Average Cincinnati Bengals salary among best in the NFL

For those nasty gollums that rant about the Bengals always being fiscal conservatives, consider that few teams treat their players as well financially as the Bengals do.

ESPN the Magazine and SportsIntelligence conducted their annual Global Salary Survey to find, among other things, the highest average salary on sports teams. As Coley Harvey notes, the NFL as a whole doesn't pay their players particularly well on average comparatively to other sports. The Miami Dolphins average $2.3 million per player, which is the highest per/player average in the NFL. Yet it ranks No. 124 in the world among sports teams. It's a rather interesting and well-known observation; players who play the most violent sport in the world receive nickels for their efforts.

Applying a more local lens, Cincinnati Bengals players average $2.3 million as well, which ranks third in the NFL and No. 126 overall. "The Bengals rank 126th on that 333-team list, up from 138th last year," writes Harvey. "At No. 124, the Dolphins are the highest-ranked NFL team. The survey also has Cincinnati's payroll at $123.3 million, the 21st-highest payroll of the entire list."

The Dallas Cowboys and New York Jets were the lowest in the NFL, averaging $1.8 million and $1.7 million respectively.

Applying another local comparison, Cincinnati Reds players average $4.7 million per player -- which ranks No. 36 overall and 9th in Major League Baseball.