DEFENSIVE COORDINATOR ANTHONY CAMPANILE
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2025
(On what he liked about the defense in Week 1 and what they need to clean up) “I liked the
effort we played with. I thought the guys played really, really hard. I thought we were
attacking the ball, which is something we’ve made a major point of emphasis. I though they
did a good job with that. I think from a clean it up perspective, there’s always numerous
things, but I keep going back to communication. I think overall, pretty good job but
definitely some things to clean up there too as well. So like any week, there’s stuff. Left a
little meat on the bone, there’s stuff to clean up.”
(On LB Foyesade Oluokun) “He’s a great leader. He’s a great communicator, total pro. Very
happy for him because he’s a guy that does the right thing every day, works really, really
hard. So, it’s great to see him get honored that way, it really is. He’s a huge part of
everything we do.”
(On the challenges of facing Bengals QB Joe Burrow) “He’s just pretty good against
everything, so he’s definitely a challenge. He hangs in there, incredibly accurate thrower
and just a tough guy. I see that in the way he’s played over the years and just watching him
over the years. He’s a very accurate thrower, hangs in the pocket and a really bright guy.
Knows what to get into from a protection perspective and where the ball should go, so it will
definitely be a challenge.”
(On if guys are more motivated to face a top QB and two top WRs) “I just think it’s a great
challenge for our guys and obviously, they’ve got a bunch of great players. I think the guys
are doing a great job working hard, trying to get the game plan right to get out there and play
well on Sunday, so I’m just so focused on that right now and I think they are too. Just getting
the game plan right and the communication there but they have been doing things the right
way up to this point this week.”
(On the importance of put consistent pressure on the quarterback) “Yeah, like sacks are
great and that’s a very important part, obviously because those are negative plays but you
want to be able to affect the quarterback and we talk about hands, hits, hurries every day
and that’s super important to us. Even batted balls, creating middle push in the pocket,
getting the quarterback off the spot, all that stuff can play a factor in incomplete passes
and a successful down for the defense. So, for us it’s a huge point of emphasis. It’s really
important, like if you get 10 sacks in a season, you had a really good year in the league. You
may have rushed the passer 650 times, so what’d you do with the other 640 snaps? You
might have affected the quarterback a whole lot and that to me is how we evaluate who’s
really productive in the rush.”
(On the steps that DT Maason Smith has to take) “Yeah, I think Maason’s just getting healthy
and getting the opportunity to play a little bit more. Obviously, he came in so late, the tail
end of camp but he’s done a really good job and every week’s different. So, he’s been
working really hard. I love coaching the guy and I think he’s getting better every day.”
(On if he expects a jump from the rookies on the defense, specifically WR/DB Travis Hunter)
“I think for everybody, just as a team, your biggest jump in the season is from week one to
week two. I totally agree with that overall. Obviously, you’re always hopeful that’s the case
for the rookies too and I think he’s incrementally gotten better each day. He [Hunter] has
and the more and more he gets the opportunity to go out there and do that, I think he will
progress and I think there will be a jump for him.”
(On Hunter) “Yeah, I just think Travis is a great athlete and he’s an aggressive player on
defense, so that’s what we love about him and like I said, he’s been doing everything he can
on both ends of it to be the best he can be as a defensive player and an offensive player. He
definitely puts another guy out there with ball skills, attention to detail and a physical style
of play. So, we’re excited with his progress at this point on defense.”
(On how to slow down Bengals WR Ja’Marr Chase) “Yeah, he’s an incredible football player.
Everybody’s got to do their 1/11th every game against this guy and obviously he’s had so
many successful outings against a lot of different teams, so definitely a hard guy to stop
because he really has a great catch radius. He’s really good at the top of the route. He’s
good on the line of scrimmage. So, I think he has a lot of qualities that make him an elite
receiver, so you’ve really got to do a great job within the game plan, obviously, knowing
where he is. And like I said, doing your job on the back end every play because one play can
get you.”
(On the value of CB Jourdan Lewis) “Yeah, he’s extremely valuable. Not even just as a
player. You watch him go out there and play, he’s got great ball skills, he attacks the ball and
he is a physical guy. He’s really a unique person because he’s got unbelievable leadership
qualities. Just very honest with his teammates, honest with me all the time. He’s a guy that I
rely on and trust out there because he’s a great communicator as well, like I said about
Foye. He’s a guy that does things right every day, so it shows up on Sunday and you can’t
have enough of those guys, and we value him a whole lot that’s for sure.”
(On the flexibility of playing in a dime defense) “Yeah, I think every game’s different but it
definitely gives you a little bit of flexibility against when they play smaller groupings, more
receivers on the field and it kind of gives you an opportunity to play different guys. Like I
said, every game’s different, we may not do that in every game but it does give you some
certain flexibilities. And the guys who were in there at those positions have done a good job
of being involved in the pressures, being able to play the run game and then obviously some
of the stuff we’re giving them the opportunity to do in the pass game, in the pass coverage.”
(On if he learned anything from Week 1) “No, I just think like you guys asked last week, I
think you’re always learning your players and learning what we can get better at. Who does
what well, and when the lights go on who shows up and who performs. I thought, like I said,
how I opened this was, I thought the guys played really physical, which we have to keep
doing that. That can’t go away. If we’re going to be a good defense, we have to be a physical
defense. We’ve got run to the ball, we’ve got to attack the ball and you’ve got to show up
with the right culture every day. That starts with how you walk in the building every day. So, I
learned that our guys will go out there and play as hard as they can every snap of the game,
which is what I thought they did.”
(On the three turnovers from the defense) “Yeah, I think that’s always a great thing. They’ve
been working hard on it. It’s good to see them get rewarded on that end of it but again, like
anything else, we’ve got keep doing that. We have to keep attacking the ball. We have to
continue to play with vision and if we’re in the right position and our eyes are right, we’re
going to have opportunities hopefully to make plays on the football and we have to keep
doing that if we’re going to be a successful defense but I think it is a good thing for the guys
to get rewarded on that.”
(On his assessment of the run defense on Sunday) “Yeah, I think there’s some real good
snaps in there but I think there’s some plays I wasn’t pleased with to be honest with you,
and we’ve got to be a little bit more disciplined on a couple snaps there. That’ll be the case
all the way up through the end of the season. Constantly evaluating that, getting on them
about the fundamentals of playing great run defense but there are some things there that
the principles we talk about in defending the run that show up and we made some good
stops in the game because of those. We just have to be really, really consistent, be vigilant
on that the rest of the way.”
OFFENSIVE COORDINATOR GRANT UDINSKI
MEDIA AVAILABILITY
THURSDAY, SEPTEMBER 11, 2025
(On his assessment of the offense from last week) “I think the offense made progress on
where we’ve been with certain things, but certainly the good news is there’s a lot of room
for improvement. The operation and some of the penalties, those are clear things that we
need to improve, and we’ll work on improving every day in practice, meetings, walkthrough,
etc. But I was pleased with the effort from the guys, the way they attacked the game and
approached the game plan, their preparation.”
(On QB Trevor Lawrence) “Very similar to the other guys in the offense as a whole. The
preparation was greatly appreciated. I think he felt that, I think we felt that with his mastery
of the game plan and what we were trying to do with each play and each concept. Now the
final product wasn’t always perfect or exactly what we were going for, but he managed a lot
of those situations at a high level.”
(On what he likes about the offensive game planning process from Head Coach Liam Coen)
“One of the great things about the process is that the preparation evolves throughout the
week. It’s not a game plan that’s put in on Monday evening, Monday morning, Tuesday
morning, and that’s set in stone, and that’s what we’re going with. He’s very adaptive,
flexible, so we are constantly trying to iterate and find the best path to success, whether it’s
the first drive or the last drive, all the way through up to kickoff, essentially, when you’re
trying to create that preparation. So, it’s great to see that process and see the fruits of it pan
out.”
(On what makes RB Travis Etienne Jr. valuable in the offense) “I think one of the things that
you’ve probably seen this past weekend was his ability, pass game, run game, screen game,
that flexibility and versatility show up, and that’s, like the other guys, a testament to his
preparation. Some of the situations that he might not have been in on or might not have
excelled at previous times or earlier in training camp or in the spring, he’s worked at and
improved and been able to do that at a high level.”
(On if Etienne Jr. had a specific point where he made great progress) “I wouldn’t necessarily
say flip the switch. It’s a process that builds over time. So, you see him stack days on top of
each other. It’s never a straight line, that progress, but over time you see bits and pieces
here and there and ultimately you get to the spot you’re at now.”
(On RBs Bhayshul Tuten and LeQuint Allen Jr.) “For Tuten, you see the athleticism, the
explosiveness, the ball carrier ability, vision, all of those things that will only continue to get
better as he becomes more comfortable with our run scheme. He’s also another guy that’s
improved in the pass game, whether it’s routes or protection, doing things that he hasn’t
been asked to do before. So, his progression in that, mentally and physically, has been
awesome to see. LeQuint, you love the physicality, the protection, the route ability out of
the backfield and then same thing for him in the run game, getting some opportunities to
run different run concepts and schemes where maybe he didn’t get a bunch of reps that the
other guys got during training camp but as he’s gotten those reps, he’s gotten better and
better.”
(On what Allen Jr. can add in the run game) “Absolutely, and I think you saw that whether it’s
run after the catch or when he does get an opportunity to run the ball, he’s been able to
make plays. Now the opportunities on Sunday were a little limited, but in preseason and in
training camp, you guys see it out there at the practices, he’s made plays when he has the
opportunity.”
(On if they can fit WR Brian Thomas Jr. better into the offense) “I don’t know that it would be
necessarily go back to the drawing board or one-off. I think you always evaluate the game
plan and see, did we utilize his skill set and his talents to the best of our ability, and then
how does that fit with the offense in total or the team’s approach to winning the game.
That’s the way it panned out with that. Of course the touchdown for him as well running the
ball, but we’re always going to try to find the best ways to get guys the ball and use their
talents, whether it is pass game, run game and when we don’t achieve that, it might not be
because of the numbers, it might be because of just the way the game played out but we’re
always going to evaluate and look and see what’s the best way to use those guys.”
(On WR/DB Travis Hunter) “It was exciting to see him out there. Exciting to see him out
there. Crazy to see the offense then go back out there and play defense, but I was fired up
for him. He’s a guy who plays with a lot of passion, so it’s cool to see him get that
opportunity to go out there and do it for real on Sunday. I think he attacked the game plan,
the preparation, all of that with great tenacity. It’s a lot to manage, not just as a rookie, you
could be a 10-year vet and that’s a lot to manage, going into a season opener, trying to learn
a new system on offense, a new system on defense, totally new operation from the way the
game goes, different TV timeouts from college compared to NFL, different rules, all that
stuff. So, it was a lot of fun to see him attack it. I think he’s another guy that did well but has
room to improve like the rest of us do, coaches, players included, and he’ll continue to get
better and better because of the way he works.”
(On going for fourth-and-one on the first drive and the mentality of the coaching staff)
“Yeah, that’s a great question. I think we’re all learning a little bit from each other. So how
much of it is predisposition, or how much of it is something that’s just innate to all of us? I
don’t know exactly where we lie, but it’s probably somewhere in the middle of that, but
we’re certainly influenced by Liam [Head Coach Liam Coen] and I’m sure we have our
influences on him or the unit as a whole, but it’s great to see his approach and the benefits
of that payoff for sure.”
(On the offense getting points on the first drive despite penalties and negative plays) “It
kind of goes back to what I said earlier about we have a lot of things to improve but the good
news is we have a lot of room for improvement. The ability for guys to handle that adversity,
even though it was self-inflicted and overcome it is encouraging because we can be in
second and long situations and overcome that and still get first downs, move the chains
and get points. Of course, we would like to stay out of those situations if possible. So, it’s
great to see those guys attack it, move on, that one play at a time mindset, but we’re going
to do everything we can to stay out of those situations moving forward.”
(On if there is pressure to score touchdowns because of the Bengals offense) “The
beautiful thing is we can only control what we can control. So, we’re preaching to our guys,
whether it’s this week, last week, every week, to go out there and control those things. Stick
to our process. We’re out there focused on us. We have trust in our defense, trust in the
special teams, trust in those guys out there on all the units, and when we’re out there on
offense, we’re taking it one play at a time and just controlling what we can do.”
(On the challenges of the Bengals’ defense) “There are a lot of challenges. I think you look
at the personnel and the players, whether it’s really all three levels, have guys that can
challenge you in different ways with matchups, rush, run game, different pressure
packages, different fronts that they can bring and some of the coverage scheme that
they’re playing presents things that are unique and different than what we played against
last week. So, we’ll try to have adjustments or change game plans, but ultimately we’ll see
the best way to attack that for each individual player and then as an offensive unit as a
whole.”
(On challenges of Bengals DE Trey Hendrickson) “Oh, certainly, certainly a big challenge
and those numbers speak for themselves. He’s a phenomenal player; that production isn’t
by accident, by any stretch of the imagination. I think it’s going to take a team effort for
those guys and the offensive line to buy into the protection plan, the run game plan to try to
handle him, and really all the guys up front and the myriad of issues that they kind of pose.”
(On the performance of the offensive line in Week 1) “It was great to see those guys playing
together. That’s another group I talked about last week. The cohesiveness of that unit as
they start to come together. So, it was really cool to see them come together, play together
for an entire game, a little different than preseason with a week of preparation, and then to
have that result running the ball. Now the numbers tell a great story, but they don’t tell the
whole story. So just like everybody else, we all have room for improvement. I hope that we’ll
continue working and we’ll keep getting better, but it was great to see us be able to run the
ball and those guys come up big in protection and the run game at certain spots of that
game.”
