NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - The Most Interesting Teams Tiers with J.J. Jansen

Episode Date: July 8, 2026

Jourdan Rodrigue is joined by 19-year NFL veteran J.J. Jansen to reveal their totally subjective arrangement of the most interesting teams ahead of the 2026 season. These are interest tiers not rankings! NFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

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Send it their way, the quick way. Exchange rates apply. Download the app or visit Western Union.com and send money today. Welcome to NFL Daily, where one of the hosts today's preparation for NFL training camp is very, very different than the other hosts. I'm Jordan Rodrigue, filling in, of course, for the great Greg Rosenthal while he's on vacation. Joining me as co-host today is my friend, one of my favorite people to speak to in general and certainly on this show. A long snapper heading into, we recently found out, his 19. not 18th, 19th NFL season, host on Sirius XM and co-host of the JJ and Luke podcast. It's JJ Janssen.

Welcome back, JJ. I appreciate it. Thank you. I'm going to get full credit for every year at this point. Long snappers, they don't have a whole lot of stats. So years of service is definitely one of the most important ones that we've got. So we'll get full credit for that. But I'm so, this is going to be a blast. I'm so excited to be joining you. We've been friends for a long time. We love talking ball and just hanging out and all those things. One of the one of the beauties of beat reporters in the locker. And there's a lot of back and forth and all that. But you get to build relationships with the people covering you. And so yours is a friendship I've enjoyed for a long time. And we've already covered. You don't have many normie friends. JJ. You have a lot of athlete hall of famer type friends.

And I, I'm very honored that I'm one of your normie friends. So how else would we have been become normy friends without the beat writer player locker room situation? Basically, my friendship. groups revolve around pro athletes and parents that their kids go to my kids school. That's the phase of life that I'm currently in. And I always laugh. My oldest is 13. And when you have that conversation like, hey, you got to do well in school. You're probably not going to be a professional athlete. Like you have to do all that. When my dad gave me that talk, that made sense. I didn't know any professional athletes. My oldest son only knows professional athletes. So he thinks I'm crazy. So it's an interesting parenting dynamic trying to emphasize.

academics to kids that only know pro athletes hanging around their dad. Yeah. It's like that arrested development meme where it's like, well, it worked for those people. So it could work. It could work for me, right? Absolutely. He's he's full on board. All of my kids think they are going to be in pro sports, which would do nothing but

would make me feel really good. But it is, it's a little bit of an interesting dynamic around here. But we have lots of normie friends. We know doctors and lawyers and architects. I believe you. One of my best friends has a demo company. So it's all up and down the spectrum. So we got,

we got Normie friends. You're a normie friend, but that's a good thing. Yeah. Hey, JJ has lawyer and doctor friends guys. Oh, normal,

Normy friends. Yeah. I believe, I believe you there, JJ. It's like, like my lawyer friends are like real estate construction lawyers. Like it's,

it's kind of like the boring kind. Yeah. Okay. I was in accounting major. So I feel like I'm pretty comfortable saying there are certain jobs that just, There aren't that exciting. And those are the people I hang out with. So that's me.

I love that for you. I have a question for you before. We have a really exciting show coming up today. We're going to do quote unquote, most interesting team tiers, a completely subjective topic, by the way. So I'm just heading off at the past, all of the people who are going to be in our mentions

yelling at us for not putting their teams in certain tiers. I bet they won't even be able to differentiate between, like, the level of quality between the tiers. It's just what we think is most, interesting, right? So that's, we're going to get to that in a minute. And also we have some news. We're going to get to here in a moment. But as I was preparing for this show, I had this question. And every time I talk to you, I'm like, man, next time I talk to him, I should really ask JJ, this question. How does it make you feel that when you Google your name, one of the top results that comes up is, is JJ Jansen still on the Panthers?

I didn't know that that was a thing. That doesn't surprise me. So I do a, uh, a weekly spot here in Charlotte with Mac and Bone. You remember in WFNZ? They're great guys. And on the weekly spot, they do a segment of Ask JJ. Inevitably, everyone asks me how old I am.

This past week, you know, around July 4th was, was I there at the signing of the Declaration of Independence? So as a 40 year old NFL player, I might as well be as old as Benjamin Franklin. So I've gotten used to it. But that doesn't,

again, our stats are primarily longevity driven. So I take it as a term of endearment. Yeah, we could get into an entire other show of what advanced metrics could be used to quantify a talent among long snappers at the layperson. I can understand. I'm sure that is some sort of genius investor project that you'll have going once you finally do decide to retire. I hope you keep playing forever. I hope you're 90 out there just spinning it 15 yards back.

JJ, we'll start with the news. today before we get to our segment. It is like a couple serious topics. We've had a lot of sad news catch up this week earlier this week. Nick Shook and I hosted a show. If listeners haven't caught that yet, it was our kids in charge show. Greg is on vacation. So the kids are deciding, you know, who, you know, how the how the house party works here. But some sad news and then continuation of more sad news. Marshawn Neeland was posthumously diagnosed with CTE, the concussion in CTE, Foundation announced this week. The former Dallas Cowboys defensive end, of course, died by suicide last fall.

He was just 24 years old. The family has released a statement, while this diagnosis does not change the tragedy of his passing. It provides important context about some of the struggles he may have been facing. We continue to remember Marshawn with compassion for the person he was, rather than defining him by the final moments of his life, a really, really sad situation. our thoughts are with his family, of course. JJ, you're a current player.

You've been active with the NFLPA. I know you're active in discussions about, you know, how players could protect themselves, what this conversation is in locker rooms and outside of it. I just sort of want to get out of the way for you here. What is your reaction seeing this news? Well, yeah, it's a continuation of just sort of a sad story. I think that statement from their family is, it's beautiful, right?

you don't want anyone's life to be remembered in one moment or a tragic ending in any sort of way. So I think that's fantastic, just how they're able to memorialize him and such sweet and significant words. Look, we'd all be lying if we didn't think that football is a violent sport and there are certain risks that come with the game. One of the things that I commend the NFL and then all of the trickle down through college and high school and into Pop Warner is doing our very best to keep the essence. of the game, its physicality and toughness, while also taking away the unnecessary risks that are associated with head traumas and head-to-head contact of any sort of way.

And we certainly are well aware that head trauma concussions at all levels of sports and in all different kinds of sports are real and significant injuries, whether you're talking about soccer or baseball, basketball. Football, we have a lot of it. It's certainly not unique to our sport, though. and what I think I want to commend the NFL in and just football in general is, hey, look, how do we make our games safer that we can keep the essence of the physicality

and the toughness and, hey, the toughest guys are playing at the NFL level, but also make this really a game that boys and girls can play at young ages with the flag football movements and things of that sort without incurring the same sort of risk. So at the NFL level, look, we are all well aware of the risks. this information kind of come out. I don't want to say it's a surprise. It's certainly shocking and sad, but we know that these are part of the risks that come with the game

and everyone that plays does so willingly. And I think that's why you continue to see the league do everything it can to take out unnecessary head injuries. We've seen adjustments to the kickoff rules. We've seen adjustments in how defensive players are allowed to hit offensive players, protections of quarterbacks and things of that sort. The guardian caps and the improvement in the helmet.

know this is a significant and serious issue. And we're continuing to work towards it. And these are just reminders of the work is still there to be done. But we've made incredible improvements and need to continue to do so in the future. I think one of the things that really was surprising to me, not in a good or bad way, just came as a surprise to me is the duality by which NFL players do operate. And obviously, I'm someone who never played the game and certainly never played at a pro level. I think I would probably be like a right tackle, I would assume. But I feel like that duality of we carry this awareness with us, for the most part,

locker rooms are a range of humanity. I don't think people understand that enough. It is the widest range of human nature and opinion and perspective that you could find anywhere on the planet and it's all condensed into like, you know, 90 seats inside of a room, right? And there's a duality among a lot of NFL players, certainly veterans too, who are thinking about life after football and what that will look like of carrying that awareness with them while also committing fully to the game itself. And I know you've seen this and you also carry it with you, the complexity of what that really

means and sort of like the nuance of what that really means as a player. Yeah, it's a big boy sport and you have to handle a lot of different challenges, right? And I think we would be remiss if we didn't also talk about that there's a lot of mental health things that need to be handled inside of an NFL locker room. There's a tremendous amount of pressure on players. There's a tremendous sense of identity and being a player and when you are struggling, whether it's professionally or personally, and that identity is should. it can cause a lot of potential issues. And so I think that's where the league is really good

about adding to the players' docket, the ability to see healthcare professionals and things like that sort. But I would also say that one of the things that I hope that we can overtime continue to kind of get back to when I first got into the league, and this is a long time ago. So 2008, my mentor was John Casey.

So John played in the era pre-free agency. And in the era pre-free agency, mentoring was a really big deal because you were on a roster and without free agency, you would just stay on the same team basically until you retired

unless you got traded, which was pretty rare. So I got mentored by a guy that knew that as part of the culture. In today's sports landscape, people are constantly moving around. And one of the things that I think we all should be mindful of is sometimes that creates a very lonely feeling for athletes,

whether you're a college athlete, a high school, athlete, a pro athlete. And so guys need mentors, guys need people that they can confide in. And a lot of times, it is away from an NFL locker room. It is away from the building because as a player, you're supposed to put on like your best self when you walk through there. At the end of the day, we say this all time, like nobody cares what you feel like. Nobody cares how hurt you are. The expectation is go on the field and perform and perform it your best. But we're still human beings. And so guys need to find those mentors outside the building. And I, would just implore any veteran player or retired player. I'm a, you know, I'm a veteran player.

Like, go mentor guys because there is, there's the physical, there's the emotional, there's mental and there's a lot of stuff. And we're going to go to training camp in two or three weeks. And it's all going to be about football. And we've got to be able to manage that, right? Marshaun Lynch, you know, handle your mental as well as you can. And I think that's something that players have to care for other players as much as anyone because that's just the duality of our sport. tense. It's physical, but we're still human beings. Yeah, really well said, JJ. I think too, before we put a bow on this topic, the, um, the shortening of contract terms over time, the trends of three year deals, the, the trade market increasing the way that it has,

it exacerbates all of these things that you're talking about, that sense of never feeling settled, two feet, not firmly on the ground as much as you're putting in and committing to the building that you're in, that sort of constant rotation, certainly the change. turn at the at the bottom of the roster. The thing about football that you love and also it's very bittersweet, especially in conversations like this where a tragedy has occurred is every little piece connects to everything else. And that's the nature of the sport schematically. That's the nature of what it is inside these buildings. It's the nature of the infrastructure of the sport now. Every little piece of it does connect to everything else. And I think these really homegrown

and to your point localized efforts to try to just pay attention to the little detail. tales of people when they're around you and vice versa are so, so crucial in the sport. And it really will lead to, you know, healthy people and a healthy sport. Just a brief update. We have been updating as the situation has continued to unfold with Terry and Arnold. He is awaiting trial on charges related to kidnapping and robbery. He was released by the Lions last week. Just as a small point of update on this ongoing story, he was not claimed on waivers.

you would feel that that would be an obvious thing as this continues to, the situation continues to be litigated in court. But there has been some reporting by the insiders out there that a couple of teams expressed their interests in the corner. We'll keep you posted. Before we get to our segment, we're going to take a quick break. On the other side, we do have a really fun segment for you guys. Most interesting team tiers, a totally subjective arranging of NFL teams.

of the 2026 season. Tap, send, go. It's that easy to send money to G-Cash mobile wallets back in the Philippines. Open the Western Union app, and with just a few taps, your money is delivered quickly and reliably straight to their G-Cash wallet.

Oh, and you always get a $0 transfer fee on your first online send. Send it their way, the quick way. Exchange rates apply. Download the app or visit Western Union.com and send money today. Welcome back. That's my Greg impression. To NFL Daily, I'm here with J.J. Jansen.

One of my favorite people to talk to, also to have on the show. JJ, we are very cautiously optimistic about this new segment that we're unrolling. This is a perfect segment to do without Greg because it is completely subjective, not at all based on data. Although if you want to use data, you can't. You can do whatever the heck you want. You know I love data, but subjectivity is more fun. You have the angel on your shoulder and the demon on your shoulder at all times. I am talking to the angel on your shoulder right now of subjectivity.

So it's a combination of everything from vibes to rabbit hole topics to personal preferences. It's most interesting team tiers. So how this is going to work is I'm going to introduce each tier as we go. for the listener, there are five total tiers. JJ has been given these tiers in advance to sort the teams. We will discuss which teams we think should go into each tier. We'll either agree or argue our choices. Eric, I don't expect there to be any tiebreakers because that would just slow the show down,

but you will break any tiebreakers, Eric, behind the glass. I am the one you have to see in person every day, so that's not a threat. I'm just noting that. I just want that said. And just a reminder for the listener, for the love of God, this is not an argument about quality, win or loss predictions, whatever. They're not rankings. I can find a team like the Chiefs, who I think will be awesome this year.

Simply not that interesting. These are interest tiers. JJ, what say you? I am, first of all, I'm ready to go. Second of all, it's going to be really hard for me to not bring in analytics, but I am ready. You can if you want. You totally can if you want. I probably will.

I'm just giving you a heads up that I will probably have some sort of number in my head half the time. But I'll, I also, it took me a little bit because we've talked about this before. I'm not super pop cultural ready. And so I had to take, I had to do a little bit of Googling to make sure I was up to date on what all

these tears actually mean. So I am ready. I'm ready to go. But I'm just letting you know that, um, I'll probably beat you, but that's okay. I just wanted to clarify.

that. That's all to say. At the end of the day, as long as we know it is a competition, yes. And also, this is the show idea and concept and also organizational chart that would make Greg literally roll over and cease to be. So I feel like this is the perfect time for us to be doing this. Okay. This is all about content, baby. Yes. And subjectivity. We love that. There you go. You can't argue with, you can't argue with a moving target. There you go. So, okay. The first tier I'm calling Christopher Nolan movies. Okay. So these are teams of utmost interest, utmost complexity, or utmost confusion in a good way.

Who is your first team that you would put in tier one? To me, this is the easiest one. The New York Giants. I don't know. I don't know what's going on there, but I'm here for it. I love it. Cam Scataboo and Jackson Dart, my kids call the creatine cowboys. Those guys are nuts.

They are a lot of fun. They've got a nasty defense, a new head coach. We had a little OTA back and forth between the guys. And I just think it's going to be fascinating. And not to mention, I think this is the analytic in me. I think they got the most wins baked into that roster. They were not a four and five win team last year. I thought Brian Daibel actually did a pretty good job.

They lost a couple of close games. And then they get a new head coach, a new energy, a new vibe. but I'm a big Jackson Dart fan. I think he's going to be really good. Cam Scataboo will literally run through anything. And you know, you and I know I'm a big Brian Burns fan. So they've got good energy on both sides of the ball. I think that they're going to be must see TV for 17 weeks.

I, first of all, did not have the Giants anywhere in my tears on accident. So good for you that you put them in here. Second, I think their offensive line is going to be better than people expect. to be this year. They've done some reshuffling there. And obviously it's a, it's a big time Jim Harbaugh, or John Harbaugh, excuse me, puts his identity on their draft class, bringing in guys that are sort of his guys. Although are they? And what will they be really? And I think they're also a team that's going to load up in heavier personnel on offense. I do think that they could be a team of utmost complexity or utmost confusion, which is why I would probably agree with you that

They can be our first, the New York Giants can be our first team in tier one. The next team that I'm going to, the team that I'm going to nominate for tier one is the Chicago Bears. First of all, I just think they're the utmost interest team. I think that they were riding sky high by the end of the year. They had some real low probability moments, Caleb Williams, obviously the architect of those. And they were a past defense heavy attack on the other side of the. the ball, which led to sort of splash plays or things that you don't necessarily need or depend on a pass rush specifically to do. They really were built to defend the past type of

defense. So that can make fans really weary and worried. But then you'd get these very highlight real splash plays and make a difference plays. And then you'd also get Caleb Williams doing heroic things in the 11th hour. The utmost interest and confusion relating to their stadium is also a big topic for me and that entire saga continuing their off season. And most of all for me, I really want to know what Ben Johnson is going to roll out. I think that he is one of those guys that is a disruptor against the grain in the league where he's going to run things that you think you are familiar with, the personnel, the heavier personalities especially. But then he's going to roll some wrinkle into it or like some FU energy into it that like you just do not see coming.

I am so curious about this team. I would nominate the bears for a tier one team here. All right. So are we allowed to introduce some of the other tiers? Because I have a thought on the bears here. Can I explain what the other tiers are? Yes. Okay.

So tier four. Yeah, I don't know. Tier four is the Danny DeVito shaking his head. And the description is, become invested and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me. I cannot help myself. So the bears were my ear. original tier one team.

So they are last year's bears were what I think this year's giants are going to be. I feel like it's tier four, not the number, the Danny DeVito shaking his head because I agree with everything you just said. I think that the Caleb Williams show is a fireworks show. And he's going to be fantastic. And then he's going to be have a lot of what just happened. And I just think that the end of their season ends a little bit closer to. we were so close, but I'm left shaking my head.

I love Ben Johnson. I think Caleb Williams, we were talking about this on Sirius XM this week. Like the sacks are way down. The splash plays are up. I love watching him play. But I feel like he still got a little bit of that. I'm just going to do something wild and crazy.

And it's not going to work out. So I love it. It would have been my first one until I thought about Jackson Dart, but I probably keep it in the Danny DeVito. But I'm not going to argue with you. I just think there's a better spot for it. Well, the bears.

I am also way lower on Jackson Dart overall than you are. But that was, to me, the Giants are interesting enough without him. Interesting. That was the goal. Interesting. So, okay, if I'm going to give you bears in Tier 4, which we could compromise on, I could give you Bears in Tier 4. And again, Tier 4 is Danny DeVito shaking his head.

Dot Jif becoming invested and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me. And yet I cannot help myself. I think that's fair. I think that's a good place to put the bears. you then have to give me Raiders in Tier 1. Utmost interest. Utmost interest and confusion. This is Tenet, right?

This is not the Odyssey. It's kind of the Odyssey, honestly. This is not, you know, the Dark Night. This is, I don't know what the hell these guys are going to be, but I'm so interested in seeing what the hell these guys are going to be. Because I like the coach. I like Clint Kubiak. I like his system.

I think that they're doing the right thing in terms of not rushing Fernando Mendoza into QB1 stuff. I think that having the floor raising backup in Kirk Cousins is really, really solid. I don't really care if he's a mentor to Fernando Mendoza or not. It's helpful to have somebody who's seen that much football in your quarterback room as you're breaking down week-to-week game plan and game film. And I think this defense, I think defense is going to improve.

I thought they had a rockin off season. And I just think that the potential and the, variance for this team is so all over the map, but it trends positively that I am going to insist that they are in tier one. I have no argument with you. I thought there are 24 into 25 off season made no sense. I didn't understand the combination and it sort of played out that way. This combination of coach, quarterback and plan makes way more sense to me. They, coming out of 24, their offensive line was not particularly good. They didn't improve the offensive line and then drafted a running back in the top 10.

An awesome running back, but they didn't improve the offensive line. This year, they go out and get Tyler Lindenbaum. They spend a bunch of money in free agency. They obviously draft Mendoza first overall. And I'm with you. I love Clint Kubiak. I think it fits well with what a young quarterback can do. Run the ball.

Keep everything simpler as a young guy is learning and developing. I'm still a big Kirk Cousins fan. paying Kirk Cousins $10 million to play quarterback is way different than paying him 40. Yes. And so I think he's playing really good football. Great math. Yeah, the math is mathing over here. You know, as a Panther fan, when the Falcons sign Kirk Cousins and then draft Michael Pennix,

I'm like, this is great. They're using all their resources on one position and there's a lot of chaos. I'm a huge Kirk Cousins fan. He played really well down the stretch. So if he's playing for them, he'll be in a good spot. and he can certainly win games in the fourth quarter for you. He did it last year. He helped us out in a big win at Tampa.

So I'm with you. No argument for me on Christopher Nolan. And I get Chicago in my Dana-Divito category. So I'm win-win. I kind of love that it's that Chicago, the bears are in the Danny DeV. The more I think about it, the more I love it. Okay, I want your, we now need a third team in Tier 1.

If you have one, if you have another nomination for Tier 1. I'm putting the Buffalo Bills. Whoa. things changed for them very quickly. You know there's a lot of Carolina connections. I was a huge Sean McDermott fan still am, huge Brandon Bean fan, Joe Brady. All the Carolina guys are up there, DJ Moore.

I love so much of what they're doing, but they're in a position now where the stress is high, right? You have a future Hall of Fame quarterback, and you've now switched head coaches. You've given him the offensive coordinator as the head coach. and quietly and kind of without any real awareness, they went from running that division to the Patriots go to the Super Bowl and they've got a rookie quarterback

on a young deal and one of the very best head coaches in the league. So this is a big year for them. You can feel the pressure building up in Buffalo. But again, they got easily one of the top three players in the whole league. They got an offensive head coach now. And the pressure to win is now, but they've got the goods to go. So I think it's going to be great. I'll be fascinating to see how the dynamic changes going from Sean McDermott to Joe Brady,

defensive coach to offensive coach. How does that unlock Josh Allen? That'll be very interesting to me. But I'm a big Bill's fan, but my eyes are going to be on them all season. Yeah, I think this team gets tier one for complexity in terms of will they or won't they sort of energy. And the dynamic and sort of the tightrope act that they're going to have to walk the entire way through because the pressure is so intense up there with Josh Allen in his prime years. I really like Jim Leonard, the defensive coordinator.

I like some of the things that staff-wise that I think I was pleasantly surprised to see a coach as young as Joe Brady, be able to assemble a staff that has like really, really good reputation top to bottom across the league. Having some Sean Payton ties in there on offense, I think is really important. And then getting kind of like the defensive coordinator that a lot of people were trying to higher but just wasn't available for a few years. Um, I thought that was important too. So yeah, I agree with you here. I put them here.

I'm also going to put the Eagles in tier one. I feel like again, in terms of utmost interest and I think potential complexity, because is there a more like visibly complicated team in the NFL, like overtly audibly, visibly, uh, emotionally complicated team in the NFL? And, and it's a huge year for. Nick Siriani, you know, that building, they are not shy about making changes, maybe even before they need to make changes. Howie Roseman is the entire brand up there. And he has the utmost trust and buy-in from Jeffrey Lurie. This is a massive year for Jalen Hertz. I don't think that is a secret

at all. Sean Mannion is there now. So this is really the first time we're going to see an offshoot or a pollination of the, really the LaFleur branch of the Sean McVeigh, Kyle Shanahan's system, the LaFleur branch being, I think, a little bit even more tight end friendly before McVeigh became tight end friendly, pulling some of that old like Cubiac stuff, uh, blending in some of that Rogers stuff that he learned in his first like sort of very compromised couple of seasons, uh, working, working with Aaron Rogers there in, in Green Bay. And then Sean Manion, really I think is, is going to be a gift for, for the receivers and the passing game, especially in terms of just some of the layers that he wants to set up.

And you hear really good things about just some of the ideas and the receivers that are there now are talking about him. Obviously, a lot of change in that room with AJ Brown no longer there. And it's really going to be the first time we see one of these like very young pollinations of that system paired with the OG Vic Fangio. Like the OG knife in the heart defensive system, Vic Fangio. I love that. I'm so interested just as a geek.

I'm so interested in that. I'm fascinated by that. I think that the Eagles have among the highest or the largest variance in terms of what they could be versus what they might be. So that's very interesting to me as well. So yeah, I emphatically nominate them for the Christopher Nolan. I'm doing the passive aggressive mom thing right now. I'm like, well, if you want dessert after dinner, you can't have a cookie now, you know?

That's right. Yeah. At our house with our kids, it usually utter chaos just brings. breaks out and desserts happening before, after, and during dinner. I was struggling with where to put the Eagles because... Good, Tier 1. I'm not going to argue with you. I think the reason I struggled to emphatically put them into Tier 1 was I feel like so much

of the complexity revolved around A.J. Brown. Like, what is A.J. Brown and J.L.Hart's connection. How are they feeling about things? How does that relate to Nick Siriani? What's Big Dom's role in all of this? Like I think that added to a lot of the complexity. I think with with the trade and they get the first round pickback and a fifth rounder, I feel like things have settled a little bit.

I think there's some of the tension is gone, but you hit it right on the screw. Like it is a unique environment up in Philly. Like clearly one of the few places that the general manager is running the team. It makes it very well known. That is a unique environment. I've always thought that when the head coach runs the show and the GM's kind of the number two, that was the healthiest environment. Philly has been able to buck the trend.

Nick Siriani is a Super Bowl winning head coach, but everyone talks about Howie Roseman first and Nick Siriani second. So that's an element of complexity for them. And again, you said it right. It's a big year for Jalen Hertz. It was up and down last year. He certainly has all the talent around him that he's had, but that offensive line's getting a little bit older,

got a little more beat up. Things have changed there. And in the NFL, you are constantly having to evolve. and I think they saw a big jump, you know, in the Super Bowl years with Jalen Hertz. Now we're asking him to make another big jump in a division with Jane Daniels and Dak Prescott and Jackson Dart. So I couldn't really find a spot to put him. So I'm not going to argue with you there.

I think whenever Philadelphia is on the scene, they're going to be of interest. And I think this year it will be no different. So we've got the Giants, the Raiders, the Bills and the Eagles so far in Tier 1, teams of utmost interest, complexity, or confusion in a good way. Quickly, do you have other nominations here? You can throw a bunch at me at once. I'll do the same.

We got to fill out Tier 1 before we jump to Tier 2 here. All right. The last one that I was really feeling pretty good about was the Minnesota Vikings. Ooh. So here's my reasons for this. Obviously, we have a quarterback controversy. But that being said,

Kyler Murray, J.J. McCarthy. I think it's kind of interesting. They went 9 and 8 last year and basically had a dysfunctional quarterback room, just all of the things. And I'm not commenting on J.J. McCarthy or anyone else that played. It was just dysfunction. They go from Sam Darnold, who wins 14 games. He's leading Seattle to a Super Bowl.

And you're like, oh, man, the Vikings are a mess. And then you wake up and they're 9 and 8. And they had the 7th best record in the NFC. Obviously, they didn't make the playoffs, but they've got that. And that Brian Flores defense is nasty. They continue to be really good. I think Kevin O'Connell is one of the very best.

So to me, in a division that there's a lot of good football teams, but if Kyler Murray, I'm assuming he's going to win the job, if Kyler Murray at a million dollars can play good football with that defense and you have Justin Jefferson and you have Kevin O'Connell pulling the strings, I think they could get back to having a really good year. I think it's interesting. A guy like Kyler Murray, it's like, man, he's struggling. in Arizona. But the reality was he was like 10 games under 500. He was 38 and 48 as a starter

in Arizona in his seven years. Everybody else was 5 and 25. Arizona has really struggled. And the biggest criticism of Kyler Murray is he's not a great leader. When you show up to a new team, you're not being asked to be a leader. He just asked to play quarterback. And so I think that's going to be a really good fit. They've got a ton of good pieces. They got great coaching on both sides of the ball. and so I think there's going to be a complex element. Like Brian Flores has been running one of the very best defenses for the last three or four years and all the attention's over right now on the offense

and getting that fixed. If that works out, it's going to be really good. If not, does that turn into like the Baltimore Ravens of the 2000s where it's like the defense is unbelievable in their top three every year? If you just fix the offense, we win 14 games and we go to an NFC championship game. So I think that's where the complexity comes in.

And then, hey, the last piece of confusion. J.G. McCarthy top 10 pick. What is he? You spent a lot of. Quessie used a ton of draft capital. They've got to salvage it. There's a lot of layers to that. So I put the Vikings in tier one.

Wouldn't you potentially agree, though, that everything you just said belongs in the Danny DeVito, shaking his head, dot jiff category. Because now, listen, I know, I, you know, I have more Normie friends than you. Some of these are Vikings fans, okay? And I'm just telling you, The vibe and my colleague, Alec Lewis just did a great fan survey over at the athletic.

And the number one catchphrase that he saw was pessimistically optimistic. And so I think, for example, that becoming invested and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me. That is what I think about the 2026 Minnesota Vikings because JJ, I agree with you. I agree with you. I think Kyler Murray is going to be great with Kevin O'Connell. I love Brian Flores' defense. I also love the retaining Brian Flores and continuing to let him basically just hole up on one side of the building

and cook and bring these like master schematic advantages out of his players and collaborate. Like the total mad scientist, we rarely get to see that in the professional sport anymore. I absolutely love that. New GM, I really like Nolan Teasley. I just, I don't really know yet. First of all, how much weight he is going to carry in terms of that power infrastructure. Now, that might work for the better. As you said, I agree with you. I think a lot of

times works really well when the head coach is the dominant voice in that particular relationship. But I don't know if I can put my faith into this team without getting hurt because all that has happened over the last, oh, I don't know, 30 years. That's true. Is that I will only get hurt by this team. If you're looking at historical Vikings, you're right. That does feel like, I, I don't know. I'm I'm thinking 2026 Vikings, but I have is data. All I have is data, right? I bet you most Vikings fans are putting it in tier four. Vikings fans are putting in so how about, so how about you give me, you give me the viking. I gave you the bears. You give me the Vikings in tier four, Danny DeVito shaking his head. Dot Jif becoming invested

and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me. And yet I cannot help myself. Awful decision by Max Rosler. I'm going to throw two more. Or, well, I'm going to throw three teams at you. You can say yes, no. I'm not going to go into a ton of explanation for time. We're going to get to Tier 2 here in a second. I'm going to throw three more that I had as potential Tier 1 candidates. Now, you can just auto veto or auto agree with any of these, right?

I so bestow that power unto you. Thank you. Okay. I'm going to put the Detroit Lions in Tier 1. I think they're one of the most interesting stories in the NFL this year, bounce back year absolutely necessary entering DeraGov's primaries new coordinator and Drew Petsing who I absolutely love and think that again similar to Kyler just Arizona that funk just could not could not shake some of that funk defense has to get better

obviously they're dealing with some off the field personnel situations here pass rush has to get better this is a team where Dan Campbell literally said I had to burn myself to ash in order to, like quoting Nietzsche to, to, that's like a, you know, normie literature reference. I know Nietzsche. I went to Notre Dame. You went to a, you went to a, no, that was more in the Jesuit high school I went to. Oh, sure.

Brophy prep. Yeah. Shout out. Phoenix, Arizona. I would put the lions in this, in this category. And I'll just give you all three. I would put the chargers in the utmost interest category because Mike McDaniel, come on.

Mike McDaniel, getting these two tackles. back and that run game and the absolute sheer like size speed power. And then by the way, factor in the quarterback who is living his best life. And I always think you get a bump if you're living your best life as your as the quarterback. And then I also put the Cowboys here. I love what Clayton Adams does as the offensive coordinator. I think he is so underrated across the league. The Cowboys, Brian Schottenheimer did a really smart thing when he hired an offensive line oriented offensive coordinator knowing that he'd get maybe at least another year with this guy before he'd be getting head coaching traction because OL coaches never get the head coaching

traction. Christian Parker, to me, is going to be a home run higher. He is the number one Vic Fangio disciple here. He's the guy Vic Fangio tried to bring with him at every stop for several years. And I just, I really, really like the potential. We saw the defense come back together and play pretty well at the end of last season. I like the moves they made this off season. I like their passing game. I like their running game. I like their offensive line. I love their quarterback. So I'm going to put in terms of utmost interest

those three teams, I would propose as tier one teams. What say you? All right. So the Chargers are in. I'm with you. I'm all in on Mike McDaniel, Jim Harbaugh. I can't imagine the conversations that are happening. I feel like

was that Joey Molynero? I feel like all season long, going to be spoofs on the Harbaugh, Mike McDaniel conversations. I can only imagine how good that's going to be. So no argument from me on the chargers. I would put the lions down a tier in that second cup of coffee that we're going to get to in a second. I find them to be a really good team that's a little, that's a little boring, right?

And that's not a criticism. They've been able to be very consistent. Like, you know, where are we now? in 2026. The Detroit Lions are a consistent football team and they've done this for the last handful of years. They have a great culture. But to me, it's not particularly interesting. Ben Johnson was the one that I always thought was kind of the interesting factor in that whole place, the way the offense went. Certainly Dan Campbell is one of the top five head coaches in the NFL, the culture, the personality, the game management and decision making. But to me, I kind of know what the lions are.

There's no confusion for me of what they are. They're a really good team. It's probably going to win between 10 and 12 games and you're not going to want to play them. And so I put them there. The Cowboys is the one where I'm struggling because I feel like the Cowboys get a lot of national attention. We all know that. I don't just feel it. We know that.

But they're kind of, they're having a little bit more of a quieter season. And maybe that's just because they're not trading on my Iika Parsons this year. But it just feels like, you can only do that once, right? You can only do that once. And so I, I, that would be the one where, I'm willing to defer to you on that one.

Wait, can you just say that? I just want to hear you say that one. I'm willing to defer to you on that one. That's about as passive of an acceptance as you can possibly have. So that's like what we say to our kids. Like I'm willing to defer to the idea that you might want to stay up 30 minutes later to watch, uh, to watch one more, uh, dude perfect or something like that. So anyways, we'll put Dallas and we'll put the chargers in, but I'm going to bump, uh,

I'm going to bump the lions down. Okay. I could get behind that totally. So tier one, again, just to recap, tier one, we've got the giants, the raiders, the bills, the eagles, the chargers, and the cowboys. And we are going to take a quick break because we've got more tiers and we've also got to move. So we're going to take a quick break and then we're going to speed tier the rest of these. I am having a blast doing this so far with you. Thanks, JJ.

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Download the app or visit Western Union.com and send money today. Welcome back. Again, to remind the listener, we are doing the most interesting team tiers, a totally subjective arranging of NFL teams ahead of the 2026 season. And I am joined by the great JJ Jansen here as my co-host today.

JJ, we have tier one set. We have a couple of teams in other tiers for the listener so that we can get reorganized. I'm going to introduce what the rest of the tiers are. Now we know the tier four already is Danny DeVito shaking his head. Dot Jif. So we have a couple of teams in there.

already. Tier two, which we're going to get to next, is called second cup of coffee. And it is teams you need a little run up to. You need to talk about a little bit to get into the rhythm. Once you get there, you're feeling really, really interested in them. Yeah, actually, this is fantastic. I feel awesome. That's second cup of coffee energy. That's what tier two will be. The lions, as you have very well argued, are in this tier two. They're our first team of tier two. Tier three, is the Larry David shrugging.gif. You know, just, yeah, I guess I could get into this. I think I can talk myself into this.

We don't have any teams there yet, so just be aware that tier is available to you. Tier four, of course, Danny DeVito shaking his head. Dot Jif becoming invested and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me, and yet I cannot help myself. So far, we have the bears and the Vikings in that tier. And of course, tier five is Damon. something is way off here.

I crossed the street and avoid eye contact, even though they're smiling at me like really, really intensely. That's tier five. So know that those tiers are available to listeners if you have tier suggestions as well for teams in these categories. Would love to hear from you.

Again, you cannot argue with the moving target, but I would love to hear, would love to hear your tears. JJ, I would like actually from you. So we have the lions in tier two. I would like two teams that you would put into tier two.

Okay. So I think this is actually a cool combination. The two teams I'd put in are my Carolina Panthers and the Houston Texans. Both teams, a little bit different. Both teams have got a fourth year quarterback, you know, Bryce Young, number one overall, C.J. Stroud, number two overall. These are big years for these teams, but there's been some struggles. C.J. Stroud gets out early, first year, winning a ton of games, and was outstanding.

And then as we got closer to the end of year three, it was clunky in the playoffs. But that defense is nasty. They got DeNeil Hunter on one end, Will Anderson on the other. That's as good of a defense as there was in the NFL last year. If they can kind of fix Stroud and he can find, and he can find his pathway,

that team's going to be really, really good. But it doesn't come off the page as some sort of dynamic team, but then you watch, you know, three or four quarters of that defense plan, like, hey, they can win any single Sunday. On the other side, the Panthers, my Panthers, like we were eight and nine last year.

We win the division in sort of this clunky backdoorway with the Falcons beating the Saints, but Bryce Young really came on. We saw how well he played in the playoff game versus the Rams. He beat the Rams earlier in the year. Some fourth quarter comebacks have sort of been the trademark of his career, and it feels like he's a quarterback on the Ascension, Tedroa McMillian, offensive rookie of the year,

and the defense continues to get improved. Devon Lloyd and Jalen Phillips among amongst others. So those are the two teams I think they don't jump off the page as super interesting to start but as you start to think about what's to come in the 2026 season I think there are going to be two teams that are going to

kind of captivate the league just in terms of are they going up or they going down? Where are they in their in their path? Yeah, actually both my choices too. I had them in this tier because first of all, you know me. I love the Panthers. I think they're interesting, but you have to almost go beyond

surface level or beyond what they've been on paper in terms of win loss to actually understand like pop the hood and see what they're doing. And it is really, really interesting stuff that's happening over there in Carolina. And similar to the Texans, you know, they run their defense is the most badass defense in the NFL. And I don't expect them to regress a ton because of the talent, but also the simplicity by which they operate. They have a very specific set of rules for their defense. And they just have better dudes than everybody else. And they're just freaking good, right? And I think that improvements to the offensive line,

I don't buy it as much as I think there's like a national criticism of C.J. Stroud. I think that so much of what hurt him was his run game. I think you look at his explosive play rate, his downfield passing rate, his efficiency when he was able to

either work out of structure within the play, within the infrastructure of the offense, but then also when he was able to actually get into rhythm. And he, to me, did not take as far as step back, I think the last couple of games were outliers. And they think he will again bounce back to what we know him to be and what he really played like for most of the season last year, just totally hampered by one of the worst run games

in the NFL last season. They've taken steps to address that, obviously, bringing over David Montgomery. And then re-addressing their offensive line center is a position battle. They're still working through and will do so still through training camp. But like this is a team full of badasses. and they're interesting to me. And they're going to be interesting to me because I also had them picked

as a Super Bowl favorite last season. I'm interested enough still that I am going to do that again this season. I really buy high on them. Other two teams that I had in this category, what do you think about this? I had the Ravens in this category because when you think about what they've been through,

almost but not quite for so many years, you're like, okay, and then, you know, changeover and head coach, Jesse Minter's over there. Then you think about Jesse Minter, his scheme, what he's able to do and where their biggest issues were defensively last season and you think, okay, I could really get

into this. Then you think about like Declan Doyle who despite his name being Declan is like really, really getting like some rave reviews across the NFL and also by his players. Coaches I talk to are really high on him. Very, very interested to see what he's going to do. And oh yeah, they have Lamar

freaking Jackson on their team. The other team that I wanted to suggest for this tier are the Green Bay Packers because they're another team that's sort of just fallen short of expectations every season. And then you remember, oh, they didn't have Tucker Kraft. Oh, they didn't have Micah Parsons. Oh, their defensive coordinator now is Jonathan Gannon. And he's going to do some really interesting like odd front stuff and some interesting stuff with the coverage, which they really badly needed to address. Oh, you know, their offensive line, you know, not as good. as it has been in past years of that reputationaly for Green Bay.

But then you think, oh, yeah, they have freaking Jordan Love, who's capable of making some of the highest ceiling throws that we see in football. And on paper, you look at kind of their, the way they've stalled over the last couple of years. When you talk yourself into this team, it always starts with the guys that they will be getting back at least by October. That's when, as you know, real football starts. and if not November. And that's when I think you can really get excited

and have your second cup of coffee with the Greenway Packers. So I would suggest tier two, Lions, Panthers, Texans, Ravens Packers. What do you think? I like that. Again, I feel like the Danny DeVito tier keeps pulling me back. So I love the arguments. It must be a generational thing, you know?

Yeah. But to me, Baltimore is either tier two or tier four, right? I'm a big fan. of the Ben Johnson tree that's beginning to develop. You know, I'm a big fan of Ben Johnson. I also think Declan Doyle's got a unique advantage in that he just watched Ben Johnson go through a season with Caleb Williams, right? Jared golf is very different than Caleb Williams.

Lamar Jackson is uniquely, a unique talent, right? And one of the things we saw in Chicago this past year was how do you get the quarterback to play within structure until it's time for him to take over the game? And I think that's the best. biggest concern. I would just have for Baltimore is as we get closer to the playoffs, Lamar Jackson, the reputation is that he struggles. That's not actually what's going on. He's played quite well in the playoffs. He was in Baltimore two years ago leading them on a comeback. Obviously there was the fumble or the drop pass at the goal line. Look, Lamar played well. He had a few

like, uh-oh plays, but he played well. But the reputation of him not showing up in the playoffs is a storyline that just continues to follow him until he breaks through. I think there's this feeling of is he going to hurt me in the playoffs? The regular season, he's been one of the very best, a Hall of Famer for sure.

I would just worry about Baltimore getting over that last hump. So I'm not going to argue too much with Tier 2, but I might slide them down to 4. And we played Green Bay last year. They are as talented as any team in the NFC. They were the number one seed when the Panthers went in there. We won in a like a low,

scoring a low possession game. I think one of the things that I'd like to continue to see out of Green Bay is trusting Jordan Love. He'll throw some interceptions. He'll throw some big plays, but felt like they didn't let him throw the ball in advantageous situations enough for a player of his talent. I don't know what that is. I don't know if that's LaFleur trying to manage the game and keep things under wraps. But I know we certainly saw it when we went, we went there in Carolina. to we were the underdog, I think like an eight or 10 point underdog and we only played a seven possession game. And it was like the whole time I'm sitting in the sideline going, this is playing into our hands and we were able to hit a field goal at the end of the game. There's a little bit

of there. If you've got the guy that you have a $55 million in Jordan Love, let him go take over the game. Don't ask, don't ask him to sort of manage the game and at the end try to turn him loose. So that would be my little issue, but I'm with you. Second cup of coffee on the Packers for sure Baltimore. I'm not going to, I'm not going to fight you, but it could be a tier four like they might hurt me. Well, I've got a banger for you for tier four. So if you give me Ravens in tier two, I promise this will work out in your favor for tier four. Another, another great Danny DeVito pick. So, okay, so I think that could close tier two for us. It'll be lions, Panthers, Texans, Ravens Packers. Now again, tier two teams you need a little run up to conversationally to like get

fired up if you're not a fan okay we're not talking about fans subjectively if you are talking about them once you really get in the weeds on them you're really interested in them and what they can be in 26 and you're thinking yeah this could be pretty great um the larry david shrugging dot jiff uh that is tier three i think we can roll through this pretty quickly because for me these are teams like yeah obviously i'm interested in these teams right like but we talk about them all the time and like I'm more interested in like the variance of some some other teams and other tiers around this like like for example I put I put some of the absolute studs of the NFL in this category I not only have the chiefs in this category I have I have the Rams in this

category I have the Seahawks in this category I have the 49ers in this category now this wasn't just for timing and ease, although those are important things if I have Greg Rosenthal in my ear. This is actually like I just, I feel like I know what these teams are. I feel like I know what these teams are. They are the absolute bona fides of the NFL going into the season. There are very few questions in my opinion about these teams. Yeah, there's been some injury issues, all of those things. But these are teams to me that I feel really, really good about just being like, yeah, in a case of tiering into most interesting teams or least interesting teams to me, I'm good with this being the Larry David dot Jiff's category.

I'm good with these teams being there. I think those are all good. I would just feel bad if I was a cardinal fan because you clearly put the whole NFC West into tier three, which means, well, that is the life of the Cardinals. I mean, really.

As a lifelong Cardinal fan growing up in Phoenix, I feel like they are destined for Tier 5 demon. Like I, I just felt bad for them as you listed off the entire NFC West and kind of knowing the Cardinals do not fit that same profile. So that makes me a little sad. I'm, I again, I am a Cardinal fan at heart. The little boy in me growing up in Phoenix, Arizona is a Cardinal fan at heart. But I just felt bad for them. Yeah, we know what these teams are. Yeah. Like we know that these guys are going to be in it at the end. Again, I would just,

the Rams have been so close the last couple of years. I would just as a fan of theirs or watching them, are they going to break our heart at the end again? Like they've been so close here. Obviously McVeigh has has won one. He's been to another. But I think that's, I think that's the nature of being a fan of any team that's in it a lot is as much jubilation as there is.

There's this fear of like heartbreak. So I put the Rams clearly in tier three, but I think any Rams fan would tell you like, is there going to be another special team's blunder? Is there going to be another something at the very end? Because they're, you know, we played them last year in the playoffs. And I remember thinking like, man,

these guys had won like 13 games. They really could have won 15, 16. Like they were so good last year. And I would expect them to be good again. So famous investors of special teams. That's right. Well, you know, we don't have to get too much. I can't even laugh.

I couldn't even get the sense out without. I will say this. I wanted to add one. I didn't, I didn't see the tiers quite the same you did as you did. I would put the Falcons in Tier 3, Larry David shrugging. Here's the reason why. Like, what? what Tua did in Miami with Mike McDaniel early on was really good, right?

The pieces around Tua were all there, right? And he had a lot of success. And when it got in the playoffs and it got cold as a smaller quarterback, it didn't work out. But now he's in a dome. He's in the NFC South. That division, I'm in that division. Like, it's up for the taking. There's a lot going on.

And as he comes in, he's not getting paid anything by the Falcons. They've paid Drake London. They've paid Kyle. pitch. Bejohn Robinson is as electric as there is in the entire NFL. There's a lot of pieces. And I've always been a big fan of Kevin Stavansky. I've always been a big fan of his. And so I'd be very curious if you're a Falcons fan. To go, hey, what could this be? We've got a lot of high-end draft picks. We're basically paying our quarterbacks between Pennix and two almost nothing at this point. And we've got an offensive head coach that's got a lot of juice and some creativity,

especially if you go back and look at those first three years or so in Cleveland. So I'd put Atlanta in there a little bit different than all the big boys that you put in tier three. But I think Atlanta's got a real shot to be pretty interesting this year. I'm glad you did that. I would agree with you on that. And I like putting them in here because I also have some maybe unexpected or surprising ones that I would like to add as well to this tier. And I agree with you. I think that it's, you can, you're like, I mean, it really is.

I mean, I keep doing, for viewers, I keep literally doing the thing. Like, I keep literally doing the tear of the shrug. For me, I'd also put the Jaguars here. Because I, first of all, listeners of the show know how big of a fan I have of what they're building over there. I think I know what they are. And I think I know what their progression is going to be because Liam Cohen is of the, the coaching tree that I have most closely covered in my career.

I think I know how they're going to do things in their, front office. I think it's interesting. To me, they are a high floor team, which is why I'm like, yeah, I'd put them in here with some of the big boys as well. I'd also put the Patriots and the dolphins in here. Now, the Patriots, I just can't get interested in, truly. So that's kind of, I just throw them in here. And they have one of the best young quarterbacks in the NFL. So you got to put them with like some real, some real contenders here. The dolphins I put in there because my description of the Larry David shrugging.gif is yeah, I guess I could get into this. I think I can talk myself into this. And the point in question for me is not what they're going to be this year,

but what they are building into being in this sprint rebuild. We've talked a lot about it on the show. Listeners are probably tired of me using the phrase sprint rebuild. But the, I think they will be better than expected, especially by the middle to end of the season. And I think their build, it really makes sense to me what John Eric Sullivan is doing over there. I really understand that they're trying to establish a couple of weight-bearing walls, raise the floor with some of those players, and draft like crazy. Do, and I know you love this phrase, a lot of dart throws in the draft. That's right.

11 or 12 draft picks, right now. I think 13, the most in the NFL this season. And Luke Keeclay's favorite player in the draft, Jacob Rodriguez. Yes, I listened to that on the JJ. We talked to him a lot. We talked about him a lot. And when he went, whatever that was, 41 or 42, there was an audible gasp inside the Jansen household. Because we were hoping maybe he'd follow us. Because that was a, that was a keeckley favorite. So yeah. I just think that they are going to, in a shorter time frame, be better than people expect them to be. Even if it is like a really questionable on paper roster, uh, over this next, these next couple of months training camp is a little unsteady. Like I just, it's, it's, it's, what they're doing reminds me a lot of what we've seen the 49ers do in the past, what we've seen the Bucks do in the past, what we've seen the Rams do in the past in terms of that sprint rebuild.

I think I want to get to our favorite, what I think will be our favorite too, really in a sick and twisted way, our favorite two tiers. I want to say, are you okay with tier three? Larry David shrugging. I'm going to add one. Okay.

Sounds good. The Bengals. Ooh. Interesting. Tell me why. Yeah. I, I am put me on the list of guys that think Joe Burrow. You don't think they're a team that will eventually hurt you?

No, because I actually, I like Burrow the later in the season it goes. They might feel like it's kind of interesting. Like I would have put Miami in tier five. Like they are rebuilding. They are pairing it all down. They are uninteresting to me this year. To me, they're interest. The interesting parts of them are free agency in the draft and what are they developing.

I'm not particularly curious about what they do in the, That's a part of what the team is, JJ, is their infrastructure. That's already happened. Unless they're tanking, there's no two at a tank for. I guess you're, you're tanking for Arch, but they got Malik Willis. Like, I don't know what they are. I'm not going to argue with you, but I would put the Bengals in because they're trying to figure out in today's NFL, can I just score 45 points against everybody?

They continue to put all their money and time and energy into their offense and it's awesome. And they are, they have been fantastic. like, but they still haven't figured out the defense. Hendrickson leaves. Like they are continuing this pathway of, you know, I think it's, we, we talked about it a little bit during the year on players point on on serious. Like the, the Bengals basically said, hey, Joe Burrow like Joe Burrow talked him into everything, right? All those things about, hey, you can move the cap number around and you can, you can get all this GM talk.

And he got all of his guys paid. But at the end of the day, like, they don't have any money really spent on. defense and it puts a tremendous amount of pressure like that's totally the opposite of like the new england patriots with tom brady he's taking less the defense is loaded we talked you know we've talked about in the past like what new england's doing right now drake may gets paid nothing a j brown's got a low cap and eight of the ten highest paid players are on defense like the bengals are going to try to outscore everybody and i think that i think that they can do it but it's a very unique strategy especially coming off of like watching the Seahawks win the Super Bowl with a defense that's just nasty.

So I put them in there. I can get into this. It's still the Bengals, but I love Burrow and Jamar chases as good as anyone in the league T. Higgins as well. I will give you this one because you have generously, I think, given me more than what I've deserved here.

But I will give you this one. I had them in my Danny DeVito category tier four because I just feel like they, they're built to hurt you in the end, right? But I love the Dexter Lawrence trade. I am someone, there was a lot of mixed opinions in this studio about that trade. I am a huge fan. I thought it was the right thing to do. This is a team where when I wrote about team building buckets earlier in the off season,

I had them in a must-win sort of category where they were sort of desperate and trying to make these moves that then petered out in the middle of free agency. And I think they win. If I were to recategorize the Bengals, I would. would have put them then in win now, which was an entirely different bucket, meaning you're making the moves that make you a true contender or make you believe you are a true contender because of the aggression level of your move. So I like this here. We have, we already have the bears and the Vikings in tier four. As a reminder to the listener, tier four is the Danny DeVito

shaking his head.jif becoming invested and interested in this team may ultimately hurt me. And yet I cannot help myself. And then tier five is our last tier. Demon! Something is way off here. I cross the street and avoid eye contact, even though they're smiling at me like really, really intensely.

So we have the Bears and the Vikings in tier four. This is my Danny DeVito banger that I want to put in here because this team has done this to me many, many times, and I'm very disappointed them. I'm not mad. I'm just disappointed. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers are going in my Danny DeVito category. I love the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

I'm sorry to say this to you while you're on screen. I think Baker Mayfield is one of the most exciting players in football when he's on. I love their receiving core. I think their defense is going to be fine. I like what they did in the draft. Jason Light is one of my favorite GMs. However, by God, they hurt me every time. I'm not doing it this year.

I'm just not going to do it. And maybe me, unclenching a little bit, is exactly what they need, just carmically, to finally move forward. So I'm putting the Bucks in tier four. I want two tier two tier two tier two team from you, JJ. I know I'm putting you through some gymnastics here, but like you went to Brophy Prep in Notre Dame. So you probably can handle it.

Um, well, I would say that I hope that the bucks break your heart again. That would be fantastic as a, as a panther. Uh, I put the Colts in this category. Me too. Um, I, I think that, you know, Daniel Jones is a Charlotte kid. Like I'm a big. fan of his. What's that recovery going to look like? Where are they going to be? Certainly their run game in the first two and a half, three months was electric. I've been a big fan of Shane Stiking

going all the way back to when he was with the Chargers. Then obviously the Eagles, I think his offenses are really creative, but they petered out last year. You know, it's sort of funny. Like the AFC South was everyone sort of laughing stocked out and the NFC South. And then all of a sudden the Jaguars are fantastic when 13 games. Houston was as good as anybody. And we forget through 10 games, the Colts were 8 and 2 and kind of running away. They had the sauce gardener trade all all dialed up and then it kind of fell apart on them. So I put, I put Indy in this category as well. Did I get, does Tampa Bay count for me or do I owe you one more?

You owe me one more. All right. Like, I'm looking through this. I think Washington is in this category. I think Jaden, I think Jaden Daniels had a great year one. Year two was a mess. Obviously there were some injuries as well there. I'm a big fan of Dan Quinn, but they went all in after year one, signed a bunch of guys,

a bunch of big money. And if I, if I remember correctly, like they've kind of burned through a lot of their cap space. So they went into win now mode, didn't win. And you look back so much of the 24 season was high variance stuff. They were unbelievable on fourth down. Dan Quinn went forward a ton. I think they were like 83 or 84% conversion on fourth down. So they were kind of in that Dan Campbell, lion,

mode and they were hitting on a lot of it, carries them to 12 or 13 wins, and then obviously getting all the way to the NFC championship game losing to the Eagles. And they went all in and they traded for Debo and they traded for Laramie Tunsell and they spent a ton of money in cap space on veterans in Win Now mode and it didn't really work out for them.

And I think a little bit of that is you can fool yourself a little bit with the high variance fourth down stuff. It's a good part to play. But as we've seen with the lion, and others, like, it is a high wire act. I'm a big fan of it. I think teams should aggressively pursue it, but it also can be one of those things

where you can think you're better than you really are. And they've put themselves in a tough spot. Again, I'm a big Dan Quinn and Jaden Daniels fan, but in that division with Philly, I'm with you. I like Dallas. I think they're a good team. And obviously I let off with the Giants. I think that's going to be a tough division

for them to kind of work their way through without maybe the resources that you'd hope to have with a quarterback going into year three. I had commanders in Demon category because I just think they're still just way too variant and top heavy and I don't, I would like to see more proof that this team can write the ship.

I love Jaden Daniels go sun devils. But I just think that there's been such a, the draft classes have not been there for Adam Peters yet. And so I just think that it's, I just would like to see. see more team building that translates onto the field that's not investing or overpaying for veterans. You get one or two years to your point. You get one or two years where you can do that.

Take the Panthers model, for example, one year maybe in this most recent build that. And you got to hit and you got to do it. Exactly. Yeah. The other two teams, before we get to the final category of Demon. The other two teams I had in the Danny DeVito shaking his head. dot Jif were the Jets because their fan base is a bunch of diehards and yet they they will be hurt and I cannot help but be interested in the journey for them. And then also the Titans because I do

think, you know, I love Cam Ward and I do think that the Titans made some floor raising moves. I am in terms of interest level, I am so interested to see how the dynamics between Robert Zala and Brian Daible, two head coach figures who are. not both head coaches now. Robert Sala is in charge. I'm so, so interested to see how that works. So subjectively speaking,

I understand that their fans will probably get their expectations up and will be hurt. Myself in committing too hard to either of these teams, I would expect myself to also get hurt in the end, but I am interested.

I can't, it's like I have to watch it. I can't look away from it. It's like when someone steps in gum, I want to see how long the gum sticks to their shoe, you know? I won't argue with you in Tennessee, although I probably would have put them in my demon category.

I think they're going to have a tough road. I need you to emphasize, you know, there is punctuation involving. Come on. Oh, demon. Yeah. The jets are clearly in demon for me. So I'm going to move them down.

Okay. Sounds good. Yeah, but it was interesting like talking. I got a chance to talk to Kyle Van Nuoy a couple days ago and he was really high on the jets. So I guess it has a little bit to do with how do you see them sort of projecting going forward. But there's controversy there at the quarterback position. What is that going to be? They had three draft picks. They've got a ton of stuff moving forward. They're in a good spot moving forward.

But most of their top players have now been traded away or let go. You know, they keep Breece Hall. But, you know, I'm an analytics guy. Like, great, you kept a high paid running back. But I don't know that that really matters if you're down 2110. So, you know, that's been my biggest criticism what they did. They had a corner. They had an interior. alignment. They traded them. I didn't, I didn't mind it because they got so much back for those guys, but then you paid the running back. Like I, that's not the way I build a team. Running backs hate me when I say that sort of thing, but that's kind of where I land on it. And look, if you're a defensive head coach, Mike McDonald definitely did it in Seattle. But like, I think the standard for how good you are as a coach has to come out early. Yeah. And so Aaron Glenn, this is a big start. It was choppy

at best last year. And as a defensive coordinator, the standard and like the ex, you guys, you got to meet those expectations early because you're not going to get a lot of time in this league as a defensive head coach because all of those big names that you've talked about, all that, you know, the entire Sean McVeigh tree, it's all offensive guys. So they, they got to come out early and I don't know that they got the juice to do it. So that's where I put them down there in tier five. But that being said, I'll go with you on, I'll go with you on Tennessee. I like the coaching dynamics there with last year's number one Cam Ward. Cool. I, this is awesome. This is all shaking out right into my hands, you know? Just kidding. Okay, so tier four, just to recap,

Bears, Vikings, Bucks, Colts, commanders, Titans. I think we can agree on tier four there. My tier five, just to remind the listener, tier five is demon. Something is way off here. I crossed the street and avoid eye contact, even though they're smiling at me like really, really intensely. So I agree that we could put the jets here. They were in my tier four, but I do agree with you that they could be certainly argued for in in tier five you like how it hedge that's like how you talk to your you're talking to your kids about their red time um i my picks for tier five are the steelers because to me it's all about the quarterback here i think they have a good team i think they have a good roster i think that going all out and being so obvious and so just everything

on pause while we go out and try to get this quarterback who did not even play very well last year and who knows how he's going to be this year to me was was so anti what you would think the Steelers would do just with their history and uh it just it's sort of just it's the vibes were just not it just sort of reeked to me a little bit of desperation and just not very not a team that is built to me the rest of the roster is very solid um but i could also argue for them in tier four as they will hurt me i also have the cardinals and the browns in here i don't think i really need to go too far into detail about that. But I want to ask you about the Steelers because I know I threw, I sort of threw them in at the end here. I'm going to kind of give this to you.

Where are you going to put the Steelers? I will give that. I'll give Steelers to you. I don't, I don't mind the Steelers in the demon category. Do I do that? Well, you did agree. I just, I just, I just don't think they're particularly interesting. I think they will be fine. I, you know, I, I was in Green Bay when Aaron was a starter for the first time with Mike McCarthy. I think it's going to be a fine working relationship. You know, one of the interesting things getting to talk to Aaron a little bit last year was he spoke so highly of Mike Tomlin and he equated it to playing for Mike McCarthy. He has a lot of respect for Mike McCarthy.

He's like, it's very, there's a lot of trust that goes to the veteran leader. So it doesn't surprise me that that's a marriage that came to be this offseason because he had a lot of respect for Mike McCarthy as he was sort of speaking so highly of Mike Tomlin. I thought Aaron played okay last year. You know, you're not, you're not paying Aaron $45, $50 million. So like, I just don't know that the team's all that interesting, especially when you consider that divisions also got the Bengals and the and the, and the Ravens.

We talked about it a lot last year. I think, I still feel like they're a 9 and 18. They're going to beat some teams that they shouldn't and they're going to lose some games that they shouldn't. I would certainly trust the ball in Aaron's hand in the fourth quarter, but I just, I just, it's sort of just an uninteresting nine and eight, 10 and seven, seven and 10 kind of team for me. So I put them in tier five. It's a little weird. It's a little clunky. But I think they'll be fine. I, I, I love this. I, I enjoy doing this. You know, normally at this point in

the show, JJ, we would go through tier by tier and give the listeners a recap of everything we had just talked about. However, as I've said multiple times in the show, you can't hit a moving target. So if they were not, if they were not tracking it, they cannot argue with it either way. And for the listeners, I do want to hear your tears and where you would put your teams within the context of these now copyrighted tiers, which I think are going to usher in a new way of how we think about deep, deep, deep off-season football. JJ, you're going to training camp in two weeks, buddy, year 19. This is so exciting.

I'm so honored and glad that you joined us on NFL Daily. This is becoming a tradition for us that you're my co-host for a summer episode of NFL daily. I'm just really grateful to you. And, you know, thanks for fighting with me a little bit, but like more often than not conceding to my arguments. Thank you for that. Playful banter is good. As you know, that's one of my keys to longevity in the NFL is playful banter in the cafeteria in the locker room, builds camaraderie amongst teammates. So it's right up my alley. Awesome.

Well, we are going to be back in your feed. Later this week, we've got Patrick Claibon, the great NFL Daily superstar. I am the chairman of the Clay Bonnie Bears, his fan club. I see him laughing behind the glass. For JJ Jansen, I'm Jordan Rodriguez. Thanks for your listening today. This is NFL Daily. This is an I-Heart podcast.

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