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NFL Report: Russell Wilson to Start for Steelers & Antonio Pierce on Raiders QB Search · NFL Game Previews

0:00
Speaker 1: This is Jason Knight, general manager of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers,
0:03
Speaker 1: and this is the NFL Report.
0:10
Speaker 2: Hi, Welcome to the NFL Report. I'm Steve Whitch with
0:13
Speaker 2: Tom Pellis Sarah filling in for James Palmer, who's on
0:16
Speaker 2: the slopes.
0:16
Speaker 1: Tom.
0:17
Speaker 2: We are in Orlando, Florida at the annual NFL Meeting.
0:21
Speaker 1: And what a show that we have today.
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Speaker 2: We're gonna hear from Antonio Pierce, the Raiders head coach,
0:26
Speaker 2: from the coaches of the team, to the top three
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Speaker 2: draft picks, and we're gonna be joined by Vikings co
0:31
Speaker 2: owner Mark wil.
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Speaker 3: Should be a lot of fun here. We got a
0:34
Speaker 3: lot of action already. We got rules changing, yep. We
0:37
Speaker 3: got coaches dining and talking to the media for the
0:40
Speaker 3: first time since free agency.
0:41
Speaker 4: A lot of fun.
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Speaker 2: Rules change is also going to be joined by Tom's
0:43
Speaker 2: fellow in Tigers, Mark Garrafollo and Ian Rappaport in just
0:46
Speaker 2: a minute. But the big news of the morning, Steelers
0:49
Speaker 2: coach Mike Tomlin sitting down with the media addressing his
0:53
Speaker 2: new quarterback row.
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Speaker 5: We're not resistant the competition, but as I've mentioned several
0:59
Speaker 5: times of late, I just think it's appropriate to establish
1:03
Speaker 5: positioning as we get into this thing, and the term
1:07
Speaker 5: that I've used is Russell has polled position. And why
1:10
Speaker 5: do I use that term because during this time where
1:14
Speaker 5: we are not formally working, man, I just think it's
1:17
Speaker 5: beneficial his experience in the National Football League, his process
1:23
Speaker 5: that's been honed and perfected. Talking about over a twelve
1:26
Speaker 5: month calendar is not only good for him, it's good
1:29
Speaker 5: for teams.
1:32
Speaker 2: So Tom here, Mike Tomlin talking about that Russell Wilson,
1:34
Speaker 2: who they acquired, you know, and for one point two
1:38
Speaker 2: million dollars in justin field. So they got for a
1:40
Speaker 2: twenty twenty five draft pick. They're in the quarterback room now.
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Speaker 2: He said, we're going to leave it over for a competition,
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Speaker 2: but I'm putting Russell Wilson there first.
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Speaker 1: He's giving me the first guy to take some reps.
1:51
Speaker 2: Mike Tomlin has not been in this position since he's
1:54
Speaker 2: been the head coach of the Pittsburgh Steelers. What do
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Speaker 2: you kind of take for him from him basically saying
2:01
Speaker 2: Russell is going to start out as the guy.
2:03
Speaker 3: Well, Mike Tomlin is a big believer in having a
2:06
Speaker 3: depth chart even going into the offseason. And to clarify
2:09
Speaker 3: people's roles, the expectations. It removes a lot of the
2:12
Speaker 3: ambiguity and the questions you get through the course of
2:14
Speaker 3: this offseason. So we reported shortly after Ian broke the
2:17
Speaker 3: trade of Justin Field's going to Pittsburgh.
2:19
Speaker 4: I tweeted it. I was told Russell Wilson is the starter.
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Speaker 3: Whole position is a little bit of a head said, well,
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Speaker 3: Justin Fields, who we get into camp, we get into
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Speaker 3: the games, who get an opportunity to show his abilities,
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Speaker 3: as only Mike Tomlin can say here, but listen, they
2:35
Speaker 3: want to put everything they have behind Russell Wilson. He's
2:38
Speaker 3: the veteran, He's the guy who really intrigued Mike Tomlin.
2:41
Speaker 3: Tom talked about this too at the breakfast, saying that
2:43
Speaker 3: this is a guy who was really driven to define
2:46
Speaker 3: his career and that's something that's spoke right. In other words,
2:49
Speaker 3: Russell Wilson's gotten kicked around. He's gone from being let
2:52
Speaker 3: Russ Cook, let him throw it around, super Bowl champ,
2:56
Speaker 3: maybe a future Hall of Famer, to a guy who's
2:58
Speaker 3: been a punchline for a couple of years here going
3:00
Speaker 3: back to the end in Seattle and obviously a couple
3:02
Speaker 3: of tumultuous seasons, I think it's fair.
3:04
Speaker 4: To say in Denver here.
3:06
Speaker 3: So now he goes into Pittsburgh and it's still announced
3:09
Speaker 3: with a video on social media, and he's still posting
3:12
Speaker 3: the workout videos.
3:13
Speaker 4: Russ is going to be Russ.
3:15
Speaker 3: However, for the way that they want to play, it's
3:18
Speaker 3: kind of a throwback to what Russell Wilson grew up in.
3:21
Speaker 3: Play good defense, run the heck out of the football,
3:24
Speaker 3: and have a veteran quarterback who's going to protect the
3:26
Speaker 3: ball make a few plays when he might need it.
3:28
Speaker 2: And that's important because Arthur Smith, the former Falcons head coach,
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Speaker 2: is now the offensive coordinator for Pittsburgh and what was
3:33
Speaker 2: the identity of the Falcons they ran the football. One
3:37
Speaker 2: thing Tomlin also said, which he enambered him with Russell Wilson,
3:40
Speaker 2: is when they started speaking to him in this process,
3:43
Speaker 2: Russell had done his homework on the Steelers their kind
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Speaker 2: of background, not history, but how Arthur Smith wants to
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Speaker 2: run this offense.
3:52
Speaker 1: So that really spoke to him as well.
3:54
Speaker 2: Again, as Mike Tomlin is changing over his quarterback room,
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Speaker 2: tom we also have some changes coming to the NFL
4:02
Speaker 2: next year. Here at the Owners meeting. The Competition Committee
4:05
Speaker 2: already has voted among its owners to ban the swivel
4:10
Speaker 2: hip drop tackle, and JJ Watt says, just fast forward
4:14
Speaker 2: to the belts with flags on him.
4:17
Speaker 4: Here comes He's you just saying we're not playing anymore.
4:19
Speaker 2: J jaths Ah, But Jonathan Grenard's playing the new Vikings
4:22
Speaker 2: defensive end, penalizing defenders for trying to tackle a runner
4:25
Speaker 2: who has the option to.
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Speaker 1: Go down to prevent injury. Yeah, makes sense.
4:30
Speaker 2: So this is another interesting take because we know the
4:33
Speaker 2: NFLPA the players didn't like that, but here we go,
4:35
Speaker 2: Jonathan Gernard more. You can't ban something and not show
4:39
Speaker 2: us the alternatives, like, come.
4:42
Speaker 4: On, rest assured.
4:43
Speaker 3: There will be a tape Jonathan that you will have
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Speaker 3: to watch in camp and you can ask all the questions.
4:48
Speaker 4: The league will do the tour. They'll show us probably the.
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Speaker 3: Same tape with a few alternatives that they showed in
4:53
Speaker 3: the press conference earlier today. Listen when Roger Gondale, Troy Vincent,
4:57
Speaker 3: Rich McKay all come out in recent months and say
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Speaker 3: very clear, this is a play we want to get
5:01
Speaker 3: out of the game, no matter what the opposition is
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Speaker 3: for players or anyone else.
5:05
Speaker 4: This was what was going to happen.
5:07
Speaker 2: All right, Tom, Now we're joined by your fellow in
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Speaker 2: Tiler's Mike, you're a follow Ian Rappaporton.
5:12
Speaker 1: Guys, thanks for joining us. That's been a long day.
5:14
Speaker 1: But the banning of the swivel hip drop tackle, Mike,
5:19
Speaker 1: we're expecting this when we came here, but let's explain
5:23
Speaker 1: for folks exactly what's being banned and why.
5:26
Speaker 6: Yeah, because there is a lot of reaction to this
5:28
Speaker 6: because the thought is this happens so often in a game,
5:31
Speaker 6: and it's gonna be flags all over the place. What
5:33
Speaker 6: the NFL has said with Rich McKay, the chairman of
5:35
Speaker 6: the Competition Committee said, what Jeff Miller, the NFL executive,
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Speaker 6: tried to make clear is that it's not that common
5:41
Speaker 6: of an occurrence because it's not just a hip drop.
5:45
Speaker 6: It is the swivel hip droppers. They really did not
5:47
Speaker 6: hammer home last week. The home once we got here,
5:50
Speaker 6: all of a sudden, it was like, let's emphasize the
5:51
Speaker 6: swivel part and that is the coming up off the ground.
5:55
Speaker 6: You can't really tell them on that one. We'll see
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Speaker 6: another one coming up here, but.
5:58
Speaker 4: It is the not a good sign.
5:59
Speaker 3: Mike, first highlight, well, you can't really tell there, well
6:02
Speaker 3: grab this is the one.
6:03
Speaker 2: Right here the market, but he was already on this right,
6:05
Speaker 2: this was on the ground, but this was the mark
6:07
Speaker 2: Andrews injury was the one that really well, it's it's.
6:12
Speaker 6: The thought is you grabbed the ball carrier with two hands,
6:14
Speaker 6: then you as a defender, lift yourself into the air
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Speaker 6: with some kind of swivel motion potentially, and then you
6:19
Speaker 6: come down on the player in a way that you're
6:22
Speaker 6: driving his ankles and knees into the ground. You're resulting
6:25
Speaker 6: in the high ankle sprains and these types of things.
6:28
Speaker 6: They found based on what they did from their review
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Speaker 6: of the NFL two hundred and thirty instances, which is
6:33
Speaker 6: what less than one per game, So don't panic. Don't
6:36
Speaker 6: be thinking this is gonna happen like five or six
6:38
Speaker 6: times a game.
6:39
Speaker 1: Uh.
6:40
Speaker 6: And of those tackles, fifteen resulted in an injury with
6:42
Speaker 6: a player missing a game going forward. So it is
6:44
Speaker 6: a high incidence if you're looking at in that regard
6:47
Speaker 6: as far as injury. I talked to John Marra, who's
6:50
Speaker 6: you know, been in the competition committee probably longer than anybody,
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Speaker 6: and what he said Ian is that it's something that
6:57
Speaker 6: had to be taken out of the game.
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Speaker 1: They understood the defensive players were going to.
6:59
Speaker 6: Be upset it, but they've adapted to other things like
7:02
Speaker 6: the horse cower attacking tackle, and they feel like they're gonna.
7:04
Speaker 1: Adapt to this.
7:04
Speaker 7: Yeah, I though Jeff Miller, one of the NFL's executives
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Speaker 7: on health and safety, explained it well, and you know,
7:09
Speaker 7: he essentially brought up the reaction from defensive players, said, well,
7:13
Speaker 7: you tell us we can't do anything, what can we do?
7:16
Speaker 7: And then his answer was definitely not that. And to me,
7:19
Speaker 7: like you watch the Mark andrews logan Wilson play where
7:22
Speaker 7: he basically breaks his leg based on being a defensive
7:25
Speaker 7: player and a tackle, and it's like, whatever you can
7:27
Speaker 7: do to make sure that one of the best weapons
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Speaker 7: in the game doesn't get a broken leg on a
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Speaker 7: routine tackle, whatever you can do to make sure that
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Speaker 7: doesn't happen.
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Speaker 4: I'm good with that rule and I've been not surprised.
7:39
Speaker 7: But you know, eyebrow raised a little bit of some
7:42
Speaker 7: of the defensive players weighing in on some of these,
7:47
Speaker 7: you know, on the rules change, because the reality is
7:49
Speaker 7: it is a tackle that routinely injures their fellow players
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Speaker 7: and fellow union members.
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Speaker 1: They should be for this, not against it.
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Speaker 8: And I'm a little surprised by.
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Speaker 6: It, which is why the union stance on this is
8:02
Speaker 6: the most interesting aspect of me, because it's a lot
8:05
Speaker 6: easier when it's player against team, go back to player,
8:08
Speaker 6: it's easy, right. In this case, it's half the players
8:12
Speaker 6: are against the defensive side of the ball, and the
8:14
Speaker 6: players in the offensive side of the ball are obviously said, hey,
8:16
Speaker 6: anything you can do it protect us and help us
8:18
Speaker 6: out here.
8:19
Speaker 1: So it's like which.
8:19
Speaker 4: Side do they take? And they came down strongly onside.
8:22
Speaker 4: But here's the player.
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Speaker 2: They announced this again, we knew this was coming, but
8:24
Speaker 2: they announced it at the same time. They say, well,
8:26
Speaker 2: defenses have caught up because we see that scoring is down.
8:29
Speaker 1: So now the defensive players are saying.
8:31
Speaker 4: We finally make some headway.
8:33
Speaker 1: And now you're doing something to ban a tackle. Look.
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Speaker 2: I spoke to say, you're Franklin, the linebacker for the Colts,
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Speaker 2: who said, we don't go into any place saying we're
8:40
Speaker 2: going to tackle tackle a player this way. Yeah, A
8:43
Speaker 2: lot of times, like Logan Wilson against Mark Ansch is
8:45
Speaker 2: a smaller player trying to bring down a bigger dude.
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Speaker 1: Because you can no longer maybe drive his helmet into
8:51
Speaker 1: him or whatever. So this is what it is.
8:53
Speaker 3: Well and listen to what a unions do. They protect
8:56
Speaker 3: wages and working conditions. The number one concern here forget it.
9:00
Speaker 3: Know I'm gonna get penalized because my team, it's are
9:02
Speaker 3: we all going to get fined for this?
9:04
Speaker 4: The number one complain everybody last year with USA helmet.
9:07
Speaker 4: It wasn't about the very rare times was called in games.
9:09
Speaker 3: It was about all the times the guys were getting
9:12
Speaker 3: fined the next week and the guys like Jalen Warren,
9:14
Speaker 3: we're losing entire game checks.
9:16
Speaker 4: That's what this comes down to.
9:18
Speaker 3: My prediction is going to be you will see a
9:21
Speaker 3: ton of fines during the preseason and because some officials
9:27
Speaker 3: a lot of times the league will incourage them, hey
9:29
Speaker 3: through a few so we've got.
9:30
Speaker 4: A frame of reference.
9:31
Speaker 3: We can look at those plays, what did you see
9:33
Speaker 3: and then have them be correctable. When we get to
9:35
Speaker 3: the regular season, it'll be fewer fines still some and it'll
9:38
Speaker 3: be virtually no flags. That's usually how these things go.
9:42
Speaker 3: And if it is something that egregious, I don't know that.
9:44
Speaker 3: There's a lot of people who look at, for instance,
9:46
Speaker 3: the Geno Smith play where he gets dragged down from
9:48
Speaker 3: the behind and say, well, that was a tackle that
9:50
Speaker 3: was necessary on And.
9:52
Speaker 2: The one thing they also made clear it was like,
9:54
Speaker 2: there will be no video replay assistance on this to
9:56
Speaker 2: help the officials.
9:57
Speaker 1: Whatever the call is to call will stand.
9:59
Speaker 6: Yeah, the only video replay you're gonna see is what
10:01
Speaker 6: they're gonna send to these teams every week in and
10:03
Speaker 6: week out and say, hey, here were four instances that
10:05
Speaker 6: weren't called, and this is something that we're looking to
10:08
Speaker 6: take out of the game.
10:08
Speaker 4: It's it's it's.
10:09
Speaker 6: Gonna be hard to officiate, which a lot of things
10:12
Speaker 6: are hard to officiate, but but some of these are
10:13
Speaker 6: more cut and dried, right, like the hits to the head,
10:16
Speaker 6: it's either a hit to a head or it's not
10:17
Speaker 6: a hit to head. The horse collar you know it
10:19
Speaker 6: when you see it. Obviously on this one you sort
10:22
Speaker 6: of know when you see it. But there's gonna be
10:23
Speaker 6: ones that are gonna be right up against it, and
10:25
Speaker 6: it's it's it's gonna be a.
10:27
Speaker 3: Topic of the ones that don't get called. Yeah, it's
10:29
Speaker 3: gonna be the controversy. It's something obvious that gets called
10:31
Speaker 3: it's gonna be okay, Yeah, that's fine, it's gonna be Wait,
10:34
Speaker 3: why wasn't that call? Now that's where you're gonna run
10:37
Speaker 3: into some issues. And that's where again they're taking their
10:39
Speaker 3: cue from international rugby. When this same type of tackle
10:42
Speaker 3: started to get out lawned. It wasn't with penalties or
10:45
Speaker 3: whatever they called in rugby. I've never watched rugby.
10:47
Speaker 4: It was find guys.
10:49
Speaker 3: Initially, because you're trying to correct the technique without disrupting
10:53
Speaker 3: the games, we're gonna see the same thing.
10:54
Speaker 4: You're a big rugby guy.
10:55
Speaker 1: I'm not a big rugby guy, but it's very entertaining
10:57
Speaker 1: to watch.
10:58
Speaker 8: Spend some time in Hong.
10:59
Speaker 1: Kong and rugby was on.
11:00
Speaker 4: Have you ever seen a flag for a hip drop ft?
11:01
Speaker 4: Do they have flags?
11:03
Speaker 9: I know?
11:04
Speaker 1: Okay, okay, time to get back on the rails. Eda, Mike,
11:06
Speaker 1: thank you so much. Everybody.
11:07
Speaker 2: You could catch the insiders these three guys tomorrow here
11:11
Speaker 2: from the league meetings at one pm Eastern time here on.
11:15
Speaker 1: The NFL Network, And coming up next we're gonna be
11:18
Speaker 1: hearing from the coaches with the top three picks in
11:21
Speaker 1: the NFL Draft. This is good stuff. Come back and
11:25
Speaker 1: roll that tape.
11:26
Speaker 10: LC.
11:37
Speaker 2: It's time for the lead block, presented by Team Mobile
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11:49
Speaker 4: A month away from the twenty twenty.
11:51
Speaker 3: Four NFL Draft, and boy do we got some quarterbacks
11:55
Speaker 3: for you? Starts with that guy Caleb Williams from USC,
11:58
Speaker 3: the presumptive number one overall pick. But you got Drake
12:01
Speaker 3: Mate out of North Carolina. You got guys like Jayden
12:05
Speaker 3: Daniels out of LSU who could be there. The Bear's
12:09
Speaker 3: takula lives at number two. Little conversation with Dan Quinn
12:12
Speaker 3: about that. So based on what you've done and trade
12:16
Speaker 3: away the guy was the starter last year. Is it
12:18
Speaker 3: fair to say at this point that you envision taking
12:22
Speaker 3: a quarterback at number two?
12:23
Speaker 11: I would say it'd be fair to envision we'll be
12:25
Speaker 11: taking a quarterback. To say where it will be happening,
12:28
Speaker 11: I think that's a better question for Adam. You know,
12:30
Speaker 11: as the next week's unfold, there'll be a lot of discussion.
12:34
Speaker 3: Speaking of trades. Is the phone ringing on number two?
12:37
Speaker 3: And is Adam even allowed to answer it. Yes, I
12:40
Speaker 3: would say it's ring and because, like you said, the
12:44
Speaker 3: talent of the group this year, and so I would
12:46
Speaker 3: anticipate in you know, fielding these calls as it.
12:51
Speaker 10: Goes through to it.
12:52
Speaker 11: You know, it is part of the process, and you
12:54
Speaker 11: do have to do your due diligence to listen and
12:56
Speaker 11: find out just to make sure, like is there something
12:59
Speaker 11: that you know that you just couldn't refuse. I certainly
13:04
Speaker 11: walked past it in the hallway, went after the Cowboys,
13:06
Speaker 11: you know, years ago for a trade that involved herschel
13:08
Speaker 11: Walker and many of draft picks and changed a lot
13:11
Speaker 11: of their organization. So I think anybody in personnel with
13:15
Speaker 11: the with the skill at them, they're going to listen.
13:17
Speaker 11: But there's only so many things that you would consider,
13:21
Speaker 11: and it had better be really good.
13:24
Speaker 4: Day. Quinn certainly sounds like a guy who in.
13:27
Speaker 3: His first year in Washington expects to be getting a
13:30
Speaker 3: quarterback pretty high here, probably.
13:32
Speaker 4: At number two, although he did leave open.
13:34
Speaker 3: I mean herschel Walker that was a was a big
13:36
Speaker 3: time trade, right there, a blockbuster type of deal that
13:39
Speaker 3: maybe could get them to move and maybe if their
13:42
Speaker 3: quarterback is not Jayden Dangels, Steve, We'll being.
13:44
Speaker 4: Back and getting a different cut. That's a big could
13:47
Speaker 4: make some sense.
13:48
Speaker 2: That's a big if, because the one thing at number
13:50
Speaker 2: two is that's the last spot in this draft where
13:52
Speaker 2: you know you've got your own opportunity to pick the
13:55
Speaker 2: guy that you want. Caleb Williams is going to Chicago,
13:59
Speaker 2: right That's that's money in the bank right there.
14:01
Speaker 4: That is that certainly would appear to be the plan.
14:04
Speaker 1: That appears to be the plan.
14:05
Speaker 4: We got a hedge. Come on, we still got a
14:06
Speaker 4: month of drama here.
14:07
Speaker 1: But time.
14:08
Speaker 2: You know, if they trade back now, they're depending on
14:10
Speaker 2: what happens in front of them to see if they're
14:12
Speaker 2: gonna get a guy.
14:12
Speaker 1: If they come out of this draft.
14:13
Speaker 2: And they have an opportunity to get one of the
14:16
Speaker 2: top quarterbacks and don't, that's a problem for dan Quinn
14:20
Speaker 2: and the staff as they try to rebuild this roster.
14:22
Speaker 1: We see some of the moves that they made.
14:24
Speaker 2: You know, they added Austin Eckler, they added some players
14:26
Speaker 2: up front to help with the team, even to support
14:29
Speaker 2: a young quarterback. So if they don't take one at
14:32
Speaker 2: number two.
14:33
Speaker 3: What I find fascinating is just the conversations I've had.
14:36
Speaker 3: I haven't seen Adam Peters here at the NFL Annual
14:38
Speaker 3: meeting yet. When I've talked to other gms and everybody's
14:41
Speaker 3: trying to fail what everybody else is doing, more than
14:43
Speaker 3: one have said to me they think the guy for
14:46
Speaker 3: Washington is JJ McCarthy.
14:48
Speaker 4: Wow, is that the picket too? Is that the trade
14:51
Speaker 4: down scenario?
14:51
Speaker 2: Right?
14:51
Speaker 3: I'm not saying that's what happens. I'm not getting that
14:54
Speaker 3: from Adam Peters or the Washington Commanders. I'm just saying
14:57
Speaker 3: there are people in the league who believe that their
15:00
Speaker 3: actual guy.
15:01
Speaker 2: Remember last time Adam Peters when the situation he's with
15:03
Speaker 2: the Niners and people were saying, oh, Mac Jones, Mac
15:06
Speaker 2: Jones is gonna be the Niners quarterback the end with
15:07
Speaker 2: Trey Lance. Neither has worked out, so they hope things
15:10
Speaker 2: go better right there. Well, we know who is picking
15:13
Speaker 2: after the Washington Commanders at number three. That's the New
15:17
Speaker 2: England Patriots. They also need a quarterback, and I sat
15:20
Speaker 2: down with their coach, girod Mayo, who, like Dan Quinn,
15:23
Speaker 2: did not sidestep the fact that getting a quarterback is
15:26
Speaker 2: a priority.
15:29
Speaker 10: It's the priority right now.
15:30
Speaker 12: But with that being said, you have to really be
15:32
Speaker 12: in love with the guy to take in that number three,
15:34
Speaker 12: and so really all the options are still open for us.
15:37
Speaker 10: Do you think your perspective of playing for so long
15:41
Speaker 10: and then coaching on the defensive side for so long
15:44
Speaker 10: is really giving you a special insight and evaluating quarterback.
15:47
Speaker 12: Yeah, I think so. With that being said, I'm not
15:50
Speaker 12: going to sit here and talk to you about mechanics
15:52
Speaker 12: and things like that, but I can see competitiveness. I
15:55
Speaker 12: can't see toughness. I can't see a playmaker out there.
15:58
Speaker 12: But you know, with our staff with Elliott and you
16:01
Speaker 12: know the quarterback guys that we have out in New
16:03
Speaker 12: England now we have multiple including Macado, avp TC. All
16:07
Speaker 12: those guys have been you know, watching quarterbacks for a
16:09
Speaker 12: long time and I really think we have to work,
16:11
Speaker 12: you know, work together to come to some type of
16:13
Speaker 12: consensus to really feel good about number three.
16:15
Speaker 1: Yeah.
16:16
Speaker 2: I'm glad you said that about I can't talk to your
16:18
Speaker 2: mechanics and off platform or this or that, but the competitiveness,
16:24
Speaker 2: how important is that too? You played with the greatest
16:27
Speaker 2: who's ever done you know, he was the most competitive
16:29
Speaker 2: guy to ever ever do it.
16:31
Speaker 10: How important of a trait is that tea. It's huge.
16:33
Speaker 9: You know.
16:34
Speaker 12: You see these quarterbacks that have the mechanics, they have
16:36
Speaker 12: all the tools, but lack toughness. You know, you're gonna
16:39
Speaker 12: get hit in the NFL as a quarterback and you
16:41
Speaker 12: have to be able to stand in there and really
16:43
Speaker 12: just get back up and do it all over again.
16:45
Speaker 12: So toughness is definitely a huge part.
16:47
Speaker 2: What's it like following Bill Belichick, a guy you won
16:51
Speaker 2: Super Bowls with and knowing his history, what's it like
16:55
Speaker 2: stepping into that role?
16:57
Speaker 10: It's tough.
16:58
Speaker 12: I mean, look, those are huge choose to feel. At
17:01
Speaker 12: the same time, I have to be myself. It's gotten
17:04
Speaker 12: me this far and I'm not trying to be Bill Belichick.
17:07
Speaker 12: I'm Gerroi Mayo.
17:08
Speaker 10: This is me.
17:09
Speaker 12: And when you talk about establishing cultures and leadership, I
17:13
Speaker 12: have a certain way of doing that. But at the
17:16
Speaker 12: same time, I did learn a lot from you know,
17:17
Speaker 12: perhaps the greatest coach in all time.
17:21
Speaker 2: You know, later on that interview, Tom Mayo told me
17:23
Speaker 2: that also one of his huge influence to influences coaching
17:26
Speaker 2: is Mike Tomblin. They're both from the same town in
17:28
Speaker 2: the Hampton, Virginia area. The Tomlin has really giving him
17:31
Speaker 2: a lot of insight as well. But I want to
17:33
Speaker 2: get back to what he was saying about quarterback because
17:36
Speaker 2: unlike Washington, who knows what's going to happen.
17:39
Speaker 1: In front of him, Patriots don't.
17:41
Speaker 2: And if Washington chooses the quarterback that the Patriots may like,
17:46
Speaker 2: because you heard him say they have to come to
17:47
Speaker 2: a consensus, then maybe they bail because we know there's
17:52
Speaker 2: about five teams that want to get up and get
17:54
Speaker 2: one of these quarterbacks, so it'd be very interesting. I
17:58
Speaker 2: still don't think they'll bail. I still got the feeling
18:00
Speaker 2: after talking with him, they're going to keep the pick
18:02
Speaker 2: and choose a quarterback right there. But then and their
18:05
Speaker 2: roster's kind of barren. They're going to have to build
18:08
Speaker 2: a roster around the quarterback that they take right there.
18:11
Speaker 2: More so, what Washington is doing is building a roster
18:15
Speaker 2: now to support a young quarterback.
18:16
Speaker 4: And the questions are who would be those teams trying
18:19
Speaker 4: to trade up. You've got the Giants at number six.
18:21
Speaker 3: Brandy Will told me earlier this week that when Daniel
18:23
Speaker 3: Jones gets back, he's the guy, which is kind of
18:26
Speaker 3: the thing you have to go with because making thirty
18:27
Speaker 3: five point five million dollars guarantee doesn't preclude the Giants
18:30
Speaker 3: draftter the quarterback. The Vikings now on the eleven and
18:33
Speaker 3: the twenty t picks any value chart you go with,
18:36
Speaker 3: that's enough to get you up to about number four,
18:39
Speaker 3: so they could be.
18:39
Speaker 4: A potential team. And of course the Raiders.
18:41
Speaker 3: We know when Mark Davis and Antonio Pierce said that
18:44
Speaker 3: with all the prospective gms, a big piece of but
18:45
Speaker 3: it was how do.
18:46
Speaker 4: We go get the quarterback? What would it take for
18:48
Speaker 4: us to go get the quarterback?
18:49
Speaker 3: Here there are a bunch of teams potentially in that
18:51
Speaker 3: trade up mix, and usually there's somebody Steve who maybe
18:55
Speaker 3: secretly else was amick.
18:56
Speaker 2: That a wrap for the lead block presented by Team
18:59
Speaker 2: Mobile for Business, a sport as fast as football deserves
19:02
Speaker 2: America's fastest five G network. Businesses go further with T
19:06
Speaker 2: Mobile for Business coming up next on the NFL Report.
19:10
Speaker 1: You do not want to miss this.
19:12
Speaker 2: It is one unplugged and unfiltered Antonio Pierce, the head
19:18
Speaker 2: coach of Las Vegas, and he brings the fire next.
19:24
Speaker 1: On the NFL Report. Let's do what we do, boy,
19:37
Speaker 1: this is what we do. Be specially to night. All right,
19:38
Speaker 1: crazy lads, get some jews down.
19:40
Speaker 4: Let's go up top.
19:41
Speaker 1: Huh, I'm top.
19:41
Speaker 4: Oh two, let's go what like it?
19:46
Speaker 1: Like it? Pound them, pound.
19:48
Speaker 8: Them, pound them, pound them. Let's get the ball off
19:51
Speaker 8: this when we sat.
19:52
Speaker 1: Down, fifth sack of the game. You can't keep this
19:56
Speaker 1: tea line down, John Cope.
19:58
Speaker 2: You're gonna get you to see the or man, the
20:00
Speaker 2: awesome seeing what you're doing as a former player. You
20:03
Speaker 2: just heard Raiders coach Antonio Peers from the sideline, and
20:07
Speaker 2: we know in the locker room he loves to scream Raytors. Well,
20:13
Speaker 2: you're gonna love hearing him screaming what he told me
20:16
Speaker 2: in this interview.
20:19
Speaker 8: Something I grew up with right as a kid, hearing
20:22
Speaker 8: that and saying it that. You know, you go to
20:24
Speaker 8: the league, play some football and do some other things,
20:26
Speaker 8: and then you know linebacker coaching, you kind of a
20:28
Speaker 8: foot soldier and you just fall in line and you're
20:31
Speaker 8: looking around like we're missing something. So after that first win,
20:38
Speaker 8: was it get an interviewed by Tracy and I was
20:39
Speaker 8: just like it just came out. It was just be honest,
20:42
Speaker 8: it was just it wasn't planned. I didn't think nothing
20:44
Speaker 8: of it. Then when I got in a locker room,
20:46
Speaker 8: I can just look at all the guys there, eight
20:49
Speaker 8: people who gonna do and boom, I just let it
20:53
Speaker 8: out and it's one of those moments like you know
20:57
Speaker 8: what you're saying that right, something's good happen, right, either
20:59
Speaker 8: you win a game or you become a head coach
21:01
Speaker 8: of Las Vegas Raiders. He started the press conference off
21:03
Speaker 8: that way, but to me, it's just that that's Rader nation.
21:06
Speaker 8: They understand it. You know, maybe everybody doesn't like coach
21:10
Speaker 8: didn't do that? Why not?
21:12
Speaker 10: Why not?
21:13
Speaker 8: You know? And it's something now looking at it beside
21:16
Speaker 8: Christian Wilkins and then he starts his press conference then,
21:20
Speaker 8: so so you know, it's just something that's contagious. I
21:22
Speaker 8: think our team, I know, our fan base. I didn't
21:25
Speaker 8: think our organization has really you know, embraced that. And
21:29
Speaker 8: that's a good thing.
21:30
Speaker 2: Well what about that, because I mean clearly so coach
21:32
Speaker 2: and do that you're your authentic you.
21:34
Speaker 1: And how do you think that translates to players?
21:38
Speaker 8: Well, they read through the BS I did an awesome
21:40
Speaker 8: player especially now with these players because everything they do
21:43
Speaker 8: is it's growing, right, so they get.
21:46
Speaker 10: A lot of information more than we got.
21:48
Speaker 8: But it's easier to be yourself and never have to
21:51
Speaker 8: fake it because I'm out line, you know, I never
21:53
Speaker 8: have to worry about what I said or what I'm
21:55
Speaker 8: doing or saying that the right way because it just
21:57
Speaker 8: comes out. And I try to myself as much as possible.
22:01
Speaker 8: But when I played, I didn't filter myself. When I
22:04
Speaker 8: lived my life as a normal person every day, when
22:06
Speaker 8: I go back to being just Antonio Pierce walking down
22:08
Speaker 8: the street, I could be myself, and damn it, why
22:10
Speaker 8: not when I'm the RAIDERO coach, just be myself.
22:13
Speaker 2: I love that so so tell me that you talk
22:15
Speaker 2: about these players today.
22:16
Speaker 10: Hey, it's the Instagram.
22:17
Speaker 2: It's just that, like when you played like you were
22:19
Speaker 2: a g right, you are like that that tough dude.
22:23
Speaker 2: How do you have to maybe adjust to relate to
22:27
Speaker 2: the players too who have all this information are constantly
22:29
Speaker 2: posting that should have to say, Okay, I know how
22:32
Speaker 2: I used to roll. Maybe you're a little differently, but
22:34
Speaker 2: we're gonna come to a happy medium to get the best.
22:36
Speaker 10: Sute of you.
22:37
Speaker 8: Yeah. I mean one thing about it that I'm a
22:38
Speaker 8: familion and I think I'm a master puppeteer. I could
22:42
Speaker 8: read the room, I could read people. I'm good with people.
22:47
Speaker 8: My way isn't the right way for everybody, and it's
22:49
Speaker 8: not for everybody, and it's not for every team. It's
22:52
Speaker 8: not favorite owners, not for everye player. But that's a
22:55
Speaker 8: good part about being a head coach. Now I get
22:57
Speaker 8: to choose those guys. I get to find my my
23:00
Speaker 8: identity and my personality and the players that we're bringing in.
23:04
Speaker 8: And they might not be the same way I am,
23:06
Speaker 8: but they might not be Oh my god, and all
23:07
Speaker 8: this energy and all this oh my god, that's passionate
23:09
Speaker 8: about the game football. But one thing about it, they
23:11
Speaker 8: better love the damn game. They better love coming to work.
23:14
Speaker 8: They will come in with a smile on their face.
23:16
Speaker 8: That doesn't change. If it does, it needs to go
23:19
Speaker 8: somewhere else. So how do I relate? It's simple. You
23:21
Speaker 8: just fight out their core. You find out what makes
23:23
Speaker 8: them click and tick. You made relationships. Half the time,
23:26
Speaker 8: we don't eve talk about football. We're in the building
23:27
Speaker 8: this offseason, we're not talking about football. Phase one. They
23:30
Speaker 8: ain't about football. It's about people. Once you get the
23:33
Speaker 8: people and you get the relationships. When it gets hard
23:36
Speaker 8: in the month of August, then you get to the
23:38
Speaker 8: ny degree.
23:39
Speaker 2: So to that point, Max Crosby, you're all pro D
23:44
Speaker 2: and your edge Russia. He pounded the table for you
23:49
Speaker 2: to get this job right. You're talking about relationships. He's
23:52
Speaker 2: the dude who's got the most cache in that locker room.
23:56
Speaker 2: When you have a guy like him, who's so respected
23:59
Speaker 2: by his peer few league stand up for you and
24:03
Speaker 2: take some of the personal accountability he has for himself.
24:07
Speaker 2: How much do you think that gets the ball rolling
24:10
Speaker 2: towards where you guys want to go.
24:11
Speaker 8: It's huge. I'm gonna go back to the first day
24:13
Speaker 8: I walked in the building February fifteenth, twenty twenty two,
24:18
Speaker 8: six am. The first guy that needs me at the
24:21
Speaker 8: door match Crossby. That's my introduction to Max, and I
24:25
Speaker 8: never felt so much energy from another player before. I'm like, God, damn,
24:29
Speaker 8: what is this.
24:29
Speaker 10: It's different.
24:30
Speaker 8: So I'm kind of taking back by it. And then
24:33
Speaker 8: I watched him that whole off season six am, six am,
24:36
Speaker 8: six am, So I go downstairs and we started having conversations,
24:41
Speaker 8: non football related, talking about his past. I got to
24:45
Speaker 8: where he's at today, where he wants to be, and
24:47
Speaker 8: then all of a sudden he starts quizzing me what
24:50
Speaker 8: was it like playing with Bruce Smith? What was the
24:51
Speaker 8: like playing with Michael strahand those defenses you had in
24:54
Speaker 8: New York. He wants to be educated. And then we
24:58
Speaker 8: get into the season and we're doing, you know, just
25:01
Speaker 8: stuff out on the field. Let's just say, off season
25:03
Speaker 8: running half gassers. I'm watching this dude run with DB's
25:06
Speaker 8: and receivers. Let me go out there and run with him.
25:09
Speaker 8: Our relationship is to me, I think deeper in football,
25:13
Speaker 8: it's personal. I think Max he's a little bit of
25:16
Speaker 8: himself and me, and I see myself and him. But
25:20
Speaker 8: to have Max speak up and say what he said,
25:23
Speaker 8: that's different. I had to tell him pump the breaks
25:25
Speaker 8: a little bit.
25:26
Speaker 9: You know.
25:26
Speaker 8: I want to pick some Martin Davis off. But when
25:29
Speaker 8: you do have a voice as a player, it's okay
25:31
Speaker 8: to use it. He's a raider, and sometimes raiders do
25:35
Speaker 8: things that's not normal and maybe not accepted by everybody
25:39
Speaker 8: else and.
25:39
Speaker 10: Not the norm.
25:40
Speaker 8: But when you have your best player showing up each
25:42
Speaker 8: and every day and saying that's the man that I
25:46
Speaker 8: want to play for, we have no other way but
25:49
Speaker 8: to follow suit. But it's not because of that, it's
25:51
Speaker 8: also because we're playing the Chiefs. Max hasn't practiced all week.
25:56
Speaker 8: He's in a hospital bed need looking like a watermelon.
26:01
Speaker 8: And we go off for pregame and everybody's telling me,
26:03
Speaker 8: do not play them, and I'm looking at him hyed eye.
26:07
Speaker 8: I said, you sure, and he told me I can
26:11
Speaker 8: do this. And it's different when a former player like
26:16
Speaker 8: myself looks at another player and you can look in
26:18
Speaker 8: his eye and say he's gonna be okay. But then
26:21
Speaker 8: also to say, listen, if you get up slow, are
26:24
Speaker 8: you doing anything that's like I got to pull you
26:26
Speaker 8: out right, and we have that gentleman handshake. Then you
26:29
Speaker 8: can make the decision that we made with Max on Christmas,
26:31
Speaker 8: on that Thanksgiving or ekping that Kansas Chiefs game. But
26:36
Speaker 8: at the end of the day, man Max is to
26:37
Speaker 8: face the franchise. He puts his heart and soul into
26:40
Speaker 8: that bad boy. The effort, the passion, the love for
26:43
Speaker 8: the Raid organization, the Raider fan base is unmatched, and
26:48
Speaker 8: he sets the tone. I know it's a head coach,
26:51
Speaker 8: but Max, so he told me to reach an interview
26:53
Speaker 8: I did with him, and he has been preaching accountability
26:57
Speaker 8: to the guys in the defensive front.
26:59
Speaker 2: He's got ten guys already training with him every morning.
27:05
Speaker 2: When you see that, it's just first off, is this different?
27:09
Speaker 10: Like? Is this a change not in him but in
27:12
Speaker 10: your building? Without a doubt.
27:14
Speaker 8: I mean, ever since the team that was in our
27:16
Speaker 8: building for the Super Bowl left team in Red, it's
27:19
Speaker 8: been a match across for show. And he brought his
27:21
Speaker 8: friends because, like I told you, when I first showed
27:24
Speaker 8: up on February fifteenth, two, it was only backs. If
27:27
Speaker 8: you walk in that building Monday, you want to see
27:30
Speaker 8: twenty five to thirty guys in there. Duvonta Adams, the
27:33
Speaker 8: entire D line, DB's Hey, guys, you ain't got to be.
27:37
Speaker 10: Here till April fifteenth.
27:38
Speaker 8: It's okay, slow down, but that's not how we're rolling
27:41
Speaker 8: no more So how does that make you feel? I
27:43
Speaker 8: know we're coming, I know we're ready. I know we're
27:45
Speaker 8: building something special. I don't know what it is. I
27:47
Speaker 8: don't know when it's going to happen. I don't know
27:50
Speaker 8: if it's this year, next year. But I know the cultures, right,
27:53
Speaker 8: I know the mindsets right. I know it's strictly business
27:56
Speaker 8: in that building. And then when we're off the building,
27:58
Speaker 8: we have fun doing and doing it together.
28:00
Speaker 2: Okay, so now part of what you guys have to
28:02
Speaker 2: figure out and if tickets and stept to your quarterback, right,
28:06
Speaker 2: you got Gardner Minshew in there, You've got Aiden in there.
28:09
Speaker 2: But how do you plan to continue to address that?
28:13
Speaker 2: But you guys are picking at thirteen. It's a good
28:15
Speaker 2: enough Maybe it's a good number if you stay there.
28:18
Speaker 2: But you know, how do you guys get to continue
28:21
Speaker 2: to address that? Well, you know you can't have two
28:24
Speaker 2: quarterbacks on the roster, right, So we know we got
28:26
Speaker 2: to ask. So okay, the next wave is is the draft.
28:31
Speaker 10: So let's see.
28:32
Speaker 8: I got toom celesko in there, got that got the
28:35
Speaker 8: figure out what he got up to sleep. You know
28:37
Speaker 8: he's done it for a long time. I got a
28:39
Speaker 8: lot of trust in him. I think he's seen it
28:41
Speaker 8: wherever he's been, right right, Peate Manning, Andrew Luck becomes
28:48
Speaker 8: a GM with the Chargers, Philip Rivers justin Herbert. So
28:52
Speaker 8: you know something about quarterbacks? He does, So I don't
28:55
Speaker 8: let him figure it out. I'll let them figure it out.
28:57
Speaker 8: But I know this, like, we got to get another
28:58
Speaker 8: quarterback in the room.
28:59
Speaker 10: We know that.
29:00
Speaker 8: But then Dave listen, ain't no Common played his ass off.
29:04
Speaker 8: He did a hell of a job for us. First
29:07
Speaker 8: game he ever played, Chargers went six sun stacks during
29:10
Speaker 8: the ball over critical interception the red zone. We played
29:14
Speaker 8: the Minnesota Vikings later this season, who said, comes back
29:18
Speaker 8: out lights it up. So you're talking about a kid
29:21
Speaker 8: that has the mental toughness to play the National Football League,
29:23
Speaker 8: whatever happens, and whatever we do, and he got to
29:26
Speaker 8: go through eight and o'conno being honest.
29:28
Speaker 10: With you because he's earned that right. Okay, But like
29:30
Speaker 10: anybody else, it's.
29:32
Speaker 8: All about competition, and if we can make that room
29:34
Speaker 8: the most competitive room on our team, the quarterback room
29:37
Speaker 8: will be a good football.
29:38
Speaker 10: To hell man.
29:41
Speaker 1: All right. First off, some of the fantastic stuff he said,
29:44
Speaker 1: the Max he is, I mean, you know, as I
29:49
Speaker 1: was doing the interview, I'm.
29:50
Speaker 2: Kind of like, Okay, I'm getting worked up here right
29:52
Speaker 2: like he's I get it, like I feel it. And
29:55
Speaker 2: then when I rewatch the interview, I'm like, Okay, I
29:58
Speaker 2: feel it. I mean, he knows his locker room and
30:01
Speaker 2: the fact that he's talking about Max Crosby and the
30:05
Speaker 2: way Max has got these guys going, and he's got
30:07
Speaker 2: that energy, which is his energy, and now he's in
30:10
Speaker 2: a position to pick the guys who could continue to
30:13
Speaker 2: convey that energy. It's just absolutely fantastic. Now we'll see
30:18
Speaker 2: if it works. You know, he talked about, hey, he
30:21
Speaker 2: is not everybody's cup of tea. You know he was
30:24
Speaker 2: you know, we didn't know he was going to be
30:25
Speaker 2: available for the Raiders head coach or other head coaching jobs.
30:29
Speaker 2: But one of the words out there was like, he's
30:31
Speaker 2: such a Raider, we don't know if he'd be just
30:33
Speaker 2: as invested in our club because he's been so outspoken
30:37
Speaker 2: about wearing the silver and black.
30:38
Speaker 3: My favorite thing of that whole interview, Steve, was when
30:40
Speaker 3: you got him rolling on the defensive line. You bring
30:42
Speaker 3: in Christian Wilkins, you got Max Crosby, Malcolm Coots, and
30:46
Speaker 3: the young Buck, the first round pick from the Erego.
30:48
Speaker 3: On the other side, Tyree Wilson Man calls him the
30:50
Speaker 3: four horsemen, that the four horsemen ready to ride, and
30:53
Speaker 3: some guys.
30:53
Speaker 4: Are just speaking sound bites. Ap is one of those guys.
30:56
Speaker 3: The big question is going to be and you talked
30:58
Speaker 3: to him about it, right, there's gonna be the courquarterback.
31:00
Speaker 3: Now he says anything we do goes through Aid and O'Connell.
31:03
Speaker 3: In other words, and I get this APB and a
31:05
Speaker 3: former player.
31:06
Speaker 4: Hey, that guy was the starter. He won some games
31:08
Speaker 4: for you last year.
31:09
Speaker 3: So he starts out atop the depth chart, something that
31:11
Speaker 3: Kenny Pickett probably was hoping he was going to hear
31:13
Speaker 3: in Pittsburg until he did it. But you know you're
31:16
Speaker 3: going to add to that rook you brought into Gardner Minshew.
31:18
Speaker 3: He gave him a pretty good contract fifteen million dollars
31:20
Speaker 3: fully guaranteed. That's significant. It's very obvious the Raiders have
31:24
Speaker 3: designs on going and drafted a quarterback here. Tom Telesco
31:27
Speaker 3: in his history with the Chargers rarely traded up in
31:30
Speaker 3: round one, but Mark Davis, Antonio Pierce every single time
31:35
Speaker 3: that they sat down with GM candidates. How do we
31:38
Speaker 3: go and get the quarterback? That's what they're going to
31:41
Speaker 3: be attempting to do. Figure out, all right, who can
31:43
Speaker 3: we move up for here? Jayden Daniels makes a lot
31:46
Speaker 3: of sense. Got the history of Antonio Pierce going back
31:49
Speaker 3: to Arizona State. I also can see Michael Pennix in
31:52
Speaker 3: a logical pick for the Raiders kind of fits the
31:55
Speaker 3: mold that we've seen in the past that Tom Telesco
31:58
Speaker 3: likes in quarter I think the entire thing is fascinating.
32:02
Speaker 3: I do know this, They got further to go than
32:05
Speaker 3: some of the other teams. We're going to be trying
32:07
Speaker 3: to trade up, which means the price is that much steeple.
32:09
Speaker 2: Yeah, they don't have quite the freight to move up,
32:11
Speaker 2: but they're not gonna be afraid to go ahead and
32:13
Speaker 2: do it because they know they think this roster is
32:15
Speaker 2: pretty darn good and that if they get their quarterback
32:18
Speaker 2: to build around, that's gonna be the guy where and
32:20
Speaker 2: O'Connell throw that pass right there, but it goes through him,
32:24
Speaker 2: But it might go through him.
32:27
Speaker 1: I mean again, speak with Antonio.
32:28
Speaker 2: I got every feeling that they're gonna go out and
32:30
Speaker 2: draft one of these quarterbacks unless there's just something a
32:33
Speaker 2: medical or something to knock somebody off their board, like
32:35
Speaker 2: a Michael Pennix.
32:36
Speaker 4: But they drafted Terry Wilson last year with a bad foot. Correct,
32:40
Speaker 4: it's the Raiders.
32:41
Speaker 3: There's thirty two different teams with thirty two doctors, thirty
32:43
Speaker 3: two degrees of risk tolerance.
32:45
Speaker 4: Raiders historically have had a little bit more risk tolerance.
32:47
Speaker 3: So again, Michael Pennix, who would be talking about is
32:49
Speaker 3: a sure fire.
32:50
Speaker 4: First round pick, but for the medical I wouldn't rule
32:53
Speaker 4: out that possibility.
32:54
Speaker 2: When we were out at all on Tom, you got
32:56
Speaker 2: something coming up from a coach who just got a
32:59
Speaker 2: new running back to help his team.
33:01
Speaker 3: That's right, Saquon Barkley is now a Philadelphia Eagle. Nick
33:05
Speaker 3: Sirianni speaking for the first time, and what it means
33:08
Speaker 3: not just to get Saquon, but to get him from
33:10
Speaker 3: your division rival. We'll also talk about what went wrong
33:13
Speaker 3: down the stretch for the Eagles last season and how
33:16
Speaker 3: Sirianni intends to fix it in twenty twenty four.
33:19
Speaker 4: That's up next to the NFL Report.
33:32
Speaker 1: Hey love you, Hey.
33:35
Speaker 4: Washington seventeen, Eagles seven.
33:37
Speaker 1: This is where y'all change it.
33:39
Speaker 8: Let's go.
33:39
Speaker 4: He mclaurton couldn't get the feet in. It's a good judge.
33:44
Speaker 4: You probably all though you're doing it right.
33:46
Speaker 10: Job, Go and back in the field goal range.
33:50
Speaker 1: All right, field goal.
33:51
Speaker 4: I don't watch field goals.
33:52
Speaker 9: Did I look at coach Clay he points at me
33:54
Speaker 9: or he gives me one of these like if we
33:57
Speaker 9: missed it is.
34:00
Speaker 1: We won pretty much every way.
34:02
Speaker 8: You can win in this league.
34:04
Speaker 3: Everybody remembers how the Eagles twenty twenty three season finished.
34:08
Speaker 4: There was a time Steve there in the.
34:09
Speaker 3: Competition in the running for the number one, yes overall
34:13
Speaker 3: seed in the NFC, things got a little bit haywire.
34:16
Speaker 3: It made a lot of changes. Since I got a
34:19
Speaker 3: chance to sit down in recent days here in Orlando,
34:21
Speaker 3: Tom Pilizero Steve White for the NFL Report from the
34:24
Speaker 3: NFL Annual Meeting and talked about one of those new
34:26
Speaker 3: big additions, Saquon Barkley, as well as a question that
34:29
Speaker 3: started out as what is the state of the twenty
34:32
Speaker 3: twenty fourth Philadelphia Eagles.
34:33
Speaker 4: Siriani gave what I thought was a fascinating response, just.
34:39
Speaker 9: Looking to take it one day at a time, and
34:44
Speaker 9: you know, I think that, you know, coming off of
34:47
Speaker 9: the two thousand and twenty two season, you think to yourself, man,
34:51
Speaker 9: we got to do what we got to do to
34:52
Speaker 9: get back to where we were so close. And I
34:55
Speaker 9: think that, you know, it really just proved to you
34:58
Speaker 9: that you really just got to take things one day
35:00
Speaker 9: at a time. And so right now, you know, we've
35:03
Speaker 9: had a you know, I think by a lot of accounts,
35:05
Speaker 9: we've had a great off season so far, and you know,
35:08
Speaker 9: got to keep doing that through the through the draft,
35:11
Speaker 9: and and we'll take that one day at a time
35:12
Speaker 9: that will lead into the training camp and and O
35:15
Speaker 9: T A. S. And you know, just looking forward to
35:17
Speaker 9: to building the team and you know, coming close as
35:21
Speaker 9: a team.
35:21
Speaker 10: So we talked about doing it one day at a time.
35:24
Speaker 10: We're some guys getting ahead.
35:25
Speaker 9: Of themselves in terms of I would say that was
35:27
Speaker 9: I wouldn't say some guys say me, I'd look at
35:29
Speaker 9: myself in the mirror.
35:30
Speaker 4: First.
35:30
Speaker 10: I think we all we all did you know, we
35:32
Speaker 10: had a lot of you know, we had When you.
35:35
Speaker 9: Get close like that and you want to and you
35:37
Speaker 9: want to be back so bad, I think it's it's
35:39
Speaker 9: it's easy to find yourself looking up to the top
35:42
Speaker 9: of the mountain and saying I got to get back there.
35:44
Speaker 9: And it really does take one day at a time.
35:46
Speaker 9: And what a great lesson for us last year. And
35:48
Speaker 9: so the state of the Philadelphia Eagles is where where
35:52
Speaker 9: where we are want to be right now. And so
35:55
Speaker 9: that gives me an opportunity not to not to side
35:57
Speaker 9: step your question, but it is where we want to
35:59
Speaker 9: be as far as just hey, we're here, we're in
36:02
Speaker 9: this off season part portion of it. Players get to
36:04
Speaker 9: come in here in a couple of weeks, we get
36:06
Speaker 9: to get going on some O TA stuff and get
36:08
Speaker 9: them lifting and getting to be together and getting in
36:11
Speaker 9: the classroom.
36:13
Speaker 10: So we're looking forward to that as we as we approach.
36:15
Speaker 3: So since last time we saw you, he signed Squon Barkley.
36:19
Speaker 3: Take me through that process and why now is the
36:22
Speaker 3: time to convince how we just spend.
36:24
Speaker 10: On a running back?
36:25
Speaker 8: Uh?
36:25
Speaker 9: Well, just so so grateful to how he he's just
36:28
Speaker 9: always looking to improve our football team. I really, you know,
36:32
Speaker 9: just he works tiresly to improve our team and really
36:38
Speaker 9: grateful to be around that. Really excited obviously about about
36:43
Speaker 9: Saquon and the things that he can do.
36:47
Speaker 10: You know, just such a dynamic football player both with
36:50
Speaker 10: you know.
36:50
Speaker 9: Both as a as an actual running back and then
36:53
Speaker 9: also the things he can do as a as a
36:55
Speaker 9: pass catcher, and so just you know, he's just going
37:00
Speaker 9: to bring an element to our offense and to our team.
37:03
Speaker 9: You know, as much as we see him, you know,
37:05
Speaker 9: all the highlights that we see on the on the tape. Uh,
37:08
Speaker 9: you know, from my understanding and all our homework, he's
37:12
Speaker 9: such a good leader and a teammate as well. So
37:15
Speaker 9: to be able to add that into our locker room
37:17
Speaker 9: not only the playmaking ability, but to the person is
37:20
Speaker 9: really is really important. And so you know, and and
37:23
Speaker 9: to be able to like how many times have I
37:26
Speaker 9: watched him on the opposite sideline playing him Two times
37:30
Speaker 9: this last year, three times the year before, two times
37:33
Speaker 9: the year before. It is like, man, we don't have
37:35
Speaker 9: to play against that guy anymore. Great, Oh, he's on
37:37
Speaker 9: our team even more, even more perfect. And so that's
37:42
Speaker 9: that's exciting that, you know, because we've seen him up
37:45
Speaker 9: close and personal and we just know how good of
37:48
Speaker 9: a football player he is, you know, and he's he's
37:51
Speaker 9: big man, he's hard to tackle, and you know when
37:55
Speaker 9: it gets cold there in the Northeast that the you know,
37:57
Speaker 9: in the December and January, looking forward to having him
38:01
Speaker 9: on our sideline where he wears down that defense and
38:03
Speaker 9: it's hard to tackle him. It's hard to tackle him
38:06
Speaker 9: in September two, let's be honest, but really looking forward
38:10
Speaker 9: to all that.
38:12
Speaker 3: Saquon Barkley has caused a lot of problems for Nick
38:15
Speaker 3: Sirianni and a lot of other.
38:16
Speaker 4: People through the years. Here now he is on the
38:19
Speaker 4: Eagles side.
38:20
Speaker 3: He grew up like an hour outside of Philadelphia, so
38:22
Speaker 3: it's a homecoming for Saquon as well. An aggressive move
38:26
Speaker 3: Steve from an Eagles team that historically hasn't paid big
38:30
Speaker 3: for running backs, but they're making a big bet that
38:32
Speaker 3: Saquon's a difference maker.
38:33
Speaker 10: Yeah.
38:33
Speaker 2: Look, they give up on DeAndre Swift because they knew
38:36
Speaker 2: they could get somebody who's more physical. Right at Saquon Barkley.
38:39
Speaker 2: It's a durability issue for Saquon Barkley. That's the only
38:41
Speaker 2: thing if he stays on the field behind this offensive line. Yes,
38:44
Speaker 2: I lost Jason Kelsey by those slide Cam Jurgens over,
38:47
Speaker 2: They've got some.
38:48
Speaker 1: Players in place. He is going to add a lot.
38:51
Speaker 2: And I like what you said about the cold weather,
38:53
Speaker 2: and it made it seem like, hmm, they played in
38:55
Speaker 2: cold weather a lot last year during that skid.
38:59
Speaker 1: Maybe there were some shoes.
39:00
Speaker 2: Now we've got a guy who's played in cold weather
39:02
Speaker 2: his whole life who could possibly help us. By Tom,
39:05
Speaker 2: I want to backtrack to the front end of that
39:08
Speaker 2: interview where he was talking about we're doing things day
39:10
Speaker 2: by day and it wasn't a cliche day by day
39:13
Speaker 2: where he talked about that maybe we got out a
39:15
Speaker 2: little ahead of ourselves. To me, I took that as
39:19
Speaker 2: maybe we thought we were better than we actually were
39:23
Speaker 2: and didn't put in as the new coach speaker.
39:26
Speaker 1: Is the strain or the grind that we needed to
39:30
Speaker 1: to be a good football team.
39:31
Speaker 3: Some of the little things sometimes can slip through the
39:33
Speaker 3: cranks here, and you saw that down the stretch. They
39:35
Speaker 3: had that game against San Francisco. Yeah, a lot of
39:38
Speaker 3: stuff happened in that game. It was an ugly showing
39:40
Speaker 3: and they never fully recovered. I also had Siriani about
39:44
Speaker 3: Jalen Hurts and where he stands, kind of deferred to
39:47
Speaker 3: the fact that listening above all else, you know this
39:49
Speaker 3: about Jalen Hurts. He's going to work at it. He's
39:51
Speaker 3: an unbelievably hard worker. That's what he's going to.
39:54
Speaker 4: Fall back upon throughout the course of this process. Listen.
39:57
Speaker 4: They got to get it going on both sides of
39:58
Speaker 4: the ball.
39:58
Speaker 3: They got new coordinators killing more there now, right Vic
40:01
Speaker 3: Fangio Over on the defensive side of the ball, you
40:03
Speaker 3: bring back a juice guy like Chauncey Gardner, John Hoboy
40:06
Speaker 3: in your secondary is gonna be part of your identity
40:08
Speaker 3: and the everything that Syrianna brought up leadership with Saquon,
40:11
Speaker 3: you lose Jason Kelcey, you lose Fletcher Cox.
40:14
Speaker 4: There is a leadership voice.
40:15
Speaker 3: They got Brandon Graham and Lane Johnson some of the
40:17
Speaker 3: other guys, but you need some people, some of those
40:20
Speaker 3: young players to step in as the leaders.
40:23
Speaker 2: Yeah, and a lot of times you try to import leadership.
40:25
Speaker 2: It doesn't always work. But Saquon's got the gravitas from
40:29
Speaker 2: a team that's faced him twice a year to come
40:32
Speaker 2: in and make it work.
40:33
Speaker 1: Well, Tom, guess what we have coming up next. We've
40:36
Speaker 1: got an owner.
40:37
Speaker 2: We've got Vikings co owner Mark Wilf and we've got
40:41
Speaker 2: some questions for him.
40:42
Speaker 4: Who's your quarterback? Mark?
40:43
Speaker 2: Who is your quarterback? And what about that superstar widers here?
40:47
Speaker 2: But no, not Jordan Addison but the other one. Oh,
40:51
Speaker 2: we got questions from Mark, and we'll get some answered
40:53
Speaker 2: next on the NFL. Mark, all right, we are back
41:09
Speaker 2: at the NFL Report and Tom Pellicero, we are now
41:13
Speaker 2: joined by a special guests, Viking's co owner Mark with Mark.
41:17
Speaker 1: Thank you so much for joining us here.
41:18
Speaker 4: Thanks for having us taking time out of.
41:20
Speaker 1: A busy day.
41:20
Speaker 2: Tom and I were wondering if you're like escaping from
41:22
Speaker 2: all of these monotonous meetings just to come spend time
41:24
Speaker 2: with us.
41:25
Speaker 4: Get a outdoor here. Yeah, absolutely so.
41:28
Speaker 1: Mark, you know, just to start things off.
41:30
Speaker 2: Of course, the vikings a big conversation leading into the draft,
41:34
Speaker 2: your quarterback spot. Are you pushing the guys to go
41:38
Speaker 2: ahead and get somebody in it? We know you signed
41:41
Speaker 2: Sam Donald.
41:42
Speaker 13: But well we love Sam Donald, but you know, when
41:46
Speaker 13: it comes to the quarterbacks position, it's certainly critical. And
41:50
Speaker 13: Quacy and coach O'Connell are working hard. We've got a
41:53
Speaker 13: plan and Sam Donald's part of it, and we're excited.
41:57
Speaker 13: He's in the building and we're excited. We have two
41:59
Speaker 13: first picks, so we'll see where it all goes. We
42:02
Speaker 13: have a lot of flexibility and we'll.
42:04
Speaker 4: See what happens.
42:05
Speaker 3: Some of the teams that are in the quarterback market,
42:07
Speaker 3: they've had their owners and their team presidents among others
42:10
Speaker 3: in the interview process. As you said, it's a very unique,
42:13
Speaker 3: very important position. How involved do you and Ziggy get
42:16
Speaker 3: through this process?
42:17
Speaker 13: Well, it was shirinly engaged all the time with Quasi
42:20
Speaker 13: and coach and Robert Zinski the whole the whole football operations,
42:23
Speaker 13: and we have a lot of confidence that they know
42:26
Speaker 13: what they're doing, they've got the right ideas, and we're
42:28
Speaker 13: behind them and the extent they're gonna want further involvement
42:31
Speaker 13: from us, we're there to help.
42:32
Speaker 4: But again, we know what we know and we know
42:33
Speaker 4: what they know and they'll get it right.
42:36
Speaker 2: Oh, I sounded like, guys, a good detailed plan going
42:39
Speaker 2: on right there. We also know one of the bigger
42:42
Speaker 2: things going around with the Vikings is Justin Jefferson. At
42:45
Speaker 2: some point there's gonna be extension.
42:48
Speaker 1: Talks or something like that. Have those started well.
42:51
Speaker 13: We had great positive conversations last season, and then we're
42:54
Speaker 13: looking forward to more positive conversations this offseason. Justin Jefferson
42:57
Speaker 13: is a unique talent, best in the game, and we're
43:00
Speaker 13: excited he's in Minnesota Viking and not only is he
43:02
Speaker 13: a great player, he's become a great leader of our
43:04
Speaker 13: locker room and he's great in the community. So the
43:08
Speaker 13: thrills he gives the fans on the field and just
43:11
Speaker 13: the way he carries himself. We're looking forward to some
43:13
Speaker 13: real positive conversations.
43:14
Speaker 3: So even if Quasi comes to you and goes markets,
43:17
Speaker 3: we made it a real strong rung because you guys
43:19
Speaker 3: did last year to try to get the extension.
43:21
Speaker 4: It's just not gonna happen. But I can get three
43:23
Speaker 4: first round picks for Justin Jefferson. How are you feeling again?
43:26
Speaker 8: Right now?
43:27
Speaker 13: We're focused on getting that guy on our field with
43:30
Speaker 13: the purple and he looks great.
43:31
Speaker 4: In purple, and we're gonna do our best to keep
43:33
Speaker 4: it that way.
43:33
Speaker 1: You talked about making a move to get a second
43:36
Speaker 1: first round draft pick.
43:37
Speaker 2: I mean that that takes you know, a lot of
43:41
Speaker 2: you know, I guess to say it, But what about
43:43
Speaker 2: the job quation if Kevin have done not only winning
43:47
Speaker 2: ball games in a few years they've been together, but
43:49
Speaker 2: the plan that they have constructed for you guys to
43:52
Speaker 2: have short and long.
43:53
Speaker 13: Term success, well that's that's that's our where we're looking at.
43:56
Speaker 13: We're trying to get sustained success. We want to win
43:58
Speaker 13: super Bowls. We want to get over that line. And
44:01
Speaker 13: we have a lot of confidence in Quacy and coach O'Connell.
44:04
Speaker 4: They're working great together.
44:06
Speaker 13: Our coaching staff, our personal staff working really hard and
44:09
Speaker 13: having the two first round picks gives us a lot
44:11
Speaker 13: of flexibility and that's great.
44:13
Speaker 4: Whether it's uptown or in the middle.
44:16
Speaker 1: We know with this deep draft here, we're going to
44:18
Speaker 1: be okay.
44:19
Speaker 4: Mark, As you know, I live up in Minneapolis.
44:21
Speaker 3: I've covered ount know how many of your games throughout
44:23
Speaker 3: your entire ownership tenure. Almost everybody that I remember is gone.
44:27
Speaker 3: The locker room has completely changed over. There's one guy left.
44:31
Speaker 3: His name is Harrison Smith. Another restructured deal to continue
44:35
Speaker 3: to have Harrison Smith, who, in my opinion, is a
44:37
Speaker 3: Hall of Fame caliber safety or the longest running Vikings
44:41
Speaker 3: in the modern era.
44:42
Speaker 4: What does it mean to you? And the organization couldn't
44:44
Speaker 4: agree more.
44:45
Speaker 13: I mean entering his thirteenth season now, I mean just
44:47
Speaker 13: an incredible player, a great leader, and we couldn't be
44:51
Speaker 13: happier for him and his family that he's back with
44:53
Speaker 13: us this coming year. And we agree with you, and
44:56
Speaker 13: we're just excited to have him back. And he's just
45:00
Speaker 13: such a such a great presence on the field and
45:03
Speaker 13: great in the locker room. So the way he carries himself,
45:06
Speaker 13: we're really really proud. One of the greatest picks in
45:08
Speaker 13: Vikings history, and he's proven it.
45:11
Speaker 1: On the field.
45:11
Speaker 3: I was thinking that, you know, when you guys were
45:13
Speaker 3: going through the contract situation with Harrison. If it didn't
45:16
Speaker 3: work out in Minnesota, maybe join your former head.
45:18
Speaker 4: Coach in Dallas. What do you think about Zim being
45:20
Speaker 4: back in the league here.
45:23
Speaker 13: We're happy for coach Zim and I know he'll do
45:27
Speaker 13: a great job in Dallas. He's just one of the
45:29
Speaker 13: great defensive minds and he's in the right position there
45:31
Speaker 13: and again, great memories with coach Zimmer and we wish
45:37
Speaker 13: him all the best.
45:38
Speaker 2: So you guys have been doing more of the talking
45:40
Speaker 2: vikings here, you owners, and this morning after the Competition Committee,
45:45
Speaker 2: you guys did vote to ban the swivel hip drop tackle.
45:50
Speaker 2: Could you kind of walk us through the decision because
45:52
Speaker 2: we heard it was unanimous vote to get that play
45:55
Speaker 2: out of the game.
45:56
Speaker 13: I think, you know, the focus on health and safety
46:00
Speaker 13: is very real and it really comes around every year
46:02
Speaker 13: at these meetings, and we applaud the league, the commissioner
46:05
Speaker 13: and the focus that's put on health and safety. And
46:07
Speaker 13: that's really what this whole rule is about. We're just
46:12
Speaker 13: trying to make the game out there safer for the players,
46:15
Speaker 13: and I think that's been proven out. The statistics are
46:17
Speaker 13: injuries are down from the years prior and This is
46:20
Speaker 13: just a continuing of that effort, and that's why it
46:22
Speaker 13: passed unanimously.
46:23
Speaker 3: The kickoff plays another one that we're talking about. Because
46:26
Speaker 3: of the high injury rates, it's changed for the last
46:30
Speaker 3: five years. Special teams coordinators have to keep adjusting. What
46:33
Speaker 3: we're talking about now, though, is something pretty radical and
46:35
Speaker 3: what they're calling the NFL hybrid kickoff, with the kickoff
46:38
Speaker 3: and the return teams both on the opposite side.
46:40
Speaker 4: Of the field.
46:41
Speaker 3: You can't move until the ball hits the ground or
46:43
Speaker 3: is caught. There's a landing zone there. It's literally a
46:46
Speaker 3: ten page type of report in the room when it's
46:49
Speaker 3: being presented. I know Darren Rizzy, John Fossil and others
46:52
Speaker 3: were here.
46:53
Speaker 4: How is it received? How much do you get it?
46:57
Speaker 4: Is this actually what's going to have? Well, it's still ongoing.
47:00
Speaker 13: You know what's great about the NFL and football, of
47:03
Speaker 13: all the major sports football, we're not afraid to make
47:07
Speaker 13: the game better, make the game better for players and
47:09
Speaker 13: more importantly for the fans.
47:11
Speaker 4: It's just a great game.
47:12
Speaker 13: And I know there's a lot of conversation and it's
47:15
Speaker 13: about health and safety. We want to get the kickoff back.
47:17
Speaker 13: It's such a great play and it's kind of gone
47:19
Speaker 13: away the amount of touchbacks, to not have a single
47:21
Speaker 13: touch back in the Super Bowl, things like that, and
47:24
Speaker 13: we're supportive of putting in a kickoff rule. There's little
47:27
Speaker 13: conversations ongoing on that. We'll see where it all falls out.
47:31
Speaker 13: So I applaud the league for making the effort and
47:34
Speaker 13: we look forward to having it back. But again with
47:36
Speaker 13: health and safety still in mind, do.
47:38
Speaker 1: You think you have a ruling on it.
47:39
Speaker 2: Ris McKay did say he's hoping by the time this
47:42
Speaker 2: meeting ends, you'll all be able to have some conclusion
47:44
Speaker 2: because you have.
47:45
Speaker 1: To build your rosters and this new rule could change
47:47
Speaker 1: some of the type of personality.
47:49
Speaker 4: You Well, that is the goal.
47:51
Speaker 13: We'll defer to Chairman McKay on the politics of all this,
47:54
Speaker 13: but again we're very supportive of trying to get a
47:56
Speaker 13: kickoff play back for the fans and for the players,
47:59
Speaker 13: and to make it as safe.
48:00
Speaker 4: And healthy as possible.
48:02
Speaker 3: And there's a lot of things for you guys, for
48:03
Speaker 3: Vikings fans to be excited about looking forward to twenty
48:05
Speaker 3: twenty four. You're going back to London, you get a
48:07
Speaker 3: fully healthy Justin Jefferson back on the field.
48:11
Speaker 4: But national media wise, there's not a lot of Vikings discussions.
48:14
Speaker 3: The Bears have the number one pick, it's the Packers
48:16
Speaker 3: on the rise game with Jordan Love.
48:17
Speaker 4: The Lions were just on the presspae of the Super Bowl.
48:20
Speaker 3: How bad do you want to get to September and
48:22
Speaker 3: go out there and reboot after everything you guys went
48:25
Speaker 3: through last year?
48:25
Speaker 13: Absolutely, and no one's ever won a Super Bowl at
48:27
Speaker 13: an owner's meeting in March. So that's what it's all about.
48:31
Speaker 13: And we're excited, and you know, we talk a lot
48:33
Speaker 13: about quarterback. I'm super excited about the defensive pickups we
48:36
Speaker 13: made in the free agency so far, and coach Flores,
48:39
Speaker 13: a coordinator of our defense, I know we're going to
48:41
Speaker 13: be a lot better there as well.
48:42
Speaker 4: So there's a lot to look.
48:43
Speaker 13: Forward to and looking forward to get some wins.
48:46
Speaker 2: Well, Mark, as a Minneapolis native who grew up with
48:48
Speaker 2: the Purple People leaders and Chuck Forman and France Tarkitin,
48:51
Speaker 2: it is always good to talk about the Minnesota Vikings,
48:55
Speaker 2: and thank you so much for joining us.
48:57
Speaker 1: Great to be with you.
48:58
Speaker 4: Thank you Skull.
48:59
Speaker 1: There you go, Mark, Well listen.
49:01
Speaker 2: Concluding a fantastic and loaded NFL report, make sure to
49:05
Speaker 2: watch Tom Ian and Mike on The Insiders Tuesday from
49:10
Speaker 2: the League meetings at one pm, and James Palmer and I.
49:12
Speaker 2: We will not be here Thursday, but we will be
49:15
Speaker 2: back next Monday for the NFL Report.
49:18
Speaker 1: Don't forget this is a podcast, Come on seven pm,
49:22
Speaker 1: streaming live on all of your free streaming apps.
49:26
Speaker 2: Tom tell Us, Joe, thanks so much for joining us
49:28
Speaker 2: again as Mark Wilf and we are out