Curious meeting between McCarron, Hue and Haslam prior to kickoff

An interesting scene unfolded Sunday morning at Paul Brown Stadium about 100 minutes before kickoff when Cincinnati Bengals backup quarterback AJ McCarron spent time chatting with Cleveland Browns head coach Hue Jackson and owner Jimmy Haslam in the north end zone.

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Jackson and McCarron started their conversation on the south side of the field where Bengals players were warming up. Jackson and McCarron walked across the field together to the opposite end zone, where Haslam greeted them to begin a conversation that lasted around three to five minutes.

There’s nothing unusual about players and coaches exchanging pleasantries before a game, especially in a situation like this where Jackson was the offensive coordinator for McCarron’s first two seasons in Cincinnati.

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But given the attempted trade between the Bengals and Browns that would have sent McCarron to Cleveland for a second- and third-round pick during the final minutes of the trade deadline Oct. 31, today’s pregame chat between the trio provides an interesting side note to the 89th Battle of Ohio.

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