Former Bengals RB Corey Dillon unloads on team, NFL for omission from Ring of Honor, Pro Football Hall of Fame

Corey Dillon is one of the best running backs in the history of the Cincinnati Bengals. However, you won’t find him in the team’s Ring of Honor or in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. That, it seems, is bothering Dillon in his retirement.

While speaking to Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic, Corey Dillon went on a truly epic rant over those omissions, saying that they are near criminal.

“You know the f***ery that’s going on,” Dillon said. “We can shoot this straight. That’s the only way I like it.”

The Bengals Ring of Honor is chosen by a vote from season ticket holders. Dillon is mad that he hasn’t been selected and is looking for a reason why, as he is deserving when looking at the on-field success that he had.

Statistically, Corey Dillon is one of the great running backs of his time. His 11,241 career rushing yards are 20th all-time. That’s more than OJ Simpson, Earl Campbell, and Larry Csonka among other Hall of Fame running backs. His 82 rushing touchdowns are 18th in NFL history, again ahead of several Hall of Famers. His 4.3 yards per rushing attempt are comparable to Marshall Faulk and LaDainian Tomlinson among others.

“It’s d***-near criminal, what [voters] are pulling off, to be honest with you. Did I not play for them? I don’t know, bro. I’m curious about that. Because it looks like they are glossing over me. For what reason? Because I left? That’s not a good enough reason. You are telling me there’s five other guys better than me — at my position? And trust me, this is no knock on whoever is getting in, who goes in, that’s not what it is about. It’s about what is your excuse going to be? I’m pretty sure they will put f****** Jon Kitna in there before they put me. Matter of fact, Scott Mitchell will end up in that motherf***** before I do.”

Corey Dillon suggested that letting fans vote is a problem and that it should be decided by team officials, who would be less emotional in their decisions.

Beyond the Ring of Honor, Dillon said that he feels he earned the right to not just be in the Ring of Honor, but the Pro Football Hall of Fame too.

“I want it all. I am coming for it all. You know why? Because I earned it. I’m not one of these borderline guys sitting on my a** reminiscing, talking about, ‘Oh, if I had this, shoulda, coulda, woulda.’ No. I’m justified,” Dillon said

“That’s why I resurfaced, man. Because there has been a lot of wrong that needs to be un-wronged. Nobody gets this. I don’t want to get into people’s personal business, but there are a lot of Hall of Famers that did far more worse s*** than I did. We can cancel out that excuse. There is no excuse for that.”

One reason why Dillon thinks he’s being passed by is his list of off-field incidents. Those include two arrests, once for a DUI and once for spousal abuse. The DUI charge would later be downgraded to reckless driving and the assault charge was later dropped entirely.

Another reason that Corey Dillon feels like he’s overlooked, especially by Cincinnati fans, is that he left for the New England Patriots, where he won a Super Bowl. He’s a member of New England’s All-2000s team but feels they’ve overlooked him too.

“Don’t make this a Cincinnati thing, because I’m about to get on the Pats’ a**, too. It’s coming. I’m coming for it all. Give it to me while I’m breathing. If anybody wants to disagree, just go look at the f****** numbers and have a Coke and a smile.”

Toward the end of the rant, Dehner asked if Corey Dillon wanted these thoughts out there. He emphatically did.

“Man, you can quote me word-for-f***ing-word,” Dillon said. “Print it. Because nobody gets this s***. I want it exactly how I told you. No spins. No nothing.”