By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

A year ago, as his 12th consecutive nonwinning season as Bengals president wound down, Mike Brown would leave his Paul Brown Stadium office and drive straight home. Despite his reserved manner, Brown liked to socialize. But he wanted more to avoid the glares, Bengals jokes and insults that often waited in public.

But this year, Brown is going out more. His team is 8-7. People now ask for his autograph, wish him well and even give him small gifts. From the airport to a favorite lunch spot at the Queensgate Frisch's, Brown is again a popular public figure.

"My dad has even commented to me that, 'Gosh, it's great what a couple of wins can do for you,' " said Katie Blackburn, Brown's daughter and the Bengals' executive vice president.

The Bengals will play Cleveland today with a chance at their first winning season and playoff berth since 1990.

"It's a difference of being the bad guy in town, and now you're the good guy," Nancy Brown said of her husband.

The Bengals compiled a 55-137 record and had no playoff appearances in the previous 12 years. The public called for Brown to give up control of the organization - his family's business. On the heels of a franchise-worst 2-14 record, this potentially winning season cuts with a double-edged sword, of sorts.

On one hand, Brown deserves credit for hiring coach Marvin Lewis and giving him authority to run the football side of the organization.

On the other hand, a simple question remains: What took so long?

Brown isn't answering. Through a team spokesman, he has declined repeated interview requests. Since his hiring last January, Lewis has been the organization's "one voice."

Still, those closest to Brown - his wife, daughter, friends and another NFL owner - say he is enjoying this season, likes working with Lewis, continues to insist that a fine line separates two victories from eight, and believes a solid foundation for long-term success has been laid in Cincinnati.

Fourth time a charm

From the day he took over the Bengals in 1991 from his late father, Paul Brown, Mike Brown wanted a coach who combined a big-picture perspective with a solid understanding of football. That's Troy Blackburn's perspective.

"Mike really was hoping that Dave (Shula) was going to be a young, energetic type of guy who was going to drive the ship in a positive direction for a long time," said Brown's son-in-law and the team's director of business development.

Sam Wyche's 3-13 season in 1991 was followed by Shula's 19-52 record over the next 41/2 seasons. Bruce Coslet went 21-39. Dick LeBeau was 12-33.

Brown's inability to find the right head coach in three tries may stand as his biggest collective strike as Bengals' chief executive.

But he has apparently struck gold. Bringing in Lewis and giving him power have made Brown a candidate for NFL executive of the year.

"He's the guy who hired Marvin; that alone should be 'enough said,' " said Dan Rooney, the Steelers owner and a long-time Brown confidant.

Brown also has approved Lewis' ideas that changed some ways the Bengals do business.

Lewis wanted to fly out Friday, not Saturday, for West Coast games. Brown said OK. Lewis wanted to overhaul the team's strength and conditioning program to the tune of a $250,000 weight room makeover and new coaches. Brown said OK. Lewis wanted to cut players who weren't performing in spite of the team's financial investment in them. Brown said OK.

"I think the great thing was we went through the process and found Marvin," Katie Blackburn said. "He was a good fit for the position we were in at the time and getting us back on the right track. To my dad's credit, he has been willing to have the discussions with Marvin."

'Wants to win on Sunday'

Lewis and Brown talk at least once a day and typically two or three times. They are both intelligent men with a shared passion for football.

Their approaches to solving problems are similar. Logic rules. They like to consider as many solutions as possible before choosing the best one. Lewis is known for his detail-oriented plans and proposals that sit well with Brown's legal-trained mind.

"Marvin hasn't come in and said, 'By God, it's got to be X,' " Troy Blackburn said. "He's come in and said, 'Listen, we both want to get to the same point. Here's how I'd like to do it: We want to go from A to B to C.' He has mapped it out. When you do that with Mike, 99 times out of 100 you win the issue and it goes your way."

Lewis has found Brown open to reason.

"He has signed off, (saying), 'If you think it helps us win football games, I'm with it,' " Lewis said.

An emotional Lewis presented a game ball to Brown after the upset of previously undefeated Kansas City on Nov. 16. The Bengals reached .500 with their fifth victory.

"It was unfortunate that people were saying he did not want to win," Lewis said. "The sense I got from him, from the first time I sat and talked to him, he wants to win so very badly that he'll do anything to win.

"Money means nothing to him. Whatever value this team has, it means nothing to him. He wants to win on Sunday. This person is at this stadium on a Sunday morning at 7 o'clock."

Two weeks after beating the Chiefs, the Bengals won at Pittsburgh to improve to 7-5. "I know watching Mike Brown walk out of Heinz Field that day that he was genuinely pleased to win that game against an organization he has great respect for," said Jack Schiff Jr., a 30-year Brown friend, travel companion and president of Cincinnati Insurance Co.

Lewis impresses Brown.

"More than once, Mike has said to me, 'Marvin deserves the credit for what we've done this season,' " Schiff said.

Better feedback

Schiff and his wife went out for dinner Tuesday night with Mike and Nancy Brown. After Brown paid the check, the waitress wished the team good luck against Cleveland.

Besides his direct contact with the public, Brown's mail also has taken a decidedly more positive turn this season, Katie Blackburn said.

But Brown's greatest joy this season, say the people closest to him, is watching how the Bengals' success has brought together people from all walks of life in a common interest.

Win or lose, though, Brown doesn't watch the highlight shows on Sunday night. He'll often take home a game film and watch it after taking a jog through his neighborhood.

And while Brown doesn't show his relief or happiness on the outside, his wife and daughter feel better for him.

"He never has come home and complained," Nancy Brown said of her husband. "The hurt affected me because it was an attack on our family. I don't think he holds grudges, which is amazing."

Said Katie Blackburn: "I probably, as much as anyone, am glad to see how people have reacted and the feedback that they give him in a positive way."

E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com