September 9, 2026 • 34 mins
Mo broadcasting live from the Anthony Muñoz foundation
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Bengals!
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Bengals fans have waited all offseason for football, and it's
finally here. Can the Orange and Blacks start the season
fast and steal the win? Or will our beloved Bengals
be swashbuckled by the Buccaneers? Coverage begins Sunday morning at
9 a.m. Stream for free on the new and improved
iHeartRadio app or on ESPN 1530, the official home of
(00:23):
the Cincinnati Bengals. It's the Bengals and Buccaneers.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Yes, sir, sure is.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Good afternoon.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
I'm Mo Egger. This is ESPN 1530. Thank you so
much for listening today. It is awesome to be out
and about here at the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate,
our ninth year. And it's always awesome to get a
chance to chat with legends like Anthony and like the
two men I'm on stage with right now. Bengals Ring
(00:53):
of Honor inductee, the great Ken Anderson, and somebody whose
name should one day be in that ring, Joe Walter.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Wow, thanks, man.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
You thought I was going to come heavy with a
barb or something, didn't you?
Speaker 4 (01:06):
I did.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
I was waiting on it. I'm surprised.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
No, I just knew season, knew me.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 5 (01:13):
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (01:15):
I don't believe that for a second.
Speaker 5 (01:17):
I listen to you every day. You haven't changed a bit.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
You know what? That's the scary thing is you do
listen because I'll get a text from you occasionally and
I'll be equally flattered and terrified. Because when somebody like
yourself weighs in on something I'm saying, it's like, oh boy,
what am I? Well, most of the time it's to
correct you.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Yes. A lot of people like to do that.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (01:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
And then I go home, get more of that. It's
awesome to have you guys here. What is going on?
Speaker 5 (01:43):
Knob Lodge is here to support Anthony.
Speaker 6 (01:45):
He does such a great job in the city and
his foundation does wonderful work. I think you'll see a
lot of former guys out here today to help support
him because he does such great work.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
That's what I always love about you guys is whether
it's your alliance, whether it's anything that anybody else is
involved in, it feels like when one guy says, I
need you there, everybody shows up.
Speaker 5 (02:06):
Joe's goodwill, golf out here.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Absolutely, yeah.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
Special Olympics back in the day. So yeah, we're all
a brotherhood. We're always there for each other, no matter
what it is.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Can you guys just tell stories about each other? Ken
and Joe, Joe and Ken.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
There's some we can't tell on air.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Okay. Well, give me one. Give me one that, like,
you almost couldn't tell on the air, but we can
get away with.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Well, I think there was one.
Speaker 6 (02:30):
It was my last year, and Joe's rookie year, and
Brian Blados was a rookie, and Bruce Reimer was a rookie,
and I said one day, I said, why don't you
guys come over to my house for dinner tonight? And
we stopped at a little bar on the way.
Speaker 5 (02:45):
Home, and I remember Blades was up on the bar dancing.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
This is before dinner.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Oh, yeah. Okay. This is usually every day.
Speaker 5 (02:55):
Kenny's inviting us over to dinner. Oh, this is great.
So we get to the house. I say, hey, listen,
before we eat, can you help me move some furniture?
Speaker 1 (03:04):
It wasn't just some.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
That's why you had them over.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Yes. It was a couple of roomfuls, and then all
we got was lasagna. Could have asked for a better meal.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Wow. quite gracious of you.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I mean, you're thinking I would have gotten steak and
potatoes and all that.
Speaker 5 (03:17):
I bought your beer.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
It was lasagna.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
I bought your beer.
Speaker 5 (03:20):
And you guys stroke a lot.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
I believe it was Stouffer's lasagna.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
I got to say a story that starts with an
offensive lineman dancing on the bar I thought would have
had a little bit of a better payoff than them
just moving furniture.
Speaker 1 (03:33):
Again, there's some stories we can't tell. Okay.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Well, we'll podcast those, I guess.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Not put them on the air. What's fun about this
event is it's always on the first day of the
NFL season, and there's always excitement. The Bengals are back.
But I think what makes tonight even more fun is
we're so excited about what's going to happen starting on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (03:53):
Oh, no question.
Speaker 6 (03:54):
I mean, I think, you know, the tone was set
by Joe Burrow right after the season that things had
to change, and I think– I know as a former player,
I was shocked the way things changed. You know how
they signed both Jamar and Tee before last season. I
never thought I'd see the day the Bengals would trade
(04:15):
the 10th pick in the draft for a player.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
And what a trade.
Speaker 5 (04:18):
Oh, yeah. I think that's going to be one of
the key things as we look back on this year. Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
You don't associate them with bold, and you don't associate
them with going all in, and you don't associate them
with trading cheap labor, 10th overall pick, in exchange for
expensive labor like Dexter Lawrence.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
And that's especially after they picked up Allen and Cook, right?
And then they go and make this blockbuster trade. And
quite frankly, you look at that draft, and there really
wasn't anybody on that board worthy of that 10th round
draft pick, right, that we weren't going to have to
work with for two years or so to get him ready.
So that was a great pick and a great trade, and,
(05:00):
you know, it's going to do a lot for us
this year.
Speaker 5 (05:03):
Well, you know this better than I.
Speaker 6 (05:04):
You know, you played on the outside at tackle, but
when you've got Dexter on the inside, one guy can't
block him. You've got to commit two, which means both
of your outside rushers are going to be singled up
unless they want to keep a tight end or a
back end or something like that.
Speaker 4 (05:17):
Right.
Speaker 5 (05:18):
I think it's going to improve the outside pass rush
as well.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Oh, big time. And it's going to help the linebacker play.
You know, it's going to free those guys up as well. And,
you know, I don't think people really understand what a
big pickup this was getting Dexter. I mean, he's a
guy that's going to get two players every single play
of the game, right? And so that's going to be
a big deal for Allen, Moffay, Murphy. Shamar Stewart, if
(05:44):
he's getting in the game, it's going to do nothing
but help those other guys in the line. Plus, the
linebackers are going to be freed up.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
And that was the thing about watching all those training
camp practices. Every day I felt so bad for Ted
Karras because they weren't helping him. And Ted's a good player.
And every day, Ted, by his own admission, was getting
worked by Dexter Lawrence. And I thought to myself, boy, Dex,
enjoy it now. Because come September, you're not going to
be getting many one-on-one opportunities.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
But you know the thing about that, too, is that's
helping the offensive line prepare for the season as well.
When you're Karis, you're Fairchild, and you're Reisner, thank you.
If you're those three guys and you're getting to work
against Dexter every day and you watch some of the
films and some of the practice films and the one-on-ones
(06:34):
and they're getting work, that's doing nothing but helping those
guys get ready for the season. Because they've gone against
the best of the best.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Would we consider you the second best right tackle in
Bengals history behind Willie?
Speaker 1 (06:49):
Yeah, I'll say that.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Do you think Amarius Mims will cause you to slide
down the list?
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I hope not, but I think so.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
His ceiling is absurd.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
He's really good.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
Yeah. I mean, he's got a ways to go, but
at the end of the season last year, the offensive
line held up very well.
Speaker 4 (07:04):
Right.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
And that started and ended with me with just watching
Amarius Mims erase whoever he was blocking.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
Right, right. You know, he's just a young kid figuring
it out, too. I mean, he's only going into year three, right?
So the way he played last year and coming into
this year, he looks good. He looks fit and strong
as hell. And that kid has got just the ceiling
is so high for him. He could even surpass Willie.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:34):
And I think the other thing that's going to help
the offensive line is it seems like they're going to
be committed to the run game a little bit more,
under center a little bit more, run the football play
action pass. Again, you know, it's hard for an offensive
line when, you know, 70 snaps a game, you know,
the quarterback's back in shotgun.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
Yeah. Yeah, we've talked about that before. You know, when
Burrow was in shotgun all the time, what are you
telling the defense? It's either going to be a pass
or a draw. What are they going to do? They're
going to pin their ears back and come at you, right? Yeah.
Going under center is going to do nothing but help.
I think it'll end up helping Burrow once he gets
comfortable with it because it's going to help the offensive line.
It's going to slow that defense down for that split second,
(08:14):
which is really all you need in this league. And,
you know, the linebackers have to hold. So that's going
to get your tight ends open a little bit more.
I think it's going to be a big, big deal
for us. But Burrow's got to get comfortable.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
The thought on that has always been, well, Burrow's not
comfortable under center. And like, you know, generation of QBs
who have played exclusively in the shotgun coming up, how
do you coach somebody to be comfortable operating under center?
Speaker 6 (08:37):
Well, I think it's pretty easy with him because I
think he's bought into it. You know, and he's got
such great attention to detail and preparation that that when
he makes up his mind that he's going to do something,
he's going to do it as well as anybody.
Speaker 5 (08:50):
So I think he's going to be very successful under center.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
Do you think it helped having– Flacco here to do
all that under center that he did during the season
to actually see it?
Speaker 6 (08:59):
Yeah, I think so. To see that it can be successful.
You know, we can run the football. You know, we
can play action to get chunks down the field. I
think that's one of the things that they wanted to
come into this year with and get more explosive plays. And,
you know, one of the best ways to do it
is with play action.
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I feel like with Joe Flacco, and heck, you could
have said this about Josh Johnson as well. You know, Joe's,
this is year seven. He has seen a lot. But
Joe Flacco has seen everything. How beneficial is it for
Joe to come off the field and just have a
guy like Joe Flacco, who nothing against Brandon Allen, Jacob Browning,
any of those other guys, but when you've got your
(09:33):
number two behind you, who knows his role but also
has seen everything in the NFL as sort of a
second coach on the sideline?
Speaker 1 (09:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:41):
No, I think it's very beneficial.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
You know, experience, you know, is hard to come by.
Speaker 6 (09:46):
And, you know, I was so excited when they signed
him back this offseason, you know, that he was going
to be the backup because– We know Joe has been
hurt in the past, and it's nice to have a
guy that you know can win football games sitting there,
and hopefully we don't need him.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
And that'll know the offense much better this.
Speaker 5 (10:03):
Year, too.
Speaker 3 (10:04):
The Bengals' offensive line depth has been talked about a lot. Now,
I like what I saw from Brian Parker, playing on
the inside, played some guard, played some center. Connor Liu,
I think there's high hopes for him. If they have
to play a backup tackle, though, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:20):
It's pretty scary, and I don't know who's better between
Hinton and Javon.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Right.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
You know, Javon was on the practice squad last year,
so I'm not really sure where that's going to fall
and how they're going to handle.
Speaker 4 (10:34):
That.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
If there's anything that's scary, that's the scariest part of
the offensive line right now is just that backup tackle.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
I think it's the biggest question I have about the team,
which if that's the biggest question... Pretty good. Like who
the backup tackle is going to be?
Speaker 1 (10:47):
Right.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
Pretty good.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
I asked Anthony about Ring of Honor. So let's start
with James Brooks. 40 years ago, he establishes a franchise
record for most yards from scrimmage in a season. You
played with him at the tail end of your career,
but you certainly watched him a lot. Give me some
James Brooks.
Speaker 5 (11:09):
I mean, I think pound for pound. maybe the toughest
running back I've ever seen.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Wow.
Speaker 6 (11:13):
And he was not a big guy, but he was
effective running inside the tackle.
Speaker 5 (11:17):
He had the speed to go outside.
Speaker 6 (11:19):
And he was a tremendous route runner, you know, as
a running back coming out of the backfield that you
had to really be aware of. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
Like blocking for James?
Speaker 1 (11:28):
Love blocking for him. And he'd tell you if you
didn't block for him, right? He was not scared of
the big men at all.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
Right.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
But just a tremendous running back. Great to watch. Couldn't
wait to watch him on film. and he would get
in your grill if he didn't like what you were doing.
I mean, he didn't hesitate.
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Really?
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
Oh, yeah. Yeah. Bob Trumpy, threw a ton of passes
to him, still franchise all-time leader in receiving yards and
receptions by a tight end.
Speaker 6 (11:56):
I would say he was Gronk before Gronk. You know,
he was a 6'5 tight end who was a great
route runner, great hands. You could split him out and
run wide receiver routes with him. And he was a
very effective blocker on the end of the line of scrimmage.
So I think he was really ahead of his time.
Speaker 3 (12:12):
Would he talk trash to you like James Brooks did?
Speaker 6 (12:16):
Well, you know, Bob was the kind of guy, you know,
back in those days it was different. You know, we
couldn't make a halftime adjustment until he and Coslett got
out of the shower smoking a cigarette.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
Right, yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Different day and age.
Speaker 6 (12:32):
Every locker at Riverfront Stadium had an ashtray in front
of it.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Mm-hmm.
Speaker 6 (12:38):
But, you know, Bob, for my entire career and still
to the day he passed away, he called me rookie.
Because I was always going to be the rookie in
his eyes.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
But was a tremendous champion of your candidacy for Canton,
which I've always appreciated.
Speaker 5 (12:55):
Oh, no question.
Speaker 6 (12:56):
You know, and when you think not only what he
did on the field, but he was the first one
that had really had sports talk show in Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (13:05):
In fact, I remember it was going into his last year,
and he wanted to do that one night a week,
you know, on the off day. And Paul Brown says no.
And he says, well, there's nothing in my contract that
says I can't. I'm going to do it. So it's
season start, and the first show comes around. He said, Kenny,
will you be my first guest? He says, you're the
only guy they can't touch. So I was his first guest.
(13:28):
But then, you know, the predecessor to Kenny, what he
did here at LW with his call-in show. And then
his broadcasting at football ended up the number one announcer
for NBC. And then he was in the 18th tower
to NBC Golf.
Speaker 5 (13:48):
He did I don't know how many Ryder Cups.
Speaker 6 (13:50):
He did Olympics. He was a versatile wide receiver. And
I think he had that great voice because he was
a smoker.
Speaker 5 (13:57):
That deep.
Speaker 6 (14:00):
Growly voice but he was uh really good and always
prepared of what he did.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Yeah the smoking you know when when bob later in
his career would come in and do stuff and tape
stuff for the pre-game show i would have to tape
that stuff with him and sit in a room with
him and sometimes wait for like two and a half
hours for his coach to call in whether it was
like jeff fisher bill gower and the entire time he
would smoke and then i would go home and my
(14:24):
wife would say where the hell have you been You're
going to have to take your clothes off in the
garage before you come in smelling like that. So thanks, Bob.
Wonderful guy. I mean, it's just so kind to me
early in my career that I would always get a
kick out of it when he would come to the
radio station.
Speaker 6 (14:42):
Well, I remember when I retired and I was with KRC.
We were doing the games on the radio, and they
wanted me to do a sports call-in show. And, of course,
it was only an hour, but it was at the
same time Bob was on the air. And the first
person that called my show was Bob wishing.
Speaker 5 (15:00):
Me good luck.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Wow.
Speaker 5 (15:02):
So I'll never forget that. That's pretty good.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
You think about that like lineage of Cincinnati sports talk
from Bob Trumpy to now idiots like me are filling
these seats. See, Joe, I'm letting you comment on that.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
I'm not going to answer. I'm going to stay away
from that because I don't want to.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
Just teach up.
Speaker 5 (15:21):
He kind of hit it on the head.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
He did. He called himself.
Speaker 7 (15:23):
There's no reason for me to talk about it. There's
nothing to elaborate on, is there? Gentlemen, I can't thank
you enough. It's awesome to share a stage with the
two of you. You both are always so kind to me.
I know Anthony.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Appreciates your support. Great to have you here.
Speaker 5 (15:38):
Well, our pleasure.
Speaker 6 (15:39):
And like I say, just, you know, when you're on
the air, I will let you know when you've made
a mistake.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Well, no, because that's every day.
Speaker 6 (15:46):
Well, no.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
The egregious ones.
Speaker 5 (15:49):
Only the big ones.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
The truly dumb things I said. That's fine. There's a
long list of people in my life that you fit
in with who enjoy doing that. And you got that
one wrong, Mo. There's a lot of that.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
I'll do that every day before your show.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
He does. Yeah, he does it in the office every day.
It's the sort of like pre-show morale boost you need
when you walk past where Joe sits and just let
you know how he feels about you.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Try to be good today.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Ken Anderson and Joe Walter, two Bengals legends here at
the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate. We are broadcasting until
6 o'clock. It's 20 after 4. I'm Mo Egger. This
is ESPN 1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (16:28):
Cincinnati's ESPN 1530. Traffic.
Speaker 1 (16:32):
From the UC Health Traffic Center.
Speaker 8 (16:34):
It's football in the natty. Brought to you by Modern
Office Methods on ESPN 1530. The official home of the
Cincinnati Bengals.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
Set to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday
at 1 o'clock. The game live on ESPN 1530. Pre-game
coverage from the Holy Grail with Ken Brew, Tony Pike,
and myself. Starts at 9 a.m. The Bengals' injury report
is not yet out. Tampa Bay's injury report is out.
(17:08):
Emeka Egbuka, full go today, had that toe issue that
lasted for a large chunk of training camp. Reuben Bain
set to make his NFL regular season debut on Sunday.
Limited in his participation with that shoulder issue. Zach Taylor
today indicated that the expectation is that Jamar Chase is
And T. Higgins go. Report not out yet. I don't
(17:30):
think anybody would be surprised to see either on it.
More tonight. Bengals game plan. That's at 6 on ESPN 1530. Afterward,
you get the NFL season opener tonight. Super Bowl rematch
for the third time ever in a season opener. Seahawks
hosting the New England Patriots. Seattle a three and a
half point favorite in Seattle.
Speaker 5 (17:51):
That one.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
FC Cincinnati, after not playing this weekend because of the
weather issues on the West End, on the road tonight
against Philadelphia. And I guess the conversation about FC Cincinnati
hasn't changed relative to where we were last week. But
we'll get the thoughts of Carlos Mauricio Ramirez from Apple
TV on tonight's tilt when we come back on ESPN
(18:13):
1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (18:15):
You've been listening to Football in the Natty, brought to
you by Red Key Express on ESPN 1530, the official
home of the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincinnati's ESPN 1530.
Speaker 6 (18:29):
Traffic.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
It's 26 from 5 o'clock. This is ESPN 1530. I'm
Mo Egger broadcasting from the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate.
Midweek tilt tonight for FC Cincinnati is the orange and
blue after the postponement at home this weekend. Takes on
the Philadelphia Union. 745 is kick. You can watch it
(18:54):
on Apple TV. And it is awesome to get a
chance to spend some time with Carlos Mauricio Ramirez. bilingual
play-by-play announcer for Apple TV to talk about tonight's tilt.
It's awesome to have you, Carlos. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Appreciate you doing this. FC Cincinnati, it is weird. Every
time I have felt like this team is about to
take off, it feels like the rug gets pulled out
from underneath them. Every time it feels like I'm about
to count them out, they go ahead and get three
points or sometimes maybe just a point. So I mean,
your guess is as good as mine as to what
you're going to see from the orange and blue tonight.
(19:31):
And the frustrating thing for me about that is that's
typically not something you say about this team in September.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Right.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Yeah, that's a good point. I think they're in a
kind of a weird influx spot for many reasons. One,
the fact that they lost the game, I mean, lost
by not played. They didn't play the D.C. United game.
And then they actually did lose the game before that
against Nashville. Places them in a situation where even though
(20:00):
they have more rest than Philly does for tonight's game,
I don't think that Pat Noonan sees that as a positive.
I'm pretty sure... that he would have much rather played
that game against D.C. and come up with a good
result to kind of wash away the sour taste in
your mouth from the Nashville game versus having extended West
(20:22):
and facing a Philly team that is perhaps alongside Nashville,
the hottest team in Major League Soccer post-World Cup break.
So from that angle, it is interesting. A weird spot
for Cincinnati. You're asking me what do I expect from
tonight's game? I would not be surprised if we see
a very much a team that is comfortable getting Philadelphia
(20:46):
on the football or the ball just to state their
defensive potential. performance first to solidify the back and then
spring with either Echenique or Denke or whoever plays up
top with Evander, Bukov over the right side. But just
make sure you don't concede first. And then if you
(21:07):
can find space behind Feely's back line with a young
and up-and-coming Nathan Pierre in the back, maybe you can
find some space with that approach.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
In the middle of all this, they make some additions
at the back end of the transfer window and say
goodbye to Matt Miazga, which, boy, I think most fans
would have said they didn't see that coming. What do
you make of what Chris Albright has done with the
roster over the last couple of weeks?
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Yeah, the Miazga one is, I wouldn't say surprising because, again,
I know there's been some issues defensively with him and
the stuff that he can do or can't do anymore.
Aside from that, you look at what they've done on
(21:55):
different fronts. Pavel Buka, he said that he was home
when he found out that David Dodara messaged him saying
that he was going to come over. So now you've
got a couple of checks there and the team, a
permanent transfer coming over from F.C., from Slavia Prague to
join FC Cincinnati. So you have Buka, and then you
(22:18):
have Dodera also joining him. He's a great wingback, great experience.
I think that's a great move. He has Champions League experience,
which we just saw some games today. So I think
not just the soccer side of it, but the friendship side.
It's always great to have someone who you know from
(22:40):
a cultural standpoint, what he can do, what he can
bring to the table. They were both, if I'm not mistaken,
they were both part of the Czech Republic U-21 side together.
So there's a connection there. There's a familiarity there that's
always good when you're going to bring in someone new
to a different country, a different culture, different language, different everything.
(23:01):
That's always helpful. So that move, I'm curious to see
what it brings for Cincinnati, for sure.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
There's only two teams in this league who have given
up more goals. And you and I have talked here
about the issues that they're trying to rectify in not
allowing goals. But usually this time of year, we're used
to looking at the top of the Eastern Conference table,
and there's FC Cincinnati. We're used to talking about them
being in contention or winning goals. the supporters shield, um,
(23:32):
that ain't going to happen, but they're obviously still in
position to get a playoff spot, but, but can they,
can they get good enough defensively to make a run
once the postseason gets here?
Speaker 4 (23:43):
Well, that's the question. And that's why I think that
going back to today's game, I think Pat's primary goal
today is to not concede. Um, he wants to Don't
get me wrong. He needs and wants to bring back
home the three points. But I think today begins with
not conceding first and then that being the foundation to
(24:04):
building a winning perspective game today for the FC Cincinnati squad.
When you allow 51... The good thing is they've scored
49 goals.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
So only.
Speaker 4 (24:18):
Inter-Miami have scored more goals than they have in the
Eastern Conference. So that's the positive. If they can just
dial it in on the defensive side, if they can
just ratchet up the intensity, the concentration, the focus, the
tactics of everything, especially with the wingbacks. I know that
(24:38):
we had a conversation. As you know, we have, when
we call the games, we get access to both coaches
before the game. And I know... Pat said he would
love to see, not just tonight, but overall, more of
his wingbacks, their contribution on defense, and create perhaps more
of a 5-3-2 shape than the habitual 3-5-2 or 3-4-1-2
(25:01):
shape that we might see tonight. So you need more
contributions from wingbacks, whether it's Buka and Echenique or whoever
plays there. If they can solidify that line, I think
they'll be more than fine. They have more than enough
firepower up top with Denke and Etunike and Evander and
(25:22):
Buka and whoever plays alongside Denke. They should be really fine.
I think more than fine. Same with Philly, though. It's
crazy that it's September 9th and it's the first time
that both Philly and Cincinnati in what I call the
Chris Albright Bowl here in Chester There's so many connections
(25:44):
in tonight's game. As you know, Chris is an uncle
to both Quinn and Kevin Sullivan. He is a cousin
to their father, Brendan Sullivan. So he worked for a
ton of time here in Philadelphia. So he knows the
organization upside down. Pat has his past with Philly as well.
So a lot of familiarity in tonight's game, for sure.
Speaker 3 (26:02):
Yeah, always a lot of connections between FC Cincinnati and Philadelphia.
The match tonight at 745 Apple TV. Carlos Mauricio Ramirez
on the call. Can't thank you enough, man. Now you've
got to prep for a game tonight. We'll let you run.
Thanks so much.
Speaker 4 (26:15):
Thank you. Appreciate it. 745 with the great Laura Lindsay.
We'll see you tonight on Apple TV. Thank you for
the time.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
Looking forward to it. 745 tonight. FC Cincinnati on the
road against Philadelphia. If you're looking for radio coverage, you
can hear it tonight on Fox Sports 1360. Sports headlines
are a service of Kelsey Chevrolet, home of Lifetime Powertrain
Protection and guaranteed credit approval from their family to yours
for life, Kelsey Chev. Bengals injury report is out and
(26:43):
pretty clean. Jamar Chase, T. Higgins, Jamar Stewart, the only
players on it. Each guy a full go today as
the Bengals get set to take on the Bucs on
Sunday at 1. The game live on ESPN 1530. Pre-game
coverage from the Holy Grail starts at 9 a.m. More
tonight on the Bengals game plan show. That's at 6 p.m.
on ESPN 1530. After that, it's the NFL season opener
(27:04):
tonight in Seattle. Seahawks hosting the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
Meanwhile.
Speaker 3 (27:09):
Reds and Dodgers again tonight. Cincinnati looking to avoid getting swept.
10-10 tonight's first pitch. 700 WLW. Rhett Lowder against Yoshi Yamamoto.
The Reds' tragic number four elimination in the National League
playoff race now down to seven. They're eight and a
half behind Arizona in the hunt for the last wild
card spot. The result last night, frankly, didn't seem to
(27:30):
matter all that much. The performance by Ellie De La
Cruz last night. And look, it's easy to default to this.
that Ellie was putting on a show in a ballpark
where he's going to be, you know, playing on a
regular basis here in a few years, and that's fair.
But what he has done over the last few weeks,
he is playing like a superstar. And Ellie has been,
(27:51):
Ellie's having a very good year, a very good year.
But over the last two and a half weeks or so,
he has played like a superstar. The throw he made
last night to now to Oscar Hernandez at the plate,
from behind second base, he made that look routine. That
(28:11):
throw is not routine. That on top of the 440-plus-foot
home run that he hit last night. Ellie has been
on fire. He put on a show last night, but
the Reds are wasting Ellie's season. They're wasting Sal Stewart's season.
They're wasting Chase Burns' season, and they wasted Ellie's performance
last night. Florence, y'all take on the Washington Wild Things
(28:32):
in game one of their best-of-three Frontier League playoff series.
6.56 is tonight's first pitch, and you just heard us
talk about FC Cincinnati. They're on the road tonight against Philadelphia. Again,
starts at 7.45. Fox Sports, 13.60. Joe Burrow had some
comments that, boy, it's interesting. They don't go as viral
(28:52):
nearly as much as they do when, you know, he
has a frowny face on the sideline, but we'll spend
some time on that. Expected to be joined next hour
by David Fulcher, Max Montoya, Sam Hubbard as well. plus
Kelsey Conway on the day at the venue originally known
as Paul Brown Stadium. A lot to get to between
now and 6. I'm Mo Egger, broadcasting from the Anthony
(29:14):
Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate on ESPN 1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (29:21):
Cincinnati's ESPN 1530. Traffic.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
From 5, this is ESPN 1530. I'm Mo Egger. Thank
you so much for listening. Chris Canty of ESPN this
morning said that Zach Taylor is going to be the
first NFL head coach fired. I actually have a slightly
different proposition. and it's available on this week's Back of
the Envelope Bets, which is available on the iHeartRadio app. Look,
(29:49):
the expectations are massive, and when a coach is on
the hot seat, there's always questions, A, about what the
fallout is going to be for Zach if the season
doesn't turn out as expected. And I think the expectation is,
although it's tempered a little bit because of the franchise
that we are talking about here, the expectation, I think,
is if the Bengals aren't a playoff team, that they
(30:11):
will be looking for a new head coach in 2027.
And so when there's heightened expectation and when there's a
sense of ultimatum, basically, hot seat coach, then if a
team plays poorly at the outset of the season, then
the expectation is that that there's at least a reasonable
chance that the head coach is whacked during the season.
(30:34):
To the best of my recollection, the only time the
Bengals have fired a head coach during the season, they
did it with Dave Shula, 1996, after they blew a
21-0 lead to the San Francisco 49ers, and they did
it after week three of the 2000 season, firing Bruce
Coslett after a memorable 37-0 road loss to the eventual
(30:56):
Super Bowl champion, Baltimore Ravens. I get it. This team's
got a track record of starting slowly, and I am,
you might argue, a little bit guilty of drinking the
Kool-Aid a little bit too much. We were talking in
the office this morning about just how abundantly optimistic so
(31:17):
many of us are. I find it hard to believe
that even if the season as a whole doesn't go well,
that they're going to sink to a point where they
move on from the coach during the season. Now, the
reason I believe that is I don't think they're going
to start 0-3. I don't think they're going to start 0-4.
(31:40):
And the Buccaneers are not going to be an easy
opponent to play against. Many, myself included, believe they're going
to win the NFC South. They're probably going to be
slight dogs against the Texans next week. They may be
slight dogs, depending on what the Steelers put on the
field the first two weeks. They may be slight dogs
against Pittsburgh, and I think they'll be favored against Jacksonville,
(32:03):
though not by a ton of points. They will be
playing three teams that made the playoffs last year in
the first four games. And we all understand this team's
recent issues with starting the season quickly. We've watched them
offensively struggle so much early in the season, and this
includes last year. I just don't think with the continuity
(32:25):
on offense, with the health this team has, which I
keep pointing to, and with the basic improvements on defense,
I just... I'll say 2-2 is worst case. And that... Again,
I'm going to get some pushback to that. I'll say
2-2 is worst case, and they're not going to fire
a head coach if he's 2-2. I do think the
conversations would be really interesting, though, if they did what
(32:49):
I don't expect, but what they've done... in the Zach
Taylor era, which is they're 0-2, and they're maybe staring
at 0-3, or maybe they go 0-3, or maybe they're 1-3. Like,
Joe Burrow's messaging has been about now, now or never,
got to win now, urgency, tired of waiting for next year.
(33:11):
When that's the overall tone of the organization, you're a
little bit more willing to pull the trigger quickly if
you get off to a slow start. And I don't
know that they're going to be swapping out a lot
of players. Zach Taylor's already had a chance to swap
out a bunch of assistant coaches. I do think it
would be fascinating to see what the Bengals would do
if this team started very poorly. Understanding that Zach has
(33:35):
a track record of, you know, digging out of a
hole and getting the Bengals to the postseason despite a
slow start or getting the Bengals back into the postseason
hunt despite a slow start. But A season defined by
urgency and a season defined by needing to win now,
if the team starts very poorly in the first three
(33:56):
or four games, I don't know that I would bet
on Zach Taylor being given a chance to dig the
Bengals out of that hole. We will see. And so
I first heard that this morning. Chris Canty said he
believes Zach Taylor is going to be the first coach fired.
I don't think that's going to happen because I think
they'll avoid the slow start. I think it's going to
be a 12-win team. And if you think they're going
(34:17):
to go 12-5, I can't imagine you believe they're going
to start 1-3. But if they did, I don't think
the chances are zero that they would move on from
the head coach. More on that coming up in just
a bit. We've got to talk more about what Joe
Burrow had to say to Jeff Hobson yesterday. We'll do
that coming up in the next hour. Kelsey Conway is
going to join us. Right around 545, we are looking
(34:39):
forward to that. We'll also be joined here by Max Montoya,
who just walked in. David Fulcher is expected to be here.
Same for Sam Hubbard. We're broadcasting from the Anthony Munoz
Foundation Topgolf tailgate here at Topgolf in Westchester. Brennan and
Jones on baseball is next on ESPN 1530, Cincinnati's sports station.
Bengals!
Speaker 2 (00:01):
Bengals fans have waited all offseason for football, and it's
finally here. Can the Orange and Blacks start the season
fast and steal the win? Or will our beloved Bengals
be swashbuckled by the Buccaneers? Coverage begins Sunday morning at
9 a.m. Stream for free on the new and improved
iHeartRadio app or on ESPN 1530, the official home of
(00:23):
the Cincinnati Bengals. It's the Bengals and Buccaneers.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
Yes, sir, sure is.
Speaker 1 (00:30):
Good afternoon.
Speaker 3 (00:31):
I'm Mo Egger. This is ESPN 1530. Thank you so
much for listening today. It is awesome to be out
and about here at the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate,
our ninth year. And it's always awesome to get a
chance to chat with legends like Anthony and like the
two men I'm on stage with right now. Bengals Ring
(00:53):
of Honor inductee, the great Ken Anderson, and somebody whose
name should one day be in that ring, Joe Walter.
Speaker 1 (01:02):
Wow, thanks, man.
Speaker 3 (01:04):
You thought I was going to come heavy with a
barb or something, didn't you?
Speaker 4 (01:06):
I did.
Speaker 1 (01:07):
I was waiting on it. I'm surprised.
Speaker 4 (01:09):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:09):
No, I just knew season, knew me.
Speaker 1 (01:12):
Oh, okay.
Speaker 5 (01:13):
Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa.
Speaker 3 (01:14):
Wow.
Speaker 1 (01:15):
I don't believe that for a second.
Speaker 5 (01:17):
I listen to you every day. You haven't changed a bit.
Speaker 3 (01:21):
You know what? That's the scary thing is you do
listen because I'll get a text from you occasionally and
I'll be equally flattered and terrified. Because when somebody like
yourself weighs in on something I'm saying, it's like, oh boy,
what am I? Well, most of the time it's to
correct you.
Speaker 1 (01:34):
Yes.
Speaker 3 (01:35):
Yes. A lot of people like to do that.
Speaker 1 (01:36):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (01:37):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (01:37):
And then I go home, get more of that. It's
awesome to have you guys here. What is going on?
Speaker 5 (01:43):
Knob Lodge is here to support Anthony.
Speaker 6 (01:45):
He does such a great job in the city and
his foundation does wonderful work. I think you'll see a
lot of former guys out here today to help support
him because he does such great work.
Speaker 3 (01:55):
That's what I always love about you guys is whether
it's your alliance, whether it's anything that anybody else is
involved in, it feels like when one guy says, I
need you there, everybody shows up.
Speaker 5 (02:06):
Joe's goodwill, golf out here.
Speaker 3 (02:07):
Absolutely, yeah.
Speaker 1 (02:08):
Special Olympics back in the day. So yeah, we're all
a brotherhood. We're always there for each other, no matter
what it is.
Speaker 3 (02:15):
Can you guys just tell stories about each other? Ken
and Joe, Joe and Ken.
Speaker 1 (02:19):
There's some we can't tell on air.
Speaker 3 (02:21):
Okay. Well, give me one. Give me one that, like,
you almost couldn't tell on the air, but we can
get away with.
Speaker 5 (02:29):
Well, I think there was one.
Speaker 6 (02:30):
It was my last year, and Joe's rookie year, and
Brian Blados was a rookie, and Bruce Reimer was a rookie,
and I said one day, I said, why don't you
guys come over to my house for dinner tonight? And
we stopped at a little bar on the way.
Speaker 5 (02:45):
Home, and I remember Blades was up on the bar dancing.
Speaker 1 (02:49):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (02:51):
This is before dinner.
Speaker 1 (02:52):
Oh, yeah. Okay. This is usually every day.
Speaker 5 (02:55):
Kenny's inviting us over to dinner. Oh, this is great.
So we get to the house. I say, hey, listen,
before we eat, can you help me move some furniture?
Speaker 1 (03:04):
It wasn't just some.
Speaker 3 (03:05):
That's why you had them over.
Speaker 1 (03:07):
Yes. It was a couple of roomfuls, and then all
we got was lasagna. Could have asked for a better meal.
Speaker 3 (03:12):
Wow. quite gracious of you.
Speaker 1 (03:14):
I mean, you're thinking I would have gotten steak and
potatoes and all that.
Speaker 5 (03:17):
I bought your beer.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
It was lasagna.
Speaker 3 (03:19):
I bought your beer.
Speaker 5 (03:20):
And you guys stroke a lot.
Speaker 1 (03:21):
I believe it was Stouffer's lasagna.
Speaker 3 (03:24):
I got to say a story that starts with an
offensive lineman dancing on the bar I thought would have
had a little bit of a better payoff than them
just moving furniture.
Speaker 1 (03:33):
Again, there's some stories we can't tell. Okay.
Speaker 3 (03:36):
Well, we'll podcast those, I guess.
Speaker 1 (03:38):
Okay.
Speaker 3 (03:39):
Not put them on the air. What's fun about this
event is it's always on the first day of the
NFL season, and there's always excitement. The Bengals are back.
But I think what makes tonight even more fun is
we're so excited about what's going to happen starting on Sunday.
Speaker 5 (03:53):
Oh, no question.
Speaker 6 (03:54):
I mean, I think, you know, the tone was set
by Joe Burrow right after the season that things had
to change, and I think– I know as a former player,
I was shocked the way things changed. You know how
they signed both Jamar and Tee before last season. I
never thought I'd see the day the Bengals would trade
(04:15):
the 10th pick in the draft for a player.
Speaker 1 (04:17):
And what a trade.
Speaker 5 (04:18):
Oh, yeah. I think that's going to be one of
the key things as we look back on this year. Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (04:24):
You don't associate them with bold, and you don't associate
them with going all in, and you don't associate them
with trading cheap labor, 10th overall pick, in exchange for
expensive labor like Dexter Lawrence.
Speaker 1 (04:38):
And that's especially after they picked up Allen and Cook, right?
And then they go and make this blockbuster trade. And
quite frankly, you look at that draft, and there really
wasn't anybody on that board worthy of that 10th round
draft pick, right, that we weren't going to have to
work with for two years or so to get him ready.
So that was a great pick and a great trade, and,
(05:00):
you know, it's going to do a lot for us
this year.
Speaker 5 (05:03):
Well, you know this better than I.
Speaker 6 (05:04):
You know, you played on the outside at tackle, but
when you've got Dexter on the inside, one guy can't
block him. You've got to commit two, which means both
of your outside rushers are going to be singled up
unless they want to keep a tight end or a
back end or something like that.
Speaker 4 (05:17):
Right.
Speaker 5 (05:18):
I think it's going to improve the outside pass rush
as well.
Speaker 1 (05:21):
Oh, big time. And it's going to help the linebacker play.
You know, it's going to free those guys up as well. And,
you know, I don't think people really understand what a
big pickup this was getting Dexter. I mean, he's a
guy that's going to get two players every single play
of the game, right? And so that's going to be
a big deal for Allen, Moffay, Murphy. Shamar Stewart, if
(05:44):
he's getting in the game, it's going to do nothing
but help those other guys in the line. Plus, the
linebackers are going to be freed up.
Speaker 3 (05:51):
And that was the thing about watching all those training
camp practices. Every day I felt so bad for Ted
Karras because they weren't helping him. And Ted's a good player.
And every day, Ted, by his own admission, was getting
worked by Dexter Lawrence. And I thought to myself, boy, Dex,
enjoy it now. Because come September, you're not going to
be getting many one-on-one opportunities.
Speaker 1 (06:11):
But you know the thing about that, too, is that's
helping the offensive line prepare for the season as well.
When you're Karis, you're Fairchild, and you're Reisner, thank you.
If you're those three guys and you're getting to work
against Dexter every day and you watch some of the
films and some of the practice films and the one-on-ones
(06:34):
and they're getting work, that's doing nothing but helping those
guys get ready for the season. Because they've gone against
the best of the best.
Speaker 3 (06:42):
Would we consider you the second best right tackle in
Bengals history behind Willie?
Speaker 1 (06:49):
Yeah, I'll say that.
Speaker 3 (06:50):
Do you think Amarius Mims will cause you to slide
down the list?
Speaker 1 (06:53):
I hope not, but I think so.
Speaker 3 (06:56):
His ceiling is absurd.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
He's really good.
Speaker 3 (06:58):
Yeah. I mean, he's got a ways to go, but
at the end of the season last year, the offensive
line held up very well.
Speaker 4 (07:04):
Right.
Speaker 3 (07:05):
And that started and ended with me with just watching
Amarius Mims erase whoever he was blocking.
Speaker 1 (07:12):
Right, right. You know, he's just a young kid figuring
it out, too. I mean, he's only going into year three, right?
So the way he played last year and coming into
this year, he looks good. He looks fit and strong
as hell. And that kid has got just the ceiling
is so high for him. He could even surpass Willie.
Speaker 3 (07:34):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (07:34):
And I think the other thing that's going to help
the offensive line is it seems like they're going to
be committed to the run game a little bit more,
under center a little bit more, run the football play
action pass. Again, you know, it's hard for an offensive
line when, you know, 70 snaps a game, you know,
the quarterback's back in shotgun.
Speaker 1 (07:52):
Yeah. Yeah, we've talked about that before. You know, when
Burrow was in shotgun all the time, what are you
telling the defense? It's either going to be a pass
or a draw. What are they going to do? They're
going to pin their ears back and come at you, right? Yeah.
Going under center is going to do nothing but help.
I think it'll end up helping Burrow once he gets
comfortable with it because it's going to help the offensive line.
It's going to slow that defense down for that split second,
(08:14):
which is really all you need in this league. And,
you know, the linebackers have to hold. So that's going
to get your tight ends open a little bit more.
I think it's going to be a big, big deal
for us. But Burrow's got to get comfortable.
Speaker 3 (08:25):
The thought on that has always been, well, Burrow's not
comfortable under center. And like, you know, generation of QBs
who have played exclusively in the shotgun coming up, how
do you coach somebody to be comfortable operating under center?
Speaker 6 (08:37):
Well, I think it's pretty easy with him because I
think he's bought into it. You know, and he's got
such great attention to detail and preparation that that when
he makes up his mind that he's going to do something,
he's going to do it as well as anybody.
Speaker 5 (08:50):
So I think he's going to be very successful under center.
Speaker 1 (08:52):
Do you think it helped having– Flacco here to do
all that under center that he did during the season
to actually see it?
Speaker 6 (08:59):
Yeah, I think so. To see that it can be successful.
You know, we can run the football. You know, we
can play action to get chunks down the field. I
think that's one of the things that they wanted to
come into this year with and get more explosive plays. And,
you know, one of the best ways to do it
is with play action.
Speaker 3 (09:12):
I feel like with Joe Flacco, and heck, you could
have said this about Josh Johnson as well. You know, Joe's,
this is year seven. He has seen a lot. But
Joe Flacco has seen everything. How beneficial is it for
Joe to come off the field and just have a
guy like Joe Flacco, who nothing against Brandon Allen, Jacob Browning,
any of those other guys, but when you've got your
(09:33):
number two behind you, who knows his role but also
has seen everything in the NFL as sort of a
second coach on the sideline?
Speaker 1 (09:40):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:41):
No, I think it's very beneficial.
Speaker 3 (09:42):
Yeah.
Speaker 5 (09:42):
You know, experience, you know, is hard to come by.
Speaker 6 (09:46):
And, you know, I was so excited when they signed
him back this offseason, you know, that he was going
to be the backup because– We know Joe has been
hurt in the past, and it's nice to have a
guy that you know can win football games sitting there,
and hopefully we don't need him.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
And that'll know the offense much better this.
Speaker 5 (10:03):
Year, too.
Speaker 3 (10:04):
The Bengals' offensive line depth has been talked about a lot. Now,
I like what I saw from Brian Parker, playing on
the inside, played some guard, played some center. Connor Liu,
I think there's high hopes for him. If they have
to play a backup tackle, though, Yeah.
Speaker 1 (10:20):
It's pretty scary, and I don't know who's better between
Hinton and Javon.
Speaker 3 (10:24):
Right.
Speaker 1 (10:25):
You know, Javon was on the practice squad last year,
so I'm not really sure where that's going to fall
and how they're going to handle.
Speaker 4 (10:34):
That.
Speaker 1 (10:35):
If there's anything that's scary, that's the scariest part of
the offensive line right now is just that backup tackle.
Speaker 3 (10:40):
I think it's the biggest question I have about the team,
which if that's the biggest question... Pretty good. Like who
the backup tackle is going to be?
Speaker 1 (10:47):
Right.
Speaker 3 (10:48):
Pretty good.
Speaker 1 (10:48):
Yeah, absolutely.
Speaker 3 (10:50):
I asked Anthony about Ring of Honor. So let's start
with James Brooks. 40 years ago, he establishes a franchise
record for most yards from scrimmage in a season. You
played with him at the tail end of your career,
but you certainly watched him a lot. Give me some
James Brooks.
Speaker 5 (11:09):
I mean, I think pound for pound. maybe the toughest
running back I've ever seen.
Speaker 1 (11:12):
Wow.
Speaker 6 (11:13):
And he was not a big guy, but he was
effective running inside the tackle.
Speaker 5 (11:17):
He had the speed to go outside.
Speaker 6 (11:19):
And he was a tremendous route runner, you know, as
a running back coming out of the backfield that you
had to really be aware of. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:27):
Like blocking for James?
Speaker 1 (11:28):
Love blocking for him. And he'd tell you if you
didn't block for him, right? He was not scared of
the big men at all.
Speaker 3 (11:34):
Right.
Speaker 1 (11:35):
But just a tremendous running back. Great to watch. Couldn't
wait to watch him on film. and he would get
in your grill if he didn't like what you were doing.
I mean, he didn't hesitate.
Speaker 3 (11:44):
Really?
Speaker 1 (11:44):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
Oh, yeah. Yeah. Bob Trumpy, threw a ton of passes
to him, still franchise all-time leader in receiving yards and
receptions by a tight end.
Speaker 6 (11:56):
I would say he was Gronk before Gronk. You know,
he was a 6'5 tight end who was a great
route runner, great hands. You could split him out and
run wide receiver routes with him. And he was a
very effective blocker on the end of the line of scrimmage.
So I think he was really ahead of his time.
Speaker 3 (12:12):
Would he talk trash to you like James Brooks did?
Speaker 6 (12:16):
Well, you know, Bob was the kind of guy, you know,
back in those days it was different. You know, we
couldn't make a halftime adjustment until he and Coslett got
out of the shower smoking a cigarette.
Speaker 5 (12:29):
Right, yeah.
Speaker 3 (12:30):
Different day and age.
Speaker 6 (12:32):
Every locker at Riverfront Stadium had an ashtray in front
of it.
Speaker 3 (12:37):
Mm-hmm.
Speaker 6 (12:38):
But, you know, Bob, for my entire career and still
to the day he passed away, he called me rookie.
Because I was always going to be the rookie in
his eyes.
Speaker 3 (12:49):
But was a tremendous champion of your candidacy for Canton,
which I've always appreciated.
Speaker 5 (12:55):
Oh, no question.
Speaker 6 (12:56):
You know, and when you think not only what he
did on the field, but he was the first one
that had really had sports talk show in Cincinnati.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 6 (13:05):
In fact, I remember it was going into his last year,
and he wanted to do that one night a week,
you know, on the off day. And Paul Brown says no.
And he says, well, there's nothing in my contract that
says I can't. I'm going to do it. So it's
season start, and the first show comes around. He said, Kenny,
will you be my first guest? He says, you're the
only guy they can't touch. So I was his first guest.
(13:28):
But then, you know, the predecessor to Kenny, what he
did here at LW with his call-in show. And then
his broadcasting at football ended up the number one announcer
for NBC. And then he was in the 18th tower
to NBC Golf.
Speaker 5 (13:48):
He did I don't know how many Ryder Cups.
Speaker 6 (13:50):
He did Olympics. He was a versatile wide receiver. And
I think he had that great voice because he was
a smoker.
Speaker 5 (13:57):
That deep.
Speaker 6 (14:00):
Growly voice but he was uh really good and always
prepared of what he did.
Speaker 3 (14:04):
Yeah the smoking you know when when bob later in
his career would come in and do stuff and tape
stuff for the pre-game show i would have to tape
that stuff with him and sit in a room with
him and sometimes wait for like two and a half
hours for his coach to call in whether it was
like jeff fisher bill gower and the entire time he
would smoke and then i would go home and my
(14:24):
wife would say where the hell have you been You're
going to have to take your clothes off in the
garage before you come in smelling like that. So thanks, Bob.
Wonderful guy. I mean, it's just so kind to me
early in my career that I would always get a
kick out of it when he would come to the
radio station.
Speaker 6 (14:42):
Well, I remember when I retired and I was with KRC.
We were doing the games on the radio, and they
wanted me to do a sports call-in show. And, of course,
it was only an hour, but it was at the
same time Bob was on the air. And the first
person that called my show was Bob wishing.
Speaker 5 (15:00):
Me good luck.
Speaker 3 (15:01):
Wow.
Speaker 5 (15:02):
So I'll never forget that. That's pretty good.
Speaker 3 (15:04):
You think about that like lineage of Cincinnati sports talk
from Bob Trumpy to now idiots like me are filling
these seats. See, Joe, I'm letting you comment on that.
Speaker 1 (15:15):
I'm not going to answer. I'm going to stay away
from that because I don't want to.
Speaker 3 (15:18):
Just teach up.
Speaker 5 (15:21):
He kind of hit it on the head.
Speaker 1 (15:22):
He did. He called himself.
Speaker 7 (15:23):
There's no reason for me to talk about it. There's
nothing to elaborate on, is there? Gentlemen, I can't thank
you enough. It's awesome to share a stage with the
two of you. You both are always so kind to me.
I know Anthony.
Speaker 3 (15:35):
Appreciates your support. Great to have you here.
Speaker 5 (15:38):
Well, our pleasure.
Speaker 6 (15:39):
And like I say, just, you know, when you're on
the air, I will let you know when you've made
a mistake.
Speaker 3 (15:44):
Well, no, because that's every day.
Speaker 6 (15:46):
Well, no.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
The egregious ones.
Speaker 5 (15:49):
Only the big ones.
Speaker 3 (15:50):
The truly dumb things I said. That's fine. There's a
long list of people in my life that you fit
in with who enjoy doing that. And you got that
one wrong, Mo. There's a lot of that.
Speaker 1 (16:00):
I'll do that every day before your show.
Speaker 3 (16:02):
He does. Yeah, he does it in the office every day.
It's the sort of like pre-show morale boost you need
when you walk past where Joe sits and just let
you know how he feels about you.
Speaker 5 (16:11):
Try to be good today.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Ken Anderson and Joe Walter, two Bengals legends here at
the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate. We are broadcasting until
6 o'clock. It's 20 after 4. I'm Mo Egger. This
is ESPN 1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (16:28):
Cincinnati's ESPN 1530. Traffic.
Speaker 1 (16:32):
From the UC Health Traffic Center.
Speaker 8 (16:34):
It's football in the natty. Brought to you by Modern
Office Methods on ESPN 1530. The official home of the
Cincinnati Bengals.
Speaker 3 (16:45):
Set to take on the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Sunday
at 1 o'clock. The game live on ESPN 1530. Pre-game
coverage from the Holy Grail with Ken Brew, Tony Pike,
and myself. Starts at 9 a.m. The Bengals' injury report
is not yet out. Tampa Bay's injury report is out.
(17:08):
Emeka Egbuka, full go today, had that toe issue that
lasted for a large chunk of training camp. Reuben Bain
set to make his NFL regular season debut on Sunday.
Limited in his participation with that shoulder issue. Zach Taylor
today indicated that the expectation is that Jamar Chase is
And T. Higgins go. Report not out yet. I don't
(17:30):
think anybody would be surprised to see either on it.
More tonight. Bengals game plan. That's at 6 on ESPN 1530. Afterward,
you get the NFL season opener tonight. Super Bowl rematch
for the third time ever in a season opener. Seahawks
hosting the New England Patriots. Seattle a three and a
half point favorite in Seattle.
Speaker 5 (17:51):
That one.
Speaker 3 (17:52):
FC Cincinnati, after not playing this weekend because of the
weather issues on the West End, on the road tonight
against Philadelphia. And I guess the conversation about FC Cincinnati
hasn't changed relative to where we were last week. But
we'll get the thoughts of Carlos Mauricio Ramirez from Apple
TV on tonight's tilt when we come back on ESPN
(18:13):
1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (18:15):
You've been listening to Football in the Natty, brought to
you by Red Key Express on ESPN 1530, the official
home of the Cincinnati Bengals. Cincinnati's ESPN 1530.
Speaker 6 (18:29):
Traffic.
Speaker 3 (18:34):
It's 26 from 5 o'clock. This is ESPN 1530. I'm
Mo Egger broadcasting from the Anthony Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate.
Midweek tilt tonight for FC Cincinnati is the orange and
blue after the postponement at home this weekend. Takes on
the Philadelphia Union. 745 is kick. You can watch it
(18:54):
on Apple TV. And it is awesome to get a
chance to spend some time with Carlos Mauricio Ramirez. bilingual
play-by-play announcer for Apple TV to talk about tonight's tilt.
It's awesome to have you, Carlos. Good afternoon.
Speaker 4 (19:09):
Thank you for having me.
Speaker 3 (19:10):
Appreciate you doing this. FC Cincinnati, it is weird. Every
time I have felt like this team is about to
take off, it feels like the rug gets pulled out
from underneath them. Every time it feels like I'm about
to count them out, they go ahead and get three
points or sometimes maybe just a point. So I mean,
your guess is as good as mine as to what
you're going to see from the orange and blue tonight.
(19:31):
And the frustrating thing for me about that is that's
typically not something you say about this team in September.
Speaker 1 (19:36):
Right.
Speaker 4 (19:38):
Yeah, that's a good point. I think they're in a
kind of a weird influx spot for many reasons. One,
the fact that they lost the game, I mean, lost
by not played. They didn't play the D.C. United game.
And then they actually did lose the game before that
against Nashville. Places them in a situation where even though
(20:00):
they have more rest than Philly does for tonight's game,
I don't think that Pat Noonan sees that as a positive.
I'm pretty sure... that he would have much rather played
that game against D.C. and come up with a good
result to kind of wash away the sour taste in
your mouth from the Nashville game versus having extended West
(20:22):
and facing a Philly team that is perhaps alongside Nashville,
the hottest team in Major League Soccer post-World Cup break.
So from that angle, it is interesting. A weird spot
for Cincinnati. You're asking me what do I expect from
tonight's game? I would not be surprised if we see
a very much a team that is comfortable getting Philadelphia
(20:46):
on the football or the ball just to state their
defensive potential. performance first to solidify the back and then
spring with either Echenique or Denke or whoever plays up
top with Evander, Bukov over the right side. But just
make sure you don't concede first. And then if you
(21:07):
can find space behind Feely's back line with a young
and up-and-coming Nathan Pierre in the back, maybe you can
find some space with that approach.
Speaker 3 (21:18):
In the middle of all this, they make some additions
at the back end of the transfer window and say
goodbye to Matt Miazga, which, boy, I think most fans
would have said they didn't see that coming. What do
you make of what Chris Albright has done with the
roster over the last couple of weeks?
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Yeah, the Miazga one is, I wouldn't say surprising because, again,
I know there's been some issues defensively with him and
the stuff that he can do or can't do anymore.
Aside from that, you look at what they've done on
(21:55):
different fronts. Pavel Buka, he said that he was home
when he found out that David Dodara messaged him saying
that he was going to come over. So now you've
got a couple of checks there and the team, a
permanent transfer coming over from F.C., from Slavia Prague to
join FC Cincinnati. So you have Buka, and then you
(22:18):
have Dodera also joining him. He's a great wingback, great experience.
I think that's a great move. He has Champions League experience,
which we just saw some games today. So I think
not just the soccer side of it, but the friendship side.
It's always great to have someone who you know from
(22:40):
a cultural standpoint, what he can do, what he can
bring to the table. They were both, if I'm not mistaken,
they were both part of the Czech Republic U-21 side together.
So there's a connection there. There's a familiarity there that's
always good when you're going to bring in someone new
to a different country, a different culture, different language, different everything.
(23:01):
That's always helpful. So that move, I'm curious to see
what it brings for Cincinnati, for sure.
Speaker 3 (23:09):
There's only two teams in this league who have given
up more goals. And you and I have talked here
about the issues that they're trying to rectify in not
allowing goals. But usually this time of year, we're used
to looking at the top of the Eastern Conference table,
and there's FC Cincinnati. We're used to talking about them
being in contention or winning goals. the supporters shield, um,
(23:32):
that ain't going to happen, but they're obviously still in
position to get a playoff spot, but, but can they,
can they get good enough defensively to make a run
once the postseason gets here?
Speaker 4 (23:43):
Well, that's the question. And that's why I think that
going back to today's game, I think Pat's primary goal
today is to not concede. Um, he wants to Don't
get me wrong. He needs and wants to bring back
home the three points. But I think today begins with
not conceding first and then that being the foundation to
(24:04):
building a winning perspective game today for the FC Cincinnati squad.
When you allow 51... The good thing is they've scored
49 goals.
Speaker 1 (24:16):
So only.
Speaker 4 (24:18):
Inter-Miami have scored more goals than they have in the
Eastern Conference. So that's the positive. If they can just
dial it in on the defensive side, if they can
just ratchet up the intensity, the concentration, the focus, the
tactics of everything, especially with the wingbacks. I know that
(24:38):
we had a conversation. As you know, we have, when
we call the games, we get access to both coaches
before the game. And I know... Pat said he would
love to see, not just tonight, but overall, more of
his wingbacks, their contribution on defense, and create perhaps more
of a 5-3-2 shape than the habitual 3-5-2 or 3-4-1-2
(25:01):
shape that we might see tonight. So you need more
contributions from wingbacks, whether it's Buka and Echenique or whoever
plays there. If they can solidify that line, I think
they'll be more than fine. They have more than enough
firepower up top with Denke and Etunike and Evander and
(25:22):
Buka and whoever plays alongside Denke. They should be really fine.
I think more than fine. Same with Philly, though. It's
crazy that it's September 9th and it's the first time
that both Philly and Cincinnati in what I call the
Chris Albright Bowl here in Chester There's so many connections
(25:44):
in tonight's game. As you know, Chris is an uncle
to both Quinn and Kevin Sullivan. He is a cousin
to their father, Brendan Sullivan. So he worked for a
ton of time here in Philadelphia. So he knows the
organization upside down. Pat has his past with Philly as well.
So a lot of familiarity in tonight's game, for sure.
Speaker 3 (26:02):
Yeah, always a lot of connections between FC Cincinnati and Philadelphia.
The match tonight at 745 Apple TV. Carlos Mauricio Ramirez
on the call. Can't thank you enough, man. Now you've
got to prep for a game tonight. We'll let you run.
Thanks so much.
Speaker 4 (26:15):
Thank you. Appreciate it. 745 with the great Laura Lindsay.
We'll see you tonight on Apple TV. Thank you for
the time.
Speaker 3 (26:21):
Looking forward to it. 745 tonight. FC Cincinnati on the
road against Philadelphia. If you're looking for radio coverage, you
can hear it tonight on Fox Sports 1360. Sports headlines
are a service of Kelsey Chevrolet, home of Lifetime Powertrain
Protection and guaranteed credit approval from their family to yours
for life, Kelsey Chev. Bengals injury report is out and
(26:43):
pretty clean. Jamar Chase, T. Higgins, Jamar Stewart, the only
players on it. Each guy a full go today as
the Bengals get set to take on the Bucs on
Sunday at 1. The game live on ESPN 1530. Pre-game
coverage from the Holy Grail starts at 9 a.m. More
tonight on the Bengals game plan show. That's at 6 p.m.
on ESPN 1530. After that, it's the NFL season opener
(27:04):
tonight in Seattle. Seahawks hosting the Patriots.
Speaker 1 (27:08):
Meanwhile.
Speaker 3 (27:09):
Reds and Dodgers again tonight. Cincinnati looking to avoid getting swept.
10-10 tonight's first pitch. 700 WLW. Rhett Lowder against Yoshi Yamamoto.
The Reds' tragic number four elimination in the National League
playoff race now down to seven. They're eight and a
half behind Arizona in the hunt for the last wild
card spot. The result last night, frankly, didn't seem to
(27:30):
matter all that much. The performance by Ellie De La
Cruz last night. And look, it's easy to default to this.
that Ellie was putting on a show in a ballpark
where he's going to be, you know, playing on a
regular basis here in a few years, and that's fair.
But what he has done over the last few weeks,
he is playing like a superstar. And Ellie has been,
(27:51):
Ellie's having a very good year, a very good year.
But over the last two and a half weeks or so,
he has played like a superstar. The throw he made
last night to now to Oscar Hernandez at the plate,
from behind second base, he made that look routine. That
(28:11):
throw is not routine. That on top of the 440-plus-foot
home run that he hit last night. Ellie has been
on fire. He put on a show last night, but
the Reds are wasting Ellie's season. They're wasting Sal Stewart's season.
They're wasting Chase Burns' season, and they wasted Ellie's performance
last night. Florence, y'all take on the Washington Wild Things
(28:32):
in game one of their best-of-three Frontier League playoff series.
6.56 is tonight's first pitch, and you just heard us
talk about FC Cincinnati. They're on the road tonight against Philadelphia. Again,
starts at 7.45. Fox Sports, 13.60. Joe Burrow had some
comments that, boy, it's interesting. They don't go as viral
(28:52):
nearly as much as they do when, you know, he
has a frowny face on the sideline, but we'll spend
some time on that. Expected to be joined next hour
by David Fulcher, Max Montoya, Sam Hubbard as well. plus
Kelsey Conway on the day at the venue originally known
as Paul Brown Stadium. A lot to get to between
now and 6. I'm Mo Egger, broadcasting from the Anthony
(29:14):
Munoz Foundation Topgolf Tailgate on ESPN 1530 Cincinnati Sports Station.
Speaker 8 (29:21):
Cincinnati's ESPN 1530. Traffic.
Speaker 3 (29:25):
From 5, this is ESPN 1530. I'm Mo Egger. Thank
you so much for listening. Chris Canty of ESPN this
morning said that Zach Taylor is going to be the
first NFL head coach fired. I actually have a slightly
different proposition. and it's available on this week's Back of
the Envelope Bets, which is available on the iHeartRadio app. Look,
(29:49):
the expectations are massive, and when a coach is on
the hot seat, there's always questions, A, about what the
fallout is going to be for Zach if the season
doesn't turn out as expected. And I think the expectation is,
although it's tempered a little bit because of the franchise
that we are talking about here, the expectation, I think,
is if the Bengals aren't a playoff team, that they
(30:11):
will be looking for a new head coach in 2027.
And so when there's heightened expectation and when there's a
sense of ultimatum, basically, hot seat coach, then if a
team plays poorly at the outset of the season, then
the expectation is that that there's at least a reasonable
chance that the head coach is whacked during the season.
(30:34):
To the best of my recollection, the only time the
Bengals have fired a head coach during the season, they
did it with Dave Shula, 1996, after they blew a
21-0 lead to the San Francisco 49ers, and they did
it after week three of the 2000 season, firing Bruce
Coslett after a memorable 37-0 road loss to the eventual
(30:56):
Super Bowl champion, Baltimore Ravens. I get it. This team's
got a track record of starting slowly, and I am,
you might argue, a little bit guilty of drinking the
Kool-Aid a little bit too much. We were talking in
the office this morning about just how abundantly optimistic so
(31:17):
many of us are. I find it hard to believe
that even if the season as a whole doesn't go well,
that they're going to sink to a point where they
move on from the coach during the season. Now, the
reason I believe that is I don't think they're going
to start 0-3. I don't think they're going to start 0-4.
(31:40):
And the Buccaneers are not going to be an easy
opponent to play against. Many, myself included, believe they're going
to win the NFC South. They're probably going to be
slight dogs against the Texans next week. They may be
slight dogs, depending on what the Steelers put on the
field the first two weeks. They may be slight dogs
against Pittsburgh, and I think they'll be favored against Jacksonville,
(32:03):
though not by a ton of points. They will be
playing three teams that made the playoffs last year in
the first four games. And we all understand this team's
recent issues with starting the season quickly. We've watched them
offensively struggle so much early in the season, and this
includes last year. I just don't think with the continuity
(32:25):
on offense, with the health this team has, which I
keep pointing to, and with the basic improvements on defense,
I just... I'll say 2-2 is worst case. And that... Again,
I'm going to get some pushback to that. I'll say
2-2 is worst case, and they're not going to fire
a head coach if he's 2-2. I do think the
conversations would be really interesting, though, if they did what
(32:49):
I don't expect, but what they've done... in the Zach
Taylor era, which is they're 0-2, and they're maybe staring
at 0-3, or maybe they go 0-3, or maybe they're 1-3. Like,
Joe Burrow's messaging has been about now, now or never,
got to win now, urgency, tired of waiting for next year.
(33:11):
When that's the overall tone of the organization, you're a
little bit more willing to pull the trigger quickly if
you get off to a slow start. And I don't
know that they're going to be swapping out a lot
of players. Zach Taylor's already had a chance to swap
out a bunch of assistant coaches. I do think it
would be fascinating to see what the Bengals would do
if this team started very poorly. Understanding that Zach has
(33:35):
a track record of, you know, digging out of a
hole and getting the Bengals to the postseason despite a
slow start or getting the Bengals back into the postseason
hunt despite a slow start. But A season defined by
urgency and a season defined by needing to win now,
if the team starts very poorly in the first three
(33:56):
or four games, I don't know that I would bet
on Zach Taylor being given a chance to dig the
Bengals out of that hole. We will see. And so
I first heard that this morning. Chris Canty said he
believes Zach Taylor is going to be the first coach fired.
I don't think that's going to happen because I think
they'll avoid the slow start. I think it's going to
be a 12-win team. And if you think they're going
(34:17):
to go 12-5, I can't imagine you believe they're going
to start 1-3. But if they did, I don't think
the chances are zero that they would move on from
the head coach. More on that coming up in just
a bit. We've got to talk more about what Joe
Burrow had to say to Jeff Hobson yesterday. We'll do
that coming up in the next hour. Kelsey Conway is
going to join us. Right around 545, we are looking
(34:39):
forward to that. We'll also be joined here by Max Montoya,
who just walked in. David Fulcher is expected to be here.
Same for Sam Hubbard. We're broadcasting from the Anthony Munoz
Foundation Topgolf tailgate here at Topgolf in Westchester. Brennan and
Jones on baseball is next on ESPN 1530, Cincinnati's sports station.
Mo Egger News
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