Hi, get everybody. I'm Dan Hoard and thanks for downloading the Bengals Booth Podcast. The I Just want to Rule Moss leaves up and start again. Addition, as I discussed the Bengals off season priorities with one of Cincinnati's best sportscasters, Fox nineteen sports director Joe Danoman. Plus we'll celebrate the two year anniversary of the Fumble in the Jungle with
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or computer by subscribing wherever you get your podcasts. It's the greatest thing since Manning and Belichick on Burrow. There's so much great NFL content out there these days that it's hard to catch everything. And one show that I meant to watch this year but never really did. Was called The Breakdown with Peyton and Belichick, featuring Peyton, Manning, and Bill Belichick analyzing film of upcoming games. Now that Bill is coaching again at the University of North Carolina,
I imagine that the show will not continue. And if that's the case, one of the final episodes featured the two legends looking ahead to the Bengals Cowboys game on December ninth. It begins with Peyton looking at burrows brilliance and ends with Belichick analyzing some of the Bengals problems on defense. If you have ESPN Plus and want to check it out, just look for the Breakdown with Peyton
and Belichick. Now let's get to my first guest. Years ago, when I was a TV sports anchor at Fox nineteen and Cincinnati, we hired a young man out of my alma mater, Syracuse University, named Joe Dana. Joe has been the primary sports anchor there for about twenty years, and since he grew up in northern Kentucky, he's been following the Bengals for his entire life. He joined me this
week to discuss coaching changes, free agency, and the upcoming draft. Joe, I want to start by publicly congratulating you on being named Ohio Sportscaster of the Year. We worked together at Fox nineteen many years ago, and when I was a local TV sports caster, it was so much easier than it is now. You wrote, you talked, maybe you do
a little bit of editing. Nowadays you do everything. I don't know how you do it, But as I've told you privately and as I've said publicly, I can't imagine there's anybody in the country doing a better job as a local TV sports anchor and reporter. So I hope this award let you know how your peers feel about you and your work ethic and the great stuff that you're doing.
Well. Thank you, and this one was completely unexpected. I knew I was a finalist. I thought the award was named after you at this point. As I told you on text, and as I tweeted as well publicly, I hope that the so many people that have been involved in my career getting it started mentoring me take a small bit of this award as well, because I think we're all a product of who we grew up working with, looking up to, and as I get into this part
of my career. I take great pleasure in seeing some of my former interns and former co workers do great things themselves. In fact, one of my great thrills was last summer I was a finalist for an Emmy Award and one of the other finalists was a former intern of mine. So to share that moment with him, knowing that he's had success and I was a small bit a part of it, I was very rewarding. And I
think that's what this award to me is. I hope everybody that has influenced me a lot the way knows that they're a big part of this award as well. Plus Dan. At the actual event, Iron Eagle is being awarded, the national sportscaster Mike Turrico is going into the Hall of Fame. So I just can't wait to be around guys like that at this event and get my picture taken with them and shake their hand and tell them how much of a fan I am of them.
That is the best part about being named the State Sportscaster of the Year, whatever state you're from, If you're able to attend the event, which is in North Carolina every summer, you meet all of these people that you have tremendous admiration and respect for you. Develop relationships with them, hanging out, having a beverage. It's really fun. So I'm glad that you're going to be able to go, and I'm sure you'll have a great experience.
What's great is every time I see Mike Turrico, whenever he's in town to call a Bengals game, I name drop you every single time. Only two things I have to do with Mike Rico are say the word Syracuse and Dan Horde, and he literally stops and talks to me. You can tell he's on the move to go somewhere. He's got somewhere important to be, but he always has a story about you and always has a nice word
to say about Syracuse. I know he's still very involved in Syracuse in decision making and very much involved with the administration and the athletics. So to make Syracuse proud of this too, not just my mentors and all the people I've worked with, but to go to a place like that that has such a great reputation and now to be a small brick in that massive colossus that is the Syracuse broadcasting family, I'm proud of that as well.
All right, let's talk about the Cincinnati Bengals and a very important offseason that is underway. Let's start with how last year finished. Was the five game winning streak to end the year momentum in any way, or just kind of a reminder of what could have been?
Yeah, I think it's more the latter, And I've talked to Zach Taylor about this. I talked about in season, week to week momentum or season to season momentum. And it's funny because you'll hear him say that sometimes, but I can tell you in private conversations he doesn't believe in that. He believes in momentum and games, but he does not believe in week to week, season to season momentum.
But I do think it's a reminder of what this team can be when they get functional play from their defense, and they got that the final few weeks of the season. Now we can all look at the offenses they've played, we can pick apart the quarterbacks that they went up against. But I think there's a reminder here, right that once you get late in the season and Joe Burrow has had an entire year, and you know, I have to
stand on this and eat these words. Dan I said before the season on every podcast and every radio appearance I did, every time I was on TV, I guaranteed that if Joe Burrow played seventeen games, this team would make the playoffs. I mean it took basically this season. That was an act of God for this team not to make the playoffs with Joe playing seventeen games. But I'll have to own it that they didn't make the
playoffs and he played the entire year. But I do think it's a reminder of what this core is capable of. And I do think it's a reminder, especially going back to that Denver game, a reminder of what this success in this window is built upon. It's built upon Burrow, Chase Higgins. And that's going to be one of those driving questions here the next couple of months after what we saw those three do the final five weeks of the season.
So when Joe came out after the Dallas game and his postgame news conference really out of the blue and said, I think we can keep t Higgins. We've had conversations. He sounded confident that was going to happen. What was your reaction, because I was really caught off guard.
So I was standing on the field in Dallas. We had two cameras down there. We were doing the live Bengals postgame show. So I'm on the field with one camera. We have another camera inside for Joe Burrows press conference. And you know how it goes when you're on TV. The press corps towards is playing. I can hear it in my ears, but also at the same time, I'm discussing with the producers where we're going next. We got video, we got graphics, we've got commercials. And I hear Joe
say that, and I told everybody stop. I said, I need to hear this and what he's saying right here, because did I miss something or did Joe just say what he just said? And to me, that changed the entire tone about this conversation going forward. Now, I've talked about this multiple times and here's my take on this situation. Obviously, Joe has a plan of what he wants for T Higgins. I think we know what Jamar and T's plans are
to keep this together as well. I've always wondered, is Joe Jamar T's plan in alignment with the front office's plan and so we don't know that we won't find
that out here until this starts to play out. But what I think Joe has now done, and we've talked about the evolution of Joe Burrow the quarterback, the player, the celebrity, the person here in Cincinnati, un there are levels to where he's going now raised himself within the organization with his success, with his professional maturity and with his understanding of rosters now and what he needs to be successful, that he's put himself, I believe, in a position where he has to be kept in the loop
about what this organization is going to do with T. Higgins, where if they do make a decision one way or the other, I think Joe has now put himself in position where they have to say, Okay, Joe, here's what it looks like if we keep T. Here's option B of what it looks like if we decide to move
on from T and reallocate that money somewhere else. So I think it's important that Joe has put himself in position that he's not necessarily a decision maker, but he has to understand the thought process of whatever it is they do do with T. Higgins. And I think He's earned that with what he means of this organization.
And that's the way it should be. You're in the Joe Burrow business. It's not a matter of trying to keep him happy. I hear people say things like that, oh, you got a koutout of what Joe wants. It's not that. It's he's your best player. He's the face of the frameise and he's a smart guy. So if he thinks this is the best path going forward, then it probably is the best path going forward. Without knowing what the numbers are going to be, so let's talk about that
a little bit. They're going to try to extend Jamar Justin Jefferson got thirty five million a year last year for four years, so that's the beginning number, and it's probably going to be higher than that.
For T.
Is there a team out there that would pay him thirty million dollars a year? And if so, is it realistic to do both at those numbers or does T have to come in more in the twenty six twenty seven million dollar range.
I would think that I would think you'd probably have to come into twenty six twenty seven million dollar range for the Bengals, and yes, there was a team out there who will give him thirty million dollars, But it's on the Bengals not to let that happen, right, I mean, that's the important part of this offseason. They still do have the power of flexing the second franchise tag and
not letting T Higgins get to free agency. And what they decide to do there with that is they can franchise tag them and they can negotiate a long term contract to keep him here. The question is what does T Higgins and what does his agent want, because they still have power themselves to flex in this situation as far as you know, if they're not happy with the situation, will T be here? Will he show up and do it? And everything we've seen from T so far in his career,
he's been very professional. Even during this situation in the offseason. He was here and he was a training camp and he was practicing a training camp understanding that he didn't get what he wanted, which is a long term deal here in Cincinnati. But to answer your question, yeah, there's certainly a team out there who will pay T. Higgins
that kind of money. Outside of quarterback, I would put wide receiver right there with defensive end as that the value positions that every team in the NFL is trying to find and trying to find difference makers. But you said, the Bengals are in the Joe Burrow business. The Bengals are in the Big three business. They're in the Jamar Chase T. Higgins, Joe Burrow business. That's what makes them unique,
that's what makes them a Super Bowl contender. And we could talk about defense, and we will, and we could talk about improving the run game and we will this offseason. But as long as you have those three and I know sometimes it comes with an eye roll of people on social media. No one wanted to face this team in the playoffs, right, And I don't think Kansas City went out and laid down to keep Joe Burrow out of the playoffs. Maybe they did. Maybe they did, And
that's fine. They have that prerogative. And I would say this. I had this conversation with Zach. I said, if the shoe was on the other foot, Zach, and you had the number one seed and Patrick Mahomes was lurking right there as the seventh seed, what would you do? And he said to me, he said, listen, if we were two times Super Bowl defending champions and we were fifteen and one, there wouldn't be a team in football that scared me. And I said, good answer, But but yeah,
we saw how that played. So to answer your question, I think the narrative has changed here in Cincinnati as far as T Higgins in his future in Cincinnati. Where I thought midway of the season, this was it. This was the last dance of the Chicago Bulls, right, the Big three, last dance that Denver game, to me is when I flipped and you saw the value of T Higgins and what he means to this team in such
a big game late in the season. For him to perform score three touchdowns and the attention he draws away from Jamar Chase, I'm sold. You gotta do what you gotta do. He has to be kept. And to me, those are the top two priorities of the offseason because they set in motion every other domino that goes with this team this offseason. They've got to get Jamar Dunn as soon as possible, and they have to make their decision on T Higgins. And if it were me, I'm
paying him. I'm keeping them. He's got to stay here in Cincinnati because those three together is what makes the Bengals unique.
I guess I flipped when Joe started talking about it the way he did and expressing confidence that it could happen. That implied to me that, you know, he's willing to do whatever it takes. T is willing to come back for maybe a little less than he might be able to get on the open market. I don't think Joe would have said what he said if that wasn't the case. I was probably ninety ten that it wasn't going to happen until that point. Now I think it's at least
fifty to fifty, maybe a little bit better. It's really interesting, though, because you've got Trey Hendrickson thrown in there as well. He's got a year left on his deal. He'd certainly like to reward him for the great player that he's been and maybe extend that for a couple of years if you can. He's you know, he's thirty, but he's certainly not playing like he's approaching the back nine. I guess my priorities are Jamar first, Trey second, t third.
If they can do all of that, and it's going to be very interesting to see if they can.
Yeah, and we've documented how important those three were this year, Joe, Jamar and Trey to what this team was and what they did, you know, setting NFL records and the first team in NFL history the lead in passing guards, receiving yards, in sacks, and trade to me is such an interesting case because of what happened last offseason with him and him demanding a trade and then coming back and having
the kind of season he did. And if I'm Trey Hendrickson at age thirty and I've had the year that I just had and the years that I've had in Cincinnati, You've got one last chance here, I would think, at one last big contract. And you mentioned it him being thirty years old. It doesn't feel like a guy who's playing at thirty years old. It feels like this guy can be an elite pass rusher for multiple seasons going forward.
And so is there a world where you can reward him as you said and extend him in a smaller window. And if I'm Trey Hendrickston and I'm his agent, I certainly want some kind of security for multiple years going forward and find the Bengals, and I'm bringing in a new defensive coordinator. You want that cornerstone of a guy that's a difference maker, a game wrecker. They're on the
defensive end. Those are hard to find. And it was funny because mid season, when the Bengals defense was struggling the way it was and people are trying to come up with solutions on how to make this team better. You know they're talking about the Max Crosby's of the world and pick your favorite defensive end. NFL teams aren't giving these guys up. These guys are really hard to find, and when they do get them in their organization, they're
doing everything they can to keep them. And I hope the Bengals have the same idea about Trey Hendrickson because they're very hard to find. The Bengals had been trying to draft guys that can play opposite him and produce at a consistent level, and it's hard to find. I mean, Joseph Asais shown flashes, Miles Garrett shown better flashes this year.
Excuse me not Miles Garrett, Miles Murphy. But when you talk about these guys and you bring them in, you draft them, and you try to develop them, it's hard It's just hard to find guys that can do what Trey Hendrickson did and does, so when you do get one, you have to reward him and whatever Trey wants. I think they have to listen here because they understand a guy going into his final year of his contract after what he did last offseason, is most likely wants to
have more security than just a one year deal. So I fully think this is going to be one of the difficult conversations this team has in the offseason is how to best take care of Trey Hendrickson because they cannot let him get out the door because of what kind of a difference maker he is for this defense.
People age differently. He certainly does not appear to be getting old at age thirty. He's like Selma Hayek. He's aging gracefully, that's for sure. Let's talk about defensive coordinator. Do you have an ideal candidate or a type of coach that you would like to see them higher for that position.
I like Al Golden a lot. I like the fact that he's been in Cincinnati, he's worked with Zach Taylor before, and for him to take Notre Dame to the precipice of a national championship built on a defense of physicality, development of young players who have gotten better into his system, and there's some creativity also in his system as well
at Notre Dame. It's gonna be interesting. I'm gonna be down in Atlanta this weekend and certainly Al Golden will be one of my targets to talk to about his future after this game coming on Monday night against Ohio State.
First question, or will you soften him up a little bit? First?
You know how these situations go. There's gonna be all around him. Yeah, So it's gonna be He's gonna take that question at least ten different times. I'll do it like this, and I've learned the art of question asking from the great Dan Horde. I think you have to give him a question he can answer and you can
get insight into what he's going to say. So I'm curious about his experience in Cincinnati, are working with Zach Taylor, what he liked about it, what he thinks of this job here in Cincinnati, Because you talk about defensive coordinators and people that look around the league and look for the best positions for them to go, and how could you not want to come to Cincinnati to where you get to work with a team that has Joe Burrow,
Jamar Chase, and maybe T Higgins. So you're hitching your wagon to an offense that can win a Super Bowl tomorrow, and quite honestly, all you have to do is just be okay as a defensive coordinator for this team to be a contender for a Super Bowl. So yeah, I think I like Al Golden. I love what Matt Eberflus did in Indianapolis. I mean you look back and it kind of mirrors a little bit of the Bengals here.
What he inherited in Indianapolis in twenty eighteen was a team that was giving up twenty five points a game. The Bengals just average given up twenty five points a game. They were thirtieth in the NFL, and defense the Colts were And in one year he went from thirtieth to tenth. So if you're a Cincinnati and you're a Bengals fan and you're looking for a quick fixer, Matt Eberflus is proven he can be a quick fixer. So those are the two names that you read a lot about this,
you think about this a lot. Those are the two names to me that really keep jumping up to the top of mind as guys that would be great fits. Now, as far as what Bengals fans should want from a defensive coordinator, I think two things stand out. I think you want a defensive coordinator who's very good with player development because we've seen what this team has to do defensively, right,
they have to draft young defensively. They might have to go cheaper defensively because of what they have to pay. We think the Big three going forward on offense, So you're going to get a lot of young players. You got to develop these young players and be able to communicate with them what your vision is defensively and help
them develop into that system. And also, I think the other thing you need to find out is, and these are hard questions for Zach Taylor and the other members of the front office who are going to do these interviews, is how does a coach coach when he has some deficiencies. This defense is not going to be loaded with stars. There were going to be holes. You can't fix this in one offseason or one draft. There will be deficiencies. How can you coach around those deficiencies and still be successful.
So development and working through deficiencies I think are very very important, and then also experience, and I think he got that with Al Golden and he got that with Matt Erablus.
I got the impression from the little bit of time that I spent with Alan his two years as Bengals assistant coach that he really liked it here. He wasn't one of those assistant coaches that would linger and just talk to you NonStop. You know, he kind of had to catch him on the move. It seemed like he was always, you know, racing from the practice field to his office, cutting through the cafeteria really quickly with you know, take out food in his hand. But he seemed to
like it here. I think it's going to come down to does he want to be an NFL coach again or does he really like what he's doing and think that it will help him become a college head coach again, because he was obviously extremely successful at Temple when nobody won there. He did reasonably well at the University of Miami,
a place where the expectations are super high. So if he is in fact the guy that they want to hire, it'll be interesting interesting to see if that is his priority to be in the NFL again.
And it's curious too, it's been somewhat quiet here. And look, these things take time, and the Bengals will likely talk to some of these candidates multiple times, but it does feel a bit with the timetable that they are waiting on something, whether it be someone who's still coaching in the playoffs or someone who's still coaching in the college football and National Championship and giving his time to do this job before they approach him about becoming the Bengals
defensive coordinator. And I think a lot of eyes will be on Al Golden on Monday Night in that great Ohio State offense, and if he can limit them and win that game, considering the kind of talent Ohio State has offensively and really look good doing that, I think then a lot of Cincinnati Bengals fans will really start to take notice of what he's doing. So we already know you working in this market for for a long time.
How many fans there are of Notre Dame and Ohio State in the greater Cincinnati area, So the ratings were always going to be high, but I am curious how many Bengals fans who don't have a dog in this fight are curious to watch Al Golden his defense match up against Chip Kelly, Ryan Day and that talented offense at Ohio State in kind of starting to think, Okay, yeah,
this is a guy that coached with Zach Taylor. If he can take Notre Dame to this spot and then can out coach Ryan Day and Chip Kelly and get a win for Notre Dame in that game, I think a lot of people would be circling Al Golden as the next defensive coordinator for the Bengals.
It's funny you say that, because I would rank one of the top five moments of my life as a sports fan watching LSU Oklahoma in the semifinals when you knew the Bengals had the number one pick in the draft. I didn't have a dog in the fight. But Burrow throws seven touchdown passes in the first half, and I am so giddy knowing that that's our guy. I mean, it's amazing. All these teams I've rooted for my whole life, and that is one of my greatest fan moments of all time.
And there was one play in particular where Joe was flushed out of the pocket. His running towards the sideline, he dodged three or four guys, broke a tackle, and threw the ball down the field. And I kind of I remember standing in my living room watching that play and said, I can't believe this is going to hit Cincinnati next season. And it's such a unique thing right where you knew, I mean, not many fan bases can watch a guy and know that's going to be their guy.
I remember interviewing Moeger and Rocky Boyman the day after the National Championship game when Joe was pointing to his ring finger. They were owning the National championship and doing the big story the next day about this is going to be the Bengals quarterback, and Moe was already wearing the T shirt of Joe Smoke the Cigar with LSU, And it was kind of a cool thing for a couple of weeks for Cincinnati. It kind of felt by proxy was celebrating this National championship for LSU, knowing they
were getting Joe Burrow and future. No one knew they were getting Jamar Chase as well, but that's the way it all worked out. But yeah, that's a great point of kind of comparing the two here of watching Joe Burrow in that great run he went on in twenty nineteen.
Defensive coordinator is obviously a huge hire, but so is offensive line coach. I've always felt that there are really four he coaches on a staff, the three coordinators and the offensive line coach. They almost should call it like offensive line coordinator. It's that important to a staff. What does the next guy need to improve.
It's interesting because I think if you look at the playoffs last weekend, and there were six games, and we talked so much about the NFL being a quarterback driven league and a passing driven league. I challenge anybody to go back and look at the winners from last week, and I have them all written down here. I think you could go look at the box scores and you're not going to find any quarterback who had a huge game and just had that MVP moment in throwing the ball.
There's nobody with four hundred yards passing and three touchdowns. And certainly Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen have their moments, but these games were one with defense and running.
Nobody threw for three hundred yards and four of the six winners rushed for one hundred and sixty five plus, So.
That points to when you get into the playoffs, you still have to play defense. You still have to run the ball. And to your point, if you took the six winning teams, they combined for more than a thousand yards rushing, and those six wins the losing teams combined for five hundred, so they doubled them up. So running the game, running the ball still matters. And the interesting thing about the Bengals is, you know, they finished last year third worse in the NFL with ninety three yards
rushing per game. That number is a little bit skew just because of who the Bengals are and the way they're that they're always going to be at least a sixty to forty passing to run offense, maybe even more, maybe sixty five to thirty five considering the offensive talent they have a quarterback and wide receiver. But if they can just get better in the margins in the run game, they average four point one yards per carry, and I think Chase Brown has been a great fit, especially in
the second half of the season what he's done. If they can just get that from like four point one yards per carry to something like four point six. All of a sudden, you drop from bottom ten, you jump all the way to the top ten. An efficiency and running the ball, and what a difference maker that is going forward, because as you mentioned, it's not just offensive line coordinator, this is run game coordinator. That was Frank Pollock's title here in Cincinnati. So you can see that
running the ball, playing defense still matters. That's why this coaching higher matters, just maybe not as much as defensive coordinator, but it's an important higher for this team going forward. And also the makeup of the offensive right to we talked about development with the defensive coordinator. You know, he's whoever the offensive line coach is is inheriting a right tackle,
one of Marius Mimms, who's young. Ted Terrris is probably nearing the end of his time and since not maybe his career as he gets older that they're likely going to be replacing at least one of their guards. So there's young players development cohesion that this new offensive line
coach is going to have to have going forward. And I think there has to be an emphasis understanding what just happened in the playoffs, What we've seen going forward that running the football matters even if you have Joe Burrow and Jamar Chase, that you still have to do
it at an efficient level. So very important higher to me considering the makeup of the offensive line, and also what we just witnessed watching the first weekend of the NFL playoffs in the importance of running the football at an efficient clip.
They scored the most points of any team Enfranchise his They finished second in points per game of any team in franchise history, So it's hard to complain much about the offense and the plays they're calling and the way it's structured. Having said all that, to me, being more efficient in the running game is about helping to protect Joe Burrow and in some cases from himself. So I
was with you prior to the season. In every interview I did, I said, if Joe Burrow's healthy, they will be a Super Bowl contender, and that's not the way it played out. But I want to maximize the possibilities going forward that he always plays seventeen games, and I think one of the ways they can do that is being more efficient in the run game. So I'm with you on the importance of that from the next guy in this role.
And if you really want to get into the analytics of Joe Burrow in the run game, he had his best year when it came to play action pass numbers. So if you continue to get this running game more efficient, you would think by just that being there them running it better, that the play action would be that much more dangerous. And I think play action passing lends to what you said of protecting Joe as well. Yet his
best year throwing the ball in play action. I think if you're bringing an offensive coordinator, excuse me, an offensive line coach who can get this running game going just a more efficient clip, it only helps Joe even more in that situation as well.
All Right, a few more questions for Fox nineteens Joe Daniman. We haven't talked about some of the other free agents that have actually reached the end of their contracts. So guys like Mike Hilton, Mikeasicki, BJ hill A, Keen Davis gaither any strong feelings on guys like that and the need to try to retain any of them.
It's interesting, And there's also guys who could have to have their contracts restructured as well, and those will be contracts that'll be interesting conversations for this team to have in the offseason. Mikeasicki's the one to me that jumps right to the top of the list. And I know he's listed as a tight end. He's basically a wide receiver.
But we saw at the end of the year his value and the number of times Joe was going towards him, and maybe there was starting to be a little bit more of a cohesion between Joe and Mike Kasicki and in the plays they like to use together. And we've seen so many times here in recent years, especially with Joe Burrow's quarterback, that it's been this revolving door of one year prove it deals for tight ends to come to Cincinnati, have a good year with Joe Burrow, the
go sign a bigger contract somewhere else. And when we talked to Mike the day after the season ended, you got the understanding that Mike is is looking for a good deal that he hasn't had it line up where he's either coming off of a good season or coming off of a healthy season and able to sign a new contract. But also at the same time, you know he just When he talks about Joe Burrow, he lights up. He gushes he got to the best quarterback in the
league and wants to continue to play with him. But it comes down to luxury, right, I mean he would be if Jamar stays, if t stays, at best, he's your third option, maybe your fourth option, even though he had big games at the end of the year. What's that number look like for Mike is SICKI is really interesting to me. So in a perfect world, yeah, bring him back, but we have to understand what Mike wants and also that the value of what he gives to
the team as maybe a third or fourth option. Mike Hilton is the one that's fascinating to me because of what Mike Hilton has meant to this team, his strengths, his weaknesses. He's he's not the perfect player again, a guy who's aging at a position where it's hard to age. But but find me someone who's who's better at blitzing off the edge. Find someone who's who's better at fitting in and mixing into a room like he did in the Bangles locker room, and that stuff matters. So so
the conversation about Mike Hilton going forward. You know he was limited in his in his third downs this year, but at the same time, whenever the guy was asked to make a play, he made plays. He came on at the end of the year, made a lot of plays. So to me, he's fascinating. Bj Hill has been one of the great trade acquisitions in franchise history. What would
a deal look like for him going forward? Knowing that the Bengals invested in Chris Jenkins and McKinley Jackson at the top of the draft last year, so each of those guys comes with a sure would love them back for what they mean, how they fit. But what's the number? And that's the interesting part about this. Everybody listening to this is a huge Bengals fan. We know this. You wouldn't listen to podcasts about the Bengals if you weren't
a huge Bengals fan. So everybody knows about the amount of money the Bengals have below the cap to spend. They might have even more once they get into cuts and salary cap cuts as well. So there's money out there to spend for this team. How will they spend it? Who will they spend it on? Is it about keeping their own guys. To me, that's another part of what makes this the most interesting offseason I think the Bengals have had since I've been doing this job.
Mock drafts have started coming out. It's all a crap shoot at this point. We don't really know who's going to be there at number seventeen. But in terms of a position, do you have a strong feeling for what they should be looking for with their first pick.
So it'd have to go in there and look at what the draft is deep at. I mean, last year it worked out that the Bengals needed an offensive lineman and it was deep at offensive line, even though we were all watching the draft and watching Brock Bauers slip and slip in wonder and the Bengals got out of it with the Marius Mims, who I think has been a very good fit and a very good draft pick
and has a great future here in Cincinnati. Certainly, you know, you talk about these teams and every team needs a quarterback, right and the teams that are near the top of the draft or wherever they're drafting, you got to keep taking a swing until you get it right. For me, that that's me with edge and I've known they They've invested a lot of draft capital and edge, but I think they have to keep swinging at a difference maker coming off the edge until they get it right. Opposite
of Trey Hendrickson. Whatever they decide to do with Trey, whether he's here one year, or they extend him, or if they trade him, who knows what happens with Trey Hendrickson. He's not going to be here forever, and there is a shelf life on his production as he goes past thirty years old. We all understand that. But I think this team and I would have to see the draft and how it falls out as far as depth at
that position. But if there's someone there that they believe can be the next swing to find someone who can rush the quarterback, that has to be a priority for this team, understanding the other positions of value are already fielded, quarterback and wide receiver.
All Right, We've got about four minutes to go on this zoom, so I'm going to wrap this up with a few fun fact style questions for Joe Daniman, Are you ready ready your all time favorite athlete in any sport?
And why Kobe Bryant, Because Kobe Bryant was never satisfied with success. Kobe Bryant was obsessed with work, What's next in the famous line of jobs not finished. So as someone who prides himself on working hard, not necessarily on talent, Kobe Bryant and the the never ending appetite for work and improvement is why Kobe Bryant is my number one.
I'll tell you a good Kobe Bryant's story after we're finished. Your all time favorite sports broadcaster is well.
Immediately went to Marty Brenneman because he was the reason I got into this business, growing up with Marty and listening to him and wanting to do something in the same business as someone who I looked up to as much as Marty Brenneman. But as I've gotten older and listen more, I'm gonna go with.
I.
An Eagle was jumped up high on my list. Mike Tarico. You know you watch Mike Tico to the Olympics. Yeah, and he makes it look so easy and it's it's unbelievable. Yeah, I would go with those three. I would go Marty Brenneman, Iron Eagle, Mike to Rico as my top three.
The happiest you've ever been as a sports.
Fan, I would have to say it was Carmelo Anthony leading Syracuse to a national championship. Yes, it's interesting because during that run, I had some sadness in my life, you know, a personal loss, and you know you're trying to find ways to get yourself out of a funk, you know, and it just wasn't a good start to
the two thousand and three year for me. So for for Jerry McNamara Carmelo Anthony to take Syracuse to a national championship, the funny story is I was supposed to go and I was just starting my career at Fox nineteen and I had time to use and I could use my vacation. I called all my friends when we made the final four, I said, we're going, we gotta go. And I'm like, ah, we can. We got this, We got that, we got this. And in the day before the game, we're like, we're going, we're picking you up.
I'm like, I can't get out of work now. I have to give them at least five days advance for them to get somebody to fill my shift. So yeah, Carmelo Anthony Jerry McNamara National Championship Jim Beheim finally gets his national championship.
To me, that was a great night we were working together at Fox nineteen. I went, I wonder if that if that's why you couldn't get out of your shift, because I was sorry there.
Well, it led to a great story of you meeting up with Jim Baheim after the national championship. That's good enough for me.
All right, we are out of time. This was great. I really appreciate your time, Joe. Keep up the tremendous work, and again, congratulations on your richly deserved recognition as the sportscaster of the Year in Ohio.
Dan, thanks for having me.
By the way, the Kobe Bryant story wasn't anything. I just didn't want to run out of time with Joe. The story is actually courtesy of UC basketball coach Wes Miller, who was in the stands in Los Angeles for a game in two thousand and five when Kobe Bryant had sixty two points at the end of the third quarter. At that point in the game, Kobe had sixty two
and the Lakers opponent, Dallas had sixty one. The Lakers had a huge lead at that point, and when Phil Jackson asked Kobe if he wanted to go back in in the fourth quarter. He said no, adding that he would have another night like it. Roughly a month later,
Kobe scored eighty one against the Raptors. The Bengals Booth Podcast is brought to you by Paycorp, Proud to be the Bengals Official HR software provider, by Alta Fiber, future proof Fiber Internet designed to elevate your home, business, and community to a new level, and by Kettering Health the best care for the best fans. Kettering Health is the official
healthcare provider of the Bengals. A couple of days ago, on January fifteenth, my friend Morrison pointed out on social media that it was the two year anniversary of what is arguably the greatest single play in Bengals history, the Fumble in the Jungle, Sam Hubbard's ninety eight yard fumble return touchdown against Baltimore that gave Cincinnati a thrilling twenty
four to seventeen playoff win. Not too long ago, I sat down with Sam to answer a few questions I had about the play, including did Ravens tight end Mark Andrews get a piece of his shoe on the run back, did Marcus Bailey get away with an illegal block in the back? And what nickname for the play? Does Sam prefer? Fumble in the jungle or the Hubbard yard dash. Here's a four minute look back.
Third down and goal from the one hundred sticks the ball out.
The Bengals have the boy.
They are running it back Sam Hubbard with blockers behind him. Hubbard of the Ravens forty, the thirty, the twenty, the ten.
Touchdown.
Bengalso Tyler Hudley tried to extend 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 Bengals touchdown.
All right, let's turn the clock back seventeen all twelve minutes to go on 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 and Logan Wilson and Jermaine Pratt punched the ball 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 Usain 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. Uh, 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 call. 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 uh, great for 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 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.
The Cincinnati kuld Hotard's gonna come by Chase by Andrews with the three the twenty well stop.
I went to college with Mike Tariko. 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, knowing my you know, just knowing everybody's story and being so invested in the game he was calling and really made for a special moment.
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.
As I said to Sam, I think it's the single greatest play in Bengals history, but it's certainly not Sam's only great moment in the AFC Championship game the year before. The Chiefs were four yards away from a go ahead touchdown with about ninety seconds to go when Hubbard sacked Patrick Mahomes on back to back plays to force Kansas
City to settle for an overtime forcing field goal. On the second sack, Mahomes had more than nine seconds to throw before Hubbard ran them down and actually forced to fumble that Joe Tooney recovered for k C. Had the Bengals come up with the ball to end the game, Sam could have had the fumble in the jungle and
the Sam slam at arrowhead. That's going to do it for This episode of the Bengals Booth podcast brought to you by pay Corps, Proud to be the Bengals official HR software provider, by Alta Fiber future proof Fiber Internet designed to elevate your home, business, and community to a new level, and by Kettering Health the best care for the best fans. Kettering Health is the official healthcare provider
of the Bengals. 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 thank you for listening to the Bengals Booth podcast