The Cincinnati Bengals have made some really great draft picks throughout their history. Let’s take a look at the 15 best draft picks ever.
The NFL Draft is a time for teams to add young talent that can help them improve. The Cincinnati Bengals have done well in their drafts and that’s definitely shown in recent years.
While it was hard to narrow this list down to 15, I tried to factor in a few things. The main one was obviously what the player did while in a Bengals uniform. Players on this list might be seen as surprises to include due to still being young but they’ve already shown they’re franchise-changing players.
The second one was value — Was the player a late-round pick and become a diamond in the rough? Cincinnati has found excellent value later on in the draft.
So, with all of that said, let’s get to the list!
15. Ja’Marr Chase
Drafted 5th overall in 2021
Some might think it’s too soon to include Ja’Marr Chase on this list but just look at what the guy did as a rookie in 2021. Chase, who went fifth overall much to the dismay of NFL analysts, immediately exploded onto the scene as a rookie, tallying 81 receptions for 1,455 yards and 13 touchdowns through 17 regular-season games.
Chase’s rookie campaign was so impressive that he was the no-brainer choice to win Offensive Rookie of the Year, the first Bengal to do so since Carl Pickens in 1992.
Chase might be early into his career but winning an award that a Bengal hadn’t brought home in nearly two decades earned him a spot on the list.
14. Isaac Curtis
Drafted 15th overall in 1973
With their first-round pick in 1973, the Bengals added Isaac Curtis out of San Diego State. Curtis immediately broke onto the scene as a rookie, hauling in 45 receptions for 843 yards and nine touchdowns and making the Pro Bowl. In fact, Curtis’ first four years in the league resulted in Pro Bowl appearances.
Curtis had his best pro season in 1975 when he tallied 44 catches for 934 yards and seven touchdowns while averaging a whopping 21.2 yards per catch. That’s insane and shows how dangerous of a weapon he was early on in his career.
Curtis spent the entirety of his 12-year career in the Queen City and while his production dipped off near the end of his playing career, he still sits third all-time in receiving yards with 7,107 on his resumé.
Still sitting in the top three when it comes to receiving yards and only playing for the Bengals is enough to land Isaac Curtis on this list.
13. Carlos Dunlap
Drafted 54th overall in 2010
With their second-round pick in the 2010 NFL Draft, the Bengals selected Carlos Dunlap out of Florida. What followed was one of the best defensive players in franchise history.
Dunlap made an instant impact on defense, recording 9.5 sacks and 16 QB hits as a rookie through 12 games. Those 9.5 sacks were a career-high for Dunlap until he notched 13.5 sacks in the 2015 season, which earned him a spot in the Pro Bowl, and deservedly so.
Dunlap ended up playing in Cincinnati for 11 years before he landed with the Seahawks midway through the 2020 season and that’s where he played in 2021 as well. He totaled 8.5 sacks in his first full year away from the Bengals.
The former Florida Gator finished his Bengals career with 82.5 sacks, which is second all-time in franchise history (though, in some instances, he leads the organization in sacks due to it not being a statistic until 1982). It was tough seeing him in another uniform after he played in the stripes for over a decade but there’s no denying that he’s one of the best draft picks in Cincinnati Bengals history.
12. A.J. Green
Drafted 4th overall in 2011
The Bengals have had a ton of success finding wide receivers in the draft, which is evidenced by A.J. Green now being the third receiver to appear on this list. Green went fourth overall in the 2011 draft and made a huge impact from Day 1.
As a rookie, Green hauled in 65 catches for 1,057 yards and seven touchdowns, garnering a Pro Bowl nod in his first-ever NFL season. He followed that season with another prolific performance, totaling 97 receptions for 1,350 yards and 11 touchdowns, and then had yet another impressive season in 2013 with 98 catches for 1,426 yards and 11 touchdowns.
Six of Green’s first seven NFL seasons resulted in him passing the 1,000-yard mark with the 2016 season being the only year he didn’t. Even then, he tallied 964 yards, so it wasn’t a slouch of a season by any means.
Green spent 10 years in Cincinnati and played in nine total (he missed all of 2019 due to injury). During that time, his lowest yardage total was 523 yards and he had just three years where he didn’t pass 1,000 yards.
The two sides moved on after the 2020 season and Green signed with the Cardinals. He finished his Cincinnati career with 9,430 yards and 65 touchdowns and is second all-time in receiving yards. It was tough seeing him play elsewhere but he’s an easy candidate to list as one of the best Bengals’ draft picks ever.
11. Chad Ochocinco
Drafted 36th overall in 2001
While second-round pick Chad Johnson (also known as Chad Ochocinco) didn’t get off to quite as hot of a start as guys like Ja’Marr Chase and A.J. Green did, there’s no debating how amazing he was as a receiver during his time in the Queen City.
Ochocinco first popped onto the scene in 2002 when he hauled in 69 receptions for 1,166 yards and five touchdowns. The next year he went for 1,355 yards and a whopping 10 touchdowns, giving him the first of six Pro Bowl appearances during the course of his career.
In 10 years with the stripes, Ochocinco went over the 1,000-yard mark in all but three seasons. One of those seasons where he didn’t was his rookie year, and the other two came in two of his final three years with the organization.
While Ochocinco finished his career with the Patriots in 2011, he’s still the all-time leader in receiving yards with 10,783 and finished with a total of 66 touchdowns. He’s definitely one of the best draft picks in franchise history.
10. Joe Burrow
Drafted 1st overall in 2020
It might feel like a stretch to have Joe Burrow in the top 10 of all-time draft picks but look at what the guy has accomplished early in his career! In just his second year as a starting NFL quarterback, Burrow helped get the Bengals their first playoff win in over three decades and helped them reach the Super Bowl for the first time since the 1988 season. I’d say he deserves to be listed right here.
Burrow had one of the best seasons for a college quarterback, which ended with him helping LSU win a National Championship and Joey Franchise himself winning the Heisman Trophy. That also earned him the distinction of being the No. 1 overall pick in the 2020 NFL Draft where the Bengals practically sprinted to turn in their draft card when they were on the clock.
Burrow’s rookie season wasn’t glitter and rainbows by any means but fans could see why the team took him first overall. Unfortunately, he was injured midway through the year, ending what looked to be a promising rookie campaign.
In year two, it took Burrow a bit to get going but he finished the season with 4,611 passing yards, 34 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions. The 4,611 yards through the air are the most ever thrown by a Bengals quarterback in a single season.
Burrow’s 2021 performance not only helped get the team an AFC North title, but it got them their first playoff win in three decades, and a Super Bowl appearance. Burrow also won the Comeback Player of the Year award.
It might be early in his career but it’s hard to argue that Joe Burrow isn’t already one of the team’s best draft picks of all time.
9. Corey Dillon
Drafted 43rd overall in 1997
The Bengals spent their second-round pick in 1997 on “Clock Killin'” Corey Dillon of Washington. Dillon responded by being arguably the best running back in franchise history.
Dillon rushed for over 1,000 yards in the first six years of his career and his seventh and final season with the stripes was the only time where he didn’t. The 2000 and 2001 seasons were Dillon’s best in the stripes, as in 2000 he had 1,435 yards and seven touchdowns and in 2001 he notched 1,315 and 10 touchdowns.
After the 2002 season, Dillon ended up in New England and played three seasons with the Patriots before calling it a career. He was solid during those final three years of his career and won a Super Bowl with New England but people still remember him most from his Bengals years, and rightfully so.
Dillon still holds the mark for all-time leading rushing yards with 8,061 and finished with 45 touchdowns. He also had 1,482 receiving yards and five receiving touchdowns during his seven-year Bengals career as well.
Corey Dillon was a lot of fun to watch during his time in Cincinnati so he was an easy inclusion on this list.
8. Eddie Edwards
Drafted 3rd overall in 1977
With the third overall pick in 1977, the Bengals drafted Eddie Edwards out of Miami. What followed was a 12-year NFL career, all of which was spent in Cincinnati with the team that drafted him in the first round.
Edwards took a few years to get into double-digit sack totals but even then, he was still getting after the quarterback. He actually leads the franchise in all-time sack numbers with 84.5 with his best season coming in 1983. That year saw the first-round pick garner 13 sacks in 16 games.
As I mentioned on the Dunlap section, with sacks not becoming an official stat until 1982, Edwards technically only had 47.5 during his playing career. Pro Football Reference, however, has him as the all-time sacks leader so that’s what I went off of.
Edwards was a part of both of the team’s Super Bowl runs in the 80s with him calling it a career after the team lost to the 49ers in the ’88 season’s big game. He’s one of the best draft picks in franchise history.
7. Bob Johnson
Drafted 2nd overall in 1968
Dubbed “The Original Bengal”, Bob Johnson was the first-ever draft pick by the Cincinnati Bengals, going second overall in the 1968 NFL Draft. Back in the late 1960s, center might have been one of the most important positions in football considering how much more teams relied on the run game.
The center out of Tennessee made perfect sense for the Bengals considering they had to be tough up front and they got that out of Johnson. He spent 12 seasons in the league and all of them were in the Queen City.
Johnson can be the answer to a trivia question for many reasons. One is that he was indeed the first-ever player drafted by the Bengals organization. Another is that his No. 54 jersey is the only number to be retired by the franchise.
There’s no debating that The Original Bengal himself deserves to be on this list.
6. Reggie Williams
Drafted 82nd overall in 1976
In the third round of the 1976 NFL Draft, the Bengals selected Reggie Williams out of Dartmouth. What they got out of the Dartmouth product was 14 years of loyal service.
As was the case with Eddie Edwards, a lot of Williams’ sacks weren’t credited to him while he was playing due to it not being an official stat until 1982 (isn’t that wild?). Had it been a stat throughout, Williams would have finished with 63.5 sacks in his 14-year career.
His best season came in 1981 (of course one year before sacks were a “real” stat) when he notched 11 sacks and hauled in four interceptions. He was a durable player too, which was another reason he stayed with the team so long.
Williams was another key piece during the team’s two trips to the Super Bowl. He was a part of the All-Rookie Team in 1976 and that’s when fans truly knew they had a special player.
Reggie Williams is certainly one of the best draft picks in Bengals history and somehow, he slipped to the third round of his respective draft.
5. Lemar Parrish
Drafted 163rd overall in 1970
Taken in the seventh round of the 1970 NFL Draft, the Bengals found a diamond in the rough in Lemar Parrish. While Parrish didn’t play his entire career in Cincinnati, he was in the stripes for eight years of his 15-year career.
These days, when NFL fans hear “true shutdown corner”, they might think of Darrell Revis in his prime. In the 70s, however, Parrish was that guy.
A lot of the attention nowadays is on Ken Riley and how unfair it is that he’s not in the Hall of Fame (and don’t worry, we’ll get to Riley in due time) but Parrish was just as, if not more, dominant than that of Riley.
Parrish finished his eight-year Bengals career with 25 interceptions (four returned for touchdowns) and was named to six Pro Bowls. After the 1977 season, he joined Washington for the next four years of his career and then spent his final NFL season with the Bills in 1982.
4. Ken Riley
Drafted 135th overall in 1969
I told you we’d get to Ken Riley, didn’t I? As mentioned on Parrish’s section, Riley deserves to be in the Hall of Fame maybe more than anyone else vying for that honor. Taken in the sixth round of the 1969 NFL Draft, Riley played his entire 15-year career with the team that drafted him.
Riley, or “The Rattler” as many refer to him as, probably has been kept out of the Hall of Fame due to not having the “honors” and awards that a lot of the Hall of Famers rack up during the course of their careers. Riley never never made it to an AFL All-Star Game or Pro Bowl in 15 years though he was named All-Pro in 1983, which funny enough, was the final season of his long career.
Riley finished his 15-year career with a whopping 65 interceptions with nine of those coming during the 1976 season. He also hauled in eight picks during the 1983 season, which again, was the final year of his career.
Riley’s omission from the Hall of Fame is frustrating but at least he’s one of the first members of the Bengals Ring of Honor, which was established in 2021. That’s good enough for now, I guess…
3. Boomer Esiason
Drafted 38th overall in 1984
A lot of teams have struggled to find quarterbacks in the NFL Draft but that hasn’t really been an issue for Cincinnati. Sure, they had the whole Akili Smith situation but for the most part, they’ve hit the nail on the head whenever it’s come time for them to draft a signal-caller.
In 1984, the Bengals wisely took Boomer Esiason out of Maryland in the second round of the draft. Ken Anderson was in the waning years of his career so it made sense for Cincy to find his eventual successor.
Esiason played for the Bengals for a total of 10 years but they were broken up a bit. For the first nine years of his career, Esiason was Cincinnati’s quarterback, leading them to the Super Bowl in the 1988 season. That year saw Esiason win NFL MVP after throwing for 3,572 yards, 28 touchdowns, and 14 interceptions (the game was much different back then).
Esiason left the Bengals following the 1992 season and played for the Jets for three years and the Cardinals for one year before returning to Cincinnati for the final year of his career. He retired following the 1997 season and is third in passing yards all-time with 27,149.
2. Ken Anderson
Drafted 67th overall in 1971
The Bengals spent their third-round pick on a quarterback out of Augustana in the 1971 NFL Draft and little did they know that he’d become of the best players in the history of their franchise.
Ken Anderson got off to a slow start as a pro quarterback but he eventually came into his own and transformed the Bengals organization into a powerhouse. The 1981 season was without a doubt his best season and he scraped up just about every big-time award there was that year.
During that ’81 season, Anderson threw for 3,754 yards, 29 touchdowns, and 10 picks. He won NFL MVP for his efforts as well as the Offensive Player of the Year and Comeback Player of the Year after missing time the season prior.
That year saw the Bengals make the Super Bowl for the first time in franchise history but sadly Anderson and the stripes came up short of winning it all.
Anderson retired following the 1986 season and still leads the organization in passing yards to this day with 32,838 yards. He’s the best quarterback the team has drafted.
1. Anthony Munoz
Drafted 3rd overall in 1980
The top entry for this list felt like a no-brainer — Anthony Munoz is the only answer here.
The third overall pick in the 1980 NFL Draft, Munoz played his college ball at USC and fit in seamlessly with the team that made him a first-round pick. He not only played for the Bengals during the entirety of his 11-year career but he was one of the few players to appear in both Super Bowls for the team in the 1980s.
Munoz racked up all kinds of awards during his time in pro football. He was named to 11 Pro Bowls, earned nine All-Pro honors, and was a member of the Hall of Fame 1980s All-Team. Munoz is the only drafted Bengal to be inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, achieving that honor in 1998. He was also one of the first players to be inducted into the Bengals Ring of Honor in 2021.
There was no debating when putting this list together as to who No. 1 was going to be. It’s Anthony Munoz and it’s not even close.
It was hard to narrow this list down to 15 players but I tried my best to include new and older players and also include guys who weren’t first-round picks. These were the best of the best.