Bengals Booth Podcast: I Have Questions

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to football, where it's time to ask lap lap. At this point, all of our podcasts are obligated to begin with a discussion of Joe Burrow. So here's my first question for you this week. Give me a percentage what is the likelihood that the Bengals are going to wind up selecting Joe Burrow number one overall? I think it's going to be in the nineties. I really do. I think that I don't see a box that he doesn't check. You know, the fact that is his dad coach. I mean,

he's he's football. He's a football lifer already at such a young age, he's been around the game so long. Um. You know. The other thing is when all his relationship with his offensive lineman, he talks about a pregame meal, always eating with the offensive lineman. First thing he did at the Heisman presentation was thank his offensive lineman. He

just he just gets it. I think. Uh. And it's you know when the big difference with him and Herbert that I've I've heard is, and I asked people about it, is when you say, okay, who are Herbert's friends on the team, they list two or three guys and they struggle to come up with that list. When you ask how about Joe, There isn't anybody that doesn't like Joe. Joe's friend to everybody. He just seems to have that and that boomer to him a little bit, you know.

I mean, he's got he's got the takes over the room. He's the personality guy that everybody gravitates toward. And I think that's a leadership quality. That is something that it's a huge X factor for quarterback. And then you know that that that huge and tangible I think is something

that separates him. Plus he's pretty damn good. I mean physically, I mean, you know, when you're when you complete over you know, over seventy five percent of your passes, including the National Championship game that brought it down from like seventy eight to about seventy. Um, you're you're you're getting it down at a very high level. So and you know, when I watch a little tape of him, the thing that impresses me about him is his um feeling that pressure.

You know that some guys have that innate ability to sense it and feel it almost without you know, eyes in the back of the head, kind of thing, and they'll slidestep or step up at just the right time. And with him, you'll see guys sometimes start to look and peripherby try to catch He never does. I'm watching him and he's just it's almost like almost like he

has a sense of touch. That's when they're close to him, he can almost sense him being you know, a foot away from him or something, because all he has his eyes down field all the time. I mean, they are trained down the football field, and that that's a that's a good quality because you know, if you can't take your eyes off the off the target down the football field,

he never does, never does. I mean, that was another trait that I'm like, wow, that's that's pretty impressive because he was feeling a pretty extemif an eat a lot of times and never diverted his eyes. And I'm like, man, that's as a lineman, you gotta love that. And there's no question, you know. And then he just he throws the ball accurately to such tight spots. I mean he

throws he's straight a quarterback anticipation and accuracy. You know, he throws it before they're you know, come out of their break and puts it to a spot where that's the best spot to throw it from them to catch it. He has so many, so many boxes check like I said, and you know you can. You can drive yourself nuts trying to find the negative thing about him. Why do that? You know? Just accept it. I mean, he's he's frint, he's a very rare had a very rare season. Accept it.

Make a decision that he's the guy. Don't worry, be happy, make the pick, move on, move on. As I told somebody the other day, I'm just happy that Andy Reid got a Super Bowl ring before Burrow begins his run of six in a row. It was nice that he was able to get one before the Burrow era begins,

you know. And that's that's the interesting thing because as soon as you know, Mahomes wins the Super Bowl with Andy Reid, and now they're talking about the forty million dollars contract and what's not going to do the roster because they built a nice roster around him with that rookie contract. And that's what you know, you can get

done potentially with Joe. You could have him a fixed price of thirty five thirty six million dollars over a five year time frame potentially, and Mahomes is going to be making more than that on an annual basis, saying forty forty four million dollars a year. It's crazy. So you know, we've seen it with Flacco wins it and they have to just sumble the team when he gets his one hundred million dollars plus payday, And I wonder

what's going to happen with Mahomes. We've seen cases of it, and we've seen cases of you know, get the young quarterback that you can build around, put a good roster around him, and make your run. Maybe the Bengals kipt out done with Joe Burrow. So Joe Burrow got along with everybody, as you mentioned at LSU and before that at Ohio State, but one of his closest friends with

Sam Hubbard. They were hanging out together in Miami for the Super Bowl and during the course of that, Joe Burrow went on the Dan Patrick Show and was asked about being potentially the number one pick in the draft, and he said, yes, I'd like to be the number one pick, and I want to go to a team that is committed to winning the Super Bowl. And naturally that set off the alarm bells because it sounds so much like the criticism that Carson Palmer repeats to anybody

that will listen. Should we be concerned about those comments by Joe Burrow? No, I don't think so. I mean, I think I think those are those are comments that a competitor makes. And Joe Borrow the one thing I talked to a couple of his offensive lamar at the Senior Bowl from lsu Castle Berry and Lewis, and you know they both said, in his polite a way or as nice away as you can be, he'll cut your throat. Man, He's a cutthroat competitor. That's Joe Burrow. He'll do whatever

it takes. I'm like, man, I love that. I love the sounds of that. So I think, you know, his competitive spirit is I had this great year, won the Heisman, we won the National Championship. I want to be the first pick in the draft. I want to win a super Bowl. So I mean those are just comments that you know, I want to I want to go where

I have a chance to win a super Bowl. I don't think I don't think he's necessarily taken a shot at the Bengals He just wanted it to be known that wherever I'm going, let's get ready because I want to win the whole thing, and I hope you do too as much as I do, because I do. I want to win it. Man, I'm a winner and I want to keep winning state the obvious. Really, can I go off on a little bit of a Carson Palmer rant here, because I know you like respect Carson Palmer.

But I'm disappointed, Dan, I'm disappointed. I am you know. The thing, the thing that disappoints me is and this is, this is the problem that Wit and some of the guys had with Carson Palmer. Is you know, all right, it didn't some things may have not gone perfectly the way you wanted it when you were here. But Mike Brown made you the highest paid quarterback in the National Football League. Why was he doing that because he thought you were the guy that we're going to win him

a Super Bowl and win you a Super Bowl? What? What? What problem do you have with that? I just don't get it. And I mean I just you know, I wish it. I wish at this point he would back off just uh, you know, keep showing with the with the deep sea blows, you know, I mean, just just he's let it go a little bit. So Carson Palmer played for seven years after he left Cincinnati between Oakland and Arizona. In those seven years, his team's won sixty one games. I believe in those same seven years the

Bengals won sixty five. With Andy Dalton AJ Green, Carson Palmer's teams went to two playoffs, the Bengals went to five. Immediately after he left, they went to five straight playoffs. Furthermore, the Arizona Cardinals, which apparently, according to Carson, are the organization that is, you know, committed to doing whatever it takes to win the Super Bowl. I mean, I guess that's what he thinks. They had the number one pick in the draft last year, just as the Bengals have

the number one pick in the draft this year. So I get frustrated by any national media member or even Bengals fans. I guess that take what he says as gospel when there's really no reason too. Yeah, no, I agree. I mean, the numbers are the numbers, and um, you know, unfortunately, I do think the team that he led to a great season and then he got his knee torn up but in the Pittsburgh Steeler game in the pluff, I do think that team could have made a run. Well, hell,

it wasn't Mike Brown had caused your problem? Was Chemo von All often? You know it was Steinbach not blocking Chemo von All often. Well enough, if you have to pick a beef on somebody, But I mean, you know that injury was tragic, There's no question. I mean, I think that team was a hell of a football team. And what's your beef then? I mean, you know, if you if if you get through that football game healthy and beat the Pittsburgh Steelers, which I think what could

have should have happened? Who won the Super Bowl? That you're Pittsburgh Steelers. Come on, man, one more thing. In two thousand and nine, he leads the team to the AFC North title and they sweep the division, beat Pittsburgh twice, beat Baltimore twice, beat Cleveland twice. The next off season, they signed Tarall Owens, largely because Carson wanted him. Sure, and that creates the circus that leads to a four

and twelve season and then he quits. I'm telling you, it's a it is a I'd say it's a very one side did memory He's got Carson has selective amnesia on all sides of it. There are there are multiple sides to every story, no question about him. You can you can pick and choose whichever one's fit your memory the best, and he's picking and choosing whichever one's fit his memory the best. He did throw a pretty ball, though, best I've seen. I mean the ball came out of

his hand. I'm not kidding. When I saw him throw, I'm like, oh my gosh. And Mike Brown, you know, obviously was infatuated. He's always Mike Brown played quarterback at Dark. He's always loved quarterbacks can throw it, and nobody could spin the pig like Carson. Palmer was unbelievably beautiful. Let's talk about this year's Super Bowl teams, Kansas City and San Francisco. What can the Bengals learn from those two

rosters as they try to rebuild and reach that height. Well, in Kansas City's case, they got the quarterback that can, you know, make miraculous plays. Um, you know, could Joe Burrow be Patrick Mahomes. Now, Joe Burrow doesn't have the arm talent to Patrick Mahomes hasn't there's very few guys you know that that do have that kind of arm talent is Joe Burrow, Jimmy Garoppolo? Hell yeah, I think he's cut above Jimmy Garoppolo. Well, what led to San

Francisco forty nine ers to the Super Bowl? Offensive and defensive line, particularly defensive line five former number one draft picks, and that group for three and a half quarters had Patrick Mahomes on the run and had him playing Mahomes like but man for an eight minute period. How do you score twenty one points in eight minutes? Here kidding me?

He scored twenty eight points in the second quarter against the Titans, never been done in the Plazz before, and followed up with twenty one points and a half a quarter basically in the Super Bowls. He's really he's really a remarkable talent. Mahomes is. But the San Francisco forty nine is almost won the Super Bowl because of their defense, their ability to run the football and you know, not

put too much on the quarterback. Kansas City won the Super Bowl because they have a freakazoid at the quarterback position, and you know they pick up honey Badger and free agency. I mean they made some moves, they got some pieces. You know, they improved their defense in free agency the drafts as well. They signed Steve Spagnolo to coach it. Um. You know, he did a great job. So it can it can be done. If the forty nine ers went from four and twelve to the Super Bowl, it's happened.

Coach the Senior Bowl then coached the Super Bowl same year. Absolutely, And you know that's why this this Senior Bowl thing, you know, Mike Mayock is when he got me all juiced up down there because you know, he said, man, the Senior Bowl. We just down here last year and six players four week coached, two week coached. Hegens every one of them. We had him called every one of them. They all made our team. They all made contributions. That's the motherload. You know. They hit the mother there's no

doubt about it. But we'll see if the Bengals experience down there at the Senior Bowl can help them, you know, put some pieces together. As great as Mahomes was in the playoffs and in the final six and a half minutes to the Super Bowl this year, to me, what's even more impressive still is last year's AFC Championship game, thirty one points in the second half against the Bill Belichick defense. He just never got the ball in overtime. Unbelievable.

And I think everybody thinks that if they have won the toss, he probably would have taken them for a touchdown and have made the Super Bowl. And you know, if d Ford lines up on side, they're in the Super Bowl two years in a row. And ironically d Ford playing against them with the San Francisco forty nine ers. It was a little twist of twist of faith there. But yeah, I mean, the Kansas City Chiefs have a

generational talent as the quarterback position. You're not a Twitter guy, but I have started a new hashtag on Twitter, ask lap. I have invited people to ask questions when we get together there for podcasts. So I've got a bunch of them today. Are you ready ready to roll? All right? This comes from t Justin What Bengals free agent is essential to resign? Boy? I mean, you know, I think I think the whole thing hinges on AJ Green. I

think I think he is the king Domino. If they can get something done with Aj Green, I think everything else falls into place. If they can't Um, you know then then then now you're talking about do we tag them other we cause the ill will of their problems there. I think I think a J. Green is the is the centerpiece, and um, if that could happen. I mean, I think Joe Mixon is an astanding player. You got to sign Joe, but he's not a free agent, but extend him. I wouldn't let him get to that last

year of his contract. But I think the uh, the biggest component right now is the AJ Green factor. If you have to tag him, tag him and trade him, or play it out and hope that you can get a good deal done down the road. Yeah, I think I think that. I'm not sure I tag him and trade him. I tag him and see what I I think that he is gonna come back and play like AJ Green can play. And I mean, if you've if you've got a guy that and I know he's starting to get a little bit long on the tooth, but

he's a freak athlete. Now honestly, I mean you look at his body other than okay, he's had some injuries down the stretch here in this this ankle injury, it is a joint, you know, but he has not had any knee reconstructions or anything like that, so he's still pretty intact, and he's an elite athlete. He's a world

class athlete. When you have a guy like that, there's a proven commodity and you trade him for a fifty fifty proposition as a draft pick, um not every wide receiver there was drafted in the first round was panned out seem more bu than guys that can play. This guy not only has proven he can play, he's proven he can play at the highest level in the National Football League. I mean, he's one of your greatest players of all time. Until I know that he's not that

guy anymore, I don't throw him away. I just don't do it. I don't know. I'd make sure that I would have exhausted every potential because man, I just know every player you talked to in that locker room, even the last year's you know, catastrophe and debacle, they all still love what he does. The leader is in a quiet way, you know, just by his actions. His actions speak so much louder than his words. And every teammate, every coach, everybody in the organization doesn't just like aj Green.

They loved aj Green, So, I mean it could it could have gotten ugly and nasty, didn't even come close. That tells me something about him too. I don't give up by the aj Green that fast. Next question comes from John. I like this one. If Miami offered all three of its first round picks this year, plus a third rounder this year and a number one next year, would you trade the number one overall pick? Well, I would.

I would think that Miami is targeting Joe Burrow, and at that point, I would say, what am I missing? If they want to give me all of that for Joe Burrow, that should solidify my feelings about Joe Burrow. So I'd be careful, you know, I'd certainly be tempted, but I'd be careful. And Okay, So that fifth pick who's there, Well, Herbert who I saw in like, but I think, you know, some of the mock drafts that are coming out now that I'm seeing have him as a mid first round pick. And that's what I heard

a lot of people talking about down there. And you know, Todd McShay is down there all week getting information, and so he's probably hearing talking to a lot of the same people I was talking to and a lot of people had Herbert as a as a mid first rounder, and it looks like at me Indianapolis is the latest destination for him, which makes a lot of sense. So, okay, do you take Herbert at five? If you take two, you get crucified if you take another injured guy with

your first round pick. After the run you'd been on with guys selecting guys and you know, hurt before they were drafted, but not hurt that badly with the pack with Billy Price and then Jonah and not you know, you picked Jonah. He's played billion Jonah. Both have this remarkable stretch of availability, accountability, durability, every ability and man, they can't get through their rookie years, you know. And John Ross and I mean the list of the Littney

goes on and on. And if you draft twa and it's like you may have to red shirt him for a year, I guess at that point you're made a decision. You're keeping Andy Dalton for the last year of his contract. If you make that trade and you're gonna take two at number five, you've made a decision there, and you cross your fingers the two is going to be and Let's face it, when he was healthy was a star, There's no question about it. And the guy, the guy is accurate. I mean, he's the left handed Drew Brees

in my opinion, with his accuracy pinpoint accuracy. So you know that's it might be tempting, but oh my gosh, if if Miami's willing to give to all that up to get Joe Burrow, you may have to say to yourself, why are you letting this dude go? If they think that highly of them, throwing another first round of the next year, and maybe we'll all right. Next question comes from Tyler, what player or players will be cut or traded before free agency? Well, you got to think that.

You know, they're gonna try to move Andy Dalton, and if they if they move Andy Dalton, if they're making a concerted effort to move Andy Dalton, they're drafting Joe Burrow because I think that they expect Joe Burrow to be able to play right away. And I can understand why. Um, in this era of young quarterbacks. Look at the young quarters quarterbacks that were drafted last year, they play I mean they draft him when they play him. You know,

here in the recent past, obviously. Now you'll have cases of Mahmes. For example, you know Smith played for a year for the Homes, Carson Palmer, you know, sad for John Kittner. I mean, we do have some history of those kind of things taken place. But I think I think if they make the determination to take Joe Burrow, who had the best year of any college quarterback in the history or college football, they're anticipating he is going

to play. He's the guy. And I think out of respect to Andy Dalton, who they value as a person and what he's done for the organization, they don't want him to have to sit the pine, you know, ride it, ride it out. I think they Andy wants to start. He's verbalized that they understand that, and I think they will try to make a deal, you know, and trade Andy Dalton. Now the question is what will the market bear.

They may want whatever they would want for Andy Dalton, but if nobody's going to offer to him, will they pull the trader and make the trade. That's going to the interesting point. Sometimes the Bengals value on a player in the league's value in a player don't coincide. I've been thinking fourth round pick, fifth round pick, based on the Joe Flacco and Ryan Tannehill deals the last year

or two. But Mike Lombardi, the former NFL GM brought up the Alex Smith trade and said he thinks that Andy Dalton could get the same thing that the Chiefs got are close to it from the Redskins when they traded Alex Smith, and that was a good player, Kendall Fuller and a third round draft pick. I mean, if the Bengals could get that an established player and a third rounder, probably even just the third rounder alone, they

would be thrilled. I would think, oh, hell yeah, I'd do that deal in a heartbeat, you know, starting caliber corner in a third round pick, definitely, you know. I mean Andy came in the league as a as a second rounder. Alex Smith came in the league as the first pick in the draft. So you know where they came into the league is a little bit, you know, different from the store point on what perceived value might

be because Alex Smith has had success. Andy Daltons had success, But you know where they came into the league is a little different. Starting point. Man, if they could get if you'd give a third round pick for Andy Dalton, I'd take that deal before the ink dride. I mean I would I'd signed it in any kind of ink I could sign it and maybe blood. The next question comes from Christian Well, well, we kind of covered this, but the question slightly different. Will the Bengals keep Dalton

as a bridge quarterback? Given the chief success with Alex Smith mentoring Patrick Mahomes for one year before that trade of the Redskins and the Bengals history with John Kenton and Carson Palmer. You know, I think one of the big differences with Patrick mcgahomes and and Joe Burrow. Mahomes ran a quote gimmick offense at Texas Tech. You know, the spread stuff, Mike Leach's stuff. You know, the Cliff Kings played quarterback from Mike Leach and that that whole

evolution at Texas Tech. Everybody after Mike Leads still you know, went with that almost you know, the running shoot spread type. Look, Joe Burrow, courtesy of Joe Brady, who they got from the New Orleans Saints, ran the Saints offense. So I think Joe Burrow has shown that he can run a very successful style of offense in the passing attack, in particular that the New Orleans Saints have employed with Drew Brees. Drew Brees very quick study, Joe Burrow very quick study.

I mean, I think that that's another thing that when the Bengals look at Joe Burrow man he processes so quickly, and Andy's been great with that. That's Andy's I think it's that's Andy's biggest attribute. Might be Joe Burrow's biggest attribute.

The way they can process information. And the fact that he was able to digest the New Orleans Saints passing attack and implement it as well as he did, I think bodes well for his transition to be a little bit faster, you know than Patrick Mahomess might have been other key thing to remember too. When the Chiefs drafted Patrick Mahomes, they were a playoff team already. Alex Smith was doing an excellent job. He led them to the

playoffs in Patrick mahomes rookie year. So unlike the situation that Joe Burrow or somebody else would be entering, they were not ready to turn things over right away because they had a good team and a quarterback that was playing well well. I can remember, you know, um, I can remember when the Chiefs did draft Patrick Mahomes. A lot of people's initial reaction was what why you got your guy? What are you doing? And a lot of people were like, you know, and when they traded Alex Smith,

why are you doing that? Wow? I mean, is this guy really that good? I will say, you know, some people had had a pretty good handle on what I think it was. Leech is the guy's name with Kansa City Chiefs that saw every snap Patrick Mahomes had beach with the GM down there taking a look at every snap he had at Texas attack, you know, and said,

this guy's the greatest thing since sliced bread. And Andy Reid looked at him and when he saw him in first and he sees like second coming of Bread far with the arm talent and the same type of gunsling, of mentality and everything. So they were sold. But a lot of people were like, what are you doing? But they certainly knew what they were doing, no doubt about it. And like you said, how they manipulated that whole thing

about as well as they could have. I mean, they get Alex Smith in free agency, he leads them to playoffs, They get their young guy that's going to take his place. They get good value in the trade for Alex Smith and then he has the tragic injury after he leaves. But you know, the Kansas City Chiefs, the way they manipulated that whole dynamic man at the most important position in all of professional sports. That's why they won the

Super Bowl. Question from Greg if you had to compare Joe Burrow to a current or former NFL quarterback, who would it be? Boy? You know, I bet, I bet Joe Brady would say that he sees a lot of Drew Brees and Joe Burrow. Um, and not necessarily. I mean they're much different. Joe Burrow sixthree Drew Brees is six feet you know, if if six feet or whatever he is, But you look at Joe Burrow has kind of underrated quick twitch. So does Drew Brees with with

respect to throwing the football and doing some things. Now he's a lot older now Drew Brees is. But um, I think processing information, you know, being able to spit it back out, all the all the things, the mental capacity for the game, um is. I think there's a lot of similarities there. So I would take a six foot three inch Drew Brees. They both throw with I mean Breeze has got a good arm, but it's not like Oh Howitzer, but boy does he throw with anticipation

and accuracy. That's what Joe Burrow does. And uh, I would take that. I would take that kind of career that Drew Brees said, there's no doubt from Bengals. Nut. What realistic free agent do you see the Bengals pursuing. That's a that's a great question. I know who I'd like to see him pursue. Joe Schobert Wisconsin. Lean Brown's linebacker and we've seen him um and he's he's He's a tremendous football player. I'd like to see. I'd like to see two Wisconsin Badgers. Dan at least like to

see Joe Scholbert in free agency. And I'd like to see Zach Bond, a linebacker otto Wisconsin, sixty three tourn and thirty five pounder who was a high school quarterback who understands, you know, every nuance of the game. Obviously reminds me of a guy named Ed O'Neill when I played at Syracuse. This guy O'Neill played at Penn State high school quarterback. You know, big six foot four, in strapping lad Well Paternal says, we're you know, we've got quarterbacks.

You're a great athlete. We want to play at linebacker. Ed O'Neil's like linebacker. They played him an inside linebacker in their four or four defense. And I'll tell you what now he was. He was something else. He was a good first round draft pick the Detroit Lions. So when I saw that this Zach Baum had played, uh, Bond had played a high school quarterback, I'm thinking, man, is this another Ed O'Neill And it's he's he's he's similar dimensionally sixty three, two thirty five. It will get bigger.

Ed O'Neill was, you know, in that range two thirty five to forty ish, but then he came into league and he got as big as two forty five to two fifty. I mean, I could I could see, I could see some comparison there. But UH drafted Wisconsin Badger, sign a Wisconsin Badger and free agency and Uh, and I think, I think you know, you've got positioned versatility

in both cases. I think they're both good enough athletes. Bond, I think you know, I would play him an inside backer, but I think you could play outside as well, he could certainly play in your sub packages. Schobert does that for the Cleveland Browns on Wisconsin Win. By the way, the top two free agent linebackers last year c J. Mosley and Kwan Alexander. Mosley played in two games for the Jets. Kwon Alexander was part of a Super Bowl team in San Francisco, but he played in eight games

after only playing six the year before. So I know, I mean, I'm like everybody else. I would love to see the Bengals sign an impact linebacker if they can. But it's always buy or beware. It is, there's no doubt about it. Scholbert has got a good experience level, but it's not like he's still got rubber on the tire. There's no doubt about that. I think he's into his prime, but he's not past his prime, which I think is to be a but he's going to command some bucks.

He's a hell of a player, all right. Let's get back to ask lap questions via Twitter from James. How does Jonah Williams compare to this year's offensive tackle class in the draft. I think very favorably. You know, down at the Senior Bowl, Um, they were all over this Josh Jones out of Houston. You've seen him dan six foot seven three and ten pounder, very athletic guy. He's he's um, but he's only got thirty two eighth inch arms.

I couldn't believe it. And I you know, I looked at his arms, look a little short, but they were I mean, I'm not saying t Rex, but but the thing I want watching him play, he had um, quiet, patient feet. They were really good and very active hands. Boy. Now he made up for his lack of length of his arms by how quick he was with his hands. And I think I think he was probably the one that most people were drooling over down at the Senior Bowl.

I like our guy. I think he compared. Now, he's not six seven and he's not you know he Jonah will struggle to be three hundred pounds. He's not over three hundred pounds every day of the year. But he's Is he big enough? I think he is. He has really good feet. He has big feet, size seventeen. He has he has a good foundation, a good base. But he can move those puppies. You know, he's not He's not a platting, dead footed guy. He's got good feet

and he's a great technician. And uh, I'll tell you, Dan, I'm sold on. You know, he had his spreadsheets that he came up with to, you know, to scout opponents while in college and watching him off the field everything he did preparing like he was going to play in the game, um, all of his I mean the Bengals offensive line coaches were saying, give us that information, give us your spreadsheet, what are you doing. I've never seen this,

how are you doing that? And then during the game he would position himself where he could look right through the formation and see the left tackle whoever was playing left on the defensive end, and then in his mind he would, you know, say this is how I'm going to set in a technique I'm going to use and then see how it all unfolded. This kid's the real deal. This kid is all football haul the time. And I

was impressed with the impact he made. Instead of, you know, kind of feeling sorry for himself and moping around him pouting, he gave a lot. I mean, he was he was making the tackles that were playing in the football game were listening to Jonah Williams what he had to say during the week and implementing a lot of it. I mean, the kid, the kid's a sharp cat. There's no question about it. If college students had laptops in nineteen seventy four,

you would have done that. I'm serious. You would have had a spreadsheet and evaluated that the people that you were trying to block. I would have tried to come up with some way to umut put it all together in a in an easy form. Maybe So I did. I did enjoy you know, tracking and charting, you know, percentage of times and he's going to swim if he you know, if he if his feet were parallel and he's going to go inside more than outside of the

feet of staggered or all that sort of. I would have started tracking some of that stime, right, I knew it all right. Question from Brian. We keep hearing about the new culture that Zach Taylor is trying to create. Was the culture bad under Marvin Lewis and didn't have to change? I don't think it was bad. I think I think Marvin changed the culture to the good way

to the good. You know, he came here at two and fourteen mess and right away there eight and eight in the playoff contender, and he changed the culture overnight and he and he kept working on keeping that culture was always a big thing, big thing to him. But just like anything, sixteen years of it, I think it started to get stale with some guys. So I think even though he was trying to reinvent it, some there got to be a little bit of a stale dimension

to it. And I think this culture, um, the one thing that they stayed was in gage, you know, even without success. They the two things that you heard were the team was connected, you know, and that that was a that was a big word. And try to be complimentary in their play and sometimes they were and sometimes that was their biggest problem, playing non complimentary football instead

of complimentary football. But if you can get the two c's, you know, be connected and play you know, complimentary style of ball, you can win some football games. And I think they're striving towards that. Two ask lap questions left from Brett. Who are some of the top targets the Bengal should be considering with a thirty third pick in the draft, in other words, the first pick of the second round. Yeah, I mean going with the quarterback that everybody thinks to'll go with obviously, and I do too

at this point in time. Um, you know, I think, all right, what are what are the two areas that come to mind from an improvement standpoint? Offensive line, linebacker, you know, on either side of the football, although you know defensively they could take they could take a shot in the arm at any position level. Duke Tobin pretty much confirmed that down at the Senior Bowl that I mean, we could take a influx the talent at any level

of the defense and be satisfied with it. So I think with that thirty third pick, the best defensive player that's on the board, unless again, it's such a deep wide receiver group. If you've got six wide receivers that you say are first rounders and only five of them go and there's the sixth one still there at number thirty three, man, you got to think about it. And then this is where it gets interesting too, Dan, is that you know, okay, well, how many teams are gonna

call the Bengals with a trade for Joe Barrow? Maybe not any how many are gonna call the Bengals in Day two with the thirty third pick a lot because when they when the first round's done, and everybody shifts. It sets their board. Well, maybe the best receiver and that somebody desperately needs wide receiver. I'm gonna I'm gonna make a trade. I'm gonna call the Bengals. I'm gonna give you this, this, and this to get to that

thirty third pick. And you have to say, Okay, here are some of the best defensive players on the board. Will they be there? How far? I can't move further back than this, this or this, but I'm going to pick up these additional picks. I think it's going to happen at thirty three. I think it's gonna happen at sixty five because you know this second and third round.

So to start the fourth round, the ninety fifth pick in the draft, the Bengals have made trades in the fourth round trying to get up to the top of the board to start the day. Every new day of the draft, the Bengals are going to have people calling because they have the first pick in that new day of the draft, first round, then the second and third the next day, who starts their second round Bengals, Who

starts the fourth round? And Day three Bengals. So I mean I think I think they've got some draft capital that people are gonna have some interest in. And I don't think they're gonna just have seven draft picks when this draft is over with. That's my can extra on it. But maybe the is the best linebacker available at thirty three, better than the best rush guy on the board, or the best you know, wide receiver, or the best interior offensive lineman. I mean, I'm thinking the thirty third pick.

If I can get the best defensive player as opposed to the best interior offensive lineman, I'm going best defensive football player. I mean, there has to be a big disparity there for it to be otherwise to me. So I think they're going to be obviously in good positions to you know, in coaching in the Senior Bowl, they may have been coaching their thirty third pick, their sixty fifth pick, they're ninety fifth pick. Whatever they may have

been coaching those guys they may have. They may take a couple of those guys in those four picks that they played in the Senior Bowl, and Joe Burrow they tried to get to play in the Senior Bowl. If they take Joe at number one and U and two other guys they played with or coached against in the Senior Bowl in the first four rounds. It'd be worthwhile to have been down there at that Senior Bowl. Final question from a Twitter follower, This is from James. Where

are you becoming an offensive line coach? Man? You know it's funny when when down there at the at the Senior Bowl. It does when you see guys that that caliber going after each other, it's it kind of gets the juices flowing it, does you know? Um? You know it's I James as who thats just James? You've hit on Probably my maybe my biggest regret is that I did not try the coaching side of it. And it would have been the best time to do. It would have been after I was done playing and could have

forced Greg. It could have been an opportunity. There are opportunities. Uh, you know, I cropped up at the college level when I was doing some college football for Fox. Just had a recent opportunity, um that you know that decided not to do. But I think going from it's it used to be you never went from player to broadcast to coach. Once you went to the broadcast, you went to the devil man. You know, it's like you decided that's it. There's no there's no return. You can't buy get out

of a jail card. Now it's it happens. I mean not only because head coach is GMS everybody, it's it's it's wide open the talent pool. It's not segregated anymore. It's wide open talent pool. So yeah, I wish I had done it at a younger age because that's the one thing that is always going to haunt me. Could I have done it? I know I would have liked it. Could I have done it successfully? I feel like I could have How far could you have gone with it?

You know? Questions that will never be answered. So James, you hit the nerve. Man, you hit the nerve. You would have been great at that. But we all know you're awesome at broadcasting, and I, for one, am grateful you made the choice you made. Well, I'll tell you what. It's it's a play. As you're working with a Hall of famer, you know, on on a weekly basis. I can tell you that. And I don't even look at it as work. Damn. I mean to me, it's like, man,

we're just we're just we're having fun. You know, I mean, I wish everybody's job lent them as much uh you know, joy and fun and everything else as we have with ours. It's like I got I've told my kids that, you know, I my one wish would be that that your quote job, your vocation, your advocation and vocation would be the same thing like mine has been for most of my life. And if, as we anticipate, the Bengals select Joe Burrow on April the twenty third, think how much fun training

camp is going to be? Oh man, it's going to be. It will be. It'll be a lot of fun. They say that this guy is he's the real deal. His girlfriend lives right up here in Mason. You know that that was that was interesting. You see, came so close, so close, and your boy was fruiting the girlfriend. I talked to him down to the senior moll Yeah, Luke and and I you know, I said, boy, it was

that close. I mean Dan told me that, you know Burrow, Oh, he said, dude, it was it was us an Lsu it was us and and he said I was recruiting. I said, the girlfriend living right in Mason. He goes, oh, man, you don't think that was part of my strategy. I'm like, come on, now, you let him go to Louisiana. These long distance relationships sometimes don't work out. But what a great guy Luca is, by the way, and what a great job he's done. But um yeah, that's it makes

so many so much sense on so many levels. I mean, his girlfriend lives right here in Mason. Get drafted by the Bengals the wedding in Mason, Sam Hubbard best man, Sam Harbard best man. But they are they are good guy be in the wedding party maybe so uh you know, that would be that would be uh, that would be nice. I really would would be a would be a heck of a heck of a draft to get to get Joe Burrow in the fold. And that's going to do

it for this episode of the podcast. If you haven't done so already, don't forget to subscribe on iTunes, Stitcher, Google Play, Spotify, or pod Bean, and if you have a minute, please give it a rating or share a comment. Those five star ratings help more Bengals fans find this podcast. I'm Dan Horde, and thank you for listening to The Bengals Booth Podcast.