Cincinnati Bengals Introduce Dan Pitcher Official News Conference
Cincinnati Bengals Introduce Dan Pitcher Official News Conference
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00:00 - Okay, thanks for coming.
00:02 Excited to introduce Stan Pitcher
00:03 as our new offensive coordinator.
00:04 It's a position that he's really earned.
00:07 And he's been here longer
00:09 than the five years I've been here,
00:10 but I think he's impressed all of us every step of the way
00:13 and continue to take on more responsibility,
00:15 played an integral part in really helping our quarterbacks
00:19 have the success that they've had
00:20 over the last several years.
00:21 And so now he'll just transition all that hard work
00:24 into the OCE position,
00:25 and I'm excited to work side by side with him
00:27 and have a great year next year.
00:30 - Thanks, Zach.
00:32 Really excited for this opportunity.
00:36 This has been a long time coming for me.
00:39 I've been a part of this organization now for eight years.
00:41 This feels like home to me.
00:43 There are people here,
00:45 really at all levels of the building
00:46 that time and time again have shown belief in me,
00:50 have offered me more and more opportunity,
00:55 shown the faith that I can succeed in those roles.
00:58 And I'm very thankful for that.
01:00 And to me, this is just one more step in that journey.
01:05 And it's something I know I'm ready for.
01:06 And the plan is to just continue proving those people right.
01:10 And I'm excited to get started.
01:12 - Dan, how important was it to stay here in Cincinnati?
01:16 - I think anytime you find yourself a part of something
01:20 that you believe in,
01:21 and you're around really good people,
01:23 and you love coming to work every day,
01:25 you gotta have really good reason to leave that willingly.
01:29 And so fortunately for me, the way things transpired,
01:34 I didn't have to make that decision.
01:37 And I get to stay here,
01:38 and this has been ideal for me all along.
01:42 I didn't know whether it was gonna work out this way,
01:43 but it has.
01:45 - Zach, how important was it to have a level of continuity?
01:47 I mean, you haven't changed coordinators in five years,
01:48 and he's been in the building.
01:49 How important was that?
01:50 - Yeah, when it's available, I think it is critical.
01:53 You know, and that's, it's not always the case everywhere,
01:55 but you know, Dan's role has really evolved.
01:59 Yeah, he's been the quarterback coach,
02:00 but that role has really evolved and given him more.
02:04 And he's been a bigger voice as the years have gone by.
02:07 And so it was a natural progression
02:09 to make him the coordinator once Brian left.
02:11 And I know that our staff would feel the same way.
02:14 - Danny said this feels like home.
02:16 Was there a point during your time here
02:18 that that particularly felt the case?
02:20 You hadn't been here a while, obviously.
02:22 Or that you know, you know that?
02:24 - Yeah, I think,
02:25 I think it's rare that you get to be a part of something
02:30 in one building where you see the lowest of the lows
02:33 and the highest of the highs.
02:35 And when you kind of get to experience
02:37 every step along that journey,
02:39 the elation, the disappointment,
02:42 to have felt all that in one place, you know,
02:46 and experience that range of emotions,
02:48 that's, you know, that's home.
02:50 I mean, that's family.
02:51 That's, you just feel like you've grown
02:53 and you become who you are in that place.
02:56 And that place for me is here.
02:58 And so it's, I'm just really fortunate that I get to stay.
03:01 - Joe has spoken many times, Dan,
03:03 about your influence on him
03:05 and what kind of impact you've had
03:07 on the offense in general.
03:08 How big of a role is continuing to work with Joe
03:12 a part of the decision to move on?
03:14 - Yeah, no, it's huge.
03:15 There's a lot of people in this profession that I respect
03:19 who have great perspective, who've reached out to me.
03:21 And almost to a person, you know,
03:24 their advice is when you have an elite quarterback,
03:27 you hang on as long as you can.
03:29 And we have that here.
03:31 And not only is he an elite player,
03:33 but, you know, I've gotten to know him so well as a person.
03:36 He's a special person.
03:39 He's different.
03:40 They don't make many like him.
03:41 And to get to continue working with him day in and day out,
03:46 knowing that we have a guy
03:47 that can win us a world championship,
03:50 it's hard to put a price on that.
03:52 - Yeah, how much pride did you take in what Jake did?
03:54 'Cause obviously you had to do a lot of work with him,
03:56 really behind the scenes a lot of times.
03:57 - Yeah, I mean, a lot.
04:00 You know, he, just happiness for him,
04:04 probably more than anything.
04:05 You're always, you always have a sense of pride
04:09 when the people you're responsible for preparing,
04:12 when they play well, that reflects on you.
04:14 And so that was nice for me.
04:16 But for me, it was really just about seeing Jake
04:19 finally get an opportunity,
04:20 watching him take advantage of it,
04:22 seeing him be able to now establish a career for himself
04:25 in this league, which he deserves.
04:27 And so just at the end of the day,
04:30 really, really happy for Jake and happy for us
04:32 because, you know, he provides tremendous value
04:34 to the organization.
04:36 - Dan, what was your view of what the offense did last year,
04:38 specifically the chance to build on what you did
04:39 in like the five games where Burrow was really open?
04:41 - Yeah, I think, I think every,
04:45 you can kind of zoom out and look at the big picture
04:49 of, you know, who you want to be as an offense.
04:50 When you get into the season,
04:52 and Zach does such an amazing job of this,
04:53 it's really about who do we have to be in a given week
04:56 to beat the team that we need to play?
04:58 And that takes into account constraints
05:01 that you may have within your own building,
05:02 and then who are we facing?
05:03 And I just think we do such a good job of that.
05:05 So, you know, there's been a lot made
05:08 of what did the offense look like
05:09 over the final part of the season.
05:11 And I really just think that's a product of us
05:14 looking at it on a week to week basis.
05:16 Who do we have available to us?
05:18 Who are we playing and what do we need to do to win?
05:19 And that's something we'll always do.
05:21 And so we'll look at some of those things
05:23 that we did well at the end of the year.
05:25 And certainly Joe Burrow is capable
05:27 of doing anything you ask him to do.
05:29 And so that's what we'll do this off season
05:30 is do a great job of deciding who we need to be
05:34 moving forward and then have the adaptability
05:36 to adjust if we need to.
05:37 - Zach, what was your first impression of Dan
05:39 when you got on staff and why was he so critical
05:41 to what you want to do?
05:43 - So I think the first time Dan Craigman
05:45 from Angra crossed paths, I was at UC
05:47 staying in the hotel the night before
05:49 our first regular season game, which was a Thursday night.
05:52 And the Bengals were in the same hotel
05:54 getting ready for their preseason game.
05:55 And I went in to talk to Bill Lazor
05:57 in a boardroom in there and Pitch was in there.
06:00 So that was the first time I met him.
06:02 Then when I got the job, a bunch of people reached out
06:04 and said, this is someone you should hold on to.
06:06 You know, he's someone who's got a great future
06:09 and would fit really well with demeanor
06:11 and all those things.
06:12 So, you know, I can't pinpoint a moment
06:16 where it's like, man, I really believe in Pitch,
06:18 but all the stuff leading into me getting the job
06:21 the first year here and the role he played,
06:23 was excited to make the phone call
06:25 to make him the quarterback coach, you know,
06:26 when AVP went to Cleveland.
06:28 And so, you know, he's a very hard worker.
06:33 Everyone that's been around him believes in him.
06:35 And that's been my experience, you know,
06:37 over the last five years.
06:38 - The structure of the apparatus of how y'all work
06:40 on game day in terms of playing volleyball,
06:41 I was told, remain the same, correct?
06:43 - Relatively the same.
06:44 I think every year's a new year.
06:45 And as personologists, our staff, you know,
06:48 we have an open quarterback job
06:49 and that process has begun and will be ongoing,
06:52 you know, into next week,
06:54 as we evaluate all the proper candidates
06:56 and see what the best fit for us is.
06:58 And so again, that's a process we'll sit down as a staff
07:00 and continue to go, but certainly his voice
07:02 will be the loudest on the headset, you know,
07:04 as he and I work together and as we piece through
07:06 what the whole thing will look for.
07:07 - And have you thought about being on the sidelines still
07:09 versus booth?
07:11 You're not there yet.
07:12 - We're not there yet.
07:13 That's something ultimately, you know,
07:16 the head coach will decide where my services
07:18 best fit the team.
07:20 And I've been in the booth, I've been on the sideline.
07:23 There's pluses and minuses to both.
07:24 That's something we'll decide at a later date,
07:26 but I'll do whatever's best for the unit and for the team.
07:29 - Zach, there have been a lot of big third downs
07:31 over the years, or when you talk about it,
07:33 you mentioned like an idea pitch out or something like that.
07:35 What's it add to you about the work you did
07:37 specifically as a game planner for third downs?
07:39 - Well, you believe in what he's presenting to you,
07:40 you know, and so that's really an evolution
07:43 over several years of him doing that.
07:45 And I, you know, I'd love to go back and look at year one
07:49 of us having third down meetings together
07:51 to where we ended up last year,
07:53 but a great trust that he owns the scheme in that area
07:58 and he's going to present a great plan and, you know,
08:01 really just got to the point where we were just tweaking
08:03 a couple of things as we finalized it.
08:05 But even on game day, his role really evolved,
08:08 you know, over the course of the game
08:09 when it came to third down and his voice, you know,
08:12 got bigger and bigger as the years went.
08:13 And so there's a lot of trust there.
08:15 And so that's why this is a natural progression.
08:17 - You've done so much, you know,
08:18 you've had some of the responsibilities,
08:19 but since Zach has been here,
08:21 the situations, third downs,
08:23 what do you think is the one area
08:24 that might've been maybe the best for taking a big job?
08:27 - That's a great question.
08:30 I think, I think the two you just mentioned
08:34 from a scheme standpoint were big, you know,
08:37 that responsibility that was given to me
08:39 with regard to third downs,
08:40 'cause that's kind of just like a mini encapsulation
08:44 of an entire game plan.
08:46 And so just being able to develop a process
08:48 as you scheme that really helps you get prepared
08:52 for that specific role as a coordinator.
08:54 The situational stuff is very helpful.
08:56 Obviously, you know, all the sides of the ball,
09:00 that's important, but on offense for sure,
09:02 with regard to coaching the quarterback
09:04 and instructing him on what he needs to do
09:06 in those critical moments of the game,
09:08 I would say one of the biggest parts of this job
09:11 has nothing to do with any of that,
09:12 which is managing people and leading
09:15 and providing a vision throughout the week,
09:21 communicating and, you know, really just being
09:26 in this building and working with the guys
09:28 that we have has prepared me for that.
09:29 I have such great relationships with these coaches
09:31 and these players, and my role will be
09:33 a little bit different in that now.
09:35 But to me, that's first and foremost.
09:37 All these other things are very important
09:38 that we're talking about,
09:39 but this is a leadership position
09:42 and it's gonna be my job to lead these guys
09:44 and I look forward to that.
09:45 - Two-parter, Dan, how did Brian Callahan help you
09:50 progress in your position?
09:53 And secondly, have you given thought
09:54 to how you see the offense differently
09:56 and how, you know, you have a different set of eyes,
09:58 obviously, how you may look at coordinating the offense?
10:01 - Yeah, I mean, Brian's been huge in my development.
10:03 You know, Brian just has a wealth of knowledge,
10:05 really from an entire life in football
10:07 and being around great coaches and great quarterbacks
10:11 and great players and great offenses.
10:12 And so, you know, I've just taken so much, you know,
10:16 from him philosophically,
10:18 particularly in the areas of protection
10:20 and, you know, the drop back pass game
10:22 and what that all looks like and how it ties together.
10:26 You know, the biggest thing I've probably taken from Brian
10:28 is just how he treated people in the building, in that role.
10:32 I think when you value people,
10:34 you get the best out of them.
10:35 When they feel valued, they give you their best.
10:37 And that's how I felt as a position coach on this staff.
10:42 And so it's now my job to continue that
10:44 and to make sure that all the position coaches
10:46 continue to feel that way.
10:48 With regard to my vision for the offense, you know,
10:52 I think I mentioned the word adaptability before.
10:56 It's something I believe in completely
10:58 and you need to have the ability to pivot
11:02 in a moment's notice,
11:03 given, you know, different constraints
11:06 that might be placed on you.
11:07 So I can't sit here and say,
11:10 "I see the offense moving in this specific direction."
11:13 Listen, we have, we've had a very good offense.
11:15 We've dealt with some issues,
11:18 particularly this past season,
11:19 that made life a little bit harder on us
11:21 than we were used to.
11:22 But I fully believe in the foundation that we have
11:26 and that we have the people in place to, you know,
11:28 be one of the top offenses in football.
11:29 - Dan, when you were playing quarterback
11:31 and kind of coming up, you know,
11:32 what were kind of some of the biggest influences
11:33 on how you kind of saw the game
11:35 and how you envisioned what the game should look like?
11:38 - I mean, it's hard to pinpoint.
11:40 Like, there's just so many people,
11:41 so many coaches growing up, playing the position,
11:44 you know, getting to college,
11:48 playing for people that really valued me
11:53 as a person and as a player.
11:54 It's who I, it's when I figured out
11:57 that I wanted a coach is being around people that,
12:00 you know, treated me that way, you know?
12:03 And I had a voice.
12:04 And the only reason I had a voice
12:06 is 'cause they knew how hard I worked.
12:08 And there needs to be that mutual respect there.
12:11 But I had it, and that's how I've wanted to continue
12:15 as a coach, is to kind of exist that way.
12:17 That's how I treat those guys in the quarterback room.
12:20 And that's now, as my role expands,
12:21 how I'll continue to treat all the guys on offense.
12:26 And so I think that definitely comes from,
12:30 you know, coming up, playing that position
12:31 and doing those things.
12:33 - What was the last couple of weeks like for you?
12:36 - Ah, there was, I mean, there was a lot going on,
12:39 you know, a lot of communication and,
12:43 and, you know, people reaching out and potential interest.
12:47 And it's, that's good.
12:48 It feels good to be recognized as somebody
12:50 who's capable of a role like this.
12:52 That's what you work towards.
12:54 That's why I've done the things that I've done.
12:56 That's, I've never been shy about that.
12:57 You know, that, that my goal is to get to this point.
13:00 And so you sort through all those things.
13:03 And in the back of the mind, in my mind, you're,
13:05 I'm hoping that this is,
13:06 I'm hoping I'm sitting in front of you right now
13:07 answering this question.
13:08 You know what I mean?
13:09 And I'm just really glad that I am.
13:11 So that's really the extent of what it's been.
13:16 - You're used to game day stress.
13:17 You're used to football stress.
13:18 What is the last two weeks stress like?
13:20 - Yeah, I mean, and stress, I mean, sure, it's stress,
13:23 but it's good stress.
13:24 You know, like you just, it comes with the territory
13:27 and I wouldn't have it any other way.
13:30 - When players are free agents,
13:31 they always cite the opportunity to go somewhere
13:34 and win as a big thing.
13:35 Is it almost a little bit of a lure of the opposite way
13:38 for a coach where you've got a chance to maybe go somewhere
13:41 and build something?
13:43 And then how do you balance that
13:44 between staying where it's familiar?
13:46 - Sure. I mean, there's elements of that,
13:48 that challenge that can be appealing as a competitor,
13:52 but you gotta be careful.
13:53 I mean, that's a double-edged sword.
13:55 There's, you know, all sorts of pitfalls that come with that
13:58 and not that I wouldn't have been willing to take those on
14:03 and attack something like that with everything I had,
14:07 but, you know, as you sit back
14:09 and you do the cost benefit analysis
14:11 of all these potential options,
14:14 like I just keep coming back to it.
14:15 I mean, the leader in the clubhouse is right here
14:18 and that's just really thankful that it worked out this way.
14:22 - Has anything in the past couple of weeks
14:23 been stressful for you,
14:24 given the uncertainty around both Brian and Dan?
14:27 - It's, yeah, moments, you know,
14:29 and I appreciate the Titans for their timeliness.
14:32 That made things ideal for us
14:34 because, you know, there was timeline issues
14:36 and it worked out the way that it needed to work out,
14:40 thankfully, and so we don't have to think beyond that,
14:42 but, you know, that's the truth of the matter.
14:45 - Is communication the key,
14:46 and that's kind of for both of you,
14:47 in that moment, knowing there's interest in you,
14:50 Brian's interviewing you?
14:51 - It is, you know, it is,
14:52 and we were in constant communication
14:53 throughout everything I knew, everything he knew.
14:56 So, again, there was constant communication
14:59 throughout the whole deal.
15:00 - Zach, how did everything evolve, I'm sorry,
15:01 how did everything evolve with last year
15:04 when you knew this was a possibility of,
15:06 Brian, Dan, you, let's figure out
15:09 how these responsibilities work for potentially,
15:11 you know, kind of grooming things for the future?
15:13 How did you attack that process?
15:14 - You know, it really was just more natural
15:16 than maybe what people would think of,
15:19 we need to structure it, so the next guy,
15:21 you know, we just thought what's best for the Bengals,
15:24 and it naturally progressed.
15:26 I mean, I don't think there was anything
15:28 we specifically said in an off-season,
15:30 like, here's more on your plate,
15:32 here's, it just naturally evolved that way.
15:35 And so, again, I think that's the best way to do it,
15:40 you know, or just does that, and people,
15:42 and we've got other guys on our staff
15:43 that have continued to step up,
15:44 and are capable of bigger roles as well, you know,
15:47 and so I think it's an exciting time for our staff,
15:51 I think we're in a really good place,
15:52 and I'm happy with how it worked out.
15:54 - How proud are you of Brian, kind of the opportunity?
15:55 - Yeah, I mean, it's, that's hard to describe,
15:58 you know, how much he's meant to me,
16:00 how much he's meant to Pitch, this organization,
16:03 all these guys, it's hard when you work side-by-side,
16:07 you know, with a guy for five years,
16:09 and like Pitch said, the lows to the highs,
16:12 trying to problem-solve through unsolvable problems,
16:16 felt like sometimes, and he was as steady as they come,
16:19 and so Tennessee got a good one,
16:21 and it's the right place,
16:23 it's the right opportunity for him,
16:24 I hate that it's in the conference,
16:25 I hate that we play him next year,
16:26 I kinda like that we play him next year,
16:28 there's, we'll see where it pops up on the schedule,
16:31 but, you know, just really, really happy for him,
16:34 and Allison, and it's, you know,
16:37 he's waited a long time for that opportunity,
16:38 he's been prepared for a long time for that opportunity,
16:41 I think the right place came calling for him,
16:43 and I'm really happy the way it felt out,
16:45 I know it felt right for him,
16:46 and we'll hear more, you know,
16:47 at one, what he says in his press conferences,
16:49 we'll all be watching anxiously to see him on that stage,
16:51 but really, really happy that it worked out for him.
16:54 - Are you too young to be a tree?
16:57 - Yeah, yeah, yeah, there's a lot of trees out there,
17:00 and a lot of people that have influenced all of us,
17:03 you know, and so, just because I've worked under people,
17:06 and people have worked here under,
17:07 there's, you know, Pitch couldn't even get to the point
17:10 where he was naming names of people who've influenced him,
17:12 but there's so many parts of your coaching,
17:15 where your coaching package that have made you who you are,
17:19 that it's really hard to say,
17:21 this person influenced me more than that,
17:24 there's a lot of people I think that affected all of us.
17:26 - Dan, the collaborative approach
17:28 for so many of the students here,
17:29 how has that helped you,
17:30 and how important will that continue to be going forward?
17:33 - It's huge, you know, I think,
17:35 I think there's some places in this league
17:37 where that's not the case at all,
17:38 I think there's some places where they pay lip service
17:41 to it, and then there's here, where we put it in action,
17:45 and it just, it motivates you as a position coach,
17:50 and as someone who's responsible for whatever section
17:53 that you've been given,
17:54 to know that you're gonna be listened to,
17:55 and it just makes you work that much harder,
17:58 it makes you make sure you've checked all the boxes,
17:59 'cause if they're gonna listen to me,
18:02 I better know what I'm talking about,
18:03 and that's absolutely has to be a part
18:06 of who we are moving forward,
18:08 I wouldn't have it any other way,
18:09 that starts with Zach, he's made it very clear
18:11 from the beginning, through just how he interacts
18:14 with all of us, that that's who he is,
18:15 and that's what he believes in,
18:16 and there's no reason that that would ever change.
18:19 - Specific question, how do you view the running game,
18:22 and how can it grow here?
18:24 - Listen, being able to run the football
18:27 is critical to offensive success,
18:31 and what that looks like for every team
18:34 is gonna be different,
18:36 that's something that we'll look at
18:38 over the course of the next couple of months,
18:41 as we come back together as a staff,
18:43 and we figure out how to put our players
18:44 in the best position to be successful,
18:47 and we'll work on improving in that area,
18:51 as we will in every other one.
18:53 - Zach, just out of curiosity,
18:55 has any updates on Burrow,
18:56 and how he's growing so far,
18:57 is he still worried about it?
18:59 - I don't have any updates on where that's progressing,
19:01 but everything's been positive,
19:03 I've seen him, he's around, he's here,
19:05 everything has been positive,
19:07 but I'm not, further update beyond that.
19:09 - Did you ever have to see him,
19:11 put out a statement,
19:12 when you released that,
19:13 "No, it's your heart, we don't like to see that,"
19:14 and kind of the words of confidence he had in you?
19:16 - Yeah, it's nice to see,
19:18 I knew that he felt that way,
19:22 but it's always good when people express those things,
19:24 listen, I love Joe,
19:26 Joe and I, we've been tied at the hip
19:29 from the moment he came in this building,
19:32 I was hired into that role two months prior to that,
19:35 and I couldn't have asked for a more ideal situation,
19:40 and I love the fact that I get to keep working with him.