Marvin Lewis will remain the head coach of the Cincinnati Bengals.
Lewis, who was widely expected to be on the way out after his contract expired at the end of the 2010 season, has instead signed a new contract to return for 2011 and, presumably, beyond.
The Bengals announced on Twitter that they had completed the deal. That announcement was a rather surprising reversal, as it came just an hour after the same Twitter account posted, “Despite reports the #Bengals expect head coach Marvin Lewis to return, there was no agreement after two Tuesday morning meetings.”
So apparently there was a third Tuesday afternoon meeting, and at that point the Bengals and Lewis got a deal done.
Lewis, who like Paul Brown and Sam Wyche before him has coached the Bengals for eight seasons, will become the longest-tenured coach in team history with his ninth season in Cincinnati in 2011. Lewis has a record of 60-67-1 in the regular season and 0-2 in the playoffs.
UPDATE: The team announced that Lewis’s new contract is a two-year deal.