Skip to content
TrackPodcasts
sportsMar 18, 202656:30

Visiting Around the AFC North Following Free Agency

About this episode

Today's show starts with Jake taking a brief look at former Browns finding/visiting new landing spots, JC Tretter's opportunity with the NFLPA, and Tuesday NFL transactions. Then a shift with three visitors around the AFC North discussing the progress of their roster through free agency and future plans for the next 45 days including the draft.

Unlock today's FULL and AD-FREE podcast by clicking the link to join and support us by subscribing at BrownsFilmBreakdown.com.

Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

Get every episode summarized

Each time Browns Film Breakdown publishes, we email you a written briefing from the transcript — the topics, who appeared, and any specific claims, with the ad reads skipped.

Email me new episodes

Free for 3 shows. No card needed.

Hosts & guests

Transcript ready

1,414 searchable segments. Every word is indexed and playable.

Visiting Around the AFC North Following Free Agency

Browns Film Breakdown

0:00
56:30

Full transcript

Browns Film BreakdownVisiting Around the AFC North Following Free Agency. Machine-transcribed; use the interactive transcript above to jump the player to any line.

The Maps app that came with your phone, it's fine if you enjoy waiting and guessing and inefficient routes or you could use MapQuest. MapQuest is back with live directions, real-time traffic and faster routes. It moves when you move. Best of all, no prints are needed, no paper, no more misterns, just you and the app. Get there fast with MapQuest. Download the MapQuest app on the app store or visit MapQuest.com. MapQuest, still getting you there. Has the news been getting you down? I'm Megan McCartle and I'm here to help. I'm the host of a news show from Washington Post Opinion called Reasonably Optimistic and it's an antidote to the pessimism that's riddling America right now. Every Wednesday I'm going to talk to people who see a path forward. It does seem to me that there is some awakening of a desire to act together to solve problems where they are. Now I am a believer in America and it's worth fighting for. Join me Wednesdays on YouTube or wherever you get your podcasts.

We have a great show lined up for you guys looking around the division, looking at what teams have done, what they might still do and what they might draft. There's all three teams now back in the first round in the AFC North. It is a wide open year, a strange year. When it keeps tabs on what these teams are doing, chances the Browns have, it's a great show. Three great guests, you're going to enjoy it. Let's get started with the latest Browns From Breakdown podcast bought to you by Fandall Sportsbook. Guys, what's up? Welcome into today's show. A great show. Happy to have you here on Wednesday, March 18th. It is a show again pointed toward looking at what the rest of the division has done, getting some inside information on things like what the Bengals might do with that defense, where they've structured contracts, Steelers quarterback situation, the Ravens Max Crosby dilemma. It's just a lot of really good insightful stuff from teams. Analysts who cover these teams up close in person. So really excited to share that with you. We will have, like I said, all three. So we'll have Cole Jackson who covers the Ravens.

Does a great job covering them for a couple of different places. Does a great podcast is podcast or sorry, YouTube channel. Rogue Graders does a great job on that. So he'll be our first guest, our second guest. We'll be Jake Lisco. Does Lockdown Bengals and really covers that team as well as anybody in the market. And then we'll ultimately at the end have Derek Bellon, who does a fantastic job with the Steelers and his YouTube channel. And his podcast, Jens Noble, which is on YouTube as well. So just good stuff, good guests. And again, we're going to cover some great stuff. Really some interesting things around the NFL today. We saw Jalen Waddle get traded, move from Miami kind of cleaning house, taking care of some of those guys that could seriously help them. But we're trying to get a return. Go younger, get the youth movement moving rookie contracts. They get back pick 30, get a three and a four back from Denver as well. They ultimately move Waddle with a four. So they kind of get a first and third. In that scenario, pretty good return for Waddle is 27, who's been productive, never really led a wide receiver room. That's successfully kind of been with Tyree Kale, but still a good play.

And we'll fit with what Sean Peyton does. I can see the vision, especially with looking at what Denver might have been able to find with the 30th pick. Certainly Waddle is a more locked and guaranteed impact player for them. We'll see what the ripple effects are of what Denver does off of that with their wide receiver room. Obviously, but just a very interesting trade. We did see also Wyatt Teller move today. Finally, somebody of the former Browns making their way to a new situation. Teller goes to the Texans on the contract. I thought was a little bigger than what I expected. 16 million over two years. Max value of 23 million with playtime incentive. So obviously due to his injury history, they are trying to protect themselves a little bit. But Wyatt Teller gets a deal. Again, I did not think it was going to be quite so high. But the Texans have invested, bringing back Edinburgh. Obviously, we know they shipped Titus Howard over here to the Browns. But they bring back Edinburgh. They sign Brayden Smith. They bring in Wyatt Teller, Evan Brown, kind of a friend starter for them. And then they bring back Trent Brown. We'll see what happens with it. I think Teller is too untrustworthy in the passing game for me personally.

I did not think that I wanted to see another contract of that size with the Browns. But we'll see if the Browns are right in their decision to maybe take the swing on Kevin Jenkins and maybe draft a guy. Or if Teller still had more in the gas tank. We also heard David and Joku is taking a visit with Baltimore. I would hate to see him in Baltimore's uniform. Kind of one of the linchpin's of this era for the Browns. And really identifies with Cleveland. Seeing him in a Baltimore uniform would not be very fun. So I hope that doesn't happen. But this is the first buzz we've had about either of the Browns kind of primary free agents. We'll see what happens with Joe Batonio and a few others. But for now, those are your updates. We don't have anything else on David at this point. But we do know that he's at least visiting somewhere. So yeah, it is a white Teller deal that we'll be paying attention to. And then the bigger trade there that we saw as well. Not really anything otherwise crazy. Max Crosby did give some insight into the really strange time he's been in Baltimore before leaving.

You can read that for yourself. Just just again, very strange conversation. The way he was treated there. The way he tells it. I mean, that's one side of the story. But ultimately pretty strange. Otherwise, we saw a few moves. It did see our first restricted free agent get an offer from somebody else. Ryan Van DeMarc, who is a UDFA that is in Buffalo system, has been around there. Kind of in the same right of first refusal tender. That 3.52 numbers. A Buffalo can match it. They have five days to match it. But if they let him go, they won't get any compensation. So that's an idea of the same thing that the Browns would deal with. If somebody tried to come in and sign Ronnie Hickman, they could match it. But ultimately, right, there's the element there. If you wouldn't get anything back. If he went, whereas if they gave him a tender of a round, specifically, it could have given them the opportunity to have a pickback with it. But that's not the case. And that also just waste teams from offering those guys, when they know they have to give up their pick to make it happen.

JC Treter somehow now is the new NFLPA executive director. After what happened is a player rep. This, I don't know the severity of his time as a player rep. And all of this, it seems like it has surprised a lot of people. Treter has been elected the new NFLPA executive director. Not that Treter doesn't have a pedigree for it, obviously. But we'll see if it works out for the players. Those are the biggest pieces of news as we know them today. A couple of other minor deals. Cam Taylor, Britt, off to the Colts. I could have been interested in that player at that price point that he could have some diversity. But he's off to the Colts. And then I thought, you know, an interesting name there. TJ Bass, it's a second-round restricted free agent tender. He signed that. I didn't think anybody would sign him. But it was interesting to kind of maybe see if somebody wanted to chase the upside player there. But yeah, again, not an overwhelmingly loud day. But those are the big ones. Hollywood Brown also, who's still around the league

and catching on, he's going to Philly. So Philly tries to improve their third-wide receiver options. I think that's everything. I think I've covered everything in real relevance at this point. There was an interesting name that I was told about this player, Carson Tau, who's a power forward for the Notre Dame basketball team, with excellent hands rebounding skills. He signs with the Colts as a tied-in, trying to convert him to tied-in. It's funny to have heard that ahead of time in the ends of ultimately going there. So, yeah, interesting, right? 68-250, I'm going to see if he can play tied-in. It's top 75 player Notre Dame all-time in rebounds for them. So, I don't know. We'll see, right? I think that's it. That's all the Teller News being the biggest of the day. We do get the hint on some big news around the Steelers in this episode, too. So, we're going to go through all three. Back-to-back, we'll jump to each one. They're great good episodes with each guy kind of around 10 to 15 minutes.

The Bengals one ran a little bit longer, but you'll see why. But good time spent with each of them, right? And as it sits right now, the Ravens are the betting favorite with Fandall. Their odds to win the division are the highest. They're at 11 and a half win total. You can get plus 120 on the over on that. If you think they're at 11 and a half win team, the Bengals are at 9 and a half win team. Browns at 6 and a half on those odds, plus 140 on those browns odds. If you think they're going over, it's like they're getting a little more action on the under on that, right? And we'll talk about this on some other episodes, too. But, yeah, I mean, Ravens are at the top of the list, but we'll work through all three teams. And I hope you enjoy this. So let's jump over with those starting with Cole Jackson right now. All right. Lucky enough to get some time from Cole. You guys know him. Rogue Graded. We've talked him before. I've been on his show. We are listening. I mean, I don't know. I was saying, anything happened in Baltimore? What's going on on there? A week, um, you know, not much going on.

Didn't make national news last week. Nothing really going on. Just, uh, just chilling. Yeah, this seems pretty pretty, uh, pretty mundane. No, so let me ask you this. We all know how it happened. Are you bummed they don't have Max Crosby? That's absolutely. I mean, I, I think it was funny. Just, you know, you know how Twitter is. And it's, uh, you know, everybody spent a couple days, uh, you know, acting like Max Crosby was washed. And then the trade Renegh happens. And then suddenly Max Crosby became a, became a lead again. And then the next morning, Tray Hendrixson was washed. So you can't win. I mean, but no, uh, I mean, I, I did what you do, um, you, you, you acquire a player. First thing you do, pro dot NFL dot com, jump into the film. And the thing with Max Crosby is just how impactful he is on all four downs, um, in all phases of the game. And Tray Hendrixson, uh, is obviously extremely impactful as a past rusher. No doubt about that. But obviously less impactful against the run. So I mean, to go from, they're both top tier ed rushers, um,

but just having Max Crosby and how he can impact all four downs at any given time during a game. I, I was excited about that aspect of it. We haven't really had a guy like that since Sugs. The, the guy that can just do it all. And, uh, you know, that, that's what kind of bum me. But I mean, Tray Hendrixson, very fair, um, consolation prize. I think they have some pieces in place, such as Tavius Robinson that really take the pressure off of him from a run defense perspective. And I think it also kind of benefits both. I mean, we don't want Tavius rushing the edge, um, too consistently because he just doesn't have the juice to do it. And on the flip side, we don't want Tray defending the run, too consistently, and it'll manage his snaps, which, uh, give any 32 years old. She give him a little bit more longevity. So I mean, all things considered, um, obviously not the same caliber of player. But when you factor what Tray is really good at, I think the Ravens have the architecture in place to really mitigate some of his risks. So given what we know about the trade that didn't go through

what you get with Tray, would you, I mean, the whole like, if you could do it again, would you do it again with Max? Do you, do you think they're that close? They just need him to push this over the top? It's tough, right? Because I mean, it's, especially when you start doing mock drafts and you have Tray Hendrixson as a, as a, as a top tier edge rusher, and then you have the 14th pick again. Um, and the reality is with the Ravens roster, they, they had quite a few holes, specifically like their offensive line still needs quite a bit of work. And now they might be in a position to get a Van Gaione or a Spencer Fano that could potentially play center with the loss of Tyler Linterbaum because, um, as much as their, their past rush has gotten better, their offensive line, I wouldn't say they, they've upgraded over Andrew Voorhees with John Simpson, but I'd say it's a pretty marginal upgrade. And they've obviously downgraded significantly going from Tyler Linterbaum to a placeholder of Corey Bullock. So I mean, that's what it is, right? It's, it's Tray plus the 14th pick versus Max Crosby.

You, you're getting more value by having that 14th pick and still getting a top tier edge rusher. Um, if I had to do one for one, like obviously one for one max over Tray, but when you factor that pick in, I'd probably take the package of Tray and the 14th overall pick. Seems to be the vibe from the franchise too. I understand a lot of that stuff that comes with, you know, I understand the injury stuff is difficult. It's hard to navigate. Nobody ever knows who's being 100% truthful, but the, the, the day, you know, you got to protect yourself. If you think there's something that could possibly maybe even slightly linger, you got to really be careful about this. That's pretty considering Max isn't 25, right? It's not, it's not the same. It's, it's a little bit older. Not that he's old, but it's just a little bit older, a little bit further along in the process. Okay, let's get off that. Let's go, um, let me, let me ask you it this way. Big parts of the franchise move on. Not just coaching staff, we know that, but obviously core parts of the, at least the offense it seems like have moved on. Are you, was there anybody you were hoping they could get back

that they didn't and then walk us through kind of the most impactful ones that, that walked out the door? Yeah, I've become like Tyler's my guy, um, you know, getting to study him over the last few years. I feel like the Ravens with their approach at the offensive guard position. I don't think we truly got to see Tyler's potential in an outside zone scheme in Baltimore. Obviously when Todd Monkin came in, they ran more outside zone, but with the lack of athleticism at the guard positions beside him, I just, there was too many times where you could see Tyler wanted to get off a combo and, and the guard just couldn't scoop. And I think when you did get Tyler out in space, like there's a number of plays where, you know, Tyler's literally running three steps behind Derek Henry, like it was ridiculous. So he's that type of athlete. So that killed me, but at the same time, you can't pay a center 27, like, can't pay a center nine million more per year than the second highest paid center, who is probably still better than Tyler. And I know that you, just because you're the best center, doesn't, or the best player to position,

doesn't mean you're always the highest paid, but to blow the market out of the water by nine million average per annual, it's just unfeasible. So that one's stunk, but they needed to rebuild this offensive line. So that was a big piece. Obviously, Isaiah likely was an exciting guy, but again, like, you know, they kind of made their decision with Mark, and I probably would have went with, honestly, Charlie Kohler over both of them. Isaiah likely coming back from that foot injury, hadn't really gotten a chance to establish himself as a number one. I wouldn't have extended Mark. I think he's on the downslope of his career. So, I mean, not really anybody. Nobody that's left, I necessarily expected them to keep. I thought Pat Ricard would move on as well. We just had to look at Declan Doyle. You look at Dwayne Ledford and their run game. They just don't use a traditional fullback as much as they would have found use for Pat because he can work in line. He can work as an H. All that good stuff. And he'll go do that. Him and Cam Scataba are going to create one hell of a back

field to be exciting to watch. But yeah, I wouldn't say anybody that's left. I necessarily expect this is how it goes with Raven's offseason. They lose, you know, 15 guys. They sign a couple patches to their to their holes and then they go in and they go BPA in the draft. That's kind of been the, honestly, signing Trey Hendrickson's kind of, we haven't seen anything like that since they signed Marcus Williams back in 2022 where they get like a top five, top 10 type free agent. So that was a pretty exciting move. But, you know, nobody's really surprised me too much. So other additions that maybe folks don't know about. You want to elaborate maybe like John Simpson or getting back Cheeto or some of those elements too. I think the most underrated addition was Jalen Hawkins out of New England. I kind of went back through his tape last week. And, you know, the Ravens want that flexibility to move Kyle Hamilton around and having two split safeties is a big need in this defense. And I think I have a little bit of concern about Jalen Hawkins playing in that kind of zone match,

cover four scheme. There's a play in week one against Trey Tucker where he had to man up from the safety alignment against Trey Tucker and he got burned for 32 yard touchdown. So it's not like this kept popping up on Trey. But you see a man up tight ends and he really struggled at that. So I'm really expecting that kind of split alignment. But I think he really allows them to, you know, play the split with Malachi Starks and move Kyle Hamilton wherever they need to. And then they can also get a little bit more creative with Starks and play Jalen Hawkins in a cover one alignment, which I think will help kind of everybody. So getting back Louisiana was also big. He played really well for them last year. It's just his injury history. You're going to need to get another outside corner and last year it was go get Jair, go get a Louisiana. And hopefully you get, you know, 15 games out of the combination of the two of them. We know what happened with Jair. So Louisiana kind of filled in. So we'll see there. They still need depth at corner. But I think Hawkins was the underrated one. I went through John Simpson's film. He's just, again, kind of what I said about the unathletic guards. It's kind of what John Simpson is. He's kind of the big downhill block,

or a gap blocker. And I just, it really makes me wonder what the hell Eric DeCosta is watching when he looks at a Dwayne led for run game that wants to get like everybody on that Atlanta whole line could get out in space and move. And John Simpson doesn't fit that. It just drives me nuts from an offensive line perspective. I thought that one was a peculiar signing, especially given that you know him having been in the organization. They could pay just a little bit more for Elijah Vera Tucker, which yeah, you have to cringe every time he takes contact. But he perfectly fits that outside's own scheme. So it just, it's just frustrating. And I thought the Jets actually did a good job of keeping the guarantees for him pretty low given that. All right, well, then you're probably talking online. You mentioned it a little bit. Picks, what are the top three pick numbers? Obviously, you know, we don't need to deal with what they got, they got back to their 27 first two. But, you know, top three picks and kind of guys, you're just eyeing early what you're thinking. Yeah, like I mean at that 14 pick, they'll go BPA. But, you know, I've had my, my eye on Van Gaione.

I just think he's, which ironically, I'm going to contradict myself because he's not really an outside zone scheme fit. But he is probably the most nuanced past protector. I've watched the guard position in the last six years. Like I use that good. So it just gives you a day one. He's just, he's going to be a good NFL pro. There's no doubt about it to me. Spencer Fano for his ability to potentially play center and then play tackled down the road. But then you know, like I'm praying, praying to the good lords above that they make, the NFL makes the same mistake they made with Kyle Hamilton. And then people freak out about Ruben Bayer, Payne's arm length. And he somehow. It's possible. It's possible. I, everybody said it wouldn't happen with Kyle and it did. And it was Nick 14 in the 2022 draft. So I mean, pit not lucky number, pick 14. But some of the guys later with the next two picks, Sam Hecht out of Kansas State as a center. I have my eye on Logan Jones out of Iowa. He basically has the exact same spider chart as Tyler Linterbaum. Obviously not the same talent.

But the same type of player. So those two Chase Bessontis, Emmanuel Pregnon, Keelan Raj, it's a really good year to need interior offensive line. And I think Ravens need to go too offensive line men with their first three picks. That's really where my focus would be. Then looking also probably at the wide receiver position, though I am hoping they use the remaining cap space to go get a Joanne Jennings or something a little bit flash here in the free agency market. Is there a pick at 14 early? I know we still got 40 days or so here. But some of the 14 that would make you cringe, Mesador, maybe the age. I will throw some. I can't stand these edge rushers that just try and run around guys. I just haven't been. He didn't impress me at all. Who is that again? Cassius Howell. Cassius Howell. So he's one that would really kind of tick me off. A corner will probably piss me off because, you know, they went safety last year. They went Nate Whitney's the year before. They've just spent so much so many high level resources in the corner room. It'll depend who's available. I mean, this, the unfortunate part is,

Jermon McCoy is a guy that someone's going to probably get a diamond with and someone that may slip a little bit because just in play last year. So we'll have to see what happens there. That just seems like such a Ravens move. Another guy would be Caleb Banks just because I can't handle another injured player. That would probably be a second round guy given the injury. But it'd be just like David and Javo, where I just have to worry about his rehab again. I'm just sick of it. Like they've tried this like three times in the last four years. Drafted an injured player that fell and then, you know, Voorhees didn't work out. Oh, Javo didn't work out. Like it just doesn't work out for them. It's pretty rare, man. You don't get on the right side of those very often. But it's just still be a good team. Obviously, very different. We know this, you know, it's going on in Pittsburgh. It's just going to be a different division. Fascinated to see it. We will probably try to catch up with you one more time, closer to the season, Cole. Listen, man, we greatly appreciate your time, buddy. Any time, man, sounds good, brother. The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports.

Right now, the NBA is heating up. March madness is here and MLB is almost back. Every day, there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying connected to my sports. I could follow the teams I care about, get real-time scores, breaking news, and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment. College Basketball is non-stop. Big games, tight spreads, momentum swings every night,

and now Fandall is giving you a way to turn that energy into bigger wins. With the College Basketball Parlay Profit Boost, here's how it works. Build any college hoops Parlay you like, the early tip, the rivalry game, the ranked matchup, the late night West Coast shootout, mixed spreads, totals, props, whatever fits your read of the slate, then just apply your profit boost and instantly bump up that potential payout. Go safe, go spicy, go with the team you've been following all season. It's your Parlay, your style. Now with more upside behind it, head to fandall.com slash believe to get started. Fandall, play your game. Must be 21 plus in present in select states. For Kansas, in affiliation with a Kansas star casino, or 18 plus in present in DC, Kentucky or Wyoming, opt in required. Minimum two leg Parlay required bonus issued as a nonwithdrawal boost builder tokens. Restrictions apply, including any token expiration and max wage or amounts. See terms at sportsbook.fandall.com, gambling problem called 1-800-GAMBLER,

or 1-800-Myreset, call 1-888-789-7777, or visit ccpg.org slash chat in Connecticut, or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here, visit gamblinghelplinema.org, or call 800-327-5050 for 24-7 support in Massachusetts, or call 877-8 hope and why, or text hope and why in New York. For Louisiana, call 1-877-770-7867. We welcome, Jake. Pat him on the show many times, and we always love to check in. Around the FC North with the Bengals, it was, I mean, again, outside looking in, Jake, a good free agency. In terms of like, I thought you guys really addressed positions. You wanted to address. You got younger at edge, Russia. I'm sure you can elaborate on the pain of losing tray, or maybe it was just so expected, but I thought between the safety edge and then adding Jonathan Allen, a good free agency. Are you happy with it? Elaborate, my friend.

We like the players they signed. I like the players they signed. I thought Brian Cook was the best safety they could have gotten in free agency. I thought that Boy Mafe was one of the targets I had at edge, especially when you dropped down from a money tier. Like, I wasn't necessarily super thrilled about Jalen Phillips for 30 million a year. Well, I think that if Jalen Phillips is healthy, he was a Bengals or any free agent seeking teams. Best chance of finding the next, you know, quote unquote, tray Hendrickson in free agency. Like, you compare Jalen Phillips first four or five years at tray Hendrickson's first four or five years. Jalen Phillips was better than tray early in his career. So that's where I was kind of like, yeah, I'd be interested in Jalen Phillips, but there was no discount at all for the injury history that he's had. The medical retirement, of course, that he had in college. So once you get past that tier, I wasn't necessarily a huge believer in Adafee. Oh, I think he's a really good past rusher, but I see him as a DPR more than a three down player. I see Boy Mafe as a three down player. I like Boy Mafe. I think there's a little bit of outside there. I think that the Mike McDonald's scheme

seemed to be detrimental to his past rushing productivity. And before McDonald, who I think is one of the best defensive coordinator or defensive minded head coaches, if not the best in the NFL, Mafe's productivity was higher. And so the Bengals will hopefully be able to unleash him to get back to the pre-McDonald productivity, which isn't like a world beater. It's not tray Hendrickson, but it's better than the potential alternatives that were around the roster. So yeah, I like those two guys. I think Jonathan Allick is still going to have to the past and they've desperately needed an interior past rusher for some time. He shouldn't embarrass himself if he's out there on a run down. He's still Jonathan Allen. He's not what he once was. But again, talking to our lockdown Vikings host, Luke Braun, who I did 10, 15 minutes talking about Jonathan Allen with. He's a real film grinder. I don't know if you have ever talked to Luke, but big film grinder up in Minnesota and gave me some confidence in Allen being John Allen and essentially being the guy that he's been. So I like the guys they signed.

Where we run into issues and I wouldn't go so far as the characterizer free agency is good. Or I just saw the pro football focus gave them a B grade for their free agency is that's what they didn't do. They are still, as of today, running Barrett Carter and Demetrius right out there in linebacker with no one else on the roster. Now they can still add a Bobby Wagner type. They can still draft a sunny style or it's a deep linebacker class. So name your linebacker of choice in the second or third rounds. And that could help. But I really helped was the standard for me for the Bengals and free agency was five starters. If they had gotten four starters, maybe I could still be convinced that it was like, yeah, they did well. These are all real contracts for real players that should help them in ways that they needed. But the way that this coaching staff in front office talked about the need for leadership in the linebacker room, the way they even talk specifically about changing Demetrius' nice role, getting them off the surface, getting them off the line of scrimmage more, and just not adding a linebacker.

I think they tried and failed, by the way. I think they were in for at least three or four linebackers that they tried to sign and didn't get deals done with. That's disappointing. And when you go beyond that and talk about all the complimentary pieces that you need to feel to football team, there's no starting slot corner on the team right now. I would have liked to see them make some additions on the offensive side of the ball too. And I'm talking depth. I'm not talking, you know, pushing the envelope too hard on offense, but like finding a tight end too, finding some wide receiver depth, like a wide receiver for interior offensive line backups, challenging Cody Ford, who's currently their swing tackle. And that's a nightmare quite frankly. So that's where he had great receiver. Great with the ball in his hands. You just get Cody Ford the ball of the perimeter and he's going to go truck some guys. All right, great. But the moves they didn't make are what really brings it down. And it is what has people met. Part of what has people met. The other thing that has people had is contract structure stuff. But again, you know, you like the moves they made. So it's hard to be super critical,

but the moves they didn't make kind of require you to be critical at least in my opinion. And to clarify, they're not still not doing void years kind of keeping like the extension of like lowering the cap hits in early portions of contracts. They're still avoiding that, right? That's that's the pathway they're using or correct me from wrong. Yeah, they've got the opposite direction actually. Like they used to be conservative, but justifiable like almost almost reasonably so. Like they used to be on the higher end of like the first year cap hit is going to be closer to the APY than any other team in the NFL. Kind of the polar opposite of the Browns or the Saints in years past or even, you know, Baltimore look at Trays contract. But for example, one of the biggest free agents hiding Jalen Phillips, right? His first year cap hit is smaller than Brian Cooks or maybe it's just a hair larger. But like the Bengals don't do that stuff where they they give you a minimum salary and you're one and offset it

with a big signing bonus. What they started doing with T Higgins, I think T was the first time they did this. Maybe they'd done it before and I just don't remember it. Or it wasn't as noticeable. I could go back and look at some old documents and see what I had. But they've started doing this thing where they take a signing bonus. So let's use Brian Cook as an example. And they carve out a portion of that signing bonus. And instead of prorating it, they're paying it out as a roster bonus. So Brian Cook got an $11 million signing bonus. But he's also getting a $3 million roster bonus in 2026. And instead of just taking that $3 million roster bonus, tacking it onto the signing bonus and spreading it out over three years, they're just taking that entire $3 million cap hit in your what. They also have a base salary for Cook that is significantly higher than the veteran minimum. It's $3.4 million salary. So all in all, you get a cap hit for Brian Cook in your one

that's $10.5 million on a deal that's $13.5 million. Which is like 80% of the AQI is a cap hit in your one. Boy, a mafe is even more extreme. He's got a $17 million cap hit on a $20 million AP wide deal. Which like, again, is because they're carving out part of the signing bonus essentially and they're paying it out as a roster bonus. I can't figure out why you would do that other than I want the cap hit to be bigger this year. They're deathly afraid of a million dollars in dead money in a future year. And so they're not prorating these roster bonuses. And it just doesn't make any sense to do it that way. Like, I'm not asking them to be the brands. I don't think that the brown family will ever manage to cap the way the brown football team does. Not asking them to be the same so the Eagles, not asking them to be proactive. Like the Eagles in terms of getting ahead of extensions. That's something that I think every NFL team should do for the guys they know they want on their team. I'm just asking them to be average.

Like, do the 60% instead of 80% because if they had just prorated these roster bonuses, you're talking about almost another $7 million in cap space. Not quite, like $6 million in cap space this year. Which is a starter? That's a starting linebacker. And so when they don't do that and they're going to sit there and say, look, we spent to the cap. Because I have them at about $7 million in cap space now after accounting for a bunch of offseason expenses, rookies, practice, quad, all those sorts of things that the over the cap numbers don't account for. And they don't pull the restructure level lever on Joe Burrow. And they're the only team in the NFL that doesn't restructure their highly paid quarterback. It's amazing. You can't really use the, we're cash, we're cat, we're cat strapped. We spent to the cap. No, you didn't. No, you didn't. Yeah. You spent to your cap. But boy, could you have done things differently to add some more players? And so the cap excuses are going to fall flatter than ever this year. And hopefully these structures are doing

whether it's carbon out of austrabonus in year one and not pro rating it. It's not something that's a long term idea because that stuff really, really drives me crazy. Like that's a step beyond, in my opinion, what they've done in the past. Yeah, we've talked about this with various different things that they've done and how, you know, if somehow we were able to combine these two franchises between the success of the Bengals and picking some specific players that have worked out very well with the Browns of Money, it would work out well. That is frustrating in its own way. Different from what Browns fans obviously deal with, but certainly when you're on the cusp and you also have the evidence of like a similar pathway where they really reshape the defense of the Super Bowl year, right? And kind of got aggressive and got some new body starting over there and was a part of that. I could be misremembering, but I think it was a part of it. Yeah, that year they had Trey Hendrix and Gidobay at Louisiana, Mike Hilton, Lario Gidobie, Riley Reef, and free agency, a very active free agency. And I actually just want to look to see if they did this roster bonus thing before

and I didn't notice it then, but they did it for Trey Hendrix in. They gave him a $10 million signing bonus. They took $6 million and they slapped it onto year one as a roster bonus. Now, they only did it for him and they did it to a lesser degree with Mike Hilton. Like, I don't really care if you do it with like a million dollars or two million dollars. Mike Hilton got a $2 million roster bonus. Like, okay, I care much less. But like a $6 million additional roster bonus in year one that you don't want to appropriate. Like, that's crazy. And they did it for Trey too in 2021. I think they have been doing year one roster bonuses to just haven't been a substantial glaring as they were this year. They didn't do it with Chidobay and Louisiana. They didn't do it with Lario or Lario was one year deal. So I guess you wouldn't do it there. They even did a void year that year with Riley Reef, which is one of the only times they have done a void year ever. The other being Joe Burrow has some void years on his deal. So at least they went that approach. And Mark Chase has some void years on his deal. But yeah, some real exceptions there to get to that point. Yeah, it's interesting, given, you know, trying to put together,

when you're in the heart of an elite quarterback, you want to want to see your team do this as much as you possibly can to just add as much in a window as you possibly can. So I understand that frustration. Good job explaining that. Yeah, I think then given what you're saying and where they're kind of considering themselves up against the cap. And I'm not, you know, tying anybody to anything. But like like a veteran linebacker talking leadership, like, uh, he's on his last legs. But like the first name becomes my Bobby Wagon. Like you wouldn't expect them to add anybody. We've seen the Christian curks and what and why it tellers sign today seems like some of that veteran class is starting to head out to places. You don't think they're going to get involved in any of those. It doesn't want to get paid. Like what do we think Bobby Wagner is going to make this year? I see last year he was on a $9 million deal the year before that. It was six and a half, the year before that it was five and a half. Do we think it's closer to five million? Or do we think it's closer to nine million? Because if Wagner is, is, and he might be considering retirement, apparently. But like, there's some guys like that that are out there at linebacker. Wagner is certainly from a leadership point of view as a first

of comes to mind, Shaq Thompson, Matt Milano. Like these guys haven't been great lately. But the guys, uh, and Bobby Okerike will be the other one. He's a cop player wouldn't contribute to the cop pick formula where the Bengals appear to be playing that game now to try to get that third round pick that they could get for losing Trey Hendrix. And so it slim pick is out there, man. Like somebody somebody asked me today, apparently Jordan Brooks is, is potentially a guy that maybe the dolphins, if they're really going that hard on the rebuild, like why keep Jordan Brooks around on the last year of his deal, can consider that trade. Maybe there's a trade out there that they can find. But yeah, really hard to find that guy at linebacker. So we're talking ahead of this about pick 10, this draft, the strange nature of premium positions on really both sides of the ball. And before we do that, I don't need you to go very long here. Maybe a sentence or two, but this is now, you know, you've invested at it, right?

And Shamar Stewart's early, we'll ask you about him a second, but Miles Murphy, where's that at? Is this like just, I'll let you elaborate. I don't know. Maybe there's no hope that this guy can figure it out or maybe these taken steps. It's interesting. He has taken steps, I think he's come along. He's a perfectly fine, you know, two for a lot of teams. I think at this point in his career, like he, he really picked up his ability to defend the run. I think substantially in the second half of last season, when he started playing a lot more, I don't know that he's ever lived up to his first round billing. But if he's, you know, essentially Sam Hubbard light, then you're okay with that. He's got good athleticism. He's got a great motor. He's got good get off. He's big enough to be a three down player. So, you know, he's, he's okay. Shamar Stewart, last year's first Trump pick, what's the early return on that? How do you feel? I know it was obviously Rocky leading up to the year, but we only saw, you know, I hated the Browns got together week one and week eight teams, such different times for teams.

But yeah, where do you stand on that one year in? Yeah, I mean, he was hurt, missed a lot of time. I think missing part of camp really was through his detriment. The comment recently from his coach, his position coach during my comedy was like, he needs to show, like essentially he needs to love the game. He needs to show up in shape. He needs to love the game or it's going to show him up and spit him out. So, like, that's not super encouraging. Maybe that's like just a motivation tactic or something. Hopefully the game slows down for him in year two. He didn't play enough in year one, though, to really get that experience under his belt. So, I'm not sure if it well. I think he's a guy that's probably going to play in the preseason. I don't think the investment that they've made at the edge position, which includes two first round picks in the last four years, and Boya Maffe, for clues, I'm from drafting an ed Russia at 10. And maybe that's me being naive. Maybe I shouldn't be thinking like, look, they're spent all these resources there. They're not going to do it.

But I think if Rubin Bay and David Bailey is available to them at 10, I think those are the guys that they strongly consider. I think they're hoping that a defensive player falls to them that picked 10. I don't know if position is going to be with a draft sunny style. So they draft Caleb Downs after not signing a linebacker, but signing Brian Cook. I think they should. I think they would probably be open to sunny styles. I don't know. Maybe at this point Caleb Downs is something that they don't feel like they have a luxury to do. Given the investment that they made in Brian Cook and their general appearance of not valuing safety very highly, Jesse Bates in the subsequent years. So yeah, I think it's interesting because they've invested all of this in the edge. And really in defensive players in general, they spent so many draft picks there and just have been too slow to develop and haven't developed the way they've needed to to feel a viable defense the last few years. Yeah, I certainly think the Ohio State guys, if they make it there, interesting. Like you said, Rubin Bayne would be a great fit.

I think he's going to be a good player. Nothing on offense. Could they get crazy and love Kenyans to leak? Could they trade down a little bit? Yeah, again, like that's the only thing I'm curious about is if you, you know, I guess you could really take anybody. They did extend Orlando, right? So they're really, I think that I thought the like more free lane could have been a fallback option if they wanted to go offense. Like at the tackle the future, but the extension for Brown probably means they're not spending a first round pick there because they're going to have to pay a mario. So Marius is really coming on. I'm really excited for Marius's future at right tackle. But extending Orlando and committing that money there means you probably don't want to spend a first round pick on a tackle because where's he playing? Unless it's like an Andrew, but what kind of player? And they took him in the second round who can play guard and then you think he can transition to tackle, I mean, with just such a rarity and such a special player that it's really unfair to compare anyone to him.

But yeah, it's hard to see offense in play given for the agency especially. Like if they had signed, if they had done, you know, their cap management differently, this year, restructure, burrow and sign, you know, like a Devon Lloyd and sign Arnold Evocati and added two adressors, a real linebacker or real safety. Like maybe you could talk me into Jeremiah Love. Maybe I don't think you can now. I don't think there's any world where you can talk me into spending that kind of draft resource and money on a running back given what's going on with his defense right now. It's good stuff, man. We appreciate it. I know we'll try to catch up with you before the season as always. Get a little preview, but you know, I always like to track some of these huge decisions and free agency and stuff. And I know since the night he's done well, but there's you know, there's there's meat on the bone and I know that can be frustrating. So you laid that stuff out well, Jake. Thanks for your time, man. It's nice to get the perspective. I'll tell you that, Jake, you know, like getting the, they did well with some things. Like maybe I am too, maybe my expectations were too high.

Because there's still Joe Burrow on the other side, right? Like how good. You just need the defense to be disruptive over there. And so hopefully the guys they've added, bring them a level of competency and disruption that they need to, you know, when you score 30 points, when a football game, a little bit more often than the Bengals of one football games. And they scored 30 points in the last two years. It's a lot of scar tissue for you guys. I mean, you've watched Joe be good enough. You've, I feel like this is again, outside of perspective on this thing. But like you've gotten the offensive line to a healthier place. And on that side, you kept tea. That side's ready to do what it does. So if I were you, and I know that there's still money to be found, and you just need the defense to be better, to meet the offense in the middle. I too would be frustrated. So I think your frustration is very fair about this. It is still a roster. I look at outside looking in and see a division winner possibly here, quite possibly. Everybody's good as Baltimore. So, you know, there's always different perspectives from teams that don't have that luxury.

But I do understand that frustration. And, you know, I don't think, and I'm sure you and Joe and some of the other guys have talked about this around like, you don't want to be sitting here in 2030 and be like, where did it go? What happened? They didn't do it. They didn't make the push they needed to because that's sickening. You just got to get one of these things. Yeah. It's going to get one. And there's already some of that feeling to be honest. Like, I was at that Super Bowl and walking out was at Nightmare. Wouldn't wish it on anyone. And so, yeah, I mean, there's already some of that feeling knowing that they had a couple shots at it in 21 and 22. And now they just need to find a way back. And this is not a team that has shown that they can do it on second quarterback contract. So, uphill battle, but they still have the guys on offense. So, hopefully, they find a way to hit in the draft this year and find the guys that could help get them over the hump with what they've done on the defensive side of the ball. Well, good stuff all around, man. Again, to turn into 20 minutes, we've planned 10, but two podcasters get together. We can't help ourselves. So, we appreciate it, buddy.

Thanks, man. All right, Derek's with us. He's been on this show many times. We talk Steelers. I mean, and this is an interesting time. There's, and I talked to Cole about this with the Ravens. Two coaches are gone. It feels so different. This division is going to be weird. But it feels like Pittsburgh's trying to keep a lot of some of the core ideas in practices and in tact. I don't know if that's right. Would you say, Derek, you can correct me if I'm wrong. But they go out to get aggressive and free agency. I don't know how aggressive you think it was, but feed us like some of the moves you liked, what you didn't like from their movement in this last week. Yeah, I think the number one thing that I could say about their free to see Hall so far is just like, I feel like they really rate the floor of the roster. They went out and got a bunch of what I would classify as like solid to good starters. You know, any events of death piece is kind of along the way. You know, bringing Enrico Dowdell was kind of, I think a pretty expected move. There's a lot of smoke around that one with his familiarity with McCarthy.

You know, Dowdell's weaknesses are kind of offset by what Jalen Warren brings to the table. So you kind of got a nice one to punch there. Trade for Michael Pittman was something that I thought was going to be a possibility. I actually tweeted about it in February just because Pittman's guys played all three positions. We knew that the Colts were going to try to, you know, do everything in their power to go, you know, retain the services of Alec Pierce. He was going to be on the move. You know, the Pittman extension wasn't something that I was necessarily in favor of because I think at this stage of his career, he's probably more of like a third option in the passing game. But he does give you toughness over the middle. Really good against zone coverage. So that stuff makes a lot of sense. Jamil Dean, you know, the series have had a terrible run of luck trying to sign like 30-year-old corners. But haven't said that. Dean, he's long, he's physical. He does play the run, he's a good tackler. I think, you know, being in a scheme probably that's going to allow him to be at the line of scrimmage more. Like, obviously, Joy Porter Jr. Probably something that'll be pretty good for him. I would imagine then probably my favorite move

that they made, which just kind of goes hand in hand with me saying they raised the floor of the roster is getting Sebastian Joseph Day on a really cheap, like, two-year deal. Day has always been someone that I have really admired from a far excellent run defender. He was top. I think he was sixth, both each of the past two seasons and runstop rate, according to Pro Football Focus. So really good run defender. I think ideally, you know, he's your third or fourth. The interior, like a third gap probably on the interior. And for the steal, he's probably going to be their number four as long as, you know, Harmon continues to develop and everybody stays healthy. So I like what they've done so far. I'm not quite sure that they've done anything to raise the ceiling, but the floor definitely. So I did see, I think, and correct me from wrong on these. But Cameron Hayward, get him another extension, keep him right. Is that dude ever going to retire? She's going to play till he's 50. Is the play ever going to drop off, man? It's crazy. I don't understand, like, the last two years. I mean, I'm watching them and I'm like, sometimes like, man, watching him get into a stance doesn't look comfortable. But he's still getting it done.

Dude is still strong as a nox. Yeah, I mean, he, yeah. Hayward was absolutely their best player with flying colors last year. So it was one of those things where if he did retire, I don't even know how you would even go about replacing a player like that. Because I'm just what he brings to you against the run. Still strong as heck at the point of attack. I mean, the past rushing stuff is more like comes kind of in waves these days. I felt like in the past couple of years, but I mean, still productive in that regard by no means like a one-dimensional player. And then he's still dominant versus the run. The deal that they gave him really like very little risk attached to it. And like, as long as, you know, the drop off is coming eventually. But the way I kind of see it is like, I'm almost done trying to predict what it happens. When it does, it does. But, you know, he's still playing at such a high level that, you know, franchise icon like that, keeping him around. It's good for camaraderie in the building too. You think they keep him Patrick Queen? You think that's staying? I know there's been a little bug that they might try to move him, but I didn't know. Yeah, I was told a couple of days, or I was told last week that there was at least four teams

that had called about his availability. I don't think that was, you know, necessarily a shock. Every team was together. And at the end of that was at the NFL Combine. You got all these GMs and stuff. So I would say that he was probably available for the right price at one point in time. They probably didn't get the asking price that they were originally thinking that they would for him. Which is going to be really like a day three pick was a lot of the offers. And a lot of those teams have pivoted to other linebackers throughout the course of free agency anyway. So I think he's going to be here. And I honestly like, I like Queen as a player more than a lot of the fanbase does. Certainly an imperfect player. No doubt has his warts. But still like finding linebackers that can play on all three downs is not very easy in today's league, especially like even in an awful linebacker class that I absolutely love. Normally there's like a three year kind of developmental window that you need for that position. It's one of the few positions in the NFL. I think you can develop. And I think you just need to be super, super patient with. So I understand keeping Queen in the fold.

Even if it is a little bit of a hefty price tag. So anything moving forward, we saw Christian Kirk sign. Some of these veterans like Wyatt Teller went in the browns in. This is like that class of guys who kind of wait out the first wave. They're all maybe their second or third contract. Do you think they get in that market at all? You know, it's kind of difficult to say that they're going to be in the market for anyone else like noteworthy. I'm trying to look at kind of Greg Rosenthal's like top remaining free agents. I mean, there's certainly some guys that make sense here. I mean, the biggest hole in the roster is out from like the quarterback thing, which I think everybody's kind of acknowledged that they can't really solve this year. Is it guard? So, you know, they're probably going to run it back with like Dylan Cook, Broderick Jones, it's going to be a camp battle heading in the camp. The stillers like Broderick Jones a lot more than like I do or probably anyone else in the football world does. But Dylan Cook played pretty well in a small sample size down the stretch last year for them. The McCarthy system is going to be more of a challenge for the off the tackles in general.

But, you know, with Don San Molo going to Arizona, he wanted to return. Still has never really gave him an offer to be honest with you. So they clearly wanted to move on. There's some guys in the draft that, you know, I'm a fan of. They got one day from Penn State is a really good player. Like right there with like being my top ranked overall offensive lineman. Some guys on day two, I like as well. It's just that San Molo was kind of the communication hub for a really young offensive line. Like really good at picking up stunts and blitzes. So whoever fills that spot is going to need to be like, you know, they're basically going to get baptized by fire. So I would say like if they're going to do something else in pre-adicy, probably going to try to go out and get some type of veteran stopgab option at least. Like Brock Hoffman was the name that was kind of thrown out there. He's got the familiarity with McCarthy. That was rumored to get done. And then George Schultz deleted the tweet. But I still have heard that they're in contact. So I don't really know what's going to go on with that. But I would say guard is probably somewhere where they're going to try to find some veteran stopgab option that can at least, you know, hold the seat warm until Ricky's ready.

So the consensus vibe. I don't think anybody knows, you know, because I think what people are doing that cover the draft are like trying to figure out the sneaky Thai Simpson spots. It feels like you guys at 21 Cleveland at 24. It was the Rams. Now it's kind of not, because I feel like there's no, I mean, I can't say no way. I saw Michael Pinnix go eighth overall like he could end up going to the Rams where like what are they 13th? But I don't know, man, you tell me like is the vibe Aaron's coming back to try this another year with McCarthy now or what's what's what do you think? Yeah, I think that Aaron's going to be back. I say that with near certainty. I think he's going to be the quarterback of the Steelers next year. The Steelers do like Will Howard more than I don't think that some of the, a lot of that stuff in the media is actual smoke. Like the Steelers organization had a fourth round grade on Howard last year. And I've heard that McCarthy's like intrigued by his skill set as well. I think like Will Howard to me like coming out of a house date,

like actually like his cop that I have for him coming out was Mason Rudolph, like a more athletic, like a non-sender blocks on his cleats first of Nathan Rudolph. So I don't know what that gets you. I think that Will has a chance to be like a pretty good backup or maybe like spot starter at a ceiling. I don't know that I see the physical traits. Many of us are older guy already. I don't know that I see a starter. And I don't know that they do either, but they do like him. But as far as that symptom man, it's just really difficult to parse. I mean, the first half of the tape last year in Alabama was so good. The second half was not. There's a lot of things to kind of square with that. Alabama had some some really a non-existent run game, some past extra stuff, receivers, a lot of drop passes. But his play just overall dropped off. I think, you know, when you're talking about a quarterback without, you know, amazing physical traits, that's also got some accuracy issues. And he's only, he's only 208 pounds. Like I don't necessarily think that it's a total coincidence that he failed to make it through a whole season, being healthy at 208 in the SEC.

And you have to wonder about, he's a one year starter. Is that going to be dependable at the NFL level? Is he going to get knocked off a spot in the pocket? Alias, he's going to be able to hold up your ability wise. First round, too rich for my blood. I haven't really gotten anything that I've heard in terms of the Steelers being like, super interested. Now, I'm sure they're doing their homework on a lot of these guys. They had Carson Beck in today for a visit when we're recording this. So, I'm sure it's an option. It would kind of surprise me right now if he was the guy in the first round. Yeah, it would surprise me too. I think that, you know, the part of Jackson Dart being in that same space was the athleticism and the body were different. I understand. I said this on our part of the other day, like Jackson Dart needs to play with like four guardian caps, but like he can at least help mitigate some of the growing pains that come into the NFL. Because you can run, he can move, he can save himself. Ty doesn't have that and he's not big. He's not big. He can play, he can sling it. There's window throws you love. Boy, it's risky. Yeah, there's a lot there too.

Like with your talk about some of the window throws, like the anticipatory throws over the middle of the field. And like they do have, there's some NFL level concepts of him getting one, two, three. I think sometimes he can work a little bit too fast. I think he's like, you know, processing is a little bit more like one to check down or one to to check down rather than actually going through the full progression. But some of that could just be trusting the offensive line. But yeah, like you said, man, like my kind of thing with scouting quarterbacks is like, I really want my quarterbacks to be like two, 15. I think he came in at the combo on like two, 12. I think some of that was probably like water weight. But I mean, he played under 200 pounds last year because he was, I think he was a deal with some type of, there was some health concern. I think where he lost a bunch of weight. So the frame to me is a concern along with just like the general accuracy. So I just think it's a big risk, man. One of your starters just to have not had a good track record of success in the league. Especially not being like that, that young, you know, for sure. So that weighs into it too.

All right, well, otherwise at 21, right? So what other names are you, are you I, do you see it a blank slate? Like they could go true best player available here? Yeah, I think, you know, at the combo on, I think I was on another show. And I said, like there's three main areas to target would be receiver guard or receiver quarterback and then safety. The quarterback one is a difficult one to solve this cycle, right? I think everybody is aware of that receiver is a pretty deep receiver class. Definitely took a big jump from over the summer. I would say that, you know, any of the big name guys would probably be within their wheelhouse. They met with them all formally at the combine. I would anticipate a decent amount of those guys coming in for a top 30 visit. I already mentioned like Vega, Juan, I think if he was there at 21, that might be something they would consider. And then safety, they do have some questions about like how the safety room is going to shake out. They did sound you call a briskour. It was a one year deal. Jalen Ramsey probably slotted in as their slot corner right now, really struggled in coverage last year.

And obviously he's an older guy as well. So he's going to be on the roster. Omar Khan said he's going to be back. But maybe some future planning there. So maybe, you know, if, you know, I could see them being interested in McNeil Warren or Dylan Deneman. If those guys fell, I know there's some smoke out there about, you know, Caleb Downs medicals. I've watched a lot of Caleb Downs and way too much Ohio State defense have filmed this cycle to know that like there's just no way in this class. He's getting down to 21. I mean, then the there would have to be some crazy conspiracy behind the scenes because that dude is absolutely a top out player in this class to me. I agree, man. Well, I can't wait to see how it shakes out. I think it's interesting. Obviously the Browns mean a few picks behind whether they feel compelled to, if they really, really want somebody. You think like if a tackle falls to them, could they get into that? Yeah, I mean, that's one thing that I've kind of been questioning. But like I said, from for everything that I've been told, not, not just, you know, in months past, like going into last year. But even, even this offseason, like, I've still heard that the

Steelers are not ready to give up on Roger Jones. Which is crazy to me, especially with the injury. Like he's coming off a pretty serious neck injury. He had to have surgery as well. So his health is a complete question mark. I obviously do not think that the on field product has been good whatsoever. So he would be a player that I would be approaching like this with a level of caution going into next year. So I would kind of be surprised that they took a tackle early. But there are some guys in that range that, you know, would, would I guess make some level of sense? I'm not as high I feel like on the tackle classes, maybe some other people are. But in a draft class that is weaker overall, I think the general vibe is that NFL teams usually in situations like this are just going to take a lot of big people. And I think that might be like what the Browns do, with just going like, okay, Monroe Freeling has a lot of upside. We might just take a swing even though like a get one-year starter or something like that. So it'll be in our CCI, it shakes out. It's a good way to put it, man. And it's really a year I talked with our Bengals guest about, like just like it's a year for non-premium positions.

And even the premium defensive positions are guys that make you kind of squint a little bit, you know, whether it's arm length or health, you know, medicals, things like that. It is a weird draft year. So I can't wait to see how it unfolds. Just because of the drama that comes with that, it'll be over in your neck of the woods this year. So that'll be fun. And obviously we'll try to check in with you one more time before the year starts. We appreciate it very much. Absolutely, I appreciate you having me on me. That's it, that's all for today's episode. Thanks for stopping by and a big shout out to Cole, Jake, and Derek for stopping by and providing insights on their teams. A reminder, we have a mailbag episode that we're splitting into two over the next two days, which is some great questions, great conversation, well worth checking out and enjoying that comes from our subscribers. I encourage you to subscribe with this as well. I greatly appreciate you doing that and joining us on all social platforms and especially including YouTube as well. We're trying to grow that and reach more people and pour more, pool more browns fans into our community orbit.

So greatly, like I said, appreciate you doing that. If you can, if you're on those channels, subscribe, hit the thumbs up, five stars on the audio side, greatly appreciated, and obviously tell somebody you know about what we're doing at Brown's Phone Breakdown. Word of mouth is the best for helping us grow. Appreciate all of you very much for stopping by, having taken your time on this Wednesday. We'll check in with you Thursday, and we have a great show splitting that mailbag into do on Friday as well. There's great film rooms coming out and keep your eye on the website. We got good stuff, teaching you about the Brown's editions and possible editions in the draft. So, again, thanks for being here, and you know we said, go Brown's. The Maps app that came with your phone? It's fine. If you enjoy waiting and guessing and inefficient routes, or you could use MapQuest. MapQuest is back with live directions. Real-time traffic and faster routes. It moves when you move. Best of all, no prints are needed, no paper, no more misterns, just you and the app.

Get there fast with MapQuest. Download the MapQuest app on the app store or visit mapquest.com. MapQuest, still getting you there. The Bleacher Report app is your destination for sports. Right now, the NBA is heating up, March Manus is here, and MLB is almost back. Every day there's a new headline, a new highlight, a new moment you've got to see for yourself. That's why I stay locked in with the Bleacher Report app. For me, it's about staying connected to my sports. I could follow the teams I care about, get real-time scores, breaking news, and highlights all in one place. Download the Bleacher Report app today so you never miss a moment.

More episodes

More from Browns Film Breakdown

View all episodes →