Cincinnati Bengals Hire New Offensive Line Coach: Scott Peters Instant Reaction
Category
🥇
SportsTranscript
00:00The Bengals, well, they have a new offensive line coach. Let's dive into Scott Peters,
00:05who he is as a human being, who he likes to train. He actually trained with Brock Lesnar.
00:10We'll get into that and much, much more right now on Enter the Jungle.
00:19Hi again, everyone, and welcome in to Enter the Jungle. I'm James Erpine. He is Andrew Fox Miller,
00:24and normally you can catch us every single Tuesday at 8 Eastern on the YouTube channel,
00:29Cincinnati Bengals Talk, and weekly on FanDuel Sports Network. But going a little early this
00:34week, a special live here on YouTube to react to the news, and it's huge news. The Bengals
00:41have a new offensive line coach. Scott Peters was named offensive line coach, I don't know,
00:46Andrew, about two hours ago, something like that. Since then, it's been a scramble drill,
00:49like we're running the two-minute offense to make sure that we make this work. And we're
00:55going to react to that today, wall-to-wall Scott Peters. Hopefully, we'll have time to take a
00:59question or two of yours as well. Scott Peters is someone that has ties to the Bengals. We are
01:06going to get into that. But Andrew, at least we've seen one coach now get hired. Two coaches,
01:15if you include Michael McCarthy, not that Mike McCarthy, but Michael McCarthy. What was your
01:20instant reaction when you saw this news? Instant reaction? Who? But that's not a slide on him. It
01:29wasn't even on my radar, of course. But also, I mean, when you start seeing just the basic profile
01:35information about him, it's like, oh, okay. I see the connections. I understand where they're going
01:41with this. And yeah, I've been trying to learn as much as I can about him in this short period
01:46of time. And there's a lot to, we're going to have to see, right? I mean, we can only assume,
01:53we know why they hired him. Now, let's see what he's going to deliver. For sure. I totally get
01:57that. And I think when you look at this hire, and I wasn't necessarily anticipating it now,
02:05not shocked about the connections. We're going to get into the connections in just a few minutes
02:09and his ties to the Bengals and Zach Taylor's coaching tree and all of the above or Zach
02:14Taylor's football history. But the thing that stood out to me was the first eight words of
02:18Zach Taylor's statement. And it's going to feel like coach speak to a lot of people,
02:23but I can pretty much guarantee you that it isn't. Because if it was, it wouldn't be Scott
02:30Peters as the offensive line coach and Zach Taylor saying, quote, Scott is a great fit for our
02:35offense. And you hear that and you think nothing of it. Scott's a great fit for our offense. Oh,
02:40well, great. Yeah. Coach speak, right? No, that's, that's why Frank Pollock isn't here.
02:45You need the right fit. Fit matters. Mentality fit matters. Scheme fit matters. Football fit
02:51matters. Mindset matters all of the above. And so finding the right fit was so important for
02:57the Bengals making this move. I've received criticism. I think since Frank got fired two
03:04weeks ago as we record this and as we're live, but he is a good offensive line coach. I think
03:11anyone doubts that Frank Pollock is a good offensive line coach, but they needed a good
03:14offensive line coach. That's also the right fit. And so I understand the move. And so with Scott
03:20Peters for Zach Taylor to say, Scott is a great fit for our offense. I think that that is noteworthy.
03:26I also think that part of his statement, and maybe it's because Zach Taylor is watching Cincinnati
03:32Bengals talk all the time. Maybe he's a big enter the jungle guy, but he went on to say he is
03:36passionate about the position. It has done a great job of both developing young players and helping
03:41veteran players continue to grow. He is familiar with the AFC North and knows what it takes to
03:45win in our division. There's a huge factors, player development. They're going to be drafting
03:50offensive linemen this year. They took a Marius Mims and Matt Lee last year, keeping these veterans
03:55playing at a high level, getting the most out of your draft picks. That's huge. And knowing
03:59what the AFC North brings, it checks all of the boxes. And maybe Zach is just telling us what we
04:05want to hear, but I actually think it's, that's exactly what they needed to find. He knew it.
04:10And hopefully they did find. So that was your quote. Would you say eight words? That's what,
04:17that was your, that was your instinct. Scott is a great fit for our offense. Yes. I'm going to add
04:23one quote to this, James, you ready for this? Let's go to see Jeff Hobson's article on bengals.com.
04:29Listen to this one. Yeah. The quote, I want to bring a level of toughness and the mindset of
04:36we're protectors. Peter said, protectors do it with more than just the shield. We do it with
04:43the sword. Oh, what does the offensive line get as a gift from Joe burrow? Oh, Oh, in fact,
04:51actually we'll just flash it up right here. Everyone will just flash it up right here.
04:55There you go. The sword. No, I like it. And here's why I like it is because I think for years,
05:04years now it has felt like it's almost a retreat mentality. And I know it's not in the offensive
05:11line is if they see this, they're going to be like, what are you saying, dude? And I just,
05:15I mean, the Bengals asked these guys to pass, protect to in drop back situations a ton.
05:21And so it's already a really tough job, but having that mentality,
05:27that attacking mentality, that could be good. And the fit part of it matters because I don't
05:33think it's just in, I get it protector, right? You want to protect, but they also got to marry
05:39this run game with the past game. It's got to start to look the same. I look at some of these
05:43offenses across the league. And the reason the run game is able to work the way it does
05:49is because it looks like they're in a passing formation and then they run out of that formation.
05:54And now you're guessing, and now you're worried about Jamar taste and see Higgins and oh my God,
05:58Chase Brown is in the backfield. And then in that would be ideal. So I think all of those together,
06:03but that is a good quote. I haven't read Jeff's piece yet. I already recorded locked on Bengals
06:08with Jake, our instant reaction. He's read it. You've read it. So clearly I need to read it.
06:12Jeff Hobson, knowing Jeff Hobson, I am shocked. He didn't put the, put the two together, right?
06:18Make that connection and mentioned the katanas and all that. So I'm just, thank you for the
06:23assist on that, Jeff. It's a great quote. Now I want to take it a little further and
06:27talk about Ted Paris just, or maybe conspiracy theory, Joe, bro. I knew this was happening all
06:32along. Oh, and you know, that's interesting. I know you're joking, obviously, but, but I had
06:37no idea when I said who kind of jokingly, but Paul Dana, Jr. He, he put it out there on social
06:42media saying that Peters has been on the radar for, um, in Cincinnati for a while.
06:47It doesn't surprise me, obviously had no idea, but you know, sticking with Frank Pollock,
06:52like they did last season, him, Paul Dana saying that Peters would have been near the top of the
06:58list if they had opted to move on from Frank Pollock though. And, uh, so yeah, this is,
07:02they, they've had their sights set on him. Time will tell of course, but Zach Taylor is, uh,
07:08when he says he's a good fit, he's been thinking this for more than just this off season.
07:13Oh, no doubt. No doubt. I think I got to watch what I, yes, I think Zach Taylor has certainly
07:21thought about the idea in the past for sure. And not just with Frank Pollock. I mean, with Jim
07:27Turner, I mean, Jim Turner almost got Zach fire for being so bad at his job and Zach is loyal to
07:32him. When Bill Callahan was available ahead of the 2020 season, Bill goes to Cleveland and guess
07:40who's with him, Scott Peters. And this is where we should get into the connection. So we will do
07:46that from Bill Callahan and what Scott Peters has done with him to the best offensive line coach in
07:51Bengals history. We'll get into the connections coming up next. The Bengals, well, they've hired
07:58a new offensive line coach in Scott Peters. Let's dig into his connections with the Bengals
08:04franchise. Welcome back to enter the jungle. He's Andrew Fox Miller. I'm James or pain.
08:08And Scott Peters was officially announced as the Bengals newest offensive line coach on Monday.
08:15And he has plenty of connections to the Bengals, Andrew. And I started to get into them a little
08:20bit. You have Bill Callahan. Obviously he coached with him for four years in Cleveland, but before
08:26that was actually a consultant with the Washington commanders under Bill Callahan. And guess who
08:35recommended Peters to Callahan, none other than the best offensive line coach in Bengals history,
08:42Jim McNally, who was their long time offensive line coach for both of their Superbowl runs in
08:48the eighties and was a consultant up until a few years ago. I'll never forget my lone Jim
08:53McNally story. And I don't know if he knows me from Adam, but, uh, is in the divisional playoff
08:59game in Buffalo, the Bengals whip up on Buffalo two years ago and make Jim is behind me. And I knew
09:07who he was. Of course he, I'm sure he has no idea who, you know, he's just talking to the press,
09:10but he was so hype, so excited to go there and kick the snot out of them with those backup line.
09:17He was really excited. I loved it. I love seeing it. And so I interacted with him a little bit then,
09:22but, uh, I'm not sure there's a soul on the planet, including Scott Peters himself.
09:28That is excited. Andrew about this higher, uh, as Jim McNally is I'm going to read one tweet at
09:35coach McNally OL on X Scott Peters will make the Bengals great again. Mark my words. He is hands-on
09:42smart updated with the latest texts, uh, in my text, he meets techniques on pass and run and
09:47will develop young guys to their max. He is the top new offensive line coach in the NFL,
09:53way beyond all expectations. He said it in all caps. And I think it's because he's excited.
09:58And, uh, oil boy, if you just search or what, uh, Jim has tweeted about Scott, he's a huge fan. If
10:06you can't tell by that reaction, but, uh, yeah. So it's not just the Callahan connection,
10:10which we'll get to, but the Jim McNally connection as well.
10:13Yeah. And, uh, I saw that. I saw that post as well on Twitter on X I'd surprised that
10:20Jim McNally was, was following me. So maybe he is aware of any, any other jungle and maybe he's
10:24watching right now. Who knows? But I, I, the excitement was he's pumped. Like it seemed like,
10:29like you said, all caps that he posts on all caps a lot, but like you could feel the energy from
10:33that. He's, he's really excited. You also mentioned the connection with bill Callahan,
10:37but you could talk about like pedigree with bill Callahan worth noting to your point,
10:42Frank Pollock, great offensive line coach, just not a great fit. He's also got those
10:47connections through Callahan. So there's, it's, it's an interesting web and Zach Taylor seems to
10:52be very aware of everything, uh, historically having played under, uh, him. So, yeah.
10:58Yeah. I, I, no, I agree. I think that that's interesting. What I would, what I would openly
11:03ask about Frank and I don't know the answer and I don't think Zach would tell me he's like, all
11:06right. Yeah. The Bengals obviously held Frank Pollock in high regard. Did they say after the
11:12failed Jim Turner experiment, like, Hey, you're going to bring Frank in, like make this work with
11:16Frank or is this your choice, Zach, or what? I don't know. I just think it's an easy question to,
11:22to ask, especially since there was issues there. I certainly think Zach made this higher. And part
11:28of it is because he could obviously call Jim McNally. Who's a consultant with the Bengals up
11:32until a few years ago. Um, in fact that, that 2022 season, I think was his last year, but has
11:39been a member of the Bengals organization for years and years and years. And then obviously
11:43the Callahan connection, bill Callahan coach, Zach Taylor. Uh, so it goes that far back.
11:48They've worked together for years and years and years, um, or, or being in contact for years and
11:53years and years. Uh, obviously his son, Brian, the Bengals offensive coach, uh, offensive coordinator
11:58for five years. Now those two are together in Tennessee. Where does it all I, where does it
12:04all cross? Well, it's the AFC North experience. And I think that's big in the Callahan experience
12:10as well. Uh, so let's do that. The connection with Scott Peters and bill Callahan. Yes,
12:16it involves the AFC North. We'll discuss that as we continue coming up next.
12:23Welcome back to enter the jungle. He's Andrew Fox Miller. I'm James Zerpine. Make sure you catch us
12:27every single Tuesday, usually at eight Eastern on the YouTube channel, Cincinnati Bengals talk
12:32weekly on Fandle sports network. We are brought to you by garage beer and happy to be part of the
12:40big play network. And speaking of big play, big play is Cleveland based as was bill Callahan,
12:46as was Scott Peters for four seasons, 2020, 21, 22, and 23 Callahan departed left for the Titans
12:54job last year. And Peters left the Cleveland Browns as well, landing in new England as their
13:01offensive line coach. I think it's interesting with the Callahan connection, because you're
13:06talking about learning from one of the best for multiple years. He was a consultant in Washington,
13:10as we mentioned earlier in the show, but Callahan thought enough of them to bring him to Cleveland
13:16and the Browns from 2020 to 2023, not really this year, but they had a really darn good offensive
13:22line. And so I think that that's valuable experience. A lot of people are going to focus
13:27on this year with the Patriots and how bad their offensive line was. I'm not sure that was
13:31necessarily Scott Peters' fault, but I think that those Cleveland lines, he had to have learned
13:36something from them for sure. Yeah. How many times did we say it every time that would be a division
13:41matchup with the Cincinnati Bengals or those Browns Raven Sealers, which just kept,
13:46just kept harping on AFC North football. Like that's, that's these games they're crazy. But
13:51with that, they're, they're sort of, it sort of breeds familiarity. You start to, it's like its
13:56own sort of, I don't, I don't want to say culture, lack of a better term culture, but it's, it's sort
14:01of this bubble, this mentality. There's a, there's a lot of similar breed that kind of come in and
14:05out of there, especially from a coaching standpoint. And Peters is seen, even if you had one,
14:10two years, that's extremely valuable specifically for the AFC North to be able to see sort of that,
14:18that continuity year after year against those opponents. And I, I don't know how much that
14:24weighed into it. Certainly a factor, obviously, but we, I don't know. I may be even undervaluing
14:30it or underselling it for what I'm saying here, because I think it's very important.
14:34Yeah. I, I agree. I think that's why in these AFC North games, it always feels like the Bengals are
14:42going to get out physical. And it's, it's weird. Like it's, it's not necessarily fair, but it does
14:47feel that way. Part of it is because of how they are, how they play, they're going to drop back.
14:52But going back to what Scott Peters told Jeff Hobson, the protector can be more than just the
14:59shield and can use the sword as well. And I like that. I like that mentality, that mindset. I think
15:04that's what they do need. And I do think that there are guys, you don't tell, you don't think
15:08Orlando Brown Jr. Loves hearing that. You don't think Ted Karras loves hearing that. I think that
15:13guys like Amarius Mims, Matt Lee, young players that I think you're banking on long-term,
15:19obviously Amarius, he's your first round pick. That's exactly what you want. That's that mentality
15:24you want him to adopt. Play in, play out, down in, down out. Doesn't matter who's on the other side.
15:29Doesn't matter what the play is. And so I like hearing that. And I think when you come from this
15:36tree, it's why I say Frank Pollock is a good offensive line guy. Because he is. People here
15:41might not like him. It might not have worked. It might not have been the best fit. That doesn't
15:44mean he's not a good coach. And so if they can find the right fit with the right coach and a guy
15:49who's in his mid-40s that played six years in the NFL, that's worked under arguably the best
15:55offensive line coach in the NFL for four years, that probably learned from what was honestly a
16:01rough experience in New England. It was a rough season outside of week one when they
16:07shouldn't have, wouldn't have, couldn't have did beat the Bengals. There wasn't much to cheer about
16:12in Boston this year when it came to the Patriots. And the offensive line was one of the least
16:17talented units in the league. So I bet Scott Peters learned from that experience as well.
16:22It's interesting you say that. The sword analogy that he gave, the shield using a sword.
16:27How many times were you saying, especially towards the end of the season, wanting sort
16:30of that more aggression from the O-line protectors of Joe Burrow, getting people's faces,
16:35calling people out for things. You've got an O-line coach that's like way in with like MMA.
16:41You know what I mean? Like this guy's, I cannot imagine a scenario where he is,
16:45if it's not already happening with the O-line mid-season in 2025, he's not getting in guys'
16:50faces. Like you need to step up and get in these guys' faces for what they just did out there.
16:55You know what I mean? Like I could see that. I, that's, I don't know how it's going to turn out,
16:59but that alone, I'm looking forward to seeing that because I know it could be entertaining to
17:04see just everyone get way more aggressive under a guy like that. Yeah, I, I agree. And it still
17:09annoys me thinking about it still annoys me and I don't want to see it and it's unacceptable.
17:15And I will ask Scott about that. It's a good point. I forgot about it. We're in the off season.
17:18We're thinking about defensive coordinator and free agency and rookies and draft and all these
17:23things. Now I need to ask, Hey, Scott, what, what do you want your offensive line to do
17:28when Burrow is taking a hit two seconds afterward or his face is getting pulled off?
17:32When Joe Burrow's face is getting pulled off and it leads to a knee injury,
17:36what, and by the way, he had to play through it all year. So, you know, it's a really,
17:39really good point. I think we need to, since this is a special live edition here on Cincinnati
17:46Bengals talk event of the jungle, we need to get to a question or two. So we will do that
17:51coming up next.
17:55Welcome back to enter the jungle. He's Andrew Fox Miller. I'm James Zerpine,
17:59and it is time to answer one of your questions here. As we continue to react to the Bengals
18:06new offensive line coach on Monday, they hired Scott Peters as their new offensive line coach.
18:11Also hired Michael McCarthy as their assistant offensive line coach. Both guys
18:15worked together last year with the new England Patriots. And Gary Jellison asks,
18:21do the Bengals or does the Bengals current personnel seem to fit
18:26Peter's coaching style and what potential free agents fit?
18:30Well, it's tough to, to say free agent wise at the moment on who fits, especially when you look
18:36at last year and who he was coaching. I mean, you think about it. I don't think you want to bring
18:40Michael Jordan back. That was a really rough Patriots offensive line. But what I will say is
18:46he's in the past coach that, that zone running style that, that Bill Callahan has coached.
18:51I'm not sure they're going to go to that a ton because they're this open pass first team.
18:58But what I will say is, and this goes back to the beginning of the show, Andrew,
19:04from a fit standpoint, Zach Taylor, the biggest reason I think why the Bengals made this move,
19:12just looking for a new offensive line coach in general, they wanted to find the right fit.
19:18And so I do think that clearly Peter's vision, his ability to develop was attractive
19:25in his vision for what they want to do on offense. All of those things had to fit.
19:30And maybe there's little scheme differences in the past, but you can make those work if
19:34you have the same vision moving forward. Look at what Zach Taylor and his, his whole
19:40coaching, we'll call it coaching tree really. And even from a personnel standpoint,
19:46he's been going, he, I think he's drawn to naturally sort of the younger minds,
19:53fresh thinkers, people that maybe are new in their role because they're going to bring
19:57something and they're not going to be kind of worn down by the same repetition for a decade or
20:04two in the league, whether it's a coordinator position or not. So there's that component
20:10too. There's that sort of, you're not going to have that on a resume. And I think Zach Taylor
20:14has always been attracted to that. Yeah. I think it's, it's one of those
20:20things that you, from a fit standpoint in free agency, you will look at some of the,
20:26the past guys that they could go after past players that he's coached. And I'm not sure I
20:32was just looking here. I was like, Oh, well, could they go after one of these guys in Cleveland if
20:37they become a free agent? I'm not sure. But what I do think is mentality scheme mindset,
20:43at least on paper, it fits. There's the connections. You have Jim McNally, just praising
20:48that the Bengals new offensive line coach, Scott Peter. So we'll see how it works out.
20:52We're obviously have plenty of time to dissect it, digest it, but we certainly appreciate you
20:56watching each and every week here on enter the jungle for Andrew Fox Miller. I'm James
21:01Urpeen. Thank you so much for watching out of the jungle.