January 21, 2025 • 43 mins
Paul Dehner Jr. of The Athletic and The Growler Podcast joined us to talk about Al Golden and the likelihood that he's hired as the Bengals' defensive coordinator. We also discussed possible cap casualties, Cam Grandy, the playoffs, and officiating.
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Podcasts of The Mo Egger Radio Show are a service of Longnecks Sports Grill.
Listen to the show live weekday afternoons 3:00 - 6:00 on ESPN1530.
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Chance to win a thousand dollars enter this nationwide keyword
on our website.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
Green, that's greed. Answer it.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Now you've found Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.
Speaker 4 (00:12):
Sure have what's up? It's three three. This is ESPN
fifteen thirty.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
I'm Oleger. Thank you for listening.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
Hopefully you are staying warm and having an awesome Tuesday afternoon.
Maybe you had a three day weekend and you're back
at work today. I don't know, but we are glad
that you are here. Congratulations to the Ohio State Buckeyes
and Ohio State fans. Not the weirdos that last November earlier,
two months ago, whenever it was or yelling and screaming
(00:43):
that they got a fire Ryan Day and don't want
to play in the playoff and who cares if they
win a national championship. Not those goobers, But to folks
like my guy Tarren, who's a hardcore Ohio State fan,
and our guy Austin Elmore. Congratulations. We'll get to last
night's game. I'm really happy for Ryan Day. Al Golden
(01:03):
was a participant in that game last night, which I
guess we have to talk about. But man, more than anything,
we have to talk about this shocking announcement made after
the game last night from the the Ohio State football program,
which I thought was interesting and I don't think is
getting nearly enough coverage. We'll get set for UC versus
Texas Tech tonight, a big, big, big opportunity for the Bearcats,
and it's one of my favorite nights on the sports calendar.
(01:25):
This evening, Baseball Hall of Fame ballot gets revealed, the
class of twenty twenty five gets rounded out, and I'm
already excited to watch people go in a witch hunt
to find the one person who doesn't vote for each
e row. More on that a little bit later on
Paul Danner Junior's here from the Athletic.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
How you doing.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I think you really do love the Baseball Hall of
Fame vote. I mean I do always provide spodder for you.
I loveday. I love every single year.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
The lack of transparency, the questioning of the process, the
bringing up of the steroid era, like it's just love
it all, it's just copy paste, rinse, repeat over, no again,
it's joyful.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
I have the list I have on my little rundown here.
Here are the nine players that I think every writer
should have checked off on his or her ballant and
uh no not. Most of these guys aren't going to
get in, but they all should.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Yeah, well, I look forward to hearing all about that.
I'll be listening.
Speaker 4 (02:19):
Well, you absolutely, that is if we're not still talking
about Cam Grant obviously, because you know you and I
have an hour.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
You're here till four.
Speaker 4 (02:27):
Paul Danner Junior covers the Bengals for The Athletic and
the Growler podcast, and I I thought we would do
three to four on Cam Grandy and then a few
other miscellaneous Bengals items after four, and sure, yeah, the
first domino of the off season fall.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
What should we play? Should we play? What was your
favorite Cam Grandy penalty?
Speaker 5 (02:46):
No?
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Like, here's what we could do is play what was
the look on your face when you read the following?
Speaker 2 (02:51):
He played in eight games with six starts. That dude
started six games. Yeah, Cam Grandy started six games.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
And they love to come out there in a weird
formation on the first play, you know, just to see
what it is, and then you see him run off
and then you don't see him again in TOI like
the fourth quarter on like a critical fourth down or something. Yeah,
it's always it's always great. Well, congratulations for Cam.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
Yeah, college free agent made the team gets another deal.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Good for him. I am that's that's that's good. That's awesome.
It is.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
I don't really, I really wish I had more to
say about Cam Grandy need other than this is. You know,
you start going through the roster and I've sort of
done this process where you're going through. Okay, here's all
the decisions they have to make. Okay, clearly we're starting
from the bottom and we're working our way up one
at a time. It's maybe every day it'll get a
little more relevant. Yeah, this is this is one of
(03:41):
those items.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
It's like when you you know, my wife and I
we we bought the house that we're in right now,
and we had a lot of work to do. But
the very first thing I did is I put a
new door handle on the closet door. Hey, right, gotta
have not the most important thing's gotta get done, but
it's got to get done.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Gotta get done.
Speaker 4 (03:57):
I mean like I didn't exactly charge downstairs. I go, honey,
work good, just put our feet up when our furniture
gets here. Nothing else to do but it did need.
It was a box that needed to be checked, and
I checked it off. And that's what we're gonna call
Cam Grandy door knob.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Don't call him that.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
I don't think you should do that. All right, Well,
we'll see. What do you think Thursday Friday for the
Al Golden press conference?
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Probably Thursday.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Yeah, I feel like Thursday, Thursday actual press conference.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
That feels right.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
Okay, So he's gonna talk to He's gonna interview formally
with Zach Taylor.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Yeah, what does that sound like? I think, Hey, good
to see you. Yeah, what's going on? You still want
the job? Right?
Speaker 1 (04:34):
The paper's there if you want to sign it, I
think is kind of where that probably goes.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I just you know, it's it's it's it's kind of been.
You know.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
I think Al Golden and I and I respect and
appreciate this wanted you can you can do two things.
You can understand what can be great for your next
career step and also want to kind of solely focused
on this massive in front of you. And I feel
like once knowing once you turn the page, that is
(05:06):
the direction you would you would want to go is
one thing. And the Bengals were recognizing that this is
a great fit for what they're looking for is another thing.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
But yeah, I don't I think that he's.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
I think Al Golden just kind of just feels like
the this is the logical next step, like one. I
mean what we talked about this on on who they
Live on Friday. I mean, I don't know people really
maye people realize this, but like Al Golden never left.
He still has his house here, his family still lives here,
(05:40):
his kids go to school here, did his his oldest
is our name. But like I mean, he's that's a
heck of a commute. Heck of a commute, right, you
know what you do when you drive from Cincinnati to
South Bend, however many times he has to do it
during the year. Think about how you don't want to
do it anymore, right, and like, you know, you love Cincinnati,
like the schools, liked what your family has there so
(06:01):
much to the point that you didn't even move them, right,
Like that makes sense, and but you understand what's good
for your career. But so that all makes senence. That's
why that makes sense for him. And I think the
Bengals are able to punch a little bit. I'm not
going to say above their weight class, because they could
have gotten whoever they wanted to, But as far as
to get familiarity and somebody with the ability who is
(06:23):
you know, has led entire programs before, but also has
all had a lot of success with younger players and
connecting with them and developing them. All of these boxes
are ones that they wanted to check. It makes the
most sense where I don't know how long that that
interview doesn't need to be long. You have had years
(06:44):
of interview. You know the person, you know, the coach,
you know, the fit, you know is the organization. What
else is there to say? So for that fact, I
think that was always there, right and they can go
out and talk to whoever or figure out what else
is out there. But knowing that was there, I think
it's hard to trump when you feel like, man, this
is just the perfect fit for what we need right
(07:06):
now because of the familiarity.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Like I get, it's a good fit for al Golden right,
he gets to come home, he doesn't have to drive
the South Bend all the time. But is it a
good fit for the Bengals just because he's been here before?
What are the other reasons why it's such.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
A good fit.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
I think somebody with a particular specialty in developing younger players.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
And you know that.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
I mean he did that in the NFL as a
linebackers coach in this building, right, did it with Logan
Wilson and help with Jermain Pratt and Keen Davis Gaither
in that whole room there, right, and then went and
proved it again at Notre Dame.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Okay, I mean, let's.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
Not I know, everyone's gonna probably wanna yell about they
couldn't stop the bucket whatever. Nobody's stopping the Buckeyes right now.
And they had the number one passing defense in college
football the last two years in a row m period.
And he did it this year basically reinventing on the
you know what they didn't have on that defense a
lot of dudes. Dane had two guys from that defense
(08:06):
projected to go in the first two rounds this draft.
One of them wasn't playing when it was the corner
that got hurt midseason that was not. Meanwhile, going up
against the entire first three or four rounds of future
dis draft and future drafts on the Ohio State offense, right,
like can sit but turned that turned that Notre Dame
defense into one that was really pretty special in how
(08:29):
they were operating and getting themselves to a point it
their dame hasn't been had in forever. So I think
that the familiarity helps because you can hit the ground
running so much faster, rather than the growing pains of
the first half of a season when the coordinator and
what do we talk about, Oh, no, slow start coordinators
(08:49):
learning how they didn't realize this, that or the other.
I think that that helps, and you know how that's
gonna gonna integrate as a teacher and with the whole
way like to do things. I think familiary is obviously
going to be a part of it, but I think
it's so much more of the credentials of what he's done,
the type of coach he's been consistently, and his ability
(09:10):
to help develop all the young players on the on
the defense that they know are going to be important
to them actually turning the thing around.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
Refresh my memory.
Speaker 4 (09:16):
Did he did he leave because he wanted to go
coordinate a defense because Notre Dame would pay more if
he loved it here so much and they like him
so much widely, that's.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
A better job, more money, all of it.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I mean, you know, linebacker, he wasn't going to take
Luena Rumo's job, right, he was trying to move up.
I mean, you know what I mean. And I think
that for that reason, Notre Dame. It's funny, the same
thing happened during the super Bowl. During the super Bowl week,
Notre Dame kind of was like, hey, we want you
to be the guy you focus on the super Bowl,
(09:47):
but as soon as that Super Bowl ends, we want
you to be the defensive coordinator here for Markus Freeman
and boom. It happened, you know, And so it's kind
of a little bit of a you know, returning the
favor a little bit on this. But you know, the
last two games he was coaching pros and college would
be the National Championship, came to the super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
That's not a bad thing to stand on, right, right.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
And and I just the other part of this is,
and I don't want it to feel like I'm sitting
here like defending it.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
I'm just don't there's anything to defend.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
I'm a little curious at some of the uproar that
I've seen about this.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
I feel like this is a really good hire. All right, so.
Speaker 4 (10:23):
You're getting different feedback than I I see, I see
negativity out. I mean, I think I saw some folks
last night who were having fun with it. I mean,
Pike and I were texting back and forth turned the
game last night, going boy, you know, I hope he
doesn't bring that defense with him. But it was tongue
in cheek, like I haven't detected the same amount of
pushback I get. Like there's you know, when the job
(10:46):
first came open, there's a lot of people who their
brains danced with visions of Robert Sala, Right, Okay, like,
so that's splashy, that's a big name.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Like I understand that.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
But okay, once you kind of got beyond that and
you looked at Al Golden's credentials, and you know, my
take was, Hey, if I'm looking for a guy who
can work with and communicate with and get the most
out of younger players, a dude who's coaching college football
is a pretty good place to start, right. And there's familiarity,
which you may roll your eyes at that. But the
Bengals aren't the only team that likes familiar No, NFL
(11:18):
teams aren't the only companies that like familiar. So I
don't gather that people feel like, oh my god, the
trajectory of the franchise has been changed because of Al Golden.
The response that I have gathered has been kind of
a yeah, okay, fine, now draft better players.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Yeah right, and and develop them better, yeah right. And
that's and that's part of what he's he's tasked with too.
There's a couple of things also, you know, he's obviously
some of his the biggest moments in his career have
come on the collegiate level, notably, but also if you
take just the last you know, eight years or whatever
of his career, there's a couple other examples that I
(11:56):
that I want to kind of point out and take
this as just I don't want people to over exaggerate
that I'm saying it's going to be this person. But
I think you see this the college to pro thing.
Mike o' donald right now, he was a linebackers coach
and in this working his way up in Baltimore, goes
to Michigan to coordinate their defense for a year, comes back,
(12:21):
does such a great job at Baltimore. He's the head
coach to the Seahawks, right translating college to pro making
that thing work halflely. Jeff Haffley goes from Boston College
right four years leading Boston College, but previously was you know,
on lower levels in the NFL as well. Goes takes
the college the things he did in college brings it
(12:43):
to the NFL. They go from twenty second in points
per drive to six. You know, the I don't. I
think there's a lot of times there's a like, can
you can you really pull from the college game and
what's that what's that going to be like? What's that
change going to be like? I think as much as
those two games have merged, both financially in the issues
(13:04):
you deal with off the field with players, yeah, and
also on the field and the way that the schemes
I think are much more similar. I think the transitions
of coaches in major roles from the college to the
NFL is much more similar. And you've seen some of
these success stories play out in recent years, and some
that are pretty close to the Bengals there, I mean,
(13:25):
Lafleur was, Zach Taylor obviously very very close and with
the Ravens, you know, seeing everything that they've been able
to do, and I just think for that fact, I
think it's really easy to see the success that he
had at Notre Dame translating to the NFL, even though yes,
it's different in different ways, in so many ways, it's
(13:46):
much more similar than it ever has.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
I think what hurts Al Golden from a perception perspective
is when he was coaching at Miami and a temple,
he dressed on the sideline like a drafting teacher.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:57):
Look, I mean I am voiced, need more, bring back, Yeah,
bring back ties. Let's go bring it. Bring anybody up,
have the tie hanging down? I think, bring it back.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
And I think like his name sounds like I'm trying
to figure out, like Al Golden sounds like a place
where you get dent's taken out of your car, Like
I'll just take it to Al Golden's. Or like a
meat store like one of those like old school meat
stores from the sixties that's in a strip mall, and
it's like, now we don't get our meat at Kroger.
We got to Al gold right, And I think I
think that's kind of what's what hurts I'll hear a
(14:30):
little bit is people don't think football coach, right.
Speaker 1 (14:33):
Here's the thing he is, you know, from an old
school newspaper guy and me a little bit. He's just
a headline writer's dream, all right, right, Golden or golden
you know, Golden boy, golden whatever. There's so many there's
so many different places you can go with that. That
from a headline writer's perspective, Like, Hey, I'm just curious.
(14:57):
My friends at the Cincinnati Inquirer are sitting there right now, right,
I think they've been working on this one for weeks, like, oh,
what are we gonna go with?
Speaker 2 (15:05):
What are we gonna go with? You know, so many options.
Speaker 4 (15:07):
Yeah, it's not unlike when you see had a point
guard named Michael Horton, and I thought, man, this guy's
not very good.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
Crowds booing. Inquire the next day has to have Horton.
Here's a boob in college.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
I was so happy. Oh, I was so fired up.
All right, well, a lot more on al Golden coming up.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
Last week.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
I went through your list of free agents. Yeah, and
then and then the next day you had this I printed,
you know, I print stuff. Now. Printer's working again. Printer
is back to working again. Yeah. How many veterans will
Cincinnati cut loose? And I have a grand takeaway from
this piece that I'll share with you when we come back.
It is nineteen minutes after three o'clock. He's Paul Danner
Junior covering the Bengals for at the Athletic dot com.
(15:47):
And here the Growler podcast as well. It's the Growler Podcast.
Listen to it here the Growler Podcast.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Thank you, I'm confused people. Well done.
Speaker 4 (15:58):
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Speaker 4 (16:52):
Paul Tanner Junior is here because it's Tuesday, and he
joins me in studio to talk about a whole u
ohole group of Bengals issues, including it we've launched into
a vague tweet season.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Oh isn't it great?
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Yeah, where everything that t Higgins tweets or Jamar Chase
tweets from this point forward will get like, you know,
thousands of responses from Bengals fans.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Does this mean you're signing yes, yeah?
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Or he's just saying, hey, I'm just using prayer hands
because I'm happy to be That's what he did today, right, Yeah,
it was like thank God or something like that, or
with prayer hands, like he could just be, you know,
coming out maybe he went to church, professional or something.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (17:30):
Vague tweets speculation. Yeah, he tweeted thank you God. I
don't follow a lot of athletes on social media, and
I think this is why.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Yeah, and like eighty two percent of the time it's
about video games.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
That is where it is.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
I always love because I always love when we actually
get to talk to them after vague tweets season to
be like, hey, what was that about, And they'll be like, oh, yeah,
you know, I was playing whatever. It's playing Halo.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
What. I don't even know that. I'm so old. I
don't know the game.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Yeah, not a big video game, but it is usually
where it ends up.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
Okay, So he could be tweeting about playing RBI Baseball
or something.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
Thank god, I just won the championship in RBI Baseball
thousand and four.
Speaker 4 (18:13):
Yeah, all right, you did last week. This came out
on Wednesday. Bengals cap cuts veterans who could be cut
in an effort to save money and then use that
money elsewhere on the team.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
And you did, as you always do, a great job
of looking at the pros and cons of each one
of these guys and talking about the financial impact of
keeping them or letting them go, and some of the
things that go into the decision making, and it's really
well done and really nuanced.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
You're setting it up to say something, but what any
you got, I don't want any of these guys.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Honest with you, I hate to do that because you
you did a lot of work into this and you
put a lot of time and effort, and I printed it,
and I like, there was even one thing that I highlighted.
I think, yeah, right, I get it. Like I'm going through.
I was like midway through reading about Jermaine Pratt. Yeah,
and then I'm like, all right, well, Sam's gonna be next.
(19:09):
You know what, I don't want any of these dudes,
so far as I'm concerned, When does the mock off
season start? When do we have the spreadsheet? It's I finished.
Speaker 1 (19:18):
All of these guys are getting cut on my spreadsheet. Yeah,
there's a lot of uh, there's a lot of those options.
It's interesting. I thought this year specifically, it's the most
interesting that has ever been because there was, as you said,
you don't want any of these guys. There's a lot
of money tied up in those guys that they're about
to free up. I mean, they're more than they have
(19:38):
ever made off of cap cuts.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
You know.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
I think that you're gonna see that type of thing
happening this year. Some of them are obvious, you know,
Sheldon Ray, Allens, Alex Kapa. I mean, some of those
are our obvious, uh, in terms of the ability to
move on and because there's so much money that they
will save and can put in elsewhere. Some of them
are a little more challenging, whether you're talking about Geno Stone
(20:03):
or Mike Hilton some of the other guys, and that's
going to get a little more philosophical there and what
they want to do. But at the end of the day,
I mean, you're talking about thirty to forty five million
dollars they can add to their cap this year. Yes,
just by going through this and depending on how aggressive
they choose to be or not to be, can really
(20:24):
can add a lot. And so it's you know, it's
it's it's a lot of guys that fit the mold
that we have seen them move on from in recent years,
older guys. Once once you see the three up there,
the Bengals have made it pretty clear that they're not
really interested anymore, and so if they stick with that,
that can mean most of those guys going.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
So the one who did give me some pause is
Geno Stone.
Speaker 4 (20:46):
Yeah, because he's still just twenty six, and because he
did play well at the end of the year, and
I was really bullish on them signing him. At the
same time, he was a terrible tackler took some of
the worst angles I've ever seen, And if we go
back to the like the teeth of the season, when
this defense was just atrocious, he was the guy that
I talked about the most. And so I'm trying to
(21:07):
balance thinking this guy's an ascending player coming off of
what he did in Baltimore, watching what I did at
the watching what I saw at the end of the season,
his age, he's not shouldn't be washed up with how
poorly he played for such a long stretch of time,
and also not knowing what's next at that position. I'm
not nuts about keeping Geno stone. But of all these guys,
(21:30):
I did the exercise of like, all right, you have
to have one, who would you take?
Speaker 1 (21:34):
I settled on Genostone. Yeah, I find myself. I think
you can talk yourself into Gino soon pretty easily. Yeah,
you know, I think you can look at like you
mentioned what happened the end of the year, who he
was in Baltimore.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
You're kind of recent.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
How much was he a victim of things going sideways
with Luenna Romeau there where the things we heard about
how they needed to simplify things, and so many of
the players and defensive backfield, we're doing the wrong thing
all the time. Well a lot of times that falls
back on the safeties to be the ones that have
to deal with that, and that's part of his job.
Speaker 2 (22:07):
But maybe maybe.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
He was not being He's one of those examples of
guys that were not being used properly. You know, he
needs to just be playing deep safety more often and
less of the like next thing you know, he's coming
up having to make tackles and being asked to do
those things like that. I think that's a decision. To me,
he is the ultimate Hey, new DC al Golden whatever.
(22:31):
What do you think about this one? I think that
it's it he that probably was where you land with
a tiebreaker type where it's like because you could go
either way, and maybe he looks at him.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
And says, not not my system, like.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
All these mistackles, these issues that we saw that does
not fit me, or says, look, I'm gonna do some
of the same exact things that he was shining with
in Baltimore that we saw him doing so well at
the end of the season.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Let's really get a real evaluation.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I think you can you can hit the start over button,
which you know Stone and get what you thought you
were getting. You can talk yourself into that. If I
think you know that that's the direction of the new defense.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Quarter thinks it can go.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
Yeah, I'm not gonna shed a tear if he's gone. No,
but I'm not gonna be mad if he's back.
Speaker 2 (23:10):
Yeah, I think you know.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
And that's gonna be part of this when we start
talking about Okay, you have to make your priority list
and because there's a lot of things on there, and
if you're gonna do t Higgins and you're gonna do
things like maybe you have to give maybe you want
to give Trey Hendrickson a raise, or maybe you want
to spend a little bit more on the guard play
on the offense.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
You gotta fix that.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
You need another defensive tackle, and you need an edge wresher,
and and well before long you're sitting here like, ah,
I just keep you know, Stone right, like I let's
not go having to pay for a safety and go
down that same route where we're gonna do. You're gonna
do this again, Nick Scott Gino Stone, like we're gonna
go down this road again of asking the new safety
(23:53):
to come in. Uh, that is learning everything on the fly.
And you've just it's failed multiple times.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
All Uh.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
That doesn't mean that you should should stick with it,
but I think you're more willing to give that a
chance if you feel like the people that are in
charge of that guy, whether it's Jordan Kovac's the safety
room or Al Golden.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Or on up the things that they can find the
role for now.
Speaker 4 (24:14):
Geno Stone's most recent tweet came, uh, yesterday, sixteen hours ago.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
Did he have prayer hands involved?
Speaker 5 (24:20):
No?
Speaker 2 (24:20):
He wrote you all that mad? Lol? Yeah? Why are
people again? This was at eleven oh seven last night.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
I mean, I'm sure in reaction to the championship game.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Yeah? Sure, all right? And it could be could be anything.
Is there?
Speaker 1 (24:36):
Isn't there a new grand theft auto out? Maybe that's
it that I seople people get really mad on there.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
That I've never played. I don't know. You should? You should?
You can do all kinds of crazy. Geno Stone played
at Iowa, Iowa State? Yeah, Iowa? Yeah? Is he a
big uh? Is he like back in the Big tenwa? Yeah?
He was back in the Big ten? Yeah? That must
be all that Matt lol, so big tweet. Let's figure
it out, all right?
Speaker 4 (25:05):
I want to tell you about the business that I
might get into, the side hustle that I might engage
in this spring.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Okay, And then.
Speaker 4 (25:13):
I've got I've got to get your thoughts on the
offensive line, coach.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Yes, it's not what I'm laughing about.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
And then I'm trying to think of a good way
to gently ask you when your coverage of the spat
between the Bengals and the county is going to start. Oh,
it is a twenty seven away from four o'clock. He's
Paul Danner Junior. Follow him on x at Paul Danner Junior.
Sports Headlines coming up on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 3 (25:40):
SINCY three sixty with Tony Pike.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
Do we want to move on?
Speaker 3 (25:44):
We have to keep going and Boston Elmore.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
I think you should continue to let me keep going.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
There Sincy three sixty Tomorrow Which twelve News on ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty Traffic.
Speaker 5 (26:00):
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(26:23):
accident on the left shoulder northbound seventy one seventy five.
It's an accident before twelfth Street. I'm at Ezeleik with traffic.
Speaker 2 (26:31):
This reporting sponsored by RAPS Service.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
Off Kelsey Chevrolet Home of lifetime powertrain protection and guarantee
credit approval from their family to yours for life kelseyshev
dot Com. The Bengals have tightened up their chances of
winning the AFC North next season by ensuring that Cam
Grandy can't go anywhere. The tight end signs a contract
extension for the twenty twenty five season, hoping to build
(26:54):
upon his five catch production in twenty twenty four. Meanwhile,
T Higgins has tweet the following I'm just giving praise
to the most High at T Higgins five boom.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
Care to interpret? I think he's saying praising his Lord.
Speaker 4 (27:12):
According to Paul Danner, junior Alic Golden's gonna interview with
the Bengals to be their defensive coordinator on Wednesday.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
Yeah, not a very long interview. I don't think there's
a whole not.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
Like putting al on the whiteboard. Hey, draw some stuff up, right, Yeah,
I don't think that's very good. College basketball tonight you
see host Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are thirteen and four,
four and two in the league. They've lost four games
by combined eleven points. Tip off tonight at seven on
seven hundred WLW, Miami Radhawks unbeaten and mac play at
five and oh. Travis Steele's team is hosting Terrence Bowling,
(27:43):
Green Falcons and the Dayton Flyers on the road tonight
against Duke Caine Paul Danner Juniors here from the Athletic
and the Growler podcast. Will you be covering the ongoing
back and forth between the stadium and the county with
the Bengals in the county on the stadium that is
just getting started.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
No, the ongoing back and forth, that's my point. Yeah,
that's the part that I will not be covered. Okay,
the yelling and complaining each other and the sending of
meanly you know, certainly worded emails. You know, like we
all know people that like love to send us sternly ye, right,
(28:22):
and this is like, yeah, person, you've ever met who
it's like their favorite thing to do. You read that
and you're like, Oh, I can't. I can't go to
this dark place. There's enough darkness out there. I don't
need to go to the deepen the emails. But yes,
eventually it will rise up above the bickering at each
other levels.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
I'm not going to pay attention to any of this.
I'm not going to talk about any of this. I'm
not going to care about any of this. But I
need you to do me a favor. If we do
get to somebody who covers the team, You'll be in
on this if it happens, because I will start to
care if we find out they're flirting with moving. Yeah,
last time we did the stadium thing, I remember finding out,
wait a minute, the Bengals might go to Baltimore. Okay,
(29:04):
now I care, And that's a thing. As much as
a lot of folks try to pretend that didn't happen,
that is a thing that happened. And then me, as
a high school kid, suddenly I cared. So now I
care even more because I'm on the station that carries
the Bengals games.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
And so now will you start, well, what happened. If
if they moved, what is moving me?
Speaker 1 (29:24):
Does that mean outside of the greater Cincinnati area or
would you count moving out of downtown?
Speaker 3 (29:29):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (29:29):
They count as long as they are still the Cincinnati Bengals.
That's fine, Okay, So they can move to they can
move to Covington, they can move to Taylor Mill whatever
if they're this. But if they're the Mexico City Bengals
or the Toronto Bengals, or or if such a threat
exists or now like you're reporting that the ownership is
(29:52):
is touring London and looking for then then I care. Yes,
until we get to that point. I do not care,
and we're not going to talk about it.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
You're good. I think you're gonna be good for a while.
Speaker 4 (30:01):
But can you tell us about the new offensive line coach?
I bet he's intense, of course, of course, No. I
think there's one key thing. I mean, he was kind
of Bill Callahan's number one right handed man assistant for
three years. And you know if if the Maiwlezland in Cleveland, correct, yes,
(30:23):
And then when Bill Callahan left and went to Tennessee,
Alex van Pelt went to New England, and then you
saw Scott Peters go to New England as well, so
he has the year in New England. They were bad.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
It was maybe the most devoid of talent unit on
any level in the entire NFL. So nobody's holding what
happened in New England against anybody. But if the Bengals
hadn't moved decided they wanted to move on from Frank Pollock,
say a year ago, I think he would have been
the higher, you know, but I think he would have
been certainly the top of a list that they would
(30:56):
have been looking at. And he goes to New England
and all of a sudden it opens up where he's
now available again a year later, and it was sort
of right on time. It's just I think it that
that Bill Callahan's stamp of approval is big. And also,
you know, there's one thing that I tweeted about this
the other day, but like you know, when you look
at things that Zach Taylor has said a lot and
(31:18):
you hear a lot throughout the building, is that playing
in the AFC North it takes adjustment, just it takes
a while to.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Get used to.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Like it's it's just different in a lot of ways.
And so I think the history inside of the division,
understanding of how this division operates in the trenches specifically,
is a major selling point. Uh there, And so yeah,
I mean, I don't know, it's it's an offensive line coach.
I have a hard time, like I do a lot
(31:46):
of throwing my hands up, like there's like there's like
four guys that.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
Everybody knows that are really really good.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
The rest you're hoping maybe they'll be a guy right
like you just you don't know what's gonna match and
how it's gonna go. So I I think there this
is as good to background as you could want or
ask for. They seem really comfortable with them, He's comfortable
with the division. You're obviously comfortable with the Bill Callahan
stamp of approval on him. So I think that's, you know,
(32:13):
all you can ask for, and you hope that it works.
Do you know anything about bootlegging jerseys?
Speaker 2 (32:18):
Do I know about bootlegging jerseys? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (32:21):
Like you acquire NFL jerseys and embroidered numbers and names
on them and sell them.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Do you know anything about that? Do you do you
do this?
Speaker 4 (32:30):
I'm thinking about doing that with Jack Sawyer Bengals jerseys. Yeah,
and get out in front of this in case they
draft him, because that will be the most popular jersey
among Bengals fans in twenty twenty five if they take
him with the seventeenth overall pick. Yeah, and so I'm
thinking maybe I'll get in front of this is college
number thirty three. You could wear whatever number you want now, right,
(32:52):
it doesn't matter. I thought you were gonna say, is
he gonna wear ninety four?
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Take away? Oh, since he's the Sam.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Hubbard replica coming out of college, that would be fun
on his number.
Speaker 4 (33:02):
You could have Sam at the press conference where they
announce him and say, Sam, you're being cut.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
But it's cool.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
We got passing, an actual passing the torch where they
can have a torch.
Speaker 4 (33:11):
It's kind of like the inauguration, right like and look
on the old guys there and then so it.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
Could be ninety four. That's fine.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
Yeah, but like you know, you're gonna get a lot
of this in the coming months. How they should draft. Yeah,
And and by the way, one thousand percent on board
with it. But there's gonna be a lot of that,
and when they do, there's gonna be a lot of
Jack Sawyer jerseys.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
I'm sure there would be thinking about getting in front
of this. Yeah, I mean like in the Jerseys myself,
and I'm not, by the way, I don't want to.
I'm not kicking Sam Hubbard out the door. I know
you did because he was on the list and you
said you didn't want any of those guys.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
You had of him leaving.
Speaker 1 (33:43):
Well, hang on again, right now, there were a couple
of different percentages with Sam.
Speaker 4 (33:47):
There was nine that there's a cut, pay cut or restructure. Yes,
and then believe it's of a return thirty five percent.
That's that's not zero. I'm not kicking him out the door.
Speaker 1 (33:57):
I think there's there's a potential some value that said, though, yes,
I could, I think you could. You would see him
being in that role. I don't think he's gonna go seventeen.
I guess too high.
Speaker 2 (34:05):
It feels like if I don't think he would be
a it feels like if you like look at the
very early evaluations of the class and mock drafts and stuff,
I don't have I don't see anybody having him that.
But after the heat did what he did against Texas, Yeah,
maybe that's Bengals fans sure to go nuts or like, well,
he would.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
He would look great in stripes, sure, and not in
the second round either. And I'm just telling you that
would be he'd he'd sell a lot of shirts.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
We would get ahead of it. Now, So may you,
may you, I mean you do it. That's good for you,
good business model. This is your side hustle.
Speaker 2 (34:33):
No, not really.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
Do you have a big takeaway on the divisional round
of the playoffs.
Speaker 2 (34:40):
I can't believe Baltimore lost that game. I you know,
I just you know.
Speaker 1 (34:46):
I think you start to wonder if they're ever gonna
get one because the last two years, you don't. We talked,
we talked about this in twenty one and twenty two.
You only get so many chances where it all comes together,
and man, it all it felt like even after last year,
it all came together and they had the home game
against the struggling the year where the Chiefs were down
(35:07):
a little bit, it seemed like, and then they had
a team that they knew they could beat and that
ended up being the other team with Super Bowl Like
it seemed like it was all setting up for them,
and they didn't win it, and Lamar didn't play, you know,
and he becomes a point of conversation, but as a whole,
they blew it right. But they recentered. They came back
with everybody that they were the best team in football.
I think they're the best team in football. But yet
(35:29):
they went there and they turned it over three times stupidly.
I mean just dropping the ball twice.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Dropping then the wrong way.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
I mean yeah, I mean all of it, all of it,
and then they still had the chance to just catch
a two point conversion to tie it there in the end.
I just I felt like it had really set up
that and Ingred would be a tough road having to
go to Buffalo to Kansas City. But I just I
just felt like the way they were playing, the role
they were on, they were outside of a Flowers relatively healthy,
(36:00):
and I just am I'm just surprised. You know that,
you know we were gonna sit in here again, and
now it's just the scar tissue gets thicker.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
Man, when you go to the playoffs, you.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
And you don't you played below the level that you
are expected to play out or that you typically play
out over and over and over again. It's like we
used to talk about with the Marvin Bengals. It's not
that these teams are incapable of putting the past behind them.
It just it gets heavier every year if you've been
a part of it. And the advantage that twenty one
(36:30):
Bengals had was they weren't a part of it. It
was like totally separated from the past, and they we
went out there and played free. These Ravens are gonna
have a hard time doing that because it is it
just feels like.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
It hangs on them in these big spots.
Speaker 4 (36:43):
So Pittsburgh lost, and for forty eight hours, everybody talked
about Mike Tomlin, who has a similar resume to John Harball.
John Harball's not been there nearly as long, but they've
both won a Super Bowl. There's been a lot of
distance between now and those last Harbass had more success.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
Harball's had in the postseason, got to a championship game
last year.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (37:04):
But I have seen folks wonder why isn't Harball being
talked about the way Tomlin was.
Speaker 2 (37:08):
I think the playoffs. He has had some playoffs.
Speaker 4 (37:10):
He's also got a better quarterback than Tomlin's had and
any point over the last five or six years. I mean,
it's gotta guys likely to be three time MVP. John
Harball is a great coach, but it is interesting to
me that Tomlin, understandably so, was put in the crosshairs
pretty squarely after Pittsburgh lost to Baltimore. Baltimore loses. I
think they have won playoff games. They did win one
(37:31):
this year.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
You gotta give moments, you gotta win some playoff games,
you gotta be and Toalins won. They haven't been competitive
in playoff games, you know, they haven't.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
So there's a difference. I mean, it matters what it
looks like, right sure.
Speaker 1 (37:43):
I mean I just feel like Harbass teams have been
close now they have have they fallen short and not
been as good in some of these moments. Like we
just talked, Yeah, but like me, still, it's not like
they're out there. They're they're to the wire with these teams.
They're winning some of these games. They're you know, they're
they're in the championship game last year. They're they're they're
playing their best at the end of the season. They
dismantled Pittsburgh in the first round. Like that's a dip.
(38:06):
I mean, that's why. Yeah, And you can't. I can't,
I don't. I don't view them in the same the
same boat. I get it, he's got the quarterback. But
you know that's part of your job as a head
coach if you've been around for a decade and a
half to get the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (38:18):
Get that right? They did?
Speaker 1 (38:20):
Who did Baltimore? Baltimore did Pittsburgh and he's not devoided
responsibility on that.
Speaker 4 (38:29):
Well. It's interesting because I said last week, I really
hope Pittsburgh stays with what they're doing, right, Like I
I don't want Baltimore to stay with what they're doing.
I want them to move. Yeah, if like Steve Tomlin
can be hired, if Mike as a brother.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
I'm sorry, I think I just think Baltimore is really
well run. No, that they are.
Speaker 4 (38:47):
I don't think anybody Costa who follows the league would
doubt that.
Speaker 1 (38:50):
Acosta on down, they do such a good job of replenishing.
They draft.
Speaker 4 (38:54):
Well, that's the most like passionate I've heard you was
the defending John Harbaugh.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
It's good. Sorry, I think.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
Harball it's the most passionate. Gods, I gotta some look
in the mirror stuff right there. Really, I swear I'll
find passion about other things.
Speaker 4 (39:10):
I are So we had more officiating issues in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (39:13):
It's so good. Can we talk about those guys? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (39:16):
And because I do, you think there's a legitimate fix,
not the league being fixed, that's not that guy, yeah,
but folks who like throw their hands up and go, well,
the league has a problem with the officiating. It's all
we talk about anymore. And there's I think there's validity
to that. We spend way too much time talking about it.
Is there a realistic fix to make officiating less of
a talking point than it seems to be at the
(39:37):
end of every NFL weekend?
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Yeah, I think they have to lean into the like
sky Judge thing a little bit more as much as
you can. Where Now there there's another side of this,
because you know what I can't stand and it just
gets the end of college.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
Basketball games nothing worse the last two minutes.
Speaker 1 (39:57):
They have ruined the sport almost with the way these
games end, where every single play ends up with these guys.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
I at the.
Speaker 1 (40:06):
Monitor, working the wheel, looking at a million replays on
every single detail, and it's like the game I don't
even want the game to get the last two minutes.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
That's when I want to turn it off now, So
you can't go that far.
Speaker 1 (40:17):
But there's a way with sky Judge and with quick
you know, buzzing down or whatever it is, that you
can be like alter this one fight, just open it
up to a little bit more, whether it is challengeable
penalties within the current challenge system not so you're not
adding more challenges, but it's more things that can be challenged,
so there's less discrepancy over some of these really critical
(40:39):
things and even even bad calls. I think at some
point you've got to get away from the referees feelings
and egos over having their calls overturned and judgment calls
not being subject to review. If you're gonnap. It's just
there's too many there's too much ability to sit there
and watch it and be like, but I just I
see it with my own eyes.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
This is like the catch argument.
Speaker 1 (41:00):
I see it with my own eyes, like that's not
a penalty, or that is a penalty. I can see
it like that on the replay. Why can't you have
somebody who's just sitting there like everyone in America and
saying that's not a penalty, buzz like and fixing that
or having it be challengeable quit you know, and open
to open to fit. I think that's the only way
you can go. You gotta fight fire with fire in
(41:20):
this one. If America is seeing it this way, yes,
you as a referee contingent need to also be able
to see it that way. That's the only way I
think that you can really fix it, because it's otherwise.
It's you're always gonna have the slow, super slow motion
replays and all that stuff. It's it's a hard job.
They put too much on those guys plates as it is.
It's passionate enough.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
It's good. It's you're fired enough. I like it.
Speaker 4 (41:43):
My favorite part of the college basketball thing they do
with the replay monitor is they'll have two of the
officials go to the monitor and then the one will
stand like five feet behind them with his arms crossed,
sometimes just staring into the crowd and he's like, I
don't have to check this out.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
I'm not a part of it.
Speaker 4 (42:00):
And invariably the two guys at the monitor, hey man,
why don't you take a look at this? And if
I was that guy, I would say, no, you can't
figure it out.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
You can't figure it. You can't.
Speaker 4 (42:10):
Then you guys decided you wanted to take a look
I'm standing here. Once you decide that.
Speaker 2 (42:16):
Do not ask for my assistance.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
No, no, If you can't figure it out over there
in ten seconds by looking quickly at a replay, then
stands as called right, let's go move on. Please, I
don't need another five minute break while we look at it.
Whose fingertip it hit first? You ever send a vague
tweet yourself?
Speaker 2 (42:33):
Sure? I might do one.
Speaker 1 (42:34):
Now, I'll do one right after the show, just to
make people wonder what I'm talking about.
Speaker 2 (42:38):
Great, I'll do that. I'll do that for you. Thanks. Yeah,
it's not gonna be aimed at me, is it.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
I mean, you won't know. It'll be vague. That's the
whole point, all right. Read Paul's work the Athletic dot Com.
Hear the podcast. It's the Growler. When's the When am
I on again tomorrow?
Speaker 2 (42:55):
Tomorrow? Great? Very good?
Speaker 4 (42:56):
All right, well we look forward to that. Balls don't lie.
Check out Paul's work again in The Athletic. Let's talk
about last night's National Championship game and the big announcement
afterward next on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
Station Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty. Traffic from the.
Speaker 5 (43:13):
UC Health Traffic Center. At UC Health, you'll find comprehensive
care that's so personal it makes your best tomorrow possible.
That's found less care for better outcomes. Expect more at
UCHealth dot com East found two seventy five at I
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(43:37):
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Speaker 2 (00:04):
Green, that's greed. Answer it.
Speaker 3 (00:07):
Now you've found Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty.
Speaker 4 (00:12):
Sure have what's up? It's three three. This is ESPN
fifteen thirty.
Speaker 2 (00:17):
I'm Oleger. Thank you for listening.
Speaker 4 (00:20):
Hopefully you are staying warm and having an awesome Tuesday afternoon.
Maybe you had a three day weekend and you're back
at work today. I don't know, but we are glad
that you are here. Congratulations to the Ohio State Buckeyes
and Ohio State fans. Not the weirdos that last November earlier,
two months ago, whenever it was or yelling and screaming
(00:43):
that they got a fire Ryan Day and don't want
to play in the playoff and who cares if they
win a national championship. Not those goobers, But to folks
like my guy Tarren, who's a hardcore Ohio State fan,
and our guy Austin Elmore. Congratulations. We'll get to last
night's game. I'm really happy for Ryan Day. Al Golden
(01:03):
was a participant in that game last night, which I
guess we have to talk about. But man, more than anything,
we have to talk about this shocking announcement made after
the game last night from the the Ohio State football program,
which I thought was interesting and I don't think is
getting nearly enough coverage. We'll get set for UC versus
Texas Tech tonight, a big, big, big opportunity for the Bearcats,
and it's one of my favorite nights on the sports calendar.
(01:25):
This evening, Baseball Hall of Fame ballot gets revealed, the
class of twenty twenty five gets rounded out, and I'm
already excited to watch people go in a witch hunt
to find the one person who doesn't vote for each
e row. More on that a little bit later on
Paul Danner Junior's here from the Athletic.
Speaker 2 (01:41):
How you doing.
Speaker 1 (01:42):
I think you really do love the Baseball Hall of
Fame vote. I mean I do always provide spodder for you.
I loveday. I love every single year.
Speaker 2 (01:49):
I love it.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
The lack of transparency, the questioning of the process, the
bringing up of the steroid era, like it's just love
it all, it's just copy paste, rinse, repeat over, no again,
it's joyful.
Speaker 4 (02:01):
I have the list I have on my little rundown here.
Here are the nine players that I think every writer
should have checked off on his or her ballant and
uh no not. Most of these guys aren't going to
get in, but they all should.
Speaker 1 (02:14):
Yeah, well, I look forward to hearing all about that.
I'll be listening.
Speaker 4 (02:19):
Well, you absolutely, that is if we're not still talking
about Cam Grant obviously, because you know you and I
have an hour.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
You're here till four.
Speaker 4 (02:27):
Paul Danner Junior covers the Bengals for The Athletic and
the Growler podcast, and I I thought we would do
three to four on Cam Grandy and then a few
other miscellaneous Bengals items after four, and sure, yeah, the
first domino of the off season fall.
Speaker 1 (02:41):
What should we play? Should we play? What was your
favorite Cam Grandy penalty?
Speaker 5 (02:46):
No?
Speaker 4 (02:46):
Like, here's what we could do is play what was
the look on your face when you read the following?
Speaker 2 (02:51):
He played in eight games with six starts. That dude
started six games. Yeah, Cam Grandy started six games.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
And they love to come out there in a weird
formation on the first play, you know, just to see
what it is, and then you see him run off
and then you don't see him again in TOI like
the fourth quarter on like a critical fourth down or something. Yeah,
it's always it's always great. Well, congratulations for Cam.
Speaker 4 (03:13):
Yeah, college free agent made the team gets another deal.
Speaker 2 (03:16):
Good for him. I am that's that's that's good. That's awesome.
It is.
Speaker 1 (03:19):
I don't really, I really wish I had more to
say about Cam Grandy need other than this is. You know,
you start going through the roster and I've sort of
done this process where you're going through. Okay, here's all
the decisions they have to make. Okay, clearly we're starting
from the bottom and we're working our way up one
at a time. It's maybe every day it'll get a
little more relevant. Yeah, this is this is one of
(03:41):
those items.
Speaker 4 (03:42):
It's like when you you know, my wife and I
we we bought the house that we're in right now,
and we had a lot of work to do. But
the very first thing I did is I put a
new door handle on the closet door. Hey, right, gotta
have not the most important thing's gotta get done, but
it's got to get done.
Speaker 2 (03:56):
Gotta get done.
Speaker 4 (03:57):
I mean like I didn't exactly charge downstairs. I go, honey,
work good, just put our feet up when our furniture
gets here. Nothing else to do but it did need.
It was a box that needed to be checked, and
I checked it off. And that's what we're gonna call
Cam Grandy door knob.
Speaker 1 (04:09):
Don't call him that.
Speaker 4 (04:12):
I don't think you should do that. All right, Well,
we'll see. What do you think Thursday Friday for the
Al Golden press conference?
Speaker 2 (04:19):
Probably Thursday.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Yeah, I feel like Thursday, Thursday actual press conference.
Speaker 2 (04:23):
That feels right.
Speaker 4 (04:24):
Okay, So he's gonna talk to He's gonna interview formally
with Zach Taylor.
Speaker 2 (04:29):
Yeah, what does that sound like? I think, Hey, good
to see you. Yeah, what's going on? You still want
the job? Right?
Speaker 1 (04:34):
The paper's there if you want to sign it, I
think is kind of where that probably goes.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
I just you know, it's it's it's it's kind of been.
You know.
Speaker 1 (04:46):
I think Al Golden and I and I respect and
appreciate this wanted you can you can do two things.
You can understand what can be great for your next
career step and also want to kind of solely focused
on this massive in front of you. And I feel
like once knowing once you turn the page, that is
(05:06):
the direction you would you would want to go is
one thing. And the Bengals were recognizing that this is
a great fit for what they're looking for is another thing.
Speaker 2 (05:15):
But yeah, I don't I think that he's.
Speaker 1 (05:19):
I think Al Golden just kind of just feels like
the this is the logical next step, like one. I
mean what we talked about this on on who they
Live on Friday. I mean, I don't know people really
maye people realize this, but like Al Golden never left.
He still has his house here, his family still lives here,
(05:40):
his kids go to school here, did his his oldest
is our name. But like I mean, he's that's a
heck of a commute. Heck of a commute, right, you
know what you do when you drive from Cincinnati to
South Bend, however many times he has to do it
during the year. Think about how you don't want to
do it anymore, right, and like, you know, you love Cincinnati,
like the schools, liked what your family has there so
(06:01):
much to the point that you didn't even move them, right,
Like that makes sense, and but you understand what's good
for your career. But so that all makes senence. That's
why that makes sense for him. And I think the
Bengals are able to punch a little bit. I'm not
going to say above their weight class, because they could
have gotten whoever they wanted to, But as far as
to get familiarity and somebody with the ability who is
(06:23):
you know, has led entire programs before, but also has
all had a lot of success with younger players and
connecting with them and developing them. All of these boxes
are ones that they wanted to check. It makes the
most sense where I don't know how long that that
interview doesn't need to be long. You have had years
(06:44):
of interview. You know the person, you know, the coach,
you know, the fit, you know is the organization. What
else is there to say? So for that fact, I
think that was always there, right and they can go
out and talk to whoever or figure out what else
is out there. But knowing that was there, I think
it's hard to trump when you feel like, man, this
is just the perfect fit for what we need right
(07:06):
now because of the familiarity.
Speaker 4 (07:08):
Like I get, it's a good fit for al Golden right,
he gets to come home, he doesn't have to drive
the South Bend all the time. But is it a
good fit for the Bengals just because he's been here before?
What are the other reasons why it's such.
Speaker 2 (07:19):
A good fit.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
I think somebody with a particular specialty in developing younger players.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
And you know that.
Speaker 1 (07:28):
I mean he did that in the NFL as a
linebackers coach in this building, right, did it with Logan
Wilson and help with Jermain Pratt and Keen Davis Gaither
in that whole room there, right, and then went and
proved it again at Notre Dame.
Speaker 2 (07:44):
Okay, I mean, let's.
Speaker 1 (07:45):
Not I know, everyone's gonna probably wanna yell about they
couldn't stop the bucket whatever. Nobody's stopping the Buckeyes right now.
And they had the number one passing defense in college
football the last two years in a row m period.
And he did it this year basically reinventing on the
you know what they didn't have on that defense a
lot of dudes. Dane had two guys from that defense
(08:06):
projected to go in the first two rounds this draft.
One of them wasn't playing when it was the corner
that got hurt midseason that was not. Meanwhile, going up
against the entire first three or four rounds of future
dis draft and future drafts on the Ohio State offense, right,
like can sit but turned that turned that Notre Dame
defense into one that was really pretty special in how
(08:29):
they were operating and getting themselves to a point it
their dame hasn't been had in forever. So I think
that the familiarity helps because you can hit the ground
running so much faster, rather than the growing pains of
the first half of a season when the coordinator and
what do we talk about, Oh, no, slow start coordinators
(08:49):
learning how they didn't realize this, that or the other.
I think that that helps, and you know how that's
gonna gonna integrate as a teacher and with the whole
way like to do things. I think familiary is obviously
going to be a part of it, but I think
it's so much more of the credentials of what he's done,
the type of coach he's been consistently, and his ability
(09:10):
to help develop all the young players on the on
the defense that they know are going to be important
to them actually turning the thing around.
Speaker 2 (09:15):
Refresh my memory.
Speaker 4 (09:16):
Did he did he leave because he wanted to go
coordinate a defense because Notre Dame would pay more if
he loved it here so much and they like him
so much widely, that's.
Speaker 2 (09:25):
A better job, more money, all of it.
Speaker 1 (09:26):
I mean, you know, linebacker, he wasn't going to take
Luena Rumo's job, right, he was trying to move up.
I mean, you know what I mean. And I think
that for that reason, Notre Dame. It's funny, the same
thing happened during the super Bowl. During the super Bowl week,
Notre Dame kind of was like, hey, we want you
to be the guy you focus on the super Bowl,
(09:47):
but as soon as that Super Bowl ends, we want
you to be the defensive coordinator here for Markus Freeman
and boom. It happened, you know, And so it's kind
of a little bit of a you know, returning the
favor a little bit on this. But you know, the
last two games he was coaching pros and college would
be the National Championship, came to the super Bowl.
Speaker 2 (10:04):
That's not a bad thing to stand on, right, right.
Speaker 1 (10:06):
And and I just the other part of this is,
and I don't want it to feel like I'm sitting
here like defending it.
Speaker 2 (10:12):
I'm just don't there's anything to defend.
Speaker 1 (10:15):
I'm a little curious at some of the uproar that
I've seen about this.
Speaker 2 (10:19):
I feel like this is a really good hire. All right, so.
Speaker 4 (10:23):
You're getting different feedback than I I see, I see
negativity out. I mean, I think I saw some folks
last night who were having fun with it. I mean,
Pike and I were texting back and forth turned the
game last night, going boy, you know, I hope he
doesn't bring that defense with him. But it was tongue
in cheek, like I haven't detected the same amount of
pushback I get. Like there's you know, when the job
(10:46):
first came open, there's a lot of people who their
brains danced with visions of Robert Sala, Right, Okay, like,
so that's splashy, that's a big name.
Speaker 2 (10:54):
Like I understand that.
Speaker 4 (10:55):
But okay, once you kind of got beyond that and
you looked at Al Golden's credentials, and you know, my
take was, Hey, if I'm looking for a guy who
can work with and communicate with and get the most
out of younger players, a dude who's coaching college football
is a pretty good place to start, right. And there's familiarity,
which you may roll your eyes at that. But the
Bengals aren't the only team that likes familiar No, NFL
(11:18):
teams aren't the only companies that like familiar. So I
don't gather that people feel like, oh my god, the
trajectory of the franchise has been changed because of Al Golden.
The response that I have gathered has been kind of
a yeah, okay, fine, now draft better players.
Speaker 1 (11:34):
Yeah right, and and develop them better, yeah right. And
that's and that's part of what he's he's tasked with too.
There's a couple of things also, you know, he's obviously
some of his the biggest moments in his career have
come on the collegiate level, notably, but also if you
take just the last you know, eight years or whatever
of his career, there's a couple other examples that I
(11:56):
that I want to kind of point out and take
this as just I don't want people to over exaggerate
that I'm saying it's going to be this person. But
I think you see this the college to pro thing.
Mike o' donald right now, he was a linebackers coach
and in this working his way up in Baltimore, goes
to Michigan to coordinate their defense for a year, comes back,
(12:21):
does such a great job at Baltimore. He's the head
coach to the Seahawks, right translating college to pro making
that thing work halflely. Jeff Haffley goes from Boston College
right four years leading Boston College, but previously was you know,
on lower levels in the NFL as well. Goes takes
the college the things he did in college brings it
(12:43):
to the NFL. They go from twenty second in points
per drive to six. You know, the I don't. I
think there's a lot of times there's a like, can
you can you really pull from the college game and
what's that what's that going to be like? What's that
change going to be like? I think as much as
those two games have merged, both financially in the issues
(13:04):
you deal with off the field with players, yeah, and
also on the field and the way that the schemes
I think are much more similar. I think the transitions
of coaches in major roles from the college to the
NFL is much more similar. And you've seen some of
these success stories play out in recent years, and some
that are pretty close to the Bengals there, I mean,
(13:25):
Lafleur was, Zach Taylor obviously very very close and with
the Ravens, you know, seeing everything that they've been able
to do, and I just think for that fact, I
think it's really easy to see the success that he
had at Notre Dame translating to the NFL, even though yes,
it's different in different ways, in so many ways, it's
(13:46):
much more similar than it ever has.
Speaker 4 (13:48):
I think what hurts Al Golden from a perception perspective
is when he was coaching at Miami and a temple,
he dressed on the sideline like a drafting teacher.
Speaker 2 (13:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (13:57):
Look, I mean I am voiced, need more, bring back, Yeah,
bring back ties. Let's go bring it. Bring anybody up,
have the tie hanging down? I think, bring it back.
Speaker 4 (14:09):
And I think like his name sounds like I'm trying
to figure out, like Al Golden sounds like a place
where you get dent's taken out of your car, Like
I'll just take it to Al Golden's. Or like a
meat store like one of those like old school meat
stores from the sixties that's in a strip mall, and
it's like, now we don't get our meat at Kroger.
We got to Al gold right, And I think I
think that's kind of what's what hurts I'll hear a
(14:30):
little bit is people don't think football coach, right.
Speaker 1 (14:33):
Here's the thing he is, you know, from an old
school newspaper guy and me a little bit. He's just
a headline writer's dream, all right, right, Golden or golden
you know, Golden boy, golden whatever. There's so many there's
so many different places you can go with that. That
from a headline writer's perspective, Like, Hey, I'm just curious.
(14:57):
My friends at the Cincinnati Inquirer are sitting there right now, right,
I think they've been working on this one for weeks, like, oh,
what are we gonna go with?
Speaker 2 (15:05):
What are we gonna go with? You know, so many options.
Speaker 4 (15:07):
Yeah, it's not unlike when you see had a point
guard named Michael Horton, and I thought, man, this guy's
not very good.
Speaker 2 (15:13):
Crowds booing. Inquire the next day has to have Horton.
Here's a boob in college.
Speaker 4 (15:19):
I was so happy. Oh, I was so fired up.
All right, well, a lot more on al Golden coming up.
Speaker 2 (15:25):
Last week.
Speaker 4 (15:26):
I went through your list of free agents. Yeah, and
then and then the next day you had this I printed,
you know, I print stuff. Now. Printer's working again. Printer
is back to working again. Yeah. How many veterans will
Cincinnati cut loose? And I have a grand takeaway from
this piece that I'll share with you when we come back.
It is nineteen minutes after three o'clock. He's Paul Danner
Junior covering the Bengals for at the Athletic dot com.
(15:47):
And here the Growler podcast as well. It's the Growler Podcast.
Listen to it here the Growler Podcast.
Speaker 2 (15:55):
Thank you, I'm confused people. Well done.
Speaker 4 (15:58):
It is nineteen minutes after three o'clock on Oegor. This
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Speaker 3 (16:04):
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(16:31):
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Speaker 2 (16:41):
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Speaker 4 (16:43):
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Speaker 2 (16:49):
This is ESPN fifteen thirty on Oegor.
Speaker 4 (16:52):
Paul Tanner Junior is here because it's Tuesday, and he
joins me in studio to talk about a whole u
ohole group of Bengals issues, including it we've launched into
a vague tweet season.
Speaker 2 (17:03):
Oh isn't it great?
Speaker 1 (17:04):
Yeah, where everything that t Higgins tweets or Jamar Chase
tweets from this point forward will get like, you know,
thousands of responses from Bengals fans.
Speaker 2 (17:14):
Does this mean you're signing yes, yeah?
Speaker 1 (17:16):
Or he's just saying, hey, I'm just using prayer hands
because I'm happy to be That's what he did today, right, Yeah,
it was like thank God or something like that, or
with prayer hands, like he could just be, you know,
coming out maybe he went to church, professional or something.
Speaker 2 (17:29):
I don't know.
Speaker 4 (17:30):
Vague tweets speculation. Yeah, he tweeted thank you God. I
don't follow a lot of athletes on social media, and
I think this is why.
Speaker 1 (17:38):
Yeah, and like eighty two percent of the time it's
about video games.
Speaker 2 (17:45):
That is where it is.
Speaker 1 (17:46):
I always love because I always love when we actually
get to talk to them after vague tweets season to
be like, hey, what was that about, And they'll be like, oh, yeah,
you know, I was playing whatever. It's playing Halo.
Speaker 2 (17:57):
What. I don't even know that. I'm so old. I
don't know the game.
Speaker 1 (18:00):
Yeah, not a big video game, but it is usually
where it ends up.
Speaker 4 (18:05):
Okay, So he could be tweeting about playing RBI Baseball
or something.
Speaker 1 (18:09):
Thank god, I just won the championship in RBI Baseball
thousand and four.
Speaker 4 (18:13):
Yeah, all right, you did last week. This came out
on Wednesday. Bengals cap cuts veterans who could be cut
in an effort to save money and then use that
money elsewhere on the team.
Speaker 2 (18:25):
Correct.
Speaker 4 (18:26):
And you did, as you always do, a great job
of looking at the pros and cons of each one
of these guys and talking about the financial impact of
keeping them or letting them go, and some of the
things that go into the decision making, and it's really
well done and really nuanced.
Speaker 2 (18:40):
You're setting it up to say something, but what any
you got, I don't want any of these guys.
Speaker 4 (18:47):
Honest with you, I hate to do that because you
you did a lot of work into this and you
put a lot of time and effort, and I printed it,
and I like, there was even one thing that I highlighted.
I think, yeah, right, I get it. Like I'm going through.
I was like midway through reading about Jermaine Pratt. Yeah,
and then I'm like, all right, well, Sam's gonna be next.
(19:09):
You know what, I don't want any of these dudes,
so far as I'm concerned, When does the mock off
season start? When do we have the spreadsheet? It's I finished.
Speaker 1 (19:18):
All of these guys are getting cut on my spreadsheet. Yeah,
there's a lot of uh, there's a lot of those options.
It's interesting. I thought this year specifically, it's the most
interesting that has ever been because there was, as you said,
you don't want any of these guys. There's a lot
of money tied up in those guys that they're about
to free up. I mean, they're more than they have
(19:38):
ever made off of cap cuts.
Speaker 2 (19:42):
You know.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
I think that you're gonna see that type of thing
happening this year. Some of them are obvious, you know,
Sheldon Ray, Allens, Alex Kapa. I mean, some of those
are our obvious, uh, in terms of the ability to
move on and because there's so much money that they
will save and can put in elsewhere. Some of them
are a little more challenging, whether you're talking about Geno Stone
(20:03):
or Mike Hilton some of the other guys, and that's
going to get a little more philosophical there and what
they want to do. But at the end of the day,
I mean, you're talking about thirty to forty five million
dollars they can add to their cap this year. Yes,
just by going through this and depending on how aggressive
they choose to be or not to be, can really
(20:24):
can add a lot. And so it's you know, it's
it's it's a lot of guys that fit the mold
that we have seen them move on from in recent years,
older guys. Once once you see the three up there,
the Bengals have made it pretty clear that they're not
really interested anymore, and so if they stick with that,
that can mean most of those guys going.
Speaker 2 (20:43):
So the one who did give me some pause is
Geno Stone.
Speaker 4 (20:46):
Yeah, because he's still just twenty six, and because he
did play well at the end of the year, and
I was really bullish on them signing him. At the
same time, he was a terrible tackler took some of
the worst angles I've ever seen, And if we go
back to the like the teeth of the season, when
this defense was just atrocious, he was the guy that
I talked about the most. And so I'm trying to
(21:07):
balance thinking this guy's an ascending player coming off of
what he did in Baltimore, watching what I did at
the watching what I saw at the end of the season,
his age, he's not shouldn't be washed up with how
poorly he played for such a long stretch of time,
and also not knowing what's next at that position. I'm
not nuts about keeping Geno stone. But of all these guys,
(21:30):
I did the exercise of like, all right, you have
to have one, who would you take?
Speaker 1 (21:34):
I settled on Genostone. Yeah, I find myself. I think
you can talk yourself into Gino soon pretty easily. Yeah,
you know, I think you can look at like you
mentioned what happened the end of the year, who he
was in Baltimore.
Speaker 2 (21:48):
You're kind of recent.
Speaker 1 (21:49):
How much was he a victim of things going sideways
with Luenna Romeau there where the things we heard about
how they needed to simplify things, and so many of
the players and defensive backfield, we're doing the wrong thing
all the time. Well a lot of times that falls
back on the safeties to be the ones that have
to deal with that, and that's part of his job.
Speaker 2 (22:07):
But maybe maybe.
Speaker 1 (22:08):
He was not being He's one of those examples of
guys that were not being used properly. You know, he
needs to just be playing deep safety more often and
less of the like next thing you know, he's coming
up having to make tackles and being asked to do
those things like that. I think that's a decision. To me,
he is the ultimate Hey, new DC al Golden whatever.
(22:31):
What do you think about this one? I think that
it's it he that probably was where you land with
a tiebreaker type where it's like because you could go
either way, and maybe he looks at him.
Speaker 2 (22:41):
And says, not not my system, like.
Speaker 1 (22:43):
All these mistackles, these issues that we saw that does
not fit me, or says, look, I'm gonna do some
of the same exact things that he was shining with
in Baltimore that we saw him doing so well at
the end of the season.
Speaker 2 (22:54):
Let's really get a real evaluation.
Speaker 1 (22:56):
I think you can you can hit the start over button,
which you know Stone and get what you thought you
were getting. You can talk yourself into that. If I
think you know that that's the direction of the new defense.
Speaker 2 (23:05):
Quarter thinks it can go.
Speaker 4 (23:06):
Yeah, I'm not gonna shed a tear if he's gone. No,
but I'm not gonna be mad if he's back.
Speaker 2 (23:10):
Yeah, I think you know.
Speaker 1 (23:12):
And that's gonna be part of this when we start
talking about Okay, you have to make your priority list
and because there's a lot of things on there, and
if you're gonna do t Higgins and you're gonna do
things like maybe you have to give maybe you want
to give Trey Hendrickson a raise, or maybe you want
to spend a little bit more on the guard play
on the offense.
Speaker 2 (23:32):
You gotta fix that.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
You need another defensive tackle, and you need an edge wresher,
and and well before long you're sitting here like, ah,
I just keep you know, Stone right, like I let's
not go having to pay for a safety and go
down that same route where we're gonna do. You're gonna
do this again, Nick Scott Gino Stone, like we're gonna
go down this road again of asking the new safety
(23:53):
to come in. Uh, that is learning everything on the fly.
And you've just it's failed multiple times.
Speaker 2 (23:59):
All Uh.
Speaker 1 (24:00):
That doesn't mean that you should should stick with it,
but I think you're more willing to give that a
chance if you feel like the people that are in
charge of that guy, whether it's Jordan Kovac's the safety
room or Al Golden.
Speaker 2 (24:11):
Or on up the things that they can find the
role for now.
Speaker 4 (24:14):
Geno Stone's most recent tweet came, uh, yesterday, sixteen hours ago.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
Did he have prayer hands involved?
Speaker 5 (24:20):
No?
Speaker 2 (24:20):
He wrote you all that mad? Lol? Yeah? Why are
people again? This was at eleven oh seven last night.
Speaker 4 (24:29):
I mean, I'm sure in reaction to the championship game.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
Yeah? Sure, all right? And it could be could be anything.
Is there?
Speaker 1 (24:36):
Isn't there a new grand theft auto out? Maybe that's
it that I seople people get really mad on there.
Speaker 2 (24:44):
That I've never played. I don't know. You should? You should?
You can do all kinds of crazy. Geno Stone played
at Iowa, Iowa State? Yeah, Iowa? Yeah? Is he a
big uh? Is he like back in the Big tenwa? Yeah?
He was back in the Big ten? Yeah? That must
be all that Matt lol, so big tweet. Let's figure
it out, all right?
Speaker 4 (25:05):
I want to tell you about the business that I
might get into, the side hustle that I might engage
in this spring.
Speaker 2 (25:10):
Okay, And then.
Speaker 4 (25:13):
I've got I've got to get your thoughts on the
offensive line, coach.
Speaker 2 (25:16):
Yes, it's not what I'm laughing about.
Speaker 4 (25:19):
And then I'm trying to think of a good way
to gently ask you when your coverage of the spat
between the Bengals and the county is going to start. Oh,
it is a twenty seven away from four o'clock. He's
Paul Danner Junior. Follow him on x at Paul Danner Junior.
Sports Headlines coming up on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 3 (25:40):
SINCY three sixty with Tony Pike.
Speaker 2 (25:43):
Do we want to move on?
Speaker 3 (25:44):
We have to keep going and Boston Elmore.
Speaker 2 (25:47):
I think you should continue to let me keep going.
Speaker 3 (25:49):
There Sincy three sixty Tomorrow Which twelve News on ESPN
fifteen thirty Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty Traffic.
Speaker 5 (26:00):
You see Health Traffic Center. At you see Health, You'll
find comprehensive care that's so personal it makes your best
tomorrow possible. That's boundless care for better outcomes. Expect war
at ucehealth dot com East found two seventy five at
I seventy five. It's an accident that off onto the
right shoulder southbound seventy five at Ezra Charles Drive. Another
(26:23):
accident on the left shoulder northbound seventy one seventy five.
It's an accident before twelfth Street. I'm at Ezeleik with traffic.
Speaker 2 (26:31):
This reporting sponsored by RAPS Service.
Speaker 4 (26:33):
Off Kelsey Chevrolet Home of lifetime powertrain protection and guarantee
credit approval from their family to yours for life kelseyshev
dot Com. The Bengals have tightened up their chances of
winning the AFC North next season by ensuring that Cam
Grandy can't go anywhere. The tight end signs a contract
extension for the twenty twenty five season, hoping to build
(26:54):
upon his five catch production in twenty twenty four. Meanwhile,
T Higgins has tweet the following I'm just giving praise
to the most High at T Higgins five boom.
Speaker 2 (27:06):
Care to interpret? I think he's saying praising his Lord.
Speaker 4 (27:12):
According to Paul Danner, junior Alic Golden's gonna interview with
the Bengals to be their defensive coordinator on Wednesday.
Speaker 2 (27:18):
Yeah, not a very long interview. I don't think there's
a whole not.
Speaker 4 (27:21):
Like putting al on the whiteboard. Hey, draw some stuff up, right, Yeah,
I don't think that's very good. College basketball tonight you
see host Texas Tech. The Red Raiders are thirteen and four,
four and two in the league. They've lost four games
by combined eleven points. Tip off tonight at seven on
seven hundred WLW, Miami Radhawks unbeaten and mac play at
five and oh. Travis Steele's team is hosting Terrence Bowling,
(27:43):
Green Falcons and the Dayton Flyers on the road tonight
against Duke Caine Paul Danner Juniors here from the Athletic
and the Growler podcast. Will you be covering the ongoing
back and forth between the stadium and the county with
the Bengals in the county on the stadium that is
just getting started.
Speaker 1 (28:01):
No, the ongoing back and forth, that's my point. Yeah,
that's the part that I will not be covered. Okay,
the yelling and complaining each other and the sending of
meanly you know, certainly worded emails. You know, like we
all know people that like love to send us sternly ye, right,
(28:22):
and this is like, yeah, person, you've ever met who
it's like their favorite thing to do. You read that
and you're like, Oh, I can't. I can't go to
this dark place. There's enough darkness out there. I don't
need to go to the deepen the emails. But yes,
eventually it will rise up above the bickering at each
other levels.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
I'm not going to pay attention to any of this.
I'm not going to talk about any of this. I'm
not going to care about any of this. But I
need you to do me a favor. If we do
get to somebody who covers the team, You'll be in
on this if it happens, because I will start to
care if we find out they're flirting with moving. Yeah,
last time we did the stadium thing, I remember finding out,
wait a minute, the Bengals might go to Baltimore. Okay,
(29:04):
now I care, And that's a thing. As much as
a lot of folks try to pretend that didn't happen,
that is a thing that happened. And then me, as
a high school kid, suddenly I cared. So now I
care even more because I'm on the station that carries
the Bengals games.
Speaker 2 (29:18):
And so now will you start, well, what happened. If
if they moved, what is moving me?
Speaker 1 (29:24):
Does that mean outside of the greater Cincinnati area or
would you count moving out of downtown?
Speaker 3 (29:29):
Oh?
Speaker 4 (29:29):
They count as long as they are still the Cincinnati Bengals.
That's fine, Okay, So they can move to they can
move to Covington, they can move to Taylor Mill whatever
if they're this. But if they're the Mexico City Bengals
or the Toronto Bengals, or or if such a threat
exists or now like you're reporting that the ownership is
(29:52):
is touring London and looking for then then I care. Yes,
until we get to that point. I do not care,
and we're not going to talk about it.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
You're good. I think you're gonna be good for a while.
Speaker 4 (30:01):
But can you tell us about the new offensive line coach?
I bet he's intense, of course, of course, No. I
think there's one key thing. I mean, he was kind
of Bill Callahan's number one right handed man assistant for
three years. And you know if if the Maiwlezland in Cleveland, correct, yes,
(30:23):
And then when Bill Callahan left and went to Tennessee,
Alex van Pelt went to New England, and then you
saw Scott Peters go to New England as well, so
he has the year in New England. They were bad.
Speaker 1 (30:35):
It was maybe the most devoid of talent unit on
any level in the entire NFL. So nobody's holding what
happened in New England against anybody. But if the Bengals
hadn't moved decided they wanted to move on from Frank Pollock,
say a year ago, I think he would have been
the higher, you know, but I think he would have
been certainly the top of a list that they would
(30:56):
have been looking at. And he goes to New England
and all of a sudden it opens up where he's
now available again a year later, and it was sort
of right on time. It's just I think it that
that Bill Callahan's stamp of approval is big. And also,
you know, there's one thing that I tweeted about this
the other day, but like you know, when you look
at things that Zach Taylor has said a lot and
(31:18):
you hear a lot throughout the building, is that playing
in the AFC North it takes adjustment, just it takes
a while to.
Speaker 2 (31:24):
Get used to.
Speaker 1 (31:25):
Like it's it's just different in a lot of ways.
And so I think the history inside of the division,
understanding of how this division operates in the trenches specifically,
is a major selling point. Uh there, And so yeah,
I mean, I don't know, it's it's an offensive line coach.
I have a hard time, like I do a lot
(31:46):
of throwing my hands up, like there's like there's like
four guys that.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
Everybody knows that are really really good.
Speaker 1 (31:51):
The rest you're hoping maybe they'll be a guy right
like you just you don't know what's gonna match and
how it's gonna go. So I I think there this
is as good to background as you could want or
ask for. They seem really comfortable with them, He's comfortable
with the division. You're obviously comfortable with the Bill Callahan
stamp of approval on him. So I think that's, you know,
(32:13):
all you can ask for, and you hope that it works.
Do you know anything about bootlegging jerseys?
Speaker 2 (32:18):
Do I know about bootlegging jerseys? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (32:21):
Like you acquire NFL jerseys and embroidered numbers and names
on them and sell them.
Speaker 2 (32:28):
Do you know anything about that? Do you do you
do this?
Speaker 4 (32:30):
I'm thinking about doing that with Jack Sawyer Bengals jerseys. Yeah,
and get out in front of this in case they
draft him, because that will be the most popular jersey
among Bengals fans in twenty twenty five if they take
him with the seventeenth overall pick. Yeah, and so I'm
thinking maybe I'll get in front of this is college
number thirty three. You could wear whatever number you want now, right,
(32:52):
it doesn't matter. I thought you were gonna say, is
he gonna wear ninety four?
Speaker 2 (32:56):
Take away? Oh, since he's the Sam.
Speaker 1 (32:59):
Hubbard replica coming out of college, that would be fun
on his number.
Speaker 4 (33:02):
You could have Sam at the press conference where they
announce him and say, Sam, you're being cut.
Speaker 2 (33:07):
But it's cool.
Speaker 1 (33:08):
We got passing, an actual passing the torch where they
can have a torch.
Speaker 4 (33:11):
It's kind of like the inauguration, right like and look
on the old guys there and then so it.
Speaker 2 (33:16):
Could be ninety four. That's fine.
Speaker 4 (33:17):
Yeah, but like you know, you're gonna get a lot
of this in the coming months. How they should draft. Yeah,
And and by the way, one thousand percent on board
with it. But there's gonna be a lot of that,
and when they do, there's gonna be a lot of
Jack Sawyer jerseys.
Speaker 1 (33:29):
I'm sure there would be thinking about getting in front
of this. Yeah, I mean like in the Jerseys myself,
and I'm not, by the way, I don't want to.
I'm not kicking Sam Hubbard out the door. I know
you did because he was on the list and you
said you didn't want any of those guys.
Speaker 2 (33:42):
You had of him leaving.
Speaker 1 (33:43):
Well, hang on again, right now, there were a couple
of different percentages with Sam.
Speaker 4 (33:47):
There was nine that there's a cut, pay cut or restructure. Yes,
and then believe it's of a return thirty five percent.
That's that's not zero. I'm not kicking him out the door.
Speaker 1 (33:57):
I think there's there's a potential some value that said, though, yes,
I could, I think you could. You would see him
being in that role. I don't think he's gonna go seventeen.
I guess too high.
Speaker 2 (34:05):
It feels like if I don't think he would be
a it feels like if you like look at the
very early evaluations of the class and mock drafts and stuff,
I don't have I don't see anybody having him that.
But after the heat did what he did against Texas, Yeah,
maybe that's Bengals fans sure to go nuts or like, well,
he would.
Speaker 4 (34:20):
He would look great in stripes, sure, and not in
the second round either. And I'm just telling you that
would be he'd he'd sell a lot of shirts.
Speaker 1 (34:27):
We would get ahead of it. Now, So may you,
may you, I mean you do it. That's good for you,
good business model. This is your side hustle.
Speaker 2 (34:33):
No, not really.
Speaker 4 (34:34):
Do you have a big takeaway on the divisional round
of the playoffs.
Speaker 2 (34:40):
I can't believe Baltimore lost that game. I you know,
I just you know.
Speaker 1 (34:46):
I think you start to wonder if they're ever gonna
get one because the last two years, you don't. We talked,
we talked about this in twenty one and twenty two.
You only get so many chances where it all comes together,
and man, it all it felt like even after last year,
it all came together and they had the home game
against the struggling the year where the Chiefs were down
(35:07):
a little bit, it seemed like, and then they had
a team that they knew they could beat and that
ended up being the other team with Super Bowl Like
it seemed like it was all setting up for them,
and they didn't win it, and Lamar didn't play, you know,
and he becomes a point of conversation, but as a whole,
they blew it right. But they recentered. They came back
with everybody that they were the best team in football.
I think they're the best team in football. But yet
(35:29):
they went there and they turned it over three times stupidly.
I mean just dropping the ball twice.
Speaker 2 (35:37):
Dropping then the wrong way.
Speaker 1 (35:39):
I mean yeah, I mean all of it, all of it,
and then they still had the chance to just catch
a two point conversion to tie it there in the end.
I just I felt like it had really set up
that and Ingred would be a tough road having to
go to Buffalo to Kansas City. But I just I
just felt like the way they were playing, the role
they were on, they were outside of a Flowers relatively healthy,
(36:00):
and I just am I'm just surprised. You know that,
you know we were gonna sit in here again, and
now it's just the scar tissue gets thicker.
Speaker 2 (36:08):
Man, when you go to the playoffs, you.
Speaker 1 (36:10):
And you don't you played below the level that you
are expected to play out or that you typically play
out over and over and over again. It's like we
used to talk about with the Marvin Bengals. It's not
that these teams are incapable of putting the past behind them.
It just it gets heavier every year if you've been
a part of it. And the advantage that twenty one
(36:30):
Bengals had was they weren't a part of it. It
was like totally separated from the past, and they we
went out there and played free. These Ravens are gonna
have a hard time doing that because it is it
just feels like.
Speaker 2 (36:41):
It hangs on them in these big spots.
Speaker 4 (36:43):
So Pittsburgh lost, and for forty eight hours, everybody talked
about Mike Tomlin, who has a similar resume to John Harball.
John Harball's not been there nearly as long, but they've
both won a Super Bowl. There's been a lot of
distance between now and those last Harbass had more success.
Speaker 2 (36:58):
Harball's had in the postseason, got to a championship game
last year.
Speaker 1 (37:03):
Uh.
Speaker 4 (37:04):
But I have seen folks wonder why isn't Harball being
talked about the way Tomlin was.
Speaker 2 (37:08):
I think the playoffs. He has had some playoffs.
Speaker 4 (37:10):
He's also got a better quarterback than Tomlin's had and
any point over the last five or six years. I mean,
it's gotta guys likely to be three time MVP. John
Harball is a great coach, but it is interesting to
me that Tomlin, understandably so, was put in the crosshairs
pretty squarely after Pittsburgh lost to Baltimore. Baltimore loses. I
think they have won playoff games. They did win one
(37:31):
this year.
Speaker 1 (37:32):
You gotta give moments, you gotta win some playoff games,
you gotta be and Toalins won. They haven't been competitive
in playoff games, you know, they haven't.
Speaker 2 (37:39):
So there's a difference. I mean, it matters what it
looks like, right sure.
Speaker 1 (37:43):
I mean I just feel like Harbass teams have been
close now they have have they fallen short and not
been as good in some of these moments. Like we
just talked, Yeah, but like me, still, it's not like
they're out there. They're they're to the wire with these teams.
They're winning some of these games. They're you know, they're
they're in the championship game last year. They're they're they're
playing their best at the end of the season. They
dismantled Pittsburgh in the first round. Like that's a dip.
(38:06):
I mean, that's why. Yeah, And you can't. I can't,
I don't. I don't view them in the same the
same boat. I get it, he's got the quarterback. But
you know that's part of your job as a head
coach if you've been around for a decade and a
half to get the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (38:18):
Get that right? They did?
Speaker 1 (38:20):
Who did Baltimore? Baltimore did Pittsburgh and he's not devoided
responsibility on that.
Speaker 4 (38:29):
Well. It's interesting because I said last week, I really
hope Pittsburgh stays with what they're doing, right, Like I
I don't want Baltimore to stay with what they're doing.
I want them to move. Yeah, if like Steve Tomlin
can be hired, if Mike as a brother.
Speaker 2 (38:43):
I'm sorry, I think I just think Baltimore is really
well run. No, that they are.
Speaker 4 (38:47):
I don't think anybody Costa who follows the league would
doubt that.
Speaker 1 (38:50):
Acosta on down, they do such a good job of replenishing.
They draft.
Speaker 4 (38:54):
Well, that's the most like passionate I've heard you was
the defending John Harbaugh.
Speaker 2 (38:58):
It's good. Sorry, I think.
Speaker 1 (38:59):
Harball it's the most passionate. Gods, I gotta some look
in the mirror stuff right there. Really, I swear I'll
find passion about other things.
Speaker 4 (39:10):
I are So we had more officiating issues in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (39:13):
It's so good. Can we talk about those guys? Yeah?
Speaker 4 (39:16):
And because I do, you think there's a legitimate fix,
not the league being fixed, that's not that guy, yeah,
but folks who like throw their hands up and go, well,
the league has a problem with the officiating. It's all
we talk about anymore. And there's I think there's validity
to that. We spend way too much time talking about it.
Is there a realistic fix to make officiating less of
a talking point than it seems to be at the
(39:37):
end of every NFL weekend?
Speaker 1 (39:38):
Yeah, I think they have to lean into the like
sky Judge thing a little bit more as much as
you can. Where Now there there's another side of this,
because you know what I can't stand and it just
gets the end of college.
Speaker 2 (39:53):
Basketball games nothing worse the last two minutes.
Speaker 1 (39:57):
They have ruined the sport almost with the way these
games end, where every single play ends up with these guys.
Speaker 2 (40:05):
I at the.
Speaker 1 (40:06):
Monitor, working the wheel, looking at a million replays on
every single detail, and it's like the game I don't
even want the game to get the last two minutes.
Speaker 2 (40:14):
That's when I want to turn it off now, So
you can't go that far.
Speaker 1 (40:17):
But there's a way with sky Judge and with quick
you know, buzzing down or whatever it is, that you
can be like alter this one fight, just open it
up to a little bit more, whether it is challengeable
penalties within the current challenge system not so you're not
adding more challenges, but it's more things that can be challenged,
so there's less discrepancy over some of these really critical
(40:39):
things and even even bad calls. I think at some
point you've got to get away from the referees feelings
and egos over having their calls overturned and judgment calls
not being subject to review. If you're gonnap. It's just
there's too many there's too much ability to sit there
and watch it and be like, but I just I
see it with my own eyes.
Speaker 2 (40:58):
This is like the catch argument.
Speaker 1 (41:00):
I see it with my own eyes, like that's not
a penalty, or that is a penalty. I can see
it like that on the replay. Why can't you have
somebody who's just sitting there like everyone in America and
saying that's not a penalty, buzz like and fixing that
or having it be challengeable quit you know, and open
to open to fit. I think that's the only way
you can go. You gotta fight fire with fire in
(41:20):
this one. If America is seeing it this way, yes,
you as a referee contingent need to also be able
to see it that way. That's the only way I
think that you can really fix it, because it's otherwise.
It's you're always gonna have the slow, super slow motion
replays and all that stuff. It's it's a hard job.
They put too much on those guys plates as it is.
It's passionate enough.
Speaker 2 (41:41):
It's good. It's you're fired enough. I like it.
Speaker 4 (41:43):
My favorite part of the college basketball thing they do
with the replay monitor is they'll have two of the
officials go to the monitor and then the one will
stand like five feet behind them with his arms crossed,
sometimes just staring into the crowd and he's like, I
don't have to check this out.
Speaker 2 (41:59):
I'm not a part of it.
Speaker 4 (42:00):
And invariably the two guys at the monitor, hey man,
why don't you take a look at this? And if
I was that guy, I would say, no, you can't
figure it out.
Speaker 2 (42:09):
You can't figure it. You can't.
Speaker 4 (42:10):
Then you guys decided you wanted to take a look
I'm standing here. Once you decide that.
Speaker 2 (42:16):
Do not ask for my assistance.
Speaker 1 (42:17):
No, no, If you can't figure it out over there
in ten seconds by looking quickly at a replay, then
stands as called right, let's go move on. Please, I
don't need another five minute break while we look at it.
Whose fingertip it hit first? You ever send a vague
tweet yourself?
Speaker 2 (42:33):
Sure? I might do one.
Speaker 1 (42:34):
Now, I'll do one right after the show, just to
make people wonder what I'm talking about.
Speaker 2 (42:38):
Great, I'll do that. I'll do that for you. Thanks. Yeah,
it's not gonna be aimed at me, is it.
Speaker 1 (42:43):
I mean, you won't know. It'll be vague. That's the
whole point, all right. Read Paul's work the Athletic dot Com.
Hear the podcast. It's the Growler. When's the When am
I on again tomorrow?
Speaker 2 (42:55):
Tomorrow? Great? Very good?
Speaker 4 (42:56):
All right, well we look forward to that. Balls don't lie.
Check out Paul's work again in The Athletic. Let's talk
about last night's National Championship game and the big announcement
afterward next on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports.
Speaker 3 (43:07):
Station Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty. Traffic from the.
Speaker 5 (43:13):
UC Health Traffic Center. At UC Health, you'll find comprehensive
care that's so personal it makes your best tomorrow possible.
That's found less care for better outcomes. Expect more at
UCHealth dot com East found two seventy five at I
seventy five. It's an accident that off onto the right
shoulder southbound seventy five at Ezra Charles Drive. Another accident
(43:37):
on the left shoulder northbound seventy one seventy five. It's
an accident before twelfth Street. I'm at Ezelik with traffic
Mo Egger News
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