Welcome to NFL Daily, where we're always grinding our face off. I'm Greg Rosenthal and beyond lucky today to be joined by Nick Shook, who's gonna do some news with me. Also excited Will Brinson will be joining me a little bit later to talk about players. We're all in on for twenty twenty four. I'm all in on Nick Shook this year. It's a big year for Nick Shook.
I mean, look, every year, in this time of year, we set expectations high, and we want to live up to those expectations. It's not quite a chip tracker, it's not best shape in my life, but the potential making the leap happening right here.
Yeah, before your eyes.
I love it.
Nick is rested, hopefully had a little time off little boy's trip, which which is nice. I think that's the only time off he said all season. And yeah, we're gonna keep you busy today and all season long, Shook, You're going to be doing the news a lot with me. You're going to be doing a lot of that the primetime games with me. And yeah, let's get right into the news, all right. We start in Pittsburgh, where Russell
Wilson was back on the field today. Shooky did some individual drills, but it was still justin fields with the first team, and Fields has had a nice little run here to start training camp with the first team. Other news there, Unfortunately, Roman Wilson, their rookie wide receiver, left practice with an ankle injury. We haven't gotten severity of that yet. Mike Tomlin didn't sound incredibly enthused about it,
so we'll have to wait and see. But for a third round rookie pick, he expected to be a bigger part of the Steelers' plans than most rookies would be.
Yeah, it's a big bummer for me personally because he was one of my favorite picks in this entire draft, and especially how he would fit in that Steelers receiving corps. I thought he's a great compliment to George Pickens. He was a sneaky good receiver at Michigan for those who paid attention to the Wolverines.
So it's a bombery.
Hear he exits on a cart, you know, early in camp, But then again, we don't quite know yet. So until we know, we can hold out hope that hey, look you got a month, let's say he can come back. In a month, you're gonna miss some of those rookie reps. But hopefully there's enough of a run way there where he could come back. Just just keep my fingers crossed
that the worst doesn't happen. But when it comes to Fields and Wilson, you know, if we were sitting back a month ago, which we were, and saying when is Justin Field's going to end the conversation because Russell Wilson is the starter as of right now. Well he just got quite a jump on that process by getting all these opportunities with Russell Wilson out And even today, Russell Wilson, according to those who were there, wasn't quite moving a lot.
It was more about passes than moving around. So they're treating that really gingerly, which is going to keep the door cracked open for Justin Fields could affect this whole thing.
Yeah, it's always tricky to know which minor injuries to talk about it this time of year because you just don't know how they're gonna last.
I wanted to.
Choose these two because Wilson, who's been quite durable, is getting up there in years in a soft tissoo injury like this two start year year. It's not just that he's missing reps. He's a veteran, although it's a new system, and he's letting justin fields get those reps and I'm sure he's not feeling that comfortable about that, which is maybe why he's forcing getting back on the field too early. When you see these types of injuries with veterans, they
often reoccur. And I know we got a while before the regular season starts, but that's a concern. And then with rookies, they just missed that time that they can never get back. So you hope even if it was something where he's back nick before the regular season. I can just hear the twenty twenty five puff piece. That's like Roman Wilson I never quite got back up to speed after missing training camp. And it's especially interesting to
me just because they don't have any receivers. I can't believe they went into training camp with Pickens as they're one okay, and then Van Jefferson, Calvin Austen and Roman Wilson as their two three four. It's one of the worst two three fours in the league. No, all of those guys have chances. I think Van Jefferson maybe the
ship has sailed on him. But it's a tough situation, I think for the quarterbacks in Pittsburgh this offense where they're having a lot of new pieces on the offensive line too, which are promising, but it's just a lot of question marks for Arthur Smith to deal with.
Yeah, I mean it's a pivotal season because you have Arthur Smith there, you know, putting a new offense, and you have so many young pieces that you're going to be counting on, and so when you lose one of those, that's obviously going to hurt you. But on the flip side, I often wonder, you know the puff piece that you just referenced, Well, we also hear the piece at the end of the season, which is, oh, man, I really hit the rookie wall around week twelve. Does a month
off or how long he could miss? Does that prevent you hitting the rookie wall? Is this the second half resurgence? Is this a making the leap candidate going into twenty twenty five? Anything's possible, Okay. I mean it worked for Odell Beckham his rookie season. I think that works more for the next guy we'll talk about. Arden Key was a veteran who suspended six games for PDS. Now, there are guys that come back from the pd suspension and they're never the same, and you wonder what's the cause
and effect here. I don't know if that's gonna be the case with arden Key, and he's a guy who's a key pass rusher, not a superstar. But I think it's a nice spot for veterans to miss six games of the season and then, assuming he's healthy, just come back in and be kind of like a mid season replacement. Yeah, it would be nice to get some reinforcements during the regular season that are fresh because they had a month
and a half off. It's interesting with him though, because his career trajectory, like he came out of LSU as a guy who was always gonna be a first round pick, but there were concerns about his effort level, and he's been fighting those his whole career and he's actually put together a pretty good career, never quite what a lot of people thought it would be. But maybe you get that six weeks off, you're like, Hey, I'm refreshed, I'm rejuvening, I'm gonna give full effort for the first time.
So Arden Key, I should have mentioned, is on the Titans now and had a nice season a year ago. You know, has been previously with the forty nine ers and the Jaguars, and their defense, to me, has a lot of questions. Not a defense we've talked about a lot. They're hoping they get the full herold Landry back, but Key was kind of their second best edge rusher. So
that's a big loss for the Titans. And just on the topic of suspensions, I do want to note Rashi Rice has not been suspended and Jordan Addison has not been suspended, and I did ask around a little bit about this. I just think it's fair to say that
no one knows when it comes to suspensions. But I think it's fair to say that the Chiefs, who probably earlier in the offseason just assumed that this guy's going to miss time, now aren't so sure and are wondering if this potential suspension is not going to come until twenty twenty five, because the NFL would rather let the legal process play out, and it's going to end up taking that long. So it's just something to watch there.
You don't need to comment on that, but it's something to watch that we've kind of assumed Raci Rice is not going to be there all seventeen. I'm not so sure about that, and the same is true for Jordan Addison, but it still could happen. The NFL is extremely unpredictable when it comes to suspensions, but sometimes they do wait until the next season. I want to mention a potential holdout.
As we're taping, we're reading a report from ESPN's Mike Reese that teammates of Matthew Judon did not see him on Tuesday, and that's coming off a story Nick that I don't know if you saw the video of Matthew Judon at practice on Monday conducting a holden. Basically, he had been practicing, but then they put the pads on, and he didn't put the pads on, and he was just on the side of practice. And you wonder if he relayed this plan to anyone else ahead of time.
My guess is no, because Girod Mayo goes over and talks to him, and with all the reporters there and everything like that, like, Judon gets worked up. They have a conversation. Mayo stays calm, but Judon really gets worked up. He goes inside, he comes back outside. Then it's another conversation with some front office people that are there. Again, Judan looks, you know, unhappy to the people that were there, and then it sounds like he wasn't at work Tuesday.
So it's just one of those things to me that I can't imagine happening. And I'm not saying it's that bad or good, but it's just you wouldn't have seen this under Bill Belichick.
It's a new day there in New England.
And that's their first reaction as wow, this is very unpatriot like. It's also kind of it's just getting messier because he arrived by saying, look, I'm here even though I'm not happy with my contract because I signed on the dotted line. It's a commitment that I made, and in the same breath said, but I don't think that, you know, my contract matches my value. Then he's participating.
Then as soon as the pads come on and his greatest asset, which is his health, is suddenly potentially threatened by you know, the full contact practice, he's sitting out. But most of these instances, guys stay off the side, or they stay inside the building.
They don't come out.
He's sitting on a flipped over trash can right next to his teammates doing their drills, just chilling, making a scene without doing anything but sitting there, and of course that's going to irritate Drod Mayo. So the fact that he went out there and did that, you had to think this was all kind of planned and it was him making a statement.
So the fact that we got to this next point now not a surprise.
Yeah, he's squeezed, he's turning the screws a little bit. He's only do six point five million, and he's one of their best players, but he's coming off a really serious, difficult injury that caused him to miss basically all of last season. So it's a tricky spot. But I just have noticed Drod Mayo to start camp speaking to the media, you know, was okay with Devon Godshaw also had a public displeasure with his contract, talking to the media about it, and Drod Mayo was like, Hey, I want to let
guys be able to voice their displeasure. He's going to be more of a player's coach and really rely on that relationship. And this is just just the first example of like okay, but that's being tested. Most most coaches would not allow that much from the players, and it'll just be interesting to see how he handles this. I was a little disappointed, shooky how the head coach of the Bears, Matt Eberflus, is handling the Hall of Fame
game because Caleb Williams is not going to play. Not that I really blame him, but I just want to watch that game and want to have some fun. I know you're going to be there. You're excited for a little Tyson baigin No, but I was excited to see Caleb Williams. I mean, at least get a series or two out of him.
You know, it's pretty common that coaches will treat the rookies with kid gloves, especially massive investments like Caleb Williams. But Caleb also went out on record yesterday is saying, look, I think these reps are really important, and he used the word paramount twice.
It's paramount to my development.
And this is where you know, I feel like I need to improve and just seeing the shells and everything else and making decisions and all that stuff. And you know, even though joint practices are becoming more and more popular in this new world of training camp in which they don't do two days and everything.
The games you still can't replace live bullets.
Oh he's gonna play Cale, He's.
Not going to get that in this game. It's just a bummer.
So this is where the Hall of Fame Game is probably rooting for that idea where there would be an eighteen game regular season and a two games preseason, which could happen someday. It could, it might not, because then the Hall of Fame Game is only the third preseason game. The problem the Hall of Fame Game has still is like the Bears have said they're gonna play Caleb Williams. They think it's important. He might play two preseason games. The problem is, just if you're gonna pick two, this
isn't one of those two. He might even play three. It wouldn't shock me. But my guess is gonna be he'll play next week, he'll play the week after that, maybe a decent amount, like a quarter and a half or something. But unfortunately for the Hall of Fame Game, it is the fourth week of the preseason, which otherwise we've eliminated. We haven't eliminated Tyson Bagent though I thought it was interesting. I don't know if you heard this
earlier in the week. It's Tyson Bagent talking about his off season and his off season training.
Ale's too busy grinding my absolute face off in the offseason.
Who the hardest grinding your face off thing.
That you did?
June nineteenth, shout out to my one of my best friends, Derek Gallagher one mile, Burbie broad Jump hour and seven minutes. Let's go Burbie broad JONP Burbie broad JONP.
One mind.
You know, I might not be getting better necessarily at football when I'm doing a workout like that, However, just the mental edge that it gives me finding out, you know, what I can endure versus what the next man can endure in a sense, gives me a little mental as when I show up to things like this and people start complaining about our schedule, I can kind of have somewhere in the back of my head that I've done things far worse than this.
Chuck, I wanted that quote for you. I don't know if it's the first time you heard it. As as a person who treats his body as a temple, what do you think of the Burbie broad jump move.
I don't know if it's the Temple, it's closer to a guess do rest station. Look, we've been there, we've been there.
You know, if you've played football at you know, basically the high school level and beyond, you've been in those situations where you're running distance and you're thinking, how is this helping me at football? Like I'm dying out here? Why am I running a mile after I just ran twenty one hundred yard dashes? You're in your conditioning test and you're just sweating and dying. But it does increase that intestinal fortitude, that mental strength that you need to play.
So Tyson Bage's gonna be on the sideline and Kayleb Williams is throwing for three touchdowns and he's gonna be like, this is great. But you know what, guys, burpy broad jump mile, throw me in there. I'm tougher than all these guys.
I mean, Tyson Baje, Okay, I thought you were gonna you were gonna slag on them a little bit because yeah, trainer Twitter did not like it.
They're like, you're not getting anything out of this, There's no.
It's true, Like calm down, I say, calm down, trainer Twitter, and they're just testing himself mentally.
It's like, it's so many passes can you throw?
You're also not gonna hurt yourself doing that either, Like it's totally fine. I support you, Tyson Bage. I love that hairdo hey. You outplayed as an undrafted free agent, the number one overall picking the draft. As a rookie last year, I would say he was better. And he's probably their backup. Brett Rippen is the other guy in that room, which.
No, it's Tyson Bage's backup.
John feels weird. I I want to absolutely grind my face off. Let's wrap up the news before the speed round. Just mentioned quickly. John Kaminsky of the Yons, who's a key part of their rotation, tore his mcl. It sounds like he will miss the season. He could be back for the playoffs, was the initial rapport.
And yeah, just a little risky. We've talked.
I talked about that just on the last show that DJ Reader little you know, coming off a huge injury. A lot of boomer bust players and that's a guy that they really relied on. So tough news, especially for John Kaminsky and the lines. And then finally, Mike Rabel has been working with the Browns.
Shook. This isn't breaking news or anything.
We've known this since the start of camp, but we haven't addressed it here in an uncertain role where I think he's kind of like just helping them as an advisor, maybe a little bit of an advanced scout working on the next opponent, but also helping them with tight ends. What do you think about Mike Rabel as part of the brown staff. It's pretty badass, actually.
You know, if it was a different regime, it was a Hugh Jackson regime, I'd be worried because there would be, you know, egos clashing and insecurities that might not be in fighting. But in this this is stable. Kevin Stefanski's been there for a while now, and bring another mind like Mike Rabel, who I thought was one of the more underrated coaches in the NFL and didn't deserve to be fired because the Titans tore down the roster around him. Uh, you know, I think it only helps the team.
Plus you get.
Cool highlights of Mike Rabel sprinting in races against Jameis Winston during practice.
Who doesn't like that. It's embarrassing. Not that Rabel isn't an athlete, but he's getting up there in years. He's a big guy, and the sprints it's close. But yeah, no one, No one's ever accused Jamis Winston. I guess of being in like an uber athlete, that that was part of his charm. But you got you gotta be Vrabel And good job by Kevin Stefanski and that Browns crew. This is where being a good dude and having relationships
pays off, because you can't. Mike Rabel is gonna help that team that is a great coaching staff already, and they just signed a contract extension and you said it. They're secure in where they're at and I love that move. He will absolutely help them. Let's do the speed round. Randy Chavez. Zach Wilson appears to be out of the starting quarterback rotation.
Shook it.
It looks like it's just Jared Stidham or Bo Nicks now in Denver.
And my reaction is, Gee, what a surprise. Couldn't see that coming.
To surprise to Steve Weis, who was trying to honk about Wilson a couple of weeks ago on this show. Chase Young fully back to practice, which is great coming off of a neck surgery. Kendre Miller, they're running back that they took in the third round, who was supposed to be their backup, really hasn't practiced at all at Saints camp, and Chris o'lave left practice with a hip injury. That is a thin receiver group shook if Chris o'lavey is not out there.
Yeah, I'm not excited about this because that offense was very uninspired last year and Chris o'lave any sort of injury or nick along the way, I'm worried about it because they need to have everybody healthy in order to get them to where they need to go offensively, since they never got there last year.
Right, it falls off a cliff. He's supposedly been having a great tramp camp. We don't know if it's serious. Chreevon Diggs back on the field from his torn acl so that is great. Happy trails to Rashad Penny. Really an exciting runner when he came into the league with Seattle. Just too many injuries and he hangs it up. He was with the Panthers at twenty eight Kareem Jackson is on the Bills. The Falcons have sold out season tickets
for the first time in twenty years. Kirk Cousins gets it done in a way that Matt Ryan and Michael Vick never did. What is happening here? Yeah?
What We spent all this time complaining about them drafting Michael Pennix and everyone in Atlanta's just like, now I'm buying tickets.
Baby.
We believe in Kirk. We watched quarterback. He's our guy right there.
I'm shocked by that stat but I love it and I love the hype. Finally, kicker battles have been decided. A rookie cam Little is the kicker in Jacksonville over Riley Patterson who has been cut and the only rookie on the Minnesota Vikings, or rather the only kicker on the Minnesota Vikings.
Nick is can you name?
It's a rookie kicker for from Allina? His name's will Is it Reichard or reck Card? Yeah, he's a dog, he's got a leg, he's clutch kicks when he was back at Alabama, and they finally get an answer there.
I'm excited you did it.
I didn't I would not have been able to name him twenty.
Four hours ago, but it's over now.
College football guy and yeah, nice like having a couple of kickers on decent teams being rookies. I think that just adds a little something to it. Thank you Shuk for helping out with the news. And we are going to take a quick break here. I will be back on the other side with Will Brinson. We're talking about players we are all in on and oh yeah, Randy, ooh ooh like this is great. Keep this, oh yeah, back on NFL Daily. And then I've been excited about
this next guest ever since. We were texting over the weekend about RAFAA on the doll and Carlos Alcarez and realized, like, oh, I need to get Will Brentson on this show. One of my oldest colleagues, friends in the business. He was, you know, back at AOL FanHouse in the oughts, early internet days.
It's Will Brinton of CBS. What's going on?
What's up? Greg? We've been man, We've been doing this for a long time now, haven't. We're closing them. I mean it's like a decade half.
The business keeps changing.
There's like corporate mergers, but you're still kicking CBS senior NFL writer, I'm here, yeah, and one of the best dudes if anyone has followed Will's career, funny and knows his stuff and has a very manly beard that I wish I could grow a beard that good, but I just realized it wasn't ever going to be that good. So I'm just permanent stubble because I look even older without it.
Well, I mean you you.
I think, I want to say. We talked about this right before NO, right before COVID. No, you were like, all right, I'm out on the beard. Every NFL writer has a beard, and then COVID happened. Yeah, and everybody, you know, everybody grew facial hair.
I think that. I mean, I like mine. I would, you know, I probably.
I've got some other physical stuff I'm going to work on before I work on shaving the beard. Keep tear it around, you know, mask and mask uh in mask mass various attributes on my face.
That is one of the great things men have. Women just just don't. The beard can just cover up whatever you want. I love that you not only you know texting me about tennis, and we love connecting about that. But you you suggested this idea for a show, and I'm just like, okay, we got it. We gotta get this done even before Will gets back from his vacation
in Dallas. And so you phrased it as just guys were all in on for twenty twenty four, and you set the parameters no rookies, and I don't know if you said any other parameters that I didn't listen to. H but guys, we are We're pushing our chips in the table. There are guys for twenty twenty four, and maybe we'll track this through the season and see which group of our guys are better. But since you came up with the idea, Will, I'll let you start off.
Okay, So I think too, Like I was sort of thinking about this, and I don't think that you should necessarily have to, you know, go way off the board for guys you're all in on right now.
It can be superstars. I have one on my list, a super duper star.
Yeah yeah, yeah, I do too, And you know I'll start let's start with the super duper stars. So I think you need to start at the top. You start
with the big names. You sort of work your way down. Honestly, like the impetus for this sort of came from you know, whether it's DraftKings or whether it's you know, our palaced underdog like Josh Norris and Hayden Winks do great work over there, but doing best ball drafts and sort of saying like taking a stand on players and who I really want to be in on and one guy, I'm really really in on that, and this is its like
a nobleep Sherlock move. But I do think he's undervalued, especially if you look at maybe like the MVP markets. Okay as well Josh Allen, Oh my god, is this a super different star?
Is that too?
That is?
I mean, I guess, I guess it takes you know, two of us, you know, twenty years in the business to figure out that Josh Allen is good. But yeah, I wrote it's the same. But you go on, I'm glad. I'm glad.
No, No, I mean, I think like I have, You're look at like my exposures in these drafts.
I think he's my maybe my highest exposure quarterback, and I think there's a little bit of twenty twenty three Patrick mahall or twenty twenty two Patrick Mahons, excuse me, Where you know Stefan Diggs is traded in the off season, he goes to Houston. Everybody's wondering, can Josh Allen be the guy without a true number one receiver? I think people are out of the bills. People want to be out of the Bills. They've been wanting to be out on the bill since last offseason with all the digs
drama that was circulating in July. And now you have the situation where Josh Allen is is like the fourth or fifth guy in terms of odds for MVP. I saw nine to one in various spots. He's behind C. J. Stroud, Greg That's insane.
I see a list where he's even lower than that, to me, which is absolutely crazy.
Yes, I didn't know. I don't know what the official spots like.
What You're good.
This is why we got to have Will on more more often, because, as you know, I'm an employee of the NFL and I have to sign a piece of paper every year that says I can't gamble. That said, I'm on a show every week that picks games, and we pick scores and game debut and so we can talk about it and you're you're more of an expert, and yeah, it's insane to me that he is behind guys like Stroud, Lamar, Herbern.
Purty.
I see in one and all your points are great, and I think there is something about the public going so in on the bills last year and they were burned,
and so you don't want to do it. But it's so funny that you wrote him down and you mentioned twenty two Mahomes because that is it to me, because sometimes MVPs are about narrative, and the narrative is gonna be like, oh, it's it's Josh Allen without Stefan Diggs, and he's gonna take a step back, just like everyone expected Mahomes to do in twenty twenty two without Tyreek Hill. And yet I look at this group and I like
this wide receiver group. I like the combination. I like that he's not forcing it, and more than anything, I just like the point of Josh Allen's career that he's at. He reminds me a little of Ben Roethlisberger when Ben Roethlisberger was a little bit older Will and I think it was where Ben Roethlisberger finally married up for a couple of years. His physicality and his strength was still there. He wasn't old, but he was just smarter. Like he
was a better quarterback because he was smarter. And it took him a while. It took it takes a lot of quarterbacks a while to get to that point. And I think Josh Allen is at that point now. It's a sweet spot for like one or two years where his physicality is still all the way there and his mental side has caught up, and he just feels like a guy that one of these years is gonna win an MVP.
And this feels like that year to me.
Well, it is the narrative thing is exactly right. You lose gigs, people like you know you and I know and we'll get I mean to assume you have this tight end on your list to Dalton Kincaide, You.
Like I just stayed off him.
Yeah, yeah, I text you, I think Kinkaid is gonna have a monster year.
And you talk about the twenty twenty two chiefs. What do they do?
They said, Mahome, you lose Tyreek. But you know what, it's okay because you have Travis Kelcey. Well, guess who's gonna be Josh Allens, Travis Kelcey, it's Dalton Kinkaid.
You also have Curtis.
Samuel who had his and I realized that like people, you know, like hyping up Curtis Samuel whatever. He and the best year of his career in twenty twenty with the with the Panthers when Joe Brady, the Bill's offensive coordinator, was Carolina's offensive coordinator.
Speak to me, didn't think of that.
Yeah, mccollins is getting buzzed, and look, I like Mac.
I don't think mac collins is all right changing wide receiver one. No, but he's a deep He's a deep threat. Like he's a cheap deep threat.
He's like when the when the Chiefs God to get MBS right and bring him in NBS on this team as well.
Chase Claypool getting hype.
In So okay, you've got You've got too far. You've gone too far. This is like, you know, we learned this model Congress. Like you, you want to stick to your strongest points in your argument. You got to know when to stop, and when you get to mc collins and Claypool, that's.
Where you got to stop.
But Shakir Samuel, Kean Coleman, Kincaid, Knox Cook. That's six good pass catchers. You can't it again. It reminds me of Kansas City in twenty twenty two, except they have better pass catchers, but more that they have continuity on the offensive line. That Sean McDermott's been saying it all off season. This is the best offensive line that the Bills have ever had in their tenure, and they have
great continuities. So I'm totally with you, and I know you love Kincaid, so that that's one two where I think he'll be the number one receiver in the league. And it's a great point on Joe Brady and Samuel. I'm just into it this year. I guess I've given away my MVP pick of the year. I'm gonna go less of a star here, but still a star. Let's go big names first. I'll go Drake London. Okay, I'll start with that. Yeah, okay, I actually forgot Drake London
didn't even break a thousand yards last year. I just think of him as a top ten to twelve receiver in the league. And I know if you're in fantasy you did not feel that last year when he ended up with a nine hundred and two and he is the ultimate tape over numbers guys. I wasn't even that high on him going into the draft. I think I had him fourth or fifth in that class. I think
I'm gonna be proven wrong. When you watch him, there's just so many times that he is just absolutely bodying cornerbacks and he can run slants, he can run digs, and people say he doesn't get open, like maybe deep down the field he doesn't get open. Our friend Matt Harmon talks about that, but he gets open in the short areas. And where is Kirk Cousins good over the middle of the field. That's where he wins in the intermedia area. And you think about his offensive coordinator, Zach
Robinson is there and they're gonna use Puka. I mean they're gonna use Drake London like Puka and he can make enough plays after the catch it. I know this isn't a perfect stat Will, but yards per route run, it's just it's a stat I have some issues with, but it's just an efficiency stat. When you look at the yards. Drake London has two of the top ten marks since twenty thirteen in that stat. In the last ten years he is in the Both of his seasons
are in the top ten. And you look at the other people on the list, it's like Odell Beckham's best year, Devanta adams Is best year, and Drake Lonnon's two years in the NFL. So he's been extremely efficient and he just passes the eye test contested catches that offense, and there's no second receiver. I know Kyle Pitts is like a second receiver, but he's the only real wide receiver there I could.
He seems to be.
Underdrafted, underappreciated, whether we're talking fantasy or not.
I'm just in on him having a total monster season.
I was.
I was definitely trying to find the stat. I saw it yesterday on Twitter. I thought it was Hayden Winks. Maybe it was Matt Harmon. What you know, one of all these guys, maybe's Ian Harden's.
I don't know.
There's a lot of guys doing great work in the fantasy space. You're right yard for out run. Not a perfect stat, but the one set I saw is that,
and again I would attribute if I could. But on Drake London was that he leads the or he's like top ten since like twenty eleven in terms of commanding targets, and it's like basically, how many targets can you pull based on your routes run and based on your time on the field, which is insane because he was in an Arthur Smith offense where there are no targets to be had, like Johnny Smith got all the targets for the for the Falcons last year, and now you have
Kirk Cousins and I, Greg, I don't know if this don't I don't know what to do about this Achilles saying. You know, when we first started this business, we didn't know what to do with a Now it's like a cl You're just stronger and better, sort of like Tommy john The Achilles thing worries me a little bit with the quarterback because you got to push off. But if Cousins and Rogers come back, Cousins, I mean Cousins is such a massive upgrade for this offense, and.
They're gonna like Zach Robinson is a pass first. You know, the Rams all pass a ton. So even if Cousins and Pennox, if he plays, like even if Cousins isn't totally cousins.
They're got just the volume is going to be through there.
If you're going to go from one of the heaviest run offenses to the heaviest pass offense.
I love it well and.
It just too I threw out Darneld Mooney too, as like, you know, somebody who can stretch the field and open things up underneath a little bit for for London there as well, And I just think there's a lot of weapons there, but London's going to be the alpha in that offense.
So I'm in on that. I like it.
Okay, I love you throwing in some two lane love. There might be some coming up in a little bit. Uh, all right, give me, give me someone else. You're all in on your guy?
All right?
This is this, I think this is I'm here for it. Speaking of speedsters, now nine percentile in terms of the forty he ran at the combine, an elite athlete, a guy who was unbelievable with Alabama before tearing his ACL
late in the season. Now getting just the high train is starting to build as Dan Campbell AKAPC principle types up, Jamo Jamison Williams emerging as this new extra option on the Detroit Lions, a guy who is an absolute like lightning bolt down the field, but I think can command some more like sort of manageable targets closer to the line of scrimmage. But also it was just a perfect
compliment to amround Saint Brown and San Malporta. The Lions, I believe, played fourteen of seventeen games indoors or like over a root this year. This offense is going to go just be electric, and I think a Jamo and Jamo becomes what they believe he can be. And again, Dan Campbell dousing pretty good about he's a hype guy, but he's pretty honest within this offense.
Like Jared Golfson gonna be peace sleeper as well.
That's going too far for me. Jamison Williams, I'm shocked he is getting drafted in like the tenth round of fantasy drafts. And this conversation isn't all about fantasy, but for the skill guys, it obviously applies. Teams tell you how they feel with their actions, that's the most important thing. Like I was surprised how in on the Ravens, I mean, how in on Rashad Bateman. The Ravens were this offseason, but then they gave him money and they didn't sign anyone.
I was like, Okay, that proves it. Same thing with Detroit. They didn't need to give James and Williams money. He wasn't eligible, but they let Josh Reynolds go. They didn't bring anyone in, and you look at the way last season ended. They started to trust him his last two games of the season, which were the NFC Championship game in the Divisional round game, he ran more routes in those two games.
I'm so glad I was.
I was prepped for a different show to talk about Jamison Williams and I.
Never used it. Always use it.
That's a lesson for any people you know that are trying to get into the business, like prep will never hurt.
Someday you'll use it, or anyone.
Who's in school, like if we study, you're going to be better at the test.
It will happen eventually that it will come in handy. And so yeah, he ran more routes in those two games than any other in the biggest spots ever. And you think about their biggest drive of the season when they needed to come back against the forty nine ers, in the NFC Championship.
He caught a deep comeback. He also had a big time drop.
He also caught an absolutely crazy touchdown that no one will ever remember to cover the spread probably or at least, you know, make them kick an onside kick. I don't remember what the spread was at that game. So he was out there being trusted in the biggest moment. So, yeah, they're telling me with their actions. And I mentioned that draft class, I had him ranked number one, and I wasn't the only one. Our friend Mitakimes had him ranked number one. Just we you know, he was coming off
in ACL. We've learned he maybe wasn't as mature as he needed to be. But I think he's there now and they trust him, so I'm totally in. He's a post hype sleeper. That's That's another one.
What did you call it? Dan Campbell by the way, the PC principal? What is this?
Yeah?
South Park they replaced they brought it a new principal at one point, and he's the PC principal.
He's like, you know, he's like very politically correct, but he is a spitting image for Dan Campbell.
Well, yeah, Dan Campbell politically correct too, and generally I'm on board with almost everything he says and does. But he did have Hulk Hogan at practice doing like a promo the other day, not as PC there. All right, I'm gonna go, let's do it. Let's do a non skill player. I'm gonna go Devin Witherspoon. Obviously, this is not out on a limb that he was a Rookie of the Year finalist. I guess they call it now with with NFL Honors, which means he came in the
top three of votes. But I do think when they're doing the cornerback rankings at this time a year ago, a year from now, that it very well could be Sas Gardner one, Devin Witherspoon two. I'll never forget that Peak Carroll compared him within weeks of having him on the roster to Troy Polamalu, just that this guy has instincts and smarts unlike anyone I've ever coached, which Pete
Carroll saying that is just insane. So I think for a player like that, who's obviously physically talented, but he's also gonna win, just mentally, that first the second year leap is gonna be huge. He even improved so much during last season, So he can do man, he can do flex a zone, he can really do everything. I know, he's not Kyle Hamilton. He's a cornerback. But with Mike McDonald, I think he can use him in a bunch of
different ways. He can travel with with wide receivers like he didn't a year ago.
And I just love the Mike McDonald fit.
I just I think he could be a guy where it's like week six and you're like writing one of those articles Will and it's like, is Devin Witherspoon a Defensive Player of the Year candidate? Like I could just absolutely see him having that type of year, and he's gonna let you know about it too. He's gonna talk about it, which which is great in the in the proud tradition out there of Richard Sherman.
Well, you know, we talked about the Lions.
The Lions wanted to draft DEVI in Witherspoon and he made sense as like a like a Dan Campbell guy, Brad Holmes a cornerback tape watching savant self proclaimed and this guy like he's he's almost like two physical in the run game for his own good because he just pops people.
Yeah, it's a little like can he survive this long term? But he should be fine for now?
Yeah, but I but I know he'll be fine.
And I agree with your take on Mike McDonald and how like a smart player who is versatile. Yeah, it's not the Kyle Hamilton thing, but like, if you're a really intelligent football player who can be versatile on the defensive side of the ball, Mike McDonald is going to utilize you in as many different ways as possible, and
it's going to help you flourish. I mean, you saw that across the board with all these Ravens guys, whether it was the guys on the on the on the defensive line, you know, whether it's you know, Rokwan Smith and Patrick Queen developing, or whether it's Kyle Hamilton and those guys in the secondary. Obviously a lot of great players on that Ravens defense. But I think I'm excited. I think Seattle is actually flying under the radar. I've had dk metcalf on the on the longer list of
guys that I put in there. Oh okay, well, I mean while we're on Seattle and not to switch back to the skill position guys. But like Ryan Grubb out there is really interesting. Greg, maybe I might be calling on Ryan Grubb And yeah, I mean, I don't know, I don't know if it's like like I know, I've heard people say how much of it is Kailen debor who who's now at Alabama? Or how much of its grub And you know, you can wonder, well, they did have three, you know, wide receivers with Jill and Polk.
You know, you have Jaylem McMillan. Of course in the Rebdonda you have all these three guys. But it's like man man that sort of sounds like.
DK Metcalf, Tyler Lockett and Jackson smithing jigin.
To me, it feels like it feels like, you know, if you want to be all in on somebody too. I mean, I wouldn't dare take the quarterback in the Seattle Seahawks from you, but I feel like he can have a career year as well.
You could. And I'm trying to be careful. This is a daily show, Will and I'm just trying not to you.
Know what Smith five days a week.
Right, I'm trying to not repeat takes and support. But yeah, I'm very excited about everything offensively, they're really just about that whole team, like their their week one game is Seattle Denver and that's that's one of the games. I think it's a late game that I'm most excited to walk just just because they're both just so I have no idea what I'm going to get out of the
quarterback situation with Denver that I'm actually curious. And then that Seattle team, I think is just going to be so exciting, and.
Can we get a like can I can we get like a camera on Russell Wilson for that game? I mean, just like it's supposed to be Russ's like second revenge game against Seattle.
Seattle, Hell, he's not even on the team.
Get this point, you know Tyler Lockett and DK we're at his wedding and the guy who fired him, well, I guess John Schneider's go there, but Pete Carroll's not there. I think he still has a lot of love and affection for Seattle in a way that he definitely doesn't for Denver.
All Right, we we got it.
Just like a couple like let's go quick pick your favorites or go fast on a couple of the board that you got I got, I got.
Three running backs on you give you four, but but one of them I think was on your.
Show would be all in for all of them. I mean that this might be stretching the bounds of it, but go for it.
Javonte Williams, Rico Dabdell, and Tray Sermon, It's JK Dobbins season again. I refuse to believe that Chase Servon and JK Dobbins won't emerge from the depth chart mall that is holding them back and develop into I do think like those guys as late flyers, will would have been really good. Dobbin's running this number two. But then like Dowell, why can't Rico Dwell just be the new Tony Pollard
who does all the work for the Cowboys offense. And then te Kelliott like stumbles in from the five yard line because Jerry Jones is demanding it from the luxury box. And then Javonte Williams just the way that Sean Payton's talked about him and this guy who's incredible at Carolina early draft pick. You know, Sean Payton said it takes two. He said it takes two four years to really repair that surgery. And if you think about, you know, the type of he's not Alvin Kamara. I mean nobody is
in terms of that physical skill set. But he is a really good receiving back when he's allowed to, and he can be a little more physical than Kamara in that run game. And I think you're going to see him lean into that run game because you've got a rookie quarterback in bo Nicks who's just blatantly going to start seventeen games.
Yeah, he's one player, Davonte Williams where the preseason I think matters a lot. There's really not that many that would be Fantasy football relevant or have a chance to start, but he is one that I want to see just how he looks because it's it's always that second year coming off the ACL. And Yeah, I thought Dobbins, if I wasn't just looking like a guy who was a homer after he was on the show on Tuesday, Yeah, he would have been my pick.
That's why I asked him on because I've heard he's.
A great guy and like, I'm really big on him, and he looked great at practice, So I think those are good picks. And Daubtell is definitely the guy to shout out in that backfield. I would go Tajy Spears as my last one where just his change of direction is crazy. He was fifth last year as a rookie in PFF's elusive rating. They were such bad run blockers. And now you bring in Brian Callahan and his dad. Of course, who's gonna set it up that running game
in a much better way? Like he was close to the top of the league, I think top fifteen, like yards after contact, really good hands. You just watched the You watch like a highlight reel of Spears last year. It's like a snuff film. It's I don't think people realize how.
Good he was.
How many people and I know he's a two lane guy, and they blew it by taking Kendre Miller over Taj Spears in New Orleans. Miller hasn't been able to get on the field, but I'm all in on him. I'm all in on Drew Trankle. By the way, well, I'm here too, just as having like a big off ball linebacker season. If I want to get really nerdy. The Chiefs bounds out there knows how good he is.
Pete Prisco, by the way all in on Will Levis because Levis could be the next Josh Allen.
I trained Peachman on me heater with these quarterbacks. I don't know what he was.
He was on a cold streak, he's been hot lately calling out these these young quarterbacks.
So just worth minching.
He's got a good article interviewing Levis talking to Callahan and about that offense and what they want to do and how those guys are playing.
So I'm sneaking in on the Titans year.
I do think the Titans are going to be much more box office and entertaining than they've been in a while. And Levis is the guy that I've fallen for over and over and usually been like half right, like they're oh, they're they're fun and they're kind of good. It's like Cutler or Tannahill like, but he's a much more exciting version of those guys. So I do think they're going to be fun. Good shout to uh, just to the article.
I know you're writing articles. CBS NF got some teams in and out of the playoffs, A big preview team coming up in terms of best and worst case scenarios for every team, and yeah, one of the best to do it. Will appreciate you always. Fine, Greg, all right for Will Brinson. That's gonna be it for today. Really looking forward to Thursday. Show Bo Wolf's gonna be onto. We're gonna talk some Eagles, we're gonna go over all
the news around the league. Thank you to Nick Schuck two for taking care of the news for me at the top of the show.
Until next time, We'll see tomorrow.