Editor’s Note: This is a weekly column from former sports reporter and editor Mike Bass. Bass will be contributing to The Enquirer by offering advice for sports fans, athletes and youth sports parents and coaches through a weekly Q&A. You can reach him at [email protected] or on Twitter @SportsFanCoach1.
For @doug_c_67, the greatest Bengals Draft Day memory involves a trade the team did make.
“Although it didn't turn out good in the long run, the year they traded up for Ki-Jana Carter was the most excited i have been” @doug_c_67 tweeted. “Besides Carson palmer and burrow, but we know those were coming.”
In 1995, the Bengals traded up to No. 1 for a sort-of do-over. With the No. 1 overall pick in 1994, they chose a defensive tackle (Dan “Big Daddy” Wilkinson) who would underachieve instead of a running back (Marshall Faulk) who would reach Canton. This time, they drafted the marquee running back. Carter was going to be a sensation on the field and Nike’s next superstar off it.
This was fun. At the time.
This is what Draft Day can be. A catalyst for months of joy.
Until …
Carter became another Bengals Legend That Wasn’t because of injury. At least quarterback Greg Cook had a few games in 1968 before tearing his rotator cuff and somehow finishing a Rookie of the Year season. Carter blew out his knee in his first preseason game.
Part 1: Bengals fans share draft jeers, cheers and tears.
Neither was ever the same.
@Gibby398gmailc1: “Big Daddy Dan Wilkerson..& Kijana Carter.. Both were Hugh BUST….”
@CoachKnox17: “Worst: Akili Smith vs. all the Saints picks aside, taking Dan Wilkinson over Marshall Faulk was horrible. Best: 2011 Rounds 1-2: AJ Green and Andy Dalton's selections. It meant that they were going to turn the corner quickly after the Carson Palmer debacle...and they did.”
Green became one of the NFL’s best wide receivers, Dalton became a fairly productive quarterback, and the Bengals reached the playoffs the next five years. A relatively good run in Bengal Land, but the same old one-and-dones in the playoffs.
@PChrisBrantley: “Favorite draft memory was probably AJ Green because I followed him from HS to UGA to Cincy. Worst memory was drafting Chris Perry. I really wanted Steven Jackson they could’ve had him but they traded back.”
Perry went 26th in the first round and dealt with a slew of injuries before ending his career with just over 600 yards rushing in four years. Jackson rushed for more than 11,000 yards in 11 seasons.
@westsidewhodey: “Favorite: watching the draft at La Rosa’s in 2011 when we took Green. Least Favorite: Chris Perry in the 1st in 04. … I was happy about both (picks at first). Perry just didn’t pan out so it was bad later.”
CATCHING REY
The Bengals once cut a second-round draft choice before his rookie season started. That was offensive lineman Freddie Childress in 1989. I helped cover that draft. The “Big Chill” eventually and poetically landed in Canada. He became a CFL Hall of Fame last year. Nice ending.
Twenty drafts later, another second-round pick became memorable for a couple of Bengals fans.
@Thee_Jules: “Didn’t exactly work out the best but when Rey Maualuga fell to us in the 2nd round, me and my buddy jumped for joy! Haha!”
@MattEdwards: “Two that stand out are Rey Maualuga and Carlos Dunlap (the next year). Didn't expect either to make it past the first round so being there in the second felt like a steal. Both worked out, but one much more than the other.”
This is how it works. This is how it always works. The hype skews toward the first-round picks unless someone intriguing drops to your team. In the end, the better player might fall to the second round.
Or lower.
Nose tackle Tim Krumrie went in the 10th round in 1983. He was drafted 276th overall. His home-state Packers took Jim Thomas five picks earlier. That was Indiana college basketball player Jim Thomas. Krumrie never forgot. He became one of the best draft picks in Bengals history. The Bengals don’t make the 1989 Super Bowl without him.
Fast forward to 2001.
The Bengals drafted three players who would help catalyze their offense. None went in the first round. Chad Johnson (second round) and T.J. Houshmandzadeh (seventh round) took their wide receiving duet from Oregon State to Cincinnati, and Rudi Johnson (fourth round) became the team’s lead runner.
Their first-round pick? That memory stands out for one Bengals fan. This is what first-round picks do on Day 1.
@Timpatrick14: “Favorite: Justin Smith [solid but didn’t work out like I’d hoped]. … he just looked like a ten year stud. He wasn’t awful at all. I just thought we got somebody special.”
The defensive end did make five Pro Bowls – all later in his career with the 49ers.
@Timpatrick14: “Least: Akili & it’s not even close. … I just wished they had taken that trade from NOLA.”
IS YOUR HAIR REAL, MEL?
In the 20th century, it was a big deal to attend the NFL Draft in New York City. One Bengals fan will never forget it. This was a chance to see the Bengals pick John Copeland in the first round. More than that, this was a chance to poke fun at ESPN’s draft maven.
@stephenrlilly: “Raised in Cincy. Age 59. Bengals fan since '68. Tix since '85. Favorite (memory): Attending draft in person. Marriott Marquis Times Square '93. Only 300 fans allowed. Threatened with ejection for yelling about Mel Kiper's hair, etc. Worst? Rejecting Saints offer in '99. Dreadful.”
Before the NFL Draft became a three-day extravaganza, before the first round received the red-carpet treatment, before the event included a fan festival and moved from city to city, before there were prime-time telecasts on multiple networks – before there even was an NFL Network – there were New York City and ESPN in 1993.
And @stephenrlilly was there, he tweeted, with his closest friend since fourth grade, his Bengals ticket partner. He even tweeted a photo of the view.
“Well, we were in a gallery above the set,” @stephenrlilly tweeted. “Espn officials warned us to be free of swearing and malice. Amid all Jets chants for Marvin Jones we yelled at Mel [during a commercial break] asking if his hair was real. A no-no. … Our yelling paled to the colorful language of those around us.”
Last year, the draft was done remotely because of COVID-19. Cleveland is host this year, and the fan festival is back, albeit with some COVID restrictions. And whether you are there, or at home, the draft is a great experience to share with fellow Bengals fans.
@PChrisBrantley: “I love watching the draft and talking on social media with fans.”
Remember to email Bass at [email protected] or reach out to him @SportsFanCoach1 on Twitter if you want to be included next week. His website is MikeBassCoaching.com.
