The Cincinnati Bengals are a professional American football team based in Cincinnati, Ohio. The Bengals compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the American Football Conference North Division. [3] [4] Founded as an expansion team of the American Football League (AFL) in 1968, they joined the NFL as a result of the 1970 AFL–NFL merger. [5] [6] [3] The team's home games have been held in downtown Cincinnati at Paycor Stadium since 2000. [7]
The NFL draft, officially known as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting", [8] [9] [10] is an annual event which serves as the league's most common source of player recruitment. [11] The draft order is determined based on the previous season's standings; the teams with the worst win–loss records receive the earliest picks. Teams that qualified for the NFL playoffs select after non-qualifiers, and their order depends on how far they advanced, using their regular season record as a tie-breaker. The final two selections in the first round are reserved for the Super Bowl runner-up and champion. Draft picks are tradable and players or other picks can be acquired with them. [12]
Since the team's first draft in 1968, the Bengals have selected 68 players in the first round. The team's first-round pick in their inaugural draft was Bob Johnson, a center from the University of Tennessee; he was the second overall selection. [3] [13] The Bengals have drafted number one overall four times and selected Dan Wilkinson in 1994, Ki-Jana Carter in 1995, Carson Palmer in 2003, and Joe Burrow in 2020. [14] In the most recent draft, held in 2024, the Bengals chose Georgia tackle Amarius Mims. [15]
The Bengals have drafted at least one player in the first round every year except for 1989. [14] Only one of the team's first-round picks—Anthony Muñoz—has been elected to the Pro Football Hall of Fame. [16]
Symbol | Meaning |
---|---|
† | Inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame |
* | Selected number one overall |
Position abbreviations | |
---|---|
C | Center |
DB | Defensive back |
DE | Defensive end |
DL | Defensive line |
DT | Defensive tackle |
G | Guard |
LB | Linebacker |
NT | Nose tackle |
QB | Quarterback |
RB | Running back |
T | Tackle |
TE | Tight end |
WR | Wide receiver |
The 2002 NFL draft was the 67th annual meeting of National Football League (NFL) franchises to select newly eligible professional football players. The draft is known officially as the "NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting" and has been conducted annually since 1936. The draft took place from April 20–21, 2002, at the Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The draft was broadcast on ESPN both days and eventually moved to ESPN2. The draft began with the Houston Texans selecting David Carr, and it ended with the Texans selecting Mr. Irrelevant, Ahmad Miller. There were thirty-two compensatory selections distributed among eighteen teams, with the Buffalo Bills receiving the most selections with four. The University of Miami was the college most represented in the draft, having five of its players selected in the first round. Although the Carolina Panthers finished with a 1–15 record which would normally have given them the first pick in each round, the Houston Texans were given the first pick because they were an expansion team. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
The 1995 NFL draft was the procedure by which National Football League teams selected amateur college football players. It is officially known as the NFL Annual Player Selection Meeting. The draft was held April 22–23, 1995 at the Paramount Theatre at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
The 2006 NFL draft, the 71st in league history, took place in New York City, New York, at Radio City Music Hall on April 29 and April 30, 2006. For the 27th consecutive year, the draft was telecast on ESPN and ESPN2, with additional coverage offered by ESPNU and, for the first time, by NFL Network. Having signed a contract with the Houston Texans on the evening before the draft, Mario Williams, a defensive end from North Carolina State, became the draft's first pick. The selection surprised many commentators, who predicted that the Texans would draft Southern California running back Reggie Bush or Texas quarterback Vince Young. Ohio State produced the most first round selections (five), while Southern California produced the most overall selections (eleven). Twenty-seven compensatory and supplemental compensatory selections were distributed amongst seventeen teams; Tampa Bay, Baltimore, and Tennessee each held three compensatory picks. The league also held a supplemental draft after the regular draft and before the regular season.
Kevin Zeitler is an American professional football guard for the Detroit Lions of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football for the Wisconsin Badgers, and earned consensus All-American honors. He was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals in the first round of the 2012 NFL draft and he has also played for the Cleveland Browns, New York Giants, and Baltimore Ravens.