Pine Pony Podcast
Friends arguing about sports
Pine Pony Podcast
Breaking the Huddle: OTA Takeaways & Sportsball
Welcome to another edition of the Pine Pony podcast! This week, we talk the latest NFL OTAs, Bill Belichick's social media drama with Jordan Hudson, and the SEC's push for more influence in the college football playoffs. We also explore some leading sports narratives, including updates on the WNBA, NBA / NHL playoffs. This episode provides detailed player and team analyses, spotlighting key figures like James Cook, RJ Harvey, Dak Prescott, and Dak's dilemma with the Cowboys. From Buffalo Bills' new challenges to the Green Bay Packers' player updates, and the Saints' quarterback issues, we cover it all. Stay tuned for all the latest scoops!
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Welcome, welcome to another edition of the Pine Pony podcast. It's me, the og, as always Along beside me, Josh Persian fantasy uncle. What's happening?
Pershin:Howdy, howdy. Gotta be back for another week. Talking sports ball.
Jason:Absolutely. Well, with that being said, as the OTAs have started, let's also start to show. All right, so, you know, before we get into the OTAs, we must talk about the continuation of the saga. That is Bill Belichick and Jordan Hudson. They wanted to clarify things in the past week that mm-hmm. Jordan Hudson is not a part of UNC football team and that she does not work for UNC. If anything, she is merely working Bill Belichick's social media accounts, and that's it. And that's, if that's what he wants to do, he can do that. But nonetheless. There's somebody investigating Bill Belichick and Jordan Hudson and UNC for whatever reason. I don't know. I don't even know like what their, what could they even get? You mean someone from the NCAA is
Pershin:investigating them?
Jason:No, a journalist. Oh, okay. Who seems to be, he's trying to make a name for him for themselves or. You know, try to Sure. Get something stern, but
Pershin:have at it Haas. I mean, if some cool story is there, then hey, I'm down to read about it. If you wanna waste your time barking up various trees, that's fine with me too. I don't care. That's, go for it, buddy. You know what I mean? It's like,
Jason:I know, I saw that and I was just like, this is dumb. So we won't spend any more time. I actually thought you were gonna say
Pershin:like, they broke up or something. I was like, damn, I, I was not expecting that.
Jason:No, man. He just put a ring on that thing. They ain't breaking up.
Pershin:Yeah. They seem to be legit. I, yeah, 50 years apart. At first I was like, man, you know, she don't really like him. And he might not even like her. Just all this, all just like some kind of vanity show publicity sort of thing. But you know what? I don't know man. They keep having friends, like people that are like, that, know of them that keep saying like, nah, man, they, they just really into each other like
Jason:you. Well, you know, what if, if anything even that she's not that interested into'em. If he, if she's running her, his, his social media accounts. She's at least making, you know, the, the look of being a gold digger, a little hard to, to swallow because she's actually doing something positive for the person, you know?
Pershin:Right.
Jason:So nonetheless I saw a way too early prediction that says Clemson versus Texas in the college football playoff final. Woo. That would be pretty cool. That would be pretty cool, but as I said, way too early. Yeah. The se, the SEC thinks they should have more say in the college football playoff. They actually think that certain conferences only deserve two teams no matter how good they are. So, oh,
Pershin:wow.
Jason:Yeah. No matter, no matter what and that them, and that the SEC is not, you get the most Right. Yeah. No, no, no, of course. So, which brings me to friend of the show pods, friend of the show, Smith's PO. Points about how like, this is too subjective. Like this is just like, college football is kind of getting in, in a way of itself where it's like. The conferences should not have as much say.
Pershin:Yeah.
Jason:Like it should be,
Pershin:say especially, especially the SECI mean, the thing that I don't like about this idea that I, I guess the SEC themselves is proposing this right at, the thing that I don't like about this idea, at any rate, is that. Within those rankings, within the, any college rankings that you look at from really anybody is already built in a. You know, power conference bias, and especially a pro SEC bias. So if you've got three teams that have made it into the top 15, 12, whatever it is from a conference that we generally see as not as good as the SEC, then you could bet your asset. Those teams are earning that respect. You know what I mean? It's like the, the rankings already have a built in bias for these things. We don't need to. Codify it or formalize a bias. Like if you got three teams, I don't care what conference they're in, you got three teams that have made it outside of the SEC, then. Then they've earned that respect.
Jason:Well, the SEC also was questioning itself as to why they're even in the ncaa, like college football playoff. Like they should just do their own thing. And you know, that might be God, I mean, that might be cool and all for the first season, but after that, like people are gonna be like, oh, okay, well, like these other teams just kinda like, stays like,'cause could you imagine a recruit, like, is he gonna pick the SEC over like other, like being in the NCAA. Like, I don't even know how that would even work. So it's just kinda like, it made no sense to me,
Pershin:but literally that sounds like an onion headline, you know what I mean? It's just like, right. You guys take yourselves. So seriously, and you're constantly pushing for more and more sort of status and advantage everyone else that you've gotten to the point where you're. Making fun of your own selves. You know, it's, it's just no one wants to see anything like that except for maybe the SEC teams. You know, no one wants to see anything like that though. Like most college football fans would hate dividing it up like that.
Jason:Right. And one little thing that I saw. The EC is also interested in the, what they're calling the five plus 11 model, which is 16 teams in the college football playoff with the five conference champions getting the automatic bid. Which also brings to this year's rankings for the final playoffs, is that conference champions will get an automatic bid, but they won't be an automatic top four. So they'll still get the bid and they'll still make the playoffs, but they won't necessarily get the buy, which makes sense to me. I, I, you know, the friend of the show Smith could, could say, well that makes conference games mean nothing. Conference championships mean nothing. No.'cause you're getting the automatic buy now. Bid. Now you could say, well, if you're an SEC team, you're probably already gonna get in. So what's the point in playing that, that game? Well, you could, I don't know. I mean, there, there is a world where, you know, the second place team in a conference championship game doesn't get into the top 12. So winning that game could boost them into the top 12. To make the playoffs versus, you know, it's like if George was playing, you know, South Carolina, not, they wouldn't, yeah. If George's playing South Carolina and maybe South Carolina sitting. 14th, if they win that game, that gets'em into the game in probably Georgia as well. So yeah, I think that, I just think it makes it better.
Pershin:Yeah, I, I think it definitely makes it more fair just because what I said before is that those, the rankings are already going to have a built in. Bias for strength of schedule, and particularly for conference. And the thing is that for, for most of the teams that are in conference championships, they're gonna be far more likely to earn a buy if they win that conference championship game. The only exception is when a team is clearly like a a, they're in the driver's seat to be the number one seat or whatever. Then for them, it, it's not gonna help them to play the conference championship game. But even then it's like, okay, you really hate it that much. You don't wanna play it, play your fucking backups, then I don't care. You know what I mean?
Jason:Right. Yeah, exactly. Play your backups. Moving on over to the WNBA, because I feel like we can't go a newish episode without discussing Angel Reese. One more time. She was drug tested after her 13 point game. It was a blistering 13 point game, and I, I think it was a career high. So the, the WNBA decided the drug tester, oh, it's so funny to me.
Pershin:It it is that just like a random, like drug test or, or were they quote unquote random? This is like after Saquon Barkley pull pulls some video game move and they're like.
Jason:Exactly, that's exactly what
Pershin:it, and I hilarious. I, by the way, was skeptical that this was natural also the way Seon that is. I was like, yeah, yeah, yeah. He needs to be tested. And it turns out he, he already was in line to, to be tested. Right? He passed. He is legit. He's, he's just a freak. But
Jason:yeah. Real life video game. Okie dokie. NBA update. OKC leading the series three to one. They're about to put the Timberwolves You're Timberwolves to bed.
Pershin:Yeah, I was, this
Jason:is, I think this is OKCs tournament to win.
Pershin:Clearly. Clearly. I, I was thinking that, that the Timberwolves were hot. They're playing fool team ball where everyone's getting involved and all the guys are staying fresh'cause they're getting so much production off the bench and yada yada. But then OOKC. I, it has looked really dominant versus them so far. So it's like yeah, at this point I disagree with you. I think this is just OKCs here. It's, you know, if, if they don't get it, I feel like it's, you disagree with me. No, I said I just agree with you at this point.
Jason:Oh, okay.
Pershin:Okay. Yeah. At this point I just agree with, with your original take which is that you know, they're really in the driver's seat here. I feel like if they don't win, it's more so that they kind of let themselves down. Then it will be, you know, somebody else truly being better than them.
Jason:Yeah. Yeah. And, and what's crazy about OKC is it, like we were talking last week about how there's no villains or there's no team that's really dominant. You know, the Celtics are there, but you know, they kind of don't really show up sometimes. But the thunder are young. I think they're oldest players, Alex Caruso at 31. Otherwise they're like one of the youngest teams in the league. So. It's, it makes you sad as a Hornets fan to see OKC lose their big three in Durant, Westbrook and Harden. Go through some turmoil for some years and then somehow find their way back to the championship. When you look at the Hornets and they're just like. Yeah, every player they pick is injured. You know? It is just this sad story.
Pershin:Yeah. I think it's a good point there. Not only are they looking so good right now and they're in the driver's seat, but yeah. I mean, as a fan, you gotta be excited for how young they are. There's no reason to believe they're gonna slow down anytime soon.
Jason:A hundred percent. And on the other side of the bracket, we got the Pacers and the Knicks. This game, as we're airing is game four. Indiana leads the series two to one, and this game is 111 to 99 as we speak, with eight 50 left in the fourth. It looks like the Knicks could potentially go down three games to one which is in, it was just, you know. I'm not that huge of, of a Pacers like, I mean, the Pacers have dominated every series they've played so far. So they've lost every game three they've played. That's their one loss in each series. I'd rather see the Knicks, man. I think New York City would
Pershin:pop off. Oh yeah. There'd be so much excitement if the Knicks got in there. I mean, there's already a lot of excitement for what they've done just now, you know.
Jason:I know, but they're gonna have to make a, a 12 point comeback in eight minutes. It's possible. It's possible. Anything's possible.
Pershin:Yeah.
Jason:So we'll, we'll, we'll keep that up and see what's happening throughout the episode. Alright. And then moving on over to the NHL playoffs. We got Edmonton in game four right now in the third period, 16 minutes left, they are winning two to one against the Dallas Stars. They also lead the series two to one, so that's kind of a lot, very similar to NBA here in the series. You know. Records right now. Yeah. Because on the other side you got the Florida Panthers versus the hurricanes. And the hurricanes are down three games to one, so could be a couple of four to one series.
Pershin:You gotta love that Southeast hockey, man.
Jason:Yeah. Domination. Domination. And here we are. That brings us to the NFL something we missed last week. At the owner's meeting, they approved that an onside kick can in fact, now be kicked at any time in the game, but only by the losing team. The team that's losing.
Pershin:Oh, which
Jason:is just. Stupid. That's weird. That's dumb. I don't understand why we changed this rule in the first place. The whole point of the onside kick was to take advantage of a moment in which the team, other team would not see it coming and or potentially to get the ball back. Just to add another possession to your, your thing. I, I don't agree with the fact that you're not letting I. The other team do it like, you know, like Sean Peyton did in the Super Bowl. Colts didn't see it coming. Boom, extra possession. Like it just kind of like you're, it's like you're taking the game and it's, it is like Mario Kart, right? Like you've got somebody super skilled, but you got somebody who kind of sucks and like doesn't really know how to control the carts or whatever. But if you lead too far, they'll kind of make them faster. Give them shells and other things to catch up. Yeah. Or like in, in the days of Madden on the we where it was like they had a family mode and so it was like if you got to 21 points more than the other team, like they would in enact like more interceptions from you or like your players would be
Pershin:fatigued and shit. Yeah. So, yeah, I think it's, it's just completely unnecessary to regulate the onsite kick at all. Just let the, let the people have their fun. If the coaches wanna pull some crazy, like, ah, try to catch'em off guard. I mean, half the times it, it. You know, it, it, it doesn't, it doesn't, doesn't work out for them anyways, right? So it's not like, oh, there's this huge competitive advantage for letting the winning team do an onsite kick. Like that's risky as hell. Like just leave it open. Because the thing is, like the success rate on onsite kicks is, is so low that what, what do you care? Let them do it. If a team's trying to come back, if the team's trying to catch'em off guard. Mm-hmm. If a coach just decides that they're up enough that they wanna do something for the fans and spice it up, who cares? Man, what? That's not
Jason:hurting. And the worst part about it is you still have to let the other team know you're doing it.
Pershin:That's stupid. I just don't understand why you need to restrict it or regulate it at all. It's not.
Jason:Yeah, I don't know. But so it came out word today that there was a, an intense battle over the tush push at the owner's meeting. The owner of the Eagles made a one hour speech beach, and he at wow. The end of his one hour, at the end of his one hour speech. He said it was a win-win for the Eagles. Adding that it was like a wet dream for a teenage boy to create a play that was so successful that the only way for it to be stopped was for it to be banned.
Pershin:That, I mean, that's true. I am sure that that. I'm sure that was like a wet dream for a teenage boy level of satisfaction.
Jason:It's just crazy, man. It just is crazy to me. And then like they had Kelsey stand up and he said something. He said he would be playing in the NFL today if he could do 60 tush bushes a game. I was like, dude. We get it. And, and
Pershin:you, you would only get this sort of impassioned campaigning from the team that's benefiting from it. You know what I mean? Like, you're not like,
Jason:right. It's like I mean, there were some other people that said, you know, Jerry Jones had some stuff to say that, you know, like Kelsey kind of made sense and, and helped him. You know,
Pershin:J Jerry, Jerry Jones actually had some funny comments where he was like. If it was my team that was doing the tush pushing, would I support it more? Eh, I don't know. I dunno. And I was like, damn, Jerry,
Jason:my team was the one tush the push. Yeah. He's like, he pushing Ush like.
Pershin:I dunno. I go back and forth. I was like, damn, Jerry, all man. That's gotta be an honest answer, right? Like, I don't know. I go back and forth, I'm just like, okay, no you don't, motherfucker.
Jason:If your team could do it, just push. You would be doing it. Stop it.
Pershin:Yeah. Yeah.
Jason:So and then OTA, I mean, hard knocks training camps is gonna be the bills. That's exciting. You know.
Pershin:Oh, I thought they, I thought they, they couldn't get anyone to sign up.
Jason:No, that was off season. That was like before the draft.
Pershin:Oh, that's because the, the giants got embarrassed last year, right. And now they're like, man, we don't wanna see how stupid we are, how emotional our decisions are.
Jason:That's crazy. And then let's get to the OTAs. Speaking of the Bills mandatory camp, they said it starts June 10th or 12th. So I guess we're gonna find out what happens with James Cook. I. Because he's not, he's not there right now.
Pershin:Yeah,
Jason:he said he's, he's 25 and he's looking
Pershin:for a new contract. He, he wants to get paid like a top running back. And I just feel like, bro, the, you old, the bills, the bills clearly do not see you in that light. Like he was averaging like 40% snap share. And he ended up getting a bunch of touchdowns, which is great. You know, if you got James Cook on your fantasy team, you were happy with that. But the thing is like
Jason:team high.
Pershin:But the thing is like those touchdown rates, man, they come and go like they, I. They can be fluky like that. And it's just like, if, if the bills really saw you as that important of a piece, then you would be more like a workhorse. You would, you'd be getting that at least like a 70% snap share. I mean, his, his snap share most games below 50%, they're, they're not gonna pay you like a top running back in the league. Like they, they don't see you that way. And holding out, I don't think is going to get them to change their mind about that, you know?
Jason:Yeah, and then we'll, so we'll see what happens with James Cook. And other news for the bills. Joey Bosa pulled a calf and is probably out till training camp. So they signed him for one year deal knowing he was injury prone and what does he do gets an injury. So we'll see if he ends up playing or not.
Pershin:Yeah, I mean, bad news for the bills, but much worse news for Bosa'cause he's on a one year prove it basically where he's trying to get paid next off season. And if. Can't get on the field or, or can't get on the field much. Even if he is productive when he's out there, teams are gonna be like, ah, I'm not paying him the big bucks. You know, I'm not, I'm not investing that much. You know, and it's a shame because he, he, he is a good player when, when he is healthy and he is out there. But we'll see, I I strained calf, not the end of the world, but not a great start either.
Jason:Yes, indeed. And in a a bunch of other teams, they started OTAs, Falcons, Ravens, bills, Panthers, Bengals, Browns, Broncos Packers, chiefs Chargers, Rams, dolphins, Vikings, giants, Eagles, Steelers, 49 ERs, Seahawks, Buccaneers, and Titans. Some other teams will start theirs tomorrow. Buccaneers, I mean, not Buccaneers Texans, Colts, Cardinals, and a bunch of others.
Pershin:It's it's a coincidence or maybe not coincidence that all of the teams that have already started seem to be like the better teams in the league. Did you notice that, that pattern as well?
Jason:Well, I mean, the Texans. They got no, Dianes aren't, aren't that great? Texas got no offensive line. I mean, the Falcons don't, the Falcons don't have Kirk Cousins isn't there. He didn't show up.
Pershin:Oh. So is he expected to be traded there? Oh, I wonder if the Steelers maybe are trying to trade for him or something.
Jason:Well, Rogers went on. Whatever. His three, he went on somewhere and he said he's not, he doesn't wanna play for the Bears, but there's a team that he does wanna play for that could be playing at the Bears this year. And the Steelers is that, is that team so.
Pershin:Fucking weirdo.
Jason:He just like can't, can't help himself, man.
Pershin:Yeah, I don't know. I, I, I do think it's weird that so much time has gone by and they, they've been in talks for a long time and, and visited several times. Like, I just feel like if, if the Steelers. And Rogers were both on board, then they, they would've gotten it done by now, right? Like it's, it's just, it's gotta be a red flag that it's gone on so long without anyone pulling the trigger here.
Jason:Well, it's a red flag already'cause it's Aaron Rogers. So, yeah. So speaking of the Packers, Jaire said he's showing up regardless of whether the contract is done or not. He said he's in. Jaire is pulling me back in. I like it. I like this guy. Right now, this is
Pershin:players should go get back to this kind of attitude where it's like, we'll work on the contract. That's really not my work anyway. My fucking agent does that for me, right? And as my agent works on the contract, I will fulfill the contract. I'm already on
Jason:like a hundred percent. Couldn't agree more, man. It.
Pershin:It doesn't hurt yourself anything. It probably helps you to stay sharp, but even if you're training out on your own or whatever, it, it helps your teammates to know that you're in there doing the work, you know?
Jason:Exactly. Exactly. Well, let's take a look at some other players to look out for. I like to. You know, pick some players to look out for during the off season and kind of see if they were seeing some improvement and then kind of match that up with the regular season and see if things did actually improve. But first there's some important people returning from IRS that we can take a look at. Rashid Rice from Kansas City wide receiver. This needs to be a pretty decent year coming back off of injury. You know, let's see if he can get folded back into the mix. I mean, I think he can you know, they, they always need wide receivers in Casey.
Pershin:Yeah. I mean, he, he was like shot out of a cannon at the start of last season. He's got a really weird. Sort of injury though, where he didn't actually tear his ACL but apparently the procedure needed for his injury is similar to the procedure that they do for the ACL. So it's, it's, it's, it's a little weird. It's he gonna come back a hundred percent. Is he gonna come back? Something close to a hundred percent? We're not sure. So it is gonna be very interesting to see how he starts the season off because last season, I mean he caught like 40 balls in the first four games or so. It some outrageous target percentage.
Jason:Absolutely. Another player, Aiden Hutchinson, ed Rusher off of the lines, they're gonna need him back and in full health. So it'll be interesting to keep an eye on him as the off season starts and. I see how he progresses on his was it a achilles, was he an achilles tear? I can't remember what happened to him. Yeah, I
Pershin:can't remember. It was, it was one of'em, Achilles, ACL one of these leg injuries. Yeah. One of these turf Monster injuries. Yeah. He's a really important piece though. I completely agree with you. They, they ended up losing a lot of guys last year, but, but clearly there was. When Hutchinson was on that defense, and then it was very different the moment he wasn't. So he's probably the, the single most important piece of that defense.
Jason:An important piece coming back. And my, I'm curious, would you draft him, Christian McCaffrey?
Pershin:I, I can't, I can't. Is he getting too old? I mean, I guess it depends on what, what other people's perception is of him, because I'm not exactly sure to be honest with you at this point. Maybe there's other fantasy players that are starting to sour on him. But the thing is that like if people expect him to be healthy, catch a jillion passes in that offense. Like they love to do in San Francisco. If people think it's like gonna be business as usual, then he's gonna be like a first round pick, maybe early second round pick in redraft leagues. And I'm not, I'm just not willing to, to make that bet. I, I really wanna pick as safe, as safe a production sort of bet as I can in the first couple rounds. I, I think I would consider a player like him in the fourth or fifth round. I can't imagine he's gonna be available If he is. Maybe. Maybe. But my, my guess is that people are gonna snag him up before I ever get to him.
Jason:Absolutely. Absolutely. Nicks have closed the gap. It's one 20 to one 14 with three minutes left, man.
Pershin:Ooh, it's
Jason:getting tight. Hey,
Pershin:three,
Jason:getting tight. There's plenty of time in the
Pershin:NBA man.
Jason:That's, man, that's only two shots.
Pershin:That's, I'm telling you that's, that's two shots, man.
Jason:Right. One guy I think's gonna be really important for Im important, important for the Tennessee Titans is Lloyd Berry, the center. You know, I mean, they're gonna need to, to be protecting their guy, man. You know? So,
Pershin:yeah, I mean, he was pretty good for the Broncos last year, and one of the guys I was hoping we would keep, we did not. So I think that he's gonna represent a pretty good upgrade for, you know, the interior of that line for them.
Jason:Absolutely man. Protecting that first round pick.
Pershin:Yep.
Jason:And then for the Saints, definitely gonna need a lave and the fastest man rash Shahid like you said, kinda Rashid rice blasted out of a canon. Same with Shahid man. Yeah, he kinda really got going last year and then the injury bug hit him.
Pershin:Yeah, I was actually surprised at how, how often he was targeted you know, the first half of the year last year. He was a big piece of that offense. And it, you know, I, I think it, it's a huge question mark to say the least, with Spencer Rattler. Who's the other guy that they already hit? Jake Haner. So it's Spencer Ratner, Jake Hanner, and now Tyler Schuck. I don't know, may maybe one of those guys ugly. Maybe one of those guys emerges as a decent qb, but I, I gotta think the likelihood's not good. And you know, that hurts both Shahid and Oola, you know, so.
Jason:Yeah, absolutely. Couldn't agree more. So stay away from the saints is pretty much what we're saying on those fantasy leagues. Next guy I got is your boy Alex Singleton, linebacker of Denver. Right? He's gonna need to have a Denver's defense is gonna need to step it up this year. I mean, they played, they played well last year, right? You know, bow nick, they kept bow nicks in the game, but. Bow Nicks has had a year now, so you expect and hope that he gets better. But the league also has a year of tape on him as well, so the defense might need to Oh, yeah. To continue to put him in those positions of win. So
Pershin:yeah. We've seen several times in the past where a quarterback has a really good first season and then has something of a sophomore slump. I mean, just last year we saw that with CJ Stroud. And a, a big part of that is you know, the second year around teams, especially Interdivisional, but not just Interdivisional teams really know your tendencies. They really have a good grip on what you're likely to do in various situations, and they, they've got their guys coached up prepared for that. And, you know, so.
Jason:Yeah. And then Brandon Iuk is making that comeback, but in a different uniform this year. So, you know, hopefully I'd like to see a little bit of a shell of himself, maybe a a little bit, you know, an improved year because for the other team, so maybe a little bit more excitement from him this year. We'll see what happens. I don't know. He's getting up there in age. You talking about Debo Samuel? Nope. I was thinking, I was thinking of Deebo Samuel talking about Brandon iu.
Pershin:Yeah. You said iu, but you, you described exactly Deebo Samuel. So I was like, wait, what you talking about?
Jason:I was thinking of Deebo Samuel so hard in my head. Like I had the commanders like, yeah, on lock right there.
Pershin:Yeah.
Jason:Either way. Well, without Deebo Samuel, the 49 ERs are going to need Brandon. I. And so he is going to need to stay on the field, stay healthy and, you know, become that, you know, leader on the wide receiver with Ricky Piol and all, and all the other guys. What do you think, man, about Brandon? I you's return,
Pershin:I think this is a, an extremely intriguing situation. I'm gonna be. Really, really paying close attention the first couple weeks to what the 49 ERs do, how they deploy these guys, because you've got IU coming back and supposedly I'm not a doctor. Supposedly the, the various Twitter doctors and the people say that he's not gonna be a hundred percent. For the first portion of the season and that's, it's gonna take a while for him to get back to full capacity. And so if that's true, do they lean on Juwan Jennings again?'cause last year, I mean, Juwan Jennings was extremely productive, basically out of nowhere. And then at the same time, they've got now second year. Last off season, he got injured plus shot in the chest, which is wild. But the second year for a first round draft pick, and Ricky Pearsall, do they kind of turn to him at the beginning of the year and say, Hey, that you're wide receiver number one Now it's a guy that they can use in the slot, can use outside. Really, all three of these guys can be moved around the formation however they feel like they need. And so. Huge question marks one of those guys is certainly going to emerge as a big fantasy producer for you. I don't know which one though, to be honest with you. I, it'll be very interesting to pay close attention to that at the beginning of the season, I would say.
Jason:Yeah, I mean, Ricky Pearsall definitely better than Malik Washington. I will say that, you know, so. Kudos to him.
Pershin:Yeah. And, and better than
Jason:It's the throwback to a conversation we had a while ago.
Pershin:Better than TAs W
Jason:that guy too. Yeah. And then the last guy on the IR returns list, Dak Prescott. I mean, how many years do you have to say It's a proven year for this guy. Jerry Jones loves him some Dak Prescott. So.
Pershin:Well, he got paid, right?
Jason:Maybe he'll have a great year. Yeah, maybe he'll have a great year. I don't know. Alright. And then moving on to some more players and coaches that, we'll, we'll check out. I think Michael Pennix Jr. Is someone to take to him, but not only him, but him in that Drake, London connection because so far they have been having pretty good off season together. Yeah, so that might be something to check out. I think
Pershin:the Pennix thing is very interesting'cause he flashed some really good, some really good film. But I think he only had, he only got in three starts, right? Three or four, so, mm-hmm. Really small sample size. Don't, you don't wanna go overboard on it, but promising.
Jason:Yeah, absolutely. Brian Flores he's somebody to keep a lookout for DC for Minnesota Vikings. Just, I know he is a coach, but I'm interested to see what he does with the defense if he can continue to have that same defense he had last year with JJ McCarthy. Potentially starting, starting quarterback. As far as we, as far as I know. So I, I'm assuming, you know, JJ might put them in some terrible spots being first year, especially in the first couple games, and so they're gonna need that defense. So it'll be interesting to see what Flores dials up, if you will. And then Nate Wiggins cornerback for the Ravens. You know, he's coming second year. He's, he's got a lot to prove. I, I think he can take that step up and be one of the shutdown quarterbacks for the Ravens. What you got? Any thoughts on him?
Pershin:Yeah, I thought he looked good before he started dealing with injury. I, I think sky's the limit for this guy. Really talented guy. Got, got good size. He's, you know, he, he plays with a sort of physicality that I think is you just, he is one of these players that you just like to see succeed. I just like to root for this guy. So
Jason:absolutely a pair of Green Bay guys that I'm checking out, you know, Rin Cooper, linebacker, he had a pretty good season last year. Like to see, like, to see that. Go up again because we need our defense to make another step forward with Jeff Halfly. On the flip side, Eldon Jenkins moving to center this season. Oh, they moved. Okay. Had had, yeah, played center a little bit last year. So we know that he can do it. It's just, you know, how does that offensive line fit with that move? I think it's a good move, in my opinion. But you know, just kind of keeping an eye on him because it is a different position, but he can play it, so I'm not that worried.
Pershin:Yeah, Edgar and Cooper really impressive rookie season. If he's able to take a step forward and be even better than that first year, then you got a damn good play on your hands.
Jason:Yeah. Yeah. We need, and we need all the blocking for love up front to give the speedster number 22, the Matthew Golden, the ball. Going to another coach, Nick Kaley, the offensive coordinator for the Texans, as you said, sophomore Summit last year. You know, missing Tank Dell this season. You know, I think he's, he's got some work cut out for him, so, you know, let's see if they can put the gas pedal, if he can, you know, bring back some of that offense that we saw the year prior.
Pershin:Yeah, I think he's gonna be put to the test too. I mean, they, they did bring in Christian Kirk and they, they drafted both of the Iowa State Boys that look somewhat promising as prospects. I don't think there's necessarily going to be a lacking for. Receiving talent. They even drafted Woody marks, which is basically like a pass, catching, running back, sort of scat specialist. But the problem, the problem is that offensive line, like they, they got rid of the one guy who was good. You know, they traded him away for decent draft capital, but yet, you know, the, the guys that they brought in, not, not known as great offensive linemen. So I think there's a good chance that that offensive line is not going to be a, a really good pass blocking unit. And so he's going creative and figure out how do plays. Get the ball out of his hands in the first three or four seconds. Play after play after play, you know, so we'll see.
Jason:Yeah. And then another coach look at Al Golden for the defense coordinator for the Bengals. You know, they're planning on outscoring everyone based on the contracts. So we'll see. You know, I mean, it'll. Defense has gotta step up a little bit. So, or else outscoring, everyone's gonna be hard. So be interested to see what happens there. And then your boy, as we already spoke about on this podcast, d running backs in Denver are dime a dozen. So we're trying to see who can actually be the running back there. So, RJ Harvey. He, you know, he's got a little bit of pressure on him. Yeah. I can't wait to see what he can do.
Pershin:Yeah. I mean, when, when Sean Peyton like reaches for you in the second round yeah. He's putting a stamp on you that RJ Harvey's gonna get every conceivable opportunity to. Run away with that job. And so you know, the spotlight's on you buddy. It's time for you to show up and be that guy that Peyton believes you to be, you know,
Jason:a hundred percent. So, and then the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, you know, they're slated to return all 11 starters on offense. So you would think. This should be an easygoing for Josh Grizzard, the new OC there. But, you know, does Baker Bayfield turn into a pumpkin this year? I don't know. That's, that's, that's gonna be the big question. What do you think about this guy?
Pershin:I think I've actually turned into a Mayfield believer because
Jason:what,
Pershin:it's actually a couple seasons in a row now where people have said like, oh. Things are changing. And so now Mayfield's, he is gonna fall off, you know, so he doesn't have Callahan, Callahan's going to Carolina. Oh yeah. So now he can't, and I mean, it's been, I think four seasons in a row where he is done better than the previous season. So I
Jason:Yeah, but you said like five seasons in a row, Kelsey's gonna fall off. So
Pershin:Yeah, he, Hey, listen. Listen Ca Kelsey actually said that he lost 25 pounds. I was like, yeah, he put on all that Taylor weight. Do you really want your tight end losing 25 pounds? I'm like,
Jason:dude, he did to bro. He was fast. He was getting chubby. He was getting that like. I'm comfortable with my girl, like, yeah.
Pershin:Yeah. I'm off the market.
Jason:All right. And then let's see, let's see. Did I hit everybody? All right. One more person. And that's it. Mike McDaniels. That's right. Head coach for Miami. Mr. I believe, right? This is, no, this seat is fiery high. He's, he's the meme or the GIF where he's sitting in the chair, he's the dog sitting in the chair going, it's fine. Everything's fine, and there's nothing but fire around him. That's how hot his chair is. Okay. If he cannot get this team, I mean, what is the goal though? It is gotta be like conference championship game, right? A FC conference championship. Yeah.
Pershin:It's gotta be keep it, it's gotta be at least win a couple playoff games. I, I don't think, like, I don't think sneaking into the wild card. Is necessarily gonna be enough for him because the, the expectations were that you had a stack team two seasons ago and then last season, and now the window's closing. So it's like, I think the expectation is you need to cash in on the Tyreek waddle, you know? Wide receiver room that's supposed to be hot shit that you got very little production out out of last year, honestly. And you know, Tua who's said, fuck it, I'm just gonna play till I die or whatever and you know, so yeah. I think that he's supposed to be the offensive wizard, you know, genius play caller and. For a couple seasons. He, he looked like he really was one of the best in the league last season. It seemed like the defenses really had it figured out. So if he doesn't PIV pivot, figure it out and you know, actually have the team be considered a contender, then the ownership might get a little might get a little antsy on and decide that they wanna go another direction.
Jason:Yeah, completely agree with that man. And I don't have anything, I don't have anything else to say. I'm gonna say something stupid. I don't have anything else to say. Well, I, I'll
Pershin:say that I, I don't think that it, it is necessarily like, oh, his seat's on fire. Like he. You know, he, he's going to be fired. Fired. He's gonna be fired by, he needs to be fired by week six or whatever. But I do think that Brian Dbol is in jeopardy of being fired by Midseason, you know?
Jason:No, Brian Dbol and Joe Shane's job is saved.
Pershin:No way. There's no way. I just,
Jason:yeah, dude. Yeah, bro. Yeah. That draft, they saved their job for at least the rest of the season. Yep. I, I do think Mike make one thing that, like Mike McDaniels, you built this entire team around speed to all of this. But yet you, you, you cold weather this, cold weather that, but yet you lose in every cold weather situation. So to me, this team will not win. I don't care where like,'cause they're gonna either have to go to the Chiefs or they're gonna have to go to the bills. And they suck against both teams. So this experiment to me is over and they're gonna have an inexperienced defensive group. Like they're Tua goes down, it's done. It's a done deal. This team is over.
Pershin:Yeah. And I, I suspect that the. The fall off has already started for Tyre Kill. I think last year he looked to me like he was not the same guy. Not that he was like slow or anything, but he, he lost at least like a half a step. And a lot of times when you start, you go quite, quite quickly, you know what I mean? So I'm afraid that. You know, they're, they're just, they don't have the offensive line to let the plays develop downfield. And, you know, Tyre Hill is just not the explosive player that he once was. So,
Jason:yep. Yep.
Pershin:Malik Washington. Just gonna have to come save your ass. We'll see.
Jason:We shall see. He's no Ricky Piol, that's for sure. And with that being said, that's it. The Knicks have lost three games to one. All right. Go Pacers. Here we go. That's all the scoops we got as always. Hit us up on the socials threads. Instagram, blue sky. You know, maybe we'll discuss one of your topics on the pod. Who knows?
Pershin:Yeah.
Jason:Anyway.
