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Green and Gold Brothers Episode 5 · Green and Gold Brothers

0:04
SPEAKER_01: Hello and welcome to the Green and Gold Brothers Podcast, the place for all things Packers related.
0:10
SPEAKER_01: You can find us on X at GRNGLD Bros, on Facebook at Green and Gold Brothers, and anywhere you get your favorite podcasts.
0:19
SPEAKER_01: Welcome back to the Green and Gold Brothers Podcast, episode five.
0:23
SPEAKER_01: I'm Cody.
0:24
SPEAKER_01: I'm Zach.
0:25
SPEAKER_01: Today we are going to be going over preseason game number one.
0:28
SPEAKER_01: They played Pittsburgh Steelers in Pittsburgh, and the result was 28 to 3, or 28 to 9, excuse me.
0:37
SPEAKER_01: Not 3, 28 to 9.
0:39
SPEAKER_01: In my opinion, who cares?
0:41
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I mean, it's preseason football.
0:44
SPEAKER_02: Just excited to see the fellows back out there in pads.
0:48
SPEAKER_02: It was a lot of fun.
0:49
SPEAKER_02: I definitely missed it.
0:50
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it was a fun one to watch too.
0:51
SPEAKER_02: You had Aaron Rodgers and Mike McCarthy on the sideline.
0:54
SPEAKER_02: That was a little weird, was it not?
0:56
SPEAKER_02: It was a little weird, but I mean In a good way, but it it was definitely different.
0:59
SPEAKER_02: Kind of came full circle for you know Rodgers last year, McCarthy's as coach.
1:05
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
1:05
SPEAKER_01: Playing against the Packers in the first preseason game.
1:08
SPEAKER_01: I know a lot of people were kind of bummed that it wasn't in Lambeau.
1:11
SPEAKER_01: Um I think I would say that I was one of them until I really thought about it, and I understand why.
1:17
SPEAKER_01: Number one, they have these they have home and away figured out very far in advance.
1:23
SPEAKER_01: Uh probably before they knew Rogers was either A coming back, B, that it was his last year.
1:28
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
1:29
SPEAKER_01: Or that McCarthy was gonna be coaching.
1:31
SPEAKER_01: But also the Packers have nine home games this year.
1:34
SPEAKER_01: So by default, I I don't know if it's League Rules, I would assume it's League Rules.
1:38
SPEAKER_01: They need to have two road games.
1:40
SPEAKER_01: They can only have one preseason game.
1:42
SPEAKER_01: Otherwise, they're getting an extra game at home that they would be making money on that it it would have been not feasible.
1:50
SPEAKER_01: So I get why people wanted it.
1:52
SPEAKER_01: It would have been cool, but it just it wasn't uh didn't line up that way.
1:57
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
1:57
SPEAKER_02: Maybe we'll see him in the Super Bowl.
1:59
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, there you go.
2:00
SPEAKER_01: I'm just kidding.
2:01
SPEAKER_02: Probably not, but too uh too early to tell.
2:04
SPEAKER_02: Uh yeah, there's a lot to unpack about uh the game.
2:07
SPEAKER_02: Despite the loss, there was still a lot of good.
2:10
SPEAKER_02: Oh, there was a ton of good.
2:12
SPEAKER_02: Uh, me personally, I would say like my most positive takeaways was uh Trey Smack.
2:18
SPEAKER_02: He phenomenal, phenomenal kicker yesterday.
2:21
SPEAKER_02: I mean, there was a lot of talk throughout OTAs and mini camp and training camp.
2:26
SPEAKER_02: I'm pretty sure he was kicking like 70% throughout that whole process, and it's been a lot of ups and downs for him, but he he shined yesterday.
2:34
SPEAKER_02: I mean, two 50 plus yarders, I think it was a 58 and a 57 one.
2:38
SPEAKER_02: We actually there was a penalty on the play, so we ended up re-kicking four plays later.
2:45
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
2:45
SPEAKER_02: And uh yeah, he looked great.
2:47
SPEAKER_02: And then the injuries, there wasn't really a whole lot of injuries.
2:50
SPEAKER_02: We stayed pretty healthy for the most part, so that was a big thing for me.
2:53
SPEAKER_01: Few few uh bumps and bruises.
2:54
SPEAKER_01: A couple guys did, I think, come out and didn't necessarily go back in.
2:58
SPEAKER_01: Uh, but the one probably biggest one was Darren Kennard.
3:02
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I haven't heard yet today how significant it was.
3:05
SPEAKER_01: Uh he left and and obviously didn't come back, but but he did walk back to the locker room.
3:10
SPEAKER_01: So I mean decent sign.
3:13
SPEAKER_01: It maybe it should be.
3:14
SPEAKER_01: However, I remember uh I think Terrell Owens walked back or jogged back to the locker room the time that he tore his ACL with the Eagles.
3:22
SPEAKER_02: So Jordy Nelson when he tore his ACL against the Steelers in preseason, yeah.
3:27
SPEAKER_02: He popped right back up.
3:28
SPEAKER_02: He had a little limp, but he walked to the sideline and yeah, we thought everything was okay, and it was not okay.
3:34
SPEAKER_01: Not even a little bit.
3:35
SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that's it's too early to tell on that one.
3:37
SPEAKER_01: Uh we'll I guess we'll wait and see.
3:39
SPEAKER_01: Uh like I said, that it may have come out today, but I didn't didn't hear yet.
3:43
SPEAKER_02: So Marshawn Lloyd didn't get hurt.
3:45
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
3:46
SPEAKER_01: That was a a very big positive in the injury department.
3:49
SPEAKER_01: Uh I thought he looked twitchy and explosive.
3:53
SPEAKER_01: He he didn't have any you know big game breakers or anything, but no, I think he had what two or three carries for maybe fourteen yards.
4:01
SPEAKER_02: Something like that, yeah.
4:02
SPEAKER_01: But you could just tell that the tools are there, the body's feeling right, and he just you gotta stay healthy and you could see how excited he was to to get hit and to be able to get hit and go back to the huddle and get another carry.
4:16
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
4:16
SPEAKER_01: And then he came out and yeah, he was he was good.
4:19
SPEAKER_01: So I think he even said as much in the postgame that he was excited that he's doing good.
4:26
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, that's that's big, especially just like we've talked about before, the running back room is kind of uh a lot of question marks there right now.
4:33
SPEAKER_02: So it's glad to s glad to see he was out there and looked good, and we'll uh we'll see what next week brings for him too in the future.
4:42
SPEAKER_02: Uh I guess we'll hop right into you know some who looked good, who looked bad as far as players.
4:48
SPEAKER_02: I mean, there's a lot of good in my opinion.
4:54
SPEAKER_02: There was some bad.
4:55
SPEAKER_02: Um there was some, yeah, there definitely was some bad.
4:58
SPEAKER_02: And bad from guys that, you know, we well, at least one specifically.
5:03
SPEAKER_02: Don't want to have bad from.
5:04
SPEAKER_02: No.
5:05
SPEAKER_02: Uh Keyshawn Nixon had a pretty poor poor showing against Pittsburgh.
5:10
SPEAKER_02: Um I don't know.
5:12
SPEAKER_02: Just a lack of effort.
5:14
SPEAKER_02: It's it's been that for him at least the last two seasons.
5:18
SPEAKER_02: Maybe three.
5:19
SPEAKER_01: I I just I feel like the this has really come on since more so the middle of last year.
5:27
SPEAKER_02: I think it's a mental thing for him right now.
5:29
SPEAKER_02: He's going through.
5:30
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if he doesn't know his job's safe.
5:32
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if he's got contract on the mind for the next team.
5:36
SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
5:36
SPEAKER_02: I would think if he doesn't think his job is safe, you'd be busting your butt.
5:40
SPEAKER_02: Like Yeah, but I just he's not that type of guy.
5:43
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he thinks he's all that all the time.
5:46
SPEAKER_02: That's that's true.
5:47
SPEAKER_02: I think um I don't know.
5:49
SPEAKER_02: I expected a lot more out of him this season because there's a lot of competition at that position, and he's the veteran.
5:56
SPEAKER_02: He's been there multiple years now.
5:58
SPEAKER_02: He was he crowned himself cornerback one.
6:01
SPEAKER_02: I mean, had a pretty poor season last year, and yeah, last night was not not very good in my opinion.
6:09
SPEAKER_01: I it's hard to to sit here and say it like this, but part of me is kind of okay with it.
6:15
SPEAKER_01: I hope he continues to play bad and and almost forces the Packers to to do something.
6:20
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
6:21
SPEAKER_01: Uh rather than you know, having a bounce back game next week and then all of a sudden, oh well, I guess he's our starter again.
6:27
SPEAKER_01: Like if he is, whatever.
6:31
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it it is what it is, but it's a tough situation for sure.
6:35
SPEAKER_01: But I think it's time.
6:36
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it's been like you said, this is going on a couple years now where it's it hasn't been comfortable uh being able to be confident in him, and it's it hasn't gotten better.
6:49
SPEAKER_01: So no.
6:50
SPEAKER_01: I I hope he's kinda on the downtrend there.
6:54
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we'll see what happens with him for sure.
6:56
SPEAKER_02: Um, we'll just run through a couple other uh bad performances, in our opinion.
7:01
SPEAKER_02: Jalen Simpson, uh guy, a guy who's been you know lighting up training camp, doing fairly well and making some plays, had a really bad performance.
7:11
SPEAKER_02: It was kind of kind of unexpected.
7:13
SPEAKER_02: I had high hopes for him.
7:14
SPEAKER_02: I was looking forward to watching him, and then you know, there was a while there.
7:17
SPEAKER_02: It was like, what the heck is going on?
7:19
SPEAKER_01: I agree with that completely, because yeah, I guess that's why these preseason games are so important.
7:24
SPEAKER_01: Because yes, in practice, it sounds like the reports that have been coming out of Green Bay, he's looked awesome and they've been very happy with him.
7:32
SPEAKER_01: And then you go up against somebody else who you don't know the plays and the player, and yeah, he kind of got burnt a lot.
7:38
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
7:39
SPEAKER_01: He was out of position, couple missed tackles.
7:42
SPEAKER_01: Uh, it was it was rough.
7:44
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I think the the cornerback room in general left a little to be desired.
7:50
SPEAKER_01: Uh from from a depth standpoint, I thought Cise looked like our number one corner right now.
7:58
SPEAKER_01: Oh, for sure.
7:59
SPEAKER_01: Uh he he impressed me in his first game action as a pro.
8:04
SPEAKER_01: Uh he looked absolutely like he belonged, um, even to the point that he was probably one of the better players on the field.
8:11
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I was telling you that earlier.
8:13
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I don't think he he didn't wow me, which is alright.
8:20
SPEAKER_02: He made a really nice uh tackle to save a touchdown, but he he didn't do anything wrong.
8:25
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he was in position every time.
8:27
SPEAKER_02: I think he got a couple tackles, he was in on you know a few stops, and he he just did the right things.
8:33
SPEAKER_01: Uh he didn't I feel like a lot of times, and I'm not saying that this is who he is or even who he may become, but just be consistent.
8:41
SPEAKER_01: The the best cornerbacks you don't hear about.
8:44
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
8:44
SPEAKER_01: I mean Champ Bailey was an all-pro one year with like two interceptions, Darrell Reeves too.
8:50
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
8:50
SPEAKER_01: Because teams don't throw at them.
8:52
SPEAKER_01: So cornerback is a position, if you don't hear their name, that's not always a bad thing.
8:58
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I'm excited for him.
8:59
SPEAKER_02: I I definitely agree with your take there.
9:01
SPEAKER_02: If the season were to start right now, he's cornerback one and um just looking looking forward to what he has.
9:08
SPEAKER_01: At the very, very least, number two.
9:10
SPEAKER_01: He he is on the field with the starters.
9:12
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
9:12
SPEAKER_01: Depending on how you want to label it, he he would be out there with the first eleven.
9:16
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, um, Anthony Belton will talk about a little bit.
9:19
SPEAKER_02: Um, don't think he I don't know, it's it's a it's a tough one because originally I was thinking he was going to be a part of our starting offensive line, and then they started moving things around.
9:31
SPEAKER_02: I don't think he had a terrible, terrible game, but I think he's just trying to get comfortable in his position on the team.
9:37
SPEAKER_02: He's our for sure right tackle backup now.
9:41
SPEAKER_02: I think we've talked about that, how he's probably done with uh the experiment at guard.
9:46
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was it was interesting that he he didn't play guard at all yesterday, and he hasn't.
9:51
SPEAKER_01: I don't think he has all of last week at practice either.
9:54
SPEAKER_01: They basically they they kicked him back to the outside, which that is what he was drafted as.
9:59
SPEAKER_01: True.
9:59
SPEAKER_01: Uh, but yeah, I think the guard experiment might be done.
10:03
SPEAKER_01: Um we were talking about this earlier today and even yesterday, that I think they uh might be leaning a little more heavily into the uh a little bit lighter or definitely more agile guards.
10:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
10:18
SPEAKER_01: Uh with with Burton and uh Jacob Monk, who I thought looked great.
10:23
SPEAKER_01: Both of them looked really good.
10:24
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, let's talk about them a little bit.
10:26
SPEAKER_01: Sure.
10:26
SPEAKER_01: So yeah, that's Jacob Monk and and Burton were uh they started the game.
10:31
SPEAKER_01: They both played through the first quarter.
10:34
SPEAKER_01: Yep.
10:35
SPEAKER_01: Um and then they that's another position that if you're if you're not hearing their name, that's probably better.
10:42
SPEAKER_01: And they both kinda I guess not both, it was um it was Monk and um Belton when Tyra Taylor took the late hit on a slide that kind of went and threw their nose in there and you know had their quarterbacks back a little bit.
10:57
SPEAKER_02: Which is something we haven't seen here last couple seasons.
11:00
SPEAKER_02: I mean, back when Rogers was there, if you looked at Rogers the long way, the wrong way, the O-line was coming after you.
11:06
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, TJ Lang and Bakhtiari and those guys were gonna be, you know, potentially looking at suspensions next week if you did something a little too far.
11:14
SPEAKER_02: And since Love's been our quarterback, I just feel like I feel like they have his back, but I feel like they just there's you gotta bite, you gotta get in there.
11:22
SPEAKER_02: Like you gotta have some bark, you gotta have some bite.
11:23
SPEAKER_02: If somebody hits your quarterback, you need to go let them know, hey, do it again, and there's gonna be a problem.
11:27
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
11:28
SPEAKER_02: And then when they do do it again, I mean, like you said, who cares if you get tossed at that point?
11:32
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you let the other team know we're here to play.
11:35
SPEAKER_01: That message is worth way more than finishing the game.
11:37
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
11:38
SPEAKER_01: And I think I think that is one of the things that has maybe held them back from from finishing the way they want to.
11:46
SPEAKER_01: Not saying that they have to be, you know, just bullies and thugs and whatever you want to call it, where they're borderline dirty.
11:55
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
11:55
SPEAKER_01: But I don't feel like they've had that edge in a while, or at least they haven't had a guy that's had that sort of attitude.
12:02
SPEAKER_01: Um, so it would it would be nice if they found one or maybe a couple guys that would maybe not be afraid to to kind of throw their nose in there and get under the other team's skin.
12:13
SPEAKER_01: You know, that's that is a strategy and it it is part of the game that is sort of it's not necessarily quantifiable.
12:20
SPEAKER_01: You can't track it statistically, but it's something that is is pretty important.
12:27
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I agree with you 100%.
12:29
SPEAKER_02: Um, we'll touch on a few more uh players who trending up who played very well, kind of impressed us.
12:35
SPEAKER_02: Kyle McCord had a pretty good uh game, I think 10 for 16, 100 and something yards, 101, 102 yards.
12:44
SPEAKER_02: Maybe, maybe I'm wrong.
12:45
SPEAKER_02: Maybe he's 12, 12 for 16.
12:46
SPEAKER_02: I can't remember the exact stat line, but he did well.
12:50
SPEAKER_02: He did his job, he looked comfortable.
12:52
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he very much looked in control.
12:54
SPEAKER_01: I thought uh the end of half operation.
12:58
SPEAKER_01: It was perfect.
12:59
SPEAKER_01: It was absolutely perfect.
13:00
SPEAKER_01: They had 12 seconds and they hit Shepard on a quick little up the seam for probably 12 or 15 yards, and they were able to get on the ball and spike it with one second left to give Smack a chance to kick that 58 yarder that counted right before the half, and he drilled it.
13:17
SPEAKER_02: No, it was perfect.
13:18
SPEAKER_02: I'm sure LaFleur was probably smiling after they pulled that operation off to perfection.
13:23
SPEAKER_02: Definitely.
13:24
SPEAKER_02: Something that you know a lot of teams struggle with, even veteran teams regular season.
13:28
SPEAKER_02: I can't tell you how many times you see it where they don't know where to go with the ball, they don't know where the ref is.
13:32
SPEAKER_02: You have a guy that lines up offsides or illegal formation.
13:35
SPEAKER_02: Yep.
13:36
SPEAKER_02: The 10-second runoff happens, boom, you go to halftime, you miss out on three points.
13:40
SPEAKER_02: And this was third stringers pulling it off to perfection.
13:43
SPEAKER_02: Yes.
13:44
SPEAKER_02: So it was really cool to see that kind of excited for sure on that.
13:47
SPEAKER_02: Um, any other guys you want to touch on before we move on here?
13:51
SPEAKER_02: Um, we could talk about Aaron Banks a little bit.
13:54
SPEAKER_02: We had an interesting conversation about him.
13:56
SPEAKER_02: We'll get to him.
13:57
SPEAKER_02: Okay, all right.
13:58
SPEAKER_01: Um, I think uh uh Tyron Hopper looked pretty good.
14:01
SPEAKER_01: I saw a couple plays where he was able to shed his blocker and make a tackle.
14:05
SPEAKER_01: There was one I remember was on kind of a little screen pass, I think it was to the tight end, that uh if he doesn't make the tackle, might go for maybe a touchdown.
14:15
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
14:15
SPEAKER_01: Uh it would have been a really big play.
14:17
SPEAKER_01: They still picked up probably 10 or 12, but he was able to kind of sidestep and and shed the block of the offensive lineman and make the tackle in space.
14:25
SPEAKER_01: Uh I thought that was really encouraging.
14:27
SPEAKER_01: He looked decent in coverage too a couple times.
14:29
SPEAKER_02: I'm kind of excited for him.
14:30
SPEAKER_02: I mean, it'll we'll see what happens.
14:32
SPEAKER_02: Come cut down in time.
14:33
SPEAKER_02: I think he's got a safe spot on the roster, but things change.
14:37
SPEAKER_02: I mean, there's still two preseason games left here, and you never know who's gonna get cut from other teams.
14:41
SPEAKER_01: Exactly.
14:42
SPEAKER_01: Granted, he has been been there for this is his third year now.
14:46
SPEAKER_01: Yep.
14:46
SPEAKER_01: So he knows the well, it's a new system, but he knows the team, he knows the culture, he knows you know, he's comfortable there.
14:53
SPEAKER_01: So uh that's some somebody to watch, but yeah, I agree.
14:58
SPEAKER_01: I think he's probably safe.
14:59
SPEAKER_01: I I don't remember if I I might have called his spot being a question mark um one of our previous episodes when we were talking about roster bubbles.
15:09
SPEAKER_02: I still think it might be.
15:10
SPEAKER_01: It definitely could be.
15:11
SPEAKER_01: Like I said, it depends on you know, somebody could get cut that maybe has worked with Jonathan Gannon.
15:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
15:17
SPEAKER_01: That he would want to bring in, or or who knows.
15:20
SPEAKER_01: There's a lot of practices left.
15:22
SPEAKER_01: There's th two preseason games left.
15:24
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we're still a month away from opening day, so anything could happen there.
15:28
SPEAKER_02: Colin Oliver, he performed very well.
15:31
SPEAKER_02: He looked, you know, athletic.
15:32
SPEAKER_02: He looked like the guy he was coming out of college.
15:35
SPEAKER_01: I understand why they call him Baby Micah.
15:37
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
15:37
SPEAKER_01: Because holy cow, he he looked very similar in his playstyle.
15:41
SPEAKER_01: Kind of little ball of muscle, low to the ground, but super fast and athletic.
15:47
SPEAKER_01: Uh, he didn't have, I don't think he had a ton of stats, but he did a lot of very good things.
15:52
SPEAKER_02: And he's gonna have plenty of opportunities here in the preseason.
15:55
SPEAKER_01: I mean, especially that first month, too, yeah.
15:58
SPEAKER_01: That we're gonna be, you know, down the big gun, but it'll be alright.
16:03
SPEAKER_02: Another guy we'll touch on here, um, Katan Oladopo.
16:06
SPEAKER_02: My opinion on him, I know we kind of discussed this a little bit ago.
16:10
SPEAKER_02: Um, I personally think he's a safety.
16:13
SPEAKER_02: That's what he's gonna be.
16:14
SPEAKER_02: They've been trying him in the slot here with Bullard being injured this last week.
16:19
SPEAKER_02: And there were reports coming out of training camp that, you know, he was looking pretty good at in the slot there.
16:24
SPEAKER_02: He was doing his job, he was just performing well.
16:27
SPEAKER_02: And then we got to the game yesterday.
16:29
SPEAKER_02: He had a nice sack there.
16:30
SPEAKER_02: He chased down uh was it Mason Rudolph or was it Will Howard?
16:34
SPEAKER_02: I think it was Howard.
16:35
SPEAKER_02: He chased Howard down to the sideline and ended up ended up getting a sack, which I thought was impressive.
16:40
SPEAKER_02: And then I watched the rest of the game and he just looked uncomfortable in the slot there.
16:45
SPEAKER_02: Uh, there were just some inconsistencies.
16:47
SPEAKER_02: Obviously, he's learning a new position.
16:49
SPEAKER_02: The guy's been a safety the last two years.
16:51
SPEAKER_02: So we'll see what happens there.
16:53
SPEAKER_01: Um I think he is pretty safe.
16:56
SPEAKER_01: I think he's a pretty good uh contributor on special teams.
16:58
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
16:59
SPEAKER_01: And I think the the slot experiment is slightly out of necessity right now, but also something that is he's a guy that they like.
17:09
SPEAKER_01: And uh he you know, is this is your uh year three with him as well, so uh he's gotten a a chance to to kind of prove himself.
17:20
SPEAKER_01: And I mean he hasn't really uh taken anything by the reins.
17:24
SPEAKER_01: Granted, there's not really there's not a starting spot at the safety position, obviously.
17:29
SPEAKER_01: The Packers have one of, if not the best safety rooms in in the league.
17:33
SPEAKER_01: But I I think it's a chance to kind of let him show what he can do and and maybe try and get him on the field uh a little bit more.
17:41
SPEAKER_01: But it I thought he looked okay.
17:43
SPEAKER_01: Um he did have a penalty on special teams, which I just mentioned that's kind of where he's made his hay, but that that that that will happen.
17:52
SPEAKER_01: And uh he yeah, he he was alright.
17:56
SPEAKER_01: Um I thought he did a little bit better than what what you thought, but I definitely can see where you're coming from with that.
18:01
SPEAKER_02: We'll see what happens.
18:02
SPEAKER_02: Like I said, there I there's two two more games left to experiment, to put guys in new spots, try them out, you know, kind of give you that comfortable feeling going into the season where if a guy does go down, you can put them in there and they're not gonna completely collapse.
18:17
SPEAKER_01: That's been a big thing, and I feel like that was sort of his maybe downfall in the past.
18:23
SPEAKER_02: I'll give him a little more credit.
18:25
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I I'm back and forth on him.
18:28
SPEAKER_02: I just I was expecting a little more, I was excited, and that's fair.
18:32
SPEAKER_02: I just didn't live up to my excitement, so that's on me.
18:35
SPEAKER_02: That's on me.
18:36
SPEAKER_01: He has been the true backup since the end of his rookie year, and yeah, he was out there playing with backups that he probably should have maybe flashed a little more than what he did, but it's it's week one, even even though it's preseason, you know, that's there's some rust and and stuff going on, so no big deal.
18:55
SPEAKER_02: Um, I guess Kyron Jones will talk about a little bit.
18:58
SPEAKER_02: I had some high hopes on this guy coming into training camp.
19:02
SPEAKER_02: Um, we went to training camp a couple, was it last week?
19:05
SPEAKER_02: Two weeks ago.
19:06
SPEAKER_02: Two weeks ago.
19:06
SPEAKER_02: And was kind of watching him a little bit, kind of excited about him.
19:10
SPEAKER_02: Last night, he didn't have a whole lot of opportunities.
19:13
SPEAKER_02: It was towards the end of the game.
19:15
SPEAKER_02: The offensive line at the po at that point was, you know, guys who probably aren't gonna be on the roster.
19:22
SPEAKER_02: No.
19:22
SPEAKER_02: I think he got sacked three times.
19:24
SPEAKER_01: That sounds I think one of them was his fault, though, for sure.
19:27
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
19:28
SPEAKER_01: He just he just held on to the ball and never he didn't get rid of it.
19:31
SPEAKER_01: And I think he had one where uh he basically tried to roll out and tried to outrun.
19:38
SPEAKER_01: I think it it was an edge, and he couldn't.
19:40
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and I think that was maybe a welcome to the NFL moment.
19:44
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I saw for Fernando Mendoza even mentioned that after his first preseason game.
19:49
SPEAKER_01: The dude was a number one pick, and he said the defense is way faster.
19:53
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, guys are not in college anymore.
19:57
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I saw that too, kind of cracked me up.
19:59
SPEAKER_02: But yeah, with drones, I mean, it's the third quarterback spot.
20:03
SPEAKER_02: Him and uh Kyle McCord are essentially fighting for who's gonna be the practice squad practice squad quarterback.
20:11
SPEAKER_02: At this point, I mean, I think McCord showed me enough yesterday to make him the number three and he'll be our practice squad guy.
20:17
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's it's all pretty much all but over, in my opinion, on that too.
20:21
SPEAKER_01: I mean, it would have to take something drastic, uh maybe an injury.
20:24
SPEAKER_00: Yeah.
20:25
SPEAKER_01: But uh yeah, he he definitely looked a lot better.
20:28
SPEAKER_01: Uh McCord looked poised, he looked comfortable, he you know, did a lot of really good things.
20:34
SPEAKER_02: Uh Jonathan Ford will touch on here too.
20:36
SPEAKER_02: I was kind of surprised uh this last week he's been running with the ones.
20:42
SPEAKER_02: And kind of surprised me a little bit just because there's some depth on that line of guys who have been around a little more, had some more you know snaps last season.
20:52
SPEAKER_02: Um Ford, to me, I like the guy.
20:55
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if he's if they're just giving him a chance with the ones right now to see what he's got.
21:00
SPEAKER_02: Or you know, it could be out of necessity.
21:02
SPEAKER_01: Uh I know Hargrave's been out, why it's been out, uh, why it has kind of come back um to some extent.
21:08
SPEAKER_01: I I don't know if he's been in team yet, but he's definitely been practicing.
21:13
SPEAKER_01: Uh, and same thing with Hargrave.
21:15
SPEAKER_01: I think this last week he was back, but same thing at not in team.
21:18
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
21:19
SPEAKER_01: Um, but uh Ford, yeah, Ford's an interesting one.
21:22
SPEAKER_01: He is a guy that we I believe we drafted originally, right?
21:26
SPEAKER_01: We drafted him, released him.
21:28
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, this is like his third different stint with us, I believe.
21:31
SPEAKER_02: It's at least second.
21:32
SPEAKER_02: Claimed him off waivers at the end of last season.
21:35
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
21:36
SPEAKER_01: So same thing.
21:38
SPEAKER_01: Out of necessity, we had nobody left.
21:40
SPEAKER_01: We had to go get a D tackle last year after Wyatt got hurt.
21:43
SPEAKER_02: He did play pretty much the entirety of the game, which surprises me a little bit.
21:48
SPEAKER_02: It's in my mind, they're either actually considering him as a prospect and like he might actually get some reps throughout the regular season, so they're trying to get him in game shape or just trying to get eyes.
22:00
SPEAKER_02: On him throughout all different types of scenarios to just see how he reacts.
22:04
SPEAKER_02: Or like you had just mentioned with the depth right now that we have, two of our top starters are not playing, they're not suited up.
22:12
SPEAKER_02: So just letting him go out there and eat up snaps and could be trying to get him on tape too.
22:18
SPEAKER_01: You know, this is the time of year that teams are looking at other rosters as well.
22:22
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
22:23
SPEAKER_01: Preseason is is fun because guys go out and the tape they put out isn't necessarily just for them.
22:29
SPEAKER_01: They're trying out for every team uh when they're playing.
22:32
SPEAKER_01: So you never know who could see you and like you and and give the team a call.
22:36
SPEAKER_01: And if you get cut, get signed, or maybe even a trade.
22:40
SPEAKER_01: Uh I just in my opinion, I don't see room for him.
22:45
SPEAKER_01: He has looked really good though.
22:46
SPEAKER_01: I th i I thought.
22:48
SPEAKER_01: He he looked good on family night, he looked good yesterday uh against Pittsburgh in actual game action.
22:55
SPEAKER_01: I just with uh Hargrave and Wyatt and then McClellan, who was a draft pick this year, is obviously not going anywhere.
23:03
SPEAKER_01: I think they still are comfortable on Warren Brinson, so that's already four.
23:08
SPEAKER_01: Stackhouse?
23:09
SPEAKER_01: And Stackhouse, Stackhouse is a bubble guy, but he was on the team last year.
23:13
SPEAKER_01: Carl Brooks.
23:14
SPEAKER_01: Carl Brooks, it depends on what you're gonna label Brooks.
23:16
SPEAKER_01: Is he an end?
23:17
SPEAKER_01: Is he a tackle?
23:18
SPEAKER_01: How how are they gonna navigate that as far as a depth chart situation?
23:23
SPEAKER_01: Uh but yes, so that's I mean, that's already six.
23:26
SPEAKER_01: And you're not necessarily gonna carry a whole lot more than that, especially with a 3-4.
23:33
SPEAKER_01: Your your outside linebackers are still technically defensive linemen, so you you have some wiggle room there.
23:41
SPEAKER_01: Uh you have potentially four at edge, and then if you have six D-line, now you're talking ten guys for your defensive line.
23:49
SPEAKER_01: That's that's a pretty solid rotation.
23:51
SPEAKER_01: And that already that doesn't even include uh Campbell, Anthony Campbell on the D-line, who has looked really good.
23:58
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, he's looked really good.
23:59
SPEAKER_02: I think he had multiple uh multiple plays last night where he was in there.
24:03
SPEAKER_02: I think he made a tackle on one and he might have had a pressure or he flushed the quarterback one one play for sure.
24:09
SPEAKER_02: And a lot of a lot of good things um on him in training camp.
24:14
SPEAKER_02: I mean he's a big 6'6, 300.
24:16
SPEAKER_02: He's only like yeah, he's like 306, 307, something like that.
24:19
SPEAKER_02: But uh he likes to get his hands up there and bat the balls down, you know.
24:22
SPEAKER_02: So that's something that we haven't had on this defensive line in a long time.
24:26
SPEAKER_02: Long, long time.
24:26
SPEAKER_02: So we'll see.
24:28
SPEAKER_02: There's tons, tons of competition at that position for sure.
24:32
SPEAKER_02: We'll see how it all shakes out here in the next couple weeks.
24:35
SPEAKER_01: All right, what else do we want to do here?
24:38
SPEAKER_01: Probably my last one for uh good and and really good.
24:42
SPEAKER_01: Uh this was quite refreshing.
24:45
SPEAKER_01: Um, I know it's it's week one, preseason week one, so not gonna get super excited just yet, but the special teams impressed me yesterday.
24:54
SPEAKER_01: No more wee fence.
24:56
SPEAKER_01: Yes, special teams top to bottom, I thought was the best it has looked in a long time.
25:01
SPEAKER_01: I'll agree with you for sure on that.
25:02
SPEAKER_01: Obviously, the kicker, uh, which was a huge question mark, and same thing.
25:07
SPEAKER_01: Doesn't mean he's all of a sudden a Hall of Famer, but he looked good.
25:10
SPEAKER_01: Kind of eased some people's minds, I think, who were you know concerned about his training camp performances going on so far.
25:18
SPEAKER_01: But uh he looked good.
25:20
SPEAKER_01: All his kicks were, I mean, right down the middle.
25:22
SPEAKER_02: They weren't maybes, they weren't that's what I loved about it too.
25:26
SPEAKER_02: I mean, the snap, the hold, everything looked good.
25:28
SPEAKER_02: He looked confident too when he was doing it.
25:30
SPEAKER_02: You see how pumped he was after the long one?
25:32
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and he just drilled him right down the middle.
25:34
SPEAKER_02: There was no question whatsoever.
25:35
SPEAKER_02: So that was refreshing to see.
25:37
SPEAKER_01: And then to go even deeper, the the maybe special teams that you don't notice except when it's bad, was kick coverage unit, the punt coverage unit, and then also kick return.
25:48
SPEAKER_01: I mean, they didn't do anything flashy on kick return, but they didn't have any penalties.
25:52
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
25:52
SPEAKER_01: That at least that I remember remember, there weren't any penalties on the Packers kick return unit.
25:58
SPEAKER_01: Um there was one on punt, but that's you're gonna have one probably at least every game.
26:04
SPEAKER_01: Uh the the coverage unit, that was probably uh one of the bigger tests.
26:08
SPEAKER_01: I know he's a rookie, but uh Caden Caden Wiegen for the Steelers, they drafted him.
26:14
SPEAKER_01: He was the number one returner in the draft out of Iowa.
26:17
SPEAKER_01: That guy is electric, punt and kick returns, and he he didn't have anything.
26:22
SPEAKER_01: There was really nothing available for him on the return unit.
26:26
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I thought that was was really, really refreshing.
26:30
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, even something as small as just the kickoffs.
26:34
SPEAKER_02: We were talking as well earlier how um as a rule change this year, touchbacks go back to the 35, correct?
26:41
SPEAKER_02: Yep.
26:42
SPEAKER_02: So I know last season we had a lot of touchbacks, you know, which last year you start at the 30.
26:48
SPEAKER_02: This year it would be the 35.
26:50
SPEAKER_02: I thought the few kickoffs that uh smack had, he was putting them right on the the one, the two-yard line, you know, forcing the kick returner to come out, and then your coverage unit got down there and they they did well.
27:00
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, with a little bit of hang time.
27:03
SPEAKER_01: I know with the the new setup, you don't necessarily need the same kind of hang time for your guys to get down there.
27:08
SPEAKER_01: They start in the same spot, but just the way that a returner can catch the ball, if they have to kind of wait for it to come down, they're basically starting from a stopping position or a stopped position, whereas the line drive sometimes they can get a little bit more of a running start.
27:22
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, you get that extra momentum moving forward for sure.
27:25
SPEAKER_02: So, yeah, just something little I noticed, you know, on that.
27:29
SPEAKER_02: Very good point.
27:30
SPEAKER_02: Alright.
27:31
SPEAKER_02: Uh, do we want to hop into Aaron Banks' situation a little bit now, or what are you thinking?
27:36
SPEAKER_02: Sure, we can do that.
27:37
SPEAKER_01: Um we just saw before we started this, uh, that I guess Matt LaFleur said that uh Jagger Burton and um Jacob Monk are going to make it very difficult for Aaron Banks to keep his starting spot.
27:52
SPEAKER_02: Which is crazy to me thinking, you know, back when OTAs was going on and minicamp, I think everybody thought Aaron Banks was going to be our starting left guard no matter what, as long as he stayed healthy.
28:03
SPEAKER_02: Well, that's been the problem here.
28:04
SPEAKER_02: I don't know if he's actually banged up or if they're just giving him those rest maintenance days just to make sure that he doesn't get hurt.
28:12
SPEAKER_02: But when he's not out there, there's two young guys that are fighting for that spot.
28:17
SPEAKER_02: Um Jagger Burton obviously was a draft pick this year.
28:20
SPEAKER_02: He's got some versatility on the line.
28:22
SPEAKER_02: He can play center, he can play guard.
28:24
SPEAKER_02: When we saw him at training camp, my first comment to Cody was he kind of looked undersized.
28:29
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, he's he's big, but he's not like towering big, he's not wide big, he's just he's athletic big, which I think could play into our hand big time this year, like you had mentioned earlier, having that athletic guard who can pull on plays or you know, make certain blocks, get up to the linebacker or to the the third level if you have to.
28:51
SPEAKER_01: So that's I I do want to kind of throw a little bit out there on the the size thing.
28:57
SPEAKER_01: Uh it's it's crazy the difference he wasn't in pads when we were there, he wasn't practicing yet.
29:03
SPEAKER_01: He had the the hammy thing that had flared up, so he wasn't back yet.
29:08
SPEAKER_01: Um, and also they weren't in pads anyway when we were there.
29:11
SPEAKER_01: But I think it was Brandt Banks was also out that day, and then after seeing video of him in pads compared to when he was standing on the sideline, he was tall, but he looked tall and skinny, and then he put on the pads, and the dude looked like he was about three twenty and just a monster because he's tall.
29:29
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so that yes, I I totally agree with you on that that he he looked a little undersized, but I don't think it was anything concerning.
29:38
SPEAKER_02: I'm not knocking the size at all.
29:40
SPEAKER_02: I mean, if it was he would put me in the dirt, right?
29:42
SPEAKER_02: I don't care.
29:42
SPEAKER_02: He's he's an animal, any any of those guys for sure.
29:45
SPEAKER_02: But no, I'm excited about him.
29:47
SPEAKER_02: Um Jacob Monk, too.
29:50
SPEAKER_02: He's been on this team for three years now, multiple injuries.
29:54
SPEAKER_02: I think he had a lower body injury, and then last year was it a bicep tear or something, something upper body.
30:00
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it's something that kept him out for a while.
30:02
SPEAKER_01: Uh yeah, it was he was out because there was plenty of opportunity to play, and he really didn't.
30:08
SPEAKER_02: So he's he's out there right now.
30:11
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he's putting he's putting in the work, and all reports out of training camp is he's looked great.
30:16
SPEAKER_02: He's been running with the ones, he seems confident, and I'm excited for it.
30:21
SPEAKER_02: So there's definitely a reality where if these guys keep practicing and playing well, by the time Aaron Banks is ready to come back and play football.
30:30
SPEAKER_02: He may not have a job.
30:31
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, he might they might release him.
30:33
SPEAKER_02: I mean, you were mentioning something earlier about how financially it would make more sense to keep Aaron Banks on the roster this year and release him next year, and he would be a solid debt.
30:44
SPEAKER_02: Oh, you're shaking your head down.
30:46
SPEAKER_01: It was what I saw was actually it would be cheaper even next year to keep him.
30:51
SPEAKER_01: Oh, rather than cutting him.
30:53
SPEAKER_01: So so he could be a backup, a fairly expensive backup.
30:57
SPEAKER_02: But gotcha.
30:58
SPEAKER_02: My mix up there.
30:59
SPEAKER_01: But also at a certain point, sometimes you just gotta eat the cap.
31:04
SPEAKER_01: You know, that you just gotta eat the dead money and and move on.
31:08
SPEAKER_01: Uh, not saying that that's what's going to happen, but it it may be in the cards potentially next year.
31:14
SPEAKER_02: Well, yeah, and you don't want a situation where Aaron Banks feels like he's owed a spot and then there's some locker room drama going on because somebody else is starting over him, and I'm getting paid more than you, and they brought me you you don't need that.
31:26
SPEAKER_02: I mean, so there is a real possibility that he might not be on this team much longer going into the future.
31:31
SPEAKER_02: So that's fair.
31:32
SPEAKER_01: I think uh we I can throw this out there too that I I definitely need to uh apologize to Jacob Monk.
31:39
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
31:40
SPEAKER_01: I I think in our first or second episode, we were looking, we were previewing rosters, and uh I had him as uh almost surefire cut candidate.
31:49
SPEAKER_01: Well, it's looking like he might be a starter.
31:51
SPEAKER_02: I think I was there with you too.
31:52
SPEAKER_02: I think just the frustration of the last couple seasons, him not being out there, and then when he did get opportunity to play, wasn't the greatest.
32:00
SPEAKER_02: You know, he was learning and he I will be the first to admit he has looked night and day.
32:05
SPEAKER_01: Miles, miles ahead of where he's been.
32:07
SPEAKER_01: He has vastly improved over the last offseason, and and now coming into this year, he looks much more comfortable and and much much more impressive.
32:17
SPEAKER_02: All right, I think that kind of wraps up the Steelers game, unless you have anything else you want to add.
32:22
SPEAKER_02: I don't think so.
32:23
SPEAKER_01: Uh yeah, they they lost, but it's preseason game big deal.
32:27
SPEAKER_01: They can go 0-3.
32:28
SPEAKER_01: Peyton Manning's Colts hardly ever won preseason games, and they were always winning that division and going to the playoffs.
32:33
SPEAKER_01: So that's the whole point of preseason.
32:35
SPEAKER_02: You just want to get your starters, those reps, make sure they're in game shape, kind of get some of the the basic offensive and defensive installments in, you know, and just you know, work out the kinks and see how your new coordinators and your new coaching assistants do things.
32:52
SPEAKER_02: And we could touch on that real quick.
32:54
SPEAKER_01: Let's do it.
32:55
SPEAKER_01: Since you you said coordinators, uh, we we had talked about before um off mic that it was it was cool to see uh how how the defense was was uh functioning and how they were calling plays.
33:09
SPEAKER_01: I mean Ganon didn't hold a whole lot back, he was blitzing guys, blitzed blitzed corners, he ran double A gap on second down.
33:17
SPEAKER_01: Like he was he was putting their stuff on tape.
33:20
SPEAKER_01: And Matt LaFleur said the same thing uh in his uh interview coming out from the end of the first half to start the second, that they want to get their stuff on tape because this is new to new for them too.
33:32
SPEAKER_01: So they they want to.
33:34
SPEAKER_01: I believe Ganon said this.
33:36
SPEAKER_01: I didn't see it, but I I think I read it somewhere that and I absolutely love this mentality that and that it's not a quote, so don't don't super quote me on this, but basically he said that they want to get to the point where they don't care if you know what they're running, they're gonna be better at it.
33:52
SPEAKER_01: So I love that.
33:53
SPEAKER_01: They don't care if you know what it is, they're gonna put it on tape, they're gonna call the plays how they're gonna run them, um, and everybody's gonna get comfortable.
34:00
SPEAKER_01: Did talk to with McKinney.
34:02
SPEAKER_01: Um, I saw his sideline interview, interview, and he said that not that, but he basically said that Gannon has let them be free and they don't have to think, they're flying around with the ball, and it's it's exciting.
34:14
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, definitely.
34:15
SPEAKER_01: I'm looking forward to that.
34:16
SPEAKER_02: And yeah, overall, um, I guess we can mention, since we're talking about coordinators quick, uh, Cam Accord, too, just his um presence lately, seeing him at Family Night, just all jacked up and all excited, and him giving his little uh spiel on how to kick a ball.
34:32
SPEAKER_02: He was up there at the podium last week and actually got down on a knee and held the marker as if it was the ball and explained to the whole press room this is how you do it.
34:40
SPEAKER_02: And we haven't had a special teams coordinate coordinator like that in a long time.
34:43
SPEAKER_02: I don't think in our lifetime.
34:45
SPEAKER_01: That was pretty cool to see.
34:46
SPEAKER_01: And usually, you know, they're the guys that stand up there and hold the podium and talk for five minutes and then go back to the locker room.
34:52
SPEAKER_01: And no, he was very much a teacher and very engaged, and yeah, that's that's exciting.
34:58
SPEAKER_01: So you want to hop into a little bit of Denver preview for our next preseason game here?
35:02
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, so next Friday, they are headed to Denver.
35:06
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, it's uh here's my thought on this.
35:09
SPEAKER_02: I'll just throw this out there quick.
35:11
SPEAKER_02: Last year we played Denver in the regular season, and that's kind of where everything went wrong.
35:15
SPEAKER_02: That's where the season unraveled.
35:17
SPEAKER_02: This might be an opportunity for everything to start going right.
35:20
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I don't know how many starters are gonna play, but I mean, if I was coaching that team, I would bring that up.
35:26
SPEAKER_02: Like, hey, last year these guys they beat us.
35:29
SPEAKER_02: We lost practically ended our season with a lot of guys.
35:32
SPEAKER_02: Micah was out, I mean, Watson was out.
35:36
SPEAKER_02: A lot of the bad things happened against Denver last year.
35:38
SPEAKER_02: So I'm kind of excited.
35:39
SPEAKER_01: I mean, maybe go exercise some demons out there.
35:42
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, exactly.
35:42
SPEAKER_01: I mean one way or another.
35:44
SPEAKER_01: I don't think you know they're not gonna play the starters for three quarters and run up the score and anything like that.
35:49
SPEAKER_02: I'm sure some of the starters are gonna play a little bit.
35:52
SPEAKER_02: I would imagine, yeah.
35:53
SPEAKER_02: Maybe a little more than they played against Pittsburgh, maybe give them two series.
35:56
SPEAKER_02: We'll see how.
35:57
SPEAKER_02: Maybe the first quarter.
35:58
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
35:58
SPEAKER_01: Certain guys.
35:59
SPEAKER_01: Jordan Love probably a series, and then he's he looked fine.
36:03
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, uh, I thought, against Pittsburgh.
36:05
SPEAKER_01: So I don't think he he needs a whole lot more refining.
36:09
SPEAKER_01: Um, so yeah, you don't want to play with any fire there.
36:13
SPEAKER_01: Let him let him play and then get him out.
36:15
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I could see our O-line playing roughly the same amount.
36:20
SPEAKER_01: Most of the starters played all of the first quarter and probably halfway through the second.
36:25
SPEAKER_01: Could maybe even see them getting the full half, potentially, um, just to kind of help build some continuity that we've talked about multiple times.
36:35
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I'd I'd be alright with that.
36:37
SPEAKER_02: I mean, we'll see what they do.
36:40
SPEAKER_02: Um there's multiple guys I'm excited to get eyes on again.
36:45
SPEAKER_02: Marshawn Lloyd.
36:46
SPEAKER_02: Want to see a few more, a few more reps out of him, um, see what he can do.
36:51
SPEAKER_02: The guards that we had mentioned.
36:53
SPEAKER_02: Um Burton and uh Jacob Monk.
36:58
SPEAKER_02: Some tight ends.
36:59
SPEAKER_02: There's still absolutely a spot.
37:00
SPEAKER_02: That's a huge, that's a huge uh opening right now for that number two, number three spot.
37:06
SPEAKER_02: Well, three spot, I guess, for sure.
37:08
SPEAKER_02: For sure, three.
37:08
SPEAKER_01: And then it'll depend on how they want to use Josh Wiley.
37:11
SPEAKER_01: I think he's pretty much a lock.
37:12
SPEAKER_01: He played the first series with the starters and then was done.
37:14
SPEAKER_01: Yeah um obviously, you know, 85 is looking like he's gonna be ready to go.
37:20
SPEAKER_01: So he'll be back soon for sure.
37:21
SPEAKER_01: So there's there's your two for sure.
37:24
SPEAKER_01: Uh, I know they have toyed around with the idea of using Wiley in the backfield as a fullback.
37:30
SPEAKER_01: Um, doesn't change his position, but that could allow them to maybe keep an extra one.
37:34
SPEAKER_02: It's been kind of a revolving door with tight ends here the last couple weeks, where they bring a guy in, he practices for a day or two, then they release him.
37:41
SPEAKER_02: Gets hurt, and then bring another guy in, he gets hurt.
37:43
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, so very interesting to see what happens there.
37:46
SPEAKER_01: I want to see some more of uh McCallan.
37:48
SPEAKER_01: McAllen Castle is he looks pretty good.
37:50
SPEAKER_01: I like that guy a lot.
37:51
SPEAKER_01: Uh he you know, he didn't do anything special necessarily.
37:54
SPEAKER_01: He had a nice special teams tackle, speaking of special.
37:56
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
37:57
SPEAKER_01: Um, but other than that, you know, he didn't, I don't think he had a catch, but uh just like we just said, the opportunities are there.
38:05
SPEAKER_01: So, you know, who who's gonna grab him.
38:08
SPEAKER_01: Then uh the kicker too.
38:10
SPEAKER_02: I want to see uh Trace Mac again.
38:11
SPEAKER_02: Especially in Denver, he might be able to kick a 68 yarder.
38:14
SPEAKER_02: I'd be interesting to see uh pre-game, you know, if there's any clips out there what he's kicking.
38:19
SPEAKER_02: I'm sure he'll he'll test it.
38:20
SPEAKER_02: 70 maybe.
38:21
SPEAKER_02: I don't know.
38:22
SPEAKER_02: We'll see.
38:22
SPEAKER_02: But uh, I want to see what Keyshaw Nixon does.
38:25
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he's not put a ton out there.
38:29
SPEAKER_02: I mean, in practice, he's been he's been getting burnt in practice.
38:34
SPEAKER_02: There's just not a whole lot of good things.
38:35
SPEAKER_02: I mean, I'm kind of leaning more towards just let's let this guy go and move on.
38:41
SPEAKER_02: And um, it'll be interesting to see.
38:43
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he's gonna have plenty of opportunities, and who knows, maybe he wakes up and realizes hey, my job is not safe and I need to start playing like I actually want to be a Green Bay Packer.
38:52
SPEAKER_01: That would be honestly, that'd be best case scenario.
38:54
SPEAKER_01: If if we're able to have him flip a switch where all of a sudden he, you know, I I whether it's playing with a chip on his shoulder again for whatever reason it went away, just crowning himself cornerback one, like you said, maybe maybe he's gonna be like, oh, well, maybe I'm not.
39:12
SPEAKER_01: So now I gotta go back and earn it again.
39:14
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
39:14
SPEAKER_02: So yeah, just the cornerback group in general as well.
39:17
SPEAKER_02: I just I want to see a little more out of him.
39:18
SPEAKER_02: I want to see more reps for Brandon Cise.
39:20
SPEAKER_02: I want to see some more Benjamin St.
39:22
SPEAKER_02: Juice.
39:22
SPEAKER_02: We'll see if uh Carrington Ballantyne is fully healthy and able to play in this game.
39:27
SPEAKER_01: Also, uh Damani Jackson, I think, should be getting close, according to LaFleur.
39:33
SPEAKER_01: I'm excited for sure to see what he's got.
39:34
SPEAKER_01: He's another big press man, corner, physical guy.
39:38
SPEAKER_01: Uh speaking of that, we'll just jump right into that.
39:41
SPEAKER_01: Uh the cornerback room, that's I totally agree with with what you were saying about getting some of these guys back on the field because there are jobs to be had.
39:49
SPEAKER_01: Absolutely.
39:49
SPEAKER_01: Uh the Pittsburgh game was less than stellar out of anybody not named Brandon Cise or Brandon St.
39:56
SPEAKER_01: Juice.
39:57
SPEAKER_01: I thought uh St.
39:58
SPEAKER_01: Juice looked fine.
40:00
SPEAKER_01: He didn't do anything spectacular.
40:03
SPEAKER_01: He did chase down uh the the long pass.
40:06
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, it was impressive.
40:07
SPEAKER_01: He he came from the opposite side of the field and caught uh Wiegen inside the five that yeah they they ended up scoring, I think, the next player two plays later, but you never know.
40:18
SPEAKER_01: I mean that could be a a play that saves the game.
40:22
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
40:24
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
40:24
SPEAKER_02: Um Tyrone Hopper, I mean just the linebackers in general.
40:28
SPEAKER_02: I want to see I want to see a little bit of a little bit more of Zaire Franklin and Edrin Cooper, see how they play.
40:35
SPEAKER_02: I mean, the starters probably won't play a ton, but we'll see.
40:38
SPEAKER_02: Um Hopper for sure, um McDuffie, Christian Welch, um Nick Neiman, maybe.
40:44
SPEAKER_02: He had a nice special teams tackle yesterday, too, I believe.
40:46
SPEAKER_01: He looked decent on defense, too.
40:48
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
40:48
SPEAKER_01: I think he's hit he's a guy that I think is pretty safe.
40:51
SPEAKER_01: Uh he's kind of the special teams guy.
40:54
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, they're not gonna just let him go to let him go.
40:56
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he probably won't play a ton of linebacker unless asked to.
40:59
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
41:00
SPEAKER_02: But he's probably one of our top special teams players for sure.
41:04
SPEAKER_01: What they brought him in for, and he's been doing it for a long time in the league, not just with us.
41:08
SPEAKER_01: He was with Houston for a little bit.
41:11
SPEAKER_01: And the Chargers.
41:13
SPEAKER_01: Okay.
41:14
SPEAKER_01: Uh don't I don't remember.
41:16
SPEAKER_01: I don't think he was a pro bowler, but I know he's definitely been he's he's well regarded uh across the league.
41:22
SPEAKER_01: And we kind of missed out on him towards the end of the season.
41:26
SPEAKER_01: It kind of showed, I mean, the special teams was bad in general, but I think not having him was didn't do us any favors.
41:34
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
41:36
SPEAKER_02: Anything else you want to touch on here?
41:38
SPEAKER_01: Um more for uh players to continue to watch.
41:41
SPEAKER_01: Um I think the interior defensive line.
41:43
SPEAKER_02: Yeah.
41:43
SPEAKER_01: Uh we talked about Jonathan Ford.
41:45
SPEAKER_01: I don't again, don't necessarily think he's got a roster spot, but crazier things have happened, and guys can play their way onto the team, absolutely.
41:54
SPEAKER_01: Uh, but there's maybe a spot to be had.
41:58
SPEAKER_01: There's maybe one or two, but there's definitely a lot of different guys that are fighting for just one or two spots.
42:05
SPEAKER_01: So it it's a pretty uh heated competition.
42:08
SPEAKER_01: Um excited to see who can kinda emerge from that group.
42:12
SPEAKER_01: I think even though we're kind of moving back to more of a 3-4, I think those guys are gonna be relied on for certain situations, maybe a little bit more.
42:22
SPEAKER_01: I feel like Jonathan Gannon is very much involved and likes to use the defensive line.
42:30
SPEAKER_01: Um whereas in the past it's kind of just been like in the past two years, but definitely last year it was basically Micah, go do your thing, and everybody else just kinda be in the right spot.
42:40
SPEAKER_01: Where now I feel like they're they're a little more involved and and sort of uh part of the game plan, so it it's definitely uh a spot that's interesting.
42:52
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, I think that kind of wraps it up as far as our Denver preview.
42:56
SPEAKER_02: Um just trying to think here if there's anything else we want to touch on before we header out.
43:03
SPEAKER_01: Um some player stock, I guess we could I don't know if I don't think we talked about that.
43:07
SPEAKER_02: No, we didn't.
43:07
SPEAKER_02: Um obviously most of these guys we've mentioned, um, I guess guys whose stock is up.
43:13
SPEAKER_02: Um Mervin Kenyon, he had a pretty good game yesterday.
43:16
SPEAKER_01: He impressed me.
43:18
SPEAKER_01: Uh he kinda he looked rough at the training camp practice that we were at, from at least what we could see.
43:24
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
43:24
SPEAKER_01: Um he kind of got beat a little bit, and I I think I even made the comment to you when we were there that ah, that guy's, you know, he's just don't don't remember him because he's gonna be gone.
43:33
SPEAKER_01: He's just another guy.
43:34
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, and then he looked really good last night.
43:36
SPEAKER_02: So uh pretty sure he led the team in tackles.
43:38
SPEAKER_02: I think so, yeah.
43:39
SPEAKER_02: Looked pretty good on I think he got you said he got burnt on one or he completely whiffed on a tackle, but it was that the long play.
43:45
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
43:46
SPEAKER_01: Um from the back angle, it kind of it looked like he did get maybe just outran.
43:52
SPEAKER_01: Uh he didn't necessarily it wasn't a horrible miss tackle.
43:56
SPEAKER_01: Um it's a play that you wish could have been made, but also it the guy was fast.
44:02
SPEAKER_01: I mean that that was a big ask.
44:03
SPEAKER_01: So Yeah, but he was all over the field, uh, Kenyon was.
44:07
SPEAKER_01: He was, yeah.
44:08
SPEAKER_01: He was around the ball a lot, tackles, and I don't think he had any he didn't uh necessarily have any PBUs, I don't think.
44:16
SPEAKER_01: But just being in the right spot and you know, as a safety, being that last line of defense is something that is a is a big deal.
44:24
SPEAKER_01: Brenton Cox for sure.
44:25
SPEAKER_01: Looked awesome.
44:26
SPEAKER_01: He had sack.
44:27
SPEAKER_01: Yeah uh I he came out like I think he's fairly safe.
44:32
SPEAKER_01: Oh wow.
44:32
SPEAKER_01: Um I would agree with that for sure.
44:34
SPEAKER_01: He played like the second and third quarters and then he was done.
44:37
SPEAKER_01: Yeah.
44:37
SPEAKER_01: So he's he's pretty safe.
44:39
SPEAKER_01: Uh I thought Jordan Morgan looked like a left tackle yesterday.
44:44
SPEAKER_02: He his stock is rising as we speak.
44:48
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he played phenomenal.
44:51
SPEAKER_02: There was one play, um, he got to the second level, and uh, who'd you say it was?
44:56
SPEAKER_02: Uh Jamal Dean.
44:57
SPEAKER_02: He put him on his butt.
44:59
SPEAKER_02: I mean, he got to the second level there, found a man, pancaked him without even really trying.
45:05
SPEAKER_01: Granted, he, you know, got a hundred pup a hundred plus pounds on him, but still.
45:09
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, he put him right down, and that was awesome.
45:11
SPEAKER_02: I mean, overall, consistent, looked comfortable.
45:14
SPEAKER_02: There was no question, I mean, throughout the game, he's our starting left tackle.
45:18
SPEAKER_02: Absolutely.
45:18
SPEAKER_02: Everything that we were hoping for.
45:20
SPEAKER_02: We got it, and he's still young.
45:22
SPEAKER_02: There's gonna be bumps in the road throughout the season with all these players.
45:26
SPEAKER_02: But he was a first-round pick.
45:27
SPEAKER_02: The whole point of this was to have him be a starter.
45:31
SPEAKER_02: This is his year, it's his time.
45:33
SPEAKER_02: I'm excited for it.
45:34
SPEAKER_01: So granted, it was preseason, but that was one of the better edge rooms that you're gonna go up against.
45:40
SPEAKER_01: So to have that be the first test was great, and he passed it with flying colors.
45:44
SPEAKER_01: And he's been shining throughout training camp here, too, as well.
45:47
SPEAKER_01: I mean, Joe Joe Thomas, yeah, yeah, Hall of Fame lineman from Wisconsin, has said nothing but good things about him that he's he's got the right makeup, he's got everything you need to be a true star left tackle.
46:01
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, and then two guys we mentioned earlier whose stock is also rising, uh, Jacob Monk and Jager Burton.
46:08
SPEAKER_02: Not really much more to say about them.
46:09
SPEAKER_02: We kind of touched on that earlier, but um very excited to see them keep playing.
46:14
SPEAKER_02: And then Keyshawn Nixon, we've brought him up multiple times here.
46:17
SPEAKER_02: His stock is dropping.
46:18
SPEAKER_02: He just he has to he has to figure it out.
46:20
SPEAKER_02: That's all I got left to say.
46:22
SPEAKER_01: Yeah, yep, I would agree with that.
46:23
SPEAKER_01: Um Aaron Banks, too, a little bit.
46:25
SPEAKER_01: He's another guy that I mean it's very possible that it was just not necessarily precautionary, but there were a lot of guys that didn't suit up, and maybe he was just one of them.
46:36
SPEAKER_01: But after hearing that Matt LaFleur said that, uh, I maybe it wasn't.
46:41
SPEAKER_01: And yeah, he's he's gotta figure it out and get on the field and and put some some good time in.
46:47
SPEAKER_01: Um, otherwise he is gonna be an expensive backup guard.
46:50
SPEAKER_02: Yeah, we'll see what happens for sure.
46:52
SPEAKER_02: We're looking forward to next Friday uh when we take on Denver.
46:55
SPEAKER_02: It's uh we're getting there, folks.
46:57
SPEAKER_02: We're getting closer and closer to the regular season.
47:00
SPEAKER_02: Um I'm excited about it, and uh hope you guys are enjoying these episodes.
47:05
SPEAKER_02: It's finally back.