Ken Anderson (quarterback)

For other people with similar names, see Kenneth Anderson (disambiguation).

Ken Anderson
No. 14
Position:Quarterback
Personal information
Born: (1949-02-15) February 15, 1949 (age 75)
Batavia, Illinois, U.S.
Height:6 ft 2 in (1.88 m)
Weight:212 lb (96 kg)
Career information
High school:Batavia
College:Augustana (IL) (1967–1970)
NFL draft:1971 / round: 3 / pick: 67
Career history
As a player:
As a coach:
Career highlights and awards
As a player
As a coach
Career NFL statistics
Passing attempts:4,475
Passing completions:2,654
Completion percentage:59.3%
TD–INT:197–160
Passing yards:32,838
Passer rating:81.9
Stats at Pro Football Reference
Record at Pro Football Reference

Kenneth Allan Anderson (born February 15, 1949) is an American former professional football quarterback who played in the National Football League (NFL), spending his entire career with the Cincinnati Bengals. He later returned as a position coach.

After playing college football for the Augustana Vikings, Anderson was selected in the third round of the 1971 NFL draft by the Bengals. Over the course of his 16-season NFL career, Anderson led the league in passer rating four times, completion percentage three times and passing yards twice.[1][2][3] In 1981, he was awarded NFL Most Valuable Player and NFL Offensive Player of the Year, a season in which he led the Bengals to their first Super Bowl appearance. In 1982, Anderson set an NFL record for completion percentage of 70.6%—which stood for over 25 years until broken by Drew Brees in 2009.[4]

As of the end of the 2022 NFL season, Anderson holds the Bengals franchise passing records in yards.[5]

After his professional playing career, Anderson served as a radio broadcaster for the Cincinnati Bengals from 1987 to 1993. From 1993 to 2002, he served as the Bengals quarterbacks coach and offensive coordinator. Anderson later became the quarterbacks coach for the Jacksonville Jaguars (2003–2006) and Pittsburgh Steelers (2007–2009), before retiring in 2010.

Anderson has been a finalist for the Pro Football Hall of Fame three times, and is often regarded as one of the best players not in the Hall of Fame.[6][7][8][9][10]

  1. ^ "NFL Passer Rating Year-By-Year Leaders". pro-football-reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  2. ^ "NFL Pass Completion % Year-by-Year Leaders". pro-football-reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  3. ^ "NFL Passing Yards Year-by-Year Leaders". pro-football-reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  4. ^ Martel, Brett (December 31, 2009). "Like Williams, Brees prefers to play for record". Associated Press in Seattle Times. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  5. ^ "Cincinnati Bengals Career Passing Leaders". pro-football-reference.com. Sports Reference. Retrieved April 22, 2022.
  6. ^ Byrne, Kerry (May 10, 2011). "Injustice in Canton: the Case for Ken Anderson". Cold Hard Football Facts. Pigskin Media Inc. Archived from the original on May 14, 2011. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  7. ^ Cite error: The named reference nfltop10nothof was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
  8. ^ Redemann, Joe (February 2, 2018). "10 Best NFL Players Not in the Hall of Fame". numberfire.com. numberFire, Inc. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  9. ^ Clemens, Jay (October 20, 2016). "Top 20 eligible NFL greats who aren't in the Hall of Fame". foxsports.com/south. Fox Sports Interactive Media, LLC. Retrieved January 7, 2019.
  10. ^ Heltman, Russ (August 23, 2023). "Ken Anderson not named senior finalist for Pro Football Hall of Fame". SI.com. Retrieved March 1, 2024.