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Bengals Booth Podcast: How Do You Like Me Now · Bengals Booth Podcast

• 0:03
  Speaker 1: Hi, get everybody on Dan Horde and thanks for downloading
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: The Bengals Booth Podcast. The How Do You Like Me Now?
• 0:11
  Speaker 1: Navam Ama Wie addition, as the Bengals wrap up the
• 0:16
  Speaker 1: regular season and get ready for a home playoff game
• 0:18
  Speaker 1: as they face the Browns in Cleveland. Coming up, I'll
• 0:22
  Speaker 1: talk to one of the stars of Good Morning Football
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: on the NFL Network, Kyle Brandt, who recently said that
• 0:28
  Speaker 1: the Bengals could be the next big thing in the NFL.
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: Dave Lapham joins me to discuss the decision to rest
• 0:35
  Speaker 1: Joe Burrow this week, and lap shares his thoughts on
• 0:39
  Speaker 1: resting as many starters as possible. My one on one
• 0:42
  Speaker 1: player interview this week is with Isaiah Prince, who will
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: be the Bengals right tackle in the playoffs now that
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: Riley Reef is officially out for the rest of the year,
• 0:52
  Speaker 1: and did Our Know the Faux segment, we'll take an
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: in depth look at what's gone wrong for the Browns
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: with long time Cleveland sportswriter Tony Grossi. The Bengals Booth
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: Podcast is presented by Ultimate Bengals, the free to play
• 1:05
  Speaker 1: next level fantasy football game downloaded now from the app
• 1:09
  Speaker 1: Store and Google Play. And here's a quick reminder that
• 1:12
  Speaker 1: you can have the latest edition of this podcast delivered
• 1:15
  Speaker 1: right to your phone, tablet, or computer by subscribing wherever
• 1:19
  Speaker 1: you get your podcasts. It's the greatest thing since a
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: victory cigar. Former Boston Celtics coach Red Auerbach is credited
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: with starting the tradition. During the Celtics dynasty years when
• 1:32
  Speaker 1: they won nine out of ten championships, he would light
• 1:35
  Speaker 1: up a cigar on the bench. Imagine that once the
• 1:39
  Speaker 1: Celtics had a game locked up. I enjoyed taking a
• 1:43
  Speaker 1: few puffs of a victory cigar in front of touchdown
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: Jesus when you see one at Notre Dame this year.
• 1:48
  Speaker 1: And I loved seeing the footage of Joe Burrow and
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: his teammates enjoying victory cigars in the locker room last
• 1:54
  Speaker 1: week after wrapping up the AFC North. Joe famously enjoyed
• 1:59
  Speaker 1: one after eating LSU to the national championship. And here's
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: hoping that there's a Super Bowl victory cigar in Joey
• 2:06
  Speaker 1: franchise is future. Now let's get to my guests, beginning
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: with one of the hosts of what I consider to
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: be the best NFL studio show on TV. If you
• 2:18
  Speaker 1: want to be the richest person in the world, there
• 2:20
  Speaker 1: are two ways to pull it off. Number one, discover
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: the cure for baldness or number two bottle the chemistry
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: of the crew on Good Morning Football. And one of
• 2:29
  Speaker 1: the stars of the show joins us now, Kyle Brandt. Kyle,
• 2:33
  Speaker 1: it is great to have you on. What did the
• 2:35
  Speaker 1: Bengals show you with their win over the Chiefs last week? Dan,
• 2:39
  Speaker 1: I'm thrilled to be on, And first of all, I
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: wish I could have provided that other means to be
• 2:43
  Speaker 1: in the richest man in the world to you. I'm sorry,
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: all due respect, I wish I could be there for you.
• 2:48
  Speaker 1: I really do. All I can do is the Good
• 2:51
  Speaker 1: Morning Football alleged chemistry that you hype. So thank you
• 2:55
  Speaker 1: and listen to join you right now. It's a credible time.
• 3:00
  Speaker 1: It's like going to the Santa Claus's house and Christmas Eve.
• 3:03
  Speaker 1: This is like as good as it gets right now.
• 3:05
  Speaker 1: It's unbelievable. I remember when I was in I was
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: in my early twenties. It was a younger man in California,
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: and man, the Chiefs were all that. The Chiefs were
• 3:14
  Speaker 1: so cool, and they were dominating everybody and they were perfect.
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: And this Bengals wide receiver not a lot of people
• 3:21
  Speaker 1: knew yet, came out and said, I guarantee we're gonna
• 3:23
  Speaker 1: beat the Chiefs. Oh you're crazy, You're crazy. Sure enough,
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: Chad was right. They did beat the Chiefs that day.
• 3:29
  Speaker 1: And here we are in the wake of yet another
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: Bengals win over a really good, almost omnipotent seeming Chiefs team,
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: and it's absolutely pure electricity. My thoughts were for that
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: game where there was a time the Bengals had a
• 3:43
  Speaker 1: nice little run this year where they were the most
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: fun to watch team in the league or the most
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: exciting team in the league, which is fine, those are
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: cool titles to be helped for sure. They went from
• 3:55
  Speaker 1: that to being, oh, my gosh, never mind the watchability
• 3:58
  Speaker 1: or the excitement. They are actually a really, really good team.
• 4:02
  Speaker 1: I never mind watching them. I don't think you want
• 4:04
  Speaker 1: to play the Bengals. And we saw that happen right
• 4:06
  Speaker 1: in front of us. It was exhilarating, it was really cool.
• 4:09
  Speaker 1: I wrote down something you said earlier this week that
• 4:12
  Speaker 1: was similar to that, and here's the quote. There is
• 4:15
  Speaker 1: an intoxication with Cincinnati, there's a feeling of oh my gosh,
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: this is the next big thing. Describe why you think
• 4:24
  Speaker 1: the Bengals might be the next big thing. Well, I
• 4:28
  Speaker 1: could point out the obvious things. I could point out
• 4:31
  Speaker 1: the young talents and the quarterback and the way that
• 4:33
  Speaker 1: they improved this defense so much, and the players they added.
• 4:36
  Speaker 1: But I'll tell you why because here I sit in
• 4:38
  Speaker 1: and I'm in you know, suburban New York, outside of Manhattan.
• 4:42
  Speaker 1: I have an eight year old son, My son, Calvin,
• 4:44
  Speaker 1: has spent almost all his life here in New York.
• 4:47
  Speaker 1: And you know, we just had Christmas and Calvin has
• 4:51
  Speaker 1: suddenly realized that there's some boys at school, maybe the
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: older boys, who wear jerseys to school, and he wants
• 4:57
  Speaker 1: to get some jerseys. So I said, all right, listen,
• 5:00
  Speaker 1: we got lots of options, son, this is an important choice.
• 5:02
  Speaker 1: You know, it's a long commitment, just a reflection of
• 5:04
  Speaker 1: you and like who And he says, who should I get?
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: Who should I get? So you know, we talked about, well, listen,
• 5:11
  Speaker 1: you can't go wrong with Tom Brady. But you're a
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: wildly different generation. There's a lot of you know, there's
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: Josh Allen and there's my homes and there's there's Lamar
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: Jackson and everything. Well, I'm thrilled to tell you damn
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: that on Christmas Eve at our home, Santa Claus came
• 5:26
  Speaker 1: to the Brant House and he brought this night and
• 5:29
  Speaker 1: it was waiting at the bottom of the stairs on
• 5:32
  Speaker 1: Christmas morning for my eight year old. So you want
• 5:34
  Speaker 1: to talk about the next big thing? A kid born
• 5:37
  Speaker 1: in twenty thirteen living in outside in the suburbs of
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: New York wants a Bengals jersey with his pick from
• 5:46
  Speaker 1: the whole NFL. This is the one he wants. This
• 5:49
  Speaker 1: is the one Santa Claus brought. If that doesn't say
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: next big thing, I don't know what does. That is awesome.
• 5:54
  Speaker 1: Calvin is the sharpest dress kid at his school, There's
• 5:56
  Speaker 1: no question about it. We're talking to Kyle brand from
• 5:59
  Speaker 1: Goodmore Football. You do a podcast Ten Questions with Kyle Brandt.
• 6:03
  Speaker 1: I am looking forward to the point where Joe Burrow
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: is your guest. I'm sure that's coming at some point
• 6:08
  Speaker 1: down the road. What has Joe Burrow done aside from
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: inspire your son for the Bengals franchise? Oh man so much.
• 6:18
  Speaker 1: And bear in mind that my son is wearing that
• 6:20
  Speaker 1: jersey at a school which is mostly New York Giants fans.
• 6:22
  Speaker 1: Those poor kids shown up in say Quan and Daniel
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: Jones jerseys. Calvin's walking on the hallway with his orange
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: tiger stripe thing. So he certainly inspired them. But you
• 6:32
  Speaker 1: know some of the comparisons now from Burrow, they're getting
• 6:36
  Speaker 1: to the stratosphere. I'm starting to see, you know, the
• 6:40
  Speaker 1: word Rogers, the word Brady thrown around. Here's what he's done.
• 6:45
  Speaker 1: We have a NonStop stream now and this golden age
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: of offense and quarterbacks of this is the next great one,
• 6:51
  Speaker 1: this is the next dist, this is the next dist
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: and there's all of them, and they are really some
• 6:54
  Speaker 1: great young talents. Burrows seems to have transcended them. And
• 6:58
  Speaker 1: I really mean that now. Listen. He hasn't accomplished the
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: playoff wins, doesn't done anything. But what he's done, in
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: my mind is he has come off in this way
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: of like, Wow, that guy's cool. Wow, that guy's gonna
• 7:09
  Speaker 1: be a future. It's not just all the throws down
• 7:11
  Speaker 1: fields to the receivers to useam or any of them.
• 7:14
  Speaker 1: The way this dude conducts himself after the game, after
• 7:18
  Speaker 1: the loss or after the win. His pulse does not bounce.
• 7:23
  Speaker 1: He can easily stunt on someone or brag, or he
• 7:27
  Speaker 1: can get angry afterwards. I have been so impressed with
• 7:31
  Speaker 1: the way he speaks to the media, the way he
• 7:33
  Speaker 1: talks about the media, even more so than the throw
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: for five hundred yards and first person's story. I'll tell
• 7:38
  Speaker 1: you one right here. This is when I knew Joe
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: Burrow was gonna work, back in the early stages of
• 7:43
  Speaker 1: Quarantine and now how we're all used to people doing
• 7:46
  Speaker 1: shows at home and having the home camps like I'm
• 7:48
  Speaker 1: on now, It was a totally foreign concept. When we
• 7:51
  Speaker 1: first talked to Joe Burrow. He was coming out of
• 7:53
  Speaker 1: the draft, he was out of LSU. We thought he
• 7:55
  Speaker 1: wasn't even ever want to pick. He's supposed to come
• 7:57
  Speaker 1: on Good Morning Football that and we have him, you know,
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: let's say we have him at the ten thirties mark,
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: and he shows up at ten twenty nine, and he's ready,
• 8:03
  Speaker 1: and he's ready to talk about everything he wants to accomplish. We,
• 8:06
  Speaker 1: for the life of us, could not make this work. Technically,
• 8:09
  Speaker 1: the audio wouldn't connect, the visual was wrong. He could
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: hear us. We couldn't hear him, then vice versa. This
• 8:15
  Speaker 1: one on for what seemed like an hour, and Burrow
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: just sat there and just said, sure, I'll try this.
• 8:21
  Speaker 1: Does this work? Does this work? I can say it again,
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: testing one, two three for the million time. This is
• 8:25
  Speaker 1: the guy who's gonna be the number one picking the draft.
• 8:27
  Speaker 1: This is a national champion, celebrated. I know nine out
• 8:30
  Speaker 1: of ten other players would are like, ooh, sorry, closed
• 8:32
  Speaker 1: the laptop. Couldn't make it happen. He sat there in traffic.
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: He would still be sitting there if we asked him too.
• 8:39
  Speaker 1: He was unbelievably courteous, unbelievable hospitable even as a guest,
• 8:43
  Speaker 1: and he didn't get nervous and he didn't get flustered,
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: and we all laughed afterwards. Nate and Peter and K
• 8:49
  Speaker 1: and myself were like, well, this guy's gonna win the
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: AFC North. He sat there for an hour with us
• 8:53
  Speaker 1: having technical issues and didn't even bat an eye, and
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: it said something about him. And to this day I
• 8:59
  Speaker 1: will never forget it. And I think you see that
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: kinde of demeanor on the field. If you can handle that,
• 9:03
  Speaker 1: you can handle the Ravens Blitz. There's no question about it.
• 9:08
  Speaker 1: All right, Kyle, let's go back to this year's draft.
• 9:11
  Speaker 1: I was team Sewel. I thought the Bengals should have
• 9:14
  Speaker 1: fortified the offensive line. I'm happy to have been wrong.
• 9:18
  Speaker 1: You said going into the draft, you can either fix
• 9:21
  Speaker 1: the stairs or you can buy an eight inch TV.
• 9:25
  Speaker 1: They got the eight inch TV and Jamar Chase and
• 9:28
  Speaker 1: I really like an eight inch TV. What do you think?
• 9:31
  Speaker 1: It's beautiful, ultra high death. Oh my gosh, you can
• 9:36
  Speaker 1: play video games on it. If you ever watch The
• 9:38
  Speaker 1: Masters on it, you'll feel like you're there at Augusta.
• 9:41
  Speaker 1: And that was a true story, Dan, And I'm flatter
• 9:43
  Speaker 1: that you dug that up. Last spring, we my wife
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: and had decided we have a certain amount of money
• 9:48
  Speaker 1: and we can do sort of like a spring cleanup.
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: And these steps outside our front steps front door rather,
• 9:54
  Speaker 1: they're kind of stone, and to have them fixed you
• 9:56
  Speaker 1: need to hire a mason, which is very expensive you
• 9:59
  Speaker 1: to pay for them. It's reels, and it's a very
• 10:01
  Speaker 1: practical thing. I mean, it's gonna make your house better, safer,
• 10:04
  Speaker 1: it's gonna make you feel more comfortable. That was the
• 10:06
  Speaker 1: left tackle pick, and that was the practical pick. Of course,
• 10:09
  Speaker 1: protect a burrow but oh my gosh, if you take
• 10:12
  Speaker 1: that money and what if we just live with the steps?
• 10:14
  Speaker 1: So what if we just trucks that they'll be okay
• 10:17
  Speaker 1: and we spend it on that TV? And I'm like,
• 10:20
  Speaker 1: I think, you know what I want the TV. My
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: head says the steps, but my heart and my eyes
• 10:26
  Speaker 1: say the TV. Can you imagine right now, listen, Penney
• 10:29
  Speaker 1: Soul may maybe may have become you know, Anthony Munos.
• 10:32
  Speaker 1: We don't know, We'll never know, but I know this, damn.
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: I'm sitting on the set at GMFB today and Chris Carter,
• 10:38
  Speaker 1: of all people who in the bur listen seat this week,
• 10:42
  Speaker 1: is talking about Jamar and he said, now, listen, I
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: was there in Minnesota when Randy was there. I saw
• 10:48
  Speaker 1: Randy have three catches for three touchdowns against the cot
• 10:52
  Speaker 1: Dallas Cobos didn't draft him. I was there. He said,
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: Jamar Chase is better as a rookie than Randy Moss was.
• 10:57
  Speaker 1: We said, oh, hold on, we love jam Are we
• 11:00
  Speaker 1: all getting caught up a night? He's better than Moss was.
• 11:02
  Speaker 1: You were in the same huddle, Chris, he says, better,
• 11:06
  Speaker 1: more diverse, more fleshed out skill sets that Randy was Randy,
• 11:10
  Speaker 1: he had about four routes. He could run really fast.
• 11:12
  Speaker 1: Jamar can do everything. I'm saying this right now is
• 11:15
  Speaker 1: the guy who was there as a Hall of Famer
• 11:17
  Speaker 1: that Jamaar Chase as a rookie is better than Randy
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: Moss was as a rookie. I think the ad TV
• 11:23
  Speaker 1: was the right choice. I heard Chris Carter say that,
• 11:25
  Speaker 1: and I had the same reaction. I'm like, wow, If
• 11:28
  Speaker 1: that's coming from a guy who was Randy Moss's teammate
• 11:30
  Speaker 1: when he had seventeen touchdowns catches as a rookie, that's
• 11:33
  Speaker 1: a pretty strong statement. Let's assess the AFC as we
• 11:38
  Speaker 1: get set for postseason play. Who's the top team in
• 11:41
  Speaker 1: your opinion? And where did the Bengals stack up close?
• 11:44
  Speaker 1: They stack up close to the Chiefs win if they
• 11:47
  Speaker 1: beat Kansas City in a quote unquote shootout, you think
• 11:49
  Speaker 1: they can beat anybody. To answer your question, I think
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: right now, I actually think the best team is the Bills,
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: and they don't have the best record, and I don't
• 11:56
  Speaker 1: know if they have the best roster. If you file
• 11:58
  Speaker 1: the AFC really closely, everybody remember first the night against
• 12:00
  Speaker 1: New England and when Matt Jones threw three passes and
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: the Bills had this weird loss. Then they follow it
• 12:05
  Speaker 1: up going to Tampa and they're just getting routed in
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: the first half. I think they went to the locker room.
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: It was twenty four to three at a half, and
• 12:11
  Speaker 1: Brady was just destroying them. From that moment on, the
• 12:14
  Speaker 1: Bills have been unbelievable. The second half of that game,
• 12:17
  Speaker 1: Allan was the best player in the field, that they
• 12:19
  Speaker 1: were the best team. They almost they lost an overtime
• 12:21
  Speaker 1: come back, beat the Patriots soundly, and I just think,
• 12:25
  Speaker 1: like this Josh Allen thing has gone nuclear since then,
• 12:27
  Speaker 1: and listen, so have several other quarterbacks. But I've been
• 12:30
  Speaker 1: watching the Bills a lot. They've been up and downs,
• 12:32
  Speaker 1: they've been through I think right now they're the team
• 12:34
  Speaker 1: I don't want to play. But I mean it is
• 12:36
  Speaker 1: raised within because you got these new rock stars and
• 12:39
  Speaker 1: the Bengals the Chiefs who are still the Chiefs, and
• 12:42
  Speaker 1: I think we all agree. I don't know, Dan, I
• 12:44
  Speaker 1: don't want to speak for you, but if the Bengals
• 12:46
  Speaker 1: did not punch in that touchdown, if they would have
• 12:48
  Speaker 1: played it conservatively at the end of that game, I
• 12:50
  Speaker 1: think the Chiefs are coming back to win. Mahomes is
• 12:52
  Speaker 1: still Mahomes. And it's funny about the AFC playoffs right now,
• 12:55
  Speaker 1: and I promise I'll finish with this is we can
• 12:57
  Speaker 1: have a whole talk about how good these teams are
• 12:59
  Speaker 1: and how good these quarterback are and not even mentioned
• 13:01
  Speaker 1: the team that's sitting on the one seed, which is
• 13:03
  Speaker 1: the Titans, who have the two thousand yard rusher coming back.
• 13:05
  Speaker 1: The AFC playoffs are gonna be wild. I still have
• 13:08
  Speaker 1: the Bills slightly number one, and I would say that
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: Bengals are right there in that two, three four. How
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: could they not be? All right? Last thing for Kyle
• 13:15
  Speaker 1: Brant Kay Adams was here a few weeks ago as
• 13:18
  Speaker 1: the ruler of the jungle. Are you jealous? And would
• 13:22
  Speaker 1: you like to be the ruler of the jungle? At
• 13:24
  Speaker 1: some point I wasn't jealous until I saw the I
• 13:30
  Speaker 1: guess it's a throne that she was sitting on. It
• 13:32
  Speaker 1: seemed to be some sort of Lord of the Rings
• 13:37
  Speaker 1: meets Game of Thrones meets the Cincinnati, Ohio type stone throne,
• 13:43
  Speaker 1: which looked really cool that I wish I could have
• 13:46
  Speaker 1: like in my basements. Listen the Unfortunately, I think that
• 13:50
  Speaker 1: I didn't. I didn't get in on the stock of
• 13:52
  Speaker 1: the Bengals when it was really low. At this point,
• 13:55
  Speaker 1: you could have heads of state probably lining up to
• 13:58
  Speaker 1: be the Bengals ruler of the Jungle because they're that
• 14:01
  Speaker 1: good and that hot. I have never been to a
• 14:03
  Speaker 1: Cincinnati Bengals game. I have never done all the champions
• 14:06
  Speaker 1: of the Skyline, chili and all that. Of course I
• 14:09
  Speaker 1: would love to, I would absolutely love to, But like
• 14:12
  Speaker 1: I said, it's like a long line at the deli counter. Now,
• 14:14
  Speaker 1: like get a number. We will happily give you a
• 14:17
  Speaker 1: number and look forward to having you here in Cincinnati
• 14:20
  Speaker 1: eventually as the ruler of the Jungle, Kyle. This has
• 14:23
  Speaker 1: been a lot of fun. I appreciate your time, keep
• 14:25
  Speaker 1: up the awesome work, and I'm very happy for you
• 14:28
  Speaker 1: and everyone in any way involved with the Bengals organization.
• 14:31
  Speaker 1: This is a great league when there's ups and downs,
• 14:33
  Speaker 1: and right now the Bengals being up is the coolest
• 14:36
  Speaker 1: story in football right now, and I hope the story
• 14:38
  Speaker 1: continues for several more weeks for you guys. Man if
• 14:41
  Speaker 1: and when Kyle comes to town to be the ruler
• 14:44
  Speaker 1: of the Jungle. Here's hoping young Calvin comes with him
• 14:47
  Speaker 1: rocking that Joe Burrow Jersey, the Bengals quarterback, isn't going
• 14:52
  Speaker 1: to play this Sunday. Zach Taylor made that announcement on Wednesday.
• 14:56
  Speaker 1: So Cincinnati will be trying to win in Cleveland with
• 15:00
  Speaker 1: and An Allen at quarterback, and Joe Burrow is hardly
• 15:02
  Speaker 1: the only starter who is expected to miss the game.
• 15:05
  Speaker 1: I discussed that and more with my broadcast partner Dave
• 15:09
  Speaker 1: Lapham lad Zach Taylor announced that Joe Burrow is going
• 15:12
  Speaker 1: to sit out Sunday's game in Cleveland. I'm pretty sure
• 15:15
  Speaker 1: that other key players probably will sit out too, although
• 15:18
  Speaker 1: he did not give any other names. Is this a
• 15:21
  Speaker 1: no brainer in your opinion or a tough call? It's
• 15:25
  Speaker 1: pretty much a no brainer. I mean, I think they're
• 15:28
  Speaker 1: gonna treat it like a buye. I think very few
• 15:32
  Speaker 1: guys are gonna play. I think guys may have backup roles,
• 15:35
  Speaker 1: emergency roles, but I think he's going to try to
• 15:38
  Speaker 1: rest every single starter he possibly can. And you know,
• 15:43
  Speaker 1: I feel like they feel like they earned it, earned
• 15:46
  Speaker 1: the opportunity to do that and get everybody healthy and
• 15:49
  Speaker 1: everybody rested and ready to go against whoever that first
• 15:52
  Speaker 1: round opponent may be, and they I think they feel
• 15:56
  Speaker 1: good about, you know, going up there with the players
• 15:58
  Speaker 1: that are going to be playing, They'll be motivated and
• 16:01
  Speaker 1: going up there and trying to put forth a good
• 16:03
  Speaker 1: performance and show that they belong in the National Football
• 16:06
  Speaker 1: League and belong with the Cincinnati Bengals. And a big
• 16:09
  Speaker 1: part of what a coach's job is from a perspective
• 16:16
  Speaker 1: of job employment is developing young players. So see how
• 16:20
  Speaker 1: how well these young guys have developed, See if they
• 16:23
  Speaker 1: can make some plays, get some things done, and win
• 16:25
  Speaker 1: a football game. Joe Burrow has been on this incredible
• 16:29
  Speaker 1: roll over the last couple of games. And you asked
• 16:31
  Speaker 1: him the question on Wednesday. Annie hesitation to stop playing
• 16:36
  Speaker 1: when you're rolling the way that you're rolling. Yeah, you know.
• 16:39
  Speaker 1: I asked about the momentum part of it, and as
• 16:42
  Speaker 1: he worried at all about that, and he said, no,
• 16:45
  Speaker 1: that he feels like he'll get all the throws that
• 16:48
  Speaker 1: he needs to get in during the week of practice
• 16:51
  Speaker 1: and maybe have a competitive too minute drill type situation
• 16:55
  Speaker 1: to stay sharp. And Zach Taylor feels the same way
• 16:59
  Speaker 1: that he can get it, you know, every throw that
• 17:01
  Speaker 1: he needs to get every rept that he needs yet
• 17:03
  Speaker 1: with his players during the week of practice, and both
• 17:06
  Speaker 1: of them feel like they've practiced so well. He's practiced
• 17:10
  Speaker 1: so well, and they practice so well as a team.
• 17:12
  Speaker 1: That's the reason that they're on the role that they're on.
• 17:15
  Speaker 1: You know, it carries over into game day and they
• 17:19
  Speaker 1: feel like the only thing that will be missing is
• 17:22
  Speaker 1: that is that final game day deal where you've worked
• 17:25
  Speaker 1: hard all week to get ready for game day, but
• 17:28
  Speaker 1: now you won't actually play and be exposed to injury,
• 17:31
  Speaker 1: and all the preparation leading up to game day will
• 17:34
  Speaker 1: all be the same. So they feel like, um, you know,
• 17:38
  Speaker 1: they're getting the best of both worlds. As such, Joe
• 17:41
  Speaker 1: Burrow has been incredibly impressive really from day one, but
• 17:45
  Speaker 1: the last two weeks have been mind boggling. Nine hundred
• 17:48
  Speaker 1: and seventy one yards, eight touchdown passes, no interceptions. This
• 17:53
  Speaker 1: might be the best two game stretch that any quarterback
• 17:56
  Speaker 1: has ever had in NFL history. Is their anything about
• 18:00
  Speaker 1: this stretch where you say, you know, I knew the
• 18:03
  Speaker 1: guy was great, but I didn't know he could do that.
• 18:07
  Speaker 1: I'll tell you he the clinic that he and Jamar
• 18:12
  Speaker 1: Chase put on, it was just amazing. I mean, Chase
• 18:16
  Speaker 1: goes for two sixty six and Joe goes for well
• 18:19
  Speaker 1: into the four hundreds again, but they were so on
• 18:25
  Speaker 1: the money in terms of Joe putting the ball exactly
• 18:30
  Speaker 1: where it had to be put and Jamar Chase fighting
• 18:33
  Speaker 1: for that football no matter what, was going to make
• 18:36
  Speaker 1: a play on it. The two of them played just
• 18:39
  Speaker 1: about a perfect game. I mean, it was incredible watched because, honestly,
• 18:44
  Speaker 1: I mean, Jamar Chase had a couple of opportunities where
• 18:46
  Speaker 1: he got separation, but I'd say a good balance of
• 18:50
  Speaker 1: the eleven catches that he had were difficult. I mean,
• 18:53
  Speaker 1: he had to jockey for position, bump somebody, nudge, somebody,
• 18:58
  Speaker 1: uses physicality at the high point of the route, you know,
• 19:01
  Speaker 1: get a last minute body position advantage. And he's he's
• 19:06
  Speaker 1: capable of doing that. He's so darned strong, And particularly
• 19:09
  Speaker 1: when both te Higgins and Jamar Chase when they leave
• 19:13
  Speaker 1: the ground like a strong rebounder in the air at
• 19:17
  Speaker 1: the high point when he's rebounding a basketball is so strong.
• 19:20
  Speaker 1: That's what those guys are, you know, when they're high
• 19:22
  Speaker 1: point in the football. So all of that was just
• 19:26
  Speaker 1: unbelievable to watch. And well, yeah, Joe, I think Joe's
• 19:32
  Speaker 1: I felt like he was accurate, but the last two games,
• 19:35
  Speaker 1: it's it's been like ludicrously accurate, you know. I mean,
• 19:39
  Speaker 1: it's it's mind boggling to complete over seventy percent of
• 19:43
  Speaker 1: your passes in a sixteen game season, basically which he'll
• 19:46
  Speaker 1: he'll have he's not going to play against Cleveland. That's
• 19:49
  Speaker 1: that's incredible. Kenny Anderson holds a record seventy point five
• 19:52
  Speaker 1: five but it was in a nine game season, a
• 19:55
  Speaker 1: strike shortened season, so literally almost half the games. And
• 20:00
  Speaker 1: for Jodah complete the percentage that he's completed for the
• 20:04
  Speaker 1: yards that he's completed. And that's the thing too, is
• 20:07
  Speaker 1: his deep ball numbers are you know, so far off
• 20:11
  Speaker 1: the charts compared to everybody was concerned about that in
• 20:15
  Speaker 1: the early stages of his career. Now he's got thirteen
• 20:18
  Speaker 1: players of over forty yards, second best in the league,
• 20:21
  Speaker 1: fifty five over twenty yards, fourth best in the league.
• 20:25
  Speaker 1: That's an area where he's gone light years up a
• 20:29
  Speaker 1: ladder as well. It's incredible to watch. I'm glad you
• 20:32
  Speaker 1: brought up those numbers because the first time that Joe
• 20:34
  Speaker 1: talked to reporters this spring, coming back from his knee surgery,
• 20:37
  Speaker 1: he said one of his goals was to improve his
• 20:40
  Speaker 1: deep ball, and obviously he's done that. I've read comments
• 20:44
  Speaker 1: from unnamed scouts from other teams that have said, well,
• 20:47
  Speaker 1: the only negative with Burrow, as good as he is
• 20:49
  Speaker 1: that he's close to his ceiling. But if he picks
• 20:52
  Speaker 1: that out is the thing he wants to improve upon
• 20:54
  Speaker 1: and makes this quantum leap like he's made this year,
• 20:58
  Speaker 1: it makes me wonder what he's going to target in
• 21:01
  Speaker 1: the future as the thing that he wants to get
• 21:03
  Speaker 1: better on and how much better he'll get. And I'm
• 21:05
  Speaker 1: glad that scouts said that because he feeds off that stuff.
• 21:09
  Speaker 1: All you have to do is throw shade out there,
• 21:11
  Speaker 1: throw any doubt about Joe Burrow and his talents, and
• 21:15
  Speaker 1: Michael Jordan was the all time best at it, you know,
• 21:17
  Speaker 1: using it to just motivate him to like an eye
• 21:21
  Speaker 1: on a sphere in terms of you know, focus and
• 21:25
  Speaker 1: adrenaline and all that. And that's what Joe Burrow does.
• 21:28
  Speaker 1: You know, Joe Burrows like his biggest motivation is to
• 21:31
  Speaker 1: prove doubters wrong. And that's what a lot of great
• 21:33
  Speaker 1: players are all about and he fits that fits that
• 21:37
  Speaker 1: category for sure. I mean, I'm glad. I hope people
• 21:41
  Speaker 1: continue to doubt him. You know, he might be close
• 21:45
  Speaker 1: to a ceiling. If so, I'll take it. It's a
• 21:47
  Speaker 1: pretty damn good ceiling in my opinion. I'll take what
• 21:50
  Speaker 1: I saw the last couple of weeks all day, every day.
• 21:52
  Speaker 1: The last two weeks were the Sistine Chapel of ceilings.
• 21:55
  Speaker 1: He was that impressive. Let's turn to the offensive line.
• 21:58
  Speaker 1: Zach Taylor said on Wednesday that Riley Reef is officially
• 22:02
  Speaker 1: out for the rest of the year. We know that
• 22:04
  Speaker 1: Quentin Spain is going to at least miss this game.
• 22:08
  Speaker 1: I don't know about his status for the first playoff game.
• 22:10
  Speaker 1: So right now, the starting offensive line includes a Chimadenagy,
• 22:15
  Speaker 1: Isaiah Prince, and Jackson Carmen for all intents and purposes,
• 22:20
  Speaker 1: based on their playing experience. That's three rookies that are
• 22:24
  Speaker 1: going to be starting on the offensive line for a
• 22:26
  Speaker 1: playoff team. Yeah, it's pretty incredible, you know. For this
• 22:32
  Speaker 1: game against Cleveland, would not shock me if Fred Johnson's
• 22:35
  Speaker 1: at one tackle, do not to Smith's at a guard,
• 22:38
  Speaker 1: Trey Hills at a guard, Jackson Carmen's at the other
• 22:41
  Speaker 1: guard and Isaiah Princess at the tackle position. But the
• 22:47
  Speaker 1: thing that you have to if you're particularly if you're
• 22:50
  Speaker 1: Jackson Carmen, you have to stay to yourself. This is
• 22:54
  Speaker 1: an opportunity. I mean, you know, you played over forty
• 22:57
  Speaker 1: snaps last week and you're gonna play a lot more
• 23:00
  Speaker 1: than that, hopefully this week, and now it's time to
• 23:03
  Speaker 1: show that you know you're ready. It should be a
• 23:06
  Speaker 1: clip of the coin. It should be you know, if
• 23:09
  Speaker 1: if if Jackson Carman doesn't start when he comes off
• 23:13
  Speaker 1: the bench, it's like no change in the level of
• 23:16
  Speaker 1: play whatsoever. He has to start showing people, particularly his
• 23:21
  Speaker 1: line coach Frank Pollock and the offensive coaches and Zach Taylor,
• 23:25
  Speaker 1: that he is playing at that level. Um and and
• 23:29
  Speaker 1: that's that's basically what Identedgy did to Tobate when he
• 23:33
  Speaker 1: got his opportunity. He showed himself and he earned earned
• 23:37
  Speaker 1: the spot. That that's what it's all about. So some
• 23:41
  Speaker 1: of these guys, I mean, they're in a situation where
• 23:45
  Speaker 1: all you can all you can ask for in the
• 23:47
  Speaker 1: National Football League is a chance to play, and they're
• 23:50
  Speaker 1: they're gonna get it. They're gonna get it. In this
• 23:52
  Speaker 1: game against the Cleveland Browns at the tackle position, if, if,
• 23:59
  Speaker 1: if Clowney and Garrett both play, those young tackles can
• 24:03
  Speaker 1: step up and show coach Pollock I'm ready, I'm here,
• 24:07
  Speaker 1: I belong and that is exactly what you're hoping for
• 24:12
  Speaker 1: and you're looking for. So they are young, they are inexperienced,
• 24:18
  Speaker 1: and obviously that's the biggest question mark. It's going to
• 24:21
  Speaker 1: be interesting to see, not only in the draft, but
• 24:25
  Speaker 1: what kind of free agency offensive lineman will they be
• 24:28
  Speaker 1: able to sign. I think they're going to attract quality players.
• 24:32
  Speaker 1: I think Riley Reef was just the beginning of that
• 24:36
  Speaker 1: door being open. I mean Joe Burrow, the way he's playing,
• 24:41
  Speaker 1: the way the offense is built. If I'm an offensive
• 24:44
  Speaker 1: lineman and I'm out there, Cincinnati's gonna be on my list.
• 24:47
  Speaker 1: All the skilled people they have a you're kidding me.
• 24:49
  Speaker 1: If I feel like I'm an offensive lineman that can
• 24:51
  Speaker 1: go to that group and make a major difference and
• 24:54
  Speaker 1: improve the entire group up front, I'm thinking about that
• 24:58
  Speaker 1: big time. All right, So let's talk about Sunday's game
• 25:02
  Speaker 1: in Cleveland. The Bengals clearly are going to have starters
• 25:06
  Speaker 1: sitting out most notably Joe Burrow. The Browns had a
• 25:10
  Speaker 1: highly disappointing season. Baker Mayfield is not going to play
• 25:13
  Speaker 1: in the game. He is opted to go ahead and
• 25:15
  Speaker 1: have surgery to that left shoulder that's given him so
• 25:17
  Speaker 1: much trouble. What do you expect to see on Sunday.
• 25:21
  Speaker 1: That's a great question, you know. I'm looking at last
• 25:26
  Speaker 1: week's flip card, and I mean I'm looking to see
• 25:29
  Speaker 1: a bunch of guys getting reps that hadn't got many reps.
• 25:32
  Speaker 1: I think I think Ronelle Wren and Daniels could be inside,
• 25:36
  Speaker 1: Wyatt ray Spence on the edge, Tyler Shelvin is going
• 25:41
  Speaker 1: to get some look play, Johnston KeAndre Jones, Colletro, Marcus Bailey.
• 25:46
  Speaker 1: I think it's going to have to play if it's
• 25:49
  Speaker 1: going to be very interesting. On the back end, Grennan Hargraves.
• 25:53
  Speaker 1: I think Trey Waynes, if he's able to, he needs snaps.
• 25:57
  Speaker 1: I mean, he may be the most veteran player with
• 25:59
  Speaker 1: the best reps A may that maybe getting snaps out
• 26:02
  Speaker 1: there because he needs them. I think if he's able
• 26:05
  Speaker 1: to go, he should go. Um Michael Thomas, Ricardo Allen,
• 26:09
  Speaker 1: will he get some snaps. It's gonna be very interesting.
• 26:12
  Speaker 1: Then on the offensive side of things, Trent Irwin is
• 26:16
  Speaker 1: obviously gonna get snaps. Drew sample Wilcox. They they brought
• 26:21
  Speaker 1: to Scotty Washington off COVID to the practice squad tight end,
• 26:25
  Speaker 1: he'll probably get What about PoCA? What if they bring
• 26:27
  Speaker 1: Pook up there and give him some snaps? Taylor, Um,
• 26:32
  Speaker 1: it's it's you know, Brandon Allen obviously get snaps at quarterback.
• 26:36
  Speaker 1: Are they gonna sit Joe totally and have Jake Browning
• 26:39
  Speaker 1: up as a as a possibility? I mean, Trevion Williams
• 26:43
  Speaker 1: at the running back position, it's gonna be It's gonna
• 26:46
  Speaker 1: be an interesting day. And then Cleveland, I'm I'm looking
• 26:49
  Speaker 1: at at them, particularly their offensive line and Treder the
• 26:53
  Speaker 1: center has got a chronic knee problem. I mean, I
• 26:56
  Speaker 1: wouldn't be surprised if they sent him again. How much
• 27:01
  Speaker 1: will Miles Garrett and Clowney play? How much will Denzel
• 27:05
  Speaker 1: Ward play? How much will these really good players play?
• 27:09
  Speaker 1: Jarvis Landry veteran player like him, Nick Chubb. They didn't
• 27:13
  Speaker 1: play Nick Chubb in the game against the Steelers as
• 27:16
  Speaker 1: much as I thought they would, so, I mean, what's
• 27:18
  Speaker 1: going on there. It is a total, big question mark
• 27:24
  Speaker 1: as to what's going to happen. I'm glad, I'm glad
• 27:27
  Speaker 1: we do have rosters and programs because you can't tell
• 27:30
  Speaker 1: a player without a program. For this one, it'll be
• 27:33
  Speaker 1: like the preseason opener. Yeah, you know, it will. It'll
• 27:35
  Speaker 1: be almost more like a you know, like a like
• 27:37
  Speaker 1: a preseason encounter where guys trying to make major impressions,
• 27:41
  Speaker 1: you know, and and saving guys for the opener, which
• 27:45
  Speaker 1: is the opener of the playoffs. How much more on
• 27:48
  Speaker 1: Sunday's game. Tune into the Bengals pep Rally Show this
• 27:51
  Speaker 1: Friday afternoon from three to six on ESPN fifteen thirty
• 27:55
  Speaker 1: or on the iHeartMedia app by searching for ESPN in
• 28:00
  Speaker 1: fifteen thirty. The Bengals Booth podcast is presented by Ultimate Bengals,
• 28:04
  Speaker 1: the free to play fantasy football game. Ultimate Bengals will
• 28:08
  Speaker 1: be awarding a weekly winner during the course of the year,
• 28:11
  Speaker 1: with tickets, autograph merchandise, and money can't buy experiences all
• 28:15
  Speaker 1: up for grabs. Find Ultimate Bengals in the app Store
• 28:18
  Speaker 1: and Google Play. Now time for this week's one on
• 28:22
  Speaker 1: one player interview, as I visit with one of the
• 28:25
  Speaker 1: bengals least known starters, twenty four year old right tackle
• 28:29
  Speaker 1: Isaiah Prince. Isaiah, to me, you are one of the
• 28:34
  Speaker 1: unsung heroes on this team, taking over for the injured
• 28:37
  Speaker 1: Riley Reef and right tackle. You had only played four
• 28:40
  Speaker 1: NFL games prior to this season. Can you describe what
• 28:44
  Speaker 1: it means to you to be the starting right tackle?
• 28:46
  Speaker 1: A lot of playoff team, right, it means a lot.
• 28:49
  Speaker 1: My main focus is, you know, doing what I've been doing,
• 28:52
  Speaker 1: Just how can I be of servants to the team
• 28:54
  Speaker 1: and playing them a part and a lot a team,
• 28:57
  Speaker 1: a lot of players, a lot of coaches, and the
• 29:00
  Speaker 1: how to do the best I can for the guys here.
• 29:02
  Speaker 1: It's your first year working with offensive line coach Frank Pollock.
• 29:05
  Speaker 1: What do you think of Frank and has he made
• 29:08
  Speaker 1: a difference for you? I think Frank definitely has made
• 29:12
  Speaker 1: a difference for me. I think that he is a
• 29:14
  Speaker 1: great coach, But I think great coaches also have to
• 29:16
  Speaker 1: be teachers, and I think Frank is a great teacher
• 29:19
  Speaker 1: in getting us to understand what he wants us to do.
• 29:22
  Speaker 1: And I think that that's also very important. And I
• 29:25
  Speaker 1: have a lot of respect for Frank. Somebody who's played
• 29:27
  Speaker 1: the game, and yeah, I think I've grown a lot
• 29:29
  Speaker 1: as a player with him as my coach. We're chatting
• 29:32
  Speaker 1: with Isaiah Prince. For those who don't know, you are
• 29:34
  Speaker 1: a former Buck Eye. You are a three year starter
• 29:37
  Speaker 1: at Ohio State and a team captain at OSU, and
• 29:41
  Speaker 1: you played in a lot of big games. Obviously, how
• 29:43
  Speaker 1: does that prepare you for what's at stake now? Yeah,
• 29:47
  Speaker 1: I definitely got a chance to an opportunity to play
• 29:49
  Speaker 1: in a lot of big games. Coming from the school
• 29:51
  Speaker 1: that I came from, the Ohio State, I'd say is
• 29:55
  Speaker 1: definitely giving me a bit of a confidence. You know
• 29:59
  Speaker 1: that thing is gonna be okay. You know, you just
• 30:01
  Speaker 1: keep chopping away, even in big games. You know, things happen,
• 30:04
  Speaker 1: They make plays, We make plays, But the main thing
• 30:07
  Speaker 1: is to remain the same. I think that's the main
• 30:09
  Speaker 1: thing I got coming from school. Playing in those big
• 30:12
  Speaker 1: games is up and down when you're playing against the
• 30:14
  Speaker 1: good teams. You are from the Washington DC area and
• 30:18
  Speaker 1: you are a member of Ohio States twenty fifteen recruiting class.
• 30:22
  Speaker 1: Another person in that class was a quarterback from Athens,
• 30:25
  Speaker 1: Ohio that people have heard of by the name of
• 30:27
  Speaker 1: Joe Burrow. What did you think of your fellow freshmen
• 30:31
  Speaker 1: at the time. I've always been good friends, but Joe,
• 30:35
  Speaker 1: that's that's kind of my bro. We came in together
• 30:37
  Speaker 1: at Ohio State. We was on the same floor in
• 30:40
  Speaker 1: the dorm room. I remember moving into the dorms. Joe's
• 30:42
  Speaker 1: one of the first people I met. We've been good
• 30:45
  Speaker 1: friends ever since. Even when he transferred to LSU, I
• 30:49
  Speaker 1: stayed in contact. I always text them, and I think, honestly,
• 30:54
  Speaker 1: it's like so surreal that we're playing together right now,
• 30:56
  Speaker 1: is like it's crazy. I always thought Joe was a
• 30:59
  Speaker 1: great quarter gay. I always knew he was capable of
• 31:01
  Speaker 1: what he does now. I think we've seen it every
• 31:03
  Speaker 1: day in practice, movies, in school. Well, let's fast forward
• 31:07
  Speaker 1: to what he's done the last couple of weeks, because
• 31:09
  Speaker 1: you've been one of the guys protecting him during arguably
• 31:13
  Speaker 1: the best back to back performances that any quarterback has
• 31:16
  Speaker 1: ever had. Nine hundred and seventy one yards, eight touchdowns,
• 31:19
  Speaker 1: No picks describe what he is doing for this team
• 31:23
  Speaker 1: right now. I think Joe gives everybody a level of confidence.
• 31:27
  Speaker 1: I think when you see your quarterback take the field
• 31:30
  Speaker 1: and plays with that confidence, that swagger, that toughness. I
• 31:33
  Speaker 1: think I think that gets everybody fired up, and I
• 31:36
  Speaker 1: think that's just the type of person Joe is. He's
• 31:38
  Speaker 1: a great leader and I think we all love playing
• 31:41
  Speaker 1: with him. How do you like the watches he gave
• 31:43
  Speaker 1: his offensive lineman not that was a great gift, appreciated, Joe.
• 31:51
  Speaker 1: Have you been wearing it or is it more of
• 31:53
  Speaker 1: a trophy. I'll wore it one time to a game
• 31:56
  Speaker 1: right after he gave it to us, But pretty much
• 31:59
  Speaker 1: I'm pretty gonna tuck away as a trophy. I appreciate it.
• 32:02
  Speaker 1: We are chatting with Isaiah Prince. Isaiah. Last year, you
• 32:06
  Speaker 1: were one of hundreds of NFL and college players who
• 32:09
  Speaker 1: chose to opt out during the pandemic. How did you
• 32:11
  Speaker 1: spend your season and what's it difficult for you not
• 32:15
  Speaker 1: to be around teammates and coaches. I think opting out
• 32:18
  Speaker 1: last year was probably one of the toughest times I
• 32:21
  Speaker 1: faced in my life so far. But during the time,
• 32:24
  Speaker 1: like like I know throughout life is to remain resilient.
• 32:28
  Speaker 1: So in that time being, I went back to school
• 32:30
  Speaker 1: and I finished my degree. I got my bachelor's and
• 32:34
  Speaker 1: I did some boxing. I worked out every day on
• 32:36
  Speaker 1: my football craft. I just did what I can to
• 32:39
  Speaker 1: stay in the right direction and just stay ready. You
• 32:42
  Speaker 1: have tremendous reach. You probably would be a good boxer
• 32:46
  Speaker 1: with your with your wingspan. Do you enjoy training that way? Yeah?
• 32:52
  Speaker 1: I do. It was it was different. It was my
• 32:54
  Speaker 1: first time doing it, different type of cardio, and I
• 32:57
  Speaker 1: think it got my hands right a little better for
• 32:59
  Speaker 1: the season, and I appreciate it. So Isaiah, You're originally
• 33:03
  Speaker 1: a drafted by Miami and then the Dolphins tried to
• 33:06
  Speaker 1: move you from the active roster to the practice squad
• 33:08
  Speaker 1: when you were a rookie and the Bengal swooped in
• 33:10
  Speaker 1: and claimed you off waivers. What was your reaction at
• 33:14
  Speaker 1: the time and how do you feel about how everything
• 33:16
  Speaker 1: has worked out? I would say definitely. These past two
• 33:19
  Speaker 1: years have probably been one of the toughest years in
• 33:21
  Speaker 1: my life, you know, being released from the Dolphins and
• 33:25
  Speaker 1: you know, gett into the Bengals and opting out. But
• 33:29
  Speaker 1: you know, I never imagined they would work out this way,
• 33:32
  Speaker 1: you know, getting an opportunity to play again, But that
• 33:35
  Speaker 1: was the whole purpose of the Hall offseason and staying
• 33:37
  Speaker 1: resilient and keep working, you know, staying faithful. And I'm
• 33:41
  Speaker 1: honestly just so grateful that and thank God that everything
• 33:44
  Speaker 1: worked out. So you've started the last two games and
• 33:48
  Speaker 1: three out of the last five, the Bengals have wrapped
• 33:51
  Speaker 1: up the AFC North. You know, you've got at least
• 33:53
  Speaker 1: one home playoff game to look forward to. Describe the
• 33:57
  Speaker 1: confidence level of the team right now, coming off big
• 34:00
  Speaker 1: win over Kansas City. All right now, we're just focused
• 34:04
  Speaker 1: on taking it one week at a time and don't
• 34:06
  Speaker 1: just focus on them, on what we have coming up
• 34:08
  Speaker 1: this week, and you know, just doing what we have
• 34:10
  Speaker 1: to do to stay healthy, stay you know, and stay
• 34:13
  Speaker 1: ready for whatever. As I said at the beginning, I
• 34:17
  Speaker 1: think you've been one of the unsung heroes on the team.
• 34:19
  Speaker 1: Continued success. Appreciate your time today and best of luck
• 34:23
  Speaker 1: against Cleveland. Thank you, man, I appreciate it. Finally time
• 34:27
  Speaker 1: for this week's Know the Faux segment. The Cleveland Browns
• 34:30
  Speaker 1: won a playoff game last year. This year they'll finish
• 34:34
  Speaker 1: with a losing record. There's seven and nine with one
• 34:36
  Speaker 1: game to go. Baker Mayfield, who ranks twenty seventh in
• 34:40
  Speaker 1: the league in passer rating, won't play on Sunday. Instead,
• 34:44
  Speaker 1: it will be veteran case Keenum at quarterback. Earlier this week,
• 34:48
  Speaker 1: Lap talked a long time Cleveland sportswriter Tony Grossie on
• 34:52
  Speaker 1: the Bengals Game Plan Show. Obviously, Baker Mayfield had physical
• 34:58
  Speaker 1: ailments and issues all season. Aside from Baker Mayfield, what
• 35:03
  Speaker 1: do you think of the biggest reasons for the Cleveland
• 35:06
  Speaker 1: Browns not living up to the expectations in the hype.
• 35:10
  Speaker 1: First of all, that's a big aside there. I think
• 35:13
  Speaker 1: that was the biggest reason. Their offense was just totally
• 35:19
  Speaker 1: not up to par, and they had chances in five
• 35:22
  Speaker 1: different games to win games with the ball in their
• 35:26
  Speaker 1: hands at the end, and they came up short all five.
• 35:30
  Speaker 1: Any one of those, or maybe two would have would
• 35:32
  Speaker 1: have won the division or at least set up a
• 35:35
  Speaker 1: big eighteenth seventeenth game against Cincinnati. The game in Cincinnati
• 35:40
  Speaker 1: was probably the only game all year that the Browns
• 35:44
  Speaker 1: played complementary football. They had a great game defensively and
• 35:48
  Speaker 1: a very good game offensively, and that was it. I mean,
• 35:52
  Speaker 1: they had a handful of good offensive games, a lot
• 35:58
  Speaker 1: of good defensive games. That Cincinnati Bengals game, uh, was
• 36:02
  Speaker 1: the only game they put it all together, and we
• 36:06
  Speaker 1: expected that they expected that to happen a lot more
• 36:10
  Speaker 1: than one game. So in a broad scope, I think
• 36:13
  Speaker 1: that that was the biggest problem. But again the offense
• 36:17
  Speaker 1: um and it was primarily the quarterback. You know, he
• 36:20
  Speaker 1: had ball in his hands and chances to win five
• 36:23
  Speaker 1: different games. That is amazing. I mean, you look at
• 36:27
  Speaker 1: the uh three game losing streak that the that the
• 36:31
  Speaker 1: Browns are currently in, two point lost to Las Vegas,
• 36:34
  Speaker 1: two point lost to Green Bay at Green Bay, and uh,
• 36:39
  Speaker 1: Baker obviously is seriously injured. When when When do you
• 36:44
  Speaker 1: think they'll schedule the surgery Tony, And what's the prognosis
• 36:48
  Speaker 1: and what do you think the future holds between Baker
• 36:51
  Speaker 1: Mayfield and Cleveland Browns. Yeah, um, probably they're They're planning
• 36:58
  Speaker 1: as soon as possible. This is a torn labor in
• 37:02
  Speaker 1: his left shoulder, which you know what he played through.
• 37:07
  Speaker 1: He first suffered it in week two and then reinjured
• 37:11
  Speaker 1: it in Week six and only missed one game that
• 37:15
  Speaker 1: was on a short week, a Thursday night. Geen. It's
• 37:19
  Speaker 1: supposed to be a four month rehap which takes him
• 37:22
  Speaker 1: in the April. By then, tho, the Browns have to
• 37:25
  Speaker 1: make a decision. You know, the transaction season begins in March,
• 37:30
  Speaker 1: and if they're going to pursue or at least look
• 37:32
  Speaker 1: into upgrading the quarterback position, you know Baker will still
• 37:37
  Speaker 1: be rehapping at that time. He is under contract in
• 37:41
  Speaker 1: his fiftyear option in twenty twenty two for eighteen point
• 37:45
  Speaker 1: eight million. They never delivered an offer for a extension.
• 37:51
  Speaker 1: I know the Baker mayfield side in the middle of
• 37:54
  Speaker 1: the summer expected it to happen after last year, and
• 37:58
  Speaker 1: it never happened. The Browns held off, and it looks
• 38:02
  Speaker 1: like they were smart in doing that because Baker really
• 38:06
  Speaker 1: regressed in the second year of the Sefanski offense. We
• 38:11
  Speaker 1: thought it would be the opposite. We thought he would
• 38:12
  Speaker 1: be much better in the second year as the first time,
• 38:16
  Speaker 1: the first time he returned to a completely the completely
• 38:20
  Speaker 1: same offense, same coaches, same teammates on offense, and the
• 38:24
  Speaker 1: production nos dive. Um. I think I think his future
• 38:30
  Speaker 1: is uncertain. That's the test. I could say it. I
• 38:33
  Speaker 1: could see them bringing them back, I could see them
• 38:36
  Speaker 1: trying to get better, but I don't, you know, they
• 38:39
  Speaker 1: have to make sure that they're they're getting better. I
• 38:42
  Speaker 1: don't think they're at a situation where they say we
• 38:45
  Speaker 1: gotta you know, we gotta move on regardless. It's not that,
• 38:48
  Speaker 1: but I do think they will investigate the options to
• 38:52
  Speaker 1: get better, and by that I mean a veteran quarterback
• 38:56
  Speaker 1: who can win now with the team they have Nick Chubb.
• 39:01
  Speaker 1: Everybody was kind of puzzled with the lack of rushing
• 39:04
  Speaker 1: attempts for Nick Chubb against the Pittsburgh Steelers. Is he
• 39:08
  Speaker 1: okay physically? And do you expect him to get a
• 39:12
  Speaker 1: lot of carries on Sunday against the Bengals. Yeah, we
• 39:16
  Speaker 1: were all puzzled at that too. So we're the Mannings.
• 39:18
  Speaker 1: I guess if you're watching the Manning cast in Pittsburgh,
• 39:22
  Speaker 1: and really you could extend that into the Green Bay
• 39:25
  Speaker 1: game the week before when they got to the fifty
• 39:27
  Speaker 1: yard line with a minute to go and then through
• 39:30
  Speaker 1: three straight passes, the last one was an interception in
• 39:33
  Speaker 1: a two point game. So he did suffer a rib
• 39:38
  Speaker 1: injury somewhere in that game in Pittsburgh and was rested
• 39:44
  Speaker 1: at a lot. He'll be on the injury report. They
• 39:48
  Speaker 1: didn't practice today and the coach said that, you know,
• 39:52
  Speaker 1: he wants to see him at practice tomorrow. The coach
• 39:55
  Speaker 1: did say that anybody who's able to play will play
• 39:59
  Speaker 1: in this game. They have a lot of players dinged
• 40:01
  Speaker 1: up and that includes chub Daream Hunt, maybe even Miles Garrett.
• 40:05
  Speaker 1: So there may be some guys sitting out, but it
• 40:08
  Speaker 1: won't be uh you know, just to to hang it up.
• 40:13
  Speaker 1: It will be because of injuries. So at this point,
• 40:18
  Speaker 1: if you're projecting to the draft, and I know it's
• 40:22
  Speaker 1: a it's a quick projection, But what do you think, Well,
• 40:27
  Speaker 1: I guess, I guess before I get to that. What
• 40:29
  Speaker 1: about guys like JC Tretter, who battles that knee injury,
• 40:32
  Speaker 1: you know, every single day basically of his football career.
• 40:36
  Speaker 1: Do you think guys like Trader and some guys that
• 40:38
  Speaker 1: you say are on the injury list, they probably won't play.
• 40:42
  Speaker 1: They won't try to extend and take a risk on
• 40:46
  Speaker 1: damaging these guys anymore. Yeah, Trader is such a warrior,
• 40:51
  Speaker 1: you know that, Dave. I think he'll play. He's always
• 40:55
  Speaker 1: on the injury report, but he always shows up. Yeah,
• 40:59
  Speaker 1: he had five four years of consecutive snaps um snapped
• 41:05
  Speaker 1: street by COVID not because of his need, so he'll
• 41:10
  Speaker 1: I would think he would play. Uh, you know, the
• 41:13
  Speaker 1: guys I mentioned I think are very questionable in my mind,
• 41:16
  Speaker 1: and also a guy like Troy Hill. They're nickelback guys
• 41:20
  Speaker 1: who are on the have been on the injury report
• 41:23
  Speaker 1: for several weeks. Um, and that includes Garrett. Um, we'll
• 41:27
  Speaker 1: see he might want to He's just he's just, you know,
• 41:31
  Speaker 1: a sack fiend. He wants to collect as many sacks
• 41:34
  Speaker 1: as possible, so he might he might decide to play. Yeah,
• 41:40
  Speaker 1: and now that watst watch twenty one and a half,
• 41:42
  Speaker 1: I guess he wants to try to close that uh,
• 41:44
  Speaker 1: close that gap a little bit. Good luck, I mean, yeah,
• 41:47
  Speaker 1: good luck is right. Um. What about the draft? I mean,
• 41:50
  Speaker 1: where do you think the priorities are for the Cleveland
• 41:53
  Speaker 1: Browns in free agency and the draft? Where do you
• 41:55
  Speaker 1: think they need to address first and foremost? Well, they
• 42:01
  Speaker 1: don't have anything resembling any of the Bengals receivers, so
• 42:05
  Speaker 1: I think receiver is going to be a high priority,
• 42:10
  Speaker 1: and I do think they want to find one in
• 42:12
  Speaker 1: the draft, not in free agency. They'll be sitting somewhere
• 42:17
  Speaker 1: in the middle, maybe you know, in the low teams.
• 42:20
  Speaker 1: In the draft. I don't know they could even get
• 42:23
  Speaker 1: into the top ten if things work up that way.
• 42:27
  Speaker 1: So that's right in good position to take one of
• 42:31
  Speaker 1: the best receivers as two kids from Ohio State they're
• 42:34
  Speaker 1: very familiar with, so I was I was the receiver
• 42:37
  Speaker 1: first in the draft. They have some contract situations that
• 42:42
  Speaker 1: they're going to have to sort out, and two of
• 42:45
  Speaker 1: their defensive ends were signed to one year contracts, Jadevian
• 42:48
  Speaker 1: Clowney and Tech McKinley, who's out with an achilles ruptures,
• 42:52
  Speaker 1: so he's not going to be back. But I don't
• 42:55
  Speaker 1: know what they'll do with Clowney. I do think they
• 42:57
  Speaker 1: want him back, but Clowney might, you know, seek the
• 43:00
  Speaker 1: highest deal and eventually they have to groom a young
• 43:04
  Speaker 1: defensive end pass rushers. So I think that's another position
• 43:07
  Speaker 1: right up there in the priority list. I look at
• 43:11
  Speaker 1: this Cleveland Brown's defense and it's a good group. I mean,
• 43:14
  Speaker 1: there's talent on that defensive football team. And then I
• 43:18
  Speaker 1: look at the fourth quarter and they gave up one
• 43:21
  Speaker 1: hundred and twenty four points on the season, by far,
• 43:24
  Speaker 1: their worst quarter of points scored against them. Why do
• 43:28
  Speaker 1: you think what happened in the fourth quarter of this
• 43:31
  Speaker 1: defensive football team? So many times this season do you think. Yeah,
• 43:36
  Speaker 1: And at the same time, they scored the fewest points
• 43:39
  Speaker 1: in the fourth quarter, so that was some of it.
• 43:43
  Speaker 1: Was the offense just given the ball right back, that
• 43:47
  Speaker 1: was some of it. And a lot of those points
• 43:49
  Speaker 1: I believe it was in the first half of the season. Yeah,
• 43:51
  Speaker 1: This defense had like seven new star eight new starters
• 43:54
  Speaker 1: to begin the year. It took a while, but by
• 43:59
  Speaker 1: the time they got to Cincinnati, they were playing really
• 44:03
  Speaker 1: well and there was There was only one hiccup after
• 44:06
  Speaker 1: that game, and that was against New England where they
• 44:08
  Speaker 1: gave up a lot of points. But other than that,
• 44:11
  Speaker 1: the last eight or nine games they played, their point
• 44:15
  Speaker 1: totals were down considerably, third down conversions and everything. I'd
• 44:19
  Speaker 1: say most of that fourth quarter stuff happened when they
• 44:22
  Speaker 1: were still trying to mash and they were they were
• 44:24
  Speaker 1: a little discombobulated, but they got it together and they'll
• 44:28
  Speaker 1: go into next season thinking that now the strength of
• 44:31
  Speaker 1: the team. Sunday's game starts at one o'clock, and since
• 44:35
  Speaker 1: the Bengals are expected to rest Joe Burrow and many starters,
• 44:38
  Speaker 1: Cleveland is currently a six point favorite. That's going to
• 44:42
  Speaker 1: do it for this episode of the Bengals Booth podcast
• 44:44
  Speaker 1: brought to you by Ultimate Bengals. They're free to play
• 44:47
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• 44:51
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• 44:54
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• 44:56
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• 44:58
  Speaker 1: more Bengals fans find us. I'm Dan Horde and thanks
• 45:02
  Speaker 1: for listening to the Bengals Boot Podcast.