PodcastFrom NFL: The Insiders
The Insiders Podcast: Minicamp Roundup + Dolphins WR Chris Johnson and 49ers FB Kyle Juszczyk Join the Insiders
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44 min
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Jun 13, 2026
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Sat, June 13, 2026
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Episode Transcript
0:00This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed Human. Minicamps abound this week.
0:03Hundreds of players, so many statements from coaches, but what do they all mean?
0:08Our insiders will break that down today on the show and the man affectionately known as Juszczyk stops by as the Niners
0:15contend with the toughest division in football. Kyle Juszczyk joins the show and adds an asterisk to his career accomplishments.
0:21And a big part of the youth movement in Miami is rookie corner Chris Johnson.
0:26He tells us about the process of learning everything all at once in this edition of The Insiders.
0:31Hey everybody, welcome to The Insiders here on this Friday.
0:34Patrick Claibon here in the NFL LA newsroom along with Tom Pellicero, Ian Rappaport and Mike Garofalo.
0:39These gentlemen, of course, journalistic champions in so many, so many different determinations as we get into what's new today.
0:46Championships in terms of rings going to the Seattle Seahawks.
0:49Call outs to 12s in multiple locations on their rings.
0:5212 feathers, two buttons that say 12 is one.
0:55Not included on the ring. Shoulder chips. Leonard Williams applying them this week.
0:59I think I'd be lying if I said there wasn't a little extra motivation from hearing that type of stuff.
1:05There's a little extra chips on our shoulder. You know, we just came off of a Super Bowl, you know, winning season
1:12and people are still, you know, giving other people favorites over us.
1:16But at the same time, like I said, it's like, it's always about us.
1:20It's about our process. I think that is still adding fuel to the fire for guys.
1:25But at the same time, we're going to stick to our process regardless of what other people outside may think.
1:31So, Ian, we've got the Seahawks in the respect rankings exactly where they need to be, but they're hearing things that are
1:38from places that are not us and don't like it.
1:41Well, Leonard Williams is not crazy, though. It really does seem obviously everyone respects the job that Seattle did winning the dominant fashion that they won.
1:49But it seems we've spent most of the offseason wondering if they can do it again while several of their key players,
1:56including Ken Walker, the Super Bowl MVP, have have walked away.
1:59While several of their interdivision rivals have loaded up, including most recently the Los Angeles Rams with Miles Garrett.
2:05And yeah, I mean, it does seem like for a team that won the Super Bowl in about as easy and dominant way as you can.
2:13We have spent all the offseason just kind of wondering how real it is now.
2:18They are going to have the opportunity very quickly to beat the New England Patriots in the opener.
2:24If that is what happens to kind of show us that it is real.
2:28But because things are so challenging in the division, because so many of the teams they play against twice a year have
2:35spent the entire offseason doing everything they can to get ready to beat them.
2:39And the fact that Seattle is going to have to counteract that with players who are young and getting better that maybe we haven't quite heard of yet.
2:48Yeah, they're going to have to keep proving themselves over and over again.
2:52If you're a Seahawks fan, you want to be optimistic.
2:55One of the reasons is that this front office led by GM John Schneider has been as good as anybody at keeping
3:02the roster and the salary cap healthy. You mentioned Kenneth Walker III.
3:06He walks for a big deal with Kansas City.
3:08Slide in Jadarian Price, who's the first round draft pick.
3:12Another great example is Boye Mafé. He's a contributing rotational player on last year's team.
3:16Gets a monster deal. Three years, $60 million with the Bengals.
3:20Congrats to Boye and his agent on working out that type of contract.
3:24Some teams would overextend themselves, say we can't lose our guy.
3:27The Seahawks not only let him walk, but they were prepared.
3:31They had budgeted and they knew he was probably going to be gone.
3:35In his place, they signed Dante Fowler, the veteran, for $2.5 million, up to $5 million with incentives.
3:40All fairness to Boye Mafé. Fowler's older, but he's probably a better player.
3:44And they're, oh yeah, the money you save goes toward retaining Derek Hall.
3:48That's how good teams stay good and this team should be good for a while, Mike.
3:53Here's a team that, why did I just go Collinsworth?
3:56Crazy. They feel really good about their talent on the defensive side of the ball and the scheme on the defensive side of the ball.
4:04And the scheme isn't changing. And the guy that's making the calls, Mike McDonald there, isn't changing.
4:09They feel like that was the part of the game.
4:13Look, I think we look at a team and if there's offensive fireworks, we say, oh, that was a Super Bowl champion.
4:19They were complete all over the football. And this was an offense that scored a bunch this year.
4:25But it was more about what they were doing defensively.
4:28And they feel really good about where they are for the long haul, not only from a talent perspective, but also from a scheme perspective.
4:36That's not going away. That's not changing. They feel like maybe they didn't get enough credit for just how good that defense was the entire season.
4:44Now they get a chance to prove that once again in their title defense.
4:48Yeah. And again, all due respect applied from this program, Leonard Williams, don't get too upset.
4:53We love the big cat. We love the Seahawks.
4:56Let's go from the team that picked last in the first round to the team that had the number one overall pick, the Las Vegas Raiders.
5:04The dynamic between franchise future quarterback and veteran free agent.
5:07Always a fun one to watch. Kirk Cousins asked the question about mentoring this week and his head coach on the concept of player mentorship as well.
5:16I think to say I'm mentoring them is a bit of a reach, probably more of a narrative than it is the
5:22truth in the sense that they're pretty good players.
5:25I never would never ask anybody to be a mentor if you're on the roster is to play and to play really well for the team.
5:33If you watch Kirk play, you know, his last four games in Atlanta, you know, you saw you saw what he can do.
5:41You know, he's getting healthier. He's played really good football for us this time of year.
5:46And we're counting on him come the season. Ian, is that commentary on mentorship itself?
5:50Or are we taking from what the Raiders had to say about their quarterbacks this week?
5:55It is nice that Kirk Cousins decide to go the route of honesty and transparency when it comes to the way most
6:02veteran players in the NFL deal with really good younger players who are coming up and trying to take their job.
6:09This is the reality of life in the NFL.
6:11Also, by the way, happens to the reality of life in the Raiders quarterback room.
6:16It is not necessarily Kirk Cousins job to mentor the number one overall pick Fernando Mendoza.
6:21Would it be nice? I guess it would be, but also he has coaches that are actually going to be doing the mentoring.
6:28What the Raiders want is for Kirk Cousins to go out there and do everything he possibly can to make sure that
6:35Fernando Mendoza does not see the field. For Kirk Cousins to play as well as he possibly can, to stay healthy, to
6:42give them a chance to win, and allow Mendoza the time necessary for him to, you know, ripen or whatever you want
6:49to say, and get a chance to go out there when he is ready to play.
6:54It is okay if they are not best friends.
6:56It is okay if the coaches do the mentorship, not the players.
7:00None of this is Kirk Cousins' job, and I appreciate that he decided to tell us this so we don't talk about phony narratives.
7:08We talk about real stuff, which is that Cousins right now gives the Raiders the best chance to win.
7:14Of course, he has some experience in the matter, having recently been signed as a free agent.
7:19The team drafts a first-round picket quarterback. Kirk Cousins has done this all before.
7:23Let's go to the Jacksonville Jaguars. They were at work this week in minicamp down in Duval.
7:28Several top players in attendance, including Travis Hunter, but not yet practicing.
7:32His head coach, Liam Cohen, letting us know how he's doing.
7:36Travis, I know he ran 22-6 this morning outside here, and, you know, he was talking a lot of smack to Chris Bach and the athletic trainers.
7:44And, I mean, he just – he's worked his tail off.
7:47I got to give a lot of credit to our strength staff, athletic training, sports science.
7:52They've just kept him – not motivated because he motivates himself, but they've kept it creative for him.
7:58The drills, the way that they're pushing him and challenging him.
8:01And then he goes into the video room with each side of ball, and then he's able to get a ton of reps in there.
8:09So, yeah, watching him run around this morning, hit 22-6, was pretty fun to watch.
8:14They're glad to have him back. We hope to see him back at some point, Tom.
8:19We also hope to learn what he's going to do.
8:22That's right, Patrick. Of course, the rare both-sides player.
8:25There's been a lot of debate about exactly how they should go about that because they're in unprecedented type of a territory here.
8:32They're coming off a significant injury. It was also notable that Liam Cohen said earlier this week they don't know when exactly he will be full go.
8:40Keep an eye on the reps through the course of the preseason, not just in terms of how many he gets, but where they are.
8:48It was not lost on some observers this week that while Travis Hunter was not practicing, he was wearing the teal jersey every day at practice.
8:56The teal jersey is what the offensive players wear.
8:59Could we potentially see a little bit more of him there than people are anticipating?
9:04One of many things to watch in Jaguars camp.
9:06Yeah, so much to try to figure out. A lot of these same questions we were asking before he first stepped on
9:13the field, still having them, of course, due to that very unfortunate injury.
9:17Thanks, Tom. Checking in on the Jacksonville Jaguars. Let's go to Philadelphia.
9:21The Eagles, they got some help at corner. They added Reek Wollin.
9:25With all the changes, the defense dealing with a lot of them as well.
9:29As we bring in Mike Garofalo, there was the departure of Reed Blankenship, discussion of position changes for some other pieces, and
9:36then questions about the contract potentially for Jalen Carter.
9:39Where are we there? You saw Jordan Davis there in those short clips that we just showed.
9:44Got paid this offseason at $26 million per year.
9:47Jalen Carter kind of looking over saying, all right, where's mine?
9:50My turn. There was some trade talk or speculation this offseason.
9:54From my understanding, what I was told was the Eagles were not going to trade Jalen Carter and that they were committed to extending him as well.
10:02Carter's probably saying, yeah, I want to be above there.
10:05I want to be at the top of the market, which is into the 30s if you go with Chris Jones' deal with the Kansas City Chiefs.
10:14There is the block that the two combined on.
10:16So you want to make sure that you get both of those guys happy, paid, and ready to go by week one.
10:23The question is, if it's not done for Carter by the start of training camp, will he practice?
10:29Hasn't been, but he's also rehabbing from the shoulder injuries, the shoulder surgeries that he had, which gives him a little bit of cover there.
10:37It doesn't help that Vic Fangio said that his shoulders were fine a couple of weeks ago.
10:42So we'll see how this goes. Is it going to be a hold-in situation?
10:46Perhaps. We'll see. Maybe the deal gets done before that.
10:49The Eagles are trying. Yeah, we've seen Howie Roseman get these things done a little ahead of schedule in the past.
10:56We'll see how that goes. And we'll hear more from our insiders as we continue on this edition of the Insiders here on NFL Network.
11:04A little bit of news. This is coming courtesy of Ian.
11:07The NFL let Stefan Diggs know that the investigation into any personal conduct policy has come to a close.
11:13He was found not guilty by a jury about a month ago in Massachusetts.
11:17And Broncos linebacker Jonathan Cooper arrested for the second time this week.
11:21Police say they arrested the Edge for a violation of a protection order stemming from a previous arrest, including charges of assault on his girlfriend.
11:29When we return on the Insiders, Baker Mayfield doesn't have a deal yet.
11:33Why? His head coach says he's not too concerned about that just yet.
11:37And one of the best, if not the best, fullback in the NFL joins the show.
11:42Kyle Yushek is standing by. Why he might be lobbying for some retroactive all-pro votes.
11:47Coming up next on the Insiders. How do you feel about not around?
11:51Nice 71-yarder to open it up. Now you're loose.
11:53Got him. We got some horses in the stable now.
11:57Come on, buddy. Couldn't have said it better. Hey, we got some dogs in that kennel.
12:01Horses in the stable, dogs in the kennel. 10 Pro Bowls on the wall, on the mantle.
12:07Two All-Pros. Got to get that number up. Still some time for Kyle Yushek over the course of his career.
12:13Most Pro Bowls. Read the fine print, ladies and gentlemen.
12:16Most Pro Bowls by a fullback. All-time. And at least his second appearance on the Insiders.
12:21Kyle Yushek joining us right now here on the program.
12:24If you need to spell it, it's right down there at the bottom.
12:28Not on the tail end of minicamp. Kyle Shanahan canceling minicamp as a veteran at this point in your career.
12:34Your reaction to that is what? Man, I love it.
12:38For me, that's fantastic. I don't need minicamp anymore.
12:40But I think he had a good reason, man.
12:43I think the team is in a really good position.
12:46Guys are healthy. The young guys have done a really good job since they've been there.
12:51And I just think we were in a good spot.
12:54And I just don't think we needed it right now.
12:57You know, a lot of teams are kind of going through it right now, like you mentioned.
13:03And, you know, there's been some fireworks this offseason in a way that we don't often see.
13:08Obviously, we know the Rams required Miles Garrett. A couple other interesting moves have happened, you know, in a generally sleepy June month.
13:15You guys made your fireworks early with the addition of Mike Evans and others.
13:20You got to see Mike Evans and some of the other new additions this spring.
13:24What did you think? Man, Mike has been so impressive.
13:27And that's, I feel like that's saying so much because we were expecting so much.
13:32You know, this is a guy, you know, we all say he's a bona fide Hall of Famer.
13:38What was it, 9 or 10, 11 straight thousand yard seasons.
13:41So, like, your expectations are already high. And I feel like he's already exceeded that.
13:46He has been unguardable at practice. Red zone has been an absolute problem.
13:50And what a great guy. Like, what a great teammate.
13:53I think everyone has already enjoyed his presence so much.
13:56And I think he's going to be an incredible leader for that room.
14:00And it's hard to imagine a better addition than Mike has been so far.
14:04That's awesome. Love Mike. Love watching Mike. Love covering Mike.
14:07Excited to see him with the 49ers in that new uniform.
14:11Look, Kyle, Ian alluded to it. Let's get right into it here with the Rams and the headlines that they're getting for
14:18the move that they made there for Miles Garrett and what they've done this offseason.
14:22I don't know if it's a bulletin board or if it's a smart board these days.
14:27But you got the Super Bowl champs in your division and you got the offseason champs in your division.
14:33It's got to be there and being talked about like, hey, ladies and gentlemen, don't forget about us.
14:39Right? Yeah, absolutely. I mean, we're not. There's no easy games here out in the NFC West for sure.
14:45But we feel great about where our team's at.
14:48The fact that we won 13 games last season with all that we had to deal with.
14:53I think, you know, that's easy to forget. And rightfully so.
14:56You know, the Seahawks, they won a Super Bowl.
14:59The Rams had a great season and they've had some great additions in the offseason.
15:04So I can understand why that is the case.
15:07But I think we feel great about where we're at, man.
15:10I love our squad. I think that we have only improved.
15:13Guys are getting healthy. We added Mike Evans and Osa on defense, which I think both of those guys are just going to make such an impact.
15:22And I think we're sitting in a good spot, man.
15:25If people want to forget about us, that's fantastic.
15:28That's a good place to be sometimes. You know, it is possible when you guys start the 2026 season, you will not be at full strength.
15:36Status of George Kittle very much up in the air, obviously working his way back from a torn Achilles.
15:42That is your partner in crime. I know you want him healthy, but I also know you want him back.
15:48How is he and how do you kind of handle that part of watching your buddy rehab and, you know, wanting him
15:55back but also wanting him to be 100%? Yeah, yeah, for sure.
15:58I mean, George looks great. You know, as he mentioned, you know, somewhere a couple days ago, like he really is ahead of schedule.
16:06So he was impressive just last week, seeing him running, you know, zigzags, like making cuts, actually like hitting like 16 miles per hour or something like that.
16:15I've been super impressed. And, you know, he's got another two months or so to get even better.
16:20And, you know, it's been enjoyable to watch him go through this process because he attacks it as such a professional.
16:27He makes it a point to no matter what we're doing, you know, whether even when we're down in Cabo and we're
16:34celebrating McCaffrey's birthday and we're golfing, like that guy finds it a time to rehab.
16:38Whether it's early in the morning, late at night, like he is always, always grinding.
16:43It's always on the back of his mind. And I really do think he's going to, you know, beat some expected timetables.
16:50And when he does come back, whenever that is, I think he's going to come out there and be the George Kittle that we all know and love.
16:58Ian talked about how tight you are with George.
17:01Your wife's tight as well. I got to see a mannequin over your right shoulder.
17:06We got a couple of looks in the background.
17:09Are you in Kristen's sewing room right there? How excited are you for what she's been able to do?
17:15Yep. I'm in my wife's office right now. And I'm so excited about what Kristen has built.
17:20And, you know, she just named the Times 100 most influential people in sports for 2026, which, oh my gosh, you know, just a few years ago.
17:28That would be just such a crazy notion, you know, like she wasn't, you know, didn't grow up as a sports girl,
17:35but she has made it her own. And I'm so proud of everything that she's built.
17:40And offseason has been such a success. And it's continuing to build and build and build.
17:45So, hey, offseasonbrand.com. People go check it out. There you go.
17:49Good husband, Kyle. Great job. We came into this talking about your 10 Pro Bowls, your All-Pros.
17:54You're 35 years old. You have played certainly far longer than many have at your position, though you've always been a little
18:01bit of an anomaly at the fullback position. Considering what you've accomplished, considering that you are still playing at a very high
18:08level, how is your offseason going personally? And then how long do you want to keep doing this?
18:13Great, great questions. And, hey, in my defense on that opening about, you know, the only two All-Pros, about 11 years of
18:20my career, there was no All-Pro for a fullback.
18:23He's right. Take it easy on that. For God's right.
18:26Man, I just I feel so good and I'm still having so much fun.
18:30I'm in zero pain whatsoever. And like you said, I feel like I'm still playing at such a high level.
18:36So I want to just continue to do this thing as long as I possibly can.
18:41It's been such a great offseason. Like OTAs were so enjoyable and I still feel like I'm growing.
18:47Like I spent this whole this whole offseason during OTAs and all that meeting with the tight ends, practicing with the tight ends.
18:54To just kind of continue to build and continue to grow.
18:58And I still feel like I'm doing that even at 35 years old.
19:02So I haven't put a number on when I want to end.
19:05But as it stands right now, I'm just going to keep going until the wheels fall off.
19:11So here's what, and that, no, we're soon, by the way.
19:14Here's what we're going to do. You know how like Saks was an official stat and they kind of went back and added some numbers for God.
19:22We're going to do that for you for All-Pros.
19:25Do we want to get greedy? Like I'll put the number at about eight.
19:30What do you think? Should we go all the way to 10?
19:33Well, shoot. You know, there was a couple years where I was still making, you know, making my name in there.
19:40So I'll take eight. I think eight is fair.
19:43Okay. There it is. Eight time, all pro, pullback, Kyle Juszczyk.
19:46Put the asterisk there. It's fine. We got no problem doing that.
19:50But that's the number that he deserves. And he deserves all the time on the insiders that he gets.
19:56We appreciate you, dude. Get some rest. You and Kristen go someplace nice and warm and fancy.
20:01Enjoy the next couple weeks. We'll see you in training camp soon enough.
20:05All right. Thanks, guys. Good talking with you. Thank you, man.
20:08Back here on the insiders. Here's what's new today coming into the NFL LA newsroom.
20:13Start with Stefan Diggs. The NFL closed its potential, excuse me, its personal conduct review on Stefan Diggs.
20:19Comes a month after he was found not guilty by a Massachusetts jury.
20:23Diggs was released by the Patriots in March after leading the team in receiving.
20:27And Bronco's Edge. Police say they've arrested Bronco's Edge, Jonathan Cooper, for a violation of a protection order stemming from a previous
20:34arrest that came earlier this week, including charges of assault on his girlfriend.
20:38The Super Bowl champions got their rings. The rings featuring two Lombardi trophies for the franchise's two titles, 50 diamonds for the team winning in its 50th year.
20:47One side has the player's name and number and MOB, which is short for last year's slogan, Mission Over BS.
20:53The Tampa Bay Buccaneers at minicamp this week had a start and a stop due to a violation of league rules with players on the ground.
21:01So they did lose a day there. Question is in the future, will they lose their quarterback?
21:06No contract agreement between Baker Mayfield and the Bucs.
21:09Todd Bowles was asked whether or not he was disappointed that Baker had not yet gotten a contract extension.
21:15Baker's a true pro. I don't think there's any disappointment whatsoever.
21:18I mean, he loves it here. We love him here.
21:22The contract stuff takes care of itself, whether it's the quarterback or any other position that comes up.
21:27You know, those things get worked out over time.
21:30You just concentrate on what we got to concentrate on on the field and he's been great right there.
21:36There's no question in your life, at least, that you want him to be the quarterback going forward as a player.
21:42Absolutely no question. So the head coach, Ian, says there's no question there.
21:46He wants him there. He says these things work themselves out.
21:50How are they working to work it out now?
21:53Well, first of all, this does seem to have to work out before training camp, the deadline set by Baker Mayfield.
21:59But you're right. The most important thing here is that both sides want to move forward together.
22:04Baker Mayfield wants to be the starting quarterback for the Tampa Bay Buccaneers for the foreseeable future.
22:10And Bucs brass, including Todd Bowles, including general manager Jason Light, want that as well.
22:14It's really just as they set a new contract floor, basically, for Baker Mayfield.
22:19He's been in the 30s. We have now the market changing over the couple of years since he signed his deal.
22:25Daniel Jones at 44 or so. Perhaps that's where the Bucs want this to end.
22:30And then you have several quarterbacks from Josh Allen, Jordan Love, Trevor Lawrence, Brock Purdy, Herbert.
22:35All of them in the 50s would make more of a would make sense for that where Baker wants to land.
22:41And we will see if they're able to find some sort of middle ground before training camp.
22:47Quite an example of how things can change over time as we go to one of Baker Mayfield's former teams, the Carolina
22:54Panthers, where things were a lot different for Baker back then.
22:57The Panthers coming to terms on an agreement with Jalen Coker this week.
23:01A three-year deal could be worth $35 million. Could go north of 40 if all the incentives are hit.
23:07Panthers head coach Dave Canales on guys getting their money maybe ahead of schedule.
23:11We're all on the same page with trying to identify guys that are Panther football players.
23:16And yes, a huge component of that is the production on the field.
23:20And first and foremost, right, that's how the market is set across the league.
23:25But beyond that, we want guys to be here long term that embody what we're looking for in terms of play style, character on and off the field.
23:33Guys that are great teammates. Guys that take personal accountability and responsibility for their job and are always prepared and show up
23:40with that type of work mentality and mindset and the way that they practice, how hard they practice.
23:46Guys that find their way to be available because they take care of themselves.
23:50So we factor all those things in. But like for the long term commitment, it's got to be guys that we believe
23:57embody what we're trying to build here and what we're trying to maintain and establish as a cultural identity.
24:03And they certainly established that belief for all of us to see by signing Jalen Coker this week, Mark.
24:09If you think Jalen Coker's contract extension was big news, how about this news?
24:13He'll be joining the insiders next week. Jalen Coker to talk about that deal.
24:18Three years, $35 million that Ian reported on Thursday evening.
24:21This Panthers team. Look, there's talent here. There's talent at the receiver position now with Coker clearly locking himself in as the
24:28number two wide receiver on this team ahead of Xavier Lee Gett, whose career hasn't been quite what they hoped to this point.
24:35There's a lot of change on the offensive line.
24:37Icky Aquano suffering that devastating knee injury. They do expect that he will play this upcoming season, but there's a lot of change there.
24:45And then Jonathan Brooks coming back at the running back position after missing all of last year.
24:50So this is a boomer bus type offense. And I know that Dave Canales feels really good about the talent that he has across the board.
24:58What are you going to get from the quarterback?
25:01Right? That's another reason that it's going to be a little bit up and down in a lot of people's minds.
25:08We shall see, but there's enough here to work with him.
25:11We've seen Bryce Young play well in spurts. Fascinated to see the Panthers offense this upcoming season.
25:16Including in that last loss where they came pretty close to knocking off the Los Angeles Rams team.
25:22They beat a couple of weeks before that their Bank of America stadium.
25:26Thanks, Mike. We'll go to the Minnesota Vikings where the quarterback battle between JJ McCarthy and Kyler Murray will be decided by
25:33Kevin O'Connell, but a guy who's definitely invested in the outcome.
25:36Two-time All-Pro Justin Jefferson, who spoke about the offense this week.
25:40Growth is the, I would say the key word is, and obviously, you know, having a new quarterback in Kyler, just trying
25:47to work with him, building that connection with him.
25:49Obviously, working with JJ and seeing the impact and the growth and the improvements that he has made is definitely tremendous.
25:56So I'm seeing great work throughout everybody in this whole entire training camp.
26:00I'm really glad to see everybody here and working as a team and building that team camaraderie early.
26:05So it's just great to see everybody. Great to get in that work again and obviously carrying on this throughout the summer.
26:12Tom Pelissero now with us. That was five everybody's from Justin Jefferson.
26:16He's not new to this. He's a pro. Tom mentions both quarterbacks by name as well.
26:21Kevin O'Connell has been very intentional, Patrick, throughout the spring of splitting everything down the middle 50-50.
26:26He wants to make sure that both of these guys, Kyler Murray and JJ McCarthy, get a fair shake.
26:32And the fact that you have Justin Jefferson saying he'll work out with both quarterbacks during the break before training camp indicates
26:39even the most important player on the team doesn't ultimately know where this goes.
26:43I would say this. O'Connell is not going to say anything publicly, but I have to imagine coming out of the spring
26:50and minicamp, he's got a pretty good idea of what direction this goes.
26:54I do not anticipate it's going to take the entire preseason three games to sort it out.
27:00At some point, especially if it's Kyler who's new to the system, you need the time on task and the reps to
27:06get the rhythm and timing and tempo that makes NFL passing offenses go.
27:10But clearly they want to at least take this into training camp and see if this goes the direction that people believe it's going to headed into camp.
27:19A lot to look forward to in Minneapolis. Where the Vikings will have somebody starting a quarterback.
27:24We'll have to wait and see. Jared Goff there, we know he's going to be there.
27:29Jameer Gibbs and this Lions offense. The Lions have their mandatory minicamp coming up next week after some injuries.
27:35Maybe some fall off in play. Dan Campbell looking forward to what's going to be a new defensive line in Detroit.
27:42You know, Wanham looks good. You know, Hutch, look, we got some length now.
27:46Let me just step back for a minute. I like where Wanham's at.
27:50You know, he was coming off that injury, all that, and hadn't missed a day with us.
27:56Been putting in the work. And so he's doing a good job in the spring.
28:00But, man, we've got some guys now, you know, between Wanham and Turner and this pup, Lucas.
28:06Obviously more. Like, we got some length now. We got some size and length and athletic ability on the perimeter.
28:12You know, Lacey is that, but he's a little bit more of that big end, big stack.
28:17But we are big. We are long. And so you can't wait for training camp.
28:22You know, you just can't wait. But these guys are, Casey's doing a good job with them.
28:27And they all kind of have their own little niche, their own knack.
28:31And just to watch them fundamentally get a little bit better and work their craft.
28:36And then we'll see what camp looks like. You know, it'll be good.
28:40Let's delve into the Lions a little bit more now with Jeffrey Chidia joining us on The Insiders.
28:45Good evening to you, Jeff. As we kind of try to see what has been a years-long goal to find a complimentary
28:52pass rusher to work with Aiden Hutchinson. How are the Lions doing in that now?
28:57Yeah, it feels like a career-long goal for the Lions as far as trying to find help for him.
29:03And look, some of the names that Dan Campbell was mentioning there are some really big guys.
29:08He talked about wanting length. DJ Wanham, a free agent who showed up, is 6'5".
29:13You look at Anthony Lucas, undrafted free agent. He's 6'6".
29:16Peyton Turner is a free agent signee. He's 6'6".
29:19And Aiden Hutchinson is 6'7". A lot of size and versatility there.
29:22And what they want to have is an improved pass rush, but also players who can defend the run.
29:28This is a team that was fifth in sacks last year and sixth in pressures, but took way too long to get to the quarterback.
29:36So getting better on that end of the defensive line is a huge impetus for this team.
29:41Let's go over to the Denver Broncos now, who have a pretty good pass rush of their own.
29:47They got some good injury recovery news this week.
29:50They expect Bo Nix coming off of that after the playoff win against the Buffalo Bills ankle surgery.
29:55They expect him to participate in minicamp this week.
29:58Sean Payton asked this week if they think his mobility will be hindered recovering from that injury.
30:03He's going to be like completely clean mobility wise.
30:06And I understand the question, but he's out here like today going through two minute reps, walk through reps.
30:12There won't be. I mean, he's young and one of his great assets is his ability to avoid sacks and escape from the pocket.
30:20And I don't think you'll see that hindered at all.
30:23So Jeff, they have a healthy Bo Nix, who is very creative back there in the pocket.
30:28He had options last year. He's got even more options at receiver.
30:32What are they saying about that room right now?
30:34Well, Sean Payton's really excited about his wide receiver room, Patrick, for good reason.
30:39A lot of versatility in that room. You think about the addition of Jalen Waddell and what they already had with Courtland
30:46Sutton and Marvin Mims and Patrick Bryant. And so the goal here throughout the offseason is to have some serious competitiveness within that room.
30:53And he's been seeing that. Payton's been seeing that in practices throughout the OTAs and certainly in the minicamp coming up next week.
31:00And so they love what they see in Waddell especially.
31:03And offensive coordinator Davis Webb called Waddell a thermostat, a multiplier, a player who brings great energy to this team.
31:10And so he referenced being in Buffalo with Stephon Diggs showed up in year three for Josh Allen, what that meant to Josh Allen.
31:17And Jalen Waddell coming to Denver could be the same thing, could mean the same thing for Bo Nix.
31:23Jeff, you mentioned their new offensive coordinator, Davis Webb, was going to call plays with Sean Payton not calling plays for the first time since 2006.
31:31They called him a mastermind in camp. The players did.
31:34Garrett Bolsa, the thumbs up to that, a mad scientist as well.
31:38So we'll see if that nickname sticks. Jeff Chedia taking a look at the Lions and the Broncos here on The Insiders.
31:45Thanks, Jeff. When we come back as the show continues, the rookie corner, Chris Johnson from Miami joins us next.
31:51Dolphins figure to have one of the youngest rosters in the NFL when things get going and their young players making plays.
31:58This is back during OTAs. First round pick, Chris Johnson going up and snagging this interception.
32:03New Finns head coach, Jeff Halfley, talking about his rookie corner and what kind of player he's been thus far.
32:09I think he's done a really nice job. He is very instinctual.
32:13He sees the game very fast. He works really hard in the meeting rooms.
32:17He's super athletic, has really good coverage ability. He's been able to get his hand on the football.
32:23And we've asked him to do a lot and he's handled it very, very well, which is what I kind of told
32:30you maybe a week or two ago. We've thrown a lot on his plate and he's responded.
32:35And I'm really excited to continue to coach him.
32:38I think you guys will like him a lot when you talk to him.
32:42He's got a good energy about him and he's mature.
32:45He's he'll see it. He's really mature for a rookie.
32:48And joining us now is Dolphins rookie corner, Chris Johnson.
32:51Thanks for spending time with us here on The Insiders.
32:54Cam will hear it with me. Chris, a lot of times coaches are hesitant to give that kind of praise early on to a rookie.
33:02What's it like to hear Coach Halfley be so effusive in his praise?
33:06Yeah, man, it feels great hearing that from from Coach Half, man.
33:10Just, you know, being being able to come in here and, you know, do do what I do and be the best I could be for him.
33:18And, you know, he's been a great help with me being in the corner room with all the other coaches.
33:25And, you know, it's just been great. Chris, I couldn't help but notice Halfley talking about giving you more, allowing you to do more.
33:32I've been out there at practice. You're playing outside corner, slot corner.
33:36A lot of times rookies, they like to ease them in.
33:39Can you maybe take me through what that challenge is adjusting the NFL, but also playing two positions as a rookie?
33:46Yeah, I'd definitely say it was challenging at first, just being able to handle, you know, the load of, you know, learning the new defense at both positions.
33:54But now that we're making strides towards, you know, towards training camp and stuff like that, I feel like it's all coming
34:01together and helping me understand the defense as a whole.
34:04So understanding what the corner is doing when I'm at nickel and understanding, you know, vice versa, just helping me be able
34:11to play faster, understand, you know, when and where I might have help or there might be voids in the cover.
34:18And Chris, looking back, because as a bigger corner, right, you've been asked to do a lot for most of your career.
34:25What's the biggest difference between what you were asked to do in college, say, and from Coach Halfley now?
34:31I really just say the amount of details in every call.
34:34Obviously, you know, I played in a very good system in college, but, you know, coming up to the NFL, just the
34:41amount of details that I have to understand from the front to the linebackers to, you know, the whole back end, just
34:48being able to understand that is definitely, definitely a big job for me.
34:52But, you know, I always enjoy learning and, you know, just being able to learn this new game, transitioning into the NFL.
34:59Chris, I love that we're getting so much detail on corner play, but I want you to take me into practice meeting rooms.
35:06You got a head coach that is a cornerback coach at heart.
35:09What is that interaction? Tell me a story of maybe how he's critiqued you or had some fun with you early in these first six weeks in Miami.
35:18Yeah, for sure. So right after the team meeting, we'll go to special teams.
35:22And from there, we'll go to, you know, our unit meetings where we'll first meet up as an offense and defense, and then we'll break off into DBs.
35:31But Coach Half is sitting back there in the DB meeting.
35:35You know, something funny that, you know, happens pretty often is when it's a little bit of controversy, you know, how, you
35:41know, a player should play the answer, what technique I should use here.
35:45And it'll be a little gray area. But, you know, with him being able to sit in the room, that gray area
35:52is, it's only there for a short window because whatever he says goes.
35:56So, you know, things just tend to get cleared up really easily.
36:00But, you know, I definitely enjoy having a head coach in the back of the room just to clear things up.
36:07You guys come into the league all the time.
36:09Some are coming to rosters filled with veterans. You guys are a very young team, Chris.
36:14What were your expectations and what's the reality been of the start of your NFL career?
36:19Yeah, I feel like my expectations were to come in here and, you know, meet a lot of people and, you know, start a new brotherhood.
36:27And I feel like we're exceeding those expectations, you know, especially as rookies.
36:31We're all close as rookies, but then, you know, within our individual meeting rooms, like all the corners welcome me with open arms.
36:39And, you know, we're all in there, all fighting for spots, all competing every day, getting each other better, man.
36:45And I feel like, you know, there's no way I'd rather have it.
36:49Chris, I want to keep it real with you because you're a part of a big transition, a new regime here, right?
36:56And you were drafted with the pick that they use to trade away another foundational player in Jalen Waddell.
37:02And now you're here there. Have you thought about maybe the pressure, the expectations, some would say the privilege that comes with
37:08you trying to be the next foundational piece of this team?
37:12Yeah, I've definitely thought about it. But, you know, to me, man, nobody puts more pressure on me than myself.
37:18So, you know, hearing a lot of the outside noise, it really doesn't get to me because I'm my hardest critique.
37:25You know, I want to be a perfectionist and, you know, I want to be here forever and be that foundational piece, like you said.
37:32So I hold myself to those expectations. So, you know, hearing them from the media and fans and stuff like that, you
37:39know, it ain't nothing that I'm not telling myself already.
37:42Now, Chris, obviously we talked a lot about cornerback play and you focused on learning so much about this defense.
37:49What are your what's been your biggest takeaway from watching this new offense, especially with Malik Willis in charge and running it?
37:55Yeah, man, just, you know, especially transitioning from college, just a lot of things are different, man.
38:01And obviously the skill level is a jump as far as a depth, you know, ones, twos, threes, fours rotate in.
38:07And I feel like there's not a lot of drop off between any of them.
38:12Everybody could play. And, you know, Malik specifically, man, he's a great guy.
38:16He was out here during rookie mini camp. So we got to meet him, which is, you know, really cool being able
38:23to meet the starting quarterback, you know, when we first just arrived.
38:27But he's a cool guy. We watched a finals game in his crib.
38:31But, yeah, just trying to bring the team together, be connected as a team.
38:35I can't imagine the energy, Chris, with that finals game.
38:38It's been a crazy series. But I want to end you with this here.
38:42I can't wait to see y'all in training camp.
38:45I want to take you to a potential matchup.
38:48I can't wait to see. Devon A. Chan gets into the slot.
38:52He's facing you. How do you win that matchup?
38:55What's your go-to move against him? Probably just getting physical with him, man.
38:59He's a real quick cat. So understanding, you know, I don't want to have a lot of space in there.
39:05I want to be able to take away his superpower, which is, you know, going to be his speed.
39:11But that'll definitely be a fun one that y'all probably going to see some.
39:15Well, Chris, just in terms of analysis of what Coach Affleck said about getting a chance to meet you and fall in
39:22love with what you do and the way you play football, it's official.
39:26We're in there. Can't wait for the people down there in South Florida to feel the same.
39:31Thanks for joining us here. I appreciate you guys.
39:34It's a live look overseeing our champions field as fans are making their way in ahead of this World Cup match coming up at six o'clock tonight.
39:42But we are previewing the World Cup with Adam Rank on the insiders.
39:46Hey, man. Oh, thank you so much, Patrick. It gives me great pleasure to kick off the weekend here this this Friday
39:53by congratulating the Mexican soccer team for winning the World Cup with a thrilling two nil victory over South Africa on Thursday.
40:00Congratulations. That's the world. Now, the tournament's a month.
40:03That was just the opener. We got a long way to go.
40:07I need you to do your research on this.
40:09Oh, OK. So this is going to take a month while a sport like the NFL determines their champion on a single day.
40:17Hey, it's hard to trust the process when it's longer than a single day.
40:21But at the same time, I guess it does make sense why there are so many people milling around SoFi Stadium right now.
40:28And look, I know a lot of you NFL fans are going to get into the World Cup, but you end up
40:35being that annoying person at your Super Bowl party who becomes an instant expert after one game.
40:40Or perhaps you're going to be that person who's like, oh, I'm only here to watch the commercials.
40:46Well, the joke's on you, sport, because there are no commercials during World Cup matches.
40:51Right. They got to drink water. They take breaks to hydrate properly.
40:54Yeah. I get you. All right. Well, I watch on Telemundo.
40:58They don't go to commercials, but whatever. Listen, the point is, is that as much as you get upset with Taylor Swift
41:05showing up at the Super Bowl or at the NBA finals, that's exactly what you're doing with the World Cup here.
41:11Commercial breaks, drinking beers in the stands. These games don't even start at four in the morning.
41:16What is happening to this sport? But don't worry.
41:19I'm going to find a way right now to help you look.
41:23How do I say this? Less American at your World Cup parties.
41:27What you do, it's a pitch, not a field.
41:29They're wearing boots, not cleats. And under no circumstances are you to ever refer to or ever root for Erling Haaland.
41:36Like, he's not as kooky as Aaron Rodgers. Still is bad.
41:39And remember, when one of your international buddies is sitting there making fun of you for the lack of quality of U.S.
41:46soccer, remind them that the U.S. has won four World Cups.
41:50It's the women, but still, we've won four World Cups.
41:53And you might ask yourself right now, what are the U.S.'s chances to win this World Cup?
41:58Let me give you some of the players. Now, we have Argentina.
42:02They are the defending champions. I don't think a straight comp is the Seahawks.
42:06I think they're a lot like the Kansas City Chiefs, whereas Messi is the most identifiable football player in the world.
42:13He's got merch at Old Navy. And when you think about Patrick Mahomes being the face for the Chiefs there, anyways, let's go to France.
42:20France is a very good football team. They're like the L.A.
42:24Rams. They've got stars on both sides of the field.
42:27You've got Mbappe. You've got William Saliba. And what about the U.S.?
42:31The U.S., they're kind of like Centennial High School in Corona, California.
42:34They're great at what they do. When they're playing in their own little pool in the Coppa Cup or anything like that, they're amazing.
42:42When they get on the world stage, not so much.
42:45And I know you're probably sitting there like, why don't you just compare them to the Bears?
42:50Well, you know what? Much like the Bears, I'm delusional enough to think that the U.S.
42:55has a chance in this thing. As a matter of fact, I go over this in great detail in the latest edition
43:02of the Sick Podcast with Adam Ray. No, Frank, we can't promote the podcast.
43:06I'm already writing an apology letter to Old Navy, so we just got to stop right here and just leave it at that.
43:14Thank you for educating the football masses on football.
43:16Outside of what's just being called Los Angeles Stadium for this week at the World Cup.
43:21Kind of what it is. Names are fun. I believe that we will win.
43:26I believe that we will win. I believe that we...
43:29This is an iHeart Podcast. Guaranteed human.
