Strap on the boots and scrape up the knuckles.
Hold ahead.
He got jacked.
This is the Big Red Rage presented by santan Ford and Gilbert.
Barry's gonna score touchdown slim to the ground by Buddha Baker Like a torpedo. He came flying into the backfield.
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Better than that.
So at one NFL training camp not named Cardinals Camp earlier today, there was a VIP on the sidelines. Hey look it's Hulk Hogan. He shot a promotional video with the head coach and some camera time, etc. Here on the Big Red Rage, presented by santan Ford and Gilbert, we settle for the guy with the wrestling announcer voice and Ron Wolfley here is truly Paul KELVC. But wait
there is more. Not only Chris Moore is going to join us, but Ron Wolfley entered the storyline of Cardinals practice today when all of a sudden, wait a minute, get off me. We got a little rooting in a tooting going on, little scuffer kerffuffal, little skirmish Will Hernandez, who then wolf afterwards cited you as a possible reason for said skirmish based on an interview you did with
Will Hernandez earlier in the day. No way did you speak it into existence when, according to Tyler Drake Arizona Sports, he reported that Will hernan has told him that whole deal today was provided by wolf He believed.
I know nothing about this, JG. I don't know what Will's talking about. Although I did ask him bully when he first sat down to do the interview, have you gotten to a fight yet? I did. I did say that to him, and it was kind of tongue in cheek right there, knowing that yesterday was not a very physical practice. Of course, they went out there and they had the shorts on, they had a helmet on. I understand that. But today, day two, there was not a fight.
There was not a fight, bully, don't call it a fight. There was a fight. There was a disagreement. There was a disagreement that actually happened out there, and Will Hernandez was involved in that disagreement.
Because if there was a fight, there was one fight a year ago. We know what happens. You get sent off the field. Thou shalt be banished to the locker room. That happened last year. LJ. Collier, Elijah Wilkinson. Yeah, the walk of shame. One hundred yards off the field, down the ramp and you're done for the day.
Yeah, you know that one. Always it's confounding to me. It is, it's very confusing, Paully, and it's confusing to me because once again, I mean, you want your football players to play so hard, so hard they're on the edge of getting into a brawl. You want so hard, so committed to what you're doing. You want them right or to brawl. As a matter of fact, I mean, it's an analogy that many many coaches have used over and over and over again. It's time to brawl, It's
forget about football. It's brawl. That's what it is. Let's go brawl men tonight. Let's go do that. Let's fight tonight. I mean how many times I've heard a coach say that, of course in my career. So it's one of these situations where it's very confusing because we know JG Demand's physicality. You better be physical. I don't care if you're the holder on extra point and field goal, Polly, you better be physical or you know what you're going to be out.
And because of that, the no fight policy is confusing to me.
Look, as Kyler Murray said in fact to you this offseason, he said, we became a team no one wanted to play by the end of last season. So tough, physical team. We know it, the physicality, the violence. And by the way, the first day in full pads, full contact, full speed football should be early next week. It's a ramp up in the NFL. That's what it works in training camps these days. So I believe it's mondayday. So Cardinals reported on Tuesday, and then as you mentioned, today was day
two of practice. But that Tuesday night there was a team, meaning you had ton of them. Wolf for your years in the NFL a decades worth of this. Twas the night before training camp, the owner Michael Bidwill spoke the head coach Jonathan Gannon obviously, and then Buddha Baker impromptu off the cuff. In fact, here's what James Connor had to say about team captain Buddha Baker, six time Pro Bowl and what he had to tell the team.
Would has been a guy who's done it right year after year after year after year. You know, so when he talks, listen, He's been a captain every year for a reason. And he's our tone seer for sure.
What do we call Buddha Bik over the years, the heartbeat of the team, the tone setter another word for it. Dennis Gardak in Arizona Sports earlier today, saying that what Buddha said was akin to basically saying he's establishing this is our team. That the coaches can talk. The coaches can tell us. All we need to know is players, but Buddha is claiming ownership that this is a player led thing. We're not just going to talk about it or listen to what's being said. We're going to be
about it. End quote. Dennis Gardak. I love that his translation.
I love that. Be about it right there, PAULI. Can I just say this right now, PAULI. I played ten years in the NFL. Yeah, it was a long, long time ago, no doubt about that. I was an eight time team captain. I went to the Pro Bowl four times. And yet can I tell you right now, if I were in that meeting room, I don't think there is anybody I'd rather hear Buddha Baker get up and hear what he had to say about this season, the culture in this coming season, and how we're going to approach
playing football here. I don't. And if I'm thinking that, imagine what his teammates are actually thinking. They're all in on Buddha Baker, with the respect and the regard they have for him.
What can we say about Buddha Baker that hasn't already been said?
All right?
Correct?
So I was thinking about it. I'm going to go back to his rookie year. You know what was on the team his rookie year. They spend one year together, Tyron Matthew.
M Honey Badger.
What Buddha did on the night the Cardinals reported to camp. Doesn't that sound like something Tyron Matthew would do just from the gut, just from the heart, get up there, just be that leader. Yes, that's a guy who, pound for pound, arguably the toughest dude in the room. Yes, who puts it all out there. I think in some ways they're different people, they're different personalities. But in terms of the mentality, yes, I do believe there's some tyron Matthew and Buddha Baker.
Yeah, no, you're right about that, Paul, agree with that assessment right now. I just want to say this to Buddha Baker. There are there are rare players, based on Ian's rare players in the NFL who impact everybody on the field every time they play. Buddha Baker is one of those guys. He impacts not just his team, not just his coaching staff, not just the Cardinal fans that
are out there watching them. He impacts the other coaching staff, the other head coach, the other players on the other sideline, based on how he plays the game, just based on how he plays. One of the smallest guys on the field, He's not the biggest, I've said this many times, not the fastest, not the strongest. All he is is gonna knock your face off. That's all he's gonna do, and he's gonna do it over and over and over again, fearlessly.
There are rare players in the NFL that impact everybody that is out on the field, not just their team, but the opponent as well.
So NFL dot Com came out with their annual Top one hundred players. He's number eighty nine, So we still a right there among the elite. I would say safety might be the only position group where there's no competition whatsoever. And well, that and starting quarterback. Otherwise, there are spots to be had and there's pecking orders, corner, left guard, running back. Actually, you know what, let's hear from the head coach, Jonathan Gannon on the position battles going on here at Cards camp.
It's a feather in Mani's cap when you go to camp and you can't pencil in fifty three guys. That's a good thing. I really do think that, and I think that we couldn't pencil in fifty three guys. So there's a lot of spots that are open competition.
No doubt. You want to talk about Mania support Ron Wolfe. Are you aware that in the four draft classes pre monty twenty nineteen, twenty twenty one, and twenty two. How many players do you think are left currently from those four draft classes pre mantios support.
Okay, you don't need more.
Than two hands.
Okay, I'm going to say four.
Seven Kyler, Zavin Collins, Victor d mukag, Trey mcplay, Cam Thomas, Jesse, Luketta, Marquise Hayes. Okay, wow, all right, so a lot of turnover, a lot of turnover. I'm not gonna list all the Purge movies. I'm just gonna tell you, well, if this is the latest Purge movie, the big Red Purge Cardinals roster reset, and you have a very young team, all of a sudden in certain spots, you have wide open competitions at corner, at left guard, who knows what running back?
Drey Benson looked pretty good today, did he not. Max Melton made a few play shit, had one, maybe even two picks out there. I mean there are jobs to be one and there are spots to be had on the fifty three.
You know, it's amazing. Yeah, you bring it there. There's no doubt about that. This is going to be a very competitive training camp. Polly very competitive preseason because we may have some surprise cuts here because of how competitive I think this roster is right now. To your point, but you mentioned Trey Benson. Did you happen to see Trey Benson and how he is built? I have to tell you right now, I'd be just watching the highlights
of him, of course when the silks were on. It just it's a whole different ballgame to actually stand next to him and see him from the waist down. He's what, Paul, two hundred twenty three pounds, Is that what we're saying?
Six foot twenty something, Yeah.
Two hundred twenty three pounds. Let's just go with that right now. I honestly think one hundred and eighty of them is from the waist down. It is truly amazing how thick he is. Man, I like that for a guy who's gonna run in between the tackles.
He ran a four to three nine, and he was disappointed. He said he had run much quicker earlier. So okay, Yelda Froholdt was asked about Trey Benson and he said, you know what, I love the rookie so far because he makes the cuts he's supposed to. He follows the blocks and he follows the rushing lanes that he's supposed to do. So so far, so good on the rookie. I bring up Yelda Froholt because we've had a few moments already in this camp. Okay, this starting center, and
there's no question he is the starting center. Unke this time a year ago, meeting the media, and let's just say he's a workout warrior. As we know, he couldn't even come to the press conference without some liquid protein in his hand. He actually started the press conference by using his teeth to open up a bottle of liquid protein. He had a couple of them by the time he was done. If you're scoring at home, that's eighty grams of protein over the course of his press conference. And
then somebody asked him about it. Yelderprohole, Oh, I love protein.
So just always protein, man, It's the number one thing. The more protein the better, So always always more protein. Good litt eighty grams here, so it works great. I want to go to just like a Stonemason, just be like you just chopped me up some natural rocks and just need a hundred pounder one hundred and fifty pounds two hundred pounder and two and fifty pounder and just put him outside his decorations. But we all know what they're for, so that'd be super fun. Just be the
alpha on the street. Just carry around rocks. Sounds sick.
That was his response to so good when we asked him about Okay, how's the home gym going, because he's told us here in the Big Red Rage before how he has his own home gym. It's his hobby. He just lifts weights for fun. Yeah, okay, and he has Atlas stones. Remember we do you know Magnus ver Froholt, you know, the old World's Strongest Man magus. He's like he's like a throwback to one of these guys.
It's amazing about that. You know. My older brother Craig. Of course, he's played twelve years in the NFL, one of the strong men in the world, competed in the Strongest Man World. Content wants to go to Scotland to pull the Denny Stones. I think I've told you about this before, right, Maybe Yelda would know all about the Denny Stones in Scotland, by.
The way, putting those rocks on display in his front yard. I asked him if that would be a HOA violation, and he smelled and he said find me. So he's a nonconformist like you Wolf. He doesn't like the HOA people.
Yeah, but you know, Pauline, I didn't know what an HOA was. You have to remember that, coming from Buffalo, New York, at the bottom of the hill, growing up at the bottom of the hill, I had no idea what an HOA was.
So Max Melton met the media, he had some great stuff to say, and we'll get into that a little bit later. Okay, what jersey was he rocking? Throwback? And why did they have to put him under for eight hours? We'll get into all that a little bit later. Hey, you can secure your free Arizona Cardinals training camp tickets now. Tickets and parking are free. Just go to Azycardinals dot com slash camptis at c A M P t I
X Arizona card Azycardinals dot Com slash camp ticks. All right, we're gonna talk to Chris Moore, veteran receiver nearly a decade in the league. We're gonna talk about Marvin Harrison Junior, these new kickoff rules, what he's seen in the new cornerbacks Kyler Murray when he played with Lamar Jackson that I was all Next The Big Red Rage presented by Santan Ford and Gilbert Bill's looking.
Bills throws for the end zone across the goal line, catch.
His trade by Chris Moore from what to right.
In front of the goal line, makes the catch for a thirteen yard touchdown.
Mills takes the snap heavy pressure, throws right side, has Chris Bahr across the five He's across touchdown Houston. Mills fires to the right sideline and took by Chris Moore at the forty thirty five thirty twenty fifteen to ten five broke alve touchdown Houston sixty seven yards.
My goodness, all right, Netflix has this series called Receiver Whatever We've got our own receiver here tonight on The Big Red Rage presented by Santan Ford and Gilbert Chris Moore Cardinals newcomer, although he's far from a newcomer when it comes to the NFL. So first welcome to Cardinals camp, Chris, Thank you, thank you for having a couple of practices in how has cam just in the NFL change from year one nearly a decade ago for you to now.
Yeah, I mean it's changed a lot. My first year when I was gott in the league, I was with Baltimore and practices were a lot different and it was just about going out there and grinding through days, hitting each other non stop. And now the league I feel like they've gotten i would say, wiser, and has definitely made practice safer for players and it's more about learning scheme and stuff. So it's definitely changed. And shot this year we got those Guardian caps on which, yeah, I
ain't lie. At first, I was very upset about that, but I've grow grown to like them and I think they'll help us.
What's it like when you're actually wearing them in running routes?
You can't tell? And that's what all those receivers were worried about. We're like, man, when you're trying to track a ball on air and turn your head, that's gonna be difficult. But they don't. They don't cause any problem.
So you don't feel or maybe think, you look like a bobblehead at all. I mean, do you have to get over that maybe a little. Yeah, I said, we looked terrible out there in those things. But as far as affecting our play. No, they're good. Okay, So all right, Chris morre is our guest. All right, first year as a Cardinal, first Cardinals camp. Obviously, do you still get a little butterflies at the beginning of a training camp?
I guess you can call them butterfly the more just excited just to go to work. I mean, I love playing football, one of the reasons why I keep doing it every year, and so it's just more exciting to go out there and just continue to play.
What do you bring to this receiver room? What do you bring to this offense?
I feel like I bring explosiveness. I'm a deep threat. I like to make explosive plays a receiver. I would definitely bring special teams value. That's something I hang my hat on. It's something that allowed me to stay in the league this long. And just as far as for my guys in the locker room, I think I bring some older leadership, just being able to tell guys things, give them some older experience because this is a young team.
But that's all I want to do is just keep helping them learn how to be in this league as long as they can.
When you say big plays and chunk throws last year, your average over nineteen yards of catch. Oh yeah, what do you attribute that to?
Like I said, when the balls in the area, I want to go get in. I feel like, even though I'm older, I'm fast, I'm still very fast and when that ball's in the air, like I said, I want to make that big play to help the team.
I mean, and you played seventeen games right, five starts. How much of that you think was appealing to many Austin Fort Because if there's one pattern we've seen in a lot of his acquisitions in the offseason, real reliability and durability. How important do you think that is?
I think it's very important. That's the name of this game. If you can't play on Sunday, what value you have to the team? Really, Like, that's the point. You got to be out there on Sunday. You gotta be available for this team to be able to count on you. So I think that's something also that throughout my time in the league, I've been able to do. I've been able to be available and in the Sunday every Sunday. So I just keep trying to do it.
Give me your impressions on Marvin Harrison Junior. All right, and tell me what do you think is realistic in year one? When guys like me evoke Justin Jefferson Pro Bowl as a rookie twenty twenty or maybe a Jamar Chase twenty twenty one, is that out of line?
I want to say it's out of line. I mean if him as himself and anybody around him watching him, if you don't expect big things out of yourself or him, like, how can you come in and do it? So I think it is good to put high expectations on him, but at the same time, we had to be realistic. Everybody has the own learning curve, everybody has to adjust
to this game different. So whatever happens happens. But I just know from watching him he's a special player and I personally expect good things out of him.
There are a couple other rookie receivers in your room, So what do you know about the NFL having played over one hundred career games, three playoff games that they're about to find.
Out to on Sundays. It's a different game, it's saying in college anymore. Everybody on that field is a pro and they're good at their job. I know some days in college I played at a in what it was at the time, AAC and the Big East. I might not have straight NFL players there every Sunday, so I was playing against some guys that that want to be playing on Sundays. But now you're playing against pro so
everybody out there is a pro. The game's a little faster, but I mean, if you study and you become a professionalist game, you'll be all right.
Chris Moore is our guest Cardinals veteran receiver. It's interesting some of the guys have mentioned they've already had a Welcome to the NFL moment. Cornerback Elijah Jones said he was just calling the defense. He turned around and Buddha Baker's standing there. He's like, man, that's Buddha Baker, right. Darius Robson said, just the grip strength of Will Hernandez. He's like, how is this guy so ridiculously strong?
Yeah?
Do you remember you're welcome to the NFL moment? Did you have one?
I think mine was. I was definitely lucky. My receiver room my first year was it was Stacker receivers. I had definitely had Steve Smith, Mike Wallace, Mike Wallace, and
I grew up watching those guys play. So just to be able to come in as a rookie and see those guys the way they practice and the way they played on Sundays was definitely my welcome to the NFL moment because it's crazy because I'm at that age now where like dudes, the guys coming in were in middle school, high school when I was already starting when I was first getting in the league. So that age gap is crazy. That how you can go from watching them when you're
a kid and now you're peers with them. So it's definitely a crazy moment.
Let me tell you, I've been doing this twenty years on the sideline, and I'm gonna guess Patrick Peterson's welcome to the NFL moment, right, future All Pro cornerback was his debut game, first regular season game was against Steve Smith and it was hand to hand combat. Oh yeah, the entire I've never to this day seen a player more intense power for pounding Steve Smith. Won't you agree with that?
Oh for sure? He's a hang along on game day. He's a different human. He's scary. I was his teammate I was scared to be on that sideline with him, So he definitely turns on the inner dog when it comes to Sundays.
So what sort of advice do you have for the rookies, guys like Marvin Harrison Junior. You mentioned Leadership's a big role for you in that room, is the VET? What do you tell those guys?
My biggest thing is learn how to be a pro. Like there's a lot of things you can do, and then that day in and day out, to make sure you're prepared every day and don't be afraid to ask guys and take take things from guys like That's all I did my first few years in the league. I saw what other vets were doing, and I tried it and see if it worked for me. And then if it didn't, I moved on to try something up. But
dead I kept it in my routine. And I will say that's the biggest thing is when you're in this profession, you have to have a routine.
What do you look for when you assess a receiver? If the team was to bring in some free agent receiver tomorrow and you're just sort of watching him, what do you look for in trying to determine, Okay, this guy have a future or not.
First thing I look for is, obviously can he catch, like not afraid to catch the ball away from his body even if he's in traffic, those catches that may look difficult, He's still gonna throw his hands out away from his body and catch it. And then just how smooth he is, because you got to be smooth. You got to make the defense think you're going one way
and go the other ways. So it's just definitely hands and how smooth you are, a little bit of speed because I'm a fast guy, so you gotta be faster around me.
Absolutely. Chris Moore is our guest Cardinals receiver. Why do you think receiver the position itself in round one over the last decade has the worst hit rate of any position group in round one of the draft in the league. Why are there so many misses at the position?
I think it's a It's a hard position to come into the league straight out of college. There's a lot of changes. One, you're just you're coming in. You're used to be getting fed the ball all the time. It's college.
You're usually if you're coming in your first round draft pick or even if you're a draft you were the man on your team and you used to getting fed every game, and in the league sometimes that's not the reality to the game plan dictates how who gets the ball, So sometimes you can go first half without seeing them football.
And it's just weird for a receiver his first time to have to all of a sudden, this third down and we gotta make a big play and this is the first time you see the ball go to you and you got to make that play like a lot of young guys just aren't ready for that. So I think that's one of the most difficult things. And then two, I don't like to make this an excuse, but the equipment does change. We are catching a different football, so some guys that's an adjustment for them. They take the
white line off the ball. The ball is a little bigger, So for some people that's an adjustment too.
That's interesting. Chris Moore is our guest. All right, Kyler Murray, you played with Lamar Jackson. Do you see parallels at all?
I do? I do. They're both when they're both special. When that ball is in their hand, you never know what's gonna happen. You just know it's gonna be good for your team. So I definitely see some parallels in them. But both of them are amazing, special, special athletes, definitely once in a generation.
How do they impact defenses? How do you see defenses react when you're playing a guy who might be the best athlete on the field, yet he's playing quarterback.
Yeah, I mean I feel like defense now they just had to think more like you think you got everybody covered, okay, but now he's running, and then he's running, and now he's not running. He's just scrambling just to get you out of your motion. The receiver is just scrambling himself, and they throw a big play. So I think it just keeps defenses on their toes. You can't prepare for
a quarterback like that. You can try, but there's just so many options they have when they're the best athletes on the field.
This was a top five run team a year ago, and you're used to being part of a team like that, Baltimore. Yeah, you had Kyler's back, right, He has a full offseason, well versed in the offense. I'm like last year we just landed in the middle of the year coming off of torn acl Now all of a sudden, you've improved the receiver room. I mean, what do you like? What are you most bullsh about when it comes to this offense this year.
I think it's more of a balance and complete offense. I think that we can do well in the run game as they did, and then I believe our passing game can just can be very effective as well. So I believe we can do whatever we need to do out there on Sundays. We just got to execute and make those plays because we have the guys in the building to do it. After spending time with these guys, we got guys that want to do it and are willing to go out there and do whatever they had to do to win.
Cardinals receiver Chris Moore. I guess in the Big Red Rage you played last year in Tennessee, that means you played with Sean Murphy Bunting. Yes, all right, So tell us about Sean Murphy Bunting and whether the Cardinals are getting right now. He's cornerback one.
Yeah. I mean, he's a great corner He'll go out there every day if there was. What I like about him at most is his toughness. I believe last season he had some injuries and he played through them, and we can count on them every Sunday to be out there and play football. And then, like I said earlier, that's what you want guy that's gonna come out every day,
work and be available on Sunday. So I'm excited. It's always good to have a familiar face when you come into a new team, so it's good to see him.
I asked about receivers. How long does it take you to determine whether a corner can play? Can you tell right away when you're going against the corner, like, for example, I've heard a lot of really good reviews on Max Melton so far. The second round rookie ye number sixteen. If you're coming out to camp, I mean, his athleticism scores were through the roof coming out of Rutgers. But for a guy like that, what do you think he's
gonna need to learn right away? Any rookie corner when they come to the NFL.
Yeah, I think the big thing for them is to not lose their composure. Because this is the NFL. You're playing against great receivers, so things will happen. So when when say a big play does happen, to you just got next play, because the next play can be your pick and change the whole game. So you can't hang your hat on something that had previous. You just got to move on. But I say that's the biggest thing
for them. As long as they keep their confidence and the composure good, can you can trust them out there?
You played your share of special teams over the years, right? Oh?
Yeah?
How many big plays are coming to the NFL this year on kickoff return considering the rule change?
Yeah, I mean, I'm excited to see. I think Week one is gonna be nuts, Like it's gonna be crazy, but there's definitely gonna be a lot more plays happening on kickoff return because of this new rule change.
It was kind of a dead play. It was.
It was no because I was doing it. I was returning last year a little bit, and like most time, we were just going for touchbacks because it was pointless to even take it out just because of how the stats worked with the yardage and stuff, so it wasn't even worth it as a play. So I like this because I was actually getting scared that they were trying to take special teams out of this game. And it's a big, important part of football, So I'm excited they try to find a way to keep it alive.
Do you think some teams are gonna find out the hard way? Oh boy, we maybe misjudge or didn't practice this correctly, or we don't have the right strategy. Do you think some teams are going to really pay a price in Week one?
I don't think it's gonna be as far as that. In that case, I think it's just gonna be so new to the players that it's gonna be some coaches gonna figure out the right thing to do and somebody and it's gonna hurt. But I think more so it's just about feeling this because it's interesting. We've been watching film on I believe the XFL has done something similar, so we've been trying to You try to watch and try to study and see how to do, and then you try to anticipate what other teams might do. So
I just think it's gonna be interesting. We want to see how it goes. It is.
I mean, it's gone from just maybe the most boring play in the game too. It could be out chaos, yes, and it's gonna be fun. I think it definitely revamped special teams makes it important again, especially that play. All right, Chris Moore is our guest. I got to ask you
about your high school, Thomas Jefferson High School in Tampa. Yes, so your list of notable athletes includes four all time baseball figures Luis Gonzalez, Tony LaRussa, Fred McGriff, Tino Martinez, three of the four Hall of famers, and the other one's the most popular Dbacks player in team history. Did they try and make you a baseball player when you were going to high school? No, they didn't.
My well, growing up, my mom wouldn't let me play baseball, so I never even thought about that as a sport. So, no, they didn't.
Your mom wouldn't let you play baseball.
Nah, she told me, that's what she said. That's one sport I can't play. I had a great uncle who used to play for the Expos, and I guess my mom used to always has to go to those games, and she despises baseball because of that. So she just asked me, it's like, please, don't make me watch baseball games. So I told her I went it. Football track was my theme though.
That's funny, Yeah, that's funny. Well, it's the worst Little League assistant coach ever. She's there's something when you know, there's that age rage between like eight and ten where nobody can find the plate and every game includes like twenty walks and you're like, oh my gosh, what am I doing here for four hours watching the kids baseball game?
Exactly? And you sitting in that heat is bad?
Okay? All right, well Chris, look, I really enjoyed it. Is What do you know about this team? Last question that maybe the rest of us are going to find out? Is there something about the identity of this team? Or you know, we hear a lot about how connected this team is, and you know, one word to hear a lot is it's a hungry team. You've been around this league long enough. What can you tell so far?
Yeah, like you said, is this team is young. But that I think that's what is so special about them. These guys came in and they went through after coming in. Myself, they went through some things last year and they grew together as a staff and as the players that were already here. So I think they understand like what it actually takes to win on Sunday and they're all hungry. They want to come out here and prove to the NFL that we're a team that people should be worried about.
And so I just I love how the guys come out here and work. I mean, this is this is a good team. I love it. A lot of special guys.
And in your ninth season, sounds like you feel like you still have that top end speed. You still have the track speed.
Oh yeah, I'll still fast. Hopefully down't go nowhere for a couple more years, but now I can still run.
All right. Hey, it's been our pleasure, look forward to the season. There you go. Chris Moore is our guest. We continue with a big red rage presented by Santan for in Gilbert. This is a James Connor four yard touchdown run. Just do flat shovel, flat face, as Jack Nicholson.
Flat shovel, flat face, that's how you run the ball inside the red zone. A little gold to go. Hand it off to James Connor. Let him find the light. That's what he did. Here's James Connor h flat flat shovel, flat face.
That's how you run the ball inside the red zone. Sonny the Morgan Freeman go ball. Technically that's the Day Pasch podcast. Really it's the Frank Callyando Podcast. Sorry, Dave, that was all Kelly I know right there. I mean, come on now, that's just Dad Water unbelievable entertainment. And you know what a great intro for James Connor. It's a big Red Rage presented by Santan Ford and Gilbert. We are Santan Ford, Paul calvic Ron wollfully special. Thanks again,
Chris Moore. So to recap Chris Moore, he averaged better than nineteen yards of catch. Now, he didn't have catches to qualify among the NFL leaders last year, but he says, quote, I'm still fast, still has that track speed, even at age thirty. Okay, he does see parallels between Kyler and Lamar Jackson. He played four years with Lamar Jackson in Baltimore. About the kickoff return coming this year, the rule change,
he said, quote week one is gonna be nuts. He said, you know what, we want to be a team that people are gonna worry about. Talking about how hungry he senses this Cardinals team is. And then maybe most amazing is that mom wouldn't let him play baseball when he was a kid because she didn't want to sit through the endless baseball games because she found it boring. Because his uncle wants upon a time played for the Expos.
Yeah, and let's not forget this. He played with Steve Smith. Oh my goodness, one of the most intense human beings on the face of the planet. Forget about wide receivers. I'm talking about just one of the most intense individuals the game has ever seen.
Okay, so is that our segue to James Connor?
Yes, speaking of I mean, what is it, Pauli? The Angry Run? Is that what it is? Pauli right there?
Yes, threeceptors, receptor, receptors.
For people who don't understand Pauli kind of like me for people don't understand that the sceptor, what exactly is that?
Ball?
NFL Network, Good Morning Football, Kyle Brandt, the beating heart of that show. He does Angry Runs every Tuesday, and he just picks out the most physical runs and then he gives out a sceptor every week to who trucks somebody, who track stops somebody. And so James Connor is a three time award winner of the Angry Scepter Angry Run. Okay, so he's got him somewhere. He doesn't even know where he has him. He said, if he ever finds him, he give us one. But okay, so he just lives
for the next carry, the next season. Well, that season is here, and he was asked, all right, James Connor, a thousand yards you got it for the first time last year in your career. Is that the goal this year?
I know that if I stay healthy, you know, and do what I do, you know, that's definitely the floor. So you know, I've always believed in my talent, and so I'm confident. I think, you know, we're going to hit that again for sure, but you know, we got to win first. That's all I care about everything else that comes with it.
And he said that before thousand yard season, that's the floor, not the ceiling. And if he can stay healthy knock on wood, he missed four games a year ago. If he can stay healthy. We know about the Cardinals, the Cardinals commitment to the run board. I mean, you're talking about a team that was top five in every rushing category, number two in yards per carry.
PAULI. Once again, they've already done it. That's the thing that is so encouraging. You're not talking. You're not grasping at straws here. You're not talking pie in the sky. When you talk about the Arizona Cardinals being maybe the most physical offensive football team in the league. I think we're gonna see him line up right now. I've told you this ballyl offseason, but I believe it. I think
we're gonna get twelve personnel. We're going to lead the league in twelve personnel and rundown situation right now, and it's going to be James Connor running the ball. And what does James Connor do? He chooses the third rail of running the ball many many times, which is running over somebody's face. For the most part, I love the fact that Manti asen Fort and the Cardinals went ahead and drafted Trey Benson and the third round drafted Trey. Here's a guy, he was the second running back taking
off the board right now, who is built like James Connor. Okay, he's not as heavy as James Connor, but he's right there, and he might be faster. As a matter of fact,
he is faster than James Connor. But I like the fact you're going to institutionalize physical You're going to institutionalize that brutality that is going to happen, and this, to me, is going to set off a chain reaction for the Arizona Cardinals offensively and from a team perspective that I think is going to allow them to win games once again.
Three of the last four games last year, the Cardinals ran for over two hundred yards. In those games, they led the NFL. In your in rushes of twenty yards or more, James Connor among the league leaders in that category. But to your point, there are some young guys pushing him on this depth chart. It is musical chairs. Three four tops running backs are going to make this team and there's a half dozen guys in that room. Here's James Connor on the depth.
It's still my job, you know, to help all the other backs, you know, just like they help me, you know, just bring them along because there's strengthen numbers.
For sure.
That's what training chemist ford. You know, we're doing this big evaluation, but that definitely adds to the longevity, you know, with having other backs that can you know, maybe no drop off. You know, that was my main goal when Le'Veon Bell came out the game, I wanted to be right there so we can keep the offense moving well. So that's how we want to play it.
If you remember the Philadelphia Eagles win Cardinals going to Philly, they get the win, they were down twenty one to six at halftime.
Yuh.
Opening drive of the second half, James Connor got the first few carries and they brought in Michael Carter. He had a pear pair of twenty yard runs, just making dudes look stupid because all of a sudden, dbs are they're so accustomed to gearing up for two hundred and thirty pound James Connor and then here comes Michael Carter breaking ankles in it. It just was a really effective one to two punch, right Paully.
And if speaking of one two punches right now, whenever you run the ball, you have to have balance. You have to have balance because all the defensive coordinator is gonna do and run down situation. He's gonna jam up the box, Polly, He's gonna jam it up. He's gonna make it really, I don't care. We'll bring nine guys into the box. If that's all you're gonna do is line up, try to run the ball. We're gonna go ahead and jam up the box. It makes it very
difficult to run the ball successfully. That's the reason why you've got to also have play action. It is it's point A to point B right Paully, it's the left hand in the right hand you have to run. You have to play it right down the middle. In regard to running the football, well, when teams start to overadjust and say we're gonna shut your run down to him, that's great because here it comes. I didn't hand the
ball off. Now all of a sudden, we're going to hit Marvin Harrison Junior on a dig for twenty yards down the field. This is why it goes hand in hand and there's always this fine balance that you have to find as an offensive coordinator. What are teams doing, What are teams doing to try to stop this brutal rushing attack that I think the Cardinals are going to have, and how will you adjust to that.
It's funny because James Connor was asked about Marvin Harrison Junior, his takeaways, his impressions, because every player is asked about Marvin Harrison Junior, and what he said was, hey, more power to him. I hope he takes more guys out of the box and he takes double coverage. Lighter boxes were all for it.
Keep those safeties all right, man.
And that's something the Cardinals did not have last year. They did not have wide receiver one that will command double coverage. They didn't have a six foot five, two hundred and seventy pounds blocking tight end and tip riman. They didn't have a rookie with fresh legs who runs a sub four four two hundred and twenty plus pounds in Tray Benson. So started. Not only was a top five run game, but it's a run game that could get better this year. Yes, so, Kyle Shanahan, I know
you love to run the ball. Seatt always loves to run the ball. We know what Kyra and Williams did last year at the Rams. Guess what Cardinals are coming. It is going to be a run first offense from what we can tell. We continue with this addition to the Big Red Rage presented by santan Ford and Gilbert. This troick.
Malakailt call me Max Counts touchdown Scarlett knights Man.
Look he torch pulled old man.
Inside the pie of your line is intercepted by Max Melton.
Max Melton went to pack.
You know, everybody's have an opinions. The opinions are like Gucci belts. Everybody has one, you know what I'm saying, so exactly like everybody's haveing the paion. Nobody's ever going to be one hundred percent on the same pace, especially when you were talking about millions of fans. You know. But I know, come this season, once we get a couple of weeks in, I think they'll be happy with their pig.
That was a sobering moment. After the selection of Max Melton high second round, I turned to Craig Reeler, Do you have a Gucci belt? Because I don't have a Gucci belt?
Both?
Do you have a Gucci Beltau? You don't have a Gucci Jimalma Hundre do you have a Gucci belt?
No?
We know you were on TV in Chicago, Paul, at some point in time you were at the Gucci belt.
It's the big red rage brought to you Hi, santan Ford and Gilbert We are santan Ford, Paul, kelvc Ron. Woefully no Gucci belts here, but Max Melton and unmistakably mad. Max pulled up in a an elite supercar that cost him a little bit of coin. He had a Kevin Cop throwback jersey on that he bought it a thrist store, So it's sort of that dichotomy of the supercar big money. And then he had the goodwill Kevin Cop jersey on
number four, so that was interesting. And then it was what was on his body, his person underneath the jersey, which we'll just get into this and then we'll talk some football, but just show you a little bit about the personality that is Max Melton. He shared with the media what he did during his time off before camp.
I got put to sleep for my tet so I went under anesthesa for eight hours and I had five tattoo artists working on me. At onezon got the throwback Rutgers logo Welcome to New Jersey sign two streets I grew up on and till that's where you get off of my city. So they all got meaning. My real name is Malachi. I don't even know if I'll know that real named Malachi. That means messenger of Jesus Christ and biblical terms. And I got an angel with a
message bottle in her hand, like coming from heaven. Every one of my tess got meaning to it.
Five tattoo artists were done him for eight hours. He was under he was under bully for eight hours. Eight hours.
Oh my goodness.
A couple of sleeves each arm crossed the chest. So significant tattoo work. And you know, brought his parents out even though it was one hundred and ten. They said they enjoyed their time. From New Jersey in Arizona. He's a car guy. He's already talked about that. But he also happens to be one of the most athletic corners to come out of this draft. In fact, in a
couple of years. Dave Sears, the assistant GM, told us a couple of months ago on the Big Red Rage here that that he was one of the only corners to test at a certain level in both the forty, the vertical the broad jump. And he's also had more than forty starts in the Big ten. He's gone against Marvin Harrison Junior twice. He's gone against Caris Olave, Garrett Wilson, He's probably gone against Keon Coleman from Michigan State. He's going to see him week one in Buffalo.
Pay He's got an awful out of swag, guy would say for a rookie coming in here right now, and he would not be the first cornerback in the National Football League to have a little bit of swag. Yes, you need little bit of swag if you're gonna play that position right there, So maybe that's a harbinger of things to gom.
He's in a competition. I mean, you have last year's guy with a lot of swag, Key Trell Clark, Yeah, yeah, Starling Thomas, undrafted guy who started a lot of games last year. Garrett Williams Now, he's your starting nickel slot corner, but he potentially could go outside. Elijah Jones, who we talked to on The Big Rid Rage nearly six foot two, played sixty plus games at Boston College. He's a little older. And you know it's interesting then Sean Murphy Bunting is
cornerback one. You're at Chris Moore earlier talk about his former teammate with Tennessee, and here's Murphy Bunting just talking about that cornerback room. And now they're all pushing each other.
Everybody shows up every day, work hard, We feed off each other, we compete. Obviously, being an NFL. You know that it's going to be a competition every you know, everything's a competition. Everything's being evaluated, but it's it's ultimately not our decisions. So I think you know, going into it, we just lean on each other for things that we need to lean on them for. We fight, we push, and we just try to make each other better every day.
How do you assess that room, that position battle?
Yeah, I'm really glad that Sean Murphy Bunting is here, Pelly, I really am. I mean, first of all, he brings experience and knowledge to that position right now. I'm not worried about CB one because of Sean Murphy Bunting. I am not. I do believe they need a model, and he's got an awful lot of pressure on him not to only go out and play, but also to model the culture. This is how we do things around here, to lead that room because there are so many young guys in that room right now, so he's got to
be the model to everybody else. But you know what the good thing is, You've already vetted these young guys that you've brought in, like Garrett Williams. You've already vetted these young guys that you brought it in, like Max Moultain. You've vetted these guys already because of your draft, because of how maniasin fort of value weights these players. They're already a good fit for your culture. They're already ahead of the game because of that ball.
You know what, that's a great observation because Jonathan Gannon today said that when they met Max Melton at the combine, right away they noticed that there was chemistry there, just his mindset, the way approaches the game. And then they drilled a little deeper. They had zooms, they had more interviews, and they realized, Okay, this is our sort of coin. Then they went to the tape. That's right, Paula. It was almost reverse engineered. What's the person like now we examine the player.
Why would you do that? Why would you do that? Why would you say, we've got this culture. This is what we have. We have a culture here. But we're gonna bring guys in. We're gonna run because he's really really good and man, we like to stay. We're gonna bring him in. Don't really know about what kind of culture fit he's gonna be, but he's gonna have to conform you know what you don't want to do that. You don't want to do that you want to go find guys that are gonna be good fits culturally.
Fact JG said that it boils down to they all look at each other many Dave Sears, Jonathan Gannon, all the other personnel evaluators. Comes down to one question, do we want this guy in our building? And if the answer is yes, then they get into the football side
of it. It's really intriguing, is it not. Yes, Hey, learn more about arizon A Cardinal season tickets, single game tickets, premium seating, group tickets, the all new luxury field seating experiences today, the home schedule, Oh my goodness, the Bears, the Chargers, the Patriots and Jets, the Lions coming to town, the Commanders with Cliff Kingsbury, and then of course the NFC West. Just go to Azycardinals dot com slash tickets,
Azycardinals dot Com slash tickets. Quick reminder, they're reminder that, by the way, a week from tonight the Hall of Fame game, you have Bears taking on the Texans and wolf Just give us a couple observations, maybe at camp two days in couple of practices in I know there's a couple of things you saw, especially maybe with the run game and some of the personnel groups.
I gotta tell you, Bolly, I really loved it. It was rundown situation first and ten, of course, and it was twelve personnel. Well, there's going to be a lot of times that are going to be in tall personnel with Tip Ryman as a stud tight end and Trey McBride as the move tight end.
And that's what it was.
It was those two guys that were out there and first and ten, there's gonna be a lot of times Kyler is going to be under center, James Connor's toes are going to be at seven yards and they're going.
To run the ball.
Well, that's not what they did. They went ahead and spread the formation and then motion James Connor out of the backfield, went empty from the shotgun and threw the ball on first and ten and twelve personnel. That is going to blow some defensive coordinators' minds when they do that in a game, and they will.
You added receivers, right, including Marvin Harrison Junior. So you had games last year like against the Niners late in the season more than four hundred yards of total offense. You got twenty yards receiving out of your receiver group. Wow, think about the run game. Yes, the two tight ends you just described. Yes, and now Michael Wilson and your two Marvin Harrison Junior, Greg Dorsch, who's been tearing it
up say Jones. Yes and look good, really good. PAULI Special, Thanks as always, Jim Almahondro, Cody Fincher, Enrique Garcia, Farron wolflay On, Paul KELVC. This has been the Big Red Rage presented vice santan Ford in Gilbert.
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