The Battle of Ohio is sometimes used to describe the everlasting rivalry between the Cincinnati Bengals and the Cleveland Browns. Both teams play in the North Division of the AFC and play against each other twice a year and you could bet on maxbonusbet.com that it it is always exciting. How did the Battle of Ohio come to be?
History
Interestingly enough, both clubs share a prominent figure in their creation – Paul Brown. He was the head coach and namesake of the Browns ever since their inception in 1946. Under his leadership, the Browns quickly climbed up from a simple membership in the All-America Football Conference and wreaked havoc in the NFL, winning three titles.
After he was fired by Art Modell, the team’s owner in 1963, he said: I’m going to make my own team. And so he did. The Bengals played their first AFL season in 1968. After the AFL and the NFL merged, the two teams were pitted against each other. Both of them had something to prove.
Stats
The two teams met up a total of 91 times at the time of writing, fueled by the animosity between their respective owners, which is unsurprising, given their history. The largest victory achieved by the Browns was in 1987 when they didn’t let the Bengals score a single point. The final score was 34 – 0. However, the Bengals had their chance to reciprocate relatively recently and their biggest win was 37 – 3 in 2015. While both matches have the same number of points, the Browns managed to strike their opponents a few times before going down.
Regarding the wins, it is very difficult to objectively say which team is better. Both teams have a personal record winning streak of 7 victories, though the Browns won the last two matches.
Is the Rivalry Still Alive?
While there is still a spark between the two clubs, some believe that when Mike Brown took over from his father that the Bengals are struggling to compete. One of the main criticisms Mike has had to endure was the reluctance of the club to spend money on scouting. The results, reportedly, were transgressions form the players on the field and losing a bit of the clubs pride on the way.
The Browns also face their own difficulties. Art Modell, so hated by the Bengals, has faced bankruptcy and even moved the team to Baltimore at one point. Both teams have, at one time or another, experienced serious downs which made the fans wonder whether they will be able to see their respective clubs in their former glory.
The rivalry between the Browns and the Bengals was once a big part of Ohio culture. Paul browns coaching methods resonated throughout the decades and, I’ll say it again, it is difficult to say which team is better. However, I really hope things will turn for the better for both of them soon because nothing would give me greater joy than seeing these two football titans at their best fighting each other on the field.