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Speaker 1: Mahomes back throws.

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Speaker 2: It is equal.

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Speaker 3: Please pickoff picked off by the Alliance by Branch with

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Speaker 3: the left side.

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Speaker 1: He's going, baby, He's going to the house. Touch down

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Speaker 1: to Tod Lions deflected in the air. Branch ran under

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Speaker 1: it and he took it all the way back. Welcome

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Speaker 1: back to the twenty Men in the Huddle podcast presented

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Speaker 1: by Microsoft and I have in field Yates from ESPN.

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Speaker 1: Thanks for being my field. You are always a favorite

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Speaker 1: of mine to talk to in the off season. You

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Speaker 1: kind of have your pulse on everything, which I love,

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Speaker 1: which probably makes you a little bit busy, but the

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Speaker 1: pulse of the NFL. So let's talk about a couple

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Speaker 1: of NFL kind of centric topics to begin. The kickoff

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Speaker 1: rule kind of has been talked about. The NFL wants

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Speaker 1: to see more kickoffs. What's your thought on on maybe

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Speaker 1: some potential changes coming to the kickoff rules.

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Speaker 4: I'm a little old school and I want to see

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Speaker 4: more kickoffs as well. I mean, I don't think I

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Speaker 4: need to preach when I'm talking to a team that

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Speaker 4: just made I think Jalen Reeves maybe the highest paid

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Speaker 4: core special teamer ever. Right, Like Lions fans understand there's

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Speaker 4: a three phase football game still, So I think the

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Speaker 4: kickoff is good for the NFL. I think it adds

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Speaker 4: an element of unpredictability. I think it adds an element

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Speaker 4: of variants. And I have seen a lot of massive,

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Speaker 4: massive playoffs, swinging games decided by by the kickoff. So

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Speaker 4: you know, I think back to like whether it's Devin

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Speaker 4: Hester returning the opening kickoff for a touchdown in the

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Speaker 4: Super Bowl or just you know, Troy Brown in.

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Speaker 1: Particular, though those are such huge plays, a black punt,

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Speaker 1: a key return, just flipping the field percent it's it's

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Speaker 1: played that I couldn't agree more.

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Speaker 4: And uh, you know, there's a huge chunk of the roster.

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Speaker 4: I mean, usually the special teams coach does not deal

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Speaker 4: with at maximum two position groups, the quarterbacks because other

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Speaker 4: than maybe the backup holding on field goals and pats

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Speaker 4: not going to be involved with special teams. And then

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Speaker 4: occasionally the wide receivers, and though there are some wide

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Speaker 4: receivers that have merged to some of the best special

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Speaker 4: teamers in the entire NFL. So the Lion's special teams

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Speaker 4: coordinator might know more players on an individual level than

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Speaker 4: any other coach, maybe other than Dan Campbell on the team,

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Speaker 4: So I'm a little bit of a softy for a

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Speaker 4: good special teams action.

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Speaker 1: Oh one other thing kind of being talked about league wide,

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Speaker 1: the trade deadline has become a topic. They want to

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Speaker 1: move it back totally weeks.

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Speaker 4: Totally agree, it just introduces So here's one of the

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Speaker 4: realities of the NFL is that the trade volume has

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Speaker 4: kicked up. Right, a couple of years ago we saw

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Speaker 4: a very very busy trade deadline. This past year wasn't

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Speaker 4: quite as busy. But the further into the season you are,

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Speaker 4: the more of a accurate representation of what you think

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Speaker 4: you are or going to be for the.

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Speaker 5: Rest of that year point.

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Speaker 4: And it allows teams that maybe halfway or maybe at

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Speaker 4: the trade deadline, you're five and four, you don't know

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Speaker 4: what you are. But if it gets moved back three

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Speaker 4: weeks and you're seven and four, eight and four, or

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Speaker 4: you're five and seven, all of a sudden, it allows

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Speaker 4: you a more complete picture, and it allows for more

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Speaker 4: possibilities of trades, which I think generally speaking, can benefit

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Speaker 4: both sides in a pretty dramatic way.

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Speaker 1: It's almost like taking the NHL approach right because we're

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Speaker 1: just now starting to talk about the trade deadline NHL,

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Speaker 1: and there's right, twenty three twenty two games totally Yeah.

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Speaker 1: Being from Detroit, a team like Detroit, you know the

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Speaker 1: Red Wings now can say, okay.

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Speaker 5: He's playing some good puppy. Yeah there, Yeah, it's fun.

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Speaker 5: It's fun.

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Speaker 1: You know, we're in a spot now, Hey, later, maybe

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Speaker 1: go do it so similar similar deal. I agree. I

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Speaker 1: think it makes more sense to be a little bit later.

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Speaker 1: Let teams who think they can go for a run

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Speaker 1: try to make that mom.

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Speaker 5: That's my stance on it.

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Speaker 4: I think that, and I understand at some point you

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Speaker 4: have to draw a line, like I don't think we

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Speaker 4: need to have a trade deadline after Thanksgiving. But even

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Speaker 4: if you push it back two to two and a

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Speaker 4: half weeks, then you're in business. Teams I think have

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Speaker 4: a much better feel for what they are, what they're

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Speaker 4: going to be. And while the NFL is not like

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Speaker 4: where I think the NBA is worth, so much of

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Speaker 4: the interest in the NBA stuff takes place during the offseason. Yeah,

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Speaker 4: it does create fan interest in the NFL has an

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Speaker 4: intended goal of being relevant three hundred and sixty five

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Speaker 4: days in a year. Sure more trade certainly goes a

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Speaker 4: long way in doing that.

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Speaker 1: How surprised were you at the thirty million dollar salary

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Speaker 1: cap hike?

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Speaker 5: Pleasantly surprised?

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Speaker 1: I bet.

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Speaker 5: I would say that there's really no doubt.

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Speaker 4: The only way I was trying to think of winners

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Speaker 4: and losers, my thought winners everybody, right, everybody is a winner, right.

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Speaker 4: I would say specifically, players that play either a premium

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Speaker 4: position or guys that are at the top of their

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Speaker 4: own position are in a good spot because resetting the

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Speaker 4: market is much easier to do and you've got thirty

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Speaker 4: million dollars more to play with. I don't even know

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Speaker 4: if there is a loser. The only one that I

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Speaker 4: could come up with is if competitive balance becomes a

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Speaker 4: little bit of an issue for the NFL because teams

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Speaker 4: that are already at the top have now been emboldened

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Speaker 4: to make more audacious moves that impact the next couple

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Speaker 4: of seasons. That being said, like a lot of things

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Speaker 4: still have to happen for teams at the top to stay.

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Speaker 5: At the top.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, because they've got to pay well, it's yeah, it's.

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Speaker 4: A lot of players still, you know, Like the NBA

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Speaker 4: had this capspike in twenty nineteen that led to the

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Speaker 4: Warriors signing Kevin to Rants and the best team or

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Speaker 4: one of the best teams in the entire league have

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Speaker 4: that much more to sign one player. And in the NBA,

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Speaker 4: one player can tilt the entirety of a franchise. In

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Speaker 4: the NFL, there are some players, certainly, but it's not

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Speaker 4: like it's you know, one, even the best quarterback is

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Speaker 4: not twenty percent of the players on the field at

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Speaker 4: one time.

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Speaker 1: Speaking of contracts, important players, players amongst the best at

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Speaker 1: their position. Yeah, you knewhere, I was going. I's Brown

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Speaker 1: is looking for an extension. You know, I think before

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Speaker 1: he goes into next season, what do you think that

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Speaker 1: looks like? And do you consider him among the top three,

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Speaker 1: four five the top guys at that position.

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Speaker 4: Not only do I consider I'm one of the best

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Speaker 4: wide receivers in the NFL. This might be one of

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Speaker 4: the easiest extension candidates. What more could you possibly ask

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Speaker 4: for out of any draft pick, but much less one

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Speaker 4: that came in the fourth round than a Monroe Saint Brown. Right,

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Speaker 4: amonra is the definite I think of what the Lions

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Speaker 4: want in a player, I'm not sure any player is

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Speaker 4: has a better attitude on the field than I'm nurra,

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Speaker 4: He's just mean. He's unbelievable. He's super talented, obviously, but

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Speaker 4: I think his talent is matched by intangibles that take

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Speaker 4: him to a level that's even greater than his quote

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Speaker 4: unquote natural talent is right. I mean, he famously wasn't

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Speaker 4: that fast in the pre draft process. Hasn't seemed to

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Speaker 4: impact him one bit. The toughness is off the charts

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Speaker 4: sets the tone for an offense. A big game player

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Speaker 4: who every got a habit situation. You might think they're

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Speaker 4: throwing the football to number fourteen and you're probably still

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Speaker 4: not breaking it up. So I don't want to sound

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Speaker 4: super nerdy here, but I'd imagine if Brad Holmes or

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Speaker 4: Mike Disner, who who of course does the contract for

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Speaker 4: the Lions, here's this, they might agree with my assessment.

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Speaker 4: Here we fixate, We in the public fixate on the

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Speaker 4: average annual value for a contract more than any other metric.

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Speaker 5: That's what we care about the most.

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Speaker 4: I would argue that there are a lot of factors

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Speaker 4: that contribut to how you value a contract. So right now,

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Speaker 4: the wide receiver mark is set at thirty million dollars

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Speaker 4: per year on the Tyreek Hill deal with Miami four year,

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Speaker 4: one hundred and twenty million dollar contract. If you look

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Speaker 4: at that one a little bit closer to a three year,

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Speaker 4: seventy five million dollar deal with forty five million dollars

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Speaker 4: in compensation due to tyreek Kill and the final year

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Speaker 4: of that of that contract, tyre Kill might be the

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Speaker 4: best receiver in the NFL. That's still a big number

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Speaker 4: for any wide receiver, right, a big number for any

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Speaker 4: player period. So if you're a manra if the goal

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Speaker 4: for Amanrai is to get to thirty one million dollars

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Speaker 4: per year, there are ways that you can get there.

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Speaker 4: There are also ways that you could say, hey, a

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Speaker 4: three year, seventy seven point five million dollar deal, which

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Speaker 4: is only if I can do my math quickly, like

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Speaker 4: twenty seven and a half million dollars per season or

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Speaker 4: somewhere on that range, lay twenty six, twenty seven, whatever

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Speaker 4: that is, right, that might be a stronger deal or

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Speaker 4: an equally you know, a.

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Speaker 5: Very very strong deal that might also get the job done.

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Speaker 4: Does it make you the highest paid wide receiver on

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Speaker 4: an average angle basis technically no? Does it make you

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Speaker 4: one of the highest paid receivers?

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Speaker 5: Ever?

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Speaker 4: Yes, So there are a lot of different metrics, three

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Speaker 4: year cash flow, guaranteed money, you know, injury guarantees, practically guaranties,

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Speaker 4: things of that nature. So I think the number is big.

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Speaker 4: I think it's twenty five million plus per year. I

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Speaker 4: think it's worth it. Every penny is worth every every

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Speaker 4: penny is worth it. I agree he And by the way,

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Speaker 4: last thing I'll say about it is that not that

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Speaker 4: I have no reason to believe that they won't do it,

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Speaker 4: but it's an example. It's an example to every player

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Speaker 4: that gets drafted and walks in that building. It doesn't

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Speaker 4: matter if you're taking in the first round, fourth round,

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Speaker 4: are undrafted. If you do what it takes to earn

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Speaker 4: your pay day, we're gonna reward you. I think there's

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Speaker 4: a delicate balance. If a team doesn't reward a player

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Speaker 4: who's in everything you possibly can in an expedient.

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Speaker 5: Manner, it leaves other guys saying, what are we gonna do?

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Speaker 1: What are we doing here?

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Speaker 5: What do we do?

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Speaker 1: What are you doing here?

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Speaker 5: What do we do?

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Speaker 2: Yeah?

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Speaker 5: So, how can I if that guy can't get paid,

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Speaker 5: how can I get paid?

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Speaker 1: No? No one deserves it more. I mean, I love

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Speaker 1: the fact that he could rattle off to sixteen guys

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Speaker 1: taken ahead of them. You know the fact that he is.

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Speaker 4: I think I think I had extra breakfast this morning,

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Speaker 4: but I can't quite recall field.

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Speaker 1: When you watch his tape and watch him block in

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Speaker 1: the run game, it's so fun. I mean, wide receivers

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Speaker 1: don't stick their head into it, like I'm on Rod.

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Speaker 1: He just everything that Dan Campbell you mentioned it is about,

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Speaker 1: and what he wants the culture of this team to

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Speaker 1: be about is in number fourteen.

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Speaker 4: He's Dan Campbell with football talent on the field, right.

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Speaker 4: Dan obviously was a talented player played for a while

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Speaker 4: in the NFL. But Dan would be the first to

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Speaker 4: tell you I saw that Combine photo resurface recently, right, Like, yeah,

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Speaker 4: Dan was like, you know the four eight tight end

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Speaker 4: right Like if he would, if he hates me for

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Speaker 4: saying this, I apologize.

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Speaker 1: One of the one yard line running off tackle, you

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Speaker 1: want Dan Campbell on your side to help punch that

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Speaker 1: into the end zone.

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Speaker 4: Dan never ran a four or five or whatever. You know,

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Speaker 4: he didn't have that the quickness that Amana has. But

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Speaker 4: he's everything you could possibly want in a Detroit Lions

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Speaker 4: wide receiver.

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Speaker 1: I'm glad you brought Dan up because the player grades

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Speaker 1: came out yesterday I believe it was, and there were

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Speaker 1: three coaches that received an A plus from the players.

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Speaker 1: And these are are grades that you know, voted on

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Speaker 1: by the players across the gambit of nutrition and facilities

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Speaker 1: and everything. Andy Reid and I think it was Kevin

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Speaker 1: O'Connell ye with a buses and Dan Campbell.

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Speaker 4: I'm just so glad it happened because I hope that

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Speaker 4: people rethink the way that we evaluate head coaching hires,

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Speaker 4: which I would argue there's no dumber reaction that we do.

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Speaker 4: I know people don't like draft grades sometimes, and hey,

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Speaker 4: believe it or not, sometimes we're wrong. Grading coaching hires

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Speaker 4: is so incredibly difficult for so many reasons. It's one thing,

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Speaker 4: if listen, if someone's been a coach for a long

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Speaker 4: time before and gets rehired after a track record of success,

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Speaker 4: I'm generally gonna believe it's a good hire. But when

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Speaker 4: it's your first time being hired as a head coach

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Speaker 4: on a full time basis.

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Speaker 5: It's a bit of a mystery here.

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Speaker 4: But so often we just go and find the high

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Speaker 4: hot offensive coordinator, defensive coordinator candidate, which by the way

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Speaker 4: the Lions had this year in Ben Johnson. Right, But

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Speaker 4: if Ben Johnson was hired by a team as a

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Speaker 4: head coach, my rational for liking Ben Johnson as a

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Speaker 4: hire wouldn't be, oh yeah, he coordinated a great offense.

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Speaker 5: There's a lot more to the job than just that.

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Speaker 4: It would be because when you hear Lions players talk

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Speaker 4: about what has enabled Ben to lead this great offense,

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Speaker 4: it's talking about clear communication, having a plan, Jared feeling embolden.

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Speaker 4: He feels empowered within the offense. It's belief. It's throwing

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Speaker 4: the football to Penney School or throwing the football I'm

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Speaker 4: not gonna bring up tailor to place, yes, or but

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Speaker 4: you know, getting skipped the ball, like doing things like that, Right,

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Speaker 4: those are the trades that matter.

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Speaker 5: So Dan didn't come mean was Dan.

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Speaker 4: I don't think Dan was ever a coordinator prior to

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Speaker 4: being hire as a head coach. Obviously, it was an

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Speaker 4: interim coach for whatever it was, thirteen years, thirteen games,

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Speaker 4: filling in for Joe Fildman after he was ousted in Miami.

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Speaker 4: But and the press conference that you know, was was

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Speaker 4: being laughed at and mocked. It's like, all right, so

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Speaker 4: we can have fun with the memes now, but there

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Speaker 4: was like a serious blowback at the time. Yeah, and

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Speaker 4: that's a reality that rather than gravitating towards just the

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Speaker 4: guy that coordinates the great offense of the great defense.

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Speaker 5: Let's find leaders.

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Speaker 4: Let's find people to understand how to communicate to players.

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Speaker 4: Let's find coaches that instill a belief. Let's find coaches

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Speaker 4: have their players situationally prepared. Let's find coaches that believe

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Speaker 4: in process, not just results. Results obviously matter, but you

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Speaker 4: don't have a process, you're not going to.

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Speaker 5: Get the results. You find a coach who can handle

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Speaker 5: the tough times. It's easy.

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Speaker 4: I'm not saying it's easy to be a coach in

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Speaker 4: any capacity, but when everything's going great, a lot easier

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Speaker 4: to coach then when you hit a rut.

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Speaker 5: And the Lions didn't have too many ruts this year.

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Speaker 4: But I'm not like, I remember a year and a

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Speaker 4: half ago, I think they got I believe it was

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Speaker 4: like one seven shutout, yeah, shut out yeah.

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Speaker 1: Against New England in New England twenty seven was to.

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Speaker 4: A team that ended up being okay, not great, right,

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Speaker 4: And you're like, damn, what's happening here with this Lions

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Speaker 4: right come back, finish the season seven and two in

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Speaker 4: their last nine games. Jared goes bananas. You think it's

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Speaker 4: hard or easy being one in six? Obviously the answer

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Speaker 4: is very difficult. And I thought that that Dan Campbell

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Speaker 4: showed that, Yes, it's great when you're winning the division

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Speaker 4: and making the conference championship game, but if you can't

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Speaker 4: endure the difficult times because more coming, it's just the

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Speaker 4: way the NFL works, right, You're not gonna last.

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Speaker 5: So I was fired up by it. I love Dan.

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Speaker 5: You know one of my I don't know five favorite

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Speaker 5: people in the entire NFL.

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Speaker 4: I I've suffered a couple of shoulder injuries running through

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Speaker 4: brick walls for Dan.

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Speaker 1: Money obviously dictates free agency, but do you think anything

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Speaker 1: like that plays in free agency at all?

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Speaker 5: If you don't think you guys want to go play

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Speaker 5: with him?

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Speaker 4: Of course, now, money is I will always believe it,

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Speaker 4: and by the way, it's justified. If I were an

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Speaker 4: NFL free agent, I'd probably go where the biggest money

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Speaker 4: offer was. But tie breaking situations, if you're a guy

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Speaker 4: that's already been around and made some money, you're probably

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Speaker 4: saying to yourself, I want to go play for that

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Speaker 4: guy as opposed to somewhere else where the coach does

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Speaker 4: not have the presence that Dan Campbell does and Brad Holmes.

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Speaker 4: I don't want to like lose track of Brad, Yeah,

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Speaker 4: because Brad has emerged as this unbelievably brilliant general manager

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Speaker 4: who has presidence to him.

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Speaker 5: Right, Like you saw how fired up he was in

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Speaker 5: the elevator right for a couple of those times, and

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Speaker 5: you're like.

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Speaker 1: That guy, Gad fit to get the perfectly And that's

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Speaker 1: the most important important relationship in the building.

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Speaker 4: And by the way, zero prior connection that I'm aware of, No,

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Speaker 4: didn't work together. It wasn't like one was hand picked

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Speaker 4: by you know the other, like to my knowledge it was.

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Speaker 4: We just ran a thorough search and the GM we

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Speaker 4: felt was best with Brad Holmes, the GM we felt

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Speaker 4: was a head coach we felt was best with Dan Campbell.

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Speaker 4: So anyways, I could wax the rest of the day

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Speaker 4: here on the line.

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Speaker 1: Well we are here in Andy four the combine. I

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Speaker 1: know you just recently on ESPN had your like eleven

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Speaker 1: key questions yes column that you and Matt Miller who

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Speaker 1: was also on the podcast, and I think to read Yeah,

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Speaker 1: kiper yep. A lot of great stuff in there, just

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Speaker 1: maybe real quickly a couple of things that you're kind

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Speaker 1: of really focused on, some keys on, some maybe things

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Speaker 1: that made that column that jumped out that you're looking towards.

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Speaker 1: As on field workouts now I've kicked off.

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Speaker 5: Yeah, I always say that, like for the onstead of workouts.

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Speaker 4: You know, I've I've got my my I think I'm

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Speaker 4: up to three hundred and twenty nine player reports that

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Speaker 4: I've written up so far, so I've I've I have

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Speaker 4: a feel for a lot of guys in this class.

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Speaker 4: But it's tiebreaker week for me. Right, It's these guys

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Speaker 4: are wide receiver five versus wide receiver six. One run slow,

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Speaker 4: one runs fast. It's going to be hard to keep

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Speaker 4: the slow guy ahead of the past, right, things of

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Speaker 4: that nature. The medicals are so essential on so many players.

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Speaker 4: It's guys like Michael Pennox Junior from Washington. It's guys

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Speaker 4: like Layout two lat too from UCLA. I hope that

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Speaker 4: those guys get a clean medical history or get a

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Speaker 4: clean bill of health. And everybody says there's no issues whatsoever,

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Speaker 4: but the reality is that we've seen guys fall down

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Speaker 4: boards because of what happens here in Indianapolis during this week.

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Speaker 4: So it's tiebreakers, it's medical stuff, and this is not

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Speaker 4: something that I'm going to be privy to every single

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Speaker 4: bit of.

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Speaker 5: But the interviews matter too.

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Speaker 4: I've heard already from player people around the NFL this week,

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Speaker 4: players that have wowed and players that have left you.

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Speaker 5: Saying I don't know.

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Speaker 4: Yeah, I don't know if he's a program that even

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Speaker 4: if the football stuff is really good on tape, and.

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Speaker 1: A lot of people don't realize that that's an important

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Speaker 1: connection there that the football stuff has to match. In

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Speaker 1: the interviews, Dan said, he came down here, we talked

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Speaker 1: to him. I'm here for the interviews. That's what I'm

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Speaker 1: here for. It's testing everything else. I can get all that,

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Speaker 1: but I want to sit across from a guy and

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Speaker 1: know if he fits our culture, he fits our style,

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Speaker 1: and I think you can only get that in those meetings.

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Speaker 4: I don't think it's a coincidence that the Lions took

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Speaker 4: Jack Campbell. I don't think that was we never met

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Speaker 4: the guy. I think it's you know, as you probably

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Speaker 4: have gathered, Yeah, you just spend ten seconds around Jack

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Speaker 4: Campbell and yeah, yeah, yeah, exactly, you know, like, and

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Speaker 4: he's going to become an even better player. He's going

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Speaker 4: to continue to become a big part of that defense.

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Speaker 4: But you know, coach Shepherd and Campbell and all the

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Speaker 4: people involved in that pick, like on the coaching staff,

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Speaker 4: I'm sure, and Brad Holmes and his staff, like I'm

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Speaker 4: sure interviews are part of the process. And a guy

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Speaker 4: like that being a first round pick.

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Speaker 1: One hundred percent Field great stuff as always. Gonna have

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Speaker 1: to have you back here, maybe before they're drafted, definitely

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Speaker 1: before training camp.

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Speaker 5: I can't wait to down.

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Speaker 1: Field Gates from ESPN follow him. He's got a pulse

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Speaker 1: on everything on the NFL. Thanks so much for joining me.

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Speaker 1: I appreciate you pretty to have me on.

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Speaker 4: We'll see you guys in sixty three days and not

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Speaker 4: that I'm have to wait wait a little while. Ye

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Speaker 4: first early, I know, I know the lines might not

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Speaker 4: pick till after it might be the twenty six points.

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Speaker 1: People are gonna be a little slashed up by the

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Speaker 1: time they pick a twenty nine. But hey, we'll take it.

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Speaker 5: That's right.

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Speaker 1: Welcome back to the twenty in the Huddle podcast. I

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Speaker 1: am very happy to welcome in. Lancer Line does a

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Speaker 1: great job with the NFL. And how much time do

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Speaker 1: you spend doing those combined profiles? Because they are must

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Speaker 1: reads for me when I'm looking to do a prospect.

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Speaker 1: You got the strengths, the weaknesses, all the little tidbit stuff.

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Speaker 1: I mean, when do you start that and how long

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Speaker 1: does that process take leading up to this? I started

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Speaker 1: in late October.

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Speaker 6: That's what I feel like. I have enough tape to

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Speaker 6: start looking at certain players. Yeah, and then I'll wait

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Speaker 6: for quarterbacks until I've got all the tapes. So some

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Speaker 6: of the biggest prospects I'm not writing up until December,

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Speaker 6: sometimes into early January, but usually late December. I might

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Speaker 6: not any of their bowl games or the Bowl Championship series,

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Speaker 6: but this year I did so, I would say. So

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Speaker 6: I've written up three hundred and forty three prospects so far.

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Speaker 6: I'll write about five hundred total. Quarterback may take me

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Speaker 6: two and a half hours to get done, two and

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Speaker 6: a half to three hours. A general player is going

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Speaker 6: to take me. A good first or second round talent

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Speaker 6: will take me about an hour and a half to

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Speaker 6: get through the tape and then write the prospects. I

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Speaker 6: fine tuned my process where I can get to my

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Speaker 6: information quicker, and then you know a below average player late.

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Speaker 1: Round draftable those guys.

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Speaker 6: Typically, I can find what I need in about forty

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Speaker 6: five to fifty minutes. So I'll work seven days a

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Speaker 6: week try to get anywhere from three to five players done,

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Speaker 6: and then once February rolls around, I'm not only seven

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Speaker 6: days a week, but I'm gonna put in I do

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Speaker 6: a three hour radio show every morning, and then I'll

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Speaker 6: probably put in another seven or eight hours on top

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Speaker 6: of that and write five to six prospects because I

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Speaker 6: have to have all the combine guys done. So it's

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Speaker 6: an arduous process from late October to the Combine. But

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Speaker 6: after this, I've got and this sounds funny to people,

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Speaker 6: I've got about one hundred and forty hundred and fifty

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Speaker 6: more prospects to write in two months, which is no

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Speaker 6: big deal. And people, what like when you're keeping a

439
00:19:09,119 --> 00:19:11,439
Speaker 6: pace eye, AM like seventy five a month is like

440
00:19:11,560 --> 00:19:12,359
Speaker 6: that's light work.

441
00:19:12,480 --> 00:19:15,320
Speaker 1: Well, it does not go unappreciated, let's.

442
00:19:15,160 --> 00:19:15,920
Speaker 5: Just put it that way.

443
00:19:16,040 --> 00:19:18,080
Speaker 6: And you know what, I know that, and I know

444
00:19:18,080 --> 00:19:19,560
Speaker 6: a lot of people are depending on me because they

445
00:19:19,600 --> 00:19:23,600
Speaker 6: don't watch fourth round guards, right, you know, so I

446
00:19:23,680 --> 00:19:27,040
Speaker 6: know that I can't shortcut my process because I've got

447
00:19:27,040 --> 00:19:28,800
Speaker 6: a lot of people counting on me to tell them.

448
00:19:29,000 --> 00:19:31,720
Speaker 6: You know who the player is and what they look like,

449
00:19:31,800 --> 00:19:33,480
Speaker 6: and what are the strengths and weaknesses, and I don't

450
00:19:33,480 --> 00:19:35,800
Speaker 6: want to get those wrong. Yeah, my projection may miss,

451
00:19:35,920 --> 00:19:38,199
Speaker 6: my grade may be off, but I want you to

452
00:19:38,400 --> 00:19:40,240
Speaker 6: get a good feel of who it is that your

453
00:19:40,280 --> 00:19:42,760
Speaker 6: team has drafted or may draft.

454
00:19:42,480 --> 00:19:45,280
Speaker 1: One hundred percent. You mentioned strengths and weaknesses. Let's talk

455
00:19:45,280 --> 00:19:47,800
Speaker 1: about strengths in this draft class. Maybe we're are three

456
00:19:47,840 --> 00:19:50,600
Speaker 1: positions where you feel like, Okay, there's some good talent,

457
00:19:50,640 --> 00:19:53,080
Speaker 1: but there's some good depth to I think teams that

458
00:19:53,119 --> 00:19:55,680
Speaker 1: are looking for this position are going to be able

459
00:19:55,720 --> 00:19:57,280
Speaker 1: to find it, not only at top of the draft,

460
00:19:57,320 --> 00:19:59,879
Speaker 1: but maybe into Day two and maybe even Day three.

461
00:20:00,000 --> 00:20:03,040
Speaker 6: Receiver hits that mark the top three wide receivers are

462
00:20:03,040 --> 00:20:05,359
Speaker 6: cut above everyone else. But I think the real strength

463
00:20:05,400 --> 00:20:06,960
Speaker 6: of this draft is when you get into the second

464
00:20:07,040 --> 00:20:09,440
Speaker 6: round and third round. Day two, I think you're gonna

465
00:20:09,440 --> 00:20:12,000
Speaker 6: find some good starters, different types. You got some great

466
00:20:12,080 --> 00:20:15,240
Speaker 6: route runners in there, like with speed like Lad mccacky.

467
00:20:16,400 --> 00:20:19,600
Speaker 6: Piersoll from Florida could not be guarded at Senior Bowl

468
00:20:19,720 --> 00:20:23,560
Speaker 6: or on tape. Roman Wilson is going to run in

469
00:20:23,600 --> 00:20:25,960
Speaker 6: a four to threes here at the combine, and he's

470
00:20:26,000 --> 00:20:29,399
Speaker 6: a guy who's really seen his stock rise. Jermaine Burton

471
00:20:29,480 --> 00:20:33,600
Speaker 6: from Alabama's big can win, you know, contested catches. So

472
00:20:33,880 --> 00:20:36,520
Speaker 6: there's a lot of guys that fit whatever you're looking for,

473
00:20:36,920 --> 00:20:38,080
Speaker 6: We've got it in this combine.

474
00:20:38,160 --> 00:20:40,800
Speaker 1: Xavi, you're worthy, is going to run an unbelievable time at.

475
00:20:40,680 --> 00:20:43,040
Speaker 6: The University of Texas, but he's about one hundred and

476
00:20:43,080 --> 00:20:46,960
Speaker 6: sixty five pounds, so you know it's He's the opposite

477
00:20:47,000 --> 00:20:48,480
Speaker 6: of some of the receivers I talked about. But if

478
00:20:48,520 --> 00:20:50,960
Speaker 6: you want a wide receiver, day two and into Day

479
00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:52,760
Speaker 6: three is going to be great for you. I think

480
00:20:53,080 --> 00:20:56,440
Speaker 6: offensive line, it's rare to see offensive tackle span into

481
00:20:56,480 --> 00:20:59,320
Speaker 6: the second round with legitimate starting grades, but you do

482
00:20:59,400 --> 00:21:02,320
Speaker 6: have that have some developmental players like the kid out

483
00:21:02,359 --> 00:21:05,199
Speaker 6: of Yale who's going to be in this combine. You

484
00:21:05,359 --> 00:21:08,879
Speaker 6: have plenty of good centers, decent guards, but but really

485
00:21:08,920 --> 00:21:11,679
Speaker 6: the centers I think range into the fourth round was

486
00:21:11,720 --> 00:21:15,600
Speaker 6: starting grades. And then beside that, I would say that

487
00:21:16,520 --> 00:21:20,159
Speaker 6: it's light on linebackers, a little light top end on

488
00:21:20,240 --> 00:21:23,360
Speaker 6: defensive tackles, but pass rush. Pass rush is another one

489
00:21:23,560 --> 00:21:25,760
Speaker 6: where it's really good in the first round, falls off

490
00:21:25,760 --> 00:21:28,520
Speaker 6: a little, but then gets a little more broad in

491
00:21:28,600 --> 00:21:31,720
Speaker 6: terms of you know what, depending on what your taste is,

492
00:21:32,560 --> 00:21:35,240
Speaker 6: edge what you need, you can find that. I think

493
00:21:35,320 --> 00:21:37,359
Speaker 6: in the fourth and fifth round you can still find

494
00:21:37,680 --> 00:21:40,200
Speaker 6: very good backups who have a chance to become eventual starters.

495
00:21:40,280 --> 00:21:42,119
Speaker 1: Lance, You're starting to get people in Detroit exciting.

496
00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:46,320
Speaker 2: Man.

497
00:21:46,359 --> 00:21:47,360
Speaker 1: I'm an Aaron Glen guy.

498
00:21:47,359 --> 00:21:49,480
Speaker 6: I known him since since he was at Houston with

499
00:21:49,520 --> 00:21:52,080
Speaker 6: the Texans, UH following him for a long time, and

500
00:21:52,320 --> 00:21:54,080
Speaker 6: I just want to see that defense become as good

501
00:21:54,080 --> 00:21:56,720
Speaker 6: as a cany listen, Detroit is now kind of an

502
00:21:56,760 --> 00:22:00,920
Speaker 6: America's team situation, right it was Honestly, people who don't

503
00:22:01,000 --> 00:22:03,439
Speaker 6: have a dog and a fight are like, I'm an

504
00:22:03,440 --> 00:22:06,760
Speaker 6: AFC South guy, do radio on Houston, but watching Detroit.

505
00:22:06,800 --> 00:22:09,160
Speaker 6: And it's not just that I like the Dan Campbell's story.

506
00:22:09,440 --> 00:22:12,159
Speaker 6: It's not just that I like Aaron Glenn personally. I

507
00:22:12,240 --> 00:22:16,399
Speaker 6: like the redemption arc of Jared Goffe. I like the

508
00:22:16,480 --> 00:22:18,760
Speaker 6: fact that you drafted one of my favorite linebackers of

509
00:22:18,760 --> 00:22:22,159
Speaker 6: all time, Malcolm Rodriguez. I like the fact that this

510
00:22:22,280 --> 00:22:24,159
Speaker 6: is a team built on the offensive line, which is

511
00:22:24,160 --> 00:22:26,400
Speaker 6: one of my specialties. That you went out and said

512
00:22:26,400 --> 00:22:28,160
Speaker 6: we're gonna kick people's butt in the trenches.

513
00:22:28,920 --> 00:22:29,480
Speaker 2: I like that.

514
00:22:29,560 --> 00:22:31,560
Speaker 6: It's the way it's built, and I think they're an

515
00:22:31,600 --> 00:22:32,760
Speaker 6: easy team to root for.

516
00:22:32,800 --> 00:22:35,240
Speaker 1: And it's built for sustained success too. When you look

517
00:22:35,240 --> 00:22:36,959
Speaker 1: at the core players and you look what Brad has

518
00:22:37,000 --> 00:22:40,080
Speaker 1: been able to do in these last three draft cycles,

519
00:22:40,119 --> 00:22:41,800
Speaker 1: it's been amazing. I want to talk about one guy

520
00:22:41,800 --> 00:22:44,040
Speaker 1: in particular. You mocked him in your first mock draft,

521
00:22:44,119 --> 00:22:46,439
Speaker 1: Darius Robinson out of Missouri, a guy that I like.

522
00:22:46,520 --> 00:22:49,320
Speaker 1: I actually mocked him as well. Why is he a

523
00:22:49,359 --> 00:22:51,040
Speaker 1: good fit right there at the end of the first

524
00:22:51,119 --> 00:22:51,960
Speaker 1: round for Detroit.

525
00:22:52,040 --> 00:22:54,200
Speaker 6: Well, he can play, so he lost weight going from

526
00:22:54,240 --> 00:22:56,919
Speaker 6: defensive tackle to defensive end. This year they just needed

527
00:22:56,920 --> 00:22:59,240
Speaker 6: a defensive end. They were injured at Missouri, so he

528
00:22:59,280 --> 00:23:02,080
Speaker 6: bounced from detail d end and I mean didn't miss

529
00:23:02,119 --> 00:23:05,679
Speaker 6: a beat. He was just just beat people up off

530
00:23:05,760 --> 00:23:08,840
Speaker 6: the edge. He is body beautiful, great physical specimen. Can

531
00:23:08,880 --> 00:23:11,720
Speaker 6: play defensive tackle or defensive end, so you can rush

532
00:23:11,800 --> 00:23:14,719
Speaker 6: him inside as a sub package rusher on third downs.

533
00:23:14,880 --> 00:23:16,880
Speaker 6: You can play him outside as a base end. Who

534
00:23:16,880 --> 00:23:20,840
Speaker 6: bullies run blockers, and I just think it gives you

535
00:23:20,840 --> 00:23:24,040
Speaker 6: a nice compliment to what Aiden Hutchinson does. You got

536
00:23:24,040 --> 00:23:26,280
Speaker 6: a bully of the same stature on the other side.

537
00:23:26,320 --> 00:23:28,760
Speaker 6: Maybe not the same exact athlete, but I think he's

538
00:23:28,800 --> 00:23:30,960
Speaker 6: going to test pretty well. And I just like the

539
00:23:31,320 --> 00:23:34,879
Speaker 6: Dan Campbell mentality of let's go physical. We're trying to

540
00:23:34,880 --> 00:23:36,920
Speaker 6: physically impose our will the same way we do it

541
00:23:36,960 --> 00:23:38,679
Speaker 6: to our offensive line, and we're going to do it

542
00:23:38,680 --> 00:23:40,359
Speaker 6: with our defensive front too, And I think one of

543
00:23:40,400 --> 00:23:42,920
Speaker 6: the best ways to compete for a championship. People get

544
00:23:42,960 --> 00:23:45,000
Speaker 6: locked up in a lot of different positions, but when

545
00:23:45,040 --> 00:23:47,960
Speaker 6: you're dominant on your fronts, it makes a job much

546
00:23:48,040 --> 00:23:51,960
Speaker 6: much easier. And typically you can find help at corner,

547
00:23:52,000 --> 00:23:55,280
Speaker 6: at wide receiver, some of the skill positions on day

548
00:23:55,320 --> 00:23:57,480
Speaker 6: two and day three. So you know, if you get

549
00:23:57,520 --> 00:24:01,040
Speaker 6: a special physical specimen like Robinson, who is really on

550
00:24:01,119 --> 00:24:04,679
Speaker 6: the incline, I say, draft the ascending prospect with the

551
00:24:04,680 --> 00:24:05,280
Speaker 6: great traits.

552
00:24:05,359 --> 00:24:07,520
Speaker 1: Yeah, and you gotta love that versatility, right, I mean,

553
00:24:07,520 --> 00:24:09,600
Speaker 1: you played anywhere from zero to nine technique. I think

554
00:24:09,600 --> 00:24:12,000
Speaker 1: he played maybe every single one in college. And you

555
00:24:12,040 --> 00:24:15,280
Speaker 1: look at the way Aaron has kind of created some

556
00:24:15,280 --> 00:24:17,879
Speaker 1: of these sub packages with bumping Aiden inside, and he

557
00:24:17,960 --> 00:24:20,119
Speaker 1: likes to do some of those things and move guys around.

558
00:24:20,400 --> 00:24:22,560
Speaker 1: Just seems like a good fit. Yeah, I agree with you.

559
00:24:23,480 --> 00:24:26,760
Speaker 1: Value at twenty nine, where do you see lines haven't

560
00:24:26,760 --> 00:24:29,439
Speaker 1: been drafting, you know, this late in a little while.

561
00:24:30,200 --> 00:24:33,200
Speaker 1: Brad's had top ten picks heading into the draft in

562
00:24:33,240 --> 00:24:34,600
Speaker 1: each of his first three years, so this is a

563
00:24:34,640 --> 00:24:37,639
Speaker 1: little different. He talked the other day about just, you know,

564
00:24:38,000 --> 00:24:39,960
Speaker 1: loving the fact that you have to trust the tape

565
00:24:39,960 --> 00:24:42,320
Speaker 1: at twenty nine. You know, it's not about getting the sexy,

566
00:24:42,760 --> 00:24:44,760
Speaker 1: you know pick and the top ten guy. But at

567
00:24:44,760 --> 00:24:48,080
Speaker 1: twenty nine, where do you see value the most? If

568
00:24:48,119 --> 00:24:50,479
Speaker 1: you're Detroit. Now free agency comes first, so needs are

569
00:24:50,480 --> 00:24:52,480
Speaker 1: gonna change a little bit. Yeah, where's the value at

570
00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:53,399
Speaker 1: twenty value?

571
00:24:53,520 --> 00:24:55,960
Speaker 6: That's a good question because I every draft has its

572
00:24:55,960 --> 00:24:59,639
Speaker 6: own flow and lifespan of where prospects go, and I

573
00:24:59,680 --> 00:25:01,959
Speaker 6: think there's a very definitive one to me. The value

574
00:25:01,960 --> 00:25:04,760
Speaker 6: in this draft is going to be the second group

575
00:25:04,760 --> 00:25:08,560
Speaker 6: of wide receivers Ad and I Mitchell from Texas, Brian

576
00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:12,239
Speaker 6: Brian Thomas Junior from LSU. I mean they may not

577
00:25:12,280 --> 00:25:14,360
Speaker 6: be on the board, but at that spot that's where

578
00:25:14,359 --> 00:25:17,400
Speaker 6: the value is. I think Graham Barton from Duke who

579
00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:20,200
Speaker 6: can play center a guard, Jackson Powers Johnson for Morgan,

580
00:25:20,240 --> 00:25:22,240
Speaker 6: who can play center a guard. These are guys that

581
00:25:22,240 --> 00:25:25,640
Speaker 6: I would put on the top of my list because

582
00:25:25,960 --> 00:25:27,800
Speaker 6: those who are going to be the value players, Guys

583
00:25:27,840 --> 00:25:32,960
Speaker 6: who have strong, solid first round grades who also might

584
00:25:33,080 --> 00:25:36,679
Speaker 6: fall there depending on if the quarterback pushes is strong

585
00:25:36,760 --> 00:25:39,720
Speaker 6: enough to go five deep, which I think it will be.

586
00:25:39,960 --> 00:25:41,560
Speaker 1: You know, and the lines have im On Rossaint Brown,

587
00:25:41,640 --> 00:25:44,280
Speaker 1: they have Jamis and Williams, but that's still an area

588
00:25:44,280 --> 00:25:45,640
Speaker 1: of me. They're still looking for a number of three

589
00:25:45,800 --> 00:25:48,440
Speaker 1: depending on what free agency does with Josh, Josh and

590
00:25:48,600 --> 00:25:50,280
Speaker 1: some of those other guys. But well, that's why I think.

591
00:25:50,320 --> 00:25:52,160
Speaker 6: I think, you know, when you look at wide receivers,

592
00:25:52,280 --> 00:25:55,480
Speaker 6: it's a it's a pick you wouldn't typically make for

593
00:25:55,560 --> 00:25:58,640
Speaker 6: a team that's not very good, but you can once

594
00:25:58,680 --> 00:26:01,000
Speaker 6: you get to a certain level, you can, Like I thought,

595
00:26:01,080 --> 00:26:04,119
Speaker 6: Jamiir Gibbs is a really intriguing creating excess. It was

596
00:26:04,160 --> 00:26:07,600
Speaker 6: a matchup. It was specifically designed to create stress on

597
00:26:07,680 --> 00:26:11,359
Speaker 6: defenses with a special matchup. If you now have a

598
00:26:11,480 --> 00:26:13,639
Speaker 6: mon Ross, Saint Brown and James since you got a

599
00:26:13,640 --> 00:26:15,680
Speaker 6: field stretcher, You got your guy who can work from

600
00:26:15,680 --> 00:26:17,760
Speaker 6: a slot, and now you put someone on the other

601
00:26:17,840 --> 00:26:20,520
Speaker 6: side that can work all three levels. Now you have

602
00:26:20,600 --> 00:26:23,560
Speaker 6: given you know, you've given that offense along with Jamir

603
00:26:23,560 --> 00:26:26,440
Speaker 6: Gibbs and then a bully like like Montgomery. You've got

604
00:26:26,480 --> 00:26:29,880
Speaker 6: an opportunity really to attack anywhere on the field all

605
00:26:29,880 --> 00:26:33,440
Speaker 6: three levels with any number of prospects. So that's when

606
00:26:33,480 --> 00:26:35,600
Speaker 6: you're trying to make that jump and say we want

607
00:26:35,600 --> 00:26:37,480
Speaker 6: to win a super Bowl. You can make a move

608
00:26:37,560 --> 00:26:37,840
Speaker 6: like that.

609
00:26:37,840 --> 00:26:40,119
Speaker 1: All right, Last one for me, just the cornerback class,

610
00:26:40,160 --> 00:26:44,560
Speaker 1: maybe just a quick synopsis, quick rundown end of first

611
00:26:44,680 --> 00:26:47,560
Speaker 1: round into day two. Can you find quality starters? Is

612
00:26:47,560 --> 00:26:48,919
Speaker 1: it's a pretty good cornerback class.

613
00:26:49,000 --> 00:26:51,520
Speaker 6: I think it is. I think you can find quality starters.

614
00:26:52,760 --> 00:26:55,600
Speaker 6: You know, you may have to Would the Lions be

615
00:26:55,680 --> 00:26:58,199
Speaker 6: willing to move up for a corner That might be

616
00:26:58,240 --> 00:27:00,639
Speaker 6: what you need to do, because for me, the top

617
00:27:00,880 --> 00:27:03,520
Speaker 6: four or five corners there's a little bit of gap

618
00:27:03,560 --> 00:27:06,040
Speaker 6: after that, so it might be a situation where you

619
00:27:06,080 --> 00:27:08,680
Speaker 6: need to move up maybe three spots something like that.

620
00:27:08,760 --> 00:27:12,200
Speaker 6: But I do think that you can get it. There's

621
00:27:12,240 --> 00:27:15,199
Speaker 6: gonna be a kool Aid McKinstry possibly at the end

622
00:27:15,200 --> 00:27:17,560
Speaker 6: of the first round is one guy to keep an

623
00:27:17,560 --> 00:27:20,880
Speaker 6: eye on. And and it's deep enough that you could

624
00:27:20,960 --> 00:27:22,960
Speaker 6: let it slide into the second You could even trade

625
00:27:23,000 --> 00:27:25,240
Speaker 6: back into the second round if you wanted to. But

626
00:27:25,880 --> 00:27:28,360
Speaker 6: if I'm in the lines, man, I'm close. Everything I'm

627
00:27:28,400 --> 00:27:31,560
Speaker 6: doing is really this might be kind of a now draft. Yeah,

628
00:27:31,640 --> 00:27:33,720
Speaker 6: you know, because Jared Goff's not getting any younger, So

629
00:27:34,160 --> 00:27:35,800
Speaker 6: it might be a now draft for you make moves

630
00:27:35,800 --> 00:27:37,879
Speaker 6: that maybe you're a little more aggressive as opposed to

631
00:27:37,920 --> 00:27:38,679
Speaker 6: playing for the future.

632
00:27:38,720 --> 00:27:40,760
Speaker 1: Now. They got four picks in the top one hundred,

633
00:27:40,760 --> 00:27:42,840
Speaker 1: they've got some cap space to deal with him. It

634
00:27:42,840 --> 00:27:46,320
Speaker 1: should be a fun off season in Detroit. Great job,

635
00:27:46,359 --> 00:27:49,560
Speaker 1: as always, great information. Continue to follow Lance. He does

636
00:27:49,600 --> 00:27:52,480
Speaker 1: everything for NFL dot Com. He's got the no on

637
00:27:52,560 --> 00:27:54,520
Speaker 1: all these prospects. You need to know anything on a guy,

638
00:27:54,720 --> 00:27:57,520
Speaker 1: go to NFL dot com, go to Lancer Line. He's

639
00:27:57,520 --> 00:27:59,240
Speaker 1: got all the information. Thanks so much for joining me.

640
00:28:09,840 --> 00:28:12,800
Speaker 1: Welcome to the twenty in the Huddle podcast presented by Microsoft,

641
00:28:12,880 --> 00:28:15,240
Speaker 1: and we are here in Indianapolis. It is the NFL

642
00:28:15,280 --> 00:28:17,640
Speaker 1: Scouting com by one of my favorite weeks and joining

643
00:28:17,680 --> 00:28:20,480
Speaker 1: me is Ben Solac from The Ringer. You guys might

644
00:28:20,520 --> 00:28:22,239
Speaker 1: know him as the new kid on the block if

645
00:28:22,280 --> 00:28:25,600
Speaker 1: you read Peter King at all. Congratulations on that, by

646
00:28:25,600 --> 00:28:27,160
Speaker 1: the way, I mean, that's that's quite the honor, though,

647
00:28:27,160 --> 00:28:29,240
Speaker 1: Ben right, and Peter's been doing this for a long time,

648
00:28:29,280 --> 00:28:31,200
Speaker 1: and to shout you out as kind of one of

649
00:28:31,240 --> 00:28:33,280
Speaker 1: those new kids, those up and comers coming up for

650
00:28:33,560 --> 00:28:34,800
Speaker 1: people to read, quite the honest.

651
00:28:34,600 --> 00:28:36,000
Speaker 2: And Peter like, that's very cool.

652
00:28:36,080 --> 00:28:40,280
Speaker 7: Peter's also been like helping and providing advice and mendorship

653
00:28:40,400 --> 00:28:42,160
Speaker 7: like to a lot of young journalists over the past

654
00:28:42,240 --> 00:28:43,920
Speaker 7: couple of years, and so like that's always cool. But

655
00:28:43,920 --> 00:28:45,320
Speaker 7: I always wanted to tell people like Peter's been in

656
00:28:45,360 --> 00:28:46,840
Speaker 7: the trenches for a lot of young guys, and I

657
00:28:47,440 --> 00:28:48,440
Speaker 7: got a well respect for that.

658
00:28:48,640 --> 00:28:50,720
Speaker 1: Well, it was certainly a great honor. You are a

659
00:28:50,760 --> 00:28:52,640
Speaker 1: friend of the podcast. You've been on a few times,

660
00:28:52,680 --> 00:28:55,360
Speaker 1: so we love having you. Let's just jump right into this.

661
00:28:55,400 --> 00:28:57,520
Speaker 1: It's a fun time in the NFL. Right, we're here

662
00:28:57,520 --> 00:29:00,600
Speaker 1: in Indianapolis. We're getting ready for the draft, but agency

663
00:29:00,720 --> 00:29:03,440
Speaker 1: is before that, so there's gonna be a lot going on.

664
00:29:03,880 --> 00:29:07,000
Speaker 1: Let let's start with the Detroit Lions and getting to

665
00:29:07,040 --> 00:29:10,520
Speaker 1: the NFC Championship game. Obviously huge season, but when you

666
00:29:10,560 --> 00:29:12,600
Speaker 1: talk to people in Detroit, they kind of wonder do

667
00:29:12,640 --> 00:29:14,960
Speaker 1: they have that staying power? Was this a flash in

668
00:29:15,000 --> 00:29:17,680
Speaker 1: the pan? I know Brad Holmes was pretty adamant after

669
00:29:17,720 --> 00:29:21,000
Speaker 1: the season talking about We've done all this to be

670
00:29:21,080 --> 00:29:24,480
Speaker 1: a consistently good football team. Does this Detroit team have

671
00:29:24,560 --> 00:29:26,960
Speaker 1: staying power in your in your opinion, they do?

672
00:29:27,120 --> 00:29:27,440
Speaker 2: Yeah.

673
00:29:27,640 --> 00:29:30,840
Speaker 7: Now, what Dan said after the lost Nantasy Championship game

674
00:29:30,880 --> 00:29:32,920
Speaker 7: was correct, which is that you can be as good

675
00:29:32,920 --> 00:29:35,480
Speaker 7: of a team as you were next year relative to

676
00:29:35,600 --> 00:29:37,160
Speaker 7: last year and not make it back to the Dantony

677
00:29:37,200 --> 00:29:39,160
Speaker 7: Championship game. We start to get to the playoff football,

678
00:29:39,480 --> 00:29:42,600
Speaker 7: one bounce, two bounces, everybody's banged up, everybody's hurt. We

679
00:29:42,640 --> 00:29:44,800
Speaker 7: don't play best at seven series in the playoffs the

680
00:29:44,840 --> 00:29:47,280
Speaker 7: way the NBA does, and we played best to ones, right,

681
00:29:47,280 --> 00:29:49,960
Speaker 7: And so Dan was correct to say, listen, like, it's

682
00:29:50,000 --> 00:29:51,920
Speaker 7: not guaranteed that it just because you're you're this good

683
00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:53,680
Speaker 7: next year when you get back to this spot next year,

684
00:29:53,720 --> 00:29:55,920
Speaker 7: That was that was accurate, But in general, yeah, I

685
00:29:55,920 --> 00:29:57,800
Speaker 7: remember when Brad and Dan first took the job a

686
00:29:57,800 --> 00:30:00,360
Speaker 7: few years back, and they were very explicit, like we

687
00:30:00,400 --> 00:30:03,800
Speaker 7: believe a good team is built through the draft's built patiently,

688
00:30:03,840 --> 00:30:06,320
Speaker 7: it's built slowly, it is homegrown, Like that's how you

689
00:30:06,320 --> 00:30:07,240
Speaker 7: build a true contender.

690
00:30:07,280 --> 00:30:08,680
Speaker 2: So now three years later.

691
00:30:09,280 --> 00:30:11,800
Speaker 1: This is why we built it, Like the pieces guys

692
00:30:11,840 --> 00:30:12,400
Speaker 1: they drafted.

693
00:30:12,760 --> 00:30:15,000
Speaker 7: Yeah, and we're young, and we're we're and we're cheap,

694
00:30:15,000 --> 00:30:16,720
Speaker 7: and we're we're homegrowing. We have a culture, we have

695
00:30:16,760 --> 00:30:18,480
Speaker 7: an understanding of who fits where, Like, this is why

696
00:30:18,520 --> 00:30:20,440
Speaker 7: we built it this way, not to go get free

697
00:30:20,440 --> 00:30:22,760
Speaker 7: agents and to get to nine wins quickly and kind

698
00:30:22,760 --> 00:30:24,240
Speaker 7: of you know, feel like a little salve, a little

699
00:30:24,280 --> 00:30:26,320
Speaker 7: band aid who's been legit good for a long time.

700
00:30:26,360 --> 00:30:27,960
Speaker 2: So yes, I think they do a staying power.

701
00:30:27,840 --> 00:30:30,640
Speaker 1: You know, and coaching continuity I think plays a part

702
00:30:30,720 --> 00:30:33,960
Speaker 1: in that too. Ben Johnson back, Aaron Glenn back. You

703
00:30:34,000 --> 00:30:36,000
Speaker 1: don't see that a lot going into a third season,

704
00:30:36,080 --> 00:30:38,160
Speaker 1: especially when a team has been as good as Detroit

705
00:30:38,200 --> 00:30:40,560
Speaker 1: has the last two years. How much does that coaching

706
00:30:40,640 --> 00:30:43,640
Speaker 1: continuity fit into the mix as well? How important is

707
00:30:43,720 --> 00:30:46,400
Speaker 1: that Dan talked about it this week down here, just

708
00:30:46,480 --> 00:30:49,480
Speaker 1: how almost spoilty feels a little bit having those guys back.

709
00:30:49,480 --> 00:30:51,080
Speaker 1: But that's a huge part of it too. Hasn't it been.

710
00:30:51,160 --> 00:30:52,360
Speaker 2: It's an enormous deal.

711
00:30:52,480 --> 00:30:55,160
Speaker 7: Ask that a'sk the Philadelphi Eagles, last year's NFC champion

712
00:30:55,280 --> 00:30:57,240
Speaker 7: or I stually two years ago now, but then lose

713
00:30:57,240 --> 00:30:59,600
Speaker 7: both their coordinators and and are bat in the playoffs. Yeah,

714
00:30:59,600 --> 00:31:02,680
Speaker 7: as the forty nine ers with their carousela defensive coordinator, right,

715
00:31:02,920 --> 00:31:05,120
Speaker 7: your Your windows in this league tend to be very small,

716
00:31:05,160 --> 00:31:06,880
Speaker 7: and it's hard to crack them wider. It's hard to

717
00:31:06,920 --> 00:31:08,959
Speaker 7: keep them sustained. One of the best ways to do

718
00:31:08,960 --> 00:31:11,160
Speaker 7: that is to rain as to retain coaches, is to

719
00:31:11,160 --> 00:31:12,760
Speaker 7: have have the guys in the building who understand how

720
00:31:12,760 --> 00:31:14,920
Speaker 7: to make the pieces work. Like Ben Johnson to Jared

721
00:31:14,920 --> 00:31:16,960
Speaker 7: Goff is the easiest and clearest example. Like, we know

722
00:31:17,000 --> 00:31:18,520
Speaker 7: that Ben has figured out what works for Jared. We

723
00:31:18,560 --> 00:31:20,520
Speaker 7: know that Jared dross Ben, Jared has gotten better over

724
00:31:20,560 --> 00:31:23,080
Speaker 7: his time here with Ben. If you if you took

725
00:31:23,120 --> 00:31:24,680
Speaker 7: Ben out of the equation, it would be a massive

726
00:31:24,720 --> 00:31:26,240
Speaker 7: question mark, and I'd to say it would be bad,

727
00:31:26,360 --> 00:31:27,880
Speaker 7: but it would be a huge question mark going in.

728
00:31:27,920 --> 00:31:30,080
Speaker 2: And so like they're, they're.

729
00:31:29,320 --> 00:31:32,600
Speaker 7: The continuity allows you to have reasonable expectations for the

730
00:31:32,600 --> 00:31:33,360
Speaker 7: team at a high level.

731
00:31:33,400 --> 00:31:35,320
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think Dan had a great line down here

732
00:31:35,360 --> 00:31:37,960
Speaker 1: in Indy when he said getting all the coordinators back,

733
00:31:38,000 --> 00:31:40,240
Speaker 1: it's like being able to start at level four oh

734
00:31:40,240 --> 00:31:41,520
Speaker 1: one instead of one oh one.

735
00:31:41,480 --> 00:31:42,680
Speaker 2: Right, And I think that they're running.

736
00:31:42,760 --> 00:31:44,600
Speaker 1: That's a great point for a team coming off an

737
00:31:44,680 --> 00:31:47,760
Speaker 1: NFC championship to just hit the ground running, like like

738
00:31:47,800 --> 00:31:50,560
Speaker 1: you talk about all right, one of the big contracts

739
00:31:50,560 --> 00:31:52,680
Speaker 1: that the Lions are probably going to have to figure

740
00:31:52,680 --> 00:31:55,480
Speaker 1: out here the most important position in football, Jared Golf.

741
00:31:55,480 --> 00:31:58,080
Speaker 1: I'm just curious from your perspective the outside looking in,

742
00:31:58,600 --> 00:32:00,880
Speaker 1: what do you think of Jared golf tension looks like

743
00:32:01,000 --> 00:32:02,640
Speaker 1: if you were to if you were to guess on one.

744
00:32:02,520 --> 00:32:04,880
Speaker 7: I think he gets forty five million dollars a year,

745
00:32:04,920 --> 00:32:07,280
Speaker 7: and I think he gets it like functionally over three years.

746
00:32:07,360 --> 00:32:07,479
Speaker 2: Right.

747
00:32:07,520 --> 00:32:08,880
Speaker 7: It might be like a four year deal and the

748
00:32:08,880 --> 00:32:11,320
Speaker 7: fourth year's got no bonus money and you restructure yetta,

749
00:32:11,360 --> 00:32:15,400
Speaker 7: Yeah whatever. That Daniel Jones contract is a really important

750
00:32:15,400 --> 00:32:18,600
Speaker 7: contract in the league right now, because every single agent

751
00:32:18,640 --> 00:32:20,880
Speaker 7: of every single starting quarterback in the league can walk

752
00:32:20,920 --> 00:32:23,080
Speaker 7: up to a GM and go, we'd like to beat

753
00:32:23,120 --> 00:32:24,360
Speaker 7: this police because.

754
00:32:24,320 --> 00:32:27,720
Speaker 2: You can make an argument better than Daniel Jones. And

755
00:32:27,760 --> 00:32:29,760
Speaker 2: that's then taking Mickey out of Daniel Jones.

756
00:32:29,840 --> 00:32:31,800
Speaker 7: Just he had that great season in a contract year

757
00:32:32,120 --> 00:32:34,160
Speaker 7: that he switched agents that got a huge deal out

758
00:32:34,200 --> 00:32:35,680
Speaker 7: of it, and that's going to become a new four

759
00:32:35,760 --> 00:32:37,600
Speaker 7: for a lot of people. Yeah, and so the idea

760
00:32:37,640 --> 00:32:39,960
Speaker 7: of golf getting anything less than forty to me is

761
00:32:40,000 --> 00:32:42,160
Speaker 7: just I would laugh that away about his vision. Yeah,

762
00:32:42,240 --> 00:32:43,280
Speaker 7: now I think it's going to be more than the

763
00:32:43,280 --> 00:32:46,160
Speaker 7: forty five to forty eight per year range. And I think, yeah,

764
00:32:46,160 --> 00:32:48,440
Speaker 7: like you're going to structure this kind of like the

765
00:32:48,520 --> 00:32:50,920
Speaker 7: Kirk Cousins deal was where when he first joined Minnesota,

766
00:32:51,040 --> 00:32:53,000
Speaker 7: where you're only kind of on a three year horizon

767
00:32:53,200 --> 00:32:54,959
Speaker 7: because he's getting a little bit older, he's gonna get

768
00:32:54,960 --> 00:32:57,040
Speaker 7: banged up more easily, and you don't want to invest

769
00:32:57,080 --> 00:32:58,920
Speaker 7: four years in five years. So I think, yeah, if

770
00:32:58,920 --> 00:33:01,640
Speaker 7: you do whatever, one thirty eight over three like that

771
00:33:01,680 --> 00:33:02,360
Speaker 7: to me makes.

772
00:33:02,160 --> 00:33:04,960
Speaker 1: Sense and huge that the seller kept win up as

773
00:33:05,000 --> 00:33:07,400
Speaker 1: much as it did. It really gives teams like Detroit

774
00:33:07,480 --> 00:33:09,360
Speaker 1: who are looking to have a couple of big contracts.

775
00:33:09,440 --> 00:33:11,800
Speaker 1: Is not only would Jared, I'm on Ross, Saint Brown

776
00:33:12,000 --> 00:33:14,640
Speaker 1: is coming to Penna, sool Is can get one. But

777
00:33:14,680 --> 00:33:16,760
Speaker 1: he's got his fifthy or option. That's probably one more

778
00:33:16,840 --> 00:33:19,040
Speaker 1: year away. But the Troit's got some big contracts to

779
00:33:19,360 --> 00:33:21,120
Speaker 1: deal out, and like we talked about off the top,

780
00:33:21,280 --> 00:33:23,640
Speaker 1: that's a good thing. Though. Those are guys when we

781
00:33:23,640 --> 00:33:25,320
Speaker 1: talk about I'm on ross a Brown, those are guys

782
00:33:25,360 --> 00:33:27,800
Speaker 1: that you drafted, developed them now become some of the

783
00:33:27,800 --> 00:33:30,080
Speaker 1: best players in the league, deserve those deals, and you

784
00:33:30,240 --> 00:33:30,800
Speaker 1: like paying them.

785
00:33:30,800 --> 00:33:32,480
Speaker 7: And if you go early on the same Brown, you

786
00:33:32,520 --> 00:33:34,160
Speaker 7: go early on a penne school, and you build out

787
00:33:34,200 --> 00:33:36,760
Speaker 7: that structure off the end of their rookie deals, you

788
00:33:36,800 --> 00:33:38,960
Speaker 7: can give them the big deals now, but the headstones

789
00:33:39,000 --> 00:33:40,960
Speaker 7: start coming actually until a few years down the road,

790
00:33:41,000 --> 00:33:43,440
Speaker 7: after the big salary numbers come. And that's what allows

791
00:33:43,440 --> 00:33:46,520
Speaker 7: you to remain aggressive and free agency now right and

792
00:33:46,560 --> 00:33:49,040
Speaker 7: go and land a couple of big fish and try

793
00:33:49,080 --> 00:33:51,200
Speaker 7: to plug the last remaining gaps on this team. And

794
00:33:51,240 --> 00:33:53,720
Speaker 7: so it is it's nice at that homegrown talenty because

795
00:33:53,720 --> 00:33:56,080
Speaker 7: when you extend them, you can play with the years

796
00:33:56,120 --> 00:33:57,680
Speaker 7: and play with the structure a lot more because they're

797
00:33:57,680 --> 00:33:58,400
Speaker 7: already in the building.

798
00:33:58,600 --> 00:34:00,480
Speaker 1: I know we're here at the combine time talking about

799
00:34:00,520 --> 00:34:02,360
Speaker 1: the draft, but free agency comes first. So I want

800
00:34:02,360 --> 00:34:05,600
Speaker 1: to ask you a couple things about free agency. What

801
00:34:05,640 --> 00:34:07,480
Speaker 1: do you think out there is a good free agent

802
00:34:07,600 --> 00:34:09,920
Speaker 1: fit for Detroit? Is there is there one name, one

803
00:34:10,000 --> 00:34:12,560
Speaker 1: position group maybe that that you see boy that that

804
00:34:12,600 --> 00:34:15,280
Speaker 1: guy just kind of seems like a great fit in Detroit,

805
00:34:15,360 --> 00:34:17,319
Speaker 1: both for what he brings to the table what the

806
00:34:17,360 --> 00:34:18,000
Speaker 1: Lions need.

807
00:34:18,120 --> 00:34:19,120
Speaker 2: I circle right guard.

808
00:34:19,160 --> 00:34:21,000
Speaker 7: I think that that that's the spot on offense that

809
00:34:21,000 --> 00:34:23,400
Speaker 7: I would want to improve. You have Kevin Dotson who

810
00:34:23,520 --> 00:34:25,319
Speaker 7: was traded from the Steelers to the Rams last year,

811
00:34:25,400 --> 00:34:27,239
Speaker 7: started really nicely for the Rams. He's on the left

812
00:34:27,280 --> 00:34:29,120
Speaker 7: side and started well in the interior for them. I

813
00:34:29,200 --> 00:34:31,239
Speaker 7: think that Dodson's a good fit for what they do.

814
00:34:31,360 --> 00:34:34,400
Speaker 7: Mike and Wenthu who's the guard out of New England

815
00:34:34,440 --> 00:34:37,160
Speaker 7: now and he's he's a tackle sized player, but Detroit

816
00:34:37,280 --> 00:34:39,440
Speaker 7: likes hm big and went who's played guard in the

817
00:34:39,520 --> 00:34:41,520
Speaker 7: league and played there successfully. He can bring on went

818
00:34:41,640 --> 00:34:43,080
Speaker 7: win and he can start a right guard for you.

819
00:34:43,280 --> 00:34:45,440
Speaker 7: And both of those guys are solid startists. Why not

820
00:34:45,480 --> 00:34:47,800
Speaker 7: break the bank starters. And since you're kinda going to

821
00:34:47,840 --> 00:34:49,520
Speaker 7: break the bank on Decker and on Sewel and I'm

822
00:34:49,560 --> 00:34:51,400
Speaker 7: right now you kind of already have your big money guys,

823
00:34:51,560 --> 00:34:54,200
Speaker 7: you can go for I think a not lower tier guy,

824
00:34:54,239 --> 00:34:56,120
Speaker 7: but just like a solid starter and just feel good

825
00:34:56,120 --> 00:34:58,560
Speaker 7: about raising the floor that offensive line. So tomilate the

826
00:34:58,560 --> 00:35:00,560
Speaker 7: I think the interier offensive line markets gonna be good

827
00:35:00,640 --> 00:35:02,520
Speaker 7: in the draft, It's always gonna be good in free agency.

828
00:35:02,600 --> 00:35:04,840
Speaker 7: Wouldn't be surprised. You don't want to walk into the

829
00:35:04,880 --> 00:35:07,200
Speaker 7: draft with a massive gap at right guard and feel

830
00:35:07,239 --> 00:35:10,000
Speaker 7: like we need to go make a pick there early.

831
00:35:10,000 --> 00:35:11,960
Speaker 7: You'd rather have a solution in the building and then

832
00:35:12,080 --> 00:35:13,359
Speaker 7: to go on a draft guy do that as well.

833
00:35:13,440 --> 00:35:14,760
Speaker 2: So I think guards the spot I look.

834
00:35:14,640 --> 00:35:16,120
Speaker 1: At when you when you look at is there a

835
00:35:16,160 --> 00:35:20,040
Speaker 1: better position to address via free agency versus the draft.

836
00:35:20,040 --> 00:35:22,399
Speaker 1: I know you just talked about guard, they're both in there.

837
00:35:22,400 --> 00:35:24,960
Speaker 1: But when you look at free agency versus the draft,

838
00:35:26,760 --> 00:35:29,400
Speaker 1: what do you look at, Like, what's maybe better in

839
00:35:29,480 --> 00:35:30,160
Speaker 1: free agency?

840
00:35:30,280 --> 00:35:32,160
Speaker 7: Yeah, Like it's always I think it's always better get

841
00:35:32,200 --> 00:35:34,040
Speaker 7: a safety and freegency than the draft. I think offensive

842
00:35:34,080 --> 00:35:36,360
Speaker 7: linement's better for a freigency than the draft. You've just

843
00:35:36,400 --> 00:35:39,680
Speaker 7: seen success with those guys changing teams over time, right,

844
00:35:39,760 --> 00:35:42,000
Speaker 7: Like you can get good safeties get off alignment on

845
00:35:42,040 --> 00:35:43,799
Speaker 7: the market. I have, like a wide receiver hits the

846
00:35:43,800 --> 00:35:45,520
Speaker 7: market like not a trade guy, but a legiti free

847
00:35:45,520 --> 00:35:47,520
Speaker 7: agent guy or an edge rusher usually I'm kind of

848
00:35:47,520 --> 00:35:49,960
Speaker 7: like those are like those guys don't get away from

849
00:35:50,000 --> 00:35:52,319
Speaker 7: teams if they're if they're legit right, and so like

850
00:35:52,440 --> 00:35:55,440
Speaker 7: barring up Brian Burns Carolina Panthers malpractice, I don't like

851
00:35:55,480 --> 00:35:57,160
Speaker 7: to kind of go for those positions. I don't know

852
00:35:57,160 --> 00:35:59,520
Speaker 7: they're draft than develop, but those spots I would say,

853
00:35:59,520 --> 00:36:00,960
Speaker 7: like tight ends is another spot where you love to

854
00:36:01,000 --> 00:36:02,439
Speaker 7: go get a free agency had a draft guy because

855
00:36:02,480 --> 00:36:04,319
Speaker 7: usually the rookie thed ends aren't good. But you can't

856
00:36:04,320 --> 00:36:06,520
Speaker 7: say that on a Detroit Lions podcast. There I proved

857
00:36:06,520 --> 00:36:09,480
Speaker 7: you're wrong on that one. So yes, like corner is

858
00:36:09,520 --> 00:36:11,440
Speaker 7: a spies as well. If a corner makes it to

859
00:36:11,480 --> 00:36:14,560
Speaker 7: the market, usually there's a reason he made it, and

860
00:36:14,600 --> 00:36:16,560
Speaker 7: you're more likely, I think if you're if it's swinging

861
00:36:16,600 --> 00:36:18,360
Speaker 7: for like a really top tier guy to kind of

862
00:36:18,360 --> 00:36:20,480
Speaker 7: do so successfully in the draft. Lagerious Need here being

863
00:36:20,520 --> 00:36:23,160
Speaker 7: a perfect example, like if Lagerius Sneed made it to market,

864
00:36:23,880 --> 00:36:25,480
Speaker 7: Brad Holmes should have walked up to Steed's agent with

865
00:36:25,480 --> 00:36:27,640
Speaker 7: the biggest blanket check you ever dog on saw those

866
00:36:27,920 --> 00:36:29,680
Speaker 7: were the Chiefs have explicitly said like, hey, we're gonna

867
00:36:29,680 --> 00:36:31,319
Speaker 7: tag this guy. We're not gonna let him get to

868
00:36:31,320 --> 00:36:33,120
Speaker 7: the market because that's the caliber player that he is,

869
00:36:33,160 --> 00:36:36,120
Speaker 7: and so trade potential still there. I would I mean

870
00:36:36,160 --> 00:36:37,919
Speaker 7: like I would trade a first for la Jerious Sneed.

871
00:36:38,040 --> 00:36:40,680
Speaker 7: That's why I'm not a general manager. I'm an irresponsible man.

872
00:36:40,920 --> 00:36:43,560
Speaker 7: It would just send picks for good players. Uh.

873
00:36:43,880 --> 00:36:46,200
Speaker 1: The fan perspective, I love it, a little bit of

874
00:36:46,239 --> 00:36:48,759
Speaker 1: fandom there. The NFC North, let's get into that a

875
00:36:48,760 --> 00:36:51,239
Speaker 1: little bit. Obviously, Like going on the number one pick

876
00:36:51,280 --> 00:36:53,000
Speaker 1: with Chicago, they've got to decide what they want to

877
00:36:53,000 --> 00:36:55,440
Speaker 1: do with Justin Fields and Caleb Williams. It sounds to

878
00:36:55,480 --> 00:36:57,759
Speaker 1: me they're leaning toward Caleb Williams. I think that's the

879
00:36:57,840 --> 00:37:01,160
Speaker 1: right move. You can reset that quarterback position with the

880
00:37:01,239 --> 00:37:04,520
Speaker 1: rookie deal. Minnesota's got to figure out what they're gonna

881
00:37:04,560 --> 00:37:07,160
Speaker 1: do at quarterback as well. Green Bay looks like that

882
00:37:07,200 --> 00:37:11,080
Speaker 1: team like Detroit maybe at the end of twenty twenty two,

883
00:37:11,200 --> 00:37:13,400
Speaker 1: when they had some young pieces that were coming together

884
00:37:13,440 --> 00:37:16,680
Speaker 1: playing a lot better. Just your expectations for the NFC North.

885
00:37:16,880 --> 00:37:18,719
Speaker 1: To me, it looks like a division that's gonna be

886
00:37:18,840 --> 00:37:21,520
Speaker 1: much much improved in a much harder road for Detroit

887
00:37:21,560 --> 00:37:22,440
Speaker 1: to repeat twenty four.

888
00:37:22,440 --> 00:37:23,920
Speaker 2: All of those teams like that are at least five

889
00:37:24,000 --> 00:37:24,640
Speaker 2: hundred or better.

890
00:37:24,880 --> 00:37:27,640
Speaker 7: And that's with like the Bears making a potential quarterback

891
00:37:27,719 --> 00:37:30,120
Speaker 7: change right like they were. They finished just under five hundred,

892
00:37:30,160 --> 00:37:31,840
Speaker 7: and they had such a strong end of the season.

893
00:37:31,960 --> 00:37:34,000
Speaker 7: I think the Packers are you know, won a playoff game.

894
00:37:34,040 --> 00:37:35,600
Speaker 7: Clear the team, he's got to be over five hundred.

895
00:37:35,719 --> 00:37:37,040
Speaker 7: The Viking is maybe like a little bit of a

896
00:37:37,120 --> 00:37:39,040
Speaker 7: question mark because what if they don't bring Kirk back.

897
00:37:39,280 --> 00:37:41,880
Speaker 7: But there's pieces like in that defense, Brian Flores returns,

898
00:37:41,880 --> 00:37:43,399
Speaker 7: there's Justin Jefferson healthy and TJ.

899
00:37:43,440 --> 00:37:45,400
Speaker 2: Hawckets and hopefully healthy. They they still got guys.

900
00:37:45,600 --> 00:37:47,759
Speaker 7: Everybody to me feels like nine and eight and and

901
00:37:47,880 --> 00:37:49,160
Speaker 7: U Brian terms of expectation.

902
00:37:49,440 --> 00:37:51,320
Speaker 2: So now it becomes do you win your divisional games?

903
00:37:51,320 --> 00:37:53,080
Speaker 7: Do you win your road games? Are you able to

904
00:37:53,080 --> 00:37:55,319
Speaker 7: secure that division? I think this is gonna be you know,

905
00:37:55,320 --> 00:37:57,319
Speaker 7: it's gonna be a week fourteen to fifteen. Nobody's gonna

906
00:37:57,320 --> 00:37:59,440
Speaker 7: be near securing this division. And if you may be

907
00:37:59,480 --> 00:38:01,080
Speaker 7: a big a team went out pick Detroy, I think

908
00:38:01,080 --> 00:38:03,080
Speaker 7: they're the best team in the division. A lot's gonna

909
00:38:03,080 --> 00:38:05,560
Speaker 7: happen between now and then. So absolutely, the AFC North,

910
00:38:06,400 --> 00:38:08,520
Speaker 7: in the American Conference, in the NFC North, and the

911
00:38:08,600 --> 00:38:10,880
Speaker 7: National Conference too. Those those are the best divisions in

912
00:38:10,920 --> 00:38:11,600
Speaker 7: the league right now.

913
00:38:11,640 --> 00:38:13,600
Speaker 1: All right, we are at the combine. So I would

914
00:38:13,640 --> 00:38:15,480
Speaker 1: be a little bit remiss if I didn't ask you

915
00:38:15,560 --> 00:38:18,680
Speaker 1: about the draft. And let's start with this. Brad Holmes

916
00:38:18,680 --> 00:38:23,200
Speaker 1: canning he continue this pace of hitting on guys in

917
00:38:23,800 --> 00:38:26,319
Speaker 1: all three days. You look at his draft picks. I

918
00:38:26,320 --> 00:38:30,840
Speaker 1: mean it's seventy five in terms of hits on guys playing.

919
00:38:31,080 --> 00:38:34,600
Speaker 7: He can keep this up, Absolutely not and no chance.

920
00:38:34,920 --> 00:38:37,040
Speaker 7: And that's why it's very important to understand. I think

921
00:38:37,040 --> 00:38:39,440
Speaker 7: the Brad does giving his comments yesterday that when you

922
00:38:39,680 --> 00:38:42,120
Speaker 7: when you hit like this, boy, you better make it count.

923
00:38:42,160 --> 00:38:43,440
Speaker 7: You got to make it worth it, right, you have

924
00:38:43,480 --> 00:38:45,480
Speaker 7: to hit. I always go back to the Chris Ballad

925
00:38:45,520 --> 00:38:48,560
Speaker 7: Indianapolis Colts late twenty Ten's right. They have their Quentin Nelson,

926
00:38:48,640 --> 00:38:52,080
Speaker 7: Darius Leonard drafts unbelievable, and Braden Smith in the third round.

927
00:38:52,080 --> 00:38:54,759
Speaker 7: They're pulling cats out of Kennymore. The drafting unbelievably, and

928
00:38:55,480 --> 00:38:58,520
Speaker 7: Ballad and the Colts just kept recycling at quarterback, and

929
00:38:58,520 --> 00:39:00,280
Speaker 7: I never fully went all in and never can admitted.

930
00:39:00,480 --> 00:39:02,319
Speaker 7: And then by the time they started to figure quarterback out,

931
00:39:02,360 --> 00:39:03,839
Speaker 7: all those guys are on their second contract. They were

932
00:39:03,840 --> 00:39:06,280
Speaker 7: getting hurt, they were getting old. When you strike iron

933
00:39:06,320 --> 00:39:07,000
Speaker 7: and it's hot, you.

934
00:39:07,000 --> 00:39:09,640
Speaker 2: Got to go. This is the league. It's not for long.

935
00:39:09,800 --> 00:39:10,520
Speaker 2: You got to attack.

936
00:39:10,560 --> 00:39:15,240
Speaker 7: And so yes, like Gibbs, Laporta, Branch, Hutchinson, Saint Brown sewell,

937
00:39:15,280 --> 00:39:18,640
Speaker 7: you have this young core, it's ridiculous. Spend, attack, trade,

938
00:39:18,960 --> 00:39:20,560
Speaker 7: go right, and if Golf is your quarterback and you

939
00:39:20,600 --> 00:39:22,480
Speaker 7: feel like you have the guy, like long term, you

940
00:39:22,640 --> 00:39:25,839
Speaker 7: secured the most important position, go get everybody you can. Right,

941
00:39:25,880 --> 00:39:28,399
Speaker 7: they should be calling the Bengals about t Higgins, calling

942
00:39:28,400 --> 00:39:30,000
Speaker 7: the Niners about Brandon and I you calling the Chiefs

943
00:39:30,000 --> 00:39:32,640
Speaker 7: Ballageria sneed call anybody who's got anybody, about anybody who

944
00:39:32,719 --> 00:39:33,440
Speaker 7: might be anybody.

945
00:39:33,520 --> 00:39:34,759
Speaker 2: This is the time to go on, This is the

946
00:39:34,800 --> 00:39:35,440
Speaker 2: time to attack.

947
00:39:35,760 --> 00:39:39,160
Speaker 7: We'll see, right, because this is their window to think absolutely,

948
00:39:39,239 --> 00:39:40,320
Speaker 7: and I think that they know that. I think that

949
00:39:40,360 --> 00:39:42,680
Speaker 7: they get that. But also when you I think again,

950
00:39:42,680 --> 00:39:45,000
Speaker 7: I think they understand that academically. But when you've drafted

951
00:39:45,040 --> 00:39:46,839
Speaker 7: and built and been as good as a culture team

952
00:39:46,840 --> 00:39:48,680
Speaker 7: as they've been of the last few years. Sometimes it's

953
00:39:48,680 --> 00:39:49,920
Speaker 7: hard to accept the reality of like, all right, we

954
00:39:49,920 --> 00:39:51,520
Speaker 7: gotta go get some big stars and so we'll see

955
00:39:51,520 --> 00:39:53,759
Speaker 7: how they behave. I'm really hoping that they, you know,

956
00:39:54,040 --> 00:39:56,200
Speaker 7: ramp things up to an eleven a little bit about.

957
00:39:55,920 --> 00:39:59,240
Speaker 1: Fifty five million roughly in cap space. They've got call

958
00:39:59,280 --> 00:40:02,200
Speaker 1: fres they got four picks in the top one hundred.

959
00:40:02,200 --> 00:40:04,960
Speaker 1: It should be a really fun free agency. It should

960
00:40:04,960 --> 00:40:08,279
Speaker 1: be a really fun draft. He has Ben Solak. He

961
00:40:08,440 --> 00:40:10,440
Speaker 1: is the one of the new kids on the block,

962
00:40:10,480 --> 00:40:13,239
Speaker 1: as Peter King says, but a very good friend of

963
00:40:13,239 --> 00:40:16,120
Speaker 1: the podcast, very well respected. You do a great job

964
00:40:16,120 --> 00:40:17,839
Speaker 1: with the Ringer. Thank you so much. Fun for joining

965
00:40:17,840 --> 00:40:29,480
Speaker 1: me always welcome back to the twenty Men in the

966
00:40:29,560 --> 00:40:32,200
Speaker 1: Huddle podcast. I am very happy to welcome in Matt Miller.

967
00:40:32,280 --> 00:40:36,000
Speaker 1: Just such a great job with ESPN the Bleacher Report

968
00:40:36,040 --> 00:40:38,920
Speaker 1: before that, Matt, is this when it kind of starts

969
00:40:38,960 --> 00:40:40,960
Speaker 1: to become real for you? Oh a comment. I know

970
00:40:40,960 --> 00:40:44,120
Speaker 1: you've been evaluating these guys for months, but now everybody's

971
00:40:44,160 --> 00:40:46,319
Speaker 1: here in one spot. It's all about the draft. Is

972
00:40:46,320 --> 00:40:48,200
Speaker 1: this when it kind of starts to become a little

973
00:40:48,239 --> 00:40:49,040
Speaker 1: bit more real for you?

974
00:40:49,080 --> 00:40:51,359
Speaker 3: Absolutely, and it's when the rest of the league takes

975
00:40:51,440 --> 00:40:53,040
Speaker 3: notice of the draft. You know, we've been waiting for

976
00:40:53,080 --> 00:40:55,920
Speaker 3: months to talk about these guys, and now it's like everyone.

977
00:40:55,560 --> 00:40:57,040
Speaker 8: Else is able to do that.

978
00:40:57,080 --> 00:40:58,960
Speaker 3: You know, like y'all had such a great season, you

979
00:40:59,000 --> 00:41:01,080
Speaker 3: had such a long run to the playoffs, You're not

980
00:41:01,120 --> 00:41:01,839
Speaker 3: thinking about the draft.

981
00:41:01,840 --> 00:41:03,040
Speaker 8: You're worried about the forty nine ers.

982
00:41:03,080 --> 00:41:05,440
Speaker 3: Yeah, so it's like, this is I think when you

983
00:41:05,480 --> 00:41:07,560
Speaker 3: get all thirty two fan bases, you know, like you

984
00:41:07,560 --> 00:41:08,680
Speaker 3: mentioned my I was a Bleach report.

985
00:41:08,680 --> 00:41:10,439
Speaker 8: We used to have a joke of like, you know, soon.

986
00:41:10,320 --> 00:41:11,839
Speaker 3: As the Browns are out of the playoffs, that's draft

987
00:41:11,840 --> 00:41:14,080
Speaker 3: season for at least one team, and then everyone else

988
00:41:14,080 --> 00:41:17,000
Speaker 3: followed suit. And now it's you know, it's this is

989
00:41:17,040 --> 00:41:19,120
Speaker 3: the time when all thirty two teams are focused on

990
00:41:19,120 --> 00:41:19,960
Speaker 3: this and it's such a.

991
00:41:19,880 --> 00:41:22,879
Speaker 1: Crazy schedule in the NFL because we all come here,

992
00:41:22,920 --> 00:41:26,040
Speaker 1: we do this, and then we immediately focus on free agency,

993
00:41:26,120 --> 00:41:28,040
Speaker 1: and almost it gets spits to the back burner again.

994
00:41:28,080 --> 00:41:30,759
Speaker 1: The free agency goes, and then you know, teams are

995
00:41:30,920 --> 00:41:33,360
Speaker 1: having the visits and everything else goes, and then it

996
00:41:33,360 --> 00:41:35,960
Speaker 1: gets into draft mode again. But it's a weird dichotomy

997
00:41:36,000 --> 00:41:37,280
Speaker 1: of the of the NFL schedule.

998
00:41:37,360 --> 00:41:37,600
Speaker 6: It is.

999
00:41:37,640 --> 00:41:40,000
Speaker 3: And you know, the NFL is great at keeping us

1000
00:41:40,040 --> 00:41:42,720
Speaker 3: interested in everything they do, so you know, but also

1001
00:41:42,800 --> 00:41:45,239
Speaker 3: like as you know, what happens behind the scenes here

1002
00:41:45,320 --> 00:41:47,959
Speaker 3: is so important. And yeah, it is the unofficial start

1003
00:41:47,960 --> 00:41:49,520
Speaker 3: of free agency, even though you know.

1004
00:41:49,480 --> 00:41:51,080
Speaker 8: We don't like to talk about that fact.

1005
00:41:51,160 --> 00:41:52,719
Speaker 3: Yeah, a lot of deals are getting done here and

1006
00:41:52,800 --> 00:41:54,560
Speaker 3: interest being shared, so it is.

1007
00:41:54,640 --> 00:41:55,880
Speaker 8: Yeah, it'll be a nice.

1008
00:41:55,680 --> 00:41:58,840
Speaker 3: Little break for me after here while all my colleagues

1009
00:41:58,880 --> 00:42:01,320
Speaker 3: are covering free agency and step back and kind of

1010
00:42:01,360 --> 00:42:03,160
Speaker 3: revisit the take breath that too.

1011
00:42:03,320 --> 00:42:07,600
Speaker 1: Yeah, you recently updated your top fifty. Just maybe give

1012
00:42:07,640 --> 00:42:10,160
Speaker 1: me a quick synopsis. Where's this draft? You think strong?

1013
00:42:10,160 --> 00:42:12,720
Speaker 1: What position wise do you think it's strong? Where team's

1014
00:42:12,760 --> 00:42:14,440
Speaker 1: going to be able to get some immediate impact?

1015
00:42:14,560 --> 00:42:14,759
Speaker 2: Yeah?

1016
00:42:14,880 --> 00:42:17,800
Speaker 8: Wide receiver every year, right, every year Wide cherivers.

1017
00:42:17,560 --> 00:42:20,520
Speaker 1: Teach just the way the college game is absolutely I mean,

1018
00:42:20,520 --> 00:42:22,120
Speaker 1: it's transitioned so easily now.

1019
00:42:22,160 --> 00:42:24,560
Speaker 3: Yeah, and so wide receiver's great corner is great, which

1020
00:42:24,719 --> 00:42:27,719
Speaker 3: very interesting for Detroy. Happy Detroit there, and you know,

1021
00:42:27,760 --> 00:42:30,880
Speaker 3: I need offensive tackle, which you're very good there at tackle.

1022
00:42:30,920 --> 00:42:32,160
Speaker 3: But it is the deep class and a lot of

1023
00:42:32,160 --> 00:42:34,399
Speaker 3: those guys could potentially be guard. Some of them could

1024
00:42:34,400 --> 00:42:37,040
Speaker 3: even play center. So it is those are the three

1025
00:42:37,040 --> 00:42:38,719
Speaker 3: core positions. I think we're going to see a lot

1026
00:42:38,719 --> 00:42:39,640
Speaker 3: of really good players.

1027
00:42:39,760 --> 00:42:41,640
Speaker 1: I'm glad you mentioned that because it's something I wanted

1028
00:42:41,800 --> 00:42:43,920
Speaker 1: to ask. Everybody knows kind of who the guard and

1029
00:42:44,000 --> 00:42:46,839
Speaker 1: center guys are, you know the names, but I don't

1030
00:42:46,840 --> 00:42:50,280
Speaker 1: think a lot of maybe fans know of some tackles

1031
00:42:50,280 --> 00:42:53,120
Speaker 1: that are projected to play guards, or some tackles that

1032
00:42:53,160 --> 00:42:55,600
Speaker 1: you could see playguard. That's obviously a need depending on

1033
00:42:55,640 --> 00:42:57,879
Speaker 1: what happens in free agency for Detroit, but maybe who

1034
00:42:57,920 --> 00:42:59,520
Speaker 1: are one of the tour of those guys that are

1035
00:43:00,000 --> 00:43:02,560
Speaker 1: tackles right now, but you could see them playing guard,

1036
00:43:02,600 --> 00:43:04,960
Speaker 1: And maybe Lions fans should know their name just in

1037
00:43:05,000 --> 00:43:06,759
Speaker 1: case that that's kind of where it ends up. Yeah,

1038
00:43:06,800 --> 00:43:07,280
Speaker 1: to begin.

1039
00:43:07,120 --> 00:43:11,120
Speaker 3: There, Washington's left tackle, Troy Fatano, Okay, not short armed,

1040
00:43:11,239 --> 00:43:14,040
Speaker 3: but shorter, and that's probably gonna kick him inside. Graham

1041
00:43:14,040 --> 00:43:17,279
Speaker 3: Barton from Duke left tackle, gonna get kicked inside the

1042
00:43:17,440 --> 00:43:20,240
Speaker 3: Jordan Morgan from Arizona another guy who college left tackle,

1043
00:43:20,280 --> 00:43:23,399
Speaker 3: but could get kicked inside. So and they're interestingly enough,

1044
00:43:24,160 --> 00:43:26,239
Speaker 3: their range is right there in the you know, mid

1045
00:43:26,280 --> 00:43:28,480
Speaker 3: to late twenties, so the value would be would be

1046
00:43:28,560 --> 00:43:30,160
Speaker 3: right if that's the direction Detroit went.

1047
00:43:30,239 --> 00:43:32,640
Speaker 1: And do you see teams value those kind of guys

1048
00:43:32,680 --> 00:43:35,040
Speaker 1: more too, just because injury. It's not a matter of

1049
00:43:35,200 --> 00:43:37,319
Speaker 1: you know, yeah, if injuries aren't having, it's when and

1050
00:43:37,360 --> 00:43:39,399
Speaker 1: to have a guy that's not only versatile to play

1051
00:43:39,440 --> 00:43:42,680
Speaker 1: all three in tiers spots, but in a buying could

1052
00:43:42,680 --> 00:43:45,439
Speaker 1: go play you know, tackle if needed to end game.

1053
00:43:45,480 --> 00:43:47,919
Speaker 1: We've seen some of those situations with Detroit before where

1054
00:43:47,960 --> 00:43:50,520
Speaker 1: they've had to have a guard played tackle, and teams

1055
00:43:50,560 --> 00:43:52,279
Speaker 1: love that kind of flexibility.

1056
00:43:51,920 --> 00:43:54,600
Speaker 3: Even you know, like hey, Pane Swillian's play left tackle. Okay, yeah,

1057
00:43:54,600 --> 00:43:56,520
Speaker 3: well he can do both. That's great, but yeah, I

1058
00:43:56,520 --> 00:43:58,719
Speaker 3: mean you can only carry so many guys on your roster,

1059
00:43:58,800 --> 00:44:01,000
Speaker 3: so I think that's where it's huge to Okay, well,

1060
00:44:01,040 --> 00:44:02,000
Speaker 3: you know we're drafting you.

1061
00:44:02,000 --> 00:44:03,080
Speaker 8: You were a college left tackle.

1062
00:44:03,080 --> 00:44:03,680
Speaker 2: We're gonna move you.

1063
00:44:03,680 --> 00:44:06,040
Speaker 3: To guard, but in a pinch, we know you could

1064
00:44:06,040 --> 00:44:08,080
Speaker 3: play left tackle and it's not gonna be that huge

1065
00:44:08,080 --> 00:44:10,279
Speaker 3: transition or we're not have to dedicate a lot of

1066
00:44:10,280 --> 00:44:11,960
Speaker 3: practice time to it. We're gonna be able to get

1067
00:44:12,000 --> 00:44:13,400
Speaker 3: you back out there and have you do that, and

1068
00:44:13,480 --> 00:44:15,480
Speaker 3: you know, teams like Green Bay have made a living

1069
00:44:15,680 --> 00:44:17,560
Speaker 3: in the Philadelphi Eagles as well, they made a living

1070
00:44:17,600 --> 00:44:19,640
Speaker 3: off drafting alignment who are versatile.

1071
00:44:20,160 --> 00:44:20,960
Speaker 8: Just for those reasons.

1072
00:44:21,040 --> 00:44:23,239
Speaker 1: All right, let's get into your mock draft a little bit.

1073
00:44:23,560 --> 00:44:28,640
Speaker 1: Uh first pick at twenty nine to LA to the

1074
00:44:28,960 --> 00:44:33,000
Speaker 1: defensive end out of UCLA. You're one of the few

1075
00:44:33,040 --> 00:44:35,279
Speaker 1: guys I think that has him going back that far.

1076
00:44:35,400 --> 00:44:37,000
Speaker 1: Is that just because of what you see with the

1077
00:44:37,040 --> 00:44:39,520
Speaker 1: quarterbacks and the and the skill guys really dominating the

1078
00:44:39,600 --> 00:44:43,640
Speaker 1: first or is there something about him or or how

1079
00:44:43,640 --> 00:44:45,200
Speaker 1: do you think he gets to that spot with you

1080
00:44:45,239 --> 00:44:46,080
Speaker 1: Tory twenty.

1081
00:44:45,880 --> 00:44:47,920
Speaker 3: And that's a great question. You know, he has been

1082
00:44:47,960 --> 00:44:50,440
Speaker 3: a fantastic played the last year at UCLA. Yeah, prior

1083
00:44:50,480 --> 00:44:52,560
Speaker 3: to that, he had to medically retire at Washington because

1084
00:44:52,560 --> 00:44:54,680
Speaker 3: of a neck injury. So it's the situation if you remember,

1085
00:44:54,719 --> 00:44:57,799
Speaker 3: similar to Jaln Phillips who was at UCLA, retired, went

1086
00:44:57,840 --> 00:45:00,719
Speaker 3: to Miami and you know, became a first pick. So

1087
00:45:01,160 --> 00:45:04,200
Speaker 3: this week is huge forts with the medicals also, somebody

1088
00:45:04,200 --> 00:45:06,680
Speaker 3: who's not gonna test exceptionally. Well, he's just a really

1089
00:45:06,719 --> 00:45:09,960
Speaker 3: really good football player. He's a technician. You know, he

1090
00:45:10,000 --> 00:45:12,799
Speaker 3: looks like a seasoned pro playing defensive end. So I

1091
00:45:12,840 --> 00:45:14,879
Speaker 3: think that's the reason for the slip in that mock draft.

1092
00:45:14,920 --> 00:45:17,440
Speaker 3: But those medical questions could get answered this week and

1093
00:45:17,480 --> 00:45:18,480
Speaker 3: he can go in the top fifteen.

1094
00:45:18,840 --> 00:45:20,919
Speaker 1: I think Lions fans would love it if he's sitting there,

1095
00:45:20,960 --> 00:45:22,759
Speaker 1: just based off the tape and with the players and

1096
00:45:22,800 --> 00:45:25,239
Speaker 1: how he fits this scheme and that Dan Campbell kind

1097
00:45:25,239 --> 00:45:27,279
Speaker 1: of mantra as well. And then in the second round

1098
00:45:27,280 --> 00:45:29,640
Speaker 1: you had them going a cornerback TJ Tampa. What do

1099
00:45:29,680 --> 00:45:30,239
Speaker 1: you like about him?

1100
00:45:30,280 --> 00:45:31,720
Speaker 8: Yeah, physical fights do you mentioned?

1101
00:45:31,800 --> 00:45:34,080
Speaker 3: I'm glad you said Dan Cambell regalady of like, yeah,

1102
00:45:34,400 --> 00:45:36,279
Speaker 3: you want somebody who's going to be a little bit

1103
00:45:36,320 --> 00:45:37,960
Speaker 3: of a nuisance for offenses.

1104
00:45:38,239 --> 00:45:39,000
Speaker 8: That's who he is.

1105
00:45:39,320 --> 00:45:41,719
Speaker 3: And I think, especially in the playoff run, I was

1106
00:45:41,719 --> 00:45:43,560
Speaker 3: so impressed by Detroit, but every time I watched it

1107
00:45:43,600 --> 00:45:45,319
Speaker 3: was like, man, I would love to get one more

1108
00:45:45,320 --> 00:45:47,160
Speaker 3: corner in there, you know, at least one more young

1109
00:45:47,200 --> 00:45:49,920
Speaker 3: corner in there. And Tampa not only fits the scheme,

1110
00:45:50,400 --> 00:45:53,000
Speaker 3: but you know, in the second round, I think he's

1111
00:45:53,000 --> 00:45:55,560
Speaker 3: a starting caliber player that's actually available just in the

1112
00:45:55,640 --> 00:45:56,480
Speaker 3: late second round at.

1113
00:45:56,480 --> 00:45:58,960
Speaker 1: Least of my second question, my next question, excuse me,

1114
00:45:59,280 --> 00:46:02,319
Speaker 1: the cornerback lass. Are there going to be guys late

1115
00:46:02,400 --> 00:46:04,800
Speaker 1: in today two that you think teams are going to

1116
00:46:04,840 --> 00:46:07,160
Speaker 1: be able to to snag and can be guys that

1117
00:46:07,160 --> 00:46:08,799
Speaker 1: can compete for starting jobs.

1118
00:46:08,840 --> 00:46:10,440
Speaker 3: Yeah, and we'll see where the run happens. You know,

1119
00:46:10,760 --> 00:46:12,719
Speaker 3: if if six or seven go in the first round,

1120
00:46:12,760 --> 00:46:14,719
Speaker 3: that's going to change things. But yeah, you know, like

1121
00:46:14,800 --> 00:46:17,319
Speaker 3: I loved Jarvis Brownlee from Louisville at the Senior Bowl.

1122
00:46:17,360 --> 00:46:19,200
Speaker 3: He had such a great week and I'm watching him,

1123
00:46:19,320 --> 00:46:21,480
Speaker 3: I'm looking at my rankings, I'm like, this guy could

1124
00:46:21,480 --> 00:46:23,080
Speaker 3: be This would be a third round player who's gonna

1125
00:46:23,080 --> 00:46:25,360
Speaker 3: play in the NFL a lot. You know, Mike Singers

1126
00:46:25,360 --> 00:46:27,680
Speaker 3: still from Michigan. Yeah, he's gonna be a nickel, but

1127
00:46:27,800 --> 00:46:29,799
Speaker 3: he's gonna play seventy percent of the time and he's

1128
00:46:29,840 --> 00:46:31,600
Speaker 3: because he's a little bit smaller, probably gonna be a

1129
00:46:31,600 --> 00:46:32,200
Speaker 3: third round pick.

1130
00:46:32,440 --> 00:46:34,400
Speaker 1: Where do you see value at twenty nine when you're

1131
00:46:34,440 --> 00:46:36,840
Speaker 1: when you're training. It's a weird spot to be, you

1132
00:46:36,840 --> 00:46:38,480
Speaker 1: know because the last three years with Brad Holmes, he's

1133
00:46:38,520 --> 00:46:40,560
Speaker 1: had a top ten pick going into it, but he's

1134
00:46:40,560 --> 00:46:42,440
Speaker 1: at twenty nine. Now, where's the value for him?

1135
00:46:42,480 --> 00:46:42,680
Speaker 6: Yeah?

1136
00:46:42,680 --> 00:46:44,400
Speaker 3: I think it could be offensive line, I really do,

1137
00:46:44,560 --> 00:46:47,440
Speaker 3: just because you know, we might see two tackles in

1138
00:46:47,480 --> 00:46:50,040
Speaker 3: the top ten, we might see one, and that's gonna

1139
00:46:50,080 --> 00:46:53,000
Speaker 3: push really time to players down. And as we mentioned,

1140
00:46:53,040 --> 00:46:55,920
Speaker 3: you know some of these guys, even JC Latham from Alabama,

1141
00:46:55,960 --> 00:46:57,759
Speaker 3: he can play guard in the NFL and be a really,

1142
00:46:57,800 --> 00:47:00,839
Speaker 3: really good one. So you obviously you guys are great

1143
00:47:00,840 --> 00:47:02,840
Speaker 3: at tackle, but I think when you look at the interior,

1144
00:47:03,719 --> 00:47:05,239
Speaker 3: that's where you can maybe find great value.

1145
00:47:05,320 --> 00:47:07,040
Speaker 1: What about this edge class? What do you like about

1146
00:47:07,040 --> 00:47:07,640
Speaker 1: it overall?

1147
00:47:07,760 --> 00:47:09,600
Speaker 8: Yeah, over I think you have a lot of athletes.

1148
00:47:09,640 --> 00:47:12,160
Speaker 3: You know, got Dallas Turner from Alabama, Chop Robinson from

1149
00:47:12,160 --> 00:47:15,120
Speaker 3: Penn State. Maybe they're not the most well rounded guys,

1150
00:47:15,160 --> 00:47:17,800
Speaker 3: but they're going to give you that speed. Especially opposite

1151
00:47:18,040 --> 00:47:21,640
Speaker 3: a Nudgson who's just such a game wrecker, things easier

1152
00:47:21,680 --> 00:47:25,080
Speaker 3: for at absolutely and I think I could pray yes him,

1153
00:47:25,120 --> 00:47:27,480
Speaker 3: he's that good. And then you know, defensive tackle there

1154
00:47:27,480 --> 00:47:29,400
Speaker 3: could be really good value at twenty nine as well,

1155
00:47:29,400 --> 00:47:31,120
Speaker 3: because again we could be looking at a spot where

1156
00:47:31,360 --> 00:47:33,799
Speaker 3: only one like Biran Murphy's come off the board. You know,

1157
00:47:33,840 --> 00:47:36,719
Speaker 3: maybe Jersey Newton Illinois might be there to and Andre

1158
00:47:36,840 --> 00:47:38,680
Speaker 3: sweat you know is more of a true nose tackle.

1159
00:47:38,719 --> 00:47:40,880
Speaker 3: But even putting a nose tackle next to eight Hudgerson's

1160
00:47:40,880 --> 00:47:41,720
Speaker 3: going to create a lot of problems.

1161
00:47:41,719 --> 00:47:44,360
Speaker 1: And alle McNeil putting that kind of size next to

1162
00:47:44,360 --> 00:47:46,880
Speaker 1: Aleem McNeil, they touch, let them work a little bit.

1163
00:47:46,920 --> 00:47:50,040
Speaker 1: That that'd be interesting. Our final one for me. Brad's

1164
00:47:50,080 --> 00:47:52,719
Speaker 1: been so Brad Holmes has been so terrific in his

1165
00:47:52,760 --> 00:47:55,879
Speaker 1: first three draft cycles. So yeah, can he keep this up?

1166
00:47:56,320 --> 00:47:56,520
Speaker 2: Yeah?

1167
00:47:56,520 --> 00:47:59,000
Speaker 1: Because he's really hit I mean, Matt it's been eighty

1168
00:47:59,160 --> 00:48:01,240
Speaker 1: ninety percent of the I said he's drafted have become

1169
00:48:01,719 --> 00:48:05,960
Speaker 1: quality guys that contribute. Yeah, if not right away in

1170
00:48:06,040 --> 00:48:06,839
Speaker 1: year two and three.

1171
00:48:07,000 --> 00:48:08,359
Speaker 8: So I do think he can keep it up because

1172
00:48:08,360 --> 00:48:09,200
Speaker 8: it's a very good scout.

1173
00:48:09,560 --> 00:48:11,160
Speaker 3: I will say it's a little easier when you're in

1174
00:48:11,160 --> 00:48:13,080
Speaker 3: the top ten than it is at twenty nine. It's

1175
00:48:12,880 --> 00:48:15,080
Speaker 3: also here's the thing, it's also easier when you have

1176
00:48:15,120 --> 00:48:17,480
Speaker 3: a roster that's developing. You know, now your team that

1177
00:48:17,520 --> 00:48:19,920
Speaker 3: has had a lead in the NFC Championship game, that

1178
00:48:20,360 --> 00:48:22,239
Speaker 3: roster doesn't have as many holes as it had two

1179
00:48:22,280 --> 00:48:24,799
Speaker 3: years ago because of how good of a job Brad

1180
00:48:24,920 --> 00:48:26,839
Speaker 3: is done. So yeah, he can keep it up and

1181
00:48:27,120 --> 00:48:29,760
Speaker 3: I love that he is just bucking trends and saying

1182
00:48:29,960 --> 00:48:32,120
Speaker 3: we've got a foundation built. We'll take a running back

1183
00:48:32,160 --> 00:48:33,640
Speaker 3: in the first round, yeah, and he's going to be

1184
00:48:33,680 --> 00:48:35,759
Speaker 3: a huge playmaker for us. Or we'll take an off

1185
00:48:35,800 --> 00:48:38,359
Speaker 3: ball linebacker in the first round. And you know it

1186
00:48:38,360 --> 00:48:40,600
Speaker 3: helps when you can find a Brian Branch in round two.

1187
00:48:40,840 --> 00:48:43,040
Speaker 3: So yeah, they've done a great job. I'm in awe

1188
00:48:43,040 --> 00:48:44,440
Speaker 3: of how well they've built this team.

1189
00:48:44,520 --> 00:48:47,200
Speaker 1: Yeah, it should be a fun couple of weeks leading in.

1190
00:48:47,239 --> 00:48:49,160
Speaker 1: I know you're a busy man. You can check everything,

1191
00:48:49,360 --> 00:48:51,959
Speaker 1: and Matt Miller does on ESPN does a great job

1192
00:48:52,000 --> 00:48:54,480
Speaker 1: with their draft coverage there. Matt, thanks for taking the time.

1193
00:48:54,480 --> 00:49:04,560
Speaker 1: Appreciate you, of course. Thanks