Bennett

        Fresh from a prime-time embarrassment and an 0-3 flop, most Bengals somberly strode past the media after Monday afternoon meetings. Frustrated veterans shook their heads and tight-lipped rookies avoided eye contact as they made their exits from Paul Brown Stadium.

        Halfback Brandon Bennett was in no hurry. He sat comfortably in a locker room stall, snacking on a bowl of bran flakes and ruminating about another dismal start.

        Just as he did two years ago, when the team stumbled to 0-3 under coach Bruce Coslet.

        “I think some things are different,” Bennett said. “With Coslet, the mentality of the players was "same old Bengals' when we didn't play well. People on the team aren't saying that this year. I think it's because we have a better mix of players.”

        The improvements have yet to surface for a team that's 0-3 for the 11th time since 1978. So far the Bengals have been outscored 84-16, their second-most dismal start in franchise history.

Category	Coslet '00	LeBeau '02
Points (Against-For)	74-7	84-16
First downs	38	52
Passes intercepted	6	6
Quarterbacks used	2 (Smith, Mitchell)	2 (Frerotte, Kitna)
Corey Dillon's rushing yards	82	184
Dillon's touchdowns	0	0
Opponents' 1st quarter scoring average	27	26
Bengals' 1st quarter scoring average	0	0
Neil Rackers' field goal accuracy	0-3	3-3

        The worst? Coslet's 2000 team, which was shut out twice in the first three games and was outscored 74-7. Coslet resigned after a 37-0 loss to Baltimore Sept. 24.

        Coach Dick LeBeau, who insists a resignation is not in his future, said a hard-line stance is what the team needs to eradicate the ghosts of 2000.

        “We're going to do things differently on the field,” LeBeau said. “There are similarities in that we were 0-3 in both situations and hadn't scored very many points. I think our team will stay together, and I think they will answer. I think we will turn this around.”

        It would be hard to play worse than they did in 2000, although this year's team holds statistical advantages only by inches.

        Coslet's offense controlled the clock an average of 25:01 in the first three games. LeBeau's offense has had possession for 25:35.

        Coslet's defense gave up 986 yards of total offense. LeBeau's defense has surrendered 972 yards.

        Coslet's team had 21 penalties for 162 yards. LeBeau's team has been charged with 20 penalties for 159 yards.

        LeBeau's decision to start Akili Smith at quarterback is a throwback to 2000. Smith started in Coslet's three debacles, going 34-of-85 passing for 441 yards, for one touchdown and four interceptions. Smith suffered a concussion in the second quarter of the third game, and quarterback Scott Mitchell took over in the loss.

        The team's plagued passing game is only one facet of the Bengals' troubles. Besides an ineffective offense and a weary defense, the team has been bogged down by lack of individual productivity.

        Critics have said LeBeau, 65, hasn't been hard enough on the team from training camp onward. Bennett said the coach has been plenty tough behind closed doors.

        “He yells at us sometimes, but he talks to us like men. He'll stop and ask us about our family and other things about us - he wants to get to know us. That's why it's so aggravating, because he expects more out of us,” Bennett said. “With Coslet, it wasn't like that. It was all business.”

        Many players don't want to disappoint LeBeau. But sentiments have done little to put points on the board. Fullback Lorenzo Neal said that though the team isn't lacking in talent, it has grown more timid with every loss. The players haven't done their part in executing coaches' schemes.

        “It's like being a dog, and every time you get off the step, your owner kicks you. Every time we get in a game, someone kicks us. And you know what happens? You get scared and run back on the steps,” Neal said. “We've been getting our butts kicked so much we're running for cover.”

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