The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL - 2023 NFL Draft: Day three thoughts, favorite overall draft hauls, favorite fits, and more

Episode Date: April 30, 2023

Robert Mays, Nate Tice and Dane Brugler wrap up draft weekend on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys discuss the biggest news from day three, including the Eagles' acquisition of D'Andre Swift and their move to get Kelee Ringo, their favorite overall draft hauls, best fits, favorite moments, and a whole lot more.Follow Robert on Twitter: @robertmaysFollow Nate on Twitter: @Nate_TiceFollow Dane on Twitter: @dpbruglerSubscribe to The Athletic Football Show...AppleSpotifyYouTube1:30 Eagles make moves for D'Andre Swift, Kelee Ringo6:43 Plenty more quarterbacks on day three14:37 Favorite day three picks22:10 Favorite day three hauls28:10 Favorite total draft hauls32:50 Drafts that made you go "ooooh"45:58 Best fits and moments59:22 Where are we still searching for answers?67:07 Full circle back to Bryce Young, C.J. Stroud and Anthony Richardson74:30 Parting thoughts on the 2023 NFL Draft Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

This is the athletic football show. Welcome to the Athletic Football Show. I'm Robert Mays. We did it, guys. Seven rounds, three days, the NFL draft nearly in the books. We are watching the final few picks of the seventh round tick by here in the Kansas City area. We're about to wrap things up with a little retrospective about how the last three days have gone. Joining me today to help us finish out our draft chatter. first of all, it's our draft expert at the athletic. Dan Brugler. Dan, how you doing, man?

A Wingate punter just got drafted, so that's where we are in the draft. And for those scoring at home, he was my number seven punter in the draft guide. But he's in the draft guide, and that is what matters. Yes, that's why you go top 20 at punter and don't stop at five. Because you never know. That Wingate punter might hear his name called. So good for Ethan Evans. He love it.

Also joining us today, it's my good friend, Nate Tyson. How you doing him, buddy? I'm doing very well. Yeah, we're talking Wingate. We're on pick, what, 224 right now? It is, it was a lot of fun, though, going over, what, the first 103 picks with you guys. Yeah, yeah, yeah. But no, very happy to be here. It's been a very fun week, and this is going to be a great way to cap it off. So a little combo here. We're going to talk about some of the picks that happened today, some of our favorite moments of today, your guys' favorite moments of today, but also use this as a way to look at the draft as a whole, some of our favorite classes, favorite picks, favorite moments. But let's start with kind of the newsier items from today that maybe weren't about specific picks. The Eagles trade for DeAndre Swift. They give up, I believe, a 2025 fourth round pick to do it.

We assume this was probably coming after the Lions drafted Jamir gives with the 12th pick. Obviously, they signed David Montgomery Industry Agency. So this is the other shoe we were waiting to fall with the Lions running back room. Yeah. And after Miles Sanders left for Carolina, you know, Eagles ended up taking a flyer on Rashad Penny, but it was kind of felt always like, hey, maybe they need another guy in there. They have Gainwell and they have Boston Scott. They also re-signed him. But they kind of flopped out one runnerback that likes to bounce and doesn't have the greatest vision with another

runnerback that likes to bounce everything, it doesn't have the greatest vision. I actually was going to say DeAndre Swift is kind of like the Jimmy G, I guess, or maybe the Jared Gough of running backs now where he just keeps getting into these great situations. He goes from the Lions-O-Line and now goes to the Eagles offensive line. So, like, good for him. But this may have a total sense. as far as what's shaking out with the lines, of course, kind of the writings on the wall, signing Montgomery, drafting Jamir Gibbs and the top at pick 12. It's kind of, yeah, it seems like running back three is going to get squeezed out. The idea that they were going to take Bejan Robinson, Dane was always a little bit silly to me.

I never assumed they would take him that high based on this organization and the things that they value. So instead of taking a running back with a 10th overall pick, they spend pretty much a combined $3 million against the cap and a 2025 fourth round pick to get Rashad Penny and D'Andre Swift to try to piece this thing together. Yeah, and I can just imagine them kind of going through, who played at Georgia? Let's see. Isaiah wins out there. Maybe we go, yeah, he can like that. Lorenzo Carter, DeAndre Swift, kind of matches up. We like this. So what do smart GMs do when they, you're following the draft? Oh, that's interesting. I wonder if this guy's available. When a team, because teams tell on themselves, when they draft certain positions that tells you

what they think at the depth chart currently. And when that pick was made, made by the Lions, a couple calls were made to Detroit saying, hmm, what would it take? And so give credit to Howie Roseman in the front office for getting a deal done. And, you know, he's, DeAndre Swift's a Philadelphia native. It's a, you know, great chance for him before he hits for agency to remind people why he was an early second round pick. A lot of people thought he was the best running back in the draft that year, 2020. And that was the draft with Jonathan Taylor and J.K. Dobbins, Clyde Edwards-Hillard. So, yeah, this is still a player with talent, but the Lions front office, not the one that drafted

him. So this is a good second chance for him to remind people how good he is. I think both him and Rashad Penny having trouble staying healthy, but when you take two kind of low-risk swings on these guys, you hope that we add that explosive element to the offense if one of them stays healthy. So I completely understand. I get the bets. Dan, you made the joke about Georgia.

their other big move today, Philadelphia, probably one of the biggest swings, the biggest swing in the fourth round. They trade a 2024 third round pick to move back up in the fourth round and draft Kili Ringo, whose slide ends with Philadelphia nabbing him early on day three.

And you can bet that's hard to do. It's hard to give up future picks in the top three rounds, especially when we're talking about a fourth round pick. So that was painful for the Eagles to do that, but they saw a player falling who, you know, we thought would go top 50. Even if you didn't love Keely Ringo, the traits, you're going to bet on those. Usually those guys go early, especially at a corner position. Cornerback is a stopwatch position.

But he is a better prospect, a better, you know, more of a toolsy guy than a complete player at this point. But, man, roll the dice on him. I love the fit at this point in the draft. The value is tremendous, even if it did cost the next year's third. So I was told there's nothing medical. It's not like that situation where he was off boards because of a knee or a shoulder or anything like that. It was simply teams were not wowed by the football player. And so, but for the Eagles, love the value.

You see so many traitsy guys that go high in the draft. And especially like you said, the cornerback position is a stopwatch position. I love that phrase is that he has the traits that guys take swings on at all time, guys being teams. So it was very curious to me Some people were sneaking him into the back half of the first round And way near the end And I viewed him kind of more like you said A top 50 player more like a middle second rounder

Early second rounder So I was like okay somebody will take a chance I'm like at least a third round And then you see other corners going off the board So really interesting slide And yeah it's kind of You sacrifice a little bit in the future Because it's just I think the ego's right

All right come on there's not many opportunities like this Especially on day three Yeah it's a dice role He doesn't have to play right away You still have Darius Slay still have James Bradbury You can have a slower development plan for him. And it seems like that's the way the Eagles have gone with a lot of these picks. It's just contingency plans where they're trying to fortify certain positions.

I think one of the other storylines here on day three, just the run on quarterbacks, you know, potential backup quarterbacks. Dana, you threw out a number. I mean, this is the most that we've seen go in the top 50 ever? 150. 150. Yes. Yes.

And I think there's, this is a draft where it could have been a lot stronger at the position if guys like Bo Nicks and I mean there's a handful of quarterbacks that we thought could be part of this class that ended up going back to school. And part of that's NIL, part of it's, you know, there's a couple moving parts there, but this quarterback class was not hurt that much. And we still might see another quarterback or two come off the board at this point. But even some quarterbacks, we didn't think we're going to go. Like Sean Clifford. I mean, I think the only people more surprised than us were the Penn State fans that watched them in the last four years. So, look, part of this has to do with, I think, the quarterback contracts and teams just looking to get cheaper on the depth chart at the position.

You know, they're not, it's not realistic to think you're going to fall into a Tom Brady situation. Your sixth rounder is going to become a starter, but you can at least find functional quarterback play on day three. And, you know, take the Browns, for example. They have, obviously their starter in Deshawn Watson, their backups right now, Joshua Dobbs, Kellyn Monde. you drafted Dorian Thompson Robinson and maybe starting next year that's your backup and you can move on from those guys and you have a cheap backup option for the next three years. So I think that's how a lot of teams are looking at this. It's not so much. If we hit, he could be, you know, the starter force, it's more let's just get cheaper at the position.

Let's find someone that, you know, we feel is going to help our quarterback room. Yeah. And we look at when we talk about rookie quarterback contracts, we're always talking about just starters. But even the backups. This is a way to save yourself five. million to $8 million. That's kind of the going rate for maybe the high-end backups. So that's what you're paying, I mean, less than a million dollars a year for some of these guys.

So I think that's exactly where it goes. And it's also, like you said, you're just taking dice rolls in position. You never know. You just never know. And if you have a guy that has some trades, has some tools, and it's not the worst bet to make at that position, which is such a valuable position. It's much better. You know, there's always the Peyton Manning line and Tom Morland. Oh, we don't practice, effed.

You know, we don't do that. but it's nice when you maybe have some insurance with a guy you actually like, maybe not that backup that you signed off the street, some practice squad guy. It's some guy that you actually are invested in. And that's really important what you said, the value of the position. Quarterback two on the roster is way more valued by teams than it is by fans. And I think if you're just going to rank the positions, quarterback two is going to be a lot higher than you think.

It's going to be higher than some starting positions with a lot of organizations in the way they think. So, yeah. You look at grading scales and like guys that are like some grading skills for teams. It's high and backup potential to be a starter. It's just as value of some like starters. Like some like equivalent starters at those positions or you know, maybe like the third receiver at the time or something of that sort.

Like just it's something that I think is, it's an interesting kind of always discussion. Like a guy like a Jay Canner or even for me, I really like Tanner McKee out of Stanford is these guys that I was like, oh, I have a third fourth round grade on it. And people are like, well, guys that get drafted. then they're screw, they're never going to start. It's like, that's not the point. It's more about having that potential of a high-end backup that maybe you can have as a spot started.

That's more the point of it because it is such a value. Those guys are going to have to be on the field. You can't sub them inside and out or in and out and rotate quarterbacks. It's just the insurance with, again, a guy that you kind of like or you think there's something to develop. Look, the guys who signed as backups this off season, somebody like Mike White, who signed for $4 million a year. You're drafted in the middle of the fourth round.

You're making a million bucks a year against the cap. So if that's how you find your backup, and that's millions. of dollars that you're saving on that position. Jared Stidham. Two years, ten million. It's another good example. Case Keenham and Houston. Case Keenham, yep.

Jared Stedham when I'm, I didn't use that example because part of me thinks that he's a breaking case of emergency. We just want to ship Ross out of here. We can start Jared Stidham. But Mike White, I think, is, I guess Mike White's kind of a high-end backup. You think the same thing. He could start two against her. But again, these are backup quarterback signing for that amount of money.

We talk about money and saving money or surplus or whatever term you want to use. And it's like, but that's $5 million right there. That's like when, oh, we so-and-so got overpaid at tackle by $4 million, we freak out. Christian Kirk and overpaid by. Exactly. It's the same equivalent. I mean, that's how you have to look at. Also, $4 million a year is a stopgap interior offensive line starter in free agency.

That stuff does add up over time. It does. Nate, of all the guys, your fourth, fifth, sixth round quarterbacks that went, any fit, any kind of team match that you feel particularly is intriguing. I love the Jake Hainer to the Saints. I really do. I love the player. He's very high football IQ.

he's tough as I'll get out. Jayhater from Fresno State. I'm sorry, yes. We're back now. Now that we're up to the top 100. I think this is where it's starting to throw out. And these guys aren't scrolling across the screen as we're doing a live stream. Yeah.

So, no, Jake Hainter for Fresno State. He's been there for a while, transferred kind of back and forth with Washington. Undersize, been banged up because he's so tough. But high, high football IQ handled all the pre-snap stuff, post-snap stuff, handles all high-end concepts, like advanced concepts. and knows kind of how to go through them. I'm a fan of his. Going to the Saints is interesting.

I think, Dane, you said, like, some people have compared him kind of mentally to Drew Brees. He's just kind of this undersized, smart, tough player. I'm not going to say he's not that tier, obviously. But I just like it. I think that's an interesting one. Backing up Derek Carr, you've got the Fresno State connection there now. So, but if you're going to take a chance on one of these guys,

I think that's a fun one. It's the other one that stood out to me, Aidan O'Connell, to the Raiders. You think about Jimmy Garoppolo and Brian Hoyer, not maybe two guys that you can learn from but also you might have a chance to go on the field this year and you know with uh... he's very accurate he's very smart very mature not the most mobile guy and that's kind of the knock on him that's why we're looking at him is it back up maybe a spot starter but i think he goes to a situation where he's going to learn

and has a chance to get on the field at some point and that's such a it's i know it's the raiders but it's such a patriot's qv just like the classic more pocket pastor type but i agree I saw him at Shrine Week and I've watched a few games from this season on film. And, yeah, accurate, big, statuesque quarterback, complimentary and derogatory, statuess type of quarterback. One more late-round quarterback kind of headline here. Stets and Bennett goes in the fourth round to the Rams Dane. Earlier than you thought, about where you expected, what did you think of the Stets and Benefic? Earlier than I thought, just because he was off so many boards.

You know, he's just enough for everybody quarterback. You love the toughness that he brings to the position. You look at the resume. You can't argue against it. What he did at Georgia, back-to-back national titles. He played in four college football playoff games. He was the MVP of four college football games. He has a lot of what you want,

just not quite in the body type that you want, and you have to be able to trust a guy that you're going to be on your quarterback depth chart, and you can't always trust him. And so there's some things working against him, but if you trust the tape, you trust the mentality that he brings, you know,

he always feels like the underdog, and that's when he thrives. So, you know, I think he'll obviously bring that with him as a fourth round pick to the Rams, and, you know, we'll see how it pans out, but a little bit earlier than I thought he'd go.

Yeah, a few rounds earlier. I thought, yeah, you'd probably be an undrafted guy or maybe a late seventh-round flyer type. He might get the Brock Purdy tab. But it's, that's exactly. but he's a gamer. That's like the compliment I can give him. But, you know, he just abrasive.

That's kind of, I think, his personality. And I was surprised that maybe that type of personality in that frame, somebody would take a chance of him, not only just drafting him, but in the fourth round. That just was a little rich for me. Maybe the brief Baker-Mayfield experience for Sean McVeigh, this season made a little more open to the idea of Setson Bennett. I love the chip on the shoulder QB.

He's like, yeah, this is it. This is what I like. Yeah. All right, let's talk about some of your favorite picks from day three here, Dane, just the ones that really kind of made you perk up on the third day of the draft. Definitely a few of those because there was some talent that fell. One of my favorites, Clark Phillips, the corner from Utah, going to the Atlanta Falcons. Not the biggest.

He's 5-9, 185. He ran in the 4-5s, slow 4-5s at the 40-yard dash. He's not big and he's not fast, but he's a good football player. And so I think you look at that, we thought maybe the Falcons would, invest in the position maybe earlier. They do it here. Casey Hayward no longer on the roster. They bring in Jeff Okuda, but, you know, obviously that's not someone that you're

necessarily banking on as a long-term option. And, you know, you have possibly a guy that can step in and win the nickel job from day one and give you a quality player here in the fourth round. So that's one I really liked. Yeah, one for me in the fourth round. Real quick, I'm just talking about Phillips, they also signed Mike Hughes and free agency. So I think that across from AJ Terrell, can we piece together that position, similar to what the Lions tried to do last year, with Jeff Okuda and Mike Hughes? And then can Clark Phillips step in right away and be your nickel because Isaiah Oliver is in San Francisco now?

So, you know, it's not the sexiest plan for those three spots overall, but I think trying to make sure, all right, do we have enough bodies to try to piece these three spots together? That seems to be the Falcon style process here. It's basically a potential starter. Yeah. I mean, it really is. The guy who's going to be on the field to hold. lot trying and it's going to be around the ball a whole lot what he got for me name oh yes they jumped the gun on it i'm going to go with a safety j ward from lSU going to the viking's in the

fourth round uh another shrine guy versatile player has experience playing in the slot um really ton of fun i just like this fit with the vikings because of brian for his defense just picture all those kind of mixture guys that the patriots have used all over the years those kind of hybrid easy even like what tivan holland was when they early on his time in miami absolutely and so i think j award can be that. And I like where he went. This is very fair, I think. And yeah, but I really like that fit as far as, like, schematic wise. Can I give you a few more? I was going to ask you for a few more. Okay, good. Chase Brown, Illinois running back going to the Bengals in the fifth round, we thought the Bengals, even as early as the second round, could go with a running back. You know, and maybe if

a Zach Sharbonnet would fall to them in the late second, maybe they do go in that direction. They wait until the fifth. They get Chase Brown, who, one of the most productive running backs in college football last year. Undersized a little bit, five, nine and a half, 210 pounds, but he has speed, explosiveness. He catches the ball well at the backfield. Love his vision.

He just, it's gotten better and better. And the more you watch him, you really appreciate his game. So you look at that Bengals depth chart with no more Samajai P. Ryan. Joe Mixing at the top, we're not sure what his future is going to be with that organization. After that, you know, Evans, Trayvion Williams,

I mean, there's some players there, If Chase Brown ends up coming out of this year, this season as being the starter for this team, I wouldn't be totally shocking. I like that one too because also just pass protection third down stuff. He can do it. That's exactly where he's going. That's what they needed with P.R.I. I'm gone.

Absolutely. That's the biggest glare need. The safety net that P. Ryan provided you, I think, on multiple different levels within that offense, that's what needed replacing. Absolutely. By the way, I said triumphal with J. Word. I meant senior bowl. S. Bowl.

Espo, Espo, college all-star game. That's what I actually meant. I have another kind of, kind of a couple backs that went on day three. I also like, I like Rochon Johnson's,

the Bears. Yes. In the fourth round, kind of similar role, I actually compared him to P-Ride, which is kind of funny, but he was going to the Bears. I really like this,

just a good football player, just a team-first guy. It's going to play teams for, he does pass protections, just third down. It's good in every type of run scheme. Just a solid back. I had him rated pretty high.

I mean, not that. round higher, a third round grade on him. So not that crazy, but really like him. And Evan Holt to the Colts in the fifth round, kind of as, again, as the pass protection third down, passing game back, really good on screens. He didn't play to his testing numbers. He tested way better. Dana and I talked about this than he plays like. But good hands. He's smart, obviously being a Northwestern guy, but he shows on film and protection and stuff. Solid vision, I would say, but not overly explosive. but I really like that role.

He's kind of replacing Naheem Hines a couple years later after they got rid of them or a year later. That role, not the same type of route runner, but that type of role. A team that was looking for a number three that is a good pass catcher and kind of a speedy back. I mean, he was going to fit in perfectly. And John and Taylor, Zach Moss,

and now with Evan Hall, yeah, I agree with you. Love the fit. One more from me. CitySalle, the Eastern Michigan Guard, going to New England. Guards not a glaring need on that team when you look at it. I don't think he's necessarily going to be competing for a starting job with Cole Strange.

Assuming Michael Onwenu, a big guard tackle, assuming they're keeping me inside a guard, but maybe you try him or push him to tackle and Citi Sow can move into inside the guard and have a starting job. So that's a possibility. Last year's contract. He will be a free agent after this season. And based on the way that he has played, there's a chance that he gets a decent looking for agency.

And good teams always are drafting for the future. and I think City South definitely qualifies for that as a guy here in the day three that has some starting potential. And a team like New England, not surprised. That's where he ended up. Jamie Robinson to the Panthers really like that one as well. Undersized. He's kind of the fourth, fifth round version of Brian Branch, where he's 190 pounds. He's a four or five athlete, but quick reaction.

The tape is awesome. So, you know, you have to look past the measurables that you don't usually draft at those positions, but you really like the football player and obviously the value at this point in the draft, you take that chance all day long. I'm going to throw two more in there. Puka Nakuwa going to the Rams in the fifth round. Just stay healthy.

Just stay healthy. Has some Christian Watson to his game, I would say. That might be my closest comparison. Maybe just because they used them on jet sweeps and I'm not very original with my thoughts. But yeah, it has a chance to be a vertical guy, which they've needed. They need some juice.

Yeah, but it has to stay healthy. And I actually have a seventh-round fit. I actually like was Dewey McBride from UAB going to the Vikings in the seventh round. And just because he doesn't catch, my kind of, I guess my pro comparison firm would be like 80% of Alfred Morris, kind of like a zone runner, like kind of Mr. brutally efficient. But I think in that type of run scheme that the Vikings like to do, all the under center stuff, it's an easy transition for him. I was a little lower on him, maybe in some of the consensus, but I did like that fit as far as

schematically, go to the Vikings. More career fumbles than catches. Not what you want. He has like five career catches. That's what Alfred Morris compares to him. But some of the most fun running back tape you'll watch because his contact balance is ridiculous. It's some of these where he's just bouncing off guys

makes no sense. Like it just this defies physics. How is he doing this? But, and there were some character stuff. That's why he went in the seventh and not the fourth because teams, I think, really liked the talent. But, no, I agree with you. I went to a good spot where you take that chance

and hopefully he can keep things under control, and he can be a good player for them. All right, let's take it a little bit wider. Beyond individual picks, your favorite haul from day three as a whole day? I didn't mention Rishon Johnson because I wanted to talk about Chicago as a whole. I knew it was coming.

And the other one in the fourth round, that's why I kind of... Yes, the other one... The other one, being Tyler Scott, one of my darlings from this group. Wide receiver from Cincinnati. Yes, who... could have gone mid-second.

I'd be like, yeah, makes sense. He's undersized. He's 180 pounds, former option running back in high school, but really came on this year as a route runner as a guy that can catch away from his body. He'll climb the ladder a little bit. But he's going to a situation where he won't be pressed in action. But when he does get on the field, teams will respect that speed. He's a 4-3 guy and fits what that offense wants to be with pushing the ball downfield

were Justin Fields. Darnel Moody, you know, Mooney, I mean, this might be, at least might be his final year in Chicago. He could be. He'll be a free agent next spring. It will be. Wasn't drafted by this regime. Right. It's not like he's lit the world on fire over the last two years. So that's definitely possible. They also drafted Terrell Smith, the corner from Minnesota, a size speed athlete, big time track guy.

Again, it's a stop watch position, bet on size and speed and see what you can mold them into. Noah Sewell, the younger brother of Penae Sewell. This is where he should have gone. Fifth round, you know, people talking about the top 100 pick. He was in first round Mawks at one point. This is where the tape says he should have gone. He's just a big physical thumper. You want him moving downhill.

Patriots linebacker time. Yeah, right. Think of Jolani Tavai, you know, those guys of guys. I put him on the edge where, you know, let him rush, let them work downhill, use some of that thumping power that he has. so I really like what the bears have done here today. For me, I kind of hinted at it, but I like it to the crowd. I like it a lot.

I like the Colts on day three. Blake Freeland for BYU. Those other team I wrote down. Yeah. Yeah. And I like them. Like a longer tackle, he's got to put a little weight in his legs. But it has some intriguing traits, but I think of a nice little project type that you take on day three.

You don't really see these type of dudes on day three at that position. And I'm going to try it. we go. Adi Tomawa, Adi Bara from Northwestern. I can't call him the Northwestern defense tackle, but he was getting a little, people were going a little crazy after the testing a little bit, and Dana and I have talked about this, but it's just, this is kind of more what his film kind of said. Fourth round tape. Yeah, fourth round tape. You see some flashes, you see some get-off when you can anticipate the Ohio State film was pretty interesting. We'll thump some guys, can beat up tight ends on the outside, but defense tackle will probably be his future. Gets a little. Gets a little. It's

to a lot of tackles but doesn't make them. He's a guy that's always like a step away, messing stuff. But in the fourth round, it has some traits and there's enough there. Will Mallory, I'm a little lower on, but not a bad package of traits. Again, this is the Colts I'm talking about. So traits is going to be the word. You're going to hear me say a lot. But take a chance.

I brought him up from Northwestern and running back. And then, Dan, you like the Titus Leo from Wagner inside a linebacker. But again, you're looking at late day three type of linebacker. But I just like that overall haul because these guys have a, enough tape. They're not just total ideas. Yeah, they're a bit idea-ish because of their traits, but enough film here that's like, okay, this is something that we can tap into.

Leo definitely has the traits. He's a speedy guy. He was a safety at one point, put on weight, played linebacker. Really, I see him more as an edge player at the next level. But he's a guy that was really productive, super productive at a lower level, at a lower level, but here in the sixth round, love rolling the dice on him. And going back to the fifth round, I love what they did in the fifth round. I love what they did in the fifth round.

You mentioned Will Mallory and Evan Hull, but they also got Darius Rush, the corner from South Carolina, who I thought was the better South Carolina corner coming out this year, better than Cam Smith. Rush was a high school quarterback, kind of a big fish in a small pond, you know, kind of guy, and goes to South Carolina, it takes a couple of years as he adjust the corner, because he was a receiver at one point, adjust the corner.

Big athlete, outstanding speed. At the senior bowl, he was running routes for the receivers, and it was great to see it. on tape. And so Rush really ruined me throughout the process. Then Daniel Scott, safety from Cal, who they're going to love the special teams aspect that he brings. You know, he can play the post.

He can play not really a nickel, but he can at least walk down on the box and maybe cover some tight ends. And so with Daniel Scott, I think you have a versatile fifth round safety who is going to give you those reps on special teams that you're looking for. Obviously, the Anthony Richardson thing steals the headlines, but this is a very

traditional cults draft outside of drafting quarterback in the top five. To move back to get Julius Brent's. They move back twice in the second round. They pick up an extra fourth and an extra fifth. They're going to make a dozen picks by the time this day is over, which you would come to expect from them. Yes. Relative athletic score for the Colts draft picks over the course of the last three days. Anthony Richardson, 10 out of 10. Julius Brent's 9.99. Adabuari 9.72. Blake Freeland 9.83. Darius Rush, 9.8. Daniel Scott, 9.94. Will Mallory 9.05, Evan hole 9.3.

Wow. Just athletes. Athletes, athletes, athlete at every single position over the last three days. I imagine Titus Lito had to, Leo, had to have been close. I did not have his in front of me. Okay, yeah. So, I mean, it really follows the model that they've been looking for. And, you know, even a guy like Josh Downs, he doesn't have that blazing speed that you

think of for an undersized receiver, but he's so quick. And so, you know, I think that's, with what they already have, he was a great fit for what they're doing. If you're going to make an exception, it's like this makes a total sense. It's not like they had built. It's not like the Cardinals of the last couple years where it's like small, small, small. We're done it to see. Yeah.

It's complimentary. It is. It is. That one made a total sense for where the cults are, especially with their receiving room. All right. Let's move outside of just today and talk about the draft in general. Okay. Your favorite draft, knee-jerk reaction, Dan Bruegler, hit me.

I mean, we've got to start with the Eagles, in my opinion. I mean, just what they've done with Jalen Carter and the Nolan Smith, the all Georgia first round. And then, I mean, we already talked about what they did today with Keeley Ringo and, you know, picking up to Andre Swift, which I won't make Swift part of this. You know, he's kind of separate. But going back to last night what they did with Tyler Steen and Sidney Brown, you're getting a tackle guard, someone that can win that right guard job in camp and then

be your long-term right tackle after Lane Johnson moves on. You have Sidney Brown, who's going to be a core special teamer and a set of safety, depth chart that is, you know, they're piecing together right now. They had a lot of people leave, you know, read Blinkinship, they're banking on, bringing Terrell Edmonds. So I think Sidney Brown's a guy is going to have a chance to earn a role pretty quickly. And then they added Tanner McKee, who, you know, it's a role of the dice at the quarterback in the six rounds. So really like top to bottom with, with the assets they had. They've, I mean, obviously it starts with the first round with those two Georgia players,

maximize what the opportunity they had and they went for it. And so I really like the strategy they have. I would say continuing the day three thought, I did like with the Bears Day on Day 1 with Darnell Wright and Dexter and Pickens. But I'm going to go with the Packers. They were my number two. Yeah, trades, trades, which shouldn't surprise anyone. But Lucas

Van Ness, Luke Musgrave, and Tucker Craft, and Jane Reed, actually all their day one and day two picks are guys that I was personally a fan of. So it's kind of easy for me to go, yeah, this is great. I'm not going to talk about Sean Clifford. So we'll ignore that. Okay. But all the other guys, man, I really like the tight ends. Must grade from Oregon State, Tucker

Kraft from South Dakota State, said this on the live show. These are two guys. I think it's the same boat. Very bullish on both of them long term, and they got both of them. The upside is why. I really big fan of both of those guys. Jane Reed, I think it's just a good, good receiver. He broke the 195 rule, and I got a couple of people hit me up on Twitter, and they said, oh, no, he actually said he's at 195 now. The Packers probably got to him, so it's like, okay, that made me feel better that they hit it. Van Ness on Bullish, as well. But also in the sixth round they had Carl Brooks from Bowling Green. Defensive tackle has some traits, a quick mover kind of gap shooter type.

And I know teams are fan of him and I kind of got to watch him late. But yeah, I like that as a kind of a day three stab. And would it surprise you if either one of those tight ends ended up being the best tight end from this class? Absolutely not. I mean, they both have that in him and them to be, have that type of ceiling. So yeah, I love what they did. I also wanted to mention Buffalo. It was one of my. favorite draft classes as a whole. We talked about Dalton Kincaid and what that means for that offense, the impact he can make right away. That's a lot of fun. Then you come back in the second, you add Osiris Torrance, plug and play a guard. You add Dorian Williams, the Tulane linebacker,

long, speedy, young player still learning, but this is the guy you want to bring to your competition and develop him and you know, love the fit there. And today they added Justin shorter, the oversized receiver who, former five-star guy, you want more out of him, but there's not many guys walking down the street that look like Justin Shorter. And then Nick Broker here in the seventh round,

Ole Miss, who's a left tackle, they move inside the guard, just more offensive line depth, which obviously they need. Broker's a guy that doesn't have a very high ceiling, but I think you know what you're getting. He's going to be able to come in

and really help that depth right away. And then I'm going to give an honorable mention real quick. Low-key the Giants. Deonti Banks made a lot of, sense in the first round corner from Maryland. They need that. John Michael Schmitz, the center from Minnesota, Jalen Hyatt, kind of giving them a different type of receiver in the room. And Eric Gray at running back, I think is a nice piece too. So that's kind of like my honorable mention. Wanted to mention one team, not even what they did in the draft, the guys they got,

but just the strategy overall that kind of made me perk up was the Cardinals. To come away from this draft with an extra first round pick next year and two extra third round picks next year without a quarterback trade that had to happen. And then they moved back up to six for Paris Johnson. If you look at certain charts, they gave away 33 to do it, but they got back 81. If you look at the Fitzgerald-Sperberger chart on over the cap, moving from 33 to 81, it's equivalent of a fifth-round pick on that chart. And then they gave an additional fifth-round pick.

So two fifth-round picks to move back up from 12 to six and get probably the best tackle in the draft. So I think everything the Cardinals did just in terms of mindset and approach, who knows the players and how they'll work out, I appreciate it. on where they are as a franchise. So we actually have a category coming up here. Drafts that made you go, ooh, and you guys just stole both of mine. The Giants and the Cardinals.

He stole mine. I had the bills. There you go. But yeah, with Arizona, just look at the picks they have next year. They have two firsts, which they might be both top ten picks, one second, three threes, two fours, two fives, and a seventh. So they are equipped to, and, you know, we'll see what they can turn that into. not just the players, but adding picks for the next year in 2025. And, you know, if they want to trade one of those fifths for a player, a veteran, you know, they can do that.

They have options. And that's exactly what that team needs. They weren't lying to themselves. You know, they weren't going to hit this ground around. No, they're like, no, this is. They weren't the Raiders last year. Yeah, exactly. They, no, they're like, this is a rebuild.

And so they went about the right way. And they started the draft doing that. They started the draft hot doing that with that first trade with the Texans. So it was a good weekend. And I think just also the players they added. Yeah. The tackle, obviously, with Paris Johnson in the top 10, but then on day two with BGA Audrey Larry,

who I thought one of the better pass rushers this year, a great character guy that you're going to build around. Garrett Williams, the corner out of Syracuse, such as a, you have a discount on him because of the ACL injury. Michael Wilson has injury stuff himself, but if he hits, high character, a lot of talent. Then here today with John Gaines, Clayton, two, the quarterback from Houston,

who, you know, that quarterback situation, you know, Colt McCoy is still there. David Blow, I believe, is still there, but you add another piece to the mix for competition until Kyler's ready to come back. Ketrell Clark? Yeah, Keytrell, is that what is? Undersized, but really feisty nickel

gets his hands on some footballs. Easy player to like. If he was bigger, he had gone way higher. He's a lot of fun to watch. Owen Pepo, a freak at linebacker. He struggles to take on blocks, but when he has a clear lane, he has four-three speed, and he's really, really strong. So he is a freak, and then their final pick,

Dante Stills at West Virginia, inside, outside versatility. Another, again, we kind of, we're teasing those Cardinals because of the depth chart and that defensive line was so sparse and names that we just, you know, don't recognize.

Well, they added, they made some upgrades there, and Dante Stills, even the six. I think that's a good ad for this team. There's a potential if they're one of the worst teams in the league, which they might be. Their pick could be in the top three, and who knows,

how good the Texans are going to be. The Texans are probably going to be pretty rough this season. There's a chance they have two picks in the top five, the top seven. It's nice owning the first round pick of a team with a rookie quarterback. It certainly is. It's pretty far away. And, Nate, we were talking about this last night. Let's say they land the number one pick in the draft.

And it's Caleb Williams. You can trade Kyle Murray after this season. If you trade him as a pre-June first trade. You should see this is what me and Robert do. After the draft show, after we spent four and a half hours talking football, almost five hours. in a row. We go to a bar, I have a drink, and as we're sitting there, we start going over Kyler Murray's contract language, and we're looking at bonuses, and we're doing it straight-faced.

This was not like to. So I just want to know people, this is a 24-7 gig that we do here. It's 46 million in dead money, if it's before June 1st. If it's after June 1st, it's only 13 million in 20-24. So you get potentially, if Kayla Williams, you can move on from Kyle Murray, if that's how it all falls. And let's say they're another top five pick, and drop up Marvin Harrison, Jr. here they're into the equation and you're rolling. Maybe you got Stu going. You're one year removed from being this abject disaster roster-wise and now suddenly things are turning around in a big, big hurry

potentially for Arizona. All right, do we want to do the drafts that made you go ooh or do you want to do the favorite fits first? A pick that made me go ooh, the Colchester's drafted Jake Witt. Out of Northern Michigan. Your guy. My guy. Awesome story.

He was a basketball player at Michigan Tech. He gives up basketball. And he's just a student. And then he says, you know, I got that itch again. And he only played two years of high school football, and that was eight-man football, up in Northern Michigan. And he goes to Northern Michigan. He's a tight end.

Towards the end of his junior year, he sees the coaches coming towards him at halftime with the number 65 jersey. He's like, hmm, this isn't good. And with zero experience, he goes the offensive line, never played before in his life. And so he's got about 13 games under his belt at left tackle. But this is a freaky dude. 300 pounds, ran the 4-8s. The vertical is like 37. I mean, it's crazy.

So this is a traits player, no surprise. Chris Ballard goes after him. This is seventh round. These is the type of dirt throws you want. So this fits what the cold to do. And I think they got a heck of a project here. I'm really interested to watch how this plays out. The only reason I know Northern Michigan is because they had a okay hockey program,

pretty decent hockey program in the late 80s, early 90s. They scored a lot of goals. I think they won the championship. So sorry. that's my recognition of Northern Michigan. All right, Daniel, we stole two of yours. Any other drafts that just made you go, ooh, all right.

Not necessarily your favorites for value, but just the ones that you feel excited by. Yeah, you know, I think the Giants I definitely thought because of John Michael Schmidt's, the Center, I've been mocking that for a while. It's just a perfect fit with what they need and just the mentality that I mean,

I just love that fit. So the Lions are a team. It's like a love-hate thing, this draft class. right? Like you love Jemir Gibbs. Don't necessarily love the value at where they drafted him. Jack Campbell, you love the player, but again, the value, you can talk about that.

But then they get, on day two, you get a guy like Brian Branch. And you love that fit and what that means. Henan Hooker, like, really? We're going to mock this guy in the first round? Like, I don't, but okay, but they get him in the early third. Okay, you know what? I like that. And I'll hold it off on talking about Sam LaPorte. We'll talk about him here more in a little bit.

So I think that Lions draft classes, it's so interesting with just the way they went about it. Brad Holmes doesn't care about what anybody else thinks, and that's great. That's how your GM should think. But, you know, the draft's still about value, so it's worth talking about. And it does make you go, you know,

make some different emotion or make you feel different things when you look at it. So let's say we, Colton Pouncey, our lines writer at the Athletic, he tweeted this yesterday, and I think it's an interesting thought exercise. So let's say we change the order of the players. Yeah.

Let's say they get Brian Branch at 12, Jamir Gibbs at 18, Jack Campbell with their first pick in the second round, Hendon Hooker with a pick after that, and then Sam Laporta. How do you feel about the Lions draft event? That's it. I mean, it's funny how when you move things around, it's like, hmm, okay, you know, I can get around that. And if you, a week ago, if you mocked that, you know,

I think you, you know, Lions fans have been like, okay, yeah, like that. That fits, you know, hitting a lot of what we're, maybe not, you know, obviously, I don't think they saw them going running back so early, but. They'd be like, we got Henan Hooker on day two? Yeah, yeah, they were fired up. Oh, the two Iowa player? Yeah, no, that's exactly. It fits what, you know, Coach Campbell wants.

Yeah, so it makes sense. Nate, the draft that made you go, ooh. Yeah, Bill's was one. I just really just their top two picks because I think that's a, I don't say a full-on potential signal of a philosophy change, but as a ways to pivot on offense with Osiris Torrance and Dalton Kincaid. But it's just something that it did crop up late in the season against the Bengals where they hit a rut as an offense.

and I just think this offseason, they're reconfiguring it a little bit where they just have the ability to pivot. Another team, though, is the Falcons. This is not only just the Bijon Robinson, I'll save this for a longer discussion down the road, but I can't wait for this offense. And just the, it used to be the island of misfit toys. Now it's truly the positionless players. That's sometimes when you get these tweeners or guys that are versatile or something of that sort, when you get them all together, it's pretty sweet.

it's the switching wings of basketball on defense. Like, I'm beyond excited for this offense. And Bijon, I think, is that true cherry on top because of what he, it's not theory, what he, or just an idea. He's a true, true, true good receiver. He's a true, true, true, top tier, one of the most fun players to watch, an amazing running back, hitting holes, tempo. He's the complete package.

Arthur Smith yesterday at their press conference talking about Bijon Robinson, almost dismissed the idea even having to address him as a running back. You're just like, well, that stuff is obvious. I don't need to talk about that. It was the stuff he can do out of the slot that starts to make it get you really intrigued about his potential, specifically in that offense, where there is that positionless mindset. The best comparison I've seen for him was Ricky Waters, and I kind of was just somebody threw that out on Twitter.

I was like, yeah, like, I see that a little bit. It's a spin move and everything. We've talked about Jamir Gibbs being, and, you know, he's got the Alvin Camara comparisons and stuff. Bejohn has that receiving ability, too. that's what makes them such a special package. But also their second round pack, Matthew Bergeron, he's gotten so much name-matched this past week from Syracuse.

He was a tackle there, but he has true, true, his best side, or best upside might be at guard. Having that tackle versatility as well, but I think that's a zone guard with some tenacity, he's smart. He also just, I mean, just good hands, just a lot. He's a fun package. I like the athleticism balance that he brings a table, and then Zach Harrison.

I just liked all that that they nailed. Home run swings. Yeah, it was just, it was good. It's just good players. It really, that's how I, best way I can sum it up. I want a special mention to the Steelers as well. That was going to be. Okay, I'm sorry.

I was about to throw up. That's okay. You want to go? I had two, and the Steelers were one of them. You know, they make the move up for Project Jones, thinking, you know, this is going to be the cliff at the position. We need to make sure that we get our starting offense attack a lot of this draft. So they go up and they make that move.

Then they get Joey Porter Jr. at the top of the second round. And even if there's a little consternation about some of the deficiencies in his game. A lot of intrigue. Cano Benton, we talked about on last night's show, Nate, you pointed out some of the kind of freaky traits he brings to the defensive line. And then, you know, they get an extra fourth round pick to move down 13 spots to get to Arnaw Washington. And, you know, he's the second tight end there.

He's not going to be miscast as somebody who needs to be this high volume receiver early on because they already have Pat Fryermuth. And then they go get Nate Herbig in the fourth round. So just a team that I don't know how it's going to work out, but definitely kind of made you stand up, sit up straight in your charge. chair. And then the other one for me was Seattle. You know, Devin Witherspoon with the fifth overall pick, and not a lot of people saw that coming. They clearly are incredibly excited about him. And then JSN. You know, this is really just

the first round of Seattle's draft that makes me feel this way. But those two guys and the makeup of what their roster already looked like, I cannot wait to see it. One other thing with the Steelers, they just drafted Corey Trice, cornerback from Purdue here in the seventh round. He was my last remaining top 100 player on my board. Wow. Okay. And he has, He's got a knee issue, and that's why he fell. That's an issue. But six three and a half, two hundred and six pounds. Big time athlete.

They got some length over the last couple days. Big time athlete. And so in the seventh round here, you know, based on what the medicals are, if it's, you know, he may only play one contract, whatever it is. You know, I'm speculating. I don't know. In the seventh round, yeah, take a chance on that. In a weird way, too, commanders.

Like, ooh, okay. Forbes in the first round, Gartavius Martin from Illinois, and then Ricky Stromberg. I think they got three starters. Not a bad first three rounds. So that was just one that Rick Strombergian is centered from Arkansas. But just three guys that I understood why they went with them and then they have a chance to play really early. I want to ask you one more guy that drafted in the seventh round here, Dane.

What do you think about Andrew Vore? He's going to the Ravens with a tournament-twite-neth pick. It was good to see. He's USC guard. He's the guy that tore his ACL at the Combine. You know, he probably would have went someone in the top four rounds, if not for that. but good that he was able to hear his name drafted.

You know, that's a tough thing. And give him credit the day after, because at the combine, you do all the on-field testing, then the next day you do the bench. Tours ACL one day, the next day he still did the bench, and he did the most at the combine. This is a player that is older. He's had his injury stuff in the past,

but, you know, he's ready to go in terms of his NFL mentality. It's just, okay, when's the injury going to be ready? And so to get him here on day three, he's obviously a draft and stash player. And when he's healthy, hopefully maybe towards the second half of this season, maybe he can get on the field. If not, you know, you have him for next year. And you have for three years on a rookie contract. So I'm not surprised he was drafted here later in the draft.

This is a team that has stockpiled those guards in the third, fourth round over the years. They've lost a lot of those guys. I mean, their guard depth chart does not look like we typically think with the Ravens. So they needed some depth at that position. So having a guy that they don't need to play right away but can bank on a little bit later, I think makes a lot of sense for that. Two other fits I wanted to mention here. Joe Tipman going to the Jets in the second round.

I think you look at that offensive line. They needed some help. They weren't able to get that guy in the first round. They come back with Joe Titman in the second round. Was a center only at Wisconsin, but I think with his size and ability, he can play guard. So I think realistically you have the interior line flexibility that they've been looking for. And then with Devon A chain, going to the Dolphins, speed, speed, speed. I just, I can't wait to see it happen.

I feel like I mock this into existence, and now, I mean, we're all going to benefit from it. All right, Nate, your favorite fits from all three days of the draft? Don't limit yourself. I have like 12. But I know, but I am going to put a governor on myself, but a chain was one of mine.

Actually, it was the first one I wrote down because I just speed, speed, speed, it's going to be so much fun. Burjuron was another one. I mentioned before, the Syracuse offensive liming, going to the Falcons in the second round. I really, I just want to emphasize. I just love, we laid it out on our show, on the live show,

was that I just love the potential plan for him as being, I think, a day one guard with potential to tackle in the long term, maybe, but also just scheme fit. Cedric Tillman to the Browns in the third round. One that I didn't picture in my head going into the weekend, and I really like that potential as a true X from that offense. I think it's going to be more vertical, and he fits right in for the other guys that they have there.

Oh, man, I got a few. I'm just going to try to limit myself here. Maisie Smith to the Cowboys in first round. Talked about this ad nauseum already, but love the difference of what his skill set is as being a true nose interior defense alignment with the rest of that defense, being run and hit kind of speed guys.

I think that's really nice. And I'll just give him one more here. I do like Skoronsky to the Titans, offensive line from Northwestern. Feels like we've forgotten about that. Yeah. The Levis pick and he was not. I really did like that.

I thought they knew. Leimond and what's his best spot? Doesn't matter. He's going to be their best offensive line at whether spot he ends up at. I just really liked it. And last one, Michael Barretted are ears. Sorry if I took any. All right. Your favorite moment of the drafting?

I think definitely the Jemir Gibbs when he was drafted, because that was truly the one where we had net, they didn't expect it. Even like Houston going up to get Willie Anderson. That was going to be mine. That was definitely a surprise. But it was something that we had talked about at some point where, you know, could they do this? You know, could they move back up and move around to get the quarterback, plus get that defensive stud? I don't, no one was talking about the lions taking our running back, especially Jamir Gibbs in the top 12 picks.

And so for that to actually happen, that was a lot of fun. And then my other favorite moment happened today with Deuce Fawn being drafted at the Cowboys. His dad, Chris Fawn being part of the front office there in Dallas. he's a long time assistant coach, especially the college ranks. And, you know, so do screw up around football, around all these different programs. Now he's with the Cowboys. And for, you know, I wondered how those draft meetings went. Like, did he have to leave the room that talked about a son?

Yeah, they said. They said, they would say that he had to leave the room when they ever talked about it. Because that's difficult, you know, it's hard to do that objectively. And, you know, it's, so for that, for that, for that, moment that happened. I mean, you can't recreate that for that family. So special. Both father and son. And so just really cool to see. Yeah,

we had, not we, but like when my dad was with the Vikings, they had a moment like that with Troy Walters, who was kind of a receiver returner from Stanford. And now the coach with the Bengals, my receiver coach with the Bengals, but his dad was a coach on the staff as well with the Vikings and they drafted him. That was a pretty cool moment. But for

me, it was kind of some funny ones, but the most tight end, the record for the most tight ends taking the first three rounds with nine, that just felt like a culmination of this whole year like talking about these tight ends I wrote an article on them like hey there's a lot of these guys and they broke the record which was really cool with nine

the former record was eight in 2019 2006 there's a moment happening with tight ends we're going to talk a lot about it I have a feeling this summer as we think about some trends around the league and just the way the physicians are being valued and being utilized it just

it feels like we're sitting in something right now at that position specifically open us to use them in different ways is really interesting in this class because it was such a deep class and I think they even went later and we thought because teams were willing to be patient because they knew, okay, if we don't get Michael Mayer here, we'll get Luke's screenmaker next round. So as opposed to if some of these guys were in last year's class, I think they would have went a lot higher.

Absolutely. Michael Mayer, I think, would have been a first rounder last year because you didn't feel good about waiting for, you know, your Dolchick in the second round or, you know, because it just was a down, tight end class last year. So it'll be interesting, you know, to your point, Robert, how moving forward, how we look at the tight-end position through the draft, and is this a trend that will continue? Yeah, especially ones that are just kind of talked about this last few weeks.

It's just the ones that are what we call F-only, the second tie-end, the H, the move-tied-down. The Joker, yeah, whatever you want to call on. But those guys and their versatility and coaches being more willing to use them in non-traditional ways, you look at Evan Ingram, of course, Travis Kelsey over the last few years, but there's just a lot of guys that, you know, Darren Waller, coaches are just getting used to not using them.

like they can't block a 280 pound DN. It's like, well, don't ask them to. All right. Let's just use their ability as a receiver. So I think the evolution of just the term pass catchers is going to be really cool to watch. And I want to be clear about this. We've had years where and stretches of the NFL where these guys have been high volume important pass catchers.

But those examples I'm thinking of specifically, Jimmy Graham for a stretch, what Grunk was in New England, what Travis Kelsey has been for Kansas City. that's when they're the primary receiver on their team. That's not what I mean. I mean how useful a tight end is as the second third receiver on your team compared to how we categorize wide receivers. That that, to me, is the shift that's happening. Not, man, tight ends are past catchers now.

We've done a lot of that. But I think that tiny little distinction is important to point out. I don't want people like screaming Jimmy Graham's name at me as they listen to this podcast. No, it's a secondary option. Yes. Think of Evan Ingram. There you go. Also just kickers, Jake Moody, ended the third round.

That was just a funny moment for us on the live show. It just was. It was a great change. They forced me to talk about kickers. It really forced me. It was fun. But that was just a personal moment, a highlight of the weekend.

The trader for Will Anderson is going to stick with me just because it's, I mean, it's incredibly bold. I don't know if I agree with it. I think the value of it is you can definitely argue against it, but to go get a quarterback at two and then to trade back to the third overall pick to get the best defensive player in the draft it, it signals a change. I think for the Texans and who they want to be

and how much of the conversation they want to be a part of. Yeah, it's fascinating. It'll be really interesting to track moving forward because when we do see trades like this, nobody wins right away. This isn't like the Texans win the trade, the Cardinals win the trade, you have to wait and see how it plays out with these picks.

I remember when the bills moved up for Sammy Watkins, which, you know, you made that pool the other day talking about that. and the Browns, oh, they got all these draft picks, and how'd the Browns use those draft picks? I mean, it just didn't work out for really either team. So it will be interesting moving forward how we look at this trade, how we grade it.

What type of, you know, what's the bar for Willie Anderson now? You know, does he have to be a Nick Bosa type of player in the NFL for this to actually make sense? I think the answer to that is yes. And it will be interesting to see how that evolves over time. It's a big swing, and we'll see how it works. out. The other guy we did not mention in the moment, but again, Nate and I were talking about him yesterday, Marcus Davenport was somebody that the Saints traded a future first round pick to move for Marcus Davenport. And he's had some nice moments, you know, when he's been on the field. But it's impossible to judge

Marcus Davenport's career without thinking, oh, they gave up an extra first round pick to move up and get him. So I think that always follows you around. Never forget when that happened in real time. And it's the middle of first round. They give a future one. I was like, oh, well, this has to be Lamar Jackson. this has to be. Why else you're giving up a future one to go up that high? Obviously, they want the next guy after Drew Breeze and nope, turns out to be a pass rusher. So, yeah, that's fascinating. One other moment I want to mention just now because this doesn't happen very often. You had your D-line slash running back just get drafted. Derek Parrish out of Houston who is, I mean, you want a guy with just that elite toughness, the football passion off the chubbleau.

tarts. It's this guy. He's an undersized edge rusher, six foot, 240 pounds, under 30 inch arms. So he actually, he at the Shrine game played running back, played a fullback position, and he'll just do whatever he can to get on the field. Special teams, so he goes to the Jaguars. He's like,

remember in lethal weapon and Mr. Joshua in that scene where it's like stick out your arm and he lights the lighter. Like, whatever Mr. Joshua wanted him to do, he was going to do it. So that's Derek Parrish. Whatever, you know, you want him to play special team? that's fine he'll do it you want to play defense fine offense he'll do whatever it takes and i'm not

going to bet against them i've seen a couple of these guys kind of kind of do this uh roosevelt nicks for the Steelers he was a like a former defense alignment at kent state and he actually think he made he did make a pro bowl but he was the he was the mac defensive player of the year and made the pro bowl as a fullback for the Steelers 2017 and then the giants had uh niquita whitlock yeah wake forest yeah who had one small nose small nose with one of the funniest tapes you'll ever see just like a dynamic like there were two gaping with him and he was like 511 240 pounds but again he stuck around for a little bit made a little career for himself with the giants yeah talking a lot about the guys that were drafted let's talk about some picks that didn't happen dane is there a team that

didn't meaningfully address a hole on their roster so that mean obviously that doesn't count like the seventh round let's say in the first four rounds um well i was going to talk about Cowboys running back. I'm surprised, I think if Kendrae Miller was on the board in a third round, maybe they would have went that route. But they did get Deuce Fawn here later, which, you know, I think maybe Deuce Fon's a space guy. And, you know, with Tony Pollard, is it kind of overlapping with what they do?

So that's an interesting fit. We'll see how they continue to build to that running back room. The Raiders, not, see, how many picks have they made? They have one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, not drafting an offensive line. Yeah, that's, that's all the line. picks. Yeah. And we don't have to stop it at the fourth round.

They had five picks, six picks in the top four rounds. Nine picks altogether. They did not draft a single offensive lineman. And when you think about that current state of that line, Colt Miller, that left tackle, that you feel good about him. Dylan Parham, they drafted in the top 100 last year. I think, you know, he's a promising interior offensive lineman guard or center. But after that, it's a lot of kind of crossing our fingers that this is going to work out.

So for the Raiders not to draft an offensive line, and that was a pretty big surprise. Raiders not taking the offensive line was my number one. Cowboys not taking a running back. Chargers are not going with another tight end. Of course, I'm just going to keep pounding the table for this. And the draft that was this loaded. Come on. This was a great opportunity for you guys.

Jaguars got there on day three, but left a little to be desired with how they helped their defense out. I thought that was kind of interesting. I am of the philosophy of you should build around your quarterback and the special franchise young guy like that. I wanted to do that last year. So it's kind of, they did it kind of sort of this year, but I thought now they have to help out their defense, even though it was so expensive last year.

The last one, just because I can't help myself, is the Rams were specialists. They took the wingate punter, but they still need a kicker and a long snapper and returners. So that's just another thing. Listen, they got one more pick to make before the end of this draft. Mr. Irrelevant. So they have the final pick.

Who's the next kicker and long snapper on your board? So maybe they look at them. The kickers are wiped out at this point, but we haven't seen a long snapper yet. So Alex Ward, UCF, maybe it could happen. Maybe it could happen. Can't rule it out. One other I wanted to mention, the Falcon's not adding a receiver in this class. I thought that's something that they might do.

Drake London, they'd sign Mack Collins. Scotty Miller. Yeah, I wasn't going to say it, but yeah, Scotty Miller. I mean, it's a lot of bodies, but I don't know who you're getting excited about. And you know what? obviously your draft are running back top 10. We know where this offense is shifting. And, you know, no offense to Desmond Ritter,

but obviously he is what he is as a quarterback. And, you know, we'll see how that, you know, tends to evolve over this year if it does. And Kyle Pitts, you hope we'll take that next step. But I thought that at some point, they might address the receiver position, just to add someone else to that mix. Homer pick for me. I mean, Tyree Wilson was getting mocked to the Bears in the top 10.

Lucas Van Ness had been thrown around as a possible option for them. They didn't draft an edge rusher. in this entire draft. So the four guys right now on the draft chart here, to Marcus Walker, they signed a free agency, Rishim Green,

they signed from Houston. Travis Gibson, who was a former fifth round pick, and then Dominic Robinson was a former fifth round pick. That's it. Those are your bear jazz rushers. So going from them potentially

taking one with the ninth overall pick to not drafting one at all is definitely a pivot. Bear down, oh no, there's no pun there. I was going to say bear down formation? No,

I'll work on it. We're workshoping that for the rest of the weekend. One more kind of bigger picture question about things that didn't happen or just some curiosity here, Dave. Anything over the course of the weekend that now you want more answers on, something you feel like you're going to be making some phone calls about in the next 24 hours or so because it left you a little bit perplexed. We mentioned the Keely Ringo thing, just making sure was he off boards because teams thought, okay, well, obviously he's going to go pretty high. He's going to go in the first two rounds. We don't like him as a football player, so he's not going to be. to make our board.

Was it a case of that? And so because he was off so many boards and then he falls, there's only so many teams that could go make a move for him like the Eagles did. I think that's interesting. The Juan Jones, the Ohio State right tackle. Still 21 years old. He's a young player. And what?

The maturity kind of matches that. He is a very young player. And teams were a little worried about the football passion. You know, does he a guy that consistently needs to be motivated? Can he keep his weight below 400 pounds? he had pretty good tape this year. But he is what he is. He's a big mover.

He's never going to be that light-footed, going to be able to recover and adjust. And, you know, he's just going to get in the way. And, you know, if he can do that on a consistent basis, he can start in this league at right tackle. There have been other examples of guys that size have been able to be able to do it. And so can he, you know, you made a great point, Robert,

with Coach Callahan. This is a project for him. Obviously, they don't make this pick without, you know, the coaching staff signing off on it. And this is someone they think they can motivate. And, you know, they, last year in the fourth round, they took a chance on Perry on Winfrey, Oklahoma defensive tackle, where there were similar questions about maturity.

And so far that has not worked out. It has backfired. He did not really cement himself as a reliable role player. Might not be able to roster next year. Exactly. And he had some off-field incident this past off-season. So they took a swing, didn't work. They did it here again in the fourth round.

We'll see how this one works out. Yeah, for me, It's like, it's nothing against the player or anything, but just why Emmanuel Forbes over Christian Gonzalez? And I like Forbes. I really do. I love his football IQ. I love his awareness.

And I get Christian Gonzalez is more of a finesse corner, I will say. And so maybe that's my answer right then and there, like why it happened. But that was just curious to me because I think Gonzalez just has some of those traits that are hard to teach and is kind of more fun clay to mold at that position, which is a lot about traits is that position that cornerback position again i do like forbes but that one i was just curious to me and this is just a personal pet peeve i'm not saying he should have been a second rounder i'm not even saying he should have been a third rounder the hell happened to et perry what what am i missing uh oh the first i talked to some teams and i was like hey i like this guy

you know it's kind of a third round type uh what what's what's what's what's what's what's the m o on them you know and a lot of them they're like oh you know i don't think he's going to run well. Okay. And then he tested really well. Four force. And an awesome broad jump as well. And okay, well, he's not very smart. It's like, Wake Forest. Okay. All right. Is that relative? So I don't know. I really don't know what the deal is with him. So, I mean, Dane might. But that one, I'm just, that's more of a personal kind of a curiosity. I think that offense. It just, I think it's scarce. People just scare them. Yeah. They scare him off. And, you know, because it's. Then the Stanford guide went, you know, Wilson.

Michael Wilson. Yeah. Right. Went. And that's a similar. type of offense. Yeah, I don't know. It was just a curious thing for me. Yeah. No, I was surprised by that too because, I mean, E.T. Perry, he's, he put up the production, too. It's not like he wasn't productive. He totaled 26 touchdowns the last two years. He has size, six, three and a half, 200 pounds. The play strength isn't there. I mean, he's, you worry about that with him. But he's not a deficient athlete. He has size. Yeah, I'm with you. I thought that he should have went much higher than he did. I'm wondering, what does the veteran trade market look like over the next few months after it was dead during this draft.

You think about how many guys removed last year. We haven't seen nearly that sort of activity. I mean, the biggest trade outside of DeAndre Swift going for a fourth round pick is Adam Troutman getting traded to the Broncos. Vast departure from where we were a year ago. And Marvin Mims gets drafted by the Broncos in the second round. What does that mean for Jerry Judy and Tim Patrick? Moni Austin Ford came out yesterday and said, you know, DeAndre Hopkins is a member of the

Cardinals? Is that just a ploy to let everyone know you're not going to trade pennies for the guy? like if you want them, you're actually going to have to pay for them. So what does that look like over the next two, three months before we get to training camp? Do we see some more of these trades? Or is it just going to be quiet this year? Yeah, that'll be really interesting. And one other I wanted to mention too was the why Sam Leporta over Michael Mayer with the Lions.

I mean, that was one that, I get it. Sam Leportta is a good player, but, you know, why? I just didn't make sense to me. I don't know. As much as I do like Sam Leport, I, I thought Michael Mayer is a much better player. Yeah, and continuing to tight ends. Well, I'll just roll with this one.

It was Brent Strange over Tucker Kraft. And Strange is fine. Like, not saying he's a bad player or anything, but it was, especially with how the Jaguar's makeup was, as far as that the position. Again, mentioning Evan Ingraham again for like the fourth time already on this podcast. It's funny. But he's, you know, a true F-only athlete.

And then you're taking kind of another guy that's an F-only off-ball tight end. It's just, you know, you don't always need that true why, but even a guy like Tucker Kraft that I think is much higher tiered than Strange is, that guy has upside as a why. Yes, he's a little bit more developmental, but it's like that's why he's developmental. That's why he's South Dakota State. You take chances on these types of guys with these types of traits. So that one was just really, really, really curious for me.

It felt like a panic move. Just in kind of, I think they missed out on a better player and also a better team fit for where they're at right now. Can I just tell you how excited I was when I was waiting from that text from you? I was reading from that text from anybody, to be honest with you. I love Tucker Kraft in the summer and how high I put him. And it's like, why is nobody talking about this guy? Like, come on. And then I get the text from Nate.

He's good. Yeah. He's really good. You can always count on him. Yes. So two-way tight add and excitement. You can always count on our guy over there. Not that I needed the validation or anything, but it was very good to get that text

for you to like, okay. I'm not taking crazy pills because there were some scouts that were giving him seventh round grades. I kid you not. And I'm just like, what are we doing here? This is a day two pick all day. And I mean, I'm glad to see where he went and how that's going to work out. He was, his pre-draft video was fun.

We were as he was getting drafted. Half of Timber Creek, South Dakota was there. So that was fun. And I made this joke to you guys that I think Tucker Craft is the first person in the world to go to Green Bay and go, oh my God, this is big city living. He's going from Timber Creek High School, 500 people in the town. I think it's a high school of like 50 kids. Timberlake, I'm sorry.

Timberlake, yes. And then goes to Brookings, South Dakota. You know, it's not the biggest city in the world, the biggest town in the world and go in the Green Bay. So it should be a good transition for him. But, yeah, again, very bullish on Tucker Craft. So I'm excited to see him in Green Bay. I forgot his name during the live draft show,

but it was kind of tumbling through my head trying to make the point about the Jags. Trey Burton and Zachertz played together on that 2017 Eagles team. So they had two guys that maybe weren't necessarily those traditional Y tight ends, and they played a lot of 12 personnel that year. Brent Selk was also in the mix, but we've seen an adjacent version of this in a Doug Peterson offense before. So that's just one thing I wanted to mention.

It's nice sometimes when you run a ton of RPO's, and this is what I talked about with Donald Kincaid going to the bills. When you run a ton of RPOs, Titan doesn't have the block. They're running routes. They're running flats and doing all the other stuff. So that is a way to kind of mitigate maybe some traditional weaknesses and not have a why. Before we get out of here, just pulling us out of the weeds a tiny bit. a lot of quarterbacks were drafted early in this draft.

And three teams drafted them in the top five to kind of set off just these next iteration of their franchise. I don't think we've talked about Bryce Young since before the draft started on Thursday. So, Dana, I think it's important to just bring us all the way back and remind people that Bryce Young was the number one pick. And the Panthers spent the number one pick out of quarterback. They did. And they have a new face of the franchise. And, you know, even with a veteran like Andy Dalton there, it feels like this is Bryce Young's team. and he should be the starter from the get-go and, you know, let's see what they have.

And it'll be really fun to see, you know, C.J. Stroud if he could do the same thing in Houston. But, you know, just feel really good for Carolina fans having, you know, you had all those years with Cam Newton and some really high highs. And then it kind of fell off. And the last few years have been just god-awful, especially the quarterback position. But to get a guy like Bryce Young, who is the intangibles off the charts, you know, just so much fun to watch. And if nothing else, I think it's going to be really entertaining because he will create,

he will make the offense better, he will make the offense move. And so it'll be really fun to see the coaching staff adjust to it as well. I'm really interested to see how, you know, the coaching staff adjust the play calling and the game plans to fit Bryce Young and just how specific the skill set he has, but also just the way the coaches react to that. So that's going to be a lot of fun to watch. It is. The history of number one overall pecs is quarterbacks.

it's a checkered history. It doesn't always work out. It's not some guarantee that it's going to change everything for you. But the recent history, think about what the Bengals feel like today. And think about what the Bengals felt like three years ago. Think about what the Jags feel like today. And what the Jags felt like three or four years ago. And Bryce Young, I think, has somewhat longer road to be one of those elite league quarterbacks in the league because of those size outlier concerns.

But when you take a guy number one, that timeline, that eventuality, we've seen what it can be for other teams and the Panthers have to be hoping they're the next one in line. It's a mindset. And also, he comes from Bama, plays a lot of big games. That does translate and just carrying, I mean, he was carrying that offense this year. And it's nice to see that when a guy does that and doesn't have a ton of help, even if I had a traditional blue blood like that. But as far as just mentality, he just brings that worker, that, yeah, that work ethic,

that kind of just all the stuff that you want your quarterback to do, he's going to be the first one in, last one out. So all that type of stuff on top of the creation. in the big place. It's a lot to like. It's just easy to like. And for a team that kind of has been wandering in the wilderness at that position,

it's nice to see a guy that's easy to root for. Think about how special you have to be to be a 5-10 quarterback, 190 pounds, and no one's like flinching that you would just want number one overall. Think about how special you have to be. It's a great word.

It's a right word. Yeah. And that's what he is. He is a problem solver on the football field. He does a great job turning whatever the play is, he's going to make something happen no matter what the defense throws at him, he has an answer. You know, so this is the problem, okay, this is a solution.

The defense is going to give me this, I'm going to find this solution. He is so good at finding those solutions in different ways, and I think that's really what makes him special. So Bryce Young goes one, and about the last three weeks, what they've been like. We'll Levis go to, Bryce Young

had scored an 18 on the S2 test. You know, Anthony Richardson comes along late in the process. Let's go back nine months to your first big board or just the initial conversations about the 2023 drive class. Even going back to the previous year, we were talking about what this class would look like. It's like, well, if you get a top five pick, you can get Bryce Young or C.J. Stroud. And then you go this circuitous roundabout, ridiculous mess of a conversation. And then where we arrive, Bryce Young goes one, and C.J. Stroud goes number two to the Texans.

Exactly. And again, I go back to last year's quarterback class and how below average it was, uninspiring. But in most years, a guy like Desmond Reuter goes in the second round. Sam Howell goes in the third round. Malik Willis goes in the second round. Those guys didn't go as early because teams were looking at this quarterback class and said, you know what? We'll be patient and that's okay. We'll wait another year to get our guy. And absolutely, that's what, you know, Carolina. Remember all the Carolina County picket stuff from last year? Exactly. Exactly. And so that's definitely part of it. And, you know, coming by first big board, my first top 50 back in August, CG Strave was number three overall.

Brayshund was number five overall. I mean, we thought they were top five picks from the start. They go one and two, just different order. It's interesting. Will Levis was 11 on this top 50, and then Anthony Richardson was 27. So Anthony Richardson, he had one start at that time. Yeah, he never started.

The fact that you had to have a tip of the cap to you, sir. We didn't know what we had with Anthony Richardson, except that the flashes against South Florida were... Well, okay. This is pretty impressive. Yeah, I did a look forward at the quarterbacks of next your class because that was the conversation about him so did stroud and bryce young and i was like these guys were one two yeah and interchange whatever one two and it's funny how more things changed more things stay the same but even just doing the other guys levice was three and then it was kind of just

you know and then miami's uh oh what's his name miami's oh tanner van dyke no not tanner tyler van dieck and yeah that was the original guy called the stork uh and we'll see what happens with him down the road but then i think i did an honorable mention it's like just just keep an eye Anthony Richardson. This guy is just, he's built different, moves different. So who knows how he's going to progress? And now he's the number four pick. So it was fun trying to extrapolate what that one game was of him starting and the other

spot stuff that he did and just going, okay, there's something there. And then seeing his development throughout this year, it ended up being the number four pick. And I do think that is justified. I'm excited to just watch that path. It's pumped to watch him that offense. You got Josh Downs there now with the other two guys, Shane Steakin. I mean, it's just going to be a blast.

It was great. Erse said that they would have probably taken him number one. And we'll never know for sure, but it would have been fascinating to see if the Colts did have that number one pick, if they would have stayed true to that and taken, betting on the upside, betting on, you know, this remarkable talent that just is very rare. We might never see an Anthony Richardson type again, you know, and so it'll be really fun to see how he develops and how things move forward. Something else, Jim Eersay said today, he is going to start at some point this year.

So there's a very good chance that we get Anthony Richardson versus C.J. Stroud at least once next fall and maybe twice. Both of those guys landing in the AFC South. And it's amazing how fast things change. And then Will Levis also. He may come along a little bit slower, but an entire division seemingly changes overnight with the way where the quarterbacks went in the 2023 draft. I was about to say Trevor Lawrence is now the oldest quarterback. Actually, Will Levin. He will live. The oldest quarterback. But it's still remarkable that a rookie will be potentially the oldest. starting quarterback in the AFC sound. All right, Dane, parting thoughts about the 2023 draft. First, just an absolute pleasure to do this with you, you two guys. I mean, it was so much fun. I mean, this was, you know, draft is always a special weekend for me personally

because this is my whole year revolves around this. And starting June 1st, when I really dive into next year's class and start building those rankings and looking, you know, creating that base foundation for the players. and then you get into the season, and it starts to change a little bit based off updated data and evidence on tape. And then we get into the All-Star season. And you start to see other people kind of get into the arena with start working on draft stuff. And here are their initial thoughts. It's like, hmm, okay, interesting.

And then get into Combine and ProDays and testing, and it all comes. It all culminates here this weekend. It's just been, just want to say thank you to you guys. Thank you to all to listeners. It's so much fun doing the live show, so much fun. month, two months, really talking about the draft and just breaking it down from every angle that we could. So just absolute pleasure to do this. Oh, man.

Pleasure's on all the side of the table, like an office space. It was just, you know, it really is. No, honestly, yeah, pleasure's on this side over here. But, Dane, it's fun watching you go to work. Like, just like a player or in any sport and watching someone at the top of their craft do it. It's seriously watching you do what you do is amazing. I love the draft. I have fond memories of it, and I mean that sincerely, as a kind of sports junkie,

even as a kid growing up, the draft has always been a fun event for me, and still is to this day. Now that I do it professionally getting to cover, it's really a dream. So honestly, I echo Dan statements that it's just, I love the process. It can be exhausting when we get to silly season. It's still fun. It really is. There is still enjoyment of it and laughing about stuff that we talked about and poured over and stuff that actually turn out to be right.

I think it's the best. So thanks to you guys. Thanks to everyone that listened. Thanks to Kent, Beller, Alex. You guys killed it. Everybody that helped out at the studio, a great, great, great weekend. One of my favorite moments of every single year

doing stuff like this, the fact that we've gotten to do the live show the last three years, it's a blast. I have so much fun doing it. Watching you go to work is truly a pleasure. The amount of work that you put into it, I think there are not that many people, even in our world, where I have such a deep respect for how they go about their business.

They take it so seriously. It's important to them the same way. It's important to us on this show. You are at the top of that list, sir. The work that you do is just remarkable. And we are so happy to have you be a part of this, both this weekend and then all year. It means a lot to have you. So thank you very much, my friend.

And thank you to everybody for listening. And thank you to everybody that tuned in to the live show over the last couple days. We had so much fun doing it. and it wouldn't exist if you guys weren't watching it. So sincerely appreciate you spending the time this weekend with us. And hopefully you'll be back. We're not slowing down really. No.

This will be our last show until this will be Monday's podcast. We're going to kind of let this sit over the weekend. But, you know, Nate and I'll be back on Tuesday. Prospects to Prospects to Pros, the Final Prospects of this season. We'll be back on Wednesday. Football GM will be your way on Thursday. Me and Nate will be back again on Friday and all through May. You know, we'll have four podcasts a week coming your guys' way,

even after the draft finishes up. So please stay tuned to the athletic football show feed as we cruise through May and we cruise toward the 2024 NFL season because this does feel like the exclamation point period punctuation mark on the end of the 2023 draft calendar. Chee-choo. Chew-choo. Here we go.

I chew-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-choo-s you, Robert. Or excuse me, 2020. 2023 season is what I meant. We've talked for 10 fucking hours over the last three days. So we're just fine. All right, boys, thank you very much. You guys, do me a favor.

If you liked the Draft Show and didn't subscribe to the YouTube channel, please do that. You know, we're going to be doing a ton more video stuff over the next six, nine months more than we've ever done before. You know, this is just one thing that we've done. So go subscribe to the YouTube channel if you haven't. If you liked listening to the show during the 2022-23 season, please let us know. You know, go on Apple Podcast, leave us a review. I would consider a personal favor. It would mean a lot.

It does help us. So take the time out of the 10 hours that we've taken this weekend. Take 10 seconds to do that for us. But really appreciate it, guys. We will talk to you soon. This was the Athletic Football Show.