By Mark Curnutte
The Cincinnati Enquirer

Maybe not during the 2004 season but probably by 2005, the draft class assembled today and Sunday by the Bengals could be the one that finally tips the scale to a winning record.

For 13 years, an eternity in this day and age of the NFL, the Bengals have failed to post a winning record and make the playoffs.

In years to come, Bengals fans easily could look back at the 2004 draft and say it was the best in franchise history. Two forces have converged to make it a potentially milestone draft: The class is deep at several positions, and the Bengals have a lot of meaningful picks. They've acquired three - one in each the second, third and fourth rounds - in the past month.

The Bengals have five of the first 96 picks and seven of the first 117.

Oregon State's Steven Jackson could form a new running back tandem with the Bengals' Rudi Johnson, now that Corey Dillon's gone. (AP/file photo)

"With a total of seven picks now in the first four rounds, we're in a position to improve ourselves significantly," Bengals coach Marvin Lewis said after the trade of disgruntled running back Corey Dillon gave them New England's second-rounder, 56th overall.

The total of 10 picks overall this year is the franchise's highest since 1992, when the draft went 12 rounds instead of the current seven.

The Bengals have not had as many as seven picks in the first four rounds since 1986, when they had eight. It all starts with No. 24.

"We have an opportunity to pick a player who is going to come in here and help us win football games next year," is about all Lewis will allow when asked about the first-round pick.

Lewis has gone on to list every position but quarterback as one of need. The first-rounder might be a cornerback - probably the Bengals' position of greatest need. Ohio State's Chris Gamble is a possibility if he's still available. Southern California's Will Poole, though not among the top three corner prospects, could be an immediate starter if necessary.

Don't be surprised if the Bengals package one of their second- or third-round picks to move up from 24 overall to get running backs Kevin Jones or Steven Jackson (way up). Top cornerback DeAngelo Hall will be long gone, but a move up 10 slots might get South Carolina cornerback Dunta Robinson.

Depending on what happens in the top 10 picks with quarterback Eli Manning and left tackle Robert Gallery, several teams - Detroit, the Jets, San Francisco and New Orleans - might want to trade down.

Cornerback and running back might be Nos. 1 and 2 on the Bengals' possibility list.

There's always a position that creates a buzz. Last year it was defensive tackle; six went in the first round, pushing one of the draft's top offensive linemen, Eric Steinbach, to the Bengals at the top of the second.

The buzz position this year is wide receiver, and as many as eight could go in the first 32 picks. A group of receivers could drop a top cornerback or running back to the Bengals. Don't rule out a receiver at No. 24, either.

What the Bengals don't draft in Round 1, they're likely to go after in Rounds 2 and 3. If a corner is picked in the first round, and if they stay put at Nos. 49, 59, 80 and 96, look for an offensive lineman, running back and defensive tackle to come down the pike.

Keep these names in mind: center Jake Grove of Virginia Tech, wide receiver Devery Henderson of LSU, running backs Julius Jones of Notre Dame and Cedric Cobbs of Arkansas, and defensive tackles Randy Starks of Maryland and Dwan Edwards of Oregon State. By the end of today, one or more could be Bengals.

Current Bengals players will be watching with interest.

"I'm definitely excited by that," right guard Willie Anderson said of the team's accumulation of first-day draft picks. "We're going to get some talented rookies."

NFL DRAFT

What: 69th Annual National Football League Player Selection Meeting

Where: The Theater at Madison Square Garden, New York

When: Begins at noon today (Rounds 1-3), ending at approximately 10 p.m.

Rounds 4-7 will begin Sunday at 11 a.m. and end at about 6 p.m.

On the clock: Barring a trade, the Bengals will make the 24th overall pick sometime between 3 p.m. and 4 p.m.

Ten times

The Bengals have 10 picks:

No. 24 overall in the first round (from Denver);

Nos. 49 and No. 56 (from New England for Corey Dillon) in the second round;

Nos. 80 and 96 (NFL compensatory) in the third round;

Nos. 114 and 117 (from Denver) in the fourth round;

No. 149 in the fifth round;

No. 183 in the sixth round; and

No. 218 in the seventh round.

Compensatory picks awarded other teams pushed back the Bengals' four original second-day picks (all except No. 117).

In New York

Miami University quarterback Ben Roethlisberger will be one of six players at Madison Square Garden today. The others will be Iowa tackle Robert Gallery, Virginia Tech cornerback DeAngelo Hall, Mississippi quarterback Eli Manning, Texas wide receiver Roy Williams and Miami (Fla.) tight end Kellen Winslow Jr.

On the air

Today: ESPN will carry the draft from noon to 7 p.m., when ESPN2 will pick up coverage through the end of Round 3.

Sunday: ESPN will be on the air from 11:00 a.m.-1 p.m., when coverage again will switch to ESPN2 for the remainder of the draft.

Local draft hopefuls

Some draft eligible players from local high schools worth watching, especially Sunday:

Name	Pos.	College	High School	Projected round
Jared Lorenzen	QB	Kentucky	Highlands	5-6 (10th-ranked QB)
Brandon Miree	RB	Pittsburgh	Winton Woods	6-7 (20th-ranked RB)
B.J. Sander	P	Ohio State	Roger Bacon	6-7 (First-ranked P)
Jon Schall	G	Pittsburgh	Turpin	Projected to sign after the draft as a rookie free agent

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E-mail mcurnutte@enquirer.com

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