The Trouble with Corey Dillon and Bengals' Ring of Honor

So former Cincinnati running back Corey Dillon is unhappy. Again. Nothing new there.

The running back who once said he’d “rather flip burgers” than play for Mike Brown and who threw his helmet, pads and cleats into the stands after his last game with the Bengals, is outraged that he’s not in the Bengals’ Ring of Honor … and said as much this week.

“It’s damn-near criminal,” he told The Athletic’s Paul Dehner Jr. “This ain’t a popularity contest. This is football.”

Oddly enough, I agree with him … to a point.

As Cincinnati’s all-time leading rusher, Dillon is one of the most illustrious players in franchise history. In 1997, he broke Jim Brown’s rookie rushing record that stood for 40 years when he ran for 246 yards (and scored four times). Three years later, he broke Walter Payton’s single-game rushing record when he ran for 278 yards vs. Denver.

In his first six NFL seasons, all with the Bengals, he never had fewer than 1,100 yards rushing, averaging 4.4 yards a carry and 80 yards a game. When he finished, he’d won a Super Bowl with New England, had been a four-time Pro Bowler and rushed for 11,241 yards, averaging 4.3 yards per carry.

Yet he’s not in the Bengals’ Ring of Honor, and he’s furious.

“I’m not one of those borderline guys sitting on my ass reminiscing,” he said, “talking about “Oh, if I had this, coulda … should … woulda. No, I’m justified.”

No argument there.

But Ken Anderson, Anthony Munoz, Ken Riley, Isaac Curtis and Willie Anderson – all of whom are in the Bengals’ Ring of Honor -- are “justified,” too. Ken Anderson was a league MVP who led the Bengals to a Super Bowl, and Munoz was one of the greatest tackles of all time. Riley will join Munoz in the Pro Football Hall of Fame next month … Curtis was a three-time All-Pro who was so fast he averaged 17.1 yards per catch and forced the league to invoke “The Isaac Curtis Rule” (go ahead and look it up) … and Willie Anderson was a four-time All-Pro and a Hall-of-Fame finalist the past two years.

So which of those five does Dillon think he should’ve superseded?

Second, when he said “this ain’t a popularity contest,” he’s right. It shouldn’t be. Except it is. The Bengals have fans … their season-ticket members and suite holders … determine who’s in and who’s not by voting on the Ring of Honor – which means they’ll support the players they like. I don’t care if you’re good with that or not. That’s the way it is.

So why, then, would voters support a guy who couldn’t wait to get out of town and torched ownership before he did?

Yes, Dillon was a marvelous player, one of the most productive in Bengals’ history. His numbers prove it. But he was a pain in the keister, too, who seems to be suffering from amnesia. When he emptied his gear into the stands following his last game with Cincinnati, he delivered a message to the team and its fans that goes something like this.

Good.

Riddance.

Well, fans heard him. And they haven’t forgotten, though Dillon apparently has. Nevertheless, Dillon is one of 13 former players on the ballot for the Bengals’ Class of 2023 Ring of Honor, with two elected. Normally, I’d say Dillon might be one of them.Now I’m not so sure.

Because now he’s poked the hornet’s nest.

“I want it all,” Dillon told The Athletic. “I’m coming for it all. You know why? Because I earned it.”

He’s right about that, too. But he also earned a reputation as a very unhappy camper. He said it was because he wanted to win so much. Maybe. But doesn’t almost everyone who plays pro sports? Dillon made it clear he didn’t like it in Cincinnati and wanted out. So he left.

Now he wants back in.

So, let’s see if we have this straight: Two decades after torching management, rebuffing then-coach Marvin Lewis’ plea to have him take more of a leadership role and pushing for a trade, Corey Dillon demands that the Bengals – no, their fans – embrace him as one of the team’s greatest in a profanity-laced rant? You can't make this stuff up.

“I’m pretty sure they will put f—king Jon Kitna in there before they put me,:” he told The Athletic. “Matter of fact, Scott Mitchell will end up in that m-----f---er” before I do.”

Maybe. But don’t blame the voters. Blame the system.

And that’s where Dillon has a point. Fans shouldn’t make this decision alone. They can help, but others should be involved, too. The New England Patriots, for instance, have a Hall of Fame committee of media, staff and Patriots’ alumni that chooses three candidates for election before passing them on to fans. Their vote comprises a large percentage of the final result, but not all of it. Furthermore, the club periodically has a senior committee nominate a former Patriot who’s been out of the game 25 or more years, much like the Pro Football Hall of Fame.

That process seems reasonable. However, it’s not what’s happening in Cincinnati. A “popularity contest” is, and Dillon shouldn’t be surprised he’s not the people’s choice. Popularity contests are – by definition -- about more than numbers. They’re about likeability, too, and Corey Dillon’s behavior was easy to dislike.

“The guy left here with some major issues,” said a long-time member of the Cincinnati media, “and now, 20 years later, he unprovoked revisits them. He clearly doesn’t get it.”

There’s a lot about Corey Dillon to like. But there’s plenty not to like, too. He should remember that the next time he wonders why he hasn’t yet been honored by a franchise he couldn’t wait to leave and an owner he couldn't wait to trash.