Panthers X-Factor: Jaelan Phillips

Lominia Mal steps into McDonald's looks left sees Pulic, looks right se Samenez, Gives a nod to Ronaldino in the corner with a FIFA World Cup meal Ronald Dinioch sees Sun in the booth, Sun finds Beckham going for extra bigig Mac saus. He's got Dav's at the table just behind him. Davy's going for his collectible cup.! A steal by Henry. Who pulls his own collectible cup? Collect one of nine legendary cups with a FIFA World Cup meal. P participating McDalds for un limited time whilew suppies last, All rightighteserve twenty six McDonal's at FFor Cup twenty six Welcome back media time show featuring Lenn the NFO bodcast. where of the host thinks one of the best tight ends of all time is named Shannon Sharpee. That's Lenny many times. I wasm thinking about him The thing about a lot of old time football players because I am completely addicted to all of these seventeen to no games on the internet Dan, are you playing this Danazuda is joining me? Dan, are you playing them as well I played a couple and then especially the football one got real frustrated with like the mechanics of what they liked and didn't like. and I was just like, I'm I'm too competitive for this and I'm not gonna continue to waste my time. I'm also in the middle of FTN almanac writinges. So the free time that I have to play around with a game like that, very limited. So I tried to be responsible and cut myself off as a. Can you tell me what divisions you're doing or is that I am doing the AFC East as well as the lions and Vikings. So six chapters for me this year teams that will come up today because we are doing NFC X factors We did AFC X factactors two weeks ago to remind people that's when we choose an X factor player for every team who is not a quarterback And then we took a week off because two gigantic trades broke, which was insane I When the AFC Dan I did I feel like way too many offensive linemen And this time, I actually didn't end up picking as many. I have a lot more like there's a few in the mix, but it's a lot more big names. Did you notice any tendencies in your picks before we dive in When I first started with the teams I had, like I wanted to the wide receiver two for every team and then kind of got away from that. So I think there's only like one that I have, but I think like that's a big thing that came up. but yeah, I tried to try to mix it up a little bit because these are some really interesting teams with a lot of ways you can go Well I'll start right off with a wide receiver. I'll go first I give myself the giants I thought about some more obscure picks for this one, but it seems to me If I think about a team a player who's performance, availability et cceter could swing the season. and also when I say swing the season, That means a different thing for different teams, right So when I think about the giants, who I don't view as like a contender, sorry, giants fans. know I hope you don't think that either. But you know, a team that's like feels like they're on the rise, young quarterback, new coach, all of that The thing I think that's most important is helping the young quarterback achieve success. And if Malique neighbors ain't there It's pretty concerning. So he is my X factactor pick So For those who have been paying attention Neighbors, of course was very hurt last year. when did that injury happen? It was late September, The Torrn ACL and Torrn. a meniscus Um The questions around when he is going to practice, when he will be ready for the season Get a little concerning Um I think it was a couple of weeks ago that Adam Schfter imply that He might not be ready for week one there're on Sunday night football against Dallas. And you know, when you look at the rest of this receiving group without him Pretty rough, prettyty rough. We got the Omnipresent, o'm present, ever present, Darry Slayton Calvin Austin, who actually liked Calvin Austin, Darnnell Mooney, all these players are fine if Malique Neighbors is in the mix. But if he's not thenan, this is a really, really weak group of receivers. I sorry, OBJ Right Aardy, OBJ. Malaki feels they drafted this year. Okay, sorry. Anyways, Juu Sito' dirt I mean, if it's twenty eighteen, nineteen we're doing we're doing all right. Yeah.. So my point is just that like I ne if neeighbors is in the mix, you feel I feel good enough about the group around him. They also ass signed as a likely who wass a tight end, who's kind of like a big receiver. But if he's not, it's very concerning to me Yeah, absolutely. And he completely changes the entire structure of what the offense is. someomeone you actually have to pay attention to on the outside. and that's not someone they have at all if he's not on the field. So Dart only had eleven dropacks with neighbors on the fields last year, so it's not like we can really Yeah. see a lot of like what he did, but I think we do need a lot of development from Jackson Dart can do because that is kind of my hesitation with what the giants were It was so many, so much of his production came from the sccrambles and the design runs and we just kind of know that's not a way you can live. So on throws where on plays where it was just a pass attempt or a sack Jackson Dart dropped to like twenty eighth in EPA per play. And that's not great when you're kind of asking him to throw the ball. So having neighbors there as someone who can bail him out a little bit, someone he can trust. I think that's going to be a key. And if he is on the field, I think that certainly helps the offense and obviously If he's not, that that's a real concern because I'm not sure if you can be living with those receivers and the tight ends, even if likely like does become a much better player and a bigger impact than he was at Baltimore Yeah, Wondale Robinson was the primary volume eater, you know once neighbors went down and he is of course, gone. He is in Tennessee now. And yeah, like it's it's funny because I liked the giants draft two players they took in the first round were Great pickch. However, again, like I liked it. with neighbors And as the part of the vision Um and it's hard. it'll be like I I can't believe like it'll be kind of harder to evaluate Dart without him with this group Like you almost, you know what I mean? Like even last season, and I should I'm going to talk a lot more about him, you know, between now and when the season starts and he had such kind of the highs high highs early on. some of that, you know, some of it was a lot of it was like you said, his athleticism and the scrambling, but I thought he also he impressed me as a pro. I think surprised me in some ways. I thought U you know, showed a lot of toughness. I thought through a very catchable football U but like it's hard for to imagine the world in which like And then there was a little bit of a drop offff. there was a lot of a drop offff after after the year went on and people kind, But it was easy to write it off as well, like look at this team. Look at this offensive line. It's horrendous. Look at these why know Robins, your number one. Okay, that's your one, right? Like simimilarly to Calvin Ridley, we want to give him kind of like that Rickie quarterback grace for the circumstances Really circumstances should be pretty ared out really pretty I see C I really Kamward Ward circumstances should be improved in part because Ridley is not the number one. We'reas With Dar, it's like if there's no neighbors, I certainly not improved. like even though I like the I think the Idea is they've invested in the offensive line and that the run game is going to be the focal point of this team with Dart being part of that. And that I think is a reasonable way, even with neighbors on the field to look at this office. this should be a primarily like a run first offense, but Again, it's just such a weak group without him. And I guess to talk about the player for a second. you know, he barely played last year. He had this incredible breakout rie season, which by the way, speaking of Target share, he was like insane number of targets that first season almost like overusing, quite frankly Um and then he only played in, you know, like three ish three and a half games or whatever this year and he had that week two game against Dallas where he went crazy and he was like kind of quiet after that. and then he got hurt. So it was just such for him as well. It was like a lost season And which should have been another year for him to like fully be like, okay, we're a top ten receiver here because he it look like he had that potential as a rookie. Yeah, absolutely. And yeah, you go back to what he was Roie Yeah Yeah. The target share was thirty point seven percent target on thirty one percent of his routes, forty one point six percent of the giants air yards. like again, when you're running with Wandale Robinson like your're number two and he's getting every four yard throw that they have. like you he's obviously someone who's going to be working down the field more. And yeah, he's he's awesome And if he can be healthy. And I think the thing that scares you a little bit is that like there was the second surgery and they needed to clean some things up. So that just really makes you wonder when he's going to be healthier or when he's really going to be one hundred percent and on the field kind of running like he is. And again, for the giants, I think you kind of need that superstar type of guy because I don't really trust the offensive structure to be something that really Yeah. Yeah, you can't sell me on that. So I think having someone like that who can be individually dominant is going to be a big piece in how much this giants off' going to improve. It's not like they hired Mike McDaniel where we're like, well, he'll cover up for he'll find ways to get guys open. the run game will be creative. you know, it's A lot of questions around this giants offense. then I'll feel a lot better if Neighbor is trending in the right direction at some point this summer. All right, you have the commanders. I don't know who're I have no idea where you're going to go in this direction Yeah, Commanders was weird because there was just a lot of change over coming in here. So I'm going to go with the person that I think just kind of exemplifies what that change is. and I don't think I made a top ten pick anywhere else here, but like Sonny Syles, I think is just going to be that guy just because of How important he looks like he's already going to be. in the middle of that defense, right? So They did like a massive change overver. obbviously, Johnon Jones is now the defensive coordinator who is like really tinking over the defense. He's going to be the play callaller. This isn't going to be a Dan Quinn defense that just has a defensive coordinator. This is absolutely a shift into a lot of things. And they really changed out a lot of what they had on the defense were. They were the oldest defense by snap weighted age last season and everyone they brought in was like Much younger, Dfe. alwaysways twenty eight, Kilvon Chaseon twenty seven, Nicross twenty five. Lo Chanel like twenty six. So there's a lot of youth here And to get Sonny Styles to put him in the middle of that defense, be able to in a lot of different roles. Obviously, he can he's awesome moving forward. He has that safety background where he can still work well in coverage. I think that's going to open up Frankie Luvu and Leo Chanal to do a lot of things. So I think having that type of player as the centerpiece of this defense just really opens up all of these things that they can do with a lot of new pieces in a new defense If Styles is anything close to what people think he can be and I say people I include myself in this group. This could be one of the best linebking groups and you know, maybe not immediately because you know, it is a very hard position to play from the jump. but like you said, it's Chanal Luvu as your pass rusher. Um and styles as the kind of, you know versatile jack of all trades S to call like it reallyally is an exciting front. And I say front by the way because I also like like some of the additions that they made. You alluded to this. like Chaseon, I thought was like kind of shockingly good in New England, Odaf Owe. I think the risk there is like both those players are a little bit like, okay, small sample size wonders, maybe or do I we feel good about because Chaseon is a bit of a reclamation oA was Okay in Baltimore, then he goes to LA. and he kind of breaks out there in terms of getting past rush production. But You know this should be it's funny because this is a group that I think some people thought they might go after the Washington defense capacure was not sufficient last year, right? We all agree They were a team that I think there was a thought they're going to be the Tay Hendrksson team or the trrade for Cross like they're going to go after that big money number one pass rressher. And instead, they're kind of doing it by committee a little bit, not necessarily got a big contract, but They're taken a few Darth rows, which I think is an interesting approach those Dthrows happen to be players that I like. And then if Again, if the linebacker group centers it you could see a pretty significant I think from this front. U I don't know if I'm buying the defense entirely. L in the backke end, I saw some questions about the secondary, but I like that they're making changes, new scheme, New a lot of new players in the front. likeike you said, an infusion of youth. U but if Styles struggles year one, it might not all come together as as I'm painting it Yeah and I think that's that's the thing. if he is I think if Styyles is good, this defense has a good chance of being at least average, which I think if we look at what the offense could potentially be, and I You know, just did a piece on Jane Daniels that's going come up. so but going back into like looking at what he was even last year was still really good. So a healthy Jane Daniels, I think, makes this offense a lot better. And if this defense can be even average, It's a fun team that we might think is a little better than what we remember it being last year kind of gets into into the mix a little bit. So I think that yes, Styles is I think has just so much upside And there's a chance that it hits. and I think this defense has a chance to at least be interesting, which it certainly wasn't like the past two years. Let me go to the offense really quickly. Did you consider McLauren given the makeup of this group because you can orr do you feel better about receiving group then say like New York because I just painted the picture likeike if there's neighbors, it's bleak. What if Mc Lauren is hurt again like he was last year? How do you feel about this group of Pascatchers Yeah, that's that's certainly tough. because McAarren was really so much and I think we kind of saw it a little bit last year and it I don't think the receiving Ct particularly got better than it was last year when McCarn was either you know injured or not fully one hundred percent. And that connection with Jane Daniels when the two play together in the very limited snaps like just still wasn't there. So I think McCarin is definitely a big piece of what is needed on that offense. I do have a little more confidence in what he can do With a full off season, these guys have already been working out together in the offseason. They did some workouts in LA. So I think a lot of what happened last year was with the holdout leading to the injury then leading to the Jene Daniels injury. and nothing really got on track. So I'm a little more confident in what that can be could because outside of last year, you know, McCorn has been a pretty healthy receiver, so I'm not too worried, but I do think it like I said, I could have had the wide receiver two for every team likeon B. I thought about Chica Conquo who could be kind of interesting as kind of that guy who runs in space a little bit. So yeah, I considered some pieces on the offense too. yeah, I like Antonio Williams, who was their third round pick, the receiver out of Clemson kind of he I imagine will play in the slot primarily for them, gives you some quick game, gives you some yards after the catch I think he is a nice compliment to McLauren, but McLauren has to be out there for that to be the case. But yeah, I Washingt offense there's like it's part of this trend of like all these offenses moving in the Shanahan direction, McVeigh direction The Eagles in their own division, Washington with David Blud now calling the plays. They've said Jaden's going to be more I mean whereere's your piece coming? by the way? I'm excited to read It is going to be at the star, the new rebranding of nototice. They're going to they're doing some more Washington central stuff and some sports. So it should be up, you know sometime out Okay So So we're doing these back to back You did the first round pick for Commanders. I I swear this is my only I think this is my only first round pick. let me scroll, scroll scroll. It is. okay. So I just want to start off by saying that from this year goingaleb downs for Dallas. I think ye it got to have to, right? I mean, because he Caleb downs All is on paper. The answer to so many of the things that Dellas got wrong, not just last year, but has gotten wrong for years just to throw out some of the several ways in which Sadaos defense was a bit of a disaster. Run defense, we know it's been a problem But I think it's worth highlighting, again, and downs is relevant here thirty first in a second level, run defense, Cord to FTN twenty eighth in the open field. They gave up fifty one fifteen yard plus runs On the giants were worse in giving up explosive runs something that you imagine, Downs will be very good at helping is limiting some of those explosives. He's a phenomenal run defender. And then zone coverage, I want to highlight this because when I think about the Dallas Cabbys defense in twenty twenty five Something that I think about a lot is just it felt like everybody was always in the wrong spot or they were taking bad angles h they gave up twenty five p per play, which was thirty second in zone coverage, seven point seven yards for play, which was also thirty second in the league. Again. If there's Caleb Downs has has many great qualities, but the thing and I mentioned this around the draft that jumps out is he puts people in the right position to play football in addition to being in the right position himself. He is a brilliant, brilliant young player. He's an excellent communicator and I feel like just again to go to the explosive runs and then the zone coverage guys being in the wrong spot. like he really hypothetically Dan should solve those issues for Dallas Yeah, I think like you look at, you know, do they have issues in the slot Yeah, do they have issues at linebacker? Yeah. Do you have like some questions about what's happening in the defensive line? Yeah, Kagle downs all of that like he can't play everywhere. but I think the fact that you can have him be this queen on the chessboard is going to be just so magical for potentially what this you know, Christian Parker defense can do. I think just watching downs and I think it's You kind of you watch him and he is someone who is more in like a the Buddha Baker type of thing, which he said himself. and I think a lot of people if pre draft we're trying to be like, he's a Kyle Hamilton, Nick Emm and Warry, he's not exactly that, but I think the more he's able to just kind of play downhill and just he is so smart. He's always in you can't like run a screen against him. It's just all of these things that he does so well. I think just does fix a lot of those problems Dallas could be facing along that defense. L like you allude to this mile question is the only bummer is that you can't you don't have three of him . So I think it'll be interesting to see how Christian Parker utilizes him because he can play the nickel as you alluded to. And I think in certain matchups, that is where you'll want him to be. when they play Dime, he'll probably have him closer to the box, right? And they signed Jalen Thompson as well, I think. So and I always say PG Lock And then he can also play the post. So he can do multiple things. I think it's really just going to be like down a distance, matchups, all of that Um, but like he's just like a really good football player. I think like You know, Dallas It just feels like it's been so long since they had kind of this like even when the Dallas defense was really good with Dan Quinn and they were very like kind of hair on fire getting after the quarterback, it didn't feel like Spoke a Mirrors that's incorrect there were offenses who broke it pretty easily. Do you remember that? R packers stuff and it just feels like, okay, you just let's just let's bring someone who is a floor razor for everybody and make sure that like we're fundamentally sound and not getting giving up we about busted coverages and giving up explosives. and Calemb Down should hypothetically be that guy Yeah, that those Dan Quinn defenses were a lot of like orrganized chaos, but it was we were going to throw so much at you that you're going to get scared and turn the ball over. And that's kind of what they went on a lot. And when that didn't happen offense could control it. that's when they got in trouble. And with downs, it's just something where it's just He can be everywone and like he just plays everything correctly, which can like you said, is just not something that we have seen from Dallas all that often also potentially covers up or helps address what I still feel is an issue, which is linebacker on team., All right. You have the Eagles wrapping up the N ofCe East, whoo did you pick? I went to a former Seahawk and Rk Wolan. I think I could have gone a lot of places like on offense, but I think with just with so much anybody could potentially be an exXactor there. But Rk Wolan specifically because Quarterback two was just a like it was a free space for opposing offenses last year. The Eagles were second in DVOA against number one wide receivers and they were twenty fourth against number two receivers. So Dory Jackson played that spot most times. He was targeted on eighteen percent of his coverage snaps, which was one hundred thirty first out of one hundred thirty eight quarterbacks with at least one hundred coverage naps He was one hundred and six in adjusted yards allowed, which accounts for touchdowns and interceptions Wolan you was targeted a bit be just because of that Seattle secondary. He was forty first in targets allowed per covered snap. but he was fourteenth in adjusted yards allowed per covered snap And for someone that we just kind of publicly think of as this crazy inconsistent player, he's been in the top twenty in each of the past three seasons by that magric. And that's now at a position where it is very hard to be good and among the best in like coverage statistics year to year. He's done it now three years in a row. So I think he is a much better player than a lot of people given him credit for. And now that he only really has to shore up the corarnerback two spot, I think is just kind of it's one of those force multipliers for the rest of that defense because now everyone else can be better at their jobs because there's not this wide open space that opposing offenss can pick off I really do think he's an underrated player. and I think part of the reason he has that reputation is just he's given up some big plays or had some bad penalties like in big moments and those just aren't memorable to people as well as some goober moments, right? But like it kind of covers over all the times he isn't he's in great position or I mean, he he's such a unique like for Eagles, I'm sure Eagles fans, you've kind of studied up on Rk Woolen, but because of his rare combination of size and recovery speed, even when he gets beat at the line of scrimmage or, he has a chance to make a play in the football. and I think he's a great pick for Philadelphia because He going to have a lot of opportunities, right? Like so the Seattle secondeary was great, but the other quarterback spot was Josh Job, who they decided to keep at pretty bargain price. Witherspoon is their the star Philadelphia is just CB two amongst the corners Cooper Jeginee and Qinan Mitchell, they' like two of the best pairings in the league. So he's gonna to get thrown at and this is a guy who is very good, you know, he's got a history of production and likeike he could potentially produce the kind of past breakups and turnovers that swing games. It's an incredible opportunity for him. and he did a one year kind of prove it deal So he has something to prove as well. And yeah, I feel like You know, as this Eagles offense kind of figures things out and you know, I talked about it a great deal with Field last week talking about theJ Brown trade and we're going to talk about it more because it's kind of one of the more interesting storylines in football You trust Vic Fangio's defense to kind of pick up the slap. And if You can tell me that they last year, they were one of the three best defenses in football If that continues, you're you can give the offense a little bit of time to fully click and yeah, he's a big he He's a big part of that. I thought it was a really good signing personally Yeah, it was one of my favorites of the offseason. I think it kind of you know, it was only one gear. so it's not like if he hits great the Eagles get a lot more benefit just because he would be up on a contract again. But I think this has the chance. So like we're in the middle of the year And you were just it's one of those, why did the rest of the league let how we do this type of things? Because I do think he really has the potential to really good in this defense and like help everybody else out. I think the passast rush now has more of an ability to get home because again, like there's just not this open spot that's so easy to intgrate. Yeah. Yeah All right, well, this is kind of a good transition from the Eagles pass rush. they added Johon Th think Gernard I'm going to go to Minnesota here And we'll go to the NSC Nor And I'm going to identify a player who I think is very important in the wake of the Johathan Bernard trade, and that would be Dallas Turner. who was their first run draft pick from a couple years ago u barely played his rookie season traded up for him. likeike, you know, it was underwhelming Last year, he played more as part of like kind of a rotation with, you know, they have Turner, Grenard and then Vank Gle Andrew Van Ggel U And it was kind of a mixed result, right? Like so over the course of the season, nine ses, six hits, twenty seven hurries, forty two pressures kinds of. midling ranks U And then we look at the advanced stats, they're also kind of like in the forties kind of So I went back and watched because a lot of his production came in the second half of the season And I wanted to watch just his pressures and see what they look like and see how it because My feeling, Dan was like the Grenard trade doesn't happen unless this team believes in Dallas Turner especially with Kyler coming in where it's no longer like a quote unquote rebuilding year pass Rush. I know Brian Flores can turn anything into pass Rush, but I felt like And especially with all the change in Minnesota No way Flores let's Grenard walk unless he feels like he's got something in Turner.aybe I'm wrong.'m just trying to but like, you know, nobody even knew was calling the shots right now right. Okay, so my big takeaway from watching him back and watching these pressures is He did feast a little bit on bad competition in the second part of the season I will say he has A lot of juice He is exosive off to L of S Grimmage and he has got closing speed. likeike he is an athlete now notot a lot of high quality ies wrong word Pwash repertoire is still a little bit underwhelming. There's a couple like, you know, nice long arm, nice rip here and there, but For the most part, the thing that just jumped out to me was the speed and the get offff So Development has to continue next year because if it doesn't I feel like they're really regretting trading Jonathan Gernard Yeah, it's tough because it felt like Grenard really was the one piece that they were able to get out of to free up some cap space. So it might have just been something that they needed to do regardless. But I do think they That's true They certainly have faith in Turner and they do need it because it's not just that he's stepping up into this role. If you look at their depth chart right now, it is Van Ginkkel and Dowas Turnner on the edge. And behind them is Tyler Batty, who is a twenty twenty five undrafted free agent and Bo Richter, who is a twenty twenty four undrafted free agent And that's their edgeedap And obviously in this Brian Forez defense, there's going to be a lot of moving pieces. There's a lot of blitzing like they witz on half of their snaps last year. like no one blitzes like Brian Forez in different ways and with the guys who are coming in. and they go really deep at like off ball linebacker and guys who can pass rush, but again, to have someone onn the edge, you really need that and be able to win some of those one on ones that are created because of some of those blitz looks. And you're really asking, it was a rotation last year, but right now and obviously that you could have like a veteran come in. I think there's still a couple veteran pastares at this point just to add to the group. But right now, you're asking a lot of Van Ginkkel and Turner. We've seen Van Ginkkel do it. He can definitely do it in that Forest defense do need a little more of Turner for this to be a defense that stays as good as it is. and you kind of part of the chapter that I wrote for the Vikings is the projections are kind of expecting the Vikings defense to drop down to closer to average a little bit after being a top three defense in DVOA the past two years. And again, they're just kind of asking a lot of players to step up Turner if he can step up and be, you know, what they thought he was going to be as a first round pick that has the that's what gives them the potential to be one of those better defenses in the league again and kind of stave off that reggression a little bit Yeah, there're a team where even if like let's say you drop from top five two top ten ish range The hope, I think, is the offense picks up the slack, right? But yeah, I just Like look, I Brian Flores, if we're doing a defensive coordinator draft, he's It's interesting because I think like different guys you want for different types of defenses, different talent levels. he perhaps is the one out of everyone where you're like, you could just take anything and turn it into something, right But it gets to a point where I mean like they did draft Caleb Banks in the first round. We'll see. know what they get out of him and if they're able to get more interior past rush and all that. but I think this is this is it for Turner. He it's kind of for him as well, right? L doesnn't it feel like it's year three. you got to this is it. You got to break out now if you want that big money contract So we shall see. And I think when I think about like this the anesy North and which kind of feels like a division in flux. if the Vikings are going to be competitive and I'm closing my eyes imagining it, it starts with Kyler, you know, and but then the second thing I would say is a player like Dallas Sterner picking up the slack on defense All right, you have the Lions, team very much Yeah, absolutely. So I this is the one where I did go with a wide receiver and it's a weird one kind of breaks into a little bit more of their philosophy here, but I have Isaac Tesla And Ks Okay, partly because I All right, he was again, a fun rookie. I made a lot of like crazy catches, but under a yard per route run, but eleven of his twenty seven targets were in the end zone and those ended up with six touchdowns. So how he develops, I think is going to be important for the lions philosophically, because it's how much do they want to be running eleven personnel They brought in Drew Petsing to be the offensive coordinator. he's someone in Arizona who was running a lot of you know twelve and thirteen probablyably would have run even more thirteen last year if Tip Ryan did not get hurt. So this is something where I expect them to want to wean into twelve personnel a little more. When you look at Jamir Gibbs has been as a runner. He's been a much better runner out of eleven personnel because of that spacing. So last year on eighty seven early down carries from eleven personnel, Gibbs averaged six and a half yards per carry and ten point eight percent DVOA on eighty eight carries from twelve, he averaged three point seven yards per carry and a thirty four percent success rate and negative twenty three point nine percent DVOA. So That's underrating Gibbs a little bit because I think the offensive line was really in fllux last year. I think he has the ability to create some of his own space between the tackles. But I do think throughout his career he's been a much better runner being able to spread some things out And taking advantage of some of that space from eleven and the way they've been able to figure out how to get him you know space in the run game. So in this league that I think is shifting more to twelve and thirteen, and I think that is something that the lions will benefit from How often the lions bene want to be in eleven I think could potentially be something that really impacts how explosive the run game can be as we see Gibbs take way more carries than he did last year If you had to pick a player, I'd like that what you're thinking there by the way and it is kind of an interesting zag from the line, right? likeike as The leeague does go to using more multiple tightens sets if they were leaning a little bit into using the three receivers because the other two are obviously very good. I'm Ros Brown, Jamason William But it does feel like that vision is predicated on functional offensive line play If you had to pick one player on this offensive line, Who you think is the X factor? I thought you were going to pick a lineman Who would you pick of the five Yeah, I was I was thinking about it. I think I mean, I have faith in Kade Mays being good, but he's probably who I would pick just because it is important So much of that interior and being that centerpiece quite literally of that offensive line, I think is going to be really important. And that was a position that was really in flux last year. And I think a good center would help the two young guards a little bit. And I think if Yeah, you pen ofual, I'm not worried about transitioning to the left side. I feel fine Sal mahogany. and then the right side you're like you go from Maz at Center to Ratledge to Blake Miller who they drafted this year. That's a young right side and If this thing all falls apart, I do feel like it's going be on that side of the offensive line, but I'll Alternatively, it could be great Yeah. and I originally so I actually originally did have Miller when I first did my first raraft of this, but then I decided to go this route because I think the offensive line plays an important part here. If they do need you more tight ends to be attached to the line, maybe create some of a longer surface area for Gibbs because you need to make up for, you what Miller is doing on the right side and you just need a little more help there I think all of this just kind of plays together. and what Detroit ends up being philosophically is really interesting to me and how they want to run this offense and also how they keep the personnel in place because I think they could potentially run thirteen, but I also don't think they want to take Jameson Williams off the field like at all. So the push and pull of who they have and what they want to do, I think is super interesting this year. uck There's two injured players who I could have easily chosen Michael Parsons obviously who now were the Adam Cft, I think somebody was reporting might not be ready till like October. That's deeply concerning. given he is like one of the more load bearing players in the NFL. I always say Tucker Kraft is another player. I'm very interested in his health and availability and how he looks early on because he was such the focal point of that offense and he's so good and also gave them kind of, I think, an identity that If he's not on the field, they have to evolve. But I'm going to go with a different player and I'm going to pick a receiver. I'm going to go with Christian Watson, who just got the four year one hundred ten million dollars contract extension Um So This receiving group has let some guys walk out the door Notably Romeo Dobbs who was kind of like the steady eddie of the bunch Um, and then D Tavian Wicks as well. And so they went from having like Too many guys, too many mouthes to feed, but is there a number one to like a pretty concrete one, two, three Watson Golden Reid, who they also play Jade Reid. You know, they have Savian Williams, is Sky Moore, but yeah, those are the three And I picked Watson because I just really think this packer's offense is so different when he's not on the field and it kind of gets underplayed a little bit. And obviously there's he's had injuries since coming into the NFL that have made it and storyline for this team, but like I pulled his on and off numbers out of curiosity and I did the entire his entire career So to get a large sample size. So twenty twenty two through twenty twenty twenty twenty five When Christian Watson is on the field. Packer's offense is Second in yards per attempt First in Yard's reply Fourth in EPA per play and third in first down rate. So this is a top four offense When he is off the field They are sixteenth in yards per play, nineteenth in first down rate. teenth in yards per attempt they their ninth in E paper play. So like I feel that If you could tell me, Christian Watson is going to play seventeen games for the Green Bay Packers You know what? I haveve concerned about the offensive line, Tucker Craft, whatever, but that That's probably enough for me to feel good about this offense based on what we've seen. But if he's not You know, if there's an another injury or whatever, you get worried about where they're going Yeah, it's so clear what the Packers are when he's on the field and and how he impacts what they're able to do. being able to be that long s side vertical threat that is explosive. And I think there were some people that saw the contract that he got and were a little surprised by how much money he got paid, but Explosives matter so much in this league. So last year when there was at least one play in a drive that went or pass play that went over sixteen yards forty six point eight percent touchdown rate on that drive and a seventy point eight percent scoring rate on those drives. That is at one play or more of sixteen or more yards through the air without one So zero plays of sixteen or more yards through the air, a ten percent touchdown rate per drive and twenty one percent scores per drive. So you just see one explosive just changes everything that you can do on an offense, especially with the new kick offff f where you're already starting closer to the goal line, usually starting at least like on the thirty five or around the thirty somewhere. And like one explosive put you in field goal range. And that's what Christian Watson has been for this offense when he is on the field. And you have a quarterback like Jordan Love who is has no hesitation to push it down the field when he's there. So it's just the combination of those two work out so well. and that's why they are so efficient when he is on the field. Yeah, I'm glad you brou join L up, right because he is a quarterback who' aggressive, throw the ball down field and Watson is his guy on those concepts. and that's st at Denny the Packer's office. when it's clicking, it's deep balls and then yards after the catch. So like Watson and Kraft being on the field at the same time. Reed was also a great yah guy. know it is And we'll see what they get from Matthew Golden, who kind of came alive at the end of the season. but Yeah, it's just it's just very different. It feels a lot more congested. he clears his room. when he's not on the field. And I'm kind of the opp opposite of what I was saying about like the Eagles likeike I think this Packers's defense could really struggle at the beginning of the year So the offense is going to have to pick up the slack, I think until Michael Parsons gets back to being Michael Parsons. All right, let's wrap with the bears You have the bears? Who did you pick? I picked Austin Booker Yeah. So Bears were twenty ninth in pressure rate last season with the ninth highest splitz rate So not a lot going on in the past rush category there. So Monte sweathead twenty eight point nine percent of the bear' pressures overall, which ranked thirteenth. N next highest bear was Gerban Dexter at twenty point three. So Booker hurt his knee in the second week of the preseason missed the first seven games of the season of when he was on the field He actually accounted for twenty nine percent of Chicago's pressures, twenty seven point three percent of the quarterback hits and sweat was second. for both of those. So I think that the bears are really banking on him to to step up. They didn't make any moves really in free agency or in the draft to get a like number two edge to go next to sweat. So I think they're just really banking on him to to step up and and be that type of guy that they can rely on to get after the quarterback. and he's flash when he's been on the field J did not really get that consistently coming off the injury last year. didn't play a lot in his rookie year. So I think this is another year three guy that they're really they banking on a lot. If you told me that Booker has double digit Sacks, then I think this is probably a good defense because the secondary is, I think could be awesome, right? So they They didn't add to pass rush, but they did draft Dylan F and him in They signed Kobe Bryant. So the safety group is going to look very different Jayalen Johnson, Tyriick Steven, Kyl Gordon, when they all play, we know are a gr a talented corners promise. they all miss so much time last so much time This is a defense that was very turnover dependent last season. They' a prime regression candidate because of that unless they can get more pass rash production from one of these players because yeah, like the big, I think one of the biggest surprises is I talked about this, I think when I was after the draft Talking about like groups where I thought they still had big holes was that the bears didn't add to I think they wanted to and it just didn't work out So this is a little bit of a bet on internal talent and We'll see. I mean, I agree though. he is the one that I would pick as well as the one that's kind of exciting and there's some potential there All right Let's take a quick break, come back, and let's do the NFC West next Treat your taste buds to an explosion of flavor. with fruity rainbow five hour energy shots. 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And for a limited time, college students get of both worlds. Get the unreal college deal, everything you need to study and play with select Windows eleven PCs. Eligible students get a year of Microsoft three hundred sixty five premium and a year of Xbox GamePass Ultimate with a custom color Xbox wireless controller. Learn more at windows dot com slash student offffer. Lawupplies last ends june thirtieth turns at aka dot mS slash college Pc All right, we're back NFC West. I'm going to go first. This is going to be the only podcast in the history of podcast that's going to start the NFC West with the Cardinals this summer. I would do the Cardinals first. I think this is an easy one Minris Jri U So earlier I talked about likeweening the vision. Cardins are not going be good And nobody thinks that In fact, they might be so bad that they get a quarterback next year, which makes Harrison even more important because I'm not only thinking about this season, Ohh by the way, you see J Kobbe Berette finally reported H there we go So over guys, forre free. But for next season as well, right? Like this is if Harrison Jror show something this year, you feel better about next year the receiver or the quarterback walking into you know, not feeling like, gosh, we got to really fix this receiving group because Michael Wilson's a nice player. You got Tamy Bride's one of the best young titans in football But Harrs Juniror has just been woefully inconsistent. That's how I would describe him since he came into the NFL as the fourth overall pick. I was as high on him as any prospect, honestly as shamed to admit it because cos tape was freaking incredible. And he's been it's been very up and down. And I think there's questions, Dan, about like why is he up and down? like how much of it is him versus quarterback versus chemistry U, but like last year U you know, we had a couple of big games like similar to the paradeious year against Dallas and Indianapolis, but lot of games where he didn't do a ton Um I went back and watched him a little bit just to kind of try to revisit maybe like what it was, you know, just Yeah Is he being misused And I will say I don't I won't say like he was horribly misused, although there were times where he was just kind of like, hey, C clear it out, sacrificial. but Do you think his particular skill set and maybe we didn't know this coming into the league is not something that they totally leaned into which is Watching him, I felt He was the best on In brereakers, crossers, digs, slants And D of those in the offense with Kyler And so I do think that maybe this could have been a little bit of like a quarterback receiver, not quite the same skkill set I'm not sure if The quarterback situation this year is going to lend itself towards answering these questions. but I do think it pos it's possible that we could see more out of Marvin Erison Jr. if he is used in a slightly different fashion. Yeah, and I think like the main thing that it goes back to for Marvin Harrison for me is his rookie year where they just like forced those back shoulder balls down the field that him and Ker just had zero chemistry on. Yeah neegative chemistry if that was possible. They just like always looked out of sorts, but they just continually like spam that and tried to make that a thing. and it didn't really work When Busette was in last year, so Uh, Marin Harrison actually had lower yards per route run with Bersette than he did with Kyler last season. It did not have as many inbreakers so you would think that maybe it changed a little bit, but it didn't change in that way. But I do think this year, with Michael F as a kind of running that offense. I do think we are going to get more not only just him moving around from the outside, maybe have him in a little b I think there's just going to be M versatility in what he's doing. and just in the previous two years, he was just so much of that outside guy who ran down the field. And like you said, that just does not fit his game in the way that we all kind of thought it potentially could be. And I don't think like any receiver really would have worked that well in the role he was really asked to play, especially with the the surroundings around him. but I do have I'm still holding out hope that a change in being a little more versatile will certainly help him get because he was he was awesome. It still doesn't really like completely translates to me how we got the receiver that we saw in college to what we've seen in two years in the NFL. It does not look nearly like the same guy. The reps where you see like a a one or where it looks really good. And know I mentioned like again, like the crossers, the slantance or whatever. I just think like his size, his Yes, I could like he's able to use his frame to box guys out. He doesn't he's not an elite separator, or even a great separator, but There are moments where you can see he still has unique movement abilities at his size to break guys off at the top and I just think if he could anywhere close to what we expected this next season then whether it's Arch Manning or whoever next year, you're like, okay, cool. We have Marmin Aarrison Jr., Micha Wilson, Kendrg Borres, who they the third year they added this year. ill we feel good, right? But if he's not, it's like, oh, we got really work hard to improve the situation that our young quarterback is stepping into You have the San Francisco forty niners, Wh is your choice Yeah, it's Mike Evans, because like Mike Evans on the forty nine really really cool Yeah and like every Everyone coming like out of Tampa Bay is just like, yeah, we hate it. We didn't think it was ever gonna happen What did Chris Godwin say he thought it was AI when he first saw it? Like I think everyone is very heartbroken in Tampa, but This can be really fun if it works out in a way for the forty nineers again, like just this outside vertical, you know, one on one type of receiver that San Francisco hasn't really had. And I think when you kind of go back to when this offense was really good, like the like record breaking one like twenty twenty three, like that outside verticality of Brandon Ike was really important, not only to like getting him the ball, but it also opened up the middle of the field. and that's when McCAaffrey and you know George Kittdle were able to do some things because you had someone that you really had to worry about on the outside. and Mike Evans is like that to now an extreme over what Iuke was. So I think when you can do that and you know Perdie iss already a guy who wants to rip the ball when he can, especially like on third downs and Mike Evans is going to be that guy now. And I think that just adds an element to this passing offense that really has not been there in like this version of the Shanahan offense. 's going to be so weird say pr nine I've seen it before. I feel like of all the Changing teams, guys, that's the one where I'm not gonna like Hendrickson in a Ravens, you know, some of the like more notable players. That's the one where I'm going to be like, what? And then I guess Miles Garret over the Rams in a Rams jersey. I don't know why. That doesn't feels weird to me as Mikeah. mayaybe just because I even though Miles Garret was like a lifelong he was brown for so long. I just think like Mike Evans' spcked. I mean, it's just like Yeah, we've like fantasy traded Miles Garrett for years. So like maybe that and I've seen Ed I had phhotoshops of I don't think I ever saw that with u with Mike Gevin. I just never I thought he was going to retire a buck, but Yeah I mean, the crazest thing is like the Sam Su Frian Iy' offense, like I talked about this last year, even with out Brock Pty at times. They were still unbelievable. evenven all the many injuries that they had kill at the end, no having IU. this was still a top like three offense And again, even with all that, they were fifth in Red zone. and now they have Mike Evans, like that's potentially could be really crazy. I think at times too, as good as they were last year, it did feel like Like you said, it was a little bit just like they didn't have somebody to really create Yep, space and I think Hypothetically, like you said, I think twenty twenty three is a great example of like going back to the offense status layer. which was kind of the first year we' like, oh not first year, but it was a reminder, Oh, here's where Brock Purty is different from other nineers quarterbacks and having a receiver who caters to that is really valuable I'm going to a Seahawks And I am it's funny. I thought about Josh Joob actually, which would have been s sideide of the requal and thing, but I'm going go with Abe Lucas, who's the right tackle I do not think it was maybe appreciated enough how B of a role Abe Lucas playing the entire season had in the COx way this assume A who was their third round draft pick who was awesome his rooookie season and then was injured the next two years U for much of them was really like the straw that it was the offensive line without him has been really bad last year. So H Last season in the entire season, he gave up, I was just using the PFF Data here, Th saaxon and one hit in twenty The prior season, twenty twenty four when he missed ten games The offensive tackles he replaced him, Stone Forsythe, Mike Derrell, George Frant, old friend. gave up seven sacks and six hits. in half of the season So they gave up combined more than double what he did last year, not even you know, for seeven games Um Last year, I thought this was notable and it because it felt right Rushing to the right side. the Seahawks average five point three yards per carry, which is tenth in the NFL Rushing to the left fourour point one, which was twenty seventh. So his presence both in terms of protecting Sam Darnold, but also on the ground was a massive game changer for this offensive line Reygard is still a chilling proposition Center, Sndell's fine But if you can tell me that you get another full season out of Abe Lucas I think they'll be fine However, He's injred So I just want to throwike when they did the contract, people were like, oh, that guy always gets hurt. and then he played the entire full healthy season I just think he's so important to this offense. And if you take him out, you're like This reminds me of point Yeah, it's just like you said, there's so many different factors that go into having him healthy. I'm looking at the FTN numbers, he was eighth among right tackles in pressure rate allowed. and that's super important in front of Sam Darnolds, who we know is one of the most you know, pressure dependent quarterbacks that we have in the league, then you again, like you said, with Anthony Bradford next to him, having a stable force being able to kind of help him out a little bit that obviously did not help when, you know, he had some interior rushers that were picking on the Seahawks in that way, but to have a stable right tackle there and not have to worry about a backup right tackle having him and again, I think is we're going to have to lean on that really early in the season when you're working in, you know, a Judarian price in the backfield who is going to have to, you know, have a little more of a, you know probably get on the field and have more carries than he would have otherwise. So I think just having as much of a stable authentive line as you can for that time being is going to be really important for for Seattle Yeah. I mean, Brian Flurry, who like nobody seems to know that much about is taken over Kl Kubak. The assumption is he's going to kind of copy and paste a lot of it, right? But if You saw this with I think, you know, Ryan Greb, there was a few things like he was Fot. But I also think he was dealt a pretty bad hand with that offensive line as a time NFL play caller and without a glucus, right And if you again, like if you could tell me that the CX will get the same consistency, same starting five even with the guard being a question mark or Bradford being bad Um feel okay, but I don't feel okay if itlcus just not on the field. All right, you have the Rams to wrap up the division. Who is your choice All right, so we're sticking on the offensive line here and I'm going have Warren McClendon It's a great who had stepped in really well for Rob Havenstein last year. and I think like really went underrated how good he was. If you just kind of look at He was in like all the win rates. He was twelfth in passast block win rate among tackles. He was second in runbock win rate among tackles, which is so huge for what this Rams team wanted to do last year when so much of their offense with the heavier personnel was just, we are going to have successful runs that keep us ahead of the sticks, putting up one of the best rushing success rates that we've seen in over a decade or obviously, you know, in the true media era that that we have. it was it was so big and not only with that, Keeping Matthew Stafford upright is a very important piece of what the Rams are. So to have a tackle who was able to come in, be play as well as he did and now have the opportunity to be the starter there on that side of the offensive line, I think is going to be really big for what they can potentially do on offense I think offensive tackle is like the only potential hole in Dathar here If anything happens or decline in play, injuries, whatever. And again, you could say that to every team, but the other teames aren't the death star Okay. L I actually think for all of this the, you know hand wringing around the ramps not taking Mcay Lemmon or a receiver you could take Adams, Titan, Nkua for a limited amount of time. And I think, you know what Sh me they can make this work How do this work But If you take these one of these linemen out, that's when I get worried Because like you said, so much of this Rams offense is predicated on being a hyper efficient rushing team and they have a quarterback who's You know, like I said, like hes he's older. He needs passast production. One thing, I think. That could stop this Uh freight train. So Great choice They've been incredibly, I mean, letess need his credit finding, you know, these offensive lines like they're not Premium picks outside of Avila They've been incredibly successful at finding developing young offensive linemen But the depth is The deth is I feel better and I know these players because a lot of them playing the rasprery season. I feel better about the deth on the interior than I do at tackle as well Okay, so good, so good New summer arrivals are at Nordstrom Rack stores now. Get ready to save big with up to sixty percent off brands like Rag and Bone, Levi's, Adidas, and Free People. Join the Nordy Club to unlock exclusive discounts, shop new arrivals first, and more. Plus, buy online and pick up at your favorite rack store for free. Great brands, great prices. That's why you rack I am one of Meni On july tenth. o you will board my boat and restore the heart of Tefiti. And here we go. The journey begins. See her lightine up the see, she calls me. The ocean chose you. Let's go save the world. I got you back, Chosen one Thisne' Mauana. Bootnk. His name is Heii. His name is Yumyum. when he goes in my tumbtub, in theatater's july tenth. Rated PG, Parental guidance suggested This episode is brought to you by Google Chrome. You think you know a browser, but Gemini and Chrome, that's new. It can help you with practically anything on the web, like restoring a vintage motorcycle from a fifty page restoration block, or finally break down that long article you've had open for weeks. Gemini and Chrome is here for it. Ready to make anything online makes sense? There's no place like Chrome. Check responssees setup required compatibility and availability varies eighteen plus All right, let us wrap with the NFC South I'm gonna go first Aecca E gua Is he hiss wrong? Emica? Is it Emca or I can't remember. Yeah, I think that's right. Igbuca. I know I'm saying the last name, right Um So I want to have a conversation about him and what happened last year because I don't think I really like took a moment during the season to like step back and discuss this. First few weeks of the season, he looks like not just the runaway rookie of the yearar, one of the best receivers in football and then Evans gets hurt. he's fine, but then the production starts dropping, dropping, dropping. and In this final twelve games she's held below fifty yards and nine of them Qions, I think this is the conversation part of it Why is an interesting discussion? Is it Mayfield? Baker Mayfield Is it more attention on Ibuca? Is it the competition he faced And sadly, my answer is a little bit of all of the bu I went back and watched his all of his targets from the first five weeks think He was awesome. But it is worth noting most of them were against infer competition Week one, AJ Trell didn't cover him. That was Atlanta. Wek two, Texans actually limited him pretty good. He scored on a screen in a weeks three He had one nice tight window catch against Sos, but otherwise it was not against him for the most part. Wek four, he was not Queena Mitchell. his wins were not againstQuina Mitchell against the Eagles Wek five, he got Josh Job and it was all Seattle backups in the secondary Um So I think there was like a little bit of great inflation going on with some of the guys who played him. And then the other thing I'll say is this because then I watched like the I was curious about the Patriots game of week ten because he had a lot of he put up a lot of yards against them. And he actually ate up Gonzallees a little bit underneath when he was playing Zone. And I think if I had to pinpoint one thing with Abua, it's this The key is much better right now against Zone than man. And that is borne out in the numbers against Zone. He was twenty second in yards per route run against man. that was sixty first. Against off, he was seventeenth against press. He was sixty fourth And I do think as the year went on, defenses kind of keyed him on that a little bit and corners were able to get push them around and give them a little bit of a hard time So speinning it forward to this year and like can he be the dude? because Mike Evans gone. Dan, I would pauseit this They shouldn't use him like Mike Evans because he's not Mike Evans. And I think that's a really important thing to mention when we kind of look at what happened last year and ask how do we get back some of that early season success Yeah, and it does seem like when you hear what they're talking about out of, you know, Beers camp that they are going to use him more as like a Z and move him around a little bit and not have him be some outside X receiver that they're asking to win man coverage. And like you said, going into it, when you just split the season in half, through week nine, nineteen percent of his routes were against man from week ten on that jumped up to twenty four percent. and he was getting targeted much less against man too thirty one point four percent of his man routes. he was getting targeted on the first half of the season. that dropped to eighteen point eight percent in in the second half. So That is like really a big thing of what they were doing. They were manning him up more. He wasn't getting as open. inaccurate passes were more too. So it was just everything kind of just went wrong a little bit for what he was doing in the second half of the season. But I do I like what I think Zach Robinson can potentially do with him and I do it sounds like they do have a plan to get him just more open, get him some more space around the line of scrimmage. so he is able to just kind of work in those underneath areas that I think can just free him up a little more, play more to his skill set. And I think that is certainly going to be something that he does well You know, and for all the criticisms at Romison Atlanta, a lot of it deserved. I do think he was pretty good at utilizing Drake London and finding ways to get him open and get him opportunities. And yeah, I love hearing that because he is excellent against Zone. I'll mention that as well. likeike he's got such a great spatial feel. He's got quarterback friendly hands you know, it's really just yeah, so you want to keep them clean. And I do think It's a little bit of an awkward fit like L did the well. If he's the Z and God wins a slot, I guess McMillan is sort of lining up outside and it's It'll be interesting to see how it all shakes out But u I'm still I still think the arrow is pointing up. I still think he's incredibly talented. I just think like when I went back and looked at like the course of the season, I was like, okay, like some of this early on was a little bit little bit like misleading. And then later on, I think was a little bit unfair as well. So I'm so optimistic about the player. You have Atlanta. Who did you choose? I have no idea what to make of the Falcons. Yeah, this was a tough one. but I ended up with Jayen Walker just because of a lot of things that are going on with their defensive line, obbviously not having James Peters. You know so Walker had an Iressive rookie season, like five and a half sacks, two strip sacks, which you know there was some impact there Cay in like kind of hailed for his versatility is kind of one of those guys that was able to he played off ball but can rush the passer, but he played ninety eight percent of his snaps on the edge last year. And I think Alanta has said they maybe were a little too conservative with him trying not to put too much on his plate last year trying to let him weren one position that he would play well But he still only brushed the pass on eighty five percent of his past nap. so he's still dropping back into coverage a little more to use that versatility But It seems like as they're talking, you know, through some of this off season work, they they want to move him around a little more. and like he is still like the number one pass rusher just based on depth chart goes, but and so they're probably not going to make him like Kayden Ellis in a way that he was an offball linebacker who moved around all the places. So I think Walker's probably going to move around the front a little more and then can pop up in some other places. And I think the way they are going to use his versatility, I think when now you are down the other past rure that you thought you would have, like it's only Samson Abukum and iz O Jari as the other edges, how effective Walker is going to be is going to be really important because this defense was actually surprisingly twelfth in DVOA last season. So I think there are some pieces here that can work. And if Walker can have some kind of expanded role where the versatility he did have is now more weaponized than it was last season, I think that could be a fun piece that you play around and it makes some of those other pieces fit a little better into the defense along the front too. It has the leak come down on 's going to happen with James Pierce Jr. at all. I saw that he was offered And this was in April. was around the draft, I remember. He entered like an intervention program Yeah allowing him to avoid trial for felony charges of aggravated battery with a deadly weapon, fleeing police, resisting arrests, stalking a horrible story. you can look up that happened in the offseason with him and his girlfriend or ex girlfriend But I don't think I'm aware of like what his status is. I mean, hate even the way I went about addressing a story I hate because Like it is really quite upsetting and It just is somethingomet that I don't think it's come up because I haven't talked about the Falcons at all, but it is You talking about Jalen Walker, and I think about, you know, he was the leading c. I believe was leading sack or right for the team last year. I will say not that this is completely separate from what I just said, and I hope it doesn't detract from the seriousness. I thought Jayalen Walker was a better player And I'm more' very I am optimistic about him. I thought he times flashed a lot of the traits that I liked about him as a prospect at Georgia The instinct instincts pranker Um, the athleticism, the he plays really, really hard But yeah, I do wonder what's going to happen with Perst Jr. Do you have any idea?'m I'm just Googling and I'm not seeing anything No, I don't think anything has come from the Wi yet and that's probably again, one thing that the Wii is probably going until the last possible moment to actually say something about it It is another reason why Walker is actually important, really important for them. They did keep their defensenseive coordinator. also Jeff Wilbrk and part because I think he's surprisingly they finished twelfth ofA, this was kind of like a surpris unit. They had like really flashy big games. you remember the Rams game, right? certain teams is they they gave Drake May Patrion fans dragged me for saying that the Falcononss defense gave Drake me a hard time, but they did. I'm not saying he was bad. I'm just saying it was a hard game All right, U yeah, but it's a good pick All right, Saints So I went back and watched a little bit for this one Kelvin Banks Jr, who was last year the rookie left tackle And I thought of this while watching Tyler Shock. I'viously we're notking Corterbxs So When I think about the Saintss offense and what it would look like for them to take a step in year two I really think this young offffensive tackle duo, him and Fuang on the right side If they continue building on what we saw in the end of last season I actually think this could be a pretty good offensive line. They added David Edwards also from Buffalo And we think about that coupled with the addition of Tyson and what I saw in Jqu I start getting a little bit excited about this Saints's team. and I'll go back to Banks Junior. So Again, played his best football in the second half of the season. someome of that was competition got Carolina twice, notot the greatest pass rush. Miami, Tampa, the Jets, the Titans. Yeah Whever, I'll say watching him and and I was watching him while watching Shuck There's a lot to light I saw it His athleticism, his like he's got really nice light feet panic strength some of the runs too, he had some pretty nasty finishes, particularly against Carolina There was something there and I think Again, you think about like this offense growing together, like if he can take another step in year two. Why can't this be? u First of all, why can't a team win the NFC South? I would absol like when I think about like going back to my original point of, you know, what is swinging a season The S should be trying to win the NFC sth. That is like this is not a like, let's just see what we got in the young quarterback. You saw it last year Pro ready I'll get into him more later. This team should be in contention for the division. and if you can tell me that these offensive linemen and Banks Jior take another step, I genuinely think this could be one of the sneaky fun offensces to watch Leuewide. Yeah, yeah, absolutely. And they they had like a sneaky fun off season, which is the first time we could say that for the Saints, I think ever. because they didn't like over commit to anything, which was really nice. And They allowed a lot of their dead money to finally clear and hit the books and they didn't try to, you know bring back D Mario Davis or anything like that to where they were just kind of doubling down and tripling down on some of those veteran players. They let some of those guys have have a clean break and started to get some more youth. And I think that is going to be a lot of fun This is another, you know, just jump the other side of the ball real quick. This was a defense that was tenth and EPA per play throughout the season. likeike they they had some fun things. A lot of have a bad for the season, which doesn't always translate. it's be careful when like make thinking that that is something that is just automatically going to continue theou again. So R also also helps. And I think there are a lot of things inside the structure of the offense. like I think Kellin Moore did some very fun things that helped the offensive line. I do think signigning David Edwards certainly helps that interior too. and I think that's going to help the entirety of the offensive line. I think they made some some really smart moves. This is the most optimistic I've been about where the saints are going in like since Drew Bries was there Totally. I The whole town was watching to Sark, I was thinking like Jordan Dyson is such a good fit for this offense quarterback Chriso Lave, like it makes if you just watch because Suck's got this real willingness to throw a lot of the stuff that I think Tyson's really good at middle of the field intermediate He I know I just said, I'll talk Thip later, but like it is it is it was it was a fun rewatch because you could just tell he was so much more comfortable in the NFL than You know, I mean, he should be. He's twenty five, but u I don't know. the whole I was very pleasantly surprised by the whole operation, but then when I started focusing on banks, I was because I didn't really think about them too much during the season. I didn't really like I don't know, I thought The sameaints softens line. I'm going to say they were good either because I don't think that's accurate I do think he was trending in the right direction, particularly by the end of the year. Banks jr. and Fon hestly. But so just you know, if that continues, I think you feel pretty good about him in year two and then you feel pretty good about this offensive line. All right, final team Carolina Panthers. R And one of the guys that Banks is going to have to block. Jayln Phillips. I thought you were going toick Jaylen Phills. Yes. Yeah. it's really hard to go anywhere else, I thought when looking at the Panthers just because of actually I was like I said, I was watching the Panthers and against the Sains and I was like, They need Bazrush. So yeah Yeah. so yeah, Panthers were thirty first in pressure rate and there was not a lot of help that they could have. So Phillips had thirty one point two percent of his team's pressures between the Dlphins and the Eagles, but only fourteen point nine percent of his ss, which is something that hung me up a little bit last year. He was able to kind of around the quarterback, not necessarily to the quarterback. I think we know that pressures matter a lot. and throughout his career, he has been someone who has finished more often than he did last year. even like when the Eagles though was like extremely a low rate where like only six six point eight percent of his pressures turned into Sacks, which was one of the lowest figures. It was one hundred and forty second among one hundred and seventy five defenders with at least two hundred pass rushes. But that's not something I'm quite worried about, but he is going to have to be some guy that turns into or turns those pressures into Ss in order for it to really matter on this Panthers' defense and for him to be worth what they gave him. And I understand the contracts, especially after whizzing out on Milton Williams last year, where he was really the impact pass rusher you could get on the market, knowing that you just kind of had to pay whatever it was to make sure you got him because I don't think there was like a bigger need than like Panther's Eedge rusher throughout the week. So He's just someone that I think just has to be this major impact player want for this defense to be good to make up for this contract, which is like a very real three year contract with how the money is spread out and some of the guarantees that go into all three seasons. So I think if he is not that guy, then I think that the Panthers still have some issues on defense Yeah, it because The rest of the defense, you feel like should be pretty solid actually, right? Like Corner duos, quQite safety is a question. That's one we're going, don't know, I don't have it in front of me, but I remember looking at it recently, not feeling great. But they designed Devin Lloyd. had a much cheaper deal than I thought he was going to get. It was f. I was like, o, you know I can't get that upset about this. I don't know. Yeah, I thought he was going to get much more and I would have been like, oh, I don't know about that. But what they got him for, I think that makes a lot of sense in that defense too. Yeahah.. And then of course on the inside you have Derk Brown and ye yeah, and you know, the young passast brushers, Gordon, Prince like It's Jalen is ten passersure in the NFL. then you feel fine about the rest of the group, But he has to be top ten. It does seem on its face to be a very good fit for Everreu, right? who comes from the Vicangio tree and There's a reason why Vig Fangio and the Eagles wanted to keep J and Phillips by all accounts And then they tradeed for Grenarly there's it's a protype, right of a complete edge. Phillips is a good run defender too. He S I feel like has become a little bit underrated in some people's estimation because of the lack of sack production. But when you watch the games, he's so clearly a Tar defensive alignment to me or top tier edge to me. So. Yeah, I I understand like was it was thirty eight people what thirty, I think It went Mafe twentyA twenty five, Phillips thirty per year. if I remember correctly. I get it. it was a little bit surprising, but when you take a step back and look at the other options, like he is better than those players. R. It makes sense that he got more money. So And then yeah, you're like, okay, well, you mean likeike I said, okay, safety is Merrigan Scott. So and then ransom. you know, it's not that bad. but Nicol, you kind of wish. But like yeah, this I think if Phillips is Phillips, if Phillips is hits his ceiling This is at minimum an average defense which is of leap You know, that's that's a pretty significant improvement. And you like everything on offense offense. I don't believe if you're not picking offense. It's quarterback is just, you know, that's the X factor there The rest of the offense looks pretty damn good to me, so I like a lot of it, you know, Ted was really was incredible last year. Im you know, one of the many Jay and Koker fans. I think like that is just something the The offense, I think is going to be structured fairly well. and yeah, since we l should be way better healthier. They threw a ton at the tackle position. So I feel really good about the decisions that this front office has made on offense. I like a lot of their choices, honestly. I like The Dan Morgan era, I feel like, you know, they've got a big decision looming, obviously with Bryce Young, But otherwise, when I look at everything else that they've done, I feel pretty solid about most of it. So All right, that concludes our NFC X factors Dan, where you mentioned you have an article coming out. You have the FTN chapters, where can people find you, find your work Uh yeah, well go mostly on Blueky. That's all going to be posted there or whatever it is. but yeah, the big thing is the FTN all Allman for twenty twenty six, available for pre order now, should be available for preordder now. Preordder now should be out early July. I believe I think there's a set date and I don't remember what it is. It early top of my head. We're on top of it U as I am slightly behind on chapters on Eisa W. But we are yeah, it's definitely the best thing to get you ready for the season and you know six chapters for me, a lot of things. You're yes, you say that on the cover of the book. So we Yeah That's really funny. I didn't even know that. Yes, seriously, folks, I always recommend this. The FT and Fantasy guide, You can get a digital copy or paper, right? So both fTantasy. comot It is by far hands down the best preview that exists right now. And it is really great for if you're in a fantasy as well. I think just like gives you good a good oversight of everything, but I think it is invaluable for the leaguewide coverage, some of the best writers around. it is awesome. So and also you check out FC and Fany in general. I mean, you hear me always on the show mentioning stats that I use from the site, it is really Really useful in that regard. So FDN fantasy, go check it out. Go follow Dan, wherever. are, but especially on Blue sky. And I will be back next week to do the top ten offenses of twenty twenty six I already have no idea who I' would to pick for number one That's not true. I think I know You'll have to tune in to find out And if you are watching Love Island We are now recapping the show on viewer discretion, David Dennis Jr. and I, lot hat. We did our first recap of the premiere Next one will drop on Thursday morning. A lot has already happened. You watch you watch a L? I think you do? Yes. so you convinced me to switch over to US last year because I was a UK I'm sorry. Yes Yeah I'm still a little mad at you for that. but I'm behind I'm behind on US this year But we are we're getting into it. so I'll be caught up soon Okay, just Google this who the new bombshell His name is Corbin. If you're listening at home, if you don't watch Love Island, just Google Corbin bombshell Dan. and I want you to tell me if this is not Kyle Hamilton's complete doppel hanger. He is he came in, I think on Saturday night or something. He even sounds like him when he talks. It's so uncanny. He's also Right? Yeah. He also is like, he's just like I'm six to four and my bra's like, that's Kyle Hamiltonsike because of course that's like how I think, but it is crazy how much looks like Kyle.