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NFL REPORT: NFL Draft Season is Upon Us · NFL Game Previews

0:05
Speaker 1: Welcome to the NFL Report.
0:07
Speaker 2: And typically we start the show off James with celebratory
0:12
Speaker 2: happy feel Let's.
0:13
Speaker 1: Get everybody ready.
0:15
Speaker 2: But as you know, very well as all of us
0:17
Speaker 2: know by now, the February fourteenth Chiefs celebration was mired
0:22
Speaker 2: by a shooting that victimized twenty three people and left
0:28
Speaker 2: one person dead.
0:30
Speaker 1: Now we're recording this show early Thursday.
0:33
Speaker 2: Afternoon, so there could be updates to what I'm about
0:36
Speaker 2: to say before the show airs. But this is the
0:38
Speaker 2: latest from Kansas City Police Chief Stacy Graves that preliminary
0:43
Speaker 2: investigative finding shown that there was no nexus to terrorism
0:46
Speaker 2: or homegrown violent extremism. This appeared to be a dispute
0:51
Speaker 2: between several people that ended in gunfire.
0:54
Speaker 1: That's the last I'm talking.
0:55
Speaker 2: About these idiots who committed a horrible crime on innocent people.
1:01
Speaker 1: In the great city of Kansas City.
1:04
Speaker 2: During the overnight hours, we learned there were twenty three
1:06
Speaker 2: victims off yesterday's shooting. In one of our victims, Elizabeth Galvin,
1:10
Speaker 2: forty three years old, died. We're still learning about her,
1:14
Speaker 2: but no, she's beloved by many. To her friends and family,
1:18
Speaker 2: we are with you. We are working tirelessly to investigate
1:21
Speaker 2: her murder. The twenty two victims age reigned between eight
1:25
Speaker 2: and forty seven years old. At least half of our
1:30
Speaker 2: victims are under the age of sixteen. Again, that's Kansas
1:34
Speaker 2: City Police Chief Stacy Graves. Thursday, early in the afternoon,
1:40
Speaker 2: James You and Sherry Burris and our fantastic crew ken
1:44
Speaker 2: Field at O'Brien. A lot of our great camera people
1:47
Speaker 2: were there for NFL Network doing the coverage of the parade.
1:52
Speaker 2: I'm just gonna turn it over to you here because
1:55
Speaker 2: it went from like the most celebratory of highs to
1:58
Speaker 2: something I'm sure nobody saw coming.
2:01
Speaker 3: Yeah, I appreciate that. Steve and Well said.
2:03
Speaker 4: What I want to get across here is a couple
2:07
Speaker 4: specific points. I've hosted this parade almost every single year
2:10
Speaker 4: I've been at a NFL network all the way back
2:11
Speaker 4: to twenty fifteen. I've done it in a variety of cities.
2:14
Speaker 4: It's one of my favorite assignments every year. I did
2:18
Speaker 4: the two previous ones in Kansas City and then I
2:20
Speaker 4: was able to do this one. I think people need
2:22
Speaker 4: to remember that this parade means so much to fan
2:26
Speaker 4: bases because so few people actually get to go to
2:30
Speaker 4: NFL games in person. So this celebration in each city
2:34
Speaker 4: a lot of times. For a lot of passionate fans,
2:37
Speaker 4: Steve is their only time to see their heroes, their
2:40
Speaker 4: favorite players in person. It is a huge deal for
2:44
Speaker 4: a lot of fans and a lot of families because
2:47
Speaker 4: school is usually canceled and you're allowed to go down
2:50
Speaker 4: as a family and celebrate your team's victory, right and
2:53
Speaker 4: you get an opportunity, we saw it during most of
2:57
Speaker 4: the parade on Wednesday, to maybe interact with these players,
3:00
Speaker 4: get a handshake, a fist bump, a you know, a
3:03
Speaker 4: selfie if you could. And people go all out for
3:06
Speaker 4: these things, you know, signs and camping out the night before.
3:09
Speaker 4: It is a big deal for a lot of fans.
3:11
Speaker 4: And I mentioned kids specifically because it's a big deal
3:14
Speaker 4: for kids. This is a core memory, or should be
3:17
Speaker 4: a core memory for a lot of kids with their families,
3:21
Speaker 4: and because of what happened yesterday to all of us
3:25
Speaker 4: that were there, this is sadly a core memory that
3:27
Speaker 4: is going to stick with a lot of children for
3:30
Speaker 4: all the wrong reasons. And that's the part that I
3:33
Speaker 4: keep thinking about after what transpired, and it's affecting anyone
3:38
Speaker 4: that was involved in any stretch, whether you were as
3:43
Speaker 4: Steve mentioned, twenty three people that are directly impacted with
3:47
Speaker 4: gunshot injuries, and one family has a member of their
3:50
Speaker 4: family and Liz not coming home. But then there's the
3:54
Speaker 4: people that are friends and family of those individuals, and
3:57
Speaker 4: then it extends to everybody that was there, everybody that
4:00
Speaker 4: was close, everybody, no matter how far you were away
4:02
Speaker 4: at the parade, it's impacting you one way or another,
4:06
Speaker 4: whether it's physically, whether it's mentally.
4:09
Speaker 3: I'm not sure where I stand mentally. Right now.
4:11
Speaker 4: We're about one hundred and fifty yards from where this
4:13
Speaker 4: transpired on our stage. We had as a team to
4:17
Speaker 4: hide under our stage together our entire production, until law enforcement,
4:22
Speaker 4: who was brilliant came and got us and kept us safe.
4:26
Speaker 4: But this isn't really about us there. This is about
4:29
Speaker 4: I think the young people. Steve that a lot of them,
4:31
Speaker 4: as you mentioned, were specifically impacted. But as we were
4:35
Speaker 4: trying to leave and so many of us are stuck there,
4:38
Speaker 4: We're in a parking garage that's somewhat secure, and I'm
4:41
Speaker 4: talking to a family in a truck and the mother's
4:44
Speaker 4: telling me how they were about fifteen yards from where
4:47
Speaker 4: this transpired. And she told me she jumped on top
4:50
Speaker 4: of her three boys, and her husband jumped on top
4:52
Speaker 4: of her just to keep these three boys safe. And
4:56
Speaker 4: I see them sitting in the backseat of this truck
4:59
Speaker 4: and they're in their Mahomes Jersey and they're Kelsey Jersey,
5:02
Speaker 4: and they're justin Reed Jersey. And I'm the only idiot
5:05
Speaker 4: in a suit there, Steve, So I stand out pretty
5:07
Speaker 4: pretty well. And one of these boys recognizes me from
5:11
Speaker 4: NFL Network, and they wanted to step out of the
5:15
Speaker 4: truck and take a picture. We're going nowhere in this
5:17
Speaker 4: parking garage, nobody can move, nobody can do anything, and
5:20
Speaker 4: we take a picture. And the only thing I'm thinking
5:23
Speaker 4: of is that these three kids memory of this parade
5:25
Speaker 4: is dramatically different than what they thought they were going
5:27
Speaker 4: to have when they went to Union Station. So I
5:31
Speaker 4: just looked at him and said, like, hey, you guys
5:34
Speaker 4: want to talk some football, Like you want to ask
5:36
Speaker 4: me anything about Pat, You want to ask me anything
5:38
Speaker 4: about Trav Like, let's talk some ball.
5:42
Speaker 3: Like.
5:43
Speaker 4: My first thought, Steve, was, how do I change their
5:46
Speaker 4: memory of this or maybe distract them for just a moment.
5:51
Speaker 3: And try to do that.
5:53
Speaker 4: And so that's what sticks with me from being there,
5:57
Speaker 4: is that things like this and it's it's not the
6:00
Speaker 4: form to talk about my stance on anything, but things
6:02
Speaker 4: like this, when they happen, young people being affected, and
6:08
Speaker 4: we can't even imagine the number of ways they can be.
6:11
Speaker 3: So I'd like to move forward.
6:14
Speaker 4: I'd like to talk some football and hopefully distract some
6:18
Speaker 4: more people.
6:20
Speaker 3: From thinking about what happened.
6:21
Speaker 4: But we have to acknowledge it and acknowledge what transpired
6:24
Speaker 4: and that it still has an impact on a lot
6:26
Speaker 4: of people. And we'll continue to and we'll see how
6:30
Speaker 4: this shapes things moving forward. But I think we should
6:34
Speaker 4: we should talk some balls.
6:35
Speaker 2: Steve well JP, well done by you, and you talk
6:38
Speaker 2: about memories.
6:39
Speaker 1: They've got that photo with you, and that's going.
6:42
Speaker 2: To change some of the memories that may be traumatic
6:45
Speaker 2: to them and a lot of other people. So much
6:47
Speaker 2: respect to you, much respect to law enforcement, the medical enforcement,
6:53
Speaker 2: and those good Samaritans who helped apprehend the bad guys
6:57
Speaker 2: and help save the lives of so many JP. Again,
7:02
Speaker 2: well done. Also coming up on the show, we are
7:05
Speaker 2: going to have our draft analyst Lance zero line. But
7:08
Speaker 2: up next Terry Fonto, the Falcons general manager. You see
7:11
Speaker 2: him with his new coach, Rohie Morrison t president Greg Beatles.
7:14
Speaker 2: He's going to talk about the Falcons plans for the
7:16
Speaker 2: draft and possibly some trains coming up. That's after the
7:21
Speaker 2: break on the NFL Report.
7:23
Speaker 1: We'll de tate Belsie.
7:31
Speaker 3: This is coming home.
7:33
Speaker 5: And when you get a chance to go back home
7:36
Speaker 5: in this profession, it is extremely important and it is
7:40
Speaker 5: extremely critical to everybody involved. I can express the joy
7:44
Speaker 5: that I have right now to be able to come
7:46
Speaker 5: back and work with the Blanks, to be able to
7:47
Speaker 5: come back and work with all these people around me
7:49
Speaker 5: that I've been with for years. And I could talk
7:52
Speaker 5: about this for the rest of the press conference and
7:54
Speaker 5: I probably may bore you, but I don't know if
7:57
Speaker 5: you've ever been in the spot to coming back home,
7:59
Speaker 5: but this is certainly the best people in the world.
8:01
Speaker 2: We are back at the NFL Report and you just
8:03
Speaker 2: heard new Falcons head coach Raheem Morris at his introductory
8:07
Speaker 2: press conference and JP we are now joined by Falcons
8:10
Speaker 2: General manager Terry Fonteau, who was part of the committee
8:14
Speaker 2: that helped bring Raheem.
8:15
Speaker 1: Morris back to Atlanta.
8:17
Speaker 2: Terry, thanks so much for joining us, and let's get
8:20
Speaker 2: right to it, Terry, the decision to go with Raheem.
8:23
Speaker 1: I mean he's been in your building for a couple
8:25
Speaker 1: of weeks now.
8:27
Speaker 2: Just a feeling you have of bringing him back and
8:30
Speaker 2: you and him getting to work together for the first time.
8:33
Speaker 6: Yeah, Steve James, first of all, appreciate y'all having me on.
8:37
Speaker 6: And before we get into football, I do want to
8:39
Speaker 6: acknowledge yesterday and let everyone in Kansas City know that
8:44
Speaker 6: down here in Atlanta, our thoughts and prayers are with them,
8:47
Speaker 6: with everyone that was affected by those tragic events. But
8:51
Speaker 6: to your question, very excited about Raheem, and it was.
8:57
Speaker 6: It was a thorough, detailed process with a lot of
8:59
Speaker 6: people involved. We talked to fourteen of the brighter minds
9:02
Speaker 6: in the NFL, including some veterans, some younger guys. But
9:08
Speaker 6: man Raheem really stick out throughout that whole process. His infectious,
9:12
Speaker 6: infectious positive energy, the football acumen he has. He he
9:17
Speaker 6: has a clear vision of what we're gonna do here,
9:20
Speaker 6: and he's a two time champion. He knows how we're
9:22
Speaker 6: going to get there. So it's been really fun working
9:24
Speaker 6: with him.
9:25
Speaker 4: Terry, appreciate your knowledging Kansas City off the top, classic move,
9:29
Speaker 4: appreciate it. What I'd like to pass us forward to
9:32
Speaker 4: is and once you hire a coach, once you have
9:34
Speaker 4: a staff, I don't know if people at home really
9:36
Speaker 4: know what goes on inside of a building. If you
9:38
Speaker 4: could kind of tell us kind of the process once
9:40
Speaker 4: that staff's in place, how both sides from evaluating what's
9:45
Speaker 4: happening in free agency and the upcoming draft and just
9:48
Speaker 4: the process from your side and the coaching staff side,
9:50
Speaker 4: how you maybe start mending it all together, and how
9:53
Speaker 4: you go about the next several weeks after Raheem is hired.
9:56
Speaker 6: Yeah, great question. We're right in the midst of that
9:58
Speaker 6: process right now. The first step is to really take
10:01
Speaker 6: a hard look at your roster. You really have to
10:04
Speaker 6: look internal. Before you go out and buy new clothes,
10:06
Speaker 6: you need to know what you have in your own closet.
10:08
Speaker 6: So that's what we're doing right now. And we're spending
10:11
Speaker 6: a lot of time with the coaches, and not only
10:14
Speaker 6: the new coaches, but the coaches that have been here,
10:16
Speaker 6: really going through our entire roster. And we'll spend time
10:20
Speaker 6: in those roster meetings in the coming weeks. And once
10:23
Speaker 6: you do that, you spend a lot of time with
10:25
Speaker 6: the coaches going through the specific profile and the details
10:29
Speaker 6: of the players that we're going to be bringing in.
10:31
Speaker 6: Spending time with the coaches and the scouts and getting
10:33
Speaker 6: the staff together in regards to what's going to be
10:36
Speaker 6: the profile of what a Falcon looks like in all
10:39
Speaker 6: three phases of the game. And from there we can
10:42
Speaker 6: devise the right plan and make sure we have the
10:45
Speaker 6: plan to attack free agency, to attack the draft in
10:48
Speaker 6: the right way. So it starts off with looking at
10:51
Speaker 6: your own players.
10:52
Speaker 2: But Terry, you've been part of the process of building
10:54
Speaker 2: this roster for the past few years, and there is
10:57
Speaker 2: no denying there is a tremendous amount of talent on
11:00
Speaker 2: both sides of the ball. I mean, you really got
11:02
Speaker 2: big on defensive free agency last year. You've drafted big
11:06
Speaker 2: at the skill positions on offense. But the big question
11:09
Speaker 2: is the quarterback. I mean, I've been told the people
11:12
Speaker 2: in your organization, you guys planned to be very aggressive
11:16
Speaker 2: to get the quarterback that you need. What does that mean?
11:19
Speaker 2: Does that mean trading up? Does that mean going into
11:22
Speaker 2: free agency? What exactly does that mean?
11:25
Speaker 7: Yeah, we won't close any door.
11:27
Speaker 6: Steve You're right, that's the top priority for us this offseason,
11:31
Speaker 6: and it's exciting again not only people that have been
11:34
Speaker 6: in the building, but people outside the building from Raheem
11:37
Speaker 6: and Zach tj Yates, Ken Zampz, DJ Williams. We have
11:43
Speaker 6: a lot of really smart people in the building. We're
11:45
Speaker 6: going to spend a lot of time together make sure
11:47
Speaker 6: we attack that the right way. We're not going to
11:48
Speaker 6: close any doors, be it trades, free agency, the draft.
11:53
Speaker 6: We'll make sure we keep an open mind there and
11:55
Speaker 6: we're going to attack it and make sure we get
11:56
Speaker 6: it right.
11:57
Speaker 3: Terry mentioned the draft. You're sitting there at eight.
12:00
Speaker 4: A quarterback could be in play there to day you
12:02
Speaker 4: may feel the decision has to be made that you
12:04
Speaker 4: need to move up. This is kind of what you
12:06
Speaker 4: can tell with this question as well. What I'm fascinated with.
12:09
Speaker 4: How do those conversations kind of start with other teams.
12:12
Speaker 4: What's the pacing I guess in terms of the conversations
12:16
Speaker 4: you would maybe have just to feel it out, And
12:17
Speaker 4: when do those really around the NFL start heating up.
12:22
Speaker 6: Well, you're right, I'm actually sitting right outside. We're right
12:25
Speaker 6: in the midst of our February draft meetings. Our area
12:27
Speaker 6: scouts are in town, and we have a lot of
12:29
Speaker 6: stuff going on simultaneous to getting ready to get with
12:32
Speaker 6: the coaches and work with our roster. We're also going
12:35
Speaker 6: through our draft meetings right now, just with the scouts.
12:38
Speaker 7: So this is the.
12:39
Speaker 6: Phase where you're just meeting about with the scouts and
12:42
Speaker 6: then we get the coaches involved and then we get
12:44
Speaker 6: into the combine and all that stuff.
12:46
Speaker 7: But it's really fun.
12:47
Speaker 6: And I'll tell you what, it's a really strong draft,
12:50
Speaker 6: not just a quarterback, but a lot of positions.
12:52
Speaker 7: So that's really fun.
12:54
Speaker 6: To your question, talking about that communication, you keep that
12:58
Speaker 6: open line and you start talking right now, just touching
13:01
Speaker 6: base with because you have some some gms that were
13:05
Speaker 6: just put in place in some areas, so you make
13:07
Speaker 6: sure you have that line of communication open. You spend
13:10
Speaker 6: time at the combine and so we're always talking about everything.
13:14
Speaker 6: We're very open to communicate. But it's gonna be a
13:17
Speaker 6: fun year because I would say it's a very strong draft.
13:21
Speaker 8: Terry.
13:21
Speaker 2: I know you're not gonna give me an exact answer
13:23
Speaker 2: on this, and I would expect any I asked question
13:29
Speaker 2: sometimes to get him.
13:32
Speaker 7: Right now.
13:33
Speaker 1: Okay, well let's go there.
13:35
Speaker 2: Then the one player, hey, the one player who continues
13:38
Speaker 2: to be linked to you via trade potential trade conversations
13:42
Speaker 2: is Justin Fields out of Chicago.
13:44
Speaker 1: He's from Atlanta.
13:45
Speaker 2: But you had an opportunity to draft him a couple
13:47
Speaker 2: of years ago, and you decided not to. Can a
13:51
Speaker 2: player like Justin Field show enough evolution in the first
13:56
Speaker 2: couple of years of his career, and like you said,
13:59
Speaker 2: you now have a coach change or maybe there's a
14:01
Speaker 2: different philosophy to make you change your mind about going
14:06
Speaker 2: and getting a player like him.
14:08
Speaker 7: Now, I gave you too much credit.
14:09
Speaker 1: You know, I knew it.
14:13
Speaker 7: I answer that question, Steve, I'm gonna get a call.
14:16
Speaker 6: My cell phone's right there, and Ken Fiora is gonna
14:18
Speaker 6: call me right away, and we're gonna be We're gonna
14:21
Speaker 6: have tampering and I'm talking about how excited we were
14:23
Speaker 6: about this draft.
14:24
Speaker 7: We're gonna lose a draft pick if I answer that question.
14:26
Speaker 1: Okay, okay, But what I'm saying is, but what I'm
14:28
Speaker 1: saying is can.
14:29
Speaker 2: A player then But can a player then who maybe
14:32
Speaker 2: that you didn't select in a draft.
14:34
Speaker 3: You have an a particular point.
14:35
Speaker 2: Can they evolve over a couple of years, you're like, Okay,
14:38
Speaker 2: this player is better than what I thought and he
14:41
Speaker 2: fits what we're trying to do. And it doesn't matter
14:44
Speaker 2: to you out in your quarterback, But can a player
14:46
Speaker 2: showed that type of growth as to where you really
14:48
Speaker 2: get sweet on him so to speak?
14:49
Speaker 6: No, that that is a that's an outstanding question, and
14:52
Speaker 6: that's why you do. You evaluate players at every point
14:56
Speaker 6: in their career. And that's why it's so critical as
14:58
Speaker 6: we go through for a agency and again possible trades,
15:02
Speaker 6: we're evaluating every player. You're never going to look at
15:05
Speaker 6: a report from last year or the year before. We're
15:08
Speaker 6: going to look at the evolution of the players. And
15:10
Speaker 6: so yes, it's answer your question. Your question, it is
15:15
Speaker 6: we have to be detailed and evaluate players in every phase.
15:18
Speaker 7: Look, it's the same way with people.
15:20
Speaker 6: You can have someone that you know, you knew at
15:22
Speaker 6: a certain point in their career as a coach, and
15:25
Speaker 6: then now three or four years later, Okay, were they
15:28
Speaker 6: at this point in their career? We all grow and adapt, So,
15:32
Speaker 6: speaking in general about any player that we have to
15:36
Speaker 6: make sure we have recent reports and know where they
15:38
Speaker 6: are at this point in their careers.
15:41
Speaker 4: Terry, I love that in terms of growth and adapting,
15:44
Speaker 4: and everybody has a different opinion on every player, right,
15:47
Speaker 4: and that's what you're trying to do in the room
15:48
Speaker 4: and see what everybody has to say. So there was
15:51
Speaker 4: a lot of talk with how you guys were going
15:52
Speaker 4: to use b Jon Robinson taking them where you took
15:54
Speaker 4: him a year ago. I'm just curious what Raheem's conversation
15:58
Speaker 4: with you is like when he came in going this
16:00
Speaker 4: is what I may.
16:01
Speaker 3: Bee envision for a back like that.
16:03
Speaker 4: Have you guys kind of talked about his evolution going
16:06
Speaker 4: into year two.
16:07
Speaker 6: Yeah, we're still working through that and that's a part
16:10
Speaker 6: of going through the process and going through our players
16:12
Speaker 6: and spending time with the staffs. What I'm excited about
16:15
Speaker 6: with this staff is from uh from where we're talking
16:18
Speaker 6: about Zach or Jimmy or Marquise who has been here,
16:22
Speaker 6: is we do we have some really smart coaches that
16:25
Speaker 6: are always learning and adapting in their open minded So
16:28
Speaker 6: we'll have specific things that we want to do, but
16:30
Speaker 6: we're going to make it fit our players and make
16:33
Speaker 6: sure the scheme fits our players, and we're going to
16:35
Speaker 6: go out and add some more guys. So I'm very
16:37
Speaker 6: excited about this staff here because I know we're going
16:40
Speaker 6: to get the most out of every player on this roster.
16:42
Speaker 6: We're going to go out and find some more and
16:44
Speaker 6: make sure we're ready to roll this year.
16:46
Speaker 1: Yeah, you know you got the old line. You know
16:47
Speaker 1: you got the running backs to pound the ball. But Terry,
16:51
Speaker 1: you know you talk about.
16:51
Speaker 2: You're evaluating some things with your area scoles and whatnot.
16:54
Speaker 2: But just maybe if you can just tell us about
16:57
Speaker 2: the overall depth and talent at the quarterback spot of
17:01
Speaker 2: the prospects entering this year's draft.
17:04
Speaker 6: Yeah, good, good depth, no doubt. There's some really good
17:08
Speaker 6: players and some different flavors. So there's different types of
17:11
Speaker 6: quarterbacks that can do some different things. And again we're
17:15
Speaker 6: going through that process right now, just with the scouts initially.
17:19
Speaker 6: Then we get the coaches involved, and like I said,
17:20
Speaker 6: we have some really uh smart coaches, some really good
17:24
Speaker 6: guys that I'm excited to really attack that with. So
17:27
Speaker 6: we know what we're looking for specifically. But it's a
17:31
Speaker 6: really good group of quarterbacks this year, not only in
17:34
Speaker 6: the draft, but like I said, free agency via trade,
17:39
Speaker 6: there's some really talented players available and we're excited to
17:41
Speaker 6: attack that.
17:42
Speaker 4: I will have you on further, Terry, to talk about
17:45
Speaker 4: in depth about those specific free agents.
17:47
Speaker 3: Maybe never mind, we won't do that. Don't worry, we
17:49
Speaker 3: won't put you there.
17:51
Speaker 1: With the drafts A great answer.
17:54
Speaker 4: Yeah, well it's gonna tell me to ask the question
17:57
Speaker 4: and then he's gonna say, well, okay, well we can't
17:59
Speaker 4: get Tyler to there.
18:00
Speaker 3: A stick with the draft.
18:01
Speaker 4: Another spot, looking at your defense, Terry, looking at your TV,
18:05
Speaker 4: I'm looking at at at the edge spot.
18:06
Speaker 3: What what do you see out of this class?
18:08
Speaker 4: Is this maybe a class where there's, you know, some
18:10
Speaker 4: years it's there's a couple at the top and then
18:12
Speaker 4: there's almost maybe sometimes a gap before you hit the
18:15
Speaker 4: next bunch. Is this one that you can find guys
18:18
Speaker 4: in different rounds that can rush the passer from the outside.
18:22
Speaker 7: Yeah, there is.
18:23
Speaker 6: There are some really exciting guys at the top, like
18:25
Speaker 6: you said, but also there's there's depth throughout and there's
18:29
Speaker 6: there's really good players throughout the entire draft. And I
18:32
Speaker 6: have a lot of confidence in our staff. I know
18:33
Speaker 6: we'll find those players through off the draft.
18:36
Speaker 7: But it is.
18:36
Speaker 6: It's it's strong in that area regarding the pressure players.
18:40
Speaker 6: But this is draft overall, it's going to be a
18:43
Speaker 6: really fun year. It's an exciting year, and we got
18:46
Speaker 6: a couple of extra draft picks this year. I'm excited
18:48
Speaker 6: about that because it's a very deep draft and there
18:51
Speaker 6: are definitely some pressure players, not just the edge guys,
18:54
Speaker 6: the outside backers, some there's some interior pressure players.
18:58
Speaker 3: So it's exciting going into.
19:00
Speaker 2: Your fourth year now in this position. What are some
19:03
Speaker 2: of the key things that you've learned.
19:06
Speaker 6: Yeah, I think anytime kind of what we've talked about
19:10
Speaker 6: where you can get people at different phases of their career,
19:13
Speaker 6: and the key is to continue to learn and always.
19:16
Speaker 6: Guy gave us one mouth and two ears for a reason,
19:19
Speaker 6: because we always need to be learning and listening and evolving.
19:23
Speaker 6: Every year is going to be different. But I think
19:25
Speaker 6: specifically sitting in this seat, you need to make sure
19:27
Speaker 6: you surround yourself with really smart people and listen to
19:30
Speaker 6: and learn from them. And that's what I'm always trying
19:33
Speaker 6: to do, and I know the people around us are
19:35
Speaker 6: always trying to continue to learn, continue to adapt because
19:38
Speaker 6: every year is going to be different.
19:40
Speaker 4: Awesome Terry fin no Falcons GM joining us on the
19:42
Speaker 4: NFL Report. Steve he wants to keep all these draft
19:45
Speaker 4: picks by the way, So he's going to watch what
19:46
Speaker 4: he says on our show to make sure he gets
19:48
Speaker 4: to capitalize on how.
19:49
Speaker 3: Deep this draft is.
19:50
Speaker 4: And we're excited to keep an eye on you guys
19:53
Speaker 4: down there in Atlanta. To Terry, I mean, you're a
19:55
Speaker 4: fascinated team to watch this offseason with everything that you
19:59
Speaker 4: guys have already and we're looking forward to what you're doing.
20:01
Speaker 4: So thank you so much for joining Steve and I
20:03
Speaker 4: on the NFL Report.
20:04
Speaker 1: Appreciate it.
20:05
Speaker 7: Thanks, guys, appreciate it.
20:07
Speaker 4: Coming up, we're going to talk to some defensive coordinators
20:10
Speaker 4: and that man right there has won four Super Bowl rings,
20:13
Speaker 4: Steve Spagnolo, fresh off of a new contract to stay
20:17
Speaker 4: in Kansas City. What has he done right and what
20:19
Speaker 4: does some other ones need to do to do the
20:21
Speaker 4: same thing Spags has done.
20:22
Speaker 3: More of that coming up on the NFL Report.
20:29
Speaker 2: You're listening to the NFL Report podcast, but you can
20:32
Speaker 2: watch me, Steve Weich and my co host James Palmer
20:35
Speaker 2: on The NFL Report at seven fifteen Eastern time on
20:38
Speaker 2: Mondays and Thursdays on the NFL app and free streaming
20:42
Speaker 2: platforms on.
20:42
Speaker 1: The NFL channel on Roku two.
20:44
Speaker 2: B Peacock Pluto TV and other free streaming apps.
20:53
Speaker 4: Welcome back to the NFL Report, James Palmer, Steve which
20:55
Speaker 4: with you. The big news on Wednesday was that the
20:58
Speaker 4: forty nine Ers fired defensive coordinator Steve Wilkes after just
21:02
Speaker 4: one season, and Steve, we have had turnover at the
21:06
Speaker 4: defensive coordinator spot in San Francisco because they just all
21:10
Speaker 4: keep getting.
21:11
Speaker 3: Head coaching jobs.
21:12
Speaker 4: It was Robert Sala who was there, and then it
21:14
Speaker 4: was Demiko Ryans who picked up where Sala left off,
21:17
Speaker 4: and then they bring in Steve Wilkes. What I'm curious
21:21
Speaker 4: most about is you pose this question to me, and
21:24
Speaker 4: now I pose it to you. If they win Super
21:27
Speaker 4: Bowl fifty eight and they take a Vintombardi Trophy back
21:31
Speaker 4: to the Bay Area, is Steve Wilkes still the head coach,
21:34
Speaker 4: still the coordinator a defensive coordinator for this team in
21:38
Speaker 4: twenty twenty four?
21:39
Speaker 2: Yes, I mean, look, I am not saying this decision
21:42
Speaker 2: came solely off of one game, but it would be
21:45
Speaker 2: very hard to justify the firing of a defensive coordinator
21:49
Speaker 2: whose defense had been pretty good most of the season.
21:53
Speaker 2: Now it wasn't he had to measure himself up against
21:57
Speaker 2: Robert Sala and Demiko Ryans. There were points a season
22:00
Speaker 2: where this Niners defense was not as great or as
22:04
Speaker 2: dominant as those teams, especially in the playoffs and especially against.
22:09
Speaker 1: The run, where they were once impenetrable.
22:11
Speaker 2: But they played a Super Bowl game where they lost
22:14
Speaker 2: their best their second best defensive player in Drake green Law,
22:17
Speaker 2: or their third best defensive player. Let's not forget they
22:21
Speaker 2: did not have Pro Bowl safety Tallano Hufonga for almost
22:25
Speaker 2: the entire season, so there was a lot of shifting
22:28
Speaker 2: going on with this defense at points, but there also
22:32
Speaker 2: seemed to be some issues along the way. Remember Kyle
22:34
Speaker 2: Shanahan said Steve, come down from the booth and get
22:37
Speaker 2: on the sideline. So Wilkes came down to the sideline
22:41
Speaker 2: and things seemed to turn around briefly, well I won't
22:44
Speaker 2: say briefly. Things seemed to turn around. Something get better
22:47
Speaker 2: from that point on. So again, there's gotta be more
22:51
Speaker 2: to this, something that's been brewing all along. But I
22:54
Speaker 2: still think if they win the Super Bowl, Steve Wilkes
22:59
Speaker 2: would still be the defensive coordinator for the forty nine
23:02
Speaker 2: ers because then they could take all off seas and
23:03
Speaker 2: they say let's work on some of these things that
23:06
Speaker 2: I didn't think went quite right in twenty twenty.
23:10
Speaker 3: Three, I think exactly right.
23:12
Speaker 4: See this is one year and Kyle Shanahan said repeatedly
23:15
Speaker 4: that there wasn't a lack of effort by Steve Wilks.
23:17
Speaker 3: Trying to make all of this work.
23:19
Speaker 4: And when I say trying to make all of this work,
23:21
Speaker 4: it's because it's a system that they wanted to keep
23:23
Speaker 4: in place that has been there and built for the
23:27
Speaker 4: personnel that they have.
23:28
Speaker 3: It was run by Solid, was run by Demiko Rans.
23:30
Speaker 4: They didn't really have a strong in house candidate that
23:33
Speaker 4: could have replaced Demko, And essentially you put Steve Wilks
23:38
Speaker 4: in a position where he's running a system that wasn't
23:40
Speaker 4: essentially one he's very familiar with, but you wanted to
23:43
Speaker 4: keep the continuity for your team, and I understand that
23:46
Speaker 4: as well. So maybe some more time would have actually
23:49
Speaker 4: helped Wilkes in a sense. But I think also being
23:51
Speaker 4: the escapegoat can also happen at the exact same time,
23:54
Speaker 4: because I do think we live in a world of
23:57
Speaker 4: recency bias, and this defense was not at its best
24:01
Speaker 4: in the most recent of games. You mentioned what happened
24:04
Speaker 4: with them against the run during the postseason.
24:07
Speaker 3: It didn't just fall off, it dropped off a cliff.
24:10
Speaker 9: Ye.
24:10
Speaker 4: I mean they were third in the NFL against the
24:13
Speaker 4: run during the season, and they more than doubled that.
24:15
Speaker 4: I think it was almost seventy yards a game. They
24:18
Speaker 4: were giving up more during the postseason than they were
24:22
Speaker 4: during the regular season. And you don't think Kyle Shannan
24:24
Speaker 4: doesn't forget that those are the last several games that
24:26
Speaker 4: they played. And then when you look at also comments
24:30
Speaker 4: that certain players make you hear Nick bos To say
24:34
Speaker 4: after the game, we were not prepared for Patrick.
24:37
Speaker 3: Mahomes to be using his legs.
24:39
Speaker 4: That's not a great comment you want coming out of
24:41
Speaker 4: the sal for your defensive coordinator. And the other aspect
24:44
Speaker 4: of it is Steve Wooks is brilliant working with the
24:46
Speaker 4: secondary and great back there. This team is built off
24:50
Speaker 4: of its front seven. It has been for a long time,
24:54
Speaker 4: so I think there was that aspect as well. This
24:57
Speaker 4: seemed like a difficult decision for Kyle Shanahan, but he
25:00
Speaker 4: said it had to be made. I'm not sure where
25:03
Speaker 4: they go from here though.
25:04
Speaker 1: Uh.
25:05
Speaker 4: And that's the other part that I'm I'm kind of
25:07
Speaker 4: fascinated by with because this is very late now in
25:11
Speaker 4: terms of making a higher.
25:12
Speaker 2: Brandon Daley's out there brandis Daley's out there, and he
25:15
Speaker 2: comes to that from that Sean McVay Vic Fangio type
25:18
Speaker 2: of system that's kind of similar to.
25:20
Speaker 1: What they like to do.
25:22
Speaker 2: Well, JP, let's go to the other side and not
25:24
Speaker 2: a coach getting let go, but a.
25:25
Speaker 1: Coach being retained. Kid's hitty.
25:28
Speaker 2: Yeah, signed DC Steve Spagnolo to a well deserved contract extension.
25:34
Speaker 2: We talked to Spags on the podcast the end of
25:37
Speaker 2: podcast while we're at super Bowl? What about Spag getting
25:40
Speaker 2: taken care of?
25:42
Speaker 3: I think this is just, you know, so much of this.
25:45
Speaker 4: You know, two weeks, Steve, we've been out in you know,
25:47
Speaker 4: covering the Super Bowl and then out in Vegas and
25:49
Speaker 4: it's is Andy Reid going to retire? Is Andy Reid
25:52
Speaker 4: going to retire? Well that was solidified, right, Andy Reid's
25:54
Speaker 4: going nowhere. And this is a big part of why
25:56
Speaker 4: Andy Reid's going nowhere. He literally does not have to
25:59
Speaker 4: worry about half his football team right because he has
26:03
Speaker 4: Steve Spagnola running that entire defense. I mean, the faith
26:08
Speaker 4: and trust that this team has in that man right
26:11
Speaker 4: there is remarkable.
26:13
Speaker 3: I mean, second to none.
26:15
Speaker 4: There are guys that have told me, Steve, if Spags
26:17
Speaker 4: isn't here, I'm not sure I want to even play
26:18
Speaker 4: here anymore. And this is one of the best organizations
26:20
Speaker 4: in football. That's the way that's not ant to Kansas City.
26:23
Speaker 4: That's a feather in the cap of Steve Spagnola. When
26:27
Speaker 4: the parade was going on during the speeches and Justin
26:31
Speaker 4: Reid came out and said, I hope everybody here knows
26:34
Speaker 4: that Spag's got a contract.
26:35
Speaker 3: Extension this morning.
26:36
Speaker 4: It was the roar was just as loud as it
26:39
Speaker 4: was when Patrick Mahomes got introduced or Travis Kelcey. That's
26:43
Speaker 4: the way everybody in Kansas City acknowledges what Spagnola can do.
26:47
Speaker 4: And I think this is only going to continue, Steve,
26:48
Speaker 4: because these are young players that have been drafted into
26:51
Speaker 4: this system and only continue to become more intelligent in
26:55
Speaker 4: what he wants him to do and allows him to
26:57
Speaker 4: make even more and more adjustments, which makes his defense.
27:00
Speaker 1: Well, here's the other thing Steve Spagnolo likes.
27:04
Speaker 2: So many chiefs assistant coaches are kind of the victims,
27:09
Speaker 2: so to speak, of the team's success.
27:12
Speaker 1: Very few coaches under Andy Raid.
27:14
Speaker 2: Have left because they're playing in so many Super Bowls.
27:17
Speaker 2: Look at how long it took for Eric b Enemy
27:19
Speaker 2: to have to go someplace else. Andy Reid has lost
27:23
Speaker 2: very few of his assistants and that coaching continuity again
27:27
Speaker 2: because a lot of times his teams are playing deep
27:29
Speaker 2: into the playoffs. That works against some guys trying to
27:32
Speaker 2: get coaching opportunities or coordinator opportunities because those teams with
27:36
Speaker 2: vacancies tend to make the HighRes before the.
27:38
Speaker 1: Super Bowl is played.
27:40
Speaker 2: So that has benefited the Andy Reid and the leadership
27:44
Speaker 2: there to be able to retain people likes bags because
27:47
Speaker 2: of their successes a JP. Now let's go to one
27:50
Speaker 2: more defensive coordinator move, and that is down in Dallas, where,
27:54
Speaker 2: of course Dan Quinn, the former defensive coordinator left to
27:58
Speaker 2: become the head coach of the Commanders, and Jerry Jones
28:02
Speaker 2: and Mike McCarthy go way back into the Cowboys time
28:05
Speaker 2: machine and they bring in Mike Zimmer to be the
28:08
Speaker 2: defensive coordinator. Remember, Zimmer was a secondary coach with some
28:12
Speaker 2: of those Super Bowl teams that Dallas had back in
28:15
Speaker 2: the nineties. Now he's basically back on with a head coach.
28:19
Speaker 2: He's got one year to prove he needs to get
28:22
Speaker 2: an extension.
28:25
Speaker 4: That's a great point. I mean, dan Quinn had this
28:27
Speaker 4: defense in a good spot. Let's just I will kind
28:30
Speaker 4: of put it that way. What led the NFL and
28:32
Speaker 4: takeaways in twenty one and twenty two, top five scoring
28:35
Speaker 4: defense in twenty twenty two and twenty twenty three. What
28:38
Speaker 4: my main focus, Steve is what does Mike Zimmer come
28:41
Speaker 4: in and do in developing a relationship with Micah Parsons
28:45
Speaker 4: Because I think we talked about this on the show
28:47
Speaker 4: mid season when I had a long conversation with dan
28:49
Speaker 4: Quinn in the lengths that he went to find ways
28:54
Speaker 4: for Micah Parsons to be comfortable, find ways for him
28:58
Speaker 4: to play at the highest level possible, to find new
29:02
Speaker 4: ways to use him in new ways for him to
29:05
Speaker 4: be effective, and develop their relationship together. That was a
29:08
Speaker 4: huge part of being, you know, the defensive coordinator of
29:13
Speaker 4: a player that is so unique as Micah Parsons. I
29:16
Speaker 4: think that's the first thing that Mike Zimmer has to
29:19
Speaker 4: do is make sure that that's intact, because that could.
29:22
Speaker 3: Be who knows, volatile if you will, but.
29:25
Speaker 1: Also, it's kind of right.
29:28
Speaker 4: I am the linebacker position as well. That is a
29:31
Speaker 4: spot that I think you want to talk about, and
29:33
Speaker 4: that is a spot that remember we have a converted
29:35
Speaker 4: safety playing linebacker. Now listen, there were injuries, there were
29:38
Speaker 4: things like that, but I think Zimmer is focused on
29:40
Speaker 4: that position. On the defensive line needs to be a
29:43
Speaker 4: focal point as well. But I think there can't be
29:46
Speaker 4: a drop off in the in the aspects that I mentioned,
29:48
Speaker 4: and there needs to be maybe an increase in certain
29:51
Speaker 4: things like penalties, which this team is one of the
29:52
Speaker 4: more penalized defenses in football the last couple of years.
29:55
Speaker 4: How do you change that and remain aggressive? He says
29:58
Speaker 4: he doesn't want to, you know, remain the wheel entirely, Steve.
30:01
Speaker 4: But what do you see Zim coming in and doing
30:03
Speaker 4: on this defense?
30:04
Speaker 2: Well, first, the bigger, the biggest thing, and we know
30:07
Speaker 2: this is the personalities. Dan Quinn was the dude, Like
30:12
Speaker 2: everyone you talk to in Dallas will tell you on
30:15
Speaker 2: both sides of the ball that Quinn was the most
30:17
Speaker 2: relatable dude on.
30:18
Speaker 1: That coaching staff. That's who they all kind of flowed to.
30:21
Speaker 2: His energy was what they kind of trickled down and
30:25
Speaker 2: built off of Mike Zimmer is not dan Quinn. Mike
30:28
Speaker 2: Zimmer is an old school, in your face coach. He
30:33
Speaker 2: is a curmudgeon. He will tell you that, but I
30:36
Speaker 2: think the players, once they kind of get beyond that,
30:38
Speaker 2: understand how great of a coach he is. I have
30:40
Speaker 2: been around Zim for a long time, from when he
30:42
Speaker 2: was a defensive coordinator with the Falcons, when he went
30:45
Speaker 2: to be the DC in Cincinnati, and when he went
30:48
Speaker 2: to Minnesota. And the one thing you'll notice there speaking
30:50
Speaker 2: about the Micah Parsons is there's always one player who
30:54
Speaker 2: he gets to just dominate. It was Michael Bowley, an
30:57
Speaker 2: outside linebacker in Atlanta who always had the most press
31:00
Speaker 2: the stat sheets of any player. At the end of
31:03
Speaker 2: the season, he goes to Cincinnati. Vontes Perfect, an inside linebacker,
31:07
Speaker 2: turned out to be one of the better players.
31:09
Speaker 1: I know.
31:10
Speaker 2: Steelers fans don't want to hear anything about Vonte's perfect,
31:12
Speaker 2: but turned out to be one of the better players
31:14
Speaker 2: in that year after year.
31:16
Speaker 1: Then he goes to Minnesota.
31:18
Speaker 2: You guys guys like Anthony Barr, right, guys who can flex.
31:22
Speaker 2: But you you talked about linebackers at second level, player
31:25
Speaker 2: who can do things. And we know Zimmer is a
31:27
Speaker 2: great secondary coach.
31:28
Speaker 1: That is his strength.
31:29
Speaker 2: But he likes to play a lot of that cover
31:31
Speaker 2: two type coverage, So we'll see if he kind of
31:34
Speaker 2: puts that in.
31:35
Speaker 1: To what the Cowboys like to do.
31:38
Speaker 2: All right, JP, we talked about the defensive coordinators, but
31:42
Speaker 2: coming up, we're gonna talk about some of the guys
31:45
Speaker 2: coming into this year's draft.
31:46
Speaker 1: I don't know anything. You don't know anything. We've been
31:48
Speaker 1: covering the NFL. Land Zer, he.
31:51
Speaker 2: Knows a lot and he'll be back to.
31:53
Speaker 1: Join us next on the NFL Report.
32:02
Speaker 2: Three hundred of the best college football players get the
32:05
Speaker 2: chance to showcase DERI skills in Indianapolis at the twenty
32:08
Speaker 2: twenty four NFL Scouting Combine presented by Noble Combine cover
32:13
Speaker 2: It starts February twenty ninth.
32:15
Speaker 1: Right here on NFL Network.
32:18
Speaker 2: And also, let's not forget that the NFL Draft takes
32:21
Speaker 2: place in Detroit April twenty fifth through twenty seventh.
32:24
Speaker 1: JP.
32:25
Speaker 2: And now we're joined by our draft analyst lambs On,
32:30
Speaker 2: so L James and I We're gonna go Denzel Washington
32:33
Speaker 2: right here, explain this to me like we're kindergarteners.
32:38
Speaker 1: Right, We've been immersed in Super Bowl covers.
32:41
Speaker 2: We've been immersed in the NFL's When it comes to
32:43
Speaker 2: draft prospects, we know nothing.
32:46
Speaker 1: Okay, and let's start with the quarterbacks.
32:48
Speaker 2: And we're all assuming that Caleb Williams out of USC
32:52
Speaker 2: is gonna be the top pick, if the Bears hold
32:53
Speaker 2: the pick, or else whoever comes up to get the pick.
32:56
Speaker 2: What can you tell us about Caleb Williams as to
32:58
Speaker 2: why he's deserving of the top spot.
33:01
Speaker 9: Well, I think with Caleb Williams, it's kind of interesting
33:04
Speaker 9: because from a physical standpoint, he's kind of average sized,
33:07
Speaker 9: decent size.
33:09
Speaker 8: His arm talent's really really good.
33:11
Speaker 9: I think if you watch tape this year, it's a
33:13
Speaker 9: little uneven, frankly, and it's because he tried to play
33:15
Speaker 9: a lot of hero ball. He wasn't surrounded with a
33:18
Speaker 9: great offensive line. He had pressure on him a lot,
33:20
Speaker 9: and I think he developed some bad habits. But when
33:23
Speaker 9: things are right and he's in rhythm, man, he is terrific.
33:26
Speaker 9: I mean it comes out of his hand a little differently.
33:29
Speaker 9: He's got the ability to make the improvisational throws as
33:31
Speaker 9: you just saw right there.
33:33
Speaker 8: And let's face it, when you look at Pat.
33:34
Speaker 9: Mahomes the guy who's been the most consistently excellent quarterback
33:38
Speaker 9: outside of Tom Brady over the last several years, or
33:42
Speaker 9: if you want to even talk about Aaron Rodgers.
33:44
Speaker 8: Things that those two guys can do.
33:45
Speaker 9: They've got good arm talent and they get outside of
33:47
Speaker 9: the pocket extend to make big plays. And I think
33:50
Speaker 9: that's what gets people the most excited about Caleb Williams.
33:53
Speaker 8: So what you've got with Kayleb Williams is a guy
33:55
Speaker 8: who I think is going to go first. I think
33:57
Speaker 8: he is going to go to the Bears.
33:58
Speaker 9: It'll allow them to he set that clock for rookie
34:02
Speaker 9: contract and really hit reset on a quarterback that they
34:04
Speaker 9: feel like might be a better passer there in the
34:07
Speaker 9: in the Chicago area. So of this quarterback class, you know,
34:11
Speaker 9: is he the best player in this in this class?
34:13
Speaker 8: I don't know if.
34:14
Speaker 3: He's the best.
34:14
Speaker 9: I rarely have quarterback at the very top of the list.
34:17
Speaker 9: Is he the best quarterback? I think he's definitely the
34:19
Speaker 9: best quarterback Steve, and that's that's why he's going to
34:22
Speaker 9: go first. The upside, the potential, the background of productivity,
34:27
Speaker 9: it really checks out checks a lot of boxes.
34:30
Speaker 4: Yeah, Lance We had Ian Rappaport on the show earlier
34:32
Speaker 4: this week and he kind of said similar things to
34:34
Speaker 4: the Bears most likely staying at that number one spot.
34:36
Speaker 4: Taking Kayleb Williams is going to take a massive haul
34:39
Speaker 4: for anybody to come up there and try to take
34:42
Speaker 4: that number one spot away from them. And I look
34:44
Speaker 4: at you know, Ryan Poles running the show. There was
34:46
Speaker 4: with Patrick Mahomes for five years in Kansas City. If
34:49
Speaker 4: anybody want to make the comp I would assume Ryan
34:52
Speaker 4: Poles has enough intel being with Patrick Mahomes day in
34:55
Speaker 4: and day out to make a very educated opinion about
34:58
Speaker 4: some of the comparisons we are seeing out there. What
35:01
Speaker 4: about the system staying in Chicago? Shane Waldron comes in
35:05
Speaker 4: disciple of McVeigh. Is this a solid fit for when
35:09
Speaker 4: you evaluate Caleb Williams's strengths that this would be a
35:12
Speaker 4: system he would flourish in lance.
35:14
Speaker 8: That's a great question. You know it can be if
35:16
Speaker 8: Caleb will let it be.
35:18
Speaker 9: And what I mean by that is, as I mentioned previously,
35:20
Speaker 9: Caleb will take some things off.
35:22
Speaker 8: Schedule that don't need to go off schedule.
35:23
Speaker 9: So I think it's going to be really having the
35:27
Speaker 9: offensive coordinator drill down on this is when we extend
35:30
Speaker 9: and take chances. This is when the ball needs to
35:32
Speaker 9: come out to option number two or option number three,
35:35
Speaker 9: we go move on to the next play. It doesn't
35:38
Speaker 9: have to be hero ball on the next level. And
35:39
Speaker 9: you've got some targets over there in Chicago, and of
35:43
Speaker 9: course they've got draft capital, they've got free agent money.
35:46
Speaker 9: They're going to build something around Caleb Williams. And and I
35:49
Speaker 9: think the number nine pick could easily end up being
35:51
Speaker 9: a wide receiver as well, or they could move up
35:54
Speaker 9: and target one of the top three wide receivers in
35:56
Speaker 9: this draft. So I think it could be a really
35:59
Speaker 9: good offense for him because he has the ability to
36:02
Speaker 9: play in rhythm and the offense you're talking about the
36:05
Speaker 9: schedule is.
36:06
Speaker 8: I mean, it's playing on schedule, it's playing a rhythm.
36:09
Speaker 9: It's kind of levels passing attack where you make a
36:11
Speaker 9: simple read and then you throw a the accuracy in touch.
36:14
Speaker 8: It could be a really great offense for Caleb Williams.
36:17
Speaker 9: It's just a matter of will he stay inside the
36:20
Speaker 9: structure of that offense and showed the discipline that he's
36:23
Speaker 9: kind of lacked over the last year and a half
36:25
Speaker 9: when he felt like he had to carry the team
36:27
Speaker 9: because frankly, he did have to carry his team.
36:29
Speaker 2: Yeah, when we saw him in Oklahoma, though we saw
36:31
Speaker 2: him play on schedule.
36:32
Speaker 1: I mean, that was the thing.
36:33
Speaker 2: That's why I say, you know, when you talk about
36:34
Speaker 2: him with the bad habits, just because of the USC,
36:37
Speaker 2: he's scoring forty points a game, but he knows he
36:39
Speaker 2: had to score forty.
36:40
Speaker 1: Eight to win. So that's when you talk about I
36:43
Speaker 1: don't know if.
36:43
Speaker 9: We're talking to the same guy, Steve, because I had
36:45
Speaker 9: I had somebody I was questioning some of the USC
36:48
Speaker 9: stuff I saw, and this and this scout from hes
36:52
Speaker 9: a personal exact now from a team that needs a quarterback, said,
36:55
Speaker 9: if you go back to Oklahoma with Lincoln Riley, you
36:59
Speaker 9: can see him play in schedule. Uh, you know, instructure
37:03
Speaker 9: much more, play on schedule much more. And he raved
37:05
Speaker 9: about the fact that. And I said, aren't you worried
37:07
Speaker 9: about going back that far? And he said, no, I
37:09
Speaker 9: don't think so. I mean, he said, just because he developed,
37:12
Speaker 9: you know, he said, is it a bad habit that
37:14
Speaker 9: he developed or is it just taking on too much?
37:17
Speaker 9: Those are two different things. And he thinks if you
37:19
Speaker 9: go to Oklahoma, you see what you need to see
37:22
Speaker 9: in terms of being on time. So I think that's
37:24
Speaker 9: a great point that you make. It isn't his background,
37:28
Speaker 9: so he can't do it. It's just a matter of
37:30
Speaker 9: getting him back there and trusting the guys around him.
37:32
Speaker 8: Again.
37:33
Speaker 2: Okay, so Lance, Let's let's get to some of these
37:35
Speaker 2: other quarterbacks.
37:37
Speaker 1: Okay, Well we see Drake May. You know, he's who
37:39
Speaker 1: some people consider the.
37:40
Speaker 2: Second best, but a lot of people don't know a
37:43
Speaker 2: ton about him.
37:44
Speaker 1: What about Drake May?
37:47
Speaker 9: Big, arm, height, weight, He's got the trades right, he's
37:50
Speaker 9: got the physical tools. He can throw it. There's some
37:52
Speaker 9: people who want to comp from to Josh Allen. That's
37:55
Speaker 9: who you comp a quarterback with size who's a little inaccurate.
37:59
Speaker 9: You want to throw Theosh Allen. There's not a lot
38:01
Speaker 9: of Josh Allen's out there. That probably one of one situation.
38:05
Speaker 9: Cam Newton had some of the same elements those two guys,
38:08
Speaker 9: But there's not a lot of guys like those two
38:10
Speaker 9: guys in this league.
38:11
Speaker 8: Now.
38:12
Speaker 9: I think when you look at Drake May when he's on,
38:15
Speaker 9: he's really really good. He can throw with accuracy, he
38:18
Speaker 9: can throw with positioning, he can throw with the ability
38:22
Speaker 9: to attack down the field, uh and really challenge safeties.
38:25
Speaker 9: The problem with him is he just doesn't sustain it.
38:28
Speaker 9: It's just not sustained enough. There's there's missed throws in
38:33
Speaker 9: the middle of the field that should be point A
38:35
Speaker 9: to point B throws, and he leaves it behind wide
38:37
Speaker 9: receivers or he drives it over them with a you know,
38:39
Speaker 9: with the just a gun to overthrow where he just
38:44
Speaker 9: doesn't take anything off that fastball. He's got to learn
38:46
Speaker 9: to play without the fastball. He's got to learn to
38:49
Speaker 9: change up speeds and have that touch. So I think
38:52
Speaker 9: with Drake May, I'll be honest with you, the tape
38:54
Speaker 9: is really uneven for him, and I even question I
38:57
Speaker 9: put it out on social media sometime in early January.
38:59
Speaker 9: I said, after I finished Drake May, I said, I'm
39:02
Speaker 9: trying to figure out why he's a de facto quarterback
39:05
Speaker 9: too in the media.
39:06
Speaker 8: And it was it wasn't a slam for him. It
39:08
Speaker 8: was just I didn't really see it.
39:10
Speaker 9: And I took some bullets because the narrative had, you know,
39:13
Speaker 9: come in today, this is the number two, it's it's
39:15
Speaker 9: Caleb and then it's Drake, or maybe it's Drake and
39:17
Speaker 9: then Caleb, and then I watched it and I said, no,
39:19
Speaker 9: it's going to be Caleb and Jaden Daniels, who I'm
39:22
Speaker 9: sure we'll get to in a second. But I think
39:23
Speaker 9: Drake May is one of those guys that you see
39:26
Speaker 9: the potential, but you got to reel it in and
39:29
Speaker 9: it may take him a year or two to develop
39:31
Speaker 9: the habits that he needs to And really it might
39:34
Speaker 9: be a situation like Josh Allen where you need to
39:37
Speaker 9: get the right pieces around him that can help him
39:40
Speaker 9: flourish despite the fact that he may never be the
39:42
Speaker 9: most accurate quarterback.
39:44
Speaker 7: Well.
39:44
Speaker 4: Listen, the situation that Josh Allen walked into as well
39:47
Speaker 4: Lance was an organization that was prepared to be patient
39:50
Speaker 4: with them, which we do not see.
39:51
Speaker 3: Around the NFL very often.
39:53
Speaker 4: And with all of these evaluations on these quarterbacks, sometimes
39:56
Speaker 4: with each guy that might be more important than another
39:59
Speaker 4: guy just having the time and the patience that he
40:02
Speaker 4: could come around. I bring that up because we're gonna
40:04
Speaker 4: mention all of these names that I believe you have.
40:06
Speaker 4: Maybe I don't know a little bit of a gap
40:08
Speaker 4: all of these quarterbacks after Caleb Williams. When I bring
40:11
Speaker 4: this up, is I look at Josh Allen. I look
40:13
Speaker 4: at Patrick Mahomes, I look at these guys that were
40:16
Speaker 4: not taken right off the top, and not the first
40:19
Speaker 4: quarterback taken like of this group. Who could be the
40:22
Speaker 4: best out of this draft right now after Caleb Williams,
40:26
Speaker 4: because that is a realistic possibility. We've seen quarterbacks in
40:30
Speaker 4: seed quarterbacks draft. No.
40:31
Speaker 9: I you know, so much of it is fit. Obviously,
40:33
Speaker 9: you look at Bryce Young and c J.
40:36
Speaker 8: Stroud.
40:36
Speaker 9: I mean, one guy is in a bad situation. The
40:39
Speaker 9: other guy got to a great situation. But that's not
40:41
Speaker 9: to downplay c J.
40:42
Speaker 8: Strouds. C J. Stroud just much more special than.
40:45
Speaker 9: I thought he was, and he's every bit the talent
40:49
Speaker 9: that you see on the field and you see off
40:50
Speaker 9: the field. I think in this draft, Jade and Daniels
40:53
Speaker 9: has something really unique. If he were two hundred and
40:56
Speaker 9: twenty pounds, we'd be talking about him as the first
40:58
Speaker 9: quarterback in this draft. He is a legiti dual pass quarterback,
41:01
Speaker 9: a dual threat quarterback who is equally good with his
41:04
Speaker 9: arm as he is with his legs. Most dual threat
41:07
Speaker 9: quarterbacks are gonna slide. If you had a slide or
41:09
Speaker 9: your slide it.
41:10
Speaker 8: Heavier on the run side, and then there may be
41:12
Speaker 8: a little.
41:13
Speaker 9: Bit less in terms of passers, whether it's accuracy, placement, whatever,
41:17
Speaker 9: you know, whatever the case may be. Like in basketball,
41:19
Speaker 9: you may have a guy who's a big time scorer
41:21
Speaker 9: who doesn't play as well defensively. When you look at
41:24
Speaker 9: Jaden Daniels, this guy is obviously an outstanding runner.
41:27
Speaker 8: He had over a thousand yards rushing.
41:29
Speaker 9: But as a passer, he's calm outside of the pocket,
41:32
Speaker 9: he's accurate throwing the intermediate routes, he can throw as
41:35
Speaker 9: a scrambler and create and extend plays. There's a lot
41:39
Speaker 9: of NFL things that Jaden Daniels does. And let's not
41:42
Speaker 9: forget he's got five years of experience on the collegiate level.
41:45
Speaker 9: He's learned to play football, and it's something that we
41:48
Speaker 9: don't see often anymore. These quarterbacks sometimes are two years,
41:52
Speaker 9: sometimes one year guys out of Dwayne Haskins was a
41:55
Speaker 9: one year quarterback.
41:55
Speaker 8: We'll see two years every once in a while, three
41:57
Speaker 8: years rarely, four years in the first round.
42:00
Speaker 9: And you know, we have two guys and Bo Knicks
42:02
Speaker 9: and Jayden Daniels, who I think, and Michael Pennix. Actually
42:05
Speaker 9: all three of those guys. I thought they all had
42:08
Speaker 9: really good seasons and they all took really big steps up,
42:12
Speaker 9: steps up this year because of the natural progression of
42:15
Speaker 9: experience at the collegiate level. So Jaydeen Daniels to me,
42:18
Speaker 9: is gonna come out maybe with the best polish.
42:21
Speaker 8: Of all the quarterbacks ready to play right now.
42:24
Speaker 3: I love that.
42:24
Speaker 1: I love that. He's one of the most exciting players
42:27
Speaker 1: I saw it. But like you said, he's built like
42:29
Speaker 1: RG three, right, He's got everything, but he's very slight.
42:31
Speaker 8: Guy.
42:32
Speaker 1: Let's go to edge rusher's real quick.
42:34
Speaker 2: Okay, you got Latu Latu out of UCLA, Dallas Turner,
42:39
Speaker 2: Jared Vers, what about some of those guys, and then
42:42
Speaker 2: you just got the absolute specimen and Darius Robinson out
42:47
Speaker 2: of Missouri, who was the Senior Bowl MVP.
42:50
Speaker 8: I'm so excited about the hedge rushers.
42:53
Speaker 9: Yeah, I think what's gonna happen is I think it's
42:55
Speaker 9: I think it's gonna go and it's it's gonna flow
42:57
Speaker 9: in different directions. It's gonna start with the low quarter
43:00
Speaker 9: back run, then it's going to go to a wide
43:01
Speaker 9: receiver and tackle run, and then you're gonna see the
43:04
Speaker 9: edge rushers come off the board a lot too. Is
43:06
Speaker 9: akin to TJ. Watt already from a from a hand
43:10
Speaker 9: usage stamp. From a hand usage standpoint, yeah, no, I
43:14
Speaker 9: I gotta be careful. But when it comes to using
43:16
Speaker 9: his hands, his understanding as a pass rusher and this
43:20
Speaker 9: is a guy let me give you the background. Went
43:22
Speaker 9: to University of Washington, was there a couple of years,
43:24
Speaker 9: didn't play much at all because they said he had
43:27
Speaker 9: a neck injury and it would end his career, so
43:29
Speaker 9: he retired from football. Then Washington's doctor looked at him
43:32
Speaker 9: and said, you know what, we think you can play,
43:34
Speaker 9: but we do think you need these, you know, neck
43:36
Speaker 9: exercises and there's some things you need to do, but
43:38
Speaker 9: we think you're fine. He then goes to UCLA, plays
43:41
Speaker 9: only two years and ends up with double digit sacks
43:43
Speaker 9: in both years and completely dominated the tackles. He has
43:47
Speaker 9: an unbelievable understanding with his hands of how to get
43:50
Speaker 9: around tackles in a very efficient manner. He is so
43:53
Speaker 9: much fun to watch because he's so polished. Now Jared Verse,
43:57
Speaker 9: he is a ball of dynamite. Jared Burst can get
44:00
Speaker 9: out of a stance and into tackles and ragged all
44:03
Speaker 9: him around with his compact power at the point of attack,
44:06
Speaker 9: his twitch, but also his bull rush is nasty, a
44:11
Speaker 9: little birdie. A friend of his, let's just say, reached
44:13
Speaker 9: out to me last year and said, Okay, he's going
44:15
Speaker 9: back to school, but he wants to know what he
44:17
Speaker 9: needs to work on. And I'd already written him up
44:19
Speaker 9: because I thought he was going last year in the
44:21
Speaker 9: first round. And I gave him a list of my
44:23
Speaker 9: scouting reports what I thought were the areas of concerns
44:26
Speaker 9: or areas where he needed to work on him, and
44:28
Speaker 9: he worked him and he got better at him this year,
44:30
Speaker 9: and I think Jared Versus is going to come into
44:32
Speaker 9: the league and be an automatic w for whatever team
44:35
Speaker 9: drafts him. Dallas Turner, I mean, he's got height, he's
44:39
Speaker 9: got linked, he's got speed, he's got some great nick
44:42
Speaker 9: sabing characteristics. In terms of his technique that he utilizes.
44:46
Speaker 9: I do have questions about how he's going to stop
44:48
Speaker 9: the round. I mean he's not a Will Anderson, but
44:50
Speaker 9: as a rusher phenomenal talent. I saw him as a
44:53
Speaker 9: freshman against Charles Cross. I mean, Charles Cross just had
44:58
Speaker 9: so much trouble with him as a freshman. So these
45:02
Speaker 9: edge rushers and I haven't gotten a chop Robinson and Robinson.
45:06
Speaker 1: But real good lance.
45:07
Speaker 2: Here's what's gonna have to happen because a producer saying rap.
45:11
Speaker 1: So what I'm gonna do is we're gonna say we
45:15
Speaker 1: just got it. NFL's over. I mean, I'm ready to
45:22
Speaker 1: roll here, but I got hit with the rap. Can
45:24
Speaker 1: you come back next week? Can you join us next week?
45:27
Speaker 8: I'll be here for sure.
45:29
Speaker 1: So we're gonna get you on next week and we're
45:30
Speaker 1: gonna hit the.
45:31
Speaker 3: Let's get in the lab for the next two months.
45:34
Speaker 2: Hey, because I'm gonna be at the HPCU Legacy Bowl too,
45:36
Speaker 2: So let's get on to black college players as well.
45:39
Speaker 1: Appreciate your lance, all right, so come down next.
45:42
Speaker 2: There are some NFL quarterbacks you likely will be changing teams,
45:46
Speaker 2: but do they have futures in the league. We'll discuss
45:49
Speaker 2: it next on The NFL Report.
45:52
Speaker 1: Wolver Tate Fell See.
45:59
Speaker 2: You're listening to the NFL Report podcast, but you can
46:02
Speaker 2: watch me, Steve Weich and my co host James Palmer
46:05
Speaker 2: on The NFL Report at seven fifteen Eastern time on
46:08
Speaker 2: Mondays and Thursdays on the NFL app and free streaming
46:12
Speaker 2: platforms on the NFL channel on Roku, two b Peacock,
46:16
Speaker 2: Pluto TV, and other free streaming apps.
46:22
Speaker 4: Welcome back to the NFL Report as we close things out,
46:25
Speaker 4: James Palmer, Steve, whitch with you, Steve, There's been a
46:27
Speaker 4: lot of quarterback talk with lanceerline. Let's talk some guys
46:30
Speaker 4: that have been in the league playing the position that
46:32
Speaker 4: might be on the move as we always see a
46:35
Speaker 4: new crop come in and they're shuffling around the league.
46:38
Speaker 4: A former first rounder out of the University of Alabama,
46:40
Speaker 4: fifteenth overall pick.
46:42
Speaker 3: Mac Jones will be headed where Steve.
46:45
Speaker 1: Great question. He can't stay in New England. It just
46:47
Speaker 1: did not work there.
46:48
Speaker 2: No, I wouldn't I wouldn't mind seeing him go to
46:51
Speaker 2: a team like the Minnesota Vikings, right whether they if
46:55
Speaker 2: they resigned Kirk Cousins. That's one thing he can learn
46:57
Speaker 2: under one of the best leaders. Cousins has off that Achilles.
47:01
Speaker 2: You never know, but if all of a sudden Kirk
47:03
Speaker 2: Cousins gets paid and go somewhere else, I think he's
47:06
Speaker 2: someone who can develop under Kevin O'Connell.
47:08
Speaker 1: I think mac Jones has played a potential. The Patriots
47:10
Speaker 1: just did not do him Justice the past two seasons.
47:15
Speaker 4: Yeah, and when you bring in a head coach and
47:16
Speaker 4: Drod Mayo that's been in that building on that staff
47:19
Speaker 4: the previous year, there's just you just can't bring him
47:22
Speaker 4: back to New England considering everything that went on in
47:24
Speaker 4: that quarterback room.
47:25
Speaker 3: I'm looking at a team that was tied to him
47:27
Speaker 3: in the draft.
47:28
Speaker 4: How about going back up Brock Purty in San Francisco,
47:31
Speaker 4: because I do believe after these two seasons, Brock has
47:35
Speaker 4: solidified himself to whether he should not be looking over
47:37
Speaker 4: his shoulder by any stretch.
47:39
Speaker 3: If you bring him in right the.
47:41
Speaker 4: Way he played in the Super Bowl, the way he
47:42
Speaker 4: played again in his second season, I think this is
47:45
Speaker 4: a great spot for Mac Jones to learn to grow
47:48
Speaker 4: to read.
47:48
Speaker 3: Maybe I don't know, kindle.
47:51
Speaker 4: His reputation around the NFL, and what better place to
47:54
Speaker 4: do it than with Kyle Shanahan. How about number two
47:58
Speaker 4: overall pick Zach will of the New York Jets. What
48:02
Speaker 4: do you think is in store for mister Wilson this season?
48:06
Speaker 1: I mean he's gonna be let go.
48:07
Speaker 2: You heard Woody Johnson the Ode or just basically say
48:09
Speaker 2: they had nothing at backup quarterback this year.
48:11
Speaker 1: So he won't be with the Jets this year.
48:13
Speaker 2: My thing is, if he wasn't the number two overall pick,
48:16
Speaker 2: he might be out.
48:16
Speaker 1: Of the league.
48:18
Speaker 2: He'll probably be in somebody's camp, you know, to compete
48:21
Speaker 2: for a backup job, maybe be the number three guy.
48:23
Speaker 2: I don't know, but he just hasn't. He's had opportunities,
48:26
Speaker 2: he just has not elevated. We can make all excuses
48:29
Speaker 2: we want, but I honestly he'll He'll probably get two
48:34
Speaker 2: or three shots, but I just don't even know if
48:38
Speaker 2: he'll make any more than a number three for some team.
48:42
Speaker 4: I had to see that real quick because I'm feeling
48:44
Speaker 4: exactly the same as Henson repeating it, like, would you
48:47
Speaker 4: rather have Zach Wilson or Drew Lock as your backup?
48:50
Speaker 1: Drew Lock?
48:52
Speaker 3: I think I'm taking Drew Lock.
48:53
Speaker 2: I'm taking Drew Lock all day. Drew Lock has got
48:55
Speaker 2: something to him. Even saw last year when he came in,
48:58
Speaker 2: the teammates followed him. That didn't happen.
49:01
Speaker 3: Was that?
49:02
Speaker 1: So I would take Drew Locke all day With that one,
49:07
Speaker 1: I wanted to put that out there.
49:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, real quick, only twenty seconds. Gardner minshew, our guy.
49:12
Speaker 4: We'll always have a job in the NFL. It's the
49:16
Speaker 4: exact opposite of what we're talking about with Zach Wilson.
49:19
Speaker 4: He has a value in every quarterback room. Steve, Yeah,
49:23
Speaker 4: Gardner Mitschew.
49:24
Speaker 2: He can go anywhere. The Colts I'm sure would love
49:26
Speaker 2: to keep him, you know. But he's someone, like you said,
49:29
Speaker 2: who's always gonna have a job.
49:31
Speaker 3: You know.
49:31
Speaker 1: We also as a job for at least another week.
49:33
Speaker 2: We do JP as Thel Report.
49:37
Speaker 1: Oh yeah, we're here for you on podcast.
49:40
Speaker 2: We're at seven pm now and back next Tuesday, not Monday.
49:45
Speaker 2: Next Tuesday, I'll be in New Orleans at the HBCU
49:48
Speaker 2: Legacy Mold JP. You'll be there at your beautiful home
49:50
Speaker 2: in Colorado. You'll get the final words, sir.
49:55
Speaker 3: I appreciate that.
49:55
Speaker 4: And with us doing this because of the holiday on Tuesday,
49:58
Speaker 4: I get to ski on Monday.
49:59
Speaker 3: Very excited.
50:00
Speaker 4: And we have a monster guest with Steve just to
50:02
Speaker 4: tease it real quick for next week's show, make sure
50:05
Speaker 4: you tune into the NFL Report or listen whatever you choose.