The Around the NFL podcast is going Around the NFC in 48 minutes. 414 from the Chris Wesling podcast studio. It's Around the NFL. Dan Hans is here. Got heroes, Greg Rosenthal. What did you tap the table for?

I just was excited. It's like the show starting.

When you make eye contact and you tap the table, of course, I'm going to think you're trying to tell me something.

I was I was just like, getting going.Tough start. You're the tough start. You're the tough start.

Mark Zesler and Patrick Claibon. What's up, Pat?

You're the tough start. It's an incredible response.

You know what else is incredible? What's that? You know what else is an incredible response?I don't know.Patrick..

I don't know.

We have music submissions to share. No. Before we get into the National Football Conference, which we'll do at three-minute bursts with Eric Roberts manning the dart gun, the Trank gun. By the way, Andrew Siciliano in stable condition at Cedar, Sinai. Took one too many dart shots. It seemed like it didn't affect him.

You guys set up, Andrew, a little bit.

You could say that.How did we set him up?It.

Was a little unfair. If he didn't understand the rules, that just showed an ignorance of the process.

It almost felt like, and Patrick as someone that's just watching from the outside on that episode. It almost was like he was targeted at a point. Like he was being led into a trap.

Yeah, I don't feel like he was targeted, more so as you guys placed him in the line of fire to take dart after dart, and Eric is relentless, and that's just how it goes.

That is true. You could see Eric, even though he doesn't have any military background, couldn't you just see Eric doing some damage in the Middle in 2006?

Murdering people?

No. I mean, yeah, he's taken out the enemy. If he had to, I could see Eric doing that.

I will say that I am very rules-driven, but I am also very bad at first-person shooter games. I might just be firing a lot, uploading a clip. I might not hit anybody.

Or you might hit somebody.

I'm just happy I was getting this there.

Patrick, murdering people? How about serving your country? Patrick. Okay.

You could put whatever scarecoats you want.

Where's your pin? Put on your pin.

I support troops.

He's done it. He's covered. He's safe. Let's listen to a Patrick Leban introduction song.

Wow.

Momentum isn't real.

Infashion isn't real. But you know who is real. Patrick Claibon, Patrick Claibon, Jazzy.

Yeah.

Very nice.

Yeah, I mean, lyrically, how can you-What did he say off the top?

Momentum's not real. Is that what he said?

I think that was the opening Lyric, as I recall. That was from Kolby Night.

Like that. Jazzy.

I think on our IM client now, because The bots are coming for us. They actually translate some of the lyrics. But there was, as you would imagine, a lot of the content here is connected to momentum. That was no exception. Let's listen to another one, this one from Matthew Quick.

Okay.

He's from Alabama.

His beard is hairy as a llama.

It's Patrick. Claybon.

Pretty. Very pretty.

Okay. Okay.

A shorter one. Very nice voice. Patrick is so damn handsome that anything that even approximates ugliness, like he's as hairy as a llama, it doesn't. To me, that line didn't ring true because his beard is immaculately groomed.

Anybody who takes the time to pin lyrics about me, I'm going to appreciate no matter what. I understand. I've never felt like a llama, but hey, that's Wonderful, Matthew.

Let's check out this one. It blew me away. Alex Madura. It's like a radiohead type song for you.

Okay. Playboon, playboon, playboon, playboon. Playboon, playboon, playboon. Claybon. Patrick laybon. You are the man.

Oh, Then Tom. What a guy. What a stud.

That's tough to top.

I mean, I love it just as having my own positive affirmations.

I mean, this is an ego stroke, having your own songs, no doubt about it. I thought Alex nailed everything. Obviously, the momentum thing was a little off, but everything else, I could not quibble with any of it, including Patrick being a stud.

That would be my pick. I also just did an incredible self-experiment to see how far I could go into the episode without saying a single word. I think I crossed five and a half minutes, which would be a record.

You were missed. You were missed. Now that you're in the episode.

I've been told the episode is 48 minutes long, so the window begins at some point here. But I think that third song, it captures the essence of Patrick.

I love that. I want to hear that more. They were all great.

Well, let's listen to one more. This is from Sam Gaffigan.

Probably not a real person. Who's that man who's coming on?

Patrick Laybon. Who's that man who's rarely wrong? Patrick Laybon. He announces with glass and ferocity that he denonces mass times velocity.

Who's that man who's coming on?

Patrick Leban. For Dan, that was a formula for momentum.

That's definitely my favorite lyrics.

That was good. I feel like sometimes we mix it up with Coleen's, too. We have the main one, but then we throw in some others. I would like to hear that again, but I still think number three. Yeah, I think Alex. It's a go-to.

You should crack. All tremendous.

Thank you, everyone.

They're all really good. A mixed CD and give that to your significant other. If she's ever wondering how great you are, it's a Hype CD for you.

I can see the look on her face.

You do have to play these. If I ask for Lauren, you have to play them. Just as Mark says, just a reminder.

Yeah, a gentleman.

You realize, I know we're busy, we got kids, and we've known each other for so long now. Sometimes just a reminder, and your wife's a wonderful woman, but she's married to Patrick Claybar. Here are some songs as a reminder. Let's make it clear.You did it. You got Claybar.

I don't think she forgets.

I think we all do in our marriages sometimes, what we have. These songs will serve as a reminder. You didn't have to... This is how you frame it. You're like, God, this is so stupid. I did the podcast today. It's ridiculous. But they played these songs about me. It was dumb. It was dumb. Then see if she takes the cheap.

Okay.

She probably will. What do you mean songs about you? What does that mean?

Also make sure Then you just lay it out and then watch her fall in love with you all over.

Yeah, come in hard self-deprecating. You find it absurd. You almost want to share a joke with her, but then she starts to feel something different.

Just mega imposter syndrome, which I do have, the fact that people sat on their computers and got their instruments out and made songs for me. But like, hey.

I would go the other route. I would turn off all the lights in the house right before dinner and then maybe get a strobe thing going and then blast it and then the lights come on and you walk into the dinner table as these songs are playing.

That's a huge answer. That's like the arena rock way to do it. If anyone, and those are all excellent, and thank you again, everybody. If anyone wants to make one It's just for Patrick to use at home, if you know what I'm saying. I like that. Don't throw up the arena lights. Yes, Coleen. Light a couple of candles, get a babysitter, and then play something. Patrick would take that as well.

A babysitter at home while they're at home. No, get them out of the house.

Take him to the bounce house or one of those ridiculous places. Here, son, let's bounce here until my ACL explodes. It's like, Okay, great party. My Achilles is gone.

Some of those places are falling into disrepair, guy. You start bouncing a couple of ways, and it's like, This could go horribly wrong.

Not to mention, have you ever gone to one of those bounce houses and not had the entire house ill within 48 hours of going?

Yeah, plus it's a ripe, fertile ground for concussions. We're like two children out of control bang heads, and then it's like, you're dealing with that. A child with concussion is no fun.

I feel like we might be risking losing sponsors, but this is an important message to get out. Enough with the bounce houses.Wow.What sponsor? Get back to the bowling hour. All right, let's get into it. Without further ado, Patrick, you got to be feeling good now.

Yeah, I'm rife of confidence.

All right, with that said, time to go around the end. Was that the Dean scream?

That was the Dean scream. It's back. Showing our age.

Damn. Listen, we had Ross Perot come up. We fast forward 12 years, get a little Dean scream. What's next? You never know.

We're topical. It's back to Charlie Shee.

Aaron Rodgers doing contrail myths. I don't know.

All right, let's get into it. Start in the NFC, in the East. We'll go East to West, just like we did with Andrew Siciliano over in the air. Again, Andrew is in critical but stable condition. You could send flowers or whatever you wish.

Just don't send darts.

No darts. The doctors were amazed that something like that could happen in a controlled environment within the NFL's building. I believe there will be hell to pay. Like the Ohtani situation, and we're like, Oh, yeah. We'll blame it on the interpreter. We need to figure out a plan post-haste on where to... Is it Eric?

Does Eric take the Eric is pressing the trigger. He's the natural guy.

But you could argue that we put him in that. We put the gun in his hand.

He did say he follows orders.

Who clipped that off before he deletes it. All right, let's get to it. Nfc East, Patrick Claibon, the Dallas Cowboys.

The Dallas Cowboys having turnover yet again. Now, Tyron Smith is going to be protecting Aaron Rodgers. We see Tony Pollard going elsewhere, playing with Tajay Spears in Nashville. And my question about the Dallas Cowboys last year? Was Mike McCarthy taking over the play calling duties? And is it a Mike McCarthy or Kelen Moore issue, or what was going on with the Dallas Cowboys offense? No more concerns about the offense. And I'm looking at the defense with Dan Quinn out. For the second year in a row, Dallas has bargain shopped in free agency. They made those late trades for Brandon Cooke as well as Stephion Gilmore last year. Can the Dallas Cowboys bargain hunt their way to a Super Bowl if they're allegedly, quote, unquote, all in?

They're going to have to. For all these teams, it's an incomplete grade, but some teams more than others. I counted up nine players that had significant roles on the team that either have signed elsewhere, most of them or a couple of others are just unsigned. To this point, they haven't brought in anyone new that's going to have a significant role except for Eric Kendrix, who's at the end of his run as a different he's making player, a role player at this point. They need three offensive linemen. They certainly need a running back. They need some defensive tackles. Cornerback looks a little thin. I don't know if they bring back Stefan Gilmore. They have a lot to do, but you know what? I actually think their personnel department deserves a little bit of credit here to give them some faith that over the last few years, they always have a good roster. Like the Ravens, I am in a wait and see mode with the Cowboys.

I think losing Dan Quinn matters a lot. He clicked running that defense. Well, sure, till But now, if you're Mike Zimmer, you've seen a number of faces leave your defense, and it's going to be a bit of a different scheme. I mean, Michael Gallup is visiting with the Ravens. I guess for me, it's a tired conversation. The Cowboys just bring me exhaustion at this point, but you did have your owner/GM announced, We are going to do everything we can to maximize our roster. And it's been the quietest of every team out there. It's been the quietest, weirdest free agency period.

Not like a single real notable addition so far. I think in some ways, and there are different levels to this phrase, but the window closed. Dak is crazy expensive. Ceed is about to be insanely expensive. Parsons, forget about it. Going to be the highest paid player in the league. They might end up being in a situation where they're the highest two paid players in the league on each side of the ball. That is very hard now to build a championship roster around it. Since they couldn't get it going and get it done when these guys were younger, now it's going to be so tough. Yeah, you're right. They have to absolutely nail the They have won 12 games, three straight years.

I don't think the window is closing. I get it, but that's incredible.

At this point, it doesn't matter anymore.

The problem is they've always had a really good offensive line for the most part, and right now, that looks like a weakness, which is weird.

Up next, the New York Giants. The G-men. The G-men.Time out. Time out.

Oh, boy.

Wow. Early time out.

The G-Men. The G-men.

The G-men.

The G-men. G-men. The G-men. The G-men.

The G-men. The G-men.

The G-men.

The G-men. The G-men.

The G-men. All right, Timing. I'm going to spend positive. I'm sick of it. Rosenthal is Just throwing dirt all over the Giants, his own personal issues coming through. I'm going to combat that. While everyone was burying the Giants and doing their annual springtime slurpage of Howie Roseman and the Eagles, I thought the Giants made easily the most impactful move in the division with this Brian Burns trade and then subsequent signing. Their defensive line has Burns, a rising star who has a next level potential even. You have Dexter Lawrence, another superstar, and Kavon Thibodeau, who's, personal interactions aside, had a big second year and looks like a guy that is hitting as a first-round draft pick. Now they're all together, and if they stay healthy, I know there's issues other places, and I know everybody wants to focus on the Saquon left thing, but that is a game-wrecking defensive line, and it could lift the entire defense defense and win games.

Yeah, I think that is a team strength that matters a lot inside of this division. Brian Burns was a coup d'État. I also think Jermaine Illumineau, along the offensive line, is a versatile guy who adds... They need to add bodies there. My one thing with them is you're into year three of this regime, and we know that Daniel Jones is not part of this team after this season. In fact, it's like, he feels to me on strange soil already. I don't care about the Drew Lock signing. You are sitting there high up in the draft. Do you pass on someone like JJ McCarthy? We'd have pieces around him. I don't mind that they moved on from Saquon, but it's like, I would look at quarterback. I just would to match up with this solid defensive front.

I just think, considering the decisions that they have made at the quarterback position and how that set them up, that if they're not sold on a quarterback and you get to have your mark on the pick in the way that the franchise goes in the next... They have an opportunity to either make that defensive line that Dan was talking about even more of a strength. They could come in and add a wide receiver in these top because considering where they're picking, the quarterbacks are going to go early. A very, very good football player is going to be available. They can make the rest of the team better. And I think if you add a Romo Dunze to this group with Darius Slate and Jay Hyatt, you get a good group for some quarterback, whether it's Daniel Jones or somebody they get later this year. But I just think if you're reaching for a quarterback, if you're trying to solve this problem, then you're It's exacerbating.

Right. I'm surprised that there's been so much quarterback talk because taking the fourth quarterback when you have the six pick seems like a disaster. In a draft that has three number one wide receiver, Malik Nabors might still be there at number three, and they need to find their guys. I look at this and I look at some other GMs like Ryan Polls in Chicago that are entering year three, and I can see his guys. Who are Joe Shane's guys? Their guys are Gettelman's guys. They're best players. I heard that. Eat it.

Jones gets the second year. People could say all this thing about the quarterback. He's going to get the second year on this contract, and we'll see what happens after that. Okay, up next. Greggy, the Eagles.

Fun offseason so far for the Eagles. They've I'm seeing three or four of the top 30 or 40 free agents available with Bryce Huff. I like Chauncey Garner Johnson coming back. Saquon is going to be a great fit. They just keep adding little pieces, and yet I still look at it and it's like, Does Vic Fangio have what he needs? Does Vic Fangio They still have the magic touch, too. After a couple of mix years, do they still have- Everyone hated him last year. Right. Mixed is maybe being kind. Do they still have the best roster in the NFL? Because I look at the two lines, and there's maybe some questions, but they've planned ahead with Tyler Steen, Kam Juergens on the offensive line. Hassan Redik is still there. They're probably going to trade him. But I look at a lot of depth on both of the lines. I look at a fantasy football spectacular on offense. The secondary has some question marks, but maybe that's what the draft is for. Is this still the best roster in the league? Because I believe.

I don't know if it's the best roster. I cannot think of too many examples of a quality team like this with a lot of high-profile parts where you're going on to the third straight year on both sides of the ball with a different coordinator. I mean, that affects things, especially on offense. It does on defense. I want to see what happens with Redik. When you're Howie Roseman, I just expect him to create three or four notable moves before we get into the summer. It's like they're not done yet.

One of those moves seemed like an admission, right? The way that they handled CJ, GJ's departure. They were lost in the secondary. Maybe you can make the case that that reason for that coordinator change was because they were bad. We saw the Eagles lose a coordinator because they were good. And how much confidence do you have when you saw things fall off at the end of the season? I think I still have it because Jalen was hurt. Aj was hurt. Not only were the decisions and the play calling questionable down the stretch, but the players were hurt. I just don't know that Kelen Moore really excites me. I wonder how many very talented quarterbacks are going to be saddled with Kelen Moore and have disappointing results.

It's supposedly his offense is no longer nick Seriani's offense.

That's deserve it after what happened down the stretch. You don't have Kelsey in the building. You don't have Cox in the building. We're talking about that. We're talking about the improvement index, Greggy. They were 27th in that in terms of the roster losses and their draft standing. There is a way to look at this roster and say it depreciated in some ways as well.

I think it is important to remember losing Jason Kelsey is a massive loss. Now, I look at the rest of their losses. Fletcher Cox certainly was valuable to them, but I think they've replaced him and prepared everyone else leaving the team I can live without.

Well, they lost. I know this is hard to assess, but they lost locker room leadership on a team that was in total chaos by the end of last season.

Kids smart.

Excited to stop talking there.

That wasn't about the team. Wasn't about the team.

Who was the dark fired?

I was just complying Mark.

It missed Dan, I think. Playing the game. Right over Dan's shoulder.

Are we allowed to talk?

I thought we weren't allowed to talk at all.

I thought that was a conceit.

I thought Andrew wasn't allowed to talk.

It's a completely lawless-All right, let me...

I'm not going to call time out. Now, you're making new rules.

I'm throwing the challenge flag.

We can talk, but it can't be about the teams. What's the point?Challenge.

Flag.it's a circus. It's almost like, what makes the podcast better? We can talk. It just can't be about that topic. You know what I mean? In that case, I was giving Mark kudos.

Hey, nine years in, let's just make some new rules.

I appreciate the compliment. I think if you're Eric, it's like the rules of this game seems to change every five or six minutes.

I think more darts makes the podcast better.

Now, if I would have said a point, if I would have followed up on the point Mark made, dart in a Hell, bro.Out.

Of bounds.

Put me in Hades with a dart. Got you. All right. With that said, more darts. Mark, the Washington Commanders. They're going to keep that name?

I would love to see them change that name. None of us have ever bought into that. I don't hate what they did in free agency at all. I started there early. Look at it. I've done that two days in a row. Too bad. I think Dorrance Armstrong, following Dan Quinn, Frankie Louvou, we've all talked about him, Bobby Wagner, Jeremy Chin. It's like there's some veteran identity on this team, and I think that was needed. I know, of course, you move on from your quarterback. They absolutely are taking one at number two. Daniel Jeremiah has them taking Drake May. I see the Drake May assessments are all over the map. Chris Sims has them in a tier below Bo Nicks and Michael Pennix Jr. It's like, I don't know who's going to number two. I don't know what the commanders think. But I have one question. I think this addition to the team flew under the radar a little bit. You've got a new quarterback and a lot of new pieces on offense. Do we trust... Is Cliff Kingsbury someone we trust at this point to helm a rookie's opening salve into the NFL? That, to me, is a big question mark.

I don't know why we would have reason to say that we do. I just haven't necessarily seen it.

This is a man that found a way to have a losing record with Patrick Mahomes.

And then he comes over to USC, and Caleb gets worse. There was a serious regression in the quarterback that's going to go number one overall. And so now the Cliff move signaled to people that, Oh, is Washington going to try to get the number one overall pick? And there hasn't been any We move towards that yet. I'm just wondering what position we're putting a rookie quarterback in. If it's a rookie, if they go another direction. I'm just very confused about the team. And this is a franchise we thought we were going to get more clarity from. And It feels like we've actually gotten left.

If ever was not a quarterback, they have Marcus Marriota.

I don't think they're letting the media know at all what they're interested in. So there's a vacuum in people just speculating, which actually is a good sign that's different than what was happening in Washington. In the past. I don't think anyone's going to know whether it's Jay and Daniels or Drake May until drafting, which is fun and I think is a sign that they're getting better. I like the approach. They brought in so many players. 14 new players have come in from other organizations. 8 have gone. I think that's the way to do it with a team like this. Just hope you hit on seven or eight role players. Some of the moves like Louver, like Armstrong, I think have been among the best in free agency.

Yeah, a lot of their moves haven't blown me away, but it's like, okay, He seems useful. He seems useful. That could work. The Mariota thing blows my mind that he keeps getting a job. But otherwise, I thought they've been effective in using free agency to overhaul the roster. You have a new head coach, and it did any team need more of a a reset this year than Washington. Now, will it work? We'll see. Are they a lot better? We'll see. But at least they're trying. Then if you hit on the quarterback, who knows? I give them a solid B for their offseason so far. I'd agree.

I hope they take Jaden Daniels. That's where I'm leading.

All right, we're just getting going. See, under the old rules, I'd take a dart right now.

I don't know. There are no rules. We've established that. Am I allowed to talk or just you? I don't even know.

I feel like some people think the dart is a part of that music sound effect because it's so common.

It's true. How's your ammo doing? You fire off so many darts that I start to wonder who's your supplier. Unlimited.

Never It never ends.

One of the scariest things was Eric saying, I'm good at taking orders. He could be a killing machine as an assassin. What was the Bill Hater show? Barry? Robots. Sleeper Cell. Spin off. All right, let's take a break, and we'll get to the NFC North. All right, we are back. Let's get to the NFC North. Let's get right into it with the Chicago Bears. I'll start this one-off. They have improved their roster. There is no doubt about that. Love the Keenan Allen move. Deandre Swift. Cool. Kevin Bayard. Okay. Jerold Everett. Nice addition to the tight-end room. Now, everything, all attention, obviously turns to the number one overall pick. Everyone knows where they're going to go with this, and barring some type of absurdity, Caleb Williams becomes that guy. I, speaking of off seasons where I give a solid B so far, I like what the bears have done. I'd even bump them, Claybon, to a B plus because the first job you have to do when you bring in a pick of this elk, a number one overall pick, is don't surround him with trash. They're trying to set up infrastructure to let the kid hit the ground running, a la C.

J. Stroud. Let's see if it works.

Yeah, and They have a very good example from Chicago of what not to do with a quarterback that goes in the first round and how to surround him and how to provide him with the opportunity to be successful. So you think they take the lessons that they learn from the Justin Fields experience? And I'm looking at Keenan Allen as still A1. Keenan Allen, of course, there's injuries. Everybody in the league is going to deal with injuries at some point. But the way that his game is structured, he can contribute three, four, I still think maybe six years down the road. Then you change DJ more and the way the defenses can focus on him. It's all set up there. What's the schedule like for Caleb and how are they going to facilitate him to be successful?

I'm going to have to see it. I I love also that they got Keenan Allen for a four, and because their cap situation was what it was, they could absorb that salary versus him being cut at some point, and they were able to make that trade. Keenan Allen, DJ More. It's part A, a part of two parts, because the second part is the draft, obviously. We know it's Caleb Williams, number one, borrowing a stunner. But then they've got the number nine pick, too, and it's like, do you just go maybe, Rob, do you get the best wide receiver possible? And suddenly you've got a stacked offense. I think Jerold Everett matters, too. Right.

They could be at a spot where those top three receivers are off the board, and then the value doesn't seem like it's there, so they take a tackle there. That's where this draft is really deep. Or they take the top defensive player on the board. I think Ryan Pauls has done the thing, which in the thing is by year three of being there, I want to have some stamp on my team. I want to have evidence that my time here has been worthy, and I think he has. He's built up a defense that has an identity. Ibraflus made it happen a year ago, but they're still very thin They could use another tackle, certainly. They could use another receiver. Keenan Allen is on a one-year deal, and they have no third receiver, no fourth receiver, no nothing, so they could look for another one.

I mean, it feels like a great time to have two top 10 picks. It just... There's reason for hope. And yes, the fields thing turned into a fiasco with the way the trade ended up playing out. But it's all in the past now, and you move forward as an organization, and maybe brighter days are here.

For once, the bears are worth some hype.

Deserve it.

I'm watching. We're on a freaking monitor. I stopped talking before it hit zero.

That's the deadline. You're done. As someone who's the tee up of the segment, I had put a bow on it, then you came in.

Well, that's because I saw the 4, 3, 2, 1. I thought I'd get one last shot. I'm not worried about my field goal percentage like those guys in the NBA who holded that extra half second before they throw it.

Can you just keep shooting him? Give it to me.

I think it was still in the hands. You got to go off the clock.

It was on the fingertips. You got a stronger dart for Greg?

I think it's a sharpshooter's prerogative.

Detroit Lion's Mark Sesler.

I like some of the very lions-y type things that they did. Like DJ Reader, really good football player to add to their defensive line. Kevin Zeitler can still play, and he is a nasty beefy human to add to their offensive line. The thing with the lions, last couple of years, it's like their defense let them down, and I know they were better last year than the year before. I do wonder if they could pull. I know they went and got Carlton Davis. They re-signed Emmanuel Moseley. Amik Robertson is there as well. But they have 26 million in cap space, and there is this behind-door number two option. They were listed as one of six teams that had a potential interest in Lejarius Sneed. He can play all over the place as a cornerback. Is it so crazy for a team that's on the precipice of Super Bowl? Their window is right open. Go get a difference-making cornerback who can also, I think if you use them correctly, he is a total quarterback nuisance as a blitzer. It would add a whole element to a lion's secondary that look completely different. Do you just go for it?

They are also aware and made a statement about Cameron Sutton, their cornerback, who they brought in for a lot of money last year, who's being investigated. Police in Florida have been searching for him about two weeks after an arrest warrants for a domestic violence case, and they released a statement. They're aware of it, and that's another thing at that position that I think is a concern. I was thinking, too, they could be a spot for Justin Simmons, who's a free agent at safety. They could certainly need another safety. These signings, Mark with Stavenport was another one. Zitler was a one-year deal. These are all very much like, Let's add a little sprinkle to get over the top on some high-risk, high-reward one-year deals.

I think the departure of Jonah Jackson was something that really meant something. But then Kevin Zitler comes over and you feel solid about that. In terms of the Jared Goff discussion Cushian feel so much better about Jared Goff than maybe ever. And Ben Johnson-I think he might get a contract this offseason.

Yeah.

Why not? The negatives there are vastly outweighed by thinking about Jamir Gibbs coming back his second season, knowing how to operate in the offense and more Jamo as well on the outside.

More Jamo. It's just more Jamo this year. All Jamo. Yeah, the defense has been the focus. Reader, Davenport, Robertson, Carlton Davis, the third.

Davis was a big-time move.

Now, let's see if that takes the defense from back end of the 32, if they finished 24th in the league in yards per play, allowed last year, to the middle or even a little bit higher. That could be the difference for this team to get over the pump in the NFC. Exciting times indeed.

I always am a little worried, though, about the... I mean, whoever enters the year where it's like, Oh, we just need a little more. I think Dan Campbell said it in the block room. There's no guarantee we ever get back there. And the NFC, I think, is going to look better this year. As much as I like Jared Goff, he's still not one of the best quarterbacks in the league.

That division is a nightmare.

It back there will be tough. It's thorny.

Indeed. Technically, I was seconding his point.I.

Thought you were that. That was it. That was an add-on.I'll take it.It was an add-on.

See, that just shows, again, magnanimus. I didn't say, nice job, Mark. I was actually agreeing with your point, which is over the deadline of the class.

I wasn't going to say anything because I didn't know. I'm trying to go dart free today.

You're doing well.

I'm like our last guest. We'll see.

We'll see.

Up next, the packers with Greg Rosenthal.

I struggled in this exercise thinking, what is the big need for the packers? Have they refreshed their roster that fast that they can do anything on draft day? Certainly, they could use a safety, but they did just add Daryl McKinney to Big Time Money was one of my favorite moves in free agency. Left tackle, I think, could be one, and they've had such a good history of finding values. But you look at this roster and it's just goody pics sprinkled up and down the draft. I mean, up and down the roster. I guess cornerback would be the spot. You brought Keisha Nixon back, the returner, but Dierre Alexander is still around. People didn't necessarily expect that. Eric Stokes. They could get better there. And yet I look at this roster and a lot of homegrown talent. There's a lot to like. And Josh Jacobs and A. J. Dylan, to me, is a fun combination at running back.

I don't like Josh Jacobs versus where they were a year ago at running back, but that's my own personal bias. I think Xavier McKinney was one of the best signings, and it's a little bit anti-Packers to go out and spend that money the way they did. But they have sprinkled. They're able to do that because they've sprinkled in so many good draft picks. And it really so much of it is like everything that happened last year, post-Darren Rodgers, is everything he was asking for before. And I think one of the bigger issues was defensive coordinator situation, was becoming a lightning rod all over the place. Jeff Halfley comes in with a better situation in the secondary. I'm very interested to see how he performs because he's basically one of the rare guys that left a head coaching job in college flat out because he was tired of the way college football operates.

Josh Jacobs is the only player that's going to start on offense that isn't a packer's draft pick from the last five years. Yeah. He's crazy.

And that luxury allows them to do whatever. I think I think that tackle spot is the place to fill. And if, say, a J. C. Latham is off the board at 25, then I think the packers are a solid trade-down candidate to try to get. Because if you're a believer in this whole, well, you can get a receiver anywhere. The packers hit on almost every single one of them in the the last couple of years, so that Goodie can do whatever. And Jordan Love gives you the opportunity to just take a shot.

Love is huge, obviously. I saw a meme floating around. One of my favorite movies ever, Goodwill hunting, when Will goes after this Sarsgaard character, and he goes talking about math for him, but it's for the packers and picking quarterbacks. Do you know how easy this is for me? Do you have any idea how easy this is? This is a joke, and I'm sorry you can't do this. I really am, because I wouldn't have to sit here and watch you fumble around and it up. That's basically the packers to 24 other teams in the league that cannot find quarterbacks. They've found three in a row. My one point is you don't have Joe Barry to kick around anymore. They got him out of the building, Mark. Yeah. You like Goodwill hunting?

I love it. I also love when he goes after the man with the ponytail early on, the iconic line.How.

About them apples?Yeah.

That guy is an annoying academic. He gets on a great actor, great casting. Yes. He looks like a central casting Intellectual...

I feel like you were baited into that one.

Not at all. Stop it. I was not watching the clock, to be honest.

Stinky Davis. All right, next. Patrick, the Vikings.

The Minnesota Vikings go out and make a trade. They trade a future second-round pick as well as a late-round pick, and they're number 42 to move up. It makes me feel like they will take a shot to try, at least try, Queste sending out some feelers and offers to get a quarterback move up in the draft in 2024. My question about the Vikings, the huge departure of Kirk Cousins. How long does Sam Darnold fend off whoever the Vikings draft at quarterback in 2024.

Doesn't it depend on how big the swing is for the Vikings, or does it not matter if they take any quarterback in the first round? Sam's basically just a seat for them.

If they somehow get up to three and take Jaden Daniels or Drake May, I feel like it's less of a leash. I actually think they still would tend to lean towards starting Darnold to start the season, but it'd be less of a leash. If it's a guy in the second round, I'm not totally convinced that they're going to take a the quarterback in the first round just because we all think-I think that's the natural inclination once they got that second pick is that they were arming themselves to march up the board, but maybe they have a whole different plan that they're about to unfurl. Or maybe they like Michael Pennix and are going to take him at 23 or something like that and see what happens at 11. They've sneakily had the most transition of almost any team in the NFL over the last two years. I counted 11 players that are out the door that had significant roles that have signed with other teams already this year, and they've had 14 players come in. I like it. I've liked Questy's process. I like the players that they've brought in for the most part, Aaron Jones, certainly Jonathan Gernard, Cashman, Van Ginkle.

It's a fun group of players they brought in, but it is really a different roster than it was two years ago.

It's a lot of transition. Questy openly talked about churning the roster, the process, and they found a way without going to the darkness during all that. I do find it interesting because Daniel Jeremiah typically does not include trades before his final mock draft, and he went out of this with this way to do because they added that second pick. He has them moving up to number 4 trading with the Cardinals to get JJ McCarthy. I think it comes down to if you're Kevin O'Kunal, do you have a guy that you fall in love with? That greases the skids for a trade-up.

There's a lot of McCarthy, Viking spoke. I get all that, and the focus on the offense. They've done a great job building up the offense. The line is good. Addison was a good pick. I look at this defense, it's the opposite of the packers. They have almost no a homegrown day one or two. They literally don't have a day one or two guy that was drafted on their team that's starting for their defense, other than Harrison Smith, who's been there 13 years. They have no premier homegrown talent on defense. It's a tough way to live.

To me, I'm curious what their plan is. Was the Darnold move strictly a move like, Here's our backup plan if the draft doesn't go our way, or they see Darnold as a depreciated asset, then they can, with a cheap QB, build up the roster quickly around him and take a swing. I guess we'll find out. That's the NFC North. We take a break and we hit the South. All right, we're back. Mark, do you want to give a Bayside a try?

Sure.

Well, he has to say-Not allowing to know here.

I had no chance to know.

All right, hit it, Eric.Let's try that again.

Did you understand the assignment? I do not have any idea what you're asking.

Dan comes back from the break with the Bayeside thing. That might be when Mark just check it out. He might not be aware of what you're doing.

But then, naturally, you would speak next. Do you want me to say something?

I'll do it. You say what he says. You say what he says.

And then coming back out of the last break, you'll We'll give it a shot.

I'll just guide us in.

When I initially said, Do you want to try Bayside? And you just said, Sure. You had no idea what I was talking.

Let's just play the song. Because it's like these things I remember, I'm in react mode during that. We would come out of these long, lengthy, enjoyable breaks that we have.

Okay, so here they come. Here it comes, and then we'll try it the last part. All right, welcome back. We now move on to the...

Yeah, but I thought you wanted me to do it.

Yes.

I'm showing you it. Next time around.

Then for our last break, you're going to do it.

I'll do it in my own way when the time comes.

That's what we really want.

Okay, there we go. Mark, the Falcons. That was a journey.

Yeah, no, I feel at this point, I'm just completely lost it. See, I would ask... Here we go. Remember the old IBM, You make the call commercials? Those were fun. The back when there was a less nonsense going on, so you could focus on it and you and your dad would argue over the penalty call?

I don't remember those, but-It might have preceded your watch a little bit.

It was like-I'm not sure either, but-It was old school.Go.

Ahead, you're old.

But I want you to imagine in this world that Terry Fontenou, Falcon's GM, has received a case of sunstroke after in the front office boat party at the George 8 Sparks Reservoir, which is outside of Atlanta.

He's down for the county, can't attend the draft, so you have to make the call. You are looking at a pretty loaded Falcons offense. Pick number 8, though. You can help Raheem Morris get a foundational defensive player, picking Dallas Turner, the number one edge guy out of Alabama in the draft. They need that. Or you can look at a wide receiver room with Drake London, Darnell Mooney, Ron Dale Moore, and Kyle pits, and you just go get Roma Dunzé and just say, Kerr Cousins, no matter... Even if your Achilles is still only at 30%, you cannot help but hit one of these players on every pass attempt that you have. You make the call, Greg.

I think I'm taking the defensive point. Well, the Dunes is a unique case. Is he duplicative of Drake London? They're similar in some ways, although you would love to have both. I don't think he'll be there. I think the first six, seven pics of the draft are going to be quarterback wide receiver. It's like an ultimate fantasy showdown. Unless they are willing to move up, I have a feeling they'll be gone. Their defense looks like one of the worst defenses in the league on paper. It's flown under the radar. You know who they've signed on defense this offseason? Nobody. Literally nobody. Their edge rushers are Arnold Abaketty and Lorenzo Carter, and the other positions are pretty thin, too. Best defensive player on the board. It seems like it's working out well for them, I feel.

Yeah, easily. I think Dallas Turner is in a spot where the Falcons would be able to get them. And the value there, considering that while we love all of these offensive guys, not all of them are going to pan out. It's a very rare to think that every single one of them is offering the value that we think Dallas Turner might provide. He was a younger guy who's got the measurables off the charts. It seems like a no-brainer, especially considering that Atlanta has tried. You go back 10, 15 years, like Vic Beazley, all these guys off the edge.

They've replaced the Jets as the team never having an edge rusher.

Do you want to hear the freaky thing? What's that? The freaky thing is now, Falcons say, We haven't had an edge rusher since. It's also John Abraham. The Jets fans were saying that for 12 years about John Abraham. And now the Falcon years, Falcons are saying the same thing.

Maybe he leaves-About the same guy. Is it a curse? He leaves a hex on these teams when he-That's what I'm saying.

How is it possible?

He's like the guy who doesn't teach the next generation how to do things, and somehow it's lasted for 15 years.

The curse of Abraham. They're number one far and away on the improvement index, Cousins.

Because of Cousins.

It was zero. It's fair. Could have gone to either of us.

The best part is Greg pointing at the zeros. They're The other time I said it, the first time, it was that one.

Greg, the Panthers.

Oh, the Panthers. I feel like we haven't given a lot of Panthers love this offseason. Panthers pop. I like what they've done. They've decided offensive line, and Deontay Johnson, that's the best way to help Bryce Young. I think it makes sense. They spent a lot of money for Damian Lewis and Robert Hunt. It's not my money, though, and they are definitely better. Yash Nijman from the packers, actually, is a guy who I had in my top 100. I like a lot. That's all good. Then I look at the defense, and I think this was a pretty good defense. I like a Jiro Evero. There's a reason why other teams wanted him. I just think, Man, a lot of talent is going to out the door. Frankie Louvou, Brian Burns, Dante Jackson, Gross Matos, who was a good player, and they've brought some in like DJ Juan, I'm in Josie Jules, but not big-time players, Jordan Fuller. They're asking a lot out of a Jiro Evero. The focus has only been on the offense, and now they might not be good at anything is my point.

Yeah, they lost key components on that side of the ball, and they're a team largely without an identity, other than the fact that they've largely failed at quarterback and up front. He was poorly protected, though, all year. I can't think of a quarterback in the league that you don't want to get hit as many times as he was. I think Robert Hunt is a great signing. He was a PFF number 6 guard last year. He looked like it's a big loss for the Dolphins. You needed to go do that. I just think the number one thing is Dave Canales, two years in a row, he's survived a quarterback's career. This It was more challenging than even Gino or Baker Mayfield. You feel the panic around the team because the way the draft played out and then Stroud instantly became the star.

They're like, Holy God, what are we going to do? Let's redo the interior of the line. Remember, he's not a very tall quarterback, so it's very important to have some ballers up front that can really get things under control. Coming down, what was the old Tom braided thing? Bring the pressure right at him. He doesn't like the pressure up the middle. It doesn't like it up the middle. So they're attacking that. Who does? They add a wide receiver, Deontay Johnson, Claybon, who is very talented, certainly bumps back guys like Adam Thielen, which is necessary into a different spot on the depth chart. So they're trying, and we'll see what else they can do here. Yeah.

As far as influence the perception, C. J. Straub benefited from a lot of that team that was there where at least Laramie Tunzel was brought to benefit another quarterback when the Texans were making that original run. And so the Texans had this upheaval. D'amico comes in, but C. J. Straub was in a much better position. The team was in a much better position than the 2023 Carolina Panthers, where Adam Thielen is your number one, and you've got rookies and guys that didn't necessarily work out elsewhere. I think there's reason to be confident, but I'm also looking at Azzurro Evero and the defense like Greg mentioned, where it seems, based on Jeremy Chin falling off of the planet, that they have a stated belief, and this is the type of player, this is the system that we're going to operate in. If you don't do that particular thing, then we don't want you to play on.

Who are their edge rushers? You brought I've seen these maulers on the line, but they're like run first guys, and you don't really have a running back, by the way.

Hog maulies.

Save, Bryce.

Claybon on the Saints.

The New Orleans Saints.

It should be fun.

Well, it's always fun. I think every single year there's this like of the Saints and saying that, Well, we see, we told you the cap is real. I don't think anybody, especially, shout out to Ky Harley, is denying the existence the salary cap. There are just different ways to manage the salary cap. The Saints do actually keep some veterans. Demario Davis comes back. The Honey Badger comes back. They still have the talent. But last year was the best head coaching season in Dennis Allen's career. The absolute best.

Judged by wins and losses.

By wins and losses. Can we just get one Dennis Allen compliment without the rejoin?

That wasn't a compliment.

Was that the best coaching job of his career?

It was It was just purely a statement of fact.

It's damning with faint praise intentionally.

Just let it sit a little bit.

Purely a statement of fact. Best season Dennis Allen has ever had as a head coach of the National Football League. What's the best reason to believe the Saints will finish even better in the division in 2024 than they did in 2023?

I can't because I think last year they openly said, We are going to ride through this year identity free. I look at the Saints over the last couple of seasons. I'm like, I don't know how it is you want to exist in this world or what life you're trying to live and what you're trying to tell your fans. Just to me, it's like a roster floating. And what they've done so far this time around feels more of the same to me.

What's a roster led by a defensive coach that wants his defense to be good, and it should be good. It was good last year. Can it be great? We'll see Chase Young they bring in. We didn't talk about that on the show where it's a lot of roster bonuses. He's having surgery right now. Right. If he can be active. It was a fairly low risk because of the money and a It's a decent reward, I think, for him. But you hope he's well. Willie Gay was a nice signing. Their defense should be good. I just don't buy that they're suddenly conservative. They haven't done much this offseason, and I feel like more is coming. They need a second wide receiver. They certainly needed left tackle despite having traded up for Trevor Penning a couple of years ago. Marshawn Latamor maybe will be part of trying to improve other spots on the roster. I don't know. I hope not because he's one of the best players on the roster.

This is where I was supposed to speak.

You seem agitated. We just wanted to give you a Saint spot.

No, no. In this case, I was sitting it out because I felt like the takes were strong about the Saints, and I don't have the same level of heat around them, so he's going to keep passing the ball back and forth. Go ahead. If you say it's the best coaching, you were doing that with a little tongue in cheek because I'm giving the judge's score.

I'm giving them a lower score.

Well, I mean, just again, we've done quarterback wins, I guess there are a group of people that believe that the quarterback gets to... I feel like if we were applying that to quarterbacks, then we should definitely apply it to coaches.

That was his best season. Well, speaking of the... Hey, you mentioned that you had to get Nathan Petermann in the building quickly. The Peter Pan.Querterback wins. I do like Clint Kubiak.

The Tampa Bay Bucaneers. Me thinks the Bucs are a tad high on their own supply. Remember that Jason Light, Connor or Ambush at the Combine? Yeah.

This is also the same Jason Light who recently said that the Bucks free agency was one of the greatest free agency hauls ever.

That was a direct quote, actually. That meant they re-signed Mike Evans, Levante David, got Baker under contract. While I believe a wholeheartedly that positive reinforcements Division of Self is important. I am pounding that message home to my eldest son Jack right now, who's going through some struggles on the baseball diamond this spring. But perspective, context, also important. Not all back to back to division winners are created equal. By the way, they've won three in a row now. It's important to remember that Tampa Bay won these last two division titles despite a 500 record across those two years. Actually, 17 and 17. The question becomes, what do the Bucks have to do to aspire to be more than just the champion of a bad division?

He had some more explosiveness on offense. They are a great test of how much continuity matters. Bringing back all the guys you said. Even bringing in Jordan Whitehead is continuity, again. Bringing back a guy that was there when they didn't win the division, but they did win the Super Bowl four years ago. So it's been a nice run. His offensive line, he's done a good job, Jason Light. Their entire offensive line is day one or two picks by Jason Light. He's a sneaky good drafter, but I feel like we need to get a few more of the difference makers on the defensive side. Trading away Carlton Davis in Todd Bulls' defense was really not holding their end of the bargain consistently last week.

I'm with you, Dan, in the sense that I keep hearing the Bucs 6 saying we're running it back. You finish with the same record as Dennis Allen and the Saints in a bad division, and you want a playoff game against a team that had fallen off a cliff, but you're running back something that probably Who will give you again about eight or nine wins?

The questions are mainly about the offense. To me, I feel confident in Todd Bowles, and then that brings me back to Baker Mayfield. I know it was a fantastic season, but am I going I don't like to see Baker Mayfield in this vision of the same way I see Kirk Cousins, in the same way I see Dak Prescott or Jalen Hertz? I just don't know if Baker gets them over that line where you can have that continuity when it's Tom braided because you're going to opportunity. I don't know the variance that Baker Mayfield provides is enough to get what's left of that team.

It's another year where Baker Mayfield goes through a coordinator switch. I know he's happy with Liam Cohen. It's another one of these.

If you're willing to go that high for Baker salary-wise, why not rework a couple more deals and make a real play for Kirk? And then you don't, and then he ends up in your own division, and he goes to the team that has a roster otherwise built to contend best in that division. Time out. Time out. Time out. Now, it's understandable that you might have just listened to those three minutes and said, Tad critical there, Daddy Rich. I have a dissenting opinion. This dissenting opinion is actually the owner of West Bromwich Albion Football Club. Also a Bucks super fan, Shalind Patel. This is breaking news. This is a world exclusive.

Hey there, heroes. Long-time listener, first-time agitator. I've been a lot more focused on football than football this offseason. But when I heard that the tug boat was trashing the Bucs offseason moves, I had to step in and defend my guys. The Bucs main job this offseason was to retain or extend four all-pro players, and those were Mike Evans, Antoine Winfield Jr, Levante David, and Tristan Wurfs. And they're well on track to doing that. And a big reason why is because Baker is who Baker is and because he did the deal that he did. I think the Bucs have the combination of players to feast on a weak division. I'm glad that Dan's sleeping on the Bucks, and I'm glad lots of people are sleeping on the bucks because that seems to be when they do their best work. Going into the draft, they've got a couple holes, O-line, edge rush, and DBs. Jason Light has been good at getting O-linemen and DBs in the draft, and we'll have to figure out how to get the best edge rusher we can. But I think we still have the opportunity to beat up on a weak division.

The Panthers are trash. The Saints are still figuring things out, and I don't I think that the Falcons got so much better with the Kirk Cousins coming off an Achilles injury to really scare us away from aiming for our fourth straight division Crown. So go Bucks and up the Albion.

There you go. Boing, boing.

That was a good comeback because I think the Winfield thing, the way they handle that matters. There would have been a fair excuse for the post Tom braided Bucks just to disappear entirely. And light has navigated. You keep the good players that you have and you keep He's adding more, but it's like, there are worst fan experiences right now.

Jason light's sneaky been there for a decade now. Good job by him, navigating all these different errors. And he really is a good drafter. He really does fill in at DB very well. They just need more players that are getting better. I feel like they have a lot of players like Godwin, like Evans, like Baker, frankly, who have... They're not going to get better. We know they need to be that good just to get outscored in aggregate by 20 points over the last two years. It's like you need some younger players that are getting better.

And Rashaad White stepped up.We're.

Just still talking Bucks.Yeah.I.

Like it.We got the time out.

That's what the time out is for. I think you keep the guys that are going to be in your ring of honor one day. In terms of Mike Evans, I feel could have gotten a better offer elsewhere. I think Baker Mayfield, perhaps, could have waited things out. So saw where Kirk went and got some more money. But Jason Light, the folks in Tampa, convincing them to... I think they should be celebrated for that. I just don't see where the ceiling. Where's that surprise?

It's all about continuity, because when I look at this depth chart, man, they do have... These guys have all played together for a while. Not continuity in terms of the offensive coordinator. That's a little bit of a concern because Liam Cohen is the one guy from the Sean McVay tree that really didn't get a bump. He got bumped off the Rams roster by Sean McVay.

That clear-headed, concise take is classic Shalind Patel.

That's why he's running an actual sports team.

It's rare that you hear a team owner call another team trash, but I like that.

You got to love that, too. It is a different sport. Some of the press he's getting out there. Here's BBC Shalind Patel, West Brom owner, aiming high, M-Dash. But with realism and patience, how about this from Express and Star? Shalind Patel is already giving West Brom fans something they have been craving.Craving.He was just on our show.Aero up.

That's our bud.

Craving is important, as I learned on Love is Blind Season 6.

Do you have a money stake in this show? Because of the 14th time you brought this.

It was like grave. When you weren't here, Patrick and I actually did five minutes on Love is Blind Season 6, and then I told Eric to take it out of the show.

Were you there for this? Yeah, but I watched two episodes of Season 1.

Then afterwards, I was like, You know what? Let's just take that out.

That's incredible. Maybe we can put it onPut it on the list if folks want to hear that five minutes.

I was going to say, it could have been a satellite pod, but isn't that already mean as territory? There you go.

The season is long over.

Nfl Plus, I think, would love to have. They'll take it.

Plus, we'll take a little Love is Blind recap.

I've moved on to Blownaway and Top Chef. I like that. Glass-blowing competition. Underrated. Blown away.

Thanks for the update.

All right, let's take a break, and we will finish out the NFC with the West.

All right, we're back. The show is continuing. Let's move to the NFC West, the Arizona Cardinals with Greg.

Wow, I love that you did the whole thing. The Arizona Cardinals. All right. They exist. Hey, we're talking about your team. For the first time, I feel like all offseason, they have been quiet. A little surprise, year two of this regime that they aren't stirring things up a little more. Marquise Brown, Ron Delmore out the door. They really don't have any wide receivers. You get rid of DJ Humphreys at tackle. You get Jona Williams. You have some rotational defensive linemen, but this is still a team If you were just guessing who has a top five pick next year, them and the Panthers still have the most to work out. They need a number one wide receiver. Right now, it's Michael Wilson or Dorch. They need a ton on the defensive line. I I don't know if they're putting Kyler Murray in the best position to succeed right now. There's not a lot of help on this roster right now.

That's my concern, too. They have been talked about Monte Austin for it likes to compile draft picks, that that's a target in the draft where someone could move up to get that QB4 or Marvin Harrison Jr. Michael Wilson is a good player. I thought he showed a lot of promise, but he seems like a good number, too. Greg Dorsch is interesting, too. And Zack Pascal is your other guy. I don't think you can afford to move out of that spot and pass up on Marvin Harrison Jr. I think you've got to give Kyler Murray and the rest of this offense a chance.

I feel like, considering what Kyler has been through, I have more confidence this season than I did a couple of other seasons ago in terms of Kyler coming back with an opportunity to be healthy coming into the year. Seeing these other quarterback situations and the way things have been, a success or a disaster, there hasn't been a lot of in between. Kyler is probably that quarterback that's been the in between where we haven't gotten what we wanted, but there's still hope of some promise. I think we see that come to fruition.

I thought he fit well in this system.

Yeah, I think Michael Wilson is maybe not as solid as a one as you would like, but this year, too, there is cause to be positive about it.

It's good from a Cardinal's fan perspective that you can just get things back. You got the boat out of the dock now. The repairs are done. Maybe we could go out on the high seas and do some things because you had all the drama around Kyler with the contract. Then he blows his knee out, then you're waiting for him to return. Now we can go into a new season with a fresh start. There's so much work to do on the roster, obviously, and you lose Hollywood Brown, DJ Humphreys. There's work to be done, Greg, but at least you have Kyler starting fresh and healthy, and let's see once and for all if he is that dude.

I'm confident in him. I thought he fit well in that system. I thought they coached really well on both sides of the ball. Gannon was cooking up pretty creative game plans without a lot of talent, but that lack of talent is still there, so they really need to start hitting. Justin Jones, they gave $20 million guaranteed. That was their big move on defense, a guy that the bears Weren't exactly in love with.

The Rams. The Aaron Donald-less Rams with Patrick Claybon.

We've talked about the Philadelphia The Eagles having to deal with a first ballot Hall of Famer not being on the team, still playing very well. Aaron Donald was still playing exceedingly good football, and he was getting the lion's share of attention as he always would. But the contributions from Kobe Turner last year, maybe because of what Will Anderson did, got slept on overall on his same team, Puka, stealing his shine a little bit. They've done so well in the draft, and Sean McVea hasn't actually gone the combine since 2020. And I'm wondering, are the ramps proving that does anybody need to go to the combine? The way that Les is cranking out these very, very good players later on in the draft, I'm excited to see what they do this year. That's my only question.

Do coaches need to go to the combine? I think it's funny because Sean McVay, from a cynical angle, he'd say, Oh, he wants to work less. I don't think that at all, but it's like the first coach to totally ghost the combine. He doesn't want to do anything in the preseason. These are two building blocks of the NFL offseason into regular action, and he just dismisses them both. Last year was one of the best coaching jobs in the NFL, I thought.

Well, he's not picking the player, certainly not on defense. I do worry a little bit that they're rolling back this idea of, now it's Chris Shula as the defense coordinator. We're just trying to be average on defense, and we're going to invest $66 million guaranteed at guard in Jona Jackson and Kevin Dodson, which they're going to be fun. It's a creative way that they've attacked this offseason. I like Cam Curl. They brought back Darius Williams, but also Kela Witherspoon is a free... Just like, no Aaron Donald, and you're going cheap a little bit on defense, and it's a new defensive coordinator. Rahim did a nice job coaching this defense up, and counting on that again might be expecting too much.

I liked the way J. B. Long put it on the show on Monday that you lose Donald, and it's massive, and it's incalculable, and we're going to see how they move on. But he was there as a transition with your boy Kobe Turner, Greggy, and that defense getting its sea legs in real-time and ending up almost getting to the divisional playoff.

Byron Young, too. I I don't think there was a world where they win the Super Bowl last year. It was like one in 20. But I think there was a world.

Yeah, J. B. Was hitting at that. If they can get by that first game, it's a wide open, you never know. I get why the way they're playing this offseason and they're looking We're going to build in this mock two, or is it mock three now of Sean McVay's tenure there? Keep the quarterback upright, and the sky's the limit, I think, on offense.

They remind me a little bit of the Colts back in the day. Now, the Colts had a couple of Hall of Famers or near Hall of Famers on defense, but it was just like, Invest in offense every year. Try to be a top three offense every year. Hope the defense is good enough, and we'll win 10 games at worst with our offense.

The Seattle Seahawks. I got this one. I feel like for years now, the Seahawks have been parked in a cul-de-sac neighborhood. That's fine. It's nice. The houses are not luxurious, but they're comfortable. The people maintain their yards and the neighbors get along. It's a nice place to trick or treat, but also not the place you go if you're hoping to get full candy bars, if you know what I'm saying. There's nothing wrong with that. Like as Brandon flowers. You get those mini- Yeah, the mini ones. No, I'm talking about the full bars, the ones that Connor Orr gives out. You got to go to a different neighborhood. I imagine that's where they want to be eventually. I think this is a pretty decent roster with good players on defense. They have talent on offense, replacement-level quarterback, but not a bad player, not a major issue. Stop. He's trying to be a jerk. That set up with good coaching, and we'll see how Mike McDonald is, is a recipe for 9 or 10 wins, maybe a one-off road trip in the playoffs. But is there something more to aspire to? Does this team have the ambition to try to move out of that neighborhood?

As Brandon flowers of the Killers once said, There's nothing wrong with working class. But what if there's more out there? The American dream, as it were.

I love change, and the Seahawks started to feel a little stale to me under Pete Carroll as much as I like Pete Carroll.I think Mike McDonald.

I think that's part of the setup of Carroll moving on is because I think they get that, right?

I mean, your all-time Hall of Fame type coach is an indication they want to change neighborhoods.

I think Mike McDonald is going to be a huge story next year. There's something about his vibe just watching a couple of his in this conference is. I think the Seahawks needed this. I'm not down on Geno Smith or anything, but I thought that the Sam Howell trade was intriguing because this, to me, was a starter in development who, if things get a little shaky at quarterback, Sam Howell is a much more spicy to me than Drew Locke as a number two who can come in and at times look really good. I don't know.

Yeah, I mean, Sam Howell takes risk. He holds on to the ball way too long, but he can go out there and get buckets. There was a time last year where he was leading the NFL in passing. I don't think it's enough to dethrase their own Gino. But what it does is it gives you value at the backup position where all these backups are playing. We see a team's actual commitment and how they feel about their starter, perhaps, considering where the backup is and how good where they're not necessarily concerned about the starter's psyche or whatever. We know nothing's going to ruin Gino like that. He's been through everything. But talent-wise, on defense, I think there's some room improve on offense, running the ball. It just got to keep people healthy. But I think they can get there. I think they're on the precipice. It's just hard, especially in this division.

Their biggest move was just bringing Lenny Williams back and then-They had to.resigning Noah Fant. They haven't gone outside that much. They have new linebackers, Tyrell Dodson, Jerome Baker, I thought were smart. Eleven core guys have left the team.

Final time out. I really wasn't trying to be a jerk about Gino. Where does he fit with the Dalton line?

He's definitely above it. Yeah. That's why I don't think it's replacement.

It's not miles above it.

Last year's play also or just the year that everyone remembers?

I think he played really well down the stretch last year. If you look at the pop the hood numbers, even the PFF grades and stuff, the two years were very similar. I think he's been a little streaky within those years, but they didn't block well for him. He threw well down the field all season. He's not a perfect quarterback, but I think he was safely above that. To me, he was in that 10-12 range both years.

I thought when we were in London, we watched him make some... Just watching him together at the same time. Gino can whip the ball downfield, and I honestly think he higher than the Dalton line. Mike McDonald did not come out screaming and shouting about he's definitely their starter.

But their actions. Their actions... Patrick's point showed like, they brought in a backup, a backup who has a similar skillset in some ways, other than the running to Gino.

And a backup that can then learn from Gino. I think for every 20 seconds we spend talking about Sam Darnold, then that should mean at least 20 minutes of Gino discussion.

Darnold, to me, is closer to-That's not going to get touchy because somebody-But by the I said something critical about Gino Smith in the Greg Klabon high.We.

Do send about 20 minutes talking about Gino Smith on every preview show.We've.

Given plenty of Gino Smith conversation on this show.

I think Darnold, though, would be closer to a replacement level based on his contract. I guess that's what I think. We're at a different point of place.

We don't know about Darnold, but yeah, right now, he needs to prove that it can even be that.

Or Baker, even. We don't know about Darnal, but a few years ago, we were absolutely certain about Gino, right?

He's fine. I got to get... You know what? I got to get nick Shook in here. Shook's got him 18, and I think that is a nice spot.

Last two years, combined, charted passing. This is from football inside on throws 15 yards downfield. Gina Smith, the number one most accurate quarterback in the league. I think when he's got his issues, hold the ball sometimes, he's almost too aggressive. But when he sets up to throw, the ball goes where he wants it to go about as well as any quarterback in the league, which is a great starting point.

I think It may be, Dan, where you're coming from, because it's how I feel, it's just like, Okay, cool. So Gino Smith is your quarterback. Let's see how that works.

Don't get it twisted. I just said they live in a nice neighborhood. Yeah, right. He's part of that.

It was a replacement level. Even if 18 is a replacement level, then we should be in like 40.

To talk as Gino Smith would be-Well, you want a top 5, top 10 quarter. I mean, you guys are saying the fact that I could even bring up that Gino is someone that could be replaced and they can get better at the position is the third thought. I'm sorry. I fundamentally They disagree with that.

They certainly, I think, thought about it. But I think if he's in a situation with everything great around him, he's going to put up numbers like Jared Goff for better. I think last year, he played well. He played well down the stretch. He probably saved his job.

He's not bad. I agree to disagree? I agree to disagree, and I respect your opinions.

You're saying you disagree?

I disagree, but I respect the hell out of you.

It It was a shot at Gino.

A shot at Gino in that I don't see him as highly as you doesn't mean it's a shot. It's just I don't see him at the same level. That's all.

Yeah.

Time in? Time in. Close it out, Mark, with the Niners.

They have been my pet team for years. They have. I think they came in. There was reporting that their number one priority, they lose Eric Armstead and Chase Young, that they wanted to make sure that they kept that defensive line humming. Leonard Floyd, nice pickup. They trade from Lee Collins. I trust that this will just work out for the Niners on some level. I see two mysteries that linger. Number one, does Brandon Ayuk get moved before the draft?They were linked toHanging around out there.

That talk.

The Jaguars were linked as a team, interested. The Steelers, maybe not, but he's in the last year of his contract. You're already paying one of your other wideouts a ton of money. It's like, I don't like seeing that offense lose even one of those pieces because they're so overwhelming. I think the second thing for me, and I just get this feeling about the Niners, and maybe it's just like, I don't know, I feel like psychologically or in terms of a spiritual feeling inside the building, how many more breaking points can the Kyle Shanaher experience take? Because it's like every season has been so heartbreaking. It reminds me of the Saints team that had three terrible playoff losses three years in a row, and they've really never been the same. I mean, it's just like you get It's so close. It's like, is there a point where we just don't assume they win 14, 15 games?

I think it's a great question from a human standpoint, because these losses aren't just any losses. I mean, you look at the Super Bowl defeats, the title game defeat. These are feeling like the world is... They're winning an overtime of the Super Bowl a couple of months ago, and they can't get over the pump. At one point, yeah, does that psychologically just damage you?

Offensively, they will return all of their starters. They're, to my mind, the best offense in the NFL. They could try to improve their offensive line and do some things. I don't think they'll trade at Duke, although supposedly they were open to it. I think if Jacksonville was going to give up that number 17 overall pick, they would have done it. If I was Jacksonville, I would do that.

Yeah, he's going to be because the offense has proliferated literally across the entire NFL. You have Brandon Ayuk, who's learned it from the person who we associate this offense with and has gone through all those trials and tribulations. It would be a mistake to move him. But to Mark's point, physically, I think we saw the accumulation of all those extra football games on the Kansas City Chiefs, and the 49ers played literally the same number of games, but it didn't turn out in the way that they wanted at the end. But over and over again, to deal with that, you're eventually going to get an extra season's worth of football in playing all of these games, and they're such a physical team. I think it does add up, not to discount them, but over and over again at some point.

And this is the first year, Mark, about the questions about the defense are fair now after the way they struggled down the stretch and they've lost players, and it's going to be be a lot.

Gross models, Malik Collins, Leonard Floyd, Jordan Elliott, another radar. A lot of rotational guys on their defense.

New defense coordinator.

There.

We go out with a dart as we must. We just went around the NFC. We went around the NFC a day earlier. Now you have all 32 team cup. We were thinking there was a year, a few years back, where we've missed a team, we've skipped a team. I never, ever agree, or hardly ever agree, when we're getting criticism on social media or whatever like, Oh, you hate my team. They always hate this team. But when you get your team skipped in this exercise, we will take the L. But I think we're covered there.

But especially if you're waiting, like you're the fourth division. Oh, I can't even imagine. You made it through. It's not 48 minutes, it's 2,048 minutes. Then your team doesn't get mentioned.

It's like big slap in the face. I think that's only once. We started doing these around the AFC-NFCs pretty early on in the run of this show, I would guess we've been doing it for 11 years.

You're going to say our batting average is pretty good.

Yeah, just saying we only miss one team out of 32.

We hit 800.

We're doing like 990.

It's probably not 990 up in here.

I like to say if you forgot about a team, it's probably not that big of a deal. I think it might have been the bills also, but this was during the forget-up bills. Probably warranted then.

I love forgetting about the team that you forgot about.

You're doubling down here, you guys.

I think it was Next episode, we probably spent 20 minutes talking about the build. We make it up to people when we do.

It might have been the E. J. Manuel, tie ride era build, I believe. It was a while ago. Second E. J. Manual reference this week, by the way.

Eric, Now it's time to put down the gun. I think sometimes another risk that we take, and I just did get a report that Andrew's doing great, and he's going to be really good. It's good to hear. Later today. Have we created a monster now? Will he be able to step out of the studio and realize that time in his life is over and he needs to become a civilian again?

I think it's a fair question. I would say that if memory serves, and I'm thinking of Erica and others, that every producer that's had the taser weapon has gone absolutely nuts with it. I think it's a powerful feeling.

You have to have a structure in place for once he gets home. A code. Yes. Not necessarily that Eric needs a leadership, but he said he is an order of a follower, and so he needs that structure in place to work not just at home. We got word from Kinty and Palace yesterday that Kate is working at home.Work.

From home.We.

Can trust that report.

Relatable sitch.

I just want Eric to be able to dart from home safely.Wow. Yeah.

I appreciate it, guys.

Let's go out with Alex Badera's song, simply titled Patrick Claybon. We'll be back next week. Now, Greggy, you are taking a much deserved vacation next week. I am, yeah. Enjoy that.

My in-laws and my parents meeting up for the first time since their wedding 17 years ago. I see.

Where?

It's an undisclosed location. Now, Hawaii. Nice.

Then I'll be taken off the next week, going to the same island. Oh, look at us. Oh, nice. We'll see you Tuesday.

Patrick Leban.

Until then. He's the call.

You are the man.

Momentum.

What a guy. What a stud.