04-30-2018, 10:29 AM
(04-30-2018, 10:08 AM)bengals67 Wrote: we sure have missed out on several first round and second round picks during the same time frame.
That's a great assessment, as unfortunate as it is to admit.
Somebody did post something somewhere on the boards recently- a list of Bengals roster players divided by 1st/2nd round players vs. 3rd-7th, and it was a very visually striking way of demonstrating how crucial it is to hit on your top picks if you want a talented team.
At first glance, the names from the early rounds side jump out as the obvious stars you would want to build a team around, and of course the late rounds have their value in role players, several above average starters, special teams contributors, and depth, and yes, there are some tremendous additions like Geno and Burfict, to an extent.
But not to go off topic too much from the OP, but if you look again at the 1's and 2's stretching back a fair number of years, I think you'll find quite a lot of delayed, unreliable, or none-as-yet contributions (and some flat out whiffs) on some selections including Dennard, Jackson, Og, Fisher, Ross, Eifert, Boyd, Hill, Hunt, Still, Simpson, Pollack, Thurman, Rivers ...maybe even Maualuga and A. Smith?...and then right or wrong, we didn't retain positive contributors like Zeitler, Gresham, Whitworth, Joseph, and now possibly Dunlap, and you start to see where the talent has been lacking, inconsistent, or left.
(Yes, Jackson looks great now, and maybe we keep Dennard, and who knows about Ross or a final hurrah with Eifert, but bad luck with injuries on all these players have to factor in to the amount of impact they've failed to deliver early in their careers when our window was very wide open to make the ultimate run for a Super Bowl win we're all looking for.)
And with that all being said, that list has had a decent amount of upside - the run of playoff worthy regular seasons is nothing to sniff at - but a few more hits from the top of the draft (crucial with our usual approach to free agency), and a few more strategic successes when it comes to extensions, and a fair amount of luck with injuries would have this team roaring (which I guess you could say for most teams.)
To finish up my ramble, I'll say that I feel that the Bengals have very much improved drafts in the Marvin Lewis era, especially when compared to the lost decade, though they could use a bit more consistency and contributions from their early round selections. I do think the front office has been slower to make supplemental and complementary moves with FA and extensions (though that is showing signs of improving and becoming more consistent - we'll see what happens with Geno and Dunlap.) Coaching/scheme is where I find our team lacking compared to more consistent winners, who are able to create a system that plays to the strength of the pieces available instead of trying to fit players to a preferred style of play.
