Trent Brown on Amarius Mims: “He’ll have an All-Pro career”

In an exclusive sit-down with The Orange and Black Insider, the big Bengals tackle talked about his mentorship of Amarius Mims, as well as his longstanding rivalry with the Chiefs.

Since 2021, the Cincinnati Bengals have largely preferred to rely on short-term deals with veteran right tackles. Riley Reiff and La’el Collins manned the position during their deep 2021-22 postseason runs (though they were on injured reserve during those streaks), with their former first-round pick taking over that side in 2023 with the arrival of Orlando Brown Jr. in free agency.

This past season, it was decorated veteran Trent Williams who was called upon for the starting role. Cincinnati invested a first-round pick in the talented Amarius Mims, but Williams was the seasoned presence the Bengals wanted while their rookie got acclimated to the NFL.

On a recent episode of The Orange and Black Insider, we were privileged to welcome Williams to the program. In our 25-minute chat before Super Bowl LIX, we touched on a number of subjects in an exclusive and entertaining sit-down.

One of the topics we discussed with the gigantic tackle was his taking Amarius Mims under his wing this past season. While Brown’s mentorship was cut short, in a sense, due to his unfortunate injury, he still played a role in the rookie’s development.

“I really didn’t look at it as a competition,” Brown told us. “I looked at it as me being an older veteran, and he’s a young guy. I’m in year 10. He’s a rookie. So, I was just trying to bestow upon him all of the wisdom I have to give, try to tell him some things, try to give him some tips here and there. And, it might allow him to play a little bit faster, maybe it’ll help him pick up some things faster, see things faster and allow him to play faster.”

When the Bengals drafted Mims, it was understood that there was a bit of a project to be undertaken, as his college sample size was small. However, Cincinnati banked on his immense size and athleticism, and it ended up paying off early for the team. Mims finished with a 60.8 PFF pass-blocking grade, which is a respectable number for a rookie tackle—particularly in the AFC North.

“For one, he’s from South Georgia, two he played in the SEC, so that gives him a pretty good head start, I think,” Brown said of Mims’ abilities and early NFL performance. “Me being a guy that they tried to say, ‘Hey, he didn’t have much experience coming out of Florida’…I only had, like, 12 starts or whatever…if you look at that 2015 draft class, I’m like one one of three tackles left, if that, still playing. So, the cream rose to the top there.”

“I did think that he (Mims) had all the tools and attributes to be able to play at a high level in this league, and he showed that, and, on top of that, I think he’ll continue to progress and have an All-Pro career,” Brown concluded.

Prior to our chat with Brown about Mims, we asked him if he dove right into the Bengals’ rivalry with the Kansas City Chiefs. Though Brown only started three games for Cincinnati this year, one of them was the critical Week 2 loss at Arrowhead Stadium.

“I think for me, going against them (Chiefs) so many times, both with the Raiders and the Patriots, I think there’s a healthy amount of hate there,” Brown said with a smile. “But, I mean, all in the love of competition and football—no real bad blood off of the field.”

In what has become an annual matchup (sometimes more than once a year), the Bengals-Chiefs clash is always heated and brings in immense viewership. “I think I just fell right in line with the rivalry, as you put it, against, I guess, the best team in the NFL”.

“I also believe, coming into Week 2 and playing as well as we did — there were probably some questionable things that took place, as far as calls go,” Brown said with a laugh. “I played for the Patriots, so I understand — they probably felt the same way about us — but when you’re going into the No. 1 team’s stadium, you can’t really leave any room for people to make decisions for you.”

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Our conversation also struck a personal note for Brown as he told us about his passion for being a rancher. The Brown Ranch is based just outside of Austin, Texas, with Trent serving as the figurehead of the operation.

When he’s not battling on the gridiron, Brown enjoys riding horses and living the ranch life. What has sprung from this passion is also high-quality meat cuts and packages produced from livestock raised on his ranch.

Brown has teamed with Ratcliff Premium Meats to provide fantastic packages that can be sent to you in time for the Super Bowl! Quality cuts of beef, chicken, and pork are available, with the Prime Rib Family Package being a premier choice for meat lovers.

This interview is also brought to you via our partnership with FOCO. The “Fans Only” company offers unique merchandise, and because of our channel’s partnership with them, exclusive products and promotions!

Some of their newest products for Bengals fans to check out are their wide array of fan flags. Get yours today!

Our thanks to Trent Brown for the opportunity to chat with him. Go order your meat packages from The Brown Ranch today!

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