Riley Reiff is just here for football.
That was the new Bengals offensive lineman's quick reply to comparing August in Cincinnati to his open-spaced offseason life in South Dakota. There, he owns a farm. He hunts, golfs and fishes when not pumping iron and going over offensive line sets.
He is a 10-year veteran and walks the walk that the Bengals hope their young offensive linemen will someday walk. A former first-round pick out of Iowa, he's helped Reggie Bush go over 1,000 yards in Detroit, helped Kirk Cousins throw for 4,000 yards in Minnesota and paved the way for Dalvin Cook of the Vikings to run for an NFC-best 1,557 yards in 2020.
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Signed to a two-year deal, he's leading by example trying to mentor the likes of new draftees Jackson Carman, D'Ante Smith and Trey Hill and 2019 first-round Jonah Williams among others.
"There's no secrets with me, I try to help everybody out," Reiff said. "Football is about one thing, about having fun, but you do that by winning games. That's all it comes down to, anyway I can help this team out. I like to talk. We're offensive linemen. We're honest, right? Truth hurts sometimes, right? We're a tight-knit group. We're pretty much all around each other."
Reiff acknowledges Fairfield High's Jackson Carman has had some "rookie moments" but sees him as a dominant player for a long time. Joe Mixon has noted improvements in 2019 top pick Jonah Williams, as has Reiff, who says he asks a lot of questions and is going to be a good player.
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Just as Reiff hopes the youngsters soak up his knowledge, he did some soaking himself Tuesday when Ring of Honor member Anthony Munoz and long-time color analyst Dave Lapham addressed the so-called "big uglies" at the request of Frank Pollack.
"I got chills," Reiff said. "They set the standard on how stuff gets done. A lot of that stuff still carries over to today."
Reiff referred to Coach Pollack's thoughts of mastering the mundane.
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"Not always saying stuff but watching guys," Reiff said. "OK, this guy's coming early to lift. You know, he's 10 minutes early or he's studying film. I hope I can rub off on the younger guys."
A long way from Buckley Brothers
When the Bengals practiced in Wilmington, the larger players had to be officially weighed at Buckley Brothers, a feed mill that had a grain scale big enough to give a better reading than what was available in the day at Wilmington College.
Scales have been updated obviously, which is good because linemen are considerably bigger. Currently, the only Bengal lineman under 300 pounds is rookie fourth-round pick D'Ante Smith out of East Carolina at 294.
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By comparison, if you looked at the Bengal starters from their first Super Bowl, Hall of Famer Munoz was 278, Lapham 259, Blair Bush 268, Max Montoya 282 and Mike Wilson was 275. In the second Super Bowl, Bruce Reimers joined at 285, Bruce Kozerski at 287 and Joe Walter was the heaviest at 292.
Get your T-shirts!
Joe Mixon either had a great idea or is simply borrowing from the University of Michigan's famous basketball freshmen in the early 1990s. Either way, he was notably excited describing what the Bengals could have on the field this fall.
"Everybody should be excited about the offense," Mixon said. "I know for me, we've got a four-headed monster (himself, Tyler Boyd, Tee Higgins, Ja'Marr Chase). If you want to, I guess include Joe (Burrow). It's the Fabulous Five, you know what I'm saying?"
Mixon said he was thinking Fantastic Four but then added Burrow quickly.
"I can't forget about my dog, Joey B!" he said.
Closing the deal
Clearly Sam Hubbard and Joe Burrow have bright futures on the field in the NFL. However, should they ever have to swing to the business side, they apparently have credible closing skills. Reiff was sold on Cincinnati when the two joined him over a Jeff Ruby's steak at The Precinct along with head coach Zac Taylor, offensive coordinator Brian Callahan and offensive line coach Frank Pollack.
"They really preached about what they see, where this team is going and I want to be a part of it," Reiff said. "I believe in what they had in place. I'm excited to be here."
Grappling with the truth
Reif was a defensive tackle and tight end in high school at Parkston High School in Parkston, South Dakota. In the winter, he wrestled and was wildly successful with a 121-1 record. He credits the sport for his current offensive line success.
"Leverage, toughness, hands," Reif said describing the upside of being on the mat. "That’s probably the biggest factor that’s brought me to this point is my wrestling background."
The Bengals have had top wrestlers before, most notably former nose guard and line coach Tim Krumrie who was known to wrestle potential draft picks as part of his evaluation.
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Limited fans in for the weekend
Saturday and Sunday's practices were held on Paul Brown Stadium's practice fields with a limited number of fans. Tickets were distributed to1,000 fans to be in attendance. Based on last weekend's "Back Together Saturday" the players are looking forward to the interaction.
"It was definitely great when I came through the tunnel," Mixon said of last weekend's gathering. "It was basically a standing ovation for me and Joe Burrow. I was like, 'Wow, I can't believe it!' It's a great thing. I love the fans. I love everything about football and what comes with it."
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