Speaker 1: Hi, get everybody.
Speaker 2: I'm Dan Hoard and thanks for downloading The Bengals Booth Podcast.
Speaker 2: The Find My Way Back to Tennessee addition, as the
Speaker 2: Bengals head to Nashville for the third year in a
Speaker 2: row and look to beat the Tennessee Titans for the
Speaker 2: third straight time. Coming up, I'll talk to former NFL
Speaker 2: offensive lineman Ross Tucker, the host of the Ross Tucker
Speaker 2: Podcast and a game analyst for CBS this year, and
Speaker 2: find out if his opinion of the Bengals changed after
Speaker 2: Monday Night's win over the Rams, and what he thinks
Speaker 2: it's going to take to beat the Titans. On Sunday,
Speaker 2: My one on one player interview this week is with
Speaker 2: AJ McCarron, whose pro football career has come full circle
Speaker 2: with a return to Cincinnati. Dave Lapham joins me and
Speaker 2: shares a great story about Titans coach Mike Vrabel, and
Speaker 2: in our No The Faux segment, we'll get the latest
Speaker 2: time this week's opponent from Nashville's sports anchor and sports
Speaker 2: talk show hosts John Burden. The Bengals Booth Podcast is
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Speaker 2: the official healthcare provider of the Bengals. Now here's a
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Speaker 2: the radio announcer for UC football and basketball, I had
Speaker 2: the honor of pouring the first beer at the brewery
Speaker 2: back in June, and a portion of the proceeds from
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Speaker 2: Now time to hear from my first guest, former offensive
Speaker 2: lineman Ross Tucker, host to popular podcast calls NFL games,
Speaker 2: for CBS and Westwood One and introduced me to my
Speaker 2: front page story dot com. That made for the perfect
Speaker 2: Mother's Day gift this year. I caught up with Ross
Speaker 2: this week and started our conversation by asking if his
Speaker 2: opinion of the Bengals changed after Monday Night's win over
Speaker 2: the Rams.
Speaker 1: Maybe a little bit, Dan.
Speaker 3: I think they were obviously able to get Jamar Chase involved,
Speaker 3: which they hadn't been able to do. And I thought
Speaker 3: Mixon showed some real burst and juice, which I thought
Speaker 3: was highly encouraging with some of his runs. Hadn't seen
Speaker 3: that as much from him recently, so I think the
Speaker 3: ability to get both those guys going a little bit
Speaker 3: was encouraged. You know, obviously, Burrow missed throws that you
Speaker 3: just never see him miss.
Speaker 1: I mean, he's so good and he's.
Speaker 3: So accurate that it's like jaw dropping when he misses
Speaker 3: some of the easy throws that he missed the other night.
Speaker 3: But as long as he doesn't suffer a setback, and
Speaker 3: I think even he said this, as long as you
Speaker 3: know that Calf continues to get better and they can
Speaker 3: manage it these next couple games. Now, listen, the Titans
Speaker 3: D line is legit, so that won't be easy. But
Speaker 3: if Joe can get through this portion of the calf injury,
Speaker 3: I think the Bengals will be able to break through
Speaker 3: to the other side and get back to being what
Speaker 3: they've been in the last couple of years.
Speaker 2: You played in the NFL, what would you think of
Speaker 2: Joe's willingness to play if you are his teammate.
Speaker 1: Just really appreciate it.
Speaker 3: Yeah, just really appreciate it because you know that it's
Speaker 3: not fun to play when you're injured. Now listen, I
Speaker 3: will say this as a former offensive lineman. A lot
Speaker 3: of those guys have something bothering him, right. I Mean
Speaker 3: it's like I always laugh when these people say, are
Speaker 3: you one hundred percent later in the year.
Speaker 1: If you're a hundred percent later in the year, what
Speaker 1: have you been.
Speaker 3: Doing the whole time? I mean, you're not going to
Speaker 3: feel like you're one hundred percent. But he very easily
Speaker 3: could have sat that one out and said let's be
Speaker 3: safe and let's be smart about this.
Speaker 1: But I think.
Speaker 3: Burrow knew the risk of going on three, didn't want
Speaker 3: to take that chance, and especially I think the mental
Speaker 3: toughness dan for him to battle through performing poorly in
Speaker 3: the first half and just stick with it to be
Speaker 3: able to lead his team to a critical, critical victory.
Speaker 3: I think that's what the guys really appreciate as much
Speaker 3: as anything.
Speaker 2: We are visiting with Ross Tucker. The defense was awesome
Speaker 2: on Monday Night, six sacks, two takeaways. Does that group
Speaker 2: have to lead the team right now while Burrow and
Speaker 2: the offense are still jelling well.
Speaker 1: I think they do, and I think they have been.
Speaker 3: I'm really impressed by the Bengals defense and have been
Speaker 3: for the last few years. I said it last year,
Speaker 3: I'll say it again this year. Dan, I'd be really
Speaker 3: surprised if lou Ana Rumo does not get a head
Speaker 3: coaching job.
Speaker 1: But I don't know.
Speaker 3: He didn't even get that many interviews, so maybe I
Speaker 3: don't know what I'm talking about.
Speaker 1: But they're just a really good group.
Speaker 3: Love Logan Wilson and what he does Hendrickson on the
Speaker 3: D line.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's been the same guys.
Speaker 3: Now for a few years that are really high level
Speaker 3: players in the prime of their career, and they're showing
Speaker 3: it every week now. To have a corner like Cam
Speaker 3: tayl Or Britt and what he brings the table, they
Speaker 3: just have a really good team, and for them to
Speaker 3: be able to massage the situation of losing both safeties
Speaker 3: and still being able to play really good on that
Speaker 3: side of the ball, I think speaks really well. Even
Speaker 3: more so, I would say I have Anna Rumo and
Speaker 3: the position coaches for that matter.
Speaker 2: So after three weeks, the other three teams in the
Speaker 2: AFC North, the Browns, the Ravens, and the Steelers are
Speaker 2: all off to two and one starts. Does anything jump
Speaker 2: out about the other three teams in the division so far?
Speaker 3: Yeah, I would say one thing jumps out for sure,
Speaker 3: and it's the Browns defense. The Browns defense is really
Speaker 3: really good. So now you've got a team where the
Speaker 3: Browns defense was a liability last year they were horrendous,
Speaker 3: and now it's a strength. I mean, I'm watching those
Speaker 3: guys and they've been almost unblockable so far.
Speaker 1: To start this year.
Speaker 3: Miles Garrett is as good of a defensive player as
Speaker 3: there is in the NFL. So to see what those
Speaker 3: guys have been able to do on that side of
Speaker 3: the ball, that's probably the most noteworthy thing, right. I mean,
Speaker 3: the Steelers are probably about where I thought they'd be.
Speaker 3: The Ravens losing to the Colts. That was a bad
Speaker 3: loss for the Ravens and a good one for the Bengals.
Speaker 3: Obviously that the Ravens lost that game at home against
Speaker 3: the Colts in overtime.
Speaker 1: But I would say the Ravens and Steelers.
Speaker 3: Are about who or what I thought they'd be. It's
Speaker 3: the Browns defensively that has done the biggest one to
Speaker 3: eighty from last season.
Speaker 2: You're a Princeton guy. The Bengals drafted one this year
Speaker 2: and rookie Andre Yosi Bosch the wide receiver. What do
Speaker 2: you think of Andre and his long term NFL potential?
Speaker 3: I think he needs to go back to Princeton because
Speaker 3: we lost to Bryant last Saturday, and I'm not real
Speaker 3: happy about it. We need Andre back in our black
Speaker 3: and orange, not the Bengals black and orange.
Speaker 1: By the way, what are the odds of that?
Speaker 3: The odds there aren't that many teams that have orange
Speaker 3: and black. For him to be able to go from
Speaker 3: Princeton to the Bengals is pretty wild.
Speaker 1: But no, it sounds like you had a good preseason.
Speaker 3: I saw where you guys mic him up for a
Speaker 3: game that was pretty funny. You know, it's so interesting
Speaker 3: because a guy like that, they don't usually get that
Speaker 3: many snaps unless someone ahead of them gets hurt or
Speaker 3: they kind of earn that opportunity.
Speaker 1: But I'm excited for him. I'm excited for you guys.
Speaker 3: He's never just been a you know, I mean, and
Speaker 3: I'm sure you talked about it. But he's doing winter track,
Speaker 3: he's doing spring track. He's an All American decathlete. I
Speaker 3: think if this guy's just doing football year round, he
Speaker 3: obviously has the physical ability. He's got terrific guys to
Speaker 3: learn from, with Chase and Boyd and Higgins, and so
Speaker 3: you've got he has a mental acuity, he's got the
Speaker 3: physical ability, and he's got.
Speaker 1: Good guys to learn from.
Speaker 3: There's certainly a really good recipe there for him to
Speaker 3: be able to have some success.
Speaker 2: So the Bengals are at Tennessee on Sunday. What are
Speaker 2: a few keys to beating the one in two Titans.
Speaker 1: Well, I don't think they're gonna be able to run
Speaker 1: the ball very well, because.
Speaker 3: Nobody runs the ball very well against the Tennessee Titans.
Speaker 3: That is clearly their focus. So I guess I would
Speaker 3: start with protecting Burrow. They've got some real difference makers
Speaker 3: up front, whether it's Landry or arn Key. On the outside,
Speaker 3: Jeffrey Simmons is probably about as good of a defensive
Speaker 3: tackle as there is in the NFL. So I would
Speaker 3: say run it enough to keep them honest, and then
Speaker 3: make sure you're double teaming Jeffrey Simmons and trying to
Speaker 3: get the ball out of Burrow's hands quickly, which.
Speaker 1: By the way, he does very well.
Speaker 3: It's a huge positive for Burrow, but that's a big
Speaker 3: concern when they're on offense and on defense.
Speaker 1: Kind of interesting.
Speaker 3: I don't know why the Titans aren't leaning on Derrick
Speaker 3: Henry as much as they have in recent years. Maybe
Speaker 3: it's game script, they've gotten behind or whatever, but they've
Speaker 3: been having that Tajy Spears play a lot, the rookie
Speaker 3: out of Tulane. You can't let Henry get going. They're
Speaker 3: clearly better at home than they are on the road.
Speaker 3: And if they get a lead and they can just
Speaker 3: pound away at Henry, that's tough for any defense.
Speaker 2: Your schedule is nuts. I appreciate your time. Keep up
Speaker 2: the great work.
Speaker 1: Dan, it's my pleasure love hearing you. Love those all
Speaker 1: white unis. You guys were rocking on Monday night. I
Speaker 1: don't know you guys call it White Tiger. That was awesome.
Speaker 1: Always good to be with you, Happy to be on
Speaker 1: with you. Thank you so much for having me.
Speaker 2: As Ross noted, the Bengals defense can't allow the King
Speaker 2: Dereck Henry to get rolling this week, and Cincinnati has
Speaker 2: contained him on the road in each of the last
Speaker 2: two years. Henry had sixty two yards on twenty carries
Speaker 2: in the Bengals playoff win two years ago and just
Speaker 2: thirty eight yards on seventeen carries when Cincinnati beat the
Speaker 2: Titans in the regular season last year. That's two point
Speaker 2: six yards of carry in those two games. As for
Speaker 2: the Bengals offense, barring a setback at practice, we won't
Speaker 2: be doing the Willie play or Won'ty play thing with
Speaker 2: Joe Burrow this week. He threw for two hundred and
Speaker 2: fifty nine yards with a passer rating of fifty nine
Speaker 2: point eight in the win over the Rams, and I
Speaker 2: discussed that performance with Dave Lapham. His personal numbers weren't
Speaker 2: spectacular on Monday night. He didn't throw a touchdown pass.
Speaker 2: It's the first time in the Joe era they have
Speaker 2: won a regular season game where he did not throw
Speaker 2: at least one touchdown pass. Now, his numbers would have
Speaker 2: been better if t Higgins didn't have a rare case
Speaker 2: of the dropsies, But in any case, Joe did enough
Speaker 2: for the Bengals to get a badly needed win over
Speaker 2: the Rams. Let's hear from offensive coordinator Brian Callahan.
Speaker 4: It was a tough week, you know, just not knowing
Speaker 4: for a long stretch of it what it was, who
Speaker 4: was going to be, what it was going to look like.
Speaker 4: And then you know, there was a beginning part of
Speaker 4: the game where like what is this going to look like?
Speaker 1: You know?
Speaker 4: And Joe Guy's an absolute warrior to be able to
Speaker 4: go out there and play the way he played and
Speaker 4: those in that state was really impressive.
Speaker 2: Good enough to beat the Rams. But let's be honest,
Speaker 2: the offense has to get much better if the Bengals
Speaker 2: are truly going to be the type of team that
Speaker 2: we all expected them to be going into the season.
Speaker 5: Well, in reality, dan three football games offensively, their highest
Speaker 5: production was the nineteen points net one win against the
Speaker 5: Rams twenty seven to twenty. Fourth Baltimore offense scored seventeen.
Speaker 5: There was an eighty one yard punt return, special teams touchdown.
Speaker 5: So offensively, they scored three in the opener, they scored
Speaker 5: seventeen points in Week two against Baltimore offensively, and then
Speaker 5: nineteen points in the victory against the Rams.
Speaker 1: So it's trending up.
Speaker 5: Yeah, So hopefully that continues in the Tennessee. I you know,
Speaker 5: it's the Bengals have won down there. The interesting thing
Speaker 5: is against Zach Taylor, Mike rabelers zero and three's that's
Speaker 5: his worst record against any individual coach head to head.
Speaker 5: So the Bengals and Zach Taylor at this juncture, we've
Speaker 5: kind of had the Titans in Mike Rabel's number. And
Speaker 5: I remember, I can't remember if it was the playoff
Speaker 5: game or the last regular season game last year, where
Speaker 5: I just happened to be walking out of the locker
Speaker 5: room trailing Vrabel, and man, he went to his car.
Speaker 5: I was going to the bus. He walked to his car.
Speaker 5: He started kicking his car, dent in his car.
Speaker 1: Come on, he was pissed kicking his car.
Speaker 5: He kicked the side of his car, put two huge
Speaker 5: dentst and I'm like, whoa boy. It was after the
Speaker 5: playoff loss down there, he was I mean, he was
Speaker 5: hot man, he was human.
Speaker 2: The Bengals have not scored a ton of points in
Speaker 2: those two most recent victories over Tennessee twenty last year
Speaker 2: nineteen in the playoff game, but that's been enough. It
Speaker 2: was similar to the Rams game on Monday night. Their
Speaker 2: defense has really shut down the Titans. We talked about
Speaker 2: how they slowed down Derreck Henry the last couple of games,
Speaker 2: but they've really given Ryan Tannehill trouble. Three interceptions in
Speaker 2: that playoff game.
Speaker 5: Absolutely the last two times the two victories sixteen points
Speaker 5: that held him two both times twenty to sixteen. And
Speaker 5: just like last week's score in the victory, they'd beat
Speaker 5: Tennessee nineteen sixteen as well in the playoffs. So you know,
Speaker 5: it's a tough place to play. It's going to be
Speaker 5: loud down there. It's crazy down there. As I recall,
Speaker 5: the stands are right on top of the players. I mean,
Speaker 5: it's just I remember the players talking about people could
Speaker 5: have been throwing things out of me. They could hear everything,
Speaker 5: they were right on top of them. So the noise
Speaker 5: kind of just hangs right in there, and it's very
Speaker 5: very difficult. So your non spoken communication has to be
Speaker 5: top shelf because you're not going to be able to hear.
Speaker 5: And what bothered me is it's third and one, back
Speaker 5: to back fall starts at home when you don't have
Speaker 5: to deal with crowd noise, two separate veteran players, Tyler
Speaker 5: Boyd or Orlando Brown junior back to back fall starts.
Speaker 5: Now it's third in eleven, third and one where you
Speaker 5: have a short guardage goal line play to convert. Now
Speaker 5: it's starting eleven, and it's like one of the many
Speaker 5: times there were third and ten or more and struggled
Speaker 5: on third down having those kind of down a distance conversions.
Speaker 5: So you're going to have to play a clean game
Speaker 5: down there, and the Tennessee Tits are going to lean
Speaker 5: on those fans to give the Bengals there's as many
Speaker 5: promis with crowd noise as they can.
Speaker 2: The Bengals Booth Podcast is brought to you by Alta
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Speaker 2: Fiber by Kettering Health, the official healthcare provider of the Bengals,
Speaker 2: and by pay Corps, the team's official HR software provider.
Speaker 2: Following the Baltimore game, where Joe Burrow's status was up
Speaker 2: in the air after he tweaked his calf injury. The
Speaker 2: Bengals signed an old friend and added him to the
Speaker 2: practice squad. AJ McCarron, who spent his first four NFL
Speaker 2: seasons in Cincinnati before bouncing around to Buffalo, Oakland, Houston, Atlanta,
Speaker 2: and even Saint Louis of the XFL. AJ, it's great
Speaker 2: to have you back here in Cincinnati. I know Bengals
Speaker 2: fans have been rooting for you since you left. What
Speaker 2: was it like for you to walk back into the building.
Speaker 6: Yeah, that was awesome. Listen, I've told everybody since I've
Speaker 6: got here, you can feel the love that the city
Speaker 6: has for me, and it's greatly appreciated. And I loved
Speaker 6: coming back to this organization and being back in this city.
Speaker 6: It's awesome to be a part of it again and
Speaker 6: see the excitement within the city surrounding the organization. It
Speaker 6: is awesome.
Speaker 2: It sounds like it was in the back of your
Speaker 2: head to possibly come back to Cincinnati someday.
Speaker 6: Oh yeah, you always want to kind of go back
Speaker 6: as a player and where you first started and be
Speaker 6: able to, you know, maybe retire there. But I mean,
Speaker 6: I don't plan on retiring anytime soon. But yes, it's
Speaker 6: awesome to kind of full circle and come back to
Speaker 6: this organization. It's special for sure.
Speaker 2: You have already played a football season this year in
Speaker 2: the latest version of the XFL with Saint Louis after
Speaker 2: nearly a decade in the NFL. Why did you make
Speaker 2: that choice?
Speaker 6: It was mainly just my oldest son wanting to watch
Speaker 6: me play. And I tour my ACL in twenty one
Speaker 6: in Atlanta, So it's really just coming back and being
Speaker 6: able to play and lead a team and play, you know,
Speaker 6: weekend and week out and have him experience and my
Speaker 6: middle son Cash as well, so have him both be
Speaker 6: a part of it and see daddy play. Was you
Speaker 6: know something that every player that has kids dreams of.
Speaker 2: Your oldest son was born when you were here. Yeah,
Speaker 2: back in twenty sixteen, I believe. Was he able to
Speaker 2: be around the team much?
Speaker 5: Yeah?
Speaker 6: Yeah, he was ball boy and we come to practice,
Speaker 6: come to meetings, sit in and hang out, and it
Speaker 6: really helped him from playing. You know, me as a
Speaker 6: dad coaching him in baseball and in flag football, but
Speaker 6: seeing how dad got coached at practice and knowing like, okay,
Speaker 6: well Dad's not mad at me. He's just coaching me,
Speaker 6: So it really actually helped him grow as a player.
Speaker 6: And this year base ball and then leading into football
Speaker 6: was such a huge difference for him, and I mean,
Speaker 6: he grew as a player. So it's it was awesome
Speaker 6: to see.
Speaker 2: You led the league in touchdown passes, you led the
Speaker 2: league in passing efficiency. Did it renew the belief that
Speaker 2: you can help an NFL team win?
Speaker 5: Yeah?
Speaker 6: I mean listen that that was the first time in
Speaker 6: twenty one tear my ACL that I've ever had an
Speaker 6: injury to not be able to play football that season,
Speaker 6: so and sit out, and you know, as somebody that's
Speaker 6: going through the injury like that, you always have doubts
Speaker 6: can you get back to where you were and can
Speaker 6: you still play at.
Speaker 5: A high level.
Speaker 6: So being able to come out and prove not only
Speaker 6: to myself but everybody else that I can still play
Speaker 6: at a high level and play the QB position in
Speaker 6: an efficient way, it was something that I was excited
Speaker 6: about and have the opportunity to do. And you know,
Speaker 6: I had great teammates that helped all that, you know,
Speaker 6: be possible. And so it was a year.
Speaker 2: Let's turn the clock back to twenty fifteen. Your first
Speaker 2: year on the Bengals active roster. The team was ten
Speaker 2: and two when Andy Dalton broke his thumb. You took
Speaker 2: over for the rest of the year despite not having
Speaker 2: really any NFL experience and played great. What was your
Speaker 2: most vivid memory of that stretch.
Speaker 6: Yeah, I think just being kind of thrown into the
Speaker 6: fire because rookie year, being on NFL, never getting any experience,
Speaker 6: and then really had that preseason of fifteen and then
Speaker 6: other than that it was scout team practice reps because
Speaker 6: didn't I didn't get any reps as a two for
Speaker 6: our own offense that year, So all of a sudden
Speaker 6: being thrown in in that Pittsburgh game here and then
Speaker 6: having to go from there to San fran and then
Speaker 6: Denver and then Baltimore again and then playoff game against
Speaker 6: pitt here. Listen, it was a special year. It was
Speaker 6: a lot of great memories for my family. I mean,
Speaker 6: definitely sucks and it was tough to lose that playoff game,
Speaker 6: but it was still something that I'll, you know, cherish
Speaker 6: for the rest of my life.
Speaker 2: Your touchdown past aj Green with one fifty to go
Speaker 2: gave the Bengals a one point lead. It would have
Speaker 2: gone down as one of the most memorable plays in
Speaker 2: franchise history. If not for what happened after that, does
Speaker 2: it still sting?
Speaker 6: Oh for sure, because you know, you just never know
Speaker 6: what would have happened from a career standpoint, and then
Speaker 6: maybe being able to start, you just you don't know
Speaker 6: what the next year leads to. But listen, I've always
Speaker 6: been a firm believer. God has a plan for everything,
Speaker 6: So just roll with the punches sometimes and enjoy the
Speaker 6: journey while you're on it.
Speaker 2: A couple more questions for AJ mccaron. There are a
Speaker 2: couple of guys left from when you were here previously,
Speaker 2: Tyler Boyd and Joe Mixon, but the other guys are new,
Speaker 2: including Joe Burrow. Would have been your impressions of him
Speaker 2: watching from afar?
Speaker 6: I told him when I first got here, it's been
Speaker 6: awesome to watch him.
Speaker 5: You know.
Speaker 6: I got to watch him a little bit in college
Speaker 6: just staying so busy, but mainly the big games, and
Speaker 6: then now meeting him and watching him in person the
Speaker 6: other night was something that was awesome to see. But listen,
Speaker 6: he's a special talent. He's special quarterback, and I mean,
Speaker 6: this guy's the limit. He's an awesome leader and a
Speaker 6: great quarterback, and it's it's fun to be in that
Speaker 6: room with him and you know, help in any way possible.
Speaker 2: You're thirty three, father of three young boys, You're financially
Speaker 2: secure from your time in the NFL. What do you
Speaker 2: still have left that you would like to accomplish in
Speaker 2: the NFL?
Speaker 6: Well, I mean I'd like to, you know, work my
Speaker 6: way to either playing or being on the active roster
Speaker 6: again and and helping the team out in a certain way.
Speaker 6: So but right now, I'm taking it day by day,
Speaker 6: just enjoying this this ride and and then we'll figure
Speaker 6: everything out once this season ends. But for right now,
Speaker 6: I'm just I just want to enjoy my time while
Speaker 6: I'm back in the city and part of this organization,
Speaker 6: and then we'll see what the future holds.
Speaker 2: Welcome back the Orange and Black. Looks good on you.
Speaker 2: Nice to have you back in this locker room.
Speaker 6: Thanks for the time, Thank you, I appreciate it.
Speaker 2: Now time for this week's Know the Faux segment. John
Speaker 2: Burton is a Nashville sportscaster and joined Lapping Me this
Speaker 2: week on the Bengals Game Plan show.
Speaker 7: It's an interesting Titans football team. We're watching, you know,
Speaker 7: one win, two losses, both losses. They haven't scored an
Speaker 7: offensive touchdown, which is certainly not expected. So you know,
Speaker 7: in the ultimate week to week league, the Titans appear
Speaker 7: to be the ultimate week to week team, at least
Speaker 7: so far through three games.
Speaker 1: So John.
Speaker 2: When these teams met last year, the Titans were seven
Speaker 2: and three. The Bengals won a tight game. The Bengals
Speaker 2: didn't lose again until the AFC Championship game. The Titans
Speaker 2: never won again. They lost their last seven. They're one
Speaker 2: and two so far this year. What are the biggest issues?
Speaker 2: What is plaguing the Tennessee Titans.
Speaker 7: Well, offensively, it's inconsistently inconsistency, especially along the offensive line.
Speaker 7: You know, they lost two pillars of that offensive line
Speaker 7: last year or this past offseason. And Taylor Lawan and
Speaker 7: Ben Jones. Not only were they two Pro Bowl type
Speaker 7: productive players la one at left tackle and of course
Speaker 7: Jones at center, but they were also two big time
Speaker 7: leaders in that locker room. And you know, you lose
Speaker 7: you lose production and leadership there. You know, you had
Speaker 7: Peter Skronsky, who they drafted first in the first round
Speaker 7: out of Northwestern. You know, he's dealing with an appendectomy.
Speaker 7: He hasn't played in a couple of games. He's probably
Speaker 7: not going to be back for a while. And they
Speaker 7: you know, they have four new starters, actually I believe
Speaker 7: five new starters on along that offensive line, and you know,
Speaker 7: they're the one guy that they were counting on the
Speaker 7: right tackle, Petique Frere. You know, he's suspended six games
Speaker 7: for gambling violations. So they've had all kinds of problems
Speaker 7: along that offensive line. And you know, with thes you
Speaker 7: guys know this, it starts with the running game. It
Speaker 7: starts with Derrick Henry. They haven't been able to get
Speaker 7: that going on a consistent basis. And last week they
Speaker 7: had a lot of trouble against the Browns protecting Ryan Tannehill.
Speaker 7: He got sacked five times, three and a half of
Speaker 7: those by Miles Garrett, who you guys know is an
Speaker 7: absolute beast. You know, they signed Andre Dillard at left
Speaker 7: tackle during the offseason from the Eagles. He hasn't really
Speaker 7: provided much, to be honest with you. So that's the
Speaker 7: problems on offense. Defensively, a lot of breakdowns in the secondary.
Speaker 7: You know, this Titans team is one of the best
Speaker 7: front sevens in all the football, you know, led by
Speaker 7: their superstar defensive tackle Jeffrey Simmons. But if you can
Speaker 7: get that front seven blocked, We've seen a lot of
Speaker 7: breakdowns in the secondary with the corners in the safeties,
Speaker 7: and teams have been able to get big plays over
Speaker 7: the top in the passing game. So you know, those
Speaker 7: those are the issues facing this team, and you know
Speaker 7: they're they're a lot more inconsistent than a lot of
Speaker 7: us thought we were going to see here in Nashville.
Speaker 5: So that the defensive line, like you talk about Jeffrey Simmons,
Speaker 5: I mean, the Bengals go from Aaron Donald last week
Speaker 5: with the La Rams to Jeffrey Simmons, who I think
Speaker 5: of the best two interior defensive players the National Football
Speaker 5: League has to offer. I do think that Simmons has
Speaker 5: a better supporting cast around him right now than Aaron
Speaker 5: Donald does. I mean, You've got you know, Autrey, You've
Speaker 5: got Key, You've got Landry. I mean it's that down
Speaker 5: line group is responsible for six sacks, I mean eight
Speaker 5: sacks already. So are they playing well enough? Is it
Speaker 5: a surprise there's breakdown in the secondary because I look
Speaker 5: at the two guys. In my mind, defensively, Jeffrey Simmons
Speaker 5: is way big a cut above, and I thought that
Speaker 5: Bayer at safety was way big a cut above as well.
Speaker 5: Is with twenty seven career interceptions, number one for safeties
Speaker 5: in time he's been in the NFL, number two overall
Speaker 5: in the NFL. Is he not playing up to snuff?
Speaker 7: Yeah, I think Dave A lot of it has to
Speaker 7: do with the fact that and we talked about this
Speaker 7: after the game on Sunday when they lost to the Browns,
Speaker 7: communication appears to be an issue in that secondary and
Speaker 7: he talked about, guys need to be on the same page.
Speaker 7: And you know, there was a play where Amari Cooper
Speaker 7: got free right down the seam, wide open, caught a
Speaker 7: pass from Deshaun Watson from the touchdown that really put
Speaker 7: this game away. And you know there's there appear to
Speaker 7: be communication issues and that the one phrase you hear
Speaker 7: from the secondary guys is we need to be on
Speaker 7: the same page. We're not on the same page. And
Speaker 7: again it's about getting that front seven blocked. If you
Speaker 7: can get Simmons blocked, if you can get Harold Landry blocked,
Speaker 7: if you can get the Nico autrey blocked and give
Speaker 7: quarterbacks time to throw. You see a lot of big
Speaker 7: plays down the field. So yeah, it is a price.
Speaker 7: It is a surprise to see a guy like Kevin
Speaker 7: Byer not be able to be the ballhawk he's been
Speaker 7: his entire career. And this goes back to his college
Speaker 7: days at Middle Tennessee State just down the road. So yeah,
Speaker 7: there are issues in the secondary. And you know, obviously
Speaker 7: the further you go in the season, you're gonna be
Speaker 7: playing better quarterbacks and better passing attacks. They need to
Speaker 7: get that cleaned up quickly because you know your face,
Speaker 7: they're gonna be faithing Joe Burrow and those great receivers
Speaker 7: coming up this weekend, and they don't get these problems fixed,
Speaker 7: it could be a long day for him.
Speaker 2: We're visiting with Nashville broadcaster John Burton. Let's talk Ryan Tannehill.
Speaker 2: The Bengals have beaten his teams the last five times
Speaker 2: he started against Cincinnati.
Speaker 1: How's he playing a.
Speaker 7: Little up and down right now? But you know, unfortunately
Speaker 7: for him, he's not getting the protection that he needs now.
Speaker 7: He was terrible in the first game against the Saints,
Speaker 7: got sacked three times, I believe through three interceptions. Was
Speaker 7: just absolutely really bad, to be honest with you bounce
Speaker 7: back nicely in the almost s at San Diego. In
Speaker 7: the LA Charger game, you know, completed twenty to twenty
Speaker 7: four passes, you know, no no interceptions, no turnovers. Really
Speaker 7: was a big reason why they won that game. And
Speaker 7: then this past week, you know, he barely throws for
Speaker 7: one hundred yards, no turnovers. But man, Miles Garrett and
Speaker 7: that Cleveland defensive front, we're all over him all day.
Speaker 7: And you know, he's got some talented receivers to work with,
Speaker 7: and obviously DeAndre Hopkins, we know what he's done in
Speaker 7: this league. Treylan Burks is the second year guy that
Speaker 7: they hope will be the replacement for aj Brown, who
Speaker 7: they traded away last week. They've got a talented, athletic
Speaker 7: tight end in Chigakonkuo. But I think it comes down
Speaker 7: to inconsistency in the running game and lack of protection
Speaker 7: in the passing game. And you know, Tannehill is a
Speaker 7: good quarterback, He's not an elite level guy. I don't
Speaker 7: believe he's the type of guy that can just put
Speaker 7: a team on his back and go to the Super Bowl.
Speaker 7: He needs help and right now, he's not getting the
Speaker 7: help he needs. At least in two out of the
Speaker 7: first three games, we haven't seen it.
Speaker 5: Derrick Henry has averaged over three hundred rushes the last
Speaker 5: four years. Is there any sign of where and tear
Speaker 5: or is Derrick Henry still the beast he once was?
Speaker 7: In all honesty, I really think Derek has lost a step.
Speaker 7: And you know, he's twenty nine years old and he's
Speaker 7: he's had a lot of carries, as you mentioned, the
Speaker 7: last couple of years. What they've tried to do is
Speaker 7: they drafted Tai J. Spears out of Tulane to be
Speaker 7: like the change of pace running back. And trust me,
Speaker 7: ever since Derek has been here, they've been looking for
Speaker 7: that quote unquote change of pace back. But Spears appears
Speaker 7: to be the guy that can get it done. You know,
Speaker 7: he's good out of the backfield, he can catch the ball.
Speaker 7: He's small, but he can run between the tackles. I
Speaker 7: think the hope is this year, let's get Spears involved
Speaker 7: in the running game a little bit more because Derek,
Speaker 7: as good as he's been, as great as he's been,
Speaker 7: we all know, is not a three down back. He's
Speaker 7: not a traditional three down back. So I think the
Speaker 7: idea is to share. Maybe not obviously Derek's gonna get
Speaker 7: the bulk of the carries, but I think they want
Speaker 7: to involve Taij. Spears a little bit more for a
Speaker 7: couple of reasons. Right Number one, it keeps Derek fresher
Speaker 7: in the fourth quarter and obviously later in the season
Speaker 7: as well, because you know, listen, the three of us,
Speaker 7: we we all love to be twenty nine years old again.
Speaker 7: But you know, as with running backs, you know as
Speaker 7: you get closer to thirty year, production is going to
Speaker 7: you know, probably diminish a little bit. And going back
Speaker 7: to Tannehill and Derrick Henry, both these guys are in
Speaker 7: the final years of their contracts, so you know, they're
Speaker 7: days here in Tennessee may be numbered and we'll have
Speaker 7: to see where what the future holds. But yeah, to me,
Speaker 7: it appears Derek has slowed a bit. I mean, probably
Speaker 7: his worst games. It's becoming the Titans full time bell
Speaker 7: cow back last week, twenty yards on eleven carries. You
Speaker 7: just don't see that from Derrick.
Speaker 5: Henry Mike Rabels after a loss like like they suffered,
Speaker 5: and this guy, his whole game was physicality, there's no
Speaker 5: question about it. I mean, and to lose a football
Speaker 5: game to Cleveland twenty seven to three and Henry rushes
Speaker 5: for twenty yards and they're just kind of you know,
Speaker 5: beaten up and beaten down. What is he like after
Speaker 5: that type of that type of a game, and what
Speaker 5: what a practice has been like? What can the Bengals
Speaker 5: expect And they expect a Tennessee Titan team that is
Speaker 5: going to be up in the bit and they better
Speaker 5: put on the big boy pats.
Speaker 7: Yeah, I would say so, Dave, because you know, the
Speaker 7: one thing that Rabel preaches well a few things, effort, finish,
Speaker 7: and violence. He wants his team within the rules to
Speaker 7: be as violent as possible. So they're gonna they're gonna
Speaker 7: emphasize physicality this week. Obviously with Joe Joe Burrow probably
Speaker 7: still being a little bit limited because of that calf,
Speaker 7: they're gonna want to go after him and test him early.
Speaker 7: See you know, see how his mobility is, Uh, see
Speaker 7: how he if he can avoid the rush. Obviously, this
Speaker 7: defense has had a lot of success individually against Burrow
Speaker 7: sect and what nine times in that playoff game, even
Speaker 7: though the Bengals still won. As to what Rabel's like,
Speaker 7: after a week like this, Uh, it's Belichick two point zero,
Speaker 7: it's on the Cincinnati. That's kind of what he's been
Speaker 7: preaching this week. And you know, he's a no nonsense guy,
Speaker 7: as we all know, he's a hard nosed guy. He's
Speaker 7: a Northeast Ohio guy, Ohio State, Pittsburgh Steeler, New England Patriot,
Speaker 7: Kansas City Chiefs. So yeah, you know, we're not allowed
Speaker 7: to watch practice. We can watch the warm ups and
Speaker 7: all that stuff, but I would imagine he's going to
Speaker 7: be turning the heat up and practice this week because
Speaker 7: let's face it, guys, we got two one in two
Speaker 7: teams going at each other. Neither team can can you know,
Speaker 7: afford a loss because at one in three it's an
Speaker 7: uphill climb and I think both teams realize that. And
Speaker 7: you know, after the performance last week when they stunk
Speaker 7: it up in Cleveland, Vrabel does not want to repeat performance,
Speaker 7: especially in front of the home fans coming up this Sunday.
Speaker 2: That's going to do it for this episode of the
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