LIVE Patriots Daily: CFB Semi Recap + Championship preview w/ Alex Barth
Taylor Kyles of CLNS Media teams up with Alex Barth from 98.5 The Sports Hub for a special edition of the Patriots Daily College Show. In this episode, they delve into the College Football Playoff semifinals and offer a preview of the Championship, with a focus on Washington quarterback Michael Penix and Michigan's JJ McCarthy. Additionally, they discuss Bo Nix's decision to participate in the Senior Bowl.
This episode of the Patriots Daily Podcast Show is brought to you by:
SeatGeek! Use code DREAMERSPRO for $20 off your first SeatGeek order! Visit SeatGeek.com ! With NFL, NBA and NHL seasons in full swing you don’t want to miss out - SeatGeek has your tickets to every game!
FanDuel Sportsbook, the exclusive wagering parter of the CLNS Media NetworkRight now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! So, visit https://FanDuel.com/BOSTON and kick off the NFL season. FanDuel, Official Partner of the NFL. 21+ and present in MA. Hope is here. First online real money wager only. $5 pregame moneyline wager required. First onlinereal money wager only. $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable bonus bets that expire 7 days after receipt. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. GamblingHelpLineMa.org or call (800)-327-5050 for 24/7 support. Play it smart from the start! GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234. 
#Patriots #NFL #NewEnglandPatriots
This episode of the Patriots Daily Podcast Show is brought to you by:
SeatGeek! Use code DREAMERSPRO for $20 off your first SeatGeek order! Visit SeatGeek.com ! With NFL, NBA and NHL seasons in full swing you don’t want to miss out - SeatGeek has your tickets to every game!
FanDuel Sportsbook, the exclusive wagering parter of the CLNS Media NetworkRight now, NEW customers get ONE HUNDRED AND FIFTY DOLLARS in BONUS BETS with any winning FIVE DOLLAR MONEYLINE BET! So, visit https://FanDuel.com/BOSTON and kick off the NFL season. FanDuel, Official Partner of the NFL. 21+ and present in MA. Hope is here. First online real money wager only. $5 pregame moneyline wager required. First onlinereal money wager only. $10 first deposit required. Bonus issued as nonwithdrawable bonus bets that expire 7 days after receipt. See terms at sportsbook.fanduel.com. GamblingHelpLineMa.org or call (800)-327-5050 for 24/7 support. Play it smart from the start! GameSenseMA.com or call 1-800-GAM-1234. 
#Patriots #NFL #NewEnglandPatriots
Transcript
00:00 Day of the week, we're talking college football,
00:03 specifically some bowl games.
00:05 We had the Rose Bowl, we had the Sugar Bowl,
00:08 we had some really good performances
00:10 for different reasons.
00:12 Quick reminder, this show is brought to you
00:14 by our pals at FanDuel and SeatGeek,
00:16 more from them later.
00:17 But before we dive into what was a really good Monday
00:21 of football at the college level
00:23 and some of the quarterback prospects
00:25 who may or may not be in the draft this year,
00:29 or this summer, rather, Alex, how you doing, brother?
00:32 I'm good, how we doing, Taylor?
00:34 It's, we're getting down to it, here we go.
00:36 We're almost done.
00:37 How many times have people heard me say,
00:38 "Oh, we gotta get all the data,
00:40 "we gotta get all the information."
00:42 We're almost to the end of this,
00:43 and then the pre-draft process begins,
00:46 if you can believe that.
00:47 All the work we've done up to this point,
00:50 we have one game left,
00:51 and then that's when the pre-draft process starts.
00:54 And man, I can finally get to know
00:57 more than just the quarterbacks.
00:58 I got to see Blake Core, I mean, impossible to miss him.
01:02 He had a lot of good performances all over the place,
01:05 but we're gonna start off with the Rose Bowl.
01:07 So, a topic I wanna ask you about, J.J. McCarthy.
01:10 One of the big things in this game was,
01:12 is he gonna actually prove
01:14 that he can compete at the NFL level?
01:15 Should he declare for the draft,
01:16 or is this gonna be a game where you say,
01:18 "You know what, maybe he just takes another year in school,
01:21 "get some stuff worked out."
01:23 I think I know where you're gonna go with this,
01:24 but just, you know, so I can ask,
01:27 does he need to go back to school,
01:28 or do you think he showed it up to potentially declare?
01:30 - I don't think he needs to go back to school.
01:33 Like, he can probably come out and be a,
01:37 whatever you wanna call it, a top 200, maybe top 150 pick.
01:41 But I just, the numbers were impressive, right?
01:45 17 for 27, 221 yards, three touchdowns, no picks.
01:48 Can throw a little asterisk on that, no picks, right?
01:51 'Cause he got kind of bailed out
01:52 on the first play of the game.
01:54 But I really think you mentioned Blake Coram.
01:56 We'll talk about Roman Wilson as well.
01:57 I thought this was a really good game
01:59 for Michigan skilled position players.
02:01 This was another one where, to me, J.J. McCarthy,
02:05 even though he threw the ball 27 times,
02:08 was as much in the passenger seat
02:10 as he was in the driver's seat.
02:11 You look at his, you know,
02:13 he won big time throw according to PFF.
02:15 His average depth of target was six yards per attempt,
02:18 which, Bo Nix's for the season was six,
02:21 and that was, you know, outside of the top 80 nationally.
02:24 So that's not that aggressive of a game.
02:27 He did have a couple of nice throws.
02:29 The one, well, first off, he made a great catch.
02:32 - Yeah. - And then the throw
02:33 to get the ball off on that,
02:34 which should have been a failed trick play,
02:35 I think was a nice one.
02:37 And he has that one other throw.
02:39 I don't think it was, I'm trying to remember.
02:40 I don't think it was a touchdown.
02:41 It got them down to the red zone,
02:42 where he rolls to his left and kind of pulls back up
02:45 and throws a little bit right.
02:46 - Right hander. - I can't remember
02:48 who that was.
02:49 I think it was to Roman Wilson,
02:50 but, you know, picked up a decent game there.
02:53 But overall, he still looks very raw.
02:55 I kind of felt watching him a little bit,
02:57 like I felt watching Bailey Zappi
02:59 on Sunday against the Bills,
03:00 where there are certainly individual plays in there
03:02 where you're like, oh, okay, that's impressive.
03:05 But there's too much just bleh in between all of it
03:10 to look at him and take him seriously
03:12 as a starting NFL quarterback.
03:14 Now, Bailey's what, 24, 25 years old?
03:17 He's going into the third year of his rookie contract.
03:20 He doesn't necessarily have the time
03:22 to turn that around and be a legitimate starter.
03:24 I could argue that for J.J. McCarthy,
03:26 but that's not a first round pick.
03:28 That's a guy you're taking in the third round,
03:31 maybe late in the second.
03:32 You have an established starter.
03:34 You know, this is a guy you're at the very least
03:37 sit for a year, maybe two,
03:39 kind of like the Packers did with Jordan Love.
03:41 Jordan Love probably shouldn't have been a first round pick.
03:43 That was just a weak, weaker quarterback class.
03:46 - Yeah.
03:47 - That's where I'm at with J.J. McCarthy.
03:49 It wouldn't surprise me if he comes out,
03:50 'cause again, I still think he'll get a decent pick.
03:52 Now, he can go back to school and have a massive NIL deal.
03:55 He's probably gonna make more money, not overall,
03:59 but in the year 2024, he'll make more money
04:01 going back to school than he will going to the NFL.
04:02 I truly believe that.
04:03 Maybe he just wants to get to the pros though.
04:06 And if he does, that's his prerogative
04:07 and great, good for him.
04:09 He's not a first round pick.
04:10 He's not a year one starter.
04:12 He's not right now close to being a potential franchise guy.
04:17 That's just not, it's out the window.
04:20 I didn't think he was exceptional in this game.
04:23 He had moments where he was really rough
04:25 and I think you have to look at those.
04:27 - And then we had a comment in the chat,
04:29 depth of targets to Thomas Satton football.
04:31 Who cares if he throws six yards or if it's 17.
04:33 I'm very confused.
04:34 Okay, so I understand where you're coming from,
04:37 but it's important because one,
04:39 if you're looking at say like a Bo Nix,
04:41 like a big part of the discussion with him is that,
04:43 you know, you see the accuracy
04:44 and his stats look good from afar,
04:46 but the average depth of target matters
04:48 because it shows how often they're testing downfield windows.
04:51 That's important in the NFL because we saw Mac Jones
04:54 when he had, you know, for the games where he was having
04:56 like a four or five yard average depth of target
04:58 wasn't impressive.
04:59 And in the NFL, if you're just going to throw under 10 yards,
05:03 defenses are going to start taking advantage.
05:04 They're going to start jumping routes,
05:06 makes you more predictable.
05:07 And in the college level, you know,
05:09 you have your Justin Herbert's where he was
05:11 in a similar situation at Oregon,
05:12 where he wasn't throwing downfield a lot
05:14 because it was just a scheme that was a lot of RPOs
05:16 and things like that.
05:17 Then he gets to the NFL and you see, okay,
05:19 he does have the talent to do more than that.
05:21 So it's not an end all be all stat.
05:23 That's a fair thing to point out.
05:24 But at the same time,
05:26 JJ hasn't also shown consistently
05:29 that he can win as a downfield passer.
05:31 And that's something where teams are going to say,
05:33 like to your point,
05:33 that's what kind of slips you in the draft order.
05:35 When you've shown that you can perform
05:37 at that kind of level,
05:38 and you're not a Justin Herbert,
05:39 where Justin Herbert clearly had the physical talent,
05:41 it was more a question of, okay, he hasn't done it yet.
05:44 Is it going to translate to the league?
05:46 And it did.
05:46 JJ isn't the same physical specimen.
05:48 So it's a fair point to make,
05:51 but that is why those stats matter
05:53 because the NFL is going to look at that and say,
05:55 well, I want to see him make NFL caliber throws.
05:59 And that's not really happening.
06:00 If you're in a college offense
06:02 where RPOs are already rampant
06:03 and you're not really throwing downfield very often.
06:05 - So, and my point is like so many people will point to,
06:08 oh, he threw for, you know, a guy,
06:10 and this isn't just JJ McCarthy,
06:12 this is anybody,
06:13 threw for X number of yards.
06:15 And, you know, look at this.
06:16 He's this big yardage quarterback.
06:18 'Cause that's, I think,
06:19 whatever he wants in New England, right?
06:20 A guy that can, but if he's throwing the ball
06:23 two yards down the field,
06:25 and then the receiver makes five guys miss,
06:28 and it goes as a 25 yard gain, who made the play?
06:33 Who really made the play?
06:34 Was it the two yard?
06:35 And that's not to say two yard pass can't be impressive.
06:37 Maybe he shook a defender or whatever,
06:38 but like it just kind of tells you
06:41 who's carrying the brunt of the workload.
06:44 And you have a guy like, you know, JJ McCarthy,
06:47 whose ADOT was six.
06:48 And if you'll just allow me a second here to pull this up
06:50 for point of comparison,
06:52 you want to guess what Michael,
06:54 actually Michael Pennock's ADOT is lower
06:55 than what I thought it was going to be.
06:57 It's 9.1, which isn't a bad number.
06:59 I just thought it was going to be something absurd.
07:01 The guy, Quinn Ewers was 11,
07:03 and Alabama had a really weird game plan.
07:05 I doubt Jalen Milrose was that high.
07:07 Jalen Milrose was 8.3.
07:10 So, you know, by multiple yards, the lowest of the week.
07:15 And just to bring this same commenter up,
07:17 who cares if the play's made at a 70% clip?
07:20 To bring it back to the Patriots,
07:24 and this is something that goes to, you know,
07:25 oh, well, a lot of these quarterbacks
07:27 have all this talent around them.
07:29 Do the Patriots have a guy like a Blake Coram
07:32 who can make guys miss those tackles
07:34 and create after the catch?
07:35 Do they have a guy like a Roman Wilson
07:37 who can make some of these plays?
07:39 That's the point.
07:40 It's not, the completion percentage matters.
07:43 Like, it's important, certainly.
07:44 But if you're just completing it
07:46 three yards down the field every time,
07:48 and then you go to a situation
07:49 where you don't have guys that can complete after the,
07:51 compete after the catch.
07:53 - Like the Patriots?
07:55 - Right, exactly.
07:56 Like, then, so what, so there's just going to be
07:58 three-yard checkdowns and tackles,
07:59 and that's kind of how you end up with Mac Jones.
08:02 So, it, the plays are being made,
08:05 but you have to look at the full picture there.
08:07 And I know this is going to sound a little hypocritical,
08:09 because we're going to talk later about Michael Penix,
08:13 and everybody's going to talk about,
08:15 everybody's going to come in the comments and say,
08:16 well, Michael Penix has so much star around him,
08:19 star power around him, that how can you, you know,
08:22 bank on him being good in the NFL
08:24 when he's not going to have that same star power?
08:26 You have to look at what the quarterback does in a bubble.
08:30 And yes, some of these guys have great offensive lines.
08:32 Yes, some of these guys have great receivers.
08:34 Take the other, well, I don't want to say
08:37 take the other 21 guys out of the picture,
08:39 because I think the corner matters in this,
08:42 but what does, what does the quarterback do?
08:46 Does he make the right read?
08:48 Are his mechanics good?
08:50 When the ball gets to the receiver, where is it placed?
08:52 I don't really care what the receiver does
08:54 after the catch, sort of,
08:55 does the quarterback allow the receiver, right?
08:57 Does he set him up, lead him,
08:58 to where he can create after the catch?
09:00 When you watch the Michigan offense, again,
09:02 there were, there's that one throw
09:04 that JJ McCarthy made rolling to his left,
09:07 where he comes back and throws across his body and hits it.
09:10 That's a nice throw.
09:11 If he was doing consistently,
09:12 I'd feel a lot better of it, about it.
09:14 But there's too many times where,
09:16 here's what I'd say if you're looking at it this way,
09:19 stop, stop the film as soon as you see the catch.
09:23 Stop the film as soon as you see the catch
09:24 and tell me what he looks like.
09:26 If you watch JJ McCarthy in that context,
09:29 you're not going to see a ton of big plays.
09:31 You're not.
09:31 And I'm not, I'm not saying that every play
09:34 has to be a big play.
09:35 I think there's value in guys that know
09:37 when to hit the check down.
09:39 It's finding that balance.
09:40 And right now, there's just not enough
09:42 on JJ McCarthy's shoulders.
09:44 And this goes back to my overarching point on JJ McCarthy.
09:46 Everybody thinks I think he sucks.
09:48 'Cause I say he's not a first round pick.
09:50 A lot of quarterbacks that aren't first round picks.
09:51 Most quarterbacks aren't first round picks.
09:53 Some good quarterbacks aren't first round picks.
09:55 I don't know that JJ McCarthy's good.
09:58 I don't know that JJ McCarthy's bad.
10:00 I haven't seen him be asked to do enough
10:04 to feel strongly about it one way or the other.
10:05 I think if you feel strongly that he's good,
10:07 you're kidding yourself.
10:08 I think if you feel strongly that he's terrible,
10:10 you're kidding yourself.
10:11 He's a total unknown.
10:13 But the reality is you really shouldn't be using
10:15 a first round pick on a total unknown.
10:18 That's how you end up with Trey Lance.
10:20 So I just think there needs to be,
10:23 you need to see more from JJ McCarthy.
10:26 Now maybe you're an NFL team saying,
10:27 look, he's 6'3", he's 20 years old,
10:30 he's got some athletic traits.
10:31 We'll see more in camp, right?
10:33 We'll see more in camp and we'll sit him for a year
10:35 and we'll see more in practice.
10:36 And great, if that's the plan,
10:38 and I think there will be teams, frankly,
10:40 that see that and if he comes out,
10:41 we'll be somewhat aggressive.
10:43 But I'm not gonna get to see that.
10:46 The Patriots don't really have the time to do that.
10:48 And that's why, at least for,
10:50 certainly for the Patriots, he's not a first round pick.
10:52 And most teams that need a quarterback
10:54 don't have the time and the luxury.
10:57 And the teams that do have a quarterback
10:58 and are maybe looking two or three years down the road
11:01 aren't gonna take that guy in the first round
11:03 'cause they're trying to maximize
11:04 the quarterback they have now.
11:06 So that's where I'm at on JJ McCarthy.
11:08 I don't think this game changed me a ton for him
11:10 one way or the other.
11:11 I think it more so just reinforced how I felt.
11:13 And yeah, to go back to the original point, Taylor,
11:15 'cause I realized we've gone around and around and around.
11:18 It would be, I think if he goes back to school,
11:22 especially with what next year's quarterback class
11:25 is looking like and Cam Ward declaring over the weekend,
11:28 which we'll get to a little bit at the end,
11:29 we'll see what Penix does.
11:30 JJ McCarthy probably is a first round pick next year
11:33 if he has a decent year 'cause Michigan's offense
11:36 is gonna look very different without Roman Wilson,
11:38 without Blake Corham, without Donovan Edwards,
11:40 without some of these offensive linemen
11:42 they're gonna lose.
11:43 He's gonna have more of a chance to prove what he can do.
11:45 And if he plays up to that potential, yeah,
11:47 he probably is a first round pick next year.
11:49 Money shouldn't matter.
11:50 He's gonna get a big fat NIL deal.
11:52 It's gotta be fun being a quarterback
11:54 at the University of Michigan right now,
11:55 I would think being on that campus.
11:57 All the reason in the world for him to go back to school
11:58 unless he just like really wants to be
12:00 in the NFL right now.
12:02 - And we're gonna really focus on draft prospects
12:04 to this one, but we have to address Jalen Milrow.
12:06 You mentioned he had the eight yard average up the target,
12:08 but he only averaged five yards per attempt.
12:11 What is this, 60 for 23, 116 yards, 45.1 passer rating.
12:15 Not great.
12:16 Then he ran 21 times for 63 yards, three yard average,
12:19 not his best performance.
12:21 The quotes came out, I believe it was over the weekend
12:23 or just before the weekend, about how Bill O'Brien,
12:26 you said that he didn't think that he was a quarterback.
12:29 Did he prove Bill O'Brien wrong?
12:30 And also, what did you think of the last play call?
12:33 Because everybody's talking about it.
12:35 I'm curious what your thoughts were,
12:36 because obviously there were snapping problems all game.
12:39 And you call a play where it's pretty heavily dependent
12:42 on a good snap that you hadn't had.
12:43 And that's, it felt like there had to have been something
12:46 in your playbook that was better than that,
12:47 given the circumstances.
12:49 - And I don't know if you saw this today, Taylor.
12:51 This was like a couple hours ago.
12:52 Seth McLaughlin, the center, is entering
12:55 the transfer portal.
12:57 So he won't be back at Alabama next year.
12:59 Probably what's best for everybody, I would think.
13:01 I hate, I didn't think Tommy Reese
13:04 called a good game throughout.
13:06 I think there were things that would work
13:08 and he would instantly go away from them.
13:10 Some of the Jalen Milrow designed run stuff.
13:12 I thought they were making some things work
13:14 against the screen on the aggressive Michigan front.
13:17 Michigan's front was awesome in this game, outstanding.
13:22 They didn't really get Jermaine Burton involved a ton.
13:24 I thought he should have had a bigger role.
13:26 And you know, Michigan has a good secondary,
13:28 but he's a guy that you've got to scheme touches for.
13:31 And then the last call, when you can't get it snapped,
13:33 and I know there's some people saying
13:34 that it was actually an RPO call, it wasn't a designed run.
13:37 And if you look at it, the running back motions over
13:41 and it's maybe, does he swing it out
13:42 to the running back or go?
13:43 He loses that opportunity on the bad snap,
13:45 which again, the bad snap.
13:47 Michigan sitting on that run.
13:49 You know what play would have been awesome there?
13:50 In hindsight, 2020, but just looking
13:53 at the way Michigan approached it,
13:54 the old Tim Tebow jump pass, they hit that.
13:57 Absolutely in that situation, you guys,
13:59 I kind of like in the back of my head, I had that thought.
14:02 Yeah, but on Milborough, I know so many people
14:06 want to take a victory lap on, you know,
14:08 the Bill O'Brien comments and say,
14:09 "Oh, look, O'Brien was right.
14:10 You know, he's not a quarterback."
14:12 He got them there.
14:13 He got them to the college football playoff.
14:15 And I don't know that any of the other guys
14:17 on the roster were going to.
14:18 They had a couple of freshmen who looked overwhelmed
14:20 in their opportunities.
14:21 Tyler Buckner is now a lacrosse player.
14:24 So you're going to tell me he was going to get them there.
14:25 He sucked for Notre Dame last year.
14:27 You can't take those O'Brien comments
14:32 in the context of the NFL.
14:33 Because that's not, I know that's how people think it works.
14:38 O'Brien's trying to get Alabama national championship
14:40 when he's the offense coordinator.
14:41 That is first and foremost, his objective.
14:44 And Jalen Milrow proved to be,
14:47 after the departure of Bryce Young,
14:49 the best option to get them to a college football playoff.
14:52 Had O'Brien had his way,
14:54 Alabama probably doesn't play yesterday at all.
14:57 And that's where I think,
14:58 you want to take a victory lap on the game, fine.
15:00 It definitely wasn't Milrow's best game.
15:03 But he's a quarterback, he is.
15:05 And we'll see what he does next year.
15:07 I think it was a smart decision,
15:08 very smart decision by him to go back to school.
15:10 He got a lot better this year,
15:11 but he still has a lot of getting better to do.
15:13 And we'll see.
15:14 But yeah, I do wish Tommy Reese had called a better game
15:17 though, 'cause I think that game was there to be had.
15:19 And they just, it was too,
15:21 they didn't just pick one thing and stick with it.
15:23 And you want to vary your offense,
15:25 but it felt too scattered.
15:27 It was hard to tell, watching that game,
15:29 all right, what was the game plan?
15:31 What of Michigan's defense were they trying to attack?
15:34 Were there certain players they wanted to attack?
15:36 Were there certain guys that they wanted to emphasize?
15:38 It was like, they were just throwing things against the wall
15:40 and seeing what's stuck.
15:41 And it was frustrating.
15:43 - Speaking of Alabama players
15:45 who didn't have their best performance, J.C. Latham.
15:47 Now early in the game,
15:48 obviously blew a huge hole open for the big touchdown run.
15:51 We also had the sack where he could have picked up
15:54 one of two guys, usually for an offensive lineman,
15:56 the rule is you take the inside most threat.
15:58 So the quarterback has a little bit more time
16:00 because that's the shortest path for the quarterback.
16:01 He didn't take either.
16:03 It was a sack.
16:04 Do you think that performance at all affected
16:07 his draft status or at least just your opinion
16:09 on the kind of player he is and where, you know,
16:12 if he's a Patriots target,
16:13 where they could potentially think about taking him?
16:15 - So you said Latham?
16:16 - Yes.
16:17 - Latham.
16:19 - If anything, this game made him more likely
16:22 for the Patriots, even though I didn't think he played well.
16:25 And if you just hang with me, like,
16:27 it's all Patriots love bad players.
16:28 He's the third tackle in this draft.
16:33 He's probably gonna go somewhere between 10 and 15.
16:35 That means the Patriots either trading back
16:37 and not taking a quarterback.
16:39 Or if you're gonna take a tackle, you don't trade back.
16:41 You take Joe Alter or Lou Foshana, right?
16:43 Or just trading way up in the first round,
16:46 which you're talking about getting from,
16:48 even if it's pick 34, getting from 34 back into the top 15
16:52 without giving up a first round pick is nearly impossible.
16:56 You're gonna have to give it like multiple firsts
16:57 down the road.
16:58 So he kinda, as good of a player as he is,
17:02 he wasn't on the table.
17:03 If scouts are really gonna look at this game,
17:05 maybe it knocks him down into that 20s range.
17:08 And maybe now it's realistic to trade up from 34
17:10 to have a shot at him.
17:11 And he kind of falls back to that path with,
17:13 I mean, we'll talk about Troy Fittanu in a little bit,
17:16 the Washington tackle.
17:17 Patrick Paul's another guy liking that range,
17:19 that kind of 30 to 50 range.
17:21 There's a bunch of tackles that are gonna go in there
17:23 and maybe he kinda ends up, not 30 to 50,
17:26 but like 20 to 50, something like that.
17:28 But yeah, he looked overwhelmed at times.
17:30 I didn't think this was his best game.
17:32 And it's gonna be, scouts pay a little more attention
17:36 to these and that's definitely,
17:38 you're gonna hear the Michigan game a lot,
17:39 I think when you talk about Latham
17:42 as we get into the draft process.
17:44 - Yeah, especially on a staff like Alabama.
17:46 Like there are times where you're saying at the college,
17:48 I'm like, okay, in the NFL,
17:50 you're gonna get better coaching.
17:51 First of all, with the Patriots,
17:52 we have no idea who their offensive line coach
17:53 is gonna be next year.
17:54 So that's not a guarantee.
17:55 But also Alabama is one of the programs
17:57 where you're saying, all right,
17:58 he was getting some of the best coaching
17:59 that you're gonna find in college football.
18:01 How much can he grow in a reasonable time span
18:05 where he's an instant starter?
18:06 Because if you're taking him with that kind of capital,
18:08 you're hoping he could be a pretty quick contributor.
18:10 What else we got here?
18:11 Blake Corham and Roman Wilson
18:13 did have some pretty good performances.
18:15 Let's turn this thing around, talk to positives.
18:17 What did you think?
18:18 - Blake Corham was the best player on the field
18:21 in the Rose Bowl.
18:22 He was probably the second best player overall
18:25 of the semifinals.
18:26 I think it's obvious who the best was,
18:28 who I think the best was at least, and we'll get to him.
18:31 Blake Corham was just awesome in this game, man.
18:34 He took the game over in a way that,
18:36 look, it's easier for running backs
18:38 to take the game over in college
18:40 than it is in the pros, obviously,
18:42 but you still don't see it to the extent
18:44 to which Blake Corham did on Monday.
18:48 He was, what didn't he do, right?
18:50 He ran between the tackles, he ran outside the tackles,
18:52 he broke tackles, he made guys miss, he caught the football.
18:56 He did a little bit of pass protection.
18:58 He's a true, well-rounded back.
19:01 You have a job, Blake Corham will do it.
19:05 And he did it on a big stage against an elite defense.
19:09 He should be, apparently there's a bunch of people
19:12 who don't have him as RB1, and I get people
19:15 like Travion Henderson, who's the running back
19:17 at Ohio State, I do like him as well.
19:20 I don't know how Blake Corham's not RB1, though.
19:22 I mean, this guy is just, again, well,
19:26 I don't wanna go to, I think, well-rounded running back,
19:28 right, the first guy I go to is Christian McCaffrey.
19:30 I don't wanna go that far, that's too much,
19:33 but you wanna talk about Austin Eckler,
19:35 I think is a guy he looks a lot like.
19:37 I haven't really thought of a confirm,
19:41 I'm kinda doing this off the fly.
19:43 If there was a finesse version of Romandre Stevenson,
19:46 right, Romandre's more of a power back,
19:47 he can catch the ball a little bit.
19:48 I think Corham's a better receiver.
19:50 Really good, what it does mean is I loved Blake Corham
19:54 for the Patriots, can you get him early on day three,
19:58 like about where they took Romandre, right?
19:59 Essentially as Romandre's replacement.
20:01 A lot of people are talking about Blake Corham
20:03 as the new third down back.
20:05 He's beyond that, he could handle that role,
20:08 but you're kinda limiting him if that's
20:11 entirely how you use him.
20:12 That all being said, I don't see how Blake Corham
20:15 gets to day three at this point, I don't.
20:17 If he's not the first running back off the board,
20:20 he certainly should be the second.
20:22 And if the Patriots want him,
20:24 they're probably gonna have to take him around.
20:25 Maybe they pick up an extra third somehow,
20:27 take him late in the third.
20:29 I'd love to see him here, 'cause I think they would have,
20:32 and I guess we don't know who the offensive coordinator is,
20:34 but in a current system, I think he'd be a great fit.
20:36 But yeah, kinda tough, kinda tough to see how that happens,
20:40 'cause I think he legitimately,
20:41 so I said Michael Penix is probably
20:45 the most impressive player on the field,
20:46 but Penix's draft stock was already pretty high.
20:49 I don't know that any player improved their draft stock
20:52 on Monday more than Blake Corham did.
20:54 He was fantastic.
20:56 - Yeah, and you talked about where he could be taken.
20:58 It's no secret that running back is undervalued
21:00 in the modern NFL, but all it takes is one team that says,
21:02 "Hey, we don't necessarily need a receiver or tight end,
21:05 we need a playmaker, someone who we can lean on
21:08 in certain situations, who we know
21:09 is gonna provide for us week in and week out
21:11 and be one of the most productive players."
21:13 All it takes is one of those people to take him
21:14 in one of the, maybe not the first round.
21:16 I think we're kinda well past that at this point,
21:18 unless you are an electric, game-breaking speed,
21:21 you know, that kinda deal.
21:22 But I mean, even end of the second, again,
21:25 all it takes is a team who feels comfortable enough
21:27 investing in him as somebody who could be
21:29 one of the faces of their franchise,
21:30 the faces of their offense, and then he's gone.
21:32 But hopefully he can be in the Patriots' range,
21:34 because especially with what they like to do on offense,
21:37 so difficult to talk about what the Patriots
21:38 are gonna do next year, because we don't know
21:39 who's gonna be running things,
21:41 but it's probably gonna be Bill O'Brien,
21:42 and you know, they do like to have,
21:44 not only the versatility, but the ability
21:45 to lean on the run game at will,
21:48 when the offensive line allows them to.
21:50 We got more to talk about,
21:51 we're gonna move on to the Sugar Bowl,
21:52 but before we do, quick word from our friends at FanDuel,
21:55 we'll be back.
21:56 - Score early this NFL season with FanDuel,
22:00 America's number one sports book.
22:03 Right now, new customers get $150 in bonus bets.
22:07 With any winning $5 money bet, that's 150 bucks.
22:11 Your team wins.
22:13 If you've been thinking about joining FanDuel,
22:14 there's no better time to get in on the action at NFL.
22:18 The app is so easy to use,
22:19 there's a wide range of betting options,
22:20 including you get spreads, you get your player props,
22:23 you get over-unders, and more.
22:24 So visit fanduel.com/boston,
22:27 and kick off the NFL season.
22:30 FanDuel, official partner of the NFL.
22:36 - All right, so the Sugar Bowl.
22:39 Now, I think everybody knows who we wanna talk about most,
22:42 but we gotta tease you a little bit first.
22:43 So let's start off with Quinn Ewers.
22:46 Now, for most of this game,
22:47 it didn't look like he was somebody
22:49 who really was gonna be able to get out of college.
22:51 It seemed like, all right,
22:52 real relatively quiet performance,
22:54 maybe this guy's gotta come back to school.
22:56 To his credit, Texas did fight back,
22:59 and they nearly won the game,
23:00 although I don't know what that last play call was.
23:03 It looked like something they drew up in the dirt,
23:05 where it's the goal line fade,
23:06 but literally, the placement was off,
23:09 but it was just such a bizarre kind of play call and throw.
23:13 It kind of blew my mind.
23:14 But do you think that Quinn Ewers did enough
23:17 to maybe push to say, okay,
23:19 I think that I've done enough to show
23:22 that I can compete with a guy like Michael Panix,
23:24 who rose his stock?
23:25 Or do you think, yeah, go back to school,
23:29 get another good year in,
23:30 where any of the questions people have,
23:31 you can just solidify?
23:33 What's your take there?
23:35 - Yeah, I think he's going back.
23:36 I thought he played well in this game.
23:39 He made some throws early on.
23:40 What was really impressive was he made a difference
23:42 with his legs, which we haven't seen him do.
23:44 And that's an interesting angle to add to his game.
23:47 Got going in the second half.
23:49 I thought he was placing the ball really well,
23:52 hit Jadavian Sanders on a couple crossers.
23:54 The deep ball to Whittington
23:55 to set up that last touchdown was good.
23:57 The high point to A.D. Mitchell,
23:59 but of course, he missed the one throw.
24:00 He hits that throw to A.D. Mitchell at the end,
24:02 and Taylor, what I think the play call was,
24:04 was, all right, we got one of the best jump ball receivers
24:07 in the nation on a 5'11" corner.
24:09 He's, A.D. Mitchell down there somewhere, right?
24:13 I think that's essentially what that was.
24:14 And there is a window, right?
24:16 If he throws that more as a comeback,
24:20 or as a back shoulder, and not as much as an out,
24:22 I mean, Mitchell got the separation.
24:25 And it's a great play, I'm blanking on the corner's name.
24:28 It's a great play by the corner.
24:30 I don't know if you saw the back angle, Taylor,
24:32 of that, where the corner comes around with his arm,
24:35 but doesn't touch him.
24:36 It knocks the ball away, like it was as clean of a PVU
24:39 as your, it was just high level football all around.
24:41 But I don't know, I think yours is gonna have his people
24:45 kind of put their feelers out and go to the NFL
24:47 and see if he has a real chance to be a first round pick.
24:49 But was he good?
24:52 Yes.
24:53 Did he do enough to maybe wow teams to jump some other guys?
24:57 I think there are teams that would say, you know,
24:59 yeah, we like him as a first round pick,
25:01 but not ahead of so-and-so, so-and-so, and so-and-so.
25:03 And it's like, okay, well, they have four quarterbacks
25:06 ahead of them, they're picking 10th,
25:07 so they're not gonna take up, right?
25:09 That sort of thing, you do that math.
25:11 So it wouldn't surprise me if he comes out.
25:14 I'll say it wouldn't surprise me,
25:15 as I'm doing my big board right now,
25:17 I actually wrote out a big board this morning
25:18 and I left them off.
25:19 But it wouldn't surprise me either way,
25:24 but gut feeling, he goes back to school.
25:28 Now, what happens with Arch Manning and him
25:30 becomes another very fascinating story.
25:33 I wonder if Arch Manning transfers,
25:35 'cause I think Quinn Ewer is a better quarterback,
25:37 but we'll see what happens with that.
25:40 But no, I thought he was good,
25:42 definitely left a couple of throws on the table,
25:44 but this was a good performance
25:47 against a good, not great defense.
25:49 - Jatavian Sanders and A.D. Mitchell,
25:53 do you think that they're legitimate options
25:55 for the Patriots?
25:55 Now, we're gonna kind of get into the discussion
25:57 of who they should take, where they should take.
25:59 We've already had those debates,
26:01 but do you think the realistic options for New England?
26:03 - Oh yeah, and I'll throw Xavier Worthy in there as well.
26:07 I know Xavier Worthy didn't have a great game.
26:09 I wonder if he was still dealing with that sprained ankle
26:12 he suffered in the Big 12 Championship.
26:15 Those three guys are all gonna be top,
26:17 call it 60 picks, probably top 50.
26:20 I would love it if the Patriots came away with those guys.
26:23 For me, ranking them personally,
26:25 and this is a, you can rank them in whatever order you want.
26:28 I don't think there's an argument.
26:29 It's just, what are you looking for?
26:31 - It's flavor, yep.
26:31 - Right, Xavier Worthy to me is the top guy
26:33 'cause speed, quickness, elusiveness,
26:36 ability after the catch, I love all of that.
26:39 Then I'd probably go Jatavian Sanders
26:41 'cause I think he's got great makeup for a tight end.
26:43 They're gonna need a tight, like a long-term tight end option.
26:46 I think he's a guy, if you drafted him
26:49 and had him play second fiddle
26:50 to like Hunter Henry for a year, right?
26:52 Maybe a franchise tag Hunter Henry, bring him back.
26:54 Jatavian Sanders, your T.E. two for a year.
26:56 Doesn't mean he doesn't contribute,
26:57 but like you're not banking on him.
26:59 Give him a year to really kind of work on his game
27:01 and then have him take over in 2025.
27:03 I think that would make a ton of sense.
27:05 I do really like A.D. Mitchell too.
27:07 I just, they have, they've tried.
27:10 How many times have we seen them try
27:12 with these big body X outside guys
27:14 and they just can't figure it out?
27:16 Maybe it's a different coaching staff, I feel differently,
27:18 but you still have Devontae Parker under contract.
27:20 Like that to me would feel a lot like,
27:22 I don't know, you're moving on
27:25 from Devontae Parker at that point.
27:26 'Cause I don't see a Parker and A.D. Mitchell
27:28 are both on the field.
27:28 So that's my order.
27:31 If they move on from Parker,
27:32 Mitchell moves up, something like that.
27:34 Right, exactly.
27:36 Well, ideally they're moving on from Parker for T. Higgins,
27:38 in which case again, you don't need A.D.
27:39 - Yes, yes, yes.
27:40 - I mean, I would not be upset if they landed any of them.
27:43 I really wouldn't.
27:44 I think they're all really good.
27:45 But I think Sanders specifically in this game,
27:47 Mitchell had that one really nice catch
27:49 for the touchdown where it looked like he,
27:50 like Mario double jumped, which was awesome.
27:53 You saw with Sanders, the athleticism,
27:56 he's going up, he's catching some of those footballs
27:58 above his head.
27:59 And then at 6'4", 250,
28:02 his ability to come down from that
28:04 and just shift his momentum and get up field.
28:06 He's a chore to tackle.
28:08 I think you kind of saw the flashes with him
28:10 that are really fun.
28:11 He is a converted defensive end.
28:13 So his technique is still a little raw.
28:16 I would, if that scares anybody,
28:17 I would point to Keon White,
28:19 who was a tight end who converted a defensive end.
28:22 Jatavia and Sanders, it's kind of a weird comp to make,
28:25 but there's actually, in terms of the profile,
28:28 the athletic profile,
28:29 Jatavia and Sanders is kind of similar to Keon White.
28:32 They just switch positions the other way.
28:34 We're like, you're talking about a guy
28:35 that's a freak athlete, has made some great strides
28:38 in his first few years playing this position.
28:40 He's gonna need to kind of work on his game
28:42 and grow his game.
28:43 And that's why he's not a first round pick.
28:44 There's gonna be some growing pains with that.
28:46 But boy, if you develop him right,
28:47 I mean, we're seeing it with Keon White right now.
28:49 We saw what he did against the Bills.
28:51 Picture that on offense.
28:54 I think that's what you're talking about
28:55 with a guy like Jatavia and Sanders,
28:56 if he goes to the right situation.
28:58 So I really liked what I saw from him.
28:59 I thought he was probably Texas's best,
29:02 definitely the best offensive player in this game,
29:04 maybe their best overall player.
29:05 I thought Byron Murphy, the defensive tackle,
29:07 had a really good game as well.
29:08 - Yeah.
29:09 And yeah, you mentioned how you could resign Hunter Henry
29:11 and still use him.
29:12 It kind of reminds me of an Algie Crumpler situation
29:14 where when they took Hernandez and they took Ron Kawuski,
29:17 it was like, Crumpler was clearly the starter,
29:19 but there was plenty of snaps to go around
29:21 for the young guys.
29:22 He obviously still contributed.
29:24 DeMario Douglas just passed Rob Gronkowski's,
29:26 I think it's his receiving yards,
29:29 a total from his rookie year,
29:30 and then he's 16-yard shy of Hernandez.
29:32 So there's still plenty of those to go around.
29:34 But here's the thing.
29:35 So Troy Faltanu, people are talking about,
29:38 is he a guard, is he a tackle?
29:39 Well, according to Jim Nagy, he has 34 1/2 inch arms.
29:43 That's a tackle- - He hit the benchmarks, baby.
29:45 - There we go.
29:46 So, and I know our buddy Damian at the Draft Network
29:49 was saying, if you just have him at tackle,
29:52 and if he can't do it in training camp, then you move him,
29:55 but you take him and you expect him
29:56 to just stick at the same position.
29:58 So, Brandon Thorne has him, another friend of the show,
30:02 as a late first round, early second round pick.
30:06 Where are you leaning?
30:06 'Cause you know where I stand.
30:08 I think, like you just said,
30:09 there's so many receiver prospects that you can take,
30:12 and obviously we're talking about really more
30:14 towards, again, end of the first or the second round.
30:16 But throughout the draft, you can find really talented guys
30:18 who can contribute for you early.
30:20 Would you wanna take that tackle?
30:22 Would you take Fatanu,
30:23 or do you think they just really need a playmaker?
30:25 'Cause you know my thoughts.
30:26 I think tackles are too hard to find,
30:29 even in deep draft classes, and they don't last very long.
30:33 - So, I think Fatanu's a great,
30:35 you're talking about with their second pick.
30:38 - Yes, yes, the second pick.
30:39 - Yeah, I mean, he makes a ton of sense.
30:41 Would he be my first choice?
30:43 I still gotta catch, there's so many guys here, Taylor,
30:45 in this draft, just to kinda sum it up.
30:49 So this is the consensus big board right now.
30:51 All these guys are from 20 to 50.
30:53 Amarius Mims from Georgia,
30:55 Talese Fugaba from Oregon State,
30:57 Fatanu, Tyler Guyton from Oklahoma,
30:59 Kingsley Tsutomaru from BYU,
31:02 Jordan Morgan from Arizona,
31:03 Patrick Paul from Houston.
31:05 I watched a little bit of some of these guys.
31:06 I like Morgan, I like Paul.
31:09 You know, a lot of these guys will beat the Senior Bowl.
31:10 That's gonna be massive.
31:12 Can I tell you right now, you know,
31:14 Stamp it, I like, you know,
31:16 Fatanu, you know, I like Mims over Fatanu,
31:18 and I like Fatanu over Morgan,
31:19 I like Paul over Fatanu, right?
31:21 I don't know.
31:22 Sorting that part of the board out
31:24 is gonna be one of the bigger quagmires
31:29 we face in this draft process.
31:30 It reminds me of the day two receivers last year,
31:32 where we were, they were like,
31:34 it was like 10 guys that are expected to go in like 15 picks,
31:37 and you know, where are you putting all of them?
31:39 It was a mess, and everybody had a different order
31:41 and whatever.
31:43 - So it makes it fun.
31:43 - Oh no, and it's part of the fun of it.
31:46 It's work, but it's part of the fun of it.
31:46 That being said, like, Fatanu was in that group,
31:50 and I think he's rightfully in that group.
31:51 He had a very good game
31:52 against a very good Texas defensive front.
31:54 Texas defense, by the way, and I know they got lit up,
31:57 but for what they were on the season
31:58 in an offensive conference like the Big 12,
32:00 not getting enough credit for how good they are.
32:03 But I thought Fatanu had a really good game again.
32:05 Four year starter, which is great.
32:09 To me, Fatanu is, and this is how it'll kind of break down
32:11 with some of the guys in that range I just read.
32:14 He's a four year starter, he's 24 years old.
32:16 He looks pretty maxed out physically
32:18 at I think six, four, 317.
32:21 He's a floor guy.
32:22 Like, you're getting a day one starter,
32:25 but he's probably not gonna be much better
32:28 than he is right now.
32:29 And he's good enough right now to play in the NFL,
32:31 but I don't think he's a guy you're ever gonna be talking
32:33 to as like an all pro, right?
32:34 But maybe you just feel like we need a hit on a tackle.
32:37 We just need a tackle.
32:39 Fatanu was one of the safer options,
32:41 whereas if you go to a guy like Amarius Mims,
32:44 who's only a two year starter and looks a little more raw,
32:47 but he's younger and he's still bulking up,
32:50 that's like, all right, this guy can be a stud
32:53 and he's not right now
32:54 and we're gonna have to work with him.
32:56 So that's what it's gonna come down to.
32:57 We gotta see what they do in free agency.
32:58 We gotta see what happens with Michael and Wenu,
33:00 but Fatanu should be on their board.
33:03 It's too soon to say that he's like the pick at 34.
33:06 If they trade up late in the first, I think he's an option,
33:09 but he's absolutely on the board.
33:11 And before we move off Washington's offensive line,
33:13 I don't know if you had any more thoughts on Fatanu,
33:16 but let me just say the Patriots, if it's still Bill,
33:19 the Patriots like to do this thing
33:20 where everybody's looking at one prospect
33:23 and there's another guy that's on the field with that guy.
33:25 And so the one I remember is Cash Malawi.
33:28 I remember the linebacker from Wyoming.
33:30 It ultimately didn't work out,
33:31 but Wyoming had some other like great player.
33:33 I don't remember who it was,
33:34 but they were like, yeah,
33:35 every time we watched tape of this guy,
33:36 Cash Malawi was just making plays.
33:39 - Logan Wilson?
33:40 - That sounds right.
33:41 Yeah, I think it was Logan Wilson.
33:43 And Dietrich Weiss was,
33:45 I forget who the other Arkansas rusher was,
33:47 but Dietrich Weiss was another guy they got like that
33:49 for a good example.
33:50 Roger Rosengarten, the right tackle for Washington
33:54 was very good in this game.
33:55 And he's an underrated prospect as a day three pick.
33:58 Now he's a right tackle.
33:59 So if they re-sign Michael Nguyen, he's off the table.
34:02 But if Michael Nguyen leaves,
34:04 Rosengarten on day three is a player to watch.
34:07 I thought he was also,
34:08 and I don't think either one of them allowed a sack.
34:10 Neither one of them allowed a sack.
34:12 Rosengarten didn't allow a pressure in 72 snaps.
34:15 Fitanu allowed two,
34:17 but they were both really good in this game
34:20 and both guys in different ways,
34:22 both guys that should be on the radar for the Patriots.
34:25 - All right, I know all the real football nerds
34:27 love this offensive line talk,
34:29 but I know most people are here to talk quarterbacks.
34:31 One quarterback in particular, Mr. Michael Penix Jr.
34:35 But before we get into him,
34:36 quick word from our friends at Seekee.
34:38 We'll be back.
34:39 - I've been looking for the best deal on Celtics tickets.
34:42 And with over 28 million downloads,
34:43 Seekee is the number one rated ticketing app.
34:46 There are more than 70,000 events every single day
34:48 on Seekee, including concerts, sports festivals, and more.
34:51 With the NFL, NBA, and NHL seasons of full swing,
34:54 you don't want to miss out.
34:56 Seekee has your tickets to every game.
34:58 Plus artists like Travis Scott are on tour.
35:01 They put all the tickets across the web in one place
35:03 to make sure you're getting a good deal.
35:05 Each ticket is rated on a scale of one to 10.
35:07 So look for the green dots.
35:08 Green means good and red means bad.
35:11 Every ticket is backed by their buyer guarantee.
35:13 And Seekee is the only site that lets you return your tickets
35:17 ahead of the event with swaps.
35:19 So as you know, I always come through for you guys.
35:23 You can use my code DREAMERSPRO
35:27 for $20 off tickets at Seekee.
35:30 That's $20 off your first purchase
35:33 with promo code DREAMERSPRO.
35:35 Make sure you check the link in the description
35:37 to download the app.
35:39 - All right, so Michael Pennix Jr.,
35:48 one of the few guys in these games
35:49 that I actually did sit down and get to really break down
35:51 to see just how he performed,
35:53 'cause he was one of the best college players
35:55 who played this weekend.
35:57 The deep accuracy, not a surprise, but it's so impressive,
36:01 especially considering with the footwork,
36:03 like it's not always perfect.
36:04 It's still something that, you know,
36:06 especially if you look really deep into his film,
36:08 you'll see that his accuracy can kind of get
36:10 all over the place because of it.
36:12 And then he's got the kind of Philip Rivers type release
36:15 where it's all slow, looks a little wonky,
36:17 but man, does that ball get there.
36:19 When you talk about the touch, the zip,
36:21 like the one where he split the safeties
36:23 and threw it to Jalen Polk.
36:25 I mean, then he had the really nice touch throw
36:27 to the sideline where they fake the bubble screens.
36:29 I actually get to actually talk some X's and O's
36:32 'cause I really got to sit down with this one.
36:34 But I mean, he was really, really impressive.
36:37 So what were your thoughts?
36:39 And do you think he's not only entered
36:40 the first round conversation,
36:42 'cause I really think that at the very least
36:43 he could be maybe be taken towards the end,
36:46 but do you think he's inserted himself
36:47 one of the top 10, top 15 conversation?
36:50 And all of this is of course, assuming the medical is clear
36:53 and he continues to have a good performance
36:55 in the championship game.
36:55 - Oh, I mean, I think he's a first round lock now.
36:58 And I think it's a matter of top 15 or top 10 with him,
37:00 Taylor.
37:01 My first thought was, wow.
37:03 I think I audibly said that on seven or eight
37:05 of those throws.
37:06 I mean, that was one of the best quarterback games
37:10 I've seen in a long time at the college level.
37:13 He was so good, so good.
37:16 And you talk about, where do you start the poise,
37:21 the pocket movement, the ball placement,
37:23 the velocity, the reads.
37:24 He didn't make a mistake.
37:25 He didn't make a single mistake.
37:27 They dropped, how many times did he throw the ball
37:29 in that game?
37:30 How many pass, about 42.
37:33 42 times they threw the ball in that game.
37:35 He didn't make one mistake against a good Texas defense.
37:37 This is a Texas defense that was top 15 in the nation
37:40 overall, that was top 30 against the pass.
37:43 And he picked them apart.
37:45 And there's moments where I thought balls are dropped
37:50 'cause I didn't see the receiver move his hand.
37:52 So I'm like, oh, that's overthrown.
37:53 No, he put it where, forget the receiver
37:55 not having to break stride.
37:56 The receiver didn't have to move his hands.
37:58 - Yeah.
37:59 - And he's doing it.
38:00 - And time to a doomsday, just, oh my God.
38:01 - He's doing this in a tight coverage windows.
38:03 He's stepping around rushers in the pocket,
38:06 step, reset, throw.
38:07 He's throwing off balance.
38:09 We saw him run a little bit in this game,
38:10 which I've been trying to tell you guys.
38:11 It's not that he's immobile.
38:12 He just doesn't want to do it to protect himself,
38:15 which I get.
38:16 But when he has to do it, he can be a factor with his legs.
38:19 He was, again, I can't say enough.
38:24 I can't say enough about how good Michael Penix was
38:28 in that game.
38:29 And I know doomsday is a great receiver.
38:30 Jalen Polk had a great game.
38:31 We'll talk about him.
38:31 But you, like you said, the throw to Odunze,
38:34 what does Odunze really do there?
38:36 I mean, Penix puts it right on his hands, right?
38:38 He just kind of tenses his fingers up a little bit
38:40 to catch the ball.
38:41 That's it.
38:42 The throw, he splits the safeties to Jalen McMillan.
38:45 I, you know, McMillan, it was,
38:47 McMillan tips it up in the air and then catches it, right?
38:49 You know, that's what he did, but the ball's on a rope.
38:52 And that's the other thing.
38:53 It's like, all right, when he needs to thread it,
38:55 he threads it.
38:56 When he needs a touch pass, it's a touch pass.
38:57 There was not one moment watching that game.
39:00 And this is so rare for college.
39:02 It's rare for the NFL.
39:03 Forget college football.
39:04 We're sitting there saying, what did he see?
39:08 Why did he make the decision he made?
39:10 Because I don't see it.
39:11 Everything he pressed was the right button.
39:15 That wasn't an anomaly.
39:17 He's had other games like that.
39:19 But to do it on that stage against that team,
39:23 man, he looks special.
39:25 I gotta tell you, if it wasn't for the knee injuries,
39:27 I think we'd be talking about him
39:29 as a potential one-one today.
39:30 I really do. - Oh, absolutely.
39:32 Absolutely. - And, but look,
39:33 and that matters.
39:34 That matters.
39:35 And there's a legitimate risk with a guy
39:36 who's torn both ACLs with a guy that's had
39:39 four season-ending injuries before two clean years
39:42 the last two years.
39:43 That factors in.
39:44 The combine medicals are gonna be huge,
39:45 but I've said it about it from the beginning.
39:48 I'm gonna keep saying it, Taylor.
39:50 There is not a better thrower of the football.
39:53 He is the best thrower of the football we've seen come out
39:55 in the last three years.
39:57 I'll take him over anybody in that 22 class, right?
40:00 That's the Kenny Pickett class.
40:01 I mean, that class sucks,
40:02 but he's a better thrower of the football than Bryce Young.
40:05 He's a better thrower of the football than CJ Stroud,
40:08 Anthony Richardson, Will Levis,
40:09 whoever you want from last year.
40:11 The ball just explodes out of his hand.
40:14 I mean, just, it's gone.
40:16 And I know some people struggle
40:18 with the lefty throwing motion.
40:20 I flipped it.
40:21 If you go look on my Twitter, I flipped the video.
40:24 Does he have the best mechanics in the world?
40:26 No, you probably wouldn't teach a quarterback
40:28 to throw like that.
40:29 And honestly, there's times where I'm looking at it
40:31 and I'm like, his footwork kind of sucks here.
40:34 But then I see that the ball is put, you know,
40:36 in a keyhole 45 yards down the field.
40:38 And I'm like, all right, I guess it does.
40:40 Like, it doesn't really matter, right?
40:42 It's Aaron Rodgers was another,
40:44 well, Phillip Rivers is the obvious comment, right?
40:46 Coaches always say, you would never teach a young quarterback
40:49 to throw the football
40:50 the way Phillip Rivers throws the football.
40:53 It's so good that you weren't gonna tweak it.
40:55 Another example, sorry, is Steph Curry.
40:59 Steph Curry's jump shots like,
41:00 never get to shoot like Steph Curry.
41:04 But is anybody gonna sit here and be like,
41:05 Steph Curry's jump shot is a problem?
41:07 No, never.
41:09 It's one of those things like, they're not bad.
41:12 I don't wanna sit here and say they're bad.
41:15 His mechanics aren't bad, but they're good enough.
41:19 And for the flaws that are in there,
41:20 they don't seem to bother him much.
41:23 - And we talk about mechanics with quarterbacks.
41:24 It's important to remember that it's more about comfort
41:28 than you being mechanical.
41:29 Like some guys like Patrick Mahomes,
41:31 you don't want him throwing like a Peyton Manning
41:33 'cause he's not gonna be comfortable.
41:35 There are things that every quarterback needs to fine tune.
41:37 Like Tom Brady, even.
41:38 It was like the 1% of the 1%,
41:40 where there's always something you can do better
41:41 to get your release quicker,
41:43 to just get a little bit more of something else,
41:45 what have you.
41:46 Pennix just looks like a guy who was born to play quarterback
41:49 and not only just from a physical perspective,
41:51 but like you said, the mechanics aren't perfect,
41:53 but the passes are just beautiful.
41:56 And the fact that we've seen in several of these big games
41:59 in late in the fourth quarter,
42:00 when we're talking like, all right,
42:02 if he decides to take a shot and it's inaccurate
42:04 or gets picked off or he makes a mistake,
42:07 like it could very well end up
42:08 completely swinging in the game.
42:10 Not only does he have the ice in his veins
42:12 to make those decisions, but he comes through.
42:14 And then you look at like the way he talks post-game.
42:17 Like he even kind of slide at Texas.
42:19 He was like as respectful as he could be.
42:21 He's like, yeah, I want to credit them.
42:23 They got great players.
42:24 They're well coached, called a good game, blah, blah, blah.
42:26 But you know, I thought what they were doing
42:28 was kind of simple.
42:29 And honestly watching it, I thought the same thing
42:31 'cause there was no safety rotations.
42:33 They weren't trying to confuse him at all.
42:35 They were just lining up, all right, middle field close,
42:37 middle field open, making it easy for him.
42:39 The dude didn't really have to do anything.
42:40 It was like he was on autopilot, just cutting them up.
42:44 And I mean, like you said, the medicals are really important
42:47 but the fact that he can do what he does
42:49 with injuries to both shoulders
42:51 with the same ACL injury twice.
42:53 And he still, it's like, you know,
42:55 I've seen some reports that say
42:56 he doesn't have the same physical ability
42:58 that he did when he was younger.
42:59 Sure, but he's still fantastic.
43:02 So I'm excited to watch him in the championship game
43:06 to just see more of what he can do.
43:08 Let him build on his legend.
43:10 Just absolutely impressive, impressive prospect.
43:13 Is there anything else you want to add before we move on?
43:15 - I mean, if he tears up Michigan,
43:16 like he's a top 10 lock.
43:18 - Yeah, again, that's an NFL defense, right?
43:20 Like I said, Texas defense is good.
43:22 Doesn't get enough credit.
43:23 Michigan's defense is best in the country.
43:25 It's the best in the country.
43:26 And if he, and he's going to have to do more
43:27 in terms of maneuvering the pocket and stuff like that.
43:29 But yeah, boy, and they might have, you know,
43:33 it sounds like they're going to have Dylan Johnson.
43:35 They're running back.
43:36 We got hurt late in that game, but you know,
43:37 is he going to be at a hundred percent?
43:39 That was, yeah, I'm glad to see he's okay.
43:41 Another guy I like through Patriots, by the way,
43:42 on day three, but yeah, it's just,
43:46 I'm still like, I'm still going back and watching the clips.
43:49 Cause I'm just like, it's, I don't remember the last time,
43:52 even at the NFL level,
43:53 I don't remember the last time I saw quarterback
43:55 play like that.
43:56 I mean, just every single pass is right on the hands
44:00 with no window.
44:02 He's not getting brought down on the backfield.
44:05 He's so calm and poised.
44:06 And like you said, too,
44:07 you can see how much his teammates love playing with him.
44:12 And that's a factor too.
44:13 Like he's a leader of men.
44:16 He's got that dog in him, however you want to phrase it.
44:19 It's, I keep going back to it.
44:21 If it's not for the knee injuries,
44:23 he's pushing Caleb Williams and the knee injuries are real.
44:26 And that's, that's something,
44:28 if you're somebody who doesn't care about that,
44:30 and I think you have to care about it,
44:31 but if you're somebody who doesn't care about it,
44:33 I think the age thing's overblown,
44:34 but if you're somebody who doesn't care about
44:35 the knee injuries,
44:36 I don't know how Michael Penix isn't one, one.
44:39 And I will say for a team like the Patriots
44:42 that maybe wants a pop right away
44:44 and cares more about say the three-year window
44:46 than the 10-year window,
44:49 Michael Penix looks pretty damn good right now,
44:51 especially if they win this week
44:52 and they fall to four or five.
44:54 'Cause you get a couple of pieces,
44:57 you get that guy T Higgins,
44:59 and you have him dotting balls 40 yards down the field
45:02 to T Higgins, you got something there.
45:04 Now you got to build an offensive line.
45:06 You got to take care of him.
45:07 - Yeah, that's exactly, exactly.
45:09 That's when it's like, all right, that's like,
45:10 I want to get him Jalen Polk,
45:12 but now we got to get him a good tackle.
45:14 And then you talk about like,
45:16 it's the kind of a similar Mac Jones argument
45:18 where it's like, well, look at all the talent around him.
45:19 Like he's got all these guys
45:20 who are going to go top 100 in the draft, sure.
45:23 But like you mentioned,
45:25 he's putting these balls in windows that don't exist.
45:28 You have the play where he had a free rusher
45:29 coming right down the pipe, immediately at him.
45:32 Quick side swept, get the ball out.
45:34 I think he had like a couple of plays like that actually,
45:36 where pressure was coming down
45:37 and he just delivers a perfect pass.
45:39 So that's what you want to see.
45:40 We're sure you're throwing a great playmakers
45:42 who are coming down and finishing for you.
45:44 But also you want to see him being able to make those
45:47 just like really, really high level plays
45:50 where when things don't go right
45:51 and things aren't perfect circumstances
45:53 where you know, a dude's not,
45:55 doesn't have 10 yards of separation down field
45:57 where it's like, all right, just hit him in stride
45:58 and you know, just get the completion.
46:01 I mean, I don't really know how many more questions
46:03 other than obviously the medicals he has to answer
46:05 because he's doing it on big stages.
46:08 There's inconsistencies I think
46:09 in some of the earlier games I saw again,
46:11 like there were a couple of games where the accuracy
46:14 in terms of inconsistency was like, wow,
46:16 but you didn't see it in that game.
46:17 And again, in these big games,
46:19 you're seeing them come through.
46:20 So we can do an entire show just on him.
46:22 But the point is Michael Penix Jr.
46:25 You are him.
46:26 - Actually, let me bring up one more comment here.
46:29 This is really interesting.
46:30 And this is a minor thing that I thought
46:31 was big in this game.
46:33 Jason brings up a good point.
46:34 You didn't always see the Texas DBs turn and play the ball.
46:37 For all the crap we give Bill
46:39 about developing wide receivers.
46:41 One thing they do coach that I love,
46:44 and I think Randy Moss taught him this.
46:46 You don't show your hands until the last second.
46:50 So if you're tracking the ball down the field,
46:51 you're running back to the quarterback,
46:53 receivers running back to the quarterback,
46:55 corners running back to the quarterback.
46:56 You might be looking back for the ball.
46:58 The corner's looking at you.
46:59 If you put your hands up,
47:02 the corner knows the ball is coming.
47:04 And he's gonna get in position.
47:06 Where you go watch the Randy Moss,
47:08 and Randy Moss is obviously the GOAT,
47:10 like not everybody can do this,
47:11 but Randy Moss, it would be,
47:13 as the ball's coming down over his shoulder,
47:14 he just pops his hands out, right?
47:16 That's where Michael Penix's accuracy comes in.
47:19 A lot of the reason the Texas DBs weren't turning
47:22 is 'cause all the Washington wide receivers
47:23 were coming through with laid hands,
47:25 'cause the ball's right there.
47:27 They didn't have to, 'cause you're running here, right?
47:28 You're running, you're running like at your chest,
47:31 and they just kind of had to pop their hands open.
47:32 They don't have to go over here.
47:33 They don't have to go over here.
47:34 They don't have to go back here.
47:36 He allowed, Penix enabled them to really take advantage
47:40 of the laid hands technique.
47:41 And I don't think it was the Texas defensive backs
47:44 not knowing to turn,
47:46 like not knowing the coaching point to turn.
47:50 They're doing what they're told.
47:51 You watch the receiver and you play the hands,
47:53 'cause that's what you do
47:54 when a guy running down the field.
47:55 If you turn back to look, you slow down, you can't keep up.
47:58 I'm gonna guess if Bill's still here
48:00 in the Patriots draft, Penix,
48:02 this is gonna be a huge thing with them,
48:04 is going to be his ability to put the ball right on guys
48:07 and take advantage of that laid hands concept.
48:09 So, maybe some of it was college players.
48:11 I don't wanna say that was like 100% of the time,
48:13 but no, there were times where it was definitely,
48:15 you could see the hands go really late
48:18 and the corner start to turn,
48:19 but it's too late, the ball's already there
48:21 'cause it was just so accurate.
48:22 The receiver could really take advantage of that
48:24 'cause he didn't have to move his hands that far.
48:26 He didn't have to break stride or anything
48:28 to get to the football.
48:29 - Yeah, I think there's a Rob Gronkowski
48:31 like mic'd up video or something
48:32 where he says the same thing,
48:33 where like the season before he was playing Buffalo
48:35 or something like that,
48:36 and he put his hands up too early and he got swiped out.
48:39 And there was another huge play he made, he credited.
48:41 Yeah, I just didn't show him my hands
48:43 and I was able to come down with it.
48:44 So, yeah, I'm really excited.
48:47 All right, real quick, we got some other stuff
48:49 we gotta get to.
48:50 We had Bo Nix, he's gonna be going to the senior bowl.
48:53 We also had Cam Ward, he's going to the draft.
48:57 Talk about those guys,
48:58 whether you think they would be fits in New England,
49:00 where you think they should get them.
49:01 'Cause I know with Bo Nix, he's kind of polarizing guy.
49:05 I know some people think he's better
49:06 than the top quarterbacks in the class,
49:08 which I do not agree with.
49:09 But then there's a debate of, okay, is he a late first?
49:11 Is he a second round?
49:12 So let us know what your thoughts are on those folks.
49:15 - So Nix, older prospect, gonna be 24, six years of starting.
49:19 He's got over 50 starts under his belt, you love that.
49:23 I think the senior bowl is gonna be really good
49:25 because he was very good at Oregon,
49:28 but it was a very quarterback friendly system.
49:31 And that's not to knock him,
49:32 but like setting the completion percentage record.
49:34 Again, he's not throwing the ball very far.
49:36 He's not, it's scheme for him to not throw the ball
49:38 in the tight windows, things like that.
49:41 He's not necessarily gonna have the benefit of that
49:42 at the senior bowl.
49:43 We're gonna get to see him throw the ball
49:45 more down the field, throw to some more covered receivers.
49:47 It's gonna be really, really interesting.
49:49 And also see him throw under center,
49:51 which he didn't do a lot at Oregon.
49:53 I still think he's a Shanahan quarterback.
49:55 Like I think if you put him in a Shanahan system
49:58 where it's very paint by number,
49:59 you can take advantage of some of the stuff he does
50:01 with his legs, not necessarily designed quarterback runs,
50:05 but using his legs to extend plays.
50:06 He's very good on the bootleg.
50:07 He's very good rolling out of the pocket.
50:10 Maybe the Patriots running a Shanahan system,
50:12 I get more excited about it, but we'll see with him.
50:15 I do think it's great.
50:16 He's going to the senior bowl.
50:17 I think that's a great chance.
50:19 Now can we get Drake May there?
50:21 That's what I really wanna see.
50:22 As for Cam Ward, so I had a kind of fire drill,
50:27 scramble catch up on Cam Ward,
50:28 'cause I didn't think he was coming out.
50:30 He was getting offered $2 million NIL deals
50:32 on the transfer portal.
50:33 I thought he was going to Ohio State.
50:34 I thought that was a lock.
50:36 Super exciting quarterback.
50:38 Another guy that, you know, big deep ball thrower,
50:41 big arm, ball explodes out.
50:42 He's got some athletic ability.
50:45 He's got, you know, the mojo, the charisma you wanna see
50:47 from one of those quarterbacks.
50:48 Only two years of starter, only 25 starts under his belt.
50:51 That's, the NFL uses 25 starts as a cutoff.
50:55 So there, I guess, are numbers,
50:57 and I've kind of tried to look at it.
50:58 Maybe there's more in-depth numbers they're using.
51:00 I don't know what NFL teams consider success exactly
51:03 at the quarterback position,
51:04 but I guess 25 starts is where that cutoff is
51:07 for like successful NFL quarterbacks.
51:09 25 starts- - Especially for like Bill
51:11 with that Parcells, 'cause Parcells has like,
51:13 his rules on quarterbacks, and Bill tends to stick to that.
51:16 So that's a pretty significant factor.
51:17 - So Cam Ward's like right on that line.
51:19 Who Cam Ward is to me, and Taylor,
51:21 I remember I told you this, I do this with Evan, right?
51:23 Like we tier guys, right?
51:25 Where you had Zay Flowers last year,
51:27 and then you had day two Zay Flowers was Tank Dell,
51:29 and you had day three Zay Flowers,
51:31 which was DeMario Douglas.
51:33 Cam Ward to me is day two Caleb Williams,
51:37 where he is really good at that out of structure,
51:42 play breaks down, he's gonna extend, he's not a runner.
51:46 He's not like Jaden Daniels where he's gonna take,
51:49 he can run, but he's not, that's not a plus for him.
51:52 He's gonna look to throw.
51:53 Like he's really good at a structure.
51:54 He can extend plays.
51:56 He can make the throws down the field,
51:58 and he can zip the ball in the tight windows.
52:00 He's not nearly as technically sound as Caleb Williams.
52:03 I don't think he sees the field as well as Caleb Williams.
52:05 He doesn't have that experience.
52:07 So that's where he like falls today too, right?
52:09 He's much more boomer bust, but if you like that skillset,
52:14 he's a guy you look at if you can't get Caleb Williams.
52:16 Now, I don't think he's NFL ready.
52:17 He's probably a guy you gotta sit for,
52:20 I don't know about a full year,
52:21 but you gotta give him a couple of months
52:23 in an NFL offense to get accustomed to it.
52:25 So I don't think, maybe if his stock falls,
52:29 he's a guy you take early on day three
52:31 and you do the RG three Kirk cousins thing,
52:34 you know, like Pennix in Ward could make some sense.
52:38 You pair those two guys,
52:40 but I think he's more a team that is a year or two away
52:43 from meeting the quarterback to trying to get ahead of it.
52:45 I do like Cam Ward.
52:47 I do think he's a fun prospect, but yeah,
52:50 it's he's not a first round guy.
52:53 I don't think he's a year one week,
52:56 one starter kind of guy.
52:57 Had he stayed a year, had he stayed a year,
53:00 maybe I think you're talking about him
53:01 as one of the top quarterbacks in 2025,
53:03 which again is why this is so surprising.
53:06 I'd love to know why he decided to come out,
53:09 but yeah, it's gonna be interesting to see kind of
53:12 how NFL teams handle him because
53:14 I don't think teams expected him to come out
53:17 and there might be some catch up there as well.
53:19 - All right, so for the championship game,
53:23 - Yes.
53:24 - Give me your predictions on this real quick
53:26 before we get out of here.
53:27 Because personally, I just, I don't see JJ McCarthy,
53:31 like, I don't know, I don't see Blake Corum
53:34 out dueling Michael Penix Jr.
53:36 Like if we're being totally honest,
53:37 I don't think putting Penix and McCarthy
53:39 in the same conversation of like,
53:40 who's gonna out duel who, let's be realistic.
53:42 Corum is the heart and soul of that Michigan offense,
53:45 but also that defense is fantastic.
53:46 Like this is gonna be a different type of test for Penix
53:50 and it's gonna be fun 'cause we're gonna get to see
53:53 what he can do against not only NFL talent,
53:55 but a scheme that's gonna challenge him more than did Texas.
53:59 So what's your prediction for this one?
54:00 - Yeah, man, it's so tough.
54:02 Like, so I picked earlier Washington to cover four and a half.
54:06 I don't know if I'm picking with my heart
54:07 or my head on that one, honestly.
54:08 (laughs)
54:09 I wonder what, so I, Washington this year
54:14 has been very good at,
54:15 when the passing game isn't there initially,
54:18 running the ball, establishing the run,
54:21 and then getting back to the passing game off of that
54:23 once they've kind of offset that pass rush
54:25 and they have the defensive backs looking in the backfield.
54:28 With this Michigan front, with Dylan Johnson banged up,
54:32 I wonder how viable of a strategy that is
54:36 if they can't throw initially.
54:37 And I wonder if Michigan's front just takes over this game.
54:42 - Yeah. - Now,
54:43 could Michael Penix simply be better and rise above it
54:47 and make more plays in the pocket
54:48 and get the ball down the field?
54:49 Absolutely.
54:50 I just, you know,
54:54 if Michigan can start turning the ball over, right,
54:57 on defense, then that's it.
54:58 I do think Michigan wins.
55:02 I think there's a world in which Penix has a good game
55:04 and Michigan wins.
55:05 - Yeah. - I think Michigan wins,
55:07 but I don't think we're coming away
55:08 talking about JJ McCarthy or even Blake Corham.
55:11 I think we're coming away talking about Chris Jenkins.
55:13 I think we're coming away talking about Mike Sandler still.
55:15 I think we're coming away talking about Rod Moore.
55:18 Like, I think we're coming away just saying,
55:19 "Wow, that Michigan defense stepped up, made plays,
55:24 "receivers weren't open, Penix was under duress."
55:26 And I will say this about Penix.
55:28 He hasn't been great under pressure this year.
55:31 That Texas game was-- - Numbers were rough.
55:33 - A bit of an anomaly in that regard.
55:35 Right, I think for the most part,
55:37 that's what we've seen him be this year,
55:39 but he certainly elevated his game against pressure.
55:42 He has to do that again for Washington to beat Michigan,
55:45 'cause he's going to be pressured more,
55:47 and he's going to have to handle it
55:50 in order to win this game.
55:51 If not, I think Michigan,
55:52 'cause they're going to run the crap out of the ball.
55:55 They're going to keep that clock running.
55:56 They're going to shorten this game as much as possible.
55:59 If it's up to them, there's only going to be
56:00 seven or eight drives for each team in this game.
56:03 And then there's no margin for error for Washington.
56:05 You have to be perfect.
56:07 And I think Washington can do that.
56:09 We saw them just play a perfect game last week.
56:11 But I want to say Washington.
56:15 I want to say Michael Penix, 'cause that lights him up.
56:17 I hope he proves me wrong,
56:20 'cause I just think Michigan's defense
56:22 is so freaking good, man.
56:24 They've got dudes all over the field
56:26 on that side of the ball,
56:27 and it's going to be tough for Washington to,
56:30 they haven't been tested like this before.
56:31 They haven't been tested with a defense like this.
56:33 And even if it takes them a quarter to adjust
56:37 against a team that can control the clock
56:39 like Michigan on offense, it might be too late.
56:42 - Yeah, these are going to be two teams
56:44 with legitimate NFL talent,
56:46 especially talking Washington's offense,
56:48 Michigan's defense.
56:49 It could be its own show entirely
56:51 talking about those matchups.
56:52 But we got to get out of here for tonight.
56:54 Alex, please let the people know
56:56 what fantastic stuff you got coming down the pipeline
56:59 for the rest of the week.
57:00 - Yeah, it's all on 985thesportshub.com.
57:03 We're catching up on the end of the season here,
57:05 getting ready to get into the off season.
57:06 And me and Evan will break down the college football play.
57:09 I'm making Evan talk about the college football playoff
57:12 tomorrow on Catch 22, Thursday morning.
57:14 So you can check that out.
57:15 - Awesome. Thank you, brother.
57:17 Thank you all for watching as always.
57:19 Take care of yourselves, take care of each other, and we will see you next time.