National Championship Draft Prospects & 2023 “All-Impressed Me” Team | This is Football

Kevin Clark is joined by The Athletic’s Nate Tice to preview Michael Penix Jr. & other Michigan/Washington NFL Draft prospects in Monday’s National Championship Game. They also unveil their “All-Impressed Me” Team from the 2023 NFL season.
0:00 This Is Football
1:10 NFL Draft expectations for Michael Penix Jr.
4:27 How Michigan is becoming an NFL factory
6:56 NFL schemes impacting college football
9:05 How the transfer portal has changed college football
16:56 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Cardinals OC Drew Petzing/DC Nick Rallis
19:23 How Drew Petzing is handling the offense around Kyler Murray
25:17 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Texans GM Nick Caserio
29:52 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Jordan Love
31:02 Matt LaFleur’s “aggressive” Packers offense
33:25 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Baker Mayfield
38:04 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Kyle Hamilton, Brian Branch & young slot defenders
41:50 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Sean Payton
48:01 “All-Impressed Me” Team: Sean McVay

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All right Nate Ty is here old buddy of ours you know him from the athletic football show you know him from Yahoo where his columns are must reads what is going on brother not too much that was a a great preliminary discussion uh I feel like our most of our conversations have

Been recently you know off air have been our our son we are we’re Sun dad brothers like that we’re boy we’re boy dads which is I don’t think a thing no it’s not um we’re in a robust group chat with Mina kimes called boy what is it called boy boy

Life or something I I don’t know it’s called I don’t know what it’s called um something boy I didn’t name it you didn’t name it somebody else named it did um solac I think will be joining parent corner here in a couple of months um that’s something to watch soac the

Dad he’s been making dad jokes for a long time he has a lot of dad Tendencies so he’ll fit right in he’ll probably be on the show shortly speaking of um you guys both like to watch college quarterbacks do this National Championship Game on Monday Michael penx is what he is

Aggressive so but no but like what would you do where do you feel comfortable two acl’s the age um he can I mean he can move in the pocket although JJ mcarthy much better his actual numbers are much better under pressure than Michael penx

Is um but what what is he as a prospect if you’re watching Monday night with an NFL L it’s that’s what a lot of people are trying to determine he came into the season thought of as like a day three guy and then has grown into a day two

Guy through sheer production and sheer how he has put what he has put on film it’s something you can’t deny yes you can say it’s a a very fun offensive system how much of it translates is interesting because some throws do and some throws don’t it he has multi many

Talented weapons two potential one for sure first rounder a potential second another day two guy and on top of that though is that he has performed in the biggest moments against Oregon in the Pack 12 championship game now in the first game against Texas in the college

Football playoff and all he’s done is just put it put it up throw that ball and aggressive Tight Windows and make real aggressive throws that translate to the NFL and that’s what I think a lot of evaluators including me are trying to weigh is is it do I weigh the first

20ish games I watched this guy at Washington or these last couple games of four or five games and i’ I’ve heard the CJ stra comparisons what he did against against Georgia last year but it’s Georg it’s one of those where it’s like yeah but that he showed stuff before that so

That that’s something we’re trying to determine to me he is quarterback four and that is if you asked me a month ago he was quarterback six and I’d say just the performances that he’s put up against the best defenses in in making real throws and improving on stuff that

I was hoping he would improve upon is it too little too late I don’t think so because because he’s doing it now so the offseason questions are going to be the age going to be the injury stuff and that will you know it’ll play out but

Right now I don’t consider him a true first-rounder but I do consider him quarterback four which to me is more of a late second round grade that would get inflated so quarterback three is who uh Jane Daniels from LSU okay oh yeah yeah yeah okay that makes sense that makes

Sense I just want to make sure because we’ve had we had Jordan Reed on the show a couple months ago he was saying that JJ McCarthy was going to get in the conversation in the top four yes yeah I think he’s probably dropped yes yeah

Yeah the it’s just that his I I hope he goes back for another year just because he has to put more out there it’s just that he it’s there’s just not a lot of tape they don’t have to throw the ball with him and so that’s why you only can

Determine 12 plays a game that translate and that you’re trying to come from so he’s just a very tough evaluation and then po Nicks is another one that’s kind of in that kind of quarterback forward discussion at least the general quarterback forward discussion so that kind of three are going to really kind

Of be battling it out it seems like I want to ask you a question you may not be equipped to answer I love love asking questions you’re just not prepared for to just get a totally halfback answer that’s what’s called being a good host look it up journalism students of the

World no it was interesting and I’ve said this on a couple of shows this week Washington zero five stars um Alabama has more five stars than the entire Big 10 conference and normally normally um over the past let’s say 150 years that translates into NFL guys and the way

Michigan has recruited has translated into some but not a ton of NFL players just the way they you know just if you’re not doing top five classes you’re not getting a steady stream of of of recruits that’s 150 years of data on that particular issue having said that

Michigan has according to pff’s draft board 15 guys who are going to be drafted this year which is astounding right and I’m curious when you watch this Michigan team they’re doing what that’s producing and developing because everybody says like the number one COPE in college is oh when you don’t get when

You get a two star St because you’re because you have a bad recruiter everybody goes oh yeah we’ll watch the tape and we’ll develop these guys and it’s like well you know who else is going to develop them Kirby and Nick who have the best players in the country

They’re also going to develop but it seems like Michigan has some sort of Secret Sauce in development I know the coaching Advantage obviously the coach the coach borrowing scheme from the Ravens really helps um but I’m I’m just curious when you watch Michigan as what amounts to a special NFL Factory you’re

Seeing what uh well a lot of the scheme does translate you talked about the coaching and stuff obviously Harbaugh’s NFL background and everything but they run real I formation runs and like yes the NFL has gone away from ey formation runs but it hasn’t fully gone away so

But it’s something it’s it’s it’s nice when you can see the day one quote unquote install plays and you can go like how does this guy do on this play that everybody runs as opposed to just this wacky RPO that you only see in college over and over and so I think

It’s that I think P Herbert their strength coach um is worth every dime only reason I could drop that name is he was the strength coach at Wisconsin when I was there so I know that one like you do look you look a little doughy ever

Since leaving him so so just let you know he obviously worked a miracle he obviously worked a little bit of a miracle like hey you got start drinking Miller Light Bush light’s not doing it um but that’s what it was uh but no I think the scheme stuff does you just

Mentioned oh the it’s a lot like the Raven scheme okay I I get to watch this safety come down in this def defense that I also run on Sunday if I’m a coach watching that so it’s easier easier for them to translate they’re taught in that

Way as well they practice in that way I think that’s how they install plays so I think these guys are kind of quote unquote trained to be more professional and if they have some decently recruited guys it’s like they still have room to grow potentially too so it’s that nice

Balance and when you win games you got more eyeballs on you and so maybe some guys get inflated as well I think that’s also a part of it too but I think it’s just the the coaching comes down to and that translates the best somebody in

That orbit told me a great nugget which is that NFL style pressures terrify tery terrify college quarterbacks it’s the last thing they want to see and so if you have some sliver of pro pressures in college and you can’t run the same stuff you can’t disguise it like you can in

The NFL when these guys are 29 years old and can can throw everything on their plate but if you just throw a little bit of a complicated pressure at them offensive coordinators are going to be like I I rage quit I give up I’m not

Going to do this and and and Michigan is capable of that because of the threshold on the coaching staff just there’s just Talent there there’s coaching Talent there it yeah that’s absolutely I I thought the best performances from Monday were penx and the Michigan defense coordinator I thought those two

Those two had the best days uh and I I think that’s why people Rave about him and why he’ll probably be a name that shoots up uh Jesse M and I I think no but what you’re talking about is something Jim Leonard’s touched on and

How he said it was kind of fun to be you know down up Rex Ryan blitzes in the big in the Big 10 and or just rushing forward and keeping the running back in protection like they yeah um I I always come back to what Chip Kelly said when

He got back into college and he said you know the thing that struck me about the NFL it’s so situational and that is and now I think college has gotten way better at being that there’s definitely more merger between NFL and college it feels like as far as scheme wise but I I

Think that they I think because of those Blitz stuff it’s like not only just quarterbacks offensive lines look at Alabama uh trying to sort out anything that any game any simulator creeper pressure which is where you rush for but it seems like Blitz uh that was just messing anytime Alabama went to empty

Which is this they should usually have a plan no they didn’t have a plan for what Michigan was doing and I think that’s what it is is you have to have a plan these guys have six games under their belt 12 games they just took a final two

Weeks ago they’re not an NFL guy who’s getting like several coaches breaking down this specific thing and then they work out and study at it all entire week so I I think that’s what it is it’s just like that is just Advanced 401 level stuff being in the Big 10 sometimes

Against these guys that are two stars with with eight eight throws under their belt yeah and also and and I don’t want to harp on this but it is you know national championship game in a couple days I said some f bomb yesterday and it’s it’s something I came up with on

The spot but I I want to explain on it here like modern college football is so portal heavy that 15 years ago Michigan’s defensive end going against JC leam an IMG product stud stud tackle just declared for the draft yesterday that’s not going to be a fair fight

Typically typically you’d have to really hit on a local talent in the Midwest and he’d have to develop and you have to give him in the weight room all that stuff tell you what you can do go get the Coastal Carolina transfer which is who backed him up into milro in that

Last half and that’s what’s interesting to me is like that’s how the recruiting Gap is closing yeah we’ll see it on Monday night I’m intrigued to see it first modern college football championship game we’ll go from there all right that’s not what we’re here to do we’re here do all unbelievable point

Though that that’s so good because that the the transfer portal is the that’s the edge that’s the Money Ball obviously obviously it’s like do it right it’s free agency get a basically a pro SC scouting staff to start working and finding guys to fill your gaps I don’t

Want FSU people to get mad at me but FSU I I kind of think when you watch the Orange Bowl it was by 60 points yeah it shows you how surgical they were at using the portal to fill the gaps they did not Mike norell did not recruit high

School well enough the first whatever three or four years that he was there and so they go out and they get Keon Coleman and Jared verse Brandon Fisk and even Jordan tra was was a Louisville Transfer but obviously a different era because it was four years ago um but

They went out and they said we don’t have the talent let’s go get the talent and you can’t and and you can do that by scouting Western Michigan and Albany and all these different places so that’s it’s the great equalizer and it’s changing two nuggets we’re we’re in a

Good rabbit hole here so I’m not I actually do want to stay on this the two nuggets I have I talked to someone over the summer a person we all we all the name we would know but I can’t tell you who um and and I said what is a transfer

Portal change and they said number one kids don’t get D recruited anymore so you used to go into Georgia and Alabama and the first thing they would say is you were a five star you’re the worst player on this team you are the worst player you’re go go you know not hazing

But like you know just you you are a you do not speak here do not speak and and exactly and he can’t do that now because one of every three kids might say yeah about that I’m going to Tennessee I really liked Shane Beamer he was nice

I’m going to go to South Carolina now that’s just the way it is so you’re getting you used to be able to establish yourself as a coach who would take these prospects and and D recruit them I’m not saying Saban and Kirby in particular I have no they’re just we’re speaking in

Generality not say Obviously C it’s just a thing that happens that they say is happening let them now the other thing is that sometimes now draft prospects they’ve noticed come in asking a little more questions of kind of a what can you do for me yes thing Yep this is something

I’ve heard where maybe in the last two or three years a guy who’s transferred twice is used to sitting down and saying how do you plan to use me etc etc what can you do for me are the opportunities and the scouts and the coaches and the

GMS kind of say that’s not really what this that’s not really what this is we’re not GNA we’re not going to like pitch you on this now you is like Pete Carroll famously used to send pamphlets for undrafted for agents that’s pitching but they said they’ve noticed it that a

Little bit now on the flip side one thing I think everybody loves is that quarterbacks now get to go to a system that they can thrive in they can get the opportunities Matt Castle would not have to be a project he would have just gone and played at Cal I guess not

That back then in theory yeah yeah Arizona State wa wow Andrew Walters we really really going Walters Rudy Carpenter no no but but Matt Castle after three years would have said okay I’m going to go play Texas s and just see how that goes so it’s changing literally everything about evaluators

Yes and also those quarterbacks that might have decare for the draft are now transferring like a like a guy like our our mutual quarterback Tyler van dijk our our our esimo quarterback they uh but with with with beep that out but no with uh no but

I I think that was so interesting too is that there’s so many these uh guy there’s a big glut in the middle of prospects this year uh some of the guys we already talked about we’re part of that but a lot of day 2ish early day

Three type guys I was far for the draft and it feels like to me a large majority of them are going back or transferring because either nil or because yeah the transfer portal stuff and I I think that’s actually pretty good or you get a

Guy like cam W um yeah it does it helps college and it helps and actually helps these guys get developed I mean Jane Daniels has now got two years at l you and look at them now I like kind of like them out Arizona State okay interesting

Day three guy pennx as well gets another additional year of course he he has the injury stuff as well but I I think some of these guys benefit for everything you’re saying is that they are becoming smarter and understanding not only their value dollar-wise but their potential

Value and what can help them it used to just be agents you know or or you know their buddy or the player that already went through the cycle or went through the draft or went through a transfer and it used to be tough and you couldn’t go

To this conference or couldn’t go to these schools and some of those schools were the best schools that you could have gone to so I I think Absolut what you’re saying I think it’s I don’t know for me as a neutral person that just does the draft enjoys college football

It’s like all right both products are kind of getting better if it goes right and also makes guys work it sounds like to me like everything you’re just kind of shaping out sounds like college coaches have to work and I I think they’re going to like that’s what the

Money is for yes exactly we pay that’s but everyone’s like oh this is this is so problem whoa these coaches are going through it oh cool they’re making $9 million that’s like any coach that goes oh man they’re getting after me I’m like yeah and you you can do the Woody

Harelson me Woody harlson me wipe your tears away with money it’s like that that’s why they pay you seven figures or eight figures to do that the other thing is somebody was saying this the other day because Kirby after the Orange Bowl said uh I everybody need to see what

Happened here the for state of the opt outs is uncompetitive game and somebody said well this is going to change things Kirby saying this like let me tell you something I’ve been around competition committee meeting I’ve been around NFL owners meetings for over a decade you know this more than

Anybody no one who makes decisions cares what coaches think no not one person not one person think they they’re look at the ratings well like after 2011 CBA the coaches are ready to storm the league office over the practice rules and they said that sounds good but we you know

Got this labor deal done because of it so take it easy see you later Budd there’s not really you ever hear about a coach’s Union too much it’s a players union and owners uh yeah yeah the coaches are the middlemen coaches don’t have much said if you let let me tell

You something a coach run league would be terrible awful shortsighted you do not want to see it’ be patchworked yeah no you don’t want that so shortsighted no you do not my father is a coach I used to be a coach I have several local

There coaches yes you do you do not want that I’m a longtime Madden coach so I know I know we’re kind of kind of the same tickets to the game merch meals at iconic restaurants stays at Caesar’s Palace all this can be yours when you bet with Caesar Sportsbook win or lose

Every bet earns reward credits which you can redeem across the Empire now if you haven’t started yet use the code Omaha full and then place your first bet up to $1,250 if you win great you keep those winnings but if you lose you get your stake back as a bonus bet all right

We’re doing all impressed me team um I wanted to just kind of shout out some guys frankly um and and and I don’t we could take it anywhere we want I have different kind of scenarios I have one player one GM one coach I um you can

Take it wherever you want to the floor is yours your first all impressed me guy yeah and this is kind of a Tag Team champ which is kind of fitting uh it’s the Cardinals offenses offensive and defensive coordinators Drew petzing and Nick rolles yes a little Tag Team champ

Here they are not highly rated any statistical category n but they are up there in the fun meter and I think they are building something in Arizona I’m very interested to see what they do this offseason because with spare parts and a whole bunch of Nob buies and and a

Little bit of half a season of Kyler Murray and a little bit of Buddha Baker uh you got some offensives the offense under ping is doing the meta I would say they are on top of anything that is the edge in the NFL right now as far as Run

Game and pass game and I think Nick Rus their defensive coordinator who is not even 30 yet is just is a junk ball pitcher because they had nothing but Buddha Baker and how he would try that they they’re the team that brings the most simulated in creepers they bring

Blitzes they run every type of Defense you could think of because they’re trying stuff and I’ve heard a lot of offensive coaches just go yeah it was a pain they we got them but it was a pain this game against the Eagles was kind of their magnumopus of the year and I think

It’s fitting that was not a mistake uh but I just wanted to shout out those two because I think those two are ones to watch and I think the Cardinals are a team to watch pretty soon because they’re doing some fun things sure so um I love that let’s start on the offensive

Side of the ball there with Drew petzing he comes from stans’s tree he worked in Minnesota before he worked in Cleveland he was a guy who I think to us I think we all know people in that uh coaching treat and they were saying this guy’s

This guy’s next up um and I’m curious with Kyler playing a slightly different style than maybe some of the kind of kubak coaches or whatever you want to call it you know sansy stans’s by the way been in a bunch of different offenses in Minnesota that was one of

The I mean that was that was one of the things that that he was able to to gleam I mean obviously I think there was a couple didn’t a few years ago they they declined his OC candidacy in New York did that happen yeah I think so or

Something like that yeah because it’s technically a side step yeah not a promotion but anyway uh one of the good things was that he was exposed to a bunch of different offensive coaches by by staying there in in Minnesota um and so I’m curious uh a guy like trupet who

Came through stans’s wing and then all the play action guys besides that he’s running what kind of style with Kyler uh schmorgus board uh but it is is definitely I I will call it pro style because it is a greatest hit offense but I I’ll give you one stat to

Show you the difference um over Kyler’s first uh part of’s career with Cliff kingsburry as offensive play caller in Arizona he was under Center only uh never under Center more than 5% of the time this past game against the Eagles he was under Center 40% of the time and

That is just one twist and that sounds a little minor difference but think of Kyler think of what he was at Oklahoma think of him as a pro that is gun spread it out and Chuck it they are using two tight ends they are using a decent

Amount of motion creative uh and some creativity with it in the Run game and pass game but it’s more of a two tight end set and using that uh Trey McBride and Kyler have real chemistry Michael Wilson their young uh their rookie receiver has some moments he had some

Bad moments too he caused a pick six but he also had a touchdown but I would say they just run what’s working right now with I call the meta their run game is diverse but they are major in Duo which is an at you run game and then their

Pass game has play action has dropback has screens it has all the stuff that’s kind of working um and some of the bootle stuff they do is the the new twist that good offenses are doing so it’s I I think if I had to give you one

Line after I just gave you thousand of them it’s the good stuff I I think is that that that they found the good place they found the good place which is so I mean it and I I I don’t want to make it that simple but they are running the

Good place in 2023 what you should be running I love that um I want to make One Plea real quick because after Ganon and before that with Dan Campbell stop judging head coaching hires based on the demeanor of press conferences slso videos even serani even serani yes the only one this

Works for is the gase Jets one oh what that was we had prior that was real bad we had yeah we had some data points we had some tape on gas we had some tape we had some reps we had some reps we had six games on yeah yeah yeah and so

Uh a nice little database we had we we had a file we had a file on um but uh we got to stop doing that because now at this point like here’s a guy who I thought I actually what I thought was funny about the Ganon thing wasn’t the

Wasn’t the Ronda Moore thing it was that it was that if you watch the full video and I did I think I was on fraternity leave what a sicko just hold on hold on Teddy I’m watching the full Ganon cut it was that you could tell if

He liked a guy or not I think a little bit by how he like hugged them greeted them because there were like a couple guys who I didn’t know yeah who came up to him was like oh I’m so and so and gon was like okay and then kind of moved on

And I was like H I bet that guy’s not I bet that guy’s not gonna make it and then a couple months later I looked make it was pretty one to one so that was actually the funnier thing but the Rond Del Moore thing like he was just trying

To connect with a guy and he’s a little bit not everybody is you know not not everybody’s the coolest guy in the world just doing a little everybody everybody’s one bad hand mannerism away from becoming Michael Scott and I love the people that make fun of it like they

They would do better uh but it’s like that yeah so um I agree with that I pushed back that that happened to me that happened with Justin Thomas the golfer oh I I was introduced to him okay and I was busy I was doing a million

Different things at once and I was was introduced him to the Super Bowl and I just started trying to make conversation and I just I am a very good small talker social situations F I can I can attested it I just totally blanked with Thomas I just totally blank with Thomas done that

And I had nothing and I’m sitting there and I’m like all right well I golf well yeah he’s a lot better than me oh I play some nice courses he plays nicer courses I’m sitting there and I’m just like I have nothing here you remember when he won that one

Tournament yeah and so it was all going to be the Chris Farley Show I start talking to him so I was just like how are you enjoying the Super Bowl man and he was like uh oh yeah you know it’s it’s cool it’s cool so then by the grace

Of God Ian rport comes here Ian raport golf sio he walks up and I say oh you two should know each other and then I and then they talk and I’m sure Ian did a much better job than me and I just left I’ve never had that before or since

More famous people than Justin Thomas More awkward situations for some reason I just looked at Justin Thomas and I became Dwight shrew I’ve only had that my only like celebrity one would be Jean Hackman I uh but it was almost it almost came off good it almost came off in a

Good way uh a lot of people I was at a a team party I was young I was in college but it was a it was my dad was with the Jaguars so they have a chrism holiday party every year and Jean Hackman and his friends by some way shape or form

With Jack Del Rio from their his USC days and he was at the party very nice guy very but a lot of those coaches you know being um of their age group were asking about super man and asking about all these old movies and and that he’s

Been in and I didn’t say a word I wanted to talk about Royal Tenon bombs I but I didn’t say a word guess Eugene Hackman probably didn’t say much to me but like kind of gravitated towards was like I’m gonna hang out with a 20-year-old kids

Not saying a word to me because he like and like we didn’t say we say like five words I think he liked Vince Young I think that was like my the one conversation we had but it was like that’s my lack of small talk worked to

My benefit because he was like I’m not going to hang with those coaches that want to ask me a 100 questions I’m going to hang with a 20-year-old kid that probably doesn’t know who I am I didn’t know who you were but it was just that I

I just knew I had nothing to say to you I had nothing to bring to the table hi I’m a backup quarterback in college like what am I gonna say Jean Hackman are you kidding all right um I’m gonna do my first one Nick cerio okay so one of the

Reasons that an all minor are vaguely famous and cerio being one of them but all of them made me look stupid which I think is the most important part of the impressive all impressive team and the reason that I thought that cerio made me look stupid I think this was a lot of

People for me it was why is this team accelerate in the timeline by trading up for three I understand taking two getting the best quarterback in the draft great by the way there was a ton of smoke of that not being stoud like it was funny how that like one and two kind

Of regressed to the mean where it was like oh it’s GNA be last two jues ago we were like it’s gonna be Bryce young and CJ St and then we went through a whole whole draft thing oh it’s going to be will l oh it’s going to be this guy oh

Cool was a thing we thought atic made fun of me he goes I feel like every every quarterback check in you’ve done it’s been the same I go that’s all we got this is it that’s all we got um and I love like the mock drafts are like

Caleb Williams is going ninth it’s like I promise you he’s not I promise you he’s not promise he’s not so cerio accelerates the timeline with Will Anderson he improve and tank obviously and and obviously CJ St but then he kind of professionalizes the roster he goes

Out and he gets a bunch of different veterans none of them home runs they still need a wide receiver one and hopefully they’ll be able to I mean we’ll see what the franchise tag situation is but but hopefully go out and get a number one style receiver they

Certainly have the cap room but he went out and he got a bunch of professional football players and all of a sudden they’re winning really quickly and the demo Ryan higher was phenomenal um and and i’ I’ve I think that there are guys who and you know this you ask around the

League at who impresses them when you go up against them and I think a lot of times coaches have a better view than players because players could just have one good game or or whatever some technique OC’s hated going against J Ry hated it and and and the one thing that

Always sticks in my mind is when I was doing that story on the Cincinnati on how teams defend Cincinnati differently and they have to change their offense around is the Bengals offense offensive coaches were like they played the the Bengals played the Niners two years ago and the Niners basically invented a

Tampa two scheme on the and they got out there and they were just like what are we looking at right now because this is not the Niners defense um and and they like what that to install a new defense for Joe burrow is pretty phenomenal and so that had always stuck

In my head and then I still didn’t see it coming I still didn’t see it coming that they were going to be this good this quickly um I just love what this Texans team has been able to do and I think it shows you I I I’ve I’ve said

This before but if you don’t have a proof of concept by the end of year two on your build a lot of times I just I don’t think it’s going to happen and maybe I’m being reductive or whatever like to go out and this quickly in what

Amounts to year one be this good I just think it’s it’s it’s a it’s a a sign of a rebuild done right and also I think a lot of times we go oh what lessons can we take well the lessons take CJ Stout but like not everybody can do that it

Just shows you what’s possible year over-year yeah and even the defense like that still needs pieces like they they’re outplaying what they are right now which is again a testament to him I I I thought the the Ryan’s game was the Cowboys playoff game from two years ago

Also and and I believe they played the Packers the week before and um and those two games like you’re saying they invented kind of a game plany game plan a weekly game plan like truly usually teams are carrying over a lot and then this is why I always love Steve Spagnola

He’s one of the best week- toe game planers once playoff time comes and that’s what he’s one of the best at and it it’s funny because usually his stuff is very much I know what you’re about to run and you get and we still can’t beat it because they’re so well coached and

That that’s the thing is he can get to either he can wear either hat which is just so scary so I love that one I I I was gonna say a shout out to CJ strad I felt like that one was a little too easy a little too shoot fish in Barrel

Because he’s freaking awesome and because we we spent two weeks asking if he should be an MVP candidate it’s unbelievable right um I Al also say the Will Anderson trade up I also thought was rich but might end up being end up being okay because this Edge class not

Only will understand was my pick for Defensive Rookie of the Year uh but also this Edge class coming up is not very strong at the top and you can’t really find a guy like Will Anderson so it’s like all right all right I can justify it a little bit more especially but now

They have their star on offense their star on defense and I mean it just looks good right now so I’m excited to see what they do all right all right who’s your next guy okay so um I have a couple ones here but I’m gonna go instead of

Strad I’m gonna go Jordan love for the Green Bay Packers hell yeah because I love the laser show he puts on every week and and I really like this Packers team and the baby cheesee heads and just the game their game plan stuff as well is really

Good but love is what you want at quarterback right now he is he’s pushing the ball he’s changing arm angles he’s creating throws creating throwing Lanes has athleticism to scramble and everything he looks like a top 10 guy um he he looks awesome that then that offense is like a top five passing

Offense right now so I you said proof of concept it’s like this has come this is everything you wanted to Hope as a Packers fan and probably everyone that Packers organization what they’re seeing from Jordan love and this offense okay so we get a leaf Flur offense it is a

Little bit of a hodg Podge because Rogers loved the McCarthy Concepts and the Flur was humble enough to say sounds great dude um and I think he earned a a lot of respect in that chahan tree because he was open to that to say okay these are the 10 best Mike McCarthy

Plays and Rogers wants to run them and we’re not going to put a square peg in a round hole um having said that that’s no longer the case the lefur offense is what mate oh boy It is Well coached it is a uh a playaction heavy um a motion heavy formation

Changing at the snap kind of just grabag offense again another Greatest Hits types offense that’s what I’ve always liked about the floor uh but I would say the best things about it is it’s aggressive it’s it’s very down the field which I links up with their quarterback

And also just their their man like last week against the Vikings was Clinic tape of how to handle Brian flores’s defense and just to all the all the blitzes that Flores brings they got so creative with how they use protection so really maybe the word is or the phrase is the

Oneliner the how you sell this in an ad the elevator pitch uh is that it’s sound and creative and at the same time and I I think it’s awesome and I think it’s so much more down the field and over the middle than Rogers wanted to do at the

End and also just helps having so much more juice at the receiver position with some of these young guys so it’s yeah it’s aggressive sound creative and fun I couldn’t tell in the last year of Rogers what was the thumb injury what was him just missing deep throws I mean that was

I thing that frustrated me so much at the beginning of the Season certainly and I still get frustrated with it with lur offense now is like lefur is not afraid to take deep shots on really like fourth down oh yeah Lov like fourth and addict he loves that

Stuff and I’m always just like trick plays double passes he loves it get the two Matt get the two yards come on dude just get get the two yards um all right uh I I love that obviously I’m I’m a a blur Stan um I I just I think

And this is something I said this in my piece two years ago about him like it was easy to win back-to-back MVPs with Rogers and win 13 games every single year guess he would have done it Mike McCarthy He Didn’t Do It um all right so

I’m gonna shout out and maybe this maybe this is like the cousin of the CJ St shout out that is so unbelievably obvious going through the stats and I saw that Jordan Lev was sixth in EPA per play involvement I’m not really sure what that means I think it

Means yes yeah yeah um wow EPA EPA connoisseur here thank God you’re here um he’s sixth eighth is someone with significantly less expectations than Jordan love even Baker Mayfield who has solved everything like he has saved his career I this is this is the trajectory of a bus he was a meme okay

He was a meme but the trajectory of a bust is get a good opportunity somewhere don’t get that extension happens all the time go one place where they really want you Carolina last year hey we we’re we’re going to give him a shot Sam darnold’s there we’re gonna give him a

Shot uh hopefully he can give us something right and then there’s one more team and it’s a team that’s going well we don’t have anybody else and then they always fail there that stage they always fail and then what happens next year you go to camp with someone you

Lose the job that’s it you’re out of the league that’s it and that’s it and then the next thing you do is you put start tweeting about quarterback play the ne like six months later and you try to get on a headset that’s it that’s the life

Cycle of a modern quarterback it is and Baker Mayfield got to the stage where we said okay it’s over and he said what if I played lights out yeah what if I was one of the most productive quarterbacks in football and this is important I Ian rafport had that that that nugget a

Couple weeks ago that basically like he’s Mr humble now and I don’t think it’s I think it’s really hard for that to be an act I think it’s more like football took a lot out of him and he came in as a first overall pick very cocky guy which which works for some

Guys but when you get beaten down by football and it has over the past couple of years he’s had a couple of off field things um I’m not really sure what happened with his the finances with the the family stuff which I’m sure is just again it’s like it’s one of those things

Where like you could you could you imagine like could you imagine having to file Financial stuff where’s where’s my Hey where’s my money that’s not good to your family um the M the the um happened to Billy Bean it’s in Moneyball they Billy Bean they uh they took his uh his

Parents did they took his his uh signing bonus oh that’s right yeah that’s right um so B little baker Mayfield little second second act as a as a forward thinking baseball GM yeah um so anyway uh the way he’s been able to change the entire narrative yeah is really

Incredible the most impressive thing for you about Baker Mayfield has been what oh man it’s getting back into what their offense does is just spreading it and shredding it and I think Baker in Cleveland they wanted to be more you know Nick chub heavy and a lot more play

Action stuff turning back to the defense and now yeah remember Baker at Oklahoma was a air raid quarterback and watching him now I I think they’ve done uh can Canalis their Dave Canalis their offensive coordinator there in Tampa Bay they this is the most he’s ever truly

Drop back so no play action no screens this is the most he’s ever done at the highest rate he’s ever done it as a professional and I think this is the best he’s looked as a dropback passer probably since that second that little rookie year six weeks of just like oh

Baker’s going to work because he gets to sit there he gets to get some space and he gets to rip it and that’s what he wants to does he wants to push the ball and then he’s got some awesome receivers that you know Mike Evans played fantastic this year and and you know

Chris Godwin’s Chris Godwin I think they got play from other guys Trey Palmer Kate otton Rashad White’s a great receiving back um the offensive line is good tackles interior’s a little iffy that’s why the Run game’s not great but it’s like this is fun and I like that

Eighth rating that you you dro the eper dropback that’s kind of how it feels this doesn’t feel too fuky it feels very Boomer bust but that’s kind of how Baker does feel overall so maybe this offense reflects Baker perfectly maybe that career Arc I was going to say um yeah

Baker went to Tampa but not to cover a USF game you know he was not not to cover USF no he was not going to R James Thurday night no no Thursday night USF I honestly don’t even know who’s in that I was I was just about to say it’s not

Cincinnati I almost went I almost said I almost said Cincinnati so I’ll go tuls I’m I’m sure tuls is in there um I went to a USF West Virginia game to talk to Gino Smith oh very fun very fun for the local paper um all right that was that

Was my only time in a USF game okay I don’t think no I never went to any of the Miami USF games Miami lost to USF and got Randy Shannon fired oh which I thought was going to be a blessing disguise and it just it just wasn’t and Tedd Bridgewater decommitted yeah Teddy

Bridgewater decommitted after they fired Randy and we got out golden so tough one um all right uh your next guy uh I oh man I got I got a few oh yeah nothing but wins there plenty of them uh but oh man I I I got a couple because I know we

Don’t want to go get too many in here but I was just going to say young defensive slot players that that’s a thing there are nine first or seconde Defenders that played or first or second year DBS that played 400 more snaps in the slot there’s 14 that played 300 or

More snaps in the slot Kyle Hamilton Brian Branch Deion Witherspoon Kyler Gordon Trent McDuffy D Alford Allante Taylor Roger mccre CER coo jaywan McMillan Christian Ean all players that are kind of notable for their defenses some I mean Hamilton’s been one of the stars of the Season could just made this

Whole category of him uh Brian Branch made the Pro Bowl or no no I’m sorry Deion Withers made the Pro Bowl Brian Branch though had impact moment week one Chiefs onwards but now I I thought it was awesome the allpro the AP announced that they were gonna add the slot

Position to their allp proo team and I think that’s Justified because of guys like this that are used to just be a 59 180 pound slot guy is now kind of becoming this multi- these versatile guys these safeties these maybe undersized linebackers these Corners these big Corners that couldn’t stick it

On the outside they get to affect the game and be these kind of Swiss Army knives so I want to shout out all these guys because this is a new wave and it reflects what’s happened in college the last five six seven eight years and now

We’re just seeing it now in the NFL as more defenses look like that in the NFL quickly on this one Kyle Hamilton does what to that Ravens defense unlocks it and that that is he opens that whole thing up him and roquan Smith but uh but Kyle Hamilton’s versatility he could

Line up at the line scrimmage as a linebacker in the slot as a deep safety and truly be a plus player um like truly be a good winning player at all those spots as opposed to just lining up there for fun so he he unlocks the whole thing

Because his versatility being able to guard a receiver on One Snap Blitz do all those things lets them have their kind of collidoscope uh defensive scheme that they want to do I said this on the Pod with Deontay Lee when he came on a couple weeks ago but I am now fully

Linebacker and safety pilled yes I’m fully middle of the field pill yes spine my whole thing I all I wanted to do was have defensive lineman over and over that’s all I would do is draft defensive lineman on day one and day two and then just figure the rest out later and now

I’m like actually give me give me the linebacker spine everybody but corner and wide receivers those you can find four linebackers right now it’s it’s a thing I know so it’s like get them just get all of them let’s get them if you can no I to I think uh truly watch what

Jesse Bates has done leaving the Bengals defense and now going to the Falcons defense Bengals defense is one of the worst in the League this year they’ve had moments in the red zone and the Falcons defense is one of the most improved in the entire NFL and Bates is

Probably the big reason because of that because it’s just what he does on the back end Jesse Bates is awesome awesome awesome I know the Bengals knew that but they just didn’t have the money and they or they didn’t want to have the money and then they did have a plan like which

I will they had a plan yeah they they they replaced him they replaced him and I and and listen if Joe burrow is healthy we might be having a completely different conversation about this we might say well they were able to get over the loss of Jessie bat it’s like I

Really do believe if he was healthy never had the cath injury the Bengals would in Super Bowl like I feel like that roster that coaching staff we’re going to look back on this moment in time yeah it’s well I mean I just remember and I’ve told the story before

Like when I was in Cincinnati two years ago doing the whole thing on burrow and and somebody turned off my tape recorder and said you don’t like this is not this is a special group of offensive players and we’re going to look back on this and

Be like holy crap in 10 years and be like Chase and Higgins and Boyd were on those contracts on this team and like that was you know like anyway that’s that’s that’s a that’s another day it’s like yes yes and Joe Burl yeah and Joe Burl yeah yeah yeah um all right I’m

Gonna shout out I’m gonna shout out just just this is a results oriented business I don’t want to get in trouble with the uh the NFL PA Shawn pyton being eight and eight going into week 18 is one of the best inseason turnarounds I’ve ever seen and best year over-year

Like that was a joke team last year yeah and then they start September and they’re still a joke team and I think that I mean in a lot of times in this era you’ve coached in it but I remember uh when I was doing the ringer NFL show

With with Robert Mays I’d said a uh uh defense was was crappy and somebody a GM called me and he said what he was I thought it was be mad at me kind of was but then he said the thing you need to understand is a modern defense if you’re

Putting something together on the fly it is not this is not 1996 anymore you there are defenses that will start awful in September and by November will click and it might just be kind of what you’re talking about one player unlocks the defense on the back end one pass rusher

Were’re given more rep to and all of a sudden he’s in the back field every play and it’s changing you know so there’s there’s just a quick little scheme thing and I’ve always thought about that the the evolution of Defense in the middle of the season is probably I would guess

And you know ball fall more far more than me significantly more than the offense unless there’s there’s injuries the defense evolves totally it’s it’s the it’s the units that are the are greater than some of their parts and that’s offensive line and defense those are the ones that need time because they

Need communication they need to get on the same page especially all these defenses they practice contact in a lot of cases oh yeah that as well tackling and blocking yes the most fundamental stuff is possible and also just um yeah you got to figure out the right pieces

This guy goes here I would always look and I think Steve spagnol is usually the guy to always look at as pre- bye and post bye because the bye is the big reset button for especially for the good staffs they self Scout they get some time take a deep breath they go okay

Every time this guy is at the slot we suck all right get him out of here look at what the 49ers did they signed Isaiah Oliver who I liked he was in the slot kind of was all right are we good there are okay so they bumped de de deodor

Lenor back into the slot and that’s really helped the whole defense and Chase young uh following their bye but different offenses different defenses do that so I I think that’s exactly it Sean I mean the offense is wonky but it I I’ve called this team a jiujitsu team

They just get you on the ground they grind it out and all they win and they they get you in like a finger hold Toe Hold and so the the reason I I after they lost I think it was after the 70-point game I said Shawn pton doesn’t

Seem into this this team seems much further away than I anticipated and I said I said on this show I said this whole thing is over unless they get a top two pick this whole thing is over I literally counted them out which I never

Do but you would have a proof of concept giving up 70 points is a proof of some sort of concept and so I looked at it and I just said this is on the wrong track and it’s not getting on the right track and so for them to be able

Obviously I’m I’m going to shout out Vance Joseph here who who was who orchestrated it who was able to pressure get get the pressures where they needed to be um that’s remarkable in season turnaround to get this team to eight wins after hackit I mean hacket really

Was probably the worst coach I’ve I’ve ever seen it it was just the worst environment I’ve seen just as far as coaching quarterback play just everything going on there and people were like well some people were like well he hired his buddy from college and that he was like his his buddy from

College was the strategy guy right like and that’s that what’s the unraveled I’m just like okay well you know what don’t do that don’t hire your buddy from college to be the strategy guy don’t don’t do that um and so I just think that there’s uh them being at this stage

In their rebuild shows me and this is what impresses me shows me that Payton is into this that he’s building something is it going to be a team that catches the Chiefs probably not anytime soon but they’ll fix the quarterback thing they’re going to have to take their medicine with the Russell Wilson

Contract but I also think like I really I’m surprised I think it’s a little slimy what they did to Wilson I’m not surprised they did it I actually said it in September late September and think I’m sure I wasn’t the only one where it’s like he has his injury guarantees

At some point they’re going to sit him I didn’t think they were going to say hey wave your injury guarantees or we’re gonna we’re gonna bent you that’s a little Slammy to me I think one day you just say Okay um you’re you’re not playing anymore and everybody will get

It they’ll have to take their medicine on the cap but I don’t think that this is this is no longer a doomed project which is uh it’s like an Arrested Development we’re now we’re now don’t buy instead of sell on the stock um that’s and I think that’s important it

It’s yeah I I think when they paid him what they paid him they were saying you have rank here and that’s why it it was interesting to me that I was like oh man he’s gonna have some pride in this and they spent free agency I was like oh

They’re moving up for guys in the draft I was like all right he’s he’s into this they’re they’re pushing it and then like you said the first six weeks happened I had them as I picked him as my Dark Horse for Coach of the Year and I had

Them as the seventh seed in the playoffs and now they started the season I was like boy do I look dumb and and I watching him on tape I’m like oh man I don’t know guys this defense can’t guard anybody I love ceran he’s one of the

Best players in the league but the rest of this is rough and they have players too guys have a lot of Pride and I think they of course had lot a lot of Pride on defense I also think Shawn pyton all was got that kind of competitive itch again

And he was like really was like oh okay actually I do like this I do want to get part of this I do want do all this and I’m curious they were one of the most fascinating teams this offseason because of obviously the Russell Wilson stuff but also the pivot Points they could

Take because I don’t think Shawn PNE wants to do like a whole rebuild thing so how aggressive are they getting to find a quarterback it’s gonna be really interesting because they could be yeah they could be sneaky I would say sneaky team but a very interesting team this

Offseason a very active team this offseason also Shan Payton’s good with quarterbacks I don’t think but’s forgot yeah um he turned Tamm Hill into someone football games and then P him and then P him that was that was the original sin um not to spoil anything if you’re doing

This with Maize but um who is your coach of the year oh I just wrote about it uh sha McVey oh and which is also a transition into my next one which is sha McVey lesne and the the entire Rams organization uh I love this just everything everything

They did uh nailing draft picks non-ir rounders I mean top down Byron young I mean a bunch of guys Kobe Turner B and Kobe Turner are enough for a draft Hall on top of it they got starting guard that’s fantastic Steve a uh I mean they’ just done so much good stuff uh

Development of undrafted free agents uh Michael Hoy has been one of my favorite kind of like those guys of the Season just this former briy League Canadian guy uh has undrafted free agent has slowly developed he’s dropping in the coverage at 310 pounds he’s getting after the passer they they are again

Another team that’s on defense they got rid of Jaylen Jaylen Ramsey but they found a kind of greater than some of their parts kind of thing okay we’re not GNA be amazing in but we’re going to make it hard at least on offenses and then what this whole offense did I mean

They revamped the whole offens line they moved guys around they benched guys they leaned in Kiren Williams they said no this guy’s Something Matthew Stafford has been playing on freaking fire this entire year and then pukan nura I was my offensive Rookie of the Year going into

This week because just what he’s doing statistically and what he’s doing on the field I think he’s legitimately good people are kind of just cropping hip I was like ah he’s a f really good for Fantasy he’s a nice story fifth rounder no he’s legit freaking good he’s an

Awesome blocker great receiver great Runner Cooper cup was hurt for some of this year good chunk of this year and they still were clicking on offense um I I just think everything this team did especially what they looked like last year when they kind of just went oh yeah

We’re gonna sign Bobby Wagner and Allen Robinson whatever yeah run it back and then now this offensive identity change they’ve had this this what they’re doing on defense with rahee Morris as well he should get a shout out um bringing in um Mike laflor offensive coordinator just they they really looked at themselves

They really just were like hey we got to change just that’s a lot of work to do and a lot of self-confidence to have that and from week one onwards against Seattle they looked apart and now they’re in the playoffs and so I they have to get a shout out because they’ve

Been awesome this entire year so I think because mcvey’s original Miracle was seven years ago now wow that we’ve forgotten that he is a miracle worker the guy like the nobody I I really think that and I know this like I’m so tired of people be like nobody’s talking about

This but like Jared gof stunk he really stunk under Jeff fiser terrible he was like as bad I I haven’t checked the Bryce young numbers but I think he was the second worst rookie golf was the second worst rookie it’s always like Rosen and like Alex Smith was for a

While and then uh Andrew Walters actually I swear to God was in the mix there oh I think what’s his name uh gabber gabber gab I think I think Gabbert I think Gabbert was closer to the middle than those fellas that they there’s some grimass numbers um um I I

Had Alex Smith on the show a couple years ago and he was like took me like years to get over my first start okay um like I mean some sometimes you get drapped in bad environments and bad things happen so McVey is a miracle worker and then he works a miracle and

Everybody goes whoa check out McVey this is what he does yeah this is exactly what he does or even when they traded for Stafford everyone’s like I don’t know why would you do that to run like that offense and everything it’s like yeah he changed that entire offense

Because he gets it he understands what he has it’s like some of these guys just get it and they just understand personnel and are are confident I don’t know they just I don’t know and they they’ve taken me by so surprise their win total going in the year was six and

A half they their cap dead cap was the second highest in the league it was it’s this team just looked like ah whatever shrug shoulders year let’s see what we got with some of these young guys well they got good things with the young guys

And some of the old guys Stafford cup a little bit cupers always older than you think Aaron Donald are still awesome so yeah shout out to them they because that that took that takes a lot to do that and the fact that it has results is awesome beautiful Nate Ty all impressive

Team I love this enjoy life with your boy we’ll be texting about it athletic football show Yahoo sports column must read must listen see you buddy thanks thank you so Much