What Cincinnati Bengals Should Be in the Hall of Fame?

In two months, two exciting events will have taken place.  One, the New England Patriots will have won another Super Bowl, although I'm personally hoping for a Packers or Cowboys upset, and, two, the 2008 Hall of Fame class will have been announced.

 The annual announcement of Hall of Fame inductees is always a touchy subject for Cincinnati Bengals fans.  There is only one full fledged Cincinnati Bengals player in Canton--the great Anthony Munoz.  Fans suggest many other Bengals legends should be similarly enshrined, such as receiver Isaac Curtis, defensive back Ken Riley, and quarterbacks Ken Anderson and Boomer Esiason.

The debate becomes heated on Bengals fans' websites over which quarterback deserves enshrinement more--Boomer or Kenny.  Both are local legends.  Both represent two seperate Golden Ages of Bengals' history.  Both led the Bengals to a Super Bowl appearance with both losing.

 Most Bengals fans believe Kenny Anderson should go in first.  Granted, he was the first great quarterback in team history.  A look at the numbers may, objectively, lead to a different conclusion.

Anderson played his entire sixteen season career with the Bengals.  He finished his career with 32,838 yards passing (twenty-third all time), 197 career touchdowns (twenty-eighth all time), and a completion percentage of 59.3 percent.  He is two and four in the post-season and played in four Pro Bowls.

Boomer Esiason, on the other hand, played fourteen seasons, twelve with the Bengals, three with the Jets and one with the Cardinals.  He threw for 37,920 yards (thirteenth all time), 247 touchdowns (fourteenth all time), and a completion percentage of 57.0.  His record in the post-season is three and two and also played in four Pro Bowls.

Ken Anderson is a franchise folk-hero because he led the Bengals to its first Super Bowl appearance.  He was always regarded as a very accurate passer in the league.  He walked the border between an A- rated quarterback and a B+ rated quarterback.  Boomer Esiason accomplished the same things Anderson did in terms of Super Bowl and Pro Bowl appearances in two fewer seasons.  While I would never argue either should be excluded from Canton, if either go it, Esiason gets the nod first.