Speaker 1: This is the OTP presented by Farm Bureau Health Plans.
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Speaker 1: Keith and our all friends. Sarah Walsh is here. She's
Speaker 1: now known as NFL Network Sarah Walsh. But you were
Speaker 1: on WKRN here.
Speaker 2: How long three years is at all? That's it? But
Speaker 2: I feel like I was here in a really good
Speaker 2: special time.
Speaker 3: I mean, obviously I'm completely biased, but I was even
Speaker 3: talking about it today the last it feels like that
Speaker 3: Titans never obviously get the national love I think that
Speaker 3: they deserve. I mean, even when you're the number one
Speaker 3: seeing in the FC.
Speaker 2: I've seen it.
Speaker 3: I've seen this team in all different incarnations, and it
Speaker 3: felt like the last time that it was like this
Speaker 3: national situation. I mean, I was here in the years
Speaker 3: of Eddie George, Steve McNair, Keith Bullock, Frank Wycheck, Javon Curse.
Speaker 3: I mean, this was this locker room to me, and
Speaker 3: I was much younger in my career, but you walked
Speaker 3: in that locker room and it was these superstar players
Speaker 3: that I felt like nationally got a lot of attention
Speaker 3: for Tennessee.
Speaker 1: Now, so what is your job with NFL Network specifically?
Speaker 2: Now, anything and everything they ask.
Speaker 3: So for the last three years I have been primarily
Speaker 3: down in Tampa because there was a quarterback there that, yeah,
Speaker 3: you know, demanded a lot of attention. He didn't demand it,
Speaker 3: but you know, nationally he is Tom Brady. So I've
Speaker 3: spent the last couple of years covering Tom Brady in
Speaker 3: the Buccaneers. And that wasn't never really solely my job,
Speaker 3: but it became solely my job. So now I'm sort
Speaker 3: of I don't want to say I'm a free agent
Speaker 3: because I worked for NFL Network, but now I can
Speaker 3: go to other teams. And not that I couldn't go
Speaker 3: to other teams before, but there was just never a
Speaker 3: situation that they were like, let's skip the cover.
Speaker 1: It's okay that you say that, because I mean, Tom
Speaker 1: Brady was that kind of big deal that I mean,
Speaker 1: I guess Patrick Mahomes is that he can.
Speaker 3: I mean he could. He has a chance to potentially
Speaker 3: catch Brady. A lot of things have to go right,
Speaker 3: but you know, Patrick Mahomes is the face of the league.
Speaker 2: I don't think that that's right. You can't really argue that.
Speaker 1: Tom Brady was a face beyond.
Speaker 2: We're talking greatest of all time, right, yes.
Speaker 1: But you're talking about also a super I mean he
Speaker 1: was married to a supermodel. He went to another team,
Speaker 1: and then that was a story because they won the
Speaker 1: Super Bowl. And I mean, if I'm NFL network, I'm
Speaker 1: going to cover every move Tom Brady makes.
Speaker 3: Correct and people always ask me to you know, this
Speaker 3: ideal that he's just a regular football player. I mean
Speaker 3: he's not, though, because to your point, this is a
Speaker 3: guy that, like if you this is He sat in
Speaker 3: front of me when Bruce arians retired and he did
Speaker 3: his press conference.
Speaker 2: Tom came in the room. He sits in front of me.
Speaker 3: It's one of the rooms that I don't know if
Speaker 3: you guys still have it here, but back in my
Speaker 3: day it was like an auditorium or so they have
Speaker 3: the you know, like your old college, Like you've got
Speaker 3: the thing that you can put your phone on. And
Speaker 3: I remember Tom sitting in front of me and his
Speaker 3: phone's there and it was turned over, but I'm like,
Speaker 3: who's on that phone?
Speaker 2: Like right now?
Speaker 3: Like who's texting that phone. We're not talking it's not
Speaker 3: just like another star quarterback. We're talking billionaires. We're talking
Speaker 3: people that tra like far outside of football. I mean,
Speaker 3: he's just a different he's and so the best way
Speaker 3: I could explain to him, he's just a different level.
Speaker 3: It's not just hey, this guy's the best in the NFL.
Speaker 3: He's on a different like level in the entertainment, in
Speaker 3: all of those worlds.
Speaker 1: All right, I got one more. Are you convinced he's retired?
Speaker 2: Yes, I think he is. Now there there's always been.
Speaker 2: I'll tell you what.
Speaker 3: When he was going to step away, we felt like
Speaker 3: we saw a lot of things in Tampa that made
Speaker 3: you think it was his last season. When there was
Speaker 3: a little bit of could Rabel get him, because you
Speaker 3: know they have a connection from the Patriots, I was like,
Speaker 3: this is going to be great for me. I'll just
Speaker 3: continue on. I'll go back to Nashville, Tennessee, where I
Speaker 3: still have a home, Like, let's keep it going.
Speaker 2: So No, I do.
Speaker 3: Think he's he's done. I mean he's been off on
Speaker 3: like a yacht overseas a summer. I mean, if Tom
Speaker 3: thought he was playing, Tom would be working, working, working,
Speaker 3: So yes, I think that chapter has finally closed, like
Speaker 3: he's living his best life.
Speaker 4: But it also seems like you're living your best life
Speaker 4: in a lot of ways. I feel like we see
Speaker 4: you on TV all the time, and we see you
Speaker 4: in so many different spaces and doing so many different things.
Speaker 4: What stories are you most excited about following throughout the
Speaker 4: twenty twenty three season. Now that Tom Brady's on a
Speaker 4: yacht somewere.
Speaker 2: There's so many things.
Speaker 3: I was recently at Panther's trading camp and Bryce Young
Speaker 3: is could be a new up and coming And it's
Speaker 3: one of those things where I always say it's difficult
Speaker 3: for me to look at practice and when you're in
Speaker 3: the minutia of drills, when you're in the mundane until
Speaker 3: you get in a game situation, it's hard to see
Speaker 3: certain things. Went to Panthers practice and you could see
Speaker 3: Breakstlete's really good, Like there's just something, there's a factor.
Speaker 3: There was like an excitement, so like I potentially could
Speaker 3: be dealing with them. I've been in Jacksonville. If it
Speaker 3: wasn't the Buck stays with Jacksonville they have I know
Speaker 3: this might be a bad topic here on this particular
Speaker 3: Show's okay, they're just really they're really excited down there.
Speaker 3: There's an energy they again they've been they have been.
Speaker 3: This isn't I'm not gonna sugar it. They've been bad
Speaker 3: for a long time. And last year I was in trading.
Speaker 3: This is what's cool about the NFL. And I've talked
Speaker 3: about this before in terms of parody. A year ago,
Speaker 3: we go to Jacksonville. They're coming off that debacle season.
Speaker 3: They were hoping to just improve a little bit. They're
Speaker 3: just hoping to improve. They don't they They're like, we're
Speaker 3: never gonna pick number one overall again. They did it
Speaker 3: two years in a row. It was dire down there
Speaker 3: for them, and so they'd like to see improvement, you know.
Speaker 3: And I don't know that they envisioned that it would
Speaker 3: have turned out to be as an exciting finish as
Speaker 3: it was for them. I know at some point that
Speaker 3: was at the Titans expense. But they were a fun
Speaker 3: story of a team that was looking at the league's
Speaker 3: worst record to at one point going into Arrowhead in
Speaker 3: the playoffs and taking it to the Chiefs.
Speaker 2: I mean, they really, like people thought that wasn't going
Speaker 2: to be a game.
Speaker 3: It was a game, and so I always think too,
Speaker 3: going into the preseason, I'm like, who's the Jaguars that
Speaker 3: we're not talking about? Who had three wins last season
Speaker 3: that you're giving that nobody's giving any chance to but
Speaker 3: that you can turn it around overnight. Here in some regards,
Speaker 3: it doesn't happen for everybody, But every year there's teams
Speaker 3: in the playoffs that weren't in the playoffs this season
Speaker 3: ago well.
Speaker 1: And the other part of it, too is that's always
Speaker 1: how it happens when you least expect it. It just
Speaker 1: all of a sudden becomes a title wave. It's the
Speaker 1: coolest thing, you know. When we got good in ninety nine,
Speaker 1: we'd been eight and eight three straight years, and then
Speaker 1: all of a sudden we go to the Super Bowl.
Speaker 1: The Rams on the other side had won four games
Speaker 1: the year before, and you see that that whole thing happened.
Speaker 1: I think that's the best thing about the NFL.
Speaker 2: That's why it's so exciting. Again.
Speaker 3: You can sit there and be down on your luck
Speaker 3: and things can change. And actually, and now I'm gonna
Speaker 3: watch the stat but I was talking to you about that.
Speaker 3: I was on Good Morning Football this summer and we
Speaker 3: did this segment called what if, like name something that
Speaker 3: happened in the NFL, what if it didn't happen, how
Speaker 3: would it change fates? And I said, what if the
Speaker 3: Music City Miracle didn't happen? And now I'm going to
Speaker 3: watch the stat because I've lost it. But after that game,
Speaker 3: which obviously knocked Buffalo out, they didn't see a postseason
Speaker 3: for and I'm running now.
Speaker 2: Almost like twenty years.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it was twenty years to think that you're that close,
Speaker 3: that game's over, Buffalo is going to the postseason to
Speaker 3: lose the way that they lost, And to think if
Speaker 3: you would have told the Buffalo Bills fans in the
Speaker 3: hour after the Music City Miracle happens, hey, guys, buckle up,
Speaker 3: because you're not going back to the postseason for twenty years.
Speaker 2: Like that's insane.
Speaker 1: I mean, it's like when you fall And they were
Speaker 1: the most successful playoff team of the nineties, even though
Speaker 1: they didn't win a Super Bowl. They were in the
Speaker 1: playoffs seemingly every year and competitive and went to Super Bowls.
Speaker 1: But when you fall off the cliff too, it's like
Speaker 1: when you ride the title wave up, somebody else rides
Speaker 1: the tidle wave down, and you know, we went nine
Speaker 1: years without a playoff appearance here, and you don't think
Speaker 1: when we lose that game to Baltimore at the end
Speaker 1: of two thousand and eight that we're supposed to win
Speaker 1: and that we're not even going to make it back
Speaker 1: to the playoffs for nine years. You're like, oh my goodness.
Speaker 2: It's crazy.
Speaker 3: It is crazy, which is why you always say, don't
Speaker 3: take it for granted. And there's guys that get to
Speaker 3: the super Bowl, and we've heard this a million times,
Speaker 3: that go to a super Bowl in their first year
Speaker 3: lose it, but you always think, well, I'll be back,
Speaker 3: and you don't know if you ever get back.
Speaker 2: It's just crazy. I think specifically for Tennessee.
Speaker 3: I've always thought Mike as someone that worked here that
Speaker 3: the Titans, no matter what they do, never got enough credit,
Speaker 3: you know what I mean. Like even when this team
Speaker 3: like two years removed from being the top team in
Speaker 3: the AFC, right, and what do you hear about? You
Speaker 3: hear about the Chiefs, the Bills, the Patriots for the
Speaker 3: longest time. And I just feel like, and people here
Speaker 3: in Tennessee know that you're sort of like insulated, and
Speaker 3: you know in our world of like I just feel
Speaker 3: like they've never gotten nationally the love that at times
Speaker 3: they've deserved.
Speaker 1: But don't you think Amy that's I don't think it's
Speaker 1: a chip on the shoulder thing. I think it's we
Speaker 1: don't have a Brady or a Manning here. We haven't
Speaker 1: had a Brady or a Manning. People can now fly
Speaker 1: into Nashville easier, which helps because the media comes in
Speaker 1: here a lot more than they did back when you
Speaker 1: were at Channel two. But I just think the other
Speaker 1: thing is too we don't play a run and gun
Speaker 1: style and gain five hundred yards a game and score
Speaker 1: forty points. I mean where the team that very much
Speaker 1: matches its city, where the hardcore, tough guys, blue collar
Speaker 1: Eddie George Derrick Henry sort of thing. And I think
Speaker 1: to be a story you've got to have a stylized point.
Speaker 1: The guy who really brings us there, I think is Vrabel.
Speaker 2: Yeah, yeah, I think that's very interesting.
Speaker 4: I think Mike Vrabel is the guy that brings us
Speaker 4: kind of the sex appeal that this team didn't have
Speaker 4: for a long time, just because he's got the personality,
Speaker 4: he's got the attachment to the Patriots, he's got the
Speaker 4: successful playing career, he'll give you the SoundBite that kind
Speaker 4: of goes viral and that will be played in lots
Speaker 4: of different places. But the supporting cast, if you can
Speaker 4: call it that, that is the roster, is made up
Speaker 4: of a lot of guys that you kind of go, oh.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I've heard of him, or oh yeah, i've seen
Speaker 2: him play really good.
Speaker 4: Oh yeah, he's he's on his second swing of whatever,
Speaker 4: which for us is great as a team. We've got
Speaker 4: a team made up of guys that are really fighting
Speaker 4: for and they want it really bad because they're on
Speaker 4: their they're second go around. They're getting another crack at it,
Speaker 4: they're getting another opportunity.
Speaker 2: But for everybody else.
Speaker 4: They're like, oh that was a bust right, he's bust guy. Well, no,
Speaker 4: he's not bust guy. He's a great player. But it's
Speaker 4: just a very different story here.
Speaker 2: And I think that to your point, it gets lost in.
Speaker 4: The in the machine of the NFL and all of
Speaker 4: the personalities and all of the big stars.
Speaker 2: So I can see both sides of it.
Speaker 4: But I think the Titans as a franchise thrive on that.
Speaker 2: I think it's almost become sort of not in the spotlight.
Speaker 4: I think it's become part of their identity is that
Speaker 4: like we could win it, we could not. The stories
Speaker 4: will be the same, so let's sneak up on them.
Speaker 2: And I like that. I like that. I think it
Speaker 2: makes the team tough and scrappy.
Speaker 1: I like to Sarah leave the Snickers hot seat to go.
Speaker 3: You guys, this is like when you trick or treat
Speaker 3: at people's houses and you're like, they gave you the
Speaker 3: full size. It's fair, no expense here. Titans fans like these.
Speaker 3: They're not the bite size, full one.
Speaker 2: I can take one to talk.
Speaker 1: Yes, absolutely, Okay, So final question before you depart, how
Speaker 1: many of the NFL Network shirts do you have?
Speaker 2: Oh my god, I mean pay for them. We don't
Speaker 2: pay for them, so a way, this is probably gonna
Speaker 2: get me fired.
Speaker 1: Mike so uh, he's a great guest.
Speaker 2: I love Charlie.
Speaker 3: Every year they send us, you know, like if you're
Speaker 3: going two weeks in a row and you can't wash anything,
Speaker 3: then you need a bunch.
Speaker 2: They would send like a huge amount of shirts, and
Speaker 2: I'm like, I don't need.
Speaker 3: First of all, I was mostly in Florida and it's
Speaker 3: always hot, so I'm always gonna go to Leeveless. They
Speaker 3: send us so many shirts, and I'm like, so every year,
Speaker 3: I'm like, I don't you guys don't even have to
Speaker 3: send me and I'm good, I'm good, and they're like, no,
Speaker 3: we need to send it, and they send like a
Speaker 3: new box this year. Until today, we were wearing NFL
Speaker 3: Plus shirts. There's a big difference there, Mike. It says
Speaker 3: NFL Plus NFL Network. I got to just transition today
Speaker 3: to NFL Network. So yeah, I've got I've got a close.
Speaker 1: You can't exactly wear those at to dinner in Tampa
Speaker 1: because it's like, oh, look, Sir Wallace wants everybody knows
Speaker 1: she works for Ye. No, I don't.
Speaker 3: I don't, but like I'll run into target sometimes sometimes
Speaker 3: there's breaks in between practice and I'm not, yeah, I.
Speaker 2: Don't want people. I don't.
Speaker 3: I feel like it looks like I'm out like walking
Speaker 3: around like this. But at this way, I have more
Speaker 3: NFL Network shirts than I have w Kreen shirts. They
Speaker 3: did not give me a litany of w k although
Speaker 3: I did have some w kre and polos I wore
Speaker 3: in training camp.
Speaker 2: I will say, I think about it. I have these
Speaker 2: live shots.
Speaker 3: From training camp back in the day, and I did
Speaker 3: have a w kre in polo.
Speaker 2: I remember it was Navy blue.
Speaker 1: Sarah, get out of here, okay, I got a flight ticket.
Speaker 1: It's so good to see you.
Speaker 2: Thank you so much.
Speaker 1: I hope we're very proud of you here, but I
Speaker 1: know her.
Speaker 2: Oh thank you.
Speaker 3: I have obviously such a special place in my heart
Speaker 3: for Tennessee. I still have a home here, like I said,
Speaker 3: And I was just asked downstairs while Brabel was talking,
Speaker 3: so do you get to be up here this season?
Speaker 3: Because you know there's Tom has left the league, and
Speaker 3: I'm like, it's done. You guys like you guys are good,
Speaker 3: like I feel like I will be up here. So motivation,
Speaker 3: I would love it, soul consider that he's.
Speaker 1: A better team than what people know. I'm telling you.
Speaker 2: I well, like, let's go. I'm happy to be here.
Speaker 1: All right, get out of here, okay, leaving the OTP.
Speaker 1: I mean as we're doing this, she'st down, she's running
Speaker 1: out the door, all right. So with Sarah Walsh having departed,
Speaker 1: that's time for us to let you know, Hey Titans fans,
Speaker 1: hey ot people, it's always game on with Duncan, so
Speaker 1: grab a coffee and kick off the action. Whether that's
Speaker 1: drinking a cup of coffee on your way to the game,
Speaker 1: or grabbing one to go before watching or listening to
Speaker 1: the game at home. Duncan is always there to help
Speaker 1: you get your game on. Just like the pros, we
Speaker 1: need to be at our best come game time, which
Speaker 1: is why Duncan is the most important part of your
Speaker 1: game day ritual because it's always the best call for
Speaker 1: Football America runs on Duncan. And the game Saturday is
Speaker 1: at noon.
Speaker 2: The game, I don't know, you're gonna need.
Speaker 1: Coffee because it's the first game. Yeah, you're not ready
Speaker 1: for this, Well you're not.
Speaker 2: The people have been in training camp too.
Speaker 1: Bot people. I mean, I hope I'm not ready for it,
Speaker 1: but I mean it's August the twelve.
Speaker 2: I know it's at noon.
Speaker 1: It's not a seven o'clock game. Yeah, you need Duncan.
Speaker 1: You need your coffee, you do.
Speaker 4: I had a box of twenty five munchkins this morning.
Speaker 2: Golly, it was good.
Speaker 1: By the way, you've changed seats. You're now in the
Speaker 1: Snickers hot seat, and it's amazing how this works.
Speaker 2: Humphy, I'm hydrating. I'm closer to the Snicker.
Speaker 1: Yes, okay, well we're glad. We're glad to see you there.
Speaker 1: I want to go over something as we get ready
Speaker 1: for the first preseason game, and I want to call
Speaker 1: it three to see. Okay, each of us, Mike Keith
Speaker 1: and Amy Wells will pick three players that we want
Speaker 1: to see against the Bears. All right, all right for
Speaker 1: the Titans, I'm going to take out the kickers.
Speaker 2: Okay, okay, you got to see the kicker.
Speaker 1: We got to see. I mean we all know that
Speaker 1: all of the ot people are saying, oh, which one
Speaker 1: of them is going to say the kicker? No, we're not.
Speaker 1: We're shocker spoiler alert. We're not because we everybody wants
Speaker 1: to see. What's the Titans have to pick a kicker
Speaker 1: between Caleb shoot Deck and Trey Wolf.
Speaker 2: Right, that's a given.
Speaker 1: That's a given. And then you're going to say, oh,
Speaker 1: you're going to say the backup quarterbacks. No, you all
Speaker 1: want to see Malik Willis and you all want to
Speaker 1: see will Levis. We all do. Yeah, so they're out. Okay,
Speaker 1: we we understand. We want to see them run the offense.
Speaker 1: I mean, we could go through all of the coach
Speaker 1: speak about the kickers and the quarterbacks. We get it.
Speaker 2: Okay, so those are off the table.
Speaker 1: They're off the table, so we will go back and forth. Okay,
Speaker 1: three to see Amy Wells. You get to pick one first.
Speaker 4: I think my first one is going to be wide
Speaker 4: receiver Kyle Phillips.
Speaker 2: And I'll tell you why.
Speaker 4: Kyle Phillips showed up for training camp and his body
Speaker 4: looked different. He is still not a big dude. He
Speaker 4: will never be a big dude. His just skeleton won't
Speaker 4: allow for that. But he looks like he has become
Speaker 4: more sturdy, sturdy, he looks a little more built, and
Speaker 4: I think that that is going to go a long
Speaker 4: way with helping him stay healthy.
Speaker 2: He's going to be more durable.
Speaker 4: We saw him have some of the highest highs and
Speaker 4: lowest lows within like a matter of minutes. Yeah, that
Speaker 4: you never see. You never see someone that high and
Speaker 4: that low within the same five minutes of each other.
Speaker 4: And so I think there's so much potential there. Throughout camp,
Speaker 4: We've seen him make plays. He's more confident in this offense.
Speaker 4: He's more confident in his abilities. I'm excited to see
Speaker 4: him get on the field and really see what he
Speaker 4: can do in a game, because I think he's going
Speaker 4: to be a little more sturdy, a little more durable,
Speaker 4: a little more confident, and hopefully that leads to more consistent.
Speaker 1: I've said multiple times, I'll try not to repeat it.
Speaker 1: I think the addition of DeAndre Hopkins means he probably
Speaker 1: has to play less offensive snaps, which should make him
Speaker 1: more effective. And the biggest area where he can help
Speaker 1: this team. He can be the best punt returner this
Speaker 1: team has had since Mark Marianni.
Speaker 2: Which is so excited, and.
Speaker 1: This team hasn't returned to punt for a touchdown in
Speaker 1: nearly ten years and really hasn't gotten much out of
Speaker 1: the punt return game overall. That's an area where if
Speaker 1: he's able to concentrate on it, if he's not so winded,
Speaker 1: if he's not so you know whatever, then he's not
Speaker 1: going to fumble a punt. He's not going to put
Speaker 1: that pressure on himself. He's going to do what we
Speaker 1: saw him do on the first punt return of the
Speaker 1: year and what we saw him do in training camp.
Speaker 1: So I think that's a good one because I don't
Speaker 1: think there would be very many people among the ot
Speaker 1: people who would think Kyle Phillips cannot help this football team.
Speaker 1: He clearly can help this football team. He has shown
Speaker 1: that he can help this football team and in a
Speaker 1: very specific role, in a very specific role where this
Speaker 1: team has not always had that guy. They've gone looking
Speaker 1: for that guy in several different places. If he stays healthy,
Speaker 1: I mean, I think he's a I think he's a
Speaker 1: winner in this offense.
Speaker 4: I think he's a guy where almost less is more
Speaker 4: for him. I think if he can focus in on
Speaker 4: what he needs to do and not need to do
Speaker 4: all of the things, I think it's gonna be beneficial
Speaker 4: all the way around. I think he will be a
Speaker 4: better punt returner. I think he'll be a better receiver
Speaker 4: if he is able to focus in on what he
Speaker 4: does really well and do it to the best of
Speaker 4: his ability.
Speaker 1: My first of the three to see is defensive tackle
Speaker 1: Jaden Peevey, who wore seventy two last year and he
Speaker 1: appeared in one game. He's wearing number ninety two. Now
Speaker 1: six ' five listed at three oh eight, first year
Speaker 1: man out of Texas A and M probably weighs less
Speaker 1: than three oh eight. He has slimmed down some. He
Speaker 1: still has the amazing thirty six inch plus arms. It's
Speaker 1: like thirty six and an eighth or thirty six and
Speaker 1: a quarter, which makes him crazy long to be able
Speaker 1: to get into an offensive lineman. He had a great offseason.
Speaker 1: He's taken a lot of snaps. The acting coach for
Speaker 1: this week's game, Terrell Williams, who is the defensive line coach, says,
Speaker 1: this is a guy who's made a move. Can he
Speaker 1: make a move to the point where he's on the
Speaker 1: active roster For all of the talk about the off
Speaker 1: season program and OTAs in the mini camps and we've
Speaker 1: done everything, We've been great in meetings, it's still about
Speaker 1: executing and making plays in his case, for what you're
Speaker 1: asked to do as an interior offensive lineman. You're not
Speaker 1: asked to make every tackle, you're not asked to sack
Speaker 1: the quarterback on every play, but you're asked to do
Speaker 1: your job well enough where you're getting that penetration, you're
Speaker 1: getting that knock back, you're staying in your gaps, and
Speaker 1: then do all of those responsibility things and still be
Speaker 1: able to make some plays. So I'm very interested to
Speaker 1: see jadenpev play against the Chicago Bears.
Speaker 4: I think that's a good point that you made about
Speaker 4: being able to take all of the progress that someone
Speaker 4: like PV has made throughout the offseason.
Speaker 2: You've heard about.
Speaker 4: Mentally how well he's doing physically, how conditioned he is,
Speaker 4: and how well he's doing in that regard, but now
Speaker 4: being able to put it all together on the field,
Speaker 4: that's like the last step, the last piece of the puzzle.
Speaker 4: So being able to see that thread pulled all the
Speaker 4: way through the off season, that was a good one, Mike.
Speaker 1: Thank you.
Speaker 2: I like that one.
Speaker 1: Remind you too, Open a Titans checking account from Pinnacle
Speaker 1: with at least one hundred dollars and a recurring direct
Speaker 1: deposit by August the eighteenth, and you could get two
Speaker 1: tickets to five Titans home games. Details at Titansbanking dot com.
Speaker 1: Titans Checking from Pinnacle play Hard Bank Easy member FDI.
Speaker 4: See, so I'm going to go back to offense, Okay,
Speaker 4: and I guess I guess I've got a returner thing
Speaker 4: because I'm kind of sticking in that realm. Ty Ja
Speaker 4: Spears is the guy I'm excited to see, and obviously
Speaker 4: we know that he is very gifted as a running back.
Speaker 4: We know that there's some excitement around what he can
Speaker 4: provide for this offense as a compliment to Derrick Henry
Speaker 4: and will we see all of that in the preseason?
Speaker 4: We don't know, right, I mean, you don't see more
Speaker 4: of the fancy stuff really, some of the trickery and
Speaker 4: that in those first preseason games.
Speaker 2: That's not really what It's.
Speaker 1: Very hard to tell. To further your point, it's very
Speaker 1: hard to tell about the run game in the preseason
Speaker 1: because you're not scheming up in anything. In the run game,
Speaker 1: you're not trying to outflank anybody.
Speaker 4: You're just kind of trying to make plays and run
Speaker 4: the ball, right, Yeah, So will we see all of that?
Speaker 2: I don't know.
Speaker 4: But the kick return game is something that's very interesting
Speaker 4: to me, and I think there there's a lot of
Speaker 4: opportunity for him there as a returner.
Speaker 2: I think that there's.
Speaker 4: There's just a lot of excitement about some of the
Speaker 4: other things that he can provide beyond just the running
Speaker 4: back stuff.
Speaker 2: That's what I'm looking for.
Speaker 4: That's what I'm excited to really see, is where he
Speaker 4: can plug in there and where he can make a
Speaker 4: name for himself beyond just being the other guy with
Speaker 4: twenty two.
Speaker 1: I want to see the shake and that's that's what
Speaker 1: he showed us at the Reese's Senior Bowl. That's why
Speaker 1: when they picked him in the third round, I was excited.
Speaker 1: Even though many thought they should take another position like
Speaker 1: a tight end or wide receiver. I thought, that's a
Speaker 1: guy you can't pass up because what he has that
Speaker 1: very few players have is he's got shake. And if
Speaker 1: he can show that on a kick return, running the ball,
Speaker 1: catching a pass, I think that will get Titans fans
Speaker 1: excited because the more it's like, the media out at
Speaker 1: practice at Ascension Saint Thomas Sports Park has become excited
Speaker 1: about him, watching him because.
Speaker 2: Like, oh, like watch a video game.
Speaker 1: It's it's like whoa what? WHOA? What is that? You know,
Speaker 1: because he's not the biggest guy, and he's not the
Speaker 1: fastest guy, and yet there's something about like when he's
Speaker 1: in the one on one tackling drills and the guy
Speaker 1: has to come to balance and decide which way he's
Speaker 1: going to go. I mean, it's very difficult because there
Speaker 1: is an element to him that is just God given.
Speaker 1: It's shake.
Speaker 4: Yeah, it's hard to decride. I mean, shake is the
Speaker 4: right saying. But I can't talk about him without like
Speaker 4: moving my whole body somehow.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 4: It's like I can't find the word for exactly what
Speaker 4: it is he does.
Speaker 2: It's like a I can't like, I can't say it.
Speaker 2: I just have to move.
Speaker 4: Some people have shake, I know, and that that's what
Speaker 4: it is.
Speaker 2: It's shake. I didn't I guess I've never thought about
Speaker 2: it before. But it's just it's a it's a way
Speaker 2: of life.
Speaker 1: It's it's it's shake. It's not learned, No, I mean
Speaker 1: you can learn how to master it. It's a god given. Yeah,
Speaker 1: there's something about him that is just totally different.
Speaker 4: I'm so glad that we have added video to the
Speaker 4: OTP because I can't because it I just have to move.
Speaker 1: You've shown the shake, all right. So my second of
Speaker 1: the three to see is Reggie Robertson. No, I mean
Speaker 1: this guy has shown up as a wide receiver. The
Speaker 1: back end of the wide receiver corps is not set.
Speaker 1: We know that there's gonna be a lot of guys battling.
Speaker 1: We're gonna see Kiss Jackson from Georgia, an undrafted rookie.
Speaker 1: We're gonna have a chance to see Treyshawn Harrison. Obviously,
Speaker 1: Mason Kenzie is still fighting for a spot. Uh. There,
Speaker 1: you know Colton Dow, the seventh round pick, is fighting
Speaker 1: at the back end of the roster. Reggie Robertson is
Speaker 1: a guy that when he's good, he is really really good.
Speaker 1: And for the most part, he's been really really good
Speaker 1: in practice. Inconsistency is what has been the bugaboo for
Speaker 1: him through his time. Now he's he's come back from
Speaker 1: fully come back from the surgery. Now from a couple
Speaker 1: of years ago, he looks more confident. He's playing faster.
Speaker 1: I think he may have a chance to show big.
Speaker 1: But we'll see. I mean, this is this is certainly
Speaker 1: his moment.
Speaker 2: That's Ah, that was a good one too. You've got
Speaker 2: a good list.
Speaker 1: Well, let's see what your third one looks like.
Speaker 4: Okay, so my third one, I'm going to the defensive
Speaker 4: side of the ball. Now we've got to switch at
Speaker 4: some point here.
Speaker 2: Manti Rice.
Speaker 1: Okay.
Speaker 4: I'm excited to see what he is going to be
Speaker 4: able to do. The poor guy struggled with injury throughout
Speaker 4: his career as a Titan, and I think that that
Speaker 4: his kind of It's like he's never been able to
Speaker 4: really get traction. You know, we've seen some good things
Speaker 4: from him. Obviously, he's familiar with this defense. He's familiar
Speaker 4: with this team. You just want to see him get
Speaker 4: his wheels on the ground and really take off. And
Speaker 4: so that's what I'm excited to see. I'm excited to
Speaker 4: see him healthy. I'm excited to get to see him
Speaker 4: get in the rotation, really see what he can bring
Speaker 4: to the defense. I think that I think there's a
Speaker 4: lot to watch. I think that that linebackers group is
Speaker 4: kind of an exciting group. It is, and so I'm
Speaker 4: excited to see what he's able to bring to it
Speaker 4: and where he's able to kind of find his niche niche.
Speaker 2: Where he's able to find his niche.
Speaker 1: I say niche, but on on HGTV they say niche.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so it could be a niche niche. Yeah, I
Speaker 2: guess that's how it's.
Speaker 1: A niche space. But if you're just calling it the
Speaker 1: space by its name, it's a niche. Yes.
Speaker 2: Well, I'm hoping he finds a spot. Yeah.
Speaker 1: Well, I mean, as he's Al Shier is the leader
Speaker 1: of that group, right, And I don't think I'm breaking
Speaker 1: any news by saying. I mean he's just come in
Speaker 1: and it's just like I'm the boss, and yeah, that's
Speaker 1: the that's the way this runs. And then you've got
Speaker 1: Jack Gibbons who's really playing well, and Chance Campbell who's
Speaker 1: come back from injury and he's playing well. And then
Speaker 1: they bring in a guy like Benneman who's a veteran linebacker.
Speaker 1: And the other guy that they bring in, Luke Gifford,
Speaker 1: who can play inside linebacker, has great length, and he's
Speaker 1: going to be a special teams stalwart. So I mean
Speaker 1: there's a there's sort of a squish in that area.
Speaker 1: You know, there's a there's a tightening of all of
Speaker 1: that at the linebacker. Well, somebody's gonna have to yep,
Speaker 1: that's a great point. Watch the linebackers. Uh. My final
Speaker 1: of the three to see is Adam Rupsich six six
Speaker 1: three eighteen out of Culver Stockton. That's in Missouri, right, Sure,
Speaker 1: you're from Missouri. You don't know that well?
Speaker 4: I mean, I don't know all of the places Surrey,
Speaker 4: how do I Not? Everybody is as well versed in
Speaker 4: their home state as you are, Mike Keith.
Speaker 1: Okay, fine, Rupsich comes out of this very small program
Speaker 1: and he is six six three eighteen, And I think
Speaker 1: Andrew would be that big even if he weren't a
Speaker 1: football player.
Speaker 2: Yeah, just naturally.
Speaker 1: He's a naturally large human. He's got some athleticism, he's competitive,
Speaker 1: he was on the practice squad all of last year.
Speaker 1: He took a red shirt which he needed and has
Speaker 1: transformed his body, is playing different positions, and my question
Speaker 1: about him is, I don't think Andrew. I don't think
Speaker 1: at this time at least that Andrew Rupsich is probably
Speaker 1: a starter on September tenth at New Orleans. But the
Speaker 1: question becomes, does Andrew Rupsig make the team as the
Speaker 1: eighth of the ninth offensive lineman because he can play
Speaker 1: multiple positions. There are several guys that would be competing
Speaker 1: in that area. With Nicholas petif Frere suspended for the
Speaker 1: first six games, you would have a John leglu who
Speaker 1: has played some some ball for the Steelers at different points. Uh,
Speaker 1: They've just brought in a veteran player and Justin Murray
Speaker 1: who would be fighting for that. They've just bought in
Speaker 1: a veteran player in Jimmy Murray, who is fighting for that.
Speaker 1: Because you're you're looking for guys outside the first five
Speaker 1: who can be part of your EID on game day
Speaker 1: and probably part of your nine offensive linemen on the roster.
Speaker 1: Could could Rupsich be back on the practice quite sure? Yeah,
Speaker 1: I mean, but I'm wondering does he take the step
Speaker 1: because you just don't see many guys and the Titans
Speaker 1: have two of them right now, Jalen Duncan, who they
Speaker 1: drafted out of Maryland and Andrew Rupsig. Great size, Yeah, naturally,
Speaker 1: I mean Duncan's six six three oh five and he's
Speaker 1: another one. He would be that big a man no
Speaker 1: matter what. And the reason I say that is when
Speaker 1: you're that big a human, naturally, you're generally a better
Speaker 1: athlete because you're not bulking up or you're you know,
Speaker 1: this is who you are, this is how you. It's
Speaker 1: like Ben how Ben Jones was. Ben Jones was a
Speaker 1: great baseball player because he was naturally as big as
Speaker 1: he was, and so his athleticism was, you know, caught
Speaker 1: up with his body size, so to speak.
Speaker 4: Right, And those people are so valuable to any team,
Speaker 4: but especially to this team where you've got to have
Speaker 4: that depth, You've got to have those guys that can
Speaker 4: fill in in multiple different places.
Speaker 2: It's just so useful to have.
Speaker 4: And even if he were to end up either one
Speaker 4: of those guys were able to end up on a
Speaker 4: practice squad. It's still so valuable because of the grind
Speaker 4: of a regular season and you've got a lot of
Speaker 4: football to play, and you're taking a beating at that position.
Speaker 2: All along the offensive line. You need to have that depth.
Speaker 4: You need to have those people that you can rely
Speaker 4: on to say, all right, next man up, let's go.
Speaker 2: I think that over the years, we've seen.
Speaker 4: What a premium there is on guys who are big,
Speaker 4: who are naturally gifted and strong and can fill in
Speaker 4: in a lot of different places. So being able to
Speaker 4: find a couple of them to have just to help
Speaker 4: this team awesome.
Speaker 1: Amy's three to see in Chicago. Wide receiver Kyle Phillips
Speaker 1: number eighteen, running back potentially kick returner Taj Spears number
Speaker 1: thirty two, Linebacker Monty Rice number fifty six. My three
Speaker 1: to see in Chicago seventy six, Adam Eruptsich, offensive line
Speaker 1: eighty Reggie Roberson, wide receiver ninety two, defensive lineman Jaden Peeve.
Speaker 1: We both agreed to stay away from the kickers Caleb
Speaker 1: Shudeck and Trey Wolf and the quarterbacks Malik Willis and
Speaker 1: Will Levis because those were obvious.
Speaker 2: Mike, I didn't break the rules a single time game.
Speaker 1: Coach Mack would be so proud.
Speaker 3: I know.
Speaker 1: Breaking news for Titans fans out there that you're gonna
Speaker 1: want to hear. It's official. Seat Geek is the official
Speaker 1: ticketing partner of your Tennessee Titans. You think I'm kidding,
Speaker 1: but I'm not. The deal is finalized. Seat Geek is
Speaker 1: the newest member of the Titans Titans family. If you
Speaker 1: haven't heard the name yet, it's because you haven't been
Speaker 1: listening to the OTP. Come on on, you get used
Speaker 1: to it because you'll be hearing Seat Geek a lot
Speaker 1: more this season. Whether you're buying or selling tickets to
Speaker 1: Titans games, there any live event in Nashville, Seat Geek
Speaker 1: is the place to do it. Seat Geek is the
Speaker 1: new official ticketing partner of the Tennessee Titans. So Titans fans,
Speaker 1: Ammy Wells knows the lingo. You've done well, all right,
Speaker 1: So I want to discuss as we wrap up. And
Speaker 1: by the way, thanks to Sarah Wallash for coming by.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it was so great to see her.
Speaker 1: Very proud of her, Yeah she was. She was very
Speaker 1: nice when she was here at w k R n
Speaker 1: and she's done well. And that's one of those people
Speaker 1: you all he's pulled for. And I'm very happy that
Speaker 1: she's a big star nationally now.
Speaker 2: I hope she's coming around more this season.
Speaker 1: To the head coach for Saturday's game at Chicago will
Speaker 1: be Terrell Williams. Yeah, and he's the defensive line coach.
Speaker 1: This does not surprise me because Mike Rabel made him
Speaker 1: the assistant head coach in the off season and in
Speaker 1: talking about it and in discussing this move this week,
Speaker 1: Mike brought up something interesting. He said that Big T,
Speaker 1: as he's called around here. You know, at times, to
Speaker 1: be honest, we have had to stop and look and see,
Speaker 1: oh it's Terrell Williams because everybody's like, hey Tea, hey
Speaker 1: big T.
Speaker 2: Yeah, sometimes you forget well, I.
Speaker 1: Mean he's just like the nicest guy. He has a
Speaker 1: relationship with people throughout the team.
Speaker 2: Yah.
Speaker 1: He is a coach that transcends just the defensive line
Speaker 1: or the defensive room. He has a relationship throughout the
Speaker 1: ball club. And who does that make me think of?
Speaker 1: Mike Rabel? Oh and you think about this. One of
Speaker 1: the reasons DeAndre Hopkins said he was interested in Tennessee
Speaker 1: is that he had a relationship with Mike Rabel. They
Speaker 1: really didn't have much to do with football.
Speaker 4: He just liked him.
Speaker 1: They talked about things. He was a guy that reached
Speaker 1: out beyond barriers. He wasn't a position coach who just
Speaker 1: tried to stay focused in on his area and acted
Speaker 1: like other positions didn't exist or another side of the
Speaker 1: ball didn't exist. I think it's an exciting thing, and
Speaker 1: I think the players think it's a very exciting thing
Speaker 1: because they like Terrell Williams so much.
Speaker 4: Absolutely, I think that it's a great opportunity for big
Speaker 4: t Trolliams to expand and kind of get that experience
Speaker 4: and get that exposure to what kind of the grind
Speaker 4: of being a head coach looks like and what that
Speaker 4: cadence is like in that room team. And I think
Speaker 4: the players are excited for him and they're responding to it.
Speaker 4: You know, they're excited about having the opportunity to almost
Speaker 4: make him look good. You know, does that make sense,
Speaker 4: of course, to have the opportunity to show him off
Speaker 4: and what he's able to do, because coaching.
Speaker 2: And the performance on the field are so intertwined.
Speaker 4: Sure, so I think that that's something the whole team
Speaker 4: is responding to and listen, this is the most Mike
Speaker 4: Vrabel move you could possibly see him having the idea
Speaker 4: to do this. He said that it was something he
Speaker 4: thought about during the off season and then it all
Speaker 4: kind of came together. And I think that this is
Speaker 4: Mike Rabel doing what Mike Rabel does, which is caring
Speaker 4: about the people that are around him, caring about his staff,
Speaker 4: wanting to invest in them beyond just winning a football game,
Speaker 4: beyond just prepping for the season. This is an opportunity
Speaker 4: to invest in that coach's future. It's an opportunity to
Speaker 4: invest in this team and the culture as a whole,
Speaker 4: showing that hey, when you show me that you deserve
Speaker 4: an opportunity, I'm giving you the opportunity. And that is
Speaker 4: so on message with what he says all of the time,
Speaker 4: and he is continuing to put his money where his
Speaker 4: mouth is and just build relationships.
Speaker 1: I think three things. Number one, it's a great thing
Speaker 1: for the organization to do. I think number two, Terrell
Speaker 1: Williams is already getting a lot of publicity and most
Speaker 1: people around the NFL did not know who he was
Speaker 1: because you honestly you cannot name thirty two defensive line
Speaker 1: coaches in the NFL. Most people who love the NFL
Speaker 1: couldn't name but three or four. And yet now you're
Speaker 1: going to know this name. And as Sarah Walsh and
Speaker 1: Ian Rapaport and Scott Pioli we're here today from NFL Network,
Speaker 1: that's certainly a focus of what they do. So that's
Speaker 1: a good thing. I think the other thing, too, is
Speaker 1: it gives the team a little sort of jolt for
Speaker 1: a first preseason game. It makes it a little more interesting.
Speaker 1: It kind of focuses them in just a little bit more. Now.
Speaker 1: I don't think it's going to be the difference in
Speaker 1: winning and losing the game, because winning and losing in
Speaker 1: the preseason is not the big thing. But Mike is
Speaker 1: looking for any advantage to add a little focus, to
Speaker 1: add a little spend, to add a little interest. He
Speaker 1: does it in practice. He does it with things like this,
Speaker 1: He does it in meetings. He does it with what
Speaker 1: we're doing next week with the Titans Foundation Luncheon, which
Speaker 1: on August the fifteenth, We're having the Foundation Luncheon at
Speaker 1: the Grand Hyatt to raise money for the Titans Foundation,
Speaker 1: which gives away a lot of money. It'll be the
Speaker 1: first time we have ever had the whole team. The
Speaker 1: whole team, yeah, at any event since we've been here.
Speaker 2: Awesome.
Speaker 1: I mean that's hard. It's hard to do. It's not
Speaker 1: that people didn't care. But so he thinks that's going
Speaker 1: to be a big deal. As the team's on their
Speaker 1: way to Minnesota to practice. So that's something the whole
Speaker 1: team can do together. That's like this, you know, and
Speaker 1: and so I I think everybody's first thought. Who knows
Speaker 1: anything about what we do here, they've been like, wow, cool,
Speaker 1: good for Big T and and good for you know,
Speaker 1: the organization overall, good for Vrabel. I just think a
Speaker 1: perfect thing.
Speaker 2: Yeah, it's a shakeup wells.
Speaker 1: And it will be interesting for Vrabel too, because when
Speaker 1: he was out for the game a couple of years
Speaker 1: ago when he got COVID, he had to be at
Speaker 1: home because he was obviously sick, and he said he
Speaker 1: thought that was valuable as he watched it. It will
Speaker 1: be an interesting viewpoint too, to kind of see the
Speaker 1: dynamics of the communication among the staff and to look
Speaker 1: at the side his sideline from a different standpoint than
Speaker 1: what he knows. He won't learn everything because it's not
Speaker 1: a regular season game, but he's always looking to pick
Speaker 1: up one or two little things that they can do better.
Speaker 4: And that's the The other part of this that I
Speaker 4: think is so interesting and so beneficial is that it's
Speaker 4: not like Mike Rabel's gonna be out of town, right,
Speaker 4: He's not going to be at the house.
Speaker 1: Yeah.
Speaker 4: No, he's going to be there. He's going to be
Speaker 4: able to observe. He's going to be able to be
Speaker 4: hands on in a different way. It gives everybody the
Speaker 4: opportunity to kind of readjust the kaleidoscope and the picture
Speaker 4: comes in to focus a little bit differently. What can
Speaker 4: you glean in that time that you take into the
Speaker 4: regular season that you notice maybe you wanted.
Speaker 1: To maybe Spears has a little shake.
Speaker 4: Oh there you go, Yeah, a little shake. I think
Speaker 4: there's oh my gosh, I don't need any of those.
Speaker 4: I think there's so many good things that can come
Speaker 4: out of this. I'm so excited for everyone involved, for
Speaker 4: the players, for the coaches, for Big T, for my Rable.
Speaker 2: I think this is great. Ten out of ten decisions,
Speaker 2: all right.
Speaker 1: So a couple things that we want to mention as
Speaker 1: we finish up this edition of the OTP that is
Speaker 1: sponsored by our tremendous friends from Farm Bureau Health Plans.
Speaker 1: See how much you can save on your health coverage
Speaker 1: with Farm Bureau Health Plans. Get a quote at FBHP
Speaker 1: dot com. If you go to the Titans YouTube channel,
Speaker 1: you can watch a program called Titans Camp rewind Yes
Speaker 1: and it's sort of some of the features that have
Speaker 1: been done during the course of the week. What's going
Speaker 1: on with the ball club? Be something to get you
Speaker 1: ready for the Chicago game that you would really enjoy.
Speaker 1: That's at the Titans YouTube channel. We did one last week.
Speaker 1: It was really well received. Bless you all for watching.
Speaker 1: Hopefully more we'll watch this week. We're trying to do
Speaker 1: one a week through Training Camp. Titans YouTube channel. Titans
Speaker 1: Radio on the air Saturday, eleven am Central from Soldier
Speaker 1: Field in Chicago, kick off at twelve oh two Central time.
Speaker 1: Titans and the Bears preseason game number one.
Speaker 4: It's happening, Mike Keith, No, are you so excited? I
Speaker 4: am hearing you give like you know it's football time.
Speaker 4: When Mike Keith is telling you the Titans radio programming schedule,
Speaker 4: that's right, Like that's how you know that's what I've
Speaker 4: been waiting months for.
Speaker 2: Goosebumps.
Speaker 1: I was talking to my mom and she said, you
Speaker 1: know where am I going to watch the game?
Speaker 2: I said, you're going to listen.
Speaker 1: So you couldn't listen to games, because no, I'd rather watch.
Speaker 1: That hurts.
Speaker 4: My dad was telling me the other day that his
Speaker 4: tips and tricks for syncing up the TV to.
Speaker 1: The rate they're I have to have him on the
Speaker 1: OTP to discuss that.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I mean, my man's got a whole like plan.
Speaker 1: This is how he does it, doctor Will, I know,
Speaker 1: pretty bright gas.
Speaker 2: I was very impressed by he's got it refined to
Speaker 2: an art.
Speaker 1: Now he does. All right, So we're coming to you
Speaker 1: from Shytown. You can bet that there will be some
Speaker 1: Chicago style pizza. Oh, I mean, you can bet that
Speaker 1: there will be some football and here we go, ot people,
Speaker 1: here we go.
Speaker 2: It's happening.
Speaker 1: It's happening. Thanks so much for joining us. For Amy
Speaker 1: Wells and Sarah Walsh, I'm Mike Keith, and you've been
Speaker 1: listening to the oh T T