September 8, 2024
Paycor Stadium (Capacity: 65,515)
Cincinnati, OH
Cincinnati Bengals vs New England Patriots
Final Score: 10 – 16
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Our football weekend in Cincinnati concluded with a Sunday stop to see the NFL’s Bengals on a beautiful weather day. The Queen City is located along the Ohio River in the southwest corner of the state and the population of 310,000 is misleading as the much larger metro area is the 30th most populous in the United States. Cincy may not have the most robust attractions, but it is a surprisingly attractive place thanks to a waterfront, surrounding hills and varied architecture. The Bengals became the city’s second professional franchise in 1968 with a brief stint in the AFL before the merger with the NFL. They made a couple of Super Bowls in the 1980s and then turned into one of the worst franchise in all of pro sports thereafter (becoming known as “The Bungles”). Carson Palmer helped lead the team back to the playoffs finally in 2005 and then Andy Dalton turned Cincy into a more consistent regular-season winner in the 2010s. The playoffs were a different story and with Joe Burrow leading at quarterback, the team ended a 31-year playoff win drought with a Super Bowl appearance in 2021. Games are played at Paycor Stadium, a building that opened in 2000. It’s a good stadium with an awesome view, however the lack of maintenance and care during my visit soured things a bit.
Prestige Ranking: 3.5 out of 5
Location
Paycor Stadium (sometimes referred to as “The Jungle”) is in a section of the city called “The Banks”, which is along the river, a short distance down the hill from downtown. There’s not much to see there, though the architecture is great and Fountain Square is a good spot. On gameday, the Bengals set up the Jungle Zone, a pregame party with music, along Freedom Way in front of the National Underground Railroad Center (a museum worth a visit when in the city). It’s mostly a place to get tchotchkes, but a good start nonetheless. Tailgating isn’t that plentiful around the area because of spread out parking, but apparently Longworth Hall is where the party is at. Back closer, within walking distance to Paycor Stadium is Great American Ball Park and on the approach to that stadium is mixed-use development that includes a handful of restaurants with outdoor seating. Heading towards the nearby River is Smale Riverfront Park. Probably overlooked on gameday, this is a nice park with little touches that make it good for families. You also have an impressive visual of the Roebling Suspension Bridge, which makes for a scenic walk across the river into Kentucky.
Location Ranking: 8 out of 10
Accessibility / Parking
Parking is not confined to The Banks as there are plenty of other ways to get to the game besides the Riverfront. Downtown has several garages and if you are not looking to tailgate, then parking in this area will save money and likely lead to a faster exit after the game. We went with a garage at 7th Ave and Elm Street which achieved both of those goals for us. It was a 15 minute walk. Other options include walking the bridge over the Ohio River and parking in Covington or perhaps taking The Connector, a free streetcar that goes up into the northern neighborhoods like the popular Over-The-Rhine (OTR). As for parking around the stadium, the number of surfaces lots for tailgating have dwindled as garages and other development increased on The Banks. I’m not even sure how open these are to just drive up to on the day of the game as they weren’t available for prepurchase and had little info on them from the Bengals website. Multiple interstates converge on Cincinnati and it’s usually a northern approach into the city from I-71 or I-75. Though there is plenty of access to the complex containing both stadiums, it can get confusing given all the nearby interchanges and the number of various signs, so stay focused on your GPS. If parking downtown, strategic garage picking can lead to a fairly simple route back to the desired interstate. Traffic for our Sunday afternoon game from that aforementioned garage we used was impressively minimal. It took us just 5 minutes extra to get out of downtown and then there was only 5-10 minutes of traffic on I-71 North.
Accessibility / Parking Ranking: 6.5 out of 8
Exterior
There is a lot of glass and gray elements to the stadium. While the intent may be to blend it in with office buildings, the downtown skyscrapers are removed enough where that’s not necessary and it would’ve been nice to see something more colorful or with more pizzazz. With that said, the angles are sharp and the look is sleek with pointy steel features as the pieces fit decently enough together. The cantilevered roof supports the upper deck, while below that is more officy building looking stuff. Ends are somewhat open, an attractive feature when inside.
Exterior Ranking: 6.5 out of 10
Concourse
It’s not uncommon for limited upper deck access at a stadium, however never have I been more frustrated than I was here. After literally walking miles before the game, I was ready to head to my 300-level seat. There are only two escalators to reach that level and they come in opposite corners of the stadium. Closer to gametime, a line ensues as just 1 person is allowed every three steps (that should get you nervous). Because there’s no connection from sideline to sideline in the 300s, you have to get on the right side, otherwise you’re going back down and then up again. Well with no signage and no nearby map, I became despondent when I figured out the side I was on was Sections 333-347 (my seat was Section 316). Horrible flow and horrible directions. Throw in bathrooms with just a trickle from the sinks as water pressure was non-existent.
Getting past that, concourses themselves are just ok. Endzones are open-air, but there’s not really a plaza or room for a field-view. Interior concourses on the sidelines have some odd bi-level spots to disperse space, otherwise they have a parking garage feel in terms of walls and ceiling look (I should be fair, there are a few areas that give some color and team vibes). The upper concourse is decent as the open-air allows for spectacular views of downtown or the Ohio River. There’s a partial overhang if cover is needed. There is also enough space in areas where there are picnic tables.
Concourse Ranking: 2.5 out of 5
Food
There’s a lot to be desired here and most concession stands only have a few of the core items. There are staples like Skyline Chili and Donatos Pizza, while the offerings of Bratwurst and Mettwurst were tempting until I saw the sad end result (below). Really the only way to go is the portable BBQ stand in the south end zone as the Pulled Pork, Brisket and Smoked Chicken sandwiches at least looked desirable. Alcohol of all varieties was available and amongst a slew of national brands was “Hudy Delight”, a local product from Hudepohl Brewing Company.
Food Ranking: 4 out of 8
Interior
After the frustration following when I first went through the entrance gate, things improved a lot inside the seating bowl. The place to be is on the west side Upper Deck (303-317). The vantage point to the field is good, but the outside view really shines. To the left is the close skyline of downtown Cincinnati, while to the right is the Ohio River and the Roebling Bridge. Credit to the designers for keeping end zone seating low to maximize the views. Staying in the 300s, a partial overhang assists with shade, but it’s not long enough to protect more than the back 10 rows or so if it’s raining. Those back 10 rows are a good distance from the field, further than several stadiums built in this era. Stadium design features a standard lower bowl that rounds the field as sections turn towards the center. There is definitely a shallow depth to this area with rows extending outward instead of upward. This includes end seating. It’s thankfully much steeper in the 300s, though a lower walkway pushes sections further back. Seats are green with a neat embedded helmet logo and cupholders in front. Watch out for a few obstructed view seats in the upper deck via railings. A good size second deck on each sidelines is reserved for club seating, while the only 200s at the ends are on the north side as these are regular tickets. There’s also a lot of asymmetry as sections are finished off at odd angles.
Interior Ranking: 9.5 out of 14
Scoreboard
Both scoreboards are at the ends of the stadium and they cleverly made the north one off center so the downtown visual wasn’t disrupted. The display is good as they use it appropriately for video/replays, while stats are off to the side. Size is on the smaller end for NFL Stadiums, but not to the extent that I’m squinting to see what’s going on.
Scoreboard Ranking: 3.5 out of 4
Displays
Limited to none. The concourse features a few splashes of color and where there are large picture murals, the very bottom says “AFC Champions 1981, 1988, 2021)”. There is a Ring of Honor and names are in the stadium, while on the concourse are pictures of each honoree.
Displays Ranking: 1 out of 6
Cost
Get-in tickets for this season-opener that we attended were $155, by far the most I’ve had to pay for an NFL game. Inflation sucks as that somehow was only in the middle for ticket expense when comparing all of the other teams at home on this day. The Bengals Fan Cost Index rank at #28 is suspect given that upper-deck tickets (both through the team and secondary market) are $100 – $200 and stadium parking is $40 – $60. Thankfully, it’s easy to save on parking as garages downtown are much cheaper. The one that we went with was just $15. As for concessions: $7 for a hot dog, $11 for a pizza “mega” slice and $10 – $13 for a beer.
Cost Ranking: 3.5 out of 8
Fan Support
Fans have had to endure a lot as the 90s and 2000s featured the inept “Bungles”. The QB succession of Palmer, then Dalton, then Burrow have brought several decent seasons and the team is supported quite well. How can you not tear up at this video after the team finally ended a 31-year playoff win drought in 2022. There certainly is a buzz when the Bengals are good and nearly everyone in the stadium was decked out in orange. I should note that I do believe at it’s core, Cincinnati is a baseball town and there is more football passion in other regional cities like Cleveland and Detroit (though their TV Market share during games was not higher than the Bengals last season). Attendance for this home opener that I attended in 2024 was about 90% as there were open seats in the majority of rows across the upper 300 sections. I’ve seen this before as even during winning seasons, there have been scores of empty seats for games.
Fan Support Ranking: 7 out of 8
Atmosphere
This place was rocking pretty good and the overall noise was impressive. I’d put it somewhere in the #8 – #12 area for NFL Stadium loudness. Fans often stood on 3rd down and general roars were plentiful with a lot of energy and arm motion during touchdowns. You can’t go to a Bengals game without hearing “Who Dey” and it is an experience to hear everyone yell this chant so loudly. The extended version goes: “Who dey, who dey, who dey think gonna beat dem Bengals” with the answer being “Nobody”. The phrase began in the 1980s and fans love the utterance as saying “Who Dey” is often a form of hello for fellow Bengals fans. Also popular is “The Bengal Growl“, a fight song for the team. Don’t get me wrong, I love nostalgia and I love corny, but man this song is just bad. Otherwise, the Bengals have a great atmosphere with lots of energy and noise as the event starts with goosebumps thanks to the intro just before kickoff featuring the Who Dey chant and then Guns N’ Roses’ “Welcome to the Jungle”.
Atmosphere Ranking: 12.5 out of 14
Other Stuff
Poor maintenance and general thought was a theme that kept popping and the most personal experience was my awful seat at the top of the stadium. First, it was full of cobwebs and was super dirty…obviously not touched since last season. Then, there was some cord draped over it. Combine that with my hike up the wrong sideline and I felt more icky about the Bengals’ stadium than I should have…..The original name of the stadium before a corporate sellout was Paul Brown Stadium. Brown was the original owner of the team, actually setting the wheels in motion while still coaching the Cleveland Browns. He died in 1991 and his son took over and is still owner as of this write-up. Mike Brown is often lauded by fans as one of the most frugal owners in the league……Those beautiful striped helmets were originally not in place when the team debuted. After Paul Brown was fired by Cleveland, he still owned the equipment and brought it over to Cincinnati. It wasn’t until 1981 when they ditched Browns stuff for something more Bengals oriented.
Game
Cincinnati fans were excited coming into the season after a lackluster 2023 due mainly to Joe Burrow’s injury. He was healthy for this season opener, but a selfish contract dispute with JaMarr Chase cast a cloud over the team. They were sloppy and mistake-prone as 3 turnovers proved costly. New England never had a three-and-out, while the Bengals had plenty as Burrow only threw for 164 with Chase having a quiet game. On the other side, Rhamondre Stevenson ran for 120 and they put the game away with two easy first downs to run out the clock and win 16-10.
Stadium and Arena Visits 
