WEBVTT - #598 Packers Unscripted: Personality insight 0:00:00.520 --> 0:00:11.560 Hi, everybody. Welcome to another edition of Packers Unscripted from 0:00:11.560 --> 0:00:14.560 Packers dot Com. I am Mike Spofford, joined by my 0:00:14.600 --> 0:00:17.240 trusted colleague Weston had Coowits were coming to you hear 0:00:17.280 --> 0:00:20.079 from our studios at lambou Field. West were about a 0:00:20.120 --> 0:00:22.040 week into training camp and I know a lot of 0:00:22.079 --> 0:00:24.640 fans want to know what's going on with the position 0:00:24.720 --> 0:00:28.760 battles and competition and all that kind of stuff. The 0:00:28.800 --> 0:00:32.040 reality is this, the pads go on in training camp 0:00:32.080 --> 0:00:35.080 shortly after you and I get done taping us. There 0:00:35.080 --> 0:00:38.480 has not been a padded practice yet. So rather than 0:00:39.400 --> 0:00:44.120 pontificate on non padded practices, I thought we could actually 0:00:44.200 --> 0:00:48.720 focus this episode on some of the insight that we 0:00:48.760 --> 0:00:52.479 are getting into veteran players on this roster as they 0:00:52.479 --> 0:00:55.400 have come into the media auditorium to speak to the 0:00:55.440 --> 0:00:59.160 media at the podium for for an extended period of 0:00:59.160 --> 0:01:01.640 time over the last several days. I'm telling you, fans, 0:01:01.840 --> 0:01:03.720 if you haven't had a chance to go on Packers 0:01:03.760 --> 0:01:06.160 dot com and watch some of these press conferences, you 0:01:06.160 --> 0:01:09.800 will really get a feel for the personalities of some 0:01:09.920 --> 0:01:11.840 of these players. The players who have been with the 0:01:11.840 --> 0:01:15.440 Packers for several years now and I want to start 0:01:15.520 --> 0:01:20.160 with Marcedes Lewis West because his session with the media 0:01:20.280 --> 0:01:26.280 yesterday was um was as enlightening, as entertaining, as down 0:01:26.319 --> 0:01:30.000 to earth as maybe one that I have heard in 0:01:30.120 --> 0:01:33.200 quite some time. He is really he's not just a 0:01:33.240 --> 0:01:36.000 special football player and a special presence in that locker 0:01:36.080 --> 0:01:38.480 room for the Packers. He's a He's just a really 0:01:38.520 --> 0:01:40.880 really special human. I could sit and listen to him 0:01:40.880 --> 0:01:44.440 talk about football life and leadership all day long. Yeah. 0:01:44.480 --> 0:01:46.880 I think that was pretty much the sentiment of every 0:01:46.880 --> 0:01:49.520 reporter leaving the auditorium. I heard Jason will They say 0:01:49.560 --> 0:01:51.080 that as well as soon as he walked off the 0:01:51.120 --> 0:01:55.600 podium after an eighteen minute news conference on Monday. Listen. 0:01:55.640 --> 0:01:59.400 I touched on this an Insider Inbox on my Tuesday edition. 0:02:00.480 --> 0:02:03.320 That's him. That's the guy that came into the Packers 0:02:03.360 --> 0:02:05.400 locker room three years ago, and I think just sort 0:02:05.440 --> 0:02:09.040 of blew everybody away, earned the respect of Aaron Rodgers, 0:02:09.040 --> 0:02:11.720 a guy that you know is it's so funny for 0:02:12.160 --> 0:02:14.680 Louis saying over and over again he's not a rock guy. 0:02:14.760 --> 0:02:16.600 Even said I'm not somebody's gonna walk in locker and 0:02:16.639 --> 0:02:19.520 be like, ah, you know, like there can only be 0:02:19.560 --> 0:02:23.720 one Highlander. But the way he conducts himself, he's the 0:02:23.720 --> 0:02:26.600 guy given the pregame speeches after tough losses. He's a 0:02:26.600 --> 0:02:29.280 guy given the postgame speech to the locker room. From 0:02:29.280 --> 0:02:32.760 a player perspective, that's just the way this guy is built. 0:02:32.800 --> 0:02:36.880 But as you said, I really thoroughly enjoyed this transition 0:02:37.000 --> 0:02:41.040 back to having in person press conferences. Now it's still 0:02:41.080 --> 0:02:43.120 not quite the same as we're just all huddled around 0:02:43.120 --> 0:02:44.520 a guy just kind of being able to shoot the 0:02:44.520 --> 0:02:47.160 breeze a little bit, but it is a big step 0:02:47.200 --> 0:02:50.280 forward from Zoom. And as good as Louis was last 0:02:50.360 --> 0:02:52.160 year on zoom and he still was very thoughtful in 0:02:52.160 --> 0:02:56.240 that capacity, there's something about his energy and the way 0:02:56.280 --> 0:02:59.839 he conducts himself that it just it meshes well, uh, 0:03:00.240 --> 0:03:04.280 human interpersonal communication and just hearing a little bit you'll 0:03:04.320 --> 0:03:06.480 match and even asking that first question, why are you 0:03:06.520 --> 0:03:11.440 still here sixteen years of NFL football and seventeen regular 0:03:11.440 --> 0:03:13.320 season games? What keeps you coming back? And he told 0:03:13.320 --> 0:03:16.280 a really neat story about actually really a sad story 0:03:16.320 --> 0:03:18.959 and uplifting story, but about his mom, who gave birth 0:03:19.000 --> 0:03:22.040 to him at fifteen and seeing everything that she went 0:03:22.080 --> 0:03:24.320 through to help raise him, and how difficult that was, 0:03:24.360 --> 0:03:27.320 how nothing he could ever do touches that. Having that 0:03:27.400 --> 0:03:29.880 kind of foundation and that framework, I think that set 0:03:29.960 --> 0:03:35.200 him up for a really humble approach to professional football. 0:03:35.240 --> 0:03:37.040 When you're a first round pick at the tight end 0:03:37.080 --> 0:03:39.560 position in two thousand and six, that isn't always going 0:03:39.600 --> 0:03:42.600 to be a position of humility. But I think because 0:03:42.640 --> 0:03:45.720 of that base, it's allowed him to make adjustments throughout 0:03:45.720 --> 0:03:47.840 the course of his career. That's made it accepting of roles, 0:03:48.080 --> 0:03:50.640 and in this particular case, it's, as you know, the 0:03:50.680 --> 0:03:52.600 wise veteran on this ball club. Yeah, and I think 0:03:52.680 --> 0:03:55.760 it's not even just accepting of roles, but honestly like 0:03:55.880 --> 0:03:58.520 embracing whatever role that he has given because this is 0:03:58.560 --> 0:04:02.480 a guy we've seen him catch a couple of touchdown 0:04:02.560 --> 0:04:04.840 passes here and there. He does get involved in the 0:04:04.840 --> 0:04:09.480 passing game, but it's still very rarely. He he really 0:04:09.520 --> 0:04:12.760 has looked at as as that extra offensive lineman for 0:04:12.800 --> 0:04:15.560 a lot of the running packages. He does a lot 0:04:15.600 --> 0:04:18.719 of the dirty work, and he is counted on to 0:04:18.839 --> 0:04:21.919 have that presence in the locker room and especially within 0:04:23.160 --> 0:04:25.800 his own position group. You wrote it's a story on 0:04:25.839 --> 0:04:30.480 our website now that the relationship that's developed between Marcedes 0:04:30.560 --> 0:04:34.560 Lewis and and Robert Tonyan, you know, the mentor mentee, 0:04:35.560 --> 0:04:38.640 but something that you know. And and he's not gonna, 0:04:38.680 --> 0:04:40.720 as you said, he's not the U raw ra guy. 0:04:40.839 --> 0:04:42.599 He's not going to be running out on the field 0:04:42.600 --> 0:04:45.200 and slapping Robert Tonyan on the rear end after a 0:04:45.680 --> 0:04:48.200 touchdown catch or something. But he takes a lot of 0:04:48.240 --> 0:04:53.240 pride in what Tonyan has accomplished because Tonyon is a 0:04:53.240 --> 0:04:56.520 guy who has been in his ear, you know, practically 0:04:56.560 --> 0:04:59.279 from day one, been in his hip pocket to try 0:04:59.320 --> 0:05:02.240 to learn to absorbed, to take in everything he can 0:05:02.279 --> 0:05:05.640 about all of the the different facets of the tight 0:05:05.720 --> 0:05:08.400 end position and how to become a complete pro at 0:05:08.440 --> 0:05:11.880 that position. And you couldn't ask for somebody better than 0:05:11.920 --> 0:05:15.160 Marcedes Lewis to impart that wisdom because he does it. 0:05:15.320 --> 0:05:19.799 He does it so willingly and uh and so enthusiastically 0:05:19.880 --> 0:05:22.080 to those guys who are who are asking for Yeah, 0:05:22.120 --> 0:05:24.800 and naturally, you know it's not something that's forced. It's 0:05:24.839 --> 0:05:27.320 something you can tell that he enjoys. And I remember 0:05:27.360 --> 0:05:29.680 sitting down with Tony in back when we used to 0:05:29.720 --> 0:05:31.200 be able to be in the locker room in two 0:05:31.200 --> 0:05:33.560 thousand and eighteen. It was his first training camp when 0:05:33.560 --> 0:05:35.719 he was trying a sort of a long shot to 0:05:35.800 --> 0:05:37.920 make the roster as a number three or number four 0:05:38.000 --> 0:05:41.440 tight end. And I remember him talking about what it's 0:05:41.480 --> 0:05:44.800 been like working with Jimmy Graham in Mercedes Lewis at 0:05:44.800 --> 0:05:46.680 the time, Graham he was working with one of the 0:05:46.680 --> 0:05:50.320 best pass catching tight ends in NFL history. And Lewis, 0:05:50.320 --> 0:05:52.400 who pound for pound for what he does and the 0:05:52.800 --> 0:05:54.960 job that he feels, one of the most well rounded 0:05:55.080 --> 0:05:59.719 tight ends in the modern era. And and he hasn't 0:06:00.040 --> 0:06:05.039 change that perspective. He still enjoys seeking information and Louis 0:06:05.080 --> 0:06:06.640 even touched on it. I mean him going to the 0:06:06.640 --> 0:06:09.479 tight end you thing that Kittle and and Toungya and 0:06:09.520 --> 0:06:12.120 all these tight ends were putting on this offseason in Nashville. 0:06:12.600 --> 0:06:15.400 He enjoyed going there and speaking for twenty minutes because 0:06:15.400 --> 0:06:17.200 the position he plays, the tight end, is one that's 0:06:17.240 --> 0:06:20.559 long been disrespected in the National Football League. The last 0:06:20.600 --> 0:06:23.880 thought I had is as Lewis walked off the podium, 0:06:23.920 --> 0:06:27.159 and this is no disrespect to anybody, but something crossed 0:06:27.200 --> 0:06:30.640 my mind. I thought to myself, how did the Jacksonville Jaguars. Ever, 0:06:30.720 --> 0:06:33.560 let this guy go. I don't care if your record 0:06:33.640 --> 0:06:37.440 is one in fifteen, fifteen and one. You want to 0:06:37.440 --> 0:06:39.840 have Mercedes Lewis in your locker room now. It ended 0:06:39.880 --> 0:06:41.680 up being good for Louis because it gave him a 0:06:41.720 --> 0:06:43.800 chance to have a real legitimate shot here getting that 0:06:43.839 --> 0:06:46.359 Super Bowl ring that's alluded him. But when you have 0:06:46.440 --> 0:06:49.440 a specimen, a human being, a guy that thinks the 0:06:49.440 --> 0:06:52.160 way that Lewis thinks, that that's going to make the 0:06:52.200 --> 0:06:54.159 rest of your football team better. And that's why Lewis, 0:06:54.200 --> 0:06:56.839 at thirty seven years old, he said, the athletic ability 0:06:56.920 --> 0:07:01.400 is gonna wane, it just happens. But his art, his size, 0:07:01.720 --> 0:07:04.920 in his approach to the game that never stops. Yeah, 0:07:04.920 --> 0:07:06.960 and it's and it's second and none quite frankly, and 0:07:07.000 --> 0:07:11.000 a lot of those categories um quickly with serious x M. 0:07:11.120 --> 0:07:13.880 NFL Radio delivers hard hitting analysis and up to the 0:07:13.880 --> 0:07:18.920 minute NFL news that true football fanatics need. Seven three 0:07:19.040 --> 0:07:22.160 sixty five. Well, another veteran player we heard from yesterday, 0:07:22.200 --> 0:07:26.400 and I really enjoyed getting his perspective. And I'm talking 0:07:26.400 --> 0:07:30.640 about Preston Smith because you know, his first year here 0:07:30.800 --> 0:07:33.880 and even a good chunk of last year. Most of 0:07:33.920 --> 0:07:37.320 what we got from Preston media wise was always, you know, 0:07:37.560 --> 0:07:40.640 Preston and Sadarius doing their media thing together. They're really 0:07:40.680 --> 0:07:42.440 good friends. They have a lot of fun with it. 0:07:42.840 --> 0:07:46.440 That's all fine and good. Zadarius Smith currently not practicing. 0:07:46.440 --> 0:07:52.080 He's on the NFI list. Preston spoke with the media 0:07:52.200 --> 0:07:55.320 at at the podium, and you know, he didn't he 0:07:55.360 --> 0:07:58.520 didn't shy away at all from the questions about, you know, 0:07:58.560 --> 0:08:01.240 the lack of productivity sast year. His sacks went from 0:08:01.280 --> 0:08:03.960 he had twelve and twenty nineteen a couple more in 0:08:04.000 --> 0:08:06.160 the playoffs that year too, then he only had four 0:08:06.760 --> 0:08:10.080 last season. He did talk about the fact that, yeah, 0:08:10.120 --> 0:08:12.440 his role changed. Kyler Facrol did a lot of the 0:08:12.520 --> 0:08:15.440 dropping into coverage and whatnot. In twenty nineteen, he was gone. 0:08:15.480 --> 0:08:18.800 He left as a free agent, so in Preston Smith 0:08:18.920 --> 0:08:20.920 was the best guy they had at that position to 0:08:21.000 --> 0:08:24.400 handle some of that. So pass rushing opportunities dwindled. But 0:08:25.640 --> 0:08:28.240 he also said, I don't want to have the same 0:08:28.280 --> 0:08:31.760 season I had last year. He acknowledged that he didn't 0:08:31.760 --> 0:08:34.880 play as well. Um, he knows he can play better. 0:08:34.960 --> 0:08:37.480 He knows he can get back to the form of 0:08:37.520 --> 0:08:41.720 twenty nineteen, and um, I'll just say this was you know, 0:08:42.040 --> 0:08:45.040 I say it a lot of insider inbox. You never 0:08:45.320 --> 0:08:51.520 underestimate a motivated professional athlete, and Preston Smith looks to 0:08:51.600 --> 0:08:54.640 me like a motivated professional athlete. He very much does. 0:08:54.679 --> 0:08:58.120 And what's interesting, I don't know if it's because it's 0:08:58.120 --> 0:09:00.160 been so long since a lot of these guys have 0:09:00.280 --> 0:09:02.520 had face to face interaction with the media, or the 0:09:02.520 --> 0:09:04.200 fact that you know, they're not being asked to do 0:09:04.240 --> 0:09:06.920 interviews every day, but we've been on the string here 0:09:06.920 --> 0:09:09.719 of like guys having all time press conferences like the 0:09:09.800 --> 0:09:12.079 last three or four days. JayR Alexander had one too 0:09:12.080 --> 0:09:14.520 at the end of last week. In my opinion, that 0:09:14.600 --> 0:09:17.160 was Preston Smith's best press conference as a member of 0:09:17.160 --> 0:09:19.680 the Green Bay Packers. Maybe not the most entertaining, but 0:09:19.760 --> 0:09:22.640 I mean in terms of the what came out of it, Yeah, 0:09:22.640 --> 0:09:25.040 the insight that you get. I mean Randall Cobbs last 0:09:25.040 --> 0:09:27.160 week when he was brought back, same type of thing, 0:09:27.200 --> 0:09:28.920 Which is why I wanted to talk about these in 0:09:28.920 --> 0:09:31.880 the show today because they really, they really do. They 0:09:31.920 --> 0:09:34.880 really are giving us members of the media, reporters everybody 0:09:34.880 --> 0:09:37.800 who's listening, the fans who watched the press conferences on 0:09:37.840 --> 0:09:40.640 the website, you really do get a better feel for 0:09:40.679 --> 0:09:43.360 the personalities of these players. And I want to touch 0:09:43.360 --> 0:09:45.400 really quickly on the Kyler facul thing because I know 0:09:45.480 --> 0:09:47.600 some people are going to hear Preston talk about that 0:09:47.640 --> 0:09:50.000 and be like, Oh, that's just an excuse whatever. Go 0:09:50.160 --> 0:09:53.160 back to two thousand and nineteen, Go back to those 0:09:53.160 --> 0:09:55.880 press conferences with the Smith bros. And with Mike Smith 0:09:56.200 --> 0:09:59.000 outside linebackers coach. How many times did they talk about 0:09:59.080 --> 0:10:02.040 what Kyler fac All meant to that group because he 0:10:02.120 --> 0:10:03.760 was the one doing a lot of that dirty work. 0:10:04.080 --> 0:10:06.120 He was the one having to pick up those assignments. 0:10:06.440 --> 0:10:09.360 Last year, they didn't have that guy. Rashaan Garry is 0:10:09.640 --> 0:10:11.679 more in that mold of Zadarius Smith where it's a 0:10:11.720 --> 0:10:14.160 lot of there's versatility there, but it's all pretty much 0:10:14.160 --> 0:10:17.000 happening on the defensive front. So Preston Smith had to 0:10:17.000 --> 0:10:18.560 be kind of the guy that picked up that weight. 0:10:19.440 --> 0:10:23.320 So what I my takeaway was when he mentioned this 0:10:23.440 --> 0:10:25.560 is that you know, the question was asked, did you 0:10:25.600 --> 0:10:27.560 think after at the end of last season, that could 0:10:27.559 --> 0:10:30.600 be it for you here and He's like no, and 0:10:30.720 --> 0:10:32.720 he he had a line in there. I'm gonna butcher 0:10:32.760 --> 0:10:34.200 it here because I don't have it directly in front 0:10:34.200 --> 0:10:36.400 of me, but basically saying something along the lines of 0:10:37.520 --> 0:10:39.199 I wanted to do what I had to do to 0:10:39.280 --> 0:10:42.560 come back with his contract everything else, because he he 0:10:42.640 --> 0:10:45.160 knew what was in place here in the direction things 0:10:45.160 --> 0:10:47.800 were heading. And Joe Barry, to his credit, at the 0:10:47.840 --> 0:10:50.840 new defensive coordinator. I made the tweet on Monday watching 0:10:50.920 --> 0:10:53.000 him during the team periods just hopping up and down. 0:10:53.080 --> 0:10:55.120 That's a guy in what is mid fifties now at 0:10:55.120 --> 0:10:57.360 this point, hopping up and down like a kid as 0:10:57.360 --> 0:10:59.200 his defense is getting set and trying to make the 0:10:59.200 --> 0:11:03.040 adjustments to and Roger's adjustments. You can tell these guys 0:11:03.040 --> 0:11:07.080 are motivated by by Barry's message, and in Preston specific case, 0:11:07.400 --> 0:11:10.280 this is a guy he played for before in Washington. 0:11:10.880 --> 0:11:15.000 So I just think with the way that Barry is 0:11:15.000 --> 0:11:17.240 gonna lay this thing out once you get to Darius 0:11:17.240 --> 0:11:20.840 Smith back from the back injury, the direction that Rashawn 0:11:20.840 --> 0:11:23.520 Garry's heading, and in Preston was very complimentary of him 0:11:23.559 --> 0:11:27.040 in that regard. I think those three outside linebackers there's 0:11:27.040 --> 0:11:28.800 gonna be a big opportunity if they can stay healthy 0:11:28.880 --> 0:11:31.000 this year for all three of them make a big impact. Yeah. Well, 0:11:31.040 --> 0:11:33.480 Preston kept it pretty simple. I mean he was asked about, 0:11:33.520 --> 0:11:35.600 you know what, why did you decide to come back? 0:11:35.640 --> 0:11:38.800 He had to accept, you know, a salary reduction, a 0:11:38.920 --> 0:11:42.280 contract restructure with incent all these incentives built in an 0:11:42.280 --> 0:11:44.920 opportunity to win back the money. We've seen that work 0:11:44.960 --> 0:11:47.120 before here by the way, with a guy named Mason Crosby. 0:11:47.240 --> 0:11:49.280 So I'll just throw that out there. But but keptain. 0:11:49.800 --> 0:11:53.120 Preston kept it pretty simple. And then he's like, hey, 0:11:53.679 --> 0:11:56.120 we're right there. You know this team is right there. 0:11:56.200 --> 0:11:58.920 I haven't been to NFC Championship games. I didn't get 0:11:58.960 --> 0:12:01.640 to do that in Washington. I've been to NFC Championship 0:12:01.679 --> 0:12:04.160 games twice in a row. We know we have a 0:12:04.200 --> 0:12:07.680 shot here and um, and you know, I appreciated the 0:12:07.720 --> 0:12:10.240 candor and I love you. You brought the Mason Crosby 0:12:10.320 --> 0:12:12.680 example up. You know, two thousand twelve, things did not 0:12:12.760 --> 0:12:15.280 go his way. Two thousand and thirteen, Mason reduced his salary. 0:12:15.320 --> 0:12:18.439 You're like eight hundred thousand dollars, took millions off his salary. 0:12:18.440 --> 0:12:20.200 But the way they worked the bonuses as he could 0:12:20.200 --> 0:12:22.360 earn every dime back, and he did. He had a 0:12:22.400 --> 0:12:25.320 career year at the time. So for Press's perspective, he said, 0:12:25.360 --> 0:12:27.360 he's not thinking about the sack totals that will get 0:12:27.360 --> 0:12:30.400 the you know, the enhancers in there. He's thinking about 0:12:30.400 --> 0:12:33.680 what's in front of him. And I just I gotta 0:12:33.720 --> 0:12:35.120 say it, Mike. I mean, when you come off a 0:12:35.200 --> 0:12:38.080 year like last year, which can be frustrating, can be humbling, 0:12:39.280 --> 0:12:41.520 I think you're gonna see a guy coming back now, 0:12:41.640 --> 0:12:44.400 especially with this structure in place, that's going to be 0:12:44.440 --> 0:12:46.480 motivated to show that he's still that same player that 0:12:46.559 --> 0:12:48.640 broke out for the Green Bay Packers in two thousand 0:12:48.679 --> 0:12:51.520 nineteen when maybe a lot of folks weren't expecting it. Yeah, well, 0:12:51.559 --> 0:12:55.200 another motivated player, um, and we'll flip back to the 0:12:55.280 --> 0:12:58.000 offensive side of the ball. Another motivated player here in 0:12:58.720 --> 0:13:01.840 one without questions. Mark que Sveelda Scantling, the wide receiver. 0:13:01.960 --> 0:13:05.559 He is now entering his fourth season, fifth round draft 0:13:05.600 --> 0:13:09.719 pick in eighteen, so this is the final year of 0:13:09.800 --> 0:13:13.040 his rookie deal. Now he's coming off of his career 0:13:13.120 --> 0:13:16.319 highs in terms of yardage, touchdowns. You know, six hundred 0:13:16.400 --> 0:13:18.880 and ninety yards I think was roughly the number six 0:13:19.240 --> 0:13:22.120 touchdowns in the regular season, had a big time performance 0:13:22.120 --> 0:13:28.360 in the NFC Championship Game against Tampa Bay. But the thing, 0:13:28.559 --> 0:13:30.840 the thing I like, the thing I like about ENVS. 0:13:30.880 --> 0:13:33.640 And I know fans get frustrated with the drop passes 0:13:33.679 --> 0:13:37.880 in the inconsistency and everything like that. But as much 0:13:37.880 --> 0:13:42.240 as MVS doesn't revisit those down moments with the media, 0:13:42.840 --> 0:13:45.760 he also doesn't stand in front of the cameras and talk, 0:13:45.880 --> 0:13:47.880 you know, say, hey, well, what about my seventy two 0:13:47.920 --> 0:13:50.480 yard touchdown against the Bears that helped get the number 0:13:50.480 --> 0:13:53.360 one seed. What about my fifty yard touchdown against the 0:13:53.360 --> 0:13:56.320 Tampa Bay Buccaneers in the NFC Championship game. He doesn't 0:13:56.320 --> 0:13:59.400 go that route either. He's just it's all about what's 0:13:59.440 --> 0:14:02.040 in front of him, and and he's got a lot 0:14:02.080 --> 0:14:04.080 in front of him here. This is a pivotal year 0:14:04.480 --> 0:14:07.400 in his career, and the Packers aren't necessarily worried right 0:14:07.440 --> 0:14:10.680 now about whatever the next contract is going to be 0:14:10.800 --> 0:14:13.880 for him, and he's not either. It's just whatever happens 0:14:13.880 --> 0:14:17.120 in one it's it's going to tell the story, and 0:14:17.160 --> 0:14:18.960 it's going to speak for itself. That's kind of where 0:14:19.040 --> 0:14:21.760 things are with this guy. Yeah, and especially the entire 0:14:21.960 --> 0:14:25.040 construct right now, these offensive skill position players. I mean, 0:14:25.080 --> 0:14:28.160 there's no gambling in Bushwood here, sir, But I mean 0:14:28.520 --> 0:14:31.640 I wouldn't put a single penny down on what the 0:14:31.720 --> 0:14:34.560 snap totals are gonna look like the opener against the Saints. 0:14:34.920 --> 0:14:37.200 Because you have Davante Adams, You're always going to play 0:14:37.240 --> 0:14:39.120 a lot. But these other chess pieces here, whether it 0:14:39.200 --> 0:14:42.120 is Lewis and Tonyan or whether it's MBS and and 0:14:42.360 --> 0:14:45.160 Alan Lazard and Randall Cobb and Amari Cooper, Mary Cooper, 0:14:45.200 --> 0:14:48.000 Amari Rodgers, some of these other guys that are involved 0:14:48.040 --> 0:14:50.720 the running backs. There's so many different directions they can go. 0:14:50.760 --> 0:14:53.280 But what intrigues me the most about Valdes Scantling with 0:14:53.320 --> 0:14:56.440 the way that the Packers have built out these offensive weapons, 0:14:57.160 --> 0:14:58.920 is he's a guy that when he's on the field, 0:14:59.040 --> 0:15:02.440 you know the defensive coordinator and the safeties are paying 0:15:02.480 --> 0:15:05.400 attention to him. Because it's been shown time and time 0:15:05.440 --> 0:15:08.200 again how this guy can hurt you if you don't 0:15:08.240 --> 0:15:10.800 account for him on the field. You can't just ask 0:15:10.960 --> 0:15:13.880 cornerback to go and play him straight up. You need 0:15:13.920 --> 0:15:15.920 to have some type of attention over there just in 0:15:15.960 --> 0:15:17.560 case he ends up going over the top of you. 0:15:17.960 --> 0:15:20.000 And Valdis Scantling said when he was asked that the 0:15:20.040 --> 0:15:22.960 news conference, Hey, Eric Stokes is in here with the 0:15:23.000 --> 0:15:25.600 four to five forty, who's the fastest guy on the team. 0:15:25.920 --> 0:15:28.240 And before you can even get that last word out, 0:15:28.520 --> 0:15:30.480 MVS with a straight face, was like, yeah, no, it's 0:15:30.480 --> 0:15:32.960 still me. I mean, the guy is confident in his 0:15:33.040 --> 0:15:36.080 abilities and and certainly I thought the last year the 0:15:36.200 --> 0:15:39.080 end of the season, that to me and you kind 0:15:39.080 --> 0:15:40.680 of asked Matt la Floor about this, but that to me, 0:15:40.720 --> 0:15:43.440 the way that guy ended the season, that is a 0:15:43.480 --> 0:15:45.600 sweet taste to have your mouth going to the next season. 0:15:45.640 --> 0:15:48.200 Not saying that you're gonna get complacent, but it's a 0:15:48.200 --> 0:15:50.480 lot different when you have something like that to build 0:15:50.520 --> 0:15:53.080 off of, rather than thinking of some disappointment and what 0:15:53.160 --> 0:15:55.400 how you performed. Yeah, I mean, Matt la Fleur said 0:15:55.400 --> 0:15:58.080 for MVS. And and it goes for you know what 0:15:58.120 --> 0:16:00.440 we've seen of him throughout his career. It's all about 0:16:00.440 --> 0:16:03.600 the consistency. I mean, this guy is among the league 0:16:03.680 --> 0:16:05.880 leaders over the last over the three years of his 0:16:05.960 --> 0:16:09.560 career in terms of forty plus yard receptions, forty plus 0:16:09.640 --> 0:16:12.080 yard touchdowns. He's he's right up there at the at 0:16:12.120 --> 0:16:14.480 the top of the league. But you look at last year, 0:16:14.520 --> 0:16:17.200 even with the career high and yardage and touchdowns, he 0:16:17.320 --> 0:16:19.520 still had five games where he didn't catch a pass 0:16:19.560 --> 0:16:21.920 and two other games where he only caught one pass. 0:16:22.640 --> 0:16:25.920 The the potential. Now, granted, this is an offense, as 0:16:25.960 --> 0:16:28.400 you said, I mean, there's Davante Adams. Now, there's Randall 0:16:28.440 --> 0:16:31.520 Cobbamari Rodgers is in the mix. Al Lazard is right there. 0:16:31.520 --> 0:16:34.200 So there's only so many footballs to go around, right, 0:16:34.760 --> 0:16:36.680 But you just you look at the game, you look 0:16:36.680 --> 0:16:40.000 at the game by game production, and uh, and there's 0:16:40.080 --> 0:16:43.160 there's certainly more out there for mvs. And I think, uh, 0:16:43.800 --> 0:16:45.880 you know, I think he's certainly going to have a 0:16:46.000 --> 0:16:50.440 chance too to have that you know, career year at 0:16:50.480 --> 0:16:53.440 the right time here in year four. One other guy 0:16:53.400 --> 0:16:55.040 I want to get to before we go, and you 0:16:55.080 --> 0:16:57.440 brought it up, you brought it up earlier in terms 0:16:57.480 --> 0:17:00.800 of his news conference, and it's Jairo Alexander. That was, 0:17:01.360 --> 0:17:04.320 um that was rather entertaining. We've seen him on zoom 0:17:04.359 --> 0:17:08.520 with the sunglasses and and all of that before but um, 0:17:08.800 --> 0:17:11.440 but you asked him, you know, and you wrote the story. 0:17:11.480 --> 0:17:13.800 It's on our website for those, uh, for those who 0:17:13.840 --> 0:17:16.800 want to go find it. This is a guy who 0:17:17.240 --> 0:17:19.840 I mean, he's he's got the Pro Bowl and the 0:17:19.880 --> 0:17:24.320 All Pro recognition and everything now three years into, uh, 0:17:24.359 --> 0:17:26.919 three years into his NFL career, and this is a 0:17:26.920 --> 0:17:29.640 guy that that back in high school, even in college 0:17:29.640 --> 0:17:32.600 to a certain extent, couldn't get anybody to pay attention 0:17:32.640 --> 0:17:36.639 to the ability that he had. And uh, and you know, 0:17:36.920 --> 0:17:42.360 guys don't. Guys usually don't get overly bothered or worried 0:17:42.400 --> 0:17:45.600 necessarily about those accolades. And I'm not saying that Jaye 0:17:45.720 --> 0:17:50.760 Alexander has. But at the same time, the recognition that 0:17:50.840 --> 0:17:53.720 he's getting as an NFL player really means something to him. 0:17:53.760 --> 0:17:56.840 It's a juxtaposition to everything he went through his first 0:17:56.840 --> 0:17:59.439 twenty one years of his life. Yeah. And if you 0:17:59.480 --> 0:18:01.960 sit down for me, Mike, So this is my tenth 0:18:02.040 --> 0:18:04.920 year doing this as a Packers reporter. I'm now going 0:18:04.960 --> 0:18:08.960 to my fifteen sixteenth year as an actual sports reporter. JR. 0:18:09.200 --> 0:18:12.320 Alexander unequivocally is the most fascinating human being I've covered 0:18:12.480 --> 0:18:14.320 in any sport I don't care if it was Bayport, 0:18:14.320 --> 0:18:16.880 a cross Country or the Green Bay Packers. He fascinates 0:18:16.880 --> 0:18:21.560 me because his story is incredible if you know where 0:18:21.560 --> 0:18:25.240 he comes from from, just from a family perspective and 0:18:25.320 --> 0:18:27.159 what this means to his family for him to make 0:18:27.200 --> 0:18:31.560 it to this step to understanding why he carries himself 0:18:31.560 --> 0:18:33.200 the way he is. You can hear him speak, you 0:18:33.240 --> 0:18:36.160 can read his words in a newspaper, but you got 0:18:36.160 --> 0:18:38.440 to understand the meaning behind those words. When he says 0:18:38.480 --> 0:18:42.440 I'm the best, he says that because nobody wanted to 0:18:42.480 --> 0:18:45.879 even say he was good. He says that, I'm I 0:18:45.920 --> 0:18:47.840 feel like I can be the greatest cornerback of all 0:18:47.840 --> 0:18:49.560 time because there was people out there didn't think he 0:18:49.600 --> 0:18:53.119 was the best cornerback and even the city of Charlotte. 0:18:53.600 --> 0:18:56.680 This is an individual that has been at countless points 0:18:56.680 --> 0:18:59.199 of his life the only person that believed in himself, 0:18:59.240 --> 0:19:00.920 maybe outside of his family, but I mean in terms 0:19:00.960 --> 0:19:03.880 of just knowing that, hey, I feel like I can 0:19:03.920 --> 0:19:06.440 do this. I'm gonna do it. I don't care what 0:19:06.480 --> 0:19:08.159 anyone else says. So that's why I asked him the 0:19:08.240 --> 0:19:10.359 question about the All Pro and the Pro Bowl. Is 0:19:10.400 --> 0:19:12.920 that for the very first time. This is a guy 0:19:12.960 --> 0:19:15.480 that's now being thrown in the conversation with Stefan Gilmore, 0:19:15.520 --> 0:19:17.720 He's being thrown in the conversation with Jalen Ramsey and 0:19:17.760 --> 0:19:21.199 these young corners in this league that are basically ushering 0:19:21.240 --> 0:19:25.159 the next generation of that position. And for him to 0:19:25.200 --> 0:19:28.399 be able to clear out everything and just focus on 0:19:28.400 --> 0:19:30.760 once in front of him, that's what makes him special. 0:19:31.040 --> 0:19:34.919 The forty time. The athleticism, the vertical the press man skills, 0:19:34.960 --> 0:19:38.280 all that stuff made him a first round pick, but 0:19:38.400 --> 0:19:40.560 it's that aspect of his mental approach that's going to 0:19:40.640 --> 0:19:44.439 make him a really, really noteworthy player for years to 0:19:44.480 --> 0:19:46.840 come well. And it speaks to the respect that he's 0:19:46.880 --> 0:19:50.920 garnered from his peers with regard to Pro Bowl and whatnot, 0:19:50.960 --> 0:19:53.359 and coaches, other players around the league and all that, 0:19:53.440 --> 0:19:56.440 and from the media with regard to the second team 0:19:56.480 --> 0:19:59.439 All Pro recognition. That a guy at his position at 0:19:59.480 --> 0:20:03.280