1973 Cincinnati Bengals season

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1973 Cincinnati Bengals season

Head coach	Paul Brown
Home field	Riverfront Stadium
Results
Record	10–4
Division place	1st AFC Central
Playoff finish	Lost Divisional Playoffs (at Dolphins) 16–34
← 1972 Bengals seasons 1974 →

The 1973 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 4th season in the National Football League, and the 6th overall.

The Bengals split their first eight games, then swept their last six to win their second AFC Central Division title. Cincinnati qualified for the postseason but lost in the Divisional Playoffs to the Super Bowl winner, the Miami Dolphins 34–16.

RB Essex Johnson became the first Bengal to achieve 100+ yards rushing and receiving in the same game. He rushed for 121 yards on 21 carries and got 116 yards on two receptions on Sep 30, 1973 at San Diego. Perhaps one of the best marks of the season for the Bengals was giving the eventual NFC Champion Minnesota Vikings their most lopsided loss of the season 27–0.

Offseason

NFL Draft

Main article: 1973 NFL Draft

Round	Pick	Player	Position	College
1973 Cincinnati Bengals draft
1	15	Isaac Curtis *	Wide receiver	San Diego State
2	43	Al Chandler	Tight end	Oklahoma
3	68	Tim George	Wide receiver	Carson–Newman
5	121	Bob McCall	Running back	Arizona
6	146	Bob Jones	Defensive back	Virginia Union
7	171	Bob Maddox	Defensive end	Frostburg State
8	199	Joe Wilson	Running back	Holy Cross
9	224	John Dampeer	Guard	Notre Dame
10	249	Lenvil Elliott	Running back	Northeast Missouri State
11	277	William Montgomery	Defensive back	Morehouse
12	302	Boobie Clark	Running back	Bethune–Cookman
13	327	Brooks West	Defensive tackle	UTEP
14	355	Hurles Scales	Defensive back	North Texas State
15	380	Ted McNulty	Quarterback	Indiana
16	405	Harry Unger	Running back	Auburn
17	433	Wayne Estabrook	Quarterback	Whittier
Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career

Personnel

Staff

**1973 Cincinnati Bengals staff**
	Front office President – John Sawyer Director of Player Personnel – Pete Brown Head coaches Head Coach/General Manager – Paul Brown Offensive coaches Quarterbacks/Receivers – Bill Walsh Offensive Backfield – Jack Donaldson Offensive Line – Bill Johnson			Defensive coaches Defensive Coordinator/Defensive Backfield – Chuck Weber Defensive Line – Chuck Studley Linebackers – Vince Costello

Roster

**1973 Cincinnati Bengals roster**
Quarterbacks (QB) 14 Ken Anderson 12 Greg Cook 17 Mike Ernst Running backs (RB) 35 Boobie Clark 44 Doug Dressler 36 Lenvil Elliott 19 Essex Johnson 26 Reece Morrison 46 Joe Wilson Wide receivers (WR) 85 Isaac Curtis 89 Tim George 18 Charlie Joiner 25 Chip Myers Tight ends (TE) 81 Al Chandler 88 Bruce Coslet 84 Bob Trumpy		Offensive linemen (OL) 50 Tom DeLeone G 72 Howard Fest G 76 Vernon Holland T 54 Bob Johnson C 73 Pat Matson G 71 Rufus Mayes T 64 John Shinners G 75 Stan Walters T Defensive linemen (DL) 82 Royce Berry DE 70 Ron Carpenter DT 79 Steve Chomyszak DT 80 Ken Johnson DE 74 Mike Reid DT 78 Lee Thomas DE 83 Sherman White DE		Linebackers (LB) 52 Doug Adams 51 Ken Avery 58 Al Beauchamp 66 Bill Bergey 56 Tim Kearney 55 Jim LeClair 60 Ron Pritchard Defensive backs (DB) 29 Lyle Blackwood S 37 Tommy Casanova S 34 Neal Craig S 23 Bernard Jackson S 32 Bob Jones S 20 Lemar Parrish CB 13 Ken Riley CB Special teams 15 Dave Lewis P 16 Horst Muhlmann K		Reserve 11 Virgil Carter QB (IR) Rookies in italics

Regular season

Schedule

Week	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
1	September 16	at Denver Broncos	L 10–28	0–1	Mile High Stadium	49,059
2	September 23	Houston Oilers	W 24–10	1–1	Riverfront Stadium	51,823
3	September 30	at San Diego Chargers	W 20–13	2–1	San Diego Stadium	46,733
4	October 7	at Cleveland Browns	L 10–17	2–2	Cleveland Municipal Stadium	70,805
5	October 14	Pittsburgh Steelers	W 19–7	3–2	Riverfront Stadium	55,819
6	October 21	Kansas City Chiefs	W 14–6	4–2	Riverfront Stadium	56,397
7	October 28	at Pittsburgh Steelers	L 13–20	4–3	Three Rivers Stadium	45,761
8	November 4	at Dallas Cowboys	L 10–38	4–4	Texas Stadium	54,944
9	November 11	at Buffalo Bills	W 16–13	5–4	Rich Stadium	76,927
10	November 18	New York Jets	W 20–14	6–4	Riverfront Stadium	55,745
11	November 25	St. Louis Cardinals	W 42–24	7–4	Riverfront Stadium	50,918
12	December 2	Minnesota Vikings	W 27–0	8–4	Riverfront Stadium	57,859
13	December 9	Cleveland Browns	W 34–17	9–4	Riverfront Stadium	58,266
14	December 16	at Houston Oilers	W 27–24	10–4	Astrodome	21,955
Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text.

Game summaries

Week 2

	1	2	3	4	Total
Oilers	7	0	3	0	10
• Bengals	0	10	0	14	24

Date: September 23
Location: Riverfront Stadium, Cincinnati
Game attendance: 51,823
Game weather: 71 °F (22 °C); wind 9 mph (14 km/h)

Scoring summary

Q1	HOU	Gresham 103 yard kickoff return (Butler kick)	HOU 7–0

Q2	CIN	Johnson 11 yard run (Muhlmann kick)	Tie 7–7

Q2	CIN	Muhlmann 27 yard field goal	CIN 10–7

Q3	HOU	Butler 38 yard field goal	Tie 10–10

Q4	CIN	Clark 3 yard run (Muhlmann kick)	CIN 17–10

Q4	CIN	Trumpy 35 yard pass from Anderson (Muhlmann kick)	CIN 24–10

Week 5 vs Steelers

See also: 1973 Pittsburgh Steelers season and Bengals–Steelers rivalry Pittsburgh Steelers (4–0) at Cincinnati Bengals (2–2)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Steelers	0	0	0	7	7
Bengals	6	3	7	3	19

at Riverfront Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio

Date: October 14
Game time: 1:00 p.m.
Game weather: 59 °F (15 °C) • Wind 8 mph (13 km/h)
Game attendance: 55,819
Referee: Dick Jorgensen
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

Steelers

Terry Bradshaw
9/14, 106 Yds, INT
Preston Pearson
12 Rush, 39 Yds, TD
Ron Shanklin
1 Rec, 67 Yds

Bengals

Ken Anderson
9/21, 78 Yds
Boobie Clark
28 Rush, 112 Yds, TD
Isaac Curtis
3 Rec, 46 Yds

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	PIT	CIN
1					Bengals	20-yard field goal by Muhlmann	0	3
1					Bengals	19-yard field goal by Muhlmann	0	6
2					Bengals	20-yard field goal by Muhlmann	0	9
3					Bengals	Clark 3-yard touchdown run, Muhlmann kick good	0	16
4					Bengals	41-yard field goal by Muhlmann	0	19
4					Steelers	Pearson 1-yard touchdown run, Gerela kick good	7	19
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							7	19

Week 7 at Steelers

Cincinnati Bengals (4–2) at Pittsburgh Steelers (5–1)

Quarter	1	2	3	4	Total
Bengals	0	6	0	7	13
Steelers	3	7	10	0	20

at Three Rivers Stadium • Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania

Date: October 28
Game time: 4:00 p.m. EDT
Game weather: 52 °F (11 °C) • Wind 12 miles per hour (19 km/h; 10 kn)
Game attendance: 45,761
Referee: Norm Schachter
Pro-Football-Reference.com

Game information

Bengals

Ken Anderson
20/38, 230 Yds, TD, 3 INT
Boobie Clark
15 Rush, 60 Yds
10 Rec, 68 Yds

Steelers

Terry Hanratty
4/7, 127 Yds, TD, INT
Franco Harris
21 Rush, 43 Yds
Ron Shanklin
3 Rec, 104 Yds, TD

Scoring summary

Quarter	Time	Drive			Team	Scoring information	Score
Quarter	Time	Plays	Yards	TOP	Team	Scoring information	CIN	PIT
1					Steelers	15-yard field goal by Roy Gerela	0	3
2					Bengals	17-yard field goal by Horst Muhlmann	3	3
2					Bengals	41-yard field goal by Horst Muhlmann	6	3
2					Steelers	Ron Shanklin 51-yard touchdown reception from Terry Hanratty, Roy Gerela kick good	6	10
3					Steelers	18-yard field goal by Roy Gerela	6	13
3					Steelers	John Fuqua 1-yard touchdown run, Roy Gerela kick good	6	20
4					Bengals	Essex Johnson 16-yard touchdown reception from Ken Anderson, Horst Muhlmann kick good	13	20
"TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football.							13	20

Standings

AFC Central
view talk edit	W	L	T	PCT	DIV	CONF	PF	PA	STK
Cincinnati Bengals	10	4	0	.714	4–2	8–3	286	231	W6
Pittsburgh Steelers	10	4	0	.714	4–2	7–4	347	210	W2
Cleveland Browns	7	5	2	.571	4–2	6–3–2	234	255	L2
Houston Oilers	1	13	0	.071	0–6	1–10	199	447	L6

Team stats

1973 Cincinnati Bengals Team Stats
TEAM STATS	Bengals	Opponents
TOTAL FIRST DOWNS	252	219
Rushing	124	109
Passing	108	97
Penalty	20	13
TOTAL NET YARDS	4512	3705
Avg Per Game	322.3	264.6
Total Plays	871	840
Avg. Per Play	5.2	4.4
NET YARDS RUSHING	2236	1807
Avg. Per Game	159.7	129.1
Total Rushes	515	459
NET YARDS PASSING	2276	1898
Avg. Per Game	162.6	135.6
Sacked Yards Lost	24–163	43–342
Gross Yards	2439	2240
Att. Completions	332–180	338–182
Completion Pct.	54.2	53.8
Intercepted	12	18
PUNTS-AVERAGE	68–41	77–41.7
PENALTIES-YARDS	83–799	78–710
FUMBLES-BALL LOST	25–14	31–16
TOUCHDOWNS	32	27
Rushing	13	15
Passing	18	9
Returns	1	3

Score by Periods	1	2	3	4	Tot
Bengals	39	100	79	68	286
Opponents	50	61	58	62	231

Team leaders

Passing: Ken Anderson (329 Att, 179 Comp, 2428 Yds, 54.4 Pct, 18 TD, 12 Int, 81.2 Rating)
Rushing: Essex Johnson (195 Att, 997 Yds, 5.1 Avg, 46 Long, 4 TD)
Receiving: Isaac Curtis (45 Rec, 843 Yds, 18.7 Avg, 77 Long, 9 TD)
Scoring: Horst Muhlmann, 94 points (21 FG; 31 PAT)

Postseason

Round	Date	Opponent	Result	Record	Venue	Attendance
Divisional	December 23	at Miami Dolphins	L 16–34	0–1	Miami Orange Bowl	74,651

Awards and records

RB Boobie Clark (AFC Rookie of the Year)
WR Isaac Curtis, Led AFC Rookies, Receiving Yards, 843 yards

Pro Bowl Selections

References

"1973 Cincinnati Bengals draftees". Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved October 11, 2014.
Pro-Football-Reference.com. Retrieved 2014-Jun-22.
NFL 2001 Record and Fact Book, Workman Publishing Co, New York, ISBN 0-7611-2480-2, p. 452

v t e Cincinnati Bengals
Founded in 1968 Based and headquartered in Cincinnati, Ohio
Franchise	Franchise History Seasons Coaches All-time roster First-round draft picks Draft history Starting quarterbacks
Stadiums	Nippert Stadium Riverfront Stadium Paycor Stadium
Culture	Paul Brown Sam Wyche Ickey Shuffle "Welcome to the Jungle" Ben–Gals Laura Vikmanis Bengalized
Lore	Freezer Bowl
Rivalries	Baltimore Ravens Cleveland Browns Kansas City Chiefs Pittsburgh Steelers
Division championships (11)	1970 1973 1981 1988 1990 2005 2009 2013 2015 2021 2022
Conference championships (3)	1981 1988 2021
Retired numbers	54
Ring of Honor	Anthony Muñoz Paul Brown Ken Anderson Ken Riley Willie Anderson Isaac Curtis Boomer Esiason Chad Johnson
Media	Broadcasters Radio network Flagships: WCKY WEBN WLW Television: WKRC-TV
Current league affiliations	League: National Football League (1970–present) Conference: American Football Conference Division: North Division
Former league affiliation	League: American Football League (1968–1969)

v t e Cincinnati Bengals seasons
1968 1969 1970 1971 1972 1973 1974 1975 1976 1977 1978 1979 1980 1981 1982 1983 1984 1985 1986 1987 1988 1989 1990 1991 1992 1993 1994 1995 1996 1997 1998 1999 2000 2001 2002 2003 2004 2005 2006 2007 2008 2009 2010 2011 2012 2013 2014 2015 2016 2017 2018 2019 2020 2021 2022 2023 2024 2025
Italics indicates Super Bowl appearance

1973 NFL season

East	Central	West	East	Central	West
Baltimore	Cincinnati	Denver	Dallas	Chicago	Atlanta
Buffalo	Cleveland	Kansas City	NY Giants	Detroit	Los Angeles
Miami	Houston	Oakland	Philadelphia	Green Bay	New Orleans
New England	Pittsburgh	San Diego	St. Louis	Minnesota	San Francisco
NY Jets			Washington

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