After graduating college in 1979, he was selected by the Cincinnati Bengals with the 30th pick in the second round of the
1979 NFL draft. Ross' best season was in
1981, when he totaled 71 receptions for 910 yards and five touchdowns, helping lead the Bengals to
Super Bowl XVI. His 71 receptions were a single-season franchise record, and would remain so until
Carl Pickens had 99 in 1995. Ross had an outstanding performance in the
Super Bowl, with a record 11 receptions for 104 yards and two touchdowns. His receptions, receiving yards, and receiving touchdowns were all the most by a tight end in Super Bowl history. However, the Bengals lost to the
San Francisco 49ers, 26–21, preventing Ross from being the likely winner of the
Super Bowl MVP award and first tight end to ever receive it. In addition to his impressive Super Bowl performance, Ross was the Bengals' leading receiver in both playoff wins that year, with six receptions for 71 yards in their 28–21 win over the
Buffalo Bills and five receptions for 69 yards in their AFC title win over the
San Diego Chargers, a game known as the
Freezer Bowl and the coldest game ever played in the NFL. Ross went on to make his first and only
Pro Bowl selection in
1982 on the strength of 47 receptions for 508 yards and three touchdowns in the nine-game season shortened by a players strike. In 1984, Ross briefly left the NFL to play for the
New Orleans Breakers and later the
Portland Breakers in the newly formed
United States Football League. He returned to play for the Bengals in
1985, and finished the season with the
Seattle Seahawks. Ross joined the
Green Bay Packers for the following season, and then retired in 1987. In his eight NFL seasons, Ross recorded 290 receptions for 3,419 receiving yards and 19 touchdowns. Ross later said that as a veteran of a small college not known for its football program, he was grateful for a chance to play in the big leagues. "Just getting drafted was a thrill. You don't expect it from the school I went to. At the time, you don't expect to play in the National Football League, and especially somebody taking you with the 30th overall pick. It's like 'oh geez they must see something I don't'." ==NFL career statistics==