Bengals Beat: 50 Years After The 1974 Draft, Dreaming Of That ‘Perfect’ Draft for Bengals

CINCINNATI — There are average draft classes that add some pieces to an NFL roster, and perhaps add a starter or two.

There are good drafts that add quality pieces and depth to an already competitive roster. There are great drafts that overnight turn a mediocre roster into a contender.

Then there is the 1974 draft.

This is the 50th anniversary of what is widely considered the great addition of talent to one team in the history of the NFL selection program.

The Pittsburgh Steelers had twice been to the playoffs in 1972 (Immaculate Reception year) and 1973. They were building something with names like Joe Greene, Terry Bradshaw, Mike Wagner, Jack Ham and Mel Blount and Franco Harris.

But over two nights, Jan. 29-30, 1974, a great Steelers team acquired pieces that would immediately transform into the team of the 1970s and one of the greatest NFL teams ever assembled.

The Steelers opened their draft by selecting receiver Lynn Swann in the first round (21st overall). They followed with linebacker Jack Lambert out of Kent State in the second, receiver John Stallworth in the fourth and center Mike Webster in the fifth.

Those four picks not only started for the Steelers on their first Super Bowl champion team, they wound up in Canton in the Hall of Fame.

A fifth player, safety Donnie Shell, wasn’t even drafted in a selection program that included 17 rounds. Nevertheless, the Steelers signed him as a free agent. He became the fifth player from the class to be enshrined in Canton.

The Steelers had 21 picks that year. They only needed to hit on a handful. But boy, did they.

Fifty years ago there obviously wasn’t the voluminous data and video and film on every college player there is today.

Imagine for a moment what would a draft like that would do to the Bengals, who like the Steelers in Jan. 1974 had never hoisted a Vince Lombardi trophy before those fateful two days.

The Bengals have their franchise quarterback. They have a generational receiver in Ja’Marr Chase. They have another Pro Bowl-caliber receiver in Tee Higgins for at least another season. They have the offensive line. They have a rock solid linebacker, two terrific edge rushers, a talented young corner, one of the best slot corners in the game and they rebuilt their safety room.

But add one, two or (dare to dream) three solid starter-caliber players, and you’re talking about greatness for the next five years, which in this decade is like 10 back in 1974.

With that in mind, here’s my one and only mock for Thursday through Saturday in Detroit. The Bengals have 10 picks (for now).

1 (18): J.C. Latham – OT – Alabama – one Alabama OT replaces another. Consensus first-rounder.

2 (49): Ladd McConkey – WR – Georgia – Can never have enough clutch playmaking receivers.

3 (80): Mike Hall Jr. – DT – Ohio State – Bengals get an athletic man in middle of DL.

3 (97 comp): Kamari Lassiter – CB – Georgia – SEC tested.

4 (115): T’Vondre Sweat – DT – Texas – First-round talent falls to fourth and into Bengals laps.

5 (149): Zak Zinter – OG – Michigan – Interior line depth.

6 (194): Steele Chambers – LB – Ohio State – The name, how could Bengals pass at this point?

6 (214 comp): Kalen King – CB – Penn State – Secondary depth from a big school.

7 (224): Jaylen Harrell – EDGE – Michigan – 9 sacks in ’23, impact in Big10 and CFP playoffs.

7 (237 comp): Daijun Edwards – RB – Georgia – Could battle for playing time on special teams.

It’s important for all teams not to have preconceived notions of a player and keep an open mind heading into the most important weekend on the player development calendar.

“It’s huge. I think a lot of times people going with preconceived notions, maybe saw the guy on TV or you heard what his coach said about him, but you have to watch the film. That’s the most important part of it,” Bengals director of college scouting Mike Potts told me Tuesday. “I mean, no matter what the measurements are, no matter what the medical, the character, how fast of a 40-time they ran. That’s what you have to go to, is go to the tape. And if you don’t go to the tape with an open mind in your evaluation, then you’re probably going to be off a little bit in terms of where the guy’s value needs to be on our final board. And again, that’s what’s most important.”

The Bengals take pride in getting the most out of their scouting department, long regarded around the league as minimal in number but large in stature. Potts said Tuesday that with all scouts local to Cincinnati and the Southwest Ohio area, internal communication is strong.

But the biggest thing is putting as many eyes on a player as possible, be it live or on tape.

“I think seeing a guy live gives you more conviction, for sure,” Potts added. “Once you see him move around, just see the explosiveness in their movements in person. Their bend, flexibility, quickness (and) just sheer size, height, length, all those things. That gives you more conviction on the player. But again, the the film is, for sure, the most important. How the guy plays football, and we try to study at least four or five games at a minimum on all these guys. And a lot of these guys have built up a lot of resume in the in terms of their tape over time. And yeah, seeing them live is very helpful, but how they play on tape is, for sure, the most important.”

With so much focus on the depth of this draft at offensive tackle, Orlando Brown Jr. is someone with a vested interest in who the Bengals might take in the first round.

“I’m a certain style of tackle myself,” Brown said. “Guys like Trent (Brown) are a certain style of tackle. Seems like in this draft you’ve got the pick of the litter, in terms of what you’re looking for, what you want.”

Brown will be – like the rest of us – watching closely starting Thursday night.