Getty Images

Marvin Lewis coached the Bengals for 16 years. He worked as an assistant in the NFL for 11 years before that. With nearly three full decades in the NFL, has it been a difficult transition for Lewis to leave pro football?

“No, it has not,” Lewis recently told Zach Gelb of CBS Sports Radio.

Does he miss it?

“I do not.”

Will he return at some point?

“I don’t think so. I’m fine.”

Lewis was talkative in response to most of Gelb’s questions. But the answers became short and quick when certain topics came up, like why did the Bengals fail in the postseason on his watch?

“The other team ended up with more points,” Lewis said.

Lewis, who will work with former NFL coach Herm Edwards at Arizona State this year after giving TV a test drive, sounds like he won’t be paying much/any attention to pro football in 2019.

“I don’t know,” Lewis said. “I watched games because it had an affect on things I was doing and so forth and strategically and so forth if I had an opportunity to watch another game. But I’d probably spend more time watching golf on TV than football, and with my responsibilities here at ASU, I’ll probably be a little busy on Sundays.”

Lewis also made it clear that he’s “happy and excited” doing what he’s doing now, when asked about a potential return to the NFL. And it became clear that, while Lewis possibly didn’t rule out a return to the NFL at some point, 27 years was more than enough, at least for the time being.