AFC South 2025 Preview

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:42):
Hello, and welcome back to another episode I've done to
Sideline podcasts with Jackson and Kyle. I am Jackson and
I'm joined here as always by the man who still
hasn't given up on Daniel Jones. Kyle, Kyle, how's it going?

Speaker 2 (00:57):
Uh? Doing good? I think I've given up on Daniel
Jones a little bit. I'll say that.

Speaker 1 (01:02):
Oh no, this forty million dollar man, he he is.

Speaker 2 (01:05):
Uh, you know, rightfully paid after that one season and uh,
you know this is the second draft rohim. Here we go.
He's gonna have the renaissance though. Maybe we'll see.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
Yeah, someone brings up in the chot Kyle football two
weeks away for us who watched the preseason a little
bit longer way for you.

Speaker 2 (01:21):
Yeah, Yeah, I'll see you guys in September. You enjoy that,
enjoy your Hall of Fame game, and yeah, i'll see
you guys in a few weeks after.

Speaker 1 (01:29):
Yeah. I mean, you're you have a vacation, You're you're
completely checked out during the preseason.

Speaker 2 (01:33):
Yeah, I'll be gone completely. I'm gonna be off off
the grid. I'll just be checking in on how amazing
Drake May looks. And then we'll go from there.

Speaker 1 (01:42):
Yeah, exactly. I'm sure the reports are great. I'm sure
all the uh when the reporters are saying he's doing
great this uh, this off season training.

Speaker 2 (01:49):
Camp stuff is only positive. I don't listen to negative stuff.
The negative stuff is just wrong. The positive stuff is right.
That's the way I.

Speaker 1 (01:56):
Feel, Kyle, Uh, we might have some negative stuff in
this hour of talking about the AFC South, which is
always a made fun of division. This is always, you know,
usually when you ask people what's the most exciting, what's
the least exciting division, usually get one of the South divisions.
But AFC South tends to be the one people choose.

Speaker 2 (02:17):
You know.

Speaker 1 (02:17):
Again, there is interesting stuff here though, as always, Well,
I don't hardly disagree that this might be one of
the least interesting divisions. Hey, we're talking about four football
teams here. Every one of these teams has something intriguing.

Speaker 2 (02:33):
Yeah, I think there's at least something to talk about
with each of these teams, for sure. You know, I
don't expect to see a lot of these teams, you know,
we obviously have are required to see one in the
playoffs come January. I don't expect to see you know,
more than one of these teams in the playoffs come January.
But I think there is interesting things to talk about.

(02:53):
You know, Tennessee Titans, we're not a very fun team
to watch last season, but they got the number one pick,
they got the quarterback, so they have a rookie quarterback
to talk about. We got interesting things in Jacksonville, make
a break here for Trevor Lawrence. What's going on in Indianapolis?
What do they do? And then you got Houston who's
trying to find this next leap into their thing too.
So I think there's interesting storylines for all of these teams,

(03:16):
even though this is not gonna be the prettiest football
of the season in this division.

Speaker 1 (03:21):
Maybe not. But ultimately, Kyle, we go through every team here,
why don't we get into the list. So again, if
you're new here, Kyle has his own rankings. Then I
will go through each positional category for each of these teams.
We'll kind of discuss the team as a whole. I'll
give my prediction at the end of the discussion. So yeah,
Kyle Hot further Ado, there is some questions as to

(03:44):
who you have fourth in this division. You know, I
think there is again, there is something to talk about
with each of these teams. We do have the team
that was last in football last year. Are you once
again predicting the Titans to finish fourth in this division
or are you going somewhere else?

Speaker 2 (03:58):
Yeah, I'm sticking that for for now. Like, yeah, so
I do have this as the worst division in football
for this next season. I think it is difficult to watch.
But that being said, like we said, more things to
talk about, I still have Titans last. Could it get better? Absolutely?
Cam Wore could be awesome. We've seen it. We saw
Washington last year take a huge leap with just drafting

(04:18):
Jayden Daniels and adding some pieces around him. I think
that was a huge part of it. They also changed
the coach in that one. But there is a case
that this Tennessee team could take a big leap forward
this next season if cam Ward's awesome right away, and
he has that potential for sure, So I don't think
it's out of the question. But it's almost one of
those things you need to see to believe it, and

(04:40):
right now I just have a hard time believing it.
And even beyond cam Ward, you know, there's a couple
interesting playmakers here. There's a couple interesting. You could go
through this roster and say that player is pretty interesting.
I think there's like five or six kind of interesting
players on this team overall. But it still just feels
like a long term projects. I'm still not entirely convinced
in the coaching situation, and I still think it's a

(05:01):
long way to go before we could take Tennessee seriously
as a playoff team, playoff contender.

Speaker 1 (05:06):
Yeah. Also, on a side note, I don't know what
happened with the banner. It's a different color now. I
didn't change anything. Sometimes the stream yard just uh, you know,
updates and it does whatever. So it still says that
old color is on there. So I don't know. Well,
I guess we're in a new era, Kyle, in a
gray world.

Speaker 2 (05:22):
It is a gray world. Not Superman, though that was
very bright.

Speaker 1 (05:26):
I haven't seen Superman yet.

Speaker 2 (05:31):
I liked it, Okay, I don't need to get into
the uh, I don't need to get into it all.
I liked the movie. I had a fun time. I
like Superman.

Speaker 1 (05:39):
Yeah, I mean those are very much not my thing,
but I'll give a shot. I trust you, Kyle, all right, Yeah,
go for it. Let me know what you think. Okay, yeah,
the Tennessee Titans. Yes, as you brought up. I mean, again,
not too disrespectful to say the team that finished worst
in football last year, will is the has the highest
odds of finishing fourth in the division this year. You know,

(06:02):
with the head coach Brian Callahan, I'm interested to seeing
what he can do with maybe a little bit more
talent this year. But I mean, you know, I'm still
gonna keep give him a Tier five head coaching rankings
for now, just because, like I don't know much about
him and the one year he had finished worse in football.
I'll go Tier four for for the quarterback cam Ward
right now. But obviously that is the big wildcard. If

(06:24):
they have a Jayden Daniels in their pocket, this team
is completely different.

Speaker 2 (06:29):
Yeah, I mean it's the biggest wildcard for every rookie
quarterback taken right It's awesome. It's going to change a
lot really quickly. And you know, they couldn't have gotten
worse quarterback play last year. You know, we talked a
lot about Will Levis and like even last season when
they won two games, I mean, it started with them
handing the ball to the other team. I think twice

(06:49):
in the first game of the season to lose that one.
So this team just found a lot of ways to lose,
and a lot of it did start at the quarterback
position where they found those ways to lose. So, at minimum,
you think that's going to improve it at least one
or two wins, right, just having a quarterback who's not
going to hand the ball away all the time. Could
Kim Wore did that? Possibly? But yeah, So I think
he's got a ton of talent. He's elusive, he extends plays,

(07:13):
he makes some magic happen. I think he's a really
good quarterback prospect. I'm excited to see him play on
this team. And I'm just excited to watch him because
he was a very, very fun college football player for
many years. And yeah, I think it's gonna be interesting
to see how it looks at this level.

Speaker 1 (07:28):
Yeah. One thing that the Titans have also astly improved
upon is their offensive line. And we can argue if
they've overpaid certain guys or whatever, the Dan Moore contract
all that, but Dan Morrison should be a solid tackle
for them. They do have j. C. Latham, a first
round pick from a year ago who played okay last year.
They also added Kevin Zeitler. You have Peter Skronsky, another

(07:49):
former first round pick, who again is alright. You have
Lloyd and Lloyd Cushionberry at center who got banged up
last year but has had some good years in previous seasons.
So again, is this an awesome like offensive line. No,
And I think my biggest concern is just you have
so many new pieces, how does it all fit together?
But on paper, this is like a Tier three offensive

(08:10):
line for me. You have five guys who should be
able to apply.

Speaker 2 (08:14):
Yeah, I think they're all pretty good. I agree, So
I'm pretty excited for this group. And I mean, honestly,
this might be the best part of this team right now.
You know, it's not great. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (08:25):
I means, you know, like we're I'm talking positive about
the offensive line, but it's not great if this is
the best part of your team.

Speaker 2 (08:30):
Yeah, No, I mean we said it's a Tier three
and then we've all also said, you know, we don't
love building around the offensive line, you know, that's kind
of our that's kind of the staple of this podcast
at this point. But that being said, like at least
it gives you something to build off of, and these
are pretty young players outside of Zeitler, So you know,
I think there is some good things there and like

(08:53):
I said, like you said, yeah, I mean, it doesn't
feel like there's a weakness at least is there a
strength of this group. I don't know. Maybe Zitler outside
of that, I don't know, but it doesn't feel like
there's a weak link of this group for sure.

Speaker 1 (09:05):
Yeah, I agree, And I think that for the for
the rest of the offense, again, they don't have nothing here.
It's not spectacular, but they don't have nothing here. You
have Tony Poward and Tajy Spears, good one to combo
for the running back room again, it's another tier three
for me. Of like that's that should get the job done.
Might not. I don't know if there's a ton of
Tony Poward Titans jerseys out there, but like it gets

(09:29):
a job done. The offensive line again, Calvin Ridley's good.
You didn't have kind of you know, Tyler Lockett. We'll
see what he still has left in the tank at
thirty two years old. You have Van Jefferson. I think
you would like you know, they did draft some players
as well, including uh Ella and you Mayer will never
got his name down, but uh, you know, tight end

(09:51):
another tough name. Let me try this one. Uh uh
ok on co Oh, that's not it.

Speaker 2 (09:59):
How I got a yeah, a conqu.

Speaker 1 (10:03):
A conquo Okay, you know a conquer Yeah? Uh again,
Tier four receivering room. There's some pieces here, like Calvin Ridley.
I still like Tyler Lockett in a specific role, but
like it. You could you would like more here.

Speaker 2 (10:17):
Yeah, I mean the Ridley one was interesting because it
felt like there was a big chase for him last
offseason and the production didn't really felt like it felt
backed up the chase, and then he ended up having
a pretty decent year. Like I don't think he's like
the the high end, upside number one player we saw
before is the suspension a few years ago. I don't
think that guy's there. But there is a version of

(10:38):
him that I think is a good player in the NFL,
and I think he's a you know, a number one receiver,
even if it's a low and number one receiver. So
you have Ridley, you know. I think having a guy
like Lockett at least brings in a veteran presence. I
think that's something that they should cherish. Van Jefferson feels
like he's been on about seven different teams in the
last three years. I don't know what to think of
that one, but yeah, I mean I think that they

(11:02):
they I think if you looked at last season and
like some they made a lot of big moves in
the off season, obviously changing their coach, which was very
controversial with Mike Rabel. They and it looked like they
were all of a sudden gonna tank because they let
Derrick Henry go. Well, they bring in Tony Pollard, Calvin Ridley,
and then a few big names on defense. You could
argue that Tony Pollard and Calvin Ridley were their biggest

(11:23):
hits of last season. Both of those guys ended up
being pretty good for a team that needed some some
offensive firepower.

Speaker 1 (11:30):
Yeah, yeah, I agree. I think that like this team
looks way worse about those guys. Like what we can
talk about somebody's decisions, how it worked. But I think
that they're very much, very happy to have those guys because,
and this is kind of my argument about even if
you don't love your quarterback, it's still good to try
and build around them, because like they try to build
around Will Levis, it doesn't work out. Well, hey, now
you've got a couple guys that can help build around

(11:51):
cam Ward's Like it's still the right strategy.

Speaker 2 (11:55):
Yeah, yeah, a lot of options here. Another one I
like Xavier or Streppo. He caught everything in college. I'm
pretty interested, you know. And he played with cam Ward too,
so maybe they have some chemistry going to this level.
I think they haven't projected as a special teamer right now,
but I wouldn't be surprised if he makes an impact too.

Speaker 1 (12:14):
This is the part of the show where you just
give a complete off the wall shout out to it,
undrafted free agent who, as you said, projected to be
a special teamer right now. We'll see if you nailed
this one.

Speaker 2 (12:23):
Kyle. Hey, look, he was cam Ward's number one guy
last year. You know, if anyone's gonna come into the
summer with a chance to play with cam Ward, it's
going to be that guy.

Speaker 1 (12:33):
Okay, Well we'll see Kyle for the defense Defense show
flashes last year. I think the biggest question I have
secondary wise or just in general, the lugerious need thing.
They went out, They you know, paid him some money.
They trade the third round pick they get him, which
ended up being a pretty valuable pick. Ultimately, he just
you know, did not play well and then got injured.
Are you getting something out of him? You do have

(12:54):
some other corners, Jarvis Brownley Junior, Roger McCrary, So like
getting him back to being Leegerious Needs still just twenty
eight years old. If he can be prime Lagarious Need,
that would mean a lot. Can you expect that to happen? Though?
I don't know Xavior Words, Mike Brown, Moni Hooker, forty safeties.
You have talent there, even Darryl Baker Junior or another

(13:17):
corner that can use. It's it's weird because I don't
love a ton of these guys. I do think at
the very least they shouldn't be awful as long as
they have these players. But I think I'm still leaning
like Tier four, But I'm kind of just out on
Lagarious Need. I think if he can step up, it
could be better than that. So Tier four is where
I'm gonna end on.

Speaker 2 (13:36):
Yeah, it does feel like if Snead can bounce back
to what he was in Kansas City, this is Tier three,
maybe Tier two. But at the same time, it's it's
trending down with him not playing as well. Like you said,
I like a money hooker. I like a couple of
these names on the roster, but there just feels like
too many weak links. And if you're gonna pay a
guy that much money and he's not gonna produce too
at the corner spot, it's just a really tough thing

(13:58):
to overcome. So I agree with you on all that
they definitely need to neeed bounce back season or else
this is gonna be a bad group.

Speaker 1 (14:05):
Yeah, Kyle, you brought up the best part about his
team maybe the offensive line. I kind of think the
best part of this team is the interior defensive line,
with like Devandre Sweat, who was really good in his
role last year. Obviously, Jeffrey Simmons is still there. You
have sebast and Joe Soday. You have Jamont Jones who
kind of plays edge and interior could use some more
help on the edge. I like arden Key a lot

(14:26):
as a rotational guy. I think he's a good number
two guy who they asked to be a number one,
and that I don't know if you love that you
have Lorenzo Carter and Jalen Harrold there. Don't love this
pass rush stuff. Even with what Jeffrey Simmons brings on
the interior, I guess with Simmons and Key, I'll give
it Tier four pass rush and then tier two run

(14:47):
defense for me.

Speaker 2 (14:48):
Yeah, the interior is very good. I agree, and I mean, honestly,
Jeffrey Simmons is Jeffery Simmons is the best player on
this team, so he's gonna he's gonna lift anything. And
he already has good teammates next to him interior defensive line,
so there is something at least to build with there.
But it's just gonna be hard, like, especially if their
corners aren't good next season and they can't get to

(15:09):
the quarterback because this pass rush group isn't that good,
then you know it's Jeffrey Simmons versus the world, and
I just you know you're not gonna win a lot
of battles that way in football, even if Simmons is
as awesome as he is.

Speaker 1 (15:20):
Yeah. So, ultimately, Kyle, there's things I like about this team.
I'm excited to see what they do. My expectation is
four and twelve coming into this year, they could have
surpassed that. If you know, the camboard thing that can
change everything but as of right now, I think they'll
win some games. I don't think they'll be the worst
team in football this next year. But I still think
this is a work in progress.

Speaker 2 (15:40):
Yeah, four and thirteen? You mean right?

Speaker 1 (15:43):
What did I say?

Speaker 2 (15:44):
Four and twelve?

Speaker 1 (15:45):
Okay, yes, for first second, I was word I said
fourteen to three. Yes, that's what I meant. I should
I have my notes four and thirteen. I just said
the wrong thing.

Speaker 2 (15:56):
It's all good. Yeah, I think I agree with that.
A slight step forward next season feels appropriate. And like
I said, as long as Kim Ward isn't like doing
Will Levis things, I think that they should win a
couple more games just by default there are This is
not the worst team I've ever seen. That like coming
off a team that was number one pick in it
won two games last season. This is not the worst

(16:17):
roster in the world. I think that there is steps,
There are things here that you can get excited about,
and Cam Ward could be a very exciting player. So
I think all that put together has me excited for
the Titans, but I still think it's a multi year
project before we can get really excited.

Speaker 1 (16:32):
Yeah, how do you think Cam Woard's gonna do az,
let's finish there, because like he was so electric in college,
but he definitely would have hit. You can hear him
to Kyler Murray, a guy who will make big plays,
but also will you know, he will make the occasional
Will Levis play. What do you think is gonna happen
right away?

Speaker 2 (16:49):
Yeah, I mean it's just that, like I think a
lot of these I think a lot of scouting lately
for quarterbacks now has really valued the escapability and extended
play off script stuff that cam Ward was better than
anybody at in college last season. I mean, he was
fantastic at it. So he has that sort of skill

(17:11):
set that he could apply to the game. But the
problem is is that what you do in college. I
just feel like in general, when we see those guys
in college succeed, it doesn't necessarily translate to the NFL
as easily as people think. Because guys are faster, guys
are smarter, all that kind of thing. So how is
that all going to look? Because like, whenever he wanted to,

(17:32):
he could just he didn't even tuck the ball because
he's just he had that kind of confidence. He would
just run with it in his hand, like this. He
didn't even tuck the ball, but he would just take
off and run and then he was such a good athlete,
do not run everybody. Is he gonna do that in
the NFL? I don't know. I don't think he's that
level of speed, So how is that all going to translate? Like,
I wouldn't be surprised if it takes a year or

(17:53):
two for him to kind of speed up to the
NFL game and catch up to it to be able
to do the things that he did amazingly in college.
But I also could see it working because he is
a great athlete. He has a great throwing ability, and
he could play off script. That's just something that just
can't be taught.

Speaker 1 (18:08):
Yeah, let's guess the percentages, Kyle. How many people do
you think went out on a limb and predicted the
Tennessee Titans to win the AFC South Three? Yep, you
nailed it. Three percent onto my that is fourth in
the poll.

Speaker 2 (18:22):
All right, I didn't cheat, I promise.

Speaker 1 (18:25):
I don't know. Maybe you've gotten this a couple of times,
maybe you've been looking.

Speaker 2 (18:30):
I don't prepare enough for this podcast.

Speaker 1 (18:32):
Yeah, that's that's that's very true. By the way, that
you're always, you know, entering at six oh one on
the thing. I doubt that you're spending some of that
precious time looking at the pole.

Speaker 2 (18:44):
To be fair, you sent me the invite today at
six pm.

Speaker 1 (18:48):
Yeah, that's listen. I'm not saying that I'm any better.
I'm just saying that's that's how we are.

Speaker 2 (18:53):
Yeah, exactly fair enough.

Speaker 1 (18:56):
Yeah, Kyle. Three teams remaining, Jaguars, Cults, and Texans. Let's
get into it. Who do you have finishing third in
the AFC South.

Speaker 2 (19:04):
Yeah. I think this is the biggest debate of this podcast, right.
I think two and three is definitely where you probably
are looking at the most back and forth. And I'm
still kind of going back and forth in my head
a little bit. And I'm gonna get a little ballsy,
I guess, and pick the Indianapolis Colts for number three.
I don't know if this is conventional. I don't know

(19:25):
what people are picking on this side. There is a
world where the Indianapolis Colts I think can actually be
pretty good next season. Like, I think they got offensive playmakers.
They added to their offensive playmakers. But Tyler Warren, this
is a good offensive line. You know, this has good
pieces on defense. I think there's a case for it,

(19:48):
but it just felt like everything went around last season
because we don't have a solidified solution at quarterback. So
what do they do. They go get Daniel Jones. He's
the backup quarterback now. They want that security blanket. So
it does in't de real the entire season. But I
don't know if I trust either of these guys. Do
I trust Daniel Jones as much as Anthony Richardson or not?

(20:08):
Can we see that Anthony richardson ability finally be harnessed.
All of it kind of goes into a question marks
that I don't know, And that's why I have the
Colts three. Yeah, I just think it's a I think
there's a case for it, but I also think it's
a long shot. Still.

Speaker 1 (20:27):
Yeah, I mean like it's fair. Listen, we talked about
the two most important people on in the organization is
always the head coach and the quarterback. And I like
change s Tiken. He's a Tier three head coach for me.
I think that he's done some nice things. I ultimately
think that his real talent has been getting teams that
probably shouldn't be close to the playoffs and getting them
close to the playoffs but still not getting in, which

(20:48):
I don't know how much value to isn't that, but
that's what we'veeen him be able to do so far.
But yeah, it's a Tier five quarterback room right now.
I mean you have a cast off in Daniel Jones,
and you have Anthony Richardson who just through two seasons
has straight up played poorly and was a big part
of why the Colts did not make the playoffs last season.
And also we can't stay healthy on top of it.

(21:09):
So I think Daniel Jones has potentially be more than
Tier five if he plays, and I guess Richardson does too.
But like, if they're gonna get bad quarterback play again,
you know, if it's another Richardson situation, if even if
it's just another Gardner Minshew situation, Like, no matter how
good everything else is, this team's ceiling is being a
bubble playoff team once again.

Speaker 2 (21:29):
Yeah, and I do think Daniel Jones could be Tier
four quarterback play next season. And that's probably where you
talk yourself into the Colts being in that fringe playoff
spot in a wildcard competition again because they got tier
you know, they got Tier six quarterback play when Anthony
Richardson went out and Anthony Richardson wasn't even good at
the same time, so throwing all that together, they need

(21:52):
to have some sort of situation here. And maybe it
is Daniel Jones, maybe he's just a security blanket, but man,
the Anthony Richardson thing is fascinating. I don't know if
I've ever seen a quarterback like this. I mean, like,
we have seen guys like I'm trying to think off
the top of my head, JaMarcus Russell, with all the
talent in the world, who clearly didn't have football on

(22:15):
his mind all the time, right. I think Anthony Richardson cares,
like despite the taking himself out because of the injury,
you know, tired thing like, I think he cares, and
I think you see him play, and I think when
he makes some throws, it's like, wow, he may be
the only person on the planet that could make that throw.
But there's also a lot of things that he makes
look very difficult, and he's played fifteen games through two years,

(22:39):
and it's just hard to see. It's I've never seen
someone make the difficult things look so easy and make
the easy things look so difficult in my life and
I just don't know how you how you fix that?
How is that a fixable thing for a head coach?

Speaker 1 (22:55):
Yeah, I mean again, Josh Allen is the guy who
he's been compared to Josh Dowlan had a lot of
technique issues that they were able to fix, and I
think that's maybe, Like again, is that the case of Bridgington.
I don't know, but yeah, like I said, only fifteen games.
He is still twenty three. But like ultimately, like you
can't you can't spend forever on someone like him. So

(23:16):
if he doesn't play well this year, it's over. He's
a total make or break this year.

Speaker 2 (23:20):
Definitely make a break. And he's got to find a
way to stay healthy. I mean, like, even if he
gets hurt, Like I think it's a make or break thing.
You know, he's got to show some.

Speaker 1 (23:29):
Best part of the issue is he keeps getting hurt.

Speaker 2 (23:31):
Yeah, so he's got to show some flashes of development
consistency because you know, throw throwing eighty yard touchdowns off
your back foot is awesome, but you're gonna do that
once maybe a year. You know, you have to do
the simple things. You have to convert third Downs. You
have to put yourself in your team in positions to win.
Outside of making just these physically jaw dropping plays, good.

Speaker 1 (23:55):
News for the Colts. A lot of good weapons here. First,
you have Jonathan Taylor, who uhs a running back who
I really like. Uh, you know, a PFF hates him.
They always have him a fully low grades. I think
it's good. I watch him play. I I think he's
pretty good. Well, yeah, there there is that, especially in
that big moment, uh trying to make the playoffs two
years ago. But Khalil Herbert should be a good change

(24:18):
of pace back as well as the number two guy.
And for the weapons, I mean, like, listen, maybe you
don't have a superstar here, but like, uh, but you
have Michael Pittman Junior who's been a pretty effective number one,
Alec Pierce, Josh Downs, and Adonni Mitchell, who I'd like
to see a little bit more out of this year.
But like still as a player can who can play
Like I don't know, I think this is uh probably

(24:38):
I'll go tier three receiving room and tier two running
back of room, Like this is this is solid stuff,
if not just outright good stuff.

Speaker 2 (24:46):
Yeah, I think it is solid stuff. I don't know
what happened to Michael Pittman last season, but I'd like
to see him come back, because that guy is freaking
good when he's at his best. I really liked him
a couple of years ago. I think, you know, the
quarterback thing could play a big part, but I thought
he also struggled on his own right sometimes. I don't
think you could just all say, well, my quarterbacks stunk
on all of those plays, because we've seen better receivers

(25:09):
come up with lesser support around him. You know, I
think he's a good receiver. I think he's got talent.
I want to see a bounce back season. You also
add Tyler Warren to this group, who I just thought
was the perfect first round pick for them. He's a
unique tight end who you know, they did a lot
of Brock Bowers like stuff with him at Penn State,
even though he's not the brock Bauers athlete. I think
he's a pretty good athlete. I think he's got good hands.

(25:31):
I think he run routes. I think he do all
these different things. I'm excited to see him in year
one two. And then you mentioned Taylor, who's been the
Belcal for a number of years. So yeah, I mean
there are a lot of interesting you know, there are
four to five interesting pieces at least on this offensive
skill position group to where you could talk yourself into
the Colts.

Speaker 1 (25:50):
Yeah, and of course offensive line, which has been at
times the heart and soul of this team. I'm not
sure if I go quite that far with the five
that they should be thrown out there this year. But
still Bernard Raymond Aiden Smith, that's a very good tackle combination.
You have Quenton Nelson, who's still Quinton Nelson. You know,
Matt gun Collins as one of the guards who's slated

(26:10):
to play. Also Tanner Bortonoli it's maybe how you say
his name, who has looked fine in a very small
sample size. He should be their center. Only played around
three hundred and fifty snaps, looked all right there, So
a couple question marks there with him and Colls as
the kind of the two other slots. But ultimately I

(26:31):
still think there's a lot of good stuff here. I'm
still gonna go Tier two offensive line for Nicoles. It's
a good offense outside of quarterback, it is.

Speaker 2 (26:39):
There's a lot of talent. This offensive line is good. Still,
they did lose two starters, so that is obviously a big,
you know, big you know question mark. But like you said,
those guys in smaller samples have played well and this
team always just seems to churn out offensive lineman, so
I'm not too worried about it. But yeah, I mean
it starts with Raymond and Nelson on that left side.
That is a that's a legit one two punch, and

(27:01):
then the other guys just have to do their job.
So yeah, I mean it's the offense. You you would
look at you everything we just said about this offense,
you would look at this offense and say, that's a
playoff caliber offense. But then the guy at the quarterback
is gonna change that. That changes everything immediately. That's why
it's the most important position in football, and they haven't
been able to capitalize on this.

Speaker 1 (27:21):
But it's also a little bit like, uh, but other
than that, miss Lincoln, how was to play? Right? Like,
the quarterback is what matters?

Speaker 2 (27:29):
Yes, yeah, yeah. You can't have a you know, you
can't have a band without a lead singer, right, And
that's that's kind of where that's where the Colts feel
like they're at right now with this offense.

Speaker 1 (27:40):
Yeah. As for the defense, which are gonna spend effective
these past few seasons, a lot of just players who
am interested in seeing what happens. Like for the quarnerback position,
you have Kenny Moore, you have Jalen Jones and Samuel
Womnack the third. You also have Travavi's Ward in there,
who I'm interested in seeing if he can have a
bounce back year because he's had some you know, knock

(28:01):
him off his best year in San Francisco, but he's
had some good years in San Francisco. If he can
be you know, kind of prime Shaavias Award, this could
be a really good secondary Cameron buying him Nit Cross
for a safety duo. Again, they have depth here. I
think they could have some stars as well, just a
couple of question marks, just again with the Ward's help,
and how is he going to bounce back and again

(28:23):
knock going off his best year, But it should be
pretty good even if he's not great. So I think
I'm gonna go Tier two and you could probably talk
me into Tier one coverage here.

Speaker 2 (28:33):
There's a case for it. I think that there was
an issue of this team, despite on paper being talented
I think that they were soft at times last year,
and I think they were called out for it. I
think Kenny Moore even had some quotes about you know,
guys needing to be there ready to play, and I

(28:54):
want to see that bounce back. Like there is talented
players on this defense. This secondary should be really good.
I think it's super talented. As you mentioned, it could
be a Tier one group. And then yeah, the TV
adding a guy like Ward though, is a huge thing
because it wasn't a great year for him last season. Obviously,
there was a whole lot of tragedy that played a
part in that. So I'm thinking.

Speaker 1 (29:16):
I keep misremembering he wasn't injured, it was it was
the tragedy thing. Yeah, thanks for clarifying.

Speaker 2 (29:21):
Yeah, yeah, no problem. So yeah, I just think that
it's going to be a thing that, like I'm expecting
it bounce back season for him. I still think he's
a very good player. I couldn't imagine having to play
in those circumstances. So yeah, I think that is a
huge that's a huge walle card though. You know, if
he is good, I think this could be a very
good group for sure.

Speaker 1 (29:39):
Also key Ran saying Kyle not aware of instrumental brands.
Instrumental bands. Excuse me, Oh yeah, all those great instrumental
bands that are selling out arenas. Yeah, all those those
ones are fantastic.

Speaker 2 (29:50):
Yeah, I'm sure that's exactly what everyone immediately goes to
in those situations.

Speaker 1 (29:56):
Yeah, all those you're constantly listening to instrumental bands.

Speaker 2 (30:00):
I sure, and that's for sure.

Speaker 1 (30:03):
Yeah, exactly. Kyle defensive line, So first you have lay
you a lot to in Quidy Pay, who are like
two great like analytics starlings that you want to see
kind of finally showing on the stat sheet a little
bit more. We'll see if they can do that. At
the edge position, you also have Taekwon Lewis, so again
analytics like these guys. We'll we'll see a little bit more.
But DeForrest Buckner, who we all know what he is.

(30:25):
Gerver Stewart another really good INTI your guy. Even Neville
Galmour can be a good depth piece in the interior.
As for the linebacker, you have Zayer Franklin, who is
you know, uh sort of a guy does a great
job racking up tackles uh for the Indianapolis Colts. I
think it's a fine player. And then yeah, I mean,

(30:45):
you know, we'll see who ends up being the other
off ball linebacker. But again, I like this. I think
there's a lot of good players here. I'll go, I'll go,
I'll go. Tier two's for both. I think that there's
good stuff here for both on defense, Sam pass.

Speaker 2 (30:57):
Rush, Yeah, I agree with that. I mean, DeForest Buckner
continues to be awesome. Like you said, lat too and
pay should be very good. And then J. T. Tuomolao
is another interesting player I think too, former high school stud.
I think he could be very I think he could
be very good. So yeah, I like this group overall.
Good front seven, even if it's a little unspectacular. I

(31:20):
think it's a good front center front.

Speaker 1 (31:22):
I have to point out there's now a war going
on in the comment section between you and key Ran
about the metaphor.

Speaker 2 (31:31):
It's okay, he can win that battle. I don't know
if instrumental bands do exist, but I guess I guess
we should just acknowledge those and say that it was
a bad comparison. You know, immediately when I say bands,
everyone just thinks of instrumental bands. I know.

Speaker 1 (31:48):
You don't have, Kyle, You're not forgiven.

Speaker 2 (31:51):
Yeah, it's okay. You know this is my best podcast work.
I'll admit, Kyle.

Speaker 1 (31:56):
This team feels like more the same for me. I'm
going like eight to nine for this whole team. It
feels like they're once again gonna be a bubble playoff team,
like I think we're gonna be when I do my
late in the season. You know where every team is
at playoff wise thing. I think I'm gonna be talking
about them. They're gonna be uh prime contender of the
d the Hunt graphic. In fact, I'm gonna bet right
now they are one gonna be in the in the

(32:19):
Hunting graphic. But I just don't know if this team's
gonna do more that this feels like what this team
is at right now.

Speaker 2 (32:26):
Uh, I mean I think that's the case. I mean,
like until you get that quarterback thing figured out, Like, yeah,
I don't know. I think eight nine probably feels right.
They're probably gonna win games that they should win or
shouldn't win, and or sorry, they're gonna lose games that
they should win. Basically because of that situation, I continue
to say, I don't think this is that bad of
a football team. They were basically middle of the pack

(32:48):
in DVLA DVOA last season. There is a case that
this team could be a lot better with just one
positional change or one positional upgrade. And you know what,
I still think any Richardson is young enough that he
makes that leap and can make this team more competitive, because,
as he said, like, there are good receivers on this team,
this is a great offensive line. Historically, year after year,

(33:08):
this has good defensive players across the board. We said
tier three, tier two, tier three, tier two, all that
kind of stuff. This team. If this team had anything
else at quarterback, they would probably be a ten win
team in consistent playoff performance. But they just don't have it.

Speaker 1 (33:22):
Yeah, we have someone in the chat saying, do you
think Dale Jones is gonna have a career year on
a new team? Listen, long list of guys who have
had a career year right after leaving the Giants, right, Like,
that's not the craziest thing in the world to say,
could happen. I guess. The thing though, was like, even
if they get decent quarterback play, I think again that
puts them in playoff contention. But I still don't know,

(33:42):
like what that does unless we get a full Sam
Darnold like resurgence with Dale Jones.

Speaker 2 (33:50):
Yeah, that would have to be the case for them
making a run or at least, you know, getting to
the double jup. Wan. So it still feels like a lot.
It's not something I want. I'm willing to bet on
right now. So yeah, we'll give it one more year
for the Colts and you know, maybe Anthony Richards or
Daniel Jones will surprise us.

Speaker 1 (34:09):
Okay, Kyle, Well, we have finished half of the AFC South,
which means we only have half of the AFC South left.
I know, it's very disappointing. Kyle, jaguars in text. Oh wait,
I have to do to real quick just the the
percentage of people who have the Colts. Do you want
to guess the percentage?

Speaker 2 (34:27):
Like nine percent?

Speaker 1 (34:28):
You're high? Only five percent? Only five percent have the Colts. Yes,
that is third. So the you know, fan base is
also low on the Colts.

Speaker 2 (34:38):
Yeah, I mean I could see it. I mean I
see the case for it. I mean, if you if
you're not sold on the quarterback, it's never going to happen.

Speaker 1 (34:44):
Yeah. Well, of course you see the case. I mean
you agree with it. You also put them third?

Speaker 2 (34:47):
Yeah, I did, Yeah, so yeah, that brings us number two.
Though in the AFC South, I did feel like this
is pretty straightforward. It does feel like it's the Jacksonville
Jaguars here. I think two and three more of a
debate than one, two and three or anything beyond that.
I think four and one we're pretty locked in for
this division. The Jaguars are a different thing where we

(35:09):
know who their quarterback is, but we're still not entirely
sure if he's good. Another guy who's shown some flashes
of real potential Trevor Lawrence, former top overall pick. And
then also, like you know, even the Trevor Lawrence defenders
I think had to take a step back last season
and say we're just not getting enough from this guy
for what we want to see. I think he had
some real problems last season. I think he played some

(35:31):
of his worst football since his rookie year last year.
I think there is things that definitely need to develop
in this game, and I think if it does, this
is another team that could be kind of good. Because
it is interesting. They make the big move in getting
Travis Hunter into this team, Travis Hunter Slotson as the
number two receiver because their rookie last season, Brian Thomas

(35:51):
Junior was really good. He also slots in as a
cornerback next to Tyson Campbell, who is shown to be
a very very good corner in the NFL as well.
That could be a dynamic there as well. There is
a lot of things to like about this across the board.
Good defensive players, a lot of good offensive players. Not
a great offensive line, but there is something there. And yeah,
it just comes down to can we get a good

(36:12):
version of Lawrence? And what is this Jaguars seem going
to be?

Speaker 1 (36:16):
Yeah, I mean the big thing is, again, two most
important people in the organization. The big question you have
to have with both of them is they're just complete
unknowns right now. Liam Cohen is unknown because it's his
first time being a head coach and he was an
awesome offensive coordinator last year with Tampa Bay. But again,
how would that translate to the other side of being
a head coach. A lot of guys have been great

(36:37):
coordinators haven't been great head coaches. We'll see if that
happens with him. Also, Trevor Lawrence, who has had good
stretches in the NFL like he had like a I
don't know, a seven to eight week stretch where he
looked like he had put it all together and was
the kind of the guy that we thought he was
gonna be. He's also had stretches where he just hasn't
looked like that, and so we just have to kind

(36:58):
of wait and see with both of these guys. And
that's kind of why the Jaguars are such a difficult
team to talk about. I'm gonna end up going Tier
four for both of those right now, just because of
an unknown factor. But like that's why this is a
team that could end up if everything goes well, massively
exceed expectations.

Speaker 2 (37:14):
Yeah, if if you looked at the resume for Liam
Cohen in the last couple of years, you completely understand
why the Jaguars were pretty hell bent on getting him
in the building. He has done very good job with
rebuilding some quarterbacks, fixing some things, improving these quarterbacks and
helping them take the next step. They bring him in
here and his number one job is fixing Trumper Lawrens because,

(37:34):
like we said, there's been some struggles lately. It hasn't
really come together like they were hoping, but there's enough
flashes to still get excited. He did get a contract
for a reason, and whether or not he lives up
to that, it's going to come down to this season
and maybe next season he gets another chance. So Liam
Cohen has to fix that. That's his number one job
and he's The good news is that is something he
is capable of doing, because he's proven at multiple stops

(37:57):
now that he can't do it. It's still not an
easy saying. Not every quarterback can be fixed, but can
he do it with Trevor Lawrence? I think there is
potential for it. That is what you're gonna be looking
for for Liam Cohen. You're not gonna be worried about
much else beyond that, even though I do think that
you're excited about other parts of this team if they
can come together as well.

Speaker 1 (38:16):
Yeah, I think that. You know, with Liam Cohen, one
thing he did a very good job of last year
was utilizing all the offensive pieces that Tampa Bay had,
you know, especially early on the year when it had
Evans and Godwin was able to make adjustments when they
didn't have those guys here. Like you said, should have
a lot of weapons. I mean, Brian Thomas Junior was
awesome as a rookie Travis Hunter will play receiver. It

(38:38):
looks like the plan is to have him played both
receiver and corner, which we'll see what happens. I I
have no idea how that's gonna go exactly, but as
of right now, it seems like they're more they're viewing
him as a receiver first and then with some corner
stuff on the side that should help. He should be
really good. He was really dynamic in college. And then
also Dinnie Brown, who I think was kind of an

(38:58):
underrated pickup. I think he's prett good for tight ends.
You have a few guys who I'm not sure who
the number one is, Hunter, Long, Johnny Mount, Brenton Strange.
They'll all get some snaps, I'm assuming, but like, yeah,
I mean, this is again a I'm gonna stick with
Tier three receiving room for now because of you know,
Hunter is a complete unknown. We don't even know if

(39:19):
we end up playing receiver by the end of the year.
But like, there's also real potential for this to be
better than Tier three.

Speaker 2 (39:26):
Absolutely there is potential for it. And if Travis Hunter
is a star, which he has the potential to be,
this will be better than Tier three because him and
Brian Thomas Junior will go a long way to fixing
any weaknesses on this team as far as the offensive
skill position goes. So I definitely think there's potential for that.
Travis Hunter has so much talent. I think he's just
as capable as a receiver as a corner. Can you

(39:47):
handle the stamina? He's proven it time and time again
he can. I see no reason why he can, at
least in some capacity, dude in the NFL level. And
Brian Thomas Jr. Was awesome last season, so I can't
hate it all. Janny Brown, like you said, it was
very good. They have some depth options. I kind of
like Parker Washington too, like there's pieces there even though
it's all imperfect, but there is a there is a

(40:09):
decent core you at least can talk yourself into. And
like I said, if those two guys at the top
are elite, then you know it may not matter what
the depth is.

Speaker 1 (40:19):
Yeah, Kyle, this is a look about the offensive line now,
so there is some you know, some not ideal spots
with this offensive line. I don't think it's the worst
Jaguars offensive line we've seen in recent years, but Anton Harrison,
who was a first round Pickquine ever really was crazy about.
But it's been okay in the NFL Walker Little again,

(40:40):
you know, solid, it's not the worst tackle tandem in
the world. The center thing is weird. They went out
and signed Robert Hainsey, who was a backup center for
Tampa Bay that they felt like they needed to draft
a center in the first round to replace, and now
Jacksonville went out and gave him a little bit of
money to be a starting center. I'm not exactly sure
what's going on. They he's not the worst in the world,

(41:00):
but he just he feels like a backup center. You
also to have Ertz of Cleveland and Patrick McCarry as
the other two guards to again it's fine. So like
it's a group of guys who I think are fine
and then one spot that isn't great. I think per
four feels fair for that, right, like no real star
and then you do have a weak spot, but also

(41:22):
like that you can certainly work with that.

Speaker 2 (41:25):
Yeah, it's not the worst. It's not the worst situation, right,
And you know, Anton Harrison took a big lead forward
next season. Could he take another leap forward in year three?
And then all of a sudden become a very good
offensive tackle that would at least give you something to
build around too. So there is a case for that,
but at the same time, it just feels like it's
a no week links group and not like a you know,
you're not excited about any particular player.

Speaker 1 (41:48):
Yeah, you know who else we're maybe not excited about,
but maybe could be is Traves y d n who
I mean, there's no doub about he was bad last year, right,
he like, it wasn't a good situation for him. It
didn't look good. He had three point seven yards per
carry when he played, and he also had three point
eight the year before, But the first year he played,
which remember wasn't his rookie year, he had five point

(42:09):
one yards per carry. He has shown flashes and you again,
running backs, what injury can can make or break you.
But ultimately you're in a situation now with Liam Cohen,
who does scheme up some pretty pretty good stuff. You
saw how you know it look how Bucky Irving looked
last year. I think a lot of that was Bucky Irving,
but also Cohen certainly helped with that. You also have

(42:30):
Tank Bigsby as a good change of pace back. I
don't know what to make of this. I'm gonna go
Tier four just because I still thought there is potential
for Travis Etn, but also like that there is potential
for this to this not work.

Speaker 2 (42:43):
Yeah, this twenty twenty one draft, looking back at it,
it has become so interesting for Jacksonville, right because it
felt like they were really trying to change the franchise,
getting those two Clemson guys, getting Lawrence and getting Etn,
and you see it continues to be you see like
moments of why they took those two guys in the
first round, but then you also just see some pure

(43:03):
moments of frustration. So it's gonna be very interesting to
see if those guys can actually like turn into something
or is it just gonna be a consistently inconsistent group.
I like Tank Bisbee, though you know I think he could.
I wouldn't be a surprised if Etn stumbles out of
the gate again, if Bigsby is starting full time later
in the season.

Speaker 1 (43:23):
Yeah maybe. I mean, I guess the question about Bigsby
is just like we've seen it happen, where these like
these change of pace backs look so good when they're
out there. But then when like now you're out there
for every snap, can you can you still make it work?

Speaker 2 (43:36):
His name's Tank, He'll be fine.

Speaker 1 (43:38):
You're right, You're right. What am I saying? Yes, you're correct.
Let's move on to the defense, Kyle. You know a
lot of questions were like, why are you putting Travis
Hunter as a receiver who's gonna play some corner snaps.
I think part of it is just to have depth here.
You have Tyson Campbell and Jaren Jones. We also have
Jordan Lewis, you have Monttrak Brown, and then for the
safety is Eric Murray. And they could probably use another,

(44:02):
uh maybe use another safety here with Antonio Johnson and
Donald Savage probably competing for the other starting job, but
but all them, Like again, there's depth here is therty star.
Tyson Cable has been a star. He's a corner, so
he's been up and down because that's how corners played.
But you know, I think he's a valuable piece. And
there is the Travis Hunter X factor. So I'll go

(44:22):
tier two coverage unit for this Jaguars team.

Speaker 2 (44:25):
I like it. I like it a lot. Tyson Campbell
I definitely think he had a step back last season,
but I still think there is a talent. I think
he's pretty underrated still, And yeah, I really like this
group across the board. I agree. And then you know,
just the threat of having Hunter being able to deploy
out there and do some things. I think it's gonna
be very interesting to see how it plays out this year.

(44:45):
So I'm a fan of it, and I'm I'm pretty
excited to see what they do with him and how
much he actually plays some defensive side of the ball, because,
like you said, they do have starting caliber options.

Speaker 1 (44:55):
Yeah, the flip side is so for the front seven,
I prepperich like everything except for the interior, Like the
I don't know if like Dwayne Smoot is gonna have
to have is he gonna have to play more than
three hundred snaps? Are we getting another like Devon Hamilton
had six hundred over six hundred snaps last year. That's
not why you want to use a guy like Devon
Hamilton as like a number one interior guy. But they
might have to once again, uh, in this situation. The

(45:20):
you know, everyone thought that they were gonna draft Mason
Graham last draft with the fifth overall pick because of
how they need to help out there, and I was
just because it's good. They have some really good stuff
on around it. Though. Our guy Travon Walker, who hey
look at him, he's turned into a pretty solid player.
Uh Josh heinz Allen who's always been a great player.

(45:41):
Eric Armstead as well, who maybe you shift him back inside,
I don't know. Also Manuel Ogba is still hanging around.
We'll see if you can get anything out of him.
And then you know, Devin Lloyd, uh foystaide alucon as
the interior U linebackers here for this team. So like again,
I'm concerned about the interior. Because of that, I'm gonna
go tier four run defense. Were like the pass rush,

(46:04):
I'll go I don't know, I don't know. I think
I'm still gonna go Tier three pass rush though, just
because a you know, I'm a Travon Walker hater, so
I have to be cold on that and also be
I don't think you're getting much from the inside. So
because of that, that's the real reason I think tier
three pass rush, tier four run defense. But then get
some kind of interior. This could be way better.

Speaker 2 (46:27):
Yeah, there's a case for it, and they have options,
Like you said, they can move Armstead back inside. They
can move Walker inside honestly too, he has that physical capability.
So they have some options there. They have Josh Heinz
Allen obviously, and look, I mean like arms Stein and
Walker kind of combined create a pretty good number two
option to Josh Allen, right like, So they at least

(46:49):
have that, And yeah, I can't hate it. Would I
like a little more of a run stuff and guy
mixed in, Yes, But at least they have some good
pieces there and I can't hate that.

Speaker 1 (46:58):
So as for my prediction, I am also going to
give them eight to nine, like I have the Colts.
I do think I'll give the Colts number two in
my rankings, though I think I'll go Jaguars three, even
though at the same record, I just feel like there's
too much question marks with Jacksonville. I agree though, that
the ceiling of the Jaguars is easily the second highest
in this division.

Speaker 2 (47:19):
So if Trevor Lawrence think of what you think could
be the best version of Trevor Lawrence in the best
version of Anthony Richardson next season, which team do you
think would finish better the Jaguars are the Colts? Well,
I think there is a big difference between the best
version of Anthony Richardson and the best version of.

Speaker 1 (47:39):
Of Trevor Lawrence. But if they both, I guess if
Trevor Lawrence gives you slightly better quarterback play, I still
think I lean Colts. If Trevor Lawrence gives you significantly
better quarterback play, then I would lean Jaguars. Which could happen.

Speaker 2 (47:54):
Yeah, I see all scenarios on the board. I do
think these two teams are really close, and they're built
a little differently, so it makes it fun. But yeah,
I think that is I think those two guys that
think will define both of these teams a lot.

Speaker 1 (48:08):
Yeah, yeah, I agree. And again, what are we getting
out Travis Hunter this year? Right? And like what if
Danane Jones comes in? It can be or four quarterback play,
that could be something. I don't know. I'm just picking
what I think is the most likely outcome, and I
have no idea how to do it. With the Jaguars,
They're one of those teams where you're just kind of guessing.

Speaker 2 (48:28):
I think the Jaguars themselves are guessing all the time too.
It doesn't seem like they always have to plan.

Speaker 1 (48:33):
Hey, but it's a new world, no, Chen Balky, that
is true.

Speaker 2 (48:37):
It is a new era in Jacksonville. We should all
be excited, Kyle.

Speaker 1 (48:41):
We thought we were entering the new Oh wait, first,
let's do the pole. So the Jaguars finished second in
the poll. What percentage you think they got a little
bit low again or a little bit low this time?
Twelve percent said the Jaguars, So they actually had a
nice showing in the community notes the pole. Twelve percent
felt like they would win. But that means by far

(49:02):
and away the most the biggest landside we've had so far.
The Houston Texans end up with seventy eight percent, and again,
part of it just the other three teams in your division.
But ultimately, people are people are expecting the Texans to
win this division once again, as are you.

Speaker 2 (49:19):
Kyle.

Speaker 1 (49:21):
We don't have to expl go to do with detl
because we kind of get it. But why don't you
explain why you gave them number one? Yeah?

Speaker 2 (49:27):
I still think they are rightfully the favorites of the
AFC South. They are the one team that you expect
to make the playoffs this season. I was, you know,
I felt like I was down on the Texans compared
to others because I had such high expectations and it
felt like it just never really reached that point. I
think this defense is really really good. They got one

(49:48):
of the best young corner duos in the NFL, if
not the best just straight corner duo in the NFL.
I think that leaves it. I think they got a
great ed rush duo. When you have a great corner
duo and edge rush duo, you're doing a good thing.
I think that is the trademark of the Texans right
now and that defense. They should be very good there.
And yeah, I thought I thought the offense was a

(50:10):
little frustrating at times last season. I don't think this
is all a CJ. Stroud thing. I think CJ. Stroud
looked a lot like rookie CJ. Stroud. I question if
they can actually make that leap and if Damika Ryans
could make that leap because there were some frustrating things
and I think they played it safe too many times
to really compete for Super Bowls or really like take
the next step. So I do have questions for the Texans,

(50:32):
but I think they are going to be a ten
to twelve win team again.

Speaker 1 (50:35):
Yeah, I mean like, I agree. I think the question
for Texans is not will they be good next year?
The question is can they be great? And you know,
you have CJ. Stroud, who was like a tier two
quarterback in year one, and it's like, oh my goodness,
where's this guy gonna end up in his career? Year
two comes around and it's basically just a tier two
quarterback again, which sometimes happens with players like Herbert's kind

(50:57):
of had that where he was awesome as a rookie
and then just stayed like that level for his whole career.
So far, I still think he shoud's very good and
there still are ways you can improve his game. We
haven't seen that before as well. I also like Dmiko
Ryan's Pier three head coach. For me, you know, it's
like these are these are good aspects of the organization
and kind of why we feel high about the Texans

(51:19):
is because of those two guys. But I don't think
there is room for improvement with both of them.

Speaker 2 (51:23):
There's definitely room for improvement. I think you said Shrub,
I think people were down down on in last year
compared to his first year because the expectations are that
much higher, not necessarily his performance because I do think,
like I said, I think it was very similar, but
you do want to see a leap eventually, and granted,
you know, not not everything is necessarily you know, not

(51:45):
everybody progresses or regresses the same. You know, it's not
all binary, Like he could get better next season and
could be year four he takes another leap. But at
the very least, you have a good quarterback situation for
the next few years. And he is going to be
a good quarterback I think for the next foreseeable future.
So you have that in Houston and then Namika Ryan's
thing like, look, I criticized him at times last season,

(52:08):
but like as far as stutting the culture at this team,
where this franchise it felt like year off the year
was just changing coaches. He comes in and stabilizes this
organization pretty quickly, turns them around almost immediately. I think
all of that stuff is a pretty underrated aspect. I
think those are things he's good at. I just want
to see him not coach games like a defensive coordinator sometimes.

(52:29):
I think he's got to be willing to let his
young quarterback do things and put his trust in him.

Speaker 1 (52:35):
Yeah, I agree, I think one interesting aspect of this
team is the receiving corps. Who you have Tank Dell
who had the injury, and Outers he's had another surgery,
and I don't I'm not expecting really to get anything
from Tank Dell this year, which sucks. Hopefully I'm wrong
and hopefully we do get to see him play. Nico
Collins is a top ten receiver in football. He is well,
you know, the joke is that there's thirty top ten

(52:57):
receivers in football and that every team's number one receiver
is underrated by their own you know, that's what the
own fan base will say. But Nico Collins is underrated
and is the top ten receiver in football, Like, he's
really good. You also, they added Christian Kirk, which is
an interesting kind of underrated move and interesting seeing how
that will go. Also drafting Jayden Higgins, they add jyll

(53:17):
and Nole. You still have John Metchi there, and not
to mention Dalton Schultz, who should be a good receiving
option as well. Kyle, I still like this receiving corps
even without Tank Dell. I'm still gonna go Tier two
for it.

Speaker 2 (53:28):
Yeah, I mean, it's it's really good. I would love
to see it with Tank Dell because at times you
just saw the flashes of talent with him. You know,
you go back to that Chiefs game before the injury
and he was just fantastic. So yeah, you want to
see him out there. Hope you recover as well. But
at the minimum, like you say, like you said, Nico
Collins is great, Christian Kirk is good, Dalton Schultz is good.
That's at least the start of something for sure from

(53:50):
the receiving corps. And then if you get anything from
Jayden Higgins, this is all of a sudden a great
receiving room that's gonna change a lot. So yeah, I
think it's a really good start. And like you said,
you have that top ten option off the bat.

Speaker 1 (54:03):
Yeah. As for the offensive line, so what was the
big story last year, right was Larry? You know, this
offensive line stinks? What did they do? Well, let's get
rid of Laramie Ton, so let's get rid of another
you know, Kenyan Grain, which that that's fine, but still
they got rid of multiple starting offensive lineman, one of
which was a really good player. They did add some

(54:25):
pieces though, so you have you have you know Cam
Robinson who again has always gotten paid like he's better
than he is, but is a player who you know
it should be okay. For the other tackle, it's Blake Fisher,
who was a second round pick last year and just
quite frankly, just wasn't very good last year. He was
a late second round pick, so you don't expect a
ton but I think he even was lower than what

(54:46):
those expectations were. As for the interior, you know, Listen
Lake and Tomlinson, Titus Howard, that's a fine guard combo.
You're not mad at that. You're not mad at Cam
Robinson obviously, the the Blake Fisher thing you would like
better in even Jared Patterson that's okay at center, like
and they even have Juice Scrugs, who should be a
good backup center. So like I do feel like again

(55:09):
four out of five of these are fine, but it's
just like that issue and that issues that tackle on
like Jacksonville that their issue was at center. So I
think because of that, I'm just gonna go Pier five again.
Like that's a little harsh, but just like I don't know,
I just don't think this is gonna work. I just
look at this like I just don't don't buy into this.
I think it'll be maybe okay at times, but I

(55:29):
just feel like a good pass rusher just gonna destroy this.

Speaker 2 (55:33):
Yeah, it's not great. I would argue it's among the
worst offensive lines in the league, if not the worst
offensive line in the league going in the next season.
You know, I I struggled to see the logic of
how much their offensive line struggle last year, letting Laramie
Tunzel and Shack Mason honestly too, letting those two guys go,

(55:53):
and thinking it's gonna work out. So this is the
big black hole of this team. Can they fix this?
They clearly decided that paying not paying Tunsl and hoping
that they can make it work by just kind of
replacing in the aggregate across the board was gonna fix it.
But I still think there's issues there across the board.

Speaker 1 (56:11):
Michael three two nine with a super chat loved your
Bryce Young video twenty twenty four. Young greater than Stroud
question mark well, brace Young to get benched in twenty
twenty four, So I think I would still go Stroud
ahead the whole year. I think I'm gonna go Stroud
ahead of him. Second half. I think it was close
between them, I really do. I think take your pick,
I think they were in the same tear.

Speaker 2 (56:32):
You could say the best version of Young was better
than best version of Stroud.

Speaker 1 (56:36):
Yeah, I'm Stroud was really good in the playoffs though
once that weird play happened in the wildcard round, he
was really good there, and he played really good against
Kansas City as well. So I think it's I think
probably I would lead Young, but I think it's close
between them.

Speaker 2 (56:49):
Yeah. Yeah, but those first two games all obviously did happen. Still,
so yeah, the whole.

Speaker 1 (56:56):
Year, you have to go with Stroud. But sure, why
not Bright, Sure let's go him over Strad.

Speaker 2 (57:03):
I don't know about that one, but I'll take your
word for it. We don't need to do Panthers talk
right now unless you want to.

Speaker 1 (57:10):
Oh you know, I always want to do Panthers talk.
The running back room again, I don't know if they'll
have enough like space to work, which is kind of
the issue. Last year got Joe Mixon though, who's still
really good. Damian Pierce again, a player who has shown flashes.
I'd like to see him get back to that rookie
season for him, and also added Nick Chubb, which is
a really interesting flyer. Nick Chubb at his peak was

(57:32):
like debatably the best running back in football. Like he
was like he was top three pretty like on pretty
much everyone's list for a short period of time. So
if he can get back to half of that, that
could still change this. I like this running back. I'm
gonna go Tier two.

Speaker 2 (57:48):
Yeah, it's good. I mean, we've seen all these guys
be good. If you could be goodund behind this offensive
line is a different question. But you know, like I said,
we've seen all three of these guys be productive, and
Joe Mixon was ended up being a pick up last year.
But do you think some people question for sure?

Speaker 1 (58:03):
Yeah, so as a whole in offense, that again doesn't
look that different than it was previously. And honestly, this
team in general was pretty similar to what it was
last year. Obviously, losing Tounzel was kind of a big loss.
But you know, for the secondary Derek Stingley Junior, who
was fantastic last year, you also have Jalen Petier Kamari

(58:25):
last year, you have Jimmy Ward. They added CJ. Gardner Johnson.
Like I don't okay, let's just do it. Tier one
coverage I like this a lot.

Speaker 2 (58:34):
Really good. The CJ. Gardner Johnson one was obviously the
big trade. You mentioned it, another big trade they had,
and you know it is gonna be one of those
things where outside of Philadelphia he hasn't looked like quite
the same player. So I'm wondering can it work this year?
We'll see, But the very least, you know, I mean,
as long as they have Derek Stenley and Kamari Lassiter,

(58:56):
I think there's probably gonna be a Tier three, Tier two,
Tier one group. Like I don't see it again any
lower than that. You know, you may be able to
put you and I out there and they work out.
Those two are so so good man, Stanley and Lasser
are a really good duo. You add tier to that,
you add all these other guys like it's Tier one
for sure?

Speaker 1 (59:13):
Did it have to put us out there? Though I
don't want to run.

Speaker 2 (59:16):
Yeah, it's fair. We're not equipped to play defensive.

Speaker 1 (59:18):
Back right now, no, I think, so give me give
me a year to trade me.

Speaker 2 (59:23):
I don't know if that'll change much.

Speaker 1 (59:25):
You don't think so it would change something. It would
make me at least look less embarrassing as I'm getting.

Speaker 2 (59:28):
Torched slightly less embarrassing.

Speaker 1 (59:31):
That's yeah, it make me make me look better in
the uniform, I think.

Speaker 2 (59:36):
Yeah, yeah that's fair. Yeah, just get cut for that,
that's all you need.

Speaker 1 (59:40):
Yeah, I'd be the guy who's like having like the
jersey rolled up and like no sleeves, even though like
I'm the worst player on the team.

Speaker 2 (59:47):
Oh yeah, you just gotta show off the abs.

Speaker 1 (59:50):
Yeah, I think so. I think that they think that'd
be the move Kyle for the front seven. So the
the headline is the edge rush stop with Daniel Hunter
uh and then Will Anderson Junior as the top two.
That's great on his own, and it's not just that.
You have Derek Barnette as well. You have de Nico Autrey,
Like you have depth along with these top two guys.

(01:00:12):
The interior is not quite as good, but there are
play It's not like Jacksonville where they don't have much
of anything here. There are players who I do like
Tim Settle, Sheldon Rankins, Mario Edwards Junior, like like there's
some pieces here off ball linebacker. You have Aziz al Shayer,
who is everyone's favorite player, you know, the the you know,
I think EJ. Speed might end up being the other

(01:00:34):
off ball linebacker or maybe I guess Christian Harris is
there too, So I don't know. The run defense is spectacular,
but you still do have really good edge play, so
I still kind of like this run defense. I'm gonna
go Tier two run defense, and again I'm gonna go
Tier one pass rush. I mean, there's this is just
good stuff.

Speaker 2 (01:00:52):
Here, Kyle, really good pass rush. I mean you can.
Like the other thing with the linebackers too, is you
got depth there as well, so you can't really hate it.
But at the same time, you know, it doesn't matter
who's in the middle of the field when you have
these edge rushers in those corners, so like they're able
to They have good players as it is, like even
when Aziz al Shaer is not trying to like kill players,

(01:01:13):
like he's really good or not. I wouldn't say really good,
he's pretty good, but yeah he is pretty good. So yeah,
you have good players in this group. It's just also
you have great players on the outside and on the edge. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:01:23):
I think I did a top ten I did a
top ten list for every traditional category, and like, I
think I ended up putting us out here like at
number ten, which sounds kind of crazy high, but like
if you actually make the list, like there's only like eight,
like guys who feel like they're top like they should
belong to the top ten. And like, I guess is
he's out here, like he's he's that's a lot of
good things.

Speaker 2 (01:01:40):
Yeah, yeah, just not you know, late tackles.

Speaker 1 (01:01:44):
Yeah, you know, just yeah. Every now and then he
tries to kill an opposing quarterback. Like, okay, we all
have our flaws.

Speaker 2 (01:01:52):
So sometimes they commit murder.

Speaker 1 (01:01:53):
No big deal, Kyle. I like this Texans team. I
know that the offensive line is an issue, and I
do worry if that's gonna hurt this team once again
into postseason. But you have a weak division, an awesome
defense that I think will be even better this year
when you have kind of a year of cohesion with
them or receiving court, it should be better as long

(01:02:14):
as it stays healthy.

Speaker 2 (01:02:16):
And c J.

Speaker 1 (01:02:17):
Stroud, who I do really like. I'm gonna go twelve
and five for this Texans team. I think they're very good.

Speaker 2 (01:02:23):
I see the case for it, I see the scenario.
This team is very good. It is definitely gonna still
take a leap I think from CJ. Shroud from Namiko
Ryans as a coach and this coaching staff as a whole.
But yeah, I see a scenario where this team can
win playoff games and maybe compete with the big three
in the AFC, as we've talked about before.

Speaker 1 (01:02:41):
Michael says, can we agree that the NFC South is
better than the AFC stuff? Absolutely? Yeah.

Speaker 2 (01:02:45):
I mean come on, yeah, one team's doing the heavy lifting.
But yeah, Carolina exactly.

Speaker 1 (01:02:53):
M Yeah, uh no, I mean yeah, I listen again,
I still do ultimately feel like, well, I'm being very
posit on his Texans team. I still do ultimately feel
like when they go up again, like even like Baltimore,
I just feel like that offensive line is gonna get
eaten alive. Like, I still just don't. I think that
it's hard to I think they need uh. I think

(01:03:13):
that they need someone. Really they need Blake Fisher to
have a good year and or just trade for someone
or something like I keep saying Blake Fisher. Ariante Essery
isn't scheduled to start. He is someone they drafted who
could maybe come in and play. Someone's gonna have to
be okay at that tackle position for this team to
actually be able to go on a beat playoff run
and finally make a conference championship game.

Speaker 2 (01:03:34):
Yes, yeah, you just can't be that bad, especially with
the teams you're gonna play. You know. You just just
imagine going into Buffalo with that offensive line, Baltimore with
that offensive line, Kansas.

Speaker 1 (01:03:45):
City, Yeah, Kanas City especially.

Speaker 2 (01:03:47):
Yeah, Carloftis, Chris Jones, Mike Danna, like, just forget about it, man, Like,
it's just not gonna work in that scenario. So, and
it's hard enough to beat those those three teams as
it is. So when you're really bad at something, you know,
it's just gonna find a way to be taken advantage of.

Speaker 1 (01:04:01):
Yeah, well that's the thing, is like when they're playing
a good team. The Texans are good enough elsewhere that
they can withstand it having a weakness. But just you know,
that's just why I feel like I think they'll beat
most of the bad teams they're playing. I just don't
know if I see them as a you know, a
real threat. Is there a way that this team can
go on a deep run. Is it just Stroud takes
the next step and becomes the top five quarterback?

Speaker 2 (01:04:23):
Is it?

Speaker 1 (01:04:24):
Like I said, one of the young offensive linemens step
up and they have a decent offensive line. It's I
guess one of those two things would be the play,
or maybe both of those things happen.

Speaker 2 (01:04:33):
I mean, if this is like a Tier three level
offensive line, like one of the young offensive lineman takes
a step forward and all that kind of stuff, I
see the scenario for it. I think that's probably the
strongest case. I don't even think Stroud needs to be
like a top five quarterback. He just needs to be
like he has to make the big plays. Like it
has to be like Jalen Hurts. Yeah, the Jalen Hurts

(01:04:54):
thing from last season, Like, yeah, you know, make the
big plays when you need it, make the big throws.
That's kind of what you need from this.

Speaker 1 (01:05:00):
Here, Kyle. That is the AFC South. Next week we
are going to do the AFC East, a division that
you were paying very close attention to, Kyle. Where will
you rank the Patriots. We will find that out next week.
In the meantime, though, let me know we can find
us on Twitter before we head out.

Speaker 2 (01:05:17):
Yeah, make sure to follow us on Twitter that is
at Jackson Kruger. Make sure to follow me at by
Kyle running and make sure to follow the account page
on the sideline. JK. That is that on the sideline JK.

Speaker 1 (01:05:26):
Of course, if you'd rather listen to the podcast instead
of watch the podcast, we do have the audio only
feed available anywhere you get your podcast, you can check
that out. But yeah, Kyle, that is our that is
our show. That is the AFC South. I should have
made the intro to insure this. But Kyle, how funny
is it that Aaron Boon somehow also screws up the
All Star Game?

Speaker 2 (01:05:47):
Absolutely hilarious. He's the worst. Jeh Chisholm's the worst. Yeah,
we're happy with that. Yeah, the Yankee stinks. So we
feel good about that fun All Star Game though, I
enjoy and yeah, ready for the second half.

Speaker 1 (01:06:03):
Yeah, I felt a little bad for Jonathan Ronda as
a race fan. That wasn't that's that's not his fault.
He should he that was not a position he should
have been thrown into. And he almost said a home run,
was put away.

Speaker 2 (01:06:13):
Almost hit a home run. So the funny thing is,
so I guess there's something along the lines of like
I guess like the starters like leave after the get
when they get.

Speaker 1 (01:06:24):
Old, but not all like some some guys were pulled
and still played, so it was it wasn't a rule.

Speaker 2 (01:06:30):
Yeah, but not all of them. But like some people
were saying that like guys like Aaron Judge and such
like had left that like they had already gone home. Well, yeah,
that's weird, Like what do you think, Well, you you
don't want to hang out like with all the other
best players, and like people are paying so much money
to be that you could have done that for free,
just hang out. I don't know, like can we not
do to well, I guess the Red Socks got in

(01:06:50):
trouble a while back for having like beers in the
locker room whatever, but like I don't know, all Star game,
could you like not have to have bottles of wine
there or something? Yeah, I mean I don't know exactly
like who it was or but that was basically the
reasoning why they were saying, like some of the guys
didn't get picked like they did. Show Tarik skoobl was
in like street clothes.

Speaker 1 (01:07:08):
Like Okay, I think a lot of.

Speaker 2 (01:07:10):
These guys when they got subbed out early in the
games kind of like either less completely or like showered
and changed, and like we're not prepared to do a swing.

Speaker 1 (01:07:18):
Off, sure, but still you had Brian Buxton, the Twins
guy who was in the home run derby and like
made it to round two, and you're still going with again,
a contact hitting player. I think this was forty chess.
I think Boom was trying to ruin Aronda's confidence as
division rival. I think that's what he was messed with
the raise.

Speaker 2 (01:07:38):
I mean they picked two rays, so there is a
case for it. Yeah, and I don't know, it could
be it could be a big power play there for sure.

Speaker 1 (01:07:47):
So I see the case for it. You know what,
you know, I don't believe that is because uh it's
Aaron Boone making that call.

Speaker 2 (01:07:56):
Yeah he's not smart enough. Yeah.

Speaker 1 (01:07:58):
The real answer is he probably Hey, who wants to play?
And those were the three guys that raise their hands.

Speaker 2 (01:08:03):
Yeah yeah, Bobby Will was there too. I mean they
had options. I mean regardless, like I still think even
if they got into the final round, like Pete a.
Lonzo was gonna hit three homers like yeah, no, yeah,
I mean it Kyle s Warber going three for three
was really what's on them? Uh yeah, yeah, I mean
that's just kind of that is what it is.

Speaker 1 (01:08:23):
Do you have any comments on James Harden making the
Top one hundred Bleacher Report list.

Speaker 2 (01:08:30):
Top one hundred players.

Speaker 1 (01:08:32):
Ever, Yeah, that doesn't seem that controversial.

Speaker 2 (01:08:35):
He's a top one hundred player. Yeah, sure, I mean
he's probably a top He's probably a top forty player.
Ever thin, he isn't my top forty players ever, Like,
do has he reached his full potential? Like, he's probably
a guy who, if he won a championship would move
into like the top twenty five honestly, Like dirt, I.

Speaker 1 (01:08:54):
Was gonna say, like that's totally a slighting doors thing
of like if Chris Paul doesn't get hurt, like and
the Rockets go on to win a title, cow differently
do we view James Harden?

Speaker 2 (01:09:05):
Yeah, I mean it plays a huge factor if they
don't miss twenty seven straight three pointers or whatever it is,
Like that plays part. Like, Yeah, I mean he is
he has fallen short so many opportunities that he had
to win the championship. They have a good team again
this year even so, But I have no faith left
in James Harden to do any of that. But yeah,
it's just one of those things where it's like it's
like the Dirt thing, though, like Dirk in twenty eleven,

(01:09:28):
probably solidified himself as the top twenty to twenty five
player ever by winning one championship. James Harden would probably
do the same thing.

Speaker 1 (01:09:36):
Yeah, Kyle, that is our show again. Any final thoughts
or are we I think we cover it all? Got
the AFC South, got the All Star Game. James Harden
top one hundred. We really are in the deep part
of the off season, are we? These are a topic.

Speaker 2 (01:09:49):
Yeah, we're ready to We're ready to get to the
season for sure. Everybody go home and listen to your
favorite instrumental music.

Speaker 1 (01:09:57):
Then we'll go for that. Yeah. I guess technically instrumental
music it plays before the show, that is true.

Speaker 2 (01:10:02):
Yeah, shout out the shout out to music.

Speaker 1 (01:10:05):
Yes, shout out to music again. Thank you to everybody. Uh,
we'll be back next week normal time, six pm Eastern
and until then, have a good one.

Speaker 2 (01:10:15):
Peace.