# The Insiders Podcast: Will Anderson's Huge Pay Day, Brissett Not Attending Workouts, & Rising Draft Prospects

An episode of [NFL: The Insiders](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/podcast/1543090622), 18 Apr 2026, 41 min.

Audio: https://podtrac.com/pts/redirect.mp3/traffic.omny.fm/d/clips/e73c998e-6e60-432f-8610-ae210140c5b1/0414225e-5167-477f-9f83-ae390070e4d2/9805e827-ef94-43bf-a781-b430000738a9/audio.mp3?utm_source=Podcast&in_playlist=3e412703-0644-468e-9001-ae390070e4db

NFL Network Insiders Mike Garafolo, Judy Battista and Ian Rapoport report on Texans DE Will Anderson’s new contract extension, along with Jacoby Brissett requesting an extension and not reporting to voluntary workouts. Plus, draft strategy for the Steelers and Giants, including potential interest in WR prospect Jordyn Tyson. RB prospect Kaelon Black and QB prospect Behren Morton join the show to discuss their paths to the draft. Jeff Chadiha adds one position that would have immediate impact for teams in the AFC West, and Adam Rank brings his Weekender segment. See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

## Transcript

[0:02] Speaker 1: Dinner is on Will Anderson Junior tonight. Not sure what
[0:05] Speaker 1: he's eating, but he's been gobbling up quarterbacks for the
[0:07] Speaker 1: last couple of years, and now he's been rewarded. We'll
[0:10] Speaker 1: break down his record setting contract in just a few moments.
[0:16] Speaker 1: We'd like to have an answer from Aaron Rodgers in
[0:18] Speaker 1: a few moments. I'm in fact, Art Rooney said he
[0:20] Speaker 1: expected it by the draft, the draft which is in
[0:24] Speaker 1: Pittsburgh just a couple of days away now, Aaron, Yes,
[0:28] Speaker 1: we are steel waiting and with the draft coming up
[0:32] Speaker 1: inside of a week, teams are doing their work on
[0:36] Speaker 1: their prospects at the last minute, so are we. Kaylon Black,
[0:39] Speaker 1: Indiana running back, Baron Morton, Texas tech quarterback joining the
[0:43] Speaker 1: show tonight. You're not gonna want to miss that. Welcome
[0:45] Speaker 1: inside with the insiders. Ian Rappaport, Judy Batista in their blues.
[0:51] Speaker 1: You boy in white with a pattern here, Mike Garofalo.
[0:54] Speaker 1: We've got a lot of news as we get ready
[0:57] Speaker 1: for that draft. But it was the draft a couple
[0:59] Speaker 1: of years years ago when the Texans maneuvered and took
[1:02] Speaker 1: Will Anderson junior high. I mean the Texans have been
[1:04] Speaker 1: active up top of the draft, and yeah, it paid
[1:08] Speaker 1: off and now it's time to pay the man. Three years,
[1:10] Speaker 1: one hundred and fifty million dollar extension.
[1:13] Speaker 2: Ian.
[1:14] Speaker 1: I remember when the top of the pass rusher market
[1:17] Speaker 1: was at thirty million. Just felt like just the other day.
[1:20] Speaker 1: Now we're at fifty.
[1:22] Speaker 3: Will Anderson Junior got paid and set a new top
[1:26] Speaker 3: mic to the pass rusher market. This is a historic
[1:28] Speaker 3: deal for Will Anderson Junior and for the Houston Texans.
[1:32] Speaker 3: You mentioned they swung that big trade three years and
[1:35] Speaker 3: one week ago to come all the way up to
[1:36] Speaker 3: Travia the Arizona Cardinals and get the top pass rusher
[1:39] Speaker 3: in the draft after choosing C. J. Stroud and man
[1:42] Speaker 3: has that trade hit Today. Will Anderson cash in gets
[1:46] Speaker 3: a three year, one hundred and fifty million dollar deal,
[1:49] Speaker 3: highest paid non quarterback in NFL history. One hundred and
[1:53] Speaker 3: thirty four million dollars guaranteed, one hundred million fully guaranteed.
[1:57] Speaker 3: Most of these blockbuster deals are four years tensions. This
[2:01] Speaker 3: is a three year extension done by agent Colin of
[2:04] Speaker 3: Clutch Sports, who also, by the way, has had record
[2:06] Speaker 3: setting deals for Jalen Hurts for Miles Garrett, and by
[2:09] Speaker 3: the way, Garrett also has a no trade cause, as
[2:11] Speaker 3: does Will Anderson Jr. He is not going anywhere. If
[2:16] Speaker 3: you are wondering, Judy, why the Texans have been really good,
[2:19] Speaker 3: made the playoffs the last three years, and his role
[2:23] Speaker 3: on the defense is a huge reason why.
[2:26] Speaker 4: Will Anderson with an unbelievable day today.
[2:28] Speaker 5: He is worth every penny, not just because of what
[2:31] Speaker 5: he does for the defense, but because of what he
[2:33] Speaker 5: is off the field. He is the perfect face of
[2:35] Speaker 5: a franchise kind of guy. And by the way, he'll
[2:38] Speaker 5: only be twenty five when the season kicks off in
[2:42] Speaker 5: the fall, so he will certainly get another bite at
[2:45] Speaker 5: the big contract apple while he's still in his prime years. Now,
[2:49] Speaker 5: we will turn our attention to CJ. Stroud, the player
[2:52] Speaker 5: who was chosen in the draft just before Will Anderson Junior.
[2:56] Speaker 2: His situation is a little bit more complicated.
[2:59] Speaker 5: Obviously, they drafted at the same time, so he is
[3:01] Speaker 5: eligible for an extension too that does not appear to
[3:04] Speaker 5: be forthcoming. They picked up his fifth year option, which
[3:07] Speaker 5: essentially gives the team another year to evaluate him. While
[3:11] Speaker 5: he is relatively inexpensive relative to the rest of the
[3:14] Speaker 5: quarterback market, it has been an uneven start to his career.
[3:18] Speaker 5: Of course, he was electrifying as a rookie and he
[3:21] Speaker 5: just hasn't been able to get back to that level.
[3:24] Speaker 5: There have been injuries, the offensive line has certainly been
[3:26] Speaker 5: an issue. Last year was particularly up and down. Of course,
[3:30] Speaker 5: ended on a very bad note with a playoff loss.
[3:32] Speaker 5: This is going to be the next interesting situation to
[3:35] Speaker 5: watch for the Houston Texans.
[3:37] Speaker 2: Can c J.
[3:37] Speaker 5: Stroud get back to that level of his rookie season
[3:40] Speaker 5: and what do they eventually do with his contract.
[3:42] Speaker 1: Patients on both sides of that one. CJ. Stroud saying, well,
[3:46] Speaker 1: if I can play better this year, I'll get a
[3:48] Speaker 1: much bigger bite. Judy talk about the bite of the up.
[3:50] Speaker 1: I'll get a much bigger bite than I would right now,
[3:53] Speaker 1: believes in himself, sort of betting on himself, I guess
[3:55] Speaker 1: by not pressing the issue. So we'll see where that
[3:57] Speaker 1: one goes. We'll also see what happens with Jacobe Brissette,
[4:01] Speaker 1: whom right now we expect to be the starter. I mean,
[4:04] Speaker 1: there still could be some quarterback maneuvering, but there's really
[4:06] Speaker 1: nobody in the draft that the Cardinals are going to
[4:08] Speaker 1: take and it is gonna be the starter day one,
[4:10] Speaker 1: So Jacoby Brissett Ian said, looking like it's going to
[4:13] Speaker 1: be me, better pay me like it.
[4:15] Speaker 3: Kobe Brissett set to make about five million dollars the
[4:18] Speaker 3: base salary this year, now like nine million dollars, which
[4:20] Speaker 3: I tweeted, but I digress. After last year making about
[4:23] Speaker 3: nine he had a really good contract last year for
[4:26] Speaker 3: basically a bridge starter. Well, this year he is the starter,
[4:30] Speaker 3: and we'll see what kind of season the Arizona Cardinals habit.
[4:32] Speaker 3: It's possible he goes through it and what is a
[4:34] Speaker 3: sort of a transition year while they still deal with
[4:36] Speaker 3: the fall out from Kyler Murray's contract and changing coaching
[4:40] Speaker 3: staffs and all of that.
[4:42] Speaker 4: He now wants to be paid like the starter that
[4:44] Speaker 4: he is.
[4:44] Speaker 3: And I'm not saying he's gonna come in and demand
[4:46] Speaker 3: like early Sam Darnold money or something, but he wants more.
[4:50] Speaker 3: He wants more, and he wants some security. Now are
[4:54] Speaker 3: the Cardinals going to pay him? We'll see if they
[4:56] Speaker 3: end up paying what he wants. My understanding is they
[4:58] Speaker 3: are willing to adjus the contract until and unless that happens.
[5:02] Speaker 3: He now is expected to stay away New Ahill. The
[5:05] Speaker 3: Cardinals have three They also have thirty four. There is
[5:08] Speaker 3: the Ty Simpson conversation Judy, and obviously even without this news,
[5:14] Speaker 3: this was going to be a huge conversation heading into
[5:16] Speaker 3: Thursday's draft.
[5:17] Speaker 5: Well, it's noteworthy that their pre draft press conference, nobody
[5:21] Speaker 5: with the Arizona Cardinals would name a starting quarterback and
[5:23] Speaker 5: they wouldn't even say who the front runner was. Right
[5:27] Speaker 5: they said, well, we're just putting the offense together for
[5:30] Speaker 5: the guys who were here, and we'll see how this
[5:32] Speaker 5: plays out. Ty Simpson, you brought it up. They had
[5:36] Speaker 5: him in the other day on the last day that
[5:37] Speaker 5: they could have visits. They could do what we saw
[5:41] Speaker 5: the Giants do exactly a year ago, and that would
[5:43] Speaker 5: be go back into the bottom of the first round
[5:46] Speaker 5: to get a quarterback.
[5:47] Speaker 2: You would get the fifth year option.
[5:49] Speaker 5: There doesn't mean they have to start him right away
[5:51] Speaker 5: unless they think he is ready to go right out
[5:53] Speaker 5: of the gate, but it would give them a developmental
[5:56] Speaker 5: guy while you have Jacoby Brissett as the bridge quarterback.
[6:00] Speaker 5: Maybe they give him a bump on the contract, but
[6:02] Speaker 5: he is clearly not their idea of a long term answer.
[6:05] Speaker 5: And don't forget next off season, we have a draft
[6:09] Speaker 5: which is expected to be deep with quarterbacks, so all
[6:12] Speaker 5: the teams that.
[6:13] Speaker 2: Are need of quarterbacks are going to be lining up
[6:16] Speaker 2: for that draft.
[6:17] Speaker 1: To put your money where your mouth is, Jeremiah, put
[6:19] Speaker 1: him in your mock draft. If it's that inevitable and
[6:21] Speaker 1: you feel so confident, Let's see you do. Although if
[6:24] Speaker 1: your mock draft is only a round one and you
[6:26] Speaker 1: don't think he goes into round one and it's round two,
[6:27] Speaker 1: then it wouldn't be in your mock draft.
[6:30] Speaker 6: Yeah.
[6:30] Speaker 1: Well, Judy, if they had said that Jacoby Brissett was
[6:32] Speaker 1: the starter, by the way, he'd say, see there as
[6:34] Speaker 1: you said it, I'm going to negotiating table right here.
[6:36] Speaker 1: See it's right here, Aaron Rodgers. Still waiting on that, Yes, Aaron,
[6:41] Speaker 1: the Steelers shoe, I should say, awaiting that decision, which
[6:44] Speaker 1: aren't Rooney expected to have by the draft? The draft
[6:47] Speaker 1: now six days away, Aaron Rodgers. Didn he indicate at
[6:51] Speaker 1: one point that it'll probably be a little bit faster.
[6:53] Speaker 1: I mean, technically right now, it is faster because we
[6:55] Speaker 1: had to wait till what June last year, Judy, you're
[7:00] Speaker 1: thoughts on I don't know when we're getting an answer.
[7:03] Speaker 2: I mean, please please, please, please do it soon.
[7:06] Speaker 5: I'm actually we're going to be talking to Cam Hayward
[7:09] Speaker 5: on the show on Wednesday, I believe, so could we
[7:11] Speaker 5: maybe do it before Wednesday? That would give us an
[7:14] Speaker 5: extra topic to talk to Cam about. Yes, Art Renie
[7:18] Speaker 5: said they hoped to have an answer in time for
[7:21] Speaker 5: the draft. At the same time he said that, he
[7:22] Speaker 5: said Mike McCarthy was in regular communication with him all along.
[7:26] Speaker 5: The Steelers have felt pretty good about this situation and
[7:29] Speaker 5: that you don't even need them to tell you that.
[7:32] Speaker 5: It's reflected in their lack of activity in the quarterback
[7:35] Speaker 5: market in the off season. I mean, they've just done
[7:38] Speaker 5: nothing basically around the quarterback situation. So they clearly still
[7:43] Speaker 5: are pretty comfortable, but certainly they want an answer. No,
[7:46] Speaker 5: we are not waiting as long as we had to
[7:48] Speaker 5: wait last year for an answer that was deep into
[7:51] Speaker 5: the summer. Certainly you would expect there'll be an answer
[7:54] Speaker 5: before that. But yeah, we are one week away from
[7:57] Speaker 5: the draft being in Pittsburgh and they have lots of
[7:59] Speaker 5: decisions to make. Certainly, the draft gives them an opportunity
[8:03] Speaker 5: to put pieces that they really need around Aaron Rodgers,
[8:06] Speaker 5: another wide receiver and offensive lineman, a tackle they need
[8:10] Speaker 5: one path Ley. So there are pieces available in this
[8:13] Speaker 5: draft who would support Aaron Rodgers. They did a lot
[8:16] Speaker 5: of work in a free agency to support Aaron Rodgers.
[8:19] Speaker 5: What we need is Aaron Rodgers.
[8:21] Speaker 4: I don't know if we're going to get an answer
[8:22] Speaker 4: before the draft. We may not. Honestly, we may not.
[8:25] Speaker 3: And I know the Steelers have hoped that they also
[8:27] Speaker 3: hope there'll be one an early in March vell free agency.
[8:29] Speaker 3: They hope they'd be one around the time of free agency.
[8:31] Speaker 3: They hope to be won around the draft. And I
[8:33] Speaker 3: know it's like, well, can't they just say, like we
[8:35] Speaker 3: need an answer. You could, You definitely could, but then
[8:39] Speaker 3: you might not like the answer. Aaron Rodgers is a
[8:41] Speaker 3: different dude. You knew that he is going to go
[8:43] Speaker 3: into as system that he's obviously very familiar with, so
[8:46] Speaker 3: there's no real urgency for him.
[8:48] Speaker 4: And if he's not ready to commit, then he should definitely.
[8:50] Speaker 3: Not commit, because the only thing worse than committing early
[8:54] Speaker 3: is committing early and then going back the other way
[8:57] Speaker 3: and saying, you know what, I don't want to play
[8:59] Speaker 3: Rogers is on his own timetable. I don't know that
[9:01] Speaker 3: it's really going to change what the Steelers do anyway,
[9:04] Speaker 3: they do have other quarterbacks, well how it would be
[9:06] Speaker 3: one Mason Rudolf of another who they can slot in
[9:09] Speaker 3: there if they need to. Obviously they would like Aaron Rodgers,
[9:13] Speaker 3: but there is nothing right now to let anyone say they.
[9:16] Speaker 4: Know for sure, for sure that Aaron Rodgers is going
[9:18] Speaker 4: to play for the Steelers. They think, but they don't know.
[9:21] Speaker 6: Mike.
[9:21] Speaker 1: The question post on Good Morning Football this morning was
[9:24] Speaker 1: what's your dream draft scenario? They expected me to say
[9:26] Speaker 1: something about like what team could take what player? I says,
[9:29] Speaker 1: not even any of the selections. My dream scenario is
[9:31] Speaker 1: Aaron Rodgers on the stage to open the show, drives
[9:34] Speaker 1: in in the same Chevy Malibu that he drove last
[9:37] Speaker 1: year on his visit to the facility, because he figured
[9:40] Speaker 1: nobody's going to realize Aaron Rodgers is driving into Chevy
[9:42] Speaker 1: Malibu to announce that he's coming back, so we can
[9:44] Speaker 1: all know and move on from that. Jordan Tyson worked
[9:49] Speaker 1: out for teams. We're gonna get to that in a second.
[9:52] Speaker 1: There's a promo first the NFL Draft next Thursday, eight
[9:55] Speaker 1: pm Eastern right here on NFL Network. That guy wi
[10:00] Speaker 1: that's going to come off the board quickly, that guy
[10:03] Speaker 1: next to him pretty soon thereafter, and those guys as well.
[10:06] Speaker 1: These are some of your top picks in the NFL draft.
[10:08] Speaker 1: I mentioned Dan Tyson. Joe Shane, the Giants general manager,
[10:12] Speaker 1: flew to Arizona to see Tyson work out. One of
[10:14] Speaker 1: twenty teams in attendance were also told Ian and I
[10:18] Speaker 1: that Shane and Tyson had dinner together the night before
[10:21] Speaker 1: and now five is a little rich for a lot
[10:23] Speaker 1: of people's blood for Tyson, the wide receiver, So perhaps
[10:27] Speaker 1: maybe sliding back Giants One of the teams exploring the
[10:30] Speaker 1: possibility of sliding back Judy Jordan Tyson. Some folks comparing
[10:36] Speaker 1: his skill set in the top end of his skill
[10:38] Speaker 1: set to what O'Dell Beckham used to do. I mean
[10:41] Speaker 1: a rich comparison by some folks. But the skill set
[10:44] Speaker 1: certainly is there, and the Giants have a need at
[10:46] Speaker 1: the position.
[10:46] Speaker 2: They do have a need at the position.
[10:48] Speaker 5: They need to pair somebody with Malik Neighbors, who is
[10:50] Speaker 5: actually coming off an injury, so they really.
[10:52] Speaker 2: Do need someone. Tyson is exactly what they need right.
[10:55] Speaker 5: He has explosive potential, He can catch the ball, he
[11:01] Speaker 5: can play any of the wide receiver positions. Of course,
[11:04] Speaker 5: then you're saying, well, why is he not going to
[11:07] Speaker 5: be the top wide receiver off the board. Well, because
[11:09] Speaker 5: he has an extensive injury history, big time injuries, knee injuries, collarbone, hamstring,
[11:15] Speaker 5: He's missed a lot of time, and so what you
[11:18] Speaker 5: saw on the field, especially at the end of the
[11:21] Speaker 5: twenty twenty four season, the last like six games of
[11:23] Speaker 5: the twenty twenty four season, you'd be like, Wow, he
[11:26] Speaker 5: should absolutely be the first wide receiver off the board.
[11:29] Speaker 5: When you see him on the field, he's super impressive
[11:32] Speaker 5: and you can see why he is tantalizing for NFL teams.
[11:36] Speaker 5: The problem is can he stay on the field. If
[11:38] Speaker 5: he couldn't stay on the field in college, you really
[11:40] Speaker 5: have to wonder will he be able.
[11:42] Speaker 2: To hold up at the NFL level.
[11:44] Speaker 5: But certainly a general manager flying across the country the
[11:48] Speaker 5: week before the draft to watch somebody work out in
[11:51] Speaker 5: person suggests that there might be some interest there. I
[11:56] Speaker 5: would agree five feels a little bit rich, But you know,
[11:58] Speaker 5: if the Giants are looking to me, he'd moved back
[12:00] Speaker 5: a few spots, pick up some more draft capital.
[12:03] Speaker 2: Maybe in that spot.
[12:04] Speaker 1: Joe Shay wasn't just going for the weather. He had
[12:06] Speaker 1: just been in Arizona, number one and number two. It's
[12:09] Speaker 1: been very nice here in Jersey this week, so they
[12:11] Speaker 1: didn't have to go there to get that warmth. Francis Mawanoa,
[12:16] Speaker 1: the Miami offensive tackle. This is one of the guys
[12:19] Speaker 1: that we've been talking about extensively from a medical perspective.
[12:23] Speaker 1: There's questions about his back that have been talked about
[12:26] Speaker 1: and mentioned. From my understanding, and I mentioned this previously,
[12:31] Speaker 1: sources tell me that he has focused his visits with
[12:35] Speaker 1: teams and his meetings on the top tier of the draft,
[12:37] Speaker 1: that he's confident that the medical was going to check out,
[12:40] Speaker 1: and so all these teams that were coming in the
[12:42] Speaker 1: back end of the first round, I'm not gonna be
[12:43] Speaker 1: around for you. I'm not even gonna waste my time
[12:45] Speaker 1: in that regard. Also, for my understanding, in the past
[12:47] Speaker 1: two weeks, multiple top teams in our top ten teams
[12:51] Speaker 1: had their own physicians examined him and confirmed that right
[12:55] Speaker 1: now he has no symptoms. So ian the thought of
[12:59] Speaker 1: is he going to have back issue is more hypothetical
[13:01] Speaker 1: and projecting. Right now, all the medical concerns seem to
[13:05] Speaker 1: have been answered about Mainoa.
[13:07] Speaker 3: I've talked to a lot of teams about him, especially
[13:09] Speaker 3: teams in the top ten. I would be surprised as
[13:12] Speaker 3: of right now if he was not one of the
[13:14] Speaker 3: top tackles taken. He may be the top tackle take
[13:16] Speaker 3: and we'll see some teams have a different flavor. But
[13:19] Speaker 3: he is certainly in that mix, surely in the mix
[13:21] Speaker 3: to be a top ten player, could end up being
[13:24] Speaker 3: a top six player. Obviously, the Cleveland Browns have the
[13:27] Speaker 3: number six pick. A lot of people wonder whether they
[13:29] Speaker 3: will take a tackle. Certainly have a need there. But
[13:32] Speaker 3: as far as the back goes again, I've talked to
[13:34] Speaker 3: plenty of teams about this. From a medical standpoint, does
[13:37] Speaker 3: not seem like they have an issue, does not seem
[13:39] Speaker 3: like surgery is imminent, And in the event that at
[13:43] Speaker 3: some point he does need surgery, they do not think
[13:45] Speaker 3: it will be something that will affect him long term. Yes,
[13:48] Speaker 3: it is something to discuss. This is what medicals are,
[13:51] Speaker 3: This is what happens before the NFL Draft. But it
[13:54] Speaker 3: seems like Francis Malwino is going to be probably where
[13:56] Speaker 3: he should be, which is taken very early.
[13:58] Speaker 6: YEP.
[13:59] Speaker 1: One of the big gap guy that we're going to
[14:00] Speaker 1: expect to be taken early in the draft. Got some
[14:03] Speaker 1: offensive lineman. We think we're going to go in the
[14:04] Speaker 1: top fifteen. We're expecting Mao Andoa, perhaps even in the
[14:08] Speaker 1: front half of that top fifteen. We'll keep an eye
[14:10] Speaker 1: on him for you. Does your Indiana NFL draft prospect
[14:15] Speaker 1: have facial hair? Does he have pulled back hair? Is
[14:22] Speaker 1: he a running back? Is he a quarterback? There are
[14:25] Speaker 1: all the Indiana prospects that they're waiting to hear their
[14:28] Speaker 1: names called coming up here in the draft next week.
[14:32] Speaker 1: You know what, why don't we spend a couple minutes
[14:33] Speaker 1: with one of them, Indiana running back Kaylon Black joining
[14:36] Speaker 1: the insiders now with Judy Butteza and me, Mike Garofolo. Kaylon,
[14:40] Speaker 1: so glad to have you had a lot of Indiana
[14:41] Speaker 1: guys leading up to this draft.
[14:43] Speaker 6: And why not.
[14:43] Speaker 1: We're talking about the national champions. We're talking about guys
[14:46] Speaker 1: with a lot of talent. You a sixth year, six
[14:51] Speaker 1: years in college. I mean, this is the NIO world.
[14:53] Speaker 1: We understand how it goes from JMU to Indiana. You
[14:56] Speaker 1: enter the NFL, the experience has to be on your side, right.
[15:00] Speaker 7: I feel like it has been.
[15:01] Speaker 8: Man and Honestly, I feel like it's great for me,
[15:04] Speaker 8: just for an NFL team as well, just being able
[15:07] Speaker 8: to play right away, familiar with a lot of systems,
[15:10] Speaker 8: and you pass protection, running the ball, So Villa gotta
[15:13] Speaker 8: be a good transition.
[15:14] Speaker 5: We're going to get to more football, but first I
[15:16] Speaker 5: want to take you through what you've just gone through
[15:19] Speaker 5: the last few weeks, all of the visits, all the
[15:22] Speaker 5: conversations with teams. Most recently, one of them started with
[15:25] Speaker 5: a sleepover in Ohare Airport and then like a five
[15:29] Speaker 5: hour Uber ride to Cincinnati. Can you take us through
[15:32] Speaker 5: that whole cycle? We're just sleep How did you get
[15:36] Speaker 5: to being an Uber for five hours to Cincinnati?
[15:39] Speaker 2: What was that whole visit?
[15:40] Speaker 8: Like? Yeah, so basically I was just coming from Vegas
[15:43] Speaker 8: and the layover was in Chicago, And as soon as
[15:46] Speaker 8: we landed in Chicago, pretty much, we got a notification saying, oh,
[15:51] Speaker 8: your flight got pushed back, and we're like, oh, man,
[15:54] Speaker 8: here we go. And then it started raining heavy, so
[15:56] Speaker 8: then it got pushed back again. And then after I know,
[15:59] Speaker 8: that hour got pushed back again, so I'm like, man, like,
[16:03] Speaker 8: what are we supposed to do? I mean, the next
[16:05] Speaker 8: flight wouldn't be able to make it to Cincinnati until
[16:08] Speaker 8: one pm the next day, so pretty much we got
[16:11] Speaker 8: in contact with the team that I was visiting, and
[16:15] Speaker 8: next thing you know, they're sending out of uber for us,
[16:17] Speaker 8: and we're just in the uber for five hours, trying
[16:20] Speaker 8: to sleep as best as we could.
[16:21] Speaker 7: But we ended up making it and it was a
[16:22] Speaker 7: great visit.
[16:23] Speaker 1: Listen, man, this is the pre draft process for you.
[16:26] Speaker 1: It's going to be stuff that's unscripted. I've heard about
[16:28] Speaker 1: the combine. Sometimes guys are running and they haven't eaten
[16:31] Speaker 1: and they're you know, getting their medicals for hours. It
[16:34] Speaker 1: is it a battle of resilience for you, because I
[16:36] Speaker 1: know it probably feels like it's been an eternity even
[16:39] Speaker 1: though you have had the shortest offseason of any of
[16:42] Speaker 1: the college guys.
[16:43] Speaker 9: Yeah.
[16:43] Speaker 8: Man, it has felt long, man, But it's definitely a
[16:46] Speaker 8: true testament of being resilient, you know, just being focused
[16:49] Speaker 8: through the whole process. And so we can't complain like
[16:52] Speaker 8: this is something that we've been wanting for the longest time.
[16:55] Speaker 8: We're just best to be able to play football and
[16:57] Speaker 8: play at the highest level, and like I said, we
[16:59] Speaker 8: just can't playing about it.
[17:00] Speaker 5: You were in the senior boat. You did not go
[17:02] Speaker 5: to the combine. What have you wanted teams to learn
[17:05] Speaker 5: about you during this pre draft process?
[17:08] Speaker 8: Yes, so I just wanted teams to know, like, I'm
[17:10] Speaker 8: a quiet and humble person, but I'm just out there
[17:13] Speaker 8: willing to do anything, anything to help my team win.
[17:16] Speaker 8: And I just feel like throughout this whole process, I've
[17:18] Speaker 8: just been gaining a lot of knowledge on how to
[17:20] Speaker 8: become a better player and you know, just you know,
[17:23] Speaker 8: showcase and receiving ability, and it's just one of them,
[17:26] Speaker 8: complete package.
[17:27] Speaker 1: Give me a breakdown of Fernando Mendoza as he heads
[17:29] Speaker 1: to the NFL. We've certainly talked a lot about him.
[17:32] Speaker 1: We've talked to a lot of people about him. Give
[17:34] Speaker 1: us your best read on what kind of quarterback the
[17:37] Speaker 1: Raiders are getting. What the NFL is getting.
[17:39] Speaker 8: Man, Well, the Raiders are getting, you know, the most
[17:42] Speaker 8: talented quarterback that's out there. Fernando is very detailed. One
[17:46] Speaker 8: of my favorite teammates that I've ever been around. He's
[17:48] Speaker 8: just so humble and just so hungry that always wants
[17:51] Speaker 8: better and like you can ask anyone on our team,
[17:53] Speaker 8: there's no more more detail than him, and I feel
[17:56] Speaker 8: like he was one of the main reasons why we
[17:57] Speaker 8: were able to take that next stage over And I
[18:00] Speaker 8: feel like, you know, being on a team with Fernando.
[18:02] Speaker 7: Was just a blessing.
[18:03] Speaker 5: What did you get out of being on that team? Again,
[18:05] Speaker 5: out of six years in college, but what'd you get
[18:08] Speaker 5: out of being on a national championship team?
[18:10] Speaker 1: Man?
[18:10] Speaker 8: It honestly taught me a lot about being resilient and
[18:13] Speaker 8: just never taking things for granted through all the things
[18:16] Speaker 8: that the guys on the team have been through as
[18:19] Speaker 8: Pat you know, Pat Coogan, As Shiner Wuld said earlier
[18:21] Speaker 8: in the season, we were a bunch of misfits that
[18:23] Speaker 8: jelled well together.
[18:24] Speaker 7: And I just feel like that that's a true story.
[18:26] Speaker 8: And I just feel like all of us together just
[18:29] Speaker 8: working hard, just working for that same common goal in
[18:31] Speaker 8: a week about week, we just feel ourselves to get
[18:33] Speaker 8: better and better, and that's that was our main thing.
[18:35] Speaker 1: You know what I'm saying these games here, you come
[18:39] Speaker 1: from JMU, you follow kurtin Signetti to Indiana. Quite the
[18:43] Speaker 1: character that guy, heard some great stories about him. But
[18:46] Speaker 1: you're playing on some of these big stages as you
[18:48] Speaker 1: get through the playoffs, that's got to help you. Having
[18:52] Speaker 1: that experience in your back pocket as you're going to
[18:55] Speaker 1: be playing in some huge stadiums and some huge games,
[18:57] Speaker 1: some primetime NFL games moving forward.
[18:59] Speaker 8: Right, sir, Definitely, and I just feel like it definitely
[19:02] Speaker 8: helped in, you know, the experience factor, and then also
[19:05] Speaker 8: just being in those large crowds. But when you're playing football,
[19:08] Speaker 8: you really don't really don't hear it. It's just one
[19:10] Speaker 8: of those things where as soon as the play goes on,
[19:12] Speaker 8: you zone in on what you have to do, and
[19:14] Speaker 8: you know, just being at Indiana being able to experience
[19:17] Speaker 8: these things has just been a blessing. And I just
[19:19] Speaker 8: thank God for even being in this position, and I
[19:22] Speaker 8: honestly thank Koch Sig for allowing me to take part in,
[19:24] Speaker 8: you know, his success at Indiana.
[19:27] Speaker 5: What kind of feedback have you gotten when you've talked
[19:29] Speaker 5: to teams about your experience, your age, the whole thing.
[19:32] Speaker 7: Well, honestly, I haven't heard much about my age.
[19:34] Speaker 8: I know I'm twenty four, but my first two years
[19:37] Speaker 8: of college I rarely played, so I don't really like
[19:39] Speaker 8: to count those. I like to focus on my last
[19:41] Speaker 8: four and honestly, the teams have been telling me a
[19:44] Speaker 8: lot of great things that they respect my game. They
[19:47] Speaker 8: love the way I run with aggressiveness and you know,
[19:50] Speaker 8: being strong and physical, and also just a lot of
[19:52] Speaker 8: team things as well, like they always say that, you know,
[19:55] Speaker 8: as a team, we played so well together and it
[19:58] Speaker 8: was all efficient and that was like the main that
[20:00] Speaker 8: I was hearing.
[20:01] Speaker 1: Kay On last one for you, what's happening over your
[20:04] Speaker 1: right shoulder there? Who's on the walls at you? You
[20:05] Speaker 1: get your own fat head?
[20:08] Speaker 8: So yeah, it's from my senior year in high school.
[20:11] Speaker 8: We had our senior night and they ended up giving
[20:14] Speaker 8: us these and it's just sitting there on my wall.
[20:16] Speaker 8: I haven't been home in months, so when I do
[20:18] Speaker 8: see it, it just reminds me of where I come from,
[20:20] Speaker 8: and you know, growing up in Virginia Beach.
[20:22] Speaker 1: That is fantastic. Well, congratulations on that. Congratulations where you're
[20:26] Speaker 1: coming from. Congratulations on where you're going. We appreciate you
[20:29] Speaker 1: joining the Insiders the first of many visits we hope
[20:32] Speaker 1: over the course of your NFL career. Good luck and
[20:34] Speaker 1: enjoy the draft process.
[20:35] Speaker 9: I appreciate you all for having me on. God bless
[20:37] Speaker 9: God bless you, Kaylon Black. Best of luck to you
[20:40] Speaker 9: over the next week. Best of luck to all the
[20:42] Speaker 9: coaches and players in the AFC West, because that is
[20:45] Speaker 9: one tough division.
[20:47] Speaker 1: Are a resident tough guy. Jeffrey Toda gonna be here
[20:50] Speaker 1: after the break to break it down. We're talking AFC
[20:53] Speaker 1: West next to the insiders.
[20:56] Speaker 3: I have a hunch, and it's just a small one.
[20:59] Speaker 3: Fordos is stay at the draft is going to be quick. Well,
[21:04] Speaker 3: not going to be at the draft, going to be
[21:05] Speaker 3: in Miami, but his stay in the draft is going
[21:07] Speaker 3: to be quick because the Raiders are going to take
[21:09] Speaker 3: him at number one.
[21:10] Speaker 4: We know that anyway. Listen to gentlemen Nager, John Spy
[21:13] Speaker 4: Tech talk all about it.
[21:14] Speaker 10: Well, a lot less energy spent on you know, hypotheticals,
[21:18] Speaker 10: and you know, we we were just talking before we
[21:21] Speaker 10: came down here. There's only one team that can get
[21:24] Speaker 10: the exact person that they want, and we have that.
[21:28] Speaker 10: We have that option to us available this year if
[21:30] Speaker 10: we so choose.
[21:31] Speaker 5: Here's some video of the Chiefs looking kind of sad.
[21:34] Speaker 5: You just don't see them looking dejected all that often.
[21:38] Speaker 2: Here we are.
[21:38] Speaker 5: They are picking in the top ten. It's weird to
[21:40] Speaker 5: even say that they have two first round picks. Big
[21:43] Speaker 5: opportunities for a free reset for the Chiefs. Here's general
[21:47] Speaker 5: manager Brett Beach on the draft.
[21:49] Speaker 6: It does open up.
[21:52] Speaker 11: That nine pick to go in any one direction, and
[21:54] Speaker 11: and you know, certainly we'll see how the first five
[21:56] Speaker 11: or six picks go. But I think whether it's you know,
[22:01] Speaker 11: the defensive backfield, the offensive line, edge rusher, receiver, again,
[22:06] Speaker 11: you know we need help in all those areas. So
[22:09] Speaker 11: I do think that you know, we'll be in a
[22:10] Speaker 11: position there to get one of those players and then
[22:13] Speaker 11: add throughout the course of the draft. So I just
[22:16] Speaker 11: think where we are with our roster, you really can't
[22:18] Speaker 11: eliminate any one need because I think you know, there
[22:21] Speaker 11: are a lot.
[22:22] Speaker 1: Of The Chargers had thirty two different offensive line combinations
[22:27] Speaker 1: last year, thirty two. That's one for each team in
[22:30] Speaker 1: the NFL. Joe Hortiz, the general manager, is charged with
[22:34] Speaker 1: getting that number a lot closer to one this upcoming season. Yeah,
[22:39] Speaker 1: the draft will be a part of that.
[22:40] Speaker 12: You love that ten starters and that are ladder right,
[22:43] Speaker 12: But you know, I think continuity is important. Chemistry is
[22:48] Speaker 12: important when it comes to the offensive line. So that's why
[22:50] Speaker 12: you get five guys and you put them out there.
[22:52] Speaker 12: Now that doesn't say, hey, we're not going to have
[22:55] Speaker 12: a competition at X.
[22:57] Speaker 6: We're looking, you know, we.
[22:58] Speaker 12: Want to keep adding, like coach says, competitors welcome. We're
[23:00] Speaker 12: not done on the offensive line. I can promise that.
[23:03] Speaker 3: So it was exciting when a team trades a first
[23:05] Speaker 3: round pick for a superstar player, just like the Denver
[23:07] Speaker 3: Broncos did for Jalen Waddle right there. Not as exciting
[23:11] Speaker 3: when your pick comes up and you don't get to
[23:13] Speaker 3: make it. Are the Denver Broncos going to trade back
[23:16] Speaker 3: into the first round and take another playmaker or something else?
[23:20] Speaker 3: George Peyton was asked as that is pre just pre
[23:23] Speaker 3: draft press conference.
[23:24] Speaker 4: Well, I didn't say no. It was more sort of
[23:26] Speaker 4: like we'll.
[23:27] Speaker 13: See never never say you know never. But it's unlikely.
[23:30] Speaker 13: It would cost quite a haul for us to get
[23:33] Speaker 13: to get up there. You know, most of our draft
[23:35] Speaker 13: we'd have to trade and then obviously something next year.
[23:37] Speaker 13: I would say it's unlikely, but you know, we certainly
[23:39] Speaker 13: could move up in the second and we're really honed in,
[23:42] Speaker 13: you know, let's say from forty five to seventy five,
[23:46] Speaker 13: you know, and just really honed into that group of players.
[23:48] Speaker 13: Not that we haven't gone through the process in the
[23:51] Speaker 13: first round like we always do, but now this just
[23:53] Speaker 13: gives us time to really focus on the players there
[23:56] Speaker 13: and to go through every scenario possibly.
[23:58] Speaker 3: I want to stick right here in this division, bringing
[24:00] Speaker 3: our good friend Jeffrey Chideo with me in Rappaport and
[24:03] Speaker 3: Judy Batista.
[24:04] Speaker 4: Jeff, I want to get a little breakdown from you.
[24:06] Speaker 3: Take me through the draft that is upcoming for the
[24:10] Speaker 3: Las Vegas Raiders and what we should expect on the
[24:14] Speaker 3: field that should come out of this for them.
[24:16] Speaker 14: Well, a lot of needs for the Raiders that you
[24:17] Speaker 14: saw John spot Tek talk about some of those things.
[24:20] Speaker 14: But to me, once you get past Fernando Mendoza, they've
[24:23] Speaker 14: got to find an interior defensive lineman to help that
[24:26] Speaker 14: pass for us.
[24:26] Speaker 6: At front seven, you got Mass Crosby coming back.
[24:29] Speaker 14: That trade did not work out in Baltimore made some
[24:31] Speaker 14: good moves in the offseason as far as adding free
[24:34] Speaker 14: agent linebackers like kway Walker and nikolbe D, but Christian
[24:37] Speaker 14: Wilkins did not work out for them as a defensive tackle.
[24:40] Speaker 14: Adam Butler is thirty two years old. He's their best
[24:43] Speaker 14: interior defensive lineman and you go up to a three
[24:45] Speaker 14: four defense, you got to find somebody to help that
[24:47] Speaker 14: defensive line out, and then going to the Chiefs picking
[24:50] Speaker 14: nine and twenty nine and forty one again edge rusher,
[24:54] Speaker 14: to me, makes a lot of sense for this team
[24:55] Speaker 14: going to the defensive line because George Carloftis is a
[24:58] Speaker 14: good player, not a great player. Chris Jones Is was
[25:02] Speaker 14: a great player becoming a good player now and not
[25:04] Speaker 14: much else there with this pass rush, and we know
[25:06] Speaker 14: ste Spagnolo once to get after the quarterback. They have
[25:09] Speaker 14: not been able to do that the last couple of seasons,
[25:11] Speaker 14: So going out and finding somebody at the edges to
[25:13] Speaker 14: help them out. Brett Bitch talked about the depth at
[25:16] Speaker 14: defensive line at edge rusher and thinks he can find.
[25:18] Speaker 6: Somebody in Day two, maybe late in the.
[25:20] Speaker 14: Second round, So don't be surprised that that pick happens
[25:23] Speaker 14: for them at forty one or even twenty nine.
[25:25] Speaker 5: We should spend some time talking about the teams that
[25:27] Speaker 5: actually made the playoffs out of this division.
[25:30] Speaker 2: Let's start with the Chargers.
[25:31] Speaker 5: What position would provide the biggest immediate impact for the Chargers.
[25:36] Speaker 14: You have to go to the offensive line here because
[25:38] Speaker 14: they had so many problems with Joe All going down
[25:40] Speaker 14: to Rashawn Slater, and they lost three interior alignment starters
[25:44] Speaker 14: this past offseason.
[25:45] Speaker 6: Now they've made some good news there, but.
[25:46] Speaker 14: I think guard left guard is a big, big need
[25:49] Speaker 14: for this team because Zion Johnson starter last year, left
[25:53] Speaker 14: in free agency. Joe Horties talked about feeling good about
[25:57] Speaker 14: the idea of playing a game with what he has there,
[25:59] Speaker 14: which is basically Trevor Penning a converted tackle. But they
[26:03] Speaker 14: need to find somebody who's a younger player can help
[26:05] Speaker 14: them because depth is so critical. You see the hits
[26:07] Speaker 14: that Justin Herbert took this season. They need to find
[26:10] Speaker 14: a way to add depth and add more youth there.
[26:12] Speaker 14: And then going over to the Broncos, I would expect
[26:15] Speaker 14: them to think long and hard about going with a
[26:18] Speaker 14: tight end. They don't have a pick until the second
[26:21] Speaker 14: round here, pick number sixty two. But Evan Ingram was
[26:24] Speaker 14: a guy they thought they could do a lot with
[26:26] Speaker 14: last offseason. He had one touchdown reception, he averaged nine
[26:30] Speaker 14: yards of catch. He's turning thirt two year olds thirty
[26:32] Speaker 14: two years old in September, and even though Sean Payton
[26:35] Speaker 14: likes him, has talked about feeling good about what he
[26:37] Speaker 14: can still do for his offense. Adding another weapon to
[26:40] Speaker 14: go along with Jayden Wattle to give both Nicks more
[26:42] Speaker 14: options in the passing game makes a lot of sense
[26:44] Speaker 14: here in the second round for this team.
[26:45] Speaker 3: Bunkers actually just hosted Vanderbilt tight end Eli Stowers would
[26:49] Speaker 3: be an interesting pick there. Receiver slash tight end, kind
[26:52] Speaker 3: of Sean Payton's type guy. So I going to keep
[26:54] Speaker 3: an eye if he is going to be there when
[26:56] Speaker 3: they pick.
[26:57] Speaker 7: We will see.
[26:58] Speaker 4: Jeffrey great stuff. Thank you. There's always Judy. Thanks, but
[27:01] Speaker 4: you're gonna be back. So it's like not that big
[27:02] Speaker 4: of a deal.
[27:03] Speaker 1: Were now less than a week away from the twenty
[27:05] Speaker 1: twenty six NFL Draft, presented by bud Light. You can
[27:08] Speaker 1: catch all the drama starting Thursday, April twenty third, at
[27:12] Speaker 1: eight pm Eastern. You can hear now write this down
[27:16] Speaker 1: right here on NFL Networks and you just leave your
[27:18] Speaker 1: TV or device on for the next week.
[27:20] Speaker 15: ABC, ESPN, ESPN, deport this oh, NFL plus plenty of
[27:28] Speaker 15: places for you to find the NFL Draft twenty twenty
[27:31] Speaker 15: six where this guy bight here.
[27:33] Speaker 1: His name called Let's talk to a quarterback because we
[27:36] Speaker 1: love talking quarterbacks when it comes to the draft, and
[27:38] Speaker 1: we love talking two quarterbacks when it.
[27:40] Speaker 6: Comes to the draft.
[27:40] Speaker 1: Ian Rappaport and Mike Garafalo now joined here on The
[27:43] Speaker 1: Insiders by Texas techs Baron. Martin Baron, appreciate you joining
[27:48] Speaker 1: us Texas Tech quarterback. That's a good thing when it
[27:51] Speaker 1: comes to the draft.
[27:52] Speaker 6: No, yeah, no, thanks for having me on. Guys. This
[27:54] Speaker 6: is gonna be awesome. Yeah.
[27:56] Speaker 3: So, I would say I might kind of hinted at
[27:58] Speaker 3: it a little bit, but there has been a little
[28:00] Speaker 3: of Texas Tech quarterbacks in the NFL draft. I would
[28:03] Speaker 3: say this, is there anyone you can think of that
[28:06] Speaker 3: you enjoyed watching at Texas Tech? And is there any
[28:09] Speaker 3: way that your game maybe models Patrick Mahomess.
[28:13] Speaker 6: Yeah, maybe a little bit. I've been told once or twice.
[28:16] Speaker 16: I'm actually up here in Kansas City since January training
[28:20] Speaker 16: up here with Bobby's troup. It's been awesome. I'm working
[28:23] Speaker 16: with Justin Hoover's my quarterback guy up here. We've had
[28:26] Speaker 16: about six NFL guys come back, and you know, it's
[28:29] Speaker 16: really cool to get to see the guys that have
[28:30] Speaker 16: been through the processes last year and then they come
[28:33] Speaker 16: back in the offseason and it's like, man, this is
[28:35] Speaker 16: going to be what I'm going to be in a
[28:36] Speaker 16: position next year.
[28:37] Speaker 6: So get to learn from those guys. Now, it's been awesome.
[28:41] Speaker 1: Let's get right into that. Because your agent is Chris Cabot,
[28:44] Speaker 1: the same agent as Patrick Mahomes. Did Patrick facilitate that
[28:48] Speaker 1: at all? Has that opened a door for you to
[28:50] Speaker 1: have a relationship with him? I mean, how did that
[28:53] Speaker 1: come about? And what's your relationship with Patrick?
[28:55] Speaker 9: Yeah?
[28:56] Speaker 16: I mean once anil kind of took off and you know,
[28:58] Speaker 16: it was time to get an agent in college football.
[29:01] Speaker 6: You know, I had a good, good guy reach out
[29:03] Speaker 6: to me.
[29:03] Speaker 16: He said, he got a great rep and then got
[29:05] Speaker 16: in contact with Chris back in twenty twenty three. So
[29:08] Speaker 16: I've been with him for a couple of years now,
[29:10] Speaker 16: and then we knew going into this process.
[29:12] Speaker 6: Once this kind of rolled around, I'm going up to
[29:14] Speaker 6: Kansas City.
[29:14] Speaker 16: Heat limbs here too, so you know, it's very convenient
[29:17] Speaker 16: to have a guy here in the same place as
[29:20] Speaker 16: your training. So I'm been taking really good care of
[29:23] Speaker 16: and you know, really enjoyed my time here in Kansas.
[29:26] Speaker 3: I have some football questions too, but I mean, you
[29:29] Speaker 3: played for five years in Texas, you now have spent
[29:31] Speaker 3: a lot of time in Kansas City. Are you a
[29:34] Speaker 3: barbecue guy and can you weigh in on the Texas
[29:36] Speaker 3: birus Kansas City barbier.
[29:37] Speaker 4: I promise we'll get the foot.
[29:38] Speaker 16: Yeah, yeah, I might get some heat for this. But
[29:41] Speaker 16: the Casey barbecue up here is legit. It is really good.
[29:45] Speaker 16: This is the first time I've had burt Ins, so
[29:48] Speaker 16: I'm added to that. Lest Man, they're so good. They're
[29:51] Speaker 16: so good. Yeah, but I hit up Joe's the original
[29:54] Speaker 16: in the gas station. That place is Yes, it's got
[29:57] Speaker 16: on that's the best.
[29:58] Speaker 1: But I mean the line is the line is down
[30:00] Speaker 1: on the block. Hopefully you got a way to cut that. Yeah,
[30:02] Speaker 1: you may catch heat from it, but anybody from Texas
[30:05] Speaker 1: who's been to Kansas City understands that they do it well.
[30:08] Speaker 1: They just do it differently. It's fantastic. You can't get
[30:10] Speaker 1: bad barbecue in either places.
[30:14] Speaker 6: You.
[30:14] Speaker 1: You talked about Ian, he's at Texas Tech. You're a
[30:16] Speaker 1: Texas Tech for five years. You did not transfer. Now
[30:20] Speaker 1: we're actually doing a feature on NFL Network for the
[30:23] Speaker 1: draft about how the portal has changed things. And it
[30:25] Speaker 1: used to be the question was, wait a second, why
[30:28] Speaker 1: did this guy transfer now? The question is, wait a second,
[30:31] Speaker 1: why did this guy not transfer?
[30:33] Speaker 6: Did you?
[30:33] Speaker 1: Did you have that question brought up at all?
[30:35] Speaker 6: Yeah, for sure. My first two years I sat behind
[30:38] Speaker 6: Tyler Shuck.
[30:39] Speaker 16: I learned a lot, you know, coming from a small town,
[30:42] Speaker 16: you know, being the guy in East lond who you
[30:44] Speaker 16: know is great, and then get to college and then
[30:46] Speaker 16: you sit behind a guy that is a veteran that
[30:49] Speaker 16: that you can learn from. And so those two years
[30:50] Speaker 16: are really good for me growing wise. But I got
[30:52] Speaker 16: a taste of blame you in those two years. And
[30:54] Speaker 16: you know, I had opportunities to lead, But you know,
[30:57] Speaker 16: I really trusted in coach maguire. You know, he's the
[30:59] Speaker 16: texashigh school coach. My dad was a Texas high school coach.
[31:03] Speaker 16: A lot of similarities between those two. But coach McGuire's,
[31:07] Speaker 16: you know, a guy that I've really called my mentor
[31:10] Speaker 16: you know, I can call him about anything and he's
[31:11] Speaker 16: always there for me.
[31:12] Speaker 6: And that's the reason I stayed interesting.
[31:14] Speaker 4: Interesting.
[31:14] Speaker 3: Plus you also, I mean get that experience that I
[31:16] Speaker 3: know teams just I know everyone transfers around now, but
[31:19] Speaker 3: the quarterback who starts thirty six or whatever game, whatever
[31:23] Speaker 3: games it was, certainly that has value. Considering it's in
[31:26] Speaker 3: the same spot only helps more. So, you have been
[31:30] Speaker 3: a busy man. I know you visited the Packers. I'm
[31:32] Speaker 3: curious where else on top thirty visits, and then you've
[31:35] Speaker 3: also done a bunch of zooms. Can you give us, well,
[31:37] Speaker 3: first of all, where else did you visit? And then
[31:39] Speaker 3: give us an idea for what some of those zooms
[31:41] Speaker 3: are actually like.
[31:42] Speaker 6: Yeah, no, there, they're intents for sure.
[31:45] Speaker 16: I've took thirties to the Packers, the Patriots, and the Panthers.
[31:51] Speaker 16: Those those thirty visits, you know, can range from coaches
[31:54] Speaker 16: getting to know you better, but then some coaches want
[31:57] Speaker 16: to install a lot and they want to see you
[31:58] Speaker 16: how much you can retain and basically those zooms. I've
[32:01] Speaker 16: had about fifteen zooms and they've all been great. Some
[32:05] Speaker 16: of them are, you know, want to watch my film
[32:07] Speaker 16: explain my offense. Some of them are I'm gonna teach
[32:09] Speaker 16: you our offense. You're going to recall it at the
[32:11] Speaker 16: end of the meeting. But it's been really good, you know,
[32:14] Speaker 16: being in the air raids system, the furbage and the
[32:17] Speaker 16: pro style offense a little bit different than what I'm
[32:19] Speaker 16: used to.
[32:20] Speaker 6: But this is a great opportunity, you know.
[32:22] Speaker 16: Getting to play in the East West Shrine Bowl, getting
[32:24] Speaker 16: to learn a pro style offense. Doing that, you know,
[32:26] Speaker 16: really set me up for success through this process.
[32:29] Speaker 1: Baron, You've got a lot of skills you got to
[32:31] Speaker 1: you know, the arm strength you need, you got the
[32:33] Speaker 1: footwork that you need. You've got the experience in a
[32:36] Speaker 1: system that will translate to the NFL. You've also got toughness.
[32:39] Speaker 1: You played through a hairline fracture in your fibula this
[32:42] Speaker 1: the half last half of this past season.
[32:45] Speaker 6: How and how painful was that? Yeah, No, it was tough.
[32:49] Speaker 16: It was actually Week one we were playing Arkansas Pine
[32:52] Speaker 16: Bluff and it was the third quarter it happened.
[32:55] Speaker 6: I got hit in the lower leg fracture fibula.
[32:59] Speaker 16: But you know, Monday through Friday, when don't do much practice,
[33:02] Speaker 16: I would be in a boot, take the boot off
[33:04] Speaker 16: on Saturday, go play Saturday, get back in the boot
[33:07] Speaker 16: on Monday, not practice. And I did that really for
[33:10] Speaker 16: the whole year. And it was tough. I mean, not
[33:12] Speaker 16: getting to see the reps. You know, you got a
[33:14] Speaker 16: new coordinator. You want to get the reps during the
[33:16] Speaker 16: week and then you know, get out there Saturday and
[33:19] Speaker 16: you know, the ball is gonna get snapped and we
[33:20] Speaker 16: got to go win a football game.
[33:21] Speaker 6: So you know, it was a greedy season for sure.
[33:24] Speaker 16: You know I wanted more for myself, but at the
[33:27] Speaker 16: end of the day, we won our first ever Big
[33:28] Speaker 16: twelve championship and did a lot of things Tech hasn't done.
[33:31] Speaker 3: So because you played through the injury really the entire season,
[33:35] Speaker 3: do you feel like teams have seen what you can do?
[33:38] Speaker 4: Like do you think there's like does that tape represent you?
[33:41] Speaker 3: Or are you more excited like, well, they saw I
[33:43] Speaker 3: can play through something real and there's that like you
[33:45] Speaker 3: could sort of look at it both ways.
[33:46] Speaker 16: There, Yeah, no, this is this The majority of what
[33:49] Speaker 16: I wanted to come to Kansas City for is to
[33:51] Speaker 16: get my body healthy, and that was that was the
[33:53] Speaker 16: top of my list. I need to get healthy, and
[33:55] Speaker 16: Bobby's troop has been phenomenal with me. I'm really figured
[33:57] Speaker 16: out a lot. But then you know, going through the combine,
[34:01] Speaker 16: going through the All Star Game, going to Pro Day,
[34:04] Speaker 16: and getting a showcase what you can really do when
[34:06] Speaker 16: you're healthy. I know, I think that was an eye
[34:08] Speaker 16: opener for some of the teams just to say like, hey,
[34:10] Speaker 16: this kid's really athletic. You know, just had a broken
[34:13] Speaker 16: leg this year and you know, kind of made what
[34:15] Speaker 16: it's worth.
[34:16] Speaker 1: He's athletic, he can throw, he's tough. We just established that.
[34:19] Speaker 1: And he's a winner. And he's a guest on The
[34:21] Speaker 1: Insiders for the first of we hope many times. Baron Morton,
[34:24] Speaker 1: we appreciate you joining us.
[34:26] Speaker 6: Good luck, man.
[34:27] Speaker 1: I know it felt like a long process, but I
[34:29] Speaker 1: swear we're almost there, dude, Just yeah, Bardown, We're almost.
[34:32] Speaker 6: There for sure. No, thanks for having me on. It's
[34:35] Speaker 6: been great.
[34:36] Speaker 1: Pittsburgh Bridges, there's three. They're called the Sister Bridges, and
[34:41] Speaker 1: they spend the Alleghany or is it the Manonga Heeler
[34:44] Speaker 1: or the Ohio.
[34:44] Speaker 9: I don't know.
[34:45] Speaker 1: I got a thirty three percent chance. Anyway, you gotta
[34:47] Speaker 1: see plenty of Bridge shots next week on The Insiders
[34:51] Speaker 1: and on NFL Draft covers. But yes, The Insiders Monday
[34:54] Speaker 1: two Wednesday, live from Pittsburgh, or at least some of us,
[34:57] Speaker 1: right some of the rest of us will be in Jersey,
[35:00] Speaker 1: in LA. Don't worry about it. Don't worry where we are.
[35:01] Speaker 1: We're all about us normal time Monday to Wednesday. You'll
[35:05] Speaker 1: be here Monday to Wednesday. That's the first part of
[35:07] Speaker 1: the week. We are now toward the back end of
[35:09] Speaker 1: the week, so it's time for the weekender. Adam Ranks segment,
[35:12] Speaker 1: what are we ending weekending about today?
[35:15] Speaker 4: Thank you so much.
[35:15] Speaker 17: As you said, the NFL Draft is about seven days
[35:18] Speaker 17: away from right now, and there's going to be a
[35:20] Speaker 17: lot of changes in the league and some of those
[35:22] Speaker 17: changes will be in the uniforms and some of the
[35:25] Speaker 17: teams will be wearing this year. And of course the
[35:28] Speaker 17: Washington Commanders understood the assignment. The new look Commanders are
[35:33] Speaker 17: a throwback to their glorious nineteen eighties uniforms, complete with
[35:38] Speaker 17: some modern amenities. They look great, they look sharp, really
[35:43] Speaker 17: really fantastic looking uniforms. The only thing missing, not that
[35:46] Speaker 17: you're never getting mad, but the only thing missing is
[35:49] Speaker 17: the Joe Heisman's single bar face mask to complete the look.
[35:54] Speaker 4: I don't know, I don't know if you would want
[35:55] Speaker 4: to do that.
[35:55] Speaker 17: It seems a little risky, but still the Commanders love
[35:59] Speaker 17: what you're doing. You did a great job, La Rams.
[36:03] Speaker 17: So now they revealed new uniforms on Thursday. M Sorry,
[36:08] Speaker 17: Am I getting punk care like is Ashen Colchak gonna
[36:11] Speaker 17: show up and say like, hey, but he actually change
[36:14] Speaker 17: the uniforms. I mean, listen, we've been cleared to use
[36:17] Speaker 17: this meme before.
[36:18] Speaker 4: Don't make me break this meme out again. Break out
[36:21] Speaker 4: the meme, show me the meme.
[36:22] Speaker 1: There it is.
[36:23] Speaker 6: This is you, Rams.
[36:25] Speaker 2: What are you doing?
[36:26] Speaker 17: You did nothing, You changed nothing, but listen, you understand. Like,
[36:31] Speaker 17: the one thing that's the most frustrating about the Rams
[36:33] Speaker 17: is that they have some great uniforms in their history.
[36:37] Speaker 17: I'm talking about the Roman Gabriel, blue and whites. It's
[36:39] Speaker 17: like going over to your friend's house and finding out
[36:41] Speaker 17: that they have a Scottie Cameron collecting dust in the garage.
[36:44] Speaker 2: But you use that thing.
[36:46] Speaker 4: What are you doing, Rams, You've done nothing? And what
[36:48] Speaker 4: about what dial? Look at those uniforms?
[36:51] Speaker 17: You don't want to use those going on in Ravens, Ravens,
[36:55] Speaker 17: don't get me started on you. You didn't change at all either,
[36:59] Speaker 17: exactly the same. But I think I got it. I
[37:01] Speaker 17: feel like you agreed to change your uniforms and then
[37:05] Speaker 17: at the last second pulled out of the deal, like
[37:07] Speaker 17: now if we don't want to do that, we're actually
[37:09] Speaker 17: not going to change our uniforms. And then you're trying
[37:11] Speaker 17: to make us believe like, no, we were going to
[37:13] Speaker 17: use these uniforms all along.
[37:15] Speaker 4: No you weren't. That's not what you're all about. We
[37:17] Speaker 4: know your m O now.
[37:19] Speaker 17: And speaking of the Baltimore Ravens, their former offensive coordinator
[37:22] Speaker 17: Todd Mankin the new head coach of the Cleveland Browns.
[37:25] Speaker 17: This dude's been on a roll lately. He was recently
[37:27] Speaker 17: on a podcast with our colleague Kevin Clark.
[37:29] Speaker 4: He was fantastic. He was so good.
[37:32] Speaker 17: He comes out and he goes, you know what I despise?
[37:34] Speaker 17: I despise How do I put this? I despise poopy football?
[37:39] Speaker 17: And I'm like, oh, dude, you're gonna be bummed to
[37:41] Speaker 17: find out that you're coaching the Cleveland Browns because that's
[37:44] Speaker 17: all you guys do is played poopy football. That's the
[37:47] Speaker 17: Browns identity, That's what you guys do. But I'll be
[37:50] Speaker 17: honest with you, I'm warming up to Todd Mancott. I like,
[37:53] Speaker 17: really like him now. It's kind of like when Hot
[37:55] Speaker 17: Tub Time Machine came out. I didn't know if I
[37:58] Speaker 17: was going to like it because the premise seem kind
[37:59] Speaker 17: of a far fetch. But when I went to go
[38:01] Speaker 17: see it in the theater. That's right, geezy, I saw
[38:04] Speaker 17: it in the theater. I went to the theater. I
[38:06] Speaker 17: saw hot timee time Machine. I loved it. I was in,
[38:10] Speaker 17: I was I was down with it. And now similarly,
[38:13] Speaker 17: I like Todd Monkin. Listen, last week I was making
[38:16] Speaker 17: fun of his haircut. I would like to apologize about that.
[38:18] Speaker 6: I was wrong.
[38:19] Speaker 17: It's almost gotten to the point where I'm thinking of
[38:22] Speaker 17: picking the Cleveland Browns.
[38:24] Speaker 4: To make the playoffs.
[38:25] Speaker 17: But I realized if I do that, I'm gonna be
[38:27] Speaker 17: pumped pumped because they do play some poopy football.
[38:31] Speaker 4: Mike J take it away.
[38:32] Speaker 6: What are you doing?
[38:34] Speaker 12: How do you love that?
[38:35] Speaker 5: There?
[38:36] Speaker 9: See what was going on?
[38:37] Speaker 1: Hey, listen, that's the new as you see the red
[38:40] Speaker 1: eyes on the Raven. I'm sorry. They got rid of it.
[38:46] Speaker 1: They got they got rid of the drop shadow. There's
[38:48] Speaker 1: no drop shadow. I'm a hole in the six would
[38:52] Speaker 1: have had a shadow in the previous so that's gone.
[38:54] Speaker 1: Now okay, that's wow.
[38:56] Speaker 17: You I haven't been here three hundred dollars for a
[39:01] Speaker 17: new one because there's no drop shot out.
[39:02] Speaker 1: They're very different rank red eyes, red eye eyes.
[39:07] Speaker 6: How about this?
[39:07] Speaker 1: They also signed this guy right here.
[39:09] Speaker 6: How about that?
[39:10] Speaker 1: Oh, look at that? All right, we've gone too far,
[39:17] Speaker 1: but you don't go far. There's one more segment of
[39:19] Speaker 1: the Insiders before we see you again in Pittsburgh next week.
[39:23] Speaker 1: Stay with us. Yes, we are six days away from
[39:27] Speaker 1: the NFL Draft. We're gonna counting it down tomorrow. We're
[39:29] Speaker 1: gonna saying it's five days, then four, then three day.
[39:31] Speaker 1: We're gonna get there, folks, and Jeremiah Love is gonna
[39:34] Speaker 1: get there, and all these prospects are gonna get there.
[39:35] Speaker 1: It's been a long process. They're gonna hear their name
[39:37] Speaker 1: called the NFL Drafters. They didn't buy Lexus coming up
[39:39] Speaker 1: in just six days. NFL Network, ESPN, ESPN, The O Show,
[39:43] Speaker 1: any network that Disney owns, you can watch it on there,
[39:46] Speaker 1: Disney Plus two probably, I don't know. Navy running back Eli.
[39:50] Speaker 6: Heid and Reich.
[39:52] Speaker 1: Uh. Yeah, he was invited by the NFL at ten,
[39:55] Speaker 1: day two and day three, so not just day one.
[39:56] Speaker 1: We've got guys coming for Day two and day three.
[39:59] Speaker 1: The Pittsburgh local back to his home area to attend
[40:04] Speaker 1: the draft and speaking of running backs and backs, Jamir Gibbs, Yeah,
[40:08] Speaker 1: it's back tattoo season. Dion Dawkins did one. We talked
[40:11] Speaker 1: about a couple other guys. Here's Jamir Gibbs and yes,
[40:14] Speaker 1: that is sonic on his neck. Insiders, do you have
[40:18] Speaker 1: any thoughts Ian.
[40:19] Speaker 3: I have a thought. I'm glad he didn't do the
[40:22] Speaker 3: sonic on the front. On the back is on.
[40:24] Speaker 4: People like, oh, when he's sixty, is he gonna have sonic? Yeah,
[40:27] Speaker 4: but he's not gonna be able to see it, Judy,
[40:28] Speaker 4: So what's the difference, right?
[40:29] Speaker 5: I mean, how much does it hurt? That's all I
[40:31] Speaker 5: can think whenever I see these massive back tests a lot?
[40:34] Speaker 2: How much does that hurt?
[40:35] Speaker 4: A lot?
[40:35] Speaker 1: They're unconscious, they're not cold, which you can be for
[40:37] Speaker 1: two days. We're back Monday.

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