By Mark Curnutte
Enquirer staff writer

Bengals defensive coordinator Leslie Frazier will resume calling the defense Monday against Denver.

Coach Marvin Lewis, a seven-year defensive coordinator, made the calls Sunday at Cleveland.

"It's no indication of anything," Lewis said Thursday night when asked if the move was a sign that Frazier's job is in jeopardy. "Sometimes you're suggesting a lot (as a head coach), and I don't think that's a fair way of doing things."

Lewis and Frazier create the defensive game plan in tandem, and Frazier normally makes the calls.

"I just wanted to settle our younger players down," Lewis said. "It was one way to get them something new."

Lewis hired Frazier as coordinator on his Bengals staff in January 2003. The Bengals had some bright spots defensively in 2003 - holding Chiefs running back Priest Holmes to 62 rushing yards - but the Bengals are last in the NFL against the run this season and 29th in points allowed.

"It's not desirable," Frazier said of his position in the Browns game.

"It's not what I came here to do, to be in that role," Frazier continued. "He just made me aware ahead of time that this was something he wanted to do. He's the head coach. I helped with whatever I could do on the sidelines - taking (players) through the calls that (Lewis) might make on the next series."

Frazier is a first-time defensive coordinator. He was a successful defensive backs coach for four seasons - his first four in the NFL - in Philadelphia.

"You have to press on," he said. "You can't lose confidence in what you know and what you do. It's important for the guys I'm working with, both the coaches and players, that they see this."

The run defense is the Bengals' biggest problem. Dating to the final four games of 2003, the Bengals have allowed 139 or more rushing yards in eight of nine games and are 2-7 in those games.

Lewis hired former Raiders defensive coordinator Chuck Bresnahan in the offseason as an assistant coach. Eight of the 11 regular defensive starters were players Lewis brought in.

The challenge will be great this weekend. The Broncos are No. 1 in the NFL in rush average at 151.7 yards a game.

"We're still working on it," Frazier said. "We've got to get it fixed. We say that every week. Hopefully this will be the week we get better at it. We've got to make small steps to get to big steps."

Some players, including safety Kim Herring, didn't know Lewis had taken over the calls. Linebackers coach Ricky Hunley signals the plays in by hand gestures to linebacker Brian Simmons, who runs the defensive huddle.

"Leslie has been his normal,quiet self all week," Herring said.

Frazier played cornerback for the 1980s Bears and suffered a serious knee injury on a special teams play in their Super Bowl victory. He said he knows how to handle adversity and benefits from having the "short memory" cornerbacks - and coordinators - need to have.

"My self-esteem is not tied to football or a title or any of those things," he said. "You've got to be able to push past some of the fluff and know who you are. I've experienced a lot more than what we went through last Sunday."

Asked if he thought his job were on the line, he said: "You've got to know, in this league, that is something that is out of your control, as well. They're going to point the finger at someone. I've got to continue to work as hard as I can to prepare our guys for every game. And those things will take care of themselves."

E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com

Return to Bengals front page...