By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

The Bengals made history Sunday by becoming the franchise's first 1-13 team. Their 29-15 loss to the Jacksonville Jaguars also strengthened the Bengals' grip on the first overall pick in the 2003 NFL draft. Only the 3-11 Detroit Lions can challenge with two games remaining.

With their only victory coming over an expansion team, the 2002 Bengals could finish as just the eighth 1-15 team since the NFL schedule expanded to 16 games in 1978.

The smallest Bengals crowd in 23 Paul Brown Stadium games - announced at 42,092, but visibly smaller - saw Cincinnati again lose a lead, again (twice) fail to score a touchdown from the 1-yard line, and again give the game away with a major special-teams mistake.

This familiar script unfolded after CBS Sports reported an almost unbelievable story on its pre-game show that Bengals president Mike Brown was seeking advice from the league office and the NFL Players Association about restructuring the team's front office.

Brown denied the report, but there is no denying the malaise surrounding his team.

"This team could benefit from an attitude change," Bengals quarterback Jon Kitna said after the loss. "You have to expect to win. Right now, I don't know how many people expect to win."

And that mentality starts in the front office, he said.

"I'm saying as an organization we don't expect to win," Kitna said. "And if you don't expect to win, you're not going to win very often.

"Until you expect to win and do the things that are necessary to win - until you give your players reason for optimism - you're going to have a tough time," Kitna said.

Since starting the 2001 season at 4-3, the Bengals have gone 3-20 under coach Dick LeBeau, who offered no forecast of his or his staff's future.

"I wouldn't even want to take a guess at that," LeBeau said.

The Bengals took a 15-14 lead in the third quarter on Neil Rackers' third field goal, from 25 yards.

Then the Bengals' defense forced Jacksonville to punt from its 43-yard line. Chris Hanson's punt sailed into the end zone, but the Bengals were penalized 5 yards for having 12 men on the field.

Jaguars coach Tom Coughlin decided to go for the first down on fourth-and-1 from the 38, and Stacey Mack ran 8 yards to the 30. First down.

Four plays later, on fourth-and-1 from the 26, Mark Brunell threw his third touchdown pass of the game to Jimmy Smith, who beat Bengals cornerback Jeff Burris by two steps.

"To get off the field and to get a stupid penalty, and that's what it was, that wasn't like a penalty during the play where a guy is trying, 12 men on the field ..." Bengals linebacker Brian Simmons said.

The Bengals lost a third-quarter lead for the second time in two games. In the past seven games, the Bengals also have lost a fourth-quarter lead and two second-quarter leads.

Mental errors are a major reason for the Bengals' 1-13 record.

"They always do it for us," Kitna said. "We have no margin for error. When we commit an error that isn't forced, something bad always happens. It's like the worst thing that can happen will happen."

The special-teams penalty marked the fifth time this season that the Bengals' special teams had the incorrect number of players - 12 or 10 - on the field. In the first quarter Sunday, the Bengals had to call a timeout before a field goal because guard Mike Goff had come off the field and wasn't in position.

But blame for the loss can't be pinned on special teams alone. Unlike the previous week at Carolina, where the Bengals allowed 23 points without the defense on the field, all 29 of Jacksonville's points came against the defense.

The Bengals have now allowed a league-high 416 points and are just 45 from setting a franchise futility mark, held by the 1999 team.

The Bengals' defense - playing without its best cornerback, Artrell Hawkins, because of a thigh injury - was picked apart for three touchdown passes and 223 yards by Brunell. The Bengals have now given up 28 touchdown passes - which equals their combined numbers of sacks (19) and interceptions (nine).

The Bengals also continued their season-long problems inside the red zone.

Trailing 14-3 in the second quarter, the Bengals had third-and-goal from the 1, but Jaguars linebacker Wali Rainer tackled Corey Dillon for a 1-yard loss. Rackers' 18-yard field goal pulled the Bengals to 14-6.

In the fourth quarter, trailing 29-15, the Bengals had first-and-goal from the 1 and failed to score any points. Fullback Nicolas Luchey was called for an illegal-motion penalty, pushing the Bengals back to the 6.

They kept going backward.

Wide receiver Ron Dugans was penalized for offensive pass interference in the end zone, moving the ball to the 15. An incompletion and a 1-yard Dillon run gave the Bengals fourth down on the 14. Then Kitna threw over the middle for Dugans, who was covered by Jacksonville linebacker Danny Clark. Clark never turned back to look at the ball and appeared to be holding Dugans' jersey. No call.

"He would have rather been called for interference than let me catch a touchdown pass," Dugans said.

Said Kinta, who failed to throw a touchdown pass for the first time in seven games, "They were terrible calls."

The Bengals also failed to score at least 20 points for the first time in those seven games.

The 2002 Bengals team now is the fifth one in franchise history to lose at least 13 games - joining the 1991, '93, '94 and '98 teams, all of which finished 3-13.

The Bengals host the playoff-hungry New Orleans Saints on Sunday. It will be the Bengals' last chance to avoid the first winless home schedule in team history.

Simmons was asked if avoiding a 14- or 15-loss season is motivation for the team.

"We're 1-13," he said. "It's bad right now. It can't get any worse than now.

"If we win the last two games, that's good, but now we're at 1-13. Either way, it's going to stink."

History of Ls

The Bengals could match the worst record in NFL history at 1-15. Here are the previous

1-15 teams:

Year	Team
2001	Carolina
2000	San Diego
1996	N.Y. Jets
1991	Indianapolis
1990	New England
1989	Dallas
1980	New Orleans

Three-peat

If the Bengals win out, they'd equal the worst season in franchise history with

a 3-13 record.

Year	Record
2002	1-13
1998	3-13
1994	3-13
1993	3-13
1991	3-13

Final games

Sunday: vs. New

Orleans (9-5)

Dec. 29: at Buffalo (7-7)

So Bengals ...

The Bengals were called for too many men on the field when Jacksonville punted into the end zone with Cincinnati up 15-14. The Jaguars accepted the penalty and drove down to take a 22-15 lead.

Said Bengals coach Dick LeBeau: "That was a major error. We've got coaches counting, we've got players counting, and we still can't count to 11."

Tell us what you think

Quarterback, coach, the draft. The Bengals face a swarm of challenges to turn the team into a winner.

What do you think? Visit the Enquirer's center for Bengals action at http://bengals.enquirer.com, and take our poll. Results will appear Sunday.

Draft watch

Bengals	1-13
Lions	3-10

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