Feels like a "B"

That's what I give the Bengals for the 2010 draft.

The 2009 draft got them back to the land of the living in the NFL. Now if they can just build on last year's success (Ray Maluaga, Michael Johnson, Bernard Scott, Morgan Trent).

The picks who I think will contribute right away -

Jermaine Gresham. The TE position is his to lose. He is the best threat we've had there since Rodney Holman in the '80's.

Carlos Dunlap. It was impossible not to notice this kid in Florida's games. Any guy who is 6'6" with his long arms and wingspan is just built to get after quarterbacks. He was inconsistent in college. But that is what Mike Zimmer does best as the Bengals defensive coordinator: he puts players in the best position possible to maximize their talent.

Jordan Shipley. This kid will be the third receiver on opening day. He might just be my favorite pick of their entire draft.

Geno Atkins. DT. Peko and Tank Johnson and Pat Sims helped the Bengals rank in the top five against the run. Atkins can help spell them.

The Bengals don't often get enough credit for their drafts. And some of that's justified because they've had some serious clunkers in the past (Akili Smith, Peter Warrick, Ka-Jana Carter, Reinard Wilson), but they've also found a lot of talent (Corey Dillon, Ochocinco, Darnay Scott, Carl Pickens, Justin Smith, Takeo Spikes).

Part of the problem surely is their past misfires and their losing records (thank you Mike Brown). But part of it is too that they rarely trade or move up. They just sit there and take the players that fall to them.

That's not sexy in the NFL. If they packaged picks and players and moved all over the place, Mel Kiper and the legions of critics would praise their work. But that doesn't always work. Jerry Jones crippled the Cowboys for years by thinking he was Jimmy Johnson and moving out of the first round and stock piling mid round picks. And it's no wonder they hadn't won a playoff game (until this year) since. The Eagles are another team who moves around a lot, but their drafts have been quite poor. Look at some of their first round and second round picks and you'll say, "Who?" For every Deshaun Jackson or Bryan Westbrook, there's a Freddie Mitchell, Ryan Moats, Trevor Laws, Winston Justice, and Matt McCoy. Not exactly household names. But the Eagles get a pass on this ineptitude for some reason.

Another team that has been worse at drafting than the Bengals is the New York Jets, yet they never seem to get made fun of the way the Bengals do. The Bengals get ridiculed for a minuscule scout department (Mike Brown is cheap and he asks his assistant coaches to do a lot of the scouting). The Jets have one of the largest scouting departments.

But line up any draft of the past 20 years, and the Jets will do no better than the Bengals. Yet, they get a pass on their failures too.

Another joke is the Patriots. If it weren't for free agency, the Pats would never have reached the success they did (Moss, Junior Seau, Mike Vrabel, Corey Dillon, Rodney Harrison . . .). And if you look closely at their drafts, they easily miss on just as many picks as they hit on.

Sure they nabbed Brady in the sixth round. And they've drafted very well when it comes to defensive linemen and offensive linemen. But when was the last time they hit it out of the park when it came to a running back or receiver or linebacker? Here's some name for you. Tell me how many Pro Bowls these guys have racked up - Chad Jackson (second round wide receiver), Dave Thomas (third round tight end), Marquise Hill (second round defensive end), Guss Scott (third round defensive back), Bethel Johnson (second round wide receiver), Jarvis Green (fourth round defensive end), Brock Williams (third round defensive back).

Now I know you will say that they gained a lot of picks and moved around to get the players they wanted. You miss on a lot but you also hit on a few (and it's undeniable that the Pats certainly hit on a few of their picks). But no one brings up the gaffes they made.

If it weren't for superior coaching and astute free agency, these drafts would be laughed at for the total number of quality starters they've yielded for the amount of picks spent.

Here's hoping the Bengals have reversed their fortunes when it comes to this.

Their best draft - 2001 - never gets enough credit. But how many teams can boast hitting on four Pro Bowl players? Justin Smith DE - first round (made the Pro Bowl this year - albeit for the 49ers). Chad Ochocinco WR - second round (a perennial Pro Bowler). Rudi Johnson RB - fourth round (a Pro Bowler in '05). Tj Houshmandzadeh (a Pro Bowler in '07). Not bad for production? And that draft was vital in getting them the division championship in 2005.

If they wouldn't have been snake bitten by the 2005 draft (David Pollack (out of the NFL after breaking his neck), Odell Thurman (out of the NFL after alcohol problems and a league suspension), Chris Henry (dead after finally getting his act together), Tab Perry (out of the NFL after suffering a hip injury). The only one left contributing is the seventh rounder Jonathan Fanene, who had a career year this year. But had any of those guys lived up to their potential, the Bengals would be a far different team.

The Bengals rebounded, though, with the 2006 draft, nabbing what could be three Pro Bowlers. Jonathan Joseph (first round corner back) who played as well as any defensive back in the AFC not named Derrelle Revis. Andrew Whitworth (second round offensive tackle) who shut out every pass rusher in the AFC North and Jared Allen of the NFC North this year. And finally Domato Peko (fourth round defensive tackle) who was the best run stuffing tackle in the AFC this year. If they Bengals win the AFC North again, pencil these three in to the Pro Bowl.

Add those guys to the crop from last year's draft, and the Bengals could be building something special.