Locked On Colts - Daily Podcast On The Indianapolis Colts - LOCKED ON COLTS 5/22/20: Crossover Special with Locked On Bucs

Episode Date: May 22, 2020

On today's episode, James Yarcho of Locked On Bucs joins for a offseason winners crossover special. How did Tampa Bay pull off Tom Brady, and what will his impact be like on their offense?Also, how about the Bucs' new additions of Tristan Wirfs, Antoine Winfield Jr., and Rob Gronkowski? Yarcho believes it these additions alongside Brady will make this team a top contender for a Super Bowl immediately.Flipping over to Indy, the Colts' additions of Philip Rivers, DeForest Buckner, Jonathan Taylor, and Michael Pittman Jr. will help them take the leap from average to great in 2020. Indy's offensive line will help Rivers improve the team by four wins over Jacoby Brissett.Will these teams meet in Tampa Bay come February, 2021? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Hello, everybody. Welcome back into your latest crossover special here. Talking about the biggest offseason winners. I am Evan Cedri of Locked on Colts, joined by James Yarcho of Locked on Bucks. James, first off, how are you doing? Because Tampa Bay has got to be so excited about what's happening this offseason. Yeah, I'm doing well. You know, it's been a whirlwind of an offseason. There's been quite a few times over the past decade that the Buccaneers have, quote, unquote, won the offseason, but nothing ever like this.

Yeah, that's definitely true. We're going to talk first off, James, here about Tom Brady. How stunned were you by that news? And did you really ever expect Tom Brady to sign a dotted line in Tampa Bay? Because everyone, at least nationally, believes it's an odd fit on paper just due to Brady leaving Tampa Bay, maybe Las Vegas, Los Angeles, but no, he's going to Tampa Bay. But the more you think about it, with the weapons they have in place in that offense, James, what's your expectation for Tom Brady?

And what was your instant reaction when you saw the news? Well, I had started hearing that the interest in Tom Brady was very real early on but as you said you're nationally people would point to the Chargers and point to Vegas and point to these other markets as fits for Tom Brady but when you really broke it down as far as the teams in the market for a quarterback this offseason yet Tampa made the most most sense. It was away from Patrick Mahomes and Lamar Jackson. It was a team that they wouldn't have to face the Patriots until 2021 when they were on the regular season schedule. No team had more weapons or better weapons for Tom Brady to throw to, and that was kind of the biggest knock in 2019 was Brady had no one to work with in New

England. So you take a look at a team that had two Pro Bowl wide receivers, teammates that both went for over 1,000 yards, neither one playing for a full season. In Godwin and Evans, you had arguably the best tight end duo in the NFL already in OJ Howard and Cameron Bray. You had an offensive minded head coach who has a history of working with his quarterbacks and, and kind of collaborating with them, you know, Bruce Arians history with Peyton Manning and Andrew Luck and Ben Roethlisberger and Carson Palmer is well documented.

So the more you looked at it, the more sense it made for Brady to go to Tampa Bay. The big hurdle to me was always, was he really going to leave New England? And once he made his announcement that he was leaving New England, I was pretty confident that that was going to be who the Buccaneers were going to come away with, or at least that was the team that Tom Brady was going to head to as a free agent, just because it all lined up. It all just made so much sense from the team that he would be joining to the head coach and the offensive coordinator that he would be working with. James, just how big of an upgrade is that?

I mean, you watch Jameis Winston throughout his professional career. Now he's the backup in New Orleans, of course. But how big of an upgrade is it going to be, at least for this offense, when you slide out Jameis Winston and put in his place Tom Brady for 2020? Yeah, Jameis Winston was one of those quarterbacks that he could make throws that not many quarterbacks in the NFL could make. And at the same time, he was the only quarterback that would make some of the mistakes that he would make. And you look at a team that went seven and nine last year, and people think it's pretty astounding to predict

the Buccaneers to be an 11 or a 12 win team, which I believe they will be. And you look at 2019, they finished seven and nine, but they seven of those nine losses were by one score. And in those games, Jameis Winston had 18 turnovers. So they were already a playoff team. They just couldn't get out of their own way. And they had a quarterback turning the ball over at a rate that was unprecedented. As far as having 30-30 season on a team that was so talented. You have a top five offense in the NFL, you have the top five defense in the second half of the 2019 season, and you still only come away with seven wins because the quarterback can't stop giving the ball to the other team. So the knowledge, the intelligence, and the protection of the football that Tom Brady brings immediately makes this team a playoff team.

And so it's a huge upgrade. Granted, we have to temper a lot of excitement because it's only for two years. Tom Brady is getting older. So you have to maximize on the two years that you have. But it's an upgrade from that aspect. I hope Jameis Winston does well, except when the Saints play the Buccaneers. And I think with some time, Jameis Winston is the kind of quarterback that could potentially lead a team to the postseason. But this is a head coach who signed a contract. He probably won't fulfill the duration of that contract. He's trying to win a Super Bowl before he finally retires for good.

And had he gotten Jameis Winston five years ago, I think we're looking at a much different quarterback and a much different team than we are right now. He just doesn't have the time to put in to develop Winston the way Winston needed to be developed. And when you're in win now mode, you're going to do whatever you can to do that. And that was sign the greatest quarterback of all time. Absolutely.

I think this is going to be a huge move for Tampa Bay here, James. But I wanted to hit on as well your draft that Tampa Bay had, especially their first two picks. Getting Tristan Wirfs, who I believe was one of the best tackles in the NFL draft, sliding to 13, move up one spot to get him. I think that was an absolutely fantastic move there to get Brady some more protection. And also Antoine Winfield of Minnesota. I think he's going to be a lights-out safety in the NFL,

and pairing him in the secondary is going to really improve that. What was your thoughts on the Bucs draft? Yeah, getting Wirfs was the big hurdle, I thought. Their number one need heading into the draft was a right tackle to replace DeMar Dotson. Dotson was, he's getting older, the knees are going out on him, and he even came out and said at times that he didn't really have much interest in in run blocking and you know that's not really the attitude you you need to have when you're an offensive lineman but you know they they got in my opinion the second best right tackle in the draft and you know this this kid is to say he's athletic would be an understatement. I'm sure a lot of your listeners have already heard or seen the video of him

jumping out of a pool, just complete freak athleticism. And getting somebody like that to shore up the offensive line, which actually played relatively well when they weren't decimated by injury last year. Alex Kappa really took a giant leap forward as a starting guard. Donovan Smith has been kind of the punching bag for Buccaneers fans, but overall, he's a relatively average left tackle. He's not the best in the NFL, but he's also definitely not the worst. So that was a big, big move. And then, yeah, Antoine Winfield Jr. He's really the only guy the Bucks could have taken and I'll be completely candid. When they passed on J.K. Dobbins, I was irate in the moment and

it had nothing to do with Antoine Winfield Jr. and everything to do with my desire for them to finally address the rushing game with one of those marquee star collegiate running backs, which they just flat out haven't done. But Antoine Winfield Jr., he is everything they need on the back end of that secondary. And you take a look at Carlton Davis and Jamel Dean and Sean Murphy bunting down the stretch last year. They were consistently in pro football focuses top three as far as past breakups and opposing quarterback completion percentage, opposing quarterback ratings. And they really gelled and really kind of all came together at the same time, which is why the defense ended up being in the top five in the second half of the year.

So to get somebody like Winfield Jr., who's kind of that ball hawk, he can also play in the box. He's a thumper. He's not afraid of contact. He can blitz. He can do anything that you need him to do. And putting him in a Todd Bowles defense is just, it's a match made in heaven. Bruce Arians, after the draft pick, we were on a conference call with him, and he compared Antoine Winfield Jr. to a mixture of Tyron Matthew and Buda Baker, and he's 100% right. That's exactly what you see when you sit down and you watch the field of Antoine Winfield Jr.

So putting that style of safety in a defense run by Todd Bowles is just a match made in heaven. I'm really excited to see what Winfield Jr. can do with that secondary because this defense, after bringing back that front seven and retaining Shaq Barrett and JPP and Adama Kinsu, and then to have the secondary come together the way it did and add a piece like Winfield, absolutely incredible. I'm so excited to see what this defense can do. Final two questions I have for you, James, in the first segment on the Bucs, who I believe had the most exciting offseason by far in 2020.

I imagine a move that did stun you maybe, that maybe obviously came out of left field, of course, was Rob Gronkowski. That trade that happened with New England, he comes out of retirement, joins Tom Brady in Tampa Bay. What was your thoughts on getting Gronk on board, and what do you think his role will be alongside Cameron Brady and O.J. Howard? At first, I was a little hesitant about the move because I didn't know what that meant for the future of O.J. Howard. We're still a little uncertain as to what it means for the future, but I was incredibly concerned that he was going to be a draft weekend casualty and he was going to be moved for, you know, is part of a trade up or, you know, to gain a couple of

extra picks, whatever the case may be. The fact that he's staying with the team now and they have this trio, it's exciting. And I love Gronk and I think in really in any other offseason, it wouldn't make as much sense as it does right now. You take a look at how strange our day-to-day lives are with everything going on. And you take a look at the way the NFL is having to handle their offseason and their training camps and they're doing virtual workouts and things like that. Tom Brady's coming into a new team for the first time in his NFL career. He's having to learn a new system. He's having to learn a new playbook,

learn the tendencies of wide receivers and tight ends. This is all very different. So why wouldn't you bring in the guy who he has better chemistry with than he's had with anyone over his 20 years playing. So you have that security blanket, basically, in Rob Gronkowski. They know each other better than anybody else, and they know exactly what one another are going to do or what they're going to expect. So you're not going to have as much of a slow start as Brady gets to know Mike Evans and Chris Godwin and O.J. Howard and Cameron Braid a little bit more,

when he's in trouble, when it's a third and six and they have to move the sticks in the fourth quarter and get into the end zone to put away a game or to come back, whatever the case may be, he has his guy that he knows and he trusts and he can rely on instead of having to rely solely on the chemistry with these new teammates and allow that to develop more naturally and gradually as it will. So it makes a ton of sense from that aspect. And I mean, shoot, it's Rob Gronkowski. If you can get him, why don't you get him? This guy, again, I was on the call with

him when he joined the Buccaneers, and he talked about for the first time in his career, he got to do what he's never been able to do, and that's heal. He said he feels absolutely fantastic. He had only lost about 15 pounds. He's gradually put that back on to get back to his playing weight, but this guy has suffered so many injuries and has had so many lingering problems. He's never had the time to actually sit and let his body heal. And now that it's done that, we may see, you know, the first full season that Gronk has played in, I don't know, it was like, it's been like six or seven years since he's played a full 16 games. So I like the move. I like what it can bring for the Bucs. And I like the chemistry that he and Brady have that can help them get off to a fast

start in case this offseason is shortened and Brady doesn't have as much time on the field with his new receivers and tight ends to be able to get that chemistry down. Final one I have for you, James, we're down to some Colts questions to finish our crossover today on the Locked On Podcast Network. What's your I have for you, James, for a demonstration of Colts questions, finish our crossover today on the locked on podcast network. What's your prediction for next season, James? I feel like this Buccaneers team looking at their schedule is at least a 10 or 11 win team to me.

I think they hit their off season out of the park, adding Tom Brady to this offense. Do you think this team is built right now for a cerebral contender and going out and win one Lombardi in their home stadium this year? I think it's very possible. I take a look at this team. I take a look at the schedule. And of course, looking at the schedule and doing the strength of schedule based off last year, all these teams are different, so it's really hard to gauge. But if you take a look at their strength of schedule, quote unquote, against passing defenses, they only have one game where they face a top 12

passing defense. So the cards are laid out for them that they can do some damage in 2020, and Tom Brady is good easily by himself for a three to four win increase over the production that Jameis Winston had last year, just by virtue of protecting the football. I think this is a 12 win team, maybe even 13 wins. I truly, truly do. It's a playoff roster already. And mistakes are what cost them that opportunity in the postseason. All they need to do is get there.

You just need a ticket to the dance and then anything can happen. The biggest hurdle, I think, for the Bucs this year is the New Orleans Saints because they are still the New Orleans Saints and they are still the team to beat in the NFC South. But you take a look at Atlanta, they're kind of in disarray. I'd be surprised if their head coach makes it through the entire season. And then you take a look at Carolina, they're in kind of a rebuilding mode. I like what they did in the draft. They went defensive heavy.

They got their quarterback in Teddy Bridgewater. I don't think that offense is going to be able to do a ton. You kind of eliminate Christian McCaffrey. You eliminate a lot of what that offense can do. And they're building their defense to face off against Drew Brees and Tom Brady and Matt Ryan two times a year. So they did a really good job there. But to me, it's a two-team race for the division. And then the Buccaneers getting into the postseason, anything can happen. And you're going to trust that Tom Brady will find a way to get it done.

Before we dive into segment two of our show, talking the Indianapolis Colts, I want to remind you guys, if you have not already, to subscribe to Locked on Bucs and Locked on Colts. James and I bring you guys instant analysis to all the latest news on the Bucs and the Colts daily here on the Locked on Podcast Network. So whatever streaming platform you're listening to, make sure to subscribe to Locked on Bucks and Locked On Colts. And we'll be back with you guys in just a second after a word from our sponsors.

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go to BuiltBar.com and use promo code LOCKEDON, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N. You'll get $10 off your first order of Bill Barr's. Use promo code LOCKEDON, L-O-C-K-E-D-O-N, for $10 off of BillBarr.com. Colts fans, Bucks fans, go take advantage of this right now. Cool. Let's dive into it now then, James. I know Phillip Rivers was a huge addition for this Colts team. What was your thoughts when you saw that move?

Because I know Phil was actually linked a lot to Tampa Bay before they went and got Tom Brady. Yeah, I thought it made a lot of sense just because of the history he had with Reich. It sounded like, you know, for the Colts, it was Rivers or Bust, but I love the fit of Phillip Rivers in Indianapolis from the outside looking in. Yeah, I think it is a great move here. And what's your overall thoughts, I imagine, James, here on Marlon Mack and adding in Jonathan Taylor? I know you want to get a premier running back on board there. Do you feel like the Colts might have what the Buccaneers are trying to strive for here,

or at least what you wanted with getting a bell cow type running back in Jonathan Taylor and pairing him with an underrated running back in Marlon Mack? Yeah, I'm a huge Marlon Mack fan. In fact, when the Buccaneers traded up in the draft, I thought it was going to be for Marlon Mack. Turned out it was for Kendall Beckwith, a linebacker out of LSU who unfortunately suffered a major injury in a car accident where he was a passenger. It looks like he may not be able to set foot on the field again, but I love what Marlon Mack can do.

It seems like there's a lot of volatility and kind of some angst going on with the team. And Marlon Mack, as far as his future there, is concerned. I like Jonathan Taylor. When we were diving into running backs for the Buccaneers, I didn't like Jonathan Taylor as a fit for the Buccaneers, but I think he's going to be a great running back in the NFL, and I think he's going to be able to do some great things for the Colts in that offense.

But I was just kind of surprised at the move because I feel Marlon Mack is such a talented running back, and he can make big plays when he's carrying the ball. He can make plays as a receiver. It just kind of struck me as a little bit odd. Obviously, there's a tandem there that they're going to want to work with, and Jonathan Taylor is going to be able to do some outstanding things. I don't know.

I mean, I guess if Marlon Mack gets the open market, I'll be kind of pouting the table a little bit for him to join Tampa. But they addressed the running back position with Keyshawn Vaughn. Not sure how that's going to pan out. See, it just kind of struck me as odd, the way that they've handled the entire situation with Marlon Mack. Both he and Malik Hooker, it seems like these are a couple of bigger names for the Colts that just seems like they're at the end of their journey

in Indianapolis. Yeah, it seems like the Colts are going to be playing a compensatory game here in a couple years with all these free agents they have to pay. They have to extend Darius Leonard, Quentin Nelson here very soon. It'll be the top-rated linebacker and offensive guard on the open market as far as contract annual value goes but I think another interesting question I want to hit on with you James the Colts is their defense because obviously the Buccaneers have one of the more fearsome defenses at least now on paper with what they've done already over the past few off seasons

but the Colts getting DeForest Buckner on board and pairing with Darius Leonard who did a lot of damage against the Buccaneers this past year, two interceptions off Jameis Winston. What's your thoughts on that Colts defense and adding in a piece like Buckner? I think that's really what's going to set their defense apart this year. Buckner was such an out-of-left-field move, but such a great one for the Colts. And Darius Leonard is, he's just a freak, man. And I look at him and I see a lot of Levante David, which gets me excited. Hopefully Darius Leonard gets more recognition and more praise than Levante David has, you know, being buried on, on such terrible football teams for so long. But he's, he's easily one of the best linebackers in the NFL, but nobody ever

talks about him. So I really enjoy watching Leonard play. I don't enjoy watching him intercept the Buccaneers a couple of times in a game, but he's immensely talented. So adding Buckner to that and really fortifying the pass rush there, it's a game changer for what the Colts are going to be able to do on defense, especially in that division. You're going up against the Texans, which aren't as scary as they were three months ago. You're going up against the Titans, who just ran through the AFC as far as in the playoffs until they ran into the Chiefs, but they were doing incredible things. Derrick Henry is a phenomenal talent, and you have Ryan Tannehill there, where if he continues the way he did last year, you know, the Titans are going to be a pretty formidable opponent. So yeah, the Colts defense, I mean, it really, it has me excited for Colts fans because they have some really, really great

pieces there, and you know, adding Buckner is just – that's next-level good. Yeah, absolutely. I think Buckner is going to really set off this defense ticket at another level as far as going from average to at least above average or elite in 2020 and beyond. But I think another interesting question I wanted to ask you is on the Buccaneers as well, tying into the Colts for a second, James, is the offensive line comparison. I know the Colts have really rebuilt their offensive line

since Chris Bauer came aboard as GM in 2017, drafted Quentin Nelson, Braden Smith in 2018, and then, of course, they brought back Anthony Costanza this past year on a two-year extension. What's your thoughts on the Colts' offensive line and really a model for, I think, for how a lot of offensive lines want to be? Do you feel like Tampa Bay is anywhere close to that level? Well, it still greatly upsets me that you guys stole

Quentin Nelson from us because we won a meaningless week 17 game, but that's neither here nor there. No, the Colts offensive line, you know, you take a look over the last six or seven years, so many people talk about how great the Dallas Cowboys offensive line has been and how much draft capital they had invested in making the line that way. And I think the Colts, although at the Cowboys peak, isn't quite that good. It's easily one of the best offensive lines in the NFL. Bringing back Costanzo again was a huge move. And Quentin Nelson is just, I love watching him play. He just tosses guys around like ragdolls. And that's the way I love

to see offensive linemen play. He plays angry, he plays hungry, and he imposes his will on opposing players. And that's what I love to see out of my offensive linemen. So the Colts have done a phenomenal job of setting up that offensive line. It's so unfortunate that they finally get this line together, but it's too late for Andrew Luck to be able to benefit from it because poor Andrew Luck was stuck there behind some terrible offensive lines. And that ultimately, of course, led to his early retirement. But having a guy as smart and as experienced as Phillip Rivers back there, giving him that little bit of extra time that the Indianapolis Colts can provide that the Chargers could not, it's going to lead to some big plays

and some wins for this Colts team in 2020, in my opinion. And I'm really excited to see a guy like Jonathan Taylor be able to run behind this line in a power running game because they're going to open up some holes that you could drive a truck through. And Jonathan Taylor is probably going to do exactly that. Last question I have for you, James, on our crossover special today, locked on Bucs and locked on Colts. What do you think as far as stacking the competition out in the AFC? I know you believe that Buccaneers are very much a Super Bowl contender, 12-4, 13-3. I've been on my list with the Colts. They were 7-9, of course, last year, but I believe 11-5 is what I've been really pounding the table for. I think Phillip Rivers makes a huge impact,

as does DeForest Buckner in the rookie class of Jonathan Taylor and Michael Pittman Jr. But how do you see the Colts stacking up in the AFC? Do you think there's a chance that we could see the Bucs versus the Colts in Tampa Bay this year in February? If we could see the Colts and the Bucs in February, that would be the ideal situation. Now, I'm saving this apparently for the very end. My boss is a huge Colts fan, and so he and I talk football all the time. We're always talking Bucs and Colts, and having the two teams in the Super Bowl would be just an absolute dream scenario. The Colts, I believe, are

absolutely a playoff team. I thought they essentially had a playoff roster last year, minus the quarterback. Kind of the same situation that the Bucs are in. These teams have quite a few parallels when you really sit down and look at them. So both teams were playoff caliber as far as talent, but had too many questions about the guys taking the snaps under center. They both bring in veteran quarterbacks. To me, Phillip Rivers is a Hall of Fame quarterback. He's just never been to the Super Bowl, and that's going to hurt him when it comes time for voting. So you bring in somebody with that level of intelligence who's seen everything he could possibly see. He now has some guys on offer. Not that the Chargers didn't have any weapons, but he's got guys like T.Y. Hilton and Michael Pittman Jr.

What a great pick. Love that kid. I loved covering his dad and talking to him. I got to interview him a few times. It's funny, I would ask him questions about his career, and he would swing it back to talking about his son, who at the time had just committed to USC and had played his freshman year. And this Colts team can be scary, scary good.

Again, I think the hurdle in the AFC South is going to be the Tennessee Titans. They proved to be the class of the division last year with their playoff run, the way Tannehill stepped up and really just took over for Marcus Mariota, just ripped his job away from him and played the way that Dolphins fans were hoping he would play. You know, you get him on a team with some good coaching and some solid talent. He can make some things happen happen as we've now seen. I think the Texans, what a mess they've become. Poor Deshaun Watson.

He loses DeAndre Hopkins for David Johnson. Nothing against David Johnson, but he's not hot. DeAndre Hopkins is arguably the best receiver in the NFL, and they traded him for peanuts and a bad contract. Just a terrible move. So much like I see the NFC South playing out as a two-team race between the Saints and the Buccaneers, I see the same thing in the AFC South. It's going to come down to the Titans and the Colts. Were the Titans a one-year wonder or flash in the pan? We're going to find out,

but Phillip Rivers alone, to me, is good for three to four women improvement for the Colts. And I'm excited to see what they can do with this squad and with this quarterback. You all can go follow James on Twitter at J Yard show underscore bucks, and also go follow the locked on bucks podcast on Twitter at locked on bucks. James, this is fun.

Appreciate the time. Absolutely. Thanks for having me. You know, looking forward to doing it again sometime soon, hopefully before a very important game in February down in Tampa. That would be a lot of fun.