WEBVTT - Senior Bowl Preview with Jim Nagy 0:00:01.000 --> 0:00:08.880 That keep your booking Deep down, fail, clutchdown, Miami drawn. 0:00:13.600 --> 0:00:18.000 What is up, Dolphans And welcome to the Drive Time Podcast, 0:00:18.320 --> 0:00:22.520 part of the Miami Dolphins official podcast network, covering your team, 0:00:22.560 --> 0:00:26.880 your Miami Dolphins, each and every day. How's it going everybody? 0:00:26.920 --> 0:00:30.479 It is Tuesday. I am your host, Travis Wingfield, and 0:00:30.520 --> 0:00:33.519 I'm here to bring you your daily dose of Miami 0:00:33.560 --> 0:00:36.239 Dolphins football. And on today's show, we reeled in a 0:00:36.360 --> 0:00:40.040 big big Fish Championship weekend is in the books. Two 0:00:40.080 --> 0:00:43.879 teams remain and that means we are on to Senior 0:00:43.960 --> 0:00:46.640 Bowl week and we've got Jim Naggy, the director of 0:00:46.680 --> 0:00:49.879 the Senior Bowl, on tap for this edition. This Tuesday, 0:00:50.000 --> 0:00:58.080 January edition of the Drivetime Podcasts and practices for the 0:00:58.120 --> 0:01:00.680 Senior Bowl will begin today on nf All Network. The 0:01:00.720 --> 0:01:04.680 next three days they will televise those practices. Brian Flores 0:01:04.720 --> 0:01:07.640 and the entire Miami Dolphins coaching staff will be out there, 0:01:07.800 --> 0:01:11.080 and we conclude with the game on Saturday that kicks 0:01:11.080 --> 0:01:14.160 off at two o'clock Eastern, and we're gonna jump into 0:01:14.240 --> 0:01:17.040 my interview with Jim Naggi here in just one second. 0:01:17.080 --> 0:01:20.120 But first, some Dolphins coaching news over the weekend, the 0:01:20.160 --> 0:01:23.320 Dolphins made a change to the staff at the quarterback position. 0:01:23.680 --> 0:01:26.120 Charlie Fry. You might recognize that name from his playing 0:01:26.200 --> 0:01:29.520 days back with the Cleveland Browns, the Seattle Seahawks, and 0:01:29.560 --> 0:01:32.920 the Oakland Raiders. He has been named the Dolphins quarterbacks 0:01:32.959 --> 0:01:35.800 coach as the Dolphins also parted ways with a man 0:01:35.840 --> 0:01:39.240 that held that position in and Robbie brown Now. His 0:01:39.280 --> 0:01:42.160 most recent stop for Charlie Fry was as the offensive 0:01:42.200 --> 0:01:45.760 coordinator at Central Michigan in the Mac Mac Tuesday Baby, 0:01:45.760 --> 0:01:48.120 one of my favorite college days of the entire week. 0:01:48.320 --> 0:01:51.040 He led the Chippawa's offense to two D eight team 0:01:51.120 --> 0:01:54.040 point two rushing yards per game this past season, and 0:01:54.040 --> 0:01:57.880 in twenty nineteen they gained six thousand seventy total yards. 0:01:58.000 --> 0:02:00.720 That was the most in the Mid American. Friends, as 0:02:00.760 --> 0:02:04.240 the coaching staff starts to round out here for one season, 0:02:04.240 --> 0:02:07.400 Brian Flores is third here in Miami. Let's go ahead 0:02:07.400 --> 0:02:09.680 and waste no more time on this edition of Drive 0:02:09.720 --> 0:02:13.200 Time and welcome in my guest Jim Naggy and writing 0:02:13.200 --> 0:02:16.280 Shotgun Now on the Drivetime podcast is the director of 0:02:16.320 --> 0:02:18.680 the Reese's Senior Bowl. He was a scout in the 0:02:18.760 --> 0:02:21.960 NFL for eighteen years. Jim Naggy, Jim, thank you so 0:02:22.040 --> 0:02:25.480 much for joining me today. Yeah, I appreciate you having 0:02:25.480 --> 0:02:27.079 me on. Yeah, it was nice to meet you. Last 0:02:27.120 --> 0:02:29.040 year Indianapolis was hoping to get a chance to do 0:02:29.080 --> 0:02:31.119 that again, but that's that's not gonna happen this year. 0:02:31.160 --> 0:02:34.080 But we we do get it to enjoy the festivities 0:02:34.120 --> 0:02:36.239 of Senior Bowl because of what it's become in terms 0:02:36.280 --> 0:02:39.160 of the national broadcast and all the stuff that goes 0:02:39.200 --> 0:02:41.480 along with it. And and Jim, I had mentioned this 0:02:41.560 --> 0:02:44.799 on Twitter, but man, these rosters just continue to get 0:02:44.840 --> 0:02:47.760 beefier and beefier each year. Dane Brugler, one of the 0:02:47.800 --> 0:02:50.280 good draft writers over The Athletic, mentioned that forty of 0:02:50.400 --> 0:02:53.399 his top one players on his first big board will 0:02:53.440 --> 0:02:56.280 be descending on Mobile this week. How have you and 0:02:56.320 --> 0:02:58.440 your team been able to make this event such a 0:02:58.560 --> 0:03:00.880 draw for some of the big names maybe in the 0:03:00.960 --> 0:03:07.400 past would have passed on the opportunity to come to Mobile. Uh, yeah, Travis, 0:03:07.440 --> 0:03:09.520 I appreciate you saying that. You know, we we really 0:03:10.000 --> 0:03:12.320 when we got here almost three years ago. Now it's 0:03:12.360 --> 0:03:16.200 our third game cycle. Really wanted to put the focus 0:03:16.200 --> 0:03:18.440 on the tape and we've never had tape here at 0:03:18.480 --> 0:03:20.600 the Senior Bowls, so we had to jumped through a 0:03:20.639 --> 0:03:22.919 lot of hoops in the league office and and get 0:03:23.000 --> 0:03:25.000 the tape that all the thirty two NFL teams do 0:03:25.080 --> 0:03:28.520 so we can download anything we want, which has been huge. 0:03:28.520 --> 0:03:30.400 You know, We've hired a scouting staff of guys that 0:03:30.440 --> 0:03:33.120 have scouted in the league before, just to get some 0:03:33.200 --> 0:03:35.520 veteran eyes on these players. And I really try to 0:03:35.560 --> 0:03:37.600 run this thing like a you know, like a real 0:03:37.680 --> 0:03:41.160 personnel department. And uh so that's that we've worked really 0:03:41.160 --> 0:03:43.240 hard at that. And and then also using the social 0:03:43.280 --> 0:03:45.760 media has been really big with us in terms of 0:03:45.760 --> 0:03:48.680 connecting with players early. And we'll start watching tape for 0:03:48.760 --> 0:03:51.200 next year's game here and just just in probably two 0:03:51.240 --> 0:03:53.960 or three weeks um after this year's game is over, 0:03:54.520 --> 0:03:56.720 and so what you know, we'll start cranking out content 0:03:57.000 --> 0:04:01.400 um for the draft even before gets here. You know, 0:04:01.440 --> 0:04:04.320 it's important, it's it's important to connect with these guys early, 0:04:05.080 --> 0:04:07.360 let them know that we're looking at him. And really, 0:04:07.400 --> 0:04:10.080 the the other part of it is just changing that narrative, Travis, 0:04:10.080 --> 0:04:13.520 that you talked about. Um, to me, our game has 0:04:13.640 --> 0:04:17.320 more value for the first round picks than these, than 0:04:17.440 --> 0:04:19.880 like the middle round guys that can play their way up. 0:04:20.320 --> 0:04:24.200 That hasn't been like the popular mindset in the past, 0:04:24.240 --> 0:04:26.200 and I think it needs to be. You know, Terry 0:04:26.240 --> 0:04:28.080 McLaurin came to the game a couple of years ago 0:04:28.120 --> 0:04:30.640 as a fifth or sixth round pick. Um had a 0:04:30.640 --> 0:04:33.360 great week down here, turned everyone inside out, nobody could 0:04:33.400 --> 0:04:35.640 handle him, and he went in the third round. So 0:04:35.720 --> 0:04:38.640 that that's a huge jump for a player. You know, Um, 0:04:38.720 --> 0:04:40.880 and in hindsights, Terry should have been a first round pick. 0:04:40.960 --> 0:04:43.680 But um, you know, but for if you go from 0:04:45.040 --> 0:04:48.800 eighteen or if you go from thirty six to twenty nine, 0:04:49.160 --> 0:04:51.359 I mean those jumps that you make more more money 0:04:51.400 --> 0:04:53.440 making those jumps than you do jump in two or 0:04:53.440 --> 0:04:55.840 three rounds later in the draft. So to me, if 0:04:55.839 --> 0:04:58.440 you're sitting there at twenty one and you could get 0:04:58.480 --> 0:05:01.800 to fourteen, and mean, that's like seven or eight million 0:05:01.839 --> 0:05:03.960 dollars just to like just to putt in like three 0:05:04.040 --> 0:05:07.359 days of work. So um, yeah, just it's just trying 0:05:07.360 --> 0:05:09.680 to create that mindset that been around the game for 0:05:09.720 --> 0:05:12.240 a long long time. I really do feel like this 0:05:12.279 --> 0:05:15.240 game benefits those those top round guys, those first dround 0:05:15.279 --> 0:05:17.479 guys more so than anyone. I'm glad you brought up 0:05:17.520 --> 0:05:20.240 Terry McLarin because even watching him on the television broadcast 0:05:20.320 --> 0:05:22.440 and just watching, you know, the way he looked on 0:05:22.480 --> 0:05:25.200 the field, man, that was fun to watch. Deebo Sam 0:05:25.279 --> 0:05:27.080 another guy that comes to mind that really kind of 0:05:27.240 --> 0:05:29.240 did well for his stock. And then Javon kin Law 0:05:29.320 --> 0:05:30.760 last year, I think he had what one day of 0:05:30.839 --> 0:05:33.680 practice and and he winds up, you know, showing everybody, Okay, 0:05:33.680 --> 0:05:35.440 he's one of the best players on the football field 0:05:35.440 --> 0:05:37.640 out here. So it's it's so much fun to watch 0:05:37.640 --> 0:05:39.880 those one on one drills and and what what goes 0:05:39.880 --> 0:05:42.240 on the week of practice. But this year the Dolphins 0:05:42.240 --> 0:05:44.280 Crav Travis, let me cut you off there, since we're 0:05:44.320 --> 0:05:48.320 talking Dolphins. Um On last year's board, we had three 0:05:48.320 --> 0:05:50.560 different defensive tackles at the top of the board. We 0:05:50.560 --> 0:05:53.560 had Derek Brown one, we had Javon kin Law too, 0:05:53.640 --> 0:05:56.080 and we had ray Kwon Davis like he he and 0:05:56.120 --> 0:05:58.120 he and kin Law were like touching each other on 0:05:58.160 --> 0:06:00.480 the board. They were that they were that close. One 0:06:00.520 --> 0:06:03.280 guy came to Mobile, the other guy was committed to 0:06:03.320 --> 0:06:07.120 Mobile and pulled out the day three hours before he's 0:06:07.120 --> 0:06:09.800 supposed to get on a flight and Ken law will 0:06:09.880 --> 0:06:12.400 goes four teen and Rey Kwan went what somewhere in 0:06:12.440 --> 0:06:15.240 the late fifties or something like that. So um. And 0:06:15.320 --> 0:06:17.040 you look at what Rei Kwan did on the field. 0:06:17.480 --> 0:06:20.160 He had a great rookie year. He's a great football player. 0:06:20.560 --> 0:06:23.240 But pulling out as late as he did and not 0:06:23.320 --> 0:06:26.400 showing himself in front of these thirty two decision makers 0:06:26.440 --> 0:06:29.400 that really impacted where he got drafted. So um, I 0:06:29.480 --> 0:06:32.080 think that's a perfect example of what this week can 0:06:32.120 --> 0:06:34.040 do for guys and and how it can hurt him 0:06:34.040 --> 0:06:36.200 if they choose not to play. I'm glad you brought 0:06:36.240 --> 0:06:39.120 up Rey Kwon Davis. You know coach Flora's when he drafted. 0:06:39.160 --> 0:06:41.880 When when Ray Kwan got drafted, Coach Flora's was was 0:06:41.920 --> 0:06:43.400 caught on camera with a little bit of a smile 0:06:43.400 --> 0:06:45.600 on his face there, and he certainly, uh you know, 0:06:45.760 --> 0:06:47.600 proved why that smiles on his face. In the second 0:06:47.640 --> 0:06:49.679 half of the season, he played really well, like you mentioned, 0:06:49.920 --> 0:06:52.279 and you talk about this Dolphins coaching staff was gonna 0:06:52.320 --> 0:06:54.839 be coaching the national team in the game next Saturday. 0:06:55.279 --> 0:06:57.440 What was that conversation like with you and your old 0:06:57.440 --> 0:06:59.680 friend Brian Floor's you guys go way back when you 0:06:59.760 --> 0:07:01.680 offer him him and his staff that spot. What was 0:07:01.720 --> 0:07:05.400 that conversation, Like, Well, it's not us, Travis, it's the 0:07:05.480 --> 0:07:08.360 NFL league office. So the football operations on on Park 0:07:08.400 --> 0:07:10.920 Avenue pick our teams, Um, they go, they go with 0:07:10.960 --> 0:07:14.240 the draft orders. So um, yeah, Flow and I talked 0:07:14.240 --> 0:07:16.040 about it last year and I was really hopeful they 0:07:16.040 --> 0:07:18.560 would get the game. Last year I didn't work out, 0:07:18.600 --> 0:07:20.080 and it was great that it worked out that way 0:07:20.120 --> 0:07:23.320 this year. So, um, it's been phenomenal. Like I've said, 0:07:23.400 --> 0:07:25.360 he's one of my closest friends in football. Is one 0:07:25.360 --> 0:07:28.360 of my favorite people. Um, I've ever connected with. And 0:07:28.360 --> 0:07:31.119 then you know, I'm friends with Chris Greer and I worked, 0:07:31.120 --> 0:07:33.320 and I'm really good friends with Marvin Allen who I worked. 0:07:33.960 --> 0:07:36.800 We all worked in New England together, Marvin and Brian 0:07:36.840 --> 0:07:39.120 and I. So it's been a great group to work with. 0:07:39.120 --> 0:07:41.720 Those guys have been awesome. They've been completely low maintenance, 0:07:41.760 --> 0:07:44.640 they've been interactive. Um, we've had some hits on the 0:07:44.720 --> 0:07:47.640 roster the last couple of weeks with injuries and just 0:07:47.680 --> 0:07:50.360 working through trying to bring guys they want to see. Uh, 0:07:50.400 --> 0:07:52.640 you know, we picked the rosters initially, but but once 0:07:52.680 --> 0:07:54.720 we get the teams on, I don't want to bring 0:07:54.840 --> 0:07:56.679 players in that they don't they don't want to coach. 0:07:56.720 --> 0:07:59.000 So UM, it's always good when you're kind of in 0:07:59.040 --> 0:08:01.640 lockstep and we've we've agreed on all these guys, but 0:08:01.960 --> 0:08:06.240 the communication has been great. Um, couldn't ask for anything better. 0:08:06.280 --> 0:08:08.360 I kind of wish we could have the Panthers in 0:08:08.400 --> 0:08:10.440 the Dolphins coach this game every year because it's it's 0:08:10.440 --> 0:08:12.800 been a really good two weeks. That's awesome to hear 0:08:12.840 --> 0:08:14.920 and and whether it's going off of what you've heard 0:08:14.920 --> 0:08:17.080 from previous coaching staffs or just what you've seen, you 0:08:17.120 --> 0:08:19.360 know with your own eyes, Jim, what are the real 0:08:19.440 --> 0:08:21.520 benefits like for a fan that that knows a little 0:08:21.520 --> 0:08:23.400 bit about the Senior Bowl but doesn't really have the 0:08:23.440 --> 0:08:26.640 intimate knowledge, What are the true benefits of coaching staff 0:08:26.640 --> 0:08:28.720 being able to be down there and get these kids 0:08:28.760 --> 0:08:30.920 and meetings and practices and in the film room and 0:08:30.920 --> 0:08:32.920 all that stuff. What's the true benefit for this Dolphin 0:08:32.960 --> 0:08:35.240 staff to be there for you know, these hundreds of 0:08:35.280 --> 0:08:39.080 kids down there. Yeah, it's it's it's tremendous value any 0:08:39.160 --> 0:08:41.599 year and probably more so this year. I can just 0:08:41.679 --> 0:08:44.360 draw it back to two years ago when the Raiders 0:08:44.400 --> 0:08:46.600 coached the game. They had eight players from the Senior 0:08:46.600 --> 0:08:49.880 Bowl on their opening day roster the next year. So, UM, 0:08:49.920 --> 0:08:52.679 it's it's it's everything. You know, it's it's in it's 0:08:52.679 --> 0:08:55.520 a training table, it's you know, being in the locker room, 0:08:55.520 --> 0:08:58.240 it's being in the meeting room. Um, you're seeing which 0:08:58.240 --> 0:09:01.600 guys pay attention tocts, show up on time. You know, 0:09:01.640 --> 0:09:05.280 how guys learn, how they respond to coaching. Um, being 0:09:05.280 --> 0:09:07.200 on the practice field and one on ones when they 0:09:07.240 --> 0:09:09.640 take reps back to back, and you know, all these 0:09:09.640 --> 0:09:11.840 guys are gonna lose during the week at some point, 0:09:11.880 --> 0:09:13.800 so you see how those guys bounce back in their 0:09:13.840 --> 0:09:16.680 mental toughness and just how much guys love football and 0:09:16.679 --> 0:09:19.320 how how invested they are in the process. And so 0:09:19.760 --> 0:09:22.240 those takeaways, the behind the scenes stuff that you don't 0:09:22.280 --> 0:09:24.560 see it practice or in the game, and the and 0:09:24.600 --> 0:09:26.920 the other teams don't have. You know, the opportunity to 0:09:26.960 --> 0:09:30.839 get is uh is so valuable because you know, not 0:09:31.559 --> 0:09:33.760 where we're at with the NFL right now, these guys 0:09:33.800 --> 0:09:35.880 gotta show up ready to be a pro. UM the 0:09:35.960 --> 0:09:37.800 league isn't waiting for him to to do that. They 0:09:37.800 --> 0:09:40.800 gotta show up ready to go and uh and they'll 0:09:40.840 --> 0:09:43.240 they'll see all that stuff, you know, coaching these players 0:09:43.240 --> 0:09:45.120 this week. I think that might be a good segue 0:09:45.200 --> 0:09:47.120 to my next question for you, because we asked that 0:09:47.200 --> 0:09:48.880 question at a time, like what does the benefit for 0:09:48.920 --> 0:09:51.240 the Dolphins coaching staff to be down there? But you know, 0:09:51.280 --> 0:09:54.439 as as you mentioned, being someone that knows coach Flora's 0:09:54.480 --> 0:09:57.200 and the Dolphins coaching staff, what's the benefit these players 0:09:57.240 --> 0:10:00.840 have of playing under a coach like Brian Flores. Yeah, 0:10:00.840 --> 0:10:03.360 it's great value for our players too to be coached 0:10:03.360 --> 0:10:05.199 by any staff. You know. It's just the NFL is 0:10:05.200 --> 0:10:08.000 a different league. So whether it's practice temple or how 0:10:08.080 --> 0:10:10.640 meetings are run, or you know, installs of a playbook, 0:10:11.480 --> 0:10:13.920 you know, a pro style offenses is I think it's 0:10:13.920 --> 0:10:15.760 morphin a little bit. I think the NFL has taken 0:10:15.760 --> 0:10:17.640 a little more from the college game than in the past, 0:10:17.720 --> 0:10:20.199 but but still everything is different, you know. And the 0:10:20.480 --> 0:10:22.719 thing about Brian Staff and there's some guys and that 0:10:22.720 --> 0:10:25.520 stuff I'm not really familiar with. But um, I know 0:10:25.600 --> 0:10:28.560 Brian is a great teacher and I know that, Uh, 0:10:28.640 --> 0:10:31.120 you know that. I'm I know that's important to him 0:10:31.240 --> 0:10:34.320 when he when he hires coaches. So I'm sure that 0:10:34.600 --> 0:10:37.200 all those guys are great teachers. So it's great for 0:10:37.200 --> 0:10:39.680 our players. I mean, a week exposure is a long time. 0:10:39.760 --> 0:10:42.200 We're not talking about like a day or two. So 0:10:42.200 --> 0:10:44.560 so to get a week with this staff, um and 0:10:44.640 --> 0:10:46.760 learn from them, they're gonna leave, they're gonna leave will 0:10:46.800 --> 0:10:48.679 be all better football players than when they came here. 0:10:48.880 --> 0:10:50.400 I want to go ahead and continue up on that 0:10:50.440 --> 0:10:52.600 with with Brian Flores, because, like I mentioned, we spoke 0:10:52.640 --> 0:10:55.360 in Indianapolis last year coming off of five and eleven season, 0:10:55.640 --> 0:10:57.600 and you know the Dolphins were they had so many 0:10:57.640 --> 0:10:59.680 draft picks and so much free agent capital they could 0:10:59.760 --> 0:11:01.679 or you know, salary cap capital that they could go 0:11:01.720 --> 0:11:04.240 out and prove the roster. I'm curious to get your take, Jim, 0:11:04.280 --> 0:11:06.360 on how you saw kind of this whole thing come 0:11:06.400 --> 0:11:08.360 together under Brian Flowers and what you saw from the 0:11:08.360 --> 0:11:10.480 beginning of his vision and where the team is now 0:11:10.480 --> 0:11:12.800 a ten one season going into year three here with 0:11:12.880 --> 0:11:17.959 again more draft capital and more free agent money to spend. Uh. Yeah, 0:11:18.120 --> 0:11:21.320 Brian's made me look smart because they hired him. It 0:11:21.400 --> 0:11:23.000 was my first it was my first year at the 0:11:23.040 --> 0:11:25.520 Senior Bowl and they just hired him in a couple 0:11:25.520 --> 0:11:27.640 of people at the opening press conference asked me about 0:11:27.679 --> 0:11:30.480 Brian and I kind of gushed on him, and you know, 0:11:30.520 --> 0:11:32.480 you've got friends in the league that you're you're good 0:11:32.480 --> 0:11:35.800 friends with. But um, like I wouldn't say I wouldn't 0:11:35.800 --> 0:11:37.719 have said those things just because we're friends, you know 0:11:37.760 --> 0:11:40.080 what I'm saying. Like, there's there's certain guys that are 0:11:40.120 --> 0:11:42.880 great position coaches, are great coordinators that might not not 0:11:42.960 --> 0:11:46.160 necessarily make a great head coach. Um, but I've always 0:11:46.160 --> 0:11:48.240 felt Brian was that guy, even even you know, back 0:11:48.280 --> 0:11:50.320 to our early days in New England, Like I you 0:11:50.360 --> 0:11:52.960 could see that in him. Um. And I'll say this, 0:11:53.080 --> 0:11:54.760 like I I don't get a chance to watch n 0:11:54.960 --> 0:11:57.360 a lot of NFL uh stuff during the fall because 0:11:57.360 --> 0:12:00.000 we're so focused on the college game. Um. But I've 0:12:00.040 --> 0:12:02.200 looked over the roster and they had a nice draft 0:12:02.280 --> 0:12:05.120 last year and they added some guys. But um, on paper, 0:12:05.200 --> 0:12:07.320 that's not a ten win football team, you know. That's 0:12:07.600 --> 0:12:10.240 that's really a credit to to coach Flora's and his 0:12:10.280 --> 0:12:12.160 staff and what they got out of that football team 0:12:12.160 --> 0:12:14.680 this year. So they still have plenty of needs and 0:12:14.720 --> 0:12:17.920 with the draft capitol that they have, like you talked about, um, 0:12:17.960 --> 0:12:19.680 and as good as Marvin and Chris are on the 0:12:19.720 --> 0:12:21.880 on the personnel side and their scouting staff, they do 0:12:21.920 --> 0:12:25.160 a great job. Um. It's exciting to see where where 0:12:25.280 --> 0:12:27.640 Miami is gonna be in two years when it when 0:12:27.640 --> 0:12:29.920 this roster is gonna look a lot different. Yeah, kind 0:12:29.920 --> 0:12:32.040 of like the college coach kicking of a program right 0:12:32.040 --> 0:12:33.520 once he gets all of his guys in there, then 0:12:33.520 --> 0:12:35.960 you can kind of truly judge what his his full 0:12:36.040 --> 0:12:38.160 vision is in terms of how the program looks under 0:12:38.240 --> 0:12:41.320 his direction. And you know, we talked about Brian Flora's 0:12:41.320 --> 0:12:43.520 a lot on this podcast on Mimi Dolphins dot com. 0:12:43.520 --> 0:12:45.880 Whatever it is as a guy that has done so 0:12:45.920 --> 0:12:48.199 many jobs in the NFL, and you mentioned the scouting 0:12:48.200 --> 0:12:50.520 background with him back in New England. What what was 0:12:50.600 --> 0:12:52.440 Brian floors the evalue what you're like and how does 0:12:52.480 --> 0:12:54.920 that kind of help him, you know, excel in this 0:12:55.040 --> 0:12:56.839 role where he does so many multiple things and where's 0:12:56.840 --> 0:13:01.720 the multiple hats like a head coach has to do well? Again, Like, 0:13:01.760 --> 0:13:04.160 I know, Brian's a good evaluator because we've always talked 0:13:04.160 --> 0:13:07.319 about players together. But honestly, when we were together in 0:13:07.360 --> 0:13:10.840 New England before before coach Belichick was smart enough to 0:13:11.360 --> 0:13:14.240 reach upstairs into the front office and and yank Brian 0:13:14.280 --> 0:13:18.040 downstairs and coaching. Um, he was. He was a scouting 0:13:18.040 --> 0:13:20.560 assistant man. He was filing report their reports that that 0:13:20.720 --> 0:13:23.080 us the scouts were writing. You know, he was. He 0:13:23.240 --> 0:13:25.920 and Pat Stewart, who's now uh, you know, one of 0:13:25.920 --> 0:13:28.120 the top dogs in Carolina. That's why it's been fun 0:13:28.120 --> 0:13:31.200 with having Carolina because Pat Stewart, who met Rule hand 0:13:31.240 --> 0:13:34.120 picked last year to head up his personnel department. He 0:13:34.240 --> 0:13:36.079 and he and Flow were the two we're a two 0:13:36.120 --> 0:13:38.920 scouting assistants those a couple of years. So, um, you 0:13:39.000 --> 0:13:40.920 know in both those guys are great. You know, you 0:13:40.960 --> 0:13:42.840 knew what you kind of know if a guy has 0:13:42.880 --> 0:13:44.920 the eye or not right away. It shouldn't take that 0:13:44.960 --> 0:13:46.160 long to know if a guy is gonna be a 0:13:46.200 --> 0:13:48.920 good evaluator. Obviously, you can hone your craft and you 0:13:48.960 --> 0:13:51.520 get better the more players you see because you build 0:13:51.520 --> 0:13:54.320 out that rolodex of players. Um. But you know, you 0:13:54.360 --> 0:13:56.480 can talk players with guys early on and kind of 0:13:56.520 --> 0:13:58.920 see if they have an eye forward if they don't. Um, 0:13:59.160 --> 0:14:01.800 and and Brian finitely did from right from the jump 0:14:01.800 --> 0:14:03.840 in New England. Yeah, it's you know you talk about that. 0:14:03.840 --> 0:14:05.520 It's fun to see what the industry has become in 0:14:05.600 --> 0:14:08.040 terms of all the people that are interested in scouting nowadays. 0:14:08.040 --> 0:14:09.920 It's just it's beneficial for all of us who think 0:14:09.920 --> 0:14:11.920 it gives us, you know, even more people to choose 0:14:11.920 --> 0:14:13.800 from in terms of who does get in those positions. 0:14:13.840 --> 0:14:15.960 But let's go ahead and transition now back towards the 0:14:15.960 --> 0:14:18.560 week at Mobile and talk about this game. Uh, you know, 0:14:18.720 --> 0:14:21.840 scouts and coaches are gonna be their decision makers. What 0:14:21.960 --> 0:14:24.480 exactly are they looking for this week? Like, I'm curious, Jim, 0:14:24.520 --> 0:14:27.480 what's the process of an organization? As they all descend 0:14:27.560 --> 0:14:30.000 upon Mobile, they get their their eyes on the field, 0:14:30.040 --> 0:14:31.840 their eyes and the player. They get the meetings and 0:14:31.880 --> 0:14:33.520 all the fun stuff that goes along with that, and 0:14:33.520 --> 0:14:36.880 then they convene afterwards. What are those conversations sound like 0:14:36.880 --> 0:14:38.880 in terms of what they take away from the entire 0:14:38.920 --> 0:14:43.920 week in Mobile? Uh, Travis, It's it's everything, man, Honestly, 0:14:43.960 --> 0:14:46.080 they they are looking for everything. And I tell the 0:14:46.120 --> 0:14:49.600 players that orientation the first night they come to town. 0:14:49.640 --> 0:14:52.680 I tell them, guys, You're you're on watch the entire 0:14:52.760 --> 0:14:56.360 time you're here. You're being evaluated every time, every time 0:14:56.400 --> 0:14:58.240 you get in front of these guys, whether it's walking 0:14:58.320 --> 0:15:01.040 from uh, you know, training table to the to the 0:15:01.080 --> 0:15:03.840 elevator go back up to your room. These scouts are 0:15:03.880 --> 0:15:05.680 are hanging out in the hallways and they're watching how 0:15:05.720 --> 0:15:08.800 you do stuff. So um, like in pre practice, like 0:15:08.840 --> 0:15:11.480 our guys just you know, monkeying around or are they 0:15:11.480 --> 0:15:14.320 focused on what they're doing, Um, you look like we 0:15:14.400 --> 0:15:17.760 talked about bouncing back from from mental mistakes. They're looking 0:15:17.760 --> 0:15:19.880 for that stuff. They're seeing who loses two reps in 0:15:19.880 --> 0:15:21.920 a row and who bounces back that second rep and 0:15:22.240 --> 0:15:25.760 and gets after somebody. Um. So it's it's a full takeaway. 0:15:25.800 --> 0:15:28.360 The interviews is a big part how those guys performing 0:15:28.400 --> 0:15:30.920 the interviews. UM. And it's a lot of the stuff 0:15:30.960 --> 0:15:32.760 you can't get on the tape right and and this 0:15:32.840 --> 0:15:35.400 is a huge year for that. So all these all 0:15:35.440 --> 0:15:39.040 these decision makers, I've only spoken to, UM, a couple 0:15:39.080 --> 0:15:41.480 of gms in the entire league that actually went and 0:15:41.520 --> 0:15:44.880 saw college football players this fall. And uh, because you know, 0:15:44.920 --> 0:15:46.600 if they did that, well, then they couldn't re enter 0:15:46.640 --> 0:15:48.440 their teams. Bubble and go to the game on Sunday. 0:15:48.520 --> 0:15:50.840 So a couple of a couple of guys chose to 0:15:50.840 --> 0:15:53.320 do that this year. But but by and large, these 0:15:53.360 --> 0:15:55.280 guys are coming down here and seeing these players for 0:15:55.280 --> 0:15:57.920 the very first time. So, you know, I think the 0:15:58.360 --> 0:16:00.880 you know, the eyeball test, the bodies is a really 0:16:00.960 --> 0:16:04.600 underrated part of the evaluation process, just looking for growth 0:16:04.640 --> 0:16:06.720 potential and how a guys built. I mean, there's old 0:16:06.760 --> 0:16:09.400 takeaways we could we could probably do a whole podcast 0:16:09.400 --> 0:16:12.520 session on that, but uh, but they're there. This is 0:16:12.520 --> 0:16:14.280 a big year for that. You know, these guys haven't 0:16:14.320 --> 0:16:17.840 been seen yet. So um, it's everything. Man, They're they're 0:16:17.840 --> 0:16:20.560 gonna be have their eyes opening in their eyes opening, 0:16:20.560 --> 0:16:22.880 their ears open at all times while they're down here. Jim, 0:16:22.920 --> 0:16:24.640 you're teeing me up well here because I wanted to 0:16:24.640 --> 0:16:27.440 go ahead and mention one of my favorite Saturday traditions 0:16:27.440 --> 0:16:29.480 from you on Twitter is when you're on the field 0:16:29.480 --> 0:16:31.080 and you're you're looking at a player in warmups. I 0:16:31.120 --> 0:16:33.480 love seeing the way they move and the size of 0:16:33.520 --> 0:16:36.560 those guys next to normal size human beings, right, It's 0:16:36.560 --> 0:16:38.320 always one of my favorite things. I just I'm so 0:16:38.440 --> 0:16:41.720 fascinated by the entire process of evaluation. So it's it's 0:16:41.760 --> 0:16:43.600 cool to see you have that access. And I want 0:16:43.600 --> 0:16:45.360 to finish with this because you mentioned you could talk 0:16:45.360 --> 0:16:47.960 for an entire podcast just about this. I could turn 0:16:48.000 --> 0:16:50.680 this into a Joe Rogan three hour long podcast in 0:16:50.720 --> 0:16:52.720 a blink if I had asked you everything I had 0:16:52.760 --> 0:16:54.440 for you here. But we'll keep it brief. And I 0:16:54.480 --> 0:16:56.840 know it's not easy for you to select names from 0:16:56.880 --> 0:16:59.320 these loaded groups, But who are some of the names 0:16:59.480 --> 0:17:01.280 you're gonna you out there this week throughout the week 0:17:01.280 --> 0:17:05.360 that you personally cannot wait to see on the field. Um, 0:17:06.119 --> 0:17:08.200 I mean really, the answer is all of them. Um. 0:17:08.200 --> 0:17:11.200 For me, this is tomorrow when the players arrive on 0:17:11.200 --> 0:17:14.000 on Saturday. That's that's truly my favorite day of the 0:17:14.040 --> 0:17:16.880 whole year. Um. It's just it's so exciting to get 0:17:16.880 --> 0:17:18.920 these guys here. We've been tracking them for so long, 0:17:19.040 --> 0:17:21.639 and you know, once they accept we really connect with 0:17:21.680 --> 0:17:23.920 them and and uh so to get them here is great. 0:17:23.960 --> 0:17:26.840 But I'm excited. I'm always excited to see the smaller 0:17:26.880 --> 0:17:29.760 school guys, right, Um, I mean this game is great 0:17:29.800 --> 0:17:32.720 for for everybody, but you know, these smaller school guys 0:17:32.760 --> 0:17:35.239 like that Dylan Ravens from North Dakota State was an 0:17:35.280 --> 0:17:39.520 offensive tackle, Spencer Brown and other offensive tackle from Northern Iowa. UM, 0:17:39.640 --> 0:17:43.399 Robert Rochelle, a corner from Central Arkansas. These guys are 0:17:43.480 --> 0:17:46.280 Day two guys right now, and I'm just curious to 0:17:46.320 --> 0:17:48.960 see how high they can get. Um. You know, right 0:17:48.960 --> 0:17:52.040 now Ratents and Spencer are rated on our board. We 0:17:52.119 --> 0:17:54.199 got those guys higher than we had Titus Howard a 0:17:54.200 --> 0:17:57.240 couple of years ago, Um, the tackle from Alabama State, 0:17:57.600 --> 0:17:59.440 and Titus came down here and tore it up all 0:17:59.480 --> 0:18:03.320