Latest / Best of the NFL Podcast Network / Matt Stafford, Bengals Contracts, and the Jets: Good Morning Football Selects

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Matt Stafford, Bengals Contracts, and the Jets: Good Morning Football Selects · Best of the NFL Podcast Network

0:07
Speaker 1: The Season with Peter Schrager is a production of the
0:09
Speaker 1: NFL in partnership with iHeartRadio. What's your name on somebody
0:29
Speaker 1: that you find most interesting in this latest head coaching.
0:31
Speaker 2: Here, it's Liam Cohen.
0:33
Speaker 1: He took this job in Jacksonville and he burned all
0:35
Speaker 1: the boats to Tampa.
0:37
Speaker 2: And yeah, what I mean by that is he said
0:39
Speaker 2: he's coming back to Tampa.
0:40
Speaker 1: Agreed in principle, and then under the guise of like
0:44
Speaker 1: the Mayflowership, went and go met with the ownership at
0:46
Speaker 1: Jacksonville and they said, well, we're gonna give you this
0:48
Speaker 1: amount of money and you can basically hire whoever you want.
0:50
Speaker 1: He's like, I'm sorry, Tampa, i gotta go. And he did,
0:52
Speaker 1: and it rubbed a lot of people wrong, and maybe
0:55
Speaker 1: it was done in a clunky fashion communication wise. That said,
0:59
Speaker 1: he becomes the head coach of Trevor Lawrence, who has
1:03
Speaker 1: won a playoff game before in a division that is down.
1:06
Speaker 1: And besides, Houston really has three rebuilding teams in that division,
1:11
Speaker 1: between the Titans, the Jaguars, and of course you've got
1:15
Speaker 1: the Texans and then the Colts. So I look at
1:17
Speaker 1: Liam Cohen, young, fresh offensive mind with a quarterback that
1:21
Speaker 1: we thought was gonna be the best product to come
1:23
Speaker 1: into the NFL since Andrew Luck. So let's see what
1:25
Speaker 1: we got, and let's see if Trevor Lawrence can work
1:27
Speaker 1: with them and they can make actual magic happen. The
1:30
Speaker 1: Raiders have a giant void at quarterback unless you think
1:32
Speaker 1: Adan O'Connell's the guy, which I'm not sure they do,
1:34
Speaker 1: which leads me to the question of if you're a
1:37
Speaker 1: Stafford or a Rogers or a Cousins, when you see
1:41
Speaker 1: that Raiders logo, is that retirement village last stop on
1:45
Speaker 1: the tour? Or is there a legitimate chance that you
1:48
Speaker 1: can potentially compete with Sean Payton and bow Nicks, and
1:51
Speaker 1: with Justin Herbert and Harbaugh and of course Mahomes and Reid.
1:54
Speaker 2: It's a very hard division.
1:56
Speaker 1: It's an uphill battle, but there are a lot of
1:58
Speaker 1: veteran quarterbacks, and the carousel's going to be going around.
2:01
Speaker 1: Someone's going to end up in Vegas unless they draft
2:03
Speaker 1: someone like Shador or cam Ward. Anytime I do speak
2:08
Speaker 1: on the Rams, and specifically on Stafford and McVeigh, like
2:11
Speaker 1: ears perk up, and I want everyone to listen in
2:13
Speaker 1: that those guys actually have a fine relationship. This was
2:16
Speaker 1: nothing that is between them personally, and this is a
2:19
Speaker 1: This is a money issue, and Matthew Stafford wants to
2:22
Speaker 1: be paid what he thinks he's worth. He wants to
2:23
Speaker 1: be paid more than fifty million dollars. They've given the agent,
2:26
Speaker 1: Jimmy Sexon, one of the best agents in all of football,
2:29
Speaker 1: both college football with the coaches and.
2:31
Speaker 2: Of course in the NFL with coaches and players.
2:34
Speaker 1: They've given him the freedom to go seek out what
2:37
Speaker 1: might be some teams that would be of interest and
2:39
Speaker 1: if those teams would pay him. And guess what, there
2:41
Speaker 1: are teams that are willing to pay him more than
2:43
Speaker 1: what the Rams are currently willing to pay him. The
2:45
Speaker 1: question is does Stafford want to go to those teams
2:48
Speaker 1: and what are those teams willing to give up. It's
2:51
Speaker 1: all very awkward because McVeigh and Stafford may end up
2:55
Speaker 1: together and it's just like, well, that was water under
2:57
Speaker 1: the bridge, that was business. We got to keep the
2:58
Speaker 1: emotional side separate from the business side.
3:01
Speaker 2: Here.
3:01
Speaker 1: Truth of the matter is, Matthew Stafford was one pass
3:04
Speaker 1: away from playing an NFC champion game at home against
3:07
Speaker 1: the Washington Commanders this year.
3:09
Speaker 2: That guy can steal ball. And if you don't think he's.
3:11
Speaker 1: One of the top nine quarterbacks in the NFL currently, well,
3:15
Speaker 1: then you're thinking he's not worth fifty million dollars. And
3:18
Speaker 1: that's really where we're starting that number. Fifty million. Last year,
3:22
Speaker 1: the Rams borrowed money from future years.
3:25
Speaker 2: To pay him a pay bump. They're not going to
3:26
Speaker 2: do it again this.
3:27
Speaker 1: Year, and they are currently paying him less than fifty
3:30
Speaker 1: million dollars. So you look at the teams, and you
3:31
Speaker 1: look at the options for the Rams, say you trade
3:34
Speaker 1: him to the Steelers. Are the Steelers willing to give
3:38
Speaker 1: a first or second round pick and pay Matthew Stafford
3:42
Speaker 1: fifty plus million dollars? And it's Stafford willing to go
3:44
Speaker 1: play in Pittsburgh in the cold weather, and it's Kelly
3:47
Speaker 1: and the four girls. Are they going to want to
3:48
Speaker 1: go move out to Pittsburgh? How about the Giants? Giants,
3:51
Speaker 1: they're not giving up the third overall pick, but would
3:54
Speaker 1: they be willing to give up the thirty fourth overall
3:56
Speaker 1: pick and pay him fifty five million dollars? If that's
3:58
Speaker 1: the case, does that make sense? The Raiders are an option?
4:02
Speaker 1: Who knows you can go down the list. The issue
4:04
Speaker 1: with this year for Stafford is if they do trade
4:07
Speaker 1: Matthew Stafford, there are quarterbacks who would likely love to
4:11
Speaker 1: play for the Rams. Aaron Rodgers lives in Malibu in
4:14
Speaker 1: the offseason. You don't think he'd want to just mix
4:16
Speaker 1: it up for a discounted price and play with Sean
4:19
Speaker 1: McVeigh for a year. Of course he would. So who
4:21
Speaker 1: has the leverage here? Where are they gonna go? Jimmy Garoppolo?
4:24
Speaker 1: They could pay ten million dollars and McVeigh by think
4:27
Speaker 1: I could.
4:27
Speaker 2: Win games at Garoppolo.
4:29
Speaker 1: It's a really tough, awkward situation because there is a
4:31
Speaker 1: real friendship, they have a Super Bowl championship together, and
4:34
Speaker 1: there's no real bad blood at the moment. But the
4:38
Speaker 1: longer this thing proceeds, the ugli ric could get.
4:41
Speaker 2: I don't know if I.
4:42
Speaker 1: Could envision a world where the Rams go on without Stafford.
4:45
Speaker 1: I think everyone would love Stafford to come back, But
4:47
Speaker 1: I don't think the Rams are gonna break their back
4:49
Speaker 1: to pay Matthew Stafford top dollar.
4:51
Speaker 2: And if he's okay with.
4:52
Speaker 1: That, to go pursue a super Bowl fine, And if
4:54
Speaker 1: he's not, no shame in that, go get the money.
4:56
Speaker 2: You think you deserve.
4:58
Speaker 1: You've got now a solid two three week span where
5:02
Speaker 1: teams are gonna look to find their free agent pieces,
5:04
Speaker 1: and then you have another solid two to three week
5:07
Speaker 1: span where they build their draft board that it's the draft,
5:09
Speaker 1: and then you got your roster and you're good to go.
5:10
Speaker 1: And as Tom said, there are so many unresolved issues,
5:13
Speaker 1: specifically at the quarterback position.
5:15
Speaker 2: The team that I'm looking at as.
5:16
Speaker 1: A team that seems to get to the playoffs every
5:18
Speaker 1: year and has a giant question market quarterback, that's the
5:21
Speaker 1: Pittsburgh Steelers. The Pittsburgh Steelers decided to Jennison Kenny Pickett
5:26
Speaker 1: last year and said, Okay, we're gonna cut bait On
5:28
Speaker 1: on a twentieth overall pick and we're gonna go with
5:30
Speaker 1: the Justin Fields Russell Wilson do Well. It was great
5:33
Speaker 1: to start off, they were ten to three, and then
5:36
Speaker 1: the season hit the skids.
5:37
Speaker 2: And what happened in the end, Well.
5:40
Speaker 1: It was the same Steelers that we have seen every
5:43
Speaker 1: time they've been in the playoffs since twenty seventeen.
5:46
Speaker 2: They ended with a loss.
5:47
Speaker 1: Take a look at how the Steelers seasons have ended
5:50
Speaker 1: once they've reached a postseason. The last several years twenty
5:54
Speaker 1: seventeen lost, twenty twenty lost, twenty twenty one lost, twenty
5:58
Speaker 1: twenty three lost, twenty twenty four loss.
6:01
Speaker 2: And now you don't have.
6:03
Speaker 1: A quarterback under contract going into combine that includes Justin Fields,
6:08
Speaker 1: that includes Russell Wilson, and of course Kenny Pickett is.
6:11
Speaker 2: Over in Philly.
6:12
Speaker 1: Now, so I look at this Steelers team, what are you?
6:15
Speaker 1: Are you a team in transition? Are you in rebuild mode?
6:19
Speaker 2: Or are you a team that has TJ.
6:21
Speaker 1: Watt on one side, Alex Heidsmith Alex Taisman on another side?
6:26
Speaker 1: And the ability to say, are we the team that's
6:29
Speaker 1: gonna go and get Matthew Stafford, Are we the team that's.
6:32
Speaker 2: Gonna get Aaron Rodgers?
6:33
Speaker 1: Are we the team that's gonna get Kirk Cousins.
6:36
Speaker 2: Are we the team that's gonna get Derek Carr?
6:38
Speaker 1: There are so many viable veteran options out there. They
6:42
Speaker 1: did this dance last year. They decided on Justin Fields
6:45
Speaker 1: and Russell Wilson. But with the twenty first overall pick
6:48
Speaker 1: and what I would say is an underwhelming quarterback class,
6:53
Speaker 1: I would think they're gonna go veteran again. Or do
6:56
Speaker 1: they bring back Fields and say we're four and two
6:59
Speaker 1: and we decided to throw in Russ or do they
7:01
Speaker 1: bring back Russ?
7:02
Speaker 2: Steelers are fascinating.
7:04
Speaker 1: A good team, not a great team, but that's been
7:07
Speaker 1: their story for nearly a decade in Pittsburgh salary cap gymnastics.
7:13
Speaker 1: Here we go, and it's Duke Tobin, the guy in
7:15
Speaker 1: charge of all that, capable and ready to do whatever
7:18
Speaker 1: he can to make this work. I think all three
7:21
Speaker 1: players they would love to have back. All three players
7:24
Speaker 1: are elite players in the NFL. And if you start
7:27
Speaker 1: ranking them, and I really give Judy a lot of
7:29
Speaker 1: credit for not saying, Okay, here's the most important, here's
7:31
Speaker 1: the second most, and here's the third one. Because you
7:33
Speaker 1: can make the argument that Trey Hendrickson, with their team
7:35
Speaker 1: MVP last year, led the NFL in sacks on a
7:38
Speaker 1: team that had defensive woes everywhere. He was the star
7:41
Speaker 1: of the shining bright star. I would imagine they figured
7:44
Speaker 1: it out with Jamar Chase. I would imagine they figured
7:46
Speaker 1: out with Trey Hendrickson. Then what about t Higgins that
7:49
Speaker 1: is a number one wide receiver. They put themselves in
7:52
Speaker 1: this position by not finding a way to get this done.
7:55
Speaker 1: Going into this offseason, but it's not too late. If
7:58
Speaker 1: they can go three for three, it would be miraculous
8:00
Speaker 1: and it would be a heralded offseason for the Bengals.
8:03
Speaker 1: I will say this last year, at this point, we
8:05
Speaker 1: were going into the Combine and the Tampa Bay Buccaneers
8:08
Speaker 1: had Baker Mayfield up. They had Mike Evans up, and
8:11
Speaker 1: they had Levonte David up, and they had Antoine Winfield up.
8:14
Speaker 2: They got all four of.
8:15
Speaker 1: Those guys back and they were able to figure it
8:16
Speaker 1: out how to do it financially.
8:18
Speaker 2: There are ways, There is an ability.
8:20
Speaker 1: You just have to be creative and you have to
8:22
Speaker 1: have an open dialogue with the players.
8:25
Speaker 2: Yeah.
8:25
Speaker 1: Look, Aaron Glenn came in yesterday at this podium and
8:28
Speaker 1: he was all business in a way that I don't
8:29
Speaker 1: think Jets media or Jets fans have seen a new
8:32
Speaker 1: coach b There's no hey, let's wait and see.
8:35
Speaker 2: This is a process. He's like, no, we're looking to
8:36
Speaker 2: win now. Every day. I'm looking to win now.
8:39
Speaker 1: But they also was not going to suffer any fools
8:41
Speaker 1: and do this Rogers thing, and both he and Darren
8:43
Speaker 1: Moosey were like, we're moving on. We already told Aaron
8:45
Speaker 1: we're good with Aaron. We're moving on. Question is where
8:48
Speaker 1: are they going? You know we're talking about the Giants
8:50
Speaker 1: in the Stafford conversation. We haven't heard the Jets being
8:53
Speaker 1: linked to that Sam Donald played for the Jets. Does
8:55
Speaker 1: it make sense for the Jets to make a big
8:56
Speaker 1: free agent offered a Sam Donald.
8:58
Speaker 2: I don't know if that's even in the cards.
9:00
Speaker 1: So the question to me is we did all this,
9:03
Speaker 1: We got the coach, we got the GM, we got
9:05
Speaker 1: the new OC, we got the new DC.
9:06
Speaker 2: See he got all this. Who's playing quarterback?
9:08
Speaker 1: And does it start here where they have the seven
9:10
Speaker 1: overall pick? And I saw mel Kiper has Door Sanders
9:13
Speaker 1: going to the Jets. Are we going rookie or is
9:15
Speaker 1: this going to be another deal where it's let's kick
9:17
Speaker 1: the can a little bit and try to find a
9:19
Speaker 1: veteran to get it done. Remember Tyrod Taylor very well
9:22
Speaker 1: liked in that room, but in his mid thirties. Is
9:24
Speaker 1: Tyrod Taylor the best option to be the quarterback one
9:26
Speaker 1: for the Jets? And does that get the fan base going?
9:29
Speaker 1: I'm not sure that's the answer. So a lot of
9:31
Speaker 1: positivity out of the Jets brass and a lot of
9:33
Speaker 1: positivity from Jets fans about how the Jets brass has
9:35
Speaker 1: been speaking, but they still have a giant hole at
9:37
Speaker 1: quarterback at the moment.
9:39
Speaker 2: There's a big push to get it down, no pun intended.
9:42
Speaker 1: There's a lot of people around the NFL, and one
9:44
Speaker 1: of the things we keep hearing is that it's because
9:46
Speaker 1: of player safety, But we don't have the data, and
9:48
Speaker 1: I've talked to folks at the league off like, there's
9:50
Speaker 1: no data that shows that.
9:52
Speaker 2: More players are getting hurt because of the Toushbush.
9:54
Speaker 1: Now, the potential to get hurt, obviously when you have
9:56
Speaker 1: someone pushing someone into a line of players is great
10:00
Speaker 1: in your head and you imagine, But so far, all
10:02
Speaker 1: the times we've seen it, the data doesn't prove out
10:04
Speaker 1: that there has been an increase in injury.
10:05
Speaker 2: So it's hard to stand on that.
10:07
Speaker 1: Second part of it is this not So Philly and
10:10
Speaker 1: like so plays into their entire mantra that the entire
10:14
Speaker 1: league is against us and everyone wants them and only
10:17
Speaker 1: if you want to BRT Bannett, how about you stop it.
10:20
Speaker 1: I love that Sirianni was as bold as he was
10:23
Speaker 1: there and I think it speaks to Jeff Stoutlin their
10:26
Speaker 1: offensive line coach.
10:27
Speaker 2: It speaks at Jamel Singleton, their running.
10:29
Speaker 1: Backs coach, and it speaks to all of those players
10:32
Speaker 1: who line up for the Philadelphia Eagles that this is
10:34
Speaker 1: not just one year, this is not.
10:35
Speaker 2: Just two years.
10:36
Speaker 1: This is four years that we have seen the tush
10:39
Speaker 1: push be used and it still has not been stopped.
10:42
Speaker 1: And yet other teams try it and other teams don't
10:44
Speaker 1: execute it as well. So I personally don't have any
10:47
Speaker 1: opinion on it. I don't love seeing it aesthetically. I
10:50
Speaker 1: have much more in favor of a beautiful game and
10:52
Speaker 1: some of the different ex's and o's that the coaches
10:54
Speaker 1: can draw up than just hey, lower your shoulder. But
10:56
Speaker 1: there is a skill to this, and that skill has
10:58
Speaker 1: to be appreciated.
10:59
Speaker 2: It's almost like.
11:00
Speaker 1: Brawn over beauty. I'm in the beauty business. I like
11:03
Speaker 1: seeing beautiful football. I like seeing long passes. I like
11:05
Speaker 1: seeing my face on TV. There into Lebron. They're into
11:08
Speaker 1: the physicality of it. I stay away from all that.
11:27
Speaker 1: Let's get started with the top ten combined prospects going
11:30
Speaker 1: into the combine.
11:32
Speaker 2: It's my list.
11:32
Speaker 1: There are plenty of others out there. Take with this
11:35
Speaker 1: what you will, but let's get excited about some of
11:37
Speaker 1: these guys, and let's go to Ann Arbor for number
11:39
Speaker 1: ten guy who missed a bunch of games this year
11:41
Speaker 1: but still is viewed as one of the top defensive
11:44
Speaker 1: backs to come out of the college game in quite
11:46
Speaker 1: some time. It's number ten Michigan defensive back Will Johnson.
11:51
Speaker 2: Will Johnson has that size.
11:54
Speaker 1: Guys six foot two, two hundred and five pounds, has
11:59
Speaker 1: the range, and in their national title season in twenty
12:02
Speaker 1: twenty three, was first team All Big Ten Conference, a
12:05
Speaker 1: dominant player.
12:07
Speaker 2: Where's that?
12:08
Speaker 1: Charles Winson number two? The ultimate compliment for a Michigan corner,
12:13
Speaker 1: has the size, has the ability. Missed a bunch of
12:16
Speaker 1: games this year, so there are some questions on that
12:20
Speaker 1: is he going to be the same player he was
12:21
Speaker 1: in twenty twenty three as he would be in twenty
12:23
Speaker 1: twenty five. The answers, Yes, he was a freshman and
12:26
Speaker 1: he was the Big Ten freshman player that he was
12:30
Speaker 1: All American as a freshman. Goes On has the national
12:33
Speaker 1: title in twenty twenty three. Last year, plays in Wink
12:35
Speaker 1: Martindale's all out blitz defense where he was the man
12:38
Speaker 1: to watch out in the backfield. Will Johnson has the
12:41
Speaker 1: physical build, and he's been one of these guys since
12:43
Speaker 1: the second he walked on campus in ann Arbor that
12:46
Speaker 1: everybody has been talking about.
12:48
Speaker 2: As the next dude.
12:49
Speaker 1: He is number ten on the list. Look for him
12:51
Speaker 1: to go in the first round. Of course, in April's draft,
12:54
Speaker 1: number nine, I'm staying in ann Arbor and I'm going
12:58
Speaker 1: with another player out of the University of Michigan.
13:01
Speaker 2: Number nine is tight end Colston Loveland.
13:05
Speaker 1: If you want to talk about a different types and
13:07
Speaker 1: body shapes and body forms, different types of players that
13:09
Speaker 1: we get at tight end, there are guys who are
13:12
Speaker 1: more like Grunk in this draft, and then there's Colston Loveland,
13:16
Speaker 1: who I think as complementary a high bar.
13:19
Speaker 2: As you can set. Is compared to Travis Kelce.
13:22
Speaker 1: In the way that they use him and the way
13:24
Speaker 1: that he can move. Brock Bauers as well, more of
13:26
Speaker 1: a receiving tight end. Six foot five, two hundred and
13:30
Speaker 1: forty five pounds, runs and moves like a receiver.
13:33
Speaker 2: There's a guy who led the.
13:34
Speaker 1: Team with fifty six catches, five hundred and eighty two
13:37
Speaker 1: receiving yards and five touchdowns this.
13:38
Speaker 2: Year and miss time as well due to injury.
13:41
Speaker 1: First team All Big ten last year and is one
13:44
Speaker 1: of those players that you circle when you're talking about.
13:47
Speaker 2: The next level. We're now at.
13:48
Speaker 1: Ten and nine and they both are out of the
13:51
Speaker 1: same school. How about we go for a rapid departure
13:54
Speaker 1: from cold and arbor and go to Sonny Tucson for
13:58
Speaker 1: number eight. I am higher on this player than I
14:00
Speaker 1: think any of my fellow draft pundits are. But my
14:04
Speaker 1: number eight prospect is Arizona wide receiver Tenoroa McMillan. I'm
14:10
Speaker 1: gonna call him t mac and he is out of Hawaii,
14:13
Speaker 1: and I am sure my boy Mantaiteo has a little
14:16
Speaker 1: knowledge on this guy. First Team All American, first Team
14:21
Speaker 1: All Big twelve, and he has set a school record
14:24
Speaker 1: with three thousand, four hundred and twenty three career receiving yards.
14:29
Speaker 1: He is my number one wide receiver.
14:31
Speaker 2: In this draft.
14:31
Speaker 1: He is six foot five, two hundred and fifteen pounds.
14:36
Speaker 1: I watched this guy these late night games going up
14:39
Speaker 1: here against Kansas State, and of course what he was
14:42
Speaker 1: doing before that when they were in the Pac twelve.
14:44
Speaker 1: This is a player that has been over different coaching stats,
14:47
Speaker 1: started with Jed Fish and of course has been there
14:50
Speaker 1: now the last year with a different coaches have and
14:52
Speaker 1: it's just always produced.
14:54
Speaker 2: Reminds me of Drake London.
14:56
Speaker 1: That is the body size, six foot five basketball body,
15:00
Speaker 1: can get everything and was playing on an Arizona team
15:03
Speaker 1: that surprised a lot of folks in twenty twenty three
15:05
Speaker 1: and had a big year in twenty twenty four. That's ten,
15:10
Speaker 1: nine to eight, number seven. I know he might go
15:12
Speaker 1: first overall, but cam Ward is my seventh overall prospect
15:16
Speaker 1: in this draft.
15:17
Speaker 2: I'll tell it like it is, folks.
15:18
Speaker 1: This is not a draft where the quarterbacks are one
15:21
Speaker 1: through five. As far as prospects go, there are far
15:24
Speaker 1: better depth and talent at the defensive line, at the
15:28
Speaker 1: tight end spot, and guess what the running back spot
15:31
Speaker 1: this year.
15:32
Speaker 2: So cam Ward he might go first or.
15:33
Speaker 1: Second overall, but coming into this thing, I've got him
15:36
Speaker 1: as my seventh best prospect. Loved watching him at Washington
15:40
Speaker 1: State and of course when he transfers over to Miami
15:42
Speaker 1: and did the things he did last year set an
15:45
Speaker 1: NCAA record with one hundred and fifty eight passing touchdowns
15:49
Speaker 1: in his career over three different school started at Incarnate Word,
15:53
Speaker 1: went to Washington State, where he was a standout and
15:55
Speaker 1: then came into Miami as a one year guy and
15:58
Speaker 1: absolutely blew everybody away.
16:00
Speaker 2: Led FBS with thirty.
16:02
Speaker 1: Nine passing touchdowns last year, the most ever by a
16:05
Speaker 1: Miami Hurricane in a and of course was the ACC.
16:09
Speaker 2: Player of the Year. Great kid as well.
16:12
Speaker 1: But if I'm gonna be honest, I don't know if
16:15
Speaker 1: cam Ward is in the same conversation as a Kayla Williams.
16:18
Speaker 1: I don't know if cam Ward's in the same conversation
16:20
Speaker 1: as a Jaden Daniels. I don't know if he's in
16:22
Speaker 1: the same conversation as a Drake may as they were
16:25
Speaker 1: entering the league last year. Of course bo Nix and
16:28
Speaker 1: Michael Pennix would both get time, and JJ McCarthy's going
16:31
Speaker 1: to play as well. I was asked recently where I
16:33
Speaker 1: have cam Ward if he was coming out last year, said,
16:36
Speaker 1: I'm not sure he's in that top tier. Probably in
16:38
Speaker 1: that next year, but I'm not even sure about that.
16:41
Speaker 1: So cam Ward great prospect. We'll be an NFL starter
16:45
Speaker 1: next year and will be a top five, top ten pick,
16:47
Speaker 1: no doubt. But I've got him at seven, not as
16:49
Speaker 1: number one in this prospect list.
16:52
Speaker 2: Number six. I go defense again, and.
16:54
Speaker 1: I go to a place where it's been an absolute
16:56
Speaker 1: factory of pass rushing talent. That is Georgia and that
17:00
Speaker 1: is Jalen Walker, who this year won the Buckets Award
17:03
Speaker 1: for the best linebacker in all the land. To part,
17:07
Speaker 1: he's everything on that defense. He's everywhere on that defense.
17:11
Speaker 1: It was a third team All American but led the
17:14
Speaker 1: team with ten and a half tackles for a loss,
17:17
Speaker 1: led the team with five sacks. But here's the thing,
17:20
Speaker 1: this is last year. He was a bench player last year.
17:23
Speaker 1: So his big year came this season where he popped
17:27
Speaker 1: off the screen and.
17:28
Speaker 2: Was all over the place. I've got him as number
17:30
Speaker 2: six on.
17:31
Speaker 1: This list, and guys, he was a reserve in twenty
17:34
Speaker 1: twenty three. Think about all these different Georgia pass rushers
17:38
Speaker 1: over the last several years. Obviously, the Eagles have about
17:42
Speaker 1: a dozen of them, and Nolan Smith and Jordan Davis
17:46
Speaker 1: and of course Jalen Carter and Nakobe Dean, all those
17:48
Speaker 1: guys in the front seven. But Green Bay has a
17:51
Speaker 1: couple also with Kway Walker and what they've got up
17:53
Speaker 1: front there with Wyatt, Like this has become a factory.
17:57
Speaker 1: And if there's one thing you can say, you can
17:59
Speaker 1: trust these Georgia pass rushers. You can trust these Georgia
18:02
Speaker 1: front seven guys.
18:03
Speaker 2: They come in and they make an impact in the league.
18:06
Speaker 1: Alen Walker is not listed as like a top five
18:09
Speaker 1: pick on any other mock drafts, but I got him
18:11
Speaker 1: as number six right now going into the combine. I
18:13
Speaker 1: think he's going to be an outstanding performer, and I
18:15
Speaker 1: think his stock will rise, both the pedigree and the performance.
18:19
Speaker 2: This is not everybody's list.
18:21
Speaker 1: It's different than the herd mentality is I always say
18:24
Speaker 1: I don't always have what everyone else has.
18:25
Speaker 2: There's no there's no glory in.
18:28
Speaker 1: Copying someone's mock draft and saying here's is it from
18:30
Speaker 1: calls and some discussions going into the combine and they're
18:34
Speaker 1: my guys here at six, seven, eight, nine, and ten.
18:38
Speaker 1: Of course today we're going to go five through one,
18:40
Speaker 1: and we had two Michigan men at ten and nine yesterday.
18:45
Speaker 2: How about another Michigan man at number five?
18:47
Speaker 1: Mason Graham is the number five prospect for me going
18:50
Speaker 1: into this combine week.
18:52
Speaker 2: Mason Graham wearing number.
18:54
Speaker 1: Fifty five, just like Brandon Graham out of Michigan. But
18:58
Speaker 1: this guy's on the inside of the defensive line and
19:00
Speaker 1: one of the top players in all of college football.
19:03
Speaker 1: Had a career year in twenty twenty three and they
19:06
Speaker 1: won the national title.
19:07
Speaker 2: He started thirteen.
19:09
Speaker 1: Games for the national championship team and then followed it
19:11
Speaker 1: up by being a first team All American this year,
19:15
Speaker 1: two time First Team Big Ten Conference and dominant inside.
19:19
Speaker 1: Now there's been critiques about his body. Does he have
19:22
Speaker 1: long enough armed? I don't want to hear it. He
19:24
Speaker 1: dominated the Big Ten, dominated the Big Ten. He is
19:26
Speaker 1: a top five pick and I wouldn't be shocked if
19:28
Speaker 1: he goes even higher than that. From a personal note,
19:31
Speaker 1: our show has a connection to him. He went to
19:33
Speaker 1: the same high school as Tea Mac who was the
19:36
Speaker 1: wide receiver at of Arizona. They both could go in
19:39
Speaker 1: the top ten if you're talking about two guys who
19:41
Speaker 1: went into high school together and they went to a
19:43
Speaker 1: school out there in Anaheim. Now, guess what our researcher
19:47
Speaker 1: on the show, Blake Blake, was a math teacher at
19:50
Speaker 1: this school when they were both there at the same
19:53
Speaker 1: time in Anaheim. So I love that team Mac Mason Graham,
19:57
Speaker 1: and of course our guy Blake in research the school itself.
20:01
Speaker 2: Let me get on the phone here because I gotta
20:03
Speaker 2: give it love.
20:04
Speaker 1: I'm here, I am, I'm trying to do all this
20:06
Speaker 1: stuff it is called.
20:07
Speaker 2: And at the school.
20:08
Speaker 1: Here, Servite High School, we see you Servite in Anaheim,
20:12
Speaker 1: churning out NFL content and churning out churning out NFL research.
20:17
Speaker 2: Gods our guy blink.
20:18
Speaker 1: So there we go.
20:19
Speaker 2: That's number five. Yeah, number four. We go to Boise State,
20:25
Speaker 2: where I think Ashton.
20:26
Speaker 1: Gent is one of the top running backs in this
20:29
Speaker 1: draft and will obviously be a.
20:31
Speaker 2: First round pick, number two in the Heisman this year.
20:34
Speaker 1: Did it all at Boise A product, of course, out
20:37
Speaker 1: of Florida. He's a Jackson of Florida kid, five foot nine,
20:40
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifteen pounds, won the Dope Walker Award,
20:43
Speaker 1: is a nation's top running back. Why see led college football?
20:47
Speaker 1: We get this number, guys, twenty six one hundred rushing
20:52
Speaker 1: yards in one season. Twenty six rushing yards in one season,
20:57
Speaker 1: and that's major college football.
20:59
Speaker 2: That's not Division three, that's not Division one.
21:01
Speaker 1: Double a two time AP All American, and he two
21:06
Speaker 1: time Mountain West Conference Offensive.
21:08
Speaker 2: Player of the Year. The sigh is the speed. He's
21:10
Speaker 2: got it all.
21:11
Speaker 1: Unfortunately, he's already said he's not going to work out
21:14
Speaker 1: at the Combine.
21:15
Speaker 2: But if you watched him do any of the.
21:16
Speaker 1: Stuff he did at the Super Bowl, he did a
21:18
Speaker 1: lot of media. He is a big personality and he
21:21
Speaker 1: is very confident that he can bring it to the
21:23
Speaker 1: next level. I have seen some teams tell me. I've
21:26
Speaker 1: had conversations like he might just be the best player
21:27
Speaker 1: in this draft.
21:28
Speaker 2: It's a running backs. We're not sure where that goes,
21:30
Speaker 2: but I've got him at four on this list.
21:33
Speaker 1: Number three is my favorite player to watch in all
21:35
Speaker 1: of college football this past season. He's out of Penn State.
21:39
Speaker 1: He's the tight end who has number forty four. Mister
21:41
Speaker 1: Tyler Warren. If you watch any of these Penn State games,
21:44
Speaker 1: this guy does it all. He was a high school
21:46
Speaker 1: quarterback who plays HVAC and plays tight end, and he
21:50
Speaker 1: is an absolute machine. He's got a Mechanicsville Virginia finish
21:56
Speaker 1: seventh in the Heisman this year. That is the highest
21:58
Speaker 1: eight tight end has finished since Notre Dames Ken McAfee
22:02
Speaker 1: finished third in nineteen seventy seven. He was the do
22:06
Speaker 1: it all player on this Penn State offense. Won the
22:09
Speaker 1: John McKie Award as the.
22:11
Speaker 2: Nation's top tight end.
22:12
Speaker 1: Was tied for second in all of college football, not
22:15
Speaker 1: amongst tight ends, among all players, with one hundred and
22:18
Speaker 1: four catches, First Team All Big Ten, Fiesta Bowl MVP,
22:23
Speaker 1: where he had two touchdowns and six catches, and of
22:26
Speaker 1: course was that dominant force in that Penn State offense.
22:31
Speaker 1: Kyle Brant likes to do angry runs like this guy
22:34
Speaker 1: might win it every single week, plays with a fury
22:36
Speaker 1: out there.
22:37
Speaker 2: Again a high.
22:38
Speaker 1: School quarterback, so he's a superior athlete, bulked up at
22:42
Speaker 1: Penn State.
22:42
Speaker 2: Where's that sea on his chest? As a captain? Unbelievable player.
22:46
Speaker 1: Ty Warren, I think he might go as high as
22:49
Speaker 1: top five. He will not escape the top ten. We
22:52
Speaker 1: already had Lovelades the one tight end out of Michigan.
22:55
Speaker 1: I've got another tight end in Warren, and he's as
22:58
Speaker 1: high as number three. I've got a friend, my friend
23:00
Speaker 1: Eric Ziff, who sees all this football. Two years ago,
23:03
Speaker 1: he put me on to Tyler Warren. I have been
23:04
Speaker 1: watching this guy for the last two season and he
23:06
Speaker 1: has gotten.
23:07
Speaker 2: Better and better and better.
23:09
Speaker 1: We'll see where he goes in the draft, which leaves
23:11
Speaker 1: two players left. And I think these two players have
23:14
Speaker 1: been batted around as the top two non quarterbacks in
23:17
Speaker 1: this draft. Number two, I've got Tyler Warren's teamate at
23:21
Speaker 1: of Penn State. It's for Abdul Carter. Abdul Carter did
23:24
Speaker 1: it all for Penn State this year. And what a
23:26
Speaker 1: lot of teams love was that he did it ball
23:28
Speaker 1: while he was hurt in the biggest of games.
23:31
Speaker 2: Yes, abduall Carter.
23:33
Speaker 1: Of course he comes out of this thing, and you
23:35
Speaker 1: look at what he did at Penn State.
23:37
Speaker 2: The numbers tell the story.
23:39
Speaker 1: He led all of college football with twenty three and
23:42
Speaker 1: a half tackles for a loss. He was the Big
23:45
Speaker 1: Ten Conference defensive player of the Year All American six three,
23:49
Speaker 1: two hundred and fifty two pounds out of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania
23:54
Speaker 1: gets hurt in that last semifinal game against Notre Dame
23:58
Speaker 1: and still found a way to dominate that game.
24:00
Speaker 2: Anti Tao, I know you were watching it. Number eleven
24:03
Speaker 2: was all over the field.
24:05
Speaker 1: Many people believe, if he'll be the first pick in
24:07
Speaker 1: this draft, Abdul Carter will just go number one to Tennessee.
24:10
Speaker 2: You call it like that. It's easy. He's your Miles Garrett,
24:13
Speaker 2: he's your TJ. Watt.
24:14
Speaker 1: You put him in there. You're set for the next
24:15
Speaker 1: ten years. He is that good of a prospect. I've
24:18
Speaker 1: got him number two on my list because for number
24:21
Speaker 1: one coming into the NFL Draft and coming into the Combine,
24:25
Speaker 1: I've got to go with the player that I watched
24:26
Speaker 1: every single week the past two seasons, and I watched
24:29
Speaker 1: him dominate on both sides of the field. I've got
24:31
Speaker 1: Travis Hunter as my number one prospect out of Colorado.
24:34
Speaker 1: Played corner, played a wide receiver, and he won the
24:37
Speaker 1: Heisman this year. I just don't think there's another player
24:40
Speaker 1: like him that we have seen in college football in
24:43
Speaker 1: some time. I actually don't think I in my lifetime
24:45
Speaker 1: I've seen a player do it as much as he
24:47
Speaker 1: did on both.
24:48
Speaker 2: Sides of the ball.
24:49
Speaker 1: You're talking about a guy who plays one hundred and
24:51
Speaker 1: twenty snaps a game and doesn't get hurt, doesn't complain,
24:56
Speaker 1: doesn't demand the ball, and was an elite wide receiver and.
24:59
Speaker 2: Was an elite defensive back.
25:00
Speaker 1: The fact that we are already here at the Combine
25:03
Speaker 1: and there are still teams split on how they would
25:05
Speaker 1: use him tell you just how special a player he is.
25:08
Speaker 1: Travis Hunter six' one one to Ninety Heisman trophy, winner
25:13
Speaker 1: two Time first Team All. American he was The big
25:16
Speaker 1: Twelve Defensive player of The year this, year but he
25:18
Speaker 1: was also a first Team All Big twelve wide. Receiver
25:22
Speaker 1: he averaged one hundred and twelve snaps per game last
25:26
Speaker 1: year and this year you're talking about the rarest of.
25:30
Speaker 2: Breeds you're talking about a pure, unicorn and to, me
25:34
Speaker 2: the best player.
25:34
Speaker 1: In college football and the best football player entering this combine. Period,
25:39
Speaker 1: NOW i don't know if he's working out at defensive,
25:41
Speaker 1: back wide, receiver or none of it, all because we
25:44
Speaker 1: don't have that information yet here at the. COMBINE i
25:46
Speaker 1: will say, this he has been with the defensive backs
25:49
Speaker 1: group going through that as far as interviews and measurements
25:53
Speaker 1: and all that. Goes but don't be shocked if AN
25:55
Speaker 1: nfl team drafts him and uses him both at corner
25:58
Speaker 1: and wide, receiver something we have never seen in this,
26:00
Speaker 1: league and that Includes Charles.
26:02
Speaker 2: Woodson Deon. Sanders all these guys to come out of.
26:04
Speaker 1: College and be used that way just doesn't. Happen Chuck
26:07
Speaker 1: bednarik our last true two way, player and that was
26:10
Speaker 1: the nineteen Sixty. Eagles Could Travis hunter be the next?
26:13
Speaker 1: ONE i love NEW i love precedent breaking. Players Travis
26:16
Speaker 1: hunters that. Guy here are my top, five including the
26:19
Speaker 1: top ten prospects of the twenty twenty.
26:23
Speaker 2: FIVE Nfl scouting comment just my. Lift you can argue that's.
26:26
Speaker 2: FINE i like. That let's, debate let's have.
26:28
Speaker 1: It i've Got Travis hunter at, One Abdul carter, Two
26:32
Speaker 1: Tyler warren, Three Ashton jente at, Four Mason graham at.
26:36
Speaker 1: Five then you saw six through ten. Yesterday The season
26:48
Speaker 1: With Peter schrager is a production of THE nfl and
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