He got his first pro start on October 7, 1984, in Cincinnati in a game against the Houston Oilers. On a rainy day, he led the Bengals to a 13–3 win over Houston and scored the game's only touchdown on a three-yard run. He took over for Ken Anderson as the Bengals' full-time starting quarterback on September 22, 1985, in a loss in Cincinnati to the San Diego Chargers and future Hall of Famer Dan Fouts 44–41. At 6'-5" and 224 pounds with a powerful arm, Esiason was the signal caller on one of the most potent offenses of the late 1980s and, though well short of Ken Anderson's rushing total of over 2,200 yards, was surprisingly mobile, rushing for 1,598 yards on 447 attempts and scoring seven touchdowns by this point in his career. He became particularly adept at running the difficult "no huddle" offense devised by Bengal Head Coach Sam Wyche.