Cincy 360 with Tony Pike -- 7/24/24

Tony Pike talks all about Bengals on the opening day of Bengals training camp. Tony talks with Ben Baby of ESPN, Richard Skinner of Channel 12 and of course Talkbacks, Quick Hits and Locks of the Night.

Episode Transcript

(00:00):
This is Skyline Chile. Sincy threesixty about Cincinnati from Cincinnati, sponsored in
part by Skyline Chile. Stop bySkyline Chili for a three way or cheeze
cony today. Feeling good, It'sSkyline time. This is ESPN fifteen thirty,
Cincinnati Sports Station. Good afternoon,Happy Wednesday. Welcome into the dust

(00:25):
edition of Cincy three sixty on ESPNfifteen thirty, Cincinnati Sports Station, a
service of our good friends at SkylineChili. However, you're listening to today's
show right now live on ESPN fifteenthirty or via the iHeartRadio app whenever you're
catching up, we certainly appreciate it. Look, here's the deal. We

(00:46):
are the home of the Bengals hereon ESPN fifteen thirty, and training camp
is here. And if you're watchingany of my pre show video today on
Tony Underscore Pike fifteen on Twitter,then you know what that means. We
are in football mode. And that'snot to say that we will not give
credit where credit is due to theCincinnati Reds. We'll talk about the Reds
today. They got a double headergame. One's gonna see first pitch in

(01:08):
about eighteen minutes. From now inAtlanta, a doubleheader from Atlanta FC.
Cincinnati made an acquisition is part.That's what they do. They do not
sit oddly by, and that shouldbe noted and celebrated as well. But
speaking of celebrations, that is whattoday is for. Because we made it,

(01:30):
man, we officially made it.And it's been so much harder because
the Bengals season ended so much earlierthan what anyone imagined. And let's be
honest, it didn't end when theseason ended. It ended when Joe Burrow
got hurt. That took away thechances at the playoffs out of magical run
that night in Baltimore. So let'sjust call it what it is. It's
been a long offseason. And yeah, what Jake Browning did was cool and

(01:53):
the storylines were fun to follow,but the season ended when Joe Burrow went
down. Made the off season thatmuch longer. And what have we done?
Free agency combines, drafts, morefree agency roster predictions, schedule release
parties. We're finally back. Trainingcamp opens today at pay Corpse Stadium,

(02:19):
the practice fields at pay Corpse Stadium, and I'm so excited football's back.
We're going to try to do everythingwe possibly can today to get you primed
and ready for training camp, forpreseason and for the regular season. Now
here's what I need from you.We're trying to take this show to the
next level. I want this footballseason to be like nothing we've had ever

(02:42):
before, from a coverage standpoint,from a feature standpoint, from a segment
standpoint. So this show was madefor you, the listener. This show
was made for you to feel likeyou are a part of what's going on
right here for three hours every singleafternoon, which means I want to hear
from you five one, three,seven, four, nine, fifteen thirty.

(03:04):
You can leave a talkback, youcan send me a tweet at Tony
Underscore Pike fifteen. I want toknow, as the football season is now
here, what can we do tomake it better? What features would you
like to see added? What typeof coverage would you like to see added?
Maybe there's features you would like tosee we go away from. I
want this show to be about you, the listener, and I want you

(03:29):
to enjoy every second of it.So what are things we could do?
What are things we can add?What are things we can take away to
make sure that this football season withthe optimism at an all time high is
unlike anything else we have seen herein Cincinnati, and like anything else we've
ever done to cover the Cincinnati Bengals. I'm all ears. We are working

(03:50):
endlessly here to make sure that wedeliver from today all the way through ideally
the Super Bowl, and yes,a week from today the Bearcats open up
their training camp. We'll cover that. It's going to be an exciting college
basketball season. Maybe the Reds stillhave a run at them. Heck,
maybe by the end of the daytoday, by about nine o'clock to night,

(04:14):
maybe the Reds get two. Maybethe Reds are all the way back
to just three games under five hundred, and if so, we'll do what
we always do. We'll crawl backin. Maybe f C Cincinnati gets it
turned around and they stop the skidand they show signs of getting back to
who they were for much of theseason. And again, when all that
happens, happy to talk about it. We've got so much to get to

(04:36):
with the Cincinnati Bengals today. We'lldo so for much of the day.
BENBABYBESPN dot com is going to joinus at one o'clock. Richard Skinner of
Local twelve is going to join usat two o'clock. Now it is going
to be a little bit different todaybecause Chad Brendle is in for Moagar and

(04:56):
practices get underway, I believe aroundtoday. So I'm gonna take it all
the way up to quick hits,and then Chad Brendle will handle quick hits,
get you lined up for what he'sgot coming up, and kind of
pass the baton that way. SoI won't be here for quick hits.
I'll be here for everything else.Uh, for those conversations, for your
talkbacks, and more importantly, foryour phone calls. Five one, three,

(05:18):
seven, four, nine, fifteenthirty. Uh be a part of
today's show. As we go aheadand look at everything that happened yesterday,
we review the top stories, mostlyfrom sports. It's brought to you by
our friends at Klaus Roofing System ofCincinnati, the trusted local roofing and gutter
company. Visit krscinc dot com.That's Krscincy with a y dot com.

(05:40):
Mentioned before, Reds did not playlast night, so there's nothing to get
to from a Cincinnati Red standpoint.Now. The only thing that there is
able to get to for the CincinnatiReds is a little bit of a change
from how things were gonna be handled. It's not Nick Martinez in Game one.

(06:00):
It's Frankie Muntas taking the mound forthe Cincinnati Reds in Game one,
and again as that game gets turnedaway here in about fourteen minutes, Jonathan
India is gonna play second in boutleadoff, Elie de la Cruz at short.
Jamercandelario's the d H. Spencer Steerbats clean up playing first base.
Tyler Stevenson is the catcher. JakeFrayley bats sixth and plays left field.

(06:24):
Nouelvee Marte bats seventh playing third base. It's Reese Hines in right field,
bout a eighth, and Will Benson, who had a phenomenal Game one against
the Atlanta Braves, will bat ninthfor the Atlanta Braves. They turned to
Alan Winnins today, who's zero toone on the year with a ten point
eight to zero ERA. They turnedto Winnings in Game one, and I

(06:45):
believe for Game two at this pointtoday, it will be Martinez for the
Reds at least so far, andChris Sayle tonight for the Atlanta Braves.
So the starter move around just alittle bit everything else stays the same.
For the Cincinnati Reds again, Gameone of the doubleheader coming your way in

(07:08):
just over ten minutes. How aboutthe Universal Champion in the WWE, Cody
Rhoads, whose famous finish your storyslogan is kind of what overtook the Royal
Rumble and all the way up toWrestleMania where he beat Roman Reigns. Cody
Rhodes finished the story. And I'mtalking to our WWE guy Rick Uchino earlier

(07:29):
today, and Rick said, howcrazy is it that Cody Rhodes tweeted at
Joe Burrow yesterday. Now, thesetwo, because of the new hair from
Joe Burrow, look eerily similar.They threw the neck tattoo on Joe Burrow.
They threw a title around his belt. Maybe Joe Burrow finishes the story
for the Cincinnati Bengals in New Orleansback home in Louisiana. Maybe that's a

(07:57):
foreshadow of what's to come. MaybeJoe Burrow need to finish the story.
Regardless, pretty cool to get theww champ tweeting at Joe Burrow. And
I do have one last thought onthe Joe Burrow side of things. Look,
I know that a lot of peoplesay, well, the buzz cut,

(08:18):
he's back to business. I findit hard, though, when he
dyed the hair blonde, because ifhe had just cut the hair and he
shows up with the buzz cut,no one's really talking about it. Back
to business, got rid of thehair, ready to go at camp.
When you dye the hair blonde,you make more of a statement. You're
gonna bring more of attention to yourself, and maybe that's a good thing.

(08:43):
But he knew what he was doing. That's what he signed up for.
But we have camps opening up nowacross the NFL. We have a lot
that we'll get to on the CincinnatiBengals, starting really when we get back
from our first break of the show. I do have to say I spent
yesterday at the Great Wolf Lodge,and uh, you're asking why I spent

(09:03):
it. My wife and I askedour son, Wilder, who turned four
on Monday. We asked him whathe wanted for his birthday, and I
don't think it was a shot athis siblings. He just said he wants
to go to a pool with justme and his mom. Didn't want our
daughter or our new son going.He just wanted some time with Mom and
Dad uh Great Wolf Lodge. Myfirst time going was extremely accommodating. Great

(09:28):
Spot. Now we just did ahalf day pass where not we didn't stay
the night or anything like that,so we had a lot of fun.
Unfortunately, my son was a littlehesitant to go down some of the water
slides, So the first slide,as soon as we got there, I
rode with him down the slide andI'm doing my best to make sure that,

(09:48):
you know, we don't hit thebottom of this slide, and he
doesn't, you know, go underthe water, and then he hates slides
and he doesn't do anything the restof the day. So I'm doing all
I can to keep him above thewater, and I did really good job.
I kept him above the water asI kind of pushed him to Meredith,
I put my hand on the groundof the pool to push myself up.

(10:13):
Somehow, some way, there wasa vent like a filter located right
there where I was pushing my handup at the bottom of the slide,
and as I did so, withina split second, my wedding ring fell
off and was sucked into that filter. I am now without a wedding ring.

(10:33):
If you're listening from Great Wolf Lodge. Can you check the filtration system?
Just not a good start. Kidhad a great time, We had
a great time. Lost the ring. Would like to find that the things
you do for your kids is absolutelyinsane. What else is going on across

(10:54):
the sports world? Before we diveinto all of the Bengals, there's a
story out there right now from KyleShanahan that he offered Bill Belichick a chance
to continue his career on the sideline. Said that he offered Bill Belichick a

(11:16):
spot on the San Francisco forty nineers staff but was thrown What was turned
down? Now? Shanahan says hecan't believe he's not head coach of a
team right now. Knows what hewould do if he was an owner.
But Kyle Shanahan, what a smartmove. I wonder if there's any other
team out there that did make thecase to get Bill Belichick somehow on the

(11:39):
staff. And I see it fromBill Belichick to say, Okay, that's
fine, but I want to bea head coach. I'm not going to
go on a staff and be toldwhat to do it. There's so many
years of running an organization. Iget that, but I wonder how many
other teams did that as well.Other news is training camps are now happening
all over the place to his practice, even though contract talks are still happening.

(12:03):
That's going to be a kind ofa returning theme going on now.
There's a lot of players with contracttalks. There are stories out there that
the Browns and the Patriots are alreadytwo teams eyeing t Higgins for next season.
And if you're wondering why the Browns, well they won't have a wide
receiver one next season. They gaveanother five million guaranteed to Amrii Cooper.

(12:24):
But this is the final year ofa Mariy Cooper's contract, So Amari Cooper
is now satisfied in Cleveland. Butit's just for this season. And I
want to talk more today about theAFC North as a whole. I want
to talk more today. I wantto talk about the other teams in the
North USA today. Yesterday did aprojection of all thirty two teams in the

(12:46):
NFL from a record standpoint, andthey projected every team in the AFC North
they have a winning record, Pittsburghbeing at the bottom at nine and eight,
the Bengals winning the AFC North ateleven and six. That's how small
of a margin the AFC North isviewed to have. No other division in
football had all four teams with winningrecords. But it goes to show the
national thought on the AFC North andI just think it's very unique to look

(13:13):
at that. So we will talkabout those teams as they enter training camp
with some of the major storylines goingon in the AFC North. Here's a
little spoiler. They're all good teams. Now. Yes, they all have
questions, they all have storylines,just as the Bengals do. But from
a roster standpoint, they are allgood, good football teams as far as

(13:35):
the Cincinnati Bengals go. Trent Brownyesterday was put on the non football injured
list. Now, this, Ithink too many came as a major surprise,
and anything we do at this pointgoing forward would be speculation. Right.
There is no there is nothing thatwe know today at this hour about

(14:00):
Trent Brown that's not already out therehere. This according to Jay Morrison yesterday,
for those asking, the non footballinjury list could be anything from a
non football injury or illness. There'sno mandatory absence length. Browns can return
to Brown can return to practice atany time, but once he does,
he is not eligible to return tothe n f I. So while this

(14:22):
is a setback for one of themajor acquisitions in the offseason for the Bengals,
it also opens up the door forwho number one draft pick of Marius
Mimes. He's gonna have an opportunityto bolster his case. And look,
when you look at a Marius Mims, what is talked about lack of reps?

(14:43):
That is the one knock on AmriusMimes. Hey, he's great at
Georgia, but he just didn't playenough. What do you know what helps
a more reps? You know whathe's gonna get until Trent Brown comes back,
more reps. I'm assuming Trent Brownwill be back at some point.
I'm not gonna speculate. Is hemad that the team drafted a Marius Mims?
Maybe? Does he have something elsegoing on? Probably, But I'm

(15:05):
not gonna speculate. I just knowthat without Trent Brown, that opens up
the door more for a Marius Mims. And let's be honest. You know
what the first couple of days oftraining camp a or Zach training camp and
Zach Taylor even talked about it.They're gonna be out there in helmets.
It's a glorified walk through for acouple of days. Let's get into pads,
let's get into some live reps.Then we'll see where things are at

(15:26):
with Trent Brown. But as ofnow, I'm not putting a ton of
stock into it. Man, I'mexcited because football is back. Football is
here, and again, it's sodifferent this year because of how last season
ended. It already felt like theoffseason when the regular season was happening.

(15:48):
No Joe Burrow, we all knewwhat that meant. His team wasn't gonna
win a super Bowl last year,and it was a grueling end of the
season, and it made for agrueling off season. And there are so
many individual items in the offseason thatthe NFL does a great job of letting
you look forward to, but witheach one, it's still a reminder that

(16:10):
football is not back yet, andthat all changes today and it is a
glorious, glorious thing. Now.We talk about changing, some things change,
some things remain the same, Andone of the things that continues to
remain the same is the national mediaconsistently trying to find a way to tear

(16:32):
down or look for some type ofhole in the organization for the Cincinnati Bengals.
There's a clip from Mike Tannembaum andAdam Schefter talking earlier today. It
relates to the Jamar Chase contract conversation. We will get to that when we
get back. We'll get to moreof your phone calls five one, three,
seven, four, nine, fifteenthirty. Everything and anything we can

(16:56):
do to get you primed for thisnumber one of Bengals training camp, we'll
do so today. Ben Baby,Richard Skinner, your talkbacks, your phone
call, so much more. Betweennow and three o'clock. It's Cincy three
to sixty, a service of SkylineChili, right here on the Home of
the Bengals. ESPN fifteen thirty CincinnatiSports Station. Now your chance to win

(17:17):
one thousand dollars entered this nationwide qwardon our risty resumes, brought to you
by Save Auto. Give us threeminutes save up to twenty five percent on
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.Welcome back, Cincy three to sixty.

(17:41):
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station,a service of Skyline Chili. Reds didn't
play last night. Which means there'sreally no calls a night to be had
last night. But I can tellyou that we can still name a power
player of yesterday's game, because I'mnaming him the power player of the whole

(18:02):
season for the Cincinnati Bengals. Let'sget it out of the way now,
let's name Joe Burrow the power playerof the game, because Joe Burrow,
when he dyed his hair blonde,became the power player. That is brought
to you by Cincinnati Tax Resolution.It's powered by Tave Sheldon. Joe Burrow
again, and I mentioned this,when you die the hair blonde, you're

(18:23):
making a statement. You keep itjust buzz cut. It's just hey,
we're getting back to football. Youdiet blonde. You're gonna bring some attention
with it. I love, love, love this version of Joe Burrow because
I think it's a Joe Burrow thatis ready to set the NFL on fire.
Now there's a clip from Jamar Chasetalking a little about Joe Burrow that

(18:47):
we're going to get to in justa little bit. But the first clip
I wanted to get to. It'sa clip that's flying around today because of
things that Mike Brown said at themedia luncheon earlier in the week as it
relates to Jamar Chase, and look, the premise of it is Mike Brown
saying, look, we're gonna doeverything we can to get a deal done,
but it's probably going to be afterthe season, and that's something for

(19:10):
the off season. And there areways that Mike Brown worded things that probably
could have been better. But youcan't tell me as we sit here that
there is any trepidation that Jamar Chaseis not going to be a Cincinnati Bengal

(19:30):
for a long time. What thatcomes with. I understand that it comes
with sacrifices that the team has tomake. But this thought that Jamar Chase
would potentially not be a Cincinnati Bengalis one of the most ludicrous things I
have heard in all of the offseason. And again I take this with

(19:51):
the grain of salt. That itis that Mike Brown could have handled words
differently on Monday, and that nationalmedia is going to run with any narrative
that the can. But listen hereto Adam Schefter and Mike Tannenbaum as they
talk about the Bengals and the JamarChase contract situation. Let me remind you

(20:14):
that Bobby Bernia, who hasn't playedfor the Mets in an awful long time,
is making more this year. Oneof the top wide receivers in all
of football. Bobby Banie is makingmore than him. And again, we
may see Jamaar Chase in Cincinnati hadBengals cab we may see him there.
But I think, and I don'tthink it's unreasonable to think this that Jamar
Chase has some decisions to make abouthow he's going to attack this summer,

(20:37):
how he's going to attack this seasonif that contract is left unadjusted and not
addressed, as Mike Brown is sayingwill be the case. Essentially, can't
you just see us getting into theseason his hamstring sore, his shoulders,
So whatever it may be, itis hard for me to imagine that Jamar
Chase is going to play this fullseason making one million dollars. You know,

(21:00):
Adam, I have two thoughts.That's number one. This goes back
to jailing Ramsey, going back tothe Jaguars, forcing his way out to
the Rams, and obviously he gota much better situation for himself. And
some of these situations we've talked aboutare close and Matthew Stafford was gonna make
thirty one million dollars and granted afifteen. But when you're roughly thirty four
million dollars below marketing value, Ican't imagine there's any conversation that has him

(21:26):
playing this season until there's at leastsome reasonable adjustment for this year, let
alone you know the contract extension heshould get. And I questioned the Bengals
strategy from this standpoint. Guys,if we went back, if the four
of us were having this conversation backright after the Super Bowl around the combine,
you could see Devonte Smith and allthese other players from I'm around Saint
Brown, Tyreek Hill, and allthe way up to Justin Jefferson. They

(21:48):
knew where the market was going.They cost themselves so much money maybe six
seven eight million dollars a year ona five year deal, that's forty million
dollars. If Cincinnati was more aggressiveof a few months ago, they should
have had this steal done. AndMike Brown said, the time to have
this conversation is in the off season. We're coming off of months of the
off season. So did they nothave the conversation, did they not get

(22:11):
the deal done? At that pointin time. The time to have that
conversation was in the off season.It's not next off season. Now it
hangs over everybody, all right,absolute absolute trash in my opinion. Listen,
there are a couple things that playhere. One, let's set the
record straight. Jamar Chase his basesalary this year is one point zero five

(22:36):
to five million dollars. He's gota signing pro ration of four point nine
million dollars, so he's not justmaking one million dollars this year. Regardless
of any of that. Legitimately,regardless of any of that, this group
of Mike Brown and company said onMonday that they were will be bending over

(23:00):
backwards to sign Jamar Chase. It'sgoing to happen. But this narrative out
there that it's the same old Bengalsownership group, it's the same Bengals organization
that's going to fumble at some pointis ridiculous. For Mike Tannebaum to talk
about Jamar Chase not showing up orplaying until he has something out there.

(23:22):
What are we doing legitimately, whatare we actually doing now? Could two
things be true? Could the Bengalshave looked and said, all right,
there's what Justin Jefferson's getting. Here'swhat the other top receivers in the NFL
are getting. This is where weslide Jamar Chase, this is what he's
going to get. Sign the deal. Yep, done, deal, Absolutely

(23:47):
well. The Bengals probably cost themselvesa little bit if they wait or when
they wait. Yeah, because thewide receiver market is only going to go
up. Maybe that's what Jamar Chaseonce. Maybe Jamar Chase said, you
know what, I'm good playing thisyear. I'm good balling out this year
and that money's gonna go up,and I'll make more than what Justin Jefferson

(24:10):
got, and I'll be the topdog in the NFL instead of being slotted
or having to put the Bengals upand say, okay, here's what Justin
Jefferson gets. What do you thinkof? What do you think of Jamar
Chase? What are you gonna payhim? Maybe Jamar sat back and said,
ah, I'll wait. Market's onlygonna go up. But to throw
a narrative out there on a showlike NFL Live to spend a segment about

(24:32):
man, maybe Jamar Chase shouldn't play, Maybe he should sit out, or
to allude that, oh that hamso he's gonna get tight and Jamar Chase
won't have a reason to play.Is complete, complete garbage, complete garbage.
Is Adam Schefter giving that same loveto Ceedee Lamb, who's not showing
up because he's waiting on a contractsituation. You know who is showing up.

(24:56):
Jamar Chase is here, He's readyto practice. Why doesn't that get
the notoriety? Is it because ofthe t Higgins situation? Is because of
years and years where this organization wasstuck in the mud or stuck in the
past. Maybe, but it's notnow. If you look at everything this
organization has done since Zach Taylor hasbeen hired, the way they have honored

(25:18):
their past greats, the way theyhave handled free agency, the way they've
handled the draft, the way theyhave paid at a fair or even above
average price to free agents to changethe narrative in Cincinnati. Does all of
that just get swept under the rug? Does all of that go unnoticed?
From an NFL standpoint, that wespew the garbage with the Jamar Chase contract

(25:45):
situation. I followed this team closerthan a lot of people. I never
once in the offseason thought, JamarChase steel is gonna get done. I
always felt like that was going tobe next year. At the end,
Yeah, it's good to cost theBengals more money. But do you genuinely
think for one second do you genuinelybelieve for one second that the Bengals would

(26:10):
just allow Jamar Chase to walk outthe door? Come on, come on,
we can't be that naive. Couldyou have made the case to get
the deal done? Yes? Arethe parameters there? Yes? Will the
money go up for wide receivers?Yes? All those things are true.

(26:34):
But don't sit in and make itabout the organization. Don't make it about
Mike Brown. Don't say that JamarChase shouldn't show up and play. That's
not who he is and that's notthe message that this organization is sent.
Again, could Mike Brown have beenbetter with his words on Monday? Yes?

(26:55):
Did Mike Brown also say that theyare going to bend over backwards to
make sure that this deal gets done? Yes? Also true. Relax around
the Jamar Chase side of things.This is just nothing more than a national
media standpoint trying to get a storyand make something more of something that's not
there. This is a non story. It's a non story from everything I've

(27:18):
heard seen followed. This is anon story. We'll talk more about this
story with Ben Baby coming up atone o'clock. Talk more about the Bengals
today all throughout this show, andspeaking of Jamar Chase, you want to
talk about loyalty. Jamar Chase isloyalty to Joe Burrow is on full display

(27:41):
with another video that's making its roundson social media. We'll get to that
video and more when we get back. We're just getting started. It's day
one of training camp for the CincinnatiBengals on cinty three p. Sixty and
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station,a service of Skyline Chile. In today's
Marketers Report, Arctact education at RBIOpportunity. Here he drives one toward the

(28:04):
corner and right on the run,the right fielder Duvall dives. Can't get
it. It's gonna get down andgo to the base of the wall.
Steer around second, digging for third, and the throw slips out of the
hand of the second basement. Itrolls in a no man's land. Here
comes Steer to the plate. Hedives in safely a Little League home run.
Spixer Steer circles the bases, ZachShort on the relay, turned to

(28:30):
throw, and the ball just poppedright out of his hand like a wet
bar of soap and went rolling intono man's land in the grass behind second
base, rolling over near the shortstopposition Arcia. By the time he got
there, it was too late Steer'sable to score. It's an error on
the second basement short allowing Steer toscore after the RBI tripled it had already

(28:55):
scored Daily Cruise and the Reds havea to nothing lead. All right.
How about that the old wet barof soap throw attempt from the Atlanta Braves.
How about the start for the CincinnatiReds. Right now, Ellie de
la Cruz singles, he gets hisfiftieth steal of the season. Spencer Steer
triples. He scores on the air. That is immediately followed up by Tyler

(29:19):
Stevenson, who walks, and thenJake Frayley, who through this point of
the season I believe, had onehome run hits his second home run of
the season, and the Reds afterone half inning have a four to nothing
lead with Frankie Muntas taking the moundin Game two in Atlanta. Good things

(29:41):
happening for the Cincinnati Reds. Beforewe went to break, I had a
conversation about the clip that's going aroundfrom Tannembaum and Schefter talking about Jamar Chase
and just outlandish takes. I'll retweetthe video on my Twitter Tony Underscore Pike
fifteen if you want to watch moreof it. But I did retweet a
different video. The NFL goes throughevery year their Top one hundred Players,

(30:04):
where they list the top players inthe game of football. This is voted
on, I believe by pretty mucheverybody, and they asked Jamar Chase,
who number one is? You wantto talk about loyalty, you want to
talk about a rivalry. Now everyoneknows at the top of this list,
it's still Patrick Mahomes. Listen toJamar Chase navigate through naming number one on

(30:27):
the list and who is the numberone player on the What I'm not saying
him. I get credit when todo, but I'm not saying his name.
You're talking about you do. I'mnot saying his name. Brother.
I'm sorry, Joe Burrow. I'mnot saying that guy's name. He's good,

(30:52):
he's amazing, He's good. Notgonna lie. I'm seloty, though
a little salty two years in arow. I don't put in Borough first.
The saltiness is there and the respectis there. But I love so

(31:14):
much the rivalry that has become theKansas City Chiefs and the Cincinnati Bengals.
I love it. It's it's somuch of what makes this sport great.
And mahomess do the flowers. They'vewon back to back championships. They're going
for a three peet. Joe Burrowand the Cincinnati Bengals are standing in their
way. They play early in theseason this year. It's going to be

(31:36):
absolutely electric. But make no mistakeabout it, there's a hate there.
There's a respect, and it's rootedin respect, but there's a hate for
that team. And Jamar Chase asloyal as they come to Joe Burrow,
and rightfully so, because there isgoing to be There is going to come
a time where I am fully confidentthat Joe Burrow is number one on that

(31:59):
list, and winning a championship whinthe Super Bowl would would go a long
way with that. But it's coming. Make no mistake about it, but
some good loyalty there. From widereceiver number one to quarterback number one for
the Cincinnati Bengals. Again, thatis wide receiver number one who will be
at training camp even though everyone saysthat, you know, really they shouldn't

(32:22):
be or he shouldn't be. Absoluteabsolute joke on that side of things.
For the first time today, wehave the ability to take a phone call.
Chris is calling in from Covington.What's up, Chris, Hey,
Tommy, how you been. I'mgood? How are you? I'm great?
Man. I just want to giveyou a little tidbit. Dock your
your wedding ring? Yes, yeah, you lost your wedding ring and I

(32:45):
lost mine. I'm a meet departmentmanager for a local company. I'm not
going to say. And I wasdown there grabbing around, grabbing around.
I had my wedding ring came offand the grinder grinder meat man a terrible
feeling. I got. Oh,well, I don't know if somebody was
eating gold when I cleaned the grinderafter I did the grinding and it was

(33:09):
gone. I didn't see nothing ofit. So you know she was.
She wasn't happy about that. Yeah, that's the thing like, I'm already
I'm counting it as a loss already, Chris, I really am. It's
gone. Man, you ain't gonnaget it back. I am. I'm
already figuring out the next step towhat I'm going to do to replace it.
And you know, maybe we gotthree kids now maybe I can maybe

(33:31):
I can get it any break andthen you got it, and then you
got to go buy her another ring. Yeah, it's just it's it from
a already. I mean it's notit's not cheap to go to Great Wolf
Lodge and eat and do everything else. So what was already a pretty expensive
birthday for my son has now turnedinto a much much more expensive that I
put myself here exactly. It wasnice part. Are you guys all put

(33:55):
on a great show. I reallyappreciate your share, and I really appreciate
Chris, I appreciate those words.Man, have a great day, too
bad, Thank you? Awesome stuff. All right, we have one more
segment here in our number one beforewe get to ben Baby. What I
would like to do, because wehaven't done so yet. We've talked about

(34:16):
positions of note for the Cincinnati Bengals, things that we're looking for when training
camp opens. But every year thereare those camp battles that take place the
back end of the roster. Who'sgoing to make a team in what spot
and whose spot could be up forgrabs. Let's highlight when we get back

(34:36):
a couple of those camp battles thatwill be under a microscope starting today,
because football is back training camps herewith the Cincinnati Bengals. This is since
E three to sixty ESPN fifteen thirtyCincinnati Sports Station, a service of Skyline
Chile, ESPN. Welcome back sincehe three to sixty on ESPN fifteen to

(35:07):
thirty Cincinnati Sports Station, a servicehere of our good friends at Skyline Chile.
Anytime you're feeling good and hungry,it is Skyline Chile Skyline Time.
We will be joined by Ben Babyof ESPN dot Com to kick off the
second hour of today's show. Beforewe get to that quick update, Red's
joined themselves no favors in the bottomhalf of the first two airs already,

(35:31):
a simple groundball single that Will Bensonmisplayed and center allows a runner to get
the third who scores on a fielder'schoice from Marcel Azuna, and then a
double play ball hit to Noelvee Martethrow that goes low to Elie de la
Cruz, who doesn't catch the ball, results in the second air in the

(35:52):
first inning for the Cincinnati Reds.It's now a four to one game,
runners on first and second for theAtlanta Braves with two outs for Frankie Mantas.
So we'll continue to watch a lota lot with the Cincinnati Reds,
but more importantly get to more conversationsaround the Cincinnati Bengals. Before any of
that, we have a phone callhere. Mike is calling, and what's

(36:15):
up? Mike? Hey, John, what's up? How are you?
I'm Hangland, I get your checks. I had three questions on one day.
You know, if I I wasthinking about this last night, if
I was you know, I mean, I'm a Reds fan, but if
I was really hardcore Reds fans,the one team in the league that would

(36:37):
be my rival, like the Bengalshave the Chiefs would be after what the
Giants did to them and what wasthe twenty thirteen coming back here and win
in next series. That would bethe team I would hate the most if
I was a Red stand not theCardinals, the Giants three straight. They
came into Great American Ballpark and wonthree straight games in that year after knocking

(36:59):
off the Reds, they went onto win the World Series at first Boche
something else. I still wouldn't countthe Rangers out at this point. Ay,
Cold String's a beautiful course. Huh, yeah it was. It was
really cool to play, uh,for such a great event. That was
my first time playing at Cold Stream. But so well done. The greens

(37:20):
are lightning fast. It's a challenge, but it's also one of those courses
that's fun to challenge yourself. Thatwas my first job, and I was
a kid caddy and when I wasabout twelve, I guess it was a
Cold String because they grew up inWashington and was just right up the street
in Anderson. So yeah, Ihave fund memories of that. I wanted
to ask you one more question andthen I'll hang up and listen. So

(37:43):
tell me why. If somebody askyou that, Tony, why will the
Bengals win the North over three reallygood teams? What would be your answer?
And I'll hang up and listen.But I'm not feeling that great Thanks
to Mike. Thank you. Thesimplest answer is Joe Burrow stays healthy.
I genuinely, genuinely think that ifJoe Burrow stays healthy, then the Bengals

(38:07):
can win a Super Bowl. Andit maybe it sounds like a cop out
answer, but it's not, becausewhen he has stayed healthy, they have
went to the Super Bowl and they'veplayed in the AFC Championship Game against the
Kansas City Chiefs. Like that,that's it right there, that's your answer.
You could dive into the secondary,you could dive into the pass rush,

(38:30):
you could talk about the offensive line. This team will go as Joe
Burrow goes, and if Joe Burrowis healthy, they can win. If
Joe Burrow is not, if hemisses games, it's gonna be much of
the same for the Cincinnati Bengals,and Mike I do appreciate that because I'm
gonna spend time an hour number threetalking about the AFC. I want to
do a kind of an AFC whiparound in the North because the Browns,

(38:52):
the Steelers, and the Ravens allare very competitive, all are loaded from
a roster standpoint, but all ofthem have interesting questions and storylines going into
camp. We'll dive into all ofthose. All of those when we get
into the third hour of today's show, Look position battles for Bengals training camp.

(39:15):
We'll expand more on this going forwardoffensive line obviously as a battle with
the unknown right now around Trent Brown, you get Amarus Mims. What about
the backups? All five starters playedevery rep last year, that's not going
to happen this year. Some ofthese backups are going to have to get
reps? Is it Jackson Carmen,Deontay Smith? What does it look like

(39:38):
is there? What is the roleif anything, for Chris Evans on this
roster? That to me is aninteresting battle to look at. When it
comes to the running back room.Is there a battle for Brad Robbins?
Is there a battle for Brad Robbinsas a punter with Austin McNamara in camp

(40:01):
for the Cincinnati Bengals. Is thereis there a surprise type of player?
I saw James Rapene did this earlieron when he talked about Joseph Osai.
Is there a path where Joseph Osaiis a surprise to watch in the back

(40:23):
end of this roster. Miles Murphyand what they have there, he hasn't
stayed healthy for any season. Yougot to think they took Murphy for a
reason. You got Hendrickson, yougot Hubbard. They added Cedric Johnson with
a six round pick, So I, like James, thought that that maybe
Joseph Osai is a guy to circleas it relates to training camp as well,

(40:50):
we need a break. When wecome back. Benbaby vespn dot com
is going to join us. We'lltalk to him and also your talkbacks.
I talked about the beginning of theshow this Bengal season. I want it
to be like nothing we've ever donebefore. I want the coverage to be
all over the place. I wantit to be as in depth as we
possibly can make it. I wantto add new features. I'm asking you

(41:13):
as well. This show is builtand catered around you, the listener.
So in a talkback today or ina tweet, what do you want to
see added? What do you wantto see maybe go away? What can
we do better? What can wedo more of in Bengals season? To
make sure that this coverage right hereon the Home of the Bengals is like
nothing else you'll find out there.Let us know, leave us at talkback,

(41:35):
give us a call or tweet atTony Underscore Pike fifteen It's going to
be a big year. I'm soexcited for Cincinnati Bengals and training camp getting
underway today. Let's get more ofa primer for you when we get back
with Benbaby at ESPN dot com atSincy three to sixty thanks to Skyline Chile
on ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati SportsStation, ESPN fifteen thirty, Online at

(41:58):
ESPN fifteen thirties, on your phonewith the iHeartRadio app and on hundreds of
devices like Alexa, Google Home,Xbox, and Sonos and iHeartRadio station.
Tony Pike with my friends at TriState Men's Health Look. Intimacy is a
special moment when we feel deeply connectedto the one we love. See shirts
Cincy three sixty about Cincinnati from Cincinnati, sponsored in part by Cinci Shirts.

(42:22):
Cinci Shirts All Cincy, all Day. This is ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports
Station. All right, welcome backour number two thanks to Cinsi Shirts on
ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station.It's the first day of Bengals training camp,
which means we are getting you primedand ready for the upcoming Cincinnati Bengals

(42:43):
season. There are multiple storylines thatwe can get to Let's get things underway
today with a man that covers theCincinnati Bengals for ESPN, and he's nice
enough to join us right now.Ben, Baby, Ben, what's going
on? Man? How are you? I'm doing great, Tony. I'm
honored to be on All Show,which I absolutely love. By the way,
on the first day of camp,I mean it is a I'm really

(43:05):
puffed about this, Ben Hay,thank you for that. Before we dive
into the Bengals, though, Ihave to ask, there was so much
excitement in the city of Cincinnati fora potential second round matchup in the TBT
between Nasty Natty and the Brown Ballers. Nasty Natty loses a tough one to
about billions. Did the Brown Ballersactually show up in Cincinnati or not?
They were beaten eighty three to fiftyfour. What went wrong for the Ballers?

(43:30):
You know, that's a great question. When you look at that squad,
you know, I have a lotof eye hopes for that what was
formerly known as India Rising, comingoff of what they did last year in
the tvt was hoping they can makesome noise. This year was just not
the case. Very very frustrating tosee that. I don't know. You
know, Luckily I'm still right highafter the India winning the T twenty Cricket

(43:51):
World complience before you discuss plenty ofthem on this show. But maybe next
year look at that Natty Round Bowlersmatch up here at Sydney. That's fair,
That's fair, All right, Ben, Let's start with this because look
the Jamar Chase situation. I thinkMike Brown could have he could have used
his words better on Monday. Butwhenever something is said the national standpoint,

(44:14):
people are gonna take it and run. So now all eyes in the NFL
look to the Jamar Chase contract situation. I saw Schefter and Tannembaum talking about
it. Talk to me about yourknowledge of Jamar Chase in the Cincinnati Bengals.
Is there any scenario where you seethis becoming a problem. I think

(44:35):
it's still too early to say thatit's going to be a problem, given
where they're at in negotiations. Imean, it's still relatively early when you
look at other receivers who have notgotten healed. You talking about Cede Land,
Brandon Ayuk, guys who are likeJamar in that range get one done,
you know, So I think it'sa little too early about that.
I think that, you know,it's an interesting watching the reaction to everything,

(44:59):
because I think, really when yousee the fans talking about this,
the stent that I get is thatthere is a sense of nervousness that you're
seeing kind of manifest with all thecomments about the comments about maybe it isn't
gonna be as much of a slamdunk as we thought it was going to
be. And like I said,it's still very early in the process,
but we do know, and Ijust wrote about it for ESPN dot Com.

(45:20):
The guaranteed money in the second yearis something that Bengals are not done
for anybody not named Joe Berlin.I think when you look at the money
that's going to be involved for Jamaaland Chase of what he's looking for,
that was definitely gonna I think thebest way to structure that contract is you're
gonna likely have to put guaranteed moneyin other years. And obviously had something
that Jamar's got to push back onwhen we talked about that at the end

(45:42):
of last season, and how muchhe values himself whereas how much the team
is willing to pay. I thinkit's going to be very interesting to watch,
and I think that's not something thatis an insignificant part throughout this whole
negotiation process. So as this continuesto develop, and as Mike said,
you know that Duy has probably beencasked and that this is going to maybe

(46:04):
go until next off season. Youknow, where are they going to land
or how far apart are they goingto be, and how much he's going
to be worth. You know,I think then we'll start to talk about,
you know, maybe levels of concern. But I think it's all very
fair play right now to discuss wherethings are at on both sides of the
equation. Let me ask you anotherthing to discuss right now, and that's
Trent Brown. Ben Look, TrentBrown. The team announced yesterday they placed

(46:28):
him on the non football injury list. Can you just dive in a little
bit more officially to those that don'tknow what the non football injury list means?
And obviously him missing opens up ahuge opportunity for a Marius Mims as
well. Yeah, I'll say thatTrent, this is not a great situation
for Trent Brown because already going inand granted the team they have known on

(46:50):
Monday that he was going to goon the NFI list, But you know
that they said that this is eventuallya competition between the Marius Nyms and Trent
Brown. And so for a veteranwho's already struggled to stay healthy in the
last couple of years, when youhave that kind of track record, you
want to be able to put yourbest foot forward. And we've seen the
situation in the past. You know, we've seen Lyyle Collins be on that

(47:10):
list and battle injuries in camp andthen come back and play, and then
we've you know that right tackle situation. Has there been such a revolving door,
And you know, I think it'salso a little early to get concerned
about Trent Brown's health status. We'llsee what Zach Taylor has to say today
about that as that continues to getcloser to camp. It because that risk
of missing regular season games ben thatbecomes a different situation. But as things

(47:35):
currently stand, I think that,you know, we'll kind of see how
this development, really see what thelong term concern is. But right now,
I think it's a little too earlyto get worked up and really getting
kits about that situation. And it'sa great chance to see what Amarus continues
to do, someone who had thosefirst team reps throughout the whole offseason while
Trent was away. I do haveto ask Ben, I saw you tweeted

(47:58):
out yesterday getting all the Joe Burrowhairtakes out of the way early, any
big hairtakes from Joe Burrow that youhad, because I see this a little
bit differently. Right If Joe Burrow, if he just went with the buzz
cut, and he showed up atcamp with the buzz cut, You're like,
Okay, this guy's locked and he'sready to go. But choosing to
dye the hair blonde, he knewthat was going to bring attention. Right.

(48:22):
Yeah, Listen, everything Joe doesthere is a reason behind it.
I think that he's someone who thinksabout everything, so the fact that he
made this move is not insignificant.I'm very curious to see what he has
to say about it. I thinkit's fascinating that the last time that we
know he had this look was backin his senior of Athens when they went
to mid that deep run and helost in that state championship game, and

(48:44):
that's something that is stuck in hiscrawl ever since then. It's something that
has really never gone away, andI'm very curious to see why he did
that, if there's any connection withthat, definitely one of the big questions
we're going to find out. Also, I want to know how it feels
about the Cody Roads and Eminem comparisons, which he prefers. So we're going
to get into all the heavy hittingstuff today Day one here down in Cincinnati,

(49:04):
and by the way, Tony Ijust pulled in. It is packed.
I am struggling to find parking rightnow. This is gonna be a
pack day. Let me ask youthat because that's where I was going to
go next. You've covered this teamnow for multiple years. What is the
difference this year in your opinion ofthe feel going into training camp. We've
had camps before where Burrow's coming offinjuries, We've had camps before coming off

(49:27):
of a Super Bowl appearance. Whatis it in your opinion about this year's
camp that maybe feels different, thatmaybe leads to much of that excitement that
you just talked about with the crowdsalready showing up for camp. Yeah,
you know, I think this it'snight and day. The fervor in this
city from when I got here intwenty nineteen and even at the beginning of

(49:47):
twenty twenty one when Joe is here, on how much the city's been re
energized and passionate about their football team, which is someone who comes from a
great football state. That's great tosee. I do think that this camp
is going to be very different inthe fact that I think Joe Burrow is
going to have something to prove.I think he's going to have to go
out and show he's the same quarterbackhe was before. He's able to do

(50:08):
what the risk isn't bothering him.You know, we saw him start out
the off season pro This isn't thisis kind of went under reported and under
talked about. But let's go backand look at what happened this offseason.
He started out the off season programas normal, did not have any rest
days. As things progressed, youknow, they work those rest days in
Zach Taylor made it a point tosay we're going to be proactive, and

(50:31):
it was interesting. You listened toMike Brown the other day and I think
he said it in one of theother interviews. You know, he asked
Joe Burrow before that Rams game lastyear not to play and Joe ended up
playing anyways, And now we kindof see this shift and that there is
a sense that Joe understands what needsto happen, what needs to occur in
order for him to be on thefield, and I think for him to

(50:52):
be able to come out here,put out some very good weeks together,
have a strong camp, and giveconfidence that this is going to be a
one hundred percent full go going intothis big season, especially when it could
be the last time he has JamarChason t Higgins on the same field and
that caliber receiver. I think thatthe states are as high as they've been
since he's gotten here. Offensively,Ben, do you put more from a

(51:15):
camp standpoint on what happens in therunning back room or what's going to happen
to fill out that wide receiver threerole for the offense. Yeah, given
what we've seen, I think Burrowhas been able to make it work with
whoever's been that wide receiver three,and the options they have are solid.
You know, when you look atTrenton Merwin, who's been a proven commodity
in that situation, you look atJermaine Brown, who they are really high

(51:38):
on internally, and then you know, we'll see what Charlie Jones brings to
the table as well, and canhe work his way into that rotation.
You know, I think that's goingto be settled by and large, and
that's not as significant as what we'regoing to see in the running back room,
because ultimately they need better production thanthey've gotten the last few years.
You know, Joe Mixon was solidin what he was able to give you,

(51:59):
but he was really able to takeadvantage of the way teams were playing
him. And that was the casereally the last few years. And so
they need either Zach Moss or ChaseBrown to really take a hold of that
running game, create those explosive runs, be somebody who can be on the
field on third downs, something Mixand failed to be in his time here.
And I think if they can fillout that role and give them more

(52:21):
than what they've had, it's goingto open up that passing game, which
is really something that needs to bemore explosive, which is something Dan Pitcher
has talked about the entirety of thisoffseason. Defensively, As we spend just
a few more minutes here with BenBaby, who's just getting to training camp.
Day one of the Bengals training campstarts today. Switch me to the
defensive side of the ball. Bendso much, so much has been made

(52:44):
about who's gonna play corner, thedepth at the safety position. Let me
talk about the defensive line real quick, because this is a defensive line that
for much of the offseason the questionwas have they done enough. They bring
in Sheldon Rankins, they draft ChrisJenkins, Hill was back, They need
to get after the passer better.You still have Joseph Osai, Miles Murphy,

(53:05):
Sam Hubbard who's healthy, and obviouslyTrey Hendrickson is the defensive line in
your opinion, at a good enoughspot going into training camp to be a
weapon for this defense. Yeah,you know, the more you as you
talked about that, I was thinking, this is definitely an underrated group in
my opinion. When you look atit, I know that pressure needs to

(53:25):
be better, and they definitely understandthat as well. But when you talk
about Hubbard being healthy, which isa significant thing, having that tightrope surgery
in the offseason to repair the stuffhe was dealing with before he suffered that
injury, I thought he was asdisruptive as he's been in his time in
Cincinnati and was really winning a lot, really doing a good job to get
pressure off the edge, and evenif he wasn't getting sacks, he was

(53:47):
being disruptive. I liked what MilesMurphy did and our internal numbers at ESPN
the pass rush win rate towards theend of the season. He was as
effective as any rookie edge rusher inthe league last year. So I think
that'll definitely continue. In the bigX factor for me, Sheldon Rankins is
going to be a massive addition forthis team. And the reason I say
that is when you are able tobring a rush from the interior, that's

(54:10):
going to be huge. And that'ssomething he's been able to do throughout his
NFL career. And I was talkingto somebody, you know, in the
front office the other day and Isaid, you know, I'll be honest.
When y'all get DJ Reader that money, I kind of raised Vibral a
little bit because he's not a guy. He got premium, you know,
disruptive money, guys who generally createpressures and tacks. That's what they paid
DJ and you know, and itdidn't really fit his profile. Ultimately,

(54:34):
we saw what his value was,and he definitely earned every dollar he got
here at Cincinnati was really huge formthe turning of this franchise. But in
getting Sheldon, I think you're goingto get a guy who's going to be
more vertical, and it's definitely somethingthat defensive line has really lacked the last
couple of years. If if wehave spent so much of the off season
on the defensive line, safeties andcorners, does that mean we're assuming the

(54:57):
linebacker position is solid? There wassome converse around Jermaine Pratt, but you
know what Logan Wilson is in themiddle. You hope a team Davis Gaither
can take the next step. Ifeel like it's the one position that we
really didn't talk about at all inthe offseason. Where are you at from
a comfort level with the Bengals linebackingcorps? Yeah, you know, I
think when you see the communication thatthat bond Bell brings back to the table,

(55:21):
Uh, you know, the improvementsthey made and I think that you
know, Jermaine and Logan also inthe category if they have a lot to
prove as well. And we'll seeif they, if Sheldon can, if
they if that defensive line looks good. If that interior is solid, you're
gonna use they should be in positionto make place throughout the course of the
year. Uh. You know,they paid both of those guys. Uh,
you know that those are corner stonesof their defense for at least the

(55:43):
next couple of years. And andquite frankly, they need to play like
they did before they got paid.And you know, I think having von
Bell back having more so you know, you know, uh, solidarity in
that corner in that secondary room,I should say. And then the improvements,
like we talked about on the defense, those backers need to be able
to play well because if not,then I think that you it's definitely gonna
hurt this defense. And they doneed to be better than they were last

(56:06):
year, there's no doubt about that. Lastly, Ben, but before I
let you go, we talk alot about the front end of the roster.
Every year there is essentially training campbattles that take place. What's the
biggest camp battle, maybe for aroster spot, maybe for a starting spot
that you have your eyes on.With camp getting underway today, That's a
really good question. And I keepthinking about it because you know, for

(56:29):
me, it seems like a lotof it is going to be It's going
to play itself out pretty pretty quickly. I think when you talk about that
wide receiver three the cornerback room,you know, I think probably that Dax's
Hill battle with DJ Turner for thatspot. I think it's huge because here's
the thing. I think Dax isgoing to should have to prove this relatively
quickly because if not, if hedoes not, you know, play as

(56:51):
well as he needs you to bethat outside corner, then I think you
have to ask the question, whatexactly do you do with Dax Hill?
You can you know, this isa guy you drafted in twenty two,
He has a lot of athletic trades. This is going to be his third
year. At what point do youneed to find out where he is more
valuable to you? Do you wantto try him at slot next year in
twenty twenty five, on the lastyear of his rookie deal, and then

(57:14):
have him not play essentially for thefirst three years, where he'd be more
valuable as a trade asset, muchlike Billy Price was when they got DJ
Hill in twenty twenty one. Ithink for me, that long term question
about Dax is the biggest thing,and he's he more valuable to your roster
now or maybe as an asset asa trade piece, And I think that's
something. If he continued, ifhe plays well, does what he did

(57:36):
in the spring, that should relativelywork itself out. But if not,
DJ is able to show he isgoing to be that number one quarterback,
then you should be asking questions aboutwhat's best for Cincinnati and also really what's
best for Dak a guy who reallyhas still been trying to find a position
to stick out and has done everythingasked of him and just hasn't worked out
so far. That's Ben Baby.He covers the Cincinnati Bengals for ESPN.

(57:58):
Ben, It's been awesome to catchup on day one of training camp.
I look forward to catching up againsoon. I'll see you soon at a
training camp. But really, moreimportantly, I appreciate you stepping up to
the mic after the Brown Bawlers didnot show up to the TBT and still
coming on the show and talking aboutit. You're the best, Ben.
What's the easiest way to follow alongeverything you got going on in your coverage

(58:19):
of the Bengals. Yeah, youknow, we're at ESPN dot com.
Really been making a big Instagram pushthe last couple of years at b Baby
forty one. So those are reallythe two places, if you got to
pick two, those are the placesI'm standing yet. But no, this
was fun, Tony. I cannotwait to do this again. I can't
wait to see you in person,and we'll talk more about this basketball battle
and it's gonna be going now foranother year. Maybe since they're both out,
they can just get together and playfor fun and we will find it

(58:45):
when we can find some sponsors.We get them as part of the Fifth
League at submission, we'll see whatwe can do here. Love it,
Ben, I'll see us soon.Man, Thanks for taking the time today.
Yeah, thanks, Tony. Therehe is. That's a BENBABYESPN dot
Com. Great stuff and express uheveryone you know that that that takes the
time to be a part of theshow, especially the last couple of days

(59:06):
because things are so busy from aBengals coverage standpoint. Awesome to get to
catch up with Ben. We'll catchup with Richard Skinner a little bit later
in the show today as well.But when we come back, it's your
time. It's time for talkbacks onESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station. Thank
you to our friends at Cincy shirtsat Cincy three sixty. Now your chance
to NF He carries on on ESPNfifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Station. Is the

(59:30):
Temple to bet suppressed the microphonent recordyour message both Austin and don't keep the
clean and don't mean a sprinkles dripow ish that Temple to Bet. It's
our favorite part of s three sixty. Austin, well, you played at

(59:55):
to backs on your screen and tryingnot to sanitize, all right, Austin's
not in, He's still on vacation. Seawan is in, and Sean has
confirmed to me that he's not sabotaginganything. By the way, before we
get into talkbacks, a quick update. Reds after the top half of a
third, now leading seven to three. Red scored the first four in the

(01:00:17):
top of the first. The Bravescome back over the first and second and
cut it to four to three.Elie de la Cruz Homard in the third,
and Noelve Marte with a two rbidouble to score Spencer Steer and Tyler
Stevenson. It is now seven tothree heading into the bottom of the third
and in very, very eventful twoand a half innings already in Atlanta.

(01:00:37):
With that being said, let's getto your talkbacks for today. Yeah.
I don't care what color Joe Burrow'shair is at the beginning of the season,
as long as he's hoisting that Lombardiat the end, it don't matter
me who the heck carriage is wearinga helmet when he plays. Anyways,
let the guy do what he wants, let him go. Amen. Hello,

(01:01:00):
this is former President Ronald Reagan.Hello, and well it's been a
long, long off season, butnow it's the on season. Read my
lips, don't inhale. Go ahead, make my day, bring it on.

(01:01:22):
Very good, Thank you, misterPresident. I'm ready as well.
What's up? T fifteen? Thisis Mola mount healthy. What up?
Though? After Tyreek Hill science hisdeal, Jamar Chase will be ready to
sign his Okay, it is probablygoing to cost the Bengals an additional three

(01:01:42):
to four million per year, Butthat's the game they played, so hashtag
who they pays? I'm out piece. All right, let's wait for the
game. Let's play the game.Then again, I never had it on
my radar that this was going toget done this season if it is even
better, but I still think thisgoes to next year. Hey, Tony

(01:02:05):
missed you guys. Kevin and Architecthere have been on the graveyard shift for
a little while. Back to workingin him daylight hours now. I'm looking
forward to catching you guys live firstday of trading camp. Let's go.
Man and Joe Burrow with the blondhair looking like Cody Rose Outter have to
go on everybody today. Verry goodKevin, good to hear back and thanks
for the message, and good tohave you back on the day shift.

(01:02:29):
Adam Schefter is a loser. Hedoesn't like the Bengals organization because we don't
leak information to him. We don'tleak information to anybody, let alone Adam
Schefter, Sir Shechferd gets all thoseinformation from players agents and in turn he's
got to say whatever the agents wanthim to say through the local, from
through the through the media. That'sall it is. Loser city. Very

(01:02:52):
good. Hey, just sending thoughtsin compassion and prayers for Mike from La.
Hey, Mike, we all lovelistening to you. Glad you're calling
in and we're thinking about Jamn.I'm so sorry. You're going through what
you are. And then also ahappy sixtieth birthday to our own now talkback
guy. Happy birthday yesterday, Jim. All right, everybody take care,

(01:03:16):
thank you. I agree yesterday agreat birthday for Jim, and I think
many of us echo the same sentimentas it relates to Mike in LA and
hoping that he's able to get betterand get through this. Tony Peaks,
I would love to get some actualplayer interviews. I feel like it's crazy

(01:03:37):
how you guys don't get to interviewlike the any of the coaches or the
players throughout the year. Thank you. That is at the literally the top
of my list. I want moreplayer engagement trying to make that happen,
but thank you for leaving that.It's got your high way to heaven.

(01:03:58):
Hey, Tony, I think thatmaybe you should add is having talkbackers being
on location at Bengals practices, OTA'straining camp, whatever, and having special
coverage from the talkbackers and have everybodyreport to you. I think that would

(01:04:21):
be fantastic. Put it out therefor the talkbackers. If you're at practice
today, leave a talkback today frompractice, reporting on what you see at
practice. Talkback reports. I loveit, Tone, John Moon ding Hey,
Bud. First and foremost, Iwould like to wish a happy birthday

(01:04:41):
to my one year old daughter,Victoria Kathleen Martin is one today. She
is a beautiful and we're very luckyto have her. Oh and happy birthday
to you too, Tone. Thanks. Wedding ring story on a honeymoon five
minutes into it, lost my ringin the ocean. Wife at that point
in time, not happy, divorcedsix months later, Bye bye. Oh

(01:05:03):
oh okay, yeah, that's unfortunate. Right on the honeymoon to lose the
ring not a good move. Ithink it was good that she was at
least there with me last night andsaw it happen. But on the honeymoon,
that's a dangerous way to live,my friend, Tone, Sorry for
the double dip, John Moon,dang Hey, Yeah, God was probably

(01:05:25):
telling us both something just wasn't meantto be. All good worked out,
both worked out great for both sides. You know what I say, though,
your first wedding is a dress rehearsal. Bye bye, thank you,
John Moon, honey t pet didyou buddy the tech bank caboy? I

(01:05:48):
got the day off his Chris switchis calling the game with Tommy Yeah today,
but were speaking of all we're talkingabout practice, practice, man,
practice, not the game, notAmerica's pastime. Practice and haircuts and practice

(01:06:12):
for real man, Thank you,cowboy, enjoy the day off. For
some reason, the national media thinksthe Bengals are an easy target. Yeah.
It amazes me in a world fullof bullies that the national media can
bully the Bengals and nobody ever doesanything about it. You'd never see anybody

(01:06:34):
ever take a shot at Jerry Jonesbecause he can't get Cdee Lamb signed.
But for some reason, everybody wantsto pick on the Bengals. By the
way, if Tannonbaum knew what hewas doing, he wouldn't be on ESPN.
He'd still have a job in theNFL. You know, I guess
you make a good point because thethought of this being a story and yet

(01:06:58):
Cedee Lamb is not a cam forthe Cowboys in a in a similar situation
that that that should be the conversationof Ceedee Lamb should be upset how the
Cowboys are fumbling this. This isn'tabout the Bengals fumbling anything. It's insane.
Donnie Annie went up a nice man. I'm getting ready to head down
to practice first dance train again andit's starting to in on me. What

(01:07:24):
the hell is going on? Anyway, I'm excited, crap football season is
upon us. Count Cory going ofhonor. Ye are gonna win the freaking
Sugar Bowl this year. Let's gout. I love it. And with that,

(01:07:46):
let's stop for today again. Leavemore talkbacks. Let us know what
we can add during football season.But what I wanted to do we didn't
get to a yes day Sean.Can we can we get the audio that
we had ready for you yesterday ofMike Brown from the media day lunching,
because there are folks out there thatmaybe didn't hear the Jamar Chase comments and
maybe it can put it into alittle more context of what is being said.

(01:08:10):
But I do think it's it's importantto play that. We'll do so
when we get back. It's Cincythree sixty, ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports
Station, a service of CINCI Shirts. Hey sixty continues on ESPN fifteen thirty
Cincinnati Sports Station. Welcome back Cincythree sixty, ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports

(01:08:40):
Station, a service of Cincy shirts. They can get you ready for football
season. They have so many unbelievableCincinnati football shirts. I believe that it
didn't take Cincy Shirts very long yesterdayto connect with the the Joe Burrow shirt.
They have a slim, shisty shirt. They have platinum status, they

(01:09:02):
have blondes, have more fun.They've got the Cody Rhodes Finished the Story
shirt. And they have a shirtsimply put it says, that's why they
call me Joe Shady. I'm back. I'm back. All of that and
plenty more at Cincy's Shirts. Checkthem out today, download the app,

(01:09:23):
visit them in store, or simplygo to Cincy shirts dot com. Very
appreciative of Sincey Shirts. Very appreciaateveof Ellidaily Cruz. He just stole his
fifty first base of the season afterhomer in his last at bat. He
singled in his very next to bat, it's seven and four Reds still top
of the fourth now at Truest Parkin Atlanta, as the Reds on top

(01:09:45):
of the braves right now, allright. Much was made today on this
show and nationally around the comments thatcirculate around Jamar Chase and his contract situation
with the Cincinnati Bengals. And againyou'll hear I mean, Mike Brown says
they will bend over backwards to doeverything they can to get this deal done.
But I can understand some of theways in which Mike Brown worded things

(01:10:10):
why people could be a little cautious. We talked about this to Ben Baby,
but to give it full and truecontext, I did want to give
you the audio to back it up. Here is about eight minutes from Monday
of Mike Brown speaking to collected membersof the Bengals media. Another training camp
for you, You've been doing usa long time. What gets you excited

(01:10:30):
about this? Well? I knowno different since I was about five years
old. So I think it's justthe season for it. And to me
to watch the team be put togetherand see how it looks is always exciting
for me. You're a former quarterback. How much fun is it to watch

(01:10:53):
Joe Burrow out there? It isn'tquite the same between Burrow and how I
was as a quarterback. Burrow wasan outstanding quarterback. He really is what
makes our team go. He's aheart of it and I think we go
as he goes. So he's readyto go this year from all I've seen.

(01:11:17):
I think he thinks he's ready.I think everyone with the team feels
the same. Corey Dillon and TimCrumra are going into the Ring of Honor.
Yes, they're both deserving. TheRing of Honor has gotten to be
an interesting thing. It grabs theattention of our fans and the players.

(01:11:41):
Tim CRUMRAI was a an exceptionally hardtrying player. He just didn't know how
to quit. And he even saysthat he liked to practice. Not all
of them do, but he wasexceptional. And Corey Dillon was probably the

(01:12:09):
best running back we've had here inour history. He was strong, He
carried the team during the time whenwe weren't as good a passing team as
we have been say lately. Hewas outstanding on the field. There were

(01:12:36):
little things that went with it,but the time has put them to rest,
and I think he's deserving and we'reglad that both of them are going
to be put up in the Wallof Fame or whatever we call it.

(01:12:57):
Okay, this team has been veryclose to winning a Super Bowl year in
the last few years. Do youthink this team has filled in the gaps
done what's necessary year to make thisroster as good as it can be to
get over the hump and win aSuper Bowl. This year we have a

(01:13:19):
crack at it, and I thinkeveryone with the team knows it. It's
a tough road to hope. Youdon't know how hard it is until you
go through the process. And howeverhard I might think it is, the
players know it's even harder. Soit's not an easy thing to do.

(01:13:45):
But over the last three years wegot to the Super Bowl once, we
got to the AFC Championship Game twice. We fell off last year. We
have to rebound. Our division ismore than competitive. As you all know.

(01:14:10):
Our division was the first NFL divisionsince nineteen thirty five to have all
the teams in it winning teams,and I can remember that. I'm surprised
all if you can, but it'smy birthday. I haven't looked it up.

(01:14:33):
It's Detroit, Green Bay and thetwo Chicago teams, the Bears and
Cardinals at the time, and theywere the one other division that did that.
Unfortunately for us, we weren't atthe top of the list. Last
year. We located at the bottom. Some things happened, but I think

(01:14:57):
we tried hard. We played aswell as we could, and if we're
healthy, we can play with anybody. You spoke a little bit about the
history of the game. You havea position that every football fan would dream
to have, being around an NFLteam for as long as you have,
how has it changed and how doyou view it differently now, both football

(01:15:19):
and the Bengals at this stage oflife. Well, the remarkable thing is
how little I view it differently,not how much I view it differently.
Eventually it boils down to one thing, how do you play? Can you
win? And all the other surroundingthings are peripheral, come and they go,

(01:15:44):
they bounce off, and what mattersis how do you do in the
field. So I'm accustomed to that. That's the way it is this year
too, and I look forward tothe challenge. When you watched this spring,
did he look the same? Dideverything look normal? I thought he
looked up to speed. He wasat the tail end of his rehab.

(01:16:14):
They kept him under wraps, theybeing there trainers. They made sure he
was spaced with how much he threw. Didn't ever try to overload him.
And from what I saw, hethrew the ball with zip, with accuracy.

(01:16:34):
He had distance when he needed it. He moved well, he looked
tuned up and ready to go.Mike, there was a lot made last
year of one day at practice youpicked up Joe Burrow on your golf cart
and you drove him around practice andthen took him back. Do you remember

(01:16:55):
that conversation and what was said there? And also what is your relationship like
in general Joe? I try tostay away enough that I don't get in
the way. I don't want tobe a problem for the coaches on that
particular In that particular moment, Ioverstepped and did a dumb thing. I

(01:17:21):
was convinced he shouldn't play, andhe looked like he wanted to play in
that game, and I went outthere to tell him he wasn't going to
play. I was going to makesure he wasn't gonna play. Whereupon he
played, and so that's all thathappened. I felt. I still feel
a little bit shamefaced about it.What is your relationship like with Joe in

(01:17:45):
general? I respect him, Ilike his family. I don't want to
be his best buddy. I don'tthink that's proper, but I admire how

(01:18:06):
he handles himself. For me,he's one of the great players that I've
had the chance to watch, andI enjoy watching him do what he does.
All right, So there is MikeBrown. Those are the comments made

(01:18:27):
earlier in the week, and alot of that stemming from where the Jamar
Chase conversation is. Again, werethings maybe taking it a different way?
Did he portray things in a waythat they shouldn't have been Maybe, But
you know, he's up there,he's speaking for a long time with the
media. Maybe he slips out likeI don't have any concerns around Jamar Chase.

(01:18:49):
I just wanted to give you thecontext of why so many people were
blowing this out of proportion. Ienjoy the moment of talking about his relationship
with Joe Burrow and how he viewsthat and his view of the team.
I think those are all good thingsto hear about from Mike Brown. So

(01:19:10):
we have a couple more Bengals things. We have a couple more minutes before
the top of the hour. RichardSkinner is going to join us. I
will update you the Reds are leadingnine to four. In the bottom of
the fourth inning, Spencer Steer addeda two RBI the double. Now it
is just the bottom of the fourth. At this point I should make note
of it for you. There iscycle watch going on right now. Spencer

(01:19:33):
Steer three at bats, a single, a double, and a triple so
far for the Cincinnati Reds. Youwould imagine he's gonna get probably two more
bats to see if he can completethe cycle with a home run. Also
interesting of note for the Cincinnati Reds, Frankie Muntoss has allowed eight runs on

(01:19:54):
four I'm sorry, he's allowed fourruns on eight hits through just three and
a third right now. Frankie Muntossis a name that a lot of people
had circled as one of those perhapsdeadline type moves that the Reds can make.
Frankie Muntoss not impressing so far today. From it a Bengals standpoint,

(01:20:15):
just to finish out this hour.Look, training camp is always gonna be
an interesting time to see how thingsplay out. And you're not gonna get
a ton from the first couple ofdays. I'm not sharing any breaking news
there. They just ease themselves intocamp nowadays. But this roster is full
of intrigue and it starts Joe Burrow. It's an intriguing camp. I thought

(01:20:39):
Ben Baby was spot on when hesaid, look, Joe Burrow probably feels
like he's got something to prove goinginto training camp coming back from the injury.
You run that right to the runningback Zach Moss, Chase Brown.
Is there a role on this teamfor Chris Evans. That's an interesting position
of battle the wide receiver. Obviously, Chasing and Higgins are up there.
Is it Burton? Is it YoshiVash? Is it Trent Irwin? Is

(01:21:00):
it Charlie Jones? What does widereceiver three look like? Tanner eric All
junior who was drafted, will willstart this season out. He's on the
physically unable to perform list. ButTanner Hudson good season last year, Drew
Sample, Mikeasicki, what's the tightend role? What does that room look
like? Mentioned Orlando Brown junior,Cordell Volson, Ted Krris, Alex Cappe.

(01:21:25):
We've talked a ton Trent Brown nonfootball injury list. That opens the
door for Marius Mimes. For anoffensive line who didn't need a backup role
last year, you would imagine theywill at some point need a backup this
year. Who's that going to be? Outside of Mimes? What is Jackson
Carmen, Deontay Smith, Cody Ford, Trey Hill. What does that position

(01:21:45):
look like? Sam Hubbard is healthy, he played much of last season injured.
You know what Hendrickson and Hubbard are. What can Miles Murphy be?
What can Joseph o'sib? How aboutthe six round pick Cedric Johnson or Cam
Sample Sheldon Rankin slots into the interiorpart of the defensive line alongside bj Hill

(01:22:06):
with rookie Chris Jenkins, Zach Carter, j Two Filey, McKinley, Jackson.
They've aded depth there. How willthat depth play out? We've not
talked a ton about linebacker, butyou already know what linebacker is, Logan
Wilson, Jermaine Prattackheim Davis Gather.The major defensive conversation point is gonna be
Cam Taylor, Britt Jordan, I'msorry, DJ Turner or Dax Hill.

(01:22:30):
You know where Mike Hilton is.He's gonna be that slot corner, the
nickel corner that comes in and thensafety, I think is an interesting battle
with Jordan Battle and Von Bell.And you do bring in Geno Stone,
who There are a lot of folksin the NFL very high on Geno Stone
and what he can be. EvanMcPherson is going to be your kicker.
Who's gonna hold for Evan McPherson.Who's gonna be punting for the Cincinnati Bengals.

(01:22:55):
Is it Brad Robbins or is itAustin McNamara, Charlie Jones. You
would think we'll get opportunities as areturner along with Chase Brown and Treveon Williams
and maybe even Chris Evans. Butthat is just a rundown from a depth
standpoint of so many different roster battlesthat will start today. We're not done

(01:23:15):
with our camp primer. Richard Skinnerof Local twelve will join us as soon
as we get back. We'll moveinto our number three of cinty three sixty
on ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati SportsStation, Play ESPN fifteen thirty, online
at ESPN fifteen thirty, dot com, on your phone with the iHeartRadio app,
and on hundreds of devices like Alexa, Google Home, Xbox and Sono's

(01:23:39):
and iHeartRadio station we need your houseis Penstation Eastco subs since E three sixty
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(01:24:02):
Cincinnati Sports Station. All right,welcome back. You heard right there.
We are a service here at PennStation now our number three of cinty three
to sixty on this the opening dayof the twenty twenty four Cincinnati Bengals training
camp, which means football is back, which means we've got to get you
primed and ready in every way possible. We'll take a look at the AFC
North as a whole a little bitlater in this hour, but first covering

(01:24:24):
the Cincinnati Bengals for Local twelve.He is my good buddy, Richard Skinner,
joining us right now. Skinny.What's up? Skinny? Is the
uh? Are the batteries installed onthe tape recorder? Are you ready for
another Bengals training camp? You betterbelieve it. Man, I got to
talk all those plays in the recorder. He just make sure I don't don't
miss something of significance that happens,because my handwriting is so illegible that if

(01:24:47):
I try to do that or anote pair, which I used, surprise
to know many ars do. SoI went to the tape recorder. I
gotta have that recorder. Man,it's introduce my fallback. How many notes
will you make to yourself regarding JoeBurrow's hair today? This will be It's
gonna be part of a lead toa story I write because that's what people
are gonna come to see. Ina way, although they're really coming to

(01:25:08):
see how his risk is and howhe's doing. I've never seen and I
is this just the same. We'reboth from there, from Goring, the
Kentucky, but they're both from thisarea. This isn't our areas. Then
when we go crazy over it,dude getting a haircut? Yes, now
here's here's my only part. Imade this earlier today, Skinny. Had
he just went with the buzz cut, I would be all in, Like
you know what, this is astatement. It's camp, it's locked in.

(01:25:30):
But when you go out of yourway to diet blonde, you are
bringing a little attention to yourself.No questions. Now, I will say
if you recalled back in his highschool days, you would die us there.
So maybe feel like all right ifyou start to make a statements.
I'm gonna be locked back in likeI was in my high school vison.
Yeah, and then I'm getting thebuzz cut to so I'm locked in.
But you're right, I mean,if you're a guy who values his privacy,

(01:25:51):
yep, I'm not sure he's goingwith that haircut, skinny. You.
Uh, You've covered a lot ofBengals training camps, and you've going
into a lot of Bengals training camps. I'm sure with curiosities around the team,
with optimism, I'm sure you've goneinto training camps with not many expectations.
Where does this training camp slot foryou? I was talking about this

(01:26:12):
yesterday a little bit, and it'sunique to me because it's it almost feels
like there's some caution with the optimismjust because of the injuries that Joe Burrow
has sustained. But I'm optimistic becauseI feel like when Joe Burrow's healthy,
this team has a chance to wina Super Bowl. Where do you stand
going into another Bengals training camp aboutthis roster? Yeah, I think it's
the best roster they put together.I really mean that twenty one roster was

(01:26:34):
pretty good. And I'm talking aboutthe Zach Taylor in your mud, not
of all Bengals time, but inthe Zach Taylor hera. You know,
the tent Brown situation is interesting tome because he's on the NFI list and
not gonna be a multitude of things. We'll see what that may be when
we talk to Zach today. ButI think this is going to be the
best offensive line of Joe Burrow's playedbehind. I think you've got a different

(01:26:57):
dynamic at running back. Listen,Jill Mixon had his day of his day
was was not a recent vintage,and you have some new blood back there.
You've got some new blood wide receiverJermaine Burton, I target a van
pitcher of the to day. Ithink he's really excited to see what he
can maybe unlock with him. Andthen you know you've got, you know
the some stuff on defense of youknow it, Cam Tailor Britt or Victims

(01:27:17):
is that actual really a quarterback?And it's so you know, you got
yourself maybe another bonafid dad to goalong with Cam Taylor, brit and all
those defensive line. You almost havetwo full platoons on the defensive line that
that lu Anna remote can play.So I think it is a really good
roster, but it all starts withwith Jill Burrow's wrist right, and you
know the good news in today hasbeen fully cleared to practice all of those

(01:27:38):
things. But you may be like, we got I need to see it
when it looks like an eleven oneleven pass rose around him, tight window?
What does that throw look like?It probably looks great, but I'd
need to see it. Uh.Pro Football Focus listed the Bengals running back
room is the thirtieth best in theNFL, and look, to me,
there's a lot of unknowns because untilyou see him out there on the field,

(01:27:59):
it's hard to judge. It's It'sessentially the same problem I have with
college football now, because college footballis essentially free agency where you add these
pieces to a roster, but untilyou see the roster performing together, you
don't know how everything's gonna fit.But you made the mention of Zach Moss
and Chase Brown, how do youview this running back room going into the
season? Guy? Is not thatthe other day the media of you know,

(01:28:23):
how do you want this to kindof evolve? If you want to
evolve organically, do you have aplan for who's number one who's number two.
How the touches go and he said, now, I just like to
see it evolve organically. I wantto give all these guys a chance.
You mentioned trade out Wins and ChrisHavas, but it's the first two.
It's Zach Lawson and Chase Brown.I think it's one of the ones that
it will evolve as camp goes on, is the season goes on, you
know, maybe Chase Brown gets threetouches in ruland game and two of those

(01:28:45):
going for home runs. Maybe hegets fell touches and SIPs a great plays
and Zach Moss just is there.I think it is going to evolve differently.
I think it could evolve differently fromweek to week where maybe Zach Moss
is a starter technically to three weeksand where they've got a special play they
want to run with Chase ball inthe first year, so he's in the
game, and I think, guessthat's the good point. And I do
think that again, Jill Mixon wasa very good back to this team.

(01:29:09):
I don't think it was last year. The stats kind of back that up.
And I think the new blood isinteresting. I get p peopball focus,
want and I do because of theend known a Chase Brown, but
I would be willing to bet youin this season and they would be more
towards at least the middle of thepack when it comes to those rankings.
Uh, what do you make ofthe wide receiver three slot? And I
think this is unique because I thinkthere's gonna be times where Mi Kasicki is

(01:29:30):
wide receiver number three. But asit is on the roster, they they
draft Ermain Burton. I know they'rehigh on Andrea yoshi Vash. What do
you see as that wide receiver threebattle as training camp gets underway. Yeah,
that's gonna be really cool to seethe different personnel packages they use.
You know, Tyler Boy was clearlyjust the slot guy, That's what he
was. And you know, thenarrative initially was, Okay, who's going
to replace Tyler Board in the slot? Well that Dan pits your lays on

(01:29:53):
us at the combine, Well,we'd like to use Jimore chasing the slot
more. And you know, Ithink they really do like Andre Yoshovash on
the outside. So I could see, you know, series where it's Higgings
and Yoshibars outside Chase in the slot, I can see series where it's chasing
Yoshibas on the outside and it's probablyJones in the spot. I can see
series where it's Jermaine Burton and tHiggins on the outside and it's Joshibash in
the slot or rather the slot,Chase and Higgins on the outside and Jermaine

(01:30:15):
Burton the slot. I think theygot a lot of ways through it,
and to your point, like thecity, you know, maybe two tight
insects on occasion where you know there'sa there's a parent Hudson, there's an
inline tight end, the sticky sline up to the spot. They've done
a lot of ways they can mixand match this, and I think they're
gonna see what clicks in training campand what baby doesn't uh, and then
then go with an answer. ButI don't think it's gonna be a descendantive

(01:30:36):
one guy fills that role. Ithink it'll be multiple guys in multiple ways
on the other side of the ball. Spending a few more minutes here with
Richard Skinner from Local twelve. DukeTobin spoke at at Media Day talking about
this team will probably not be signinga veteran cornerback that means you start to
look at that battle at corner withdox Hill, with DJ Turner, do

(01:31:00):
you have concern about the cornerback slotand who do you think has an edge
there early on? Yeah, thatanswer took me by surprise. But I
did a stint with Mike Patroli yesterdaywhen he was stilling in with MO and
we talked about that for a minute. I thought Mike had a good take
and his was He goes, youknow, I think they don't want those
young guys looking over their shoulder,and they said, I think they want
them to compete and go play withconfidence and let them play their way into

(01:31:26):
those spots, whether that is dackField or DJ Turner. And if it
doesn't work out in camp, that'swhen you would go get a veteran.
The answer surprised because I really thoughtthey would because right now, here's what
you got slack corners. Fine,you got Mike Hilton and likely Jalen Davis
backs him up, two veteran guys. Jalen hasn't started a lot, but
Mike has, and so you're goodthere. Out of the rest of your
quarterbacks, Cam killer Rich started abouta year and a half, DJ Turner

(01:31:49):
started about eight games and dak Shillhad started one game as a slot corner.
And your other backup at the moment'sprobably a rookie Josh Newton that seems
scary on paper, right, ormaybe they know that competent these guys,
if they love their ability, theybelieve in them, and then they're gonna
let them go into camp and showthem that they're right, and roll with
those fours their full main outside corners, and go into a season with some

(01:32:10):
young blood at the position. ButI do think eventually they probably got a
Cookita Vets and and maybe it willbeat to final cuts and they get somebody
out on the street. But Itruly think they believe in those guys,
I said, I wanst say.The answer took me by surprise when he
said it the other day. Well, let's talk about two positions that could
help a cornerback slot. Let's startwith the safety. They bring back Von

(01:32:32):
Bell. They signed Geno Stone.You slot Geno Stone in there to start.
Jordan Battle is still here as well. What do you make of that
strong safety role, because again youbring back Von Bell for a lot of
things that this team missed last year. But Jordan Battle showed I thought some
impressive signs for a secondary that wasnot good enough last year. Is there

(01:32:55):
a key position battle going on attraining camp in your opinion? At safety,
I think is penned in as astarter for right now, and I
think it's for a couple of things. I don't think they like the way
Jordan's finished last season. There wasI think they wanted to be a little
bit more of a pro and Ithink that's somewhat the same with DJ Turner.
But I think that's just rookies.It's a long season after long college

(01:33:15):
seasons, and they do I think, hit the rookie wall mentally and physically.
But if you ever want to learnfrom a guy at that position,
right, it's Von Bell and soyou you put Vaughn in there and let
him learn some things. Von thenyou know knows who's defense so well.
My fear for Vaughan is, youknow, he's at that stage where sometimes
the career goes quickly. Now,Ugh, the everybody is different in the

(01:33:35):
NFL, right, I mean,Tom Brady never aged and we just saw
Michael Gallup retire for at age twentyeight for the Dallas Caliboy. So the
guys ags differently in the NFL,and Von's obviously a physical specimen, but
he plays a physically demanding position.He plays it physically. I just want
to what's left in the tank forhim in that regard. But I do
think he's pinned in because I thinkthey want him in camp to kind of

(01:33:57):
be the voice at the back endbecause he knows what he's talking about.
Where last year, you know,DA's unfortunately just didn't he hadn't played the
spot before and lose defense, andthen he had a new guy, Nick
s Gottay the defense even Lebron does. I think eventually it will evolve in
the Jordan battle being the starter forhim. Maybe Ron's got the found of
us and he's the starter all seasonlong. In the years, that wouldn't
be an awful thing because it meanshe's playing really well and probably a good

(01:34:18):
defense. At that point, Skinnywas such a I think underrated, hectic
offseason on the defensive line for theBengals. Remember the Trey Hendrickson out of
nowhere seemingly requesting a trade and threateningwhile I'm willing to retire. Now Trey
Hendrickson's here, he seems happy SamHubbard played last year for a majority of

(01:34:38):
the season injured. There are questionsaround, okay, as Miles Murphy ready,
as Joseph Osai ever gonna take thatnext step, And for much of
the offseason we wondered did they doenough on the interior part of the defensive
line. They had Sheldon Rankins,they draft Chris Jenkins junior. Are you
comfortable going into camp Day one withhow the defensive line is constructed? Again,

(01:35:02):
a good defensive line can also helpout the back end of that defense,
no question, because I think they'veadded They've added not just potential interior
rush, but guys who were legitinterior rushers. That was not a forte
of DJ readings. And unfortunately forBJ Hill, he's had to play more
snaps and they'd like him to play, not because they don't like him,
they'd like to get him some reststhat they had to play him by the
fault. So d J Hill wasplaying probably games gas at the end where

(01:35:26):
he was having to play too manysnaps. I mean, Tony, if
you know, this is kind ofthe first camp that Joseph Osiah other than
his first camp and he got hurt. You got Tampa Bay game, and
he's kind of come in healthy andI didn't expect him to take a jump,
you know, Miles Murphy and theMan room talking about the other day,
like liked his progress last year,like how he did some things in
ATA. I think he'd like totake some snaps off of Sam Hubbard and
Trey Henderson and let them be thrusher. I mean, you could almost.

(01:35:48):
I don't think it's going to bethis way. It's you could almost have
a two P two defensive line thatyou're gonna play one group more snaps than
the other group, But you reallycould. I mean you could rotate the
ends and you can rotate the tackles, and I think you'll see fresher groups.
I mean remember the Seattle game whereLou told the defensive line literally,

(01:36:08):
you guys are gonna win this game, and they had to win the game
force because I knew they were gassed. You know, I hadn't got many
of them off the field, butI knew they had to win the game
force. Well, what if you'vegot a fresher defensive line now where Trainers
is playing seventy eight percent of defensivesnaps and Sam's playing seven percent defensive snaps
and the twenty two percent others areRosign Murphine getting productive snaps from them in
in the interior. You're just rotatingthose guys around. You're getting a fresher

(01:36:30):
bj Hill in games, and you'regetting a fresh sholdon rankings and games.
And you got young blood and ChrisJenkins and McKinley Jackson. So I think
they've done done a really good jobon paper of that. Again, you're
you're count on some young guys tostep forward here, but you know Losai
has showing potential as Murvie flash.At the end of last year, you
granted Chris Camptons and the second hegranted the mckilly Jackson in the fourth round.
So you believe in those guys,and so I do think that this

(01:36:54):
has a chance to be a realstrength. The fact that they can not
fully rotates not a fifty to fiftysplit, but take some of the pressure
off the starters and let them befresher when it matters in games. I
have to ask any Evan McPherson isnot a question mark. But we've gone
a couple of years now, whetherit was Drew Christman or they draft Brad
Robbins. Is Brad Robbins comfortable inyour opinion as the punter or does he

(01:37:15):
have a battle on his hands throughouttraining camp? Yeah? I think he
has a bottle on his hands andit comes with that being great last year.
You know, he's thirty first ingross average, he was twenty eighth
in net average AMOU qualifying punters.I thought an interesting answer from Darren and
we talked to him the other day. It was about, you know,
you know, did Austin holding college? Who did? And he said,
do you worry about you know,a third different you know holder for Evan

(01:37:38):
messing him up? And Darrel waspretty blunt and he said, he said,
Lionel Evan's gonna probably just have tofeel it up because first and foremost
we need the punter to be ableto punt and title level we want and
holding his secondary and sell off that. Oh okay, So I do think
this is strictly a punter bottle ifyou will, and the best guy will
win, and you know, maybeit will be bread. It probably will

(01:38:00):
be. But we saw the yearbefore he had Christmas was the incumbent he
had, you know, he haddirectional issues. But the kid has a
strong leg. I think Tony,but that tone in Kansas City stuck in
everybody's crawling. Then Robbins came inand showed some directional stuff, but then
he struggled it during the season,So he's got a final his hands,
for sure, Skinny. I wouldbe remiss, as we're going into a
training camp if I didn't ask youa question that we've asked since twenty twenty

(01:38:24):
one. Now, will Jackson Carmenfinally take a step forward? Or will
this be the final camp in Cincinnatifour Jackson Carmen. I think it's the
final camp. The question is willhe be on the final roster? I
think that will be one of theother interesting things I think he will.
I did a fifty three player rosterprojection the other day, and I think

(01:38:45):
I had the backup tackles as him, and I'm going a blank on who
the other him? Oh, himand the loser of THEMS mims, Trent
Brown would be the two backup tackles. But I mean I could see a
scenario where maybe deontaey Smith beats himout, maybe Devin cocker Beach And now
I don't think they do again.You invested a second round picking him.
You know, this is his fourthyear in the league. Does have some

(01:39:06):
snaps under his bild. He hassome starts under his built, his playoffs
starts under his build. He's playeda bunch of spots on the line.
Can't see he's played all of themvery well because he's bounced around. But
he does have some value there.I think it's a matter of how does
he handle his camp? Does hehandle his camp? Well, this is
it for me. They don't youknow, they don't believe me enough to
be a starter. How does hetreat the camp? So to your point,

(01:39:26):
I think it is his last camp. The question will be is he
going to be on the on theon this roster at the end, Skinny,
last thing I have to ask youbefore I let you go, and
I'll see you very soon. Downat the practice fields at pay Course Stadium,
every single offseason, you and Iat some point around the sidelines down
there talking about preseason games, andwe did hear maybe a little bit different
tone about starters expected to play inthe preseason. Do you think this has

(01:39:53):
something to do with playing Kansas Cityso early or trying to find a way
to get out to a fast start. Is this the next step in the
evolution of getting a couple reps inpreseason because this team has failed to do
so in years past. Yeah,I've never thought it's a big deal that
they haven't, Tony, but I'mgoing to give Zach Keiller some credit to
hero of maybe telef analysis, ormaybe just as a nod to the fans,

(01:40:14):
for get everybody to shut up aboutthe rative of slow starts, of
the reason that being slow starts becauseof not playing guys in preseason, maybe
some of that, or maybe it'sthem reflectively going all right, maybe if
there is something to that. Andto your point, you know, playing
Kansas City so early and having youknow, that part of the schedule where
you need to come out all gunsof plays. I don't think anybody's expecting
the Bengals to go to Kansas Cityand win, but they you're expecting them

(01:40:35):
to win three of their first fourgames, and if not, you know,
I think it would be disappointing.And I think it's a nod to
that, and I think they willplay. I thought he gave a not
completely definitive answer, but when hesaid, you know, we were gonna
play our guys and when he waspointing playing asked about Joe Burley, he
says, yeah, that means everybodythat to me, Indicator Star was gonna
play a little bit of the preseason. So I think it is a bit

(01:40:56):
of a nod to that of allright, you know, maybe there is
something to this. I can literallygive you reasons for some of the slow
starts. One dude Jack that happeneddeck to me, and a long snapper
getting hurt in the middle of thegame, costing you an opener. You
know, there's been some mitigating factors, but hey, they are one in
nine in the first two games ofZach Taylor's five year career. One and

(01:41:16):
nine is is a is a terribleplace to be. Now, a couple
of those rosters, right, thenineteen roster wasn't very good. Twenty roster
you had rookie quarterback and it wasn'ta great roster. But I just think
to your point, I think thisis the nod of all right, let
me try it that way. Let'ssee if that that helps us get off
to a better start. Richard Skinner, you're the best. I look forward
to seeing you very soon. Ispractice about to get underway at the practice

(01:41:36):
fields at pay Course Stadium, Skinny. With the season starting with training camp
starting, what's the easiest way tofollow along with all your coverage that will
happen from your mouth to the taperecorder to Local twelve. Yeah. Local
twelve dot com is the place forcontent. We also have a YouTube page,
Chris right Clear are gonna do itdaily at a five to ten minute

(01:41:58):
podcast kind of wrapping up the dayeach day. It's on the Local twelve
YouTube channel and you can find meon x at Local twelve Skinny. Love
it, Skinny, I'll see youasume man. Have a great day,
you bet kick there. He isRichard Skinner, Local twelve. We got
to get a break in when wecome back. Let's take a quick look
around the AFC North. A lotof interesting happenings this offseason, and as
mentioned before, USA Today projected allfour AFC North teams to have winning records,

(01:42:24):
of course, the Bengals being atthe top of those projections. We'll
get to more of that as weroll along our number three of Cincy three
to sixty on this the first dayof training camp right here on the home
of the Bengals, ESPN fifteen thirtyCincinnati Sports Station. Now your chance is
back on ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati'sSports station. All right, welcome back,

(01:42:48):
cinty three to sixty. We aremoving right along on ESPN fifteen thirty
Cincinnati Sports Station and the service ofPenn Station. Because my mind's already starting
to switch, right because in justa few minutes, I am heading from
here down to the practice fields atpay Course Stadium for the first official Cincinnati
Bengals training camp of the twenty twentyfour season. I'm so excited. We've

(01:43:11):
already knocked a lot of this outtoday. We talked to Ben Baby today
on ESPN dot com. We justtalked to Richard Skinner of Local twelve.
So we are putting our best footforward when it comes to covering the Cincinnati
Bengals, because well that's what footballseason is around here. And yes,
we will still devote time going forwardto the Cincinnati Bearcats a week from today
open up training camp for their twentytwenty four football season. Obviously, the

(01:43:33):
Reds in a doubleheader today and everythinggoing on with that. FC Cincinnati made
a move. How much will thatmove help them as yet to be seen,
But there are things happening. Butmake no mistake about this, this
is football season in Cincinnati, andit's a football season that brings expectations that
are at an all time high.I don't know how many times now in

(01:43:54):
the last couple weeks that we've talkedabout the next five years and that span,
and you know, it's super Bowlerbust. Is truly what it feels
like in Cincinnati. And I agreewith that, and I follow that completely.
It does feel like super Bowler bust. With that being said, there's

(01:44:14):
also three other teams in the AFCNorth that have a lot to say about
that. Talked about USA Today yesterdayand the predictions that they made. They
projected every regular season game, theyprojected the Super Bowl winner. And in
the AFC North for USA Today,they had all four teams finishing with a

(01:44:36):
winning record. That's the only divisionin football that that happened. And we've
talked about this seemingly every year.The North is a battle. It's physically
demanding, it's mentally demanding. You'replaying against MVPs or former MVPs. You're
playing against the types of teams thathave this blue collar mental in everything that

(01:45:00):
they do. And oh, bythe way, you're playing against some rosters
that are really really good. Yesterdaywe kind of did the Cincinnati Bengals training
camp preview. When we look atthat preview for the AFC North, here's
where things standing for the Pittsburgh Steelers. It says this, how will the

(01:45:21):
Steelers offense look with wholesale changes atquarterback and offensive coordinator? I mean,
at this point, the staff isnot even officially named Russell Wilson the starter
over Justin Fields. Now, youwould think that Russell Wilson will be the
starter, but that doesn't mean thatJustin Fields will not play a major role.

(01:45:41):
I find it hard to believe thatJustin Fields was brought in to the
Pittsburgh Steelers if there wasn't a thoughtor a role that he could play.
Does that mean they played two quarterbacksmaybe? Does that mean they have opportunities
to get Justin Field's ball? Yes? Absolutely. Now if it is Russell
Wilson, who's now thirty five yearsold, how does he perform in Arthur

(01:46:04):
Smith's system? Yes, Arthur Smithnow the offensive coordinator the Pittsburgh Steelers.
George Pickens I believe is a bonafide number one. Not sure what they
have from a receiver standpoint. Afterthat, I don't know if they have
a number two Najee Harris and JalenWarren. How does the workload go in
the backfield for the Pittsburgh Steelers now, Brooke Pryor, who covers Pittsburgh for

(01:46:29):
ESPN, said the Steelers have thepieces to build an offense that compliments one
of the league's best defenses. Obviously, there's not much I even have to
say. Right it's the Pittsburgh Steelers. You know. Defensively, they're going
to be tough. It's still TJ. Watten Company. But training camp for
Pittsburgh is going to dictate how andif all those new pieces on offense come
together to create the kind of offensivesuccess that has eluded Pittsburgh for now going

(01:46:56):
on four five seasons. Reason foroptimism in Pittsburgh, and it starts with
the quarterback position. For the ClevelandBrowns, look no further than move that
they made yesterday. Amari Cooper isgetting a five million dollar raise, while
the team is also guaranteeing him thetwenty million dollar currently left on his contract,

(01:47:17):
so he's entering the final year ofhis deal. But it also means
that eighty million of the one hundredmillion that he signed for will be guaranteed.
That's a Mariy Cooper coming off anotherPro Bowl last year twelve hundred and
fifty yards, five touchdowns and doingso in a system where they had quarterback

(01:47:40):
nightmares as well. So they appeasedto Mariy Cooper before training camp happened.
Now, much like the Pittsburgh Steelersfor the Cleveland Browns, what's it come
down to. They made a lotof moves to build around Deshaun Watson.
Remember Ken Dorsey from Buffalo, He'snow the offensive coordinator for the Cleveland Browns.
They traded for Jerry Judy. JerryJudy for many underperformed for the Denver

(01:48:08):
Broncos. But now you pair Judywith Amari Cooper, David and Joku is
still there. Oh, by theway, Nick Chubb is squatting what feels
like a thousand pounds. Now veryformidable offense with again one of the league's
best defenses now installing a new scheme. Was a little stunted for Cleveland in

(01:48:28):
the offseason because Deshaun Watson was alimited participant, continuing to rehab from the
shoulder surgery in November. Amari Cooperwas not with the team during many camp
because of the contract dispute, andJerry Judy had a minor injury. Nick
Chubb was sidelined because he was stillcoming back from the knee injury. So
while Dorsey is in place, noneof the other pieces in place that we

(01:48:49):
talked about were there. That putsa huge emphasis on training camp for the
Cleveland Browns. Now there is optimsin Cleveland around the offense. Ken Dorsey
is a very knowledgeable offensive coordinator.His past concepts with Kevin Stefanski's roots in

(01:49:12):
the run game have a lot ofpeople excited in Cleveland. But Watson has
to be healthy. Watson also hasto be better than what he was before
he got injured, and they're gonnahave a full compliment of offensive weapons to
disperse the ball to Cleveland is adangerous team. And then there's the Baltimore
Ravens. All right, let's notsit back and act like Baltimore has not
been the team that the Bengals arelooking up to. Yes, I know

(01:49:34):
that the Cleveland Browns have had,in particular Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals
number but how about the Ravens.You want to talk about new faces in
different places. This is a Ravensdefense now under new coordinator Zach Or Umber.
Mike McDonald has now gone as theplay colin in Baltimore. How about

(01:49:54):
this journey for Zach Orr eight years. He has gone from being the starting
inside linebacker for Baltimore to now becomingits new defensive coordinator. Last year,
the Ravens led the NFL in socksand takeaways. They blitzed twenty one point
eight percent of the time, eighthlowest in the NFL. Coaches and players
have both taken note that the defensehas been more aggressive under zach Or in

(01:50:19):
offseason practices. Now, will they'dbe going after quarterbacks at the rate they
did under Wink Martindale. Probably not, But I would assume that they're gonna
send a little bit of an uptickand pressure. Jamison Hensley covering the Ravens
for ESPN dot Com. So theRavens have a high standard of excellence on
defense. Baltimore finished in the topthree and fewest points allowed for five of

(01:50:41):
the past six seasons. Now that'snot even talking about the major addition to
the Baltimore Ravens and that is DerekHenry one of the league's best running backs.
One of the war courses in theNFL is now a Baltimore Raven,

(01:51:02):
Derrick Henry, Justice Hill in thebackfield, Zay Flowers another year in a
great rookie season. They have RashadBateman, Nelson Agular, Mark Andrews,
and Isaiah Likely who took a bigstep forward. This is an offense in
my opinion, that is dangerous.It's a new look Lamar Jackson. He
slimmed down from where he was andI just envision that Raven style of offense

(01:51:30):
where the quarterback is always a threatto run, where you have to bring
extra help to Lamar Jackson keeping theball. And when you do that,
all of a sudden, I knowhe's getting older. Derrick Henry is probably
going to see the most favorable numbersin the box that he has seen in
his career. Think of when youplayed the Tennessee Titans. Bengals have done

(01:51:53):
so you load up the box,make Tennessee beach in a different way.
That was every team's mentality in philosophy, and yet Derek hen Henry still dominated
through his time at Tennessee. Withloaded boxes. We talked about Corey Dillon
going into the Ring of Honor herein Cincinnati, and he did so in
large part due to loaded boxes.So did Dereck Henry. And now,
all of a sudden, if youload the box against Baltimore and Derick Henry,

(01:52:16):
Lamar Jackson is even bigger threat torun. Mark Andrews becomes a bigger
threat, Zay Flowers becomes a biggerthreat. The question will always be can
Lamar as a quarterback do enough toget this team to the next level.
But a running game that was alreadylethal has now added Derrick Henry, who's
probably gonna see fewer rush attempts thanhe has, which means he'll be fresher

(01:52:41):
and lighter boxes, which means hedoesn't have to beat two guys every play.
He gets one on one battles,and Derrick Henry watch some of the
offseason workouts, is still going towin a lot of those battles. And
that's just the AFC North alone.Again, USA Today projected all four AFC
North teams to finish with winning records. That's in the North. That's not

(01:53:02):
talking about the Bills, the Dolphins, the Jets, the Texans, the
Colts, the Jaguars, the Titans, the Chiefs, the Raiders, the
Chargers, or anyone else in aloaded AFC conference. I am so excited
the football's here. I'm so excitedto get down to practice today. I
am minutes away from heading south,but we still got some work to do

(01:53:24):
on SINCY three to sixty. We'llpick it back up when we get back
on ESPN fifteen thirty Cincinnati Sports Stationand a service of our good friends at
Penn Station. ESPN fifty Welcome backsince three to sixty. ESPN fifteen thirty,
Cincinnati Sports Station, a service ofPenn Station. Look, here's the
deal. Chad Rendel is in forMoager today. We heard Ben Baby join

(01:53:48):
us at the top of our numbertwo at one o'clock. There are already
people arriving at Bengals training camp.They have to walk through in the bubble.
They're already getting out on the practicefield. So what has to happen
now? Because I have training reports? Yes, I have training camp reports
daily throughout training camp on the stationdown the hall seven on WW seven AM

(01:54:10):
three twenty five twenty Right here onESPN fifteen thirty three, forty four,
forty five, forty I am downat training camp each and every day of
Bengals training camp, reporting on everythingthat is happening, even on days where,
let's be honest, there's probably nota ton happening. So what is
going to happen now? I amgoing to pass the baton one segment early

(01:54:33):
to Chad Brendle. So when wecome back Quick Hits Locks of the Night,
that is going to be Chad Brendle. Now, I'll give Chad the
green light to go ahead and giveme a call if he'd like to talk.
But Chad will tell you what's onthe docket for his show, perhaps
even give a lock, or Ican give a lock as well. But

(01:54:53):
it's a little bit differently configured duringtraining camp because there is drive time,
gotta get down, gotta find park, and got to be able to talk
about what's going on at Bengals trainingcamp. I mentioned before, we're trying
to have the best Bengals coverage around. We are trying to blow it up
this year, to blow it outof the park, and to do so,
we got to be down there.We got to have boots on the

(01:55:14):
ground and I am heading down nowto the practice fields at pay Course Stadium.
If you're down there today, ifyou're going to be down there today
and you see me, stop meand say hello. Uh. But looking
forward to getting down to the practicefields, Chad Brendle. When we get
back, we'll take over quick Hitslocks of the night, and then he's
in for the next three hours,which means I'll talk to him three different
times throughout the afternoon and give updateson everything going on at practice. This

(01:55:39):
is Sincy three sixty, or aservice of our good friends at Penn Station
right here on the home of theBengals, ESPN fifteen thirty, Cincinnati Sports
Station. From the preferred home comfortTempsincy. Three sixty continues on ESPN fifteen
thirty, Cincinnati's Sports station. It'stime for Cincy three sixty Quick Hits on
ESPN fifteen thirty. All right,welcome back since he three sixty right here

(01:56:02):
on Cincinnati's ESPN fifteen thirty. I'mChad Brindle. I will be in for
Moeger on The Moegger Show, butI'm in studio now because our guy Tony
Pike made a swift jaunt down tothe banks, down to the practice fields
for the first practice of training camp. Tony. How's it going, Chad.

(01:56:25):
You know, I'm still trying tofigure out the ways around here.
For many many folks, day oneof training camp as a learning experience,
and for me right now, it'smore about learning how to get into the
building, how to get my credentials, and then how to run out the
practice and see guys in their helmetsand what Joe Burrows hair color looks like
and all those things in person.How'd you finish up Monday? How was

(01:56:46):
the score? Did you play?Well? Yeah? I think we finished
up like fourteen thirteen or fourteen under, which is a good score, but
not nearly good enough to win anouting like that. No, but I
mean as long as you didn't playpoorly like that, the key correct And
that's really where we're at right now. It was a great event, Yeah,

(01:57:06):
it's It's always a great event.And you know, Zach Taylor was
a part of the event on Sundaynight. Uh. Tom Izzo spoke on
uh on uh after the event.So they always do a really good job
at the event, and I'm happyto be a part of it. I'm
glad you got to be a partof it as well. Yeah, the
the skyline chili was great, hada couple of Coney's and then the uh

(01:57:28):
the pork tenderloin from lush as Qwas was outstanding. Yeah, that was
real. How about that too?How about them setting you up right by
the skyline? I know, Imean I was in a perfect spot.
There was a place to get someice water, there was a place to
get food, We had some shadethanks to Rodney bringing the tent like we
were, we were set. Itwas it was outstanding. Uh what are
you looking for today? Ton?But what are you looking to check out?

(01:57:53):
You're always exciting first practice. Yeah, I thought it was interesting.
Zach Taylor spoke a little bit agoabout, you know, easing guys in
and certainly have an idea of repmanagement going into this camp for guys like
Joe Burrow. He talked about earlyon in camp, you're going to see
a lot of the younger guys gettingthe reps. And I don't think that
that is alarming. I think that'sa good thing. But it will continue

(01:58:15):
to kind of hang over camp ofwhat is the capability? Is there any
restriction on Joe Burrow? And untilyou see him just spinning it day after
day after day, you always doone in the back of your mind want
to see, Okay, when ishe going to let it all loose?
I think the I think the replimit is great. I think easing these
guys in the camp is also great. But at the same time, when

(01:58:39):
you can start to see some ofthese starters who are going to be relied
on for much of the season,I think there's always going to be that
caution when it comes to the Bengals, because, let's face it, the
Bengals season Chad didn't end at theend of the year last year. It
ended when Joe Burrow went down becausetheir hopes of winning the Super Bowl went
away, and that's when the seasonended. So it's been a long offseason

(01:58:59):
to see these guys back. Iwant to see him back in action and
the Super Bowl roster put together thatmany people feel it is. But what's
the word on Trent Brown anything?Uh? It sounds like he just has
what Zach Taylor used the term tightness. I'm not really sure what tightness refers
to, but Zac Taylor says they'rebeing cautious with him. For me,

(01:59:20):
that's an opportunity for a Marius mensa guy who you know, people raved
about Chad coming out of Georgia.The one knock where the Marius Mens was
the reps. Well, when TrentBrown is unable to practice, that means
the Marius Mimms get more, getsmore reps, and I think that's a
very good thing for this Bengals team. How much are you going to be

(01:59:41):
able to ascertain from the play ofthe defense throughout this camp because they were
bad last year. They were badagainst the run, they were bad against
the explosive play, Like this defensehas to get better well, so much
of last year during camp, theconversation was it's hard to get a grasp
of who they are because they're notgoing against Joe Burrow because he didn't he
didn't practice during training camp last year. And that's kind of the other fallback

(02:00:05):
of Zach Taylor's comments earlier. IfJoe Burrow is going to be eased into
this, if he's gonna have daysoff, that means that the secondary is
not getting those reps as well.I think you get a great opportunity during
one on one, seven on seventeam to get good looks where it's hard
in other positions because of the physicalityyou're not tackling you're not going live on

(02:00:26):
the offensive defensive line. Secondary,you can usually get a pretty good idea.
When Joe Burrow is not practicing,you don't get a grasp of the
day of that. Yeah, allright, ton, are we locks of
the Night? Here? Are wegetting into that? Sure? Okay,
let's do Lots of the Night,Hi Degenerates, It's time for Lots of
the Night presented by Cincy Shirts.Visit the stores in Hyde Park, Loveland,

(02:00:49):
or on Dixie Highway in Fort Mitchelland always online at Sincy shirts dot
com. Now, let's make yousome money, all right? Had that
a town, Let's just keep itsimple today, said I like the Uh,
well, let's the simple because Icould have kept it simple and I
could have given a cop out todayand said, like, my only lock

(02:01:10):
is that you know, Sangals trainingcamp and Joe Burrow is going to be
healthy for today's portion of Bengal trainingcamp. But if we really want to
dive into the nuts and bolts ofit, uh, I think Kansas City
has a legitimate chance to make itin the second half of the season.
Bobby Wad Junior was robbed of theopportunity to have a cycle by getting hit
by a pitch the other night.So I like the Royals at home against

(02:01:32):
the Arosona Diamondbacks. I also amgonna lock in me having to figure out
a better way to do camp reportsbecause I am sweating already and that that
that perspiration gets into the earpiece ofthe cell phone. So I've got to
figure out a better way to handlecamp. That's gonna be a lock And
uh, the Kansas City Royals aswell, all right, and then probably

(02:01:53):
since the Reds hit an offensive explosionthis afternoon, probably the Reds under tonight.
That's a good point. Uh,but more importantly locking me talking to
you three times over the next threehours as well. Can't wait. As
Bengal hater Bart Scott once said,all right, that's gonna wrap it up.
This is Sincy three sixty the MowegerShow with uh not Moeger with me

(02:02:15):
coming up next right here in Cincinnati'sESPN fifteen thirty, ESPN fifteen thirty,
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