WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Nobody Knows 0:00:03.760 --> 0:00:06.720 Hi, get everybody on Dan Horde and thanks for downloading 0:00:06.720 --> 0:00:15.200 the Bengals Booth podcast. The nobs addition, as we take 0:00:15.240 --> 0:00:17.680 an in depth look at who the Bengals are going 0:00:17.720 --> 0:00:22.080 to select with the first pick of the second round 0:00:22.120 --> 0:00:25.760 of the NFL Draft. Obviously, I don't really know who 0:00:25.800 --> 0:00:28.560 that is going to be. Nobody does. But I'll take 0:00:28.560 --> 0:00:30.880 a look at ten players who have popped up on 0:00:31.000 --> 0:00:35.080 mock drafts as the thirty third overall selection in this 0:00:35.159 --> 0:00:38.920 year's draft, and you'll hear from people who have great 0:00:39.040 --> 0:00:43.520 information about each player. Before we get to that, I'll 0:00:43.560 --> 0:00:47.400 spend five minutes with Bengals head coach Zach Taylor. Unfortunately, 0:00:47.479 --> 0:00:50.920 he is still not permitted to discuss the Bengals editions 0:00:50.920 --> 0:00:54.000 in free agency. Teams can't comment until the players have 0:00:54.080 --> 0:00:57.440 passed physicals and signed on the dotted line. But I'll 0:00:57.520 --> 0:01:01.120 talk to Zach about Andy Dalton, age a Green, and 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:06.120 much more. The Bengals Boot Podcast is presented by Prime Sport, 0:01:06.400 --> 0:01:11.240 the official fan, travel and hospitality partner of the Cincinnati Bengals. 0:01:11.480 --> 0:01:13.319 And here's a quick reminder that you can have the 0:01:13.360 --> 0:01:18.319 latest edition of this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, 0:01:18.520 --> 0:01:24.480 or computer by subscribing. It's the greatest thing since everyday 0:01:24.560 --> 0:01:28.759 heroes during the COVID nineteen pandemic. I've tried to keep 0:01:28.760 --> 0:01:33.160 two words in mind, careful and hopeful. But each day 0:01:33.560 --> 0:01:37.280 I feel more and more grateful to the everyday heroes 0:01:37.360 --> 0:01:43.560 who can't stay home. Doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers, police, 0:01:44.000 --> 0:01:49.480 firefighters and other first responders, grocery store employees, delivery people, 0:01:49.600 --> 0:01:53.960 news broadcasters. The list goes on and on. Thank you 0:01:54.360 --> 0:01:58.560 for all you're doing to help us cope with this crisis. Now, 0:01:59.040 --> 0:02:01.880 let's get to football, all beginning with my conversation with 0:02:01.960 --> 0:02:05.320 head coach Zach Taylor. As I mentioned, the league is 0:02:05.360 --> 0:02:09.040 not permitting teams to discuss specific free agent acquisitions until 0:02:09.080 --> 0:02:12.760 they have completed physicals. But I did start my conversation 0:02:12.800 --> 0:02:16.840 with Zach by asking him about the team's aggressive approach 0:02:17.240 --> 0:02:20.440 this year. Did you feel like it was important to 0:02:20.560 --> 0:02:23.320 change the perception around the league and also within your 0:02:23.320 --> 0:02:27.959 own locker room, perhaps that the Bengals weren't willing to 0:02:28.040 --> 0:02:31.040 sign some of the most prominent free agents. It was 0:02:31.040 --> 0:02:33.560 just about improving our team. That's the whole focused on. 0:02:33.639 --> 0:02:36.960 We don't again. Our motto has been it's about us. 0:02:37.200 --> 0:02:39.360 You know, we're not worried about what the outside perception is. 0:02:39.360 --> 0:02:41.000 We just want to improve our team to get the 0:02:41.000 --> 0:02:43.799 most out of our players, and so that's that's been 0:02:43.880 --> 0:02:46.160 what we've set out to do here in free agency, 0:02:46.760 --> 0:02:49.160 and we feel like we've we've made those improvements that 0:02:49.200 --> 0:02:52.239 really give ourselves a good chance on both sides of 0:02:52.240 --> 0:02:54.640 the ball. And it's things that we're all on the 0:02:54.680 --> 0:02:56.960 same page with. We're all excited that we got them done. 0:02:58.280 --> 0:03:01.120 You know, it's free agency not over yet. We're still 0:03:01.120 --> 0:03:03.080 looking at every single way we can prove our team 0:03:03.080 --> 0:03:06.280 and we're willing to do so if the opportunities present itself. 0:03:06.840 --> 0:03:09.880 You officially tagged DJ Green, which I think all of 0:03:09.919 --> 0:03:14.399 us anticipated happening. You hap until July fifteenth to try 0:03:14.400 --> 0:03:17.200 to sign him to an extension. Is it just a 0:03:17.320 --> 0:03:20.200 matter of dollars and cents at this point or does 0:03:20.200 --> 0:03:24.079 the team needs some sort of proof that he's healthy. Well, 0:03:24.120 --> 0:03:27.760 it doesn't hurt. We'd obviously like to see Aj in 0:03:27.840 --> 0:03:29.600 the offseason program that there's a lot of things that 0:03:29.639 --> 0:03:31.520 are up in the year obviously with that just in 0:03:31.600 --> 0:03:33.400 terms of what's going on in the world right now, 0:03:33.440 --> 0:03:35.360 So we'll just take it one day at a time. 0:03:35.400 --> 0:03:38.480 But we've maybe known that we want Aja here. We 0:03:38.520 --> 0:03:40.640 can very highly of him. You know, this is not 0:03:40.760 --> 0:03:43.400 somebody that we want out of the building. So we'll 0:03:43.440 --> 0:03:45.240 just continue working through it and take it one day 0:03:45.240 --> 0:03:48.280 at a time. You met with Joe Burrow at the combine. 0:03:48.880 --> 0:03:51.280 One person in the room who's been involved with these 0:03:51.280 --> 0:03:53.360 things for many years says it was the best player 0:03:53.400 --> 0:03:55.880 interview that he's ever been a part of. What were 0:03:55.920 --> 0:03:59.320 your takeaways. We'll keep us somewhere private, but I think 0:04:00.040 --> 0:04:03.520 it was not unexpected. You know, he's impressive, impressive person. 0:04:04.080 --> 0:04:05.440 It was the first time we had a chance to 0:04:05.440 --> 0:04:09.320 talk to him one on one, you know, so again 0:04:09.600 --> 0:04:11.720 get very impressive. All the things that we expected to 0:04:11.720 --> 0:04:14.160 see and hear from him, and we'll continue to get 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:16.520 to know him, you know, in different ways. Now it's 0:04:16.560 --> 0:04:19.760 a little bit unique, this process. It's different than it 0:04:19.800 --> 0:04:21.320 was in the past. Now, you know, now we're going 0:04:21.360 --> 0:04:24.520 to rely on FaceTime and just conversations over the phone. 0:04:24.520 --> 0:04:25.800 You're not gonna get a chance to see the gas 0:04:25.880 --> 0:04:28.920 from person to get until the draft. So it was 0:04:28.960 --> 0:04:31.880 just a starting point for us. We're excited to continue 0:04:31.880 --> 0:04:34.360 to get a note to know more about him and 0:04:34.360 --> 0:04:37.280 and you know, we're just getting the process started right now. 0:04:37.960 --> 0:04:40.719 When you coached the Senior Bowl, we all talked about 0:04:40.760 --> 0:04:44.000 it as the time as as an advantage to have 0:04:44.120 --> 0:04:47.040 that much contact with those guys in light of what's 0:04:47.080 --> 0:04:50.560 happened where teams had the opportunity to interview forty five 0:04:50.600 --> 0:04:53.880 players at the Combine. But now you have been forced 0:04:53.880 --> 0:04:57.279 to do phone calls and FaceTime and skype and things 0:04:57.320 --> 0:05:00.240 like that. Is it even more of an advantage then 0:05:00.320 --> 0:05:02.280 you thought it would be at the time, I think 0:05:02.320 --> 0:05:04.359 you'd have to say it is. You know, we got 0:05:04.360 --> 0:05:07.600 that face to face interaction. You're planning on being able 0:05:07.680 --> 0:05:09.760 to bring a lot of players into your building, you 0:05:09.760 --> 0:05:12.479 know that got thrown out the window. You were going 0:05:12.520 --> 0:05:14.400 to get to go to more pro days and meet 0:05:14.440 --> 0:05:16.680 these guys face to face. That got thrown out the window. 0:05:17.160 --> 0:05:20.320 So I think any any face to face time that 0:05:20.360 --> 0:05:23.279 we got, which with US Lions really the two teams 0:05:23.279 --> 0:05:26.960 that got that opportunity, it's beneficial. And so I'm glad 0:05:27.000 --> 0:05:28.200 of all the years that we got to do it, it 0:05:28.120 --> 0:05:30.919 it was this year because that that does check a 0:05:30.920 --> 0:05:32.960 couple of boxes on some guys that otherwise we'd be 0:05:33.000 --> 0:05:35.080 curious about. But again, now you just got to be 0:05:35.080 --> 0:05:37.880 creative at this point and find ways to make sure 0:05:37.960 --> 0:05:40.320 you tame the same information about the players that that 0:05:40.360 --> 0:05:42.600 you would have otherwise had to do through traveling to 0:05:42.640 --> 0:05:44.320 the pro days and bringing guys into your buildings. You 0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:47.200 got to be creative and how you do it, you know, 0:05:47.360 --> 0:05:51.359 just just virtually at this point, where do things stand 0:05:51.400 --> 0:05:54.000 with Andy Dalton and trying to trade him? At this point, 0:05:54.720 --> 0:05:57.000 all options are on the table. You know, he's still 0:05:57.000 --> 0:06:00.920 a bangle and um, we still work through that, but 0:06:02.040 --> 0:06:03.839 right now, all options are on the table, you know, 0:06:03.920 --> 0:06:06.480 and he's obviously a quality player that we think very 0:06:06.560 --> 0:06:10.320 highly of and he's under contract and so you know, 0:06:10.360 --> 0:06:12.640 we'll just keep walking through that process. What are you 0:06:12.680 --> 0:06:15.960 advising your players to do right now in terms of 0:06:16.600 --> 0:06:21.120 staying fit in light of a lot of home quarantining, 0:06:21.920 --> 0:06:24.240 right so take a week to week right now, because 0:06:24.960 --> 0:06:27.800 we really just we sent on some information that no 0:06:27.920 --> 0:06:29.680 players can be in the buildings for the next for 0:06:29.720 --> 0:06:32.800 this week and next week. So you know, not that 0:06:32.839 --> 0:06:34.680 we have many guys that are around this time of 0:06:34.720 --> 0:06:37.560 year anyway, but guys are gonna have to be creative 0:06:37.560 --> 0:06:40.440 with the workouts because as you've seen, gyms are closing. 0:06:40.600 --> 0:06:42.279 You know, a lot of work epasolities around the country 0:06:42.279 --> 0:06:44.880 are closing for the time being. So we got to 0:06:44.920 --> 0:06:49.000 be creative and what what our guys can do. And 0:06:49.160 --> 0:06:51.159 obviously right now is a time where they couldn't be 0:06:51.320 --> 0:06:54.880 They couldn't be training with us anyway, but they could 0:06:54.880 --> 0:06:56.720 come in and just be monitored in the weight room. 0:06:56.760 --> 0:06:58.160 But you can't tell them what to do. So those 0:06:58.200 --> 0:07:00.000 guys are just gonna have to take it upon themselves 0:07:00.120 --> 0:07:02.680 creative and what their approach isn't be ready that whatever 0:07:02.720 --> 0:07:06.120 this Offseas program does start, they're in Shaffer and right rule. 0:07:07.200 --> 0:07:10.160 Now the most important question, how is Sarah coping with 0:07:10.280 --> 0:07:15.440 four young kids and no school? Just like any any 0:07:15.440 --> 0:07:17.840 any mom is around the world. You know, it's no different. 0:07:19.040 --> 0:07:21.320 She's been great. You know, I think she's got some 0:07:22.200 --> 0:07:24.320 she's becoming a teacher in some senses now. She's got 0:07:24.320 --> 0:07:26.320 the kids around the table and making sure they stay 0:07:26.400 --> 0:07:29.440 up on their studies, trying to make it creative and enjoyable. 0:07:29.560 --> 0:07:32.320 But she does a great job with all that. So um, 0:07:33.040 --> 0:07:35.040 you know, it's just she's gone through just like any 0:07:35.040 --> 0:07:39.080 other mom. The Taylor family has found ways to have 0:07:39.160 --> 0:07:43.440 some fun during this social distancing period. Go online and 0:07:43.520 --> 0:07:48.080 search for Zach Taylor Old Town Road and you'll see 0:07:48.120 --> 0:07:52.640 what I mean. Now let's turn to the draft. Let's 0:07:52.640 --> 0:07:55.560 face it, we all expect the Bengals to select Joe 0:07:55.600 --> 0:07:59.160 Burrow with the number one overall pick, no matter what 0:07:59.320 --> 0:08:02.280 rumors pop up about the Dolphins trying to swing a 0:08:02.320 --> 0:08:06.440 trade for the top spot. I would be flabbergasted if 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.840 Joe Burrow is not wearing a number nine Bengals jersey 0:08:10.160 --> 0:08:13.680 to begin his NFL career. So the real drama for 0:08:13.680 --> 0:08:17.280 the Bengals begins with the first pick in the second round. 0:08:17.920 --> 0:08:21.320 I've predicted on this podcast that they'll trade down at 0:08:21.360 --> 0:08:24.119 the top of round two in order to get more picks, 0:08:24.120 --> 0:08:26.920 but for the sake of argument, let's say they don't. 0:08:27.440 --> 0:08:30.080 If the Bengals go ahead and use the thirty third 0:08:30.120 --> 0:08:33.120 overall pick, who are some of the players they are 0:08:33.280 --> 0:08:36.760 most likely to choose. I come through a bunch of 0:08:36.800 --> 0:08:39.640 mock drafts this week and came up with ten names. 0:08:39.679 --> 0:08:43.000 Then I reached out to the play by play broadcaster 0:08:43.160 --> 0:08:46.440 at that player's school or in one case, the head coach, 0:08:46.920 --> 0:08:50.160 to get an in depth scouting report. I will share 0:08:50.160 --> 0:08:54.439 the results in alphabetical order, beginning with the player who 0:08:54.480 --> 0:08:57.920 appears on more mock drafts in that spot than any 0:08:57.960 --> 0:09:02.600 other Wisconsin outside linebacker, Zach baugh He was one of 0:09:02.600 --> 0:09:05.400 the most disruptive players in college football last year with 0:09:05.559 --> 0:09:08.360 nineteen and a half tackles for loss in twelve and 0:09:08.400 --> 0:09:12.000 a half sacks, and I discussed him with Badger's play 0:09:12.000 --> 0:09:17.160 by play man Matt Lapey Adan. The strength of Zach 0:09:17.240 --> 0:09:21.760 Baughan is a fast switch hoss rusher. I think he 0:09:22.000 --> 0:09:25.320 probably heard this a lot, and it's true. I think 0:09:25.360 --> 0:09:27.600 the thing that became very noticeable about him is he 0:09:27.640 --> 0:09:29.840 has had a very quick give offf time. You know, 0:09:29.880 --> 0:09:32.920 his forty time of the combine is probably the middle 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:36.640 of the pack at his position. But his quick bursts 0:09:37.280 --> 0:09:40.920 enabled him to get to the quarterback at a pretty 0:09:41.000 --> 0:09:45.520 high rate. And on the defense that was not star studded, 0:09:45.559 --> 0:09:47.760 there was only one other player who was as much 0:09:47.800 --> 0:09:50.120 as second team All Big Ten. They were a good 0:09:50.160 --> 0:09:53.199 defense that they did it collectively, but Zach Joan was 0:09:53.240 --> 0:09:55.560 one of those guys. I think composing offenses had to 0:09:55.600 --> 0:09:58.040 account for him. You had to find him and where 0:09:58.080 --> 0:10:01.480 he's lined up on every snap. He truly was a 0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:05.880 difference maker, quick, a lot of speed, high football IQ, 0:10:06.520 --> 0:10:09.320 and someone who had battled injuries earlier in his career 0:10:09.400 --> 0:10:14.120 but really blossomed to an extent in twenty eighteen, but 0:10:14.280 --> 0:10:17.360 really came into his own in twenty nineteen. A lot 0:10:17.400 --> 0:10:20.959 of the draft gurus list him as an edge player. 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:25.080 Is he strictly a pass rusher or will he be 0:10:25.120 --> 0:10:27.720 able to be a three down linebacker? Well, the other 0:10:27.760 --> 0:10:30.400 thing that they did like about him is that he's 0:10:31.120 --> 0:10:33.319 shows a fair amount of versatility and I think he's 0:10:33.320 --> 0:10:37.600 still growing. I think he's someone here to term upside 0:10:37.600 --> 0:10:40.000 of lots and I would like to think he fits 0:10:40.040 --> 0:10:42.600 that description, has a lot of it, but I think 0:10:42.760 --> 0:10:45.800 he can drop back into coverage. He can do a 0:10:45.800 --> 0:10:47.800 lot of different things. He needs to get bigger, I think, 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:51.880 to be a more more of a run stuffing type 0:10:51.920 --> 0:10:54.960 of player. But I do think, especially in today's NFL, 0:10:55.120 --> 0:10:58.920 his versatility lends itself. He can rush the passer, but 0:10:58.960 --> 0:11:03.240 he can also can drop back in coverage. And that's 0:11:03.280 --> 0:11:07.080 something that he'll continue to get better at. But a 0:11:07.280 --> 0:11:10.520 very popular word to describe Zach Ball and still at 0:11:10.520 --> 0:11:12.800 this stage of his football life, is that his first 0:11:12.840 --> 0:11:16.600 of all, I'm intrigued by his background. High school quarterback, 0:11:16.720 --> 0:11:19.280 offensive player of the Year in the state of Wisconsin, 0:11:19.400 --> 0:11:21.800 high school track star, and one hundred meters and two 0:11:21.920 --> 0:11:24.920 hundred meters. That's unusual for a guy that's six two, 0:11:24.960 --> 0:11:27.600 two hundred and forty pounds. Now, yeah, they've had this 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:31.480 interesting stretcher at Wisconsin for the last few years where 0:11:31.520 --> 0:11:34.960 a lot of their linebackers were high school quarterbacks. And 0:11:34.960 --> 0:11:37.880 it's that old line that you're the best player on 0:11:38.040 --> 0:11:40.600 your team at the high school level is likely a quarterback, 0:11:41.240 --> 0:11:44.079 or at least your top three players, one of them 0:11:44.120 --> 0:11:46.959 is going to be a quarterback. And Zach, it's fun 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:49.760 of himself a little bit. He said, he really quarterback 0:11:49.800 --> 0:11:51.560 in name only. He ran the ball a lot, but 0:11:51.600 --> 0:11:53.679 he threw it. He threw the ball around a little bit. 0:11:53.720 --> 0:11:56.439 I guess he would be the high school a little 0:11:56.440 --> 0:11:59.480 bit more of a dual threat quarterback, you would say. 0:11:59.520 --> 0:12:02.320 But there was no secret that his future as a 0:12:02.360 --> 0:12:05.839 college player would be that of an outside linebacker. And 0:12:06.120 --> 0:12:08.960 he you know, he missed twenty seventeen. He had a 0:12:08.960 --> 0:12:12.920 foot injury and that that wiped out his season. As 0:12:12.920 --> 0:12:16.320 I said in eighteen, certainly showed flashes, but I think 0:12:16.360 --> 0:12:19.200 going into last year they thought he could be a 0:12:19.320 --> 0:12:22.760 real important clog to this defense, and he was all 0:12:22.800 --> 0:12:25.320 of that and then some. But he is, no question, 0:12:25.480 --> 0:12:29.320 very athletically gifted. What's he like as a kid? Great guy, 0:12:29.679 --> 0:12:34.960 really really good kids. You mentioned a Wisconsin guy. He 0:12:35.080 --> 0:12:39.520 likes to keep things simple. There's a real popular tourist 0:12:39.600 --> 0:12:41.719 area in the northern part of the state and call 0:12:41.760 --> 0:12:44.520 it the north Woods. And for him, that's that's the 0:12:44.640 --> 0:12:47.640 slice of heaven. To go up into the north Woods 0:12:47.679 --> 0:12:51.360 and just to have a quiet, long weekend or stress 0:12:51.400 --> 0:12:56.000 of days, whatever the calendar allows him to have. It's 0:12:56.040 --> 0:12:59.920 always funny. And you know this from covering. You see 0:13:00.200 --> 0:13:02.640 that one of the great joys that we have are 0:13:02.640 --> 0:13:05.920 watching guys as freshman and then see what they become 0:13:05.960 --> 0:13:08.559 as juniors and seniors. And they grow as players, but 0:13:08.679 --> 0:13:12.360 they grow as people. To his very poison an interview setting, 0:13:13.240 --> 0:13:17.640 he makes you feel relaxed. He is that fit. He's 0:13:17.679 --> 0:13:20.640 just a really he's a really good young man and 0:13:20.679 --> 0:13:22.520 I think would be a really good gift for the 0:13:22.520 --> 0:13:26.280 team that takes it. I saw comparison to Joe Schobert. 0:13:26.640 --> 0:13:30.000 What do you think of that? Yeah, it's interesting because 0:13:30.120 --> 0:13:33.120 Joe too was he was something. He was a really 0:13:33.120 --> 0:13:36.560 good high school running back, put up some ridiculous numbers 0:13:37.440 --> 0:13:41.120 at the prep level here in Wisconsin. The difference was 0:13:41.240 --> 0:13:44.040 Joe was a walk on here and then became what 0:13:44.200 --> 0:13:47.640 he has become now in the NFL. I think there 0:13:47.679 --> 0:13:53.679 are some similarities born. You know, maybe on the surface 0:13:54.000 --> 0:13:56.640 is a little I was gonna say a little more athletic, 0:13:56.640 --> 0:13:59.120 but I'm not even sure. Joe Schobert's a really athletic guy, 0:13:59.200 --> 0:14:01.520 So I think it's fair. I think both of those guys. 0:14:02.640 --> 0:14:05.880 We've put out some pretty good linebackers who in Wisconsin, 0:14:06.000 --> 0:14:09.120 especially outside linebackers here in recent years. Joe is one 0:14:09.160 --> 0:14:10.920 of them, and I think zag Mart is on that 0:14:11.040 --> 0:14:17.480 same line up next alphabetically as USC offensive lineman Austin Jackson, 0:14:17.960 --> 0:14:22.760 projected this week by ESPN's Todd McShay as Cincinnati's first 0:14:22.760 --> 0:14:26.720 pick in the second round. USC has another player who 0:14:26.720 --> 0:14:29.280 has popped up on some mock drafts in that spot, 0:14:29.680 --> 0:14:33.840 wide receiver Michael Pittman. So I discussed both of those 0:14:33.840 --> 0:14:37.880 players with USC head coach Clay Hilton. Yeah, you know, 0:14:38.000 --> 0:14:40.760 Austin has been a three year starter force at USC. 0:14:41.480 --> 0:14:46.000 Tremendous athlete, has played left tackle the whole time. I 0:14:46.040 --> 0:14:48.720 think has a really really bright upside. You know, you're 0:14:48.720 --> 0:14:50.440 talking about a kid that was only with us for 0:14:50.560 --> 0:14:54.760 five semesters, if you can believe that, and so a 0:14:54.400 --> 0:14:58.440 young kid that is really coming into his zone. And 0:14:58.520 --> 0:15:00.400 I think he's going to be one of the guys 0:15:00.400 --> 0:15:02.400 that play in the league for a long long time. 0:15:03.640 --> 0:15:10.160 Extremely football instinctive, smart athletic. I've I've had the luxury 0:15:10.240 --> 0:15:13.520 of of and having the opportunity to be around a 0:15:13.600 --> 0:15:16.360 Tyrant Smith and Matt Khalil when I first got to 0:15:16.600 --> 0:15:20.600 USC ten years ago, and he fits that mold. He 0:15:20.640 --> 0:15:23.600 fits the mold of a first round draft pick offensive 0:15:23.640 --> 0:15:26.600 tackle that's going to have a tremendous quarter at this 0:15:26.760 --> 0:15:29.440 young point in his development. Is he better as a 0:15:29.480 --> 0:15:33.800 pass blocker or as a run blocker? I think he 0:15:33.960 --> 0:15:37.800 is exceptionally well. We were a passing team, and when 0:15:37.800 --> 0:15:41.320 you're talking about his ability to pass blocking, you know, 0:15:41.680 --> 0:15:45.040 in Graham Harrow's offense, that's that's a must. And to 0:15:45.120 --> 0:15:47.840 watch what he did, I think he has both attributes 0:15:48.160 --> 0:15:50.880 to be successful. But we know what the NFL is 0:15:50.880 --> 0:15:53.040 as well as you know what college football has become. 0:15:53.400 --> 0:15:55.680 You have to have guys that protect that trigger man 0:15:56.080 --> 0:15:58.640 and protect that quarterback. And that's what Austin did. A 0:15:58.640 --> 0:16:01.760 tremendous job for us. On the Bengal selected Jonah Williams 0:16:01.760 --> 0:16:05.960 out of Alabama last year, the first offensive lineman taken 0:16:06.040 --> 0:16:08.400 in the draft, so he has projected to be their 0:16:08.480 --> 0:16:11.960 left tackle. Can Austin move over easily and play the 0:16:12.080 --> 0:16:16.440 right side in your opinion? Yeah, without question. Um, you know, 0:16:16.720 --> 0:16:19.920 he's a I watched Tyrant when we first got here 0:16:19.960 --> 0:16:22.080 and he was a right tackle that moved to left. 0:16:22.120 --> 0:16:25.400 And I've seen Kaliko from left to right. Um. You know, 0:16:25.520 --> 0:16:30.240 he's naturally right handed, which which is a preference for 0:16:30.360 --> 0:16:33.400 right tackles, but as you know, has played the left 0:16:33.400 --> 0:16:35.960 tackle position. He's a guy that I think could do 0:16:36.080 --> 0:16:38.840 either one at the next level. What's he like as 0:16:38.840 --> 0:16:41.520 a kid, He's the captain he wants he's the guy 0:16:41.600 --> 0:16:45.360 that you look up to. Uh and uh. He was 0:16:45.400 --> 0:16:47.640 the example of what we wanted to Trojan to be. 0:16:47.920 --> 0:16:52.920 He was a tremendous student athlete here, leader amongst his team. 0:16:52.960 --> 0:16:57.200 Everybody respected the young man and a guy that I 0:16:57.240 --> 0:17:01.040 think has just tremendous subside as a person. Let's turn 0:17:01.080 --> 0:17:03.920 to wide receiver Michael Pittman one hundred and one catches 0:17:03.960 --> 0:17:07.600 for nearly thirteen hundred yards this year, eleven touchdown catches. 0:17:08.640 --> 0:17:12.480 A great receiver in a great wide receiver class. I 0:17:12.520 --> 0:17:16.960 think there's gonna be tremendous value in Michael's pick because 0:17:17.320 --> 0:17:20.480 I think he's a first round draft pick talent that 0:17:20.640 --> 0:17:23.720 because of how deep the receiver class is, somebody's going 0:17:23.800 --> 0:17:25.400 to get a lot of value here. You're talking about 0:17:25.400 --> 0:17:28.679 a kid that's six four plus of two twenty plus, 0:17:29.080 --> 0:17:32.840 ran four or five two forty plays even faster than 0:17:32.880 --> 0:17:36.000 he is, has the deep play capability to go over 0:17:36.080 --> 0:17:39.480 top of people. Was our big play guy on our 0:17:39.520 --> 0:17:43.440 offense last year, you know, twelve hundred yards and he 0:17:45.240 --> 0:17:48.040 reminds me a lot of the way we've had Robert 0:17:48.080 --> 0:17:52.240 Woods and Juju Smith, Schuster, Marquise Lee, those type of 0:17:52.320 --> 0:17:56.439 kids that really were defensive, played defensive side of the 0:17:56.440 --> 0:17:59.639 ball in high school and brought that defensive mentality to 0:17:59.680 --> 0:18:02.159 the offer. It's outside of the ball. No job was 0:18:02.200 --> 0:18:05.520 too small for him. Played on all four special teams 0:18:05.640 --> 0:18:09.800 during his time here. Just a great teammate and another 0:18:10.080 --> 0:18:14.800 a team captic force on our football team. Where does 0:18:14.840 --> 0:18:19.240 he fit best outside slot? Is he versatile to do 0:18:19.320 --> 0:18:22.639 all of it? Yeah? You know, within our offense, we 0:18:22.760 --> 0:18:25.840 moved Mike a round to you know, primarily he played 0:18:25.880 --> 0:18:29.240 about eighty percent of the time outside, but we did 0:18:29.359 --> 0:18:31.720 use slot formations with him to match him up on 0:18:31.800 --> 0:18:35.200 safeties to be able to create someone on one opportunities 0:18:35.400 --> 0:18:38.199 on maybe als or athlete. And so he has that 0:18:38.320 --> 0:18:42.800 experience at both positions. Naturally, being that big, I think 0:18:42.840 --> 0:18:46.960 people will look at him as an outside receiver first, 0:18:47.119 --> 0:18:50.320 but he has the ability to move around. He's learned 0:18:50.320 --> 0:18:54.520 conceptually rather than just learning maybe an ex orcy position. 0:18:54.960 --> 0:18:57.960 He knows he's learned the position like a quarterback does. 0:18:58.760 --> 0:19:02.160 And I think that's He's an extremely football smart kid 0:19:02.680 --> 0:19:07.480 that I think's got a huge upside going in playing 0:19:07.520 --> 0:19:10.320 on Sundays. I read somewhere that he only had five 0:19:10.440 --> 0:19:14.280 drops in his USC career, which speaks to his consistency 0:19:14.280 --> 0:19:17.960 and reliability. No, no question. You know you're talking about 0:19:17.960 --> 0:19:21.000 a kid that caught over a hundred ballsmares this year 0:19:21.160 --> 0:19:24.400 and he was just the model of consistency. This year 0:19:25.160 --> 0:19:27.920 really could have happened earlier for him in his career, 0:19:27.960 --> 0:19:30.639 but he was playing behind another really good receiver in 0:19:30.720 --> 0:19:35.520 Juju Smith Schuster, and when his time came this past year, 0:19:35.600 --> 0:19:37.560 he made the most of it. Tell us about Michael 0:19:37.560 --> 0:19:40.800 as a person, Mike is obviously, he was up for 0:19:40.840 --> 0:19:44.160 the Jason Wittman at the Year Award for his community 0:19:44.200 --> 0:19:49.760 service within our community, a graduate of our university, a 0:19:49.840 --> 0:19:54.200 team captain. You're talking about a guy that you don't 0:19:54.200 --> 0:19:57.919 get to coach too many. Michael Pittman's I cherished my 0:19:58.000 --> 0:20:02.000 time with Mike and as a person, as a student, 0:20:02.080 --> 0:20:05.720 as an athlete, He's a definition of what you want 0:20:05.760 --> 0:20:11.000 as a trojan. Another wide receiver is next, Baylor's Denzel Mims. 0:20:11.440 --> 0:20:14.440 Dane Brugler from The Athletic is among the draft experts 0:20:14.440 --> 0:20:17.440 who have predicted that Mims will be the pick at 0:20:17.480 --> 0:20:22.639 the top of round two. Here's Baylor radio voice John Morris. Yeah, Dan, 0:20:22.680 --> 0:20:24.200 it's gonna be on with you. Good to talk about 0:20:24.240 --> 0:20:27.720 Denzel and really hoping this turns out well for him, 0:20:27.760 --> 0:20:30.000 because I think he deserves it. He's had a great 0:20:30.040 --> 0:20:32.960 career here at Baylor, and I think he's ready to 0:20:32.960 --> 0:20:35.919 step up to the next level. He's a he's a 0:20:36.000 --> 0:20:39.359 really good guy, comes from East Texas, has that kind 0:20:39.359 --> 0:20:42.879 of small town mentality where you know he has to 0:20:42.960 --> 0:20:45.600 work hard. He works hard every day. But he had 0:20:45.640 --> 0:20:48.560 a great career here at Baylor, and he really you'll see, 0:20:49.080 --> 0:20:52.160 you know, when when you see him at the next level, 0:20:52.320 --> 0:20:54.959 you'll see he has a knack for making big plays 0:20:55.000 --> 0:20:57.320 at big times. And he did that a number of 0:20:57.320 --> 0:21:01.280 times for US here at Baylor. Six three two hundred 0:21:01.280 --> 0:21:03.879 and seven pounds, ran a four to three eight at 0:21:03.920 --> 0:21:07.199 the combine thirty eight and a half inch vertical. It 0:21:07.359 --> 0:21:11.400 sounds like he's a phenomenal athlete. He really is. And 0:21:11.560 --> 0:21:14.800 you know, I would I would describe him maybe as wiry, 0:21:15.000 --> 0:21:17.440 but when I think wiry, I think finn and he's 0:21:17.440 --> 0:21:20.159 not really finn. I mean he's a good size and 0:21:20.280 --> 0:21:23.680 with that high he's got great jumping ability. Also, I 0:21:23.800 --> 0:21:26.680 can remember a game we had here last year against 0:21:26.720 --> 0:21:31.000 Oklahoma State where he just out left the defensive back 0:21:31.080 --> 0:21:33.320 and made a catch for a game winning touchdown, you know, 0:21:33.440 --> 0:21:35.960 in the end, Zoe. So it's like, you know, how 0:21:36.040 --> 0:21:38.119 high can you jump? Well as high as he needs to, 0:21:38.760 --> 0:21:42.040 and we saw that on several occasions. I've read some 0:21:42.320 --> 0:21:46.359 reports about him that suggest he will make the unbelievable 0:21:46.480 --> 0:21:50.600 catch and then occasionally botch the easy one. Is that fair? 0:21:51.720 --> 0:21:54.920 You know? That probably is fair, But I think you 0:21:55.040 --> 0:21:59.119 just got to get him, you know, focused, and you know, 0:21:59.119 --> 0:22:02.359 knowing that each time he's targeted that he's got to 0:22:02.400 --> 0:22:05.639 make the most of it. During his career here at Baylor, 0:22:05.680 --> 0:22:07.359 he had to really, you know, to be honest, to 0:22:07.440 --> 0:22:10.800 disappointing junior year and a lot of that was missing 0:22:11.000 --> 0:22:13.840 balls that were thrown right at him, and he really 0:22:13.840 --> 0:22:16.639 worked on that, came back highly motivated to have a 0:22:16.680 --> 0:22:19.119 great senior year, and you could see that he was better, 0:22:19.359 --> 0:22:22.600