Bengals Booth Podcast: Get Back

last year. T J Watt of the Steelers was number one, Joey Bosa the Chargers was number two, and Bengals newcomer Trey Hendrickson was number three. We'll discuss that, plus get Nick's thoughts on the Bengals offensive line improvements and the likelihood that Joe Burrow will ultimately become one of the

best quarterbacks in the NFL. The Bengals Booth Podcast, entered by Bud Light Seltzer, refresh the game and here's a quick reminder that you can have the latest edition of this podcast delivered right to your phone, tablet, or computer by subscribing on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or pod Bean. It's the greatest thing since the Jungle to the Hall Rally.

In about two weeks, Saturday, June nineteenth, hundreds of Bengals fans from all over the country are heading to the Pro Football Hall of Fame in Canton to make the case that more Bengals should be enshrined, most notably Ken Anderson and Ken Riley. From ten to twelve that morning, there will be an event at masselin Washington High School, where Paul Brown's coaching career began, and then from one to three, a big rally will take place in a party tent on the grounds of the Hall of Fame.

Former Bengals will be involved in person and virtually, and the Hall of Fame is planning to have a special Cincinnati Bengals exhibit. The hope is that the event will influence the nine voters on the Senior Committee, and the rally is already getting a lot of publicity. But regardless of that, it's sure to be a great time for everybody that makes the trip. They've even arranged for discounted hotel rooms and Hall of Fame tickets. For more information

and to RSVP for the free events. Look up Bengal Jims BTR on social media again, that's Bengal Jims BTR on Twitter or Facebook. And who day to all the Bengals fans who are planning to attend the Jungle to the Hall rally. Now let's get to Trent Taylor. When the Bengals held the recent rookie minicamp, most of the attention went to number one draft pick Jamar Chase, But while watching video and looking at photos of number one, some Bengals fans were surprised and miffed to see another

wide receiver wearing AJ Green's old number eighteen. As it turned out, it wasn't a rookie. It was Trent Taylor, who spent the last four years with the San Francisco forty nine ers. The former Louisiana tech star, who led the nation in receiving yards as a senior, promptly signed with the Bengals after the mini camp and is now wearing the number eleven. Taylor is undersized at five eight, but had an excellent rookie year as a slot receiver

in San Francisco before encountering back and foot injuries. I spoke to the twenty seven year old this week, Prent. After four years in San Francisco, where you built some great friendships, describe what it's like to start over with a new team. It's an exciting time for sure. It's you know, kind of you do your four years in high school, four years in college, and I did my four years in San Francisco, so I just naturally time to move on. I guess it just kind of worked

out like that. But yeah, it's an exciting time, like all it always is starting with a new team. Right now, I'm just getting no all my teammates, meeting everybody and all the coaches and everything, and so far, so good. Everybody seems like cool, good people. So yeah, just still getting to know everybody right now. George Kittle posted a heartfelt tribute to you on Instagram after you signed with the Bengals, saying it's hard to think about not lacing

up the cleats with you next year. Sounds like the two of you built a very strong bond. What did that message mean? Yeah, so it started. We were training together before the NFL Combine and all that coming out of college. That's where we first met met each other and out there in Frisco, Texas, we just became great friends. We would always, like on the weekends, we would go to the Dallas Stars hockey games. We would do whatever, you know, we would hang out. That's when we started

become great friends. And then we both got drafted to the forty nine ers. He was at the early fifth round pick and I was, uh the late fifth round pick. So it was you know, an instant like we face behind each other, streaming and yelling and uh so, yeah, all of our time in San Francisco together, we were roommates. Um, and just like continue to grow as great friends together. Um. You know I was in his wedding, He's gonna be

in my well. I actually had a COVID wedding this past year and he was the the one single guest that I had there with me, along with his wife, Claire. UM So yeah, we um definitely created a lifelong friendship together. UM. So it kind of sucks to be able to tap to leave friends like that, but you know, it's it's it's part of the game. And you know, we both

have houses in Nashville now. Um, so we'll always be friends. UM. Continuing on from this his rise to start them must be awesome for you to be that close to him. Oh yeah, it's it's been amazing to watch that because you know, after our rookie year, we both had forty three catches. I think, you know, we tied with catches. So the bet, like I was like, I bet you like two hundred bucks. You know, I'll have more catches

than you this year. And that's like when he actually broke the tight Ends all time record for receptions or he broke the yards record, I think, not receptions, but that's when he like completely started going off and I was like, oh, I kind of regret regret doing that, but uh yeah, it's been so much fun watching him progress and just become the big superstar that he is these days. Did he hold you to the bat? Yeah? I paid him. Yeah, we're talking to a Trent Taylor.

So you mentioned forty three catches as a rookie. You got off to a great start and then the injuries kicked in. What have you had to overcome? You know? Rookie year went good for me. I had I had back surgery going into my second year. So my third year training camp, I fractured my foot and I was only supposed to miss like one or two games starting the season, but then there's an infection in my foot.

So my foot got infected which caused me which they only thought it was gonna like take three or four more weeks, but it actually ended up being I missed the whole season because the infection in my foot, it was like really hard for them to get it out, so a bunch of surgeries happened for them to make that happen. So I literally like the whole season I was just sitting on the couch with my foot, you know, trying to get it back healthy, getting the infection out

of it. And that's when we went to the Super Bowl. So it was a super tough year for me just to have to sit back and watch my guys go to the Super Bowl without me. When it was like something that was out of my control, which is like an infection in my foot, you know, it'd be different, it feels, because like I injured myself playing football. But just the fact that it was like a doctor kind of messed up my foot a little bit, and that's the reason that it held me out. That one stung

a little bit. So just some unfortunate events for me like that in San Francisco. So it was kind of a tough ride. So I'm ready for a fresh start here in Cincinnati. That foot injury sounds like really scary stuff. I think anybody that followed Alex Smith's leg injury knows how serious an infection can be after surgery. Were you in danger of losing the foot or anything dire like that. No,

it was nothing crazy like that. But it was just like they would think that the infection was going to be clear, So then we waited a couple of weeks and then they go back and look at it again and it's like, oh wow, it's still in the bone. So we had to like explore a bunch of different methods. I had. I had a pickline in my arm um injecting myself with um antibiotics for six weeks. I think, wow. Um so that yeah, that was just a miserable time

dealing with that. But um yeah, nothing like what Alex Smith was dealing with out That's that's just a whole other level. We're talking to Trent Taylor. So you signed with the Bengals after getting a tryout at the rookie Minicamp. A few weeks ago, and it was interesting because there were twenty two players there and you were the only one with real NFL experience. Did it feel a little bit strange and did the rookies know that you were

an accomplished NFL vet? Uh? Yeah, it definitely felt weird, Like you can kind of tell, just like talking to guys and working out with guys, um, guys who you know, know how the league works, and guys who are completely new to it. Um. But I don't think I don't think anybody really knew that I was a veteran um because like towards the end, when we were catching punts, it got brought up somehow and everybody was like, oh, dang, like you you used to be with the forty nine ers.

Oh yeah, yeah, I've done this before, man. But uh but yeah, it was It was definitely a different time for me. You know, something I've never experienced, having to, you know, travel around and like try out for a team like that. Um. But I'm glad we made it work here in Cincinnati. Now, did they have you go through that tryout more or less just to see if you were healthy because obviously, you know, you can put on the tape and see what you've accomplished in the NFL. Yeah,

I think, I mean, yeah, it was normal. Um I'm glad that I got to do it, you know with the rookies, because usually, like a workout, you kind of go and you're out there by yourself just running routes while while they watch you, and it's just you know, it's a lot more fun whenever you're running routes with other guys and you have actual quarterbacks throwing to you. Um, so yeah, I was I was able to join in with the rookies and do it that way. It's just

it's a lot easier now. The other thing that caused a bit of a stir was the fact that you were wearing AJ Green's number eighteen. You switched to number eleven after signing with the Bengals. But were you amused or annoyed by the outrage that people seem to have. Oh yeah, it was pretty funny, honestly, Like I never

even thought about it. I just you know, once it was over, I guess they like closted pictures of me wearing eighteen at the rookie mini camp, and um, I just opened up my Twitter and there's like all these people who are so angry with me for some reason. I'm just like so confused. But I mean aj Greens, I mean, he's the man. He's he's a complete baller. So you know, I understand where they're coming from. That's

that's how fans are. It is what it is. But um, I definitely knew not to keep number eighteen on my chest. I knew that for sure. Well, eleven looked good, it practiced. Last last week, we're talking to Tred Taylor. The Bengals lost Alex Ericson in free agency, and he's had the role the last few years of being kind of a backup slot receiver to Tyler Boyd and then obviously the primary punt returner. And you have performed those roles in the past for San Francisco. Do you see this as

kind of a natural replacement for the job he had. Uh? Yeah, I feel like that that could easily become my role. Um. I think I proved myself as a prim returner, a guy who can get the job done in this league, so um, I mean I obviously got to go prove it every day, but um yeah, I feel like that could be a good role for me and obviously TV Tyler Boyd is a I mean, he's a great athlete and a baller obviously in that position. So uh yeah,

we'll see what happens with that. But um, the offense here is a lot is a lot better for me, you know, for a guy like me, Because in San Francisco, we had Kyli Huschek at tied end, which would take our at fullback, which would take a lot of time from that third receiver spot, which Jews. He's like obviously a baller at fullback and can do a lot of things for your offense. But we don't have a fullback

here at Cincinnati, which is good for that third receiver. Um, you know, a lot more opportunities for guys like me to come into the game and make play. Yeah, no question, more three receiver sets than any other team in the NFL over the last couple of years. What stood out to you, Yeah, what stood out to you about the wide receiver group in the first few days of OTAs. My parents asked me about it and I told him, I said, we might have the best receiver group in

the NFL. I believe if if obviously you know, Jamar Chase can come in and be a baller like he did all throughout his college years, which I believe definitely will. Um we're looking at like a pretty lethal groove at receiver. So I'm just I'm excited to be a part of it and to get this offense role. Does the possibility of playing with Joe Burrow excite you? Yeah? Obviously, you know you you watched him his rookie year, and uh, he obviously has what it takes to be a baller

in this league for a long time. You know, He's got the right mentality. And yeah, so I'm excited to work with a guy like that. And uh, you know, just the fire that he brings to the game is something that isn't normal as a quarterback, I don't think. Um. So, yeah, it's gonna be fun playing with him for sure. In December, the Bengals host your former team. Have you given any thought to what it'll be like to line up against the forty nine ers. Yeah, I'm I'm really excited about

that one. I've already joked with you know, the strength staff over there and some of the coaches. I say, if I scored, So I'm I'm throwing the ball at you on the sideline. I mean, yeah, I'll definitely you know, have a nice little chip on my shoulder for that one. Um, hopefully I ball out and get to shove it in

their face. But I mean, it's all love at the end of the at the end of the day, I respect all those guys over there, Um, Kyle Shanahan, John Lynch, the whole, um, the whole coaches that they're all great people and I definitely appreciate everything they did for me and my time there. So it's all love at the end of the day. All right, last thing for Trent Taylor. I was glancing at your bio and you were a great all around athlete in high school. That's not all

that unusual for an NFL football player. But in your case, did you really take up tennis as a high school senior and make it to the state double final? Yes, that that is true. Um, yeah, we so, me and my quarterback, and you know, we were both just natural athletes ourselves. Dakota Duran is his name, but uh, you know, we always played tennis for fun. We're like, dude, senior year, like, let's just join the team. It will be a blast.

And so we were doubles partners together, and we made it all the way to the to the state championship match. You know, we we beat everyone throughout the state tournament, made it to the finals, and got beat um in the championship game, which I think we I think the whole tennis community like hated us so much. You were known, we were known as like the two football guys because you know, we just went to the state championship in football that year, and so everyone knew us pretty well.

And so yeah, we were known as like the football guys. That's why everyone knew us as at the state tennis tournament, and uh, you know, we kind of had we had a little edge about us. You know, we would talk trash, you know, poor kids and tennis. You know, they probably haven't seen much of that, but we got We talked trash to a lot of them, and I think we

got in most people's heads. I think that's why we won most of the games, honestly, which it was probably like not nice at all, but you know that's how we were. We were just out there having fun with it and yeah, and made it all the way to stay So I mean, I enjoyed the hell out of Little Still's a good time. The football guys crashed the party. Is there is there footage of that on YouTube or somewhere where people can see it. I don't know, honestly,

I don't think so. I don't think there's anything online of that. I might I might need to find some videos and post them for you all. That would be very entertaining. Hey, Trent, this was great. This was great. I really appreciate your time. Welcome to Cincinnati and we look forward to watching you play. All right, Yeah, thanks for having me. I'm looking forward to it. The Bengals Booth podcast is presented by Bud Light Seltzer. It's light

and refreshing with a hint of fruit labor. Last week, there was a story on nfl dot com about the top ten pass rushing disruptors in the NFL last year. That stat combines hurries, pressures, and sacks to determine who is most effective at rushing the quarterback. Former Bengal Karl Lawson was number seven on the list. The free agent that the Bengals signed to replace him, Trey Hendrickson, checked in at number three. I spoke to the author of

the article, Nick Shook, about that and much more. Nick I reached out after reading your recent story on NFL dot com about the top ten disruptors of twenty twenty. In New Bengal, Trey Hendrickson checked in at number three, ahead of Miles Garrett and Aaron Donald, among others. I know you are not saying that he's better than those two guys, but explain the stat and what it says

about the Bengals acquisition of Trey Hendrickson. Well, I know you, I know that you know that I'm not saying he's better, but I would like to inform all Twitter that because they think otherwise when they just see your ranking next of these games. Um, well, the thing with with Trey Andrickson that that put him so high on this list was the fact that you know he got home And when I say that, I mean, you know, on his pass rushes he was getting to the quarterback and bringing

him down. He wasn't just getting close and maybe pressuring him or causing a hurry or anything like that. He was finishing the job. I mean, he was nearer at or in the league lead for sacks for the majority of the season, and he had the highest sack rate of any player on this list of any player in the history of Next Gen's dabs dates back to twenty sixteen at over four percent, is the only guy to

ever break four percent. So, you know, I think that you're getting a guy who ideally replaces somebody who lost. Also on this listen, Carl Lawson ended up in seventh, but you hope that it's not a flash in the pan thing. He you know, he came from college with the reputation for getting after the quarterback, and it's almost like he just happened to finally blossom in the final year of his deal and you know, at the perfect time.

But again, he was playing offs to Tamra Jordan's So it does make you wonder, you know, was he benefiting from that or not. We'll find out, I think in Cincinnati this year. But he's I mean, he's a big get for the Bengals, no doubt. We are talking to Nick Shook from NFL dot Com. Let's talk about the Bengals pass rush in general, because it was pretty anemic last year. Last in the NFL in sacks twenty ninth

and pass rush win raid. According to ESPN, they signed Trey they signed Larry Ogan job, They've got DJ Reader coming back from injury. They drafted four defensive lineman, including Joseph Osai in the third round. What do you think of the group and the likelihood that the Bengals pass rush will be much improved? Um, you know, I think even having guys healthy would help you a lot. I think, you know, Geno Atkins and what was going on with him in the last couple of years didn't really help

him either. So I'm a big fan of Larry Ogan joby uh from his time with the Browns. I got to know him fairly well when I worked for the team, and you know, I love approach. He's a very hard worker. He's an under the radar guy who you know, he makes some plays here and there that might catch somebody's attention and then maybe to set the expectation a little too high and then they get disappointed. But that's not the type of players he's not. He's not your warrant

sap interior rusher. He's just gonna break through and set the quarterback. But what he's gonna do is cause problems. He's rarely gonna get pushed back. He's gonna jam up the middle. Despite not being three hundred and thirty pounds or whatever. So he's gonna be effective in there, and I think he works really well in tandem. I think hed Reader's gonna help out with that, uh, you know, provided that he can come back healthy after missing Lois

of last year. And you know, Hendrickson we already talked about um and I like Joseph Asaia I do. I thought that he got drafted later than I expected raw in the fact that he was an inside linebacker at Texas before making a position change and clearly becoming you know, the edge that he was supposed to be. You know, he's a little stiff in the hips, he doesn't quite have that natural bend yet. But I think it's great value for the Bengals, and if they give him a

long road, he could become a very productive player. He's also not somebody that you're gonna have to immediately rely on. So overall, what I learned from that drafted from this offseason with the Bengals, at least in the defensive side of the ball, is they acknowledged that they were weaving the trenches and they needed to get better, because what can you do if you can't stop the run? Not much so it's It was an encouraging offseason for that, all right. Speaking of the draft, there was a heated

national debate before the first round. Should the Bengals give Joe Burrow another weapon Jamar Chase or improve his protection with Pine Sewell, where were you before the draft and what do you think about what the Bengals did after the fact. Well, my background is an offensive line, so I was leaning towards Sewel because I think Sewel is potentially a generational tackle. I mean, the kids super impressive. He was coming out of high school going to Oregon.

You know, routinely when you pull up his clips, you're seeing him block one or two guys a play. Sometimes he chase him at the same time. But I do understand the allure of the receiver and a Jamar Chase, who was fantastic when he last played football, which was with Joe Burrow at LSU's seasons ago. And I understand, you know, you're replacing a role, you know, owned by

a J. Green. You've got T Higgins coming back after a very impressive rookie season, and you still have Tyler Boyd as well, who I think is another under the radar guy who could you know, really explode. I think in the right set of circumstances. So you combine all of that, then yeah, adding Jamar Chase makes sense. You have a trio of receivers and you can't overlook any of them. It's going to give nightmares to all the opposing defense is not to mention you have a brushing

attack led by Joe Mixon. It's that is formidable. So I do understand going for the weapon over the tackle. I just think that I always personally prefer to invest in high quality offensive lineman because provide that they can stay healthy, that's something that you don't have to worry about for five to ten years and you can't put, I think a price on that. But I think they were in a great spot either way to get a prime time player in either Sewel or Chase, and I

think they'll be happy regardless. In the interest of full disclosure, I was also in favor of Pine Sewel before the draft, but at the end of round one, when I looked at the available lineman left in comparison to the available wide receivers left, I think the Bengals got it right. I would agree. I would agree, you know It's funny because the year prior, we had spent so much time talking about how strong the receiver class was, and then you saw them flying up the board at a faster

rate this year. And whereas you know, the tackle class last year was very good, but there were more lineman that you could see becoming very solid offensive lineman in the NFL available on Day two. And I thought they did that pretty well at Jackson Carman when they spent

that thing. It addresses an area that's not quite a need depending on how you want to, you know, set out you're starting five, but it gives you depth and frankly, you know, from this point last year to now, I thought the Bengals have done a spectacular job with remaking their offensive line. I think they left out with the quinnin Spain thing and how he ended up in Cincinnati, but overall, I think they've done a great job at that.

So it wasn't you know, I got a lot of texts that you know, they're never going to keep Joe Burrow up right. You know, he's gonna have a dirty jersey. He's gonna be on the ground all afternoon because they selected a receiver instead of attackle on the first round, not realizing that the draft is more than one round, and that they'd had a quietly a very good off

season in remaking that group. So yeah, it's sometimes I think it's tough to make a decision one way or the other, and we really won't know what the right move was for years down the road. But I feel very confident that no matter who they had taken there,

that they'd be happy. Well, hearing you use the words spectacular job and remaking the offensive line is music to the ear of Bengals fans because the simple fact that they didn't take Pinney Sewell has led to the reaction from some that they're just neglecting the offensive line, ignoring the fact that they signed Riley Reef, they drafted Jackson Carmen, they drafted two other offensive linemen, they retained Quintin Spain as you mentioned, and they went out and brought Frank

Pollock back to be their offensive line coach, widely considered to be one of the better ones in the NFL. Yeah, you know, that type of investment is what was sorely needed, and I think exactly what you have to do after you spend the number one overall pick on a franchise quarterback of the future. And you know, like I said, I think they did. They did do a very solid job there. And you know, none of them are splash signings necessarily. I thought Riley Reef is a very solid signing,

but it's not a splash signing. I loved quintin Spain when he was with the Bills, and when he ended up in Cincinnata, was like, that's a that's a perfect fit. But it doesn't attract the eye of the average fan because how many fans are doing what I do, which is like pay very close attention to the offensive linemen and their footwork and their steps on a play by play basis while most everyone else is following the ball. It's just because I'm a line nerd. It's not necessarily

because I'm smarter or anything. So you know those types of players who you know they can come in and make a contribution, make a difference and aren't going to grab the headlines, well then you know it starts to become a very solid effort that they put forth. And

they do have death that I really like too. You know, I liked Billy Price coming out of Ohio State I was actually there watching his bench press tours pack, which is a bummer, but I like him as a backup, you know, Xavier Suaphilo, and he's got some experience being a backup, kind of a swing guy. I think Jackson Carmeo, he was a highly rated recruit coming out of high school. You guys know he's from that area and before he went to Clemson, you know, Flipton Ohio State and went

to Clemson. I think that you can't argue with that type of you know, potential there as well. So I think it's a much better situation than it was a year ago, and they deserve to be committed for it. We are talking to self proclaimed line nerd Nick Shook from NFL dot Com. You can follow him on Twitter at the Nick Shook Sho. Okay, you do a lot of work with next Gen Stats for NFL dot com, and you teased recently on Twitter that you're going to be writing about the top ten coverage guys from last

season sometime this month. And there was a graphic that accompanied your tweet that showed that Bengals cornerback Darius Phillips ranked third in the NFL last year and something that next Gen Stats calls ballhawk rates. I also saw that they tweeted out that he ran fourth in the NFL and tight window rate, meaning he is forcing tight windows.

Is Darius Phillips underrated? So when it comes to next Gen stats, we have the benefit of the tracking data that they can tell us exactly where players are at specific moments, you know, relative to the players near them, how fast the ball is going, how fast they're traveling, when angle they're moving out, all this stuff that kind of helps us to get an idea of how prepared or how well they put themselves in a position to make a play on the ball, which is what the

tight window thing is. How closely they to the targeted receiver when the past arrives. Usually you want to be within three yards. Most of these guys that you're going to see on these lists are within three yards. So forcing a tight window on a consistent basis tells us what we already see with our eyes, which is he's all over him. He's a blanket cover guy, you know, even potentially a shutdown corner guy. Ballhawk rate is where in that situation that players can end up making a

play the ball. It's kind of the next step in the process, and a play on the ball could be a pass defended, or it could be an interception. If you have a high ball hawk rate and a tight high tight tight window rate, that means that basically you more often than not or more often than then most defensive backs in the NFL are very close to the receiver who's targeted and you're playing, making him play on

the ball more often than most guys. I think ball hawk rate is very important provided that you have I think enough of a baseline of you know, targets over the seasons. Like the peace I'm working on right now, we have a minimum of forty targets. We have a minimum of three hundred pass coverage snaps. Darius Phillips didn't play the full season last year, finished a two hundred and ninety pass coverage snaps, so he's not going to

end up on that list. But if he if he had dropped that down to let's say two fifty two hundred and seventy five pass coverage snaps, then suddenly he's

pretty high up there on the list. Because of things like ball hawk rate, tight window There's some other stats as well that we kind of rely on to to kind of figure out, you know, who's the best in covering in all areas, you know, one of them being completion percent over or under expectation allowed, which is kind of a complicated thing where when it passes throne, you know not to get too deep in the week, but when it passes throwne based on all the data of

everybody on the field at the same time and where they are in the location, everything else, there's a there's a probability, a likelihood that pass is going to be completed. If a defensive back then forces any completion on the pass that was likely to be completed. Stretched that over an entire season, all the coverage snaps that they have, you end up getting how much of a difference they're making.

If their completion percentage under expectation is a negative number, that means they're doing well, whereas receivers doing the negative number, that means you're doing poorly because you're not catching as much as the expectation you know sets for you to catch. That you're basically not doing the job you're expected to do. So that's another number that we use. He's also pretty high up there in those numbers. That's will actually have

it in front of you right now. He's a negative five point one percent, which is going to be among some of these guys that are on this list. He's not gonna be on this list again because he doesn't hit the total pass coverage snaps necessary at just two hundred and nine. I set the base line to three hundred and getting good. But I do think all of this, this very long winded explanation has told us is that you know, this is a guy who I think is

on the rise. I'm a MAC guy myself, so I love anybody who's coming out of a MAX school and uh, and I think he's wanted to continue watching in a secondary that's probably going to need to rely on him a little bit more going forward. We're talking to Nick Shook from NFL dot Com. Bengals fans have been very encouraged by the side of Joe Burrow taking part in

OTAs over the past couple of weeks. What did you think of Joe as a rookie and what do you think of his chances of ultimately becoming one of the better quarterbacks in the NFL. I think it's a great chance. Um. When I was I went to the Bengals Browns game a Thursday night, Week two, sitting in the press box just watching him drop back and throw. And I'm familiar with Joe uh in his you know performance going back to high school and he was an Athens High school.

He actually beat my alma mater in the state semifinals Uh that year when he was you know, slaying it down there for Athens. So um, you know, he ends up into Ohio State. We all know the career progression, you know, from there to LSU and everything else. And I think that it's all just fit right in line with with who he is. I think he's grown as a pastor. But what I've seen more than anything, he's got that that brain of a coach's son. He's got

the composure of a coach's son. I mean Week two, I was sitting in the press box and watching him sit in a pocket like he's been in the league for five or ten years, delivering the ball while that offensive line was still trying to figure it out. Myles Garrett is coming after him, while Olivier Vernon and Sheldon

Richardson and all those guys are coming after him. Moxie, I mean total composure through the ball over fifty times and nearly through the Bengals to a victory in that one, And I thought that he was believing candidate for Offensive Brookie of Year until he get hurt. And then you know, they kind of cleared the way for Justin Herbert to run away with that award, which I don't think it was necessarily a full run with that. Justin Jefferson had

a pretty strong case as well. But the sky is a limited think for Joe Burrow as long as you protect him and you surround him with weapons, which it seems like the Bengals have done. I think that you know, he's only going to go up from here is you know, if we can gear that his knee is fine, which advances in modern medicine makes me think that that's probably not going to be much of an issue. You just got to keep him up right, that's the biggest thing.

And I think otherwise, you know, as long as he can come back from this injury and have that same confidence, he just picks up where he left off and continues on up. Yeah, you saw sixty one attempts in that Week two game. I might want to cut down that a little bit in order to and increase the likelihood that he'll be upright, But obviously you want to use

that weapon as well as much as you can. The Bengals are obviously in a very tough division with three teams that won at least eleven games last year, and those three teams made the playoffs. What does success look like for the Bengals this year? In your opinion, that's a tough one because I expect, you know, those other three teams to be very competitive. They should all be.

Maybe I don't know abou the Steelers as much. We'll see, but I expect the Browns and Ravens to be battling for the division title just based on roster construction objectory. But I think success for the Bengals is playing competitively, which they showed last year before Joe got hurt, that they were a competitive football team. Now they've had another off season to add talent and kind of, you know, get better. So I think success for them is you

flirt with five hundred. You don't necessarily have to hit five hundred. Well, we don't really have five hundred anymore with seventeen games, but you know, nine, eight, eight and nine. You try to get in that range and and you demonstrate progress, you demonstrate that we're maybe a couple more pieces away. We're not that far away. We just need another offseason, We need another year to grow as a team,

starting to come together. I think that is success. Anything above that, you have to be, you know, over the moon if you're a Bengals fan, just because of the difficulty of the division and the fact that every division game is gonna be tough. There are going to be no no cakewalks whatsoever for any team in this division, and that that includes those playing against the Bengals, because the Bengals are a competitive football team, at least when

they have their starting quarterback healthy. So it's going to be a tough one for them. This might be the best division of football. If not, it's definitely one of the best. And unfortunately for the Bengals, they're not among that group yet. But I don't think that they're that far away from turning that corner. And this could be the first step this year. Well, they had a tie last year, so eight eight and one is the new five hundred. Let's go for it. Well, if it happens,

people heard it first on this podcast. Nick I really appreciate your time. Keep up the good work, and I look forward to reading about the top ten corners. Even though Darius Phillips did not have enough snaps to qualify. Yeah, you know what, next year, he needs to play more than twelve games, and he'll get that night. He'll probably get that number even in twelve games, no doubt next year. Thanks for having me on, Dan, I really appreciate it, all right, thank you, My thanks to Nick Shook and

Trent Taylor. And that's going to do it for this episode of the Bengals Booth Podcast, brought to you by bud Light Seltzer Reach the Game. If you haven't done so already, please subscribe and if you have a minute, give it a rating or share a comment that helps more Bengals fans find this podcast. I'm Dan Horde, and thanks for listening to The Bengals Booth Podcast