Lou Anarumo says Germaine Pratt-Joseph Ossai mishap proof of Bengals culture

Last postseason after the AFC championship, Cincinnati Bengals Germaine Pratt went viral in about as bad of a way possible as cameras caught him questioning the now-infamous roughing-the-passer penalty by Joseph Ossai on Patrick Mahomes.

That now-infamous mishap from Pratt quickly became an afterthought though, as most could understand it was a heat-of-the-moment outburst and Pratt quickly made that clear the next day during interviews.

Fast forward to now, Bengals defensive coordinator Lou Anarumo says he actually used that moment as a good example of the culture he can build while interviewing for head coaching jobs elsewhere.

“The next day in the locker room,” Anarumo told Peter Schrager. “Germaine is basically crying, saying you know, it’s my fault, I was, you know, I shouldn’t have said what I said. Joe is one of the reasons we got to this point. Just squashed it immediately. I didn’t have to say nothing to him. Zac didn’t have to say anything to him.”

More importantly, Anarumo says the whole saga is a good example of how far the Bengals have come together over the last five or so years.

The whole clip is worth a watch, given how impressive it is that the unfortunate moment caught on camera managed to bring the Bengals closer together.

After a heartbreaking AFC Championship Game loss in KC, Germaine Pratt was on camera questioning Joseph Ossai.

It could have ripped apart the team at the seams.

But it didn’t.

It brought the @bengals closer. DC Lou Anarumo explained why on “The Season with Peter Schrager”. pic.twitter.com/LVXge9QtXP

— Peter Schrager (@PSchrags) October 17, 2023