The Cincinnati Bengals have made the No. 1 pick in an NFL draft four times since 1970.
Zac Taylor and Co. made Joe Burrow the latest this year and the first since 2003 with Carson Palmer. Prior to that, Ki-Jana Carter was the team’s No. 1 pick in 1995 and Dan Wilkinson came off the board in the same spot the year prior.
But where do they rank against all No. 1 picks since 1970? Luke Easterling of Draft Wire looked at just that recently and explained the rankings:
“The task of ranking the last 50 No. 1 overall picks is challenging, and ours starts with a pair of players who weren’t necessarily the worst players, but whose circumstances paid absolutely no dividends for the teams that drafted them (Bo Jackson, Tom Cousineau). Only seven have been inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame, though a tandem of brothers is sure to grow that list in the coming years.”
Understandably, on a list of 50 players, Ki-Jana Carter slots No. 46. He wasn’t ranked worse than someone like JaMarcus Russell, but his flop of a career saw him spend just four years in Cincinnati.
The next name is much farther up the list as Dan Wilkinson slots in at No. 33. He spent just four seasons in Cincinnati while piling up sacks before going to play elsewhere over the course of a career that went from 1994-2006.
Then there is Carson Palmer, who checks in at No. 14. Hardly shocking considering Palmer was arguably a top-three passer during his prime and helped lead the Bengals back to relevancy before hanging up the cleats and going to play elsewhere, including one of his most successful pro seasons in Arizona.
The focus now turns to Burrow, who has to do something similar to Palmer in reviving a two-win team that just had a complete makeover this offseason. The Bengals have to hope his talent and that of those around him help him slot high on such a list in the future.
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