# 1971 Cincinnati Bengals season

The 1971 Cincinnati Bengals season was the franchise's 2nd season in the National Football League, and the 4th overall. Cornerback Lemar Parrish set a team record with seven interceptions, including one for a 65-yard score, Cincinnati's first-ever interception return for a touchdown. The Bengals, coming off their first division-winning season of 1970, drafted quarterback Ken Anderson in the third round of the 1971 NFL Draft. Anderson would go on to play 16 seasons for the club and set numerous team passing records. While 1971 proved to be a disappointment, losing six games by four points or less, statistically this was the first year the Bengals led their opponents in almost every category.

## Offseason
### NFL Draft

1971 Cincinnati Bengals draft :
| Round | Pick | Player | Position | College |
| 1 | 15 | Vernon Holland | Offensive tackle | Tennessee State |
| 2 | 41 | Steve Lawson | Guard | Kansas |
| 3 | 67 | Ken Anderson * | Quarterback | Augustana |
| 4 | 93 | Fred Willis | Running back | Boston College |
| 5 | 110 | Art May | Defensive end | Tuskegee |
| 7 | 171 | Neal Craig | Defensive back | Fisk |
| 8 | 197 | Fred Herring | Defensive back | Tennessee State |
| 9 | 223 | Gary Gustafson | Linebacker | Montana State |
| 10 | 249 | Jack Stambaugh | Guard | Oregon |
| 11 | 275 | Ed Marshall | Wide receiver | Cameron |
| 12 | 301 | James Hayden | Defensive end | Memphis |
| 13 | 327 | David Knapman | Tight end | Central Washington |
| 14 | 353 | Irvin Mallory | Defensive back | Virginia Union |
| 15 | 379 | Bob Thomas | Running back | Arizona State |
| 16 | 405 | Mark Debevc | Linebacker | Ohio State |
| 17 | 432 | Sam Pearson | Defensive back | Western Kentucky |
| Made roster * Made at least one Pro Bowl during career ||||||

## Regular season
### Schedule

| Week | Date | Opponent | Result | Record | Venue | Recap |
| 1 | September 19 | Philadelphia Eagles | W 37–14 | 1–0 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 2 | September 26 | at Pittsburgh Steelers | L 10–21 | 1–1 | Three Rivers Stadium | Recap |
| 3 | October 3 | at Green Bay Packers | L 17–20 | 1–2 | Lambeau Field | Recap |
| 4 | October 10 | Miami Dolphins | L 13–23 | 1–3 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 5 | October 17 | Cleveland Browns | L 24–27 | 1–4 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 6 | October 24 | at Oakland Raiders | L 27–31 | 1–5 | Oakland Coliseum | Recap |
| 7 | October 31 | at Houston Oilers | L 6–10 | 1–6 | Astrodome | Recap |
| 8 | November 7 | Atlanta Falcons | L 6–9 | 1–7 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 9 | November 14 | at Denver Broncos | W 24–10 | 2–7 | Mile High Stadium | Recap |
| 10 | November 21 | Houston Oilers | W 28–13 | 3–7 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 11 | November 28 | San Diego Chargers | W 31–0 | 4–7 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 12 | December 5 | at Cleveland Browns | L 27–31 | 4–8 | Cleveland Stadium | Recap |
| 13 | December 12 | Pittsburgh Steelers | L 13–21 | 4–9 | Riverfront Stadium | Recap |
| 14 | December 19 | at New York Jets | L 21–35 | 4–10 | Shea Stadium | Recap |
| Note: Intra-division opponents are in bold text. |||||||

### Season summary
#### Week 1 vs Eagles

| Quarter | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Total |
| Eagles | 0 | 7 | 0 | 7 | 14 |
| Bengals | 0 | 10 | 17 | 10 | 37 |
at Riverfront Stadium • Cincinnati, Ohio
* Date: September 19
* Game time: 1:00 p.m. EDT
* Game weather: 68 °F (20 °C) • Wind 6 miles per hour (9.7 km/h; 5.2 kn)
* Pro-Football-Reference.com
Game information :
Eagles
Pete Liske 20/40, 301 Yds, 2 TD, 3 INT
Tom Woodeshick 7 Rush, 29 Yds
Ben Hawkins 7 Rec, 118 Yds, 2 TD
Bengals
Virgil Carter 22/30, 273 Yds, 3 TD
Essex Johnson 8 Rush, 113 Yds, TD
Speedy Thomas 4 Rec, 122 Yds, TD :
Scoring summary :
| Quarter | Time | Drive | Drive | Drive | Team | Scoring information | Score | Score |
| Quarter | Time | Plays | Yards | TOP | Team | Scoring information | PHI | CIN |
| 2 | | | | | Bengals | Eric Crabtree 2-yard touchdown reception from Virgil Carter, Horst Muhlmann kick good | 0 | 7 |
| 2 | | | | | Eagles | Ben Hawkins 10-yard touchdown reception from Pete Liske, Happy Feller kick good | 7 | 7 |
| 2 | | | | | Bengals | 36-yard field goal by Horst Muhlmann | 7 | 10 |
| 3 | | | | | Bengals | Speedy Thomas 90-yard touchdown reception from Virgil Carter, Horst Muhlmann kick good | 7 | 17 |
| 3 | | | | | Bengals | 35-yard field goal by Horst Muhlmann | 7 | 20 |
| 4 | | | | | Bengals | Jess Phillips 7-yard touchdown reception from Virgil Carter, Horst Muhlmann kick good | 7 | 27 |
| 4 | | | | | Eagles | Ben Hawkins 15-yard touchdown reception from Pete Liske, Happy Feller kick good | 14 | 27 |
| 4 | | | | | Bengals | Essex Johnson 68-yard touchdown run, Horst Muhlmann kick good | 14 | 34 |
| 4 | | | | | Bengals | 26-yard field goal by Horst Muhlmann | 14 | 37 |
| "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | "TOP" = time of possession. For other American football terms, see Glossary of American football. | 14 | 37 |

### Standings

AFC Central :
| viewtalkedit | W | L | T | PCT | DIV | CONF | PF | PA | STK |
| Cleveland Browns | 9 | 5 | 0 | .643 | 5–1 | 7–4 | 285 | 273 | W5 |
| Pittsburgh Steelers | 6 | 8 | 0 | .429 | 4–2 | 5–6 | 246 | 292 | L1 |
| Houston Oilers | 4 | 9 | 1 | .308 | 2–4 | 4–7 | 251 | 330 | W3 |
| Cincinnati Bengals | 4 | 10 | 0 | .286 | 1–5 | 3–8 | 284 | 265 | L3 |
    Note: Tie games were not officially counted in the standings until 1972.

### Team stats

1971 Cincinnati Bengals Team Stats :
| TEAM STATS | Bengals | Opponents |
| TOTAL FIRST DOWNS | 236 | 213 |
| Rushing | 109 | 93 |
| Passing | 115 | 102 |
| Penalty | 12 | 18 |
| TOTAL NET YARDS | 4266 | 3906 |
| Avg Per Game | 304.7 | 279.0 |
| Total Plays | 867 | 811 |
| Avg. Per Play | 4.9 | 4.8 |
| NET YARDS RUSHING | 2142 | 1778 |
| Avg. Per Game | 153.0 | 127.0 |
| Total Rushes | 462 | 446 |
| NET YARDS PASSING | 2124 | 2128 |
| Avg. Per Game | 151.7 | 152.0 |
| Sacked Yards Lost | 40–303 | 30–254 |
| Gross Yards | 2427 | 2382 |
| Att. Completions | 365–214 | 335–157 |
| Completion Pct. | 58.6 | 46.9 |
| Intercepted | 11 | 27 |
| PUNTS-AVERAGE | 73–44.7 | 73–40.9 |
| PENALTIES-YARDS | 82-921 | 72–722 |
| FUMBLES-BALL LOST | 29–12 | 21–12 |
| TOUCHDOWNS | 32 | 32 |
| Rushing | 14 | 11 |
| Passing | 15 | 19 |
| Returns | 3 | 2 |
| Score by Periods | 1 | 2 | 3 | 4 | Tot |
| Bengals | 58 | 64 | 91 | 71 | 284 |
| Opponents | 44 | 71 | 48 | 102 | 265 |

### Team leaders

* Passing: Virgil Carter (222 Att, 138 Comp, 1624 Yds, 62.2 Pct, 10 TD, 7 Int, 86.2 Rating)
* Rushing: Fred Willis (135 Att, 590 Yds, 4.4 Avg, 36 Long, 7 TD)
* Receiving: Bob Trumpy (40 Rec, 531 Yds, 13.3 Avg, 44 Long, 3 TD)
* Scoring: Horst Muhlmann, 91 points (20 FG; 31 PAT)

## Awards and records
### Pro Bowl selections

* CB Lemar Parrish