0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. Cardinals rookie Jeremiah Love on the burden of being the franchise savior at the running
0:07back position, how the rookie plans to help Phoenix rise.
0:10And the Buccaneers were firing the cannons to start the 2025 season.
0:13Does Baker Mayfield need a repeat to get paid?
0:16We get into the Bucs contract circumstances today and Mark Ross gets questioned on some older quarterbacks as well as some younger coaches.
0:23What are the real metrics for success? All that coming up on The Insiders, which starts now.
0:28Hey everybody, welcome to the Monday edition of The Insiders.
0:31Patrick Claibon here in the NFL LA Newsroom. I will be leaning heavily upon Judy Batista, who is our lone insider for the day.
0:39Good evening to you, Judy. Let's get started with some firsts here in the newsroom.
0:43What is new today as in first picks starting with Fernando Mendoza, the number one overall pick of the Las Vegas Raiders
0:50successfully completed minicamp, says he's come a long, long, long, long, long, long, long, long.
0:55Long way just in the past couple of months of this off season.
0:59But he has something in common over there to the West a little bit with Rams first round quarterback, Ty Simpson.
1:05Neither of them is signed yet. They're the only first round picks who have yet to sign their rookie deals.
1:11We'll welcome in our front office expert as well as Super Bowl champion Mark Ross along with Judy Batista.
1:17Judy, we've had these slotted pay structures since 2011.
1:20So what's going on here, Judy? Is it a problem these quarterbacks aren't signed?
1:24It's not a problem yet. We still have a month before players start reporting for training camp.
1:29So we still have a long way to go.
1:32Occasionally, we see these things where the contracts take a little longer.
1:36It's usually about the structure or about the language offsets.
1:39There's no need to worry, though, because as you pointed out, when that CBA went into effect, we had a rookie wage scale.
1:46And since then, we really don't have holdouts anymore, which is a blessing for everybody.
1:50And I speak as a reporter who used to have to cover them.
1:54It's a great thing to not have holdouts. So we still have a long way to go for these two.
2:00If either one of these guys wanted to press the issue with their respective teams, they could have chosen not to participate in the offseason programs.
2:08They didn't do that. They both participated in the offseason programs.
2:12So things are fine. They've got a month to get this straightened out again.
2:16It is mostly about language and offsets and contract structure.
2:19They are going to get their money, though. And Mark, speaking of the offseason programs, the Raiders doing everything new all over again.
2:26Mendoza last week glowing about how far he's been able to come just this offseason.
2:31Yeah, for the Raiders and Mendoza, I think the goal should be to get him on the field as much as possible.
2:37And look, Kirk Cousins is there, but he doesn't need any reps.
2:41And for the head coach, new head coach, Clint Kubiak, although he said, I prefer not to start a rookie quarterback.
2:48You know, I think nowadays you have to play them and you really just have to look at the last two years
2:54of in 24 with Caleb Williams, Jaden Daniels, Drake May, Bo Nix all played right away.
2:59You saw how well they've developed up to this point.
3:02And even last season with Cam Ward and Jackson Dart and Tyler Shook where all those teams feel, although there were some
3:09bumps and bruises along the way that those guys are the guys.
3:13So I think for the Raiders and where you are as an organization, you know what Kirk Cousins is.
3:18You know where you're going, but you drafted Fernando Mendoza.
3:22Number one, I think Kubiak took the job to get work with Kurt with Fernando Mendoza for a reason.
3:27So I think for him and his maturity and as much as he's played, I think he's ready to go.
3:33And all signs should point to getting him on the field as many reps as possible to be the day one starter.
3:40I'm really curious to see what he looks like in training camp because Mendoza has talked about during the offseason, he's learning to operate under center.
3:48He's talking to Tom Brady about what it is to be the quarterback, how you lead, how you have to take care
3:55of yourself, how you lead by example. So he is clearly preparing himself to be the guy.
4:00The question is, can he push Kirk Cousins enough to make the Raiders who again have said that they would prefer not
4:07to have to start him right away. Can he push Kirk Cousins enough that you make it a decision for the coaches?
4:13Certainly, I would agree with Mark that we have seen in the past, players seem to develop best when they're on the field, getting a lot of reps.
4:22Even Cam Ward, who had a rocky start to the season last season, he wasn't surrounded by the best roster.
4:28Frankly, you could see him progressing as the season went on late in the season.
4:33You really saw sparks from Cam Ward. So, Fernando Mendoza, to me, when he gets on the field in training camp, the
4:39question is going to be how far behind Kirk Cousins is he and how much can he close that gap?
4:46Let's go to the next first round quarterback, Mark, and that's Ty Simpson, the Rams rookie's report on the 25th.
4:52There's a lot of energy and attention around the Rams here in Los Angeles, Mark.
4:56Not necessarily all about Ty Simpson. Shouldn't we be devoting more energy and attention towards Ty Simpson?
5:02No, you bring in Miles Garrett. I think that might get a little bit of the attention.
5:07And for me, the Rams are the hands on favorite to go repeat if Matthew Stafford is healthy.
5:12And remember last year this time, you know, and even during training camp up to the end of training camp, it was
5:19Matthew Stafford in the back and whether he was even going to play.
5:23So we know he can jump on the field without any reps and go be an MVP candidate for Ty Simpson.
5:29It's a different trajectory than what Fernando Mendoza is dealing with Ty Simpson.
5:33It's really about can he show enough to be the backup?
5:37Do you trust him to go in there and back up Matthew Stafford if he does get hurt?
5:42Stetson Bennett is on the team, you know, a veteran who's played in games.
5:46So really for Ty Simpson, he has to show enough to say I can be the number two.
5:52And in the difference of Fernando Mendoza saying I can be the number one, Judy.
5:57So a lot to be shown for the rookie to go in there and prove himself as the backup.
6:02So, yeah, let's be clear if Ty Simpson is on the field for the L.A.
6:07Rams this season in anything but garbage time, it is probably because disaster has struck the Rams.
6:12So you don't want Ty Simpson to be on the field unless it's mop up duty.
6:17But what we're going to be looking for for him in training camp and beyond is what does he look like?
6:23How much can he progress? As Mark said, can he prove himself worthy of being the backup quarterback to Matthew Stafford right out of the gate?
6:31And what does he show? Because he was drafted to be the future of the Rams, not the present and maybe not even the present next season.
6:40But what can he show and how much can he develop for the Rams in the backup role?
6:45Again, the hope is you don't see Ty Simpson on the field at all this season.
6:50Yeah, it's either great news for the Rams that Ty Simpson's on the field or the worst news imaginable.
6:56We'll be back with Mark Ross, including the question when it comes to some powerhouses in the AFC.
7:01Judy, you stick around the Cardinals hoping to one day be considered a powerhouse in the conference.
7:07They're number four in the division right now. The number three overall pick Jeremiah Love wants to be a big part of
7:13the bounce back at the running back position. Today, he wasn't talking about yards or catches.
7:18He wants to protect the quarterback. Physically, just as good as any other guy.
7:22But I've seen a jump in just my mental, you know, I understand the game a little bit better, you know, being
7:29able to, you know, see how Coach LaForge likes to call his offense and being able to understand why he calls the
7:36offense the way that he calls it. And then also just understand my role as a running back, you know, understand that,
7:43you know, protections, you know, I got to be at the right place at the right time.
7:48Everything's about timing. Protections, you know, blocking to make sure that he has a happy cocoon of love so he can do
7:55what he got to do, dice the defense up.
7:57But my mental has improved greatly throughout just a little bit of time I've been here.
8:02And I think it's only just going to get better, you know, as we go into training camp, as we get a
8:09little bit break down to, you know, maybe get a head start on, you know, looking at some teams and stuff like that.
8:16But my mental has definitely gotten a lot better.
8:19And joining me now at the news desk is Omar Ruiz, an incredible talent on the field.
8:24He's developing new phraseology as well. He wants to make everything better, Omar.
8:28Yeah, we heard that selfless talk on the field, but a selfless talk extending off the field as well.
8:34Patrick, he's saying that one of those goals he has for this rookie season is to get to know his teammates even better as people.
8:41He said a team that comes together more tightly knit is a team that performs better on the field.
8:47He said he jokes around with his linemen, wants to get in their good graces and earn their respect.
8:53When you hear head coach Mike LaFleur talk about using Jeremiah Love, the word that comes to mind is versatility.
8:59LaFleur saying that when you look at the Packers offense, when you look at the 49ers offense, when you look at the
9:06Rams offense from the from the air up above approach, they have the foundational similarities.
9:10But what differentiates them is the personnel. And he said in this Cardinals offense, the likes of Jeremiah Love and his versatility,
9:17the likes of Trey McBride and his versatility are going to be the things that set this offense apart in hopes for a successful 2026 season.
9:25Now, Jeremiah Love has said that he's heard about all the expectations of being a number three pick.
9:31He said just can't allow that to affect how he approaches his preparation in the meanwhile, Judy.
9:36He's been picking the brains of James Connor and Tyler Algier, the fellow running backs in that room for how to keep
9:43his mental straight for the rest of the season and how to take care of his body to get through the workload
9:49that they expect for him in 2026. Well, there's no question we're going to see a heavy dose of Jeremiah Love, right?
9:56He is a three down back. We're going to see him running the ball.
10:00We're going to see him blocking. We're going to seeing him catch the ball.
10:05The question to me is, can they get enough out of the passing game?
10:09And they've got people on the passing game. Marvin Harrison, Jr., Trey McBride, as you mentioned.
10:14Can they get enough competent quarterback play from Jacoby Brissett or Gardner Minshew or Carson Beck, whoever it is, whatever combination of
10:20quarterbacks it's going to be, to take some of the load off Jeremiah Love?
10:25We saw the situation with the Raiders last year with Ashton Gentry, really talented running back.
10:30But because they didn't have much around him in Las Vegas, defenses could key on him.
10:35So they took him away, basically. Can the Arizona Cardinals show enough on the offense, show enough variety, get him into positions
10:41that Jeremiah Love can still be successful and still be productive, even though he is clearly going to be the center of operations for that offense.
10:49Yeah, well, there's a cautionary tale out there for first round, early first round running back.
10:54You saw it in Las Vegas, at least what appears to be a more cohesive plan than the Raiders have, with they have fully turned everything over.
11:02Checking in on the Arizona Cardinals with Omar Ruiz.
11:05A screen at right side, but by Tyler Warren gets out of a tackle, angling left, first down and more.
11:11Oh my! Yards after the catch, the big fill of Tyler Warren.
11:15Oh my! He's going to lumber down to the 31-yard line of Miami and pick up 14 in the first down.
11:21Oh, what a great cut! He laid two of them down, they broke their ankles, and then he ran through it, looked like a bowling ball.
11:29Oh my God, did we strike at risk on this guy.
11:33Well, the incredible start, Judy, for that 2025 Colts team.
11:36Had an incredible start for the rookie tight end, Tyler Warren.
11:39Of course, injuries kind of slowed things down for the entire team, but he's still getting a lot of glowing praise there in Indy.
11:46Well, he went to the Pro Bowl last season.
11:49Don't forget, in his first month of work, he had 370 plus yards of receptions.
11:54He scored in four straight games, so that was a great start.
11:57He faded down the stretch, not surprisingly, that coincided with when Daniel Jones got hurt.
12:02But he still ended the season leading the team in targets.
12:05He had over 800 yards receiving, so certainly there are big expectations for him, especially because the Colts no longer have Michael Pittman.
12:12Those receptions, those targets, have to go somewhere. They've got Alec Pierce, they've got Josh Downs, but they basically have to divvy those up.
12:20We know that nothing is better for a quarterback than a reliable tight end.
12:24He's already got chemistry with Daniel Jones. Daniel Jones is coming back of the Achilles injury.
12:29He is certainly going to be looking for easy targets.
12:32Certainly, it all lines up if he can stay healthy, if Daniel Jones can stay healthy for a big season for Warren.
12:39Yeah, a part of a tight end rookie class that was very good in 2025, including when I went to the Cleveland Browns and Harold Fanon.
12:47Let's get more on those Cleveland Browns where the best and most exciting thing about the 2025 season was the record-breaking 23-sack season by Miles Garrett.
12:55Now he's gone though. Former Brown and Hall of Famer Joe Thomas said trading Garrett was the right decision, but it still hurts.
13:02Judy, Joe sees it as medicine coming in without that spoonful of sugar.
13:06It's tough, right? Because for several of those seasons that Miles was here in Cleveland, he was like the one thing we got to cheer for, right?
13:14Last year out of the playoff hunt for a long time, but it gave us a reason to be proud as Browns
13:21fans to see him chasing that sack record and to finally get it and just see the commitment that he had on
13:27the field to his team and to the city.
13:30It was incredible. So it was really hard to hear that he was traded, but it hurts everybody that Miles is not a Brown anymore.
13:38But when you look at the Miles trade to be able to get a great young player like Jared Verse, who's a
13:44tremendous pass rusher, who's a great asset to that team.
13:47He's on a friendly contract, saving money there, getting three draft choices for Miles first, second and a third.
13:53Like it puts us in a much better position for the next two, three, four years as we're in this building phase.
14:00So as you step away from the emotion of losing Miles, you realize like this puts the team in a much better situation moving forward.
14:08And it was the right decision, even though it hurts.
14:11Joe Thomas and all of Cleveland, Judy, coming to a similar realization at this point.
14:15Not surprisingly, Joe Thomas summed it up perfectly. It hurts in the short term.
14:20There's no question that Cleveland Browns are not as good right now without Miles Garrett.
14:24No team would be if you lose a Miles Garrett level player.
14:28But for the future, they are better positioned. This trade was the Browns saying we are not contenders this season.
14:34And that is an extension of saying we don't have the quarterback that we think can make us a contender this season.
14:41But by trading Miles Garrett, you clear a lot of cap space.
14:44You save a lot of money and you get a lot of capital in return.
14:49They have a lot of good young players. And Jared Verse is now one of them, too.
14:54They've had two really good drafts. So they've got a young nucleus there.
14:58They've got to get the quarterback. And now they've got a lot of capital to use to try to get the quarterback
15:05in the next year or two years, whenever they determine that they are in play for the quarterback.
15:10So they're in a very good position as they rebuild.
15:13There's no question it is a rebuild. They are not making a push to make the playoffs this year or you would not get rid of Miles Garrett.
15:22But they are in a very strong position to go out and get a lot of players to put in place to
15:29make a push in the next few years. Yeah, positives.
15:32Everything coming up Browns has just got to get away.
15:35It may hurt to see that 95 jersey playing here at SoFi Stadium.
15:39We got congratulations to another big time defensive lineman in the AFC.
15:42That is Jeffrey Simmons, Ian Rappaport, Mike Garofalo reporting over the weekend.
15:46He gets a new deal, an extension that adds on to his current deal.
15:50Could be worth one hundred and five million dollars over three years.
15:54One hundred million guaranteed. And there's Jeffrey Simmons getting pinned to paper.
15:58Congratulations to him. When we come back, the Chargers offensive changes mean a lot for the quarterback, of course.
16:04But one of the receivers Omar Ruiz gets back up to discuss the Chargers coming up next.
16:09And after months, the Eagles are done with fielding questions about A.J.
16:12Brown after it finally happens. Now he's a Patriot with joint practices with the Eagles, the insiders and A.J.
16:18Brown and the Eagles. We'll be right back. Back here on the Insiders, this is what's new today coming into the NFL LA newsroom.
16:26Looking forward to some training camps as we've got the rookies and veterans scheduled to report all available on this alphabetical list,
16:32as well as some joint practices that we can look forward to, including teams like the Colts and the Patriots, the Bears and Cincinnati.
16:40And here to discuss both of those matters, we got Judy Batista back with us as well as Cam Wolf.
16:46So let's start with the joint practices, Cam, because I want to know which one you're looking forward to the most.
16:52Patrick, get your popcorn ready. Let's go to Foxborough.
16:55A.J. Brown and the Patriots versus former team, the Philadelphia Eagles.
16:58We've been talking about it all offseason. A.J. Brown, I've known him for a long time.
17:03He's going to have a chip on his shoulder.
17:06They got two practices, the 19th and the 20th.
17:09And a lot of times coaches talk about that second practice because that's when you get the animosity, the fights that happen.
17:15This is going to be smoke from first play practice.
17:18Number one, A.J. Brown lining up against Quinion Mitchell and Cooper Dejean.
17:22A.J. Brown said a lot of things over the last year, and I'm sure his Eagles teammates have not forgot.
17:28They're going to want to lock him up in coverage.
17:31A.J. Brown certainly going to want to put on a show and show them why they're going to miss him.
17:37And look, a lot of times in joint practices, you don't get a chance to play in the preseason game.
17:44So this will be the preseason version for A.J.
17:46Brown. I also think it was very interesting. Now talk to a Patriots staffer not too long after they finished minicamp.
17:53And he said A.J. Brown is different than anyone we have had here as an offensive playmaker in years.
17:59He said, look, when we first made the trade, I was maybe a little questioning the first round pick, but his athleticism already showed up in practice.
18:07And we think we can unlock maybe that 2023, 2024 version of A.J.
18:11Brown, take that offense to the next level. And of course, Philly wants to prove they can still win without A.J.
18:17Brown. I can't wait. I hope I get a chance to see that joint practice.
18:22I can't wait for the L.A. Rams hosting the Dallas Cowboys.
18:25First of all, I hope that we get to see all of those new pieces on the Rams defense in this joint practice.
18:32It is August 19th in Los Angeles, by the way.
18:35Looking forward to seeing what that Rams defense looks like as it's reconstituted, of course, with Myles Garrett.
18:41And of course, you want to see them against an elite offense.
18:44And the Dallas Cowboys have an elite offense. And every season always begins with the question, is this the year that the
18:51Dallas Cowboys finally make a run to the Super Bowl again?
18:54Well, there is hardly a better measuring stick available in the NFC than the L.A.
18:59Rams, who everybody has already installed as the favorite to represent the NFC in the Super Bowl.
19:04I am looking forward to seeing how the Dallas Cowboys measure up against the L.A.
19:09Rams. And I'm certainly looking forward to seeing what the Rams look like as they have put all of these pieces in place.
19:16They were so very close to making the Super Bowl last season.
19:20Really looking forward to seeing what they look like now.
19:23Yeah. Between those four teams, four fully formed teams, where there's certainly no quarterback controversies among any of them.
19:28I want to know the quarterback controversy or just battle camp battle camp that you're looking forward to the most.
19:35Patrick, I can't wait to see the Cleveland Browns battle.
19:38Yes, I did say that the Cleveland Browns battle.
19:40Shador Sanders versus Deshaun Watson. Something really cool happened this spring.
19:44Talking to people with the Browns. Shador Sanders had a strong spring and closed the gap between him and Deshaun Watson.
19:50There was a lot of early belief. Maybe this was going to be Watson's job because of the experience, because of the mobility.
19:57I'm told that Shador Sanders really impressed with his processing.
20:00Something that was a question for him as a rookie.
20:03Was able to process a lot faster during the spring.
20:06Now training camp, preseason games, a whole different element with those live bullets.
20:10Can he continue his momentum? If so, he has a real chance to win the starting job there for the Cleveland Browns.
20:17Of course, this is a Browns team that is building towards the future.
20:21Judy talked about it. A rebuild. Two first round picks in 2027.
20:25Still a high likelihood they get their future quarterback there.
20:28But what if Shador Sanders can win this battle and show them something?
20:32They saw some positives in the spring. Can it continue?
20:35Or does Watson hold down the fort in the last year of his contract?
20:39And if Watson does win that, that, that quarterback competition, do the Browns consider trading Shador Sanders and moving forward with Deshaun
20:46Watson and tailing green in that quarterback room? To me, there's so many interesting dynamics there for Browns team that is looking
20:52for 2027 and beyond, but they have got younger.
20:55They have got better and now they're looking towards the future.
20:59Which quarterback is going to help them in this 2026 bridge year?
21:02I can't wait to find out. You want to talk about interesting dynamics.
21:06How about the one in the Minnesota Vikings quarterback room, Kyler Murray and JJ McCarthy engaged in a battle?
21:12Certainly you would expect that Kyler Murray would be ahead just because of his experience to win the starting job.
21:18But he had a rough day at one point during the off season workouts.
21:22And he talked about how behind he was and how he's not getting all the reps that usually you would give a
21:29guy who is behind and trying to catch up.
21:32So certainly the dynamic there, Kevin O'Connell said, well, it's professional that they're behaving professionally.
21:37This is a team that one year ago was coming off a playoff appearance.
21:41Then Sam Donald left, Daniel Jones left. And of course, last year, JJ McCarthy really did not progress the way they had hoped.
21:48Certainly did not give them anywhere near what they hoped in terms of performance.
21:52This is a chance for both of these quarterbacks to resurrect their careers.
21:56Kyler Murray is there only on a one year deal.
21:59So certainly this is an opportunity for him to prove himself and then go get another big deal next off season.
22:06And for JJ McCarthy, it is a chance he hopes to save his career.
22:10A true quarterback battle. According to Kevin O'Connell, we'll see how those things play out.
22:14Thanks to Cam Wolf. Judy will be back with you as we continue this edition of the Insiders.
22:20But let's go back to the West Coast here.
22:23The Chargers wrapped up mini camp last week. We'll get the rookies report to training camp a month to tomorrow.
22:29A lot of changes for the Chargers. But one thing that's constant as we're rejoined by Omar Ruiz, who was there about
22:36four miles as the crow flies back that way at the vault.
22:39Nelson Dundo. Jim Harbaugh is a constant. He loves to praise guys like Herbert and the new offensive coordinator, Mike McDaniel.
22:46But he's throwing love at other guys on the offense.
22:49Yeah, saying that they have three elite receivers with Quentin Johnston, Lad McConkie and Trey Harris.
22:54And when I've talked to Quentin Johnston over the years, I asked him where he gets his confidence from.
22:59And he said from the work that he puts in, the diligence with which he watches tape, the way he works on his body.
23:07And then I asked him recently with the fact that Jim Harbaugh saying that he is an elite receiver and they're expecting
23:13them to have a career year this season. The fact that the organization picked up his fifth year option as a former first round pick.
23:21What does that do for his confidence? And he told me that gives him a chance to really shed some of the
23:28pressure off of them and maybe go out and play free in a way that they are expecting big things from him
23:35in 2026 in terms of the offense and playing for Mike McDaniel.
23:38Now, he told me he was fired up when he heard that McDaniel's philosophy is wanting to get the ball out quick.
23:45He said that's what he did a lot at TCU in terms of getting the ball in position to make plays with
23:52his legs and that yard after catch approach. So big things expected from Quentin Johnston.
23:56Then there's Lad McConkie who flashed as a rookie in 2024.
24:00In 2025, his second year didn't put up as big of a growth in terms of what they were hoping for.
24:06But he hopes to bounce back in a big way in 2026.
24:10The last month or so he's been limited in OTA and minicamp practices because of a strained hamstring.
24:15But he told me he expects to be a full go in training camp when they report next month.
24:21And then there's Trey Harris. So the L.A. Chargers putting full faith in their former first round pick who's going into his fourth season.
24:28Their former second round pick who's going into his third season.
24:32And then Trey Harris, another second round pick going into his second year.
24:36All the reasons why Jim Harbaugh saying he has those elite receivers surrounding Justin Herbert going into the season.
24:42A lot of familiar names that we've seen for the Chargers, but the Mike McDaniel of it all makes it feel so much different.
24:49Coming into the 2026 season, Omar Ruiz, who was there at Chargers minicamp.
24:53We go to the desert. Cardinals number three overall pick Jeremiah Love available today spoke on what he wants to do for the team's offense.
25:00But he also let us in on some of his personal goals.
25:04In college when I scored both years I started, I scored 20 plus touchdowns per year and I shoot.
25:10I haven't seen what that looks like in NFL.
25:13I think a lot of guys probably don't score that many touchdowns, but that's the goal that I've set for myself.
25:19That's the standard I've set for myself. Hopefully I can live up to that standard through hard work and dedication and discipline.
25:26But as far as the numbers, man, I try not to think about them or I try not to set specific numbers
25:33so that I'm not trying to, I'm not making it too personal.
25:36You know, like I said, everything's about the team of you.
25:40Make sure you're doing your part on the team like those things will come.
25:44And the rewards will come and accolades will come and the pros will come.
25:48Like all that stuff will come as long as you are keeping everything team oriented and you're playing for your guys.
25:55So the numbers, I try not to set goals for myself, try not to think about them.
26:00But they're nice to see, you know, if you got a honey yard gain or you or you got what a thousand yard season.
26:07I use it always nice to see. Guys had a lot of personal success in the NFL.
26:12A lot of them play for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
26:15Their rookies report to training camp on the 27th.
26:18The veterans like Baker Mayfield come on July 28th.
26:21Baker providing a little bit of help to all the new dads out there this weekend.
26:26Changing a diaper more scientific than you really think about it.
26:29It's all about the prep work. Depending on blowout or not blowout, you always want to have the scene set for you.
26:36You want to have the clean diaper ready to roll, wipes opened and ready to go.
26:41Because you never know how many you're really going to need till you get in there.
26:46So start out, make sure you're in a good position.
26:49Got to go a long ways in the changing table now.
26:52Great for a funky angle, but you do it.
26:55Check. Good. Okay. Front to back, ladies and gentlemen.
26:58Front to back. I like to ball that up and cover up the real mess and leave it under there so you
27:04don't get the changing table too dirty. Continue, continue, continue.
27:07Got to make sure you get everything at that point.
27:10Boom. Baby's fine right there. Wrap that thing up because I don't want to look at it anymore.
27:16Maybe have a little conversation in between. Make sure they're still doing good.
27:20Oh yeah. Yep. Boom. Boom. And like that, we're good to go.
27:24It's my first time. Clearly a pro at changing the diaper as Sarah Walsh joins us now to discuss the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
27:31The change there done expertly by Baker Mayfield. But we're wondering as there's some looming contracts for the quarterback as well as
27:37Vita Vea, how big of an issue those contract circumstances are on Florida's Gulf Coast, Sarah.
27:42Well, first of all, that is news you can use from Baker Mayfield.
27:46And yes, Baker and Vita both looking for big contract extensions.
27:50Let's start with Baker first. He has been involved in all their voluntary workouts.
27:54He was at mandatory minicamp. He did say though that they are really far apart right now on what that deal would look like.
28:01The clock is ticking until training camp because if a deal is not done before the season, Baker says they're going to table talks.
28:09Now there is nobody that has been around this organization.
28:12There is nobody that knows Baker Mayfield that thinks that if they don't get this deal done, that it would be a distraction in any kind of way.
28:20This is a guy that is focused the second he gets to the field.
28:24He is a great teammate. He wants to win.
28:27He wants to get this team back into the playoffs.
28:30He is also a guy that feels if they're not offering him what he believes he's worth.
28:35We've seen him do it before. He will play on a prove it year, right?
28:40He has no issue with that right now. He is set to make about 40 million this year as for Vita Vea.
28:47He did not participate in mandatory minicamp. He is set to make 17 million this year.
28:52Now he was there. He was a presence there.
28:54But the question is, would he have essentially a, hold in during training camp?
28:59We don't know the answer to that. But if you want some context and you look about what Vita is looking at
29:05in terms of comparisons, well, we just saw Jeffrey Simmons, a defensive tackle get hugely paid three years.
29:11100 million of that is guaranteed. That was the most recent, but these are huge payouts for these defensive tackles.
29:17Now, Simmons, 28 years old, had 11 sacks last year.
29:20Vita 31 years old. He had four and a half sacks last year, but he's a guy that really just gobbles up the middle, stops the run.
29:28We don't know if the Bucks at this point are going to give him that monster contract that we've seen some of these guys get.
29:36Now, if you also want to look at some things that Jason Light has to weigh.
29:41Yeah, I had Yabi entering the final year of his contract.
29:44Cody Mock, the guy on the offensive line entering the final year of his contract.
29:49So those are all of the things that Jason Light has to weigh when he's figuring out how to be handing out these contracts.
29:56Thanks, Patrick. Jonathan Grenard was on that list. He'll also be on the insiders coming up tomorrow.
30:01So folks stick around and see that later on this week.
30:05A lot of people didn't stick around in Tampa Bay after some changes there, Sarah.
30:09So other than the big absences, we know they're going to be different.
30:13What's going to be different about this Bucks team?
30:16Well, when you look at the defense for years, we have now heard Todd Bull say he wants his defense to be faster, younger, more physical.
30:24And they have really done a lot to address that this offseason.
30:28Obviously, when you talk about absences, Mike Evans is a big one.
30:31Levante David on the defensive side is a big one.
30:34So here's what the Buccaneers did. They brought in some veteran presences to take up where Levante was in terms of Alex Anzalone, A'shaun Robinson.
30:42They got Al-Qadim Mohamed from the Lions, who's coming up a career best 11 sacks last season.
30:47The Bucks would love to see that kind of production from him.
30:51And I don't mean in any way to say that you replace a Levante David, but this is the veteran presence that they have brought in.
30:59Now, they also addressed defensive needs in the draft.
31:02Four of their first five draft picks were on the defensive side of the ball and all eyeballs really on their first round pick.
31:09Ruben being taken 15th overall, the Buccaneers believe that he was a steal for them.
31:14Now, it's minicamp. It's voluntary workouts. So you can only read into so much.
31:18But so far, the reports on him have been he's everything they think.
31:22This is a guy that is all football all the time.
31:25One thing that's really interesting is at the end of last year when the Bucs were not going to the playoffs for
31:32the first time in five years, Yahya Diaby talked about the fact that there were too many walkthroughs, too many mental reps.
31:39And there has been an increase, a ramp up in physicality, even in this offseason for this Buccaneers team in terms of practices.
31:46So that's sort of one of the changes that we are starting to see.
31:50But this is a Buccaneers defense that has to get better in red zone defense last in the league there.
31:56They want to cause more turnovers. There's 37 sacks last year ranked 18th in the year in the league.
32:02Todd Bowles wants this team to do better. He knows they can do better next season as they try to reclaim their dominance in the NFC South.
32:10Yeah, kind of lost in the injuries on the offensive side as well as Baker's injuries were the way the defense kind
32:17of faded as the season went on. Sarah Walsh looking at the 2026 Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
32:22Thank you to Sarah. More insiders as the show continues.
32:25So many questions this offseason. Let's apply a mark of certainty to them.
32:29Question mark when we come back as Mark Ross and Judy Batista address some of the biggest lingering questions on the inside.
32:35We're back here on the insiders. It is time for question mark as we get to some of the biggest questions in the offseason.
32:43A segment named after our friend and colleague Mark Ross, Judy Batista back here with us.
32:48The first question up for you, Mark. What's the biggest question surrounding the Cincinnati Bengals?
32:52Well, we know the defense has been bad, but it's all about Joe Burrow and can he stay healthy?
32:58Look when Joe Burrow plays they win 41 and 26 when he's on the field when he doesn't play they lose 5 and 12.
33:05And he's missed 16 games in the last three seasons.
33:09He's missed 23 games in the six seasons. He only finished two of his six seasons in the NFL.
33:14So when he's on the field, we know that that offense can put up 40 at any point.
33:20It's been the defense. That's the problem. But with the offseason additions of Dexter Lawrence and Jonathan Allen and Boye Mafe and
33:27Brian Cook and drafting cash is how on the second round out of Texas A&M the defensive end.
33:32And the defense has to be better, Judy. They can't be worse than worse.
33:36So with those defensive additions, if they could just be average and Joe Burrow stays on the field, they have a legit
33:43legit chance to go back to the Super Bowl.
33:46Well, what would really help Joe Burrow is if the defense would take some of the burden off him.
33:52If you remember last season, even when Burrow was hurt, certainly in the beginning when Jake Browning, they weren't scoring a lot of points.
33:59But then when Joe Flacco got in there, they were scoring a ton of points and they still weren't winning because the
34:06defense could not keep the other team from scoring a lot of points.
34:10As you pointed out, they have made a lot of additions to that defense.
34:14If that defense is just marginally improved and frankly, they should be more than marginal with Dexter Lawrence there now.
34:20But if they just get marginal improvement and Joe Burrow can stay on the field, they have Super Bowl level talent on that offense.
34:27They have been to a Super Bowl before. We know Joe Burrow is driven to get back there.
34:33Certainly the defense has to hold up their end of the deal.
34:37Well, speaking of Super Bowl level talent, let's go to a team, Mark, that had not a similar level of concerns with their defense in the Seattle Seahawks.
34:45What is their biggest question mark going into 2026?
34:48Well, I'm looking at Sam Darnold and look, I know you've had the Cinderella story with playing as well as you have
34:55the last two seasons and going to win the Super Bowl.
34:58But can you take your game to another level and compete with Matthew Stafford there and the Rams who look like the
35:05favorites at this point with the Biles Garrett signing Trent McDuffie coming in there?
35:09So Sam, look, I know this has been a great ride and everyone loves you now, but can you take it to
35:16another level, especially with the loss of Super Bowl MVP Kenneth Walker?
35:19They did draft Darian Price out of Notre Dame to replace Kenneth.
35:23But Sam, we're going to need a little bit more.
35:26Can you take it to even higher heights than what you've done so far, Judy?
35:31Well, I am curious to see what they do with that running game.
35:35Do they go running back by committee? And is that enough to not have to put all of the burden on Sam Darnold?
35:42Because historically, that is when Darnold has gotten into trouble.
35:45Now, perhaps he is past that moment in his career.
35:48Certainly, last season would indicate that he has taken a big leap up.
35:52But if the Seattle Seahawks don't want to put all of it on the passing game, they're going to have to get
35:59a stout running attack and they're going to have to do it without the Super Bowl MVP.
36:04The Seattle Seahawks able to have that success early on in Mike Mack's tenure there in the Pacific Northwest.
36:10Let's ask the big question for a couple of new coaches in the AFC, Mark.
36:14What's the biggest question for the new guys in the AFC in 2026?
36:18Well, the two new first time, first time head coaches of the powerhouses.
36:22That's Joe Barry, Joe Brady with the bills and Jesse mentor with the Ravens.
36:26And can they take those teams to the next level to get to the Super Bowl?
36:31Something that has eluded these two teams, despite being in the playoffs every season with their two dynamic quarterbacks in Lamar Jackson and Josh Allen.
36:39So, of the 12 of 37 first time head coaches over the last five seasons have made the playoffs.
36:45That's only 32%. We expect them to be in the playoffs, of course.
36:49But the bigger issue is can they win the Super Bowl?
36:52Because that's really a lot of pressure for the first team quarterback.
36:56The last time a rookie head coach with no head coaching experience won the Super Bowl, Judy, was George Seifert in 1989.
37:02And the only other time it happened was in 1970.
37:05I know you'll know this name, Don McCafferty of the then Baltimore Colts.
37:09Those are the only two first time rookie head coaches have never been head coaches before to win the Super Bowl in the first season.
37:17But for Brady and Minter, that's the expectation. Well, to be fair, most new head coaches are taking over teams that are bad.
37:24And that's why they are looking for new head coaches.
37:27These teams, though, are not bad. They are very good.
37:30And of course, they have elite, elite quarterback play.
37:33The good news is these two coaches, they are new, but they both have strong relationships with their respective quarterbacks.
37:39To me, the big question is, do they have rookie growing pains for head coaches?
37:44We've seen that before. Game management, time management, timeout management.
37:47We've seen coaches stumble out of the gate over those kinds of things.
37:51Do they suffer from those things? Does it hinder their team's performance?
37:54Can they win it in their first year or is it going to take a few years to settle in?
38:01Like Mike McDonald. Yeah. At least at the quarterback position, the pressure certainly being there, considering what they currently have, Mike McDonald
38:07having to do it with a retread. Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson, a little bit different circumstances.
38:12That's question mark with some big off season questions with Mark Ross and Judy Batista.
38:17It's the insiders, but right now it's fantasy live.
38:20It's fantasy live because Michael F. Florio is here fresh off the plane from New York City, celebrating his Knicks winning the world championship.
38:27Mike, people are drafting. They've got the stats. They've got yards and touchdowns and all those things, but they need numbers that are really going to help them.
38:36So let's get the wide receiver position. What are the stats that people need to know?
38:41A player who wears blue and orange, like my beloved New York Knicks world champion, as Patrick said, Luther burden, right?
38:47He was third amongst all wide receivers in yards per route ran.
38:51And I think yards per route ran is an extremely effective stat in judging wide receivers.
38:56And let's give burden a pass for being third because first and second were JSN and Puka Nakua, who set the second
39:02highest rank in this stat in the next gen stats era.
39:06He was also burdened the second best mark by a rookie ever top five and yards per target and yak.
39:12After the catch, he was the bears leading receiver from week 10 on.
39:16I am extremely excited about him, but so are many others.
39:19And that's why his ADP is in the fourth round right now, ahead of Mike Evans, Terry McLaurin and Jalen Waddle.
39:26But the upside is there. And then I love me some Justin Jefferson this year.
39:30He had the lowest end zone catch rate in 2015, uh, 2025.
39:34He is the most obvious touchdown regression candidate ever.
39:37Eight times in NFL history, a player has had 140 yard targets and two or fewer touchdowns.
39:42The last time it happened was Trey McBride and he rebounded with 11 the following year after a quarterback change.
39:48It was just career lows across the board for JJ.
39:51He had one game over 20 fantasy points, but with Kyler, I think he is back to being an elite top six fantasy wide receiver.
39:59And one you should take in the first round and then Chris Olave don't look now.
40:03He would have been the wide receiver five with Tyler Shuck last year.
40:0718.8 fantasy points per game with Shuck only wide receivers who average more were Puka, JSN, Jamar Chase, and Amon Ross St.
40:14Brown. He saw consistent volume with both quarterbacks, but his air yards per target went from under 10 without Shuck to almost 15 per target with Shuck.
40:22And I have him as my wide receiver 10 right now.
40:26I think the late second round is a good price, but ADP early wise, at least he's going to see wide receiver
40:3315 in the mid to late third round. So I do think there is a buying opportunity here with Chris Olave.
40:39Yeah. If you hit in the spots, like with burden and Olave, that's where people win fantasy championships.
40:44And it's hard to cause Puka and JSN are going to be at the top of everything.
40:50You're not getting those guys. So what stats at the running back position can we make a similar application?
40:55This one isn't as great for Puka, like a fantastic for the Rams, right?
41:00But for Kyron Williams, this one isn't great. Blake Corum second highest explosive run rate amongst all running backs last season.
41:06And that, that means 10 or more yards on a carry only Devon HN was higher and Corum was fifth amongst running
41:13backs in yards per carry last year in the second half of the season.
41:17He actually had more goal line attempts than Kyron Williams.
41:20Now we did see Kyron use more down the stretch in the playoffs.
41:24So I'd still believe he is the clear RB one there, but Corum is more of a threat than he's ever had to deal with.
41:32And he's going in the eighth round. So it's expensive to handcuff the two of them right now.
41:37And then Kenneth Walker was top three and explosive run rate and miss tackles force rate.
41:42That was despite inconsistent usage last year. Like let's not forget for much of the season.
41:47He was not the best fantasy asset, but once he had the backfield to himself, we saw that he could run wild and literally lead a team.
41:55To a super bowl. I expect him to run wild in Kansas city.
41:59There's not a lot of competition there behind him.
42:02And what patch Rome's coming off this ACL. Let's not forget.
42:05He was their leading rusher most games last year.
42:08So I expect three down back a lot of work, but you got to pay a second round price to get him.
42:15We've been waiting for years for an explosive running back option in Kansas city.
42:19I'm always waiting to spend time with Michael F.
42:22Florio here on the insiders. It's not fancy life.
42:25Michael F. Florio. Hey, you want a chance to listen to the podcast.
42:29You get a chance to do that Monday through Friday.
42:32We have our show, wherever you get your podcast, get the best from my Garofalo, Judy Batista, Tom Pellicero, Ian Rappaport.
42:38Back this week, tight in you. There's George Kittle next to his founder poster.
42:42As he is standing next to that picture of him and Travis Kelsey.
42:46We'll have a chance to hear from him. I have the first day of TEU tomorrow.
42:51Also on our show, we've got Jonathan Grenard and Christian Watson.
42:55Judy. I do want to ask you, what are you most interested in hearing from one of those guys?
43:01I want to hear what Jonathan Grenard has thought of Vic Fangio so far.
43:05He was excited to work with him. Want to hear how it's going.
43:09All right. Well, I will make sure to use the resources, Judy, to ask Jonathan Grenard that question for Judy Batista.
43:15Mark Ross, I'm Patrick Claiborne. We'll see you tomorrow.
43:18Thanks for watching. This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human.
