Being a Cincinnati Bengals fan has never been easy. The NFL loved their stars in the 1970s even more than they do today. The Raiders DOMINATED Monday Night Football, schedule-wise and result-wise in the 1970s. If we saw the Bengals on MNF it was something to get nervous about all weekend. That was a part of my childhood.
Honestly, I never expected the Hall of Fame voters to EVER be smart enough to vote Ken Riley in. “The Rattler” was a Florida A&M Rattler quarterback in college. When the Bengals drafted him in 1969, Coach Paul Brown, yes, that Paul Brown to those who know their NFL history, told him he was going to play cornerback. Yes, Ken Riley was disappointed. He was also a pro. He wanted to play in the NFL. He did so from 1969 to 1983. Not many players in the NFL retire after a season that saw them earn ALL-PRO honors for their excellent prowess on the field. That is what Ken Riley did. He walked away from playing cornerback while he was the best.
Tough being a Bengal fan? Yes. Ken Riley is only the second Bengal to be enshrined in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. He joins ALL-WORLD tackle Anthony Munoz with that distinction. Ken Anderson has been overlooked by the Hall of Fame for years. The man led the NFL in passing four times running for his life behind a suspect line until Anthony Munoz came along in 1980. They made it to the Super Bowl after the 1981 season.
I remember Ken Riley well. He was a nice guy.
This past week I saw video footage of Joe Burrow, before he was recently injured, signing autographs. There was a modest barrier between him and the autograph seekers. The kids screaming and the adults pushing their kids forward made Burrow pause and tell them to calm down.
In 1977 at Bengals Training Camp at Wilmington College, I caught up with as many Cincinnati Bengals players as I could as they were walking from the practice field to the locker room. Ken Riley was one of them. No one was yelling. There were no boundaries. We were civil. “May I have your autograph?” was the question of the day. It would take a minute for me to dig out Ken Riley’s autograph. Trust me, I was there.
I was also in Clarksville one day when there was a RE-GRAND OPENING of the Kroger store on old 131 (now the Lewis and Clark Parkway). I don’t even think it was the weekend. At the time I was working across the street in the Greentree Mall. I’ve looked for the date. Can’t find it.
What I remember is Joe Klecko sitting at a table with a pile of these promo flats. He looked like the loneliest man in Clarksville. I went over and introduced myself. He rose to his feet and returned the favor with a smile on his face. And away we went. I began talking football with Joe Klecko for nearly half of an hour. He was affable and in no way pretentious. He was just a guy glad to find someone to talk football with. As fierce a pass rusher as he was and as much as I wanted to give him a knuckle sandwich for his Jets putting the Bengals out in the first round of the 1982 playoffs, he was just as much a good guy.
Like Ken Riley, Joe Klecko was inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame this weekend. One day I hope to see their busts in Canton. I have driven through Canton many times on the way to Cleveland and parts North. The day that place puts Ken Anderson in the Hall is the day I will stop. Just like it was for me and the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in Cleveland in 2018. The year The Moody Blues FINALLY made it I stopped in for the first time.
The Bengals got #13 in this year. Hope it will be #14 next year.
Speaking the rights.
Danny Johnson