WEBVTT - Bengals Booth Podcast: Holly Jolly 0:00:03.560 --> 0:00:06.519 Hi again everybody. I'm Dan Horde and thanks for downloading 0:00:06.519 --> 0:00:11.920 The Bengals Booth Podcast. The have a hully jelly Christmas 0:00:12.680 --> 0:00:15.960 edition as the Bengals give their fans the number one 0:00:16.040 --> 0:00:20.760 gift on their wish list, a stunning win over the hated, despised, 0:00:20.800 --> 0:00:25.720 buck always respected Pittsburgh Steelers. On Monday Night football. Coming up, 0:00:25.800 --> 0:00:29.800 you'll hear radio replays, postgame comments, and in depth analysis 0:00:29.800 --> 0:00:32.960 from Dave Lapham, and in this week's fun fact segment, 0:00:33.040 --> 0:00:35.960 you'll get to know the person under the pads as 0:00:36.000 --> 0:00:39.879 I go one on one with linebacker Josh Bines. The 0:00:39.920 --> 0:00:44.479 Bengals Booth Podcast is presented by bud Light Seltzer. Refresh 0:00:44.520 --> 0:00:47.239 the game, and here's a quick reminder that you can 0:00:47.240 --> 0:00:50.640 have the latest edition of this podcast delivered right to 0:00:50.680 --> 0:00:55.200 your phone, tablet, or computer by subscribing on iTunes, Stitcher, 0:00:55.280 --> 0:00:59.400 Google Play, Spotify, or pod Bean. It's the greatest thing 0:00:59.480 --> 0:01:04.760 since End of Year lists. I am a total sucker 0:01:05.000 --> 0:01:08.119 for the various end of year lists that come out 0:01:08.160 --> 0:01:11.520 in the final few weeks of December. Top ten movies, 0:01:11.640 --> 0:01:13.800 even though I've rarely seen more than one or two 0:01:14.319 --> 0:01:17.280 Top ten news stories. Even though this year most of 0:01:17.319 --> 0:01:21.120 them are likely to be depressing top ten books. Even 0:01:21.200 --> 0:01:23.960 though I've been reading all the light, we cannot see 0:01:24.360 --> 0:01:26.920 a few pages a night before bed for at least 0:01:26.920 --> 0:01:29.960 a month, and that book came out in twenty fourteen. 0:01:30.720 --> 0:01:33.840 If I see an end of year list, I'm reading it, 0:01:34.200 --> 0:01:37.440 even if I know very little of the content. I 0:01:37.440 --> 0:01:41.120 should probably make a top ten list for why I 0:01:41.240 --> 0:01:46.480 love lists. Now let's get to the game. It began 0:01:46.800 --> 0:01:50.760 with a salute to the Radio City Roquets Christmas Spectacular 0:01:51.240 --> 0:01:55.320 as in one two three kick, one two three kick. 0:01:56.080 --> 0:01:59.720 Each team began with two three and outs on offense, 0:02:00.360 --> 0:02:04.440 but Pittsburgh's third possession was even worse. Pittsburgh has it 0:02:04.560 --> 0:02:07.960 first intent to the nineteen yard line. The exchange was fumbled, 0:02:08.200 --> 0:02:11.200 the ball on the ground at the twenty. The Bengals 0:02:11.200 --> 0:02:15.440 have started celebrating and they recover the Pittsburgh Steelers fumble. 0:02:15.919 --> 0:02:18.760 Josh Bines at the bottom of the pile comes up 0:02:18.800 --> 0:02:21.880 with a football that led to an Austin Cybered field 0:02:21.880 --> 0:02:25.400 goal and a three nothing Cincinnati lead. Before the first 0:02:25.440 --> 0:02:29.200 quarter was over, the Steelers coughed it up again. Roethlisberger 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:31.760 back to throw short pass over the middle, caught by 0:02:31.840 --> 0:02:35.079 Juji Smith Schuster. The ball was popped away by Von Bell. 0:02:35.360 --> 0:02:38.680 It's scooped up by the Bengals and returned to the twenty, 0:02:38.919 --> 0:02:42.800 but they're saying it's an incomplete pass. After reviewing the play, 0:02:43.040 --> 0:02:46.800 the receiver completed the process of a catch. As a result, 0:02:46.919 --> 0:02:49.360 it is a catch in a foam role, as is 0:02:49.400 --> 0:02:53.520 his custom. Juju Smith Schuster danced down the Bengals logo 0:02:53.600 --> 0:02:57.959 and a TikTok video before the game, then got blown 0:02:58.040 --> 0:03:02.160 up by Von Bell and fumbled on Primetime TV. Here's 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:05.480 the Bengal safety. We have a limless group, and man, 0:03:05.520 --> 0:03:07.800 we stepped up to the place to night, Monday Night Football, 0:03:07.880 --> 0:03:10.200 the biggest stage. We're out there and hit out. The 0:03:10.200 --> 0:03:13.840 parking man was out there doing things we love at 0:03:13.840 --> 0:03:16.280 the highest level and we're just playing for one another, 0:03:16.440 --> 0:03:18.720 planning for the name went back your jersey, you know, 0:03:19.280 --> 0:03:22.120 because guys come from different stories and they're just telling 0:03:22.120 --> 0:03:23.520 the story to night and we're going out there and 0:03:23.520 --> 0:03:26.560 making plays. Ryan Finley, making his first start of the 0:03:26.600 --> 0:03:30.440 year at quarterback, turned the takeaway into points with two 0:03:30.600 --> 0:03:33.920 third down pass completions to t Higgins that drove the 0:03:33.919 --> 0:03:36.920 Bengals to the four yard line. Finley under center, takes 0:03:36.960 --> 0:03:39.080 the snap, hands it off Geo trying to run wide 0:03:39.080 --> 0:03:41.680 to the right. Little ship off. Yeah. He takes it 0:03:41.760 --> 0:03:45.040 into the end zone before tossing the ball into the air. 0:03:45.480 --> 0:03:50.800 Touchdown Cincinnati as the Bengals go up nine nothing pending 0:03:50.840 --> 0:03:54.400 the extra point. Giovanni Bernard finished with twenty five carries 0:03:54.480 --> 0:03:57.480 for eighty three yards, and that touchdown run and the 0:03:57.520 --> 0:04:01.520 point after gave the Bengals a ten en lead. Surely 0:04:01.600 --> 0:04:06.040 big Ben would strike back right wrong. Roethlisberger back to 0:04:06.160 --> 0:04:10.000 throw fires apastit's intercept it picked off at the thirty 0:04:10.040 --> 0:04:12.960 eight yard line. The Bengals are running it back high 0:04:12.960 --> 0:04:18.520 stepping his way as McKenzie Alexander he got hit after 0:04:18.600 --> 0:04:21.239 being out of bounds and now he got some pushing 0:04:21.240 --> 0:04:25.560 and shoving in the Bengals bench area. But McKenzie Alexander 0:04:25.680 --> 0:04:29.839 intercepts Big Ben and runs it into Steelers territory. There 0:04:30.000 --> 0:04:32.800 was a fifteen yard penalty for a necessary roughness that 0:04:32.920 --> 0:04:35.880 gave the Bengals the ball at the Pittsburgh twenty six 0:04:36.520 --> 0:04:39.640 three plays later, they were in the end zone again. 0:04:39.960 --> 0:04:42.839 Finley catches a shotgun snap. He's back to throw the 0:04:42.880 --> 0:04:46.760 protection's good shot pass caught over the middle, Bernardo breaks 0:04:46.760 --> 0:04:49.560 the tackle at the five, runs into the end zone, 0:04:49.800 --> 0:04:52.720 and throws the ball away up in the air again, 0:04:53.240 --> 0:04:59.120 touchdown Cincinnati and the Bengals lead the Steelers by sixteen points. 0:04:59.240 --> 0:05:02.080 The extra point he made it seventeen nothing, and all 0:05:02.160 --> 0:05:06.440 seventeen points were the result of takeaways by the Bengals defense. 0:05:06.880 --> 0:05:10.120 Here's Ryan Finley. We preached the heck out of that 0:05:10.200 --> 0:05:13.559 all week. Was just winning the turnover battle versus these guys. 0:05:13.600 --> 0:05:16.880 And you know, if you get three takeaways on defense, 0:05:16.920 --> 0:05:18.600 you know the offense owes it to you to win 0:05:18.720 --> 0:05:22.039 night football game. So you know, just happy we could 0:05:22.040 --> 0:05:24.640 do enough to get that defense to win, because they 0:05:24.720 --> 0:05:28.080 service heck deserved it. It was seventeen nothing Bengals. At 0:05:28.120 --> 0:05:33.400 the half they had seventeen points. Roethlisberger had nineteen yards. 0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:36.360 But in the third quarter he finally looked like the 0:05:36.480 --> 0:05:40.800 quarterback who's made life miserable for the Bengals for seventeen years. 0:05:41.360 --> 0:05:44.040 First with a screen pass to Chase Claypool for thirty 0:05:44.080 --> 0:05:47.440 seven yards, and then Ben's gonna float it deep down 0:05:47.520 --> 0:05:51.520 field into the end zone touchdown Deyonte Johnson, and just 0:05:51.720 --> 0:05:55.520 like that, Ben Roethlisberger and the Steelers come to life 0:05:56.040 --> 0:05:58.920 a screen passed down the sideline for a thirty six 0:05:59.000 --> 0:06:04.000 yard game, followed immediately by a touchdown pass to Deonte Johnson. 0:06:04.200 --> 0:06:06.320 The next time the Steelers got the ball, they drove 0:06:06.360 --> 0:06:09.240 to the Bengals seven before settling for a field goal 0:06:09.279 --> 0:06:13.480 that cuts Cincinnati's lead down to seven points. The Bengals 0:06:13.480 --> 0:06:16.200 failed to score in the third quarter for the seventh 0:06:16.200 --> 0:06:19.599 consecutive game, but they started to drive late in the 0:06:19.720 --> 0:06:22.880 third that reached the end zone early in the fourth. 0:06:23.320 --> 0:06:26.760 Finley in the gun second down in two runs after 0:06:26.800 --> 0:06:29.039 Faki to p Ran, He's to the fifteen to ten 0:06:29.360 --> 0:06:33.520 middle of the field into the end zone, touchdown Ryan 0:06:33.680 --> 0:06:37.640 Finlay as he runs the zone read to perfection. The 0:06:37.760 --> 0:06:42.359 Steelers all converged on samaj p Ryan and Ryan Finlay 0:06:42.440 --> 0:06:45.839 went untouched into the end zone for the Bengals score. 0:06:46.160 --> 0:06:48.880 Finley is not known as a running quarterback, but finished 0:06:48.880 --> 0:06:52.160 with forty seven yards on ten carries. Well, that helps 0:06:52.200 --> 0:06:55.159 when you have a thirty yard touchdown and don't get touched, 0:06:55.200 --> 0:06:59.360 So that helps with the average. But you know, it's 0:06:59.360 --> 0:07:03.160 always been, you know, a part of my game. You know, 0:07:03.200 --> 0:07:05.560 it's kind of using athleticism to get out of some stuff. 0:07:05.600 --> 0:07:09.160 And you know, it's it's not heavy what I do, 0:07:09.200 --> 0:07:11.240 but I think it's it's something that I can definitely 0:07:11.280 --> 0:07:13.320 do on occasion. And this was a game that called 0:07:13.320 --> 0:07:15.400 for the touchdown play. Did you run that during the 0:07:15.400 --> 0:07:17.200 week or was that just it was a concept you 0:07:17.200 --> 0:07:20.000 guys have talked about or ru we had not ripped 0:07:20.040 --> 0:07:22.280 that play. That was just Zach being you know, real 0:07:22.320 --> 0:07:25.280 headsy and just kind of tagging it on there, and 0:07:25.800 --> 0:07:28.280 you know why not. Up by two touchdowns in the fourth, 0:07:28.320 --> 0:07:30.240 it looked like the Bengals were on the verge of 0:07:30.280 --> 0:07:33.200 wrapping it up when they stopped the Steelers on fourth 0:07:33.200 --> 0:07:36.440 and four with less than six minutes to go, but 0:07:36.560 --> 0:07:39.840 Will Jackson was called for pass interference near the goal 0:07:39.920 --> 0:07:42.520 line first and goal from the one. After the penalty 0:07:42.600 --> 0:07:45.640 on Will Jackson five thirty four to go, the Steelers 0:07:45.640 --> 0:07:47.920 a yard away from making it a seven point game. 0:07:47.960 --> 0:07:50.040 They give it to Snell. He's into the end zone, 0:07:50.360 --> 0:07:54.160 touchdown Pittsburgh. The lead was down to seven, and the 0:07:54.240 --> 0:07:56.800 Bengals were only able to pick up one first down 0:07:56.920 --> 0:08:00.400 on their next drive, punting the ball back to Pittsburgh 0:08:00.400 --> 0:08:04.680 with two seventeen remaining from his own twenty four Roethlisberger 0:08:04.720 --> 0:08:09.920 through incomplete to Smith Schuster, then incomplete to Johnson, then 0:08:10.080 --> 0:08:14.040 incomplete to Claypool, making it fourth and ten with one 0:08:14.240 --> 0:08:17.200 fifty six to go. The Bengal sending defenders up to 0:08:17.240 --> 0:08:20.400 the line of scrimmage, showing blitz Jesse Bates playing deep 0:08:20.440 --> 0:08:22.960 in the middle of the field. Roethlisberger back to throw 0:08:23.080 --> 0:08:31.000 from the pocket his past two high incomplete coffinels Bam, bam, 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:34.360 how about that? Who would a fuck? That? Attack on 0:08:34.480 --> 0:08:37.480 field goal by Cyberg with twelve seconds remaining made the 0:08:37.520 --> 0:08:44.040 final score Cincinnati twenty seven, Pittsburgh seventeen. Here are Zach Taylor, 0:08:44.559 --> 0:08:49.160 Ryan Finley, Von Bell and Giovanni Bernard on a memorable 0:08:49.360 --> 0:08:51.600 Monday night. It's the resilion of the group. Has I've 0:08:51.640 --> 0:08:53.880 ever been around, you know? They never stopped believing each other, 0:08:54.320 --> 0:08:57.240 never stopped believing what we're asking to do. It showed 0:08:57.320 --> 0:09:01.000 up on a huge stage tonight against divisional. Right, and 0:09:01.000 --> 0:09:03.200 and again I just can't can't say enough how proud 0:09:03.280 --> 0:09:05.680 I am of the coaches, the players, the staff, everybody 0:09:05.679 --> 0:09:08.600 who's hunging there together. Here we are week week fifteen, 0:09:08.720 --> 0:09:11.600 whatever it is, and um just what a great night 0:09:11.640 --> 0:09:15.120 for those guys. You know, I'm obviously very happy, um, 0:09:15.160 --> 0:09:17.880 but just happy for everyone involved. You know, just the 0:09:18.240 --> 0:09:21.720 faces and the you know, the after the post game 0:09:21.800 --> 0:09:25.080 locker room. Um, it's just you know, it's fun. We 0:09:25.160 --> 0:09:29.240 haven't had too many post game locker rooms like that, uh, 0:09:29.280 --> 0:09:31.199 you know as of recent and it's just fun. It's 0:09:31.200 --> 0:09:33.839 always fun to get a win, and um, even better 0:09:33.960 --> 0:09:36.720 beating the Steelers on Monday night. So just happy for 0:09:36.720 --> 0:09:40.040 everyone involved. Really, it shows the world tonight. We played 0:09:40.040 --> 0:09:43.200 with anybody. We played all phases of the game. We 0:09:43.320 --> 0:09:47.160 played great team football, um uh, hand in hand football, 0:09:47.160 --> 0:09:50.480 offs and defense, put them in position to make points 0:09:50.480 --> 0:09:53.120 of plays, taking the ball away, just really have to 0:09:53.120 --> 0:09:55.800 just let them loose, having fun, and then that's that's 0:09:55.800 --> 0:09:58.599 one of my most complete games we played at the 0:09:58.640 --> 0:10:01.880 highest level. So was gonna keep on building that, keep 0:10:01.880 --> 0:10:04.720 going getting better to be able to beat a team 0:10:04.720 --> 0:10:06.200 like that. We know they're a good team, they know 0:10:06.240 --> 0:10:08.000 they're a good team. But you know, when you play 0:10:08.040 --> 0:10:10.880 those divisional games, the records don't matter. It's about who 0:10:10.880 --> 0:10:13.720 wants them more. And it just showed just the type 0:10:13.720 --> 0:10:15.600 of mentality that we had going to the game. We 0:10:15.640 --> 0:10:18.440 started off hot, you know, coming we started off hot, 0:10:18.480 --> 0:10:20.440 come back after the second half, you know, we started 0:10:20.440 --> 0:10:23.280 off so, but we continue to keep fighting. Man, I'm 0:10:23.280 --> 0:10:26.680 just so thankful that I've been able to witness you know, 0:10:26.760 --> 0:10:29.200 some of the guys make these plays, and you know, 0:10:29.320 --> 0:10:31.280 just throughout this season, it's just been a tough year, 0:10:31.320 --> 0:10:35.199 a tough road. But man, I'm just I'm just grateful 0:10:35.240 --> 0:10:36.560 that I've been able to be a part of those 0:10:36.559 --> 0:10:38.959 tough times, just because you know, when things like this happen, 0:10:39.320 --> 0:10:41.680 it just feels that much sweeter. Now, time for postgame 0:10:41.720 --> 0:10:46.600 analysis with my broadcast partner Dave Lapple. My point spread, 0:10:47.000 --> 0:10:50.600 this is the Bengals biggest upset since you're playing days. 0:10:50.720 --> 0:10:53.679 Back in nineteen eighty you were part of a Bengals 0:10:53.679 --> 0:10:56.120 team that was a thirteen point underdog and beat the 0:10:56.160 --> 0:11:01.000 Steelers in Pittsburgh seventeen sixteen tonight the angles of fourteen 0:11:01.040 --> 0:11:04.480 point underdog and they beat Pittsburgh by ten. How did 0:11:04.480 --> 0:11:07.559 they do it? Turnovers? And that was the secret to 0:11:07.600 --> 0:11:10.240 beat in Pittsburgh anytime we beat them. I remember we 0:11:10.320 --> 0:11:13.520 beat the Steelers another time handily, like thirty four to ten, 0:11:13.559 --> 0:11:17.360 and they couldn't even execute a center quarterback exchange problem issue. 0:11:18.080 --> 0:11:21.600 Mike Webster and Terry Brusch, two Hall of famers, couldn't 0:11:21.600 --> 0:11:24.000 get the ball snapped. Wilson whitlerw was causing all kinds 0:11:24.000 --> 0:11:28.480 of havoc in there when Ben fumbled Pouncy's snapping, thinking 0:11:29.040 --> 0:11:32.679 two Pro bowlers, Man Carmer's kind of looking the same here. 0:11:32.679 --> 0:11:35.400 I mean, they're having issues with the simplest things. And 0:11:35.840 --> 0:11:39.320 turnovers were huge in this football game. You go plus three, 0:11:39.440 --> 0:11:42.160 you're gonna win ninety five ninety seven percent of the time, 0:11:42.200 --> 0:11:44.840 There's no doubt about it. In the first quarter, Ben 0:11:44.920 --> 0:11:50.320 Roethlisberger was four for ten from minus five yards. How 0:11:51.760 --> 0:11:53.760 good question. I mean, he wasn't even sacked, you know. 0:11:53.840 --> 0:11:58.920 I mean, it's it's it's amazing that they were just 0:11:58.920 --> 0:12:03.160 just avocating. I mean, the Bengals do. The Bengals basically 0:12:03.160 --> 0:12:05.960 beat Pittsburgh at their own game. They ran the football 0:12:06.160 --> 0:12:08.280 when Pittsburgh in the heyday would run the ball right 0:12:08.320 --> 0:12:11.319 down your throat and then play suffocating defense, and whenever 0:12:11.400 --> 0:12:13.800 you made a mistake, they pounce on it and they 0:12:13.840 --> 0:12:15.840 make you pay, and they make you pay dearly, and 0:12:15.880 --> 0:12:20.120 then you know, you get all, you know out of sorts. 0:12:20.160 --> 0:12:21.880 And you make another mistake and then they make you 0:12:21.960 --> 0:12:24.360 pay even worse. And that's that's what the Bengals did 0:12:24.400 --> 0:12:26.400 to them tonight. They ran the ball down their throat, 0:12:26.440 --> 0:12:30.400 They played suffocating defense at times, and every mistake that 0:12:30.480 --> 0:12:34.040 Pittsburgh made, the Bengals really capitalize them made and pay 0:12:34.120 --> 0:12:40.600 dearly for it offensively forty one rushing attempts and thirteen 0:12:41.080 --> 0:12:43.760 pass attempts. It's nice to say you're going to do 0:12:43.840 --> 0:12:46.880 something like that going into a game against the Steelers, 0:12:46.880 --> 0:12:50.120 but to actually pull it off effectively, I did not 0:12:50.200 --> 0:12:54.839 see that coming. It's funny. I was. I figured, Okay, 0:12:54.840 --> 0:12:57.320 this is gonna have to be a dirty, grimy, bloody game, 0:12:57.559 --> 0:13:00.319 you know, for the Bengals to have to be able 0:13:00.320 --> 0:13:04.720 to compete. What I thought was as I was thinking 0:13:04.760 --> 0:13:07.160 about the game this afternoon, had all day to think 0:13:07.200 --> 0:13:09.440 about it, and and I'm like, all right, well, if the 0:13:09.480 --> 0:13:15.080 Bengals can somehow incorporate a quarterback run package, maybe include 0:13:15.120 --> 0:13:17.040 Hogan in it. Because Hogan had rushed for over one 0:13:17.080 --> 0:13:19.840 hundred yards against the Bengals and he's averaging almost ten 0:13:19.880 --> 0:13:22.600 yards to carry, you know, in his career, so you 0:13:22.640 --> 0:13:24.440 know he can run the football a little bit and 0:13:24.440 --> 0:13:26.720 he rushed for a touchdown against the Bengals, and I thought, well, 0:13:26.720 --> 0:13:29.480 you know, maybe they'll do some kind of quarterback run 0:13:29.480 --> 0:13:33.480 package kind of thing and and shrink the game, you know, 0:13:33.559 --> 0:13:36.000 eat up the clock, get into the fourth quarter with 0:13:36.040 --> 0:13:38.880 an opportunity to steal a football game. Was what I 0:13:38.920 --> 0:13:41.320 was thinking. And you know, I said to my wife Lynns, 0:13:41.360 --> 0:13:43.079 where as I was getting ready for the game, I said, 0:13:43.120 --> 0:13:45.560 you know what if they can run it, and the 0:13:45.640 --> 0:13:48.319 running backs, you know, rush for over one hundred and 0:13:48.360 --> 0:13:51.440 the quarterback rushes for fifty or more, they got a 0:13:51.440 --> 0:13:55.000 shot if they can you know, compress the game, eat 0:13:55.040 --> 0:13:57.720 up the clock. You know, don't don't throw the ball 0:13:57.840 --> 0:14:00.800 very much against this defensive front. I mean they're number 0:14:00.840 --> 0:14:03.520 one in the league in sack sack differential, all that stuff. 0:14:03.920 --> 0:14:06.320 You don't you don't want to get in second and 0:14:06.360 --> 0:14:08.360 third and lungs against these guys and have to throw 0:14:08.400 --> 0:14:11.200 the football. And so I was, you know, just thinking 0:14:11.200 --> 0:14:13.440 along those lines, and be a son of a gun. 0:14:13.440 --> 0:14:15.680 If Ryan Finley it doesn't turn into Lamar Finley. It 0:14:15.720 --> 0:14:19.360 was crazy. He's out there doing zone reads and the 0:14:19.440 --> 0:14:23.520 quarterback draw unbelievable design to run the jet. The jet 0:14:23.600 --> 0:14:26.560 motion and the linebacker has to clear out of there 0:14:26.600 --> 0:14:29.840 with him and just a design quarterback draw. And Ryan 0:14:29.880 --> 0:14:32.960 Finley was saying that on his touchdown run, it wasn't 0:14:32.960 --> 0:14:35.600 even anything they ran at practice. It was a run 0:14:35.640 --> 0:14:38.200 play and Zach just put a tag on it, said, 0:14:38.240 --> 0:14:40.040 you know, put a read on it at the end. 0:14:40.480 --> 0:14:42.120 So all he did was look at high Smith. As 0:14:42.160 --> 0:14:43.920 soon as you saw high Smith closing down the line 0:14:43.960 --> 0:14:46.320 of Scramm pulled it out of there, walked into the 0:14:46.360 --> 0:14:50.400 end zone untouched or to scored in one fingernail touch football. 0:14:50.480 --> 0:14:53.080 Nobody laid anything on him. I mean, it was just incredible. 0:14:53.480 --> 0:14:55.400 Got to give Zach a lot of credit for the 0:14:55.440 --> 0:14:59.400 game plan, calling the game, improvising during the game, adjusting 0:14:59.480 --> 0:15:02.520 during the game. He's been bombarded about that, where are 0:15:02.520 --> 0:15:04.960 the adjustments? What are they doing when you hear things 0:15:04.960 --> 0:15:08.160 like that that they made an adjustment like that as 0:15:08.160 --> 0:15:10.840 he was calling the play, just put a little tag 0:15:10.880 --> 0:15:13.800 on the thing. That's pretty strong. There are a lot 0:15:13.800 --> 0:15:16.000 of defensive heroes in the game for the Bengals. Let's 0:15:16.000 --> 0:15:18.120 start with Carl Lawson. He had a sack, He had 0:15:18.240 --> 0:15:21.600 six quarterback hits. You've pointed out in the past that 0:15:21.800 --> 0:15:25.560 villain Auava at his height, has a particular problem with 0:15:25.640 --> 0:15:29.600 Carl Lawson. He does, you know, six eight and villain 0:15:29.640 --> 0:15:31.920 Auava is a waiste bender. He's not a knee bender. 0:15:32.440 --> 0:15:36.600 So when you're six to eight and you're you know, 0:15:36.920 --> 0:15:39.440 the little teapot short and stout, you know, and just 0:15:39.480 --> 0:15:41.520 bending over at the way instead of with the knees 0:15:41.560 --> 0:15:44.760 when the little kids play. I mean, he's he's got 0:15:44.760 --> 0:15:47.760 issues with that because then his shoulder pads are leaning forward. 0:15:47.840 --> 0:15:50.040 Carl can you know, use his hands and pull some 0:15:50.120 --> 0:15:52.760 moves on him, rip, swim, all those kind of things. 0:15:52.760 --> 0:15:56.680 And Carl Lawson gives him fits he does, and you know, 0:15:56.800 --> 0:16:00.640 villain Auava ends up kind of turning his older pads 0:16:00.680 --> 0:16:02.600 toward the line of scrimmage parallel to the line of 0:16:02.600 --> 0:16:06.040 scrimmage and then given a short edge. And Carl Lawson, 0:16:06.120 --> 0:16:08.360 who's made him pay for that in the past, and 0:16:08.880 --> 0:16:10.920 he was he was a thorn in Ben's side, There's 0:16:10.920 --> 0:16:14.000 no doubt about it. I thought he gave very consistent pressure. 0:16:14.080 --> 0:16:16.960 I thought Sam Harbard, Margus Hunt and a lot of 0:16:16.960 --> 0:16:19.640 guys showed up in this football game for the Bengals 0:16:19.680 --> 0:16:22.080 defensive front. They played as hard as they can play. 0:16:22.120 --> 0:16:26.120 They definitely emptied the effort bucket for sure. The Bengals 0:16:26.160 --> 0:16:29.720 also had ten pass deflections. I don't remember them ever 0:16:29.760 --> 0:16:31.960 getting to double digits in that stat and it came 0:16:32.000 --> 0:16:35.240 from every every level. You mentioned. Margus Hunt he knocked 0:16:35.280 --> 0:16:37.800 one down at the line of scrimmage, George Evans had 0:16:37.800 --> 0:16:40.600 when I think at the linebacker position, Darius Phillips had three, 0:16:40.720 --> 0:16:44.640 Mackenzie Alexander had two. They were deflecting a ton of 0:16:44.720 --> 0:16:47.880 Ben Roethlisberger's throws. Yeah, they did. William Jackson, you know, 0:16:47.960 --> 0:16:50.440 got his hands and he should have had an interception. One. 0:16:50.480 --> 0:16:52.600 He'll get a pass broken up, but I mean should 0:16:52.600 --> 0:16:54.920 have been an interception, and then you know, a couple 0:16:54.920 --> 0:16:57.359 of plays later he has the fourth down problem, the interference. 0:16:57.400 --> 0:16:59.720 But Sam Hubbard got his hand on one as well, 0:17:00.160 --> 0:17:02.920 you know, as well as Marcus so Um. They were 0:17:02.920 --> 0:17:06.040 they were getting their hands on footballs and uh, you know, 0:17:06.200 --> 0:17:09.520 I think they were. They were. The coverage was outstanding 0:17:09.880 --> 0:17:12.280 and for on and off during the course of the game. 0:17:12.280 --> 0:17:14.639 They were really in Ben's head, I mean more so 0:17:14.720 --> 0:17:17.080 than I've seen in a long time. It was. He 0:17:17.160 --> 0:17:19.919 was definitely bothered by what they were doing. I'm not 0:17:19.960 --> 0:17:22.919 sure that he was confused, but I think it was 0:17:22.960 --> 0:17:25.600 like wow, I mean, there's just like fly paper. I mean, 0:17:25.680 --> 0:17:28.879 they're suffocating us, man, They're smothering us down the football field. 0:17:29.000 --> 0:17:31.520 I have nowhere to go with the football. And that's 0:17:31.600 --> 0:17:36.520 that's that's not typical Steeler action there. I have no 0:17:36.600 --> 0:17:40.560 idea what Mike Brown has been thinking about Zach Taylor's 0:17:40.640 --> 0:17:44.639 long term future. But do you think if there was 0:17:44.920 --> 0:17:48.800 any inkling of making a change, that his mind might 0:17:48.840 --> 0:17:52.080 have been changed tonight? I mean, you look at it. 0:17:52.240 --> 0:17:56.719 You look at a scenario like tonight against an organization 0:17:57.000 --> 0:18:02.520 that is, you know, the the gold standard of professional football. 0:18:02.960 --> 0:18:04.879 You've lost eleven in a row to him, it's on 0:18:05.000 --> 0:18:09.080 national television. It could have been a total embarrassment. I 0:18:09.080 --> 0:18:11.639 mean last last week's Monday night football game was an 0:18:11.640 --> 0:18:16.919 instant classic. This one had the makings of being forgettable 0:18:17.200 --> 0:18:20.000 immediately kind of football game. And for them to play 0:18:20.080 --> 0:18:22.159 like they did, I think it does mean something to 0:18:22.240 --> 0:18:26.439 Mike Brown on national television, and you know, in the 0:18:26.480 --> 0:18:29.919 restroom at halftime, Steve Leapy was like, I can't believe this. 0:18:30.359 --> 0:18:32.359 You know, that's why you don't bet on these games. 0:18:32.640 --> 0:18:35.600 All my stuff, I have for I can't use. All 0:18:35.600 --> 0:18:37.800 he had was Pittsburgh stuff in the second half of steven, 0:18:37.840 --> 0:18:40.520 you know, and it's all understandable, but I mean everybody 0:18:40.600 --> 0:18:43.399 was stunned. I mean all the media guys, national, local 0:18:43.520 --> 0:18:46.480 or whatever there. Everybody was stunned. And I mean me too. 0:18:46.520 --> 0:18:48.960 There's no way, but I thought the Cincinnati Bengal was 0:18:49.000 --> 0:18:51.199 going to hang twenty seven points on the Pittsburgh Steelers 0:18:51.200 --> 0:18:53.640 in this football game. I thought they won. It would 0:18:53.680 --> 0:18:57.800 be like fourteen ten, seventeen, fourteen, you know, but it was. 0:18:58.720 --> 0:19:01.840 It was a very very good football game that they 0:19:01.880 --> 0:19:05.040 get short fields on some of those turnovers, took advantage 0:19:05.040 --> 0:19:09.560 and get points out of it again kind of reverse 0:19:09.640 --> 0:19:12.960 the flip the script on Pittsburgh. Pittsburgh makes you pay 0:19:13.080 --> 0:19:16.240 for every turnover. They just make you pay. Dearly Bengals 0:19:16.240 --> 0:19:18.680 did it to the Pittsburgh Steelers. And you know, there 0:19:18.720 --> 0:19:20.800 was a lull there in the third quarter, Dan three 0:19:20.800 --> 0:19:22.440 to three and outs. They go third and eight, three 0:19:22.480 --> 0:19:25.119 straight possession like a little boy, now is there going 0:19:25.200 --> 0:19:28.840 to be you know, enough time for Pittsburgh to make 0:19:28.840 --> 0:19:31.600 the complete comeback. And then the Bengals, you know, snap 0:19:31.600 --> 0:19:34.360 out of it and make plays and win the football 0:19:34.400 --> 0:19:37.359 game going away, pretty pretty impressive. Well, they didn't want 0:19:37.400 --> 0:19:39.159 to score in the third quarter, now, you know, the 0:19:39.200 --> 0:19:41.840 Bengals don't like to do that. Yeah, that's right. I mean, 0:19:42.520 --> 0:19:46.359 you're right about that. It's it's just incredible. What what 0:19:46.359 --> 0:19:49.040 what happens in the third quarter? It is, it's it's 0:19:49.080 --> 0:19:52.479 just it's beyond mind boggling. I'll tell you though. When 0:19:52.480 --> 0:19:54.399 Pittsburgh came out with the formation they came out with 0:19:54.440 --> 0:19:56.119 and spread the field as far as they could with 0:19:56.119 --> 0:19:58.199 two wide receivers lined up behind each other in like 0:19:58.240 --> 0:20:02.440 double life formations, almost in front of each football team's bench. Boy, 0:20:02.480 --> 0:20:04.520 that's a big adjustment and it worked. I mean, they 0:20:05.720 --> 0:20:08.320 big play by Claypool and then Ben throws a touchdown 0:20:08.320 --> 0:20:10.240 past the very next snap, and I'm thinking, oh boy, 0:20:10.760 --> 0:20:12.399 I wonder what else they have up their sleep. But 0:20:12.440 --> 0:20:14.480 that was something that you just you run at once, 0:20:14.520 --> 0:20:16.840 and it wasn't really a gadget play, but it was 0:20:16.880 --> 0:20:19.600 a different look formation. You can make quick adjustments to it. 0:20:19.640 --> 0:20:22.520 But I thought for the most part, you know, you 0:20:22.600 --> 0:20:25.000 hear all the time, oh the Bengals, man, you know, 0:20:25.040 --> 0:20:27.880 they've had halftime leads. But then the other team adjusted 0:20:27.920 --> 0:20:31.040 the Bengals never adjust well. I thought in this instance, 0:20:31.080 --> 0:20:34.440 they adjusted to adjustments and the whole thing, the whole 0:20:34.480 --> 0:20:37.920 thing panned out. Let's talk about the other side from 0:20:37.920 --> 0:20:41.240 eleven and ozero to eleven and three and if you 0:20:41.320 --> 0:20:44.320 go back to win number eleven, that was the Baltimore 0:20:44.359 --> 0:20:47.800 game where I think it was twelve guys for Baltimore. 0:20:47.880 --> 0:20:51.240 We're out with COVID, including seven Pro Bowlers. The Steelers 0:20:51.240 --> 0:20:54.520 struggle to win that game. They haven't scored twenty points 0:20:54.560 --> 0:20:59.280 now in any of their last four games. Are the 0:20:59.320 --> 0:21:03.120 Steelers limping to the finish line? I mean, their their 0:21:03.160 --> 0:21:07.480 offense looks so different, and everybody's realizing that they are 0:21:07.680 --> 0:21:10.479 going to the short intermediate east and west stuff, and 0:21:10.520 --> 0:21:14.720 they're aligning their coverages and and crowding. You know, they're 0:21:14.880 --> 0:21:18.480 making Pittsburgh playing a closet and it's it's interesting to watch. 0:21:18.560 --> 0:21:20.919 And I thought right away when Pittsburgh came out and 0:21:20.960 --> 0:21:23.240 Ben rolled out and went deep, they were trying to 0:21:23.240 --> 0:21:25.280 make a statement, Okay, this we're not doing that tonight. 0:21:25.359 --> 0:21:27.400 You know, you're gonna have to make some adjustments here. 0:21:27.680 --> 0:21:30.280 But Ben was not even close and the coverage was good, 0:21:30.280 --> 0:21:33.880 so that wasn't a panic type scenario, and they did try, 0:21:35.080 --> 0:21:37.640 not even a handful of deep balls through the rest 0:21:37.640 --> 0:21:41.000