future NBA announcer Craig Sager. Professional career After playing for and graduating from Augustana College in Rock Island, Illinois, he was selected 67th overall in the 1971 NFL Draft by the Cincinnati Bengals, where he would soon become noted for his short-range passes and running. Anderson made four starts in the 1971 season while playing in seven other games (Virgil Carter was the primary quarterback) in a year where the Bengals fell off from a productive previous year. He rushed for 125 yards on 22 total carries for one touchdown while being sacked 23 times. However, Anderson was given more reins in 1972, going 7-6 as a starter with 1,918 yards for seven touchdowns and interceptions while having a 56.8 completion percentage. With 22 carries, he also ran for 94 yards and three touchdowns while fumbling it five times and being sacked eighteen times. The Bengals started 5–2, but they only won three of their next seven to miss the playoffs. The next season proved better, as he went 10–4 as a starter and threw for 2,428 yards while having eighteen touchdowns to twelve interceptions and had a 54.4 completion percentage, with Anderson helping to lead them to the AFC Central Division title with a six-game winning streak. In the playoffs that year, they were tasked to play the defending champion Miami Dolphins in the Orange Bowl. Special teams helped negate a bad start on offense that meant the Bengals only trailed 21–16 at halftime. However, the Dolphins pressed the Bengals for thirteen unanswered points to win 34–16, aided by a running attack that ran for over 200 yards on Cincinnati's defense. Anderson went 14-of-27 for 113 yards and one interception. The following year was a muddled mess of success. Anderson threw for a league high in completions, completion percentage (64.9), yards (2,667) and passer rating (95.7) while going for eighteen touchdowns to ten interceptions, but the Bengals went 7–6 in his thirteen starts. In 1975, Anderson had a great year. He threw a league high 3,169 yards while throwing for 21 touchdowns to eleven interceptions for a 60.5 completion percentage. He had league highs in yards gained per pass attempt, yards per game and passer rating while being named to his first Pro Bowl and leading the Bengals to a 10–3 record (John Reaves started and won a game without Anderson). One of the finest performances of his early