0:02For the second time this morning.
0:06Hi everybody. I'm Bob Harris, he's Matt Waldman. We're here for the Field Your Bunker Podcast and so are you.
0:11Uh and that's great news. You're also probably here because you are familiar with the Rookie Scouting Portfolio. The post-draft version is now available for
0:18download. Uh I've been perusing it this very morning. Tons of great information in there as always. Matt, tell everybody about it.
0:25>> Yeah, you're going to get I don't know, somewhere between 120 and 150 pages worth of information cheat sheet that's a few pages long that covers 220
0:33prospects. You're going to they have um you know, kind of different symbols that give you a shorthand for determining where you should draft these guys cuz
0:42it's a tier cheat sheet that also gives you values based on the ADP analysis I've done of about nine drafts um where
0:50I link you to the drafts and you can look at those and complete them if you want to with the chart that I provide so
0:55that you >> Hey Jady.
0:57>> you can do different work yet page 80, there you go. So you can kind of do some additional homework. You can even add in
1:02some of your own leagues into the columns that are available there. I gave you a few to do that with. Um but you're
1:08also going to get analysis good fit, bad fit, overrated, underrated, um long-term guys. I give you some strategic ideas especially in a draft like this where
1:19you know, a lot of people feel it's a bad draft and you're probably not going to be able to um trade for 2027 picks as easily as you
1:27would in you know, in previous years for the next year's pick. Um so I kind of give you ideas of what to do if
1:33everybody's stingy about holding on to their um subsequent year picks and give you some rationale in terms of why and where I think some of the hidden
1:42strengths of this class might be and the hidden values can be so that you can um leverage picks that you have and and
1:49face the reality of the situation at hand. Um so you you get this with the RSP pre-draft which was 1,267 pages of
1:59goodness. Uh Choose your own adventure.
2:01Everything's bookmarked in both of these in these products so you can, you know, really choose your own adventure. The pre-draft I think is at best for the
2:09waiver wire and long-term outlooks for players. I think the the post-draft is the best for the faux long-term outlook that dynasty managers tend to have in
2:20terms of we all react to new information. So, um I find that you know, it's actually, you know, we I advertise it as more of the
2:30now we see what the fit is, but it tends to be a little more reactionary than what talent actually shows you
2:35long-term. So, you kind of get the best of both worlds with it.
2:38>> Yeah, I think I think that's true. I I, you know, I use the pre-draft to catch up on everything I didn't know because I
2:46didn't watch college football. Right? I have no idea. I'm starting cold and there's no better way to dive deep into this. Um but also, you know, you learn a
2:54little bit about what scheme fit, you know, what the possible scheme fits are.
2:57Now that we have the post-draft, I think that to me is the is the piece of the puzzle that makes it all work and and
3:02you throw it in there that tier cheat sheet is fantastic. So, tons of great content in there. If you haven't looked
3:06at it, go look at it now. I demand that you do that because you will be very happy with me. And I'm Bob Harris. I
3:12approve that message. Hi.
3:15With that out of the way, let's go on to feeling our pockets of things. And I almost feel like I'm setting you up to
3:20destroy somebody here. Drew Allar, his team limited him and that's a good reason to buy into him. Feeling our pocket.
3:25>> Yeah, I think that's a bad rationale. I mean, I think, you know, we're rooting for Drew Allar even if I don't have a
3:31strong grade for him. I don't have a good grade for him at all. Um I don't even have a bad grade for him. It's that
3:36bad. Um so, it but the idea that you're going to um justify the pick of him by saying
3:45that Penn State really didn't use him in the best possible way for how many years that he was there?
3:52That just kind of says to me now he's even less ready because it if they they didn't use him to his
4:01capability we never saw his capability. And so to me it's kind of an illogical statement to make.
4:10Now maybe because at the same time you could say well, NFL coaches might say, Mike McCarthy might say that he wasn't
4:17used to his ability.
4:19Um Is that that's rooted in practice? Um that's rooted in workouts against air?
4:26I mean what's what's the basis for that?
4:28So I hope that he's right and I hope that Drew Allar proves me wrong in terms of you know, his career and he has an
4:35awesome career but I'm more inclined to think that you know, we'll probably see Will Howard before we see Drew Allar and if we do
4:43see Drew Allar first and he has a good first few set of games. I mean, let's just remember Will Levis and Marcus
4:51Mariota. A few games does not make a career.
4:54So So we've got to we we got to take a patient approach with him. Give him, you know, probably 18 to 30 games to really
5:03start to show what he is and then we can kind of go from there. But at this stage the rationale makes no sense.
5:10>> So let's just put it this way though. Yeah, I mean you're not high on Drew Allar yet. He is in a
5:16fortuitous opportunity, right? I mean, he maybe is a in line to to be a starting quarterback for an NFL team. How do you balance
5:23those two things out when you're drafting?
5:25>> Um I think for me when it comes to other positions, I tend to be a little bit more open to that possibility. Say like
5:33Dez On Stribling. He's probably going to have an opportunity to see significant playing time. So I'm going to bump that up because I think that there's a
5:42especially if I think there's a good fit there. But at quarterback, I don't change very much because, you know, whether it was Will
5:50Levis or Malik Willis or Drew Drew Drew Lock or Zach Wilson or any of these guys or Desmond Ridder, any of these guys
6:01that got early playing time, what tends to happen is that these players get rushed into it because of the initial sunk cost that owners put into this and
6:11they want to see their rookie play sooner than later. So, it's actually it makes things worse more often than not and these guys, maybe they get an early
6:20opportunity and my recommendation usually to people is that if you're a trade savvy GM and you want to draft them because you
6:28can sell high on them and you think there's a chance that you'll have a sell high window and you'll recoup more
6:34picks, then sure, take that chance. But if you're like most people who don't fashion themselves, you know, it's like the gun owners who fashion themselves,
6:44um that they're going to be James Arness and Gunsmoke, you know, and they they you know, they lean back in their bed
6:51and the shotgun is in the in the headboard and they're going to you know, they're not going to shoot their wife or
6:56shoot themselves in in the foot when they do the fancy maneuvering. I mean, then yeah, I mean, I think that Allar's
7:03on that end of the spectrum. It's the safer play to avoid him. Yes. It's just it's just better to >> Pretty old for the listeners to get
7:12>> I I just want to say it's I mean, it's fair to say though that teams often I mean, people can
7:18view prospects very differently, right?
7:21Uh and maybe the Steelers see Drew Allar differently. You mentioned a couple things that I want to tie that into the
7:25San Francisco 49ers and DeShawn Stripling probably went higher than he was expected. The 49ers seem to view players differently and we saw that.
7:33Kyle Shanahan had Caleb Black uh as the second-rated back on the board.
7:38He said the 49ers had that. Uh I How do you feel about that or or [ __ ] it?
7:43>> I'm feeling it. Um and I think it's because when you watch Kylin Blacks game, he's very aggressive through a crease.
7:51He attacks creases at the earliest point. He really anticipates the blocking well, especially on off tackle plays, off tackle zone, inside zone. The
8:03types of plays that the 49ers run well.
8:06And on top of that, he's a good blocker.
8:08He finishes strong. And when you think about I've seen some comparisons to him to Trey Sermon because of his speed.
8:16Like first of all, like let's talk about comparisons real quick.
8:20I you know, there's lots of ways that they can be made, but I think that for me, I prefer to make comparisons where
8:28there's a physical body type in addition to a stylistic um way of playing that match the player you're comparing him
8:37to. If you're comparing a player like Kylin Black who's not as big as Trey Sermon, um to that guy because they're both
8:47slower, I I just feel like that that's kind of a shallow comparison point. Um so, you you know, for me, you and they're not
8:58they're very different. Kyle, you know, Trey Sermon where I erred with uh Trey Sermon in my analysis of him fitting the
9:05scheme is that he was a much more patient runner behind and he didn't attack as hard early enough. And that was the sticking point
9:17with him with Kyle Shanahan is that in contrast, they had Elijah Mitchell who while he wasn't a zone runner in school,
9:25he he translated well to Shanahan style of zone running because he hit creases hard and he once he saw or anticipated
9:34where the opening would go, he he really zoomed through that and he didn't mind running through people's faces in order to um get to where that crease is
9:44supposed to be. And that's more Kalen Ballage style. So, I sit I I get how Shanahan and company valued him as the
9:53best possible fit for their board. And we'll see what Jordan James is. I mean, I really liked Jordan James last year,
10:00but where Ballage might have the edge over Jordan James right now, based on what we've seen of James, is that Ballage is a very decisive
10:09anticipatory runner who is violent at the collision point. Whereas, I think James was a more versatile player overall, maybe a a a more creative
10:20player overall, but we haven't seen the the iteration of James, the most recent iteration of James. The most iteration recent iteration of Ballage we've seen
10:31was from, you know, December. James really didn't play last year. So, you know, didn't get a lot of playing time if at all. So, the off season is
10:41probably a point where he probably also learned a lot and worked on his game a fair bit. And we may see a different
10:47iteration of them. So, I would say it's a pretty close call between these two backs, but I um I would might give the
10:54edge to Ballage right now, based on what we've seen most recently.
10:59>> It's interesting you brought up a picture there. And and maybe part of the concerns is the, you know, the 49ers
11:04often miss on these mid mid-tier backs in the draft. And they have but they're looking for something. They So, you can't underestimate
11:12And and like I've read varying things where the scouts often are at odds with the coaching staff on these players and who
11:19they take. And the coaching staff tends to win out. I'm going to I'll just say there, if you go out on your X device or
11:24whatever and search Mike McDaniel, Chris Foerster, there's a great like 5-minute video of my old high school teammate Chris Foerster and and McDaniel talking
11:34about how they put together a game plan and what's involved and what they're looking for. This all goes back to Mike
11:41Shanahan, their time together in Washington. And And so, it's just really interesting and it and it kind of informs on how they look at players a
11:48little better than than they are a little differently than other teams. So, >> Yeah, and just to just to add real quick
11:53to this, cuz I think it's a great point, is that you can see if they hit on black, and I think that they will be
12:00closer to hitting on him than some of the failures they had, it's because of what they've learned in the past. Kyle
12:07Shanahan wanted um you know, um what was his name? Tevin Coleman in Atlanta. And Coleman was an outside zone runner, so he picked
12:16outside zone runner, but Coleman was not a good outside zone runner. So, they ended up he ended up they force-fed Coleman until he failed and they put
12:25Devonta Freeman in there and then Coleman started to get better. And then they went with you know, when they went with uh Sermon they rolled the dice with
12:33Sermon, you know, I think that was Lynch more than it was Shanahan. And then when at the same time though, if it was
12:41Shanahan, they went with a guy that they they saw what Elijah Mitchell did. And they weren't they they picked a guy who
12:49ran gap schemes. And I think he saw that what his style of offense was about maybe was easier to find runners who
12:58could execute it in that way with a gap scheme back, even though that was an outside zone, because sometimes the way certain teams use backs, they
13:09don't they they tweak their scheme a little bit differently than what you might find on Google. For instance, Iowa with Tyler Goodson, they wouldn't allow
13:18him to make cutbacks in his scheme. Uh in their scheme. They wanted their guys to just hit the front side all the time,
13:26which eliminated um a high-end ability of a player in terms of what he could possibly do, but they wanted they wanted a certain
13:34level of discipline with how they approach things, and they frowned upon that stuff. So, you know, there's a lot of nuances involved with this.
13:43>> Yeah, and it it is interesting, you know, some reporting about, you know, some of the behind-the-scenes reporting suggesting, you know, how those arguments go and how
13:51somebody wins out over somebody else.
13:52It's It's It's interesting stuff. And then And then Elijah Mitchell happens, and it doesn't matter at all. Uh Mitchell released by the Patriots this
14:00week. He's been to San Francisco, Kansas City, now the Patriots release him. Is that a good step first step for Miles
14:06Montgomery uh to maybe become the eventual running back three in New England, field or [ __ ] it?
14:11>> I feel it. I mean, it's an early step, but it's nice to see that, you know, I mean, for for Mitchell it stinks, and
14:18maybe it's cuz Mitchell just can't stay healthy, and maybe they feel like that That might have more to do with it, but
14:25at the same time, it just means one less body to be um have to compete with. So, Montgomery now is probably what, running back five,
14:33probably on the on the depth chart rather than running back six. And so, more reps for him as as a result of
14:40that, they don't have to worry about Mitchell being in the mix. Now, if they add another running back, you know, in
14:46New England within the next week to compete with him, you know, he's probably in the same spot, but I'm I'm, you know, looking at that letting go of
14:55Mitchell might also be a fact that they looked at minicamp and I said, "You know what? We got enough guys that we feel
14:59pretty good about."
15:00>> For sure. And, you know, let's develop somebody There's a body of work that we have on Mitchell that they have to to go with,
15:07and maybe that they don't have on Montgomery then. Uh Jerry Jeudy, we have a a great body of work with from which
15:13to work with him. Uh with with Jameis Winston?
15:17Praise be. Without Jameis Winston?
15:20Uh So, now he shows up uh, you you have KJ Hamler and Denzel Mims uh, show up in, uh, in Cleveland in the
15:27first and second round respectively. Um, GM Andrew Berry said this will have no impact on, uh, Jerry Jeudy. He's still the bell cow uh, wide receiver.
15:38Uh, are you buying into that? Feel or it, Matt?
15:40>> I would like to say feel it just because I think Jeudy at his best is capable of that type of production, but based on
15:48track record, I'm going to say [ __ ] it because Jerry Jeudy has been known to listen to outside voices an awful lot.
15:55Um, Steve Smith for instance, when Steve Smith criticized him, um, you know, Jeudy took a little bit of umbrage to that and then was motivated a
16:03bit to try and be better, but Jeudy's tended to be have a profile of a very talented player who doesn't always play up to his
16:12potential or he's good one season and then when the things he can rest on his laurels a bit. And I wonder if this is a
16:19little bit of often times after the draft with veterans or second year players in the spring, we hear from coaches and GMs give little
16:29excuse me, public attaboys to players that they feel like need a little motivation. And I could see how Andrew Berry is giving a little
16:38bit of an attaboy to Jerry Jeudy, but more importantly, you you mentioned the key thing, Jameis Winston. Jameis Winston, when it comes time to target
16:47his primary receiver, it's the it might be the only receiver on the field sometimes. I mean, he's going to pepper those guys. It's not even pepper, it's
16:56like scotch bonnet pepper those guys in terms of what he does. I mean, I remember when he had Michael Thomas in
17:03in New Orleans and the for the the games Thomas was healthy, Thomas would have been the runaway wide receiver one after
17:11the first few weeks of the season based on how often he was getting targeted.
17:16And I they don't have that in, you know, they're we're not going to see that kind of peppering. We're going to see it
17:21spread around a fair bit. So, Judy could have a good year, but I don't think he's going to rebound to the tune of what he
17:27had with James.
17:28>> Yeah, I feel like Andrew Berry might be leading us on a bit and and diminishing, you know, kind of setting a a reasonable
17:35expectation for the two rookies coming in. I will say this, Judy has been working out in Florida with Deshaun Watson. Uh so, that can't hurt him at
17:43all if Deshaun Watson is going to be the starter in Cleveland, which is the trajectory we're on right now. I don't
17:50know why you leak it out that, you know, he is not unless he is unless you're trying to motivate Cedrick Sanders, who
17:55seems plenty motivated to me. So, we'll see how that plays out there in the uh great city of Cleveland, that great
18:03storied franchise, the Browns. Um DeAndre Hopkins uh uh has been talking about playing in Cincinnati. Would he be a relevant player in the slot there, feeler or [ __ ]
18:13it?
18:14>> [ __ ] yeah. I'm still I'm still totally on the DeAndre Hopkins train. I did not see anything last year that dissuaded me
18:21from thinking the guy still can't that the guy can't play other than the fact that they didn't want to use him as much
18:27as they should have. I mean, early in the season, he looked like the total badass he's always been, you know, making tight coverage plays when they
18:34needed. Um he's excellent in the slot.
18:38That's probably best where his best possible fit um because he's going to operate against zone coverage and he's going to have to and he can still win at
18:46the catch point against tight coverage when the ball's in the air. You know, getting separation on the outside might be a little tougher for him than what it
18:55was.
18:57Again, all indications didn't show it was that much of a of a difficulty last year in limited time. So, to be able to
19:04put him in that third role where they hoped Jermaine Burton, Charlie Jones, Andre Iosivas would possibly um
19:13be assets at one point. Right. I think Hopkins there would be absolutely magical.
19:20>> Yeah, the numbers compare favorably to Andre Yoshi who's there in the slide.
19:23Now, also maybe would give them an opportunity. I mean, he can still play outside. They can move Jamar Chase around more and I think that's one of
19:30the big goals there. Uh the Ravens as last team added some heft to their receiving core in Jacobe Lane and Elijah
19:38Serratt, but also at tight end where they do have a need behind Mark Andrews.
19:42Matthew Matthew Hibner could succeed Mark Andrews as Baltimore as the main tight end weapon. Feel or [ __ ] it.
19:47>> I feel it. I think that that's very possible, especially when they mentioned this week that they felt like he could
19:53become a major weapon for them. Um the the strength in Hibner's game is his ability win up the seam to be able to
20:00make plays in the in the intermediate and vertical zones. He tracks the ball fairly well. Um catches the ball against contact well. Um so, and he's not a bad
20:11blocker. He's just got to get a little He's He's just going to you know, have to acclimate the same way you know,
20:17Andrews and Charlie Kolar did. And I think he can do that. So, he's a sneaky good you know, kind of mid to late pick
20:24depending on the type of format that you're in scoring wise.
20:28>> All right, Antonio Williams. You hate him. Feel or [ __ ] it. No.
20:35I went too far with that one. Uh let's just say he's an overrated fantasy asset. Feel or [ __ ] it.
20:39>> Yeah, [ __ ] it. I think he's a very good fantasy asset. Um I think the Randall Cobb Jayden Reed kind of comps I had a
20:46Jayden Reed comp. There's a long time scout apparently um who noted that it was that Randall Cobb was the player he was reminded of when
20:57he saw Antonio Williams. Either way, you're looking at a slot flanker who's going to play in an offense that I that uses it. And so, that's great and I
21:07think that, you know, maybe Luke McCaffrey is ready to go in year three.
21:12Um but I think that Williams is probably someone that will at least be wide receiver three on this team. Um and I
21:20think that he'll wind up being the third most second or third most productive receiver on the team.
21:26>> Yeah, and the post your good post draft RSP, he has a shot to start off the Terry McLaurin in his new offense. Does
21:33the David Blough is this Detroit offense in for many of this for you?
21:37>> Um yeah, I mean, that's a good it's a very good point with that because if it is indeed the Detroit offense,
21:44then you're looking at Williams playing that role of a of an enhanced kind of Jayden Reed role or Amon-Ra St. Brown
21:52type of role. And that that could make him a high, you know, target count player. And I think that that's, you
21:59know, that's worth investing in.
22:01>> Okay, fair enough. Emanuel Wilson, we saw when he had opportunities last year in Green Bay, he was fantastic. Now he's
22:07in Seattle. I know J'Darien Price is the player we wanted to see get all the opportunities. I don't think he will. Um
22:14Emanuel Wilson will be a factor in Seattle, feel it or [ __ ] it.
22:16>> At least early in the season, I believe it. And I think that he'll stay that way throughout because he's a good all
22:22around running back that the the Packers just decided that they like Chris Brooks better maybe from a financial standpoint and that
22:31that the separation between them wasn't as great as it you know, cuz it was kind of like tomato tomato when you put those
22:38guys in um into the lineup and they split time. And I guess they felt like, "We'll stick with Brooks and we can uh
22:46and we can let Wilson go." And Wilson, I think, is going to be a nice asset for this team where it'll probably be a
22:52committee. I think Price will probably lead the way, but Wilson will probably get enough say with touches that he could have some
23:00fantasy value for you.
23:02>> That seems reasonable enough. Emmit Johnson, the player you liked in the pre-draft, goes to Kansas City where Andy Reid has
23:10has compared the agility of Johnson to that of one LeSean McCoy.
23:16Feel that or [ __ ] it.
23:17>> Well, I mean, how am I going to disagree with Andy Reid when he had LeSean McCoy all those years, right?
23:22>> one, man.
23:22>> You know, I'm not disagreeing with him on that. I mean, come on. But, I I think what's interesting about that, what I'm
23:28feeling about this particular angle, Bob, is that Reid is um you know, noting his change of direction quickness, his agility at What did What
23:39was Emmit Johnson banged on the most pre-draft? For For that very thing because he ran a slow three-cone drill time, and we talked about how it just
23:49didn't match up one-to-one with what you saw on film. And so, I think this is a great example of that.
23:56>> All right. Well, Jayden Otts there as well. What can we expect from him working um with behind the starters there and and uh
24:06and Johnson in Kansas City?
24:08>> Well, I mean the the running back coach, I think, vouched for him because he was Ott's coach at California. Um
24:16and so, there was so, there's that. Um but I watched Ott at Cal when he was having his best season, and I got to be honest
24:26that that was most of what I watched when I evaluated him. And I wasn't highly impressed with his skills. I thought
24:33that he was a good um shallow box runner, you know, five five, six in the box at most. He was good
24:41there, but when you started to give him, you know, seven or eight in the box, that's where he really faltered. He
24:46wasn't good in traffic. Um he's good open field player, um but you know, he's at best third on on depth chart, and I don't think he's going to
24:56be third. I think he might be stay on the depth chart because of his special team prowess. Have him return kicks. I
25:04think that's where they'd probably vouch for him the most.
25:07Um and so I don't think he's a threat to Emeka Johnson really at all.
25:12>> It's a deep class this year with the awful linebackers. CJ Allen could be the best IDP rookie in 2026. Feeler [ __ ] it.
25:19>> I'll totally feeling that. This guy is a pro's pro in terms of as a prospect. Um comes downhill really well, can work side to sideline very
25:28well, and he's just another one of those Georgia guys who who on defense who understands the game. And he's going to
25:36be put in the middle, and he's going to be their focal point for this off for this um Colts offense or Colts defense, excuse me. So, yeah,
25:46I'm taking him.
25:47>> So, when are you taking him?
25:49>> I in an IDP league, I mean, I could see second round.
25:54>> I mean, let's say this. Let's say you're in the middle of the first round, asking for a friend.
25:59Your pick's coming up at sixth overall.
26:01You're looking at possibly the three receivers not named Carnell Tate, and you're looking at CJ Allen. You're I'm four picks away. Or he, that guy,
26:10>> Yeah.
26:10>> the person I'm talking about.
26:12>> Another IDP draft nerd.
26:13>> I would consider it, though people will consider it a reach.
26:16>> I I I think the the key here is I'm pretty loaded at at most every position.
26:20Like, I'm probably going to go with one of the wide receivers, and I think there's enough depth at the position. Uh
26:25but but I would been flirting with the idea, so when I realized we were going to be discussing him, I thought this
26:30would be a good opportunity for me to dig deep into Matt Waldman's bass IDP knowledge.
26:37>> I would consider I would definitely consider CJ Allen, though I know it might be a reach.
26:41>> It is a bit of a reach. Um you can probably get him in round two, maybe even round three.
26:46>> Yeah. Are you Do you think people will see Sonny Styles as a better pick just because of the draft capital?
26:51>> Yes, they will. They will see that, but I will be waiting on CJ Allen.
26:55>> Fair enough. All right. I'm glad we could figure that out for my uh for my friend. You're welcome, sir.
27:00>> Yeah, that's okay. He's not going to be my friend when he when he snipes him from me um in another league that me and my
27:07friend are in, but you know, that's what I do.
27:09>> not a dissimilar league. All right, Jonathan Brooks.
27:12Uh reasons to buy, sell, or hold.
27:15>> Let's do all three. The reasons to buy is that when he was healthy at Texas, he was the best back in that class um
27:23and he he rivaled I thought he rivaled any of the I I thought he rivaled Bijan.
27:30I thought he was Bijan was um more um agile player.
27:35Brooks had better contact balance, but was also faster and quicker than people realized and then had excellent vision.
27:44So, I love what Brooks offers from a from a pre-injury standpoint. The reason to sell is that we haven't seen him play
27:51in 2 years. And so, we don't know how fast he's going to acclimate, whether he's going to be able to overtake Chuba Hubbard, or whether
28:00it's going to be a split time share, and they love Chuba Hubbard there. And so, >> so he could wind up being the third back
28:07and not really doing anything. The reason to hold is that he's probably going to wind up somewhere in between and see what kind of value you can get
28:15from him before you make that type of a decision. Um if you're loaded, if you're loaded at running back and there's some
28:22excitement about him, I could see why you might want to sell now um so that you can avoid any of the
28:28speculation of whether he'll even get on the field and show anything. That might be worthwhile to you. The reason to buy
28:35might be that you're rebuilding and you don't and you you still want to have an early round pick in 2027. Maybe you're
28:41aiming for Jeremiah Smith at wide receiver and you're thinking, "I don't want to I want to acquire players who might help me, but I don't want them to
28:50help me right away. Well, Brooks might be that that type of player where you can take a risk like that at a
28:55reasonable price.
28:57>> Or if you're drafting in best ball right now, running back 47, you're getting them in like round 11. I think that's
29:03the those that's the kind of thing that can get you huge wins. He's got tons of upside there based on everything Matt
29:09said. So, I think there's a lot of players that that people will be drafting ahead of him. Uh they probably don't have that same upside or
29:17contingent upside he has should he outright win that job. If he's if he turns back into Jonathan Brooks, I mean, it's
29:24very believable. I will go back to something talking to local reporters about Chuba Hubbard and something that you'll find is the theme. You'll hear
29:34you'll hear David Canales say it. You'll hear the reporters say it. You'll hear the players say it. Running with violence. They think Chuba Hubbard
29:40embodies that and that is the word they use, violence. They want violent runners. So, uh so, interesting to see how that plays out, but I do think
29:48investing cheap shares in in Jonathan Brooks is a is a good path to potential success. I mean, that's the key, Matt,
29:55getting getting players to outperform their price and he has every has all the ability to do that. So, does Diego Pavia, I'm told, in Baltimore where he
30:04had no guaranteed money on his initial contract. Is that 3-year deal notable at all?
30:09>> Yeah, there's some piss and vinegar there. Let's just put it that way. Um >> Definitely that.
30:13>> Yeah, but uh I I think it is from the standpoint that they actually while there's no guarantees, the 3-year that's because
30:22of his off-the-field activities. Yeah, that that Basically, what they're saying is we know you're talented, so we're giving you a 3-year deal.
30:29>> been a dick, so you suffer.
30:32>> so exactly. Exactly. So, if he's if he behaves himself, um they got themselves the best number two quarterback they've had in a while and
30:43they can also maybe have Joe Fagnano maybe um develop slowly on the bench as a third if they want to do that. But Pavia Pavia
30:53to me was one of the top five quarterbacks in this class outside of the off-field stuff.
30:58>> Yeah, and and I guess they you know I say he's a dick. I don't know him. I've just heard things
31:03>> thinks he is.
31:04>> The NFL absolutely thinks he is and I think that's the broader point or what is he like the first Heisman
31:09runner up not to not to get drafted in all time history?
31:13>> Though there were a lot that didn't deserve to get drafted so >> Probably. Yeah, it turns out it turns out a lot of the Heisman
31:19winners probably didn't deserve the draft capital they spent it on them. Uh Cameron Jordan is getting up there in years. Uh the Bears will add him this
31:27summer and have him join his former head coach Dennis Allen in Chicago feeling or >> Yeah, I'm feeling that that's a there's
31:33a good chance that that's going to happen. Um I know that a lot of the Bears fans have been um were upset that they didn't draft a
31:42defensive end but as we talked about last week, you know, the addition of having a Tyler Lindenbaum-like center who could be better than Garrett
31:49Bradbury right away and the addition of Sam Rauch who could wind up being the you know, part of an of a a more um
32:00how would I say it? More civilized version of Aaron Hernandez Rob Gronkowski um tandem >> you know, in terms of you know,
32:09>> Rob says he's plenty civilized. He Aaron doesn't say much.
32:12>> Yeah, Aaron didn't say much no. But uh but you know what I'm saying is that you know, this could be a a better citizen
32:19version of that and and I think that they want to go all offense because they know their defense isn't the strongest
32:28but is it really going to matter for you to get one player and that's going to really change your defense as
32:35opposed to getting two offensive players who can keep your offense at the same level of production and execution in key positions so that you can dominate. You
32:46know, I think that you know, and if the and if you're one year better in this offense, you're going to be able to run
32:51through people a lot more efficiently and maybe build bigger leads than you did you know, in year one that then re then
32:59it comes down to one small play with a pass rusher, you know, at the end of the game. But if you're ahead by 21
33:07at the begin in the middle of the fourth quarter, pass rush isn't quite as important as it maybe was when you were
33:13behind by 10 and you come back and now every little play counts. And I think that that's where they're looking at this is like keep
33:22building on your strength and we'll try and shore up our weaknesses where we can and Cam Jordan would be a a logical
33:28choice there. I'm feeling the idea of that.
33:30>> With the 248th pick in the NFL draft 2026 NFL draft, the Cleveland Browns took uh BYU tight end Carson Ryan. He wasn't
33:40Mr. Irrelevant, but he wasn't necessarily all that relevant. Um they've got Harold Landry Jr. David Njoku moving on.
33:50Is this like uh is he a sleeper? A guy that you would pick up as after your draft as a free agent in your dynasty
33:56leagues? Feel free to [ __ ] it.
33:57>> Pre-draft I was all in on the idea and then I saw some idea of a workout that sounded like that he weighed 235 and I
34:05thought, oh, well, that might be why he he's not going to be drafted.
34:08>> college weight was listed at what? 245?
34:11>> Yeah, 255. 250 to 255. So, if he's 235, then we're concerned that he's more of a full back and and that's fine, but
34:21he might still be viable for the Browns, but not for fantasy. But if he's a legit 250 255, he will I I would say that he's second
34:31to Sam Rauch as a blocker in this class because of that weight and pound-for-pound he might even be better.
34:38Um and he I know he can catch, I know he can run decent routes, and he's got some skill after the catch. He could fulfill
34:46He could be a um middle-class version of David Njoku and actually a better version of him if they're asking him to
34:54be more of a full-fledged um technician as opposed to just a straight-line fast guy who runs straight-line routes that
35:03Njoku tended to do. Um so, I'm definitely keeping my eye on Ryan.
35:08>> All right, sounds good, man. That's all we got today, people. By the way, in case you didn't miss it didn't hear it
35:14at the top, the post-draft RSP is available, Rookie Scouting Portfolio.
35:18Get it at mattwaldman.com. It's fantastic. I've been referring to it as we've discussed these players, and you'll find tons of good information.
35:26Again, page 80 is probably where I will be living uh as I'm doing drafts. I mean, there's some vital information in
35:32there, but I think the big key for me is, you know, putting together Matt's understanding and knowledge of what scheme fits there are. We now have
35:39schemes, and we can see how they actually fit, and Mac can project add that to his uh to his uh formula here and and come up with some
35:48better information. And it is fantastic.
35:50I love it.
35:50>> And maybe next year we'll do a we'll do a bonus um insert of some of Bob's favorite um Bob's favorite pictorials of of
36:00>> Very fast players.
36:01>> very fast players, yes.
36:02>> You can go get my fantasy notebook. It's available every week at Football Guys.
36:05This week I look at second-year breakout candidates.
36:08>> Nice.
36:09>> So, check that out. Also, the Hot Seat has started back up, my uh YouTube uh show on the Audible channel. Uh we'll be
36:15uh every I think coming out every Wednesday. You can go back and listen to week one. I had the great Mike Dempsey
36:19on, my cohost from Sirius XM Fantasy >> Fantastic dynasty player.
36:23>> He is a very good dynasty player and very knowledgeable in general. The This week I'll have on Terra Roberts uh from
36:29the Dear Myth Fantasy podcast and she's been doing great work on YouTube.
36:33Recent winner of the Mike Tagliere award for grinding it out. So she does great stuff on the podcast.
36:40>> Clemson affiliations notwithstanding.
36:42>> Big Clemson fan, big Packer fan. So but yeah, she does great job of assessing the fantasy landscape. So she'll be on
36:48with me this week and then we'll be back next week for more feeling and [ __ ] How about that Matt?
36:52>> I'm I'm loving it.
36:54>> All right, let's get out of here.
36:55>> I'm loving it. All right, bye. Bye bye.
36:56>> Bye.