Latest / The Daily Play With Joy Taylor / Raiders Start Cousins Over No. 1 Pick Mendoza, Texans Fifth Year Option for Stroud, NBA Brings Hammers Down On Clippers

Transcript

Raiders Start Cousins Over No. 1 Pick Mendoza, Texans Fifth Year Option for Stroud, NBA Brings Hammers Down On Clippers · The Daily Play With Joy Taylor

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Hey, guys. Welcome to The Daily Play with Joy Taylor.
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining me. Make sure you hit subscribe.
• 0:06
  Speaker 1: Follow us on social at The Daily Play Joy Taylor.
• 0:09
  Speaker 1: Sorry if I'm a little red right now. Got a
• 0:10
  Speaker 1: little microneedling earlier. So you guys are getting a fresh
• 0:13
  Speaker 1: face on today's show. But let's get started with the
• 0:17
  Speaker 1: Las Vegas Raiders in a surprising move. They are doing
• 0:20
  Speaker 1: the responsible thing and starting veteran Kirk Cousins at quarterback
• 0:24
  Speaker 1: and not first overall pick Fernando Mendoza. Now, if you
• 0:27
  Speaker 1: have followed me in any capacity... you know that I
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: am being a huge hypocrite in this space because I
• 0:33
  Speaker 1: like for young quarterbacks to play right away. However, I
• 0:38
  Speaker 1: am making an exception to my usual rule in this
• 0:41
  Speaker 1: particular situation because the Raiders are exceptionally bad. And I
• 0:45
  Speaker 1: think that they need to ease Mendoza in to the
• 0:49
  Speaker 1: NFL with a little bit of grace and not throw
• 0:51
  Speaker 1: him directly into the fire, which is what would happen
• 0:54
  Speaker 1: if they had him as the starter this year for
• 0:57
  Speaker 1: the Raiders. So, He will be the first one drafted
• 1:00
  Speaker 1: with the first overall pick to not start in week
• 1:02
  Speaker 1: one since Baker Mayfield in 2018, who was playing for
• 1:06
  Speaker 1: the Cleveland Browns at the time, and he didn't start
• 1:08
  Speaker 1: until week four. Tyrod Taylor started the first three games
• 1:11
  Speaker 1: that season. So it's been a while since we've seen this,
• 1:14
  Speaker 1: and this is not about Mendoza's readiness, because I think
• 1:17
  Speaker 1: he would be fine, but I do think it would
• 1:21
  Speaker 1: make things a bit complicated for him. It put a
• 1:23
  Speaker 1: lot of pressure on him, and like I said, the
• 1:25
  Speaker 1: Raiders haven't been good for quite some time. So, Let's
• 1:28
  Speaker 1: just make the plan to bring in Kirk Cousins, have
• 1:31
  Speaker 1: him be the starter, and they're sticking with it. He
• 1:33
  Speaker 1: will be the ninth player to start at quarterback since
• 1:36
  Speaker 1: the Raiders parted ways with Derek Carr near the end
• 1:38
  Speaker 1: of the 2022 season. Cousins and the new Raiders head
• 1:41
  Speaker 1: coach Clint Kubiak will be the franchise's fourth different head
• 1:45
  Speaker 1: coach quarterback combination in four years. So while I think
• 1:49
  Speaker 1: Fernando would be able to handle it, why put him
• 1:51
  Speaker 1: in that situation? Why crush his confidence? Why put him
• 1:56
  Speaker 1: in a situation where he could potentially get hurt? And
• 1:58
  Speaker 1: why force him to be the savior of this organization
• 2:02
  Speaker 1: that has constant turnover when you've already brought in Kirk Cousins?
• 2:05
  Speaker 1: The writing was really on the wall the moment that
• 2:07
  Speaker 1: they brought him in. Now, he had kind of mixed
• 2:10
  Speaker 1: performances in the preseason, but the team will be his
• 2:13
  Speaker 1: soon enough. The general manager of the Raiders, John Spytek,
• 2:17
  Speaker 1: said that Mendoza's time is coming, but he's got to
• 2:19
  Speaker 1: earn it every day. And he knows that. I think
• 2:21
  Speaker 1: we're all very pleased with the person and his work
• 2:23
  Speaker 1: ethic and his commitment to being a great quarterback. Cousins
• 2:26
  Speaker 1: is 38 and is on a one-year deal. So he's
• 2:30
  Speaker 1: in Vegas for a good time, not a long time.
• 2:31
  Speaker 1: And he's had a relationship with Kubiak since the Vikings. So,
• 2:37
  Speaker 1: you know, one thing Kirk can do is win regular
• 2:38
  Speaker 1: season games and get paid a lot of guaranteed money.
• 2:41
  Speaker 1: So I think this is a good situation for the Raiders.
• 2:44
  Speaker 1: I am not expecting a lot of wins from them
• 2:46
  Speaker 1: this year. I'm expecting them to just be stable for once.
• 2:50
  Speaker 1: Just build an organization, build a system, build a culture,
• 2:56
  Speaker 1: and then pass it along to Mendoza. I know this
• 2:58
  Speaker 1: is a massive ask from the Raiders because they have
• 3:01
  Speaker 1: been the pinnacle of turnover and disaster, despite them having
• 3:04
  Speaker 1: a massive, very strong brand in the league and internationally.
• 3:09
  Speaker 1: Incredible fans that have followed them from Oakland to LA.
• 3:12
  Speaker 1: They deserve a winning team. And we, as the NFL team,
• 3:16
  Speaker 1: fans and media in general deserve for the Raiders to
• 3:18
  Speaker 1: finally be competitive and relative and not and relevant not
• 3:22
  Speaker 1: just a big well-known brand so I like this plan
• 3:26
  Speaker 1: let's stick to it and see what the Raiders can
• 3:28
  Speaker 1: build CJ Stroud feels like he's been in the league
• 3:32
  Speaker 1: for a while now but he is still on his
• 3:34
  Speaker 1: rookie deal and the Texans picked up Stroud's fifth year
• 3:37
  Speaker 1: option so he is locked in through 2027 and And
• 3:41
  Speaker 1: after that, the team's 2023 second overall pick would become
• 3:46
  Speaker 1: an unrestricted free agent. They picked up his fifth year option.
• 3:49
  Speaker 1: So they have him under contract for two more seasons.
• 3:52
  Speaker 1: So it does give them some flexibility to revisit this
• 3:56
  Speaker 1: in the offseason. The offseason is the time to get
• 4:00
  Speaker 1: a deal done and it hasn't happened yet. So reportedly
• 4:03
  Speaker 1: Houston offered Stroud, a deal worth around $ 50 million per season,
• 4:07
  Speaker 1: and Stroud said no. For reference, $ 50 million per year
• 4:10
  Speaker 1: wouldn't crack the top 12 in the highest annual value.
• 4:14
  Speaker 1: Stroud's teammate Will Anderson, an edge rusher, has a three-year
• 4:18
  Speaker 1: deal worth $ 50 million a year, and that is the
• 4:20
  Speaker 1: highest average annual value for a non-quarterback, but can't feel
• 4:25
  Speaker 1: like market value to CJ and his camp, who are
• 4:27
  Speaker 1: reportedly willing to wait until next offseason to negotiate if
• 4:30
  Speaker 1: the team can't come up. From 50, Texas General Manager
• 4:34
  Speaker 1: Nick Casario said a week one deadline. Corporate agency agreeing
• 4:37
  Speaker 1: to the contract extension with CJ Stroud this year. He
• 4:40
  Speaker 1: said if we don't get it figured out before the
• 4:41
  Speaker 1: season starts, it'll be something we address in the offseason.
• 4:45
  Speaker 1: This is a mistake. Now, while I have already backed
• 4:50
  Speaker 1: off of one of my usual takes when it comes
• 4:53
  Speaker 1: to starting young quarterbacks right away with Fernando Mendoza on
• 4:58
  Speaker 1: this topic, I'm pretty steadfast. your players early. It doesn't matter.
• 5:07
  Speaker 1: You're going to overpay. And then very quickly, the next
• 5:13
  Speaker 1: person at that position is going to reset the market
• 5:16
  Speaker 1: and your deal will look like a good deal, especially
• 5:19
  Speaker 1: when it comes to quarterbacks. The moment you know that
• 5:22
  Speaker 1: he's your guy, you pay him. And I don't care
• 5:25
  Speaker 1: what Nick Casario and the Texans are talking about. CJ
• 5:28
  Speaker 1: Stroud is the guy. I can list about 10 teams
• 5:33
  Speaker 1: right now that would love to have CJ Stroud. This
• 5:38
  Speaker 1: is a very silly conversation. Basically, what you're doing is
• 5:42
  Speaker 1: pushing off a much, much bigger ticket to next year.
• 5:47
  Speaker 1: That's what's happening. As A fan, maybe you think he
• 5:51
  Speaker 1: hasn't solidified himself as a Super Bowl winning quarterback or
• 5:55
  Speaker 1: top five as his position. That is not how the
• 5:58
  Speaker 1: market works for quarterbacks. It does not work that way
• 6:01
  Speaker 1: for quarterbacks. It does work that way for other positions,
• 6:04
  Speaker 1: but it doesn't work that way for quarterbacks. If you
• 6:06
  Speaker 1: are a certain caliber of quarterback, the next highest up
• 6:09
  Speaker 1: gets paid the most. Those are the rules. I didn't
• 6:11
  Speaker 1: make them, but that's what these guys continue to do
• 6:14
  Speaker 1: for many, many years. And that is the situation when
• 6:16
  Speaker 1: it comes to quarterbacks. It is a desperate position. They
• 6:19
  Speaker 1: are not cranking them out from college like they used to.
• 6:21
  Speaker 1: It is very difficult to find a franchise guy. And
• 6:24
  Speaker 1: CJ Stroud is a franchise guy. It seems very, very
• 6:27
  Speaker 1: crazy to me that they would not come up off
• 6:29
  Speaker 1: the money that they need to come up off of
• 6:31
  Speaker 1: to get this deal done before the season starts. Whatever
• 6:34
  Speaker 1: it's going to be this year, it's going to be
• 6:35
  Speaker 1: a whole hell of a lot more next year. And
• 6:39
  Speaker 1: I believe that would be the case even if CJ
• 6:41
  Speaker 1: Stroud got injured. It just doesn't make any sense. He's
• 6:44
  Speaker 1: the number two overall pick. The moment that you take
• 6:46
  Speaker 1: a guy that high, you should be expecting to pay him.
• 6:48
  Speaker 1: You should be budgeting to pay him. And he has
• 6:52
  Speaker 1: compiled 28 regular season wins. That's seventh amongst NFL quarterbacks
• 6:57
  Speaker 1: during that time. He has led the Texans to two
• 7:00
  Speaker 1: AFC South Divisional titles and the playoffs in each of
• 7:03
  Speaker 1: his three seasons. at the helm. He had a historic
• 7:06
  Speaker 1: rookie season. Obviously, he has regressed a little bit since then.
• 7:10
  Speaker 1: There are other factors that play a role in that
• 7:12
  Speaker 1: besides him not remembering how to play quarterback. They have
• 7:17
  Speaker 1: had a ton of injuries. Their offensive line has been
• 7:20
  Speaker 1: an issue. It is a dependent position. While it is
• 7:22
  Speaker 1: the position that we put all of the pressure on
• 7:24
  Speaker 1: and give all the praise to, it does still get
• 7:26
  Speaker 1: affected by other positions. And they've had a lot of injuries.
• 7:30
  Speaker 1: I'm not making excuses for him, but that's just the
• 7:32
  Speaker 1: reality of the situation in Houston. He is your guy.
• 7:35
  Speaker 1: He's going to be your guy. You pay him. You
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: pay him early. I do not understand why organizations do this. Oh,
• 7:40
  Speaker 1: he's betting on himself. Of course he's betting on himself.
• 7:42
  Speaker 1: Because if they aren't going to pay him, another team
• 7:44
  Speaker 1: would pay him an absolute fortune because they wouldn't be
• 7:47
  Speaker 1: stupid enough to let someone like that go. There isn't
• 7:50
  Speaker 1: like a quarterback store. It used to be called football.
• 7:54
  Speaker 1: That is not the case anymore. We had Fernando Mendoza.
• 7:59
  Speaker 1: in this year's draft. Yes, some other quarterbacks got drafted,
• 8:01
  Speaker 1: but when we're talking about who is a highly touted,
• 8:05
  Speaker 1: ready-to-go prospect, one, okay? CJ Stroud is the guy who
• 8:10
  Speaker 1: will be with the Texans. They're going to sign him
• 8:12
  Speaker 1: to a deal this offseason. And if they were smart,
• 8:16
  Speaker 1: they would come up off the money now because it's
• 8:17
  Speaker 1: going to be, it is going to be so much
• 8:20
  Speaker 1: more next offseason. And I just don't, I do not
• 8:23
  Speaker 1: understand why teams do this. You draft the guy, you
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: got to know that you're going to pay him. Finally,
• 8:28
  Speaker 1: the NBA caught themselves a big fish that they probably
• 8:33
  Speaker 1: did not want to catch. But after months of investigation,
• 8:37
  Speaker 1: we have talked about this multiple times on the show.
• 8:38
  Speaker 1: The NBA has dropped the hammer, which is very, very
• 8:41
  Speaker 1: surprising to me. It seemed like this story had gone
• 8:44
  Speaker 1: away and we were done with it. But Steve Ballmer
• 8:47
  Speaker 1: and the Clippers, they are getting punished for the alleged
• 8:51
  Speaker 1: cap circumvention involving superstar Kawhi Leonard. The team will lose
• 8:55
  Speaker 1: Five future first round picks, 2029, 2030, 2031, 2032, and 2033. Ugh.
• 9:00
  Speaker 1: They'll be fined $ 30 million. And while Steve Ballmer is
• 9:07
  Speaker 1: the richest owner in the NBA, that is still a
• 9:12
  Speaker 1: ton of money. And I would argue that most dramatically
• 9:16
  Speaker 1: of the punishments, Ballmer, who lives to be at these games,
• 9:20
  Speaker 1: And at the new high tech arena he just built
• 9:22
  Speaker 1: is suspended from all team and league activities for a year.
• 9:26
  Speaker 1: So they were not playing. They are sending a big,
• 9:32
  Speaker 1: big time message that this is not acceptable. In a statement,
• 9:35
  Speaker 1: the NBA said in a near year long investigation that
• 9:39
  Speaker 1: they found a pattern of misconduct and multiple significant rule
• 9:42
  Speaker 1: violations by the Clippers organization and prior offender of the
• 9:46
  Speaker 1: salary cap circumvention rules. Additionally, the president of business operations,
• 9:51
  Speaker 1: Gillian Zucker, is suspended without pay for one year and
• 9:55
  Speaker 1: president of basketball operations, Lawrence Frank, is suspended without pay
• 9:58
  Speaker 1: for six months. Kawhi Leonard for his role in this
• 10:02
  Speaker 1: wasn't suspended, but he asked to pay the league $ 700, 000.
• 10:05
  Speaker 1: And according to the reports, the trade to send Kawhi
• 10:08
  Speaker 1: back to the Raptors is expected to go through now.
• 10:10
  Speaker 1: So that's good news for Grady Dick and Brandon Ingram
• 10:15
  Speaker 1: who have been in limbo this whole time. Absolutely crazy situation.
• 10:19
  Speaker 1: Pablo Torre in his podcast blew this open. So shout
• 10:22
  Speaker 1: out to him in real journalism. Kind of stalled out
• 10:25
  Speaker 1: there for a little bit and felt like it was
• 10:28
  Speaker 1: fading away and that Adam Silver was kind of going
• 10:31
  Speaker 1: to maybe push this under the rug for what would,
• 10:35
  Speaker 1: you know, be a really bad look. for the NBA,
• 10:40
  Speaker 1: but yeah, it's absolutely crazy. The Clippers and their personnel
• 10:45
  Speaker 1: will be under compliance and monitoring program by the league
• 10:49
  Speaker 1: for five years. And Uncle Dennis Robertson, who works with Kawhi,
• 10:54
  Speaker 1: is banned from doing business with NBA teams for five years.
• 10:58
  Speaker 1: So whatever they got, it turns out it is for
• 11:03
  Speaker 1: real because that is a crazy, crazy, crazy, crazy punishment.
• 11:08
  Speaker 1: In 2015, they were fined $ 250, 000 for violating rules against
• 11:13
  Speaker 1: offering unauthorized business or investment opportunities to players when they
• 11:16
  Speaker 1: were pursuing DeAndre Jordan. So this was a multiple time
• 11:19
  Speaker 1: punishment and Ballmer had just bought the team in 2014
• 11:24
  Speaker 1: for $ 2 billion. When that happens, so the Clippers will
• 11:32
  Speaker 1: likely continue to be very bad and I'm sure Ballmer
• 11:35
  Speaker 1: is not happy with this situation. I don't know, but
• 11:39
  Speaker 1: this is a wild, very heavy punishment, which is kind
• 11:43
  Speaker 1: of surprising because it has seemed to kind of die
• 11:46
  Speaker 1: down and go away, but not so. Big, big time,
• 11:51
  Speaker 1: big time bringing the hammer down by Adam Silver and
• 11:54
  Speaker 1: the NBA on the Clippers. Absolutely crazy ending to what
• 11:59
  Speaker 1: has been a wild saga in the NBA. Thanks so
• 12:03
  Speaker 1: much for joining me. Make sure you hit subscribe, follow
• 12:04
  Speaker 1: us on social at The Daily Play. Joy Taylor. For
• 12:07
  Speaker 1: more on this and other top stories of the day,
• 12:09
  Speaker 1: tune into The Daily Play with Joy Taylor at urban1podcast. com
• 12:12
  Speaker 1: or wherever you get your podcasts.