The Kevin Sheehan Show - Diggs, BA, and Keenan Allen News?

Episode Date: July 15, 2026

Kevin opened with thoughts on Spain's 2-0 World Cup Semifinal win over France. He then got to some recent musings about Washington's wide receiver needs from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. Included was Fowler's thoughts on Stefon Diggs to the Commanders, his current feelings on whether or not Washington is interested in Brandon Aiyuk, and he also "implicated" Keenan Allen as a possibility in DC. Kevin also weighed in on former Maryland Basketball Coach Mark Turgeon's recent comments about the state of Maryland Basketball.   For all your football betting needs: DCRELOAD at MyBookie for a 50% Deposit Match   Ready to do your own spring reset? Join Thrive Market with my link www.ThriveMarket.com/SHEEHAN for $20 off your first three orders plus you’ll get a FREE $60 gift.   Chime is not just smarter banking, it is the most rewarding way to bank. Head to www.Chime.com/SHEEHAN. It only takes a few minutes to sign up.   Search Whatnot—W H A T N O T—in the App Store, download, and you can start selling right away. Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You don't want it. You don't need it. But you're going to get it anyway. The Kevin Chean Show. Here's Kevin. One guest on today's show, John Kine will join me shortly. The show's presenting sponsor is always Window Nation. If you need new Windows, 86690 Nation.

We're head to Window Nation.com. Mention my name, I promise you. They'll take really good care of you. So I just finished watching Spain. I think destroy France. They won easily. Two-nil was the final. Spain advances to the World Cup final Sunday in the Meadowlands.

England or Argentina will be the opponent. Those two squads play tomorrow in Atlanta. I wouldn't even know where to start with post-gaming it, the game that I just watched. I just listened to some of the post-game crew say, what a great game it was, it wasn't for me a great game. You know, this was not,

this World Cup has produced some really exciting games over the last five weeks. You know, for that sport anyway, very exciting games. Today was not one of them, in my opinion. I'm sure someone will tell me that I'm not sophisticated enough

to know how great and how beautiful today's game was. But I didn't think it was a very exciting game. In football terms, it was one of those games where you would say, you know, Spain ran the ball well, they controlled the line of scrimmage, they won time of possession, and they didn't make any mistakes. You know, they played kind of not to lose, and they won the game 17 to 7. You know, that's kind of the football equivalent that I would give as far as analysis of what I just watched. It was a 17 to 7.

snoozer. The one thing at the end of the game that kind of irked the hell out of me was the flopping by Spain's goalie. My God, dude. I mean, grow a pair. I know he played great. He had a couple of really good saves. I think he had a couple of what they call good clears. But yeah, not, you know, a super scintillating game. Spain, you know, didn't beat themselves. and took advantage of a couple of opportunities, including a PK in the first half. They didn't miss it. They got a second half goal early,

and then France got desperate at the end, and some of that created some activity for sure. But how about the fact that Spain has now won four of the last five head-to-head against France in international competition? Spain's won the cup once. It happened back in 2010. They beat the Netherlands. But that's their only World Cup final appearance until Sunday.

That'll be their second World Cup final appearance. England's also looking for their second World Cup final. They won in 1966 in their only appearance in the World Cup finals. Argentina, meantime, they've been a mainstay in the finals of the World Cup. They have been to seven World Cup. finals. I'm sorry, they will advance to their seventh World Cup final with a win tomorrow over England. They've been to six already and won three. So I did want to watch today and I sat there, start to finish, watch some of the post game, just didn't think it was anywhere near the excitement

level that the announcers and the postgame crew seemed to think that it was. The all-sword Star Games tonight. I did not watch really any of the home run derby last night, with the exception of Bryce Harper's attempt. I did tune in for that. It was actually good timing because when I popped on Netflix last night to see where they were in the home run derby, Bryce Harper was coming up to bad. He did not qualify for the final four, even though he had an exciting turn. I'm a big Bryce Harper fan. I know that really bothers Nats fans that are hardcore Nats fans that listen to this podcast. You think it's some sort of, you know, lack of loyalty to my favorite team. I don't really blame Bryce Harper for not signing, you know, a long-term deal. I blame the learners just as much. And

he's one of the great showmen and one of the great clutch performers of the last 10 years in team sports. he comes up big in big moments. And I thought he was going to do it last night, but he did not. It was on Netflix, as I mentioned, and I'll just quickly mention that when I got to Netflix last night, a new documentary popped up as a suggestion, I guess, for me. It was one of the first things that popped up before I went searching for the home run derby. I ended up watching it late last night. It was a documentary about the Everett Navratilova

rivalry. It was called the final set. I thought it was really good. And I've actually read some reviews of it because it came out just, I think, two weeks ago, two or three weeks ago. And the reviews are excellent as well. It was about an hour and a half. It was a lot about the both of them in recent years and their simultaneous battles with cancer. And I knew about some of that. And I knew about some of that. I didn't know the details and how close they've been as they've been battling cancer

kind of at the same time. But the show goes back to the beginning of really what is one of the great rivalries in the history of individual sports. Navratilova and Everett played 80 times in 15 years. 80, 8-0

times over a 15-year span. Most of those matches by the way, with the players ranked one, two in some order. I know most of you know about the Chrissy Martina rivalry, but for those of you who don't, I'm not exaggerating by saying that in terms of individual sports, not team sports, but individual sports, Everett and Avertolova is right there behind Ali Frazier. That's not crazy.

That's not hyperbole. They played 14 Grand Slam finals against each other out of the 80 head-to-heads in their career. Martina won 10 of the 14 Grand Slam finals head-to-head, and she held the advantage when their rivalry came to an end at 80 total matches. She won 43 of them, and Everett won 37 of them. Martina's story, you know, alone is a fascinating one, and they get into that. in this documentary. She defected to the states in 1975 as a 19-year-old from Czechoslovakia. Czechoslovakia was Russian-controlled then. It was communist. And she knew when she defected, she was in New York when she defected in 1975. She lost a match to Chrissy in the final,

I think it was of the masters in New York. And Chris Everett was one of the few people that knew that she was going to defect, but she knew that she would never likely see her family again, or at least that's the way she felt in the moment. And it devastated her mother and her younger sister in particular, but the government wanted too much control of her career. She was becoming a big-time star in women's tennis, which was becoming a big-time popular sport in this country. But it was, it was well done. It's a documentary about a 50-year relationship essentially that developed

into a deep, deep friendship and has maintained over the years and really become special in recent years as they both had simultaneous difficult battles with cancer. I thought it was really good. I thought it was really emotional. I mean,

that's an era that I, you know, obviously grew up and I'm a child of the 70s and, you know, a teenager and a young adult in the 80s. And those two provided, you know, unbelievable theater, sports theater in the 70s and 80s. I mean, their battles back then were must watch. They were epic. You know, and part of what made their rivalry so great, it was a total contrast in styles. Martina was the servant volleyer, was the aggressor. Chrissy was the baseline, you know, ground strokes. And I don't know, I thought it was really well done. I recommend it.

Anyway, enough of that. Speaking of Netflix, the quarterbacks documentary year three is out today. I've not watched an episode yet, but Jaden Daniels is one of the quarterbacks featured along with Joe Flacco, Baker Mayfield, and Cam Ward. I think we're going to get some good nuggets from this year's show. By the way, I can't believe I haven't mentioned this already. I don't know why I haven't mentioned it already, but Tommy is not on today's show. He had a family issue that he was dealing with and hoping everything works out for him and the family. And hopefully he'll be with me tomorrow.

We'll see. I'm not sure why it took me so long to mention that. Anyway, some news today and yesterday on the wide receiver front, I would say. Much of it comes from ESPN's Jeremy Fowler. I'm going to play two sound clips for you. The first that I'm going to play for you was from ESPN yesterday, where Fowler was on with Tim Hasselbeck. And they were talking about fits for Stefan Diggs.

And Hasselbeck just finishes up talking about how he thinks Diggs to the Chiefs makes a lot of sense. And then this was ESPN Jeremy Fasselbeck. Fowler responding. I'm hearing he's going to have a market closer to training camp. I was told that at least five teams that need a wide receiver have been checking in. Now, they got to deal with some of the baggage and the headlines they are what they are. But here's why Stefan Diggs, I'm told, is confident. He had a thousand plus yards last year, really playing on a snap count of around 55% of the snaps coming off an ACL. He feels he's going to be better this time around. I'm looking to

the DMV, Laura. That's where he's from. Commander certainly need a receiver. I think they're looking for more of like a speed option at this point. We'll see there are several veterans they could look at. I don't think it's going to be Brandon Ayuk at this stage. I think the last part was interesting where he says, I don't think it's going to be Brandon Ayuk at this stage. There's more from Fowler that I'm going to play for you on Brandon Ayuk from an interview that he did this morning with the sports junkies on 1067.

The fan, I'll get to that in a moment. I do think that, you know, that is one of those where you're not really sure as a fan or even as another media person, whether or not that is something that he's throwing out there because he's got information versus it's just part of what he is thinking is the case right now, not based on any real information. That's not a report from him. If Jeremy Fowler were going to report that he has sources close to Washington that say they're not interested in Brandon Ayuk. That would be a standalone tweet that would be out there and then a follow-up conversation

on ESPN. But, you know, like I've said with guys like Rappaport and Schefter before and Fowler's kind of in that same class, sometimes you can tell and sometimes you can't tell as to whether or not, that's just kind of an opinion that he has based on, you know, all of these social media videos that have led to, I think, the majority of people feeling the same way about Brandon Iyuk and any interest any team would have in him or if it's based on an actual piece of information he's gotten, but maybe can't share in the form of a report. I don't have a strong feeling about that. one way or the other.

But he had more on IUC, which I will get to here momentarily. The first part of that, five teams interested in Diggs and that he thinks the DMV would be a really good fit. And then talks about, you know, they're looking for a speed threat. And see, that's the thing that for me, when it comes to, you know, anybody but IUC or Tyree Kill, you know, because Tyree Kill obviously is a speed. threat, or at least we still think he is. Diggs isn't the vertical threat he used to be.

He's still an exceptional, you know, over-the-middle, route-running possession kind of a receiver. And I'm not saying he's slow by any means. But that's just not really, you know, that's just not really what he is anymore. So I think when they, you know, tried to sign Alec Pierce, in particular, Dobbs to a lesser, extent. They were looking for speed to put out on the field. They were looking for a true

vertical threat to make defenses play Washington in a way in which they would be at an advantage. Terry still has good speed if he comes back as the same player he's been in recent years, not last year, and I don't put it all on Terry. He was injured, and then when he wasn't injured, he wasn't playing with Jaden Daniels very much or any really good, healthy players around him. But that's where I wonder about digs and the fit here in Washington. I would love it. Just from a comfort standpoint, you would have a known entity at your number two spot. A guy that you know you could rely on to be an excellent route runner and excellent competitor on game day.

And a guy that's going to catch contested balls and not be fearful at all. at any point on a football field. I love Stefan Diggs on game day. I'm sure, you know, if you're in the locker room with him every day after a year or two, it might get old. But for a year on a one-year deal, yeah. Now, if five teams are interested, Diggs is probably going to get some guaranteed money, for sure.

He is a really good option for a lot of teams. I actually think Kansas City makes sense for him. Anyway, that was Fowler yesterday on ESPN with some of the information on digs and then sort of that, I don't know, throwaway line or maybe not on Ayuk. This morning he was on with the junkies and they asked him about the wide receiver need here in D.C. Here's what he said. Yeah, so Washington is certainly on the radar for a receiver. It's been hard to identify which one. It's kind of been a moving target.

I think the Brandon I, U.S. ship has failed, I think. I mean, I'll never say never. Maybe he can sort of rebuild his image here a little bit in the next few months, but it looks bigger than football at this point with some of what's going on there. So I'd be surprised if Adam Peters went that route. The problem is, in talking to some people there, I get the sense that they really would like a speed guy. You know, they got Antonio Williams and Laine, I believe,

believe that some of the young guys can play on the slot a little bit, and they got McLaureen, who can still run, but you could use another outside speed guy, but there's not much out there in for agency, like Diggs at this stage is, I think he can still be really productive, but he's not a burner, you know, and I've heard Washington implicated to Keenan Allen a little bit over the last few weeks, but it sounds like nothing's going on there, so maybe that perks up. You know, he's more of a true slot at this stage. So it's interesting. Like, they've been linked to some receivers, but nothing firm. So, you know, at the end, Adam Peters is still

kind of operating in the shadows here. We'll see. I still think they could add somebody. The Diggs would love to be in Washington. I mentioned Baltimore mostly just because they, that would be a Washington, that would be a Baltimore signing, Stefan Diggs, somebody who's been in the league that's sort of a retread at this stage. Like, they seem to lean on those kind of receivers

with Anquam Bolden in the past and DeAndre Hopkins recently. That would fit the mold in that way. Jeremy Fowler from the sports junkies earlier this morning. They're at the end saying that maybe Baltimore would be a good fit for Diggs, but that Diggs would love to play in Washington, whether it's Baltimore or Washington, if he ended up with either of the two franchises,

that's coming home for him. But again, he said some of the same things about Diggs that I have kind of felt, which is he's not that vertical speed threat. he once was. I don't necessarily think of him as a retread, though. He had over a thousand yards last year as the number one receiver for a team that ended up playing 21 football games last year and was in the Super Bowl. Now, they struggled mightily on offense in the postseason, but he was a good football player last year. And as Fowler reminded us, coming off ACL surgery

from the year before when he was in Houston. So I do think you could get a really good version, of Stefan Diggs, and I think we'd like that version. It just wouldn't be the type of receiver that they're probably desiring at this point. I also think with Diggs, one of the things that, you know, if they are interested, they'd probably have to move sooner rather than later. He's not going to be sitting there midway through camp or at the end of camp before the end of the regular season. He's going to sign with somebody, I would think, before training camp.

Now, going back to the beginning of Fowler's answer when he's talking about Brandon Ayuk, and he says, you know, the Brandon Ayuk ship has sailed. And then he followed that up with, I think, that may be a tell that his Brandon Ayuk to Washington not going to happen thoughts from yesterday and this morning are more a matter of opinion than they are a result of having some information. He did say that he'd be surprised if Adam Peters went that right. out. He also said what I've been saying, which is you can never say never. Look, I think the chances are slim and none at this point on Brandon Ayuk. I think this was a self-sabotage situation like

we haven't seen in some time. In terms of the uniqueness of it, you know, he didn't, you know, he didn't maim anybody. He didn't assault anybody, but he did it to himself in a way that was pretty unique. And, you know, obviously there were so many self-destructive moments before the video barrage of the last five to six weeks. But he said that, you know, you never say never, he could go out and rebuild his image. And look, when you've got talent, people are going to want to give you an opportunity,

especially if they have a need. But what he needs to do, and I talked about this yesterday, he needs to apply for reinstatement. He needs to be a big boy, and he needs to confront his employer, whether it's by himself or with representation, that would be the best way for him to do it.

He does not seem to be a guy that is super, you know, sharp as a quick thinker and quick communicator. He should have representation, but he should confront the 49ers. And I think there's got to be some level of contrition. There's got to be some level of an apology. But when you've got talent, there's always somebody willing to look for reasons to give you a chance. So I'd never say never either with respect to the possibility that he could go out and really work on his image from what we've seen of it over the last five to six weeks, which has not been becoming for sure. So, you know, I know a lot of you, and I've heard from many of you say, who cares?

You know, he's not Antonio Brown. And if, by the way, he's not Antonio Brown. Antonio Brown was the best receiver in the league there for a few years. I do think Brandon I, you could be a top 10 receiver and maybe even a top five to six, seven receiver in the league. But Antonio Brown was literally uncheckable for a few years. And he was nuts. And he became even more nuts later.

So, yeah, I mean, never say never. At this point, I'd say there's a very, very small chance he's playing in Washington. I think there's a pretty decent chance he's not playing anywhere because he seems completely unwilling to take the actions necessary to create an environment where he could return to the field. But we'll see things change. And how about the Keenan Allen reference?

You know, we've talked about Keenan Allen since, you know, free agency began. One of my all-time favorite receivers. I love Keenan Allen. He's a big target. He's an incredible route runner. He's a hands catcher. He is a contested catch guy. I mean, you know, the Mike Williams, Keenan Allen combo for Philip Rivers when the Chargers had it going. And remember, Anthony Lynn was his head coach in San Diego for some of those years. So there is some familiarity, obviously, with Keenan Allen from the staff, Anthony Lynn, in particular. I would love it if Keenan Allen were added to the roster. I think he's going to end up back with the Chargers personally. He's still got something left at 34 years old, but he's not a speed

threat. He's a possession receiver. And, you know, you'd have to get to the point where you weren't confident in, you know, Birx or Jefferson or Bruex. or somebody else to be another sort of outside threat. I don't see, by the way, Keenan Allen is an inside receiver. I think he's certainly flexible and has the ability to play everywhere like Terry McClorn does. But I would see him opposite Terry as an outside receiver,

but again, more of a possession type of receiver rather than a vertical speed threat. Yeah, so that was, Jeremy Fowler from the last two days weighing in a little bit on the receiver situation in Washington. All right, let's get to John Kime. We will do that after these words from a few of our sponsors. If you're tired of the following bad combination, inflated grocery prices and unhealthy shopping, I've got the answer for you. It's Thrive Market. I've been telling you about Thrive for over a year now.

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Did you think like I did? I'm pretty sure you and I talked about this before. A month and a half ago, I would have given it a 90% chance he ended up in a Washington uniform on opening day. Were you in that same spot? I was pretty close to that, yeah, because first of all, you knew that there was interest and that if anybody knew this guy, it would be this team because of Adam Peter's working there

and Jane Dan's relationship. And because it was a need for what he provided. And so, yes, it all made sense. And then the longer went with San Francisco, not kind of whatever they're doing, whenever they're going to release them, we don't know. And then with these posts, I just think that, you know, you say you have to wonder how low those odds are at this point.

Yeah, I mean, I'm, I was actually in favor of it happening. I was a big I-Uk guy back in 2023. I really thought he was borderline elite and really kind of climbing the, you know, the chart of the best receivers in the league. And so I was all for it. And now I'm totally against it. And I know people will say, you know, really, Antonio Brown, I mean, none of these things should be disqualifiers. And I get that.

A lot of this stuff typically isn't disqualifying for players. But I think he's crossed the line. I think he's given everybody reason to pause because, A, he's not serious, John. And B, he won't do what, you know, needs to be done from an action standpoint to create the outcome that he wants. And so I just, at this point, I would move on. So you thought initially yes, and now you think no. How strong is the no for you right now in terms of how you think the team feels? I mean, it's pretty strong.

And I will say this, like, I haven't, I've been on vacation and people there on vacation. And the last thing I'm going to do, Kevin, is reach out about this because he's not free. So if, you know, just because he's posting, he was posting all that stuff. while I was on vacation and happily missed or didn't have to do anything with it, I wasn't going to reach out to anybody and disturb their time off to talk about this. Because, again, he's not free. So you start there, right? But I would say that I would think, again, the odds are very low that he would be here.

And it's, you know, I know people, you'd see things like, oh, they're trolling each other. like, I've got no indication that it was that. None, right? So, you know, like, and I get it. Like, people want to, you want to try and make it work for your team, but it's not just all this, is then it's like you combine it with, first of all, you don't know when he's going to come free. Secondly, where is his game at? You know, there's, even before this, there was a, like, you don't know what, not so much what shape he'll be in, but where's his game at? It would have been almost two years since he had played. And it does take a minute to get back into, you know, playing.

I mean, I don't care who you are. And there was a chance that he wasn't going to get here until after final cuts. You know, you know what I mean? So, like, even with, even before this, it was like, how long will it take him to get up to speed? And not that this is going to cause him to be up to speed, but it was like there were, point is there were questions before that, you know, and then it's like, okay, now you throw another layer of questions on top of that.

It's like, all right. And, you know, I also think, Kevin, like, they feel pretty good about what they have in that room. And it doesn't mean they think it's finished, but they feel pretty good. And so the other, the thing I always always say, like, first of all, you chase fit, not names, and I don't think you ever act out of desperation. And that's, like, so, I think if you feel desperate, like, and you just go sign anybody and whatever, whoever it is, in general, I just don't think that's a wise strategy.

So they do like what they have. And I know, like, we can look at the names and say, like, well, what do they really have? But I think there's a couple things that take into account. One is if Jane Daniels is healthy, others are going to be better. Because two years ago, he took a group that was pretty undistinguished outside of Terry McCorn and made them productive. And, you know, so you start there. And then it's like, okay, how much does the offensive, the new scheme,

contribute to perhaps better opportunities, right? Run the under-center play action. You know, you talk to people like the scheme, they feel like the scheme will get guys open more than it did in the past, whereas in the past, it was a little bit more reliant on winning a one-on-one, right? And so I think there's other factors to go into that that you don't have to act out of desperation. But again, I would be all four of them bolstering that room.

I would agree with anybody who says, like, yeah, they could use another piece, but I don't think you ever act out of desperation. So if I told you, and fast-forwarded to September 12th, the night before the opener, and told you they did have another receiver on their roster, who do you think it would be? Oh, I don't know. I mean, the ones that would be the logical choices that would help them, you can't just there's two veterans out there Sepon Diggs and Keenan Allen

like those are the guys that you're like outside of that you know Debo is more of an inside guy and they've got guys who can play inside there right that they like and they want to give opportunities to including Antonio William so you know he doesn't

necessarily give you what you don't have I think what Diggs and Alan would give you is a professional receivers who if nothing else can help you move the chain and whether or not, I don't know what digs, like, we know we can look at his resume, it's pretty good, right? It's very good. And Keenan is older, but it's, you know, again, chain mover.

So if you want something like that, that is available. And so, you know, I think you'd have to look at those guys as far as, like, if you're looking at names, I mean, ideally what they would want is a guy with speed, right? Like, that's why they went after Alec Pierce, but they didn't get them. So, you know, I think that's what they ideally would get. But I think the one fear, the one fear I would have, Kevin, for them is, what if McClorn has to miss a few games again? What does it look like?

That's the one question. And I think that's, you know, so that could lead to something else happening with a veteran receiver. I'm settled in right now subject to change because things can change, and there's still plenty of time for things to change, including with IUC. He could try to repair his image to a point in which people might be interested. I'm not counting on that. I always say never say never, because I've learned in this business that, you know,

unless you hear from multiple people saying there's no chance, then, you know, but short of that, like, you know, who the heck knows? But like that, I think, like I said, the odds are pretty low. So I've settled in on 58% chance that what they have now is what they take to can, and what they take in to the regular season minus, you know, the people that they end up releasing. 42% chance. How do you get to 58%? I'm not sharing my formula with you.

I'm not sharing my formula with you. 42% chance that they add, you know, something significant, as you mentioned, the two out there right now would be Keenan Allen and Stefan Diggs. Do you want to give me your percentage? You don't have a formula for this? Okay. No, I do not. All right, well, I'll work on one with you at some point. All right. My phone is like talking to people and seeing like, what do you think?

I mean, I think here's the other thing, too, like, do they necessarily add some before camp? I don't know. And now if you want a guy like digs, you probably have to add him before camp because there are other teams that definitely want him. I don't know with Keenan Allen and what the market is for him. You know, what you don't know for him is like, first of all, is there, is there, is there, legitimate serious interest, and, you know, what is, what is, what does he desire at this point? Like, would he be willing to move to the, come to the East Coast after he played one year, Chicago? But, like, you know what I mean?

Like, he's been out west all time. Like, do you want to come east? I don't know. And so maybe a guy like that waits to see what transpires in camp to find a really good solution for him. You know what I mean? And it's also, Kevin, it also could be somebody, you know, there could be guys that get cut that, like, okay, this guy makes sense. Again, I always go back to when people are panicking,

I go back to two years ago, one of their better receivers during the season until they got hurt was Noah Brown. They got him a week before the season. Yep. You know, so like, there's not that you're going to get an all-star at that point, but, you know, you just need a guy that you can come in and contribute. And then they also can't give them a chance to see, like,

okay, what does Antonio Williams look like? Like when Terry McCorn was a rookie, at this point in his career, like, You didn't know what they had. Then you get to training camp like, he's torching people. So you knew he was going to be good, right? So that would reduce the desire to then go get somebody, right? Sure.

So, you know, I think there's still things to see. And I think that's why if you, my thought would be, if you want to find digs, you probably have to sign him before camp just because, again, I think there will be other teams interested. But, you know, if not, then they probably want to have a wait and see. like how does it how does Williams developing camp you've referred back to yeah you've referred back to in a couple of occasions the 24 supporting cast for jaden and i think a lot of people have settled in on well they were a top three top four offensive football team with something that looks almost identical to this i i would push back a little bit on it being identical to this not that it can't

identical but yeah well well or at as capable. Let me put it that way. But I don't know yet because, like you said, you know, Antonio Williams could end up developing into something. Some of the guys like McCaffrey or Lane could, or Burks could take a big step forward. Yeah. But the reason I say that, John, is that, you know, Terry was two years younger. Let's not forget that Terry's coming off an injury-plagued season and the worst season when he was out there. And that wasn't his fault because there was nothing else out there with him, including his starting quarterback. And there's no guarantee that Terry's going to be what he was two years ago.

No, but he did look good when he came back from his injuries. He looked fine. Yeah, no, I understand that. And he's such a pro. He's such a pro. I would expect him to be in the best condition and ready to go. Right. And certainly he's not too old.

But they also had Austin Echler on the team, even though he got hurt with the concussions. But he was a dynamic, you know, weapon for them. He was very good. And they had a big old red zone target, you know, and third down target and Zach Ertz. And I'm a big fan of Chig, but I look at it and I say it could be something similar, better, but it also could be worse than it was in 24. And my point with it is not so much like, oh, just because it worked then, it's going to work now, but it's more like go back to that year and what were you, what were people worried about? You know, like they had a lot of these kids that coming off a 10-cats season. He caught 45 here.

You know, Noel Brown gets added late. He catches 35 and has a bunch of draws a bunch of pass and a fierce penalty. So the point is you don't know. And like, that's why, like, I don't, I'm not sitting here and going to panic about what they have. I don't have. Again, I do feel like it would be good if they could add somebody for a variety of reasons. But, you know, what is it that they really need? And, again, I think what they wanted was a guy that could stretch the field more opposite Terry.

and, you know, I think Antonio Williams is a guy that can, is more of an underneath guy run after the catch with some expositiveness that way, but just in a different way. So I, so I have, there are definitely questions, like it just because it worked then doesn't mean it will work now. And, you know, Rashad White, I'm intrigued by him. Me too. But, you know, Echler, Echler was very good. And I'll be honest, like, and watching, here's the other thing with those guys, and this

is an aside, but I loved watching Echler and Pratt. Earth's in practice. And just because of the way their approach during practice, how they would work during breaks or when, like, the special teams portions were out there, you could see why, like, why do guys last so long? We'll watch these two work in between sessions. That's how you will. You know, like the detailed footwork on that, that's why Earth was so good in the red zone,

the one-on-one. But that's where Kingsbury's offense, like when you talk to people, there are a lot of people who were like, it was good for kings, for good, that offense was good for Earth. It was not good for the other tight end because it was more reliant on being able to win one-on-one. And when you watch Earth win, it was oftentimes footwork. Well, that's not Ben Sinich game. It's not, you know, Chig is going, like, if you get the play action game going, that's where you can fool them a little bit, and that's where that's could open it up. So, like, there are differences in there that, okay, that could work. We don't know if it will, but I do think

it starts with number five being healthy, and if he is, a lot of things will look a lot better. But you're right, like, you can't assume, but my only point with that is with the receiving course, I remember half the questions, it's not half the question, but like a lot of questions that first summer was, who's going to be a number two receiver? And it's like, well, be by committee, be this. Now, I will say, having said that, the problem that I have with this group is there are a lot of questions because we don't know how Good Williams is. you know, Luke McCaffrey has to take a big step.

You know, Jan Lane has to take a step. You know, Trey Berks, what can he be in a full year in this, with this team, right? And Danny Brown, like, can he be a 35-catch guy? So, you know, there are a lot of questions with this group, and there isn't that, okay, this guy is your dependable number two guy. We don't know who that would be. But it also, not to drone on on this, but I think O'Conquist, I think the tight ends will be more involved in the past game than last year as a group, as a group,

with Chig leading away, Chick could very well be your number two target. I think you'll see, you know, different running back sets out of this than we've seen before. I think Rashad White will have a number. So there's a lot of ways to get that. The question, though, I have with it, Kevin, is do they have, not so much can you manufacture past game, but do they have enough explosive news so you don't have to just drive, drive, drive, right? 100%. A hundred percent. Somebody that can make the defense play them differently and open up a lot of space.

You know, in going back to 24 and comparing the supporting cast to this one, you know, in 24, I mean, some of us were big Jaden Daniels fans, but still nobody knew what he would be as a rookie. If you gave me the choice, I'll take the current situation 10 times out of 10, which is, We know how good the quarterback can be if he's available. The supporting cast, you know, whatever. At least we know that they have a legit starting quarterback, and hopefully he will be healthy. Yeah, go ahead.

And just like the other thing with that, look how many guys had, like, a lot of the kids went from 10 to 45. I mean, Crowder came in, you know, during the season, it became a factor. Terry had a career high in touchdown. Jack Kurtz didn't have career highs, but he certainly had a very good... Noah Brown when he was out there was a favorite of James. Yeah. So, like, the comments, I know there was like, it's not just Jaden there.

However, he was kind of a big card. Yeah. So, you know, like, I agree with you that, you know, what you keep hearing about him is locked in, locked in, locked in, locked in. And so that is a, I think, like, if you could take one of the other, let's say they had their number two receiver, but they didn't have you a lot of questions about Jaden and his play, I'd be more worried. But with number five, I think a lot of things are possible.

And he's a guy that when you still don't hear a lot of questions about his ability when you talk to people on the league. Two more. The only is durability, but that's it. Yeah, no. Look, you, I think you

know this. I think we've probably even talked about it off the air. There's not one shred of confidence loss in that building out there in J. Daniels. Not one. None. They understand what happened last year. He wasn't available to play football for essentially 13 games start to finish. All right, two other players offensively. You've already mentioned Rashad White. My gut tells me that at least early in the season, he's going to be a major factor and may actually exceed Bill's snap count. What do you think? Yeah, I could see that. And he was one of the

guys that, now, you can't fall in love with running back from the spring because they're not in pad, right? I mean, so you don't, so you don't take up with their fault, but you saw the quickness and it's like, oh, he's a, he has more quickness and speed than you thought, right? So, I could definitely see him having a key role, especially early in the year, and it may last all year. But I definitely could see that. And he's been productive in the past. Yes. You know, he's been productive as well.

I think the question, though, is as a running back, like, does Bill offer more potential big plays? And I was looking at this today, so I know this. He had, like, on his, he had 12% of his carries were for 10 or more yards. Of the running back with 100 or more carries last year, that was, like, I think, eight. And, like, whereas, like, Rashad had, like, 9% now. I don't know.

It's also very possible he's getting, you know, you're getting carries in different situations. I don't know how that all plays out. What I do know is that I think with Krosky Merritt in this system, which is heavily relying on a one cut back, that he fits that well, but he's got to develop in other areas. But I agree

with you, like, it would not shock me at all if White has a bigger role early, and not because Krosky Merit hasn't developed, but because maybe White is, you know, maybe he's just in a really good spot. Yeah. The other guy is, I think, that they have been impressed with Van Jefferson.

What have you heard? Yeah, but I still think it's like, you do the math. That's going to be hard at receiver. And so, you know, he had done a nice job in the spring. And, you know, it's always like, I was some of those times where he had some really good plays, where he's kind of going against guys that may or may not make the team, right? So you always like take that, you keep that in mind. And so, but my point, the only point in saying that is that still got this,

I think it's still a battle to make that roster for, because then, again, you know, obviously carries out. Let's say they keep six receivers. Well, it's Terry and Antonio Williams. Then you look at their, they're not getting rid of, they love, they still like McAfrey, they still believe he can do something. and Jay and Lane has been there. Then it's like, okay, Diami,

Trey Berks, Van Jefferson, like those are the guys fighting for those spots. And, you know, I think Diami, he looked good too. And I think, you know, he can help them in the screen game, which I think will be very big for this offense, but also he's got some downfield ability.

Van Jefferson, you know, he's had, he's put up solid numbers, so maybe he can win a spot, but, like, to keep all those guys, you have to keep seven. And then if they add a guy, who's the odd man out? So I think it's still going to be like, you still got to go out and get that spot. All right.

We're going to take a quick break and get to some defensive questions for John after these words from a few of our sponsors. Summer can really add up when it comes to how much money you spend, and it adds up pretty quickly. You know, a trip here, a dinner there, a couple of outdoor concerts later, and it should have you wondering if you're getting the most of, out of your money. Well, that's where Chime comes in. Chime is changing the way people bank. They're not like traditional old banks who charge fees and gatekeep perks and rewards.

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betting needs mybooky.com or my bookie.ag. All right, we continue with John. Let's flip the conversation to the defensive side of the ball. Obviously, they haven't taken a snap in a real game as a completely revamped defense quite yet. But what do you think they're excited about? Oh, length and speed. But they definitely have a lot more of that this year for sure.

So, like, I think that's obvious when you watch them. And those are, like, that's what they were focusing on in the offseason, for agency and the drafts with Sunny Stiles, O-A. You know, like, O-Way can run, man. And, you know, like, Caleb on Chase on. Like, they got some, they have, they will be more athletic on defense. Now, you have to be better. But, like, you know, we watched those games last year,

and you'd watch, you'd watch a good defense. I'm like, oh, these dudes aren't in the same ballpark. Yeah. They just not. and you know, so, and a lot of it was like, whether they were older or just looked slower or less athletic, that that should be different this year. Now, again, you have to go out and play better.

And we don't know how that's going to go. And, you know, I've been here long enough and so you that we've been a lot of change the coordinator, but not a lot of great defenses. So, you know, they've got to go out and prove it, but they will be more athletic. Is there a player that, been on the roster, you know, the last year or two that hasn't gotten the opportunity that you think will with Durante Jones is the new coordinator? Not, not yet.

Like, the guy would have wondered about it would have been Jordan McGee, but then they go through, they get Chanel, they draft sunny styles, you have a glut at linebackers. I think you have four guys who can play inside with Frankie Louvre, right? And I think he's a guy that, like, will be interesting to watch this year. But in the front, you know, I don't know that there's a guy that you'd say, like, oh, this guy just been kind of waiting for it. I don't, I'd have to think, like, cornerback, no, safety. The guys who haven't played, who are on the roster, but haven't played from scrimmage a lot are Percy Butler and Tyler Owens. But I do think, like, right now they still view those guys more special teams guys going into camp.

It seems like, but, you know, we'll see. but I don't know that there's one guy on that side. Unless there's somebody that I'm missing up front, Mike. You know, you get settled. Yeah, I was thinking about Jordan McGee, but I was also thinking about Kane Madrano. Not that he's a comp for Van Ginkle in terms of size and length, but his playmaking ability is somewhat similar,

and I was just curious as to whether or not, you know, maybe they like some of what he gives from that standpoint. Yeah, but I think when you're looking at, that role. I think you're going to look at guys like Caleb on Chase on, you have Dorrance, you have, O'Donfe O'A, are in those types of roles, like whether it's Van Ginko or Grenard, right? Like, those are the guys that are playing that. I think with Medrano, I'll be curious to see, because I was curious about him as well. And as far as, like, watching him this spring and how he does have the speed, and that's what you want to see. And so I don't, but I don't know.

I'm trying to see, like, where does he carve out his role with this group? Because, you know, it's funny, I mean, because it's more of a three-four base at this point, like when I'm talking about linebackers, like, O'Way would be in that group. But if you're looking at, like, some of the other linebackers, you still have, he'd have to find a role ahead of a Leo Chanel, whom they sign it for Eni, ahead of Sunny Stiles or Frankie Louvre or McGee, right? So, you know, I think it might be hard for him, but I think that's a good thing because it means that they have some, not just depth, but quality depth at that thought.

Why do you think they signed Russell Douglas last week? First of all, that was not, they had shown interest in him a month or two ago, but I know at that point, you know, everything I heard was like, okay, it sounds like maybe more on a minimum type deal, and et cetera, but they had had interest in him. So when you look at it, one, he's very good in zone coverage. That's where he's made his mark in the NFL. That's what these guys are going to play a lot under Durante Jones. Number two, they need another guy.

To me, they need another guy there for sure. And you have Mikey Sanchez-Eleneke Robertson and the Trayamus. And then Witherspoon is coming off the injury. Hard to say where he's really at because, you know, it's hard sometimes in the spring, right? But the other thing with Douglas, Kevin, is size and length. And they don't have enough of that and that. I mean, here's the other thing. Witherspoon did not sign a deal with like, oh, he's going to be on the roster.

So really going into last, until they signed Douglas, I'd look, okay, they have three guys that has corners, what you'd say would be on the roster. They needed a fourth guy to me who has size. It just gives you more options. And if you're playing a lot of zone, you want length. And he has that. And he's been good in zone. And he had a solid year from Miami last year.

So I think those are why. I mean, he's like six, I want to say six to one, ninety, 90, something like that. but his wingspan is longer than what these other guys are except for Amos. So that helps. And it doesn't cure everything, but if you're playing zone, they talked about getting guys with length, and he has more of it. So those are reasons why now where his game is at. We'll see.

Does he unseat anybody? I don't know. But that's what he offers. And so to me, to me, like, he always made sense for them. Who's going to be the kicker on opening day? I still would lean toward Jake Moody. Moody's coming off his best year. And here's the thing, like,

Stevens is coming in an undrafted free agent, hasn't done it. You know, we don't know what he's going to do in the NFL. I know in practice that it was fairly even. But I think if you're Stevens, you pretty much better unseat him versus being even, right? The other thing is, like, when Moody came in the NFL,

Well, he was a Lou Groza Award winner, coming from a major program, which may have cheated for a while, but coming from a major program. Says the Buckeye about, yes, they may have cheated, for sure at Michigan. Yeah, but, but it was very, point is he was very good, taking big games, and Groza Award winner, a third-round draft pick. So, like, he had the credentials. Stevens is an undraftedip region. It does take a minute for guys to adjust to the NFL.

And I remember talking, I was actually talking to movie about this in the spring. Like, why does it take so long? Because you're kicking a ball, right? But his point was, in college, you only have a couple kicks where you'd say are pressure-filled kicks. You know what I mean? Like, you know, if you're, you're, you're, you're in Ohio State kicking, you're kicking against, you know, Kent State wherever. You're going to have a lot of games where it's just not as big a deal.

You miss it yet, it stinks. And they may not have someone behind you who's as good. So the pressure is just different. Here, you miss a couple ticks. You're out. And so, like, I think that's tough to get used to. So now, did Moody, again, 18 for 20 last year with Chicago and Washington, and I think he was two for two on 50-plus-yard kicks.

Stevens has a bigger leg, but he's very, obviously very unproven. So if he, I think, I think he, right now going in, I'd have to say Moody, because we don't know what Steve is going to do. And I think it's just hard to rely on that unless he just goes out there and nails every kick and shows a big leg. And he does have a bigger leg. And that's going to be to his advantage. But you've got to be consistent. Can he be?

If he is, then he obviously has a good shot. But Moody, I just think that there's, you know, that experience will be maybe tough to move on unless he just has a really bad camp. All right. We'll save, like, predictions for the regular season for our next visit sometime during trying to kick. I had a 73% chance that you're going to ask me that today. You did. Yeah, but you're just winging it. There's no formula behind it, so it's not really trustworthy. All right, I'll talk to you later. Thanks for doing this. John Kine, everybody. Some news on AJ DeBanza heading into the Wizard's Summer League game tonight.

I'll have that for you in our final segment, as well as Mark Turgeon said something that upset a lot of Maryland basketball fans. react to that after these words from a few of our sponsors. So there's some news as it relates to the Wizards Summer League in their first overall pick A.J. Devonsa, this is not surprising, but the Wizards are shutting him down summer league-wise after two pretty impressive games to start the Summer League for the Wizards. They won both of those games, and he was outstanding in both of those games. If you listen to the show yesterday, you know that I don't really put much stock into NBA summer league results. I just don't.

I'll tell you what, Caleb Wilson has had probably the best two games of any of those top four picks. Peterson, DeBonsa, in order, DeBonsa, Peterson, Boozer, and Caleb Wilson. Wilson and Peterson were the two that I thought had the biggest ceilings. Wilson's been outstanding. but again, it doesn't mean anything. They're not playing against guys that they'll be playing against in the NBA. A couple of players here and there, but most of them not. But the Wizards are shutting DeBanza down.

I think that makes total sense. All right. I want to finish up with just a brief thought or two on something that Mark Turgeon, the former Maryland basketball coach, something he said on Sports Radio, 8, 10 in Kansas City, either late last week or early this weekend. Part of what he said during that interview got carved out and put on social media, and Maryland basketball fans were incensed.

There was a lot that Mark did or didn't do during his time at Maryland that was polarizing at the least. Most of you know who have listened to me over the years know that I was a big Mark fan. I thought he was an excellent coach, and I very much was adamant at the end of his run when he stepped down in late 2021 in the 2021-2020 season. Be careful what you wish for. I understood some of the staleness that had come upon our basketball program because of the lack of March success, and he didn't have a lot of March success at Maryland. They went to the tournament a lot. they essentially went to the tournament in six of his last seven years.

One of those years was 2020 when they would have been a two or a three seed, but that tournament got canceled. That would have been his best team playing in the tournament. It's very possible had COVID not happened, and Maryland had played in that 2020 tournament. They would have gone deep enough for Mark to have not only remained the coach through 2021, 2022, but beyond that, he might still be the coach at Maryland had he been able to coach that particular really good basketball team, the Big Ten regular season champion team in the NCAA tournament.

For those of you who don't know, Mark, after stepping down in December of 2021, didn't coach until he just recently accepted the head coaching job at the University of Missouri at Kansas City. It's a return home for him. He's got so much family out there. He's from Kansas and has lots of family. in Missouri, Kansas, and his son Will's going to be on his staff. I'm going to be rooting for him, and I will be following that program very closely because I was a big fan. The bottom line for Mark is he was an excellent regular season coach, only Izzo and

Painter won more games during his time, Mark's time in the Big Ten than Mark did, but Maryland didn't have success in March. And because of that, came a lot of apathy. and a certain level of, you know, it's not good enough. And I understood that. And I still understand that to this day for those of you that felt like it was time to move on. I think the case could be made that it was time to move on, but not because he wasn't an excellent coach.

He was an excellent coach. And I bet he'll be an excellent coach taking this new gig. He's been a consultant over the last few years working with a lot of his friends in coaching and helping them as a consultant. So anyway, during this radio interview out in Kansas City, where he is going to be coaching, he was talking about the kind of coach that he wants to be this go-around and talked about that part of his learning from being away from coaching is that he can't care as much. about what people think. He said he cared way too much about what people think. And he said, quote,

I'm going to do a lot of the same, but I'm going to do, and it sounds kind of crazy, I'm not going to take myself as serious. I lived and died and breathed on every decision and everything that went down. I was always trying to climb the ladder. I was always trying to prove myself. And I've kind of done that. And then came the part of this quote that got carved out. He said, and then when I stepped away, I was like, okay, outside your little circle, really nobody cares. And what I mean by that is, and this is the part of this larger quote that was carved out, outside of the Maryland basketball circle, really no one cares about Maryland basketball if you're not in that circle and you're not a fan. And I took myself way too serious. closed quote. What got carved out out of that long quote was outside of the Maryland

basketball circle, really nobody cares about Maryland basketball if you're not in that circle and you're not a fan. It felt very much in reading just that line without the larger quote and context, it felt very much like he was really taking a shot at Maryland basketball. And me personally, I don't believe that he was belittling or minimizing or taking, you know, a shot at Maryland basketball. I don't believe that because I read the entire quote. I didn't listen to it. Tone has something to do with it. I didn't get the tone.

But I just gave you the larger quote. And in context, it doesn't sound to me like he was, you know, taking a shot at Maryland. Now, if he was taking a shot at Maryland, then I would agree with some of the, of you who in response said, really? Part of the reason that Maryland basketball may not mean as much as it used to mean is because of you, Mark. I would feel the same way if I felt like that's what he said. Because look, the lack of March success is a lack of success in that sport

when the large majority of college basketball fans are paying attention. to college basketball. The lack of success in the month of March did lead to legitimate feelings of indifference among Maryland basketball fans, and it had an impact on Maryland basketball. There were a lot of things that conspired to make Maryland basketball's passionate fan base different than it once was. Obviously, going into the Big Ten was a massive part of that and leaving, you know, the traditions of the ACC.

And I think D.C. And even Baltimore in many ways, but definitely D.C. is a much different sports town today than it was when Gary was coaching for a large percentage of the time that Gary was there. We didn't have a baseball team for much of the time that Gary was at Maryland. We didn't have, you know, any passion really for hockey. It was very niche. It still, in some ways, is very niche.

But Maryland basketball at one point, you could argue was number two in this town behind the Redskins in terms of pure, passionate following and things that were measurable sort of indicated that. It's not anymore. It hasn't been for a long time. And it's a lot more than the lack of success in March. If I thought Mark was taking a shot at Maryland basketball with that comment, then my response would be different. I would say, look, you know, you contributed to that because we weren't good enough in the tournament. You know, under Mark Turgeon, there was, you know, essentially not enough winning, not only in the NCAA tournament, but not enough winning in the Big Ten tournament.

He was an excellent regular season coach. Maryland was ranked high. They sold out that building. They had big games. They finished in the top two, three, four in the big. Big Ten regularly. They won a Big Ten title. Yes, I do know it was a shared regular season, a Big Ten title. But yeah, I mean, there was a time when Maryland was a legitimate top 10 to top 15 program nationally. They were, you know, arguably the number two, no worse than the number

three in this town. And, you know, it's not anywhere near that anymore. However, my reaction to what he said is that the one part of the quote was taken out of a larger point and it's context people. Mark, I believe, was internalizing how he felt and how he didn't want to feel anymore when coaching in this new position out in Kansas City, that being inside the bubble like he was at Maryland and feeling like there's no outside of the bubble, that the inside of the bubble is actually the way everybody thinks, that pressure associated with it was excruciating. And it wasn't healthy for him.

That's what I took out of what he said. Not that he was taking a shot at Maryland basketball. It was that, hey, man, this isn't the end-all-be-all. Outside of this intense, he didn't say intense, but it is an intense, passionate fan base. you know, there's a much larger world and it's not the end-all be-all. And I don't want to coach that way and I don't want to feel that way. I don't want to take it that seriously.

Now, if I know him and I think I do, he's one competitive SOB. I have a feeling he'll fall back into the same thing that he was at Maryland, internalizing everything, feeling, you know, there were a lot of similarities in many ways between he and Gary Williams. They always felt like they were backed into a corner that no one thought that they were, you know, as good as he thought they were. And I think that was part of the reason he was successful

and has been successful as a head coach. I mean, this is a guy that's won 64% of his games. In the Big Ten at Maryland, the Terps were, you know, overall 226 and 16 and 105 and 79 in the league. He did a great job at Maryland with that one big exception, and that one big exception led to some staleness. It did. I agree.

I think he'll do a great job out there. It's one of those conferences where you're going to have to win the conference tournament to get into the big dance, more likely than not even with the expansion, but I think he'll do a good job. And as far as, you know, that part of the quote, I think in context, it was him just internalizing the way he felt and the way he doesn't want to feel anymore coaching wherever he would have ended up.