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Football at Four: Taking a Deep Dive Into Eagles Recent NFL Draft Success · Inside the Birds: A Philadelphia Eagles Podcast

• 0:00
  Speaker 1: But Thursday we have the draft, and that means we
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  Speaker 1: have Adam Kaplan who joins us right now for football
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  Speaker 1: at four.
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  Speaker 2: What's going on Adam, Yeah, Mike, get when we talk
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  Speaker 2: next Friday, we'll be talking about well, we think if
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  Speaker 2: they stay in the first round in Eagles first round pick,
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  Speaker 2: So it'll be interesting with all these as you know,
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  Speaker 2: Mike discussed Howie Roseman and his draft prowess, which came
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  Speaker 2: into focus with Jeff Mosher and Eye on our show
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  Speaker 2: this morning.
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  Speaker 3: We actually spent one full show talking about his turnaround,
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  Speaker 3: the problems previously before the turnaround, and why he's been
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  Speaker 3: able to turn around.
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  Speaker 1: Well, let's talk about that, because there was a time
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  Speaker 1: on this show where people hated Howie Roseman. Yeah, and
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  Speaker 1: one of the reasons, one of the reasons why people
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  Speaker 1: hated him so much, Adam, was because of the failures
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  Speaker 1: in the draft, and a lot of those failures in
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  Speaker 1: the draft played out on the field and gave them
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  Speaker 1: some mediocre seasons, you know, ten years ago.
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  Speaker 3: So, Mike, when Howie got full personnel control, this is everything.
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  Speaker 3: This is the draft, free agency, fifty three men roster
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  Speaker 3: and ninety men roster. He didn't have all that with
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  Speaker 3: Chip Kelly, and then in twenty sixteen he got it
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  Speaker 3: fully and he looked very inconsistent from sixteen through twenty
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  Speaker 3: if you really look at those years, starting at sixteen,
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  Speaker 3: like he had some good drafts, not great. The sixteen
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  Speaker 3: draft Wentz and say Malow and Jalen Mills. Mills starred
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  Speaker 3: in the Super Bowl. Isaac would start later and Wentz
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  Speaker 3: obviously before the injury. Looked like he was going to
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  Speaker 3: be the best quarterback in Egos history. We know how
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  Speaker 3: that ended, unfortunately, But those were three hits. The seventeen
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  Speaker 3: draft was terrible. They had eight picks. They'd hit on
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  Speaker 3: any of them. Eighteen was great, but he only had
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  Speaker 3: five picks. Howie had sometimes had a pension for trading
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  Speaker 3: White picks. Nineteen draft got Miles Santa's right. Dillard was
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  Speaker 3: a miss.
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  Speaker 2: J j R.
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  Speaker 3: Thingga whites I was terrible. Treuth Miller never played. He
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  Speaker 3: played one game. He never made it in the NFL.
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  Speaker 3: Clayton Thorson never made it. Twenty twenty draft, It's funny
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  Speaker 3: how things work out. Hurtsus drafted as a backup. You
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  Speaker 3: know how that ended. Ragor miss.
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  Speaker 2: That was a day.
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  Speaker 3: Had ten picks, Mike, what a terrible draft, and then
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  Speaker 3: something happened Mike in twenty one. I don't know what happened,
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  Speaker 3: other than I think how he was on a mission.
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  Speaker 3: You know how he talked about that in his press
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  Speaker 3: conference with Nick Siriani this week, about how it keep
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  Speaker 3: him up at night, how he thinks about this stuff
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  Speaker 3: every day. Well, he made a complete turnaround in twenty one.
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  Speaker 1: He did, and all of a sudden, the Eagles started
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  Speaker 1: to build much better through the draft. That it's one
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  Speaker 1: of the reasons why their resume is what it is.
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  Speaker 1: And you know, he got fro personnel control, as you
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  Speaker 1: mentioned in twenty sixteen, and there was some rocky times
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  Speaker 1: and now here they are with a couple of Super
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  Speaker 1: Bowl championships, and most people now it's almost funny, Adam,
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  Speaker 1: They almost expect the Eagles to hit in the draft.
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  Speaker 3: He went from being a bottom of the ten drafter
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  Speaker 3: through twenty twenty to now a top five drafter. Now,
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  Speaker 3: the way that clubs valuate how they do is production. Coach,
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  Speaker 3: you tape, obviously performance, number of starts, and then of
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  Speaker 3: course do you get a second contract. If you don't
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  Speaker 3: get a second contract, guy's bust. That's just the way
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  Speaker 3: it is. So if you look at twenty one, a
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  Speaker 3: phenomenal draft. Devonte Smith hit, Dickerson hit, Milt Williams hit, McPherson,
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  Speaker 3: Myth Gamewell hit. That's a really good draft. Patrick Johnson's
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  Speaker 3: a mild hit because he can't. He came back and
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  Speaker 3: forth on special team. So if you get three starters
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  Speaker 3: out of any draft, Mike, that's a great draft. Twenty
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  Speaker 3: two draft really good. Jordan Davis, now that one was interesting.
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  Speaker 3: So it took him four years to become a player,
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  Speaker 3: and he's really good. Cam Jurgens got a cut contract extension.
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  Speaker 3: We know he didn't play well last season, but he
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  Speaker 3: got a contract extension. Nikobe Dean was a hit, Kyroon
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  Speaker 3: Johnson was a total miss sixth rounder, and Green Couch
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  Speaker 3: guitarrors a mild hit. I mean he, Mike, he's a hit.
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  Speaker 3: Twenty three Jaylen Carter is a hit. He's going to
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  Speaker 3: be a hit. Noel Smith got to wait on that one.
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  Speaker 3: Tyler Stein still have to wait. City Brown, miss Ringo,
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  Speaker 3: miss special teamer, Tarner McKee hit ojom hit, uh, Mike,
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  Speaker 3: this is and then you two years ago, Quinnyon on
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  Speaker 3: his way to being a phenomenal football player. Dejeene. Yes,
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  Speaker 3: Jelex Funt is on his way to being a good player.
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  Speaker 3: The rest of those, the rest of that draft not great,
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  Speaker 3: but they've already Mike, they're looking like hits. And of
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  Speaker 3: course last year it's way too early. So Mike, what
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  Speaker 3: what what? How he's done here? You notice, and someone
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  Speaker 3: said this on Twitter where we put out the promo
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  Speaker 3: for the shot for the show this morning, Well he
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  Speaker 3: started drafting SEC teams, Mike, It's just funny how that
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  Speaker 3: started working out.
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  Speaker 1: Well, he did do that, but one of his best
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  Speaker 1: picks is from Toledo there Quinnon Mitchell, Yes, so keep
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  Speaker 1: that in mind. However, you are right, he you know,
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  Speaker 1: it always felt like he tried to be the smartest
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  Speaker 1: guy in the room by finding these guys, and then
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  Speaker 1: I guess they just said, you know what, guys from
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  Speaker 1: Alabama and Georgia are better than guys you know. I know.
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  Speaker 1: We talked to Salpoud during the season a lot, and
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  Speaker 1: he used to hate that they constantly would take PAC
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  Speaker 1: ten player pack twelve players. I said, you got to
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  Speaker 1: get out of the PAC twelve and start to go
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  Speaker 1: to the SEC. Well they started to do.
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  Speaker 3: That, so the PAC twelve stuff. Should you brought that up?
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  Speaker 3: So there's a person on director I'm a good friends with,
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  Speaker 3: and he said, unfortunately, the Pac twelve has a history
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  Speaker 3: of having soft football players. Wow. Really and he ran
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  Speaker 3: off from the top of his head like ten players
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  Speaker 3: who were soft. And I was like, wow, Okay, I mean, look,
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  Speaker 3: zach Ertz will not call him soft, but a good
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  Speaker 3: football player, you know out of Stanford. But yeah, if
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  Speaker 3: you look at it, they're not. It's not a great
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  Speaker 3: hitter rate at that conference league wide.
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  Speaker 1: But yeah, So I think the reason that came up
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  Speaker 1: at him was Dillard was a Rushington State. Yeah, and
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  Speaker 1: I think that's why specifically that he zoned in on
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  Speaker 1: that Pack twelve.
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  Speaker 3: You know what's interesting about Andre Dillard, and I know
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  Speaker 3: the Eagles their excuse was the was they didn't have
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  Speaker 3: a great review of him from just from a personality
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  Speaker 3: trait because they didn't spend a lot of time for
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  Speaker 3: him with him because of the COVID issue. But it
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  Speaker 3: was well known there was a question about his love
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  Speaker 3: for football. But you know what's interesting about that, Well,
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  Speaker 3: Jalink was Davis. Okay, Jordan Davis had a same knock
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  Speaker 3: and it is really hard Mike to overcome that. And
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  Speaker 3: I give Jordan Davis unbelievable credit because you know how
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  Speaker 3: bad he was his first two years. He was awful.
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  Speaker 3: The bee warder was being brought up third season in
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  Speaker 3: twenty four, much better late in the final quarter of
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  Speaker 3: the season in the playoffs where that's why they decided
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  Speaker 3: to pick up his fifth year option, and then they
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  Speaker 3: had a breakout season in twenty five. So sometimes we
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  Speaker 3: have to be a little bit more patient.
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  Speaker 1: But Mike, he Kee, jj Rtega Whiteside also pass right right,
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  Speaker 1: he was, but Jordan Davis sec but there was a
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  Speaker 1: knock on hit.
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  Speaker 3: Okay, like football, happy go lucky kid, really good kid
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  Speaker 3: off the field, but was he committed, Well, he got committed.
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  Speaker 3: He was great. So I think the other thing is that,
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  Speaker 3: you know, we talked to a lot of people about this.
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  Speaker 3: He finally got football character right, locker room playing within
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  Speaker 3: team concept, which, by the way, the Cowboys cannot get right.
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  Speaker 3: They have they draft for flash and they don't draft
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  Speaker 3: good football character guys consistently. That's why they can never
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  Speaker 3: get it right under Jerry Jones. And that's why Jerry
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  Speaker 3: Jones should give up full personal control. He should, but
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  Speaker 3: he doesn't do that. He has final say on that stuff.
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  Speaker 3: A guy in his eighties should have full should not
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  Speaker 3: have full personal Adam.
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  Speaker 1: Stopped trying to convince them to change. Yeah.
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  Speaker 3: I remember Joe Batner telling me that they kind of
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  Speaker 3: liked some of the Daniel Snyder and Jerry Jones owning
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  Speaker 3: it because you know, somehow they might screw it up.
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  Speaker 1: Yeah. Listen, it's the best part of having Jerry Jones
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  Speaker 1: in the NFCS is you know he runs the team.
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  Speaker 1: That's the best part about it. Yeah. But yeah, you
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  Speaker 1: mentioned they start the draft players Alabama, Georgia SEC and listen,
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  Speaker 1: they just you know, one of the things they also did,
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  Speaker 1: which is like landon Dickerson, like they would take a
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  Speaker 1: guy and just take a shot on him that who
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  Speaker 1: fell that was a first round talent. They found some
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  Speaker 1: of these guys that had some injury issues and they
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  Speaker 1: took some chances, and those guys worked out for them too.
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  Speaker 1: I mean, that doesn't happen because they tried that with
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  Speaker 1: By the way, the PAC twelve kids, Sidney Jones, yep,
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  Speaker 1: and they drafted him in the second round because of
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  Speaker 1: an injury. That didn't work out, but they did hit
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  Speaker 1: with Landon Dickerson.
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  Speaker 3: Yeah, they've They've looked Sidney Jones. His was injury torny
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  Speaker 3: Kellys had his pro day right, and then how committed
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  Speaker 3: was he to be in great football player there were
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  Speaker 3: there's a knock on him on that, but you look
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  Speaker 3: at it when they brought an Arstonota, who's who oversees
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  Speaker 3: their their basically injury analysis and development round injuries. They
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  Speaker 3: brought in University of Pennsylvania. They brought in I don't
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  Speaker 3: know what the woman's name is, but I know Denota
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  Speaker 3: brought her in. There's a team psychologist. They do such
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  Speaker 3: a better job, Mike, And you have to also give
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  Speaker 3: nix here any credit, Nika. We reported this at the
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  Speaker 3: time they was hired. One of the things that they
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  Speaker 3: really liked about him is he put a big emphasis
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  Speaker 3: on player development. So Howie's done a much better job
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  Speaker 3: of player evaluation. They've done a much better job from
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  Speaker 3: a coaching standpoint of inviting their players and developing them.
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  Speaker 3: Fewer mistakes, better rosters, no doubt about a better talent.
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  Speaker 3: We mentioned Alabama and Georgia and then the other This
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  Speaker 3: is the term I came up with on my own.
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  Speaker 3: I didn't know what to call it, So I called
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  Speaker 3: a framing. So we were talling over the years, Howie
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  Speaker 3: would basically decide like we were reported in twenty twenty
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  Speaker 3: in March of twenty twenty that the Eagles were focusing
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  Speaker 3: on Jalen Rager, not justin Jefferson, and people thought we
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  Speaker 3: were out of our mind. Well, what's comical is and
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  Speaker 3: sad at the same time, Yes, two things can be true.
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  Speaker 3: That they actually had Jefferson as a higher grade player.
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  Speaker 3: But Howie threw that out the board and he said,
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  Speaker 3: we need speed. That's called framing. They framed Andre Dillard.
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  Speaker 3: They were going to draft Jason Peters replacement. You can't
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  Speaker 3: do that. Let the board come to you. And Ozzie
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  Speaker 3: Newsom is actually sort of a I know, he's friendly
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  Speaker 3: with Howie. He's sort of a mentor for Howie. Why
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  Speaker 3: is Ozzie Newsom one of the best gams in NFL history.
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  Speaker 3: He would never reach He would let the board come
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  Speaker 3: to him instead of going up and getting the player.
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  Speaker 3: And you have to be careful with that. So how
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  Speaker 3: he has stopped framing players. He's just really he is.
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  Speaker 3: If he's not the best GM in the first two rounds,
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  Speaker 3: he's clearly one of the top three. Now we've criticized
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  Speaker 3: him the third day, he's got to do a much
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  Speaker 3: better job. And look, look where was Jason he was
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  Speaker 3: in his call, he was involved in him, but Jason
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  Speaker 3: Kelsey's six round pick of twenty eleven, Josh Wett that
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  Speaker 3: was Howe twenty eighteen, fourth round. But he still overall
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  Speaker 3: has got to do better on the third day.
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  Speaker 1: Well, he has a lot of picks on the third
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  Speaker 1: day too, Adham, Right, I mean they've got a pluth
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  Speaker 1: through a pick, which means they probably are going to
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  Speaker 1: be active Thursday and Friday and most likely Saturday as
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  Speaker 1: well well.
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  Speaker 3: Plus he also likes to trade. See the reason why
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  Speaker 3: he makes all these trades, and we'll trade out of picks.
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  Speaker 3: This gives you better maneuverability, flexibility for future drafts and
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  Speaker 3: to move around or in any kind of trade during
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  Speaker 3: the year. It just gives you better flexibility. And Howie,
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  Speaker 3: by the time he retires, trust me on this, he
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  Speaker 3: will make He'll have made the most transactions in NFL history.
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  Speaker 3: That that is, that's going to happen by the time
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  Speaker 3: he walks away.
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  Speaker 1: All right, Adam kaplan of course, uh a less than
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  Speaker 1: a week to the draft, and we'll have it all
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  Speaker 1: right here, every pick on ninety seven three he has
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  Speaker 1: been I like it this year, Adam. I feel like
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  Speaker 1: the Sixers have been in the playoffs and have played
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  Speaker 1: on Thursday night against the Draft, and there's no Sixers
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  Speaker 1: or Flyers. What was the chances of that we got
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  Speaker 1: both of them? No? Nothing. So we've got the Draft
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  Speaker 1: all Thursday night and that should be an interesting night. Friday.
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  Speaker 1: I think the Flyers are up.
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  Speaker 3: No, Philly have to play, right, it's a Friday, I'm sure, yeah.
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  Speaker 1: The Phillies do. But the Sixers play Friday night against
• 12:02
  Speaker 1: the Draft next week.
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  Speaker 3: Well, let's see, Mike. You know what I actually well,
• 12:08
  Speaker 3: for twenty seconds here, I actually liked that the Celtics
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  Speaker 3: are getting too much time off and the Sixers got
• 12:14
  Speaker 3: some barely navy time off. They I know, we know
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  Speaker 3: MBS not could be ready, but I'm just glad that
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  Speaker 3: these guys. Look if they could win a game against Boston,
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  Speaker 3: I'll take my two payoffs, man, I'll be very happy.
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  Speaker 3: I'm a diehard Sixer fan. You know I flew out.
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  Speaker 3: I'll probably told this. I flew out to the one
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  Speaker 3: finals in LA. But look about the Flyers. Mike, I'm
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  Speaker 3: an absolutely Capital fan, but i gotta tell you, I've
• 12:39
  Speaker 3: been watching the Flyers the last six weeks. They are
• 12:41
  Speaker 3: so much fun. Their energy and by the way their
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  Speaker 3: process worked for the record, their process worked well, really
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  Speaker 3: really fast.
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  Speaker 1: We'll see if I said, this Flyers team reminds me
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  Speaker 1: of when the Sixers they didn't make the playoffs for
• 12:54
  Speaker 1: five years. They had it Embian and Simmons. They were young,
• 12:56
  Speaker 1: they were fun, and they got back to the playoffs.
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  Speaker 1: That's six or team one around in the playoffs. We'll
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  Speaker 1: see if the Flyers can do the same. Flyers at
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  Speaker 1: Sixers this weekend, Phillies this weekend, and then the Eagles
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  Speaker 1: Thursday night. In the draft. Adam Kaplan and the Boys
• 13:10
  Speaker 1: have more coverage and Inside the Birds and the Inside
• 13:13
  Speaker 1: the Birds podcast on all podcasting platforms. Thanks man, There's
• 13:17
  Speaker 1: Adam Kaplan. Everybody on a Football at four Friday edition