First Round Recap

A crazy day of trades and unexpected picks in the first round of the NFL draft. 'Slick Willy' Will Einfalt and 'The Lock Smith' Cole Smithson break down the biggest stories from the first round of the NFL draft. Love y'all. Enjoy.

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:00

Hoy hoy tojoi toy joy. One two. I check one two.

SPEAKER_01 0:09

Hey, hey, hey, hey, hey.

SPEAKER_00 0:13

With two minutes to go, it's fourth and thirty-two. Hello and welcome back to Fourth and 32 Podcast. I'm your host, Cole Smitson, the locksmith, and joining me as always, it's the s uh the wettest man in podcasting, Slick Willy Will Einfault. How are you doing, buddy?

SPEAKER_02 0:36

I'm good. I'm good. Yeah, we're uh we're coming to you right after the draft. My uh team didn't have a first rounder uh this year, so it was a little bit a little bit weird for me.

SPEAKER_00 0:47

Um Yeah, I was about to say the first round's always a little weird when your team doesn't have a pick. Obviously, you spent it on Travis Hunter. He barely played last year, especially towards the end of the year. So you could look at it like, oh, we're we spent on a first round pick on uh a guy that can be an elite corner for us. Uh also everybody up there listening, excuse me, I have been under the weather all day. And it's probably gonna show on this, just barely hanging on here. But uh yeah, uh the Raiders got Fernando Mendoza. This has been on the table for months and months and months, pretty much since we got the number one pick. I watched the entire Indiana playoff run like he was my quarterback, pretty confident that he was gonna be my quarterback. And then so I've been a fan for a while. I've I've known that this was gonna happen. Um, and so there's a lot of ease once it officially happened, and I could just enjoy the rest of the draft. But we're gonna come back, I believe, Sunday, and do winners and losers, talk about the draft as a whole. Should have Patriots fan, Michael Duane on the podcast for that. But well, like I said, I am a little out of it and under the weather, so I'm gonna let you lead us and uh uh we'll go over, you know, kind of the crazy storylines from tonight. It wasn't the biggest crazy storyline draft of all time, but there's definitely some interesting stuff that happened and uh trades glore. So wherever you want to go with this.

SPEAKER_02 2:15

I'm just gonna kind of go uh uh numerical numerically here. Um I do want to uh highlight David Bailey. He had been flip-flopped all over the place. Um, we saw that the Jets canceled their visit with him. Uh obviously it was they already knew they were gonna take him. Uh, why why make him waste time traveling to come see him and all that? Uh but yeah, no, it was it was uh it was relatively uneventful here for the first few picks. Jeremiah Love goes to the Cardinals, which is a little bit of a surprise. Uh he's gonna end up getting paid uh close to$50 million, which is like the most guaranteed by a running back in the NFL. Hasn't played a snap yet. Yeah, I saw that.

SPEAKER_00 3:00

That was Cardinals. Go ahead. I was gonna say, I thought that's where the drafts really took off because almost nobody had Jeremiah Love going to the Cardinals until very late. It looked like he was gonna fall, at least to the Titans. They probably would have picked him there. Uh the Giants seemed keyed in on him. Some people had him falling all the way to seven with the commanders. But when he went to Arizona, I think it really informed what the 10 uh the Titans did next. And it makes a lot of sense, especially when you hear that they were calling around trying to get anyone to trade up for that pick for that spot. At that point, if you're gonna have to stay put, you might as well just go get the best player available, best player on your board. And it probably was Jeremiah Love, because it it from a talent standpoint, you could make an easy argument he was the best player of the draft.

SPEAKER_02 3:45

They have so many other holes that I thought that they would fill, but I agree. Yeah, go with go with best available.

SPEAKER_00 3:51

But the problem the problem with drafting a running back high like the Raiders ran into last year is if you don't have the team around him to support him, it can be a disaster, but uh, maybe they're thinking long term and just like the Raiders were, like wasn't a great first year for Genty, but he showed flashes of real superstar to him. And I think Jeremiah Love's gonna be in a similar situation here with the Cardinals.

SPEAKER_02 4:14

I think so too. And I think you're right. I think that pointed the direction for the Titans to take Tate because they needed a uh they needed a difference maker on offense. They were marching out the likes of, I mean, I I don't even know if I can name a few of their wide receivers from last year. So Calvin Ridley.

SPEAKER_01 4:34

Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 4:35

Do they still have Westbrook Akenay? I thought he went to the Dolphins. Uh, you know, you're probably right on that. Who was Robert Woods, the ghost of Robert Woods?

unknown 4:45

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 4:45

Going out there. I'm blanking on the two rookies that they had last year, but Tate's gonna obviously step in and be their number one and give Cam Ward a uh a wide out that can help him out.

SPEAKER_00 4:57

No, I thought that was a really good pick. I I don't want to move off the Jets too quick. Like David Bailey go in there, and we saw all Arvell Reese kind of fall down the board uh there to the Giants, but the Jets were very active in day one. We knew they had the two picks, and there's a lot of thought they might trade out of them, but they ended up trading back into the end of the first round. So I was I was surprised because I'd seen Omar Cooper Jr. uh mock to the draft a lot or mock to the Jets a lot at 16. They go Kenyon Sadiq, the big athletic fast tight end out of Oregon. So it's like, all right, that's the pass catcher they wanted. And then they ended up trading back in and getting Omar Cooper Jr. anyway. So super awesome value there to uh potentially starters for this offense going forward, two young guys that can really help out, even if they're not great this year. And then you got uh the potentially the best edge rusher in the draft here. So I thought the Jets did an awesome job. Yeah, honestly.

SPEAKER_02 5:55

I agree. It's yeah, they like you were saying, Omar Cooper Jr., I would have been happy if he went at 16 uh to him, but yeah, they they managed to get him at the end of the first. And yeah, no, he's gonna, I mean, they're both gonna come in and and play huge roles, and and then yeah, yeah, David Bailey's a a great pickup. I I think Arvell Reese has the highest upside, so I think that's a it was a an awesome spot for the Giants to to have him follow him at five. Uh but yeah, I I think for what um the Jets are trying to do on the defensive side of the ball, David Bailey fits their system a little bit better.

SPEAKER_00 6:30

So no, I I it's more of a sure thing and and someone who have a defined position for. Uh let's talk about Arvell Reese going to the Giants at five. They're gonna have to move them all over the field. There's the idea, you know, you'd have to kind of create a position for him. So that there's some positives there. He's comp to Michael Parsons, and that could be a good thing, and that could be a bad thing, too, if like you can't figure out what to do with them. So yeah, and also Ohio State, just want to shout out them. Uh tied for the most guys drafted in the top 12 of a modern era draft. They had four guys go. Uh with uh Sonny Styles going seven to the commanders and Caleb Downs going 11 to the Cowboys. But yeah, Ohio State guys going uh going early. But any more any more thoughts here about this top 10 from you? I thought there were some big surprises in the second half.

SPEAKER_02 7:25

I think yeah, I think we gotta talk about Kansas City here at six, moving up to to draft uh Mansur Delane, the corner from uh LSU. I thought that was a bit of a surprise. I we kind of knew the Browns might move out at this pick. Uh but I I I think Delane could have fallen to the nine spot and the Chiefs could have grabbed him there. I think they could have gone downs or another another route if he didn't end up falling, but I thought it was it was kind of weird to to jump up to six here.

SPEAKER_00 7:57

Yeah, I I think the idea was that the commanders might have been keyed in on him. So they had to move up and go get him. I mean, these teams know a lot more about what the other teams are gonna do than we do. So yeah, every mock had him fallen to nine at least, but if you know that the commanders are gonna go get him, you gotta jump up if that's gonna be your guy. They just had their two top corners leave and go to the Rams this offseason, ended up trading um totally blanket on his name. The slot corner that they traded for the first round pick. Yeah. Oh my god. I know his name. Uh you don't have an excuse an excuse.

SPEAKER_02 8:38

It's been a long, long day. Trent McDuffie.

SPEAKER_00 8:41

Trent McDuffie, yeah. Absolutely. But so they go replace uh their corner uh they get a really good player in their corner room. That was a nice move from them. I thought Commander's picking Sonny Sonny Styles at seven was a perfect pick, whether or not they wanted Delane or or not. But I I think, you know, an aging linebacker room, a guy that can be like a generational linebacker, at least is physically, that was a really good pick.

SPEAKER_02 9:07

I've been talking to Ethan a good bit this week, and uh yeah, he he had styles at the top of his board. He figured a couple other guys wouldn't fall to him, but he loves styles through and through. And uh yeah, no, I I I think it's a it's a great positional fit and uh a true difference maker.

SPEAKER_00 9:26

Mm-hmm. And then uh the Saints people couldn't really ping down who they were gonna go after. Jordan Tyson, the wide receiver from Arizona State, ends up being their pick at eight there. Uh I mean a lot of talk is made because his brother was playing in a playoff basketball game at the time he was getting drafted. So I guess that made history in some way or another very athletic family there. But definitely some injury concerns, but apparently on tape, like this guy just pops off. So they go get Shuck a a weapon, which is a nice pick if he could stay healthy.

SPEAKER_02 10:04

Offensive-minded head coach, too. Yeah, he he's gonna drop some stuff. And yeah, yeah, if if Tyson can stay healthy, he's gonna he's gonna be. I mean, him next to Alabe or on the other side, I guess, is is just gonna be awesome.

SPEAKER_00 10:17

Yeah, I agree. Yeah. And then 11 of the next 12 or 13. It's it's 11 of like 13 or 14 picks. Again, not totally in my right mind right now, were offensive tackles or defensive linemen. Um so there was a huge run on that here in the middle round, but uh the Cowboys end up moving up from 12 to 11 to go get Caleb Downs. So I thought that pick was awesome for him.

SPEAKER_02 10:42

Mm-hmm. I did have a I did have a bet that Malin Noah, the uh the uh Miami tackle, would be the first uh offensive tackle off the board. Uh so I missed on that, unfortunately. Spencer Fano goes the pick before to the Browns, but yeah, I I did see another guy had uh had Caleb Downs at 12, Dallas drafting Caleb Downs at 12 at like plus 5,400 value or something ridiculous. And uh yeah, yeah, they he missed on it because they traded up a spot to have him.

SPEAKER_00 11:19

Someone clearly wanted to move up in that spot. That's that's what that tells me. To go get him, and you get great uh potentially a one of the best players in the draft. I mean, his positional value is gonna have him slide down a little bit, you know, out of the top ten, but really good pick for the Cowboys. They need defense, they end up getting an edge rusher from UCF later in the draft, so re really rebuilding that defense. Um, and I thought the Ravens pick of uh Awane, the guard, yeah, from Penn State. I thought that was the most Raven-y pick of all time, honestly. Because he's gonna be awesome. Everybody said, like, if he wasn't a guard, you know, he he might be a top five player in this draft, if not higher. And they go get him. Uh, they don't reach on like a Kenyon Sadiq guy that a lot of people had a mock to. They just went and got the best player on the board, essentially. Um, I'm burying the Ty Simpson thing here, but I just wanted to do one more thing before we dive into that because I'm sure we'll have a lot to say. But uh Ruben Bain fell down the board. He looked very upset when he got picked. I was watching with my girlfriend and she was pointing this out. Uh, she kind of loved all the suits and the families and the shots of the player asking all these questions and stuff. It was it was kind of fun. I thought it would be more annoying than it was, but it was actually kind of fun. Uh, because she was laughing every time someone was like a nasty finisher or one dude's mom was a yoga instructor, and that was another thing. So like she was dying at all that stuff. So like they do make the draft for like a general audience. I thought that was that was really indicative of that. But Tampa Bay goes and gets Ruben Bain at 15. They seemed super happy in the draft room uh that he fell all the way there. I don't think they they felt they had a chance to get him, but maybe it was the scandal, maybe it's the short arms, whatever. This is a guy that had superb production uh in college, despite the physical limitations. So if they can get what you know Miami got from him in college, it's a great pick of 15.

SPEAKER_02 13:29

Could be a a job saver for Todd Bowles, too. Uh because yeah, he's a great fit for them on the outside. And uh yeah, obviously if he if he's a little bit pissed off, you're gonna get an even more of a of an angry high motor guy than he already is. So yeah, great value at 15 for for Tampa and uh Bain. I mean, honestly, you could have ended up in in many more worse spots.

SPEAKER_00 13:57

So no, 100 100%. Um, but let's talk about the Rams. Shocking pick of the night. Maybe that had to be the most shocking pick for most people. A lot of people had them mocked Makai Lemon, who ends up falling 20 to the Eagles, but they go pick Ty Simpson, Dan Orlofsky doing doing laps, wherever he is. Uh, said he was a better draft prospect than Fernando Mendoza, but picked at 13. They don't move down, no nothing. Don't wait for a team to try to pick him later. He was at the draft. I heard somebody talking about this. Like, he has a he has a team that probably wouldn't have had him at the draft if he wasn't going night one. Yeah. So they knew something. Error parent to Matt Stafford. I think it's kind of shocking they don't get a guy that potentially could help him more this year. Like I thought I wane to the Rams would be like an awesome pick. Uh, one of these receivers, especially with the Puka stuff going on, but they go get Ty Simpson, probably believing they won't be able to pick this high again anytime soon and being able to get the second best quarterback in this draft. So I thought it was I thought it was shocking. I don't really like the pick, but uh, what's your thoughts on it?

SPEAKER_02 15:09

Yeah, he's he's got a a C grade over here on USA today. Um, I mean they they must really see something. Um yeah, I heard that they called uh Matt Stafford ahead of time, let him know. Obviously, they're trying to have a smooth transition uh from Stafford as soon as he's decided to call it quits, but I didn't think Simpson was uh worth the first first round. I didn't think he was I don't think he's a very, very good quarterback. I texted you. I if he had stayed in Bama, I think he would have been uh the third stringer down there. And yeah, he's he's limited, he's undersized, he's inexperienced, and he doesn't even move well.

SPEAKER_00 15:53

So yeah, no, I texted, I texted you and Mike. I was like, why why go get a guy that can help you win the championship this year when you can go get the the three-year backup from Bama?

SPEAKER_01 16:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:05

You know, like I mean, it's credit to him. He stuck it out, finally got the starting job, ends up being the 13th pick in the draft, but I just don't like it. I saw someone compared him to Mac Jones, kind of the range Mac Jones picked. Uh, you know, not that many years. Did Mac Jones start a bunch of years? I feel like he only started the one. Whatever, it's just that's not a great comparison uh to get. And I just I thought there was a lot of places they could have gone. But apparently, uh Wes Les Sneed, the Rams GM, is like friends with his dad, who's a college coach or something like that. So there's something going on there. So I don't know.

SPEAKER_02 16:47

Hit wait, Simpson's dad is a is a coach?

SPEAKER_00 16:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_02 16:51

I know uh I know um the LSU guy's dad is a coach.

SPEAKER_00 16:57

Jason Simpson.

unknown 17:00

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 17:00

He is the head coach of UT Martin.

SPEAKER_02 17:04

I mean the Rams don't miss very often when it comes to the draft. So maybe they know something we don't know about this kid, but yeah, it it just seems like they could have any of the next six picks or so until you get to or five, I guess, till you get to the defensive tackle from the Vikings, I think could have helped him immediately this year and and would have been awesome in their system. So Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:33

He fell apart down the stretch, too.

SPEAKER_02 17:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:36

Also, yeah, Mac Jones played a little bit his sophomore year, but he really started his junior year during when he exploded. Yeah, they won the title.

SPEAKER_01 17:49

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 17:50

Mac Jones might be a starter in the league soon enough after what we saw him do last year. But even so, like, I just I'm not the biggest fan of that pick. Um kind of already talked about, you know, I don't know if we have much to say about all these offensive linemen going everywhere, but kind of a funny moment in the draft was the E were the Eagles moving in front of the Steelers to get Mikhail Lemon. Yeah, trading with the Cowboys while the Steelers were on the phone with Lemon. So they couldn't like get a hold of him for a second. Also, the drafts in Pittsburgh, they ended up drafting an offensive lineman. Great story. Kid from Nigeria, didn't play football till college, and now he's a first-round NFL draft pick, but move in front of the Steelers where Mikhail Lemon was at the draft. They could like they the crowd could have had the pop of the guy coming out, the receiver, and then they draft the lineman that's not there. Like it was just a kind of ruined what could have been a great like moment on draft night. Um, a lot of people concerned about Mikhail Lemon. I was talking to Brett Leischman, our Eagles fan uh correspondent, if you will, and he was like, sell me on your guy. Obviously, went to USC, you know, my childhood team. I tried my best, but he's a little undersized and not the greatest athlete ever. So there are some concerns, especially if you move on from AJ Brown, then you got the undersized receivers thing going on with Devontae Smith and Mikhail Lemon. So they do there.

SPEAKER_02 19:20

Devontae Wicks or Deontay Wicks. Yeah, they uh I think they're preparing for something. Um they obviously liked him enough to move up. I I like Lemon. I do think he could be like an Amon Ra if he really puts it all together.

SPEAKER_00 19:38

That's his best case scenario. I know they went to the same college, but like he's not the supreme athlete. He just catches everything. He can, you know, get open in the slot. He's super wiggly, but he's not the crazy athlete. So I think best case scenario is Amonra. He catches everything, you can throw, you know, 150 balls to him every year. Get 100 catches. Like obviously you're hoping for that when you draft a guy in the first round, but yeah. Yeah, you got any uh more thoughts on any of these picks here? Um uh Burkhard, our Browns fan correspondent, did not like the KC Concepcion pick at 24, said it feels like a bad pick to me, but this is uh a Browns fan that's been through enough of his life.

SPEAKER_02 20:25

I like I like KC and uh yeah, no, I I actually think that was uh that was a pretty good pick. Maybe they could have gone more offensive linemen to try to rebuild, but I mean shoot, I I I think that's it's really good value at the 24 spot, and yeah, I think he was the next best receiver on him up too.

SPEAKER_00 20:49

So yeah, I mean uh Dylan thieneman to the Bears, white DB in the first round. That's that's crazy.

SPEAKER_02 21:03

Yeah, he fell too. I had him go into the Vikings and everyone. He went to D tackle and Thieneman gets a gets another high grade as well. He's he's a playmaker.

SPEAKER_00 21:15

Um dude, everyone had him go into the Vikings, and this is why every year I have the same thought where I'm like, why is there an entire industry built around predicting this stuff when it is like you have no idea what this team's like or want or feel about a player like Caleb Banks, the guy that didn't even play that much at Florida and and is kind of like a raw, unproven guy, and I think you're just going for up upside here. Injury prone to Yeah, I'm not saying it's a bad pick or anything, but I'm just saying like you know it's a big swing.

SPEAKER_02 21:49

I mean, it he's massive, he's six six, three twenty, but yeah. I I mean he's quick too, but his his comp is Javon Kinlaw, who has hasn't quite made the statement break out um yeah that we thought he would as I he was a South Carolina guy and uh yeah uh it's a high risk, could be high reward, but yeah, kind of an interesting pick. It didn't seem like they needed help against across that defensive line. But again, these guys know more than we do.

SPEAKER_00 22:26

Yeah, 100%. I thought uh neither of the Tennessee corners going in the first round was interesting. You had Chris Johnson, the San Diego State guy, going to Miami at 27. Uh Jadarian Price was mocked to the Seahawks for months, it felt like, and they ended up going with him 32nd. So Notre Dame had two running backs drafted in the first round. That has to be the first high that's ever happened. Probably. Yeah. A backup running back going in the first round.

SPEAKER_02 22:55

I mean, good for him, but I think only 15 teams stuck with their pick and drafted just where they were. We had a lot of trades here. Um we got any I don't like the Chiefs. I I I think they're my biggest loser. I d I don't like Peter Woods a whole lot. Um they're maybe thinking that Chris Jones has been has been uh I don't know. He's just been kind of left out on an island for a long, long time. But I think there was many other positions you could have filled and Peter Woods could have been there in this in the second round. So yeah, I didn't like them moving up, and I did not like them taking Peter Woods out of Clemson.

SPEAKER_00 23:43

Yeah, they're saying, you know, he's super athletic, but he's not like that strong, which is like not what you want to hear. Mm-hmm. They're drafting out of the first round. I think they moved back up, did they not? Or did they move down again? Might have moved down.

SPEAKER_02 24:00

Yeah, do they s because they swapped with uh the Patriots, I thought.

SPEAKER_00 24:06

Oh yeah, the Patriots moved up. To grab uh yeah, they grabbed Lomo. No, but the Patriots had 31. No, the the 49ers moved back from 27 to 28 and then 28 to 31. That's what I mean. And then out of the first round. Bill ended up moving back a couple times and then out of the first round. Yeah. Um yeah, I'm not the biggest fan of the Peter Woodwoods move either. Um, it's also gonna be really hard to find a quality O lineman early in the second round because they're just everyone went O lineman. It felt like. Yeah. No, I hate it. It's like exactly what I wanted to go with the second pick, so um I had a second round pick, but we'll see. We'll see. What uh what's like uh do I have a best available list? I I mean we might just not be able to pick a fucking an alignment.

SPEAKER_02 25:02

The AM guard, uh Chase Bisantis is probably the next best alignment.

SPEAKER_00 25:10

Uh yeah, it's the the corners from Tennessee, yeah, Avian Terrell, the safety from Toledo. Mm-hmm. Yeah, there's there's yeah, the guard from Texan M. I wouldn't hate it. But uh I think we just go best available on our board here, and then we really fill up the late round picks with offensive linemen. See if one hits. I just don't like how it fell to us here. You think one of these guys would be available, but Jennings Dunker?

SPEAKER_02 25:43

You seen that guy?

SPEAKER_00 25:44

The mullet guy from Iowa? I have not. Yeah. What do we get? Seven tackles and two guards in the first round. Yeah, the Texans go guard. Keelan Rutledge. I like that pick for them. But yeah, we'll see. We'll see what happens on day two.

SPEAKER_02 26:04

Caden McDonald's still available, the D-tackle from Ohio State, who's in my opinion, the best D-tackle in the class.

SPEAKER_00 26:13

Why do you fall down again? I don't know. Yeah, Mike said the Pats said he was like one of the best players on his b on their board. And they ended up going low move from Utah. And they need offensive line help, but looking around. Sakurai branch might make a team very happy. I was like he was used wrong in college. Jacob Rodriguez is supposed to be a really good player. Linebacker from Texas Tech. What else we got here? Yeah, we'll see. Oh, bless you.

SPEAKER_01 26:48

Thank you.

SPEAKER_00 26:49

We'll see. Uh if the Raiders are gonna fuck it up or you know, do right by Mendoza. How many picks do we have left? 2-4, 3-3, and then yeah, we have three in the fourth round. Two sixes.

SPEAKER_02 27:08

I think if you guys like somebody, use a couple of those fourths to move back into the second round.

SPEAKER_00 27:15

I agree. I agree completely.

SPEAKER_02 27:18

Snag uh snag dunker and the uh the guard from from Texas AM.

SPEAKER_00 27:26

Yeah, why not? Alright, any more thoughts on uh the first round or where we go from here?

SPEAKER_02 27:33

Uh no, no. We got Niners coming up uh tomorrow with the with the first pick and yeah, no, I'm just excited to see how the rest of this kind of shakes out. It's been uh it was kind of a weird day one, all in all.

SPEAKER_00 27:49

Yeah, I agree. You can get some really good players, stay tuned, day two, I should say. Day three sometimes, but like that second and third round, that can really help some of these uh teams that are trying to compete, like the 49ers and the Bills being at 33 and 35. Like you can go get a uh day one starter. Yeah. You know? So we'll see how this shakes out. Uh yeah, definitely not all of the pompet circumstance of past drafts, but he's still a pretty good one. And there's some good players that are drafted. So yeah, we'll see how it shakes out. All right. From me, Cole Smithson Locksmith from Sick Willie Wild and Folk, the Wettest Man in Podcasting. From all of you out there make podcasts, especially thank you. Peace.