Top 10 Cincinnati Bengals

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A long, long time ago, in a faraway galaxy, the Bengals weren’t a joke of a franchise.  They had some decent seasons, and even made it to the Super Bowl once.  In making this list, it became apparent the Bengals have been top heavy with offensive players.  The Bengals have had an exceptional number of outstanding wide receivers in particular.  They’ve even had some pretty good QBs.  They just weren’t quite enough to carry the Bengals to a Super Bowl win.  And here we go.

10. Mike Reid:  Reid is perhaps the most interesting man in Bengals history.  Mike spent five seasons as a defensive tackle for the team.  Reid was named to the Pro Bowl twice and All Pro once.   Reid recorded 49 sacks in his career.  His best season in that category was 1973 when he came up with 13.  Reid retired after the 1974 season in part due to injuries and in part because he wanted to focus on his music career.  Ultimately Mike became a singer and song writer of note.

9. David Fulcher:  Here’s the other defensive player on this list.  Fulcher spent eight seasons as the Bengals strong safety.  He was named to the Pro Bowl three times and All Pro once.  Fulcher intercepted 31 passes while in Cincinnati.  His career high was eight in 1989, which was his All Pro season.  Fulcher barely gets the call over Tommy Casanova, who had similar stats.

8. Chris Collinsworth:  Chris was an unlikely looking deep threat.  In eight seasons, Collinsworth caught 417 passes for 6698 yards and 36 TDs.  Chris was named to the Pro Bowl his first three seasons in the NFL.  Collinsworth had five seasons of 60+ catches back in the days when receiving numbers were suppressed by today’s standards.  I admit I may be influenced by Collinsworth’s TV work.

7. Issac Curtis:  Curtis spent 12 seasons with the Bengals.  While the most receptions he had in a season was 45, he was a big play guy.  His yards per catch was 17.1 on his 416 career receptions.  He led the NFL in that category in 1975 with a mark of 21.2. Issac found the end zone 53 times as a receiver.  Unlike Chris Collinsworth, Curtis had world class speed.  Eventually, the” Issac Curtis Rule” was instituted to limit how defenders could defend pass receivers.  Curtis made a real impact on the game.

6. Boomer Esiason:  Boomer’s initial stint with the Bengals ran from 1984-92.  He was named to the Pro Bowl three times and the All Pro team once during that time frame.  Boomers best season was in 1988 when he led the NFL in passing rating with a mark of 97.4.  That was also Boomer’s All Pro season.  Boomer experienced some high and lows during his run with the Bengals, but on balance, the highs outweighed the lows.  After his initial nine year run in Cincinnati,  Boomer eventually finished his career with the Bengals in 1997.  Boomer has had a successful broadcasting career in both TV and radio.

5. James Brooks:  Brooks’ time in Cincinnati closely paralleled Boomer Esiason’s.  James run with Bengals extended from 1984-91 and was a weapon as a runner and receiver.  Brooks ran for 6447 yards in Cincinnati, with a per carry average of 4.8.  As a receiver, James caught 297 passes for 3012 yards.  Brooks had two seasons with over 1500 total yards from the line of scrimmage.   James had three seasons of over 1000 yards rushing.  In 1986 he ran for 1087 yards averaging 5.3 yards per carry, which led the NFL.  His best rushing total was 1239 yards in 1986.

4. Corey Dillon:  Dillon is another guy I knew was good, but I didn’t remember how good until I looked at his stats.  Dillon spent seven seasons with the Bengals, and ran for over 1000 yards the first six.  In all, he rushed for 8061 yards and 45 TDs.  He also caught 192 passes for another 1482 yards and five TDs.  His production was good enough to be named to four Pro Bowls.  He was also named to the 1997 NFL  All Rookie team.

3. Ken Anderson:  I kind of think of Ken Anderson as a slightly more flamboyant Bob Griese.  Anderson spent 16 seasons has the Bengals QB, and actually led them to their only Super Bowl appearance.  The Bengals nearly won, but a guy named Joe Montana intervened.   Anderson led the NFL on passer rating four times, and was also named to four Pro Bowls.  Ken’s best season was in 1981 when he was not only named All Pro he was also named the NFL’s MVP.  Anderson’s record as the Bengals’ QB was 91-81, which amounts to glory days when contemplating the Bengals history.

2. A. J. Green: The Bengals have had some really good receivers during their history, but A J Green is the best.  Green has played for the Bengals for eight seasons and made the Pro Bowl the first seven.  For his career A J has caught 602 passes for 8907 yards and 63 TDs.  While 2018 was a down season for Green he did have a four TD day against the Ravens. 

1. Anthony Munoz:  The top slot on this list was pretty easy to come up with.  The Bengals have had some really good players, but really, only one great one, Anthony Munoz.  Anthony played 13 seasons for the Bengals and was selected for 11 Pro Bowls and nine All Pro teams.  Munoz was named to the Pro Football Hall of Fame and Pro Football Reference All 80s team.  He was also on the 1980 NFL All Rookie team.  Munoz was quite possibly the best offensive left tackle of all time.