Bengals head coach Marvin Lewis issued an apology Monday night hours after he called Browns quarterback Johnny Manziel "a midget," on the club's radio show.
Lewis issued the apology through Bengals director of public relations Jack Brennan, calling it a "poor remark," about the rookie expected to start against his club Sunday (1 p.m.-Cincinnati's Channel 19) in Cleveland.
"I apologize to Johnny, the Browns and all the fans in Cleveland," Lewis said. "It was just a poor remark. I really didn't mean anything by it."
Preparing for a new Browns quarterback is nothing new for Lewis as he tries to up his record to 14-10 against rookie quarterbacks if the 6-0 Manziel is the guy Sunday. Manziel would become the Browns' 14th different starting quarterback to line up against Lewis' Bengals in 12 seasons and it would be the seventh season they faced a different starting quarterback in each game.
Brian Hoyer, the man Manziel would be replacing, is the Browns' only undefeated quarterback who has had multiple starts against the Bengals since 2003. The only other quarterbacks the Lewis Bengals haven't beaten are Seneca Wallace in 2010 and Jeff Garcia in 2004 in their lone starts against Cincinnati.
Included in Lewis' 15-8 record against the Browns is a win last year over Jason Campbell, the Bengals' current backup. Lewis and quarterback Andy Dalton each got their first NFL wins in Cleveland.
Here is Lewis' record against each Browns starter:
3-0 vs. Colt McCoy; 3-0 vs. Charlie Frye; 1-0 vs. Jason Campbell; 1-0; vs. Brady Quinn; 1-0 vs. Ken Dorsey; 1-0 vs. Trent Dilfer; 1-0 vs. Kelly Holcomb; 2-2 vs. Derek Anderson; 1-1 vs. Brandon Weeden; 1-1 vs. Tim Couch; 0-1 vs. Seneca Wallace; 0-1 vs. Jeff Garcia; 0-2 vs. Brian Hoyer.
