The Cincinnati Bengals fell short in the playoffs yet again. Their loss to the Pittsburgh Steelers at home marks the eighth consecutive loss in Bengals franchise history. The Bengals haven't won a single playoff game since 1990, the longest active drought in the NFL.

Head coach Marvin Lewis, who took over the team in 2003, has been the leader for seven of those games. Lewis has led the Bengals to seven playoff appearances and four division titles, but his team just can't seem to win a meaningful game in January.

Is it time for the Bengals to fire Lewis?

Many fans believe it is. Not only has Lewis never led the Bengals to a playoff win, but there are worthy candidates out there. This offseason there a plethora of head coaches that the Bengals could purse. Notable coaches such as Lovie Smith, Mike Shanahan and Tom Coughlin are available. Each of those three head coaches have managed to lead a team to a Super Bowl at least once. We may even see more head coaches available after this postseason concludes.

Each and every playoff defeat hurts, but this one stung badly. Not only were the Bengals the home team facing their rival in the Pittsburgh Steelers, but they blew a late lead. Even more telling of the Bengals coaching, Lewis lost control of the team. The Bengals killed themselves with late penalties that resulted in key first downs for the Steelers. Adam "Pacman" Jones has been out of control all year long.

Lewis hasn't done a terrible job, but it's just time to move, some would argue. It's time for a change of scenery, for all involved. Lewis can still coach, but should consider doing it elsewhere because he hasn't shown he can win a single meaningful game with this squad. Staying in Cincinnati won't help Lewis' legacy one bit. As for the Bengals, they can't keep doing the same thing and expecting different results every year. That's called "insanity."

Mike Brown has been a very lenient owner, and he has shown time and time again that he loves to take chances on questionable characters. Saturday's wild card game was a prime example of how having so many questionable players can make a team fall apart. Neither Brown or Lewis know how to set the tone in the locker room and tell everyone who is boss. In New England for example, if you're even late for a practice, you could be benched for an entire game. The Bengals have very low standards, therefore yielding small results.

It's hard to fire a head coach considering he has made the playoffs five years in a row now, but it may be time for the Bengals to head in a new direction.

Follow Damon Salvadore on Twitter @DamonSalvadore1

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