After looking at some intriguing names, we now start to look at the main list for the best wide receivers in Cincinnati Bengals history.
As the summer continues along, we’ve been looking back at the history of the Cincinnati Bengals. We started by looking at the greatest quarterbacks and running backs in Cincinnati’s history, and so now we’ve begun the wide receivers.
To begin this position group, we already took a look at some of the interesting players who didn’t make the main hierarchy of this rankings. Now we start looking at the best of the best in franchise history at the position.
We start this exercise with No. 5.
5. Eddie Brown
To keep Isaac Curtis off this list, it would take a pretty strong performer. If you remember from the Interesting Extras post, he was close to making this list — and if we only went by the gross numbers, he certainly would have made the cut. So what made Brown worthy of coming out ahead of a player who had nearly 1,000 more receiving yards than him? Well, he was so much more efficient at accumulating his stats.
Start with Curtis’ stats, and how he got them. Curtis played from the early 1970s until the mid-80s — 12 years in total. In that time, he picked up more receiving yards than all but two wideouts in Cincinnati Bengals history. That total was basically only able to get that high due to longevity than greatness, however. Case in point: Curtis never surpassed 50 catches or 1,000 yards in a single season. In most seasons he proved to be a decent option but not a spectacular one, surpassing 600 receiving yards in eight seasons but only twice going beyond 800.
Brown is a different story. He only was around for eight seasons in all, but both his floor and ceiling were markedly higher than what Curtis was able to provide. Browns’s worst season (a 12-game 1987) saw him come away with more receiving yards (608) than Curtis averaged in his career, and most of his years were plenty better than that. Brown pulled off five seasons with 800+ receiving yards (to Curtis’ two), three with 900+ yards (one for Curtis), and a year with 1,200+ yards (nothing close for Curtis).
Longevity matters in these conversations for multiple reasons, and it can be what sets a player apart, but the rate they accumulate their stats and success arguably matters more. Curtis did well to make himself an integral piece for a dozen seasons with Cincinnati, but were his contributions more important and impactful than what someone else may have managed in less time?
When compared to Brown, I’d say no — and a big reason why can be explained with proration. Take Brown’s eight seasons of stats and average them across 12 years (the amount Curtis played), then compare the two. Here’s what you’ll see:
Curtis: 416 receptions, 7,101 receiving yards, 53 touchdowns
Brown: 544.5 receptions, 9,201 receiving yards, 61.5 touchdowns
Next: NFL 2018: Dark horse MVP candidate for each team
Even assuming some level of physical dropoff, injuries, and other unforeseen problems which could have inevitably cropped up, there’s plenty of wiggle room in there on all fronts for Brown to have surpassed Curtis if his career had lasted as long. Because of that, he gets the #5 position on this list.