Marvin Lewis isn't going anywhere.
"I'll be back in 2017," the Bengals coach told SiriusXM NFL Radio, silencing rumors he might retire.
Lewis is closing out his first losing season since 2010 and will miss the playoffs for the first time in five years.
In 14 seasons at the helm, Lewis has guided the Bengals to an 117-103-3 record. This season will mark just the fourth time his team has finished worse than 8-8.
While fans have become disenchanted with the lack of playoff success (0-7), there is no arguing that Lewis has been a net positive for a Cincinnati franchise that was lost at sea before he entered the picture.
"Marvin Lewis raised the Titanic," former Bengals safety Solomon Wilcots once told NFL.com's Dan Hanzus. "This team was at the bottom of the ocean when he came in. They are (now) a perennial playoff team."
Lewis has one year left on his contract. Given the integral role Lewis plays throughout the building, in both player evaluation and coaching, it's likely that owner Mike Brown will allow him to decide when it's time to walk away.
Lewis has kicked that decision further down the road.