Stat of the Jay: A Grand Celebration Is in Store for ROH Finalist Dave Lapham in 2025

CINCINNATI – The hardest stat to dig up for the series of Cincinnati Bengals Ring of Honor finalists might be the most impressive.

Stats are hard to find for offensive linemen, especially those who played in the 1970s and 1980s.

But Dave Lapham is so much more than a former offensive lineman.

Lapham joined the Bengals as a third-round pick in 1974, and he’s still working with the team today as the radio analyst, a job he’s held since 1986.

This will be Lapham’s 50th season with the Bengals, and 40th as a broadcaster.

If you add up all of the preseason, regular season and postseason games during his time as a player (1974-83) and broadcaster (1986-present), it comes to 993.

That means Lapham will celebrate his 1,000th game with the Bengals this year in Week 4 at Denver.

Previous Ring of Honor Stat of the Jays

Jim Breech's lengthy streak
James Brooks' double dose of dominance
Cris Collinsworth's rare rookie season
David Fulcher's NFL interception records

Lapham only has missed one game during his 39 years in the booth – a 2021 preseason contest at Washington due to Covid close-contact protocols.

And by his own estimate, Lapham missed “no more than five” road games when he didn’t travel due to injury during his playing days.

So it will be sometime later in the season when he reaches 1,000 Bengals games he has witnessed in person, but that’s an inconsequential detail.

There also is the asterisk on the Buffalo game that was canceled due to the Damar Hamlin emergency. That game is not included in the 993 total due to the fact that it wasn't an official game.

But 1,000 games is a heck of a milestone any way you quantify it.

While the data doesn't exist, it's a good bet Lapham is one of a small number of people (and maybe the only one) who has worked with the same team for 1,000 games.

He is currently the longest tenured team radio analyst in the league. Tampa Bay’s Emerson Eugene Deckerhoff Jr. is a close second, beginning with the Buccaneers in 1989.

The only person currently working with the Bengals who has been affiliated with the team longer than Lapham is team owner and president Mike Brown.