This is the Patriots Catch twenty two podcasts with Evan Lazar and Alex bar Blazarre and Lazarre.
Hello, everybody nailed it?
Joined us Always buy an our Bara. Here is Evan Lazar and Alex Bars. Joey Size jacked by the way, Joey Size. So we talked to Joey Slid the other day. Super nice guy. We spent a lot of time talking about golf, some of it how it relates to kicking, but just also kind of golf.
O't too long on this, you talked out, but fourteen minutes. It was absurd.
It's great. We had great, great, We had a great copy.
We looked over three times and Joey Slide was still talking twenty.
Twenty when he was enjoying himself a good conversation.
It was a long time for Joey Slide. You guys. You guys were talking to Joey Slide for that might have been one of the longest press conferences at the summer.
I think Rees said it was his longest, like scrum ever. But I will say this, we kind of so we talked about golf, talked about the the competition, we talked about kickoffs and We're all kind of standing. There goes you guys, got anything else? Like he was ready for more questions. We were like, no, we'll let you go.
He was.
He was ready to keep talking.
We'll see you. You were ready to declare the kicker competition over last week when I after the game on Thursday night. Yeah, so we're we're getting there. We're we're getting to that point. But it's Evanzar Alex Bars Patriots catch twenty two. I wait you for the next couple of hours. The Patriots will practice this afternoon, So of course everything that we're about to say and is going to go out of the door when Drake May throws three picks in practice later today. No, I'm just kidding, but.
I I everybody you hear that Evan says Drake May is gonna melt down at practice. That's Drake May's biggest defender saying he's about to melt down.
We'll get trust me, we'll get to it.
Mark the Dayton time.
I think the biggest thing though, that that this is not where I was going to start. But I'll just say this really quickly. Off the top training camp and I was just talking to Paul about this training camp is so such a day to day grind. Yeah, that the show that we did last week is so irrelevant at this point coming off that joint practice almost like it changes so quickly this time of year because you're
watching practice every single day. There's a lot of just data that comes from that that it's different than the regular season. The regular season, you have the same take for a week, right because you don't see them again until the next the following game day, so you have the same take for a week, whereas in training camp you can have a bad practice one day and you follow that up with a good practice, then all of
a sudden, your mood changes. Everything kind of changes. We'll get into more Drake May though, I want to talk about that off the top of the show. But first, hey Patriots fans, if you want to see Toyota's best offers, including those not seen on TV, go to buy at toyota dot Com is Toyota's official website for deals from the official vehicle of the New England Patriots, Toyota, Let's Go places and easy to Drink It, Easy to Enjoy. Bud Light, the official beer sponsor of the New England page.
It's Okay, here's really where I wanted to start today. So I've done a lot of thinking about last week's show and about all the what do you want to call it panic about that joint practice last week against the Eagles, and I stand by everything that I said. It was offensively one of the worst joint practices I've ever seen for the Patriots. It was that bad. It was the panic was warranted. With that being said, the
big thing that I, I guess am getting at. You mentioned to me early on in the show, and I brushed you off because I didn't A didn't want admit I was wrong, and B I didn't want to get bogged down by an old argument that we've had a million times.
It was really A, you didn't want to admit you were wrong. B you didn't want to admit I was right.
No, I had nothing to do with that. Now, I admit when you're right, when you're right, But I didn't want to get bogged down in an argument that we always get bogged down. So I just was trying to move us along as well. But with that being said, you know I'm a big Rocky fan, So just okay, wait with the analogy here for a second. That was
the first time that I was afraid. First time I was afraid watching that offensive line against Jordan Davis and Jalen Carter and all those the freaking monsters that the Eagles have on the defense of the line. That was the first time. If you want to really break me down, if you want to get to the core of the issue, I was afraid, Adrian. I was afraid, all right. And I watched this happen and I was shell shocked from it.
I was like, oh no, this is worse than I thought, Like, they can't put him behind this line the way that it is right now. And then the game happened on Thursday night, and all of my priors about Drake May and how I felt his physical talent would just kind of win out in the end with his development all came to fruition in a lot of ways. And I
get it. It wasn't perfect, and we're making a lot out of a six four eleven for forty four yard performance, but you saw all the flashes of what I have been saying about him for months, which is that if I was an offensive coordinator, if I was Alex van Pelt, Drake May is the quarterback I would want to draft because he is every offensive coordinator's dream. Yeah, there's some rough things around the edges that they got to clean
up and they got to fix. But his ability with his arm talent to access any quadrant of the field. There's no throw or no play call that's off the books because he can't get it there. He can throw the ball outside the numbers from the middle of the field. He can drive the ball on the backside, dig through the middle of the field. He can hit the post fifty yards down the field on a dime. He can do it all. He has mobility, instructural mobility, and off
script mobility. We saw zone read right on the goal line. You have that at your repertoire. Now you have the ability for him to run around and make plays off script if he has to. You have every single button that you would want to possibly push as an offensive coordinator, you can push with Drake May as your quarterback. And now we're in like the training montage scene of Rocky three, right, or we haven't. We haven't rased Apollo yet on the beach.
We haven't gotten back in the ring with Clubber. But we're like we're in the montage where I have the tigers like starting to play a little bit in the background, right, and he's doing the jump ropes and Apollo Creed's like, I have the Tiger. I the tiger, right, and he's doing the speedbag and and all this kind of stuff. And now now my mojo's back a little bit. I'm like, all right, wait a second here, maybe I wasn't all that wrong. And now we're at the point where I
just feel like we can compromise. How's that Because I'm a fair guy, all right, So we can compromise for all the people that are out there that And we argued about this plenty in the off season, and this was sort of our dead period topic of conversation. A lot of shows we can compromise. I'll give you to week five.
That's okay, So it's funny you say that. I didn't want to interrupt that take give me one second, but mark that concept of week five though.
Just keep that.
I'll give you to week five, okay, okay, I would do week one.
You know me.
I've been Week one since April. Finish the take in all. I think week five. It's funny. I was going to come in here saying Week five two, and I have my reasons.
So Week five gets everybody what they want. It gives them a month to sort of figure everything out offensively. We hear all the time that from Belichick and the Belichick days that September has now turned into an extension of the preseason. You're figuring out who you are, You're figuring out your best combinations, You're figuring out what scheme and what your identity is going to be offensively. So
let Jacobi Brissett be the test dummy, right. Let him go out there and settle down the offensive line, figure out how they need to play to win football games, figure out their identity offensively, get through a gauntlet to start the season a little bit there. Bengals, Seahawks, Jets, Niners, really good defenses, Big lou in Week one. McDonald now out in Seattle. These are guys that know how to spin the dial on quarterbacks and how to get after quarterbacks.
Last point I'll make and then you can jump in here. That basically puts Drake May into a college football season where he's playing thirteen games, which is right around where he how many games he played the last two years at North Carolina twelve and fourteen two years ago because he had the ACC camp and the bowl game, So fourteen two years ago twelve last year. So we talk about the rookie wall and just the length of the season that's so much longer in the NFL, and the
mental grind that that can be. So now in week five, we've gotten through the first month to get everything hopefully settled down. We figured out our best five along the offensive line, we know who our receivers are going to be, we know what the play calling is going to look like. We've gotten through the gauntlet. We've gotten Drake May over the rookie wall and into a more college football esque season. And I get what I want because I get Drake
May out there for the majority of the season. So that's my compromise to end our argument of all arguments finally of when he should play, and to the listeners out there and to the people out there that are worried about him playing behind this line and everything week five. Any longer than that to me is dragging your feet and wasting time. And I think a lot of the things that we see with Drake when it comes to footwork, timing, you know, drop back, sinking to his routes, like all
those different things that you know, the JT. Osullivan's and the Dan Orlovski's and all these people harp on a lot Chris Sims, those things, to me, are only going to improve by playing. I don't see how you improve his decisiveness, his ability to sync up with the routes, his ability to drop back pass on a five step drop and hit a hitch you know, in time and
all that. I don't know how you do all that kind of stuff and train all that kind of stuff in practice, because it doesn't move the same in practice. The speed of the game is not the same. So that's why I've always thought that he should play. And I think what we saw last Thursday night was that he has enough of the baseline foundational stuff that it's not going to be a disaster if he plays. So Week five is my compromise.
What say you, So, you made a lot of good points in the college football element of that is excellent. Didn't expect that to be a good college football take things? Yeah, so I And at the same time, and this is where I'll come back the other way. Well, let me start here to your point of that that stuff doesn't get improved in practice. I think it can improve in practice to an extent. Now, yes, eventually you got a play.
But that's where Gerard Mayo talked about this. I think it was Monday right, that it's important for Drake May to get reps with the starters, to build chemistry with them. Yeah, and he still hasn't done that, and you've kind of run out of time for that to happen in terms of week one. So that's where if he was going to start week one, I think they would have had to start this process a while ago. I yeah, I'm
with you. I still think taking time to figure out the offensive line, figure out your offensive identity, get guys healthy too. I think, you know, potentially having Kendrick Borne back, maybe not by week five, but yeah, relatively early in Drake May's tenure, Hunter Henry, if he's going to miss time,
I think there is value in that. I will say on the flip side, where I've kind of come back, I was more you know, week ate nine, ten, where I'm now looking at that week five, really weeks five or six, however you want to split it, is the locker room. I think Drake May is starting to prove to guys that they can win with him, that he's a guy that's gonna make them competitive. And we did this with Mac Jones and Bailey's Appy last year. I know this is something Scott Zolak has been very big on.
The guys in that locker room, the other fifty one guys outside of Jacoby and Drake May, and I call it forty nine take out Joe, Milton, Bailey's Appy, right, those other forty nine guys outside of the quarterbacks, they I don't want to say they don't care about the development of Drake May, but they want to play, they want to win, they want to put up numbers, they want to get paid. All of that. They ultimately want the guy out there that's going to give them the
best chance to achieve their goals. Yeah, and if the locker room leaves, Drake May as that guy more so than Jacober said, and they can believe both of themore. But if the locker room starts to believe Drake May is that guy morened Jacober said. If the locker room believed Coober, sat isn't going to get them there. And he's had a rough week week and a half here. That's gonna put a lot of pressure on the coaching staff. Now, for that to happen, Drake May had to give them
something to believe in. And I think over the last week you've seen that for the first time, and that to me is a major change. And I talked about this, Evan, if you remember go before camp about the golfer Drake May was not to win the starting job. Would be great if he did, but the goldfer Drake May was not to win the starting job. The golfer Drake May was to put pressure on the coaches, put pressure on the organization and close that window, decrease that timeline that
the coaches had to sit him. He has started to do that. Now, why week five I think is perfect. He's not gonna like you can even admit, he's not gonna be ready for week one in the sense that what is he really going to accomplish working with the starters for the first time in three practices and at best half a preseason game. Is he going to get the kind of chemistry that he needs with that group in the next four days? He's not, I think, would you agree with that?
Well, yeah, but they do have two more weeks after that, Like they're gonna have all week next week and all week the following week.
But you need to decide who your starter is before that, because you're not gonna you need to prepare for the game. You don't Sundays, not when when the game starts. The game starts the week before, so realistically, it's three practices in the game, so he's not gonna have time to do that. I also just don't think you want and Dungeon Kobe Ver said that sends a really bad message, and Seattle Mike McDonald good defense, all of that home
opener too, Like, yeah, i'd sit him there. Then you have a short week ye against one of the best defense in football, even if he looks ready. Short week, No, give him the full week to prepare. You're doing the kid a disservice at that point. And then after that, you've got to go all the way across the country.
I do too, Like you're yeah, I know you're telling.
Me so tough. Evan has to travel and watch football games. You've got to go all the way across the country to play with what I believe, Evan is the best defense in football. If they're not number one their top three, right, and that's it. That's a tough sell too, and just a super Bowl team. And I don't really care what the offense does, but.
I'm just better than you.
Then you come home, you have two games against Miami and Houston, who are decent teams but manageable. You're not really gonna find a soft saw spot in the schedule unless you wait till December, which we both agree is way too long. So the way I look at it, first two weeks, let the kid watch and observe. You have a short week to get ready for the Jets.
That's just a fire drill. You then have some more time you can start to prepare Drake May and still give Jacoby Brissett a full week of preparation for that Niners game. Maybe if it turns into a blowout, maybe Drake May even gets his late in that game against the Niners. And if you like what you see week five against Miami, boom, there you go. I think that. And if you don't like what you see one more
week Houston, then it gets a little weird. I don't love his first start being overseas if they're gonna lose a day of practice on the travel and then you get to an easier stretch. This is like the worst case scenario eight nine, ten Jets Titans, Bears. That's like the absolute latest. Yeah, he should come in, but week five against Miami, for a lot of reasons, makes a lot of sense if you have to push it to
week six against Jacksonville. But to me, that's the window, and I think he's done that what he needed to do, and assuming he continues to do it of putting the pressure on the coaching staff to make the move sooner rather than later, especially if Jacoby burs said isn't playing well.
Yeah, all great points, And I have one more thing that I want to get to because it just it irks me. It's probably just a me thing, But I have to get on the soapbox for a second here, But I do want to let you guys know that the phone lines are open. Eighty five to five PATS five hundred is the phone number. Web radio at Patriots dot com is the email address if you want to jump into the conversation. We have some emails that we'll get to here in a second after we finish our
opening thoughts and all that kind of stuff. But one last thing, because this is it just gets under my skin and I just have to to get this off my chest. I feel as though the commentary on Drake, may mostly nationally but just in general, is so contradictory, and it bugs me. It irritates me. I'll give you some examples, like I always look at this whole situation, and somebody told me to look at it this way when it comes to scouting, Like there's macro level issues and there's micro level issues.
Right.
Macro level issues are for quarterbacks to me, are just like the physical trait. It's like you have to have the requisite arm talent you want him to be on the you know, the bigger side of things, like the Drake is six foot four and a half two hundred and twenty five pounds, like you want to have those boxes checked. I'm from a physical standpoint, and then what I would call just like a general understanding of the position. This is not a pro day, right, We're not routes
against air, right. This is football, the tackle football. So you have to have a general feel for an instinctual feel for the game and coverages and reading defenses and just knowing ball security like all that kind of stuff. It's a general feel for the game. Another example, Zack Wilson checked all the physical boxes, right, But Zack Wilson doesn't. Yeah, but Zack Wilson doesn't have all that like innate instinct
for the position, right. He doesn't. He doesn't understand, like he doesn't look like a football player, Like he looks like somebody who's lost most of the time. When I watched Drake May he obviously checks all the physical boxes that you're looking for, but I also see just a general understanding of how to play the position at a high level. Just a couple examples from the game. We all have broken down or seen the incut to Javon Baker a million times at this point, and that's a
full field progression. You know, he goes through the progression on time. He hits the backside dig route. That's an NFL play. Put that up there, that's the NFL concept. That's an NFL staple play in the West Coast offense, and that's him running it at a high level. The deep bomb to Javon Baker later on in the game, that is a pretty exotic coverage for a preseason game.
By that Vic Fangio called that is a he calls it tricks, And what it is is it looks like it's middle of the field open, too high safety, And what happens is is that they have an adjustment. When you get middle of the field open and you have a crossing route from number three or number two on the inside, usually middle of field open signals that you're gonna throw the ball in that area, right, You're gonna throw the crosser, or you're gonna throw whatever is, you know,
over the middle of the field. And so what Fangio has is he has a backside tag for the safety called tricks that that safety now is actually going to almost turn into a robber like he would in one rad or one robber, and he's gonna jump that crossing ground. So what that leaves is that leaves the backside receiver, the ex receiver on the backside. He is now one on one without any help in the middle of the field.
So Drake May reads out this entire thing and then recognizes that Javon Baker is one on one down the field without a post safety up top right, and he rips the post. That's a pretty advanced level nuanced coverage to be reading out that he read out at a high level, so he has a lot of that innate ability, baseline level knowledge of how to read defenses, so all the micro level things that people nitpick him on. And I felt this way during the pre draft process too.
It bugged me then too because it was like, what are we talking about here, Like we're saying that this guy is going to be a bust because he took a three step drop instead of a five step drop and has dropped it in time up with the routes, Like you don't think that's coachable, Like you don't think that that's going to be fixed. It's already getting fixed. Like we're already seventy five percent of the way there. You know, people harve a lot on his throwing motion.
Is you know, he he dips the ball, maybe a little bit more. It's a little longer than what you want. That's another thing that over time is just it's not a big issue. It's just not especially when you have the type of arm talent that he has, Like if you had an arm that was worse than his, like below average arm talent, and you have a long motion, and now you start to worry about him being able to hit tight windows, right, because it takes forever for the ball to come out and then there's no heat
on the ball. He doesn't have that issue. So we're talking about like processing, anticipation, drop timing, sinking routes with the dropbacks, like all of these quarterback minutia, like all this detailed, nuanced type of stuff. And sometimes and I'm I'm also really guilty of this because it's just in when you when you're a film junkie, this just happens.
You don't necessarily see the forest for the trees, right, Like you're you're so caught up in the film, in the details of the film, I try to tell you, and you're you're watching his footwork and you're like, oh wait a second. You know, on this drop here, like his foot is like pointed, like you know, forty five and I'd really like it to be at ninety and you're in, you're like making all these things up on the fly. That is just not going to be the
reason why he passes or fails in the NFL. And when I hear commentary about Drake may I see a lot of that type of nitpicking about his footwork, his drop back timing, you know, all this kind of stuff, and I'm just like, really like, you don't think that this is gonna get fixed, Like with all of the resources at his disposal disposal Now you have private quarterback coaches, you have offensive coordinators, you have quarterback coach here in New England, you have all this hierarchy of people that
are going to help him through this process. And what I've seen from him from start to finish a training campus, he's already making strides in these areas like it's already better, yeah than it was in college, and it was already it's already better than it was three weeks ago, and it's just gonna keep on improving. I'm not telling you he's gonna never make a mistake or never have a bad game or never you know, have issues in the NFL.
There's obviously gonna be bumps along the road. But I just don't I don't know if it does any good for people to break down his tape like that and dissect it in such detail. I don't know if that's actually telling the right story. And that That's where I've always been with Drake. And the last thing I'll say is just with Caleb Williams, in the game. The other day, I actually watched a lot of Caleb william tape just out of curiosity. I love Caleb Williams. I had him
as the number one quarterback in the draft. He was a surefire slam dunk, number one overall pick to Chicago. He has as many rookie mistakes on his film as Drake May does. Nobody is out there saying that it's crazy that Chicago's going to start him week one, that that's it's almost a given, Like no one is think thinks that even is remotely controversial that he's going to start week one, even though he's missing reads and doing things that rookie quarterbacks do and he's got a ways
to go. Everybody is just in agreement that that's a consensus that he should start week one. But then when Drake May misses a read, it's like, well, this is why he needs to sit for a year, and it just isn't consistent. So you're gonna hear a lot of commentary. It's a long way away of saying that I have all the respect in the world for a lot of these guys that do it. You know that break down the film on the national stage I love all of it.
I eat all of it up, I watch it myself, but don't lose sight of the big picture here, just because there's little under the hood. There's like little minutions of his game that need to be cleaned up. That's what they are. It's not macro level, it's micro level. And I just hate that we harp on the micro so much and point to these as like fatal flaws, like this is why he's gonna stink is because of
you know, footwork rhythm issues. It's like that will come in time, and that's why I want him to play, because I feel like it will come in time faster and more seamlessly if he plays. I don't know how you get him to play more in rhythm and on time with his feet by watching Jacob were said on the sideline.
Well, I cause see I'm doing in practice.
Yeah, but it's that's practice. Like what we saw from the practice, recent practices last week before the Thursday night game and then the Thursday night game is that it's different, Like he is a different He was a different dude on Thursday night than he was in the joint practice on two day. You know, when you're in the red non contact jersey. When you're doing all these different things in practice, it's just it's a different animal than the game.
Well, okay, but do you think he's doing it? He could be better at it in practice, right, yes?
Or no?
He can get these things you're talking about.
He can get better at it, But I don't really think you truly know if he's there, and if he's.
Not right, why not wait until he's at a level at practice that you're comfortable with it before you put him in the game. That's what I'm saying, Like he can you're acting like they're just going to leave him in the locker room during practices for those first No.
I'm not acting like that. But I feel like he's already shown that he's that he's pretty much there in practice, especially post Eagles game, you know, like since these last handful of practices, and we'll see what it looks like for the rest of this week and on Sunday. But if if his momentum is still pointing upwards by the time we get through that Commander's game on Sunday night, I feel like he's already achieved that, Like he's already checked that box.
Like I I would just I would just one what get the offensive line figured out?
Yeah? No, that, But I'm talking about just about him being.
Already Yeah No, I think Look, it's our job to talk about what we see and that comes with the good and the bad, and there are parts of his game that need to be improved. It's about understanding that in context. Yeah, saying that you know there are things that could be better doesn't mean he's going to be bad. That's just there's no such thing as a perfect prospect, right, He's got to continue to get better and there are things he needs to get better at, but that doesn't
mean he's not going to be good. There are things a lot of players need to get better at, even good players need to get better at. So I yeah, I I I'm with you in that. Maybe some of it gets gets carried away. I think maybe the organization's under a little bit more of a spotlight in terms of quarter develop quarterback development, considering how the last three years have gone. Yeah, albeit it's a new coaching staff and they weren't necessarily the ones he's leading the way
making those decisions the last three years. But it's just about understanding it context saying there's things he needs to improve on, and saying, you know, he has a chance to be a really good NFL quarterback. Those two are not mutually exclusive.
Yeah, last thing on this and then we'll move on the other thing that I really feel strongly about with this is that when we started doing this, you know, covering the team and covering the draft and watching prospects and having takes on prospects. The person that changed it all for me, really two quarterbacks changed it all for me with quarterbacks, Josh Allen, Justin Herbert, Right, those two guys, traditionally speaking, especially Josh Allen, I just didn't see it
with in the draft. I was like, there's this is too much of a project, Like there's too many broken parts. This is too much of a project. It's gonna take. It's gonna be an absolute outlier if this guy succeeds. What I feel like we've learned about quarterbacks and all this it relates to all like the minutia and the details and the nuance as I was just talking about, with all of his footwork and all this crap. Right, the game has evolved. The game has evolved at that position.
It's no longer and I'm not saying that stuff isn't important, so don't get me twisted. But the quarterbacks that are playing in today's NFL that are succeeding are no longer in the Tom Brady, Peyton Manning, Drew Brees archetype, right, like those guys that were dominant pre snap, extremely fast dies and extremely fast processors, deadly accurate like all that kind of stuff that we saw with those three Hall of Famers pocket passers, right that were just at another
level in terms of that. Now, when you look at these quarterbacks that are succeeding in the league twenty plus years later, Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, Jordan Love, Justin Herbert Jalen Hurts, you know, the list goes on and on. Those guys don't always play from perfect bases and platforms with their feet. They don't always throw the ball, you know, over the top Brady style, like we were so trained from a young age here to think that's the way
you throw a football. I would also throw, you know, in this other category, I would throw Aaron Rodgers in there too, because he doesn't play the quote unquote right way either. So all these old like quarterback tropes that we are so used to these guys don't play that
way anymore. And I think the part that confuses me is that when Jordan Love drops back to pass and throws one of his like fadeaways that's become like a staple of his game, everybody goes crazy about it, right, Like it's like, oh my God, Like, look at that he threw forty yards off his back foot with a pressure in his face. This is incredible, And nobody talks about the fact that his feet aren't right on the play,
Like it doesn't come up. It doesn't come up that Aaron Rodgers throws off of both feet off the ground like it because throwing dimes, So like what difference does it make how he throws? And I feel like that's the same thing with Drake May, Like the people are trying to turn him into this like precision pocket passer where he's brady and he's like reading out coverages and he's pre snapped dominating and he's perfect mechanically, and like,
that's just not quarterback play anymore. It's not gonna be Caleb, it's not gonna be Jaden Daniels, it's not gonna be Drake May. Like that's not what it's gonna be anymore. So I feel like we have to adjust a little bit in that regard to.
All Right, I'm off my Just one thing I'd add to that is some of those guys you named were not highly regarded coming out of college, even if they were first round picks, they weren't necessarily consensus first round picks, or people thought there was a mistake or in the pick or whatever, and the teams did a great job of developing those players. Yeah, goes back to another draft staple of mind, especially when it comes to quarterbacks, nature
verse nurture. Drafting the right guy is only half the battle. You've got to put him in a place to succeed when it comes to guys like Josh Allen, when it comes to guys like Jordan Love, even Justin Herbert, who a lot of people were not high on coming out of Oregon. And I would say all those teams, at least the Bills did for a time, But all of those teams did a great job of doing what was best for those quarterbacks and not fighting them in their development.
And for.
Actually I think all three of that, well, Herbert's situations different, but for all three of them. Essentially, they were ready for them to start the season on the bench, in Love's case, multiple seasons, Herbert. They were ready and then the training staff stabbed Tyrod Taylor. And I think Josh Allen didn't start what the first like three or four games of his rookie or something like that.
He came in like the third week.
Of the Yeah, so it wasn't a long time, but they were ready to sit him on the bench because that's what they felt was best. Now, there's other guys that are good that started right away, and maybe that's what those teams felt were best. There were also some guys that sad and that wasn't what was best for them. And there are some guys that started right away and
that wasn't what was best for them. So I get the point you're making about quarterback play is going to look different, But I also think the lesson be learned there is they Drake May. You can't put his development in a box and say, all right, what the Bills did with Josh Allen, do that, what the Packers did with Jordan Love do that? And if it doesn't look like that, oh everything's going wrong. No, you've got to let him dictate it and put him in a position
to succeed. That is really the old That's what it comes down to developing a quarterback. You've got to let the quarterback dictate the timeline and you've got to put him in a position to succeed rather than trying to put him in a box that he doesn't fit in. So far, I think they've done more good than bad with that with Drake May. I would say there's some things I don't love.
I've liked how they've coached him on the on the details, I think mechanically.
Like working with him individually, they've done a very good job. I would have liked to see him get some even if their low impact reps, get some more reps with that starting offensive line, just to build his confidence. You could tell he was a little shaken early in camp playing behind what was really the third string offensive line when the starters are out and the backups are with
the starters. But I think they've done so far. And they went out and tried to get him Brandon Ayuk and know they didn't, But I think they've done a decent job so far of the development part with Drake May, which is going to be important.
In those Yeah, I agree. I feel as though that they've done a pretty good job with him in terms of the quarterback coaching elements of it. Yeah, I feel like his footwork has improved, and mechanically he has improved, especially becoming more of like a rotational thrower. I think that has gotten better for him. He's got a long way to go, but I give them credit for that, and I honestly would part of the reason why I feel like it has improved too, is that it's improved with Joe Milton.
Also, yeah, yeah, no Van Pelt so, so.
Whatever they're doing with both of those guys who are both these raw tools. You know, I hate using project in Drinks May's terms, but just developmental guys.
Oh, there's there's different levels of projects. Yeah, Like you know, there's fixing a cabinet door and finishing your basement, like.
Right, And I feel like projects both of those guys look better than they did in college. Like, yes, Joe Milton's pocket movement is night and day, night and day from where he was at Tennessee.
Yeah, and so it's funny I got to call about this on the Hub over the weekend. Somebody is just unhappy with with Van Pelt and with the offense has looked like as a whole, and basically asking, you know, did they make a mistake? Does his offense not work? And I've seen this sentiment out there from some Patriots fans, like second guessing the Alex van Pelt higher because of the performances of the offense as a whole, not just quarterback.
I get that the offense really hasn't looked great for most of the summer, But what I would say is when it comes to the design, the schematics, the play calling of it, you can't judge Van Pelt yet because they're not running his offense. They're running a very stripped down Madden Playbook like simplified version of it, because that's what every team does in the preseason. You're not gonna put your offense on tape at this point, nobody does that. That's not saying we can't judge him for it once
the regular season starts and they are running it. But the only thing you can judge Van Pelt on really to this point is quarterback development, and in that regard, I think he's done a great job.
Yeah, I have a take on the scheme itself, but there's an email about it, so we can take let that to us off. But let's take these phone calls first. And these people have been waiting.
So I do have a little little NFL breaking news that could be relevant to the paper.
Okay, one second, because I already picked up this call. But yeah, Sean's and Vancouver.
Hey, good morning guys. I got up early this morning, so as nice to speak with you again. Yeah, the last week, I think I mentioned week five as as our time for Drake May, and I agree. I think
that's that's a good a good one. I think, you know, without Wilkins, the Dolphins defense won't be as big a challenge and could be something a good place for him to start, because to me, it's all about how Drake May develops and what he's what is he going to be like ultimately as a franchise quarterback, So it's it's not about the wins and losses, and I'm more concerned about how he's going to progress through this season and then into the future.
Yeah, absolutely, Sean, thanks for the phone call and as always, thanks for listening. Yeah, I mean that we're all there. And on one last thing, I would just add to that too, Jacoby Brissett's play and Drake May's in development our two separate buckets. You can't play Drake May before he's ready just because he's already better than Jacoby bris said right like, he he he's got to be one hundred percent ready to me. And I hear you about the locker room and stuff like that, and I think
that's a good point. But I just mean, just in a vacuum, just because Jacoby Brissett has been, let's face it, pretty terrible in the preseason. I'm not putting Drake May in just because Jacoby Brissett is not setting the bar high enough. In my opinion right now, it's it's not quite cam in twenty twenty one. Like it's not that bad, but it's not quite high enough where I feel like, oh, he's beating out a real he's really winning this competition over a guy that's that's pushing it. Yeah.
I said this the other day, Jacoby Verssett's performance should not impact Drake May's development plan. Yeah, And the locker room thing's a little different because guys buying in on Drake May. You got to be able to tell our guys buying in on Drake May because they believe in him, or just because they're done with Jacoby Brissett. But Jacoby Brissett's level of plays completely independent of Drake May's development, and it shouldn't change the timeline.
Yep, Okay, So I want to read this email or actually, let's take this one call because this is probably gonna be a longer discussion. David is in Maine's up. David, Hey, guys.
How's it going good?
How are you?
I'm great, Evan, You're my favorite. You really do a good job at keeping the Unfiltered train on the track. Jim So, I appreciate every time you're on Unfiltered.
Thank you.
So a quick question.
I keep hearing New England has the third pick in the when it comes to waivers, and I guess I always thought it was just kind of a first come, first serve thing, So I was wondering if you could just kind of explain.
Briefly how the waivers work.
And also is it likely that you can find like a starting caliber lineman or tackle in waivers or is that more just a fill in the depth kind of thing. And I'll take it off the air from there. Thanks.
Guys, Thanks David, thanks for the call. So it's a good question. This to me is a little bit overblown in terms of their waiver priority. So the waiver wire works. First, there's two important things to know. First of all, until claims start coming in, it's the draft order from last year. Yeah, right, so Chicago has the number one claim. No, oh, Carolina Carolina has Yeah, Carolina has the number one claim. Washington, Patriots, so on and so forth, right, so that it's the
reverse of the draft order. It's exactly how it works. Then the other thing I should mention, or we should mention, is that players only go through waivers are only subject to waivers if they have three or less accrude seasons in the NFL. Once you get to a four accrued seasons in the league, then you're just a street free agent when you're released. So i'll give you an example. A couple of years ago, the Patriots cut Brian Hoyer.
He then resigned with the practice squad for a beat. Right, Brian Hoyer was a vested veteran, he'd been in the league for ten years. He didn't go through waivers. The player that would go through waivers is like Marcella's dial a rookie, he would go through waivers. Bailey's a last year, Bailey's appy actually this year too, right, yeah right, twenty twenty two draft, yeah yeah, So.
And an accurrent season means six or more games played.
Yeah, and so for to an extent, we're we're talking about players that were on their rookie contracts, right like that, that's what we're talking about in terms of waivers. So to answer the second part of the question, are you were not going to find a starting left tackle on waivers?
That that that's not where we're at. Like, if the player, a young player on a team is a promising tackle prospect that the team that he's currently on feels like he is going to push to maybe start down the road or has it that sort of ceiling, then why would they be releasing that player?
Right?
It wouldn't make a waiving, I should say, that player wouldn't make any sense. So in some respects, yes, there's always a handful of players every single year that get claimed on waivers that could make a fifty three man roster, Like maybe they're your fifty second or fifty third guy. But in terms of that guy actually making a big impact on the on the NFL team. Not not likely.
Yeah, like especially not a tackle, especially not at that position.
Yeah.
Like, what was a few years ago, who was the kid from Navy that we all knew Bill Belichick would like be all over these like a Keenan Reynolds. They claimed him, right, I want to say, yeah, and you know he was here for a cup of coffee and that was it, so that those are the types of guys that you get on waivers. I want to read this email from Adama because I think it's a good it's a good jumping off point for the conversation about Van Pelton, the scheme and stuff like that, and then
we'll do three up, three down. So he said, Uh, he was listening to Zoe, and Zoe was talking about how in practice, uh, the plays they were running were not to Drake May strains, they weren't conducive to Drake May strings. But then the preseason game they called plays that more resembled what he did at North Carolina and what he did in college. And the biggest difference between the two scripts in terms of was Drake May running the full boat of the Alex Van Pelt offense to
me was playing from under center. You know, he only had one drop back pass attempt from under center was the slide route play action play to Mitchell Wilcox in the flat. That was the only time that he played from under center in the past game. Then he also had an aborted snap. It looked like that was probably going to be a playfake, but who knows right what it was actually going to be. He didn't really play
a ton from under center. I thought this shotgun stuff that he was doing was pretty much what they've been doing in practice. But the question that I have for Van Pelt tomorrow, which I think is a big part of this whole discussion, is do they need Drake May to be able to handle the entirety of the playbook, which means playing from under center, Yeah, is the biggest one in order for them to feel like he's ready
to play in a game. Or would they go into a game like a game script that they had against the Eagles in the preseason where he is playing in the gun for the majority of the game and they're cool with that.
Do you think there's any chance they'd mix in some pistol.
This is I'm so glad you brought this up. See this is how we you know, this is why we do the show together. Uh. That's a really good point. And when you read about some other offenses around the league, first of all, should mention Drake may have played out of the pistol a ton in North Carolina. Yeah, that was a big part of their offense.
And I remember you saying at the draft or before just after, at some point you made the point that he would it would be a little easier for him to get used to working under center than most of these shotguns specific quarterbacks, because he had worked in the pistol, so some of those play action mechanics were there's a lot of carry over there exactly.
So in the pistol. The biggest thing about being under center. Yeah, obviously the playfake is it's harder to read as the defense right, it's a lot more effective quarterback turns us back to the to the play line of scrimmage, he puts the ball out. All that kind of stuff makes it easier to sell the play fake. The other thing that is big with with the being under center in the run game is that the running back can go either way right, right, because he's standing behind the quarterback.
So now he has the ability you can run it left or you can run it right, and you don't when gunn you don't necessarily have that advantage because the back is offset. So now like it's a little bit different for him to run to the same side that he's lined up as. So that's the big advantage of being under center is that the running back can go
either direction and then the playfakes are better. So a lot of these quarterbacks, you know, a lot of these coaches in the modern game, what they've done with these quarterbacks that don't like being under center. And I'll give you an example. Tua does not like being under center, doesn't like it, hatesa So the Shanahan offense that Mike McDaniel's running in Miami, that is a heavy under center operation. So what Channon or what McDaniel's done to build this
around Tua is that they've adopted the pistol. So now with the pistol, the running backs behind the quarterback and the gun so you still have that ability for the running back to go either direction.
Right.
The other thing that you have is that what Tua will do is he'll still turn his back to the defense on a play action fake. So now you're getting that same play action and you can actually bootleg out of the pistol as well and get the same exact action that you're looking for from under center. You can
get it in the pistol. So my I wonder if that is the compromise for Alex van Pelt, because, let's face it, the stuff from under center from Drake May has been bumpy at times, not so much about the reads and getting the ball out once he gets up and down field, he's fumbling the snaps.
Right, it's getting that.
It's literally getting out from underneath center. That's an issue right now.
Well, but this also goes back to my point. I really wish they'd let him work more with David Andrews because he's working with Nick Levertt is really a guard who's moving the center. Antonio Maffi's really guard who's moving the center and struggling, and who else he worked with Liam Fourneels a converting Yeah, Levert's a converted guard, Mafi's a converted guard.
Yeah.
Forin Dell's a converted tackle. I'd still understand that one tackle the guard to right, and then Charles Turner's at UDFA who they clearly don't see as a as a legitimate option. So I don't know. Maybe I'd like to see him under center, with a real center and maybe some of that clears up, but we didn't see it so.
Right, So I love the idea of the pistol that to me seems like a perfect compromise to negate the issues that they're having with Drake may playing from under center, but also still running some of the traditional early down
concepts that Van Pelt wants to get to. You can still run all the post crosses, the bootlegs, hank concepts like, you can still run all of that stuff from the pistol, and it's basically the same as running it from under center without him having to worry about the footwork and the snaps and all that kind of stuff. Love that compromise. Glad you brought it up too. Was the real poster
child for this, Yeah, because you know McDaniel. I don't know if he was the first guy to do this, but McDaniel kind of was in a revolution of having quarterbacks turn their back to the line of scrimmage out of the pistol, like that that whole action of turning your back to the line, showing the ball fake like, doing all those mechanics from the pistol was something that McDaniel kind of brought to the league a little bit
and is obviously all over the college game. The other quarterback I just give you an example with is Matthew Stafford also hates being under center, so that RAMS offense is still in that tree of Shanahan whatever, and he hates being under center. So they've adopted the entire offense to be more from the gun, and that's they've thrived when he's been healthy in that regard. So I think
there's ways to kind of pivot out of this. The question that I have for Van Pelt is are you willing to pivot right?
Like?
Is that something you're willing to do or are you looking at it more like we need Drake May to master being under center so that we can play him under center. It's gonna be an interesting question. All right, Let's take this last call well from Brian and Baltimore. What's up?
Brian, Hey, buddy, A big fan of the show. I was just calling man because I feel like one of the under the radar things and I know you guys have talked about that little bit is man, after watching that preseason game last week, man, backup center, Like, like, what are we doing there? Because I knew it was a few years ago that David Andrews got hurt and we kind of had a backup playing with Connor mcdermack
and things like that, but man, backup center. Man, it makes me nervous after seeing those snaps last week that were low and like, I mean, god forbid David Andrews don't get hurt. But what do you see is doing
about that? I still see some guys out there that's still free agents that'd be pretty good, maybe like bringing them in as veterans like Qusenbury or McGovern But yeah, I just really wanted to know what you guys think we should do about that, because I know that's an issue as well under the radar.
Yeah, it's a fair question, Brian, thanks for the call. That is actually one thing you might be able to get on waivers. Yeah, a backup center, up interior alignment is something that you might actually be able to get on waivers. I'm not overly concerned about Nick Levertt being the guy. He's been fine, he's hurting, Yeah, he's been fine in terms of blocking. Obviously they have to work out some of the things with the issues with the snaps because he hasn't snapped a whole lot, right, and
so that that's where that's probably coming from. But just in general, I feel like as a blocker, he's held his own as an interior guy. So I wouldn't be overly concerned if Andrews were to get hurt if Nick Clevertt was the guy that they turned to, and maybe they can do some stuff like again not not playing from under center a bunch to try to negate some of the things that they would have with that. But
it's something that is on the radar. Jake Andrews gets hurt that that's obviously who was probably in line to be the backup center you mentioned Charles Turner hasn't really emerged as a UDFA.
I was hoping that didn't sound super excited abut him when he's asked about him.
Yeah, I hope. I was hoping that that Charles Turner was gonna have a better summer than what he's had. So it's a goner. But I also think that one just one quick thing on the backup center, that's the least of their worries.
Right now on the alternative stat Yeah, they.
Don't have a tackle, a left tackle right now that they feel great about. Uh, there's so many other.
Holes right great about. Yeah, there's so many other holes on the in.
The first string offense right now to that to be worried about the twoses a little bit, But I agreed that it is like a low key, sneaky need. All right, let's do three up, three down. But before we do, preseason is upon us, and Bob's Discount Furniture is going
ahead head to head with the competition. Dare to compare Bob's unbeatable lineup of on trend, high quality furniture for every room from game day seating to halftime snacks setups that costs one hundreds, even thousands less than the competition. See how much you can say when you dare to compare with Bob's Discount Furniture the official furniture store of the New England Patriots. All right, let's start with the ups because we're a positive.
Real quick, because I I the Eagles released cj Uzama.
Okay, yeah, he's with the Bengals, right.
He's with the Bengals. A couple of years ago. He was with the Jets the last two years and struggled. But I mean, who is throwing him the football? The last year he had competent quarterback, playing twenty twenty one, he caught forty nine passes for four hundred and ninety three yards and five touchdowns. He is now thirty one, and he did just get cut before roster cuts. They need tight ends, they need tight ends. He'd be at least worth a call, at least worth a workout in my mind.
Big dude, like big blocker. Right, he's like two hundred and seventy pounds.
I want to say, is yeah, six seventy one.
Yeah, he's a big guy.
You just bring him. Who remember they had Algie Crumpler here late in his career. I think he was playing at like two to eighty yeah, and they just had him here to block. Yeah, could do something like that.
All right, three upgree down. Let's start with the ups because we're we're I want to be positive today too negative last week? Who didn't like it? So let's go a little positive here to start? Do you want to start? You start? I always start, So you start?
Sure? Taekwon Thornton, And I'll tell you why.
Look at how the tables are well, but listen, I'll give the take.
You're right, it's not anything he's done, but that's the performance wise.
That's not fair.
It's really not it's the way they're using them. He gets the veteran treatment in the preseason game, he's working exclusively at the starters in practice. He's gonna make the team. Oh yeah, he's gonna make the team. And that makes me nervous because if they're really planning on him having a big role in the offense, that means he needs to be out there and he can't count on that
with him. But if I'm Taekwon Thornton, I'm feeling pretty good right now because I know I have a spot on this football team.
So the big thing for me with Taekwon and you say he's not he had to go ball against Christian Zales in practice the other Okay, so he had. He's had some flashes in practice. Let's put it to you that way. And I do feel like he's the added weight, Like he looks like he just looks sturdier out there to me, like he's not as easily derailed doing his round.
Here's why I'm talking yourself into Taekwon Thornton.
Of course, you know, you know this is like a summer tradition. Of course I'm talking you weren't gonna do it this year. Okay. But here's the thing about Taekwon, and I've been saying this for a while about him, so I'm repeating myself a little bit. But the biggest thing to me with Taekwon is that this offense needs a player like Taekwon Thoring on the team. They need an outside X receiver that can get down the field.
It just the offense needs it, otherwise it's going to be exactly what we've watched the last couple of years, where everything is a three yard pass, right Like, they need somebody, even if it's just as a decoy that the post safety has to respect over the top, or when he does get the occasional one on one matchup, you can throw the go ball to him down the sideline like he did in practice the other day against Gonzo.
They they need to be able to have that element of the offense, someone that clears out coverage, someone that takes occupies safeties down the field, takes the top off the defense and once a game, can you give me one good go you know, vertical route one. It's a game against one single coverage like that's all I'm asking for. I'm not asking for him to be Tyreek Hill and
you know, win eight times like that. But if you can win one time, if he's one for forty and he's doing his job in terms of the structure of the offense, then to me, that's a win. And until Javon Baker gets to the point where he can play the full time X role, which he's not very close to you right now, I don't think Taekwon Thorton is the best player on the team for that. He's just
the best receiver on the roster that does that. And it's more about usage in skill set than it is about anything that he's demonstratively better than at that he has been the last two years. Right, it's just the way they're using him within the framework of the offense that gives me a little bit of hope. So, yeah, I'm glad you did Taekwon because I'm not doing Taekwon. I told you I wouldn't do it.
Yeah, And then you proceed proceeded to explain why you're hiring him than I am.
You know I can always talk myself from the right.
So you didn't have him on your list.
I did not because I told you I wouldn't be duped again. That's why number one up to me still is Drake May. We don't have to go long on it.
But the one center that won't be available. Speaking of guys you were high on, Yeah, Yell defro Holt just got a multi year contract extension with the Arizona Cardinals.
That one stings because yelled defro Hole was a good I thought he was.
I could use Yell for Hole.
He was a good prospect. Yeah, I felt like he had a chance to make it in the league. They gave up on him too easily or too quickly. I should say I don't want to go super long on Drake May because we spent the first thirty five minutes of the show talking about it. But from the Eagles Thursday night preseason game on, he's just been a different guy to me, more confident, more decisive. He's coming on. He's making progress. He deserves credit for that, They deserve
credit for that. I'm excited by what I've seen from Drake May. But you guys know that already, So who's your number two up?
I had Drake May too, so I guess let me, I'll give you my third and I'll of another one so we don't have overlap. Joshua Bloodsoe nice. I thought he was really good in the game. Yeah, specifically as a pass rusher, which was weird. And not that I'm saying he's going to solve all their pass rush issues, but they're gonna need it from somewhere, and if he can help as a blitzer, it's not exactly hurting his case, right.
I thought he's really good in the game. I thought he had a couple of solid practices the last few days too. Nothing overly flashy, but a guy that's managed to stick around, and you're kind of seeing why right now. He's just the little banged up at safety or in the secondary. He's getting some more reps. He's doing some things that maybe hasn't done in the past that they're clearly asking him to do out of need, and he's doing them. And that's the kind of guy that usually
hangs around again. So good quiet, but good week for josh Bledsoe.
Jalen Hawkins is dron Harmon. He's that center fielder. But if Marte Mapho's not going to be a factor on this team this year, she's not at least a start. The most like body type is obviously josh But.
So they have those two. They changed the rule this year. You can put two guys on IR before roster cuts that can come back, but the rule is you can't put them on IR until cutdown day, So like Jake Andrews doesn't apply, and you have to designate them that day. You can't put like five guys on IR that day and say all right, we'll pick two later. You have to choose to that day. Marte mop who, Christian Barmore. It's got to be it, right pending another injury.
Yeah, I wholeheartedly agree. The only way it's not Barmar is if the doctors say it's it's not.
And even then they don't really have it unless Hunter Henry's injury is worse than we think. Yeah, they don't really have a clear second option, and you might as well at that point, right, you know you're not gonna you can't bank it.
Yeah.
So yeah, but Joshua Bledsoe uh, solid week for him, So that's my uh okay, that's my second.
Number two up for me is a both rookie offensive lineman Kaden Wallace and Laden Robinson. Caden Wallace, I'm still you feel like he's got a little bit of ways to go with his technique, you know, hand placement, things like that that we've talked about in the past. With it, he's still a little bit wide with his hand carriage and he's get letting rushers into his frame a little bit too much, which causes you know, issues with anchoring
and sustaining blocks and things like that. But he's making progress and should be pushing right tackle here very soon. I would say he he should be pushing Chukes the cor four early in the season for right tackle, which is a good development.
Yeah.
I don't know if he's gonna be a stud or anything like that, but if he's better than what you have and he's a young player on the rise, that's that's the type of thing that you want. Landen Robinson was absolutely outstanding in the game against the Eagles. Now, it was against a lot of backups, I'll give you know, I'll put that out there, put that context in there. It's the third and fourth quarter of a preseason game, so it's against like you know, third stringers and practice
squad guys, but he was dominant at times. Like he took a blitzer. They sent a blitz at him, he came off a double took it a blitzer and threw him into the ground like you know, like just rag dolling guys. He's a physical guy. He's light on his feet, he's got a good sense of the game and a good sense of where his eyes should be and things like that. Really really excited about Leyden Robinson. The problem
with Layden Robinson is is it's another guard. Like if he was a tackle, I'd be like, oh, this is amazing, right, but unfortunately he's not a tackle. So when you start to factor in your best five and try to figure out who your best five are, it's kind of hard to take City So and Mike on. You're not taking Mike a winning.
Off right field, so that's a part of the problem. The only way to really do it to get him in is on attacks win at tackle, but then you don't have Wallace, so it's really the only way you're getting both rookies on or either to play Wallace at left, which I don't love Yeah, or take City so out of the lineup, which is probably the better option. But he's a solid player. Yeah, and that's not the guy you're trying to replace. And now you're moving Michael and
went into a position where he's not as good. Just to wedge the rookies in.
There's there are five best guys. Three of them are guards. That doesn't work. So when you and Robinson are in their top five linemen on the roster, yeah, and all three of them are guards, you could play all three.
You could already four their top five hour guards. And one's the center honestly.
Yeah, right, I mean one's a center too, so if you want to put it that way too with David Andrews, So it stinks that he is not a tackle, but it doesn't stink that he's good. Like is trending in the right direction.
Because people are somebody's gonna say it in the comments. Don't just wedge him into tackle, just try him left tackle.
No, he's not a tackle. And Mike on who with three hundred and fifty pounds is not a tackle either, correct. So that's my second one. Do you have another one?
Uh?
Yeah? Jaheen Bell just I thought has made the most of the opportunity with the tight ends out. I don't know what it turns into. I still think he's probably a guy that starts on the practice squad and maybe gets out of to the roster later down the road. But he's had He was definitely playing catch up after he missed that first week, and I think now he's he's caught up.
Yep. I think he's one of those guys that they're gonna have to decide whether they're going to prioritize receiving upside over blocking. And when I say blocking, Mitchell Wilcox is the blocker right And to me, this is a team that needs to prioritize the upside right now. So I would go jappine belp just because they're debute to playmakers. They need to find playmakers and if he's a guy
that can be a playmaker. His little spree in the red zone the other day with the three touchdowns and like a ten play span or whatever it was, that was exciting to me because a lot of those things were the things I thought he would be good at
in the NFL. You're running into the flats and just winning foot races, down on the goal line, and one was a slide route from Joe Milton where he just comes underneath the formation and slides out into the flat and he just wins a foot race like just coming across. It's not right. He's getting to the top of the route and he's not Hunter Henry right, He's not like getting open on y option or something like that. He's just running people at that size and that's encouraging.
All right, real quick before move on while we're talking about pass catchers of questions in the comments, want to know what you think about Matt Landers.
Okay, we'll get to that in a second. Last one here my last up, yep, coming around to it. Keon White, all right, dot, Kean White was an animal in that game against the Eagles the other night. It's so crystal clear to me now and maybe it should have been before. But he's so much better as a hand in the dirt interior rusher than he is as an outside russ Yeah.
I've been telling you this for months.
And the comp that we've we've we've kicked this comp around I think before Trey Flowers, like Trey Flowers is the comp to me, he's a little bit more physical than Trey Flowers, and Trey Flowers is a little bit more elusive or like just flexible, wiggly, I would say, but in terms of their usage and how exactly they're going to play, he's very, very explosive and twitchy when he plays on the inside and for some reason he goes on the outside and he stands up and he's
just like this stiff guy. Now, I don't know what it is, but on early downs if he's a strong side outside linebacker setting the edge of the defense and pressing the pocket, fine, and then on third down he's now it's obviously not exactly the same. It's not apples to apples, But for the time being, he's the one on one guy that wins on the inside for you on third down that Christian Barmore was for you last year if you had to. He's not Matthew Judon. That's
not gonna be his game. They're gonna have to get by with like Uce and Ziminez and those guys you know, coming off the edge. But when they get on into third down in their pass rush packages, Keon White's gonna put his hand in the dirt. He's gonna be over the guard of the center and he's gonna just go to town like it's just gonna be one on one and yeah, go win, go go beat your block. And he was very good in this game. Still think he
struggled a little bit with finding the ball. You know, finding the quarterback in the pocket was more buwling a china shop than it was, you know, in terms of sack production. Still, but that's what they need. They need a guy that's gonna get the quarterback off the spot on the interior and they need to do Chay or zem Andez or one of these other guys to emerge as the finisher. And if that's what Kean White is, then fine. I thought this was his best week of practice and in best build up.
Glad he finally came around on that came around.
See I can, I can be, I can when I'm wrong and be flexible. All right, let's go to the doubts.
Uh cover set number one. Just a rough couple of weeks here now. And the accuracy the balls, that's the big thing for me, the balls getting away from him spot. He's not putting the ball where he should be putting it. You know, he's had I'd still say his summer is an overall positive when you take in the full body of work. But football is what have you done for
me lately? Sport and the joint practice, which is the biggest practice of the summer, and in the preseason game where he played the most, he did not look good.
Yeah, it's a fair assessment. I thought the tape against Carrier against the Eagles in the preseason game was brutal. He missed multiple throws in.
That game and the pick was I mean, Mayo gripped him for it.
Yeah, that's why I feel comfortable saying it was brutal because they may have called it a terrible play. So I don't really think I could say anything that was worse than that. But a first third down of the game, he has Austin Hooper on the corner route. It's it's not a great ball. It's just not a great ball. It needs to be better there. The pick was was terrible. Mayo is right. Not only I understand why he came off the Taekwon Thornton read because they have sort of
like a red zones bracket. Yeah, so I get why he came off that, why he didn't move on from Austin Hooper to Pop Douglas on the on the little return route there, juke route. I'm not a one hundred percent short. You have to ask him, but Pop Douglas was was open for a walk in touchdown on that you know that Ellman route right outside inside a type of route, and uh, he just locked onto Hooper and threw a bad ball also on that play, and maybe
maybe he doesn't have this quite in his back. He could have ran it in, yeah, because man coverage or and there's no there's nobody on the court, like he could have just waltzed in.
Throw it away. And look, I know it's Fort Town, but fourth and three from the twelve. As a veteran, talk Mayo, you should be able to talk Mayow to let you go there.
Yeah, at least kick the field goal, right, you know, you got to preserve points there. Some of his accuracy issues that we were seeing in the game also came up in practice as well. So that's a little bit alarming. And uh, just the last thing, the last throw to that he made to Pop Douglas over the middle of the field in the game on last Thursday night, that throw was dangerous too. Yeah, he was like you got a guy hanging on him and he threw like whipped
it to Pop Douglas and it went off. Pop Douglas's right hand wasn't catchable and popped up in the air and there you know, that could have been a pick. Also, So if he at the very least Jacobia Brissett needs to be have good ball security and manage the game, and he wasn't. He has not done that, and that's got to improve. All right, who's your your second, because we both had Jacob Bersett.
My second was Javon Baker. Yeah, got to catch the ball. It's that simple. This is not a guy that's gonna have a ton of opportunities. And I don't mean that in the sense that like they're gonna bench him. I just mean that in the way he plays the game, his role in the offense. He's not gonna be a high volume player. His job is to create, ideally two
or three big plays a game. And if he does that, if he has three catches, that's fine because you hope that they amount to, you know, eighty ninety yards in a score. When you get open over the top, you have to catch the ball. That's why you're here. That's the primary reason you're here, not being able to do that, and he struggled to do it in practice as well. I know I've said with him, you know he's going to create explosive plays. There's gonna be drops. The good
comes with the bad. You live with it, and you hope the drops don't come in big moments. That ratio is not working in his favor right now.
It's a good way of putting it. I want to give my last one and then I want to circle back to that because I have a bigger point to make about the receivers. We have a we have to have a tough conversation about the rookie receivers, right, people.
Really want you to talk about Matt Landers.
So Jesus, okay, uh, really quickly my last down, and then I'll circle back to the receivers. Armon Watts.
I was not making the team.
I really was hoping that Armon Watts was going to be a player for them. His table last year in Pittsburgh was good.
Yeah, as a.
Pass rusher, I don't know what happened. He's not winning any one on ones uh, And during practice he's not He's playing into the fourth quarter of preseason games, like this is a classic veteran surprise Mike Panell. Yeah that, but he's a better rusher than Mike Panell, like Mike Pel's nose.
No. No, but I'm saying, like Mike Panell was signed defensive lineman. I remember people getting mad at me. I left him off for roster projection. Yeah, people got mad at me, and I'm like, he's not gonna make the team. No, I think he just some of it too, like he got laft. Jeremiah Farms has been excellent this summer. Tristan
Hill has had a very solid summer. And I would also say a Qualle Daniel, well, he was Quali was always ahead of him to me in the depth chart, but coming in you think he's kind of that third guy to Daniel Laqualley in Barmore and then obviously you lose bar More. But I had him ahead if I to do with depth chart, I had n't head of Farms in Hill, and they've both been better than him. Sorry,
and credit to those guys. That's not saying like he's been terrible, and it's by default both of those guys, especially Farms, excellent, But he just he got outplayed and got outplayed by other players on the roster.
Just a little surprised, especially when Barmar got injured or blood clots, whatever health issues. There was there was a clear path for armand Watts already, and then at that point there was like a really clear path for Arman Watts to make this team. And like I said, he had really good film in Pittsburgh last year. Yeah, and I was really surprised that it just hasn't been there at all.
For him this week. Look at Mike Panell, he stuck around and he's been in the league. What year is that, probably nineteen Yeah, and he's been in the league since and he's been a starter on some good teams in Kansas City.
Nineteen twenty twenty somewhere around there.
Well, Cony Eelie, I think flamed out. But like bad summer can change a lot for you.
Okay, let's circle back to the rookie receivers and I'll finish.
Give my third Oh Marcellus Dial, Now do I still think he can be a player in this league? Yes? Absolutely? And another guy where I think the body of work this summer is overall good. A really rough preseason game he had a really rough time to joint practices that to me is a guy. We talked about it with
the waivers earlier. I think in clear waivers, you get him to the practice squad, you continue to work on his game, and I wonder if maybe they should try him at safety a little bit because good open field tackler, good covering space, played kicking game as well, and you revisit him a little bit. I also kind of, like we just talked about with Watts, Marco Wilson's been playing well, Isaiah Bolden is playing while he's playing on the slot more now, which is really important. Whom I'm missing from
that group Sean Waves, Yeah, Sean Way, Alex Austin. Yeah, So like I just think Dial got he got passed, he got laughed by some other guys that that have just been playing better at the position.
Yeah. I would have him off the roster right now.
And I am it's like probably my fifty fourth fifty.
Yeah, and that nice practice squad potential there. Yep, you know a developmental guy. Okay, let's let's let's have a tough conversation about the rookie receivers. Yeah, so the Baker stuff is more obvious because of the targets. You know, he's yeah, got three of eight targets, and we also can see it on the downfield targets that you know, they haven't been great in terms of his involvement on
those plays. But the film from the first two weeks for both these guys of the preseason hasn't been great. And I'm talking about Jalen Polk also. With Jalen Polk, let's start with him there. Yeah, there are still my big thing with Jalen Polk, and you know I've been struggling with Jalen Polk. Yeah, my big thing with him is that he's going to have to be an expert outrunner. You know, Steve Smith likes to say you have a
PhD and rout running. He's going to have to be an absolute technician at this level because he doesn't have the physical gifts to just win on raw talent. So he's going to have to understand everything from concepts to leverage, to how to stem, how you know, how to release, like all of the little details of running routes. Jalen Polk's going to have to be a masterclass at that.
And the concern that I have with him on film, is that every these first two games there's two or three times where there's some clear mental errors where I'm just not a hundred percent sure he knows what he's doing. And I'm not like trying to be an ass. It's just like he's a rookie, right and there still looks
a little loss at there. I'll give you an example that I mentioned the throat Mitchell Wilcox in the flat earlier, So that's Manton man coverage and Jalen Polk for some reason runs into the same flat that Mitchell Wilcox runs into, and the guy that actually tackles Mitchell Wilcox is Jalen Polk's man. Jalen Polk's man comes off of Jalen Pole
and makes the tackle on Mitchell Wilcox. If Jalen Polk isn't in that area, there's nobody over there, Like Mitchell Wilcox is still running right like, because there's just his man must have gotten lost in the wash of the playfake or whatever, yeah, and there's nobody over there to cover him. The guy that actually makes it not an explosive play is Jalen Polk's guy. Because I think Jalen Polk ran the wrong route right right, so that those
things are happening. The other thing that happened in the game was the sack in the third quarter of Drake May. That play from snap to time to sack took four point two seconds too long. You can't hold the ball for that long. In the NFL. Some of that's on Drake, like he's got to take a check down r right, He's got to get the ball out. But it's a dagger concept. So the inside receiver is running a vertical route, the outside receiver is running that deep in cut at
the sticks, and Jalen Polk's the inside receiver. He gets chucked at the line of scrimmage, you know, gets chipped to the line of scrimmage, and he never really gets back on the tracks. He just kind of jogs up the field and he kind of does this like squiggly lined thing, and it's just not a good enough clear out route. And so the safety it's it's quarter quarter a half, it's cover six. The safety is just like sitting on the dig because Jalen Polk doesn't clear out
the picture. So he's just like sitting there waiting for Drake may like you're gonna throw it right through it, and Jalen and and Drake Mays in the pocket and he's waiting for Jalen Polk to run through the coverage so that he can throw the dig route. And Jalen Pulk never threatens the safety. It just never works. And that speaks to me to more of like the deep speed and the long speed to be able to run
those types of routes. So Jalen Polk will be a fine receiver, but they're really to me, going to have to manage the rap tree with it. Like he's gonna have to just live at the first and second level the defense. He's gotta be running in cuts and crossers and you know, just little things you know underneath the defense, hitches, things like that. The third level is not there to me. And if he's gonna get to being a really good receiver in this league, he's gonna have to be mentally
sharper than he's been. So I haven't loved what I've seen from him. I'm not completely out, I just haven't loved it. They seem like they're a little bit more bullish on it than I am. Because he's been elevated up the depth chart, it seems like in recent days. So maybe I'm being too hard on him, but I just there's a lot of things with the film that I'm just a little bit concerned about. That's Jalen Polk.
I don't know what your thoughts on him. I'll give the Javon Baker take, but well, I'm just curious to what you're seeing.
What I would flip a lot of what you said about Drake may Or earlier on to that that mental stuff's teachable, That mental stuff's coachable. Now, I wouldn't have him running a ton of vertical routes. I would rather have him be the d cut on the dig than the vertical.
Yeah like that.
So that speaks to a usage thing, and maybe when the regular season starts, that's what he's doing. But I think that you know he's gonna be He's not gonna be this big play threat, this dominant. He's going to have to win in the short and intermediate and that just comes, like you said, with reading a defense and understanding route running. That stuff that can be taught. He's
never going to be an overly explosive athlete. But that's the guy they picked like they if that comes as a surprise to them, that that speaks to a deeper problem.
Yeah.
I just I've used the Jacoby Myers comp a million times. I'm gonna continue to use it. He's just got to learn how to get open at the sticks, find a hole in the coverage, sit down, and catch the football. That's what he's got to do. If they're using him for more than that, that's on them.
Yeah, that's a good way of putting it. And I still see the Jacoby Meyers arc there. Yeah, it just to me. It's like with Jacoby, but he was an undrafted guy. It's not gonna come right away.
Well, Jacoby was also only in his third year of playing receiver, right right, he was a converted quarterback, so let's separate that. But yeah, it's it's gonna be a learning process for Polk in this role because at Washington the game plan was pretty much run straight, doesn't matter if your open or not. Michael Pennock will put the.
Ball in your hands.
Yeah, and that's what he did. Now he's got to learn to play the game a little differently. It is gonna be a developing thing, but I still think he can be a player, he's just not gonna be I think some people look at second round receivers and they see Devonte Adams, they see DK metcalf right, thank you, guys, like, that's not Age Brown's first round pick.
The second round pick.
Oh, that's right, he was that he was traded for first round pick. That's that's not the kind of guy Jalen Polk is. If that's the guy they wanted, they should have drafted somebody else. You can have that argument. I don't know that that guy was there for them at that point with the run on receivers at least not probably not not that you would be comfortable taking there. I mean again, we're talking about now a guy like Jayvon Baker, who you're hoping is just kind of a
big play threat. But that's uh yeah, I just it's he's just gonna have to learn to read a defense and find space because he say he's not necessarily gonna win physically.
Yeah, it's it's tough with him because he's he's gonna have to be mentally extremely sharp and he's gonna have to be a really advanced route runner to be a high volume, high productive for the.
Record, I think he can do that. Everything you hear about this guy loves football film rat like, Yeah, just wants to understand the game better and is willing to put in the hours to do so. He is to do it.
Yeah, it just that to me, that whole thing is gonna take time, and I just wonder he's probably gonna be in the top three until Kenrick Bourne is healthy. But yeah, my big I guess, my big picture take with all both these guys is that I don't want fans to be surprised if they play a little bit less than you want them to.
Uh.
Polk I think will play a little bit more, yeah than Baker certainly, But with where things stand right now with Javon Baker, there's a chance that Javon Baker is like a healthy scratch week one. If he doesn't start to turn it around a little bit, that that is
not going to be popular. It's a similar thing, but maybe even worse because he's a higher draft pick than like Kaishan Bouti not getting on the field, right, you know, it's gonna be like that where there's this guy that's got a lot of talent and he's got a lot of ability, but he just isn't quite there yet as a football player for him to play in an NFL game. And and that's where I'm at with Javon Baker. Two
big things with Javon Baker just in terms of the details. One, his route releases from the outside need to get better.
He can't. He's not winning early enough in the route, you know, so like he's getting pushed into the sideline, or he's he's getting you know, stuck to press man coverage and there's at no point in the route where it looks like he's open, right, And yes, I understand that some receivers are open when they're not open and all that kind of stuff, but he all those guys still have really good technique at the line of scrimmage, and he's got to develop a go to release and
then once we get to that, then maybe a counter off of it. Right, But if you need to have a best release, like when he's one on one on the on the back side like that, like on the third down play that he runs out of bounds and gets targeted on that play, there is not a mandatory outside release. That's just best release, Like whatever your best move is off the line of scrimmage, give me that and get yourself off the line and get yourself open.
And he didn't really have much there in terms of that, And I think it was Killy Ringo, right, who I do like a lot. Killy Ringo just bodied him into the sideline because there's no wiggle there at the line of scrimmage. He's got to get better there. And then obviously there's the stuff with the drops and with his hands, and I thought he slowed a little bit up on that post route, you know, trying to track the ball.
Like he comes out of the break, which was a nice break by the way, a nice little nod, and then hit the post and he comes out of it and he's like looking up for the ball because he doesn't have his eyes back into the backfield yet, so he's like looking for the ball. And when he looks for the ball, he slowed down a little bit. And if he doesn't slow down, that's in stride instead of him laying out to try to catch the football. It's
just little things like that. But I just don't want people to be prized with Baker if he doesn't play a ton early on in the season. Yeah, because I know we're gonna get the calls and we're gonna get the emails and people. You know, it's the same thing with a Kaishan booty or what. Why isn't this guy playing? Why isn't this guy playing? And and these are the reasons why he's not playing. Uh so we'll see you
with both these guys. Top three right now seems to be Thorton, Douglas Polk, maybe kJ Osborne is like rotting there three and a half with Jalen Polk. They want to go bigger, take pop off the field early down. Yeah, yeah, and that that seems to be the top three. People really want to know what I think about Matt Landers.
Huh, they're still going on about it.
Okay, So my take on Matt Landers. I remember him coming out with Arkansas end. When you run a four three seven, it catches the eye at six four catches the eye. We went over all at the beginning of the show, all the stuff about Taekwon and the role and all that. Yeah, that exists for him in this offense.
The biggest thing that I saw with Matt Landers though, that he struggles with is rowt ttail, you know, not exactly a technician, you know, he's a raw athlete right now, maybe they feel like that they can develop those types of guys better now than they could before. I'm not holding my breath on that just yet. Yeah, but he's someone that if you're a Javon Baker just a little bit.
I'm not saying it's Javon Baker's making the team like no one's saying yeah yeah, But if you're a Javon Baker and that uh with running with the twos and the threes in that X role, this is a guy that that could conceivably do that. Like Jaqwai Jackson was the third X. He gets injured. Now Matt Landers is the third X. That's the way I look at it.
And I, by the way, I'm right there with you in that. I think he's here because jaquaih Jackson got hurt. Yeah, similar receiver. Like I said, six four ten, ran a four three seven, you're six four two ten, you run a four to three seven, you go undrafted. What does that tell you? Yeah, right, that he's an incredibly raw, raw player. I don't mind him as a practice squad it just like I was saying, I like Jaquoi Jackson for the practice squad. Yeah, kind can't around see what happens.
Maybe if you really get get beat up depth wise, like I'd feel comfortable putting him in a game. I don't know that I feel great about it, but I feel comfortable with it. I put Matt Landers in that conversation, so hopefully six around on the practice squad. But I don't think he's anything more than that.
Yeah, I agree with that. All right, let's take Patty's call and then we'll read some more of these emails in the show. Patty is an aquan. What's up, Patty?
What's going on? Guys?
How you doing good?
Good?
So you know, I like throwing the questions at you guys all the time because there's two of you. So yeah, the first one before we get into like the roster breakdown next week, which I'm I know you guys are going to do, and previewing the break Bengals game the subsequent week sight unseen, And I'm going to bring up something that I brought up a little while ago. I think after the draft and after the schedule came out, you guys think, honestly, regardless of who the starting quarterback is.
Question to one, do they have a chance to beat the Bengals, because, like I brought up before many weeks ago, they are notoriously slow starters in the Joe Burrow era. And if you look at one of the teams that's given them problems, you know, over the past couple of years, it's been the Cleveland Browns in this system.
You know.
And the second question, you're talking about wide receivers. Do you think, because for all intensive purposes, Taekwan's probably going to make the team, do you think with you know, if he has a few regular season games something that we haven't seen from him, do you think he could actually become not a great player, but like kind of like a middle of the road receiver and somebody that can you can see like contributing into Drake may era
as it were, on this team. I'll take it off the air and there's always the guys are.
Great, right, thanks Patty, So do the Taekwon thing, and I'll letting myself get do that much with Taekwon. I don't feel like he's going to ever be in a thousand yard receiver or anything crazy like that, but can he be a role player within the framework of this offense and the way that they're going to design this offense can be a little bit different than it was in the past, I would think. So that's where I'm at.
I'm not going any further than that. I believe he could be a role player, Like he could be a field stretching role player. Trying to think of a good example, like maybe like a Philip dor Set, you know, but obviously a little bit different because he's longer than taller than Philip Dorset was, but like something along those lines,
which is a serviceable NFL caliber field stretcher. But not again, not tyreek Kill, not you know, Randy Moss, like not like the not a high volume guy, but somebody that could do that sort of thing. I could sell myself on that. That's about as far as I would go.
Yeah, yeah, just kind of that, you know, like Nelson Aguilar type. I guess that's gonna be the best. I was trying to remember. Wasn't one of there's like ten Mike Williams. That's why I can't remember. Wasn't there a Mike Williams that played for the Steelers who was just.
Like a burner Mike Wallace.
Mike Wallace. That's yeah, there's so many Mike Williams. Yeah, I always forget about Mike Wallace. Like Mike and Mike Wallace had a long career. He was in the league for like ten years. He's never he had a couple of thousand yard seasons early, but he was just kind of we're gonna put you on the outside, yeah, and you're gonna run a go ball. And he was consistent enough that he stayed on the field.
Yeah.
He got ten touchdowns one year in Miami.
Like, yeah, it signed a big contract with the Dolphs.
Right, could he be that? That's probably his ceiling. That's probably Taekwon's ceiling. Yeah, somewhere between uh uh, Nelson Agil or Mike Wallace. But if he can put it together, that's the kind of player you're looking at.
I'll give you one more just.
But he's got to stay healthy to be able to do that, which I'll believe when I see it.
Yeah, I'll give you one more just because of the body type.
Yeah.
Robbie Anderson like actually Jets, Like I hate to use prime with Robbie Anderson, but like when Robby Anderson was actually relevant, Okay.
Like you know, I I thought Robbie Anderson in Carolina. Like when he had that breakout here in Carolina, I was so ready to be like, this guy is it, this guy is going to be an elite receiver. And then obviously he just completely fell off the map. But yeah, yeah, I could see that. I hold Robbie robb it's Robbie chosen now, by the way, whatever it is, I hold Robbie chosen in high regard for that one season. That one season, I was locked. I was locked in, I
was ready to I was on the band. Met mister oh, it's the best. I remember when when they came here for a joint practice last year, like he did a scrum. Yeah, but he was like he kind of confused as to while the reporters were talking to him.
I'm sure he did. I think he always looks confused. That's just Robbie Anderson's face.
He no, but like you're to go back to the point, like you're exactly right, that kind of player where he wasn't the most technically sound wide receiver. No, he didn't run a diverse rout tree. But if he needed somebody to run past the defense, he was pretty freaking good at it. Fast guy or run fast right and That's that's it. But not just fast, big and fat and big. When I say big, I mean height because that helps. Because that's length. You can improves the catch radius.
That's that. That to me has always been Taekwon's Yeah, Peke Robbie Anderson has always been Taekwon seiling.
Well again, Pete Robby Anderson, you're talking about borderline all pro. No, he wasn't that ninety five catches, eleven hundred yards. He somehow only caught three touchdowns.
Okay, but maybe it's a little bit better than I thought.
But still ninety that year in Carolina and that I don't think that was a great Carolina team in twenty twenty.
That that he's not in. Taekwon is never going to catch ninety five passes, So that that's that's act.
So Mike Wallace for comparison, Mike Wallace is big year and the yards are more. And maybe this is borderline all pro too, but Mike Walla's big here. He caught sixty passes for twelve hundred yards in ten touchdowns. He averaged twenty one yards per catch. Like, if Taekwon's good, that's the guy he's gonna be. It's an average twenty one yards per catch. He's only gonna catch two or three balls a game, kind of like Javon Baker. I think Jayvon Baker is the guy they wanted in that role.
It didn't work out, And now here's Taekwon. He caught sixty for twelve hundred, seventy for twelve hundred. Later in his career, caught seventy two for one thousand in Baltimore.
That's a good Colm.
He's kind of perfect Joe Flacko receiver.
Can I just call out somebody in the chat real fast?
Yeah?
You look the cha I did look at the chat. I've been trying to look at the chat a little bit more. I know, usually monitored the chat, but I like to look at it and see if it's we.
Do look so like the guy called me chubby earlier, Like we see that you're gonna call us out. We see it.
So I don't. I don't. I don't even know how to say. This guy's name ant Antiquippo, ant Guapo and Guapo, Yep, he does not like you. Aunt Guampo claims that I was out on Pop Douglas somebody else.
It might have been him, somebody claims that you are too big of a college football fan in your opinions on players get blurred.
Somebody said that's probably you. They probably said both of us.
Honestly, no, he said Alex and Evan. He said you too. You Evan college football nutt too big of a college football.
Fan for AP Currently, though I was down on the draft pick when the drafted Pop Douglas.
Honestly don't remember. No, Yeah, you liked Pop. I've always liked you were I think you were probably bummed in and takes a Flowers, but I we we saw Pop at this We started the whole Pop Douglas there. We literally were the reason why Pop Douglas was on the map. If you were if you looked on NFL mock draft database at that time and you see Pop Douglas's draft stock, He's like the four hundredth best player in the draft.
And then the Shrine Bowl happened. We were the only two people that were talking about it in the Shrine Bowl. It shoots up that Isla. I love these podcasts.
I will allow people to call me out when I'm wrong, like I talked about earlier in the show. That's fine, But if you go we were live on the air when they draft. Go watch my live reaction to them drafting Pop Douglas. I was pumped. I was in a depressed state when they gave me Jake Andrews and a kicker.
He says, you were down Evan when he was drafted.
That is absolutely ridiculous. That is I'm trying to think, can be further from the truth.
Who might he be thinking of. I have no idea you weren't down on Booty. I don't think he cared one way or the other, the guy like the other receiver that I.
Remember my almost exactly what I said in uh in the draft, I said Pop Douglas saved Day three of the draft for the day Day three d I said that was the nickname Dave. I remember saying it. Ridiculous, blasphemy, blasphemy.
Just he says, you said it, so somebody's gonna have to pull the table.
Yeah, go pull the t of our Day three draft show from twenty twenty three, the of me being amped about Pop Doug.
The only thing he might be thinking of, the only thing he might be thinking of is I go back to that would have been twenty three, right, Yeah, for like a month after the Shrine Bowl. You very much liked Pop Douglas, but you could not remember his name because there was another guy that was there. There were two guys that were what's it called in the first when the two letters are the same, of like uh, because he was he was ja Mario Douglas. Who knows
his name was pap yet yeah to Mario Douglas. And there's a guy named Dallas Day from Jackson State, and that was who we both we kind of liked too as like a specialties player.
He was in the city. It was they literally had three levels of the same player at the Shrine Bowl. It was Zay Flowers was the top guy, Pop was the second guy, and then Dallas Daniels was the third.
Zayden practice. So it was Dallas Daniels and Mario Douglas in the same role like switching off drives. By the way, Dallas Daniels is playing professional football in the state of Massachusetts. Worster pirates.
Oh my, good for him.
But that's the only thing I can think of you it took you like a month to figure out to Mario Douglas's name.
I do remember that I could not He was like my day three sleeper like I could not have been higher on Da Mario Douglas anyway, Sorry, we can move on.
I just remember Jadakiss Bonds. Yes, that's a great name. All right, let's answer some of these emails. He was also Vallie Slow last thirty minutes here. So in Canada, are you done? Yeah?
This question is Ryan in Dublin. He has a question for you, mostly Alex, because he knows that I'm not going to know the answer to this one. So apparently Florida State Georgia Tech is playing.
Week zero baby college football on Saturday.
They're playing in Dublin. Is that? Did you know that they're playing in Ireland? Yeah? All right, so they're playing in Dublin. So his question for you, Alex is who are a couple of key players for the draft next year from Florida State and from Georgia Tech that maybe he can look out for while he's at the game.
So I'm actually I'll have something up on ninety eight five the Sports Lub on Friday.
I know you would.
Kind of players to watch for this whole season, not just week one. When it comes to Georgia Tech, it's not a big gear for the draft. I don't even know if they have any guys projected to be drafted. That can always change, but right now not so much. I'll give you two guys from Florida State, one specifically for the Patriots and one that's relevant to the Patriots that they won't draft, but it's still uh they might draft. All right. The guy Patriots fan Shoudo and I actually
talked about him last year. I thought he was gonna come out last year and he didn't is Patrick Payton. Patrick Payton is an edge rusher. He opposite Chared Vers last year, so he put up some big numbers. He's now back. He's gonna be their primary guy off the edge. When we talked, we talked about this earlier with ke On White. Evan, this is actually a guy that you specifically should watch because this goes see your take. Keon White is a disruptor. He's not a finisher. You want
the guy on the edge, the josh Ucha type. Just pin your ears back and go after the quarterback. Yes, that's Patrick Payton. And what I really like about him he played last year at like two hundred, twenty five to twenty six to five. Played last year at like two twenty five to two thirty. He weighed in this year at two point fifty, so now he's got more
that Matthew Judon kind of body type. It's actually a little I think bigger, but he was a speed player last year, so if he can keep up some of that speed and agility coming off the edge, this is a guy that's protected to be a late first early second round pick. So certainly in range where the Patriots should be taking an edge guy, assuming they go tackle at the top of the draft. You know, if you get a veteran wide receiver, now, edge is probably your biggest need.
YEP.
Patrick Pate is one of the guys for Patriots fans to watch this year. Absolutely somebody to tune into. He wears number eleven and he's mostly gonna be rushing off that week side the other guy on Florida State at Georgia Tech. There's really no draft Haines King's fun to watch their quarterback enjoy that, but he's like five eleven
really just runs. He's kind of he's got some hot stetson Bennett in his game, but like I honestly little Max Duggan, but he doesn't have the swagger the other guy to watch and Evan, you've heard me talk a lot about this guy, and I'll give you two reasons why Patriots SPAN should watch him. Dj Uey ungle A the quarterback from Florida State. Listen, no, listen, no, let.
Me explain it, did you, bo Nix? Is that where you're going with this.
Sort of there's two There's two reasons I think Patriots SPAN should watch him. One is bo Nicks slash Jayden Daniels. It's a copycat league. If Jayden Daniels has a big year, everybody is going to be looking for that older transfer quarterback who's projected lower in the draft that suddenly pops off the other guy that that relates somewhat to djungle a copycat league. Spencer Rattler dje Ungla has had a
very similar career path. They're different quarterbacks. Dju. I'm gonna call him Dju because he's here to say, yeah, six five, two forty five, big, big arm. Spencer Rattler smaller and more mobile, but former top recruit went to a bad situation.
Not just former like number one, number one recruit.
When I say to mean topper, I think dj was number two by the time his class has ended, but he was number one.
For a while because that that's the same class that Drake was in.
Yes, Yeah, went to Clemson, didn't work. Went to Oregon State last year, made some progrect. Clemson ruined the kid. I don't know what they were trying to turn him into, but it wasn't right. Went to so probably something right. Went to Oregon State last year, made progress. Now he's at a Florida State offense that I think really plays to his skill set. They got a ton of speed, They're gonna be throwing the ball all over the yard. He's got a big arm. He's not a runner, but
he's effective when he gets to the outside. If he has a good year, teams are gonna he is going. He's a guy that I could see becoming this year's jayde Daniels in that nobody thought this guy because he was in the wrong place, in the wrong time for a long time. If he has a good year, not a guarantee. The other reason Patriots fans so in that sense, sorry, how that relates to the Patriots. Yes, let me finish the take. There are gonna be teams that need quarterbacks
next year. The Raiders, the Giants, et cetera. They might need to move up with the Patriots. The more good quarterbacks the better, even though the Patriots aren't drafting one, because if they're in a position where you can draft Will Campbell and trade down, or you can draft Will Johnson and trade down or James Pearce and trade down, the more quarterbacks the better. So it's good for Patriots fans of tj O. Junglay is good. Let's say he's not good. I still think he's relevant to the Patriots.
And I'll tell you why. What is the Elliott wolf Packer way approach to drafting quarterbacks? Joe Milton, Well, I was gonna say every other year, if not every year, Right, that's so they're gonna draft. I would not be surprised if they draft a quarterback next year. It's gonna be later.
It would be Joe Milton.
So I oo young. He doesn't. He's a little different than Joe Milton, but.
He reminds me of a little of Joe Melton.
Big quarterback, big.
Arm, big quarterback, big arm, who can't read the field.
Big quarterback, big arm who can't read. If they drafted Drake May, big quarterback, big arm, unless you want to say Drake May can't read the field.
No, I'm saying that it's similar to Joe Milton. Yeah, so anyways, quite as raw toolsy as like Joe. He's got a bigger arm and all that.
But Milton has a bigger arm, and I think ou Jung lays a little more developed than his mechanics. Maybe not reading the field, his mechanics are better. They're gonna. I would not be surprised they draft a quarterback on Day three next year, and dj you is definitely the kind of quarterback that they seem to target. Okay, so Patrick Payton DJU.
So I had the classes wrong, but I went down this rabbit hole and I wrote my story about Drake May after the draft. Drake May was twenty twenty one, DJU was twenty twenty. Yeah, but Drake May had an offer from Clemson on the table that he turned down because DJU was going to Clemson. So the number one recruit in that class was Bryce Young. He originally Bryce Young committed to a USC. Yep, he's gonna play for Lincoln Riley at yesseh. He decommitted from USC and then
flipped to Alabama obviously, So he goes to Alabama. Drake May in the twenty one class was committed to Alabama because he thought he was gonna be the guy after the you know Mac Jones. Yeah, correct, So he de commits from Alabama because Bryce's young committed to Alabama. DJU commits to Clemson, so he doesn't go to Clemson. Ye, because dj U's at Clemson.
C J.
Stroud goes to Ohio State. So Drake May doesn't go to Ohio State because c J. Stroud commits to Ohio State. So all these sort of like dominoes is like what led to Drake May eventually going to North Carolin.
So as much of a college football fan as I am, I don't follow recruiting a ton. I'm like aware of the big players, but I don't track it. I don't really look beyond the senior class. It's you think, like the draft and free agency, and there's a lot of moving pieces there following recruiting, especially in the modern era, it's a roller coaster.
Yeah.
Meanwhile, you know it was so number three in that class was Brian Berzy, where I think a lot of people know. First round pick number four was Julian Fleming. I'm really interested to see and we can get back to modern times after this. I one more draft thought for you.
So, Julian Fleming draft question for you, I think so okay.
For all of the stars that have come through Ohio State at wide receiver, do you know who the highest ranked recruit was going back to I mean, I think we're going back to like Paris Campbell here. Ye, the highest ranked recruit was a guy named Julian Fleming. He was the fourth rank recruit in that class. Bryce Young, Dju, Brian Berzee, Julian Fleming. He is the one guy they couldn't figure out. He was there for four years. He
was fine, he was never great. He kept getting passed over by these other guys, and now he's at pet Penn State for a grad year. Yeah, so he's gonna come in the draft and there's going to be a lot of people that say Julian Fleming red flag. He's the one receiver Ohio State couldn't figure out. I don't know why they couldn't figure him out and neverb watching that closely because again, he couldn't really get on the field.
Can't tell me you're not interested by the one receiver that Ohio State couldn't crack, and he's like their highest ranked recruit at the position.
That doesn't bow well, Brian Hartline couldn't.
Like I'm curious, and it's not that he was bad. He just kept getting passed by all these other guys and I'm kind of curious why.
I'm actually and the answer this question, I know this is not your wasn't your point, but the answer to this question is probably that Ohio State played pays Brian Hartline like a gajillion dollars to stay there. I am so shocked that an NFL team hasn't offered Brian Hartline just eight hours.
I say this all the time, Truck, like how have you not?
And I get that some of it is like chicken with the egg because they recruit so well. So like you could say that Marvin Harrison Junior was going to be good no matter where he went, well.
He was like he was not as highly ranked crew.
And it's also just not Marv, Like it's it's Marv, it's McLaurin, it's JSN. It's like the list goes on and on and on of recent Ohio State. You know, Wilson a lave like all these guys are just studs. And Brian Hardline is the coach like he's the one, he's the whisperer, he's the wide receiver guy. So I can't believe that an NFL team hasn't just thrown I throw ten million at that guy to coach.
Remember the name, and I already forgot his name, Julian Fleming. I'm curious what you think when we get there?
All right, a couple of there's one draft question, but also there's a bunch of questions actually believed or not about cold Strange. So there's been some reporting about I guess Garredy might have had a little nugget about cold Strange and his timetable and timeline. So the number one question I guess is, uh, are you expecting anything from cold Strange? But a secondary question to that, someone actually asked if we feel that cold Strange could be a
center when he comes back? And I have a little bit of a theory about this, but do you think that Cole Strange is Are you expecting Cole Strange to contribute at all this year?
It's tough to say because their guard play has been good and they clearly don't want to mess with that interior if it's working. I don't know that there's a job for him when he comes back.
I'm with you.
Maybe they rotate him in and maybe they like he takes some snat like twenty or thirty percent of the snaps a game from city so or just to keep him fresh, right, keep him healthy. Yeah, but I don't think there's a full time job waiting for col Strange when he gets back.
Yeah, I'm with you on that one.
I do think he can play center. Maybe the job is backup center.
Yeah, so to the center point. I feel this way about center, and he would be a really small tackle. But he just meets the length threshold for tackle. But just hear me out for a second. So, the biggest problem that I see with Cole Strange when I watch him is that he is too small to play on the interior at guard. He just gets bodied. He he is not powerful enough to play at that spot. Now, the counter to that could be, well, if he's in an outside zone scheme instead of a downhill scheme, maybe
that translates a little bit better. I'll allow for that. I'll give that possibility to him. But what I see most of the time with Cold Strange against NFL caliber, like starting caliber defensive tackles is I can't get the images of like DeForest Buckner and Quinn Williams just manhandling him in pass protection. That that's the concern with me with Cold Strange. So what do you do if he's
not burly enough to play guard? Center is an option because center usually you're uncovered most of the time, or you have it. It's a different role, different position. Center is also really important in this system because center sets the pace of the line in the run game, yeah, and in the and outside zone scheme. So if he's the best athlete that they have probably at the position, then he can be somebody that could get out and reach and you know, hit the second level and all
those kinds of stuff. I'm intrigued by. Center tackle is probably loftier, probably less likely, but just wouldn't you just from a body type standpoint, Just think about it from a body type standpoint, Cole Strange going up against two hundred and fifty pound edge rushers instead of Cold Strange going up against three hundred and twenty pound nose tackles just feels like a better matchup to me. For him, right, So I think it's lofty. The technique's different. It's you're
playing in space. It's probably too much of a transition. Center is probably more realistic. But if I'm the Patriots, I'm starting to think about how do I get Cole Strange away from Quentin Williams.
But you also have a guy that's coming off a very significant knee injury, and now you're asking him to be very mobile. Yep, and that's a tough ask.
It is a tough ask. There's no doubt about that. All right, Paul is asking about the Landon Robinson pick.
Oh, by the way, speaking of there's a theory in the chat that it was Paul Perrillo who didn't like Pop Douglas, not you.
So I won't I don't want to pick on Paul too much because he's not here. I'd rather pick on him to his face. But but Paul, Paul doesn't have time for the Day three of the draft, like he all those guys who Day three of the draft, unless there's a guy like I like like Pop Douglas, or.
You get annoyed with me after the top one hundred.
I don't do as much studying of the film after the top one hundred, I usually try to do like the top one twenty five, just so that I know, I know everybody that gets drafted in the top one hundred, right, Like that's that's big to me. Uh but yeah, usually by the end of the fourth round is when my film study stuff, and then I just have notes from other people, you know, the beast, you know whatever. But yeah, Paul is not everybody on day three to the draft.
To Paul is a lottery ticket, which is I mean, he's not wrong, it's pretty fair. Yeah. To us, it's like, you know, we talk about Red Sox prospects, and I always like joke about Marcella Meyer being a bust and thing and things like that. Like to us, it's like that, you know, it's like Tyler Milliken getting all jazzed up about you know, Roman Anthony, right, you know, like that's
day three of the draft to us. But to Paul, day three the draft is there's a ten percent chance this guy actually turns into an NFL player, So why would I waste my time? Right like that that's.
The Roman Anthony, not a six round pick kind of player. Okay, anyway, Still, the miners.
Uh that that just kind of.
Uh so, Yeah, Luther Burden sucks. He's still in college, he's not in the NFL yet. I mean, it's essentially what you're.
Saying, we don't know about Luther Burdon yet. He might suck. So here's the draft question I wanted to ask you, and it's more draft philosophy than it is about prospects. But the question is we all know that left tackle is going to be a big need. Receiver is still out.
There is need a big fish at receiver. But is there a chance that pass rusher outside edge rusher like I like to call him, you call him outside linebackers if that replacing Matthew judah on To simplify it even more for people, is there a world where that ends up actually being their biggest draft need? Like, can we
get to the point where they signed T Higgins. I'm just going to dream and buy in the sky here they signed T Higgins, Maybe they sign like a serviceable veteran left tackle or something like that, and outside linebacker pass rushers ends up being the top need in the.
Yeah, I mean it's their third biggest need, so definitely, I would say corner could sneak in there.
Too.
Yep, I wouldn't roll that out. Yeah, yeah, no, it could absolutely happen. I just don't think they're gonna find that tackle, and I receiver they can, they can remove from the needs relatively easel. And when I say that, I mean give up the second round pick, give up thirty million dollars, right, get Seed Lamb, get dk Metcalf. People know how I feel about that. Yeah, you're not getting that equivalent tackle, and I just I don't. I don't think another bridge left tackle is the answer. We
talked about this last week. How long down the road, Trent Brown, you gotta answer that question. This is kind of what I said about quarterbacks and last draft. And there are gonna be people who say, well, there's these receivers, blah blah. It's like, this is a position that's hard to get. You have a chance to get eleaite prospect at it.
Do it?
Yeah, do it that simple, do it. And so I still think it's Will Campbell and Calvin Banks. I did a little more deep digging on that yesterday. By the way, might be closer between the two, and I thought, and I mean that as a positive for Calvin Banks, not negative for Will Campbell.
So I'm not sure about that, but it's not because I don't like Calvin Banks. So Calvin Banks, I watch a lot of him because who's the other tackle at Texas?
Oh, it was something Jones got drafted this past year. Yeah, I remember. It's crazy how we obsessed about these names for like four months and they just fall out of our brains. Christian Jones, Christian Jones, Christian Jones, Worthy, Ada Mitt, Yeah, a lot of Texas.
I was just watching that offense all all spring long. So I did watch a little bit of Calvin Banks, like out of the corner of my eye. He's a stud. He's a stud. He's really good. I would put him in like the alpha Shanu Tier. Yeah, I think there's a chance that Will Campbell's like s Tier special.
See, I would go. And here's the thing with these two. And I realized this about this draft yesterday. I don't I have a slight take on it. I can give you if you want, But the top of this draft is all true juniors. Campbell, Banks, McMillan, Burden, Pierce, and Johnson. Those are the seven guys we can even throw in Deon Walker from Kentucky. Those are the guys we're realistically going to talk about for the Patriots. Every single one
of those guys is a true junior. I don't necessarily like it's good you're getting younger players, there's more runway. The only take I really have on it is, whichever guy you want the Patriots draft the most Campbell burden, whoever you want to root for that team to win the national championship, because the last thing we need is Will Campbell going back for some unfinished business in a
big nil bag. Oh god, right now. But they're so young, so there's still a long way to go, and I think Alt had a little more experience at this now. By the time Campbell gets to the draft, he'll be even with allt. But there's still a whole year to play out. We have to see what happens as it stands right now. And I'm not saying Campbell can't catch All as it stands right now for me, from the last two drafts, Campbell, Alt, Campbell Banks for Shanhu. Yeah,
that's how i'd rank him. That's that's fair. But that that I think you're projecting a little more going into the season. I'm saying, if Will Campbell came to the draft today without having played his junior season. That's right happening.
So the reason why I have Will Campbell maybe a little bit ahead of Joe Alt, Yeah, is that the one you know, I love Joe Alt, But the one knock that I had that you'd have on Joe Alt is that he's not He's not overly mean, Like he's not a nasty finisher. He's more of a dancing bear than he is, like a physical guy. Will Campbell's nasty, Like Will Campbell finishes like he puts dudes in the ground while also having the footwork and the agility and all that kind of stuff to dance on an island
right with pass rushers. So he's got a little bit more snarl or nastiness to his game than Joe All. Joe Alt is uh. I think a great comparison is he's a little bit bigger and like more prototypical, but like, uh, remember like Jake Matthews with the Falcons, like that, That's who I think of with Joel, whereas with Will Campbell, he has a lot of those same traits but with like a little bit more.
Nasty, like a Taylor Lawan kind of Yeah, it's a good comp Yeah, Yeah, that's who I see a little bit.
Yeah, he's he's mean, like he's gonna he's gonna finish blocks and things like that.
Banks too. Banks has a nasty streak to him too.
That's that's what I love.
We're gonna have We're gonna have fun. We're gonna have a lot of fun with it. I just and I understand.
And you know, on PU you can throw it at Paul He's not even here doing this to his face. But you know, the offensive line talks sometimes. Yeah, I see some glossy eyes and you know, so people checking their phones and you know, stuff like that. There is nothing more reassuring to me for Drake May's long term development than drafting a stud left tackle and just knowing his blind side is protected for the next ten years. Like that, to me, it would just be so like
I'd breathe such a sire relief. Would I be as excited as if they got a number one receiver right like if it was if there was I don't know if Luther Burdens in this category, but if there was a Marvin Harrison junior in this draft and they drafted that guy instead, would I be more excited, probably just because it's a receiver and it's this straight. Sure, but
it's just the shiny toy versus like the socks on Christmas. Right, But will Campbell just or Kelvin Banks being the blindside protector for Drake May and finally filling that that need after years of kicking the can down the road, I would be I have a huge smile on my face. I'd be like, Yes, we got a left tackle. This is great, this is what we've all wanted. It'd be great.
So I'm all aboard left tackle, but I could see pass rusher if they somehow find a way to get a left tackle in the veteran market, which just seems unlikely. But if they do so, I'd be.
The projected top guy. Right Now's a guy named James Pearce from Tennessee. He so unlike some of the other guys who are true junior who so Campbell and Banks and Burden and McMillan actually all started as true freshmen. They all had Burden started like halfway through his freshman year, but they essentially all have one and a half to two years of experience. Pierce only started last year. He didn't. He played thirteen games a true freshman, but it's mostly
on special teams or like latent games. So his first year is good yet I think forty one no. Fifty six pressures and fourteen in ten sacks and thirteen games. But it's just one year. And the thing about Pierce really good pass rusher, really doesn't give you anything against the run. Yeah, and are they would they be willing to take a guy and we'll see what he does. He has more variants. He could end up not being the top pass rusher. Is a guy named Abdul Carter
at Penn State who's gonna get some attention to. But Pierce is the highest ceiling. Do they would they take a guy like Pierce who projects be an elite pass rusher if he can't play against the run?
So is he like a like a Brian Burns type.
He's not quite that like powerful.
That's how I think of when you tell the birds.
Is like big and powerful pierces. I mean, he's got good size, but he's not He's more of a finesse rusher.
All right, let's take this last call and then we got to wrap it up. Connor is in Florida. What's up, Connor.
Hey, So I just had a question for you guys, now, just one of your thoughts on this. So back in like twenty two, we had like a pretty good interior line with like Mason, we had a whnu Kris Andrews. We had Andrews, and then we also had Tuney for a little bit before, you know, right before Mac Jones
rook year. What do you think Bill's like logic was, and just basically letting all them go, then forcing them to draft Cold Strange and then just the trickle down effect with that with you draft Strange that year when you could have probably gotten you know, if they decided to go Trent McDuffie with the original pick they had before trading it, then the next year when you picked Gonzalez,
you could have picked a receiver. I just want to know your thoughts and what you thought Bill might have been thinking with that.
Yeah, thanks for the call. Look at we've been down this road before. Yeah, it's to me the beginning of the end for the offensive line, if you want to call it that. I was letting Joe Tony walk in free agency.
Well, at the beginning of the end of the offensive line is one scart left.
No because Caren Bissello had the line in good shit. Okay, So it started to me with the decision to let Joe Touni walk to the Kansas City Chiefs right like he was in a lot of ways, it's similar to what they've done now where it was like, yeah, it's a lot of money for Mike on Winnu as a guard, but he's one of your best football players and right now you just don't have a whole lot of good football players on the roster. And they were kind of in that spot at the same time too with Joe
Toney and they let Joe Tony walk to Kansas City. Who, by the way, Joe Toney is like low key on a Hall of Fame trajectory. Yeah, first, he might be the best Garden football He's unreal. He's like an All Pro. He's won like seventeen Super Bowls at this point, Like he's gonna be in the conversation for gold jacket if he keeps on thinking at.
The end, I think he is, he's gonna get one. I don't think it's a conversation.
So Joe Toney then in the same off season twenty twenty one. It's a year later from Tony. They low ball Ted Carrison free agency and they trade Shack Mason like in within like a week of each other. Yeah, and they created this gigantic coal up guard. Now they have On. They had On Wenu, so they had one guard spot. But like the caller said, that prompted the domino effect of taking Cold Strange in the first round. What I Belichick was thinking to me was guards not
a premium position. I'm not gonna pay premium dollars for guards, Yeah, because I feel like I have one and On already and I can just draft one for and get him much cheaper than what I'm gonna have to pay Shack Mason or Joe Tuny or even Ted Carris, and we'll just draft and replace and everything will be just fine.
Uh.
The problem was they didn't draft well, right, they draft Cold Strange and it didn't work out the other thing that I think was really key with the offensive line, and then we got to wrap it up up. Car and Bricella leaving with Josh McDaniels to Vegas. Yeah, Carnbrosella leaves after the twenty twenty one season. He goes to the Vegas Raiders with Josh McDaniels, and the Patriots replaced carm Barcello with Matt Patricia.
Who is also dealing with being the offensive coordinator while he's coaching the offense line.
And at that point what ended up happening is that a lot of the young guys that they had in the pipeline, including Cole Strange to the point he their development just got derailed because they weren't getting coached properly. Right, so they have that the whole Matt Patricia thing goes awry. Then Adrian clem that whole thing was a disaster last year.
So really, these linemen, and I think a lot of these guys that have been on the Patriots are having this realization like, holy crap, we have Scott Piers actually has like a strike system and like has like rules for us.
Since Scott Peters is here, he's available.
Yeah, and all of a sudden, it's like, wow, you know, we're getting coached and you're seeing that with you know, improvements from guys you know rookies Leydon Robinson, kid and Walls getting better. But Darien Lowe, I know, he's everybody's like like lightning Rod right now, but he's gotten better, you know, and and and that's what's happened with a lot of these guys. So hopefully the coaching comes back to earth and that solidifies a lot of things. But yeah,
that that that conversation has been on going. We've all had that on every various platforms over the last couple of years. As a misstep from Belichick. All right, that's gonna do it for this week's show. Uh, next week. I believe we're gonna have to be on Thursday next week, Alex, because the studio is not gonna be available on Wednesday because of some technical stuff going.
Well that and that works because by then the roster will be more set.
Yeah, so we're gonna probably be back Thursday. Maybe ten am Thursday, Marine, Nope, afternoon Thursday. Yeah, afternoon Thursday.
Honesty, Thursday might be like they might have practiced in the morning and stuff like that.
So yeah, yeah, so we'll figure it out. But we're hoping that.
You guys actually might be in the morning on Thursday.
Okay, we'll figure it out. We're hoping that we'll be able to set a time, a permanent time for in season show, our in season shows probably on Thursdays, but we'll see We'll let you guys know. But just before we sign off here, we gotta shut out Bridgetone because the official tire the New England Patriots. It's proud to partner with Sullivan Tire, New England's headquarters for quality Bridgestone tires. Visit Sulivantire dot com to find a location near you.
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