After last week’s release of their former rookie standout linebacker, Odell Thurman, the Bengals have now officially come full-circle from one of the worst drafts in NFL history.

In 2005, the Bengals drafted a trio of ultra-talented players. Going in the first round was a small, but relentless defensive end in David Pollack out of Georgia who had an amazing finish to his career there. In the second round was talented, yet troubled linebacker Odell Thurman. Also out of Georgia. Finally, with their last pick on the first day the Bengals took also troubled, yet also talented Chris Henry, a wide receiver out of “by God” West Virginia. People were not sure whether the Bengals gamble to go with pure talent over some questionable character concerns would pay off.
That season, in 2005, the Bengals gamble did, in fact, seem to be paying off. All three players played well throughout rookie minicamps and earned a roster spot. Pollack would even earn his way into the starting rotation for the opening game of the regular season. This is where things took a first tragic, then drastic turn and the now downward spiral of the Cincinnati Bengals would continue to spin uncontrollably until just last week.

For those who have not experienced what it is like to either grow up in Cincinnati or be a lifelong Bengals fan, let’s refresh:

It’s not as if this would be the first period of time in which Bengals fans felt completely hopeless and would wonder “why us”. It’s not exactly the first time those of us in the Queen City would have to again experience an extreme low point in the world of NFL football and our beloved, yet unbelievably terrible franchise. After all, we had been going through it non-stop for virtually 15 years. We were almost numb to the pain and anguish. A heartbreaking loss in the 1988 Super Bowl to the Joe Montana and the San Francisco 49ers surely gave the indication that the Bengals near future was doomed. The Bengals record the following year in 1989 was just 8-8 and the 1990's were a decade to forget with the franchise going 52-108 in that period of time. The Bengals would not come close to another run at the Super Bowl, let alone the playoffs until 2005, the rookie season for Pollack, Thurman, and Henry.

So here the Bengals are. Starting the 2005 season and there seems to be a quiet confidence around town that they’re actually talented enough to make it to the playoffs this time around. With Carson Palmer, Chad Johnson and the other explosive offense around them, a great draft under their belt and an improving defense that thrives on turnovers, the team seems poised to break through.

Finally.....Bengals fans will have something to look forward to.

Suddenly, things aren’t so bright. During the first game of the regular season, Pollack, the highly touted rookie defensive end who is already ready to make an impact at the next level goes down to the turf and is not getting up. A broken neck is the result and the team’s fans feel a slight break in their own hopes of what looks to be a bright season. Pollack loses his first, promising season in the NFL and what would ultimately be his career, as he is later forced to retire from the sport because of the horrific injury. “We know the quality of the person; he’s got such a bright future in whatever he does”...Marvin Lewis would later say about Pollack and his future. The Bengals still have reason to hope and celebrate, however, as the team finishes the 2005 season by winning the AFC North title, their first in 15 years. Both Chris Henry and Odell Thurman live up to their talent and have outstanding rookie campaigns. Thurman would even be considered a candidate for defensive rookie of the year in the NFL. Snap!.....with one swift move of big defensive tackle Kimo von Oelhoffen into the knee of QB Carson Palmer on the very first series of 2005's divisional playoff game (the Bengals first in 15 years) versus the Pittsburgh Steelers, the hopes of Bengals fans everywhere were once again crushed. The Bengals went on to lose the game and the next couple of seasons would see a decline in what looked to be an improving Cincinnati Bengals franchise.

Over the next two seasons, the Bengals would see a rise in off the field troubles and a fall in production on the field aside from Carson Palmer and his dual-threat receiving corps of Chad Johnson and T.J. Houshmanzadeh. Not only did the Bengals not have Pollack any longer, but the rest of the trio, Odell Thurman and Chris Henry seemed to be making bigger news off of the field than on it, despite their remarkable rookie seasons. Henry was arrested on four occasions from December of 2005 to June of 2006 and would later be suspended for the first 8 games of 2007 for more arrests. On top of that, Thurman would be disciplined for violating the league’s substance-abuse policy and be removed from the league for all of 2006 and 2007.

If the recent 2008 draft is any indication, the Bengals do seem to be headed back in the right direction by drafting high character guys and quickly cutting ties with their problem children of the past. The franchise isn’t nearly as low as it once was in the 1990's, but they’d better act swiftly if they want to put some more W’s back in the win-loss column and less arrests in the off-the-field column. Because if they don’t, then it will truly be a waste of a talented and capable group of football players who have all the right pieces in place to be a playoff contender and are led by the ultimate gentleman in quarterback Carson Palmer.

And so it goes, the Bengals rollercoaster ride continues. From flashes of brilliance and some of the most talented prospects to come out of the college ranks to all-time lows and embarrasment. From a team that looked a couple of years ago like it was finally, finally going to catch a break and be on the upswing to now wondering if they will ever be a winning franchise.

Will we be able to count on our players to conduct themselves in a proper manner off the field? Will our star receiver be back for the upcoming season? Is our coach really making any of the personnel decisions here or just the clueless owner? Will one of the greatest offenses in NFL history all be for not because of arrests and poor management decisions? These are all glaring questions that the Cincinnati Bengals franchise will have to answer in the near future.....and ones that every Bengals fan out there will surely be asking, as well. Will this recent circle, which has now come to a close, just be another circle on a page already full of them? Or, will this be the last circle? Ultimately, that’s for the Cincinnati Bengals ownership and players to decide.