WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Something To Talk About 0:00:03.600 --> 0:00:06.480 Hike and everybody. I'm Dan Horde and thanks for downloading 0:00:06.519 --> 0:00:11.240 the Bengals Booth podcast. The Let's give them something to 0:00:11.280 --> 0:00:17.439 talk about. Addition, as we discuss the verbal diarrhea being 0:00:17.520 --> 0:00:20.599 spewed from coast to coast about the Bengals in the 0:00:20.680 --> 0:00:25.040 possible number one pick in April's draft Joe Burrow And yes, 0:00:25.720 --> 0:00:30.880 I said verbal diarrhea. A Dan Horde rant is coming up, 0:00:31.600 --> 0:00:33.960 and with the NFL Scouting Combine a little more than 0:00:34.000 --> 0:00:36.519 a week away, I'll pick the brain of the Bengals 0:00:36.560 --> 0:00:40.840 Director of College Scouting Mike Potts. The Combined, by the way, 0:00:41.240 --> 0:00:43.760 will be the bengals first opportunity to sit in a 0:00:43.840 --> 0:00:47.640 room and have an extended conversation with Joe Burrow and 0:00:47.800 --> 0:00:51.280 many of the top prospects in this year's draft. All 0:00:51.320 --> 0:00:53.680 of that is straight ahead, but first, here's a quick 0:00:53.720 --> 0:00:56.240 reminder that you can have the latest edition of this 0:00:56.320 --> 0:01:00.600 podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, or compute by 0:01:00.640 --> 0:01:06.399 subscribing on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or pod Bean. 0:01:06.880 --> 0:01:12.840 It's the greatest thing since blowpops. So I got home 0:01:12.880 --> 0:01:15.560 from work last night and sitting at my desk was 0:01:15.600 --> 0:01:19.479 a grape blowpop courtesy of my thirteen year old son. 0:01:20.240 --> 0:01:24.080 You remember the Blowpop. It's two treats in one, a 0:01:24.200 --> 0:01:28.920 hard candy shell with a chewy bubble gum center. It's 0:01:28.959 --> 0:01:32.240 the Charms Candy Company's best selling product of all time, 0:01:32.280 --> 0:01:35.720 and I can see why they've been making kids and 0:01:35.920 --> 0:01:40.200 dentists very happy for more than half a century. Now, 0:01:40.280 --> 0:01:44.280 let's get to football. By now, I'm guessing you've heard 0:01:44.400 --> 0:01:48.200 or read story suggesting that Joe Burrow does not want 0:01:48.200 --> 0:01:51.280 to play for the Bengals, or that the Heisman Trophy 0:01:51.280 --> 0:01:55.200 winner shouldn't want to play for the Bengals. Let's start 0:01:55.200 --> 0:01:58.840 with the first part, the notion that the LSU quarterback 0:01:58.920 --> 0:02:02.840 does not want to play in Cincinnati. I've listened to 0:02:02.880 --> 0:02:06.360 three recent interviews featuring Joe Burrow. He was on the 0:02:06.560 --> 0:02:10.000 part in My Take podcast in December, the day after 0:02:10.040 --> 0:02:13.640 winning the Heisman, and he did two national radio shows 0:02:14.040 --> 0:02:17.480 during Super Bowl week, the Dan Patrick Show and The 0:02:17.560 --> 0:02:21.800 Rich Eisen Show. I recommend listening to all three interviews, 0:02:22.280 --> 0:02:26.000 especially the part of My Take interview from December sixteenth, 0:02:26.040 --> 0:02:28.960 where Joe shares some great stories about his two years 0:02:28.960 --> 0:02:31.600 at LSU. It's at the very end of a long 0:02:31.680 --> 0:02:38.160 podcast In all three interviews, Burrow speaks enthusiastically about potentially 0:02:38.240 --> 0:02:42.440 being the number one overall pick in this year's draft. 0:02:43.080 --> 0:02:47.000 The only possible thing that could raise any doubts about 0:02:47.080 --> 0:02:49.760 his desire to play for the Bengals happened on The 0:02:49.840 --> 0:02:54.040 Dan Patrick Show on January thirty first, when Patrick asked 0:02:54.160 --> 0:02:58.200 if being the number one pick or going to the 0:02:58.320 --> 0:03:04.200 right team is most porton. Burrow answered as follows a 0:03:04.240 --> 0:03:07.560 combination of both. You want to go number one, but 0:03:07.720 --> 0:03:10.399 you also want to go to a great organization that's 0:03:10.400 --> 0:03:15.160 committed to winning, committed to winning Super Bowls. Because he 0:03:15.200 --> 0:03:18.320 didn't specifically say I want to go number one and 0:03:18.440 --> 0:03:22.040 be the guy that turns things around in Cincinnati, members 0:03:22.080 --> 0:03:24.680 of the media have their story and they are running 0:03:24.720 --> 0:03:29.040 wild with it, and their logic usually goes as follows. 0:03:29.840 --> 0:03:34.000 Carson Palmer quit the Bengals and since retiring, has questioned 0:03:34.000 --> 0:03:37.440 their commitment to winning. Joe Burrow is training for the 0:03:37.560 --> 0:03:45.040 draft under Carson's brother, Jordan Palmer. A plus B equals clickbait. 0:03:46.240 --> 0:03:48.800 Never Mind that a few weeks ago, Burrow said the 0:03:48.840 --> 0:03:53.000 following to Bloomberg News quote, whoever wants to pay me 0:03:53.040 --> 0:03:55.640 the money to play the game of football. I'll play 0:03:55.640 --> 0:04:00.440 for him. It doesn't matter to me or that. In Midjauary, 0:04:00.560 --> 0:04:04.560 his dad, Jimmy Burrow said in a radio interview quote, 0:04:05.120 --> 0:04:08.040 if the Bengals do draft him, he's going to be happy. 0:04:08.440 --> 0:04:11.080 He'll look at it as a challenge, but he'll be 0:04:11.120 --> 0:04:14.160 confident that eventually they can win a lot of games 0:04:14.200 --> 0:04:18.680 there in Cincinnati. Now, I don't know about you, but 0:04:18.839 --> 0:04:22.839 I trust Joe's dad more than I trust Mike Florio 0:04:23.000 --> 0:04:27.280 from Pro Football Talk. Still, that didn't stop PFT from 0:04:27.400 --> 0:04:31.640 using the following headline on February eighth. Does Joe Burrow 0:04:31.760 --> 0:04:35.719 hope the Bengals don't draft him? They follow that headline 0:04:35.760 --> 0:04:38.279 with six hundred and thirty four words on the subject 0:04:38.720 --> 0:04:43.600 when they could have gone with four. We have no idea. 0:04:44.160 --> 0:04:46.440 Media outlets have a lot of time and space to 0:04:46.520 --> 0:04:49.279 fill between now and the draft, and they're always looking 0:04:49.320 --> 0:04:54.680 for stories with sizzle. Thankfully, there's a chance that this 0:04:54.720 --> 0:04:59.400 one will die soon. It's standard operating procedure for the 0:04:59.440 --> 0:05:02.640 top draft prospects to hold a news conference at the 0:05:02.720 --> 0:05:06.240 NFL Scouting Combine, which gets under way a week from Sunday. 0:05:07.000 --> 0:05:11.400 Here's hoping Joe Burrow buries this story much like he 0:05:11.520 --> 0:05:14.960 buried Oklahoma in the National semifinal game when he threw 0:05:15.040 --> 0:05:19.440 seven touchdown passes in the first half. Now, let's get 0:05:19.480 --> 0:05:22.599 to the second notion that media outlets are hammering that 0:05:22.720 --> 0:05:26.680 Joe Burrow shouldn't want to play for the Bengals. Listen, 0:05:26.760 --> 0:05:29.400 I get it. The team hasn't won a playoff game 0:05:29.480 --> 0:05:33.200 since January of nineteen ninety one, and they've certainly made 0:05:33.200 --> 0:05:36.520 their share of mistakes since their five year playoff streak 0:05:36.640 --> 0:05:40.640 ended in two fifteen. But it wasn't that long ago 0:05:41.160 --> 0:05:44.560 that the Bengals were being widely praised for their astute 0:05:44.600 --> 0:05:47.560 roster building. It took me all of about a five 0:05:47.560 --> 0:05:52.080 minute Google search to find the following four stories. NFL 0:05:52.200 --> 0:05:57.520 dot Com August of two twelve. Cincinnati Bengals suddenly resemble 0:05:57.600 --> 0:06:02.279 a model franchise since an Eddie Enquirer October of two 0:06:02.320 --> 0:06:07.080 thousand and fifteen, the Bengals became the beacon of consistency 0:06:07.440 --> 0:06:12.640 and a role model for roster construction. CBS Sports, also 0:06:12.720 --> 0:06:17.080 October of two thousand and fifteen. Agents take how the 0:06:17.160 --> 0:06:22.360 Bengals turned into one of the NFL's model franchises. Yahoo 0:06:22.440 --> 0:06:27.080 Sports June of two thousand and sixteen, Bengals might have 0:06:27.640 --> 0:06:32.080 the deepest roster in the NFL. I'm sure I could 0:06:32.080 --> 0:06:35.000 have found a dozen more stories from that time period 0:06:35.240 --> 0:06:40.000 that basically say the same thing. So what's happened since? Well, 0:06:40.040 --> 0:06:43.240 the Bengals had a bad draft in two thousand and fifteen. 0:06:43.400 --> 0:06:47.200 Cedric o'boyhey and Jake Fisher didn't work out, making the 0:06:47.200 --> 0:06:51.680 departure of Andrew Whitworth especially damaging. Then in the next 0:06:51.760 --> 0:06:55.119 four drafts they had brutal luck were their first round 0:06:55.120 --> 0:06:59.560 picks as will Jackson, John Ross, Billy Price, and Jonah 0:06:59.560 --> 0:07:04.240 William missed much or all of their rookie seasons. And 0:07:04.320 --> 0:07:07.440 while the Bengals historically have not gone after high priced 0:07:07.480 --> 0:07:10.880 free agents, they basically did that two years ago when 0:07:10.880 --> 0:07:14.080 they picked up Cordy Glenn. Technically it was a trade, 0:07:14.480 --> 0:07:17.280 but Cordy had three years left on one of the 0:07:17.360 --> 0:07:21.200 priciest offensive line deals in the NFL. When the Bengals 0:07:21.200 --> 0:07:25.320 acquired him. This year, he spent nearly two months in 0:07:25.440 --> 0:07:29.800 concussion protocol. Now, I've been broadcasting the games for nine years. 0:07:30.240 --> 0:07:33.080 In that timeframe, the Bengals are one of only ten 0:07:33.200 --> 0:07:37.680 teams to make the playoffs. Five times their winning percentage, 0:07:38.080 --> 0:07:42.080 despite going two and fourteen this year, still ranks thirteenth 0:07:42.120 --> 0:07:45.920 best in the NFL. None of that is good enough. 0:07:46.560 --> 0:07:49.360 The goal is to win the Super Bowl, and with 0:07:49.480 --> 0:07:52.880 the first pick in this year's draft, the Bengals are 0:07:52.880 --> 0:07:55.760 in a position to acquire the type of player that 0:07:55.880 --> 0:08:00.480 can ultimately help them get there. All right, let's get 0:08:00.480 --> 0:08:04.600 to this week's guest. Mike Potts is the Bengals director 0:08:04.640 --> 0:08:08.120 of college scouting. He joined the team in twenty fifteen 0:08:08.200 --> 0:08:11.480 after spending four years working in the scouting department for 0:08:11.520 --> 0:08:15.880 the Atlanta Falcons. With the combine coming up shortly followed 0:08:15.880 --> 0:08:18.560 by on Caps Pro Days, I thought it would be 0:08:18.640 --> 0:08:21.520 a great time to pick his brain about the process 0:08:21.560 --> 0:08:25.360 of putting together this year's draft class. Mike, the NFL 0:08:25.400 --> 0:08:27.840 Scouting Combine begins in a little more than a week. 0:08:28.000 --> 0:08:31.520 Because halving the number one overall pick raise the stakes 0:08:31.760 --> 0:08:35.240 or change anything about the combine from your perspective, I mean, 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:37.559 I think it makes it a lot more important obviously 0:08:37.559 --> 0:08:39.719 for us, because you don't want to be picking at 0:08:39.720 --> 0:08:43.120 that spot every year. Hopefully we're never picking there again. 0:08:43.160 --> 0:08:45.079 It's obviously a rough season that you have to go through. 0:08:45.120 --> 0:08:47.240 To get to that point. But that's the spot that 0:08:47.280 --> 0:08:50.600 we're in, and to answer your question, it is important. 0:08:50.720 --> 0:08:53.160 You know, you can obviously narrow it down to fewer 0:08:53.200 --> 0:08:56.959 guys as opposed to if you're picking, you know, at 0:08:56.960 --> 0:08:58.800 the latter half of the first round, there's a lot 0:08:58.800 --> 0:09:00.760 more guys that you have to have rank and see 0:09:00.800 --> 0:09:03.480 how the board falls, So it is easier to narrow 0:09:03.480 --> 0:09:06.880 it down to a smaller number of guys. But it's 0:09:07.000 --> 0:09:11.199 it's obviously a pick where you're gonna want a difference 0:09:11.200 --> 0:09:13.480 making guy that can that can change the franchise for you. 0:09:13.559 --> 0:09:16.360 So so it's obviously a very important selection for us, 0:09:16.360 --> 0:09:18.280 and we're gonna do all the homework that we need 0:09:18.320 --> 0:09:19.880 to do to make sure we make the right choice. 0:09:20.200 --> 0:09:23.040 You mentioned having guy's ranked last year. For example, when 0:09:23.040 --> 0:09:26.920 you're taking the eleventh choice, you can list guys one 0:09:27.000 --> 0:09:29.760 through eleven, and then when it's your pick, maybe number 0:09:29.760 --> 0:09:31.920 four is still there, maybe number six is still there, 0:09:32.320 --> 0:09:34.720 whatever that helps you make your choice at number eleven. 0:09:35.040 --> 0:09:36.960 You've got number one this year, but you've also got 0:09:37.040 --> 0:09:39.720 number thirty three, So will you do a one through 0:09:39.880 --> 0:09:43.240 thirty three in preparation for that second pick? We will, 0:09:43.240 --> 0:09:46.240 and even further. You know, well, we're as of right now, 0:09:46.280 --> 0:09:48.120 we're picking at sixty five at the top of the 0:09:48.160 --> 0:09:50.560 third round, and then we'll see exactly what our number 0:09:50.640 --> 0:09:52.560 is going to be at the top of the fourth round, 0:09:52.559 --> 0:09:55.800 because there'll be some compensatory selections there that end end 0:09:55.840 --> 0:09:58.680 up getting released here over the next several weeks as 0:09:58.720 --> 0:10:00.480 far as um you know, at the end of the 0:10:00.520 --> 0:10:02.959 third round, so that'll push us back a little bit 0:10:03.000 --> 0:10:05.600 from that traditional it would be the ninety seventh spot. 0:10:05.640 --> 0:10:07.440 We may be at one hundred or something like that, 0:10:08.360 --> 0:10:11.960 but we'll probably stack the board up to at least 0:10:11.960 --> 0:10:14.240 our our fourth round pick, and then there's there's a 0:10:14.240 --> 0:10:16.080 lot of moving parts from there, you know, depending on 0:10:16.160 --> 0:10:19.040 what you take at one or thirty three, or if 0:10:19.040 --> 0:10:21.000 you move around, if you trade up, if you trade back, 0:10:21.320 --> 0:10:24.160 you may address certain positions and then we'll readdress or 0:10:24.440 --> 0:10:27.880 I'm sorry, we'll reorder the board there from there as 0:10:27.880 --> 0:10:30.560 far as by position, and you know, we may value 0:10:30.920 --> 0:10:34.280 a certain position over another one according to what we 0:10:34.320 --> 0:10:36.440 did on day one of the draft. We're speaking to 0:10:36.480 --> 0:10:39.720 the Bengals director of college Scouting, Mike Potts. From your perspective, 0:10:39.760 --> 0:10:44.440 what is the most valuable part of the combine. I 0:10:44.480 --> 0:10:48.720 think it's the medicals for sure, you know, to get 0:10:48.760 --> 0:10:51.280 that many three hundred and some players all in the 0:10:51.320 --> 0:10:55.280 same spot, and Indianapolis is a phenomenal location for it. 0:10:55.480 --> 0:10:58.240 The logistics and you know, everything that they have ironed 0:10:58.240 --> 0:11:01.600 out from for doing it there for a long time 0:11:01.640 --> 0:11:04.240 is uh, you know, they really do a great job 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:06.679 with it. And that's that's the majority of the information 0:11:06.920 --> 0:11:10.280 we get is the medical. That's the that's the most 0:11:10.320 --> 0:11:12.160 important thing, I would say. And then and then from 0:11:12.200 --> 0:11:15.120 there the interviews, dialing in on on who these players 0:11:15.120 --> 0:11:17.520 are as people. You know, we talked through their coaches, 0:11:17.559 --> 0:11:19.960 we talk to their support staff when we go through 0:11:20.000 --> 0:11:24.720 these schools as scouts on visits. But it's uh, you know, 0:11:24.760 --> 0:11:26.480 it means a lot more looking at the player in 0:11:26.520 --> 0:11:30.000 the eye and hearing it from them, so that that 0:11:30.080 --> 0:11:32.600 part of it is is big. And then all obviously 0:11:32.640 --> 0:11:35.120 the athletic testing is a huge part of it. But 0:11:35.160 --> 0:11:36.760 if I had to, if I had to say, one 0:11:36.920 --> 0:11:38.800 was the you know, the most beneficial thing that we 0:11:38.800 --> 0:11:40.960 get out of it will be the medical. It's a 0:11:41.000 --> 0:11:43.400 good follow up to my next question because the staff 0:11:43.440 --> 0:11:46.040 got to coach some of the top prospects at the 0:11:46.080 --> 0:11:50.200 Senior Bowl, including quarterback Justin Herbert, but Joe Burrow to 0:11:50.400 --> 0:11:53.120 a tone of Violela, Chase Young, and some of the 0:11:53.120 --> 0:11:56.000 other top candidates for the draft. We're not in mobile. 0:11:56.400 --> 0:11:59.680 Will this be your first opportunity or the team's first opportunity. 0:11:59.679 --> 0:12:02.360 It's in a room and visit with those guys. It 0:12:02.400 --> 0:12:05.240 will be. Yeah. You know, sometimes as a scout, when 0:12:05.280 --> 0:12:07.760 you go through to a smaller school, they'll bring that player, 0:12:07.840 --> 0:12:09.760 they may only have one prospect, and they'll bring that 0:12:09.800 --> 0:12:12.040 player in to talk to you face to face during 0:12:12.040 --> 0:12:13.959 the fall. But it's not that way. You know, when 0:12:14.040 --> 0:12:16.719 when you're at a big SEC, a SEC big ten 0:12:16.760 --> 0:12:19.280 type of school, you know they have you know, sometimes 0:12:19.280 --> 0:12:22.400 fifteen to twenty prospects that that could end up having 0:12:22.400 --> 0:12:24.760 a chance of getting drafted. So you know, that's that's 0:12:24.760 --> 0:12:26.960 not the way it works. So so yeah, this combine 0:12:27.040 --> 0:12:29.160 is the first time we will get a chance to 0:12:29.200 --> 0:12:31.040 talk to the guys that we haven't already interviewed at 0:12:31.040 --> 0:12:34.640 the at the All Star Games in January. The interview 0:12:34.679 --> 0:12:37.520 process at the combine is intriguing to be because it's 0:12:37.520 --> 0:12:41.920 like fifteen minutes of speed dating. Explain how that works, yeah, 0:12:41.920 --> 0:12:45.439 and it's it's actually it was changed this year to 0:12:46.280 --> 0:12:48.200 we used to get sixty interviews. Now we only get 0:12:48.200 --> 0:12:51.920 forty five, and they lengthen them from fifteen minutes to 0:12:51.920 --> 0:12:55.199 eighteen minutes now. Um, So that that was part of 0:12:55.240 --> 0:12:58.360 the logistical adjustments they had to make with moving the 0:12:58.440 --> 0:13:01.679 workouts from during the day to now at nighttime and 0:13:01.760 --> 0:13:06.040 prime time on TV. UM. So that uh, you know 0:13:06.080 --> 0:13:08.160 that that throws those a little bit of a wrench 0:13:08.200 --> 0:13:11.040 in our schedule, but um, but you know, we'll adjust, 0:13:11.080 --> 0:13:13.079 and it is it is nice to have an additional 0:13:13.120 --> 0:13:15.600 three minutes with these guys, you know, maybe some extra 0:13:15.600 --> 0:13:17.760 tape that we can throw on to ask them a 0:13:17.760 --> 0:13:20.800 specific question about, you know, whatever the play may have 0:13:20.840 --> 0:13:23.800 been on such and such game. Um. You know, in 0:13:23.800 --> 0:13:25.760 the third quarter, you know, you can really dial in 0:13:25.800 --> 0:13:27.880 on some of those details. You can get a good 0:13:27.880 --> 0:13:32.360 feel for their personality, their intelligence. Um, you know, even 0:13:32.440 --> 0:13:35.520 even some of their leaderships, leadership and charisma will shine 0:13:35.559 --> 0:13:38.240 through in that setting. So it's really beneficial. I know 0:13:38.240 --> 0:13:40.800 it's only in this case eighteen minutes fifteen minutes in 0:13:40.840 --> 0:13:43.720 the past, but you do with with interviewing those guys 0:13:43.720 --> 0:13:46.600 back to back to back, you can make comparisons and 0:13:46.600 --> 0:13:48.960 and it's uh, it's really beneficial for us. I think 0:13:49.160 --> 0:13:50.680 I think you get more out of it than you 0:13:50.679 --> 0:13:53.880 would think, you know, just just thinking about it going 0:13:53.920 --> 0:13:56.400 in with um, you know, having never been in one 0:13:56.440 --> 0:13:59.120 of those, uh, one of those interviews, I think you 0:13:59.200 --> 0:14:01.320 do get a good out of it. But then there'll 0:14:01.360 --> 0:14:03.360 be other guys that we want to bring into the 0:14:03.400 --> 0:14:07.839 facility on a on a visit into into Cincinnati to 0:14:07.920 --> 0:14:10.960 our facility to do more work on in those interviews. 0:14:11.000 --> 0:14:13.880 Do you have a standard list of questions that you 0:14:13.960 --> 0:14:17.840 basically ask everybody or is it highly tailored to each player? 0:14:18.200 --> 0:14:20.280 A little bit of both. There there's some basic questions 0:14:20.280 --> 0:14:21.360 that we like to get out of the way in 0:14:21.400 --> 0:14:23.040 the beginning, you know, get the guy talk and get 0:14:23.120 --> 0:14:27.320 them comfortable, UM, and then we'll we'll dive into um 0:14:27.360 --> 0:14:30.840 you know, like I said, the early portion of the 0:14:31.160 --> 0:14:35.200 interview will be more so their personality intelligence, just basic 0:14:35.280 --> 0:14:38.040 questions like that. UM. Some of them are repeats and 0:14:38.280 --> 0:14:40.040 some of them are are a little more tailored to 0:14:40.080 --> 0:14:44.400 the guy. And then when we when we have him go, 0:14:44.680 --> 0:14:46.240 you know, look at the tape with the position coach, 0:14:46.280 --> 0:14:49.560 it'll be more specifically tailored to that guy, and and uh, 0:14:49.680 --> 0:14:52.200 you know how he learns. You know, they'll they'll tell 0:14:52.280 --> 0:14:54.840 us about their offense or defense and just talking through 0:14:54.920 --> 0:14:57.440 x's nose. And a lot of times the players are 0:14:57.440 --> 0:14:59.240 a lot more they're a lot more comfortable in that 0:14:59.240 --> 0:15:01.800 setting talking about football. Then they then they maybe are 0:15:02.280 --> 0:15:05.320 things off the field. So it's a it's a good process. 0:15:05.520 --> 0:15:08.200 We're talking to the Bengals Director of college Scouting Mike Potts. 0:15:08.280 --> 0:15:12.000 After the Combine, the scouts and the coaches will go 0:15:12.040 --> 0:15:14.600 to pro days from coast to coast. You'll get to 0:15:14.600 --> 0:15:17.000 see players that were not invited to the Combine. But 0:15:17.200 --> 0:15:20.280 is there anything else about the pro days specifically that 0:15:20.360 --> 0:15:23.840 you find valuable? I think, um so. So I'll sit 0:15:23.880 --> 0:15:26.040 down with with all of our position coaches and all 0:15:26.080 --> 0:15:28.920 of our scouts at the Combine. A lot of what 0:15:28.960 --> 0:15:32.400 we do is based on guys that maybe didn't work 0:15:32.400 --> 0:15:34.960 out of the Combine for a medical reason or whatever 0:15:35.040 --> 0:15:37.400 the case may be. And so that would be a 0:15:37.440 --> 0:15:39.640 guy that you know, some of our coaches or scouts 0:15:39.640 --> 0:15:42.920 haven't seen in person, so we'll schedule it that way. 0:15:43.120 --> 0:15:45.440 Um So, it may be a guy that we're seeing 0:15:45.480 --> 0:15:47.720 work out. You know up close and personal for the 0:15:47.720 --> 0:15:50.520 first time. So that's that's one big benefit we get. 0:15:50.600 --> 0:15:52.200 And then you know, if it's a you know, I 0:15:52.480 --> 0:15:55.080 didn't I didn't go in every school in the country 0:15:55.160 --> 0:15:57.440 this year as a scout. So if it's a school 0:15:57.440 --> 0:16:00.720 that maybe I didn't hit during the fall, and you know, 0:16:00.800 --> 0:16:02.920 likewise with with some of our other scouts and coaches, 0:16:02.960 --> 0:16:04.880 they may have a connection on the coaching staff or 0:16:05.120 --> 0:16:06.960 support staff at one of those schools, so you can 0:16:07.000 --> 0:16:10.080 follow up and do more homework on the prospect's personality 0:16:10.120 --> 0:16:11.920 and things like that, and you know, it's just it's 0:16:11.960 --> 0:16:16.920 just more of you know, to further further the amount 0:16:16.920 --> 0:16:19.400 of amount of information we get on the guys as 0:16:19.440 --> 0:16:23.320 both players and people. Your territory during the season includes 0:16:23.400 --> 0:16:26.720 the SEC. So roughly, how many times do you think 0:16:26.760 --> 0:16:30.520 you saw Joe Burrow into a Tundavilela over the last 0:16:30.520 --> 0:16:32.680 couple of years, Oh, I'd have to, I'd have to 0:16:32.720 --> 0:16:35.960 count it up. I've seen them both multiple times at 0:16:36.440 --> 0:16:39.280 in both a game setting and in practice. I would 0:16:39.320 --> 0:16:42.440 say over the past two years, I probably had five 0:16:42.520 --> 0:16:45.680 or six live exposures at least to both of those guys. 0:16:46.360 --> 0:16:49.600 Like I said, in multiple different settings. So that's I mean, 0:16:49.640 --> 0:16:51.800 I'm I'm big on that as as a scout. I 0:16:52.360 --> 0:16:55.680 think in order to have conviction and really really feel like, hey, 0:16:55.720 --> 0:16:57.480 this is the guy that we need to take, you 0:16:57.520 --> 0:17:00.200 need to see him in person. You need to seem 0:17:00.240 --> 0:17:03.400 at a game, especially the quarterback position that you mentioned. 0:17:03.400 --> 0:17:05.399 With those two guys, you want to see how their 0:17:05.400 --> 0:17:07.879 teammates respond to them on the sideline, you know, you 0:17:07.920 --> 0:17:09.920 want to see how they interact with everybody. You want 0:17:09.920 --> 0:17:12.720 to see how they respond to adversity, you know, taking 0:17:12.760 --> 0:17:15.000 a big hit or throwing an interception, whatever it may be. 0:17:15.160 --> 0:17:17.120 And those are things that you can't pick up as 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:19.440 far as as far as just just watching the film. 0:17:20.119 --> 0:17:22.680 You were a college quarterback and went to training camp 0:17:22.680 --> 0:17:26.200 with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Zach Taylor was a highly successful 0:17:26.240 --> 0:17:29.760 college quarterback. Duke Tobin was a college quarterback. Mike Brown 0:17:29.920 --> 0:17:33.600 was a college quarterback years ago. In a draft where 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:36.600 you are in a position to take the first choice 0:17:36.960 --> 0:17:39.280 of any quarterback in this draft, if that's the way 0:17:39.320 --> 0:17:41.879 you elect to go, is it advantageous to have so 0:17:41.880 --> 0:17:45.440 many quarterbacks in the building. Absolutely, you know, different guys 0:17:45.480 --> 0:17:49.159 have different experiences and being in the huddle and you know, 0:17:49.280 --> 0:17:52.560 changing protections at the line of scrimmage, reading coverages, having 0:17:52.640 --> 0:17:57.719 been in that position is invaluable in my opinion. And 0:17:57.760 --> 0:18:00.240 to have guys that have done it at different levels, 0:18:00.359 --> 0:18:02.240 you know, at different levels of college football, at different 0:18:02.280 --> 0:18:06.240 levels of professional football. Um, you know, the more, the 0:18:06.320 --> 0:18:10.560 more perspectives, the better in my opinion. Um, you know, 0:18:10.720 --> 0:18:13.639 and we'll get together, you know, scouts, coaches, you know, 0:18:13.680 --> 0:18:15.719 whether you play the position or not, everybody you'll get 0:18:15.760 --> 0:18:18.479 together and and have opinions on this thing. And and 0:18:18.520 --> 0:18:20.520 you know, we'll work our way through it, and we'll 0:18:20.600 --> 0:18:23.560 and we'll make the best selection for the Bengals. Where 0:18:23.600 --> 0:18:26.960 do you think this draft is deep? Oh? Man, it's 0:18:27.080 --> 0:18:29.640 it's a good draft. I would say off the top 0:18:29.680 --> 0:18:31.840 of my head. Both lines of scrimmage are very strong. 0:18:31.880 --> 0:18:34.920 The receiver class has been as has been widely publicized, 0:18:35.080 --> 0:18:38.000 is UH is a very strong group. So those are 0:18:38.040 --> 0:18:39.879 the two that that stand out off the top of 0:18:39.920 --> 0:18:42.919 my head. Um. You know you mentioned some of these quarterbacks. 0:18:42.960 --> 0:18:45.560 There's there's UH there's some good quarterbacks. And then you know, 0:18:45.600 --> 0:18:47.080 at the top of the draft end and you know 0:18:47.119 --> 0:18:49.080 that you could potentially get in the second, third, fourth 0:18:49.119 --> 0:18:51.919 round as well. Um, so, I think we're really excited 0:18:51.960 --> 0:18:54.320 about about a lot of different positions. I couldn't just 0:18:55.040 --> 0:18:57.280 sit here and say, you know, there's one position that 0:18:57.280 --> 0:19:00.159 it's really deep at um you know, glaring way way 0:19:00.200 --> 0:19:03.480 above the rest. We are meeting at two in the afternoon. 0:19:03.960 --> 0:19:06.159 You had a meeting with the staff earlier today. What 0:19:06.240 --> 0:19:08.800 are the types of things that you guys are meeting 0:19:08.840 --> 0:19:11.840 and discussing right now? So this week we've been meeting 0:19:11.840 --> 0:19:16.320 about the unrestrictive free agents, as far as our game plan, putting, 0:19:16.320 --> 0:19:19.080 putting together target lists, as far as who we want 0:19:19.080 --> 0:19:21.800 to attack in the in the free agent market on 0:19:21.840 --> 0:19:24.320 the pro personnel side of things. So we've been doing 0:19:24.359 --> 0:19:29.439 that this week, organizing everything, you know, getting the ownership, 0:19:29.800 --> 0:19:32.679 the scouts and the coaches altogether and everybody on the 0:19:32.720 --> 0:19:35.000 same page as far as as far as getting the 0:19:35.040 --> 0:19:37.919 plan together. And I think that's went really smoothly. Everybody's 0:19:37.960 --> 0:19:41.639 everybody's had some you know, really really good discussions and 0:19:42.119 --> 0:19:44.239 it's been really productive. So we've been meeting on that 0:19:44.280 --> 0:19:46.480 this week, and then next week what we're gonna do 0:19:47.240 --> 0:19:49.320 is go through all the underclassmen. I think there was 0:19:49.320 --> 0:19:50.920 one hundred and twenty one of them that came out 0:19:50.920 --> 0:19:53.320 early for the draft this year. So we'll be meeting 0:19:53.320 --> 0:19:55.200 on all those guys next week. We already have grades 0:19:55.240 --> 0:19:57.399 on all those guys, and we've been watching them all fall. 0:19:57.640 --> 0:20:00.960 It's just we like to wait and and wait till 0:20:01.000 --> 0:20:04.399 they officially declare for the draft before we before we 0:20:04.440 --> 0:20:06.879 actually study and talk about their character and their medical 0:20:07.240 --> 0:20:08.879 and what, you know, how we see them as a 0:20:08.920 --> 0:20:11.919 player and and everything. We'd like to wait until they 0:20:11.920 --> 0:20:14.439 actually come out for the draft and or officially in 0:20:14.560 --> 0:20:18.000 the twenty and twenty draft before you know, we you know, 0:20:18.040 --> 0:20:20.200 we meet on the seniors in December. We couldn't meet 0:20:20.200 --> 0:20:21.639 on some of the juniors that we think are going 0:20:21.680 --> 0:20:24.080 to come out, but they then you end up it 0:20:24.160 --> 0:20:25.919 ends up being inefficient if you if you end up 0:20:26.000 --> 0:20:28.600 talking and using time on guys that don't actually end 0:20:28.680 --> 0:20:31.320 up declaring early for the draft. So that's what we'll 0:20:31.359 --> 0:20:33.040 be working on over the over the next couple weeks, 0:20:33.080 --> 0:20:35.400 and that'll take us right into the combine. We're talking 0:20:35.440 --> 0:20:37.919 to the Bengals director of college scouting, Mike Potts. The 0:20:37.960 --> 0:20:40.359 first day of the draft is April twenty third. When 0:20:40.359 --> 0:20:43.919 will your draft board take shape? Well, well, we'll have 0:20:44.040 --> 0:20:46.040 these Like I said, we'll have these meetings next week. 0:20:46.280 --> 0:20:49.760 That'll that'll put the juniors and the seniors altogether for 0:20:49.800 --> 0:20:52.480 our initial draft board going into the Combine. We'll go 0:20:52.520 --> 0:20:54.520 through the Combine in the pro day process, make some 0:20:54.560 --> 0:20:57.000 tweaks here and there, and then we have our final meetings. 0:20:57.400 --> 0:20:59.960 It's uh, you know, the first two or three weeks 0:21:00.320 --> 0:21:03.040 roughly of of April is when we'll do that. So 0:21:03.400 --> 0:21:06.240 it'll be it'll be pretty much set the I would 0:21:06.280 --> 0:21:08.600 say a week or so before the draft, it'll be 0:21:08.600 --> 0:21:10.679 pretty much set. And then we're always, you know, all 0:21:10.680 --> 0:21:12.479 the way up until the day before the draft, we're 0:21:12.560 --> 0:21:15.639 making last minute tweaks, um. But you know, it'll be 0:21:15.640 --> 0:21:18.760