It wa-

The last three, the last three years have been, like, offensively bad defenses.

Last year was, like, distinctly bad because you could just see the...

When Flacco was in for, what was it, eight or nine games, like, he actually put them in a position to win probably five times and they only won one.

Um, it was just, it was horrible, and you could point it all back to, you know, Geno Stone, the worst safety signing of all time.

We had no pressure up front.

Meanwhile, people are talking about Trey Hendrickson like he's the nec- second coming of God in Baltimore.

it was time for him to go 'cause he didn't wanna be a Giant.

It was too much to distract them.

Yeah.

And I think the Boye comparison, when we got Trey, not to keep bringing him up, but there are things that the Bengals have done decently well over the years.

You can never knock the Bengals for being able to draft wide receivers really well.

Other than John Ross that one time, we always draft wide receivers really well.

Yeah.

The other thing we did was we've been able to identify guys on the cheap that have potentially turned into other people.

I am starting to feel a little bit better now because I was not feeling

over and over again and just learning from each iteration.

Yeah.

Yeah.

Like pretty much every, you just learn from every mistake over and over.

Like it doesn't, like it doesn't matter if you fail a few times or a hundred times, like just keep doing it and you'll figure it out.

And if you don't, you at least tried.

And that's more than people who get afraid to not do anything.

Yeah.

How you got into Cincinnati sports? Did you grow up always loving the Reds and the Bengals? Any other teams you got? Give us a little bit of background here.

Yeah, so born and raised in Cincinnati, Christ Hospital.

Shout out to Christ Hospital.

Shout out.

I forget the doctor's name.

I used to know the doctor's name.

Good guy, probably.

i i definitely do want to bring up though uh obviously we would love to talk reds we also want to talk about your career comedian having on the show funny guy talk to him pnc park and immediately like this is someone we need to talk to a little bit further so diving into a little bit of that side of your career how'd you start in comedy you were just out in la you said you live in la i think i saw you're with michael irvin talk us through some of your recent things and what's been going on the life of michael

like, hey, let's stop phonetically.

Yeah, because the names can't get crazy out there these days, man, 2026.

But luckily I had a good name.

It was like a layup, man, with the A.J. Terrell and his brother Avion.

Do a reference there.

And it was kind of cool.

And what made it easy when I first got out there, uh i saw the chargers fans was sitting in like sit there right there in the front you know as far as the sec this charter section is right there and chargers fans always showed me love throughout the years man whenever i go back man the chargers fans they show me love when i go back to california period and visit they still recognize me out there and they they treat me like i was i was like you know i'm not like alt but like one of the guys one of the starters they're one of the main guys that was on the team that uh really produced well for the guy for the team and uh for the franchise, and they never forget me out there.

What is the biggest thing? What stops this team from putting it together? Because I think the talent's there.

Exactly.

Okay.

So my, my first, my first test was, uh, my rookie year and, uh, we was already clinched the playoffs and everything, you know, so Marty set the starters, and I had to start that last season, regular season game, you know.

And I was like, "Okay, all right, I get, I get to start," so I'm pumped up about that.

So I'm saying, "Let me see what I can do o- out here for real, I guess.

Starting t- uh, starting defense or, you know, uh, get some, get some reps.

Get l- at least 10 plus carries in the game," 'cause I'm getting like one or two carries here and there, so that's not really telling me that I'm ready to be a starter in this league.

What is the biggest thing? What stops this team from putting it together? Because I think the talent's there.

Turns, have you been following things from afar? Actually, when you were a player, when you were in the side that won the playoffs in 2008, what was that summer like for you? Were you thinking they'll bring in loads of players, I could be out here? Or did you know I'm going to get a chance as a Premier League player?

Yeah, I think you never...

Yeah, you always think you know there's players going to be coming in the building.

You know, with the club going up to Premier League, they have to sign players to improve the squad.

So you know inevitably there's going to be players in your position turning up.

So...

Certainly for me and I'm sure the players now, the summer they've had after that win at Wembley would have been probably the best summer they've had in their lives in terms of the feeling of euphoria.

What was that summer like for you, going into the Premier League, compared with perhaps the summer before?

So you're saying there's black people.

No, but like the thing that I've noticed with a lot of people that have been in the industry as long as this, or honestly far longer, because people that have done things like this before have come up to me, and I thought that I'd be judged in a more harsh way from like veterans.

Most of them are like, dude...

They did you so dirty, and I've been done dirty before.

I was just talking to, I don't want to drop names or nothing, but I was just talking to some homies in L.A. on the patio at the store, and they had both had different experiences on different situations where they were on TV.

It was lesser things than that, but it was still on when fucking TV mattered, like within the last 10 years or whatever.

And it was set up in a way where they just looked like fools.

But then a lot of

need to do shit to start.

They put me, they also like, I had the beer because I just like drinking a beer before a set.

Oh, you had a beer, too.

But it was only like, everybody's like, it's probably because you were too drunk.

It's like, that was like.

I hate that.

I had one beer.

I should have.

They b-

That was a, M- Maryland was our first game, and then we beat them.

Um, and Sean Merriman was on the team.

He one of my teammates in San Diego.

So, um, yeah, but it was, it was just like we was on a roll, man.

We was just like, "L- let's see what we can do, how special we can be." 'Cause we always believed in each other as a team, and we worked hard.

It was like, man, some of those, those winter conditionings and those, those, those summer workouts, man, it was like, man, we, we got some dogs on this team.

Right.

What was you guys' mentality going into that game? What did that game, winning that game, do for you guys as a program and for you as confidence as well?

You know, our program under Joe Novak, we was built on, like, having a – basically having a chip on our shoulder, you know, because our school was kind of like misfits, whatever, like guys that's been overlooked, but we knew we had some good ball players on our team, some tough guys.

It was all about toughness, being tough, being physical, and we can line up against anybody.

We play our best, we can win any game.

And I was just one of those guys, me coming back my senior year, I was excited for the schedule.

I was like, man, they got Maryland, Alabama, Iowa State.

You guys beat Maryland, too.

was like, y'all say it's a rival game,

What was you guys' mentality going into that game? What did that game, winning that game, do for you guys as a program and for you as confidence as well?

You know, our program under Joe Novak, we was built on, like, having a – basically having a chip on our shoulder, you know, because our school was kind of like misfits, whatever, like guys that's been overlooked, but we knew we had some good ball players on our team, some tough guys.

It was all about toughness, being tough, being physical, and we can line up against anybody.

We play our best, we can win any game.

And I was just one of those guys, me coming back my senior year, I was excited for the schedule.

I was like, man, they got Maryland, Alabama, Iowa State.

You guys beat Maryland, too.

was like, y'all say it's a rival game,

Michael, can you steal?

No, prob- probably not [laughs] 'cause I've, I've been racking my brain the entire time that, that Rowan has been thinking.

Uh, so a coming of age drama.

L- a- again, it comes down to, you know, what Joker are we talking about? 'Cause I don't, I don't, I don't see a lot of Jack Nicholson coming of age dramas.

[laughs] Um, I, I, but I could be wrong.

Uh, and like the other names, like yes, Lara Croft is... you know, I, I can talk it out now.

Uh, Lara Croft, I'm assuming we're talking, uh, uh, about Angelina Jolie and not, uh, Alicia Vikander [laughs] uh, in 1999.

[laughs]

[laughs] That's pretty good.

No, I know.

[laughs] That's great.

That's great stuff.

I was thinking of, uh, singing, uh, creating songs like, uh, you like So I Married an Axe Murderer? [upbeat music] You know that movie? Woman, woe man.

[upbeat music] Oh, now I go.

[laughs]

God.

Oh, yeah.

She died on a c- a car that all of a sudden went speeding through Brentwood or something like that, and then she was pronounced dead on the scene.

But if you s- there's a video of her going to the ambulance-

Thank you.

Um, and, uh, and so yeah, it's on YouTube on my, yeah, Michael Turner comedy, um, on YouTube, and then, you know, just dropped it.

I filmed it at Fort Collins on New Year's Eve.

I'd never seen anybody film a special on New Year's Eve.