The Insiders Podcast: AFC North Camp Countdown and Jaguars Head Coach Doug Pederson

Happy Wednesday, everybody, and welcome to the Insiders. I am Steve White's here at our Inglewood, California newsroom, and in just a few minutes A're gonna be joined by NFL Media's Bucky Brooks and Nick Shook. But later in the show, Colorado head football coach Dion Sanders and his son, his quarterback, Shador Sanders, they're gonna sit down for a little chat as well Jaguars head coach Doug Peterson. Plus we're gonna

I feel like he just wanted a new start, the new opt trinity to you know, start with Atlanta and uh a clean slate. And I'm not mad at him at all of that. I'm grateful for what he has brought to me. And you know the things that we have accomplished together. But you know, at the end of the day, it's a business, and you know, you gotta do what you gotta do for yourself and for your family. And uh, I clearly understand that. Uh, but you know,

Now, joined my former NFL player, NFL scout and current NFL media analyst Bucky Brooks and Buck, you heard JJ right there, you know, talk about they're gonna make the new whoever's the quarterback better? But how can JJ and Jordan Addison, Addison and some of those other players help whether it's JJ McCarthy or Sham Darnold succeed.

So, Steve, if you've listened to the Move the Six podcast, you've heard his break quarterbacks down into trucks or trailers, meaning a truck is one that carries the rest of the team. A trailer is one that the rest of the team carries the quarterback. Well, in Minnesota, they may have the best supporting.

Cast in football.

When it comes to being able to elevate the.

Play of a quarterback.

So a trailer and Sam Donald or JJ McCarthy should be fine because Justin Jefferson, George Addison, Aaron Jones, they're all going to be able to make plays regardless of who is distributing the ball. The thing that Kevin O'Connell does, because he also plays a part in that, is he's a great play designer. He's going to make sure that the game is easy for the quarterback quarterback for Riendley's system that puts the ball in the hands of the

Yeah, some people say that's going on with the forty nine ers, with how that supporting cast helps along Rock Purty. So really good stuff right there. But Bucky, let's take a look at the Vikings schedule. When it comes to maybe deciding on when to make a quarterback change. If they do. To JJ McCarthy, that, my friend, is a brutal first half of the schedule. When you're looking at the forty nine ers Texans Packers, just look at weeks two through nine. That Week five game in London versus

So what the Minnesota Vikings did was really smart. They backstopped the quarterback position, meaning they had a veteran quarterback in place who has enough experience to be the starter.

You have a young, inexperienced quarterback.

Remember J McCarthy only hit twenty eight career starts at Michigan. In a perfect world, you will let Sam Donald do a lot of the heavy lifting early in the season, and then when JJ McCarthy shows you're on the practice field that he's ready to take over, you give him that opportunity. But really, I believe this is Sam Donald's job to lose. I believe there are a lot of people in Minnesota that believe he is a guy who

Kevin O'Connor's going.

To do everything in his power to really elevate Sam Donald. This is Sam Donald's final chance to really carve out a nice career.

Look for him to take advantage of that.

And then maybe after a year, maybe like Baker Mayfield did, maybe he has a great year, goals that Parlay's it somewhere else, and then JJ McCarthy becomes a quarterback in the middle of the season or maybe at the end of the season, going into next year, he's a QB one for the Minnesota Viking.

Well, see, this is what training campus for Bucky, because who knows, Maybe JJ McCarthy gets the guys around him to play better. Maybe he's that truck instead of the trailer that you were talking about earlier. Well, speaking of Justin Jefferson, Bucky, he was in la last night for the premiere of the New series Receiver, which documents his twenty twenty three season along with Deebo Samuel, Devonte Adams,

Now.

Today in Kansas City, you're looking at the Chiefs Equipment staff loading up a truck with equipment bound for training camp at Missouri Western State and Saint Joseph, Missouri. The Chiefs open their back to back title defense with rookies reporting in just six days. Veterans report on July twentieth.

Well, all the attention is going to be on the offense and Pat Mahomes because everyone wants to know who is going to be the number.

One receiver in this fasting game.

And when I mean receiver, I'm talking about who's gonna be the number one pass catcher. Yes, Travis Kelce comes back, but Travis Kelsey is in the twilight of his career. And then there's a lot of uncertainty on the other weapons on the perimeter. You don't know what's gonna happen with Rashid Rice once the league determines the suspension or not.

Then you have Hollywood Brown coming over.

But he has always dealt with a lot of injuries, So there's a lot of uncertainty when it comes to that receiver corps. Who is going to emerge as a guy that Pat Mahomes can depend on. The last two years, they've been able to do it with the hodspots of playmakers getting it done.

Can they do it again? That's to be another question in Kenni City.

Well, Bucky, we also just have some highlights there of Xavior Worthy, the rookie out of Texas, the four to two speed burner watching him right here. But let's also flip it to the other side of the ball. I mean, they just they traded away to Lugerius Sneed on the defensive side. We know he was the lockdown corner. Remember all the images of him shoving Tyreek Hill down into the ground. What about that being something that could be a potential concern.

Yeah, it is going to be a potential concern. The Jerry Snead.

You're talking about a Pro Bowl caliber, high end cornerback, one of the lockdown specialists in this league, who did it in a very physical fashion. The thing about the Kansas City Chiefs is they've been forward thinking when it comes to building up their defense. The last couple of years they have drafted defensive backs and put them on the field. So even though the Jerry Sneid is a huge loss, they have young guys ready to replace him. You're talking about our Joshua Williams who has come in,

Run quickly, Bucky, just from your experience as a scout, as a player, and just evaluating film. Now, Trent McDuffie again one of the better slot corners in the NFL, moving outside for him with his skill set, would it be an easy transition?

Well, look, man, he's really talented.

He's a high IQ player, great technique, tremendous fundamentals when it comes to playing the position, and even though he's been a start on the inside, he certainly can go outside. The thing that you have to weigh if you're Steve Spegnudo in the staff, do we weaken the defense by moving him outside and taking away a key piece to the defensive.

Puzzle over the middle of the field.

McDuffie's been so good, I would rather try another young player on the outside see if they can hold up, so we don't kind of ruin the chemistry and continuity of the defense by moving Trent McDuffie from inside to outside.

So Buck, you know, since we're talking about cornerbacks, who's one of the best cornerbacks of all time? Pro Football Hall of.

Famer Prime time baby Don Sanders, Bucky, Oh yeah, the new head coach were not the new head coach, but the current head coach of the Colorado Buffalo's.

He's going to be joining you in me with his son, shadur in just a minute. Come back for this on the Insiders after the break, Welcome back to the insiders, and you're looking at it as only Las Vegas can. Welcome to the Big Twelve Media Days, the sixteen team Big twelve at Allegian Stadium, that's come from the Big twelve conference social posting page, and the Big Marquis team

Good team?

He appreciates you joining us, Hey, Coach Prime. I want to start off with this new beginnings once again with Colorado now joining a new conference. Like I said, the sixteen team Big twelve, what about the new fresh start in the new conference.

Were excited.

We have the best commissioner I believe in the game, and Brett I mean he's doing a phenomenal job. The coaches have opened their arms and their hearts to me to welcome me and they've been so they've been so wonderful, man.

I mean, I feel the love. I still feel the support.

They text me and call me if you need anything, any advice on this and that. I mean so I love that aspect of it. But I can't wait to play. I can't wait to start getting it on. We've been working out, but of all summer, man, I think we have another week and a half of workouts in It's time. They're gonna have a break, then they come back at the end of the month to start gearing it up for real.

You know, coaches, I'm gonna ask you something that you've never had to do, but I'm gonna give you an opportunity with your coaching had if your door centers was on another team and you had to look at the tape, what would scare you the most about facing your son at quarterback.

Giving him time. I can't give him, sad. If I give him time, I know what the result is gonna be. If I give him time in the pocket, he's gonna he gonna rip me up a little bit. And I can't show my hand because you know, like I tell him my corner. Sometimes guys quit showing him parallel feet, parallel feet. He knows cover too, like, don't do that, He'll check off on her practice. He's he's gonna do that. And he sees the field really well. But one of the main things that he does really well, and I

So hearing something like that from your father, and I'm sure a lot of other coaches look at the film the same way. But also living up to the expectation that a lot of people have placed on you entering the season. How do you feel about that?

Well, he ain't lying about anything he said. He ain't lying.

No, I mean the expectation and that it always been there since day one. Uh, even in high school, even in the league, we're always everybody's super Bowl. So uh, really just inheriting the mindset from him, and when when when he was playing in his days and him building us up all the way from six years or old running snakes all the way at the Prosper House, which some time he probably forgot.

But I'm just thinking now, if I running his snake does.

An across the field up five yard, that's what he means, not not with real snakes running.

I see that that right there, That that that makes a grown man at you at a young age.

So now I.

Feel like he I kind of let him be kind of cruise control now and I got to let me.

Ah, he gotta you build me up to this point to be able to take over. So that's what it is true that.

Coach.

One of the things that you do is you certainly breathe a lot of confidence in all your players. But another player that you've really been talking about has been Travis Hunter.

You're one of the.

Last two way players, maybe the last two way player in the NFL, and so Travis is doing it at the collegiate level.

When you watch him. What makes Travis Hunts so.

Special Travis loves the game of football. Number one.

Secondly, travis athleticism is off the charts, and he's a ball getter. Like when the ball's in the air. Offensively, defensively, he's going to make the play. There's no fifty fifty ball with Travis. When the ball was up there seventy thirty, eighty twenty, he's going to go get the ball. Knows that if he's one on one, just throw it up there. He's gonna make a player get the pi at one

But the worst thing to do is to take him off the field. You want to keep him on the field.

And I get a kick out of all these uh you know, I'm your quarterbacks and players telling me how I should play him, how he shouldn't play at, how many reps he should get during the game. They don't understand he's gonna be more of a problem to you on the sideline than on the field.

So let me put Let.

Me put it through this way, because earlier your dad said at media days today he's the best, that Travis Hunter is the best wide receiver and the best quarterback in college football. So let me ask you this shouter, would you prefer throwing the ball to him or challenging him in practice when he's guarding some of those other standout wide receivers you guys have.

I mean, well, of course throwing it to him.

But you get the best of both worlds though you get Monday, Tuesday, he get to be on your team. Then Wednesday Thursday he's on the opposite side of the ball.

So it's definitely competitive.

You know you're gonna be on your game a little bit more when he's out there. So it gives a receiver as a chance to challenge him and him challenge the receivers. But you're not gonna go against a better corner than Travis.

Okay. So on that note, we saw today the the EA Sports College Football game rankings came out. Travis Hunters rated at ninety five one the highest rated players in college football in the game, and you're tied for at ninety three for the highest rated quarterback in the game.

We know you guys love the game.

We knowever you like guys love to play.

What about that?

How's their tag? Like?

How's their tae?

I don't do it to them that?

Like do you do? You hate so bad that you gotta give him a tax. Ain't no TAZ in football, like, ain't no TA. You don't want no tae. No we ain't we ain't accepting no tag, no tag. Just say what it is, buy said, fucky you, but you know you want of the best analysts.

I know now you know what I need information? Who I call? I call you?

That's what I can't call.

Yeah, you know ta, Yeah, give him off this team to take a little bit TVC.

What the record is?

I love it a prime.

I got to ask you this because you made some changes on your coaching staff, and your coaching staff is real heavy with NFL expertise and experience. What made you go the pro route as opposed to adding more college coaches around your project.

That's a great question, man, brother, and I appreciate you asking me that I'm a pro. Man Like through thinking the thing, I'm a pro, and I think at another level, we have some tremendous college coaches on our staff, but when it comes to the coordinating and it comes to the majority of the staff, I want to be around guys that have been there, guys that have done that, because our lights are bright, man, and.

I can't have you.

You know, you guys getting big, You're getting a little sensitive, you're getting a little salty, getting a little fraid when.

Things light up over there on that sideline.

So I like pros because we've been there, we've done that, and we understand one another. But that's not taking nothing against our collegiate coaches that we have on staff. But I think right now, especially with the daily simmers, we have over one hundred and forty some years of pro experience on the sidelines, and that's relatable to where these young men want to go.

It's hard to take somebody but you've never been well.

Again, you our guy Warren sappis on your staff too. We know he's doing a good job of shoot out. You know one thing that you know I want to ask you because we know one of the great metrics when we talk about the best quarterbacks in the country at any level is touchdown the interception ratio last year twenty seven tds just to three interceptions. In your three year collegiate career, ninety seven touchdown passes.

And don't forget you missed a game and a half last year too, well, you missed the game.

That part too, Okay, you're reminded us. But in your college career, I mean, ninety seven touchdowns are seventeen nine and tis why do you see the field so well? And why do you think your decision making is so precise that you avoid the mistakes that hurt your team?

I would say, I would say from a young age, an understanding dad put me on offense and defense to understand, you know, coverages and things like that. So I feel like those are small stepping stones from each year. Each year you get improvement in different areas and you're able to get a lot of different pictures. I played a lot of football, starting from freshman year of high school all the way to now, So it's just a lot of games, a lot of experience, a lot of different situations.

And I like that. Let me add to that.

You got to really understand what he just said, He's played a lot of football. How many quarterbacks you know have started every game in their high school career, every game in youth, every game in college except for game and a half where he was injured. Last season. He started every game. So that's a lot of playing. That's a lot of leverages, that's a lot of understanding situational football.

That's a lot of understanding talent.

I got to put the ball on his back shoulder, or I could lead him down in the field because he could make that grab fifty fifty ball. Like, that's a lot of understanding of football. And the first thing I told him, like he said, I taught him defenses. I taught him defense. You don't teach a quarterback routes. You're teaching defenses, you know.

Prime.

I want to ask you this because I know it your hard to far as you're an old school coach. But everyone talks about today's generation of player having played yesteryear for dealing with a new kind of player. What are the challenges of coaching today's athlete compared to when you were playing?

Nil collected. I want guys that want to play in the NFL. I don't want guys who are all about the nil. I want you to get paid. I may help you get paid. I'm gonna trust that I may help you get that bag.

And he knows that.

But your focus gotta be being great because when you're great. That bag is gonna chase you, and you don't have to chase it. So he knows that I'm out shoot the old team knows. If you want to make me mad, start talking about some money as I talking about getting paid to getting broken off, Start talking like that, Yeah, you dumb and it.

I'm gonna help you get it. I'm gonna make sure. I'm gonna make sure you get it.

Look, if you.

Want to keep it one hundred and get it one hundred, these are the two dudes to talk to, Bucky coach Prime. Should do it. Thank you so much for joining us. Best of luck this season, and we're getting ready to call EA sports and break that tie for you too.

Should do her?

I have to hide scrapers. Should be ninety nine. Shouldn't he like? Who else?

What is the best receiver and the best corner in cottage football?

How can he that? Don't even it don't even make sense, but it's up.

It sounds like it sounds like a segment for twenty first in Prime. Sounds like a segment for twenty first in Prime. Maybe we can bring.

That Backry, go bring that bag, all right, Jess, we got to get out of here man, Bucky, Hey, we can do this all day, but be honest to do it. Thank you so much, man, Really do appreciate you.

I appreciate y'all. Man, God bless you. I love y'all brothers, y'all know that man. Y'all some good dudes.

Man.

Oh, let me get continued talking for another fifteen minutes of prime as your doer. But we got to get to the a FC North, top to bottom.

It's the best.

Division in football. All these new quarterbacks, we're gonna be hitting the field again.

We're gonna see.

We're gonna talk about that next.

On the inside.

This is a gary competi division.

Yeah wa, this froke gid.

Jack Conning for the NA scramble off from end of the field and slapsas hell about what cap from the.

Files Garrity single handedly take you over the game.

Throw that AFC North.

If there's some turmoil, it's delightful turmoil.

Am I gonna.

There is AFC North IM Steve Whites and on Engwood, California newsroom, and that is Nick Schuchar around the NFL writer and we're going to talk about some camp storylines and for all of our training camp storylines. Go to NFL dot com Slash Countdown and Nick we talked about the AFC North right here. Let's start with the with the division chap the Baltimore Ravens.

Yeah, you know, Steve, the story about the Ravens this year, coming off of an AFC North title, coming in with Todd Monk and up and up the offense last year. Year two, it's all about elevating it, bringing it to the next level, because look, Lamar Jackson won his second MVP last season under Monkin's direction, but he also let the team in rushing with over eight hundred yards.

He threw for thirty six hundred yards.

Everything's great there, but then when it came to the playoffs, the NFC title game, suddenly the play calling became a little questionable. The league's top rushing offense only ran the ball eight times with running backs in that game.

Lamar had eight himself.

So now you go into twenty twenty four and you got to take the next step with the off year two. If last year was Monk in one oh one, this year is Monk in two oh one. John Harbaugh has talked about giving Lamar Jackson more agency at the line in pre snap getting more creative, and Monkin can't wait to see more out of Rashad Bateman. So I'm expecting them to take the next step because that might be what gets them over the hump.

Well, Derek Henry might be what gets them over the hump as well, getting the big running back from Tennessee.

All right, Joe Burrow.

Comes back at quarterback off of injury for the Bengals. What should we be looking for out of them?

Well, hopefully Burrow is completely healthy. Everything points to him being healthy, and we know what happened to them last year when he wasn't healthy. He was statuesque in the pocket for the first month, and when he was suddenly better, they were taking off, and then it all fell apart when he again was knocked out for the rest of the season with at wrist injuries.

So now he should be good.

But they don't have Joe Mixon on that roster anymore, and folks might look at that and think, well, they'll be fine.

They got Joe Burrow.

Joe Mixon accounted for fourteen hundred scrimmag yards last year, and yet before they were about to release them, all they did was traded to Houston for a seventh round pick. So I'm curious to see, can Chris Evans, can Zach Moss the new acquisition, can Chain Brown and Travon Williams

You know, you have a spot code with an open heart in the back like Joey b wore over in con France. All right, Now, the Pittsburgh Steelers Mike Tomlin, he gets the extension after having another winning season, but they've got something going on at quarterback there. They don't really have one because they've got two.

Yeah, And some people say, if you don't have one and you have too, you have nobody. But I think that's not necessarily the case with the Steelers, because, oh, Mark Han did a fantastic job this offseason.

He remade that room. So almost overnight he signs Russell Wilson.

He trades away Kenny Pickett, he acquires Justin Fields, and suddenly the Steelers are no longer relying on a youngster who hasn't quite proven it yet, even if he was a local product. But we're not going to talk about quarterback that much. That'll sort itself out. I would look at the rest of the roster. Omar Khan drafted phenomenally. Troy Fatanu gives you a tackle, Zach Fraser gives you a starting center, and Roman Wilson is my sneaky favorite pick from this class. I think he's going to fit

Folks.

Okay, all right, very interesting when you mentioned DeShawn Watson and the Cleveland Browns. This is a playoff team and Deshaun Watson is back from that shoulder injury or is.

He Yeah, we're not so certain about that because it was a bit of a strange injury. But the Browns have kind of prepared accordingly by making a change at offensive coordinator. Kevin Stefanski has called the place since twenty twenty. I don't expect that to change. But incomes Ken Dorsey, who's going to bring with him new ideas to potentially

That'd be very interesting because all of those teams, any one of them, can win the super tough AFC North. Once again, Nick schul can read nfl dot com slash Camp Countdown for all type of camp stories. Thanks so much, Nick. Well, the Jacksonville Jaguars, they got off to the hot start last season, but then they faded down the stretch. We're gonna be joined by their head coach Doug Peterson after

That's on the inside, I'm telling you. I'm telling you that's the straight You strengthen numbers.

Man strengthen numbers. Right when someone is not.

Feeling their best, somebody else rallies and the team rallies around them. That's what you did today, and that's what you did all right.

My hat is off to you guys.

I'm so proud.

Congratulations.

This ride's gonna be sweet going.

There we go one, two, three, Oh yeah, we know that chance and Bucky Brooks. We know this guy that is Jaguars coach Doug Peterson. He's in beautiful Lake Tahoe, Nevada at the American Century Golf Championship. Coach, thanks so much for joining us. I know you're loving the views and playing that very tough, hit them straight golf course up there.

I tell you what, Thanks for having me on. And you're absolutely right. This is a tough golf course, tough greens. The scene bey here is beautiful. It's a great place to bring the family. Right before training camp.

Hey, coach, I want to get you started by asking you this. I mean, just you guys locked up your quarterback Trevor Lawrence long term. I mean, what was the decision behind that? And what do you see him doing this year to continue in ascension to being that franchise changing quarterback.

Yeah, well, the decision was easy.

You know, we all feel in the building that he's our guy, and he's obviously the face of the franchise, and he was drafted a few years ago, you know, the first round pick to be that guy, and we have all the confidence in the world and we're just excited and thrilled for he and his family to get this contract behind him. As we head into this season into twenty four and just continue to build on the

You know, Coach, look, you talked about back to back winning seasons, but didn't have the finish that you wanted to last season. How do you take those lessons and help the team become a much better version of itself in twenty twenty four.

I think, Bucky, you and I have had conversations after games last year about it, and I think for myself, it's gonna burn.

It's gonna burn for.

A long time until you know, we get to meaningful games again and start playing in September. But I think that's the same fuel, you know, the motivating factor for our for our players that the way we ended.

Is not us.

And no matter what you go through as a football team, you know, everybody goes through adversity. There's always going to be injuries, but you can't make excuses and you got to go play football, and so so for us, we got to learn from that, roll up our sleeves in a training camp, work hard, and just play it one game at a time.

Doug, when you talked about doing some things to make things better, to grow from that, you've really adjusted your wide receiver room, adding guys that gave Davis, Devin Duvarney, drafting Brian Thomas out of LSU in the first round. How do you think those new faces, those different skill sets can help increase or improve that passing game.

Well, I think that's what you know, what we saw in Gabe Davis, you know in Buffalo, what he did, how he could kind of stretch the field.

He was a big, big, tall receiver that could go over the middle.

He's physical, can block and and I would say that that's a piece that we missed a little bit last year. You know, Zay was beat up a little bit. We missed Christian. At the end of the season, we get we get Christian back healthy.

We lost Calvin.

Ridley, but but now we get we get Gabe and Brian, and Brian's got the speed element that that you know we probably lost with Calvin and and so we've.

Got to integrate all that.

We got to get on the same page early as we head into training camp. But but I'm excited for these guys and how they how they fit.

And then Devin.

Devin brings another element to and in our return game with with agnew not back.

So we feel in it like we're in a good spot.

And you know, the big thing is just a matter of of I think just working and working together and and building the camaraderie and then the and the team around our quarterback that can that can help us all be successful.

You know.

Coach, one of the things that has come up, you made some defensive changes. Josh Allen recently talked about just make sure that the team builds the trust player the player, player of the coach. How important is trust and that camaraderie to build a successful team, a championship caliber team.

Now, I think trust is everything with a football team. You know, I think you got to lean on your brother,

Doug Bucket just referred to him as Josh Allen, but we know this week officially added a name and a hyphen to his last name, Josh hind Alanines. How are you and the coaching staff going to refer to him with? I mean, how are you going to make this happen?

Yeah, I don't know. I got to process this one a little bit.

It's relatively new, But I'm just excited for him, and I know that some of the history there and for him and to make the name change.

So I'm excited. And if it helps him get to that quarterback man, I'm all.

For it, Uh, you know, coach last thing, like, we've seen a lot of these teams that have kind of changed where they're kind of balancing out the wide receiver corps. You talked about what btj as and what gave Davis as. How difficult is it to defend an offense they may not have a true or extap there's number one receiver.

Why does that work for some reason? Why could it work in Jacksonville?

Well, I think the passing game in general is different, has changed a little bit around the league, and the ball does get spread out to multiple players. I think we kind of have the best of all of them. You know, we've got a really talented slot receiver that can get open. You throw Evan Ingram in there. You know, even as a tight end, he can create some matchups. And then we create, you know, some picks and obviously you get into bunches and stacks and then use some

About getting everybody involved.

And then you get your running game with Travis etn you get him going a little bit. So I think it's it's exciting for us, you know, excited for our quarterback as we head into training camp here in a couple of weeks and see just how successful we can be. Doug, it's a couple weeks.

Like you said, before you start train any camp, you are at that beautiful golf course up there in North Lake Tahoe. So Sauce Gardner, the Jets cornerback, he tweeted out, and we've seen his golf exploits this summer. I never thought I would say this, but golf is harder than football. Okay, you played in the NFL, you've coached in the NFL, and now you're on the links. Any thoughts on Sauce's tweet.

I kind of have to agree with him just a little bit. This is not a sport that we play.

We feel comfortable coaching and playing football, so I understand exactly what he's talking about. I know the ball is not moving, it's sitting right there on that beautiful green grass, but oh my goodness, it's hard to advance that ball down the fairway.

All right, coach, we'll hit him straight when the tournament starts and have a great time up there in Lake Tahoe. Thanks again for joining us.

Thank you guys, appreciate you.

All Right.

Coming up, it's Hard Knocks Season two and a lot of conversation about the New York Giants and their former running back Saquon Barkley. Oh, we're gonna have more on this. We come back on the inside. Welcome back to the insiders. Coming up this month, it's the return of the Top one hundred players of twenty twenty four. The players have voted for the fourteenth year in a row, and a

Flag keeps me moving and it keeps me them. I'm Ale Houston, I'm fifteen. I play receiver dB play for TC Flag Football. I start talking about You've always told me I'm too skinny to play up because I've always been undersize, has always been skinny.

But you can't let them bother you.

Just do you.

You did such a fast paced game and you need speed and agility and mole skills to be good.

You boss taught me to always be myself.

You got to use your voice.

You have to communicate.

He always comes from a leadership perspective. Knows how to pick up his players. He keeps his head in the game.

Tell me to work hard and always chase your goal. You can't give up just because somebody tells you you can't.

Yeah.

Another important NFL initiative driving voter registrations across the country. Back in June, the NFL partnered with Beet to help people register to vote. Several NFL employees worked the NFL Votes activation booth at the Beet experience here in Los Angeles. There were games for fans, plus an interactive experience with

Yard dash, who cares?

We're gonna talk about more Giants on the Insiders after the break, all right? Bringing back in Bucky Brooks and Bucky. When you see that scene and you've been on conversations like this, you mean you're a former scout, you're a former player. You know how this works. Did the Giants misread Saquon Barkley's value and free agency?

Yeah, it appears so it appears like when you want someone to test and kind of see where their market is, you're probably more of the belief that they're going to go and find that is less than what they think, and so then you can come back and then you begin to negotiate a deal that is probably more team friendly than player friendly. But what happened, Saquon Barkley got in those streets, he had a lot of interest to Philadelphia Eagles, jumped on them, and they paid him what he was looking for.

For the Giants, it's a huge loss.

And the reason why it's a loss is because Saquon Barkley was so valuable to that team. And I know you had a quarterback making forty million dollars in Daniel Jones. But I think if you look at it from a defensive standpoint, who was the most valuable weapon or who was the guy that you had to take away, Saquon Barkley was the guy that.

You worried about more than Daniel Jones.

And so now they have to make sure that Devin Singletary and the rest of the running backs can give them what Saquon Barkley gave them the last few years. Look, it's a difficult replacement, but the fact that he's down the road in Philadelphia, playing with a top offensive line and motivated to kind of shove it to the Giants, Oh, those two games a year are gonna be epic. When it comes to Saquon Barkley having to deal with his former team.

He's in their division with the division favor coming in, that has to be a stinging blow. So let me ask you this, because of your experience doing what you've done again as a player, as somebody in the front office, do you actually try to play games or win games and say, hey, we have to make it look at least ideologically, make it look like we made the right decision in letting him walk.

I mean, look, you always want to be right when you're a decision maker. And look, time will tell if the Giants were right in terms of moving on from Saquon Barkley.

But certainly you don't want him to come back in kind of be a thorn in your side.

The fact that he's within the division, Yeah, it puts it together a different challenge.

I felt like they negotiated in good faith. They wanted to get this done.

Running Back markets are tricky, but this year was different than any other year. We saw running backs get paid.

This year.

We saw Josh Jacobs go.

We saw like a run on running backs right away when free agencies started, and so all the conversation that we had about the devaluation of running backs that didn't appear so when it came to the veterans.

And so maybe there was just a sea change when it came to the way the.

League viewed running backs in Saint Qward, Barkley was a beneficiary.

Yeah, especially the veteran running backs this year, and you saw the guys get paid. Maybe that said something about the running backs in this year's draft class. But to get back to the Giants. It's just interesting, how I say, Daniel Jones. We have to find out what he is. He was better with Saquan when he was in there. Hey, Bucky, great job today. Tomorrow on the inside is Bears cornerback Jalen Johnson, the pro bowler, the bad man. On the outside,