It's episode five of the Draft Preview Podcast as host Ethan Greenberg and Dane Brugler preview the NFL Combine and break down the quarterback prospects. They start by talking about the quarterback class as a whole and how guys can separate from the pack (1:00). Greenberg and Brugler also break down which signal caller has the highest upside of the group (2:45), which QB has the chance to be a underrated pick on Day 2 (6:30) and a development QB the Jets could target late (8:30). The guys shift their focus to Indianapolis and the upcoming NFL Scouting Combine by talking about the biggest storylines coming into this week (14:30), who will run the fastest 40-yard dash (18:40) and how big this week is for top prospects Kayvon Thibodeaux and Derek Stingley Jr. (20:30).
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
The New York Jets are now on the board. Jeff
Darrell read Been in New York has been one of
the greatest questions. Zack spit out on the brand that
one right now the New York Jet Fleck. Welcome to
another episode NFL Draft Preview. Ethan Greenberg, Dane Brugler talking quarterbacks,
(00:21):
talking a little bit of the combine. They kind of
go hand in hand here, Dane, because the quarterbacks all
will throw, or maybe they won't all throw at the combine,
but this is their last chance to impress scouts on
on the field other than their pro days. A big
step in the evaluation process with medicals and interviews, and
we'll talk about that as we talked about the combine.
But as as a prospect, can you pick it your
(00:44):
top quarterback prospect, but not until the thirties, on your
top one hundred. So can you talk about this quarterback
class as a whole and maybe how one guy can
try to separate from the others to beat QB one
come April. Yeah. As impressive as last year's quarterback class
was five quarterbacks in the first fifteen picks, UH, including
Zach Wilson number two, this quarterback class is a little
(01:06):
bit of the opposite, where there's some talent, but none
of these guys that you look at and say, okay, yeah,
I have conviction this is going to be a quarterback
that will lead us to the playoffs or you know,
it's going to be a top fifteen quarterback in the NFL. Now,
maybe someone will surprise us uh and end up doing that.
But it's hard to have any confidence in this group
because you could poll holes at all of them. I
(01:27):
pick it is my top quarterback. I think he has,
you know, probably the highest floor of any of these quarterbacks.
You have a good idea of what you're getting with him.
I love the passing instincts uh. He has the ability
to throw receivers open. What he did this past year
coming back for his fifth season at pit was outstanding.
Um And I think that the confidence that he shows
(01:47):
is more of a strength than a weakness. But there
are times where I'll get greedy and maybe throws makes
some throws he shouldn't make. Uh. And there are some
skittish tendencies. He was beat up a lot um by
his by uh pass rusher his first few years at Pitt.
Senior year, offensive line did a much better job. But
you could tell he was a little skittish from some
of the past past years where they struggled in an area.
(02:10):
But his ability to throw from various platforms and throw
with accuracy, that's really what you're betting on with the
Kenny Picket. So I think you're getting an NFL starter,
a guy that can step in right away and at
least make an impact. And so they're going to be
teams that look at him and say, yeah, he's worthy
of a first round pick for us because he upgrades
our quarterback position. We're not sure what the ceiling is is,
(02:31):
you know, can he be a guy that leads us
to the Super Bowl. Maybe, but at least we know
we're getting a starter who's at least going to compete
Week one for us. You know, you said Kenny Pickt
in your eyes, has the highest floor. Who in your
eyes has the highest upside of this group? I think
you have to go with Malik Willis, the quarterback out
of Liberty who has a really exciting set of skills
(02:52):
with the athleticism, the armed talent um, there's a lot
to like about him. He's shorter and he almost has
like a running back build. Because he's two twenty, he's
really compactly built, but he's a loose athlete. He's a
play extender. Uh. The offense that he played in at Liberty,
it's not really conducive to what he's gonna be asked
to do in the NFL. And so there's some question
(03:12):
marks there, especially posts now when that first read is
taken away, can you find the secondary reads the third reads? Uh,
that's kind of the big question with him. Uh. And
it's something where when you talk about mental processing, it's
it's a projection. And so it's not that he can't
do it, it's just we haven't seen it consistently yet.
And so there are some question marks with Malik Willis,
(03:32):
but a lot of excitement as well, because when you
have a guy with that type of skill set, he
has intangibles. Uh. It's it's at some point you're willing
to bet on a guy like that. And so for
it's gonna be a different answer for different teams in
terms of where they want to draft a player that
probably isn't ready to see the field as a rookie,
but when you think of where he could be too
or three years from now, that's what gets you excited,
(03:54):
and so good chance he goes in the first round.
But it's again, teams are gonna look at him differently
in terms of what's the risk value where we feel
comfortable drafting him. For a guy like Matt Corrall who
was not at the Senior Bowl and obviously the Senior Bowl,
Wait wait, I think when people think about the Senior Bowl,
you think about guys who use that as a launching pad. Well,
(04:16):
it feels like, after talking to you, none of the
quarterbacks were able to separate from each other in Mobile.
For a guy like Matt Correll who wasn't there, now
teams will get to look at him both on and
off the field and whatever he does in Indianapolis. Is
that almost an advantage for him because there's a little
bit of an of an enigma there because teams haven't
seen him yet since the end of the college football
(04:36):
season when he got hurt. Yeah, that's a good way
to kind of freeme it because uh, you know, I
wouldn't say that going to the Senior Bowl, you know,
hurt any of these these quarterbacks. But for Matt corral
it's just the unique situation where he was the one
quarterback of the first probably seven that will be drafted,
the one quarterback that wasn't there, and so he is
kind of the main attraction among these quarterbacks, the guy
(04:59):
that a lot of team can't wait to see. Uh.
And there's a lot of question marks with him. What's
the size going to be? Six to two oh five?
I was told he was under two inter pounds uh
in the spring, but to who measured him? So what's
size going to be exactly? And then you know, the
interview process is going to be good for him. He
got you know, there's some immature things in his past
from high school and in college. Has been very open about,
(05:21):
you know, his therapy and battles with depression and alcohol
and things like that. So the interview process will be
big for him just in terms of selling himself to
NFL teams um. And but on the field, that's where
I think he's really going to shine, especially in this
combine environment. He's an instinctive athlete. Everything he does is
quick arm uh, the way he sees things, the movements
with his feet. So I think in a shorts and
(05:43):
a T shirt throwing against air, Matt Correll should do
very well for himself this week in Indianapolis. You know, Dana,
I know it's the end of February as we're recording
that the combine will be in March, the draft late April.
So this is kind of a projection question. Uh. It
feels like in the past, at least specifically for quarterbacks
(06:04):
and really all positions, a lot of players, Like there's
a lot of jostling in terms of position. Who's QB one,
who's running back one, etcetera, etcetera. Who's the quarterback that
we should know about that Maybe we're not talking about
enough now, but maybe by the time the draft comes around,
that quarterback will be in conversation. Maybe not for QB one,
but maybe like round two, but before, like as we talk,
(06:26):
maybe that's a Day three player. Like the guy I'm
thinking about last year, Davis Mills felt like he kind
of came out of nowhere towards the end of the process.
So is there a guy similar to that where we're
not talking about him, but then all of a sudden,
this guy is gonna light it up in the interview
process and he has good tape or good enough tape,
and now we're like, okay, now his draft stock has risen. Yeah, Honestly,
(06:47):
I don't know if there's really a Davis Mills um
in this class. And you know Davis Mills. We talked
about him throughout the process as being maybe the most
likely starter outside those top five guys, and so I
don't know that was a big surprise with him. But
this year, Uh, I don't know that we necessarily have.
It's just not a great quarterback class, uh, in any
part of the draft, and so we don't have. There
(07:10):
weren't a lot of juniors that came out. UM. Caleb
Ellaby from Western Michigan is one who maybe could surprise.
I thought his tape was more late round type of prospect,
but you know, who knows. Maybe during the interview process,
maybe during the combine his workouts, maybe Caleb Llby would
be able to impress and move up a little bit.
The one senior that intrigues me and I don't know
(07:30):
that he has a ceiling as a starter, but I
think he can be a backup in this league for
a long time. That's Jack Cone from Notre Dame. Started
at Wisconsin, transferred to Notre Dame for his final year. Uh.
There's nothing about him that necessarily wows you, but He's
a resilient competitor, very efficient as a passer. There are
some athletic limitations. I think that's a big the biggest
(07:51):
thing keeping him from maybe being a second round pick,
a third round pick, but somewhere in the mid round,
somewhere day three. I think Jack Cone is a worthy
draft pick because I love the way that he finds
rhythm in the passing game. He delivers with timing, delivers
with placement, um So there's a lot to like about
Cone as a possible backup. Although I don't know that
(08:12):
he's going to necessarily reach that starter status. I'm glad
you brought him up just generally because are there any
players that you think are in a similar vein where
I'm thinking about the Jets. A couple of years ago,
they draft James Morgan day three, hope to develop him
into a backup, and obviously that did not happen with
the Jets. But is there a guy or a couple
(08:33):
of guys, a couple of names that you think if
the Jets were to draft a quarterback to develop him
into a backup for Zach Wilson, you like as a
fit or you just you like him as a player. Yeah,
and I think outside those top five guys, you know,
talking about Pickett, Malik Willis, Matt Corral, Sam Howell, and
Desmond Ritter, I think those are the top five quarterbacks.
(08:55):
And then that's where we get into some question marks,
you know, and Curson's strong from the VAT has got
got the knee, got some other question marks with him.
Bailey Zappy from Western Kentucky's a nice player. I think
could be a case Keenum in this league, mentioned Jack Cone,
mentioned Caleb lab and then after that, you know, I
think we're going into more guys that have very low ceilings,
(09:15):
like a Brock Purty from Iowa State. A nice player,
but you know, six one, two oh five, uh, you know,
very limited in what he could do. But a few
developmental guys that have some traits that you can work
with but need need a lot of development time. Guys
like Cole Kelly from Southeastern Louisiana. H. E. J. Perry
from brown Son. There's a few quarterbacks that will be
(09:37):
in that late round conversation who uh, you know, it's
hard to see them maybe coming out as uh, you know,
grading out as top five round type of quarterbacks. But
you know there's enough to entice you that maybe they
get themselves drafted in April. You know, the Jets sit
there with the number ten overall selection, obviously not going
to take a quarterback. But I think a lot of
(09:58):
there's been projections, let's say, whether it's my trash or
just talk on Twitter, whatever the case may be, that
maybe a team would want to trade up to ten
and select a quarterback. Whether or not that's to leap
frog the Washington Commanders right there at number eleven is
moot in this scenario. Just they want to trade up.
They want to get their guy. Who is the most
likely quarterback. You think that a team would want to
(10:20):
trade up for and try to leap frog another team
to secure their guy for the future. I think it's
either Picket or Willis. You know, again, we're talking about
Kenny Pickett, the guy who can come in right away
compete for a starting job. Is he gonna help you
win football games? Again? Is this ceiling going to be
Super Bowl winning quarterback? That's hard to say, but at
least you know that he can come in and compete
(10:41):
right away. Malik Willis, maybe he will be able to
to the Super Bowl one day, but it's a bigger
projection compared to where he is now, compared to what
a ceiling. So I think it's either one of those
two players. I think it makes a lot of sense
with Washington picking at number eleven. Um, you know there's
some does Caroline at six? Do they go quarterback? That's
(11:02):
a little early for for any of these guys, but
you know, quarterback desperation is a real thing in the NFL,
and so I think Kenny Pickott Malik willis good chance
one of those two guys will be the first quarterback
off the board, and it possibly could be somewhere in
the top ten or somewhere in the top fifteen. And
if it is, maybe the Jets do receive a few calls,
and in that case would be really interesting to see
(11:25):
what they would be offered to move back in a
scenario like that. All right, February in the morning, over
under zero point five quarterbacks selected in the top ten
in the NFL draft, I will go, uh, right now
where we are, I'll go with you under um, I'll
say that you know, Washington there at number number eleven
(11:49):
seems like the most likely landing spot. Carolina, you know,
they invested so much and they don't have a second
round pick this year because I see them darble um,
it seems more likely they chase a veteran in uh
quarterback out there, whoever that may be. Uh, you know,
last year they went after Matthew Stafford, weren't able to
get it done. This year they're gonna look for that
Matthew Stafford and so whoever that may be Carolina that
(12:11):
direction I see them going. Uh, you know, Denver at
nine is a possibility, just because their quarterback situations unsettled.
But more likely again they go after a veteran and
chase one of those guys that could be available. Um.
So when you look at these quarterbacks, you know, it's
been a it's been a while since we had a
quarterback not draft at top ten. But I think this
is it's very likely that it happens this year. Al Right, Wow,
(12:33):
I love that answer. That's gonna be some fire up
here in the morning on the East coast. It is
a little chili and uh whatever, it'll be Chilian Indian
in Indianapolis, So who cares. So this is how I'm
gonna transition here from the quarterbacks to the combine because
Kenny Pickett didn't have his hands measured in Mobile. He
will in Indianapolis. I don't want to talk about it.
I just want to say I am double jointed too.
(12:54):
I don't know if you can see my thumb, but
it's popping in and out there. Yeah, yeah, just okay.
And so do you do like stretches to that's right.
That's right for everybody who wants to measure my my
hands for to hold a football, that's right, exactly. I
don't know. I think I pick it kind of made
a mistake by not getting his hands like his hands
(13:16):
are like what they are, right to get the conversation
over with and at the Senior Bowl because now that's
what everyone's gonna be talking about once he gets measured.
So might as well just ripped the band aid off,
got him measured at the Senior Bowl. Now, uh, you know,
we know he has small hands. That that's just a fact,
and so it's it'll be uh if he did it,
he wouldn't be wearing gloves, so you know, it's it's
something that I wish you would have just ripped the
(13:36):
band aid off at the at the Senior Bowl. But
now it'll be continue to be a top of the
conversation throughout this week. It is what it is, right,
call a spade a spade. If you have small hands
in the NFL combine, you just have small hands sucking up,
you're probably a good football player, regardless. I remember, wasn't
a Joe Burrow who tweeted like, oh my god, how
am I ever gonna throw a football with my tiny hands?
(13:56):
Joe Burrow? I think he was exactly nine at nine
even which that's kind of the threshold you want to
be above nine. Uh, Jared goff Ut with the same thing.
He still ended up going number one overall. So it's
a little overblown. Um. I think if you have a
history of fumbles on on tape and you know or
you know the ball coming out wildly out of your hand,
all of a sudden, smaller hands comes into play where
(14:18):
it matters. But with Kenny Pickett, he cut down on
the fumbles quite a bit, and I don't think you
really notice smaller hands with his ability as a passer
at all. So I don't think it's as big of
a deal. And that's why I wish you would have
just got it done. But we'll continue to hear about
it throughout this week. That's fair. So what are in
your opinion, the biggest storylines as an evaluator, something that
(14:39):
you're looking to see, whether it's from a specific player,
whether it's to hear from different personnel, Like, what are
the storylines that you're going into the combine week thinking,
you know what, I'm really curious to see how this
plays out. Well, I think first and foremost we kind
of have to point out the disclaimer right that of
the three main steps of the combine, the on field
workouts are are the least important. First and foremost is
(15:02):
the combines about the medicals, you know, that's why the
combiners are created in the first place. Second is the interviews,
valuable FaceTime for all these teams with the three four
players that will be uh in Indianapolis. Those two really
are the most important aspects of the combine and what
can really create fluctuation among the rankings. Third place is
(15:24):
the on field workouts, the agility testing. It's still important,
don't get me wrong. And those that you know, this
is the time of year where we hear though the
combines overrated and this those that don't value the combine
just don't understand how to use the information. Um, it's
not something that the combines shouldn't be something that you know,
change alters your rankings and changes where guys are projected
(15:45):
to be drafted. That's not how it works. But it
should be a cross checking exercise, a fail safe measure,
so you it confirms what you're seeing on film. And
it's also for comparison purposes. You know forty yard dash,
you know, a wide receiver compared to pass wide receivers
and things like that. It just it really helps create
context for these players. And so for this week, UM,
(16:06):
I think you know, starting off, we just mentioned the quarterbacks.
Matt Corral how does he look, how does he work out?
We haven't seen him since the bowl game when he
got hurt against Baylor, so that would be big for him. Um.
You know, I want to see how some of these
running backs catch the football. Nneth Walker from Michigan State
needs my top running back this year. Wasn't asked to
catch the ball that much. Uh three point eight percent
of his career touches and college were receptions, only three
(16:30):
so just not really proven in that area. To me,
he could be a top forty pick in this draft,
but I think he needs to catch the ball really
well um at the combine to help that uh wide
receiver position. A guy like Justin Ross at a Clemson
who looked like a future top ten pick as a
freshman when we watched him during the college football playoffs
against Notre Dame against Alabama. Looked outstanding, but a couple injuries, uh,
(16:54):
you know, including one with a neck injury that that
needed surgery this past year. The quarterback situation that comes
and didn't really do him any favors, and then he
had the foot injury. So Justin Ross his projection was
kind of derailed by a few of these things. So
he was cleared, gonna be back on the field, eager
to see how he does. Uh. And I mean really
we we could talk all day about all the different
(17:17):
things that really good for you know, trail and Burke's
out of Arkansas. He's gonna be two five pounds. Does
he run in the four fours? Uh? You know, does
he have eleven in chands? You know, some of these
things that are gonna be really interesting to watch. Uh,
I think the four when he comes to the forty
yard dash, if you're gonna ask me, say, who's gonna
run the fastest. My money's on Kalin Barnes at Baylor,
(17:37):
the cornerback who is you know, maybe uh, not a
top two round guy, but starting in the third round,
maybe you start to think about a guy with that
type of speed. In high school he ran at ten
oh four and the hundred meters which is just remarkable,
qualifying for the Olympics type of speed. So Caitlin Barnes, Uh,
(17:57):
he should be one of the quinner this week when
he is able to go, uh, you know, run his
forty on later this week. I feel like if you're
a fan of the NFL draft, obviously to your point,
you're excited to see the on field workouts. You're excited
to see the forty yard dash, the bench press, the
athletic freaks jumping out of the gym. Uh. Like my
(18:19):
personal favorite, not that you asked, but my personal favorites
to gauntlet. I love the gauntlet. I'd like to see
how the receivers catch it. And yeah, in terms of
the four yard dash, we'll talk about like the gauntlet
and the other drills in a minute, but the four
yard dash you mentioned who you think will be the winner.
What about other guys that you just think will be
up there, like, um, especially guys that you think casual
(18:42):
or somewhat casual NFL draft fans know of, right, Like,
maybe it's a is there a top two round guy
that you think is gonna blow the doors off the
gym and really just run a blazing fast forty a
couple of years wide receivers should Crystal Lave from Ohio State.
He a ten eight hundred meter guy in high school.
He should light it up. Um, and when you watch
(19:04):
him play, how smooth he is. UM, I think that
will translate really well with these other drills as well.
John Dotson from Penn State, he should be in the
four three range. Um. You know, I I think when
you look at corner Trent mcduffy from Washington, I think
he'll be one of the top testers. I talked to
him last week. He told me high four threes, low
four fours is his goal. Wants to get at least
(19:26):
overto inches. And the crazy thing is he might not
even be the most athletic defensive back coming out of Washington.
That's Gordon who is not as polished of a football
player as Trent McDuffie, but his athleticism is remarkable. And
you know, kind of fun talking to him about his background.
He grew up competing in martial arts, uh competitions, kung fu,
(19:48):
he was in dance competitions. Mr Spotlight that that that
was his upbringing, that was his childhood. And then at
some point, you know, middle school, he tran that translated
all that athleticism, that flexibility to football in basketball and
he grew into this player who is just a remarkable
athlete on the football field. Plumb corner and that should
show up this week. So Kyler Gordon not as polished
(20:10):
of a corner as some of these other guys, but
cornerback is a stopwatch position. And if you're going to
post the numbers that I think Kyler Gordon is capable of, uh,
he's gonna go high, maybe even in that first round.
You know, I gotta ask about two guys that have
been linked to the Jet, specifically at number four, and
how big of a week it is for these two players.
One is Derek Stingley, the other one is Cavon Thibodeau
(20:32):
of the defensive end out of Oregon. Yeah. With Derek Stingley,
obviously we want to see him run and work out.
I'm not sure if he's gonna be able to because
of the foot injury that he suffered during the season,
But above all the medicals, that's what's gonna be really
important for him. And then just the the interview process,
you know, getting him one on one and figuring out, Okay, well,
(20:54):
what indo your thought process? You know what happened the
last two years? Uh? You know, or do you have
that alpha person anality that we're looking for? Uh? I know,
Teams just skeptical that he really has that uh in
him and so the interview process will be huge for
Derek Stindley. And then with Thibodeaux, it's it's just more
about selling yourself. Um. You know, there's a lot of
(21:14):
you know, chatter out there about how he cares more
about his brand than he does about football, and uh,
you know, is he is? He have the passion needed
to draft to draft him top five and he's really
gonna work to be the best defensive end that he can.
He should test well. But the interview process, see teams
getting him one on one and getting to know him better,
(21:35):
that's really what's gonna either help Thibodeaux or maybe even
uh push them down draft boards even more. Who knows,
maybe he's there at ten if they just want to
go in that direction. So give on Thibodeaux really a
little bit of lightning run when you talk to teams,
and this will be a big week for him to
kind of, uh, you know, get back, get things back
on track and show that, hey, I am a guy
(21:55):
worthy of the top overall pick that you want to
invest a top five pick in. Uh, just his chance
to uh to sell himself and uh, you know, explain
to teams why he is worthy of that selection. We'll
see what happens. It's gonna be a fascinating week. I
do feel like I just want to bring up two
more guys, both edge rushers. David a Jabo feels like
he's primed to have a huge week, and also Jermaine Johnson.
(22:18):
I'm curious what your thoughts are on him. Doesn't feel
like a lot of people are talking about him as
an athlete. Obviously, he had a fantastic week in Mobile,
really really did a lot for himself at the Senior Bowl.
But what kind of athlete is Jermaine Johnson Like at
the end of this combine week, is he gonna get
lost to the shuffle or is he going to continue
to ascend as a player as a prospect, should I
say yeah, I don't. I don't know that combines necessarily.
(22:40):
I think Senior Bowl was very much an opportunity for
him to show out more so than the combine. Like,
I don't think he's gonna test below average, but I
think he'll be closer, probably closer to average than you know.
David A. Jabo. Um, you know he's some of his athleticism,
I think you see it more in the football field,
and I think he will in shorts and a T shirt.
I think Jermaine Johnson will still be in that top
(23:02):
fifteen range, twenty range. A guy that could go might
not even be on the board. I've never been with it,
just pick so you know, I think he'll do okay.
But David A. Jobo, he should light it up. This
is a guy who started playing football Blair Academy UH
in Jersey, and he was teammates with Jason Oway, odafe
O Way, who was a first round pick last year
(23:22):
the Ravens and oh Wait ran a four three seven
forty yard dash at his pro day. Talked to UH
David A Jobo, He'll tell you he beat oh Way
all the time when they had hunter races. Uh so, uh,
you know what's that In high school o Jabo ran
a ten nine three in the hundred meters, which anything
under eleven seconds for anyone is remarkable, but especially for
(23:44):
David A. Jobo, who is you know, linebacker sized, um
and so just an unbelievable athlete. He should test well
across the board, um and and that's why we're you know,
he's been projected to be this top fifteen pick and
a guy that could go early the combines should only
confirm that you know, uh who just reported let me
see here, one of the NFL network guys, Ian Rappaport
(24:06):
just reported Evan Neil is not gonna work out at
the combine. Who will wait until this pro day so
we won't be able to see Evan. By the way,
he seems like a freak athlete too, with the split
box jump squad whatever that is, Like I'd like to
have a sliver of the same athleticism and I'm like
a fourth of the size. So but one guy I
do want to bring up also on edge rusher, not
because not because this is this is just a coincidence.
(24:28):
I know, you're high on the guy. That's why Travon
Walker out of Georgia. He's huge. Obviously, you have them
at six five to seventy five whole way in what
he weighs in Indianapolis. But do you think this could
be like a coming out party for him because he's
one of the guys that not a lot of people
talk about because he wasn't at the Senior Bowl. And
it feels like he's also primed to show, Hey, like
(24:50):
I'm a freaky athlete and you might want to take
me very high as well. Hey, he's lost a little
bit in that Georgia scheme because it was so loaded
with guys and he wasn't asked too necessarily just his
years back and go get after the quarterback. But Travon
Walker's an outstanding football player. But I've talked to teams
that believe he could be the best defensive player from
(25:10):
this draft period when it's all said and done. So
you know, he was ranked number six overall in my
top one hundred, and I took heat for that, and
I'm that's fine with me. I'm betting on those traits
and that should show this week at the Combine and
it would be interesting to see what his weight is. Uh,
you know, is he close to that to seventy five
or is he is he heavier? Is he you know,
if he's close to eighty five, then maybe we're talking
(25:32):
about him moving inside and being more of an interior presence.
But um, you know, it kind of reminds me of
you know, Rashawn Gary Aple years ago when he's coming
out of Michigan. He was two hundred seventy six pounds
and just lit it up four or five eight and
the forty yard dash, um, thirty eight inch vertical. That
just ridiculous numbers and he ended up going twelve overall,
uh to the packers. But if he's closer to say
(25:55):
two eighty five, then we're gonna pair his numbers to
say Cam Jordan's. He was coming out of cow Uh,
he was two seven pounds and ran a four seven
six and had all these great numbers, uh seven oh
seven and three comb which is amazing for a guy
that size. So Travon Walker I think should be in
that range when we talk about a very good tester
at that size, with the length of power that he has,
(26:17):
I mean, it's just a total package. You wish he
was a little more productive and in college. But when
you watch the tape and you realize, okay, he wasn't
asked to necessarily just you know, get after the quarterback,
and then you start to realize that that that explains why,
you know, the reasons and excuses, Uh, there are reasons
why the production wasn't greater. Uh, and so that that
factors into the evaluation. Alright. Also other news, NFL Network
(26:41):
reporting that Macarron is gonna wait till his pro day,
so we evaluators won't get a chance to see him
throw at the Combine in Indianapolis indoors Lucas Oil Stadium.
So that's that's another guy. I'm sure we'll hear more
as the week goes on and on, but those are
just two guys. And also, if you're a Jets fan,
I'm sure you're gonna be watching the addressers of wide receivers,
how they run, how they catch all that good juice,
(27:03):
and we'll see what happens as the week unfold. Then
next week we're talking Combine review, biggest winners, we'll talk
about all the freak athletes as usual. So that's how
we're gonna wrap up this episode of NFL Draft Freeview
and Dane, I'll see you later this week. All right,
sounds good, looking forward to it.
The New York Jets are now on the board. Jeff
Darrell read Been in New York has been one of
the greatest questions. Zack spit out on the brand that
one right now the New York Jet Fleck. Welcome to
another episode NFL Draft Preview. Ethan Greenberg, Dane Brugler talking quarterbacks,
(00:21):
talking a little bit of the combine. They kind of
go hand in hand here, Dane, because the quarterbacks all
will throw, or maybe they won't all throw at the combine,
but this is their last chance to impress scouts on
on the field other than their pro days. A big
step in the evaluation process with medicals and interviews, and
we'll talk about that as we talked about the combine.
But as as a prospect, can you pick it your
(00:44):
top quarterback prospect, but not until the thirties, on your
top one hundred. So can you talk about this quarterback
class as a whole and maybe how one guy can
try to separate from the others to beat QB one
come April. Yeah. As impressive as last year's quarterback class
was five quarterbacks in the first fifteen picks, UH, including
Zach Wilson number two, this quarterback class is a little
(01:06):
bit of the opposite, where there's some talent, but none
of these guys that you look at and say, okay, yeah,
I have conviction this is going to be a quarterback
that will lead us to the playoffs or you know,
it's going to be a top fifteen quarterback in the NFL. Now,
maybe someone will surprise us uh and end up doing that.
But it's hard to have any confidence in this group
because you could poll holes at all of them. I
(01:27):
pick it is my top quarterback. I think he has,
you know, probably the highest floor of any of these quarterbacks.
You have a good idea of what you're getting with him.
I love the passing instincts uh. He has the ability
to throw receivers open. What he did this past year
coming back for his fifth season at pit was outstanding.
Um And I think that the confidence that he shows
(01:47):
is more of a strength than a weakness. But there
are times where I'll get greedy and maybe throws makes
some throws he shouldn't make. Uh. And there are some
skittish tendencies. He was beat up a lot um by
his by uh pass rusher his first few years at Pitt.
Senior year, offensive line did a much better job. But
you could tell he was a little skittish from some
of the past past years where they struggled in an area.
(02:10):
But his ability to throw from various platforms and throw
with accuracy, that's really what you're betting on with the
Kenny Picket. So I think you're getting an NFL starter,
a guy that can step in right away and at
least make an impact. And so they're going to be
teams that look at him and say, yeah, he's worthy
of a first round pick for us because he upgrades
our quarterback position. We're not sure what the ceiling is is,
(02:31):
you know, can he be a guy that leads us
to the Super Bowl. Maybe, but at least we know
we're getting a starter who's at least going to compete
Week one for us. You know, you said Kenny Pickt
in your eyes, has the highest floor. Who in your
eyes has the highest upside of this group? I think
you have to go with Malik Willis, the quarterback out
of Liberty who has a really exciting set of skills
(02:52):
with the athleticism, the armed talent um, there's a lot
to like about him. He's shorter and he almost has
like a running back build. Because he's two twenty, he's
really compactly built, but he's a loose athlete. He's a
play extender. Uh. The offense that he played in at Liberty,
it's not really conducive to what he's gonna be asked
to do in the NFL. And so there's some question
(03:12):
marks there, especially posts now when that first read is
taken away, can you find the secondary reads the third reads? Uh,
that's kind of the big question with him. Uh. And
it's something where when you talk about mental processing, it's
it's a projection. And so it's not that he can't
do it, it's just we haven't seen it consistently yet.
And so there are some question marks with Malik Willis,
(03:32):
but a lot of excitement as well, because when you
have a guy with that type of skill set, he
has intangibles. Uh. It's it's at some point you're willing
to bet on a guy like that. And so for
it's gonna be a different answer for different teams in
terms of where they want to draft a player that
probably isn't ready to see the field as a rookie,
but when you think of where he could be too
or three years from now, that's what gets you excited,
(03:54):
and so good chance he goes in the first round.
But it's again, teams are gonna look at him differently
in terms of what's the risk value where we feel
comfortable drafting him. For a guy like Matt Corrall who
was not at the Senior Bowl and obviously the Senior Bowl,
Wait wait, I think when people think about the Senior Bowl,
you think about guys who use that as a launching pad. Well,
(04:16):
it feels like, after talking to you, none of the
quarterbacks were able to separate from each other in Mobile.
For a guy like Matt Correll who wasn't there, now
teams will get to look at him both on and
off the field and whatever he does in Indianapolis. Is
that almost an advantage for him because there's a little
bit of an of an enigma there because teams haven't
seen him yet since the end of the college football
(04:36):
season when he got hurt. Yeah, that's a good way
to kind of freeme it because uh, you know, I
wouldn't say that going to the Senior Bowl, you know,
hurt any of these these quarterbacks. But for Matt corral
it's just the unique situation where he was the one
quarterback of the first probably seven that will be drafted,
the one quarterback that wasn't there, and so he is
kind of the main attraction among these quarterbacks, the guy
(04:59):
that a lot of team can't wait to see. Uh.
And there's a lot of question marks with him. What's
the size going to be? Six to two oh five?
I was told he was under two inter pounds uh
in the spring, but to who measured him? So what's
size going to be exactly? And then you know, the
interview process is going to be good for him. He
got you know, there's some immature things in his past
from high school and in college. Has been very open about,
(05:21):
you know, his therapy and battles with depression and alcohol
and things like that. So the interview process will be
big for him just in terms of selling himself to
NFL teams um. And but on the field, that's where
I think he's really going to shine, especially in this
combine environment. He's an instinctive athlete. Everything he does is
quick arm uh, the way he sees things, the movements
with his feet. So I think in a shorts and
(05:43):
a T shirt throwing against air, Matt Correll should do
very well for himself this week in Indianapolis. You know, Dana,
I know it's the end of February as we're recording
that the combine will be in March, the draft late April.
So this is kind of a projection question. Uh. It
feels like in the past, at least specifically for quarterbacks
(06:04):
and really all positions, a lot of players, Like there's
a lot of jostling in terms of position. Who's QB one,
who's running back one, etcetera, etcetera. Who's the quarterback that
we should know about that Maybe we're not talking about
enough now, but maybe by the time the draft comes around,
that quarterback will be in conversation. Maybe not for QB one,
but maybe like round two, but before, like as we talk,
(06:26):
maybe that's a Day three player. Like the guy I'm
thinking about last year, Davis Mills felt like he kind
of came out of nowhere towards the end of the process.
So is there a guy similar to that where we're
not talking about him, but then all of a sudden,
this guy is gonna light it up in the interview
process and he has good tape or good enough tape,
and now we're like, okay, now his draft stock has risen. Yeah, Honestly,
(06:47):
I don't know if there's really a Davis Mills um
in this class. And you know Davis Mills. We talked
about him throughout the process as being maybe the most
likely starter outside those top five guys, and so I
don't know that was a big surprise with him. But
this year, Uh, I don't know that we necessarily have.
It's just not a great quarterback class, uh, in any
part of the draft, and so we don't have. There
(07:10):
weren't a lot of juniors that came out. UM. Caleb
Ellaby from Western Michigan is one who maybe could surprise.
I thought his tape was more late round type of prospect,
but you know, who knows. Maybe during the interview process,
maybe during the combine his workouts, maybe Caleb Llby would
be able to impress and move up a little bit.
The one senior that intrigues me and I don't know
(07:30):
that he has a ceiling as a starter, but I
think he can be a backup in this league for
a long time. That's Jack Cone from Notre Dame. Started
at Wisconsin, transferred to Notre Dame for his final year. Uh.
There's nothing about him that necessarily wows you, but He's
a resilient competitor, very efficient as a passer. There are
some athletic limitations. I think that's a big the biggest
(07:51):
thing keeping him from maybe being a second round pick,
a third round pick, but somewhere in the mid round,
somewhere day three. I think Jack Cone is a worthy
draft pick because I love the way that he finds
rhythm in the passing game. He delivers with timing, delivers
with placement, um So there's a lot to like about
Cone as a possible backup. Although I don't know that
(08:12):
he's going to necessarily reach that starter status. I'm glad
you brought him up just generally because are there any
players that you think are in a similar vein where
I'm thinking about the Jets. A couple of years ago,
they draft James Morgan day three, hope to develop him
into a backup, and obviously that did not happen with
the Jets. But is there a guy or a couple
(08:33):
of guys, a couple of names that you think if
the Jets were to draft a quarterback to develop him
into a backup for Zach Wilson, you like as a
fit or you just you like him as a player. Yeah,
and I think outside those top five guys, you know,
talking about Pickett, Malik Willis, Matt Corral, Sam Howell, and
Desmond Ritter, I think those are the top five quarterbacks.
(08:55):
And then that's where we get into some question marks,
you know, and Curson's strong from the VAT has got
got the knee, got some other question marks with him.
Bailey Zappy from Western Kentucky's a nice player. I think
could be a case Keenum in this league, mentioned Jack Cone,
mentioned Caleb lab and then after that, you know, I
think we're going into more guys that have very low ceilings,
(09:15):
like a Brock Purty from Iowa State. A nice player,
but you know, six one, two oh five, uh, you know,
very limited in what he could do. But a few
developmental guys that have some traits that you can work
with but need need a lot of development time. Guys
like Cole Kelly from Southeastern Louisiana. H. E. J. Perry
from brown Son. There's a few quarterbacks that will be
(09:37):
in that late round conversation who uh, you know, it's
hard to see them maybe coming out as uh, you know,
grading out as top five round type of quarterbacks. But
you know there's enough to entice you that maybe they
get themselves drafted in April. You know, the Jets sit
there with the number ten overall selection, obviously not going
to take a quarterback. But I think a lot of
(09:58):
there's been projections, let's say, whether it's my trash or
just talk on Twitter, whatever the case may be, that
maybe a team would want to trade up to ten
and select a quarterback. Whether or not that's to leap
frog the Washington Commanders right there at number eleven is
moot in this scenario. Just they want to trade up.
They want to get their guy. Who is the most
likely quarterback. You think that a team would want to
(10:20):
trade up for and try to leap frog another team
to secure their guy for the future. I think it's
either Picket or Willis. You know, again, we're talking about
Kenny Pickett, the guy who can come in right away
compete for a starting job. Is he gonna help you
win football games? Again? Is this ceiling going to be
Super Bowl winning quarterback? That's hard to say, but at
least you know that he can come in and compete
(10:41):
right away. Malik Willis, maybe he will be able to
to the Super Bowl one day, but it's a bigger
projection compared to where he is now, compared to what
a ceiling. So I think it's either one of those
two players. I think it makes a lot of sense
with Washington picking at number eleven. Um, you know there's
some does Caroline at six? Do they go quarterback? That's
(11:02):
a little early for for any of these guys, but
you know, quarterback desperation is a real thing in the NFL,
and so I think Kenny Pickott Malik willis good chance
one of those two guys will be the first quarterback
off the board, and it possibly could be somewhere in
the top ten or somewhere in the top fifteen. And
if it is, maybe the Jets do receive a few calls,
and in that case would be really interesting to see
(11:25):
what they would be offered to move back in a
scenario like that. All right, February in the morning, over
under zero point five quarterbacks selected in the top ten
in the NFL draft, I will go, uh, right now
where we are, I'll go with you under um, I'll
say that you know, Washington there at number number eleven
(11:49):
seems like the most likely landing spot. Carolina, you know,
they invested so much and they don't have a second
round pick this year because I see them darble um,
it seems more likely they chase a veteran in uh
quarterback out there, whoever that may be. Uh, you know,
last year they went after Matthew Stafford, weren't able to
get it done. This year they're gonna look for that
Matthew Stafford and so whoever that may be Carolina that
(12:11):
direction I see them going. Uh, you know, Denver at
nine is a possibility, just because their quarterback situations unsettled.
But more likely again they go after a veteran and
chase one of those guys that could be available. Um.
So when you look at these quarterbacks, you know, it's
been a it's been a while since we had a
quarterback not draft at top ten. But I think this
is it's very likely that it happens this year. Al Right, Wow,
(12:33):
I love that answer. That's gonna be some fire up
here in the morning on the East coast. It is
a little chili and uh whatever, it'll be Chilian Indian
in Indianapolis, So who cares. So this is how I'm
gonna transition here from the quarterbacks to the combine because
Kenny Pickett didn't have his hands measured in Mobile. He
will in Indianapolis. I don't want to talk about it.
I just want to say I am double jointed too.
(12:54):
I don't know if you can see my thumb, but
it's popping in and out there. Yeah, yeah, just okay.
And so do you do like stretches to that's right.
That's right for everybody who wants to measure my my
hands for to hold a football, that's right, exactly. I
don't know. I think I pick it kind of made
a mistake by not getting his hands like his hands
(13:16):
are like what they are, right to get the conversation
over with and at the Senior Bowl because now that's
what everyone's gonna be talking about once he gets measured.
So might as well just ripped the band aid off,
got him measured at the Senior Bowl. Now, uh, you know,
we know he has small hands. That that's just a fact,
and so it's it'll be uh if he did it,
he wouldn't be wearing gloves, so you know, it's it's
something that I wish you would have just ripped the
(13:36):
band aid off at the at the Senior Bowl. But
now it'll be continue to be a top of the
conversation throughout this week. It is what it is, right,
call a spade a spade. If you have small hands
in the NFL combine, you just have small hands sucking up,
you're probably a good football player, regardless. I remember, wasn't
a Joe Burrow who tweeted like, oh my god, how
am I ever gonna throw a football with my tiny hands?
(13:56):
Joe Burrow? I think he was exactly nine at nine
even which that's kind of the threshold you want to
be above nine. Uh, Jared goff Ut with the same thing.
He still ended up going number one overall. So it's
a little overblown. Um. I think if you have a
history of fumbles on on tape and you know or
you know the ball coming out wildly out of your hand,
all of a sudden, smaller hands comes into play where
(14:18):
it matters. But with Kenny Pickett, he cut down on
the fumbles quite a bit, and I don't think you
really notice smaller hands with his ability as a passer
at all. So I don't think it's as big of
a deal. And that's why I wish you would have
just got it done. But we'll continue to hear about
it throughout this week. That's fair. So what are in
your opinion, the biggest storylines as an evaluator, something that
(14:39):
you're looking to see, whether it's from a specific player,
whether it's to hear from different personnel, Like, what are
the storylines that you're going into the combine week thinking,
you know what, I'm really curious to see how this
plays out. Well, I think first and foremost we kind
of have to point out the disclaimer right that of
the three main steps of the combine, the on field
workouts are are the least important. First and foremost is
(15:02):
the combines about the medicals, you know, that's why the
combiners are created in the first place. Second is the interviews,
valuable FaceTime for all these teams with the three four
players that will be uh in Indianapolis. Those two really
are the most important aspects of the combine and what
can really create fluctuation among the rankings. Third place is
(15:24):
the on field workouts, the agility testing. It's still important,
don't get me wrong. And those that you know, this
is the time of year where we hear though the
combines overrated and this those that don't value the combine
just don't understand how to use the information. Um, it's
not something that the combines shouldn't be something that you know,
change alters your rankings and changes where guys are projected
(15:45):
to be drafted. That's not how it works. But it
should be a cross checking exercise, a fail safe measure,
so you it confirms what you're seeing on film. And
it's also for comparison purposes. You know forty yard dash,
you know, a wide receiver compared to pass wide receivers
and things like that. It just it really helps create
context for these players. And so for this week, UM,
(16:06):
I think you know, starting off, we just mentioned the quarterbacks.
Matt Corral how does he look, how does he work out?
We haven't seen him since the bowl game when he
got hurt against Baylor, so that would be big for him. Um.
You know, I want to see how some of these
running backs catch the football. Nneth Walker from Michigan State
needs my top running back this year. Wasn't asked to
catch the ball that much. Uh three point eight percent
of his career touches and college were receptions, only three
(16:30):
so just not really proven in that area. To me,
he could be a top forty pick in this draft,
but I think he needs to catch the ball really
well um at the combine to help that uh wide
receiver position. A guy like Justin Ross at a Clemson
who looked like a future top ten pick as a
freshman when we watched him during the college football playoffs
against Notre Dame against Alabama. Looked outstanding, but a couple injuries, uh,
(16:54):
you know, including one with a neck injury that that
needed surgery this past year. The quarterback situation that comes
and didn't really do him any favors, and then he
had the foot injury. So Justin Ross his projection was
kind of derailed by a few of these things. So
he was cleared, gonna be back on the field, eager
to see how he does. Uh. And I mean really
we we could talk all day about all the different
(17:17):
things that really good for you know, trail and Burke's
out of Arkansas. He's gonna be two five pounds. Does
he run in the four fours? Uh? You know, does
he have eleven in chands? You know, some of these
things that are gonna be really interesting to watch. Uh,
I think the four when he comes to the forty
yard dash, if you're gonna ask me, say, who's gonna
run the fastest. My money's on Kalin Barnes at Baylor,
(17:37):
the cornerback who is you know, maybe uh, not a
top two round guy, but starting in the third round,
maybe you start to think about a guy with that
type of speed. In high school he ran at ten
oh four and the hundred meters which is just remarkable,
qualifying for the Olympics type of speed. So Caitlin Barnes, Uh,
(17:57):
he should be one of the quinner this week when
he is able to go, uh, you know, run his
forty on later this week. I feel like if you're
a fan of the NFL draft, obviously to your point,
you're excited to see the on field workouts. You're excited
to see the forty yard dash, the bench press, the
athletic freaks jumping out of the gym. Uh. Like my
(18:19):
personal favorite, not that you asked, but my personal favorites
to gauntlet. I love the gauntlet. I'd like to see
how the receivers catch it. And yeah, in terms of
the four yard dash, we'll talk about like the gauntlet
and the other drills in a minute, but the four
yard dash you mentioned who you think will be the winner.
What about other guys that you just think will be
up there, like, um, especially guys that you think casual
(18:42):
or somewhat casual NFL draft fans know of, right, Like,
maybe it's a is there a top two round guy
that you think is gonna blow the doors off the
gym and really just run a blazing fast forty a
couple of years wide receivers should Crystal Lave from Ohio State.
He a ten eight hundred meter guy in high school.
He should light it up. Um, and when you watch
(19:04):
him play, how smooth he is. UM, I think that
will translate really well with these other drills as well.
John Dotson from Penn State, he should be in the
four three range. Um. You know, I I think when
you look at corner Trent mcduffy from Washington, I think
he'll be one of the top testers. I talked to
him last week. He told me high four threes, low
four fours is his goal. Wants to get at least
(19:26):
overto inches. And the crazy thing is he might not
even be the most athletic defensive back coming out of Washington.
That's Gordon who is not as polished of a football
player as Trent McDuffie, but his athleticism is remarkable. And
you know, kind of fun talking to him about his background.
He grew up competing in martial arts, uh competitions, kung fu,
(19:48):
he was in dance competitions. Mr Spotlight that that that
was his upbringing, that was his childhood. And then at
some point, you know, middle school, he tran that translated
all that athleticism, that flexibility to football in basketball and
he grew into this player who is just a remarkable
athlete on the football field. Plumb corner and that should
show up this week. So Kyler Gordon not as polished
(20:10):
of a corner as some of these other guys, but
cornerback is a stopwatch position. And if you're going to
post the numbers that I think Kyler Gordon is capable of, uh,
he's gonna go high, maybe even in that first round.
You know, I gotta ask about two guys that have
been linked to the Jet, specifically at number four, and
how big of a week it is for these two players.
One is Derek Stingley, the other one is Cavon Thibodeau
(20:32):
of the defensive end out of Oregon. Yeah. With Derek Stingley,
obviously we want to see him run and work out.
I'm not sure if he's gonna be able to because
of the foot injury that he suffered during the season,
But above all the medicals, that's what's gonna be really
important for him. And then just the the interview process,
you know, getting him one on one and figuring out, Okay, well,
(20:54):
what indo your thought process? You know what happened the
last two years? Uh? You know, or do you have
that alpha person anality that we're looking for? Uh? I know,
Teams just skeptical that he really has that uh in
him and so the interview process will be huge for
Derek Stindley. And then with Thibodeaux, it's it's just more
about selling yourself. Um. You know, there's a lot of
(21:14):
you know, chatter out there about how he cares more
about his brand than he does about football, and uh,
you know, is he is? He have the passion needed
to draft to draft him top five and he's really
gonna work to be the best defensive end that he can.
He should test well. But the interview process, see teams
getting him one on one and getting to know him better,
(21:35):
that's really what's gonna either help Thibodeaux or maybe even
uh push them down draft boards even more. Who knows,
maybe he's there at ten if they just want to
go in that direction. So give on Thibodeaux really a
little bit of lightning run when you talk to teams,
and this will be a big week for him to
kind of, uh, you know, get back, get things back
on track and show that, hey, I am a guy
(21:55):
worthy of the top overall pick that you want to
invest a top five pick in. Uh, just his chance
to uh to sell himself and uh, you know, explain
to teams why he is worthy of that selection. We'll
see what happens. It's gonna be a fascinating week. I
do feel like I just want to bring up two
more guys, both edge rushers. David a Jabo feels like
he's primed to have a huge week, and also Jermaine Johnson.
(22:18):
I'm curious what your thoughts are on him. Doesn't feel
like a lot of people are talking about him as
an athlete. Obviously, he had a fantastic week in Mobile,
really really did a lot for himself at the Senior Bowl.
But what kind of athlete is Jermaine Johnson Like at
the end of this combine week, is he gonna get
lost to the shuffle or is he going to continue
to ascend as a player as a prospect, should I
say yeah, I don't. I don't know that combines necessarily.
(22:40):
I think Senior Bowl was very much an opportunity for
him to show out more so than the combine. Like,
I don't think he's gonna test below average, but I
think he'll be closer, probably closer to average than you know.
David A. Jabo. Um, you know he's some of his athleticism,
I think you see it more in the football field,
and I think he will in shorts and a T shirt.
I think Jermaine Johnson will still be in that top
(23:02):
fifteen range, twenty range. A guy that could go might
not even be on the board. I've never been with it,
just pick so you know, I think he'll do okay.
But David A. Jobo, he should light it up. This
is a guy who started playing football Blair Academy UH
in Jersey, and he was teammates with Jason Oway, odafe
O Way, who was a first round pick last year
(23:22):
the Ravens and oh Wait ran a four three seven
forty yard dash at his pro day. Talked to UH
David A Jobo, He'll tell you he beat oh Way
all the time when they had hunter races. Uh so, uh,
you know what's that In high school o Jabo ran
a ten nine three in the hundred meters, which anything
under eleven seconds for anyone is remarkable, but especially for
(23:44):
David A. Jobo, who is you know, linebacker sized, um
and so just an unbelievable athlete. He should test well
across the board, um and and that's why we're you know,
he's been projected to be this top fifteen pick and
a guy that could go early the combines should only
confirm that you know, uh who just reported let me
see here, one of the NFL network guys, Ian Rappaport
(24:06):
just reported Evan Neil is not gonna work out at
the combine. Who will wait until this pro day so
we won't be able to see Evan. By the way,
he seems like a freak athlete too, with the split
box jump squad whatever that is, Like I'd like to
have a sliver of the same athleticism and I'm like
a fourth of the size. So but one guy I
do want to bring up also on edge rusher, not
because not because this is this is just a coincidence.
(24:28):
I know, you're high on the guy. That's why Travon
Walker out of Georgia. He's huge. Obviously, you have them
at six five to seventy five whole way in what
he weighs in Indianapolis. But do you think this could
be like a coming out party for him because he's
one of the guys that not a lot of people
talk about because he wasn't at the Senior Bowl. And
it feels like he's also primed to show, Hey, like
(24:50):
I'm a freaky athlete and you might want to take
me very high as well. Hey, he's lost a little
bit in that Georgia scheme because it was so loaded
with guys and he wasn't asked too necessarily just his
years back and go get after the quarterback. But Travon
Walker's an outstanding football player. But I've talked to teams
that believe he could be the best defensive player from
(25:10):
this draft period when it's all said and done. So
you know, he was ranked number six overall in my
top one hundred, and I took heat for that, and
I'm that's fine with me. I'm betting on those traits
and that should show this week at the Combine and
it would be interesting to see what his weight is. Uh,
you know, is he close to that to seventy five
or is he is he heavier? Is he you know,
if he's close to eighty five, then maybe we're talking
(25:32):
about him moving inside and being more of an interior presence.
But um, you know, it kind of reminds me of
you know, Rashawn Gary Aple years ago when he's coming
out of Michigan. He was two hundred seventy six pounds
and just lit it up four or five eight and
the forty yard dash, um, thirty eight inch vertical. That
just ridiculous numbers and he ended up going twelve overall,
uh to the packers. But if he's closer to say
(25:55):
two eighty five, then we're gonna pair his numbers to
say Cam Jordan's. He was coming out of cow Uh,
he was two seven pounds and ran a four seven
six and had all these great numbers, uh seven oh
seven and three comb which is amazing for a guy
that size. So Travon Walker I think should be in
that range when we talk about a very good tester
at that size, with the length of power that he has,
(26:17):
I mean, it's just a total package. You wish he
was a little more productive and in college. But when
you watch the tape and you realize, okay, he wasn't
asked to necessarily just you know, get after the quarterback,
and then you start to realize that that that explains why,
you know, the reasons and excuses, Uh, there are reasons
why the production wasn't greater. Uh, and so that that
factors into the evaluation. Alright. Also other news, NFL Network
(26:41):
reporting that Macarron is gonna wait till his pro day,
so we evaluators won't get a chance to see him
throw at the Combine in Indianapolis indoors Lucas Oil Stadium.
So that's that's another guy. I'm sure we'll hear more
as the week goes on and on, but those are
just two guys. And also, if you're a Jets fan,
I'm sure you're gonna be watching the addressers of wide receivers,
how they run, how they catch all that good juice,
(27:03):
and we'll see what happens as the week unfold. Then
next week we're talking Combine review, biggest winners, we'll talk
about all the freak athletes as usual. So that's how
we're gonna wrap up this episode of NFL Draft Freeview
and Dane, I'll see you later this week. All right,
sounds good, looking forward to it.
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