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You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox Sports Radio Chris.

Sims Pro Football Talk Live co host, and you can see him on Football Night in America. Give me the head scratcher there, of all the moves, all the different signings, Well.

Uh okay, I mean, I don't know if I got head scratchers.

I got one that surprised me.

I think the one that surprises me, maybe more than any is I did not think I would be sitting here Tuesday, after the first day of free agency uttering the words j C. Horn highest paid dB in NFL history. Right, that one was a little surprising to me.

Good player.

I get that, been injured a lot during his career. I know they need good defensive players there in Carolina. That was an issue, right, But they're paying him like he's Pat certain or Sauce Gardner, and he's certainly not that and hasn't been able to stay in the field that way.

That to me was a surprising one.

Again, I'm never gonna get mad at a team for signing a guy they like, they drafted, they see potential in. But I didn't think, again, it was gonna to be the highest paid dB in the history of football that was that was surprising, and a lot.

Of attention goes to the quarterbacks, and rightfully so, but this feels like this is the stock up on offensive and defensive lineman where it's not going to get headlines, but it's going to win you games. It's going to get you into the playoffs, it's going to help somebody win a super Bowl? Is there?

That's right?

Yeah? But is there a move that was let's non skill level that you would go, wow, that's a big upgrade or that that'll be a big difference for this team.

Well, there's two teams that jump out and they have a number of moves, right and the one you were kind of you were just making fun of a little bit, right with Milton Williams.

But again, Dan, it's like, the.

First thing I gotta say is this is how good the Eagles are. That they're an all star team. This as good of a team as we've seen in a long, long time. Right, They're so good they stashed a guy that were paying seventeen million dollars a year, was the top free agent free agent pass rusher in last year's draft, and they said just sit on the bench.

We're we could just we'll keep you there.

So I knew and thought all along and said this yesterday that Milton Williams between the Cardinals and Jonathan Geddon who was in Philadelphia.

Of course Carolina got involved. That was a big deal.

But further along with what they did there in New England, not only the Milton Williams trade, but to get carl are signing.

Get to get Carlton Davis, who is still.

A damn good corner, and now you got opposite of him, Christian Gonzalees. So you got two guys on the outside that can shut people down. And Harold Landry, who vrabel had history within Tennessee, is.

Still a really really good football player.

Right.

So I look at some of those moves and even the Morgan Moses move offensive tackle as going wow, like you're saying in the trenches, quality signings there. The Patriots certainly improved their team in a big way yesterday. Them and the Bears, I thought, really were the ones that jumped out to me more than others.

Dan.

If you're Aaron Rodgers and you have your choice of the into the Steelers, yeah, it's it's Steelers.

It is us.

It's the Steelers are at least or Mike Tomlins on more solid ground I believe than you know, Brian Dabull or Joe Shane. Right, So there's that aspect. You certainly can look at the Steelers and go, wait, this is a team that's been in the playoffs.

They get to the playoffs.

Yeah, they're one and done, right, but uh, they're doing some things a little differently there. They're making some drastic moves. What they traded for DK Metcalf and paid them all this money. They usually don't do that type of stuff. We know that their defense, they got some disruptors and some playmakers there.

I think that one there.

You know, if it's apples to apples, there's no doubt the Pittsburgh Steelers would be the team for Aaron Rodgers.

That means Russell Wilson to the Giants.

I don't know what it means for the Giants. That doesn't excite me very much. See the other thing that I think we're seeing going on right here, you know, good players in free agency, all the movement the free agent player there wasn't a big time market this year, right, or at least high end players. So we saw a lot of guys get re signed at the last second, trades like DK Metcalf and some other ones out there.

I like him, but I don't know if I love him right that.

That's the feeling I'm getting, at least by the signals out there.

So yeah, the Giants, the options are limited.

I don't know what they do there, but it seems like we're getting to the spot here where there'll be more and more pressure on them to take a quarterback at number three.

You just think cam Ward is the only guy who grades out to maybe be a starter right away.

Cam Ward is.

I haven't come out with my rankings yet, but I've said this on my pot He's definitely the number one quarterback.

That's not debatable.

Right.

This will be a year where I have a hard time thinking all thirty two teams will be in consensus that that is the number one guy is worthy of being the number one pick. Cam Ward, to me, would be in the conversation with Caleb Williams and Jayden Daniels as the top quarterbacks in last year's draft. I think he's worthy of that. I had Bo Nick's number three.

So yeah, I look at it that way.

And then where I look at like Shador Sanders and Jackson Dart, I feel like they would have been towards the bottom of last year's list. But still I look at Shador Standers and still goes starting caliber stuff.

First rounder.

I don't love all the crap he's getting, you know, in Place is certainly not and there's a lot to like about his film.

The Jets Getting justin Fields. Yeah, holds your excitement.

Well.

I like the I like the move right because he at least is going to go out. You know, if he stays healthy, he at least can make some plays. It's he can be interesting there. I think your expect level is greatly reduced because it's justin fields, and that's right, and maybe you can get eight or nine win like maybe best case scenario, maybe Rogers I you know, we thought they could go to the Super Bowl.

I hear you, and I think you know, one on top of that, you give you get justin fields that type of contract what he got, that doesn't take you out of the market for If Shador Sanders is there for you to pick right and you want to take it, you're now we're not going to be like Kirk Cousins Michael Pennox and be like what why did they pay him one hundred and fifty million dollars And now they're drafting the number seven quarterback That makes no sense. So

Chris Sims Pro Football Talk Live co host also unbuttoned the Chris Sims podcast and a contributor to Football Night in America. Would you rather have Sam Darnold or Geno Smith?

I would take Gino, all right, I would take Gino. Yeah, I'm a Gino fan. I like Sam Darnold now, and I mean it's it's close, right, it's close. But I would take Gino. But also within that, Okay, if you told me, wait, you can get Sam Donald for a little less money and you can get a third round pick, I might.

Go, well, I don't know, maybe I will tip.

The scales swords Sam Donald then a little bit, and I think that's what Seattle looked at it, like let alone. I think Seattle's a little like, Hey, we know Gino was in the Quarterback of the future. We know that, and we're not necessarily Sam Donald is either, but we like him. And I think the biggest thing here too, Dan is Clint Kobiak. He had a full year right with Sam Donald when he was in New Orleans, I mean San Francisco, So he knows what he's all about.

It's kind of interesting. Slash may be sad to look at what happened to the Niners, like what could have been Now we talk about windows of opportunity. You're good friends with the head coach of the Niners that they're saying goodbye to good players. Still have some headliners there, But what's the future the immediate future of the Niners.

I'm glad to see they're doing it right. You got to you gotta take a step back or rip the band aid off every now and then and start new, or take a step back to get two or three steps forward.

And I think that's where they are.

They couldn't go on with the current rate of what they were doing right, I've made I've had a lot of fun with this on my pod and with Florio on PFT. I mean, just think about it. I mean, their roster, the amount of money they have spent, the people they have on there, the high end guys, how can you how can that be sustainable? They have a top five paid receiver in football, and they had Deebo Samuel, which was you know up there. They have a top

Two Super Bowls, it's over. They're they're starting a new era.

There around of applause for Chris Simms. That's what they call those sims isms. I know you don't watch my Sims show all that much, but I seem to combine and confuse a lot of sayings. Right if you read between the tea leaves, that's a pretty good one on my podcast or my show a lot of the time.

Right, I'm famous for that.

Davante Adams to the Rams. But let me talk about Cooper Cup's market, because they're it looks like they're going to release him. Uh Is he a third receiver for somebody? Now?

I think that's what it is, right. I don't like saying that. I like Cooper Cup. He's still got gas in the tank. But I mean he's the number two receiver with the Rams and they don't want him, and they don't have many receivers, so I think, doesn't that tell you something.

Well, they don't want to invent that price?

Well, they exactly right, but yet they brought somebody else in for the same price to take his spot, right or a little bit more?

Well, who would you rather have, Davante Adams Orpah.

Devonte Adams? I would Cooper Cup.

I think a little bit between the injuries, right, getting up there in age not separating quite the same way. I think the perfect world for him is to be, yeah, you know a two really slash three where he could go and be the slot guy, right, he doesn't have to get outside and beat the top corners in football and Manda man Reid coverages run great routes tough over the middle. That's where it makes sense for Cooper Cup. But no, certainly I would take Devonte Adams over him right now.

And Cooper Cup will end up with eighty catches with the Chiefs necks.

Well, it could be exactly right, exactly right.

He'll find a spot where a team values that slot receiver who is smart and runs option routes the right way. And I wouldn't be shocked to see him have a little second wind of his career like we saw Adam Feln when he went from Minnesota to Carolina, who still looks pretty damn good.

Tom Brady, you think pulled the trigger on the Geno Smith deal.

I think he gives him the final vote of confidence one. Hey, Pete Carroll right, he's got history with Gino Smith, so he likes that. But I think I think where I and again this I kind of tweeted this out on Friday night or whatever night it went down that I think this was a look of Tom Brady going on. I don't know if we want other quarterbacks not named

I certainly think Tom Brady had a saying that, no question.

Yeah, And if I look at this from ten thousand feet, it feels like Brady says, I need somebody that I can at least show up every Sunday and trust that he'll go out right and he'll play quality football. He also has Rock Bowers. If they go after Ashton Genty and you got Max Crosby, okay, now you have some entertainment here. Now you at least can be competitive in your own division with those other quarterbacks. And if you've got Schudor Sanders, I don't think he was going to

That's right. Let alone. The head coach knows him right, Yeah, so that's good. That's a good thing.

The head coach, I doubt wants a rookie quarterback, right Pete Carroll knows he's not there for seven years. He's probably going damn. I might got two three fourth the most, So I need somebody that can hit the ground running doing all that. And then I think, yes, Brady's seeing it like you're saying, or like I'm saying, he's going, damn this guy. Hey, he'll push the ball down the field.

Damn.

He moves better than people realize. Yeah, he's got a little experience. He sees the field and damn, his arm's powerful.

He can he can.

Be sexy and exciting that way. And why we do that and all the things you mentioned. Ad buys Brady time and the team time to figure out what they want to do big picture, long term for the quarterback, because eventually Brady's gonna figure it out as long as they're in a position to where they can get a quarterback that makes sense. I mean, come on, Brady knows

Have you hung out with Brady socially?

Not really hung out? No? No, not really?

When New England.

Yeah, I was around a lot and around him, and you know, I had to hand them stuff all the time, and you know, I was always handing them papers and at the time I was always like, hey, Tom, we got to get like, we're wasting like half of the Brazilian and Giselle's home country rainforest with all this stuff we're printing out every day.

Let's save the world and go to like the tablet so the iPad of it. What was your next year it happened?

What was your job in New England?

Do whatever they say? Boy, that's what I loved. I mean, that's yeah. I was quality control.

I had some things involved in scouting, uh and whatever they yelled at me to do next, That's that was my job.

But how did it feel though? When Tom says, hey, oh, did you hear Tom's getting all the guys together and go out and have beers and then you weren't that far.

Then I wasn't invited right.

Well, one, he was like, what, he's not allowed out of his shackles, so they're not letting him out of his dungeon up there. But but no, of course that was a tough transition period.

In general.

I'm sitting there just getting done playing football, going, damn, I'm better than some of these guys in the league. I can't believe this right, and yeah, I'd seen him and some of the other guys of the team, like, yeah, I wish I could hang out with him. I wish I could go hang with Brady right now. I really love Tom Brady as a guy. I know I've been on him about to flight gate, There's no doubt about that, and I won't back down from that. But everything else

Hey, what is you about the flate that he did it and didn't admit me? Yeah, exactly, But you know what, it's a stupid rule.

Well it's not a stupid rule. I'll disagree with you there. Then then then let the kids. Then let my homes throw a college football and see what you think about that.

From his feet.

You get to you get the ball that you want, and then I get the ball that I want.

I know, but if you but because if you let me take air out of the football, my arm will go up exponentially and I'll be able to control it and doing things that I wouldn't be able to do if the ball was inflated properly.

It's the big deal.

We're giving you an advantage. I get an advantage, I get the ball that I want. We do this with kickers, why not with quarterbacks? It's silly.

Well, at some point there has to be a baseline for everybody has to do the same thing. So in basketball, do we want to some of the guys aren't shooting as good, should we tell them to lower the basket?

Or some of the guys don't run as fast? Should we tell some of the faster guys to slow down?

In the NFL, offense gets their own football. We're not talking about lowering a rim.

That's not No. I want something that's a It's a sport of.

Rules and what we do when we play with the ball that's the same size. What sport does that go to? Sound like old man baseballs? Hey use a metal baseball bat this time up? Who cares?

I mean, we'll let you use metal bats today to the US use.

Only two people who are affected by this, the quarterbacks. That's all a couple of psiys.

No, the quarterbacks, it does, and yes it would affect. It's gonna help. It's gonna help people who catch the ball.

It's gonna help the running backs and everybody else that has to grab the ball and not fumble the ball as much because it's.

Not properly inflated, so now you can squeeze it to death.

Yes, you you're like your old man.

I'm just the realist dude you've ever met. I'm just sorry. That's just the way it is.

Good to talk about.

No other than that. Brady's awesome. And and what Brady did show.

Us is that two weeks later in Super Bowl forty nine, he could throw lasers all over the field. And that's why I was mad at that, because I was like, you don't need that, you're the man, that's all.

That was my point.

You know, Aaron Rodgers over inflated footballs.

Hey listen, if you want to make it harder on yourself, go ahead. I mean no, he told me that he over inflated. Nobody got upset about because everybody would go, that's a disadvantage. Nobody in football would go put a bigger object in. It had to be to make it. It had to be an advantage for him to overinflate it. I mean, he must have just liked how it felt in his hand, right, that would be the big thing. But I don't think you're gonna find a common consensus

Thank you.

Chris.

All right, guys say it.

Chris Sims Pro Football Talk Live, co host Football Night in America. Look, Tom Lied, that's all. That's a silly rule.

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He's the head coach of the Auburn Tigers, his eleventh year there. He's Bruce Pearl. It was six years ago in Minneapolis. I had you in studio. You had your team in the Final four, and I said to Paulie I'm going to make Bruce Pearl cry that day, and you did shed a tear a light tier, but I got you to cry.

Hi Bruce, Hi Dan? Who are you?

I'm great. I'm not going to try to make you cry this time.

You know, of all your great accomplishments over the course of your career, I hope my shedding a teer isn't one of them.

It was just a goal to see if I could, you know, bring out that emotion. Because you're an emotional guy. You say you cry a lot. I don't know if you've cried the last two games that you love lost. You know, no offense here the timing of this, but you know, when's the last time you cried.

Let's see, I probably cried after we'd be Kentucky at RUP and won the championship. I'd say, I would say probably. You know, I'm pretty passionate. You talk about family, talk about the Lord, you know, talk about the blood, sweat and tears that go into all the things that it takes to win a championship. In other words, just like putting up with me and my expectations, my accountability, my

Uh, Princey, would you check and see if they're the other two coaches are Jewish? All right, thank you? Okay, So why'd you cry after you lost or one at Kentucky at rupp Arena.

Yeah, you know, I think just I guess the motion of it all the the the being being, you know, really really grateful. Dan. I think what we do as we work in this this this ministry, or in this thing about coaching, we are we are we are built to win and compete for championship. We really truly do. And at the end of the day, there was a championship that could be won. I didn't cry at the when we beat when we when we won the Maui Invitational. You know that that you know, that wasn't that wasn't

Who's the best player in college basketball this year?

Well, I think jan I Broom is that it should be the college player of the year because of all that he's accomplished and and and all that he's able to do for our team. Leads us and scoring and rebounding and assists and and and and obviously stepped up in the biggest games. I think Cooper Flag at Duke is going to be if he's not the first player drafted, is gonna be one of the top player drafted. And Cooper is an amazing player who plays so hard and

Okay, let's say you're coaching Cooper Flag yep, and you want him to come back for another year, but you want him to realize he wants to come back for another year, not you selfishly as a coach, how would you go about trying to convince Cooper Flag to stay one more year.

Well, first of all. I would only try to convince him to do it if I truly felt like it was in his best interests, not just in mind.

And now you have seen the Washington Wizard's roster, Bruce.

Yes, I have it. Here's the one factor that I would ask to consider him to consider Dan, you know this because you've been doing this a long time. It's not how much you make, it's how long you can make it. That's the truth. And so the question for Cooper Flagg would be what's the best position for you to be in for your second and your third contract?

He's only eighteen, that's right, crazy crazy.

That would be the only factor we're.

Talking to Bruce Pearl, Auburn head coach. SEC Conference tournament starts on Friday. We've talked about a variety of things. The NBA has, you know, face of the NBA. Could we get the non North America basketball players to play against the you know, US based players in the All Star Game? Like where do you see?

You know?

The globalization of basketball is the future in Europe and other countries more so than it is in the United States. If you consider I could probably give you seven or eight of the top ten players in the game and they're not from the United States.

Yeah, the game. I think the game is in great shape, Dan, in the sense that worldwide it's really really popular. And you're right, these international players, European players are playing the game better than our guys have. One of the factors has been just a skill level that they are brought up through a training program that isn't like high school, AAU college, so on and so forth. At the same time, your interest in our game and the college game has

But the talent level, I mean, they're young, they're you know these guys, I mean jokers, what thirty or you know, somewhere around there. But if you put in Giannis, you put in Embid and you put in Luca Shay Gilgis, you know from Canada, and maybe we go back to the dream team that the Dream Team in ninety two sort of you know, birth this, they spawned all of this. I'm just curious, does the does US basketball try to model itself after, you know, instead of this AAU and

Well, I think there are people that are in the professional basketball in world basketball that are studying this very factor right now. They're absolutely looking at it. You know. The ext explanation I can have for it is the age that they have these European kids starting to train

Okay, but what would you do with Shack if he was your center?

Oh, I'd find a way. I have. I am Jani broom right now, and and and and we're gonna find ways to get him inside and and and and and and and and run our offense accordingly. So oh no, no, you give me Shack. His big ass is going on the block, and good luck. The only way you're gonna stop him is to hackershack him.

Who's the best player you recruited didn't get? But the best player you you recruited?

Wow? Well, you know it's interesting. Aj Devansta was somebody that the kid, that young man is going to b yu. Uh. He grew up in Boston and actually grew up in Brockton, which is really a town outside of where I grew up. And we got in early on him and and uh, guy, he's got a great family, and and he he was one of the highest rated players I think I've ever you know, not not gotten. Uh. Anthony Edwards maybe in Atlanta would have been another one that that, you know,

Tom Izzo said, Chris Weber made him cry because he thought he was getting Chris Webber and then you lose him to Michigan. That's painful.

Oh yeah, no, no, it's that. That definitely is. I remember when Tom was an assistant for jud Heathcote and they were playing old Jennison field House, and so I don't know that Michigan State's program was in position when Chris Webber was coming out out of Country Day High School in UH in Detroit to pick Michigan State over uh Michigan, and tom Izzo hadn't quite done what he what he done.

Now, Yeah, but he still had the magic Johnson era.

That's great, and that's about I don't want to speak to Michigan basketball history Michigan State basketball history, but the perception of Michigan's program at that time was much stronger than Michigan State.

When where were you in your career when Burden magic arrived on the scene in college basketball.

I was just coming out of high school. I was just starting at Boston College for doctor Tom Davis, starting to be a manager and and work in the industry.

So you're a lifer. You're a lifer, aren't you.

I was at BC in nineteen seventy eight before the Big East was born. I saw Dave Gavitt, you get that thing started. Doctor Tom Davis in the job he did at Boston College goes way under the radar because of you know, Louis Carnoseca and John Thompson, really mess Amino, you know, just Jim Beaheim and and Yukon and all. And we were at BC kind of doing great. In those early early years of the Big East. They almost

Wow, who do you get mistaken for in public? Uh?

Sometimes uh, Lou Farigno, like the incredible, incredible, the Green Monster that back when I when I was a little bigger, not anymore. Every now and then Greg Brady remember Brady Bons, we had the afro a little bit of that. Hey hey, and a really good day thirty forty years ago.

Tom Jones, Oh yeah, yeah, yeah. Well, if women start throwing their underwear at you at an Auburn game, like you know, Tom Jones in I'm thinking a little bit of Jeff Garland from curb your enthusiasm, like Larry David's good buddy, like like a smaller verb maybe just the face, uh, and and your voice you could be you know, Jeff Garland.

I've gotten a lot, a lot great you know, coaches, we do agent Doggie.

Years, you know, are you okay? Coaching seems to be the fun easier part than the n I L and the recruiting.

Is that fair?

Yeah? Coaching because coaching is still you know, teaching and and and and and developing and and and the gym and the ball and and uh look I like N I L. Dan, because we're way overdue. Thank God for n I L. For you, for me, and and it would make this country great. And obviously the numbers that these kids are getting right now tells you how late the n C double A was. Yeah, recognizing the value of these student athletes. Now, listen, there's no right now,

Great to talk to you on the success. Hopefully you don't run into a Jewish head coach of the rest of the season. But thank you for joining us.

Always a pleasure, Dan, and thanks for not making me cry.

All right, this time that's Bruce Pearl Friday SEC Tournament. They will get underway. Opponent to be determined.

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.

Wapp Lewis Riddick for the Mothership ESPN College Football, NFL analyst and a former front office executive with the Eagles and Washington All right, instant replay came into our world on this day in nineteen eighty six. Has instant replay been good for sports or bad?

Look?

I think it's been both. And I know that sounded like a little bit of a cop out, right. I think you you want to maintain as much of the human element the game as possible. You don't want to slow it down too much. You don't want to have

That don't abide by the rules. So it's you're never then.

I don't think you're ever going to have like one hundred percent consensus of whether or not replay is good good the game or not, because as soon as you start there's too many replays, people start complaining about the fact that it's slowing down the game, And you know what, just let the ref ref And then as soon as ref's miss and as soon as the refs miss.

A call, it's like, which which league.

Do the ref suck more? Is it an NBA or is it the n Is it the script? Are these games rigged. Is Grogoral Goodell trying to protect Patrick Mahomes blah blah blah.

No one's ever happy. That's kind of like the world we live in right now.

Yeah, I was always bothered it came in as instant replay. Then they changed it to replay because it was an instant So that was one of my big problems. All right, let me you. You worked in two front offices. You worked with the Eagles in Washington. I'm going to put you in the Steelers' front office. Yeah, you decide who's going to be your quarterback between Russell Wilson Aaron Rodgers.

I would look, I would I would go with with Aaron because I said all along, I believe the organization needs him. He needs this kind of organization. I think at this point in his career. What's my rationale for that? Why do they need him? Pittsburgh needs to level up somehow.

Some way at quarterback. They just do. They have been stuck in this kind of like mid range, mid tier.

Mode of operating at that position and figured as though Michael Tomlin could coach his way around that the defense could create enough turnovers to get around that they could run the ball well enough to get around it. They could play renegade enough to where they would create some kind of magic in the stadium and that would be enough.

And it's not enough.

They've got to level up somehow, and that's either through veteran, the veteran market, or the draft where they're drafting right now. Is it possible for them to still get someone late in the first round that could wind up helping them at the position.

Yeah, I believe that there is.

But when we're just talking about free agency, Aaron levels up for them. He just does with his knowledge, which I would. I still think he has left in the gas tank as far as his ability to play the game and how he could help this offense, in particular the passing.

Game become more dynamic. He will need to abide by a.

Much more rigid structure in Pittsburgh and not think that he can come in there and bring in all of his buddies bringing got you there, and pick and pick his offensive coordinator and call the plays that he wants all the time and like basically run the show. He's not running the show and he doesn't really need to at this point, and I wouldn't. I would and trust him to do that anyway, and Mike's not gonna let him do that, and Arthur Smith's not gonna let him

He wants people to look at him. And Pittsburgh needs the level up.

So yeah, I think it's a I think it's a good combination on the surface. Now, we don't know how Mike feels about that, we don't know how Arthur Smith feels about that. We don't know how DK Metcalf and George Pickens are going to react Aaron Rodgers getting in their rear end about not doing things the right way. There's a lot of things that still would have to be worked out, but that's that's that's the same The

But then, does Russ in the Game of Musical Chairs end up with the Giants?

Probably? He probably does.

And you know what I think, Look, I think both of these guys at this point in time in their career are bridge players. It's just a matter of whether or not that's a one year bridge or a multiple year bridge.

In Pittsburgh, it could be a multiple year bridge for.

Aaron because they don't have a they're not really in position to get what we would term as a surefire long term solution given where they're where they're drafting. So he may be going into he can be possibly going into a situation there where he could extend this thing to two, maybe.

Three years, if he wanted to play that long.

If you're in if you're in New York, you know for sure, Russell Wilson, that being Russell Wilson, knows for sure that as soon as he walks in there, he's already on the clock. They're already thinking about what the next option is. Then it may be this year, who knows, but they may think, hey, you know what, we'll sit Pat, we'll play with Russ for a year, We'll draft Travis Spunter.

All the times, let's trade down.

And get more picks and build up the roster and then just plug in the quarterback like you need to pick one off of my grandma's cherry tree and plug him in there.

But that may be what they're thinking.

I don't know if I'm Joe Shane right now, though I'm Brian da Ball, I'm thinking I need to win some games, man, and I need to win them this year. So that's what makes this time of year so fun to see how these teams ultimately wind up constructing the roster, who they getting, and how it pans out.

In New York. There's gonna be no team you talk about more next year than the Giants, that's for sure.

And we have a bet on the show the uh will there be more running backs than quarterbacks? Taken in the first.

Guys talking about that? All right, that's a good one. What do you think I think it will be running backs?

Months ago of GM who I respect A Ton said, look, this is the best year I've seen for running backs since I've been a general manager.

He's been a general manager for a little bit.

Now, and he's someone who really does do a good job of evalue.

Waiting that position in particular. And I agree.

I've seen a bunch of these guys in person this year, and when you start watching the tape, you have guys who are big, strong, powerful dudes, and you've got some guys who are kind of like Jamier Gibbs. I don't want to say scout Back type dudes, but guys were real electric in terms of their ability to stop starting go seventy eighty on you.

And even the big dudes can do that. I mean, you look at a Marion Hampton, you start thinking Joe Mixon.

I mean you, I'm sitting there watching him and I'm going, damn, is that Joe Mixon in a North Carolina uniform? And then you look at Ashton and I'm telling you people, you know, people think I'm crazy.

I'm going, that's EMITTT. Smith with better speed. That's what it is. That's what that is.

Now watch Brashard Smith from SMU. I'm sitting there going if that ain't Engineer Gibbs, I don't know who is. There's all kinds man, there's all kinds and if you need, if you're if you need a back this year, I mean you may not take him in the top ten, top fifteen, although I think Ashton deserves to.

Go that high.

I think you will see this will be a heavy year for backs going in the first round, top of a second for sure, and once that run starts, there's gonna be people just picking them off, for sure.

Lewis Riddick part of ESPN's ongoing NFL free agent coverage. You can catch him with Adam Schefter and more today on ESPN from three until five. You're sold on cam Ward going as the number one, number one quarterback? Are you sold that Shador Sanders is a first round quarterback?

Yes?

I am top fifteen, he's a top half of the first round.

Okay, he's a top half.

But where where is this negativity coming from? And I like it's on the field and then a little bit off the field with how he interviewed with one coach at the combine. It feels like it was a smear campaign because once it happened that all of a sudden, it's boom, everybody kind of jumped on this.

Why of course, look they've been trying to people have been at this game, so to speak, of trying to talk certain prospects down for years.

Dion is a lightning rod. That's where it starts. It doesn't even start with Shador.

This is about.

This starts with his father and then it just trickles down to him, and it starts with his father. It's been that way since I played with Deon back in nineteen ninety two in Atlanta. People don't like flashy guys like that who can back it up.

They just don't. They don't like people who are strong, confident. You know.

It's funny, like we love it, but then with some people we don't love. With Dion, he's always been a polarizing player to the people who don't know him. If you know him personally, you would be like, I get it and I love it, Give me.

More of it. With Shador, he has some of his father in him. There's no question. How could he not. He's the man.

I mean, he's the man's son, and so a lot of it comes from who he is and what his last name is. Now, as far as him individually, why do they pick at him on the field.

Does he have cam Ward's arm?

No? Do you need cam Ward's arm? Do you need John Elway's arm? Do you need Josh Allen's arm? In order to play high level winning football in the NFL?

No, But at this time of.

Year we always fall back to those baseline, those baseline levels in terms of like evaluating quarterbacks and saying, well, if you don't have a rocket army, you can't play. If you don't run four four like Lamar and can create outside of structure and throw the ball and switch it to your left hand like Patrick Mahomes, you can't play.

You're either a Hall of Famer or you suck.

And that's what it always comes down to this time of your quarterbacks, there is no in between, and that quite honestly, I think that that discussion stems from the fact that I don't know if people really ever know what the hell they really think about quarterbacks because it's such a dependent position and it's so hard to get your arms around it.

Shador is very smart. He can process like hell.

He's a good leader, he's got good feet in the pocket, he throws a great ball, he has a lot of anticipation.

And he's tough as hell. He got the crap bait at him in at Colorado.

Ye, I was at games and calling games where I'm sitting there looking at Dion, who is like pleading with this son throw the ball away or pleading with officer coordinator, run the ball.

My son's getting murdered out here.

He'll be fine, They'll be just Daniel Jones just signed with the Colts.

Yeah.

Is he going in thinking he gets to compete for that job?

There's no question.

I mean, why else would you switch teams at this point considering what you have in Minnesota in terms of the weapons that they have, the coaching staff. And I'm not taking anything away from Shane Stichen because a lot of respect for shame. Daniel Jones is looking for an opportunity to really compete, to play, and you're not going to tell me otherwise that the people in Indianapolis didn't tell him that you are going to have a chance

If j JJ's n's fine, it's over.

That's why you went to Indy. And if I'm Anthony Richardson right now, what I'm really interested to see is how he responds Dan to this. How does he respond? It's gonna be I hate it for the kid. It's gonna be so hard for him to ever shake the stigma that's gonna follow him, the story that's gonna follow him because of that one decision he made down there in Houston.

How many years did you play defensive back?

Seven?

Okay, how many? Give me the number of quarterbacks that actually made you nervous. I don't want to stay scared.

You can say scared.

Who scared you? When you go, oh my god, we're playing him.

John Elway because he had TD with him, had Rod Smith, had Shannon Sharp, offensive line, had Tom Nalan, Mark Schlair, Dan Neil Tony Jones, and that that play action passing game was just so ridiculously good. That was a year the TD went for two thousand and it was just like, as a safety, I was like, I know, I got to get up here and support this run because when this guy starts going downhill, it's over, and these linemen

And I'm telling you, in mid play, you can tell I can tell you. You can already guess the words that were coming out of my mouth.

Oh oh yeah, all of them, f words everything.

The thing.

The only thing that saved me, honestly was Charles Woodson was the corner and he broke the play up and I remember jogging back to the huddle and I was like, and he was, hey, you know, but yeah, l Way, Marino, I got to play against Danny when he was when he had Mark Duper and Mark Clayton and Keith Jackson and those guys down in Miami.

He came out, first play of the game.

He comes out and he was standing there at the line and he looks at me and he winked, and I went, what.

Does that mean? Does he mean? Does that mean I found my guy?

What does that mean?

You know, hail to Pitt?

What does that mean?

Man? But yeah, those dudes were Steve.

Oh you know what I would be It would be disrespectful for me to dismiss Steve Young, Steve when he was when they were in San Francisco. I played against him when I was in when I was in Atlanta, and when I was in Cleveland. They had it rolling at that time, Dan, I mean they had it rolling. Steve was so mobile and so fast, and Brent Jones was so crafty, and they had Jerry and they had John Taylor and Ricky Waters and it.

Was just like, I mean, it was a come on, this isn't fair. It's not fair. So yeah, I got to play against some great ones, man.

I mean, so much respect for those guys where you literally were like I can't make a mistake.

I can't. And even if you and even if you were perfect, sometimes it just didn't matter.

Always great to spend time. I know it's a busy time for you, but thanks for carving out. Of course a few minutes, buddy always man.

Thanks