WEBVTT - Adam Peters and Tariq Ahmad Talk 'Collaborative' Draft Process | Press Pass

0:00:04.080 --> 0:00:04.600
<v Speaker 1>Both of you.

0:00:06.120 --> 0:00:08.440
<v Speaker 2>I start off, just what do you kind of feel

0:00:08.520 --> 0:00:12.360
<v Speaker 2>like the overall stamp that this draft class can make

0:00:12.480 --> 0:00:14.200
<v Speaker 2>on this team.

0:00:14.640 --> 0:00:18.520
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I'd say this draft class was probably one of

0:00:18.520 --> 0:00:21.360
<v Speaker 3>our most collaborative just with the coaches and the scouts

0:00:21.360 --> 0:00:25.120
<v Speaker 3>and everybody together. It's gotten better each year. Last year

0:00:25.200 --> 0:00:28.200
<v Speaker 3>was great, This year got even better, and and there

0:00:28.240 --> 0:00:31.800
<v Speaker 3>was so much just talk within the draft room and

0:00:32.280 --> 0:00:35.360
<v Speaker 3>getting everybody's opinions, and it was really I think, I

0:00:35.400 --> 0:00:37.960
<v Speaker 3>think it felt about as collaborative as it can be

0:00:38.080 --> 0:00:41.919
<v Speaker 3>and we're really happy about that, you guys, And there.

0:00:41.880 --> 0:00:44.360
<v Speaker 4>Are a lot of cornerbacks, you know, on the on

0:00:44.400 --> 0:00:48.599
<v Speaker 4>the board. What was it about Looterer that that made

0:00:48.680 --> 0:00:49.200
<v Speaker 4>him the pick?

0:00:50.000 --> 0:00:52.720
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, Looter He came on a thirty visit Matt and

0:00:54.120 --> 0:00:55.800
<v Speaker 3>actually Tark and I talked to him out on the

0:00:55.840 --> 0:00:58.280
<v Speaker 3>deck and I remember it because we've been stuck in

0:00:58.320 --> 0:01:00.960
<v Speaker 3>this draft room for weeks and there's no son in there,

0:01:01.040 --> 0:01:03.360
<v Speaker 3>so it's like, instead of meeting in an office, let's

0:01:03.400 --> 0:01:05.200
<v Speaker 3>go stand on the deck in the sun for a while.

0:01:05.240 --> 0:01:08.399
<v Speaker 3>And he was probably the most mature guy we met

0:01:08.760 --> 0:01:12.560
<v Speaker 3>probably in the whole process. He's married, he's just he's

0:01:12.560 --> 0:01:15.240
<v Speaker 3>a man. Already, and he impressed the heck out of me,

0:01:15.280 --> 0:01:18.039
<v Speaker 3>and I know he impressed you too, And that was

0:01:18.040 --> 0:01:19.759
<v Speaker 3>probably the thing that stood out with Looting the most.

0:01:20.880 --> 0:01:23.800
<v Speaker 3>Obviously the stuff on the field. We love his physicality,

0:01:23.840 --> 0:01:27.280
<v Speaker 3>his strength is upside. Junior college guy's got a lot

0:01:27.280 --> 0:01:30.319
<v Speaker 3>of upside still, So yeah, we're real excited about Looter.

0:01:31.080 --> 0:01:33.080
<v Speaker 5>Yeah, and then part of that evaluation processed at the

0:01:33.120 --> 0:01:35.080
<v Speaker 5>Senior Bowl. He really stood out to us. We thought

0:01:35.120 --> 0:01:37.720
<v Speaker 5>he separated himself from a lot of different prospects there.

0:01:38.640 --> 0:01:40.280
<v Speaker 3>And it made a big impact. Yeah.

0:01:42.080 --> 0:01:45.399
<v Speaker 5>Strong, he's very strong, he's very sticky. At the Senior Bowl,

0:01:46.400 --> 0:01:47.960
<v Speaker 5>he fitting very well down there to get some of

0:01:47.960 --> 0:01:48.720
<v Speaker 5>the top competition.

0:01:49.120 --> 0:01:52.120
<v Speaker 6>Yeah, he's a man already. Is that something that you

0:01:52.200 --> 0:01:54.320
<v Speaker 6>look for? I mean, in terms of maturity, How important

0:01:54.320 --> 0:01:55.680
<v Speaker 6>does that become when you're looking.

0:01:55.440 --> 0:01:58.520
<v Speaker 3>At it is a lot. It's a hard game. It's hard.

0:01:58.800 --> 0:02:01.000
<v Speaker 3>NFL is really hard. Got to be you got to

0:02:01.000 --> 0:02:03.280
<v Speaker 3>be tough, you got to be mature in order to

0:02:03.320 --> 0:02:07.080
<v Speaker 3>do this at your job. So we found on our team,

0:02:07.240 --> 0:02:09.440
<v Speaker 3>the mature guys do really really well. You know, the

0:02:09.480 --> 0:02:11.320
<v Speaker 3>guys that are they are physical, they're tough to do

0:02:11.400 --> 0:02:13.000
<v Speaker 3>really well. And he fit that bill.

0:02:14.880 --> 0:02:17.320
<v Speaker 1>What goes into scouting a kicker. I mean for us,

0:02:17.320 --> 0:02:19.240
<v Speaker 1>it just looks like, you know, doesn't go through the upris.

0:02:19.680 --> 0:02:22.280
<v Speaker 1>What goes into that and what led you ultimately to Jamie?

0:02:22.600 --> 0:02:27.120
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I thought the kicker questions were done yesterday. But yeah, Jake,

0:02:28.320 --> 0:02:30.760
<v Speaker 3>you know, we really lean on our special teams coaches

0:02:30.800 --> 0:02:33.519
<v Speaker 3>for that. And I think John and Kyle told you.

0:02:33.720 --> 0:02:36.560
<v Speaker 3>Brian Schneider loved him. I absolutely loved him. Was sold

0:02:36.600 --> 0:02:40.840
<v Speaker 3>on them. And it starts with the scouts during the fall,

0:02:41.320 --> 0:02:44.440
<v Speaker 3>identifying them and giving the coaches a list of of

0:02:44.440 --> 0:02:48.440
<v Speaker 3>of who the best kickers are and understanding that Robbie

0:02:48.480 --> 0:02:50.000
<v Speaker 3>was coming up and we didn't know what we're gonna

0:02:50.000 --> 0:02:51.280
<v Speaker 3>do with Robbie at the time, so you have to

0:02:51.320 --> 0:02:55.200
<v Speaker 3>be very thorough and so they gave him really the

0:02:55.240 --> 0:02:57.840
<v Speaker 3>top five or so kickers, and he stood out right

0:02:57.880 --> 0:03:01.560
<v Speaker 3>away and throughout the process. For some reason, he didn't

0:03:01.560 --> 0:03:02.959
<v Speaker 3>go to the Senior Bowl, but he goes to the

0:03:03.000 --> 0:03:05.040
<v Speaker 3>East West and he's the MVP of the East West,

0:03:05.080 --> 0:03:07.600
<v Speaker 3>which was probably the most boring game. If you guys

0:03:07.680 --> 0:03:10.200
<v Speaker 3>watch that, it's like all field goals and it was terrible.

0:03:10.240 --> 0:03:13.160
<v Speaker 3>But he stood out, and so that does you a

0:03:13.200 --> 0:03:15.880
<v Speaker 3>little bit about Jake, but really we lean a lot

0:03:15.919 --> 0:03:17.640
<v Speaker 3>on our special teams coaches for that and they did

0:03:17.680 --> 0:03:21.280
<v Speaker 3>a great job. They were real thorough when it comes

0:03:21.360 --> 0:03:21.760
<v Speaker 3>to beale.

0:03:21.880 --> 0:03:25.200
<v Speaker 5>Can you expand on the GTFO and just the two

0:03:25.280 --> 0:03:27.000
<v Speaker 5>yard burst that he that he showed you.

0:03:26.919 --> 0:03:30.320
<v Speaker 3>Guys, Yeah, the GTFO is something that our R and

0:03:30.400 --> 0:03:34.200
<v Speaker 3>D group came up with and really just mimicking what

0:03:34.320 --> 0:03:37.400
<v Speaker 3>coach Casarak wants. And you guys know what the acronym means,

0:03:37.560 --> 0:03:42.200
<v Speaker 3>or I assume you know, but it's something we look

0:03:42.280 --> 0:03:44.360
<v Speaker 3>for and it's something they measure and they do a

0:03:44.360 --> 0:03:47.120
<v Speaker 3>great job of that. And when you get to the

0:03:47.200 --> 0:03:49.800
<v Speaker 3>later rounds and you see guys like him stand out

0:03:50.000 --> 0:03:52.160
<v Speaker 3>on that, and then it matches up with his forty

0:03:52.240 --> 0:03:55.680
<v Speaker 3>and all the different athletic measurements. It's it's something that

0:03:55.760 --> 0:03:57.680
<v Speaker 3>separated him from the other guys at that point on

0:03:57.720 --> 0:04:01.720
<v Speaker 3>the board. Yeah.

0:04:02.120 --> 0:04:06.920
<v Speaker 7>Thanks, we're covering Robbie the last you know, six seasons

0:04:06.920 --> 0:04:11.000
<v Speaker 7>that he's supremely confident he wants to be out there

0:04:11.200 --> 0:04:12.360
<v Speaker 7>with the game.

0:04:12.160 --> 0:04:14.640
<v Speaker 4>On the line. Do you do you get that sense

0:04:14.720 --> 0:04:18.719
<v Speaker 4>that that Moody has that that same I mean that

0:04:18.800 --> 0:04:22.039
<v Speaker 4>same confidence and how do you sort of assess that

0:04:22.120 --> 0:04:24.800
<v Speaker 4>it seems like a very important thing to find out

0:04:24.920 --> 0:04:25.240
<v Speaker 4>about it.

0:04:26.200 --> 0:04:29.320
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I think you're right that that's something that Robbie

0:04:29.400 --> 0:04:31.960
<v Speaker 3>had and he was awesome for six years, Like sent

0:04:32.080 --> 0:04:33.960
<v Speaker 3>him out there and you I mean, he thought it

0:04:34.000 --> 0:04:36.880
<v Speaker 3>was gonna be good, and that's hard to replicate with Jake.

0:04:37.279 --> 0:04:39.480
<v Speaker 3>I think that's one of the things that coach Knight

0:04:39.680 --> 0:04:43.839
<v Speaker 3>really liked is the kid just just wasn't scared of anything.

0:04:43.839 --> 0:04:45.320
<v Speaker 3>He'd go out there and kick it and kick it

0:04:45.360 --> 0:04:47.680
<v Speaker 3>as hard as he could every time. You can try

0:04:47.680 --> 0:04:50.000
<v Speaker 3>to replicate that in a practice or something, but that's

0:04:50.040 --> 0:04:53.400
<v Speaker 3>not real. But you see him make big kicks and

0:04:53.440 --> 0:04:56.160
<v Speaker 3>games and I reference the East West, but he made

0:04:56.200 --> 0:04:58.560
<v Speaker 3>big kicks. I think was Illinois won the game and

0:04:58.839 --> 0:05:01.159
<v Speaker 3>there's I think three game winning kicks that he had.

0:05:01.200 --> 0:05:04.400
<v Speaker 3>So those are the things you see under pressure, he

0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:07.839
<v Speaker 3>did it, and that's past performance is the best predictor

0:05:07.839 --> 0:05:10.640
<v Speaker 3>of future performance, and that's what he's done. We try

0:05:10.640 --> 0:05:13.080
<v Speaker 3>to replicate it in a workout and he did the

0:05:13.120 --> 0:05:14.599
<v Speaker 3>same thing. And I don't know if they told you

0:05:14.640 --> 0:05:19.400
<v Speaker 3>the specific incident, but when we worked him out privately,

0:05:20.040 --> 0:05:22.719
<v Speaker 3>he did like a last second rush out on the

0:05:22.720 --> 0:05:26.040
<v Speaker 3>field field goal thing was all messed up, laces are

0:05:26.080 --> 0:05:27.720
<v Speaker 3>the wrong way, he didn't care, kicked it right through

0:05:27.760 --> 0:05:30.719
<v Speaker 3>the uprights fifty yards. So those are the things you

0:05:30.720 --> 0:05:32.840
<v Speaker 3>can do, but you don't really know until they're in

0:05:32.880 --> 0:05:33.400
<v Speaker 3>that moment.

0:05:33.960 --> 0:05:36.159
<v Speaker 5>And then part of the evaluation process with the people

0:05:36.200 --> 0:05:37.800
<v Speaker 5>that we talked to that are inside that building, that

0:05:37.839 --> 0:05:40.159
<v Speaker 5>was one of the things they emphasized. How this guy

0:05:40.279 --> 0:05:42.680
<v Speaker 5>is ice in his bands. This guy's as consistent as

0:05:42.720 --> 0:05:45.320
<v Speaker 5>any position player that they had there. So it's something

0:05:45.320 --> 0:05:46.320
<v Speaker 5>that we felt really good about.

0:05:46.440 --> 0:05:52.320
<v Speaker 2>Yeahs a roster that you know, it looks like there's

0:05:52.640 --> 0:05:55.159
<v Speaker 2>virtually a starter at every spot. You know, the depth

0:05:55.200 --> 0:05:58.920
<v Speaker 2>looks pretty good. Does it change like how you approach

0:05:59.000 --> 0:06:00.960
<v Speaker 2>it and where your eyes go when it comes to

0:06:01.560 --> 0:06:03.239
<v Speaker 2>evaluating the talent, Yes.

0:06:03.279 --> 0:06:06.160
<v Speaker 5>It doesn't change the process. Right, So we're evaluating everyone

0:06:06.560 --> 0:06:08.800
<v Speaker 5>through the fall as if we're starting the roster from

0:06:08.839 --> 0:06:11.880
<v Speaker 5>scratch to get the value exactly correct. But as we

0:06:11.880 --> 0:06:14.599
<v Speaker 5>talk about the players as we go in the winter

0:06:14.680 --> 0:06:17.880
<v Speaker 5>and then during the April meetings, we compare them to

0:06:17.920 --> 0:06:19.840
<v Speaker 5>the guys on our roster and how they would fit in.

0:06:20.960 --> 0:06:22.719
<v Speaker 5>So initially it doesn't change at all, but then we

0:06:22.800 --> 0:06:25.520
<v Speaker 5>have to be able to clearly communicate what their exact

0:06:25.640 --> 0:06:26.880
<v Speaker 5>value is a little bit later in the.

0:06:26.800 --> 0:06:31.720
<v Speaker 2>Process, basically in the essence scouting your own guys too,

0:06:32.040 --> 0:06:33.039
<v Speaker 2>to figure.

0:06:32.720 --> 0:06:36.039
<v Speaker 5>Out exactly So everyone has a specialty that they focus

0:06:36.080 --> 0:06:39.800
<v Speaker 5>on in those April meetings, and that's one of the

0:06:39.839 --> 0:06:41.919
<v Speaker 5>things that we ask them to evaluate our own roster

0:06:42.279 --> 0:06:44.480
<v Speaker 5>and stack those guys amongst the guys on our roster.

0:06:48.440 --> 0:06:50.920
<v Speaker 1>When you're kind of stacking those guys, say you've got

0:06:50.920 --> 0:06:53.000
<v Speaker 1>two guys that are pretty close to one guy, maybe

0:06:53.040 --> 0:06:55.400
<v Speaker 1>have more traits, more upside, but may not get it

0:06:55.400 --> 0:06:57.120
<v Speaker 1>for a year, versus a guy who kind of a

0:06:57.120 --> 0:06:59.080
<v Speaker 1>little more polished, you know what he's getting. Do you

0:06:59.120 --> 0:07:00.680
<v Speaker 1>have to think about, like, you know, it might be

0:07:00.760 --> 0:07:02.960
<v Speaker 1>worth going for the guy that might take a year

0:07:02.960 --> 0:07:04.720
<v Speaker 1>because and we'll have a spot for him. Like does

0:07:04.720 --> 0:07:05.600
<v Speaker 1>that factory into it at all?

0:07:05.680 --> 0:07:08.039
<v Speaker 5>Yeah, I would say our job is to communicate exactly

0:07:08.040 --> 0:07:12.840
<v Speaker 5>what you just said, Communicate those differences, also understand who

0:07:12.880 --> 0:07:17.080
<v Speaker 5>that person is who can reshare potential and clearly communicate

0:07:17.120 --> 0:07:20.600
<v Speaker 5>that to the assistant GM, to the GM, to the

0:07:20.640 --> 0:07:23.680
<v Speaker 5>coaching staff and just help make a good decision.

0:07:23.880 --> 0:07:27.680
<v Speaker 3>Thanks very including me. Yeah, it's really communicating that to

0:07:27.760 --> 0:07:29.679
<v Speaker 3>John and Kyle and making sure they know the total

0:07:29.720 --> 0:07:32.440
<v Speaker 3>package and what this player can be now and then

0:07:32.560 --> 0:07:35.440
<v Speaker 3>in the future, give them all the information to make

0:07:35.440 --> 0:07:36.200
<v Speaker 3>the best decision.

0:07:37.560 --> 0:07:39.800
<v Speaker 6>Seemed like two themes that were through a lot of

0:07:39.840 --> 0:07:42.400
<v Speaker 6>your draft picks. Work, speed and then also guys that

0:07:42.480 --> 0:07:45.040
<v Speaker 6>were team captains. How important are all of those futures.

0:07:45.040 --> 0:07:46.800
<v Speaker 6>I mean, I know that doesn't mean that they're going

0:07:46.840 --> 0:07:50.760
<v Speaker 6>to be successful on the field, but those are reoccurring things.

0:07:50.560 --> 0:07:51.400
<v Speaker 2>That we saw.

0:07:52.760 --> 0:07:54.480
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, OK, I got it. Sure.

0:07:55.720 --> 0:07:57.560
<v Speaker 5>Those are two things that are very important to us.

0:07:57.800 --> 0:08:00.280
<v Speaker 5>The forty nine or the what it takes to be

0:08:00.320 --> 0:08:03.120
<v Speaker 5>as successful forty nine or football player is something that

0:08:03.160 --> 0:08:06.240
<v Speaker 5>we emphasize. We emphasized in the preseason, we emphasize it

0:08:06.680 --> 0:08:10.239
<v Speaker 5>during winter meetings, we emphasize it prior to our April meetings.

0:08:10.400 --> 0:08:12.680
<v Speaker 5>And those are two things that are extremely important to us.

0:08:13.800 --> 0:08:15.960
<v Speaker 5>So it is communicated. It's something that they try to

0:08:16.000 --> 0:08:19.680
<v Speaker 5>gather as much information on as possible, like a captain,

0:08:19.720 --> 0:08:21.920
<v Speaker 5>but what is a captain and captain is a leader

0:08:21.960 --> 0:08:26.160
<v Speaker 5>that can connect, can motivate, and so those are things

0:08:26.160 --> 0:08:27.960
<v Speaker 5>that we're working on as we get into the schools,

0:08:28.280 --> 0:08:30.960
<v Speaker 5>and that's what we're communicating when we get into those meetings.

0:08:32.000 --> 0:08:34.760
<v Speaker 7>The collaborative process. I noticed there was a lot of

0:08:34.800 --> 0:08:37.160
<v Speaker 7>talk about Steve Wilks. It seemed that he was calling

0:08:37.280 --> 0:08:39.360
<v Speaker 7>prospects even letting them know some of the good news.

0:08:39.360 --> 0:08:41.719
<v Speaker 7>I think, yes, Jay or Jerry Brown, when a new

0:08:41.720 --> 0:08:45.360
<v Speaker 7>coach does come in, is it hard to get him

0:08:45.400 --> 0:08:48.480
<v Speaker 7>kind of integrated into that whole flow? How did that

0:08:48.520 --> 0:08:50.959
<v Speaker 7>whole process work? Because it seemed that he was very

0:08:51.000 --> 0:08:51.760
<v Speaker 7>involved in the get go.

0:08:52.440 --> 0:08:54.880
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, but Steve, it was real seamless, and I think

0:08:54.880 --> 0:08:57.200
<v Speaker 3>we talked about it before. Maybe I talked with you,

0:08:57.240 --> 0:09:00.600
<v Speaker 3>Matt about how seamless it was from the get go,

0:09:00.760 --> 0:09:03.839
<v Speaker 3>from free agency and then and then going into the

0:09:03.920 --> 0:09:06.640
<v Speaker 3>draft is the same way. And he just it was.

0:09:06.800 --> 0:09:08.559
<v Speaker 3>He was like he was part of us right away,

0:09:08.600 --> 0:09:12.240
<v Speaker 3>and he was a really smart guy. He communicates exactly

0:09:12.240 --> 0:09:15.240
<v Speaker 3>what he's looking for, eyes, hands hips, and feet and

0:09:15.280 --> 0:09:18.120
<v Speaker 3>I've heard that about thirty times, but it's the real

0:09:18.160 --> 0:09:23.760
<v Speaker 3>thing because it was But he is. He's been about

0:09:23.800 --> 0:09:26.480
<v Speaker 3>as integral as he could be in such a short time,

0:09:26.800 --> 0:09:29.840
<v Speaker 3>and he's not afraid to speak his mind, but he's

0:09:29.880 --> 0:09:33.320
<v Speaker 3>also real respectful of everybody else's opinions. And it's been

0:09:33.520 --> 0:09:34.680
<v Speaker 3>it's been really good so far.

0:09:34.840 --> 0:09:39.120
<v Speaker 8>Yeah, well, he obviously has break it off in length

0:09:39.200 --> 0:09:42.760
<v Speaker 8>and speed. I understand George has been a lot of players,

0:09:42.760 --> 0:09:46.000
<v Speaker 8>but you know, you look at his packages. How company

0:09:46.040 --> 0:09:49.720
<v Speaker 8>didn't do more in college for what what was kind

0:09:49.720 --> 0:09:52.920
<v Speaker 8>of behind that other than talented roster.

0:09:53.840 --> 0:09:57.960
<v Speaker 3>Yeah, I think bial really looking more at him for

0:09:58.080 --> 0:10:01.440
<v Speaker 3>how he fits us and with what they did at Georgia,

0:10:01.480 --> 0:10:03.319
<v Speaker 3>they had him dropping a lot, they had him doing

0:10:03.320 --> 0:10:06.160
<v Speaker 3>a lot of different things, and talking to the people

0:10:06.200 --> 0:10:09.640
<v Speaker 3>at Georgia, talking to Kirby Smart, he says, the best

0:10:09.679 --> 0:10:12.560
<v Speaker 3>thing he does is get off the ball GTFO and

0:10:12.720 --> 0:10:15.320
<v Speaker 3>get the quarterback and set the edge. And those are

0:10:15.360 --> 0:10:17.640
<v Speaker 3>the things we do. As you know, Chris Casara, you

0:10:17.679 --> 0:10:20.200
<v Speaker 3>see him at practice every day. So those are the

0:10:20.200 --> 0:10:23.240
<v Speaker 3>things that fit us really well. So maybe it didn't

0:10:23.240 --> 0:10:25.720
<v Speaker 3>fit other teams as well, but his skill set fits

0:10:25.760 --> 0:10:31.640
<v Speaker 3>us really really well. All Right, thank you guys.

0:10:31.760 --> 0:10:33.440
<v Speaker 5>You want to be guy work