Week 1 Early Look-Ahead with Ollie Connolly

Published Sep 2, 2024, 7:20 AM

Gregg Rosenthal is joined by Ollie Connolly to share what they're most looking forward to in Week 1. Such as, how will the Eagles run game look like with Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley? (3:40) What will the Ravens defense look like under first-time play caller Zach Orr? (8:00) Can Caleb Williams prevail over the Tennessee Titans , and how will he perform in his regular season rookie debut? (15:20) Or, what will Bryce Young look like during year 2? (33:00) Many questions to be had heading into Week 1, Football is back!

Welcome to NFL Daily, where the show's title kind of overrides the concept of Labor Day. I'm Greg Rosenthal and pleased to be joined by now a repeat guest. Hopefully we can make this as regular as possible. Ali Connolly, who does great work over at the read Optional on Substack. Him and John Ledyard do a great podcast there, renamed and that's gotten.

Going for the year. You know him and love him. He was on The.

Menachim Show last week. Welcome Ollie, Thank you for having me. This is a huge, huge week for the North of England. You have me doing NFL Daily. Oasiss reform. This this big popping off all over the place. And you took off the hat, which like, what were you doing hiding this beautiful let us you got there. You know, forget the Kirk Cousins that you have because he can't rock that.

Every single comment I see under anything I do mind entire social media feed is all you.

Like Kirk Cousins.

So I'm trying to do everything possible to pass the Kirk Coms you pointed out last time. Not an awful comp it could be way worse.

No, No, he's a successful man, handsome man, nice family, nice guy. We spent a whole episode talking about him last night, which was which was fun and a coincidence because I didn't know quite how similar you look to him this time. I thought it'd be fun, Ali because I've spent so much time, certainly over the last month, but especially over the last week, like going through the league as a whole and predicting and season, and it's like, these games are here, We're at these games, and we really haven't gone through the matchups of Week one, and Week one is a very different week in the NFL. You know this because these teams really do prepare for their Week one game longer and more extensively than they really prepare for any other game until maybe the playoffs where you start getting ahead of time. And so yes, we have our previous show coming up on Thursday. I'm really excited for that show every week. Steve Wish and Patrick Clayband are going to be with me on that. But I thought we'd get to jump on it and look a little more just big picture into these matchups we've had this long off season, Olie, and talk about kind of man, what are we looking forward to the most matchup wise? Just like kind of opening up a box on Christmas. Week one because to me, week one is still the best week. I don't know if you agree with me on that or what, Ollie, Because you spent a long time you've been covering soccer. You know now you're back to doing American football full time. So I'm excited about that.

Yeah, as excited as could be.

My favorite thing about Week one is overreactions to Week one is two bad teams play each other, and you think one's really good after one does really well.

But look, you spend a whole off season. I'm the kind of person.

Where as we go through all the drafts, all of fregent transactions, I can be critical of them in the moment, and then two weeks before the start season, I started talking myself and do basically every single team having an appropriate plan, something that could work, some kind of change they've made that may make sense, and I look forward to within by week three, week four, immediately going that was terrible. I was right the first go around. Everything is ruined. So week one is off first tuns to find out kind of where these seems lie.

All right, let's get into it. I might as well start. Why not the first thing I thought about. And again we're gonna just kind of pick out instead of like games, just more concepts or matchups. Part of the matchups, I'm going to talk about the egos running game like I just want to see that off the bat because I just think of the trajectory of Kellen Moore. I also wanted to hear your thoughts on this, especially that a year ago we were being sold this bill of goods that he's going to fix the Chargers running game and they actually had a monster week once again Week one can be missed leading. I think they were over two hundred yards in that game, and you know they're doing the under center stuff and the outside zone. He's mixing it all up. It look great, and then they end up having the worst running game in the league. Obviously, they were effective when he was in Dallas, but now he goes to a team in Philadelphia, which, for all their troubles last year and Jalen Hurts wasn't even one hundred percent for a good chunk of the season. I mean, they were the number five most efficient running game according to DVOA. They were pretty effective the whole season. Obviously, Jason Kelcey's there. You have the tush push, but he's coming to a group and a system that's been good. Now you add Saquon Barkley, the offensive line is different. You go against this Packers defense, which could be a whole nother conversation. But I have heard some reports alim from Eagles training camp that they've had Hurts pretty involved in the running game, which I think they were encouraged by a little more running backs in the passing game, which they talk about every year.

But that's exciting.

So I just don't know what I'm going to get because to me, they're one of the signature units of the entire NFL Eagles running game over the last couple of years, and now it's going to be different.

Like what are you looking for there?

Yeah?

I think the number one thing you hit up top is how involved as Hurts in this rung game when they were really rolling with Shane Steike, and that to me has been probably the best offense in the last four or five years. But what all the meta trends are on defense, how you would attack them all is what kellum, which is what Shane Styking came up with, which was a power spread offense. All five guys can pull downhill running threat and then a really talented.

Accurate deep ball thrower.

That is like the go to way to kind of disrupt what everyone's doing with movement up front, moving on the back end. That's the way to get after it. Kellen Morris someone I've been pretty critical of in the past because he, to me, is a guy who is only really interested in the payoff plays. He's not as involved in the down to down sequencing of how to get those pay of plays. There is an awful lot of highlight social media clips, great whiteboard stuff as opposed to maybe having a feeling and sense for like the rhythm of a game itself and how to dig out of hole when things aren't going well, which is why I think you get moments where he has fifty five point explosions in Dallas because everything is just clicking the way it was designed, and he can't necessarily get himself out of a hole when it's not flowing the same way. So for me, he's walking into an organization where he should just ask them all for the playbook from two years ago.

Hand it to me.

Good stuff, Let's get rolling. That's still the best way to approach this thing, and it's just getting Jalen Jalen hurts a downhill run as involved as possible.

Okay, so a few things there, and I can't remember because one of my favorite things you would hit on on your podcast, and again like, if I can do one thing today, it's to point people towards the read optional Ali's substack. I've been paying for this podcast last year. I do like the coordinators you get on for being too flashy that they there's some that you think it's it's kind of like a look at me coordinators versus having an overall smart scheme. I can't remember if Kellen Moore was in that category.

He might be the post a child of the flashy I go viral. People write nice profiles about me because I do interesting or cool things that draw attention, but is it really helping the offense move?

Is it efficient enough?

And he's got some unbelievable numbers though he has worked with incredible talent. The thing for me was he goes to the Chargers and everyone was saying, Wow, this is gonna be incredible just in her, but with Keller Moore, and once again it becomes look how clever Keller Moore is rather than is this thing effective?

Mm and yeah again, we'll see what the difference of Jason Kelsey not being there.

I think it's gonna be a difference. But they've been ready for this moment with Cam Jurgens.

Also, that came is on Friday night in Brazil, so one of the best NFC games of the season. Like it just I can't believe this is all happening, but it's fantastic. I'm looking forward to doing a recap of that show. We're having Adam Lefko, who I'm a big fan of and is an Eagles guy, who's gonna gonna join me after the show, So he's either gonna be bummed out or happy. Why don't you you get me going with your first one?

OLLI.

My big thing is the state of the Ravens defense.

We don't have very much data on you know, defensive football year to year fluctuates so much, it's so volatile. These kind of new breed of we sim a bunch, we roll a bunch in the back end. We doesn't have much date on how those perform year to year. So you have a first time coordinator who's not been coaching football for a long time, with a team that relied so much slashly on one guy in the middle of the field being an absolute monster, and Kyle Hamilton being the most unique player in football on the back end and playing all three levels, going against the best staff in football, the best player in football in primetime. To me, it's the number one thing of I don't expect him to, you know, find a way to confuse and befuddle Patrick Mahomes, But it's more finding out is he just going to run the same system as Mike McDonald or does he have his own identity and imprint he wants to put on the team which may be more reliable, sustainable as the year goes along.

Yeah, I'm curious too.

I'll just pick that one next, which is what Mike McDonald's going to do. But sticking on the Ravens, You're right, it used to be a cliche. You do these shows long enough, you find yourself repeating yourself. And there was that Andy Reid Week one thing going for a little while. I feel like that's calmed down a little bit. It definitely peaked in the Week one where Kareem Hunt just went crazy on the Patriots in Foxborough. But he would always come up with some stuff that you just hadn't seen before. In Week one, Mike McDaniel does that too, And thinking about that versus a brand new coordinator in zach Or, I'm not as I'm not worried about their defense, but yes, I'm curious how it's going to look. I'm excited to see what the secondary is going to be with Nate Wiggins, Like, that's an interesting Week one guy. I do just put some faith, and maybe it's too much faith that zach Orr is a great coaching prospect just because the Ravens chose him. They apparently had four defensive coordinators on their own staff last year and Mike McDonald left, and so they chose zach Orr out of the other three. And so I guess I'm going to give it to John Harbod that he's going to make a smart choice, but it's hard to guess like exactly what that's going to look like.

Yeah, I just think if your kind of predominant blue chip thing, isn't that we have one or two top tier pass rushers. Yeah, that to me is a thing that's sustainable. I love the sim pressure world all the dorky stuff.

I get it. I just don't know how reliable it can be. Years.

Yeah, and you can't teach Kyle Hamilton, you can't teach Roquan Smith. All those guys might a week I think will still be as good as he was.

Like, well, they're still there, though they're not going anywhere.

Everyone's still there. But I just don't know.

If you give people that long to take a look and review things and you're coming in week one, you imagine he's going to default to the things that he thinks worked best last year and then over time kind of blending how he've used the game. Right, That's what I would assume what happen Robin trying to tear it up what was a great unit last year, and so they've had, however long to prepare with the best player in football, the best offensive mine of football. That's the thing for me, And it's one of those ones. Way it would not surprise me if it didn't look that great in week one, and try not to overreact to.

It, but I do think it's something worth watching.

Absolutely, and I think you point out in terms of the edge rushers, of course, Genevian Clowney's not there after he had a good season. Odafe Oway has gotten a little better every year and certainly could have a good season, but after that, like they're starting Kyle van Noy in the year twenty twenty four. I know Kyle Vanoy's played well for the most part the last few years, but that's a thin edge group. Absolutely. I do like the secondary. It's fun, so that that's a good one to look forward to. I might as well go to my Mike McDonald one. It's not that deep, but it's just, you know, what does his defense look like without a Roquan Smith in Seattle? Because to me, their off ball linebacker situation could be a total fiasco. I think there's some concern about people who have watched them in training camp because Jerome Baker has not been healthy. Interroalde Doddson, we'll see he hasn't been one hundred percent either. They actually traded for a rookie who's going to be a backup at off ball linebacker, and so what does that look like now? If you look at the preseason, which I guess does tell you something. They were the leader, you know, in stunting in the preseason percentage wise by a good amount, and they were running a lot of sim pressures. So for as much as people say, like the preseason doesn't tell you anything, like Todd Bowles was the one running the most blitzes, Mike McDonald's the one running the most stunts. I mean, they kind of do what they do even if it was in the preseason, and I think they have enough talent overall to make it work. But I do love the matchup Week one, that they're going against bow Nicks and this hype machine in Denver. That's a little out of control and I have to stop myself from just pushing against the fans because it's not Sean Payton or bow Nix's fault that the fans think bo Nicks is this awesome, but it does annoy me ally.

Well, Mike McDonald has the chance it's like win Week one by closing down Bonix and a misbegotten high train and then people saying, look, how smart might McDonald's being one of the great Week one overreactions before they get their heads club for the next five six weeks. That's definitely in play. My big concern with I think the linebacker stuff, the way Mike McDonald approaches things. They really play in a pretty limited plane. You're not asking an awful lot of people. It's pretty vertical and north south that there's not an awful lot going on there for those guys, So that is something you can pick up with. I mean, he had great ones last year, and I understand that, and that is a true cheat code. The big thing for his defense is then Nickel has to be, if not the best player on the unit, in the top three, and he's only not the best one because of the two guys are such freakazoids. That's like the go to thing for that defense. They blitz it so often it is crucial to the run scheme. I don't want to bore people too much with the details. I love Devon Weatherspoon. I thought he was the best corner in that class. I'm not sure for that role where a big part of the responsibility is being a wall defender versus the run. The guy who hits, who comes down, who flies around, but he doesn't scream out to me as a guy who can like drive someone off the ball plant and shift the blocker. It is more driving downfield and clothes lining someone and trying to create a turnover, So that to me is the concern that they've got a lot of talent on the back end. I think because of the young guys, I'm not sure that necessarily a line to what he wants to do, which then means he might have to switch things up and put more pressure on the linebacking group if he can't figure out with the secondary. So I just don't know if we're gonna get the pure uncook McDonald's right away.

I think we're going to be at least a year away from.

It because Devin Weatherston in that defense, you know, just from a basics point of view, it's like, oh wow, it's hee a sneaky defensive Player of the Year candidate or an All Pro candidate, And I am buying. There are some preseason stories I buy, and cornerbacks are so up and down that I am buying, like the Reek Woolen rejuvenation because he understood what went wrong on some level last year that he'll be at least a quality corner All it took for me, I'll were like a few reps where he embarrassed Calvin Ridley and joint practices and a few podcasts from Michael Shan Dugar, who does a great job of just saying he's looked awesome, and so I'm into that. There there's a lot of talent, and I think way more talent than the Broncos offense. And so that's one week, one game. I'm just curious to see. I guess if I'm right, and if they can dominate in that game, all right, you give me one more and we'll take a break after that.

It's gotta be Caleb versus the Tennessee defense. Is is this Titan defense going to be good? Do you think they could be sneaky good?

I would tend to know. That's what I'm I'm going towards.

It's weird one because as I go through them, it does feel like I don't know me playing Madden and like the signing guys I've heard of in two years time.

So I understand that.

But once you look at the secondary in particular, I do think X actually a decent amount of talent. Then obviously the best receiving core is could be really overwhelming. Caleb is such an unusual player and can extend and create plays, and I get the concerns with the front seven.

I love the uns Jones pickup.

I think that can that can have an impact, and they may not be a top twelve in DVOA type defense, but I don't think this is anywhere near like a troubling, dumpsterfire type unit. So I'm interested to see what that looks like in Week one.

Yeah, and it's the same coaching trades in Ard Wilson. You know, we don't know if he's gonna run everything the same. Actually, the way he's talked in the preseason does not sound like he's like running a Mike McDonald type of defense. It's gonna be a different a different scheme. He's his own guy, and the front could be good. Devandre Sweat Again, it's camp. I just think he's had a very positive camp, a guy that everyone was down on and certainly lack of judgment with Dui and his weight in everything. And yet everyone that's been at Titans camp is like, other than Jeffrey Simmons, he's been our most consistent defensive lineman. He's actually shown up and it's translated and they could be good upfront. And I am a little worried about the Bears offensive line in general. I think Bears fans are higher on it than I am, but is at a matchup that they could lose Week one, Caleb Williams, that's spicy. I could see them being good. I didn't love the Owoozia signing. It's like and he hasn't been healthy in camp. I didn't even love love the lagarious Snead outside of Kansas City, not always being able to practice because his knee is such a problem signing. So that's a big mystery box, a big question mark. But you're right, there's a chance there that they could improve quite a bit.

Yeah, I think I am higher on the secondary than you. I really like the safety room. I think they can do interesting creative things with those guys. I think Sneed's are really good. We'll see if you just put him in a pure bump and run situations that you've got nothing else to do with the rest of the game. That should translate. There's no earthy reason why it shouldn't. Yet for some reason, this happens every year in free age, So these guys don't translate playing the exact same technique as somewhere else, and for some reason it doesn't work. The front I'm probably more down on from you. I'm not a Devandre sweat guy. That is to me, that's camp stuff. It's believe it when I see it. It's believe it when it's eight straight weeks and it's snapped a snap and it's not rotating golf and just playing running downs and maybe possibly considering being in shape to play football.

At this level.

So that that is the thing I will I will definitely have to see before I believe it.

And yeah, that's a great point too, because of course in camp, like they're not you know, they're in pads plenty, but they're not they're not tackling to the ground.

They're doing it. It's a totally different sport.

And they're very thin there that I have sort of picked up on that, Like they're planning on him playing a lot. He's certainly starting, and that's that's a little concerning. But if you get close to prime Jeffrey Simmons and it sounds like he's ready to go, and Harold Landry finished out last season well and I think could have you know, is certainly a solid edge like they they have guys arden Key had that suspension overturn, and so that's a fun one. Titans Bears Week one, We're gonna come back with a couple more things that we're just like, we just can't wait to unwrap week one. We couldn't even wait to do the previous show. So we'll be back in a couple of minutes. All right, we are back here on NFL Daily and yeah, but the big news in the UK.

Oasis it's back. They're back.

Are you what do you? What's your oasis connection? I'll give you a second to think about that, as I say, my biggest connection there is the first ever weekend of my life that I ever just got drunk for an entire weekend because I was either a freshman or a sophomore in high school and someone someone had a house that was just open for the weekend and I somehow, you know, got you know, my parents allowed me to sleep over there and I think I spent we spent like two or three nights and yeah, that was that was That ages me a little bit, but it was definitely maybe an oasis lived forever, just basically on repeat, like while getting drunk as a fifteen year old for forty eight hours straight.

Well, I live in Manchester, England, as you know, I'm from the North of England. People can't tell that from my messed up voice of living in Boston for three years and having the wolf's most accent. So for us, you know, thirteen years old in a park with rock and roll star believing and walking and talking like we are all Liam and Nole Gallaghans. That is how I was born and raised.

That is awesome.

I can kind of picture it, but not picture because I've never been in Manchester. When I go, it's like I always stay in London. This year, I really on Saturday, I wanna Saturday usually have some free time. I want to like get outside the city. Not that London's not amazing, but it's time for me to venture out. Maybe you can help me with that.

Ali.

Before that, though, let's talk more week one and hmmm, where do I go next? Let's call Colt's defensive line. I had a lot lay after LAT two was just such a fun prospect to me, as fun of a edge prospect as there's been in a couple years. And in the preseason, the little that we saw he looked like the same guy in college. It makes you feel a little better that, okay, this is going to translate. And then you think about that defensive line in general. You know, the question for me is DeForest Buckner and Grover Stewart gonna be close to where they have been at their peak, because if they're anywhere close, and they've been pretty good lately next to lat too, and you know you have Quidy pay as the other edge that matchup against the Texans week one, you got larm. You know, maybe it's a lot to versus tunsl which is like you know, film geek porn there and the whole line in general. I have some questions about the rest of the Texans offensive line, but that line and some good linebackers for the Colts too against this explosive Texans offense, and there's some familiar aler arity now between the two coaching staff to me that that's a really exciting Week one of just like, okay, where are these these two sides at especially a lot too versus Tunsil could be a lot of fun.

Yeah, that's a GC one. I wish I really like that line. I don't mind them playing a four down and go situation. They've got the dudes, they can just fire off the ball and make some Hey. I do kind of wish he was with someone over them. Gous Bradley. Not to dump on Gus Bradley particularly, but you just went through it right. We've got this guy, this past rusher who is an unusual type play. He doesn't win in normal ways pass rushers play football. I've described him for as like an MMA fight. Do they just like let loose on the football field. It's a weird hand movement and uncoordinated body stuff. It's not really fire off the ball and dip around the edge or run through someone's chest. I mean, he can do that stuff, but he's at his best kind of levitating in the air and doing unorthodox kind of TJ. Watt type things. So you look at the Texans line, you say, let's just plant this guy over the center, let him loose, and we'll get like ten to fifteen pressures. Everyone else can come screaming con and we all high five, what a great day. There's no need for him to be caught up in the Laramie tunsil hurricane of just the speed and the power and a guy who is who will be laughing if you try and hit him with some weird like Bruce Lee moves and then you just wind up in his arms. It's not gonna work. So that's not a great match to my thinking for a lot do week one. If he's going to come and try and do his typical things, which I think can make him a really, really good player in the league, I would like to see him moved around and maybe Bradley spent you know, six months away hanging out in the lake, get a bit frisky and deciding to change up things a little bit front.

It is kind of wild to think about the run that Gus Bradley's had. I don't know if he's had a single season where he hasn't run a defense since he started running a defense.

And yeah, he has the reputation.

You can tell me if it's changed in your eye in any recent years of Yeah, he's gonna line him up, he's gonna have the four linemen, he's gonna do what he does. I mean, he's mixed it a little bit on the back end maybe before, but he's a little more static and a little more just like our players are going to be ear players more, yes, coordinators.

It's really static and it's all about which is fair enough to the NFL. It's really hard. You got guys rolling now injured right practice squad guys. It makes a ton of sense to say, you get me players, I'll teach them technique, will go win games. It is still for all the fun stuff about rotations and sim pressures. It is still sixty forty a man coverage single highly That's what it is. So that's what he made in him getting frisky was adding in a dose of Tampa two and being like, hey, look at me, guys, kind of getting out there over here, look at me. So I don't think it's going to be a wacky situation on the back end, but he's now been given these pieces where he could do interesting things them. It could be more Niners like where it's at least an overload front and we're trying to do something a little bit different to get after people in the past US game. Because he's now he's got the pieces, there's not really an excuse I don't think for them to be one of the best pressure teams in the league.

Yeah, Deo Adigmbo is still there. Sampson Abakom just a little update. I had mentioned he was out for the season, we believe with an achilles. They put him on designated to return. There was a Terrell Suggs Achilles tear ones where he returned by the end of the season. So if they're you know, I think they can be a playoff team. I put them in the playoffs in our AFC preview with Nick Wright as one of the wildcard teams. So just something to keep an eye on that maybe he could return. But they're fairly deep, especially on the edge. They have Taekwon Lewis. It's a it's a fun defense. It's a fun off. I mean, it's just a fun division. Why don't you go with the next one?

For me, it has to be the Dallas defense. I have no idea what this thing is going to be. We get zimmer Bag. I don't think people quite understand last year how corrupted they were by design for long stretches. Because dank Quinn is considered a great coach. He had the two really good years and he gets a head coaching job, so he gets a job promotion, which I think people think means he did a great job. But structurally they were a disaster for like large chunks of last year. And I've made this point before where it just because you had that one by year, it doesn't mean dan Quinn can't be a good head coach elsewhere. That could be what happened in a job interview can run a programmer's done the job before. But if he just went in without any of the background stuff and it was just a tape by tape who had a good year of the year before, there is no chance he's getting any kind of job. And so you bring Zimmern and they do absolutely nothing. They get Eric Kendricks, who is just like Scotch taped together as please give us a chance. They say they're not going to run all this three safety stuff. They're betting on Marsie Smith and these guys to show internal development. They lose a cornerback. I'm pretty worried that they're not going to be anywhere near the level people would assume they would be the thing they've got going in their favors. I'm also not quite sure about Deshan Watson the Cleveland Browns offense. And we may get one week where Mike Parson sparkles and we still think that they're a really effective group.

It's really interesting and I haven't heard it put that way. I think you're right because of the presidence of Parsons and just the name of Laurence, so that DeMarcus is still a good player. He's not what he was, but he's still a plus player to have out there, not as much talent. And you're right, I didn't think dan Quinn had that bad of a year. I thought he had a bad like final six weeks. It was kind of disastrous. It reminded me a little bit of Mike Rabel getting the promotion to a head coaching job too, when his defense was absolutely terrible.

Here, it's not a bad year. If you go by some of the metrics and the measurables, it's not so bad. I'm just saying that if you are someone who's evaluating a coaching job and you sit down with them and say, walk me through what you're doing here. They have things where runfit wise, they don't make any logical sense, and it was happening weekly, and you've got you know, they're playing more defensive backs than anyone else in the lead. They got defensive backs fitting B gaps which regularly, which is not like cool Brandon Staley stuff.

It's like an error.

Then they have a bunch of players when it's run to the perimeter where two guys are arriving at the same spot at once. So that's just either a coaching issue of feeding it into the players or you've designed a poor defense and you don't now have to spin your way out of it midway through the year because you realize we don't have any linebackers.

What have we done?

And that runs into this is to go and get Zimmer and Eric Hendricks. That's the solution.

Yeah, the Kendricks hype and I think think I've said this on this show, so I feel bad pileing non but this weird thing where I'll listen to Cowboys ANALYSTSS like, well we got you know, we fixed linebacker by getting Eric Kendricks. I was like, no, Aeron Kendricks was a problem for their last two teams. He's got to be a problem for your team. Zimmer coming off the shelf, you never know, like could he get a little wild or could it be stale?

Like he's a bit of a mystery.

Certainly one of the most effective defensive coordinators of the last twenty years, and yet yeah, different situation.

Everyone's on the hot seat. It's weird.

He certainly is. And everyone loves Mike Zimmer. I love Mike Zimmer. I love the tenor and tone of how he just used football. I love the commodtioneally style when it's kind of this like little genius hidden in there.

But he's a commercial still good on hard knocks. As a decoordinator. It was so good with the Bengals.

It was fun.

That is my favorite kind of coach. But I think he's a little bit misunderstood in the sense that they were never that wacky or inventive. They did some interesting things with Harrison Smith, and it was like, well, therefore the whole defense must be really, you know, inventive and cool. He's very static, it's very cover three. It's pretty traditional. It's three linebackers as often as possible. That's why they went and got Kendricks. It's like, you wouldn't have made that move if that was not the style you were expecting to run again, and dan Quinn, to be fair to him, really overhauled the entire thing. Became a guy who was playing a bunch too deep and rotating a lot.

It just failed.

It was just not well designed by the end of the run there and was bailed out by great players up front, essentially masquerading, you know, covering up a lot of like technical flaws with the defense. I think Zimma can at least fix those bear basics, and that is a starting point. I just don't know if they have that much talent.

Yeah, they're counting on de Moon Clark maybe who knows, he might be the fourth linebacker, but they think maybe he develops DeMar Vean Overshan maybe improving. That's a third round pick from a year ago development there. I've heard there's some concerns about Marshawn Neelan and his hip coming into the ceiling. I know he's defensive end, but they're they're a little thinner, and you're right, just the talent isn't quite as good, and certainly Deron Bland's injury doesn't help there. I hate to go so Cowboys heavy and be basic, but that was my fourth was the offense. So I guess I gotta watch this game. I really am interested in this game. Plus it's Brady's first game. I have to admit as a broadcast head and a Brady head, you know, just.

All of it.

I'm this is my main game. I'm in Fox. I'm not gonna be like a hipster. I want to watch this game. But it is because of the offense for the Cowboys to me more than the defense that this offensive line versus the Browns defensive line. Now they've had some injuries in camp, but you know, Miles Garrett potentially against Geiton and or whoever they're you know, going to have it right tackle there. It was a really effective defensive line. I'm wondering if this Brown's defense kind of like you mentioned with mac Mike McDonald's defense, in everyone getting a year to kind of get used to the scheme and everything, what is year two Jim Schwartz in Cleveland?

Can it be as effective?

And then all the questions that we have about the Cowboys offense, specifically to me, the offensive line coming into the year and the running game, And I'm just I don't really have a hot take of like how it's gonna go. I just want to see it and what the heck happens. The Browns one is fascinating because that's one where we'll know, I think within like a quarter, like is the magic still there? They last year played like almost a high school kind of defense. It was seventy two percent of the time the middle of the field is closed. They ran basically three coverages all year. They had like four changeups. That was the entire defense. And then they've got this outrageous pass rush, which is just players. It was just four down and go, and that is great coaching. It's like, I have really good players, I'm gonna put them in the best spot. We'll play man coverage everywhere. It's really easy. They had really talented corners. But when you're losing guys tow injury to just say, this is what Belichick always did so well. Why he'd always just find a corner by people.

How does he do that?

Belichick's a genius. He says, you find that guy and you run with him everywhere. That's the job for the week. We're not doing all cool creative coverage stuff. So I think we'll know pretty quickly whether they still have that kind of talent. I just don't know if it's easy to roll with that year or year and say we're going to be the most static, predictable defensive league and not just you know, do well, but house people by a big distance in terms of precious sacks, TFLs, all that kind of stuff. So I think we'll know quickly, and then for Dallas. I just don't trust that staff to ever make things. It's like they as good as Dak is and I'm a huge Dak believer. It's like they think there's some kind of like extra bonus points for being very complicated and that's how they view offensive football, and there just isn't And if he's not got the time and he can't create a move as well as he has it in the past, then I think they could.

Be in trouble.

Yeah, and it could be one of those matchup based things that both of these units are a little worse than everyone thinks. But it's a fun game, it's close, it's the national game, and you feel good maybe about both sides coming out of it. It's like, oh, that was a good match between two good sides. And maybe not because to me, Cook Brandon Cooks is is.

Not what he was. He hasn't been what he was. And we'll see.

They've been high on their third receiver, whom I wanted to say Geiton, but Jalen Tolbert, not Jalen Guitton, who's had a good camp and everything. Ferguson's a solid, you know, but this is a maybe a group you can cover with man coverage other than Seee Lamb, who's not going to have a ton of practice time before this game. All right, let's wrap up one more pick your best one you got remaining, Ali Connolly.

Best one I got remaining is Bryce Young has to be Bryce Young? What on earth is this thing going to look like? Do you have any idea of what Bryson will look like?

In you two?

Because for me, the big thing is it's like everyone's already moved on. C J. Stroud is great, we get Caleb Williams, we get Drape May, and it's as though an everyone outside of Carolina is like the number one overall pick who they traded their entire frenchise to go get might just stink and they don't want to say it publicly.

And I hope he's going to be great. The league will be awesome.

If Bryce Young is amazing, that would be I just from what they've said, what they've messaged, what they've shown in the tiny sample size possible, I'm just not buying him believing it right now.

In terms of the camp progress. And you know, he had one good preseason drive, but it's hard to take too much out of that. I just feel like and you can tell me what you think about Canalis that it'll make it should make more sense. I just am more concerned that even if he plays better, the talent around him, is the coaching enough to like, what's the upside here, Like, it's the ceiling's still probably pretty low even if he plays better. I keep comping him to Alex Smith just in terms of like where he could go as one of the worst rookie quarterbacks of all time to a pretty respectable second year under North Turner with the forty nine ers, where I was like, Okay, this guy is going to have a career and be a decent enough starter.

That's that's probably the hope.

But I still think everything around him is probably close to bottom five level.

Yeah.

I mean the offensive line they did improve, and it was such a disaster last year, but it's one of those ones where they invested so much money in it. It's like even if it's just like bad.

Right, maybe Damian Lewis and Robert Hunt, like how many people were talking about them as difference makers last year.

I don't know, No, I think it's not going to be great. The only thing you can buy.

It's like trying to give Bryce Young his second contract now by buying other.

Players in the hopes he may be good and.

Then you can make a decision, but at some point you would have to pay him then at that point, So it's I think it's a gutsy strategy to basically make yourself bad on defense.

We will be old and bad on defense.

To give this guy a hope is to their credit of trying to find out what they got with this guy. I just don't like the pairing of the coach of the quarterback. I think worked to a point of Canalis is a really good motivator, confidence builder. I view him as more of like a glorified quarterback coach who's also the head coach. Where I get concerned from what he's been messaging and what they've shown so far is that he will have a hands on role in the actual offense. That gives me a cause to pause and concerned. I just don't think that fits with Bryshung the player at all. So even if you can build it slightly, I think we're gonna end up with this season where it's like Bryce Sung's maybe there's something in there, and that isn't really a good answer. Either you kind of just want to know right by the end of the year. Either this isn't gonna work. We've got to pull the ripcorn and find a way out because we've got to build the rest of our roster. We've sunk so much money into the offensive line. Now we're gonna have to make some tough decisions.

Or Yeah, we got it.

There's a pathway to stardom here and we can start building around that. And I think what they're building here, for some strange reason, in my opinion, is some part some kind of Jared Goffian, Baker mayfield Ian Russell wilson Ian type offense that just is not a fit for Brys. Youung the player based on the line.

Why now, Like why not?

So you said Canalis being so involved in running the offense is almost a red flag for you. Their offensive coordinator is Brad Idzick. Just the name Idzick freaks me out. It's sort of like the opposite of, you know, Nepo Baby. But I guess it worked out for him that, like he overcame what happened with his dad with the Jets. But why don't you think Canalis and Young fit perfectly together?

Yeah?

And if you go through the rest of the staff, these are all his boys from Seattle. He just went through the phone book. He brought all his boys to them Seattle. They didn't go and bring out someone as an outside high who maybe would blend more with a true spread type style that Bryce Young I think would be best. And now I've said this in a bunch of places, so I'm sorry people heard this before. But he's such an unusual player. To try and build a typical offense that constrains the quarterback that is Jared Goffian when he doesn't have those skills makes no sense. And it sounds like I've been smoking when chweed or something to say, you've got a bill swing no one's ever seen before. Man, it's got to look completely different, man.

But I think that's true.

I think you need this is we've never seen someone with that skill set whose best trait is tap dancing in the backfield, right, That's the number one bryising thing. Can he create and playmate from the backfield so in a Drew Brees body, that's who he is. So what you have to do is given as many options as possible on every single play. You know, constraining him in a two man route combination offense, whereas you hit the deep cross while you check it down. He's just not that player. He doesn't drive the ball down the field like Russell Wilson. He doesn't drive the ball down the field like Gered Goff. These guys where it's a point and shoot, take that and go. That's not who he is, and that's the style they've been running in the preseason. It's a whole bunch of concept feed coverage. If the concept wins, get rid of the ball. So you're trying to make him Baker Mayfield by limiting him as much as possible. That's what they're trying to do. When the point of taking the guy would be he can create for us, and you can only create if there are as many options out in the route as possible, so that he can move around, bounce and then go find people downfield.

Maybe like I'm trying to think, well, what would be good for him?

And you're right, I saw I think people underrate or have forgotten about his potential creativity. He didn't have the confidence to necessarily do it. Certainly he can throw with anticipation, and he showed a little bit of that in that preseason, just the way he was moving looked good.

It's like, Okay, this guy's in the NFL.

You realize that I'm trying to think what would be good for him is like a like a Deshaun Watson and Houston type of thing.

Even then, I mean that was again Deshaun drives the ball down the field. It's really it's difficult to play in an offense where you're basically in a three man situation. That's a lot of what they do these like levels concepts, you call them deep, intermediate, short, that's a lot of what those offenses are. When your guy can't truly drive it down the field, it has to be a lot of what the Rams have done when they get into empty is it's a double stack, switch releases, and then you can just throw it open.

Swan runs underneath it. That's what you would need.

Now. I think they should be at ten, fifteen, twelve percent in empty and just have oz on a podcast people writing deep features.

How are the Panthers running empty?

It by far the highest rate since Brady was really cooking in twenty That's what it should be, Noriy.

But that's where I threw out Watson because if I'm right, I think there was a lot. I was just trying to think who can be a point guard and just create and options and they will be fun. That's a fun one to watch in Week one. They're playing the Saints. I do like Week one games where it feels as close to a must win as possible. So on one hand, like Saints Panthers is low on everyone's list of probably what they're watching first, and yet if that game is fifteen to twelve in the fourth quarter, Panthers are leading the Saints and that crowd is booing Derek Carr a little bit and grumbling, there actually feels like there'd be more stakes in that game because the Saints can't lose that game to start the season than almost any other NFL game out there. So that's fun to me. Every game in Week one is a little fun in different ways. It was great having you Ali again. If I can do anything, listen to this podcast that Ali does with John Ledyard and Oli does a great job writing too.

You can get smarter.

And so that's over at the Read Option Podcasts and we hope to have Ali on throughout the course of the season until Tuesday look, I'm gonna have Jordan rodriegback, and before the season starts, we're gonna choose what would be our ideal roster, almost like a preseason All Pro team, but in the fifty three million roster form. It's gonna be a fun exercise until then football's back.

NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal

Gregg Rosenthal and a rotating crew of elite NFL Media co-hosts, including Patrick Claybon, Colleen  
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