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Speaker 1: Hey, what is up everybody? Welcome to the Giltias Charge Podcast.

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Speaker 1: My name is Steven and I am the host as always,

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Speaker 1: and we're presented by the Chargers Podcast Network of course.

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Speaker 1: Join me is my guy, Tyler, Tyler something, how you

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Speaker 1: doing today?

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Speaker 2: I am doing fantastic. I'm on cloud and I no

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Speaker 2: handstands though I can't. I can't do that again. I

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Speaker 2: was sore for a whole week.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, we we had to have worked up to that

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Speaker 1: that point. You know. Now now you got a little

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Speaker 1: little hand string or handstring strain, whatever the case would be,

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Speaker 1: you know, and it was a one time thing. So

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Speaker 1: exciting news again today to get into today for this episode,

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Speaker 1: this is obviously one of the more exciting week stretches

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Speaker 1: for Chargers and Chargers fans, and we'll get into some

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Speaker 1: of that. First and foremost, Tyler and I are fans

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Speaker 1: of the team just like you guys are. The opinions

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Speaker 1: that we express on this show are just there, our

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Speaker 1: opinions and not the opinions of the organization themselves. We're

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Speaker 1: very grateful for this platform to express these opinions. And

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Speaker 1: that being said, Tyler, let's dive in. None of this

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Speaker 1: is officially official as of recording this on Monday night,

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Speaker 1: January twenty ninth, but according to Ian Rappaport and several

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Speaker 1: other insiders, the Chargers are believed to be hiring Joe Horties,

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Speaker 1: the Ravens director of player personnel as their new GM.

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Speaker 1: I think this is again a great move. We've talked

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Speaker 1: a lot about alignment and synergy, and certainly somebody who's

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Speaker 1: worked with Jim Harbrod's brother for the better part of

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Speaker 1: two decades will be able to have that kind of

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Speaker 1: philosophy alignment that we are looking for. So, Tyler, that

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Speaker 1: being said, your reaction here to Joe Hortiz and this

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Speaker 1: news that it's kind of trending towards him becoming officially

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Speaker 1: the new GM.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, this would be fantastic for the Chargers.

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Speaker 2: When we spoke about lessons learned from the past eleven

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Speaker 2: years and what we can take moving forward, two of

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Speaker 2: the things that I mentioned and were acquiring draft picks,

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Speaker 2: whether that's trading back in the draft.

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Speaker 3: Or comp picks.

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Speaker 2: And the other thing I mentioned was just alignment from

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Speaker 2: general manager and player acquisition all the way through the

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Speaker 2: coaching staff. And I think the Chargers get that here

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Speaker 2: with Horti should they make this the official higher and

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Speaker 2: he comes from one of the best organizations in football

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Speaker 2: if you're just looking at draft success, since he was

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Speaker 2: the director of college scouting for the Ravens. The Ravens

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Speaker 2: have been third over that span in draft success. The

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Speaker 2: Chargers have been cover years everybody thirty second over that

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Speaker 2: same span, and they are going to get a significant

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Speaker 2: upgrade here where it really matters. And Michigan defensive coordinator

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Speaker 2: Jesse Minter pointed out that at the epicenter of both

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Speaker 2: Baltimore and Michigan's programs was player development and how important

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Speaker 2: that was for them and Michigan obviously it's worked for

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Speaker 2: them they won the National Championship, and the Ravens that's

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Speaker 2: the same case as well. The Ravens have eight players

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Speaker 2: who have made the Pro Bowl or All Pro this season.

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Speaker 2: Seven of those players they brought in. It was their

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Speaker 2: draft picks or an undrafted free agent. The only one

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Speaker 2: who wasn't was ro Kwan Smith, who they traded for.

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Speaker 2: It is about homegrown talent and developing those players. It's

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Speaker 2: one thing to just take the talented player, is another

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Speaker 2: thing to make that player into what they should become,

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Speaker 2: What they're projected to become. And beyond that too, we

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Speaker 2: talked about comppicks. The Ravens are the kings of compicks.

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Speaker 2: The Chargers since twenty fourteen up until now, had only

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Speaker 2: seven comppicks.

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Speaker 3: The Ravens had twenty two. That is twenty two free

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Speaker 3: swings at the ball and at bats for the Ravens.

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Speaker 3: That's incredible.

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Speaker 2: The Chargers have needed that and they're going to need

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Speaker 2: that because justin Herbert, this contract, it's no longer a

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Speaker 2: rookie contract. It's not an expensive contract. So the Chargers

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Speaker 2: need to make sure that they hit on these draft picks.

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Speaker 2: So just it's going to be everything that Jim Harbaugh wants.

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Speaker 2: And the number one thing we talked about. We could

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Speaker 2: put one candidate against another resume versus resume five, but

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Speaker 2: mber one most important thing for us was alignment to

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Speaker 2: the head coach. Since that head coach is Jim Harbaugh

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Speaker 2: and Hortiz seems to be a very natural connection for him.

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Speaker 2: That synergy from decision making up top to player development,

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Speaker 2: to coaching, to scheme to philosophy to fit to identity,

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Speaker 2: that's all there. Now the Chargers are going to be

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Speaker 2: so much better should they choose to make this move,

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Speaker 2: and I'm really excited.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that synergy is extremely important and one

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Speaker 1: of the ways that we've kind of tried to parcel

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Speaker 1: through this this GM cycle it is how much stock

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Speaker 1: do you put into relationships built with Jim Harbaugh over

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Speaker 1: you know, the course of several decades ago, whether it

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Speaker 1: was Ed Dodds and his direct relationship with him from

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Speaker 1: when they were in Oakland together. Brandon Brown had the

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Speaker 1: connection the Giant's assistant GM obviously that Albert Beard pointed

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Speaker 1: out Ian Cunningham worked for the Ravens. You know, the

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Speaker 1: Chargers were were interviewing GM candidates and it was like,

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Speaker 1: if you have Harbaugh experience, like that's a plus, But

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Speaker 1: it didn't. It was not obviously prerequisit. But you know,

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Speaker 1: Joe Ortiz has has spoken the Harbaugh language for the

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Speaker 1: Better Park better part of a decade. You know, He's

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Speaker 1: learned from Ozzie Newsom, He's learned from Eric Tacosta, and

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Speaker 1: everybody says that the Roster building is a collaborative process,

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Speaker 1: but nobody exemplifies that better than the Baltimore Ravens, in

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Speaker 1: my opinion, And the biggest part about being a general manager,

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Speaker 1: in my opinion, is finding ways to give your teams

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Speaker 1: advantages within the margins, because I think for the most part,

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Speaker 1: like you know, the coach, his job is to win

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Speaker 1: on game days, right, But everything else, you know, from

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Speaker 1: a roster building standpoint, it is the GM and his responsibility.

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Speaker 1: And can you find those compics, can you trade down,

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Speaker 1: can you hit on undrafted free agents, can you sign

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Speaker 1: some minimum some veteran contracts to minimum deals and they

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Speaker 1: just you know, over exceed their value. And you know

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Speaker 1: you mentioned just from twenty twelve, the Ravens in history

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Speaker 1: of compensitory picks have fifty three total compensitory picks. Second

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Speaker 1: place on that list is the Green Bay Packers with

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Speaker 1: forty three. That's ten extra just for no reason. The

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Speaker 1: Chargers in the history of competitory picks, for what it's worth,

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Speaker 1: like Tyler mentioned, only have fourteen total. So it's a

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Speaker 1: huge difference, and it's a huge advantage that that can

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Speaker 1: give you those extra picks. So I think his background

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Speaker 1: in working in those margins is going to be a

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Speaker 1: huge plus for the Chargers. I would be pretty surprised

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Speaker 1: if the Chargers make all of their scheduled draft picks

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Speaker 1: at this point, given where Joe Ortiz is coming from,

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Speaker 1: and we can dive into that here in a little bit,

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Speaker 1: but it's just a flexibility aspect for me. He has

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Speaker 1: such a flexible background of pulling from draft day trades,

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Speaker 1: in season acquisitions, veteran minimum contracts, compensatory picks, everything you

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Speaker 1: could possibly want. The Ravens were always about like checking

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Speaker 1: off every single box and looking for advantages everywhere that

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Speaker 1: they could possibly find. And like you mentioned, the Chargers

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Speaker 1: are entering into this cap transitional period where they have

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Speaker 1: a lot of expensive contracts. Justin Herbert is going to

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Speaker 1: be very expensive starting next season, and so having a

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Speaker 1: GM who comes from this kind of background is going

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Speaker 1: to be super super important.

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Speaker 2: And what about the two things are one of the

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Speaker 2: two of the things that have really hurt the Chargers

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Speaker 2: this past season.

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Speaker 3: That'd be the run game and of course the defense.

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Speaker 2: I think bringing in someone who's overseen the Baltimore Ravens

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Speaker 2: and that run game. Granted, Lamar Jackson has a lot

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Speaker 2: to do with that, but still the run game that

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Speaker 2: tight ends the full back.

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Speaker 3: That's going to be super helpful.

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Speaker 2: And then of course the defense be able to build

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Speaker 2: both of those two things to help out Justin Herbert,

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Speaker 2: you know, lost in all this, we talk about the coach,

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Speaker 2: we talk about GM, we talk about all that. But

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Speaker 2: Dean Spanners or John Spanals came out and said, the

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Speaker 2: number one priority is Justin Herbert, and by extent sure

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Speaker 2: it could be Brock Powers at five, and it might

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Speaker 2: be Brock Powers at five. If you want to hear

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Speaker 2: about Block Powers at five, go see our last episode.

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Speaker 3: But it's also about that run game.

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Speaker 2: It's about that defense, and I think finding someone who

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Speaker 2: has experienced building those two things very very strong.

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Speaker 3: Like if you feel better to good as a CHARGES fan,

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Speaker 3: it's been a great week.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, it totally has. You know, Joe Hartiz, we did

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Speaker 1: our GM rankings and Joe Hartiz was not at the top.

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Speaker 1: We prioritized that assistant GM experience and things like that.

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Speaker 1: But there were so many great candidates in this GM

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Speaker 1: cycle and Joe Orti's was definitely one of them. So

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Speaker 1: this isn't like I feel like they're settling by any means.

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Speaker 1: You know, I think this whole thing was about alignment.

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Speaker 1: This is about finding a guy who can speak Harbaugh

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Speaker 1: and also find you know, just how to you know,

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Speaker 1: take advantage of these different areas. So I want to

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Speaker 1: talk specifically about their trade history on Draft weekend because

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Speaker 1: this is this is going to be something that is

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Speaker 1: going to be very different for us as charges fans

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Speaker 1: over the last few years and what we're used to.

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Speaker 1: And I think there's there's a specific quote out there

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Speaker 1: from Hortiz about size and lack thereof or fitting a

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Speaker 1: certain physical file, and his quote was, you got to

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Speaker 1: pay attention to it, but all players are different. You

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Speaker 1: don't want to knock a guy because of a previous player.

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Speaker 1: So he really has that flexible mentality and let's adapt

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Speaker 1: to the certain player. Let's grade the prospect, not the helmet,

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Speaker 1: as Jordan reed a ESPN always likes to say, and

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Speaker 1: that pans out into their draft history and just like

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Speaker 1: you know, I found this article dating back to twenty sixteen,

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Speaker 1: and since then they have traded back into the first

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Speaker 1: round to get Lamar Jackson. They traded Hollywood Brown to

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Speaker 1: the Cardinals for a first round pick, which they then

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Speaker 1: parlayed into more picks by trading down from that spots

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Speaker 1: to select Tyler Linnerbaum. They traded Orlando Brown to the

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Speaker 1: Chiefs and selected Outa Faoa and Ben Cleveland. With the return,

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Speaker 1: they traded up on Day three for tight end Charlie Colart.

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Speaker 1: They traded up in the draft in the second round

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Speaker 1: for Justin Madobuk. They originally traded down three spots to

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Speaker 1: acquire Hollywood Brown. Originally they traded down twice in twenty

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Speaker 1: eighteen to select Titan Hayden Hurst, and with those returns

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Speaker 1: they were able to to trade back up to get

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Speaker 1: Lamar Jackson. They traded up in the third round for

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Speaker 1: Mark Andrews. They traded down in the second round for

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Speaker 1: Matthew Judahon. They traded down again after that and the

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Speaker 1: same draft to take Camalaya Correa. This is their entire

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Speaker 1: draft history. They trade down, they trade up, they move around,

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Speaker 1: They move down twice, they move up twice. They are

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Speaker 1: so flexible and active on draft weekend, and it's about

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Speaker 1: finding those advantages, and it seems like every time they

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Speaker 1: do that, they still end up taking the player that

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Speaker 1: they were originally going to take and hit a home

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Speaker 1: run with those players, and if it's not a home run,

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Speaker 1: they're still a really good player. And then they leave

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Speaker 1: in free agency and then they get compensatory picks and

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Speaker 1: around and a round around, we go for the Baltimore

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Speaker 1: Ravens on draft weekend. It's it's going to be such

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Speaker 1: a treat to see how Joe Jorties approaches this particular

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Speaker 1: draft with a fifth overall pick and does he want

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Speaker 1: to take one of the blue chip players, does he

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Speaker 1: want to trade down and still take a really high

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Speaker 1: end player and take two second round players. It's gonna

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Speaker 1: be fascinating that this adds so many different layers to

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Speaker 1: drafts weekend because his background is of a chess player. Essentially,

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Speaker 1: this is a guy who's going to move around the

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Speaker 1: board as much as he can and try and make

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Speaker 1: as many picks as he can and give his team

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Speaker 1: as many advantages as he can. And that to me

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Speaker 1: as a draft nerd, is extremely exciting to think about

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Speaker 1: all the different possibilities that Joe Hortiz can cook up.

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Speaker 2: Yeah, the Charges have given up the equivalent of the

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Speaker 2: eighteenth overall pick in the draft based on trades up

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Speaker 2: for players the Baltimore Ravens and what they've been able

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Speaker 2: to do. The idea that the Chargers could do something

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Speaker 2: like what they've done, like the imagination and the process

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Speaker 2: that you've talked about that you mentioned there is awesome

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Speaker 2: to hear. I'm really excited for this one should it happen,

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Speaker 2: of course, but all things are trending that way.

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Speaker 1: Yeah. Again, we're recording this on Monday night. Ian Rappaport

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Speaker 1: seems to believe that it is going to be that way.

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Speaker 1: So by the time you're listening to this, it might

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Speaker 1: have already become official. Who knows it is Monday night,

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Speaker 1: all right, Tyler, any other thoughts about here about mister

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Speaker 1: Joe hortiz.

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Speaker 2: That if you look at the Lions and the way

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Speaker 2: that they believe being able to become a contender, not

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Speaker 2: necessarily overnight. It's been a lengthy process, of course, and

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Speaker 2: they didn't start out great. But if you look at

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Speaker 2: the way the Lions have drafted the last three drafts,

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Speaker 2: and really this pass one with some of their difference

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Speaker 2: makers that could be the Chargers. I'm not saying that

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Speaker 2: they'll go to the AFT Championship this year based on

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Speaker 2: one class. It required several classes for the Lions. You

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Speaker 2: can really turn things around very quickly if you hit

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Speaker 2: on a couple of drafts or even one.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, we're gonna expand upon that particular point here in

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Speaker 1: a minute. So the other piece of news Again, according

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Speaker 1: to Ian Rapaport, Tom Pellasero, and some Michigan insiders as well,

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Speaker 1: the Chargers are expected to hire jesse Minter away from

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Speaker 1: Michigan to be their defensive coordinator. The Rooney rule does

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Speaker 1: apply here to defensive coordinator and offensive coordinator hires. It's

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Speaker 1: just one candidate instead of two, So the Chargers are

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Speaker 1: still going to have to go through a search here

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Speaker 1: to determine if jesse Minter is the defensive coordinator. But

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Speaker 1: again it sounds like that is where we are training towards.

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Speaker 1: So this is again a really fantastic move by Jim Harbaugh. Obviously,

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Speaker 1: there's the continuity, there's familiarity of him being at Michigan

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Speaker 1: over the last two years. He was in Baltimore along

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Speaker 1: with joh Ortiz and all those guys. So this is

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Speaker 1: again it's the alignment, it's the philosophy, it's the belief,

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Speaker 1: and it's the trust in his ability to maximize the

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Speaker 1: staff and those around him. So jesse Minter has been

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Speaker 1: a defensive coordinator the last two years at Michigan. He

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Speaker 1: was a defensive coordinator at Vanderbilt before that and worked

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Speaker 1: in Baltimore. Like I said, so a lot of alignment here, Tyler,

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Speaker 1: what's kind of your initial thought as we look forward

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Speaker 1: to what a potential Jesse Mintor defense might look like

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Speaker 1: in Los Angeles.

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Speaker 2: Well, I talked about acquiring players right and selecting the

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Speaker 2: right players.

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Speaker 3: Sure, you can do.

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Speaker 2: That, That's half of it. Now they have to go

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Speaker 2: onto the field and develop. And as Mentor pointed out

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Speaker 2: in the quote I referenced earlier, Michigan was about development

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Speaker 2: and that player development was at the epicenter of their programs.

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Speaker 2: And I think he absolutely backs that up. And Michigan

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Speaker 2: and Jim Harbor have backed that up. If you look

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Speaker 2: at the quote unquote talent metric, which measures, you know,

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Speaker 2: recruiting classes and compares recruiting classes. Not that Michigan was

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Speaker 2: a D three school by any means, I'll see a

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Speaker 2: lot of teams would kill to have the talent that

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Speaker 2: they've had.

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Speaker 3: But the last three college.

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Speaker 2: Football champions before Michigan, in terms of talent Metric, those

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Speaker 2: three teams, Georgia twice and then Alabama, were both second

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Speaker 2: in talent metric, and since twenty fifteen when they kept

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Speaker 2: track of talent Metric, no other team has been quote

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Speaker 2: unquote worse than ninth. These are all top ten recruiting

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Speaker 2: classes and overall groups. Michigan is the only one to

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Speaker 2: rank outside the top ten and win the national championship.

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Speaker 2: They were fourteenth in talent metric, which again is not bad.

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Speaker 2: That's a very very good team. But they're still doing

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Speaker 2: more with less, and that is so impressive. They went

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Speaker 2: and beat Alabama, of course, and I'm sure they had

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Speaker 2: a career recruiting class. Based on projections, it looks like

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Speaker 2: Michigan's going to have seven players be drafted this year.

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Speaker 2: And of those seven players, four of them were former

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Speaker 2: three star recruits, two of them were former four star recruits,

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Speaker 2: and the only one who's projected to be drafted that

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Speaker 2: was a former five star recruit actually wasn't their recruit.

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Speaker 2: He transferred from Alabama. So they've been able to take

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Speaker 2: these players. And I'm just talking about defense here, and

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Speaker 2: I'm not saying three stars bad binding means, are four

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Speaker 2: stars bad bunding means. But these aren't that the five star,

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Speaker 2: best player, number one player in their state, the country, etc.

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Speaker 3: Kind of guys.

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Speaker 2: They're taking these guys and turning them into NFL draft picks,

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Speaker 2: and with that talent, again, which isn't quite the same

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Speaker 2: as others. They were still first in total defense fourth,

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Speaker 2: and red zone defense first, and scoring defense fourth and

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Speaker 2: turnovers generated like they were an awesome defense obviously, and

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Speaker 2: we've seen that they are three biggest games to close

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Speaker 2: out the season against Iowa, Alabama, and Washington. Granted i

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Speaker 2: was not exactly a high hot Dane offense, but still

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Speaker 2: in those three games they only gave up eleven points

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Speaker 2: per game. So when it absolutely mattered, the defense only

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Speaker 2: gave up eleven points per game in those three games.

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Speaker 2: That's what Michigan's doing. So if you can bring that

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Speaker 2: to the Chargers now we're talking about not only the

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Speaker 2: players that they're going to draft, but the ones that

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Speaker 2: they have drafted that they have paid dayon Henley, how

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Speaker 2: much better does he get now if they decided to

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Speaker 2: bring in Jesse Minter j T.

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Speaker 3: Woods.

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Speaker 2: Right now, he's the safety too on the team. He

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Speaker 2: is a starter as of right now. How much better

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Speaker 2: is he going to get? How much higher can his

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Speaker 2: ceiling be or how much higher really can his floor be?

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Speaker 2: Because of mintor things like that. Derwin James. I mean,

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Speaker 2: I'm not saying that he's going to be what Kyle

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Speaker 2: Hamilton has been for the Ravens this past year. But

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Speaker 2: before Kyle Hamilton, it was Derwin James, and everyone wanted

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Speaker 2: Kyle Hamilton to be the next Derwin James. Hamilton, of course,

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Speaker 2: I think has at this point surpassed Derwin James. But

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Speaker 2: there is a world where Derwin James gets back to

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Speaker 2: being who we all fell in love with that rookie season,

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Speaker 2: and I think Mintor could be the guy to do

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Speaker 2: that the same way, the same way McDonald has done

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Speaker 2: that for the Ravens. So again, great option here, not official,

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Speaker 2: but I do think should they go.

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Speaker 3: This route, it would be fantastic for the team.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, I think overall this would be a really strong

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Speaker 1: step in the right direction. Jesse Minter and Mike McDonald

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Speaker 1: obviously came up in the same tree under Wink Martindale

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Speaker 1: for the most part, and the two of them have

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Speaker 1: taken their own spin on the Wink defense, which is

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Speaker 1: obviously a lot of pressure, a lot of simulated pressures,

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Speaker 1: and we can get into specific numbers here in a minute,

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Speaker 1: but it's this idea to make things extremely difficult on

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Speaker 1: the quarterback, and that's what Jesse Minter and Mike McDonald

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Speaker 1: have done such a great job of It's why Mike

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Speaker 1: McDonald was one of the hottest head coaching candidates in

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Speaker 1: this cycle. That's why he was one of the best

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Speaker 1: defensive coordinators. That's why jesse Mincher was one of the

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Speaker 1: best defensive coordinators at the University of Michigan. And it's

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Speaker 1: again philosophy that we're going to make things difficult on

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Speaker 1: you and we're going to maximize our own abilities to

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Speaker 1: get after, you know, our own development. And like Tyler

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Speaker 1: is saying, so I think this is a really strong

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Speaker 1: step in the direction for what you want, what everybody

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Speaker 1: envisions of, you know, the next stage of defense. Like

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Speaker 1: we've had this little hot streak if you all have,

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Speaker 1: like the big Fangio defense, and now it seems like

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Speaker 1: we're kind of getting back to pressure and simulated pressures

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Speaker 1: and let's like heat up quarterbacks and let's make sure

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Speaker 1: that we are making things as difficult as possible on them.

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Speaker 1: And Mike McDonald, Jesse Minter a kind of like the

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Speaker 1: next guys in that group. So I'm really excited about this.

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Speaker 1: I think from a schematic standpoint, you look at kind

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Speaker 1: of the biggest differences here Mike McDonald at Michigan at

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Speaker 1: least ran more cover zero and more Cover one. He

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Speaker 1: was able to, I think, take a little bit more

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Speaker 1: chances because that Machigan defense had David Ojabal and Aiden Hutchinson.

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Speaker 1: Jesse Menton never really had both of those guys. There

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Speaker 1: was always one really quality edge rusher, but he didn't

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Speaker 1: have those two guys who I both had as top

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Speaker 1: fifteen grates. Aiden Hutchinson was the highest pass rusher on

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Speaker 1: my board that year and he's certainly become a star

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Speaker 1: in with the Lions. So you know, Mike McDonald was

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Speaker 1: able to take more chances at Michigan, and I think

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Speaker 1: that shows out in the numbers. But the interesting thing

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Speaker 1: here to me is the simulated pressure numbers. In particular,

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Speaker 1: Jesse Minster ran simulated pressures on thirty six point four

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Speaker 1: percent of their dropacks this past season, and Mike McDonald

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Speaker 1: at Michigan his season was twenty five percent. So again,

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Speaker 1: Jesse Mintter really believes in muddying up the picture. Let's

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Speaker 1: make things as difficult as possible up front. Let's make

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Speaker 1: your offensive line think at every single turn, and then

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Speaker 1: let's try and heat up your quarterback as much as

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Speaker 1: we can. So I think his defense is perfect for

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Speaker 1: what skill sets the Chargers. Have you mentioned Derwin James,

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Speaker 1: I think two Lee two E Polow two is perfect

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Speaker 1: for this kind of defense because he can drop into coverage,

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Speaker 1: because he can rush over the middle, because he can

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Speaker 1: he can be your edge rusher, he can push the pocket.

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Speaker 1: This two lee is such a versatile piece that he's

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Speaker 1: going to be perfect in jesse Mentor's defense. Again, assuming

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Speaker 1: that is the decision here, but you know, you have

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Speaker 1: your your core pieces in Derwin and too Ley. The

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Speaker 1: rest of your roster kind of needs to be figured out.

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Speaker 1: But that's a pretty great place for jesse Minter to

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Speaker 1: start out. And I think both of those guys would

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Speaker 1: be moved around a lot and play extremely fast and

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Speaker 1: impact the football at a really high level.

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Speaker 3: Yeah, it's really exciting.

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Speaker 2: I know that you know that you don't need to

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Speaker 2: have the number one defense, and I don't expect the

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Speaker 2: Chargers have the Ravens defense in the years.

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Speaker 3: It's not that simple.

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Speaker 2: It's not going to be that quick at the very least,

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Speaker 2: but I am excited for the prospect that the Chargers

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Speaker 2: are going to have a defense that again, as we

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Speaker 2: sort of joked about what this special teams look, just

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Speaker 2: get justin Herbert. Just get this unit to the twenties,

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Speaker 2: like heaven forbid its sixteenth in the league. Just get

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Speaker 2: them there and this team would win several more games

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Speaker 2: than they did last year. So if Minter can bring

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Speaker 2: even two thirds of what McDonald was able to bring

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Speaker 2: to the Ravens, the Chargers are going to be very

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Speaker 2: very good, very very soon.

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Speaker 1: Yeah, And don't I don't want it to be like

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Speaker 1: you know you're talking about, you know, average being the twenties.

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Speaker 1: The Chargers defense is going to have to have some turnover.

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Speaker 1: Like there's gonna be a very young group in my opinion,

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Speaker 1: maybe some cheap veterans here and there. This isn't going

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Speaker 1: to be like the twenty eighteen defense that had all

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Speaker 1: these guys, you know, hitting their primes of their careers

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Speaker 1: at the same time and just everybody's making plays. This

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Speaker 1: isn't going to be you know, Sean Merriman and Seohn

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Speaker 1: Phillips and everybody hitting their prime at the same time

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Speaker 1: back in the day. Like, there are going to be

434
00:21:51,240 --> 00:21:54,199
Speaker 1: some lumps next year. But I think Jesse Minzer can

435
00:21:54,440 --> 00:21:57,760
Speaker 1: can maximize the talent, whatever talent he has. Use some

436
00:21:57,880 --> 00:22:00,840
Speaker 1: chess pieces, maybe Kolil mac Jolly Wilson stick around, We'll

437
00:22:00,880 --> 00:22:04,439
Speaker 1: see and the pieces are there for them to be

438
00:22:04,680 --> 00:22:07,560
Speaker 1: at least better than what they were last year. That's

439
00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:11,160
Speaker 1: the floor for me is kind of, you know, low twenties,

440
00:22:11,160 --> 00:22:13,399
Speaker 1: I think would be great. Obviously, anything better than that,

441
00:22:13,600 --> 00:22:16,000
Speaker 1: I'm not gonna, you know, rule that out, because I

442
00:22:16,000 --> 00:22:18,160
Speaker 1: think Jesse Minster is a great coordinator and the Chargers

443
00:22:18,200 --> 00:22:21,480
Speaker 1: could certainly revamp this thing in a hurry. But I'm

444
00:22:21,480 --> 00:22:24,480
Speaker 1: definitely not expecting like number one defense right away from

445
00:22:24,920 --> 00:22:27,440
Speaker 1: a potential defensive shakeout.

446
00:22:27,960 --> 00:22:28,520
Speaker 3: How dare you?

447
00:22:28,840 --> 00:22:32,800
Speaker 2: How dare you realistic expectations and not demand excellence right away?

448
00:22:32,840 --> 00:22:35,200
Speaker 3: What I think too? And I was definitely worried.

449
00:22:35,040 --> 00:22:37,080
Speaker 2: About this watching the game, and I think Chargers fans

450
00:22:37,359 --> 00:22:39,560
Speaker 2: were worth they were watching the game against the Chiefs

451
00:22:39,560 --> 00:22:42,160
Speaker 2: and the Ravens of the Chiefs and the AFT Championship game. Yes,

452
00:22:42,200 --> 00:22:43,919
Speaker 2: the Ravens did end up losing. Sure, they gave up

453
00:22:43,920 --> 00:22:47,320
Speaker 2: seventeen points, but early on everything was working for the

454
00:22:47,400 --> 00:22:51,200
Speaker 2: Chiefs yea. And suddenly things were not working for the

455
00:22:51,280 --> 00:22:53,400
Speaker 2: Chiefs and things were just off a little bit. There

456
00:22:53,440 --> 00:22:57,040
Speaker 2: was more pressure. Mahomes was consistently hit, and I don't

457
00:22:57,040 --> 00:22:59,800
Speaker 2: believe they scored in the in the second half, no

458
00:23:00,119 --> 00:23:02,600
Speaker 2: zero for a single point in the second half, Like,

459
00:23:03,520 --> 00:23:05,680
Speaker 2: can we just imagine that for a second, Like Chargers fans,

460
00:23:05,720 --> 00:23:09,000
Speaker 2: think of every Chargers Chiefs game you've watched outside of

461
00:23:09,000 --> 00:23:11,760
Speaker 2: the two Arrowhead wins, and I think I don't recall

462
00:23:11,800 --> 00:23:14,720
Speaker 2: exactly what it was, but I believe the Chargers have

463
00:23:14,800 --> 00:23:18,240
Speaker 2: had a lead before this season in like all six

464
00:23:18,720 --> 00:23:22,160
Speaker 2: of their games going into half and they were one

465
00:23:22,200 --> 00:23:26,160
Speaker 2: in five or whatever. It was the idea, the thought

466
00:23:26,240 --> 00:23:28,119
Speaker 2: that the Chargers. I'm not saying this is going to

467
00:23:28,160 --> 00:23:32,720
Speaker 2: happen immediately, but just the potential for the Chargers to

468
00:23:32,920 --> 00:23:38,239
Speaker 2: put to blank the Chiefs in the second half like

469
00:23:38,600 --> 00:23:41,800
Speaker 2: that is pretty awesome. I'm excited for that against very early.

470
00:23:42,240 --> 00:23:43,399
Speaker 2: You know, it is the off season.

471
00:23:43,800 --> 00:23:45,400
Speaker 3: I got to see these things happen, got to see

472
00:23:45,400 --> 00:23:47,680
Speaker 3: a higher but it is very exciting.

473
00:23:48,560 --> 00:23:52,159
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think you can pinpoint the opposite half, but

474
00:23:52,680 --> 00:23:55,520
Speaker 1: same kind of deal against Alabama in the Rose Bowl.

475
00:23:55,640 --> 00:23:59,119
Speaker 1: I mean, the Alabama Crimson Tide were coming off of

476
00:23:59,160 --> 00:24:03,440
Speaker 1: this amazing, you know, undefeated SEC season. Jaylon Milroe was

477
00:24:03,480 --> 00:24:06,680
Speaker 1: getting a ton of Heisman hype. People were talking about

478
00:24:06,680 --> 00:24:09,320
Speaker 1: this that group being Nick Saban's best offense and his

479
00:24:09,400 --> 00:24:12,439
Speaker 1: best coaching job, and they completely shut them out in

480
00:24:12,440 --> 00:24:15,240
Speaker 1: the first in the first half, like Alabama had to

481
00:24:15,359 --> 00:24:19,000
Speaker 1: completely abandon any kind of traditional passing offense that they wanted.

482
00:24:19,000 --> 00:24:22,679
Speaker 1: It became run heavy, it became zone read RPO, like

483
00:24:22,720 --> 00:24:24,840
Speaker 1: they had to just like say, hey, like, we're not

484
00:24:24,920 --> 00:24:28,800
Speaker 1: even gonna try to do deep dropbacks because your defense

485
00:24:28,880 --> 00:24:31,760
Speaker 1: is too good. And that was against Alabama, again, one

486
00:24:31,800 --> 00:24:33,639
Speaker 1: of the best offenses in the country. What they did

487
00:24:33,720 --> 00:24:37,080
Speaker 1: against Michael Pennix and we we had Trevor Sikima on

488
00:24:37,119 --> 00:24:39,080
Speaker 1: the show last week talking about Romo Dunese being a

489
00:24:39,080 --> 00:24:41,840
Speaker 1: potential pick at number five overall, and yeah, he had

490
00:24:41,880 --> 00:24:44,800
Speaker 1: a good game. He's a great player, but that Washington

491
00:24:44,960 --> 00:24:47,080
Speaker 1: offense looked like a shell of itself. I watched a

492
00:24:47,160 --> 00:24:49,440
Speaker 1: ton of Washington football this year. I did not see

493
00:24:49,480 --> 00:24:52,879
Speaker 1: a single defense play as good against them as Michigan

494
00:24:52,920 --> 00:24:56,120
Speaker 1: did in the National Championship. So it's just the ability

495
00:24:56,160 --> 00:24:58,080
Speaker 1: to make things difficult. You want to be a run

496
00:24:58,119 --> 00:25:00,159
Speaker 1: heavy team, We're going to load the box and our

497
00:25:00,160 --> 00:25:01,560
Speaker 1: guys are going to beat you up. You want to

498
00:25:01,560 --> 00:25:04,000
Speaker 1: be a passive a team, We're gonna muddy up the

499
00:25:04,000 --> 00:25:06,600
Speaker 1: picture up front, our corners in our safeties are gonna

500
00:25:06,600 --> 00:25:09,360
Speaker 1: fly around and make plays. It's such a fun unit

501
00:25:09,440 --> 00:25:12,600
Speaker 1: to watch. I've started to really watch them because of

502
00:25:12,640 --> 00:25:15,120
Speaker 1: the draft prospects and obviously because of Jim Harbaugh. Now

503
00:25:15,440 --> 00:25:19,639
Speaker 1: that defense flies around every single play, everybody makes plays,

504
00:25:19,680 --> 00:25:23,920
Speaker 1: everybody's into it. I'm super excited about the possibilities here

505
00:25:24,240 --> 00:25:26,520
Speaker 1: that jesse Minzer can bring to the Chargers because of

506
00:25:26,560 --> 00:25:29,520
Speaker 1: the just the the culture, of the identity, the schematics,

507
00:25:29,880 --> 00:25:33,080
Speaker 1: everything just fits with what I envision is like the

508
00:25:33,080 --> 00:25:35,200
Speaker 1: next era of Chargers football going forward.

509
00:25:35,720 --> 00:25:37,600
Speaker 3: And just that flexibility is so key.

510
00:25:38,080 --> 00:25:40,520
Speaker 2: We've heard it from the locker room, from the quotes

511
00:25:40,560 --> 00:25:43,640
Speaker 2: that have come out, just on the lack of flexibility,

512
00:25:43,680 --> 00:25:47,120
Speaker 2: and that's kind of been organizational. I feel like, from

513
00:25:47,160 --> 00:25:49,480
Speaker 2: top to bottom, whether that's you know, GM, whether that's

514
00:25:49,520 --> 00:25:53,919
Speaker 2: head coach, whether that's coordinators, whatever, the lack of flexibility,

515
00:25:53,960 --> 00:25:55,800
Speaker 2: the inflexibility.

516
00:25:55,320 --> 00:25:57,120
Speaker 3: Has not been great for a lot of players.

517
00:25:57,119 --> 00:26:00,320
Speaker 2: And some players just are like, look, hey, we got

518
00:26:00,359 --> 00:26:01,960
Speaker 2: to change this, We got to do something different. And

519
00:26:02,000 --> 00:26:03,840
Speaker 2: I just think being able to adapt to the players

520
00:26:03,840 --> 00:26:07,439
Speaker 2: that you have and be player friendly, not try to

521
00:26:07,440 --> 00:26:10,520
Speaker 2: just force the scheme or force these certain concepts or

522
00:26:10,600 --> 00:26:13,120
Speaker 2: rather just adapt to the players is so huge.

523
00:26:13,359 --> 00:26:16,920
Speaker 1: Yeah, kund of were sent there. We've kind of hinted

524
00:26:16,920 --> 00:26:20,080
Speaker 1: at it here. We wanted to have a discussion about

525
00:26:20,160 --> 00:26:23,200
Speaker 1: how soon the Chargers could become contenders under Jim Harbaugh,

526
00:26:23,359 --> 00:26:27,720
Speaker 1: Jesse Minter, Joe Ortiz again hypothetically theoretically, not official yet.

527
00:26:29,280 --> 00:26:31,600
Speaker 1: So that's the conversation we want to finish the show

528
00:26:31,640 --> 00:26:34,760
Speaker 1: today with, is how soon can the Chargers become contenders?

529
00:26:35,000 --> 00:26:37,920
Speaker 1: We're going to qualify this as like the divisional round,

530
00:26:38,040 --> 00:26:40,080
Speaker 1: Like how soon can the Chargers potentially get to the

531
00:26:40,080 --> 00:26:43,359
Speaker 1: divisional round because that's, you know, kind of the the

532
00:26:43,440 --> 00:26:45,920
Speaker 1: final eight. Those are the best eight teams in each

533
00:26:45,960 --> 00:26:49,400
Speaker 1: conference there, and I wanted to kind of my brain

534
00:26:49,440 --> 00:26:51,919
Speaker 1: first went to, like, Okay, everybody's making the comparison between

535
00:26:51,960 --> 00:26:55,240
Speaker 1: the forty nine Ers in twenty eleven and the Chargers

536
00:26:55,280 --> 00:26:58,080
Speaker 1: what they could be in twenty twenty four. I do

537
00:26:58,200 --> 00:26:59,920
Speaker 1: kind of want to push back on that a bit

538
00:27:00,119 --> 00:27:04,399
Speaker 1: because just from a roster construction standpoint, it doesn't really

539
00:27:04,840 --> 00:27:06,840
Speaker 1: line up. So if you look if you go back

540
00:27:06,880 --> 00:27:10,359
Speaker 1: and look at the twenty eleven forty nine Ers, the

541
00:27:10,400 --> 00:27:13,800
Speaker 1: majority of the core of that team that Jim Harbaugh

542
00:27:13,960 --> 00:27:17,960
Speaker 1: it took over, was already in place, and Delaney Walker,

543
00:27:17,960 --> 00:27:19,920
Speaker 1: who was a part of that, piece a great tight

544
00:27:20,000 --> 00:27:22,080
Speaker 1: end for them and obviously the Tennessee Titans. After that,

545
00:27:22,800 --> 00:27:25,360
Speaker 1: he spoke on Busting with the Boys the Barstool Podcast

546
00:27:25,400 --> 00:27:28,800
Speaker 1: and he made the point that the group, the talent

547
00:27:28,960 --> 00:27:32,440
Speaker 1: was all there. The culture was what needed to be reset.

548
00:27:32,480 --> 00:27:32,600
Speaker 3: You know.

549
00:27:32,680 --> 00:27:34,560
Speaker 1: Jim Harbaugh had to come in and get everybody to

550
00:27:34,720 --> 00:27:38,280
Speaker 1: buy in, everybody to you know, really believe that they

551
00:27:38,320 --> 00:27:41,760
Speaker 1: could take that next step as a team. It was

552
00:27:41,840 --> 00:27:44,400
Speaker 1: not the roster. The roster did not need to be reset.

553
00:27:44,440 --> 00:27:49,080
Speaker 1: You look at Alex Smith, Frank Gore, Vernon Davis, Delaney Walker,

554
00:27:49,119 --> 00:27:52,679
Speaker 1: I mentioned Joe Staley, Patrick Willis, Michael Krabgree, Mike you Potty,

555
00:27:53,200 --> 00:27:56,840
Speaker 1: Justin Smith, Amad Brooks, Nabarro Bowman. Those guys were all

556
00:27:56,920 --> 00:27:59,280
Speaker 1: there already and that's the core of the forty nine

557
00:27:59,359 --> 00:28:02,720
Speaker 1: Ers team that made that push. The only real addition

558
00:28:02,800 --> 00:28:05,919
Speaker 1: that made a strong impact that year that Jim Harbaugh

559
00:28:05,960 --> 00:28:10,400
Speaker 1: selected was Alden Smith. So it's a very different situation

560
00:28:10,480 --> 00:28:14,760
Speaker 1: for me because the Chargers are we've talked about in

561
00:28:14,840 --> 00:28:17,359
Speaker 1: kind of a stage of flux. There's a lot of

562
00:28:17,520 --> 00:28:21,439
Speaker 1: veteran pieces that are potential cut candidates or will be

563
00:28:21,560 --> 00:28:24,960
Speaker 1: free agents. There's not like a core of ten players

564
00:28:24,960 --> 00:28:28,040
Speaker 1: that's going to carry over from last season to this season.

565
00:28:28,520 --> 00:28:30,719
Speaker 1: So I wanted to make that distinction because people are

566
00:28:30,760 --> 00:28:33,560
Speaker 1: talking about it, and obviously it's extremely relevant that Jim

567
00:28:33,560 --> 00:28:36,000
Speaker 1: Harbaugh can do that and has done that everywhere he's been.

568
00:28:36,680 --> 00:28:39,640
Speaker 1: But the comparison to me is like, maybe from a

569
00:28:39,680 --> 00:28:41,920
Speaker 1: record standpoint, like they were six and ten and the

570
00:28:42,000 --> 00:28:45,440
Speaker 1: Chargers were five and twelve, But from the roster standpoint,

571
00:28:45,520 --> 00:28:47,800
Speaker 1: this is a very different situation than Jim Harbaugh is

572
00:28:47,840 --> 00:28:49,600
Speaker 1: inheriting this season for the Chargers.

573
00:28:51,080 --> 00:28:54,080
Speaker 2: We don't even know what the vision is for the team.

574
00:28:54,120 --> 00:29:00,080
Speaker 2: We discussed previously, Hey, they could just trade several players

575
00:29:00,120 --> 00:29:03,200
Speaker 2: and acquire as many young rookie picks as they can,

576
00:29:03,600 --> 00:29:05,680
Speaker 2: but really make that push in twenty twenty five when

577
00:29:05,680 --> 00:29:08,520
Speaker 2: a lot more contracts roped the books, less dead money,

578
00:29:08,560 --> 00:29:11,840
Speaker 2: et cetera. They genuinely themselves could be looking at twenty

579
00:29:11,880 --> 00:29:14,520
Speaker 2: twenty five and going, hey, that's when we're really going

580
00:29:14,560 --> 00:29:16,720
Speaker 2: to make the push. Also, one thing I do want

581
00:29:16,760 --> 00:29:20,200
Speaker 2: to add, which I think is important, is that the

582
00:29:20,240 --> 00:29:23,720
Speaker 2: best team in the NFC West in twenty ten, before

583
00:29:23,720 --> 00:29:24,760
Speaker 2: the forty nine Ers got there.

584
00:29:24,680 --> 00:29:27,280
Speaker 3: In terms of record was the Seahawks, where the record

585
00:29:27,280 --> 00:29:28,080
Speaker 3: of seven and nine.

586
00:29:29,440 --> 00:29:31,520
Speaker 2: The Kansas City Chiefs are going to the super Bowl

587
00:29:31,560 --> 00:29:33,760
Speaker 2: for the forty seventh time in the last twelve years.

588
00:29:34,200 --> 00:29:37,640
Speaker 2: It's a very different division and it didn't conference wasn't

589
00:29:37,720 --> 00:29:41,600
Speaker 2: until it wasn't until twenty twelve that the Seahawks finally

590
00:29:41,600 --> 00:29:44,760
Speaker 2: had their winning record, because the next year, in twenty eleven,

591
00:29:45,240 --> 00:29:47,000
Speaker 2: the next best team I believe was eight and eight,

592
00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:49,840
Speaker 2: and that was the Cardinals, And then the Seahawks started

593
00:29:49,840 --> 00:29:51,880
Speaker 2: to make their push and they eventually overtook the forty

594
00:29:51,960 --> 00:29:54,280
Speaker 2: nine Ers. So it's also a very different division. So

595
00:29:54,320 --> 00:29:56,960
Speaker 2: we're talking about do the Chargers make you know, the

596
00:29:57,000 --> 00:29:59,240
Speaker 2: top eight here? Do they make that the eight to

597
00:29:59,320 --> 00:30:03,280
Speaker 2: finish out the co I don't really know, or each conference,

598
00:30:03,280 --> 00:30:05,680
Speaker 2: I should say, I don't know that the Chargers are

599
00:30:05,680 --> 00:30:08,720
Speaker 2: going to do that as easily as some might hope

600
00:30:09,160 --> 00:30:10,440
Speaker 2: because of the Chiefs.

601
00:30:10,480 --> 00:30:12,280
Speaker 3: It is not quite the same situation.

602
00:30:12,360 --> 00:30:15,960
Speaker 2: The forty nine Ers were primed to take the jump

603
00:30:16,320 --> 00:30:18,800
Speaker 2: in their division because there wasn't really anybody else. Again,

604
00:30:18,840 --> 00:30:21,040
Speaker 2: seven or nine was the best record that year for

605
00:30:21,040 --> 00:30:23,040
Speaker 2: someone else in the NFC West. The Chargers have the

606
00:30:23,120 --> 00:30:25,880
Speaker 2: Chiefs in their division. We'll see about the Broncos, We'll

607
00:30:25,880 --> 00:30:29,120
Speaker 2: see about the Raiders. But you know, I want the

608
00:30:29,160 --> 00:30:31,080
Speaker 2: Chargers do well, to do well. Of course, I hope

609
00:30:31,120 --> 00:30:33,960
Speaker 2: they win the division this year, but that NOD does

610
00:30:34,080 --> 00:30:36,680
Speaker 2: go to the Chiefs until proven otherwise. They're in the

611
00:30:36,720 --> 00:30:40,200
Speaker 2: Super Bowl again. They've been their sixth straight AFT championship.

612
00:30:40,280 --> 00:30:43,520
Speaker 2: So I think that basically I'm priming this and what

613
00:30:43,560 --> 00:30:45,440
Speaker 2: we're about to talk about with I don't think the

614
00:30:45,480 --> 00:30:47,600
Speaker 2: Chargers win the division, So I think we're talking about

615
00:30:48,280 --> 00:30:50,560
Speaker 2: sneaking in as a wildcard team and then seeing if

616
00:30:50,560 --> 00:30:52,800
Speaker 2: they can win one of those wildcard games.

617
00:30:53,680 --> 00:30:57,080
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think that's that's a much more you know,

618
00:30:57,200 --> 00:30:59,480
Speaker 1: realistic expectation for where this team is going to be

619
00:30:59,480 --> 00:31:02,959
Speaker 1: at in twenty twenty four. Again, that's a drastic improvement

620
00:31:03,160 --> 00:31:05,440
Speaker 1: of making the playoffs and like thinking that they could

621
00:31:05,440 --> 00:31:07,560
Speaker 1: really you know, do some damage in the playoffs of

622
00:31:07,560 --> 00:31:10,120
Speaker 1: where we were at, you know, two months ago, three

623
00:31:10,160 --> 00:31:13,360
Speaker 1: months ago obviously. So Jim Harbaugh is a great coach.

624
00:31:13,360 --> 00:31:15,000
Speaker 1: We just talked about Jesse Minter, we just talked about

625
00:31:15,080 --> 00:31:18,280
Speaker 1: Jeo Ortis I'm not putting anything past this group, but

626
00:31:18,440 --> 00:31:21,200
Speaker 1: the roster, to me, like it needs to be discussed

627
00:31:21,200 --> 00:31:24,960
Speaker 1: that this is not everybody's talking, you know, media wise

628
00:31:25,000 --> 00:31:29,520
Speaker 1: about the roster from last season being this great veteranlated roster.

629
00:31:29,960 --> 00:31:32,320
Speaker 1: It's not going to be the same. The roster is

630
00:31:32,360 --> 00:31:34,480
Speaker 1: going to have a lot of turnover. They're going to

631
00:31:34,520 --> 00:31:37,520
Speaker 1: have to hit on some young guys. Can they do that? Absolutely.

632
00:31:37,720 --> 00:31:39,880
Speaker 1: We just talked about Geoorties and his ability to hit,

633
00:31:39,920 --> 00:31:41,480
Speaker 1: you know, play the board, and it hit hit on

634
00:31:41,520 --> 00:31:45,360
Speaker 1: some young guys. So that's that is why, like my

635
00:31:45,440 --> 00:31:48,200
Speaker 1: brain is like, okay, can they contend? Okay, let's talk

636
00:31:48,200 --> 00:31:51,280
Speaker 1: about the roster first. The second thing that I think

637
00:31:51,560 --> 00:31:54,280
Speaker 1: is worth mentioning is like, what does that really look

638
00:31:54,360 --> 00:31:57,120
Speaker 1: like for the NFL. The easiest way to do that

639
00:31:57,320 --> 00:32:00,680
Speaker 1: for the Chargers is to have a bona fide, legitimate

640
00:32:00,760 --> 00:32:02,600
Speaker 1: top ten offense. I know that there's still a lot

641
00:32:02,600 --> 00:32:05,720
Speaker 1: of like defensive win championships, and the defense certainly played

642
00:32:05,720 --> 00:32:08,680
Speaker 1: some great football this past weekend. The easiest way to

643
00:32:08,720 --> 00:32:10,760
Speaker 1: make sure that you are playing football in the division

644
00:32:10,840 --> 00:32:12,720
Speaker 1: round is to have a top ten offense. If you

645
00:32:12,760 --> 00:32:15,840
Speaker 1: look at the numbers from an EPA per play standpoint

646
00:32:15,960 --> 00:32:19,600
Speaker 1: and a success rate standpoint. The only team that was

647
00:32:20,280 --> 00:32:25,000
Speaker 1: not at least borderline top ten in terms of offensive

648
00:32:25,040 --> 00:32:27,960
Speaker 1: potential that was in the Division round was the Tampa

649
00:32:28,000 --> 00:32:31,720
Speaker 1: Bay Buccaneers. But the Buccaneers were so good at hitting

650
00:32:31,760 --> 00:32:34,280
Speaker 1: on explosive plays with Mike Evans and Chris Godwin all

651
00:32:34,280 --> 00:32:38,680
Speaker 1: those guys that they were really like flirting with that line.

652
00:32:38,760 --> 00:32:41,720
Speaker 1: Everybody else was at least like at the top ten

653
00:32:41,840 --> 00:32:45,880
Speaker 1: range or higher, even the Chiefs, who appeared to have

654
00:32:46,040 --> 00:32:48,320
Speaker 1: like this this very average offense all season. They were

655
00:32:48,320 --> 00:32:52,120
Speaker 1: eleventh in EPA per play and success rate. So that's

656
00:32:52,160 --> 00:32:55,200
Speaker 1: the number from an offensive standpoint. The question is, obviously,

657
00:32:55,520 --> 00:32:57,280
Speaker 1: what do the Chargers have to do to get there

658
00:32:57,320 --> 00:33:00,400
Speaker 1: and how realistic is that possibility season.

659
00:33:01,520 --> 00:33:05,680
Speaker 2: That's a really good question, and that is impossible to

660
00:33:05,800 --> 00:33:08,960
Speaker 2: really answer this point until we see what happens, what

661
00:33:09,080 --> 00:33:11,360
Speaker 2: happens at center, what happens at wide receiver, what happens

662
00:33:11,360 --> 00:33:13,320
Speaker 2: at tight end, what happens at running back. You know

663
00:33:13,360 --> 00:33:15,240
Speaker 2: that there's so much the Chargers have to figure out

664
00:33:15,240 --> 00:33:17,920
Speaker 2: that It's a question that we can definitely address again

665
00:33:17,960 --> 00:33:21,000
Speaker 2: and we will address again after the draft, after free agency.

666
00:33:21,520 --> 00:33:23,760
Speaker 2: During the summer at some point when we see how

667
00:33:23,800 --> 00:33:26,480
Speaker 2: some of these injuries, you know, play out, how people return,

668
00:33:26,560 --> 00:33:29,880
Speaker 2: et cetera. So that is definitely one one thing I

669
00:33:29,880 --> 00:33:31,720
Speaker 2: do need to bring up, and I think that I'm

670
00:33:31,760 --> 00:33:34,720
Speaker 2: sure we're all thinking the same thing. The good news

671
00:33:34,840 --> 00:33:38,000
Speaker 2: about not being very good one season is that you

672
00:33:38,040 --> 00:33:41,000
Speaker 2: get to play the NFL worst schedule in terms of

673
00:33:41,080 --> 00:33:45,280
Speaker 2: sure you are the division quote unquote loser. Therefore you

674
00:33:45,320 --> 00:33:47,480
Speaker 2: get to play that schedule and it benefits the Chargers

675
00:33:47,520 --> 00:33:51,560
Speaker 2: tremendously that they will play ten games against teams who

676
00:33:51,600 --> 00:33:55,960
Speaker 2: finished fourteenth or worse. I would say picking fourteenth or higher,

677
00:33:56,280 --> 00:33:58,320
Speaker 2: but the Panthers don't on their pick, so I will

678
00:33:58,360 --> 00:34:01,840
Speaker 2: say they play ten games against teams who finished fourteenth

679
00:34:01,960 --> 00:34:04,800
Speaker 2: or worse, and it really helps them that half of

680
00:34:04,840 --> 00:34:06,880
Speaker 2: their road games are against teams that are going to

681
00:34:06,920 --> 00:34:11,000
Speaker 2: be who finished bottom eight in the NFL. So there's

682
00:34:11,080 --> 00:34:13,319
Speaker 2: a lot going on on their schedule. You know, some

683
00:34:13,480 --> 00:34:18,600
Speaker 2: teams new coaches, the Panthers, the Patriots, the Falcons, the Titans.

684
00:34:18,600 --> 00:34:19,960
Speaker 2: These are all teams that are going to be picking

685
00:34:20,040 --> 00:34:22,799
Speaker 2: top eight. They've got new coaches or there's trying to

686
00:34:22,800 --> 00:34:25,600
Speaker 2: find new coaches. The Chargers really do, I think have

687
00:34:25,680 --> 00:34:28,720
Speaker 2: a bit more of an advantage here because of Jim Harbaugh.

688
00:34:28,920 --> 00:34:31,439
Speaker 2: It's very different, and this is why you spend the money.

689
00:34:31,560 --> 00:34:34,440
Speaker 2: There are first time head coaches with their franchises, and

690
00:34:34,480 --> 00:34:38,319
Speaker 2: they're coaches entering their first year with these franchises, and

691
00:34:38,320 --> 00:34:40,879
Speaker 2: then there's Jim Harbaugh entering his first year with the Charges.

692
00:34:40,920 --> 00:34:43,040
Speaker 2: It is just very different. And you have some like

693
00:34:43,080 --> 00:34:46,960
Speaker 2: Horti's who sure first year GM, longtime guy in the

694
00:34:47,040 --> 00:34:49,920
Speaker 2: NFL with a lot of success, these sort of things.

695
00:34:50,000 --> 00:34:52,000
Speaker 2: These pairings are going to do well for the Chargers.

696
00:34:52,040 --> 00:34:53,960
Speaker 2: So you know, if they hit in the draft, I

697
00:34:54,000 --> 00:34:56,279
Speaker 2: do think they're going to be pretty good.

698
00:34:57,400 --> 00:35:00,000
Speaker 3: How close we'll see Chargers fans? I pulled them.

699
00:35:00,520 --> 00:35:03,640
Speaker 2: Two thousand fans responded in the poll, and they said

700
00:35:03,680 --> 00:35:06,960
Speaker 2: the Charges would be contenders in twenty twenty four or

701
00:35:06,960 --> 00:35:09,600
Speaker 2: actuld say fifty five percent and said the Charges would

702
00:35:09,640 --> 00:35:13,080
Speaker 2: be consistent playoff contenders starting in twenty twenty four, and

703
00:35:13,160 --> 00:35:16,080
Speaker 2: forty percent of them said twenty twenty five. So I

704
00:35:16,080 --> 00:35:17,879
Speaker 2: guess we got to ask the question, then, Steven, where

705
00:35:17,920 --> 00:35:18,359
Speaker 2: are you at?

706
00:35:19,719 --> 00:35:22,880
Speaker 1: Yeah? I think Jim Harbaugh made him himself very clear

707
00:35:23,000 --> 00:35:26,720
Speaker 1: on Sunday on CBS why he came back to the Chargers.

708
00:35:26,760 --> 00:35:28,920
Speaker 1: He he's coming back to win a super Bowl and

709
00:35:28,960 --> 00:35:31,960
Speaker 1: that's that's the bar for him to reach. How long

710
00:35:32,040 --> 00:35:36,080
Speaker 1: that takes, we'll see. Obviously, winning the super Bowl is extremely,

711
00:35:36,160 --> 00:35:41,359
Speaker 1: extremely difficult. But to me, if you're asking me how

712
00:35:41,400 --> 00:35:44,440
Speaker 1: soon can the Chargers reach their divisional round, I think

713
00:35:44,480 --> 00:35:46,800
Speaker 1: it will be twenty twenty four. But it's going to

714
00:35:46,880 --> 00:35:49,000
Speaker 1: take a lot of things to go their way. You

715
00:35:49,080 --> 00:35:51,160
Speaker 1: have to hit on some draft picks. You have to

716
00:35:51,200 --> 00:35:53,680
Speaker 1: get some veterans in here on the cheap who can

717
00:35:53,719 --> 00:35:57,239
Speaker 1: maximize their contract. Is it possible one hundred percent? You

718
00:35:57,280 --> 00:35:59,160
Speaker 1: mentioned the schedule. Jim Harbaugh is going to have a

719
00:35:59,200 --> 00:36:02,560
Speaker 1: coaching advantage every single week for the most part, you know,

720
00:36:03,000 --> 00:36:04,960
Speaker 1: on the Charger of schedule, they're gonna have a quarterback

721
00:36:05,000 --> 00:36:07,239
Speaker 1: advantage on the for the most part, every single week

722
00:36:07,280 --> 00:36:09,960
Speaker 1: on their schedule. Is it possible that they look at

723
00:36:09,960 --> 00:36:13,880
Speaker 1: that schedule and they can go, you know, eleven and six? Probably?

724
00:36:14,640 --> 00:36:18,480
Speaker 1: I think that's you know, a realistic outcome. Is it

725
00:36:18,840 --> 00:36:20,640
Speaker 1: Is it a season that I want to bet on

726
00:36:20,760 --> 00:36:24,919
Speaker 1: that they make the division round on I'm probably gonna

727
00:36:24,920 --> 00:36:26,600
Speaker 1: say no. And I know that's probably gonna make people

728
00:36:26,640 --> 00:36:29,520
Speaker 1: say unhappy. But I just think, like I mentioned, the

729
00:36:29,640 --> 00:36:34,520
Speaker 1: roster is going to really undergo some some over corrections,

730
00:36:34,600 --> 00:36:38,600
Speaker 1: shall we say, to the point where it's gonna look

731
00:36:38,680 --> 00:36:42,000
Speaker 1: very very different, you know, uh heading into twenty twenty four.

732
00:36:42,440 --> 00:36:45,200
Speaker 1: I think from a roster standpoint, the goal is to

733
00:36:45,400 --> 00:36:49,000
Speaker 1: have that roster ready to rock in twenty twenty five. Again,

734
00:36:49,120 --> 00:36:53,839
Speaker 1: Jim Harbaugh, justin Herbert definitely, you know, Rashawn Slater, maybe

735
00:36:53,920 --> 00:36:56,440
Speaker 1: Keenan Allen will see there. Maybe Mike Williams sixs around,

736
00:36:56,480 --> 00:37:00,560
Speaker 1: we'll see there. This core of offense can certainly reach

737
00:37:00,600 --> 00:37:03,000
Speaker 1: that number. It can certainly win you some games. I

738
00:37:03,360 --> 00:37:05,240
Speaker 1: don't know if I'm going to predict that to happen

739
00:37:05,360 --> 00:37:08,319
Speaker 1: right now. Playoffs, yes, I'm on board with them being

740
00:37:08,320 --> 00:37:10,920
Speaker 1: a playoff team in twenty twenty four, but winning a

741
00:37:10,920 --> 00:37:13,399
Speaker 1: playoff game, making it to the division round or further,

742
00:37:14,239 --> 00:37:17,040
Speaker 1: I'm not there quite just yet. I need to see

743
00:37:17,080 --> 00:37:20,520
Speaker 1: how the offseason goes before I can make that declaration.

744
00:37:21,040 --> 00:37:23,799
Speaker 2: Yeah, I think you and are an agreement that we

745
00:37:23,840 --> 00:37:26,520
Speaker 2: will pick them to make the postseason in some capacity.

746
00:37:26,600 --> 00:37:28,359
Speaker 3: I think that's what Jim Harbaugh does.

747
00:37:28,960 --> 00:37:31,640
Speaker 2: I can't be doing handstands and cartwheels and crazing everybody

748
00:37:31,680 --> 00:37:33,560
Speaker 2: and all these acquisitions, and then say they're going to

749
00:37:33,640 --> 00:37:34,480
Speaker 2: miss the postseason.

750
00:37:34,680 --> 00:37:37,120
Speaker 3: We're excited for a reason, and Jim Harbor is that reason.

751
00:37:37,200 --> 00:37:39,320
Speaker 2: So yes, I do believe the Charges will make the

752
00:37:39,360 --> 00:37:41,000
Speaker 2: postseason in twenty twenty four.

753
00:37:41,440 --> 00:37:43,919
Speaker 3: You have Justin Herbert. You're going to be good.

754
00:37:43,960 --> 00:37:47,320
Speaker 2: And I think what they lose in terms of players

755
00:37:47,760 --> 00:37:49,719
Speaker 2: because the several players are going to be gone, that

756
00:37:49,840 --> 00:37:51,960
Speaker 2: is the nature of the salary cap, the salary cap

757
00:37:52,000 --> 00:37:56,359
Speaker 2: being real, roster turnover, new regimes, et cetera. What they

758
00:37:56,400 --> 00:37:59,440
Speaker 2: lose in those players that go, they make up for

759
00:37:59,520 --> 00:38:01,880
Speaker 2: in the maxization of the players on their roster.

760
00:38:01,920 --> 00:38:03,640
Speaker 3: Whether that's coaching, whether.

761
00:38:03,400 --> 00:38:06,279
Speaker 2: That's a new facility, whether it's the strength and conditioning coach,

762
00:38:06,600 --> 00:38:10,240
Speaker 2: whether it's the new money poured into an analytics department, whatever,

763
00:38:10,360 --> 00:38:12,520
Speaker 2: those things are going to matter. So we could see,

764
00:38:12,719 --> 00:38:15,719
Speaker 2: like you take this exact same group and give them

765
00:38:15,760 --> 00:38:19,080
Speaker 2: to another very high qualified, first year head coach, and

766
00:38:19,120 --> 00:38:21,719
Speaker 2: I think we're saying something different. I genuinely believe with

767
00:38:21,719 --> 00:38:24,160
Speaker 2: all the turnover that this team does not make the

768
00:38:24,160 --> 00:38:24,799
Speaker 2: postseason in.

769
00:38:24,760 --> 00:38:25,520
Speaker 3: Twenty twenty four.

770
00:38:25,600 --> 00:38:28,400
Speaker 2: But you have Jim Harbaugh, and that is an advantage

771
00:38:28,400 --> 00:38:31,000
Speaker 2: the Chargers have not had in a very very long time.

772
00:38:31,040 --> 00:38:33,719
Speaker 2: And I just think the maximization of your roster, where

773
00:38:33,760 --> 00:38:35,840
Speaker 2: like you said, they're finding hidden ways to win in

774
00:38:35,880 --> 00:38:38,479
Speaker 2: the draft, where they're going to be the toughest team,

775
00:38:38,480 --> 00:38:40,880
Speaker 2: and you know, Jim Harbaugh would track how many reps

776
00:38:40,880 --> 00:38:43,040
Speaker 2: in practice that their team would do and say, ha,

777
00:38:43,200 --> 00:38:45,480
Speaker 2: no one else is doing more than the forty nine ers.

778
00:38:45,520 --> 00:38:48,919
Speaker 2: Like that is Jim Harbor. They're going to win every day,

779
00:38:49,000 --> 00:38:51,359
Speaker 2: every second, every minute, and Jim Harbaugh wants it so bad.

780
00:38:51,400 --> 00:38:54,240
Speaker 2: Like you said, there's no Lombardi Trophy in college football.

781
00:38:54,680 --> 00:38:57,440
Speaker 2: All that dude wants is a championship. And I think

782
00:38:57,440 --> 00:39:00,359
Speaker 2: he's the perfect pairing for a quarterback who just wants

783
00:39:00,400 --> 00:39:02,839
Speaker 2: to freaking win. He just wants to go out there

784
00:39:02,840 --> 00:39:05,200
Speaker 2: and when that's all he wants, it's football, and it's

785
00:39:05,239 --> 00:39:07,239
Speaker 2: when he wants to do that. They've got a coach

786
00:39:07,239 --> 00:39:11,080
Speaker 2: who can definitely bring that. So I agree playoffs in

787
00:39:11,080 --> 00:39:13,000
Speaker 2: twenty twenty four. Can they win at a game and

788
00:39:13,000 --> 00:39:16,440
Speaker 2: get to the divisional round? I think yes, that slightly

789
00:39:16,480 --> 00:39:20,080
Speaker 2: depends on who they're playing. A lot of really good

790
00:39:20,080 --> 00:39:22,319
Speaker 2: teams out there, of course in the AFC and really

791
00:39:22,320 --> 00:39:24,640
Speaker 2: the AFC is up in the air right now. How

792
00:39:24,640 --> 00:39:27,600
Speaker 2: many quarterbacks were not playing or how many good teams

793
00:39:27,640 --> 00:39:28,880
Speaker 2: missed the postseason because.

794
00:39:28,640 --> 00:39:31,359
Speaker 3: The quarterback got hurt. But yeah, I agree with you.

795
00:39:31,400 --> 00:39:34,719
Speaker 2: The Chargers will make the playoffs in twenty twenty four,

796
00:39:34,760 --> 00:39:37,600
Speaker 2: as long as everyone stays relatively healthy, of course, and

797
00:39:37,719 --> 00:39:38,760
Speaker 2: Justin Herbert's out there.

798
00:39:39,080 --> 00:39:41,320
Speaker 3: I feel good about the team, and I feel even

799
00:39:41,440 --> 00:39:42,680
Speaker 3: better in twenty twenty five.

800
00:39:43,440 --> 00:39:46,360
Speaker 1: Yeah. I think that's a great point about the coaching standpoint,

801
00:39:46,400 --> 00:39:48,359
Speaker 1: because there were first time head coaches that I would

802
00:39:48,360 --> 00:39:51,759
Speaker 1: I am pretty excited about. But that changes the trajectory

803
00:39:51,840 --> 00:39:54,800
Speaker 1: of the team. Like we're talking about all this roster turnover.

804
00:39:54,880 --> 00:39:56,840
Speaker 1: But I'm still expecting them to make to be a

805
00:39:56,880 --> 00:40:00,279
Speaker 1: playoff team because of Jim Harbaugh, because of Joe or Teas,

806
00:40:00,360 --> 00:40:03,040
Speaker 1: because of Justin Herbert. Lots of j H's going around

807
00:40:03,560 --> 00:40:07,560
Speaker 1: fun fact, But I think this trio of men, if

808
00:40:07,600 --> 00:40:10,080
Speaker 1: you will have the goods to be able to take

809
00:40:10,120 --> 00:40:13,400
Speaker 1: them to that playoff step and see what happens to

810
00:40:13,520 --> 00:40:16,920
Speaker 1: me the real like contender, Like that's twenty twenty five

811
00:40:16,960 --> 00:40:19,520
Speaker 1: when the Chargers could have more money, more picks, a

812
00:40:19,719 --> 00:40:22,520
Speaker 1: year in the system, all that stuff. Playoff team in

813
00:40:22,560 --> 00:40:25,600
Speaker 1: twenty twenty four, potential super Bowl threat in twenty twenty five. That,

814
00:40:25,719 --> 00:40:28,239
Speaker 1: to me is the goal, that's the timeline. If this

815
00:40:28,360 --> 00:40:30,920
Speaker 1: were a first year coach, you're probably talking about like, hey,

816
00:40:31,000 --> 00:40:33,040
Speaker 1: let's be a little frisky like seven and ten next

817
00:40:33,120 --> 00:40:35,480
Speaker 1: year and be a playoff team in twenty twenty five.

818
00:40:35,600 --> 00:40:37,360
Speaker 1: But this is Jim Harma we're talking about. This is

819
00:40:37,360 --> 00:40:39,759
Speaker 1: a playoff team in twenty twenty four, potential super Bowl

820
00:40:39,760 --> 00:40:40,759
Speaker 1: threat in twenty twenty five.

821
00:40:41,400 --> 00:40:44,399
Speaker 2: Yeah, let's assume the Chiefs get the number one seed

822
00:40:44,440 --> 00:40:46,200
Speaker 2: next year. Sure, why not? They're in the super Bowl.

823
00:40:46,200 --> 00:40:48,440
Speaker 2: So let's seem to get the number one seed. Do

824
00:40:48,560 --> 00:40:51,240
Speaker 2: the Chargers when I pick the Chargers to then go

825
00:40:51,719 --> 00:40:56,719
Speaker 2: win in Baltimore, win in Buffalo, these places probably not,

826
00:40:57,320 --> 00:40:59,680
Speaker 2: you know, I think you have to respect what those

827
00:40:59,719 --> 00:41:02,240
Speaker 2: teams are able to do and how far they get

828
00:41:02,520 --> 00:41:05,200
Speaker 2: in the postseason typically, So yeah, I don't know if

829
00:41:05,239 --> 00:41:09,080
Speaker 2: they would go beat the AFC Juggernauts right now, but

830
00:41:09,520 --> 00:41:11,960
Speaker 2: you never know. You that four team, that fourteen that

831
00:41:12,000 --> 00:41:13,560
Speaker 2: win the division that maybe isn't so great.

832
00:41:13,840 --> 00:41:16,880
Speaker 3: You happen to play that team then maybe, Yeah.

833
00:41:16,719 --> 00:41:20,440
Speaker 1: Whoever wins the AFC South is going down that's gonna

834
00:41:20,480 --> 00:41:27,920
Speaker 1: tell the age well oh boy, but man, it's an

835
00:41:27,960 --> 00:41:30,920
Speaker 1: exciting day. Like I mentioned, the season is going to

836
00:41:30,960 --> 00:41:33,360
Speaker 1: look so different. There's a lot of change on the horizon,

837
00:41:33,400 --> 00:41:36,560
Speaker 1: I think for the better. You know, all of these

838
00:41:36,600 --> 00:41:38,640
Speaker 1: things coming together at the same time that the new

839
00:41:38,640 --> 00:41:40,440
Speaker 1: facility is opening up and Elsa. You know, it feels

840
00:41:40,480 --> 00:41:44,640
Speaker 1: really almost poetic to me. I'm just like, I'm so excited.

841
00:41:44,760 --> 00:41:47,319
Speaker 1: This season was such a frustrating season. I know all

842
00:41:47,320 --> 00:41:50,000
Speaker 1: of you listening feel that same way. But it's been

843
00:41:50,280 --> 00:41:52,279
Speaker 1: it's been quite the reward over the last week. It's

844
00:41:52,280 --> 00:41:54,799
Speaker 1: been a fun ride. We podcasted like basically every day

845
00:41:54,920 --> 00:41:57,520
Speaker 1: last week, live streaming with all of you. It's been

846
00:41:57,880 --> 00:42:01,240
Speaker 1: a great turnout. The Chargers did that awesome video featuring

847
00:42:01,360 --> 00:42:05,040
Speaker 1: our reactions along with alongside some other great Charges content creators.

848
00:42:05,080 --> 00:42:07,560
Speaker 1: So it's been a ton of fun to cover. I

849
00:42:08,280 --> 00:42:09,719
Speaker 1: know most of you have had a lot of fun,

850
00:42:10,640 --> 00:42:13,239
Speaker 1: you know, searching everything on Twitter, Instagram, Facebook, whatever and

851
00:42:13,280 --> 00:42:17,760
Speaker 1: all that stuff too. So exciting times ahead for sure, Tyler.

852
00:42:17,960 --> 00:42:19,560
Speaker 1: Any final thoughts before we had out today.

853
00:42:20,360 --> 00:42:23,880
Speaker 2: You know, as a biology major and haven't done research before,

854
00:42:24,000 --> 00:42:27,640
Speaker 2: I'm something of a scientist myself and I've gone through

855
00:42:27,680 --> 00:42:29,440
Speaker 2: all the research and I've just kind of had a

856
00:42:29,440 --> 00:42:31,719
Speaker 2: little side project, right, and I was really trying to

857
00:42:31,760 --> 00:42:33,600
Speaker 2: answer the question because I really want to do the

858
00:42:33,600 --> 00:42:36,359
Speaker 2: research here of you know, who has it better than us.

859
00:42:36,400 --> 00:42:38,400
Speaker 2: And after going through all the research and reading all

860
00:42:38,400 --> 00:42:41,800
Speaker 2: the articles, it turns out the answer is nobody.

861
00:42:43,400 --> 00:42:45,919
Speaker 1: Nice little Spider Man reference there at the end. I'd

862
00:42:45,960 --> 00:42:48,040
Speaker 1: love to see it. Love to see it. That video

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Speaker 1: that The Charge is released today where he said the

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00:42:50,719 --> 00:42:53,120
Speaker 1: nobody for the first time in powder Blues. That was

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Speaker 1: an excellent touch by the Charge of social media page.

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Speaker 1: Just a fantastic work there. So thank you guys so

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Speaker 1: much for tuning in today. Thank you to Eddie and

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00:43:03,160 --> 00:43:06,719
Speaker 1: Greg for producing. As always, appreciate you guys for subscribing,

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00:43:06,880 --> 00:43:09,040
Speaker 1: liking all that good stuff. Don't forget to take a

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00:43:09,040 --> 00:43:10,680
Speaker 1: moment and subscribe to our own channel to get the

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00:43:10,719 --> 00:43:13,399
Speaker 1: US Charge podcasts as well. We appreciate you. We'll see

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00:43:13,400 --> 00:43:15,439
Speaker 1: you next time. As always, full time