News Roundup & Top 25 Free Agents

to the NFC title game. Also all sorts of autographs, UH jerseys, really good fun stuff for a very important cause. So go to and if at NFL auction on Twitter and UH you can see it also UM on our Twitter we are promoting this as well. So help us out, help out the people of Australia if you can hang in their folks. Be Around the NFL podcast. He's on the wrong side of thirty. Welcome to another edition of

the Around the NFL Podcast. My name is Dan Hansas, coming to you from a room that's filled with heroes, Mark Sessler, Chris Westling and Greg Rosenthal. What is up boys? Hey Dan? Hey, feeling hope and something new, a new, a new frontier for this podcast this season go on. We may just judging on the lineup that we are looking at for this show. Log an episode that comes in under a hundred and twenty minutes. I think our Championship game review was under an hour. Then this could

be this could be a thirty two minutes show. If we stay focused, it could be we could be in our cars heading home in thirty two minutes. But yeah, there's there's different seasons in in Los Angeles. You know, there's there's fire season where the fires come there fire pit season where West does fire pit in his background, and then there's Mark's really upset we didn't start on time season, which officially started well, but it kicks up

what in what in? What? Ridiculous humor begins when Dan like lastly, it's like, hey, guys, cool with the twelve a twelve pm start for the show? Yes right away, of course I'd start at eight am. We could be done by nine am, but we have to wait twenty Right now, you're you don't have the send it because we know you want to start earlier. It is twelve twenty Mark. Mark likes his podcast like his NFL games, like over well, let I would say, let's do a good job with it, but why do we Why was

must we wait and wait and wait to begin? It's a little reminder Mark how this works. We've done like seventy shows, uh, to try to do the best show possible. Uh. Eric and I we talked behind the scenes. We try to get things to bake into the show to make it a better show, and sometimes we have technical issues. Sometimes I don't think of something until, let's say, and it leads to just a brief delay that makes the show better hopefully. And when you think of it that way,

does that change anything for you? Market? We're trying to make a better show for people as as opposed to getting you out of the office. As soon as I would say for the record, I will say yes, it does change things. Well, how I feel they're there to varying degrees. Do I believe in those theories? But new shirt though, Mark like not really? How do you said we've shipped everything in a box to Miami? How do you feel about the episodes that start late solely because

everyone's trying to mess with you? You know how I feel? I feel annoyed? All right, Great to have you here, Mark, Um, Yes, Miami, we will be there one week today. Colleen Colleen will be in Miami as well. And uh, and we're really excited and looking forward to another big super Bowl week. Uh, so much to talk about, but this this is a good show, Greg. Where we can this Tuesday show during the bye week, essentially before the super Bowl. Let's not

talk about the super Bowl? Really, I think this is a good episode to stay away from the Super Gonna plenty of time to talk about the super Bowl. Uh. And we have, of course Mina Kimes coming on Thursday. Have we figured out yet? Is Mina gonna be here or is she gonna be on a skype call? What's going on? Where's the update on that front? I assume she's coming here. She lives in Los Angeles, she knows she's coming on the pod. But yeah, I guess, I

guess we should straighten these things out. She has been on the show once before, and it was a phone or as our call. Okay it was I wasn't there for that one, alright. We we informed her that you were intimidated by her and chose to set the show out, which I don't think she believed that. All right, So for today's show, Uh, Greg wrote a banker, Greg, what one of those pieces that sometimes you're reading you're thinking yourself, is this guy just looking for the clicks because some

of this stuff is really interesting and goes outside the box. Yeah, like some of you know Greg's top what is thirty free agents? I didn't think it was two outside and multiple people check to see, Hey, anything crazy on us, and people, as Alan said, no, it seems fine. So it feels like a it's a harder year, more challenging year with the but you can let me know, Dan, Yeah, no, the over the hill quarterbacks make it a very challenging year. Yeah. Absolutely, Yeah,

I don't know what to do. You know that, I Gregor, I respect your football acumen. So it's not like I'm casting doubt upon these but some of the names where they fit on this list, And I will say, because we're all spinning forward uh and looking forward to not only the Dan and Mark top one on one free agents uh article that will come out after the super Bowl, but when West and Greg do their piece as well, um, you always it's it's fun to see the scientists battle

it out. So this is the preliminary one point oh list. And sometimes you guys do these lists and there's all this build up. Oh yeah, the scientists. Who's gonna be a big winner. And then it's like Eric Fisher is the number one free agent on the market, not this year. Then it's like cha out At that point, why why is? Why is this list authored by Greg? And West has just left by the side of the road. She's your writing partner on this this front. West just put his

hands up? Does West want extra writing assignments during the playoffs? West doesn't want any writing assignments ever, I rest my case, I arrest well, So he was consulted, does he want an extra column? He was consulted and said no, or you just ran with it on your own. This was years ago. I was asked for I don't know but a questions, and I think it's safe. I think it's safe to say, Can I tell Can I be honest

with you? We can I be frank? Yes? Breaks my heart to hear you say that this isn't a cave all. We don't need to communicate that way anymore. Nobody reads anymore. Read a lot that has been on the steed for a while. But I I write an article and all anybody wants to talk about is the number Besides the analysis, not the actual analysis. So I even write of night happy to to the last the old guys are fired up to yeah the last minute. Um, you know it might be part of it. When West and I are

both doing it, then it becomes a whole process. This thing is that it's relatively I already disagree with some of these rankings. I'm going to change it a lot in a month when we have a little more time, and West will certainly change it a lot. Yeah, I'm you only have names here, so I'm just assuming Geno Smith is twenty six and I have to call I did do it? Just missed? I should throw Geno out a little bit of a wink to the audience, all right,

so we'll hit that. And also, uh uh, we're gonna do some news in fact, Ricky, how are you, by the way, doing great? How are you? I want to hear you know, some good cheer from somebody. So you had a nice weekend. It looked like I had a nice weekend. Shout out Jada's birthday, Edie Spaghetti's girlfriend, Uh, we're he's a firecracker. That yeah, she's a woman woman. I met her Thanksgiving Eve. For our listeners, Eddie Spaghetti, a member of the Dave Damask football program. Yeah, so

that was fun. Yeah, guys got a lot of birthday parties. Do you guys have like three birthdays each? Uh, normally it's about for the weekend. Yeah. Now let me say this, and this is you know, Yes, it's coming up on February ten. You knew it. Now, let me say this you on repeat before. I'm not giving I'm not gonna give Damn this credit. I um, you are a young woman and far younger than all of us. But I have to tell I just have to say something. I

know this gets into slippery slope territory. You're talking to a girl about her age. But this has to be your last birthday where you do it for a whole week. Why, I just at a certain point, it's got to just celebrate the day. Don't you stop at thirty? I'm not thirty yet. No, you'll just know naturally when it's time to well, I know, I know plenty of at some make up and you're like, oh good, sorry, go go ahead, Greg, just to forget good about what I was saying. Just

march on in let market. I'm done. I would like to hear you. I want to hear this thought. This must be once all your friends start to get married and move away, then you will have no choice but just to celebrate for a single day. Mark. I want to hear what your thought. I didn't remember at this point. It was just like I got run over by a car. So anyway, yeah, I guess you'll know. Just don't don't

be the person that takes it too far. Well, I have to do multiple days because, like we were talking before the show, you guys are all like old, So we need to go to the like the early Bird special dinner with you guys, and then I'll do my other things later. Right now, like the idea of inviting us to a West Hollywood nightclub hot spot at this juncture of our respective lives, it just doesn't quite. It's not a good connection. Why live a little but that's not.

At some point you'll realize, like, oh I was having fun then, but I was sort of yeah some of those times, convincing myself I was having more fun than I was having I there's other ways I can have fun with just like my closest friends are in a different way, and it'll change. That's how That's how it changes. Yeah, you might not want us stare at right, you don't, you don't anyway, you guys are blessing Lakisha were the only ones that came all the way to West Hollywood

last year. Well, they're in. They were they were in a different phase of their lives, which was kind of like a couple on parade where you're they were there. There was the young hot couple engaged. They were on a world tour promoting the wedding, and they didn't have no kids, not yet. Anyway, different realm. Try to get West Alikisha this party next year. This is The takes that are flying around here are ridiculous. I mean, you

guys promoted the hell out of that wedding. You get the whole you did the whole night, all the late night talk shows, you did Colbert, you did the Daily Show. Well, when you have to get to fly across the country, you have to you do have to promote it a little bit. But the idea, Yes, it's true, you guys have kids. We've hit the hour mark. By the way, you guys have kids, so it's harder for you to get the get two places. But we just wanted to go to hang out with Ricky because we were on

some couples tour. We are flying today, all right, all right, but let's do some news. Eventually, as we were both single guys in our twenties, the talk turned to girls. Maybe we should get out of here, go find where the action is, he said. I looked at him, Dude, you're JFK Jr. All right, you don't need to go anywhere. He looked at me and laughed. And as he did, I saw a glimpse of his father and was reminded

of his family's legacy of sacrifice and tragedy. I was glad that he was carrying the mantle so well and with so much promise for the future. Audio accer from the great two thousand eleven Rob Low autobiography Stories. I only tell my friends it was. It was exciting to hear him read that for the first time. He was like, Wow, this is pretty good. He didn't seem remotely familiar with it. What a great thing. This is good stuff, What a

great book. He's a real rock and tour that Rob blow and Mark, that's that's that's what caused a slight delay. And you are a huge JFK fan, So just imagine being in the shoes of a young low looking face to face and seeing in that laugh the great John Fitzgerald Kennedy nineteen seventeen to nineteen very relevant tail by Rob Low. So I'm glad that that that we waited for. That we're eleven minutes in here, not to the news that might be a record cot. Uh. Jason Garrett's got

a job. He agreed to become the Giant. So see, we kind of missed this in all the Championship Sunday hullabaloo. But Garrett, who finally got let go by the Cowboys at their nine seasons, he takes over and joins Joe Judge's staff. Um, and Greg, it's been a while since Jason Garrett called plays. That was a big subplot about halfway through his tenure as Cowboys coach. But I guess when you have a Joe Judge, a guy with very little experience, uh, having somebody like Garrett feels like a

good situation. Yeah, in terms of helping navigate all the challenges of being a head coach, you know, in a big market. I would imagine Garrett would be a great guy to kind of have with you. We haven't seen him call plays. I mean he he was the coordinator of the Cowboys back in two thousand seven, so he

had a run there. And it might be Garrett thinking, hey, if I want to re establish myself as a head coach in this league, and I have to show other teams that I can kind of update with the times and call plays, because I think that would be a big time question if he's ever interviewing for top jobs again. I I like the move when the experience head coach goes to the coordinator role and you've got someone who's new in New York with Judge at the at the

head coach. Well, I love bringing in I would like the idea of bringing in a guy that has been through it all. And I get that Jason Garrett isn't necessarily seen as like the hot young coordinator who's gonna unfurl like some sort of scheme we've never seen before. But they have parts in place like this is not a bad place for Garrett to land. They they have

some common history. They both worked for Nick Saban. I think people forget that about you know, Garrett's background, but Joe Judge came up under Saban and then under Bill Belichick. Garrett did too, and I don't know. I like the fact that Jason Garrett's in the NFC East going up against the Cowboys. I mean as as a fan of just dropping on the opposite sideline, that's that's gonna be fun. I mean, yeah, if if Jason Garrett's dropping bombs on

the Cowboys defense, that would be kind of fun. There's no there's no loser here for you know, a fan of neither team. It guarantees without any question to primetime Cowboys giant schemes. There always are, though, aren't they And there's at least one, but we're getting um. The Garrett had two choices. He could go away for the year du the Mike McCarthy, but he didn't have a paycheck coming. And this is also a smart move. Like we said, he he has some weapons and can build his name

back up. I'm sure his goal again is to get back into a big chair. Uh and we'll see if you can do it. St and P's retires after sixteen seasons in the NFL. The Titans defensive coordina announced it on Monday. He almost retired um around the time Mike Rabel was hired, but Rabel was able to talk Peas into Um coming to Tennessee to coordinate the defense. But now it is time for the coach to walk away.

Tennessee finished at number three UH in terms of opposing points scored in twenty twelve and twenty nineteen forty takeaways under the two seasons UM and UM sixteen season NFL career for Peace, it was worth it to come back. What a great showing in the playoffs this year by

Dean Peas. And he's been around so long. I was reading an article and on Antonio Gates yesterday talking about his college career and why he chose Kent State because he wanted to play basketball and football, and Nick Saban was at Michigan State with Dean pas who ended up being the Kent State coach for For Antonio Gates, he's been around forever, right, He's been a part of a lot of historical teams. I mean, he was the defensive coordinator of the two thousand seven Page Streets. I don't

think anyone remembers that the eighteen in one season. He was the defensive coordinator of the two thousand twelve Super Bowl champion Ravens team who did not have a good defense, but did win the Super Bowl. And then now he knocks off the Ravens as a one seed, and do we say farewell? It's Dean a friend of Cynthia Freeland. Another person Cynthia Freeland somehow knows. Cynthia is one of those people. She knows everybody. So watch what you say

around Cynthia Freedland. That's what I take away from it. You want to bury somebody in the NFL sphere, good chance, Cynthia will be texting about it shortly thereafter. She'll be telling on you. If you well, I will keep my mouth shut around to her if I wasn't. We're gonna have her back on the podcast soon. She wants to

be back. We've got a lot of people going on vacation coming up, and that's not how you frame it now that UM other coordinator news, as expected, Romeo Crannell will not return as the Texans d C. The Texans instead will promote defensive line coach Anthony Weaver to replace Krnell. Cornell had been on O'Brien Bill O'Brien Stephen Houston since UM and was a tough year for Houston's defense, averaging about three nine yards a game which was in the

bottom five in the NFL. UH they went a playoff game against the Bills and then yikes, fifty one point a fifty burger you get dropped on you in the divisional round against the Chiefs, and that essentially seemed to seal Cornell's fate. I found this more interesting um in Cornell might stay with the organization in some capacity as

an advisor. Uh as the other part of the story, which was O'Brien firing a vice president Personnel department, a senior VP who the owner of Cal McNair of the Texans and O'Brien had recently said is one of the the best salary cap you know guys in the higher NFL that he's like made a huge difference for organization. This was during the last kind of changeover where O'Brien was taking more power, and here it is after the season. He's saying, hey, we're going in a great direction. We

feel like everything's going in the right way. And then out Romeo care now and outs another VP, and O'Brien just swallows up more of the power coaches in terms of like power within their team. One through thirty two is the top five. He certainly wasn't a couple of years ago, and he's shot into that. Let's Sean Payton,

Pete Carroll. Pete Carroll's up there. But I would say O'Brien now is also more than anyone else has has sort of a flair for power where he does these flashy things every five or six months that remind you he how much power he. I want to know which head coaches have the least amount of power. Zach Taylor. Yeah, I think that's maybe. Maybe Bill O'Brien's pastor can run the defense right up there. And if this isn't for Romeo,

just goodbye to a great football life. A special teams coordinator of those Grade eighties Giants, then the defensive line coach back with the Parcels when he went to the Super Bowl and the Patriots, Uh, the coordinator of the Patriots when they won three Super bowl I mean he's done a largely forget right, Yes, and Chief's head coach. We had a conver we had a whole conversation downstairs, and no one remember that Romeo Cornell was once the

head coach of the Chiefs. DNPS retires Romeo Cornell heading in that direction, Tom Brady heading towards retirement, Bill Bell checking of the year older. Really is it's the end of something, it's getting it's getting there. I mean Brady is gonna be uh playing for the Raiders, and Bell Chick and Jared stid him will be in the Super Bowl next year. Get to that in a second. One more bit of coaching news. The Dolphins have coaxed Chan

Gailey out of retirement. He's their new o C. A day after fire chat o'shay um, Miami made Gailey it's new coordinator sixties seven years old. See all these old guys, especially the coordinators, they just stick around forever, and they usually keep getting jobs until they decide they're done. If you establish yourself in that, you know, in your thirties, forties and fifties, early fifties, it feels like you can work from your fifties into your sixties and then walk away.

And Gailey certainly is a guy that's been kind of all over the map. Another former head coach. UH. He was previously with the Jets, the Cowboys, the Bills, Ers, the head coach the Dolphins, UH, and now he is back full circle in Miami, reunited with Ryan Fitzpatrick. You know they made beautiful magic together and that's two teams. Yeah, back with the Bills too. Maybe that was that part of it. Wow, he's with the Bills two thousand, two thousand twelve, I was with he was with Fitzy with

the Jets. In Bills, he was always very forward thinking in terms of uh approach to offense. I remember that two thousand and eight Chiefs team, I think with Tyler thig Been. I mean, they were running some stuff that everyone's saying now is so newfangled, and I'm just shocked kind of that they that Brian Flores, that that was

his big move this offseason. Get rid of Jim Caldwell, who was technically still on their staff ed health problems, get rid of Chattosha who was his coordinator, and bringing Jan Gaily. I just I want to know what he's been out of the loop, not just for one season or something, but four years. What has he been doing with his time? Is he like grinding film like West over Here and like coming up new schemes and things like maybe a consultant than He's better not be watching

condensed there. You're gonna be in trouble if chan Gailey's watching, well, is he watching anything that especially viewed within the prism of our time here at NFL media Jet season, it is so weird. They had Right Fitzpatrick throw for thirty touchdowns, a team record, They had two one yard receivers, they won ten games, and they didn't make the playoffs. But and then just awful. Five years before that and five years after it. That's life Chilly back in the game.

Phil Rivers egon out of San Diego. That is, he's moved permanently from San Diego to Florida to be closer to his family. Uh. A text to ESPN went as follows. What this means football wise is to be determined, but it was time for us to move back closer to home. His family is settled in the South. His football future, who knows. The Chargers don't seem to want to do business anymore. This Rivers thing was interesting because you could see it kind of both ways that maybe it was

just everybody connecting the dots. He's moving to Florida, so talk radio has him going to the Buccaneers. They need a quarterback. Winston is a free agent arians with like late career Carson Palmer, could be the same thing all over again. Arians doesn't have much time left. But then when you look further, you're like, does he really want to go to the Bucks? To the Bucks? Really want to give up Jamis for Philip Rivers. Philip Rivers doesn't have the arm to to do Arians downfield offense. I

don't see that. I actually reached out the e en and he kind of pooh pooed it and said he would he thinks they still want Jameis Winston back. I just don't think you can as a Philip Rivers in his position moved to Florida and say I'm going to now limit where all play to these three Florida teams because I agree, I don't see a natural fit. I mean, the Dolphins feel like more of a fit to take a veteran for a year if they want to, like

have a quarterback grow underneath them. But I don't think that that does much for Philip Rivers or the Dolphins, right. I thought about that to it when it came to thinking of teams with Brady, because you know he had he has the connection with the staff there. But I mean, a Ryan Fitzpatrick is under contract, and then be they I think they got all these picks to get a rookie to develop, and maybe it's not easy to get

to Ah. But Ta and Ryan Fitzpatrick, to me, makes a lot of sense, not to A and Philip Rivers or or Tom Brady. He is living in the Panhandle, which is like they say, Florida you point to the south markets, like Florida is huge. He's further away from Miami than he is from like Indianapolis or just eastern Alabama. Yeah, it is, it is. It's basically Alabama, Alabama, right, he's his man, his wife are a parental Alabama man. Close close,

I don't know. Like we've talked about geography for three minutes. I think keep an eye out on West's colts. That is where the little buzzes is popping up. Frank Reich used to coach him. There's another assistant there that that used to be with him and loves him, and that they could do a pretty seamless swap of Brissette for Rivers an offensive line. You gotta running game. You're trying to win, now. I know I know that Rivers showing signs of decline, but that feels like an upgrade. And

they don't have a high draft. Pick from like a from an ursay ownership angle, it's it would be a nice year to sell philip rivers to a end based at Lost Andrew Luck. From a business side, I think you could sell that. But the families in Florida, Yeah, but I mean you take the bus to Indy. I think you're just not gonna be seeing your family that much. Right, You're gonna you're gonna be flying home on Fridays on

like a jet and spending thirty six hours. I mean, how much are they really spending it together in the season. I don't know. Does the Florida Panhandle more importantly west? Is that part of the Midwest? No, that is part of the Deep South. I mean I know that area well. I would drive from New Orleans to Golf Breeze Pensacola area, where one of my good buddies in college all the time.

You go through Florabama mobile, you drive through North Florida, and it's not anything like you think of Florida, like the vacation destination. North Florida is deep deep South. Uh. The article that I was getting this info from also has a paragraph that I find incredibly alarming. The Chargers have Tyrod Taylor under contract for next season and have been impressed with his play throughout the past season, and he could wind up as Los Angeles is starting quarterback.

That's from mort and Schefter. I mean, can we watch out their Chargers? Come on, that's how you opened the new stadium. Hasn't have been made abundantly clear that Tyrod Taylor is a very good backup quarterback. I just I don't listen to any of this stuff in you know, late January, utter nonsense, pall me. Brady is quote open minded about playing elsewhere. Here's what he said in his weekly interview with Westwood one Radio. I'm open minded about

the process. At the same time, I love playing football and I want to continue to play and do a great job. I'm looking forward to what's ahead. Whatever the future may bring, I'll embrace it with open arms. This this would be potentially the first time Greg ever he you know, takes a phone call from a different team to test the market. Not bad if you could wait until you're forty two for that to happen, that's true. And once he starts taking phone calls that are allowed,

he's already gone. Because why isn't he on the free agent list? By the way, what's the contract? He's number nine? Um, he tom Brady's number nine. Doesn't become a free agent so March eighteenth, like the rest of the league. But the difference is that's the moment that the Patriots get thirteen point five million dollars on their cap, whether he signs with them or not. And so the Patriots are

not signing him after free agency started. It either either they're signing him before it starts, or he's going out. So now I'm sure he'll have an idea of what kind of market because all these players and agents like they figure it out behind the scenes. Anyways, well well before uh it happens. But if he gets if he starts taking those calls and he's just open for business, he's gone. And I and I think there's an I think there's a real chance of it. Come on, you

don't think. So he's earned the right to do whatever he wants. I mean, if anybody's earned the right. But who wants to watch him behind a rotten Chargers offensive line or something. Well, but nobody wants to see that. The longer this goes and the more talk around it. I really think it's about do the Patriots want him, And I think the answer is probably not if they have to pay him um a going rate for quarterbacks,

which is amazing. But I think the answer is unless he's willing to take a pretty big discount, which he had to after winning Super Bowls and after winning m vps, they didn't pay him what he was worth. So unless he's willing to do that again, and maybe he will because he doesn't see a good option out there, I think he's gone. I don't think Belichick's gonna pay him, and I think Belichick might look at this year is

a beautiful time to say he signed those contracts. He could have held out or fought for more money when he accepted those contracts. So that's not That's not all on New England, but I I think Belichick is one factor here. But I cannot I wonder if if Robert Craft could even he's the big swallow the concept of watching Tom Brady on the Cults on the charge. I

know he said he'd rather just Tom Brady retire. I just think that this is the owner of the team that is very attached to Tom Brady and the whole Jimmy g Thing went to own because of loyalty to Tom Brady. In aging tom Brady, it just belichicks one person, but he's not running the team. I just nobody wants to see Tom Brady getting his ass kicked in some weird uniform for a year. It's the worst way that you can see a lot of these teams talking themselves

into him. That's where I haven't have Should we save that from the agency? All right? Put a stick a pin in that. Let's move on the NFL to test two potential rule changes in the Pro Bowl. Here they are, I'm reading this for the first time. The second one is a team may elect to give Team BE the ball at the team b's twenty five yard line, beginning a new series of downs with the first and ten. Oh. That's after a successful bield goal or extra point attempt.

Number two, Team A may elect to take the ball at its own twenty five yard line for a fourth and fifteen play. If Team A is successful in making this sounds very familiar making a first down, Team A will maintain position uh possession, and a new series of downs will continue as normal. If Team A is unsuccessful in making a first down, The result will be a turnover on downs and Team B will take possession at the dead ball spot. This is from last year, wasn't it.

It was a rule proposal at the owners meetings that came up as UH an effort to kind of make the game we're interesting and get a get rid of onside kicks, which they're kind of getting rid of. Anyways. I think it's really interesting. You take a fourth and fifteen basically when you're down ten at your own twenty five, instead of taking, you know, going for an onside kick.

Sign me up. I love it. I mean I I would imagine both coaches have essentially been ordered to dial this up once or more than once in this game, because why not, let's see it in action. I I do think the on side kick has become such a low percentage play at this point that you don't even have to do this. If they if they ever became a rule, and it wasn't just only you can only use it in the last five minutes of each half

or something. Why there's gonna be some wild team out there that, like a kid in Madden, tries to dial this up over and over and over and hold onto possession. For like straight minutes. That's what I try to do. I have another imagine the chief Imagine the Chiefs do. I mean, if you can, if you can convert two of that three, you won't. You don't start the game. Nothing. The Titans never even have the ball. How about this option?

This is all fun, but this is all malarkey. What if you just got rid of that on side uh kick rule? Tweak they made a couple of years ago that made it impossible again in the first place. Yeah, after your safety reasons they did so. By the way, it was kind of all out. It was kind of always impossible. I'm not involved in this. Yeah, I mean with every generation, the foot comes out of football even more. Uh. Nice way to put a button on at Wes liked it.

Speaking of Wes, the Bengals, they got the number one overall pick. Wes is ready to dive back in and look at this guy. You got the kid Joe Burrow at l s U. Who's more excited uh than all those the Westling family members and everybody else on the west side of Cincinnati. This kid is the future and

Ohio native. The kid is There was a report that Cincinnati had no intention of trading the top draft pick, and they better not um ostensibly with the purpose of using it to select the Heisman Trophy winner Burrow, but player Bengals Director of player Personnel Duke Tobin said Monday that the Bengals are nowhere near making such an evaluation.

That's news to me. Well, even when a generational passer like Peyton Manning came out, Bill Pullian still did his due diligence, still thought do I draft Ryan Leef or do I draft Peyton mann And he still did the research. And that's what a smart team has to You don't have to tell anybody what your intentions are. Right, and Chase Young is out there. This guy, if if he is every bit as good as people think he is, like a generational pass rusher, you at least have to

look into it. So five years later people aren't thinking Joe Burrow flopped. Why do you why do you you consider Chase Young? Well, if they ever passed on Joe Burrow and he became what people think they're that's sir. Yeah, I just closed the shut down the entire operation. I'm not saying Joe Burrow will flop. I'm just saying, no, I believe. I also think the NFL wes just guarantee it would be very Bengals for Zach Taylor to fall in love with some second round quarterback at this year's

Senior Bowl. And oh, I hope not. I mean I it finally a group of a group of players that listens to me. I love this Senior Bowl. And you know he's you used to love Za. I love him. I just making random shots. I at the a f C. North has reloaded at quarterback in a pretty crazy way. And I'm not even pointing to the Browns at this point. I don't know what will happen with Baker Mayfield, but Lamar Jackson and if they get Joe Burrow and Cincinnati Steers,

well that's the one They've They've got issues. They've reloaded in a crazy way too, uh with your type. Finally, in the news, Richard Sherman and Darrell Reeves, they've kind of beefed over the years, the great Niners cornerback in the former Jets Bucks and Patriots and Jets cornerback Darell Reevs. And during the NFC Title Game after Davante Adams beat Sherman on a long completion, Revis took a photo of his television and tweeted out fear of getting beat and

man to man coverage every snap, every play. The fact that he doesn't travel as a cornerback is lame, except the challenge is the best and shut Adams down the entire game. Do it for the game of football. Stop hiding in a cover three zone and Richard Sherman, as the kids say, clapped back, got it. Ricky. I would go in on this has been but I have a Super Bowl to prepare for. Enjoy the view from the couch. Your ninth year looked a lot different than this. L

m a O laughing my rs off. I mean you want to get into a battle of wits with Richard Sherman. Durrell Reeves is not prepared for that battle. Maybe a much better cornerback one on one, but in a battle of which although it lose to Sherman, right, although he happened to, he was just taking shots without knowing what he was talking about. He happened. In his ninth year, Darrell Reeves won a Super Bowl and was the first team All Pro and had the most turn up four

turnovers of any team in the league. So Sherman couldn't have if no one cares about whether that the burn was like remotely accurate. Darrell Rivis was better than Richard Sherman, and he's sitting on the couch and taking pot shots at someone else like a loser. Yeah he is. And uh my favorite comment was like the first Twitter, you know, Greg, I gotta I gotta stop. Yes, the Patriot season was his eighth year. So what did he do with his with his name? He did, that's what he signed a

huge deal with the Jets. I think he was a pro bowler, but he was in a little bit decline. But he's the Sherman's long. Sherman wrong in the sense that he's probably thinking about the second year Revas had the last I knew he was a pro bowler, someone had pointed out. But that's my bad. I mean it just looks petty to me. I don't I get it people. This This probably was the highest ranks story in NFL

dot com. I mean, that's like he does why does he Why does he have such a think about It's like, oh, like you're a you're a zone you play on a team that has zone defense, and you play zone defense it's like, yeah, that's that's everyone in the NFL does. That's like your job. I get why he doesn't, because he's saying, you know, for the purity of football, Like for the game, it's a better game if you're playing

man demand and you're good enough to do it. But he's like the only one who's been able to do that. It's just the way of tooting his own horse. I'm not in the news cycle, have not been for years, but now I am. I loved derrel Rivas. I hate the way his career ended, but he was one of the grades of all time. But why engage in this. You should have respect for another early thirties something cornerback who's at the top of the profession. What are we

doing here? I agree? Well it um, that's what's happening in the news, Ricky, get us a plug in for next Thursday night. Oh yeah, tickets are going fast for our Miami Improv show Miami, Miamis and make sure you guys get tickets. We've been tweeting them out there on our Instagram. It is Miami Improv Slash Events. Come hang out with us in Miami. I heard some bubbling. Good job Ricky. I heard some bubbling up on on the

Twitter verse. You know when you did your live show in London, sold out in less than a minute, and you're still hawking tickets for this. Well, maybe you're not aware that the Miami improv seats on thousand people, right, So before you talk like Drrell Reavis or Richard Sherman, just have the background back check, please. We also have way more listeners in London. I mean that's no no,

uh surprise, Miami, come come, correct. You're not in the one of the American cities, which makes sense because as you know, it's a totally spread out city that doesn't love its pro sports. Right all right, I mean it could have just left it. Dan was trying to come from a different angle there, but unmasked also on Wednesday, we're bringing it up. We're coming from that angle, and I gotta be honest. Wednesday of that week, you can go downtown to South Beach and see Greg Swim live

with the Dolphins. Yeah, no tickets for that, that's just sort of just just just follow your Google Maps to South Beach. You'll see me there. Go to the pool. You could be great. I'm right right there on the left. Okay, all right, here we go. It's time any blowback by the way about the d and the mass potatoes. No, it was beeped out on our podcast. What about your comments? Aimed at my wife at the end of Was there an apology after the show? I missed it, but I

heard it's not that. It's not not then? Why do about a phone call to uh? That would be awkward? Is this? Yeah? How about hat in hand at the front door? I stand if anything, she would give me like a fist bump. She was like, yeah, I was ready to go and get Mark com. You guys are honking too much? How are we back? Here? Was Simone doing the Friday Night Lights mom thing with the wineglass and the living room just spinning explosions and sky plane.

I know that's what you want me to tell you was happening, But I came home to a pretty controlled household. That's actually kind of disappointing, a little disappointed. All right, let's get into it. The top twenty five NFL free agents of Colin. This is the headline, folks, no shortage of intriguing QBS. Now is that your headline? Greg Or? Was that something they put on there? And not mine you sign off on, don't you kind of just find

out right when it's okay? I did the headlines. You can't worry about what you can't control, you know, That's what I said. Used to be a good headline writer. I used to be into the headline. H Yeah, except for when whenever you had to write or which bost headlined. By the way, a lot of a lot of you they try to they try to fill it up, fill

up the whole line. It's annoying. So Greg, you um, as you're putting together and doing the research on this and then going through the process of figuring out that order, what kind of jumped out to you as you were doing it from a kind of a a macro perspective. Well, Number one, that it was. It's the toughest year to rank these players, first of all, because there's more big names than I can ever remember in the top twelve.

But more more to the point, how how do you you know, ranked Tom Brady and Philip Rivers versus like Joe Tuney and Byron Jones. It's just this sort of you know, meta it's it's a question that cannot be answered. But I struggled with it, partly because a like Tom Brady is still worth more to a team that could use a quarterback. Then I think Byron Jones would be to a team maybe that needs a cornerback, but there's only a few teams out or that Tom Brady would help.

And Byron Jones and guys like Joe Touney, who would be a plug and play guard for basically any team, they could help almost every team. So it it was very hard to to figure out because you look at Rivers, I'm giving him a bonus that he's younger than Tom Brady, like he's got maybe a longer runway and he's thirty

eight years old. It's all, it's all impossible. Yeah, you look at a guy like Drew Brees and think, Okay, he's got a thirty yard arm in a dome with no wind, what's he worth at Chicago Bears when come November? You just have to sit him on the sideline because his arm is not strong enough to cut through the wind. I'm a little I'm a little higher on breeze, I think than you are. If you if you put him on the Bears, I do think they'd be a much better team. They'd figure it out. No, I'm not talking

about on the road. I'm talking about when wind is actually blowing, like more than four miles an hour. I guess Risky not too great in the wind either. Just throwing that out there. Absolutely, Tom Brady at nine, I'm another in another world. I'm curious were would Brady be in the same exercise if we were coming off last season where he had the nice playoff run but was in showing those sides as well, would he have been

in the top five? Yeah? Probably, And he was yet lower on this list for a while, and he eventually they inched up as I went. And I have a feeling West might rank them lower. Am I right? West? Yeah? So I do not want a forty three or whatever. I don't want a quarterback who can't get out of the way of pressure, because what we've seen over the last few years is that those guys struggle. I find

it interesting both PFF and Greg Badard. Greg Badard, who does a good job at Boston Sports General breaking down every all the film of Tom Brady had him ranked higher for the two thousand nineteen season than he did for two thousand eighteen. So did PF. And I think that's been lost a little. He wasn't that great last year either. He had a very good playoff run. But I probably say he's been a top fifteen, top twelve quarterback both years and it wasn't like a huge decline

this year. Is the Patriots that declined? If I was all right right above Brady. We mentioned Drew Reas, He's at number eight on this list, and I guess it it really it depends on what you thought about what you saw from Breeze this year. But you know, you

have Yannick and Gockway ahead of him. Ryan Tannehill's ahead of him, you have Shack Barrett ahead of I mean, I feel like if you were a team looking for a quarterback and thought you you had a chance to get over the hump Drew Brees, you would be doing cartwheels that to have him join your team in the

short term on a one or two year deal. I'm with you over over Ryan's I liked, I'm not gonna suddenly that was the most was trying to do Tannehill versus those guys, and this was done before that last playoff run, and I'm open to that being different, But I don't know. I think Yannick and Gockway helps thirty two teams? How many teams? You know? How many brings Payton with you? Right, Drew Brees, it has to be

the right situation. It's it's sort of impossible to ranked quarterbacks versus any position because they just matter so much more. Where does PFF have Drew Brees after twenty? Where was he? Was he in the top ten? I like, there's a lot of hate and Drew Brees right now. No, I think it's realistic about what his arm is. Sure, sign them for a warm weather team or a dome team, but I don't think you can play him and expect great results in December in a cold weather city. Um,

let me just for for framework. But your quarterbacks is where where? I surprised. That's the whole Tannehill over Breeze and Brady thing. I don't I don't know. I'm gonna have to think about that a little more. And you almost like take these quarterbacks and break them out in their own category, because I have no issue with all

the way you rank these. But I think it's just your eyes are all over the place reading this because you're seeing these huge, mega names in the middle of these in terms of like how guys are going to get paid though, which is not how it's done. But Chris Jones will make more money, then Tom, Let me read the top ten here, just so the listeners have this frame a little bit. I know they're going to read the story too, of course at NFL dot Com.

So doubted to free agents one, dock to Chris Jones three, Amari Cooper four Clowney five, Shack Barret six, Ryan Tannehill seven, In Gockway eight Breese nine, Brady Justin Simmons at ten. Now one more thought. I just wanted to get out about Breeze because you've got a factor in the you know,

the money end of this as well. Would I rather have a Drew Brees at age thirty nine on a one or two year deal or Dak Prescott's age seven through thirty two year old season at like the highest rate in the league for a quarterback or around there. I would rather have forty one. All right, Well, who do you think Terry Jones would rather have? You think he'd rather have Drew Brees for two years and not

resigned Dak Prescott. I'm just talking about what the value on the market is I would rather have Drew Brees on a short term deal than invest a ton of money in Dak Prescott as a superstar quarterback over half a decade. I'd rather have Dak because I think having a long term superstar quarterback is the last valuable thing you can have. Yeah, I do think Dak Prescott had a better year than Ryan Tannehill on balance unbalanced, Yeah,

I mean per game maybe not. They're they're in the same ballpark and Doc I've seen a lot more uh from over the years. The Tannehill thing is tricky because it was just a ten game sample and it was really impressive. But I think the Titans will be happy to use one of their tags on Tannehill because you don't have to then you don't have to pay them

eighty million dollars guaranteed. And let's let's see him for some Because when I was trying to think of teams for Tom Brady, I mean, the Titans are are right up near the top if they if they wanted to go for Tom because John Robinson was with the Patriots, Mike Brabell obviously was a teammate with the Patriot and they have a team that is looking to get over the top. If they thought Brady was a better one

year option than Tannehill, it's not that crazy. If I was the Titans, I would want to run back Derrick Henry and Tannehill and try to build more around him and see what that looks like next year. That's a great call, because if this Tannehill thing didn't happen, which really shocked everybody, everybody would be pointing at Tennessee with Rabele there, but now makes a lot of sense, good old line. It's still not that crazy that they would

at least consider it. But I think the way they finished the year, to your point, West, I think they would have to want to see Tannehill in that uniform for another sixteen games at least. A J. Green just misses the top ten, which it's surprising, but I also get it. He just missed a full year. He's on the wrong side of thirty. We've talked about that name where he would make a lot of sense to go as um a guy could be a final piece for a team that needs wide receiver help. Well, he said

he would like to stay in Cincinnati. The Bengals. Duke Tobin told rap Sheet that they want a J. Greenback and and franchise tech could be an option there because especially if you if Joe Burrow is coming in and A J. Green is excited about that, you know, if they tag him then then it's not as fun to watch what happens because I don't think the year off would hurt him that much relatively in terms of the

teams that would be after me. If you look at the teams that could use an outside receiver, I mean they're pretty great. The Ravens after seeing him twice year, you're telling me they wouldn't want him. The Patriots need an outside receiver. The Raiders are gonna be looking to spend money. They could use an outside receiver. The Eagles really could use an outside like I just even though A J. Green hasn't been a J. Green for a little bit, I just feel like he would have a

monster market regardless. And there's so much cap space this year, it's outrageous. There's teams almost every team has more cap space than they can use. Jenevan Clowney might be the highest paid player in the NFL, I feel like, or the defensive player I cannot believe. And I know running backs can't get paid in the open market. But I

guess what is this? It's the top free agents or I know you're obviously factoring position, But Leonard Williams of the Giants, you have an eighteen and you have Derrick Henry who has been the best running back in the world for a while. Are you going buy money or earning potential here now? Henry at twenty? When you when I first saw this couple of days ago, that jump out at me. But what do you pay him? That? I kind of get it though, because it's like, I

don't again, I don't know what metrics you're using. Is he is he best player on this list? No? I just I feel like much higher. I feel like the running game is he is an exceptional player that is coming off a incredibly high workload who doesn't help you on third downs really, which is kind of crucial. I mean, and you can generate like a running game is a function of the team more than the player for the most part. That that is not where I would want

to be spending my money. Look at all the running backs have been paid lately, and almost everyone is regrettable left Bell Talk, Gurley, Zeke Elliott didn't have a great year, David Johnson. I mean, you're gonna pay a guy who just have four touches. I think that's the conundrum. But I mean, like with tannehill I would just defind the Titans, find a way to bring the whole band back and see where you are year from now. I I agree, and they well, they're both tough, but it's the toughest too.

It's one of the two toughest positions Tannehillen and Derrick Henry on this list or a conundrum pay one so that this year is the final year of the collective Bargaining Agreement and there are different rules, and there are a lot of different rules in this year, some of which I can't wrap my head around, but one of them I get, which is that there are two tags available for the first time ever. I believe you can

use a franchise tag and a transition tag. Transition tag means you just have the ability to match the offer. And I could see the Titans using those two tags for those two players because they're kind of the perfect players to keep one more year that you don't want to give Henry the girly contract, but sign me up for I would be happily pay them one year sixteen million dollars. That's where I think the running back thing gets a little too crazy. Don't pay them at all.

It's like, no, I'll pay them for one year. I just don't want to essentially at another team do the negotiation for you and then decide in teams don't generally like using the trans transition tag for that reason, and it would be it would be risky, But I don't know which player you would use it on in that case. I would tend to think Henry Henry, and if someone signs the way, you're gone. But maybe it's Tannehill too

that you just let someone else do. And who's gonna swoop in and craft a massive contract from Ryan Tannehill? I love what he did this year, but it's like he fits the Titans. Where where are the other landing

spots GM fallen in love with? I can see it, But it's like I could easily see them reaching an agreement with him, so they could have the tag available for Henry right, and they also have Jack Conklin, who I think they're gonna want to keep it right tackle to um is there a player because a lot of times with this exercise, as fun as the names are, when you factor in the franchise tag and all that, when deals just getting done, um, the amount of the

players actually end up changing teams, it's not as many big names. Who's a kind of a bigger name here that you think falls through where he doesn't get franchise, where he doesn't end up getting a new deal, and he moves somebody that we haven't talked about yet, perhaps somebody that we talk to. Bowny I think will move because he he's like gonna get Khalil mac type money because there's so much money just out there in the market, and he his agent made the Seahawks agreed and not

franchise tag him as part of that trade. Wasn't like Clowney way more of a risk than Derrick Henry in terms of money, But how much money you have to pay him relatively you have to pay Derrick Henry and the injury risk and all that, there's a case to be made. Uh. I think he'll get out there. I don't totally know if a Mari Cooper stays with the Cowboys. I think with the way that duck that they can't use the tag, you know, if they have to use the tag on Doc, I could just couldn't you just

see a Mario Joe Douglass on that one. Once you get to this part of the year, if you get to the market, it's like you're gone. So I don't know that the Cowboys have some work to do with They also have Byron Jones. I don't think they would prioritize him ahead of a Marie Cooper, but Cooper someone I think could change teams. Got see him staying. I just I just don't ever see Jerry losing his stars. Joe Tuney, who's a guard on the pages, that's not a big name, He's gonna be gone. I'd rather sign

these guards than some of these receivers. Hunter Henry, I think is a fun one. Austin Hooper is out there potentially too, so unless those guys get tagged, which is possible. Uh that some good tight ends out there. Feel like Hunter Henry was drafted like four weeks ago. I mean the time is I feel like there's been about fourteen. A C. L. Tears as well. He's a buyer beware guy,

but a guy that's obviously flashed. I can tell you a couple of guys who will be moving up the list once I vote, are moving some dead drushers up this list. Judean and Bud Duprie will be voted up higher than they are on here. Yeah, for both of them, it was a little bit of one year wonder thing, just like Zadarius Smith. Yeah, but to me, no, we had Smith a lot higher, right, but he was a one year wonder going and I get it. But Judean, I think watching them is a great player, but he's

nowhere near as a dairy said dude. Pre's interesting because if you're just basing this year, he was incredible and the Steelers desperately won him back exactly anything else West that you're seeing. No, it was a great job by Greg in a very challenging year to do this. What about famous Jamis Winston. I feel like there would be a war over the soul of Jamis, who's at nineteen

on this list. West would probably want him in the range of four hundred to seven hundred, I would imagine I probably put him much closer to like thirty to forty. Why do I need to sign a guy who I want to replace immediately? This? This is I don't want him as where we're on Earth? Does he live? This is a strategic mistake. You ever you know, you ever you know with your significant other, with rife, there's some battles that you you figure like, uh, I don't need

to fight this battle. I'll just meet you halfway to start, because there's something else I want to battle you on. Maybe Jamis. I figured by putting him around twenty, I'm like, I'm already knowing what's coming from West. I'd love to put him even higher. Frank lay and I thought, Okay, this prevents anything. It was a bad move because I'm still getting the battle. I might as well have just

he you think he's gonna get more money than Kirk Cousins. Philosophically, where do you rank players you don't want on your team. That's where it comes down to. Nobody wants Jamis Winston is the quarterback. My my point for Jamis is if if he actually got to the open market, I just think people would be astounded with the contract he would get. I do think it'd be better than Kirk Cousins. I just think I do not because I want to know what team that is that You've got to sell that

to you two people buying tickets. What are they doing with all this cap space? What sell guy through for five thousand yards and thirty two days this past season? Which team is desperate for Jamis Winston? I'd like this exciting. He's a mess, but he is. He gives the ball away two to three to four times a game, So a Mariota type than about Chargers. You know, the Chargers and Bucks just do a swap. You take our interception machine, we'll take yours. And everybody like Winston on the Chargers

is interesting that will fill the stadium. Well we still we say that about every single charg scenario At this point. It's nothing that's gonna fill tom Brady. Tom Brady could get people excited here until they're one in five and he looks like the best quarterback in the NFL. Like, why why would Tom Brady wanna I don't know, play for Anthony Lynn behind the terrible offensively? That's why when you think of the whole Brady thing, where is he

really going to want to do it? There can't be that many maybe in Adianapolis if they were interest, I mean, there might be a few, but I can't imagine he's just gonna go to any team like one of the worst offensive lines in the league year after year, You're gonna put Tom Brady behind that. You're gonna go to the franchise that essentially cracked the egg onto flate Gate. I mean there's still people in that building attached to that. I mean that's the owner. Oh the cults. Yeah, that

would be an an interesting landing. Good stuff. Check it out the Greg Peace on NFL dot com slash Top twenty three agents and also the upcoming piece by the scientists top one on one for you, but most importantly first time we've teased it for a couple of years. But both Mark Sessler and Dan Hansas will be putting the other our top one o two free agents on Mark and Dan dot com March, as you can find

on the on the internet and West. I'm taking your comments today as an invitation next year, Monday after Division all round, while you're trying to grind that game pass, I'm calling you up and we're going to hash out these top agents. That was not something I put on the table. Um breaking news before we go. This just announced via Twitter from the Saturday Night Live handle the

night before the Super Bowl. J. J. Watt will host the venerable Late night Comedy Institution Saturday Night Live musical guest Luke Combs J J. Watt, Oh, that monologue is gonna be stiffer, loots back. They'll help him with us and they'll help him out sometimes it's just that you gotta you gotta work around it. There's gonna be it would be a question and answer. There'll be a lot of other you know, he'll he'll dress and dragon stars

are gonna come up during his monologue. It's not going to be him speaking for based on some history for this show. I'm just gonna say, I think he's gonna do a phenomenal Yeah, I think he's gonna be great. What would west? I know, you're not really an SNL guy, right, I'm not really a TV guy. Got you what would be? If you had to choose one SNL to watch? They announced the next two shows, So you got J. J. Watton, Luke Hombs, who sounds like a country singer but he

is I don't know. Oh my god, that's right out of the country music. Will build a name for you, and then your other choice is the February eight show, which will be hosted by RuPaul and Justin Bieber as the music. Which episode are you watching? Can I read a book instead? No, you must pick. I'm watching RuPaul. I think I would do right. And that was the name out of all those who I think can bring the most work. Cover girl, work at work, covering what you could talk about it a little on the podcast

could could help. Actually that Woul wouldn't be a terrible assignment for West. Bieber will do a skitter two and add some pop. I'm getting no entertainment from Biber. Bieber famously um one of the worst people ever at SNL behind the scenes. I'm a little surprised he came back, but I guess he's matured a little bit. So difficult to work with. Yeah, just not a nice person. I heard from a source close to the production. He's trying to Yeah, maybe he's trying to change that image. But

I feel good about this one. J J. Watt on U S and No. I'll be watching from the hotel room in Miami. I mean, all you need to do is be in a little skit where they do everything for you and people will give you a lot of lot. It's like Eli Manning throwing the footballs at the kid, people love you and you you know SNL as I do Greg. It is littered with the carcasses of sational athletes who were asked to do almost nothing and couldn't do it, and it just it derails an entire episode

when they're bad. When they're good, Joe Montana comes to mind, Peyton comes to mind. Eli did a nice job. Uh, it's okay and sometimes inspired, but when it's bad, Oh my god, go watch the Michael Phelps SNL. No, thank you, No, it's rough. I would slow down on Peyton Manning though. I've always just felt that he's not nearly as funny as everyone williams he is. But are we talking about this again? Oh this is a dangerous hot take. No,

it's not at all. But if he's just not funny, I mean you put it up there that he brought life to the show or whatever. But like Michael Jordan was terrible, but there was any I guess that's because he's Michael Jordan's it was still fun just because it was he was there. I mean, I've heard the take that Peyton Manning is not funny. You're not going to get an argument from me. You find that he is funny,

He's had his moments. Okay, that's all I'm not saying, like you and then do I say that he never cracked a joke, But I'm just saying it's it's the it's not on the top one thousand list of who I want to see love Ricky. I got it and I have to signing off for Quiet Storm the Old Boston Ricky Hollywood behind the Glass until Thursday. How one hour