NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Hard Knocks Detroit Lions: Episode 2 Recap

Episode Date: August 17, 2022

Dan Hanzus and Colleen Wolfe recap the second episode of Hard Knocks: Training Camp with the Detroit Lions, beginning with top takeaways from the episode. Then, Dan and Colleen cover rookie linebacker Malcolm "Rodrigo" Rodriguez (8:35), Duce Staley's coaching of running back D'Andre Swift (11:31), the introduction to second-year wide receiver Amon-Ra St. Brown and his father John Brown (15:25), and more from Aiden Hutchinson's family as they watch him play his first NFL game (19:40). After the break, we talk about David Blough's role in the episode and his unfortunate game-losing fumble (21:19), as well as Barry Sanders making an appearance at practice (23:46) before our Liev Schreiber Quote of the Week (26:55). Next, Dan and Colleen give their plot-line predictions for the following week (30:09), and finally, we wrap up the show with the Episode MVP voting using the vector voting system (31:44). Note: timecodes approximate.NFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Welcome to another edition of Hard Knocks presented by Around the NFL I'm Dan Hansis And I'm joined by The Tiny Box to my tugboat Wearing a robe somewhere I don't know where but she looks smashing Colleen Wolfe.

Dan, this is a big day for me. I am in Sonoma for a work event and I am feeling a little Ron Burgundy. I'm really leaning in and enjoying myself so I put on this blue robe to do the show. Is this going to end with you having a brown drink in your hand and yelling cannonball

and jumping into a 10 foot pool? I hope so. I have to locate a couple of those items first during the show but maybe if everyone's lucky fingers crossed all right so we are yes separated by hundreds of miles but we're together to talk episode two of hard knocks training camp with the detroit lions and uh connie once again the david robedo theme song snaps me right into it i'm focused i do not want to let dan campbell down because i don't want him to go ape shit on me like he will on you if you're not paying attention during a preseason game which by the way

That's a huge ask. We've been watching football for a long time, Connie. Everybody knows that preseason is, you know, kind of a joke, especially later in games. And if you're an everyday or a starting player, keeping your focus on the game is not something you typically see when they flash to the sidelines. And yet, Dan Campbell was telling his gang, if you are not locked in every second of this preseason game, I will kill you. Basically, I'm paraphrasing. Well, I can't believe that your mic already hasn't been cut off. The preseason is a big deal.

You can catch 22 live ones on NFL network. All of the games will be there. I was in the studio on Saturday, and I feel like I know everything about Kenny Pickett at this point. Listen, the preseason, it's a big deal. But I can understand how players might not be locked in, especially for the Lions when they're playing Falcons. Fourth quarter of a preseason game between the Lions and the Falcons is a little bleak. not going to lie but dan campbell he's trying to get his guys to focus in and i appreciate that yeah and i thought obviously coming off episode one episode one was i thought such a banger in the uh history

the rich history the history is rich connie it is of this uh documentary series that i don't remember the cold open of the show being a last time on hard knocks which was appropriate because it was a banger. There are a few premieres that stack up in recent years like this one did. So we got to see many of the greatest hits from episode one. And of course, Dan Campbell was prominently involved. And when you look at episode two, Campbell is not as much or is not as high in the mix as he was in episode one. And that's okay. It doesn't have to be all Dan Campbell all the time. Instead, I thought this episode kind of showed us when you think about what was the theme of this episode. What was NFL films? What is HBO trying to tell us with this story here? I think the

theme was the Lions are now in training camp. They are in the middle of it. They are in and we're starting to get a better idea of what this team is up against, quite frankly, because I think there's been so much positive vibes around the Detroit Lions. Throughout this offseason, the draft, the ramp up, all the feel good vibes, all the talk about the improved roster, the number two overall pick. And now you have a situation where you forget that this team went three and 14 last year. And this team has Jared Goff as the starting quarterback, no disrespect intended. And this team has so much work to do to get to where they need to be. And you even see it and we're going to get to the preseason game that capped this episode in that game. And it reminded me kind of how many

terrible losses they had last season where they couldn't close a game. And they didn't close a preseason game and so that was a big takeaway from me that yes the lions are fun they're frisky they got grit for days but this episode reminded us that this they're a long way from where they want to be episode two was basically a reality check episode one felt like all of the buzz this team has so much personality there is so much optimism and positivity around them they're going to be amazing it's a fresh start look at all these like former players that are coaches, and then you get a preseason game and you remember everything that happened last year. Now, a couple things that you mentioned off the top here. I also noted

that Dan Campbell, he was featured a little less in this episode. I did enjoy the add-a-baby that we got a lot from him. I didn't, you know, we heard in episode one, everything was like, come on, man, like man, it's a lot of man's, which I appreciate. But the add-a-baby was new. And I don't know if that is a phrase that everybody uses. Maybe I'm just like not in the know about it. But I at a baby maybe had faded in the parlance of society a little bit. And now maybe he's making a comeback. Thanks to Dan Campbell, dentality. Right. Right. Like at a baby, I'd kiss you right now. If you weren't breathing so hard, Dan Campbell said at one point, that was interesting. But I did have a little bit of an epiphany. Is that okay to say now? I lose track of these things. I have no idea what is

right and what is wrong anymore. But I do know that Dan Campbell has shades of Matt Foley in his voice and his intensity when he's screaming at the team from SNL, the great Chris Farley, who played Matt Foley, the motivational speaker with David Spade. And I can't even remember who else was in that amazing sketch. Christina Applegate was the other sister in the most famous one when he fell into the table or fell through the table, I should say. Yeah. Yeah. living in a van down by the river. So when you watch these episodes, I want you to think about that. But overall, I think that my big takeaway from this episode and the theme that I got was that they are trying to get this team, the Lions, to match the attitude of the city,

that it's on the rise and that it is completely gritty. It's Detroit against everybody. It's literally on the walls. Dan Campbell has written on his hat. I mean, this is very, it's, it's a little like Philadelphia in like Philly versus the world. That was kind of their mantra when they went to the Super Bowl. But it felt like an episode where the producers and everyone was was kind of trying to show that this team is trying to prove how physical and attacking they want to be. That the coaches are working so hard to change the culture there. And you can see that when Aaron Glenn is like addressing the team about changing their minds. and that they need to get that winning feeling back.

You can see that when Kelvin Shepard, it is Kelvin Shepard, right? Yeah, the linebacker's coach is kind of address. I mean, when I say addressing the linebackers, he was basically like chewing them out for Rodrigo being able, like showing them all up. You can see it when Duce Daly is telling the coaches what he wants out of Swift. It's all throughout the show, it's woven in. It's Amman Rae St. Brown versus everybody. I mean, you can see it from start to finish.

So that was kind of like my big takeaway. That's a great like sports mentality to have the nobody believes in his card. It's been a well-worn trope for decades and decades. But it does suit the Lions well. And I think Campbell's wise to play that way because you are playing off the failure of the failures of the organization for decades upon decades. So that was so you take this stance of listen, Nobody thinks we can do it, but we think we can do it.

And that's what training camp is about. It's us going into bunker mode together to figure it out. And you brought up Malcolm Rodriguez, who is our right now alone in the clubhouse as the lead underdog of season 17 of Hard Knocks. He is a, what was he, a fifth round pick, Justin? Sixth round pick, Malcolm Rodriguez. We saw him briefly doing a dance in episode one. But now we see him blowing up, blowing up the offense at the linebacker position in episode two. And you get glowing praise by Kelvin Shepard.

Just using Malcolm Rodriguez as a basically a guy saying, listen, this is who you need to be better than. He's only a six-round pick, which I thought with Rodriguez right there in the meeting room, a little bit of a weird vibe that maybe is like, what do you mean? Why are you acting like it's not good enough that I'm not, you know, these guys shouldn't be better than me. But I thought it was an app point that he was making that and he made sure Shepard to pump him up by saying coach has been in this building for five years said he has not seen a stack linebacker made this kind of play referring to one play

where he blew up a player. And it's like I will say one warning. I want to give a warning to viewers that maybe don't know Hard Knocks as well as us. when you start when you have a segment when a player a low drafted player an undrafted player gets talked up like that you assume he's going to be a star he very well could be cut at the end of this month early september that's how this game works sometimes but it looks like malcolm rodriguez is earning his keep i'm also the linebackers maybe they just aren't that good i mean you have that that that meeting was kind of tense like him motivating the other linebackers by low-key shading Rodrigo at the same time. Like, you're not better than this guy? That was basically like, you could look at it two ways. Do we have an issue with the nickname Rodrigo?

Is that I mean, that's, his name is Rodriguez. And we could do better than that, right? Well, this was the nickname that was given on the first day. So that to me kind of spoke volumes because it seems like you have to earn everything on this team except maybe your nicknames because it's a. big nickname team you got uh josh reynolds they call him the serpent of death did you catch that at the beginning like i i don't know if that was just like a nickname in the moment i mean uh funches of oats there's a lot of nicknames throughout this entire episode but the serpent of death was

one that that stood out to me you're kind of making my point like josh reynolds is as a serpent of death and Malcolm Rodriguez is Rodrigo. I mean, I just, you know, I don't know. I don't have to, I don't have a big issue with it. But maybe in this one, in this one case, I think Dan Campbell could do a little better than that. You also mentioned DeAndre Swift. And, you know, I want to play this clip from Deuce Staley, who had another big show,

I thought, another big app for Deuce, the former Eagles running back turned assistant coach of the Lions. And I want to play what Deuce had to say speaking in a. private conference room with the other coaches about Swift and then I have another thing to add. Let's listen to that. Grave Digger. I need Swift to believe he's the best

every time he's stuck on the fucking field. I need him to know when he's one-on-one no matter if he's running around or he has the ball in his hand, no one can guard him or tackle. I want him to go to Dan and have time and say coach on the ball.

And he got it. It's in there. Boy, it's special. And every day we go out there between those lines, he got to believe that. And I'm going to try my hardest to get that shit out of. Ain't going to try it. I'm going to fucking get it out of. Because he can be so special.

I've been around some guys that's been in space to special ones. He got it. And you see right after that, deuce then in a private meeting with the running backs because Staley is also the running backs coach. Challenging Swift to be a more. aggressive runner to kind of go the, take it to the next level and take all that promise and turn it into him being a top running back in the league. And I think you got a nice glimpse there, Connie, into the team's feelings on Swift as he enters his third year. He was the 35th

overall pick in the 2020 draft. Going into the top to 35 is a running back in the modern NFL means a team thinks you're a star. And I think he's flashed that. And he certainly was on his way to having a star type season last year before he got injured in week 12. But you could tell they're banking on him to be a stud. And there's maybe some messaging that they see that hasn't gotten through yet that they're trying to get into his head. And this was another example that I sort of put in that bucket of the coaches trying to change the mentality of the entire team because this seems like

it's not a physical thing with Swift because Duce seems to love him. It's more of a mental thing. It's more of unlocking that potential. Like when he says that he wants to know that. that he's the best on the field when Swift walks on the field. Like that's a confidence thing to me when he says that he wants Swift to go to him and say, I want the ball. That's a drive thing.

That's a competitive fire thing. To me, this is saying that he is just one of the players on the team that maybe is getting comfortable in being complacent. Like Michael Irvin always talks about when he first got to Dallas and they were bad. And Irv had been really good in college. And he just was always wired that way. And when he got into that locker room, he was like, I don't understand. Like, why aren't you guys, like, trying to get better?

And the veterans were like, you know, you just got to cash that check. You're good. And so he always talks about how difficult it was to change the culture. And that's something that you can see, especially with Swift, because he really likes him. He seems to think that Swift is on the precipice of kind of greatness. And if he just gives that little extra effort, you know, if he just gives that stiff arm, then he'll get the touchdown. If he's a little bit more physical, if he is a little bit more greedy, then they can, they can get over that hump. And it's, it's not just him.

It's him and it's everybody on the team. Yeah, I think with Swift, he has all the talent in the world. We need to get some more grit into Swift. And like you said, the stiff arm where we see the clip where Deust Daly makes a point to say, you could have scored here if you would have gotten more. physical bouncing inside instead of bouncing outside in the preseason game, giving it to him. So a little tough love for Swift thought that was interesting. How about Connie Amman Ross St. Brown? Oh, my God. Yes.

And Gravedigger. I know this one hit home for you because he's coming off an excellent season in 2021. And he was the first to say, in fact, that's how we first learn about St. Brown where he says, for me, I'd say. my draft experience was shitty. And then he goes through every single receiver and how many of them were there, Justin, including a certain Tennessee Titan, your favorite team?

Yeah, 16 receivers drafted ahead of him, including Des Fitzpatrick to the Titans, the final receiver drafted ahead of Amunrah, St. Brown. Yeah, so he, and he ticks those off, Connie, off the top of his head. So he's one of those motivation guys. We learned a lot about the St. Brown or was it Brown family. It's a little confusing.

Okay. So one of the things that I found really interesting was when Amam Ra, St. Brown, was reciting all of the receivers and the schools they went to. He did it with a thousand yard stare. Like he kind of just was like a little dead in the eyes while he was reciting those names. Who saw too much, that type of vibe. So, so he is, that is absolutely a chip on his shoulder. But the whole family, this episode also kind of had like a little family ties theme. throughout it with Amon Rae St. Brown, with Hayden Hutchinson and his family again, with David Bilau. But just to stay on Amman Ra real quick, like his dad being Mr. Universe, I had interviewed his brother, Equanimia St. Brown, at the Combine when he was coming out. And so I have all of these fun facts, which I did not

bother to double check, double source here. But I'm going to tell you what I have of my note. and you can do whatever you guys want with them. Okay. But I do have a little note here that says the dad added saint to his last name because he said it just kind of came to him in the moment and he thought it would look cool in the back of a jersey. Because it was when we see the dad's name is John Brown, it did throw me for a loop that it took

me a while to recover from. But saint was added. Okay. Gotcha. Right. So there's that. Then another little fun fact about his. brother equanimious was that his dad started him lifting weights at age eight and would feed him

protein shakes and red meat three times a day now that is unconfirmed not sure about that however his dad seemed pretty intense in this episode and even when they were working out the fact that there's no talking really allowed while they're working out and I'm not sure why his dad was talking down to water but he was saying what's what's wrong with spit or you're getting soft now I don't no, I feel like water is kind of a pretty well-known thing that I mean, he's old school. He's like Bear Bryant having a nine-hour practice in summer without water breaks because it makes you a better football player vibe. I don't, I don't necessarily, I feel like the science doesn't support lack of hydration

during high-level exercising. But yeah, no water allowed, no talking, the stuff about eating all the red meat. And what was the other note you had there? That he would just get protein shakes. on a very young age. At least that was equanimous. I'm sure maybe the same for all the brothers. I don't know.

They both got it. And then somehow Kevin Durant at one point catches astray because his Achilles because he wasn't doing enough, I guess, calf exercises. I was like, whoa, this dude is wildly intense. And I will say that I do believe the Brown family or the St. Brown's, whatever you want to refer to them as, they should have a suite. I mean, if we're going to give the, and I understand the Hutches, it's $20 million guaranteed in the bonus money. But it's not a great look when you got the Browns down there in the 200 level, and then you flash up to the Hutches.

And let's check in with the Hutches. What is the name of the sitcom when the Hutches have their own sitcom? Checking in with the Hutches? Let's workshop that one. I enjoyed a lot about it. I like the moment with Mia Hutchinson. I filed this under one of my quotes of the day from episode two. Just, I don't know.

I just like the way she said this. Play it. Grave Digger. I just like the way she said that. Well, also the mom like shushes them. They're like, come on. Like, she's like, come on. Aiden is in here.

This is his first play ever. It's a very relatable thing, especially when like some of these quarterbacks are changing teams in the off season. Right. That was, that was very funny. I was thinking maybe like the. um no i was i was trying to workshop a hutch name for you but the brady hutch doesn't work never mind um what i would like yeah we will we will i like that they have a family logo on their teas uh team hutch that they all wear it's like a customized logo what you think about the

shade the shade i mean it's it's like an old school upright is that what the logo is with the age i think so yeah yeah that's a you know they're getting creative i'm sure they have a name uh workshoped for their sitcom. But I did love the shade that Amman Ra's dad, John Brown, kind of sent their way when he said, they're not sitting in the stands with us. Yikes. That was a rough moment.

But, yeah, that, we're going to be following them a lot. I would like a crossover with the Browns and the Hutches on a very special episode of hanging with the Hutches. Hanging with the Hutches. There you go. I think that would really work. Let's take a break. And then Connie's going to drop a,

hammer of an observation from episode two. We'll be right back. Great. Hey, this is Matt Jones. I'm Drew Franklin. And this is NFL cover zero. We're just here to try to give you

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What's up, everybody? Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Sticks, we take you inside the game from scouting reports and player development to team building philosophies, coaching trends and how front offices construct winning rosters. Every week, we study the tape, talk to decision makers,

and share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots, from college football prospects to the NFL stars of tomorrow. We break down the draft, analyze matchups, and evaluate how teams put it all together on game day. Plus, we dig in the coaching strategies, roster construction, and the trends that shape the lead. year after year. Whether you're a diehard fan or just love understanding the game on a deeper level,

we give you the full picture. If you want insight that goes beyond the box score, this podcast is for you. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Six podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. All right, Connie, I teased it. So you did. You did. And I was like going to bring up David Blow here. So I don't feel like that is a good spot. Is it time for the BlauHards? Blowhards, yeah. I think so.

Listeners of the Around the NFL podcast are surely aware that a few years back, Mark Sessler, our colleague, fell and fell hard for David Blow and formed a fan club called the Blowhards. And I have since signed up with the Blowhards. I know you're a member, card carrying member of the Blowhards. Of course. So this was kind of. Kind of a bittersweet episode from that standpoint.

A tough blouse, if you will, for, for the blouse hearts. It was, it was tough to see his wife, Melissa, watching the game in the stands. And it was not a great game for him. The play-by-play sat especially well with me when he said, I can't remember who was calling the game. But blouse running out of time. It hit a little different, you know? Like, you could take that a lot of different ways.

Kind of is running out of time here. He is. For people, you know, a little behind the scenes. I mean, listen, Jared Gough's a starting quarterback, but Tim Boyle and David Blower and a battle for the backup duties. And this is, this has always been traditionally really fertile ground for hard knocks, the backup quarterback role. So I do want to, I want to see the other side of us. I want to get some boil in the, in the future episodes to get that side of things.

But I do like Blow. I like that he was involved. they like meeting his Olympian wife. But it is the bittersweet aspect of Akani is how we had all the buildup and he's going to her training and we're seeing the rooting in the from the team headquarters a year earlier when she was qualifying for the Olympics. And then for the preseason game to have a hideous botch snap in the fourth quarter. And then the fourth quarter rally goes nowhere.

The plowards are, you know, not feeling. too hot and we're worried about his job prospects to hold on to this gig. Sure, but hopefully there is a redemption story right around the corner because that has been the Blauhard's calling card with him. So we'll say, maybe he can recreate, wasn't it Thanksgiving that he had that amazing game? Can he have like one really? Yeah, it was Thanksgiving. That was his moment.

Another highlight for me was Barry Sanders being a big fan of the field conditions. I mean, he just was going on and on about the grass. You know, listen, if you're old enough to remember Barry Sanders and I was, I was a high school kid when he was the greatest running back on the planet. Listen, Emmett Smith might have been the most decorated or that have the most yards, but the best running back of the 90s and maybe the best running back ever in the non-Jim Brown category to me might be Barry Sanders. That's how amazing he was and special. and Barry is not to me the most charismatic individual when I see when he's interviewed it doesn't always jump off the page and I you almost could sense the hard knocks wanted to give him a little more juice in this episode but he just didn't say anything that interesting on the

sideline other than man this grass is sure is green I mean he loved it though I did enjoy the flashbacks in 97 where he had the massive shoulder pads like with the dead grass supporting his It is incredible. As a quick aside, it is incredible how far the teams and the league itself has come in terms of field preparation and maintaining and in general, just putting in the players in the best position to be healthy and successful. That was only 1997. And it looked like they were playing on a sandlot in Brooklyn in 1950. It was like, what are we doing here? But luckily, Barry never suffered an injury on that type of turf. You know, since you bring it up, two things. Number one, I once covered, the first Super Bowl I ever covered was Super Bowl 46 in Indianapolis, Giants, Patriots, too. And me and Mark, it was both our first Super Bowl coverage experience together. And our boss of the time, Justin, put us to work. And it was fine.

We were young and hungry and we wanted it. We ended up both working like 75 or 80 hours that week. When we turned to the time card, it was like a minor. disaster back in the home office when we turned in the card. But you get up to that number because of things like on Saturday before the Super Bowl, I was sent to cover the celebrity flag football game at the minor league field in Indianapolis, which was wild. Snoop was the captain of one team, I believe Maria Menudo was the standout on the other

team. And the only thing I could tell you is that it was a mix of stars, stars. and retired athletes. And Barry Sanders, I'll never forget, being completely kind of out of the game plan. Like, Barry Sanders was on one of the teams in this flag football contest, and they rarely used them.

I'll never forget that, just seeing Barry wandering around the field, not getting the ball. And who put this together? Whose fault was that? I don't know. Direct TV? I don't know.

Bad job. And then also on the Barry Sanders tip, yes, it is time now for our Leav Schreiber quote of the week with our Lee F. Shriver, stand in the great Jason Zumwald. Take it away, Jay. Detroit icon Barry Sanders is a straight up legend. Ironic because straight lines were never his move. Two for two. So good. He's so good at this. They could just pay Zumwald to do it. Yeah. Well, you'd probably be cheaper. All right. What other takeaways, Connie, is we You get closer to the MVP picks for episode two.

Yes, I just have like two other little things. You know how I think the greatest compliment that anyone can give is calling someone a bastard because that's what I have named our ATN text chain. Oh, yeah, of course. ATN bastards. Like when someone is a bastard, they are someone who can joke around and they can kind of like trash each other in a fun way. and I feel like we saw that a lot throughout this episode

with Deuce Daily telling guys to study because they're not getting dates for their looks. Dan Campbell getting on T.J. Hawkinson about his shorts that look like his wives. Yep. And he used to have shorts that looked like that. They were very short. I mean, that was one of the highlights for me.

But I think that that is sort of a recurring theme that there are some pretty big bastards on this team. Yeah, that's good. Bastardo is. always good to have a few of those or a bunch of those. I had a question about Hutch. Hutch did the MJ Sacks celebration

or a tackle, he had a tackle for loss in the preseason game and it was a Michael Jackson impersonation. I don't know because I don't follow the game, college game closely. Was that directly because of the Billie Jean moment from episode one or was that something he's done previous in his career?

I assumed that it was because of episode one. And I think at one point even his mom says that she had texted him about it earlier in the day. I like that. So I think that they're just trying to like build the brand. See, I like that a lot. Just like they have the Hutch clothing line. They're trying to build that brand. And Aiden Hutchinson was also rehearsing the handshake that he was going to do. I guess it's like a handshake. Handshake celebration. Like when he was dapping someone up, they were rehearsing it on the side earlier in the episode. So I thought that was kind of cute. It was. It was. Do we know? Is there anything else we want to hit before we get to our MVP votes using the vector voting system?

The only thing I was thinking was in the recap, like last time on hard knocks, they replayed Jamal Williams and his speech. And when he said, if you're going to piss like a puppy, stay on the porch and let the big dogs eat. In the moment, I really wasn't sure what the hell he was talking about. But when they replayed it, I figured it out. I finally realized, oh, I guess he means the. puppies are scared and that's why they're pissing on the porch, but it's still a little unclear, I guess. Oh, that didn't connect with you. It didn't connect with me because I've never had puppies pissing on the porch before. I've never had a porch. So, yeah, I guess the big dogs eating and

the puppy's pissing. I got like a little confused in the metaphor. Okay, well, you eventually landed it, so everything's fine. Plotline predictions for episode three. I got, okay, we need, and you could feel it. The hard knocks producer is like, ugh. Okay, we need to get into Jared Gough at some point. Oh, yeah. If we wait until episode four, that feels too long. We can't push it to episode five because that's just almost disrespectful. David Blau got the time before golfing.

Right. So it's like, I feel like episode three is going to be a neat little spot for him. We're still waiting, as I mentioned last week, for a visit downtown that pays homage to the Detroit music scene. You know, soul, blues, hip hop, garage rock. You know, maybe we get a Jack White visits lions practice. You know, these are all things that could be in play. Oh, I would love that. And one last prediction is you mentioned Jamal Williams and his dog metaphors.

Bring them back. I mean, I was saying before the show to Grave's Degger saying who's an example of a running back who whenever he gets a chance shines and then all of a sudden he goes into hibernation. The coach puts him in mothballs. Tony Pollard, great job by Graved. there with the Cowboys. That's what it felt like for episode two. It's like Jamal Williams just blew up the world. And then all we get from him is an episode closing dad joke about James Bond.

I need more Jamal Williams in episode three. Bubble 07? It was so good. It was pretty good. James Bond taking a bath. Bubble 07. All right. Let's listen to the joke in case you didn't hear the joke.

What do you call James Bond taking a bath? Bubble 07. All right. It's time for episode MVP voting. Again, vector voting scale, first, second, and third place votes all carry different point totals that are weighted. At the end of the fifth episode, the finale on September 6th, we will reveal through addition. Just simple math that gravedigger will handle. Who is indeed the Hard Knocks MVP for 2022?

Who is your first place? Wait, Dan, can I stop you right there? What if we count up from third, second, first, a little more drama on the reveal? You know what? Good job by you. It was actually running through my head. Should we do it that way? I went the other way. But now that you're coming in,

that's good producer work. And that's Justin Graver. Who is your third place vote for MVP of episode two? I'm going to go with Deuce Daly. He has been a favorite of mine from the jump. Last week, he was my second place vote. So this week, I didn't want to go second place again with Duce. So I'm going to knock him down to three.

All right. I have, and that's a good vote. We're going to hear more about Deuce in a minute. Third place, I have Dan Campbell. Obviously, this wasn't Campbell's episode one coming out party, but he had two lines that I love. First, the aforementioned chance encounter with Hawkinson, his tight end that led to this commentary on his shorts.

Really accentuates the butt cheeks. And then Devin Funches, who you may remember, Once upon a time being a Panthers wide receiver of note. Now he's looking to catch on and make a splash with the lions. He makes a nice catch in the back of the end zone. And I believe it was a Tim Boyle throw. And Campbell, I think kind of into his headset, but also to no one in particular had this to say.

Fucking funches bunches of oats. All right. I love that one. So that gets him on the metal stand. Who's your second place? Second place is Amman Rae, St. Brown's dad. John Brown Later known as

No-uh John St. Brown Are you serious? John Brown Don't call him John St. Brown because he's not Yeah

he's it's got to be I mean the old footage of him as Mr. Universe and then all of the stuff with him in the weight room with them now I mean it was just perfect. I also like you know as a dad

and I just got back from Legoland today this morning in fact and I'm just like me and the eight-year-old, we're just starting to bump heads a little bit because he just won't listen to me as much anymore. So, you know, we're starting to, you know, do that thing,

do that dance, that part of fatherhood. You got to feed him red meat three times a day. I think I do. That's it. But I like this line. I could empathize with this line from John Brown where he's like, you know, people should listen to me. Look, I know I'm a father,

but I'm freaking Mr. Universe two times. I know what I'm talking about. Two times. Two times. times yes maybe if he just won it once I love how many times do you think he reminds people about that and that's so awesome I love it I think John Brown is a reality show if it was 2008 he would have a reality show on TLC

off this I mean maybe there's still time yeah yeah all right so we both have John Brown I don't know I thought about is that throwing away a vote because you know John Brown is he going to keep popping up but we don't know maybe you will I hope he's exactly that's I had no problem with that a second place I bet I know we're going to have the same first place now I don't think so what is you know in fact I know we won't who's your first place whoa I'm going with Rodrigo be like he had such a big part of I mean he was just such a big part of like that whole speech when Kelvin shepard was ripping everybody apart he was kind of a star at practice uh you got rodrigo talking about

talking about it's a great time, get to be hit in practice and hitting people. I don't know. That was a he's my he's my underdog that I'm rooting for. And so I had to give him my first place vote. I totally see where you're coming from of that. I you know, the reason I he didn't get a vote for me is because I thought the storyline around him is interesting. But I didn't think he personally did enough to get the gold or or medal for me. So I'm happy that he's thriving, but I need to see more for him to get on the metal stand. I gave it to Deuce Daly. I love Duce, how he's acing what is essentially an audition for the 31 other teams

as a head coach. And that's what this show can be for an assistant coach. And I don't think there's anything, I think he's being himself. I think he's being real. I loved that whole interlude with, uh, DeAndre Swift. I just thought that was, that's a good coach. That's a guy that is using his experience to see that Swift is a special player. The way he talked about him to the coaches, the way he spoke directly to Swift in the meeting right after that. And it did remind me of this always stuck with

me on all or nothing. The all or nothing season with the Arizona Cardinals, there's a end of season meeting, private meeting between the running backs coach of that team named Stump Mitchell and a young David Johnson and Stump Mitchell says kind of the same thing or something similar to what Duce said to D'Andre Swift, which is, listen, you could be really special. You could be as good as anybody in the league right now if you just keep up what you're doing. That was more like you're doing everything great, just keep doing it. Deuce clearly thinks that Swift needs to be pushed. And I think Swift, I don't know if he does make the leap in year three,

but I think he has the right coach to do it. So I think Deuce back-to-back episodes has been really fun to watch and just seems like the exact type of guy you as a head coach you want underneath you as an assistant coach. I've been slow playing my Deuce Daily love a little bit because I have just like always loved him so much. And I'm, I've been worried watching this that I'm a little biased. because of his past with the Eagles and everything else.

But now you're just confirming that everything I'm thinking is right. So, yeah, the Deuce Daly Love is real. No, the Deuce Daly train is rolling. And a special mention to my guy, Aaron Glenn, who I do, I think he's coming off very well in this show as well. And if that defense gets a lot better this year and it could, I think his name is going to come up for head coaching jobs come January. Just the guy that obviously commands respect and knows his ball.

All right. Now, before we say goodbye, a couple things. Connie, we gave Gravedigger a lot of work, I feel like, our producer in episode one. I think we had asked him swag. Swag. We asked for Detroit pizza at some point. Oh, yeah.

There might have been a third request that I'm not recalling off the top of the head. Where are we with the requests? Yeah, so where are we producer, Justin, after one week? We have merch has arrived Hey Love it You hear that Connie? We got merch!

This is great I'm going to come in the studio to present it to Dan and then we can hold up yours so you can see it because we'll give it to you when you're back in town I'll be in studio next week

Perfect. I have a lead on Detroit style pizza So maybe next week in studio we'll eat a little bit Maybe that's a finale thing Maybe it is a finale thing But if you got to leave That's great news

And then the third request I will have to double check on because I also don't remember what it was. Great. All right. Here comes Justin with the shirts. We got the merch. Yes.

We got them. And that's not what we're not. Is it a varsity jacket? Oh, look at, ooh, Connie. It is NFL films on the front. Ooh. This clearly is Connie's shirt. This would be a little tight on me.

Oh, it's a crew shirt. Yes. Crew shirt. Love it. That's beautiful. Thank you to Ken Rogers and the NFL films people. Oh, I can't wait. Very good.

We'll wear that with pride. Listen, that's great. Integrity doesn't isn't a thing on the Hard Knocks podcast. No, we're proud of this whole operation and the product and we're just promoting it. Absolutely. Special shout out to Chris Wong for sending those to us.

Chris Wong. Thanks, Chris. We love you. All right. Now, we'll be back next week, episode three. Make sure you tune in for that. And a special, I'm especially excited for this one, Connie, because you're going to be in studio with me

and we're going to really, we're going to chop up episode three. You know, real quick, I hope that there's some more cars involved. I know that that's like another theme with Detroit. And I thought there would be more cars. Like I noticed that they incorporated some of the guys using like big tires and then would smash cut to like an old car type thing

to make that Detroit theme go. Yeah. But I'm hoping there's even more coming up. Need that. You also reminded me of David Blow. in his hype speech on the last drive when they're trying to run out the clock and I don't know if anybody's listening to it

but he's in the huddle and he's like, listen, this city, you know, they like it tough. They, you know, they want us to grind this out and we're going to show the city that we're tough like them and then like a snap fires off his hands. Again, a bittersweet, bitter sweet day for the Blauards, but there's always next week on hard knocks. That car backfired you.

I hope this time next week, Connie, we are talking positively about David Blow having a big week two preseason but we'll have to wait. We will. I'll bring the robe. All right. Thank you to everybody for listening. Here he comes. David Robido.

Do you think David just walks around the house with this playing? I hope he wakes up and it starts playing. He's like, he just turns it on and his wife's like, turn it off. He's making coffee with it on. Roboto, don't turn it off. All right. Until next week.

See you. I'm Marcus Grant. And I'm Michael Florio, and together we host the NFL fantasy football podcast. Ready to dominate your fantasy league this season? Then you need the NFL fantasy football podcast, your ultimate source for player news, draft tips, and winning strategies. Whether you're a rookie manager or a fantasy vet. We've got the insight to help you crush your opponents. Listen to the NFL fantasy football podcast on the iHeart radio app, Apple Podcast, or wherever.

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