By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

LETTERS TO MIKE BROWN

• Former Bengals: Hire GM, think championship • Louis Breeden's letter • Dave Lapham's letter • Mike Martin's letter • Bob Trumpy's letter • Solomon Wilcots' letter

Bengals president Mike Brown needs to talk about winning championships, not just about getting better, says former Bengals tight end Bob Trumpy.

Whatever formula Mr. Brown is using, it isn't working, says former Bengal and CBS Sports analyst Solomon Wilcots.

Fire the whole coaching staff, says former Cincinnati cornerback Louis Breeden.

If Brown hasn't heard enough from disgruntled fans about his team's perennially poor performance, members of the Bengals "family" are willing to chime in publicly.

Five former Bengals players, at the Enquirer's request, wrote open letters of advice to Brown. The five are Trumpy, Wilcots, Mike Martin, Dave Lapham and Breeden.

Their overall message: Hire a general manager to instill a winning attitude in the organization.

"Players need to know that from the front office to the loading dock, the franchise is set up to win championships - not that you're trying to get better - but that you're trying to win championships. I've never heard you talk about championships," Trumpy writes.

The Bengals are 1-13 entering today's home finale against New Orleans, which is favored by 7 points. A loss would give the Bengals their first winless home season (0-8) and set a single-season franchise record for losses, 14.

The Bengals have a composite 54-136 record since Brown assumed absolute control from his late father, Paul Brown, in August 1991. The Bengals have failed to make the playoffs for 12 years in a row, a drought twice as long as any other NFL team.

"Hamilton County has given the Bengals a palatial stadium, representing, in its fullness, the financial windfall and state-of-the-art technology befitting a new millennium palace," Wilcots writes.

"In return, the mega-million dollar investment has been repaid with old-school practices and stubborn ideologies. What is clear is this formula simply isn't working."

Some former Bengals initially agreed to write open letters to Brown, then declined, citing "second thoughts." Other high-profile former players did not return repeated phone messages.

Brown declined the opportunity to respond in today's Enquirer to the letters.

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