1972 Cincinnati Bengals season
Encyclopedia
The 1972
Cincinnati Bengals
season was the team's fifth year in professional football and its 3rd with the National Football League
. Starting off the 1972 season winning 5 of 7 games, this looked to be the Bengals break out year, that was until the away game at Pittsburgh, the Bengals suffered a devastating 40–17 loss, then coupled with 2 fairly close loses at home against Oakland (20–14) and Baltimore 20–19, the 1971 season was in a tail spin. Paul Brown gave his rookie quarterback Ken Anderson the starting job, winning 3 out of the last 4 games giving the Bengals an over all 8–6 season, but not good enough for the playoffs once again.
Three times in their history, the Bengals have won without scoring a touchdown, including Sept. 24, 1972 when K Horst Muhlmann's five field goals (41, 32, 20, 32, 34) fueled a 15–10 victory over Pittsburgh at Riverfront Stadium (later renamed Cinergy Field).
Twice in Bengals history, two Cincinnati players have broken the 100-yard rushing mark in the same game, with the first coming Oct. 29, 1972 when RB Doug Dressler gained 110 yards and HB Essex Johnson ran for 103 yards in a 30–7 win vs. Houston.
The latest-drafted player ever to make the Bengals roster for a regular-season game was K-P Dave Green of Ohio University. Green was the 418th selection in the 1972 draft, taken in the 17th round. He didn't make the roster in 1972, and had a brief stint (no games played) with Houston in '73 before being re-acquired by Cincinnati.
1972 NFL season
The 1972 NFL season was the 53rd regular season of the National Football League. The Miami Dolphins became the first NFL team to finish a championship season undefeated and untied when they beat the Washington Redskins in Super Bowl VII.-Major rule changes:...
Cincinnati Bengals
Cincinnati Bengals
The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. They are members of the AFC's North Division in the National Football League . The Bengals began play in 1968 as an expansion team in the American Football League , and joined the NFL in 1970 in the AFL-NFL...
season was the team's fifth year in professional football and its 3rd with the National Football League
National Football League
The National Football League is the highest level of professional American football in the United States, and is considered the top professional American football league in the world. It was formed by eleven teams in 1920 as the American Professional Football Association, with the league changing...
. Starting off the 1972 season winning 5 of 7 games, this looked to be the Bengals break out year, that was until the away game at Pittsburgh, the Bengals suffered a devastating 40–17 loss, then coupled with 2 fairly close loses at home against Oakland (20–14) and Baltimore 20–19, the 1971 season was in a tail spin. Paul Brown gave his rookie quarterback Ken Anderson the starting job, winning 3 out of the last 4 games giving the Bengals an over all 8–6 season, but not good enough for the playoffs once again.
Three times in their history, the Bengals have won without scoring a touchdown, including Sept. 24, 1972 when K Horst Muhlmann's five field goals (41, 32, 20, 32, 34) fueled a 15–10 victory over Pittsburgh at Riverfront Stadium (later renamed Cinergy Field).
Twice in Bengals history, two Cincinnati players have broken the 100-yard rushing mark in the same game, with the first coming Oct. 29, 1972 when RB Doug Dressler gained 110 yards and HB Essex Johnson ran for 103 yards in a 30–7 win vs. Houston.
The latest-drafted player ever to make the Bengals roster for a regular-season game was K-P Dave Green of Ohio University. Green was the 418th selection in the 1972 draft, taken in the 17th round. He didn't make the roster in 1972, and had a brief stint (no games played) with Houston in '73 before being re-acquired by Cincinnati.
NFL Draft
| 1972 Cincinnati Bengals Draft | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Round | Pick # | Overall | Name | Position | College |
| 1 | 2 | 2 | Sherman White Sherman White (American football) Sherman Eugene White is a retired American football defensive lineman who played in the National Football League between 1972 and 1983. He was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 1972 NFL Draft out of the University of California, Berkeley.... |
Defensive End | California University of California, Berkeley The University of California, Berkeley , is a teaching and research university established in 1868 and located in Berkeley, California, USA... |
| 2 | 3 | 29 | Tommy Casanova Tommy Casanova Thomas Henry "Tommy" Casanova, III is an ophthalmologist in Crowley, Louisiana, and a former American football player and politician. He played football for the LSU Tigers and the Cincinnati Bengals... |
Defensive Back | LSU Louisiana State University Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, most often referred to as Louisiana State University, or LSU, is a public coeducational university located in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. The University was founded in 1853 in what is now known as Pineville, Louisiana, under the name... |
| 3 | 2 | 54 | Jim LeClair Jim LeClair James Michael LeClair is a former American football linebacker who played twelve seasons in the National Football League with the Cincinnati Bengals... |
Linebacker | North Dakota University of North Dakota The University of North Dakota is a public university in Grand Forks, North Dakota, USA. Established by the Dakota Territorial Assembly in 1883, six years before the establishment of the state of North Dakota, UND is the oldest and largest university in the state and enrolls over 14,000 students. ... |
| 4 | 3 | 81 | Bernard Jackson Bernard Jackson (defensive back) Bernard Frank Jackson was an American football defensive back who played for three National Football League teams. He started in Super Bowl XII as a member of the Denver Broncos. He died of liver cancer in Lompoc, California.-External links:*... |
Defensive Back | Washington State |
| 5 | 2 | 106 | Tom DeLeone Tom DeLeone Thomas Denning DeLeone is a former American football center who played thirteen seasons in the National Football League, with the Cleveland Browns and Cincinnati Bengals. He grew up in Kent, Ohio and graduated from Theodore Roosevelt High School in 1968, where he was on the football, basketball,... |
Center | Ohio State |
| 7 | 2 | 158 | Steve Conley | Running Back | Kansas |
| 8 | 3 | 185 | Dan Kratzer Dan Kratzer Dan Kratzer was the third head football coach for the Lindenwood University Lions located in St. Charles, Missouri and he held that position for six seasons, from 1995 until 2000. His overall coaching record at Lindenwood was 29 wins, 35 losses, and 0 ties... |
Wide Receiver | Missouri Valley Missouri Valley College Missouri Valley College is a private, four-year liberal arts college affiliated with the Presbyterian Church . The campus is in Marshall, Missouri.The college was founded in 1889 and supports 27 academic majors and an enrollment close to 1,800 students... |
| 9 | 2 | 210 | Stan Walters Stan Walters Stanley Peter Walters is a former professional American football player.He was drafted in the 1972 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals of the National Football League and entered their starting line-up midway through his rookie season. In 1975, he was traded to the Philadelphia Eagles, where he... |
Offensive Tackle | Syracuse Syracuse University Syracuse University is a private research university located in Syracuse, New York, United States. Its roots can be traced back to Genesee Wesleyan Seminary, founded by the Methodist Episcopal Church in 1832, which also later founded Genesee College... |
| 10 | 3 | 237 | Brian Foster | Defensive Back | Colorado University of Colorado at Boulder The University of Colorado Boulder is a public research university located in Boulder, Colorado... |
| 11 | 1 | 261 | Kent Pederson | Tight End | California-Santa Barbara University of California, Santa Barbara The University of California, Santa Barbara, commonly known as UCSB or UC Santa Barbara, is a public research university and one of the 10 general campuses of the University of California system. The main campus is located on a site in Goleta, California, from Santa Barbara and northwest of Los... |
| 12 | 3 | 289 | Frederick Wegis | Defensive Back | Cal Poly-SLO California Polytechnic State University California Polytechnic State University, or Cal Poly, is a public university located in San Luis Obispo, California, United States. The university is one of two polytechnic campuses in the 23-member California State University system.... |
| 13 | 2 | 314 | James Hamilton | Quarterback | Arizona State |
| 14 | 3 | 341 | Steve Porter | Wide Receiver | Indiana |
| 15 | 2 | 366 | Hosea Minnieweather | Defensive Tackle | Jackson State |
| 16 | 3 | 393 | John Wiegman | Wide Receiver | Cal Poly-Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona California State Polytechnic University, Pomona, or Cal Poly Pomona, is a public university located in Pomona, California, United States... |
| 17 | 2 | 418 | David Green Dave Green (American football) Dave Green is a former punter and placekicker in the National Football League. He played for the Houston Oilers, the Cincinnati Bengals, and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers... |
Punter | Ohio Ohio University Ohio University is a public university located in the Midwestern United States in Athens, Ohio, situated on an campus... |
Schedule
| 1972 Cincinnati Bengals schedule | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Date | Opponent # | Result | Score | Attendance | Stadium |
| September 17 | at New England Patriots New England Patriots The New England Patriots, commonly called the "Pats", are a professional football team based in the Greater Boston area, playing their home games in the town of Foxborough, Massachusetts at Gillette Stadium. The team is part of the East Division of the American Football Conference in the National... |
W | 31–7 | |
Schaefer Stadium Foxboro Stadium Foxboro Stadium was an outdoor stadium, located in Foxborough, Massachusetts... |
| September 24 | Pittsburgh Steelers Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC... |
W | 15–10 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| October 1 | at Cleveland Browns Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L | 6–27 | |
Cleveland Stadium Cleveland Stadium Cleveland Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium, located in Cleveland, Ohio. In its final years, the stadium seated 74,438, for baseball and 81,000, for football. It was one of the early multi-purpose stadiums, built to accommodate both baseball and football... |
| October 8 | Denver Broncos Denver Broncos The Denver Broncos are a professional American football team based in Denver, Colorado. They are currently members of the West Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W | 21–10 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| October 15 | at Kansas City Chiefs Kansas City Chiefs The Kansas City Chiefs are a professional American football team based in Kansas City, Missouri. They are a member of the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Originally named the Dallas Texans, the club was founded by Lamar Hunt in 1960 as a... |
W | 23–16 | |
Arrowhead Stadium Arrowhead Stadium Arrowhead Stadium is a stadium located in Kansas City, Missouri and home to the NFL's Kansas City Chiefs.... |
| October 22 | at Los Angeles Rams St. Louis Rams The St. Louis Rams are a professional American football team based in St. Louis, Missouri. They are currently members of the West Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League . The Rams have won three NFL Championships .The Rams began playing in 1936 in Cleveland,... |
L | 12–15 | |
Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum The Los Angeles Memorial Coliseum is a large outdoor sports stadium in the University Park neighborhood of Los Angeles, California, at Exposition Park, that is home to the Pacific-12 Conference's University of Southern California Trojans football team... |
| October 29 | Houston Oilers Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter... |
W | 30–7 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| November 5 | at Pittsburgh Steelers Pittsburgh Steelers The Pittsburgh Steelers are a professional football team based in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. The team currently belongs to the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Founded in , the Steelers are the oldest franchise in the AFC... |
L | 17–40 | |
Three Rivers Stadium Three Rivers Stadium Three Rivers Stadium was a multi-purpose stadium located in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania from 1970 to 2000. It was home to the Pittsburgh Pirates and the Pittsburgh Steelers, the city's Major League Baseball franchise and National Football League franchise respectively.Built as a replacement to... |
| November 12 | Oakland Raiders Oakland Raiders The Oakland Raiders are a professional American football team based in Oakland, California. They currently play in the Western Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L | 14–20 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| November 19 | Baltimore Colts | L | 19–20 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| November 26 | at Chicago Bears Chicago Bears The Chicago Bears are a professional American football team based in Chicago, Illinois. They are members of the North Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W | 13–3 | |
Soldier Field Soldier Field Soldier Field is located on Lake Shore Drive in Chicago, Illinois, United States, in the Near South Side. It is home to the NFL's Chicago Bears... |
| December 3 | New York Giants New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in East Rutherford, New Jersey, representing the New York City metropolitan area. The Giants are currently members of the Eastern Division of the National Football Conference in the National Football League... |
W | 13–10 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| December 9 | Cleveland Browns Cleveland Browns The Cleveland Browns are a professional football team based in Cleveland, Ohio. They are currently members of the North Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League... |
L | 24–27 | |
Riverfront Stadium |
| December 17 | at Houston Oilers Tennessee Titans The Tennessee Titans are a professional American football team based in Nashville, Tennessee, United States. They are members of the South Division of the American Football Conference in the National Football League . Previously known as the Houston Oilers, the team began play in 1960 as a charter... |
W | 61–17 | |
Astrodome Reliant Astrodome Reliant Astrodome, also known as the Houston Astrodome or simply the Astrodome, is the world's first multi-purpose, domed sports stadium, located in Houston, Texas, USA. The stadium is part of the Reliant Park complex... |
Standings
| AFC Central | |||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| W | L | T | PCT | PF | PA | STK | |
| Pittsburgh Steelers 1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season The 1972 Pittsburgh Steelers season was the 40th in franchise history. The team went 11–3 that season, and won their first-ever AFC Central Division title.-Depth chart:-Schedule:- Week 1 : Oakland Raiders :... |
11 | 3 | 0 | .786 | 343 | 175 | W-4 |
| Cleveland Browns 1972 Cleveland Browns season The 1972 Cleveland Browns season was the team's 23rd season with the National Football League.-Exhibition schedule:-Schedule:-Playoffs:-Standings:... |
10 | 4 | 0 | .714 | 268 | 249 | W-2 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 8 | 6 | 0 | .571 | 299 | 229 | W-1 |
| Houston Oilers 1972 Houston Oilers season The 1972 Houston Oilers season was the 13th season the team was with the league. The team failed to improve on their previous season's output of 4–9–1, winning only one game. They missed the playoffs for the third consecutive season.... |
1 | 13 | 0 | .071 | 164 | 380 | L-11 |
Team stats
| 1972 Cincinnati Bengals Team Stats | ||
|---|---|---|
| TEAM STATS | Bengals | Opponents |
| TOTAL FIRST DOWNS | 255 | 207 |
| Rushing | 112 | 98 |
| Passing | 122 | 92 |
| Penalty | 21 | 17 |
| TOTAL NET YARDS | 4317 | 3552 |
| Avg Per Game | 308.4 | 253.7 |
| Total Plays | 899 | 794 |
| Avg. Per Play | 4.8 | 4.5 |
| NET YARDS RUSHING | 1996 | 1815 |
| Avg. Per Game | 142.6 | 129.6 |
| Total Rushes | 491 | 406 |
| NET YARDS PASSING | 2321 | 1737 |
| Avg. Per Game | 165.8 | 124.1 |
| Sacked Yards Lost | 24–192 | 38–296 |
| Gross Yards | 2513 | 2033 |
| Att. Completions | 384–219 | 350–167 |
| Completion Pct. | 57.0 | 47.7 |
| Intercepted | 11 | 20 |
| PUNTS-AVERAGE | 66–42.1 | 84.42.4 |
| PENALTIES-YARDS | 76–738 | 69–581 |
| FUMBLES-BALL LOST | 28–18 | 30–9 |
| TOUCHDOWNS | 31 | 24 |
| Rushing | 16 | 11 |
| Passing | 10 | 11 |
| Returns | 5 | 2 |
| Score by Periods | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Tot |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bengals | 36 | 62 | 99 | 102 | 299 |
| Opponents | 37 | 79 | 42 | 71 | 229 |
Team leaders
- Passing: Ken Anderson (301 Att, 171 Comp, 1918 Yds, 56.8 Pct, 7 TD, 7 Int, 74.0 Rating)
- Rushing: Essex JohnsonEssex JohnsonEssex L. Johnson is a former professional American football running back for eight seasons for the Cincinnati Bengals and one season for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers....
(212 Att, 825 Yds, 3.9 Avg, 19 Long, 4 TD) - Receiving: Chip MyersChip MyersPhillip Leon "Chip" Myers was a wide receiver who played nine Pro Football seasons, for the NFL San Francisco 49ers in 1967, the AFL's Cincinnati Bengals in 1969, and the NFL's AFC Bengals from 1970 through 1976...
(57 Rec, 792 Yds, 13.9 Avg, 42 Long, 3 TD) - Scoring: Horst MuhlmannHorst MuhlmannHorst Herbert Erich Muhlmann was a former professional American football player. He was a placekicker in the American Football League and the National Football League for nine seasons...
, 111 points (27 FG; 30 PAT)
Roster
Quarterbacks
Running Backs
Wide Receivers
Tight Ends
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Offensive Linemen
Defensive Linemen
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Linebackers
Ken Avery Kenneth William Avery is a former college and professional American football player. He played college football at University of Southern Mississippi, where he was a linebacker... Bill Peterson William E. "Bill" Peterson was an American football coach. His career included head coaching stops at Florida State, Rice University and with the Houston Oilers. Considered one of the unique characters in college sports, Peterson is credited with bringing the pro passing game to college football... Jim LeClair James Michael LeClair is a former American football linebacker who played twelve seasons in the National Football League with the Cincinnati Bengals... Tim Kearney Timothy Edward Kearney is a former American football linebacker who played ten seasons in the National Football League, mainly for the St. Louis Cardinals.... Al Beauchamp Alfred Beauchamp is a former American football linebacker. he played college football at Southern University, and played professionally in the American Football League in 1968 and 1969 for the Cincinnati Bengals, and for the National Football League's Bengals from 1970 through 1975 and the... Ron Pritchard Ronald David Pritchard is a former American football linebacker who played nine seasons with the Houston Oilers and the Cincinnati Bengals, first in the American Football League, then in the National Football League.... Bill Bergey William Earl Bergey is a former American collegiate and Professional Football player. He played collegiately for Arkansas State University and for the American Football League's Cincinnati Bengals and the NFL Philadelphia Eagles.... Defensive Backs
Special Teams
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