Speaker 1: And now move the sticks with Daniel, Jeremiah and Bucky Brooks.
Speaker 2: What's up, everybody? Welcome to move the sticks? DJ? Buck
Speaker 2: with you? Buck? How are you doing? Man?
Speaker 1: Man? I'm good, DJ, And I'm good because I know
Speaker 1: we're going to have a great episode. I know we're
Speaker 1: going to talk about drafting the contenders, the teams that
Speaker 1: we think are legit when it comes to having a
Speaker 1: chance to go the distance. But I need to pick
Speaker 1: your brain a little bit because I have all these
Speaker 1: conversations obviously your tie with the Chargers.
Speaker 3: My time with the Jaguars.
Speaker 1: Sometimes you get into these discussions, sometimes with co workers,
Speaker 1: sometimes with fans about what's going on, what can you do?
Speaker 3: And one of the questions that has kind of come
Speaker 3: up to.
Speaker 1: Me has been, can you be a team that drafts
Speaker 1: quote unquote good guys, good character guys, But can you
Speaker 1: comprise that same team with enough dogs to compete at
Speaker 1: a high level. So what I want to lean into
Speaker 1: you and have a conversation like we would if we
Speaker 1: were in the room talk about dogs, and we talk
Speaker 1: about like those high level competitors when we're on school
Speaker 1: calls and when we're looking at the process, the pre
Speaker 1: draft process. How can we determine the guys that are
Speaker 1: dogs versus the guys that are super talented.
Speaker 3: But they may not have that that dog.
Speaker 1: Persona that you need, that you have to have to
Speaker 1: be able to get to the next level.
Speaker 2: Well, there's that old line from Tony LaRussa. Right, when
Speaker 2: your best players are your best leaders and your best workers,
Speaker 2: you've got something special, right, that's the that's the ultimate goal,
Speaker 2: because you can you don't. We won't put them in
Speaker 2: two camps of like, here's the high character you know,
Speaker 2: good dudes, and then here's the ultimate warrior. Maybe maybe
Speaker 2: some character flaws there, but there's some dog in those guys,
Speaker 2: like you, you know, I think you can have your
Speaker 2: cake and eat it too. Those guys are few and
Speaker 2: far between. They're hard to find, the guys that have
Speaker 2: all those things.
Speaker 3: Workings of the world.
Speaker 2: Oh, John Lynch was the one that came to mind,
Speaker 2: you knowbody like that. Yeah, So there's there are guys.
Speaker 2: I mean, Derek Brooks is another one. I mean, just
Speaker 2: thinking off of that one, that one team, but that
Speaker 2: I think the uh, the common thread. Right, if we're
Speaker 2: going to say the great teams, they will have that
Speaker 2: competitive nature to them. That's the common thread. Now some
Speaker 2: of the stuff, you might have a little bit a
Speaker 2: little bit more buttoned up player and then maybe someone
Speaker 2: who's maybe had some transgressions or made some mistakes. But
Speaker 2: if they don't share that that trait, I don't think
Speaker 2: you have a good team. I think you have to
Speaker 2: collect as many of those guys as you can. Now,
Speaker 2: the harder question that you asked is how do you
Speaker 2: find that out about guys. There's a lot of different
Speaker 2: ways you can do it. I think some simple things
Speaker 2: who are the guys that who are the guys that
Speaker 2: watch the most tape at or away from the facility?
Speaker 2: And there's ways to get that information. Now, I mean
Speaker 2: you can trust out there, you can track it on
Speaker 2: your high school team. You can how much kids? How
Speaker 2: much your kids watching huddle? Yeah, So you can start
Speaker 2: there by developing relationships with video guys and different things
Speaker 2: like who's watching the most. Okay, let's that's a that's
Speaker 2: a good one. Who's when you go out to practice,
Speaker 2: who's the front of the line, who's leading drills, Who's
Speaker 2: who's bringing energy and life to a practice, especially in
Speaker 2: the middle of the season of mundane you know, Wednesday
Speaker 2: practice who's out there, Who's who's bouncing around and has
Speaker 2: some life to him? Who's holding other guys accountable? From
Speaker 2: that standpoint, I think going in there and uh, I'm not.
Speaker 2: I think the worst question in scouting are the one
Speaker 2: to ten, one to ten? How would you rate him
Speaker 2: as a worker? Like no, no, no, no, this guy? What time
Speaker 2: does he come in? How long is he stay? What
Speaker 2: does he do? What does he do? Beyond that? And
Speaker 2: you can talk to him, you can talk to his teammates.
Speaker 2: What do you like? Everybody has the same schedule. I
Speaker 2: don't care about that. Tell me outside of that schedule
Speaker 2: what you're doing and how you're preparing And because buck,
Speaker 2: I think to boil it all down, like where is
Speaker 2: its importance at for you?
Speaker 3: Like?
Speaker 2: How important is this to you? That tells you if
Speaker 2: you got to it's.
Speaker 1: Funny because you took me to where my mind goes is.
Speaker 1: I think it's as simple as like it or love it?
Speaker 1: Do you like it or do you love it? Because
Speaker 1: if you like it, you may clock in and do
Speaker 1: bankers hours. Hey, I come in at eight, I'll leave
Speaker 1: it five. If you love it, you're coming in early
Speaker 1: and you're staying late and you're obsessed with it. You're
Speaker 1: obsessed with different parts of it. That leads you to
Speaker 1: get to the facility early, That leads you to watch
Speaker 1: even more tape when you get home, because there's a
Speaker 1: level of pride in your performance that you take that
Speaker 1: you have to be the most prepared in it. Now
Speaker 1: everyone and I would say this, like the Detroit Lions
Speaker 1: of kind of look they talked about grit, right, that's
Speaker 1: kind of the moniker that they always talk about. Angela
Speaker 1: Duckworth talks about grit is the combination of passion and perseverance.
Speaker 3: So how much do I love it? How much does
Speaker 3: it mean to me?
Speaker 1: How much do I love it enough to go through
Speaker 1: the setbacks that I have to go through to get
Speaker 1: on the other side.
Speaker 3: To me, DJ, I'm.
Speaker 1: Looking for guys that love it, and it's not you
Speaker 1: telling me like we all have done those baked those
Speaker 1: canned interviews with the players.
Speaker 2: Yeah you love football or whatever.
Speaker 1: No, no, no, show me how much you love it by
Speaker 1: me being able to not only ask people what you
Speaker 1: do around the facility, me being able to document how
Speaker 1: much you're in the game, but me also seeing you
Speaker 1: display that energy and enthusiasm about the game, in practice,
Speaker 1: in film, in games, you can just sense those guys
Speaker 1: that are I would say culture changers because when they're
Speaker 1: on the field, like you feel them. We've all been
Speaker 1: around those guys that did it. You were in Baltimore,
Speaker 1: so you saw Ray Lewis and Ed Reied and what
Speaker 1: they brought every day to the tape and how they
Speaker 1: made everybody else respond to me, I think when we're
Speaker 1: talking about the draft process and we're talking about building
Speaker 1: a team, man, having the love it guys is probably
Speaker 1: more important than the most having the most talented guys.
Speaker 2: Where do you stand on recall? Because I know, you
Speaker 2: know we always tell the story about Mahomes with recall,
Speaker 2: But I always say, like you think about when you're
Speaker 2: growing up and you go to Disneyland and your parents
Speaker 2: will say you remember this day the rest of your life. Well,
Speaker 2: why will you remember it the rest of your life?
Speaker 2: Because it was important, It was important, and it's burned memory.
Speaker 2: So if you're talking to players, the more specific they
Speaker 2: can get. I can go back, Hey, week three, you
Speaker 2: were playing this team. I don't care what position you are,
Speaker 2: and you can tell me a lot of specifics, a
Speaker 2: lot of information about that game. You know why because
Speaker 2: you studied a ton before that game. You were in
Speaker 2: the moment and took everything in and were aware and
Speaker 2: concentrate and focused during the game, and then after the
Speaker 2: game you went back and watched it and studied it
Speaker 2: and learn from your mistakes. So like you maintain all
Speaker 2: this is not like scramming for a test that's in
Speaker 2: and out. Like, that's not the people that you want.
Speaker 2: You want the people that have a little bit of
Speaker 2: an obsession with this thing and both their preparation, their
Speaker 2: focus and then learning from those games. That's why I
Speaker 2: think those guys that have recall and can tell specific
Speaker 2: instances about you know, what coverage we were in, or
Speaker 2: what formation they were lined up in, or what this
Speaker 2: guy said or what the coach told me in between
Speaker 2: plays in the third series of the second Like, I
Speaker 2: think that shows you that it matters to them.
Speaker 1: I think, and we keep referencing Luke Keigley, And the
Speaker 1: reason why I referenced him is because I think our
Speaker 1: conversation with Luke Keigley are so fascinating. And it's not
Speaker 1: fascinating in terms of just the knowledge that he shares,
Speaker 1: but it is the recall, it is the attention to
Speaker 1: detail with which he shares that information DJ. To me,
Speaker 1: that's kind of like the standard because the great ones
Speaker 1: that we've been around they have that.
Speaker 3: You think about our casual conversations.
Speaker 1: Pat Mahomes is always one that we referenced when he
Speaker 1: came into the studio and he's able to recall the
Speaker 1: game versus k State where you asked him about hey man,
Speaker 1: this play that happened, and to think and how he
Speaker 1: could just dial it up and give you that information.
Speaker 3: To me, that's what it's about.
Speaker 1: It is going above and beyond the normal expectations of
Speaker 1: a player to be able to outline detail, articulate, follow up,
Speaker 1: give feedback, take feedback. Those are the things that matter,
Speaker 1: and the teams that have the advantage in the scouting
Speaker 1: world are the ones who are willing to do a
Speaker 1: little extra to make sure their guys have it. We've
Speaker 1: talked other things, probably about the advantages that you now
Speaker 1: have with Zoom and how you can interview guys far
Speaker 1: more than you could back in the day when we
Speaker 1: were doing it and it was just face to face
Speaker 1: and the train station and the combine and those things.
Speaker 1: You now can periodically check in on guys to know
Speaker 1: how much they really know, and you never know until
Speaker 1: you get someone in the building, but you can tell
Speaker 1: by the preparation process and how they take everything seriously
Speaker 1: or whatever.
Speaker 3: So that's a.
Speaker 1: Question that has kind of come up to me and
Speaker 1: sometimes like, yeah, I can stand on the thing, but
Speaker 1: I like to have these conversations so the aspiring scouts
Speaker 1: that we have listening to the thing, they can think
Speaker 1: a little deeper about the process and the types of
Speaker 1: guys that you want, because it goes is beyond the
Speaker 1: traits and the talent. A lot of times, it's it's
Speaker 1: a nasty that people show when it comes to being
Speaker 1: able to get to the next level.
Speaker 2: It's funny. That's why I like to go back and
Speaker 2: read reports. And you know, since crossed over into the media,
Speaker 2: this will be I think this will be my thirteenth
Speaker 2: draft coming up maybe uh oh wow, yeah, here you've
Speaker 2: been here a couple of years.
Speaker 3: Long, twin so fifteen going on to sixteen.
Speaker 2: Yeah, so this is my on this side of things.
Speaker 2: So when I've gone to this side, I just put
Speaker 2: out a top one fifty players. I keep my notes
Speaker 2: on four hundred players inside an Excel sheet, but I
Speaker 2: write a summary on just the top fifty. So but
Speaker 2: fifty is a good sample size to go back over
Speaker 2: thirteen years. And we've done it with hits and missus before,
Speaker 2: or I've gone through in red old reports.
Speaker 3: Buck.
Speaker 2: It is very rare for me to read a report
Speaker 2: and have the physical ability change on a player, very rare.
Speaker 2: And I'll say, Okay, gosh, this guy was my forty
Speaker 2: ninth player the physical stuff, man, but he's ended up
Speaker 2: being he he should have been the first player in
Speaker 2: the draft. I'm like, yeah, but if you read the
Speaker 2: physical stuff, like, there's not much has changed from the
Speaker 2: physical I didn't know this guy was a psycho competitor.
Speaker 2: I didn't know this guy was going to you know,
Speaker 2: dial in his nutrition and change his body, you know,
Speaker 2: from from how he was in Cowage to what he
Speaker 2: is now. Like, those are the things. There's those variables
Speaker 2: that and that's that's what All these guys are talented,
Speaker 2: All these guys that come in every year, the top
Speaker 2: first round guys, they're all talented, but fifty percent of
Speaker 2: them hit, and you know, twenty five percent of them
Speaker 2: are okay, and twenty five percent of them wash out.
Speaker 2: Why is that? It ain't because of the ability that
Speaker 2: we're watching on tape. That's not it.
Speaker 1: Nah. This level, everyone's talented and you have a pool
Speaker 1: of players that are all similar when it comes to
Speaker 1: physical traits. The thing that separates them is the mental. Uh.
Speaker 3: And then I would say like the heart, and like
Speaker 3: heart is like kind of cliche when people talk about that,
Speaker 3: but it really is to grind is their willingness to
Speaker 3: do anything and everything in the pursuit of something that
Speaker 3: they love, which is loving the game, but more importantly
Speaker 3: loving being one that is different than everybody else playing
Speaker 3: the game. Meaning they want to be elite in some way,
Speaker 3: shape or form with their performance, so they're willing to
Speaker 3: go above and beyond to get that done.
Speaker 2: Yeah. No, I think it's it's that's what scouting is, man.
Speaker 2: I think again, you can give a computer to anybody
Speaker 2: and give them access to the video, and I think
Speaker 2: most people will see similar things in players and be
Speaker 2: able to project similarly. But the other stuff that you
Speaker 2: find out at a long time that that that's what
Speaker 2: the deciding factor is and that goes a long way
Speaker 2: and determine in their success.
Speaker 3: So now let's get to the show. Let's talk about
Speaker 3: some of the stuff. Did you want to talk about.
Speaker 2: No, I love that. I love that. Well, let's take
Speaker 2: a quick break. We'll come back and we'll get into
Speaker 2: a little draft, or we'll draft the contenders in the league.
Speaker 2: We'll do that right for this, all right, Buck, So
Speaker 2: we've got to get two of each. Right, two AFC,
Speaker 2: two NFC will each get four contenders, will do a draft.
Speaker 2: I was willing to give you the first pick, but
Speaker 2: you were proactive. You're the bigger man. You came in
Speaker 2: and said I get the first pick. So, as someone
Speaker 2: who has the first pick and you're going to draft contenders, Buck,
Speaker 2: there are exactly two five and oh teams, two undefeated teams,
Speaker 2: one of which just happens to win the Super Bowl
Speaker 2: every year. So I think I'll go there. I'll take
Speaker 2: the Kansas City chief first pick.
Speaker 3: So your believer, no matter what goes on, you.
Speaker 2: Believe they just win games. I mean, I've saw it
Speaker 2: in personally. It's not aesthetically pleasing. It's not the high
Speaker 2: flying high wire act that was fun to watch in
Speaker 2: years past. But winners win, you know, and.
Speaker 3: There is something to that.
Speaker 1: So what's funny about the Kansas City Chiefs Everything that
Speaker 1: they said when they won their first Super Bowl has
Speaker 1: come to fruition, but it's come to fruition in a
Speaker 1: different way than we anticipated it. After they won that
Speaker 1: first one, they talked about a dynasty and how this
Speaker 1: was going to be a dynastic franchise because of what
Speaker 1: they had on offense, Tyreek Hill and Travis Kelce and
Speaker 1: throwing it over the yard. They lose the next year.
Speaker 1: They didn't eventually make a move where they get rid
Speaker 1: of Tyreek Hill.
Speaker 3: But now they come back and went back to.
Speaker 1: Back and they've created a dynasty because they won three
Speaker 1: in a short period. They have the opportunity, it looks like,
Speaker 1: to have a three peat maybe, So they are the dynasty.
Speaker 1: And the thing that is a common occurrence for dynasties
Speaker 1: is they do whatever is necessary to win. And this
Speaker 1: is the team that knows how to do whatever is
Speaker 1: necessary to win games. Whether it's the offense need to
Speaker 1: play with Pat Mahomes extending plays, whether it's the defense
Speaker 1: coming up with plays either through their personnel, Chris Jones
Speaker 1: and Trent McDuffie making place or Steevezpacnulo dialling up something
Speaker 1: exotic in the fourth quarter and a guy to have
Speaker 1: a situation to get off the field. They know how
Speaker 1: to do it, so I can't really dispute them being
Speaker 1: number one. So they should go to the top of
Speaker 1: the list. So I'm good with that. So my team
Speaker 1: is gonna be one that we've talked about, and we've
Speaker 1: talked about this team because they kind of embody the
Speaker 1: city that they play in and that's Detroit. And we
Speaker 1: talked about the primetime window and why the Detroit Lions
Speaker 1: are going to be at throwing in the side for
Speaker 1: some NFC teams for a while.
Speaker 3: They'll build the right way.
Speaker 1: DJ A lot of times when we think of teams,
Speaker 1: we talk about the quarterback first or whatever, and I'm say,
Speaker 1: Jerry Goff is a perfect quarterback for this team. But
Speaker 1: when I look at this team, offensive line might be
Speaker 1: the best in football. They can beat you up. They
Speaker 1: can play a smash mouth style of play. That look
Speaker 1: the flashy stuff that they do on the perimeter, the
Speaker 1: AMA Saint Brown and Jamison Williams.
Speaker 3: That stuff catches the tension. But at the end of the.
Speaker 1: Day, when they want to win, they gonna line up
Speaker 1: and they're gonna run the football behind that offensive line
Speaker 1: and two running backs that are really good and Dave.
Speaker 3: Montgomery and Jimier Gibbs. They can protect the quarterback.
Speaker 1: And then defensive granted Dan Campbell for hanging with Aaron Glenn.
Speaker 1: Aaron Glenn has kind of figured it out how to
Speaker 1: play that defense. They're hurt this year by the loss
Speaker 1: of Aiden Hutchinson. That really hurt him because if he's there,
Speaker 1: I think he's a no brainer, and I think maybe
Speaker 1: you debate the number one thing. But even without Aiden Hutchinson, man,
Speaker 1: this team is good enough to go to distance. And
Speaker 1: I would say this, they should have went the distance
Speaker 1: last year because they had all right there, right there.
Speaker 1: But the Detroit Lines my first fit.
Speaker 2: Trust me, as a pottery fan, I know about having
Speaker 2: somebody on the ropes and not being able to finish it.
Speaker 2: But I don't know.
Speaker 1: Sometimes, like as a boxing fan, I would say, maybe
Speaker 1: that was that was the rope of dope.
Speaker 2: That was the dope.
Speaker 1: But I'm gonna make sure DJ, We're gonna get you
Speaker 1: one of those replica rings, one of those replica rings
Speaker 1: that sometimes season ticket holders get.
Speaker 2: We will send one down there to you. I've already
Speaker 2: given up on the Mets. I'm going with the Yankees now.
Speaker 2: Michael Fabiano, I need the Yankees to win that thing. Uh,
Speaker 2: that's just terrible, all right. Look, I I love Detroit.
Speaker 2: That injury is a tough injury for them. I was debating,
Speaker 2: I'll be honest with I was debating between two teams
Speaker 2: with this next pick, Houston and Baltimore. That was where
Speaker 2: I was going to go. And I'm thinking Baltimore a
Speaker 2: little more experienced, Lamar a little more accomplished. But I'm
Speaker 2: telling you, Bucket, and I'll tell you what my pick,
Speaker 2: and then I'll ask you the question. I'm taking Houston.
Speaker 2: Which defense you trust more? Between Houston and Baltimore, which
Speaker 2: sounds weird with Baltimore's long tradition of defense. I trust
Speaker 2: Houston more as a more complete team right now defensively
Speaker 2: than Baltimore.
Speaker 3: I can see that.
Speaker 1: And the reason why I can see that is because, look,
Speaker 1: Dimiko Ryans finds a way to get it done, and
Speaker 1: they have a talented defense.
Speaker 3: They've upgraded the defense.
Speaker 1: You thinking about Danil Hunter coming over joining Will Anderson,
Speaker 1: Derek Stingle, He's one of the best corners in football.
Speaker 1: I mean, they have a lot of intriguing pieces to
Speaker 1: the puzzle, and he keeps the energy up as they're
Speaker 1: kind of going through. You know, the thing that I
Speaker 1: would say is I worry about their offensive line. I
Speaker 1: worry about their offensive line being able to help them
Speaker 1: get it done in the end because they've had some injuries.
Speaker 1: They haven't had the greatest play from their front line unit,
Speaker 1: and I think it has impacted now, it has impacted
Speaker 1: the way the CJ. Stroud performs. That's it, man, They're
Speaker 1: really good. They're in the mix. I can see them.
Speaker 3: I see them making making the play, making a push.
Speaker 2: You're up what you got for your second pick?
Speaker 3: DJ like, So this is this is tough, right.
Speaker 1: So the the the logical person wants to say, Hey,
Speaker 1: the Baltimore Ravens, I'm gonna take them, Lamar Jackson, Derrick
Speaker 1: Henry all that they're running game, they're doing that. The
Speaker 1: concerns about the defense are one and are valid, zachly
Speaker 1: where I know Dan Pieces coming over to help them.
Speaker 1: I just worry about them in the postseason. And let's
Speaker 1: be honest, my faith wanes in the Baltimore Ravens because
Speaker 1: until I see them do it in the postseason, I
Speaker 1: can't necessarily believe that they're going to do it in
Speaker 1: the whole season. So now I'm looking at a bunch
Speaker 1: of teams that are just kind of all there. So
Speaker 1: you got Atlanta, you get the Buffalo Bills, the Pittsburgh
Speaker 1: still is the Bucks, the Packers and Eagles, the Niners.
Speaker 1: And I'm gonna say this and DJ, it's hard for
Speaker 1: me to say that I'm gonna say this team can
Speaker 1: go to super Bowl, but I'm gonna say it anyway.
Speaker 1: Let's put it out there.
Speaker 2: Uh, let's go with M.
Speaker 3: It's gonna be tough me. I can't believe you're.
Speaker 2: Gonna get heat. I can already tell it you're gonna
Speaker 2: get heat.
Speaker 3: I believe that I'm gonna say that this team I
Speaker 3: think can go all the way. But I'm gonna say this.
Speaker 3: Let's go with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as a team. Ooh,
Speaker 3: and here's why we're gonna talk about the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Speaker 1: DJ Offensively, even when they have bad games, they still
Speaker 1: light up the scoreboard. Baker Mayfield had a bad game
Speaker 1: against the Newland Saints. They put a fifty broker on
Speaker 1: the Saints. They have found a synergy and a connection
Speaker 1: Liam Cohen and Baker Mayfield to get it going.
Speaker 3: The thing that I always can hang my hat on is.
Speaker 1: I know that in a one game scenari i Bulls
Speaker 1: can bring an exotic pressure package that can create chaos.
Speaker 1: When I look at the rest of the contenders, and
Speaker 1: I'm big on the Minnesota Vikings, I worry about the
Speaker 1: quarterback play Sam Donald in terms of big game.
Speaker 3: If they can't get the game the right way, can
Speaker 3: they do it?
Speaker 1: So I'm gonna go with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers as
Speaker 1: my dark horse to be able to get it done
Speaker 1: because offensively they can put up enough points, but defensively
Speaker 1: they can create chaos with Todd Bowles sending pressure from
Speaker 1: any and everywhere.
Speaker 2: All Right, Yeah, that's bold, man, I love it. I
Speaker 2: love it. Be bold. I'm gonna I'm gonna go. I'm
Speaker 2: gonna go Chalk. Then I'm gonna go. I'm gonna go
Speaker 2: San Francisco and say they're just bored. You know, look,
Speaker 2: they adit, Christian McCaffrey back, but they're just they're playing
Speaker 2: like a board football team. But you saw defensively, I
Speaker 2: think Bosa what they have seventeen pressures the other day
Speaker 2: against Seattle. I mean it was unblockable. So you still
Speaker 2: got Bosa, you still got Fred Warner, You've still got
Speaker 2: all those pieces on offense, and then you throw Christian
Speaker 2: McCaffrey back in there. I think they're just kind of
Speaker 2: going through the motions a little bit right now, but
Speaker 2: I think at the end of the day, I trust
Speaker 2: them more so than any of these other teams outside
Speaker 2: of Detroit. I would have Detroit as my favorite, and
Speaker 2: the NFC I'd put San Francisco right behind him. Man.
Speaker 1: I feel bad, man, I feel like we're just discarding
Speaker 1: the Purple people leaders in the Minnesota Viking.
Speaker 2: I still got another pick. You're out, You're done with
Speaker 2: the You're done with the NFC. You got two AFCs
Speaker 2: you got to pick, So I've got I've got another spot.
Speaker 2: Don't worry, Minnesota, just be patient.
Speaker 1: So now that I was worried, I expressed my concerns
Speaker 1: about the Baltimore Ravens. With this pick, I'll take the
Speaker 1: Baltimore Ravens just because I think the Ravens determine whether
Speaker 1: they go or not. I don't think it has anything
Speaker 1: to do with the opponent. I think the Ravens' biggest
Speaker 1: opponent would be themselves. One can they vanquished the ghosts
Speaker 1: that have passed that have plagued them in the past.
Speaker 1: Lamar Jackson playing well in the postseason. Derrick Henry's addition
Speaker 1: helps that if he's healthy in the postseason, that gives
Speaker 1: them a different option. I also think that makes them
Speaker 1: continue to run the football because Derrick Henry is on
Speaker 1: the thinking the Todd Monkey can help. Will walk past
Speaker 1: the big fellow in the side and be like, oh,
Speaker 1: by the way, I got to make sure I hand
Speaker 1: it off to him.
Speaker 3: So that's the thing. Defensively, Dean piece coming on board.
Speaker 3: I do wonder if we see a subtle shift, not
Speaker 3: necessarily that Dean Pee takes over to play calling, but
Speaker 3: he has a bigger sway, a bigger impact on the
Speaker 3: way the defensive game plan is put together. He's been
Speaker 3: around for a long time, and John Harbaugh as a
Speaker 3: Super Bowl winning coach, He's done this a ton. He
Speaker 3: knows how to get his team there. So I'm gonna
Speaker 3: go to Baltimore Rakings.
Speaker 2: Yeah, I can't refuse anything you said there. I'm gonna
Speaker 2: end the slide here from Minnesota. They're the other undefeated team.
Speaker 2: So I've got the two undefeated teams here in Casey
Speaker 2: and Minnesota. So I'm feeling great about that. I think
Speaker 2: we'll know a lot more about Minnesota after this coming
Speaker 2: week against the Detroit Lions. But see if Sam can
Speaker 2: keep it going. He's been excellent and playing through a
Speaker 2: little bit of an injury. And then you know, defensively,
Speaker 2: they're just fun. That is all you want to talk about,
Speaker 2: All gas, no breaks. Robert Salad's line that is that
Speaker 2: is the way they were playing defense in Minnesota. So
Speaker 2: I've got Case Houston in San Francisco, Minnesota, Buck, You've
Speaker 2: got Detroit, Tampa, Baltimore with one more pick to go.
Speaker 1: So now this is a fun one, right, So this
Speaker 1: is a fun one because there's always a team that
Speaker 1: kind of rises from the depths, that kind of comes
Speaker 1: up and can snatch it. So my initial thing, and
Speaker 1: everyone is always on the Pittsburgh Steelers in terms of
Speaker 1: like they don't get it done in the postseason. They're
Speaker 1: making a controversial move in Russell Wilson to put him
Speaker 1: in the mix, and I know that at first glance,
Speaker 1: you're like, why would they go Russell Wilson, I am saying,
Speaker 1: and I said this, for Russell Wilson, this is a
Speaker 1: gold jacket opportunity. This is an opportunity for him to
Speaker 1: put the Hall of Fame back in his legacy, the
Speaker 1: Hall of Fame back in the thing, and if he
Speaker 1: does it in Pittsburgh, they will revere him forever. The
Speaker 1: Pittsburgh Steelers are just missing the dynamic and consistent play
Speaker 1: at quarterback for them to go to the next level.
Speaker 1: The combination of Justin Fields and Russel Wilson, I think
Speaker 1: can do that. I'm gonna go with Russell Wilson put
Speaker 1: into Pittsburgh Steelers in contention and being able to take
Speaker 1: them over the top because he turns back the clock
Speaker 1: in the postseason and look DJ even when he played
Speaker 1: bad last year, I think he still had four game
Speaker 1: winning drives for fourth quarter comebacks the Pittsburgh Steelers. And
Speaker 1: this comes from a quote from Daniel Jeremiah. When they've
Speaker 1: been good, they've won with strong defense, a running game,
Speaker 1: and magical quarterback play in the fourth quarter. Stroue fourth
Speaker 1: quarter ding ding ding.
Speaker 3: Russell Wilson. Let's go to Pittsburgh Steelers as the dark
Speaker 3: horse contender.
Speaker 2: Okay, I'm calling an audible. I like that. I say
Speaker 2: we get one last pick because there's a couple more
Speaker 2: interesting teams. I want to get one more because let's
Speaker 2: just be our wild card. Let's say this. This is
Speaker 2: the rule on this one. You got to pick a
Speaker 2: team with a losing record.
Speaker 3: Oh, all right, here we go.
Speaker 2: I like that. I'm gonna go with the Cincinnati Bengals.
Speaker 2: Look at this, Look at this all right? Now, we
Speaker 2: know what Joe Burrow, when Joe Burrow's right, what that
Speaker 2: offense looks like with Jamar chasing company, Right, Te Higgins,
Speaker 2: everybody else out over there, we know what that looks like. Right,
Speaker 2: let me just show you. They're two and four. Okay,
Speaker 2: they're out the gates, inexplicable. They lose the Patriots sixteen
Speaker 2: to ten, six point loss. Right. They play the Chiefs,
Speaker 2: the undefeated Chiefs. They lose twenty six to twenty five.
Speaker 2: They play the first place Commanders, they lose thirty eight
Speaker 2: to thirty three. Their other loss is the Ravens forty
Speaker 2: one to thirty eight. Like, for all the angst and
Speaker 2: panic out there and their start, they are two and
Speaker 2: four and their losses have all been very competitive. They
Speaker 2: are this close to flipping their record. So I'm going
Speaker 2: to say the Cincinnati Bengals. They play coming up here,
Speaker 2: they have at the Browns. Let's say that gets them
Speaker 2: to three and four at home against the Eagles, who
Speaker 2: are beatable. That could get them to five hundred, and
Speaker 2: then they play the Raiders. We could very easily be
Speaker 2: talking about Cincinnati Bengals being over five hundred here before
Speaker 2: you can blink.
Speaker 1: Okay, Cincinnati Bengals being the team that can get it done.
Speaker 1: Schedule does play a part in it. We're talking about
Speaker 1: long shots to be able to come from a losing
Speaker 1: record to being able to do it. Well, if I'm
Speaker 1: going to go with that, how can I not take
Speaker 1: the New York Jets in the scenario I have to.
Speaker 3: Take the tests. Look, we can talk about the Jets
Speaker 3: being paper tigers, we can talk about all of these things.
Speaker 3: Aaron Rodgers hasn't played great.
Speaker 1: I think it's been like twelve games since he's had
Speaker 1: over brind the yard's passing and that stuff.
Speaker 3: But here's what I do know.
Speaker 1: It's the combination of not only your team being good,
Speaker 1: but the schedule giving you a break. So when we
Speaker 1: talk about the schedule, yes, they played the Pittsburgh Steelers
Speaker 1: coming up Sunday night, but then dj they played the Patriots,
Speaker 1: the Texans, the Cardinals, the Colts, the Seahawks, the Dolphins,
Speaker 1: the Jags, the Rams, the Bills, and the Dolphins. I
Speaker 1: can squint my eyes and give them eight wins out
Speaker 1: of that list. That gets you to ten. That gets
Speaker 1: you in the tournament. And the thing that we know
Speaker 1: about the tournament is a hot quarterback and a hot
Speaker 1: receiver can get him going.
Speaker 2: Didn't like and I just said it.
Speaker 3: We just said it on the last pocket. I said it.
Speaker 1: I didn't really love the Devonte Adams trade because now
Speaker 1: what does it.
Speaker 3: Do to my guy, Garrett Wilson.
Speaker 1: Didn't know that Jeff Olbrick was going to come back
Speaker 1: in and say, hey, I've seen this before. This is
Speaker 1: Jerry Rice and Terrell Owens. Now we let him know
Speaker 1: that t O and Jerry Rice aren't the best.
Speaker 3: I understand. I understand what he's getting at.
Speaker 1: It is mentor mentee helping the young fellow find his way.
Speaker 1: If they can stay up and they knocking with, they
Speaker 1: stay healthy, that offensive line, Aaron Rodgers comfort level with
Speaker 1: Devonte Adams makes Devanta Adams the natural number one. It
Speaker 1: creates a greater mismatch for Garrett Wilson being the number two.
Speaker 1: And if they can commit to running the football down
Speaker 1: the stretch with Brayln Allen and Breezeall they're fornerable. The
Speaker 1: defense is good. The defense. Look, you lose Robert Salad,
Speaker 1: but you kept the decordinator in Obrick. That defense, this
Speaker 1: is good enough to get them there. If they get
Speaker 1: into tournament, you don't want to face them, just because
Speaker 1: the prospect of dealing with the four time MVP, who
Speaker 1: at any point can turn back the clock and have
Speaker 1: one of those magical performances, gives them a punch of chance.
Speaker 3: Let's put the New York Jets in the conversation.
Speaker 2: I like it. I like it. I would. I would
Speaker 2: also add, by the way, just looking at schedules and
Speaker 2: looking at the team that I cover, the Chargers, buck
Speaker 2: the Chargers, and again they weren't eligible for this. They
Speaker 2: have a winning record.
Speaker 3: I had them. I had them.
Speaker 1: When I was debating Pittsburgh, I had the Charges right there.
Speaker 1: But I didn't want to feel like Homer, Homer guy,
Speaker 1: because it's your team.
Speaker 2: But I know right there, well, I'm looking at him,
Speaker 2: and you've got a Monday Night or at Arizona. Then
Speaker 2: it's the Saints, then it's the Browns, then it's the Titans.
Speaker 3: Got a chance to.
Speaker 2: Get on a little run here, and then then it's
Speaker 2: the Bengals at home, which would be a good one,
Speaker 2: and then it's the Big Hardball Bowl on Monday, November
Speaker 2: twenty fifth. The Ravens come to so far that'll be huge.
Speaker 2: I mean they could get the Chargers. Can make this
Speaker 2: kind of interesting here as they as they continue to
Speaker 2: to kind of feel out and find their way with
Speaker 2: the new coaching staff, new schemes, defense, play lights out,
Speaker 2: offenses hasn't spurts, but you know they got some work
Speaker 2: to do there. But man, the schedule lays out quite nicely.
Speaker 2: Anything else you want to add before we get out
Speaker 2: of here, Buck, as you get ready to get on
Speaker 2: a plane again head back to London.
Speaker 3: Yeah, it should be a lot of fun going overseas,
Speaker 3: hopefully to see the Jaguars get a.
Speaker 2: Dub but not.
Speaker 3: This is fine, man.
Speaker 1: It was great having that conversation at the beginning and
Speaker 1: then the debates over the contenders.
Speaker 3: It's always an interesting.
Speaker 2: One last question for me before we get out of here.
Speaker 2: Is it because we were scouts and maybe I shouldn't
Speaker 2: include you in this. I don't mind eating lunch by
Speaker 2: myself like everybody. My wife just went out with my daughter,
Speaker 2: so I've got it's lunchtime. As were recording this, I
Speaker 2: had no problems, DJ, I have no problem. We're weird.
Speaker 3: I have no problem going to the restaurant, going to
Speaker 3: the bar, sitting there watching TV, eating again, unbothered.
Speaker 2: I have no problem.
Speaker 3: That is definitely a scout squirrel? Is that what people?
Speaker 2: For sure? I got my phone, I can read articles.
Speaker 2: I got some charger stuff I need to do prep wise.
Speaker 2: I can read some some articles on the cardinals. I'll
Speaker 2: have some sushi in a restaurant. Booth for one, booth
Speaker 2: for one, please for one.
Speaker 1: I mean anytime you've been to Las Cruises, New Mexico
Speaker 1: and you have to go out and eat on your
Speaker 1: on your on your own do yeah, I can do
Speaker 1: it solo.
Speaker 2: I don't bother me at all at all. Yeah. Maybe
Speaker 2: I thought maybe we're weird, but I do think it
Speaker 2: is the scouting thing. I don't mind it. I don't
Speaker 2: mind it. Let us know, by the way, on uh
Speaker 2: on social media, if that uh, if that's unique to us,
Speaker 2: or if you don't mind a little meal alone, all right,
Speaker 2: that's gonna do it for I appreciate you guys hanging
Speaker 2: with Us'll see you next time. Right here on move
Speaker 2: the sticks