May 14, 2026 • 36 mins
Bucky Brooks and Lance Zierlein begin the first of a two-part series on NFL teams positioned to return to playoff contention for the 2026 NFL Season, starting with the NFC. Considering offseason acquisitions, draft picks and other factors, the MTS duo makes the case for teams including the Dallas Cowboys, Detroit Lions, New York Giants, Washington Commanders, Tampa Bay Buccaneers and more!
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Welcome to Move the Six.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I am Bucky Brooks and once again my man LZ
Lance Caroline is joining me on the Move to Six podcast.
And today, Lance, I gotta tell you, man, I think
one of the things that we do, we got to
said schedule releases on the horizon. But one of the
things teams love to do is they look at a
team that had a tremendous amount of success and they say, hey,
(00:24):
we can do this, we can be next. So last
year in the Super Bowl, we saw the New England
Patriots kind of come from nowhere to be a team
that was in the Super Bowl. And we also saw
a team on the outside of the Seattle Seahawks make
their way to not only go to the Super Bowl,
but to win the Super Bowl. So what I want
to do today is we're going to break up the
two conferences, the NFC and the AFC, And today we're
going to look at the NFC, which teams there were
(00:47):
out of the playoffs could be in the mix to
make a deep postseason run this season. Good with that,
You're good with that, NFC, I'm good with you. Okay,
all right, let's start because I think both of us
have been kind of on this team.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
How about the New York Giants?
Speaker 2 (01:03):
Why are you bullish on the Giants making their way
back into the tournament?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
You know so, I think they First of all, it's
gonna be a very competitive conference, very competitive. I think
Washington will be a factor. I think the Giants, the Cowboys, Eagles.
I think it's much more competitive than it was last year.
I'll give you a couple of reasons. Number one, it
starts with John Harball. John Harball understands what it takes
to win at a high level. He did it for
a long time. And I think bringing over players like
(01:29):
you know, Patrick Ricard, Isaiah Likely who know the way
that he likes. Especially for Card, you know, he's kind
of a very unique piece that fit in very nicely
over there with Harball and the Ravens for all those years.
I believe that he's going to get the hardball way
locked in over there. And I don't think the rosters
(01:50):
all that bad. The roster for me, you know, I
like the move of Reese Manoah Colton hood in terms
of the draft. But then I gotta be honest with you,
I wasn't that high on Jackson Dark and me personally
In watching him last year, I thought he not only
did he perform better than I expected, but I saw
(02:12):
a player who had a confidence level and a level poise.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
That I believe is very real.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Like there's nothing that he's trying to put on a
face or put on a show. He's got all that
swag that we saw in college, and then at the
combine he had that remember that chain he was showing
out on the field at the Combine. But he got
in the league and he stayed the same guy. And
it was funny to watch him vibe with Cam Skataboo
because those guys really had their own little thing going together.
(02:41):
New York is tough for a lot of quarterbacks. Not
everyone is made for New York. You got to have
a special kind of a confidence and I actually think
he has that. And now you plug in getting Malik
Neighbors back, you plug in John Harbaugh into the mix,
you got some you know, Tremaine Edmonds, I think is
a pretty good player that's going to.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
Help little bit.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
I just think that they could be an interesting team
to keep an eye on, one that could knock on
the door of the playoffs this year. That's one to
keep an eye on for me because number one hardball,
but number two I think Jackson Dart is maybe a
little better quarterback than I gave him credit for. Maybe
some others gave him credit.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Yeah, I would say the common denominator between you look
at the giants plight and maybe the one the play
that we saw of the New England Patriots. Second year
quarterback takes a major jump. New coaching staff, new head coach,
who knows exactly what he's doing, he's had success. That
confidence kind of resonates throughout the building. I feel that
right now with the New York Giants, John Harbought, eighteen
(03:39):
year coaching veteran, has been to a Super Bowl, He's
won a Super Bowl, has consistently had winners. I looked
up to stat he has eleven teams that he's had
with at least ten wins. So you know his blueprint,
his formula for winning games works and that'll be easy
for the teams to buy in. And then you talked
about the roster construction and how the roster certainly wasn't
(03:59):
that far off defensively, Man, they should be a team
that plays at the top five level, top ten if
they're not necessarily playing to their potential. That linebacker corps
with five first rounders. I mean, just think about that.
You have five first rounders.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
In that group.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
Arville Rees, Trane Evans was the first round pick when
he came out, Brian Burns came on, Thibodeau, Abdul Carter.
Like you talk about blue chip talent, just in that group,
that gives you a chance. And look, it has been
said for a long time that it takes about eight
to twelve blue chip players to compete at the highest level,
to be at a championship level. Well man, the Giants
(04:35):
are already there, just with the linebacker corps and then
some of the other guys that they have in the hopper.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
And then the early declaration that Francis Maloi Noah is
gonna be a right guard. To me, that speaks to
who John Harbot is And look, hey man, this ain't
gonna be a competition. We're not gonna play this game.
He's gonna be a right guard. This is how we're going.
I love that because I think it gives Malonoa a
chance to grow in that role, and it takes away
(05:01):
all that uncertainty, the funny business that sometimes can cloud
young player's mind.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
I made a point this offseason on some podcasts, I
think even on the Draft Show when when we and
we either as path to the draft or maybe when
we were analyzing each draft pick, where I'm just waiting
for teams to say, you know what, we believe this
tackle can be a Pro Bowl guard.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
We think he'll be a better guard.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Than tackle, even though we understand tackle is typically more valuable,
not typically it's always more valuable than a guard. I
was just waiting for teams to for a team or
more than one team to start leaning into a player
who has a chance to be a special guard and
maybe has some weakness as a tackle. We've actually seen
it with two teams. We saw it with Caden Proctor
(05:47):
in Miami. At least for now he's going to be
playing guard, and then.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
That's they're not on our list. I know, not on my.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
List of teams that I'm acected in the playoffs, but
I wanted to mention that because I think Francis Manoah
to me is a just an easy plug and play
fit at guard, and I think he's going to right
off the bad help that running game, which is you
know which is also goes hand in hand with the
young quarterback. You don't want to even when a young
quarterback looks good in year one, you don't want them
to step in a year two feeling like they've got
(06:15):
to take every take the world on their shoulders. You know,
we saw Herbert kind of have to do that and
with the Chargers, and that doesn't usually work out.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
C J.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Stroud tried to do it with the Texans, didn't work out.
It's hard for young quarterbacks in year two without that
running game because defenses go to school on young quarterbacks
and so they're going to take some things away from
you that maybe they didn't in your rookie season, and
so having a running game can really help counter that. So,
you know, getting Cam scauta go back is going to
(06:44):
be important. Having elite neighbors there as as a wide
receiver one is important. You know, building those trenches is
important too, and we know that hardball with the Ravens
that was a very important part of Ravens ball is
getting those trenches built.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
I mean, look, you talk about being the biggest and
bad as bullies on the block. The New York Giants
certainly look like that. I've said this time and time again.
Jered Reyes told me what George Young, longtime gentlemenagers for
the Giants, talked about, like when you're the Giants.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
We have to have Giants. Look, we have to play
to our name.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
We got to play to our moniker And they certainly
are a big physical team that they're putting together, and
I just love how the puzzle pieces fit.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Moreover, I love that.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
John Harbaugh has a little chip on his shoulder after
being i would say dismissed in Baltimore. I think that
comes out and that makes him laser focused on making
sure that the Giants play the right way and with
the personnel that they have until on defense, they certainly
should be able to get off to a fast start
and reappear as they playoff contender by seasons end.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Let's go to.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Minnesota because koc Kevin O'Connell gets an opportunity to coach.
I'm gonna say this, and I look, I'm kind of
being funny, but I'm being real because there's some people
that feel like this. Kevin O'Connell gets to coach the
greatest high school player to ever put on the pass
in Texas high school football, history.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
He was when he coaches Kyler Murray.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
That is real, that's legit, and he's gonna have an
opportunity to take the Vikings to the next level.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Kyler Murray joining with a great coach. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
RG three was a pretty good one too, the great Rodney.
Rodney Thomas, who has passed away, was a great not quarterback,
but he was a great running back, said Benson. We've
had some pretty good ones. Kyler Thomas was I mean,
Kyler Murray was great. You know, he's an interesting study.
Didn't do anything in Texas. A and M transferred Oklahoma,
and we know Oklahoma was the reclamation spot or the
(08:34):
building spot for Jalen Hurts and Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray,
who all came from different schools. We know Kyler's background,
We know the history of Kyler, what he can do,
what he hasn't been able to do, missing some games.
There's questions about how much is he love it, is
he willing to put the work in. We know all
everything that goes with Kyler Murray. What we also know
(08:55):
is that Kyler Murray right now understands that position and
it's going to be better at that position in jaj
J McCarty. You and I talked about it last week.
Let's be real about it.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
JJ.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
For as much potential as he may have, Kyler already
knows how to get there. He's already there. And so
you have a team with a very good wide receiver,
one of the best in the league, and justin Jefferson
and actually you know a couple of really good wide
receivers in that in that building, and you have a
(09:25):
good quarterback coaching head coach as well.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
We know that.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
I mean, that's that's the reputation for KOC. What you
have here is a chance to get a quarterback who's
more ready, you know, much more ready to get the
machine started up and get it rolling downhill with the
passing game more so than we've seen with JJ McCarthy.
They need help on defensive line. They add a Caleb
Banks and Dom Orange. These two rookies, Bucky are probably
(09:51):
going to step into a starting role right off the bat.
That's a lot to ask of rookies. But I love
the defensive coordinator obviously, in Brian Flores really understands how
to put pressure on defenses, and he's you know, I
just think he's special in terms of stressing offensive lines,
it can't be stressed enough. He understands how to make
(10:13):
teams uncomfortable with just through his play calling and just
through how he aligns his personnel, and then you know,
you look, they've got some holes on defense. There's some
question marks on defense, for sure. But I think anytime
you get a quarterback of Kyler Murray's ability, not that
it's not that he's always executed, not that he's always
(10:35):
been healthy, but his ability that really helps to unleash
Jordan Addison and Justin Jefferson. And Justin Jefferson really made
no bones about the fact that he felt like the
quarterback position needed to be better in Minnesota, and I
think it will be better with Kyler Murray. And when
you look at the roster they have, when you look
at the defensive concepts the Flores can dial up, I
(10:58):
think you got to have him in the mix for
someone who's going to make some noise in that division,
another very very competitive division. Man super competitive division.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Yeah, super competitor.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
And I think the thing about those competitive divisions, people
talk about it iron shoppers, iron and how the first
thing that you have to do before you can build
a team that can win a Super Bowl. You've got
to build your team to beat your division. You play
those teams six times. You got to make sure that
your team is able to lock and load and take
care of the competition.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
And the vikings certainly are that.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
You talked about the two young guys that they brought in,
Keyleer Banks and Big Citrus Dominic Orange.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
What I love about Kayler Banks.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
If Kayler Banks is healthy, there's no doubt in my mind,
this guy's a All Pro caliber player. The issue is
the health, and normally when you have three hundred pound
men to have foot problems, it tends to remain a problem.
We'll see if he can kind of be the outlier
and beat that, because if he can defensively, man, they
have exactly what they need. Brian Floyd is a is
(11:55):
a mad scientist concocting all kinds of different five and
six man pressures to come out the quarterback, and he
has the personnel to be able to do that. I
will say, they got to figure out maybe that one hole,
like do they need a safety? Do they need to
kind of ask Harrison's supposed to kind of come back
and be the emeritus that can keep everything together because defensively, man,
(12:16):
they're pretty solid and salty all over, and then.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Offenusly, that's where the fun is going to happen.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Kevin O'Connell, look, man, I think he probably ate a
nice little slice of humble pie. Considering how Sam Donald
continued to play great when he went to Seattle. They
had their struggles in Minnesota with the young quarterback and
the other quarterbacks that came. I think it's actually a
good thing for Kevin o'c Kevin O'Connell now will be
(12:44):
locked in and focused. And here's what I know, man,
the quarterback position is loaded with ego, just like being
a top offensive play caller has some ego to it.
And not from a bad standpoint, but from a selfish standpoint, man,
you want to be regarded as the best. I think
Koc has done some work in the offseason to make
(13:05):
sure he's able to put this offense back on the
map and have people talk about him and his play designs.
And we'll say reclamation project that caller Murray is and
will be. If those two things happened, then in Minnesota,
Vikings are certainly Pennson Dan to be deep in the
tournament because Kevin O'Connell and Kyler Murray. If they worked
together successfully, this Minnesota Vikings ten is gonna win ten
(13:27):
eleven twelve games.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Yeah, another team moving on to the Washington Commanders. Well,
this is one for me, Bucky that I look at
this as Jaden Daniels. I'm fully expecting Jayden Daniels to
get back on track.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
Last year was a disaster. Forum.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
We know what happened, We know the injuries.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
He just couldn't get it going.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
He maybe had a little humble pie too, since we're
talking about, you know, things came really easy for the
offensive rookie of the year his rookie season. They came
very easily for him. And there is something about being
humbled that really can reignite a player to find, you know,
what he had in the past. Now that pass is
obviously just one year past. But Terry McLaurin is a
(14:16):
top notch wide receiver. I thought they were going to
draft another wide receiver. I thought that was definitely on
the board. We didn't see them. We didn't see them,
you know, go in that direction. Other than Antonio Williams. Now,
I say Antonio Williams, he's a third round pick. The
reason I like him a lot is kind of a
gadget guy. He can throw it if you want him
(14:37):
to throw it a little bit. He's four for four
with two touchdowns as a passion, so I mean, you know,
pretty efficient with the touchdown throws. But he is very
good run after catch. He is good with jet sweeps
if you want to use him that way. If you're
third and three and you throw him a little hitch
and you want him to just go get a little
wiggle and break a tackle and get forward for a
(14:59):
first down, he can do some of that for you
as well.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
I like what he adds to.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
The offense because to me, he's one of those he's
kind of a hybrid player. It's not really hybrid necessarily
in terms of Deebo Samuel, but what he is is
a player who can win in a few different ways
for you. He's not necessarily necessarily the master of any
one trade, but he is the jack of all trades,
and so he has some of that available to him.
(15:25):
But this team, in my opinion, is about two things.
It's about getting your quarterback healthy and getting him right again,
and then it's to see whether or not they were
able to tighten up the defense with all the changes
they have. I'm looking at the roster right now and
I am seeing eleven new players on the two d
(15:46):
Eleven new players. Two of them came from the draft,
Sonny Styles and Josh Joseph's. Josephs was a fifth rounder.
Sonny Styles, of course, was a first round or the
seventh pick of the draft. But the rest of them,
Dafe Oway, Leo Chanal, You've got caylebon Chase on. These
are guys with starting experienced. Nick Cross came over from Indianapolis.
(16:09):
We'll see if he's an upgrade defensively. Meek Robertson got
a lot of dog in him, just a real tough
guy mentality and highly competitive. So we'll see if just
a new group of players can be better than what
they had defensively last year. It's got to be better
than what they had last year. But how quickly can
you get this many new starters potentially, as I said,
(16:30):
seven new starters potentially on the defensive side of the ball.
Is that going to be a plus or is that
going to take time for them to This is an
offensive line play the continuity things, you know, that's totally
different on defense than if you're dealing with an offensive line.
But are these the guys that can make enough of
a difference defensively.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
I think they've got it.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Looking up and down this roster, I think they're going
to make the defense better. But more importantly, I think
getting Jalen Jayden Daniels back and getting him back to form,
which I believe will happen, that is going to be,
more than anything else, the thing that is going to
give the Washington Commanders the best chance to get into
the playoffs. And I think they are a team you
got to keep an eye on despite only winning five
(17:12):
games last year.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
You know, it's funny you talked about Antonio Williams.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
I've had wide receiver coaches around the league tell me
that he was their favorite wide out at that point
of the draft because of what he could do in
the slot.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
City's the real deal. Feel like he was slept on
in Washington.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
He had have an opportunity to be a major factor
given how Jayden Daniels likes to play. You talked about
the Commander's defense and what they needed man Sunny Styles
being there for them so he can replace basically Bobby Wagner.
You love that all the new pieces that they have
to me it's going to be really simple for the Commanders.
Dan Quinn is going to make sure that this team
is simple enough on defense that they can allow their
(17:51):
athleticism and play making ability to just kind of naturally
show look forward to be a simple simon defense, not
a lot of disguise and trickery. But hey, we're going
to play, ask through and play more physical than you
and at the end of the day, we're gonna whoop
you because we have better people and their personnel may
give them a shot.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Also knowing that they have the magician.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
The quarterback that can always make it right behind them
and Jayden Daniels. Yeah, the Commanders are a team that
you want to keep. You're out and remember this, David Baldy,
David Blob, the young new offensive coordinator who looks just
fresh out the league as a backup player he takes over.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
It'd be interesting to see his take.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
And his spend on this offense as they move into
a new era with Jayden, Dandy.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Andrew and you know, a new defensive coordinator.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
But we know, we know how D'Onta Jones. But we
know obviously that's gonna be Quinn's defense. But there's a
lot of turnover on that staff, you know, maybe feeling
the heat. Obviously, obviously dan Quinn was not happy with
what he saw on the at least on the field,
(18:58):
we know, and he felt like changes need.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
To be made.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
So you know, he brought in a new defensive coordinator
to work underneath him or work with him in conjunction
with him. We know about all the players they brought in.
I just mentioned all the defensive talent, eleven different players
on the too deep and now you've got a new
play caller who's a former quarterback, so you hope that
he can really click with Jaden Daniels. A lot of.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Changes over there in Washington.
Speaker 3 (19:21):
We'll see if bringing back the old Jaden Daniels, who's
still very young, and all of the changes he's made
to the staff and to the and to the personnel,
we'll see if that has an instantly positive effect. I
know people don't think it happens. There's there's there's.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
An inclination to believe that. Well, it takes takes a while.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
When you get behind the eight ball, it takes a while.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
Not really.
Speaker 3 (19:42):
The NFL's filled with worse the first stories. Like every
other year, every year there's a worst of first. We
had one in the Super Bowl. Yeah, the Patriots, so worse.
The first happens more than you think.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
It happens more you think.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
Now it's time for how to not brought to you
with Sabi hot Cloud story.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
And then we're going to talk about America's team. You're
there in Texas. They've always told me, don't mess with Texas.
We got to talk about these Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
And I know it's on the different part of the state,
and I know in Agetown, y'all don't really rock with
the Star, but I gotta tell you, man, I am
impressed with what the Cowboys have done over the course
of their off season to bring it back. We talk
about defensively, Caleb Downs being drafted, Malachaia Lawrence giving them
some energy off the edge. They got some veterans that
have come on board to mix in with what they
(20:30):
currently had at the end of the year with Quinn
Williams and those guys. I think about for Shara Gary
and what they're able to do with Kenny Clark.
Speaker 1 (20:37):
I'm filling the Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
I feel like this is their time to kind of
show and prove the people that they're back and back
in a major way.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
I know, I'm from Houston and I take some You know,
we don't really rock with Dallas and vice versa. That's
just how it is, so I'm glad.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
You know that.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
However, I'm also objective when it comes to my football analysis,
and I tend to agree with you. I like what
Dallas has done up to this point.
Speaker 1 (21:05):
Getting look.
Speaker 3 (21:08):
Defensively, Kobe Durant is the type of competitive you know,
on the ball, type of cornerback that you want out there.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
He's a guy.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
He's gonna make some mistakes. He's not the biggest player,
but he also would go out there and try to
make plays on the football. You've added Jalen Thompson, I
think will be a benefit. You want to get Drown
Bland back to playing the type of football he was
a couple of years ago. Rashaan Gary, He's never gonna
be He's never hit double digits and sacks, not one
year while he's been in the league. But he's been
(21:37):
consistent in terms of the way he plays the game
and how physical he is. So having him on the
field along with Quinn Williams up there on the front
and Kenny Clark. No, they added Kenny Clark a few
years back in the in the trade. They've got Quinn
Williams via trade. They've added Rashaan Gary. These are some
professional some professional defensive lineman. These guys know how to
(22:00):
play and they do the same thing every year, and
that should not be you know, if your front is
sound and stable and solid, that should not be diminished
because that's a really important building block for a defense.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
You've added.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Obviously, the biggest addition to me is Caleb Downs because
I think he's going to start getting I think that
defense is going to start getting hyped with him.
Speaker 1 (22:20):
Now.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Offensively, I'm not worried about the Cowboys. I think they're
in a really good place. O line, they got pass
catching tight end and Jake Ferguson. They've got two really
good wide receivers. I think the offensive line is is solid.
Devontae Williams showed that he was ready to roll. The question,
Bucky was can they get the defense where it needs
to be? And honestly, like you talked about free agent
(22:42):
moves in the draft, can you just can you get
the Dallas Cowboy defense to level, to rise to the
level of average to maybe slightly above average, because if
you can, you've got an explosive offense that can carry
you potentially long ways.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
You absolutely can.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
And I'm thinking Brian Schotenheimer certainly learned a lot from
his dad. His dad won two hundred regular season games
in the National Football League. He has a winning pedigree,
he has a winning formula, and I think that winning
formula is going to show up big time in Big
d I want.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
To I want to ask you one more.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
I want to follow up with one more. Christian Parker,
new defensive coordinator.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
Oh, I love it.
Speaker 3 (23:20):
I think he's an interesting I want to I want
to just hop to kind of a sub set. This
is what you deal with when you have an add
person on a podcast. I'm going to bounce and I
got some caffeine in my system. But Christian Parker, this
is how it happens in the NFL. I think this
is an awesome story. Started at Virginia State as a
dB coach, then went to Norfolk State, so he's at HBC.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
Who's there.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
Then was a defensive analyst in seventeen at Notre Dame
defensive analyst. The Texas A and M and eighteen. Then
he's quality control, right, so this is Bucky. This is
like up, this is hitting the little pegs on the ladder.
It's a slow climb. Two years is a defensive quality
control coach at Green Bay Learning, getting the knowledge that
(24:04):
doesn't pay much if you know anything about QC jobs.
But then he gets three years as a dB coach
in Denver and Pat Danna said he was. He was
very instrumental in some of the work he did with Pat.
Pat's maybe the best corner in the league. Then he
was with the Eagles for two years as a passing
game coordinator and dB coach. Now here he is his
first year as a defensive coordinator and he's doing it
(24:27):
with the Dallas Cowboys. Just kind of cool to see.
I'm a coach, I'm a coach's son. You know, the
same background, and you coach right now. Watching a guy
come up the ranks, and then you always see a
guy will get hot in this business. It can happen
in college and go to the pros. It can happen
in college and go from you know, a coordinator to
(24:47):
a head coaching job. But there's certain guys in the
league It happens every year, every couple of years, where
somebody gets hot and they start to shoot up that ladder.
So when you put in your work and you do
a good job, things like this happen. And for Christian,
I think that's really cool watching him climb that ladder,
catch fire, get elevated to this job as DC. He's
only out as he buck. He's only thirty four years old,
(25:10):
So really gonna be fun watching a thirty four year
old defensive coordinator seeing how he gels with the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 1 (25:17):
Yeah. No, So here's the thing about Christian Parker. Everyone
wants what.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Vic Fangio has in terms of that too deep shell,
keep everything in front, play with smaller guys in the
box from the second level as opposed to kind of
really exposing yourself with single high coverage. And when you
think about that, and then you think about player development.
So he's gonna have the schemes and attactice giving his
experience with Fangio. Then you think about what he was
(25:44):
able to do with Passer ten. You think about the
young corners in Philadelphia that played well right away, Cooper
dejen Quinnan Mitchell, those guys showed up showed out immediately.
He understands how to develop that in the back end. Well,
now you've already giving him a veteran front that has
some guys that can show them more responsibilities while he
(26:05):
really is working with Caleb Downs and those young guys
on the perimeter. To me as a defensive back taking
over the defense, he's gonna think from back to front. Hey,
let's make sure we don't give up the explosives. Then
let's figure out how it has to fit and play upfront.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
Could be the best of both worlds.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
For the Dallas Cowboys as they look to make a
move in the postseason. That was this week's how to
Not segment, brought to you by Wassabi Hot Clouds Storage,
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for free at wassabi dot com. Got a few more
they want to get to Ay, I know you hot
on this team because you got excited when Ruben Bain
(26:43):
was drafted to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tell me, tell me,
tell me Lance, why you think the Bucks are back
this season.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Well, I think Bain is gonna be defensive rookie of
the Year. I haven't locked in officially, but I'm leaning
heavily to Ruben Bain. He's just a grown man, you know.
I made a comment I saw him. They had a
video Tampa. I don't know if you saw it, but
they were in camp.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
You know.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
I had the path had not even the pads on,
just had the jerseys on, had the helmets on, and
he exploded into the sled and lifted it and threw it.
And I was just making a point, you know. And
there's some people saying, don't get excited. Why are you
getting excited about a drills. It's not about the drill.
It's about a reminder that some guys are built for
the NFL. There are some guys that are built for
(27:29):
the NFL, and typically powerful, violent, aggressive players succeed in
the NFL, especially on the defensive line. I've seen it.
I saw it with Marcus Golden, who I thought was
going to be kind of an average player, you up
being an above average player. He ended up and he
took it. I say that my dad was coaching at
Arizona at the time. He went to my dad and said, hey,
(27:51):
is your son Lancer Line? He said, yeah, he goes.
His scouting report was terrible on me, like He's one
of one of many who have beef with me, lifelong
beef because they didn't like the fact that I said
they had weaknesses. But Max Crosby's another. But I'm glad
to be wrong on players. But one thing I learned
over the years, Bucky took me just two or three
(28:12):
years to figure out tough, violent, physical, and strong that
is more likely it's less likely to bust than an
athletic finesse player.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
And I think Ruben Bain.
Speaker 3 (28:28):
Is going to get schooled up and improve some of
the methodology. His methodology in terms of rushing, I know
he's a good run defender. I'm less worried about the
short arms with him than I would be about some
other players. And I've explained why in the past. I'm
not going to get into it here because I do
believe arm link is very important in the NFL. I
just think he's a bit of an outlier with that
because of how he plays and provided he aligns tight
(28:51):
to the line. But Bain in Todd Bowles defense, I
think is going to be really good. I like the
addition of Kenneth Gainwell, I think is a small art addition,
you know, to add him Josiah Trotter I think can
step in and be an early starter. Big shoes to fill.
Obviously when you talk about David, but Levante David, but
(29:13):
but just Josiah Trotter has has the ability, I think
to become the next man up. It's not gonna happen
right away, but I like the addition. And look, it's
not the hardest division. That division's up for grabs until
Carolina proves that they can keep on building, until the
Falcons prove that they can play up to their their
level of talent. Tyler Shuck has to prove that he
(29:35):
didn't have the second year blues. You know every second
year player. You have to watch for second year quarterbacks
in terms of that. So you lose Levante David, that's
gonna hurt. You don't have an answer for Mike Evans.
I like the addition of Ted Hurst, but let's be real,
he's not ready to take over. However, they already have Buka,
they have Chris Godwin, so it's not like they're devoid
of talent. You just need Baker, I think, to play
(29:57):
more consistently, and you do need guys like Kiante Scott,
the fourth rounder from Miami, who I think is perfect
for Todd Bowles defense, Rubin Bain and Josiah Trotter. I
think those three rookies could have a big impact on
the defense for the Bucks, to go along with what
you hope is Baker getting his mojo back because it
(30:18):
kind of went away the second half of the season.
But you know, it's a division where it's up for grabs.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
It is up for grabs, and one thing we know
about the Buccaneers is they've been able to win a
division for the last five years. They've been able to
kind of do it in a way that I would say, look, man,
it's definitely more forced than finesse. And the thing that
strikes me about their draft and the people they brought
over when you talk about their first handful of picks
and Ruben Bain's side, Trotter, Kiante Scott coming over. This
(30:49):
was definitely an attitude draft, a draft that will get
them back to the identity that has served them well.
They are a physical team and they're at their best
when they're violent. Each of those players we talked about
on the defense side of the ball are violent. They
also are high i Q players that can play in
that complex zone blitz pressure scheme that Todd Bowles prefers.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
To me, this is about making sure that they're to imposed.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
It will on opponents not only from a mental schematic standpoint,
but physically in a.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
Very primitive way.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
We are going to whip you for sixty minutes and
we can be the last one standing. This team kind
of reflects and embodies what my man Todd Bowles is
all about, particularly because he's a Jersey guy.
Speaker 1 (31:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
What about I talked about earlier, really competitive division in
the NFC North. Can the Lions get back there?
Speaker 1 (31:44):
Bucky?
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Are the Lions one of those teams? They lost DJ Reader,
they lost Graham Glasgow. You know they added Blake Miller
in the first round, Derek Moore pass rusher out of
Michigan in the second round. We know they need a
pass rusher opposite Aiden Hutchinson. We knew they needed to
tackle to to to pair up with Piney Seoul. They
got that with Blake Miller.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
What are your.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
Thoughts on getting, you know, grabbing a hold of that
very competitive division with Dan Campbell on the Lions, making
sure they say, hey that was one year, don't ride
us off.
Speaker 1 (32:18):
We're back. You know, I think this is what it
was about. And look, it's not only Dan Campbell.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
I heard Brad Holmes talk about like sometimes you got
to get back to who you are, got to get
back to the grittiness. And maybe they kind of veered
away from that a little bit in some of their
personnel moves, but they were hell being on getting back
to being that type of team.
Speaker 1 (32:36):
Well, if they're going to do that, they're absolutely gonna
find a way to win.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Because the best part of the Lions that I think
sometimes it's lost in a love affair that people have
with Ben Johnson from his time there. Make no mistake
about the Lions. The Lions were a backyard brawl type
squad at their best, and yeah, Jerry Golf was throwing
it all over the yard and I'm sat Brown was
making plays and Jameson Williams and those guys, but it
(32:59):
was part of a physical approach that really wore people down.
I think they have to get back to that, and
I think this draft and what they've done in the
offseason is about getting back to that, because there certainly
were talented enough under achieved for whatever reason. Some of
that is really from the loss of a talented office
coordinator who is now the head coach of your rival. Yeah,
Dan Campbell doesn't sit back for long and kind of
(33:21):
take those ls.
Speaker 1 (33:22):
I think they're gonna try and get back on track.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
They're gonna try and absolutely bully people to no end
when they get back on the field this fall.
Speaker 3 (33:30):
You know, you gotta remember that Dan Campbell took over
play calling duties, so there was some they didn't Yeah,
there was an issue with replacing Ben Johnson, There's no
doubt about that. They never really quite got it figured out.
We will see if that fixes itself this year.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
I do know this.
Speaker 3 (33:50):
To get your point to your point, you know, you lose,
you're going to have to find We'll see if Isaiah
Pacheco can provide something similar to what David Montgomery was
able to provide when the Lions were really had that
running game kicking. Because Jamiir Gibbs needs a second back
he needs You don't want Jamiir Gibbs, you know, having
(34:12):
way way too many carries. You want the ball in
his hands, but you also have to be smart with
it because he's so so valuable. The question is going
to be how does Pine Sewel work over there on
the left side. He's very talented. It's not always a
lock that a right can go left or that a
left can go right. That's not always a lock. So
(34:33):
you have to see, you know how that how that looks.
My guess is Pene is going to be just fine,
but it's not always a lock. But how does that
team do on the interior running the football? Do they
is their interior line? Because I think they're still trying
to They're still trying to figure out with Frank ragnow
gone and glam Glasgow gone. You know over the last
couple of years. Now you've got kid May's you brought
(34:54):
in Christian Mahogany right now as you're starting left guard.
He's got to prove himself take reutligions in his second
year from Georgia. They've got to prove that there's still
bullies on the on the offensive line, that they can
move people around. I think Jared Goff is going to
be fine. I don't worry about him. And then defensively,
you know, well, you got you have a lot of
(35:15):
talent on that you have some good smart players on
the defensive side of that, but it would be nice
if you could get some rush from the rookie Derek Moore.
I think that's gonna be really important, because, yeah, it
hurt not having Ben Johnson as your play caller. But
what hurts maybe just as much is that he went
to a division rival and the Bears look like they're
on the come up. Oh, and the Lions have to
(35:37):
The Lions have to reassert themselves this year.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
They certainly have to reassert themselves this year. We talked
about two competitive divisions. Uh, the NFC North. Uh, we're
just raling these teams off, the Vikings and Lions kind
of vying with the Packers and the Bears to get
back into the mix.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
That'd be interesting.
Speaker 2 (35:54):
But then the NFC East with the Giants, Cowboys and Commanders.
If you have to press me against it, I would
say maybe the Giants ahead of the Cowboys. But I'll
bet your money, not my money on that. So look,
that'll do it for this episode. We took care of
the NFC. On the next episode, we're gonna take care
(36:15):
of the AFC and talk about which teams can bounce
back from disappointing years to be major factors in the postseason.
Speaker 1 (36:21):
I'm Bucky Brooks. That's LZ until next time we are
out
Welcome to Move the Six.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
I am Bucky Brooks and once again my man LZ
Lance Caroline is joining me on the Move to Six podcast.
And today, Lance, I gotta tell you, man, I think
one of the things that we do, we got to
said schedule releases on the horizon. But one of the
things teams love to do is they look at a
team that had a tremendous amount of success and they say, hey,
(00:24):
we can do this, we can be next. So last
year in the Super Bowl, we saw the New England
Patriots kind of come from nowhere to be a team
that was in the Super Bowl. And we also saw
a team on the outside of the Seattle Seahawks make
their way to not only go to the Super Bowl,
but to win the Super Bowl. So what I want
to do today is we're going to break up the
two conferences, the NFC and the AFC, And today we're
going to look at the NFC, which teams there were
(00:47):
out of the playoffs could be in the mix to
make a deep postseason run this season. Good with that,
You're good with that, NFC, I'm good with you. Okay,
all right, let's start because I think both of us
have been kind of on this team.
Speaker 1 (01:01):
How about the New York Giants?
Speaker 2 (01:03):
Why are you bullish on the Giants making their way
back into the tournament?
Speaker 3 (01:07):
You know so, I think they First of all, it's
gonna be a very competitive conference, very competitive. I think
Washington will be a factor. I think the Giants, the Cowboys, Eagles.
I think it's much more competitive than it was last year.
I'll give you a couple of reasons. Number one, it
starts with John Harball. John Harball understands what it takes
to win at a high level. He did it for
a long time. And I think bringing over players like
(01:29):
you know, Patrick Ricard, Isaiah Likely who know the way
that he likes. Especially for Card, you know, he's kind
of a very unique piece that fit in very nicely
over there with Harball and the Ravens for all those years.
I believe that he's going to get the hardball way
locked in over there. And I don't think the rosters
(01:50):
all that bad. The roster for me, you know, I
like the move of Reese Manoah Colton hood in terms
of the draft. But then I gotta be honest with you,
I wasn't that high on Jackson Dark and me personally
In watching him last year, I thought he not only
did he perform better than I expected, but I saw
(02:12):
a player who had a confidence level and a level poise.
Speaker 1 (02:17):
That I believe is very real.
Speaker 3 (02:19):
Like there's nothing that he's trying to put on a
face or put on a show. He's got all that
swag that we saw in college, and then at the
combine he had that remember that chain he was showing
out on the field at the Combine. But he got
in the league and he stayed the same guy. And
it was funny to watch him vibe with Cam Skataboo
because those guys really had their own little thing going together.
(02:41):
New York is tough for a lot of quarterbacks. Not
everyone is made for New York. You got to have
a special kind of a confidence and I actually think
he has that. And now you plug in getting Malik
Neighbors back, you plug in John Harbaugh into the mix,
you got some you know, Tremaine Edmonds, I think is
a pretty good player that's going to.
Speaker 1 (02:59):
Help little bit.
Speaker 3 (03:01):
I just think that they could be an interesting team
to keep an eye on, one that could knock on
the door of the playoffs this year. That's one to
keep an eye on for me because number one hardball,
but number two I think Jackson Dart is maybe a
little better quarterback than I gave him credit for. Maybe
some others gave him credit.
Speaker 2 (03:17):
Yeah, I would say the common denominator between you look
at the giants plight and maybe the one the play
that we saw of the New England Patriots. Second year
quarterback takes a major jump. New coaching staff, new head coach,
who knows exactly what he's doing, he's had success. That
confidence kind of resonates throughout the building. I feel that
right now with the New York Giants, John Harbought, eighteen
(03:39):
year coaching veteran, has been to a Super Bowl, He's
won a Super Bowl, has consistently had winners. I looked
up to stat he has eleven teams that he's had
with at least ten wins. So you know his blueprint,
his formula for winning games works and that'll be easy
for the teams to buy in. And then you talked
about the roster construction and how the roster certainly wasn't
(03:59):
that far off defensively, Man, they should be a team
that plays at the top five level, top ten if
they're not necessarily playing to their potential. That linebacker corps
with five first rounders. I mean, just think about that.
You have five first rounders.
Speaker 1 (04:13):
In that group.
Speaker 2 (04:13):
Arville Rees, Trane Evans was the first round pick when
he came out, Brian Burns came on, Thibodeau, Abdul Carter.
Like you talk about blue chip talent, just in that group,
that gives you a chance. And look, it has been
said for a long time that it takes about eight
to twelve blue chip players to compete at the highest level,
to be at a championship level. Well man, the Giants
(04:35):
are already there, just with the linebacker corps and then
some of the other guys that they have in the hopper.
Speaker 1 (04:39):
I love that.
Speaker 2 (04:40):
And then the early declaration that Francis Maloi Noah is
gonna be a right guard. To me, that speaks to
who John Harbot is And look, hey man, this ain't
gonna be a competition. We're not gonna play this game.
He's gonna be a right guard. This is how we're going.
I love that because I think it gives Malonoa a
chance to grow in that role, and it takes away
(05:01):
all that uncertainty, the funny business that sometimes can cloud
young player's mind.
Speaker 3 (05:05):
I made a point this offseason on some podcasts, I
think even on the Draft Show when when we and
we either as path to the draft or maybe when
we were analyzing each draft pick, where I'm just waiting
for teams to say, you know what, we believe this
tackle can be a Pro Bowl guard.
Speaker 1 (05:24):
We think he'll be a better guard.
Speaker 3 (05:25):
Than tackle, even though we understand tackle is typically more valuable,
not typically it's always more valuable than a guard. I
was just waiting for teams to for a team or
more than one team to start leaning into a player
who has a chance to be a special guard and
maybe has some weakness as a tackle. We've actually seen
it with two teams. We saw it with Caden Proctor
(05:47):
in Miami. At least for now he's going to be
playing guard, and then.
Speaker 1 (05:52):
That's they're not on our list. I know, not on my.
Speaker 3 (05:54):
List of teams that I'm acected in the playoffs, but
I wanted to mention that because I think Francis Manoah
to me is a just an easy plug and play
fit at guard, and I think he's going to right
off the bad help that running game, which is you
know which is also goes hand in hand with the
young quarterback. You don't want to even when a young
quarterback looks good in year one, you don't want them
to step in a year two feeling like they've got
(06:15):
to take every take the world on their shoulders. You know,
we saw Herbert kind of have to do that and
with the Chargers, and that doesn't usually work out.
Speaker 1 (06:23):
C J.
Speaker 3 (06:23):
Stroud tried to do it with the Texans, didn't work out.
It's hard for young quarterbacks in year two without that
running game because defenses go to school on young quarterbacks
and so they're going to take some things away from
you that maybe they didn't in your rookie season, and
so having a running game can really help counter that. So,
you know, getting Cam scauta go back is going to
(06:44):
be important. Having elite neighbors there as as a wide
receiver one is important. You know, building those trenches is
important too, and we know that hardball with the Ravens
that was a very important part of Ravens ball is
getting those trenches built.
Speaker 1 (06:57):
Yeah.
Speaker 2 (06:57):
I mean, look, you talk about being the biggest and
bad as bullies on the block. The New York Giants
certainly look like that. I've said this time and time again.
Jered Reyes told me what George Young, longtime gentlemenagers for
the Giants, talked about, like when you're the Giants.
Speaker 1 (07:09):
We have to have Giants. Look, we have to play
to our name.
Speaker 2 (07:12):
We got to play to our moniker And they certainly
are a big physical team that they're putting together, and
I just love how the puzzle pieces fit.
Speaker 1 (07:20):
Moreover, I love that.
Speaker 2 (07:22):
John Harbaugh has a little chip on his shoulder after
being i would say dismissed in Baltimore. I think that
comes out and that makes him laser focused on making
sure that the Giants play the right way and with
the personnel that they have until on defense, they certainly
should be able to get off to a fast start
and reappear as they playoff contender by seasons end.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Let's go to.
Speaker 2 (07:42):
Minnesota because koc Kevin O'Connell gets an opportunity to coach.
I'm gonna say this, and I look, I'm kind of
being funny, but I'm being real because there's some people
that feel like this. Kevin O'Connell gets to coach the
greatest high school player to ever put on the pass
in Texas high school football, history.
Speaker 1 (08:02):
He was when he coaches Kyler Murray.
Speaker 2 (08:05):
That is real, that's legit, and he's gonna have an
opportunity to take the Vikings to the next level.
Speaker 1 (08:09):
Kyler Murray joining with a great coach. Yeah.
Speaker 3 (08:12):
RG three was a pretty good one too, the great Rodney.
Rodney Thomas, who has passed away, was a great not quarterback,
but he was a great running back, said Benson. We've
had some pretty good ones. Kyler Thomas was I mean,
Kyler Murray was great. You know, he's an interesting study.
Didn't do anything in Texas. A and M transferred Oklahoma,
and we know Oklahoma was the reclamation spot or the
(08:34):
building spot for Jalen Hurts and Baker Mayfield and Kyler Murray,
who all came from different schools. We know Kyler's background,
We know the history of Kyler, what he can do,
what he hasn't been able to do, missing some games.
There's questions about how much is he love it, is
he willing to put the work in. We know all
everything that goes with Kyler Murray. What we also know
(08:55):
is that Kyler Murray right now understands that position and
it's going to be better at that position in jaj
J McCarty. You and I talked about it last week.
Let's be real about it.
Speaker 1 (09:03):
JJ.
Speaker 3 (09:04):
For as much potential as he may have, Kyler already
knows how to get there. He's already there. And so
you have a team with a very good wide receiver,
one of the best in the league, and justin Jefferson
and actually you know a couple of really good wide
receivers in that in that building, and you have a
(09:25):
good quarterback coaching head coach as well.
Speaker 1 (09:28):
We know that.
Speaker 3 (09:29):
I mean, that's that's the reputation for KOC. What you
have here is a chance to get a quarterback who's
more ready, you know, much more ready to get the
machine started up and get it rolling downhill with the
passing game more so than we've seen with JJ McCarthy.
They need help on defensive line. They add a Caleb
Banks and Dom Orange. These two rookies, Bucky are probably
(09:51):
going to step into a starting role right off the bat.
That's a lot to ask of rookies. But I love
the defensive coordinator obviously, in Brian Flores really understands how
to put pressure on defenses, and he's you know, I
just think he's special in terms of stressing offensive lines,
it can't be stressed enough. He understands how to make
(10:13):
teams uncomfortable with just through his play calling and just
through how he aligns his personnel, and then you know,
you look, they've got some holes on defense. There's some
question marks on defense, for sure. But I think anytime
you get a quarterback of Kyler Murray's ability, not that
it's not that he's always executed, not that he's always
(10:35):
been healthy, but his ability that really helps to unleash
Jordan Addison and Justin Jefferson. And Justin Jefferson really made
no bones about the fact that he felt like the
quarterback position needed to be better in Minnesota, and I
think it will be better with Kyler Murray. And when
you look at the roster they have, when you look
at the defensive concepts the Flores can dial up, I
(10:58):
think you got to have him in the mix for
someone who's going to make some noise in that division,
another very very competitive division. Man super competitive division.
Speaker 1 (11:08):
Yeah, super competitor.
Speaker 2 (11:09):
And I think the thing about those competitive divisions, people
talk about it iron shoppers, iron and how the first
thing that you have to do before you can build
a team that can win a Super Bowl. You've got
to build your team to beat your division. You play
those teams six times. You got to make sure that
your team is able to lock and load and take
care of the competition.
Speaker 1 (11:25):
And the vikings certainly are that.
Speaker 2 (11:27):
You talked about the two young guys that they brought in,
Keyleer Banks and Big Citrus Dominic Orange.
Speaker 1 (11:33):
What I love about Kayler Banks.
Speaker 2 (11:34):
If Kayler Banks is healthy, there's no doubt in my mind,
this guy's a All Pro caliber player. The issue is
the health, and normally when you have three hundred pound
men to have foot problems, it tends to remain a problem.
We'll see if he can kind of be the outlier
and beat that, because if he can defensively, man, they
have exactly what they need. Brian Floyd is a is
(11:55):
a mad scientist concocting all kinds of different five and
six man pressures to come out the quarterback, and he
has the personnel to be able to do that. I
will say, they got to figure out maybe that one hole,
like do they need a safety? Do they need to
kind of ask Harrison's supposed to kind of come back
and be the emeritus that can keep everything together because defensively, man,
(12:16):
they're pretty solid and salty all over, and then.
Speaker 1 (12:19):
Offenusly, that's where the fun is going to happen.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
Kevin O'Connell, look, man, I think he probably ate a
nice little slice of humble pie. Considering how Sam Donald
continued to play great when he went to Seattle. They
had their struggles in Minnesota with the young quarterback and
the other quarterbacks that came. I think it's actually a
good thing for Kevin o'c Kevin O'Connell now will be
(12:44):
locked in and focused. And here's what I know, man,
the quarterback position is loaded with ego, just like being
a top offensive play caller has some ego to it.
And not from a bad standpoint, but from a selfish standpoint, man,
you want to be regarded as the best. I think
Koc has done some work in the offseason to make
(13:05):
sure he's able to put this offense back on the
map and have people talk about him and his play designs.
And we'll say reclamation project that caller Murray is and
will be. If those two things happened, then in Minnesota,
Vikings are certainly Pennson Dan to be deep in the
tournament because Kevin O'Connell and Kyler Murray. If they worked
together successfully, this Minnesota Vikings ten is gonna win ten
(13:27):
eleven twelve games.
Speaker 3 (13:29):
Yeah, another team moving on to the Washington Commanders. Well,
this is one for me, Bucky that I look at
this as Jaden Daniels. I'm fully expecting Jayden Daniels to
get back on track.
Speaker 1 (13:44):
Last year was a disaster. Forum.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
We know what happened, We know the injuries.
Speaker 1 (13:49):
He just couldn't get it going.
Speaker 3 (13:52):
He maybe had a little humble pie too, since we're
talking about, you know, things came really easy for the
offensive rookie of the year his rookie season. They came
very easily for him. And there is something about being
humbled that really can reignite a player to find, you know,
what he had in the past. Now that pass is
obviously just one year past. But Terry McLaurin is a
(14:16):
top notch wide receiver. I thought they were going to
draft another wide receiver. I thought that was definitely on
the board. We didn't see them. We didn't see them,
you know, go in that direction. Other than Antonio Williams. Now,
I say Antonio Williams, he's a third round pick. The
reason I like him a lot is kind of a
gadget guy. He can throw it if you want him
(14:37):
to throw it a little bit. He's four for four
with two touchdowns as a passion, so I mean, you know,
pretty efficient with the touchdown throws. But he is very
good run after catch. He is good with jet sweeps
if you want to use him that way. If you're
third and three and you throw him a little hitch
and you want him to just go get a little
wiggle and break a tackle and get forward for a
(14:59):
first down, he can do some of that for you
as well.
Speaker 1 (15:02):
I like what he adds to.
Speaker 3 (15:03):
The offense because to me, he's one of those he's
kind of a hybrid player. It's not really hybrid necessarily
in terms of Deebo Samuel, but what he is is
a player who can win in a few different ways
for you. He's not necessarily necessarily the master of any
one trade, but he is the jack of all trades,
and so he has some of that available to him.
(15:25):
But this team, in my opinion, is about two things.
It's about getting your quarterback healthy and getting him right again,
and then it's to see whether or not they were
able to tighten up the defense with all the changes
they have. I'm looking at the roster right now and
I am seeing eleven new players on the two d
(15:46):
Eleven new players. Two of them came from the draft,
Sonny Styles and Josh Joseph's. Josephs was a fifth rounder.
Sonny Styles, of course, was a first round or the
seventh pick of the draft. But the rest of them,
Dafe Oway, Leo Chanal, You've got caylebon Chase on. These
are guys with starting experienced. Nick Cross came over from Indianapolis.
(16:09):
We'll see if he's an upgrade defensively. Meek Robertson got
a lot of dog in him, just a real tough
guy mentality and highly competitive. So we'll see if just
a new group of players can be better than what
they had defensively last year. It's got to be better
than what they had last year. But how quickly can
you get this many new starters potentially, as I said,
(16:30):
seven new starters potentially on the defensive side of the ball.
Is that going to be a plus or is that
going to take time for them to This is an
offensive line play the continuity things, you know, that's totally
different on defense than if you're dealing with an offensive line.
But are these the guys that can make enough of
a difference defensively.
Speaker 1 (16:49):
I think they've got it.
Speaker 3 (16:50):
Looking up and down this roster, I think they're going
to make the defense better. But more importantly, I think
getting Jalen Jayden Daniels back and getting him back to form,
which I believe will happen, that is going to be,
more than anything else, the thing that is going to
give the Washington Commanders the best chance to get into
the playoffs. And I think they are a team you
got to keep an eye on despite only winning five
(17:12):
games last year.
Speaker 1 (17:13):
You know, it's funny you talked about Antonio Williams.
Speaker 2 (17:15):
I've had wide receiver coaches around the league tell me
that he was their favorite wide out at that point
of the draft because of what he could do in
the slot.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
City's the real deal. Feel like he was slept on
in Washington.
Speaker 2 (17:27):
He had have an opportunity to be a major factor
given how Jayden Daniels likes to play. You talked about
the Commander's defense and what they needed man Sunny Styles
being there for them so he can replace basically Bobby Wagner.
You love that all the new pieces that they have
to me it's going to be really simple for the Commanders.
Dan Quinn is going to make sure that this team
is simple enough on defense that they can allow their
(17:51):
athleticism and play making ability to just kind of naturally
show look forward to be a simple simon defense, not
a lot of disguise and trickery. But hey, we're going
to play, ask through and play more physical than you
and at the end of the day, we're gonna whoop
you because we have better people and their personnel may
give them a shot.
Speaker 1 (18:07):
Also knowing that they have the magician.
Speaker 2 (18:09):
The quarterback that can always make it right behind them
and Jayden Daniels. Yeah, the Commanders are a team that
you want to keep. You're out and remember this, David Baldy,
David Blob, the young new offensive coordinator who looks just
fresh out the league as a backup player he takes over.
Speaker 1 (18:26):
It'd be interesting to see his take.
Speaker 2 (18:29):
And his spend on this offense as they move into
a new era with Jayden, Dandy.
Speaker 1 (18:34):
Andrew and you know, a new defensive coordinator.
Speaker 3 (18:37):
But we know, we know how D'Onta Jones. But we
know obviously that's gonna be Quinn's defense. But there's a
lot of turnover on that staff, you know, maybe feeling
the heat. Obviously, obviously dan Quinn was not happy with
what he saw on the at least on the field,
(18:58):
we know, and he felt like changes need.
Speaker 1 (19:00):
To be made.
Speaker 3 (19:00):
So you know, he brought in a new defensive coordinator
to work underneath him or work with him in conjunction
with him. We know about all the players they brought in.
I just mentioned all the defensive talent, eleven different players
on the too deep and now you've got a new
play caller who's a former quarterback, so you hope that
he can really click with Jaden Daniels. A lot of.
Speaker 1 (19:19):
Changes over there in Washington.
Speaker 3 (19:21):
We'll see if bringing back the old Jaden Daniels, who's
still very young, and all of the changes he's made
to the staff and to the and to the personnel,
we'll see if that has an instantly positive effect. I
know people don't think it happens. There's there's there's.
Speaker 1 (19:35):
An inclination to believe that. Well, it takes takes a while.
Speaker 3 (19:39):
When you get behind the eight ball, it takes a while.
Speaker 1 (19:41):
Not really.
Speaker 3 (19:42):
The NFL's filled with worse the first stories. Like every
other year, every year there's a worst of first. We
had one in the Super Bowl. Yeah, the Patriots, so worse.
The first happens more than you think.
Speaker 1 (19:53):
It happens more you think.
Speaker 2 (19:55):
Now it's time for how to not brought to you
with Sabi hot Cloud story.
Speaker 1 (20:00):
And then we're going to talk about America's team. You're
there in Texas. They've always told me, don't mess with Texas.
We got to talk about these Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (20:08):
And I know it's on the different part of the state,
and I know in Agetown, y'all don't really rock with
the Star, but I gotta tell you, man, I am
impressed with what the Cowboys have done over the course
of their off season to bring it back. We talk
about defensively, Caleb Downs being drafted, Malachaia Lawrence giving them
some energy off the edge. They got some veterans that
have come on board to mix in with what they
(20:30):
currently had at the end of the year with Quinn
Williams and those guys. I think about for Shara Gary
and what they're able to do with Kenny Clark.
Speaker 1 (20:37):
I'm filling the Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (20:39):
I feel like this is their time to kind of
show and prove the people that they're back and back
in a major way.
Speaker 1 (20:46):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (20:47):
I know, I'm from Houston and I take some You know,
we don't really rock with Dallas and vice versa. That's
just how it is, so I'm glad.
Speaker 1 (20:54):
You know that.
Speaker 3 (20:55):
However, I'm also objective when it comes to my football analysis,
and I tend to agree with you. I like what
Dallas has done up to this point.
Speaker 1 (21:05):
Getting look.
Speaker 3 (21:08):
Defensively, Kobe Durant is the type of competitive you know,
on the ball, type of cornerback that you want out there.
Speaker 1 (21:16):
He's a guy.
Speaker 3 (21:16):
He's gonna make some mistakes. He's not the biggest player,
but he also would go out there and try to
make plays on the football. You've added Jalen Thompson, I
think will be a benefit. You want to get Drown
Bland back to playing the type of football he was
a couple of years ago. Rashaan Gary, He's never gonna
be He's never hit double digits and sacks, not one
year while he's been in the league. But he's been
(21:37):
consistent in terms of the way he plays the game
and how physical he is. So having him on the
field along with Quinn Williams up there on the front
and Kenny Clark. No, they added Kenny Clark a few
years back in the in the trade. They've got Quinn
Williams via trade. They've added Rashaan Gary. These are some
professional some professional defensive lineman. These guys know how to
(22:00):
play and they do the same thing every year, and
that should not be you know, if your front is
sound and stable and solid, that should not be diminished
because that's a really important building block for a defense.
Speaker 1 (22:12):
You've added.
Speaker 3 (22:13):
Obviously, the biggest addition to me is Caleb Downs because
I think he's going to start getting I think that
defense is going to start getting hyped with him.
Speaker 1 (22:20):
Now.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Offensively, I'm not worried about the Cowboys. I think they're
in a really good place. O line, they got pass
catching tight end and Jake Ferguson. They've got two really
good wide receivers. I think the offensive line is is solid.
Devontae Williams showed that he was ready to roll. The question,
Bucky was can they get the defense where it needs
to be? And honestly, like you talked about free agent
(22:42):
moves in the draft, can you just can you get
the Dallas Cowboy defense to level, to rise to the
level of average to maybe slightly above average, because if
you can, you've got an explosive offense that can carry
you potentially long ways.
Speaker 1 (22:59):
You absolutely can.
Speaker 2 (23:00):
And I'm thinking Brian Schotenheimer certainly learned a lot from
his dad. His dad won two hundred regular season games
in the National Football League. He has a winning pedigree,
he has a winning formula, and I think that winning
formula is going to show up big time in Big
d I want.
Speaker 1 (23:15):
To I want to ask you one more.
Speaker 3 (23:16):
I want to follow up with one more. Christian Parker,
new defensive coordinator.
Speaker 1 (23:20):
Oh, I love it.
Speaker 3 (23:20):
I think he's an interesting I want to I want
to just hop to kind of a sub set. This
is what you deal with when you have an add
person on a podcast. I'm going to bounce and I
got some caffeine in my system. But Christian Parker, this
is how it happens in the NFL. I think this
is an awesome story. Started at Virginia State as a
dB coach, then went to Norfolk State, so he's at HBC.
Speaker 1 (23:41):
Who's there.
Speaker 3 (23:42):
Then was a defensive analyst in seventeen at Notre Dame
defensive analyst. The Texas A and M and eighteen. Then
he's quality control, right, so this is Bucky. This is
like up, this is hitting the little pegs on the ladder.
It's a slow climb. Two years is a defensive quality
control coach at Green Bay Learning, getting the knowledge that
(24:04):
doesn't pay much if you know anything about QC jobs.
But then he gets three years as a dB coach
in Denver and Pat Danna said he was. He was
very instrumental in some of the work he did with Pat.
Pat's maybe the best corner in the league. Then he
was with the Eagles for two years as a passing
game coordinator and dB coach. Now here he is his
first year as a defensive coordinator and he's doing it
(24:27):
with the Dallas Cowboys. Just kind of cool to see.
I'm a coach, I'm a coach's son. You know, the
same background, and you coach right now. Watching a guy
come up the ranks, and then you always see a
guy will get hot in this business. It can happen
in college and go to the pros. It can happen
in college and go from you know, a coordinator to
(24:47):
a head coaching job. But there's certain guys in the
league It happens every year, every couple of years, where
somebody gets hot and they start to shoot up that ladder.
So when you put in your work and you do
a good job, things like this happen. And for Christian,
I think that's really cool watching him climb that ladder,
catch fire, get elevated to this job as DC. He's
only out as he buck. He's only thirty four years old,
(25:10):
So really gonna be fun watching a thirty four year
old defensive coordinator seeing how he gels with the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 1 (25:17):
Yeah. No, So here's the thing about Christian Parker. Everyone
wants what.
Speaker 2 (25:22):
Vic Fangio has in terms of that too deep shell,
keep everything in front, play with smaller guys in the
box from the second level as opposed to kind of
really exposing yourself with single high coverage. And when you
think about that, and then you think about player development.
So he's gonna have the schemes and attactice giving his
experience with Fangio. Then you think about what he was
(25:44):
able to do with Passer ten. You think about the
young corners in Philadelphia that played well right away, Cooper
dejen Quinnan Mitchell, those guys showed up showed out immediately.
He understands how to develop that in the back end. Well,
now you've already giving him a veteran front that has
some guys that can show them more responsibilities while he
(26:05):
really is working with Caleb Downs and those young guys
on the perimeter. To me as a defensive back taking
over the defense, he's gonna think from back to front. Hey,
let's make sure we don't give up the explosives. Then
let's figure out how it has to fit and play upfront.
Speaker 1 (26:22):
Could be the best of both worlds.
Speaker 2 (26:23):
For the Dallas Cowboys as they look to make a
move in the postseason. That was this week's how to
Not segment, brought to you by Wassabi Hot Clouds Storage,
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for free at wassabi dot com. Got a few more
they want to get to Ay, I know you hot
on this team because you got excited when Ruben Bain
(26:43):
was drafted to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. Tell me, tell me,
tell me Lance, why you think the Bucks are back
this season.
Speaker 3 (26:50):
Well, I think Bain is gonna be defensive rookie of
the Year. I haven't locked in officially, but I'm leaning
heavily to Ruben Bain. He's just a grown man, you know.
I made a comment I saw him. They had a
video Tampa. I don't know if you saw it, but
they were in camp.
Speaker 1 (27:06):
You know.
Speaker 3 (27:06):
I had the path had not even the pads on,
just had the jerseys on, had the helmets on, and
he exploded into the sled and lifted it and threw it.
And I was just making a point, you know. And
there's some people saying, don't get excited. Why are you
getting excited about a drills. It's not about the drill.
It's about a reminder that some guys are built for
the NFL. There are some guys that are built for
(27:29):
the NFL, and typically powerful, violent, aggressive players succeed in
the NFL, especially on the defensive line. I've seen it.
I saw it with Marcus Golden, who I thought was
going to be kind of an average player, you up
being an above average player. He ended up and he
took it. I say that my dad was coaching at
Arizona at the time. He went to my dad and said, hey,
(27:51):
is your son Lancer Line? He said, yeah, he goes.
His scouting report was terrible on me, like He's one
of one of many who have beef with me, lifelong
beef because they didn't like the fact that I said
they had weaknesses. But Max Crosby's another. But I'm glad
to be wrong on players. But one thing I learned
over the years, Bucky took me just two or three
(28:12):
years to figure out tough, violent, physical, and strong that
is more likely it's less likely to bust than an
athletic finesse player.
Speaker 1 (28:24):
And I think Ruben Bain.
Speaker 3 (28:28):
Is going to get schooled up and improve some of
the methodology. His methodology in terms of rushing, I know
he's a good run defender. I'm less worried about the
short arms with him than I would be about some
other players. And I've explained why in the past. I'm
not going to get into it here because I do
believe arm link is very important in the NFL. I
just think he's a bit of an outlier with that
because of how he plays and provided he aligns tight
(28:51):
to the line. But Bain in Todd Bowles defense, I
think is going to be really good. I like the
addition of Kenneth Gainwell, I think is a small art addition,
you know, to add him Josiah Trotter I think can
step in and be an early starter. Big shoes to fill.
Obviously when you talk about David, but Levante David, but
(29:13):
but just Josiah Trotter has has the ability, I think
to become the next man up. It's not gonna happen
right away, but I like the addition. And look, it's
not the hardest division. That division's up for grabs until
Carolina proves that they can keep on building, until the
Falcons prove that they can play up to their their
level of talent. Tyler Shuck has to prove that he
(29:35):
didn't have the second year blues. You know every second
year player. You have to watch for second year quarterbacks
in terms of that. So you lose Levante David, that's
gonna hurt. You don't have an answer for Mike Evans.
I like the addition of Ted Hurst, but let's be real,
he's not ready to take over. However, they already have Buka,
they have Chris Godwin, so it's not like they're devoid
of talent. You just need Baker, I think, to play
(29:57):
more consistently, and you do need guys like Kiante Scott,
the fourth rounder from Miami, who I think is perfect
for Todd Bowles defense, Rubin Bain and Josiah Trotter. I
think those three rookies could have a big impact on
the defense for the Bucks, to go along with what
you hope is Baker getting his mojo back because it
(30:18):
kind of went away the second half of the season.
But you know, it's a division where it's up for grabs.
Speaker 2 (30:26):
It is up for grabs, and one thing we know
about the Buccaneers is they've been able to win a
division for the last five years. They've been able to
kind of do it in a way that I would say, look, man,
it's definitely more forced than finesse. And the thing that
strikes me about their draft and the people they brought
over when you talk about their first handful of picks
and Ruben Bain's side, Trotter, Kiante Scott coming over. This
(30:49):
was definitely an attitude draft, a draft that will get
them back to the identity that has served them well.
They are a physical team and they're at their best
when they're violent. Each of those players we talked about
on the defense side of the ball are violent. They
also are high i Q players that can play in
that complex zone blitz pressure scheme that Todd Bowles prefers.
Speaker 1 (31:12):
To me, this is about making sure that they're to imposed.
Speaker 2 (31:15):
It will on opponents not only from a mental schematic standpoint,
but physically in a.
Speaker 1 (31:21):
Very primitive way.
Speaker 2 (31:22):
We are going to whip you for sixty minutes and
we can be the last one standing. This team kind
of reflects and embodies what my man Todd Bowles is
all about, particularly because he's a Jersey guy.
Speaker 1 (31:35):
Yeah.
Speaker 3 (31:35):
What about I talked about earlier, really competitive division in
the NFC North. Can the Lions get back there?
Speaker 1 (31:44):
Bucky?
Speaker 3 (31:45):
Are the Lions one of those teams? They lost DJ Reader,
they lost Graham Glasgow. You know they added Blake Miller
in the first round, Derek Moore pass rusher out of
Michigan in the second round. We know they need a
pass rusher opposite Aiden Hutchinson. We knew they needed to
tackle to to to pair up with Piney Seoul. They
got that with Blake Miller.
Speaker 1 (32:05):
What are your.
Speaker 3 (32:06):
Thoughts on getting, you know, grabbing a hold of that
very competitive division with Dan Campbell on the Lions, making
sure they say, hey that was one year, don't ride
us off.
Speaker 1 (32:18):
We're back. You know, I think this is what it
was about. And look, it's not only Dan Campbell.
Speaker 2 (32:22):
I heard Brad Holmes talk about like sometimes you got
to get back to who you are, got to get
back to the grittiness. And maybe they kind of veered
away from that a little bit in some of their
personnel moves, but they were hell being on getting back
to being that type of team.
Speaker 1 (32:36):
Well, if they're going to do that, they're absolutely gonna
find a way to win.
Speaker 2 (32:39):
Because the best part of the Lions that I think
sometimes it's lost in a love affair that people have
with Ben Johnson from his time there. Make no mistake
about the Lions. The Lions were a backyard brawl type
squad at their best, and yeah, Jerry Golf was throwing
it all over the yard and I'm sat Brown was
making plays and Jameson Williams and those guys, but it
(32:59):
was part of a physical approach that really wore people down.
I think they have to get back to that, and
I think this draft and what they've done in the
offseason is about getting back to that, because there certainly
were talented enough under achieved for whatever reason. Some of
that is really from the loss of a talented office
coordinator who is now the head coach of your rival. Yeah,
Dan Campbell doesn't sit back for long and kind of
(33:21):
take those ls.
Speaker 1 (33:22):
I think they're gonna try and get back on track.
Speaker 2 (33:24):
They're gonna try and absolutely bully people to no end
when they get back on the field this fall.
Speaker 3 (33:30):
You know, you gotta remember that Dan Campbell took over
play calling duties, so there was some they didn't Yeah,
there was an issue with replacing Ben Johnson, There's no
doubt about that. They never really quite got it figured out.
We will see if that fixes itself this year.
Speaker 1 (33:49):
I do know this.
Speaker 3 (33:50):
To get your point to your point, you know, you lose,
you're going to have to find We'll see if Isaiah
Pacheco can provide something similar to what David Montgomery was
able to provide when the Lions were really had that
running game kicking. Because Jamiir Gibbs needs a second back
he needs You don't want Jamiir Gibbs, you know, having
(34:12):
way way too many carries. You want the ball in
his hands, but you also have to be smart with
it because he's so so valuable. The question is going
to be how does Pine Sewel work over there on
the left side. He's very talented. It's not always a
lock that a right can go left or that a
left can go right. That's not always a lock. So
(34:33):
you have to see, you know how that how that looks.
My guess is Pene is going to be just fine,
but it's not always a lock. But how does that
team do on the interior running the football? Do they
is their interior line? Because I think they're still trying
to They're still trying to figure out with Frank ragnow
gone and glam Glasgow gone. You know over the last
couple of years. Now you've got kid May's you brought
(34:54):
in Christian Mahogany right now as you're starting left guard.
He's got to prove himself take reutligions in his second
year from Georgia. They've got to prove that there's still
bullies on the on the offensive line, that they can
move people around. I think Jared Goff is going to
be fine. I don't worry about him. And then defensively,
you know, well, you got you have a lot of
(35:15):
talent on that you have some good smart players on
the defensive side of that, but it would be nice
if you could get some rush from the rookie Derek Moore.
I think that's gonna be really important, because, yeah, it
hurt not having Ben Johnson as your play caller. But
what hurts maybe just as much is that he went
to a division rival and the Bears look like they're
on the come up. Oh, and the Lions have to
(35:37):
The Lions have to reassert themselves this year.
Speaker 2 (35:41):
They certainly have to reassert themselves this year. We talked
about two competitive divisions. Uh, the NFC North. Uh, we're
just raling these teams off, the Vikings and Lions kind
of vying with the Packers and the Bears to get
back into the mix.
Speaker 1 (35:54):
That'd be interesting.
Speaker 2 (35:54):
But then the NFC East with the Giants, Cowboys and Commanders.
If you have to press me against it, I would
say maybe the Giants ahead of the Cowboys. But I'll
bet your money, not my money on that. So look,
that'll do it for this episode. We took care of
the NFC. On the next episode, we're gonna take care
(36:15):
of the AFC and talk about which teams can bounce
back from disappointing years to be major factors in the postseason.
Speaker 1 (36:21):
I'm Bucky Brooks. That's LZ until next time we are
out
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Daniel Jeremiah
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Joy is essential. And it's also elusive. You can't order it, borrow it, or simply hope it into life. But now, there's a new and exciting way to start your journey toward a more joyful existence: The Joy 101 Podcast with Hoda! Best known for her Emmy-winning work and co-anchoring Today, Hoda Kotb infuses her authenticity, curiosity, and warmth into conversations with the world’s most fascinating people. Entertainment legends, sport icons, wellness experts, and everyday folks will share how they find, allow, and experience joy. Hoda will offer her own tips and takes on seeking a more balanced, harmonious life. If you're craving inspiration, support, and useful tools to maximize your joy, tune in to these candid, uplifting, and moving on-air chats. Joy after a breakup, joy as an empty-nester, joy after loss, joy as a caretaker — Hoda's new podcast will speak to you. Joy 101 with Hoda Kotb, an iHeartPodcast.
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.
Dateline NBC
Current and classic episodes, featuring compelling true-crime mysteries, powerful documentaries and in-depth investigations. Follow now to get the latest episodes of Dateline NBC completely free, or subscribe to Dateline Premium for ad-free listening and exclusive bonus content: DatelinePremium.com