WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Gratitude 0:00:03.560 --> 0:00:07.080 Happy Thanksgiving everybody. I'm Dan Horde and thanks for downloading 0:00:07.080 --> 0:00:14.600 the Bengals Booth Podcast. The we just want to get gratitude. Yeah. Addition, 0:00:15.160 --> 0:00:17.760 that's an earth Wind and Fire song in case you're interested. 0:00:18.079 --> 0:00:21.040 As we take a quick break from football and gluttony 0:00:21.400 --> 0:00:24.160 to discuss the latest Bengals news and look ahead to 0:00:24.239 --> 0:00:28.120 Sunday's game against the Giants coming up, Dave Lapham joins 0:00:28.160 --> 0:00:31.600 me to discuss the rehab process for Joe Burrow and 0:00:31.840 --> 0:00:35.360 who will start in his place this week. My one 0:00:35.400 --> 0:00:38.479 on one player interview this week is with c ju Zama, 0:00:38.520 --> 0:00:41.240 who knows all about rehab after tearing his achilles in 0:00:41.280 --> 0:00:45.120 week two. He looks forward to pushing and being pushed 0:00:45.120 --> 0:00:48.560 by Joe Burrow in the months to come. And in 0:00:48.680 --> 0:00:51.320 our Know the Faux segment, we'll get the scoop on 0:00:51.400 --> 0:00:55.000 the three and seven Giants from Jordan Ranan, who covers 0:00:55.000 --> 0:00:59.720 the team for ESPN. The Bengals Booth Podcast is presented 0:01:00.120 --> 0:01:03.840 by Bud Light Seltzer. Refresh the game and here's a 0:01:03.920 --> 0:01:06.520 quick reminder that you can have the latest edition of 0:01:06.600 --> 0:01:10.120 this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, or computer 0:01:10.280 --> 0:01:14.679 by subscribing on iTunes. Stitch your Google Play, Spotify, or 0:01:14.800 --> 0:01:21.120 pod Bean. It's the greatest thing since essential and frontline workers. 0:01:21.800 --> 0:01:24.520 On a previous podcast, I mentioned that during the COVID 0:01:24.640 --> 0:01:27.959 nineteen pandemic, I've tried to keep two words in mind, 0:01:28.520 --> 0:01:34.240 careful and hopeful. And on this Thanksgiving I'm adding grateful 0:01:34.880 --> 0:01:37.320 to our everyday heroes who have been there for us 0:01:37.400 --> 0:01:42.360 during this crisis. Doctors, nurses and other healthcare workers, police, 0:01:42.720 --> 0:01:48.600 firefighters and other first responders, teachers, grocery store employees, delivery people, 0:01:48.760 --> 0:01:53.280 news broadcasters. The list goes on and on. Thank you, 0:01:53.760 --> 0:01:56.720 and here's hoping that the end of this pandemic is 0:01:56.760 --> 0:02:01.240 in sight. Now let's get to my key Day conversation 0:02:01.480 --> 0:02:06.400 with Dave Lapham lapter Ryan Finlay. Era might have been 0:02:07.000 --> 0:02:10.560 short lived. At eight am on Wednesday, Mike Gara Folo 0:02:10.680 --> 0:02:13.640 from the NFL Network broke the news that the Bengals 0:02:13.639 --> 0:02:17.120 starting quarterback on Sunday will be third stringer Brandon Allen 0:02:17.360 --> 0:02:20.880 instead of Ryan Finley. Dak Taylor would not confirm that 0:02:20.919 --> 0:02:23.120 when asked about it on Wednesday, but in any case, 0:02:23.400 --> 0:02:25.959 Brandon Allen just brought it from the practice squad where 0:02:26.000 --> 0:02:28.200 he has been all year. He started three games for 0:02:28.320 --> 0:02:31.200 Denver last year, winning one with a passer rating of 0:02:31.240 --> 0:02:35.200 sixty eight point three. He's had very few practice reps 0:02:35.240 --> 0:02:37.239 this year, but he was with the Rams in two 0:02:37.600 --> 0:02:41.440 seventeen and two eighteen, so he knows Zach Taylor's offense. 0:02:41.840 --> 0:02:45.800 Here's offensive coordinator Brian Callahan. Part of the reason we 0:02:45.840 --> 0:02:53.600 signed Brandon is because he's he's got some familiarity. He's played. 0:02:54.080 --> 0:02:56.040 I played two games in Denver last year for three 0:02:56.120 --> 0:02:58.680 games stretching and won one of them. Hein't been out 0:02:58.720 --> 0:03:00.280 for a little bit. He's got a good way about it, 0:03:00.440 --> 0:03:04.280 and so he really was, you know, kind of our 0:03:04.840 --> 0:03:06.920 COVID quarterback in the stantus with the guy that we 0:03:06.919 --> 0:03:08.560 had to kind of have in the building and keep 0:03:08.880 --> 0:03:12.200 keep bringing along to start. And he's done a really 0:03:12.280 --> 0:03:14.560 nice job for what everything he's been asked to do. 0:03:14.919 --> 0:03:17.639 But yeah, I mean he's even the same boat, really 0:03:17.680 --> 0:03:19.080 is Ryan, though. I mean, either one of them got 0:03:19.120 --> 0:03:21.160 a ton of reps as a season has gone along, 0:03:21.720 --> 0:03:24.520 and that's just the nature of being a back of quarterback. 0:03:24.800 --> 0:03:27.440 If Brandon Allen is in fact the starter on Sunday, 0:03:27.480 --> 0:03:29.600 what do you think that means. I think it means 0:03:29.600 --> 0:03:32.480 that the coaches have you know, a strong comfort level 0:03:32.480 --> 0:03:36.920 with him. Zach Taylor has some experience with him. Brian 0:03:37.000 --> 0:03:41.000 Callahan knows him, likes him, likes his approach. And that's 0:03:41.000 --> 0:03:44.520 about as big as anything I think is which which 0:03:44.520 --> 0:03:47.040 guy do you think the team is going to rally 0:03:47.080 --> 0:03:50.880 around most? Which guy has the more it factor in 0:03:50.960 --> 0:03:54.880 his personality that is going to lift everybody and make 0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:57.360 everybody player play to a higher level. I think I 0:03:57.360 --> 0:04:01.880 think those are all considerations, and those three starts in Denver. 0:04:02.200 --> 0:04:05.840 He beat the Cleveland Browns twenty six to ten. Minnesota's 0:04:05.920 --> 0:04:08.160 up by four points. He takes on a drive late 0:04:08.200 --> 0:04:11.000 in the football game, a back shoulder passed to his 0:04:11.080 --> 0:04:13.680 tight end, goes off to tight ends face mask. I 0:04:13.720 --> 0:04:16.120 should have won that football game. And then they went 0:04:16.160 --> 0:04:19.120 to Buffalo and as you know, Dan, Buffalo with that crowd, 0:04:20.040 --> 0:04:21.960 that's a tough place to play, didn't win that one, 0:04:22.000 --> 0:04:24.640 but one and two should have gone and could have 0:04:24.720 --> 0:04:28.960 gone two and one. So move the football had some success, 0:04:29.480 --> 0:04:32.760 and I think the feeling is that he understands the 0:04:32.839 --> 0:04:36.160 offense and understands what defenses are trying to do to 0:04:36.560 --> 0:04:39.719 take away his offense. Maybe at a little bit higher level. 0:04:39.720 --> 0:04:42.599 Than Ryan Finley. Right now, some people are making a 0:04:42.640 --> 0:04:44.479 big deal out of the fact that he's on the 0:04:44.520 --> 0:04:48.039 practice squad, and Ryan Finley was on the roster this year. 0:04:48.080 --> 0:04:52.240 That is virtually insignificant because the rules have changed to 0:04:52.279 --> 0:04:55.760 allow you to bring up practice squad guys every week. Anyway, 0:04:55.960 --> 0:04:58.960 it might have simply been a matter of the Bengals saying, hey, 0:04:59.040 --> 0:05:04.120 we think other NFL teams are more likely to try 0:05:04.120 --> 0:05:07.200 to take away Ryan Finley if they had a high 0:05:07.240 --> 0:05:09.840 draft grade on him last year, if he were on 0:05:09.880 --> 0:05:12.920 the practice squad, then they are likely to take away 0:05:12.920 --> 0:05:15.640 Brandon Ellen. I agree with you, Dan, and look at 0:05:16.640 --> 0:05:18.680 look at the guy that's come off the practice squad 0:05:18.680 --> 0:05:20.760 in their last three games. That's given them a boosting 0:05:20.760 --> 0:05:23.560 their offensive line. Spain. You know, as you said, the 0:05:23.640 --> 0:05:26.760 rules and everything are so different this season. He lines 0:05:26.839 --> 0:05:29.360 up a left guard against Tennessee. They win the football game, 0:05:29.720 --> 0:05:31.839 they don't give up his tack, they don't turn the 0:05:31.839 --> 0:05:35.720 football over. And he goes against the Pittsburgh Steelers at 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:38.920 right tackle. It quits himself very well. And then last week, 0:05:38.960 --> 0:05:41.120 of course, against Washington, he goes and plays the right 0:05:41.160 --> 0:05:43.960 guard position, you know very well. So where would they 0:05:44.000 --> 0:05:46.600 be without Quentin Spain, you know. And he's been coming 0:05:46.600 --> 0:05:49.760 off the practice squad for for three games and now 0:05:49.800 --> 0:05:53.040 they've activated them to the to the roster. But that's 0:05:53.080 --> 0:05:55.839 another good example of this year is different. There's no 0:05:55.920 --> 0:05:57.920 question about it. Twenty twenty is different and every way 0:05:57.920 --> 0:06:00.280 it can be. I want to get back to quintin 0:06:00.360 --> 0:06:02.160 Spain and just a little bit, but first I want 0:06:02.200 --> 0:06:05.240 to talk about Joe Burrow. The loss of Joe was 0:06:05.279 --> 0:06:08.520 obviously a gut punch to everybody in the organization. He 0:06:08.640 --> 0:06:11.000 is expected to make a full recovery and return to 0:06:11.040 --> 0:06:14.159 action next year, although it might not be in time 0:06:14.160 --> 0:06:17.200 for Week one. He's been at the stadium this week 0:06:17.360 --> 0:06:20.760 in typical Joe Burrow fashion. He's been lifting the spirits 0:06:20.760 --> 0:06:23.720 of his teammates instead of the other way around. C 0:06:23.960 --> 0:06:27.520 j Uzama Torres Achilles back in Week two, so he 0:06:27.640 --> 0:06:31.239 is likely to rehab went Burrow in the offseason. Listen 0:06:31.320 --> 0:06:34.720 to what he had to say about seeing Burrow in 0:06:34.760 --> 0:06:37.640 the training room today. I saw him in there and 0:06:38.680 --> 0:06:43.080 he seems high spirited, and he was asking a bunch 0:06:43.120 --> 0:06:45.000 of questions about like hey, can I do this? Hey 0:06:45.000 --> 0:06:47.000 can I do this? He can if I try to 0:06:47.040 --> 0:06:50.600 flex this right now? Is that? Can I? Is that okay? 0:06:51.360 --> 0:06:55.360 The trainer Nick was like yes, Like does that not hurt? 0:06:55.400 --> 0:06:57.560 And he's like, no, fels it feels a lot better 0:06:57.560 --> 0:07:00.440 already today. And I was doing the rest of my 0:07:00.440 --> 0:07:02.480 rehab and finishing up and Nick came, you know, to 0:07:02.640 --> 0:07:04.360 to help me out, and he was like that guy 0:07:04.360 --> 0:07:07.320 as a beast, Like that's insane that he's his pain 0:07:07.360 --> 0:07:11.680 tients has to be ridiculous for that. UM. So hearing that, 0:07:11.800 --> 0:07:14.440 you know itself, I'm like, yo, hold up, let's crank 0:07:14.520 --> 0:07:16.720 up my my rehab real quick. Man, Like come on, like, 0:07:16.760 --> 0:07:19.040 what are we doing here? I don't feel anything either, 0:07:19.080 --> 0:07:21.800 come on, push me a little harder. UM. But no, 0:07:21.880 --> 0:07:23.920 I think I think it'll be. I think it's good. 0:07:24.040 --> 0:07:27.360 You know, obviously traveling restrictions, I'm gonna be pretty much 0:07:27.560 --> 0:07:30.600 planned here, um throughout the entire off season, which I'm 0:07:30.600 --> 0:07:34.400 fine with. UM. And now, yeah, that's another kind of 0:07:34.600 --> 0:07:38.120 person I can, you know, work out with train with UM. 0:07:38.120 --> 0:07:40.200 I have my quarterback here, so when he's on his feet, 0:07:40.520 --> 0:07:42.640 you know, I'm gonna say, hey, you got it's time 0:07:42.720 --> 0:07:44.840 to throw a buddy, like let's let's go. And and 0:07:45.000 --> 0:07:47.120 I know he's gonna be as eager to get back 0:07:47.120 --> 0:07:50.119 out there. So yeah, I think, you know it's that's 0:07:50.160 --> 0:07:54.800 the probably the only positive of of of of his injuries. 0:07:54.880 --> 0:07:56.760 You know, I get to rehab with with you know, 0:07:57.120 --> 0:08:00.360 with my guy Lap, we are doctors. But I have 0:08:00.440 --> 0:08:03.400 no doubt that Burrow is going to attack rehab as 0:08:03.480 --> 0:08:07.520 much as humanly possible and be back as soon as possible. 0:08:07.880 --> 0:08:11.040 I agree with you. I did see CJ going into 0:08:11.480 --> 0:08:14.880 his rehab Tuesday morning before he walked in there into 0:08:14.920 --> 0:08:18.120 the locker room, and and he was walking well then, 0:08:18.320 --> 0:08:20.440 and he told me he's a good week two weeks 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:23.840 ahead of schedule as of right now, So that could 0:08:23.880 --> 0:08:26.520 continue to progress in a positive way, and to have 0:08:26.960 --> 0:08:31.080 a rehab partner is significant. And I do think you're right. 0:08:31.120 --> 0:08:34.360 I think Joe Burrow not only a five star recruit, 0:08:34.400 --> 0:08:36.240 but a five star rehab guy. He's gonna be one 0:08:36.280 --> 0:08:39.319 of those guys that attacks it and the thing that 0:08:39.360 --> 0:08:41.720 you're gonna have to be careful of with him sometimes 0:08:41.720 --> 0:08:44.480 you can do too much, So there's that balancing act. 0:08:44.800 --> 0:08:46.559 They're not gonna have to light a firecrack or a 0:08:46.600 --> 0:08:48.400 cherry bomban to Joe Burrow to get him to work. 0:08:48.400 --> 0:08:50.000 They're gonna have to put a harness on him to 0:08:50.000 --> 0:08:52.000 pull him back, I think a little bit to make 0:08:52.040 --> 0:08:54.319 sure that he doesn't overdo it, particularly in the early 0:08:54.400 --> 0:08:57.600 stages and have a setback. That's the worst word you 0:08:57.600 --> 0:09:00.640 can hear during a rehab process. As all he experienced 0:09:00.640 --> 0:09:03.360 a setback. I don't want to hear that. So there 0:09:03.440 --> 0:09:06.800 is there is a point of diminishing returns, and I 0:09:06.880 --> 0:09:09.600 think he's smart enough to understand that and figure it out. 0:09:09.679 --> 0:09:12.520 But I agree with you. I think I think, if anything, 0:09:12.920 --> 0:09:14.920 he's going to come back early, and he's going to 0:09:15.000 --> 0:09:19.320 come back ready. And you can't compare injuries, but Carson 0:09:19.360 --> 0:09:21.840 Palmer toward the a c L MCL and dislocated as 0:09:21.880 --> 0:09:24.840 patella and he did it in January in a playoff game, 0:09:25.320 --> 0:09:29.240 and he played in the third preseason game. That following 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:32.760 preseason in August, he played in the Pro Bowl and 0:09:32.880 --> 0:09:35.640 one MVP. So you know, if that's a good If 0:09:35.679 --> 0:09:38.800 that's a barometer, Joe Barrow should be in pretty good shape. 0:09:38.840 --> 0:09:41.080 The thing about it, too, Dan, is he's young, He's 0:09:41.120 --> 0:09:45.079 in tremendous condition, so the healing process should be pretty 0:09:45.160 --> 0:09:49.200 darn strong. Another comparison is Houston quarterback to Sean Watson. 0:09:49.280 --> 0:09:52.480 He tore his acl almost at the exact same point 0:09:52.520 --> 0:09:55.280 in his rookie year November of his rookie year. He 0:09:55.360 --> 0:09:57.440 was back in time to start the season opener the 0:09:57.480 --> 0:09:59.560 next season and went to the Pro Bowl that year 0:10:00.000 --> 0:10:02.400 and the following year. I just want to say, you know, 0:10:02.440 --> 0:10:05.760 prayers out the Joe Joe Burrow and his family and 0:10:05.760 --> 0:10:08.680 and just him and his team. Uh, Cincinnati being was 0:10:08.760 --> 0:10:11.000 I mean, that's just a tough situation. I watched the 0:10:11.080 --> 0:10:14.400 play and it was just fast emotion and you know 0:10:14.520 --> 0:10:16.960 that just kind of pitched things in perspective where you 0:10:16.960 --> 0:10:20.080 know it can be any play. Um, so you just 0:10:20.080 --> 0:10:22.400 gotta be grateful for the position. But you know, some 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:24.400 of my best wishes and prayers out to him and 0:10:24.440 --> 0:10:26.520 his family and if he got any questions. You know, 0:10:26.520 --> 0:10:28.720 I dealt with the same thing my rookie year around 0:10:28.920 --> 0:10:32.600 similar time, UM, you know, kind of November ish. Um. 0:10:32.640 --> 0:10:34.000 You know, he can always reach out to me and 0:10:34.040 --> 0:10:36.280 I can reach out to him. So yeah, prayers out 0:10:36.280 --> 0:10:40.240 to him. Uh, you know, hopefully speedy recovery. But I 0:10:40.280 --> 0:10:42.000 would just say, you know, when I came back, it 0:10:42.080 --> 0:10:43.960 was just definitely making sure that I was, you know, 0:10:44.120 --> 0:10:48.000 a UM and I was really really comfortable, especially at 0:10:48.040 --> 0:10:51.240 this level where everything is flying around. UM. But you know, 0:10:51.280 --> 0:10:52.880 once you're out there, you just gotta play. You just 0:10:52.880 --> 0:10:54.960 gotta play fourth throttle. You know, that's the that's the 0:10:55.040 --> 0:10:57.240 part of the game. You kind of know what situation 0:10:57.320 --> 0:10:59.400 is going to happen and um, you know, for me, 0:10:59.480 --> 0:11:01.800 where my situation when I did it in practice, I 0:11:01.800 --> 0:11:03.320 didn't know it was gonna happen, and it happened. And 0:11:03.360 --> 0:11:05.240 when I came back, I was still you know, I 0:11:05.240 --> 0:11:07.400 would kind of started off, you know, let's sake you. 0:11:07.480 --> 0:11:09.320 But once out there, the first couple of plays, you know, 0:11:09.360 --> 0:11:10.920 I was just like, hey, I gotta cut it loose. 0:11:10.960 --> 0:11:13.319 It's not then I'm gonna you know, I'm gonna be 0:11:13.320 --> 0:11:15.240 a bard in for the team and then for myself too. 0:11:15.240 --> 0:11:17.800 I'm gonna be able to play, you know, my full potential. 0:11:18.040 --> 0:11:21.440 What does Joe Burrow lose from missing the last six 0:11:21.520 --> 0:11:25.720 games of this season and the offseason program, Yeah, obviously 0:11:25.840 --> 0:11:29.320 loses those those reps. And I was excited to see 0:11:29.360 --> 0:11:33.920 the rematch against Pittsburgh in Baltimore because Joe Burrow always 0:11:34.200 --> 0:11:37.800 learns from his mistakes. He doesn't make the same mistake twice. 0:11:38.080 --> 0:11:40.760 I think that's a big thing that has has put 0:11:40.840 --> 0:11:44.200 him on a straight up, up, up arrow in terms 0:11:44.240 --> 0:11:48.080 of his career. Is he is a he's a quick learner, 0:11:48.120 --> 0:11:51.040 a quick study, and it doesn't fall into any bad 0:11:51.080 --> 0:11:53.600 habits and make make mistakes over and over and over again. 0:11:54.000 --> 0:11:56.920 So he was disappointed in his performance after both of 0:11:56.920 --> 0:11:59.800 those football games. And you know how much of a 0:12:00.040 --> 0:12:03.160 hindery is. He's probably gonna grind even more before those 0:12:03.160 --> 0:12:05.640 football games. And I was looking forward to the to 0:12:05.679 --> 0:12:09.000 the rematches both you know, in Cincinnati, one of them 0:12:09.040 --> 0:12:11.160 on Monday night, one of them to finish the season 0:12:11.640 --> 0:12:14.480 and see how far he has progressed. So I think 0:12:14.520 --> 0:12:16.719 that's a little bit of a disappointment. I'm sure it's 0:12:16.720 --> 0:12:19.120 a disappointment to him. And then all the reps, I mean, 0:12:19.160 --> 0:12:22.160 every rep that you accumulate is a positive, you know, 0:12:22.280 --> 0:12:24.680 in your rookie year. Now he did get ten ten 0:12:24.720 --> 0:12:27.040 games or reps in, there's no question. And he got 0:12:27.040 --> 0:12:30.160 those ten games or reps in in the crazy year 0:12:30.160 --> 0:12:33.679 of twenty twenty, whether we're no OTAs, no mini camps, 0:12:33.720 --> 0:12:36.160 all those kind of things, which he'll miss probably this 0:12:36.280 --> 0:12:39.040 year as well, coming up, so he's at least got 0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:41.679 a track record showing I can't perform at a high 0:12:41.760 --> 0:12:44.200 level without that. But it would have been good for 0:12:44.280 --> 0:12:48.040 him to have an offseason of you know, working with 0:12:48.080 --> 0:12:53.880 his teammates, Mini camps, OTA's training camp, preseason games. How 0:12:53.960 --> 0:12:56.760 much of that will he be able to experience. That's 0:12:57.080 --> 0:12:59.560 that's the big question. That's the that's the million dollar 0:12:59.679 --> 0:13:03.840 question right now. But he has shown that he can 0:13:03.880 --> 0:13:08.040 perform extremely well even void of all that. It hurts 0:13:08.040 --> 0:13:10.440 the receiving corps too, right, they won't have all those 0:13:10.480 --> 0:13:14.079 offseason reps to work on timing, no doubt about it. 0:13:13.679 --> 0:13:17.160 It's it's you know, guys like Tylert Boyd, you know, 0:13:17.240 --> 0:13:20.559 and others Tee Hagens. I mean, they've found a nice 0:13:20.600 --> 0:13:24.120 little rhythm and with Joe Burrow, but you can always 0:13:24.120 --> 0:13:26.840 improve on it. And then other receivers that are just 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:29.480 in the infancy stages of that, it will hurt them, 0:13:29.559 --> 0:13:33.080 there's no doubt in And so how much will it 0:13:33.160 --> 0:13:36.040 retard the development of Joe Burrow? I think he is 0:13:36.080 --> 0:13:41.760 so special in so many areas that it will be hurtful, 0:13:42.280 --> 0:13:48.800 but not absolutely devastating in terms of his development. People 0:13:48.840 --> 0:13:52.199 have been playing the blame game since Joe's injury. Some 0:13:52.320 --> 0:13:55.319 say the Bengals should have played a veteran quarterback early 0:13:55.400 --> 0:13:58.720 this year behind a shaky offensive line. Others say they 0:13:58.720 --> 0:14:02.040 shouldn't have passed so much. The most common criticism is 0:14:02.040 --> 0:14:05.480 that the Bengals have neglected their offensive line for too long. 0:14:05.520 --> 0:14:08.720 And that's what I want to discuss because the biggest problem, 0:14:08.920 --> 0:14:11.640 at least in my view, that has hampered this franchise 0:14:11.760 --> 0:14:14.440 isn't that they've neglected the offensive line. It's that there 0:14:14.440 --> 0:14:17.840 are many attempts to fix it have not worked out. 0:14:18.080 --> 0:14:21.160 Three of their five number one draft picks before Joe 0:14:21.200 --> 0:14:24.800 Burrow were offensive lineman Cedrico boy Heat, Billy Price, and 0:14:24.880 --> 0:14:27.640 Jonah Williams. Only one of those guys is starting right now. 0:14:28.040 --> 0:14:31.400 They traded for Cordy Glenn, which was the equivalent of 0:14:31.480 --> 0:14:34.800 signing an expensive free agent. He had three years left 0:14:34.840 --> 0:14:37.640 on his huge deal. This would have been the final 0:14:37.720 --> 0:14:40.360 year of that, but he's out of the NFL. They 0:14:40.400 --> 0:14:43.480 signed Xavier Suaphilo prior to this season. He got injured 0:14:43.480 --> 0:14:47.080 in Week one, So not only has the line continued 0:14:47.120 --> 0:14:51.480 to struggle, but other positions have suffered because they've used 0:14:51.600 --> 0:14:55.600 high draft picks on the old line that haven't necessarily 0:14:56.080 --> 0:14:59.560 panned out. So I guess the bottom line is they've 0:14:59.560 --> 0:15:02.440 got to do a deep dive into what's gone wrong 0:15:03.080 --> 0:15:08.040 and how to fix it going forward. Agreed with every 0:15:08.080 --> 0:15:13.240 single word of your analysis there. When the Bengals went 0:15:13.240 --> 0:15:18.040 to five straight playoffs club record, they hit it in 0:15:18.080 --> 0:15:21.640 the draft pick after pick after pick, you know, not 0:15:21.720 --> 0:15:25.400 just first round, but but all rounds, multiple rounds. But 0:15:25.440 --> 0:15:27.760 when you miss in that first rounder, like they have 0:15:28.240 --> 0:15:31.960 the ones you've described, when you miss on those, it's painful. 0:15:32.320 --> 0:15:35.760 There's a huge ripple effect, and there's ripple effect for years, 0:15:36.320 --> 0:15:39.440 not just that draft year, but if it doesn't pan out, 0:15:39.840 --> 0:15:42.480 you know, and a lot of times first round, first 0:15:42.560 --> 0:15:46.120 round picks don't really perform up to what you'd expect 0:15:46.200 --> 0:15:48.880 in the first year. By year two or three, there 0:15:48.880 --> 0:15:51.840 are an integral part of the football team and that 0:15:52.720 --> 0:15:55.040 is gone. That hasn't happened with a lot of these guys. 0:15:55.480 --> 0:15:58.480 So the ripple effect is like you said, like you say, 0:15:58.840 --> 0:16:01.920 not only did the position that those guys were drafted 0:16:01.920 --> 0:16:07.440 in either stay flat or decline because of the ineffectiveness 0:16:07.480 --> 0:16:10.400 of the play of that pick, but other positions that 0:16:10.520 --> 0:16:14.360 you could have made a pick at aren't improved either. 0:16:14.880 --> 0:16:17.760 So when you missed with a pick that high, the 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:21.200 ripple effect is tremendous, and it's tremendous for a number 0:16:21.240 --> 0:16:23.480 of years. And I think that's what the Bengals are 0:16:23.480 --> 0:16:27.200 still trying to steady themselves from at this point in time. 0:16:27.600 --> 0:16:32.240 And yeah, whatever, whatever the process is, you need to 0:16:32.240 --> 0:16:35.720 take it apart, examine every portion of it, reassemble it, 0:16:35.800 --> 0:16:38.600 and go from there. So they're likely to have a 0:16:38.640 --> 0:16:41.440 really high pick in the draft. Right now, they're number 0:16:41.480 --> 0:16:44.360 three in the draft order. We keep going back and 0:16:44.480 --> 0:16:46.760 forth in recent weeks when we've discussed this, do you 0:16:46.840 --> 0:16:48.760 need a pass rush you're a defensive lineman. Do you 0:16:48.840 --> 0:16:52.800 need an offensive lineman? In light of the Joe Burrow injury? 0:16:53.160 --> 0:16:56.760 Do you think best offensive lineman on the board now 0:16:56.800 --> 0:16:59.880 becomes the most likely scenario. I think if the best 0:17:00.040 --> 0:17:02.040 offensive lineman on the board is better than the best 0:17:02.040 --> 0:17:04.760 pass rusher on the board, boom, make it right that 0:17:05.119 --> 0:17:08.160 you make that pick, because I do think they're equally. 0:17:08.840 --> 0:17:13.720 You know, the needs are astronomical in both areas. So 0:17:14.520 --> 0:17:17.360 I think you know, if the if the tackle from Oregon, 0:17:17.480 --> 0:17:20.600 for example, is better than whoever they've got as the 0:17:20.640 --> 0:17:23.560 best pass rusher on their board. At the third pick 0:17:23.560 --> 0:17:25.960 of the draft, you go with this six foot six 0:17:26.080 --> 0:17:30.159 in strand and forty pound behemoth that's athletic, and you 0:17:30.200 --> 0:17:33.720 know they project to be a superhero and and everything 0:17:33.760 --> 0:17:36.840 that goes along with it. So yeah, I would have 0:17:36.880 --> 0:17:40.440 no problem if they went with offensive. If they had 0:17:40.440 --> 0:17:42.439 the third pick in the draft and they went in 0:17:42.440 --> 0:17:46.199 that direction, I'd have no issue with it whatsoever. I 0:17:46.240 --> 0:17:48.520 want to get back to Clinton Spain, who you brought 0:17:48.640 --> 0:17:51.800 up earlier, because that's really the one offensive line move 0:17:52.240 --> 0:17:55.960 in recent months that's worked out extremely well. He's twenty 0:17:56.000 --> 0:17:58.520 nine years old. He was a free agent in October 0:17:58.560 --> 0:18:02.360 after being let go by buff Back in twenty sixteen, 0:18:02.440 --> 0:18:05.280 Pro Football Focus had him ranked as the number five 0:18:05.400 --> 0:18:09.200 guard overall in the NFL. His rankings have never been 0:18:09.240 --> 0:18:12.520 that high in his other seasons. But do you think 0:18:12.560 --> 0:18:16.560 they found a starting guard, a good starting guard that's 0:18:16.560 --> 0:18:19.120 going to be here for a few years. I think 0:18:19.240 --> 0:18:21.720 I think they've they've found something for sure. Dan. I 0:18:21.760 --> 0:18:25.159 mean he came into the league. He calls himself, you know, 0:18:25.359 --> 0:18:28.760 mister undrafted, because he entered the drafting he would be 0:18:28.800 --> 0:18:30.840 a very high pick, maybe even a first round pick, 0:18:31.119 --> 0:18:34.440 and went undrafted. So he had a chip on his 0:18:34.480 --> 0:18:37.760 shoulder as big as a two by four massive chip, 0:18:38.320 --> 0:18:41.159 and he's used it to his advantage. And I like 0:18:41.280 --> 0:18:44.679 everything about the guy. I mean, he's massive, you know, 0:18:44.800 --> 0:18:47.520 six five, three hundred and thirty pounds plus depending on 0:18:47.560 --> 0:18:50.440 what he has for pregame meal. And he's one of 0:18:50.480 --> 0:18:53.280 those guys that has an edge to him. You know, 0:18:53.320 --> 0:18:56.040 he's got that that streak about him where you have 0:18:56.080 --> 0:18:58.879 to he's you know, he's probably a heck of a 0:18:58.880 --> 0:19:01.080 guy off the football field, but on the football field, 0:19:01.080 --> 0:19:02.399 and I'm aware of what you have to do. You 0:19:02.400 --> 0:19:04.480 have to flip the switch and you have to become 0:19:04.520 --> 0:19:06.720 somebody that you can't be walking the streets, you know. 0:19:06.800 --> 0:19:08.359 I mean, it's a that's the way you have to 0:19:08.359 --> 0:19:11.320 play the game, and he plays it that way. The 0:19:11.359 --> 0:19:14.520 other thing about him is not just his mindset and 0:19:14.560 --> 0:19:16.720 his physicality in the edge that he brings to the 0:19:16.720 --> 0:19:20.200 football team, the toughness he is unbelievably football to wear. 0:19:20.680 --> 0:19:23.640 He sees the big picture. He's not a tunnel vision guy. 0:19:23.680 --> 0:19:26.280 It's not like, Okay, well they have me playing left 0:19:26.280 --> 0:19:30.240 guard against Tennessee, so I'm going to just understand that 0:19:30.359 --> 0:19:33.800 left guard. He sees the entire defense. He understands how 0:19:33.800 --> 0:19:36.800 the offense is trying to attack it with blocking schemes 0:19:36.840 --> 0:19:41.040 up front, and he just if he pulls, he knows 0:19:41.080 --> 0:19:43.879 the center is blocking back, the tackles blocking down, the 0:19:44.560 --> 0:19:47.560 back is feeling. He knows what's going on. If he pulls, 0:19:48.160 --> 0:19:50.000 you know, it's not just I'm gonna pull. I'm gonna 0:19:50.040 --> 0:19:52.280 hit this guy. What else is happening when I pull? 0:19:52.320 --> 0:19:55.240 Who's got my guy? If this guy that I'm supposed 0:19:55.240 --> 0:19:57.879 to block stunts, who else do I get? I mean, 0:19:57.920 --> 0:20:01.880 he gets football. He is fall aware, and I think 0:20:01.960 --> 0:20:05.840 that Dad has allowed him to play left guard, right tackle, 0:20:06.000 --> 0:20:09.119 and right guard in his three games with the Cincinnati 0:20:09.160 --> 0:20:12.000 Bengals to date. He is one of the big picture guys. 0:20:12.160 --> 0:20:15.560 And to boot, he can play. So he gives your 0:20:15.560 --> 0:20:22.320 position versatility and that's tremendously valuable. Instead of carrying eight 0:20:22.400 --> 0:20:25.399 offensive line with Quentin Spain, you can carry seven, instead 0:20:25.400 --> 0:20:27.240 of carrying nine, you can carry eight. I mean, it 0:20:27.359 --> 0:20:30.760 just gives you that that dimension where he's shown he 0:20:30.760 --> 0:20:33.639 can play both guards in both tackles. I don't know 0:20:33.640 --> 0:20:35.920 about center, but he's shown he can play the guarden 0:20:35.960 --> 0:20:39.800 tackle position on either side. For most of his NFL career, 0:20:39.840 --> 0:20:42.480 he's been a left guard. That's obviously the spot that 0:20:42.520 --> 0:20:45.400 Michael Jordan is playing in Cincinnati and the Bengals had 0:20:45.480 --> 0:20:48.240 high hopes that Michael would take a big step forward 0:20:48.280 --> 0:20:50.040 this year in his second year in the NFL and 0:20:50.080 --> 0:20:53.080 eventually be a really good guard. Where do you see 0:20:53.160 --> 0:20:57.639 him at this stage of his development? Unfortunately, still a 0:20:57.640 --> 0:21:00.800 little too inconsistent. You know, you can tape where it's 0:21:00.840 --> 0:21:03.800 like WHOA. I mean, he did some things against the 0:21:03.800 --> 0:21:07.439 Indianapolis Colts. He had a much better day against Cameron 0:21:07.480 --> 0:21:09.919 Hayward this year. Even though it didn't go well for 0:21:09.960 --> 0:21:13.280 the team, his individual matchup was light years better than 0:21:13.280 --> 0:21:16.000 it was his rookie year where he was just decimated 0:21:16.480 --> 0:21:19.520 by Cam Hayward and it basically got him benched. You know, 0:21:19.640 --> 0:21:21.919