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Speaker 1: Welcome to another edition of the Official Jets podcast, The

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Speaker 1: Draft Podcast, presented by PEPSI. We're here in the bed

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Speaker 1: MGM studio with Double Trouble Phil Savage Rex Hogan, our

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Speaker 1: first two guests to ever record in the bed MGM studio. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: but unfortunately they weren't at the desk with us across

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Speaker 1: the way in the casual setting here, but we got

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Speaker 1: it done. True professionals, great veterans. And Joe Douglas. We've

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Speaker 1: said it multiple times here on the official podcast of

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Speaker 1: the team. He's assembled equality staff and two these are

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Speaker 1: two guys that he relies on big time, very much so.

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Speaker 1: Rex Hogan, the assistant GM to Joe Douglas, Phil Savage,

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Speaker 1: what the basically senior trust advisor, senior personalities and your

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Speaker 1: personality he trusts Joe Douglas, and Joe Douglas trust him,

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Speaker 1: you know. But yeah, they were both great and right

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Speaker 1: now as we record this, some final meetings before the

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Speaker 1: draft actually takes place. That's what's going on behind closed doors,

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Speaker 1: setting the big board, breaking up clusters and they'll talk

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Speaker 1: about this, but it's just interesting to hear them talk

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Speaker 1: about what goes on compared to what I think maybe

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Speaker 1: misconceptions are about what goes on. Would you say that's

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Speaker 1: a fair assessment on well what you what would you

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Speaker 1: say are the most significant misconception. I don't know, maybe

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Speaker 1: misconception was a bit of a strong word, but I

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Speaker 1: would say I think I said this to Phil. A

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Speaker 1: lot of fans and a lot of people say, my

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Speaker 1: team needs to come out with this position in one

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Speaker 1: of these two rounds, or else it's you know, or

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Speaker 1: else everything is going down the deep end. But that's

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Speaker 1: not the way that personnel or NFL personnel view it. Well,

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Speaker 1: I don't know if you would agree with this, but

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Speaker 1: the thing that I have really keaton on here as

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Speaker 1: we've gotten closer to the draft is a lot of

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Speaker 1: people look at the draft, uh from a forty foot view,

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Speaker 1: and they assign numbers for every prospect one, two, three,

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Speaker 1: four fuss. It all depends how you view the prospects

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Speaker 1: yourself for your organization, aligning with your systems too, because

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Speaker 1: the scouts have to grade each prospect, but then you

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Speaker 1: have to get intel information from the coaching staff because

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Speaker 1: there are certain traits they're looking for in these prospects.

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Speaker 1: So I think a lot of people out there think

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Speaker 1: in terms of the draft, you take the most talented

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Speaker 1: player available, no matter who it is. Well, not necessarily,

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Speaker 1: if that makes sense. It's not not just based on talent.

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Speaker 1: You have to draft well, but then you have to develop.

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Speaker 1: So there you're gonna have difference of opinions in there

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Speaker 1: because you have so many people floating out opinions. The

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Speaker 1: way I view a player is going to be different

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Speaker 1: than to wait you view a player. But that being said,

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Speaker 1: there has to be consensus ultimately when Joe turns that

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Speaker 1: card in that this is the right player for the

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Speaker 1: New York Jets, and the right player for the New

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Speaker 1: York Jets not might not be the right player for

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Speaker 1: somebody else. Right, I think that there's almost three chapters.

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Speaker 1: Chapter one the pre draft process, gathering your information. Chapter

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Speaker 1: two is the draft, and then chapter three, which a

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Speaker 1: lot of people I think just overlook it is the

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Speaker 1: development of those players, and chapter three doesn't come until

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Speaker 1: training camp and for the rest of their first couple

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Speaker 1: of years in the NFL. Even with the two thousand

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Speaker 1: twenty the draft class and reviews are very favorable and

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Speaker 1: look at what McKay Beckton did, and uh and Denzel

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Speaker 1: Mims and so on. But those guys, it's not the

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Speaker 1: period at the end of the sentence. I think sometimes

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Speaker 1: we look at the draft in terms of, oh, this

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Speaker 1: is the finished product, this is the ceiling. No, no, oh,

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Speaker 1: you are taking a talent and then you're going to

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Speaker 1: mold that talent into what you want him to be.

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Speaker 1: And there are certain traits the Jets are looking at

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Speaker 1: for every position. Right, very well said, And we don't

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Speaker 1: know what those traits are, partly because of the new

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Speaker 1: schemes would be easier to figure out. Okay, the Jets

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Speaker 1: defense looks like this, the Jets offense looks like this.

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Speaker 1: We don't know the answer to those questions yet. We'll

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Speaker 1: probably get a sense of it maybe after the draft.

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Speaker 1: But you know, let's hear from Phil Savage and Rex

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Speaker 1: Hogan on what's been or on what's been going on

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Speaker 1: the past couple of months and now the past couple

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Speaker 1: of days leading up to the draft. Alright, Phil, so

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Speaker 1: when we're recording this, we're just over a week out

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Speaker 1: from the draft. But what goes on between now April

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Speaker 1: and the first night of the draft on that side

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Speaker 1: of the building and internally among yourself and Joe Douglas

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Speaker 1: and everyone, Well, hopefully we're putting the finishing touches on

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Speaker 1: basically eleven months worth of work in terms of some

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Speaker 1: final reports, some some last check ups on players from

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Speaker 1: a personality standpoint, just trying to fill in any final

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Speaker 1: blanks on each prospective player that could become a New

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Speaker 1: York Jet. And I'm not talking, of course, about the

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Speaker 1: top players in this draft. I'm talking about all the

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Speaker 1: guys down in day to day three and then ultimately

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Speaker 1: the undrafted free agents. So a lot of finishing touches

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Speaker 1: and then a lot of internal conversations in terms of, Okay,

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Speaker 1: you know, are we sure this is these are the

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Speaker 1: players that we have lined up this way? Are we

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Speaker 1: sure this is the way we want it going into

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Speaker 1: the to the first night of the draft. And of course,

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Speaker 1: one of the beautiful things about the fact that it's

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Speaker 1: spread over three days is now you get a chance

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Speaker 1: to have a game plan, but then adjust and reset

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Speaker 1: that game plan between day one and day two, and

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Speaker 1: then obviously, uh, day two and day three, And that

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Speaker 1: was something that really has changed here over the last

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Speaker 1: decade or so. Yeah, so many things to get to

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Speaker 1: here with you, Phil, But what happens after the first

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Speaker 1: night of the draft after round one because a lot

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Speaker 1: of fans the anticipation is so great for number two

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Speaker 1: and number twenty three, But you have eight selections after

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Speaker 1: round one, five in the first three rounds. So what

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Speaker 1: happens with the board and how are the how do

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Speaker 1: those discussions go after nights one into Well, I think

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Speaker 1: a couple of things happened. Number one, of course, you

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Speaker 1: you you plug in the two or three players that

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Speaker 1: you've got a chance to select on night one, and

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Speaker 1: then you forecast okay with in taking those players. How

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Speaker 1: does it impact the ratings that we have at at

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Speaker 1: the other positions where we still may have a need? Uh,

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Speaker 1: do we reorder some things? Are we completely depleted at

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Speaker 1: a position that we were hopeful that there were going

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Speaker 1: to be more prospects available in the second or third

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Speaker 1: round or maybe in the fourth or fifth round, And

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Speaker 1: do we need to make a move up or are

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Speaker 1: there are the players that we like plentiful and now hey,

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Speaker 1: let's decide to go ahead and move down. And also

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Speaker 1: do you start building some assets for a future draft

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Speaker 1: in terms of would we be willing to trade uh,

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Speaker 1: some of these selections that are in the later part

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Speaker 1: of the draft, where we may feel like we're full

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Speaker 1: in terms of our roster makeup. There's really not a

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Speaker 1: lot of room left in the end in terms of

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Speaker 1: adding a six or seventh rounder, so let's spend that

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Speaker 1: pick off for a future pick. So those are definitely

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Speaker 1: a couple of things that that you look at in

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Speaker 1: terms of assessing what you just did and how it

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Speaker 1: might impact the ratings that you have for day two

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Speaker 1: and day three. Can you take us through, generally speaking,

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Speaker 1: how the board gets compiled by, When does that start

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Speaker 1: and how does the initial layout go compared to where

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Speaker 1: you're out now where maybe you're just putting some last

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Speaker 1: minute touches on it, you know. I think for each

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Speaker 1: individual scalt, it really starts with the first player that

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Speaker 1: they grade for the previous fall, you know, usually during

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Speaker 1: training camp. This year, of course, we were not allowed

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Speaker 1: to go to college practices, but nevertheless, for the individual scout,

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Speaker 1: I think it starts the very with the very first

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Speaker 1: player that you grade. For the organization and and the

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Speaker 1: team board, which is the most important thing here that

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Speaker 1: we're talking about, it really starts in December when we

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Speaker 1: have our first set of preliminary draft meetings. Then in

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Speaker 1: February where all the information is brought to the table, uh,

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Speaker 1: and it's really laid out in terms of, you know,

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Speaker 1: what do we think about the player on the field,

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Speaker 1: off the field character wise, ability wise, his his internal intangibles,

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Speaker 1: his external character, his on field performance or production. How

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Speaker 1: do all those things pull together? And where would we

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Speaker 1: rank this player? And I think that's one thing that

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Speaker 1: fans don't realize. Yes, we have a draft board with

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Speaker 1: all the different positions listed and the players ranked beneath

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Speaker 1: their different respective position, but we also ranked the players

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Speaker 1: vertically one through whatever number it ends up being. Typically

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Speaker 1: it used to be a hundred and fifty players. I

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Speaker 1: think nowadays you could really rank the top one twenty

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Speaker 1: on a given board and you would be able to

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Speaker 1: get through a two hundred and fifty selection draft and

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Speaker 1: and not run out of names, believe it or not.

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Speaker 1: So Uh. Ultimately that February meeting that you fast forward

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Speaker 1: to April, where the coaches have some input, They've done

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Speaker 1: their evaluations. You've also been out to the schools and

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Speaker 1: done some pro day work, gotten some official measurables in

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Speaker 1: terms of height, weight, speed, jumping ability, explosive numbers, and

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Speaker 1: then you have a chance to really do one more

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Speaker 1: once over and put the board up and also rank

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Speaker 1: the players vertically, and I think ultimately, uh, those decisions

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Speaker 1: that are made, you know, a couple of weeks ahead

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Speaker 1: of the draft, a week ahead of the draft, and

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Speaker 1: maybe just maybe a few days before the draft. You

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Speaker 1: want to have all those really hard discussions at that

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Speaker 1: point so that when you get on the clock, you've

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Speaker 1: already decided. You know, was that Smith or Jones or Thompson?

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Speaker 1: And what order do we put them in two weeks ago?

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Speaker 1: What order were they in forty eight hours ago? And

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Speaker 1: now here we are on draft night and Smith and

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Speaker 1: Jones are still there, Thompson has been picked, and we

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Speaker 1: decided two weeks ago that Smith was the better option

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Speaker 1: for us. And really that's how it works. I mean,

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Speaker 1: we try to simplify a very complicated situation that is

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Speaker 1: impacted by a lot of different variables. I have a

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Speaker 1: two parter for you. You are the senior personnel adviser

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Speaker 1: for Joe Douglas, so you provide insight on player personnel's philosophy.

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Speaker 1: What would you say about the Jets philosophy at its core?

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Speaker 1: And also how did you see that philosophy come to

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Speaker 1: life during free agency? Yeah, I would say, you know,

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Speaker 1: just as a general rule, we want to try to

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Speaker 1: identify and acquire big, fast, physical, tough and smart players.

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Speaker 1: And you know, again, it's a situation where there's so

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Speaker 1: many different styles of of offense and defense out there

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Speaker 1: in the college game and then in the NFL. But

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Speaker 1: what we're trying to do is identify the players that

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Speaker 1: are going to best fit our systems on offense, defense,

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Speaker 1: special teams. But even beyond that, how are they going

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Speaker 1: to fit in the locker room? How coachable is this player? Uh,

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Speaker 1: you know, how how is he going to be able

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Speaker 1: to help other younger players that are on our roster?

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Speaker 1: And that really is a piece of free agency that

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Speaker 1: was important to us because when you make a coaching

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Speaker 1: change and you have a new staff coming in Coach

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Speaker 1: Robert Solo and his staff come in with a different,

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Speaker 1: different requirements, different skill sets at different positions. Then we're

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Speaker 1: trying to find not only the best players that have

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Speaker 1: those different characteristics, but also the ones that can have

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Speaker 1: a positive influence and show our other younger prospects what

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Speaker 1: it takes to be a professional football player and to

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Speaker 1: do it successfully. How would you describe the relationship between

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Speaker 1: scouts and coaches. E A asked you about the Joe

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Speaker 1: Douglas philosophy. Then Robert Sala comes in with the organization,

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Speaker 1: hires a coaching staff, and it seems like what Robert

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Speaker 1: Salo believes in is also what Joe Douglas believes in.

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Speaker 1: But then you have to scout for a little bit

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Speaker 1: something different at least. So I'm just curious how you

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Speaker 1: would describe the relationship between the coaching staff and the scouts. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: I would say that anytime you're going through a transition

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Speaker 1: between UH coaching staffs UH, there's going to be a

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Speaker 1: bit of a learning curve. And I know in our

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Speaker 1: most recent draft meetings, I felt like I learned something

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Speaker 1: with every position group that we covered from coach Solis,

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Speaker 1: assistant coaches and coordinators who were speaking in the meeting.

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Speaker 1: And so with that said, we always talk about and

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Speaker 1: everyone focuses on the head coach in general manager relationship,

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Speaker 1: but it really goes far beyond that in terms of

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Speaker 1: that stair step of coordinators and directors, assistant coaches that

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Speaker 1: are position coaches, and area scouts or regional scouts, and

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Speaker 1: so you know, everyone's got to be in alignment all

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Speaker 1: the way through from top to bottom, and I think

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Speaker 1: that's something that gets lost sometimes when we're talking about, Hey,

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Speaker 1: the GM and the head coach are on the same page,

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Speaker 1: and you have to start with that. But it's also

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Speaker 1: very important all the way through both sides of the building,

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Speaker 1: so to speak, between coaching and scouting, where there's a

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Speaker 1: respect level and there's also a give and take level

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Speaker 1: of communication between the coaches and the scouting staff. And

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Speaker 1: if you get that, that really is kind of the

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Speaker 1: secret sauce in terms of being able to draft successfully

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Speaker 1: develop players in a successful manner. And if you do

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Speaker 1: those two things, ultimately you're going to win. What was

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Speaker 1: the importance of the pro days this year compared to

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Speaker 1: maybe in past years with no combine You gotta go

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Speaker 1: back a ways without a combine for the National Football League, uh,

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Speaker 1: in terms of that data collection, actually having the first

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Speaker 1: and last opportunity unless it was the Senior Bowl, right

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Speaker 1: to get that data and then check it to what

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Speaker 1: the film actually showed your eyes, Yeerica. Outside of the

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Speaker 1: live games we were able to attend during the fall

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Speaker 1: and then the week of the recent Senior Bowl in

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Speaker 1: that game, the Pro Day at these respective schools was

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Speaker 1: really the only opportunity that you had outside of those

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Speaker 1: previous chances to see a play are in person and

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Speaker 1: see him on the field, not really even playing football,

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Speaker 1: but going through those physical tests, but then after the workout,

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Speaker 1: having an opportunity to talk to the player. And for

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Speaker 1: some of the prospects, particularly underclassmen who were not eligible

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Speaker 1: for the Recas Senior Bowl, it is very important that

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Speaker 1: we have that access to be able to shake hands

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Speaker 1: with them, look look them in the eye, maybe address

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Speaker 1: a couple of things that might be in their background

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Speaker 1: that you want to talk about. So I would say

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Speaker 1: the pro days definitely took a big step in terms

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Speaker 1: of importance this year with no combine. Essentially, we had

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Speaker 1: a combine over about a six or eight week period

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Speaker 1: and it was just done on an individual daily basis,

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Speaker 1: and then it was our job to try to pull

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Speaker 1: all that information together and make it seem as if

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Speaker 1: it was the combine where you could compare you know,

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Speaker 1: all the corners or all the wide receivers within a

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Speaker 1: given day. We had to do that really over about

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Speaker 1: a six or eight week period of time. Phil, you

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Speaker 1: have such unique perspective and you were mentioning, I don't

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Speaker 1: know if it disconnect is the right word between fans

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Speaker 1: and maybe what actually goes on behind closed doors in

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Speaker 1: every NFL organization. But you know, I think a common

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Speaker 1: a common I don't know about saying, but fans going

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Speaker 1: into a draft say, you know, my team needs to

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Speaker 1: draft this position in the draft, and they need to

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Speaker 1: do it early, et cetera. But can you take us

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Speaker 1: into the thinking and what actually happens when you know

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Speaker 1: your couple picks away and then you're actually on the clock,

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Speaker 1: and what goes through the selection process, even though to

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Speaker 1: your point, a lot of the hard work is done

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Speaker 1: in this time of the year before the draft actually happens. Yeah,

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Speaker 1: you know, there's those those uh, two different philosophies. Take

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Speaker 1: the best player available versus position of need, and I think,

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Speaker 1: in all honesty, from December to February to the April meetings,

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Speaker 1: of course, if you have a need and player are

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Speaker 1: within a certain category or certain level of your draft board,

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Speaker 1: you're gonna push up the player that is at a

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Speaker 1: position that you really need the most. And so hopefully

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Speaker 1: by the time you actually get to draft night, that

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Speaker 1: conversation has already had and there's some logic in terms

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Speaker 1: of why you're taking the player that you chose. The

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Speaker 1: other thing I would say as well, is you never

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Speaker 1: know in a given year which position is going to

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Speaker 1: have the most depth. There's certain positions that have no depth,

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Speaker 1: and then there's other positions that might have multiple prospects

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Speaker 1: that you like. So that's where you have to make

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Speaker 1: that value judgment of Okay, we only have one uh,

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Speaker 1: offensive guard left, Let's take him here because there are

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Speaker 1: plenty of linebackers later. Or hey, you know there's only

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Speaker 1: one tight end we like, let's take him here because hey,

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Speaker 1: there's plenty of cornerbacks that are going to be available

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Speaker 1: later in the draft. It's sort of just a random example,

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Speaker 1: And so that's really I I've always termed it. You know,

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Speaker 1: the art of scouting is going out and seeing the

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Speaker 1: prospects and trying to figure out, Okay, how does he

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Speaker 1: really fit with with our particular club and in our

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Speaker 1: particular systems. But then the art of the draft is

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Speaker 1: something that's at a whole different level. It's one thing

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Speaker 1: about it's one thing to line the players up and

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Speaker 1: put them on a draft board. It's another to massage

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Speaker 1: and manage that list and that draft board to get

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Speaker 1: the players that you want and that you ultimately need

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Speaker 1: to complete your your roster and make it a successful team.

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Speaker 1: You are a GM yourself, you're a longtime Scott. What

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Speaker 1: are the nerves like for you or the motions draft weekend?

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Speaker 1: Is it like it's Christmas Day? I can't wait to

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Speaker 1: get under the tree? What actually is going on internally

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Speaker 1: for you? I gotta imagine there's a lot of adrenaline

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Speaker 1: even though you put a lot of work into this

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Speaker 1: and you guys are ready to go. Yeah, I would

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Speaker 1: say there's definitely anticipation. I mean, you know, as it

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Speaker 1: sits right now, we know we're going to get two

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Speaker 1: really good players on the first day of the draft.

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Speaker 1: Now what what have Do we move up? Do we

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Speaker 1: move down? I mean, who knows what's really going to happen,

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Speaker 1: But the anticipation of of of learning who it is

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Speaker 1: that you're actually going to be adding to the team,

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Speaker 1: and you know, the fingers crossed, the prayers that are

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Speaker 1: said about hoping that certain players might get to a

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Speaker 1: point where maybe you have to move up a few

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Speaker 1: spots to get them, or maybe they just fall, you know,

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Speaker 1: in your lap, or maybe there's so many players left.

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Speaker 1: Then you have that option of trying to trade back

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Speaker 1: knowing that you're still going to get a player that

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Speaker 1: you like. But I think that, you know, the the

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Speaker 1: best drafters are the ones that have made a lot

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Speaker 1: of their determinations and a lot of their decisions ahead

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Speaker 1: of the game. It's almost like you've rehearsed it so

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Speaker 1: much in practice that when you get to the game,

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Speaker 1: the game is easy. And Uh, through my experience of

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Speaker 1: the years, I would say that when we were really

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Speaker 1: well prepared and we had had some of those really

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Speaker 1: difficult conversations and difficult choices where you know, when you're

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Speaker 1: going through these meetings there's four players that you can

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Speaker 1: choose from. Ultimately, when you're on the clock, you're probably

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Speaker 1: down to about two or three, maybe four or five

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Speaker 1: players as you work into the draft that you want

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Speaker 1: to take. And you know, with that being said, I

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Speaker 1: think the best drafters are those that really have a

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Speaker 1: calm demeanor and you know they're they're drafting players like

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Speaker 1: a good play caller in terms of, okay, we're doing

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Speaker 1: this to set this up for later. Uh, And I

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Speaker 1: think the best drafters have a knack of knowing, okay,

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Speaker 1: if we do this here, these are the ramp. This

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Speaker 1: is the ramification for us in the second round, the

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Speaker 1: third round, the fourth round, and beyond. And to me,

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Speaker 1: the ones that can kind of see beyond the moment

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Speaker 1: are the ones that are at the best at that

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Speaker 1: are the best at doing that. And to me, last

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Speaker 1: year with some of the moves that Joe made, you know,

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Speaker 1: I think he he's been around enough success in the

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Speaker 1: draft room to know what it looks like and he's

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Speaker 1: got some some instinct to it as well. And uh,

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Speaker 1: playing the draft board, that's that's the fun part of

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Speaker 1: the draft weekend. You mentioned Joe last year, his first draft,

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Speaker 1: a very unique one, hopefully the only virtual one that

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Speaker 1: he'll see. And you know, I'm from your perspective, e A.

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Speaker 1: And I spoke to Dance Biowski, you know, the weekend

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Speaker 1: he was talking about the benefit of being in person,

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Speaker 1: and so I'm curious on draft night for you, Phil,

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Speaker 1: you know, what is the benefit that you think as

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Speaker 1: an organization that everyone will be in person as opposed

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Speaker 1: to last year, which was virtual. Well, I would say,

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Speaker 1: you know, everyone across the league and you know, hopefully

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Speaker 1: you know our staff, I mean, we we were able

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Speaker 1: to to work through and adapt and adjust to all

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Speaker 1: these changes that have happened in the last year. But uh,

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Speaker 1: there's no doubt there's a bit more of a comp level,

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Speaker 1: if you will, when you have your people around you

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Speaker 1: to you know, say to to give you some support

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Speaker 1: or give you that wink or the thumbs up or hey,

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Speaker 1: don't do that. You know, sometimes the best move you

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Speaker 1: make are the ones that you don't make. And so

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Speaker 1: I think having your your your your staff around you

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Speaker 1: and in the same room, there's definitely some nuance in

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Speaker 1: terms of communication that can take place that you know,

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Speaker 1: you can't get through a through a Zoom or Microsoft

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Speaker 1: teams call. So I think that will benefit us and

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Speaker 1: and hopefully it will pay dividends. On all three nights

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Speaker 1: of the draft, we enjoy catching up with you as always.

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Speaker 1: I just said one final one from me, how unique

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Speaker 1: is this selections over two years? Like you just talked

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Speaker 1: about the flexibility, you can go up, You can use

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Speaker 1: some of those picks if you want to. You could

401
00:22:52,560 --> 00:22:55,600
Speaker 1: actually move back and acquire more picks. But just not

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Speaker 1: just the picks, but where they're at. The two first

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Speaker 1: rounders this year, the two first rounders in the two

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Speaker 1: second rounders. It's not just the accumulation of selections. It's

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Speaker 1: where they are. You know. I think it's the most

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Speaker 1: exciting part of being part of the New York Jets

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Speaker 1: scouting staff, and I emphasize this a number of times

408
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Speaker 1: during the regular season, is that while on the surface,

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Speaker 1: we're struggling, we're having a you know, a really difficult season,

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Speaker 1: but guys, we have a chance to truly make an

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Speaker 1: impact on this football team. And you know, I've got

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Speaker 1: friends that are with other clubs and other teams that

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Speaker 1: you know, they virtually have, you know, a handful of

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Speaker 1: draft picks, they have no money to spend in free agency,

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Speaker 1: and we have all of those things. So you know,

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Speaker 1: it's a scouting staff to have that carrot dangling out

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00:23:48,640 --> 00:23:51,440
Speaker 1: there in front of us, that hey, we can truly

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Speaker 1: make a difference for this football team. It's exciting. It

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Speaker 1: keeps our feet to the fire and our eyes on

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Speaker 1: the price, so to speak. And uh, I think that's

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00:24:00,440 --> 00:24:04,320
Speaker 1: that's been you know, a real motivation for all of us,

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Speaker 1: particularly on the player personnel side, because you know, we

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Speaker 1: lived through a difficult season knowing that we were going

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Speaker 1: to have a real opportunity to change this football team

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Speaker 1: over the next couple of years or we're moving this

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Speaker 1: forward to the draft. Free agency is of course behind us.

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Speaker 1: But how do they play off of one another? Because

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Speaker 1: I think the conception as well. All Right, the Jets

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00:24:26,720 --> 00:24:29,639
Speaker 1: added an edge, an edge, they added a couple of receivers.

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Speaker 1: They're good there, But that's that doesn't feel like that's

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Speaker 1: the case through the eyes of behind closed doors. Sure

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Speaker 1: it's it's a balance between both. You're always looking for

433
00:24:39,480 --> 00:24:42,800
Speaker 1: positions of need, but you're also looking for an opportunity

434
00:24:42,880 --> 00:24:46,760
Speaker 1: to upgrade your roster. And that's where the teams that

435
00:24:46,840 --> 00:24:50,200
Speaker 1: do at best have that delicate balance of adding players

436
00:24:50,240 --> 00:24:53,320
Speaker 1: at positions of need who are also very high end players.

437
00:24:53,480 --> 00:24:55,880
Speaker 1: So we will always continue to look for that from

438
00:24:55,920 --> 00:24:59,280
Speaker 1: from both those you know, both those scopes. What stood

439
00:24:59,320 --> 00:25:02,320
Speaker 1: out to you about the approach from Afar look like

440
00:25:02,440 --> 00:25:07,520
Speaker 1: it was disciplined, yet you were poised to strike and

441
00:25:07,560 --> 00:25:11,200
Speaker 1: you were aggressive when you needed to be. Yeah, we've

442
00:25:11,320 --> 00:25:13,480
Speaker 1: entered with that mindset. We wanted to be aggressive on

443
00:25:13,560 --> 00:25:15,840
Speaker 1: guys that we targeted, but once we got into the

444
00:25:15,880 --> 00:25:19,240
Speaker 1: negotiation aspect, we had to stay disciplined in terms of

445
00:25:19,600 --> 00:25:22,359
Speaker 1: what was our breaking point, where where was the point

446
00:25:22,400 --> 00:25:25,720
Speaker 1: of we would walk away? You know from a financial standpoint,

447
00:25:26,000 --> 00:25:29,080
Speaker 1: So I think, just like you said, we've we entered

448
00:25:29,119 --> 00:25:32,520
Speaker 1: it with an aggressive initial approach and then stayed disciplined

449
00:25:32,560 --> 00:25:36,000
Speaker 1: throughout the negotiation aspect. You know, Rex, Being that this

450
00:25:36,080 --> 00:25:40,440
Speaker 1: is the group's second draft together, you know, what differences

451
00:25:40,480 --> 00:25:42,880
Speaker 1: have there been in the processes? In the meetings leading

452
00:25:42,960 --> 00:25:45,120
Speaker 1: up to where we are today? Has been a more

453
00:25:45,160 --> 00:25:49,040
Speaker 1: fluid operation, I guess what I'm really trying to ask. Yeah,

454
00:25:49,160 --> 00:25:54,720
Speaker 1: the transition of we were virtual from March of into

455
00:25:54,760 --> 00:25:57,119
Speaker 1: this season. Now, for the first time in fourteen months,

456
00:25:57,480 --> 00:26:00,560
Speaker 1: we're able to get the college scouts back into the facility,

457
00:26:00,600 --> 00:26:04,200
Speaker 1: so being able to communicate face to face and feel

458
00:26:04,280 --> 00:26:07,679
Speaker 1: guys body language, and you know that the way they

459
00:26:07,760 --> 00:26:10,679
Speaker 1: speak about a player with more conviction, you feel it

460
00:26:10,720 --> 00:26:13,440
Speaker 1: more in the moment in the room. But the process

461
00:26:13,480 --> 00:26:16,800
Speaker 1: itself has has stayed the course in terms of our evaluations,

462
00:26:17,000 --> 00:26:19,800
Speaker 1: despite a limited number of college games that you could

463
00:26:19,840 --> 00:26:23,399
Speaker 1: go to, uh, the lower number of All Star games,

464
00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:26,000
Speaker 1: and then the absence of the combine as well. What

465
00:26:26,160 --> 00:26:28,800
Speaker 1: changes in the personnel meetings from the time you guys

466
00:26:28,840 --> 00:26:32,600
Speaker 1: met in February to the time you guys just spent

467
00:26:32,800 --> 00:26:38,160
Speaker 1: here in April putting those uh final details together where

468
00:26:38,240 --> 00:26:41,560
Speaker 1: typically you get the medical information back after the combine,

469
00:26:41,920 --> 00:26:44,600
Speaker 1: but the way they've structured it this year, pushing the

470
00:26:44,720 --> 00:26:47,920
Speaker 1: combined back, the medical information is a little bit. It's

471
00:26:47,960 --> 00:26:51,639
Speaker 1: delayed compared to two previous years. So we still attack

472
00:26:51,720 --> 00:26:54,960
Speaker 1: free agency with the college staff and the rest of

473
00:26:55,000 --> 00:26:57,720
Speaker 1: the guys in house and where we'll fill in where

474
00:26:57,720 --> 00:27:00,240
Speaker 1: we need or where we see fit and to of

475
00:27:00,400 --> 00:27:02,080
Speaker 1: hitting the pro days and being able to see the

476
00:27:02,080 --> 00:27:05,200
Speaker 1: most players that we can from an exposure standpoint. So

477
00:27:05,600 --> 00:27:08,159
Speaker 1: it's been it's been unique with that um and the

478
00:27:08,640 --> 00:27:11,760
Speaker 1: limited access that you can have with players of only

479
00:27:11,960 --> 00:27:15,679
Speaker 1: five interviews that last an hour apiece. Generally speaking, how

480
00:27:15,720 --> 00:27:21,480
Speaker 1: would you define a successful draft weekend? Adding a group

481
00:27:21,520 --> 00:27:27,360
Speaker 1: of guys who are starters, substarters, developmental players who are

482
00:27:27,400 --> 00:27:31,120
Speaker 1: going to improve the competitiveness of our team in addition

483
00:27:31,240 --> 00:27:33,879
Speaker 1: to improving the talent of our team. You know, I

484
00:27:33,920 --> 00:27:36,760
Speaker 1: don't think you can measure it just after one season.

485
00:27:36,840 --> 00:27:39,720
Speaker 1: I think we know more after year two and year three.

486
00:27:39,960 --> 00:27:42,520
Speaker 1: So in year two or year three, if we're a

487
00:27:42,520 --> 00:27:44,680
Speaker 1: playoff caliber team, it will be because of the core

488
00:27:44,720 --> 00:27:46,920
Speaker 1: of this this group that we've added. Rex, how do

489
00:27:46,960 --> 00:27:51,800
Speaker 1: you weigh that old adage of need versus best player available,

490
00:27:51,920 --> 00:27:57,080
Speaker 1: And at what point does it happen where you have

491
00:27:57,119 --> 00:28:00,760
Speaker 1: a group of players and that's where nied to play,

492
00:28:00,800 --> 00:28:05,320
Speaker 1: where they're closely ranked together. Yeah, you have to balance it.

493
00:28:05,320 --> 00:28:07,800
Speaker 1: It has to be. You can't. For instance, if you

494
00:28:07,880 --> 00:28:12,320
Speaker 1: have a defensive tackle who's similarly rated to to Quentin Williams,

495
00:28:12,359 --> 00:28:15,359
Speaker 1: you don't necessarily wanted to add that same type of

496
00:28:15,359 --> 00:28:18,240
Speaker 1: guy what you already have on the roster. So it's

497
00:28:18,480 --> 00:28:20,960
Speaker 1: you know, some common sense just goes into it, but

498
00:28:21,680 --> 00:28:24,600
Speaker 1: you balance it between the needs of your team and

499
00:28:24,640 --> 00:28:28,880
Speaker 1: the overall talent. Well, you mentioned not really being able

500
00:28:28,880 --> 00:28:31,360
Speaker 1: to evaluate draft classes until a couple of years down

501
00:28:31,400 --> 00:28:33,280
Speaker 1: the road and the record of the team, Well, how

502
00:28:33,359 --> 00:28:35,560
Speaker 1: much of an opportunity lies it had not only with

503
00:28:35,920 --> 00:28:39,160
Speaker 1: this draft the ten picks, but the next year's draft

504
00:28:39,200 --> 00:28:41,400
Speaker 1: with eleven picks and four of which come in the

505
00:28:41,440 --> 00:28:46,240
Speaker 1: first two rounds. It's it's huge for us. It's an opportunity.

506
00:28:46,600 --> 00:28:49,000
Speaker 1: You know, typically within those first two or three rounds,

507
00:28:49,000 --> 00:28:51,280
Speaker 1: you you want those guys to either be starters, are

508
00:28:51,360 --> 00:28:55,520
Speaker 1: significant contributors, as you know, potential substarters like nickels or

509
00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:59,320
Speaker 1: slot receivers guys who have third down value. So with

510
00:28:59,440 --> 00:29:02,080
Speaker 1: this year, with us having five picks in the first eight,

511
00:29:02,240 --> 00:29:05,400
Speaker 1: six and then you know, ten total, and then next

512
00:29:05,480 --> 00:29:08,240
Speaker 1: year with eleven, we feel like we've put ourselves in

513
00:29:08,240 --> 00:29:10,960
Speaker 1: a good position to add to the youth of this

514
00:29:11,080 --> 00:29:13,840
Speaker 1: roster that's going to continue to push us forward. How

515
00:29:13,960 --> 00:29:19,080
Speaker 1: much does this staff's experiences help them as you go ahead?

516
00:29:19,160 --> 00:29:22,120
Speaker 1: I'm thinking about Joe Douglass, He's got three championship rings.

517
00:29:22,240 --> 00:29:25,440
Speaker 1: Robert Salo is just part of a building San Francisco

518
00:29:25,640 --> 00:29:29,160
Speaker 1: that saw them appear in the Super Bowl. You have

519
00:29:29,320 --> 00:29:33,120
Speaker 1: been here twice, but the last time in between you

520
00:29:33,160 --> 00:29:37,200
Speaker 1: were in Indianapolis, and you guys change that roster to

521
00:29:37,560 --> 00:29:42,360
Speaker 1: a playoff caliber, kell caliber roster. So how do those

522
00:29:42,440 --> 00:29:47,560
Speaker 1: experiences help this staff as they move ahead. Yeah, it's

523
00:29:47,640 --> 00:29:51,360
Speaker 1: unique because none of us had worked together previously. So

524
00:29:51,640 --> 00:29:55,520
Speaker 1: it's also it's good because we're all have different experiences,

525
00:29:55,760 --> 00:29:59,200
Speaker 1: and we've all had success and we've all had failures

526
00:29:59,400 --> 00:30:03,640
Speaker 1: that you know, we've taken from from our previous organizations. Um,

527
00:30:03,800 --> 00:30:06,880
Speaker 1: you know, you can learn from your success and failure,

528
00:30:06,960 --> 00:30:09,440
Speaker 1: and you try and take those experiences and bring them

529
00:30:09,480 --> 00:30:12,360
Speaker 1: here and and put them in together and how we

530
00:30:12,400 --> 00:30:14,479
Speaker 1: want to build it, how we want to structure not

531
00:30:14,560 --> 00:30:16,480
Speaker 1: only the team, but the players that we want to

532
00:30:16,480 --> 00:30:20,120
Speaker 1: go after. So having that background and those experiences are

533
00:30:20,160 --> 00:30:22,440
Speaker 1: going to help us all individually kind of form and

534
00:30:22,760 --> 00:30:25,200
Speaker 1: shape our our own model of what we want to

535
00:30:25,240 --> 00:30:28,520
Speaker 1: build here. Rex, do you have like a draft routine

536
00:30:28,760 --> 00:30:32,200
Speaker 1: of the Thursday day, like you know, maybe eat the

537
00:30:32,240 --> 00:30:35,160
Speaker 1: same thing, maybe to a good luck char maybe to tie.

538
00:30:35,240 --> 00:30:37,560
Speaker 1: I don't know, do you have any kind routine or

539
00:30:37,920 --> 00:30:40,440
Speaker 1: just every year is unique in its own way. It

540
00:30:40,520 --> 00:30:44,160
Speaker 1: will just be a green tie is the only unique

541
00:30:44,480 --> 00:30:46,480
Speaker 1: thing that I do here for for a draft day.

542
00:30:46,840 --> 00:30:49,080
Speaker 1: But outside of that, trying to treat it like a

543
00:30:49,120 --> 00:30:52,520
Speaker 1: typical day. Um, if we were just talking about that

544
00:30:52,600 --> 00:30:55,959
Speaker 1: before here on the podcast, is that I feel like

545
00:30:56,040 --> 00:30:59,200
Speaker 1: you have to set a different wardrobe for each day.

546
00:30:59,560 --> 00:31:03,560
Speaker 1: Thursday day, that's when the suits come out. Friday dollars shirt,

547
00:31:03,600 --> 00:31:05,880
Speaker 1: and then Saturday you can go jeans and polo. Right,

548
00:31:07,160 --> 00:31:09,680
Speaker 1: some guys. Do you see a lot of guys I know,

549
00:31:09,800 --> 00:31:13,160
Speaker 1: back to Jimmy Johnson and Andy Reid's seeing the Hawaiian

550
00:31:13,160 --> 00:31:15,760
Speaker 1: shirts come out, But you're not gonna see this guy

551
00:31:15,960 --> 00:31:19,880
Speaker 1: and in one of those, Um, do you look at

552
00:31:19,920 --> 00:31:23,440
Speaker 1: it overall, big picture wise, not just this draft, but

553
00:31:23,520 --> 00:31:29,240
Speaker 1: the opportunity had one picks between two that gives you

554
00:31:29,240 --> 00:31:30,959
Speaker 1: a flexibility to do a lot of things. You can

555
00:31:31,000 --> 00:31:34,880
Speaker 1: go up, you can go down, stockpile trade for veterans,

556
00:31:34,920 --> 00:31:38,240
Speaker 1: but where they are is very unique to You mentioned

557
00:31:38,240 --> 00:31:41,440
Speaker 1: the five picks in the first eight six, and then

558
00:31:41,520 --> 00:31:44,720
Speaker 1: you go too. You guys have two first rounders and

559
00:31:44,800 --> 00:31:50,200
Speaker 1: two second rounders as well, eleven picks next spring. Yeah,

560
00:31:50,240 --> 00:31:53,160
Speaker 1: it's it's a huge opportunity for us. Um Like I

561
00:31:53,200 --> 00:31:57,160
Speaker 1: said before that we're adding young players who we feel

562
00:31:57,160 --> 00:32:00,600
Speaker 1: like can be starters in those positions, and so adding

563
00:32:00,600 --> 00:32:03,920
Speaker 1: those guys through the draft at starting level value and

564
00:32:04,160 --> 00:32:07,280
Speaker 1: hopefully some pro bowlers based out and infused in that

565
00:32:07,360 --> 00:32:10,760
Speaker 1: group as well. So we're looking forward to the challenge

566
00:32:10,800 --> 00:32:13,000
Speaker 1: of it. What about the importance of Day three two?

567
00:32:13,320 --> 00:32:16,880
Speaker 1: Because I know everybody externally they're thinking about number two,

568
00:32:16,960 --> 00:32:20,560
Speaker 1: number twenty three, even the second rounders, But I think

569
00:32:20,760 --> 00:32:24,040
Speaker 1: it gets lost in the shuffle, the importance of day

570
00:32:24,080 --> 00:32:27,840
Speaker 1: three from your perspective, your assistant GM, what does day

571
00:32:27,880 --> 00:32:30,760
Speaker 1: three mean to you? Not only those five draft picks,

572
00:32:30,800 --> 00:32:33,200
Speaker 1: but also you guys are gonna get on the phone

573
00:32:33,240 --> 00:32:37,080
Speaker 1: and try to get some unrestricted, i mean priority free

574
00:32:37,080 --> 00:32:40,000
Speaker 1: agents in here. Sure, you're you're building the depth of

575
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,120
Speaker 1: the team and and hopefully some of the guys that

576
00:32:42,160 --> 00:32:45,120
Speaker 1: you identify I have the some starting level traits that

577
00:32:45,200 --> 00:32:48,880
Speaker 1: they can develop and make too a substart substarter level

578
00:32:48,960 --> 00:32:51,480
Speaker 1: or starting level UM. But you know, the bulk of

579
00:32:51,520 --> 00:32:54,760
Speaker 1: those guys are gonna you know, bolster your special teams

580
00:32:55,200 --> 00:32:57,560
Speaker 1: UM or you can find a starting level punter like

581
00:32:57,600 --> 00:33:00,720
Speaker 1: we did last year and in Brandon Man, and then

582
00:33:00,880 --> 00:33:03,440
Speaker 1: you can add depths to the special teams into the

583
00:33:03,600 --> 00:33:06,680
Speaker 1: entire roster. But you know, we were guys did a

584
00:33:06,720 --> 00:33:10,280
Speaker 1: really good job last year of identifying undrafted free agents

585
00:33:10,360 --> 00:33:13,440
Speaker 1: who made our team and contributed to our team with

586
00:33:13,520 --> 00:33:16,520
Speaker 1: Lamar Jackson and Javeln Guidry. So you know, hopefully we

587
00:33:16,560 --> 00:33:18,720
Speaker 1: can go out and find some more guys like that. Alright,

588
00:33:18,760 --> 00:33:21,200
Speaker 1: great stuff from both of those guys who really appreciate

589
00:33:21,280 --> 00:33:24,400
Speaker 1: their time. Is there anything that stands out to you

590
00:33:24,680 --> 00:33:29,600
Speaker 1: with what either of them said? Yeah, Phil Savage said

591
00:33:29,600 --> 00:33:33,200
Speaker 1: the great drafts they have to be in the calm

592
00:33:33,280 --> 00:33:37,040
Speaker 1: while the storm is around them, because there's so much

593
00:33:37,040 --> 00:33:40,560
Speaker 1: information coming at these guys and you have to predict

594
00:33:40,760 --> 00:33:44,160
Speaker 1: what's going to come your way down the line. So

595
00:33:44,280 --> 00:33:47,720
Speaker 1: it's not just staying cool in the moment, but it's

596
00:33:47,760 --> 00:33:51,400
Speaker 1: also forecasting what's ahead and putting your team or your

597
00:33:51,520 --> 00:33:56,080
Speaker 1: organization in the proper position. On draft weekend, the Jets,

598
00:33:56,560 --> 00:34:02,120
Speaker 1: yes they'll be taking a quarterback, most likely with the

599
00:34:02,200 --> 00:34:04,040
Speaker 1: number two overall selection. It's going to get a lot

600
00:34:04,080 --> 00:34:07,000
Speaker 1: of attention, but Joe Douglas has a lot of work

601
00:34:07,160 --> 00:34:10,280
Speaker 1: ahead of him. And so did this staff draft weekend

602
00:34:10,320 --> 00:34:14,479
Speaker 1: with the tense selections, and Rex Hogan said it, you're

603
00:34:14,520 --> 00:34:20,160
Speaker 1: hoping you get starters with those first few picks extending

604
00:34:20,200 --> 00:34:23,160
Speaker 1: into the third round. Then beyond that you're looking at

605
00:34:23,200 --> 00:34:25,920
Speaker 1: guys who can come in give you some depth and

606
00:34:26,000 --> 00:34:29,719
Speaker 1: help on special teams. Yeah, I think that what Rex said,

607
00:34:29,719 --> 00:34:34,320
Speaker 1: what you just references, it's good to hear, right, because

608
00:34:34,320 --> 00:34:37,680
Speaker 1: I think some people are like, well, you know this player, No,

609
00:34:38,280 --> 00:34:40,439
Speaker 1: he's not good. He's not a Pro Bowl, All Pro

610
00:34:40,600 --> 00:34:42,759
Speaker 1: and he was drafted on Day three. It's like, well,

611
00:34:42,840 --> 00:34:45,600
Speaker 1: maybe not expecting that you're taking flyers on some people

612
00:34:45,920 --> 00:34:50,319
Speaker 1: developmental traits and hopefully they become that. I mean, you know,

613
00:34:50,400 --> 00:34:54,920
Speaker 1: but those are not common, right. Obviously you hear about

614
00:34:55,440 --> 00:34:58,440
Speaker 1: the later round picks that emerged to pro bowlers or

615
00:34:58,480 --> 00:35:03,279
Speaker 1: even beyond that. But that's not common, well not initially.

616
00:35:03,560 --> 00:35:06,799
Speaker 1: You know, like the Bryce Hall pick last year. We

617
00:35:06,880 --> 00:35:09,520
Speaker 1: talked about the value at the time, and I think

618
00:35:09,600 --> 00:35:12,960
Speaker 1: that he's gonna be a fun guy to watch under Salah,

619
00:35:13,200 --> 00:35:16,239
Speaker 1: under Jeff Albrick. Uh, what they're gonna be doing in

620
00:35:16,280 --> 00:35:19,800
Speaker 1: the defensive backfield because those physical traits. You think about

621
00:35:19,800 --> 00:35:23,360
Speaker 1: the forty nine and the cornerbacks they've had over the years,

622
00:35:23,400 --> 00:35:27,760
Speaker 1: the long limb guys, the physical players. Bryce Hall started

623
00:35:27,880 --> 00:35:30,080
Speaker 1: a bunch of games for the Jets in his rookie season,

624
00:35:30,200 --> 00:35:36,720
Speaker 1: but he could come on and you know, really shine,

625
00:35:36,800 --> 00:35:39,479
Speaker 1: I think in his second professional season. The point there

626
00:35:39,600 --> 00:35:42,759
Speaker 1: is they took call knowing he's not playing early on,

627
00:35:42,880 --> 00:35:46,000
Speaker 1: he's not contributing early on, but there's an opportunity for

628
00:35:46,080 --> 00:35:49,080
Speaker 1: him be a starter for us in year one and

629
00:35:49,120 --> 00:35:53,800
Speaker 1: then beyond. So initially, yeah, those first couple of rounds,

630
00:35:53,880 --> 00:35:58,520
Speaker 1: you want starters. You're gonna be filling needs, filling holes,

631
00:35:58,600 --> 00:36:02,000
Speaker 1: and I think that's how you break those close um

632
00:36:02,280 --> 00:36:06,520
Speaker 1: the clusters. Yeah, yeah, right, the close clusters. But then

633
00:36:07,200 --> 00:36:11,080
Speaker 1: those guys down the line, sometimes flyers, sometimes you just

634
00:36:11,080 --> 00:36:12,400
Speaker 1: look at a guy and say he's gonna be a

635
00:36:12,440 --> 00:36:15,319
Speaker 1: reserve immediately, and none, he's gonna contribute on special teams,

636
00:36:15,320 --> 00:36:18,080
Speaker 1: and then ultimately I think he's got started potential. Yeah,

637
00:36:18,160 --> 00:36:22,120
Speaker 1: I think that. I'm just interested to see what happens,

638
00:36:22,160 --> 00:36:25,600
Speaker 1: not only early in the draft day one, but also

639
00:36:25,800 --> 00:36:30,360
Speaker 1: just all rounds, not just because we work for the Jets,

640
00:36:30,360 --> 00:36:32,560
Speaker 1: but because one the draft is so interesting. I think

641
00:36:32,560 --> 00:36:35,440
Speaker 1: that's what makes the draft fund. No one knows what's

642
00:36:35,440 --> 00:36:37,720
Speaker 1: gonna happen, and that's why I feel like the number

643
00:36:37,719 --> 00:36:39,560
Speaker 1: two overall pick not a lot of people talk about

644
00:36:39,560 --> 00:36:41,520
Speaker 1: it because most people assume they know who the pick

645
00:36:41,640 --> 00:36:43,200
Speaker 1: is gonna be. I saw a couple of people on

646
00:36:43,239 --> 00:36:45,560
Speaker 1: social media today saying I'm sick of talking about the

647
00:36:45,640 --> 00:36:47,839
Speaker 1: number two overall pick. Yeah, I mean I'm excited about

648
00:36:47,880 --> 00:36:51,239
Speaker 1: pick three, right, I mean there's so many different options. Well,

649
00:36:51,280 --> 00:36:53,279
Speaker 1: you're gonna be You're gonna be pumped Thursday night too,

650
00:36:53,320 --> 00:36:56,319
Speaker 1: because you're gonna be talking about thirty four. Who's still

651
00:36:56,360 --> 00:36:58,719
Speaker 1: on the board after day one And how is this

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00:36:58,800 --> 00:37:02,440
Speaker 1: staff going to you know, look at the board after

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00:37:02,600 --> 00:37:06,479
Speaker 1: night one and night too, because um, on days two

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00:37:06,560 --> 00:37:09,839
Speaker 1: in three, they're gonna be at the top. They're gonna

655
00:37:09,840 --> 00:37:12,239
Speaker 1: be at the top, so they're gonna be looking at Hey,

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00:37:12,320 --> 00:37:14,680
Speaker 1: we got a lot of options. Yep. Yeah, I think

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00:37:14,680 --> 00:37:17,480
Speaker 1: it's gonna be fascinating to see how it all breaks

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00:37:17,480 --> 00:37:19,160
Speaker 1: down in just a couple of days. But that's all

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Speaker 1: we have for this episode of the official Jets podcast,

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00:37:22,360 --> 00:37:24,840
Speaker 1: The Draft Podcast, presented by Pepsi