Higin everybody.
I'm Dan Hord, and thanks for downloading the Bengals Booth podcast. The tell Me Tell Me One More Time. Addition, as Sam Hubbard joins me to look back at the NFL's Play of the Year last year and perhaps the greatest play in Bengals history, the Fumble in the Jungle. Then Adam Rank from the NFL Network joins me to explain why he thinks the Bengals are the best team in the league heading into the twenty twenty three season. The Bengals Booth Podcast is brought to you by Bengals Picks
and Ultimate Bengals. They're free to play with tickets hand side merchandise up for grabs. Find both inside the Bengals app. Now here's a quick reminder that you can have the latest edition of this podcast delivered write to your phone, tablet, or computer by subscribing wherever you got your podcasts. It's the greatest thing since the recent Tailor Swift shows at
pay Corpse Stadium. I attended the first of her two shows, and I honestly think that I knew the fewest number of the forty four songs she sang of anybody in attendance, but I can appreciate a great performer, and the entire production was incredible. Furthermore, the unbridled joy she brought to her biggest fans was really cool to witness. In fact, there were a couple of young ladies a few rows in front of me who started bawling their eyes out
when Taylor took the stage. Putting on two shows of that magnitude is a huge endeavor, and kudos to everyone involved with the Bengals and the stadium for pulling it off without a hitch I suspect. In the years to come, when the biggest summer concert acts think about where they should play in the Midwest, Cincinnati and pay Corpse Stadium will be high on the list. Now, let's get to football. I was recently a guest on Serious XM NFL Radio
to discuss a very speci if a topic. They were doing a show on the top plays of the twenty twenty two season, and Sam Hubbard's ninety eight yard fumble return touchdown and the playoff winner for Baltimore was obviously high on the list. They asked me to reminisce about the play, and I thought it would be fun on this podcast to ask Sam Hubbard to do the same. Before we get to Sam, let's turn the clock back
to Sunday night, January fifteenth. The Bengals and Ravens are tied at seventeen with about twelve and a half minutes left in regulation and Baltimore is one yard away from a go ahead touchdown. Third down in goal from the one Hontley sticks the ball out.
The Bengals have the ball.
They are running it back Sam Hubbard with blockers behind him.
Hubbard of the Ravens forty, the thirty, the twenty, the ten, the fun touchdown.
Bengals Tyler Hudley try do it.
Stem the ball over the goal line. It got poked away.
Sam Hubbard scooped it up and ran the length of the field for a go ahead Begos touchdown. Logan Wilson punched the ball out of the hands of Tyler Huntley and.
Right into the hands of Sam Hubbard and boy Logan Wilson, others. Everybody was swarming it at at that football and Sam Hubbard says, I'll take it to the house. And boy who threw the block for Sam Hubbard down the football field his escorts service. One final block was necessary, and it was made for him.
He looked like he was playing lacrosse and Muller again streaking down the field.
I'll tell you Sam a big man with some wheels. He's probably at the oxygen tent right now. That was one hundred yards sprint for the big fella.
Ninety eight yards officially for Sam Hubbard. Now the extra point from Evan McPherson trying to give Cincinnati a seven point lead.
Crispin put down.
The kick dead center, perfect, and the Bengals have a twenty four to seventeen lead.
I was begging for a takeaway. The Bengals had turnovers in five consecutive fourth quarters. Make it six, and not only a turnover, a takeaway touchdown, unconventional score courtesy Sam Hubbard.
One of the most remarkable defensive plays in Cincinnati Bengals history. And we have a timeout with eleven thirty nine left in regulation, twenty four seventeen Bengals. That's how we called it on the Bengals radio network. Now let's hear the TV version, courtesy of my old college buddy Mike Turrico on NBC.
RAT reaches other good day with some Hubbard. The Cincinnati Kid Hubbard's.
Gotta come by Chase by Andrews with the thirty the twenty Hey, well stop. I thought Mike's inclusion of the Cincinnati kid in the middle of that call was sensational, and it was one of the things I discussed with Sam Hubbard. Before we get to that, we remind you that The Bengals Booth podcast is brought to you by
Kettering Health, the official healthcare provider of the Bengals. With more than one hundred and twenty care facilities and fifteen hundred care providers, Kettering Health is committed to guiding you to your best health. Visit ketteringhealth dot org to learn more. Now, without further ado, my recent conversation about the play with Sam Hubbard. All right, let's turn the clock back seventeen all twelve minutes to go in the fourth quarter, third
and goal from the one. Described what happened in as much detail as you can.
Yeah, it was a fourteen play drive, so we're all pretty gassed down in the one yard line, kind of backs against the wall. The quarterback decided to try and go over the top of the pile, and a quarterback sneak in logan Wilson and Jermain Pratt punch a bo all out landed in my hands and had enough gas to get the end zone and ended up winning the game for us.
You glanced back a couple of times early. It looked like you looked at the video board in the midst of the run. Did you have a sense of what was behind you?
Uh?
I kind of was backwards on the jumbo tron, so I swerved the wrong way because it's backwards.
But I had some blockers with me. Yeah, I was all blur.
I just am glad that I didn't get tripped up on the ten yard line.
Mark Andrews looked like you say, bolt as he tried to run you down. He dove at your feet around the twenty You stumbled ever so slightly. Did he get a piece of your shoe?
I think I was just trying to pick my feet up.
You know, usually I'm on the other end of that, trying to take out the runner's ankles. But uh, you know, I just know that you've picked your feet up. Keep him, keep them chopping, and you're gonna You're gonna get in.
The end zone.
Marcus Bailey came dangerously close to a possible blocking in the back hall. Ravens fans obviously think he was guilty. Was that a topic of discussion when you all look back at the tape?
No, I was a clean blockie, you know he was. He turned his back and he was lateral with him, So you know, you can't really call that but a great effort by Mark.
He's a hell of a player.
Be competing against him since college and I got the utmost respect for him.
We've all seen the famous shot of you in the oxygen mask. Did you need it? Did you request it? How did that come about?
Yeah?
I truly was completely exhausted. I don't think I could play anymore of the game. I really emptied the tank after that drive straight into that run.
And I had nothing left.
But I had some teammates that stepped up for me and finished out the game.
I went to college with Mike Jerico. I'm sure you've heard his famous call of the play where he first used the Cincinnati kid. What did you you and your family think of that?
I thought it was perfect.
A credit to him for doing the research talking to Doug Rosfeld before the game. No one might you know, just knowing everybody's story and being so invested in the game he was calling and really made for a special moment.
You mentioned that Jermaine Pratt and Logan Wilson stacked up the quarterback to lead to the fumble, and the previous play, Von Bell makes a great tackle to keep the running back out of the end zone. Before the goal to go situation, Jesse Bates made a great hustle play to knock a guy that bounds around the two yard line. Does that whole sequence kind of epitomize what this defense is about?
Yeah, no doubt.
You know we uh, we're gonna fight, fight, scratch and claw for every yard and you know, not give him anything. You know, they're they're gonna get yards, but yards on equal points. And that's kind of our philosophy is. You know, when it comes down to a red zone, third down, goal line, we play our best ball.
The play was ninety eight yards, you actually covered one hundred and twenty three. You always do sprints at the at the end of practice. Does that cross your mind now as you're doing those sprints.
No, I'm just getting in shape for the season and get myself ready for whatever happens next. You know, I've made some big plays at the end of the game the last couple of pro seasons, just being in better shape than everybody else, and that's something I continue to plan on doing.
I think it's the greatest single play in franchise history. As a Cincinnati native. What does that mean?
It means a lot. It's got its place in history, and I look forward to continuing to build on that legacy.
Fumble in the Jungle or the Hubbard yard Dash.
I'll let the people decide.
That I'm a fumble in the Jungle guy.
Yeah, I like that too, Thanks Sam, Yeah, thank you.
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Elevates your connection with All to Fiber. Every year around this time, Adam Rank from the NFL Network writes a state of the Franchise story about all thirty two NFL teams for NFL dot Com. He wrote about the teams in the AFC North last week and not only picked the Bengals to win the division, he thinks that Cincinnati is the best team in the NFL. All right, Adam, let's talk about the state of the Bengals. Your article has this title super Bowl or bust for Joe Burrow
and company. You are setting the bar very high, which we like here in Cincinnati. Share your thoughts on your expectations for the Bengals this year.
I don't think that I'm setting the bar high. You guys are setting the bar high. I think that over the last couple of seasons, I thought that the Bengals were the best team in the AFC. Two years ago obviously went to the Super Bowl loss a very close contest to the La RAI that could have gone either way.
Last season, of course, things happened. You know, when you allow the Kansas City Chiefs to have extra plays willy nilly, like a wait, hold on, it's a doe over, Like I've never seen that stuff since we were kids playing on the street. Be like, no, no, no, that's a do over, Like what do you mean it's a doover? Like no, no, no,
we did it like that is inexcusable. So again, you know, things being what they were, I think that over the last couple of years, the Cincinnati Bengals have proven themselves that if they are not the best team in the AFC, there are certainly top two. And here's here's here's the thing nobody wants to talk about. They went out and they got better. Not only did they get better. And I know I'm gonna I don't want to. I don't want to use all my my take all my shots here.
But it's like and the whole thing of like keeping the defensive coordinator, like you did not get raided on the staff, it's insane. Do how are the Bengals so good? But you know what, do you want to hire all the Eagles guys? You want to hire guys from the Rams? Still, like go crazy. The Bengals staff is in tack. They've fortified the roster. If I was a Chiefs fan, I would be very worried. But they're not because the Chiefs fans are arrogant and.
They have Patrick Mahomes, which obviously helped. He's fine, Yeah, he's all right, he's all right. It's not Pat who that's for sure. So I agree that you are not setting the bar too high. But on NFL Network, he recently went through game by game and looked at the Bengals schedule. You've got them starting thirteen and one, including wins over the forty nine ers in San Francisco and
the Bills at home. You've got them at fourteen and three overall with a win over the Chiefs on New Year's Eve, and fourteen and three only because they are basically taking the final game of the season off. Yeah, the rest of the playoffs is the number one seed? Are they your number one team overall in the entire NFL.
I believe that the Bengals are the best team, not only in the AFC, but all of the NFL. I think that they've gone out there, as I've said, They've fortified their team, They've gotten bet are in places where they were not as strong. They've kept the coaching staff in tact. You talk about Patrick Mahomes. The Bengals have Joe Burrow, who I feel is on that elite class like you have Roman Reigns and you have John Cena. Both of them could have a claim to be the
greatest of their era. I think that both of these guys that when their careers are said and done, that they're gonna be like I was better you or better you know, whatever it is, They're gonna be very equal. And I think that Joe Burrow has been able to do it behind an offensive line that has had some deficiencies. You know, I look back at this too, and I know this is a long winded answer to a very short question, but I go back to the whole thing
about taking Penny Suwel or taking Jamar Chase. I remember doing my mock draft with a twist and I said, you know, take Penny Seol. It makes sense when you took the wide receiver Jamar Chase, I wrote in my State of the Franchise article that year, is that I was in like, I allow you like if you go if we go out for pizza, and I'm like, I would like the Hawaiian style, and you're gonna like, no, no, I want the Buffalo chick and be like, that's also
a great choice. I'm with you. I agree with you, and I felt that the Bengals, you know, they've done their due diligence. I have a lot of faith in what they were doing. It makes a lot of sense. I get it, and now it looks like it is going to pay off because Jamar Chase is If he's not the best wide receiver in the game, maybe justin Jefferson's ahead of him. You can make an argument for Devonte Adams. Fine, Jamar Chase is a top five wide receiver and he's been so instrumental in him being there.
I would say this, if you didn't have Jamar Chase, you don't go to the Super Bowl two years ago. You're not in the AFC Championship game. It's as great as Penny Stool has been. What does it meant for the Lions. It is not like they didn't get to the playoffs. So I love everything that they've done and
I think that they are sincerely the best team. Last year, you know, they went to Buffalo and beat that team, and again everybody was not giving them for whatever reason, people were not giving the Bengals a chance in that game. They should have gone to Arrowhead and won that game as well. And I think that I love everything with Burrowhead Patrick who Patrick Who's a little excessive, but Burrowhead
absolutely apt. The Bengals own that team. I feel like they owned the Bills, They owned the they owned the Chiefs, they own all of them. And so you know what, the division being very tough is gonna also help them because they play good competition all the time. But I when I look at the schedule, I'm like, I think the Bengals are a better team here, They're a better team there. And really the losses are the ones, like you said, like it's the end of the season, Like
it doesn't matter, you're playing with it. Cleveland game, Yeah, who cares that is a Cleveland Who's going to be the head coach? Then who's who's there? Because Stefanski's gonna end up being fired? They have not who's their defensive coordinator? Jim Schwartz. Jim Schwartz. Yeah, Jim Schwartz is gonna end up being the Browns coach at some point this season.
That's my that's my hot take, he said. Jim Schwartz playing for his job in twenty twenty four, is going to eke out a meaningless win over the Bengals in Week eighteen. That's that's the kind of thought I put into this stuff. I know a lot of people are like, you're crazy, you don't know what you're doing, And you could look back at some of the predictions last year
and be like, yeah, you're absolutely correct. But sometimes I do know what I'm talking about, and I think that Jim Schwartz is gonna end up being the coach of the Browns this season. That's a bad that's a bad situation. Like I get the Kevin Stefanski wants to win and you want to bring in an experienced defensive coordinator to help you along. Don't pick it. Don't bring in the guy that has NFL head coaching experience, Like it's the
whole thing, Like what am I doing? Like Mike McCarthy has got to constantly be looking over his shoulder because Dan Quinn is eventually going to be a head coach at some point. Like these guys like okay, like it it makes sense, Like I get the theory behind it, but like, do you really is this really what you want to do? It is like it's like a sitcom. It's like Zach telling Slater to like take care of Kelly while he's out of town. He's like, oh, now
they're dating. When I come to That's exactly what it feels like with the Browns. So good luck with that. Whole situation.
I hope.
I don't want you guys to lose to the Browns in Week eighteen. And believe me, I'm not saying the Browns are a better team, but circumstances being what they were. I look through all this stuff, I just feel like that's a very Browns win kind of game for them to finish seven and ten and for the Bengals to get ready for a playoff run.
Well, you've got the Bengals beating the Browns, excuse me, in Cleveland in week one.
Obviously, let's be realistic. What's going to happen.
We are chatting with Adam Rank from the NFL Network. You can read his state of the franchise articles at NFL dot com. You can also follow him on Twitter at Adam Rank. I don't want to spoil too much in your article about the Bengals, but you have the offensive line listed as a strength. Yeah, it's been a while since any national expert listed the Bengals offensive line as a strength. Orlando Brown Junior moved the needle that much, apparently, absolutely.
I mean that is such a huge deal. Is to go out there and land and left tackle that you feel not that the not that you were. It was a detriment last season. But at the same time, like having Orlando Brown Junior in there and being able to like kind of quell all all the egos. Some people have to change position, which I know is not as easy as a lot of people. But it feels like and from and you're there, you're you're on the ground,
so you would know better than me. But from my from from my outside view, it feels like everybody's copa setic. Now everybody's fine, cooler, calmer, calmer heads prevailed. I think that a lot of times too, Like it is, there's a little bit of an ego thing, like you feel like you're a left tackle, you want me to play right tackle, but like Orlando Brown Junior is pretty good, Like it makes sense. Sometimes you've got to accommodate some people.
And I think that now and even Loyol Collins, you know, he doesn't need to rush back. That's a depth piece now like that before was like we need him to play. Now it's like, okay, yeah, whatever, you could just it's it's it's a depth piece. And I think that we're starting to see that emerge as a strength for the Bengals and now as a long term play. Now you look back at the Jamar Chase draft pick and you're like, Okay, now it's all working out. We got the one super Bowl,
we've been to back to back AFC title games. I think the Jamar Chase thing has been vindicated. Now your offensive line is even better. And if you give Joe Burrow more time to throw with what I consider probably the best trio of wide receivers in the NFL, I think that's a huge thing, and I as scary as it is, because last year Joe Burrow obviously set a club record with thirty five touchdown passes. The thing that he could be even better, Like he's an ascending player. Still.
As much as we love Patrick Mahomes and everything, Joe Burrow is still an ascending player. And I love everything about this situation. And I really do feel very comfortable with the Bengals offense moving forward, especially the offensive line.
And as far as I know, you can only have your appendix taken out once, right, Yeah, yeah, yeah, So Joe should be good in Week one this year as opposed to not himself until about Week.
Three or four. Yeah, that's that's another thing. That gets just kind of like overlooked, like people talk about well this team had this or we and I was like, uh, Joe Burrow had its appendix out in August if I if I remember the timeline correcting camp, it was yeah, that's right, because we were doing that. We had an interview scheduled with him. He was supposed to join us, Tom Pillisero and me. He was going to join and I know Ian was there as well, but Ian was
leaving to Indianapolis. But Tom and I were going to interview him. We're gonna get I was so excited of like, oh my gosh, because honestly it was my first time being in Cincinnati as an adult. So that was cool. By the way, I will say this Renee Paquette, who is an announcer for ae W. She had tweeted out something that said, Hey, I've heard that Cincinnati is the San Diego of the Midwest, and I think I saw that painted on a building somewhere and I I'll be
the judge of this. As a San Diego expert, I will be and I'm dubious of this. And I show up to Cincinnati and I was like, yeah, I get it. I see it. It makes a lot of sense, Like, yeah, oh, the breweries, the original sam Adams Brewery, the Rhine, I believe it guys. The market, but the marketplace where the Reds state the Reds Parade Startsley Market. That's Finley Market, Binley Market.
Oh.
I was at Binley Market and I was walking by and I saw a bunch of people lined up for bread and I'm like, I just got in the line and somebody's like, what's good here. I'm like, I don't know, but there's a ton of people here, so it can't be terrible. I'm just gonna buy. I'm gonna let my heart. I'm gonna say, like, just fill my basket up with whatever for twenty.
Bakery.
Yes, So I loved everything about it. I went to the ballpark. It was amazing. But I was most excited about talking to Joe Burrow, but unfortunately he did have his appendix, we didn't get to talk to him. But again, he's coming into camp healthy, ready to go. This team and it feels like it's it's very cohesive. Again, the egos on the offensive line seem to be all squared away. So I love everything that's going on with the Bengals right now, I hope to get out there again.
We hope you get back out here because you brought good mojo for that training camp visit. So, following up on the Pina Sewell Jamar Chase draft, I was one hundred percent Pina Sewell going into it. I'm glad to have been wrong. What I learned is that the value of a transcendent wide receiver is greater than the value of any individual offensive lineman, with the possible exception of Anthony Munoz in his prime.
Right, but you're.
Five good offensive linemen. You don't necessarily need the best offensive lineman in the league. You just can't have really bad ones.
Yeah, you don't want to be a debt. You don't want it to be a detriment. You don't want it to be the worst offensive line. You want to at least be a somewhat of a roadblock. And I think it was over exaggerated about how much it was going to be. Now, obviously you can look back at the Super Bowl and say, well, I mean, you know, Aaron Donald was able to play very well, But you're like, Aaron Donald's an exceptional player like that, he beats a
lot of good offensive linemen. But I'm with you, like initially, like whoever they would have drafted that year, I would have been able to I would have been able to see the process and understand the rationale behind it. Like when David Caruso left NYPD Blue to go do movies. You kind of understand what he's talking about. Sometimes it works out. Like David Caruso, it didn't work out as well for him, he has to go back to do CSI Miami. George Clooney did the same thing. He left
dr Like, what are you doing. You're losing, You're leaving this television show that he goes out to be the kloon dog and then everything's great. So you understand the process. Oh Clooney. By the way, I did not mean I was not pandering to the Cincinnati crowd by doing that. I'm a huge George Clooney fan by nature, but of course he's also a famous Bengals fan, and I'm assuming a Reds fan too. By the way, That's the one thing that I love about what's happening in Cincinnati. Your
soccer team. They yet I don't know one loss.
They have one loss all year, so great record setting pace.
So amazing for them, and then the Red's playing so well. I love the Reds are almost my National League team because I fell in love with that stadium and fell in love with the crowd last year. And uh, and Ellie doing what he's doing like it's cool. And you got a bunch of prospects for the Mariners, who I hate. I know, it seems weird. Somebody's like, somebody hates the Mariners. Oh yeah, we we in southern California, especially if you're
an Angels fan, we hate the Mariners. So I want both of those prospects, or all the prospects you got for Luis Castillo to be All Stars so we can rub that in Seattle's face forever. All right, I love it.
So there are some question marks on the Bengals roster, most notably in the secondary. Three members of the secondary that started in THEFC Championship Game last year are no longer around. Jesse Bates, von Bell, Eli Apple, You're not overly concerned about.
That, correct, I mean I'm somewhat concerned. I think if there is an Achilles heal with this team and you need Dak Siel to step up, you know, And I was trying to be as positive as possible. I'm going back and forth with the editors and they're like, well, we're not seeing it on tape, and I'm like, yeah, but you know what, Like you said, they had great players playing ahead of him, that he wasn't really pressed into action all that much. But listen, he's a first
round pick for a reason. And I believe that your secondary coach came out and said the same thing. It's like, these guys have ability and at some point you just need to roll the dice. And the one thing that I really like about the Bengals, and I know that I put this in the piece, is that they've never really been a dominant defense, like you know, the eighty six Bears. And I know that I said eighty six Bears, the eighty six Bears. Statistically, we're better than the eighty
five Bears. I know what I'm talking about. The Ravens of the early two thousands. You don't need to be that good, especially in the modern NFL, especially when you get to the playoffs. Now you're going to get into these They're gonna be a lot closer than you anticipate. But you know, can you make the stops when you need to make the stops. I think we saw that last year against Buffalo, and I think Dax actually went out there and made a pretty nice play on I
believe it was Dawson Knox. He's shown that he can do it at times. So I think that the way that the Bengals play defense, they take the spirit from people. They really do. They really do come out there. And I felt like in that especially that game against the Bills, like they shook Josh Allen. They have done a really nice job against Patrick Mahomes. You hold him to twenty three points. That's a pretty good job. Like, hey, are you shutting teams down? Like no, but like the team,
the NFL doesn't work that way anymore. They've changed the rules so much that you can't have a dominant defense, and it doesn't make sense to have a dominant defense in some In some respects, you gotta be able to score points. The Bengals can do that. You gotta have a defense. You have to have a defensive coordinator that knows how to shut down people, that knows how to get the most out of the talent around him. I think that all the guys who are leaving, you know,
Baits and all them, everybody who's leaving. They're good players. But I think as long as you keep I'marilla or sorry about and and Arumo, I always say that incorrectly. That's why that's why I take the coward's way out and say the defensive coordinator Lou Lou Lou is so good as finding way because, like if you think about it, two years ago, he really solved the puzzle of stop or at least slowing down Patrick Mahomes and really going out there and putting together a plan that can slow
him down. Even last year, I know that they ended up winning. You know, that's what happens when you give a quarterback that good eight downs to get a first Then fine, I'm not saying whatever. I don't want to get into trouble. I'm still a league employee. So I think that he's done a great job, and so I have a lot of confidence of that. And you know what, every team is shifting, every team is juggling rosters. I think the Bengals have proven over the last couple of
years that they know what they're doing. They've got a great plan, they've got a great process. So I'm going to give them the benefit of the doubt, and I think they're going to find a way. They're not going to be the most dominant defense in the NFL, but they're going to be able to make the stops when they need to, and that's the most important thing.
Has Cincinnati Kansas City become the hottest rivalry in the NFL? Oh?
Absolutely, it's so much fun. I know we're probably old enough to remember the Cowboys and the forty nine Ers going back and forth in the nineteen nineties. He had the Ravens and Ravens than Steelers for a couple of years. That was the hot ticket. And there's been some other one San Francisco, Green Bay, things of that nature. But I think that the one thing that is so special about the Chiefs and the Bengals is that they both
have marquee quarterbacks. Sometimes you get into these, man it's a defensive team against an offensive team, like what is Jimmy Garoppolo versus Aaron Rodgers. It's not quite as sexy as Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes, who arguably are the two best quarterbacks in the NFL. I can't imagine who
you would rank ahead of them. I'm sure somebody will chime in, not in Cincinnati, somebody somewhere will take up a probably Buffalo, which, by the way, Buffalo, And if you saw my predictions for Buffalo, I'm not a big believer in that team. I think that I think that Buffalo's window might be closing. I think it might be closing a little bit sooner than people think, but I do. I don't feel that way with Cincinnati, and I think
it's because of the quarterback and everything. And this is why this rivalry is so good, because you have two marquee guys at the quarterback position, which is everything you want in one of these great rivalries. Even like for anybody who grew up in the eighties, like all these teams had, all these teams that were good always had a good quarterback, whether it was the Broncos they had Lway. Even Phil Simms with the Giants was pretty good. I
guess the Washington team never this. Thisman was fine, but still Montana. All those guys. You want to have that marquee quarterback and both teams have that. So that's why I love this rivalry.
We're talking to Adam Rank from the NFL Network. You can check out his State of the Franchise articles at NFL dot com. So you've done the State of the Franchise articles on the other teams in the division. How do you think everybody else stacks up Baltimore, Cleveland, Pittsburgh.
Yeah, you know what, I'm impressed by Baltimore going out there and really addressing the wide receiver position. It's strange to me that they've never drafted a Pro Bowl wide receiver, and you think about all the guys. Every year, it seems like they draft a wide receiver. It was Rashad Bateman a couple of years ago. He's missed some games. Now it's Zay Flowers. I want to believe in my scouting or at least listening to the scouts who tell me, like, I think Zay Flowers is a good player. We saw
some of the film of him at Boston College. But you're like, he's still drafted by the Ravens, Like, how good is it going to be? I love Odell Beckham junior. He is a premier wide receiver, and it's like, oh, but it's gonna be Isaiah Likely who ends up leading the team in receptions or something like that. I want to see. But I love Baltimore. I like John Harbaugh. I think he's a great coach, but he got to
see it. You know, there's something about them like they need to be able to get over that hump, you know. With Lamar Jackson, I'm a big Lamar Jackson fan, and I would even point out that, you know, even like I know a lot of teams are like, well, if we get them in a deficit, they they can't rally in the fourth quarter. But Lamar Jackson has really good numbers when he's trailing in the fourth quarter. You know, I put that in the piece as well. But at
some point you got to do it, you know. That's the biggest thing with me is like Lamar Jackson's what one and three in the playoffs. One of those wins came against the Chargers, which I don't think should count. Joe. That's the one thing about Joe Burrow, It's like we've already seen it. Like we've seen him go to the super Bowl, We've seen him win big games, win big games on the road. We have not seen that from Baltimore. I like, what's doing my scouting or my my thoughts
of Kenny Pickett coming in last year? I didn't think he was the best quarterback prospect. Now he played very well at the end of the season, But I think a lot of that coincided with TJ. Watt returning. They're like, well, Kenny Pickett was six and two in his last eight games, are like, well, TJ. Watt also returned, Like, let's not forget that it's TJ. Watt who returned that also helped propel them to all those wins. So I think they
still have some question marks at quarterback. And then Cleveland, I whatever. Like, again, I've already given you my thoughts on Cleveland. You've already fired Stefanski. I've already fired him. I don't like their quarterback. I I don't know. I just I don't like the situation. I don't like what they've done. Like I just I just don't dig it, honestly, like any quarterback that you're gonna go out there and give a fully getting You're you're giving up so much capital.
You know, you gave up so much draft capital to get this quarterback who hadn't played what twenty months or something like that. It's such a huge risk, like giving up that, Like even Denver found out the hard way like, maybe you should build a better team around some of these quarterbacks. Maybe these quarterbacks aren't as good as we think they are. Now, there are some guys I think who are transcendent who would be fine anywhere, Joe Burrow being one of them, Patrick Mahomes being one of them.
I think Cleveland's gonna find out the hard way. And then you know, when the season goes on, you know, and you start as injuries happen and things start to erode your depth, and you're like, oh, yeah, it would have been nice to have a couple of first round picks that we could plug in right here. That's gonna end up hurting them. So I don't I don't know. Cleveland could surprise me, and I will come out there and I'll admit it, and I'll apologize to everybody in
Cleveland to Drew Carry everybody. I just don't see it. I can make a case for Pittsburgh more so Baltimore, who are good teams. I don't think they're the elite level that Cincinnati is.
And you don't see Deshaun Watson returning to the four that he displayed in Houston before all of his problems.
What is his form like, what is it like throwing for four thousand yards and winning four games? Like AF I could see that. I could definitely see Cleveland doing that. I just don't see them winning a lot of football games. Like He's never on the NFL level been able to do that. And you look at it. Was it Houston? Was it him? I don't know, Like last year it didn't seem like maybe Houston knew what they were doing when they got rid of him. So I need to see it. I need to see him go out there
and perform in Cleveland. And they've got a pretty decent class. I mean, they've got good wide receivers as well. Amari Cooper continues to be vastly underrated. Nick Chubbs a very good running back. Let's see if they can put it together. I'm going to remain skeptical until I see it.
So last thing, the Bengals are your AFC team. Let's say they stay relatively injury free. I'm knocking on my head and live up to that prediction. Who do they face in the Super Bowl? He glass forty nine ers? What do you think your beloved Bears for Bears? Why can't I just say the Bears? Like I gotta know if I was, if I'm picking it right now. It's so hard for these teams to get back to the super Bowl. We saw it last year with your own Bengals. You know the Eagles are going to be back in
the NFC Championship game. I think that the NFC comes down to two teams. It's the Bengal or the Bengals. It's the forty nine Ers and it's the Eagles.
And I think that those two teams are vastly superior to everybody else. The Cowboys fans will argue with this, but still like it is the NFC North is, although Lions fans think it's them, I don't, No, it's not. I really like the forty nine Ers. I think that they could figure out their quarterback situation and it's a it's a huge leap of faith, but at Brock perty And you can ask me again in August, once training camp starts and we see Brock party throw or whether
Trey Lance is fully able to rehab. I think as long as they lock in on one quarterback and go with him, I think defensively they're great. They've got Christian McCaffrey, they've got so much talent on offense, it's hard for me to imagine them failing, and even last year in that NFC Championship game, even being as like no dimensional as they were, and perhaps Philadelphia was just playing down to their opponent, not exposing their full bag of tricks,
knowing that they were going to beat this team. I thought the forty nine Ers made that game a lot more competitive than it should have been. And at some point, I'm like, why aren't you just direct snapping at the Christian McCaffrey Just do that? Like why why not? Like I would I would have Christian McCaffrey taking snaps instead of changing the rule for the emergency quarterback. I would just have McCaffrey take snaps, or you could could you
catch the ball out of the shotgun? Like figure it out. I think the forty nine ers are very good, so I I don't know, you know what, I've actually now talked myself into the Eagles because I think the stability at the quarterback position with Jalen Hurts and a very good team. Yeah, Bengals Eagles, Like it's.
Like it should have been last year Bengals Eagles Super Bowl and Stefanski fired with Jim Schwartz taking over at some point before the end of the year. Those are the hot take predictions from this particular podcast appearance.
I love it. That's good. Well, hey, wait, why don't I just throwing the Bears are making the playoffs too, just so I can go completely, just to really erode all my credibility. I know, I feel like I'm pandering, but we've had this discussion. We've been doing this for the last couple of years, and I remember the first time that the Bengals made it back. You were like, not surprised, but you're like, oh, you see a lot of promise in this Bengals team. I go, I really
do so. As wrong as I've ever been about the forty nine ers of some of these other teams, I have been spot on with the Bengals, I feel every year, so at least take heart in that it's like, I know your team. I'm might not the other ones, but I know the Bengals, and I know that you guys are gonna be doing really well. All right.
The state of the franchise stories are great, They're very interesting, they're very funny. You do a great job with it every year, and I appreciate you coming on the podcast every year.
Thank you, Adam.
Hope to see you in Cincinnati sometime during training camp.
I'd love to be on to Cincinnati because it's a great town, great fans. I enjoyed every minute of it, so I hope to do that again. And Asel. I hope the Reds are in town because I gotta go see Ali. Oh, gotta go see him.
That's going to do it for this episode of the Bengals Booth Podcast brought to you by Kettering Health, the official healthcare provider of the Bengals, by Bengals Picks and Ultimate Bengals. They're free to play with tickets and signed merchandise up for grabs by pay Corps, the official HR software provider of the Bengals, and by Alta Fiber future
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