Episode 16: NFC South Divisional Review & Top 10 Quarterback Rankings

WELCOME BACK WATCHERS AND LISTENERS! To YOUR off-season home! We are here with off-season Shenanigans. 

We dive into what most people consider the WORST Division in Football... the NFC South! Are you a Panthers-truther? A Baker-believer? Do believe the Falcons can FINALLY do something, with a near perfect roster? How about the... uh... Saints? Whatever your NFC South team is, we got your covered. 

After going through the disaster of the NFC South... we finish it off with some Top 10 Quarterback rankings. Reflecting on the last two years, how much has changed, and what are QB expectations are. 

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Let us be YOUR off-season home. 

Transcript

SPEAKER_00 0:01

Welcome back, watchers and listeners, to our NFC South episode. We have run out of friends. Um We have really smart, ball-knowing friends, so we don't have any NFC South fans in our life.

SPEAKER_01 0:17

So I You're the closest thing to it, honestly.

SPEAKER_00 0:20

Yeah, I so I will say a little side note. I threw on my jer Georgia jersey. I do love Jalen Walker on the Falcons, two-time national champion, two-time SEC champion, dog. Um, but I'm just gonna put this out there. So obviously, my family's transplant into Georgia were from the Midwest and the Northeast, but most Georgians are not Falcons fans. Georgians are Georgia Bulldog fans. I don't really know Falcons fans, to be honest.

SPEAKER_01 0:46

Uh, they're out there.

SPEAKER_00 0:47

Yeah, just Matt Ryan out there chilling. Um, but we're gonna work our way through what pretty much is universally considered the worst division in football. Does that feel fair? Yeah, I'd say so. Yeah. Um, yeah, so um, let's kick it off with the Panthers, everyone's favorite uh 9-8 playoff team.

SPEAKER_01 1:07

The Frisky Panthers.

SPEAKER_00 1:09

The Frisky Panthers. Uh Cole, you become kind of the Panthers guy at the show.

SPEAKER_01 1:13

So kick it off. Yeah, I mean, as one of the few teams to the I mean, Rams do not want to see the Panthers in the playoffs. I'll tell you that. I mean, beat him in the regular season and then almost had him in the playoffs, lost by three. That's the biggest compliment thing, best thing you can say about the Panthers on this season. They were good against them. Beat him, beat the Rams, lost to him in the playoffs, but I mean, that's where like they are a little bit frisky, I think. And that's kind of the overall question is like, are they gonna take that leap? Like, can Bryce Young actually play not even like a first overall round quarterback, but like close to it. A first rounder. Not the first overall, but like yeah. Um, so I'll start there. Let's talk about Bryce Young a little bit. Um he played 16 games. Good. Stayed healthy. That's something. Gotta be available. Um he had 3,000 yards, 3,011 yards, just hit that mark. Um, which is 21st. I mean, it's not even average in the like top average of the league, but he got there. 21st uh or 23 touchdowns, which was um 14th. Not bad. Like, he did throw touchdowns, and he does have those weapons. Like, Tet was huge for him this year.

SPEAKER_00 2:33

I'm pretty sure like Mahomes and Daniel Jones' numbers, who played like half the season, are better than Bryce Young's numbers.

SPEAKER_01 2:40

That might be true. Um, and then yeah, 11 picks, like 27th. Yeah, not a not a great year for me.

SPEAKER_00 2:46

You can't see over the line. You can't blame him. He's just throwing the ball out there. I mean Totally.

SPEAKER_01 2:51

I mean, I think Bryce is one of the biggest question marks out there at quarterback. Because it is, they're in this weird area where like, do you JJ McCarthyum and like sorry we missed. You know what I mean? Like, it's kind of yeah, I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 3:07

So he's going into year four. I I obviously I hate Bryce Young because he's an Alabama boy. Um, he also is the Alabama quarterback that allowed Georgia to finally beat Alabama, if that tells you anything. Um he I thought I thought that him being the first overall pick was maybe a reaction to a really weak quarterback class that year. That was him, Stroud, and AR. I mean, AR went fourth. Like, what are we talking about? And he had like 10 starts.

SPEAKER_01 3:32

Totally.

SPEAKER_00 3:33

Um, I I mean it's year four. I feel pretty confident saying I don't think Bryce Young is an NFL starting quarterback. But they just spent a shit ton of money in free agency, so he better be.

SPEAKER_01 3:45

I mean, that's the thing, like, I do think that organization sucks. That team historically sucks, like, unless you go back like 15 years. Yeah. Um, that's true. I guess the camera. They were good for that, like, two seasons. Um, but yeah, I mean, I do think like they made the playoffs, you know what I mean? Like, I don't think I don't think you can call him not a starter in the league at this point. Like, there's a lot of guys that are starters that are missing the playoffs on a yearly basis. Like, I do think he's better than that. He's a top 30 quarterback in the league, in my opinion. There's 32 teams. But that's what I mean. I do think he bel he should be a starter, which is kind of like the worst place to be. Like, you are in that no man's land where like ceiling is low, floor is missing the playoffs, but like probably still six or seven wins, and like not a great draft pick.

SPEAKER_00 4:39

I think JJ McCarthy is worse than him, and I'm having trouble coming up with a second name.

SPEAKER_01 4:45

Worse than Bryce Young?

SPEAKER_00 4:47

Yeah, I don't besides JJ McCarthy, I'm having trouble coming up with a second name. And you are too.

SPEAKER_01 4:54

No, I don't know. I definitely could.

SPEAKER_00 4:56

Like Gino.

SPEAKER_01 4:57

I mean, like Yeah, absolutely. Tua, Gino. Honestly, Michael Penix, like.

SPEAKER_00 5:02

Oh, I think Tua and Penix are better than Bryce Young.

SPEAKER_01 5:06

I don't. We've never seen them in the playoffs.

SPEAKER_00 5:08

Tua led the league in passing. Um, this him.

SPEAKER_01 5:12

I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 5:13

Him being in the playoffs, three teams that division finished like nine and eight, and one finished eight and nine, and they had they played each other, and it they really couldn't play anywhere else. It was I think that's just a pathetic excuse for a division. I think I much rather would have seen like the Bucks sneak in than the Panthers or the Ravens.

SPEAKER_01 5:31

Well, like, the Panthers snuck in because they beat the Rams late in the regular season and earned that last win, and then got their crack at them again and put up a fight. Like, I do think by the end of the year they were looking much better than they did at the beginning.

SPEAKER_00 5:44

That defense is really good, and they just paid Jalen Phillips a bag.

SPEAKER_01 5:48

Um, so they brought in two linebackers. They brought in Devin Lloyd and Jalen Phillips and paid them both like I think Devin Lloyd's on like a three or forty-five million dollar contract, and then Jalen Phillips is 120 million or something.

SPEAKER_00 6:00

Like their recipe is play really good defense, run the ball with Chuba. Is Rico still on the team? Um, and have Bryce, yeah, he's a free agent, so I'm not sure.

SPEAKER_01 6:12

They brought in AJ Dillon, too.

SPEAKER_00 6:14

Yeah, have Bryce make it through few throws. I think Tet's really good. He's perfect for Bryce because he's big-bodied.

SPEAKER_01 6:19

Yeah. I do too. That's the thing. Like, you have Legette and Tet. If Bryce can be okay and that defense is better, like, why are they not gonna be a playoff team again?

SPEAKER_00 6:29

Because Bryce is I think Bryce is done.

SPEAKER_01 6:31

The division's not getting any harder.

SPEAKER_00 6:33

Yeah, no, that I think the Falcons are gonna get better. I think the Saints are gonna get better.

SPEAKER_01 6:37

Um every year about the Falcons. Yeah, I agree. Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 6:41

But no, I We'll see. My final thought on the Panthers is this is his fourth year. Do you pick up the fifth year option, let him walk, or pay it? Like what like you know I mean, this is the decision year.

SPEAKER_01 6:55

Totally. I think it does depend what happened this year. I mean, there's no world where him and his agent could like ask for the current quarterback market. But yeah, that's it. But like, he I don't know. To me, he could live kind of in that like Daniel Jones kind of contracts where like he's probably you're overpaying a guy, but like you could do it for less years or something. Just be less committal. Like, maybe you do resign him for a two-year deal if they like sneak into the playoffs again or something.

SPEAKER_00 7:19

I think if they're around 500 this year, you pick up the fifth-year option. If they're not doing well at all, I would be okay letting him walk.

SPEAKER_01 7:28

Yeah. I agree. If you let him walk though, you better have a good pick in this draft.

SPEAKER_00 7:32

Like Oh, yeah, if you have a top five pick, I think you let him walk.

SPEAKER_01 7:35

Oh, oh yeah. That either means he tore his ACL early or played awful. Like that's the thing. Panthers aren't that bad, though. They're not gonna have a top five pick. They're really not close to that territory in terms of these teams that are like tanking.

SPEAKER_00 7:47

My my summary on that though is I'm not paying him this year, no matter what. Either I'm letting him walk or I'm picking up the fifth-year option. Even if they win 12 games, I'm picking up the fifth-year option. I don't trust it.

SPEAKER_01 7:59

Yeah. Yeah, I agree. But then again, I mean, I think, I guess I think Bryce would play, but you never know. You don't have to play on that. Like, you can hold out and I don't know. If he plays well, he's not gonna play on a fifth year. Any quarterback. Quarterbacks don't do that. Quarterbacks don't do that.

SPEAKER_00 8:13

Anything else on the frisky Panthers?

SPEAKER_01 8:16

No, literally nothing else.

SPEAKER_00 8:18

Okay, I'm gonna do the Falcons. Um, a team that I will have a special place in my heart for, but again, no true Georgian is really cheering on the Falcons. Um so I really only have like one real question for the Falcons, which is this is a this roster is so good. This honestly is a little Vikings-esque. This is a win-now roster. This defense was leading the league for parts of the year. They have, in my opinion, the best running back in football. I've never liked Drake London. I would maybe add another receiver, but you have enough weapons. This roster, in my opinion, is a quarterback away. So are you gonna go with Penix? Are you gonna go with Tua? And can Stefanski turn this around? Like, do we like the Stefansky higher? I know you don't. And like, what can this what can this offense be? Because this really is a win-now roster without a quarterback.

SPEAKER_01 9:07

Totally. The the Falcons are funny because they spend all their they spend all this capital and all their picks on offense, and then every year we're just talking about their defense because it's so much better than their offense. Like, I do think they're another team where like I feel like their recipe, they could be the Broncos. Like they were kind of supposed to be the Broncos, I feel like. Um, but like they their defense was elite. They were viewed as like one of the scariest defenses in the league the first eight to ten weeks of the season, I would say. Like, you did not want to face them. I just think they just are never that scary to me. I don't I'm not scared of Penix or Tua. Like, I don't think Penix is the guy. I think they reached and it did not work out. I mean, they just they also added Trevor Simeon. Like, what are they doing at quarterback? That room is so full. Isn't whoever loses the battle gonna be the backup?

SPEAKER_00 9:58

Yeah, I think that's because both are so injury prone. They needed a third quarterback.

SPEAKER_01 10:01

Okay, they need a backup to the backup.

SPEAKER_00 10:04

Because, I mean, what's the chance either of them play a full season? I would say slim to none. I think Penix has a really good arm, but I do question his durability, and I don't think his football IQ is good right now, but I also think that's because of the coaching he's had in the NFL. I tr Stefansky has a lot of issues, but I do trust Stefansky to develop a football IQ with him and reads and really understand how to make plays. But it's really just a durability question. I think he has a great arm. I think Penix is a better option than Tua to see that ceiling.

SPEAKER_01 10:36

Well yeah, I'd much rather go with Penix because he's young and we don't know what that ceiling is. And I I actually like, I kind of disagree, I like Drake London a lot, and obviously I like Bichon. Like that offense should be really good. Um, but I'm never we're playing the Falcons. That's that's a win preseason. Like, I'm not scared of them at all. Like, nor do I think anybody should be. Like, any team can beat the Falcons on any given day, I think.

SPEAKER_00 10:59

I think Matt Ryan is really smart, and I trust that he has a plan to turn this around. I think he's really smart. Um I do think though that I don't know how you do it without a quarterback, and maybe that's a draft pick or a big trade. I don't think two is the answer. I it would be really cool if Pennic could like break through and shake the injuries off and show people he's a great pocket passer. I think that history tells us that probably won't happen.

SPEAKER_01 11:22

I think he will. Stefansky's kind of a quarterback whisperer. Any quarterback he touches. You hate Stefansky. Beautiful, yeah. I think Stefansky sucks. And I don't get the media is like, if he if you lose Stefansky, every team call. It's like, what are we?

SPEAKER_00 11:36

I mean it he's not Kevin O'Connell, he's not Sean McVay, but they want to put him in that category.

SPEAKER_01 11:41

I think he's much worse than that. Yeah. I think I think he's like a I don't know. I do not believe in him at all. And I don't I'm confused by people like, where has his was was he like where was his success?

SPEAKER_00 11:54

He he brought the Browns to the playoffs.

SPEAKER_01 11:58

With Baker, yeah, Baker made.

SPEAKER_00 12:00

And then with Flacco, like two years, two or three years ago.

SPEAKER_01 12:03

Oh, that's right. But they brought in Flacco late. That's right. No, that was yeah, that was a Flacco story, not a Stefansky story. But I mean that's another thing. Like, Stefansky just can't like train these, he's not a quarterback builder to me. But he's supposed to be an offensive mind, right?

SPEAKER_00 12:17

Yeah, I mean, I think the Falcons are gonna take a step forward. I don't know how they compete in this NFC without a real quarterback. That's really my whole take on the Falcons. Is this a great roster? If one of your quarterbacks hits, you're golden. But I don't think they will.

SPEAKER_01 12:29

100%. I'm with you.

SPEAKER_00 12:30

Um, let's move on to, I don't know, my favorite rising star in the NFL, Tyler Shuck and his Saints.

SPEAKER_01 12:37

Mmm, let's do it. Yeah, let's talk about the Saints. Saints maybe are actually frisky, I think. Yeah. A lot of people they're it's that year two Shuck. Can he take that step? Um we'll see. I don't know. Off the bat, I don't think I truly believe in the Saints. My gut. I think Shuck is a little overrated. I think he came in like ahead of all the other rookies because he's a lot older and like more experienced. But I think he kind of like sometimes that means, and some maybe it's the same with Bo to a degree, where like sometimes that means you're actually kind of closer to your ceiling than like you don't have this huge runway to grow because I'm 23 years old and young. You know what I mean? Um, so let's look at his stats. So he's only played 11 games compared to we just talked about Bryce Young's 16 games. So these are based off 11 games. 2,384 yards. 11 games.

SPEAKER_00 13:37

Okay.

SPEAKER_01 13:37

Yeah, over 11 games. Like he probably was pacing.

SPEAKER_00 13:40

A 3,000 yard season.

SPEAKER_01 13:42

3,000 yard season, and some change, I would say. Um he had 10 touchdowns. That's bad. Not great. Yeah, not amazing. 10 touchdowns, which is 30th in the league, but over 11 games. Remember, he could have had a few more. Um only six picks, but only 11 games. So like uh the picks are good. That was tied, I think, eighth in the league. Um, and a lot of quarterbacks missed a few games.

SPEAKER_00 14:06

So like Yeah, I with Tyler Shuck, I guess I didn't realize. Watching a few of the games later in the season, I saw a guy with a good arm and possibility. But thinking about his age, I maybe I I think he's a really nice guy. I like his story, but I in I'm maybe looking more at like a Mac Jones situation where you show flashes and then you just take a step back.

SPEAKER_01 14:27

I do think it is hard to judge a quarterback off their stats on a bad with a bad roster on a bad team in their rookie season. I mean, it's part of the reason. I mean, one, my crazy fandom, but like I believed in Drake May so much, despite him winning three games his rookie season, was because of the eye test. It was just like like it it feels so different to watch than the past years of Mac Jones and shit. Like, I do think Saints fans felt that, where it was more of an eye test thing. We're like, oh, I believe we could win this game. Like, that did exist this year, and that I think fans should be excited about that. And that leads me to their additions, which they up their run game, Travis Etienne, and guard David Andrews. So, like, protecting shotgiving more time and having a dynamic run game could help this second year quarterback so much, really actually take that next step. And I like Kellen Moore a lot. I think that's the biggest question, too, is is Kellen Moore actually a head coach or is he an OC? Um, and I think that's the question with a any of these young OCs that it's like the team and the franchise wants their mind on offense, so they give them that head coach job, and then it's like the question becomes can they handle everything else that comes with it?

SPEAKER_00 15:36

Yeah, I don't really know Kellen Moore's like personality. Um, so I'd love to see maybe more of that. Like, I feel like I got to know Ben Johnson's personality, Mike Vrabel's personality, like even Liam Cohen's. I like to see a little more with personality, but you know, if they have a good draft, and I forgot if they added ETM. I mean, this division is wide open. Any four of these teams could win this division, and it's probably a one and done bid. Like, they're not getting a wild card team in this division. So one of these teams could be in the playoffs, and I don't see a reason why it can't be the Saints, especially with a good draft.

SPEAKER_01 16:06

Totally. Yeah, I'm with you. I didn't check what pick they have, but um They're around.

SPEAKER_00 16:12

I actually have I'm working on my draft board for our show. Uh they're n they're eight. They're right before the Chiefs.

SPEAKER_01 16:18

Oh, they're gonna snipe you guys. Uh-oh.

SPEAKER_00 16:21

To me, there's a few there's a f basically the way the board lies, I'm okay with taking three players at nine, and at least one of them will be there. Um I could see, yeah, this the Saints could do a lot with that pick, and you know, they're picking ahead of their whole division, they're picking at the front of each round. If we think Kellen Moore's smart, I I I could see them making a good splash in the draft, adding some young talent, really pounding the run game, having good defense, and just letting Tyler Shuck be a pocket distributor. So Totally.

SPEAKER_01 16:50

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 16:50

I like it. Um I don't know how we're gonna predict a finish order. Do you have one already in your head for this division?

SPEAKER_01 16:58

Everybody ties. I don't know. I'm gonna I I'm gonna go eight and nine, eight and nine, eight and nine, eight and nine, and then like tiebreaker.

SPEAKER_00 17:06

I'm gonna go to the Bucks. You know what? You kind of convinced me about the Saints. I might go Bucks, Saints, Falcons, Panthers. That's I think that might be mine.

SPEAKER_01 17:16

Panthers? You were as you can't do that. You're that as someone who is so high on the Rams, for the Panthers to be their kryptonite and be the team to make it out of this division, you can't be that low on them.

SPEAKER_00 17:28

The Panthers ha- I mean the Saints, oh my god, who we're talking about? The Rams have had a really bad secondary the time the Panthers played them, made Bryce Young look amazing. Um, I don't know. I I think I Yeah, I don't know. I just the the Falcons roster is the best roster in the division, but I don't trust the quarterback. If anyone's taking a step forward, I think it's the Saints. If anyone's taking a step backwards, I think it's the Panthers, and I trust Baker. So that's where I'm sort of landing.

SPEAKER_01 17:57

Baker lost Mike Evans. I don't know. And they missed the playoffs with him. I don't know how I feel.

SPEAKER_00 18:02

Let's do it. Let's get into the bucks. Um, I've said a million times, besides Patrick Mahomes, my king, my second favorite quarterback in the NFL is Matthew Stafford. My third favorite quarterback in the NFL is Baker fucking Mayfield The Bake Show. Baker Baker, touchdown maker. I love him. Love his Moxie. I really believed in him. I thought he was gonna win MVP for the first four weeks of last season. Um which leads me to what the fuck happened in October. Um, in September, they're beating the Seahawks on a huge win streak. They beat the Seahawks, and then they get blown out by the Lions mid-October and aren't really the same after that.

SPEAKER_01 18:41

Yeah. I mean, I don't know either. That's and it's also like I mean, they had this he had so many weapons last year. Godwin ended up getting healthy. He had Mike Evans. Remind me of the new guys. Yeah. Yes, thank you. Like, he's outstanding too. Now you just get worse in that room with probably your one was still Evans, even in that group.

SPEAKER_00 19:07

Like Yeah, I think now the one is Emeka.

SPEAKER_01 19:10

Yeah, I would agree. Godwin's getting a little old.

SPEAKER_00 19:13

I yeah, I don't I don't love that they're holding on to Godwin. That feels risky to me. I for my diagnosis of what happened in October, the schedule did get harder. Um, and at the same time, I think the Baker injury was worse than we realized. We know he missed a game and he came back and didn't look right after that. So I think that was part of it. I don't know. I expect the Bucks to be back in the mix. I know you're low on them.

SPEAKER_01 19:38

Yeah, I mean, I think I'm low on them because it's kind of like, are they better or worse today than they were last season? And what did they do last season? And it's like I don't know, you lost maybe your best offensive player besides Baker.

SPEAKER_00 19:52

And you lost and they lost Rashad White, which is fine, but Yeah, that's that's he was kind of irrelevant towards Baker. The two, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 20:00

But yeah, I just don't know if they're any better, like, why would I expect them to be better? Baker's health, maybe. It is weird. Going into this season, I mean, that's one of the hardest games I circled on the Patriots schedule. You know, like they were supposed to be, they were viewed as a playoff team, which was kind of rare for the Bucks, besides when they had Brady, but like Baker brought them back to that standard, I would say, the previous year, and like everyone expected them to just be a playoff team in this division. Like, kind of like it was They've been the playoff team. Yeah, it was kind of a no-brainer to just fall off like that and then get worse over the offseason. I don't know. I don't know what to do with them. I don't view them the same as I did, like, yeah, now they're fighting for anything could happen.

SPEAKER_00 20:44

So, like, in that like Chiefs, Lions, Ravens who missed the playoffs, you consider those three teams an echelon above the Bucks.

SPEAKER_01 20:51

Yes, absolutely. This changed the way I think about the Bucks pretty much.

SPEAKER_00 20:56

That's fair. I mean, I kind of think the Bucks success is a little tied to Baker. Um, they're not really built like a super team, like it is really relying on Baker to do well, and I think that injury, and maybe just I I don't want to make injury excuses, but maybe it just was worse than we thought, and he just couldn't play the same and then totally fell out of it. I mean I expect to be back.

SPEAKER_01 21:19

Yeah, I mean honestly, I hope they are. I love like a Baker playoff game is electric. Like while like I love watching Baker play, and I'll be rooting for them. They're the most interesting team to make it out of this division by far, in my opinion. Like, they could beat any team, I think, with a healthy Baker on any given day in the NFC. Like you said, they did beat the Seahawks when they were like healthy and out out the gate. I mean, Seahawks probably got a lot better towards the end of this year.

SPEAKER_00 21:46

Yeah, I I expect I I kinda want them to add another wide receiver with Mike Evans gone because I don't think Godwin is long for this this league. And you know, their defense was really good, but Godwin's not that old, but yeah. Yeah, but it's the injuries.

SPEAKER_01 22:01

Yeah, okay, that's fair, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:03

Um I also I I maybe want them to add a few young pieces on defense because like they their defense is maybe getting a little older, they've lost some guys. So I feel like a wide receiver, a few key defensive players is what the Bucks need.

SPEAKER_01 22:16

Yeah, I agree. No big splashes in free agency either, right?

SPEAKER_00 22:21

Yeah, no big splashes. They just lost Rashad White and Mike Evans.

SPEAKER_01 22:24

Right.

SPEAKER_00 22:25

I thought Mike Evans was gonna stay. Um totally.

SPEAKER_01 22:30

He's just one of those guys, like, where the hell is he gonna go in fantasy now? Like, I don't know, I feel like he just is a buck. I don't know what to do with him anymore.

SPEAKER_00 22:37

Let's I mean, I I would take Mike Evans over any other of the wide receivers, but I still think option one is CMC, option two is kill, and then option three is whoever's open. I mean, I like Pearsall, I was really high on Pearsol, but he can't stay on the field.

SPEAKER_01 22:54

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 22:54

I think Jennings is gone. So he could be good for fantasy. It's just a lot of mouths to feed in the 49ers offense. I know. I know. Um, I did uh cook up a little surprise for you because I knew that Baker was gonna be catching strays. So you know, I I have uh I made myself two lists this morning. One of them I found. I ha I found my post-2024 quarterback rankings, okay?

SPEAKER_01 23:19

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:20

So this is after the thr failed three-peat season.

SPEAKER_01 23:24

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:25

So before this past season, this was my list, okay? One, Mahomes, two, Josh, three, Lamar, four, Burrow, five, Stafford, six, Hertz, seven, Baker, eight, Herbert, nine, Goff, ten, Jaden, with honorable mentions to Jordan Love and CJ Stroud.

SPEAKER_01 23:47

Okay.

SPEAKER_00 23:47

Does that feel right after two the not this past season, but the season before?

SPEAKER_01 23:52

God, you had Baker at six or seven?

SPEAKER_00 23:54

Seven. Hertz at six because of the Super Bowl.

SPEAKER_01 23:56

Yeah. Okay, yeah. I buy that list going into the year, I think.

SPEAKER_00 24:01

So the ones Baker was ahead of was Herbert, honestly, because of playoffs, Goff, even though Goff had a really good year that 2024 season. Jaden. Jayden made the list because of his breakout, but I didn't want to put him higher than 10. And then my honorable mentions were Love and Stroud. I think Baker played better than all five of those guys the last, like, two seasons ago.

SPEAKER_01 24:22

Yeah, I would agree. And I think you were right. Like the narrative was potential MVP season loading for the first like month and a half of the season. So yeah, that's how I buy that. That's that's where he was slotted.

SPEAKER_00 24:33

Yes. And now I'm gonna tell you the list I made this morning.

unknown 24:36

Yeah.

SPEAKER_00 24:37

So the only three that stayed the same were one, two, and three. I wasn't gonna move Mahomes, Josh, and Lamar. I I wanted to move Lamar, but because of the MVPs, I felt like I couldn't. Um, Mahomes and Lamar, obviously terrible disaster season for both of them. Mahomes has the rings and the MVPs, Lamar has the MVPs. Those are our three no-ballad, no-brainer first ballot Hall of Famers. So they're not moving. Those three. Agree?

SPEAKER_01 25:07

Patrick Mahomes, Josh Allen, and Lamar Jackson.

SPEAKER_00 25:10

At one, two, three. Yeah. You want to move on?

SPEAKER_01 25:14

I just don't know. Yeah, I kind of want to move Lamar. I don't know. You're okay with one and two. I'm okay with one and two for sure.

SPEAKER_00 25:21

And then the next three got the next three could go in any order. Okay. I have Stafford at four because of the ring in the MVP. I have Drake May at five off of the his this breakout season, and I move Burrow all the way down to six.

SPEAKER_01 25:37

Burrow's still ahead of Caleb, though. Where's Caleb?

SPEAKER_00 25:40

Um, we'll get to this next chunk of guys, because that got tricky. But so basically tier one being this like Mahomes Josh Lamar, the next Stafford and May Burrow. How do you rank those six?

SPEAKER_01 25:53

Um definitely Mahomes and Josh are top two. I think going into this year, like who to expect to have a better season, probably like numbers-wise, probably Josh Allen. Like, he's not coming off a major injury. It's not a shot at Mahomes, but like there's context. There's context from a home season.

SPEAKER_00 26:13

This is like, yeah, expectations or it's like current general rankings.

SPEAKER_01 26:17

Okay. Um yeah, yeah. Josh and Mahomes tied at one and two, I would say, honestly. Uh I can't, yeah. Meh Meh at three. I can't fair. That's fair. Lamar missed the playoffs and was a disaster and has been like never had a playoff run. That's good or impressive. I don't know.

SPEAKER_00 26:40

I felt like I had to keep him because of the MVPs, but I didn't want to, you know.

SPEAKER_01 26:43

Right, I agree. That's definitely a hotter take. Like, I bet Lamar is higher on the MVP odds, and like I bet the media are still obsessed with him and like, but the top three in MVP odds right now are Mahomes, Josh, and Lamar. Yeah, exactly. But it's more of a currently, like, absolutely not. I would take Drake over Lamar every time. And over Burrow. I mean, we haven't seen Burrow in the playoffs in four years.

SPEAKER_00 27:04

I drop Burrow to six. Stafford and May both ahead of him, and I'm fine with people taking Stafford out of rankings because of age, but if I'm ranking him, I'm valuing the rank and the MVP.

SPEAKER_01 27:14

Totally. Yeah, Stafford's tough because absolutely. Like, he's at that level where he's still he can still play amazing, but you do got the age and coming off a long season. Yeah, Stafford I would rather not rank. Yeah. I would not put in my top ten, really.

SPEAKER_00 27:30

But you're going Mahomes, Josh, May, and then some combination.

SPEAKER_01 27:35

Lamar, Burrow.

SPEAKER_00 27:35

Lamar, Burrow, okay.

SPEAKER_01 27:36

I still got Lamar over Burrow. Burrow's been too far. It's been too long. The leash can only.

SPEAKER_00 27:42

So that's my top six. Mahomes, Josh, Lamar, Stafford, May, Burrow. Burrow dropped, Stafford and May rose. Um, now I got four spots left in my top ten, okay? Four spots left in my top ten, and twelve guys who I think could all kind of be considered in the same tier. Okay? I'm gonna tell you the guys I cut right away as not putting on it. Based off of this year. Jared Goff. Fair. Yeah. Uh Baker, sadly. Definitely. Um, Jaden Daniels, um, CJ Stroud and Bonex. Those are the ones I took out of that group of 12 and just cut. Okay. So this is how I went 7, 8, 9, 10. And this is a little bit personal preference. God, Jaden Daniels, you cut? Cut. Just for the injury. I'm worried that I love Jaden Daniels, but availability. One of the reasons Mahomes and Josh is at one and two. I mean, Mahomes and you're right now, but those two are pretty durable. They don't miss that's why I value Mahomes and Josh besides Mahomes' rings over Lamar and Burrow, right? Yeah, yeah, that's valid. Um, so those are the guys I cut right away. Goff, Baker, Jaden, Stroud, Nyx. So now I'm down to eight guys for four spots. Oh, sorry, seven guys for four spots. And I would be like, this is where the disagreement starts. I I put Darnold at seven. He's he got a ring. I put him at seven. I didn't feel good about it, but I didn't know what to do with Darnold. I put Dak at eight off of numbers. I mean, he's video game numbers. I put Caleb at nine. So Darnold, Dak, and Caleb weren't on the list last year. Now they're seven, eight, nine. I dropped Herbert down two spots and put him at ten. His talent alone keeps him at ten. Um, my honorable mentions are Trevor Lawrence, Jalen Hurts, and Jordan Love.

SPEAKER_01 29:40

It's tough. Mine's pretty different.

SPEAKER_00 29:42

Okay, yeah, let's hear it. Who's your?

SPEAKER_01 29:43

I'm going Caleb at seven. Okay. I think he's I think I think if I was doing like a top 10 expect, like, where do I think at the end of this season the top 10 list will be? I think Caleb is like a slot behind Drake, maybe. Or like right up there with like I think Caleb. Yeah, I think Caleb could make a top five quarterback in the league case, potentially, this season. I just got him played higher. And same with same with Herbert. I would have Caleb. I would Ah man, would I go Herbert or Caleb or Caleb and Herbert? I'm gonna go, I'll take the new guy. I'd go Caleb at 7.

SPEAKER_00 30:20

So that's your 7-8.

SPEAKER_01 30:22

Herbert at 8, and then I think I'd give it to Darnold at 9 for the ring. But I think that was Darnold's defense, to be honest with you.

SPEAKER_00 30:28

No, I mean I said that about Hertz last year, and you teased me all summer, so I uh I now rules a reverse, buddy. I gotta I you put Hertz up there, I gotta put Darnold up there.

SPEAKER_01 30:38

Well, Hertz has been to multiple.

SPEAKER_00 30:40

That's your 7-8-9. Who's your ten? We still got Dak on the board, T Law, Hertz, Jordan Love, and then all the guys I cut.

SPEAKER_01 30:48

Hmm. Oh man, I don't know. It is tough. Uh probably Jaden Daniels.

SPEAKER_00 30:58

Okay, wow, and you're the Jaden hater.

SPEAKER_01 31:01

Yeah. I I just think like I agree, one more injury will totally change my mind forever. But he's had one good year, one injured year, basically. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 31:11

Yeah, I mean, that was my take when we argued about Drake versus Jaden.

SPEAKER_01 31:14

I was like, Well, I don't think that's close.

SPEAKER_00 31:16

Like I don't think it's close either, but I think it's closer than you think. Like, I don't think it's a huge, huge gap. I think that he one went to the NFC championship, one went to the Super Bowl, Drake's numbers were better. Um Jaden is a better rusher, probably. Um I I don't know.

SPEAKER_01 31:32

May's a more durable rusher. Yeah, that's true.

SPEAKER_00 31:34

It's like Lamar and Josh.

SPEAKER_01 31:35

Um, I don't disagree with that, I guess. I I yeah, I just I'm holding room for Jaden. Like, I'm I guess I'm kind of rooting. I want May to be the best out of that class, and I think he is, and I think right now most people would think that. But like, I do think it's fun if that class grows together all as elite franchise quarterbacks, and like that's kind of what we've been missing through this last era of like now we've kind of got, even though we still never won it, just the way we talk about Josh Allen, it's kind of like the Manning to Brady. Like, it does feel like there's two kind of big guys, like the two biggest guys to beat in the league is Josh Allen and Patrick Mahomes, if you're pl facing them, I would say, in terms of quarterbacks.

SPEAKER_00 32:15

Yeah, but I think Drake May might have a better chance of being the Peyton Manning to Brady. He's already gone farther than Josh.

SPEAKER_01 32:24

I Yeah, but just that there is like a you know age thing. Yeah, an A seven-year age gap where like these guys can the next five years, that'll be a harder, like we'll see.

SPEAKER_00 32:35

I mean, you don't know, but I think Drake is the best right now. I could see Caleb at one point being better than Drake. I could see them going back and forth. I think it's Drake and Caleb are the two best ones, but I don't think Caleb. I think Caleb was so good in the playoffs. And you know me, I'm I'm engaged to a Bears fan. Uh Caleb was so great in the playoffs that we are rewriting a little how up and down he was in the regular season.

SPEAKER_01 32:57

Oh yeah. I'd be the first I was pretty like, you know, defensive of Drake May before he really earned his kind of new status of like, okay, this guy's pretty good. Um, and I was pretty anti-Caleb. But I do think like they made it work by the end. It absolutely was.

SPEAKER_00 33:16

This year should be better.

SPEAKER_01 33:17

Right. There should be continuity now, and like I do think it matters that the end looked better than the beginning. Um but I agree, like, he has to fix things. I'm not saying it's a good thing.

SPEAKER_02 33:27

Gotta be able to do a five-k slant.

SPEAKER_01 33:30

But you we could be cutting him from the top ten. Like, as much of a chance he has to be top five, he could lose top ten easy if he doesn't fix like these early game and easy situation kind of play, where then he puts it. I mean, it's gonna regress to the mean, these late win wins that they have, and this luck that they have at the end. Like, it is luck to a degree. You know what I mean?

SPEAKER_00 33:50

And looking at the quarterback list, I think Mahomes, Josh Lamar, Stafford, May Burrow, that's my like undeniable top six. And then after that, I do feel like it's murky. Like, I I wouldn't, like, Darnold, Dak, Caleb, Herbert, T-Law, Hurts, Jordan Love, Throw Goff, Baker, Jaden, Stroud, and Nixon there. All of those guys are kind of in the same tier and like go up and down, in my opinion.

SPEAKER_01 34:14

Mm-hmm. I do think. I don't know, I hear really mixed things. I was talking to one of my friends recently, it kind of changed my opinion about Herbert a little bit, because their take was like, Herbert Loki took a leap this year with his two best O-linemen out for the whole season, and like he's better than he's ever been in terms of numbers. So it's like, man, if he gets them both back, like this really if he wins MVP this season, I think it's kind of because Yeah, like I do think Herbert is still in that, like, man, this guy could be, is in that fringe top five area. But it's it is, it's the playoff woes that it's gonna be it's tough to get over that. Kind of a similar thing. Like, I think people are really low on Herbert because of that playoff game, but his season was actually pretty impressive for like what was around him.

SPEAKER_00 35:01

That's every Herbert playoff game. And I say that black jersey.

SPEAKER_01 35:04

All three. Like, yeah, I I'm the first to be like, fuck Justin Herbert. Drake May is so much better than Justin Herbert, and like Mahomes has played in more playoff games, no success there, but I do think he could win, like, he might be my pick to win MVP this year.

SPEAKER_00 35:18

Well, I think, I mean, I keep going back between her him and Burrow. I mean, Mahomes was great in his first playoff game. Like, even like right away, like Burrow was great in his first playoff game. I just feel like if you're good at it, you're good at it.

SPEAKER_01 35:28

Totally. I agree. Some you win or you lose. Like, it does really, like, numbers do kind of go out the window to some degree in the playoffs. And like, some guys are winners and some are losers. I do agree with that. And it can be hard to escape that. You lose your first couple. Man, the pressure every time. That one, like, if Herbert's in the wildcard round, man.

SPEAKER_00 35:50

Yeah. I I think the only ones I'm re like, I got my big four, Mahomes, Josh, Lamar, Burrow. I'm dropping Burrow. I'm keeping Stafford in there as the old guy, and I'm sp I'm off of projection. I'm putting May up there. After that, it's murky. I also think it's fair to be like, Mahomes and Josh are on a tier of their own, and then the next one. But if you do that, I also think it's fair to say Mahomes is above Josh because of the rings.

SPEAKER_01 36:12

So Absolutely. Mahomes is alone on an island in terms of legend status. You know what I mean? Yes, and success. But like the like current current expectations for 2026, I think, is a different list than like current rankings based on their success.

SPEAKER_00 36:30

We're doing current expectations for 2026. I put Herbert so far at the top because of Mike McDaniel. Um exactly.

SPEAKER_01 36:39

I mean, I don't know if I have Mahomes top five for expectation. Maybe around there, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 36:43

I mean, I think I think by my goal is hopefully by October, November, he's looking like that, but I don't really expect that in September. It'd be great. But Exactly. Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 36:52

That's the thing, yeah. Like Would be a very impressive. That's the thing. It is an opportunity for Mahomes because he doesn't have to have an MVP year, and I just expect him to. But he just has to make the playoffs, yeah. Oh, and then he'll be on a run.

SPEAKER_00 37:04

He'll be the best January quarterback right away.

SPEAKER_01 37:06

Right.

SPEAKER_00 37:07

Well, uh that was my little surprise for you, throwing the quarterbacks at you.

SPEAKER_01 37:11

I like that.

SPEAKER_00 37:12

We got plenty of lists coming for you this week. It's interesting.

SPEAKER_01 37:14

I feel like I'm much higher on all the younger ones now. We've kind of flip-flop there.

SPEAKER_00 37:18

I just feel like in this list, I was valuing success a lot. If like that's why Dak made it up there and Darnell made it up there. Yeah. Um, but no, we're gonna have plenty of lists for you guys this offseason. We'll do quarterbacks again at the end of the summer. We'll do a team expectations list, uh, maybe throw some wide receivers and running backs in there. And our fantasy series will be starting pretty soon. We're already locked in.

SPEAKER_01 37:40

That's our true expert team.

SPEAKER_00 37:41

It's our true expertise.

SPEAKER_01 37:42

You're not gonna want to miss those.

SPEAKER_00 37:43

Oh, yeah. You I I won a championship this year. I Cole, did you win one? Yeah.

SPEAKER_01 37:48

Yeah, the league that you were in, yeah.

SPEAKER_00 37:50

Yeah, my my three win league. Um, so we got two champions here to talk to you. Um, that's our NFC South rap and our quarterback rankings we just did. Um, stick with us. We got more content coming at you these weeks. Big time. Well, peace.