Purple Insider - a Minnesota Vikings and NFL podcast - Emergency podcast: ESPN's Courtney Cronin breaks down Vikings' trade for Yannick Ngakoue

Episode Date: August 30, 2020

Read Matthew Coller's written reaction and camp coverage by subscribing to Purple Insider  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Folks, do you feel like everything these days is go, go, go? It's non-stop from work to friends to family and a million pressing issues. Sometimes you just need to take a playoff and hit the reset button. That's when you reach for a Coors Light. It's made to chill. Hey, it's that time of year in Minnesota again to get out on the lake, go to the cabin, sit back, watch the baseball. Coors Light is the perfect refreshment to chill during these summer months. There's only one beer out there that's made to chill. The mountains on the bottles and cans turn blue when your beer is cold,

and that way you know it's time to chill. Hit that reset button with some mountain cold refreshment. Coors Light is cold lager, cold filtered, and cold packaged. It's literally made to chill. It's crisp and refreshing as the Colorado Rockies. Coors Light is the one you should choose when you need to unwind, when you want to hit the reset button, reach for the beer that is made to chill. Get Coors Light in the new look delivered straight to your door

with Drizzly or Instacart, Coors Brewing Company, Golden, Colorado, and as always, celebrate. This is Greg Olson here to tell you about my new podcast, TE1. On the show, I had a chance to talk to my fellow tight ends who have revolutionized the position from an extra lineman to a dual threat superstar. And just like my guests have changed the game, this year, NFLSundayTicket.tv is revolutionizing your NFL viewing experience. Stream all the live, out-of-market NFL games every Sunday on your favorite devices

and never miss a moment from your favorite players. Visit NFLSundayTicket.tv and use the promo code GREG88 at checkout and get 15% off your subscription. That's NFLSundayTicket.tv and the promo code GREG88. Subscribe to TE1 and get NFLSundayTicket.tv and the promo code GREG88. Subscribe to TE1 and get NFLSundayTicket.tv. An unmatched dual threat. Hello and welcome to an emergency podcast. Matthew Collar along with ESPN's Courtney Cronin.

And Courtney, we spoke it into existence, the Vikings trade for Yannick Ngakwe. In my Friday mailbag, I wrote, hey, it seems like a pretty good idea. Andrew Kramer and I on this very podcast talked about why it was a good idea. A week ago, we discussed it as well. It just seemed like the obvious move, but I wasn't sure that they would actually go through with it because I wondered if they wanted to find out what they had with the Fadi Adenabo, but instead they indeed have Yannick Ngakwe.

Reaction, Courtney? Well, on Saturday afternoon was i caught wind that something was going to happen i heard it was going to be a big splash and i was like well a couple different things this could be well i mean to me cook was not going to be the big splash like so it had nothing to do with dalvin i knew that from the start but i was like hmm engakwe is still out there but so is jadeveon clowny and I remember when you and I were podcasting back in March, and I had talked with you about, well, this is what I'm hearing on Clowney. Yeah, they kicked the tires, but they weren't interested, ultimately,

in thinking Yannick Ngakwe wanted to do GTFO of Jacksonville by any means necessary. And I remember Dan Graziano, my colleague at ESPN, wrote something the other day just about the most logical places for him to end up. There were five of them. Obviously, the Jets were one. I believe Buffalo was another one. But the Vikings kind of were the surprise team here, which surprise around the league maybe,

but not surprise to Minnesota given Daniil Hunter's not been practicing. Mike Zimmer says it's not that big of a deal. Sources I've spoken with have said that it's more precautionary now than anything else. But you did have that concern of if they don't have a Daniil Hunter on that defensive line because of whatever this thing is, or if something else were to pop up this season, then they are in really big trouble.

And I think that, yes, if Adi Odenabo, you know, was primed to take over that Everson Griffin role, but when you have a player that's available, like a Yannick Ngakwe, someone who could change the outlook of your front seven, then I think you have to make that move. And that's ultimately what they did to be able to, because you think about it, historically speaking,

they have had two premier edge rushers on both sides of the line since them got here. So it's been Everson. It was, you know, Brian Robeson and Everson Griffin, and then it was Everson Griffin and Daniel Hunter. And not saying that a Fadi Odenabo can't get there, but like there's something special about Yannick Ngakwe that, you know, obviously he was franchised for a reason in Jacksonville and wanted to get out of there. So any team, he had bidders and the Vikings decided that, you know, they had to make this move,

which I know we'll get into kind of how this thing unfolded, but this is something that they've had their eye on for a while. I mean, we talked to Mike Zimmer and he said that, you know, they had been keeping their eye on adding a pass rusher for a while. So when they lose out on Everson Griffin coming back here and he goes to Dallas instead, they focus then all of their attention on getting Ngakwe. And that's why I always saw it as reasonable that it could happen with Ngakwe because if they were going after Everson Griffin,

that meant that they weren't very confident that Afadi Adenabo could take that role. And I think with him, even though I'm sure he is upset this morning, and I would be too if I spent all of camp thinking I'm the starting defensive end, I'm going to do great and then make a lot of money, and then all of a sudden they brought in someone else who's going to make all that money for sure in the future, which we'll get to. But from the perspective of the Vikings defense, the domino effect of now having Ngakwe at right defensive end, and you can do whatever you want with Afadi Adenabo, he was in that role last year and ended up with seven sacks, and I think when you look at how they performed in

situational rushing, when they put in Mata'afa, Armond Watts looked pretty good, but Jaleel Johnson playing three technique, I mean, none of that looked pretty good, but Jaleel Johnson playing three technique. I mean, none of that was very inspiring. And they realized that in the short and long term, they're going to have to do better. I think they got a pretty big sample on Afadia Denebo going up against Riley Reif every day in training camp and decided, you know what? His better role is probably a situational pass rusher.

And you can have a heck of a career as a situational pass rusher, but there's a difference between being that and pass rushing every down like Yannick Ngakwe does. And just to, you know, kind of people who aren't that familiar with Jaguars players, a couple of facts here. He is 12th in all pass rushers in total sacks since he came into the league in 2016 and has generally ranked in the top 25 in terms of his PFF pass rushing grade, twice in the top 15 in pressure rate in the last four years, and fourth in forced fumbles since 2016. So they got, I would not say this is Vaughn Miller. It's not quite of that level. It's not quite of the level of Daniil Hunter or even Everson Griffin in his prime, but

a very, very good player who now will take attention away from Daniil Hunter, assuming that he's helped. Sure. And to add to that, you know, some interesting stats that I came across of just like how he pairs up with Daniil Hunter. There's no need to play musical chairs here. Like Andre Patterson said that he wants to keep Hunter at left defensive end. That's where he's played.

Because typically you always talk about the premier address, there's the guy playing on the right side because he's going up against the left tackle. Well, that's neither here nor there because that's not apparently going to happen. So I think it creates kind of like a seamless transition because Ngakwe lined up at right end for 61% of the snaps last year. So you don't have to fight with this. You just, you know, you put him in where he belongs. And he had a pass rush win rate of 21% as an edge rusher last season.

That's 15th among players lined up on the edge. And, you know, that was higher than Daniil Hunter, who had 15% pass rush win rate. That's a next-gen stat that I love. And Griffin had 17%. So, I mean, it's kind of like they're very close. And I'm not saying that Yannick Ngakwe is better than Daniil Hunter, but he does know how to win. And when he's in that side of the defensive line, when you're going up against really good left tackles, especially, you know, throughout the NFC North, too. I mean, that's really important. So, you know, his defense was top 10 in defensive efficiency each of the last five seasons.

He brings somebody like that in. You know, we had all these talks about, are they going to regress? Are we going to see, you know, a downswing for the defense this year? And I think the biggest question going into this weekend before all this happened was can those stars that they have elevate the play around them? Can Hunter do it alone? Can Eric Kendricks and Anthony Barr and then Anthony Harris and Harrison Smith obviously have a humongous responsibility with the secondary and the

young guys that are going to be in front of them. And now you add another star to the mix. So I think it's fair to say, you know, this is still, this is, this is an elite defense. Now it's just kind of like, okay, it's cemented itself as that, because there was some question marks just about, you know, yeah, they still had all these Pro Bowl talent players, but they lost a lot too. And I think that adding somebody like this in when they're deep, when their pass rush is so formidable and also like you know they have a young secondary they need what's going on up front

directly affects what's going to happen with those young corners so this is a huge move and it was a necessary one if they didn't have another rusher and teams could put all their focus on Daniil Hunter then you would have projected his stats to go down because of that, just based on the fact that teams were putting so much attention there. And Mike Zimmer mentioned when I asked him this morning about, well, how does it impact it when you have those two rushers on each side as opposed to just one? And he talked about teams trying to chip both on a lot of plays. And think about how many fewer players can go out for passes or how many players, you know, get slowed down in their routes and things like that if you're a tight end or a running back and you have to give some attention to Yannick Ngakwe or Daniil Hunter

first versus just one of them. I mean, I think there's, in terms of having this extra player there that can win at any time and deserves attention, there is, again, kind of a domino effect there. So not only do you get better because now Fadi Adenabo is freed up to be a situational rusher on the inside, but you also take attention and you put it on both of them as opposed to just one. And I think that this is significant. Normally, you wouldn't point to one player and one acquisition and say, oh, well, he's the answer on defense, because it's just not how defense works. Usually, it depends on it being a group effort, and the weakest link of the chain is kind of how good you are, but in this case,

there is so many things that come off of having Yannick Ngakwe that I would up the Vikings projection from thinking mid-pack defense, maybe even a little worse than that, to, yeah, you know, they should be around top 10 again. Absolutely. And, I mean, think about what one of their weakest links was last year in the front seven, interior pass rush. And we were kind of looking at it being like, I don't know,

they look okay in camp because it's camp. But in the offense kind of looked disjointed in that Friday practice at U.S. Bank Stadium. But, you know, when you think about the roles of Jaleel Johnson at three technique and what Shamar Steffen's going to do at nose tackle, it just doesn't excite you that much because Jaleel's good, but he's not somebody I think that you want in there on third down all the time. Can he play that?

Sure. He's not a two-down lineman, but I think that you want to keep those guys fresh. That's why they've been rotating Hercules Mata'afa in. That's why they were, like, trying a bunch of things out. You get better on the defensive line if you're putting a Fadio Denebo in. You know, they talk about running the NASCAR package, the one that threw Drew Brees for a tailspin during the wildcard game, and why they were able to pressure the quarterback so much. Obviously, that's using

Daniil Hunter and Everson Griffin on the interior, but you can do kind of a variation with that if you have Afadi Odenabo kind of playing that situational third down pass rushing role, because he's really, he's really, he's got a good stab motion. He's good at getting back into the backfield. He's quick. And so I think it'll help them to be able to move him around. It's not like, okay, you saw the right defensive end spot and you still have this hole in the interior. I think this is the type of move that helps you upgrade the interior, kind of all in one false swoop. Right. I totally agree that your weakest link, at least we'll see on the corners and how that plays out, but your weakest link we thought was interior pressure. And so you've improved two positions rather than just one by getting Yannick Ngakwe. Now, what does this say

in your mind about the direction of the team? Because I think you could look at this as sort of a win now move, but also a long-term move because we're talking about someone who's only 25 years old. We could be talking about Yannick Ngakwe and Daniil Hunter playing the defensive ends for the Minnesota Vikings in the year 2027. I mean, these guys are still so young. It's wild. So I think that it is the perfect move that helps you immediately by a lot and also helps you in the future by a lot because these projects that you draft, your DJ Wanhams and so forth, your Kenny Willikies, like that's nice, but the chances that they become a Yannick Ngakwe are very, very low. So you can keep swinging or you can get the guarantee on the box

and get a guy who you know is going to be a double-digit sack player almost every year. Yeah, and the way that I look at that, just to break it down for people, so he's franchised by Jacksonville, $17.8 million tag. He doesn't sign the tag by July 15th, so he is not eligible this year to work out a long-term extension. It's not like the Vikings can get him in here and lower his cap number and make it work and sign everybody. So he's going to a contract year.

There's no doubt in my mind that you bring somebody like that in here with the intention of making him a long-term Minnesota Viking. He's younger than Daniil Hunter by, like, a couple months. He's 25 and some change. And Daniil's birthday, I want to say, is later this year. He hasn't turned 26 yet. I think it's in December. But nonetheless, you have guys who are barely even on the cusp of entering the quote-unquote prime

for a pass rusher. So if all goes according to plan, and they do have to redo Daniil's deal because it's criminally low, you're going to have two guys. You're going to have your edge position set for five or six years, if not longer than that. Whether this coaching staff stays here, whether this front office staff stays here, pass the front office staff stays here past the extensions that they got does not matter. You want those guys to stay and you would keep pay to keep those guys around. So I think that with bringing him in,

so he's going to take a pretty sizable pay cut. If my math, my math is correct, if it is, which we know I have trouble with pie charts. So it should be about a four to $5 million pay cut. Cause you technically, I know I use trouble with pie charts. So it should be about a $4 million to $5 million pay cut because you technically – I know I used the word negotiate earlier, like restructure. You can't restructure the franchise tag. You just have to agree to take a pay cut.

I used the wrong word. Sorry. So it's about $13 million is what he's expected to take on this deal coming to the Vikings. So that's a really big, big deal. And it shows you he wanted to get out of Jacksonville so badly he was willing to make that type of move to be on a contender to play with the Neil Hunter um there are probably a lot of factors that when we finally talked to him Dom Capers was with him

last year who knows maybe he wants to come play for Dom um there's a lot of factors here as to why he thinks why this move shows you he thinks he can be here long term and do something here long term and get paid on a long-term deal but now we have to ask ourselves all right the Vikings tabled Dalvin Cook's deal two weeks ago or last week and they did that because they had other fires to put out is what I was told that phrase um this is obviously one of them. So you've got Dalvin Cook without a contract extension set to play on 1.33 final year of his four year contract. How does that work? You know, does he does Dalvin want to say, Oh, shoot, I need to sign now? Or did you just cost yourself the millions that you were potentially going to get because of the deal that was on the table? Like, from my understanding, the deal has not been pulled.

But, hell, if you're smart, you're restructuring that because now you're like, well, we don't have the money for it. I'm sorry. Like, it's not – I know people are like, oh, the cap's a miss, blah, blah, blah. Well, money doesn't grow on trees in the NFL. And it's like they decided – they went – they took all of their cap security and all of their cap flexibility and went all in on Yannick Ngakwe. So now we need to find out what that means for Dalvin Cook.

But beyond this season, you've got Dalvin Cook, Anthony Harris, and Yannick Ngakwe who all need to have new contracts next year if they're going to stay in Minnesota. So three guys entering contract years, one tag for next year, right? Like, I mean, that's, you know, you've got to figure out, like, even within Gakwe, you could potentially double tag him. That could be something that you do next year, like, you know, if you want to make the finances work somehow else,

if Dalvin Cook balls out and you don't want to franchise him. I don't know, but it's just, like, there's so many – it is a win-now move. It's something for now, and it's for later, but the – like, kind of like, hey, let's just, cool, let's celebrate, open a bottle of champagne. We've got Yannick and Gawkway. But let's handle the finances later because it's going to be complicated

to get this whole thing worked out. I want to remind you to go to SodaStick.com to get your original Minnesota sports-inspired goods. They just launched their official collaboration with Bud Grant. Yes, Bud Grant. You can now get your official Bud Grant shirt and Man Cave art print. If you haven't seen it yet, you have to check it out. And we're going to hook you up with free shipping for your order.

Use code PURPLEINSIDER for free shipping. That is SOTASTICK, S-O-T-A-S-T-I-C-K.com, original Minnesota sports-inspired goods.com. Original Minnesota sports inspired goods. Code Purple Insider for free shipping. I also think that there was probably before you make this move, you call his agent and you say, I'm going to just write a number down in a G chat, and then I'm going to delete it.

And then you give me a thumbs up or thumbs down, and then we'll pretend that never happened. You've got to be, before you make the deal you've got to be sort of at least in the same ballpark sure absolutely and he got a new agent this year too which I think helps otherwise you don't want to give up a second round pick and a conditional fifth which my guess is the condition is on his contract that would just be uh a guess there I don't you you know, it might be on playing time, but I doubt it. It's not if he makes like, it's if like the Vikings make a Superbowl or if he makes a pro bowl, there's a bunch of like incentives based on performance,

but I'm sure the contract probably has something to do with it too. Yeah. So anyway, but you know, you're not giving up that much for someone who would be a one year rental in a year where you're kind of in transition and looking at 2021 as saying, we are going to be very, very good in 2021. So you're going to want to make sure that you have him. And to your point, if it comes down to Ngakwe, Harris, or Cook, there's an odd man out there that's obvious, and it's the running back. It's just not as valuable as an elite edge rusher who is a top guy when it comes to

turnovers and sacks those are big expected points plays if you're into analytics and then speaking of that I mean interceptions are big game-changing plays too and that's what Anthony Harris does like those are much harder to replace guys who can pick the ball off and guys who could sack the quarterback than it is guys who can average four and a half yards per run and if you're Delvin Cook and his side you've got to look at this and say okay I think we may have overplayed our hand throughout this entire thing hoping for that big mega deal and then not signing what the Vikings put down in front of you because now the Vikings can't use remaining cap space to do a Delvin deal and spread it out. Now, if they do an extension, it's all got to go on to the future, which is not super favorable for them.

No. And, like, here's my thing with the Delvin Cook thing right now, where it stands. Like, let's say he doesn't sign, like, nothing happens over the next two weeks like once you hit week one he has not signed a new a new deal like I don't know if they can go back to the table and be like hey remember us like we don't do that either they don't sign extensions during the season I can't remember a single one no and even if they did I'm sorry but trying to be like financially responsible here, that number, what was offered in July and then again in August, what the number that the Vikings walked away from saying, hey, take it or leave it, that number's got to change. The second you put a snap

on your body in the fourth year of your career, it's taking a car off the lot. It depreciates in value. If it was a $15 million a year, average salary, $13ep, did you just actively cost yourself millions of dollars by thinking that you were going to run this table and try to play hardball with Rob Brzezinski? I'm sorry, but it's like, it's the position and it's the value and you had a chance to sign it. And now he's in a situation where if I'm him, if I'm anybody related to him, I'm panicking right now because I'm him if I'm anybody related to him I'm panicking right now because I'm like I saw how much they just invested in a pass rusher do they have money left over for you we know that they can make things work but will it still be to the tune of

the original deal that was supposed to from my sources make him one of the top five highest paid running backs in the NFL I don't know and that's a bad spot for a running back to be in because if you look back at that with regret, then that is not fun. And, yeah, maybe he goes out and balls this year. They can still franchise him. You're making less money on the franchise tag than you would have if you just signed the extension. And think about this.

If the franchise tag, let's say, and I don't know what it will be next year, but let's say it's like 12, 11. It's above 10 because it's like 10 point something this year. 11 million. All right, let's go 11 million. And this year he's making basically two. So if you're the Vikings, you love that. That's two years of Delvin Cook in his prime before he hits the age curve that you got for an average of six per year.

I mean, that would be tremendous for you. And there's the other part of this, though, that Delvin Cook said he is 1,000% going to play regardless of his contract situation. I think it would still be a mistake for him to sit out because now they don't even have the cap space to pay him. There's no leverage. Right. He doesn't get a whole lot out of sitting out.

The only thing he can really do is play so well that he forces their hand in the future. look at him and be like, well, I'm sorry, like running back value depreciates. And, you know, unless Dalvin's taking Christian McCaffrey type, you know, numbers this year, like he's 25 years old. So he's going to be 26 by the time that this, you know, next season rolls around. And it makes you wonder how are the Vikings going to handle this? Are they going to say, yeah, we'll still give you what you want, like, or what we were going to originally offer you. They're not getting any more money out of them.

Like that's, they're not getting any more money out of the Vikings. That is the bottom line. Like, that ship sailed a long time ago. But how the Vikings handle it, if Dalvin has, like, a great season this year, like, okay, franchise tag's the easiest option, but do they want to, I can't see them wanting to be like, okay, now we'll give you what you want, because even still, you're losing value on it. Like, he's going to be 26, and they they're going to argue just because this is a logical thing when you have depth behind

dalvin cook and across the league we have not by and large not seen these big running back extensions pan out they're going to point to all of that and be like this is why we can't offer you what you want like and by the numbers by the evidence by the history they've played this better than signing him to an extension. If it does not happen and that's how it goes, this will be the right way to do it is take a player in the second round who's really, really talented, get a lot out of him in those first few years, and then say thanks for the memories.

I mean, that's kind of where the smart money is, even if you can look at Delvin and say, well, this guy's different. But a lot of people thought that about Todd Gurley. And it's just, I mean, by the analytical play, and this front office talks about wanting to be as analytical as they possibly can, that is the right way to play it. But if Delvin sits out, I think he just makes a fool of himself like Melvin Gordon did. Yeah, no, I mean, because he has no leverage to sit out.

Like, yeah, he's already accrued the season, but I don't – I'd have to look at the CBA as to, like, what happens. All right, so you're there. You showed up. He's done camp. He's done the whole thing. If you're doing a hold in, how does that affect you for free agency? Does it?

Like, I really honestly don't know that answer off the top of my head. Like, if he decides now he's not going to play, he doesn't have any leverage. Like, I don't understand it, he doesn't have any leverage. Like I don't understand it. He doesn't have any leverage. So back to Ngakwe, though. Do you want to do a pie chart? You in for a pie chart? Let me get a piece of paper.

You know what? We got to play both games. We also got to play does this guy make the team because this changed the 53-man roster. Yeah, you're right. There's some things to do here still. We got practice to go to today. What a day.

What a day. No more quiet Sundays. We are on exactly to the day, four years since I moved to Minnesota, and on my first day was when Teddy got hurt, and it has just never stopped. No. Non-stop, just, you know, news item after news item, trade for Sam Bradford a couple of days later, and then we are off and running to the NFC Championship, and now here we are again with more big moves.

So apropos, I guess, to have a big move on the four-year anniversary of me moving here. Okay, you ready for this pie chart? Yeah, I've got to draw my circle. Hold on. All right. Percentage chances that the Vikings are a top five defense, a top 10 defense, a top 15 defense, and let's just say, you know, not top 15. So beyond that. Worse than top 15. Percentage chances of those things happening in a pie chart.

It is demanded, by the way, by the people on Twitter that you do pie charts every single episode. So I'm sorry. Those are the rules. You guys are setting me up for failure. You know I'm bad at math. Well, you're going to have to figure it out, you know, just like the Vikings on the defensive line.

They made an adjustment. That's what you're going to have to do. All right. All right. I'm doing it backwards. Hold on. We'll wait. This isn't an emergency podcast or anything i'm trying hold on urgency is a skill okay so 65 hold on all right i got 100 minus

do you need the music do do do do do do that that's the guy make the team music that's not like the that's just the general game show music that but that's coming up next so all right are you ready yes okay what have you got top five top 10 top 15 worse than top 15 um all right so top 15 i gave them a 15 chance um or excuse me top five let's start over top five I gave them a 15 chance um they're very good with on paper right now with all this stuff that was added today with Yannick and Gawkway and you know we assume the cornerbacks just given how excited everybody's been around them and even with Mike Zimmer saying that they're not really changing those coverage rules of you know and I think that's smart I mean just to bring that up to be like

they don't need that because last year they had to change coverage rules and certain things because of Xavier Rhodes and some of the liabilities that were back there so I think that's smart um so I'd say top five defense is probably a 15 chance um my biggest one I'm going to go with here is top 10 though I put them at 35% for top 10. It feels fitting. I know the Jets actually had, like, some issues. They thought that, like, Yannick Ngakwe wasn't going to be great against the run. Oh, yeah, he's not.

I mean, he's, like, definitely. Yeah, I saw a quote somewhere about that. So it's like, okay. But who cares? I think it's who cares. I agree. When you think they're going to run, put in someone else. Like, sacks, fumbles, strip sacks, those are things that are winning you games,

even if he struggles against the run. I agree. I just think that, you know, at points last year, if I'm making a knock about anything about the defensive line last year, there were some issues about them stopping the run. They were just not as consistent as they were. And without Michael Pierce, they're not going to be an elite run stuffing team. So 35% would be top 10.

I think it's doable. I put it at 25% for a top 15 unit. I mean, I don't think they should be any lower than 15, not with the talent that you have here. Then you really are in a full rebuild and not a reboot. So then that leaves me with another 25% for below top 15. Get back to the conversation in just a minute. But first, you've always counted on restaurants, and now they're counting on you.

And while their dining rooms may be closed, they're still open for delivery with DoorDash. DoorDash is the app that brings you the food you're craving right to your door. Ordering is easy. You open the DoorDash app, choose what you want to eat, and your food will be left safely at your door with the new contactless delivery drop-off setting. Choose from your favorite national restaurants like Chipotle, Wendy's,

and the Cheesecake Factory. Many of your local restaurants also are still open for delivery too. Just open the DoorDash app, select your favorite local spot, and your food is on its way. Right now, our listeners can get $5 off and zero delivery fees on their first order of $15 or more when you download the DoorDash app and enter the code BLUEWIRE. That's $5 off and zero delivery fees for your first order when you download the DoorDash app

at the App Store and enter the code BLUEWIRE. Don't forget, that's code BLUEWIRE for $5 off your first order with DoorDash. Sunday, Sunday, Sundays are coming back in the NFL with NFLSundayTicket.tv. You can stream every live, out-of-market NFL game every Sunday afternoon on your favorite devices, plus Red Zone and DirecTV Fantasy Zone channels. Never miss your favorite team and favorite players. No matter where you live, NFLSundayTicket.tv is your key to the most glorious Sundays ever. Use the promo code BLUEWIRE at checkout

to get 15% off your subscription. Visit NFLSundayTicket.tv and use promo code BLUEWIRE. The below top 15 scenario is, it goes exactly like that. Somebody gets hurt. Right, yes. Someone gets hurt. Harrison Smith gets hurt, and all of a sudden Josh Metellus is your guy, a sixth-round rookie, ends up having to play the most important position

in this defense. The same thing goes for depth at every position except for linebacker. A corner gets hurt. If it's Cam Dantzler, then you ask Jeff Gladney or the other way around, or Holton Hill gets hurt, and you've got two rookies there. Any injury scenario is a major problem. Even if Daniil Hunter doesn't play for two or three weeks, that could hurt you. Even with Ngakwe in the mix, because there's just nobody behind him to make a huge impact. So I like where your numbers are at. Those chances are not super high. I would have the highest between 10 and 15 still. Being a top 10 defense is tough, and I can't project no injuries.

So I think at some point there's a bump in the road here. The quarterback schedule is very difficult, but you should have a very good defense. And then in 2021, I think we're back to projecting top five defense. Yeah, 2021, they're absolutely set up for that. But you think about the corners that will have their bumps in the road this year, they're welcome to the NFL moments. But you're going to then have Mike Hughes is in year four, Fulton Hill's in year four.

You don't have any rookies back there. So you'd expect that to be better. When you think about 2017, though, the reason that unit was so good, no guys played 16 plus games because no one got hurt and um i i it's just it's so hard to project because that's even with regression when we talk about defense that's one thing you always have to consider so i think they're in a good spot um here i mean they they definitely regain elite status with a move like this it's just like how elite top five elite top 10 elite top 15 would not be elite but top 15 would be really good.

Okay. I think a solid pie chart. Well done. Good job. Thank you. Thanks for being patient with me. No major. Unless you did the math wrong.

Absolutely no idea. No, I added it up. Thanks. That's why I had to get my calculator. So don't rush me on these things. I don't think our listeners appreciate the tension. Okay. The tension.

All right. Last thing for you. Does this guy make the team? Jalen Holmes, is he making it now? Yeah, I still think he is. I think Eddie Yarbrough probably won't. I was going through that in my head this morning because I've obviously had to change my 53 projection I was going to run this week.

If I had to look my 53 projection I was going to run this week. If I had to, like, look at it now, I think that Yarbrough's probably the odd guy out there, maybe. But it's like, or, or, or, or. Here's my initial one. I'll give you a little sneak preview. I had nine on the D-line. So this was Friday when I turned this in. Hunter, Johnson, Stephan, Odenabo.

Holmes, Mata'afa, Watts, Yarbrough, Wanham. I mean, Christ. Mata'afa. Could this impact Mata'afa? And James Lynch, now we were talking about the possibility of him getting cut. I almost see that as a foregone conclusion. I don't see how you could. Yeah, no.

He and Kenny Willikies, who you reported was on crutches leaving. So, I mean, that helps. Right, an injury spot for him. That's for sure. That helps their numbers game, definitely. I think both of those guys get on the practice squad for sure. Do you risk putting DJ Wanham on the practice squad? Can he make it to the practice squad and not get claimed off waivers I think he

would because of his lankiness and his physical traits James Lynch I think you get through because I mean even though he had production every other team in the league is going to look at it and go really he was a fourth round pick and he couldn't make them out of camp so uh and Wanham the only reason I say that about Wanham is like does he make the team because they're worried that they're not going to be able to get him through? And, like, I'm fairly certain. You know how there's these new rules that protect, you know, the guys that you want to, like, protect on your practice squad,

but they can't claim them? You have to get them to the practice squad first. So next Sunday or even Saturday he'd be subject to waivers. So I think that that's why I'm going to struggle with that one. I'm not really sure. Yarbrough, though, was doing a really good job. That's what I think he stays. I think he stays and Holmes goes.

I think that, yeah, because we've been through this before with guys who change positions. Even Adenabo, with the fact that they cut him again. You know, they cut him twice after changing positions. I think with Holmes, it's like, well, look, we gave you a shot at DT. It didn't work. We gave you a shot at D end. It didn't work because we had to go trade for somebody else.

And, you know, thanks for the memories. But I also go back to a Zimmer comment where he said, guys who have been around might get cut for guys who are younger that we think have more talent. And that screams – I mean, Yarbrough is not younger necessarily, but it screams like Wanham makes it instead of Holmes or the unknown in Yarbrough makes it. And he's been good.

He's made an impact in practice and was a situational rusher for them with the first team the other day. I think that fits his skill set. So I don't know. No, I'm'm gonna be torn between it because like Mata Afa they use him on a lot of those situational rushing situations and I just I don't know I mean unless immediately unless you're literally going to cut cut that roll over and say Afadi that's your role um you're taking it you're playing a lot like then then you could

probably part ways with him um I just I just, I'm, I'm, I always struggle with like, you shouldn't get rid of edge rusher depth, especially if you can use those guys on the inside. But I don't know, I have a hard time parting with Mata Afa just because I know how much they like him and how, how much and where they've used him during training camp. Yeah, I think they keep them. Um, but it's hard with the numbers game to make it work. Yeah, the D-line will be the most fascinating now on cut-down day because I was already struggling with it before this happened to bring in Ngakwe. So what a fun day, Courtney.

The last day that we actually get to go out there and watch full practice and they make a huge blockbuster trade, it has been a time, as it always is. So thank you for your time on a day where there's a lot going on. No, thank you. No, thank you. No, thank you. No. Thank you.

Hi, my name is Bobby Peters, and I've recently written a book titled The 2017 New England Patriots Pass Game Manual. If you've ever wondered what the 2017 New England Patriots past game manual. If you've ever wondered what makes the New England Patriots offense, specifically their past game, so successful over the years, this book is for you. The book breaks down in detail, the schemes the Patriots use by concept.

Each concept is broken down into its different variations. It's statistical usage based on down and distance and the important coaching points for how each route is run and how the quarterback reads the play. The book is available now on Amazon. Get your copy today. Did somebody say playoffs? NBA and NHL are playing for the gold,

and our partners at BetOnline have you covered. Get in on all the action, including a new NBA bracket contest with plenty of chances to win. MLB season is pushing into the fall. There's no shortage of ways to bet on hundreds of odds, futures, and props there. So take advantage of the return to sports. And remember, the casino never closes. Check it out all day, all night.

Go to betonline.ag. Use promo code BLUEWIRE to receive your welcome bonus. That's betonline.ag, code BLUEWIRE to receive your welcome bonus. That's betonline.ag, code BLUEWIRE. BetOnline, your online sportsbook experts.