Current New York Giants defensive coordinator Don “Wink” Martindale isn’t the most popular guy in the minds of Cincinnati Bengals fans.
Buy Bengals TicketsWink, after all, dropped some comments about Ja’Marr Chase and Joe Burrow last year that looked bad in a hurry as the Bengals swept his Baltimore Ravens in back-to-back blowouts.
Fast forward to right now, Wink came under fire from Patriots head coach Bill Belichick, who accused him of blitzing too much during a preseason contest.
But the Bengals? Offensive coordinator Brian Callahan seems to hope Wink turns up the heat that way during Sunday’s preseason affair.
“Our backs need blitz pickup work, too, so we’ll see as many blitzes as they want to bring,” Callahan said, according to Geoff Hobson of Bengals.com.
That’s not as spicy as last year’s regular-season drama by any means, but it’s a funny anecdote heading into an exhibition—the Bengals want to see Wink dial up the heat so they can get a better sense of things as they formulate the final roster.
Barring something stunning on a number of levels, this is the only time the Bengals will see Martindale in 2022.