Bag alert, bag alert, bag alert, bag alert, folks.
That's right, Joe Thune gets an extension. We
have to talk about the tush push because why?
It survives once again. We also have to discuss
the passing of former Colts owner Jim Irsay,
as well as the Lions withdrawing their playoff
proposal, the NFL heading to the Olympics. Caleb
Williams tried avoiding being drafted by the
Bears, which in some ways we sort of talked about
that a few episodes ago, but it's okay, as well
as a potential developing situation that could
be happening in Washington, which is Terry McLaurin
holding out possibly, I don't know for sure,
but just possibly, as well as the NFL rolling
out a new award. Yes. Old linemen finally get
love because you know why? Old linemen are people
too. So they deserve an award just like how everybody
else deserves an award as well as grades for
the NFC East, okay? All of this and more. on
the 79th episode of the Football Junkies podcast,
all right? I am your host with the most. I'm
your GM who currently is not on the team right
now, but don't you worry about it, okay? Don't
you worry about it because why? I am your chief,
Bagro Damas. I'm your chief, head of the table.
Anything and everything related to theories,
possible trades, possible extensions, possible
cuts. All of that and more, I cover that over
here at the Football Junkies Podcast because
why? We are the best podcast you can listen to
on a week -to -week, day -to -day basis. But
guess what? I am all these things and more. But
most importantly, the most important thing that
you must remember is I am your host, Kale. You
already know how these things are about to go.
You already know how my intro is about to go.
So guess what? On three, one, two, three, let's
lock in. All right, folks, let's just get into
the meat and potatoes of everything that is going
on in the league right now. So let's just get
this one out the way. Joe Thune inks a two -year
$35 million extension, $33 .5 million guaranteed,
and he'll be making $17 .5 million a year. Folks,
we all knew this was going to happen. We all
knew that once he got traded to the Bears, he
was going to get some form of an extension. Me
personally, I didn't believe it was going to
be a long -term extension. I thought it was going
to be more of like what they gave him, which
was a two -year $35 million deal. Simply because,
for one, you don't want to give him this large
deal and then he just retires in the middle of
it. No. Instead, you want to give him all of
his money up front so if he decides to walk away
from football, I don't know, next year or whatever,
guess what? It's not really going to affect you.
Not to mention, Joe Thune is still one of the
best interior offensive linemen in the league
right now. You're talking about somebody that
has a lot of experience. From winning Super Bowls
with the Patriots and then the Chiefs to now...
Going to the Bears and potentially, you know,
setting the culture within the offensive line
room. I think this was a great move for the Bears.
You lock up somebody that is going to be able
to be an anchor on the offensive line as well
as in that locker room. So all in all, congratulations
to Joe Thune. Now let's talk about this whole
tush push situation. So here's my thing with
it. Like it, love it, whatever you want. The
tush push stands. Once again, it was close. It
was very close. It was two votes away from being
banned. But luckily, those two votes did not
happen. So let's get into it. So the Eagles owner,
Jeffrey Lohr, along with Jason Kelsey, made a
last minute pitch to all the people that were
in that room on why they don't need to ban the
tush push. And it worked. But here's the thing,
though. Jeffrey Lord criticized both Roger Goodell
and Troy Vincent on advocating for the ban of
the tush push, which I can understand their side,
which is it's only a matter of time before somebody
takes the extreme route and try to perform this
play or try to defend the play. And in doing
so, they have a serious injury, which nobody
really wants at this point, if we can be real
here. And it looks like a dangerous move anyway.
Jason Kelsey stated, and I quote, he would have
returned to the NFL if he could run 60 tush pushes
a game, end quote. The teams that voted to keep
the tush push includes the Browns, the Dolphins,
the Jaguars, the Lions, the Jets, Patriots, Ravens,
Saints, and Titans. We all know that the Packers
made this proposal, and most likely they will
be the victim of multiple tush pushes once they
face them. Man, that's going to be a fun game.
But there is something that is very interesting.
And this is coming from ESPN's Seth Wickersham.
There is no data to support the notion that players
were hurt from the tush push, which I would have
thought at least maybe two or three people would
have shown up. But for there to be no data that
supports that, it's actually pretty good. But
all in all, this was expected. This was not something
that was going to catch everybody off guard.
No, this was expected. Everybody knows that when
the Eagles are in that formation, they are going
to convert from getting that first down to that
touchdown. They're always going to get it with
the tush push. Now, there are other teams that
have tried to at least replicate it as best as
they could. Some of them have been a little bit
successful, others not so much. But the fact
of the matter is, folks, The tush push is one
of the most popular plays in the league, and
it's one of the most broken plays in the league.
And it's going to continue to be broken until
people decide to say, listen, we need to get
rid of this. And most likely it'll probably happen
probably next year. I wouldn't be surprised within
the next three years they ban the tush push.
And then the Eagles find a different variation
of the tush push and then redo it all over again.
I wouldn't be surprised at this point, but we
do have some tragedy that we do have to report.
And that is the passing of former Colts owner
and CEO, Jim Irsay. So here's the statement the
Colts put out shortly after the announcement
was made of the passing of Jim Irsay. And I quote,
we are devastated to announce our beloved owner
and CEO, Jim Irsay passed away peacefully in
his sleep this afternoon. Jim's dedication and
passion for the Indianapolis Colts, in addition
to his generosity, commitment to the community,
and most importantly, his love for his family
was unsurpassed, end quote. Jim Irsay became
the principal owner at 37 following the passing
of his father. He was a member of the Finance
and Legislative Committee of the NFL and was
a part of a group that was created by the former
NFL commissioner Pete Rozelle in the 80s to create
the salary cap. Under ownership of Jim Irsay,
the Colts made it to two Super Bowls and, of
course, won one Super Bowl. He also created the
Kicking the Stigma campaign, which is aimed at
mental health and addictions. The Irsays have
awarded $31 million in grants to organizations
in the mental health and addiction fields, and
ownership for the team has already been transferred
to his daughters, who have held ownership titles
since 2012. Jim Irsay has left a lasting legacy
upon the NFL. From being a part of a group that
created the salary cap, to being a member of
the Finance and Legislative Committee, to creating
the Kicking the Stigma campaign, Jim Irsay has
done a lot for the NFL. And that's why you see
such an outpouring of love from all the other
teams, from former players that played with the
Colts and whatnot. Because Jim Irsay was that
guy. Jim Irsay was a type of owner where you
could have a conversation with him. He wasn't
that type of owner where he was uppity and he
was in his box and he would request for somebody
to get you to then have a conversation with him.
No. If you look at any of those highlights when
it comes to the hard knocks, he was always in
the locker room. He was always interacting with
his players. Because he loved his players. He
treated his players like family. And for him
to just suddenly pass away definitely has left
things a little bit of a somber moment within
the NFL. Because Jim Irsay left a lasting legacy
upon the NFL. And we all know that the Colts
will be in great hands because his daughters
have held ownership titles since 2012. So they
are very familiar with the experience. when it
comes to running the Colts. And so, Jim Irsay,
on behalf of me and the Football Junkies podcast,
thank you for the legacy that you have left.
Thank you and your family for all that you have
done for football. Now let's talk about the Lions
withdrawing their playoff proposal. So let me
break down to you exactly what would have happened
had this passed. So the change was going to affect
the seeding of teams. So instead of the seeding
being based on divisional games, it was going
to be based on overall record. I have an example
to prove this. So under the current format, this
is what would have happened. So with the first
seed would have been the Lions, the Eagles, the
Buccaneers, the Rams, the Vikings, Commanders,
and Packers. Fine. But here is the version if
the Lions proposal would have passed. It would
have been the Lions, the Eagles, the Vikings,
the Commanders, Packers, Buccaneers, and Rams.
Folks, this would have been a disaster. Not to
mention, it would have watered down divisional
games. Divisional games are so important, especially
in the later part of the season, that if you
was to make this move, it would diminish it.
And then not to mention, it would just essentially
say, hey, division games don't matter. As long
as you have the best record, you'll always have
a better seating. No, that's not how things work.
That's not how they never worked. So I don't
understand why the Lions would try to do this,
but I'm so glad that they withdrew it because
they knew that it probably wasn't going to pass.
But we do have some other things that we do have
to talk about, and that is the NFL going to the
Olympics. That's right, folks. Flag football
is going to the Olympics. So here is how things
are going to go. One player from every team is
allowed to participate, and every designated
international player is allowed to represent
their country. Ten players will be chosen by
every country's National Olympic Committee, and
the NFL and the Players Association are also
working together to allow both current and former
players to compete in the Olympics. Now here's
the statement from both Roger Goodell and Troy
Vincent. So Roger Goodell says this, and I quote,
Now this is what Troy Vincent says, and I quote,
Folks, this is great for football as a whole.
And the reason why I say that is because, for
one, the NFL has been trying in the last few
years to really make the sport go global. And
I think this is the best way to really do it
because now everybody will be able to see it.
And now all the countries both. Current countries
that the NFL does business with and future countries
that the NFL will do business with will be interested
in hosting at least a game or two there. We already
know that they're hosting games in Europe and
Spain and whatnot in Mexico. But I wouldn't be
surprised if we have an NFL game in Japan. I
wouldn't be surprised if we have a game in, I
don't know, Australia. or Africa, or China, or
any of these places, I would not be surprised.
The NFL is trying to make this a global sport,
and it's very much needed because we're starting
to see an influx of international players also
make their presence known in the league as well.
So it's only right that you include them with
this. Not to mention, if you have former players
to connect with, the current generation and past
generation, I think would be even better. If
you have someone like, I don't know, Michael
Vick or Randy Moss or who else, who else, who
else? Eric Dickerson. Well, no, Eric Dickerson's
too old. I don't know why Eric Dickerson came
to mind. Who else, who else, who else? Gronk
or Tom Brady or whomever. If you get any of those
guys. I guarantee you it would be amazing. Now,
granted, this isn't normal football. This is
flag football. So all the tackling stuff, that's
out the window, but I still think it'll be great
for the game as a whole. My only concern is this.
How will this affect minicamp, OTAs, training
camp, and all of those things in the summer?
Because we all know that the Olympics happen
when? In the summer. So how exactly is that going
to work from a scheduling standpoint? Will the
players that will be participating in the Olympics,
will they be excused from this? I think once
we find clarity with that point, everything else
will fall into place. Now let's talk about something
a little bit more controversial, and that is
Caleb Williams not wanting to go to the Bears.
So this is coming from a new book that's supposed
to be coming out called American Kings, Biography
of the Quarterback by Seth Wiggerson, who works
for ESPN. And so this goes in a few different
directions. So let's just get into it. For starters,
Caleb Williams and his team consulted with lawyers
on how they can avoid getting drafted by the
Bears in the collective bargaining agreement.
Caleb Williams' father said this, and I quote,
Chicago is the place quarterbacks go to die,
and I don't want my son playing for the Bears,
end quote. Caleb Williams' father also spoke
to Archie Manning, father of Eli and Peyton Manning,
lawyers and agents while considering if his son
could sign with the ufl and become an unrestricted
free agent 2025 that way he can dictate where
he wants to go instead of the draft his father
also argues about the rookie wage scale and even
says and i quote the rookie cap is just unconstitutional
as well as saying the cba is the worst piece
of shit i've ever read end quote During the combine,
Caleb Williams met with Kevin O 'Connell and
Williams actually dreamt of going to Minnesota.
But Ryan Poles, GM of the Bears, said this, and
I quote, we're drafting you no matter what, end
quote. On one hand, I understand where Caleb
Williams and his team is coming from. They don't
want to go to Chicago because Chicago is a very
dysfunctional situation. Let's be real here.
Let's really call it for what it is. Chicago
is not a good place to go to. If you are not
a defensive player, if you're not trying to go
after the quarterback, if you're not trying to
get an interception, if you're not trying to
go and get a sack, if you're not trying to do
any of those different things, do not go to Chicago.
That's just what it is. Because Chicago has not
had their act together in a long time. And I
understand where Caleb Williams and his team
is coming from. However, I would have never said
this publicly. I would have kept this privately.
And the reason why I say that is because this,
if Caleb Williams goes through a phase in this
season where he is not playing his best ball,
they are going to pull up this whole quote again.
Do you really want that? We have seen multiple
times how the media can change a narrative. So
why would you let something like this come out?
Because now this can be used against you. If
Caleb Williams goes through, I don't know, three
to five games where he's not playing his best
ball, they're going to pull up all of these quotes
again. And they're going to use that against
Caleb Williams. They're going to ask it. in press
conferences. They're going to ask it leading
up to games. They're going to ask it every single
chance that they get. They are going to hammer
this in the ground. Because why? You allowed
something like this to come out. If you guys
did not want to go to the Bears, then you guys
should have done everything in your power to
make sure that you guys didn't do it. But at
the same time, one could probably argue that
even if they did go the extra mile to say, hey,
we don't want to go to the Bears, I don't think
it still would have changed anything. Because
the Bears had their feet in the sand. They wanted
to get Kayla Williams. Come hell or high water,
they were going to get Kayla Williams. Nothing
was going to change. Now, I will say this. The
Bears have shown that they're trying to change
their thinking. By getting Ben Johnson and then
adding a whole bunch of weapons and help for
the offensive line. I think that was great. Now,
the question is this. How is it going to look
when it all comes together? Because right now,
a lot of pressure is on the Bears this upcoming
season. Specifically to Ben Johnson and Caleb
Williams. If this relationship does not work.
The Bears are going to have to scrap this thing
and start all over again. And let's be real here.
The Bears have no problem doing that. The Bears
in recent years have not had the best success
when it comes to quarterback. They messed up
Justin Fields. And I don't care what anyone says.
You can fight me. I have no problem with that.
But the Bears messed up on Justin Fields. They
did not give Justin Fields the right weaponry
and the right supporting cast to really help
him. Mitchell Trubisky? Horrible. That was a
horrible pick. So, Caleb Williams does not have
anybody that he can go to and say, hey, what
did you do in your first two years to really
stand out? Hey, how do I maneuver through the
sophomore slump in my first year as a rookie?
How do I maneuver all of these different things?
He doesn't have that compared to... Other teams
that have that type of connections where they
can reach out to their former players and have
those conversations. That's the problem in all
of this. That's what happens when you are the
first overall pick. Same thing with Cam Ward.
Everyone thinks that Cam Ward is in a great situation.
Cam Ward is in a shithole because you know why?
For one, I can make a strong case that his head
coach right now will probably be under the hot
seat come the end of this upcoming season. I
can make a strong case right now there's going
to be some significant changes on that team come
this time next year. That's what happens when
you are the first overall pick. You are inheriting
shit and you are going to try to turn it into
gold. It's impossible. So I say all that to say
this. For any person that believes that, oh,
me being the first overall pick, that's great.
Okay, that's fine. It may feel good when that
wire transfer comes through and you get that
money and that money is added to your bank account.
But guess what? When your team isn't winning
a whole bunch of games in your first three years
into the league, when all you've won is maybe
five games in three years, oh, okay. Okay. We'll
see if the money was worth it. We'll see if the
signing bonus was worth it. We'll see if all
the commercials and whatnot in your local area
is worth it. We'll see. Because I can point to
a couple of former first overall picks that are
not having a good time right now. Trevor Lawrence
is one of them. Everyone thought Trevor Lawrence
was going to be the savior of football. Oh, my
God. Trevor Lawrence is going to do something
amazing when he gets to the NFL. Oh, my God.
Trevor Lawrence, Trevor Lawrence, Trevor Lawrence.
What's Trevor Lawrence done? What's Trevor Lawrence
done? Nothing. Nothing. Even though he got paid
like he did something. He didn't do anything.
So, am I surprised? No. Do I think there's going
to be more things that come out when this book
drops? For sure. But this is probably the tip
of the iceberg at this point. And let's get into
this whole Terry McLaurin situation very briefly.
Really don't have a lot to talk about, but basically
Terry McLaurin missed a day. And so people are
speculating that maybe he's in a holdout because
he's looking for a new deal. If that's the case,
well, then the commanders just need to pay him.
Simple as that. Because Terry McLaurin has been
consistent. He has showed up. He has been a team
player up until this point. So it's only right
that you compensate him. And it's only right
that you give him a really good deal. He took
a discount with y 'all the last time y 'all went
to the table. He's looking for a re -up. He's
looking for a good deal, a really good deal.
And mind you, he's having the success that he
is having without a stable quarterback. Last
season was the first year that he has actually
had a stable quarterback. All the other times
he hasn't. Think about that for a second. You
got to make sure that you take care of Terry
McLaurin. Just saying. Now, briefly, before we
get into everything else, Terry McLaurin's market
value is three years, 93 .1 million, which is
31 .1 billion a year. Do I think he could possibly
get a little bit more than that? Yes. Do I think
the commanders will probably give him more than
that? Yes. Jaden Daniels is on a rookie contract.
You don't have to do a whole lot with Deebo Samuel.
You don't have to do a whole lot with Laramie
Tunsil. You don't have a lot of big contracts
that you have to pay out to people. So you might
as well want to take care of Terry McLaurin.
He's the veteran on the offense. Compensate him
for it. Please. Because what I don't want to
see on my timeline on Twitter is a bunch of Terry
McLaurin mocks in a Steelers jersey. Or a Terry
McLaurinberg account. Or whatever. I'm tired
of seeing it. Alright? Please, sign the man.
I don't want to hear any speculations about,
well, I've talked to sources and sources have
told me that Terry McLaurin wants to become a
Pittsburgh Steeler. Don't want to hear it. Don't
want to hear it. Commanders, write the check.
Write the check now. Let's get into this whole
O -line award thing because we need to talk about
this because you know why? Offensive linemen
are people too, okay? That should probably be
a t -shirt. Offensive line are people too. They
deserve an award. Everybody else gets an award.
Corners get an award. Safeties get an award.
Linebackers get an award. Everybody else gets
an award. But do offensive linemen get an award?
Nope. Well, guess what? They finally do. Because
guess what? The NFL has created the Protector
of the Year Award, which basically is an idea
that was pushed by both Deion Dawkins and Andrew
Whitworth. Now, the panel will include Charles
Bentley, Jason Kelsey, Sean O 'Hara, Orlando
Pace, Will Shields, and Andrew Whitworth, which
is great because I don't want any journalist
to be in charge of this because we all saw what
happened when it came to the defensive player
of the year. Yeah, that's right. I got beat with
a lot of the journalists who said, Miles Garrett
should deserve the defensive player of the year
award, and then they based their stuff off of
PFF grades. No. It should have been TJ Watt.
TJ Watt should be a three -time defensive player
of the year recipient right now. But no, everybody
wants to use PFF grades for it. Yeah, I got a
little bit of a beef about it. Yeah, it turned
a little bit into a ramp, but who cares? But
all in all, when we look at this, all right,
offensive linemen deserve awards, and this was
long overdue. So I'm super excited to see who
is going to win the award this year. Now let's
get into the grades, folks. That's right, NFC
East. You already know Giants, Commanders, Eagles,
and Cowboys. Yes, let's talk about it. So let's
get into the Giants' first positions of need,
quarterback, safety, cornerback, interior offensive
line, and tackle. We all know that they got Abdul
Carter, Jackson Dart, Darius Alexander, Cam Scadabo,
Marcus Membo, Thomas Fedone, and Corey Black.
And when we look at their team stats, however,
they were the 24th ranked defense, and they allowed
24 .4 points per game, 346 .8 yards per game,
5 .6 yards per play, 41 touchdowns, and had a
34 .3 quarterback pressure percentage. They were
8th in passing defense and allowed 210 .6 passing
yards per game, 6 .5 yards per play, and 23 passing
touchdowns. They were 27th in run defense and
allowed 18 rushing touchdowns, 136 .2 rushing
yards per game, 4 .6 rushing yards per play,
and allowed 66 rushes of 10 plus yards or more.
They were 30th when it came to offense, which
is diabolical. And they averaged 16 .1 points
per game, 294 .8 yards per game, 4 .7 yards per
play, and 28 touchdowns. They were 28th in passing
offense and averaged 189 passing yards per game,
5 .1 passing yards per play, and 15 passing touchdowns.
They were 23rd in rushing offense and averaged
104 .9 rushing yards per game, 4 .2 rushing yards
per play, 13 rushing touchdowns, and had 46 rushes
of 10 plus yards or more. Here's my problem with
their draft. I know a lot of people are saying
that they had an A plus draft. No, they didn't.
By no means did they have an A plus draft. In
actuality, I would say it's probably a B minus
to maybe a B plus, and let me explain why. abdul
carter was not a need it was a want jackson darp
on the other hand was a need because they needed
a future quarterback and i understand there's
a whole bunch of people that are saying well
abdul carter was the best pass rusher in college
abdul carter this abdul carter that let me tell
you something all right i'm not trying to sound
like a hater but i don't see it with abdul carter
I see Mike Green on a higher pedestal than Abdul
Carter. Because with Mike Green, Mike Green has
a versatile skill set. He's not just going to
beat you with power. He can beat you with speed.
He can use his hands. He can do all of that and
more. Whereas Abdul Carter, it's the direct opposite.
And so me personally, I don't see why the Giants
did it. But hey, I mean, this is the same team
that let Saquon Barkley walk. And then he goes
to the Eagles and then wins them a Super Bowl.
I'm not surprised. On to everything else, Cam
Scadabo, I feel like that was a pretty good pick
as well because they definitely wanted to do
more with the run game. This is my analogy of
Cam Scadabo. Cam Scadabo is the Mick Foley of
football. Now, you're probably wondering, why
would you say something like that? Let me explain
why. Cam Scadabo looks for contact. He doesn't
avoid it. He looks, purposely looks. for someone
to run over, looks for someone to truck, looks
for someone to just bring down his shoulder and
just give it to him. That's who Cam Scadabo is.
Darius Alexander, I was a little bit upset about
because I was very high on Darius Alexander,
but I mean, of course they got him. But out of
all the positions that they really needed, safety,
I feel like they definitely really didn't need.
And the only reason why I say that is because
they got Javon Holland. I mean, If you wanted
to, you probably could have used that second
round pick and maybe a safety if you wanted to.
But I mean, again, is that really like a priority?
Debatable. But all in all, I would give them
a B minus or a B plus, honestly. And let's go
over to the Cowboys. Cowboys actually have a
lot. So here we go. Positions of need, running
back, linebacker, cornerback. Interior offensive
line, wide receiver. So first round, they get
Tyler Booker. Second round, they get Donovan
Izaraku. Third round, they get Siobhan Revel.
Then Jadon Blue, Shamar James, Ajani Cornelius,
Jay Toa, Phil Moffa, and then Tommy Akingbesto.
Akingbesto. I think I pronounced your last name
correctly. Hopefully I did. If I didn't, I deeply
apologize. Now when we break down their team
stats, they have the 28th ranked defense, which
allowed 27 .5 points per game. 355 .2 yards per
game, 5 .8 yards per play, and allowed 53 touchdowns.
When we break this down, however, they were 17th
in passing defense and allowed 218 .1 passing
yards per game, 6 .6 yards per play, and 28 passing
touchdowns. When we break it down even more,
they were 29th in run defense. They allowed 25
rushing touchdowns, 137 .1 rushing yards per
game. 4 .8 rushing yards per play, and allowed
63 rushes of 10 plus yards or more. They were
the 17th ranked offense, which averaged 20 .6
points per game, 327 .5 yards per game, 5 yards
per play, and 29 touchdowns. They were 11th in
passing offense, which averaged 227 .2 passing
yards per game, 5 .7 passing yards per play,
and 23 passing touchdowns. They were 27th in
rushing offense, and they averaged 100 .3 rushing
yards per game, 4 rushing yards per play, 6 rushing
touchdowns, and had 42 rushes of 10 plus yards
or more. All in all, I feel like I want to give
them an A, and this is why. For one, You got
Donovan Izaraku, who could have easily been a
first rounder. Siobhan Revel, who I feel like
probably could have been a second rounder. You
get Jadon Blue. You get Shamar James. You had
a really good draft. Let's be real here, folks.
For one, we all know that they're still rebuilding
the offensive line. I'm not going to take that
away from them. Tyler Booker, that was a good
pick. Donovan Izaraku, that's a really good pick
as well. Because they need another pass rusher.
Siobhan Revel, I feel like that's a sleeper of
a pick as well. Now, we all knew that Siobhan
Revel was probably going to drop a little bit
simply because of the injury. But outside of
that, he should have been a first rounder because
he had all the intangibles to be a first round
corner. Jadon Blue, I'm a little bit skeptical
about only because he has a fumbling issue. Super
fast, ran a 4 -2, but he has a fumbling issue.
Outside of that, I can talk myself in or out.
of the rest of the picks. Now, wide receiver,
sure, they probably could have addressed it,
but they didn't. And in doing so, guess what
they did? They made a trade and they got George
Pickens. So all in all, I think they did really
well when it comes to the draft. I would probably
give them between a B plus and maybe an A. Because
those first one, two, one, two, three, four,
those first four picks, great. Great picks. But
this is the type of draft that the Cowboys need
to continue to have if they really want to be
serious contenders. Otherwise, guess what's going
to happen? They're going to be pretenders like
they have been for the past, I don't know, 20
-something years. But moving on, though, to the
Commanders. Their positions of need. Edge, defensive
tackle, wide receiver, safety, and corner. Here's
the thing with the Commanders. They didn't have
a whole lot of draft picks. So this would be
pretty quickly, though. So the first round, they
got Josh Connolly. Second round, they got Trey
Amos. Fourth round, they got Jalen Lane. Sixth
round, they got Kane Medrano. And then seventh
round, they got Ja 'Cory Kroski Merritt. Here's
the thing with their draft. I understand why
they went tackling in the first round, because
they wanted to shore up the offensive line to
make sure that they protect Jaden Daniels. Not
opposed to that whatsoever. Now, granted, I feel
like that was probably more of, you know, best
player available instead of, you know, addressing
a position of need. And I only say that because
you were lower in the draft. So it wasn't going
to be a whole bunch of great options when it
came for you to pick. Unless if you trade up,
which even if you trade it up, you would have
less draft capital to go with. So Josh Conley,
I feel like that was a good move. Trey Amos,
this is just my personal opinion. Trey Amos shouldn't
have been a second round pick. Trey Amos should
have been a first round pick. Trey Amos had all
the intangibles to be a lockdown corner. Jalen
Lane, I feel like that's an interesting pick.
Just give it some time. Just give it some time.
Same thing with their sixth round pick and their
seventh round pick. Give it some time. I think
they're probably in the best situation possible.
Now when we break down their stats. They were
the 13th ranked defense, which allowed 23 points
per game, 326 .9 yards per game, 5 .4 yards per
play, and allowed 43 touchdowns. They were third
in passing defense, which allowed 189 .5 passing
yards per game, 6 yards per play, and 25 passing
touchdowns. They were 30th in run defense, which
allowed 18 rushing touchdowns, 137 .5 rushing
yards per game. 4 .8 rushing yards per play,
and 64 rushes of 10 plus yards or more. They
had the seventh ranked offense, which averaged
28 .5 points per game, 369 .6 yards per game,
5 .7 yards per play, and 54 touchdowns. Now,
when we break this down, however, they were 17th
in passing offense, which averaged 215 .6 passing
yards per game, 6 .4 passing yards per play,
and 29 passing touchdowns. When we shift things
over to the... rushing side they were third in
the league and they averaged 154 .1 rushing yards
per game five rushing yards per plate and had
25 rushing touchdowns as well as 67 rushes of
10 plus yards or more so on one hand yes they
were a pretty good team but we all know that
the run defense was not good so i feel like they
probably should have addressed that within the
first to maybe fourth round just because for
one, there was a lot of defensive library that
were available. And two, teams were attacking
the run defense a lot. So you wanted to make
sure that you shore that up. Now, do I feel like
they did it in this draft? Not really. Do I feel
like they probably could have done it in free
agency? Sure, there's a possibility, but I feel
like that they should have addressed that in
the first round. Tackle, I feel like you could
have addressed it in the second round if you
wanted to. In the fourth round, there were still
viable options at tackle. Better yet, if you
wanted to, you could have taken the veteran approach
and you could have gotten another veteran tackle
if that's the route that you wanted to go. But
overall, I feel like the commanders probably
had like a B plus, B minus type of draft. Now,
granted, yes, they did have limited draft picks,
but... the people that they did draft were actually
pretty good players now on to one of my favorite
teams the eagles e -a -g -l -e -s eagles yes
i did that who cares their positions of need
edge cornerback interior offensive line d tackle
wide receiver Here's the thing, they have a lot
of draft capital, so let's just go through it
all. They had Jihad Campbell in the first round,
Andrew Makuba, Ty Robinson, Mack McWilliams,
Samel Mundin, Drew Kendall, Kyle McCord, Miles
Hinton, Cameron Williams, and Antoine Powell
Ryland. Yeah, um, I don't know if y 'all realize
this, but Ty Robinson was a sleeper of a pick.
Go ahead and look at his footage. Ty Robinson
is a game wrecker. Ty Robinson... is going to
change the game. When you need someone to make
a play, Ty Robinson along with Jalen Carter are
going to make the play. That's who they are.
I don't know how Ty Robinson was able to slip
through the fourth round, but man, he is a monster.
When we look at their team stats, they had the
number one ranked defense, which allowed 17 .8
points per game, 278 .4 yards per game. 4 .7
yards per play and allowed 31 touchdowns, as
well as having a 31 % quarterback pressure percentage.
They were also first in passing defense, which
allowed 174 .2 passing yards per game, 5 .1 passing
yards per play, and 22 passing touchdowns. They
were 10th in run defense, which allowed nine
rushing touchdowns, 104 .2 rushing yards per
game. They allowed 4 .3 rushing yards per play
and 45 rushes of 10 plus yards or more. When
we shift things over to the offense, however,
they were the eighth ranked offense, which averaged
27 .2 points per game, 367 .2 yards per game,
5 .6 yards per play and 53 touchdowns. They were
29th in passing offense, which averaged 187 .9
passing yards per game, 6 .5 passing yards per
play, and 24 passing touchdowns. They were second
in rushing offense, which averaged 179 .3 rushing
yards per game, 4 .9 rushing yards per play,
and had 29 rushing touchdowns, as well as 76
rushes of 10 plus yards or more. Folks, this
is an A plus. I don't care what anyone says.
This is an A plus draft right here. For one,
you have Jihad Campbell, who, from what I've
heard, there is a good chance that they may use
him in somewhat of that Derrick Brooks type of
role, where he can be used in both outside linebacker
as well as inside linebacker. So you have that,
plus Andrew Makuba, plus Ty Robinson, and everybody
else. Mack McWilliams, Samel Mundin, Drew Kendall,
Kyle McCord, Miles Hinton, Cameron Williams,
Antoine Powell -Rylan. You got it all. And once
again, what are the Eagles doing? Replenishing
the defensive line as well as the offensive line.
They double -dipped at tackle this draft class,
and they also got a defensive lineman. Folks,
as long as offensive and defensive linemen...
are coming out of college, the Eagles will continue
to draft them. Because why? They know how to
develop them. That's just the Eagles MO and it'll
continue to be the Eagles MO. Me personally,
with the amount of draft capital that they had,
you would have thought that they would have messed
up on some of these draft picks. But no, they
did an excellent job with the people that they
drafted. Miles Hinton is a sleeper of a pick.
His father used to play in the league. If I'm
not mistaken, I think he actually played for
the Eagles as well. So you have that with Andrew
Makuba, who was definitely one of the better
safeties. I mean, come on. What is there that
you can hate on when it comes to their draft
class? Their first three players are going to
be great players. We all know that they wanted
to address linebacker. And so getting Jihad Campbell,
I think, is great. Absolutely amazing. Because
if you have not seen Jihad Campbell, go ahead,
go on YouTube and look at Jihad Campbell. That
dude is a monster. That dude is everywhere near
the football. If the football is in somebody's
hand, Jihad Campbell is right near them. And
if not, well, then guess what? Something is going
on. But I'm going to let you guys debate if that
was right or if I was wrong on getting the Eagles
an A+. But I want to end this episode here. If
you guys like what you are listening, please,
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x gm kale all right gm kale k -i -l -e as well
as blue sky gm kale k -i -l -e i'm probably going
to start posting more on blue sky soon i probably
am i need to but as always i love you guys i
appreciate you guys so much have a memorial day
you guys be safe don't drink and drive What am
I going to do? I'm probably going to cook on
the grill and look at more stuff about football.
So as always, this is your GM Kale signing out.
Peace and love. Later. Unless somebody wants
to, you know, make a decision and sign somewhere
or whatever. But later, guys.