WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Welcome Back 0:00:03.600 --> 0:00:06.400 Hike and everybody on Dan Horde and this is the 0:00:06.440 --> 0:00:14.480 Bengals Booth podcast. The Welcome Back, Welcome Back, Welcome Back addition, 0:00:15.000 --> 0:00:17.600 as the Bengals return from their bye weekend to host 0:00:17.640 --> 0:00:21.400 the first Place Baltimore Ravens. In case you didn't recognize 0:00:21.440 --> 0:00:23.960 the tune, it was part of the theme song from 0:00:23.960 --> 0:00:28.520 the nineteen seventies TV show Welcome Back, Cotter, Good Lord, 0:00:28.600 --> 0:00:31.840 I'm Old Coming Up. I'll be joined by my broadcast 0:00:31.880 --> 0:00:35.040 partner Dave Lapham as well discussed the challenge Ryan Finley 0:00:35.040 --> 0:00:38.720 will face in his first NFL start. A Ravens quarterback 0:00:38.800 --> 0:00:42.280 Lamar Jackson is changing the NFL, and Lapp will share 0:00:42.320 --> 0:00:46.159 some great stories about his friend and former teammate Jim Leclair, 0:00:46.240 --> 0:00:49.400 who passed away this week at the age of sixty nine. 0:00:49.960 --> 0:00:53.280 A locker room conversation is with wide receiver Alex Ericson. 0:00:53.520 --> 0:00:57.160 He'll share his impressions of his new starting quarterback, what 0:00:57.360 --> 0:01:00.960 aj Green's return will mean to the team whenever that happens, 0:01:01.400 --> 0:01:04.039 and I'll ask Alex if he should be the guy 0:01:04.560 --> 0:01:08.399 pretending to be Lamar Jackson at practice this week. And 0:01:08.560 --> 0:01:10.600 in this week's Know the Faux segment, we'll get the 0:01:10.640 --> 0:01:15.400 lowdown on the Ravens from Baltimore reporter Luke Jones. All 0:01:15.400 --> 0:01:17.479 of that is straight ahead, but first, here's a quick 0:01:17.480 --> 0:01:19.880 reminder that you can have the latest edition of this 0:01:19.920 --> 0:01:23.679 podcast delivered write to your phone, tablet, or computer by 0:01:23.720 --> 0:01:28.679 subscribing on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or pod Bean. 0:01:29.160 --> 0:01:34.399 It's the greatest thing since The Office. I did not 0:01:34.600 --> 0:01:37.640 regularly watch The Office when it was on TV, but 0:01:37.720 --> 0:01:40.839 I've been catching up on flights and in hotel rooms 0:01:40.840 --> 0:01:44.720 on Netflix, and well you already know this, but it's awesome. 0:01:45.280 --> 0:01:48.160 I just wish I had enough time to watch every episode, 0:01:48.200 --> 0:01:52.800 but with my current schedule, it's really hard. That's what 0:01:52.960 --> 0:01:57.080 she said. Now, let's get to football time for this 0:01:57.120 --> 0:01:59.840 week's conversation with Dave Lapham, and we kept it a 0:02:00.040 --> 0:02:02.360 little bit shorter this week because, as you will hear, 0:02:02.600 --> 0:02:07.080 Lapp has been battling a pretty significant cold. One quick note, 0:02:07.480 --> 0:02:11.240 we recorded this on Wednesday before practice, when all signs 0:02:11.280 --> 0:02:15.639 pointed to the return of AJ Green. Then he reportedly 0:02:15.720 --> 0:02:19.120 experienced swelling in his ankle after a morning walkthrough and 0:02:19.360 --> 0:02:23.360 did not participate in practice. So as of now, aj 0:02:23.600 --> 0:02:28.280 status for Sunday's game is TBD. The Bengals could obviously 0:02:28.400 --> 0:02:31.000 use him as they looked for their first win of 0:02:31.040 --> 0:02:35.160 the season after an O and eighth start, a scenario 0:02:35.480 --> 0:02:39.320 that Dave Lapham can identify with. As we mentioned before, 0:02:39.520 --> 0:02:41.560 you are on a team back in nineteen seventy eight 0:02:41.639 --> 0:02:45.119 that started O and eight. You beat Houston in week nine, 0:02:45.200 --> 0:02:48.679 twenty eight to thirteen. That Houston team went ten and 0:02:48.800 --> 0:02:51.880 six and made it to the AFC Championship Game that year. 0:02:52.320 --> 0:02:56.000 Do you remember how that win felt. I do remember that. 0:02:56.080 --> 0:02:58.320 It almost felt like a playoff win, you know. I 0:02:58.360 --> 0:03:00.520 mean it had that kind of that kind of a 0:03:00.560 --> 0:03:02.600 relief moment to it. You know, it's finally like all 0:03:02.639 --> 0:03:05.560 this work finally paid off. You know, you can liken 0:03:05.639 --> 0:03:09.160 it to uh, you're a salesperson and you go two 0:03:09.200 --> 0:03:12.840 months without a sale and you're a straight commission salesman 0:03:13.800 --> 0:03:16.120 and the covers are getting there. You know, it's like 0:03:16.680 --> 0:03:19.519 you're not getting any you're not getting any any buzz 0:03:19.560 --> 0:03:23.760 for your work. There's no payback, and so it just 0:03:23.840 --> 0:03:26.800 it just felt like that. I remember how euphoric the 0:03:26.880 --> 0:03:29.560 locker room was, you know, it was. It was a huge, 0:03:29.639 --> 0:03:32.560 huge relief that was a good football team that Houston 0:03:32.639 --> 0:03:35.160 Moor football team was a daring good football team, so 0:03:35.720 --> 0:03:38.160 you know, we knew just like this team. I mean 0:03:38.200 --> 0:03:40.200 there's a lot of similarities. I mean, we played Houston 0:03:40.240 --> 0:03:42.360 a lot, they played Baltimore a lot. There's a lot 0:03:42.360 --> 0:03:45.840 of similarities there. So I mean, if they could, if 0:03:45.880 --> 0:03:49.560 the Bengals could knock off the Baltimore Ravens after they 0:03:49.680 --> 0:03:52.760 knocked off the undefeated New England Patriots, you got to 0:03:52.800 --> 0:03:55.600 think there's gonna be a little bit of Baltimore looking 0:03:55.640 --> 0:03:58.360 past the Cincinnati Bengals in this football game after what 0:03:58.400 --> 0:04:01.440 they did against New England's human nature, And if the 0:04:01.480 --> 0:04:03.680 Bengals can trap them, you know, load the trap and 0:04:03.720 --> 0:04:06.080 spring the trap on them, that would beat That would 0:04:06.080 --> 0:04:08.840 be a big, big win, a division win, because Dan 0:04:08.920 --> 0:04:11.360 they're won in seven in the last eight division games. 0:04:11.480 --> 0:04:14.120 I mean, that's they got to start competing a little 0:04:14.120 --> 0:04:16.400 bit better than that in the division lap. We don't 0:04:16.440 --> 0:04:19.360 know if Andy Dalton will play quarterback again for the Bengals. 0:04:19.640 --> 0:04:22.160 If the Dalton era is over after eight and a 0:04:22.160 --> 0:04:25.719 half years, how should it be remembered? You know, I 0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:29.239 think the fans are going to have some mixed memories 0:04:29.240 --> 0:04:31.520 of it because of the lack of a playoff win, 0:04:32.720 --> 0:04:35.200 but boy, to go to the playoffs five straight times, 0:04:35.800 --> 0:04:39.880 that's a franchise record. And you know, the average like 0:04:39.960 --> 0:04:44.120 ten wins a season during that time frame is as 0:04:44.200 --> 0:04:48.760 long a period of success as the franchise has ever enjoyed. So, 0:04:49.240 --> 0:04:52.600 I mean, Andy Dalton is responsible, a big should take 0:04:52.640 --> 0:04:55.560 a big shoulder a big part of that responsibility for 0:04:55.600 --> 0:04:58.760 that success. There's no question about it, Andy Dalton and 0:04:58.800 --> 0:05:02.640 AJ Green, that era was was prolific, you know, in 0:05:02.640 --> 0:05:06.680 the regular season from by club standards in terms of record. 0:05:07.160 --> 0:05:09.760 But again, unfortunately, you know, not having a playoff here. 0:05:09.920 --> 0:05:12.760 If they just could have come up with, you know, 0:05:12.800 --> 0:05:16.280 with a playoff wins somewhere along that that five year stretch, 0:05:16.800 --> 0:05:19.160 it would be remembered, I think, a lot differently than 0:05:19.200 --> 0:05:23.320 it'll probably be remembered now, no question about it. It's 0:05:23.360 --> 0:05:26.000 been a trying first year for Zach Taylor, to say 0:05:26.000 --> 0:05:29.320 the least. Are there any really obvious lessons that you 0:05:29.480 --> 0:05:32.000 think he can take from this year? You know, I 0:05:32.080 --> 0:05:34.480 know today's NFL and there's only so many things you 0:05:34.520 --> 0:05:37.680 can do by collective bargain agreement and protecting players and 0:05:37.760 --> 0:05:41.240 all that sort of thing. But I just think that. 0:05:41.880 --> 0:05:44.760 You know, I never saw nine on seven. You know, 0:05:44.800 --> 0:05:47.839 I never saw anything really really physical, you know, in 0:05:47.920 --> 0:05:50.679 training camp or practices, and I know once the season starts, 0:05:50.680 --> 0:05:52.760 you can't really do anything in practice. You can only 0:05:52.760 --> 0:05:56.960 have I think it's what seventeen padded practices for the season, 0:05:57.279 --> 0:06:00.320 maybe one a week if you're lucky. But I think 0:06:00.320 --> 0:06:03.200 in training camp, and I'm not saying beat them to death. 0:06:03.200 --> 0:06:05.120 I'm not saying, old man, get off my long kind 0:06:05.160 --> 0:06:07.520 of stuff. You know, beat these guys up and go 0:06:07.600 --> 0:06:09.640 back to the old school way of doing it. But 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:14.480 I think I think maybe just a little bit more physicality, 0:06:14.520 --> 0:06:17.840 because it seems like in the beginning, especially, they were 0:06:17.880 --> 0:06:21.200 almost surprised by the tempo and speed of the game 0:06:21.200 --> 0:06:24.400 and the physicality of the game in the early stages 0:06:24.400 --> 0:06:26.159 of the season. Now you're just to it as the 0:06:26.160 --> 0:06:29.400 season wears on, and it's hard to practice harder as 0:06:29.440 --> 0:06:32.120 the season wears on. But maybe in the earlier stages 0:06:32.200 --> 0:06:34.960 of it, as you're getting ready for the regular season, 0:06:35.279 --> 0:06:39.560 because I mean I experienced it preseasons one. Speed, regular 0:06:39.600 --> 0:06:44.080 season ratcheted up, playoffs ratcheted up big time. And there's 0:06:44.200 --> 0:06:47.920 no question I think everybody would agree with that. So 0:06:48.279 --> 0:06:50.800 while you're in that infancy stage of you know, the 0:06:51.120 --> 0:06:54.279 tempo and the physicality of it in the preseason, I 0:06:54.320 --> 0:06:57.680 think maybe a little bit more physicality in the practice 0:06:57.680 --> 0:06:59.400 to get them ready for the early stages of the 0:06:59.480 --> 0:07:02.039 regular seas and might be something to think about. But 0:07:03.480 --> 0:07:06.960 in today's football, you know, I understand how everybody's going. 0:07:08.440 --> 0:07:10.840 And I know even in the back in the day, 0:07:11.440 --> 0:07:13.240 Bill Walts when he had those great teams with the 0:07:13.280 --> 0:07:15.520 forty nine or forty nine er players, told me they 0:07:15.640 --> 0:07:18.280 never wore shoulder pads once training camp broke. They never 0:07:18.400 --> 0:07:21.360 had a padded practice and they went out there and 0:07:21.440 --> 0:07:24.880 kick some tail. So you know, you can you can 0:07:24.920 --> 0:07:28.200 find cases. You can be Perry Mason and find precedent 0:07:28.280 --> 0:07:30.760 cases for just about anything you want to make. But 0:07:32.000 --> 0:07:35.560 I do think that you know, not tackling. I'm not 0:07:35.600 --> 0:07:38.640 saying tackle guys have one on one nutcracker drills. I'm 0:07:38.680 --> 0:07:41.280 not saying that kind of stuff. But I'm saying maybe 0:07:41.360 --> 0:07:44.000 just a little bit more thumb lap. We've got our 0:07:44.000 --> 0:07:46.200 fingers crossed that d aj Green will make his twenty 0:07:46.480 --> 0:07:49.960 nineteen debut this week. Aj missed seven of the last 0:07:50.080 --> 0:07:52.720 eight games last year, and the first eight this year, 0:07:52.800 --> 0:07:55.920 so he's basically missed a full season. The Bengals are 0:07:55.920 --> 0:07:58.600 one in fifteen in those games before he got hurt. 0:07:58.680 --> 0:08:01.520 Last year, they were five in three. Can he make 0:08:01.760 --> 0:08:04.400 that much of a difference when he returns this year. 0:08:04.720 --> 0:08:06.440 I think he can. I mean, I think he's the 0:08:06.520 --> 0:08:09.320 king Domino. When AJ Green's out in the football field, 0:08:09.680 --> 0:08:14.000 it reconfigures coverage, Chilt's coverage differently. It's going to make 0:08:14.040 --> 0:08:16.520 life easier for Tyler Boyd. It's going to make life 0:08:16.520 --> 0:08:20.640 easier for everybody else. He's gonna draw double teams. There's 0:08:20.640 --> 0:08:22.520 going to be space for others to take advantage of. 0:08:22.760 --> 0:08:24.960 He's going to empty the box out. There'll be one 0:08:25.040 --> 0:08:26.920 less guy in the box for the offensive line to 0:08:26.920 --> 0:08:30.160 worry about, Joe Mixon to worry about. Running lanes will improve. 0:08:30.480 --> 0:08:33.880 The ripple effect of AJ Green is huge, both up 0:08:33.920 --> 0:08:37.120 and down ripple effect. It's big big. I want to 0:08:37.120 --> 0:08:39.880 bring up something that your former teammate Chris Collinsworth said 0:08:39.880 --> 0:08:43.680 on Sunday Night Football last week. He said, quote, this 0:08:43.760 --> 0:08:46.280 is one of those moments in time where we're going 0:08:46.320 --> 0:08:49.080 to think back in a few years and go remember 0:08:49.120 --> 0:08:51.480 the night that Lamar Jackson and the Ravens style of 0:08:51.480 --> 0:08:54.240 offense took apart the Patriots. We're going to be able 0:08:54.280 --> 0:08:56.640 to point to quarterbacks in the National Football League that 0:08:56.679 --> 0:08:59.559 got a chance because of this night. That was the 0:08:59.679 --> 0:09:03.160 end of the Collin's Worth quote. Is Lamar Jackson opening 0:09:03.200 --> 0:09:06.520 the door for a different style of quarterback. It's not 0:09:06.559 --> 0:09:08.680 a real big door because not many people can run 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:11.240 like Lamar Jackson. I mean, you know, if you can 0:09:11.240 --> 0:09:13.880 find guys they run a four, three five, they can play, 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:16.640 you know, a quarterback well enough in the National Football League. 0:09:16.960 --> 0:09:19.160 That doesn't take long to call that role, you know. 0:09:19.240 --> 0:09:22.000 I mean, he is so unique. The dude, in my 0:09:22.080 --> 0:09:25.480 mind is a running back because he can make you 0:09:25.559 --> 0:09:27.880 miss in a short space and he can run away 0:09:27.880 --> 0:09:30.440 from you. Who can throw a little bit. It's not 0:09:30.480 --> 0:09:32.640 a quarterback, you know, they can throw a real well, 0:09:32.679 --> 0:09:34.240 they can run a little bit. He's the reverse of 0:09:34.280 --> 0:09:37.400 the norm. And that guy is so rare. And the 0:09:37.520 --> 0:09:40.440 thing about him is is, you know, people are like, 0:09:41.040 --> 0:09:42.800 you know, do you think it'll last? I mean, how 0:09:43.000 --> 0:09:47.920 how long can he can he go? Because of his elusiveness, 0:09:48.240 --> 0:09:50.440 he doesn't take flush hits, you know, he makes he 0:09:50.520 --> 0:09:52.920 makes them glancing blows and he's smart enough. He'll go 0:09:52.960 --> 0:09:55.479 to the ground, he'll go out of bounce. He doesn't 0:09:55.520 --> 0:09:57.680 lower his shoulder and try to run people over. He 0:09:57.720 --> 0:10:00.320 will run between the tackles. But he's clever enough to 0:10:00.320 --> 0:10:02.400 make it, you know, instead of just a direct hit 0:10:02.640 --> 0:10:04.760 right down the middle. I mentioned this a few times. 0:10:05.280 --> 0:10:07.400 Reminds me of James Brooks when I talk to him. 0:10:07.640 --> 0:10:09.600 You know, everybody's like JB. Everybody's like, how long are 0:10:09.640 --> 0:10:12.040 you gonna last? Running the way you run the football? 0:10:12.040 --> 0:10:14.880 He said, because man, I make it a glancing blow. 0:10:15.040 --> 0:10:17.120 If they take a direct hit at me, it's all 0:10:17.160 --> 0:10:19.640 on me. It's my bad. God bless me with these 0:10:19.679 --> 0:10:21.800 abilities to make them glancing blows. And I'm gonna make 0:10:21.800 --> 0:10:24.480 every one of them. I can a glancing blow. And 0:10:25.160 --> 0:10:28.959 you know, Frank Or even with his running style, he 0:10:29.040 --> 0:10:31.559 has a way of right at the very end, just 0:10:31.720 --> 0:10:35.040 moving a little bit where it's not a direct smoke hit. 0:10:35.480 --> 0:10:37.640 It's more of a glancing blow. That's why he's last 0:10:37.679 --> 0:10:39.240 as long as he has. Plus, there's a lot of 0:10:39.280 --> 0:10:43.040 luck involved. The Bengals face the most blitz happy defensive 0:10:43.080 --> 0:10:47.599 coordinator in the NFL on Sunday in Baltimore's Don Wink Martindale, 0:10:47.600 --> 0:10:50.559 a former UC assistant coach back in the Rick minter days. 0:10:51.080 --> 0:10:54.560 What is the formula for success for a rookie quarterback 0:10:54.679 --> 0:10:59.440 Ryan Finlay in his debut against that defense? Well, you know, 0:10:59.640 --> 0:11:02.760 all up the blitzpeeders, you know, I mean, because Wink 0:11:02.800 --> 0:11:04.840 Martindale is going to bring it. He's going to bring 0:11:04.880 --> 0:11:07.199 one more than you can block. I mean he's brought 0:11:07.200 --> 0:11:09.920 it a little over fifty percent of the time on 0:11:09.960 --> 0:11:12.560 the season, he blitz the heck out of Brady. So 0:11:12.600 --> 0:11:14.199 if he blitzs the heck out of Brady, what is 0:11:14.200 --> 0:11:15.480 he going to do it? Or a rookie with his 0:11:15.600 --> 0:11:19.080 first NFL start, Gosh, it might be you know, sixty 0:11:19.080 --> 0:11:21.480 five percent of the time, and a lot of times 0:11:21.520 --> 0:11:24.400 he just has only two defensive linemen and two point stance. 0:11:24.480 --> 0:11:27.720 Everybody is up into three point stance. Excuse me, everybody 0:11:27.720 --> 0:11:30.240 else is into two point stance, milling around and I'll 0:11:30.280 --> 0:11:32.840 have seven, eight, nine, ten, even eleven guys with the 0:11:32.880 --> 0:11:35.480 line of scrimmage and trying to identify who's coming and 0:11:35.520 --> 0:11:38.800 who's not. And you know they wait at the very 0:11:38.840 --> 0:11:41.559 last second until you call your final protection, and then 0:11:41.559 --> 0:11:43.240 they try to bring one more than you can block 0:11:43.280 --> 0:11:46.280 on the opposite side. It's it's very, very difficult. So 0:11:47.000 --> 0:11:50.400 communication is going to be real big. When he changed 0:11:50.440 --> 0:11:53.240 his protections, which he's gonna have to do, Trey Hopkins 0:11:53.240 --> 0:11:54.920 is going to call a protection. He's gonna have to 0:11:55.000 --> 0:11:57.640 change it to have to be able to communicate that 0:11:58.240 --> 0:11:59.839 and his receivers is gonna have to be on the 0:11:59.840 --> 0:12:03.360 same page of him. Was side just blitzpeaters with routes 0:12:03.840 --> 0:12:06.040 And that's what A. J. Green and Andy Dalton did 0:12:06.040 --> 0:12:09.480 so well Thursday nine, a year ago when they made 0:12:09.520 --> 0:12:12.160 Don Wink Martin deal Blink and he stopped blitzen for 0:12:12.200 --> 0:12:14.640 about thirty thirty five plays. They were killing him on 0:12:14.720 --> 0:12:18.520 side of just slants and quick slants and just blitzpeaters 0:12:18.559 --> 0:12:22.200 and beat him to death. Last thing, you lost a 0:12:22.200 --> 0:12:24.440 friend and a former teammate this week with the passing 0:12:24.440 --> 0:12:27.640 of former Pro Bowl linebacker Jim Leclair. When the Bengals 0:12:27.679 --> 0:12:29.960 named their top fifty retired players a couple of years 0:12:29.960 --> 0:12:32.640 ago in their fiftieth season, he checked in at number 0:12:32.720 --> 0:12:35.599 thirty three. Jim went back to North Dakota after his 0:12:35.720 --> 0:12:38.559 playing days. He became a mayor. What do you remember 0:12:38.679 --> 0:12:41.840 most vividly about Jim Leclair. We were just talking about thumb. 0:12:42.120 --> 0:12:45.960 That's what I remember about Jim Mclair thump. I had 0:12:46.000 --> 0:12:49.959 my first quote episode, you know. Was it a concussion. 0:12:50.480 --> 0:12:52.080 I don't know if it was a concussion, but I 0:12:52.120 --> 0:12:54.520 know I saw a big flash of lights and I 0:12:54.520 --> 0:12:56.840 couldn't walk a straight line. And I remember and that 0:12:56.920 --> 0:13:00.160 was my very first practice at training camp. I was 0:13:00.200 --> 0:13:03.520 working with Stan Walters, the SS Walters Stanley Steamer out 0:13:03.520 --> 0:13:06.040 of Syracuse. I was playing guard, he was playing tackle. 0:13:06.080 --> 0:13:09.679 We were running a little live drill against defensive linemen 0:13:09.679 --> 0:13:11.559 and linebacker are like a nine on seven type thing. 0:13:11.960 --> 0:13:14.120 And I came off a double team on the down 0:13:14.200 --> 0:13:16.840 linement and I tried to kind of like checking peekaboo 0:13:16.840 --> 0:13:19.960 a little bit where Jim Leclair was. That dude had 0:13:20.000 --> 0:13:23.760 the most fierce forearm I've ever felt. Man. He hit 0:13:23.880 --> 0:13:26.439 me square right in the forehead and shortened my neck, 0:13:26.920 --> 0:13:29.520 and I was, oh, I was buzzing long distance phone 0:13:29.559 --> 0:13:32.520 call nobody on the other end. Man. And I come 0:13:32.600 --> 0:13:34.319 walking back to the staggering back to the hud a 0:13:34.360 --> 0:13:37.800 little bit and Stan LOOKSIMI goes, hey, one thing I 0:13:37.880 --> 0:13:40.439 gotta tell you, rook. He says, that guy fifty five, 0:13:40.600 --> 0:13:44.559 Jacques Leclair, don't be peeking for him. You gotta bring it. 0:13:44.679 --> 0:13:46.520 You can't come out that double team unless you bring it. 0:13:46.600 --> 0:13:49.720 Us I already I just figured that out. That dude 0:13:49.880 --> 0:13:52.920 would hit you. And I remember. The big thing is 0:13:53.960 --> 0:13:57.079 they had Victor, the wrestling bear that traveled around to 0:13:57.120 --> 0:13:59.800 all the cities, and Jim Leclair was a heavyweight wrestling 0:14:00.320 --> 0:14:03.080 and Jim Leclair Russell's Victor and was shooting his leg 0:14:03.160 --> 0:14:05.079 you know, I mean, taking him down. I mean it 0:14:05.120 --> 0:14:09.360 was an unbelievable performance. And the handler or Victor called 0:14:09.360 --> 0:14:12.280 it off because Victor was undefeated and he was a 0:14:12.320 --> 0:14:15.520 little worried about Leclair and Victor. He got Victor down 0:14:16.080 --> 0:14:19.320 on his back and uh and Victor had this big, 0:14:19.400 --> 0:14:22.200 long tongue. They muzzled him and they declawed him, but 0:14:22.520 --> 0:14:24.680 his tongue came out of there and wrapped around Jimmy's head. 0:14:24.720 --> 0:14:26.680 And it's like, oh, so, I said, what was the 0:14:26.720 --> 0:14:29.440 worst part of Victor goes? Man, that tongue stunk. That 0:14:29.640 --> 0:14:32.320 tongue stunk like a garbage truck man, he goes and 0:14:32.360 --> 0:14:34.680 I couldn't get that thing off my head. But I'm 0:14:34.720 --> 0:14:38.320 telling you, man, Jimmy Jimy Leclair would he would hit 0:14:38.360 --> 0:14:40.640 you in the running game, and played with him with 0:14:40.680 --> 0:14:42.560 the Generals too. We both went to the Generals and 0:14:43.040 --> 0:14:45.520 what Michael's you know, named him captain to his defense, 0:14:45.600 --> 0:14:48.560 he was captain here. He was definitely a leader of men, 0:14:48.880 --> 0:14:52.720 big broad coat, hanger shoulders man and just a physical, 0:14:52.920 --> 0:14:57.920 physical football player who you know, brought it every single snap. 0:14:58.040 --> 0:15:00.520 And he and his wife Betty were pretty good friends 0:15:00.520 --> 0:15:04.880 of Lennon. Are Lennon mine and we're both we're both 0:15:04.960 --> 0:15:08.840 grieving that one because I remember Betty telling us that 0:15:09.000 --> 0:15:11.880 this was a while back, that she kept having to 0:15:11.920 --> 0:15:16.040 reintroduce herself to Jim, which you know, it's heartbreaking when 0:15:16.440 --> 0:15:19.320 somebody'd been with your whole life, you know, the partner 0:15:19.360 --> 0:15:21.760 doesn't recognize you anymore. That has to be a tough 0:15:21.840 --> 0:15:24.160 thing to deal with. So I hope Jim's in a 0:15:24.240 --> 0:15:27.440 better place now. I know he is, and he's probably 0:15:27.560 --> 0:15:29.760 organizing a game of nine on seven up there as 0:15:29.800 --> 0:15:34.120 we speak. Fourth round draft pick Ryan Finley will make 0:15:34.200 --> 0:15:37.600 his first NFL started quarterback this Sunday, and here's hoping 0:15:37.680 --> 0:15:40.560 he is as impressive as he was in the preseason. 0:15:41.280 --> 0:15:44.080 In the opener of Kansas City, Finley completed his first 0:15:44.160 --> 0:15:47.680 ten passes. The following week at Washington, he completed his 0:15:47.800 --> 0:15:53.200 first nine. Overall. In three preseason games, Ryan completed seventy 0:15:53.240 --> 0:15:56.440 three percent of his throws, with three touchdown passes, one 0:15:56.560 --> 0:16:00.520 I NT and a passer rating of ninety nine Think three. 0:16:01.240 --> 0:16:03.840 Alex Riksson was on the receiving end of several of 0:16:03.920 --> 0:16:07.120 those preseason throws, and I spoke to the Bengals wide 0:16:07.160 --> 0:16:09.600 receiver this week. We are in the locker room with 0:16:09.640 --> 0:16:12.400 Bengals wide receiver Alex ericson how did you spend your 0:16:12.440 --> 0:16:15.880 bye weekend? Well, I went back to Sonny, Wisconsin and 0:16:16.600 --> 0:16:18.880 hung out with the family and spent some time to 0:16:19.800 --> 0:16:22.560 just being a dad and being a husband. I assume 0:16:22.640 --> 0:16:27.680 you're refreshed more physically or mentally. I'd say both pretty equal, 0:16:27.800 --> 0:16:29.840 you know what. I think the mental size just as 0:16:29.920 --> 0:16:32.360 important as the physical side, and I'll be able to 0:16:32.520 --> 0:16:36.280 refresh and get away from it and come back just 0:16:36.400 --> 0:16:39.880 refocused and finished the season and the way we want to. 0:16:40.320 --> 0:16:42.480 For visiting with Alex Rikson's who You're back at it? 0:16:42.600 --> 0:16:44.560 This week? With Ryan Finley getting set to make his 0:16:44.640 --> 0:16:47.880 first NFL started quarterback, what stood out to you when 0:16:47.920 --> 0:16:52.400 he played in the preseason. Yeah, Ryan's a competitor. He 0:16:52.560 --> 0:16:54.360 just got something about him that, you know, he makes 0:16:54.440 --> 0:16:56.560 plays when that doesn't look like there's gonna to play there. 0:16:56.840 --> 0:16:59.880 He's got good pocket presents and he does a good boss. 0:17:00.440 --> 0:17:04.040 We're excited for it. Um, you know, he's preparing hard. 0:17:04.640 --> 0:17:06.720 This is our you know, this is our first week 0:17:06.800 --> 0:17:09.280 with really a new quarterback a long time, so it's 0:17:09.320 --> 0:17:11.600 a lot of it's different, and um, we just got 0:17:11.680 --> 0:17:14.360 to do our part to help him out with communicating 0:17:14.440 --> 0:17:16.560 and being in the right spots and just make sure 0:17:16.600 --> 0:17:19.560 he feels comfortable with us as receivers. He's twenty four, 0:17:19.840 --> 0:17:21.760 he was in college for six years. Do you think 0:17:21.800 --> 0:17:24.040 that makes a difference. Yeah, I think so another year 0:17:25.520 --> 0:17:30.240 the mature and figure figure yourself out and U So yeah, 0:17:30.280 --> 0:17:33.560 I think that definitely definitely makes a difference. We don't 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:35.680 know at this point if aj Green will be back, 0:17:35.760 --> 0:17:38.879 but it certainly looks promising for the other wide receivers. 0:17:39.119 --> 0:17:42.000 Describe what it means when he's out there. You know, 0:17:42.680 --> 0:17:44.840 he's our leader, he's our captain. Uh, He's a guy 0:17:44.960 --> 0:17:47.440 we've all leaned on since the first day we got here, 0:17:47.480 --> 0:17:49.480 and a guy that we've all watched and admired and 0:17:51.200 --> 0:17:54.359 really just so when he's out there, it's just, you know, 0:17:54.400 --> 0:17:58.280 it's exciting. It's another obviously Hall of fame receiver out there, 0:17:58.320 --> 0:18:00.680 you know. So it's not like you're just getting a 0:18:00.720 --> 0:18:02.600 guy back. You know, you're getting You're getting the guy 0:18:02.720 --> 0:18:04.480 and a guy that's had a lot of success in 0:18:04.560 --> 0:18:07.959 this league over a long time. And so yeah, it's 0:18:08.040 --> 0:18:09.720 I think it's he's a vital part of this team 0:18:09.760 --> 0:18:12.600 and when he's out there definitely makes a difference. The 0:18:12.720 --> 0:18:15.840 record obviously isn't good. He's coming back from an injury, 0:18:16.040 --> 0:18:18.600 gets a contract here, and I can imagine some wide 0:18:18.640 --> 0:18:21.320 receivers around the NFL or players in general that would 0:18:21.359 --> 0:18:24.320 shut it down. He has no intention of doing that. 0:18:24.560 --> 0:18:26.359 What does that mean to the other guys on the team. 0:18:26.720 --> 0:18:28.520 It means everything. It means he's here to fight with 0:18:28.640 --> 0:18:32.840 us through through the tough times and through the uncertain times, 0:18:32.880 --> 0:18:37.160 and knowing that he's putting all his his own agendas 0:18:37.200 --> 0:18:40.240 stuff away and just being a great teammate. And um, 0:18:40.680 --> 0:18:42.040 this is the way he is. The type of guy 0:18:42.040 --> 0:18:44.439 he is. He he hates missing time, he hates missing practice, 0:18:44.520 --> 0:18:47.040 he hates missing one rep, you know, and you can 0:18:47.119 --> 0:18:49.200 tell by the way practice he'll be flying around, he'll 0:18:49.240 --> 0:18:53.320 be running more than anybody. And so we know what 0:18:53.480 --> 0:18:54.960 type of guy is and it just kills him not 0:18:55.000 --> 0:18:57.800 to be out there. So I'm not surprised that he 0:18:57.840 --> 0:18:59.240 wants to be out there and help us, help us 0:18:59.240 --> 0:19:01.520 get our first one. A few more questions for alex 0:19:01.640 --> 0:19:04.560 ericson you faced the Ravens. You played them three games ago. 0:19:05.160 --> 0:19:08.080 This team blitzes as much as any team in the NFL. 0:19:08.200 --> 0:19:11.159 Does that impact your route running? Do you have to 0:19:11.240 --> 0:19:13.680 be more aware of a hot route or things like that? 0:19:14.320 --> 0:19:16.040 You know, I think it's just like you said, just 0:19:16.119 --> 0:19:18.639 being aware of the positions there and the leverages are 0:19:18.680 --> 0:19:21.000 in and you know idea and that you know when 0:19:21.000 --> 0:19:23.359 they're bringing the zero pressures that they're obviously gonna have 0:19:23.440 --> 0:19:24.920 one more than we can block, so you know the 0:19:24.960 --> 0:19:27.480 ball is gonna come out quicker and gotta be ready 0:19:27.520 --> 0:19:31.040 for a fifty fifty play sometimes. And yeah, I think, 0:19:31.080 --> 0:19:34.600 as you know, throughout the game, you just you get 0:19:34.640 --> 0:19:37.040 a feel for what they're trying to do, and we 0:19:37.119 --> 0:19:39.840 know their aggressive defense, so we'll be aware of it 0:19:39.920 --> 0:19:41.840 and be ready to you know, make them pay. When 0:19:41.960 --> 0:19:44.399 we catch them in a blitz. The defense has to 0:19:44.440 --> 0:19:47.480 contend with Lamar Jackson, who is likely to shatter the 0:19:47.720 --> 0:19:50.280 NFL record for rushing yards back quarterback this year. He's 0:19:50.280 --> 0:19:52.800 on a pace for nearly thirteen hundred. I was trying 0:19:52.840 --> 0:19:55.480 to think of how the defense could possibly prepare for 0:19:55.560 --> 0:19:58.719 the Lamar Jackson threat, and then it hit me, alex 0:19:58.840 --> 0:20:02.160 Erics great running quarterback in high school. Do you think 0:20:02.200 --> 0:20:04.960 the coaches would ever consider having you do some of 0:20:05.119 --> 0:20:07.600 Lamar Jackson stuff at practice? Can you do that when 0:20:07.600 --> 0:20:09.320 you're working on what you need to work on? Yeah, 0:20:09.320 --> 0:20:12.560 it's tough, obviously the amount of reps and the volume 0:20:12.640 --> 0:20:16.000 you're getting practice, so you know it's it's probably not likely, 0:20:16.119 --> 0:20:19.440 but yeah, he's definitely. He's definitely a guy that is 0:20:19.840 --> 0:20:22.240 unique to prepare for. And his ability to run the 0:20:22.400 --> 0:20:25.200 football and his ability to make plays with the ball 0:20:25.240 --> 0:20:29.760 in his hands, and um, he's anique talent and you know, 0:20:29.800 --> 0:20:31.840 there's not been a ton of guys like him throughout 0:20:31.880 --> 0:20:34.920