Speaker 1: Be Around the NFL Podcast manages Ricky's dams. Welcome to
Speaker 1: another initiation of the Around the NFL Podcast. My name
Speaker 1: is Dan Anders. I'm joined in a conference room filled
Speaker 1: with some heroes. Oh, the heroes are coming back together,
Speaker 1: Chris Westling and Greg ros Thought. What is up? Boys?
Speaker 1: We are on day three of Sessler Watch. What is this? Uh?
Speaker 1: Sort of like, yeah, we're I think west and I
Speaker 1: were both a little bit because I was at a
Speaker 1: pocket Fourth of July weekend as we're us. So when
Speaker 1: Mark wasn't here this week, there was some nerves about
Speaker 1: the idea that he's followed through on that. You know
Speaker 1: how he's talking about when I leave, I'm gone and
Speaker 1: I could pack up and be gone forever. Yeah. I
Speaker 1: haven't seen him in weeks, That's all I'm saying. And
Speaker 1: nobody's seen him in weeks. He let us know that
Speaker 1: he would be locked in through May. Once he's back exactly.
Speaker 1: Maybe maybe he's back. We're here in Conference Room one
Speaker 1: fifty at NFL Media Headquarters as we continue our nomad
Speaker 1: journey with the studio podcast studio under construction. This is
Speaker 1: the I believe this is the conference room boys, where
Speaker 1: we came close to getting fired for under a previous
Speaker 1: management for something on the show, which we can't really
Speaker 1: get into. But this was the room, right, I believe so. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I've had a lot of great memories in this room,
Speaker 1: a lot of meetings, I think at eight o'clock meetings.
Speaker 1: But I believe you're right. I think it was the
Speaker 1: sternest talking to I've had in my adult life. Yes,
Speaker 1: we can't get into details, but I will tell you
Speaker 1: this that, Um, this particular management figure had a transcript
Speaker 1: of a podcast episode typed out and dropped in front
Speaker 1: of us to go line my line. He had someone
Speaker 1: on the desk type it up. Right. Sure, this is
Speaker 1: the room that um, Greg and Dan interviewed. Man, that's right.
Speaker 1: This is kind of a historic place. Yeah. And then
Speaker 1: we didn't hire you. It's like on the Register of
Speaker 1: Historic Monuments. I was already hired at that point. Everything
Speaker 1: ended up a late show after a colossal mistake. Yes,
Speaker 1: welcome to the Thursday edition to be around the NFL podcast. Uh,
Speaker 1: fun show coming up today? Yes, Well I'm assuming Mark,
Speaker 1: we'll be back maybe as soon as Monday, and then
Speaker 1: we'll all be back together. Well, I'm actually gone next week.
Speaker 1: I had emailed everyone is done again. Is this the
Speaker 1: season where we were the commitment, we just kind of
Speaker 1: fall off and we never do a show. No. I
Speaker 1: think it's finally the season where we're getting smart, we're
Speaker 1: getting older, we see what other people are doing, and
Speaker 1: the season starts with training camp, which is this year.
Speaker 1: It's kind of the Monday, the twenty one is the
Speaker 1: unofficial So I'm I'm taking off. I'm going to Massachusetts
Speaker 1: as much as possible. That's nice. Springfield, Uh No, Vineyard, well,
Speaker 1: Boston for half of it. The vineyard. When you go
Speaker 1: to the vineyard. What goes down? Uh, well, I'll be
Speaker 1: in Boston with my friend Dave for three or four days, Boston, going,
Speaker 1: going to a Red Zax game, see some friends. And
Speaker 1: then yeah, my parents and my brother live year round
Speaker 1: on the vineyard. Now they move. My parents moved there
Speaker 1: when I when I was twenty five or so. The
Speaker 1: question is when do you go full time? Never I
Speaker 1: never living in Massachusetts again. Wow, I get that. I
Speaker 1: get that. Not for Dave Um coming up in today's show.
Speaker 1: It is the return of an annual summertime tradition. You know,
Speaker 1: there's a finite number of superstars in the NFL. Uh,
Speaker 1: and every year I try to update who are the
Speaker 1: true superstars in the league. Who will become a superstar,
Speaker 1: who will fall out of the superstar ranks. It's a
Speaker 1: zero sum game. The two thousand nineteen Superstar Club and uh.
Speaker 1: This is also going to be a piece on NFL
Speaker 1: dot com. I'm working on it as we speak. Before
Speaker 1: the show. We'll finish it up, polish it off after
Speaker 1: the show, send it on the Ali bon Puri are
Speaker 1: features content editor. So I'm gonna use you, gentlemen, you
Speaker 1: geniuses and football to help me if I if I
Speaker 1: go to a drift, can I ask a question about
Speaker 1: your process here? Take Yeah, let's go. Let's go. Is
Speaker 1: there a factor of, say like Marquis Rain name recognition
Speaker 1: in addition to how well you've played on the field.
Speaker 1: I think so. I think charisma and your ability put
Speaker 1: meat in the seats and uh and live at the
Speaker 1: top of the headline stack. Those type of things matter,
Speaker 1: I think when you're talking about superstars. But that's not
Speaker 1: all that matters, you know, It's not all about the name.
Speaker 1: The game is huge as well, at least with my
Speaker 1: superstar list. That answer your question, that was a great answer.
Speaker 1: That's about what I expected. Before we get to though,
Speaker 1: let's hit a little bit of news. Oh my father,
Speaker 1: that man belongs in an institution. One of my favorite
Speaker 1: viral videos in a long time, Greg, I know you
Speaker 1: were in a flight back from Japan. You might have
Speaker 1: missed all of this, now I I caught it when
Speaker 1: I got back. Okay, Bagel Bros. In Long Island, just
Speaker 1: to see of people and mess shorts and then a
Speaker 1: tiny man having a conniption. Um over, don't call him tiny, Yeah,
Speaker 1: I don't, um five foot man. Uh, that just went
Speaker 1: nuts because he's I guess, upset that women have left
Speaker 1: at him his whole life, and that led to him
Speaker 1: getting tackled in a bagel shop in Long Island. There
Speaker 1: are there are more videos have been released since, like
Speaker 1: in other situations like at a convenience store. Same guy.
Speaker 1: He called the police because the clerk in the convenience
Speaker 1: store asked him how tall he was. Wait, the same
Speaker 1: guy has a different videos bagel guy and that right,
Speaker 1: I mean he's got to look in the mirror. It's
Speaker 1: not your high, it's your creepy personality. I mean, I've
Speaker 1: been living pretty short my whole life. You've got to
Speaker 1: make it up for it, I think. But it doesn't matter.
Speaker 1: No one, No one would like this guy if he
Speaker 1: was six ft one, Greg shade Tree, Imagine, imagine if
Speaker 1: he was six ft one, he would be one of
Speaker 1: the great dangers of society. Um. So he's a little
Speaker 1: man with a big chip on his shoulder. Check it
Speaker 1: out if you haven't already. Um, all right, let's get
Speaker 1: to the news. On what usually is a sleepy time
Speaker 1: in the NFL calendar. We had a bit of a
Speaker 1: seismic earthquake. Anybody here for the earthquake? By the way,
Speaker 1: none of we all missed two earthquakes in l A
Speaker 1: last week, and um, we all missed it. But okay,
Speaker 1: I'm still gonna keep moving into the news. Melvin Gordon. Um,
Speaker 1: he wants to get paid by the Los Angeles Chargers
Speaker 1: and he's willing to get serious if the Chargers won't
Speaker 1: get serious him. Gordon informed the Bolts that unless he
Speaker 1: receives a new contract, he will demand a trade and
Speaker 1: will not report to training camp. Uh. NFL Networks Tom
Speaker 1: Pellicero reported the Chargers veterans are due to report to
Speaker 1: camp on July. Uh. Demarrius Bilbo, that's a name one
Speaker 1: of the agents that reps. Gordon told NFL network insider
Speaker 1: Ian Rapp report that the running back is serious about
Speaker 1: holding out. Here's what Biblo said, Bilbo, He's very serious.
Speaker 1: He's worked his butt off in the fifth year option
Speaker 1: is a result of where he was drafted. It's what
Speaker 1: it is. But if we'd gotten a respectable offer, we
Speaker 1: wouldn't be here. But he felt disrespected. He's very serious.
Speaker 1: Gordon is entering the fifth and final year of his
Speaker 1: rookie contract. He wants that security. Twenty six years old, Greg,
Speaker 1: I know you're groggy. Good. I slept well. Deep gums cleaning, deep,
Speaker 1: cleaning my The left side of my face is a
Speaker 1: little numb right now. But I'm gonna tell you drunk
Speaker 1: twy on the first news story and twenty six years old,
Speaker 1: some injury history. We just saw what happened in the
Speaker 1: with the other l a football team with Todd gurley
Speaker 1: Son and a big deal with are the Charger is
Speaker 1: gonna seriously entertain giving out a multi year contract extension
Speaker 1: to a running back in today's climate. Well, they they
Speaker 1: sound like they gave an offer and I'm it wasn't
Speaker 1: enough for Melvin Gordon. And I if I were them,
Speaker 1: I wouldn't break the bank for him. I mean, I
Speaker 1: like having Melvin Gordon on that, and I love Melvin Gordon.
Speaker 1: I've defended him on this podcast. I think he's a
Speaker 1: really good running back, but I like having them in
Speaker 1: that first five years where you're getting four yards from
Speaker 1: scrimmage instead of paying him a huge contract. This is
Speaker 1: one where I would call his bluff because he's made
Speaker 1: about ten million dollars in his first four seasons. That's
Speaker 1: pretty good, but he's set to make five more this year.
Speaker 1: Is he really gonna skip those huge paychecks? I don't
Speaker 1: think so. And if if he did miss a game
Speaker 1: or two, they'd be okay. I think with Austin Ekeler
Speaker 1: and Justin Jackson, I would call his bluff. The running
Speaker 1: back market is sort of like how the quarterback market
Speaker 1: has been him. There's no middle class. You've got Girleleve
Speaker 1: Bell and David Johnson making around fifteen million a year,
Speaker 1: and then you've got like Devonte Freeman, Lashawn McCoy, and
Speaker 1: Jared McKinnon more in the eight million dollar year range.
Speaker 1: So I'm guessing Gordon once closer to the girly Bell range.
Speaker 1: And I think the difference between him and Bell is
Speaker 1: Bell is on the franchise tag Gordon, if he sits
Speaker 1: out the entire year, his contract just rolls over the
Speaker 1: next year. Right. There's no there's no way he would
Speaker 1: skip those paychecks. And there's no way if I'm the
Speaker 1: Chargers that I would give him anything close to it.
Speaker 1: Todd Gurley, do you I really like Gordon, but I
Speaker 1: think running backs the smart way to do it. I
Speaker 1: think is actually, for a while everyone thought never draft
Speaker 1: one in the first round. I don't know, drafted one
Speaker 1: in the middle, late first round, early second round. That's
Speaker 1: where you found a lot of good players recently. And
Speaker 1: that rookie contract is so cheap compared to what you
Speaker 1: have to pay in free agency. I've been a little
Speaker 1: surprised at the outrage for this on Twitter, that everybody
Speaker 1: is saying running backs need to get paid, he should
Speaker 1: sit out the year, Like why would anybody? For the owners,
Speaker 1: you gotta pay this player, And to me, it's like
Speaker 1: you Michael Lewis said, football is a tightly strong economy.
Speaker 1: If you take away something, if you try to double
Speaker 1: team or triple team Aaron Donald, somebody else is gonna
Speaker 1: have a much easier game. The salary caps the same way.
Speaker 1: If you're paying too much for a running back, you're
Speaker 1: not paying other positions. Two players to connected obviously his
Speaker 1: running backs lavy On Bell, he stayed in famously last year.
Speaker 1: I'm holding out. I'm sitting out this year to help
Speaker 1: my fellow running back, which you know, you could believe
Speaker 1: that if you want. I never quite did. The other player,
Speaker 1: as we mentioned, Girle, and it stinks. But Girle who
Speaker 1: actually did get paid immediately we find out of the
Speaker 1: arthritic knee condition. That kind of sets back running backs
Speaker 1: again because there's this very high profile case of a
Speaker 1: superstar running back who gets paid and then his body
Speaker 1: breaks down or appears to be breaking down. I just
Speaker 1: I would be stunned of of the charter go any
Speaker 1: other route than just playing out his rookie contract and
Speaker 1: then to the tag if necessary. They know him better
Speaker 1: than anyone, and Gordon has been up and down in
Speaker 1: his career. I don't think they look at Melvin Gordon
Speaker 1: as a consistent leader of their team necessarily someone that
Speaker 1: they have to keep in the building. And they have
Speaker 1: a ton of other free agents coming up next year.
Speaker 1: I mean both is gonna be coming up, rivers is
Speaker 1: coming up. A lot of their great defense is going
Speaker 1: to be coming up. So I think they have other
Speaker 1: people on the team that they're going to be prioritizing.
Speaker 1: Natural selection is you know, it was ten years ago
Speaker 1: that slot corners and slot receivers weren't getting any money,
Speaker 1: and now they get paid more than running backs, and
Speaker 1: running backs are left it, you know, on the small
Speaker 1: side of that, just like fullbacks, things become extinct. It happens.
Speaker 1: It's the way of the wombs and dads. Have your
Speaker 1: kids like quarterback or wide receiver. I mean, that would
Speaker 1: be smart, right West, Let's move on. Tell me your
Speaker 1: thoughts on the tradition in Spain running of the bulls
Speaker 1: Pampalona what. I'm curious what your thoughts are about it.
Speaker 1: It's delightful. It's a delightful tradition and good for Josh
Speaker 1: Norman can with Wesse could go either way. Car Bay
Speaker 1: DM baby. And you know, one of my favorite novels
Speaker 1: is The Sun Also Rises by Henyway. And it's interesting
Speaker 1: to me that Josh Norman is both older and more
Speaker 1: famous than Hemmingway was when he wrote The Sun Also Rise.
Speaker 1: It's interesting Josh Norman, the Redskins cornerback, fulfilled a dream,
Speaker 1: he said, by taking part in the Running of the
Speaker 1: Bulls in Pamplona, Spain. Pampalona. Yes, uh if there's a
Speaker 1: video that went viral before Twitter shut down, which everybody's
Speaker 1: freaking out about Twitter down for an hour Thursday at
Speaker 1: some point, but before that happened being passed all over
Speaker 1: the Information super Highway a video showing Norman leaping over
Speaker 1: a bull inside a bull ring during the event. So
Speaker 1: it's inside a bull ring. It's not like in the streets,
Speaker 1: the cobble streets where people are getting gored, which five
Speaker 1: people got gored in the first day of this event
Speaker 1: this year. It happens every year. I'm the only thing
Speaker 1: I was thinking, is these a lot of these pro
Speaker 1: contracts I've worked in you can't even play pick up basketball.
Speaker 1: And Josh Norman, by the way, this is the most
Speaker 1: impressive I think I've seen him do athletically in like
Speaker 1: three or four years now, jumping over the bull. If
Speaker 1: I am the Redskins, I'm Doug Williams is passing out.
Speaker 1: I mean, anybody involved with that front office is just
Speaker 1: gotta be very upset or maybe they're like, oh, maybe
Speaker 1: this will get us out of the contract. I don't know.
Speaker 1: I looked at the crowd and I'm pretty confident that
Speaker 1: Josh Norman is the only one who could jump over
Speaker 1: a bull. I mean he didn't just clear the ball,
Speaker 1: he cleared it with a with a foot despair. It
Speaker 1: was very impressive. I will give him that. I had
Speaker 1: to face the bull straight on. He said it was fun.
Speaker 1: It was worth it. It was really worth it. Last
Speaker 1: time we talked about stuff like this, I think it
Speaker 1: was Rex Ryan during his late period Jets Run did
Speaker 1: the same thing. Also not gored, so happy ending. What
Speaker 1: if Frank Gore tries it? If Gore got gored, that
Speaker 1: would be wild, sad wild. Alright. Finally, in the news,
Speaker 1: some serious news. Former Tennessee Titans defensive tackle Albert Haynesworth
Speaker 1: suffering from kidney failure and h He logged onto social
Speaker 1: media Instagram to be specific, to announce that he has
Speaker 1: quote in dire need of a donor um. He wrote
Speaker 1: a message that my kidneys failed uh this past week
Speaker 1: on July seven. It's hard to believe from being a
Speaker 1: professional athlete to only eight seasons in retirement that my
Speaker 1: body has taken another major blow. He's referring to a
Speaker 1: brain adneurism he suffered about five years ago. Now his
Speaker 1: kidneys have failed him and he is desperate for a transplant.
Speaker 1: Very sad story. Haynesworth, of course, came into the league
Speaker 1: University of Tennessee star, then was a All Pro for
Speaker 1: the Titans, one of the best defensive tackles in football.
Speaker 1: Then became something of a punch line as being a
Speaker 1: hideous long term signing by the Redskins. But he had
Speaker 1: a lot of talent work. Ethic was an issue. But
Speaker 1: now he's dealing with something way more serious than anything
Speaker 1: ever on the football field. People don't like to be
Speaker 1: told that they have to part with their money, but
Speaker 1: if you are suffering and you are having major health problems,
Speaker 1: people will part with their money to help you out.
Speaker 1: That's what's happening in the news. All right, let's get
Speaker 1: to it. Ricky. By the way, I want to say
Speaker 1: that the Shield moved to nine and two with another
Speaker 1: convincing win on Wednesday night, and Ricky Hollywood starting playing
Speaker 1: seven innings behind the plate, had two hits, hitting the
Speaker 1: ball hard all night. Really starting to come come into
Speaker 1: yourself a little bit hit a good double right to
Speaker 1: end the night. Modern day Rich Gedman, I see a
Speaker 1: little at noakes this former Red Sox, you know, World
Speaker 1: Series participant. I've probably made an All Star game or two. Okay,
Speaker 1: I'll take it. It's not a great guy. You know what.
Speaker 1: You know what Babbit is batting average on balls in
Speaker 1: play Yeah, shows you kind of how lucky and unlucky
Speaker 1: you are. You were very unlucky when it came to
Speaker 1: Babbit last night because you were hitting up. Yeah. And
Speaker 1: tell you what, the coaching staffs watching that when you
Speaker 1: start to turn it on late in the regular sets.
Speaker 1: This is the coaching staff right here. When you turn
Speaker 1: west late in the regular season, that's important. That's going
Speaker 1: to lead to the playoff p t. It's a very
Speaker 1: crowded depth chart on the plate, and I think this
Speaker 1: little missy might be uh getting some big plate appearances.
Speaker 1: It's the loan position on the roster that goes too
Speaker 1: deep and it actually goes about sixty. Yeah, but you
Speaker 1: gotta want those at bats in the playoff games after
Speaker 1: all the work you've put in. That's that's exciting time,
Speaker 1: and that's money time. It sounds like you're earning it.
Speaker 1: I know it's easier to just put, you know, like
Speaker 1: a crappy girl behind the plate because then they don't
Speaker 1: have to catch. But I like covering home and I'm
Speaker 1: not worried if you're whipping it like I'm not worried
Speaker 1: about Yeah, I'm not worried to to step up to
Speaker 1: the plane and knock someone out. It's more of like
Speaker 1: the running for the pop flies that like hit her
Speaker 1: miss sometimes. Lakisha Westling almost came to blows with the
Speaker 1: opposing catcher. I've never seen your wife more angry, and
Speaker 1: now that you're married to that woman, I would I
Speaker 1: would suggest you do not get on Lakisha's bad side.
Speaker 1: The catcher was out of line. The other teams catcher
Speaker 1: was way out of line, like a small town sheriff
Speaker 1: trying to control the game, was at the umpire to
Speaker 1: his job. What was she getting on? Keisha was asking
Speaker 1: There was a little back and forth about some of
Speaker 1: the rules, and Keisha was asking me a question about
Speaker 1: ten feet away for clarification, and rabbit ears behind the
Speaker 1: plate was like and jumped down Lakisha's throat and then
Speaker 1: Lakeisha started screaming through the fence and then all of
Speaker 1: a sudden West turns around, he goes, this is a
Speaker 1: conversation between husband and what see, I always thought you
Speaker 1: were a Southern guy. West. That's a very Southerner expression
Speaker 1: there in that situation. And that's the first of three
Speaker 1: and thirty times the West will say that in his life. Well,
Speaker 1: I got to back the next time, and she said
Speaker 1: something to me to catch your dow whoa, And I said,
Speaker 1: first of all, you are my wife, an apology and
Speaker 1: you were way out of line. She apologized after the game.
Speaker 1: Good husband work, and I hope I'm not going out
Speaker 1: of bounds and saying that at the watering hole after
Speaker 1: the softball game, Lakisha made it clear that West would
Speaker 1: be properly reimbursed for being such a great husband. Yeah,
Speaker 1: she bought flowers. Um okay. Superstar Club twenty nineteen to
Speaker 1: tradition on the dot com and on this podcast, I
Speaker 1: I go through the league, I try to find players
Speaker 1: that have Now West can one more piece of news
Speaker 1: just to get Greg's opinion on a fantasy football situation. Yes,
Speaker 1: I love I love you to jump in with that guy. Well,
Speaker 1: Andy Reid came out very strong in favor of Damian Williams.
Speaker 1: As his full time starter for the year at running back.
Speaker 1: He's taken the challenge, Reid said, he wants to do this.
Speaker 1: He's earned it to be the guy Greg in that offense,
Speaker 1: we're talking about a special talent, but he can play
Speaker 1: all three downs. He's good in the passing game. I
Speaker 1: think he's pretty talented. Do you do you you have
Speaker 1: to consider him in the first round, don't you know?
Speaker 1: If I was gonna say, tell me where he's getting drafted,
Speaker 1: because I feel like everyone's just gonna dismiss for the
Speaker 1: fantasy extravagance. Smiths, Hey, when when Priest Tholmes was a
Speaker 1: late season sensation, people weren't drafting him and then first
Speaker 1: round the next year either because he was undrafted. That
Speaker 1: was a little different. That was a little different. Damian Williams.
Speaker 1: You you hear coaches talk about like guys that have
Speaker 1: kind of earned the next chance like this in June July.
Speaker 1: Sometimes right now he's getting taken one overall. Yeah, and
Speaker 1: before that. But but I'll be a little worried that
Speaker 1: that's offense. Every running back looks good. He's talented, though
Speaker 1: he's not something for someone that's been bounced around. When
Speaker 1: you watch him. You're like, why did he bounce around?
Speaker 1: He makes people miss on his own, but he's never
Speaker 1: been that guy and have that kind of workload. Well,
Speaker 1: I remember, guys, you have a little bit of a
Speaker 1: monte ball factor, Like he's never done it before. So
Speaker 1: if you're drafting this guy just based on the offense,
Speaker 1: you do have to worry about something like that. Is
Speaker 1: he talented enough to keep the job and keep all
Speaker 1: comers away from his spottle. I feel a little weird though,
Speaker 1: having this fantasy conversation here without Mark. This is where
Speaker 1: I throw it to the corner, of course, and he
Speaker 1: would have some takes and being great danger at the
Speaker 1: same time. Yes, the Fantasy Extravaganza, Yeah, the whole thing.
Speaker 1: The wheel is spinning, it's a cycle. And uh, before
Speaker 1: you know what, we'll be doing our annual fantasy extravaganza.
Speaker 1: You know we should get on again this year. The
Speaker 1: big Fish, the big Fish, Evan Silva. He's moved on
Speaker 1: past Road a world. Talk about a guy who really
Speaker 1: built road a world, big big. He's moved on to
Speaker 1: the plaster on. He put in the stuff, spackled the place,
Speaker 1: painted it, he built the guesthouse. He's got his own Uh,
Speaker 1: he's got his own website now established the run dot com.
Speaker 1: So we got like that, gotta get him on to
Speaker 1: hear what's going on. We'll check in with the big fish.
Speaker 1: All right, let's get to it. Damian Williams my first Superstar,
Speaker 1: so we'll get right into it. No, Damian Williams, not yet,
Speaker 1: but perhaps so. Anyway, what the Superstar Club is zero
Speaker 1: sum game. I'm going to bring a guy that's an
Speaker 1: established player. Very rarely will I put in someone with
Speaker 1: no background. Last year, I I got, I did pretty well.
Speaker 1: I did. I did take Andrew Luck out of the
Speaker 1: UM Superstar Club with a caveat that I would regret
Speaker 1: it probably and I did. And I put Carson Wentz
Speaker 1: in and that did. So that didn't work out, But
Speaker 1: overall I had a good run last year. Let me
Speaker 1: just bring up my list room last year. Uh bear
Speaker 1: with me, alright. So, yes, I kind of botched that one.
Speaker 1: But I had Davante Adams in, Jordy Nelson out That
Speaker 1: was a winner, Michael Thomas in Des Bryant out. That
Speaker 1: was a winner. Album Kamara in Lashawn McCoy out, that
Speaker 1: was a winner, Sae Kwon Barkley in Marshawn Lynch out.
Speaker 1: That was a winner. UM So, not bad last year.
Speaker 1: Not bad. I'm gonna I'm gonna take some bigger chances here,
Speaker 1: some controversial moves. Is Larry Fitzgerald still in the Superstar?
Speaker 1: He's out, he was out a couple of years ago.
Speaker 1: He was out a couple of years ago. Um And
Speaker 1: I was. I was actually when I was looking to
Speaker 1: take out a wide receiver because that is tough to do. UM.
Speaker 1: I thought about Larry and it's like that sounds familiar.
Speaker 1: I think I dumped Larry before, so I would not
Speaker 1: do it again. A little start at the quarterback position, though, gentlemen,
Speaker 1: and you know that I'm a big Deshaun Watson fan.
Speaker 1: Um And I thought last year was a big step
Speaker 1: forward for him coming back from the A c L.
Speaker 1: I think he's gonna be even better. I hope Will
Speaker 1: Fuller gets gets all the way back from his uh
Speaker 1: A c L. Was what was in an A c
Speaker 1: L for Fuller as well? I believe it was. Yeah,
Speaker 1: but with DeAndre Hopkins there and I'm I'm assuming the
Speaker 1: offensive line will be better. It could not be any worse.
Speaker 1: I thought that Watson was just stellar last year both
Speaker 1: running the football, throwing the football, and I think he's
Speaker 1: gonna get even better. You gotta cut down on the sacks.
Speaker 1: That's not all the offensive line's fault. He has to
Speaker 1: be better there as well. But I think Watson in
Speaker 1: year three, still just twenty three years old, could be
Speaker 1: a guy that is someone that can carry an organization
Speaker 1: to a super Bowl. Not necessarily this team, but he
Speaker 1: ascends to that level. You guys, okay with Deshaun Watson
Speaker 1: ascending to the superstar club. I have no issues with that,
Speaker 1: and I think it's past past time to keep doubting
Speaker 1: Deshaun Watson. I think he's proven to be quite exceptional. Really,
Speaker 1: I'm surprised that he's not a bigger star now. Maybe
Speaker 1: that's from being in Houston, maybe just the injury, the
Speaker 1: way the rookie season happened, and then the influx last
Speaker 1: year of a great rookie class which got so much attention.
Speaker 1: But I think those extra snaps that Watson's had, that
Speaker 1: he's already come back from an injury like that gives
Speaker 1: him an edge over those guys. So I like that.
Speaker 1: I I think he he has a better chance than
Speaker 1: than the class of two thousand, uh and eighteen rookies
Speaker 1: to do it, and I'm surprised they're not. I'm looking now,
Speaker 1: they're not really in prime time that much. I guess
Speaker 1: they get that first Monday Night, but that's kind of
Speaker 1: a strange one. Against the Saints. I feel like they
Speaker 1: play like fourteen times on Thursday Night football every year. Yeah,
Speaker 1: they've got they've got a Thursday Night or against the Colts.
Speaker 1: They've got one Sunday Night, which could be moved, but
Speaker 1: that's week thirteen, so I guess that's three. That's that's
Speaker 1: medium respect. But I think Watson, at some point in
Speaker 1: his career, because he's so electric, is going to be
Speaker 1: the type of player you put in prime time five times.
Speaker 1: I want to know who you're taking out. That's where
Speaker 1: it gets tough, because they never get old anymore. UM.
Speaker 1: I really wanted to put Baker in as well that um,
Speaker 1: but I cannot. I could not justify taking out a
Speaker 1: second quarterback. So it's hard enough to take out one.
Speaker 1: So it became am I putting in Baker or Deshaun.
Speaker 1: I chose to Sean Baker could make me look bad.
Speaker 1: We'll see. Now I have to take somebody out all
Speaker 1: right here, here are my options. Okay, Am I gonna
Speaker 1: take out Carson Wentz? No, I'm not. I can take
Speaker 1: out Drew Brees. No. I can't do that, Big Ben, No,
Speaker 1: I can't do that. Russell Wilson can't do that. Is
Speaker 1: this about your fantasy football grudge? No? No, okay, I
Speaker 1: there's one guy I can take out, and it's not
Speaker 1: You're gonna think it's me being personal, But I'm gonna
Speaker 1: take Tom Brady out of the superstar club. No. I
Speaker 1: mean it makes sense. He just won a Super Bowl
Speaker 1: with one of the great playoff runs in the a
Speaker 1: f C of his life, scoring what was that forty
Speaker 1: points against the Chargers and then thirty eight against the Chiefs.
Speaker 1: Basically needed a touchdown to go to the Super Bowl
Speaker 1: and gets it to play the Chargers. Did they Yeah,
Speaker 1: they dropped like forty on him. That supposedly great defense.
Speaker 1: Well that's what no Gronk anymore, and statistically that that
Speaker 1: offense is so much worse without him. All they're a
Speaker 1: big dip touchdowns, yards, completion percentage, yards per attempt and
Speaker 1: he's gone forever at least until November December. Even with
Speaker 1: Gronk last year, statistically Brady was right in the middle
Speaker 1: of the pack amongst starting quarterbacks. So this is not
Speaker 1: one of the old users shots of Tom Brady. I
Speaker 1: need to make a cut. And if you guys can
Speaker 1: make a case or someone else, I thought you might
Speaker 1: have gone Philip Rivers. Is he in the superstar club?
Speaker 1: I don't have him in the superstar club personally, Cam
Speaker 1: Newton I thought about, but last year I got burned
Speaker 1: by taking a superstar ocs of a bump shoulder with Luck.
Speaker 1: I'm leaving Cam where he is, so I took out Tom.
Speaker 1: I still think Brady is a guy, could be a
Speaker 1: star if you want a super Bowl again. But I
Speaker 1: just think it's a new generational quarterback. But if he
Speaker 1: wins a super Bowl, then you're wrong. I don't. I know.
Speaker 1: It's like, oh, winds don't matter and all that, and
Speaker 1: I and I get that. Don't have to be a
Speaker 1: star quarterback to win a super Bowl. We've seen that before.
Speaker 1: Joe Flacco is not a superstar. Eli Manning is not
Speaker 1: a superstar. But if Tom Brady is not a super
Speaker 1: Tom Brady, if if Tom, But if Tom Brady won
Speaker 1: a super Bowl by dint of being Tom Brady, the
Speaker 1: greatest quarterback who has ever lived. And you know it,
Speaker 1: had two of his best seasons of his career in
Speaker 1: the last three years. You know he was good. Last
Speaker 1: year he wasn't great. I agree last year, I don't.
Speaker 1: I think he was like on the edge of a
Speaker 1: top ten quarterback in the regular season, had two of
Speaker 1: his two of his best. I think that's scotten almost
Speaker 1: forgotten because because the Super Bowl was so ugly and
Speaker 1: the regular season wasn't great, that he lit the Chargers
Speaker 1: up like they were little just coming off of that
Speaker 1: raven But that's what the Charges do in January that
Speaker 1: it doesn't matter. You get credit for it. You get
Speaker 1: credit for scoring forty points in the divisional round, and
Speaker 1: you get credit for having a sensational game in the
Speaker 1: a f C Championship when they needed him to score. Believe,
Speaker 1: let me ask you this question. It's as simple as
Speaker 1: can be. Tom Brady in two thousand nineteen, do you
Speaker 1: think he'll perform at a superstar level for a quarterback?
Speaker 1: It's the superstar word is what's confusing of all top
Speaker 1: seven or eight quarterback. Yes, I think he can. I
Speaker 1: think he's right on the line, bro, And I'm just
Speaker 1: gonna put him on the line, all right, So that's
Speaker 1: the quarterback and again, but it's like he's bringing all
Speaker 1: those other intangules of being a superstar too to a supermodel.
Speaker 1: He is. He is the superstar that the NFL has
Speaker 1: it now, but it's got to end it sometime. This
Speaker 1: is aashta gradual decline. This is the year. This is
Speaker 1: when it happens. I feel up my bone. We said
Speaker 1: that last I started graduating declining last year. I'll buy that. Okay,
Speaker 1: let's move out of the quarterback and Baker Mayfield Mark,
Speaker 1: I know you're listening. I would love to put him in.
Speaker 1: I just couldn't take someone else out, all right. I
Speaker 1: just couldn't do it, all right, I mean I put
Speaker 1: if if it comes down to it. I I love
Speaker 1: Cam New and I'd take Cam out for Baker just
Speaker 1: because I like Bakers. Baker's definitely got the sizzle factor.
Speaker 1: He's got the sizzle that matters. That matters. We'll say, though,
Speaker 1: you know it's only broky year. Yeah, better better team
Speaker 1: around him. All right? Here we go running back position.
Speaker 1: You know, Greg, it's still sticks in my crawl the
Speaker 1: way you slandered Christian McCaffrey. Um, you about a month
Speaker 1: ago on our podcast were called him a homeless man's
Speaker 1: Alvin Kamara. I believe was something along those lines you did.
Speaker 1: You had some critical things to say, comparing Christian McCaffrey
Speaker 1: to Alvin Camaro. Who's your boy in two lane and
Speaker 1: the Saints. I get all that walks home from the
Speaker 1: game from the super dumb probably walks past the bars.
Speaker 1: I used to go, I get all that, Greg. If
Speaker 1: you asked I think thirty to general managers who they'd
Speaker 1: rather have, they'd all say Camara, including the Panthers. Now,
Speaker 1: let me say this, in two thousand eighteen, I put
Speaker 1: Albuqaire in the Superstar Club. So I'm not right, Yeah,
Speaker 1: you're right. I'm just saying Christian McCaffrey, it's his time
Speaker 1: now to head in that Superstar club. Did you know
Speaker 1: that he was um? He was rested in Week seventeen.
Speaker 1: He played in ent of Caroline a Snaps last season,
Speaker 1: which just for that it doesn't happen leading into Week seventeen.
Speaker 1: Remember when we were asking if he could run between
Speaker 1: the tackles. I mean this guy he was the first
Speaker 1: of the team and targets rushing attempts up to two nineteen,
Speaker 1: he had a hundred and seven catches almost nine hundred yards.
Speaker 1: He's got. He's definitely a threat to join that Roger
Speaker 1: Craig one thousand, one thousand club. His yard for carry
Speaker 1: went up from three seven to five last year. He's
Speaker 1: twenty three years old. He is the guy you want
Speaker 1: to talk about. Guys to invest in a long term
Speaker 1: contract at running back. No injury history the way Melvin
Speaker 1: Gordon with the knees or anything. This guy is locked
Speaker 1: and loaded. A superstar. I'm putting him in the club.
Speaker 1: Anybody got an issue? No, And even though I don't
Speaker 1: remember what, I was just comparing him to Kamara. I
Speaker 1: I like this. I mean he's got, he's already got
Speaker 1: the numbers. And now that he once you do it twice,
Speaker 1: you know he's a good looking young man. He's now
Speaker 1: dating Danny Danny Amendolah's uh is that confirmed? Now? Ex girlfriend?
Speaker 1: I don't know. That's what Rick and Danny tweeted yesterday,
Speaker 1: like I told you so, so he's kind like told
Speaker 1: him what Remember his like outburst, he was like hearing
Speaker 1: all these rumors and then TMZ posted two days yesterday
Speaker 1: Olivia and Christian McCaffrey kissing and holding hands. It's not
Speaker 1: a good it's just not a good way to be Danny.
Speaker 1: You're making yourself. But it makes sense too, because McCaffrey
Speaker 1: is kind of the next you know, he's the new
Speaker 1: boy band. Remember, it's like a Mendola tried to be.
Speaker 1: It's like Amundola, how about you gain more than seven
Speaker 1: hundred yards in a regular season once in your career
Speaker 1: to be that big of a superstar. McCaffrey on their head,
Speaker 1: their hand, he's got he's got numbers up as you
Speaker 1: know what McCaffrey's nickname isn't playoffs. I don't know. I'm
Speaker 1: just saying he's got enough yards for three Danny Amandola seasons.
Speaker 1: That's fair. He's more than enough man, you know, a
Speaker 1: better man perhaps in a lot of ways. Ricky, I
Speaker 1: don't know what these with these social media outbursts and
Speaker 1: all this kind of stuff. It's it's really kind of
Speaker 1: taking a toll interesting really, it's it's just it's a
Speaker 1: bad look and um and yeah, on the bottom of
Speaker 1: our rundown there's a picture of me in my babe
Speaker 1: tumbling down the rankings. No, that looks Yeah. Personality wise,
Speaker 1: it's sort of like it's a little needy much I'd
Speaker 1: love I don't know if it's um. You've even lost
Speaker 1: his nickname. They're calling him Phillip playoffs dore set Now
Speaker 1: that's a well. In our group chat yesterday with me
Speaker 1: Eddie Spaghetti, m A VP and Sully, we are arguing
Speaker 1: yesterday and I apparently the only one that thinks Danny
Speaker 1: is better looking than Christian McAffrey. Emma said that she
Speaker 1: would take me down that I'm so wrong that Christian
Speaker 1: McAffrey is way hotter, which is just so wrong. I
Speaker 1: think it looks like he got his face smashed on
Speaker 1: the door. Christian McAffrey out of bounce back, cut that
Speaker 1: mic for five minutes. All right, Um, okay, so Kaffrey
Speaker 1: and this is tough as well. Now here's the thing.
Speaker 1: A lot of people are gonna be, you know, good
Speaker 1: crazy and say take Todd Gurley out. I'm not gonna
Speaker 1: do it. It's just two on the nose and two
Speaker 1: offseason um headline E just you guy. So I'm gonna
Speaker 1: keep him there out of respect because I think he's
Speaker 1: that great a player. I just thinking David Johnson, it's
Speaker 1: you know, he's only truly had one great year, and
Speaker 1: I really do like David Johnson, and I do like
Speaker 1: the idea of him getting back on track with Cliff
Speaker 1: Kingsbury and all that stuff. So I'm gonna leave David
Speaker 1: in there. So I kind of took an easy way out,
Speaker 1: and I took out a former rushing champion who is
Speaker 1: disgraced for some issues off the field and now was
Speaker 1: with a fresh start with the Cleveland Browns. Kaream Hunt.
Speaker 1: Was he ever in this super state? I don't know.
Speaker 1: He's a rushing champion and an electric playmaker. You already
Speaker 1: took Shady McCoy. Shady was out last year. Now, if
Speaker 1: you're telling me I can't do that, if that's too easy,
Speaker 1: it's easy. I just think Hunt was what a third
Speaker 1: round pick who had, you know, kind of burst on
Speaker 1: the scene and definitely was had a great year. But
Speaker 1: I don't know if he ever was had that superstar
Speaker 1: factor because he wasn't around long enough. All right, you
Speaker 1: think it's too easy, it feels a little convenient, all right,
Speaker 1: Then I will take David Johnson out and have him
Speaker 1: in What are my other options? You know, girlies two
Speaker 1: on the nose, but sometimes on the nose is the
Speaker 1: right choice. You would take girl out before David Johnson
Speaker 1: at the State absolutely, because I don't think he's gonna
Speaker 1: get the I think the I think he's gonna get
Speaker 1: fewer touches and superstars get touches. The Cardinals offense has
Speaker 1: to prove it to me. Yeah, I mean it was
Speaker 1: least year was a total disaster. Right, let's move on. Uh,
Speaker 1: you guys, maybe think when I'm sitting down at Starbucks
Speaker 1: after this show and I'm cranking out copy, I got
Speaker 1: something to think about wide receiver. Alright, more controversy. Alright,
Speaker 1: first this one I feel good about. You did a
Speaker 1: great job with this. Last year. You put in who
Speaker 1: Michael Thomas, Michael Thomas, I put in um and the
Speaker 1: top three guy, Jordian Dez. I mean that is a
Speaker 1: beautiful out of the league. Nice nice work. Alright, So
Speaker 1: I got a lot of pressure on this. It's not
Speaker 1: gonna be that easy this year. It's gonna be tougher.
Speaker 1: Juju Smith Schuster is going into the Superstar club. I
Speaker 1: don't need to give you a lot of background here.
Speaker 1: You get it over. Adam Feeling. I think if you're
Speaker 1: if you're looking for sizzle, Jujus. Juju feels like the
Speaker 1: right answer. I was trying to think of my own ones,
Speaker 1: and Juju was my number one feeling. Is a tremendous player.
Speaker 1: He's slowed down in the second half flash year with injuries.
Speaker 1: I just think Juju's ceiling is a little bit higher something.
Speaker 1: He's just twenty two years old. Well, he's also going
Speaker 1: to get fed targets like crazy this year. I think
Speaker 1: the intangibles matter a little bit, and Juju's got those
Speaker 1: got to He's got some charisma that I really like.
Speaker 1: I like Smith Shoes. He's got some cash as a personality,
Speaker 1: and that's what it also has a lot of like
Speaker 1: cas who's Tom Brady. Let's go um. Now we could
Speaker 1: put into wider subers by the way too, so we
Speaker 1: can theeland. We could discuss that. But I like Smith Schuster.
Speaker 1: You can't get targeted much more than he was last year.
Speaker 1: But I think you're gonna see his red zone usage
Speaker 1: go way up and become basically put up something close
Speaker 1: to Antonio brown numbers this year. That's what I expect
Speaker 1: that from Smith Schuster, and that to me is a superstar.
Speaker 1: Now I gotta take somebody out this one. Really hurts
Speaker 1: because I love him. We just talked about him on
Speaker 1: on our last show West A J. Green, I'm gonna
Speaker 1: take out of the Superstar club and I'll tell you why.
Speaker 1: It's been a while now. Uh, injuries have really started
Speaker 1: to take their toll on Green. He's entering his age
Speaker 1: thirty one season, um, but he's been missing games. He's
Speaker 1: list missed at least three games three of the past
Speaker 1: five seasons. He had toe issues. He had surgery uh
Speaker 1: this offseason. And he's you know, let's face it, his
Speaker 1: quarterback is the ultimate, you know, middle of the road passer.
Speaker 1: He is the Dalton scale. Uh, the Dalton New offense.
Speaker 1: Maybe under a new staff and a fresh start, that
Speaker 1: offense clicks. But I guess I gotta see a J.
Speaker 1: Green be a J. Green again for sixteen games. Uh.
Speaker 1: And I'm willing to say that Juju Smith Schuster is
Speaker 1: a better bet going forward than a J. Green in nineteen.
Speaker 1: I was shocked at first, but after looking at his
Speaker 1: numbers in the the last three years, this is fair. He
Speaker 1: doesn't even have an eleven hundred yards season in any
Speaker 1: of the last three year. Kids he missed, he missed
Speaker 1: a lot of time. Is his last full season, and
Speaker 1: Dalton was healthy that whole season two and he didn't
Speaker 1: crack eleven hundred yards, which is which is pretty shocking. Uh.
Speaker 1: The injuries is one reason I thought he might have
Speaker 1: been available this year before the draft. But I think
Speaker 1: the Bengals were smart to keep. They have a hard
Speaker 1: enough time last superstars. And I still think he is
Speaker 1: a superstar and should be fine. I get it. But
Speaker 1: his last true bonkers superstar year, you could say, two thousand,
Speaker 1: fifteen nine fifteen yards or touchdowns, two thousand, fourteen eleven tds,
Speaker 1: is that guy gone? I think it's possible. It's fair
Speaker 1: to point out that the two best seasons of his
Speaker 1: career we're second and third seasons, and and we're now
Speaker 1: getting pretty far away from that. That is fair. He's
Speaker 1: entering his ninth season's come back to haunt, though with
Speaker 1: a new coach. I get that, and that's part of
Speaker 1: the game. With a superstar club, it's gotta be risky,
Speaker 1: all right. A couple more sneaky thirty one. Uh, alright,
Speaker 1: So this one I'm gonna need your help with because
Speaker 1: George Kittle's got to go into the superstar club for
Speaker 1: me as a tight end Uh, you know, I didn't
Speaker 1: realize this. His thirteen hundred and seventy seven yards last year.
Speaker 1: That's an all time record. No tight end, not Jimmy Graham,
Speaker 1: not Grog, not Um Shannon Sharp, no one's ever he did.
Speaker 1: It was second and third hamming egg curtain jerkers. He
Speaker 1: had almost average ten yards per catch. He was targeted
Speaker 1: the hundred and third six times, eighty eight catches a beast.
Speaker 1: We met him, we interviewed him. He said it on
Speaker 1: the show in January. He's basically a professional wrestler. He's
Speaker 1: got charisma. He's got charisma for days. It's oozing out
Speaker 1: of him. Gross twenty five years old. This is uh,
Speaker 1: this is the time for George Kittle. And if Jimmy
Speaker 1: g is Jimmy g that we think he can be,
Speaker 1: Kittle's gonna be a household name. Potentially, somebody's gotta go. Now.
Speaker 1: I wanted to throw Jimmy Graham, but guess what I went.
Speaker 1: I went through the archives. I threw out Jimmy Graham
Speaker 1: in two thousand fifteen, and I nailed that. So you
Speaker 1: gotta pick somebody else. And Ntes Gronk right, that's I
Speaker 1: guess a cop out I can, but that's cheating because
Speaker 1: what am I gonna because? But I also think Gronks
Speaker 1: playing this year? Who? Who? Who did you come up
Speaker 1: with before this? Before? It's tough? I mean I had
Speaker 1: Graham and then I did some research and I was like, oh,
Speaker 1: I can't kick him out twice? Help you also bet
Speaker 1: against them sandwich wise before last season? Even Yeah, I
Speaker 1: on the end of the Jimmy Graham ea, uh, greg Olsen,
Speaker 1: But was Greg Olson ever a superstar? I might have
Speaker 1: to take Gronk out just because I don't have a
Speaker 1: real option otherwise. But Grons playing this year, But I mean,
Speaker 1: you can't take Kelsey out. I don't know if Zach
Speaker 1: Hurtz is on that list, but you can't take him out.
Speaker 1: And that's it. Who else would we even be in
Speaker 1: her O? J. Howard would be a candidate, and maybe
Speaker 1: Evan Ingram next year to jump up potentially, or Hunter
Speaker 1: Henry I was thinking about um. I thought Howard played
Speaker 1: like a Pro Bowl or last year until he went
Speaker 1: down with that. But taking out it was just not enough.
Speaker 1: I mean, Antonio Gates has been out, He's not even
Speaker 1: in the lead. David the Jocos says he wants twenty
Speaker 1: touchdowns this year, but I'd have to see that first.
Speaker 1: I mean, can you catch We'll find that out. Yeah,
Speaker 1: So I'll just take out Gronk just for housekeeping purposes here.
Speaker 1: With Jordan reed Ever in there, you could kick him out.
Speaker 1: He tore his hamstring listening to this podcast. Uh, Tyler Eiffort. Uh.
Speaker 1: Defense not as fun, but I do have Uh. I'm
Speaker 1: gonna put Myles Garrett in there. That could be like
Speaker 1: one of the NFL NFL slogans. Defense not as fun.
Speaker 1: We're into offense, so edge rushers that position group. Myles
Speaker 1: Garrett looks like every bit of superstar the Browns thought
Speaker 1: they were getting. And now with more help along the
Speaker 1: defensive line of Sheldon Richardson Olivier Vernon, this could be
Speaker 1: the year that Garrett, you know, eighteen sacks something like
Speaker 1: that and total game record both sides of the ball.
Speaker 1: He's been great and he and he gets like the
Speaker 1: PFF love and you watch him and he's definitely a
Speaker 1: great player, but I he hasn't been I think there's
Speaker 1: another level he can go to your point where he
Speaker 1: can have a Von Miller in his prime type of season.
Speaker 1: We've been waiting it's what your David Clowney never has
Speaker 1: quite done right hit that next tier. I think Garrett
Speaker 1: perhaps is the guy now that you think could do it.
Speaker 1: You gotta take somebody out. I'll take a guy that
Speaker 1: just changed teams. He went to West's favorite team, Justin Houston.
Speaker 1: One of the great pass rushers of the last decade,
Speaker 1: getting a little up there. Maybe won't be on the
Speaker 1: field quite as much, still gets about ten sacks of season,
Speaker 1: but after a nice run in the Superstar Club Justin
Speaker 1: Houston will step into a lesser spotlight. I was wondering
Speaker 1: if you were gonna fudge in Dominican Sue's position a
Speaker 1: little bit and use him as the guys. I thought
Speaker 1: about maybe taking Clowney out if if he's if you
Speaker 1: ever got there, wasn't last year one of his best seasons. Yeah,
Speaker 1: but I he's someone where he again he's he's gonna
Speaker 1: skip training camp. It sounds like, and is he a
Speaker 1: guy that you trust to be healthy and go that
Speaker 1: next long I think we know who he is, which
Speaker 1: is a really really good UH player, really strong against
Speaker 1: the run, not like the most dynamic pass rusher, not
Speaker 1: not the level of like the Hall of fame type players.
Speaker 1: I mean, that's such a high level to compare him too,
Speaker 1: But I don't know if he's at that A little
Speaker 1: bit of a victim of the hype. I don't remember
Speaker 1: a defensive player that came in with as much he
Speaker 1: was the next LT and you know the highlights of
Speaker 1: the ripping the ball, destroying that running back in the backfield.
Speaker 1: He was supposed to be a man amongst boys, and
Speaker 1: he's been great, But I don't think he's hit that superstar.
Speaker 1: Leut been a really good number one overall pick, I think,
Speaker 1: better than an average November one overall pick. But I'd
Speaker 1: kind of be surprised if he was trying to get
Speaker 1: paid right now. I kind of would be surprised if
Speaker 1: he stays with the Texans. I feel like he's gonna
Speaker 1: get paid somewhere else. Interesting that you know, is he
Speaker 1: the new Mario Williams? So what's happening here? Different? Alright?
Speaker 1: One more position. I give Clowney a little more, a
Speaker 1: little There are people who thought Clowney was an All
Speaker 1: Pro last year. Yeah, I think he's been borderline. He's
Speaker 1: been a Pro Bowl borderline Pro Bowl type. I wouldn't
Speaker 1: go quite outpro the last two years just be he played.
Speaker 1: He's one of the few defensive ends who can play
Speaker 1: just about anywhere on the line, can drop into linebacker.
Speaker 1: He can do anything. Um. Finally, Jamal Adams, I know
Speaker 1: it was coming and I had my boy, Jamal Adams.
Speaker 1: And when he gets the Brian Baldinger Baldy Seal of
Speaker 1: approval if you watch one of Baldi's videos, that he
Speaker 1: is a special talent of potentially transcendent type safety. Best
Speaker 1: Jets defender since Pete rivas Um. I think this in
Speaker 1: year three again, You're three is the big one. You're
Speaker 1: three is if you are a superstar type player. That's
Speaker 1: when you are a bang your smack in the middle
Speaker 1: of your prime. There's no more ramp up. You show
Speaker 1: a lot of signs as a rookie, you progress as
Speaker 1: a second year player, and then bang, this is the
Speaker 1: year where you're a game changer. I think Adams could
Speaker 1: be that guy. I gotta take somebody out. Um. I
Speaker 1: know there are different types of safeties. I was gonna
Speaker 1: throw out a guy that got overpaid by an a
Speaker 1: f C superpower, great player, re established his value, but
Speaker 1: it's had injury issues. Is honey Badger still still superstar.
Speaker 1: It's a good question. I don't think he's played at
Speaker 1: like a superstar. He hasn't played at a superstar level
Speaker 1: since his second torn a c O. Is it cruel
Speaker 1: to take him out of the superstar club because he
Speaker 1: just got paid like a superstar? So the chief well,
Speaker 1: and and he's another year removed from that a c L.
Speaker 1: That's when he had his best season once he was
Speaker 1: two years removed from the last one. For what it's worth,
Speaker 1: and they're they're counting on him. I don't know who
Speaker 1: your other options would be. The only concern with Jamal
Speaker 1: Adams is he didn't take a step forward. I don't
Speaker 1: think in his second year. I don't know if it
Speaker 1: was a better season p FF. For what it's worth,
Speaker 1: Adam grade grade and lower. He was their highest graded safety.
Speaker 1: Maybe I'm thinking like mid midway through the season. The
Speaker 1: bigger concern I'd have a it's it's a new defense
Speaker 1: and and we'll see. What Greg Williams says is that
Speaker 1: the cornerbacks are so bad and sometimes like that affects
Speaker 1: you as a safety. If you're if you're making up
Speaker 1: for if you're having to change your responsibilities. Is he
Speaker 1: going to get to make as many splash plays. If
Speaker 1: they have one of the worst cornerback groups in the league,
Speaker 1: that would be a small concern that the defense as
Speaker 1: a whole, it's a major. It's the biggest concern on
Speaker 1: the Jets is their cornerback. So that's fair for it's worth.
Speaker 1: He was ranked ranked number four behind Eddie Jackson, Earl
Speaker 1: Thomas who barely played, Tracy Walker, who barely played. So
Speaker 1: to me, the top of safety is the league lash.
Speaker 1: This one's a no brainer. He's got the leadership, He's
Speaker 1: an alpha dog. He is, you know, in his third
Speaker 1: year in the league, like he is the face of
Speaker 1: the franchise, and he he has that Marquis value and
Speaker 1: he's he's a good player. But I think if you're
Speaker 1: talking honey Badger, he has no business being in there
Speaker 1: over Derwin James, Kevin Byard, Eddie Jackson, Zaric Weddell superstar safety, No,
Speaker 1: he's not. When you get released, yeah, I was thinking
Speaker 1: of the first half of the season, Adams was a
Speaker 1: little quiet. But I think one of the reasons why
Speaker 1: he makes sense in the superstar club is he wants
Speaker 1: to be a superstar like he and he does it well.
Speaker 1: And he doesn't do it in a way that's off
Speaker 1: footing and anyway, it's great. We need personalities and he
Speaker 1: he wants that attention and he backs it up. What
Speaker 1: happened with the mascot, the Patriots mascot that he speared?
Speaker 1: Was there talk of a lawsuit it or something? Wasn't
Speaker 1: there at the time? Was there any follow up on that? Yeah?
Speaker 1: He since passed away. Hey, everybody gets the number called eventually.
Speaker 1: All right, thoughts and prayers? All right, that's what I
Speaker 1: got for the Superstar Club? Anybody else? Anybody else come
Speaker 1: to mind? Um, yes, this is a position you normally
Speaker 1: wouldn't go to. But talk about a name brand offensive lineman. Okay,
Speaker 1: this would be good for my content for the copy.
Speaker 1: I might just steal this from you, go ahead. Was
Speaker 1: Quentin Nelson put him in the Superstar Club? There you go?
Speaker 1: Super a guard? I like that, all right? Plus, like
Speaker 1: if when you're talking football, if you're at all you know,
Speaker 1: insecure about like do they really trust me as a
Speaker 1: football head? You just started talking about interior offensive lineman.
Speaker 1: The road makes you sound smart? Great is always a
Speaker 1: good one, Alright, So I gotta take a fading road
Speaker 1: greater out. You got a guard to throw up offensive?
Speaker 1: Can we just say any offensive lineman? Now I need
Speaker 1: that credit, so you gotta give me somebody. Zach Mark No,
Speaker 1: Zach Mars. What about Marshall Yonda. Yeah, Yonda like this.
Speaker 1: Marshall Yonda is a superstar. I mean even within his
Speaker 1: he's a borderline hall of fame. He's been paid like
Speaker 1: one and has the all pros of us about this um.
Speaker 1: He hasn't had a slip last year as dominant. He's
Speaker 1: been dealing with injuries. They would tell you they struggled
Speaker 1: in that Chargers game in the in the including Marcia Yonda.
Speaker 1: I was just watching that for a little of Mark
Speaker 1: Jackson spent last twelve hours cutting in the offensive line
Speaker 1: deep dive. I was wondering where this is coming from. Yeah,
Speaker 1: so because he had never heard of Quentin Nelson until
Speaker 1: That's right. The one that really have is Zack Martin
Speaker 1: as the guy that would exit the club that one. Yeah,
Speaker 1: I'm I'm really really well versed. I can sign you
Speaker 1: the link if you need it for you, and I
Speaker 1: could maybe embed it in the content. No, I don't
Speaker 1: do that, Okay, just like put someone that's been retired
Speaker 1: for six like Jerry Evans and see if anyone notices
Speaker 1: what about a line but Greg, can you throw out
Speaker 1: a linebacker from me? So a linebacker Layton Vanderesh and
Speaker 1: Jalen Smith. Oh, I gotta take out two linebackers somebody
Speaker 1: from this. Is there a linebacker tandem on another team
Speaker 1: that I can move out? I mean, I wouldn't take
Speaker 1: Bobby Wagner out to that Ruins that you can take
Speaker 1: Thomas Davis out, but you can't take Luke kick le
Speaker 1: up right, I can't do it. That's a tough one,
Speaker 1: all right, and I'll get back to you off. Let's
Speaker 1: offline this conversation. Close up the kimono, wes um. All right,
Speaker 1: maybe just make it pick one of those two guys,
Speaker 1: Vanders or Smith. Who would you pack between those two?
Speaker 1: You know what, At the end of the year, I
Speaker 1: thought Jalen Smith was playing every bit as good as
Speaker 1: as Vanderesh. And when we interviewed him at the Super Bowl,
Speaker 1: talk about a guy who's using Christ's good point, he was.
Speaker 1: He was one of the most impressive athletes I've ever seen.
Speaker 1: No j Yeah, he was. He was so cool. He
Speaker 1: seems like a leader and a fun guy. Van rest
Speaker 1: Off was a rookie and was sensational, but maybe a
Speaker 1: little bit more of a Garrett guy. And who would
Speaker 1: we knock out a Garrett guy? Cannot slander anyone any worse.
Speaker 1: Mm hmm. Just Terrell Suggs Counts. I'm always down to,
Speaker 1: you know, get that guy. Drag him a little bit.
Speaker 1: Drag him. I think he Shounts if he was still there. TI. Okay,
Speaker 1: they're they're boarding up balls Hard University. Um, that's it
Speaker 1: for today's show. So we got here's the schedule. UM
Speaker 1: back on Monday, right, Ricky, Greg, we could do some
Speaker 1: making the leap. No, I'm gone, remember, I mean you
Speaker 1: could do that in August anytime. We'll do some making
Speaker 1: the leap when Greg gets back from Massachusetts. But Mark
Speaker 1: might be back. Well, he said he was. He texted us,
Speaker 1: he let us, he let us on. No. I feel
Speaker 1: like I've only heard it from Mark like one time
Speaker 1: in the last month. He's here, He's in Los Angeles.
Speaker 1: We're told this is off the grid. This is the
Speaker 1: longest Mark and I have gone without really communicating since
Speaker 1: I've moved to LTT. He is off the grid. There's
Speaker 1: more to the story here, Greg, You've been I've been
Speaker 1: done well, Mark. Yeah, we don't communicate that much anyway,
Speaker 1: so it doesn't seem like that big of a change.
Speaker 1: He's watching like three movies per nine. You're right, though,
Speaker 1: Our group text is a lot quieter. Where are the updates?
Speaker 1: Where the text, where the tweets the instagram about the movies,
Speaker 1: the double features? He's um, I think he's gone. I
Speaker 1: think he's history. Dad. Try to build some tension before
Speaker 1: our season seven, you know, premier or whatever you want
Speaker 1: to call it. Will Mark be back? Man Took, will
Speaker 1: be replaced by? Would you be stunned? Would you be stunned?
Speaker 1: I know your answer, Greg, obviously diffuser of tension and funs.
Speaker 1: Would you be stunned if Mark's not here on Monday?
Speaker 1: I thought you were gonna say if he doesn't show
Speaker 1: up again, I would not be stunned if he's not
Speaker 1: here on Monday. I yeah, I don't think he's coming. Wow,
Speaker 1: how long do we wait before we begin the search
Speaker 1: for a fourth new fourth? You gotta give him till
Speaker 1: the season starts. We give him till a week one?
Speaker 1: Out of respect? Yeah, I think anybody else we'd be looking.
Speaker 1: Wednesday started training. But Mark's you know, part of the
Speaker 1: fabric of the show. Out of respect, we wait until
Speaker 1: early September, I think Thursday before the season. You guys
Speaker 1: can't do your your flagship show with three That's true.
Speaker 1: So you need to have that in place, like a
Speaker 1: couple of days before. Maybe do a contest, have people
Speaker 1: bring him in for auditions, sit in the Mark chair. Yeah,
Speaker 1: all right? Is this like a good will hunting situation
Speaker 1: though that like you know Mark works as a custodian
Speaker 1: somewhere else. No, No, but like, wouldn't if if Mark
Speaker 1: didn't come back just to entertain your thought. Not rooting
Speaker 1: for this, by the way, but just you have to
Speaker 1: have to come into this with open eyes, wouldn't it
Speaker 1: In this situation we would sort of be like Ben
Speaker 1: Affleck and he would be Matt Damon And the best
Speaker 1: part of our day is that ten seconds we get
Speaker 1: to work, uh that day, and we wonder is Mark
Speaker 1: going to come or not? Or is he gonna go
Speaker 1: do whatever he's meant to do in the world if
Speaker 1: this isn't it, If he if he wants to pursue
Speaker 1: something else, you know what I mean, exactly what you're saying.
Speaker 1: He has often talked about um, working at a CVS
Speaker 1: and Almaha, Nebraska could be there right now, So tune
Speaker 1: in Monday. No goodbye, no see you later, or nothing
Speaker 1: just gets to the door. But that's what Affleck wanted.
Speaker 1: He didn't want any of that. Yeah, I would want
Speaker 1: that too. I would want that too, honestly. If that's
Speaker 1: how If that's how this is going down, some birds
Speaker 1: aren't meant to be caged. All right now, we're criss
Speaker 1: crossing our iconic nineties movies. Um, what's that one from
Speaker 1: that's uh Shawshank reduption? Okay, okay, let's go. Stan had
Speaker 1: the signing off for the mail Man and the old
Speaker 1: boss Ricky Hollywood behind well right in front of me
Speaker 1: act orphans. We are sail Monday