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Made it to a Wednesday in one piece, Actually there's five pieces. It's Fritzy, It's seat, and it's mar Paula yours truly, and then the back room guys as well. Come on in, stay a while if you can. Got a few headlines here, Mavericks at the Lakers, and the Lakers got the win, but the Lakers did not cover. The line was nine and nine. That's all I cared about.
It was weird. I wanted to know, like, how inspired were the Lakers going to be and the Mavericks going to LA without Anthony Davis in uniform, and what was Luca going to do? So Luca didn't have a great night shooting, but you know he filled up every other category, had a triple double there. They win one O seven to ninety nine and the line was nine and a half. I just want to see the rest of the season,
how much defense they'll play. It's weird to say when you have two of the greatest players with Luca and Lebron, they're going to mesh. They're going to work. They're going to work because Lebron will make this work. He's too talented, too smart to not make this work. But watching last night Luca deferred, you know you wasn't he didn't have a shot, and he wasn't hitting threes. But you know you have a triple double there, and you forget just how great a passer he is. Lebron is an all
time great passer, but Luca is really good. It's just when you're scoring thirty three a game, you may not throw, you know, passes to your teammates. You know, as Jordan once said, why would I throw it to you when I have a better chance of making the shot? I mean, he actually did say that about his teammates. Why would I throw it to a wide open Judd Bushler when I might be double teamed. I like my chances better.
But you know his fun last night. At one point, Luca mean mugs the Mavericks bench, which I don't understand unless they were chirping at him, but they were all lovey dovey pre game, and I'm, I mean, you want to mean mug, then do that when you go to Dallas in April, and then look for the GM Nico Harrison. If I'm Luca, I look for him and I give him a handshake and say thank you, thank you. You put me in one of the basketball capitals of the world, my brand. I got a chance to be the face
of this franchise. It's fun. It's la thank you, thank you. I mean, Dallas is great and maybe that's his lifestyle, but I would be like, thank you. But last night it was fun. It was fun to watch just you know, sort of the I guess the body language going on.
Yes, Marvin Nico Harrison was there last night, so maybe he was looking in the direction where Nico man have been sitting. Okay, so I did see him at the game last night. I don't know why he would be there, but hey.
I'm going to give him credit to be, you know, front and center, like, Okay, yeah, we made this deal and I'm going to sit right here. But if if Luca is singling out the ga and mean mugging, I don't think you need to, like, let me remind you of how great I am. I don't know if Luca needs to do that. Now, you want to do that when you go to Dallas. I get that.
Yeah, Pauline, I'm not gonna go too much credit to Nico Harrison. He probably doesn't want to go to home games for a while. And he's like, I'm going to hit the road a little bit. I want to get away from the home fans. They don't love me right now.
NFL Combine going on this week and yesterday coaches in GMS they had to answer questions, well, they had to answer them in the best way they could answer them without really answering them. And you don't want We're so gullible as this sports society. We're just jones and for anything. Hey, these coaches are going to talk about their their draft, what they're going to do in the draft without really telling you what they're going to do in the draft.
Are they gonna talk about the uh tush push without really saying too much about or maybe a player who may be on the trading block without really saying too much. But we sit there and we eat it all up, scoop it all up. It's like, oh my god, that's great. But it's one of those if you say, coming up on Sports Center, we'll sit down with Sean McDermott and
he'll give his thoughts on the tush push. Then all of a sudden you have a question to Sean, you know, and he'll be like, hey, you know, it's a part of the game and whatever the league does, and be on whatever, and then you go, okay, alrighty, that was great. Like you don't even we're not even listening to the answers as much as the topic.
Oh.
Like I saw the topic again on Sports Center. Chador Senders not throwing at the Combine. What's it mean for his draft status? Nothing, it doesn't mean anything. He'll do a pro day at Colorado. His dad gets all this attention. The wide receivers who are there at Colorado get some national attention. Come on, the players have the power. It's okay. I mean I'm surprised when it goes the other way.
Cam Ward, I wouldn't be throwing. You want to do something where you know it's a controlled environment, You have your receivers, you get some attention for some players, your coaching stet whatever. But we make it a big deal because we allow it to be a big deal. We click on these stories and it's just silly. And I told you this was going to happen with Shador Sanders. None of the first round quarterbacks last year threw at
the Combine. It didn't lead Sports Center so I know we are gullible, we're easily led, but now there are times when I go, no, you're not going to get me on this one. And I spent eighteen years of my career trying to do this to you, Like, how do we get people to stay at Sports Center? I don't know, come up with a tease coming up on SportsCenter? You won't believe what Charles Barkley just did. And then he didn't do anything, you know, like I don't know, I didn't see the highlight yet. Yes.
What I love about the combine is when they ask a real direct question to a GM or coach and he has to ignore it, like, I'll give you exactly you be the coach or you be the GM of the How about the Browns?
Okay, Andrew Barry ye, Andrew Barry O. Yes, yes, Paulie Andrew.
What's the plan with Nick Chubb?
What are you guys going to do to keep him or not keep him?
In the off season? Man, do I love that guy? I really do. I mean, uh, you know, when I think of a running back, I think of him and he's really special guy. And you know, we we appreciate all the great things that he did for.
Us that said, what are your plans for?
Wait? I thought I just said, didn't I just answer that without answering that when they say, man, I really love that guy, that guy's gone gone. Yeah, Hey, what do you think of.
Man when they start prematurely thanking him for everything they've done for a franchise?
Okay?
How about your Sean McVay.
Okay, coach, what's the situation.
Right now with Matthew Stafford and your plans for his future?
Oh? Man, that's a great question, Paul, that really is. It's a great question, stalling, stalling, stall. I love him. I mean you cannot write the history of the Rams without Matthew Stafford. I mean hall of famer, hall of famer in every sense. Really well for what are your family? Yeah, I just I love that guys real quick. What are
your plans? Yeah? I mean you know, my plans are to just make sure I appreciate every day, every moment I have with Matthew Stafford, because you know what, he's a special player and uh, you know, on and off the field. Did I mention that? Yeah, And you can't write the history of the Rams. Did I mention that too? Yeah? I really love him. Yes, Todd, it's.
That tell when they say did when they're talking to past tens as opposed to and what.
He will be doing in the future.
If you're already talking in the prediate tents, is like that means that kind of closing the chapter.
On this guy.
Yeah, when you give me past tense, it just feels like like Nick Chubb. Let's be honest, older got injured and maybe not affordable. See ya, that's it? Uh, what are your plans for Miles Garrett? Man? Now, if you say we're not taking phone calls, we don't want to hear from anybody, We are not trading him, we have no plans or no intentions. When you say that, that means you're open for business. They can say all the right things. This is February, late February. Let's wait till
we get to April. Let's wait till we get to the draft. Teams are going to do their due diligence on all these draft picks, and then they're going to say, is that guy somebody that we can invest in as a first round pick and we don't have to pay him thirty million dollars. Miles Garrett is going to cost you that and then so and you got to give up draft picks. So I think you got to be fair to the teams in a situation like this. First
of all, the GM is not going to tell you anything. Yeah, what do you guys plan on doing with the number one pick? Oh, I'm glad you asked. You know what we're taking Travis Hunter? Oh? I mean we could take Travis Hunter. Hey, how about And by the way, the NFL won't let you say what you're doing with the top pick, even though you may know who you're taking. Do you plan on playing Travis Hunter at defensive back
and or wide receiver? Well you can say, oh, I mean, if we take him, he's going to be a cornerback and we hope to use him as a wide receiver. But we're so hungry for football. It's only been a couple of weeks removed from the Super Bowl. We're already fixing. I need a fix. But it's still the combine and it takes up a week of our attention because there's nothing really else going on.
Yes, Marvin, and that's the beauty about being a sport fan, stuff like the combine in the NFL Draft. If you're a fan of a team that's bad, you're thinking to yourself, a art, we can get better next year. So there's always hope no matter how bad your team is.
Yeah, So for the past couple of months, the good teams have been playing, the bad teams are just sitting there going all right, let me look at mel Kiper's latest mock draft here and see who we're getting. Because there's hope. You have hope right now in late February, you have hope. Free agency coming up in a couple of weeks, the draft coming up, you've got hope. Even
off season, the schedule, you've got hope. And then all of a sudden reality sets in and it's middle of October and you go, damn, thought we were going to be good. No, you're the Jets. Yes, Paul.
As a Bear fan, my season is February, March, and April. That's when I get to talk and chop it up and see what they're doing. Then it goes away.
Yes, John, there's something about that fresh enthusiasm of a new head coach that doesn't have a record of any wins or losses just yet, where this is the time where you can get all excited about things until it starts going off the rail.
Well, it's a honeymoon. Oh she's wonderful. Oh I love her so much. Oh we were inseparable. We can't stand to be apart from one another. Then all of a sudden season starts and then all of a sudden things start to fall apart. All right, Seaton poll question today, what are we going to start out with?
Is the NFL combine still useful? Yes or no?
It is because of the medicals and the interviews, And I'm going off what you know. My source says that what he gets from being in those interviews when you get the medicals, now you see how hot, you know, tall somebody is, you know how much they weigh. He doesn't get caught up in the forty, but he does get He really focuses on the medical an He focuses on the interviewing process.
Are you a dog or a cat?
Ye? Yes, I've asked him. I said, do you ask stupid questions like that? And he goes no, because if I ask you if you were would you rather be a dog or a cat? I don't care. I just want to know are you a football player? That's that's the most important thing.
Are you a football player or a guy who plays football?
Andrews for football players here. I asked Andrew luck that I asked him, and you know what, he he had a long pause because I always felt that he was a guy who was really good at football.
Still pausing, still thinking, pondering, good question.
DP, Yeah, man, what else do you have there? See?
I think we're going to combine for our one. Well, there's another slight tweak on that, which is the NFL combine is great football filler or useless?
And I still watch, well, I don't watch as much as I once did, but it's only because I kind of figured out what I need to be aware of instead of, gosh, did you see that offensive lineman from Auburn? I don't know what it means. And there's gonna be a center, there'll be a guard, and there'll be a defensive tackle where we'll look back on the draft and you go, damn, that guy became an All Pro. But we don't care about that. I mean, we should care about it, because look at what the Eagles did with
a great offensive line and a great defensive line. But you know, the draft always, you know we're gonna talk about Travis Hunter, the quarterbacks, Ashton Genty, what the Cowboys do? Anybody trade up? Anybody trade down? What trades happened prior to Matthew Stafford, Kirk d Cousins, Sam Darnold. How do they affect the I mean, that's really what the presentation is going to be, at least that first that first night.
Remember a couple of years ago when Chefty breathlessly was trying to tell us that, you know, Aaron Rodgers was going to be traded, and you had all of this programming about Aaron. I was like, Aaron Rodgers, He's not going to be traded. But it was one of those where he had Adam I think had heard from somebody who had some information, and therefore, all of a sudden it became ESPN's programming. All it takes is one little
thing like Laramie Tunsel and changes a draft. You know, somebody's rising, somebody's falling, and if you're you know you're carrying the draft. So ESPN is looking for those stories. They don't want predictability. They want to have something where somebody goes, oh my god, mel, what's your thought? That's what they want. You don't want this to go where you go okay, and then okay, you want to the New York Jets have traded up. Yes, John, But.
That's part of the problem too. When we watch the combat, we get so reactionary in the moment. Just because someone runs a fast forty we already got them going to the Hall of Fame. Or someone gets their feet tied up, or they hit a cone by accident, that means they're gonna be a bus and they have no chance of having a great NFL career. That's what's silly, because we're so fixated on every little number that that's gonna determine their future in the pros.
Thank you, thank you, Jock, thank you.
Now we can put a bow on this segment. Yes, exactly, We've just tripped over the cone.
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Sayalo to Ryan Leaf, who joins us here in the Manta.
Hello, hell everybody again, here to get my car serviced. And thought I'd stop buy and just hang out, and then I get roped into being a broadcaster with you Okay, let's do it.
Well, you don't have to.
I mean, I know, but you're my friend.
Okay, got it.
I don't want to put you in.
Well I had luckily, I got the notes beforehand what they were, so I can okay, so I could be prepared and not just some you know Dunce who showed back up from the beach and said, oh yeah, I know what's going on in football.
Okay, yeah, Seton, you are the host of in or out? Okay, So what does that mean that I do right now?
Okay, I got you. Okay, let's see question number one. Miles Garrett will not be a Cleveland Brown next season. Are you in or out on that?
Uh? Todd?
Why don't we start with you?
I am in that he will not be a Cleveland Brown, New York.
In that he will not.
All right, Marvin, I am in in in in he'll be in Cleveland.
Oh so that means you're out, You're out, You're out?
Sure?
Okay, Dan, I am out. I think he'll be in Cleveland.
Yeah, okay, And Ryan, I am in. I believe.
Listening to the general manager Barry the other day really talk about it adamantly about how he wants them there, the culture and everything like that. There is going to be a team that actually overreaches with picks and everything that they can possibly get back from that debacle of Deshaun Watson in some way, shape or form and start building again. So I would suspect Miles Garrett will be out of Cleveland.
So I'm in on that.
Okay, all right, well let's see why don't we stick with Cleveland?
And there are many issues.
Deshaun Watson's football career is over.
Are you in or out on that? Todd In, I think he's done. Marvin In, he's out deep Pizzle In.
I'm in any as well, though I do think it should be specific around being a starter.
I do.
Think that someone out there may give him a shot to be a backup. That's the only thing that would I even got a chance of being a back.
You know, so you weren't accused of what he was. True, you did go to jail, but he hasn't gone to jail yet.
That's ironic.
Yes, Marvin DP, this is in or out. Ryan Leap has given us football analysis that's not what.
Yeah, there's an association that that could be paralleled in a way that went Why why.
Is that so? Uh? Next Seaton?
All right, next question, the Tennessee Titans should trade down and get picks. Inner out, Todd.
I am in on that.
I think they need to go get a bunch of picks, all.
Right, Marvin, I'm in they need a lot dp.
Best player in the draft is right there, most talented player in Travis Hunter. Go get him and don't worry about that side.
Of the field. Right.
That's interesting. I'm I'm traded. I'm I'm in on the trading down, but only trading down so far to get who I think the best player in this year's draft is, and that's Abdul Carter. I think he's an edge rusher that is in the vein of Micah Parsons who can make a real difference on that defense. But you have
to make sure you get him. So you go out and you dangle that first pick to somebody that is just freakishly living in Fomo and needs a quarterback or do something silly, but make sure you get Abdul Carter in the.
Picks that you need.
Let's see next question. I have no doubt that Shador Sanders will be a very good NFL quarterback, very good is an interesting choice of words, Todd.
I am out.
I am uncertain to thee how great he's gonna be. I hope he will be great, but uncertain.
So out, Marvin, imy, you have.
No doubt he will be a very good quarterback?
Sure, imy?
Okay, Dan, I'm out.
I mean there is only one answer. That's out, Marvin. Come on, I mean you don't know anything.
We have no way to know that.
You know what if he goes to Cleveland.
I was in. I thought Peyton Maney was going to be a Hall of Fame quarterback.
What about me?
Oh, I'm sorry? What did you think of me?
When I was coming out?
We played when we played in or out, and I said to you, Ryan Leaf will be a very good NFL quarterback.
Everybody was out on that. I think I think I think everybody was in on that. That's the reason why I went right. Yeah, So that's the whole point. That's the whole point is that no one knows, okay, how this is going to play out.
That's right. We were all in on Ryan being a very good quarterback. Yes, okay, you should have been out.
Dion Sanders will not allow his son to be drafted by the Browns.
In or out. Todd, I am in.
I think Dean will be very involved with where she door goes, and I don't think he wants him going to Cleveland.
Marvin, I'm with Todd completely.
Okay, Dan, I'm in, I'm out. I Uh, Dog doesn't have any leverage in this. The whoever wants to draft him is gonna draft him. You know, as much as he may believe he has it, he doesn't when it comes to this. Otherwise a lot of people would have done.
He's not.
He's not the Mannings.
I'm sorry Matthew Stafford should take less to finish his career with the Rams.
In or out.
Todd, I'm gonna be in on that. Stay with a really good team that can go places he doesn't need. He's making plenty of money. He can take a little discount and he'll still be fine financially.
Marvin. I mean, stay with a good team and stay in Los Angeles.
I'm in to a certain degree of how much are they going to pay you? I think I think you gotta maybe meet halfway, because it's weird that you get move on from Matthew Stafford and then you're gonna need a quarterback. The cow they're ready to win now that defense is young and good. You got Pooka Nakua, you're gonna get rid of Cooper Cup. You still have a
good running back. I don't know if it like you got a window here of a couple of years that you can You were a couple of plays away from going to the NFC Title Game, So I would figure out how to make Matthew Stafford work.
Not only going to the NFC Title Game but hosting it. That's a big deal and people forget that if it's not snowing, they probably don't fumble those two times. That's not much different football game against the Eagles, who would go on and dominate in the Super Bowl. So I'm I'm out on this one. He should be paid as a top five quarterback if that's what you expect him to be. What are the La Rams going to do without a quarterback? This was the guy they went after
and got to win a Super Bowl. So yeah, you have to find a way whether to meet in the middle, like Dan says, or just simply pay the guy because that's what it's worth. If it's a two year deal, these two years are the exact opportunity to win another championship.
All right, last question. If I was on the competition committee, I would vote to eliminate pushing ball carriers aka the tush push, the push tush, the brotherly shoved.
I am in, let's stop the touch push. Let them get in on their own that other players pushing or pulling them in.
Marvin, I mean, I hate that play, Dan, I'm out.
I mean.
Unless you, you know, kind of modify this, tweak it a little bit. It's a football play. Everybody everybody can run this same play. The Eagles just do it better than everybody else.
That's the best point.
I'm out on this.
It's a football play. It's the epitome of a football play. Get lower, get leverage, beat them. You can't do it, so you want to ban it. And the fact that it's Philadelphia is a big reason why to watching them hold the Lombardi Trophy and do what they do so well. You know, when when Jalen Hurts gets at the one inch yard line, the one yard line in any aspect of things, they're in for a touchdown period, you're getting seven.
So yeah, if I'm on the competition committee, I think that is The lamest thing that I could see is watch the NFL ban this next year.
All you have to do is take away the guy behind in a quarterback. I'm on repeat on this that you don't have that. If I just said the Eagles are gonna line up for a quarterback sneak with nobody behind Jalen Hurts pushing him, They're still going to be extremely successful. And then what are we going to eliminate the quarterback sneak?
That's quarterback sneak was so important for so many of us. Well Tom Brady, oh, he was so good at Tom Brady mastered that.
Mastered it.
I was very good at it. Not only that I was big, but I was able to get to the right gap so many of the times and made it so easy for me to do it. So I also wasn't afraid of you know.
I wasn't.
I didn't like I didn't mind the contact. Let's go get let's go get bloody, let's go get dirty a little bit here.
That's it. We've done it. That is in or L seeing. You did a wonderful job postings. Yeah, just in case if PAULI can't you know, he's not able to complete his duties that you will be here to be the host of ills huge shoes to killin or I'm glad I can step up. Yeah, well we'll take a break. How about a round of applause again for Ryan Leeft contested, Yeah, he did it, he did it.
I tried it.
Yeah Yeah.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan Patrick Show weekdays at nine am Eastern six am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio w APP.
We started the show talking about the coaches and gms at the Combine and they're there to answer questions, but really not answer the questions. They want to give you sort of the feeling that they answered the question. And I was watching yesterday and Judy Bautista, the senior national columnist and co host of The Insiders on NFL Network, did a great job. And she did a great job
because she kept it really simple. When you would have a coach who would talk about what they need to do next year, you know the Bengals, Zach Taylor telling telling everybody, hey, we got to get we can't have a slow start, and then you know, we've got to make sure we don't do that. And then I think Judy just said how well, and you could just see the look on his face like, wait a minute. We're
not supposed to ask tough questions like that. And I said to Fritzy, reach out to Judy because I appreciate that. It was a it was a right to the point question. Don't let him reload there. And I loved it. So thank you for doing that. Give us your sort of thought process of how you're trying to get something out of people who really don't want to give you something.
Well, I mean I really wanted to know the answer myself, like because we always talk about like in the case of the Bengals slow starts, like we talk about it like I feel like every year, and so I was like, how do you like you got to get over this, this is what's stopping you from getting there, And so I mean, why wouldn't you ask that question, like, well, what are you going to do? His credit, he answered
the question right. He said, they're looking at all aspects of the off season program and changing training camp and everything. So I give Zach a lot of credit for actually answering the question.
Now you were talking to not only Zach Taylor, Andy Reid, Omar Khan, Troy Vincent Rich McKay for the competition committee. We'll get to that the Tush push competition committee in a moment, But what is the number one overriding question aside from the tush push at the combine in your opinion, Well.
Aside from the rules stuff, I think, I mean, it's just the quarterback musical chairs. What's going to happen with Matthew Stafford? What about Aaron Rodgers? You know, what are they going to do with Sam Darnold in Minnesota? They going to franchise Tag and they got to trying to sign up. So I think just there's so many teams that need quarterbacks. There's just not that many of them. Especially there's not that many top, top level ones in the draft, So how are all of these veteran quarterbacks
going to move around? Kirk Cousins is another one that's really I think the dominant topic here.
If I'm a RAMS fan, how nervous should I be?
I think they still want Matthew Stafford. I think the question is can they come to an agreement on the money. There's no question there is interest in Stafford outside of Los Angeles, right, I Mean, there are again, so many teams that need quarterbacks, so there will be a market. The Rams ideally would like to keep them, but you know, the Rams are the Rams and Stafford are like a on different timelines. They have an otherwise very young roster
that is ahead of schedule. I mean they were ahead of schedule last season getting into the playoffs, and they've got this, you know, older, still very very good and productive quarterback, but they're just not aligned on the timeline. I still think he will end up staying in Los Angeles, but I feel less certain of that than I did, you know a week ago.
Yeh, Because we keep saying or I hear analyst saying, hey, a team that's ready to win now needs Matthew Stafford. I go, well, the Rams are ready to win now, so the Rams should acquire Matthew Stafford like I would pay. I would say, you know, it's not my money, but two years, one hundred million dollars or whatever, right, and you keep it friendly and keep him because you're a few plays away from being in the NFC title game when you would have hosted the title game.
Yeah, there's no question that the Rams are a better team if Matthew Stafford is the quarterback next year than if they have practically anybody else that could conceivably be their quarterback next year if he goes, right, I mean, if he goes, who's their quarterback next year? Everybody keeps saying like, well, what about Aaron Rodgers. Well, respectfully, I'd rather have Matthew Stafford at this point. He's much better and he's been more productive recently, So I agree with you.
If I'm the Rams, you're looking for a quarterback like Matthew Stafford. On the other hand, are they looking at it a little bit more long term and saying, you know, the capital we could get back if we trade Matthew Stafford to you know, the Raiders or the Giants or whatever team comes up. Does that help us then fuel the pipeline for years and years to come. We'll see, you know.
It's strange when the Colts talked about there's an open competition quarterback and the first thing I thought of, Judy, was Matthew Stafford play half the season, half your games indoors. That's a team that won eight games, they've all they've taken a chance on Matt Ryan and Philip Rivers before he's he's a better version of those quarterbacks, it feels like and he might be worth two wins to get
you into the to the playoffs. I don't know if they've officially bailed on Anthony Richardson, but the fact that it's an open competition, is it truly an open competition with the Colts, right? I?
That is my question, because who is coming in to provide that open competition with Anthony Richardson. They want it to work with him. He was their draft pick, so they are invested in him. Many people in that building are invested in him making it. And so I do wonder, you know, when you look out there again, who are they going to bring in as the veteran they had Joe Flapoli, who are they bringing in who is a
real competitor to Anthony Richardson. And keeping in mind that ultimately, yes, maybe it's an open competition, but what they really want is to spur Anthony Richardson to raise his level. So again, who do you bring in who can spur Anthony Richardson to raise's level? But not really supplaned to Anthony richards In big picture.
We're talking to Judy Bautista, NFL Network co host of the insiders on NFL Network how awkward is the situation asking the Ravens about Justin Tucker.
Yeah, I have to say, Eric DaCosta, the general manager, said more than I expected. I thought they would defer completely to the NFL. You know, there's an NFL investigation, so we're not going to say anything. It's an active investigation. We're not going to say anything. And for him to say the number of allegations is concerning was frankly further than I expected him to go. They obviously know that those questions are coming, so I don't feel particularly bad
for them that they're getting questioned about it. It is, you know, it's troubling because it just came out of nowhere, it feels like, and now it has ballooned. The number of allegations just is growing and growing and growing, and again the NFL is investigating. And I mean, as a football player, he is an all time great, maybe the greatest kicker in the game ever. But certainly this has
cast a pall over the Ravens. It sort of makes you go back and think, like when he was struggling on the field in the middle of the season, like is this why you know we don't know the answer to that, but you do wonder what the Ravens are going to do because he was struggling at kicking. Now there's this. Does this give them the opening to move on from him? Do they stick with him? Do they think that this will all be resolved and that will
also resolve his struggles on the field. Very interesting, and again I thought Eric Depasta went further than I ever expected them, even just admitting that it's concerning.
This isn't justin Tucker from five years ago where he was not expendable. He's expendable now. And the fact that John Harbaugh said, hey, we're looking at kickers should tell you everything about this. It got to you know, recently where it was uncomfortable awkward. You're trying to ask the Browns about Deshaun Watson. I don't even know if that's a topic anymore with the Cleveland Browns.
It's not really a topic. He tours achilles, as you know, and then he retore it, you know, in the middle of his rehab process, so that essentially, we think keeps him out for this season. It's not really a topic. They picked very high in the draft, number two. They are they need a quarterback. Whether they take a quarterback at number two is a different question, or get one in free agency. But it's impossible to imagine that Deshaun
Watson will play again for the Cleveland Browns. And I think a bigger question is, like, then what happens, you know, the Browns are even if he stays on roster, If the Browns move on from him, who takes him on? If anybody?
Is there a place in the league for Russell Wilson as a starter?
I think so, And it could still be Pittsburgh. I think so. Omar Khan, the general manager, told me yesterday that, you know, first of all, they don't have a quarterback under contract right now, so everything's on the table for them. They got to get one, they got to get two, but he said their preference is to have it be one of those two guys, Russell Wilson of Justin Fields.
And so, you know, there was a lot of sentiment for Justin Fields coming at a training camp early in the season, even when Mike Tomlin made the switch and it paid off initially, you know, and that the Steelers really took off when they went to Russell Wilson. There was still a great deal of centiment that Justin Fields hasn't yet reached his ceiling. So I do think there is a role for Russell Wilson somewhere, and it may very well be in Pittsburgh. Again.
All right, Titian Committee, you're well versed with this of what's the process? If you know, the Green Bay Packers bring it to the competition committee, I'm guessing to say, we want to outlaw the Toush push. So what's the process now?
So teams can submit rules proposals and those go before the owners. The competition committee can sort of endorse it, can put their weight behind it. No pun intended in the case of the Tush push, but they you know, so they can sort of say to the owners, yeah, like we agree with this, we think you should go. Here's the thing about that play. There is no real injury data on it, which is a good thing. There haven't been injuries. It's just not run that often, so
there's not a wealth of injury data on it. If there were serious injuries happening on that play, there's no question the league would say we got to get this play out of the game, the same way as you've seen other plays get removed from the game because of injuries. So if quarterbacks were getting blown up every time they run this play and you know, dislocated shoulders, you would certainly see a push from the league to get it
out of the game. Right now, I think it's sort of more based on the possibility that there could be injuries. And there's also just people who feel like this doesn't really look like a football play. Maybe it looks too much like rugby. Why are we letting, you know, the quarterback get pushed from behind? We don't really let that happen. So it's more sort of based on nebulous stuff rather than like hard and fast data. You need twenty four
votes from ownership to change rules. That as a high bar for everything, even things that you think are no brainer. Rules changes twenty four votes to get them agree on anything as hard. So I think that's a very high bar.
I'd be surprised if they fan it. And there's also the sentiment from a lot of teams that it's just like, well stop it, like if you want to end this play, figure out how to stop it, and I the darkness in me says like, if you want to see this play go away, like the first time a quarterback gets really injured on that play, that will be the end of that play.
Yeah.
I don't understand why the NFL brought back that you could push somebody from behind what in two thousand and five. I don't know what the impetus was for that.
I don't either. You're not You're also not allowed to pull somebody right, like if running back has stopped, you can't grab his jersey by the chest and pull him over the goal line. Look, I mean, the Eagles found found a niche in the rules that they could exploit, and they're outstanding at it. And let's be honest, part of the reason the teams want to get rid of it is a their defenses can stop it and be
their offenses are not adept at running it themselves. You know, if more teams were good at this, I'd bet you would not see more teams calling for it to go. But I think when you talk to defensive coaches, a lot of them are just like, listen, we got to figure out a way to stop it.
Yeah, but Judy, if the Eagles weren't a good team and they were the Titans, nobody would care about this play.
That is correct. The fact that it is so effective and that they are scoring so many touchdowns on it is why it has attracted attention. And again, if other teams could do it as successfully as they do it, I don't think you would you know, you'd be hearing this.
If the Buffalo Bills could run it as successfully, they would have played in the super Bowl.
And the reason other teams don't do it is because they don't practice it the way the Eagles do. First of all, the Eagles have unique personnel, right, I mean, you know, Jalen Heards squats whatever he spot six hundred punds something ridiculous, so he is uniquely built to execute this. They have linemen who are outstanding, they have a gray offensive line, and they practice this, right, I mean, this
is a play that they run, so you know. I again, if other teams were as successful, I don't think you would hear this. You know, Hugh and cry about we got to get rid of it. And certainly if defenses could were stopping it, nobody would care.
If I gave you over under three and a half quarterbacks first round, you would take the.
Probably the under, I guess, which is so low for you know, for a draft. But you know the too cam Ward and Schadur Sanders are. So when you talk to people who know this much better than I do, for sure, there's so far ahead. Cam Ward seems to be ahead of everybody right now. I don't know how many more you're going to get in the first round. But again, there are so many teams that are desperate.
I think we'll probably have a better sense after the pro days, when we, you know, when we see these guys throw to familiar targets and you can really see how they are. And certainly after free agency, when we see, you know, if the quarterback veteran market gets scrambled, then see who's left. But I don't, you know, I don't have a great feel about this class beyond those two.
Is Tom Brady going to be at the combine?
I have not seen him. He is very from everything everybody has said. He's very involved though in Raiders' decision making, which is exactly what Mark Davis said he wanted when he brought him on as a minority owner, that he wanted him involved in decision, especially selecting the next quarterback. So I don't know if Brady's actually going to be up in the stands with his binoculars, you know, watching
the bench press. I don't know if we're going that far, but certainly his voice is loud in that building.
Yeah, but I would think the interviewing process, you know, being involved in that, I don't know.
I would bet when they bring in the kids for the thirty visits kids guys, you know that for the visits to the building, I would bet that Tom Brady will take part in some way in those meetings.
Do you think Brady will still be the best quarterback in Las Vegas this season? Yes, yes, I still.
I mean I don't. I'm happy he's you know that he's happy in retirement and he's doing well. But like you know, if Brady put on a uniform right now, would you bet against him? I would not.
I would not. Judy, keep asking how and why and just simple questions. One word great, but thank you for joining us.
Thank you, Dan, my pleasure.
That's a Judy Batista, senior national columnist, co host of the Insiders on NFL Network.