For the first time in their 45-year history, the Bengals will be staying in Cincinnati for training camp.
The team announced Friday that they will hold training camp at Paul Brown Stadium. They spent the last 15 years at Georgetown College in Kentucky, but their release cited fan access not available during the regular seaosn and special events as part of the rationale for remaining at home this summer. Coach Marvin Lewis explained another reason why it made sense to stay put.
“We going to be right in our home, and that’s where you’re best suited with the way the (NFL) rules have changed,” Lewis said in a statement. “We also hope to see some fans who maybe haven’t had a chance to see us at camp before, and we’re excited to join all the great activities that are happening in the summertime in our downtown.”
The new Collective Bargaining Agreement provides teams fewer opportunities to practice on field, which makes video and other classroom work available at team headquarters a bigger part of summer work. More than half the teams in the league plan to stay at home for training camp and it wouldn’t be surprising to see more teams opting to pass on going away to camp.