Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - BENGALS SQUAD SHOW: EMBARRASSING END to DISAPPOINTING season, changes BETTER be coming

Episode Date: January 5, 2026

Sunday's game at Paycor Stadium was emblematic of the entire 2025 Bengals Season. Even worse, this season ended with a loss to the Cleveland Browns. Alex Frank and Art Valero discuss the atrocities that unfolded in Cincinnati and how this better result in major changes. No matter how bad a season is, this was a terrible way for it to end. The Bengals' defense did play well, but not when it counted. Are we worried about Joe Burrow throwing three pick sixes in five weeks? How much should we worry about Evan McPherson this offseason? Finally, Alex includes the show with a message to the Bengals front office, while referencing a classic 80's rock song. Support Us By Supporting Our Sponsors! Rocket Money Let Rocket Money help you reach your financial goals faster. Join at http://RocketMoney.com/LOCKEDON Betterhelp This episode is sponsored by BetterHelp. BetterHelp makes it easy to get matched online with a qualified therapist. Sign up and get 10% off at http://BetterHelp.com/LOCKEDON. DripDrop Right now, DripDrop is offering podcast listeners 20% off your first order. Go to http://dripdrop.com and use promo code lockedonnfl. Ultimate QB Ultimate QB is totally free to play, has no ads, and works 100% offline — perfect for when you want to sneak in a quick game or two on the go. Just head over to http://ULTIMATE-QB.COM. FanDuel Today's episode is brought to you by FanDuel. So before tip-off, check the FanDuel app and see what’s dropping during NBA Happy Hour — every Friday from 6 to 7:30 PM Eastern. A little basketball, a little action, and a whole lot of Friday energy. PrizePicks Download the PrizePicks app today and use code LOCKEDONNFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. Click Here: https://prizepicks.onelink.me/LME0/LO... Gametime Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code LOCKEDONNFL for $20 off your first purchase. Terms apply. Download Gametime today. What time is it? Gametime. Zocdoc Stop putting off your doctor’s appointments and get the care you need. Go to http://Zocdoc.com/lockedonnfl to find and instantly book a top-rated doctor today. FANDUEL DISCLAIMER: 21+ in select states. First online real money wager only. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable free bets that expires in 14 days. Restrictions apply. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. Gambling Problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER or visit FanDuel.com/RG (CO, IA, MD, MI, NJ, PA, IL, VA, WV), 1-800-NEXT-STEP or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 (AZ), 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat (CT), 1-800-9-WITH-IT (IN), 1-800-522-4 Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

I'm Alex Frank and, well, that was in a word, embarrassing. Coach Valero, we don't curse on this show, but if you had to sum up today's game in one word, how would you say it? In one word to sum up this game, Coach, how would you say it would be? As we get Coach Valero on here, the Bengals falling to the Cleveland Browns, 20 to 18 on a 49-yard game-winning field goal by Andre Schmidt.

And coach, if you can hear me, me one word to describe what you saw today at Paycor Stadium. As we wait to get Coach Valero in here. I'll kind of continue this intro to the show. So look, that was embarrassing. The Bengals had opportunities to really take control of this game early, and they didn't. They committed two turnovers in the first half that directly led to points.

And that is, I mean, this offense is allowed 58 points. Coach, if you can hear me, you can chime in here. as we get things going here at the Bengals. Oh, there we go. We got Coach Valero. And give me one word, coach, if you can hear me, to describe this game, the final game of the season, to end what's been such a disappointing season.

One word to describe it. We still don't have them. That's okay. We'll work on that as we are live on the Lockdown Bengals YouTube channel on the Bengals Squad Show. Today, it's the Bengals. Squad everything Cincinnati Bengals every week. Breaking down all the big hits and game changing plays from the Queen City.

The way only the Lockdown Podcast Network can. From the jungle to the playoffs, the Bengals Squad show starts now. Indeed, it does. Welcome to the Bengals squad show on the Lockdown Bengals YouTube channel and the lockdown podcast network. Your team every day. Today's edition of Bengals Squad is brought to you by price picks right now. You can download the Price Fix app today and use code locked on NFL to get $50 in lineups after you play your first $5 lineup. I'm Alex Frank, joined by Coach Ard Valero, Mike Santagin us on assignment today.

So we don't have him. Coach, if you can hear me okay, he's going to fix this microphone before we get things going. The Bengals lose into the Cleveland Browns today, 20 to 18, 6 and 11 finish on the regular season. Just a complete an abomination today at AACOR Stadium. And we will get into everything that happened today, tons of things to get to on today's show, Miles Garrett setting the NFL sack record, the Bengals. They did, I guess, an okay job containing him early on. But coach, if you can hear me, you can chime in here on this an abomination that was today's game on so many levels.

I think for me, the most frustrating thing is just everything that this season was. It was mistakes on offense. It was the defense not being able to get a stop when it mattered. It was so many things that just added up to what has been such a disappointing season and really a revealing season, a humbling season on so many fronts. We'll get Coach Valero back here in a minute. But it's just so disappointing to sit here after the Bengals lose to their in-state rivals, their longtime rivals, the Cleveland Browns.

We got Coach Valero. I'm going to make sure his cameras gets adjusted, and then we'll add him to the stage here. Coach Valero, you got me now? I sure hope so. Okay. Well, I said this to you in the open. If you could sum up today what you saw in one word, what would you say? The 2025 season.

Wow. Okay. You know what? And Zach Taylor did say, and I kid you not, he said this, and I'm going to ask you right off the cuff, what do you think about this comment? He said that today was emblematic of the season. When you hear your head coach say that,

what goes through your mind? It wasn't good enough. And no matter how hard we work, the ball didn't bounce our way. You know, we worked hard. The staff worked hard. The front office worked hard. But you know what?

When it came down to it, we played a below par football team. We kept it close. We game planned for them. And it wasn't good enough. We got beat by an inferior team on the last. basically the last play of the game. Yeah, I mean, that's how so many games it has felt like this season, as I was mentioning, it's how so many games have felt this season.

The Bengals did enough to win the game. They just didn't finish. That's now 12 times in the last two seasons, five times this season, where the Bengals have lost by one score. It's infuriating. It truly is because you look at the opportunities that were there to break this game open early. The Bengals are up six nothing. Yes, Evan McPherson missed an extra point. We'll touch on that a little later on. So they're up six to nothing. They're in the red zone and then Joe

Borough throws a pick six, his third in five weeks. That may also be a concern. Then the Bengals are down seven, six. They're kind of moving the ball. Noah fan fumbles, Cleveland runs it back for a touchdown. And yes, they were flagged from sportsmen like conduct penalties. But the Browns were practically making a mockery of the team they were playing today. That's what it said to me. Browns fans channing Miles Garrett's name after he socked the sec record, which congratulations to him, I suppose. So you had that.

You take the lead 18 to 17. All you have to do, coaches get one stop to win the game on defense. And you couldn't. You couldn't do it. You couldn't finish. And as you said, not good enough. But did you think today when the Browns, they were like high step in, they were falling backwards into the end zone on their defensive touchdowns?

Like, what does that say to you about how they treated the Bengals coming into today? Well, I think that then as an organization, you know what? I think they went about their business today that, yeah, we're going to Cincinnati to play in-state rival, conference rival. What do we got to lose? Let it hang out. Let it go. And let's have some fun while we're doing it.

We're in it offensively. We're going to try to move the ball and score some points. And, you know, with a subpar quarterback, I hate to burst everybody's bubble out there. But, you know, we'll try to move the ball around and get some points on the board. And defense is going to be you. You're going to have to do something for us. You're going to have to create sudden change. And, you know, on the way, we're going to get arguably the greatest defensive player

in the NFL today his due reward, which they did, which was great. And I think that they played a little looser. They played to have fun. That's a great point. It's a great point. And because the way I saw the game today was, and the way we talked about it on Friday on this show, and the way I kind of felt about it all week was,

okay, seasons essentially over. You know, you're playing for pride. you're playing for a winning record in the division and all that stuff did matter. And we all talked about, okay, maybe this team is going to come out. They're going to be able to hold up against Miles Garrett, which they, you know, I think for the most part, aside from that one sack, they kind of did. You can look at the box score from this game. The Bengals at 142 rushing yards.

That's good. Chase Brown finished with over 1,000 yards. Congratulations to him. Joe Burrell 29 at 39, 29, 2, 36, three touchdowns. That's a typical Joe Burrell game. except for that one pick. Now, he was also sacked another time. That was not by Miles Garrett.

Jamar Chase, 8 for 96 and a touchdown. T. Higgins, 6 for 67. And a touchdown. Chase Brown also had a receiving touchdown. So you did hold up against the Brown's defense. Fine. But, I mean, this is what's so infuriating to me. Like, first downs, 24 to 11.

Total yards, 364 to 200. 200. And you lose? You lose? Are you kidding me? Like, this was the game. game where, okay, you beat your in-state rivals, you keep Miles Garrett at bay, which you did, he was just so happy to be a sack away from the sack record.

You find a way to run the football. Your offensive line takes strides forward. How about three false starts in the first half? Yeah, that's not taking a step forward. And now you go, you, you leave the stadium today knowing you just lost to that team that had nothing to play for. They were four and 12. They somehow beat the Steelers last week. They only scored 13 points in doing so.

They have major issues. Their head coach is going to be practically fired tomorrow, if not tonight, and you lose. Coach, you're now leaving the stadium six and 11, only one game above them. And now it's like, well, if we hadn't beaten them in week one by one point, we would finish tied with them and they would have the tiebreaker. We finish in last place. This coach was a humbling and revealing defeat. There are so many things wrong with this Bengals organization.

Is that how you see it? Absolutely. You know what? I tell you, even just coming into the game. And, you know, one coach is on a hot seat and one may. Should be. No, no. Should be.

You don't, one staff is like on, one offense is dynamic. The other one isn't. One defense is dynamic. The other one isn't. No. So if you enjoyed the punt game today, you had a great day. You watched a lot of film. Because the punters on both sides of the ball, you know, did an unbelievable job.

And we were talking last week about the 49ers hadn't punted and who knows how long. Well, we certainly did. And then you look at time of possession. More than nine minutes, the Bengals. The Bengals have possessed the Browns by more than nine minutes, coach. That is absurd for you to have. that much time in your advantage more than they do. And it comes down to, hey, two turnovers again,

that both led to touchdowns. That's 58. Whether they be the wrong touchdowns or short touchdowns. They were scores. Yep. You know, it was really, you know, I mean, it was, you looked at it and you're going, okay, they're playing small ball.

They're not going to hold on to the ball too long because they don't want to like Garrett or the other guys get to them. which is great, but the guys that they're throwing underneath two have to make plays. There were no big plays in the game. No. And you know what? Jamar had his 8 to 10. T. Higgins had his 5 to 6.

You know, Chase Brown, great year young man. You know, he got over the 1,000 yard mark. He was great out of the backfield recepting. He was good in protection. You know, great, but there's no big points. But you didn't win. Yeah, on top of, on top of that. Coach, did you know the Bengals offense has,

and this is a true stack courtesy of Charlie Clifford at WLW2 Channel 5 in Cincinnati, the Bengals offense has allowed, ready for this, 58 points this season off turnovers. Wow. Can you believe that? Wow. Like this game today, like Zach Taylor, yes, he can say, This was emblematic of the season.

I don't want my head coach saying that. We know it is. And I'm going to discuss it right now. Excuse for kind of going on a rant here, but this is what we're going to do because you lose to your in-state rivals to Cleveland Browns. Mike Brown has said, and I know this for a fact, Mike Brown has said that beating the Browns matters more to him than beating any other team. Do not think that he's upset right now or that he's not upset.

He is. He has to be. And that's why I think Zach Taylor is going to stay. I think Duke Tobin is going to stay. But I would not be surprised if there are major changes on those. front. I would not be come tonight, tomorrow, Tuesday when we are back on this show, our first offseason show of the season. Hopefully James Rapine will be joining us. So stay tuned for that. This was an abomination. Let's go to the second quarter coach. The second quarter, here's how it's

starting. You come out a break, quarter break. You're on the field. Third and one. What happens? Time out. What? You couldn't come up with a play during like two and a half minutes. of a commercial break? What? You're in your seventh season as the head coach and play caller, and you couldn't call it a third at one play? How about just to, oh, let's run up the middle, or offensive lines playing okay today.

Time out? Really? Huh? And then later in the drive, later in the drive, fourth and one, you line up to go for, you don't go for it because they don't jump off sides. You take a delay a game.

Again, what do you have to lose? You don't have anything to lose. Like, that is so, and then the fumble by Noah Fant. Third fumble, he's lost this season coach that's been run back for a touchdown. Yeah. So, I mean, just three full starts in the first half, not getting a play call in after commercial break, I should add. And then taking a delay a game on fourth and one, you have nothing to play for,

at least, as you said, let it all hang out. I mean, like the Browns were doing that today. They were flying around defensively. Shador Sanders gave him credit, made some plays on offense, even though he didn't lead a touchdown drive. You allowed six points on defense, and yet it still feels, and yet you lose. So your defense plays well, and you lose because your offense made careless mistakes. Coach, please, the second quarter. Like, what were you saying? We can't curse on this show, so this will be PG-13. But what did you say to yourself when you're watching the second quarter and the Bengals,

incompetence and ineptitude to even get a play call in after a commercial break. Well, if I could use initials, no, I won't do that. But you guys all get my drift on where I'm going with that. You know, the pre-snap mistakes in this game, pre-snap, okay, you take the three offside penalties, you take the timeout, you take the delay a game and you're moving yourself back. You haven't even snap the ball yet. You haven't even got a chance to play yet.

and you can name five right out the bat. And an old coach told me one time, when you look at the bottom line of a game in five plays, now you won't know during the game, but when you evaluate the game later, five plays will determine the outcome of the game. Five on offense or five on defense. Well, I can certainly say on offense

because the stats don't match the time of possession doesn't match, but those five critical mistakes before the ball ever got snapped were crucial. Yeah, they were. And we're going to get into those careless mistakes, including Noah fan and coach,

you coached tight end. So I'm going to talk to you about what you've seen from him this season and his fumbling issue. We will do all of that coming up next right here on the Bengal Squad Show. This edition of the Bengals Squad show is brought to you by better help. So the new year doesn't require a new you, maybe just a less burdened you. So we all carry things that weigh us down or hold us back. And therapy can help you identify

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or excuse me, the Bengals squad show, part of Lockdown Bengals and the Lockdown Podcast Network, the number one sports podcast, number of America, excuse me, and the world, your team every day. Don't forget, if you want to become a member of the Every Dare Club, Mr. Lockdown podcast.com slash every, excuse me, every day or two, learn more. I was talking too fast there. Art Valero, Coach Arfellaro with me today, Mike Santagano on assignment, we'll get him back during the offseason. I mean, this, coach, I just think about all the miscues in this game today. The pick six by Joe Burrow, yeah, bad, but it was tipped. But Noah fan and the fumble return for a touchdown that he had, that's now three times this season. Minnesota, Pittsburgh,

and today where he has lost a fumble and the opposing team has run it back for a touchdown. You coach tight ends. What would you tell them about ball security? Well, you know what? It's going back to basics because they have a tendency, especially later in the season, that most players, and in NOAA's standpoint, I mean, it's been all year. You can pick the game. So they are working at it.

It's a matter of not losing concentration trying to lose focus. You can see where you can lose yardage trying to gain yardage. And that's about more securing the football in traffic as opposed to being a long-armed guy and you're trying to make something, especially DBs. They're not going to try to rip it out. They're going to strip you from it. And there's a whole lot of them and a whole little of you

over in that area based on play design. When they pick it up, they're going. And there's no one there with any kind of angles, can get you. You know, I hated talking about it because it put it in their minds, but we would drill it, and we would drill it every day.

And, you know, my point was some of the veterans would say, hey, you know what, Coach, why would keep doing this? Let's make a deal. You know, and we would make a deal. We would stop securing the football or working at securing it, but it better be that way. and I told every defender in practice,

strip the ball from that defensive guy, or from the offensive guy, and make it a practice habit where if you're going through, even if it's walked through, break it, punch it, strip it, do whatever you have to do to get the ball out until the whistle stops.

And that allowed everybody to be able to think, hey, offensively, you got to catch it, you got to tuck it, secure it, then get yourself going upfield to the point where it is now our ball. And it's something that you work on all camp, you work at them throughout the season, and it becomes a mindset for the player. And if he gets that negative mindset, you can only get it back. You are scratching and clawing to try to get his confidence level back.

You know, it's interesting. Like, there's a coach. I don't know who it is. Maybe it's the coach you're referring to. The ball, the ball, the ball. You can do so many things as an offense. You can be the greatest offense in the world. But if you turn it over, your gift wrapping the other team extra possessions.

And turnover is coach, I'm sure you know this. They are such momentum swinging plays that can affect the entire outcome of a game. Take the first game in Cleveland, for example. You know, Joe Flacko had a rinkinning. really good day throwing the football. The Brown's offense looked like they had some cohesiveness to it. They were running the football. They were getting easy completions. But they only scored 16 points because they turned it over twice. Joe Flacka threw two picks. DJ Turner and Jordan battle. So they had a lot of activity, both the Bengals made plays when it matter

defensively and the Bengals had zero turnovers. So that stuff did matter. And so So that's, the game today was the complete reversal. Now, the Browns did commit a fumble early. The Bengals cashed it in, Chase Brown with the touchdown. I'm thinking at that point, okay, you know, keep playing from ahead. Keep getting defensive stops. You're going to be able to put this game away early. Only I was actually right on that.

I mean, you, the way I saw it when it was 14 to 6, you were gift wrapping them. Points. Yeah. Your defense was doing their job. But you were gift wrapping them points. And the most maddening thing to me, and I've said this already, and your explanation on ball security, great, because I mean, I can only imagine what those practices were like for your

buccaneers with that receiving core and that defense, which, I mean, Noah fingers are about taking the ball away. Just look at Super Bowl 37. I think the most impressive thing, or not impressive, but Noah fan has fumbled now three times this season. It's been returned for touchdowns. No, forget that. Coach, forget that he fumbled. Like, what did you tell your offensive players,

if the defense is running back a fumble or an interception? What did you tell them to do in that situation? Well, normally what ends up happening is your receivers are out of the game, right, unless they're close. So it's a matter of the O-Line and the quarterback, because he's the only one left and pull the quarterback's out because they ain't going after it. Okay, that's a business decision for them. So you've got five big guys trying to maintain or guess an angle to where this guy is going to be,

unknowing what his speed is, not worked on in practice, not worked on in practice. And I always used to tell guys, hey, don't worry about your 40 time. I don't care about your 40 time because if you have to run a sub 540, the ball's going the wrong way. and you're not going to get it done. So you got to remember, in a running game, the ball is all out in front of you, and it's a scrum. In the passing game,

whether it be sack fumble or reception fumble, you're out there by yourself, and you don't have proximate players close enough to be able to track that thing down. Why? Because they're at minimum 10 yards apart. and it really makes it difficult. And then it just becomes about hustle. Hustle to the ball.

And don't show that you're least showing effort. But when they're faster than you, they're faster than you. You can't do anything about it. All right. Let's go to Joe Burrow. So he finishes the season, eight games played, completing 65.5% of his passes, little down from where you normally see it from him,

1,573 passing yards, 14 touchdowns, 4 interceptions. Those are in nine games, good numbers. You're on pace for about 30 touchdowns, over 3,000 passing yards. I mean, he probably would have had a couple 300-yard passing games in there, maybe a 400 or 2 in there. Like, that's fine. But he's thrown three pick sixes in the last five weeks. And I'm not saying Joe Burroughs not a great quarterback by any means.

He's a top three quarterback in the NFL. And he, Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen, to me, are still the three best quarterbacks in the NFL. But pick sixes are big plays. And it cost them the Bills game, the Bengals. It, in a way, cost them today. So, I mean, this is, this was the set. I mean, his pick sixes this year were long pick sixes. I mean, they were inside opposing teams territory on each pick six.

So I ask you, coach, are you worried about that? Not about Joe Burrow, but are you worried about his pick six tendency, at least this season down the stretch going in the next season? No, no. Okay. You know what? You look at his picks, his three pick sexes, they were all in traffic. You know, today ball got badded.

Today, Baltimore, or I mean, excuse me, Buffalo, it got tipped. you look at the one on the kind of the RPO looking thing bad play you know he wasn't forcing the ball down the field telegraph in his motion they just came up at bad times

and you know what a microcosm of the season you were snake bit because of those three plays and your defense can't get you out? I mean, to this point right now, what are we, like minus five still in terms of takeaways? I don't have the stats in front of me, but yeah, I mean,

because the Bengals defense has struggled to force turnovers at times this season. So that's a great point. And I mean, you mentioned the word snake bid. This franchise has been snake bid for 58 seasons. So I, okay, if it's what you're saying, saying is tip balls, you know, corners coming off a blitz, whatever it may be. Are there ways to combat those? Just be a little bit more probably on his point.

He'll take a long look at it because he seems like a very conscientious, very by the numbers person. I mean, he's a critical thinker. And I don't see him being a guy that will serve those up. and he probably hadn't. And it was just circumstances that it hadn't. That's one person on this offense. I have no concerns about.

Because I know he will write his own ship, which in Karen will write the rest of the offensive ship. Yeah, I agree with that. I really do. And Joe Burrell definitely, you mentioned the critical thinker. Like, he's maniacal in his approach to football. Like he's obsessed with every aspect of the game, sometimes to a fault.

So I'm not worried either because I think also, you know, think about how fast he came back and the Bengals were up against it when he did return in terms of the playoff picture. Maybe that played a role into it. You know, you always say you'd love to have some plays back when you have to play perfect for your team to win and have a shot at the playoffs. That can mess with you a little bit. And I understand that. So let me ask you, coach. Like, do you think that psychology may have had an impact on some of the big six as he threw this season? You know what?

Coming back early, might have because he's trying to make things happen. When you put the world of your – the world apart on your shoulders, that's big. And he knew from the get-go, hey, he's seen this team play, his own team. And he knew that, hey, I'm going to have to take some gambles. I'm going to have to take some risks in order for us. to be able to fight through this as a team, put the defense in a better situation, and go.

And you know what? I think that wears a lot. And especially the kind of person he seems like, he's going to wear it on his, he's going to wear all of his emotions on his sleeve, even though you can't tell. You know it's there. And he just needs some aid.

And I think he can get all the talking to he wants. But that's, that's in his mind where he's got to go. You know, you got to remember, this is a kid that has been told no a lot, only to prove him wrong. Yeah. And that goes back to when he was at Ohio State and the fact that he didn't start. He bent on himself and transferred to LSU.

Look what that turned into. And now he's here. I think it's interesting, coach, because these last three seasons, ever since he's signed his contract extension, the last three seasons have not gone the way he wanted them to go, and we wanted them to go. He enters his wrist in 2023. Last year his MVP caliber season is wasted.

This year he misses nine games. Comes back, not that much better. The Bengals only go three and three with him. So, I mean, he said it earlier this week that the last, you know, the last three seasons have not been what we wanted them to be and that, you know, we have to change something. And you look at the way today's game went. The Bengals did enough.

They should have won this game when you look at the stat sheet. I mean, the first time these two teams played, the Browns dominated the stat sheet. The Bengals just made plays when it matter. They did the little things right in that game. But you end the season with the loss to your division rival. You end the season losing your last two division games at home, no less. So now you go into the off season, three and three in the,

division six and 11 overall. This, I mean, you can say this never should have happened. I say, well, you weren't prepared coming into the season. Your defense was in flux. Your offensive line still wasn't as, you know, settled as it is now. Your running game certainly wasn't. And this is what you get. We should have seen this coming. The expectations that were there at the start of this season, and then Burrow gets hurt and then just like so many other, like, you know, dramatic saga. is Trey Hendrickson, Shamar Stewart,

Jake Browning falling off a cliff, his play. I mean, there were so many things, Jamar Chase with the Spick Gate, you know, Burroughs comments and just, I mean,

every, I mean, even in the positive moments, it's like, okay, Chase Brown goes over a thousand, Burrow and Chase Connect for a touchdown. Higgins has another touchdown

the day, finished with a career high 11 this season. You just couldn't get it done when it matter. Yeah. I mean, that, That is all said and done. And the thing is, it's like you can say, the Bengals can say, well, Zach Taylor has done this, this, and this.

Fine. I get it. He's been with Super Bowl. But 12, one score losses in one season. Coach, what does that fall on? Who does that fall on the most? Well, I think that falls on the organization as a whole and how it's structured. You know, they end up, your goal about your business.

You know, take it back three years to when. Joe signed his contract, his extension. It's as if they felt like, okay, 75% of this thing is done. No. Wait a minute. Coach, what do you always say? The bottom 43? Yeah.

Yeah. You've got a whole other football team. You got the main two guys, and actually the main three guys, in terms of The receivers, because that's who this team's built around, Joe Burrow and the receivers. And then you got a surprise with having Chase Brown getting thrown in there. But you have those. But how about the stars on the other side?

All you see people is leave. You had one star. He got upset at you. You got upset at him. You let it linger. It shouldn't. You're right. And then when it shouldn't,

you finally pulled that scab on, but the scar was still there. Yeah. And he chose not to play the rest of the season. There are so many scars with this organization that much is known. I think you bring up a great point, coach. So in the fourth quarter today, T.J. Slayton, who was a free agent signing this offseason, he makes a play, and he goes to celebrate in the ends and he's trying to engage the fans. And my thought process was, this defense used to have so many players that fans could relate to.

Sam Hubbard, hometown guy. Trey Hendrickson, big free agent signing, big time edge rusher. Now fans, you know, they don't feel that, they don't feel as strongly about him as they did. Jesse Bates, fan favorite. Mike Kilden Chinobe, Wusee, fan favorites, team leaders. Logan Wilson fan favorite team leader. Where are those guys? G-O-N-E, gone.

There's this defense, it's not just that they're not good. It's that there aren't that many players that fans relate to and from a likable sense, which is very sad. considering just a few years ago, this defense, they made some key plays in that Super Bowl run and the next year on their way to the AFC championship. So, I mean, it's just their approach, excuse me, on that side of the ball, it needs to change. This offseason, I mean, I don't know if this is going to happen. There needs to be a full self-reflection in that organization.

There is no alignment with this organization. And that's a sad thing to see. again, I've said this, and other people have said this on social media. This should be the most prosperous era of Bengals football. And instead, it's turned into the most disappointing era, given the talent that's on offense and the expectations that have been in this city since 2021 when the Bengals went to the Super Bowl. Now, it wasn't just Joe Burrow in the pick six. It wasn't just no fan in the fumble return for a touchdown.

The Bengals also failed in other areas when it mattered, including, Stop me if you've heard this before on defense. We'll touch on those next right here on the Bengals Squad show. This episode of Bengals Squad is brought to you by drip drop. So kicking off the year feeling good is the goal, right? It should be. And honestly, hydration is the easiest win. Here, I'll even show you.

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That's dripdrop.com promo code locked on NFL for 20%. of stock up now at drip drop.com and use promo code locked on NFL. I'm going to be honest, coach, about something that transpired in the game today that I am once again now concerned about because, well, life's good when your kicker's making his kicks. It isn't when he's not. I mean, like, how do you view, like, just in general, the kicker position in the NFL because you coach Matt, Brian, who has one of the biggest legs of his generation. So how do you view kickers?

Well, I look at them and I tell them all the time. I look at place kickers. They're erasers. They are out there to erase somebody else's mistake by either not scoring a touchdown or getting the extra point. And same thing with the punters. The punters are out there to erase a touchdown. the offense's mistake from not gaining first downs and putting them in a position where they

have to go. They're very, very delicate, they've got a delicate ecosystem going on with those guys. And, you know, to this point, you know, McPherson has been phenomenal all year long. From in the heat, in the, you know, fall, colder the ball got, whatever it was, you knew that you always had him in your back pocket. And, you know, those guys, to me, they're erasious. They're going to erase my mistake on offense. And they're going to get us points on the board. You know, I think by my count he's only missed three field goals all season.

And they were in week six, he missed two. And then in week nine, he missed one. But that was because the coaching staff didn't realize that the quarterback ball was on the field, not the kicking ball. so there's that. He's missed three extra points in two weeks. I know the extra point isn't as automatic as it used to be. I still don't like the rule.

I think it's dumb. But the Browns kicker today had two extra point attempts from 15 yards back from where it normally is because of the penalty. Unsports like conduct penalties. He drilled both of them. McPherson missed two from the normal spot. I mean, how do you explain that? You can't.

You know. So it's just something you, it's just something you, you know, pat him on the shoulder and say move on. Is that where I'm, is that how we're gathering this? You know, you don't want to just pat him on the shoulder and tell him move on because he knows that. He knows he's better than that and he should do that. You know, whether it's lack of concentration, it's lack of focus, whether it's, you know, something that disrupt him in the stand. wind conditions, finding the cute girl in the upper deck, you never know. So, you know, hey, your job is one.

You're sitting out there, go get us points. Go get us points. And that's his job and that's certainly a letdown that he has to, because he has to face everybody else in that locker room who is banging all game. And his livelihood should be a lot longer than theirs. and so I'm sure he's feeling it right now. He's leaving the season as if he did nothing. Yeah, I mean, the two miskicks today, if he makes one of those,

the Bengals only have to kick an extra point on their go-ahead touchdown in the fourth quarter. It's 20 to 17. You make the Browns kick a field goal just to tie the game. You make both of them, you're up 21-17. Then you're saying to Shador Sanders, you got to go the length of the field for a game winning touchdown. They made it too easy for them today on that game winning drive. And that leads me to this.

How many times the last two seasons, particularly this season, has the Bengals defense needed one stop? Where's your closer? Where is the guy that you say close this game out? Like, I'm sure every Bengals fan has seen this. You watch any Super Bowl 56 mic'd-dub video. Sean McVeigh literally says to Aaron Donald, go close this game out. He did.

If you don't have your closer on defense, you're asking for it. And they did. And it's not like the Browns moved the ball very far down the field. 40 yards is all they got. It was enough. And once again, the Bengals defense, just like they couldn't do against the Jets, just like they couldn't do against the Bears, just like they couldn't do against the bills on 3rd and 15.

And just like they couldn't do today. You could even go back to the Packers game where they had four possessions in the second half and they couldn't get stopped on either one of them. Like, forget that the defense is bad. The 49ers defense last week, coach, they got a stop when it matter. The Seahawks defense yesterday got stops when it matter.

The Bengals defense has not done that in two years. yet again, they couldn't in the final minute. That I'm telling you. And we talked about it the other day. You know, what do the Bengals need? They need a boy dog on defense. They need to go out and get themselves a playmaker. Whether he be in the box, you know, one of the four down linemen,

preferably a tackle because they're really, to close a game out, you need them. or a stud linebacker a lairay louis bontez perfect you know you might not like the other baggage but he was a boy dog or you get a guy in the secondary

who is challenging people and he is covering sideline to sideline as the safety and going to make stuff happen and he makes those in the secondary and those in the front seven that much better and I think that that's what they lack. They've got a lot of players and they've got some good ones, but they need a, they need a different

dog. Boy dog, lead dog, difference maker, whatever it is. You're absolutely right, coach. Like you look behind me here. I'm not sure if you can see it for those listening, for those watching us. So this frame behind me here has the, uh, the interception that ended the Bengals playoff game against the Raiders and the curse here in Cincinnati. On that play, watch DJ Reader and BJ Hill. Like they were trying to get pressure on Derek Carr. It was a good pocket, okay? But they both got hands up.

They both put their hands up to try to deflect the pass. And then on the second level, Jermaine Pratt, a linebacker, say what you want about him and his antics. He always seemed to be in the right place at the right time on Big Place Coach. That matters. Pratt makes the intercept.

And then the secondary for the Bengals that season, Jesse Bates, Chinobe, Wuzier, Mike Hilton, even a guy like Eli Apple, they were in the right position when it mattered. You can say this is all cliche. No, it isn't. Coach, you don't think it's cliche, do you? No, sir. No, sir. I've seen, hey, I've had a chance to witness great defenses. And they are where they're supposed to be, and they arrive in a bad mood. Okay, let me ask you about Monty Kiffin. God rest of soul. Defense coordinator of the 2002 Buccaneers, Super Bowl champions. By the way, Mike Tomlin, who you'll see tonight, was on that coaching staff. That coaching staff was elite, okay? So how much, like, forget how great that defense was.

I mean, they were absurdly great. But how much did Monty Kiffon talk about fundamentals for that defense? Oh, every day. Okay. Every day. There was the individual periods in practice. were on, they were re-repetitioned. They, whether it be, you know, Rod Marinelli with the D-line,

they did it over and over and over. Monty with the linebackers, Joe Barry with the linebackers, they did things constant. Why? Because they wanted to make sure that it was second nature. Yeah. That it just happened. that their eyes were right,

that they were in body position to recover if they were out of position and in position to, we worked on, it was really kind of obnoxious from an offensive standpoint. Every play they would strip. Every play they would hold the backup.

They would, what Moni called shoot his guns, which meant you ran through the ball carrier as if you were going to tackle it. even though it was a non-physical drill. Wow. There were things that were in just etched in stone. When you watch film on Monday morning,

you would all better be by the ball. Or you were great at a loaf and you were called out in a team meeting amongst your peers. Wow. That didn't last long. What did we call it that, coach? Accountability. Is that what you're getting here?

Yes, sir. Wow. Hey, I'm telling you, he held any, and I mean, everybody's heard, Monty, when he got fired up, it was like somebody stepped on a duck. If when he preached and when he talked, oh, people listened to him because he was all, he had a standard. And it came from, you know, his time with Code Dungey, that the standard was set. and it's like what Mike Tomlin talks about all the time as well. The standard. Is the standard.

Is the standard. We don't fall below it. We always rise above it, but we're always where the standard is. And I'm going to show you on Monday where the standard lost. Wow. And where we lost defensively. Now, you combine that with the same thing offensively gone. Shoot, you've got a very volatile, very valuable operation going.

Accountability. Certainly something Bengals fans have wanted to see in this organization. It's also the theme of my message to the Bengals front office, which I told you I was going to reference an 80s rock song in it. That we will get to coming up next to round out today's edition of the Bengals Squad show right here on the Locked up Bengals YouTube channel. This edition of the Bengals Squad show is brought to you by game time. NFL season is in full swing.

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They are rabid. They get off blocks. They shed blocks. They have an understanding of the scheme in which is being run at them. You know, they've seen it in practice. They've watched it on tape. They're one step, even with you or ahead of you. And then when they arrive, they swarm to the football.

they plaster when the quarterback's moving. They are where they're supposed to be, and they're playing excited. I mean, I would go watch Seattle just to watch them on defense. The way that they play it. Fundamentally sound, active, everybody runs with the football, no one loves. And because of that, those turnovers they get,

there's always hidden yardage after the fact, because they create it. and they're excited. I tell you what. Yeah, they are very exciting. Talk to me about Mike McDonald from a defensive coaching perspective and the job that he's done

in his first two seasons with that team and the transition that that team was in, they're now the number one seat in the NFC. You know what? Mike's done a great job. Absolutely. When you walk in, first of all, he inherits a job that Dan Quinn won. it. Personnel was the same, right, that he was used to. Pete leaves, and all of a sudden now,

you're bringing in a whole new guy. Who wants to follow Pete Carroll and what he had done in Seattle? Not many. Get a guy that knows defense, though. Correct. You bring him in, he transforms to the defense, works within what he has and what fits his style. John Snyder goes out and gets him. Terrific GM. I mean, outstanding. They go out and get them. And then on offense, they know the core, but they don't have a quarterback. They haven't had a quarterback, and they were lucky to get Russell Wilson in the third round.

Yeah. There were no quarterbacks there before, Matt Hasselback, but they lucked into him, and he took them the distance, not all these other guys. and they've always been looking for that featured back. You know, Marshaun came in and he was good because he fit their style. And then all of a sudden you get where I saw a clip or an advertisement the other day, that that wide receiver makes a million dollars less than the kid at Ohio State a year. Doesn't matter. Almost 1,800 yards this season.

So what you're saying, coach is there's a line. within that organization in Seattle. Absolutely. Okay. Here goes. So last off season, I and a lot of other Bengals fans bought into the message that the Bengals got, quote,

unlucky in 2024. You know, you know, think about all the unlucky plays. Tanner Hudson's goal line fumble, whatever that was. You know, and 16 at Kansas City.

Missed field goals against the Ravens and the Chargers. And, you know, not getting a call in Baltimore on three separate instances in one play. Okay, fine. You got unlucky. And we bought into that. You know, with Joe Burrow, they extended Jamar Chase and T. Higgins, even though it took too long. They did.

Give them credit. Okay, we're good. We got our court. We got our big three. Let's just go make sure the defense is average. So we only need to make a few tweaks, right? Sam Hubbard retired. You need to become, you know, unfortunately liability.

We're going to release J. Pram. We're going to release Sheldon Rankin's. We're going to bring in T.J. Slayden. We're going to bring in Orrin Barks underrated free agent signing. We're going to, you know, draft a guy that has traits. You know, we're closer than that others might think to get him back to the Super Bowl, especially because we got Borough, Chase, and Higgins. We just got unlucky last year.

Oh, okay. I bought into that. A lot of Bengals fans bought into that. And then they go to Cleveland and win a physical game week one. Again, they probably shouldn't have won. Oh, hey, they're going to get lucky this year. Oh, if only we knew what luck was going to come our way. Joe Barrow gets hurt.

The defense is even worse this year. The offensive line was a mess early on. The Bengals didn't get unlucky in 2024. That was the beginning of revealing what's wrong with this team, roster-wise, and organization-wise. Yes, I bought into the messaging because they were really good in 2024. And the defense was better in their last five games. But to quote Cinderella's Nobody's Fool, great song by the way, one of my all-time favorites.

But now I've changed my mind. I'm not your fool. I am not going to be fooled by anything this organization tries to tell me and every other Bengals fan. Now, we're closer than you guys think. well, Joe Burrow missed nine games this year. Well, still waiting, still waiting, because you weren't close this year. You weren't close at all this year.

Remember when you lost 4810 in Minnesota? Remember when you lost 283 at Denver? Remember when your defense, despite the offense scoring 38 and 42 points, the backup quarterback couldn't beat the 0-and-7 Jets? And then the Bears the next week, and yeah, the Bears are good, but still. remember when Joe Burrow came back and you still stunk defensively,

you're not close to winning the championship with a premier quarterback and premier wide receiver times two. You're not close. Face that fact. Major changes need to be made. We're not fools anymore. We know it needs to be done. Mike Brown, Duke Tobin, Katie Blackburn, the ball is in your court.

You are now on the clock. Coach, final words before we conclude our final post-game show and final in-season show on the Bengals Squad show this season. With that being said, what you just said is so true. And it kept bringing back to it. You got, hey, you got Michael McDonald, what a fool believes at the Doobie brothers. You can only flash so much.

when people started to say, you know what, it went from hope, all right, to indictment. Indictment. There's a lot of them on the Bengals front office right now. The offseason has begun. Thank you for all of you loyal listeners, viewers, for tuning in to the Bengals Squad show during the week on game days. We started this show just before the second half of the season got underway. Kind of a little, not a lot of structure within the show just yet. That's okay.

we've kind of been flying by the seat of our pants since we started this middle of the season. We're going to have better structure this offseason. Hopefully we'll have James Rapine on more in the offseason. I know you guys love listening to him and I do too. The everyday lockdown Bengals daily podcast on the Cincinnati Bengals coach. You're going to be on our every show this off season looking forward to that. We'll have Jake Liscoe, Mike Santagana, thanks to all of them. Coach, thank you.

I mean, when I got word, you were joining us, I was ecstatic. Your resume speaks for itself. You've been tremendous. You're going to keep evolving on this show. I'm going to keep evolving, as is everybody. And we want to thank you. Our loyal listeners, our loyal listeners, loyal viewers. This has been Bengals Squad on the lockdown Bengals YouTube channel

and the lockdown podcast network, the number one sports podcast network in America and the world. If you want to become a member of the Everydare Club where you can get access to the members-only Discord among many other benefits, exclusive to everydayers, visit lockdownpodcast.com slash everydayer. For Coach Art Valero, I'm Alex Frank at Frankie underscore Nauti coaches at Arthur Valera 54 on Twitter. Thank you for listening to the Bengals Squad Show, part of the Lockdown Bengals podcast,

the Lockdown Bengals YouTube channel, and wherever you get Lockdown Bengals and your podcast, part of the lockdown podcast, the number of the number one sports podcast, network in America and the world, your team every day.