Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Breaking down Duke Tobin's plan for the Cincinnati Bengals 2025 offseason | Combine Day 1 Takeaways

Episode Date: February 26, 2025

Duke Tobin took to the Indianapolis podium for his annual combine press conference, where he shared the Cincinnati Bengals' agenda for a crucial offseason coming off a disappointing season. Jake Liscow and James Rapien break down the biggest takeaways, where Tobin sent a message to the league that the Bengals feel like they'll be able to get long-term deals done with their stars and make moves to improve the team. Plus, we've got a word of the day - and maybe the offseason - that continues to come up with new defensive coordinator Al Golden.Join the Locked On Bengals Insider Community! https://joinsubtext.com/lockedonbengalsFind and follow Locked On Bengals on your favorite podcast platforms:Apple Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/locked-on-bengals-daily-podcast-on-the-cincinnati-bengals/id1159723162Spotify: https://open.spotify.com/show/7AObc0lh0WmQl5fJVgtajsGoogle Podcasts: https://podcasts.google.com/feed/aHR0cHM6Ly9mZWVkcy5tZWdhcGhvbmUuZm0vbG9ja2Vkb25iZW5nYWxz?sa=X&ved=0CAYQrrcFahcKEwio_sXtj8nuAhUAAAAAHQAAAAAQAgStitcher: https://www.stitcher.com/show/locked-on-bengalsSupport Us By Supporting Our Sponsors!FanDuelRight now, new FanDuel customers can get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in Bonus Bets if your first FIVE DOLLAR bet wins!Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started. Bet with FanDuel—Official Partner of the NBA. 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), 1-800-522-4700 (WY, KS) or visit ksgamblinghelp.com (KS), 1-877-770-STOP (LA), 1-877-8-HOPENY or text HOPENY (467369) (NY), TN REDLINE 1-800-889-9789 (TN) Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Duke Tobin held his normal press conference in Indianapolis before the combine. And while his presence was normal, his answers a little bit different than what we've come to expect from the Bengals de facto GM. Let's break it down. You are Locked on Bengals, your daily Cincinnati Bengals podcast. Part of the Locked On Podcast Network, your team every day. What up Bengals, Dan, and welcome to another episode of the Locked On Bengals podcast. I'm your host, Jake Lisco. host, James Rupin. We are

Lockdown Bengals on the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day on YouTube and everywhere you get your podcast. Every dayers know that this Duke Tobin presser was going to be interesting, that there were going to be takeaways that we were going to cover today. Welcome back to

those of you that are everydayers, those of you who make us your first listen. We appreciate all of you so very much. And if you're new to the show, as the Bengals are preparing to embark on what sounds like a spendee off season, if you listen to Duke Tobin while you're in the right place and you can subscribe on YouTube or anywhere you get your podcast to make sure you don't miss an episode. And there's a lot that we can talk

about here today, James. We're not going to get to everything Duke Tobin had to say. But the most interesting bits about this, the highlights are reiterating some points and clarifying, I think, his position on a few points that he was asked about when he talked to Kelsey Conway and Jeff Hobson and Mobile, Alabama at the Senior Bowl, about their intention around the Bengal stars, the Bengals money situation, and we've got a word of the day later on in the podcast. But it starts with the Bengals stars and some long-term deals the Bengals would like to get done. Yeah, I thought that was the main thing for me, Jake, today, is that the Bengals, you mentioned the word of the day, and the word of the day we'll get to, because I do agree with you,

that should be the word of the day. But the theme of the day is two words. Champagne problems. And that was a quote that Zach Taylor used, sidebar, not on the podium. And this is going to be the Duke Tobin reaction episode mostly. Probably the only time I mentioned Zach in this episode. But that was interesting to me because he said this is champagne problems. Having Joe Burrow go out there and say,

yeah, we want to pay T. Higgins and T. Hendrickson and Jammar Chase and Jammar Chase and T. Higgins and Trey Hendrickson. And Duke Tobin made it very, very clear from the jump when it came to T. Like, yeah, we've wanted to pay T for years, for years. I mean, that was one thing that he reiterated multiple times. So I do think that it's crystal clear the Bengals plan, whether or not that plan will come together. is a whole other topic, and we have plenty of time to discuss that. But as far as what they want to do and what their plan is, as of now, Tuesday, February 25th, Duke Tobin made it clear.

I'm still, I'm in Indianapolis here at the Combine in the nice Indianapolis Convention Center in this nice ballroom that they put together for the media. And yeah, this is, to me, it was a message not only to the fans, of course, in media, but to the rest of the league that's gathered here in Indianapolis, because you know that there are 31 other teams. And at least half of those other teams would love for T. Higgins to get to free agency. And at least 10 of them would probably make a strong push to sign him. A lot of teams will love for Trey Hendrickson to be on the trade block or Jemar Ches to be on the trade block.

And the Bengals made it very, very clear that they do not plan on that happening with any of these guys. And they want to keep them all long term. Yeah, it wasn't just those guys either. was a mention of Mike Kaseki. The tone was different there. We'll get to that, but it did come up. And I found that interesting. I did find it interesting because it came up and Duke had positive things to say about Mike Keseki.

And I do think the tone was different there. I also think the tone was actually a little bit different on Trey for a subtle reason that we'll talk about, but not significantly different. It's just that he is under contract. And so that does make his situation slightly different. He's under contract. It was his second contract. Plus, they had the year extension there. So a different situation than T. Higgins and Jemar Chase.

Another thing about this that I found quite interesting, a couple of points that I wanted to bring up related to what you were talking about. One, I think that a lot of things Duke said in terms of who he was speaking to, you said, you know, he's speaking to the fans. He's speaking to other NFL teams because we saw reports this week that were, ah, the rest of the NFL is skeptical of the Bengals getting this stuff done, right? So, yeah, it's talking to the rest of the league, I think for sure. when you hear it from the horse's mouth and then Zach's mouth, I guess two horses here, then that's a message to the whole league, right? That is the intention. That is the plan now.

Like you said, whether or not it gets done, there's a negotiation to be had. The other thing that was curious to me is, you know, Duke says, oh, we always wanted to keep to your round long term. And I understand that people probably hear that and think you tagged him and didn't negotiate with him last year. What do you talk about? You always wanted to do it. You didn't even try last year. And that's where, again, it's relatively subtle. He was asked what changed, and he didn't want to draw a ton of attention to it,

but he mentioned that the representation changed for T. Higgins. And that came up, reaffirms everything that we've thought, and what we've been talking about really since December, when Joe Burrow first brought this up, and the agent changed stuff was in the news, something has changed there. And now there's this agenda, this clear agenda, this plan has changed. Whatever they did last year, they realized it didn't work.

And you heard this with the way Duke was talking about, their annoyance with the way the season went. It spurred this plan that we've been talking about now for it feels like a couple of months. I do think that the agent frustration element, it can't be understated. And here's why. Because I asked Duke, I was like,

because we did, so we did a little sidebar conversations after with Zach and Duke. where he met with the local writers. You're not going to see a video of this. There's only audio. And it was, it was interesting because I asked that. I was like,

what changed with tea? And he's like, what do you mean? What changed with tea? He was, he's like, I've been wanting to pay tea for years. For years.

And then it got brought up that report that they tried to, to reach out the sign and made him an offer in 2022. Obviously, that didn't happen. And then last year, it went the way it did. after they tagged tea i don't think anyone thought a deal was getting done then right but then duke was like we've tried to sign tea multiple times and so i think that whatever bridge was there

it was beyond the point of being on fire between david mulligetta and in the bengals and i don't know what like the details are kind of irrelevant but the point is is something was in the way there because they love tea. It's not like they didn't want to pay tea. And, you know, I think that what that looks like is quite interesting. But clearly it wasn't as simple as Joe Burrow made a comment. And now, oh my goodness, we got to keep tea. It's a scramble drill.

Like, I think that this is far more planned out. There's more behind it. And I think, I think tea's probably the first domino. And I don't even just mean franchise tag. would not shock me at all if T is the first one to get done long term, which if I would have said that four months ago even, six months ago, eight months, you know, I mean, you could go back and back and back, you'd be like, what are you talking about? You're crazy. And yet, it feels like that's probably the case. I mean, Duke practically said it. He's set to hit free agency. They're incentivized

to get that one done. That one is the first on the docket. The Jamar's, case deal that is coming will make him the highest paid non-quarterback in the NFL, according to Duke Tobin. Not too worried about that one getting done, I would say at this point. Troy Hendrickson, a bit more nebulous, a bit more complicated, but that agent change, while significant for the Bengals, I do want to take a second here, James, to say that at some point they're probably going to have to work with David Mulligeta, athletes first, those kinds of structures. It doesn't feel to me like they are eager to play in those waters.

Duke Tobin spending a lot of time talking about how well they've managed their cap, how they don't have all this dead money on the salary cap to deal with. And so that gives them the opportunity to extend these guys. And he would probably tell you that maintaining their flexibility and not pushing a bunch of money into future years like the Eagles have put them in a position this year where they have that option and they could go a number of different ways if they wanted to. And that's not wrong. But you give something up to get there.

And they gave up, I mean, Joe Burrow got hurt two years ago. They gave up a season to get there. And so it's not all sunshine and roses. I think they do have to get to a point where they can work with this kind of agency, this kind of representation. And while it's a positive for the Bengals, Zat Heiggins decided that he would like to have an earnest effort to stay in Cincinnati and that the Bengals are now interested in getting the deal done,

that there is a long-term issue there, I think, with the agent as well. And there is a whole lot more to get to here with Duke Tobin's comments. We've hardly scratched the surface. We'll continue the conversation coming up next. And Jake, I think from a structure standpoint, I did ask him about getting creative just to try early on. And he was like, well, yeah, we've got to be creative. Now, creative is relative to a degree, right? But I do think

I don't necessarily want them just in their defense to always do the the guarantees in year two and year three. Like I don't need that. Like the reason they can get out of Rankin so quickly, right?

Just this bust of a free agent signing is because of the way they structured some of them. Now, to your point, and hopefully they see this, Jamar Chase, there's no question marks, baby. He's just a dude that's about to go out there and ball out, and that's it.

And I think he's going to be the one that breaks that. Maybe T does a little bit with the guarantees in year two, but Jamar Chase is going to shatter that. And a main takeaway from today is Duke Tobin saying he's going to be, Jamar Chase is going to be the highest paid non-quarterback in football. Let's get it done. And the way he talked from an urgent standpoint, it was like Duke had listened to all of the naysayers from.

the timing standpoint to the money standpoint to the oh my goodness are they going to trade tier that and and was responding that way and so we'll see the action's got to back it up but clearly from an urgency standpoint i do think that it it sounded like it was there now will it be there that's much different but it sounded like it was there today when duke talked yeah and the highest paid non-quarterback in the nfl for jama chase that should be obvious to everyone who has listened to this podcast who's paying attention. The highest paid non-quarterback in the NFL right now is Justin Jefferson. So Duke isn't breaking any news there.

Wide receiver is the second highest paid position in the NFL right now. The next one is Bosa, the edge rusher, the only edge rusher over 30 million is the only other player in that range with C.D. Lam and Justin Jefferson. So Jamar Chase is set to make more than Justin Jefferson because the cap has gone up. So even if you wanted to give him the same contract as a percentage of the cap, and we've talked about this a ton, I'm not going to spend too much time here. It would be more than Justin Jefferson made last year, being the $38 million wage. Now, if that goes up to 40, it shouldn't be seen as surprising,

but it would be historic because then you're talking about touching Jerry Rice's number as the biggest cap-adjusted contract ever. And so, while, again, it shouldn't be seen as a massive surprise or anything like that, it would be historic for Jamar Chase in more ways than just a simple number, because the numbers will always get bigger. It's when you adjust them that I find it more interesting. and historic. But the other side of this, James, is the Trey Hendrickson bit. I think we should talk about that one a little bit more as its own item because the Bengals are still portraying a lot

of confidence with T. Higgins. And I don't think Jamar Chase is a question. And the reason that we haven't seen the franchise tag is as the Bengals reiterated today, or Tuesday, I guess, in Indianapolis, so they're working on a long-term deal with Tray Hendrickson. They're also working on rewarding him with an extension. And Trey is doing podcasts, talking about how he wants to help the Bengals win a Super Bowl, doesn't want to be a distraction, and that's all very noble of him, and I'm sure he means it.

I'm not saying that to be sarcastic, but Duke Tobin's tenor here was just slightly different. I think there is still an intention to reward him and extend him and give him the security that he's looking for. But, again, there's this emphasis from Duke Tobin that he's still under contract, and it's not just a give, it's a negotiation. And so this comes up again,

and it comes up, I think specifically for Trey, when he brings up the one year left on the deal, the negotiation was a more general comment. But a very subtle difference there that suggests that that one could play out a little bit differently. There wasn't that kind of urgency as to when it will get done, even though Duke would like these things to be done sooner than later. So they have a clear financial picture for free agency. My impression was, since he's under contract, that one doesn't have such a big cap implication, right? So there's not as much of a rush there from their end. No doubt. No doubt. And I think that's how it should be. And also, a lot of people don't want to admit this because it's, and I get it, you're waiting for the Bengals to get these guys done and you're eyeing that side of it. He only has so much leverage. Notice he's doing the like the messaging. Like I don't think Trey's going to demand a trade tomorrow if talks aren't where he wants them to be like last year. It's been the opposite. It's been the, oh, well, I, I would.

want the, I just want the Bengals to win. And I'm not saying he's wrong either in doing that. But the messaging is important. Just like the messaging with the Bengals today is important. Why do they want that? They've clearly heard people calling them cheap saying that they can't get their stars, saying all these things. And so they're addressing it. Well, why is Trey saying, oh, well, I want the Bengals to win the Super Bowl? Because he wants to be the good guy here. He knows forcing his way out isn't going to work. And he's trying to say, all right, well, let's, let's do it be reasonable one way or the other. And I think the Bengals want to be reasonable. And there's not much Trey can do other than either play this year out unhappily

or if the Bengals are making him a fair out. Like if they're giving him, and I'm just going to talk in average annual value numbers here, like if they're offering him $28 million per, is he just going to scoff at that even though it's a two-year extension instead of a three, let's say, all the way to August? And it would be a big raise. And I think the question then would be how much money is up front. And that's where the Bengals would have to sweeten the deal. But you know what I'm saying?

So, like, yeah, I would never defend the Bengals if they're offering them $21 million. Like, that's dumb. Like, you should never. But if they're at 28 and there's a signing bonus up front, that's going to get him a little cash in that Hendrickson bank account, baby. Get that little cash. Well, then, yeah, get it done. Because, yeah, you would get more on the open market. You're not on the open market.

That's why the Bengals were used the tag. on T on the fourth if they have to, which is one week from when we're recording now, because I can look at that. It's next Tuesday. So that's it. It gives you a little leverage and like, yeah, all right. Well, we can play this out or we can get something done for both sides that makes everyone happy.

And I think that's why they, not that they're slow playing, Tray, I think they would love to get it done right now. But I also understand T being a major priority. Jamar being a priority. And he also said that they can juggle all three from a negotiating standpoint. So it's not like they have to go one than the other than the other.

So that's worth noting as well. Yeah, he called it parallel tracks. Is that the verbiage uses parallel something? And he said that several times. Not quite the word of the day, though. We will get to that coming up in a few minutes. Like I said, not a big cap implication this year. And if you're the Bengals, honestly,

you mentioned two years instead of three. you shouldn't be too shy about a third year. There's nothing guaranteed in third years for 99% of NFL contracts. And if they give him a signing bonus to accelerate some cash flow to get him to sign on the dotted line, that third year is going to effectively be a team option, as most third years of contracts are in the NFL. That's just the way it works. There will be a small dead cap hit if things aren't working out at that point. And you'll be able to get out of that deal if you need to.

So those sorts of things shouldn't be terrifying to the Bengals. You know, that that should be something that that's the issue. Just understand the reality of things and be flexible there is what I would say. And I don't know if it is, by the way. I'm just, you know, but yeah, I think it could be, Trey wants $35 million per year because he just led the NFL in Sacks. Like, who knows? I would ask for that, by the way.

Second in DPOY and, you know, She says, hey, look, look at what I did this year. I would start there. It doesn't mean that's where you end, you know? Yeah. I think people would laugh at the starting points for both sides in a lot of these contract talks. Like, because it's ridiculous, but that's, that's it. Ask car dealerships that have had to deal with me in where I start versus where we end up.

Really, really working on those DeWoo dealers, huh? That's right. That's the longstanding joke for every day. I'll give you $5.99, Dave, Wu. There you go. What you think? I do want to talk about Mike Kaseki here just a little bit before we get to alignment. The word of the day, spoilers, word of the day, alignment.

We're going to talk about that in just a second. You can't even align that, DeWu. You can't even get it aligned anymore. It's so bad. And again, I want to go back to the audience's point, because you're talking about Duke's talking about Duke's talking about, Duke's talking to the league and everything. You mentioned this, and I just want to reiterate it. Duke Tobin, I think, acutely aware of all of the criticisms going on with the front office right now

and all of the skepticism around the Bengals offseason and quality of the Bengals football team, I think that he was speaking to the skeptics today. And I think that those people are unmoved. I think that those people are still echoing what Troy Hendrickson said, what was a Ross Tucker podcast, that actions speak louder than words. And so that's what I think people are still waiting to see. But Duke's acknowledgement of what's going on with the defense, where they're at, what they have to do, the fact that it's not just paying more for the same team that they need to get better, is, again, speaking to some self-awareness.

And what's next is setting the stage by getting the actions done. And that's what's coming next for the Bengals. Coming up next, let's talk about that word of the day. Let's hit Mike Keseki. Let's wrap up day one of the combine here on Lockdown Bengals. This episode is brought to you by Fandul. Fandul knows that the NBA action is just getting started at Tipoff, and there's no better place to get in on that action than Fandul,

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All right. You're trying to make it a big four, Jake. You're trying to. You're trying to. You're trying to. It's a big three world. Or on this podcast, it's a big two. It's a dynamic duo.

But big three world, you're trying to make it a quartet with Mike Keseki. Go ahead. It just came up as all. And I was surprised because it wasn't prompted. Maybe it was prompted. It was prompted. It was that. He was asked about Mike Gaseki, yes.

And there was an understanding that Gaseki was a fit. There was verbiage used to discuss the desire to bring Mike Gaseki back. There was also a corollary to that, as Duke did when he was asked about Jermaine Pratt as well. And I don't think we're going to get to Jermaine Pratt in much depth today. That's called a mistackle. That they've been really good at bringing in tight ends that can produce. You're going to get me in trouble, man.

What are you doing? Me. Take accountability for your actions. Accountability. The Bengals have been good at finding tight ends for one year. And they miss with Irv Smith, but they've gotten it right a couple of other times. And he also spent some time talking about Eric Hall and lamenting the injury there. So clearly not as high a priority, but there is at least some decisions.

sorry, they will explore it. I think this is going to be a more traditional Bengals thing where they have a number in mind for Gaseki. If that number is scoffed at, that might just be it. He might just go test the market and see what he can get. It might be a Jermaine Pratt-like situation where he goes and checks out the market. And if the market isn't what the Bengals expect or what he expects and is more what the Bengals expect, then that's a scenario where you can see him come back as well.

Yeah. I think it's twofold. I think Mike Gassiki wants to get paid because he feels like he's a really good tight end and never got paid, never got that true second contract. And I think the Bengals really value him. But here in Indianapolis, we're going to be talking a lot about how good this tight end class is. And Duke said, oh, yeah, we're really good at identifying. Like, can you find someone that can give you a decent amount of that?

Can you find a young guy that could come in and be your next Eric all? like there are options. So I think it's almost twofold. You'd love to have Mike Gisicki on the right number, but I don't think that number is 10 million per, right? And so I don't know what that number is, though. But I do think that the front office and that the coaching staff would be aligned in their vision of that.

And Jake, that was obviously the word of the day. Much like your DeWu, it didn't seem like Lou Anirumo in the front office were necessarily aligned over the past 18 months to two years. And alignment got brought up a ton when talking about the defense specifically, which I thought was interesting. Yeah, Duke was asked about Al Golden and how that changes the process for talent acquisition and how that impacts things. And it obviously isn't going to be a significant change.

But when he was asked about Al and how that changes things, I lost track of the amount of times Duke Tobin used the word alignment. Zach Taylor echoed that when he was on the podium as well. You heard the word alignment from Zach Taylor as well. And when Duke's talking about it, and you can listen to the way that he was glowing about Dax Hill at the end of this podium, and we won't have time to dive into those comments today either, but he was effusive in his phrase of Dax Hill. Yeah, he was.

Yeah, he was. back to last off season when we thought the Dax Hill maybe was going to be the canary and the coal mine for the split between the front office and the defensive staff. The sign that there was not the alignment that you needed between the front office and having a plan for those players. And so there's this emphasis that we've heard since Al Golden was hired that everyone that is involved with a player that is going to have their hands on that player in some way, whether it's drafting, whether it's training, whether it's skills specific to the

football field, whether it's scheme needs to be aligned with what the plan is for that player. And something that I think the way it was emphasized clearly was not up to the level where Duke Tobin wanted it to be and is perhaps part of, maybe not perhaps, certainly is a big part of the reason that Lou Anarumo is no longer with the Bengals. could be pointed to do as part of the root cause of some of the defensive issues they've had in recent years. I'm going to put the sidebar conversation with Duke and Zach into audio files and tweet them out and buy our next show, hopefully. And so I'll pub them. But because I'm referencing stuff that no one can find anywhere outside of quotes that you'll be able to read.

But I asked Duke, and this was after his entire 30-minute media availability on the podium. and probably about 15 minutes into this sidebar conversation we had at a conference room down the hall. And I was like, how important is it to have a vision and be, I didn't use the word aligned, but be, that have a vision for these versatile chess piece type guys that you can draft year in and year out. And obviously, Daxil is the previous one. but I'm thinking about the Alabama linebacker, Jahad Campbell, someone who I think a lot of people are going to talk about,

he had just got asked about a linebacker question. Campbell could be a candidate for 17. Maybe he goes top 10, but certainly could be in the mix at pick 17. You're not going to just put him in the middle of your, you know, right next to Logan Wilson and do that. Like you're going to want to move him around and he was like,

oh, well, defensive coaches love versatility because you can hide and disguise and do all these things. And I was just like, man, like I bet they were just losing their mind that Dax Hill was not getting more run early, early, because he is versatile, because he can do a bunch of different things. And he is an elite athlete. And so they still believe in him. And he's going into his fourth year. So I do wonder coming off the ACL what it's going to be like.

But, yeah, I do think the alignment is big because that's how you maximize what you get. The resources you're going to use, let's say you want a defensive tackle at 17. You want Al Golden. You want Jerry Montgomery, the defensive line. You want everybody to be like, boom, boom, boom, this is how it's going to be. Or if they go with an offensive linemen at 17. And I'm going with those two positions because a lot of people want them to go trenches. Well, guess what?

You want Scott Peters to feel the same way about this guy that Duke Tobin does. And you don't want there to be any eye roll in or, I guess I'll get the most out of them. No, no, no, no. everyone be on lockstep. So hopefully they can get that this year in the drafting and free agency. Alignment, word of the day. Word of the off season.

Last off season, it was communication. And we didn't see the kind of optic that was necessary by improving communication. And the reason I bring that up is because it sounds great. And if it works and everyone is aligned and they can implement their plan,

then it probably does work. But talk is cheap is the reason I bring it up. So are day-woo's. Yep. And despite everything Duke Tovin said today that I think was what you want to hear, again, I think you're largely hearing the kinds of things you want to hear if you're a Bengals fan, it now comes down to, okay, what happens when rubber meets road? And there are a lot of people that I saw on social media in my replies,

on social media when I had a few little quick reactions to Duke Tobin's comments that still are thinking, I don't know, I'll believe it when I see it. Or even are going so far as to say, is this Duke Tobin applied pressure to the family? And I don't see it that way. I don't think that I interpret any of the comments that way. I think that Duke is speaking knowing what his conversations have been with the family, with the Blackburns, with those. that make the financial decisions and hold the wealth that runs the Bengals, I don't think it's pressure. But the fact that people are going there tells you a little bit about where the mentality

is in the fan base right now as far as needing to see it to believe it. And that's fair. It's fair to feel that way. That's how you should feel. And this was the first step. Now, you've noted this. These things don't get done in February. So if it was going to start to get done next week, this is what would be said.

This would be the plan. All right. Words said, plan in place, stage set, go handle business. It's going to be a fun few months, Jake. Let's go. And especially the next week or two weeks, we saw the first significant. I mean, he said add to the team, too. We didn't even get to this.

We will. But like add to the, not just the big three, but add to the team. team like maybe they maybe they just like listening to lockdown bengals man maybe they just you know maybe they're just like yeah like let's just do this jake and james playing man i did feel like dude was talking to me at one point he's like but but not agreeing with me about some some of the ways they structure deals and stuff i felt like that was directed and some of my criticisms a little bit i'm not saying he listens to us but that's what i felt like yeah we'll see what happens next week next two weeks very interesting he's not

listening to you you drive a day woo stop we we we saw the first deal of the off season on tuesday kalil secure is the first significant deal that we've seen since dea woo you drive a day woo you drive a bens let's be real i'm just trying to finish the show james the the first leal shakir the first deal since december of any significance so so that's the first one now let's see if some dominoes start to fall in the next couple of weeks we will have a ton more four four you from the combine this week and that's going to do it for this episode of the lockdown bengals podcast until next time thanks for listening ho today and have a good alignment i realize