Hey guys, it's up. We've got a great show coming for you this week. We got the takeaways. We've got a special guest coming in, a guy who played in the league, who's gonna tell us about player responsibility. You have some great stories on that end in a year where it will be paramount and it's always to get to all of your questions in the sixth pack. Well, let's go. Welcome in. Its the m m QUB Podcast with Albert Brier. We had a great show coming for you this week. Like I said, we had some awesome storytelling coming with our special guest, and we're gonna get to you a questions to the six pack. We don't have gress this week. Timing didn't work. I'm on the road, so we'll get creshed back in here soon and we are going to get to the takeaway. It's just give you guys a little bit of an update of where I'm at right now. I'm actually in my hotel room in Morristown, New Jersey, and it is strange. Um, there were very few cars in the parking lot here at the hotel. Um, it is a different environment out there on the road. I drove through Connecticut, New York, New Jersey with minimal traffic issues at three four five o'clock. Um, and I'm here, I'm on the road. I went to my first training camp, was with the Patriots this morning, Gonna be with the Jets and Giants the next two days, Eagles and Ravens after that, and then probably on down to Florida to see a couple of quarterbacks. But it's definitely a different year. The good news is when I actually got out to practice, it looked like football practice. I mean, outside of looking out there and seeing the coaches wearing masks, you just see the sort of little baby blue boxes over their mouths. Other than that, I mean, it was a pretty normal football practice in New England today. We'll see how it goes the next few places I go, And I want to give you guys a taste of what's going on out there. And that's sort of why I'm going out. Um. The access is different. Usually this is a great time of year for me to go and see people. It's gonna be tougher, um, no question, for the best reasons possible. Um, because we're all trying to take care of one another, and so I'm not gonna be able to see as many people, which is why I'm not going to as many camps as I normally do. But I do want to give you guys a little flavor, which is why I'm out on the road. Now, let's jump into the takeaways. And my first takeaway is it does connect to everything that's going on here um in in this most different summer for the NFL. Two more players came off the COVID nineteen list on Tuesday at four o'clock. That means the NFL's total number is now down to ten. I want to do the math. I'm not great at math, but I know that that is just under one for every three teams. That is outstanding news for the NFL. And I'll tell you what I've learned. What I've learned here is the importance of daily testing and how when the players asked for it, what a logical ask that was. Is what it does prevents guys who are getting it from coming in the building. And I think I may have overlooked the importance of that, but I think that's a huge reason why they've been able to control it the way they've been able to control it. Over the first few weeks of camp and why I think they've got a great chance now to have a successful season. I'm more optimistic now than I was before. I still think that to some degree, you are sort of a prisoner to what's happening across the country, and the NFL can't control that. Um, circumstances are gonna change over the next few weeks, no question about it. The days for NFL coaches, for NFL players are gonna get a little shorter when they get out of training camp. Um, you're gonna be spending more time at home. Your kids might go back to school. If you're a coach or're an older player, Um, you know, your wife might go back to work. They're gonna be different circumstances that everybody's gonna be dealing with. It are gonna be introduced into the environment. So much that's gonna be about responsibility, of course, on the part of the individual players, the individual coaches. And again we're gonna get into that with our with our guest, um. But I mean to this point, I mean, given the circumstances so far, so good, that number being down to ten is outstanding news for the National Football League. Takeaway number two. It's gonna be an interesting year for the forty Niners. And it's always interesting to see where you know, teams coming off of a Super Bowl year, sometimes the injury luck swings the other way. And it's not to say the Niners didn't deal with injuries in two thousand and nineteen, UM, but you know, you look at it now, they've lost Jalen Heard to a torn a c L. They of course didn't have him last year. He had the back issue last year. So the two thousand nineteen draft picks still hasn't played a game for the organization. And then Deebo Samuel of course broke his foot. They hope to have him back for the opener, but you know how foot problems can affect skill position players and that's an issue. So now that means they're gonna be relying a little bit more on Brandon now you get that position. At those positions, they'd obviously like for Dante Pettis to come along a little bit um at those spots. You know, they took a flyer on Tavon Austin. UM. You know, the good news is they've got it happy and newly wealthy George Kittle and Camp. But certainly I think you know, you start to see where these issues. Sometimes your injury luck is good, um, owned one year and you perform like the Niners performed last year, and then you come back and it's not as good the next year, and so UM, the Niners obviously the challenge changes a little bit for them this year. That said, if there was one spot where they think the Niners could do are are able to kind of manage it with a little bit less, it might be that receiver spot. Again, they've got a great tight end, they've got a very good running game, and they've got a defense that can win games for them, and they've got a head coach who is as good at coaching up and developing receivers as anyone in the league in Kyle Shanahan. And so I think the Niners are gonna be okay. But I think it's just sort of one of those signs of how things can be different from one year to the next for a team that's coming off early special year like the Niners are. Takeaway number three now that this is really interesting. My buddy Tom Pella Sarah reported UM on Tuesday that Dalvin Cook's being held out of team drills as he negotiates a new contract. We also saw news out of Arizona that DeAndre Hopkins might be kind of holding back a little bit um as he tries to to to to get a revision on his existing contract. And it's interesting to me because the hold out rules have become so strong now and I really kind of like see this is this is sort of the way that players are going to have to handle it now and creatively, it'll be interesting to see how this can maybe create disputes between players and teams where players don't feel like they can hold out because of the rules, and now is the answer for them to become a little bit more of an issue inside the building if they're not happy with their contract. Um it'll be again, it's just an interesting kind of thing to watch. I think the Cardinals and Vikings are handling this the right way. It hasn't been an issue as far as we know in Arizona to this point. Although you would like to have a guy who's new to the team working as much as you possibly could with working as much as he possibly could with your with your quarterback Kyler Murray. I really like what the Vikings have done because the Vikings are sort of acknowledging how important this is for Alvin Cook's future, and you know how obviously you know this sort of contract negotiation is front of mine for the player, and so you don't want to put him out there where he's thinking about different things or he doesn't feel like he can protect himself properly. And so I think it is at least a nice olive branch that the that the Vikings have been willing to hold him out of team drills question number or take away number four. Um. People made a big deal out of the fact that Joe Judge Um is making guys run laps um ends. I mean, like you don't see it all that much. Again, I think so much of how this winds up being digested a year from now, two years from now, three years from now, he's green based on the success that Judge has, of course wins and losses, but also in developing individual players. And to me, so much of this comes down to can you show the guys how to get better and can you win games? If you can't do those two things, you're gonna wind up looking bad no matter what you do, And something like this is probably gonna make you look a little extra bad like you know, Josh McDaniels and Denver obviously, and I think Josh is gonna be great when he gets another chance. But I I because they didn't have the success there, people kind of look back and pointed at things that happened and acted, Okay, well that was the cause of it, that was the cause of it, and maybe that had something to do with it. But if Josh McDaniels had, you know, if they had done a better job building on the start that they had there, I believe they were six and oh in his first year and they hadn't collapsed, you know, people would be looking back at those things and saying, well, he is still disciplined and he instilled toughness, and that program is old school. When you don't win, it makes you look like, you know, like high school coach. And so I think for Joe Judge, you know, the key is gonna be what happens next and his ability to take the team, to take the team to back to where it has been in the past, of course, but also to develop individual players. Is ultimately what do players care about? They care about their earning power, and how do you build earning power? You build earning power by becoming a better player. And so I just think a lot of times these sorts of stories look like, is he gonna be able to show those guys how to win? Is he gonna be able to show those guys individually how to get better? If he does, you know, we'll be looking back on this and saying, well, you know, he did a great job in stilling discipline, and that place needed it, and they needed to get back to some of the foundation that was laid by Tom Coughlin all the way back in two thousands and four. Um, if they don't win, then people are gonna point and laugh and say like, oh, yeah, that's just another guy trying to imitate what Belichick did. I don't think running laps is a big deal, um, to be clear, And I don't think it's going to determine whether or not Joe Judge's success from New York or not. Finally, take away number five, A couple more college players have opted out over the last couple of days. UM to me, Jalen Mayfield, the Michigan tackle who did a really really nice job on Chase Young UM in November, I think a better job than anybody expected him. To he hops it opts out, he's a potential first round pick. You can see it. To me, there are two other names on Monday that we're sort of interesting, uh, Carrie Vincent, who's a nickel, a very athletic nickel back at at l s U. He opted out he was gonna play a big role in their secondary at LSU at Grant Delpit. And Christian Fulton who went to the Browns and Titans in the draft. Um, he was gonna play a big role and have a chance to really step forward. He opts out. My understanding, he's probably third fourth round pick. And then Kennedy Brooks, the running back from Oklahoma, who's probably a Day three pick. Um, you know as a running back. And so to me, like seeing these two guys is interesting just because if there is some semblance of a college season, how does this affect guys who do play um in and how many guys passed these guys? I think, what's to me the reason why I'm singling that those guys out is because you do have guys at the top who I don't think would be affected by munch and Jalen Mayfield is borderline in that category. Michael Parsons is certainly in that category. Greg Russo is in that category. Where was this just the freakish talent is so clear and it's there, and somebody's gonna take a swing at the guy right where when you're talking about guys who you know second round and below, a lot of times like the difference between the second round or a fifth round, or the difference between the third round or in a sixth round is like razor thin, right, razor then, and so not playing a season could really affect these guys. Now, I'm not criticizing their decision, because these are deeply personal decisions for each of these guys um and a lot of these guys have family reasons for doing it and everything else. It's just gonna be interesting to see the side by side when you look at players that are at those positions and how many guys pass those guys. If there are any guys that hurt themselves by playing this fall just to me, like, that's sort of one of the subplots to one draft, is how the guys who opt out wind up stacking up against guys who play a season. Again, if there's a college season, and again that's something that we're gonna be able to monitor. We're not gonna have answers on that in two weeks. That's something we're gonna be monitoring over the next six, seven, eight months. So there's the five takeaways for this week. We'll get to our special guests right after this. All right, we're gonna bring back one of our favorite guests. And uh, I'm not just bringing him in because of the timing and everything going on with the Big ten. Um, he's gonna give us great insight on where on where the NFL is now, UM, what it means, UM, the way that the NFL has been running training camp and kind of his impressions from early on. And so we're bringing back into the show former first round pick, former cowboy, former Ohio State Buck Eye and now, um, you can see him on both ESPN on get Up and and let'sten to him. If you're in Columbus one. Thanks seven point one the fan, Welcome back, Bobby Carpenter, Albert, thanks for having me on. Man, it's a pleasure, is always, all right. So let's start here. I just want to know what the mood is like there because I, uh and we both know you you're a player I that was a student. We know how important uh Buckeye football is there. So what what's the last few day has been like for you as a sports radio host and a former player there, Well, you kind of go through Albert all the all the um little steps of grief. You know, at first it's anger. You've got some resentment in there. I think the spare set in the one thing was like, I don't think it's really ever gotten to the point of acceptance because people are still fighting in the fact that you see what's happening with the SEC the Big twelve of the a c C. And you know people up here like, well, you're telling me it's not safe, but the doctors a duke are saying that it's good enough for them to go. And so they're trying to rationalize all this and that's all you see, this big ground swell and people are pushing back, trying to do everything they can to try to save a season. I don't know if it could be salvage at this point. I'd say it's a small chance, but I think that they're probably hoping to get some substantive change and how things operating, especially for the players. I think a lot of the players are looking at and saying, Hey, how can we try to make sure that if this ever does happen, especially the young guys, like, we want to make sure we have a place at the table to decide our own futures. What do you think, Like, can you imagine? I mean, because you probably be quality. I mean, you're obviously qualified to put yourself in these guys shoes, Like, what do you think is running through a player in Ohio State or Penn State or Michigan. What what's running through the player's head right now? Um, I think a lot of them are really confused. Number one, because the thing that they the coaches impressed upon them, and I've talked to some of these guys, is the fact that they told him, if you did all this stuff during the spring and during the summer, and we did this, and we did that, and we kept our numbers low, and everybody's numbers spiked a little bit early on. But if you look across college football, for the most part, they've all subsided. And so I think these guys are really just kind of distraught because like, we did everything you asked, and you're not even giving us a chance for it to fail. And to not work. That's the biggest thing that's frustrating because they don't understand, like you told us that we did this and we did it right and everything stayed okay, we'd have a chance. So they're kind of there. There's a lot of despair and there's some confusion trying to figure out roll and do I do if you're a graduating senior, know, am I gonna play this this spring? How does that work? How many guys that are going to be left on my team as opposed to probably going to the NFL? And is spring even realistic possibility? Because I don't I still don't believe that that's even gonna happen. Do you like? So? Do you like? You? Obviously still you know, very connected to the program. You live there, I know you're over there a bunch. Were the kids really responsible over the last two months in the way they handle this because they got back to campus what like way around like June eighth, right, like June eighth, June nine, somewhere in there, like just your own observations, How responsible were the kids with this? Incredibly responsible? Um, if you saw when they came in they were working out Obviously they set it up so like each position group worked out at their own time, and they would rotate guys from like the weight room to the end door to run, and then they're like some outdoor stations and they'd sanitize everything like you'd work out for forty five minutes it to each one. They cleaned all up. And so that was on the facility and on premise. And then when they went there, like none of the guys were going out and doing anything. And I don't know if you saw the speech by Jonathan Cooper, like the impassioned speech, like he was a he's a senior. I've known John's Jonathan since he was a sophomore. Get handle Lincoln. My dad coaches in his league. He's an incredibly unbelievable human being, great family, hard worker. And you saw him laying all his teammates saying like, don't ruin this for everybody. And that's really the way the guys took it. They stayed in. They they abstained from going to all those pool parties our that you went to growing up and going to a higher state and having all the fun with the co eds. Like they gave up this whole summer of college to try to play football and people look at that. I want you everyone to think, like what some of your college summers were like and how much fun you had and they didn't get to do any of that? Do you like, So, what do you think happens like if if I if I had to ask you, what do you think is the most likely thing that happens with the Big ten schools? I think there's gonna be a decent amount of pushback unless Kevin Warren is probably removed, which I don't see happening. I don't see them playing, and I think it's gonna really really start to hit close to home albert when the A, C, C SEC and Big twelve when they kick off, if they actually have games, there's going to be people that are very upset and there I've told people I've been on a lot of different radio stations. Heck, I've probably done five hours of radio outside of my own show in the last like five or six days. And I told him, like, you're upset, right, your congressman wright, your senator, right, your governor right, your state reps. Get ahold of them because they're the ones that ultimately shaped the board and the governance of how these universities operating. If you don't like it and the presidents they're picking and the decisions they're making, take it up with them. And those people are survivors by nature, and if they feel like and the one thing Albert, like, you know, being in Boston, you understand this, like nothing unifies probably Boston, like the pat It's like the Red Sox, it's like the Celtics. Nothing unifies Ohio. Whether you're conservative, liberal, Republican, Democrat, black, white, any of these things don't matter on game day. You're a Buckeye man. And if that's been taken away, that's something that everybody can get behind. And so I guarantee you if you plant applying a political pressure, there may be some structural change in how things operate, all right. So like for those who don't know Bobby Big promotion, I would say, I think I can call it that over to the Morning Drive recently there on ninety seven point one the fan in Columbus, I'm wondering if you guys have discussed how are you gonna fill all that time? Like I'm just interested in that because it's such a big part of what you guys talk about there. Have you guys talked about like, what are we gonna do now that maybe there might not like, like the possibility is there that there might not be Ohio State football, like actual games at least to talk about for the next twelve months. Well, you know, right now we're in the point, you know, I think we're gonna have Urban Meyer on here. I'm getting in contact with Randy Wade, Shawn Wade's dad, who is going to Chicago. I think we're gonna have him on to talk a little bit about his experience. You know, once this subsides the one thing about Columbus, it's a huge college football town, and so we might do a little thing like everybody draft your own team, what what team you want to cheer for from the sec A, c C, Big twelve and talk about that stuff. A little bit in NFL will come in, but it'll probably still be a lot about the hypotheticals of what this team could be because there's no questioning the fact that this team a top five talent in college football, and you could argue it's maybe the most talented roster in in college football, and potentially I talked to coach Brian Hartline, who you know, I played with and you know, you covered like this is the most talented offensive team I've ever seen, like with what they have, and so it's almost just reliving what could have been the hypotheticals. It it's like the guy sitting on the bar stool, we're talking about his knee getting blown out or he was going d one that will be Buckeye season. That what sucks about it is that it's like and that's what like, it's just the reality of college football is that they're like, you don't just run it back the next year, you know, like like a bunch of these kids are gonna be gone. And it's just that's the thing is like this this would wind up being such a huge what if, especially like and I don't know, I mean, I guess you throw the word generational around, but I have heard that talking to people I know they're that are inside that building where this could have had a chance to be a generational type of team. Well, when you look at how last season ended, you know, a misread away against Clemson, You're having the lead and having some calls go against shake. Everybody was geared up and the guy who are really feel for his pushing This is justin Fields, like, he doesn't need this year to get drafted in the top five, but I do think it would be very beneficial for him for his development of getting another season on the Ryan Day, seeing things for a second time, going through the progressions, dealing with new receivers. So that I think is invaluable. And that's one thing that people talk about, Oh, you know, these guys are fine, You're just going to the next level. There's a debl e mental process to this. We're playing more football for you is a good thing. Experience was you know, it's so interesting. You see that too, And we can start to transition now to the NFL conversation here because I think about him, I think about Trey Lance from North Dakota State. Trevor Lawrence has played two years, so I think he's probably a little bit of a different case. But you know, for Lands and Fields, they've only played for one full year, you know, and I just feel like a quarterback. It's almost like because those guys careers are longer. In the NFL, it's almost more about the second contract, right, So you want to hit the ground running when you get to the NFL. So the development is important and I also look at it, it's like the injury risk is it's not as bad as it is it under the positions I mean to uh, suffered about as bad and injuries you could possibly have, right, like like I mean short of being paralyzed in the field or something like that, Like that was a really really bad injury and he still went fifth overall, you know, like like Sam Bradford went first overall after separating his shoulder his last year at Oklahoma. So I think like for the quarterbacks, it's like again for guys like Lands and guys like Fields, I think it's tough because development, the development is going to count as far as like being able to hit the ground running and succeed, which gets you to that massive second contract, which again at quarterback, the numbers are astronomical, and the injury risk actually, if you like break it down you look at it, it's not as bad as it is in other positions where you know, like like suffering some sort of something, suffering a serious injury probably doesn't impact your draft stock quite as much as it does in other spots. No, And you even look at Drew Brees and what he came back with with his shoulder, like modern medicine now, like everybody has a high degree in faith that it will turn, that you'll be able to get into a place where you can play. And like you said to us, was almost as bad as you could possibly have and he was still able to get it done. And so when you look at that and understand it, it's really more the development. I go back to Bill parcelves as rules about drafting quarterbacks, and one of the things is like he one of guys that were two or three years starters and captains of their team, Like you're kind of eliminating guys now due to no all of their own because he knew that you wanted to have guys who had experience, guys who had been in situations, who had led teams in critical moments, and then you know one had an offseason to learn and get better and then also had teams game plan for you a little more specifically when you're the man. And so yeah, it's changed a lot. The downside of playing for those guys isn't that great Because regardless of Terry c all like the old draft and will sit him for a year, no big deal, that they'll come back as good as new, And so It's just tough to see those guys that are gonna be stunted a little bit. Carson Wentz is another one, by the way, missed almost his entire senior year at North Dakota State. Still one second overall, and like to kind of spend this NFL wise too. How tough do you think, Like when you look at at a jail and Mayfield from Michigan's the most recent one to opt out. How tough a choice? How tough of decision do you think a lot of these kids have now to like knowing like all right, like I like think I'm not gonna have you know, I'm not gonna have that year tape. I'm not gonna have year of development, like but like on the other end of it, I'm mitigating the risk and I'm giving myself a chance to train for the combine and get ready to give the NFL my best. Like how difficult a decision do you think that would be? If if you let me put yourself in that spot because you were a first round pick, How tough a quality think that is? For some of these guys. It's incredibly tough aburd because you're trying to figure out like sometimes there's really no good answer. It's the least bad answer is what the solution maybe and I don't know, it's playing in the spring viable and then trying to do all that because if you look at this, and you know a lot of scouts in front office guys, like they value tape now a lot more than they value stuff of the combine because you see guys that can run fast and jump high that aren't good football players. That just kind of confirms what you already know, and so you some guys need that year of tape. I would have I would have probably been in my mind, I think I would have been able to run to get into the third round, but reality was probably a fourth round pick, maybe fifth after my junior year. And so that's how dramatically it can change if you put together one good season of film to be able to be evaluated for the next level. And there's like the Joe Burrows to where it's like, you know, like like and I've said this a few times, but Joe Burrow is probably like a fifth round pick. Um, you know, like Baker Mayfield probably a third or fourth round pick. Kyler Murray's a baseball player if he was his last year, you know, Like so it's like there's so much the impact that this could could be like very very wide ranging. Uh alright, So, like just at the NFL level today, and I think this is an incredibly incredibly positive development for for the NFL, for football in general. Today, two more guys came off the COVID list league wide, no more went on. That means with players in camp, they're down to ten guys on the COVID list league wide. That's a little more than one for every three teams. Um. Your early impressions in the way all this has been handled, Bobby, it's not so rising. When you look at the NFL and how they do business, how they operate Albert, you know that they have that thing running like a Swiss clock. They've done everything they can to put themselves in the best situation with the players on on board as well. Like they talked to him, how can we do this safely? And remember you know the article that came out with Odell Beckham Jr. Like talking about how I don't know how we're gonna do this safely. And then all of a sudden, you know, they realized it was written earlier, and he actually got to the facility and realized that, listen, they're doing a good job with it. And so the players I think are doing a good job once they start getting around during the season and do they want to go out and they want to do things like it's gonna be tough. And this is where the leadership aspect is gonna come in from teams and coaches that have a firm control of their roster and what type of guys they draft, drafted and have assimilated onto that team. Because once you get rolling into the season, guys, you know, they may want to get lax and they want to start doing things and it's gonna be the younger guys. And so did you draft high quality guys, have you brought in high quality leaders? And are you firm enough to realize to make to find guys and to put them in situations where hey, if you're out and you're doing these things, we're gonna hold you accountable. And so there's a premium now that I think is going to be placed on character and accountability. And teams that have done a really good job with that, that have really put a high emphasis on that, they're gonna have a better situation this year, I think than teams that haven't so all right, Like how much do you trust the twenty three year old who gets a call from the girl like a Thursday night, come meet me at the bar? Like and and I think we all know we've been that age, you know. And and these guys have money in their pocket for the first time, Like how like how many of those guys are actually gonna say no? You know what I mean? Like like like and you are in these locker rooms, you've lived it, Like, how many of those guys you think actually say no and are able to kind of be able to be consistent with it and be able to keep themselves out of those situations? Well, I mean we already saw in Seattle, like it doesn't even need to be going somewhere. We're trying to smuggle and contraband know I mean in a very creative way. You know. It's it's interesting. I never thought many guys would played. And I was essentially married my whole time in the NFL. My wife, now you know, we got engaged early. She was living with me in Dallas, So I mean I wasn't running around doing those things. A lot of my teammates were going on. If I saw it, they're going out on Thursday nights Friday nights, and so I understood that, you know what, that's a different lifestyle that you're leading. And now those guys like, can you sacrifice five months for five dollars? Like that's the real question and it sounds like it would be easy, but when you're twenty three years old, it is and it's you're so short term and thought. But you know, guys who are more mature, I think can put that stuff aside. And real was like, how much do I even love the game? Like do I love to play that much to where this could take it away from me and take away that opportunity, And so I think they will have issues, not a lot, and especially on teams that put a emphasis in a premium on character. I think those teams will be fine. And also, don't forget this too our you get a week eight, week nine and you're staring down like three and six, then you might start to have some of those issues on teams as well, because we're out of the playoffs, are not really playing for much. Um, maybe I'll slide out on the Thursday night. Did you ever see anyone sneak anybody into a hotel during camp. So I've got a great story that was told to me um by Jim Schwartz, who was that coach alliance, who was the d C of the Tennessee Titans when Vince Young and Linda White were there. So this was i think the night before a game, and he told us, He's like, we sat there and watched security footage the next day from like eleven o'clock to like three thirty in the morning or two thirty in the morning of those guys trying to sneak two girls into the team hotel and like the security wouldn't let him in, so like trying back stairwells, and they have all the cameras that they're coordinating because the guy was fast forwarding. Is we spent about forty five minutes on Sunday morning watching this stuff. So, I mean, I've never personally seen it, but I've heard that. And that's not the night before it gave not even in training camp. That's your quarterback too. Did they like did did they wind up playing the next Like do you know what happened to him? Like what Jim did to him? I think they played. I mean because Jeff Fisher was that coach and he was a little more relaxed, I think. And so those guys played and then I think he addressed it with them afterwards. I think he may have put some of the film on like this the Monday Morning breakdown, like open that. I think, so everybody saw it, man, and like I don't know what his performance was, like, I mean, I can't remember the timeline, but I guarantee some of the vestor thing, like, man, you gotta get it tightened up, dude, it's Saturday night before the game, for heaven's sake. Yeah, I still remember. And this is like my one story like that was this was when I was covering I think I was covering New England, and um, there's a barn boss and I don't know if he ever went there, but it's it's called Daisy Buchans. It's like it's up right there on Newbury Street, and it's like I was there all the time when I was in my twenties, and it was a place where they to take care of pro athletes, you know what I mean. Like so if the Yankees were in town, there'd be a back room where you know, Derek Jeter or Roger whoever, whoever came in, they would be taken care of. No one takes it like you would. Literally you go into that place, if you try to take out a cell phone camera, like you get like ten dirty looks. It was like one of those sorts of places, you know. And um, and so I was covering Patriots Lions the next day and that was the year Lines went over in sixteen and so it would have been two thousand eight then, and I saw and there were like four Lions players in there, and it was I mean, god, it was. It must have been it must have been one in the morning. And I believe the Lines were staying in like providence. So it's like, yeah, that is that, Like that's like and I remember thinking to myself, I'm like, like I've done some really irresponsible stuff, Like that is a commitment to doing that sort of ship, you know what I mean, Like to go that far like that is a commitment to doing it. So uh yeah, it's it'll be interesting to see. Like I hadn't even thought of that though, Like the idea like there's a team is two and seven in November and like I mean, like the lyd just could come off then oh yeah, because my first year in Detroit was two thousand and ten, so it was a couple of years after that, and you know, we end up winning our last four games and finished six and ten. We lost some close ones, but every team I had been on prior to that with Dallas, we either made the playoffs. We always had a winning record, but we were in the playoff hunt until the final week, and so guys were making their vacation plans right after the season, like things around Thanksgiving, and I did. That was so FORIGN to mean, like, man, what are you doing? Like what do you mean? What are I doing? We're making plans and we go to the playoffs and he's like, we want two games or do and two and six, do and eight or whatever it is. I'm like, that's a good point. I mean, we're not doing that. I'm planning to win. But like guys, that's just how you think. And you know, it's nothing. They don't come in and prepare, but you're not probably doing quite as much as you would as if you were in the playoff hunt. So all right, like last thing on that, how important is it that it comes from other guys in the locker room, because I like, guys are used to be embarked at by their coaches, right, Like, how important do you think in these situations that is it that it comes from some like comes from up here, comes from somebody else who is in there planning with them. I think it needs to start with the coach and they have to know that their strict rules, like there's gonna be fines and things levied. And then it goes to the culture of the players. And if you have your best players are good dudes who are echoing the echoing those things, then you'll be fine. And if you look at the really good teams in the league and you know, you were in New England forever, you know, when you're still in Boston, like Tom Brady and I always go to him like Tom was always first and last out, one of the hardest working guys you're gonna find, you know, And so that helps set the tempo. Like Detroit they brought in Kyle Van and Bosch, you know in some bets, you know, to help set that set the tempo with that, and you have Calvin Johnson who was, you know, a great dude who was always laying low and never doing things. Stafford was the same way. And so when your best layers aren't guys who want to be out and always in public and doing stuff like that, and they're willing to take d l that that that says a lot of it. And they can be stern then because they walk to walk. Okay, So we see the circumstances now, right, So you got basically three week training camp and pads. You're gonna flow right into a game week, no preseason games obviously, all the dynamics that we just talked about. Can you think of a couple of teams that you think are gonna do really well with this, that are gonna be able to handle a shorter camp, that are gonna be able to deal with a lack of preseason games, that are gonna be able to handle all of the extra stuff that comes on the outside. Like, when you look at all the circumstances, can you think of a couple of teams that just stick out to you like those guys are gonna be okay? Well, I mean number one, you'll get the defending Super Bowl champs Kansas City, So like push them away because they have like twenty start returning starters, returning coach like, and they won the Super Bowl and they have a great quarterback. The next time I would look at is the Baltimore Ravens. If you look at the structure there that they have in place. They have an incredibly stable front office, they have a young quarterback who's played a couple of years. Those returning they return a lot of guys on both sides of the ball. They have some veteran guys that are coming in there that understand it. You know, it's it's a tough division. But I like Baltimore based upon their structure, based upon how they operate. UM, I don't know, you know how where Tennessee will be at as far as um you know, talent. I mean that it's tough to do what they did again because they kind of wont some games really close. They had a lot of luck on their side and just things broke, not a lot, just things broke their way. They have returning coach, they have returning quarterback. They run the football, play good defense, very disciplined team. And so that's what I'm looking at, Like, are there coaches that are there returning coaches that I think are really good. Returning quarterbacks that have started for a while and them, yeah, established program where they don't have a lot of front office turnover. They have the same people that have been in place for a long time. New Orleans Saints another team. Everything is in place, like they've been locked and loaded and ready to win for a long time. And you could even argue that maybe the Atlanta Falcons might be in that boat as well, like they underachieved dramatically last year, but they have that same thing where everybody's in place. Minnesota Vikings. So those are kind of like maybe seven teams, six teams that I think like, okay, all this structures in place. They have a firm organization, they have a returning quarterback, they have a better vetter, initial roster, responsible guys. You don't hear a lot about them outside of the field and off the field. And so those are the teams that I think would be in good such a good situation, like I would have said Dallas. But I'm under the belief that I think Mike McCarthy is stalling a lot more of his offense than I think was initially planned. And so when you have a tough offseason like this, like to where you don't have a lot of time with your quarterback. It's tough to get all those things worked out, and you may be working through some of them early in the season, which might not be good for chemistry. That's really interesting then, So you think it would be more McCarthy than Callen more? Like that's your what what what you're seeing right now? From what I've heard, I think that there's more Mike McCarthy involved in this then initially anticipated. And you know, Kellen Moore was supposed to be the default play caller, but I wouldn't be surprised if Mike tries to wrestle some of that away here as the season nears, as the season progresses, okay, um, a little nugget there for everybody in the Cowboys. So on the player level, like you look at what we have now, like again, like the ramp up period, three weeks of camp, Um, I think it's probably gonna be a pretty physical three weeks, but three weeks nonetheless no preseason games. What sorts of individual players and it doesn't need to be specific, guys, if you want to use some of his examples, fine, but what sorts of what sorts of individual players do you think have an edge base in the way things are structured, well, it's gonna be really tough if you're trying to break in offensive lineman right now, because that to me, if you have an offensive line that hasn't been worked together, they need reps because it's the one one of the few positions where literally you have to see everything together. Now, there will be some it will be a little bit helps. There's not gonna be any crowd noise to speak of this year, and fans like that doesn't count as crowd noise at all. But I think the offensive line trying to break in those guys who have not played a lot together or haven't really played much, going to be an incredibly difficult group. Defense not a big deal. Like, for the most part, you can get stuff in, guys can work through it, you can understand concepts. But like offensively, it's a lot harder quarterback receivers getting on the same page. But that offensive line, because you know, you don't do a ton of pads anymore, and now you don't necessarily you didn't even have the offseason. The O t a stuff, and you're trying to compress it all in there, Like it can be very very difficult if anybody's missing time to try to form a cohesive unit. It's really interesting you say that because Jordan Palmer said the exact same thing last week, and he said that, you know, he works with the quarterbacks, and he said, working with Sam Donald, Josh Allen, and Kyle Allen this offseason, they worked on a lot of like off platform stuff because his thing was, it's going to be a men, like, they're gonna be some offensive line. There's gonna be some offensive line play out there that's a total mass. And look, he felt he felt like defensive lineman, like, the defensive lineman are gonna be fine, is what he said. He's like, there would be totally fine, and the offensive lineman ark like won't be. Oh yeah, defensive lineman, you peel your ears back and go. I mean, as long as you don't try to overcomplicate the scheme, you'll be You'll be good. You know. The issue is, like you look at the Browns, there's a great job with the drafting and free agency of sharing up their tackle position. Those are two dudes that have never played in that system before and played with each other, and one of them is a rookie, and so yeah, it should be better on paper when you look at it, but the functionality of it, like that's a whole another beast. Right, absolutely all right, Uh, Bobby always appreciate you coming out. You guys can catch him on Get Up on ESPN on nine seven one the fan now in the mornings. He's now a morning drive guy. Um and he's the former first round pick. Uh, former Cowboy, former Ohio State Buckeye. And Bobby, I really appreciate you too giving me a little counseling there because I've needed it over the last week on what's gonna happen with Ohio State. I just hope it doesn't take a I hope it doesn't take a chunk out of us long term. That's sort of what I'm more worried about now. Well, the thing is you're gonna be living in the world of what it's probably this year, and that that will take a chunk out of your soul. But I don't think it. It will hurt a little bit recruiting, but it Ryan's doing such a great job that I think it'll ultimately be okay. Absolutely all right, Bobby, appreciate you coming out. My pleasure. Hobert, thank you, all right. Thanks to Bobby. He's always great coming out um talking about Ohio State, talking about what the NFL is gonna look like over the next few months. Well, of course, half him on again sometimes soon we're gonna jump right into the sixth pack. You guys know how this works. Ever since the pandemic, and even now that I'm on the road, we've sort of switched gears, going to the old school six packway of answering your questions. You guys know how it works. Every week I put the call for question is out on Twitter. I pick six. If I pick yours, then you get a like on Twitter that means I hit that little heart emoji there and you get an answer right here on the podcast. This week, we're gonna do seven because we have two from one guy who sent me a whole bunch of questions and I want to get to both of his. So our first two questions is a two and one. We'll call it a two part question. Uh is from just for the Titans at drew five eight to three zero four nine six. First question is the f C West the best division in football? His second question, any chance the Chargers take a big step up with Tyrod Visa v Ewing theory minus Rivers. Is the a f C West the best division in football? I think it could be, but a lot is gonna depend on how the Broncos come along, how the Raiders come along. Right now, I would tell you the best division in football is actually probably the NFC West. Part of that's what I see with the coaches in that division. You got Pete Carroll, who's a top five coach over the last ten years in the league. Kyle Shanahan, who I think a lot of people would have as maybe the second or third guy you would take if you had to coach one game right now, Cliff Kingsbury, who I think showed flashes of what he can be in year one. And then Sean McVeigh, who I still think is, you know, in that category, top five six coach in the NFL. And so you've got the coaches, You've got stability at quarterback, Russell Wilson, Jimmy Garoppolo, Jared Goff and Kyler Murray, and I just think it's gonna be. I just think that division going into all of this, it looks to me like the most competitive division. If you expect the Rams to bounce back, and if you expect the Cardinals to make a leap as many do. Question number two, Any chance the Chargers take a big step up with Tyrod Taylor um visa v euing theory minus Rivers. I think the Chargers have a chance. The offensive line is the big question you've got with them. What happens with that offensive line group? You look elsewhere right, and there is talent everywhere on that roster. The receiver group, Keenan Allen, Mike Williams, got Hunter and Henriett tight end, Austin Ekeler at tailback. On the other side of the ball, just overflowing with talent, Joey Bosa, Melvin Ingram, you draft Kenneth Murray from Oklahoma. You have in the secondary Casey Hayward, and of course Derwin James coming back healthy again. That question is on that offensive line. Brian Boulog is their left tackle, he's older and he's been a right tackle for most of his career. Sam Tevy is the the right tackle. Like, how is all of this gonna play out? I think there's just a lot of questions with that offensive line. If they can get that group together, though, I think they're a real Challenger to the Chiefs in the a f C West question number two from Oakland to four for three at Oakland to four four three chance of Clowney to the Raiders Oakland. I think it's possible the Raiders do need some pass rush help. It wouldn't hurt them to throw Clowney in the mix with Max Crosby and and Farrell. I just think that Clowney is more likely to go to a place where there's some familiarity. You've heard about Tennessee, you've heard about Seattle, Seattle, in there, out there, and they're out. I think Clowney's best bet is to go to a place now where he's got some familiarity less than four weeks to the opener now, and I think Clowney's focus has to shift on trying to hit it big in the one free agent market. And I think you do that if you're dv and Clowney by going to a place where you do have some familiarity, where you are able to hit the ground running, where the coaches do know how to use you. So that would be a Tennessee if there was some way to create like a reconciliation with Houston. Obviously, that would be another place and then Seattle. Question number three, this is from at Buffalo Dre. At Buffalo Dre, are you guys told not to report Bills related material because of the small market, Dre. I've been covering the Bills all off season. I did a story with Josh Allen. Sean McDermott was in my column just this week. I love where the Bills are going. I don't know what you're talking about. I've been calling the Bills the favorite in the a f C since Tom Brady signed in Tampa. I love what they've got going on there. You look at the team and the young talent on that roster and under Josh Allen, Devin Singletary, Stefon Diggs, Dawson Knox, Dion Dawkins, Tremaine Edmonds, at Oliver Trade, Devious White, They're going a tremendous job building over the last couple of years. And I think Brendan Bean and Sean McDermott have that team in a position where if Josh Allen is able to take the next step in year three, I think they're very, very real threat in that a f C playoff bracket. Question number four from Antonio that's at so Jesus, I think I pronounced that right. In regards to the Rams, what defines a successful season? Antonio defines a successful season for the Rams is contention period. They were in the Super Bowl two years ago. They should be in a position to contend. Still, there's gonna be some changes, of course, you know they Todd Gurley is not there more, Brandon Cooks isn't there anymore. They're gonna need Darnell Henderson. They're gonna Darrell Henderson. They're gonna need Cam Akers to step up in the backfield. They're gonna need obviously, you know you've got Cooper Cup and you've got Robert Woods at receiver. How much do you get out of like a rookie like Van Jefferson now, um, and so much of this now is going to be about developing young players and finding a way to get more out of players a certain position. Also gonna be about melding the new coaching staff. And you've got new coordinators on both sides of the ball, and Kevin O'Connell and Brandon Staley. Part of the reason why Sean McVeigh brought in Brandon Staley. How difficult it's been over the years to play against Vic Fangio's defense. They're getting that defense. Now, are you able to get the most out of Aaron Donald playing the way that they planned to play? You lose Um you you you, you lose Dante Fowler? Is Leonard Floyd able to pick up the slack there? How are you replacing Corey Littleton? So so much of this is gonna be about developing young players and adapting to new schemes. But again, they were in the Super well less than twenty months ago, so they should be in a position to contend. Contention should be the goal of their. Question number five is from Michael mannox As at the Omanics. Is it possible for a heartbroken Ohio State grad NFL writer to keep it together for the NFL season? Michael, I will do my best. As I said with Bob, as Bobby and I talked about, this was going to be a generational and Ohio State team. It's gonna take me a little while to close the book on that. If the Big twelve and the SEC and the A C C move forward and the Big Ten doesn't play again until the fall of question number six final question for the week from Craig Ginsburg, um At Craig Adam g What are the Vikings realistic expectations? Lots of expectations questions this week. How much will they be affected by the loss of digs, Craig. Obviously A big part of how they're gonna be affective with a loss of DIGS is going to be the development of Jordan Jefferson. How quickly can he become a serious player in that offense? Um? And and I think you know, you look at who else that you know, look at what they've got back, um with Adam Theland with and I of course I called him Jordan Jefferson, which is his brother's name, is Justin Jefferson. Um. You know, you you look at what they've got back and Adam Theland and David Dalvin Cook and Kyle Rudolph Um and you know, you expect maybe you'll get a little bit more out of IRV Smith in a year two like, based on like the fact that they've been a top ten defense since Mike Zimmer got there. If you can make it work, if Justin Jefferson can come along, if IRV Smith can take another step, I I don't see any reason why you wouldn't expect them to be a team as capable of not just getting to the playoffs but winning when they get there, and so um, it's still very much a team and a win now window with that core group of players. The guys I mentioned, you know, you're feelings, you're Rudolph's on defense, Guys like Anthony Barr still there, Harrison Smith still there. Um, you know obviously Danelle Hunter is still There's still a really really good team where if you have a couple of things fall into place in offense, they should be a team not just capable of getting to the NFC playoffs and into that bracket, but advancing when they get there. Appreciate you guys coming out again. Keep it locked all week on my social media channels, will be giving you guys all kinds of content from the training camp trail once again. My plan. I was with the Patriots on on Tuesday. I'll be with the Jets on Wednesday, the Giants on Thursday, the Eagles on Friday, the Ravens on Saturday. Then I'm planning on going down to Florida. Give you guys a flavor for what's going on out there, because the access is a little different again. I wanna again be clear about this. You know, we did cut down the camp trip a little bit this year. I'm not doing camps like I normally would because it's just not worth it um based on the access rules. And I don't want to bore you guys with the journalism stuff, but I do want to give you guys a flavor of what's going on out there, and we're going to be doing that through all of my social media channels again at Albert Brier on Twitter, at Albert Underscore Breer on Facebook, or on on Instagram at Albert our Brier on Facebook. You guys can check me out. All three of those spots will be giving you guys content all week. And thank you to again Bobby Carpenter for coming out. We'll have Gresh back again soon and always remember to subscribe. Listen to download all of our podcasts and you can find all of them in one spot now in the m m QB NFL podcast, feed this podcast, m QB Podcast with Albert Brier, the week Side Podcast with Jenny and Connor, Gary's podcast on Monday Mornings, the Weekend Review podcasts on one spot, that mm QB NFL podcast spot that That mm QB podcast feed spot. You can find it on Spotify, Stitcher, tune in, Google Play, Apple podcast, wherever you guys get your shows. We're there, same time. Next week, we'll talk to you guys. That m