Bruce Coslet was the toast of Cincinnati in 1996 when he replaced the fired Dave Shula and led the 1-6 Bengals to a 7-2 finish, earning a four-year contract extension.

        The Bengals rallied behind quarterback Boomer Esiason the next season to win six of their last eight games.

        Then came 1998 and the gloom of the team's fourth 3-13 record of the decade.

        Then came Carl Pickens' holdout and 11 losses in 15 games. Then came Pickens' public tarring of Coslet — saying Coslet had never won and that many Bengals players didn't support him — when the team announced Coslet would be back in 2000.

        As the new season opens today in Paul Brown Stadium, Coslet hopes the darkest hour was indeed before dawn.

        Question: You said a couple of months ago this is the most relaxed you've been coming into a season. Do you still feel that way?

        Answer: “For the most part I'm still relaxed. Darnay (Scott) being hurt changes things, (Tom) Barndt being hurt, (Michael) Bankston being hurt. We really can't see what our defense will be able to do. I think our secondary is going to be a lot better.”

        Q: You've said you have more say in player personnel decisions than many fans think. So is this your team?

        A: “(President and general manager) Mike Brown has a big input in it. We discuss everything like who we're going to pick, who we're going to release, who we're going to try to pick up from another team. I have ideas.

        “Sometimes I don't get what I think should be done. Sometimes he acquiesces to my thinking. It's a give-and-take thing. The perception out there is that Mike Brown does everything.”

        Q: So how much are the 2000 Bengals a Bruce Coslet team?

        A: “I've never thought that. I'm just a part of it. No more, no less than anyone else involved. There are too many factors to think of it in narrow avenues.

        “We're trying to get better players. Some of the guys we think are going to be real good are starting to come into their own. I've been talking about the third-year guys. We've lived through their growing pains, but now it has to come together.

        “It depends how quickly (Corey) Dillon can get back into the system; how Akili does; whoever's the other wide receiver and how he steps up. There are too many variables. No, this is not my team. It's not molded in my ideas. It's a compilation.”

        Q: How much pressure is on this organization?

        A: “It has started already. We've lost two preseason games. But, I mean, until we took our top players out, we were competitive. And that's all I've said all along. I've never said how many games we're going to win, whether we're going to contend for the division title. Those are goals.

        “But I've said all along is we're going to be competitive and there are going to be some ups and downs. And whether the fans out there, at this point, where we are, can live through that, I don't know.”

        Q: How much of that pressure falls on you?

        A: “No more than anybody else. You've got to define pressure. Am I worried about losing my job? Is that what this is about? Is that what we're talking about? That's never entered my mind. I'm doing the best I can. If we pull things together, and this guy comes through and this guy doesn't get hurt ... it's a whole bunch of things.”

        Q: So you're not thinking about your job?

        A: “I've been in this league for a long time now, 30 years. Not quite 30. I think if you dwell on that it hurts you, so I try not to. And if we do well, great. I'm happy for the guys and I'm happy for Mike Brown. If we don't do well, can I look myself in the mirror and say I did the best I could with what I had to work with?

        “And it's not like I'm taking off and playing golf and going to movies. We're working at it. And the players are working at. And that's most the most important thing. We're working to get better. We're not really worried about Tennessee and Baltimore. We're not worried about them. We're worried about us.

        “We want to be a little bit better defense, OK, statistically. Not make the screw-ups on special teams that we did. Have a better kicking game. Get Akili up and running.

        “And if we make these slight improvements in a myriad of areas, then we have a chance to win the game. You don't look at the final result. You can't. It's a process. You have to do step by step and you have to get all the components right, then the end result will be there — automatically. Now the end result may be good or it may be bad, depending on the process.”

        Q: Is this the best team you've had here?

        A: “I don't know. How should I know that? I'm hoping for that. Everybody's hopeful. Like I said, there are so many variables.

        “What if Akili blows up and can't complete a pass? (Cleveland's Tim) Couch is going through that right now. But I'll take him any day. He's a good one. There's more to it than everybody thinks. But everybody's impatient. And I understand that.”

Stadium's real opener is today Dillon knows he's target SULLIVAN: Bengals need to pressure QB Who has the edge? Browns-Bengals by the numbers Players to watch Coslet Q&A: Not worried about job Early bengals items big sellers

Reds 6, Pirates 4
Box, runs
Williamson comes through OK
Native Reds stay true to Bengals
Hyzdu had long wait for 1st hit
UC 12, Syracuse 10
Syracuse laments missed opportunities
Ohio State 27, Arizona 17
Miami 34, Eastern Michigan 17
Kentucky 27, South Florida 9
North Carolina A&T claims Riverfront Classic
Otterbein 35, Mount St. Joseph 0
Thomas More 41, Urbana 19
Swimmers live Olympic romance
Golden road may be hard for area Olympians
Complete prep football coverage at Enquirer.com/prepfootball
High School Highlights
Cincinnati high school results
N.Ky. prep results
High School Insider
Auto Racing Insider
Camara won't transfer from UK
NL INSIDER

• Return to Bengals front page...