Bengals losing sleep over dismal 0-2 start

CINCINNATI - Weary and bleary, coach Marvin Lewis tried to sum up his team’s horrific start. What was supposed to be a special season has quickly soured. Words are as elusive as a good night’s sleep or a simple touchdown.

“Um, the uh, you know, hmmm. Not a, you know, not a spot where we thought we’d be, but we are,” a bleary-eyed Lewis said.

They’re sleepless in Cincinnati after two historically bad games to open their 50th season. Changes are in the works, although it could be too late to make a difference. The Bengals have to win back fans and forestall an implosion that would reverberate through the organization.

“We have to start winning, and start winning now,” quarterback Andy Dalton said.

Lewis is in the final year on his contract, making him vulnerable. There have been more than 10,000 empty seats for each of the first two home games. And the offense — the focus of offseason moves — has been historically bad.

The Bengals fired offensive coordinator Ken Zampese on Friday, a few hours after they again failed to get into the end zone during a 13-9 loss to the Houston Texans.

Quarterbacks coach Bill Lazor was promoted to coordinator, although there’s not much time or room to put an imprint on the offense.

The offense has been an unmitigated mess, leading to Zampese’s firing. Cincinnati has failed to score a touchdown in 25 possessions, the first NFL team since the 1939 Eagles to open with a pair of home games and fail to get into the end zone. The previous team to open with two home games and so few points was the 1949 Packers.

With games at Green Bay and Cleveland the next two weeks, they’re staring at a bleak season.