Bengals Booth Podcast: It's On Again

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As you probably know by now, the news broke on Tuesday that Joe Burrow needs surgery to remove his appendix. It sucks for Joe. Appendectomies are considered to be routine procedures and he should be able to practice within a couple of weeks. For the sake of comparison, the UC Bearcats had a long snapper back in twenty eighteen named Zach Wood out of McNicholas High School, Kevin Huber's alma mater, who played in a game nine days after an appendectomy.

Then there's the status of Jesse Bates. He has not signed the twelve point nine million dollar franchise tag yet and did not report on time for the beginning of training camp, but Duke Tobin and Zach Taylor expect him to eventually sign the tag and be ready to go. Well, we trust Jesse's going to be in shape. That's just who Jesse is, and Jesse will be ready to go. We have high hopes to have a great year together with Jesse again and to be right back where we

were with him. We tried for a couple of years. It didn't come together. There's no hard feelings there. It's got to work for us and it has to work for him, and some times things don't come together. Maybe there'll be a chance in the future that something comes comes together in a way that we all feel good about. But you know, at this point we're we're focused on having the best possible year we can and Jesse's a

part of that and a big part of it. Got nothing but love for Jesse's a He is a success story. You know, he's a draft choice here that's developed and become an outstanding football player. When he comes, we'll be excited to have him. He's a great person, great player, a great leader for us, and when he shows up, we know that he'll be in shape and ready hit the ground. Running and I'm not going to predict a timeline and when he shows up, that's up to him.

But again, he's I know Jesse, I know he's working and he's prepared himself to again have a great season. So just look forward to when he comes. We'll be ready for him. On the injury front, we knew that right guard Alex Kappa might miss the start of camp since he had surgery to repair a core muscle injury, and he is on the physically unable to perform list of the pup list, along with Joe Bacci, College, Kareem

so I, JP Ryan, and Brandon Wilson. But we got a little bit of a surprise over the weekend when the team announced that right tackle l Collins would begin camp on the non football injury list. That's for players whose injuries did not occur during practices or games. Here's coach Taylor, he's dealing with an issue with his back, you know, and it's something he's experienced before and him

and vets that kind of go through this stuff. On the coaching side of the medical side, we want to be slow to to get those guys back into the mix. We know it's long training camp, he's got a lot of Repsomer's belt. He feels good about where he's at and we do two and so we'll be slow to go with him and Alex, But there's good news on the injury front as well. Te Higgins and Joseph Osi, who did not practice during OTA's are good to go

for the start of training camp. Osi was the star of the Bengals preseason opener last year, with seven quarterback pressures and a sack of Tom Brady before he heard his wrist and knee in that game. Duke Tobin is eager to see him back on the practice field. We'll work him back in and and the coaches will be cognizant of the fact that he's been out for quite a while, so we'll work him back in at his speed and hopefully he'll show what he showed down to

Tampa last year. You know, he was going to be Bruce Smith there for for a very short period of time, so maybe that'll evolve. All the Bengals are hoping that Osai can boost their pass rush, especially on third down. The biggest battle for a starting spotted training camp is it left guard, where the leading candidates are Jackson Carmen and rookie fourth round draft pick Cordell Volson. Once again,

here's Duke. We think we've got pretty talented guys that will be competing and it'll be good when when the whole the group of five actually solidifies and and kind of gets confidence in each other. But yeah, we'll see. I'm not gonna make any predictions. I think it's uh, it is what it is, and we'll we'll see who who's the best five, you know, to start the season. But I know one thing, You're gonna need more than five as the year goes on. You never only get

through with five. You're gonna need six, seven, eight, nine and two practice squad guys that are ready to play at a moment's notice. Regardless of who wins that left guard spot. Mike Brown expects the old line to be vastly improved. We've tried our best to add people there, Keis, Kappa Collins, they're veteran players. They should come in and be able to shore up our performance make us better.

I want to see how it comes together. I'm hopeful that it'll turn the trick and give us better protection for Joe. We're aware of the shortfall there last year, believe me. And we'll see if this can help. I think it ken I wanted to, but the proof is in the pudding well. With Mike Brown coming up shortly, but first a brief visit with Special Teams coordinator Darren Simmons, who will oversee a training camp battle at punter between thirty seven year old Kevin Huber and twenty five year

old Drew Chrissman. You know, I think it was unique. I told Kevin and Drew that the competition really wouldn't start until training camp comes around, and I think that affords Kevin the best opportunity, you know, to not pun himself out and hern OTAs and I think it's the right way to go about it. And so we'll see what kind of shape he's he is coming back into it.

You know, Drew's had the opportunity to punt here for a couple of days with the rookies and to kind of get him his feet underneath him a little bit. But yeah, it'll be unique for Kevin. It'll be the first time that he's been pushed. He's a competitive guy. He knows how this league works, and you know, I expect nothing but his best shot, and it'll take Drew's best shot to unseat him, you know, quite frankly and um, but I think that's what you want. I think you want.

You want to keep the best guy and the guy who's going to give our team the best opportunity to you know, not only exchange field position in the punning game, but also to score points in the field goal portion of it too. So the field goal the holding will have you know, an effect on that as well. How big of an effect Kevin estimated to me that holding is sixty percent of the job. Now, yeah, well I kind of gave him that assessment, you know, at the

end of the year. You know, I would tell you it was probably flipped before that, you know, with the advent of and the way that we use analytics now to we go for it so much more in fourth down, and with the weapon we have is you know, at the kicker position now it really expands the field for So I would have said before that probably sixty percent of the punters job was punning and forty percent was holding, and I think I probably flipped that, and now I

would probably think that fifty five percent of his job is holding and forty five percent is actually punning and that's a good thing. You know, what means we're getting an opportunity to score points. Uh So I think that's pretty accurate. You were able to sign the highest rated long snapper in college football last year as an undrafted free agent. Is that competition similar to the punting competition? Yeah? I think way, Why the hell not get him getting Kevin?

Kevin's getting pushed, so why not push Clark too? Now, I think that at some point here that the uh, you know, if other time is going to catch up with those two guys and it's going to be up to them when that time is this year, is it next year? Is it three years? So now I don't know, but but I think I owe it to our team to uh push those two positions and push those two players specifically as hard as I can because it's it, uh you know, it's it's it's that important for where

we're at as a team. Um. And I think, you know, I think they both need to keep working to improve. Kevin Clark, I mean, um, you know, on the deficiency deficiencies that they had. I don't think Kevin punted his best down the stretch last year. I think he struggled down the stretch in this pieway or even having this conversation. UM, and so he knows that, he feels that, and I think he's uh uh, you know, on board. I think he's probably excited about having competition. It's it's be the

first time he's had that. Who are your top candidates to return kicks and punts? Well, you know, with the uncertainty, probably Brandon Wilson, you know, and certainly what his injury brings, uh, you know, it really opens that spot up. UM, A couple of candidates saying, Chris Evans will well, we'll get a shot in there. You know, he was somebody who did that for the first time in the Cleveland game, you know, and then ultimately did it throughout the playoffs

and handled handled the position well enough. But but I think what he lacks obviously his experience. UM. I think Puka Williams get a crack at that, and I think Kami last we'll get a crack at that too. I mean, those are you know, a couple of three guys. It's at the kick return spots and you know, the pump

return spot. I think it'll you know, Trent Tail will be the first guy that trots out there, um as the incoment, but he'll be pushed hard by Poking and Kwammie also, um, you know, I've told Kwammie and Puka both that I mean, the only, the only opportunity to make our team is to be the pump return, and I think they both understand how critical that spot is

going to be for them. That's that's only they're going to seat Trent or truly, only who they're gonna be on the forty six man rosters is to be the starting return, starting pulp return specifically. So those are a couple of guys that, you know, three guys related each spot that it was pretty wide open, honestly. Before we get to my one on one conversation with Mike Brown, here's a reminder that the Bengals Booth podcast is presented by Ultimate Bengals, the free to play fantasy football game.

This past season, Ultimate Bengals awarded a weekly winner during the course of the year with tickets, autographed merchandise, and money can buy experiences all up for grabs. Find Ultimate Bengals in the App Store and Google Play. We recently learned that the Bengals have been negotiating with local companies about selling naming rights to Paul Brown Stadium. That was one of the topics I discussed with team president Mike Brown when I had the opportunity to spend about ten

minutes with him on Monday twenty twenty one. Was one of the most successful seasons in franchise history. How did you sell them? Rate the big postseason wins? Do you save a special bottle of wine? Do you and Nancy go out for dinner? Do you do anything after those big victories? No? I just sit and feel pretty good. And that's the extent of celebration for me. I'm an old man now and those games are night games. I'm not looking to jump up in the air and click

my heels. It was a great run, though. It was exciting a playoff run as you're ever gonna see, and I just couldn't have felt happier about how all that went. It was a good year. What sticks with you more an exhilarating win or a heartbreaking loss? Oh? I probably remember the losses. They stick in your crow. You remember Super Bowl losses more than others. Were here with Dave Lapham and were you in one of those games? A second game or the first game, first one, super Bowl sixteen. Yeah,

and I don't care. That was a close game when we could have won that game, and you just don't get it out of your mind. Has a little spot back there then it pops up every once in a while. He told me once that that first Super Bowl, super Bowl sixteen was the loss that hurts the most because you thought that the Bengals were the better team. Do you still feel that way? Is that the one that stands out most of all? Well, I have to confess

I did think we were the better team. You can't win when you turn the bowl over like we did in that game, But I would have liked to have had another chance at it. Of course, you don't get but one chance, and we came up short. To their credit, they played well. I thought that Kenny Anderson out played Montana in that game, and I remember afterwards having the worst headache I've ever had in my life. It was

what you get when you lose. It was recently announced that the Bengals are negotiating to possibly sell naming rights to Paul Brown Stadium. Why is that important to the long term health of the franchise and how difficulty is that for you personally? Well, I think my dad would have understood. I think he would even have approved it

in his mind. What mattered most was the team. This gives us a revenue stream if we go forward with it, and we need that for doing things such as the indoor facility we're building to help us when we get to signing some of our headline players. That's going to be a real challenge. We have things to spend that money on, believe me, and it will help us. We need some help because we're a small market team and our revenues don't normally match up with the large revenue teams.

We have to do with less, and this will give us a little more to work with. Last year, Joe Burrow became just the seventh quarterback to start a Super Bowl in his second season, joining names like Dan Marino, Tom Brady, Ben Roethlisberger and other all time greats. Of Joe's many great qualities, what stands out most to you, oh, probably is poise. He can see the field, He has a sense of the rush, he never flusters, is accurate.

Of course as a passer, he can move and run a little bit, but when you get down to it. It's the way he thinks that is most impressive. He's got a quick mind, a good football mind. Let's moved to Jamar Chase. He had a record setting rookie year. He was spectacular, but in training camp in the preseason, he struggled. He couldn't catch a cold for a while. There were you worried at all? Or did history tell you that Jamar Chase was going to be fine? Well?

What told me Jamar Chase was going to be fine? When Jamar Chase was fine and he was fine in capital letters, we all saw it was unbelievable. He had a great, great season. He's a tremendous talent, and he now has to face a new season and they'll be looking at him more than ever, and he'll have to be ready for it and keep the ball rolling. I think he will. What did you think of Zach Taylor's idea to hand out game balls to fans at local bars and restaurants after the playoff wins. Well, I thought

it was nice. So he has a mindset to him. He thinks about other people, and I was appreciative of that and some of the other things he does. He's a good ambassador for the Bengals off the field, and that's just his nature. He seems to come by it naturally. I don't think anything galvanizes a city quite like a successful championship level NFL team. What did you think of the way Bengals fans responded the last season. I thought

it was wonderful. I thought at the game when we beat the Raiders here that you couldn't have had a stadium more live than that one was. And then our fans were so pleased with how it went. It was coming out of the COVID time, and this was a moment when they could get involved publicly again with each other, and it just caught fire. It was as exciting time for our pro football team in Cincinnati as any that

I remember. We had good times in eighty two and eighty eight, but I'd have to say this last one probably it was the most exciting UH season. The fan base is very excited about the white alternate helmet that is coming in twenty twenty two. What was your reaction You saw that it's a white alternate helmet with black stripes, and I the women are excited about it, and my family and my end daughters and my daughter and my wife. You know, they just tell me I don't know what

I'm doing. So they like it a lot, and I think I'll like it too. You joke, when your granddaughters ask you to do something where the franchise is concerned, you typically say yes. But in all seriousness, Elizabeth and Caroline have had a pretty remarkable impact on the franchise in the last year or so. You know, they got some things straightened out. They are in a way inside and outside. They had time to look at it from the outside. And let's face it, we were going through

some tough years and we needed a boost. We needed to do a few things that got the public behind us better. The Ring of Honor certainly is one of those. For some reason, the public see seems to insist on a indoor facility. They'll never be in there. Why do they insistent? But we're going to have it for the players now, and I think they'll like it. It'll be a warmer spot to practice. I always felt that your NFL player a little cold and snow, what the heck?

But now we'll be a little bit warmer and it'll be easier for them. Paul Docherty recently retired from the Enquirer, and when asked about you, he said one of the things he admired most was that, no matter how harshly he criticized you, you never seemed to take it personally. Is he right about that? Or how do you handle that? Well? I know I shouldn't. Probably there's an occasion or two when I might, but not for long. The writers are doing a task, They're doing what they do, and the

TV guys the same thing. All of this is just opinion, and it's fleeting. It's on to the next day very quickly. I like Paul Docherty as a person. He's a very bright guy, and I find him an interesting person to talk to. I wish him well in retirement, whatever he's going to do with it. John Madden passed away this past year. What was your relationship like with John Madden. Well, he was not too far off my age, and we

were sort of friendly. I knew him mainly after he was let go or rather retired as a football coach, and before he became a big time telecaster, and we were just aware of each other. We would talk. I would say we were the kind of people that were on a first name basis and friendly to each other, interested in the others views on the different subjects that came up to h came in front of the NFL and I liked him. He was easy to like, a nice guy, and I think he did an amazing dual performance.

A great coach and just as good announcer as well. This will be the Bengals fifty fifth season. Do you get as excited for the start of training camp as you did now all of the previous fifty four? I don't know that excited is the word for me? Probably concerned. Do I get concerned more? Yes? It just is what I do, and I am conditioned to believe it's the natural way, and I look forward to it. I like being around the players and coaches. Feel very lucky at my stage of life to be able to do that.

And here we go again. I find it hard to believe that I have grown to be so old. But as long as I can hang on, I'll probably hang on. I always appreciate your time. Thank you so much, good to be with you. Find late time for an in depth training camp preview with my broadcast partner Dave Lapham Lap. There a lot of intriguing storylines going into this training camp, the improvements on the offensive line, the status of Jesse Bates, etc. What are the things that are the top of your

list that you're looking forward to watching when camp gets underway. Yeah, I mean, I think you've hit on a couple of big ones, you know. I think offensively, the offensive line player is going to be huge. I'd expected to be much improved. I think it's going to ease a big

burden on the offensive coaching staff. To me, in hindsight, reflecting on last year, the game planning that they had to do is five times harder than it should have been because they were trying to figure out how to cover up a weakness here or a problem there, and instead of just game planning and attacking areas of the field, they had to cover things up and maybe not attack areas of the field the way they wanted to with route combinations and all that sort of thing, because they

just didn't have the protection ability. And unless you go six men protection all the time, you know, to block four guys, which is tough. You're eliminating another one of your receivers. So at some point you have to line up and handle one on one situations. And I think this group would be able to handle that better. And I expect Joe to even perform at a higher level. You know, I think he's going to see the field easier.

I think he's gonna, you know, be able to attack areas of the field that he wasn't thinking about attacking last year. From the game plan. He's got the answers to everything from a test standpoint, He's a quick study, understands things so quickly. I mean, I just think they're going to be even better. I really do. And it starts with the with the running game. You know, they'll be able to control the line of scrimmage instead of

Joe Nixon seeing numbers being pushed back at him. You know, they'll hopefully get a push at the line of scrimmage. He'll be able to make a cut at or beyond the line of scrimmage instead of making his first cutting his own backfield as many times as he had to. So,

you know, I think I think it starts there. And when it does start there, there'll be more you know, second and fours, third and twos and down a distance being control of where you can run or throw the football, play action pass it, you know, drop back when when you feel like dropping back, dropping back to pass because

you want to, not because you have to. And that's a big big For instance, it's much here to pass protect when you're dropping back because you want to instead of because you have to because your running game is good enough. So I think the offensive line is a huge story. It's a it's a big deal. And you know, as far as Jesse Bates is concerned, you know, I'd love to see him come in and play, and I

hope he does. Whatever the number is, fourteen, fifteen, whatever the dollar figure is actually as a tag player, as a franchise tag player, it's what thirteen, twelve point nine whatever? Why not come in and play because if you trade him, he has to play for that amount as well that year he's locked now no matter who he's playing for.

At twelve point nine, why not come back to the defending AFC Championship football team where you know guys, where guys respect you, you respect them, and go out and play your tail off and then okay, you're bet on yourself. Let the chips fall, and then after that decide what's gonna what's gonna go down. I just can't fathom him not playing. I just I just can't comprehend that one. So to me, it's a matter of I don't I don't see I don't see the line in the sand

having been drawn. You know, I think it's a difficult situation. It's a it's a business scenario. It's the it's probably the ugly part of the business and the national as far as the National Football League is concerned. But you can still handle it civilly on both sides. And I think they have to as good a point as you

can in this situation. And I expect him to uh to come and play, and I expect the coaches to I'm not saying protect him as such, because football is a violent game, but I don't think they're gonna wear them out. And you know, I think there's gonna you know, there'll probably be an understanding there that you come in and you play for us, we're going to take care of you as well, and that's the way it should be. And you play for that almost thirteen million dollars a

year and let the chips fall as they may. Afterwards, have to go out and have the greatest year you've ever had, and hopefully your team wins the Super Bowl I'm with you. He's made a total of about six million dollars in the first four years of his NFL career, so he stands to make more than twice that this year, twelve point nine mill. I find it hard to believe

he would leave that on the table. Secondly, if he wants to get a contract that pays him as one of the top safeties in the NFL, he's not going to get that by sitting out. He's going to get that by playing and playing well. Playing and playing well, have a five six interception year and playing the Pro Bowl. You know, I think he everage is about three interceptions

a year, maybe as a career player. Have a career year, go out and double that, go out and have six interceptions, maybe five interceptions, whatever, and have the best year you've had, go to the Pro Bowl, and make yourself as marketable as possible. If you don't play, I mean, how are you helping your marketability? You're not. You're just not. You know, now, in the beginning of the prime seasons of your career, you're not doing anything. You're not on the football field playing.

I just don't fathom it. I mean, to me, it's just it doesn't make any kind of sense. And then how are you going to make up the twelve point nine million? I mean, how do you make good on that? I mean what kind of salary are you gonna are you're gonna, you know, ask for to make up for not only the twelve point nine but maybe the years that you could have been making a heck of a lot more than you were making the numbers you just are out there. You could have been, you know, doubling

down on that for a while. So I don't know, it's to me. To me, I don't dig myself a deeper hole to have to try to make good on and make up for. I go play in H thirteen million a year. That's not an embarrassment. That'll that'll that'll buy a lot of groceries, There's no question about that. It'll pay pay a bunch of bills. So the Bengals go out and sang three veteran offensive linemen, rebuild the offensive line, and two of the three will not be

able to practice to begin training camp. Alex Kappa and L. L. Collins, how serious do you think these things are and how quickly do they need to be back in order to develop that kind of offensive line chemistry you're trying to develop. Yeah, I think I think that's the that's the thing, um, is that they can't be part of the UH. I

think it'd be part of the meetings. But beyond the field where you're even even in drills that aren't live you know, just half speed drills or whatever the case may be, you're starting to coordinate the steps between each other. You're starting to coordinate the depth of the pass protection sets. You know, Oh boy, I better, I better take my set a little bit deeper or they'll be stunting to death. They'll penetrate that end and pick me off, and that my tack will be looping. And you just start to

get a feel for everything. Um and also the all important communication. You know, sometimes it gets to a point where when you feel really comfortable with a guy, it's unspoken. You know, there's a blink of an eye, not a wink um, any kind of body language thing that you work out. It's like you'll be in the huddling and say, Okay, we're gonna be this is the call unless if I if I blink, I'm calling it off or I'm doing whatever.

All of that stuff needs to take place a little bit, and it doesn't have to you want it to take place some in the game. But the repetitions are practice, is they're very important for that. Honestly, I wouldn't. I wouldn't necessarily play a whole lot of veterans a whole lot of playing time in any of the preseason games. I just wouldn't. I mean, you've got you've got something good going on here, and uh, you know, these guys all take care of themselves, they all work out hard,

They're all going to be ready to play. I'm not saying to you know, to just let them all sit out training camp. You're gonna have to do uh, you know that that portion of things gets yourself physically and mentally ready. But in my mind, the two most important days of training camp are going to be the two days that they practice against the Rams, because that'll be a controlled environment where things will be, you know, pretty frisky and but not not a game situation where you're

risking serious injury or whatever. But you can time things out, you know, it's it's okay, it's live in the in the offensive and defensive line, but no tackling, you know, or it's live here, but we're not going to take it to the very end in terms of finishing plays. That's where I think those two days are going to be probably unbelievably important getting the team ready for the season, because it's against a really good team with really good people who won a Super Bowl. You know you played

against them, you know how good they are. I think I think that those two days are proud. I don't think any of the veterans I need the team are going to play in that preseason, and I don't think anybody will see the field, so national television is going to have a little interesting story to tell there. But I do think that those workouts are going to be must see. I think those are going to be pretty

pretty good. I think that's going to be a big, big barometer to the coaches seeing how ready the team is to start the season. So the big position battle going into training camp is left guard. Who will be the starting left guard? In your mind, is it Jackson Carmen's job to lose or is it more wide open than that. I mean, you have to have somebody, you have to line them up somehow, and I don't I don't think that it's necessarily his job to lose. I

think it is pretty wide open. But but I think when whenever, if I'm in the situation that they're all in as a competitor, I want to have that first opportunity and not give it up, you know, to me defending that that spot it Okay, I'm lining up with the first group, I want to stay there. To me, that's a I'm not saying, an easier task, but mentally, I'd be feeling like I just need to do my job, and I need to do my job well. I don't need to try to do too much. I just need

to do my job well. I think it's going to be very interesting. I'm impressed with Volson because I think he has the physical stuff, and he seems like he's a quick study. He seems like he's he's getting it

picking him up pretty darn quickly. From what I can see out in the football field, It's like when when a coach tells a player or something, you know, you can you can tell if players are, you know, really kind of grasping it or hot by body language sometimes and then the very next snap, okay, did they make an adjustment. He's all that, I think, So I think

it's going to be a very competitive situation. I think between between those two guys, you know, the real intriguing guy for me is Ben Brown because I think he showed that he's got the feet, he's got the hands, and those are the two things you have to have to compete athletically in anything. And good footwork to start you off, in hands to finish, and a lot of things in sports. And I think that's the case with him in his situation. I want to see shoulder pads

and helmet. I want to see how he adapts mentally, how quick a study he is, all those all those kind of all those kind of variables will keep up, will Lee lag behind. It's going to be interesting to tell. He's a very interesting guy to me. I'm not sure they're looking at him necessarily to be a guard. I think he and Trey Hill are having a training camp battle. He and Trey Hill are basically backup center swing guard, you know, and which guy's going to be able to

handle it. So if I'm Ben Brown, I'm trying to unsee Trey Hill. That's that's the first thing on my agenda. And if you continue to ascend and continue to show you can play. You know, who knows, maybe you do get an opportunity for more than that, but that that one is going to be a very good training camp battle in my mind to watch those two guys, and I don't project either one of them to be in

the starting five. But you have to have versatility, you have to have position versatility, and who's going to show the most of that? I think a lot of us were surprised to see La L. Collins begin training camp on the non football injury list. Hopefully this back problem that he has is not too serious. But I was pleasantly surprised that Joseph Osai was not on the pop list. He's good to go. The knee is better, the rist is now better. That's very encouraging because he's a guy

that potentially could have a huge impact now that he's healthy. Yeah, and and Dan, I mean they got so many younger guys. I mean, Collins is the old guy. Collins is going into his eighth year and he's had lower back problems before, So you know, is it an issue? Is it a congenital degenerative thing. I don't think they think it is um. I don't think they think it's anything major. I think

they expect him to be back fairly quickly. But I think, quite honestly, if he weren't on that active, you know, pup list, I think that he would they would be treating him with veteran gloves. I think he'd be ta doing much anyway. So I don't think he's going to necessarily fall behind, um if he misses a day or two. But like we talked about before, lining up next to a guy and getting all the communication, all those kind of things is some is a plus. And if you're

on those lists, you can't do that. So, um, you know, at some point in time you'd like to see him come back and start to be in the mix and that and that part of the process getting ready for the regular season. Um, but yeah, right now, UM, it's it's it's it's very very wise to play everything with him on the safe side right now and don't push anything. But when you start talking about back issues, those those things are are they can be very very tricky. So you want to curb it. You want to nip it

in the BT as quickly as you possibly can. I want to circle back to Jesse Bates for a second. You played professionally for twelve years, so you went through contract negotiations, you had any of teammates obviously that had difficult contract negotiations. Are you all concerned about kind of a ripple effect among the locker room of a popular player who the Bengals were not able to extend That

that can be an issue. I mean, you know a guy like Jesse Bates who's held in such high regard by his team, not only his teammates, to coaches and the organization, front office, management, everybody. And you know it's like Anthony Munos for example, when when Anthony Munos had made I don't know how many consecutive you know, Pro Bowl appearances and all pro recognitions, he had to hold

out to get a contract done. And the feeling in the locker room was, man, if Anthony's holding out, what chance do I ever have of getting a second or a third contract. So there is a little bit of that, But you know, then the other business side of it is, you know, you can't overpay anywhere because there are other guys you have to sign as well. So it's it's a it's a tough balancing act, but there is I think, ah,

that's real that's that's not imaginary, that's that's real. I mean, you're gonna hear guys saying Jesse needs to be here. You've already heard guys saying it, and I think I think that that's going to go more and more as time wears on if Jesse's not in camp. So I do think that's, uh, that's that's a little bit of

you know, something that that needs to be handled. But I do also feel that this football team, even though it's young in terms of years service, it's very mature, you know, in terms of their cohesiveness and understanding you know, um, the chemistry or what it takes to put a team together in the business aspect of it. When you you know, you kind of filter that into it as well. So I don't I don't think there's going to be any mutiny or you know, anything close to that. I don't.

I don't think looking at anything like that. I don't think it's going to get contentious like that. But uh, you know, it's always it's always something that you have to address because you know, if you ignore it, the infection starts to spread. I know training camp was brutal back when you played for as Greg was tough seven preseason games one year. But having said that, do you miss it? Yeah? I do. I mean, um, this time

of year. I always felt like when I was a player that I was so fortunate to be able to do what I was about to embark on, you know. And and it's like they can't they can't ask me to do anything that I wouldn't. I'd be like, I'm definitely doing this. I think back to when you was six, seven, eight years old, you kide me you would have done you would have run through, you know, a house on fire to in a gasoline suit to play in the

National Football League. And I always looked at it that way. Um, but there were there were some challenges, there were some some trying times, There's there's no question about it. And were there difficult periods, Yeah, for sure. Would would you do them all over again? Hell? Yeah, I do it again, and I do it again, and I do it again. Um. I guess that's just the nature of the beast. And I think I think that's what uh, you know, Zach

and the organization's talking about. Where football there's a lot of things that you get. You're treated well as a professional football player, you're compensated well as a professional football player, but you've got to love the game. You got to love the grind of the game. You got to love the preparation you'd have to have for the game, both mentally, physically and all that. And I'll say that that time

period there was most joyous time in my life. And even though training camp at the end of the at the end of the some of those days of training camp before you close your eyes because you sleep like a log. But I'd say, you know what, this is tough. This is a challenge, there's no doubt about. But there's no place ouse I'd rather be right now. That's going to do it. For this episode of The Bengals Booth podcast presented by Ultimate Bengals. Download Ultimate Bengals ahead of

the twenty twenty two season. It's free to play next level fantasy football with fantastic Bengals prizes. Get it now on the App Store and Google Play, And if you haven't done so already, please subscribe to this podcast and if you have a minute, give it a rating or share a comment that helps more Bengals fans find us. I'm Dan Horde, and thanks for listening to The Bengals Booth Podcast