The Kevin Sheehan Show - Three Players Washington Won't Pick

Episode Date: April 18, 2025

Kevin opened the show with Commanders "season-ticket" talk and then got to a list of three players he would be surprised if Washington selected in next week's first round of the NFL Draft. Sam Monson/...The 33rd Team jumped on to preview the NFL Draft and talk about best fits for Washington. Alan May/Caps Monumental Network joined Kevin to preview the Caps' playoff possibilities starting with thoughts on their first-round series with Montreal.   Go to zbiotics.com/SHEEHAN and use SHEEHAN at checkout for 15% off any first time orders of ZBiotics probiotics.Try hims.com/SHEEHAN for your personalized hair loss treatment options.Shop SKIMS Mens at SKIMS.com and SKIMS stores.Go To WindowNation.com. Buy 4 windows, get 4 free!If you want to bet on sports, go to mybookie.ag. Use code KEVINDC for a bonus!  Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Transcript
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Starting point is 00:00:02 You don't want it. You don't need it. But you're going to get it anyway. The Kevin Cheon Show. Here's Kevin. Two guests on the show with me today. Sam Monson from the 33rd team. Sam was with PFF for many years.
Starting point is 00:00:17 He's a great guest. We'll talk NFL and, of course, NFL draft with Sam in the next segment. Following Sam, Alan May will join me. We'll talk Capp's playoffs. They open up Monday night in their best of seven. first round series with Montreal at home. The show's presenting sponsor, as always, Window Nation, 86690 Nation or WindowNation.com.
Starting point is 00:00:43 If you're looking for new windows, mention my name, they'll come out and give you a free in-home estimate, and they'll take good care of you, I promise. Coming up in this first segment, I'm going to give you the three players that I would be surprised if Washington selected in the first round. and two of them are players that I've really liked in previous conversations. Before that, this from Patrick to open up this show.
Starting point is 00:01:13 Patrick in Bethesda writes, Kevin, FedEx Field's capacity is bigger than $65,000. It holds up to $85,000 if they expand in the upper deck. I wonder if they'll do that with demand at a high level again. Thank you, Patrick, for that. Northwestfield is the actual name. I make the same mistake all the time. The 65,000 number, I think, that you're referring to is the number that Tommy and I were talking about on the show yesterday, as it relates to a new stadium at the RFK site in 2030.
Starting point is 00:01:53 65,000 is the minimum required to get a Super Bowl. So we were talking yesterday about, you know, if they get a stadium, at the RFK site by 2030, even if they don't, the new stadium whenever it opens is going to be, I think, between 65,000 and 70,000 capacity. But 65,000 is the minimum to get a Super Bowl. Now, your email actually intrigued me, and I actually went and did some quick research, because I was actually curious as to what the capacity, the actual capacity of North Westfield is. Because last year, I definitely referred to it as like 63,000, 64,000 and near the bottom of the league in capacity. So the listed capacity right now, according to multiple sites, the official
Starting point is 00:02:54 Northwest Field capacity as of right now, is 67,717. That would make it the 20th largest in the league not as low as I thought it was. But I'm not certain that 67,717 was last year's capacity. Now, I say that because pro football reference gives you the attendance, the announced attendance, for each game for every team in the NFL. and Washington's largest home crowd last year was 66,192, Week 10 against Pittsburgh at home. A lot of Steelers fans in the crowd that day.
Starting point is 00:03:44 And if the capacity is 67,717, then that means they didn't sell out a game last year. And they announced sellouts. I think they had two or three sold out games last year. Now, it may be that they announced sellouts because they sold all of the non-premium seats, meaning non-club non-sweet seats, non-sweet seats, say that three times real quickly. And I think you're allowed to announce a sellout if all of your non-premium seats are sold. But it's also a possibility that they had a smaller capacity. Anyway, the current capacity of Northwest Field is 67,717. Now, Patrick, as of today, because I checked on this, you can buy season tickets.
Starting point is 00:04:44 You can find good season tickets in the lower level and on the club level. So the demand at this point might be greater than it's been in recent years, but season tickets are still very much available. Now, maybe after the draft or after the schedule comes out next month, maybe they'll start selling the hell out of tickets and they'll sell out next season. I do think this is an interesting conversation, and I've brought it up before. I think it's something that we should keep an eye on, at least those of us that are still interested in the name conversation,
Starting point is 00:05:23 which, by the way, is the majority of us. because in most cases, you know, minus, you know, a city or a football town like, you know, Jacksonville or even in Arizona or a Carolina, you know, most other NFL cities following a 12-and-5 breakout season with two playoff wins and an NFC championship game in the books, even though they didn't win it, Most places would then sell out the following season. But when you add to the story, a superstar major draw at quarterback in Jaden Daniels, most teams would sell out season tickets for the following season. I mean, the upcoming regular season is the most anticipated since they were, you know, championship contenders in the early 90s. I don't know, maybe you could say the 2000 season was super highly anticipated.
Starting point is 00:06:32 That's the last time there were real expectations, like championship expectations. 2012 had great anticipation because of RG3. But this upcoming season is the most anticipated in decades. The best regular season they just finished since 1991, the deepest into the playoffs they've been since 1991, and they have a superstar at quarterback. So if they don't sell out next year, not that anybody who's paying attention really needs more data to prove it, but that would be a big tell on how much the name is still an issue, which of course it is. They should sell out next year, 67,777.7.7.7.7.
Starting point is 00:07:26 seats. They should. There have to be, have to be at least 30,000 plus people who loved last year and don't care about the name. And I say 30,000 because I'm guessing that going into last year, they probably had about 30,000 season ticket holders. I think it was much less than that, the last year of Snyder. Yes, it got that low. It got into like, the 15 to 20,000 range in terms of season ticket holders. That's how low it got. But I would think 67,717, if their season ticket base last year was, let's just say it was 35 or 40,000, I mean, come on, that's another 27,000 season tickets to sell after the season they had.
Starting point is 00:08:20 They should be able to do that. As of now, they have it. We'll see. and we'll follow that during the offseason. All right. I have spent some time the last couple of nights, just, you know, doing some draft prep. I do this every year.
Starting point is 00:08:41 I'll just start watching certain positions that I think the team will be thinking about. So I know something about the players because most of kind of my takes come from just watching a lot of college football. But obviously when you get to the draft, you've got players from so many different teams and at positions that you didn't really pay attention to. So being a week, you know, away from the draft right now, less than a week away, I mean, this time next week, the Friday podcast will likely focus in on who they picked in the first round, unless they trade it out of
Starting point is 00:09:19 the first round, which of course is a possibility. But what I did is, I looked at kind of the positions that I think are in play. Edge, you know, defensive end, running back, wide receiver, corner, O line. And I looked at, you know, the players that based on mock drafts, consensus of some mocks, have either been mocked to Washington or they're in the general. general area of when Washington picks at 29. They're expected to go in that general area. It's kind of hard
Starting point is 00:10:01 for a couple of positions. Like I'm telling you, the actual odds-on favorite for the position that Washington will select defensive end or edge, I mean, the way these players have been mocked out, they're all over the place.
Starting point is 00:10:16 But I came up with three players that I really think I'd be surprised if Washington selected these three players. And I'll give you the reasons. And two of them are a surprise to me, because one of them in particular I've been talking about for a while,
Starting point is 00:10:37 and the other one I have felt all along, if he's available, why not? I'm going to start, though, with a player that I would be very surprised if Washington selected at 29 in the first round. And that is Tennessee defensive end, edge, James Pierce, Jr. The number one reason why I think I'd be very surprised if Washington selected James James Pierce Jr. A very talented player out of Tennessee.
Starting point is 00:11:11 I mean, 6.5, 250. This is a guy that produced. The athletic traits are off the charts. But there are red flags on this player. Now, there are red flags on Mike Green, the pass rusher from Marshall. I didn't consider him because, again, I'm focused on players that have been mocked to Washington or as a consensus have been mocked in the general area of, say, you know, 23 through the first 10 spots of the second round.
Starting point is 00:11:44 And James Pierce, Jr. has been mocked to Washington, and he's been mocked to teams around Washington in the first round. I'd be shocked if they take James Pierce Jr. Because the biggest issue with James Pierce Jr. is the other stuff. The stuff we don't know about unless we read about it before the draft. And in this case, there is plenty to read about when it comes to James Pierce Jr. First of all, he's had some incidents off the field, like traffic incidents,
Starting point is 00:12:17 nothing major, speeding, driving on a suspended license. charges that were kind of dismissed after traffic stops. That's not the issue. The issue is there is a narrative about James Pierce, Jr. That he doesn't love football. That his work ethic is less than stellar, that he missed some workouts in the offseason last year at Tennessee. And there's one line that I pulled from,
Starting point is 00:12:52 one of the many things that I read. And it comes from Dane Bruegler's draft preview. He does it for the athletic. There's a lot out there that just says work ethic, work ethic, you know, does he love football, et cetera? This was the quote from an NFL scout in the Dane Bruegler breakdown of James Pierce Jr. The NFL scout said, quote,
Starting point is 00:13:19 I want to be convinced that he loves this, closed quote. You couple that with so many work ethic lines about James Pierce, Jr. I just don't think Washington's going to take a player like that. They last year took 17 captains and they tried to create a culture where everybody was high-level professional. and right now there are questions about James Pierce Jr.'s professionalism. So I'd be surprised if they took him. Look, I wasn't in the meeting with him.
Starting point is 00:14:01 I don't know how much they've talked to him or talk to people that know him. Maybe it's a bad rap. Maybe a lot of this is inaccurate. But there is a lot of smoke around James Pierce Jr. Mike Green's the other one, but they're not going to have a chance for Mike. Green. His talent is too tantalizing. I think he'll be gone,
Starting point is 00:14:23 long gone by 29. Pierce Jr. could easily be there at 29. He's a talent. The tape is great, but I don't think Washington is going to take James Pierce, Jr. The next
Starting point is 00:14:39 player on the list of three players that I have that I'd be surprised if they took is a player that I love, and I've mentioned this guy many times. I think Luther Burden III is an exciting player. I think he is one of those truly unique players with the ball in his hands. But the more and more, I looked at Luther Burden.
Starting point is 00:15:06 I love the tape. You know, watched Missouri a lot. I mean, 2023, he was unstoppable. But there was so much that I read about Luther Burden, the third, that reminded me of Jahan Dotson. Now, not Jahan Dotson coming out, but the Jahan Dotson that Adam Peters and Dan Quinn decided to trade. Luther Burden Jr. has a rap against him about taking plays off, about not running strong routes when the plays not designed to come to him. I mean, first of all, they are similar players Jahan Dotson and Luther Burdon stylistically.
Starting point is 00:15:50 But the number one reason Washington traded Jahan Dotson was that he was not a player that hustled. You know, using the basketball analogy that I used at the time, even before they traded him, you could tell. Quinn was talking about Jahan Dotson in a way in which they wanted him to play harder. I remember the line during camp. It may have been after a preseason game. We need to see him when the ball's not coming his way. Play it out. We need guys that will dive on the floor for loose balls. And that was not Jahan Dotson, not for this coaching staff. And there is a wrap on Luther Bird and the 3rd that that's not him either.
Starting point is 00:16:38 So I love the player, I love the player's talent, but there is definitely some tape, and there's a lot of discussion that he takes too many plays off and the maturity level may not be where team like Washington wants it to be. Lastly, and I've talked about this guy recently as a guy that would be worthy of a first round pick. but I watched a lot of running back stuff last night. I watched a lot of edge stuff the night before. Next week, I will give you the players that I really like and the players that I don't like. I'd be surprised if Washington selects Omari and Hampton, the running back from North Carolina in the first round.
Starting point is 00:17:26 Now, I think he's going to be a good back. I just don't think he is elite. And Ashton Genty is an elite. back. He's going to go in the first round, and he deserves to go in the first round. He has, I mean, major high-end top five running back in the league potential. I don't think Hampton does. I watched a lot of Hampton last night and some of the other backs as well. I think Hampton is a good back, but the only way I take a running back in the first round is if, and I've mentioned this many times here over the last few weeks, is if I think I'm getting Sequin Barclay or I think I'm getting
Starting point is 00:18:09 Bijon Robinson. And I don't think Hampton is that. Hampton is six feet 220. He's good, man, and he had some games the last two years. And last year, without Drake May, it was all about loading up to stop Hampton. And he produced at a high, high level. He tested well at the combine, ran four, four, six. But when you watch his tape, he runs a little bit upright. He doesn't have great wiggle. I think his football speed is not breakaway speed. It's really good speed, but it's not Sequin Barclay. If I'm going to take a quarterback in the first round, I want to know that if there is daylight, if there's a crease and my back gets into the secondary, even if a safety has an angle on him, that he's going to run right by it like Sequin Barclay does, like Jamir Gibbs does. And I don't see that with Hampton.
Starting point is 00:19:09 I think his vision is good, not great. I think he is powerful. I mean, he is a strong physical back. And he's a workhorse, man. I mean, you can feed him 20 plus times a game. And he is a good back. but in this draft with all the running backs that are out there, I'm not taking a back in the first round unless I think the back is special. And I just don't see Hampton as special. I see him as a guy who could be very good, but he's not Ashton Genty. Travion Henderson, because of his big play ability, and he's got incredible big playability,
Starting point is 00:19:55 and by the way, off the charts, high character, I could see him going in the first round. I'm becoming like, look, I think Hampton might go in the first round as well. I just don't think that he deserves to go in the first round. I think he is a night two pick, for sure, but there are a lot of backs in this draft that I like. Travion Henderson is different from Hampton because of his just blinding game-breaking speed and big playability. I don't see that with Hampton. It's not that I don't think he could take a 65-yard run to the house,
Starting point is 00:20:32 but not the way Barclay does it, not the way the elite backs do it. I could see him being a big-time productive, 1,200-yard-plus back. Not worthy of a first-rounder, though. So three players that I'd be surprised if Washington took in the first round, James Pierce, Jr., because of the red flags on character, on work ethic, Luther Burden the third love his talent, but he takes plays off and he doesn't play it out on every play and that just reminded me of Jahan Dotson. And then I think Omerian Hamptons are really good back but not a night one first rounder. You know, and look with running backs, how many of them get
Starting point is 00:21:19 picked, second, third, fourth, fifth, you know, that end up being really good backs. And he might be one of those on night two. But I don't see wasting a first round pick on Hampton. I hope they see it the same way. If they took Henderson, I'd actually be happier about that. If you told me they took a running back and it was Henderson in front of Hampton, I'd feel better about that. Because I think Henderson's upside because of his speed and, by the way, his overall character, and I think his versatility. I think I'd be happier about that than Hampton. I don't think, honestly, I'd want any running back taken in the first round other than Gentie.
Starting point is 00:22:01 And Gentie's not going to fall to Washington. All right. So much more on the draft and some of the things that I've looked at on some of the positions that they'll be focused on. I think it's D-line, edge, D-end, edge. I think it's corner. I think it is certainly, you know, a possibility at running back or a wide receiver. You know, O-line. I don't think tight ends a possibility, but I'll tell you, Mason Taylor is a really good player.
Starting point is 00:22:36 Jason Taylor's son, he's been really good at LSU the last couple of years. And I've seen him sneaking up into some first-round mocks. Two tight ends, Tyler Warren from Penn State and Colston Loveland from Michigan. are definitely going to go in the first round. And by the way, I love Tyler Warren. I think he is going to be a star, tight end. Loveland, I don't like as much as Warren, but Mason Taylor is really interesting.
Starting point is 00:23:08 But we'll talk about some of those positions in more detail next week. All right, Sam Monson coming up, but just a quick shout out to some of our sponsors, including skims, zbiotics in their product pre-alcohol, and hymns, which you will hear a little bit about when we get to our break, which we will do right now. And then Sam Monson, after these words from some of those sponsors that I just mentioned.
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Starting point is 00:29:02 They've got a great deal going on right now, and when they install these windows, they leave your home looking better than when they showed up. 96% of their installs require no follow-up service. 86690 Nation or windownation.com. All right. Joining me right now is actually one of my favorite NFL guests to have on. Sam Monson from the 33rd team. Of course, Sam was with PFF for all of those years, one of the early, early people at PFF.
Starting point is 00:29:35 You can follow Sam on X on Twitter at Sam Monson, NFL. Before we get to the draft, Aaron Rogers spoke yesterday on the Pat McAfee show. I don't know if we learned anything. Maybe you feel like we did, but just let's cut to the chase. Does he play? And if so, where? Yeah, I think he's still the most likely thing is for him to go to Pittsburgh and be their starting quarterback. I think Rogers seems like he would like to be the quarterback for the Minnesota Vikings. If he was
Starting point is 00:30:12 handwriting his own ticket, I think that's what he's angling for and trying to convince them that he's worth the headache effectively to be their starting quarterback for the year. Take one swing at the Super Bowl, and then, you know, right off into the sunset coming off a good year, as opposed to the way the Jets tenure ended.
Starting point is 00:30:29 I just don't think the Vikings want to give them that opportunity. If Minnesota would probably like to have Rogers, but only on their terms, not on his. So as long as that's the situation, I think he either has to play for Pittsburgh or decide it's time to call it quit. So what's your prediction? He plays with Pittsburgh? Yeah, I think so. You know, what's so interesting is just the receiver situation there, adding D.K. Metcalfe, and they legitimately, as we speak, do not have a legitimate, even low-end starting caliber NFL quarterback.
Starting point is 00:31:05 Yeah, and they put themselves in this awkward position. A little bit like when they had to draft Kenny Pickett in the first round. Right. And this is what's tough about this is, you know, Rogers is out there going on McAfee and saying, look, I don't have a timeline for this. I'm not rushed. You know, I don't have to, I don't know it to anybody to be on their timetable. But from Pittsburgh's point of view, they need to know before the first round of the draft, because if Rogers is not going to be their guy, they basically have to draft a quarterback in the first round like they did with Kenny Pickett.
Starting point is 00:31:39 And that's obviously not, you know, best practice. That's how you reach for quarterbacks that probably aren't likely to be superstars, but you put yourself in that position again. So I think that's what makes this all very awkward is that the Steelers know, you know, their best chance of landing Rogers is to give them space and let him make his own decision and give him the time. But they need them, and they need to know if they're going to get them, otherwise they have to do something kind of crazy in the first round.
Starting point is 00:32:06 All right. A couple of other things before we get to the draft. Do you think Trey Hendrickson gets dealt before next Thursday? I don't because I think the Bengals still desperately need them. You know, they tried to sort of future-proof that position a couple of years ago with drafting Miles Murphy in the first round. That hasn't worked out. And if they didn't have Trey Hendrickson in the last year's defense,
Starting point is 00:32:26 it would be one of the worst defenses the game has ever seen, even with him playing at an all pro kind of level, it was a terrible defense. So I think they need to keep him around. I think there's a deal to be done that makes everybody happy, even with the contracts they've already handed out. So my gut reaction is they still figure out a way of making it work. I'm with you on that, but let's just play the hypothetical.
Starting point is 00:32:49 If I told you he did get dealt before next Thursday, where did he land? I mean, I think a team, you know, a few years ago, the Philadelphia Eagles traded a first round pick and a little bit more as well to get AJ Brown from Tennessee and we were saying that year that's the best first round pick that was spent this year you know forget players taken in the top 10 forget steals later in the first nobody spent a better first round pick than the one that Eagles gave to get to get AJ Brown over and I think that's been born out um it's not quite the same thing because you know Trey Anderson is older. He's 30 years old. He's not in his young prime the way
Starting point is 00:33:28 AJ Brown was. But I think it would be a similar thing. If you were a team with a desperate need on the edge who was picking low in the first round because you're a good football team and you don't expect to be picking at the top of the draft regularly, you could do a lot worse than flipping your first round pick for Trey Hendrickson rather than rolling the dice on one of these second wave pass rushes in the first round. And a team like, Washington makes a ton of sense, who have had this, you know, edge rush need since they traded away their young edge rushes and haven't yet replaced it. Yeah, before you said that, I was going to say, I think you just described Washington for sure. I think the hang-up is, I don't think Adam Peters is willing to part with a first rounder. I think if it was second and maybe next year's third, that probably would be more palatable. But I think the asking price right now, or it has been too high for a player that's 30 years old, not
Starting point is 00:34:23 you know, Miles Garrett, you know, in totality as a player, and Miles Garrett and age. Anyway, all right, let's talk draft. Travis Hunter is the best player in an NFL draft since who? I think it's hard to quantify how good he is because what makes him special is unique. You know, he wouldn't be the best wide receiver in last year's draft. He wouldn't be the best cornerback in a lot of draft, but the fact that he's in the conversation for both at the same time is, I mean, it's not quite unprecedented,
Starting point is 00:34:59 but you have to go back to, like, the 60s when players were two-way players regularly. You know, since the NFL went to multiple sides of the ball, everybody playing one side, we really haven't seen a player like Travis Hunter come along. Guys have come along who have dabbled with both, you know, played a little bit on one side of the ball while playing predominantly on the other. you know, Champ Bailey or Charles Woodson or Chris Gamble. That's happened before. But we haven't seen a guy that's played that's been in every down starter on both sides
Starting point is 00:35:31 of the ball and arguably a top five player in the nation at both of them at the same time. It's completely ridiculous. It's basically unprecedented in the modern era. And that's what makes him great. And a big part of that question is, how sustainable is that in the NFL? I mean, it shouldn't have been sustainable in college. so he's already breaking new ground.
Starting point is 00:35:52 But we don't know yet what this is going to look like in the NFL. All those other guys that dabbled with it in college were fairly well shut down in the NFL and just turned into one side of the ball players. Maybe they would get a couple of snaps here or there on the other side of the ball. But effectively they became just a specialist on one side of the ball. It sounds like the NFL is going to give Travis Hunter a legitimate shot to play both ways in some capacity. and that unknown, the level of the some capacity, I think is what determines how great he can be.
Starting point is 00:36:26 If he's able to do something approaching what he was doing in college in the NFL, it would make him one of the greatest players in the game. If he becomes, you know, a player that basically plays almost all of the snaps on one side of the ball and then a handful of plays on the other side. It's still valuable. It's still incredibly impressive, but I think it's a lot less, you know, generational and sort of all inspiring then the potential of what he could do if he was allowed to do what he did in college. Well, what should he focus on at the NFL level, which side of the ball?
Starting point is 00:37:00 It's tough because, look, it depends what the goal is, right? If he wants to maximize his potential, I think wide receiver earns more money than cornerback. That's just a reality. I think he's a better wide receiver that he is a cornerback. So everything would be pushing you towards playing receiver first and figuring out, corner second, but, you know, there are teams that have the greater needed corner, and I think it's easier to, if you're going to play in two ways to some degree, it's a much easier balancing act to have them as a full-time corner and then put them in there for some snaps on offense,
Starting point is 00:37:35 but it is the other way around where, you know, teams very, very rarely have a defensive back on a sort of pure pitch count. You know, there, you have sub-package corners, nickel-banks, dime corners, those types of things. But the problem with that is if you're kind of at the mercy of what the offense does then, if you just had Travis Hunter's your nickel corner, I mean, you can be trapped in nickel for the entire game if a team wants to do that by just putting out the correct person on offense to put you in that situation. So you're not necessarily in control of the snaps he's playing as easily
Starting point is 00:38:10 in terms of if he's playing defense. So it was me, I would have him as a full-time wide receiver, and then try and figure out what the best way of using him on defense is. But I think that's where he's got his best. Who's the best quarterback in this draft, and where would he have been taken in last year's draft? I think it's Cam Ward, definitely. I think he's got the easiest tool set to sell yourself on.
Starting point is 00:38:37 He's got all the physical ability. He's got some incredible throws on his tape. He's a little bit of a big game hunter, a bit of a maverick, a bit of a gunfling, or all those clichés, and that can be a little bit scary. But I think he would be up in the conversation with the second tier of the top six last year. I mean, so many quarterbacks went, and they all went early, but even with that group, it felt like there was a fairly strong consensus
Starting point is 00:39:03 that it was the top three, Caleb Williams, Jaden, Daniels, and Drake May, and then the next three. J.J. McCart, the Bow Nix, and Michael Panix, Jr., sort of came out of nowhere to be in that course. group as well. I think he belongs in that second group somewhere. And obviously those guys ended up getting squeezed much tighter together than people thought they would.
Starting point is 00:39:22 But I think he would be in that collection of quarterback a year ago. Where does Shadur Sanders go? That's the big X-actor in this draft. You know, you can make a case that he should still go two or three to one of the two really quarterback needy teams in Cleveland and the
Starting point is 00:39:38 Giants, even with the veteran additions that they've made. But if he doesn't, and if teams do think that there's not enough to the physical, special tools there, and he starts sliding, there aren't that many teams that it makes sense to halt that slide for a while. You know, the Saints, obviously, at 9 are the obvious ones, the Steelers that we talked about if Rogers doesn't fly with them might be forced into doing it. And if either one of those teams thinks a different quarterback is QB2 in this draft,
Starting point is 00:40:09 I mean, Sanders could seriously slide. on the running back conversation how many go in the first round and what's your philosophy now on running backs in the first round my hunch is probably two um i could just about see three but i can't see any more than that um i think something like the answer is probably somewhere between one and two i think ultimately if you think the guy is special i have no problem with drafting a running back in the first round um if you don't think think he's special, particularly in this year, I think it makes all the sense in the world to wait because there's a lot of talented running backs that are going to be available on day two and even day three.
Starting point is 00:40:51 The question to me is not so much would you take them in the first round. It's number one, what is the opportunity cost? What are you leaving on the table to take the running back? And number two, how high can you draft him? I think that's where, you know, I don't have a problem with taking a guy in the first round, but I think there is a level at which it doesn't make sense. to take them. You know, a level up in the draft, a number at which point it doesn't make any
Starting point is 00:41:16 sense to draft the guy, because immediately the contract in the top five is making him one of the best paid running back from the NFL, and so much of the value of those guys is the surplus value based off how cheap the rookie contracts are. Yeah, I'm totally with you on that. It's like, you know, Washington, I think we'll take a running back in this draft, Sam, but unless they believe that Hampton,
Starting point is 00:41:40 or Travion Henderson, is Sequin Barclay or Christian McCaffrey or Jemier Gibbs or Bijon Robinson, I think they should wait. I don't think that player should be selected in the first round. You've got to really feel like the impact is going to be Barclay-esque to take a running back in the first round. Yeah, and the difference is with some other positions, like running back, you can find great running backs all the way to the draft. I mean, look at Bucking Irving last year for the Buccaneers. you can't say that for a lot of other positions.
Starting point is 00:42:14 If not that there are none of them, almost every position is spinning out some form of impressive NFL player at every round of the draft. But at certain positions, so much a huge proportion of the impact players come right at the sharp end of the draft. So when you're looking at these players and you're like, well, we've got a couple of needs. One of them's running back, you know.
Starting point is 00:42:35 But the other position, you're much less likely to be able to come back in the third round and find a player. that can come in and make an impact the way you can with running back. So I think that's the problem. That's why you need to be convinced that the guy is special and a gap, you know, a significant gap between him and the other running back from this draft. And I think you can definitely make that argument for Ashton Genti, who I think would probably go in the top ten pick somewhere.
Starting point is 00:43:00 I don't think you can really make the case for anybody else in this draft. I'm married Hampton from North Carolina is really good, but I'm not 100% convinced he's better than a couple of other running backs in this draft. draft. So, you know, I don't think you make that decision. But if Genties on the board, I think that's different because, you know, he looks like far and away the best running back in his draft. It sounds like we're on the same page as it relates to Hampton. I'm just curious, who are the other backs in the draft that you don't see much difference between Hampton and those guys? Who are those guys? Yeah, I mean, I think Hampton is the second best bank in this class I had at second
Starting point is 00:43:36 in my rankings. But, you know, if you run an outside zone scheme, I think you could easily talked yourself into Caleb Johnson from Iowa being just as good as Amerian Hampton, if not better. You know, Travion Henderson from Ohio State is a better pass protector is potentially more explosive. I was a pretty good running back in his
Starting point is 00:43:54 own right when he had the Belkow workload at Ohio State before they brought in Quinton Judkins. Judkins himself is a very similar sort of athletic prototype or profile to Marion Hampton. And you could talk yourself into him making that kind of impact as well.
Starting point is 00:44:10 So I think there's a group of other running backs once you get beyond Genti that are very similarly lumped together. And if you're making that decision, do we take Hampton or do we wait around or two when one of these guys are going to be available? You might end up getting the better player having waited. The guy that I like, and I'm just curious as to what you think, but I've loved Damien Martinez since his Oregon State days, would you put him into that group? because if you could get him on day three, to me, that's better than taking Hampton in the first round. What do you think? Yeah, absolutely agree.
Starting point is 00:44:47 I really like Damien Martinez. It's incredibly young as well, and it's done it in multiple different schemes. And then Dylan Samson from Tennessee as well, I think is in that group. A very different body type and a different sort of running back style, much smaller. So it doesn't have this giant physical NFL body type that you would love. But I think talent-wise is in that category as well. So, yeah, I'm with you. I think that's the reason why, you know, if it's, if Genties off the table and I'm debating
Starting point is 00:45:15 or running back, that's the reason why I'm waiting in the first round. All right. The odds are, at least, you know, from the books, Washington will end up taking, you know, a defensive end slash edge in the first round. So if I tell you that it is an edge at 29, they don't move back, they don't move up, Tell me who you think is there and who the right fit for Washington would be at 29 as an edge player. Yeah, I think projecting the edge class this year is really difficult. Everyone agrees that Abdul Carter is edge one, and after that it gets chaotic because every one of the next five or six guys has got some kind of flaw or red flag or just something to be scared of, whether it's sample size, whether it's, you know,
Starting point is 00:46:04 you know, off field, whether it's attitude, whether it's lack of production, every one of these guys got some reason that you wouldn't want to draft them, or that you would be at least hesitant to pull that trigger. But it's a different thing for almost each guy, and I think that introduces an amazing amount of randomness, because we've no idea what each team is going to think about each one of those red flags. So I think that group could go in almost any order, and it could go in almost any sort of level of the first round,
Starting point is 00:46:33 depending on how much or little teams care about those red flags. I think the guys with the best chances of being there by the time Washington pick, it wouldn't shock me if Michael Williams from Georgia flipped a little bit. Just a sort of general wasn't quite the athlete, the people were expecting him to be, you know, it's a little bit on that lack of production end of the spectrum as well. The selling point for those sort of lack of production guys is, yeah, but he's a special athlete, and, you know, we'll put it together at the NFL level, but Williams actually isn't quite the level of special athletes,
Starting point is 00:47:09 and suddenly I think that's just a harder sell for NFL teams. Donovan Aziraku, I could see being around there, and I think he's sort of underrated relative to these other guys. I would love that as a pick for Washington. He's got elite pass-rushing, kind of chops, pass-rushing tool set. I think he can play against the run as well. part of his game is a little bit underrated. So I think he could be there.
Starting point is 00:47:37 And then depending on, I think James Pierce is a big X factor. He's got mid to high first round tape. But there's a lot of the swirl about him is it's off field in the kind of work ethic attitude world. You know, it's not necessarily legal trouble. It's not, you know, drugs, none of that stuff. It's like, you know, why was Tennessee not playing him every down? You know, there's a lot of sort of talk about that he didn't necessarily commit to it full-time. In a way that's above and beyond, you know, sometimes you hear that from Scouts,
Starting point is 00:48:18 whenever a guy is like a hobby, you know, or enjoys basketball or something ridiculous, it's like, well, does he really love football? That's crazy, but it's stronger than that with Pierce. And I wonder how much that's going to scare some teams. away. It wouldn't shock me if Pierce fell out of the first round entirely, but equally if he's there, I mean, his tape justifies that selection. Yeah, I talked about this in the open. He's one that I would be very surprised if they took for those reasons. I mean, this is a team last year that seven of their nine picks were team captains as they were trying to change their culture. So,
Starting point is 00:48:57 you know, I kind of, you know, I like Azarekow. I just wonder whether or not. not he's ready to be an edge-setting defensive end against the run versus more of just a specialized pass rusher to begin with. And they got gashed Sam last year against the run, especially, you know, sort of C-gap and outside. They really struggled to set the edge. And I'm curious as to whether or not you think there's one guy, you know, in that first, early second round area that is head and shoulders above the others as a run stopper. Yeah, I mean, I think the two guys that are sort of built as the physical freak shows, Shemar Stewart and Michael Williams, I think those are the two best run setting,
Starting point is 00:49:44 edge defenders in that kind of area. You know, Shemar Stewart in particular, we can all debate what he can become as a pass rusher and how concerning the lack of production is. The one thing I think that's pretty not even up for debate is that guy is a dominant run defender. incredibly powerful. He is able to just explode through offensive tackles, drive them into the backfield. If you drafted him high and had no real interest in his pass rush, and you said, look, you're going to go out there, you're going to absolutely murder the run, and then when we get to a passing down, just bullrush through the tackle, I think you would have a productive player.
Starting point is 00:50:24 Cornerback, who would be there and who would be worth taking at 29? Corner, I think you're going to be in a good area there, depending on what exact type of corner you're looking at. But I think that's where there's a group of guys that are going to be available at that kind of spot. And it's sort of which one teams are most enamored with, whether it's Trey Amos from Ole Miss, Azarea Thomas from Florida State, Maxwell Harrison from Kentucky, Chavonne Ravel. You know, the press man teams will love him as well. I think he's a potential possible first round player. That whole group of corners, I think, are going to start coming off the board towards that end,
Starting point is 00:51:06 the end of the first round, into the top of the second round. I really like Amos. I think Azariah Thomas is a very good player as well. And then Harrison has got crazy potential because of all that speed and explosives he showed. I noticed that you had Benjamin Morrison from Notre Dame ranked really high on something that you did recently. He's a team captain. He's one of those high character guys.
Starting point is 00:51:34 Is 29 too early for him? He's a big X-factor player because it's all going to come down to the medical history with him. I think he's got first-round tape. I think he's got first-round character. He's the most technically sound cornerback, I think, in this entire draft.
Starting point is 00:51:53 but he has multiple, not just hip injuries, but hip surgery in his history. And that, I mean, hip surgery for a cornerback is a pretty scary thing. So, look, none of us are doctors, but that's what the evaluation is going to come down to. If your medical team signs off on him and says, look, these were two freak injuries, they're dealt with, he's recovered, he's good to go, and they're not going to recur, I think you could easily justify Benjamin Morrison being drafted at the bottom of the first round. I think he's got that ability. But if that's something you're scared of and you say, look, these are going to come back,
Starting point is 00:52:29 or this is going to be a reason that he's not the player that he used to be. His hips are going to be tighter. It's fluidity of movement is not going to be what it was and all these things. Then you're going to have to drop him. And you have to say, look, he's not the player that he was when we were evaluating his tape. The two safeties that are projected potentially in the first round, a mona worry from South Carolina, Starks from Georgia. if I told you they took his safety, which one should we be most happy about?
Starting point is 00:52:57 Honestly, I think both of them are extremely good players, very different players. Starts, I think, it works in more schemes than Eminwar he does. He's just a pure free safety coverage specialist, makes incredible plays on the ball. You know, it has an amazing fluidity of movement at the safety position that we should have just touched on with Benjamin Morrison. but he's able to fly despite the time 40 times just when he's doing actual sort of functional movement things. You know, when you watch him do the drills at the combine, his tracking data, the miles-for-hour stuff, he was basically the fastest guy at every drill, regardless of what his straight line sprinting 40 track time is.
Starting point is 00:53:41 And the warrior, I think, is a little bit more boom or bust. Obviously, an incredible physical specimen absolutely blew up the common. combine in terms of measurements and speed and explosiveness. His tape, I think, is a little bit more inconsistent. It doesn't always play to those physical gifts, but I think both guys have clear first-round ability and would fit into that defense. Two more for Sam Monson. Wide receiver at 29.
Starting point is 00:54:10 You know, they've got Terry McLorn. They added Debo in the offseason. They brought back Noah Brown. They schemed everybody open last year in the Kingsbury. offense with Jaden. If it's a wide receiver at 29 and they're looking for somebody to really compliment Terry long term, who is it? Yeah, that's tough. I think down-wide receiver class is kind of chaotic as well. You get beyond the first couple, then we get into what's your flavor, what type of receiver you're looking for. I think Jaden Higgins from Iowa State would bring something different
Starting point is 00:54:44 to that receiving core from the guys you just mentioned. He's got size. He's got length. He's got the ability to win inside and outside. He can be a true X-wide receiver. Somebody like Luther Burton brings utterly ridiculous run out for the catchability. I mean, when the ball is in his hands, he reminds me of Prime Odell Beckham, Jr., back with the Giants. There's just this incredible tackle-breaking, you know, yards after the catch machine. But I think he can run some routes as well. I think he's being slept on a little bit because of the season he's coming off. A guy like Jalen Knoll from the other Iowa State receiver, incredible sort of vertical deep speed from the slot and can operate horizontally as well.
Starting point is 00:55:28 I think there's a lot of options for them that would make sense of that kind of spot. You know, it's interesting that you brought up Luther Burden. He's been one of my favorite players all year long, one of my favorite players until, you know, they traded Jahan Dotson last year in part because he took plays off, you know, during the season leading up to it. He didn't play to the whistle. Quinn basically wants guys that will dive on the floor for loose balls. And I mean, I love Luther Burden with the ball in his hands. I mean, I think he is, I mean, he's not to re-kill, but he is really dangerous that way. But I just wonder whether or not they're going to love the kid overall as, you know, kind of a grinder and a gym rat.
Starting point is 00:56:14 That's kind of what this organization seems to be looking for. Yeah, and that was kind of the, that has been a lot of what's swirling around Luther Bird. Yeah. You know, did he kind of, not quit on his team, but did he take those plays off? Did he sort of grow frustrated? And it manifests in a negative way last season when his production dropped off when his quarterback was hurt, you know, all those types of things. And that's a fine line, right? I mean, the Giants, Bat Malik neighbors down last year.
Starting point is 00:56:44 We saw this on Hard Knock, and they were like, look, how would you handle when, when the ball's not going your way, when things are not going well, and he's like, it would make me mad. And they thought that was a great thing, right? And then halfway through the season, it's like Malik Navar's making noise.
Starting point is 00:56:56 Yeah. Because he's not getting the football. It's like, well, that can cut both ways, right? So, yeah, I think that's definitely the thing that teams are going to have the way when they are evaluating and Luther Burden.
Starting point is 00:57:07 But you put on 20-23, Luther Burton Tate, that guy's a top 10 player in the draft, right? So that's the type of talent we're talking about. And then it's like, well, how much do we, thing the way he behaved when the situation went south.
Starting point is 00:57:22 All right. Last one. There's got to be a player that isn't, you know, a player that a lot of people are talking about, maybe not even a first rounder, that you're in love with, that you already know you're going to be able to tell people I told you so. Who's that player? Yeah, I think there's a bunch of those guys. I love Willie Lampkin, North Carolina center slash just offensive weapon that we're going to. going to bring in and make him into a fullback or a tight end just to have him on the roster. But he's this guy who is 5'10 or 280 pounds, right? Utterly ridiculous size.
Starting point is 00:57:59 But he has long arms. He's got the waistband of a guy that's like 6'6 foot 6 or something crazy. So he's basically going to win the leverage battle every single play. And I think, like, he's had experience, you know, lining up to these sort of fullback, jack-of-all-trades type of plays. I don't think he can be a starter in the NFL at that size at center. Like, it sounds crazy because he's going to be giving up, you know, 70 pounds relative to a guy like Vita Vaya or Dexter Jackson or whatever.
Starting point is 00:58:28 Right. But with that wingspan and that height, he has got a leverage advantage every single snap. And if you watch him at the Senior Bowl, you know, he was going up against these monstrous nose tackles like Dionne Walker and guys like that and dominating them. because you can't get underneath him. You can't move them back. So this guy's going to go on day three sometime. His workout wasn't good either, which is a little unfortunate. It makes it harder to really bang the table for him. But he's definitely going to catch onto a roster, and it wouldn't shock me if he ended up being a productive starter down the line for somebody. Willie Lampkin, North Carolina, I'm writing it down right now. Sam Monson, everybody,
Starting point is 00:59:11 the 33rd team on X on Twitter at Sam Monson, NFL. Always generous with your time. I really appreciate it. Hopefully we can do it again before the season starts. Thanks. Enjoy next week. Sounds good, thanks. We'll talk some Caps Hockey with Alan May right after these words from a few of our sponsors. For those of you that haven't heard yet, Skims now offers men's underwear,
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Starting point is 01:00:27 Let them know we sent you. After you place your order, select podcast in the survey, and select our show in the drop-down menu that follows. Skims is the official underwear partner of the NBA, the WNBA, and USA Basket. This segment of the show is brought to you by MyBooky. Go to MyBooky.orgie. Use my promo code, Kevin D.C. My bookie will give you a cash bonus when you sign up if you use my promo code, Kevin D.C. If there's something written in the promo code section, erase it and write Kevin D.C. And you'll get access to that cash bonus on your initial signup. My bookie's got everything you need for the NBA playoffs, which get underway this weekend.
Starting point is 01:01:18 And the NHL playoffs, which get underway this weekend. The Caps play Montreal game one on Monday night. Right now in the Eastern Conference, Florida is the favorite, followed by Tampa and Carolina. And then the Caps, if you like the Caps to go all the way to the Stanley Cup finals, winning the Eastern Conference, you can get them right now at MyBooky at plus 500. MyBooky.ag promo code. Kevin, D.C. Joining me right now is Alan May.
Starting point is 01:01:53 Love having Alan on. It's been a while, actually, since we've had Alan on. But the caps just completed. Their best regular season in many years finishing with the best overall record in the Eastern Conference. At Alan May underscore 16 on X on Twitter. Of course, Alan's been a part of the studio show and part of the booth with Joe B. especially when Locker was out so good that Locker is back and healthy again at Monumental Sports. Alan's been a part of it for ever now, it seems like.
Starting point is 01:02:28 It's good to have you back. The season was a phenomenal one. But I want to start with something that I just mentioned, just the odds on the Caps making a deep Stanley Cup run. What do the odds makers know that others don't? I would say what they're seeing is they're not willing to admit how wrong they were, the way they forecasted the caps just for the regular season. You look at it, most people had the caps as a draft lottery team and not making the playoffs,
Starting point is 01:03:00 and they're sticking to it. So, you know, I guess that's the easy way to do it, but, you know, they were all so wrong. Everyone was wrong on how they picked the caps to do this season, and the caps have just proved with the management team and the coaching staff they had assembled that they made all the right choices in the offseason. And then it panned out, they end up being the Eastern Conference leading team. So you disagree with the odds makers. Tell me why you think they've got a chance to make a deep Stanley Cup run.
Starting point is 01:03:33 Well, the biggest thing, I just look at the body of work over the course of the season. I'm going to take that they clinched the playoff basically two months ago. Right. And they were involved in every single game. I thought opening night was kind of a dud with them. I don't think they had the line assembled properly that night. And then right from game two, they went on and on and on. They were involved in every single game, except maybe two, until about the 60 game mark.
Starting point is 01:03:58 Like actually every period, they had the most comebacks in the National Hockey League. They were never out of a game. They were always in. I think they were a little bit exhausted. And once they clenched, just like they've got it. And basically, they had a four-game winning streak about 15 games ago. And since then, you know, the record hasn't been that great, but then again, it's kind of like an in-season break that they were taking.
Starting point is 01:04:21 And, you know, they took their put off the pedal a little bit. And, you know, we've seen what happens when you win the President's trophy over the course of the season. So I just think it's just a matter of, you know, they were so involved in every game. They're a little bit exhausted. And I expect them to come out firing in game one of the playoffs. Do you think some of it was just everybody getting consumed with OV's Chase? You know, I actually discount that because that's all that people spoke about before the season, all the Capitol just going out there.
Starting point is 01:04:51 And it was kind of a disservice and a disrespect from so many people around the National Hockey League as to Govetskin being a selfish player as to the Caps being a horrible roster. And I just think that at the end, it gets a little bit of fatigue, and it was mostly the big guys who they started to stumble in their numbers. But at the same time, you know, he had very much. little nagging injuries pop up when you're involved in every game. It's like being involved in every playoff game. There is a toll that it takes,
Starting point is 01:05:20 but I've always believed it's better to have that wall when they had it versus right at the end and so exhausted and fatigue going into the first round of the playoffs that they got nothing left. And I would say that's what happened last year. They were so dialed in the last month to get in the playoffs that by the time the playoffs, that game won, they didn't have nothing left.
Starting point is 01:05:40 And so I think that happened a lot sooner because they could allow it to happen sooner. Yeah, Montreal kind of in the same position the caps were in at the end of last year. We'll get to that in a moment. I haven't talked to you in a while. Alex Ovechkin, 44 goals in 65 games. It's very likely had he played close to a full season.
Starting point is 01:06:01 He would have been the leading goal score in the NHL. Why was he so good this year? You know, I look at the roster around him, and he didn't have to do too much. much. And the way he was playing, I thought he was a more efficient. And even at the start of the year, there were so many back checks and defensive plays that he was making. And he was, his legs hadn't looked at good in five or six years. So how we rested himself during the off season, how he got himself ready during the off season when he decided to start training. I don't think he was
Starting point is 01:06:33 fatigue coming into the season, trying to, you know, as you get older, it's harder to keep that playing weight. It's hard to keep your playing legs. And he just was so dialed in. And, and, And when he broke his leg, I think would be, you know, well into the 900s right now in the goal scoring department. I really felt that the rate he was going, he was going to break that record in January. So I just feel like it was a commitment to the team for himself to be better, to be better in all areas. But they had such a better supporting cast this year, a team that was very, very big. At the start of the season, I believe they're the second largest team in the National Hockey League. And all the additions, with the exception of Andromagio Pani, were 16.
Starting point is 01:07:12 were greater. So I just think playing big guy hockey, it was easier for them to play and easier for him to play and not have to be counted on so much. And then you had to break through season of a protist breakthrough season by McMichael and all these other players are 13 players that had career highs on the capitals of their 18 regular skaters this year. That's astronomical. I don't think a team has ever hit it with every trade and every free agent as the Caps did this offseason. So, you know, once again, a way better roster. He didn't have to try to do too much. They didn't have to put him in a lot of situations that he shouldn't be in and run him down a fatigue and wear him out. He could just focus on playing a positional game
Starting point is 01:07:53 and just executing what called upon a score of goal. Do you sense heading into this postseason, it's been seven years since the Cup, they haven't won a playoff series since winning the Cup. We know how much of a weight was lifted from his shoulders when they won it in game in Vegas back in 2018. You could just sense it with him, you know, when that clock ran out and him screaming at the top of his lungs. Is there any pressure rebuilding on his shoulders to go deep and contend and maybe win another one? I would say the pressure is internal for every part of the team because those players that
Starting point is 01:08:37 were here that want it and players that have wanted anywhere, it's like a drug. and they want to feel that feeling again. And no one can explain the exhilaration of winning and what it does to your body with that surge of adrenaline. And they all want to get that feeling again. And, you know, for someone that was doubted for so long in North America that he wanted to win that there was so much Russian bias by old-time NHL people.
Starting point is 01:09:02 And I've even heard it in the last month that were people didn't want him to break Gretzky's record because he was a Russian. And they were players, you know, there were the people that, you know, and the Russians used to come over, they were held on eliminating them from the ice. So I just think that he loves to win. He finally got a chance with the perfectly assembled team from management coaching staff. And I feel like he's got the feeling again that he has that same type of team here. Now you've got to go up and prove in the playoffs.
Starting point is 01:09:31 But they all want to feel it. It never goes away. Every player wants to, any player that's ever been around winning wants to achieve that over and over. All right, let's talk about this first round matchup. How do they match up against Montreal? I think it's a great matchup for the Washington Capitals and the fact that they're a big team and they're playing the youngest team ever in the National Hockey League class,
Starting point is 01:09:55 according to something that I've heard in the last few days. They've got twice as much playoff experience. The Capitals are huge down the middle of the ice with their center. Dillenstrom 6-3, Dubois, 64, Larzeller 6-2, 6-3. Nick Dowd, he's telling me 6-2, so I'm going to believe. them. But when you have that up and down the middle, you can take away the ice. Montreal likes to play a faster game. And they're depending on a very small young defenseman in Lane Hudson, who shattered all Montreal rookie records and a lot of NHL defensemen records with what he was able to do by putting
Starting point is 01:10:28 numbers up this year. But to play without the puck against the younger team, they're going to force the Canadians to play defense. And they've got a great goaltender, Samuel Montemblow, but I do not think that he is going to steal a series from the capitals. And the capitals, depending on where their health is, that's going to be the biggest factor. How healthy are they going into the playoffs? And once they set their mind to it, I think they can eliminate Montreal pretty quick,
Starting point is 01:10:54 using size, veteran accountability, and then forcing them to play in their own defensive zone where in the last couple weeks, it's been Montreal in the press, Montreal in the press. They haven't played in their zone so well, and they open up a lot of high-danger opportunities. and I think analytically the caps are going to figure out how to play against them to create the offense inside the offensive zone and force Montreal to making mistake after mistake. They haven't been back to the postseason since appearing in the finals during the COVID year.
Starting point is 01:11:24 You just mentioned their goaltender. Just tell me that he's not the equivalent of like a Halakwa, you know, a Halak in 2010. Well, it's a completely different team as well. So I look at the Halak thing, and I think a lot of the coaching at the time between the two teams, the drastic difference in there was a defensive genius with Montreal, and they were countering on the Capitals a lot. And I didn't think the Caps played hard enough in front of Halak. He saw so many of the Pucks.
Starting point is 01:11:53 This Capitals team knows their best when they're creating goals from behind the goal line, where they're finding open players in the slot with one and then a second player joining at the net front. So the takeaway the vision of the goal center. So 15 years ago, there was only one Montreal Canadian player from that team that's still in the National Hockey League. And that's Max Petcheretti, who's on the outside looking in right now. And a young John Carlson was around, but Alexander Obechkin was basically the only capital in that series. So 15 years ago, I don't think we're going to get halak. I don't think we're going to get onto the blood.
Starting point is 01:12:25 And I just look at the drastically different teams that are put on the ice here. All right. speaking of goal-tending, Logan Thompson missed the last seven games. This is always important this time of year. Are you confident that he's healthy, ready to go, and that he can be, you know, a big-time factor in a run this time of year? Well, impossible to answer right now because he has not been even on the bench yet. And there's a long time until the series actually start. You've got to get him in real practices.
Starting point is 01:12:59 and you've got to be careful. Players, and I'm not saying that Logan's going to do this, but I know that I used to do it. I used to lie about my health at all time, and you've got to be very careful that when you put players back on the ice, that they're 100% I saw, and the last little bit, one of the NHL teams had traded for some injured players, and they got them back in the lineup,
Starting point is 01:13:20 and they were hurt in the first period. So you've got to err on the side of caution with the injuries. But with that being said, I've really liked the way Charlie Lindgren plays. the team has confidence in him. So I look at it not being so goalie dependent. Neither of these two guys let's in funky goals. They stop what they're supposed to.
Starting point is 01:13:39 They make big saves. But at the same time, the defenders in front have to dial down. So whether it's Logan or Charlie Lindgren starting in game one, the players have confidence in either one of these guys, and so do I. I think the biggest thing, when LT gets back, he's got to be 100% healthy. All right. It sounds like you really like that. to get by Montreal.
Starting point is 01:14:01 In the East, give me the matchup that you really don't want to see if there is one. Well, I'm not going to discount the Carolina Hurricanes, but I'd expect them to beat New Jersey, and I think the capitals in a class period, if New Jersey were to win that, would be able to take them outhandly using the size and everything we've spoken about. But Carolina, I think they stumbled on this something a few weeks ago, and they have to play them hard. And in the past, they played a little too much checkers with them, or a chess, I should say.
Starting point is 01:14:31 And I remember when they beat the caps in seven, the caps kept making the same mistakes over and over. And it was things that the coaching staff kept saying, do this, do this. And it was driving me crazy watching it. I thought the ground and pound game in front of their net and on their defenders is how you have to play them. Don't give them as much respect that they can do this and they can do that. so we have to do this defensively, and you can't really play your game on the heavy part of it. So I look at Carolina, but then when it gets later than that, the real thing is if they get out of the Metropolitan, then you've got to play, I think it's going to be Tampa or Toronto.
Starting point is 01:15:10 And Toronto, to me, I picked them in the caps all season long when both teams were healthy to meet in the Eastern Conference Finals, and it's not throwing shade at Tampa who's got everything you want in a team, but there's something about the way that Toronto roster is constructed right now. now that it could be very hard to create offense. So if anyone is able to be Tampa, they figured out how to get to the middle of the ice. And that's going to be bad news for anyone that plays that team. Thanks for doing this. Hope you're well. Hope to see you soon. Thanks, Alan. Yeah, thank you very much for having me. Alan May, everybody. Good to catch up with him. Washington and Montreal, game one of their first round best of seven. Monday night at Capitol One Arena, 7 o'clock start time. Game two is
Starting point is 01:15:53 in D.C. on Wednesday night. And then the caps go to Montreal for games three and four next Friday night and the following Sunday. Montreal has not been in the postseason since the COVID year, 2020, 2021. And in that particular postseason, Montreal made it to the finals, but they only allowed 3,500 fans for their home games. They played Tampa in the finals that year and lost in five games. In Florida, they were allowing fans.
Starting point is 01:16:32 So Tampa had, you know, 17, 18,000 for their home games, but Montreal was only allowing 3,500 into their arena. So it's been a while since Montreal hockey fans, among the elite fans in the NHL, have been able to see their team, play a home hockey game live. So the caps would be best served going to Montreal next weekend, up two games to zero. All right, that is it for the day. Enjoy the weekend.
Starting point is 01:17:08 Of course, next week, lots of draft discussion, plenty of guests on this show. I think Kime will be on with me on Monday, but we will fill up the week with draft talk leading up to next Thursday night. All right, that's it back on Monday.

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