The Cincinnati Bengals finished the 2009-2010 NFL season with a 10-6 record, and finishing in first place in the AFC North division. This was their first division title since 2005, and it was also their first post-season appearance since that same year. This lead to a home game against the New York Jets in the wild card round, which eventually saw Cincinnati lose 24-14 to New York, and all hopes of a deep playoff run were crushed. The Bengals are led by head coach Marvin Lewis, quarterback Carson Palmer and wide receiver Chad Ocho Cinco who were all disappointed with the loss, but remain hopefully for what the future holds for this franchise, as told here in their post-game comments. http://www.bengals.com/news/article-1/Jets-Bengals-Postgame-Quotes/3da40d18-f1f8-47fa-93f0-8ee9220c8ccd.

The Bengals have had some playoff success over their 42 year existence, but none of it has come recently. Along, with this year's first round loss, the Bengals also lost in the first round in 2005 to the eventual Superbowl champion and most hated division rival the Pittsburgh Steelers. Prior to 2005, their last playoff appearance was in 1990, and those 15 years of futility frustrated Bengals fans across the world, and led to the nickname of the "Bungels."http://football.about.com/od/nationalfootballleague/a/lamenames.htm. All is not that terrible in the Cincinnati Bengals history though, as they have appeared in two Superbowls in 1982 and 1988, losing both to the San Fransisco 49ers. The 1988 loss was especially painful as Cincinnati was up 16-13 late in the game, only to allow Hall of Fame quarterback Joe Montana lead a long drive down the field to score the winning touchdown with 34 seconds remaining.

• 1982: Lost Superbowl to the San Fransisco 49ers

• 1988: Lost Superbowl to the San Fransisco 49ers

• 2005: Lost Wildcard game to the Pittsburgh Steelers

• 2009: Lost Wildcard game to the New York Jets