WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Future's So Bright 0:00:03.520 --> 0:00:06.279 Hi, get everybody. I'm Dan Horde, and thanks for downloading 0:00:06.280 --> 0:00:10.959 The Bengals Booth Podcast. The the Future Sue Bright I 0:00:11.119 --> 0:00:16.680 gotta warshits addition, as I discussed the reigning AFC champs 0:00:16.720 --> 0:00:20.759 with two experts, Pete Prisco, the senior NFL columnist for 0:00:20.840 --> 0:00:24.920 CBS Sports dot Com, and Brandon Thorne, a leading offensive 0:00:25.000 --> 0:00:29.000 line guru and the author of the Trench Warfare newsletter. 0:00:29.560 --> 0:00:34.080 The Bengals Booth Podcast is presented by Ultimate Bengals. Download 0:00:34.159 --> 0:00:37.320 Ultimate Bengals ahead of the twenty twenty two season. It's 0:00:37.320 --> 0:00:42.279 free to play next level fantasy football with fantastic Bengals prizes. 0:00:42.760 --> 0:00:45.360 Get it now on the App Store and Google Play. 0:00:45.600 --> 0:00:47.800 And here's a quick reminder that you can have the 0:00:47.840 --> 0:00:51.199 latest edition of this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, 0:00:51.280 --> 0:00:55.680 or computer by subscribing wherever you get your podcasts. It's 0:00:55.720 --> 0:01:00.600 the greatest thing since Turo ice cream. It's no secret 0:01:00.720 --> 0:01:03.360 that I'm a big fan of Greater's ice cream, and 0:01:03.520 --> 0:01:06.080 in the interest of full disclosure, I do the voice 0:01:06.080 --> 0:01:09.360 work for some of their commercials. In any case, when 0:01:09.400 --> 0:01:13.000 Greaters releases one of its bonus flavors, I race to 0:01:13.080 --> 0:01:16.520 try it and my favorite so far this summer is churo. 0:01:17.240 --> 0:01:20.080 You've probably had a churo at an amusement park or 0:01:20.120 --> 0:01:24.639 a county fair. It's deep fried dough that's traditionally rolled 0:01:24.959 --> 0:01:29.360 in hot cinnamon sugar. The Greater's version is cinnamon ice 0:01:29.400 --> 0:01:34.640 cream with crunchy churro pieces. July is National ice Cream Month, 0:01:34.959 --> 0:01:37.880 and your buddy Dan says, get out and tried churro 0:01:38.400 --> 0:01:42.319 at a Greater Scoop shop. Now let's get to football. 0:01:42.920 --> 0:01:45.800 Pete Prisco from CBS Sports dot Com is one of 0:01:45.800 --> 0:01:51.440 my favorite podcast guests because he's opinionated and knowledgeable. I 0:01:51.520 --> 0:01:55.080 began our latest conversation by bringing up a prediction that 0:01:55.160 --> 0:01:58.800 he made back in April of twenty twenty, shortly after 0:01:58.840 --> 0:02:02.520 the Bengal selected Burrow with the first overall pick in 0:02:02.600 --> 0:02:05.960 the NFL draft. Pe, don't want to start by giving 0:02:06.000 --> 0:02:09.840 you the opportunity to gloat, because when the Bengals drafted 0:02:09.919 --> 0:02:12.720 Joe Burrow, you said he would lead the Bengals to 0:02:13.160 --> 0:02:16.840 a Super Bowl win maybe two. The guys in the 0:02:16.919 --> 0:02:20.480 studio literally laughed at you when you said that. And sure, 0:02:20.480 --> 0:02:22.519 the Bengals didn't win it last year, but they got 0:02:22.520 --> 0:02:25.200 there in Joe's second year coming back from a serious 0:02:25.280 --> 0:02:28.799 knee injury behind a mediocre offensive line. Have the people 0:02:28.840 --> 0:02:34.520 who scoffed apologized. No, they've taken what I said. And 0:02:34.720 --> 0:02:37.399 Brady Quinn, the former NFL quarterback, is one of those guys. 0:02:37.440 --> 0:02:40.640 They've taken what I've said. And they said I said 0:02:40.680 --> 0:02:43.160 they would win two, and that's not what I said. 0:02:43.200 --> 0:02:45.520 I said maybe two, he would win one in the 0:02:45.560 --> 0:02:49.119 next ten years. Well, he's ahead of scheduling in win one. 0:02:49.480 --> 0:02:51.400 But if they could block, he would have won one. 0:02:51.520 --> 0:02:54.639 And so I think the Bengals fans have to be 0:02:54.760 --> 0:02:57.680 thrilled with what they have in Joe Burrow. And I 0:02:57.720 --> 0:03:00.160 go back to a conversation I had with him. I 0:03:00.160 --> 0:03:01.680 tell this story a lot, but I had a conversation 0:03:01.720 --> 0:03:04.720 with him at the Combine that one year. And I 0:03:04.720 --> 0:03:07.120 didn't know Joe Burrow, but at the super Bowl. We 0:03:07.160 --> 0:03:09.920 had two on at the super Bowl and I asked him, 0:03:09.960 --> 0:03:15.000 I said, you know two you lost to you beat them, 0:03:15.000 --> 0:03:16.560 but if you would you, if you came back around, 0:03:16.560 --> 0:03:18.200 would you have beaten him if you were healthy the 0:03:18.280 --> 0:03:21.720 second time? Remember they played LSU the second time. And 0:03:21.760 --> 0:03:23.600 he said, well, I can't say that. I can't say that, 0:03:24.240 --> 0:03:27.720 and I asked Joe Burrow that at the combine and 0:03:27.760 --> 0:03:30.160 he answered the question conn of and he hesitated for second. 0:03:30.200 --> 0:03:32.880 He goes, you know, we did beat him when he 0:03:32.960 --> 0:03:36.280 was there, and I said, okay, there you go. That's 0:03:36.280 --> 0:03:38.680 what I want to hear. And I joke around about 0:03:38.680 --> 0:03:40.160 it all the time. I called fire in the belly. 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:42.480 Joe Burrow has fire in the belly, and that's what 0:03:42.520 --> 0:03:44.400 you want from a quarterback. And I think that shows 0:03:44.480 --> 0:03:47.400 up on the football field. So obviously you loved him 0:03:47.400 --> 0:03:49.200 coming out of the draft, but now that you've seen 0:03:49.280 --> 0:03:51.600 him for two years in the NFL, is there anything 0:03:51.640 --> 0:03:55.760 about him that's different or even better than you anticipated. No, 0:03:55.960 --> 0:03:58.120 He's about what I thought he would be. I think 0:03:58.160 --> 0:04:02.280 the cool under pressure for a guy so young is 0:04:02.320 --> 0:04:05.240 what really impresses me. I mean, the accuracy is there. 0:04:05.440 --> 0:04:07.200 The arm strength is better that I think than people 0:04:07.200 --> 0:04:09.520 even thought it would be. I think he's calm in 0:04:09.560 --> 0:04:11.840 the pocket, but just when he keeps getting hit, he 0:04:11.880 --> 0:04:14.320 just gets back up and goes. And he took a beating. 0:04:14.400 --> 0:04:16.440 You know that. You see it all the time. That 0:04:16.520 --> 0:04:19.920 line was awful last year and it's amazing what he 0:04:20.080 --> 0:04:22.960 did and what that offense did with that offensive line. 0:04:23.279 --> 0:04:25.800 So I think if anything stands out to me and 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:27.599 I thought he'd have a chance to be that way, 0:04:27.800 --> 0:04:32.200 it's responding and being so cool under the pressure and everything. 0:04:32.240 --> 0:04:34.960 This is for a guy who's coming off an ACL 0:04:35.080 --> 0:04:37.680 last year, and I admit early in the season he 0:04:37.720 --> 0:04:40.680 looked like he was a little bit leery, but once 0:04:40.680 --> 0:04:44.640 he settled in, he was outstanding. We will obviously cover 0:04:44.800 --> 0:04:47.400 a bunch of Bengals topics here, but before we get 0:04:47.400 --> 0:04:51.320 to more of those, your borough prediction looks very strong, 0:04:52.040 --> 0:04:55.479 but nobody in your position gets them. All right, what 0:04:55.680 --> 0:04:59.479 is your all time worst freezing cold take? If you've 0:04:59.480 --> 0:05:04.640 got one. I thought Christian Ponder would be good. I mean, look, 0:05:04.680 --> 0:05:07.039 I can. It's just like I always tell these guys 0:05:07.040 --> 0:05:09.279 because they bring them up on Twitter, and I'll go 0:05:09.360 --> 0:05:11.680 back and I'll say, Okay, I missed, but the team 0:05:11.680 --> 0:05:14.760 missed too and didn't didn't you know? I thought Christian 0:05:14.800 --> 0:05:17.919 Ponder would be good. I was wrong about that, But 0:05:18.000 --> 0:05:19.720 I can also bounce it out. I was the only 0:05:19.720 --> 0:05:21.919 guy that thought Josh Allen would be good. I was 0:05:21.960 --> 0:05:24.760 the only one. I mean, you couldn't find anybody, and 0:05:24.800 --> 0:05:27.159 I stuck to it through his rookie year, and people 0:05:27.279 --> 0:05:29.440 killed me. They thought it was an aberration. He's gonna 0:05:29.440 --> 0:05:32.240 be bad and he might be the best quarterback in 0:05:32.279 --> 0:05:33.640 the NFL. I mean, he can make a case for 0:05:33.640 --> 0:05:35.880 that right now. So I was right about that one. 0:05:36.120 --> 0:05:38.960 I thought Burrow would be good. I thought Herbert would 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:42.159 be good. I thought both Herbert and Burrow would be 0:05:42.200 --> 0:05:44.720 significantly better than two and both of them are. So 0:05:44.760 --> 0:05:47.920 I get them wrong. I can't. Christian Ponder was terrible. 0:05:48.120 --> 0:05:51.599 It was a bad prediction. It hurt the Vikings a 0:05:51.640 --> 0:05:54.039 lot more than it hurt you, that's for sure. Our 0:05:54.040 --> 0:05:57.240 guest is Pete Prisco from CBS. The Bengals had an 0:05:57.240 --> 0:06:00.680 obvious weakness and addressed it in free agent see signing 0:06:00.920 --> 0:06:04.320 l Collins, Alex Kappa, and Ted Carriss. How good do 0:06:04.360 --> 0:06:07.720 you think their offensive line is now? Well, I think 0:06:07.720 --> 0:06:11.920 it's significantly better. And look, it was bad. I mean, look, 0:06:11.920 --> 0:06:14.080 I know who Chimadenigy might be a nice guy at all, 0:06:14.080 --> 0:06:16.359 but he really struggled last year. I mean, we I 0:06:16.440 --> 0:06:19.120 do a thing where I give out a spinning top 0:06:19.200 --> 0:06:22.000 every week on our program for the worst offensive lineman 0:06:22.000 --> 0:06:24.440 in the league that week. And he wanted a couple 0:06:24.440 --> 0:06:27.040 of times. I mean, you know, it was bad and 0:06:27.080 --> 0:06:29.240 so and I know he's a tackle who went inside 0:06:29.240 --> 0:06:30.920 and he can now he's just gonna play swing tap 0:06:30.960 --> 0:06:33.400 he's so he's probably gonna be a good swing guy. 0:06:33.440 --> 0:06:35.280 But he shouldn't have been put in that position. So 0:06:35.560 --> 0:06:38.320 I think they will be upgrade. Lyle Collins is really 0:06:38.320 --> 0:06:41.240 a good player. I mean, he's a good player. I 0:06:41.279 --> 0:06:43.880 think you know, Ted Carress, smart guy, gonna be good 0:06:43.880 --> 0:06:46.840 in the middle of that line. You know, Kappa is 0:06:46.880 --> 0:06:49.720 a good player, tough, physical guy. And I think Carmen 0:06:49.760 --> 0:06:51.400 will be better. I mean he kind of threw him 0:06:51.440 --> 0:06:53.520 in there and put him in, put him out, pulled 0:06:53.560 --> 0:06:55.080 him in, pulled him out, and I think that that 0:06:55.200 --> 0:06:57.360 kind of hurt him a little bit, and so I 0:06:57.400 --> 0:06:58.800 think he'll be a better player. So I think the 0:06:58.839 --> 0:07:01.280 line is significantly better than it was a year ago. 0:07:02.000 --> 0:07:04.480 Pete Prisco is our guest. This is the third strade 0:07:04.520 --> 0:07:07.040 year that the Bengals have spent heavily in free agency, 0:07:07.320 --> 0:07:10.520 and now they're building an indoor practice facility. I've seen 0:07:10.640 --> 0:07:13.800 interviews in the past where you have pushed back against 0:07:13.840 --> 0:07:16.800 host who said the Bengals are an incompetent franchise and 0:07:16.920 --> 0:07:20.280 losing franchise, whatever term you want to use. When will 0:07:20.320 --> 0:07:25.000 we see the national narrative change. What's it going to take? Well? 0:07:25.000 --> 0:07:26.880 I think winning a Super Bowl would have helped, but 0:07:27.240 --> 0:07:29.800 I think last year kind of does help. And I 0:07:29.840 --> 0:07:33.040 go back to their scouting department. Okay, it's not a 0:07:33.080 --> 0:07:35.880 big scouting department, but I think the way they do 0:07:35.960 --> 0:07:40.440 it is actually a really good way. There's so much input, 0:07:40.680 --> 0:07:45.040 input and cross you know, referencing everybody that I think, 0:07:45.200 --> 0:07:47.760 you know, Tobin handles it the right way. He allows 0:07:47.800 --> 0:07:49.840 his guys to do their work and he listens to him. 0:07:50.000 --> 0:07:53.280 There are so many teams that have giant scouting departments 0:07:53.280 --> 0:07:54.840 and they send their guys out and they do all 0:07:54.840 --> 0:07:56.320 this work and they're out all week and they get 0:07:56.360 --> 0:07:58.960 all information and they come back and they give them 0:07:58.960 --> 0:08:01.040 reports and then the GM says, no, I don't like 0:08:01.120 --> 0:08:03.760 it that way, Whereas that never works. And I think 0:08:03.800 --> 0:08:06.880 you're seeing that with what they've done. They've drafted very well. 0:08:07.160 --> 0:08:09.960 They've made good decisions in free agency, and I think 0:08:09.960 --> 0:08:13.360 that showed up last year. So I think getting the 0:08:13.400 --> 0:08:15.760 practice facility is big and where are they putting that 0:08:15.800 --> 0:08:18.560 They put in right next to the stadium right there. Yeah, 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:23.440 more or less across the street going toward the Ohio River. Yeah. 0:08:23.560 --> 0:08:27.240 And again if you win, those are easier to get done, 0:08:27.840 --> 0:08:30.400 no question about that. Pete Prisco is our guest. You 0:08:30.400 --> 0:08:34.800 can follow them on Twitter at Prisco CBS. You recently 0:08:34.960 --> 0:08:37.920 released your list, your annual list of the NFL's top 0:08:37.960 --> 0:08:41.160 one hundred players. The Chargers led the way with nine guys. 0:08:41.200 --> 0:08:43.200 The Rams have three in the top ten, which is 0:08:43.200 --> 0:08:46.320 pretty extraordinary, including the number one guy, Aaron Donald. The 0:08:46.320 --> 0:08:49.040 Bengals had five guys in your top one hundred that 0:08:49.160 --> 0:08:52.280 is tied for the fifth most. I think people might 0:08:52.360 --> 0:08:54.960 be a little bit surprised to learn that your highest 0:08:55.040 --> 0:08:57.920 rated Bengal isn't Joe Burrow, who is high at number 0:08:57.920 --> 0:09:01.720 twenty one, but it's Jamar Chase at number eighteen. Why 0:09:01.800 --> 0:09:04.760 so high for Jamar after one year? I think he's 0:09:04.800 --> 0:09:08.160 one of those receivers going to be special. And you know, 0:09:08.200 --> 0:09:10.839 we see it now where if you get that special guy, 0:09:10.880 --> 0:09:12.840 he kind of elevates the rest of the group and 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:15.760 makes everybody else better. You know, Justin Jefferson does it 0:09:15.840 --> 0:09:19.520 in Minnesota's a young rising guy. And we see these 0:09:19.559 --> 0:09:22.160 receivers now making their money by the way, tons of them, 0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:25.160 and we saw it, and I think he's in that class. 0:09:25.320 --> 0:09:28.520 I think he is truly going to be a special player, 0:09:28.600 --> 0:09:31.160 and he makes it easier on Joe Burrow. And I 0:09:31.200 --> 0:09:33.320 think the ability to go get the fifty fifty ball, 0:09:33.360 --> 0:09:35.400 the ability to rip off the big play, and I 0:09:35.440 --> 0:09:38.200 think that's why I put him in that class. And again, 0:09:38.559 --> 0:09:41.280 there are a lot of really good receivers and him 0:09:41.320 --> 0:09:44.120 and Justin Jefferson are two of the better young ones. 0:09:44.400 --> 0:09:48.360 Amazing to think on that team that caught passes down 0:09:48.400 --> 0:09:53.040 there from Joe Burrow. Easy to see why he threw 0:09:53.080 --> 0:09:56.959 sixty touchdown passes there when your targets like that. So 0:09:57.040 --> 0:09:59.880 your five Bengals in the top one hundred are Chase Burrow, 0:10:00.040 --> 0:10:03.920 Trey Hendrickson, Joe Mixon, and Jesse Bates. Jesse Bates obviously 0:10:03.960 --> 0:10:06.120 an interesting name right now because of what's happening with 0:10:06.200 --> 0:10:08.360 him in the franchise tag. If you're the Bengals, what 0:10:08.400 --> 0:10:11.920 would you do with Jesse Bates and his contract. I 0:10:11.960 --> 0:10:14.120 think he's I don't think he played that well early 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:15.880 last season. I think he'd be the first one to 0:10:15.880 --> 0:10:17.640 tell you that he said he got caught up in 0:10:17.679 --> 0:10:20.120 the whole contract situation. This is a big year for him. 0:10:20.600 --> 0:10:22.640 I think you gotta let him play it out. You 0:10:22.800 --> 0:10:25.240 drafted with an eye on him one of maybe both 0:10:25.280 --> 0:10:29.000 those guys, leaving both those safeties, and I think they're 0:10:29.000 --> 0:10:31.280 both if I mistaken, he's in the franchise tag and 0:10:32.600 --> 0:10:36.080 vine Bell he's in his contract year. Yeah, third and 0:10:36.120 --> 0:10:39.160 final year of the free agent deal he signed. So 0:10:39.480 --> 0:10:42.360 you drafted, you know, with an eye on replacing one 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:44.640 of those guys at least, so I think it'll be 0:10:44.679 --> 0:10:47.080 interesting to see how they play. I'd let it play out. 0:10:47.360 --> 0:10:50.000 I think Jesse Bates is a really good player. But again, 0:10:50.160 --> 0:10:53.520 if you rush to sign guys like that without replacing 0:10:53.559 --> 0:10:56.719 them with a cheaper version, then you get into some 0:10:56.760 --> 0:10:59.000 situations where you have capell and you have a lot 0:10:59.000 --> 0:11:01.240 of good young players that you're eventually gonna have to 0:11:01.240 --> 0:11:03.760 pay big money too. So I'd be careful with that one. 0:11:03.880 --> 0:11:05.679 I like him as a player. Wherever you go, he's 0:11:05.720 --> 0:11:07.400 gonna be a good player, but it might not be 0:11:07.440 --> 0:11:11.280 in Cincinnati. DJ Reader did not make your top one hundred, 0:11:11.280 --> 0:11:14.120 but he did earn honorable mentioned status. Do you consider 0:11:14.200 --> 0:11:15.719 him to be one of the more underrated guys in 0:11:15.760 --> 0:11:18.480 the league. Yes, absolutely, He's been that way for a 0:11:18.480 --> 0:11:21.400 long time. By the way, he's a really good player 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:24.120 and the guy you want to have inside on your defense. 0:11:24.200 --> 0:11:27.120 I think what he did last year was truly impressive. 0:11:27.160 --> 0:11:29.960 Now you know, the issue is what happens j Hill 0:11:30.040 --> 0:11:33.160 comes back. He played well last year and I think 0:11:33.200 --> 0:11:35.640 he's good next to him. I like the Carter kid 0:11:35.640 --> 0:11:37.520 they drafted out of Florida. I think he's gonna be 0:11:37.559 --> 0:11:42.200 a good player again. Draft to replace, you know, you 0:11:42.360 --> 0:11:45.000 draft to replace, and I think they get that. And 0:11:45.080 --> 0:11:47.520 for all the criticism that they get, I don't think 0:11:47.520 --> 0:11:49.400 it's warranted when you watch what they do and how 0:11:49.400 --> 0:11:53.000 they handle the roster. Zach Carter was their third round pick. 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:55.680 Dax Hill, the safety at of Michigan, is obviously their first. 0:11:55.679 --> 0:11:59.360 What do you think of Dax Versatility in this league, 0:11:59.400 --> 0:12:01.680 that's what you want. You can play him outside, you 0:12:01.679 --> 0:12:03.800 could play him at slot corner, you could play him 0:12:03.800 --> 0:12:06.040 at safety. And you know, more and more teams are 0:12:06.040 --> 0:12:09.400 going to three safeties, and when you play three safeties, 0:12:09.840 --> 0:12:11.960 you know, even next year, if they're all there, he 0:12:12.040 --> 0:12:14.000 could be the third guy on the field. Or you 0:12:14.000 --> 0:12:17.040 can bring bell down and play him back, and I 0:12:17.040 --> 0:12:19.280 think that's where this league is heading. And tool teams 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:22.079 start running the football again, you know, that's where we're 0:12:22.120 --> 0:12:24.800 going eventually, if game is and I always thought it 0:12:24.840 --> 0:12:26.719 would be an air game, and it's moved to that. 0:12:26.920 --> 0:12:28.760 I said that twenty five years ago. I said, this 0:12:28.760 --> 0:12:30.959 game is gonna be an air game. You're gonna spread 0:12:31.000 --> 0:12:33.200 people out, You're gonna throw the football. You know, I 0:12:33.320 --> 0:12:35.120 was a big fan of air Correal way back in 0:12:35.160 --> 0:12:37.440 the day. I always love Marino thrown around. I always 0:12:37.480 --> 0:12:39.560 thought you needed to get to that. Well, now we've 0:12:39.600 --> 0:12:42.200 got to that, and the rules mandate that that's an 0:12:42.200 --> 0:12:45.120 advantage for you. But when does a team start going 0:12:45.160 --> 0:12:48.320 back to pounding it when they get when you get little, 0:12:48.440 --> 0:12:51.040 you start pounding him up from because everybody, you know, 0:12:51.080 --> 0:12:54.760 the bigger defensive end is now a defensive tackle and 0:12:54.920 --> 0:12:58.080 you know, and so you put him inside, you're gonna 0:12:58.120 --> 0:12:59.640 run on them now a little bit. So I think 0:12:59.640 --> 0:13:02.600 we might have to see an adjustment eventually, But for now, 0:13:02.960 --> 0:13:04.800 three safeties on the field makes a lot of sense. 0:13:05.559 --> 0:13:09.280 Belichick does that in the postseason, doesn't he. He pounds 0:13:09.360 --> 0:13:14.000 pea Yeah, you can bet. But again, like I see 0:13:14.080 --> 0:13:17.720 teams that are too reliant on the run that get 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:22.120 caught in the postseason. Tennessee. Tennessee runs the ball well, 0:13:22.480 --> 0:13:24.719 carries him to the playoffs. Every year. They might win 0:13:24.720 --> 0:13:27.040 a game or two running the ball, but eventually you 0:13:27.160 --> 0:13:29.200 have to be able to throw it. You have to 0:13:29.240 --> 0:13:31.960 be able to get big plays. You know, the Bengals 0:13:32.000 --> 0:13:33.720 will be able to run the ball better this year. 0:13:33.800 --> 0:13:35.480 I think. I think mix is gonna have a big 0:13:35.559 --> 0:13:38.040 year running the ball, and that will take pressure off 0:13:38.040 --> 0:13:40.760 the offensive line and it will make their passing game better. 0:13:41.120 --> 0:13:44.160 Even if the numbers might not be gaudy, they will 0:13:44.200 --> 0:13:46.920 be a better offense this year. A few more questions 0:13:46.920 --> 0:13:51.280 for Pete Prisco, senior NFL columnist for CBS sports dot Com. 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:55.240 The Ravens are healthy. The Browns traded for Deshaun Watson. 0:13:55.480 --> 0:13:58.160 The Steelers made Kenny Pickett the first quarterback taken in 0:13:58.200 --> 0:14:02.040 this year's draft. How does the AFC North stack up 0:14:02.040 --> 0:14:03.840 in your opinion? About a month away from the start 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:07.280 of training camp. I think the Bengals are the best team, 0:14:07.480 --> 0:14:10.080 and I would right now on paper that I picked 0:14:10.120 --> 0:14:12.040 him to win the division. I think the Ravens are 0:14:12.040 --> 0:14:14.400 going to be the second best team. They're gonna be back. 0:14:14.600 --> 0:14:16.680 You know, Lamar Jackson missed so much time it was, 0:14:16.800 --> 0:14:18.959 you know, on that on the field and never really 0:14:18.960 --> 0:14:22.200 looked like himself last year. They'll be back. You know. 0:14:22.320 --> 0:14:24.720 What happens with the Watson situation, that's the thing. Is 0:14:24.720 --> 0:14:27.720 he gonna get suspended for a year or whatever? You know, 0:14:27.760 --> 0:14:30.520 we don't know, so I think if I look at it, 0:14:31.560 --> 0:14:36.400 I'd say Bengals won Ravens two, rounds three and then 0:14:36.440 --> 0:14:38.880 the Steelers four. And I like Kenny Pickett. I think 0:14:38.920 --> 0:14:41.000 Kenny Pickett for Bengals fans might, but I want to 0:14:41.040 --> 0:14:43.280 hear this. He has a little bit of Joe Burrow 0:14:43.320 --> 0:14:46.200 in him. You know, he can sling it. He's got 0:14:46.200 --> 0:14:48.560 a little bit of an attitude, and he plays with 0:14:48.600 --> 0:14:51.520 a toughness about him. I think Kenny Pickett for it 0:14:51.600 --> 0:14:53.560 might be one of those guys that the Steelers found 0:14:53.560 --> 0:14:55.280 and he'll end up being a long term quarterback. And 0:14:55.320 --> 0:14:58.240 it could be Pickett, Burrow and Lamar Jackson the division 0:14:58.240 --> 0:15:00.560 for a long time. And if Watson gives you things 0:15:00.560 --> 0:15:03.480 straighten on him too, You're right, Bengals fans don't want 0:15:03.520 --> 0:15:06.480 to hear that. We're hoping that's a prediction along the 0:15:06.480 --> 0:15:10.720 lines of Christian Ponder. Yeah, I bet you do, all right, Pete, 0:15:10.760 --> 0:15:13.360 I got one more question for you. Last week a 0:15:13.440 --> 0:15:16.800 group of loyal Bengals fans held an event called Jungle 0:15:16.840 --> 0:15:19.120 to the Hall Too. They are trying to make the 0:15:19.160 --> 0:15:22.800 case that Anthony Munio should not be the only Bengal 0:15:23.080 --> 0:15:25.240 in the Pro Football Hall of Fame. Do you have 0:15:25.280 --> 0:15:30.280 any strong feelings about Ken Anderson, Ken Riley, Willie Anderson 0:15:30.760 --> 0:15:34.320 or any other former Bengals as Hall of Fame candidates. 0:15:35.640 --> 0:15:39.040 Ken Riley should have been in already, and that one's 0:15:39.280 --> 0:15:41.960 amazing to me. Anybody who watched Ken Riley wats to play, 0:15:42.000 --> 0:15:44.680 he should be in the Hall of Fame. I think, 0:15:44.800 --> 0:15:47.280 you know, when you look at Ken Anderson, you could 0:15:47.320 --> 0:15:50.360 make a strong case for Ken Anderson and what he 0:15:50.520 --> 0:15:53.360 did and how he did it. I again, another offense 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:56.360 I enjoyed really watching, so I could put I would 0:15:56.360 --> 0:15:58.400 have no problem with either one of those. You know, 0:15:58.440 --> 0:16:00.880 and Willie Anderson gets pinged because he played right tackle, 0:16:01.680 --> 0:16:05.720 and that's unfair. Look Tony Vaselli, who I know very well, 0:16:05.840 --> 0:16:07.320 he's going in this year. I can't wait to see 0:16:07.400 --> 0:16:11.120 him go in. Was a great left tackle and people said, oh, well, 0:16:11.120 --> 0:16:14.320 he protected Mark Burnell's left handed quarterback. Well, Anthony Unos 0:16:14.360 --> 0:16:18.120 prod prodected Boomer's blind side. I didn't protect Boomer's blind side. 0:16:18.200 --> 0:16:20.000 So yeah, I think you can make a case for 0:16:20.000 --> 0:16:23.640 Willie Anderson and I all three of them strong consideration. 0:16:24.200 --> 0:16:26.240 Maybe two at least of them should get in. And 0:16:26.720 --> 0:16:28.880 if I had a stronger feeling on any of them, 0:16:28.920 --> 0:16:32.120 I probably put Ken Riley in sixty five. I NTS 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:35.280 is hard to ignore, isn't it. It was a playmaker. 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:37.480 I mean you could just see me at the long leg. 0:16:37.560 --> 0:16:41.160 He is a playmaker. Yes, I would put and if 0:16:41.200 --> 0:16:45.120 I ranked him, I'd probably go Riley, then Anderson, and 0:16:45.160 --> 0:16:49.840 then Willie Pete. You are one of my favorite podcast guests. 0:16:49.920 --> 0:16:52.440 I always appreciate your time. Keep up the great work, 0:16:52.480 --> 0:16:54.680 and I'll hit you up again in a few months. 0:16:55.080 --> 0:16:58.280 I'll see you a calf in about three weeks. Fantastic, 0:16:58.320 --> 0:17:01.400 Thank you very much. You got it. He came out 0:17:01.400 --> 0:17:04.880 with his NFL power rankings earlier this offseason and had 0:17:04.880 --> 0:17:08.159 the Bengals had number six in the NFL and number 0:17:08.240 --> 0:17:12.439 three in the AFC, behind the Bills and Chiefs. Pete 0:17:12.440 --> 0:17:15.960 wrote the following the off season was about fixing the 0:17:16.040 --> 0:17:18.960 offensive line, and they did it. They also added a 0:17:18.960 --> 0:17:22.399 few nice pieces in the draft on defense. All of 0:17:22.400 --> 0:17:26.960 that will again make this team a contender. The Bengals 0:17:26.960 --> 0:17:30.040 Booth podcast is presented by Ultimate Bengals, the free to 0:17:30.119 --> 0:17:34.439 play fantasy football game. This past season, Ultimate Bengals awarded 0:17:34.480 --> 0:17:37.160 a weekly winner during the course of the year, with tickets, 0:17:37.200 --> 0:17:42.160 autographed merchandise, and money can't buy experiences all up for grabs. 0:17:42.560 --> 0:17:47.160 Find Ultimate Bengals in the App Store and Google play. Back. 0:17:47.200 --> 0:17:50.040 In April, the Bengals announced that they are exercising the 0:17:50.080 --> 0:17:53.800 fifth year option of offensive lineman Jonah Williams, meaning he'll 0:17:53.840 --> 0:17:56.560 be with a team for at least two more years. 0:17:57.160 --> 0:17:59.600 So just how good is the former first round pick 0:18:00.040 --> 0:18:03.280 of Alabama? I recently discussed that and much more with 0:18:03.400 --> 0:18:06.879 Brandon Thorne, the author of the Trench Warfare newsletter, where 0:18:06.880 --> 0:18:11.480 he writes and post videos about offensive and defensive line play. 0:18:12.040 --> 0:18:15.440 Last week, he featured a film study with the Bengals 0:18:15.520 --> 0:18:20.280 left tackle, who is still only twenty four years old. Edon, 0:18:20.320 --> 0:18:24.160 how did your fifty minute film study with Jonah Williams 0:18:24.160 --> 0:18:28.639 come about? I basically just reached out to him via 0:18:28.960 --> 0:18:33.360 direct message, and you know, we we've talked over the years. 0:18:33.400 --> 0:18:36.159 You know, I first met him at the Combine when 0:18:36.200 --> 0:18:39.159 he was there, I was with Duke manny Weather just 0:18:39.240 --> 0:18:42.320 kind of you know, networking around town in Indianapolis, and 0:18:43.000 --> 0:18:45.400 you know, bumped into him. So I got to at least, 0:18:45.720 --> 0:18:47.479 you know, kind of get a face to face meeting 0:18:47.960 --> 0:18:49.720 and just you know, put a name with the face 0:18:49.840 --> 0:18:52.240 kind of thing. And then, uh, you know, I think 0:18:52.359 --> 0:18:54.600 we had already been following each other and may have 0:18:54.680 --> 0:18:57.000 talked you know, online a little bit before that, but 0:18:57.080 --> 0:18:59.400 then after that, you know, I started asking him more 0:18:59.560 --> 0:19:03.359 questions about like things I was seeing on film, stuff 0:19:03.400 --> 0:19:05.600 like that, and then over the years, you know, it's 0:19:05.640 --> 0:19:07.560 just we've just talked more and more. He's just been 0:19:07.560 --> 0:19:10.800 really generous with his time. So I you know, thought 0:19:10.800 --> 0:19:13.000 it would be a great thing to get him on, 0:19:13.280 --> 0:19:15.119 you know, for a film room and actually like do 0:19:15.200 --> 0:19:18.280 a deep dive. So that's what we were able to do. 0:19:18.359 --> 0:19:21.600 So I'm excited about it and hopefully people get a 0:19:21.600 --> 0:19:24.560 lot out of it. I subscribe to your newsletter. I 0:19:24.640 --> 0:19:27.640 watched the piece. It was really informative for me because 0:19:27.800 --> 0:19:31.320 it's technical and I don't speak the language of offensive line. 0:19:31.560 --> 0:19:35.640 At one point, Jonah mentions Newton's second law of motion 0:19:36.119 --> 0:19:40.040 force equals mass times acceleration and explaining one of his techniques. 0:19:40.280 --> 0:19:42.960 What were some of your biggest takeaways first and putting 0:19:43.000 --> 0:19:46.679 together all the video and then and discussing it with Jonah. 0:19:46.760 --> 0:19:48.679 You know, I think you kind of touched on it. 0:19:48.760 --> 0:19:53.160 He's he's pretty, uh, I think, analytical in his approach, 0:19:53.320 --> 0:19:57.040 you know, to the position, and you know he's just 0:19:57.040 --> 0:19:58.840 just the way kind of his mind works. I guess 0:19:58.920 --> 0:20:02.000 he could really break it down in a lot of detail, 0:20:02.200 --> 0:20:04.639 you know, whereas there's other guys that I've talked to, 0:20:06.200 --> 0:20:08.760 you know, on the offensive and defensive line where they 0:20:08.800 --> 0:20:11.040 basically just tell me they go out and they play football, 0:20:11.080 --> 0:20:13.639 you know, they they just react to what they see 0:20:13.680 --> 0:20:16.639 and just be an athlete or you know, just and 0:20:16.800 --> 0:20:19.520