April 30, 2025 • 33 mins
ESPN analyst Louis Riddick and Kansas head coach Lance Leipold join Erin Summers to provide some insight on two Saints draft picks, quarterback Tyler Shough and running back Devin Neal.
See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:05):
Welcome in to the New Orleans Saints Podcast, presently by Seatcake.
You'll hear from players, coaches, broadcasters, and writers that cover
the NFL on a daily basis. The New Orleans Saints
Podcast starts right now. Here's your host, Aaron Summers.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Welcome into the New Orleans Saints Podcast. Aaron Summers here
to break down the NFL draft picks. The draft brought
twenty new players to the Saints, between the draft and
undrafted free agents, starting with an offensive tackle from Texas
Kelvin Banks junior at number nine.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Oh great, I mean it was awesome, kind of like
like everybody always say a dream come true, just not
knowing where you're gonna go, so being anxious and then
want you to fill your phone vibrating. You answered the
phone and you hear the GM and head coach talking
to you is kind of a soberer moment.
Speaker 4 (00:58):
So it was very exciting for me.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Today we're going to dive a little deeper on the
offensive players drafted, talk to some analysts and even some
college coaches to find out who we're getting here in
New Orleans. Locked On Saints' host Ross Jackson joined me
on our Saints twenty twenty five Draft recap show and
had this to share about the Saints first round pick.
Speaker 5 (01:18):
Not a lot of people are going to be excited
about the offensive lineman, but you know all the things
that people do get excited about, the big runs, the
breakaway plays, the big passes downfield. Those guys are the
people that make that happen. If they don't hold up
in front of that quarterback, in front of that running back,
then those big plays don't get an opportunity to take place.
So I think that's one of the things that you
get from them, and you get an excellent leader as well.
(01:40):
When it comes to him in the locker room, his
teammate Vernon Broughton spoke a bit about that. We'll talk
about him a little bit later, but I think that
what Calvin Banks gives you with somebody that's going to
be able to contribute most immediately versus a run blocker
has some development to do as a pass blocker, but
I think has every tool set he needs to get there.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
You can watch the full show on the Gulf Coast
Sports and Entertainment Network or at New Orleans Saints dot
Com or our Saints YouTube channel. Get more insight from
Ross on all of our draft picks, the undrafted, free agents,
and what's ahead for the Saints. It was the Saints'
second pick, number forty overall, Louisville quarterback Tyler Shuck that
made the most noise. Maybe because of his age or
(02:16):
previous injuries, or maybe because you just wanted the Saints
to draft someone else. However, there is one former NFL
player now analyst who absolutely loves this pick, and that
is Lewis Ridick. Riddick joined me to share why. Lewis,
thank you so much for joining me on the New
Orleans Saints podcast. It has been a busy weekend. We
(02:37):
finally made it through the draft, which I always am
happy about because I hate all the speculation. I which
want to know what it's going to look like. And
for Saints fans, second round, fortieth pick overall is quarterback
Tyler Shuck out of Louisville. Mixture reviews by the fan base,
but I know it's somebody you've been high on.
Speaker 6 (02:57):
Why, well, this starts going all the way back to
the ball. I got to see Louisville play twice. We
called two of their games for ESPN. Got to see
him play at home against SMU got to see him
play on the road at Clemson, So it starts there.
Jeff and Brian Brom, the head coach and offensive coordinator
(03:17):
quarterback coach at at Louisville, or good friends of mine.
I've known Jeff since the year, since two thousand. We
both played a little fun fact in the XFL together
back in the old Orlando Rage days, back in in
the two thousand seasons. So I've known him a long time.
And Jeff and Brian there are two better quarterback teachers
in college football period. Jeff Brom should be a head
(03:38):
coach in the NFL. He's that damn good. And so
I knew that. When I started watching Louisvill's tape to
prepare for those games, I was.
Speaker 7 (03:47):
Like, who the hell is this Tyler shub kid? And
how is he? How did I not know about him
before this?
Speaker 6 (03:52):
Well, obviously, you know his journey has been a little unconventional,
having transferred twice, had some injuries, and you know, he
hasn't really been able to take off, and he hasn't
been in an offense like this. And so when I
watched the tape, I went down and I asked Jeff,
I said, look, he said, as.
Speaker 7 (04:07):
Good as I think he is. I was like, holy shit,
this guy can play. And he's like, oh, he's damn good.
He's big, he's fast, he is smart, he's mature. The teammates,
the team loves him.
Speaker 6 (04:20):
He can execute whatever discipline you want, whether it's from
under center, whether it's in the pistol, whether it's in
the gun, whether it's zone read, whether it's RPO, whether
it's you know, boots keepers, pushed the ball down the
field on you know, big shots down the field, timing round.
Speaker 7 (04:35):
He can do it all. And I'm going, yeah, that's
what I've been seeing.
Speaker 6 (04:39):
And he goes, yeah, he's just not a household name,
I said, but you just watch, just just watch as
he goes. And in that game, he was lights out.
In the SMU game, they lost the game. I mean,
Louisville's defense really struggled the first three quarters of the season.
And then we saw him again down to Clemson and
they won that game and Clemson had everything to play for,
(05:00):
and he was again lights out. Just watch his game
up in Notre Dame earlier in the season. He had
one of the best He had the best throw of
the year, the throat to Jacory Brooks, like the eighteen
yard touchdown pass back of the end zone where he's
rolling left and basically he doesn't even throw a three.
It's like a side arm throw, almost underhand and gets
smashed in the face. He throws like that all year long.
(05:23):
And so I'm sitting there going, you know, as the
season goes on. If Tyler Shuck had played for Alabama
or Clemson or USC or some other school like that
that was known for, you know, putting out big time quarterbacks,
or was on TV every single week in the primetime game,
there wouldn't be this talks around again.
Speaker 7 (05:44):
As far as his age is concerned. Cares that he's
twenty five?
Speaker 6 (05:48):
Who cares that he came out in the draft with
Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields.
Speaker 7 (05:52):
Who cares?
Speaker 6 (05:53):
As a matter of fact, at twenty five? Many teams
in the NFL and New Orleans isn't the only one.
I can promise you that, as I've talked to plenty,
isn't the only one who looked at that as a positive.
Speaker 7 (06:05):
He's got a stable home life, he's married.
Speaker 6 (06:06):
He's a guy who you know is gonna do all
the things off the field the right way. You know
that on the field, as far as his football character
is concerned, he is super smart, he is super athletic.
He's a guy who's been through a lot of adversity
already with the freak injuries that he's had, which I
can assure you NFL medical department said that does not
make him put him in some high risk category. The
(06:28):
nature of the injuries that he has suffered, it does
not put him in that. So for people thinking, all
of a sudden, the first time he gets touched he's
just gonna turn the dust, it's kind of like, get
a grip here, He's gonna be just fine. They were
freak injuries for him. And then when you just get
to the on the field exploits, just watch him play.
He can do everything in the pro game that Kellen
(06:51):
Moore is gonna ask him to do. And quite honestly,
Kellen's a perfect coach for him because it's gonna be
like a collaboration of things, a combination of what he
did well at Louisville, some of the stuff maybe that
he did at Texas Tech and.
Speaker 7 (07:02):
The air raid. He can do it all.
Speaker 6 (07:06):
And as long as the offensive line, running game and
the receivers are healthy.
Speaker 7 (07:10):
Tyler Shuck's gonna have a hell of a career. He's
gonna have a hell of career.
Speaker 6 (07:14):
So I think overall, we need to like stop looking
at the things that that comprise who this young man
is in such a negative way. His age doesn't mean
anything at all. Bo Knicks was older also, but they
then people say the same thing about bow Knicks when
he came out of Oregon. Who wants this twice transferred
(07:34):
older guy who was Johnny checked down and mister high
completion percentage at Oregon, ran in and played in an offense.
Speaker 7 (07:40):
It doesn't even really translate the NFL. You know who
wanted him. Sean Payton wanted him.
Speaker 6 (07:44):
Sean Payton had him raided as one of the best
quarterbacks in the draft behind Jade and Daniels.
Speaker 7 (07:48):
How'd that turn out?
Speaker 6 (07:49):
Now, there's a lot of people sitting there going, you know,
with with the racers trying to go, oh, you know
what I had, I had bowenext rated really high? Oh bullshit,
No you didn't. So And I know there's a lot
of quarterback gurus, whisperers whatever you want to call him.
Speaker 7 (08:04):
Who really like Tyler Shuck.
Speaker 6 (08:08):
The draft complex that we kind of like operate in
the media world, the fan world. They kind of like
follow these typical stereo, these stereotypical methods of evaluating players,
and if they don't check these certain boxes, then they think, well,
he's not a franchise quarterback. Just throw him on the
trash heap. NFL teams don't do that, Okay. I know
(08:28):
there's some people. You know, you can you can bash
the NFL for missing on quarterbacks. You can you can
praise the NFL for hitting on quarterbacks. People in the
NFL like this guy, And I can see exactly why
Kellen Moore really likes this guy. I can see exactly
why a lot of other quarterback whisperers and gurus and
who are both in the league and out of the
league really like this guy. I can see why Jeff
(08:49):
Brohm loved this guy. That's why people should just kind
of like chill out, let him get in there, learn
the system, get with Kellen, and then get on the
football field, because a lot of the stuff that he's
been through from an adversity standpoint are all the kind
of things that you don't know how some guys are
going to react to that kind of stuff until they
(09:10):
go through it.
Speaker 7 (09:10):
He's already been there.
Speaker 6 (09:11):
Yeah, and you already know what he's made of and
his skills on the field.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
You can't really question him.
Speaker 6 (09:18):
So yeah, that's about a three minute, you know, soapbox
oration right there. I gave you as to why I
believe in the guy, and I know and I've talked
to him multiple times.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
I love everything about the kid. Everything.
Speaker 6 (09:34):
And if there's somebody who I trust, it's Jeff and
Brian Brown. They can coach it with the very best
of them. And I think Kellen Moore knows what he's
looking for in a quarterback too, So let's give him
the benefit of the doubt before we start just bashing
this guy.
Speaker 7 (09:52):
And you know what, here's the last thing I'll say.
Speaker 6 (09:55):
And you can edit this out if you want, but
I'm sorry, but I have to say it this way.
That little dumbass clip that's trending on Twitter about how
he you know, he missed that throw at the combine.
Learned some context behind that. Tyler had said before that
he was going to try some things at the combine
to try and impress people, as far as throwing the
football with different arm angles and stuff kind of like
to throw. He had the Jacory Brooks against Notre Dame,
(10:16):
but that probably wasn't the best of time to do
that because you're throwing the guys who you don't even know,
and it's not a game circumstance, and that's probably that's
not a good indication, like a good time to do that.
He did it once and then he stopped doing it,
and I remember when it happened. I'll sit in there
watching it live when it happened. I'm going I see
what he's trying to do. He needs to just throw
the football, and when he did, he's the best thrower there.
(10:38):
So when people put that up there and then they
put it on Twitter and say this is what the
Saints drafted, you're full of shit. And what you're doing
is you're trying to create a narrative that's inaccurate. And
if for anyone who buys into that, you're just as
full of shit as a person who put it up there.
Speaker 7 (10:54):
So don't do that. But that's the world we live in,
right But you could not you could not have found
a bigger fan in the guy.
Speaker 6 (11:03):
And I'm rooting like hell for him, and hopefully it
all turns out the way everybody ideally wants it to.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
When he brought up the best throw that he had
this season, I was going to ask you about that
clip from the combine and what you saw there, So
thank you for addressing that. And then with Tyler Shuck,
he might not have been a household name because people
didn't know how to pronounce it. I mean, it's tough, right.
Speaker 7 (11:28):
I had this conversation with I think I with my son.
He's like a dad. I saw your boy Tyler Shuck
went and I was like, he's like, why is his
name spelled like that? It's his name should be Tyler's Show.
I was like, Yeah.
Speaker 6 (11:41):
When I when we first started preparing for for the
Louisville game the first time against SMU, I remember looking
at it and before we went down there, I was like,
this quarterback Tyler Show.
Speaker 7 (11:51):
Never like it's shucked. I was like, it can't be
spelled s a jo. How's it shuck? Yeah, that's another
thing that I think people will have fun with. But
I'm sure people are going to.
Speaker 6 (12:03):
Have some fun with the pronunciation of his name, especially
if he starts if he starts tearing it up down there.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yeah, with the system that he played under at Louisville.
You said it was perfect for him coming in here
under a new head coach, and Kellen wore, we don't
know exactly what his system is going to look like.
When you have a new coach, usually they want to
get their guys in here. How much do you think
he is going to build a system around Shuck or
not going to be able to assimilate into whatever it
(12:32):
is that Moore wants to do.
Speaker 6 (12:34):
Yeah, I think it's always the best systems that are
created are collaborative first and foremost. But I think if
you look at if you just break the individual components down,
you know, starting you know, with Kellen, just think of
the quarterbacks that.
Speaker 7 (12:50):
He's coached recently.
Speaker 6 (12:51):
He's coached Dak Prescott, He's coached Justin Herbert, he coach
Jalen Hurts. Those are three very different guys and all
of them played at a super high level underneath him,
and all of them, you know, I'm sure Kellen had
a very collaborative process with all three of them to say, hey, look,
what are the things that make you comfortable. What are
the things that you know that you feel most confident
(13:12):
in executing? This is basically this is These are the
basic fundamentals that I believe in terms of individual quarterback
play and then offensive philosophy. But let's work together to
get this, you know, ironed out, so we can get
you rolling at a high level. And the reason why
I'm sure he takes that approach is because Kellen played
the position and he knows that you just don't come
in and just hammer a quarterback into into a certain
(13:34):
role because that's how you feel they should play it.
It's always best when it's collaborative. It's always best when
there's a nice exchange of ideas. And I think you'll
see a little bit of everything with Tyler because he
can do a little bit of everything. He played in
an air raid, he played in a in a more
conventional pro style offense that emphasized being underneath center and
taking three five seven step drops, boots, keepers, rollouts thrown
(13:57):
from different platforms, operating from the pub. He's done all
that he's done. He's done just about all of it.
And the stuff that he was doing at Louisville is
just high level and that's probably stuff I'm sure when
Kellen was watching the tape, he's probably sitting there going
this is perfect.
Speaker 7 (14:14):
This kid has done everything, and so what you do
is I mean, that gives.
Speaker 6 (14:19):
You a lot of runway to really construct an offense
that ultimately is just going to move the ball and
put points on the board because Tyler can do it all.
Speaker 7 (14:29):
So that's really.
Speaker 6 (14:31):
The last of my worries as far as Kellen trying to,
you know, find that sweet spot with with Tyler and
what he can do.
Speaker 7 (14:38):
That's that's the least of my concern.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
There is the question mark right now the quarterback position
with the injury to Derek Carr. So that is something
that Kellen Moore is going to have to figure out
as well when implementing what his system is going to
look like. But when you bring in somebody that has
the experience that Schuck does, the age even in itself,
he said, the maturity, could he just seamlessly step in
(15:02):
if needed?
Speaker 6 (15:04):
Yeah, I know, you never you never want to, Like
I'm trying to hold myself back as far as not
wanting to get too far ahead. But all the things
that right now people are and I say people in general,
that are pointing to us negatives, once he gets there,
it'll quickly turn to a positive because he is mature.
(15:25):
He is someone who's been through a bunch. He is
someone who's been in multiple systems. He's ahead of the
game compared to you know, typical rookie quarterbacks. We just
saw this play out with bow Nicks. We just saw it.
It's almost a carbon copy. It's a bo didn't have
the injury history that that Tyler had, which again I'm
(15:45):
not concerned with, because the medical people I talked to
who aren't concerned with. So it's all going to help
him and accelerate his his his growth trajectory in a
way that I'm sure will allow him step on to
the field much sooner than maybe most quarterbacks could and
or or should for that matter. That doesn't mean there
(16:07):
are gonna be bumps in the road, because there are.
I mean, the pro game is not at the ACC.
The program is not SMU and and Wake and UH.
Speaker 7 (16:14):
And Clemson in Florida State. It's just not.
Speaker 6 (16:17):
So he's gonna have isn't gonna be perfect, But I
can promise you he isn't gonna be overwhelmed. It isn't
gonna be one of those where if he throws an
interception or he has a he gets stripped sacked of
the ball in the pocket or makes a bad read.
He's gonna all of a sudden go in the tank
and look like you know, someone just stole his wallet,
and all of a sudden he's just lost. It's not
gonna be that. It's not gonna be that. He's gonna
(16:39):
make a hell of a lot more good plays than
bad ones. I'm I'm kind of like, I'm eerily not eerily.
I'm I'm uniquely calm about this one because of the
guy and who he is and who I got to
know and who I got to talk to, and the
kind of trust that I have, and the people who
coach him. Jeff Brohm, the coach at Louisville, should be
(17:01):
in the NFL coaching if you were a GM and
you aren't going to Louisville trying to get him out
of there. And I'm not for all the Louisville fans,
I'm not trying to get Jeff brom you know. But
if you're a GM and you're not an interviewing him,
I don't know what you're doing. I just don't know
what you're doing. The dude knows how to coach it,
and so I think he has prepared. He has prepared
(17:22):
Tyler Shuck for everything that's come in his way. As
far as the challenge of being an NFL.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Quarterback, when do you step back and look at the
overall draft for the Saints, they did start with that
offensive tackle and Kelvin Banks junior. How much do you
value drafting alignment, whether it's either side, you know, building
from the inside out.
Speaker 7 (17:44):
Kelvin, I'll tell you this.
Speaker 6 (17:46):
I talked to Steve Sarkesian just about two or three
days before the draft, and I know sark Well. I
went down there and spoke to the University of Texas
their football team two years ago. He said that Kelvin
Banks is obviously he's a decades long plus book can tackle.
He said, there's no one that he trusted more on
his football team. If there's anybody who was tailor made
for the pro game to protect the quarterback's blind side
(18:07):
or whatever side you need to protect it, it's that
young man again, a guy who dealt with some difficult
circumstances during his time at Texas, whether it be not
playing totally healthy this year, personal issues with the health
of his mother. Continue to fight through it, continue to
be an absolute bedrock stalwart of their football program. And
(18:28):
again that's before you even get to the field. See,
I'm big on character and makeup, resiliency, forty two, whatever word.
Speaker 7 (18:35):
You want to use. He has that.
Speaker 6 (18:38):
He has it on top of the fact that he has,
you know, cannons for hands and has got like a
grip like Thanos, And he's strong and he's mobile, and he's.
Speaker 7 (18:49):
Smart, and.
Speaker 6 (18:51):
He plays one of the most coveted positions in all
of football. He can play at a high level. Of course,
that's a home run. That's an absolute home run type
of pick for them. And if you're Tyler Shuck, you're
going perfect. Thanks a lot, that'll help.
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Yeah, the Saints drafted two players out of Texas and
two players out of Louisville. Is there anything to that
they just really value those programs or is just kind
of how the cards fell?
Speaker 7 (19:19):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (19:19):
I think sometimes, you know, the draft just plays out
the way it plays out, And I'm sitting here, I'm
just like, like all these names, I'm sitting here familiar
like looking back over their draft. But look, i mean,
Vernon Broughton is a hell of a interior defensive lineman
and again he's the he's the kind of guy that
from a football character standpoint, position specific skills standpoint, some
(19:43):
teams really do lean on certain programs and kind of
like how they develop their guys. I don't think they
specifically target those guys, but maybe it just kind of
works out that way, and it's a testament to what
Sark is building down there, it really is. And look,
Quincy Riley is someone who I had written about out
for ESPN dot com before the draft. Is one of
the guys who I thought were going to be one
(20:04):
of the best Day two I thought Quincy should have
been a Day two player, one of the best Day
two or Day three values in the draft. So you know,
one hundred meters two hundred meters sprint champion in high school,
a guy who had fifteen plus interceptions in his career.
He can play inside at the slot. I mean, he
can do He can do it all. And Brandon Staley's
(20:27):
gonna absolutely freaking love him because Brandon knows how important
corners who are are that can play outside and play inside.
Like Brandon coached one of the very best when he
was with the Rams with Jalen Ramsey. And I'm not
saying that Quincy Riley is Jaalen Ramsey, but he has
that kind of mentality. And so again when we went
to Louisville, they couldn't say enough good things about Quincy.
(20:47):
He was banged up a lot of the year this
year and had dealt with a foot injury or an
ankle injury I believe it was, but he's super super talented. Yeah,
I think Saints fan's got to give Mickey in his
in his personnel department and that coaching stay have credit.
Speaker 7 (21:02):
They had a heck of a draft.
Speaker 4 (21:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
I mean, there are a lot of unknowns right now
because you have a whole new coaching staff, really and
the news of Derek Carr's injury, so I think people
need to pump the brakes a little bit and wait
and see what happens, right, Yeah, Yeah.
Speaker 6 (21:18):
You know, it's at this time of year generally, I
think fan bases and people will like tend to lean
on the side of optimism, you know, because you haven't
lost any games, so why why not be optimistic? But
then sometimes that pendulum can swing the other way, and
before people even get on the field, they can start
they start making wholesale like evaluations on players and teams
(21:40):
that can also tend to lean way too negative. There's
a lot of things that are going to happen between
now in September and team building is an ongoing process. Also,
there's a lot of teams that you think are gonna
be good that it's just not going to go their way.
It's just not going to click the way maybe they
envisioned it on paper. And then there's a lot of
teams you're gonna sit there and you're gonna go, oh,
(22:00):
that's an average draft, that's an average free agency.
Speaker 7 (22:03):
I don't know about that coach. Who you're gonna when
the season.
Speaker 6 (22:05):
Comes around, you're gonna be going, damn, how did this
team hit it? Like that, You're dealing with fifty three
dudes who you're trying to make become a team along
with the coaching staff, and there's so many moving parts.
Speaker 7 (22:16):
Like I understand, we all like to make projections. I
do it.
Speaker 6 (22:19):
I mean, we do it for a living. But you
also have to understand that there's a lot of things
that we just can't forecast, and what you really should
do is lean on the side of favor the people
that in favor of the teams that have good people,
high football character, guys. The Saints got a lot of good,
high football character guys on top of being talented, and
(22:40):
I would bet on Kellen Moore. I would bet on
Brandon Staley. I'd feel pretty good about where they're sitting right.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Now and talking to the players. They've been here already
off season workouts, and they said it feels different. It's
unlike anything that they've done before. As far as the
workouts go. They're working out together, not position groups, so
they are are working on that team building aspect and
things do feel a little different around here. So I
(23:06):
appreciate the time, Lewis awesome, love the insight, and yeah,
good luck with everything going forward, and hopefully we'll see
you again down the line.
Speaker 7 (23:15):
Of course.
Speaker 6 (23:16):
Of course, hopefully I can get down to New Orleans
this year and see Tyler and the group and the
group of play.
Speaker 7 (23:20):
In person there.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Go come visit anytime.
Speaker 7 (23:23):
Bet thanks a lot, thank you.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
If everything Reddick said comes to fruition, we're going to
be just fine here. The next offensive player to get
drafted by the Saints came in the sixth round, Kansas
running back Devin neil. I was able to catch up
with Kansas head coach Lance Leopold for some background on
the player coach. Thanks for joining me on the New
Orleans Saints podcast. It was an awesome weekend for so
many players that got to hear their name called. And
(23:47):
I'm sure we're special for you to be able to
see some of your players take the next step in
their career. How are you doing well?
Speaker 4 (23:53):
First of all, I'm doing well. It's great to be
with you. Appreciate the opportunity to talk talk about Devin,
and it was special time. And you know, we just
completed our fourth season here in Lawrence, and to see
some of these players that have been with us a
long time grow and develop on and off the field
and then to live their dream to hear their name
called and have the opportunity at the highest level as special.
(24:15):
And I think Saints fans will will really appreciate.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
And like Devin Neil, you think about where Devin was
drafted and then you look at the numbers that he
was able to put up throughout his collegiate career and
you're like, man, was this like the steal of the
draft here for the Saints.
Speaker 4 (24:32):
I think it could be. It definitely could be. And
and as you know, you know the running back positioned
is viewed differently, and I think in the NFL than
it was five ten years ago. And sometimes you know,
and there's a lot and this year it happened to
have a lot of quality backs and it really compared
to the previous year. So you know, he knew he
was in a competitive situation and whatnot. But again, I
(24:56):
you know, talking to people through the process, as people
came through you, people could see him as easy as
you know, maybe being as early as late second day
pick to maybe where he ended up. And again, as
many of our guys understand, it's it's not from this
point on, once your name's called. It's really what you
do at the opportunity anyway to make the most of it.
(25:19):
And again, as we've been able to build this program here,
our players have always kind of been able to excel
in that underdog underdog role.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
With his productivity on the fields. He's obviously in the
record books there in Kansas. But what was it about
him that made him such a good player.
Speaker 4 (25:36):
I just think it's he's such a well grounded, hardworking
young man. He's very humble. I know a lot of
people say it, but when you get a chance to
visit with him, You'll see it. He's a quality person.
He's hard working, he's never satisfied. He comes into building
every day with with with the attitude to get better,
(25:56):
not never entitled, and he wants to be the best
he can for his team, and he kind of approached
it that way. I don't have a ton of stories
about Devon. When I'm asked about what I really remember,
it's just his steadiness and humbleness. But I do remember
his true freshman season that he was really living in
Jonathan Wallace, our running back coach's office, in between meetings
(26:19):
of fall camp, asking more questions, trying to understand plays
and concepts and protections to be the best he could be.
And he was the starter by week two of his
true freshman year. And those are the things that I
probably will remember about him. I know he'll take that
same approach of understanding of having to learn and embrace
(26:40):
a new offense and scheme at the highest level, and
I'm sure he'll do everything he can to make that
team successful.
Speaker 2 (26:47):
When I emailed Andy to ask if I could get
you or a coach on to talk about Devin, he
sent back glowing regards for for who Devin was as
a person and how much they enjoyed working with him
the whole time that he was there. What is it
about Devin that you guys love so much?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Well, you know, you know, being right from here from Lawrence, Kansas,
sometimes you wonder what what what makes guys tick? And
you know, for he had many opportunities. This program was
was not on, was was not very successful. He bet
on his home hometown team to to come in and
make a difference, and he was determined to do so.
And he did that. And and again as uh, he
(27:28):
and our our quarterback Jalen Daniels, two of our more
marquee players, our best players on the team, were also
some of our best people in our program. And again,
he's a guy who will get involved in the community,
give back to his community. He does. He doesn't forget
where he comes from. And it's just that that blue
collar mentality that that kind of balances that he gives
(27:51):
back and does the things they want. But he's also
hungry enough to be determined, and it's that other balance
that makes him so spa And we'll miss him here,
that's for sure.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
Since he is from Kansas, he was the number one
recruit coming out of high school there and chose to
stay there. How's he going to fit in here in
New Orleans and Louisiana it's a little different.
Speaker 4 (28:12):
Yeah, I'm sure he'll he'll adapt. And you know Kansas
has a little humidity too, so I'm sure he'll be
able to do that. But again, the presence about him
and the way he goes about himself, he's such a
likable guy that he can interject himself and fit into
a lot of different groups and again fit into a
(28:35):
new culture and new way of life. And like I said,
I think, you know, given the opportunity of the fan
base there will appreciate what Devin Neil's all about.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
How did you see him grow from when he stepped
on campus there?
Speaker 4 (28:47):
Well, you know, probably again I keep saying the word humbleness.
That a guy. Then when you really keep talking to
him about working on deficiencies and for him, like I thought,
he had an excellent year this year out of the backfield.
Probably we didn't use him a ton in the past,
but he worked on his receiving skills, became a better
route runner, was more effective in the past game. He
(29:09):
continues to work on past protection understands that's an area
that he needs to improve on, but he doesn't shy
away from it. He doesn't shy away from the challenge
of getting better in the areas that needs help. He
continued to learn the game and study really not just
what the assignment and responsibility of the plays were, but
what the concept of the play is designed to do.
(29:30):
And when you really watch his running style, I think
he has excellent vision, but his patience for things to
develop and then take advantage of it with quickness and
acceleration really made him very successful in our scheme.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
I'm looking forward to seeing him. Little tandem of Alvin
Kamara and Devin Neil sounds pretty good, it sure does.
Speaker 4 (29:49):
And to have a great player like that to kind
of mentor him and kind of show him the ropes,
I'm sure it'll help Devin all the way. And I
hope we have a chance to circle back to and
let me know when when you have a chance to
interact with him, what you think of If you feel
as strongly as we do about the person Devin Neil.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
Yeah, I'm looking forward to getting to know him because
I always appreciate a good person in the locker room
makes my job easy.
Speaker 4 (30:15):
Yeah, I bet it does. And you know, people use
the word culture a lot today within teams and organizations
and it is important, but sometimes we feel that, you know,
the word kind of gets over you sometimes. But it
truly helped us turn this program around here at Kansas
with with a solid locker room a culture, and for
us at Kansas, culture's action. It's not just putting a
(30:37):
bunch of words on the wall. It's what you do.
And Devin understands that and he's and he's been at
the forefront of watching something really change dramatically and what
it's done not only for our football program and our
athletic department, but really for our whole university and being
a part of that, I think is something that he
can carry on to the next level and be an
integral part no matter what role he's given.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Yeah, I mean, he's going to be a part of
a new era here with the Saints, starting with the
new coaching staff, you know, so everyone's kind of on
the same page.
Speaker 4 (31:08):
Right And though Devin signed with the previous coaching staff,
it was after signing day that I was that I
took over here as a head coach. So he went
through a coaching change, he went through a first year staff.
He's kind of been through some of those things, though
it'll be different at the professional level again, changing new
opportunities and transitions are not new to him.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Well, thank you so much for the insight. I appreciate it.
I know it's a busy time right now, college football,
the transfer portal and everything.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
It sure is, But no problem. I'm glad we had
a chance to get together and hopefully we can do
this again sometime talking about Devin's progress and success there
as a Saint.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Absolutely, we will definitely circle back.
Speaker 4 (31:48):
I'll fill you in, all right, Thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Thank you. Saints went for UCLA tight end Maliki Metaval
with their second to last pick.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
I think the big thing that he gives you immediately
is a very experienced blocker. And you know, it's kind
of like the offensive line thing where it doesn't sound
like the most exciting thing, but look, most of the time,
the biggest challenge for collegiate tight ends transitioning from the
college game to the pros game is learning protections. And
so he spent several years learning all of those protections
already and then became more of a receiving threat, bringing
(32:18):
it over five hundred receiving yards last year in twenty
twenty four. So maybe you'll get the opportunity if you're
the New Orleans Saints and development further as a passer.
But he could show up already ready to help you
blocking for your run game.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
Great insight and stories from everyone I talk to you
today on the draft class, specifically on the offensive side.
For our next podcast, and I'm sure you can guess
we will focus on the defensive side. Make sure you
tune in wherever you get your podcast, and thanks for listening.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Thanks for listening to the New Orleans Saints Podcast presented
by seat Geek. Join us three times per week on
New Orleans Saints dot com, the Saints mobile app, or
you can download the podcast on itebe. We'll see you
next time right here on the New Orleans Saints Podcast
presented by seat Geek
Welcome in to the New Orleans Saints Podcast, presently by Seatcake.
You'll hear from players, coaches, broadcasters, and writers that cover
the NFL on a daily basis. The New Orleans Saints
Podcast starts right now. Here's your host, Aaron Summers.
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Welcome into the New Orleans Saints Podcast. Aaron Summers here
to break down the NFL draft picks. The draft brought
twenty new players to the Saints, between the draft and
undrafted free agents, starting with an offensive tackle from Texas
Kelvin Banks junior at number nine.
Speaker 3 (00:43):
Oh great, I mean it was awesome, kind of like
like everybody always say a dream come true, just not
knowing where you're gonna go, so being anxious and then
want you to fill your phone vibrating. You answered the
phone and you hear the GM and head coach talking
to you is kind of a soberer moment.
Speaker 4 (00:58):
So it was very exciting for me.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
Today we're going to dive a little deeper on the
offensive players drafted, talk to some analysts and even some
college coaches to find out who we're getting here in
New Orleans. Locked On Saints' host Ross Jackson joined me
on our Saints twenty twenty five Draft recap show and
had this to share about the Saints first round pick.
Speaker 5 (01:18):
Not a lot of people are going to be excited
about the offensive lineman, but you know all the things
that people do get excited about, the big runs, the
breakaway plays, the big passes downfield. Those guys are the
people that make that happen. If they don't hold up
in front of that quarterback, in front of that running back,
then those big plays don't get an opportunity to take place.
So I think that's one of the things that you
get from them, and you get an excellent leader as well.
(01:40):
When it comes to him in the locker room, his
teammate Vernon Broughton spoke a bit about that. We'll talk
about him a little bit later, but I think that
what Calvin Banks gives you with somebody that's going to
be able to contribute most immediately versus a run blocker
has some development to do as a pass blocker, but
I think has every tool set he needs to get there.
Speaker 2 (01:54):
You can watch the full show on the Gulf Coast
Sports and Entertainment Network or at New Orleans Saints dot
Com or our Saints YouTube channel. Get more insight from
Ross on all of our draft picks, the undrafted, free agents,
and what's ahead for the Saints. It was the Saints'
second pick, number forty overall, Louisville quarterback Tyler Shuck that
made the most noise. Maybe because of his age or
(02:16):
previous injuries, or maybe because you just wanted the Saints
to draft someone else. However, there is one former NFL
player now analyst who absolutely loves this pick, and that
is Lewis Ridick. Riddick joined me to share why. Lewis,
thank you so much for joining me on the New
Orleans Saints podcast. It has been a busy weekend. We
(02:37):
finally made it through the draft, which I always am
happy about because I hate all the speculation. I which
want to know what it's going to look like. And
for Saints fans, second round, fortieth pick overall is quarterback
Tyler Shuck out of Louisville. Mixture reviews by the fan base,
but I know it's somebody you've been high on.
Speaker 6 (02:57):
Why, well, this starts going all the way back to
the ball. I got to see Louisville play twice. We
called two of their games for ESPN. Got to see
him play at home against SMU got to see him
play on the road at Clemson, So it starts there.
Jeff and Brian Brom, the head coach and offensive coordinator
(03:17):
quarterback coach at at Louisville, or good friends of mine.
I've known Jeff since the year, since two thousand. We
both played a little fun fact in the XFL together
back in the old Orlando Rage days, back in in
the two thousand seasons. So I've known him a long time.
And Jeff and Brian there are two better quarterback teachers
in college football period. Jeff Brom should be a head
(03:38):
coach in the NFL. He's that damn good. And so
I knew that. When I started watching Louisvill's tape to
prepare for those games, I was.
Speaker 7 (03:47):
Like, who the hell is this Tyler shub kid? And
how is he? How did I not know about him
before this?
Speaker 6 (03:52):
Well, obviously, you know his journey has been a little unconventional,
having transferred twice, had some injuries, and you know, he
hasn't really been able to take off, and he hasn't
been in an offense like this. And so when I
watched the tape, I went down and I asked Jeff,
I said, look, he said, as.
Speaker 7 (04:07):
Good as I think he is. I was like, holy shit,
this guy can play. And he's like, oh, he's damn good.
He's big, he's fast, he is smart, he's mature. The teammates,
the team loves him.
Speaker 6 (04:20):
He can execute whatever discipline you want, whether it's from
under center, whether it's in the pistol, whether it's in
the gun, whether it's zone read, whether it's RPO, whether
it's you know, boots keepers, pushed the ball down the
field on you know, big shots down the field, timing round.
Speaker 7 (04:35):
He can do it all. And I'm going, yeah, that's
what I've been seeing.
Speaker 6 (04:39):
And he goes, yeah, he's just not a household name,
I said, but you just watch, just just watch as
he goes. And in that game, he was lights out.
In the SMU game, they lost the game. I mean,
Louisville's defense really struggled the first three quarters of the season.
And then we saw him again down to Clemson and
they won that game and Clemson had everything to play for,
(05:00):
and he was again lights out. Just watch his game
up in Notre Dame earlier in the season. He had
one of the best He had the best throw of
the year, the throat to Jacory Brooks, like the eighteen
yard touchdown pass back of the end zone where he's
rolling left and basically he doesn't even throw a three.
It's like a side arm throw, almost underhand and gets
smashed in the face. He throws like that all year long.
(05:23):
And so I'm sitting there going, you know, as the
season goes on. If Tyler Shuck had played for Alabama
or Clemson or USC or some other school like that
that was known for, you know, putting out big time quarterbacks,
or was on TV every single week in the primetime game,
there wouldn't be this talks around again.
Speaker 7 (05:44):
As far as his age is concerned. Cares that he's
twenty five?
Speaker 6 (05:48):
Who cares that he came out in the draft with
Trevor Lawrence and Justin Fields.
Speaker 7 (05:52):
Who cares?
Speaker 6 (05:53):
As a matter of fact, at twenty five? Many teams
in the NFL and New Orleans isn't the only one.
I can promise you that, as I've talked to plenty,
isn't the only one who looked at that as a positive.
Speaker 7 (06:05):
He's got a stable home life, he's married.
Speaker 6 (06:06):
He's a guy who you know is gonna do all
the things off the field the right way. You know
that on the field, as far as his football character
is concerned, he is super smart, he is super athletic.
He's a guy who's been through a lot of adversity
already with the freak injuries that he's had, which I
can assure you NFL medical department said that does not
make him put him in some high risk category. The
(06:28):
nature of the injuries that he has suffered, it does
not put him in that. So for people thinking, all
of a sudden, the first time he gets touched he's
just gonna turn the dust, it's kind of like, get
a grip here, He's gonna be just fine. They were
freak injuries for him. And then when you just get
to the on the field exploits, just watch him play.
He can do everything in the pro game that Kellen
(06:51):
Moore is gonna ask him to do. And quite honestly,
Kellen's a perfect coach for him because it's gonna be
like a collaboration of things, a combination of what he
did well at Louisville, some of the stuff maybe that
he did at Texas Tech and.
Speaker 7 (07:02):
The air raid. He can do it all.
Speaker 6 (07:06):
And as long as the offensive line, running game and
the receivers are healthy.
Speaker 7 (07:10):
Tyler Shuck's gonna have a hell of a career. He's
gonna have a hell of career.
Speaker 6 (07:14):
So I think overall, we need to like stop looking
at the things that that comprise who this young man
is in such a negative way. His age doesn't mean
anything at all. Bo Knicks was older also, but they
then people say the same thing about bow Knicks when
he came out of Oregon. Who wants this twice transferred
(07:34):
older guy who was Johnny checked down and mister high
completion percentage at Oregon, ran in and played in an offense.
Speaker 7 (07:40):
It doesn't even really translate the NFL. You know who
wanted him. Sean Payton wanted him.
Speaker 6 (07:44):
Sean Payton had him raided as one of the best
quarterbacks in the draft behind Jade and Daniels.
Speaker 7 (07:48):
How'd that turn out?
Speaker 6 (07:49):
Now, there's a lot of people sitting there going, you know,
with with the racers trying to go, oh, you know
what I had, I had bowenext rated really high? Oh bullshit,
No you didn't. So And I know there's a lot
of quarterback gurus, whisperers whatever you want to call him.
Speaker 7 (08:04):
Who really like Tyler Shuck.
Speaker 6 (08:08):
The draft complex that we kind of like operate in
the media world, the fan world. They kind of like
follow these typical stereo, these stereotypical methods of evaluating players,
and if they don't check these certain boxes, then they think, well,
he's not a franchise quarterback. Just throw him on the
trash heap. NFL teams don't do that, Okay. I know
(08:28):
there's some people. You know, you can you can bash
the NFL for missing on quarterbacks. You can you can
praise the NFL for hitting on quarterbacks. People in the
NFL like this guy, And I can see exactly why
Kellen Moore really likes this guy. I can see exactly
why a lot of other quarterback whisperers and gurus and
who are both in the league and out of the
league really like this guy. I can see why Jeff
(08:49):
Brohm loved this guy. That's why people should just kind
of like chill out, let him get in there, learn
the system, get with Kellen, and then get on the
football field, because a lot of the stuff that he's
been through from an adversity standpoint are all the kind
of things that you don't know how some guys are
going to react to that kind of stuff until they
(09:10):
go through it.
Speaker 7 (09:10):
He's already been there.
Speaker 6 (09:11):
Yeah, and you already know what he's made of and
his skills on the field.
Speaker 7 (09:16):
You can't really question him.
Speaker 6 (09:18):
So yeah, that's about a three minute, you know, soapbox
oration right there. I gave you as to why I
believe in the guy, and I know and I've talked
to him multiple times.
Speaker 7 (09:32):
I love everything about the kid. Everything.
Speaker 6 (09:34):
And if there's somebody who I trust, it's Jeff and
Brian Brown. They can coach it with the very best
of them. And I think Kellen Moore knows what he's
looking for in a quarterback too, So let's give him
the benefit of the doubt before we start just bashing
this guy.
Speaker 7 (09:52):
And you know what, here's the last thing I'll say.
Speaker 6 (09:55):
And you can edit this out if you want, but
I'm sorry, but I have to say it this way.
That little dumbass clip that's trending on Twitter about how
he you know, he missed that throw at the combine.
Learned some context behind that. Tyler had said before that
he was going to try some things at the combine
to try and impress people, as far as throwing the
football with different arm angles and stuff kind of like
to throw. He had the Jacory Brooks against Notre Dame,
(10:16):
but that probably wasn't the best of time to do
that because you're throwing the guys who you don't even know,
and it's not a game circumstance, and that's probably that's
not a good indication, like a good time to do that.
He did it once and then he stopped doing it,
and I remember when it happened. I'll sit in there
watching it live when it happened. I'm going I see
what he's trying to do. He needs to just throw
the football, and when he did, he's the best thrower there.
(10:38):
So when people put that up there and then they
put it on Twitter and say this is what the
Saints drafted, you're full of shit. And what you're doing
is you're trying to create a narrative that's inaccurate. And
if for anyone who buys into that, you're just as
full of shit as a person who put it up there.
Speaker 7 (10:54):
So don't do that. But that's the world we live in,
right But you could not you could not have found
a bigger fan in the guy.
Speaker 6 (11:03):
And I'm rooting like hell for him, and hopefully it
all turns out the way everybody ideally wants it to.
Speaker 2 (11:11):
When he brought up the best throw that he had
this season, I was going to ask you about that
clip from the combine and what you saw there, So
thank you for addressing that. And then with Tyler Shuck,
he might not have been a household name because people
didn't know how to pronounce it. I mean, it's tough, right.
Speaker 7 (11:28):
I had this conversation with I think I with my son.
He's like a dad. I saw your boy Tyler Shuck
went and I was like, he's like, why is his
name spelled like that? It's his name should be Tyler's Show.
I was like, Yeah.
Speaker 6 (11:41):
When I when we first started preparing for for the
Louisville game the first time against SMU, I remember looking
at it and before we went down there, I was like,
this quarterback Tyler Show.
Speaker 7 (11:51):
Never like it's shucked. I was like, it can't be
spelled s a jo. How's it shuck? Yeah, that's another
thing that I think people will have fun with. But
I'm sure people are going to.
Speaker 6 (12:03):
Have some fun with the pronunciation of his name, especially
if he starts if he starts tearing it up down there.
Speaker 2 (12:10):
Yeah, with the system that he played under at Louisville.
You said it was perfect for him coming in here
under a new head coach, and Kellen wore, we don't
know exactly what his system is going to look like.
When you have a new coach, usually they want to
get their guys in here. How much do you think
he is going to build a system around Shuck or
not going to be able to assimilate into whatever it
(12:32):
is that Moore wants to do.
Speaker 6 (12:34):
Yeah, I think it's always the best systems that are
created are collaborative first and foremost. But I think if
you look at if you just break the individual components down,
you know, starting you know, with Kellen, just think of
the quarterbacks that.
Speaker 7 (12:50):
He's coached recently.
Speaker 6 (12:51):
He's coached Dak Prescott, He's coached Justin Herbert, he coach
Jalen Hurts. Those are three very different guys and all
of them played at a super high level underneath him,
and all of them, you know, I'm sure Kellen had
a very collaborative process with all three of them to say, hey, look,
what are the things that make you comfortable. What are
the things that you know that you feel most confident
(13:12):
in executing? This is basically this is These are the
basic fundamentals that I believe in terms of individual quarterback
play and then offensive philosophy. But let's work together to
get this, you know, ironed out, so we can get
you rolling at a high level. And the reason why
I'm sure he takes that approach is because Kellen played
the position and he knows that you just don't come
in and just hammer a quarterback into into a certain
(13:34):
role because that's how you feel they should play it.
It's always best when it's collaborative. It's always best when
there's a nice exchange of ideas. And I think you'll
see a little bit of everything with Tyler because he
can do a little bit of everything. He played in
an air raid, he played in a in a more
conventional pro style offense that emphasized being underneath center and
taking three five seven step drops, boots, keepers, rollouts thrown
(13:57):
from different platforms, operating from the pub. He's done all
that he's done. He's done just about all of it.
And the stuff that he was doing at Louisville is
just high level and that's probably stuff I'm sure when
Kellen was watching the tape, he's probably sitting there going
this is perfect.
Speaker 7 (14:14):
This kid has done everything, and so what you do
is I mean, that gives.
Speaker 6 (14:19):
You a lot of runway to really construct an offense
that ultimately is just going to move the ball and
put points on the board because Tyler can do it all.
Speaker 7 (14:29):
So that's really.
Speaker 6 (14:31):
The last of my worries as far as Kellen trying to,
you know, find that sweet spot with with Tyler and
what he can do.
Speaker 7 (14:38):
That's that's the least of my concern.
Speaker 2 (14:40):
There is the question mark right now the quarterback position
with the injury to Derek Carr. So that is something
that Kellen Moore is going to have to figure out
as well when implementing what his system is going to
look like. But when you bring in somebody that has
the experience that Schuck does, the age even in itself,
he said, the maturity, could he just seamlessly step in
(15:02):
if needed?
Speaker 6 (15:04):
Yeah, I know, you never you never want to, Like
I'm trying to hold myself back as far as not
wanting to get too far ahead. But all the things
that right now people are and I say people in general,
that are pointing to us negatives, once he gets there,
it'll quickly turn to a positive because he is mature.
(15:25):
He is someone who's been through a bunch. He is
someone who's been in multiple systems. He's ahead of the
game compared to you know, typical rookie quarterbacks. We just
saw this play out with bow Nicks. We just saw it.
It's almost a carbon copy. It's a bo didn't have
the injury history that that Tyler had, which again I'm
(15:45):
not concerned with, because the medical people I talked to
who aren't concerned with. So it's all going to help
him and accelerate his his his growth trajectory in a
way that I'm sure will allow him step on to
the field much sooner than maybe most quarterbacks could and
or or should for that matter. That doesn't mean there
(16:07):
are gonna be bumps in the road, because there are.
I mean, the pro game is not at the ACC.
The program is not SMU and and Wake and UH.
Speaker 7 (16:14):
And Clemson in Florida State. It's just not.
Speaker 6 (16:17):
So he's gonna have isn't gonna be perfect, But I
can promise you he isn't gonna be overwhelmed. It isn't
gonna be one of those where if he throws an
interception or he has a he gets stripped sacked of
the ball in the pocket or makes a bad read.
He's gonna all of a sudden go in the tank
and look like you know, someone just stole his wallet,
and all of a sudden he's just lost. It's not
gonna be that. It's not gonna be that. He's gonna
(16:39):
make a hell of a lot more good plays than
bad ones. I'm I'm kind of like, I'm eerily not eerily.
I'm I'm uniquely calm about this one because of the
guy and who he is and who I got to
know and who I got to talk to, and the
kind of trust that I have, and the people who
coach him. Jeff Brohm, the coach at Louisville, should be
(17:01):
in the NFL coaching if you were a GM and
you aren't going to Louisville trying to get him out
of there. And I'm not for all the Louisville fans,
I'm not trying to get Jeff brom you know. But
if you're a GM and you're not an interviewing him,
I don't know what you're doing. I just don't know
what you're doing. The dude knows how to coach it,
and so I think he has prepared. He has prepared
(17:22):
Tyler Shuck for everything that's come in his way. As
far as the challenge of being an NFL.
Speaker 2 (17:26):
Quarterback, when do you step back and look at the
overall draft for the Saints, they did start with that
offensive tackle and Kelvin Banks junior. How much do you
value drafting alignment, whether it's either side, you know, building
from the inside out.
Speaker 7 (17:44):
Kelvin, I'll tell you this.
Speaker 6 (17:46):
I talked to Steve Sarkesian just about two or three
days before the draft, and I know sark Well. I
went down there and spoke to the University of Texas
their football team two years ago. He said that Kelvin
Banks is obviously he's a decades long plus book can tackle.
He said, there's no one that he trusted more on
his football team. If there's anybody who was tailor made
for the pro game to protect the quarterback's blind side
(18:07):
or whatever side you need to protect it, it's that
young man again, a guy who dealt with some difficult
circumstances during his time at Texas, whether it be not
playing totally healthy this year, personal issues with the health
of his mother. Continue to fight through it, continue to
be an absolute bedrock stalwart of their football program. And
(18:28):
again that's before you even get to the field. See,
I'm big on character and makeup, resiliency, forty two, whatever word.
Speaker 7 (18:35):
You want to use. He has that.
Speaker 6 (18:38):
He has it on top of the fact that he has,
you know, cannons for hands and has got like a
grip like Thanos, And he's strong and he's mobile, and he's.
Speaker 7 (18:49):
Smart, and.
Speaker 6 (18:51):
He plays one of the most coveted positions in all
of football. He can play at a high level. Of course,
that's a home run. That's an absolute home run type
of pick for them. And if you're Tyler Shuck, you're
going perfect. Thanks a lot, that'll help.
Speaker 2 (19:05):
Yeah, the Saints drafted two players out of Texas and
two players out of Louisville. Is there anything to that
they just really value those programs or is just kind
of how the cards fell?
Speaker 7 (19:19):
Yeah?
Speaker 6 (19:19):
I think sometimes, you know, the draft just plays out
the way it plays out, And I'm sitting here, I'm
just like, like all these names, I'm sitting here familiar
like looking back over their draft. But look, i mean,
Vernon Broughton is a hell of a interior defensive lineman
and again he's the he's the kind of guy that
from a football character standpoint, position specific skills standpoint, some
(19:43):
teams really do lean on certain programs and kind of
like how they develop their guys. I don't think they
specifically target those guys, but maybe it just kind of
works out that way, and it's a testament to what
Sark is building down there, it really is. And look,
Quincy Riley is someone who I had written about out
for ESPN dot com before the draft. Is one of
the guys who I thought were going to be one
(20:04):
of the best Day two I thought Quincy should have
been a Day two player, one of the best Day
two or Day three values in the draft. So you know,
one hundred meters two hundred meters sprint champion in high school,
a guy who had fifteen plus interceptions in his career.
He can play inside at the slot. I mean, he
can do He can do it all. And Brandon Staley's
(20:27):
gonna absolutely freaking love him because Brandon knows how important
corners who are are that can play outside and play inside.
Like Brandon coached one of the very best when he
was with the Rams with Jalen Ramsey. And I'm not
saying that Quincy Riley is Jaalen Ramsey, but he has
that kind of mentality. And so again when we went
to Louisville, they couldn't say enough good things about Quincy.
(20:47):
He was banged up a lot of the year this
year and had dealt with a foot injury or an
ankle injury I believe it was, but he's super super talented. Yeah,
I think Saints fan's got to give Mickey in his
in his personnel department and that coaching stay have credit.
Speaker 7 (21:02):
They had a heck of a draft.
Speaker 4 (21:04):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (21:05):
I mean, there are a lot of unknowns right now
because you have a whole new coaching staff, really and
the news of Derek Carr's injury, so I think people
need to pump the brakes a little bit and wait
and see what happens, right, Yeah, Yeah.
Speaker 6 (21:18):
You know, it's at this time of year generally, I
think fan bases and people will like tend to lean
on the side of optimism, you know, because you haven't
lost any games, so why why not be optimistic? But
then sometimes that pendulum can swing the other way, and
before people even get on the field, they can start
they start making wholesale like evaluations on players and teams
(21:40):
that can also tend to lean way too negative. There's
a lot of things that are going to happen between
now in September and team building is an ongoing process. Also,
there's a lot of teams that you think are gonna
be good that it's just not going to go their way.
It's just not going to click the way maybe they
envisioned it on paper. And then there's a lot of
teams you're gonna sit there and you're gonna go, oh,
(22:00):
that's an average draft, that's an average free agency.
Speaker 7 (22:03):
I don't know about that coach. Who you're gonna when
the season.
Speaker 6 (22:05):
Comes around, you're gonna be going, damn, how did this
team hit it? Like that, You're dealing with fifty three
dudes who you're trying to make become a team along
with the coaching staff, and there's so many moving parts.
Speaker 7 (22:16):
Like I understand, we all like to make projections. I
do it.
Speaker 6 (22:19):
I mean, we do it for a living. But you
also have to understand that there's a lot of things
that we just can't forecast, and what you really should
do is lean on the side of favor the people
that in favor of the teams that have good people,
high football character, guys. The Saints got a lot of good,
high football character guys on top of being talented, and
(22:40):
I would bet on Kellen Moore. I would bet on
Brandon Staley. I'd feel pretty good about where they're sitting right.
Speaker 2 (22:46):
Now and talking to the players. They've been here already
off season workouts, and they said it feels different. It's
unlike anything that they've done before. As far as the
workouts go. They're working out together, not position groups, so
they are are working on that team building aspect and
things do feel a little different around here. So I
(23:06):
appreciate the time, Lewis awesome, love the insight, and yeah,
good luck with everything going forward, and hopefully we'll see
you again down the line.
Speaker 7 (23:15):
Of course.
Speaker 6 (23:16):
Of course, hopefully I can get down to New Orleans
this year and see Tyler and the group and the
group of play.
Speaker 7 (23:20):
In person there.
Speaker 2 (23:21):
Go come visit anytime.
Speaker 7 (23:23):
Bet thanks a lot, thank you.
Speaker 2 (23:25):
If everything Reddick said comes to fruition, we're going to
be just fine here. The next offensive player to get
drafted by the Saints came in the sixth round, Kansas
running back Devin neil. I was able to catch up
with Kansas head coach Lance Leopold for some background on
the player coach. Thanks for joining me on the New
Orleans Saints podcast. It was an awesome weekend for so
many players that got to hear their name called. And
(23:47):
I'm sure we're special for you to be able to
see some of your players take the next step in
their career. How are you doing well?
Speaker 4 (23:53):
First of all, I'm doing well. It's great to be
with you. Appreciate the opportunity to talk talk about Devin,
and it was special time. And you know, we just
completed our fourth season here in Lawrence, and to see
some of these players that have been with us a
long time grow and develop on and off the field
and then to live their dream to hear their name
called and have the opportunity at the highest level as special.
(24:15):
And I think Saints fans will will really appreciate.
Speaker 2 (24:18):
And like Devin Neil, you think about where Devin was
drafted and then you look at the numbers that he
was able to put up throughout his collegiate career and
you're like, man, was this like the steal of the
draft here for the Saints.
Speaker 4 (24:32):
I think it could be. It definitely could be. And
and as you know, you know the running back positioned
is viewed differently, and I think in the NFL than
it was five ten years ago. And sometimes you know,
and there's a lot and this year it happened to
have a lot of quality backs and it really compared
to the previous year. So you know, he knew he
was in a competitive situation and whatnot. But again, I
(24:56):
you know, talking to people through the process, as people
came through you, people could see him as easy as
you know, maybe being as early as late second day
pick to maybe where he ended up. And again, as
many of our guys understand, it's it's not from this
point on, once your name's called. It's really what you
do at the opportunity anyway to make the most of it.
(25:19):
And again, as we've been able to build this program here,
our players have always kind of been able to excel
in that underdog underdog role.
Speaker 2 (25:28):
With his productivity on the fields. He's obviously in the
record books there in Kansas. But what was it about
him that made him such a good player.
Speaker 4 (25:36):
I just think it's he's such a well grounded, hardworking
young man. He's very humble. I know a lot of
people say it, but when you get a chance to
visit with him, You'll see it. He's a quality person.
He's hard working, he's never satisfied. He comes into building
every day with with with the attitude to get better,
(25:56):
not never entitled, and he wants to be the best
he can for his team, and he kind of approached
it that way. I don't have a ton of stories
about Devon. When I'm asked about what I really remember,
it's just his steadiness and humbleness. But I do remember
his true freshman season that he was really living in
Jonathan Wallace, our running back coach's office, in between meetings
(26:19):
of fall camp, asking more questions, trying to understand plays
and concepts and protections to be the best he could be.
And he was the starter by week two of his
true freshman year. And those are the things that I
probably will remember about him. I know he'll take that
same approach of understanding of having to learn and embrace
(26:40):
a new offense and scheme at the highest level, and
I'm sure he'll do everything he can to make that
team successful.
Speaker 2 (26:47):
When I emailed Andy to ask if I could get
you or a coach on to talk about Devin, he
sent back glowing regards for for who Devin was as
a person and how much they enjoyed working with him
the whole time that he was there. What is it
about Devin that you guys love so much?
Speaker 4 (27:05):
Well, you know, you know, being right from here from Lawrence, Kansas,
sometimes you wonder what what what makes guys tick? And
you know, for he had many opportunities. This program was
was not on, was was not very successful. He bet
on his home hometown team to to come in and
make a difference, and he was determined to do so.
And he did that. And and again as uh, he
(27:28):
and our our quarterback Jalen Daniels, two of our more
marquee players, our best players on the team, were also
some of our best people in our program. And again,
he's a guy who will get involved in the community,
give back to his community. He does. He doesn't forget
where he comes from. And it's just that that blue
collar mentality that that kind of balances that he gives
(27:51):
back and does the things they want. But he's also
hungry enough to be determined, and it's that other balance
that makes him so spa And we'll miss him here,
that's for sure.
Speaker 2 (28:02):
Since he is from Kansas, he was the number one
recruit coming out of high school there and chose to
stay there. How's he going to fit in here in
New Orleans and Louisiana it's a little different.
Speaker 4 (28:12):
Yeah, I'm sure he'll he'll adapt. And you know Kansas
has a little humidity too, so I'm sure he'll be
able to do that. But again, the presence about him
and the way he goes about himself, he's such a
likable guy that he can interject himself and fit into
a lot of different groups and again fit into a
(28:35):
new culture and new way of life. And like I said,
I think, you know, given the opportunity of the fan
base there will appreciate what Devin Neil's all about.
Speaker 2 (28:44):
How did you see him grow from when he stepped
on campus there?
Speaker 4 (28:47):
Well, you know, probably again I keep saying the word humbleness.
That a guy. Then when you really keep talking to
him about working on deficiencies and for him, like I thought,
he had an excellent year this year out of the backfield.
Probably we didn't use him a ton in the past,
but he worked on his receiving skills, became a better
route runner, was more effective in the past game. He
(29:09):
continues to work on past protection understands that's an area
that he needs to improve on, but he doesn't shy
away from it. He doesn't shy away from the challenge
of getting better in the areas that needs help. He
continued to learn the game and study really not just
what the assignment and responsibility of the plays were, but
what the concept of the play is designed to do.
(29:30):
And when you really watch his running style, I think
he has excellent vision, but his patience for things to
develop and then take advantage of it with quickness and
acceleration really made him very successful in our scheme.
Speaker 2 (29:43):
I'm looking forward to seeing him. Little tandem of Alvin
Kamara and Devin Neil sounds pretty good, it sure does.
Speaker 4 (29:49):
And to have a great player like that to kind
of mentor him and kind of show him the ropes,
I'm sure it'll help Devin all the way. And I
hope we have a chance to circle back to and
let me know when when you have a chance to
interact with him, what you think of If you feel
as strongly as we do about the person Devin Neil.
Speaker 2 (30:07):
Yeah, I'm looking forward to getting to know him because
I always appreciate a good person in the locker room
makes my job easy.
Speaker 4 (30:15):
Yeah, I bet it does. And you know, people use
the word culture a lot today within teams and organizations
and it is important, but sometimes we feel that, you know,
the word kind of gets over you sometimes. But it
truly helped us turn this program around here at Kansas
with with a solid locker room a culture, and for
us at Kansas, culture's action. It's not just putting a
(30:37):
bunch of words on the wall. It's what you do.
And Devin understands that and he's and he's been at
the forefront of watching something really change dramatically and what
it's done not only for our football program and our
athletic department, but really for our whole university and being
a part of that, I think is something that he
can carry on to the next level and be an
integral part no matter what role he's given.
Speaker 2 (30:59):
Yeah, I mean, he's going to be a part of
a new era here with the Saints, starting with the
new coaching staff, you know, so everyone's kind of on
the same page.
Speaker 4 (31:08):
Right And though Devin signed with the previous coaching staff,
it was after signing day that I was that I
took over here as a head coach. So he went
through a coaching change, he went through a first year staff.
He's kind of been through some of those things, though
it'll be different at the professional level again, changing new
opportunities and transitions are not new to him.
Speaker 2 (31:29):
Well, thank you so much for the insight. I appreciate it.
I know it's a busy time right now, college football,
the transfer portal and everything.
Speaker 4 (31:37):
It sure is, But no problem. I'm glad we had
a chance to get together and hopefully we can do
this again sometime talking about Devin's progress and success there
as a Saint.
Speaker 2 (31:46):
Absolutely, we will definitely circle back.
Speaker 4 (31:48):
I'll fill you in, all right, Thank you very much.
Speaker 2 (31:51):
Thank you. Saints went for UCLA tight end Maliki Metaval
with their second to last pick.
Speaker 5 (31:56):
I think the big thing that he gives you immediately
is a very experienced blocker. And you know, it's kind
of like the offensive line thing where it doesn't sound
like the most exciting thing, but look, most of the time,
the biggest challenge for collegiate tight ends transitioning from the
college game to the pros game is learning protections. And
so he spent several years learning all of those protections
already and then became more of a receiving threat, bringing
(32:18):
it over five hundred receiving yards last year in twenty
twenty four. So maybe you'll get the opportunity if you're
the New Orleans Saints and development further as a passer.
But he could show up already ready to help you
blocking for your run game.
Speaker 2 (32:29):
Great insight and stories from everyone I talk to you
today on the draft class, specifically on the offensive side.
For our next podcast, and I'm sure you can guess
we will focus on the defensive side. Make sure you
tune in wherever you get your podcast, and thanks for listening.
Speaker 1 (32:47):
Thanks for listening to the New Orleans Saints Podcast presented
by seat Geek. Join us three times per week on
New Orleans Saints dot com, the Saints mobile app, or
you can download the podcast on itebe. We'll see you
next time right here on the New Orleans Saints Podcast
presented by seat Geek
Popular Podcasts
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.
The Joe Rogan Experience
The official podcast of comedian Joe Rogan.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.