CINCINNATI — When the Bengals walk on the field Sunday, it will be the first time in more than three decades Cincinnati has been in the Super Bowl.
Many of the team's younger fans have no memory of the Bengals in the big game — let alone winning a playoff game. Those who do, though, say things are different this time around.
Former Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson noted the lack of distractions when he reached the Super Bowl in 1982. In a tweet, Anderson said the team had one media day and was able to hang out at a pizza place near their hotel.
So different from when I was in the SB
— Ken Anderson (@KenAndersonNFL) February 11, 2022
No cell phones
No social media
Had our media day Tuesday and nothing else
Found a pizza place about a mile from hotel for a couple of beers at night and nobody bothered us
That’s about as good as we could do in Pontiac, Michigan
Now, players and coaches speak to the media just about every day in the week leading up to the Super Bowl. Videos also show hordes of people waiting for the team as they head to practice.
Tony LaPierre said the Bengals' 1989 game is etched in his memory.
"We had Joe Montana's famous 23-second drive that lost it for them, but it was still a great game,” Tony LaPierre said.
In fact, the Bengals' last Super Bowl appearance was the last Super Bowl LaPierre saw before serving in the armed forces during the Gulf War.
"I did two tours over there, so that was my last freedom before I went to the service,” LaPierre said. “That was my last Super Bowl I saw for a while."
The 1990 season was the last time the Bengals won a playoff game. It also happens to be the last time the Cincinnati Reds won the World Series. Though so much is different this time around, maybe that winning history can repeat itself.
