Podcast: Message Being Sent to the NFL
Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast on the message being sent to the NFL from the Silver and Black
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00:00 Hi everybody, this is Hondo Carpenter from the Las Vegas Raiders Insider Podcast.
00:06 As you know, I'm from Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation Raiders Today.
00:09 Great to be with you all.
00:12 So excited to have this guy with you with me.
00:14 As you know, I'm your Raiders beat writer.
00:16 He's my assistant beat writer.
00:18 Does a great job for us and with us.
00:21 And Zeke, before we get started, I made you a promise weeks ago.
00:30 Is the promise fulfilled?
00:31 Tell everybody about your gift.
00:33 What did you think?
00:34 Yes, quick answer is yes, the promise was fulfilled.
00:37 Listen, getting and being able to wear all black horses, it has a certain connotation
00:44 that comes with it.
00:45 And you feel a certain kind of way when you put them on your feet.
00:48 So it's been a while since I had some Air Forces on, but as soon as I put them on, I
00:52 felt like I had superpowers.
00:58 That's funny.
00:59 Superpowers.
01:00 All right.
01:01 I like it.
01:02 So did you like now any pair of shoes is a good pair of shoes, especially when they're
01:04 free.
01:05 But those those are nice shoes, are they not?
01:06 Oh, yeah.
01:07 Nice.
01:08 And they're classic.
01:09 I mean, you can never go wrong with them.
01:10 They match multiple outfits, really any outfit you want to wear.
01:13 And like I said, they're comfortable.
01:15 So I love it.
01:16 Thank you again.
01:17 Zeke, this is where you and I are different.
01:21 I have never put on a pair of shoes, tennis shoes and thought, I wonder if it matches
01:26 my outfit.
01:27 Oh, yeah.
01:28 That's like the first thing you got to wonder, right?
01:32 It's like, hey, how does this look with everything else that I have on right now?
01:35 But it's okay to handle.
01:36 We're gonna get you imagine coordinating.
01:37 Oh, you crack me up.
01:38 Excuse me.
01:39 All right, Zeke.
01:40 Let's talk about Christian.
01:41 What are you doing?
01:51 Screen just fell back.
01:52 My man.
01:53 Sorry about that.
01:54 All right.
01:55 So let's talk about Christian Wilkins.
01:56 I know we talked about him a lot.
01:59 And this probably gonna be the last time.
02:00 But until the season starts, or at least till we start getting into football.
02:06 But they go out.
02:08 He's their guy.
02:09 And they and they grab it.
02:11 The number one free agent on the defensive side of the football.
02:15 They're not afraid to spend the money.
02:18 They go get their guy.
02:19 But you get a guy with Max's work ethic.
02:23 That's the big deal.
02:24 He mirrors Max in practice and in games.
02:29 He's a chatterbox.
02:30 He loves to talk smack.
02:33 How big is this?
02:34 Everyone's talking about how big a signing is.
02:38 But should there be anybody happier in America than Max Crosby?
02:42 Because now they just gave another weapon that people have to win.
02:47 We know how Malcolm Coons and Tyree Wilson are doing.
02:49 How awesome is his addition for Max Crosby?
02:53 It's huge.
02:54 It's huge for the whole team.
02:55 It's obviously huge for the defense.
02:57 But I think so.
02:58 How do excuse me for a minute?
02:59 I might go off a little bit.
03:00 But I think it's huge for a lot of different reasons.
03:01 I think it's big for Tom Telesco as well.
03:04 But we'll get back to that.
03:05 In terms of Max, it's huge.
03:07 Now Max has help on the inside of things.
03:09 Obviously, they spent a while trying to find another defensive end on the opposite side
03:14 of him.
03:15 But now he has that help next to him, in the middle, right next to him.
03:17 So that's going to be huge for him.
03:18 It makes his job a whole lot easier when you put a talent next to him like Christian.
03:23 So it's a big deal for Max.
03:25 It's a big deal for the team.
03:26 But I also think it's a big deal for Tom Telesco.
03:30 For that to be his first major signing in terms of while he's here, he went out, he
03:34 did it early.
03:35 He didn't take time and he spent the money.
03:37 I think that's going to be a big thing for him going forward.
03:40 I think it shows other free agents moving forward that, hey, Tom Telesco is for real.
03:44 He'll spend the money if he thinks the talent is worth it.
03:46 So I think it's a big signing for many, many reasons.
03:51 I would 110% agree with that.
03:54 I talked about this yesterday, but I want to talk about it again with you.
03:58 I had an NFL executive.
04:00 I just said, "What do you think of what Tom Telesco has done so far?"
04:03 And he goes, "A plus."
04:06 I understand that people are mad that they let Josh go, but his contract, even though
04:13 it's a four-year, $48 million deal, it really wasn't that much.
04:19 It was basically over 12 guaranteed.
04:23 So it's technically a one-year deal.
04:26 But when you miss as much time as Josh does, even on a one-year deal, you can't spend those
04:32 extra millions, not million, millions.
04:38 It's just not feasible if you want to be a responsible franchise.
04:42 Your thoughts on that?
04:43 I think you hit it right on the head.
04:45 I was actually thinking about this last night with some of the articles I was writing.
04:49 It's business in terms of Josh, specifically.
04:53 If you're taking it in terms of your personal feelings, everyone would have wanted Josh
04:56 back, right?
04:57 But that's not the job of a GM.
04:59 The GM is to look at this as a business, which it is.
05:02 And if you look at it, between the two running backs that they already have on the roster,
05:06 between Abdullah, Zamir, and whoever else they decide to bring in, they're probably
05:11 going to be paying less for those three players combined than what they probably would have
05:15 been paying for Josh per season.
05:17 So it's smart business decisions, but it also frees up room for the Raiders to go spend
05:22 money elsewhere and get more bang for their buck.
05:25 It makes sense to me on many different levels, and bigger than that, everybody wins.
05:30 Josh won.
05:31 Raiders won.
05:32 It's rare that you get a situation in the NFL where a player leaves or a straight hitter
05:36 or how he leaves and both teams or both sides won.
05:39 The player won and the team that he left won and the team that he went to won.
05:43 Everybody wins.
05:44 I don't see a negative from the situation.
05:45 No, I don't either.
05:47 I want to talk to you about something we haven't talked about in a few days, talking about
05:51 on the podcast.
05:53 But that's Andre James.
05:56 I think a lot of people, I've talked about it earned Tolesco a lot of respect in that
06:03 locker room.
06:04 Tolesco knew what he was willing to offer.
06:08 And then when he saw the value of Andre and the amount of people that were going to be
06:13 after him, it made him reevaluate.
06:17 Maybe I don't know where that, maybe I'm a little bit low on that market and he didn't
06:21 have to step up and overpay, but he did step up and pay because they're not being cheap,
06:26 but they are being frugal.
06:28 And that I've had more than one player say to me, that was cool.
06:33 That was him really demonstrating he's going to prioritize the guys he has.
06:39 I think a lot of people are missing the enormity of that signing on the locker room.
06:46 So I agree with that as well.
06:48 And again, so overall, if you're looking at the moves that Tom has made, I would agree
06:53 in terms of what the general manager told you, A, he's got an A, A plus if you ask me.
06:58 In terms of signing Andre specifically, it takes a lot of the guesswork out of it for
07:02 Tolesco.
07:03 So now he doesn't have to go find another center.
07:05 He's got somebody that's been in there that knows the team, that knows the locker room,
07:08 that the locker room respects in terms of James.
07:11 I think what this is showing about Tolesco is that he's done his homework on the team
07:15 that he was given.
07:17 So it speaks volumes in terms of his ability to assess the situation and make the best
07:21 decision.
07:22 Andre James, I don't think people want to really realize how good of a signing that
07:26 was until they get through this next upcoming season and the offensive line is still playing
07:30 well.
07:31 Signing Andre James was a huge, huge signing for sure.
07:35 >> Yeah, I agree with you, Zeke.
07:36 I think it was a very, very big deal.
07:38 All right, I want to go back and visit something.
07:41 I visited with a executive who's no longer in the league anymore, who's had success.
07:50 And I mentioned this to John Schaap yesterday, but I asked him, if you were starting a franchise
07:58 and you're in charge, what's the most important position that you have to fill?
08:05 Now, I'm fully expecting him to say quarterback, okay?
08:10 And he said, your salary cap manager.
08:14 I'm like, what?
08:16 And he said, you can't win in the NFL and have sustained success if you don't have a
08:24 disciplined manager of your salary cap.
08:29 I was stunned.
08:30 And then he said, and then second is quarterback.
08:33 That floored me.
08:35 It makes complete sense.
08:37 I'm kind of ashamed I didn't think of it.
08:39 But what are your thoughts when you hear that?
08:41 I mean, and that comes from a guy that's won a Super Bowl.
08:44 >> Yeah, makes complete sense, right?
08:46 When you really sit down and think about it, because if the person that's spending the
08:49 money is not spending it wisely, you're gonna have a top heavy team, right?
08:53 Where the top, the quarterback and the receiver is getting paid 60% of the salary, right?
08:57 So you have to make sure you have a wise spender in that position.
09:01 But I think that's what Tom Telesco is.
09:03 And I think that's what he's gonna continue to prove that he is, is somebody who's spending
09:07 wisely, who's gonna get the most bang for his buck.
09:10 And he's gonna get a lot of bang, right?
09:11 He's not gonna underspend and hope that that player overperforms.
09:15 He's gonna go and pay what it takes to get the best talent and hope that that player
09:19 overperforms.
09:20 So I think Tom Telesco is gonna prove to be that kind of cap spender where it makes sense
09:24 what he's doing.
09:26 >> So they go out and get Gardner Minshew, who beat him, who's scrappy.
09:32 He is a raider.
09:33 >> Yes.
09:34 >> I'm sorry, what?
09:35 >> I was just excitedly saying yes, he like Minshew, he beat him.
09:40 He beat him last season, they know.
09:43 >> But he's a scrappy fighter, feisty, and they make it real clear.
09:51 This is Aiden O'Connell's job.
09:54 But you're gonna get a chance to come in and compete with him.
09:59 >> And compete, 100%.
10:00 >> And then, no, this is the part I gotta read, I gotta talk to you about.
10:04 Two year 25 mil, 15 million guaranteed.
10:09 So if he doesn't work out, you throw him away and it's not salary cap hell.
10:17 But you got a fighter, scrapper, baller, him and Aiden are gonna go at it.
10:24 And of course, whoever the rookie is.
10:27 I like this hire, I don't think it's getting enough credit in Raider Nation.
10:34 To me, this is a great signing.
10:37 I think it makes Aiden better, I think it makes Minshew better, I think it makes the
10:40 Raiders better.
10:41 Come on now, Zeke, talk about it.
10:43 >> Listen, so I agree with you.
10:45 And I think we talked a moment ago about respect in terms of between Andre James and the locker
10:50 room.
10:51 And then we talked about how Minshew beat these guys just last season.
10:54 So he's walking into a locker room that he already has respect in.
10:56 So between that and the fact that Minshew has a decent amount of starting experience
11:02 in the NFL, then he also obviously has experience as a backup in the NFL.
11:06 I think it makes a lot of sense in terms of what they're doing.
11:10 And this should only make Aiden that much better, I agree with that.
11:13 Minshew, should he push Aiden pretty hard?
11:16 Yes, but I would expect Aiden to obviously win it.
11:18 But this gives Aiden a fair shot to go take over that starting position, keep the starting
11:22 position.
11:23 But in terms of Minshew, it makes too much sense not to bring him in.
11:26 So I like the signing a lot.
11:28 All right, now I want to ask you just a holistic question.
11:33 When deals are getting announced three minutes after the legal tampering, is it time for
11:39 the NFL to just say, come on, man, let's just be real?
11:44 No, no, sir.
11:46 No, sir.
11:47 Because it's like it's like it's like if you're driving down the street, you know how sometimes
11:49 you're driving down certain streets and they make the speed limit 35, knowing full well
11:53 that you're going to go past 35.
11:55 It's similar to here.
11:56 They just take that rule away and they're like, oh, you know, do whatever you want.
11:59 Can you imagine the craziness that I mean, it would be ridiculous.
12:02 So at least this way, there's a little bit of control to what's going on.
12:06 There's a little bit of a facade of what's going on.
12:09 If they take that rule away, I think all hell could break loose, to be honest with you.
12:14 It's going to be fun.
12:15 All right, let's talk about the NFL.
12:18 Zeke, I alluded to this the other day, but they have done a masterful job.
12:26 As soon as the Super Bowl is over, you then have Palm Vine in February.
12:33 Then you go into March, free agency.
12:36 April draft, rookie mini camps, OTAs, mini camps, preseason.
12:45 I mean, they have just made the NFL 12 months a year.
12:51 It is growing exponentially.
12:54 How awesome are the marketers at the NFL?
12:57 Listen, listen, I'll even throw this one in there.
12:59 This is how genius they are.
13:00 When do they release the schedule in terms of the dates?
13:03 They release that in what, like May or June or so?
13:05 They have this figured out to the T in terms of, hey guys, hey fans out there, here's the
13:10 schedule.
13:11 Go ahead and start making your plans for later this year.
13:12 They have this figured out to the T in terms of how to keep you interested, how to keep
13:16 you involved every step of the way.
13:18 I love it because it's days like yesterday when all those signings are going off, it's
13:22 like Christmas.
13:23 It's like Christmas in March.
13:24 You know what I mean?
13:25 Seeing what Christmas presents are you going to open up, what new toys are you going to
13:28 have on your favorite teams around the league?
13:29 So I love it.
13:30 It's one of my most favorite parts of being around the NFL.
13:33 I have to tell you, I felt bad because people were, you know, Honda were refreshing for
13:41 everything you had.
13:43 Well, we gave it to you.
13:48 There it is.
13:49 A lot of fun.
13:51 All right, Zeke, last question.
13:55 Who the Raiders picking?
13:57 Are they trading up, trading down, staying, and if they're staying, who are they picking?
14:01 So first of all, I'm excited that you asked me this question simply because you asked
14:04 me last week, what was Tom Telesco going to do?
14:08 And I said, I don't know.
14:09 Giving I don't know as an answer is one of my biggest pet peeves, so I'm sorry for that.
14:13 However, although I still don't necessarily know who, I do feel like he's narrowing it
14:17 down.
14:18 I really feel like he's down to two to three positions.
14:20 And I think it's defense.
14:22 I think it's cornerback.
14:23 I think it's I think it's two positions.
14:24 I think it's cornerback, most likely, and then linebacker.
14:27 To me, I feel like that's what Tom is going to do.
14:29 I feel like no, yeah, well, I agree.
14:33 But I feel like in terms of what Tom is going to do overall, in a very general sense, is
14:37 I think Tom Telesco is about to make this a defensively focused team, step by step,
14:42 starting with the 13th overall pick.
14:43 So I'm excited because before, you know, before yesterday, before the last couple days, the
14:49 Raiders could have gone a couple of different ways.
14:50 But after the different signings they've made, he started to plug holes left and right.
14:54 So I'm excited to about where they're about to go.
14:58 And I think this is about to be a defensively led team for sure.
15:02 I think offensive line or defense is where they go at 13.
15:05 But I know they would like to trade back.
15:07 Now, if I told you, you say trade back?
15:10 Yeah.
15:11 If I told you that there are going to be at least four quarterbacks taken before pick
15:16 13, would you believe that?
15:18 Yes.
15:19 Off the top of my head, yes, sir.
15:21 Four before 13?
15:22 Yes, sir.
15:23 I feel like three is easy.
15:25 Four is likely.
15:26 Yes, sir.
15:27 What if I told you the fourth one was not JJ, that JJ is going to move ahead of some
15:34 people?
15:35 You know, I wouldn't be surprised about that.
15:38 I feel like JJ is going to be, I feel like he's got a lot of potential.
15:42 And I think the fact that he just played in a run heavy offense, I think some people might
15:45 be underestimating his skills.
15:48 So I think he's got a lot of potential.
15:50 Yeah, I 100% were on board where you and I are on the same page, my friend.
15:55 He is the great Zeke Trezevant.
15:56 Now next week, he's going to hold up his shoes.
15:59 Yes, yes.
16:00 I'm going to have those ready.
16:02 I want everyone to see him so people know when Uncle Hondo makes a promise that you're
16:06 getting a gift, you get your gift.
16:07 Oh, you get your gift.
16:09 Take my word for it.
16:10 But I will definitely show those for you next week as well.
16:11 For sure.
16:12 All right.
16:13 Look forward.
16:14 Hang on the line real quick, Zeke.
16:15 I want to talk to you.
16:16 I want to talk to you.
16:17 From Sports Illustrated's Fan Nation Raiders today, you're listening to the Las Vegas Raiders
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16:39 Don't miss it.
16:40 Follow me again on Instagram @hondosr, on X, formerly known as Twitter @hondocarpenter.
16:45 Zeke, tell them your Twitter.
16:49 My handle is E as in elephant, Z, so E-Z, and then my last name, Trezevant.
16:54 That's T as in time, R-E-Z as in zebra, E-V-A-N as in Nancy, T as in time.
17:00 Easy Trezevant.
17:01 He's easy.
17:02 Easy like a Sunday morning.
17:05 Like Sunday morning.
17:06 All right, everybody.
17:08 We'll see you again soon.