1 Chris Perry RB Michigan 26 - There were a few raised eyebrows when this pick went down, and in retrospect, Steven Jackson, taken two picks before Perry, was the better back. Perry has been hyped at times as a perfect change of pace back with great pass catching skills. Too bad he can never stay healthy enough to display those. Grade = C+

2a Keiwan Ratliff CB Florida 49*** - I think many felt this was a bit of a reach even in the 2nd round. But the Bengals secondary was in dire need of some new blood, and Ratliff seemed as good as any that were available. Ratliff hung on with the team longer than I thought he would though, serving mostly as a Nickle back for years, finally was cut before the 2007 season. Grade = D

2b Madieu Williams S Maryland 56*** - If you remember, the Bengals had this 2nd choice in round 2 thanks to their deal with the Pats for Corey Dillon. When they took Madieu, I was pretty happy with the pick, and he was impressive as a rookie. Injuries marred his season in 2005 and again last year, but he was an absolute stud in 2006(90 tackles, 13 pass break-ups, two forced fumbles, and three interceptions.). He signed this offseason with Minnesota, and if healthy could easily return to 06′ form for a good Vikes Defense. Grade = B+

3a Caleb Miller LB Arkansas 80 - I still don’t think there was any reason to get Miller at this point. While he has stuck with the team and even contributed at times, he has always been very undersized as a LB. At the time I thought he was a career special teamer but he has even started for Cincinnati at times, mostly by default. Grade = C-

3b Landon Johnson LB Purdue 96*** - Not many LB’s have been as consistent as Landon was during his years here in Cincinnati. He always had a knack for the ball and as a result recorded over 100 tackles in each of the last two years. Johnson was the most consistent performer on bad defenses, and signed a free agent deal with Carolina this past offseason. We will be able to see him in a different light this year on a more talented D and see if he stands out the way he did here in Cincy. Grade = B+

4a Matthias Askew DT Michigan St. 114*** - This seemed like a steal at the time, as Askew was projected as a possible first rounder had he stayed in school at Michigan St. for his senior year. He was mostly dissapointing though as a Bengals, and was cut in 2006 after resisting arrest. Askew was signed by the Redskins in 2007, but was cut not long after and spent last year out of football. Grade= D

4b Robert Geathers DE Georgia 117 - The nephew of Jumpy Geathers was probably the best pick in the 2004 draft for the Bengals. Coming in at 117th overall, Geathers quickly became one of the best pass rushers on the team and totalled 10.5 sacks in 2006. Geathers spent some time at LB last season with the team banged up, but returns to DE this year, great pick that has still not realized his full potential. Grade = A

4c Stacy Andrews T Mississippi 123 - A high risk, high reward pick late in the fourth round brought Andrews to Cincinnati. Andrews was and still is a massive physical specimen. Coming in at 6′7″ and 350 pounds, but had only one year of college experience before being drafted. It took some time for Andrews to develop, but he finally nailed down a starting spot for the Bengals last season and in early 2008 had the one-year franchise tag smacked on him by Cincinnati. The Bengals will likely sign him to a long term deal before the 2008 season begins. This turned out to be a great risk. Grade= A-

5 Maurice Mann WR Nevada 149 ***- Mann was a special teamer with some athletic ability that the Bengals hoped could develop into a decent backup receiver or special teamer. However, he turned into a football journeyman, and has played for Cincinnati, Cleveland(twice), Minnesota, Washington, Miami, Seattle and even did a stint in the CFL. Grade = C-

6 Greg Brooks CB Southern Mississippi 183*** - Backup DB Brooks played parts of two seasons for the Bengals in 2005 and 2006 and was then cut and never hooked on with another team. Hard to judge a late pick like this too strictly though. Grade = C-

7 Casey Bramlet QB Wyoming 218*** - I always thought Bramlet was a good career backup and nice fit in this offense. He showed some skills in the pre-season with Cincinnati but never got a change behind Palmer and Kitna. After the Bengals released him, he went to play in NFL Europe with the Hamburg Sea Devils, and then returned to the NFL in a backup role with Washington, was cut, then jumped to Atlanta and is currently on the Miami roster. Grade = C

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So, although it is way too early, here are my predictions for these games, which at this point should be taken with a grain of salt, of course…..

Sun. Sept. 7, at Baltimore, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Sept. 14, TENNESSEE, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Sept. 21, at N.Y. Giants, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Sept. 28, CLEVELAND, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Oct. 5, at Dallas, 4:15 p.m. (L)
Sun. Oct. 12, at N.Y. Jets, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Oct. 19, PITTSBURGH, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Oct. 26, (BYE)
Sun. Nov. 2, JACKSONVILLE, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Nov. 9, at Houston, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Nov. 16, PHILADELPHIA, 1 p.m. (L)
Thurs. Nov. 20, at Pittsburgh, 8:15 p.m. (L)
Sun. Nov. 30, BALTIMORE, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Dec. 7, at Indianapolis, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Dec. 14, WASHINGTON, 1 p.m. (W)
Sun. Dec. 21, at Cleveland, 1 p.m. (L)
Sun. Dec. 28, KANSAS CITY, 1 p.m. (W)

Oops, it’s 7-9 again? Well, I think it is possible. I know there is a swing of 2 games I am feeling here, hopefully on the up-tick, but 7-9 would not surprise anyone I don’t think. Also, no primetime games this year for Cincinnati, also not a surprise.

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Aug. 11 (Monday Night) @ Green Bay Packers8 p.m.
Aug. 17 (Sunday) home vs. Detroit Lions 7:35 p.m.
Aug. 23 (Saturday) New Orleans 7:35 p.m.
Aug. 28 (Thursday) @ Indianapolis 7 p.m.

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1 Carson Palmer QB Southern California 1 - The first pick in the Marvin Lewis era was one of the more obvious choices, still, #1 does not always work out, and we as Bengal fans know that very well. Palmer arguably has been great thus far and has a ceiling that has not yet been reached. Overall this obvious choice was a great one for the franchise.

2 Eric Steinbach G Iowa 33 - Stienbach was one of the anchors of the Bengals line for years and although he left via free agency before the 2007 season, this was a perfect fit. The only issue being that he is gone honestly, and the Bengals instead chose to re-sign aging Willie Anderson rather than get Steinbach. He went to the Pro Bowl last season as a Brown.

3 Kelley Washington WR Tennessee 65 - Washington came out as a fairly higly touted WR from UT. He was drafted to compliment Chad Johnson, who was beginning to emerge at the time. It turned out though, that TJ was the compliment to Chad and Washington not much more than a role player. Last season he was a Patriot and was mostly used on special teams. Not a great pick overall for the Bengals, but still played a role while he was here.

4a Dennis Weathersby CB Oregon St. 98 - Horrible luck does not begin to describe Weathersby. He was projected to be a first or second round pick during the combines, only to be shot weeks before the draft after being mistaken as a gang member. The Bengals probably thought they were getting a steal with this pick getting him in the 4th, but the big “what if” was whether or not he would return healthy or not. He only played 4 games once healthy in his rookie season before he got into a car accident that put him in a coma in April of 2004. He did recover, but has never and will never play football again. The Bengals cut him in 2005.

4b Jeremi Johnson FB Western Kentucky 118 - The Bengals really made a nice choice here in our opinion. Coming from Western Kentucky, he was a bit of a hometown choice and has been one of the more underrated FB in the NFL since he got drafted in our opinion. Johnson has led the way for some great seasons from Rudi Johnson and is still a Bengal constant 5 years later.

5 Khalid Abdullah LB Mars Hill 136 - Spent limited time on the team in 2003, totaling 10 career tackles, Abdullah later went on to play for the Calgary Stampeders in the CFL. Nothing to see here.

6 Langston Moore DT South Carolina 174 - Contributed a bit for the Bengals in 2004, with 31 tackles and a sack. They parted ways with him the next season, and he has spent time with Arizona and is currently a Detroit Lion. A career backup.

7a Scott Kooistra T North Carolina St. 215 - Another career backup, but a solid contributor off the bench and is one of only a few still on the Bengals roster from this draft. You would have to say this was a good pick for as late as they got him, and although not a great player, he has exceeded expectations relative to his round and pick. Kooistra was tendered a 3 year deal with the Bengals in 2007 keeping him in Cincinnati through the 2009 season.

7b Elton Patterson DE Central Florida 259 - Not much to say here either. Patterson spent some time with the Bengals in 2004, and with Jacksonville since, but another pick that means nothing.

So how would you grade this draft 5 years later? I would give it a solid B myself, but without the no brainer choice of Palmer, I think it drops off to a C-. The only real quality still on the roster contributing is Johnson, even though they got some good years out of Stienbach. What are your thoughts?

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Odom recorded a personal best 8 sacks last season, and had previously never had more than 2 in a NFL season. Odom was the 57th overall pick by the Titans in 2004 out of the University of Alabama. He will replace Justin Smith on the end and should be a good compliment to Robert Geathers.

Now, for the skeptical Bengal fan inside me. Is this guy that good? Or did he just capitalize on …..

1. Playing alongside one of the best DL in the game, Albert Haynesworth
2. Getting 2 of his career high 8 sacks in the final week against the Colts, which was a throwaway game for Indy
3. Starting all his games last season for the first time in his short career

Obviously, if the Bengals can snag Dwayne Robertson as well, these points might not be as valid, and maybe the kid just had a breakout year, but count me as skeptical right now. And it looks like the Robertson deal was botched as well…..

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