WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Starting Over 0:00:03.520 --> 0:00:06.359 I get everybody on Dan Horde and thanks for downloading 0:00:06.400 --> 0:00:11.600 the Bengals Booth Podcast. Uh, I can be your lucky penny, 0:00:11.920 --> 0:00:19.400 you can be my full leaf clover starting over. Addition, 0:00:19.800 --> 0:00:22.360 as the Bengals returned from a mid season bye week 0:00:22.440 --> 0:00:24.919 and start over as they opened the second half of 0:00:24.920 --> 0:00:29.240 the season in Pittsburgh against the NFL's last undefeated team, 0:00:29.600 --> 0:00:32.800 the eight no Steelers. Coming up, Dave Lapham joins me 0:00:32.880 --> 0:00:36.839 to discuss the Bengals first in season positive COVID nineteen 0:00:36.920 --> 0:00:40.360 tests and what it could mean on the offensive line. 0:00:40.840 --> 0:00:43.599 Speaking of old line by one on one player interview 0:00:44.040 --> 0:00:47.879 is with Alex Redman, who could in an emergency have 0:00:48.040 --> 0:00:51.159 to move from guard to tackle. I'll find out the 0:00:51.280 --> 0:00:54.600 last time he played that position, and in our know 0:00:54.760 --> 0:00:57.840 the faux segment, we'll find out if there's actually a 0:00:57.960 --> 0:01:02.400 chance that Ben Roethlisberger won't play on Sunday when we 0:01:02.560 --> 0:01:06.800 visit with Steelers pregame host Tim Bens. The Bengals Booth 0:01:06.840 --> 0:01:11.119 Podcast is presented by Bud Light. Seltzer refreshed the game 0:01:11.480 --> 0:01:13.320 and here's a quick reminder that you can have the 0:01:13.400 --> 0:01:17.440 latest edition of this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, 0:01:17.520 --> 0:01:22.160 or computer by subscribing on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, 0:01:22.520 --> 0:01:28.200 or pod Bean. It's the greatest thing since the leaf blower. 0:01:29.120 --> 0:01:31.920 I don't have a huge yard, but it does feature 0:01:31.959 --> 0:01:35.000 a bunch of trees that shed leaves at the same 0:01:35.080 --> 0:01:37.679 rate that I lost hair between the ages of thirty 0:01:37.720 --> 0:01:43.360 and thirty five. As a result, raking leaves sucks, but 0:01:43.560 --> 0:01:47.960 blowing leaves away is great. It saves a ton of time, 0:01:48.040 --> 0:01:52.160 and it's actually kind of fun. Now, let's get to 0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:55.640 football before we get to Dave Lapham. The Bengals made 0:01:55.640 --> 0:01:59.520 a roster move after we recorded our conversation that certainly 0:01:59.600 --> 0:02:03.240 fits a starting over theme of this episode, as they 0:02:03.280 --> 0:02:07.000 claimed former first round draft pick Tack McKinley off of 0:02:07.040 --> 0:02:11.160 waivers following his release early this week by the Atlanta Falcons. 0:02:11.480 --> 0:02:15.400 The forty nine Ers, Ravens and Browns also reportedly tried 0:02:15.440 --> 0:02:19.280 to claim the fourth year pro. McKinley is a twenty 0:02:19.280 --> 0:02:22.480 five year old edge pass rusher who is the twenty 0:02:22.520 --> 0:02:26.560 sixth overall pick in the twenty seventeen NFL draft out 0:02:26.560 --> 0:02:29.800 of UCLA. He had six sacks as a rookie and 0:02:30.040 --> 0:02:33.360 seven in his second season before only having three and 0:02:33.360 --> 0:02:36.200 a half last year. If you look at his career 0:02:36.240 --> 0:02:40.480 Pro Football Focus ratings, they are almost identical to Carl 0:02:40.560 --> 0:02:44.960 Lawson's numbers. This season, Tack reportedly showed up for the 0:02:45.000 --> 0:02:48.440 start of training camp in tremendous shape, only to suffer 0:02:48.440 --> 0:02:51.600 a groin injury in Week two, and he hasn't played 0:02:51.600 --> 0:02:54.880 that much since, but the Bengals are obviously hoping he 0:02:54.919 --> 0:02:57.520 can boost their pass rush for the second half of 0:02:57.520 --> 0:03:01.040 the season. Here's Trey Hopkins on the on office, adding 0:03:01.240 --> 0:03:04.240 Tach McKinley the front office. I mean it's obvious, it's 0:03:04.240 --> 0:03:06.920 everywhere in the building. Gaysa's just hungry to win. Everyone 0:03:06.960 --> 0:03:10.040 in the building is bought in and turning this thing 0:03:10.080 --> 0:03:12.560 around and getting cusin anywhere it needs to be and 0:03:12.840 --> 0:03:16.680 providing and bringing excitement and fun back to the city 0:03:16.680 --> 0:03:19.839 and having fun winning games. McKinley will be a free 0:03:19.880 --> 0:03:21.960 agent at the end of the season, and due to 0:03:22.040 --> 0:03:26.079 COVID protocols, he won't make his Bengals debut until next 0:03:26.160 --> 0:03:30.080 week at the earliest. Now time for my midweek visit 0:03:30.080 --> 0:03:33.360 with Dave Lapham. All Right, we got news to cover. 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:38.600 Beginning with the COVID nineteen list, two Bengals players came 0:03:38.640 --> 0:03:42.680 off the list on Wednesday. McKenzie, Alexander and Jordan Evans 0:03:42.680 --> 0:03:45.920 they'll be good to go Sunday in Pittsburgh. Fred Johnson, 0:03:46.680 --> 0:03:51.360 Marcus Hunt, and Trey Wayne's remain on the list. Winston 0:03:51.480 --> 0:03:54.920 Rose was added to the list on Wednesday. Now, he's 0:03:54.920 --> 0:03:57.400 a practice squad guy, so I think he's only been 0:03:57.400 --> 0:04:00.680 active for one game this season. Of those name's lap, 0:04:00.720 --> 0:04:04.400 I guess Fred Johnson is the one that is potentially 0:04:04.440 --> 0:04:07.560 the biggest concern since he started at right tackle in 0:04:07.600 --> 0:04:10.440 the most recent game against Tennessee, and that the guy 0:04:10.480 --> 0:04:14.200 that he started for, Bobby Hart, still isn't practicing at 0:04:14.240 --> 0:04:17.520 full speed. Yeah, Bobby Hart's got a strained MCL media 0:04:17.560 --> 0:04:21.400 collateral ligament of his knee and a sprain strain whatever 0:04:21.480 --> 0:04:24.479 you want to phrase it. There's first degree, second degree, 0:04:24.560 --> 0:04:28.520 third degree tear. So what degree how significant is that 0:04:28.640 --> 0:04:34.080 sprain strain? Everybody heals differently. To think that Bobby would 0:04:34.080 --> 0:04:37.000 be able to play might be ambitious. You know this 0:04:37.480 --> 0:04:40.200 soon and if that's the case and Fred can't go, 0:04:40.760 --> 0:04:44.480 identity gets the opportunity out there at the right tackle position, 0:04:44.520 --> 0:04:48.080 and I know that they would feel better about that 0:04:48.360 --> 0:04:51.840 at this point. Haven't seen him play against Tennessee. How 0:04:51.880 --> 0:04:53.440 would you like to have been in a situation where 0:04:53.440 --> 0:04:56.040 he's throwing out there against the Pittsburgh Steelers, hadn't taken 0:04:56.080 --> 0:04:58.600 an NFL snap yet. At least he's got his feet 0:04:58.640 --> 0:05:01.120 on the ground by going again the Tennessee Titans. And 0:05:01.200 --> 0:05:04.359 you know, people like Clowney. It was not you know, 0:05:04.440 --> 0:05:07.040 not chopped liver. So the fact that he showed up 0:05:07.080 --> 0:05:09.560 on tape and showed up the way they thought he 0:05:09.600 --> 0:05:11.520 would show up on tape, I think they would have, 0:05:12.000 --> 0:05:14.720 you know, a little bit more confidence. But man talking 0:05:14.760 --> 0:05:18.840 about J. J. Watt and that scheme that Keith Butler 0:05:19.080 --> 0:05:22.000 utilizes so well, and that's been there so long, Dan, 0:05:22.360 --> 0:05:24.599 I mean, Keith Butler's been there a while. He was 0:05:24.640 --> 0:05:27.640 dick On Dick Lebo staff as an assistant. I mean 0:05:27.640 --> 0:05:31.320 he's running Lebo stuff. It's been you know, two plus decades. 0:05:31.320 --> 0:05:34.480 It's into the third decade almost of what they do there. 0:05:34.920 --> 0:05:37.480 So they know what they're doing and they know how 0:05:37.520 --> 0:05:39.440 to do it, and they know when to do things, 0:05:39.480 --> 0:05:43.400 and the opposition doesn't have all that type of experience 0:05:43.480 --> 0:05:47.760 necessarily to combat it. So on a on a week 0:05:47.760 --> 0:05:50.159 by week basis, but ticul If you're not a division opponent. 0:05:50.440 --> 0:05:52.599 I think division opponents see it over and over twice 0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:55.360 a year every year. If you're not a division opponent, man, 0:05:55.400 --> 0:05:57.560 that's that's a tough thing to prepare against Baltimore and 0:05:57.640 --> 0:06:03.200 Pittsburgh both by rule, there's a chance that Fred Johnson 0:06:03.320 --> 0:06:07.479 could be back, right, he tested positive last Thursday. You 0:06:07.520 --> 0:06:10.799 can come back after ten days, so he could return. 0:06:10.839 --> 0:06:13.159 The first day he could possibly be back would be 0:06:13.200 --> 0:06:15.680 Sunday morning, So it's possible. But for that to be 0:06:15.760 --> 0:06:19.000 the case, he would have to be asymptomatic. Otherwise that 0:06:19.080 --> 0:06:21.359 pushes the clock back. They're not going to tell us 0:06:21.400 --> 0:06:24.040 about that, so we won't know. And then you run 0:06:24.080 --> 0:06:26.719 into the whole situation where he wouldn't travel with the 0:06:26.720 --> 0:06:28.920 team to Pittsburgh. I guess he'd have to get there 0:06:28.960 --> 0:06:32.800 on his own. So it seems unlikely, but if you're 0:06:32.839 --> 0:06:38.960 desperate enough, it's possible. Again, if he were asymptomatic and 0:06:39.080 --> 0:06:42.279 got there separately from the team, he could be activated 0:06:42.320 --> 0:06:44.719 for that game. Yeah. And if if that's the case, 0:06:44.880 --> 0:06:48.279 if he's asymptomatic, they probably already made all those travel arrangements, 0:06:48.279 --> 0:06:51.479 you know, and um, you know, but he's gonna he's 0:06:51.480 --> 0:06:55.040 tested every day. So that's the thing is you can 0:06:55.080 --> 0:06:57.839 test negative one day, in the very next day test positive. 0:06:57.880 --> 0:07:00.359 You don't know this what this virus. All we know 0:07:00.440 --> 0:07:03.440 is what we don't know. I mean, people can couples 0:07:03.440 --> 0:07:05.680 can share a bed and not get each other infected, 0:07:05.960 --> 0:07:07.440 but they can go out and see a neighbor for 0:07:07.440 --> 0:07:10.400 fifteen minutes and neighbors infected. It just you just don't 0:07:10.760 --> 0:07:14.520 there's no handle on it. Everybody, everybody's metabolism, everybody is 0:07:14.600 --> 0:07:18.280 different how it responds to and handles the virus and 0:07:18.440 --> 0:07:20.960 exposure to it. So it's it's crazy, it really is. 0:07:22.240 --> 0:07:25.280 You know. The Ben Roethlisberger situation. On the flip side 0:07:25.320 --> 0:07:27.560 of it, Dan in my mind, isn't really that big 0:07:27.600 --> 0:07:31.720 of a deal because he's contact tracing, so he's five days, 0:07:32.120 --> 0:07:35.880 he's got two knee injuries supposedly, so he's getting treatment 0:07:35.920 --> 0:07:38.000 every day. He's going down there to get treatment. That's 0:07:38.040 --> 0:07:39.760 what he'd be doing anyway, he'd be getting treatment in 0:07:40.080 --> 0:07:43.440 zoom meetings and chilling. He's assuming he doesn't test positive, 0:07:43.520 --> 0:07:46.480 Assuming he doesn't test positive. But his locker was right 0:07:46.520 --> 0:07:49.160 next to McDonald's in the locker room, so obviously the 0:07:49.240 --> 0:07:55.400 contract contact tracing there was obvious and they obviously had 0:07:55.400 --> 0:07:58.600 to had to follow through on that. But again, this 0:07:58.680 --> 0:08:02.680 particular week, with his physical status and thirty eight years 0:08:02.720 --> 0:08:05.040 old and played as long as he has. You know 0:08:05.040 --> 0:08:07.400 how Ben Roethlisberger is, he loves the drama. He'll go 0:08:07.440 --> 0:08:09.960 out there and show up like John Wayne and you know, 0:08:10.320 --> 0:08:13.480 loop out there and throw for whatever he's gonna throw 0:08:13.520 --> 0:08:15.480 for and however many touchdowns. That's just kind of the 0:08:15.480 --> 0:08:17.640 way he is. And his teammates know about it, and 0:08:17.640 --> 0:08:20.120 they joke about it. The coaches joke about it. That's Ben. 0:08:20.160 --> 0:08:23.000 Ben's definitely a drama. I'm not saying he's not tough. 0:08:23.040 --> 0:08:25.240 He's definitely tough, but he wants you to know about it. 0:08:25.480 --> 0:08:27.880 He wants he wants to be John Wayne. There's no 0:08:27.920 --> 0:08:30.160 doubt about that. He looked like John Wayne when he 0:08:30.200 --> 0:08:32.319 was going to the locker room in Dallas before halftime. 0:08:32.360 --> 0:08:35.079 He had the same kind of strutted limp whatever you 0:08:35.160 --> 0:08:36.960 want to call it he did. Let's get back to 0:08:36.960 --> 0:08:39.360 the tackle situation for a minute, because you mentioned the 0:08:39.400 --> 0:08:43.760 possibility of a Chemodenagy starting at right tackle if Bobby 0:08:43.840 --> 0:08:47.520 Hart is still out and if Fred Johnson can't play, 0:08:47.559 --> 0:08:51.760 because of COVID nineteen. That's assuming that Jonah Williams is 0:08:51.800 --> 0:08:54.959 back at left tackle. He was not back full go 0:08:55.080 --> 0:08:58.480 at practice on Wednesday, still doing stuff on the side. 0:08:59.240 --> 0:09:01.920 Zach Taylor sund it optimistic that he would be back, 0:09:02.000 --> 0:09:05.960 but I guess it's not guaranteed. Then what Yeah, Then 0:09:06.080 --> 0:09:08.480 then you've got a whole kettle of fish of it 0:09:08.559 --> 0:09:10.880 you got to fry there. I mean, I think I 0:09:10.920 --> 0:09:14.120 think Jonah will probably give it an effort. Stingers, though, 0:09:14.280 --> 0:09:16.800 can be dicey. You know, it might be a deal 0:09:16.800 --> 0:09:18.600 where we'll see him with a neck brace on, you know, 0:09:18.640 --> 0:09:21.240 one of those rolls, neck rolls, not a brace as such, 0:09:21.280 --> 0:09:23.480 but a neck roll over the shoulder pad. But it 0:09:23.600 --> 0:09:26.280 is to try to limit the snap in the movement 0:09:26.280 --> 0:09:28.280 in your neck, you know, any kind of whiplash effect 0:09:28.320 --> 0:09:30.440 and all that sort of thing. That must have been 0:09:30.559 --> 0:09:32.920 how he got it. Or sometimes you get hit and 0:09:32.960 --> 0:09:35.320 it just pinches wrong, and that's literally what it does. 0:09:35.360 --> 0:09:39.160 It pinches nerves, and nerves and nerve endings get agitated 0:09:39.160 --> 0:09:42.000 and aggravated, and pretty soon you have a burning sensation 0:09:42.800 --> 0:09:46.160 down your entire arm. Had him before stinger, you know, 0:09:46.160 --> 0:09:49.280 your whole arm burns and then boot. Everything's numb from 0:09:49.559 --> 0:09:52.800 from your your neck down to your fingernails is numb. 0:09:52.960 --> 0:09:57.120 It's weird, and sometimes it comes back really quickly. Sometimes 0:09:57.160 --> 0:09:59.880 it takes a little bit of time. His seems to 0:09:59.920 --> 0:10:03.960 be a pretty significant one. So yeah, if he doesn't 0:10:04.000 --> 0:10:08.480 go now, Idenogy would play left tackle and they'd have 0:10:08.520 --> 0:10:10.880 to go to another I think right I would keep 0:10:10.880 --> 0:10:13.480 idenergy at left tackle. That's his natural spot. He's really 0:10:13.480 --> 0:10:16.040 good at that spot. He's comfortable at that spot. And 0:10:16.160 --> 0:10:19.520 now you're throwing things up there, you're gonna have to 0:10:19.520 --> 0:10:22.559 make multiple moves. Potentially, if you move Redmond out, you 0:10:22.559 --> 0:10:24.680 don't have to move. You know, Xavier Suaphilo is going 0:10:24.720 --> 0:10:27.760 to be active from the from the injury reserve. Do 0:10:27.800 --> 0:10:29.839 you plug him in the right guard where he was 0:10:29.920 --> 0:10:31.840 before the injury? You know, do you go in a 0:10:31.840 --> 0:10:34.200 different direction. Now you're starting to shuffle, you know, just 0:10:34.240 --> 0:10:36.320 like a shuffle for Tennessee. You can't do any more 0:10:36.360 --> 0:10:39.080 of a shuffle than the line that was shuffled for Tennessee. 0:10:39.080 --> 0:10:42.320 And boy, they they stepped up and exceeded expectations for sure, 0:10:42.720 --> 0:10:44.880 being part of the performance that they were part of. 0:10:44.920 --> 0:10:47.120 The first time the Bengals had to win against the 0:10:47.160 --> 0:10:49.880 team with a winning record since they beat the Miami 0:10:49.960 --> 0:10:53.040 Dolphins Week five and twenty eighteen. It's kind of crazy, 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:56.960 and that and that revamped, restructured offensive line was a big, 0:10:57.000 --> 0:11:00.440 big reason why it really was as you meant, was 0:11:00.480 --> 0:11:02.960 activated off the injured list. They've got twenty one days 0:11:03.000 --> 0:11:05.680 now to decide if they're going to put him on 0:11:05.720 --> 0:11:08.000 the back on the active roster or if they were 0:11:08.040 --> 0:11:09.960 to let him go whatever. But they've got twenty one 0:11:10.040 --> 0:11:12.199 days to make that decision, so he could be back 0:11:12.360 --> 0:11:17.280 this week. They also added O'Shea Duga to the practice squad. 0:11:17.400 --> 0:11:20.040 He was a tackle that was in training camp last year, 0:11:20.840 --> 0:11:23.280 looked okay in camp, then suffered a knee injury, and 0:11:23.600 --> 0:11:26.120 I'm not sure what he's done since, but at least 0:11:26.120 --> 0:11:29.000 he is a tackle who is back in the building. Yeah, 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:31.880 a tackle that understands the offense. You know, he's been 0:11:31.920 --> 0:11:35.680 around it and he's had his moments. Sometimes he plays well. 0:11:35.800 --> 0:11:38.640 Sometimes he looks a little bit like a statue, you know, 0:11:39.120 --> 0:11:40.920 in terms of his ability to move. But he is 0:11:40.960 --> 0:11:45.000 a big, powerful kid, There's no question about that. Yeah. 0:11:45.040 --> 0:11:50.400 So it's it's still definitely a shuffle in terms of 0:11:50.400 --> 0:11:53.600 offensive line play for sure, able body guys to go 0:11:53.640 --> 0:11:58.240 out there and man that tackle position. We'll see, we'll 0:11:58.240 --> 0:12:01.560 see as it unfolds. But uh, and not only not 0:12:01.640 --> 0:12:04.000 only the physical part of it, but there's a lot 0:12:04.040 --> 0:12:06.080 of a lot of things that you have to communicate. 0:12:06.120 --> 0:12:10.160 And even on the road this with the with the COVID, 0:12:10.920 --> 0:12:13.360 the communication is going to be light years different. I mean, 0:12:13.400 --> 0:12:16.199 if they if they were going into Pittsburgh a normal situation, 0:12:16.280 --> 0:12:20.319 normal circumstances with guys that hadn't played much, and you're 0:12:20.320 --> 0:12:22.319 gonna have that crowd going nuts and they're playing the 0:12:22.480 --> 0:12:25.320 you know, playing the music they're blasting all the time, 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:28.160 and you can't hear yourself think that would be brutal. 0:12:28.640 --> 0:12:30.720 But there's not gonna be any of that other than 0:12:30.760 --> 0:12:32.680 the music playing. But there's not gonna be anything like 0:12:32.800 --> 0:12:35.520 that from a crowd standpoint that would inhibit any kind 0:12:35.559 --> 0:12:37.760 of communication. But that's going to have to be on 0:12:37.880 --> 0:12:40.400 point as part of the problem in Baltimore early on, 0:12:40.520 --> 0:12:43.760 looking at that at that tape for a second time 0:12:43.800 --> 0:12:46.520 a while back, to me, there was there were free 0:12:46.600 --> 0:12:49.560 runners between the tackles that shouldn't have been free runners. 0:12:49.559 --> 0:12:52.200 So that is a sigment era you got a block 0:12:52.240 --> 0:12:53.800 from the inside out that would and there were a 0:12:53.840 --> 0:12:56.319 couple of them that would just flat out blown assignment. 0:12:56.720 --> 0:12:59.880 And that's what the offensive line, whoever's in there, they 0:13:00.080 --> 0:13:02.640 to play a clean game in terms of no mental errors, 0:13:03.080 --> 0:13:05.520 no assignment mistakes, and then of course that they can 0:13:05.559 --> 0:13:07.920 do what they did against Tennessee, not giving up any sacks, 0:13:07.960 --> 0:13:10.720 not turning the football over, you know, not being stopped 0:13:10.760 --> 0:13:12.959 on downs they went for at one time on fourth 0:13:12.960 --> 0:13:15.959 down they complete a fourth and five of a great 0:13:16.520 --> 0:13:19.400 improvisational play between Barrow and t Higgins comes from the 0:13:19.400 --> 0:13:21.880 sideline the middle of the field to keep that drive alive. 0:13:21.960 --> 0:13:24.680 So if they do those kind of things, you know 0:13:24.760 --> 0:13:28.040 that that'll be a big, big reason they could win 0:13:28.080 --> 0:13:31.280 a football game. But against Pittsburgh, man, you're talking about 0:13:31.280 --> 0:13:33.800 a massive challenge there to get all that done right 0:13:34.080 --> 0:13:37.560 on the road, at home, on the moon, anywhere, a 0:13:37.640 --> 0:13:39.920 team the Bengals have not been able to beat in 0:13:39.960 --> 0:13:42.480 recent years. The Steelers have won the last ten meetings 0:13:42.480 --> 0:13:44.800 between these two teams, going back to the Andy Dalton 0:13:44.880 --> 0:13:48.000 broken thumb game back in twenty fifteen, even when the 0:13:48.040 --> 0:13:51.840 Steelers didn't have Ben Roethlisberger. Last year, they swept the Bengals. 0:13:51.920 --> 0:13:54.600 Now Ben is back, He's twenty five and seven in 0:13:54.640 --> 0:13:58.880 his career against Cincinnati, which is disgusting. This will beat 0:13:58.960 --> 0:14:03.280 Von Bell's ever Bengals Steelers game. Let's hear from the 0:14:03.320 --> 0:14:05.880 Bengals safety. I don't know much about it. You know, 0:14:05.920 --> 0:14:08.760 I always watched it, so it's new to me now. 0:14:08.840 --> 0:14:11.160 You know. I was walking my dog day in the 0:14:11.200 --> 0:14:13.160 neighbor like saying, you know, it's a big game. I 0:14:13.240 --> 0:14:15.200 was like, yeah, I know, but he's like, it's different 0:14:15.200 --> 0:14:16.800 being a thingers. I'm like, what are you talking about. 0:14:17.559 --> 0:14:21.120 He's like, no, it's different, like hate. I just felt 0:14:21.160 --> 0:14:23.520 like it from him. I was like, man, this is tense. 0:14:23.640 --> 0:14:28.560 I love it. It is intense. It is and he's right, 0:14:28.800 --> 0:14:32.240 we hate the Steelers, but it's a hatred rooted in 0:14:32.360 --> 0:14:36.240 jealousy because they have what we want. Six Super Bowl 0:14:36.320 --> 0:14:39.800 rings and a team that's eight no right now and 0:14:40.120 --> 0:14:43.120 Bengals overall against the Steelers thirty five and sixty six 0:14:43.160 --> 0:14:46.600 in franchise history, sixteen and thirty four at Pittsburgh lost 0:14:46.680 --> 0:14:50.240 more than two times as many as they've won. I 0:14:50.720 --> 0:14:53.480 gotta start turning that around. I gotta start turning that 0:14:53.520 --> 0:14:57.320 around now and that's the thing. Then Mike Tomlin basically 0:14:57.360 --> 0:15:01.040 tied Marty Schottenheimer's record fourteen eight years to start a 0:15:01.080 --> 0:15:05.480 career without a losing season, well sweeping the Bengals last year. 0:15:05.760 --> 0:15:09.680 With those with that quarterback performance, the Pittsburgh steel A 0:15:09.760 --> 0:15:14.320 defense basically one football games for them. They were crippled offense, 0:15:14.360 --> 0:15:16.920 so one of the worst offenses in the National Football League, 0:15:17.080 --> 0:15:19.200 and the Bengals know all about that, Pittsburgh steel A 0:15:19.200 --> 0:15:22.000 defense winning a couple of games against Cincinnati last year 0:15:22.000 --> 0:15:25.640 for sure. Carlos Dunlap is gone, but Sam Hubbard is 0:15:25.680 --> 0:15:28.360 back this week after missing the last three games with 0:15:28.400 --> 0:15:31.400 an elbow injury, and Sam says he'll be good to 0:15:31.440 --> 0:15:35.480 go on Sunday. I'm all in. I'm feeling good. I 0:15:35.600 --> 0:15:38.280 trust it and felt good at practice yesterday. We got 0:15:38.280 --> 0:15:41.720 pads on today, participate off, feel good. I'm just getting 0:15:41.760 --> 0:15:44.400 ready to get the game planned down and go ahead 0:15:44.400 --> 0:15:47.480 and beat the Steelers. I guess, like when you heard it, 0:15:47.520 --> 0:15:50.480 you knew right away something was wrong. Was this about 0:15:50.480 --> 0:15:54.240 the timeline that you had in mind when they first 0:15:54.240 --> 0:15:57.240 told you what you did? Ah? Yeah, I mean you 0:15:57.280 --> 0:16:00.080 can see it on film. It was pretty gnarly injury, 0:16:00.320 --> 0:16:03.800 dislocated my elbow. Lap and I talked. He did the 0:16:03.840 --> 0:16:06.840 same thing back in the day. It's not very pleasant, 0:16:06.880 --> 0:16:10.000 but uh, you know, pass back in. But three to 0:16:10.040 --> 0:16:13.080 four weeks it was kind of the timeline we set 0:16:13.120 --> 0:16:16.360 and yeah, we stuck to it and worked that well. 0:16:16.640 --> 0:16:18.520 Carl Lawson leads to the Bengals with three and a 0:16:18.560 --> 0:16:21.560 half sacks. When Sam Hubbard was out, it was very 0:16:21.600 --> 0:16:24.920 easy for opposing teams to give a little extra attention 0:16:25.080 --> 0:16:28.320 to Carl Lawson. That becomes much more difficult with ninety 0:16:28.360 --> 0:16:31.200 four on the field. It does. I mean, you can 0:16:31.240 --> 0:16:34.160 slide the line Carl Lawson's way. Well, when you slide 0:16:34.160 --> 0:16:36.920 the line away from the other tackle, that tackle's got 0:16:37.080 --> 0:16:39.320 the other defensive end one on one and you have 0:16:39.400 --> 0:16:42.840 to feel comfortable at that matchup. Well, Sam Hubbard makes 0:16:42.840 --> 0:16:48.480 that comfort less comfortable. So, you know, I think he 0:16:48.520 --> 0:16:50.480 won't be in a situation like Gino is. I don't 0:16:50.520 --> 0:16:52.360 think he'll be a one armed paper hanger out there. 0:16:52.720 --> 0:16:55.080 I think he'll be in a much much different dynamic 0:16:55.200 --> 0:16:58.080 in terms of what he's trying to get done, and 0:16:58.160 --> 0:17:01.160 he'll be wearing a big, you know, contraption to make 0:17:01.200 --> 0:17:05.280 sure that it doesn't hyper extend again, Barry Bonds elbow 0:17:05.720 --> 0:17:08.240 contraption that looking that kind of looking it's like a 0:17:08.280 --> 0:17:10.879 knee brace on your elbow exactly. It's like almost like 0:17:10.920 --> 0:17:14.120 an alien leg or something on your elbow. Um, but 0:17:14.400 --> 0:17:16.560 you know he'll have to be wearing something like that, 0:17:16.680 --> 0:17:19.159 and I'm sure he's got most of his range of 0:17:19.200 --> 0:17:21.119 motion back and a good good bit of his strength 0:17:21.119 --> 0:17:24.000 and they wouldn't have him out there, so, um, it'll 0:17:24.040 --> 0:17:27.080 be good. But you know, if you're pass rushing at 0:17:27.080 --> 0:17:29.720 particularly a defensive end, you have to grab and pull 0:17:29.760 --> 0:17:33.040 and rip people, and it's a it's a it's a challenge. 0:17:33.040 --> 0:17:35.919 So if if your elbow isn't right, it can be 0:17:35.960 --> 0:17:39.240 a major, major challenge. So I think Sam will be 0:17:39.240 --> 0:17:41.439 able to get it done and fight through it. And 0:17:41.800 --> 0:17:44.200 you need all the able bodies you possibly can out there. 0:17:44.240 --> 0:17:47.879 I mean, Ben Roethlisberg gets the ball out of his 0:17:47.920 --> 0:17:51.959 hand quickly anyway, So the more guys you can get 0:17:52.240 --> 0:17:55.280 up the football field in his face that much quicker, 0:17:55.320 --> 0:17:58.720 the better off you are. Carlsson does have thirteen quarterback 0:17:58.840 --> 0:18:01.600 hits this year. He's tied for sixth in the NFL 0:18:02.000 --> 0:18:05.040 in that category. I was on a podcast last week 0:18:05.080 --> 0:18:07.480 as a guest where I was asked about the biggest 0:18:07.520 --> 0:18:11.160 priority for next year, and up until recently, I would 0:18:11.160 --> 0:18:13.000 have said, well, you got to continue to beef up 0:18:13.040 --> 0:18:15.800 the offensive line, and that remains true. But to me, 0:18:16.000 --> 0:18:18.840 the bigger need now, whether it's the draft or free agency, 0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:21.639 is a pass rusher. I agree with you, you know, 0:18:21.680 --> 0:18:24.840 and I think I think both lines of scrimmage need 0:18:24.880 --> 0:18:27.960 to be worked on for sure. This game is a 0:18:27.960 --> 0:18:31.520 great example of it. Right now. The Pittsburgh Steelers have 0:18:31.560 --> 0:18:35.160 a plus twenty two sack ratio. They've got thirty two 0:18:35.280 --> 0:18:38.600 quarterback sacks, most in the National Football League. They've allowed ten, 0:18:39.119 --> 0:18:41.720 tied for second fewest. Plus twenty two is the best 0:18:41.720 --> 0:18:45.119 in the NFL. That plus twenty two sack ratio, you 0:18:45.200 --> 0:18:49.560 take away the ten, that ratio is tied for eighth 0:18:49.560 --> 0:18:53.280 best in the NFL in terms of sacks that other 0:18:53.280 --> 0:18:56.040 people might have gotten. So I mean, it's it's crazy. 0:18:56.280 --> 0:18:58.600 And then and then you look at the Bengals. They're 0:18:58.640 --> 0:19:01.800 minus seventeen ratio, tied with Jacksonville, the worst in the 0:19:01.880 --> 0:19:05.320 National Football League. They've got eleven quarterback sacks, like you said, 0:19:05.320 --> 0:19:08.600 tied for twenty fifth, and they they've generated they've gotten 0:19:08.920 --> 0:19:11.960 allowed twenty eight, tied for second most in the league. 0:19:12.000 --> 0:19:14.200 So you know, right at the line of scrimmage, both 0:19:14.200 --> 0:19:16.359 lines of scrimmage, you know, pressuring in the quarterback and 0:19:16.400 --> 0:19:20.480 protecting the quarterback. We were talking about upgrading the talent 0:19:20.560 --> 0:19:24.199 level on both sides of that football. There up front 0:19:24.680 --> 0:19:26.720 where games are won and lost, you know. I mean, 0:19:27.080 --> 0:19:29.960 you can have great players of skill positions, you can 0:19:29.960 --> 0:19:32.800 have tremendous linebackers and guys in the back end. If 0:19:32.800 --> 0:19:36.159 you're deficient up front, you're a hurting unit. I know 0:19:36.320 --> 0:19:39.120 that the Steelers during the years that we've been doing 0:19:39.119 --> 0:19:41.159 the games together have almost always had one of the 0:19:41.200 --> 0:19:43.879 better offensive lines in the NFL, and their former O 0:19:44.040 --> 0:19:47.080 line coach, Mike Munchak, was a big reason in your opinion, 0:19:47.440 --> 0:19:49.960 has it dropped off much since he left for Denver? 0:19:50.160 --> 0:19:53.040 You know, they still have three Pro Bowl you know, 0:19:53.400 --> 0:19:58.600 talent level players to Castro, Pouncey and Villaneueva. I think 0:19:58.600 --> 0:20:01.880 though Carl Lawson gives Villain a wave of trouble. He's 0:20:01.960 --> 0:20:04.720 so long, six foot eight in that low center of 0:20:04.800 --> 0:20:07.840 gravity that Lawson has. I remember Villain Auaver struggled with 0:20:07.920 --> 0:20:09.840 him the first time he went up against him, he 0:20:09.800 --> 0:20:12.680 had that real good body lean and he's able to still, 0:20:13.040 --> 0:20:16.080 you know, maintain a speed rush with that body lean, 0:20:16.160 --> 0:20:18.280 and villan Auaver was trying to like push him down 0:20:18.280 --> 0:20:21.240 on the back and having real problems with him. So 0:20:21.800 --> 0:20:24.160 I'm going to be interested to see that that matchup 0:20:24.160 --> 0:20:26.119 a little bit. I don't think villan Auave is playing 0:20:26.160 --> 0:20:28.480 at the level that he was, but I think the 0:20:28.560 --> 0:20:32.120 Castro and Pouncy Pouncey had some injury issues last year. 0:20:32.440 --> 0:20:36.400 I still think they're playing pretty well. But overall, I'd 0:20:36.440 --> 0:20:39.680 say it's still a top ten offensive line, but at 0:20:39.680 --> 0:20:42.480 one time it was top five or maybe even better. 0:20:42.760 --> 0:20:46.000 I think it's maybe a little bit less, but still 0:20:46.119 --> 0:20:49.480 a pretty darn good unit. Pro Football Focus grades Pittsburgh 0:20:49.520 --> 0:20:52.680 Z line number nine in the NFL. So far this year. 0:20:52.720 --> 0:20:57.080 They've got Alejandro villan Auava rated lower than both Jonah 0:20:57.119 --> 0:20:59.560 Williams and Bobby Hart for his play at tackle. Yeah, 0:20:59.600 --> 0:21:02.280 I think he has struggled a little bit more this year. 0:21:02.320 --> 0:21:06.040 And what he's doing is he's turning his shoulder pads 0:21:06.080 --> 0:21:08.840 to the sideline parallel, you know, and he's given a 0:21:08.840 --> 0:21:13.920 short corner. You know, he's really he's setting two vertically. 0:21:14.000 --> 0:21:16.239 You know, he's almost like dropped him back in on 0:21:16.280 --> 0:21:18.600 his set and then turning his shoulders, and he's so big, 0:21:18.640 --> 0:21:20.879