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Bengals Booth Podcast: Rocky Top · Bengals Booth Podcast

0:03
Speaker 1: Happy Thanksgiving everybody. I'm Dan Horde and thanks for downloading
0:06
Speaker 1: The Bengals Booth podcast. The Rocket Top Tennessee addition, as
0:14
Speaker 1: the Bengals head to Nashville and look to knock off
0:16
Speaker 1: the seven and three Tennessee Titans. Coming up, I'll talk
0:20
Speaker 1: to locker room favorite Trenton Irwin about his first NFL
0:24
Speaker 1: touchdown catch and his promotion to the Bengals fifty three
0:28
Speaker 1: man roster. Charles Davis will be in the booth for
0:31
Speaker 1: CBS this Sunday and has some very interesting things to
0:34
Speaker 1: say about the current state of the Bengals, especially the
0:38
Speaker 1: offensive line. Then, and this week's Know the Faux segment,
0:41
Speaker 1: Nashville broadcaster John Burton gives us the inside scoop on
0:46
Speaker 1: the first place Titans. The Bengals Booth Podcast is brought
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Speaker 1: to you by pay Corps. More than twenty nine thousand
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Speaker 1: customers trust pay Corps to help them recruit, pay engage,
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1:02
Speaker 1: here's a quick reminder that you can have the latest
1:04
Speaker 1: edition of this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet,
1:08
Speaker 1: or computer by subscribing wherever you get your podcasts. It's
1:12
Speaker 1: the greatest thing since the good guy factor. In the
1:15
Speaker 1: Bengals locker room. There are roughly seventy players on the team,
1:19
Speaker 1: including the practice squad, and I can honestly say that
1:22
Speaker 1: I can't name a single jerk. The guys are fun
1:25
Speaker 1: to deal with, very accommodating with our request for interviews
1:29
Speaker 1: and radio show appearances. And trust me, that is not
1:32
Speaker 1: the case in every NFL locker room. The Bengals have
1:35
Speaker 1: done a phenomenal job of drafting and signing players who
1:39
Speaker 1: enjoy coming to work and enjoy each other. I think
1:43
Speaker 1: it's a huge reason why this team got so good
1:46
Speaker 1: so fast. Now let's get to football. Perhaps the biggest
1:51
Speaker 1: question this week involves the status of Jamar Chase. Will
1:54
Speaker 1: he return from his hip injury this Sunday. Here's what
1:58
Speaker 1: Zach Taylor had to say at the beginning end of
2:00
Speaker 1: the week when asked if Jamar could be back. It's
2:04
Speaker 1: hard to say, you know, it's it's We'll start working
2:06
Speaker 1: him back this week to see where he's at. I
2:09
Speaker 1: don't want to make any predictions on that, but everything
2:12
Speaker 1: is a kind according to plan so far, and now
2:14
Speaker 1: it's just a matter of getting out there on the
2:15
Speaker 1: grass and seeing where he's at and what's his comfort level,
2:18
Speaker 1: what's our comfort level, And so that'll truly be a
2:22
Speaker 1: day to day process, you know, really starting today tomorrow, Wednesday,
2:26
Speaker 1: to figure out, you know, how he factors in on
2:28
Speaker 1: Sunday Lawrence thing for him, it really is hard to predict,
2:33
Speaker 1: you know. It's again we told him to stay off
2:35
Speaker 1: of it for four weeks, which he did, and so
2:38
Speaker 1: now you get a chance these last couple of days
2:40
Speaker 1: to start getting him going a little bit. And so
2:43
Speaker 1: really hard to make a prediction on. It's a balance
2:47
Speaker 1: of soreness, pain, everything is so great impossible to make
2:52
Speaker 1: the predictions. Jamar did practice on a limited basis on Wednesday,
2:57
Speaker 1: That's the day that Joe Burrow does his weekly news
3:00
Speaker 1: friends to discuss the upcoming game, and naturally, he was
3:03
Speaker 1: asked about the possibility of having Numero Uno back on
3:06
Speaker 1: the field. You know, we'll see how he's feeling. You know,
3:10
Speaker 1: we expect him to play. I know he ran yesterday
3:14
Speaker 1: and he felt good, so we'll see how it goes
3:16
Speaker 1: the rest of the week. Although Joe said we expect
3:18
Speaker 1: him to play, I would take that with a grain
3:21
Speaker 1: of salt. The Bengals will obviously proceed with caution, because
3:24
Speaker 1: the last thing they want to do is put Chase
3:27
Speaker 1: back on the field before he's ready. Jamar has missed
3:30
Speaker 1: three games, and while the first one went horribly the
3:33
Speaker 1: loss in Cleveland, they've scored forty two and thirty seven
3:37
Speaker 1: points in their last two games without him. One of
3:40
Speaker 1: the guys who has really contributed during Jamar's absence has
3:44
Speaker 1: been Trenton Irwin, who caught his first career touchdown passed
3:47
Speaker 1: last week at Pittsburgh. Joe Burrow praised Irwin's work ethic
3:51
Speaker 1: after that game, and I asked Zach Taylor about it
3:54
Speaker 1: this week. He lives in the facility. I think he's
3:56
Speaker 1: got a room somewhere in the facility. I promise you,
3:58
Speaker 1: whether it's the offseason, the preseason, if you hear basketball
4:02
Speaker 1: bouncing from my office and I picked my head out,
4:04
Speaker 1: there's probably Trent getting up shots because he just worked out,
4:08
Speaker 1: or he just stretched, or he just did something. You know,
4:10
Speaker 1: we're most guys, or a guy on an off season,
4:13
Speaker 1: summer or whatever it is. He just kind of lives here.
4:15
Speaker 1: And and that just doesn't mean he's just killing time.
4:19
Speaker 1: He's he's trying to achieve something. Whether it's getting with
4:23
Speaker 1: Darren extra for special teams work, you know, just mentally
4:26
Speaker 1: trying to trying to be better on special teams because
4:28
Speaker 1: he understands the value of that as a receiver when
4:31
Speaker 1: you're not a starter, how that fits into play. And
4:34
Speaker 1: so again he has done. I promise you, Trent goes
4:36
Speaker 1: to bed at night knowing that he did everything he
4:39
Speaker 1: possibly could to be ready for his opportunity when it comes.
4:42
Speaker 1: And so those are the types of guys that you
4:44
Speaker 1: can just see. I mean, that's one of the few ones.
4:47
Speaker 1: I watched the TV copy of that touchdown just to
4:49
Speaker 1: watch the reaction from the players, the coaches on the sideline,
4:53
Speaker 1: to staff members, because everybody in here knows how hard
4:56
Speaker 1: the guy works and how much heaters are of that moment.
4:58
Speaker 1: Trenton Or when his twenty six years old and has
5:00
Speaker 1: been with the Bengals for four years, nearly all of
5:03
Speaker 1: it spent on the practice squad. I caught up with
5:07
Speaker 1: the former Stanford cardinal Trent, and I asked Zach Taylor
5:11
Speaker 1: about you this week, and he said, quote, he lives
5:15
Speaker 1: in the building. I think he's got a room here somewhere.
5:18
Speaker 1: And then he said he goes to bed at night
5:20
Speaker 1: knowing he did everything to make the most of his opportunity.
5:25
Speaker 1: What's your reaction to those comments. Well, I mean that's
5:27
Speaker 1: a compliment and a half right there, But I mean
5:30
Speaker 1: that's not how true. I do stay in here a lot.
5:33
Speaker 1: I try to come in here off days every time,
5:35
Speaker 1: for sure, But you know, even the bye week, I
5:36
Speaker 1: just stayed here instead of going at home and just
5:39
Speaker 1: just trying to be the most prepared I can be
5:41
Speaker 1: for when the opportunities come, and they've been coming more lately,
5:44
Speaker 1: So happy for that. Your teammates went bananas when you
5:47
Speaker 1: caught your first NFL touchdown catch last week. What did
5:50
Speaker 1: their reaction mean to you. I think it was pretty cool.
5:53
Speaker 1: It was pretty cool. I actually had like a dance
5:55
Speaker 1: ready and they all showed up, so I was like,
5:56
Speaker 1: I wish I would celebrate together, but that's the way
5:58
Speaker 1: I want to do it anywhere, celebrate together of the team,
6:02
Speaker 1: you know, just having that reaction, And actually I think
6:04
Speaker 1: part of that too was having last week's taken away
6:07
Speaker 1: with the call there, so everyone was like, ah, you know,
6:10
Speaker 1: you had it, and so it was good to get
6:12
Speaker 1: back in the zone. Yeah, let's go back to that touchdown.
6:15
Speaker 1: Catch because I think it was a touchdown against Carolina.
6:18
Speaker 1: You're just on the edge of the end zone. You
6:20
Speaker 1: reach out. It's a question as to whether you got
6:23
Speaker 1: both feet down in bounds. I watched the replay a
6:25
Speaker 1: bunch of times. I think your right foot was down.
6:28
Speaker 1: Did you get ripped off? I feel like I got
6:30
Speaker 1: ripped off. I do, I do, one hundred percent. But
6:32
Speaker 1: it's one of those they call it incomplete on the field.
6:34
Speaker 1: It's hard to overturn type of things. They made up
6:38
Speaker 1: for it in the next game that we made it happen,
6:39
Speaker 1: so it was. It was tough, it hurt, but it
6:42
Speaker 1: turned back around. Yeah, the good news is you didn't
6:44
Speaker 1: have to wait long to get the one that counted
6:47
Speaker 1: last week against the Steelers. Let's describe that play. Are
6:50
Speaker 1: you the first option there? Do you have a pretty
6:52
Speaker 1: good idea when they snapped the ball? Did Joe's coming
6:54
Speaker 1: to you? Not at all? Not at all. TV was
6:56
Speaker 1: the first option there. I was supposed to help it
6:58
Speaker 1: out for TV, and they played different covers than we
7:01
Speaker 1: were expecting and a little scramble drill. You know, Joe
7:05
Speaker 1: put it in a good spot and made a play,
7:06
Speaker 1: and I really had no shun no idea. I was
7:09
Speaker 1: gonna get that ball, so be prepared every time they
7:12
Speaker 1: snap it. You received a game ball after the game.
7:16
Speaker 1: Where is it and where will it ultimately wind up?
7:19
Speaker 1: Game ball is It's definitely in my condo right now,
7:23
Speaker 1: just sort of chilling there. I took it with me
7:25
Speaker 1: all through the airport on the airplane, you know, through
7:29
Speaker 1: the bus, all that good stuff. But I'm gonna send
7:31
Speaker 1: it back home and get it frame or get it
7:32
Speaker 1: in a box, however you frame a football. I've learned
7:35
Speaker 1: that one. I've known that one. Yeah, some sort of
7:38
Speaker 1: glass case or box or something. I'm guessing we're visiting
7:42
Speaker 1: the Trenton Irwin. During the last three games, you were
7:45
Speaker 1: elevated from the practice squad to the game day roster.
7:48
Speaker 1: A team can only do that three times during the
7:51
Speaker 1: course of the season. You played so well that you
7:53
Speaker 1: have now been promoted full time to the fifty three
7:56
Speaker 1: man roster, get a nice pay raise among other things.
7:59
Speaker 1: But is it a relief. It's definitely a huge compliment,
8:02
Speaker 1: you know. It's it's you know, getting up there three
8:05
Speaker 1: weeks in a row and then getting the fourth week
8:06
Speaker 1: to fifty three. You know, that's that's always the goal
8:09
Speaker 1: for me. But I mean it's you know, it's not
8:11
Speaker 1: nothing I haven't proven. You know, I've been able to
8:13
Speaker 1: go a weekend, week out and make some plays and
8:15
Speaker 1: I'm excited to continue to make some plays when the
8:17
Speaker 1: opportunities come. You guys scored a bunch of points each
8:20
Speaker 1: of the last two weeks without Jamar Chase. What's it
8:23
Speaker 1: saying about the offense that you guys were able to
8:26
Speaker 1: thrive without him? I mean, Jamar's special, He's special and
8:28
Speaker 1: everything that he does. But our offense has been able
8:31
Speaker 1: to tick, and you know, ball has been spread around.
8:33
Speaker 1: People have been making plays, different people making plays between
8:36
Speaker 1: Joe you know, Borough obviously, but mixing and T and TB.
8:40
Speaker 1: So I mean it just shows that we have a
8:41
Speaker 1: lot of pieces on this team, both through attitude and
8:44
Speaker 1: you know, playmaking ability to be able to create explosives
8:47
Speaker 1: for the team. Trying to hit your fourth year with
8:49
Speaker 1: the Bengals, much of that time has been spent on
8:52
Speaker 1: the practice squad. What's the hardest thing about doing all
8:55
Speaker 1: the work during the course of the week and not
8:57
Speaker 1: getting to experience the joy of game day. Man, It's
9:00
Speaker 1: a tease. It's just a tease. Every week. You know,
9:02
Speaker 1: you I love the game, I love the preparation, but
9:05
Speaker 1: being able to make a play for the team, to
9:07
Speaker 1: be able to, you know, have that adversity, that moment,
9:10
Speaker 1: it's you know, it's like something you crave and it's
9:12
Speaker 1: a little bit of tease to just be that practice,
9:15
Speaker 1: you know, going through the motions type of thing. But
9:17
Speaker 1: you can't be going through the motions if you want
9:18
Speaker 1: to be elevated because you've got to continue to get
9:21
Speaker 1: better there. So it's it's been a tease, but you know,
9:24
Speaker 1: as long as it is, I'm playing playing ball on
9:27
Speaker 1: the team right now, so I'm happy. Do you find
9:29
Speaker 1: a way to turn practice into a game. I think
9:31
Speaker 1: they do a very good job of that. I think
9:33
Speaker 1: they do some competition drills, um. But also on scout team.
9:37
Speaker 1: You know me, Stanley's been there for some time with me,
9:41
Speaker 1: and we always we always said our Thursdays of our
9:43
Speaker 1: game days when we weren't active. So you had to
9:46
Speaker 1: Tennessee this week, knocked them out of the playoffs on
9:49
Speaker 1: their home field last year. I'm sure the fans are
9:51
Speaker 1: going to be salty on Sunday. What do you expect
9:53
Speaker 1: the atmosphere to be like? Oh, it'll be rowdy. For sure.
9:55
Speaker 1: It'll be rowdy, you know. I mean they're they're coming
9:58
Speaker 1: coming for us. But I mean this is it is
10:00
Speaker 1: like a playoff game as well. You know, we gotta
10:02
Speaker 1: come out there, we gotta win, this must win. So
10:04
Speaker 1: I think, you know, I think we all approaching it
10:06
Speaker 1: with that manner, and I think I think the results
10:08
Speaker 1: show in their last seven games, they have not given
10:11
Speaker 1: up more than seventeen points in regulation. How would you
10:15
Speaker 1: describe their defense? Wow, I didn't know that's that. Um,
10:18
Speaker 1: Their front is definitely the strength of their defense there,
10:20
Speaker 1: their front sevens, you know. I mean they showed that
10:24
Speaker 1: in the playoffs as well. But you know they're they're
10:27
Speaker 1: in every position. They're just a little bit nasty, they're physical.
10:30
Speaker 1: You know they're gonna play that way, and that's that's
10:32
Speaker 1: very able there. You know, that's him going pick up
10:35
Speaker 1: those types of guys and it's gonna be a competition.
10:37
Speaker 1: But I think we're going more than seventeen. So final
10:40
Speaker 1: question for Trent and Irwin. You joined Dave Lapham and
10:43
Speaker 1: me on a radio show a few weeks ago. Somebody
10:45
Speaker 1: approached you and asked you to sign a box of
10:48
Speaker 1: Velveta because you were in a Lvita commercial when you
10:52
Speaker 1: were a kid. Is that the all time weirdest autograph
10:56
Speaker 1: request you've received? And as it started a trend, so
11:00
Speaker 1: I've signed two Vilviata boxes. Is it the all time weirdest?
11:04
Speaker 1: Some kids be creative with the weird stuff. I signed
11:06
Speaker 1: the fork ones. I don't know why I was signing
11:08
Speaker 1: a fork the Velvata boxes. Those are always fun because
11:12
Speaker 1: it shows that nos background information. But I mean it
11:15
Speaker 1: probably up there is one of the weirdest. I've even
11:17
Speaker 1: signed a fork. I tried to figure it out. It
11:20
Speaker 1: didn't look pretty. It did not look pretty, but it
11:23
Speaker 1: was what it was. I handed it back to him.
11:25
Speaker 1: It was a metal fork and who was happy? Though?
11:27
Speaker 1: That's automatted there. That's good stuff. Congrat send your first
11:30
Speaker 1: NFL touchdown catch last week. Best of luck this Sunday.
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11:58
Speaker 1: the Bengals app The road of the Super Bowl last
12:01
Speaker 1: year included a stunning nineteen sixteen win over the top
12:04
Speaker 1: seeded Titans on their home field. It was the first
12:07
Speaker 1: road playoff win in Bengals history, and they pulled off
12:10
Speaker 1: the upset despite Joe Burrow being sacked nine times. So
12:14
Speaker 1: what's it going to take to do it again? I
12:17
Speaker 1: discussed the matchup with one of the guys who will
12:19
Speaker 1: call the game on TV this Sunday. I had Eagle
12:24
Speaker 1: and Charles Davis will be in the booth for CBS
12:26
Speaker 1: this week, and the former Tennessee safety joins us. Now, Charles,
12:30
Speaker 1: you had the Bengals Steelers back in Week one. You
12:33
Speaker 1: also had the Bengals Jets game. But I want to
12:35
Speaker 1: go back to that first game. What did you think
12:36
Speaker 1: of the Bengals when you walked out of the booth
12:39
Speaker 1: at Paycourt Stadium that day? Well, the first thing I thought,
12:42
Speaker 1: Dan was I didn't give enough credence to a cardinal
12:46
Speaker 1: rule and an adage that I'm quite aware of and
12:49
Speaker 1: believe in, and that is it offensive lines take time, continuity,
12:55
Speaker 1: is real. The best ones have played together, spent time.
12:59
Speaker 1: You know what's that great phrase, it's all through the
13:02
Speaker 1: NFL now time on task. They've all done it. And
13:06
Speaker 1: it doesn't just happen just because you're bringing new people
13:08
Speaker 1: who are very good at their positions, and then you
13:11
Speaker 1: throw in Lyon Collins really didn't practice all the run
13:14
Speaker 1: up too, like he wouldn't get like one two days
13:16
Speaker 1: in before the season opener. So when you put it together, yes,
13:20
Speaker 1: Lyon Collins is an upgrade at right tackle, Alex Kapp
13:23
Speaker 1: is an upgrade at right guard. Ted Carriss is an
13:25
Speaker 1: upgrade at center. You're hoping that Cordell Volson will be
13:28
Speaker 1: an upgrade eventually, at least with him, he was a rookie.
13:31
Speaker 1: So you exactly you said to yourself, okay that and
13:33
Speaker 1: you know it's gonna take some time. And Jonah Williams,
13:35
Speaker 1: you knew it was a proven factor. But we went
13:38
Speaker 1: into that game and let me rephrase that, I went
13:40
Speaker 1: into that game, Wow, I can't wait to see this
13:42
Speaker 1: Bengals offensive line. And they struggled rough ball game. And
13:46
Speaker 1: let's face it, just about anyone who plays Pittsburgh's going
13:48
Speaker 1: to struggle, and they did but fast forward to just
13:52
Speaker 1: last week, and you've seen an offensive line now that's
13:56
Speaker 1: had time on task. If I'm not mistaken, Dan, every
14:00
Speaker 1: guy has made every start. You don't get that in
14:03
Speaker 1: the league very often now because of injuries and all that.
14:06
Speaker 1: And boy did it show up against Pittsburgh last week.
14:09
Speaker 1: Seven If you just want blood down to one stat,
14:11
Speaker 1: seven sacks has given up in the first game, two
14:13
Speaker 1: in the second game. Just off of that, you've seen
14:17
Speaker 1: the improvement, but it was a lot bigger than that.
14:19
Speaker 1: Now this offensive line is a factor as expected. And
14:23
Speaker 1: that's my takeaway from week one. So how good is
14:26
Speaker 1: the group? Ten games? In middle of the pack, top third,
14:31
Speaker 1: not near the bottom. What do you think of the
14:33
Speaker 1: offensive line? Definitely top third and trending upwards getting better.
14:38
Speaker 1: You know they've hit their stride now to where they
14:41
Speaker 1: go into it and they're not having to account for
14:44
Speaker 1: each other as much as believe in each other. And
14:47
Speaker 1: the difference for me is very simply this. In the opener,
14:50
Speaker 1: you were counting for each other. Zach Taylor as a
14:53
Speaker 1: head coach and play caller had to count for that.
14:55
Speaker 1: Brian Callahan, do I keep tight end and more to
14:58
Speaker 1: chip and make sure I'm protecting my quarterback. Do I
15:01
Speaker 1: make sure the back checks it before he gets out
15:03
Speaker 1: into a scout? You know, no scout protection where he
15:05
Speaker 1: just gets out, but keep him in. Do I do
15:07
Speaker 1: those sorts of things? I think there's a lot less
15:09
Speaker 1: of that now in watching them over the last few
15:12
Speaker 1: weeks and seeing them being able to do that, and
15:15
Speaker 1: when they look at each other, they kind of know
15:16
Speaker 1: what the move is without having to call out the
15:18
Speaker 1: code words and do things like that. Although I'm sure
15:21
Speaker 1: they're still playing communication going on. That's what good offensive
15:23
Speaker 1: lines do, but they're definitely one of the better ones.
15:26
Speaker 1: They're not gonna get the credit for it because the
15:28
Speaker 1: numbers are so heavily skewed from the beginning of the year.
15:31
Speaker 1: When you give up thirteen sacks in your first two games,
15:34
Speaker 1: you're playing from behind the rest of the year Dan
15:35
Speaker 1: as we well know. But I think that if you
15:38
Speaker 1: take it from let's say two weeks ago to the
15:41
Speaker 1: rest of the season, then you're gonna be able to
15:43
Speaker 1: compare them to say, oh, people will go, oh wow,
15:47
Speaker 1: that's a really good You know, they've come together, so
15:49
Speaker 1: I see them, I see that happening for them and
15:51
Speaker 1: Joe Burrow. Look when you can protect him, look out,
15:55
Speaker 1: He's tough enough when you don't protect him. Because that
15:57
Speaker 1: opening game, the Steelers won it, But did the Bengals
16:02
Speaker 1: actually lose it? I think a case could be made
16:05
Speaker 1: on that. We're chatting with Charles Davis from CBS. So
16:08
Speaker 1: the Bengals are six and four right now, they're the
16:10
Speaker 1: seventh and final playoff seed in the AFCNE How good
16:14
Speaker 1: are the Bengals right now? They're good enough to play
16:17
Speaker 1: against anyone. I know. Everyone's talking about their schedule, and
16:21
Speaker 1: my colleague out of Marchiletta talked about it last week
16:24
Speaker 1: on the broadcast, and he's right, Bengals have to earn
16:27
Speaker 1: their way, okay, because there are no soft touches for
16:30
Speaker 1: the Bengals all the way out the rest of the season.
16:32
Speaker 1: But at the same time, everyone who plays them is
16:36
Speaker 1: feeling like, oh boy, gotta get ready for this squad.
16:38
Speaker 1: And when you look at numbers and again, I'm not
16:40
Speaker 1: trying to go Vince Scully here, God rest his soul.
16:43
Speaker 1: One of the greatest ever. I SI love how Ben
16:45
Speaker 1: could weave a stat into something and make it sound
16:47
Speaker 1: so incredible. And he's now batting two seventy five on
16:51
Speaker 1: a Tuesday when the temperature is four degree and you're
16:55
Speaker 1: like whoa, and you're like what was that? Right? But
16:59
Speaker 1: it felt really important. But you look at the numbers
17:02
Speaker 1: for the Bengals offensive offense, they're very good except for
17:05
Speaker 1: the running game. Defense really good, Okay, especially when you're
17:09
Speaker 1: talking about them shutting people down on third downs and
17:12
Speaker 1: getting off the field. You know things that you like
17:15
Speaker 1: what you see from them, all right, you like this.
17:17
Speaker 1: You count on the experience, even with injuries things come along.
17:21
Speaker 1: I think they're gonna be a tough out for anyone
17:23
Speaker 1: they play, and a lot of people are gonna talk
17:25
Speaker 1: about games looking even because of records. They remind me
17:29
Speaker 1: a little bit of San Francisco six and four. But
17:33
Speaker 1: I think a case could be made they're the best
17:34
Speaker 1: team in the NFC, Cincinnati six and four and in
17:38
Speaker 1: second place in their division. There's a case that can
17:41
Speaker 1: be made that that's the team you don't want to
17:43
Speaker 1: deal with. That's where I think Cincinnati is. Right now,
17:47
Speaker 1: you've got a Vince Scully imitation. I'm impressed. I just
17:51
Speaker 1: love it right there. How many times have we listen
17:54
Speaker 1: to Vince Scully give us a stat and we've just gone,
17:56
Speaker 1: Oh my goodness. And then later on you thought to yourself,
18:00
Speaker 1: who computes what the temperature was on a certain date
18:03
Speaker 1: in Saint Louis in nineteen forty seven, Ben Scully? Didn't
18:07
Speaker 1: It sure sounded good to me. All right, let's doc secondary.
18:10
Speaker 1: That's the position you played at Tennessee. The Bengals have
18:13
Speaker 1: lost chittabey a wuge. I think he's a top five
18:16
Speaker 1: corner in the NFL. You can't go find a guy
18:18
Speaker 1: like that in the middle of the season. How good
18:20
Speaker 1: is the Bengal secondary without him? Obviously they're reduced without
18:25
Speaker 1: him because he's what you said, he's one of your
18:28
Speaker 1: top players, and he's only gotten better and better in
18:30
Speaker 1: his time in Cincinnati. You know, he was relying on
18:33
Speaker 1: so much talent in Dallas, but then he refined it
18:36
Speaker 1: in Cincinnati. And he was a guy who liked to
18:38
Speaker 1: take on the challenge. He wanted to travel with the
18:40
Speaker 1: number one receiver. He wore CB one across his heart.
18:44
Speaker 1: He wanted to be that guy sending me, well, you
18:47
Speaker 1: can't do that now because it's not quite the same
18:49
Speaker 1: you're trying to do, you know, figure some things out
18:52
Speaker 1: at corner. But that's where Cam Taylor brit comes into play.
18:55
Speaker 1: This is why he was drafted, and I think he's
18:57
Speaker 1: gotten better as time has gone on. And I love
19:00
Speaker 1: a Loua and Rumo does with the defense. But I
19:02
Speaker 1: think now you go back and you say, okay, here's
19:05
Speaker 1: where my veterans come into play. Jesse Bates, von Bell,
19:09
Speaker 1: Mike Hilton, three guys that could hold down the middle,
19:12
Speaker 1: and of course Hilton going with the Nickels and doing
19:14
Speaker 1: those things and help those younger guys out. Even when
19:17
Speaker 1: they make a mistake, you have some more racers behind them.
19:21
Speaker 1: They make that mistake, they keep that mistake from being
19:23
Speaker 1: too huge. So I still think it's a very good secondary. Obviously,
19:27
Speaker 1: without a Woozia, I think it'd be disingenuous to say, oh,
19:30
Speaker 1: it's just as good. That's not true. Woozia is that
19:33
Speaker 1: type of a player. The Bengals didn't have Jamar Chase
19:37
Speaker 1: last week, they lost Joe Mixon in the first half,
19:39
Speaker 1: and they dropped thirty seven on the Steelers in Pittsburgh
19:42
Speaker 1: with t J. Watt back. What does that say about
19:45
Speaker 1: the Bengals offense. It says that they've adjusted because you
19:48
Speaker 1: remember when Jamar Chase wasn't around the first week. I
19:52
Speaker 1: had zero doubt in my mind that they would be fine.
19:56
Speaker 1: In fact, I opined everywhere people ask me, and probably
19:59
Speaker 1: even when they didn't ask me, they were gonna be okay.
20:02
Speaker 1: Remember that game, Dan, it was Halloween, It's Cleveland and
20:07
Speaker 1: Imber I actually said on a CBS HQ. They asked
20:13
Speaker 1: me who I liked in the game. I said Cincinnati.
20:15
Speaker 1: I've never been stronger on a pick this one this year.
20:19
Speaker 1: Halloween Night got me and they had to go through
20:22
Speaker 1: a little adjustment period. But a reason my reasoning at
20:24
Speaker 1: the time still stands for me because we've seen it
20:27
Speaker 1: since then. T Higgins is a wr one in most places.
20:32
Speaker 1: Tyler Boyd, before t Higgins and before Jamar Chase showed up,
20:36
Speaker 1: led the team in receiving for three straight years. It's
20:38
Speaker 1: not a matter of him not understanding how to get open.
20:41
Speaker 1: Hayden Hurst is a more than quality tight end who
20:45
Speaker 1: I thought, Okay, he'll get more opportunities. Joe Mixon, Yeah,
20:48
Speaker 1: we know the trouble running football. We've seen that throughout
20:50
Speaker 1: the year, finally starting to come together. But he could
20:53
Speaker 1: catch the ball in the backfield. P Ryan could catch
20:55
Speaker 1: the ball in the backfield. So I thought that they
20:57
Speaker 1: would adjust and Joe Burrow would find the best matchup.
21:00
Speaker 1: That one night didn't happen very well since then, with
21:04
Speaker 1: the growth of the offensive line. Yeah, all those weapons
21:07
Speaker 1: are still out there. And when you get chased back,
21:10
Speaker 1: if you get him back this week, next week, whenever
21:13
Speaker 1: it is, things go back. Not so much too normal,
21:16
Speaker 1: but they keep getting better because everyone gained more confidence
21:19
Speaker 1: in doing more things while he was out. This is
21:22
Speaker 1: a very difficult matchup with Jamar Chase or without Jamar
21:25
Speaker 1: Jamar Chase for any defense to deal with. Let's talk
21:29
Speaker 1: about the Titans. They've won seven of their last eight,
21:32
Speaker 1: the only loss in overtime at Kansas City when they
21:35
Speaker 1: didn't have Ryan Tannehill. How is this team doing it
21:39
Speaker 1: the same way they always do it? A head coach
21:42
Speaker 1: who sets a tone and a tenor and some absolutes
21:46
Speaker 1: that he makes his team play too. And his staff
21:49
Speaker 1: they you know, they have their We all know Pittsburgh
21:52
Speaker 1: the standard is the standard, right, so everyone has their
21:54
Speaker 1: version of that, whatever you want to call it. But
21:57
Speaker 1: I call him absolutes for every team, okay, because every
22:00
Speaker 1: coach says the same thing. You get what you coach, right,
22:03
Speaker 1: do you get what you demand? Well, whatever is you're
22:05
Speaker 1: absolute in Tennessee, absolutes are going to be. We're gonna
22:09
Speaker 1: be strong on defense right there, number one in the
22:11
Speaker 1: league in third down defense. And remember Dan two seasons
22:15
Speaker 1: ago they went to the playoffs giving up over fifty
22:17
Speaker 1: three percent on third down, the worst since the merger.
22:20
Speaker 1: And somehow gad in any way, Right, it gonna be
22:22
Speaker 1: tough that way, It's gonna be Derrick Henry, Derrick Henry,
22:25
Speaker 1: Derrick Henry until until further notice. But when Ryan Tannehill
22:28
Speaker 1: can throw a play action off of all that, Derrick
22:31
Speaker 1: Henry and Trailer and Burks lives up to being a
22:33
Speaker 1: first round draft pick and can break people down in
22:35
Speaker 1: the secondary, now you're starting to get there. Because their
22:39
Speaker 1: numbers with the receivers won't scare you at all. In fact,
22:42
Speaker 1: the numbers with the receivers are really abysmal. Okay, But
22:45
Speaker 1: Henry when he's running the football, and you have to
22:47
Speaker 1: respect that. When Tannehill gets that time and is locked
22:51
Speaker 1: in as he was Thursday night in Green Bay where
22:53
Speaker 1: he threw for over three hundred that night, and Burt's
22:55
Speaker 1: had a big night in the first one he's had
22:57
Speaker 1: all year long. If they can keep ascending like that
22:59
Speaker 1: on all offense, then it's look out, because now you're
23:03
Speaker 1: gonna start throwing on first down. You're gonna go play
23:06
Speaker 1: action right then and there and get those heavy boxes
23:09
Speaker 1: and create better matchups in the secondary. But the biggest
23:12
Speaker 1: thing for me is Tennessee wakes up every morning and
23:16
Speaker 1: before their feet hit the floor coming out of bed,
23:18
Speaker 1: they know who they are and they live to it.
23:22
Speaker 1: And that's why you have what you have. Tennessee Cincinnati
23:26
Speaker 1: both oh and two starts. Since then, it's been pretty
23:29
Speaker 1: darn good. I think Tennessee seven of eight Cincinnati sixth
23:32
Speaker 1: of eight. That's pretty strong matchup right there. Both of
23:35
Speaker 1: them have their a strong sense of identity and a
23:38
Speaker 1: strong sense of self. So the Bengals went there in
23:40
Speaker 1: the playoffs, slashed year, knocked out the Titans when they
23:43
Speaker 1: were the number one seed in the AFC. The fans
23:45
Speaker 1: are going to be salty this Sunday in Nashville, There's
23:48
Speaker 1: no doubt about it. What are a couple of keys
23:50
Speaker 1: for the Bengals to go there and beat them again? Well,
23:54
Speaker 1: I think it's I think it's pretty simple. We just
23:57
Speaker 1: talked about identity and sense of self. Right, Joe Mixon
24:00
Speaker 1: is able to go because of the injury he had
24:03
Speaker 1: last week. Obviously we're gonna treat that with majorcaution and
24:07
Speaker 1: air on the side of that. But if he's able
24:09
Speaker 1: to go, or if it's p Ryan and maybe tray
24:11
Speaker 1: Beon Williams running the football well enough, it doesn't have
24:15
Speaker 1: to be beating people up. It doesn't have to be
24:17
Speaker 1: that the old you have to run the ball in
24:19
Speaker 1: the AFC North to win it. Yeah, you gotta run
24:21
Speaker 1: it well enough so that you can get to the
24:23
Speaker 1: other stuff you want to get to, and that is
24:25
Speaker 1: Joe Burrow flinging it out wide to Higgins, to Boy
24:28
Speaker 1: to Hayden Hurst and just being able to dissect defense
24:31
Speaker 1: is just give him that little extra count of time
24:34
Speaker 1: in order to get that done defensively, not giving up
24:37
Speaker 1: anything big in terms of Henry meet him at the
24:40
Speaker 1: point of attack. He's going to break some tackles. So
24:43
Speaker 1: I think the Bengals wearing white this week, a lot
24:46
Speaker 1: of white shirts around Derrick Henry. Okay, first guy, it
24:50
Speaker 1: can't just be him alone, because that person, I don't
24:52
Speaker 1: care who it is, deal with Derrick Henry. He's gonna
24:54
Speaker 1: break something, all right. You may meet him in the hole,
24:57
Speaker 1: you may meet him in the backfield. He's gonna get
24:59
Speaker 1: a a little more than what is there? Your key
25:02
Speaker 1: as if it's only one person, might be a lot
25:04
Speaker 1: more than what is there, multiple people getting to Henry
25:07
Speaker 1: and then making sure you don't give a chance, give
25:09
Speaker 1: Tannehill a chance to get off growing the football. And
25:12
Speaker 1: right now that's Traylan Burkes, the rookie out of Arkansas.
25:16
Speaker 1: They get other people that they'll mix in. You're still
25:18
Speaker 1: waiting for Robert Woods to really break out. But he
25:21
Speaker 1: had six catches last week. But the big thing is
25:24
Speaker 1: just like in the playoffs, don't let Henry get going.
25:27
Speaker 1: And by the way, if I remember correctly, Dan, I
25:30
Speaker 1: think Cincinnati Hill Tennessee to one of eight, one of ten,
25:35
Speaker 1: one of whatever in the playoffs on third down. That's huge,
25:39
Speaker 1: absolutely huge. Bengals Both podcast is brought to you by
25:43
Speaker 1: Cattering Health, the official healthcare provider of the Bengals. With
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Speaker 1: more than one hundred twenty eight care facilities and fifteen
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Speaker 1: hundred care providers, Cattering Health is committed to guiding you
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Speaker 1: to your best health. Visit cattering health dot org to
25:58
Speaker 1: learn more. The tennis Titans started the year oh and
26:01
Speaker 1: two with a one point home loss to the New
26:04
Speaker 1: York Giants, followed by a thirty four point road loss
26:08
Speaker 1: to the Buffalo Bills. Since then, they're seven and one.
26:11
Speaker 1: But here are the teams they've beaten the Colts twice,
26:15
Speaker 1: the Raiders, Commanders, Texans, Broncos, and Packers. Washington is the
26:21
Speaker 1: only team on that list with a winning record at
26:24
Speaker 1: six and five, and the others are combined nineteen and
26:28
Speaker 1: forty one with three ties. And this week's Know the
26:31
Speaker 1: Faux segment, I caught up with one of my favorite
26:34
Speaker 1: people in the world, John Burton. We worked together at
26:37
Speaker 1: a TV station in Syracuse when we were just starting
26:40
Speaker 1: out in broadcasting, and now John is a popular sports
26:43
Speaker 1: anchor and talk show host in Nashville, KYB. The Titans
26:48
Speaker 1: are seven and one in their last eight. Their only
26:50
Speaker 1: loss during that span was in overtime at Kansas City
26:53
Speaker 1: when they didn't have Ryan Tannehill. That sounds like the
26:56
Speaker 1: profile of a really good team to me, But for
26:59
Speaker 1: whatever reason, they never seem to be mentioned as one
27:02
Speaker 1: of the true Super Bowl contenders in the AFC. Do
27:05
Speaker 1: they feel perpetually disrespected? I think deep down they do.
27:09
Speaker 1: They don't speak on it, Dan, you know, but I
27:12
Speaker 1: think deep down they do because you look at where
27:15
Speaker 1: this organization was not that long ago. They went through
27:18
Speaker 1: a two year stretch where they were five and twenty seven,
27:20
Speaker 1: and since then they've had a winning record every year.
27:23
Speaker 1: They made the playoffs four straight times. This will be
27:25
Speaker 1: five straight. They're about to win their third straight division.
27:28
Speaker 1: They were the number one seed in the AFC last
27:30
Speaker 1: year with a home field advantage until your guys came
27:33
Speaker 1: in and ruined the party. And you're right, they never
27:36
Speaker 1: get mentioned amongst the elite, either in the NFL or
27:39
Speaker 1: for that matter, the AFC. I think it's the market
27:42
Speaker 1: that we play in. I think it's the fact that
27:44
Speaker 1: even though Derek Henry's a star, he's not a real,
27:47
Speaker 1: you know, mouthie, dynamic kind of guy. He's a he's
27:50
Speaker 1: just a lunch pale guy. And really this organization and
27:53
Speaker 1: this team is really a lunch pale team. They've got,
27:55
Speaker 1: you know, star players, Dereck Henry's one of them, certainly,
27:58
Speaker 1: and Jeffrey Simmons is becoming an absolute stud on the
28:02
Speaker 1: defensive line. But you know, they all kind of fall
28:04
Speaker 1: in line to what Rabel wants them to do, and
28:06
Speaker 1: that's just show up, and he preaches effort and finish
28:09
Speaker 1: and you know, support your teammates. Don't do a lot
28:12
Speaker 1: of trash talking, don't do a lot of you know,
28:15
Speaker 1: stuff that's going to get a lot of attention. I
28:17
Speaker 1: think Rabel deep down likes it that way. You know,
28:20
Speaker 1: he comes from the Belichick tree, maybe not coaching, but
28:22
Speaker 1: he played for him and won a bunch of Super
28:24
Speaker 1: Bowls with him. So I think they like it that way.
28:27
Speaker 1: But if you asked him, if you put the wonder
28:29
Speaker 1: Woman last or truth around these players, they would say, yeah,
28:32
Speaker 1: you know what, we deserve more respect for what we've
28:34
Speaker 1: done the last four or five years. What was the
28:37
Speaker 1: local reaction after the playoff loss and what is the
28:40
Speaker 1: atmosphere going to be like on Sunday. Well, I'll start
28:43
Speaker 1: with your first question. Devastation. I mean, nobody saw this coming.
28:46
Speaker 1: I mean, with all due respect to the Bengals, and
28:48
Speaker 1: obviously they had a great run last year getting to
28:50
Speaker 1: the Super Bowl and maybe one Aaron Donald getting blocked
28:54
Speaker 1: away from you know, play from the winning the whole thing.
28:57
Speaker 1: Nobody expected that Cincinnati ben was to come into Nashville
29:01
Speaker 1: and beat the Tennessee Titans. Titans were, you know, basically
29:04
Speaker 1: because you look at what the Titans went through last year.
29:07
Speaker 1: They won twelve games despite the fact that they had
29:10
Speaker 1: so many key injuries, and they were able to rise
29:12
Speaker 1: above it. You know, the Titans used an NFL record
29:15
Speaker 1: ninety one different players last year and had never been
29:18
Speaker 1: done before, and they felt like, you know what, we
29:20
Speaker 1: weathered the storm. We got our guys back. Derek Henry
29:23
Speaker 1: was coming back on his injury. Everybody, to a man
29:27
Speaker 1: and a woman here in Nashville thought last year was
29:30
Speaker 1: the year that they would at least get to the
29:32
Speaker 1: Super Bowl and a chance, you know, to right the
29:35
Speaker 1: wrong that was done with them back at Super Bowl
29:37
Speaker 1: thirty four against the Rams. It was shocked. This was
29:40
Speaker 1: a quiet town for about four or five days. And
29:42
Speaker 1: after Evan McPherson kicked that field goal in the final gun.
29:46
Speaker 1: We're talking to Nashville sports anchor and sports talk show
29:48
Speaker 1: host John Burton. Ryan Tannehill was very candid over the
29:52
Speaker 1: summer about that game. He spoke about being in a
29:54
Speaker 1: really dark place after the three interceptions. He saught therapy.
29:57
Speaker 1: Do you see a difference in Ryan Tannehill this year?
30:00
Speaker 1: I do. And he's got that look at his eye,
30:03
Speaker 1: and I think, you know, he's a guy. Ryan is
30:06
Speaker 1: a guy that loves to compete and loves to win.
30:08
Speaker 1: And he's had a lot of success here being the
30:10
Speaker 1: Titan starting quarterback, taking over for Marcus Mariota mid way
30:13
Speaker 1: through twenty nineteen. But the book on him has always been,
30:17
Speaker 1: you know what, he's good. He's a good regular season quarterback.
30:20
Speaker 1: He can't get you over the hump. He can't go
30:22
Speaker 1: into Kansas City and go toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes.
30:25
Speaker 1: He can't go into Buffalo and go toe to toe
30:27
Speaker 1: with Josh Allen. And we saw what Joe Burrow did
30:30
Speaker 1: coming in here last year, getting sacked nine times and
30:33
Speaker 1: getting up every time and leading that last second drive,
30:35
Speaker 1: and of course the interceptions that Tannehill threw. So I
30:38
Speaker 1: think he's out to prove for a number of reasons,
30:41
Speaker 1: maybe chief among them the fact that he knows his
30:44
Speaker 1: days here in tennessee here number they drafted Malik Willis
30:47
Speaker 1: on the third round. He appears to be the air apparent,
30:50
Speaker 1: although he's got a lot of work to do before
30:53
Speaker 1: before we annoint him the next guy. But I think
30:56
Speaker 1: he knows you know, he's thirty four years old. He's
30:58
Speaker 1: had a good career, He's had a good you know,
31:00
Speaker 1: reset to his career here in Nashville. He really really
31:03
Speaker 1: wants to be the guy that to help lead, you know,
31:06
Speaker 1: the Tennessee Titans to a Super Bowl championship. You know,
31:10
Speaker 1: we'll find out if he can do it. But yeah,
31:12
Speaker 1: he's a different kind of player this year, and he's
31:14
Speaker 1: been able to have success despite the fact that this
31:17
Speaker 1: passing game up until the Thursday night game against Green
31:20
Speaker 1: Bay has been almost non existent. You know, you lose
31:23
Speaker 1: H J. Brown and you draft Trailing Burkes and we
31:26
Speaker 1: think he's going to be a pretty good receiver. He
31:28
Speaker 1: had a really good game Thursday night against the Packers,
31:30
Speaker 1: but he's been slow to develop. Robert Woods is more
31:33
Speaker 1: of a possession guy that tight ends haven't really gotten involved.
31:36
Speaker 1: You know, their best receiver has been their backup running
31:38
Speaker 1: back don Roll Hilliard. He's there leading touchdown catchcout, but
31:42
Speaker 1: he's been able to make the plays when the plays
31:45
Speaker 1: are needed to be made. And he is the unquestioned
31:48
Speaker 1: leader of this football team. Everybody in that locker room
31:50
Speaker 1: respects him, and I think the one thing he wants
31:53
Speaker 1: to do before he leaves Nashville or leaves the Titans,
31:56
Speaker 1: is at least get them to the Super Bowl. So yes,
31:58
Speaker 1: I have seen a different look in his eye this year.
32:01
Speaker 1: Let's circle back to Derrick Henry. There have been very
32:03
Speaker 1: few running backs in NFL history like him. He's nearly
32:06
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifty pounds. He's been time to nearly
32:08
Speaker 1: twenty two miles an hour in pads when teams have
32:12
Speaker 1: success against them, when they slow him down, you're not
32:14
Speaker 1: going to shut him down. But when they slow him down,
32:16
Speaker 1: how do they do it? Is it just hats to
32:18
Speaker 1: Derrick Henry? Is that the formula? Yeah, you have to
32:21
Speaker 1: commit to it. You know, you have to say, you
32:23
Speaker 1: know what, Ryan Tannehill beat us throwing the football and
32:27
Speaker 1: with the wide receivers, in the lack of deep threats
32:29
Speaker 1: that you have, we're gonna bang on the fact that
32:31
Speaker 1: if we stop Derrick Henry, we'll be able to make
32:34
Speaker 1: one or two plays defensively to maybe turn Ryan Tannehill over.
32:38
Speaker 1: You have to commit full time to stopping Derrick Henry.
32:41
Speaker 1: But now that you see what happens in the Green
32:44
Speaker 1: Bay game, right, tane Hill throws for three hundred thirty yards.
32:47
Speaker 1: Burkes has seven catches for one hundred eleven yards. Woods
32:49
Speaker 1: made some big catches. Austin Hooper the tight end had
32:52
Speaker 1: a couple of touchdowns. That's gonna make it a little
32:54
Speaker 1: bit more difficult to game plan against because that could
32:56
Speaker 1: loosen things up for opposing defenses pretty soon. If this
33:00
Speaker 1: keeps up with the passing game, right, you're gonna have
33:02
Speaker 1: to decide do I walk my safeties up to commit
33:04
Speaker 1: to the run, or do I stay back in coverage
33:07
Speaker 1: and let you know, some of these guys run free
33:09
Speaker 1: in the middle of Burke's Hooper, some of the guys
33:11
Speaker 1: I mentioned so, but yeah, the way to stop Derrick
33:14
Speaker 1: Henrys you've got to go all out and commit to it.
33:16
Speaker 1: I think in the Denver game, even though the Titans
33:19
Speaker 1: end up ended up winning that game, that was the
33:21
Speaker 1: best example because they basically said, Derrick Henry, if we
33:24
Speaker 1: lose this game, Derrick Henry is not going to beat us.
33:27
Speaker 1: Fill your gaps, get hats to the ball, bring your friends,
33:30
Speaker 1: you know, get and get him before he gets going right.
33:33
Speaker 1: You gotta get him in the backfield, and you gotta
33:35
Speaker 1: hit him low because if you don't, if he if
33:37
Speaker 1: he gets even with the line of scrimmage, his shoulders
33:40
Speaker 1: square as a great John Madden used to say, you're
33:43
Speaker 1: in trouble and if he gets a step on you,
33:44
Speaker 1: you're not gonna catch him, even at two hundred and
33:46
Speaker 1: fifty pounds. A couple more questions for my friend John Burton,
33:49
Speaker 1: the injuries having his pen is bad. This year is
33:52
Speaker 1: last year, but they've still got quite a few fifteen
33:54
Speaker 1: guys on ir What injuries have had the biggest impact
33:58
Speaker 1: and is there anybody we should be key thing on
34:00
Speaker 1: I on this week where that is concerned. I think
34:03
Speaker 1: the biggest injury going into this game dan is they're
34:05
Speaker 1: starting center Ben Jones. You know he's in concussion protocol.
34:09
Speaker 1: Did not play in the Green Bay game. He is
34:11
Speaker 1: the anchor for that offensive line, especially in the running game,
34:15
Speaker 1: you know, in the center guard gaps. You know, he's
34:19
Speaker 1: a leader on this team. He's pound for pound, the
34:21
Speaker 1: toughest guy on this team. They did okay last week
34:24
Speaker 1: running a football without him, but they had to move
34:27
Speaker 1: some guys around. You know, coaches never liked to do that.
34:29
Speaker 1: So Ben Jones is a guy who want to keep
34:32
Speaker 1: an eye on. Also, the starting cornerback, Christian Fulton, he's
34:35
Speaker 1: been dealing with some injuries. It looks like they're gonna
34:37
Speaker 1: get their starting safety on Monty Hooker back, which will
34:39
Speaker 1: be a big boost for them. But and also I
34:43
Speaker 1: would add outside linebacker Bud Dupree. Bengals fans are certainly
34:46
Speaker 1: familiar with him from his days with the Pittsburgh Steelers.
34:49
Speaker 1: He's been dealing with a hip injury. He didn't play
34:51
Speaker 1: against Green Bay. I believe he did practice today. I
34:54
Speaker 1: haven't got the full practice report. I believe he did
34:57
Speaker 1: at least practice in some capacity today. And you know,
35:00
Speaker 1: you remember he had a pretty big day against Burrow,
35:03
Speaker 1: as did everybody on that defense in that playoff game.
35:05
Speaker 1: Even though y'all came out with the win, Burrow earned
35:08
Speaker 1: that victory. So those are those are the three guys
35:11
Speaker 1: you want to keep keep an eye on. But I
35:12
Speaker 1: would say chief among them is Ben Jones because he's
35:15
Speaker 1: the guy that anchors that offensive line and really really
35:18
Speaker 1: powers that running game. A couple of Bengals players brought
35:21
Speaker 1: up to Nico Autrey today, is he expected to be
35:24
Speaker 1: good to go? He is not. And I'm glad you
35:27
Speaker 1: brought that up because I completely forgot about him. Denico
35:30
Speaker 1: Autrey is not going to play in this game. He's
35:33
Speaker 1: gonna be out a while. And he's a guy that's
35:35
Speaker 1: been fantastic next to Jeffrey Simmons, and that defensive line
35:39
Speaker 1: leads the Titans with seven sacks this year, was on
35:42
Speaker 1: his way to perhaps a Pro Bowl Berth maybe double
35:44
Speaker 1: digit sacks. And he's a classic two way defensive lineman.
35:48
Speaker 1: Great against the run, great getting after the quarterback. And
35:51
Speaker 1: now with him out of the lineup and may make
35:53
Speaker 1: it easier for the Bengals to double Jeffrey Simmons. But
35:57
Speaker 1: they have guys like Tierre Tart and some other interior
36:00
Speaker 1: your defensive lineman Niquon Jones, which is ironic because they
36:03
Speaker 1: used to have an interior defensive lineman named de Quon Jones,
36:06
Speaker 1: but now they just throw that in there, Dane. But yes,
36:09
Speaker 1: Nicole Autrey is certainly a significant, significant injury for the
36:13
Speaker 1: for the Titans, and that's going to affect perhaps Jeffrey
36:16
Speaker 1: Simmons's effectiveness on Sunday. So last thing about the defense.
36:20
Speaker 1: They have not given up more than seventeen in regulation
36:23
Speaker 1: in the last seven games, which is amazing. We all
36:26
Speaker 1: know Jeffrey Simmons, he dominated that playoff game, Bengals offensive
36:30
Speaker 1: coordinator Brian Callahan said, he's right there with Aaron Donald.
36:34
Speaker 1: Is one of the two best interior linemen in the
36:36
Speaker 1: NFL other than Jeffrey Simmons, and especially since Daniko Autrey
36:42
Speaker 1: is out. Who are the other standouts on that defense.
36:46
Speaker 1: I'm going to start with their inside linebacker, David Long Junior.
36:49
Speaker 1: He's an undersized inside linebacker, but he brings the wood.
36:54
Speaker 1: He's absolutely fearless, loves playing the run, extremely physical, not
36:59
Speaker 1: that bad in space in terms of covering guys, but
37:01
Speaker 1: he is a guy that loves to stick his hat
37:03
Speaker 1: in there and and and create havoc. And also the
37:07
Speaker 1: guy just mentioned a Monny Hooker, the safety next to
37:10
Speaker 1: Kevin Bayern. We all know what Kevin Bayer can do,
37:12
Speaker 1: First team All Pro, He's been a great player for
37:15
Speaker 1: the Titans, but a Monny Hooker is an emerging star
37:18
Speaker 1: at that other safety spot. Very smart, knows his defense
37:22
Speaker 1: down cold, really good against the run, really good in coverage,
37:25
Speaker 1: and he has a knack for making plays on the
37:27
Speaker 1: ball while they're in the air without fouling. So I
37:30
Speaker 1: would say David Long Junior and a Monny Hooker are
37:32
Speaker 1: two standouts other than Simmons. Simmons is the guy, there's
37:36
Speaker 1: no doubt. And you know Bud Dupree bringing you know,
37:39
Speaker 1: bringing the pass rush. And I'll give you one more.
37:41
Speaker 1: Dan Rashad Weaver, second year guy out of pit. He
37:45
Speaker 1: was having a really good year until he got hurt.
37:47
Speaker 1: He was he was on a pace to have a
37:49
Speaker 1: really good number of sacks. He's back healthy now, so
37:52
Speaker 1: they've got some depth that they're outside pass rush. Something
37:56
Speaker 1: two years ago when they went up to Cincinnati and
37:58
Speaker 1: got absolutely torched by rookie Joe Burrow up in Citcinnati.
38:03
Speaker 1: Their defense has really really improved leaps and bounds. This
38:06
Speaker 1: is a top five defense, I would I would dare
38:09
Speaker 1: say this is a super Bowl level defense. The question
38:11
Speaker 1: is can the offense, more specifically the passing game catch up. JB.
38:17
Speaker 1: I could go for an hour with you. We haven't
38:19
Speaker 1: even reminisced about our times as the award winning duo. Man.
38:23
Speaker 1: What do you need? You've got to prepare to look
38:28
Speaker 1: dapper on the TV news and I've got a radio
38:31
Speaker 1: show to do, so I'll let you go appreciate your time.
38:34
Speaker 1: Great stuff has always look forward to seeing the in Nashville, Danny,
38:37
Speaker 1: always a pleasure, you know. How. Food about you, my man,
38:40
Speaker 1: and I look forward to seeing you as well. And
38:41
Speaker 1: I'm really looking forward to this game on Sunday. It
38:43
Speaker 1: should be a lot of fun thanks to my pal
38:46
Speaker 1: John Burton. And that's going to do it for this
38:48
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Speaker 1: find us. I'm Dan Horde and thanks for listening to
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Speaker 1: the Bengals Boot Podcast