NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - JJ Watt To Cardinals & Top 101 Free Agents

Episode Date: March 1, 2021

A room filled with some heroes - Dan Hanzus, Marc Sessler and Gregg Rosenthal bring you all of the latest news around the NFL including JJ Watt's big move (12:47), some other quarterback shuffle talk (22:01) and the 17 week season is here to stay (29:05). It was a challenge to get through something Wess was so involved in, but the heroes forged on going through Gregg's solo top 101 Free agency list (41:18).Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comNFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Mark Sessler, Greg Rosenthal. That's one of the great West stories. And not only because it's a great story, tying back to West's past and a woman that was very dead set on starting the clock on what she perceived as what her life should be, which included getting married fairly quickly and then having kids and settling down,

I believe, in Cincinnati. But the fact that, West told the story so often and mentioned it so often, it tickled him to no end. So it kind of hit, it hit on two levels. So, you know, another great reminder of Chris Wesslingman. I never knew that woman's real name. I just knew her by that tagline. She engaged herself to me.

Today, any thoughts? I thought you said it well. I don't know much about her. No, nobody does. does. She was basically that woman for many years in the lore of the Around the NFL podcast. Speaking of Wes, this is a bittersweet episode for us because Greg rolled out his top 101 NFL free agents of 2021. And if you have any knowledge and back history of the show, and I'll speak personally on this. I loved the top 101 because it's really the, the, the,

The beginnings of the scientist lab, something I pumped up to no end, was about the top 101 where Greg and Wes would come up with their own list and then kind of worked together to figure out a final 101. Mark and I even countered with our own like underground list that people really seem to enjoy and maybe on some level was superior. But the one that was the canon for NFL media was the West Gregg edition. going to get to that today, in addition to some news in the NFL, including a big decision by one of the great defensive players of the last 25 years. But Greg, you did, I thought you

really, you know, well written and well thought out. The intro for the top 101, you kind of reminisced about the exercise and doing it with Wes all those years. Yeah, this is one of, you know, many times of year and yeah just things in the last three or four weeks it's been tough it's tricky like i don't know you know i know you guys are dealing with the same thing like we're podcasting and like we're we're going through it as as friends and co-workers together and i don't know there's no right answer but it was really emotional for me last week um doing this and just everything like it's still so fresh you know what i mean um but I did think about how Wes and I's relationship was so much about, like, arguing.

It started that way, like, on AOL Instant Messenger at Roda World about fantasy rankings, just, like, going back and forth. And that continued here for the last seven years doing this. And I do think it mellowed out in the last few years. And I think that, I think Wes's cancer battle is part of that, and maybe just us getting older. Like, it was like less, it was almost like we didn't want to waste our time arguing about football rankings as much but um but i still and i wrote about that i still thought about how you know this fall um driving back from chemo you know football was certainly still a big part

of the conversation and that's like you know that's a huge part of your friendship because that that's like um i don't know it's just like a nice dose of normality in a in what was such a brutal which is such a bad year overall to just like talk football and go back and forth. I remember us like trying to rank where Justin Herbert fit like among all time rookie quarterbacks because we both sort of loved them. And that's, you know, that's, there is something about that. Seth Payne was on our show, not to keep going on, but I remember he said he, you know, and this was, you know, before West Pass, but he thought, I thought it was interesting to hear from a listener that he thought the way that we interacted and showed our love for West during the season, he thought

was, you know, really affected him. And because that's sort of like how guys love each other. And that's sort of what I think about when, with these rankings and stuff. Like that, that is part of how you show you love each other is because it means everything and it means nothing. And we sort of like understood that that this stuff, it didn't really mean everything. But it was like also how we found joy and like friendship and love. Absolutely, yeah. I love the way you put that. And that is, it is a very, a guy thing because sometimes guys, you know, struggle to show how much they mean to each other. And then it will come out and something is passionate as an argument about where Marcus Mariotta belongs on a list. And you and Wes both respected each other so much as well in terms of your football knowledge. And that's why you were the scientists. So it was always great theater on the show. And not to mention, I think it also made the best. type of this exercise, which you see on every other website. This one, I think you could stack up against any other.

So, Greg, you know, this is a different world for us now as a trio without West. But there are all these little micro things as well that I guess some of us go through individually, you doing this without him. That certainly qualifies. Yeah, it's tricky because it's like, like, And I know Mark's, I'm looking at Mark, and he making me emotional. And it thinks, I don't know. Like, aren't you guys struggling with this?

Like, the public part of it is like, I don't know. It's tricky because, like, everything we're doing is, like, we're celebrating. I thought, damn itchick, so many people have spoken so well, and we've done our best, too. And I love that, too. But it's like, part of me is just, like, sad, you know, and people. pissed off too a little bit and like that doesn't necessarily make like good podcasting but podcasting is like you know our job too like so it's just very it's very hard to navigate I have been really struggling struggling with that part of it like the podcast part of it I and you don't need

to comment on that I don't know I'm just getting it off my chest kind of because there's part of me that's just like piss still too like pissed that he's yeah I'm totally with you Greg Like that, I mean, you know, like, he's, he would, like, not to do the whole, like, what he would do sorry to get up. It's like, a little bit of me is indignant. Like, West would be indignant. You know what I mean? Right. Like, he, we didn't see this coming, not, not now, you know.

We, that's still, we have to let ourselves feel that, too. We, we do something as a group. It's just an organic thing. But, like, I feel like every few days we'll be on a group text chat and we'll be sharing photos. of Wes and you go the way things are now and everybody has them like you have a photo cloud that and for all of us we're lucky enough we have families and we have all these like treasured memories of our kids and times with our wives and families and friends and we're all kind of looking back and reminiscing about the past which feels like a romantic now when you look back at the four

of us together and some of the amazing things that we got to do together and when Friday night when I went I was looking for just going back in time at different combines and to see last year we were in that luxury suite at I almost called it the Hoosier Dome I'm like a hundred years old at Lucas Oil Stadium and it was Mark wearing a ridiculous terry cloth robe from the hotel and it was Daniel Jeremiah sitting with us talking about you know Justin Herbert and the incoming QB prospects and Joe Burrow and it was me Greg and Wes, and West could not look any healthier. He couldn't look any more alive or vibrant.

And it just struck me, and I think that's a part of the thing that sucks and makes me mad is like how quickly it all changed. And it went from West with us looking better, looking frankly better than all of us, sitting in that suite to being gone one year later when the combine should have been happening. That gets me mad. And I know we're all on the same page there, just that he was taken for. from us in such a sudden way, not in the way like someone can lose a loved one in an accident or an act of violence or whatever, but the ravage of the second cancer, I don't think any

of us were ready for anything like this. So it's, it is a process. And I'm with you, Greg, that it's been strange doing this. It really is. Yeah, and don't take my silence for a lack of thoughts. I just, you know, we all were together this weekend too. And that's hard it's okay like I think that's it's all okay like I

you know the thing I just mentioned about anger like I tried to even you know it's like you gotta I want to let myself feel that too like it's so it is so recent it's like on some level

like the natural human instinct is like to start moving forward and it feels like it's been along it hasn't been long it's been like less than a half weeks man it's been less than a month and uh and so we thank our listeners too you know obviously they're like part of this too but they on i think you know they get you guys get that we're we're going along through it and like you know sometimes it'll be like i i can i can do like a normal show and and put my mind into that because we're professionals and

like i enjoy doing a normal show that has nothing to do with you know that doesn't have to do with West necessarily because we've been doing that and that's what we do and we love doing that but the the whole like thing where it's combined there's no avoiding that I guess you know like it's he is our friend privately but there's no avoiding like how it's all mixed in together so that's just something we're going to have to figure out figure out as we go yeah I was just going to say like what Mark was saying is like we were all together this weekend and it was so happy to be with you guys and all of us

be together, but it was in sort of that moment that I was like, oh, my God, like, he is supposed to be here. Right. And that was like so hard. Yep. It has been nice to have each other. And we got everyone, we got together at Connie and Gonzo's

and, you know, Lakeisha was there with Link and Rhoda, uh, O'Hisha's mother. And that, that is all great. Uh, but it does. Like, like you guys are saying, everything You're doing that and you're doing it. You feel like it's the right thing to do to get together and spend time with each other, especially after realizing how things can be taken from you so quickly.

But then at the same time, there's just this like, yeah, but this is the exact type of setup that the one person above all of us would have enjoyed. And it's him. It's him. I'm throwing cornhole with Gonzo. And I'm thinking to myself, my God, Wes taught me about cornhole. This guy would have been playing against him right now. So, man, it's tough.

And we're doing our best. And again, we thank all the listeners for being so supportive and being cool during this time. And we know it was a loss to you guys, too. So just three and a half weeks out. And we're figuring things out. So today's show, yes, the Free Agency 101, we're going to hit that. But let's do some news first, including, yes, big news involving an all-time great. I'm eating burritos bigger than your ass

So you would think that's an awkward transition But no, West, I think would have gotten a kick out of J.J. Watt saying, I've eaten burritos bigger than your ass. All right, the Cardinals are the team that lands J.J. Watt. What's that all about? Arizona Cardinals signed the former Texan to a two-year, $31 million contract. This comes after weeks of speculation that Watt would land elsewhere, the Packers, the Browns, the Bills, the Steelers, all teams that a lot of people thought.

I mean, to that point, our TV producer, and he does a wonderful job for us. Jason Kleinman had sent me a text just this morning before the news went down that J.J. Watt apparently is on Peloton, and he had listed under his bio, SB 56, Super Bowl 56. ellipsies, G-B, ellipsies, C-L-E, ellipsies, B-U-F. So like a little Easter egg buried within his exercise bike apparatus. And then he goes in signs of the Cardinal. So, Mark, I know you're probably, I would guess, A, without putting words in your mouth, you're disappointed because the Browns would have been a nice fit.

B, what do you think about where he ends up going? I kind of loved the landing spot for him. That's assuming that you get, you know, Chandler Jones playing at Chandler Jones levels. But that defense, I thought, made some strides and were interesting at times last year. And it was guys like, you know, Buda Baker, Hassan Reddick, who, you know, blew up in the wake of Chandler Jones not being out there. And so I love the idea of J.J. Watt being added to that. You have a ferocious pass rush. And it complements, you know, what they're trying to do while growing on offense. To me, it's a good landing spot. Am I disappointed from a Brown's angle? No, but I never really bought

the idea that he was going to take, like, because just no humans seem to do this in pre-agency, less money to play for what he saw was a Super Bowl contender. I think this is a contender. I think that they were a bit of a disappointing uneven team a year ago, but it brings a total new, intriguing angle to the defense. And I think that if you're Russell Wilson and people like that in that division, you're thinking, whoa, what happened here? This is an ugly development for the rest of that division. Yeah, Greg, we don't know. like Hassan Reddick, as an example. This guy had, what, seven sacks in a game last season?

He's on your Free Agency 101 list. Chandler Jones, a year lost to injury. We don't know if all these guys end up with JJ Watt, but if they do, that is an interesting wrinkle to this team that maybe you have this, like, three-headed Godora pass rush. Jones and Watt, you know, are two of the best, you know, pass rushers defensive linemen in the last decade. So it's pretty interesting to have them play together.

they're both in their 30s now but you put up the hour lads list of like their you know depth chart and it's all red and red means you're a free agent so it's not just redic but um you know corey peters who was started early and then got hurt for them devondry campbell patrick peterson draker patrick they have a lot to do on defense in terms of free agency but that's a fun that's a fun combo Jones and JJ Y and I think it speaks to them feeling like now is a time to push like that they could not afford a six and ten season necessarily in a very tough division or that maybe Kynbaum who's had a lot of chances there and Kingsbury you know I think they're feeling pressure to keep the ball moving forward and Mark you made the good point on

you know taking less money I mean it just I It just goes to show, I think, these other teams that were more obvious Super Bowl contenders, we're just not going to offer that much money. So it does come down to that. He got $23 million guaranteed. He's going to get $15 per year. It's basically a two-year, $31 million deal that will probably see both years. And that's good money.

That's like, that's pretty good money. I was going to say that's good money, but that's not break the bank money. Had you heard, Mark, something about what the Brown's offer or if they ever made an offer? Like, what were they prepared to pay? I didn't, but their cap situation isn't terrible. I would imagine they would have been competitive. And maybe, you know, maybe some of these teams did offer that. And he chose Arizona for a specific reason.

I like the idea of him not being the only guy on that line. In Cleveland, you would have had Miles Garrett and JJ Watt, I mean, you know, the metrics show how incredibly effective he was as an internal inside pass rush or two, you know, last year. And he played a ton for them. So I just think it's the versatility is there. And I mean, I guess you could have, he could have looked at other teams, but I don't know what the Browns offer. I guess they weren't close. That's the thing is, you know, he is an older pass rusher.

You know, those guys don't necessarily get break the bank money. It's like clowny last year probably regrets not taking an early deal because he ended up accepting like one for nine. So sometimes things change fast. And my guess is the Cardinals were financially a lot. more aggressive than some of the teams like the Bills and the Browns who wanted them but wanted them at their price maybe two for 20 and like 12 guaranteed or something like that if I had to guess by the way though Dan not to throw Kleinman under the bus here but that was a fake J.J. Watt

Peloton. Oh right and it's and it was it was KJ Watt and you know I am a novice compared to you at Peloton Dam but I I found it suspicious when I took a look at the the The overall presentation, a little Peloton prankster, was up to his tricks. Oh, no. Field Yates was the one that tweeted it out. Yeah, I mean, in fairness, like a lot of NFL media. What a snake pit. Who would just, you know, should have their journal hats on and maybe not just accept every.

Oh, that's a bummer. You know what? I'm going to put it on Yates because I don't know him personally and I let Jason off the hook on that. Okay. I do know. Interesting approach. I do know Field. but you know him but I don't nice guy he listens to the show at least he said that I believe

him I listen I'm not burying field I'm just saying I'm not going to take blame for it even though I spoke the words into the microphone so then I have to assign blame to someone am I going to do the guy Jason who does great work with our show or field a perfectly um a good man I understand and a great NFL reporter I got to I got to Barry field in the biggest of all spots it's a very interesting process that you're going through here during the show Dan he um field did do the like homer simpson walking back into the bush thing afterwards he didn't delete it it was too late people people knew he had he had to um he had to well j jay shot it down too he said i don't even have a bike no tough sit he would have money on a peloton bike would he would he would just look like

he would kill it yeah i don't know he looks like too large of a man and to the money thing the fact that the cardinals probably just you know offered far more compensation it's not really a chase the ring destination. And you can, I guess, squint and say, oh, Kyler, Mary, year three. And, you know, you can look at things. Maybe the Cliff Kingsbury thing clicks and the defense with this monster pass rush, I guess. But to me, a team like Buffalo or Pittsburgh, that would have been where I would have guessed. And then Cleveland, because Cleveland's buzzing now. So this is, to me, a big surprise that he went there. But good for him. Get that money. And it's a nice place to play and live.

People love Arizona, professional athletes especially. So, all right. Rigs are great, but your last, you know, monster payday of your lifetime, I usually ends up way. That could be great, too. Yeah, way and larger. Maybe not for everyone, but I guess that I think that normally weighs larger. All right.

Let's say, let me, just to have this right, I want to look it up. Spot rack. Is that how you say it? Spotrack. I like over the cap.com, but they both work. All right. I just want to know how much he's made. Career earnings.

So I prepare to bury JJ Watt. Hang on a second. Career work. Okay, he's made over $100 million in total cash. If you said to JJ, how much is he getting guaranteed here, Greg? 23. Okay. You get $23 million and you go to the Cardinals and you have a 20% chance of the Super Bowl.

or I can give you $12 million guaranteed and you have a 70% chance to get into the Super Bowl. What do you pick? You take the money? You take the gup? Or you take a better chance at a ring? I think he's telling us what he picks, you know? He's telling us. And like I am a little surprised by the landing spot.

But I think, you know, you've got a quarterback on a rookie contract. So the Cardinals, two off-seasons in a row, have taken the best player away, not named to Sean Watson from the Texans. So, you know. Oh, I like that. The Hopkins mix. To play devil's argument, you know, if you're why, and I don't think he's thinking this way. I like devil's argument better than devil's advocate person.

Oh, yeah. Well, it would be like, it's impossible to know who's going to the Super Bowl anyways. No one, you know, none of these teams have more than like an 8% chance. And so is the difference between the Browns and the Cardinals worth, like, getting excited about or even Bill, like, really almost any team other than maybe like the Chiefs or something. You know, it's like, who really knows is good. Yeah, because I wanted to have the same issue if he went to. to the Browns. I would be like, oh, this is a smart move for a team on the rise.

But like, what's the difference ultimately between the Cardinals and the Browns right now in terms of Super Bowl hopes? Maybe not that different. Bill's in Pittsburgh. It can change. It's hard to get there. It's hard to get there. All right.

In other news, other quarterback news, this according to the athletic, the 49ers have connected with the Panthers checking in on Teddy Bridgewater. the latest sign, if this is indeed the case, Greg, that San Francisco is looking to either replace Jimmy Garoppolo quarterback or bring in someone else as an option because even when Jimmy G's on the field, I mean, even when Jimmy G's on the team, you can't guarantee he's on the field because he's injured all the time. So it makes sense to have somebody back there. But yet another sign here, Greg, that San Francisco is very curious about what else they

could have behind center. And that, you know, Carolina seems, you know, dead set on moving on from Teddy Bridgewater. This was kind of buried in a Carolina article of what they might do. And it sounded like the 49ers checked in maybe early in the offseason, especially when you're getting all these Panthers want to do this and that reports, you know, including the, you know, they went hard after Stafford. And since nothing happened, and since then John Lynch and Shanahan have kind of come out pretty strong for Jimmy G. It makes me think maybe they were just checking in to see, hey, if you want to give Teddy away, like, we'd take them.

But, you know, they're just, they're poking around. I'm with you, Dan. I think they're going to bring in, my guess is that they're bringing someone with Jimmy G. And maybe it'll be a Teddy type, or maybe it'll be like a rookie. We'll see. I mean, John Lynch has sort of been vocal about the fact that they needed to upgrade the backup quarterback position. And if you're, if you want to go back to the what ifs had the Patriots signed Jimmy, Jimmy G and, you know, a little bit earlier and not allowed Tom Brady to stay there as long.

I mean, which would have been a nonsensical move. I mean, Jimmy G. is what Tom and Brady is not in the sense that he's not stayed healthy. And you got these quarterbacks that, you know, maybe they are not elite, but they are giving you availability week after week. And we've seen two seasons under Kyle Shanahan go totally haywire because Jimmy G. got hurt. And he gets more out of backup quarterbacks than anyone in the league, I'd say. And so maybe if it's Teddy, not as a clear competitor, but someone that comes in and can prevent the Niners,

who would have been a playoff team last year, minus the health issues, more security at the most important position. In other quarterback news, Rapsheet reported that the Washington football team is ready to part ways with Alex Smith, a 36-year-old reigning comeback player of the year. We know his story.

It's inspirational. Aspirational? Is it both inspirational and aspirational? You could aspire to do the same thing. I don't think many athletes would want to duplicate what happened to Alex Smith so far. Tiger Woods would like to. He aspires to have a similar pet. Anyway, he's owed $26 million this year,

and Washington saves a substantial amount of money if they cut him before June 1st. So, Mark, it looks like the end of the road for Alex Smith and Washington. It feels like a guy if he still wants to play. That would be an excellent backup somewhere. right? Yeah, I mean, I don't know at this point, we just don't have like eight or nine quarterback positions that are like dangerously vacant. So I don't know where that landing spot would be.

People have mentioned the Jaguars because there's a relationship with Urban Meyer and they'll have a rookie and it could be like a, you know, he can go play. I think it does make sense. And I mean, even Alex Smith, you know, because he's one of the better guys out there too, said, look, I know that I, what happened last year in Washington totally upended their process of looking for like a long-term quarterback. So I think if you're a Washington fan, this was the desired result. You don't go back into next season with that same situation.

You've got Taylor Heineke, and you've got to draft someone if you're not going to make a trade for someone of name, of note. Smith had a very, like, honest interview with Esquire, you know, he said they kind of messed, he messed up their plans. Right. And this, it made me annoyed with the whole like sports blogosphere. And, you know, we were part of it too. I worked at PFT, it was part of, you know. And I see what you're doing with the headline, like Alex Smith, colon, like I messed up Washington's plans. But it's like, that's not, like, we want our athletes to be honest in an interview.

Like, and you knew exactly what it was saying. It was interesting hearing it from him, that they basically thought he wasn't ever going to make it back and that they were going to get some of the cap space for him last year and not have to pay him all this guaranteed money. It's like, well, of course they thought that. Like, it was a crazy comeback. And the only reason he even ended up on the field is because Kyle Allen and Dwayne Haskins either stunker got hurt. You know, that was why he got on the field. I was just, I was actually impressed with how he played.

I thought he absolutely deserves a job. Now, I'm not saying he's like a top 40 quarterback, but he's like a backup type. And like those guys like him who are so good with young quarterbacks, they last till they're like 38 or 39. Like, so I think he does deserve a roster spot somewhere. If you're a coach, if you're a coach, think how much it would mean to have Alex Smith on your team. If you're not leaning on him to be your starter, I mean, sometimes the quarterback rooms are decided by the veterans that are in there helping the younger starters to see things that they never would otherwise.

It's like Alex Smith rips to Ron Rivera. No, I mean, it wasn't. And while you could connect the dots, and that's how this stuff goes often in our league. and you can say, okay, send him to Jacksonville as the backup. I don't know about Alex Smith. He's not playing if Trevor Lawrence is healthy. He'll never get on the field unless something terrible happens. I don't think he's going to have a chance to really compete for a starting.

If that's the only thing he wants, maybe he will retire. Yeah, maybe he'll retire. Here's the second part of this. Because I think he would have value as a backup. I wonder if he's looking at some of these jobs where if I have a path to get on the field, like Ryan Fitzpatrick in Miami last year, Fitzpatrick's a free agent. Pittsburgh with Big Ben there now. Like maybe you go in there and you're the, in case of emergency guy there.

Yeah, it is. And how about the Eagles? You know, you go in there behind Jalen Hertz. If Jalen Hertz doesn't progress, all of a sudden, you're on the field again as the starter. I would think that he's probably unless he wants to be a backup the rest of his career, would want to maybe go on a team where he had a chance to play. I'm with you.

I just think it'll be a hard market for, you know, I go on one hand to saying I was impressed how well he played. played, you know, relatively, and they won a lot of games with him. But when you look at the free agent market, I don't even think he's going to crack my top 101. There's some pretty good backups out there. You know, James, if you consider him a backup, whatever Cam is, Fitzpatrick, Tyrod, to me, I would take over Alex Smith at this point, probably.

What about the quarterback that you have at 101? Oh, yeah. Let's wait, but stick a pin in it. Stick a pin in it. We're getting there. Big reveal. We're getting there. We're getting there.

All right. In other news, Peter King. read it during the off season. I read it during the season too. But his Monday morning quarterback column had a nugget in it that a 17 game NFL regular season is, quote, highly likely this year, one by week. So it wouldn't be two by weeks. The playoffs, everything gets bumped back a week. So the Super Bowl hypothetically, which is played here in Los Angeles in 2022,

it'll be February 13th of February 6th. You ask me, all this is inevitable and there's no sense fighting it. Although, Mark, I'd love to hear your thoughts on this. I would say if you're going to really start moving around the schedule in February is a dead sports month, you might as well just back it up and connect it with the weekend after, which is President's Day weekend. And then do what we should have had in this country for the last 40 years that the day after the Super Bowl is a holiday where you don't have school and work for many people. And all of a sudden Sunday becomes this big party where you don't.

to get up in the morning for work and school. That would be my only tweak, but I also don't need, Mark, I tell you this. I don't need another extra week in the season and another extra bye week. It already is very long for folks like us. Think of us. Yeah, I don't know. I don't know if, like, for some of these teams, when you get into, you know, post-November where, yes, these certain champions are being forged, but other teams are like wandering

in total darkness. There's just a, I could think of a number of teams. every year where it's like I don't it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a it's a joy to watch them at this point and I in in their journey needs to end sooner not a lot later um but like I will say this that it was inevitable it's not a surprise at all and based on what King reported looking at what that um extra game would be it's a FC versus NFC with a different division than you'd face that that that year so next year they already have like the AFC north will be battling on that 18th 17th game against the NFC West and it creates some really

spicy extra matchups. So that's a positive. They talked about... Who the Browns got? Cleveland, based on what I'm looking at here, would play Arizona. So here comes JJ Watt into Cleveland, and to find out which one of those two teams were the real Super Bowl contender. But then they're talking about, you know, the wildcard weekend, which was, you know,

there was a lot going on a wildcard weekend with so many matchups. But one of them would be moved to Monday night potentially. So, you know, they are going to continue to put... You put as much football as they can. Well, but, you know... Winning playoff to you on a short week. But the other... Here's the flip side to that.

The team that plays that Monday night would have an extra day or two of rest coming out of a really long regular season. So King was suggesting that a lot of coaches would like that. But you're right. That's, it's new territory. So on the other's end of it, you're getting that extra day. Okay.

All right. I mean, this is... Or you're getting an entire off season, depending on who loses. We've been doing this too long, and this is very inside. football or whatever. But my first reaction is seeing this story take

off was like Ian being like we've known this for a long time. Why is he getting all the credit for breaking this? You know, like because we I guess we kind of had but he was just like putting the box around. It's something I feel like we've forgotten that this has been coming

and Goodell has kind of mentioned it. But here it is. It does show the power of the NFL that like all these TV deals are getting signed after the pandemic with no problem like doubling the money and rising the money in the 17th week

I like the President's Day idea Dan that's a really good idea but I don't want yeah even one extra week seems like a lot right now I mean that it they're playing with fire I know it'll be fine but I am one that believes 16 is a lot to ask it's just different than other sports

you know it's why the players have had issues when you just think about the state that these teams are in, like Mark said, it's just a lot to ask on the body to make these guys play anymore. It's just, it's not like baseball or whatever. We can just throw extra games here or there. Right. In the NBA, it's like there's all these discussions and you know that I have my takes about the length of regular seasons in other sports, but it's like let's go through it again, though. Well, no, let's rest LeBron for like 10 games in a row because because, guess what the regular season? Hey, he's played every game this year. Well, I know that.

It's just utterly meaningless, but football isn't that way, and you can't do that. But one little thing that will annoy me a lot, visually, and in terms of just the way I think about teams, we will never have an eight-and-eight team again. I think that eight-and-eight sometimes perfectly describes what a team is, and there are no 500 records, and less what they'll probably do is turn it into 18 games a few years from now, and we've got nine-and-nine teams, which also sits poorly with me. It would change Jason Garrett's whole legacy. Like 8 and 8 was a thing for a long time.

An odd number. An odd number is weird. But if you want to look at it half glass full, and coaches will love this. It's like, at the end of the season, you're either above 500 or you're below. Which side do you pick? They're going to get a lot of miles out of that.

Well, you're right about that. All right. And by the way, just looking at the, not the NFL calendar, the straight up, Earth calendar. Be aware. that Christmas this year falls on a Saturday. Oh, I saw this too.

There will likely be two games on Saturday. So just keep that in mind because I know we have young children and families and lives. And then, and this speaks, Mark, you and I have been doing this a long time at NFL media. Greg, I think you might have even been here the last time it happened. 2022 Sunday falls on Christmas Day. So what are they going to do? Just a full slate of Saturday games? I think that's what they do last.

That's what they did last time. Yeah. No, I was there. I think that would have been 2015. Well, I think it happened two years in a row for us, didn't it? Well, because one they moved it to Saturday, and then one they have to move a back. You're right. We're in a bad little, a little couple of years here.

We had a nice little run there where the holidays are falling in the beginning of the week. Now it's bang time. So just buckle up. One last little thing. I hope all this, you know, we're kicking everything into overdrive here with the schedule. Are we still going to make one team play five preseason games? if that part if that isn't corrected to some degree they're moving it back at least one game right they're chopping one game off but I think can we come out having learned anything

from this past season though and I'm talking about OTAs all this business can we be a little bit less frenetic okay preseason I mean I think OTAs in the offseason program are important maybe we don't need to be so you know like slaves to the coverage of it as much but I think that, especially for the younger players, preseason, I'm with you. How about this two preseason games? Case closed. That's funny.

Okay. All right. Deshaun Watson, you know, we touched on it briefly on our last show that the Texans seemed so behind the times right now and not understanding really anything, having any awareness of what's happening in their building, outside their building. Rapsheet reported last week that no one believes. leaves. Deshaun Watson will be traded. And PFT wrote something this week that Watson would lose over 20 million if he sits out the season and this idea, Greg, that the Texans, yes, all these

teams are trying to figure out their 20, 20 plans and or 2021 plans and ostensibly so are the Texans. But at the same time, they're on their own timetable right now and they're not even answering the phone when Deshaun Watson calls come in. So the idea that this is, is going to maybe go past the draft, whether or not Watson comes or goes, and how does that impact landing spots and interest in a trade? They're probably going to end up, Greg, just screwing themselves on this. And they'll get value. Maybe that isn't at the same level if they would have just accepted it. Now, make the move ahead of this draft. This could end up backfiring on them. Well, I just think, like, what's the intent of putting this all out there?

And so, and not answering the phone, which is, which to me is really interesting, the The Panthers reporters said that, you know, like, that's how they're deciding to play. I mean, they know what they're doing. They know there's a chance that he might not be there. But their strategy is, we're not going to answer the phone. We're going to put out there that we got no timeline. We're digging in. So I take out of that that a trade is, you know, less likely to happen before free agency, you know, when we hear this about the deadlines.

I don't think it's impossible. I think if, like, the Panthers picked up the phone and, like, before Nick Casario could hang up there, like five first round picks or what I mean it's like I don't know I think they would they would listen but they're trying to drive the price up and it feels like the draft is more the flash point but I'm not ruling out that the draft could could be in play I think something that's like just you know poisonous and concerning if you're David Cully the head coach who walked into this bees nest and I understand wanting the opportunity and coaches have a mindset where you know we don't we don't dwell on the negative we're going to go in and

succeed and go around obstacles, but this is the biggest obstacle any team in the NFL has faced in a long time. And Watson has basically said to Cully when they talked, like, my issues aren't with you and they're not with Nick Casario. So those two making good with him has no impact on this decision. It's much deeper. It's with the owner. It's with the journey, the loss of trust. And here's the problem. Let's say they move on from Watson, and this will be for another day. But whether it's your drafting a rookie or bringing in another young quarterback, like these guys talk to each other. They all see what Deshaun Watson's gone through, what he is intending to do with his career. They're not going to be happy to be there either. It's a mess. That's what's

happening in the news. All right. Let's get to it. The top 101, Greg, where does this one stack up in terms of pure talent in the top 20 talent overall. Is this a good free agent class? A bad one in the middle somewhere? Where would you grade it? My instinct was it wasn't as good as the last couple. But then I went and looked back at these lists and man, there were some dark years like in 2013, 15 where it's like Jarus Bird is number one and it gets down pretty good. That's sort of what normally happens because I'm anticipating so many of. these top 20 players are going to get the franchise tag. So, you know, Dack, Alan Robinson, Leonard Williams, possibly, Justin Simmons, Chris Godwin,

so many, Taylor Moten, maybe Brandon Scherf, like so many of these guys, Goliday that are in the top 15, that you're like, oh, those would be cool, those will get tagged, and then it's not as spicy. But there's, there's good depth, I think, in the past rush, I think there's good depth that safety, it's not as many good wide receivers. I don't think, I think there's more quarterbacks that are available than usual, even though no one seems too excited about them. I mean, it's better than normal, like guys who could actually be competent. Who was that again?

You have the example. Gyrus Byrd. Oh, yeah. Gyrus. Of course. Bired. Our guy. All right.

So, with that said, good little setup there, Greg. I'm going to read off 1 through 10, just if you curious, and check out the whole thing at NFL.com slash. Top 101. Top 101. That's easy. You have DAC at one, Trent Williams at two, Alan Robeson three. Leonard Williams, look at you, buddy, all the way up at number four, Justin Simmons, five, Chris Godwin, six, JJ Watt seven, already off the board.

So we're down to a top 100 in a way, almost to the point where it happened so close to the published, Greg, that maybe Watt comes out and then you give it a true one-on-one vibe again. But then again, you're taking out some major name brand appeal there. I understand it. That's not up to me. but yeah once these guys get tagged they're going to get taken out so you have to write up some extra ones there's going to be cut guys added in this is a living breathing document well i would imagine that this the watt news development maybe even shook up some some art attached with it if they were to publish it certain ways that probably caused all sorts of chaos for the people behind

the scenes shack barrett much to marks her grin up at number eight aaron jones uh the running back nine and taylor moton um number 10 okay so Let's have some fun with this. First of all, let's get Ricky involved. At some point, Ricky, I want you to jump in and we'll do a random pick generator. And you're going to throw a number out there and then we're going to talk about whoever that is. You want to do as an example, do one right off the bat? Sure.

Okay. Let's see. Hold on. Are we going to like spin a wheel or anything? Yeah, I'm going to pull up for Google. Uh-oh. Let's see. Let's check out our search.

history here yeah oh my god Ricky you gotta use incognito Ricky got to use incognito Ricky you got to use inconguze all right number 12 okay right off the top bud dupre that's a good one all right so you got bud dupre the edge rusher uh with the steelers age 28 blew out his ACL which was a major bummer and step back for the steelers I like that one I like the generator Greg right off the bat going with some intrigue I like him as a kind of a tough decision whether to go all in on a guy like him. I do too because I think it gets at

what, to me, was the hardest part of ranking this class and the best part of this class which are the pass rushers. And I kept resorting how, you know, and Dupree was lower for a while. And then I thought, you know, E.C.Ls aren't as big a deal as they used to be and it's more of like a

three year deal. And he's, you know, really diverse in terms of his skill set. And so there's a whole bunch of guys. And I talked, you know, Shaq Barrett, Watts now off the board, but Shaq Barrett, Dupree, Carl Lawson, who I really like from Cincinnati, In Gacquay is out there. Matthew Judon is out there. How is the market going to value all these guys? They're all pretty good pass rushers. I ultimately put Dupree pretty high despite the torn ACL because Trey Hendrickson is another guy from New Orleans. Ooh, I like him. Dupree ended up going up above all those guys because I just, I know. I think I know what I'm getting with him even coming off an injury. I think he's a little more complete than the rest of those guys.

I just want to get this out of the way because, you know, if Wes was involved with the list this year, he'd definitely be lower by virtue of the averaging of the numbers. I cannot believe you have James Winston at 23 on this list. I mean, that is, it's almost like you're punking the audience here, Greg. your write-up reads it will take the right coach but Winston can improve a handful of starting quarterback situations don't be surprised if that happens to neurons first of all I'd like to know which which situations he's improving and Mark mentioned earlier 101 101 is is Mitch

Trubisky and I am not a Mitch Trubisky fan but can you honestly tell me that these men should be separated by 75 plus spots or you've been drinking this Winston juice for so long And now on top of you digging in your hills back with West during the times of Marriota Winston back at draft time. Now he's got that New Orleans Saints like slickness on him and you love that too. Like why, how in the hell is James Winston a top 25 free agent based on the tape he's put out there in his entire NFL career? Come on now. I did put in the intro how I heard Wes's voice often while doing these. And, you know, one of it was like, you got to be.

You can me with James was, I mean, he would have put him at 75. And then I did bump up guys like Mike Hilton, who I know Wes loves, you know, for, but I look at quarterback differently here, where to me, if you have a chance to even be an average starting quarterback, you get a huge bump. I just think the position's worse so much that that's why Winston, Cam, Fitzpatrick's fairly high in the top 40. but Winston is the one out of all of those that I think has a real chance to have a good second part of his career. I know you're burying him, but it's like imagine if like Sam Darnold

had a third of the stats that James Winston did in his first three years. Like he is produced and here are the teams he could upgrade as a starter. The Patriots, the Saints. I'd have to keep going through to find some more. I mean, but I think he could be a starter and he's my favorite of all the free agent quarterbacks.

Him with Sean Payton, though, I would be intrigued. I would be intrigued to see what that could be. And I'm with you that, like, for me, if I were, if, like, you know, 85 people quit NFL.com and they had me do this list, I would probably also put quarterbacks just much higher than other positions. But that does beg the question, and I couldn't be more down on Mitch Trubisky, sitting them down at 101. I mean, it's also kind of an intriguing number just to put it.

a quarterback at. We've done it in the past. I know you have with Gino Smith and others, but I mean, he's being a little devalued then at 101 because he could be a starter in certain situations depending on what happens. I can't believe I'm defending Mitch Trebiske. You guys know this, but if there's any new listeners, 101 is a special honor that we usually spent more time kind of debating who's going to be the 101 this year. It's got to have some pop. It actually it doesn't even make sense because as guys come on and off the list with franchise tags and cuts and whatever, we still

leave the anchor at 101. Like Trubisky really would be moving up for a while. But he just felt he felt good. That's my evaluation that I don't think he... And you project. I don't think he's good. I think he's just an okay backup with limited

upside. I have him lower than Tyrod, for instance. And I get it, Greg. I mean, it's part of this and it's why you're being paid is to project and you see James Winston at some time becoming because yes I'm sure he put up numbers that you could look back and say oh these pretty good numbers but he just never there's a reason Tampa Bay got rid of him and he barely saw the field last year of course and like for instance you have Andy Dalton he might be a little high down at 48 I mean and I'm not saying

Andy Dalton is anyone's like an example of a star quarterback of this stage but like who would I rather have as my backup or a fringe starter? I would take Andy. Even Ryan Fitzpatrick, who you have, which I was pleasantly surprised, you have him higher than I would have expected at 30. It just, to me, again, points out, like, what has James Winston done in his career? I mean, the same time Ren's Patrick's never been to the playoffs, but he's very clearly above your Dalton line then, Greg. James Winston. Well, he's above Dalton. It's a good question. Like these are all these quarterbacks, and I'm throwing Cam in there who I haven't totally given up on either, that I would put below the Dalton scale, actually, in terms of are they a franchise guy right now? Are they better than average? But I think you could like survive. James is 27. That's part of it, is I do think there's a chance here he can have a pretty good second back half of his career. It's like, think of Fitzpatrick at 27. I do think that there's a route here where he is a, a mid-level starting quarterback.

And I guess it depends on how much you value that. Like, is that more than, do you want that more than Romeo Aquara on these rankings? Like, I don't know. There's no right answer. You have Jake, you on that. You have Jake Brisket at 63. I feel like in the 60s would have been my spot for James Winston. But that's, it's over.

Let's, I want to throw a couple out there. Why don't we do the generator again? Yeah, let's hit the generator again. See what's going on. That's like Mark has to talk about him. All right. 81, I'm sure I'll have no end to the comments. Alden Smith, edge rusher, most recently with the Cowboys.

He was a big comeback story. Is that somebody you want on your team, Mark, if you're looking for some pass rush? I know what the Cowboys were trying, like they were trying to do what I think another team could do. It's like you add them to what they thought would be a spicy defense. I think it's just hard to evaluate almost anyone from that Cowboys defense last year because they were so disorganized. I mean, there were complaints about the coordinator right away. Alden Smith, I thought, had moments where you saw it.

And, I mean, this is still one of the most mesmerizing, edge-rushing athletes and just physical presences that I can recall, like, covering in the NFL. He was so incredibly ferocious with the Niners and created such havoc. For him to go away and go through all he did and come back and look at times really productive for the Cowboys. I would take a shot. I also think that part of free agency this time around is going to be trying to get guys on lower money, shorter term deals that might have a little upside. And this someone, you have to, it's going to have to be the right environment, the right coach, the right situation.

But why not? You could add a little pop to a team. I mean, I don't think it's just, you know, the teams are going to be more capstrap. I kind of like the idea of him going somewhere and contributing. Could have been a comeback player of the year in a normal year, potentially. But he faded hard down the stretch. That was why he got buried a little bit in these rankings. I want to share some buyer bewares when I looked at your list.

So maybe I disagree a little bit with the placement, but not even so much about where you have the place, but just thoughts about where these guys are going forward. You have Corey Davis. He's ranked number 32, you know, once by the time, a first round bust. And then he finally broke out this past season. and had almost 1,000 yards and 14 games.

I do have concerns, Greg, that a team looks at that fifth season and says, okay, that's the guy that the Titans thought they were getting. And then you move them out of a situation where you have the 2,000-yard rusher and Derek Henry and A.J. Brown, the monster wide receiver on the outside, and you put him into a situation where it's not so, and a really fine quarterback in Ryan Tannhill. If you don't put him into a situation where he's just a piece of the puzzle, like that could go sideways yeah i'm with you i thought that was having him fairly low like guys like

curtis samuel and juju and are ahead of him he uh he would have been a fifth year option type and they didn't they like declined it to me that's that's a red flag like they i know he had a nice year but they valued him so little a year ago that you didn't even give him that option which is its own conversation they've done that back-to-back years with conklin and corey davis and i don't know if that's really paid off for them, but I'm with you. I would be a little worried about him just because he's like young coming off a good season. Doesn't mean he's worth huge money. Their offense, too, seems like it clicks because all those parts fit together so well. And like I'm with you that if he goes somewhere else and it's just an add-on, like I would much

prefer like Curtis Samuel, for instance. I think he could kind of do it all for anyone. They got a lot out of him last year. Like you had, I believe, at number 100, my boy, Bresad Perriman, another example. like, if you're going to go get Barryman, don't do what the Jets did last year, which is hope he's going to be your big deep threat on the outside and really need a big presence. You got to kind of slot him in the way he was in Tampa, his last season there, where he's just a piece of the puzzle, and then he could give you things. It's about what you're asking for certain guys.

Richard Sherman at 59, more like an age thing that you could get sucked into the name brand side of things, and I don't know what you're going to, how many 33-year-old cornerbacks play the game at a high level? he's a legend or maybe not a legend but a hall of famer most likely um that one's on my radar Antonio brown at 64 I think you kind of wrote about it Greg but I don't like him anywhere but under you know Tom Brady's thumb and having that situation under control um Hassan reddick he's interesting we talked about him earlier with um with the news of j j wott I would like son and Greg maybe I'd be interested in your insight on this one because he had that uh historic

level game last November or December, whatever it was, that spiked his numbers, but is he a guy that, oh, I'm a team desperate for a pass rush? Is Reddick going to be actually the guy you want? Or was that a bit of an inflated situation, a guy that hadn't done a ton in his first few years? Right. Another guy that could have been a fifth year option and they didn't even put like he was on my potential cuts list going into last season. Like that's how much he transformed his career. I always am wary of those guys. guys that just have you got to look at the last four years not just like the one year like where they suddenly pop sometimes it sticks though you know sometimes it sticks and they change their

career but i i would be wary he reminds me a little bit of he's not you know nearly the player but d ford a few years ago where kind of popped up and had one good year after having a lot of hype and that has not worked out for the four times well a friend of the show jason zumwald who is a cardinal super fan also felt like reddick last year was used correctly for the first time. And with Jones out of the lineup, we kind of saw what he could do. But you're right.

And it kind of, if I could throw one buyer beware in there too, someone like Matt Judon, for instance, I just am weary of Ravens guys. And it sort of is the Paul Kruger type thing that happened where he was massively overpaid, went to Cleveland, and never really was the same guy that like,

is this because of the Ravens with some of these players or is it because they could go do that anywhere? And they're a defense that, they're big free agents that come out of there. I'm always a little bit suspect of. McPhee was another one. Zadaria Smith is kind of the one exception, but I'm totally with you.

He is a guy, Judon, I think, has a lot of respect as, like, try-hard guy, lunch pail guy. He's going to do all this. You want him on your team, but is he like some, like, awesome edge rusher outside of Baltimore? I don't know.

Nobody's even using, like, children don't even know what lunch pails are at this point. My kids, they bring in, They bring in school lunch You're right, it's not I think my son had a pay He had a panel

I should introduce my children To lunch boxes It's not a thing in our house I'll speak only for my children then Ricky hit the generator 96 Okay we're in the deep reaches Of the top 101

And that will be Dan Arnold The tight end out of Arizona Five minutes on Dan Arnold, Dan I really don't have much to say at all on Dan Arnold. It looks like neither did you, because you just have basically his weight. He's a good player. He's good at catching. Yeah, he made some big plays for them.

I think he could get him at a good value and he'd exceed what you might be guessing. I mean, it was like that deadline. No, I like to. First of all, Dan Arnold is Kevin Arnold's dad on the Wonder Year, so that's something. Well, that's worth extra money right there. But here he's, he's, the one point I want to make on Dan Arnold would be is, you know, he's only 220 pounds. If you're 220 pounds, just like be a tight end, call yourself a tight end. And suddenly you're like one of the most athletic pass catching tight ends in the league.

I don't know why he's a tight end and not a wide receiver or what it is exactly because he is like unbelievably athletic. But it's like if then if he's a receiver, you wouldn't be that impressed. By the way, the actor that portrayed Kevin Arnold's father was Dan Lauria. and his name on the show was John or Jack Arnold. Well, you can see where I can see. Absolutely, absolutely. All right, generate me. 28.

Okay, this is better. Let's get into the top 30 again. Number 28, it falls on. Hunter Henry, another tight end. Okay. You know, I think you had this one hit well, Greg, that he's a guy that's battled a lot of injuries, obviously and that's something to keep in mind but he's still just 26 and who knows maybe his best

football is ahead and he becomes the guy that the Chargers thought he was at a college which is like a true star guy that would take the crown from Antonio Gates and just pile up 1,000 yard seasons. Maybe he's not that guy but if he stays healthy he's a perfectly serviceable 600 to 750 yard guy with a handful of touchdowns and teams will take that. Yeah, I think of those games where he helped win him at the end with Herbert and Rivers over the last few years. How many of those, like, game-winning drives they had where it included a 20-yard shot up the seam to Henry. They might tag him the second straight year. He would be, like, the second highest-paid tight end in the league.

It gets into a weird situation, but it's possible. I like him and Johnny Smith. I put Johnny Smith one spot ahead of Henry, but both those guys are pretty good tight ends to be available. I have to also say, like, because of the injuries and some, you know, changes all on a team, It's like tight ends, it's not unusual that they really start to find their way in year three or four. And he hasn't really had like these consistent starts. So I think he'd be a good signing. But I'd like to see him stay with the Chargers and not pull weapons away from Justin Herbert.

I know. I'm worried about Herbert. The whole, like, you just hired Joe Lombardi to be their offensive coordinator. I feel like has been under the radar and is concerning. Austin Hooper, who was a big tight end signing last year in Free Agency at the Browns, got four for 42. So I wonder if that's kind of... And I don't think he...

I don't think that he did what they thought he would. So you've got to be careful what you're paying some of these guys. Hit the generator again, Rick. Make a play, Hooper. He finally made a play right at the end of this season. All right. Let's move down to spot 24. Curtis Samuel, a wide receiver.

I like this one, Greg. You summed it up well in your blurb. Speaking of things, we miss with Wes, we used to play the game where we would guess Mark and I who wrote which blurb and it was so obvious very obvious but the best were when west would kind of drift off and get a little more philosophical about something and the blurb would just be like whoa where did this come from none of those but if you want to read some of the older 101s the blurbs were a thing a piece of art itself not to take anything away from your blurbs Greg which are very good as well no they were you know those like one-law liners on Dan Arnold at like 8 p.m. on a Friday. I'm thinking, what the fuck am I doing here? You're a master of brevity, though. I will say that's a very tough skill in writing. And you find a way to say something in one or two sentences that throws a punch. Maybe that's the old

editor. I do try to go back and take out a lot on the edit. See how we built him back up there, Mark? Yeah, thank you. Thank you. I mean, it's not great. I'm not taking any big. But I do try to knock out a lot of words on the edit. My favorite thing on the 101 write-ups, though, were when Wes, especially in the early years, completely disagreed with my ranking, and then even when it averaged out, and then Hugh got assigned that guy. And it'd be like, you know, let's say it was James, let's say he got to sign James Winston. It was score settling time.

He would just bury it. It would make no sense. It'd be like, number one player, Genevian County. This guy is an atrocity. He did a little with Brady last year, Brady and Breeze, he thought were way too high, and he just kind of, like, buried them anyways. These old guys can barely get out of bed. It was like, come up.

Curtis Samuel at 25, though, what I was getting at was that your blurb points out that he's a perfect type of receiver for a lot of the way football is played on offense right now. He's awesome. It just goes to show how much a coach can change your value, because now you see all the different things that he could do under. Matt Rule. And I always was so excited when they would give him carries. He was such a good running back. He was a good inside running back. It really showed a skill set that was unique. You don't want to do it too much. He's 195, 200 pounds. But he had this weird mix, kind of like Antonio Gibson

with Washington, although he's obviously not as much of a running back, where he's like your speed guy on end rounds, but also can be like a power runner who breaks tackles. I don't know. They just didn't used to have players like that. It's pretty cool. I mean, I think it helped and have Christian McCaffrey out of the mix, and you saw more what he could do. And I think it gets paid well because you could see him fitting with so many different teams. To your point, Dan, that he just fits what offense is today. And I think, if anything, you'd have to thank Matt Ruhl and friends for really showcasing him last season. He'll get huge money. I'm totally with you. All right. I had some value buys here, so I'm going to

throw a few out there. You have T. Y. Hilton at 47. We saw what he did at the end of the season. It has to go to the right location, right team, if he doesn't stay in Indy. But I like the idea of him have another year in the tank. I mentioned Dalton at 48. I think he's a great backup, a fringe starter guy. Chris Carson, the running back at 53. Nelson Aguilar, you have at 56.

And Marvin Jones at 57, two veteran receivers. Aguilar finally broke out. I think both those guys are far better options than Sammy Watkins, who you have at 60. and then two guys coming off Achilles with Indy that I would think would be well worth a flyer Marlon Mack at 84 and Malik Hooker at 92. I think any of those guys,

if things fall the right way, you might get nice production at a deflated cost. Yeah, I always think injured guys are an undervalued part of the market. Like so many of the best value deals over the years like Jason Verrett last year, granted the 49ers had to do it a couple times to get it to pop but are just guys coming off injuries that end up being like great players but their value i like i like marlin mac i'm with you there

isn't that short-sighted i mean shouldn't front offices have that same view it's like we only forget we only really remember what people have done so recently that the injury kind of takes so much money away from these guys yeah like the one year to like sammy walkins is a guy that at this point it's been so often that it makes sense you're gonna he's going to get discounted But even he, like, Sammy Watkins is the ultimate, like, he's how old? How is he only 27 or 8 still? It's like it's, it doesn't make any sense. Well, it's finally, yeah, I don't know, he still is 27.

He's been 27 for seven years. But he is final, now that he's 28 and he's back in free agency, I think he needs to now hand the crown over to Juju Smith-Schuster for, wait, this guy's still only 27? Like, Juju in three years will only be 27. It feels like he's been in the league for 15 years. So maybe he gets the crown. He's 24. Wow, that's true.

Yeah, I'll be interested in how he gets paid because he's like maybe not what people are looking for like a Curtis Samuel type. But he is, I think you shouldn't just sleep on like a good physical number two receiver. He should still do fine. Especially for the Steelers and you're bringing back Big Ben. He's perfect for Ben if you're serious about, you know, having some continuity. We're going to talk about a lunch pail guy. People get on. This is why it annoys me.

people get on juju for the social media stuff it's like if there's someone in the NFL that has the spirit of like hinds ward or these like these rugged like blocking gonna like take the hardest hit possible over the middle guy that you would think would you know people would like that toughness that's juju he sort of is a weirdly cast as this like you know flaky guy but that's how he plays football he's a study in contrast is what he was one more time with the generator and then we'll Generators, we're getting our money's worth from this thing. We paid like $7,000 for it. 67.

Mark, go. 67, Mark Sessler, Kwan Williams, the cornerback. You know what? Let it rip, baby. I think Kwan Williams, you know, another guy that's gone through so much with injuries, but was such a signature type Robert Salah guy last year who just they got the most out of him. You look at the Niners.

Jekwisky. Tart. It's Richard Sherman. Saul is gone. Kwan Williams has gone a lot of issues with, like, they're not to do, their defense is going to look and feel so much different. But Kwan Williams was an old Mike Patton dude in Cleveland, too. I think he's a good player.

It's just been durability, I think, you know, when he's not been available. But he played well for the Niners when he was on the deal last year. But why do you disagree with 67, because I know you do? No, because I think, first of all, and this is why I think that there's a real skill to the way that Greg and West did this list, is that to me, when you get past like 60, I kind of just see them all the same for the most part. It's like to me, like there's no difference between 67 and 77. So you're not, you know, I can manufacture a hot take.

How about put them at 61? On our list, Dan, I think we had him up at maybe 65, which is, you know, that shows that we think a little bit more about them. But we're keeping our list under wraps this time around. You know, no reason for controversy. I think that's a smart thing, right? now where we are as a podcast. But Mark, off the top of your head,

where should James Winston be on a top 101 free agent list? Maybe it's too high. You guys making me... I'd put him in the low 40s. But here's the thing. I'm completely with Greg that if you're going to sign up for a quarterback that's in the start 14 games and he's serviceable. He's good. He's much more valuable than almost anyone else

on this list. Maybe I'm the only one that remembers the game in London that we attended. James Winston when he had 17 turnovers. I think it's, if you put him with Sean Payton, I, that's the thing. If you put him, if you put him with, you know, Pat Schumer, no thank you. So it's like, I, to me, it's about where he lands. It's one of those things he started out, probably around 40, and then it's like, you do it again. You move, oh, I like James.

We need, move him up a little more. Oh, you move him up a little more. But now if, like, the file was due after this podcast, I would move him just back to 40. Just from your, just from your influence. Ricky, we need like a bell now. Whenever Mark gets in one of his Pat Shermer digs, we got to have just like a little bell that rings. It's like a ding!

Does anyone else not see a difference between Sean Payton and Pat Schumer? I think that... No, I think you nailed it. I'm just saying that you do find a way to bring that man up in a negative context very often on this program. That's all. Is he still the Broncos offensive coordinator, by the way? I think he is, right?

They never fire him. Because he ultimately, listen, the thing about him is like, I get it, Mark. Like, he was a bust in Cleveland, but you could have put, you know, a peak Lombardi in there at that time, and no head coach was going to come out of that alive. Well, it was more that there was, I believe it was Mike Lombardi, who wrote that he was getting phone calls sort of, you know,

unasked for from people saying that whenever we watch Pat Schermer's offense, we know what the play is before the snap. Consider the source there, but yeah. Well, I am, but I just, that stuck out to me. And when I'd watch them play, it was like, hmm, they do seem kind of milk toast and predictable. And I don't think that he's disproven that with the Giants or the Broncos. One of those guys, though, that when I saw him in person, I remember after the Vikings

lost in the NFC championship, more swole than you would expect, like, very in shape, and a good-looking guy in his 40s more than I really would have thought. You know, he kind of seemed like a forgettable guy, but he was pretty jacked. And I conveniently forgot the Vikings part of his career, which was spectacular. So consider the source on that front. It was like Kiski and him running around and like throwing like up in the air and seemed a little wild. Seemed a little wild. Yeah, he got, I mean, what did he?

He got a lot. He got a head coaching job out of it. So I don't feel too good. It doesn't matter. He went to the Giants and he got old man Eli and the first year of Daniel Jones. And the 2011 and 12 rounds like what is going on there? I think that's Mansell and maybe Josh McLean. No, no, it was it was Colt McCoy into Brandon Whedon where

Brandon's getting lost under a flag. That's all I'm saying. That's all I'm saying. Cut to my text before the show. I'm like, hey, wouldn't, yeah, if we have a 40-minute show, there's no crime in that. Cut to, you know, minute 72 where we've talked Pat Shermer for five streamers. That's why it's gotten to the point where I don't usually reply to those, not out of any, like, animosity or anything. I'm just like, okay.

Yeah, it's, if that ever happens, I will be happily stunned. Hey, hit us up on Twitter if you think the show is too long. We'll reconvene and re-strategize. Greg, good work, buddy. That is at all seriousness. That's a tough one as we go through this. And you guys are so linked on that top 101. So you did it alone as you had to.

And it's good stuff. So check it out, NFL.com slash top 101. next time you hear from us will be Thursday and we will have a special guest lined up so make sure you a former general manager in the NFL he actually was he's been on our show one other time if people really wanted to try to end to the show

yeah he was actually on our show when they were like redoing the podcast studio at our old office which we haven't seen in a year now so this particular person was, we were like almost in like a closet, a utility closet, and he couldn't have been more of a professional at that time. And it was also, it was a part of the studio, the television studio where we were doing it.

And I think it was about 25 degrees in there. I remember us complaining heavily because we were two or three shows in that room that it was untenable to conditions. This is where I really wonder, like, what has happened to me? I really don't remember this. I mean, I remember that studio. set up, but I don't remember this guest being us with us there, but I'm going to just trust you. I do. Yeah, I have some theories why the short-term memory is not there, but we'll get to that

in another show. All right. Yes, so we'll be back Thursday. This is Dan Hansa signing off for the old boss, The Quiet Storm, Ricky Hollywood behind the virtual glass. Until then, he the call. How about that? Thank you. I'm Marcus Grant. And I'm Michael Lev 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 Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. Hey, everybody, Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Six, we take you inside the game from breaking down college prospects and NFL rookies to evaluating team building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters.

We study the tape, talk to decision makers, and give you a perspective you won't find anywhere else. It's everything you need to understand the why behind what happens on Sunday. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Sticks podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast.