April 19, 2024 • 49 mins
Dave Del Col is joined once again by former Scout and current NFL Producer/On Air Talent Matt Hamilton. Matt is in the thick of the draft buzz given his role on the Up and Adams Show on Fan Duel TV. They dive into what the Giants should do throughout the draft and what the process is like for prospects leading up to their name being called. His insights and information are always a valuable listen for draft fans.
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Episode Transcript
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(00:03):
Ladies and gentlemen, Welcome back toanother edition of The Scouts on our podcast.
Today we are going to be droppingthe hammer. That's right, it's
our annual Hammer time. We're pleasedto have Matt Hamilton back on the show
once again. Matt's a former LionScout, longtime NFL producer, and on
air talent for The Up and AdamShow on FanDuel TV. Matt, welcome
(00:23):
back. Really appreciate you making thetime, pal, Dave, appreciate you
having me. Always love doing thisshow. Yeah, we love having you
on too. So in honor offour to twenty tomorrow being the National Smoking
Holiday, all the smoke screens thatare out there these days, how much
of the smoke screens are you smoking? Is anything legit this time of year?
(00:47):
Between? I mean when it comesto the giants trading up for a
quarterback and everything in between, areyou buying any of that noise or is
it just all misdirection in your opinions? Yeah, I think you have to
take everything with the grain of salt. And obviously sometimes some of the stuff
you hear does end up being true. But there's so much information out there,
and as far as the Giants tradingup for a quarterback, I just
(01:11):
I can't get there. It justlogically to me, it doesn't make a
ton of sense right now for themto do that, because, you know,
let's say, trade up, you'regiving up more assets to get a
quarterback, to put him into asituation with you know what weapons is he
going to have surrounding him. ObviouslySaquan is gone, we don't know what
Darren Waller situation is going to be. There's still no real number one established
(01:34):
wide receiver. The offensive line stillneeds work. So you're starting the clock
on that rookie window without really theinfrastructure in place. I think a much
more. I'm not opposed to themtaking a quarterback. I do think,
you know, Daniel Jones's issues,they've had a lot to do with the
infrastructure breaking down around him early lastyear and his injuries. You know he
(01:57):
is he Patrick Mahomes no shown youthat you can make the playoffs with him.
I still don't think we've seen hisbest football. If he's if he
can get healthy and you put theright pieces around him, we still haven't
seen the right pieces around him.So I don't think it's this like,
you know, there's this perception outthere that he's just finished and he has
no place in the NFL. Ithink that's absolutely ridiculous. But I'm not
(02:20):
going to post the idea. Okay, get somebody, get an offensive lineman,
get a receiver, to build upthat infrastructure around him. With that
sixth overall pick, and then inthe second round, if you want to
take a Spencer Rattler, if youwant to take a Joe Milton, if
you want to take one of theseyoung quarterbacks that has a lot of promise,
that has a lot of ability thatyou can put behind him and develop,
I think that's a great way togo about it. But trading up
(02:43):
to take one of the top quarterback, I just it's hard for me to
get there with the state of thisroster right now, particularly when you've allocated
so much capital to signing him aswell what he's got on the books.
To have him either sit behind arookie or a rookie sitting behind him,
just the capital outy location. Froma salary cap perspective and from a draft
capital standpoint, I agree with you, it doesn't make any kind of sense.
(03:06):
I'm glad that we're on the samepage. Because this is what I've
been saying in every show, andI feel like most Giants fans want to
blow my brains out because I'm noton the quarterback train. But assuming that
we don't trade up for a quarterback, which please, for love of God,
don't do that, you would yourather stay at six and take one
(03:27):
of these premier wide receivers, beit you know, probably more so neighbors
or a doom say, or wouldyou be more inclined to trade back and
potentially address needs on the offensive line, gets some additional draft capital. I
mean, I know it's like agame time DECAYSI you go either way,
but personal preference, what would yourather them do? Personal preference? I
would rather than take one of thosebig time receivers there. It's been such
(03:51):
a glaring need for so long.Now again, what you're we in now
with Daniel Jones, and we haven'tseen him with you know, with a
legit number one wide receiver that's thereavailable into consistently. And that's why I
really think we haven't seen what isceiling can be yet. Give him that
opportunity, give him that playmaker.And again, even if it doesn't work
(04:12):
out with Daniel Jones and you moveon from them after this year. Whatever
quarterback coming is going to come innext needs that weapon as well. So
and it's interesting we did a littlea little deep dive on the show this
week and looking at the teams youknow that have had sustained success that have
made Super Bowls. Of the lastten teams to make the Super Bowl,
(04:32):
when you just talk about roster constructionwise, nine of those last ten teams
to make the Super Bowl had eithertheir quarterback or their number one wide receiver
on a rookie deal. You know, I found just digging into the numbers,
it's hard to pay both your quarterbackand receiver and have them work out.
So if you have you know,you're paying Daniel Jones right now,
(04:53):
you get that receiver on a rookiecontract, You're setting yourself up from a
roster construction standpoint, you know,be able to allocate resources elsewhere. You
know, obviously we don't see it. You know, we may see some
high level receivers at the open marketlast year. But again, if you're
paying Danie Jones that money, it'sgonna be hard to pay one of those
wide receivers and get that rest ofthe roster where it needs to be get
(05:15):
that receiver on the rookie contract nowand set yourselves up for a better position
in the future. So then ifyou do go wide receiver at six and
you get that guy, what isyour long term planet quarterback? I mean,
assume that Daniel has a mediocre year, you know. I mean there
(05:39):
was one thing that Eric pointed outto on the show the other day was
if he gets injured, there's anadditional twenty three mil that the Giants are
strapped with, So it's a hugerisk to put him out there. And
if you don't go quarterback in thefirst and then you get it developed mental
(06:00):
guy, I'm a huge Milton guy, so I love the fact that you
brought up Milton. Then I alsolike Raler. So you know, do
you when you only have six picksin this year's draft and you have so
many holes that you need to fillif you go wide receiver there, does
it make sense to take a quarterbackthis year? Or does it make more
sense to try to build, likeyou're saying around Daniel and the rest of
(06:21):
the team, to then go aftera quarterback next year? Assuming Daniel doesn't
work out, How do you kindof think through that. Yeah, that
is a great question, and Idon't think there's a right or wrong answer
there, you know, as aas I said, I think in the
second round, I like those secondround probably as you said, Milton and
round. I think there's a lotof ability there and I think there's a
(06:41):
chance that one of those guys canbecome a really good starter in this league.
So I like the idea of takingone of the second with that second
round pick. But as you mentioned, yeah, they don't have a ton
of picks this year. You couldjust go all and around Daniel, and
you know, if catastrophe strikes,your probably going to be picking in the
top ten again next year. Ifhe just doesn't have it, you're probably
(07:03):
gonna be picking in the top tennext year anyway, and then you can
make your move and trade up.But I just I know it's risky,
Like you said that that additional moneythat's gonna have to that injury guaranteed money.
But it's hard to it's hard todo this thing for a place of
fear, right, like you investedin Daniel, Like give him his opportunity
(07:26):
to go all and try to makeit work with him, and if it
doesn't work out, you move on. And if you know, if that
nightmare scenario plays out, it's somethingyou're gonna have to deal with. And
I don't know, it's hard tobuild build your team around your fear of
something going horribly wrong, you know, Yeah, no, absolutely, And
I think where I'm at is tradedown. Take an offensive lineman in the
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first shore, up the right sideof the line, so that you give
Daniel some protection, you know,because I mean, you take the receiver
and then he's still well, Imean, Evan Neil's kind of on an
island over there, in the likelihoodof Daniel getting you know, smacked around
again is pretty high. So I'mmore along, Yeah, go ahead,
No, And that's and that's theproblem right now. No matter what they
(08:13):
do, they're having to try todig themselves out of mistakes that made either
by this rughime or the previous one. And and that's where this all gets
tricky, is Yeah, like ifem and Neil just worked out and became
the player they drafted him to be, you don't need an offensive line,
you know. It's it's just it'ssuch a tough position that they're in right
(08:33):
now, and there is no easymagic fix to all of this. It's
no matter what they do, there'sgonna be a hole somewhere else that needs
to be patched up. And Ithink that's the kind of argument against mine.
Of like if neighbors in a done, say, are these perennial athletes
that can't miss picks, and thenyeah, you do, forego taking them
(08:54):
to you know, address other needsand holes, blah blah blah. But
then they those guys pop off whereverthey end up playing, and then you're
like, well, damn, whydidn't we go after that. I mean,
granted, sample size is totally differentin another franchise versus the Giants,
because we haven't been able to getthe ball to Hyatt Waller Robinson to begin
(09:16):
with. So to think that we'regoing to be able to get the ball
to neighbors or a dune day,it's kind of crazy. And the other
two things on the wide receiver frontis a I think it's a really deep
draft of wide receiver. I thinkyou can get somebody in the second or
third round and then still not haveto use a premium pick on wide receiver
by comparison to some of the otherareas. The need that we have like
(09:37):
corner O line that might not beD line, it might not be as
deep. And then when I waslooking at free agents in twenty twenty five
at the wide receiver position, yougot names like Stefan Diggs, T Higgins,
Godwin Cooper, Jamar Chase Waddle,DeVonta Smith, Ceedee Lamb, Justin
Jefferson. I U KU. Everybody'ssaying, maybe they trade for Eco Collins
(10:01):
am and Ross Saint Brown, MikeWilliams. There could be a situation where,
you know, if you don't takea wide receiver this year, and
then, like you said, youneed a quarterback or a wide receiver on
a rookie deal, maybe you payone of those premium wide receivers next year
to have that number one guy,and then you get your quarterback on a
rookie deal, and then you arekind of set up for success. So
(10:22):
I agree that it's hard. I'ma big at donsay guy, like a
dunesay more than neighbors, and toskip over a doonsay is a tough look,
you know, and it's it's sucha confidence selection by so many folks
in the contested catch rate and beinga big physical guy, we haven't had
one of those bodies in forever.But when you're really trying to build a
(10:43):
franchise and having been a part oflike one of those scouting staffs earlier on
in your career, like, howdo you juggle making those those calls?
Because it's also a risk if youwait until next year for a quarterback,
you know, like, is therea quarterback that you're gonna like there more
than the ones this year? Soon and so forth. Yeah, it
is extremely tough, and I like, I mean, the argument you laid
(11:05):
out makes a ton of sense,and you're right. It is a very
deep receiver class. And I dothe one thing I do think. I
think the Giants need that go toguy at the receiver spot. But they're
not in the same position as likelet's say the Patriots, where there's really
not much to work with on thereceiving corps. I like the pieces that
the Giants have. I think ifyou, you know, let's say you
(11:26):
get somebody in the second round thatyou feel good about and you can have
Wan Dale and you have Jalen Hyatt, Like that's a pretty good trio.
That's a pretty good trio of receiversright there. So that argument definitely makes
sense to me. I just Idon't. I just looking at this team
and they've just been missing that piece, that that go to guy for so
(11:46):
long to put it off for anotheryear when you have a guy like Odun'sday
who's probably gonna be there, whoI'm with you, I like him even
better than neighbors. I'm super highon him. It's just really hard for
me to pass on that type ofa player and that spot. So if
we do go wide receivers, saywe go dun say at six, what
(12:07):
are the other areas of need onthe roster currently that you think have to
be addressed this year, even thoughwe have a limited amount of picks.
Yeah, uh think yeah, it'syeah, I do think, yeah,
you want to see the old lineaddressed in some way. I do like
some of the pieces that they've addedin free agency at a value, getting
(12:33):
a guy like like a run in, like an illumin or guys that we've
seen start other places and while they'renot you know, while they're not elite,
they'll fill in and be serviceable andbe fine, which is something that
the Giants haven't happened consistently. Sothey have upgraded there, but I do
think, yeah, you'd like tosee them upgrade there. And I think,
you know, you look at thestate of the secondary right now,
(12:54):
you got to think there's going tobe something allocated to the secondary. Losing
a McKinney, you know, notreally a ton of depth there at corner
either, you gotta think the secondaryhas got to be addressed. Here.
The few guests that I've had onthis week, I've asked them all there
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was a position that you had toignore this year, what would it be?
And the consensus, which I agreewith, is safety. It's not
a particularly strong safety class. Andif you address that additional cornerback spot that
it's a glaring hole, you areshoring up the secondary, giving yourself like
a little bit more room in thebackfield there. So you would you agree
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that or is there another position thatyou would forego? Yeah, I agree,
I think I think of the glaringneeds, I think that's the one
that they can afford to put off. I definitely think corner. I would
prioritize corner over safety for sure,and especially with the group of players in
this class. Yep, yeah,I agree with you there. So what
(14:03):
do you think about defensive line?I mean, obviously adding Brian Burns huge
get for the team. Costs hima second and a fifth and a ton
of money, but an incredible talentto be on the outside there. Kvon,
you got Decks in there, butwe're still missing that interior tackle along
with Decks who can do a bitmore, you know, penetrating up the
(14:24):
middle. Do you think that that'ssomething that is a bigger need than corner.
I mean, assume that we gowide receiver in the first you got
two picks on day two. Ithink that would have to be like O
line, D line cornerback. Butif you were kind of like ranking those
three, which would you rather themprioritize. I still think prioritizing corner I
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liked to. I think they madea lot of good sneaky depth moves,
like getting a Jordan Phillips. He'sbeen really successful in this leak too.
I know he's a little bit oldernow, but he's going to slide in
there and next to Decks and beable to contribute. You know, it
does. While I love the Burnsand Tibeau combination, and they're so fast
and athletic, and you know they'regonna reacavoc. You know you do worry
(15:13):
about them and against the run alittle bit being stout against the run,
but uh, you know, soI could see that. But I still
think corner to corner to me isthe more glaring need right now. I
think that front seven, you know, you look at that front seven overall,
it's a pretty that's a pretty talentedfront seven. Yeah. Absolutely,
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are there any corners this year thatyou're really high on? Potentially for like
Day two, I'm interested to seewhat happens with kool Aid McKinstry because we're
seeing him fighting most of the things, and again, you never know how
the stuff's gonna work out, butI feel like a lot of the mocks
(15:56):
i'm seeing it's not have him fallinglater in later in the first and you
know, and some him into thesecond and he's a guy. I think
if he's there at that at thatgiant second pat, I mean, I
think that's a that's a no brainerto me, if he's able to make
it down there. And I don'tI haven't heard like a tangible reason yet
for really why he's slipping, butif he can fall into that range,
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and again, I know the giantsdon't have a ton of assets. But
even if he's falling late into thefirst, is that a guy you maybe,
Yeah, that's when that would bereally interesting to me. Yeah,
I agree. I mean it happenedlast year Banks and Porter Junior and these
guys kind of like tailed off intothe end of the first and yeah,
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I agree with you here this year, I mean, Cooper Dejon, I
think he'll go a little bit higher. But Wiggans, kool Aid, some
of these guys are definitely on theborder of falling into the top of the
second. And I agree with you. You've got a guy that you really
love at the top of the second. Wouldn't hurt to trade up? Yeah,
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And Wiggins is another one. Ilike, he's actually he's actually gonna
be coming on the show on Monday. Oh cool, I'm up. And
adhams so interested to talk to himand get to know him a little bit
better, but you know, aheadof him coming out and studying him a
little bit. And I think he'dbe another one that's uh, you know,
would be a really nice fit toplug in there. So that leads
(17:23):
into another question I had. Howdo you guys go about booking players on
the show? I mean, youwere GMFB for a while with upping Adams
now and you guys have a ton, I mean just on uping Adams this
year alone, a ton of draftdraft prospects on the show. Is that
(17:44):
something where you guys identify, Hey, like, we'd really love to have
Nate Wiggins on there, Let's reachout to him and see if we can
get him, or like the agentskind of making the rounds for them and
just trying to get the more exposurethis time of year. How does all
that work behind the scenes. Yeah, so we you know, there are
a bunch of different it's not thesame for everybody. There are guys like
that that we identify that were like, hey, like, let's go after
(18:04):
you know, let's go after thisguy like Drake May. We knew,
you know, we want to getDrake May on the show. We end
up we're going to be talking tohim this next week as well. Like
that's somebody we targeted and aggressively pursued. We also, we have we have
a tremendous booking team that we workwith, good talent, Lodge m h
and John They you know, wekind of get will tell them, hey,
(18:26):
we want Drake May or whoever,and you know Joe, we want
Joe all too. They ended upgetting for us as well, and they'll
go out there and make that happen. But also they have relationships established with
all with a lot of agents aswell, so they'll get pitched guys and
you know, so they'll get pitched, like a list of guys come back
to me, and I'll kind ofgo through and you know, again,
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it's not that we just we're notgoing to be dismissive of any player,
like you know, if it's aguy that's you know, just because the
guy projecting the fifth round, we'renot gonna say no. You know,
we like to get the guys onthat have big personalities, so you know,
not just guys that are super talented, the guys have personality. Because
again, if you love the draftlike like we do, you're paying attention.
(19:08):
You're gonna remember that guy in thefifth round, like, oh I
saw him on up and at HIMS. He was such a cool character,
Like I'm rooting for him to getdrafted, you know. So it's kind
of it's a multi pronged approach really, and you know, it's it's our
booking team, it's the agent's comingto us with stuff, it's okay,
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and I having our own ideas ofwho we want to go after, So
it really is it takes. Ittakes a lot of people involved. And
yeah, we've had over twenty prospectsalready this year and I just pulled up
our list for next week. Wegot another we got another eight coming up
this next week clean up to draft. So it's gonna be it's gonna be
pretty exciting. Yeah, it's supercool, and I think it's also an
(19:53):
awesome sneak peek into their personal lives, you know, like uh said Javion
Solomon from Troy was on there andjust like meeting his dog, you know,
and just like finding out, youknow, like that he's he's got
his dog and he's more of likea down home guy and everything like that.
Because a lot of the times youget snippets from all the media,
(20:17):
a pundits and everything about you know, this guy is a problem off the
field, or you know, thisguy's a high character guy, whatever,
whatever, but nobody really seems tocare as much about them on a personal
level. But I think you guysdo a fantastic job of connecting with them
on that level and being able togive the fans sort of that look behind
the scenes of like, oh,this is a normal kid, you know.
(20:38):
I mean, because that's another thingwe overlook is that they're kids.
You know, they're just out ofcollege and it's a big transition exactly.
And I appreciate you saying that.It is something that you know, we
want to give them this platform.We understand what time of year this is
for them too, This is thisis an exciting time, this is a
celebration. We're not bringing guys intoyou know, try to trap them into
(20:59):
things that are gonna get them introuble with teams. Like we want to
highlight what they do well and youknow, what their story is and give
fans a chance to get them getto know them a little bit more.
And the fun part too is oncethe draft is over, like last year,
you know, once these guys endup with their teams, you know,
seeing the different fan bases of youknow that drafted, these guys start
to pick up on our interviews thatwe had done in the in the pre
(21:23):
draft process and get to know theseguys all over again. So it's it's
a lot of fun for us.And you know, I'm glad that we
get the platform to share more aboutthese prospects. Yeah, I was seeing
some videos on Twitter. I thinkit was earlier today, yesterday. It
might've been just from like the NFLaccounts or whatever, but it was like
(21:45):
Puka Nakua and Aiden Hutchinson watching thevideos of them getting picked and like getting
the phone call and reacting to itand then just being like, dude,
I was so nervous when that happened. I can't believe I said what I
said, you know, but it'scool to get that perspective because it's got
to be a tense situation. Youdon't know where you're going. Like Aiden
(22:07):
Hutchinson was saying that he thought thewhole week leading up to it that he
was going to Detroit, and thenhis agent was telling him, like right
before the draft started that he mightfall five to the Giants, and then
he's like, wait a minute,now my world's turned upside down. So
yeah, there's a lot that goesinto that, you know. Yeah,
it is such a stressful time forthese guys, and that's why I like,
again, we want to we wantto celebrate. It's also, you
(22:30):
know, they're on the doorstep ofa life changing opportunity in front of them,
So it is it is something tocelebrate and it is fun too to
look back. Like we had BrianBranch on the show last year and we
asked him like, what, youknow, what quarterback do you want to
pick off first? Like, what'swhat's the guy? You know, who's
the guy you're going after? Andhe's like, I want my homes.
He's like, I want to getan interception on my homes. In Week
(22:51):
one, the opening game Chiefs Lions, he picks off my homes and runs
it back for a touchdown. Solike seeing those moments come to life such
a fun part of this. Yeah, yeah, that's nuts. I wouldn't
have put two and two together.So I appreciate you sharing that because,
yeah, that is super cool.So out of the the guys you've had
on he said, twenty guys sofar this year, any anybody stand out
(23:15):
personality wise or any cool anecdotes fromthose visits that are worth sharing. Yeah,
And that's the thing. It's I'mnot just saying that because you know,
I've been doing this for years,going back to Good Morning Football,
and it seems like this whole,this group of prospects, everybody we've had
has been such a good personality.Like sometimes you have guys that are just
really camera shot and it's not aknock on them, they're just not comfortable.
(23:36):
And and this year it's like everybody'sbrought a personality and it's you know,
guys that I didn't know as muchabout, like a Kendall Kendall Milton
from from Georgia getting to know himthis week. Just a phenomenal personality,
phenomenal teammate. He was one thatreally really stood out to me. Brennan
Rice. Brendan Rice is U wasso much fun yesterday we had him on
(24:00):
and just learning that Jerry Rice isevery bit as embarrassing a father as any
of our fathers. Like those instagramwere hilarious. Yeah, exactly. And
it's got to be tough for himliving in his dad's shadow. And I
think he's handled the pre draft processreally well given all that. You know,
I mean, when your father isJerry Rice, that is quite the
(24:22):
shadow to have to live in.But he's trying to do his own thing
and make his own name for himselfand he's and he is doing a great
job at it. Is uh really, Yeah, it's been it's been amazing
to see just all these guys we'vehad on have been so likable. And
I don't know too if it's goingthrough all that il stuff and more media
training and things like that. It'sjust like all these guys are ready for
(24:44):
these And you know, Mikey Sanderstill was another one that he was He
was the first prospect we had onand he was just like as polished as
you imagine for a young draft prospect. And I really do feel like this
year, like this this class isjust is full of personality as it really
is. I'm sure those Michigan guystoo haven't gone for the national championship circuit
(25:04):
and dealing with like the media onthat level, Yeah, helps give them
a little more practice, right,Yeah, I think so that's a good
point. And yeah, we've hada lot of Michigan guys on as well.
You know, absolutely loaded group forthem, and it's fun too to
hear just how much they all theygenuinely love their teammates and you know,
(25:26):
having each of them on, theywant to shout out other teammates from that
Michigan team that are in this draftprocess as well. I don't think we've
had one of those guys on thatjust wanted to talk about themselves, which
is pretty cool. So when you'rechatting with folks like maybe in years past,
sin as you said, everybody's beenpretty outgoing this year, But if
you have somebody who's more of anintrovert, camera shy, are you apprehensive
(25:48):
at all about them being drafted intoa larger market where, like say,
they're up against New York City andNew Jersey media all the time. Do
you think that that factors in,like when you were with the Lions,
Is that a consideration at all whenyou're in a larger market by comparison.
That is a great question, andit's you know, I think the only
(26:12):
position to me where it can bea more significant factor is that quarterback.
But it's also I don't know,like everybody's different. I try not to
paint anything with a broad brush becauseI think sometimes, you know, somebody
coming into the New York market,like, you know, I think there's
(26:32):
this perception that, like, oh, somebody coming into the New York market,
you want a big personality that's goingto play with the media, that's
gonna you know, be entertaining.But I think sometimes you know that doesn't
necessarily work out the best way.I think sometimes these guys that are a
little more quae reserved and keep tothemselves. I mean, look at Eli
(26:53):
and the way you tell with everything, like and it's funny because he's come
out of a shell shown to bea much bigger personality after But the way
he handled things as the quarterback ofthe New York Giants was incredibly reserved.
So I don't think I think yougot to just it's more about I guess
how they handle the adversity and howthey respond than necessarily being the biggest personality,
(27:18):
if that makes sense. Yeah,no, absolutely, So running back
is another hot button issue for theGiants obviously. Los Saquon added Singletary got
Eric Gray in the fourth round lastyear at Oklahoma. I liked Eric Gray.
I think he didn't get a tonof reps last year, so very
interested to see how it kind ofshakes out for him this season. But
(27:41):
they saw right well in Corbyn forsome camp bodies and whatnot. But how
much of a priority do you thinkrunning back is And have any of those
folks stood out like either guys you'vehad on the show that you've interviewed and
been really impressed with or just ingeneral from like tape that you've watch,
Like, how big of a prioritydo you think running backs should be this
(28:03):
year for the Giants? Yeah,And that's another tough one because again,
they have so many needs. Andif you're you know, like we talked
about maybe taking a quarterback in thesecond round, maybe taking a quarter there.
Running back is also spot because whilethere isn't that you know, Jamiir
Gibbs Bijon level prospect in this class, there's still there's still a lot of
(28:25):
good running backs on the board thatthey're gonna have a chance at. Marshaun
Lloyd to me, is the toprunning back in this class, just with
his skill set what he can do. Jalen writes another one that I like,
I know there are issues with theway Tennessee run their offense and how
that's gonna translate, but I'm afan of his game. It's but again,
(28:52):
running backs also a physician where yousee, you know, there's a
lot of quality later in the drafttoo, so you don't necessarily need to
jump at one of those top guys. But I do think they got to
add somebody in the middle rounds.I think to that to that backfield I
am. I'm a fan of Singletarytoo. I thought he had a fantastic
year last year in Houston. Youknow, I think he showed what he
(29:15):
can do when he gets the opportunities, which he didn't get consistently in Buffalo.
So you know, I know it'snot exactly the sexiest that after having
a sake one Barkley, but Ithink he's gonna be He's gonna be pretty
good back there. Yeah, Iagree with you. And if we're taking
a running back, I wanted tobe on day three. I think there
(29:37):
is a ton of depth there.Kamani Vidal, Frank Gore Junior. I
mean, the fact that you canget Frank Gors kid and like, you
know, the sixth or seventh roundis pretty insane to me. And yeah,
he had a really good draft processleading up to everything with All Star
Bulls and the Combine and what haveyou. So Yeah, brayln Allen's a
guy that I really like, bigbody dude at Wisconsin that I don't think
(30:00):
anybody's really talking about. Estimated.The kid from Notre Dame's been getting a
ton of hype the last couple ofweeks as a mid round guy. Yeah,
yeah, yeah, once he fixedthat forty times because I mean he's
he's such a powerful runner. Youjust want to see that. You know,
he wasn't swall as molasses. Butwith him having the proda that he
had, I think, you know, yeah, that's that's a great option.
(30:22):
Uh. Day three. Yep.There's a ton of ton of good
running back prospects on day three thatif the opportunity presents itself, and I
think it's got to be an intersectionof like man, just an obvious BPA,
one of those rounds on day threewhere you can't really pass up on
him. I mean obviously they didwith Eric Gray last year on day three,
(30:44):
so it wouldn't shock me if theydid it again. Just add a
little bit more depth. But Iagree with you if like safety, if
there's a position where you know you'regonna forego a little bit, like I
think you could probably sign some undraftedfree agents are running back or wait for
the cuts at the end a camp, and then somebody's going to shake loose
like a veteran that can come inand fit the system. And you know,
(31:06):
we're not looking for the next SaquonBarkley. This year. It's a
role player, right, so it'snot like it has to be a high
level prioritization. But then that kindof feeds into another question mark position,
which is tight end. Darren Waller, Lord knows what's going on there.
But even if he does come backand play this year, I don't think
(31:27):
he stays healthy the whole year,and then he's obviously going to retire at
the end of this year. Andthen you got guys like Bellinger, they
sign Manhurtz Stole. But how bigof a need is tight end in your
eyes? With the uncertainty around Waller? And where do you think again in
(31:47):
the context of we have so manyholes and you know, maybe O line
and corner a little bit wide receiverhigher up on that needs list, do
you think tight end? If atight end false you're in the third round
that you like damn like I didn'tthink he was going to be sitting here.
Do you pull the trigger on thatand then just kind of like bump
Waller to the side. It's like, we wasted a third round pick on
(32:08):
you, but it is what itis. Or do you wait and hope
that there's somebody on day three oragain, ignore the position entirely, like
we're talking about potentially with running backin safety, it is tall. I
do think that's a position that theycan get away with ignoring. I mean,
we saw them make it to theplayoffs with Daniel Belander being the guy,
(32:30):
right, So I don't think it'snecessarily something that you you have to
reach for. Again, if somebodyfalls in your lap that you absolutely love,
then that's a different story. ButI don't think it's something that they
need to prioritize. And it isanother deep position group this year, So
I do think that there's some valueon Day three with some of those folks,
(32:52):
particularly like fifth, sixth, seventhround that like running back, if
somebody is just there and it makesa ton of sense. Once you you
have that deep into the draft,it's hard to be positioned specific. It's
more so BPA in my eyes.But you know, day one, day
two, I think there's got tobe an intersection of needs and value in
(33:13):
order to actually be able to buildthe roster the way that you need to.
So in terms of can't miss prospectsin your eyes, like who are
some of the names that you'd reallywant to pound the table for. I
mean Marshall and Lloyd's a guy thatI really like. Joe Milton's a guy
that I really like. I'd poundthe table for both of those guys.
I think they'd be instantaneous upgrades.And Doonesday is a guy you'd pound the
(33:35):
table for, but anybody else topof mind from your side of guys where
you're just like, I know,if I take him, I'm gonna hit
I look at all that way too. I know, offensive linemen. You
know, it's been a wide rangewith how top ten picks in the old
line had panned out. But Ido think Alt is going to be one
(33:57):
of those guys. And I agreewith you on Milton. You know,
I wouldn't call him a camp miss. I think there's things he's got to
clean up a little bit, butthe raw tools are there, and I
think you get him with Dabel,I kinda I kind of look at it
similarly to what Table was able todo with with Josh Allen refining his his
tools and his skill set, becauseI feel like, you know, it
sounds like almost blaspheos to say becauseof where Josh Allen Allen's been elevated to
(34:22):
in the public perception, but hisrookie year was messy. He was a
little messy coming out of college,and you knew that the tools were there,
but he needed work and Dabele dida tremendous job with him. I
look at Milton the same way.I think the tools are there for him
to be a star. Uh ifhe gets in the right system, with
(34:44):
the right coach, with the rightplayers around him, I think you know,
he absolutely has that ability. Soagain, I can't I can't get
past the idea of taking him andif he's there for you in the second
round. To me, like it'sa perfect scenario if you're able to get
one of those pieces for the infrastructure, wide receiver, offensive lineman and then
go and get him in the secondround. I think that would be if
(35:08):
you're a Johnston wanting them to tradeup for a quarterback and that scenario plays
out, then you get No dunesA or Joe Alt at six, and
then you get Milton in the secondround. It's hard to be mad at
that, right. Yeah, Ihave been preaching the Joe All thing and
a lot of people hate my gutsfor it. But you talk about can't
miss offensive tackle prospect, I mean, this guy is as prestigious as anybody
(35:34):
who's come out in recent memory,and I think he's being drastically overlooked.
I mean, maybe Harbaugh takes himat five since he's a big ol'd line
guy, and he'll appreciate the valuethere. But with the Chargers and the
Giants, both teams have left tacklesalready. And I think that's the one
main argument that everybody likes to throwin my face is well, you already
(35:55):
got Andrew Thomas, so what thehell are you doing taking Joe Walt?
And I'm like, well, I'lltell you I'm doing. I'm putting him
at right tackle. I'm kicking EvanNeil inside. Now I got a fortified
right side of my line, andGod forbid Andrew Thomas gets hurt. Wow,
Joe Walt just flips the left sideand we're not missing a beat,
you know. So yeah, howdo you kind of look through that lens
(36:16):
of the justification around taking allt whenyou already have a left tackle? I
think you laid it out perfectly thescenario that we could see unfold if they
do take all and I do thinkthere's I think there's some fatigue from Jihanson
just that I have sense just oninvesting more premium picks in the offensive line
(36:36):
when it's been such a mixed bagand they they've tried to go that route
so often and the line still isn'twhere it needs to be. So I
feel like that kind of plays intoit. But I don't think it's a
hard thing, right because you do. You do get scarred, I think
sometimes by some of these picks.But you can't let the past and the
way things have worked out in thepast influence, you know, the way
(37:00):
you're going into this draft. Likeyou can't say, just because we took
an alignment and it didn't work out, we can't draft another one in the
first round. You just have totry to learn your lessons from that.
And I think you know honestly thatdraft you're not saying it in hindsight coming
out with Evan Neil like I was. I was concerned with that pick because
there were things on tape that Ididn't love. You know, you looked
(37:22):
at some other guys who were nastyor finishers, like you didn't see that
in Evan Niel's tape. And that'skind of honestly, before the athleticism,
before anything else, like, Iwant to see that nasty streak. I
want to see guys just taking prideand burying their the guy they're blocking in
the ground, taking pride in thosepancakes, you know, wanting to just
(37:44):
kick somebody's ass, like you needthat in an alignment. You know,
it doesn't matter if they're athletic orwhat they test or anything else, that
they don't have that in them,and I didn't. That's what concerned me
about him is I didn't see thaton his tape really much at all.
Alt is a guy who has themeasurables you look for and shows that mean
streak. And you know, again, I don't think just because it's an
(38:07):
alignment and they haven't done as wellwith certain aligned prospects that you can't just
ignore the type of impact. Addinga guy like that would make I agree
wholeheartedly. Man. I mean,it's it's such an obvious thing to me,
but yeah, most Giants fans arelike, you've already got two first
round offensive tackles, so you gotno business taken another one. But man,
(38:29):
wouldn't that be one hell of afront and imposing to defensive lines and
defensive coordinators to have to go upagainst if you were able to have all
and Andrew Thomas. So another enoughout of the box thought at six Quinyon
Mitchell, right, we have ahuge need at corner. He seems to
(38:52):
be the top guy. Some peoplehave Terry On Arnold up there, some
people have Cooper j Jon up there. But I think Quinon Mitchell to me
far away the top corner prospect.I mean, Dijon is he a safety?
Is he a corner? A lotof uncertainty in that conversation, But
what do you think when you lookat the first cornerback going off the board.
(39:14):
Most years it's normally in that fouror five six range, and most
people haven't even considered the giants goingcorner there, even though it is a
huge need. So what would beyour reaction if they didn't go wide,
receiver, didn't go quarterback, didn'tgo o line and got sneaky and when
cornerback there would be I would besurprised. I gotta be honest. But
(39:38):
there is logic too, like you'resaying, I mean, I think Mitchell
is a fantastic cross way. Ithink there's going to be You know,
it's funny because people forget this,like the same questions people asking about him
they asked about Sauce Gardner, andwe've seen how that worked out as far
as like level of competition, whodid he really face? Who did he
really shut down? But I don'tknow corners to me also, it's to
(40:02):
me, just in my experience,it's such a hard position to evaluate because
there's so many other factors. Thereare guys that I thought were gonna be,
you know, no doubt thuds thatjust completely disabreate, like watching Okuda's
tape at Ohio Stateum, like,how can this guy not be a phenomenal
(40:22):
NFL corner And it just he doesn'thave it, And it's it's one of
the hardest positions I think to translateto the next level. And I wish
I had an answer for exactly whythat is, because again, like you
look at the measurables, you lookat the tape, there are guys that
are undeniably great in college that justthey can't get there in the NFL.
(40:44):
So it's it is a position thatscares me a little bit to go that
high again, especially when there areother glare needs and guys like a Romo
Junes and Joel that I feel soconfident about. But I do like Mitchell
as a prospect as well. Yeah, Witherspoon is another one who went five
to Seattle, you know, nota high level of competition I played in
(41:05):
the SEC or anything like that,but obviously super successful. What stands out
to me about Mitchell is not onlyall of his like tape and everything like
that, but just a swagger thathe's got. When you talk about that
with the offensive lineman, I mean, I want a corner who's gonna jaw
a little bit like. I wanthim to be braggadocious if you will,
you know, like have that demeanorbecause you need that to really shake up
(41:30):
a wide receiver and everything. SoI do put a little bit of a
premium on that. I agree,I don't think corner is the way to
go, but he is a prospectthat I still would seriously consider. And
some people would say, oh,well, you got to trade down if
you're gonna do something like that.I don't know how far he's gonna make
it down, you know, becausehe really is above and beyond as far
(41:50):
as I'm concerned, the top cornerin the draft. But yeah, a
lot of people are real skeptical aboutcornerback prospects because it is a tough position
to figure out from a scouting perspective, but it should be interesting. Bowers
is the only other one, likewrapping up the top guys that you hear.
You know, a lot of pundonsay, well, you know,
(42:13):
if the Giants aren't going to gowide receiver and Darren Waller is going to
retire, then what about brock Bauers. I mean, I'm kind of the
mindset that they used and abused himat Georgia. He's a little undersized,
and I worry about him taking aton of hits to the legs at the
next level, which is definitely goingto be the case. But there's no
arguing that he's a legitimate prospect,one of the better tight ends that have
(42:36):
come out, and you know,top ten tight ends normally don't pan out,
but he has a higher probability thanmost of those folks. So what
do you do you think that's morerealistic than corner or it's hard for me
to see them going there. Yeah, I mean, I like him as
a prospect. I do. Allthe concerts he laid out I think are
(42:57):
exactly the concerns that I have.But I just think for the way that
this team's constructor right now, Ilike taking him when Ramo Doing's on the
board, it's just hard for meto get past that. If you're looking
for a number one option, youknow, it's it's just hard for me.
It would be hard for me toget past that. What if it
(43:19):
went like, you know, WilliamsDaniels or May and then those top three
wide receivers are off the board,and then you're sitting there with like JJ
McCarthy or something else, And whatif you're not in love with JJ McCarthy
or whatever quarterback is available, andthen the three wide receivers that you would
(43:43):
have taken are gone. Then doesthat open that door up a little bit
more? Or is that just likean immediate let's trade down? What the
hell are we doing type thing?I mean just kind of thinking out loud
with you. Yeah, yeah,I think. And it's and it's good
to like have these exercises because wealways we always go into these drafts like
thinking because we've heard it's gonna bea certain way for so long, thinking
it's going to go you know,there's gonna be four quarterbacks in the top
(44:06):
four picks or at least within thetop five. Like we go into that
with you know, go into thiswith that mindset, and then you know,
or three picks in everything we thoughtit was gonna happen, it is
totally blown up. So I thinkin that situation, yeah, I'm looking
to trade down because if it playsout that way, that means Minnesota hasn't
(44:29):
moved up yet. Right, mostlikely Denver hasn't moved up. The Raiders
haven't moved up, so there's gonnabe suitors. If McCarthy makes it there
to six, I think those teamsare gonna start getting Nancy and I think
you can get a potential haul.I would rather do that than as much
as I like a Bowers than takea Bowers at six. Yeah, I
agree with you, and I don'tthink it. I think the media is
(44:52):
hyping up these quarterbacks a lot morethan I think maybe NFL franchise to interview
them. I anticipate that a quarterback or two is gonna fall little bit,
And it wouldn't shock me if Harrisongoes three to the Pats and then
you know, neighbors are a dune, Say goes four to the Cardinals.
They got a ton of picks andhelping out Kyler Murray would not be a
(45:13):
bad thing for them. And thenyou got the Chargers right there who no
longer have key in Allen or MikeWall you know what I mean. So
it's like it could happen. Crazythings have happened. So yeah, I
agree with you. It is afun exercise because we do always think,
oh, it's going to go thisway and it never does. So cool
man. Well, I know we'recoming up on time here. Curious what
(45:36):
the coverage is going to be likefor the show over the course of Draft
weekend. You guys are going tobe out there doing a bunch of stuff.
What do you guys got in theworks? Yeah, so we are
not going to the draft this year, but we do have a ton of
stuff planned, I can tell youright now and pulling up our list.
So we got Marshaun Lloyd, NateWiggins, and Bo Nicks on the show
(45:58):
on Monday, so that's to beloaded. That's a power line up to
start off Draft week. Oh yeah. And then Tuesday we got Keith Lee,
Austin Reed, and kool Aid.Okay, so not bad. Wednesday
we got Calvin Johnson, Ricky Piersoll, and then a couple of things in
(46:19):
the works with some potential top fifteenpicks nothing confirmed yet. And then Thursday
we're gonna have Drake May and JoeAlt and potentially another top fifteen pick.
So yeah, so we're gonna getWe're gonna have a lot of these top
prospects coming in. We're still workingon a couple other things to finalize too,
But you know, even though we'renot gonna be there this year,
we're going full speed ahead on gettingas many top prospects in as you can.
(46:45):
We're gonna have some analysts in toothat we're still working on some things
to finalize. Matt Miller is definitelygonna be on this week with us.
Oh also Malachai Corley is gonna bebe coming on this week. So we're
really getting a lot of exciting prospectsthat I can't wait to talk to.
And we're gonna have some great analysisbetween k and and some of the other
(47:06):
analysts that we're gonna have on.Yeah, really really really excited for how
our covery is shaping up for thisweek. Yeah, and Corley and pearsall
are two names I think a lotof giants fans are super interested in you
know, Lat McConkie's another one.But piersaw, I feel like a lot
of Giants fans are real high onOn Pearsall. He's got to be a
(47:27):
Day two guy. Is he gonnaHe's got to go on probably the second
round? I would assume I reallylike Keon Coleman not to go on a
tangent, but you know another youtalk about if you miss out on Romadoonsday,
having a guy with a basketball backgroundlike Keon Coleman who can high point
a ball is not a bad thingto have. But Pearsall is a really
popular name in the Giants fans scoutingcircles, so it be interesting to see
(47:52):
him. And then yeah, ThursdayDraft morning, got to tune into that
one May and all, I meantalk about two names they keep coming up
for the Giant and says of latedefinitely worth checking out. Oh yeah,
yeah, it's gonna be it's gonnabe a blast. I'm super excited for
this. And then yeah, andthen the week after we go right into
Kentucky Derby Week, which we're gonnabe there for that. So oh you
(48:14):
guys are going to that cool man? Oh yeah, that's quite like that.
Oh yeah, and then schedule releaseweek the week after that, so
we got we're gonna have a lotcoming up on the show over the next
three weeks. That's gonna be That'sgonna be a lot of fun. You
got your fit picked out for theDerby already sort of still still still working
on some things. Yeah, I'mI'm in draft mode right now. Yeah.
(48:37):
That's just like always such a spectacle, the Derby, And I feel
like, if you're going, yougot to like playing that like months in
advance. But yeah, and ittotally snuck up on me last year too,
because we were in Kansas City forthe show last year for draft week,
and then it's like, oh,like I'm two days away from having
to leave for Louisville and I havenot given this anything whatsoever. So I'm
(48:58):
playing things out a little bit morethis year, but I'm still, yeah,
still underprepared. For sure, Iwould be prioritizing the draft way more
than now. But for the goodtuck me too, man. I'm right
there with you, but really appreciateyou coming on at Always a pleasure to
have you on. You Welcome backanytime, obviously, Best of luck next
week with the coverage, keep goingat it. You guys do a fantastic
(49:19):
job. I love watching the showall the time, particularly like all the
player prospects that you have on thistime of year. To get that insight
and information, it's super unique,but again really making you. Really appreciate
you making the time, particularly ina busy time of year, to come
on the show and chat with us. I appreciate you, Dave always love
coming on with you, I reallydo. Thanks so much. Man.
(49:40):
Well, that's a good place towrap up here. Thanks to all of
our listeners for checking in with uson another show this week, and we
look forward to having you all backon the next Scouts on our podcast.
Ladies and gentlemen, Welcome back toanother edition of The Scouts on our podcast.
Today we are going to be droppingthe hammer. That's right, it's
our annual Hammer time. We're pleasedto have Matt Hamilton back on the show
once again. Matt's a former LionScout, longtime NFL producer, and on
air talent for The Up and AdamShow on FanDuel TV. Matt, welcome
(00:23):
back. Really appreciate you making thetime, pal, Dave, appreciate you
having me. Always love doing thisshow. Yeah, we love having you
on too. So in honor offour to twenty tomorrow being the National Smoking
Holiday, all the smoke screens thatare out there these days, how much
of the smoke screens are you smoking? Is anything legit this time of year?
(00:47):
Between? I mean when it comesto the giants trading up for a
quarterback and everything in between, areyou buying any of that noise or is
it just all misdirection in your opinions? Yeah, I think you have to
take everything with the grain of salt. And obviously sometimes some of the stuff
you hear does end up being true. But there's so much information out there,
and as far as the Giants tradingup for a quarterback, I just
(01:11):
I can't get there. It justlogically to me, it doesn't make a
ton of sense right now for themto do that, because, you know,
let's say, trade up, you'regiving up more assets to get a
quarterback, to put him into asituation with you know what weapons is he
going to have surrounding him. ObviouslySaquan is gone, we don't know what
Darren Waller situation is going to be. There's still no real number one established
(01:34):
wide receiver. The offensive line stillneeds work. So you're starting the clock
on that rookie window without really theinfrastructure in place. I think a much
more. I'm not opposed to themtaking a quarterback. I do think,
you know, Daniel Jones's issues,they've had a lot to do with the
infrastructure breaking down around him early lastyear and his injuries. You know he
(01:57):
is he Patrick Mahomes no shown youthat you can make the playoffs with him.
I still don't think we've seen hisbest football. If he's if he
can get healthy and you put theright pieces around him, we still haven't
seen the right pieces around him.So I don't think it's this like,
you know, there's this perception outthere that he's just finished and he has
no place in the NFL. Ithink that's absolutely ridiculous. But I'm not
(02:20):
going to post the idea. Okay, get somebody, get an offensive lineman,
get a receiver, to build upthat infrastructure around him. With that
sixth overall pick, and then inthe second round, if you want to
take a Spencer Rattler, if youwant to take a Joe Milton, if
you want to take one of theseyoung quarterbacks that has a lot of promise,
that has a lot of ability thatyou can put behind him and develop,
I think that's a great way togo about it. But trading up
(02:43):
to take one of the top quarterback, I just it's hard for me to
get there with the state of thisroster right now, particularly when you've allocated
so much capital to signing him aswell what he's got on the books.
To have him either sit behind arookie or a rookie sitting behind him,
just the capital outy location. Froma salary cap perspective and from a draft
capital standpoint, I agree with you, it doesn't make any kind of sense.
(03:06):
I'm glad that we're on the samepage. Because this is what I've
been saying in every show, andI feel like most Giants fans want to
blow my brains out because I'm noton the quarterback train. But assuming that
we don't trade up for a quarterback, which please, for love of God,
don't do that, you would yourather stay at six and take one
(03:27):
of these premier wide receivers, beit you know, probably more so neighbors
or a doom say, or wouldyou be more inclined to trade back and
potentially address needs on the offensive line, gets some additional draft capital. I
mean, I know it's like agame time DECAYSI you go either way,
but personal preference, what would yourather them do? Personal preference? I
would rather than take one of thosebig time receivers there. It's been such
(03:51):
a glaring need for so long.Now again, what you're we in now
with Daniel Jones, and we haven'tseen him with you know, with a
legit number one wide receiver that's thereavailable into consistently. And that's why I
really think we haven't seen what isceiling can be yet. Give him that
opportunity, give him that playmaker.And again, even if it doesn't work
(04:12):
out with Daniel Jones and you moveon from them after this year. Whatever
quarterback coming is going to come innext needs that weapon as well. So
and it's interesting we did a littlea little deep dive on the show this
week and looking at the teams youknow that have had sustained success that have
made Super Bowls. Of the lastten teams to make the Super Bowl,
(04:32):
when you just talk about roster constructionwise, nine of those last ten teams
to make the Super Bowl had eithertheir quarterback or their number one wide receiver
on a rookie deal. You know, I found just digging into the numbers,
it's hard to pay both your quarterbackand receiver and have them work out.
So if you have you know,you're paying Daniel Jones right now,
(04:53):
you get that receiver on a rookiecontract, You're setting yourself up from a
roster construction standpoint, you know,be able to allocate resources elsewhere. You
know, obviously we don't see it. You know, we may see some
high level receivers at the open marketlast year. But again, if you're
paying Danie Jones that money, it'sgonna be hard to pay one of those
wide receivers and get that rest ofthe roster where it needs to be get
(05:15):
that receiver on the rookie contract nowand set yourselves up for a better position
in the future. So then ifyou do go wide receiver at six and
you get that guy, what isyour long term planet quarterback? I mean,
assume that Daniel has a mediocre year, you know. I mean there
(05:39):
was one thing that Eric pointed outto on the show the other day was
if he gets injured, there's anadditional twenty three mil that the Giants are
strapped with, So it's a hugerisk to put him out there. And
if you don't go quarterback in thefirst and then you get it developed mental
(06:00):
guy, I'm a huge Milton guy, so I love the fact that you
brought up Milton. Then I alsolike Raler. So you know, do
you when you only have six picksin this year's draft and you have so
many holes that you need to fillif you go wide receiver there, does
it make sense to take a quarterbackthis year? Or does it make more
sense to try to build, likeyou're saying around Daniel and the rest of
(06:21):
the team, to then go aftera quarterback next year? Assuming Daniel doesn't
work out, How do you kindof think through that. Yeah, that
is a great question, and Idon't think there's a right or wrong answer
there, you know, as aas I said, I think in the
second round, I like those secondround probably as you said, Milton and
round. I think there's a lotof ability there and I think there's a
(06:41):
chance that one of those guys canbecome a really good starter in this league.
So I like the idea of takingone of the second with that second
round pick. But as you mentioned, yeah, they don't have a ton
of picks this year. You couldjust go all and around Daniel, and
you know, if catastrophe strikes,your probably going to be picking in the
top ten again next year. Ifhe just doesn't have it, you're probably
(07:03):
gonna be picking in the top tennext year anyway, and then you can
make your move and trade up.But I just I know it's risky,
Like you said that that additional moneythat's gonna have to that injury guaranteed money.
But it's hard to it's hard todo this thing for a place of
fear, right, like you investedin Daniel, Like give him his opportunity
(07:26):
to go all and try to makeit work with him, and if it
doesn't work out, you move on. And if you know, if that
nightmare scenario plays out, it's somethingyou're gonna have to deal with. And
I don't know, it's hard tobuild build your team around your fear of
something going horribly wrong, you know, Yeah, no, absolutely, And
I think where I'm at is tradedown. Take an offensive lineman in the
(07:50):
first shore, up the right sideof the line, so that you give
Daniel some protection, you know,because I mean, you take the receiver
and then he's still well, Imean, Evan Neil's kind of on an
island over there, in the likelihoodof Daniel getting you know, smacked around
again is pretty high. So I'mmore along, Yeah, go ahead,
No, And that's and that's theproblem right now. No matter what they
(08:13):
do, they're having to try todig themselves out of mistakes that made either
by this rughime or the previous one. And and that's where this all gets
tricky, is Yeah, like ifem and Neil just worked out and became
the player they drafted him to be, you don't need an offensive line,
you know. It's it's just it'ssuch a tough position that they're in right
(08:33):
now, and there is no easymagic fix to all of this. It's
no matter what they do, there'sgonna be a hole somewhere else that needs
to be patched up. And Ithink that's the kind of argument against mine.
Of like if neighbors in a done, say, are these perennial athletes
that can't miss picks, and thenyeah, you do, forego taking them
(08:54):
to you know, address other needsand holes, blah blah blah. But
then they those guys pop off whereverthey end up playing, and then you're
like, well, damn, whydidn't we go after that. I mean,
granted, sample size is totally differentin another franchise versus the Giants,
because we haven't been able to getthe ball to Hyatt Waller Robinson to begin
(09:16):
with. So to think that we'regoing to be able to get the ball
to neighbors or a dune day,it's kind of crazy. And the other
two things on the wide receiver frontis a I think it's a really deep
draft of wide receiver. I thinkyou can get somebody in the second or
third round and then still not haveto use a premium pick on wide receiver
by comparison to some of the otherareas. The need that we have like
(09:37):
corner O line that might not beD line, it might not be as
deep. And then when I waslooking at free agents in twenty twenty five
at the wide receiver position, yougot names like Stefan Diggs, T Higgins,
Godwin Cooper, Jamar Chase Waddle,DeVonta Smith, Ceedee Lamb, Justin
Jefferson. I U KU. Everybody'ssaying, maybe they trade for Eco Collins
(10:01):
am and Ross Saint Brown, MikeWilliams. There could be a situation where,
you know, if you don't takea wide receiver this year, and
then, like you said, youneed a quarterback or a wide receiver on
a rookie deal, maybe you payone of those premium wide receivers next year
to have that number one guy,and then you get your quarterback on a
rookie deal, and then you arekind of set up for success. So
(10:22):
I agree that it's hard. I'ma big at donsay guy, like a
dunesay more than neighbors, and toskip over a doonsay is a tough look,
you know, and it's it's sucha confidence selection by so many folks
in the contested catch rate and beinga big physical guy, we haven't had
one of those bodies in forever.But when you're really trying to build a
(10:43):
franchise and having been a part oflike one of those scouting staffs earlier on
in your career, like, howdo you juggle making those those calls?
Because it's also a risk if youwait until next year for a quarterback,
you know, like, is therea quarterback that you're gonna like there more
than the ones this year? Soon and so forth. Yeah, it
is extremely tough, and I like, I mean, the argument you laid
(11:05):
out makes a ton of sense,and you're right. It is a very
deep receiver class. And I dothe one thing I do think. I
think the Giants need that go toguy at the receiver spot. But they're
not in the same position as likelet's say the Patriots, where there's really
not much to work with on thereceiving corps. I like the pieces that
the Giants have. I think ifyou, you know, let's say you
(11:26):
get somebody in the second round thatyou feel good about and you can have
Wan Dale and you have Jalen Hyatt, Like that's a pretty good trio.
That's a pretty good trio of receiversright there. So that argument definitely makes
sense to me. I just Idon't. I just looking at this team
and they've just been missing that piece, that that go to guy for so
(11:46):
long to put it off for anotheryear when you have a guy like Odun'sday
who's probably gonna be there, whoI'm with you, I like him even
better than neighbors. I'm super highon him. It's just really hard for
me to pass on that type ofa player and that spot. So if
we do go wide receivers, saywe go dun say at six, what
(12:07):
are the other areas of need onthe roster currently that you think have to
be addressed this year, even thoughwe have a limited amount of picks.
Yeah, uh think yeah, it'syeah, I do think, yeah,
you want to see the old lineaddressed in some way. I do like
some of the pieces that they've addedin free agency at a value, getting
(12:33):
a guy like like a run in, like an illumin or guys that we've
seen start other places and while they'renot you know, while they're not elite,
they'll fill in and be serviceable andbe fine, which is something that
the Giants haven't happened consistently. Sothey have upgraded there, but I do
think, yeah, you'd like tosee them upgrade there. And I think,
you know, you look at thestate of the secondary right now,
(12:54):
you got to think there's going tobe something allocated to the secondary. Losing
a McKinney, you know, notreally a ton of depth there at corner
either, you gotta think the secondaryhas got to be addressed. Here.
The few guests that I've had onthis week, I've asked them all there
(13:16):
was a position that you had toignore this year, what would it be?
And the consensus, which I agreewith, is safety. It's not
a particularly strong safety class. Andif you address that additional cornerback spot that
it's a glaring hole, you areshoring up the secondary, giving yourself like
a little bit more room in thebackfield there. So you would you agree
(13:39):
that or is there another position thatyou would forego? Yeah, I agree,
I think I think of the glaringneeds, I think that's the one
that they can afford to put off. I definitely think corner. I would
prioritize corner over safety for sure,and especially with the group of players in
this class. Yep, yeah,I agree with you there. So what
(14:03):
do you think about defensive line?I mean, obviously adding Brian Burns huge
get for the team. Costs hima second and a fifth and a ton
of money, but an incredible talentto be on the outside there. Kvon,
you got Decks in there, butwe're still missing that interior tackle along
with Decks who can do a bitmore, you know, penetrating up the
(14:24):
middle. Do you think that that'ssomething that is a bigger need than corner.
I mean, assume that we gowide receiver in the first you got
two picks on day two. Ithink that would have to be like O
line, D line cornerback. Butif you were kind of like ranking those
three, which would you rather themprioritize. I still think prioritizing corner I
(14:48):
liked to. I think they madea lot of good sneaky depth moves,
like getting a Jordan Phillips. He'sbeen really successful in this leak too.
I know he's a little bit oldernow, but he's going to slide in
there and next to Decks and beable to contribute. You know, it
does. While I love the Burnsand Tibeau combination, and they're so fast
and athletic, and you know they'regonna reacavoc. You know you do worry
(15:13):
about them and against the run alittle bit being stout against the run,
but uh, you know, soI could see that. But I still
think corner to corner to me isthe more glaring need right now. I
think that front seven, you know, you look at that front seven overall,
it's a pretty that's a pretty talentedfront seven. Yeah. Absolutely,
(15:35):
are there any corners this year thatyou're really high on? Potentially for like
Day two, I'm interested to seewhat happens with kool Aid McKinstry because we're
seeing him fighting most of the things, and again, you never know how
the stuff's gonna work out, butI feel like a lot of the mocks
(15:56):
i'm seeing it's not have him fallinglater in later in the first and you
know, and some him into thesecond and he's a guy. I think
if he's there at that at thatgiant second pat, I mean, I
think that's a that's a no brainerto me, if he's able to make
it down there. And I don'tI haven't heard like a tangible reason yet
for really why he's slipping, butif he can fall into that range,
(16:19):
and again, I know the giantsdon't have a ton of assets. But
even if he's falling late into thefirst, is that a guy you maybe,
Yeah, that's when that would bereally interesting to me. Yeah,
I agree. I mean it happenedlast year Banks and Porter Junior and these
guys kind of like tailed off intothe end of the first and yeah,
(16:40):
I agree with you here this year, I mean, Cooper Dejon, I
think he'll go a little bit higher. But Wiggans, kool Aid, some
of these guys are definitely on theborder of falling into the top of the
second. And I agree with you. You've got a guy that you really
love at the top of the second. Wouldn't hurt to trade up? Yeah,
(17:03):
And Wiggins is another one. Ilike, he's actually he's actually gonna
be coming on the show on Monday. Oh cool, I'm up. And
adhams so interested to talk to himand get to know him a little bit
better, but you know, aheadof him coming out and studying him a
little bit. And I think he'dbe another one that's uh, you know,
would be a really nice fit toplug in there. So that leads
(17:23):
into another question I had. Howdo you guys go about booking players on
the show? I mean, youwere GMFB for a while with upping Adams
now and you guys have a ton, I mean just on uping Adams this
year alone, a ton of draftdraft prospects on the show. Is that
(17:44):
something where you guys identify, Hey, like, we'd really love to have
Nate Wiggins on there, Let's reachout to him and see if we can
get him, or like the agentskind of making the rounds for them and
just trying to get the more exposurethis time of year. How does all
that work behind the scenes. Yeah, so we you know, there are
a bunch of different it's not thesame for everybody. There are guys like
that that we identify that were like, hey, like, let's go after
(18:04):
you know, let's go after thisguy like Drake May. We knew,
you know, we want to getDrake May on the show. We end
up we're going to be talking tohim this next week as well. Like
that's somebody we targeted and aggressively pursued. We also, we have we have
a tremendous booking team that we workwith, good talent, Lodge m h
and John They you know, wekind of get will tell them, hey,
(18:26):
we want Drake May or whoever,and you know Joe, we want
Joe all too. They ended upgetting for us as well, and they'll
go out there and make that happen. But also they have relationships established with
all with a lot of agents aswell, so they'll get pitched guys and
you know, so they'll get pitched, like a list of guys come back
to me, and I'll kind ofgo through and you know, again,
(18:48):
it's not that we just we're notgoing to be dismissive of any player,
like you know, if it's aguy that's you know, just because the
guy projecting the fifth round, we'renot gonna say no. You know,
we like to get the guys onthat have big personalities, so you know,
not just guys that are super talented, the guys have personality. Because
again, if you love the draftlike like we do, you're paying attention.
(19:08):
You're gonna remember that guy in thefifth round, like, oh I
saw him on up and at HIMS. He was such a cool character,
Like I'm rooting for him to getdrafted, you know. So it's kind
of it's a multi pronged approach really, and you know, it's it's our
booking team, it's the agent's comingto us with stuff, it's okay,
(19:29):
and I having our own ideas ofwho we want to go after, So
it really is it takes. Ittakes a lot of people involved. And
yeah, we've had over twenty prospectsalready this year and I just pulled up
our list for next week. Wegot another we got another eight coming up
this next week clean up to draft. So it's gonna be it's gonna be
pretty exciting. Yeah, it's supercool, and I think it's also an
(19:53):
awesome sneak peek into their personal lives, you know, like uh said Javion
Solomon from Troy was on there andjust like meeting his dog, you know,
and just like finding out, youknow, like that he's he's got
his dog and he's more of likea down home guy and everything like that.
Because a lot of the times youget snippets from all the media,
(20:17):
a pundits and everything about you know, this guy is a problem off the
field, or you know, thisguy's a high character guy, whatever,
whatever, but nobody really seems tocare as much about them on a personal
level. But I think you guysdo a fantastic job of connecting with them
on that level and being able togive the fans sort of that look behind
the scenes of like, oh,this is a normal kid, you know.
(20:38):
I mean, because that's another thingwe overlook is that they're kids.
You know, they're just out ofcollege and it's a big transition exactly.
And I appreciate you saying that.It is something that you know, we
want to give them this platform.We understand what time of year this is
for them too, This is thisis an exciting time, this is a
celebration. We're not bringing guys intoyou know, try to trap them into
(20:59):
things that are gonna get them introuble with teams. Like we want to
highlight what they do well and youknow, what their story is and give
fans a chance to get them getto know them a little bit more.
And the fun part too is oncethe draft is over, like last year,
you know, once these guys endup with their teams, you know,
seeing the different fan bases of youknow that drafted, these guys start
to pick up on our interviews thatwe had done in the in the pre
(21:23):
draft process and get to know theseguys all over again. So it's it's
a lot of fun for us.And you know, I'm glad that we
get the platform to share more aboutthese prospects. Yeah, I was seeing
some videos on Twitter. I thinkit was earlier today, yesterday. It
might've been just from like the NFLaccounts or whatever, but it was like
(21:45):
Puka Nakua and Aiden Hutchinson watching thevideos of them getting picked and like getting
the phone call and reacting to itand then just being like, dude,
I was so nervous when that happened. I can't believe I said what I
said, you know, but it'scool to get that perspective because it's got
to be a tense situation. Youdon't know where you're going. Like Aiden
(22:07):
Hutchinson was saying that he thought thewhole week leading up to it that he
was going to Detroit, and thenhis agent was telling him, like right
before the draft started that he mightfall five to the Giants, and then
he's like, wait a minute,now my world's turned upside down. So
yeah, there's a lot that goesinto that, you know. Yeah,
it is such a stressful time forthese guys, and that's why I like,
again, we want to we wantto celebrate. It's also, you
(22:30):
know, they're on the doorstep ofa life changing opportunity in front of them,
So it is it is something tocelebrate and it is fun too to
look back. Like we had BrianBranch on the show last year and we
asked him like, what, youknow, what quarterback do you want to
pick off first? Like, what'swhat's the guy? You know, who's
the guy you're going after? Andhe's like, I want my homes.
He's like, I want to getan interception on my homes. In Week
(22:51):
one, the opening game Chiefs Lions, he picks off my homes and runs
it back for a touchdown. Solike seeing those moments come to life such
a fun part of this. Yeah, yeah, that's nuts. I wouldn't
have put two and two together.So I appreciate you sharing that because,
yeah, that is super cool.So out of the the guys you've had
on he said, twenty guys sofar this year, any anybody stand out
(23:15):
personality wise or any cool anecdotes fromthose visits that are worth sharing. Yeah,
And that's the thing. It's I'mnot just saying that because you know,
I've been doing this for years,going back to Good Morning Football,
and it seems like this whole,this group of prospects, everybody we've had
has been such a good personality.Like sometimes you have guys that are just
really camera shot and it's not aknock on them, they're just not comfortable.
(23:36):
And and this year it's like everybody'sbrought a personality and it's you know,
guys that I didn't know as muchabout, like a Kendall Kendall Milton
from from Georgia getting to know himthis week. Just a phenomenal personality,
phenomenal teammate. He was one thatreally really stood out to me. Brennan
Rice. Brendan Rice is U wasso much fun yesterday we had him on
(24:00):
and just learning that Jerry Rice isevery bit as embarrassing a father as any
of our fathers. Like those instagramwere hilarious. Yeah, exactly. And
it's got to be tough for himliving in his dad's shadow. And I
think he's handled the pre draft processreally well given all that. You know,
I mean, when your father isJerry Rice, that is quite the
(24:22):
shadow to have to live in.But he's trying to do his own thing
and make his own name for himselfand he's and he is doing a great
job at it. Is uh really, Yeah, it's been it's been amazing
to see just all these guys we'vehad on have been so likable. And
I don't know too if it's goingthrough all that il stuff and more media
training and things like that. It'sjust like all these guys are ready for
(24:44):
these And you know, Mikey Sanderstill was another one that he was He
was the first prospect we had onand he was just like as polished as
you imagine for a young draft prospect. And I really do feel like this
year, like this this class isjust is full of personality as it really
is. I'm sure those Michigan guystoo haven't gone for the national championship circuit
(25:04):
and dealing with like the media onthat level, Yeah, helps give them
a little more practice, right,Yeah, I think so that's a good
point. And yeah, we've hada lot of Michigan guys on as well.
You know, absolutely loaded group forthem, and it's fun too to
hear just how much they all theygenuinely love their teammates and you know,
(25:26):
having each of them on, theywant to shout out other teammates from that
Michigan team that are in this draftprocess as well. I don't think we've
had one of those guys on thatjust wanted to talk about themselves, which
is pretty cool. So when you'rechatting with folks like maybe in years past,
sin as you said, everybody's beenpretty outgoing this year, But if
you have somebody who's more of anintrovert, camera shy, are you apprehensive
(25:48):
at all about them being drafted intoa larger market where, like say,
they're up against New York City andNew Jersey media all the time. Do
you think that that factors in,like when you were with the Lions,
Is that a consideration at all whenyou're in a larger market by comparison.
That is a great question, andit's you know, I think the only
(26:12):
position to me where it can bea more significant factor is that quarterback.
But it's also I don't know,like everybody's different. I try not to
paint anything with a broad brush becauseI think sometimes, you know, somebody
coming into the New York market,like, you know, I think there's
(26:32):
this perception that, like, oh, somebody coming into the New York market,
you want a big personality that's goingto play with the media, that's
gonna you know, be entertaining.But I think sometimes you know that doesn't
necessarily work out the best way.I think sometimes these guys that are a
little more quae reserved and keep tothemselves. I mean, look at Eli
(26:53):
and the way you tell with everything, like and it's funny because he's come
out of a shell shown to bea much bigger personality after But the way
he handled things as the quarterback ofthe New York Giants was incredibly reserved.
So I don't think I think yougot to just it's more about I guess
how they handle the adversity and howthey respond than necessarily being the biggest personality,
(27:18):
if that makes sense. Yeah,no, absolutely, So running back
is another hot button issue for theGiants obviously. Los Saquon added Singletary got
Eric Gray in the fourth round lastyear at Oklahoma. I liked Eric Gray.
I think he didn't get a tonof reps last year, so very
interested to see how it kind ofshakes out for him this season. But
(27:41):
they saw right well in Corbyn forsome camp bodies and whatnot. But how
much of a priority do you thinkrunning back is And have any of those
folks stood out like either guys you'vehad on the show that you've interviewed and
been really impressed with or just ingeneral from like tape that you've watch,
Like, how big of a prioritydo you think running backs should be this
(28:03):
year for the Giants? Yeah,And that's another tough one because again,
they have so many needs. Andif you're you know, like we talked
about maybe taking a quarterback in thesecond round, maybe taking a quarter there.
Running back is also spot because whilethere isn't that you know, Jamiir
Gibbs Bijon level prospect in this class, there's still there's still a lot of
(28:25):
good running backs on the board thatthey're gonna have a chance at. Marshaun
Lloyd to me, is the toprunning back in this class, just with
his skill set what he can do. Jalen writes another one that I like,
I know there are issues with theway Tennessee run their offense and how
that's gonna translate, but I'm afan of his game. It's but again,
(28:52):
running backs also a physician where yousee, you know, there's a
lot of quality later in the drafttoo, so you don't necessarily need to
jump at one of those top guys. But I do think they got to
add somebody in the middle rounds.I think to that to that backfield I
am. I'm a fan of Singletarytoo. I thought he had a fantastic
year last year in Houston. Youknow, I think he showed what he
(29:15):
can do when he gets the opportunities, which he didn't get consistently in Buffalo.
So you know, I know it'snot exactly the sexiest that after having
a sake one Barkley, but Ithink he's gonna be He's gonna be pretty
good back there. Yeah, Iagree with you. And if we're taking
a running back, I wanted tobe on day three. I think there
(29:37):
is a ton of depth there.Kamani Vidal, Frank Gore Junior. I
mean, the fact that you canget Frank Gors kid and like, you
know, the sixth or seventh roundis pretty insane to me. And yeah,
he had a really good draft processleading up to everything with All Star
Bulls and the Combine and what haveyou. So Yeah, brayln Allen's a
guy that I really like, bigbody dude at Wisconsin that I don't think
(30:00):
anybody's really talking about. Estimated.The kid from Notre Dame's been getting a
ton of hype the last couple ofweeks as a mid round guy. Yeah,
yeah, yeah, once he fixedthat forty times because I mean he's
he's such a powerful runner. Youjust want to see that. You know,
he wasn't swall as molasses. Butwith him having the proda that he
had, I think, you know, yeah, that's that's a great option.
(30:22):
Uh. Day three. Yep.There's a ton of ton of good
running back prospects on day three thatif the opportunity presents itself, and I
think it's got to be an intersectionof like man, just an obvious BPA,
one of those rounds on day threewhere you can't really pass up on
him. I mean obviously they didwith Eric Gray last year on day three,
(30:44):
so it wouldn't shock me if theydid it again. Just add a
little bit more depth. But Iagree with you if like safety, if
there's a position where you know you'regonna forego a little bit, like I
think you could probably sign some undraftedfree agents are running back or wait for
the cuts at the end a camp, and then somebody's going to shake loose
like a veteran that can come inand fit the system. And you know,
(31:06):
we're not looking for the next SaquonBarkley. This year. It's a
role player, right, so it'snot like it has to be a high
level prioritization. But then that kindof feeds into another question mark position,
which is tight end. Darren Waller, Lord knows what's going on there.
But even if he does come backand play this year, I don't think
(31:27):
he stays healthy the whole year,and then he's obviously going to retire at
the end of this year. Andthen you got guys like Bellinger, they
sign Manhurtz Stole. But how bigof a need is tight end in your
eyes? With the uncertainty around Waller? And where do you think again in
(31:47):
the context of we have so manyholes and you know, maybe O line
and corner a little bit wide receiverhigher up on that needs list, do
you think tight end? If atight end false you're in the third round
that you like damn like I didn'tthink he was going to be sitting here.
Do you pull the trigger on thatand then just kind of like bump
Waller to the side. It's like, we wasted a third round pick on
(32:08):
you, but it is what itis. Or do you wait and hope
that there's somebody on day three oragain, ignore the position entirely, like
we're talking about potentially with running backin safety, it is tall. I
do think that's a position that theycan get away with ignoring. I mean,
we saw them make it to theplayoffs with Daniel Belander being the guy,
(32:30):
right, So I don't think it'snecessarily something that you you have to
reach for. Again, if somebodyfalls in your lap that you absolutely love,
then that's a different story. ButI don't think it's something that they
need to prioritize. And it isanother deep position group this year, So
I do think that there's some valueon Day three with some of those folks,
(32:52):
particularly like fifth, sixth, seventhround that like running back, if
somebody is just there and it makesa ton of sense. Once you you
have that deep into the draft,it's hard to be positioned specific. It's
more so BPA in my eyes.But you know, day one, day
two, I think there's got tobe an intersection of needs and value in
(33:13):
order to actually be able to buildthe roster the way that you need to.
So in terms of can't miss prospectsin your eyes, like who are
some of the names that you'd reallywant to pound the table for. I
mean Marshall and Lloyd's a guy thatI really like. Joe Milton's a guy
that I really like. I'd poundthe table for both of those guys.
I think they'd be instantaneous upgrades.And Doonesday is a guy you'd pound the
(33:35):
table for, but anybody else topof mind from your side of guys where
you're just like, I know,if I take him, I'm gonna hit
I look at all that way too. I know, offensive linemen. You
know, it's been a wide rangewith how top ten picks in the old
line had panned out. But Ido think Alt is going to be one
(33:57):
of those guys. And I agreewith you on Milton. You know,
I wouldn't call him a camp miss. I think there's things he's got to
clean up a little bit, butthe raw tools are there, and I
think you get him with Dabel,I kinda I kind of look at it
similarly to what Table was able todo with with Josh Allen refining his his
tools and his skill set, becauseI feel like, you know, it
sounds like almost blaspheos to say becauseof where Josh Allen Allen's been elevated to
(34:22):
in the public perception, but hisrookie year was messy. He was a
little messy coming out of college,and you knew that the tools were there,
but he needed work and Dabele dida tremendous job with him. I
look at Milton the same way.I think the tools are there for him
to be a star. Uh ifhe gets in the right system, with
(34:44):
the right coach, with the rightplayers around him, I think you know,
he absolutely has that ability. Soagain, I can't I can't get
past the idea of taking him andif he's there for you in the second
round. To me, like it'sa perfect scenario if you're able to get
one of those pieces for the infrastructure, wide receiver, offensive lineman and then
go and get him in the secondround. I think that would be if
(35:08):
you're a Johnston wanting them to tradeup for a quarterback and that scenario plays
out, then you get No dunesA or Joe Alt at six, and
then you get Milton in the secondround. It's hard to be mad at
that, right. Yeah, Ihave been preaching the Joe All thing and
a lot of people hate my gutsfor it. But you talk about can't
miss offensive tackle prospect, I mean, this guy is as prestigious as anybody
(35:34):
who's come out in recent memory,and I think he's being drastically overlooked.
I mean, maybe Harbaugh takes himat five since he's a big ol'd line
guy, and he'll appreciate the valuethere. But with the Chargers and the
Giants, both teams have left tacklesalready. And I think that's the one
main argument that everybody likes to throwin my face is well, you already
(35:55):
got Andrew Thomas, so what thehell are you doing taking Joe Walt?
And I'm like, well, I'lltell you I'm doing. I'm putting him
at right tackle. I'm kicking EvanNeil inside. Now I got a fortified
right side of my line, andGod forbid Andrew Thomas gets hurt. Wow,
Joe Walt just flips the left sideand we're not missing a beat,
you know. So yeah, howdo you kind of look through that lens
(36:16):
of the justification around taking allt whenyou already have a left tackle? I
think you laid it out perfectly thescenario that we could see unfold if they
do take all and I do thinkthere's I think there's some fatigue from Jihanson
just that I have sense just oninvesting more premium picks in the offensive line
(36:36):
when it's been such a mixed bagand they they've tried to go that route
so often and the line still isn'twhere it needs to be. So I
feel like that kind of plays intoit. But I don't think it's a
hard thing, right because you do. You do get scarred, I think
sometimes by some of these picks.But you can't let the past and the
way things have worked out in thepast influence, you know, the way
(37:00):
you're going into this draft. Likeyou can't say, just because we took
an alignment and it didn't work out, we can't draft another one in the
first round. You just have totry to learn your lessons from that.
And I think you know honestly thatdraft you're not saying it in hindsight coming
out with Evan Neil like I was. I was concerned with that pick because
there were things on tape that Ididn't love. You know, you looked
(37:22):
at some other guys who were nastyor finishers, like you didn't see that
in Evan Niel's tape. And that'skind of honestly, before the athleticism,
before anything else, like, Iwant to see that nasty streak. I
want to see guys just taking prideand burying their the guy they're blocking in
the ground, taking pride in thosepancakes, you know, wanting to just
(37:44):
kick somebody's ass, like you needthat in an alignment. You know,
it doesn't matter if they're athletic orwhat they test or anything else, that
they don't have that in them,and I didn't. That's what concerned me
about him is I didn't see thaton his tape really much at all.
Alt is a guy who has themeasurables you look for and shows that mean
streak. And you know, again, I don't think just because it's an
(38:07):
alignment and they haven't done as wellwith certain aligned prospects that you can't just
ignore the type of impact. Addinga guy like that would make I agree
wholeheartedly. Man. I mean,it's it's such an obvious thing to me,
but yeah, most Giants fans arelike, you've already got two first
round offensive tackles, so you gotno business taken another one. But man,
(38:29):
wouldn't that be one hell of afront and imposing to defensive lines and
defensive coordinators to have to go upagainst if you were able to have all
and Andrew Thomas. So another enoughout of the box thought at six Quinyon
Mitchell, right, we have ahuge need at corner. He seems to
(38:52):
be the top guy. Some peoplehave Terry On Arnold up there, some
people have Cooper j Jon up there. But I think Quinon Mitchell to me
far away the top corner prospect.I mean, Dijon is he a safety?
Is he a corner? A lotof uncertainty in that conversation, But
what do you think when you lookat the first cornerback going off the board.
(39:14):
Most years it's normally in that fouror five six range, and most
people haven't even considered the giants goingcorner there, even though it is a
huge need. So what would beyour reaction if they didn't go wide,
receiver, didn't go quarterback, didn'tgo o line and got sneaky and when
cornerback there would be I would besurprised. I gotta be honest. But
(39:38):
there is logic too, like you'resaying, I mean, I think Mitchell
is a fantastic cross way. Ithink there's going to be You know,
it's funny because people forget this,like the same questions people asking about him
they asked about Sauce Gardner, andwe've seen how that worked out as far
as like level of competition, whodid he really face? Who did he
really shut down? But I don'tknow corners to me also, it's to
(40:02):
me, just in my experience,it's such a hard position to evaluate because
there's so many other factors. Thereare guys that I thought were gonna be,
you know, no doubt thuds thatjust completely disabreate, like watching Okuda's
tape at Ohio Stateum, like,how can this guy not be a phenomenal
(40:22):
NFL corner And it just he doesn'thave it, And it's it's one of
the hardest positions I think to translateto the next level. And I wish
I had an answer for exactly whythat is, because again, like you
look at the measurables, you lookat the tape, there are guys that
are undeniably great in college that justthey can't get there in the NFL.
(40:44):
So it's it is a position thatscares me a little bit to go that
high again, especially when there areother glare needs and guys like a Romo
Junes and Joel that I feel soconfident about. But I do like Mitchell
as a prospect as well. Yeah, Witherspoon is another one who went five
to Seattle, you know, nota high level of competition I played in
(41:05):
the SEC or anything like that,but obviously super successful. What stands out
to me about Mitchell is not onlyall of his like tape and everything like
that, but just a swagger thathe's got. When you talk about that
with the offensive lineman, I mean, I want a corner who's gonna jaw
a little bit like. I wanthim to be braggadocious if you will,
you know, like have that demeanorbecause you need that to really shake up
(41:30):
a wide receiver and everything. SoI do put a little bit of a
premium on that. I agree,I don't think corner is the way to
go, but he is a prospectthat I still would seriously consider. And
some people would say, oh,well, you got to trade down if
you're gonna do something like that.I don't know how far he's gonna make
it down, you know, becausehe really is above and beyond as far
(41:50):
as I'm concerned, the top cornerin the draft. But yeah, a
lot of people are real skeptical aboutcornerback prospects because it is a tough position
to figure out from a scouting perspective, but it should be interesting. Bowers
is the only other one, likewrapping up the top guys that you hear.
You know, a lot of pundonsay, well, you know,
(42:13):
if the Giants aren't going to gowide receiver and Darren Waller is going to
retire, then what about brock Bauers. I mean, I'm kind of the
mindset that they used and abused himat Georgia. He's a little undersized,
and I worry about him taking aton of hits to the legs at the
next level, which is definitely goingto be the case. But there's no
arguing that he's a legitimate prospect,one of the better tight ends that have
(42:36):
come out, and you know,top ten tight ends normally don't pan out,
but he has a higher probability thanmost of those folks. So what
do you do you think that's morerealistic than corner or it's hard for me
to see them going there. Yeah, I mean, I like him as
a prospect. I do. Allthe concerts he laid out I think are
(42:57):
exactly the concerns that I have.But I just think for the way that
this team's constructor right now, Ilike taking him when Ramo Doing's on the
board, it's just hard for meto get past that. If you're looking
for a number one option, youknow, it's it's just hard for me.
It would be hard for me toget past that. What if it
(43:19):
went like, you know, WilliamsDaniels or May and then those top three
wide receivers are off the board,and then you're sitting there with like JJ
McCarthy or something else, And whatif you're not in love with JJ McCarthy
or whatever quarterback is available, andthen the three wide receivers that you would
(43:43):
have taken are gone. Then doesthat open that door up a little bit
more? Or is that just likean immediate let's trade down? What the
hell are we doing type thing?I mean just kind of thinking out loud
with you. Yeah, yeah,I think. And it's and it's good
to like have these exercises because wealways we always go into these drafts like
thinking because we've heard it's gonna bea certain way for so long, thinking
it's going to go you know,there's gonna be four quarterbacks in the top
(44:06):
four picks or at least within thetop five. Like we go into that
with you know, go into thiswith that mindset, and then you know,
or three picks in everything we thoughtit was gonna happen, it is
totally blown up. So I thinkin that situation, yeah, I'm looking
to trade down because if it playsout that way, that means Minnesota hasn't
(44:29):
moved up yet. Right, mostlikely Denver hasn't moved up. The Raiders
haven't moved up, so there's gonnabe suitors. If McCarthy makes it there
to six, I think those teamsare gonna start getting Nancy and I think
you can get a potential haul.I would rather do that than as much
as I like a Bowers than takea Bowers at six. Yeah, I
agree with you, and I don'tthink it. I think the media is
(44:52):
hyping up these quarterbacks a lot morethan I think maybe NFL franchise to interview
them. I anticipate that a quarterback or two is gonna fall little bit,
And it wouldn't shock me if Harrisongoes three to the Pats and then
you know, neighbors are a dune, Say goes four to the Cardinals.
They got a ton of picks andhelping out Kyler Murray would not be a
(45:13):
bad thing for them. And thenyou got the Chargers right there who no
longer have key in Allen or MikeWall you know what I mean. So
it's like it could happen. Crazythings have happened. So yeah, I
agree with you. It is afun exercise because we do always think,
oh, it's going to go thisway and it never does. So cool
man. Well, I know we'recoming up on time here. Curious what
(45:36):
the coverage is going to be likefor the show over the course of Draft
weekend. You guys are going tobe out there doing a bunch of stuff.
What do you guys got in theworks? Yeah, so we are
not going to the draft this year, but we do have a ton of
stuff planned, I can tell youright now and pulling up our list.
So we got Marshaun Lloyd, NateWiggins, and Bo Nicks on the show
(45:58):
on Monday, so that's to beloaded. That's a power line up to
start off Draft week. Oh yeah. And then Tuesday we got Keith Lee,
Austin Reed, and kool Aid.Okay, so not bad. Wednesday
we got Calvin Johnson, Ricky Piersoll, and then a couple of things in
(46:19):
the works with some potential top fifteenpicks nothing confirmed yet. And then Thursday
we're gonna have Drake May and JoeAlt and potentially another top fifteen pick.
So yeah, so we're gonna getWe're gonna have a lot of these top
prospects coming in. We're still workingon a couple other things to finalize too,
But you know, even though we'renot gonna be there this year,
we're going full speed ahead on gettingas many top prospects in as you can.
(46:45):
We're gonna have some analysts in toothat we're still working on some things
to finalize. Matt Miller is definitelygonna be on this week with us.
Oh also Malachai Corley is gonna bebe coming on this week. So we're
really getting a lot of exciting prospectsthat I can't wait to talk to.
And we're gonna have some great analysisbetween k and and some of the other
(47:06):
analysts that we're gonna have on.Yeah, really really really excited for how
our covery is shaping up for thisweek. Yeah, and Corley and pearsall
are two names I think a lotof giants fans are super interested in you
know, Lat McConkie's another one.But piersaw, I feel like a lot
of Giants fans are real high onOn Pearsall. He's got to be a
(47:27):
Day two guy. Is he gonnaHe's got to go on probably the second
round? I would assume I reallylike Keon Coleman not to go on a
tangent, but you know another youtalk about if you miss out on Romadoonsday,
having a guy with a basketball backgroundlike Keon Coleman who can high point
a ball is not a bad thingto have. But Pearsall is a really
popular name in the Giants fans scoutingcircles, so it be interesting to see
(47:52):
him. And then yeah, ThursdayDraft morning, got to tune into that
one May and all, I meantalk about two names they keep coming up
for the Giant and says of latedefinitely worth checking out. Oh yeah,
yeah, it's gonna be it's gonnabe a blast. I'm super excited for
this. And then yeah, andthen the week after we go right into
Kentucky Derby Week, which we're gonnabe there for that. So oh you
(48:14):
guys are going to that cool man? Oh yeah, that's quite like that.
Oh yeah, and then schedule releaseweek the week after that, so
we got we're gonna have a lotcoming up on the show over the next
three weeks. That's gonna be That'sgonna be a lot of fun. You
got your fit picked out for theDerby already sort of still still still working
on some things. Yeah, I'mI'm in draft mode right now. Yeah.
(48:37):
That's just like always such a spectacle, the Derby, And I feel
like, if you're going, yougot to like playing that like months in
advance. But yeah, and ittotally snuck up on me last year too,
because we were in Kansas City forthe show last year for draft week,
and then it's like, oh,like I'm two days away from having
to leave for Louisville and I havenot given this anything whatsoever. So I'm
(48:58):
playing things out a little bit morethis year, but I'm still, yeah,
still underprepared. For sure, Iwould be prioritizing the draft way more
than now. But for the goodtuck me too, man. I'm right
there with you, but really appreciateyou coming on at Always a pleasure to
have you on. You Welcome backanytime, obviously, Best of luck next
week with the coverage, keep goingat it. You guys do a fantastic
(49:19):
job. I love watching the showall the time, particularly like all the
player prospects that you have on thistime of year. To get that insight
and information, it's super unique,but again really making you. Really appreciate
you making the time, particularly ina busy time of year, to come
on the show and chat with us. I appreciate you, Dave always love
coming on with you, I reallydo. Thanks so much. Man.
(49:40):
Well, that's a good place towrap up here. Thanks to all of
our listeners for checking in with uson another show this week, and we
look forward to having you all backon the next Scouts on our podcast.
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