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Speaker 1: Be Around the NFL Podcast wants it's next contract fully guaranteed. Welcome to the Around the NFL Podcast, presented by Into It Quick Books, official sponsor of the NFL. I'm Greg Rosenthal here in a room filled with heroes, Mark Sessler, Chris Wesseling and for the first time ever, Omar, realise, that's some intense music to be interfenceed to. Wow, this is awesome. We just broke out that music just for you, Omar, Like almost a thousand episodes in and that music. I walked in with that infrance. It was made for this moment. Omar Louise. Of course, Um a long time reporter at the NFL network. He is sitting in, uh, in the Dan Hansas seat, and you know, potentially putting himself a little bit at risk here. UM no, no, I'm not saying Dan is putting himself. I read you are because Dan is out sick today. Uh. He's got the little CE. You know. Of course, the little Chris had the big Sea back in the day, and now we have the medium CE. I guess is what is that standing for? Coronaviruss I mean he has undetected symptoms. Dan has the little c just a cold the middle that exactly. We don't know that. We don't know what Dan hastive, what are you? What are you guys? You guys texted him. You haven't heard back yet. Right, there's a lot of missing, filling the blank scenarios here. West. There's some information that my wife would like to have that she has not gotten from Daniel. I mean, his kids, his kids were sick. He said he had, he said he had strepped throat and um, and that's unfortunate. But Keisha, to her credit, was concerned just in general about the the sand you know how safe it is up here, emailed a shadowy league figure about it and then uh which ended up going to our producer, Ricky Hollywood to wipe down all the microphones in the studio. Well, yeah, it was under my impression that the janitorial staff, that the NFL employees UM was doing a little bit more than just emptying out the trash in here. So UM News Alert the due diligence by Lakisha, Yeah yeah that, I mean, she's she's very pregnant. It all, it all checks out and West's face is like roughly four and a half feet from Dan's face, like six seven. People need to calm calm down, trying to trying to put this on and full disclosure. I was just sick, but I went to the doctor yesterday. It's not chrona. It wasn't even the flu. It was some sort of you know, lung inflammation or something nice, a new strain of virus. As we it's no longer contagious history of pneumonia and Broncott r right show totally here. Think I've got a cough, but hey, it's no big deal. Glad you guys had me on the chair. Thanks whoever's in that chair, constant Um, We've got we've got a fun show. Um, we've got a lot of news. We're gonna ask omar ruiz Um put him on the hot seat. I know it does feel warm. I think we all do. I mean our questions. We we haven't had a chance to kind of quiz you with things we've always wanted to ask you, and some of them are hotter than other items. Mark remember that I believe early nineties television show Herman's Head what vaguely it sounds familiar, but I was not a consistent viewer. Or if I want to know what's inside Omar's Yeah, okay, um, we also uh are going to talk about some underrated maybe overlooked players GMS stories heading into freeency. Um jumping off the fact that Omar Ruiz again is here one of the most underrated guys at NFL network. Think that maybe now at some point you don't want to be underrated. It's like you just want everyone to recognize your great But I think it's fair to say that Omar is kind of, um a key figure here at the network. People love Omar, has a great job, and he's underrated. He's he can be a little overlooked, not as much anymore, sure because you're extremely versatile, and you know, whether it's the old days and we'd be you know, cranking out those stories and you'll be doing what Matt Money and Andrew were doing out the news desk, inside the shoot. You out to San Francisco and you cover the Niners seamlessly, so on a day's notice and take a red eye of Cleveland and be embedded with the Browns for a week. And I think that's one of my strengths, is to go from Cleveland to Jacksonville. No no drama, no drama. Omar and That's why I have noticed though, um because he's been with the NFL networks since two thousands. The assignments, it's like the assignments are going up and up when you see like who's covering one of the Super Bowl teams, like Omar is getting those plumb assignments now, so they're starting directing. Oh so you may not notice this, but during things like the NFL Talents, some it like you have leadership quality yet come across and not everybody has those, So it's easy to see and it's appreciated. We are occasionally pinged by listeners for well, I know where we sometimes we get critiqued for being too nice to our guests to come on the show. So you know there's gonna have to be If we see a little crack chinking normal, we're about to go after it too. Uh yeah, we mean we were gonna We're gonna hit you hard about your um days as a game day security guard. Uh back. So just be ready for some tough questions. But in the meantime, Ricky, let's do some news. Drew say, your coach Mikebell calls you guys street rats. You guys always find a way to get it done. That is the voice of Tiffany black Men. We are just saying, uh, so long and farewell to another one of our our co workers we've probably said nice things about over the years moving on to the MLS team in Charlotte, she announced today. So just congratulations Tiffany Blackman, one of the one of the good people here at the network, one of the great people. Always interacted well with my daughters and family and all the league events. And as a matter of fact, she said that she wanted to come when our next family vacations. I opened up to her. Whenever she's ready, Tiffany. We just came back from one and she didn't take you up on It's not that time. Yeah, but she was in the middle of going to the NLS Charlotte, so whenever that thing gets up and running. And yeah, she's a good friend of Lakisha. She's she had. She did a lot of um covering of those Southeast teams Charlotte, Atlanta, in Tennessee where the Bermuda triangle the teams. Nobody pays the town while we're paying it. We're paying attention to the Titans right now. We're leading the news with him. Um. We are talking Tennessee because Ryan Tannehill to me, could be the first um decision that we get a feel of how all these quarterback decisions are going to be made around the league. Ian Rappaport Are Insider reported today that the Titans are focused on resigning Ryan Tannehill. The tag deadline has been extended to Monday. Just gonna combine these two stories. We will find out if the Titans hag Ryan Tannehill by Monday, but in the meantime, they are reportedly focused on resigning Tannehill. Does this quiet your You're tom Brady to the Titans thoughts Chris Wesley well Rad She said this is their priority. Their top priority is to bring Ryan Tannehill back. So yes, that does by definition quiet concerns that Tom Brady would be replacing him. And I think as much as we see Tom Brady connected to teams like the Titans and the forty Niners, you have to kind of question whether he fits those offenses and what the plays they kind of run, play action, boot action, movement in the pocket. Does he fit those offenses? Like the quarterbacks who are already in place in those cities. I agree with that assessment, especially with Ryan Tannehill wants to be there. The chemistry and the magic that they formulated once he was inserted into the lineup, that's something you can't necessarily replicate, even as great as Tom Brady is, if you were to go there just sort of out of the va hume or in the vacuum. Ryan Tannehill coming in reminded me a lot of the Case keenom situation in Minnesota. They thought they could upgrade with Kirk Cousins. Hasn't necessarily worked out that way by getting a guy who seems to be an upgrade. Um, so if they can build on that magic, that chemistry into and I think making himself an enemy of kissing Cousins corner. These guys love Kirk Cousins. I don't love Kirk Cousins represent that's not I mean, he's an upgrade from case Keen And let's I would say this for the like a lot of this, like, oh, your free agent, everyone wants to match you with new landing spots and teams. And if I'm the Titans and I look at Tannehill, or if I'm Ryan Tannehill, or if I'm looking at Derrick Henry or I'm Derrick Henry. The best landing spot is right where you were last year, because I just don't simply trust Ryan Tannehill suddenly going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or fill in the blank team X. The Titans worked with these two guys for a reason. I would hate to see either one of them try to duplicate last year somewhere else. I don't say they're both risky, so right and I and I'm no Ian's right that he's their first priority. But to me, what does that mean is either first priority at a certain price. That's how I would assume that it is that it doesn't They want to get it done. They want priority, absolutely, they want to get it done. They you know, they could get it done if they wanted to just pay him thirty million dollars a year, I'm sure it'd be done today. So it's figuring out what the right prices and is there a price that's you know, too much, too rich for their blood where they start going in on Brady. To me, the tag deadline being changed to Monday probably affects the Titans more than any team. The Cowboys are in there too, because I just think they kind of have to declare what they're doing. I would imagine they're going to use their tag on Derrick Henry and to me, that tells you, yeah, Ryan Tannehill, you're our priority, but we at least start comfortable in the uncertainty of what's gonna happen Monday and Tuesday that we have some other plans if we can't get you signed. I just don't understand, like, does Tannehill have any leverage to to meet, Like what one team that's gonna go after Ryan attached him to? Any team? Have you heard anything, Ohmar, I haven't heard anything with Tannehill as far as outside teams. But I think you saying Derrick Henry being maybe the focus of that tag speaks to whoever at quarterback of the Titans is next year. It's going to be a run first team. Still, Derrick Henry is still gonna be, you know, the ball carry and he is the reason in that offense for what he does to it is why it's so attractive. Whether it's Ryan Tannehill, whether it's Tom Brady, Derrick Henry being the centerpiece of that offense. Yeah, I think you can't discount the stats Tannehill put up are just outrage. I mean, who could use right. I mean, it's hard to overlook the thest Do you agree that if he just went somewhere else, like a team trying to just find a cameterback Amphill, I just I don't. I like, while bringing the whole Titans thing back for another year. While we're on Tampa and Brady, the Tampa Bay Times is reporting just now that the that the Bucks are all in quote on Tom Brady. Well, and we just did an NFL Network hider. We talked about teams that are gonna be over celebrated if they do certain things in the off season. I brought up the Bucks because if you ever put Brady into Tampa Bay and they have their shiny new uniforms and everything else you got going on there, look out for the the this the song of a nice young defense, and everyone makes the comparison. Phil Rivers is potentially landing spot there in Florida with Bruce Arians. The way Arians resurrected a late Carson Palmer career, imagine what he could do to Tom Brady. It would It's it's a very different fit in terms of the offense that he plays in. The Arians played with Manning and the only thing I'd pushed back with us on like if the Titans took Brady, I think any team that takes Brady, you're running the Tom Brady offense. I mean you are just choosing. I don't think that. I think Derrick Henry is the Titans, all right. It would be a huge risk for the Titans to change things. But wherever Tom Brady goes, you are going to change things and do things in a way that Tom Brady wants to do it that suits its year old quarterback, because that's the best way to make him at his best. Why bring him in unless you're gonna let him do I think too, you know, picking out matchups before the snap, right, I mean, what is his best quality of how his ceiling? Right now? Can he lift your offense? Because he did not lift the Patriots offense. But when you say that part of Brady being wooed by another team and the discussions around that, or that Brady's involvement in creation of the attack will be immense versus taking someone else's That's all I'm saying. And with the Bucks, I think the upside would be a better than average starting NFL quarterback that limits mistakes and can kind of manage the game for lack of a I hate that phrase, but that's part of it. Especially with the Buccaneers and those third turnovers last year. I think they've emphasized ever since the season ended that this season would have been dream actically different had they prevented those turnovers. So even just limiting those would be a huge victory for the Buccaneers. In regardless, it's a very Bruce Arians move. And then you talk about Tom Brady with Mike Evans and the weapons that they have there, it's a whole different ball game than what he was tempting to have lifted in New England this past That would that would be fun, It would be a good It would be a good spot for Stidham Corner to step up and step in. And I of all the impressive things Tom Brady has done in his career, one of the most impressive I've seen is the way people have handled his value this offseason after what he did last year. I think it's fair, but I think he was I think he was a mid level starting quarterback last year, and it was about the same when they won the Super Bowl. For stretches and like for the Bucks for the Titans, that could have a lot of value. No forty three year old quarterback has ever started UH a season, so who knows. Maybe it'll be a total bus uncharted territory. Um, you know, who's not continuing UM his great career. Unlike Tom Brady, marsh Yonda has retired after thirteen seasons. Gonna be a Ring of Honor guy in Baltimore, they already have said, And UH could be a Hall of Fame type of guy in five years or more. Marshall yonda part of those Ravens teams that gave you nightmares. Mark gave me nightmares. I mean, I mean, yeah, you don't like the Rapperds, No, I'm not. No, I I wanted to trade them in for an under the continent train system that would go to Yeah. Yeah, I know. It's kind of symbolic of their rugged ways this decade. I I I'm not probably the first person on the planet that should be grading um offensive guards as Hall of Fame entries, But I don't know what more you need to do in terms of consistency that he's just been someone you can rely on every single year. They weren't all his best seasons, but Yonda feels like h o F scenario Canady time. Yeah, I'm surprised he's actually walking away with Lamar Lamar Jackson and mark Ingram and everything that they accomplished last year in the Running Game. It's seems like one of those offenses that an offensive lineman would love to perform it, and Marshall Yonda kind of walking away I think speaks more to the fact that he wants to be healthy and go out on his terms and maybe how brutal it is to play guard at the level I think that that he was playing. He was easy choice for all Decade for my list that I did about a month ago, and I'm sure he'll be on the one, the official one that they come out with, probably with Zach Martin. I would imagine they there was Yeah, I think, uh, I think he'll probably be the favorite. I'm trying to think of who else could be in there. Yonda should get it. Shol Matonia has been very good, but now but on bad teams and and off the robably not quite to the level and not maybe for the whole deck. There was a good story someone sent out, um was it? Kevin von Dalkenberg is his name. Yesterday of covering Yonda as a rookie, Chris McAllister once brought a a taser into the locker room and that he put five dollars down and he said like, whoever wants to taze themselves gets the five under and then other players were like yeah, yeah, yeah, and like started throwing a ton of money in there, and Yonda just like walked up there apparently like he grew up on farms and he knew that wasn't even like a police grade taser, that it would be no problem for him, and he just like because he knew enough about tasers and just did it, and like everyone would get and then they were like, did he really do it? Did he really do it? And like did it again just just to prove him wrong. That's it. On the farm, they had electrical fences and he was used to that. So get you a little locker room respect. We're gonna do that on on Friday show the Taser. I think Ricky would Ricky would take a taser to the thigh or something. She would go for it. She would register the teams. You can make a little money. If you can make a little money, yeah, take that one to the bank bucks. You know, twenty bucks is all all takes we have. We've been we've been following the al Michael's Monday Night football, Tony Roma, all the speculation of who's going to be a bouncing where throughout the off season. It's really dance corner. I feel bad even talking about it out of here. I really do. UM. You know I feel bad about is Joe Testy talked about that. It's unfortunate, um for those two. But hey, we're just reporting the news. And the latest is Andrew Marshawn of the New York Posts as the NBC is saying no to an Al Michael's getting traded to ESPN deal, So that solution, which seems fun, I guess, will not happen. It just surprises me because of the Mike Tariko factor, where it was such an easy transition to someone that has been kind of backbenched unnecessarily. In that article, there was one line that stood out to me because they bent they mentioned Kurt Warner as someone in there. The in the mix of Manning didn't go. But that said internally, ESPN is toyed with the idea of a booth with Steve Levy, Lewis Riddick, and Brian Greasy who did the second Monday Night Game a year ago. That's just if all this stuff falls apart and it looks like it's falling apart, that could be a trio to look at. They were good. I like Lewis Riddick, I don't. I don't love a three man booth. I just think I would pick just Lewis Riddick. Just do you know. It's like I think, if you're asking people to do something they haven't done before and then it's three people, I'm I'm good with the little leaving Rick sorry Brian on our four person podcast that is to come in where we go on Forever. Yeah. But I think with al Michaels, I think he wants to see this NBC Super Bowl in l A, his hometown, and I think that will be his swan song and the official baton will have been passed after that. So I think it's probably more his call than anything to turn that trade down, knowing that not this season super Bowl, but the following will be on NBC and he'll have it here in Los Angeles. What was it putting on the trade on the table as trade bait. I don't like, why would what's the incentive for NBC to even think about some of that. We'll give you fifteen minutes of Stephen A. Smith and Football Night in America. Put him next to like, uh yeah, Florio and that would be fun. Tariko. Things just go crazy, did you say, Stephen Smith? Yeah? Just who are their most valuable assets right now? Stephen A Meter? God? No, Stephen even put that out there in the world. Greg. By the way, wait, what I think Stephen A. Smith was on some sort of Oscar coverage, right, Just try to maximize ABC, ESPN, trying to get as much, you know, for he can. He can do it all. So you need more disingenuous from TV report you can you can talk about kind of like the Stephen A. Smith types of the world Mark because he became close friends with Skip Bayliss over the weekend. Well, no, I think you know, there's a mall that is being reconstructive, but there's a movie theater still active inside of it. So I went to said mall, I don't want to, you know, name the location. And as I was going up the escalator from the garage, Skip Bayless and a woman I presume to be someone that he's again don't want to say, I assume it's his wife. I am assuming was going in the other directions. So I did not have a long conversation. Actually that's Mrs Bayless. It was Mrs Bayless? Was it more? Did you? Actually we didn't. I just like it was one of those things. As the person was passing by me, I like turned my Henry lines that was Skip Bayless and like texted this this crowd, how about what were you doing at the mall? What did you see seeing a movie? Oh? I missed that part movie will not? I will yeah, no, no, it was not. I will not announce what it was because the last time I mentioned a movie that I went to, which was doesn't mean you're whistlers, I believe, Yeah it was, I was, I was. I was just ripped a greg you almost want to movie by yourself? Last night? Which one was that I was gonna go see. I didn't see it, but I will. Portrait of a Lady on Fire I h a wonderful looking lesbian romantic period piece. I'm looking forward to it. I've heard it's great. That's playing at the theater that I went to. By the way, is that what you saw, Joe? I saw a film called, actually called I thought was underwhelming. Read who's in a well? You know, I mean we can okay, don't we can discuss. You don't need to bury it. We don't need to bury it. Um, what else should we talk about here? Let's uh, let's talk about the new rules proposals? Have you guys? Do you guys look at that that they're going voting on at the owners meetings, which is still scheduled to happen. By the way, the league says, the draft remains in place. The owners meeting, which is about sixteen days away from us flying to Florida for remains in place. They could always change it, of course, but assuming it happens and they go. Uh, it was a little shorter list. I noticed of potential rules changes this year. What jumped out to you, Mark, I thought the Eagles lobbying for a like different on site kick scenarios that would allow a team to go for it on fourth and fifteen. UM stood out from the twenty five yard line. They you could get the ball on your own fourth and fifteen in a way to try to keep possession of the ball instead of doing an on side kick I love I love it too, because the onside kick seems like it's become unmanageable in terms of being a reality at the end of games. To flip possession. I love that real tune we saw in the Pro Bowl, and I remember leading up to the Pro Bowl, Pete Carroll said, if we get a chance to use it, we will, and in fact they did. They scored a late touchdown they were still within one possession to try to get back in the game, and Pete Carroll goes for it fourth and fifteen from their own twenty five and who interrupts the play? Earl Thomas gets the intercession for the ultimate bird back at Pete Carroll in that play, But that I mean anything the ultimate burn in the Pro Bowl though the bird. Oh look, were you covering the Pro Bowl? You're covering everything? And that will what a surreal day. I mean, just to talk with Kobe Bryant dying, you know, five minutes before you know that all happened. What was that? Did you? What was the reaction from the players and everything in terms of your day, They're like, it was, well, first you I looked at my phone. You think it's not real? I have somebody's at TMZ texted them. They said it was so as everybody in the stands is discovering looking on their phones. You see them distracted, not looking at the introductions anymore. That all unfolds any you. I start talking to the players and they all had heard and and in the locker room. Before you know, they're describing just the error and the energy being sucked out of them because they were having their locker room speeches, let's go out and do it, and then that word creeps in redd. At the last minute, I think Pete Carroll gathered the NFC team around and said, you know, let's go do it for Kobe and and all that. And players were willing to talk to me during the game on camera. We couldn't air it because ESPN had the rights of the game until until they were offline. But the fact that they were so eager to talk and get their feelings out, uh, during the game. The actual Pro Bowl, I think, you know, spoke volumes to what how they felt about Cope and their words did that as well. I want to know how it affected their on field performance. I don't know if the Pro Bowl is the perfect gauge of how it affected their own performance versus you know, prior to the a f C Championship or something. I do like they got to try out that that rule because that we haven't seen a rule change like that in football that I can think of. That's that creative and just changing the dynamics of how you think about possession in a long long time, Like, why not try that out for a year? West seems a little skeptical. No, I love you like it. I love any rule changes that do not involve replay review. Okay, well, so there are some. There are some replay review um changes. One, you know, one proposal was saying, uh, to include scoring plays and turnovers that were negated by a penalty. Basically, just make it more available for automatic replay reviews so that you don't have to waste the challenge if like a touchdown is taken away from penalty, I'd be fine with that, or successful or unsuccessful time. We don't know for sure if they're bringing back replay at all, and they um, you know, the the Ravens and the Chargers both wanted to add the booth umpire as an official eighth game official and then maybe add technology Advisor and the there's a lot going on here. Here's one that got on my radar. Yes, I don't know if the Eagles are just trying to, as they say, sort of punk the rest of the league and all of us discussing this, but the Eagles want to restore the preseason overtime period to fifteen minutes. Well, and the regular season too, Yeah, regular season. So I I just saw, okay, so that it helps. I saw preseason and I thought, why on God's green Earth are we trying to extend preseason games that go into a fifth It is an interesting move by the Eagles that we're into that we've done this overtime for a while and now they're just saying let's go back. Well, I agree with it. Regular season I kind of get a little bit. I don't I like the ten minute thing. I don't like the ten minute you know, because I think you get the one possession. If it takes six minutes, now you have the other possession, that's it. But but you know, if if nobody scores in that first possion, nobody scores in that second possession, there's not really enough to get a third possession to actually win the game. And then you have you know, all these coaches asked, you know, are you trying to win or you're not trying to win or you just trying to play for the tiny You have other ones where they have like five possessions, no one scores, and it's like it seems like it's largely been non it's worked out without a lot of country. Seventy minutes is too that's too long to be playing football, you know, says the guy on the sideline. Finally, Um, the Patriots lead the way. I don't know if we have to talk too much about this. With compensatory picks, they had four of them, including they were the only team with two third round picks in compensatory announcements. Trent Brown, I believe was it was one of the ones they picked up for The Ravens have traditionally kicked everyone's but in compensatory picks because they figured out the formula along time ago, and they have said it's like they guard that secret like it's Coke's formula. But it factors in salary, playing time, postseason honors, and whether the team has lost more free agents than they've signed, right, Yeah, and mostly in terms of like the the Ledger of who you signed, who you don't. That kind of decides how many picks and then yeah, how how well they played or how much they did decides where the picks are. And it the Patriots are like the Ravens are a team. I think the Patriots have the second or third most you know ever in the Ravens. And uh, the Patriots they wait until the day after they're no longer included in the formula and then they signed some some free agents. It's uh because I always thought, oh, it just seems like the Ravens constantly have like endless you know, high third fourth Brown compics, which is you know, as a Browns fan, utterly because you look at some of these compics. Dak Prescott came through a compic, Mike Daniels, Kyle use Check, guys like Aaron Jones, James Connert, Our, Guy Burgo, Jeremy Bergman put together a top ten like players that were pulled through compics, and there's a pretty amazing list. The Ravens since two thousand eleven have had twenty since two has eleven. The Packers I think we're next, was seventeen New England ten. But then you look at teams like the Bears and Jags, they've had one each since two thousand eleven, which tells me you're not that's twenty players. I I saw a different list that went back even further, and I think the Ravens had fifty three in the Saints were at the bottom with ten. I mean, that's forty players. They got an next dressing at they signed mark Ingram and Earl Thomas and still got a third in the fourth round of compensatory picks of that equation. But that also speaking, it's for the Patriots they need some young players. Those are two kind of late, very late third round picks. Does that speak a lot to developing in in drafting and letting the guys walk in kind of the system. It's almost you have too much talent, like you have to let guys go and you're and they're good at good players, Yeah, they're good. I mean, what what do you saying if you have what's the cell for the Bears and the Jags that have one, You've not done that, You're not done a good job. You know, um, you know who has done a good job. We're into Omar ask Omar second, you know, yeah, that's it. For the news. I mean, he's been here since two thousand twelve. Um, his bio. I don't know if this is a law ravio magnifico, but it's it's rather long, omar, and we know you probably wrote that yourself. I mean, that thing is it's about four words. Well, they asked me, Well, they asked me, like when I first got here, that didn't go up until I've been here twelve. I had written like four before and it just never got on the website for whatever. And maybe they had you know, quick plans with me early on. But um, but if I was gonna take the time, you know, when I wrote that, I was on jury duty, so I was bored in the main perfect time, I just you know, started banging away at this bio and you know, a couple of drafts later, there it is. You've hosted NHL Tonight on NHL Network. You've been a play by play announcer from for some Olympic sports, UH, including u c l A's men's water polo. You made your way through the ranks covering a number of sports, UH, and now you're here mostly as kind of a team reporter, traveling the land, going all over the country, and and like I said, I think the value that I bring is, you know, they can kind of put me in anywhere and you don't do a and so that's all been easy and good, but now it comes. Now comes the hard time. We have five minutes. Who knows if actually he's actually having a clock. We have a rapid fire enough we have anything. Um, we are going to start the clock. And then questions are coming at you fast. You gotta answer them fast. And who knows you this might be supposed to be I'm looking for some depth here, okay, well, depth and speed whatever. There's no rules on this podcast, and we are going to start right now. People in l A keep score more than any other city I've ever been around, houses, cars, neighborhood, airtime, agents, social media. Following my scorecard is happiness. That's the only thing on there, and you rank very high on my score card. Your children are some of the most delightful children I've ever seen. They're almost like many adults are. And I've noticed that you and your wife don't speak to them like children. You speak to them as if they're actual adults, and you reason with them and you logic with them. Tell me the secret to how great your children? Well, I think from from an early age I adopted that philosophy. And so when we spoke to them, even when the kids were one year old, a year and a half and not necessarily engaging in this conversation, yet we would speak to them at the mall in a way that they could understand and hear all of our words, and they could listen to all of that in a way that and and I removed any embarrassment that I would feel talking like that in public. And so they take can notes here, I think father to be, I think they absorbed all of that a lot better and maybe a lot faster than their peers were. You know, you kind of just you know, quiet them up at the store. You don't want them to make a scene. Well, we just sort of encourage them to be themselves. We were ourselves, albeit in allowed version, and you know, kind of talking like this again so they can understand better and maybe develop their vocabulary and speaking spills skills. Good dad says, right there, Thanks, I've got one for you. Um like this music. By the way, Ricky, you seem like a high class act from what I'm hearing here. But what percentage and I want a number here, what percentage of NFL wags ak wives and girlfriends should trust their NFL playing husbands. I want a number between zero and one. Their number seems about right. Most of the guys in the NFL are good dudes. I know that you're a good So you're not gonna tell us who you say. You know things. You know things, So tell us tell us something you saw as a security guard at Candlestick Park. My favorite memory is Joe montana retirement night. They're retiring his jersey number sixteen. Huey Lewis is singing the national I hit them. It's the Broncos, It's the forty niners. They're both, you know, right around the top seeds in the a f C and NFC respectively. The Broncos were going to win the Super Bowl that year. And I'm the guy that is escorting the cameras as Joe Montana is walking onto the so I'm making sure that they keep moving because they're walking backwards of course, as we're going onto the field at Candlestick and making sure they don't trip on themselves, they don't trip on the cables and everything. And just to have that kind of bird's eye view as Joe Montana walks on the field to get his jersey retailed. It was also the game where it was Brent Jones final game as a forty niner. Their account got to get out of there Montana's get up. And it was also the game that Jerry Rice returned. If you remember at that season week one, Warren Sap tackles him on that reverse and you know is his a c L. It was his first game back. It was Monday night football, so it was everything back when al Michael's was a Monday night football and take the career path he tuck. Yeah, I mean not necessarily that night, but just being there on the sideline talking to different people, Um, you know, I would you know, chat up you know, Jim Mora at the time when when younger Jim Moore was on the forty nine staff and he was not coaching that that particular year, and and you know, having a discussion on you know, team building and all that, you know, just random stuff like that. That was just so cool, I thought, And you know, how cool would it be to be on the sidelines and get paid for it. So I kind of honed in, I like choose your idiom for the English language, better phrase beyond the pale or various stages of undress. Beyond the pale, I would say on choosing that, Yeah, I mean, either it's not my wheelhouse, but for the sake of this show and and keeping it moving out, maybe I'm the only one who finds those phrases interests. I love them. Why did you? You know? The last time I saw you in person, I believe was at around for something in the morning at a waffle house. You uh, actually you came with us and you ordered a very healthy, balanced meal, and then suddenly you were gone. What happened to you? You were you? That was a great chapter the night you weren't teaching your daughters and life lessons at four fifty? Where are you? I always say, I have the advantage coming from the West Coast of going to Indianapolis and and hanging with everybody and having these great conversations late into the night because our body is three hours ahead. So anyway, I wanted to hang out with Mark and Colleen and and and one of the coaching friends that we had met, and Dan was there as well. Um, and I was so hungry. You know, I'm a I'm a Catholic. It was it was the day after ash Wednesday, so I had fasted all day Wednesday, and I was so looking forward to once the clock struck midnight, having that huge meal late night early Thursday morning. So technically I was off the hook and now I could eat whatever I want. Steak and shake was freaking closed. So we had to drive out seemingly to Iowa to go to walk I know, and we get there and I just put the cook up against the clock. I said, hey, I have a six fifteen flight in his four fifteen. Here is my order. If it's ready, I'll eat it. If it's not, I'm gone. It wasn't ready, I took off left and I made my flight. That was the priority. That's the coach we were with, by the way, offered some explosive information that cannot be shared on the show after I left, Oh do you have do you have any good insidery stuff you want to let out from Indianapolis. I did have a good conversation with Fred Kitchens, and you know after you know, he really hasn't gone public, you know, with his side of the story since he got fired. And I think the main takeaway from that conversation was um he feeled he he felt he wasn't necessarily supported by ownership to implement a lot of the discipline that he wanted instill. We we had we saw glimpses of that when they had hard knocks. Remember, he was one of the vocal proponents of instilling a little more discipine, trying to make that that team tougher. He tried to do some things that he felt he was overruled by by ownership. He thought that he had a good conversation with Jimmy has them going into week seventeen that he was gonna have a chance to build on on things that they had gotten done there in twenty nineteen, As disappointing as it was, and the bottom line that he took away from that was they've been there since talking about ownership, and and they've had twenty one wins and he had a big hand in thirteen of them. So as disappointing as that year was, as as much a lack of a support that he felt he had in that situation, they won a lot of games, a lot more than they had. I mean, he's now on a tech sread with like fifteen other Browns coaches that field just the same way that you know, I can imagine best California beach for volleyball O. Well, Manhattan Beaches is the your beach volleyball player Avid avidly. So that's kind of my one hobby that I have carte blanche to how's the beach bot? Not right now, it's more of a dad bot, you know. But it's funny because I work all offseason. Inevitably, I gained fifteen to twenty pounds every season just being on the road, eating out all the time, lack of exercise, especially as a year wears on, because I get tired come week nine, week ten. It's just kind of like we all do. But being on the road. It's Thanksgiving, and then two weeks after that it's my Birthday, and then it's Christmas, and then it's New Year's and then it's the playoffs, super Bowl, Pro Bowl, whatever, that whole drive. So again, all that weight and then I work all off season to take it off, and I do, and then it's cycle and then and then you get back in his training camp and then away we go. So I get into the best shape of my life every year. So whenever you guys have all those tropes and you guys have that the fun discussion about like best shape of my life that we hear from the players. I'm saying the same girl. This podcast right now has something called hashtag bod quest, which um Dan was a large part of. He's been felt at the moment, but he is looking to prove his body as the rest of us. You're welcome to join. Thank you, I will hashtag bod quest. So anything that you do, hashtag it and wet you know, people come out of the woodwork and see where you're at. I'm down for that. And that's it. You're off the side. Yeah, I survived, great job. It was really not that. Not that that was I did. I did want to find out, you know, how you how you elbow out other people for these these good assignments. I feel like of all the the reporters, Omar is kind of the one who's really just stabbing people in the back. You know. Maybe it's the nice guy persona that I'm only can I only can say that because you're one of the You're the last person anyone ever I always wanted to be on who wants to be a millionaire. I think it's probably been auditioned and having that music, you know, and and those questions I felt, you know, maybe as close as I could get to read just minus the prize money. Yeah, you don't get anything. You can be on her on the next segment though, I mean that's like your price there. You can join us as we discussed. I feel like we've discussed it all with free agency. We're waiting for this clock to just turn on. And it's been an extra week this year in terms of the build up to free agency, plus everything has been on hold because of the c b A. I think stuff like things are gonna get crazy starting Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday are going to be the busiest days of the off season. We'll have podcast, we have a web show that will be on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday next week too. We'll give you info on that. But we've talked about almost everyone. It feels like, but what are what are some people maybe we haven't just like underrated, overlooked, roo easy and type figures um entering free agency. It could be players, it could be GMS, people that haven't gotten a lot of attention that that could be factors. Well, I would say well, from the GM standpoint, I want to see how Dave called Well navigates that salary cap you know, hell that they seem to be in right now. Um, given the fact that he has autonomy once again, um with coach Coughlan gone and kind of everything that he loomed in that organization hasn't gotten that well when he did have autonomy. Yeah, And that's right, and he's still around, and I think that's the sort of point to it. This is I'm sure his last chance to kind of resurrect whatever hope he was down the road. I don't know. I'm never sure he stuck around here. They've would, They've had one season over six wins while he's been there, and he's still there, still there, Yeah, So I mean I think, you know, seeing how he navigates this, you know, will be interesting. Jaguars are interested in general, like what are they gonna do because they cannot rebuild. It's not like the rebuilding, but they're gonna be very active. And then I think from a player's perspective, I want to see, like Blake Martinez, Joe Schobert, how the middle linebackers do this time around, because remember there I think there was a couple of years where it seemed like the linebacker position was getting devalued, and then C. J. Mosley comes along last year and kind of resets the market, and then Bobby Wagner surpasses that even well, they have a trickle down fact. I don't think any of those guys this year are as good as those guys. But how does the market, um, you know, conform to the numbers that were set last year? You know, are they beneficiaries of that being in that maybe second tier? And Martinez was second only to Bobby Wagner and tackles this year, so I think he kind of emerged there in Green Bay. And Schobert has been a playmaker, you know, for a number. It gave me pause. The Browns did not show any interest in Reese in Showbert at what apparently his his request. I don't know if there's any middle linebacker out there that's gonna get paid big money. I don't think those two guys will. We we talked about Christian Kirksey, who's maybe a little bit more of an off ball guy. We probably got Nick quiet Kowski. Quiet Kowski, we put uh, we put Kirksey at the very bottom of our top one of one. We did not put Rashad Jones on our top one of one who was cut by the Dolphins, thirty two year old buck safety. He's had a great career um, but he's not gonna make it. Jonathan Joseph also learned to We learned today Hill hit free agency. But there's a lot of depth, but not a lot of big names at middle linebacker. Who who's who do you got for an underrated West We've been trained over the last I think half decade or so to devalue nose tackles in today's NFL, and I think Javon Hardgrave and DJ Reader are gonna get paid. I think Hardgrave is a guy, especially who came into the league as a guy like the quintessential anchor guy. You're not moving him over the last couple of years. He's developed into a pass rusher too. And Mike Tomlin will tell you do not think this guy is a one dimensional run stuffer. He's getting after quarterbacks, and I think Hardgrave is a guy who's gonna get a lot of interest. Reader Reader to it seems like he might already be headed to the Broncos. I don't know, like that was my that was my first thing. Hardgrave reader. I mean, we just like this big uglies up tough up front. We're readers. A guy too who who was a run stuffer and he's gotten better at pass rushing and he has J. J. Watts endorsement as the best nose guard in the league. Hard Grave was awesome last year. He you can put him on a two man line or a three man line. I will not forget his run in the playoffs when they made the a f C Championship and and got blown out against the Patriots. He was their best defensive lineman. Granted it's a small sample if at the end of that season there were some injuries there. He also gave the Patriots all sorts of problems in that game. Didn't matter. You know, your nose tackle is only gonna do so much when when there your secondary's letting people wide open. But he on a on a pretty talented defense. Javon Hargrave was a guy who was kind of standing out the most and then he really built on it. His best season was a year ago. It's really an awesome Those guys on your one oh one, they are right around thirty. Hargrave is thirty and DJ Reader uh is twenty eight. In hindsight, I wish I put Hardgrave even even a little higher than that. I think west Adam higher. I might have made that mistake, but I liked them both. Uh Reader a little bit more of just like a run stuffer, but he can do. He can rust the pastor too. There's a there's a million good defensive lineman. It's like the only the only position where there's a lot of good players. Well, you could say Robert Quinn and Jason Pierre Paul qualified for this if we're talking about what they did last year and the way they looked compared to two or three years ago. They both looked quicker, more explosive. Quinn was getting to the backfield all the time and j JPP was getting multiple quarterback hits every game. I throw in eforts and Griffin, if he actually becomes a free ag. The Vikings seemed confident that they'll be able to resign him. But he is a free agent, and he's another guy. I don't know what it is. I guess it's just all athletes age better than they used to, but especially it seems like some of the line lineman used to fall apart there in terms of their bodies a little faster. But now you're seeing so a lot of left tackles playing until they're late thirties, and you're seeing these pass rushers who are thirty two, thirty three years old and like everysing Griffin got it done last year, but we don't have the league were like the guy in the middle of the defensive line weighs three and eighty pounds and has like five beer bellies. Let these guys right there like they're treating their bones, working as like an accountant in the off season, or like no actual Green Bay packer. I'll give you one that I I want to see it before I believe it. But you're talking. You mentioned for the last decade or whatever, we've done X Y and Z, I've completely looked beyond this front office year after year in free agency because their mantra is essentially go into deep slumber whenever players are available on the open market. We'll do nothing but just build our own roster. Blah blah blah. I think that the Bengals, you're here whispers this time around with Duke Tobin. But to Mike Brown has to sign off and all this and He's been the issue. I think in terms of growing your roster the way that of the rest of the league does. If it's true that they're going to be active for the first time and you're going to have Joe Burrow at quarterback, the Bengals, to me, you know they've got capron. They they are an interesting team going into next season. But the first step is a front office that we just assume we'll do nothing doing the opposite for once, and that doesn't mean gost sign one left guard. They have issues on their offensive line. They have to be aggressive like some of these other teams. They have issues in other places too, these linebackers. We mentioned that the Bengals are a team that is desperately in need of linebackers. They that would be fast. I would love to see. I'd love to see a competitive Browns I mean a Bengals team, not to mention the Browns so well. It reminds me of an overlooked, underrated um story which came up this week in my own household in terms of my children asking they were asking for the origins of different team names. I don't know why it came up, but I was like explaining some team name, why why they were named that? And then they started my walker kept asking why are teams names certain things? And they asked about the Browns and I tried to like, I tried to explain it to him, and I just thought, you know, it's a little over underrated that people just don't talk about that the freaking Browns are named after the Bengals owner. I mean, like you, your whole life is you're you're the owner of the Browns, and it's the Bengals owner. I mean that just seems what you could argue that art ex Brown's owner, Art model created half of the n f C North because what he did with Paul Brown created the Bengals and then what he did with the Ravens created the Ravens. So that's half. But I there was another and I took out there that the Browns name is not it married well with Paul Brown, but that it was a fan contest where some one essentially called them he was named after Joe Louis the Brown Right. I looked into this. This is what Paul Brown said for most of his life, but then later in life he admitted multiple times I had to look it up because I wanted to give up my son the straight couple of Paul Brown biographies. They're named after Paul Brown, right, he admitted later in like, yeah, it's after Well. I think it's cool that Jim Brown, arguably the greatest player in NFL history named Brown played for if you're gonna have as though you're gonna have that, you're named after a guy who owns one of your rivals. Now, in fairness, the Bengals have been you know, as cursed or worse, so maybe something with that family. The state of Ohio needs to finally have a football team worth the state of Ohio. I mean, you've got the Hall of Fame there, we're not doing it justice. Um what else we got for underrated overlooked characters in free agency? I was going to say the women of NFL network, whoa oh, we have like some dynamic, exceptional women. You know, familiar with Ricky of course and Colleen Wolf from this podcast, But Jane Slater has broke more Cowboys stories than anybody else I've seen from this network who worked on the Cowboys beat before that. Stacy Dale's is phenomenal and one of the great college basketball players we've ever seen. Olympian when I yes, when I talk about like what we see at the talent summits, like I always I'm so impressed by the women in this company that they they are go getters, They're confident, and they get things done. Hey, every day is International Women's Day for West here. This is great. Well. I worked with Jane at the Pro Bowl and just to kind of see her work on a daily basis and her connectivity with the Cowboys, it was surreal experience how dialed in she is and and kind of what kind of juice she has there in Dallas. She really is the kind of queen of the crew. Good crew Cowboys coverage, Jeff, So, I'm gonna go a couple of overlooked position groups quickly. Safety, a lot of safeties, not just Justin Simmons, Von Bell, Anthony Harris, Devin mccordy, Ha Hacklington. Dix is pretty solid player, right, Nie McLeod, Like you go up into Karl Joseph is out there if you need a safety. Uh, there's actually a decent amount of ale. And then running back. It's not a deep class of running back, but I just feel like no one even talks about running backs anymore, and to me, Melvin Gordon would be a nice addition to a team at the right price, Like if the Bills added Melvin Gordon to Devin Singletary, and that's a one to combo. Like I was trying to think, what are the Bills gonna do, because I think they're gonna do something. I think they're gonna want to add a running back. Kenyan Drake is out there too, and in his interesting the Texans, they're a team that are probably looking for a running back. But Gordon's a good play when he's rolling, especially if you have someone with him. I think he'd be a good I think last year also, probably to an over extended degree, gives you a bad taste when it comes to Melvin Gordon was the hold out. He comes back and then the whole offense is not as effective with him in there, But you forget when he's good. He's been awesome. I would say with Kenyan Drake, Steve Kim and the Cardinals too, because you're in year two of Cliff Kingsbury and they don't have a ton of cap room, but they have enough to make you get closer to completing the offensive roster that Kingsbury would want. I think at wide receiver. We mentioned this on our last show that there, you know, you're rolling out for white outsets snap after snap, but you don't have four proven whiteouts, and you're gonna hit it in the draft, but you're also gonna hit it in free agencies. So I think they're gonna be active because they can't float into next September with an unfinished offense the way they did last time. And I think speaking to the Cardinals that they're one of those sneaky teams that there's buzz going about them as being a destination, you know, that people that players want to be at. And I think Tyler Murray's presidence obviously speaks volumes of that, and Cliff Kingsbury implementing the system in year two and what potential take off that could have these guys talk to each other, all these players so that that matters. Maybe like that the heat there could just help wipe out the coronavirus, you know what I mean. It's just like it's so hot there that that would be not a place. It's don't check don't check the science on this, Uh, anyone want to throw one else out? As we wrap this up here, we're good anyone you want to get out there. I feel I thought I thought Mark I was just like I have others. But I think we've discussed some of these. I had the Bills and the Bucks as guys that you know, but we sound like the Bucks are no longer underrated. They're becoming centerpiece potentially if this Brady stuff happened. I like the Seahawks. We talked a little bit about Russell Wilson expressing himself that they need more superstars on that roster and and if they acquiesced about your go, I go te that. I think that's been one of the storylines of the offseason. Got a lot of positive feedback in Indianapolis, so I kept it and my wife loves this. It's kind of win win all the way around. You've not had to go to at any point and just looks natural on you. And then I've had on the facial air and it's just like, I feel like I've seen you with this. I've had it, wore to Indie last year, but I didn't go on TV with it, So essentially it lasts post super Bowl. We gone the family vacation. I shave it down once and I keep it maybe for a few days, but this has lasted. Now the public is this is, this is two or three shaves in. Now it's filled in quite nice. Wow, it looks great. And I keep saying when we hit free agency frenzy next week, it's going to be gone. But I think it gives you You're such a nice guy, but it gives you a little Yeah, it gives you a little bit of menace, which I don't think it a little You know, you're not in You're not you're yeah, you said you're you're not in peak beach volleyball shape. So this this kind of makes this gives you a little more menace. This is a Lakisha theory. Some men need facial hair for seasoning in flavor. You're not one of those men, but it works naturally. No, I've been told that I need it for seasoning. What other mother, guys, what other men does she need facial hair on? Just if she is going across the She was my first and biggest supporter of of my beard when I had it, so you know I did a you guys, um, you guys have a lot in common. West is expecting his uh, his first in may Omar just days away in terms of expectation, uh, your third daughters away from his uh do date? Yeah, in terms of do date. Who knows, might might land on the same day your your third child, Mark and I still sitting on too. I don't think we're moving off that. Yeah, there's not a huge push in our household to expand the roster. All right, well, I mean the factory had been closed in my household and then yeah, well that's I'm happy for you a third go keep going, all right, before this goes anymore off the rails Omar. If Dan was here, he would say that you said it all, you did it all. Well, thanks, and it was a it was awesome to be here. You know, I've been big fans you guys. You'll be back, and you know, I appreciate guys having me on. It was fun. It was great having Omar. We will be back on Friday, and who knows what we're gonna come up with. We're running a Taser special maybe, yeah, yeah, the Taser special. Maybe some news happened. Ricky is getting the taser on Friday. We'll see if Dan's back. Don't taste me, bro, I guess he's got the little see be careful. I'm not sure how little it is. We'll be careful out there everyone in terms of the Middle Sea and uh everyone with the big C. We're thinking of you. You know, fight on. We got all our c's covered. Next week is going to be big. So until then, thank you for listening to the Around the NFL Podcast, presented by Intuit Quick Books, official sponsor of the NFL. What a time, weird time in this world right now, very weird for Mark Sessler, Chris Wesley, Nomarroui's and Ricky Hollywood. See you Friday. The counticis
Speaker 1: Be Around the NFL Podcast wants it's next contract fully guaranteed. Welcome to the Around the NFL Podcast, presented by Into It Quick Books, official sponsor of the NFL. I'm Greg Rosenthal here in a room filled with heroes, Mark Sessler, Chris Wesseling and for the first time ever, Omar, realise, that's some intense music to be interfenceed to. Wow, this is awesome. We just broke out that music just for you, Omar, Like almost a thousand episodes in and that music. I walked in with that infrance. It was made for this moment. Omar Louise. Of course, Um a long time reporter at the NFL network. He is sitting in, uh, in the Dan Hansas seat, and you know, potentially putting himself a little bit at risk here. UM no, no, I'm not saying Dan is putting himself. I read you are because Dan is out sick today. Uh. He's got the little CE. You know. Of course, the little Chris had the big Sea back in the day, and now we have the medium CE. I guess is what is that standing for? Coronaviruss I mean he has undetected symptoms. Dan has the little c just a cold the middle that exactly. We don't know that. We don't know what Dan hastive, what are you? What are you guys? You guys texted him. You haven't heard back yet. Right, there's a lot of missing, filling the blank scenarios here. West. There's some information that my wife would like to have that she has not gotten from Daniel. I mean, his kids, his kids were sick. He said he had, he said he had strepped throat and um, and that's unfortunate. But Keisha, to her credit, was concerned just in general about the the sand you know how safe it is up here, emailed a shadowy league figure about it and then uh which ended up going to our producer, Ricky Hollywood to wipe down all the microphones in the studio. Well, yeah, it was under my impression that the janitorial staff, that the NFL employees UM was doing a little bit more than just emptying out the trash in here. So UM News Alert the due diligence by Lakisha, Yeah yeah that, I mean, she's she's very pregnant. It all, it all checks out and West's face is like roughly four and a half feet from Dan's face, like six seven. People need to calm calm down, trying to trying to put this on and full disclosure. I was just sick, but I went to the doctor yesterday. It's not chrona. It wasn't even the flu. It was some sort of you know, lung inflammation or something nice, a new strain of virus. As we it's no longer contagious history of pneumonia and Broncott r right show totally here. Think I've got a cough, but hey, it's no big deal. Glad you guys had me on the chair. Thanks whoever's in that chair, constant Um, We've got we've got a fun show. Um, we've got a lot of news. We're gonna ask omar ruiz Um put him on the hot seat. I know it does feel warm. I think we all do. I mean our questions. We we haven't had a chance to kind of quiz you with things we've always wanted to ask you, and some of them are hotter than other items. Mark remember that I believe early nineties television show Herman's Head what vaguely it sounds familiar, but I was not a consistent viewer. Or if I want to know what's inside Omar's Yeah, okay, um, we also uh are going to talk about some underrated maybe overlooked players GMS stories heading into freeency. Um jumping off the fact that Omar Ruiz again is here one of the most underrated guys at NFL network. Think that maybe now at some point you don't want to be underrated. It's like you just want everyone to recognize your great But I think it's fair to say that Omar is kind of, um a key figure here at the network. People love Omar, has a great job, and he's underrated. He's he can be a little overlooked, not as much anymore, sure because you're extremely versatile, and you know, whether it's the old days and we'd be you know, cranking out those stories and you'll be doing what Matt Money and Andrew were doing out the news desk, inside the shoot. You out to San Francisco and you cover the Niners seamlessly, so on a day's notice and take a red eye of Cleveland and be embedded with the Browns for a week. And I think that's one of my strengths, is to go from Cleveland to Jacksonville. No no drama, no drama. Omar and That's why I have noticed though, um because he's been with the NFL networks since two thousands. The assignments, it's like the assignments are going up and up when you see like who's covering one of the Super Bowl teams, like Omar is getting those plumb assignments now, so they're starting directing. Oh so you may not notice this, but during things like the NFL Talents, some it like you have leadership quality yet come across and not everybody has those, So it's easy to see and it's appreciated. We are occasionally pinged by listeners for well, I know where we sometimes we get critiqued for being too nice to our guests to come on the show. So you know there's gonna have to be If we see a little crack chinking normal, we're about to go after it too. Uh yeah, we mean we were gonna We're gonna hit you hard about your um days as a game day security guard. Uh back. So just be ready for some tough questions. But in the meantime, Ricky, let's do some news. Drew say, your coach Mikebell calls you guys street rats. You guys always find a way to get it done. That is the voice of Tiffany black Men. We are just saying, uh, so long and farewell to another one of our our co workers we've probably said nice things about over the years moving on to the MLS team in Charlotte, she announced today. So just congratulations Tiffany Blackman, one of the one of the good people here at the network, one of the great people. Always interacted well with my daughters and family and all the league events. And as a matter of fact, she said that she wanted to come when our next family vacations. I opened up to her. Whenever she's ready, Tiffany. We just came back from one and she didn't take you up on It's not that time. Yeah, but she was in the middle of going to the NLS Charlotte, so whenever that thing gets up and running. And yeah, she's a good friend of Lakisha. She's she had. She did a lot of um covering of those Southeast teams Charlotte, Atlanta, in Tennessee where the Bermuda triangle the teams. Nobody pays the town while we're paying it. We're paying attention to the Titans right now. We're leading the news with him. Um. We are talking Tennessee because Ryan Tannehill to me, could be the first um decision that we get a feel of how all these quarterback decisions are going to be made around the league. Ian Rappaport Are Insider reported today that the Titans are focused on resigning Ryan Tannehill. The tag deadline has been extended to Monday. Just gonna combine these two stories. We will find out if the Titans hag Ryan Tannehill by Monday, but in the meantime, they are reportedly focused on resigning Tannehill. Does this quiet your You're tom Brady to the Titans thoughts Chris Wesley well Rad She said this is their priority. Their top priority is to bring Ryan Tannehill back. So yes, that does by definition quiet concerns that Tom Brady would be replacing him. And I think as much as we see Tom Brady connected to teams like the Titans and the forty Niners, you have to kind of question whether he fits those offenses and what the plays they kind of run, play action, boot action, movement in the pocket. Does he fit those offenses? Like the quarterbacks who are already in place in those cities. I agree with that assessment, especially with Ryan Tannehill wants to be there. The chemistry and the magic that they formulated once he was inserted into the lineup, that's something you can't necessarily replicate, even as great as Tom Brady is, if you were to go there just sort of out of the va hume or in the vacuum. Ryan Tannehill coming in reminded me a lot of the Case keenom situation in Minnesota. They thought they could upgrade with Kirk Cousins. Hasn't necessarily worked out that way by getting a guy who seems to be an upgrade. Um, so if they can build on that magic, that chemistry into and I think making himself an enemy of kissing Cousins corner. These guys love Kirk Cousins. I don't love Kirk Cousins represent that's not I mean, he's an upgrade from case Keen And let's I would say this for the like a lot of this, like, oh, your free agent, everyone wants to match you with new landing spots and teams. And if I'm the Titans and I look at Tannehill, or if I'm Ryan Tannehill, or if I'm looking at Derrick Henry or I'm Derrick Henry. The best landing spot is right where you were last year, because I just don't simply trust Ryan Tannehill suddenly going to the Tampa Bay Buccaneers or fill in the blank team X. The Titans worked with these two guys for a reason. I would hate to see either one of them try to duplicate last year somewhere else. I don't say they're both risky, so right and I and I'm no Ian's right that he's their first priority. But to me, what does that mean is either first priority at a certain price. That's how I would assume that it is that it doesn't They want to get it done. They want priority, absolutely, they want to get it done. They you know, they could get it done if they wanted to just pay him thirty million dollars a year, I'm sure it'd be done today. So it's figuring out what the right prices and is there a price that's you know, too much, too rich for their blood where they start going in on Brady. To me, the tag deadline being changed to Monday probably affects the Titans more than any team. The Cowboys are in there too, because I just think they kind of have to declare what they're doing. I would imagine they're going to use their tag on Derrick Henry and to me, that tells you, yeah, Ryan Tannehill, you're our priority, but we at least start comfortable in the uncertainty of what's gonna happen Monday and Tuesday that we have some other plans if we can't get you signed. I just don't understand, like, does Tannehill have any leverage to to meet, Like what one team that's gonna go after Ryan attached him to? Any team? Have you heard anything, Ohmar, I haven't heard anything with Tannehill as far as outside teams. But I think you saying Derrick Henry being maybe the focus of that tag speaks to whoever at quarterback of the Titans is next year. It's going to be a run first team. Still, Derrick Henry is still gonna be, you know, the ball carry and he is the reason in that offense for what he does to it is why it's so attractive. Whether it's Ryan Tannehill, whether it's Tom Brady, Derrick Henry being the centerpiece of that offense. Yeah, I think you can't discount the stats Tannehill put up are just outrage. I mean, who could use right. I mean, it's hard to overlook the thest Do you agree that if he just went somewhere else, like a team trying to just find a cameterback Amphill, I just I don't. I like, while bringing the whole Titans thing back for another year. While we're on Tampa and Brady, the Tampa Bay Times is reporting just now that the that the Bucks are all in quote on Tom Brady. Well, and we just did an NFL Network hider. We talked about teams that are gonna be over celebrated if they do certain things in the off season. I brought up the Bucks because if you ever put Brady into Tampa Bay and they have their shiny new uniforms and everything else you got going on there, look out for the the this the song of a nice young defense, and everyone makes the comparison. Phil Rivers is potentially landing spot there in Florida with Bruce Arians. The way Arians resurrected a late Carson Palmer career, imagine what he could do to Tom Brady. It would It's it's a very different fit in terms of the offense that he plays in. The Arians played with Manning and the only thing I'd pushed back with us on like if the Titans took Brady, I think any team that takes Brady, you're running the Tom Brady offense. I mean you are just choosing. I don't think that. I think Derrick Henry is the Titans, all right. It would be a huge risk for the Titans to change things. But wherever Tom Brady goes, you are going to change things and do things in a way that Tom Brady wants to do it that suits its year old quarterback, because that's the best way to make him at his best. Why bring him in unless you're gonna let him do I think too, you know, picking out matchups before the snap, right, I mean, what is his best quality of how his ceiling? Right now? Can he lift your offense? Because he did not lift the Patriots offense. But when you say that part of Brady being wooed by another team and the discussions around that, or that Brady's involvement in creation of the attack will be immense versus taking someone else's That's all I'm saying. And with the Bucks, I think the upside would be a better than average starting NFL quarterback that limits mistakes and can kind of manage the game for lack of a I hate that phrase, but that's part of it. Especially with the Buccaneers and those third turnovers last year. I think they've emphasized ever since the season ended that this season would have been dream actically different had they prevented those turnovers. So even just limiting those would be a huge victory for the Buccaneers. In regardless, it's a very Bruce Arians move. And then you talk about Tom Brady with Mike Evans and the weapons that they have there, it's a whole different ball game than what he was tempting to have lifted in New England this past That would that would be fun, It would be a good It would be a good spot for Stidham Corner to step up and step in. And I of all the impressive things Tom Brady has done in his career, one of the most impressive I've seen is the way people have handled his value this offseason after what he did last year. I think it's fair, but I think he was I think he was a mid level starting quarterback last year, and it was about the same when they won the Super Bowl. For stretches and like for the Bucks for the Titans, that could have a lot of value. No forty three year old quarterback has ever started UH a season, so who knows. Maybe it'll be a total bus uncharted territory. Um, you know, who's not continuing UM his great career. Unlike Tom Brady, marsh Yonda has retired after thirteen seasons. Gonna be a Ring of Honor guy in Baltimore, they already have said, And UH could be a Hall of Fame type of guy in five years or more. Marshall yonda part of those Ravens teams that gave you nightmares. Mark gave me nightmares. I mean, I mean, yeah, you don't like the Rapperds, No, I'm not. No, I I wanted to trade them in for an under the continent train system that would go to Yeah. Yeah, I know. It's kind of symbolic of their rugged ways this decade. I I I'm not probably the first person on the planet that should be grading um offensive guards as Hall of Fame entries, But I don't know what more you need to do in terms of consistency that he's just been someone you can rely on every single year. They weren't all his best seasons, but Yonda feels like h o F scenario Canady time. Yeah, I'm surprised he's actually walking away with Lamar Lamar Jackson and mark Ingram and everything that they accomplished last year in the Running Game. It's seems like one of those offenses that an offensive lineman would love to perform it, and Marshall Yonda kind of walking away I think speaks more to the fact that he wants to be healthy and go out on his terms and maybe how brutal it is to play guard at the level I think that that he was playing. He was easy choice for all Decade for my list that I did about a month ago, and I'm sure he'll be on the one, the official one that they come out with, probably with Zach Martin. I would imagine they there was Yeah, I think, uh, I think he'll probably be the favorite. I'm trying to think of who else could be in there. Yonda should get it. Shol Matonia has been very good, but now but on bad teams and and off the robably not quite to the level and not maybe for the whole deck. There was a good story someone sent out, um was it? Kevin von Dalkenberg is his name. Yesterday of covering Yonda as a rookie, Chris McAllister once brought a a taser into the locker room and that he put five dollars down and he said like, whoever wants to taze themselves gets the five under and then other players were like yeah, yeah, yeah, and like started throwing a ton of money in there, and Yonda just like walked up there apparently like he grew up on farms and he knew that wasn't even like a police grade taser, that it would be no problem for him, and he just like because he knew enough about tasers and just did it, and like everyone would get and then they were like, did he really do it? Did he really do it? And like did it again just just to prove him wrong. That's it. On the farm, they had electrical fences and he was used to that. So get you a little locker room respect. We're gonna do that on on Friday show the Taser. I think Ricky would Ricky would take a taser to the thigh or something. She would go for it. She would register the teams. You can make a little money. If you can make a little money, yeah, take that one to the bank bucks. You know, twenty bucks is all all takes we have. We've been we've been following the al Michael's Monday Night football, Tony Roma, all the speculation of who's going to be a bouncing where throughout the off season. It's really dance corner. I feel bad even talking about it out of here. I really do. UM. You know I feel bad about is Joe Testy talked about that. It's unfortunate, um for those two. But hey, we're just reporting the news. And the latest is Andrew Marshawn of the New York Posts as the NBC is saying no to an Al Michael's getting traded to ESPN deal, So that solution, which seems fun, I guess, will not happen. It just surprises me because of the Mike Tariko factor, where it was such an easy transition to someone that has been kind of backbenched unnecessarily. In that article, there was one line that stood out to me because they bent they mentioned Kurt Warner as someone in there. The in the mix of Manning didn't go. But that said internally, ESPN is toyed with the idea of a booth with Steve Levy, Lewis Riddick, and Brian Greasy who did the second Monday Night Game a year ago. That's just if all this stuff falls apart and it looks like it's falling apart, that could be a trio to look at. They were good. I like Lewis Riddick, I don't. I don't love a three man booth. I just think I would pick just Lewis Riddick. Just do you know. It's like I think, if you're asking people to do something they haven't done before and then it's three people, I'm I'm good with the little leaving Rick sorry Brian on our four person podcast that is to come in where we go on Forever. Yeah. But I think with al Michaels, I think he wants to see this NBC Super Bowl in l A, his hometown, and I think that will be his swan song and the official baton will have been passed after that. So I think it's probably more his call than anything to turn that trade down, knowing that not this season super Bowl, but the following will be on NBC and he'll have it here in Los Angeles. What was it putting on the trade on the table as trade bait. I don't like, why would what's the incentive for NBC to even think about some of that. We'll give you fifteen minutes of Stephen A. Smith and Football Night in America. Put him next to like, uh yeah, Florio and that would be fun. Tariko. Things just go crazy, did you say, Stephen Smith? Yeah? Just who are their most valuable assets right now? Stephen A Meter? God? No, Stephen even put that out there in the world. Greg. By the way, wait, what I think Stephen A. Smith was on some sort of Oscar coverage, right, Just try to maximize ABC, ESPN, trying to get as much, you know, for he can. He can do it all. So you need more disingenuous from TV report you can you can talk about kind of like the Stephen A. Smith types of the world Mark because he became close friends with Skip Bayliss over the weekend. Well, no, I think you know, there's a mall that is being reconstructive, but there's a movie theater still active inside of it. So I went to said mall, I don't want to, you know, name the location. And as I was going up the escalator from the garage, Skip Bayless and a woman I presume to be someone that he's again don't want to say, I assume it's his wife. I am assuming was going in the other directions. So I did not have a long conversation. Actually that's Mrs Bayless. It was Mrs Bayless? Was it more? Did you? Actually we didn't. I just like it was one of those things. As the person was passing by me, I like turned my Henry lines that was Skip Bayless and like texted this this crowd, how about what were you doing at the mall? What did you see seeing a movie? Oh? I missed that part movie will not? I will yeah, no, no, it was not. I will not announce what it was because the last time I mentioned a movie that I went to, which was doesn't mean you're whistlers, I believe, Yeah it was, I was, I was. I was just ripped a greg you almost want to movie by yourself? Last night? Which one was that I was gonna go see. I didn't see it, but I will. Portrait of a Lady on Fire I h a wonderful looking lesbian romantic period piece. I'm looking forward to it. I've heard it's great. That's playing at the theater that I went to. By the way, is that what you saw, Joe? I saw a film called, actually called I thought was underwhelming. Read who's in a well? You know, I mean we can okay, don't we can discuss. You don't need to bury it. We don't need to bury it. Um, what else should we talk about here? Let's uh, let's talk about the new rules proposals? Have you guys? Do you guys look at that that they're going voting on at the owners meetings, which is still scheduled to happen. By the way, the league says, the draft remains in place. The owners meeting, which is about sixteen days away from us flying to Florida for remains in place. They could always change it, of course, but assuming it happens and they go. Uh, it was a little shorter list. I noticed of potential rules changes this year. What jumped out to you, Mark, I thought the Eagles lobbying for a like different on site kick scenarios that would allow a team to go for it on fourth and fifteen. UM stood out from the twenty five yard line. They you could get the ball on your own fourth and fifteen in a way to try to keep possession of the ball instead of doing an on side kick I love I love it too, because the onside kick seems like it's become unmanageable in terms of being a reality at the end of games. To flip possession. I love that real tune we saw in the Pro Bowl, and I remember leading up to the Pro Bowl, Pete Carroll said, if we get a chance to use it, we will, and in fact they did. They scored a late touchdown they were still within one possession to try to get back in the game, and Pete Carroll goes for it fourth and fifteen from their own twenty five and who interrupts the play? Earl Thomas gets the intercession for the ultimate bird back at Pete Carroll in that play, But that I mean anything the ultimate burn in the Pro Bowl though the bird. Oh look, were you covering the Pro Bowl? You're covering everything? And that will what a surreal day. I mean, just to talk with Kobe Bryant dying, you know, five minutes before you know that all happened. What was that? Did you? What was the reaction from the players and everything in terms of your day, They're like, it was, well, first you I looked at my phone. You think it's not real? I have somebody's at TMZ texted them. They said it was so as everybody in the stands is discovering looking on their phones. You see them distracted, not looking at the introductions anymore. That all unfolds any you. I start talking to the players and they all had heard and and in the locker room. Before you know, they're describing just the error and the energy being sucked out of them because they were having their locker room speeches, let's go out and do it, and then that word creeps in redd. At the last minute, I think Pete Carroll gathered the NFC team around and said, you know, let's go do it for Kobe and and all that. And players were willing to talk to me during the game on camera. We couldn't air it because ESPN had the rights of the game until until they were offline. But the fact that they were so eager to talk and get their feelings out, uh, during the game. The actual Pro Bowl, I think, you know, spoke volumes to what how they felt about Cope and their words did that as well. I want to know how it affected their on field performance. I don't know if the Pro Bowl is the perfect gauge of how it affected their own performance versus you know, prior to the a f C Championship or something. I do like they got to try out that that rule because that we haven't seen a rule change like that in football that I can think of. That's that creative and just changing the dynamics of how you think about possession in a long long time, Like, why not try that out for a year? West seems a little skeptical. No, I love you like it. I love any rule changes that do not involve replay review. Okay, well, so there are some. There are some replay review um changes. One, you know, one proposal was saying, uh, to include scoring plays and turnovers that were negated by a penalty. Basically, just make it more available for automatic replay reviews so that you don't have to waste the challenge if like a touchdown is taken away from penalty, I'd be fine with that, or successful or unsuccessful time. We don't know for sure if they're bringing back replay at all, and they um, you know, the the Ravens and the Chargers both wanted to add the booth umpire as an official eighth game official and then maybe add technology Advisor and the there's a lot going on here. Here's one that got on my radar. Yes, I don't know if the Eagles are just trying to, as they say, sort of punk the rest of the league and all of us discussing this, but the Eagles want to restore the preseason overtime period to fifteen minutes. Well, and the regular season too, Yeah, regular season. So I I just saw, okay, so that it helps. I saw preseason and I thought, why on God's green Earth are we trying to extend preseason games that go into a fifth It is an interesting move by the Eagles that we're into that we've done this overtime for a while and now they're just saying let's go back. Well, I agree with it. Regular season I kind of get a little bit. I don't I like the ten minute thing. I don't like the ten minute you know, because I think you get the one possession. If it takes six minutes, now you have the other possession, that's it. But but you know, if if nobody scores in that first possion, nobody scores in that second possession, there's not really enough to get a third possession to actually win the game. And then you have you know, all these coaches asked, you know, are you trying to win or you're not trying to win or you just trying to play for the tiny You have other ones where they have like five possessions, no one scores, and it's like it seems like it's largely been non it's worked out without a lot of country. Seventy minutes is too that's too long to be playing football, you know, says the guy on the sideline. Finally, Um, the Patriots lead the way. I don't know if we have to talk too much about this. With compensatory picks, they had four of them, including they were the only team with two third round picks in compensatory announcements. Trent Brown, I believe was it was one of the ones they picked up for The Ravens have traditionally kicked everyone's but in compensatory picks because they figured out the formula along time ago, and they have said it's like they guard that secret like it's Coke's formula. But it factors in salary, playing time, postseason honors, and whether the team has lost more free agents than they've signed, right, Yeah, and mostly in terms of like the the Ledger of who you signed, who you don't. That kind of decides how many picks and then yeah, how how well they played or how much they did decides where the picks are. And it the Patriots are like the Ravens are a team. I think the Patriots have the second or third most you know ever in the Ravens. And uh, the Patriots they wait until the day after they're no longer included in the formula and then they signed some some free agents. It's uh because I always thought, oh, it just seems like the Ravens constantly have like endless you know, high third fourth Brown compics, which is you know, as a Browns fan, utterly because you look at some of these compics. Dak Prescott came through a compic, Mike Daniels, Kyle use Check, guys like Aaron Jones, James Connert, Our, Guy Burgo, Jeremy Bergman put together a top ten like players that were pulled through compics, and there's a pretty amazing list. The Ravens since two thousand eleven have had twenty since two has eleven. The Packers I think we're next, was seventeen New England ten. But then you look at teams like the Bears and Jags, they've had one each since two thousand eleven, which tells me you're not that's twenty players. I I saw a different list that went back even further, and I think the Ravens had fifty three in the Saints were at the bottom with ten. I mean, that's forty players. They got an next dressing at they signed mark Ingram and Earl Thomas and still got a third in the fourth round of compensatory picks of that equation. But that also speaking, it's for the Patriots they need some young players. Those are two kind of late, very late third round picks. Does that speak a lot to developing in in drafting and letting the guys walk in kind of the system. It's almost you have too much talent, like you have to let guys go and you're and they're good at good players, Yeah, they're good. I mean, what what do you saying if you have what's the cell for the Bears and the Jags that have one, You've not done that, You're not done a good job. You know, um, you know who has done a good job. We're into Omar ask Omar second, you know, yeah, that's it. For the news. I mean, he's been here since two thousand twelve. Um, his bio. I don't know if this is a law ravio magnifico, but it's it's rather long, omar, and we know you probably wrote that yourself. I mean, that thing is it's about four words. Well, they asked me, Well, they asked me, like when I first got here, that didn't go up until I've been here twelve. I had written like four before and it just never got on the website for whatever. And maybe they had you know, quick plans with me early on. But um, but if I was gonna take the time, you know, when I wrote that, I was on jury duty, so I was bored in the main perfect time, I just you know, started banging away at this bio and you know, a couple of drafts later, there it is. You've hosted NHL Tonight on NHL Network. You've been a play by play announcer from for some Olympic sports, UH, including u c l A's men's water polo. You made your way through the ranks covering a number of sports, UH, and now you're here mostly as kind of a team reporter, traveling the land, going all over the country, and and like I said, I think the value that I bring is, you know, they can kind of put me in anywhere and you don't do a and so that's all been easy and good, but now it comes. Now comes the hard time. We have five minutes. Who knows if actually he's actually having a clock. We have a rapid fire enough we have anything. Um, we are going to start the clock. And then questions are coming at you fast. You gotta answer them fast. And who knows you this might be supposed to be I'm looking for some depth here, okay, well, depth and speed whatever. There's no rules on this podcast, and we are going to start right now. People in l A keep score more than any other city I've ever been around, houses, cars, neighborhood, airtime, agents, social media. Following my scorecard is happiness. That's the only thing on there, and you rank very high on my score card. Your children are some of the most delightful children I've ever seen. They're almost like many adults are. And I've noticed that you and your wife don't speak to them like children. You speak to them as if they're actual adults, and you reason with them and you logic with them. Tell me the secret to how great your children? Well, I think from from an early age I adopted that philosophy. And so when we spoke to them, even when the kids were one year old, a year and a half and not necessarily engaging in this conversation, yet we would speak to them at the mall in a way that they could understand and hear all of our words, and they could listen to all of that in a way that and and I removed any embarrassment that I would feel talking like that in public. And so they take can notes here, I think father to be, I think they absorbed all of that a lot better and maybe a lot faster than their peers were. You know, you kind of just you know, quiet them up at the store. You don't want them to make a scene. Well, we just sort of encourage them to be themselves. We were ourselves, albeit in allowed version, and you know, kind of talking like this again so they can understand better and maybe develop their vocabulary and speaking spills skills. Good dad says, right there, Thanks, I've got one for you. Um like this music. By the way, Ricky, you seem like a high class act from what I'm hearing here. But what percentage and I want a number here, what percentage of NFL wags ak wives and girlfriends should trust their NFL playing husbands. I want a number between zero and one. Their number seems about right. Most of the guys in the NFL are good dudes. I know that you're a good So you're not gonna tell us who you say. You know things. You know things, So tell us tell us something you saw as a security guard at Candlestick Park. My favorite memory is Joe montana retirement night. They're retiring his jersey number sixteen. Huey Lewis is singing the national I hit them. It's the Broncos, It's the forty niners. They're both, you know, right around the top seeds in the a f C and NFC respectively. The Broncos were going to win the Super Bowl that year. And I'm the guy that is escorting the cameras as Joe Montana is walking onto the so I'm making sure that they keep moving because they're walking backwards of course, as we're going onto the field at Candlestick and making sure they don't trip on themselves, they don't trip on the cables and everything. And just to have that kind of bird's eye view as Joe Montana walks on the field to get his jersey retailed. It was also the game where it was Brent Jones final game as a forty niner. Their account got to get out of there Montana's get up. And it was also the game that Jerry Rice returned. If you remember at that season week one, Warren Sap tackles him on that reverse and you know is his a c L. It was his first game back. It was Monday night football, so it was everything back when al Michael's was a Monday night football and take the career path he tuck. Yeah, I mean not necessarily that night, but just being there on the sideline talking to different people, Um, you know, I would you know, chat up you know, Jim Mora at the time when when younger Jim Moore was on the forty nine staff and he was not coaching that that particular year, and and you know, having a discussion on you know, team building and all that, you know, just random stuff like that. That was just so cool, I thought, And you know, how cool would it be to be on the sidelines and get paid for it. So I kind of honed in, I like choose your idiom for the English language, better phrase beyond the pale or various stages of undress. Beyond the pale, I would say on choosing that, Yeah, I mean, either it's not my wheelhouse, but for the sake of this show and and keeping it moving out, maybe I'm the only one who finds those phrases interests. I love them. Why did you? You know? The last time I saw you in person, I believe was at around for something in the morning at a waffle house. You uh, actually you came with us and you ordered a very healthy, balanced meal, and then suddenly you were gone. What happened to you? You were you? That was a great chapter the night you weren't teaching your daughters and life lessons at four fifty? Where are you? I always say, I have the advantage coming from the West Coast of going to Indianapolis and and hanging with everybody and having these great conversations late into the night because our body is three hours ahead. So anyway, I wanted to hang out with Mark and Colleen and and and one of the coaching friends that we had met, and Dan was there as well. Um, and I was so hungry. You know, I'm a I'm a Catholic. It was it was the day after ash Wednesday, so I had fasted all day Wednesday, and I was so looking forward to once the clock struck midnight, having that huge meal late night early Thursday morning. So technically I was off the hook and now I could eat whatever I want. Steak and shake was freaking closed. So we had to drive out seemingly to Iowa to go to walk I know, and we get there and I just put the cook up against the clock. I said, hey, I have a six fifteen flight in his four fifteen. Here is my order. If it's ready, I'll eat it. If it's not, I'm gone. It wasn't ready, I took off left and I made my flight. That was the priority. That's the coach we were with, by the way, offered some explosive information that cannot be shared on the show after I left, Oh do you have do you have any good insidery stuff you want to let out from Indianapolis. I did have a good conversation with Fred Kitchens, and you know after you know, he really hasn't gone public, you know, with his side of the story since he got fired. And I think the main takeaway from that conversation was um he feeled he he felt he wasn't necessarily supported by ownership to implement a lot of the discipline that he wanted instill. We we had we saw glimpses of that when they had hard knocks. Remember, he was one of the vocal proponents of instilling a little more discipine, trying to make that that team tougher. He tried to do some things that he felt he was overruled by by ownership. He thought that he had a good conversation with Jimmy has them going into week seventeen that he was gonna have a chance to build on on things that they had gotten done there in twenty nineteen, As disappointing as it was, and the bottom line that he took away from that was they've been there since talking about ownership, and and they've had twenty one wins and he had a big hand in thirteen of them. So as disappointing as that year was, as as much a lack of a support that he felt he had in that situation, they won a lot of games, a lot more than they had. I mean, he's now on a tech sread with like fifteen other Browns coaches that field just the same way that you know, I can imagine best California beach for volleyball O. Well, Manhattan Beaches is the your beach volleyball player Avid avidly. So that's kind of my one hobby that I have carte blanche to how's the beach bot? Not right now, it's more of a dad bot, you know. But it's funny because I work all offseason. Inevitably, I gained fifteen to twenty pounds every season just being on the road, eating out all the time, lack of exercise, especially as a year wears on, because I get tired come week nine, week ten. It's just kind of like we all do. But being on the road. It's Thanksgiving, and then two weeks after that it's my Birthday, and then it's Christmas, and then it's New Year's and then it's the playoffs, super Bowl, Pro Bowl, whatever, that whole drive. So again, all that weight and then I work all off season to take it off, and I do, and then it's cycle and then and then you get back in his training camp and then away we go. So I get into the best shape of my life every year. So whenever you guys have all those tropes and you guys have that the fun discussion about like best shape of my life that we hear from the players. I'm saying the same girl. This podcast right now has something called hashtag bod quest, which um Dan was a large part of. He's been felt at the moment, but he is looking to prove his body as the rest of us. You're welcome to join. Thank you, I will hashtag bod quest. So anything that you do, hashtag it and wet you know, people come out of the woodwork and see where you're at. I'm down for that. And that's it. You're off the side. Yeah, I survived, great job. It was really not that. Not that that was I did. I did want to find out, you know, how you how you elbow out other people for these these good assignments. I feel like of all the the reporters, Omar is kind of the one who's really just stabbing people in the back. You know. Maybe it's the nice guy persona that I'm only can I only can say that because you're one of the You're the last person anyone ever I always wanted to be on who wants to be a millionaire. I think it's probably been auditioned and having that music, you know, and and those questions I felt, you know, maybe as close as I could get to read just minus the prize money. Yeah, you don't get anything. You can be on her on the next segment though, I mean that's like your price there. You can join us as we discussed. I feel like we've discussed it all with free agency. We're waiting for this clock to just turn on. And it's been an extra week this year in terms of the build up to free agency, plus everything has been on hold because of the c b A. I think stuff like things are gonna get crazy starting Sunday, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday are going to be the busiest days of the off season. We'll have podcast, we have a web show that will be on Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday next week too. We'll give you info on that. But we've talked about almost everyone. It feels like, but what are what are some people maybe we haven't just like underrated, overlooked, roo easy and type figures um entering free agency. It could be players, it could be GMS, people that haven't gotten a lot of attention that that could be factors. Well, I would say well, from the GM standpoint, I want to see how Dave called Well navigates that salary cap you know, hell that they seem to be in right now. Um, given the fact that he has autonomy once again, um with coach Coughlan gone and kind of everything that he loomed in that organization hasn't gotten that well when he did have autonomy. Yeah, And that's right, and he's still around, and I think that's the sort of point to it. This is I'm sure his last chance to kind of resurrect whatever hope he was down the road. I don't know. I'm never sure he stuck around here. They've would, They've had one season over six wins while he's been there, and he's still there, still there, Yeah, So I mean I think, you know, seeing how he navigates this, you know, will be interesting. Jaguars are interested in general, like what are they gonna do because they cannot rebuild. It's not like the rebuilding, but they're gonna be very active. And then I think from a player's perspective, I want to see, like Blake Martinez, Joe Schobert, how the middle linebackers do this time around, because remember there I think there was a couple of years where it seemed like the linebacker position was getting devalued, and then C. J. Mosley comes along last year and kind of resets the market, and then Bobby Wagner surpasses that even well, they have a trickle down fact. I don't think any of those guys this year are as good as those guys. But how does the market, um, you know, conform to the numbers that were set last year? You know, are they beneficiaries of that being in that maybe second tier? And Martinez was second only to Bobby Wagner and tackles this year, so I think he kind of emerged there in Green Bay. And Schobert has been a playmaker, you know, for a number. It gave me pause. The Browns did not show any interest in Reese in Showbert at what apparently his his request. I don't know if there's any middle linebacker out there that's gonna get paid big money. I don't think those two guys will. We we talked about Christian Kirksey, who's maybe a little bit more of an off ball guy. We probably got Nick quiet Kowski. Quiet Kowski, we put uh, we put Kirksey at the very bottom of our top one of one. We did not put Rashad Jones on our top one of one who was cut by the Dolphins, thirty two year old buck safety. He's had a great career um, but he's not gonna make it. Jonathan Joseph also learned to We learned today Hill hit free agency. But there's a lot of depth, but not a lot of big names at middle linebacker. Who who's who do you got for an underrated West We've been trained over the last I think half decade or so to devalue nose tackles in today's NFL, and I think Javon Hardgrave and DJ Reader are gonna get paid. I think Hardgrave is a guy, especially who came into the league as a guy like the quintessential anchor guy. You're not moving him over the last couple of years. He's developed into a pass rusher too. And Mike Tomlin will tell you do not think this guy is a one dimensional run stuffer. He's getting after quarterbacks, and I think Hardgrave is a guy who's gonna get a lot of interest. Reader Reader to it seems like he might already be headed to the Broncos. I don't know, like that was my that was my first thing. Hardgrave reader. I mean, we just like this big uglies up tough up front. We're readers. A guy too who who was a run stuffer and he's gotten better at pass rushing and he has J. J. Watts endorsement as the best nose guard in the league. Hard Grave was awesome last year. He you can put him on a two man line or a three man line. I will not forget his run in the playoffs when they made the a f C Championship and and got blown out against the Patriots. He was their best defensive lineman. Granted it's a small sample if at the end of that season there were some injuries there. He also gave the Patriots all sorts of problems in that game. Didn't matter. You know, your nose tackle is only gonna do so much when when there your secondary's letting people wide open. But he on a on a pretty talented defense. Javon Hargrave was a guy who was kind of standing out the most and then he really built on it. His best season was a year ago. It's really an awesome Those guys on your one oh one, they are right around thirty. Hargrave is thirty and DJ Reader uh is twenty eight. In hindsight, I wish I put Hardgrave even even a little higher than that. I think west Adam higher. I might have made that mistake, but I liked them both. Uh Reader a little bit more of just like a run stuffer, but he can do. He can rust the pastor too. There's a there's a million good defensive lineman. It's like the only the only position where there's a lot of good players. Well, you could say Robert Quinn and Jason Pierre Paul qualified for this if we're talking about what they did last year and the way they looked compared to two or three years ago. They both looked quicker, more explosive. Quinn was getting to the backfield all the time and j JPP was getting multiple quarterback hits every game. I throw in eforts and Griffin, if he actually becomes a free ag. The Vikings seemed confident that they'll be able to resign him. But he is a free agent, and he's another guy. I don't know what it is. I guess it's just all athletes age better than they used to, but especially it seems like some of the line lineman used to fall apart there in terms of their bodies a little faster. But now you're seeing so a lot of left tackles playing until they're late thirties, and you're seeing these pass rushers who are thirty two, thirty three years old and like everysing Griffin got it done last year, but we don't have the league were like the guy in the middle of the defensive line weighs three and eighty pounds and has like five beer bellies. Let these guys right there like they're treating their bones, working as like an accountant in the off season, or like no actual Green Bay packer. I'll give you one that I I want to see it before I believe it. But you're talking. You mentioned for the last decade or whatever, we've done X Y and Z, I've completely looked beyond this front office year after year in free agency because their mantra is essentially go into deep slumber whenever players are available on the open market. We'll do nothing but just build our own roster. Blah blah blah. I think that the Bengals, you're here whispers this time around with Duke Tobin. But to Mike Brown has to sign off and all this and He's been the issue. I think in terms of growing your roster the way that of the rest of the league does. If it's true that they're going to be active for the first time and you're going to have Joe Burrow at quarterback, the Bengals, to me, you know they've got capron. They they are an interesting team going into next season. But the first step is a front office that we just assume we'll do nothing doing the opposite for once, and that doesn't mean gost sign one left guard. They have issues on their offensive line. They have to be aggressive like some of these other teams. They have issues in other places too, these linebackers. We mentioned that the Bengals are a team that is desperately in need of linebackers. They that would be fast. I would love to see. I'd love to see a competitive Browns I mean a Bengals team, not to mention the Browns so well. It reminds me of an overlooked, underrated um story which came up this week in my own household in terms of my children asking they were asking for the origins of different team names. I don't know why it came up, but I was like explaining some team name, why why they were named that? And then they started my walker kept asking why are teams names certain things? And they asked about the Browns and I tried to like, I tried to explain it to him, and I just thought, you know, it's a little over underrated that people just don't talk about that the freaking Browns are named after the Bengals owner. I mean, like you, your whole life is you're you're the owner of the Browns, and it's the Bengals owner. I mean that just seems what you could argue that art ex Brown's owner, Art model created half of the n f C North because what he did with Paul Brown created the Bengals and then what he did with the Ravens created the Ravens. So that's half. But I there was another and I took out there that the Browns name is not it married well with Paul Brown, but that it was a fan contest where some one essentially called them he was named after Joe Louis the Brown Right. I looked into this. This is what Paul Brown said for most of his life, but then later in life he admitted multiple times I had to look it up because I wanted to give up my son the straight couple of Paul Brown biographies. They're named after Paul Brown, right, he admitted later in like, yeah, it's after Well. I think it's cool that Jim Brown, arguably the greatest player in NFL history named Brown played for if you're gonna have as though you're gonna have that, you're named after a guy who owns one of your rivals. Now, in fairness, the Bengals have been you know, as cursed or worse, so maybe something with that family. The state of Ohio needs to finally have a football team worth the state of Ohio. I mean, you've got the Hall of Fame there, we're not doing it justice. Um what else we got for underrated overlooked characters in free agency? I was going to say the women of NFL network, whoa oh, we have like some dynamic, exceptional women. You know, familiar with Ricky of course and Colleen Wolf from this podcast, But Jane Slater has broke more Cowboys stories than anybody else I've seen from this network who worked on the Cowboys beat before that. Stacy Dale's is phenomenal and one of the great college basketball players we've ever seen. Olympian when I yes, when I talk about like what we see at the talent summits, like I always I'm so impressed by the women in this company that they they are go getters, They're confident, and they get things done. Hey, every day is International Women's Day for West here. This is great. Well. I worked with Jane at the Pro Bowl and just to kind of see her work on a daily basis and her connectivity with the Cowboys, it was surreal experience how dialed in she is and and kind of what kind of juice she has there in Dallas. She really is the kind of queen of the crew. Good crew Cowboys coverage, Jeff, So, I'm gonna go a couple of overlooked position groups quickly. Safety, a lot of safeties, not just Justin Simmons, Von Bell, Anthony Harris, Devin mccordy, Ha Hacklington. Dix is pretty solid player, right, Nie McLeod, Like you go up into Karl Joseph is out there if you need a safety. Uh, there's actually a decent amount of ale. And then running back. It's not a deep class of running back, but I just feel like no one even talks about running backs anymore, and to me, Melvin Gordon would be a nice addition to a team at the right price, Like if the Bills added Melvin Gordon to Devin Singletary, and that's a one to combo. Like I was trying to think, what are the Bills gonna do, because I think they're gonna do something. I think they're gonna want to add a running back. Kenyan Drake is out there too, and in his interesting the Texans, they're a team that are probably looking for a running back. But Gordon's a good play when he's rolling, especially if you have someone with him. I think he'd be a good I think last year also, probably to an over extended degree, gives you a bad taste when it comes to Melvin Gordon was the hold out. He comes back and then the whole offense is not as effective with him in there, But you forget when he's good. He's been awesome. I would say with Kenyan Drake, Steve Kim and the Cardinals too, because you're in year two of Cliff Kingsbury and they don't have a ton of cap room, but they have enough to make you get closer to completing the offensive roster that Kingsbury would want. I think at wide receiver. We mentioned this on our last show that there, you know, you're rolling out for white outsets snap after snap, but you don't have four proven whiteouts, and you're gonna hit it in the draft, but you're also gonna hit it in free agencies. So I think they're gonna be active because they can't float into next September with an unfinished offense the way they did last time. And I think speaking to the Cardinals that they're one of those sneaky teams that there's buzz going about them as being a destination, you know, that people that players want to be at. And I think Tyler Murray's presidence obviously speaks volumes of that, and Cliff Kingsbury implementing the system in year two and what potential take off that could have these guys talk to each other, all these players so that that matters. Maybe like that the heat there could just help wipe out the coronavirus, you know what I mean. It's just like it's so hot there that that would be not a place. It's don't check don't check the science on this, Uh, anyone want to throw one else out? As we wrap this up here, we're good anyone you want to get out there. I feel I thought I thought Mark I was just like I have others. But I think we've discussed some of these. I had the Bills and the Bucks as guys that you know, but we sound like the Bucks are no longer underrated. They're becoming centerpiece potentially if this Brady stuff happened. I like the Seahawks. We talked a little bit about Russell Wilson expressing himself that they need more superstars on that roster and and if they acquiesced about your go, I go te that. I think that's been one of the storylines of the offseason. Got a lot of positive feedback in Indianapolis, so I kept it and my wife loves this. It's kind of win win all the way around. You've not had to go to at any point and just looks natural on you. And then I've had on the facial air and it's just like, I feel like I've seen you with this. I've had it, wore to Indie last year, but I didn't go on TV with it, So essentially it lasts post super Bowl. We gone the family vacation. I shave it down once and I keep it maybe for a few days, but this has lasted. Now the public is this is, this is two or three shaves in. Now it's filled in quite nice. Wow, it looks great. And I keep saying when we hit free agency frenzy next week, it's going to be gone. But I think it gives you You're such a nice guy, but it gives you a little Yeah, it gives you a little bit of menace, which I don't think it a little You know, you're not in You're not you're yeah, you said you're you're not in peak beach volleyball shape. So this this kind of makes this gives you a little more menace. This is a Lakisha theory. Some men need facial hair for seasoning in flavor. You're not one of those men, but it works naturally. No, I've been told that I need it for seasoning. What other mother, guys, what other men does she need facial hair on? Just if she is going across the She was my first and biggest supporter of of my beard when I had it, so you know I did a you guys, um, you guys have a lot in common. West is expecting his uh, his first in may Omar just days away in terms of expectation, uh, your third daughters away from his uh do date? Yeah, in terms of do date. Who knows, might might land on the same day your your third child, Mark and I still sitting on too. I don't think we're moving off that. Yeah, there's not a huge push in our household to expand the roster. All right, well, I mean the factory had been closed in my household and then yeah, well that's I'm happy for you a third go keep going, all right, before this goes anymore off the rails Omar. If Dan was here, he would say that you said it all, you did it all. Well, thanks, and it was a it was awesome to be here. You know, I've been big fans you guys. You'll be back, and you know, I appreciate guys having me on. It was fun. It was great having Omar. We will be back on Friday, and who knows what we're gonna come up with. We're running a Taser special maybe, yeah, yeah, the Taser special. Maybe some news happened. Ricky is getting the taser on Friday. We'll see if Dan's back. Don't taste me, bro, I guess he's got the little see be careful. I'm not sure how little it is. We'll be careful out there everyone in terms of the Middle Sea and uh everyone with the big C. We're thinking of you. You know, fight on. We got all our c's covered. Next week is going to be big. So until then, thank you for listening to the Around the NFL Podcast, presented by Intuit Quick Books, official sponsor of the NFL. What a time, weird time in this world right now, very weird for Mark Sessler, Chris Wesley, Nomarroui's and Ricky Hollywood. See you Friday. The counticis
