Zac Taylor recalls how Bengals made one of their most important NFL Draft picks in recent memory

When the story of the 2021 Cincinnati Bengals team is told years from now, kicker Evan McPherson will get his own chapter.

McPherson came in as a rookie that season and kicked his way into the hearts of every Bengals fan. He was responsible for several game-winner boots, including two in the playoffs alone.

The story of when the Bengals decided to draft McPherson is now known as well, thanks to head coach Zac Taylor.

Taylor began his latest press conference Monday morning by sending his condolences to director of player personnel Duke Tobin and the Tobin family for the loss of Duke's father, Bill Tobin. The elder Tobin spent two decades scouting for the Bengals in multiple roles.

One of the last draft classes he worked on was in 2021, the year McPherson came into the league. Before the Bengals sent the pick in, Taylor recalled Tobin speaking up and supporting the pick right before his son made it official. 

"We were on the clock with the fifth [round] pick in the 2021 draft, and we were talking about Evan McPherson," Taylor said. "And a voice in the back of the room spoke up and said, 'You know, in 1985 at the Bears, we we took a rookie kicker and we went to the Super Bowl and it worked out well for us.' And I just kinda remember there being a silence after that comment. And next thing I remember was Duke submitting the pick for Evan McPherson."

Tobin's anecdote of his Chicago Bears drafting kicker Kevin Butler in the fourth round of the 1985 draft was the final push towards making McPherson a Bengals draftee. Butler was also far from a bust. He ended up playing 13 years in the league with 11 as a Bear. 

There's probably dozens of other examples of Tobin making his case heard in the war room, but not many resulted in helping draft a player that was a part of a Super Bowl run. Taylor and Co. were lockstep with one of the most experienced football minds in the war room at the time. 

"I think we were leaning that way anyway, but that comment always resonated with me, and he was obviously making his voice heard in that moment," Taylor said. "And, next thing you know, Duke's putting in Evan's name and that's probably where Duke was headed anyway, but it's always good to have that last piece of advice."