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All right, let's get it going on this Monday night. If it's Monday, it's Bengals Line. And that's three rock solid hours of conversation coming your way. Thanks for making your way here, settled in, We've got you for three talking about yesterday's thirty four twelve lost to the Steelers, looking ahead of those nine and two red hot New England Patriots on Sunday, Lance McAllister, Dave Lapham and Dave.
The day began with coming off the buy the hopes and dreams of getting to three and zero in the division and making things really interesting and buying a little bit of time for Joe Burrow's eventual return. And unfortunately, as it plays out, it produces a lot of frustration and a lot of questions now about where this team goes after losing thirty four to twelve.
Well, you're exactly right, Lance, comed up pretty darn well there. I mean I think that the big deal is, like you mentioned, a bunch of questions, you know, I mean, what's the future of this football team, not just for this season, but what's the future for the football team for next year, the year after, you know, the short term future of the football team. What about the coaches, what about the head coach, Zach Taylor? What about assistant coaches?
Who's safe, who's not a lot of questions that need to be answered and ironed out right now.
Boy, And what was really I think disappointing was going into the buy. So much is made about the opportunity to rest up, do you self, scout, you work on some things, and yet you look yesterday, and I think it's a fair question to say that was the performance coming out of the bye. I think there was an expectation there would be more from this team.
Agreed, you know, I think you make another valid point there. I mean, you have a long time to work on things that have not gone well. And uh, you know you players understand that.
Uh.
Everybody watches tape. The players watch tape, the coaches watch tape, the organization members watch tape, the owner, the general manager, everybody is looking at state tape and scourring the tape and trying to figure out what is wrong. Where where is it disjointed? Where's it where's the synapse? I mean, it's it's just not the message isn't being carried through. So you have all that time to work on it.
You feel pretty good about what you're doing. You feel pretty good about playing against the Patriots, the Steelers, I should say Patriots, the upcoming the Pittsburgh Steelers, who you already had beaten, as you say, have a chance to go, you know, two and oh against the Pittsburgh Steelers, and three and oh in the division, and all of it goes up and smoke boy.
It's just one of those that classic Murphy's law. It's like, if it's one thing, if it's not one thing, it's another. On a day where the defense played better, certainly there were still issues, but on the day they played better, your offense only manages one touchdown. In reality, the offense allowed two touchdowns with the pick six and then the scoop and score off the fumble. It just that's the way this thing has unfolded this year.
Yeah, and in the National Football League, when that dynamic happens when you allow to unscripted, unconventional scores and you only get one out of your offensive football team. Normally, it doesn't end up well for you, and it didn't in this case as well.
Let's get reaction immediately after the game. Here's Dave with the coach Zach Taylor.
Tough today coming to Pittsburgh. You knew you were going to be playing a really good football team, a sound football team. Just didn't didn't work out. What do you think with the biggest reasons that didn't win this football game?
Turner re battle. That's the number one starting point two to nothing, two of them led to fourteen points. You're rarely going to win in this league when you have one for touchdown, two for touchdown is going to really set you back, you know. So you an opportunity twenty to twelve, you're in field goal range, worst case, you feel like you're going to kick a field goal, and then Joe's hit as he throws and pick six and then turned around with a fumble you know, right away
on the next one for a touchdowns. So that's not winning football. That's not what I was supposed to look like. Credit to them for taking advantage of that running away with it and again losing the turn of battitude. Nothing's the best starting point there.
Is for that. Yeah, the final score really doesn't dictate or show what the game was like. I mean, for three quarters it was a battle. I mean a battle where I was, you know, fighting for every inch, tooth and nail, every inch of the football field. What were you thinking? Did you feel like you were not in control, but you feel like going to win this football game?
Absolutely. We've been in a lot of these dog fights and had opportunities right until the very last player to win the game, So that's not unique. Being down eight points felt like at halftime we were in a fine spot. We're gonna get the ball start the half, came out, scored points and just never never took control of the game. There was not a point where we ever took control of the game, and they did in the fourth quarter. They took control of it. And that's that's the difference.
You hold it team to twenty eight third down conversion I think it was like twenty eight points six percent or something like that Pittsburgh Steelers on third down. Usually that is in the winning column of a football game.
How rare?
Is it to hold a team to that kind of a performance on third down and not win the game?
Yeah, the plan was good. Again, it's it comes down to that's great. We got to get a turnover. You know, we've had several games now with no turnovers created, and offensively we give him fourteen points. That's that's just there's no chance you're gonna win that.
Yeah, I mean turnover third down? What about the running game? Offensively? He Chase Brown ran the ball effectively before he ran hard. I mean he always does. He gives every effort that he has a total effort every snap that he runs the football. Other than him, do you feel like the running game was proficient enough?
Yeah, I think he's right now, especially with small JL he's the main running point. We're gonna give Taj and Kendle reps. We got confidence in those guys, so I thought we got way we needed. It's not always going to be pretty when you're playing any team in the North.
To have some you feel really good about their effishing, they're explosive, you're gonna have some that are no gains or one game and you're just you're gonna have to rally behind that because that's just when you're playing a great front like they have, that's part of the part of the process, and that doesn't catch a soff guard. And we just got to handle the next down as well as we can.
I bet when you were traveling to Pittsburgh and thinking about this football game, Mason Rudolph wasn't a name that was in the top of everybody's mind that he was going to come and play in a football game. What did you obviously study everybody, everybody scouting department, coach, everybody studies everybody. What does Mason Rudolph do to help his football team win? Oh, he's a veteran quarterback. He's he's been in this building before. We played against last year
in Tennessee. You just got to managing their offense, you know, and they were running the ball well, and he was getting the ball in the perimeter. He was getting the ball in some nakeds. They didn't try to put too much on him, you know, in a windy, cold environment where he's coming in the second half, and he did a good job managing what they want him to do. Everybody in the National Football League has at least two so I mean, the season is not over. I mean,
there's plenty to play for. What do you do to make sure that your your football team stays focused and takes it one game at a time.
Yeah, we go back to work and we keep fighting. And that's that this locker room has been about, through thick and thin, and so I trust that that's that's the message they've received, that's the message they want to receive and follow. I've got full trust that will do that. We have to find a way to win a football game. That's there's you can't run from that. These these losses they take it out of you, you know they do.
They beat you up.
But in this profession, you got no choice or professionals, we got to bounce back the next day, find a way to have a great attitude, fix the things we got to fix, and come back ready to fight and go find a win. And that's exactly what we're going to do.
Jamar Chase and Tigans are going to get a lot of attention every time they play.
They're great.
I mean I think they're the best duo of the best tandem in football any level of football. Pittsburgh Steelers did a pretty good job. I mean, Jamar and t they're going to make plays. They did make plays. But overall, I think the Pittsburgh steel has handled things pretty well. What did did they do anything difference coverage wise?
They just weren't going to give you any access. You know, they were going to make sure that there was no access there. A little bit different than the first time we played them. Not to be expected. You didn't expect the exact same plan when you played them again and again.
We just didn't.
We didn't find a way enough to get points on the board early in the game when our defense was getting some stops.
Coach, appreciate your time, as always New York Class Act for joining us. I mean, I know this is not a happy time for anybody, that's for sure. But I know that this football team, like you said, you get a bunch of winners, a bunch of professionals, a bunch of guys are gonna give you every effort. We'll see it up again next week. I appreciate that, Zach Taylor.
After the game, we are up and running on this Monday night, still ahead. We'll hear from Joe Flacco, Gino Stone, We'll talk with Barrett Carter, and a whole lot more to get to as we navigate three hours tonight if Bengals line on the Bengals radio network and seven hundred WLW, we're back on Bengals.
A lot of this blending out of the Bengals.
Radio networking seven hundred helping you out w Lanscer Catave Blackham sorting through yesterday. We'll look on ahead to the Patriots, says well. Coming up in our third hour, let's talk Joe Flacco. Twenty three of forty yesterday, one hundred and ninety yards. He was sacked once, threw a touchdown, threw a pick unfortunately a pick six quarterback rating of sixty eight point six. Here's Joe Flacco after the game.
Go watch things and clean them up. But obviously, you know your thoughts are going to be you know, are going to be with you for a little bit, and you gotta find a way to move on and watch the film and see what it really was, and you know, take care of it. Given where the division is, to say, feel like huge opportunity potentially and really.
Gain some momentum out.
Listen to me, We're halfway through the season. Basically it's a little bit more now, but it really is so tough to look at it that way. I think it's easy to get caught up in that stuff, but you know it, I I really try to remove myself from those situations and just go play football. And I think if you do that, that's when you give yourself the
best chance to be in the best position you want. Obviously, that's there lingering and you know, the opportunity and all that stuff, but you got to try to avoid getting caught up in those things are you're trying.
To manage the pain and the shoulder. How much worse did he get after?
Now?
I mean, listen, that's football. He did a good job. He buried me in the turf. But uh but I felt good, you know, felt good all game.
Did they they changed much the way they attacked you?
Well, I think they made sure that. They probably did it more. Just they probably had a couple of guys on him more often than they did in the first game. And you know, that's why they're a good football team.
Uh.
And we knew, we knew they were going to make adjustments and come in here and play better than they did the first time we played them, and we just gotta we gotta match that.
Too.
Shady change what they did.
I listen, I think everything they did we kind of had a plan for and and and could see that you know, why they were doing it and the fact that they were going to do it. You have to ask them, I mean in terms of what they feel like they can do, and and and you know, I know those guys are good players. And anytime you get your best players out there, you feel you feel like you got a you know, a good thing going.
Do you feel like there was a miss in terms of like when they lose their safety to you was in a situation already do the secondary and whatever.
I just think I just think the way they were playing that stuff mattered. Obviously it matters over the long haul. But the way they were playing and trying to double guys and doing those things and just trying to get pressure with their front. I don't think it was one of those things where you could, you know, start drawing stuff up and take advantage of because guys were out. I think they were still sticking to their plan and doing what they were gonna do against us.
You made it so many, you made it so many eight teams here when.
You that they might betting their ground and well no, I mean, listen, did these games you know they're gonna be battles And even though this looks like a lot, it looks really bad. It's one of those typical games that you come playing here and all of a sudden it breaks loose and it goes the other way. But this you felt it today. It was a hard, physical game. They you knew they were gonna make it tough, tough for it for us, and we just didn't come through
in those couple of little moments. You know, they got to two touchdowns on defense and got everybody excited and we're able to pin their ears back and do their thing. And you know, that's what this game comes down to.
It's it's one or two plays that you can look back on, and obviously there's more than that and just the consistency of it, but there's always those plays, and it comes down to just playing winning football and and and kind of waiting for your opportunity and you know, not letting and not letting yourself get too far out ahead of yourself and trying to make things happen when
they're not going to. And I don't really think we were doing that today, but we obviously you know, just we weren't able to wait, wait, wait, wait and strike. We we made mistakes and they capitalized. I don't think so. I don't think so. And you know, I didn't pay much attention to it during the game, but like it was windy out there, you could tell pregame ball was moving around. I don't think I've seen it like that before. I don't think so. I, like I said, I don't.
I think during the game it really didn't end up playing, you know, being a huge factor.
Yours defense.
But the team I thought they did a lot of good things today.
You know.
It's just a shame in the way that you know, we're kind of not meaging each other right now and playing both sides as well as we can at the same time.
So I know, you're out and.
You're on the sidelines, but the extent that you got to see the defensive at all, your eyes different what they were doing.
Well, that looked like they got you know, it looked like they were pinning their ears back a little bit more and playing with some confidence and playing with some speed, so they were able to kind of you know, break through the line a little bit and you know, get in the backfield a little bit more, and I just it just looked like they were playing faster.
Joe Flacco talking about his performance and defeat yesterday and Dave, I don't know that he would never acknowledge it, but I wondered at times how much that shoulder was bothering him, because he seemed to throw some kind of side arm at times, and there weren't a lot of deep shots down the field. Again, he's not gonna admit that, and he took a shot on that sack as well. I wonder how much the shoulder is bothering him at this point.
Yeah, you got to figure that it's, you know, some sort of an issue. There's he has to be feeling something, some sort of pain. I know, there's all kinds of ways in today's football to alleviate that pain on game day, and I'm sure he's probably taken advantage of some of that. But yeah, he his throwing mechanics didn't look the same.
It's throwing motion was was different. Like you said, a lot of it a lot of it was flight, dropping down and throwing sidearm, you know, And obviously I guess that felt more comfortable to him and whatever the anatomy or you know, uh uh, the the chart of the human body. You know that that that you have to
you have to look at. I just think I think that Joe Flacco could have done better throwing the football if if healthy, obviously, but even without health, if the Bengals had run the ball more consistently, I think Joe Flacco might have been able to take advantage of intermediate and deeper routes with play action passing game. And and well, the Pittsburgh Steelers certainly took advantage of it. They ran the ball well, uh twenty eight care of the football.
They they were they were consistent with that. They only they threw up thirty one times. We're in at twenty eight. That's that's pretty good balance for that offense. And the Pittsburgh Steelers did a pretty good job at the line of scrimmens. Their offensive line I thought played a very solid sound football game.
And David, the reality is Joe Flacco's forty years old. He's been really good on a magical ride. Yeah, but again, he's forty. It wouldn't be fair to say Joe Flacco's got to throw for three hundred and fifty every week or this offense is not gonna go anywhere. You just can't put that on his shoulders. No, no pun intended with an injured shoulder. You just can't do that to it.
No, you're right, it's you know, you've got You've got other players that need to step up. Everybody needs to support what Joe Flacco is doing. I thought the uh. I thought the offensive line was okay for the Cincinnati Bengals. I didn't think it was, you know, like a scintillating effort that wow, look at this, I mean, this is Hall of Fame worthy. But I thought they played pretty well.
I do think that the Pittsburgh Steelers are better in sid with their defensive tackles and the interior defensive lineman. And I thought the Bengals struggled control on those guys pretty well. Hang type more to get to including Jamar Chase. He's Dave Lapham, I'm Lance, but callister. It's Bengals Line of the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW.
Continue on this Monday night.
Welcome back in Thanks for hanging out with us as we talked Bengals football on Bengals Line the Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW lance butcallister Dave Lapham thirty four to twelve losers to the Steelers yesterday. And the other story coming out of that is Jamar Chase. Jamar on the field, has three catches for thirty yards, got into an incident with Jalen Ramsey in the fourth quarter of that game, and today comes word because of a
spitting incident, will be suspended beginning next week. And David was one of those, one of those afternoons of great frustration. And anybody who knows Jalen Ramsey and this is not to excuse, certainly Jamar's behavior, but Jayleen Ramsey is an instigator and an irritator, and Jamar engaged and then took it too far. And now he's gonna suffer the consequences and the Bengals offense and this team is gonna suffer the consequences.
Yeah, And that's that's the big thing is you know, Jamar. Jamar is gonna be lighter in the pocketbook and have less opportunity to put up numbers at the end of the season in terms of catch his yards and touchdowns, but it's opportunity for teammates to step up opportunity for others to show that they're developing, that they're coming along, that they're ready for more work, They're ready for more opportunity, showing that to the head coach, the coordinator, the position coach,
and the quarterback. Most importantly, the quarterback. Chase Brown has gotten quite a few targets and he's caught the football very well. He's shown himself to be a viable target coming out of the backfield, running good routes, securing the football, tucking it away, making the first guy miss, and then the other. Thing he's doing real well, obviously, is allowing the players to be made by blitz pickup, sticking the face right in the middle of a linebacker's chest and
getting it done. The tight end positions has been almost not invisible, but hasn't really shown itself to be a huge factor in any football game. Kasiki needs to get healthy and be able to do what he does so well on the football field. The tremendous receiver of the football Noahfan had five receptions on six targets, Hudson Tanner Hudson had three catches on three targets, and Yosi Vosh step up. As you knows as a number three receiver. With Jamar Chase out for a game, he could be
he's number two. I mean, he's a guy that needs to show that. Okay, come on, guys, I'm ready. He's had his issues dropping the football. He seems to have gotten over that. Everybody has those from time to time during the course of their careers and hopefully Yosi's done with that for this season. So bottom line is, guys are drafted out of college showing that the talents they have and they're they're they're taken by a football team for a specific role that the team had in mind
for them. Now you're going to live up to that role and have an opportunity to maybe expand that role show the team that you're capable of more. And if you're Jamar, you just can't. The track record is clear with Jaylen Ramsey. You know what he is, you know what he's going to try to do. And if you're a veteran like Jamar and you're a captain like Jamar.
You just can't engage. You can't let him get under the skin and take it to the extent he did, because you cost yourself and you cost your team. And that's not that's what. That's never what Jamar Chase has been about. He's always been about team. That's the disappointing thing. Yeah, Jamar Chase is a team player. You're right about that, Lance, I mean, and it's not lip service, you know. I mean, he's sincere. He's sincere about it. Nobody probably feels worse
about it than than Jamar Chase. You know, you know some guys, uh, you know, I asked, he deserved it. I'm glad I did it. That's not Jamar. Jamar is not that type of types of an individual because the like like just said, the team's the one that's paying the consequences. Let's get reaction immediately after the game to what transpired. Here's Jamar meeting with the media. What happened to jail.
Exchanging words? You were saying that you him him, I ain't never to I ain't never opened my mouth to that guy.
What do you what?
What do you think prouted the reaction from.
Well, you don't like some of the words I told him. He's been going back and forth the whole time, so I'm sure some some got under the skin.
So it was building whole game.
It just wasn't on that drive.
The first time we had a altercation and then it was a second time.
Except the first time in your career anybody's.
Ever hunched you.
A game.
You seen me get punk.
We'll thank you for a punch.
M hm j J.
Just so clear you did not spin on him.
A whole ones you got any saying, I ain't spit on nobody?
Okay, how how frustrating getting you walk about the game. How frustrating is the loss? Giving what y'all wanted?
What y'a wanna do in the morse come.
Out in wi was it?
It's hard knowing how hard we work for practice and coming here in here and not executing tour best ability. Gotta I gotta do better as a team.
When you double down every snap basically you wor.
Nah not every snap? First series is like cloud with like a two man show. Second series the first thirty downalds when I got double.
Did they did they change it up from last month?
Yeah?
How did they?
How did they change? Uh?
A lot more?
Too high cloud myself the whole time, try to look make it look like too man. And then when they did give me one on one safety just cheated.
Why do you think it was so hard to get into a rhythm tonight. That's an offensive unit.
Good question, man, it's a lot going on.
We had a good was running the ball a lot too, tryna get 'em out of the too high so you know, we was tryn to execute that, but when it was time for us to execute and pass the ball, we wouldn't getting our best looks.
Did you feel, given the fact that you guys were close at half time, that this game on the road was there for the taking?
Uh?
It was there, It was there, It was there by half time.
Yeah, a playoff math gets hard. Now what motivates you from here on there?
Just gotta keep competing, Man, can't forget how I got here. I gotta keep competing, stay positive, and just keep working.
Do you feel like there was a missed opportunity to to make things tight in the AFC North?
You could say that probably.
Yeah, Where where do y'all going from here?
Now?
How tid it was?
It?
Like?
What's what's the main objective? Now? Three and seven?
With the games that Jill got left.
It just won the next game and you know we gotta we gotta win in the in the.
You know where Sam Stone was talking about how there's no quit in the defense, no quit on the team. Why do you feel that same way? I assume we do.
Uh yeah, I mean look at it from the past couple of games that you know we we shouldn't have won or we have one and just see see how the guys play. Everybody's playing today, fullies until the last listen to the last time on the clock, go.
Out Jabar Chase immediately after the game yesterday, We've got more to get to. We'll talk about the defense here from Geno Stone and more as we continue on with Bengals Line on the Bengals Radio Network, it's seven hundred WLW Welcome back to the Bengals Line. And there's plenty I know the Bengals Radio Network. It's seven hundred WL Lances hanging out with Dap Lap.
Yes, Sir Lanson. The Kettering health feature, it's always about the injury report the Bengals. They get nicked up, they suffered a couple of injuries. They had guys that couldn't play in the football game because of injury. That it's not a long term situation. I don't think for anybody on the football team. Uh So that that part of it even though there are three and seven football team.
It's not necessarily related to injury. It's related to, uh, playing better, I mean a better performance on a week two week basis, being more consistent. So we'll see how that evolves. And it's presented by Kettering Health, the official healthcare provider the Cincinnati Bengals, providing the best care for the best fans.
Let's uh, let's get into the defensive side of things. We've heard from Zach Taylor, heard from Joe Flacco and also Jamar Chase. Let's talk defense. Here's Geno Stone after the game.
You know, did you guys think that was a better effort by the defense as a whole today? I mean, yeah, for sure, definitely.
I mean everyone said the back on said, definitely a thing we work on for we've been we've been saying we could work on. By the end of the day, I think we held it down in the rezone today when we had the opportunities on there, Captain Tobel, So I think we did a better job today doing that.
Did you think the chunk plays where really would hurt you overall at.
A certain point, Yeah, And then it comes down to, you know, certain situations of you know, people are ill spot and that's that's what it came down to. But I think overall I played we played better. I would say that we played better. I mean, definitely got work on a tackles though my self included, but we definitely play better.
Can you describe trying to tackle Washington? I mean a three hundred pound tight end that gets ahead of steam with that stiff arm. It seems like a difficult task.
Yeah.
No, I mean my my first one, I tried to get him out of bounce. I thought I was gonna get my bounce on the heel on the tracks.
Uh.
The next one got knocked. If I'm down and gone down, I mean, it's really that end of the day. It's got to get him down. But the first one, I think that's gotta I mean, I's gotta do better.
Rest all, this feels like on third and long they threw short a lot, counting on yards after the catch, and unfortunately it worked too many times.
Yeah, I mean in the second and second half. We made an adjustment after the first half, but you know, we we had them an opportunity to second half, so really didn't do that.
And then the one, the one we did. It wasn't the same call we were in before.
So you know, at the end of the day, we just gotta, you know, execute the call and everyone got a rally to the ball.
They scored twenty points to offense. What were the positives from your view for the defense?
I feel like when we stopped to run better. Uh it wasn't many big drum plays. They had a few, I'll say that, but uh, it wasn't like nothing like last two weeks.
I said that for sure.
I think it was we took a positive step, and uh, I felt we gotta get get better. We still got a lot of more games left, and uh, there's no quickn this team.
So I know we're we're better right now.
It takes to keep going, you see, to keep drive was the first drive the second half proved Office out.
There instead of Rogers and they don't get him.
On the field.
Yeah, yeah, definitely. I mean I just feel like I'm I I mean think we we we adjusted after the first the first the first drive of the whole game. I felt we had to just adjusted after that. But you know, we know when Mason came in, there's gonna be a different type of style. They were gonna limit limit it a little more, uh with him in there, and try not to put too much on his plate.
But you know, I feel like we, like we said, uh, we only have limited action in the second half, so you know at the end of the day when when when we get down there, then too we.
Gotta stop him. So we came out of score big understand not only.
That, Yeah, definitely, I mean we knew it was a stake. We knew, uh, what we have in front of us. So you know, at the end of the day, like I said, we gotta getett ready to get better. And uh, there's no Quinn's team. You know, last year we ran off with a lot of wins, so she's gotta keep the same mindset and get ready to do it again.
I'm frustrated gainst the mistackles just kind of continues.
To be the common theme here every week.
It just seems like just guys can't kind of get that corrected at this point.
Yeah, I mean, it's definitely a thing.
By the end of the day, I feel like, I mean, it's really no bit scores off it. I mean except the one D and that's me. That's that's the one thing I'll say, but like the miss tackles are all one on one situations.
It's not like where people are.
You know, everyone's rolling to the ball and there, and that's that's how it should be. It's how defense would be played. Should be one on one tackles. But when this one on one tackles, gotta make your plays. I'll say that for sure.
Seems like steel little football.
You know what it's all in, But you grew up watching it.
If they get, if they need it, they get, if they.
Start getting there and they get and it seems like.
They always out tackle when I was yeah, I mean I feel like I mean I being in THEFS North for a while, kind of all these games when you come to Pittsburgh kind of play out the same way. They're gonna rely on their defense and let their offense run the ball and keep it serveve and is kind of how it is. And it's been my best as I growing up. You know, so we knew what type of game was gonna be coming in and he's an execute the way we.
Had to do.
Geno Stone after the game and Dave, we talked defense was was better, not good enough? But one thing that really jumps out in tracking the game, the third downs allowed and some of the killers. They allow a third and eleven conversion, a third and seventeen conversion, another third and eleven, there was a first and twenty. There's a
twenty three yard gain on a on a first down. Earlier, there were just those backbreaking moments where you're so close to getting off the field and giving your offense to football, and they would they would break down at those moments. And it's just kind of been the pattern this season.
Yeah, it has. And you know, if Aaron Rodgers, you know, makes a big conversion, you think, oh, you know, Aaron Rodgers, He's done that to a lot of people. But Mason Rudolph, now he's making a big third and seventeen conversions, and it's like, whoa, that's a horse of a different color. Mason Rudolph comes in the football game and goes twelve or sixteen, one hundred and twenty seven yards touchdown pass quarterback Radio one eighteen point five. So yeah, I mean,
the defense, I agree. In the locker room, the sentiment was, you know, the defense really played well enough to potentially win this football game. Offensively, just didn't get it done at all. You know, we just couldn't take advantage of opportunities that were presented to us. And then you turn it over twice. You know, Pittsburgh doesn't turn it over. Bengals turn it over twice. You go minus two on the road against the Pittsburgh Steelers. That's a recipe for disaster.
And it's tough to win a football game when you're putting yourself in that type of an environment.
Boy, with seven games left, and part of the conversation will be as it becomes more and more difficult to make the math work to making the playoffs. Part of it when you get late in the season is finding out about players even more so in opportunities. And I wonder as much as Gino Stone has continued to have a tough time struggle tackling, I wonder if it might open the door for Tyson Anderson to get some more
snaps or PJ Jewles to get some more snaps. It just feels like something has to happen from a tackling standpoint, and Geno unfortunately has been almost like the poster problem for the tackling at times for this team.
It really has and he's earned it and he deserves it. I mean, God, it's brutal. It's like he doesn't want to use his arms and hands and wrap people up and tackle people and take them to the ground. I mean, the Bengals need to do the routine tackling drill for like a half an hour, you know, and get your head across the bow, wrap up with the arms and
take them to the ground. Paul Brown had our quarterbacks doing routine tackling drills back in the day because if they turn the football over and they may be the one that has to make the tackle on the interceptor. So you're right, if things continue this way, and maybe it's time. You know, it's been bad now for ten games, so you know, maybe it's time to take a look, see at the others and give him an opportunity. And you know, once they get in the lineup, they may never come out.
Stick around more to get too. As we hit down the stretch. In our first of three hours today, we'll talk about the day that Chase Brown turned in yesterday and more. He's Dave Lapham, I'm alliance McAllister. The show is Bengals on. We do it on the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW down the stretch. We go about to put our first of three hours in the books today Bengals one of the Bengals Radio Network and
seven hundred WLTW Lance McAllister Dave Lapham. Chase Brown a productive day, fourth straight week with over one hundred total yards from scrimmage. He carried it eighteen times for ninety nine yards. He caught six passes for twenty eight yards. And Dabu, you alluded to the running game early and what the the big picture of eighteen carries ninety nine yards is impressive. The frustrating thing was kind of the staggered stop and start to the run game because Chase
Brown had a fifteen yard gain. He later had a thirty five yard gain, but the other sixteen carries they didn't do a whole lot with the run game. And that's part of the kind of the roller coaster of this thing. It'll be fun at moments and then it'll like come to a jarring, halted moments.
Yeah, I mean, Chase Brown fifty yards of his ninety nine on two of his eighteen carries, So it was feast or famine. Yep. You know, they either gashed him and hurt him. Badly or you know, went away with without a whimper. And that's the thing. I think consistency, or lack thereof, is the biggest problem this football team is having. And that's not a shock when you consider that their overall record is is three and seven. It's just you know, some some series they go out there
and wow, jeez, it looks pretty good. Thet they got a pretty good idea of what's happening here. They they're they're they got a nice, nice approach. They're attacking well, playing very physical, playing very aggressively, and then you know it'll be like, what the hell is going on? This football team looks awful? Man, it looks like they haven't even practiced all week. It looks like that you know, the Pittsburgh Steelers or whoever the opponent is is just
totally befuddling them. You know, they're doing things that they didn't even anticipate and prepare themselves for. So that's the thing is becoming. I think part of being a professional is doing your job consistently. Your supervisor knowing day in and day out, you're gonna show up to work, you're gonna punch in, you're gonna work your ass off and you're gonna punch out and go home, rest up, and do it again the next day. And and that's the mindset that they have to get to.
And Chase Brown is so good. We saw earlier in the year when there weren't holes being created for him and he was getting hit first contact was behind a lot of scrimmage. But you him just a little bit of daylight, and whether it's running the ball or catching it out of the backfield, he can be dynamic. I mean, four consecutive weeks over one hundred yards of total offense. That is a big element for this offense when it when it's working that.
Way, no question. I mean he is as he's an explosive player. He's got a low center of gravity, you know, I'd say he's five to nine max and two hundred and ten two hundred and fifteen pounds, and he can change direction in a heartbeat now and hit his skill set, like we talked about, he can do just about anything that you wanted to do as a football player. So he's a huge weapon.
And wound up being their leading receiver with the six catches yesterday. It had more catches than anybody else on the team yesterday.
Yeah, he did, and uh you know he he had tied for the most targets with eight. Excuse me, I'm looking at the wrong he was he was second target. Yep, and he and t had eight, so you know they're definitely the offense is definitely. I'm not saying it's going through Chase Brown, but part of the time it is going through Chase.
From yes nice got to have it go through absolutely.
Yep.
All right, that's one of the books. We have much more to get to. We'll hear from Barrett Carter andmaryus Mims talk about the play of Miles Murphy yesterday and more. I might have to get into some Joe Burrow conversation before we're done as well. He's Dave Blapham. I'm Lance McAllister. The show is Bengals Line on the Bengals Radio Network
and seven hundred WLW. Hey, welcome back into our number two Bengals Line of the Bengals Radio networking seven hundred wled up at Lance McCalister and Dave Blapham breaking down yesterday's thirty four to twelve loss to the Steelers, looking ahead eventually to those new England Patriots and always time for one of these dave.
Yes, Sir Lance, it's card time. We want to remind folks to shop the Bengals Pro Shop find the best selection of Bengal merchandise where visit the Pro Shops seven days a week, located on the north side of pay Court Stadium, or shop online at Bengals dot com.
Let's begin the hor with some conversation on the defensive side of things and the rookie linebacker. Here's Barrett Carter after the game.
We just got to get eleven half to the ball and just find a way to get the guy down whoever it is. We're in great play calls, play calls sending us up for success. So for us as a defense, we just got to get eleven halfs to the ball and just find a way to get off the field. You know, it may not look pretty all the time, but just we just gotta find a way.
Washington a big tight end, he catches that ball.
What was your view of that play and ours to try to get him down in the space.
Of be size.
Yeah, just I just got to do better just knocking the stiff arm down and just find a way to get him down. So he's a good player. Obviously, he's a large human being. So just just gotta knock the stiff arm down and just get him, find a way to get him down.
He went heavy to the screen game. What's the key to playing those men?
Getting eleven half to the football? That's that's really it. I mean it's as frank as that age. Just eleven guys just doing their job and once the ball get thrown.
Just flying around and just trying to get 'em down.
You know, there's no quid and helping moralizing get third and eleven third and eleven third.
And seventeen they keep picking up those big ones where those artipically high percentage plays.
Yeah, it's frustrating. You know, those are favorable situations for the defense, and you know we expect to get off the field really every single time we're in that situation.
So it's uh, super frustrating.
So we just gotta just watch the film and find out, you know, what exactly went wrong and just do better with tackling, do better just swarming to the football, taking better angles, and just finding a way to get the runner down. So it's frustrating, but you just gotta find a way to.
Not let it happened in the next few weeks. Did you like being a key drive the game?
First?
First drive the second half moved alps in there.
Uh, you guys got 'em through and the water a couple of times.
Don't put off the field.
You to get with keyp drive and keep and.
How the game went.
I mean that specific drive. I wouldn't say that was the KEI a key drive.
You know, you have to treat and give every single drive the respect that it deserves, and if you don't, then you know you're gonna get exposed. So I wouldn't necessarily say that was a key drive. You know, it is a emphasis of, you know, try to win the middle eight the last four minutes of the second half, first four or the third. So frustrating that that happened, but you just gotta find a way to not let that happen again.
And those stirring lungs. It seemed like the strategy was, you know, if they catch it short close to the line of scrimmage, you gotta rally up and make the play, which is pretty common and unfortunately there were several plays where you just weren't able to execute that right.
Yes, yeah, you know what I mean.
I guess there's no real question there, but that is something that the defense has to improve on, right.
Yeah, you know, we try to try to keep everything in front of you and just like I said, just rally and tackle 'em. So we just need to do a better job of that. Frustrating that we had them in. You know, so many of those situations today and weren't able to get off the field. But you know those, like I said, those are favorable situations for the defense. If we can get 'em in a third down the long every single time, then you know, that's that's playing
good football. So we just gotta find a way to just correct those mistakes and all that that happen again.
Reach straight games without a turnover with what's the comu to get a.
News, but just seeing the ball, just having a knack for it, you know, whether that's punching, ripping, stabbing, picking the ball off, whatever it is, just just gotta see
the ball better. You know, our offenses, you know, fighting and scratching corn, doing everything they can for us, and you know we just gotta we gotta compliment them and give them some turnovers and return So we're just we're building towards at you know, it's frustrating that we haven't done that in the past three games, but we work at it every single day so that that worm that turnover warm is gonna turn. So it's gonna turn very soon.
You used it'd frustrating a lot.
Just how much more frustrating is it knowing where you guys are in the division and knowing how much of win here could have tightened.
Things in the race.
It's frustrating. Again, No, this division stay, There's still a lot of ball have to be played. Still gotta play Baltimore twice, Cleveland again, Cleveland again. So I mean there's it's still a lot of room to for us to you know, rise and you know take the spot. So it, like I said, it is freshing. But they don't call the season after that game. So we we got we got work to do, but we'll we'll respond. For sure.
The Ropins did only score twenty were their positive things on defense and if Selwich stood out.
To you, Yeah, for sure there were positives and you know, twenty is still too much in in my opinion and our whole defense opinion. Like that that's they shouldn't they shouldn't have had twenty points. But I thought we played well, just never never wavering. You know when things got hard, you know we stayed together. You know, the energy was great.
So you know, we we we're we're building a family on this defense, and we we know that we're gonna fight til the last second, and you know things may not be pretty, but you know we're gonna finish all four quarters or however long.
It takes so a.
Lot of positives to take away, but know the main positive that we just got to get a win, and that's what we fail to do today. So I just got to look forward to next We try to do that.
Barrett Carter after the game yesterday and Dave, I almost I feel bad at times watching Barrett Carter because it's almost as though when when you're a rookie and there's expectations you early in the season, he looked really aggressive and sometimes might overrun a play what you understand now.
I almost it almost feels like he's wondering and second guessing and tentative, and and anytime you're a linebacker and your tentative, that play has already passed you, and it's just it's leaving him in some really difficult situations.
Yeah, he wants to be perfect, you know, and and man, you just got to shoot your gun. You just got to let it roll, you know. Have faith in your preparation, have faith and what the coaches have instructed you to do, have coached you up to do, and when you see it, go get it. And because he is he's a very very physically gifted kid, He's a skilled kid athletically. They were very very excited about about having him and being able to work with him and and be a big
part of his his professional career, his professional life. So they've got big plans for Barrett Carter, and I think, you know, deservedly so. But he's got to play more consistently, just like everybody around him, Dave.
I would imagine there were times back in your day where you're sitting in the film session and there's a play that pops up on the screen and you know it's coming and I block your eyes. I gotta imagine today a tough day for the trio of Barrett Carter and Geno Stone and DJ Turner on the play that Darnell Washington at six seven two sixty four pushes one away knocks one down, shoves another away, and rumbles down the field. That up on the up on the screen would would be a tough watch.
Yeah, absolutely. I mean, you know, you can get embarrassed sometimes. And Washington, who they say is pushing three hundred pounds on the scale, uh, and he looks like it. He's a he's a big man. I mean, I'm thinking this guy might be a hell of a left tackle. He's got he's got great feet. Uh, he's he's got long, long arms. I mean he could he could literally uh at the back end of his career, maybe end up playing some some tackle for somebody. But that play ignited
the Steelers, you know, because they respond to physicality. That's what Mike Tomlins all about. And that happened right in front of the Steeler bench and they went nuts. I mean Tomlin, the coaches, the players, the fans, and i mean everybody started going nuts. So that was Ah, that was a big, big momentum builder in the football game.
There's no question this linebacker group is a is a work in progress. They they've traded Logan Wilson and that was to get more time for Barrett Carter and more time for Dimitrius Knight Junior yesterday or in Burke's got more snaps than he's been getting and a little bit fewer for Dimitrius Knight Junior. So you're you're walking the line when you when you play young guys, you can't get better unless you play. But when you play with young guys, it comes with the built in growing pains
of being a young guy. And that's the line they're walking right now.
Yeah, and they've got a few players that are right about the same ability, you know, and now Al Golden and the staff is trying to figure out who deserves the most snaps, you know. I mean it's like they're they're auditioning out there in in live action, live football games. It's not necessarily where you want to be at this stage of the season, you know, just over the halfway point of the season. But reality, uh sometimes sucks. That's where the Bengals are.
It's like a T shirt. There should be a teacher. Reality sometimes sucks. Printed up will continue. There's more to get to. We'll talk oh Lie, Dave Lapham, Lance but Catlister Bengals line on the Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW.
Bengals Line Onnday night on.
The Bengals Radio Network at seven hundred wil up in the last But now let'st along with Dave Lapham. We've sorted through yesterday. You've heard from Zach and Joe Flacco and Jamar Chase and Gino Stone. A little bit later on, we'll get into some other elements of the game, from Miles Murphy to looking ahead with the potential return of Joe Burrow. We've got the Patriots to get to and more. Let's talk offensive line and let's let's hear from the
second year offensive lineman and Marius Mims. Here's Mimes after the game.
Marius, tough loss today against the Pittsburgh Steelers. You're matched up against t J. Watt. He didn't wreck the game. I know that's the first thing that any offensive lineman has to do. But I describe how you feel about the way the offense performed today.
Like I said, man starts with me before I can. I said, I point this finger on me first, because, like I said, I gotta be I gotta be better in areas. Like I said, Mike, I said, nobody can never play a perfect game, man, But you just got you gotta ascribe to. Like I said, some things I wish I could take almost I can get back. It's a few players where I just didn't play out to my standard, whether that be a a set where I opened too fast or a late hit that I gave up Like I said, I gave up a late hit
when Joe, when Joe threw the interception. And it's just like I said, it starts with me. I gotta be better in that area. And like I said, I'm not the one to critique anybody else because like I said, it starts with me first. And I don't want to, you know, speak on another like I said, another group or another like I said, another player what they can do better. But I said, I can just talk about my I just talk about me honestly, where you know,
I just have to be better in certain areas. Like I said, it's two or three players that I want back. I guess tej in past pro where I feel like, uh, like you know, I didn't plug up to my standard. But like I said, we're on the road. It's hard in a hard environment. I'm going against a Hall of famer, and you know, I just if I want to be you know, like if I want to be a Hall of Famer one day, I gotta you know, you know,
I gotta, I gotta, I gotta play like one. And you know, like I said, I'm not gonna play perfect, but I didn't plug up to my standard on a few plays. And I wish I could have those players back, But like I said, it's football, imperfect. Never gonna be perfect.
Man.
But like I said, you gotta scribe to be. Like I said, we're gonna we're gonna go back in watch film Monday, dissect the dissect the film and figure out what we did wrong, and you know, come back out next Sunday ready to roll, man, because like I said,
we have seven more games left. It's not over with you know, it's you know, two and one of the division, and we just gotta, you know, just gotta keep going, man, because we really gotta win out men in my in my minds, like I said, making the playoffs, man, it's hard. So like I said, with any team, but for with us, we gotta our goocrit just like went out honestly. But we're gonna start with just you know, taking that one game at a time, and that's the Patriots next So.
How hard is it to face Pittsburgh in Pittsburgh Once they start to get the momentum going and the crowd gets into it.
I mean, I feel like that's anywhere honestly, man. But Pittsburgh's different. It's an AFC North rivalry.
Man.
You know they're gonna be coming out that ball. They're gonna be humming.
They're known for their front seven, their their their their interior, their edge rushers, their linebackers, being physical, and we just got a master that physicality.
Man.
But like I said, man, season's not over. We gotta just keep getting better every week and you know, come back stronger next week.
Chase Brown and ran for ninety nine yards. As a team, he ran for more than one hundred. Do you feel like that aspect of the offense has kind of turned the corner now where you feel like the running game is pretty reliable.
I feel like we bought him to what we bought into our oc our head coach and our on opposition coaches philosophy.
Just run the ball. And like I said, Chase is a special talent.
Man.
That guy right there runs hard.
Practice is hard, like I said in the building, like I said, like I said, he always has pen paper, he's always studying hard, watching film.
Man.
Like I said, he deserves it. So we just gotta be better for him. And going forward, you know, we gotta just you know, keep holding them the run game, just keep getting better because he's a he's a guy that if you get him in space and if you you know, make Keith blocks man, he's he's gonna take them to the house. So, like I said, we just got him. Like I said, we've been taking a step
in the right direction in the run game. But for him, man, we just gotta keep getting better every week so he can show high supposed to be is.
Appreciate your time, guests to luck against the Pats next week.
Appreciate you Mims after the game, Dave, give me a give me a kind of a scouter reporting and in his second year, Do you like the track and the projection that Mims is on in the kind of the growth, development and maturity that you would hope for in a second year player.
Yeah, I like. I like Amarius Mims' potential. You know, I think he's, uh, he's a genetic freak. I mean he is, He's He's a marvel physically. He's he can move really well for a guy his size. Uh, there's no stiff you know, in a Marius Mims. I mean he's very fluid. Uh. He bends really well at the knees and and he doesn't bend at the waste. He bends at the knees. He's got flexibility in his in his ankles, and he's got flexibility and his knee joint.
And he's he's very strong, you know, big, naturally strong guy.
He is.
He's a horse, and I think Scott Peters, the new offensive line coach, has given him additional tools for his toolbox. You know. He he played at Georgia, was well coached down there, didn't get he missed a lot of activity in games because of uh injury and hopefully you know, he's been nicked up a little bit here with the Cincinnati Bengals. Hopefully that is sometimes guys have a period of time during the course of their career where that
is a problem, but then it goes away. And hopefully when he's done and retired, he will be able to reflect back and say, man, that was a struggle getting through that period of time. But I think that that he Scott Peters likes the way he plays, likes his attitude, likes his approach to the game. Intelligent, you know, he's not a guy that he doesn't blow assignments the tackle position.
After having played all five you know in my career and a couple of times in the same game, the tackle position is not real sophisticated in terms of assignments. You got the end, you know, basically, you got the end the end man on the line of scrimmage. But he he does have good football IQ overall IQ general I Q smart guy, he's good teammate. All the other offensive lineman love the guy, as do other position players. So I think a Marius Mims is a good addition of the football team.
When you're a smart guy and a willing learner and a sponge, I think you hit on a great point. He didn't have a whole lot of snaps in playing time in college, so there's still a learning curve, and he's it's almost like a piece of clay that he hadn't developed a ton of bad habits, so you can just kind of mold him into what you want on the on the NFL level, and he seems willing to learn and adapt as you go that's that's all you're looking for.
Yeah, I mean if if when you draft a guy like him, I mean, his his future could project to be you know, not not sure fire Hall of famer, but that type of skill set or you know, is he a bust? Is he You hate to use that word.
I don't think he is, but I'm saying, you know, that's that's obviously when when guys come in highly acclaim, there's pressure with that and if they don't live up to it and fulfill it, you know, oh yeah, that dude, he was a bust, you know, and that that kind of that kind of attitude, you know, you don't like to hear. So I do think I think he's got a very very bright future. I think he's playing at a good level. I'd say he's grading out as well as just about any of the offensive lineman you know
that the Cincinnati Bengals have. I'm not sure if Scott Peters is a very is he a real task master greater like you know, Tiger every once in a while would be. You know, I remember John Shiner saying, I got Tiger. My god, I can't. I can't do anything right. I mean, you know, I guess I can't even put my uniform on right. But we'll see, we'll see how I do think the the one two punchs though Scott Peters teaching Amarius Mims the game of football in the NFL is a positive.
Thing still ahead.
We'll flip the script back onto the defensive side of things and talk about the day turned in by Miles Murphy and others as we continue with Bengals on on the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW. Hey, we continue on Rocket and Roller Throw a Monday Night at Bengals on Bengals Radio Network, Hit seven hundred WLW, LANs Bookatluster, Dave Lapham, we just made eye contacts. See behind the scenes.
We just made eye contact. Dave reach for a card and we had that look like card and I thought, yeah, let's go and behind the scenes, boom right there, telepathic waves.
There we go, and we're talking out the Fiber Lance, the official Wi Fi and Internet provider of the Bengals and Greater Cincinnati's fastest Internet with up to two gig symmetrical speeds.
David, if fans are looking for something exciting out of a frustrating day yesterday, to me. It was exciting that Miles Murphy. I jotted his name down a number of times throughout the game. And there's been a lot of games, right, I didn't jot his name down at all, and I was like, where was Miles Murphy today? But unofficially seven tackles, a sack, two quarterback hits, a tackle for loss. Yes, he did have a roughing the passer, but that was a moment where Miles Murphy made his presence felt and
that that's a good sign. They need more of that from him.
Absolutely. I mean that stat line that you just read is probably the best he's had in his career, I would think, so, there's no question about it. I mean, his his activity level was at a premium. I mean, he was he was a factor coming off the edge, he uh and and that's what the Bengals thought that they were going to get when they drafted him, and he is. He's been a uh, you know, just a tough nut to crack for the for the Cincinnati Bengals
coaching staff. And he's had different coaches now unfortunately, uh in a very short time frame of his career. But he he does have unrealized potential. He has a big, big upside. He showed some of the things that he can do. He is explosive, and he has a quick first step. I mean he can he can really uh you know, distort the timing and and and a guy like him not only does he have that quick first step, and can he speed rush the edge, he can hunker down and take you right down the middle and bull
rush a little bit. He can he has a pretty good storage where he can he can stun you and stagger you a little bit. So Miles Murphy is a guy that, uh, okay, you put up one good game. Now how about following up two, three, four in a row. Let's let's show that you've arrived boy. And I was struck by uh. I enjoyed the part of the pregame conversation. Yesterday Dan Horden talked with him and and mentioned that Miles is is so cerebral and such a smart guy.
And Dan said, sometimes defined yourself maybe overthinking something or spending too much time thinking about your your next move or how I'm gonna do this versus just the power of I'm gonna impose my will. And I would I would imagine that's something especially when you're a young guy, you're and you're a smart guy.
There's there's a lot you have to clear out. And sometimes it's just I need to impose my will and be able.
To say the hell with technique and fundamentals, but the hell a technique in front ofmentals. Just get after it. Just just you know, let fire the gun man, let it roll. You got all this uh, all this physical talent oozing out of that out of that body. Let it happen. Man.
And there's no question with the the trays obviously dinged up right now, we don't know what his future holds. And Shamar Stewart is still a rookie and in recovering from an injury, and Joseph Osai, we don't know what his future is. They need Miles Murphy when this isn't breaking news. You need first round picks to deliver. And they need a lot from Miles Murphy this season and going forward for this defense.
Yeah, and the and the Bengals have uh have spent a lot of high draft picks on the defense. YEP, have had to do it because they've decided as an organization they're going to spend money on the offense. You know, Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase and T Higgins. I mean, you get a lot of money invested in that offensive machine. So defensively, Uh, the best way other than signing uh you know a veteran free agents, uh who bolstered the defense, is to spend high draft picks on the defense side
of the football. And the Bengals and Duke Tobin and the scouting department have been doing exactly that.
Still ahead, let's talk a little bit about Joe Burrow. Yeah, the news of last week and what it may mean going forward. Will do that up next. He's Dave laphamm Lance.
But callister.
It's Bengals Line of the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW. As we continue on on this Monday night talking Bengals and the show, we call Bengals Line the Bengals Radio Network. It's seven hundred WLW and.
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Right, Dave, last week, the big news, the surprise news, the WHOA wait a minute, the Bengals make an announcement.
Joe Burrow.
They have opened up the window. It's a twenty one day practice window where he can practice without counting against the roster numbers. At this point, it seemed to have caught everybody off guard, what even his teammates. And that's good.
News, Yeah, really good news. Love it, how about it? In a season of not so much good news, there is good news regarding Joe Burrow and any positive news that involves number nine is tremendous news for the Cincinnati Bengals organization. And uh, seeing him out in the field throwing and and I'll tell you looks pretty damn good to me. Man. He is he's snrolling the ball. The ball is coming off his hand very fluidly, very easily,
very smoothly. He's uh, he's directing the football exceptionally well. His his accuracy is still pinpoint. I haven't seen any any drop or any change in that. And you know, the thing that Joe Burrow has is is just a it's it's almost like the movie The Natural. He just has a feel for the game. He understands football about
as well as it could be understood, you know. He he if he we're going to UH school at the collegiate level and studying football, he'd have his doctorate and be going for his doctor at plus thirty or whatever the hell it would be. He's he's an incredible, incredible athlete physically and mentally, and it really does. It puts a bounce in the step of everybody, you know, coaching staff, uh, players, everybody involved in the Cincinnati Bengals when they see Joe
Burrow at that locker. And it has been interesting to watch guys come by Joe Burrow's locker and you know, sit down next to him and the empty locker and talk to him and you know, get get a feel for what what he's doing and how he feels. And they come come away from it, you can see a different a different like I said before, bouncing their step, you know, a little bit different gait as they're as they're looking upon their day.
The the initial speculation nationally what all this has happened was, uh, maybe mid December, and now we're we're looking at speculation of maybe Thursday night against the Baltimore Ravens. Maybe that's a little bit early. Maybe it's Buffalo the next week. I just know this. It was fifty seven days from the surgery to his return to the practice field. And yeah, you could argue Joe's had a lot of practice unfortunately rehabbed. But you talk about sinking your all into a rehab
to get back for your team. This quickly says a lot about Joe Burrow. Well, it didn't need to be said, because I think everybody knew and respected it. But I'll say it. He put a lot into this to get back to this.
Point, no doubt. I mean he invested everything, you know, all of his time, all of his energy, and he wants to play. He loves his teammates, his teammates love him. He wants to be part of it. It's like he's got a big hole in his stomach, in his heart, you know, and other organs probably in his body when he's not able to go out there and do his thing because he is he's a high level, high producing quarterback in the National Football League and he's a leader.
There's the undisputed leader of the football team. And it's just not the same when when Joe Burrow's not at the helm and hopefully as sooner rather than later, and that twenty one day deal, it's he doesn't have to sit out the whole twenty one day. He can be activated at any time. There as long as the coaches feel like he's ready. And then even more importantly or equally important to that is the training staff and Joey
Bostay and everybody. Are they good with how Joe Burrow is physically and can he handle the riggers in the physicality of the NFL.
If let's let's play it out, he's clearly he's been cleared to do what he's doing. If that continues to be the case and he feels good, would there be any hesitation? I'm one who I tended to fall to. Players play, and if they're healthy and they want to play, and they're cleared to play, they play. You know. The other side of the argument, the elephant of the room is, well, if if they lose this game to the Patriots and they're sitting at three and eight, right, what's the use
of playing Joe Burrow? But man, Joe's only played a game and a half this season, and if he's worked his tail off to get back and he feels and medically, they say, green light, do you play Joe Burrow? Yes?
And because I mean Joe Burrow, will He'll demand to me play? You know? He he You're right, I mean he he is Uh. He is rehabbing like a banshee every single day with the thought in mind that I'm gonna go out there and play football, the game I love, the game I've done my entire life, and I am going to show my teammates the way I'm gonna I'm gonna lead the way. I'm going to be a beacon of light for my team and for this organization, and we're gonna win football games. And you never know what
will happen around league. Maybe somebody else suffer assisting of an injury at a key position, and all of a sudden, they're a different football team. So you know, you play it out man, and and uh, and Joe Burrow is ready to do that for sure.
Boy, I think of of messaging and optics. If Joe works his tail off this hard to get back and and he wants to, and he's been medically cleared, and and there's a debate, well, we're not going to play him because we're out of it. What does it say to the rest of the tea. I just think it'd be a weird message to everybody else who's banged up, and I know they're not QB one making fifty million year.
But for anybody else banged up or gone through a lot this season, if they suddenly looking, your team says, well, no, we're not going to play Joe because the season might be I just that's that's a tough message.
It is. It's a bad message, and it's a double standard. Yeah, you know, it's like, you know, you can't have a set of rules for everybody and then another set of rules for Joe Burrow because he's Joe Burrow. You know, it's like that now you're playing with fire.
Yes, yeah, and we've heard he's he's using a I haven't. I don't think anybody's seen it, a protective type thing in the built into the shoe to help the toe. So there's precautions being taken there. And I think having said all this, will still would we'll still kind of hold her breath because you don't want him to get hurt again. I mean, there's excitement that he's that he's back and he'd be cleared and to be okay, you just don't want to get him hurt again. And that's
just the way it is. You know, you I went your quarterback hurt.
Right, and you know early on I'm not sure in games if he'll be wearing that boot, he might just have a really you know, tape job that is extensive and taping the heck out of it where he can't even ben it, can't move it at all. Because, like you said, Lance, the worst thing, a nightmare that can't be imagined would be if he goes out there and re injures it.
Yeah, And I think in the end it can be as simple as if medically he's cleared and he wants to play.
God.
Yeah.
I mean if somebody says, well, he's eighty percent, then I'm saying, well, I don't know, right, if he's seventy five percent, if he's sixty, I don't want any I want one hundred percent. If you tell me he's one hundred percent cleared and he's in his mind ready to play, then he goes out and plays football, because that's who he is.
Yeah. In the game of football is you can be one hundred percent. You can have played five, six, seven years never been hurt, and then boom, Yeah in year eight you're hurt. You're hurt in week one and you might miss the entire season or a half of or whatever the case may be. That's uh, that's that's life
in the National Football League. But like you say, everybody looks at the contract and the dollars that Joe Burrow's being paid, and you know understandably, so that's that's part of professional sports these days and any any one of the major professional sports. But you're right, in my mind, I would not mess with it. If he is ninety nine point nine percent, I want him one hundred percent to go out in that football field and do his thing.
Yeah, let's be honest. And you said at the start of the show, the way that this season, unfortunately has trended, there's there's a lot of people's futures in doubt. And if I'm part of the coaching staff, I want Joe Burrow playing because no disrespect to Joe Flacco. We love what Joe Flacco has brought to help the store team. But Joe Burrow is Joe Burrow, and that's one of a handful of the best quarterbacks in the NFL who gives you a better chance to win football game.
Absolutely, you want your best players out on the football field giving you the best chance to win as many games as you possibly can.
We roll on on this Monday Night, talking about what happened yesterday, talking about what could happen in the future, and that includes a look at the New England Patriots. A little bit later on in the eight o'clock hour, it's Bengals Line on the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW. Down the stretch we go in our second of three big hours to night of Bengals Line on the Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW and Dave looking at the big picture before we get into our
third hour tonight. Here a little bit more from Zach. Here a little bit more from Joe Flacco. It is amazing. It's part of the drama that is the NFL, the greatest reality show on earth. The uncertainty of year to year. You may be bad one year, you're suddenly good the next year. The salary cap, the scheduling, all that plays into There's amazing numbers from year to year, the number of tea I think at least four teams every year for like the last thirty years have gone from last
to first at just nuts. And I look at the standings this morning and I see, as of today, the Ravens would not make the playoffs. There five and five, the Chiefs would make the playoffs. They're five and five over the NFC. The Lions would not make the playoffs. It's just it's it's the beauty of the NFL. From a TV marketing standpoint, it's got to be the frustration
of building football teams. Sometimes you just don't know. One year to the next things happen and there's a there's i mean, Denver's nine and two, New England's nine and two. Who saw New England being nine and two. It's just that's life in the NFL.
No, you're you're absolutely right, and uh you know what, what a what a coaching job has taken place in New England. I mean they are just talk about turning it around. I mean Drake Mays has had a hell of an impact on that organization, on that on that football team. Uh, they're they're playing, they're playing really really well,
a good brand of football. But there's not a team in the NFL that hasn't lost two games, you know, and and like you say, rattling off the teams that are at five hundred, that's why, that's why the Bengals could have gotten this one at four six there one game out with you know, with eight to play, they're definitely still you know, in the hunt. But the one thing you can't do is cashing your chips as a player. You can't say it's over now, you know, we're done. It's a it's a it's a it's a big piece
of history there. So uh, you know, they they they have to they have to keep their nose to the grindstone, keep keep preparing. Like you know, you're you're fighting for uh, your division title, you're fighting for a playoff birth, You're you're fighting for your professional career. And there's a lot to a lot to be said for that, you know, and and going that mindset, and.
They think of the way things turn. I mean, who would have Indianapolis is eight and two with Daniel Jones as their quarterback? Nobody could have imagined that coming. And yet here here we are with where the cults are standing right now. It's incredible.
Yeah, that's the beauty of sports, you know, is if you think you can, uh, you can make uh pick every where, but he's gonna finish in every single division. Yep, you get another thing coming, man. I Mean, there's so many variables the injury variable. Like you said, what they got in the draft from one year to the next, what they got in free agency from one year to the next, all those kind of things, all the team
building aspect of things. I mean, you can you can change a change a team team around very very quickly, like they've done in New England.
Boy in that that Baltimore Ravens team was once one in five and they were giving up I think they've given up more points in any five game stretch in their franchise history. And people started the doubt them. And Lamar was hurt, and now he's healthy, they're playing better defense. And you look up in Baltimore is now five and five and right here come the Baltimore Ravens.
Yeah. And when you have quarterbacks like Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson, you know, don't don't don't count those teams out. Don't count them out too soon, because stranger things have happened and uh, and these guys are uber competitive, there's no question about it. And they would love nothing more than to change everybody's plans the way things are unfolding.
By the way, to end the our final thought, I meant to ask you this earlier. Much was made of the swaying goal post yesterday with the wind. What tell me what was it like?
Visual?
It was the wind and the impact on yesterday's game in Pittsburgh.
Yeah, the wind was a was an issue, was a factor. I thought that that the players handled it pretty darn well though, you know, I mean, I think they made it. It impacted the game minimally, you know, really it was almost inconsequential, which you know, you got to applaud the effort of everybody for that. So you take the wind into account, but you don't let it dominate your thinking.
By the way, as much as I don't like the Pittsburgh Steelers that renegade, that scene in that stadium with that music playing.
Is just it is it really is. I mean, the fan base that is something they they they wait on that with baited breath, man they do, and they let it roll.
Let it go, man, they do.
All Right, that's two in the books. We've got one more to get to, a little bit more from Zach Taylor on yesterday's defeat, a little bit more from Joe Flacco. We'll do fun facts here that from Dan Horton. Get into those Patriots a little bit more as we head down the stretch. Oh and also remind me, Dave Lapham, I've got our final segment. Final segment. It was this date. I'll give you a little hint here. It was this date, nineteen seventy five. It was Bengals Bill's Ken Anderson through
the Air, OJ on the ground. Yeah, Monday Night Football. It happened on this date. I might have to ask you for memories of that game.
Okay, as we continue.
He is Dave Lapham, I Aliance pick Alistair. It's Bengals on On on the Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW. Hey, welcome back Gain hour number three of three tonight. Thanks for being with us on Bengals one of the Bengals Network at seven hundred WLW. Plans p Caanos Drew along with Dave Lapham and Lance Bengals Friday Night Stripes Tour presented by a Hole Kat is back for all locations this season.
Go to Bengals dot Com slash community.
Thirty four twelve the final Yesterday's the Bengals dropped a three and seven on the season with the Laws. So let's get more from the coach. Here's Zach with the media after the game.
You got to give them credit. They did the things you gotta do to win these games. AFC Now North November December Football. They did it, you know, and they tackled better. They won the turner of battle two to nothing, and that's the recipe for success.
And I think.
Ultimately the score, the score is not indicative of how the game played through through the first three quarters, but it is what it is. They did the things you gotta win and so they got a chance to run away with it. And it was really frustrating and disappointing because this is not what we expected to run. But so what we did, you was to turn a battle two to nothing. That's how it's gonna play out.
There was yeah, what was happening.
It got loud, you know, so the communication became a problem on one of the timeouts. So your choice is just stand there and run no play you know, as you're trying to figure out with ten seconds on the play clock, and so we called the time out there and the delay of game was just again hard to hear. So I'm sure we're having to repeat a lot of calls, repeat calls on my end so that we can hear him in the huddle and then repat him in huddle.
So it's challenging. It was a loud environment, yeah, trying to get him jump, trying to get him jump. It's it's a tough call. They they are a tough short yardage unit to go against. So yeah, it's it's that that's a decision worth criticizing. I'm not going to doubt that. But that was we went into the game film like that was an opportunity for us and didn't work out.
Did you feel like you were going to get momento after just throw, you know, just because all that happened beforehand, But even did you make you like get a little they lost.
We were just expecting to go score, you know, and and uh came away with a field goal. Andra, if I'm not mistaken. So again, I I don't read too much into how that situation unfolded. We're just we're just trying to call the next play. Oh I didn't. I still thought he threw the ball. Well, I mean it was as windy a game as ever ever been a part of. So as we watched the tape, I don't I don't know how much that factor did anything. I felt like he was throwing well and probably where he
wanted to. Maybe he'll tell you different, but again that was that was you know, for both teams, it was there's a win again. Yes, yes.
They did.
I mean it was certainly one of the better games they played, and so they gave us those opportunities, you know, ten points third halftime after giving out that first drive of the game. I was happy with the punts they forced. Unfortunately, we couldn't capitalize on offense and get enough points on the board to take advantage, especially with the ball coming out so at the second half, and you know, overall in the second half, just the two positions, we just
got to get him on the ground. There's a lot of opportunities to get them on the ground. We're working like crazy, talking like it crazy. It's just got to show up.
There's tough.
I mean, the their defense is a great job. You have to give them credit. Well, coach, they have great players. You know, we we had some some drives there in the first half. We weren't backed up per se, but you know, minus ten, minus fifteen felt like we were working our way out of that thing, and you just can't kind of stall out at midfield, and so just didn't sustain, didn't get the exposive plays we we'd like to get. And that's you know, that's that's a credit
to them. That's that's how they played us. And they were going to make us go to the link of the field, and we just weren't able to do that in the first half. I saw that first drive, yeah, because we we had them behind the sticks plenty of times, you know, and I think that was it was great, you know for our guys to do that and and some opportunities to take advantage of and and so then when they convert, Yeah, that takes the win out of
you a little bit. Yeah, they again, I don't I don't think we we were ever in a tremendous rhythm in any facet. And and you have to credit them, you know. They they had a great plan, They played well at times, we found some momentum and just it wasn't enough of that to to go out and score enough points to win in the game keeping school there, Yeah, yeah, I mean these guys are in emotional matchups. We all know that there's a lot at stake for teams. There's
a lot at stake for these individuals. It's competitive when when you got great players going against great players, it's going to be emotional at times. And jamar Is always do an excellent job of of controlling what you can control, and and so I respect that about them.
Were able to win.
He asked you about tackling to a point.
Where you guys.
And games that you might personnel changes to see if that can help tackling exactly.
Might be about.
But on the.
I have no idea.
I didn't see any of it. I got the worst view in the house. So I again, they didn't call us for anything. So I'm proud of our guys I I have. I have the worst eating house, no idea. You you feel them, you feel all the losses that you feel them all they eat at you all. You know, we're working, We're working like crazy to make sure that this doesn't happen. It happened today is disappointing. Our option is come back tomorrow and keep fighting and find a
way to get a win. And we got a red hot team coming in here, and so what that's what we're gonna do. We're gonna do everything we can to clean this up, correct the mistakes, get back to work. And fight another week and find a way to get a win. Same just what I just said, the same thing.
Opportunities just to kind of tighten things.
Of course, you know it's we were our goals would be three and oer in the division, you know, coming out of this game. And that's that's not how out New England. I mean, it's simple, find a way to scratch and call and get a win and get the feeling we had back three weeks ago and we'd beat Pittsburgh, you know, and gave us a good opportunity. And so that's where we're back to. We're back to just find a way to get a win against New England and
try to capitalize when them. That is our only option right.
Now, Zach after the game yesterday, early on a couple of points during the game. Early on, Bengals score on their first drive, there's a penalty that moves the ball to the one. I had no issue with Zach going for two at that right right, probably would have gone with a different play. I don't know if I run into the teeth of the Steeler defense on it. But did you have a problem from the start with the opportunity to go for two? No, I didn't.
I thought, you know, I had no issue with the decision that was made there. I mean, if you can't make a yard, you don't deserve it, you know, so, but I agree with you. I think the play selection, in hindsight, I think Zach would have gone in a different direction as well.
One other aspect of this offense that is maddening, Dave is how long it seems to take them to get plays in that lead to timeouts or or delay of game. There was one point Joe Flacco turned to the sideline and kind of had his arms up like that, and Zach was like, what And it's just that that has to be fixed. That that delay is just because any quarterback would want as much time, and Joe Burrow specifically is so good processing at the line, you want to
give him time and not rush things. And so many times things seemed rushed to get a playoff.
Yeah, and there's no excuse for you know, time management issues where you know you're literally going down in the last second and having to quick snap the football or you know, not having to burn timeouts in order to you know, alleviate a penalty that would be incurred otherwise. I mean, those are the kind of things that from a game management standpoint, you just you just can't you
just can't really have. And I don't know if it's like Zach's, you know, talking to Dan Pitcher and other members of the offense, and everybody's got opinions and everybody's sworn opinions out, and there's you know, they don't have enough time to sort through it all. If that's the case, that has to be remedied, I mean you have to,
you have to have I remember Bill Walsh. I saw his play sheet for a game one time, and every single down in distance he had two or three things that he was going to be thinking about so he would get to the crux of it right away. And Okay, based on what I've seen so far, it's the first quarter of the game, I haven't really seen all that much. Let's try this. Well, okay, I've seen a lot more
snaps of what they're doing defensively. Next time that comes up, sure and make a notation and he'd be over there like a mad you know, mad professor writing on his on his play by play sheet. You know, but those I think those are the guys who have a lot of success. Uh, you know preparation. He burned the midnight hours man he was. He was all about preparation for the game. So when when the game unfolded, he was ready.
Good stuff. Take a time out and continue a little hear a little bit more from Joe Flacco as we make our way through this Monday night. The show is Bengals Line and the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW. Let's keep it moving on this Monday night of talking Bengals on Bengals Line, the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW.
Hey, Bengals fans, make sure to catch me and Dan Hoard every Wednesday this season for Bengals Game Plan presented by Bud Light on the air from six to eight pm on ESPN fifteen thirty.
Joe Flacco again, one hundred and ninety nine yards through the air, through a touchdown, through a pick six, one up with thequarterback rating of sixty eight point six years more from Joe after the game.
Listen to me.
We're halfway through the season. Basically, it's a little bit more now, but it really is so tough to look at it that way. I think it's easy to get caught up in that stuff, But you know it, I I really try to remove myself from those situations and just go play football. And I think if you do that, that's when you give yourself the best chance to be
in the best position you want. Obviously, that's there lingering and you know, the opportunity and all that stuff, but you got to try to avoid getting caught up in those things are you're trying to manage the pain in the shoulder. How much worse did he get after?
Now?
I mean, listen, that's football. He did a good job. He buried me in the turf. But uh but I felt good, you know, felt good all game.
Did they changed much the way they attack Jamara?
Well, I think they made sure that. They probably did it more. Just they probably had a couple of guys on him more often than they did in the first game. And you know, that's why they're a good football team.
Uh.
And we knew, we knew they're gonna make adjustments and come in here and and play better than they did the first time we played them, and we just gotta we gotta match that.
Two safeties would do gooder than that five.
Did they did they change much bigger? Listen? I think everything they did we kind of had a plan for and and and could see that you know, why they were doing it and the fact that they were going to do it. You have to ask them, I mean in terms of what they feel like they can do and and and you know, I know, those guys are good players. And anytime you get your best players out there, you feel you feel like you got a you know, a good thing going.
Do you feel like there was a miss in terms of point when they lose their safety too, do you look at the situation orrey down do the secondary and you know whatever?
I just think I just think the way they were playing that stuff mattered. Obviously it matters over the long haul. But the way they were playing and trying to double guys and doing those things and just trying to get pressure with their front. I don't think it was one of those things where you could, you know, start drawing stuff up and take advantage of because guys were out. I think they were still sticking to their plan and doing what they were gonna do against.
Us made so many you've made it, so.
Many eight teams here.
When did you begin to think that they might.
Be you know, equipment and ground well no. I mean, listen, these games, you know they're gonna be battles. And even though this looks like a lot, it looks really bad. It's one of those typical games that you come playing here and all of a sudden it breaks loose and it goes the other way. But this you felt it today. It was a hard, physical game. They you knew they were gonna make it tough, tough for it for us, and we just didn't come through in those couple of
little moments. You know, they got two touchdowns on defense and got everybody excited and we're able to pin their ears back and do their thing. And you know, that's what this game comes down to. It's it's one or two plays that you can look back on, and obviously there's more than that and just the consistency of it,
but there's always those plays. And it comes down to just playing and winning football and and and kind of waiting for your opportunity and you know, not letting not letting yourself get too far out ahead of yourself, and and trying to make things happen when they're not going to. And I don't really think we were doing that today, but we obviously you know, just we weren't able to wait, wait, wait, wait and strike. We uh, we made mistakes and they capitalized.
I don't think so, I I I, I don't think so. And you know, I didn't pay much attention to it during the game, but you like it, it was windy out there. You could tell pregame ball was moving around. I don't think I've seen it like that before. I don't think so. I. I, like I said, I don't. I think during the game it r it really didn't end up playing, you know, being a huge factor Georgian defense. But the team I thought they did a lot of
good things today. You know, it's just a shame in the way that you know, we're kind of not managing each other right now and playing both sides as well as we can at the same time.
So I know you your jobbing on the sidelines. But the extent you got to.
See defensive at all, was there anything to your eyes that looked different about what they.
Were doing well today versus it looked like they got you know, it looked like they were pinning their ears back a little bit more and playing with some confidence and playing with some speed, so they were able to kind of you know, break through the line a little bit and you know, get in the backfield a little bit more. And I just it just looked like they were playing faster.
Joe Flacco after the game and Dave, one thing was very clear. The Steelers took a much different approach to how they were going to handle Tea and Jamar this time. In the first meeting, Jamar and t were targeted thirty three times and had twenty two catches. Yesterday, Tea and Jamar combined for six catches on eighteen targets.
Uh.
The Steelers certainly made the made their adjustments and weren't gonna let Jamar Chase go off like he did the first meeting.
No, I mean they were like fly paper. I mean they had they had somebody. It was me and my shadow for both of those guys. I mean they they had people, you know, picking them up immediately once they
came off the line of scrimmage. And I saw in both cases, said, you know, double teams almost every single snap as they were in the process of running their routes, and sometimes it'd be a you know, a third defensive player would work their way over in that direction and then and then get involved so they had those two targeted. They know that a big reason they lost the first matchup was because of those two, because of Jamar Chase
and t Higgins. So they were going to neutralize those efforts and uh and and and diminish their contribution for sure, and I think they probably feel like that's a big reason that they won the rematch.
Stick around more to get to, including Dan's weekly segment that we love fun facts talking with the Pride of Saint X Bengals quarterback Sean Clifford. Ahead, plus we'll get into those New England Patriots and what Mike Vrabel has done with that team. All ahead, as we rock and roll through a Monday night of talking Bengals football and
Bengals Line on the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW. Hey, we're back on Bengals Line of this Monday night on the Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW, sorting through yesterday and about to look ahead before we're done at those New England Patriots on this Monday night and.
Bengals fans on Fridays, make sure to listen to myself and Dan Horde from Bengals PEP Rally presented by Just Bear Chicken on the air from three to six pm on ESPN fifteen thirty.
Speaking of Dan, each week we take a listen to his Fantastic Fun Fact segment. We love it he gets behind the scenes with a Bengal In this week, behind the scenes with the Pride of Saint X, the former Saint X quarterback Bengals quarterback. Here is Dan with Sean Clifford.
No Fantastic Fun Facts with Dan Ord.
Time for some fun facts with quarterback Sean Clifford, a local kid out of Saint Xavier High School here in Cincinnati. You haven't had the opportunity to play in a game yet for the Bengals, but describe what it's been like for you to go to work every day at pay Court Stadium.
Yeah.
I think it means lots of my family first and foremost. You know, the the Cliffords have been living here for over twenty years now, and you know, we really truly call this place a home. So just being able to go to work with a great group of guys, great coaching staff, and great front office. I think that all together, it just means a little extra. I know it means a lot to the guys in this locker room, but
for me personally, you know, it is personal. So it's been a it's been a pleasure to be here so far and looking get some wins in the future.
Did you attend a lot of Bengals games when you were young, and if so, do any specific memories stand out.
We would, We would go to games all the time. But my senior year, my parents actually got my brother and I season tickets for just for my senior year and his eighth grade year. And if you know brother, the brother connection, obviously you bicker and you fight each other for so long. And it was actually funny because in my last year before I left for college and
his first year going into high school. You know, it was that opportunity to go to the Bengals games where I feel like we really developed that best friendship and then it carries on today. You know, that's my right hand man. So I owe a lot to this team just from being a fan first and foremost. My brother and I would always talk about it were I was able to the first game point out to Zach the exact spot where I was sitting, you know, almost a decade ago. So it's it's really cool to be back
on the field contributing to a team. Maybe not on the field, but from a week to week perspective, just giving it at my all and trying to find a way to win.
We're visiting with Sean Clifford. One of the most memorable moments in the Bengal Super Bowl run in twenty twenty one was the playoff game in Tennessee where Joe Burrow got sacked nine times and the Bengals still won the game. You did that in the state championship game for Saint X back in twenty sixteen. Describe that season because it was not a smooth ride for the Bombers.
Yeah, very similar to this year. I think, you know, the at least the opportunity. You know, we went five and five in the regular season. Steve Speck actually wrote a book about that season. But when five and five, I had injuries. We had injuries going into the season. I think that we had five starters out by the
first week. So, you know, it was a lot of ups and downs, but put together some good wins in the back end, made it into the playoffs, is a very late seed, and then rode that momentum all the way to the state championship, and I think that you know, you in those situations, you know, I compare it, you can compare it in every level.
You know, you just got to find a way to string together wins.
But then once you get to the big dance and it's one game at a time, anything can happen. So I think that that's always been on mindset is you know, a season's long, it's gonna be tough, and there's gonna be ups and downs, but weathering that storm and being able to at least get to the final that you know, that final show, then anybody can win every single week.
So it's just about putting putting enough together, you know, because you're gonna face adversity, But if you can put enough together to get to that point, then you can catch a hot streak.
From a state championship at Saint X, it was on to Penn State, where you spent six years. Why did you choose the Niitney Lions.
It really came down to James Franklin and I hate to see him go.
It was tough to see him go, for sure, And I know a lot of guys in that locker room, uh are still feeling that just because you know, James was such a great guy, a family man, somebody who really preached, you know, the same mantra similar to Saint x Men for others. You know, it was kind of the same way at Penn State, and my mom really fell in love with the idea of me going to that school. Thank god she did, because I really, you know,
she she was a big proponent of going to Penn State. Uh, staying committed the whole way through, committing early and staying admitted.
So I owe a lot to my parents for kind of steering me in that direction. I always love.
Penn State, but once I got there, it's around the people, you know, Pennsylvania. I really consider Pennsylvania and Ohio to be the two spots that I really love Midwest kid through and through, that's for sure.
After a record setting career at Penn State, you were a fifth round draft pick by the Green Bay Packers. Describe your draft experience.
It was a crazy one.
I you know, I didn't get invited to the combine, was counted out a bunch of different times, and then as I kind of told my story through the draft process the scouts and kind of worked my way up to to the GM level and the coaches level. I think that my story is all about heart and will and what I can provide from a value perspective to a team.
And it's it's a day to day thing.
You know, you're gonna get my best every single day, doesn't matter. You know, if it's if it's a Monday or Tuesday off day, or if it's game day. You know, I'm gonna give it my all because I'm I always like to think I'm an ultimate competitor. I want to win as much as the next guy, and I'll do whatever it takes for my teammates to be able to get that done.
I think that, you know, green Bay heard that.
I know that.
In the process, Cincinnati, you know, I was talking to brad Our quarterback coach as well, and he even reminded me that, you know, they weren't taking a quarterback in the draft, but if I did slip outside of the draft, you know, since he was gonna try to be the first call that they make to get me here. So I always appreciated them. But Green Bay, you know, took
that shot in the fifth round. You know, I was able to back up Jay Love for a couple of years, and I thought that the bonds that I created in that locker room, I have a lot of respect for how the Packers.
Run their organization. It's just a it's a it's a well run show.
And I think that it really helped me early in my career to be able to see how it's done. So that way, you know, I can bring that that energy and that mindset into places like this.
We're visiting with Sean Clifford. You join the Bengals in September following Joe Burrow's injury. Do all of your Cincinnati friends and family members as what's Joe Burrow?
Like?
I think it's it's both Joe's now obviously, you know, being in the in a room full of Joe's and Jake uh, you know, we have three great minds in that room that that all contribute in different ways.
You know.
I think that Joe Burrow is somebody who has a lot of experience early He's an elite, elite talent and somebody who I've I it's funny if we we lost the game into Minnesota my in twenty nineteen in a in a very controversial game that I won't get into because referees in my opinion. But if we win that game, in which we should have, we actually would have played Joe and the l S and the LSU Tigers in in the first week of that that playoff. So I've
always seen him as a great competitor. I've seen him as somebody who you know, I have, I have a lot of respect for, and so you know, he provides.
So much value to that room.
And then you add Joe Flacco in the mix, his experience and all the story that he can tell of different looks and different players he's played with and how to scheme certain ways.
It truly is incredible to just see the full picture.
And then you lay in and a get a guy like Jake who's done such a good job of backing up Joe and coming into big situations and winning games.
Very blessed to be a part of this room, and I think it's.
Competitive, I think it's exciting, and someone that really pushes not only our room, but the players around us as well to be their best version of the selves and really elevate the competition.
A few wild card topics now for Bengals quarterback Sean Clifford, who is your all time frint athlete in any sport.
I think Kobe's probably for me, just because of the mindset, the mentality, the mama mentality of I think he was such a servant leader outside the community. I think that he did a lot as you study kind of his life and what he did with his family. I think from a business perspective, he did so much off the field that really really left a mark. From a community perspective, he was always pouring back into kids and being able
to to really give back to that community. But then when you turn on the tape and you watch him in a game, he turns into a complete nutter savage, and I think that that's I think that there's time and place for all that. You know, I think that you have to be an upstanding, an up stay, and a citizen and a good man in the community, and I always try to be that, especially now being back in the community that gave me so much. But really for for a guy like that, you know, when when
when it's time to play ball, I think it. You know, there is a switch that you can turn on and it's okay to to kind of get aggressive in that situation because you know, all that hard work and dedication that you put.
In to be able to to win and to you know, have the chance to win. It's it's it's meaningful.
Penn State famously wears the most plain uniforms in college football, perhaps all of sports. So bland that they're cool or time for an update.
Oh they're cool.
I'm an old school type guy anyway, so I don't think that they need any sort of update. I've always appreciated the tradition, and I think that you know, I I grew up watching I wasn't a huge NFL guy until I really started fall in love with the Bengals, but I always appreciated watching college ball and specifically college players, and I just always loved I followed a lot of Nordame, traditional program, you know, with a lot of a lot
of good guys, good community guys. And I don't think I I knew the importance of that when I was just a kid. You know, you're just watching them be busy they're on TV. But you know, I followed some some some great players just because I was just attracted to the way that they held themselves.
And I think that you find that at Penn State. I think you find that in a urdame. You find it at.
Schools that are traditional. So to answer your question, long story short, Yeah, I love the uniforms.
All right.
Final fun fact for Sean Clifford. This one's kind of deep. If you could meet anybody in history, living or deceased, who would that person be.
You know, I'm a Christian man and I think that Jesus would be somebody who I love to meet. You know, I think that it's He's the ultimate messenger and he's the ultimate, you know, warrior when it came to doing good in this world. And I think that the conversations that you know, I would have and will have one day in my in my opinion, will be magical and
really life changing. So, you know, always trying to dive into the word and finding different ways to talk to him in different ways, but having an actual sit down conversation, maybe over at dinner, it would be really cool.
Sean, appreciate your time. It's great to have you on your hometown team. Best of luck the rest of the year. Thank you.
Dan Horde with Sean Clifford. For more of the those interviews, always check out the Bengals Booth podcast. Take a time out and come back, let's figure out what's making those New England Patriots tick. They are rolling nine and two on the season. Talk a little bit about that club is we roll on with Bengals Line at the Bengals Radio Network and seven hundred WLW and now on the stretch on this Monday night of Bengals Line and the
Bengals Radio Network in seven hundred WLW. Next up for the Bengals the nine and two Patriots, winners of eight straight games under coach Mike Vrabel, and they've I was struck by a story I read over the weekend about the Patriots and what Mike Vrabel has instilled in this team and how he has leaned on his team captains and sitting a tone. And last week he gave the captains he said, look, were later in the season, we
could lighten up the load today and go inside. What do you think And they said, no, we want full practice outdoors. And he said on Thursday for the Thursday night game short day, he said, should we go with the regular team meeting early morning and or I could let you guys off and let you clear your head. And the team captain said, no regular team meeting. Last week on their standard day off. Forty one guys showed
up on the standard day off. And the whole point of the piece was they have bought into hook line and sinker and what Mike Vrabel is instilling in that team, and they're getting the results and and they're rolling right now.
They are they are, they're they're probably the hottest team in the National Football League. And uh, you know, you're gonna give a lot of credit to Mike Vrabel. And there's nothing like winning, yep, I mean, winning makes the labors of us all no question. Mike Rabel could say, you know, I want you to on Wednesdays, I want you to put your helmet on and look through the year hole. We're going to do that every Wednesday, and
that's how we're going to practice. And and uh, you know, if you win it eight or nine in a row, that's that's all good.
So the the.
Teams.
Football teams are creatures of habit, and when you establish good habits, you're gonna win football games. That's usually the case. And and that's the case for the New England Patriots. They have turned things around very very quickly. And it's always about the quarterback in the National Football league, and they get a young quarterback by the name of Drake May who's lighting it up. Man. He is playing at a very very high level. I mean Tom Brady set
a high bar in New England. I mean every quarterback is always going to be like, oh jeez, in the shadow of Tom Brady, how do I crawl out of that shadow? Drake May seems to be extremely poised. I mean nothing, nothing seems to rattle this kid. He seems very, very unflappable. So it's the Patriots have a lot of things really going for him. And when you when you look at their roster, the starting lineups offensively and defense, there's not a whole lot of names you say, oh
my god, this is a three time Pro bowler. You know this guy they got. I mean, it's it's guys, you know. But they're they're good football players, and they're playing collectively, you know, Synergy one plus one equals three. They're playing at such a high level. And I think part of it is the you know, the intangible of yeah, Rabel, we know we got the best coach in the league. We know we're better than every other team in the NFL, and that regard. So let's go win games.
Drake May is completing seventy one point nine. I mean there was a time where I mean sixty one was like, well you got to throw it complete at least sixty percent in the league in a time. And now he's at seventy one point too. That that's like a video game number.
It is.
I mean that that's that's like Tom Brady. It's like a Brady number.
He is.
He is playing it up in.
Twenty only five interceptions as well.
Yeah, that ratio is outstanding. I mean, this kid's not playing like your typical rookie. There's no no question about it. And uh, you know he's he's definitely the leader of the pack in the Boston fans. I grew up in the Boston area, fifteen miles northeast of Boston, Massachusets, and I know how those fans can be. So Drake May is the toast of the town right now. But that can change quickly, yes, But but he is, he's doing things. He's doing everything the right way.
All right, we come back final segment.
I must ask you to go back in the time machine to this date nineteen seventy five for Monday Night football. The Bengals and the Bills. As we wrap things up next Bengals on and the Bengals Radio Network seven hundred WLW.
All right, final segment of the night.
Let's put a caper on all this with a trip back in time. Dave I noticed it was this date, nineteen seventy five, Riverfront Stadium, Monday Night football was in town for the first time. That's Howard and Down and host Sow. It was Bengals, it was Bills. Kenny throws for four hundred and forty seven yards. OJ ran for one ninety seven for the Bills. You guys win thirty three twenty four to move to eight and one on the season. What a night that must have been.
It was incredible and we end up with a twelve and four record. We went to eight and one, and that's after that particular game, and it was Monday night football in Cincinnati and Dandy Don and the Gifford Frank Gifford and Howard co sal it was it was amazing. The the energy in that stadium was was nuts. And literally the best running back in the National Football League O Jay Simpson and in my mind, the best national quarterback in the National Football League Kenny Anderson had a
duel at the OK Corral. Man, I mean they had a shootout in thirty three, twenty four. I mean that was there was a lot of offense, and I'm sure, I'm sure the network was excited as hell to have that kind of a game because that was the hype. You know, you got, you got explosive offensive football teams coming coming in to do do battle and matchup and and and they did. It lived up to its billing. A lot of times you get the hype and the
game doesn't live up to the billing. You know, Uh, this one, this one more than.
Did Isaac Curtis seven catches for one hundred and thirty nine yards, Chip Meyers seven catches for one hundred and eight yards. Arlie Joiner five catches for ninety yards. Holy cow, what a trio.
Yeah, I mean he got two over one hundred yards and one at ninety that and that's you know, that's obviously the most of the four forty seven that Kenny Anderson uh threw four. But I mean Chip Myers was a big, tall, tough He was a cowboy, went to University Wyoming. I mean he literally he literally bulldog Steers and stuff like that, you know, I mean, he was
he was something else. He ended up coaching in the National Football League as well, and uh and had a had a great career in that and that side of it. Charlie Joiner was the thing I remember about Charlie. He made this sound when he was running sprints routes. Sounded like a human typewriter. It's like, Oh, there he is, he's he's breaking free. There's Charlie.
It was.
It was great, but it and he was. He wasn't the biggest guy. I don't think. I don't think he was six feet tall. If he was, he was barely six feet tall. But man, he played large and he was a great teammate. And that's the thing. I mean, when you have success and you win games, it's easy, you know, in hindsight, it's like they had to have good attitudes. Yeah, and everybody did. You know, Paul Brown did a great job of, you know, picking talent from the collegiate level that was going to mesh in the
National Football League. And he knew what he wanted. He knew, you know, he had Isaac Curtis, the speed guy, and then the other two were guys that could work off the speed of Isaac Curtis, very very effectively.
Well, that was a fun way to end it. Well, we're fun results yesterday, but that was a fun way to end it tonight. Right here this date, nineteen seventy five, man, second.
Year in the league at the young pup.
Yes, no doubt about that. We'll take well, we're done. Well, I was gonna say, we'll take a time out. Well, we'll take our time out for good.
Well, we'll go there next week and talk about Bengals and Patriots there for hanging out with us tonight. It's been Ben Goles one in the Bengals radio network in seven hundred WLW.
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