Locked On Bengals - Daily Podcast On The Cincinnati Bengals - Which defenses will challenge Joe Burrow? | Broncos, Steelers could TEST in 2025

Episode Date: July 1, 2025

Which defenses will give Joe Burrow and the Cincinnati Bengals offense the most trouble in 2025? The AFC North is stacking up, with the Pittsburgh Steelers adding Jalen Ramsey and the Baltimore Ravens bringing in Jaire Alexander. But don't sleep on out-of-division threats like the Denver Broncos and Detroit Lions. Jake Liscow and James Rapien break down the toughest defensive matchups awaiting the Bengals this year. 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!GametimeDownload 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.FanDuelRight now, new customers can get $150 in BONUS BETS when your first $5 BET WINS! Download the app or head to FANDUEL.COM to get started.Monarch MoneyTake control of your finances with Monarch Money. Use code LOCKEDONNFL at monarchmoney.com/lockedonnfl for 50% off your first year.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.

The Pittsburgh Steelers tried to move the needle by adding Jalen Ramsey, but they won't be the toughest defense of Bengals face in 2025. 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 fans, and welcome to another episode of the Locked on Bengals podcast. Part of the Lockdown Podcast Network, your team every day. I'm Jake Flisco. He's James Rupinin.

and we're your host of Lockdown Bengals covering the Cincinnati Bengals daily here on the Lockdown Podcast Network on YouTube and everywhere you get your podcast. Your everydayers out there, you already know what's going on here. But if you're looking for a daily source of all things, Bengals, whether it's news, whether it's analysis, whether it's off-season topics here in the last couple of slow weeks before training camp is here.

We're in July for a lot of you listening to this here on July. live first. You're in the right place. You can just hit that subscribe button and that'll help you not miss an episode of the lockdown Bengals podcast. And we appreciate everyone out there who makes us your first listen. Today we're going to dive into the best defenses the Bengals

are going to face in 2025. And this is the day. We're recording this the day. The Steelers make a big move. They go get Jalen Ramsey to try to improve their defense. I think the Steelers are in the conversation, James. But when you look at the Bengals schedule this,

there are a number of teams that have a pretty good argument for being some of the better defenses in the NFL. For sure. And it's going to be one of those things. The theme, week in and week out, we're going to be like, oh, man, they got this pass rusher or they got this guy that you're going to have to worry about and you're going to have to think about it. And a lot of these defenses are going to have that.

And, man, I look, and the reason why Cleveland week one is kind of, you make a face. Like that's a game you should win, but it's Cleveland and they have Miles Garrett and they have other guys that are going to make life tough. Denzo Ward has obviously had some success against Joe Burrough, Jomar Chase and the Bengals. I look at Minnesota, at Denver, two defenses that should be really darn good. I think Green Bay is intriguing. Obviously, in the division, anytime you talk about the AFC North, I think you think defense when it comes to the Baltimore Ravens or the Pittsburgh Steelers. You mentioned the Ramsey trade. So there are a lot of teams, I think, that we'll go over.

But there aren't many where you look at it. And you say, oh, well, their defense stinks. Like, you might not think much of the Jets, but they have some real dudes in the trenches. And they have one of the best corners in football. And so that's not necessarily going to be fun, even though it's going to be at Paycor Stadium. So there are a lot of solid defenses to really good defenses on this list. There are some that you don't worry about as much. But the Bengals don't catch the NFC South this year.

They caught them last year. They got the NFC North this year. And those were obviously some very different divisions in terms of defense quality. The Carolina Panthers still major questions on defense. The Saints are still major questions on defense. This year instead, like you said, the Bengals get Minnesota, they get Green Bay, they get Detroit. And Detroit, I think, is in the conversation for potentially being the best defense the Bengals are going to face this year. I think Pittsburgh is in the conversation.

I said it might not ultimately be them. We'll talk about whether swapping Jaylen Ramsey for Mika Fitzpatrick is enough for them to push that conversation. But I'm not sure the answer is actually in the AFC North for all the familiarity and the emphasis on defense in the AFC North and good players on AFC North defenses has at times given the Bengals issues in the last five years or so, the Joe Burrow era. I'm not sure that the answer is in the AFC North James. I think it's in, I don't know, for me it might be between Denver and one of those NFC North teams. Well, I think if it is the North, one of two things has to happen. Either Jaya Alexander has to be really, really good again and dial it back. Because I think if he did that for Baltimore, it really changes.

Now you're talking about corner safety and linebacker and a heck of an interior pass rush as Well, so I think that they have guys. And so if you had that true elite-ish corner and then Marlon Humphrey is your two, like you're feeling really darn good about it. No, it probably won't happen. Maybe it does. That's why you take the swing on a guy like Jaya Alexander. For the Steelers, if they were getting prime Jalen Ramsey,

then it would feel different with that front. I think a lot of people would argue they're not getting prime Jalen Ramsey. And so to your point, yeah, I'd definitely. Denver, the reigning defensive player of the year is in Denver. And so when you add that to what they have to that pass rush, to really all three levels of their defense, it's a really good unit. And yet, no matter who we talk about,

and we're five minutes in, so we might as well say this, no matter who we talk about, it's not like the Bengals won't be able to score against these teams or be able to have success on offense against these teams. They have a lot of answers. But there are a lot of talented defenses. it's important to highlight them.

I think I agree with you, though, as black and blue as the AFC North is, when I think of the Ravens, and this isn't really fair, but I still think of defense because of all the years of Ray Lewis and Ed Reed, I don't necessarily think of offense, even though they have a multi-time MVP leading the charge,

and Derek Henry, who's going to go to the Hall of Fame. I mean, they have some dudes on offense, obviously. But I still think of defense. The Steelers, I certainly think of defense, and it starts with their defensive front. That being said, the Broncos are probably that team. I do think the Vikings, they're just really, really sound and really well coached. And so they're in the mix as well, but I would probably give the edge to Denver.

I think the team we haven't mentioned either that we need to make sure we don't forget. Buffalo has a very strong defense if they can stay healthy on that side of the ball too. But with Denver, with Patrick Sertan, with good safeties, with a front that features Zach Allen, in Jonathan Cooper, Nick Benito, they're guys that can get after the passer. They're good in the secondary. They're incredibly well coached. They have Drake Greenlaw as well,

who they added this offseason, who's been a good linebacker. They are a good defense that got better. The Bengals play Denver in Denver, which is also never a benefit to the visiting team. The mile high altitude issue, that benefit Denver playing at home, a prime time game there,

the first prime time game of the year. And not necessarily the first test for the Bengals offense in the year, to your point, Minnesota the week before that, Cleveland, for all of Cleveland's issues, is going to be annoying on the road in the opener with Miles Garrett leading the charge for that defense. But it's really going to be a conversation,

I think, of can another team persuade, us off of Denver with the defensive player of the year and a strong defense surrounding him as a quote unquote challenge for the Bengals office because like you said, we expect the Bengals' offense to drive this team, right? And no matter what defense they're facing, we're expecting the offense to push the team for. Baltimore's defense last year wasn't bad. The Bengals put up numbers on them. And that's the kind of thing that the Bengals will need to do this year. And it's a matter of can any of these teams find the formula to get the Bengals into that Bronco-style game that we've seen these teams play the last couple of times these teams have

played where it's kind of that knock-em-down, drag it out kind of game. Yeah. The Broncos, they took some interesting chances. They paid Jerry Greenlaw a lot of money. Ufonga, the strong safety is really, really good, but he's had a lot of injuries. And so they get to San Francisco 49ers veterans that were big parts of the 49ers when they were making Super Bowl runs, but they've had some health issues. Will those guys be able to contribute? One of the reasons why the Bengals had so much success against the Broncos and that wack wacky win is because T. Higgins bought land on Riley Moss Island. And by buying land, he actually acquired the whole island. Yeah, whole thing. And it's it's T. Higgins is now. It says property of T. Higgins. Well, the Broncos said,

all right, we're going to go get Jod A. Barron as well. Yeah. And, and so, So how does that mix? Does Nick Bonito continue to be one of these quality young pass rushers? I think that there are some questions, but if you're a Broncos fan, you really like that on paper. And that should be a fun back and forth, I would say. Because the Bengals, there are going to be teams that this year, I think, try to do even more unique wrinkles and throw even more unique wrinkles at Jamar Chase to try to take him out of it. And that's when you need T, or you're going to need Chase Brown, or you're going to need Mike Gassiki,

Andre Yosevash, all these other answers to the test. Those guys are going to matter. And that Broncos game could certainly be one of those. Definitely one of the best corner wide receiver matchups of the year is Sartan and Jammar and T. Just because Sartan is a premier player there. And the Bengals have a number of those really high-quality DV wide receiver matchups. that's another fun part of the schedule is finding those strength-on-strength matchups. We'll continue and try to identify the other defenses that will challenge the Cincinnati Bengals in 2025.

And is that the Buffalo Bills? Are we going to the NFC North? We'll get into that coming up next. Today's show is brought to by Fandall. The NFL season is right around the corner. But before you get there, summer sports are in full swing. Whether you're about baseball under the lights, golf on the green, high stakes soccer action, Fandle is the best one.

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team is going to look like when the Bengals inevitably face them. When you look at the beginning of the Bengals schedule, the run of Minnesota, Denver, Detroit, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, from week three to seven, features a bunch of defenses that are in contention here with Buffalo, with potentially Baltimore to be some of the more challenging defenses to Bengals face in 2025. So if we agree that it might be Denver leading the way, and this might all change in a few weeks, who knows? We're in early July, late June here. Who stands out to you next? Is it Detroit? Is it Pittsburgh? Where are you going next?

Yeah, it's in that mix, right? I think Detroit is certainly a team. DJ Reader, and then they get your guy from Ohio State. Do you remember it from the draft? Do you remember your guy? Pretty sure they got your guy. I'm concerned about who you're going to attribute to me as my guy after that lead in. Oh, oh, Tileak Williams, your guy.

What do you mean? An actual my guy. Yeah. Great. Yeah. Oh, yeah. Like, I'm serious. I was serious.

Like, when they drafted, they got Tileyk Williams, and then they get Tate Ratlidge, and I'm like, man, oh, man. But Tyleek and DJ, what a guy that you can have learning from DJ Reader, who obviously delivered from them last year. We'll see on Aiden Hutchinson. I think that's a big factor here. When you're looking at this defense for the Lions, they bring in DJ I think he's going to help bring some stability in that secondary.

But after that, it's really, all right, can Aden Hutchinson be the dominant pass rusher that he was right before his injury? Can he be that and then take another step? But they have a ton of talent. And I do think that's what it comes down to when you look at, is Detroit going to be a top, top, top, top defense? It's probably how Aiden Hutchinson is how he's doing. Is he one of these top edge rushers this season? If so, then they're probably going to be a heck of a defense. Aidan Hutchinson's start last year was crazy.

He had 198 pass rush snaps in five games when he was healthy. He had 45 pressures in five games, eight sacks in five games. Trey Hendrickson had 514 pass rushes last year, had 83 pressures. Just to give you an idea there of the rate base, this is PFF numbers, of the rate at which Aidan Hutchinson was producing last year for Detroit. They've also extended Ali McNeil. they bring back Levi owns Zerike. DJ Reeder is still part of that team like you mentioned,

despite adding Ty League Williams in the draft, just a stacked defensive front. And it's not just a defensive front. Kirby Joseph and Brian Branch is safety, one of the best safety tammons in the NFL, if not the best safety tandem in the NFL. Jack Campbell, who many thought was drafted earlier than he should have been in that draft for Detroit.

Detroit doesn't care what you think. They're going to pick guys when they think they're good. And Jack Campbell is one of the best linebackers in the NFL. You got Carlton Davis at Corner as well, and he was good for them. Last year, he only played 13 games, whether he stays healthy, maybe there is something to exploit

at Corner. But that's really it if you're talking about the Lions, really, really good in the front seven, really, really good at safety, and then it's just a question of whether they have enough at Corner and whether the Bengals can exploit that. That's 2023 drafts

was just wild. It's just wild for them, because they're able to get Campbell after taking Jamir Gibbs and then they get Brian Branch and Brian Branch is a big part of what they do and yeah it's always health man I look at I recognize a lot of names on their defensive front like DJ Reader obviously Aline McNeil

I'm just talking about their tackles but then after that your guy Tileik Williams Levi-I-enzeriki and then Mackay Wingo it's like five deep where you're like I'll take those five I'll take those five and so maybe they want a little bit more on the edge if they're not satisfied

with Marcus Davenport but there's not much. I'm being very nitpicky here about what but what you would complain about or not necessarily like it's a really solid unit and it's why honestly the offense for Detroit got a ton

of love last year and rightfully so but why they like if they're going to be true Super Bowl contend it's because their defense takes a step. I truly believe that because you have Jared Goff. And Jared Goff is not the Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, not some of these guys. Obviously, Lamar, Patrick, he's not on that level. He's just not.

And so if you're going to win a Super Bowl, your defense is going to have to be a tick better than your opponents and going to be able to or has to be able to slow things down. And at least on paper, you're trying out, Aidan Hutchinson, DJ Reader, League Williams, some of these guys. It's going to be a tough one to face those guys. And really good safeties. Like I said, those safeties last year, Kirby Joseph and Brian Branch, just absolute game changers for Detroit on that side of the ball.

So the cap bros and the NFC North in contention here, do we think that the Detroit Lions pose a bigger problem for the Bengals than, I don't, the bill's? on paper should be in this conversation, but because of the way those games have gone, I'm not, I'm not there at the moment. But it is a different bill's defense than it's been in the past, notably because Christian Benford has broken out at corner. And that'll be a fun matchup to see how he holds up against the Bengals receivers.

But it's kind of Detroit versus those AFC North contenders for me, if we're talking about number two, Baltimore, Pittsburgh. I do think the addition of Jay Lamansy, if he's healthy, and the addition of Jaya Alexander, if he's healthy, those are big if those guys play the full season at the level they've played at in the past, those AFC North teams that are so familiar with the Bengals that have the continuity defensive coordinator this year, I think those teams are probably right there in the conversation with Detroit, if not ahead of Detroit.

So let's finish the show by trying to figure out where those AFC North team stack up with the Lions, with some of these other teams coming up next. Jake, the thing that stands out, anytime I look at Pittsburgh, anytime. And I know they just made the trade for Jalen Ramsey, but I look and I'm like, oh, man, Keanu Benton and Cam Hayward and T.J. Watt and, oh, Derek Harmon and obviously Alex Tysmith. And, oh, they got Jack Sawyer as well. Like, it's just, it goes on and on and on of these dudes that you're like, well, yeah,

Jack Sawyer in round four, you take that. He's like, who knows one whole play? I forgot Nick Herbig as well. Like that's it. There's just layers. Yep. There's like layers and layers and layers to their defensive front. And I thought they stole Peyton Wilson in the draft.

Last year, I think he delivered some. You bring in Patrick Queen as well. It is interesting because I think that today that they got the worst player. they did not get the best player in their trade. I don't think Jalen Ramsey is better than Minka Fitzpatrick today. But when I look at their secondary and I say, all right, well, you have Jalen Ramsey, Joey Porter, Jr., Darius Sale, and you have Juan Thorne Hill and Deshaun Elliott, and you're going to play more of a traditional setup and not have this personal chess piece at safety.

I think it does fit with that rush. that's a dynamic of a rush is you're probably going to see assuming T.J. Y is around and motivated and healthy and playing on a new deal, which I think he will be.

So it's really tough for me to discount Pittsburgh. They wanted to get a true shutdown corner or something close to that. Maybe Ramsey fits what they're looking for. They're clearly taking a risk there and going all in on this year. But that front is what I keep coming back to

and why I would probably take Pittsburgh's defense over any defense in the north because when you're starting with that kind of front, you can put Jake Liscoe out there and you're still going to be pretty darn good in coverage. And they don't have to. Like they have guys that aren't like they've had deficiencies in the past. And I'm not sure Joey Porter Jr. is that guy. But he has a big name. He has a big draft pedigree.

And he's going to get every chance to show he is that guy. I think the Darius Slay signing, I know they're old for NFL teams. I can't talk about anybody being old here. But for NFL terms, they got some guys that have been around for a while. But they're good players. Dariuslay, Jalen Ramsey, those are guys that are better than what they've had at corner. No doubt. If they're healthy.

If they're playing close to the level they've played out in the past. And then you mentioned Peyton Wilson. Talk about a tailor-made pick to deal with the Cincinnati Bengals. Just a fair coverbacker. Like, I went and looked. Peyton Wilson's snap split against the Bengals, the Bengals don't run the ball that much. But against the Bengals,

Peyton Wilson had, in their first game, 32 pass-down snaps to three rundown snaps in that game. That's insane. That's an insane split. In the second game, it was 34 to 7. 34 pass-down snaps, seven rundown snaps. So the Steelers are hiding Peyton Wilson in the run game. At least they did when he was a rookie,

238 pounds 6-4 an older rookie but he played well in coverage against the Bengals last year and when you couple that like you said with the front the front is where obviously all of this starts where they're like seven deep of guys that would start on the Bengals probably yeah like you'd love Nick Herbig

like you'd love yeah no doubt like Peyton Wilson you love him like I know that's not the front front. Keanu Benton would be a huge part of what they do. Yep. You know?

He would be starting, by the way. Like, they would, they probably don't resign BJ Hill if Keanu Benton's in town. Like, that's probably, that's probably it. It's, uh, no, it's a tough one. It's a tough one. And that's, that's part of the north.

That's what's really interesting. The Steelers trying to make it all work. And yet, I still think overall roster-wise, they're behind the Bengals. They're behind. the Ravens, and I look at this Ravens defense, how do you feel about it now? They added Jaya Alexander.

They get Malachi Starks, and I think that one's just going to really matter. I just do. Starks and Hamilton together, it's a heck of a one-two. They've invested a lot in this defense. You look, Nate Wiggins was their first rounder. Kyle Hamilton first rounder. Malachi Stark's the first rounder. They signed Jair Alexander.

They traded for Roquant Smith, which never should have been able to steal him like they did. Matabeeke, they paid. there are always guys that end up there and you're like, how did they do that? Well, this one, this year was Mike Green. And Mike Green, someone that a lot of Bengals fans wanted in round one. He had the off-the-field stuff, falls to the Ravens in round two. How are you feeling about this unit overall? I think Baltimore has this track record that's almost the opposite of the Steelers when it comes

to developing edge rushers. Like they draft these toolsy guys who have had productivity in college at times or sometimes sometimes they don't, but like they've got a ton of athleticism on the edge that hasn't translated to production in the NFL. I know Mike Green had the production in college, but that's an interesting litmus test for the scout the helmet. Can Baltimore develop an edge rusher to be a true difference maker as an edge rusher? Because they got sacks last year.

Matabeeke had 11 sacks. This is including the postseason. Let's make sure we're only looking at the regular season. And this doesn't include half sacks. So Matabeeke had eight regular season sacks, according to the last season. to PFS counting. Oa had 10, and Kyle Van Nuoy had 13. Is Van Nuoy still on that roster, James?

Are you looking at that? He is. Yeah, he is. So Van Nuoy, who is going to be 34 for this season, still an effective pass rusher. But largely, when I talk about the Ravens, when we've looked at the Ravens matchups in recent years, it's are they going to be able to manufacture a pass rush? And it's finding the opportune time to send Kyle Hamilton on a blitz, to find the right time. to send a linebacker on a blitz and not necessarily what they've been able to manufacture up front,

although Travis Jones and Matabeeke in the middle are both really good players, not necessarily great pure pass rushers. So from a front perspective, starting there, I think that distinction between the Ravens and the Steelers makes me prefer the Ravens matchup, even if I think they're secondary is better, even if I think that they're more cohesive overall. They had these guys last year. And what's the big difference, right? Is another year for Kyle Hamilton, maybe Roquan Smith has a better year overall.

Maybe he's more consistent. And then does their improved corner depth play up? Because they had a lot of these guys last year and the Bengals hung points on them last year. And so maybe it's year two for the defensive coordinator and the post-war. Mike McDonald era that makes a difference. But I've, despite what feels like on paper should be really close, feel pretty comfortable thinking that the Steelers should be a bigger challenge to deal with for the way the Bengals were put together.

And it's because of that layered front. Yeah. You should trademark that. It's just, it can hit you in waves. I mean, they can literally, T.J. Watts nicked up. Okay. Like, all right. Well, we'll throw Nick Herbig out there and we'll be good to go.

and that's it. And that's what's really tough is you got Nick Herbig, you got Alex Highsmith, you got guys that are going to matter. And at some point, Jack Sawyer could matter this year. Obviously, Derek Harmon's another one that the Bengals passed on, and we'll see what happens there and how he pans out. You mentioned some of these guys, I agree with you. I think Baltimore's a tough matchup, a big reason why they're a tough matchup. They're solid on defense, and they have some stars on defense. but then there's obviously far more star power on their offense as well.

And that's why it's so tough to beat them. The Steelers, they have all that layered depth on their defensive front. I think they're the best defense in the north. Again, I'm not sure that Ramsey is better on paper than Minket Fitzpatrick now. But does it fit what they're probably trying to do? Are they sick of not being able to cover the way they want to cover and do they need to evolve in that way? I think that's what they're saying.

Could make some sense here. We'll see how it plays out. But yeah, I think that they're the best defense in the North, at least entering training camp. I think it'll come down to the way the secondaries come together on both teams. You know, we're revisiting this conversation in a couple of months when the Bengals are getting into their, you know, three weeks of two Baltimore games later in the season.

It's going to be how is the secondary come together? Because like you said, those safety pieces and, Baltimore really good. And if that can be the glue that makes that secondary really stick and lets the front play up because the secondary is giving the front an extra three-tenths of a second to get home, then we could be having a different conversation at that point if it doesn't come together in Pittsburgh. And they can't figure it out in the secondary. And for all of their prowess up front, the Bengals are able to quit game on to death, you know, to use to invoke the quick game here a little.

bit. So the other contenders here that we aren't going to talk about in a ton of depth, I think Minnesota, Green Bay are both defenses that should be in the top 12, maybe higher in the NFL this year. And then I mentioned it. I've paid them lip service and not much more than that, but Buffalo's defense has a chance to be very solid as well. And those are the other ones that I would think are in contention, but a surprisingly tough stretch from week three to week seven is one of my big takeaways here, when it's Minnesota, Denver, Detroit, Green Bay, Pittsburgh, some good defenses that the Bengals will be playing early on. Now, that is after playing Cleveland, who on paper shouldn't be great on that side of the ball, but has some dudes that have given the Bengals

issues in the past, as we've discussed, in Jacksonville, who, again, on paper, shouldn't be great on defense. But then it gets a little bit trickier on people. Yeah, you better make your hair early. You start 2 and O and then it's going to be battles, you know, and that's fun. Hopefully it's a lot of fun early on and throughout the season. But we've said so many times, how many people have said, well, the offense is set. The offense is set, but they're going to be challenged. And they're certainly going to be challenged when they face some of these top teams and defenses we talked about. we go. You got to wish Jake Lusco, a happy birthday. It was his birthday on Monday. And so everyone, make sure you tweet him, send him a message on the Lockdown Bengals Insiders Club or however you want

to. But yeah, happy birthday, my man. Appreciate that. That's why I said the thing about, I can't say anything about how old BBs are. I know. I know. I was like, I'm not going to interrupt him. I'll wait. Oh, we're feeling today. That's going to do it for this episode of the Lockdown Bengals podcast. Thanks for listening. And until next time, Hoor Day and have a good one.