PodcastFrom Bootleg Football
Hell hath no fury like a Buccaneer scorned.
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
1 hr 30 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Aug 27, 2026
Published
Thu, August 27, 2026
22
Player insights
18
Players mentioned
Topics
Baker MayfieldCade OttonKenneth GainwellMike EvansDae'Quan WrightEmeka EgbukaEric RiversJake BrowningJalen McMillanJalon DanielsJayden HigginsLeonard FournetteRicky PearsallSean Tucker
Player analysis
Player insights
Baker Mayfield
PositiveProjection0:18
Early in the 2025 season, before injuries derailed Tampa Bay, Mayfield was 'on pace for 4,300 yards and over 30 touchdowns.' The source frames him as 'that overrated quarterback' in the opening, but then reveals he was performing at an elite level before the team's injury crisis.
Insight pageNegativeInjury67:05
The source notes that Baker Mayfield got hurt last year, contributing to the Buccaneers' offensive collapse. The source lists his injury as one of several major injuries that affected the offense, along with receivers, running backs, and the offensive line, suggesting the team's floor remains similar to last year's performance.
Insight pageCade Otton
PositiveValue43:44
The source likes the Buccaneers' $10 million signing of Cade Otton, praising him as a very good receiver in the short-to-medium range and as a safety outlet release, with solid blocking ability and toughness. Otton is not a seam-stretching type like Arondae Gadsden but excels in his assigned role with good after-the-catch production.
Insight pagePositiveRole67:05
The source notes that Cade Otton might have been the only player in the Buccaneers' offensive room who did not sustain a major injury last year, implying his durability and availability as a consistent offensive weapon.
Insight pageDae'Quan Wright
NegativeDepth Chart65:53
The source mentions Daquan Wright, a tight end, as one of multiple players in the group of those eligible to return to college via court decision. The source notes he was one of the first tight ends chronicled in late October in early Patreon draft episodes, indicating prior interest in his ability. He is now in the transfer portal, creating uncertainty about his NFL future.
Insight pageEmeka Egbuka
NegativeRole5:00
Egbuka thrives as a Z receiver playing off the line of scrimmage with space, similar to how Godwin operates. However, due to injuries, he was forced to play X receiver for most of the season, a role he's 'not really meant to be' in. The source notes: 'Emeka like really thrives. Honestly, he's the new Godwin. Like, he really thrives being off the line of scrimmage and just playing with space. So when he's like your only healthy receiver for the season... you have nine offensive linemen that have to play significant snaps... you're making him play X because your X got hurt and nobody else could do it. And he's really not meant to be that role.'
Insight pageEric Rivers
NegativeDepth Chart65:24
The source notes that Eric Rivers was productive the year before but then transferred to Georgia Tech, which was 14th in the ACC in pass attempts per game, cutting down on his production. The source identifies him as a UDFA of note but provides limited fantasy-specific analysis.
Insight pageJake Browning
PositiveRole47:11
Jake Browning was signed by Tampa Bay at $1.3 million as a backup quarterback; the source emphasizes that teams play an average of 2.4–2.6 quarterbacks per season, meaning Browning will likely take snaps as the QB2 and must be capable of winning games, not just filling a roster spot. The source notes Browning has NFL experience, a good arm in the pocket, and can operate an offense, making him a meaningful insurance policy.
Insight pageJalen McMillan
PositiveBreakout0:31
The young receiver (McMillan) was 'a frontrunner for Rookie of the Year' early in the 2025 season before injuries disrupted the Buccaneers' offense. The source uses this as evidence that the team's early-season success was legitimate despite doubts about the receivers being 'unproven.'
Insight pageJalon Daniels
PositiveRole65:09
The source identifies Jalen Daniels as a UDFA who looked good in week one and believes he might legitimately stick as QB3 for the Buccaneers. While some Bucs fans think he could be QB2, the source notes it will be tough for him to beat out Browning for that role. However, there is something there for the team, suggesting he has a realistic path to the roster.
Insight pageJayden Higgins
NegativeInjury39:30
Higgins suffered an ACL injury during the offseason, prompting the Texans to sign veteran wide receivers Sterling Shepard and another veteran as tryouts to address depth concerns in their receiving room.
Insight pageKenneth Gainwell
PositiveRole44:47
The source characterizes Kenny Gainwell as a slight upgrade over Rashad White in the Buccaneers backfield, brought in to replace White's production. Gainwell is described as a better player than White, and the source notes that when White was injured, the team clearly missed his run-game production and needed to upgrade the position.
Insight pageNegativeRole45:41
Kenny Gainwell was brought in by Tampa Bay as an upgrade or complementary piece to Rashad White; the source frames this as a wise decision to add depth and push the envelope in a competitive division, suggesting Gainwell will have a defined role but not necessarily as a lead back.
Insight pageLeonard Fournette
NegativeInjury5:30
Fournette (Bucky) was injured during the season, and his absence directly contributed to the Buccaneers' collapse. The source states: 'Bucky gets hurt and then you immediately lose three games. Yeah, that's how you end up eight and nine.' While Fournette wasn't there for the entire year, the team 'did make do with their other running backs,' but the offensive line injuries compounded the running game's challenges.
Insight pageMike Evans
NegativeDepth Chart36:18
Evans, a franchise legend, was traded to the 49ers; the source was shocked to see him in a non-Buccaneers uniform and notes he joins a long line of Hall of Fame receivers who did not play for only one franchise, though he will likely retire as a Buck.
Insight pageNegativeValue42:19
The source reports that Buccaneers GM Jason Light made a practical financial decision to move on from Evans, citing cap constraints and injury concerns on the receiving core. Light determined they cannot afford to pay what Evans is "truly worth if he's healthy" and chose not to take that financial risk, prioritizing roster flexibility and younger, cheaper talent acquisition.
Insight pageRicky Pearsall
NegativeProjection39:06
Pearsall is part of the 49ers' theoretical wide receiver room alongside Mike Evans and Dejan Stribling with Brock Purdy at quarterback, but the source notes this is only a theoretical strength; in practice, Stribling is the only one on the field, making the actual receiving room less impressive.
Insight pageSean Tucker
PositiveRole44:20
The source views Sean Tucker's $3.5 million deal as good value, noting he suffered an injury but has found a role with the Buccaneers. While not an RB1 long-term, Tucker can serve as a temporary starter for 3-4 weeks, making him a practical depth piece for the team.
Insight pageSterling Shepard
NegativeDepth Chart40:23
Shepard, a veteran wide receiver, recently signed with the Texans after Jaden Higgins suffered an ACL injury; he was one of two veteran receivers the Texans brought in as tryouts following Higgins' injury.
Insight pageTed Hurst
NegativeRole39:35
Hurst was drafted by the Buccaneers and is projected as a wide receiver five, but the source notes he will likely be elevated to wide receiver three or starter role in 11 personnel due to the team's chronic receiver injury issues.
Insight pageTeddy Bridgewater
NegativeInjury40:08
Bridgewater has officially retired, citing injury-related reasons; he suffered a massive knee injury in the middle of his career but played for many years after recovery, however his knee no longer responds as it used to and he can no longer offset the effects of being on turf or grass, making it time to retire for good.
Insight pageTez Johnson
NegativeRole39:15
Johnson was initially projected as a wide receiver five for the Buccaneers but has been elevated to wide receiver two for several weeks due to injuries in the receiving corps, illustrating how receiver injuries force depth players into starter roles.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00Everybody doubts the Bucs. Their quarterback, overrated. Their receivers, unproven.
0:03Their first-round pick, T-Rex arms. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers select Reuben Bain At some point, you all have to realize, when you
0:10doubt this team, and more specifically, when you doubt the players that are on this team, historically speaking, that's when they're at their most dangerous.
0:18It's easy to forget where Tampa Bay was halfway through 2025, before injuries derailed their season.
0:23They were the number one seed in the NFC.
0:26That overrated quarterback, he was on pace for 4,300 yards and over 30 touchdowns.
0:31That young receiver, he was a frontrunner for Rookie of the Year.
0:35And that short-armed first-round pick? Well, he was kind of preoccupied at the time.
0:39Look at the bend of Bain. 275 pounds, able to bend like that and get to the corner.
0:45Look, I get it. This conference has all of the heavy hitters in it.
0:49The Seahawks, the Rams, the Eagles, basically the entire NFC North.
0:53It's an absolute war zone. But if we've learned any lessons from the last two times this team has won a championship,
1:00it's that rings fit better on bloody hands. Welcome to the Bootleg Football Podcast.
1:04I'm Brett Coleman. That's EJ Snyder. Hell hath no fury like a Reuben Bain scorned.
1:09Every clip I see from training camp is just him pissed off in the corner, beating the shit out of some bag.
1:16I cannot wait to watch this man play football.
1:19Now, that was his modus operandi in college, and then everything throughout the draft happened, which we said, if you looked at
1:26our rankings, I don't really think it's going to matter.
1:29It didn't matter against players that are very good and who are going to play tackle in the NFL.
1:35He whooped the shit out of them. Then he's going to continue to do it.
1:40And he looks just like he did in college.
1:43This is not a, oh, there's been a glow up or the coaching staff has found an unlock.
1:49It literally is Reuben Bain being Reuben Bain the way he was in college.
1:53And those of us that saw the tape going, you know, yeah, this is the same thing.
1:59No surprises here. They need him. They need him.
2:02And we will get into the details why. We're going to talk extensively about this defense, what worked, what didn't, mostly what didn't.
2:09We'll talk about the offense as well and all of the injuries.
2:13Yes, Bucs fans, we will validate your feelings that you guys were one of the more banged up teams in the NFL, specifically on offense.
2:21That did cause a lot of issues. So we have a lot to get to.
2:26But first, we have to do our little season recap where we unfortunately go through the details of what went wrong.
2:32Yeah, for sure. And, you know, this section specifically isn't sponsored by Woodinville, but it sure helps if you have a little bourbon when you're going.
2:41I got up my coffee, by the way. No, there you go.
2:45A little coffee and rye this morning because we're recording this at 940 a.m.
2:49So we have to be appropriately using alcohol. We can't just be doing shots.
2:53Not straight up. It is the weekend, but I fully endorse your camouflage approach.
2:58Overall record, 8-9. Rank in the division was second.
3:01Home record of 4-4. Road record of 4-5. Very similar home and away.
3:05And the last five games, 1-4. And, you know, we'll talk about the way that that happened.
3:10They started out hot. This was a very strong team in the strongest conference in the NFC.
3:16They were 6-2. Then they got dinged. And they lost to three very good teams.
3:21New England, Buffalo, and the Rams to make it 6-5.
3:24So, again, this is your roller coaster. 6-2. Great.
3:27Lost three straight. Oh, bummer. Hung on against the Cardinals to make it 7-5.
3:31Yes, hung on against the Cardinals. That should have been the sort of indicator, the canary in the coal mine, in the
3:38middle of the Bucs season that maybe it's not as rosy as it looked in the first quarter.
3:44Then lost three straight, all in the division, which eventually doomed them.
3:48Now you're below 500. 7-8. They limped to the 8-9 finish, end up not winning the division.
3:53And we will talk about the reasons why that happened.
3:57Again, we promise Bucs fans we're not going to gloss over the fact that this was a very injured team.
4:03So, the three teams that we just mentioned lost the least starters to injury.
4:07Patriots, Rams, and Seahawks. Go figure. If you're healthy, you can make a good run in the NFL.
4:13The Bucs were? Here's where we validate your feelings, Tampa Bay fans.
4:1722nd. 250 combined games lost, nearly more than 100.
4:20The Patriots, who had 154, led the league in health.
4:23So, you know, that's just hard to overcome. Yes, next man up, all of that.
4:28But when it's the next, next, next man up, you're not going to have a similar quality to a team that is healthy later in the season.
4:37Specifically on the offensive line, they had nine offensive linemen that played at least 150 snaps.
4:42Yeah. Like, that's ridiculous. Because not only that, but when you have that many guys playing, you're also moving positions around.
4:48And it was just a mess. And then, you know, you're losing receivers.
4:53You're making Emeka play out of position. You know, he was super productive early on when he could be like the Z,
5:00you know, move him around offline scrimmage, absolutely roast people in space.
5:03Now you're making him play X because your X got hurt and nobody else could do it.
5:09And he's really not meant to be that role.
5:12He's not like a JSN where it's like, yeah, everything.
5:15Whatever you want. JSN's good at everything. Emeka like really thrives.
5:18Honestly, he's the new Godwin. Like, he really thrives being off the line of scrimmage and just playing with space.
5:25So when he's like your only healthy receiver for the season, you have nine offensive linemen that have to play significant snaps.
5:32Bucky gets hurt and then you immediately lose three games.
5:35Yeah, that's how you end up eight and nine.
5:38Yeah, for sure. And that's the way that it looked at the end of the season.
5:43But again, if we're taking off the recency guy rolls and looking at the beginning of the year, it was much more hopeful in Tampa Bay.
5:51And we will talk about whether or not we think that carries over to a new season in 2026, because sometimes it does and sometimes it doesn't.
6:00But before we get out of 2025, we have to talk about where the Bucs in their totality for the entirety of
6:07the season ranked relative to their peers. And the way we do that here on bootleg is something called power score.
6:14It's six numbers we think are representative of football team being good at football, passing EPA per play, rushing EPA per play,
6:21defense against the pass and the rush again by EPA per play, points scored and points allowed.
6:26We assign them their league rank. We add up those six scores, divide by six.
6:31That gives us raw score. Then we stack all those scores.
6:35And that's the bootleg power score. Where were you compared to all your peers?
6:39So in terms of passing EPA per play, again, injuries took their toll both on the offensive line and the receiving core.
6:46They were 22nd in the NFL, rushing EPA per play.
6:49They were better. They were 10th, a top 10 rushing team.
6:53But again, Bucky wasn't there for the entire year.
6:56They did make do with their other running backs.
6:59But again, offensive line affects that as well. Passing EPA per play, defense 20th.
7:03We're going to talk about why we're going to pick this one apart.
7:07Rushing EPA per play allowed fifth. We're also going to pick this one apart and say, why was it so good?
7:14There's a very definitive reason. And then he's staying in Tampa Bay.
7:18Points scored. They were 18th right down the middle.
7:21And points allowed 20th. Not terrible. Very similar to their points scored rank.
7:25Again, if you take 18th and 20th in terms of league ranks and call 16th or 17th the middle of the league, that's 8-9.
7:33Like just under. Yeah. About. Just under the middle of the league.
7:36So their raw score when you add up those six numbers and divide by six is 15.83.
7:42And strangely enough, that put them 18th overall in the league.
7:45Right where their points scored rank was. And again, pretty much right where their record ended up.
7:51They were a mid team that could have been great.
7:54And I think when Bucs fans look back at last year, and I think they were coming off like four straight division wins.
8:01And again, they barely lost the division this year, even with all those injuries.
8:06I think they look at it as a missed opportunity.
8:09Now, would they have gone on to beat Seattle in the playoffs?
8:13Would they have beat the Rams in the playoffs?
8:16I don't know. Because those teams, again, were two of the three healthiest teams in the league.
8:21And also two of the three most talented teams in the league.
8:25So when you're a really talented team and you're healthy, you're going to go far.
8:30Again, shocker. I know. So I don't know if they would have beat them, but I do think.
8:36When Tampa is healthy, they are built in a way that scares people.
8:40Right. Because Tampa has at their best. They're deep at receiver.
8:43They have a dynamic running back. They've had a dominant offensive line, particularly at tackle.
8:48So you have a tackle tandem when they're healthy that can handle almost any edge group in the league.
8:54Like if I was going to leave anybody one on one with Miles Garrett, if they have to play the Rams this
9:01year in the playoffs, it's going to be Tristan worse.
9:04Right. So they have a lot of hard counters to what the elite of the elite in the NFC.
9:11Bring to the table. And so they scare people.
9:13And you have a defense now with Yaya Diaby and Ruben Bain.
9:17And that would keep me up at night. Because that's they're a blitz heavy team, but now they don't have to be a blitz heavy team.
9:26Now they could just blitz whenever they want to, but not when they have to.
9:30Um, and that edge rush duo with that offense, it's, it's very, I'm not going to say it's exactly mid two thousands
9:37Colts because mid two thousands Colts had like three hall of famers, like at quarterback and receiver and tight end.
9:44And, but like, it's that kind of mold where they can turn it into a track meet and their pass rush.
9:51At least their edge group is probably better than yours.
9:54And I think that's a threat to everybody. For sure.
9:57Jason lights built this team to be strong in the trenches when healthy.
10:01And again, health was a major factor last year, but the offensive line has dudes.
10:06The defensive line has dudes. They just kept their biggest dude in town with Vita and his extension.
10:12And that is going to keep the center of that defense strong, but he's not the only one.
10:17There are other teams that are paying top prices for a DT and he's kind of the only guy it's him against
10:24the world and a bunch of other guys that should benefit from one-on-ones, but don't Tampa Bay is not that way.
10:31So if you're strong in the trenches on both sides, you're a threat.
10:35If you can't be run on at will, right?
10:38You're a threat. You're going to have to put the ball in the air late in the game, even if you're leading,
10:45because you're not going to be able to grind it out.
10:49It's going to be a bunch of three and outs against the defense like this.
10:54So that is a challenge, right? Now we'll talk about the past defense.
10:58I said, we would, we will. That is the one place where it's like, okay, go ahead, try and pass on us.
11:05And other teams are like, okay, you have to get away from the rush, but the coverage is not up to snuff.
11:12I mean, it's not the equal of the defensive line.
11:15Let's put it that way. And I kind of think it's the staff's fault on this because when you draft a bunch
11:22of guys that are really rangy, physical zone defenders where they thrive, having vision on the quarterback, vision on the route, and just attacking.
11:30And then you make them play man and their skillset really isn't to be a great man corner with the exception of Jamel Dean.
11:37And like maybe the exception of, of Parrish last year, Benjamin Morrison, like a couple of years ago, I thought was a great man corner.
11:45He was coming off an injury. He looked like he was coming off an injury.
11:50It was rough. Zion McCollum was a disaster in man.
11:53The linebackers, God bless you, Levante David. Enjoy retirement.
11:56The linebacker group could not move. They look so slow on tape.
12:00The safeties other than Antoine Winfield couldn't cover in man either.
12:04Again, you got a bunch of really good zone defenders that thrive with vision and just using their physicality to make plays in the ball.
12:12And then you make them play a bunch of man like this.
12:16This was a team that was seventh in terms of yards per attempt allowed in man.
12:21They were second in terms of touchdowns allowed in man.
12:24And they just kept doing it. Weirdly though. And this is, this is something that I'm, I'm interested to see if it changes because they have Bain now.
12:33When they did play man, they were nearly a 50% man rate when they blitzed.
12:38Like when they brought pressure, which was a lot, it's Todd Paul's team.
12:42So they're gonna bring a lot of pressure. When they blitzed, they're about 50% man rate, which is super high.
12:48When they only rushed for, they were about 15% man.
12:51So they didn't play man when they rushed for, they just played zone behind it.
12:56And they were a lot better when they just rushed for, because they have a bunch of really good zone defenders.
13:03And I don't know why they leaned so much into being a blitz heavy team, especially a blitz heavy team on early downs.
13:10In that way. Like you can be a zone pressure team on early downs.
13:15If you still want to blitz on early downs, you don't have to be a man pressure team, but they wanted to
13:22be a man pressure team without having guys that could do it past Jamel Dean and Antoine Winfield.
13:28I don't know. Just watching this defense last year frustrated the shit out of me because you would see, you would see
13:35the difference between them and zone and them and man.
13:38And I questioned why they ever, ever, ever called man.
13:41Yeah. It's almost like they had an aspiration to be a man team.
13:45They're like, yeah, but we drafted a guy that used to be good in man and we can play man.
13:52We're going to show you, we can play man.
13:54And we typically get on coaching staffs that are not super flexible or say, you know, this is my system.
14:01Not necessarily. These are the guys I have to fill it out in this part of the season, but this is my system.
14:08And Hey, I'm calling my system and they're just not executing.
14:12Well, you have to adjust as a coach. And again, it's not like they didn't have a counterpunch.
14:17This could have been a fire zone team should have been a fire zone team was better when it was a fire zone team.
14:25And at some point you got to sit back, whether it's your analytics staff or whether it's your coaches on the field
14:32or the guy in the box or whatever going, look, when we do this, we're capable.
14:37When we do this, we're getting cooked. Now we don't want to be completely predictable, but there's a fine line between trying
14:44to play against type and being bad enough at it that it costs you and just being predictable and saying, look, you
14:51know what we're going to do, but we're good at this.
14:55This is our, this is our strongest foot to stand on.
14:58So it was a little strange and they definitely have a type in the secondary.
15:03Again, they have a couple of guys that can play man and they want those guys to be at corner playing man.
15:10It gives them some flexibility defensively, but in terms of their secondary, they love aggressive dudes that are going to knock you out of their socks.
15:19They've got Antoine Winfield Jr., Tykee Smith, Jacob Parrish, Keontae Scott.
15:22Those guys are cut of the same cloth. They are going to stand back, keep their eyes on the quarterback and annihilate you.
15:29And they love those guys. Great. Cool. Draft them.
15:32Get a, get a whole room full of them and then play them to type.
15:37Don't play them against type. One quick break. Then we'll get right back to it.
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17:36And with that, let's get back to it. Honestly, they should be playing like the Texans, right?
17:41If you guys listen to the Texans episode last week, the Texans defense last year were super heavy in zone coverage because
17:48again, they have a bunch of guys. Well, they're better than man when they call man, but they have a bunch of
17:55guys that are really rangy, great hitters. They had an excellent four-man pass rush.
18:00They would sit back and they would play quarters, cover three.
18:03I think they would throw in some quarter, quarter, half there, but like they were 85% zone as well.
18:09The Bucs were only 85% zone when they rushed four, which again, wasn't always because they were a blitz-heavy team, especially on early downs.
18:17Second and first down blitz rate, fifth and second down blitz rate, which is pressure, pressure, pressure.
18:22If they played more like the Texans where it's like, oh, we're going to be quote unquote vanilla in terms of calling zone coverage.
18:30And then we're going to let our front four do their thing.
18:34Like that's what they're built to do. I do not understand why they didn't do that.
18:39And one of the issues that their lack of man coverage ability really exposed was yards after the catch, especially when it's
18:46paired with pressure and you're bringing five, sometimes six guys.
18:49If you play man and you lose quickly in man and you don't have as many bodies back there to rally and
18:56tackle, a five yard catch can turn into 20 yards really, really quickly.
19:00Like God help you. If you miss when you're covering a guy and he gets a catch on you and then you
19:07try to bring him down and he breaks your tackle, like you're screwed at that point.
19:13And this team had the second highest average yards after the catch allowed specifically on five band rushes at about 7.8.
19:19So not just the yards that you got pre catch.
19:23Again, it could be five, six, sometimes 10, but then you're adding almost another first down on top of that.
19:29Every time they got a catch on you, that's atrocious, right?
19:3274 missed tackles on past plays last year, which is awful.
19:36Like just absolutely awful. It's a killer in man defense.
19:39It really is. And I just, I'm, I'm, I'm with Bucks fans who really resented their coaching staff last year and wish
19:46that there were changes because that's the kind of stuff that week seven, week eight, you realize isn't working and you should change and they just never changed.
19:55And it goes back to what you were talking about with team speed as well.
20:00If you want to make up the distance on those catches, you need linebackers that can absolutely roll.
20:06And they didn't have them last year. They're better this year.
20:09I'm not going to say they're great. That's not.
20:12So when the trotter pick happened, were you also kind of thinking the same thing I was where I was like, well, that doesn't really fix the problem.
20:21Well, again, I was great against the run, but I'm not sure about the other stuff.
20:26I was thinking it played to type again. And I, I struggle with this personally.
20:31This is just my mini soapbox about this in terms of draft evaluation, because you know, this is the, this is the Denzel Perryman allegory, right?
20:39I, there are these guys that play the run ferociously and they're really good at it in college.
20:45And you go, well, that's not a pro linebacker because he gets eaten in coverage.
20:50And Denzel Perryman got destroyed in college and coverage.
20:53He was basically non-functional. He's gotten better. Like I thought he was going to be one of those guys that played four
21:00or five, maybe six years, bounced around and then, you know, was out of the league unless he was a special teamer.
21:07Denzel Perryman has carved out a very nice career by being, by becoming average against the pass and not being the guy
21:14you want to isolate, but also not a big enough liability that you can just destroy him.
21:19And therefore he's not functional and you need to pull him off the field.
21:24So when I see guys like Trotter who are very good against the run, diagnose, well, get downhill, shed blocks, understand angles,
21:31like very, very good player against the run. I'm always like, okay, don't dismiss him.
21:36Can he become better in pass? Does he have the physical capacity to play better against the pass?
21:41Was he just not asked to do it? And he, maybe he's not experienced.
21:46Can he, can he grow into that role? Because I've been burned multiple times saying this guy is a run only linebacker, Nick Bolton, another one.
21:54Well, for a time, then he became not great again, but you know, there was a stretch there where he was more functional.
22:02And I was like, aha, he's evolved. So I, I don't just want to put the tag on these guys pre-draft and say one dimensional.
22:10I really have to dig further and say, is he, does he have the capacity to grow?
22:15Because if he does, he can be functional in this league for a long time and point to a lot of examples where that's happened.
22:23If he doesn't, it looks a little bit like the Bucks defense did last year, which is, you know, not great against
22:30the initial catch after the catch horrendous giving up chunks and chunks of yardage.
22:35And yeah, it doesn't necessarily solve the issue. Like Anzalone will help there.
22:39He is better for sure. But Savasie Dennis was one of those guys.
22:43Yeah. Anzalone is probably their only linebacker I really trust in coverage.
22:47And actually when we did the lions episode, if you guys remember, so the lions played base more than basically every other
22:54team and especially base against 11 and they put Anzalone in the slot.
22:58He led their linebackers in slot reps because he could play man.
23:02So maybe that's their solution. Maybe, but he's got it.
23:05He's got to stay healthy. We talked about that.
23:08And again, it's a lot to put on one guy and it does make the defense more predictable.
23:14And I know it sounds like we're jumping over the fence here whenever it suits us, but they might just go predictable
23:21and say, look, you know what we're going to do.
23:24There have been very successful defenses that do that.
23:27The Steelers did it for years and years. You were not trying to confuse you.
23:32We've got our guys, you know where they're lining up.
23:35The Texans do it in a different way. Like there are defenses that just say, look, we're not trying to confuse you.
23:42We're going to try and out talent you. And again, if you're looking at that defensive line, this is a bunch of killers on the defensive line.
23:50This is a team that is built to get pressure with four that is built to stop the run really with two.
23:57If you got Veya and Robinson in the middle, you're not running through there.
24:02Then you got Kansi, Bain, Diaby, like who can be moved around, who can be creative, who can play more of the
24:09stunt game, who can rush with four, who can rush with five on certain downs if you want to and make it,
24:16you know, even more difficult to stop. So they might just line up.
24:20Tampa Bay might, you know, the best course of action might just be lining up our guys, playing what we're really good at.
24:28You know, it's coming. We know it's coming. Let's see.
24:31Let's just stand in the middle of the ring and trade punches.
24:35One last note that I know Bucs fans would be mad if I didn't bring up because again, validates all of their concerns.
24:42Nearly a 70% touchdown allowed rate in the red zone last year.
24:4630 second league. Like if you got to the red zone, you were going to score like flat out.
24:52And this defense was Bears-y in the sense that just like the Bears, they lived off turnovers.
24:57They lived off of fourth down stops. They were sixth best at stopping teams from converting on fourth down.
25:03Thank you, Vita Veya. You've earned your money. Glad you got paid.
25:07And they had the seventh most takeaways. But if you converted a fourth down or you just didn't turn the ball over
25:14and you got to the red zone, you were going to score.
25:18And it was for all the reasons we talked about.
25:21Just couldn't cover. Yeah. This is the Loyola Marymount of defenses for 1980s college basketball fans.
25:26Jesus. Yeah. Let's go as niche as possible. Yeah.
25:29No, that's a, that is, that is a way back reference.
25:33Loyola Marymount was built to run the ball like, and run the ball in the basketball court.
25:38They, they wanted to score 125, 135 every game.
25:41And when you got the ball, the defensive effort was, uh, shall we say punter-esque?
25:46It was like, oh yeah. NBA all-star game. Yeah.
25:49Every time. Go ahead. Score as quick as you can, because we're going to score more often than you are.
25:55Our offensive possessions are going to add up to more points at the end.
26:00And that's the way that we win. Hi, alternate timeline.
26:03Brett here before we get to all the 2026 stuff.
26:06If you've liked a lot of the data that we brought up so far, we have companion infographics for every single team,
26:13including the one we're talking about today. With over 15,000 total data points that we have collected throughout this summer, each team
26:20gets its own companion infographic, which is roughly about 20 pages long.
26:24It has all the data on this team you can think of, whether it's alignment data, personnel data, cap allocation, coverage data
26:31broken out by down and distance, blitz data. I mean, basically anything you can think of, we've got it.
26:37So if you want access to that, you can find that down at the link in the description below or at the QR code on the screen.
26:46Reminder, we also have bonus episodes that go live every single Friday over on Patreon, recapping every single division.
26:52We're going to pick division winners, MVPs, rookies of the year, all that stuff.
26:56So if you want bonus episodes, plus more data than you could probably handle, that is over on the Patreon.
27:03Thank you once again to all of our patrons that have made, honestly, this series possible to make in the first place.
27:10We could not have paid the people who help us make it without your guys' financial support.
27:15So thank you to our patrons. Thank you to all of our executive producers on Patreon.
27:20Their names are on screen right now. They have been OG supporters of us and made so much in our lives possible
27:27while we try to chase this dream. So thank you.
27:31Thank you. Thank you. And with that, let's get back to the show.
27:35All right. From here on out, we're talking 2026.
27:38All the moves this team has made to get ready for 2026 to ideally patch those holes, starting off with the power
27:45structure, the decision makers that determined who stayed and who went.
27:48A lot of familiar names here. I will say one of the new names, Zach Robinson, probably feels like he got the last chopper out of Nam.
27:57If you guys have been looking at videos coming out of Falcons training camp, dear Lord, quite a quarterback upgrade for him to work with this year.
28:06It's the get out of jail free card. We'll skip right to Zach Robinson, an offensive coordinator, because man, you talked about Baker.
28:13He open said can throw for 500 yards in any given week.
28:17He can also throw for 200. There is up and down, but Zach Robinson's got to be looking at his current quarterback situation going, yeah, I'll take it.
28:26That is going to make my coaching life this year feature a lot less sleepless nights.
28:31So we'll start at the top with GM Jason Light.
28:34Mentioned him earlier. He's built a very competitive and I will say sustainable roster.
28:38This is a team that can play for the division title every year, and Bucs fans do appreciate that, I think.
28:45And if they don't, they need to. All they need to do is look around their own division and say, hmm, there
28:52are some examples of what it looks like when you don't have a Jason Light.
28:57Bucs fans are lucky enough to enjoy a team that, again, is built, I would say, fairly sustainable.
29:03Jason Light stays away for the most part from large cap bubbles, having to blow it up, tear it down to the studs.
29:10Not really his style. And the Bucs have benefited from that.
29:14You talked about it. A run of division titles.
29:17They are considered in that race every single year, and largely the roster is the reason.
29:22So head coach Todd Bowles. Vitova had a very interesting comment.
29:25He was ride or die, Todd Bowles, upon getting his contract extension.
29:29He said, when Todd retires, I do. Wow, really?
29:32That's what he said. Interesting. Yeah, that pricked my ears up.
29:35I was like, okay. There's certain things you say when you get paid a lot of money by an organization.
29:42So the trade request wasn't really a, I want to leave.
29:45It was more of a, please just pay me and I'll stay.
29:49But I'm a lot more expensive than what I'm giving you.
29:53Please just make it right. And eventually they did.
29:56But it sounds like he really just wants to play with Todd, but also be paid for his services.
30:02Yes, for sure. And this is my plug during Summer Series to listen to local writers.
30:07Local writers. Find the good ones. There are good ones in every single market.
30:11Find the good ones. Tampa Bay beat writers from the beginning of this drumbeat were like, this is noise.
30:17He's not going anywhere. He is going to be a buck.
30:21And everybody's like, but, but, but. You know, and those of us that, you know, would like very quality defensive tackles on
30:28our team were like, hey, maybe there's a chance.
30:31So you're saying there's a chance. Tampa Bay beat writers from the beginning, the good ones, were like, nope, not going anywhere.
30:38This is noise. This is exactly what you just said.
30:41Wants to stay. Wants to get paid. This will work out.
30:45They will find a solution. They, they gave this whole kerfuffle zero credence.
30:49So find your local beat writer. That is, that is quality.
30:52Again, there's track record. It's not that hard to find.
30:55And it can save you a lot of tumult as a fan to just go, oh, okay.
31:01He, he says, and, or she says, and they have a very good track record.
31:06I'm just going to sleep well at night knowing that Vita Bay is going to be playing for us next year.
31:12And that was the case with Tampa Bay beat writers.
31:16After the Jalen Carter deal, 38 million and Quinn and Jeff Simmons got paid.
31:20Also, I think this off season. So he was one, two, three, four, five, six, seven, eight, nine, 10, 11, 12, 13,
31:2714, 15, 16, 17, 18, 19, 20, 21, 22.
31:30Again, includes three techniques and nose tackles. Is Vita Bay the 22nd best interior defensive lineman in football?
31:36No. Nope. Nope. And that's what his agent said.
31:39One of the contractor reflected. Yeah. But his agent said, okay, here's the list.
31:43Is that right? Everybody went, no, that we, we know that's not right.
31:47Okay. Let's fix it. And they did. So good for them.
31:51I, you know, I like Vita Bay in this defense.
31:54I like Vita Bay period. I would like to see him in, in again, my team's defense, but it's cool that he
32:01gets to stay in Tampa Bay again with a coach that he really trusts and gets to apply his trade there and
32:08gets rewarded because we all know that, uh, if preseason remind us of anything that health in the NFL is very, very fickle.
32:15So in terms of defensive coordinator, no true DC listed on this team.
32:20And I get to this episode every year in summer series and I'd look and I go, what?
32:25And it's just split between defensive pass game coordinator, George Edwards and defensive run game coordinator, also outside linebacker coach, Larry foot.
32:32And it's been this way. This is not a new thing for the books.
32:37They just kind of don't pick. They go, this guy's in charge of the pass game.
32:42This guy's in charge of the run game. And they are essentially co DCs, even though that's not in their title, special
32:49teams coordinators, an interesting name, Danny Smith, longtime Steelers, special teams coach, Danny Smith now in Tampa Bay.
32:55Uh, you know, Danny is no nonsense. And I appreciate him for that.
32:59His approach, his players on special teams will know exactly where they stand.
33:03And I think at, you know, having talked to a lot of players, that's all they want is an honest critique of
33:10what they need to do better and what they didn't do well.
33:14And Danny's going to tell him. So I appreciate that from a coach.
33:18As far as, uh, assistants under the coordinators, uh, senior offensive assistant slash pass game specialist.
33:23So very long title. Ken Zampisi. If you don't know who Ken Zampisi is, look him up.
33:29He has been around the block in the NFL.
33:32He's held many different titles, um, always on offense.
33:35As far as I know, I don't believe he's ever one of those guys that's dabbled on the defensive side, but he hasn't really needed to.
33:43And Zampisi is a guy that, uh, younger offensive coordinators are going to lean to because he has been there, done that, seen it, played against it.
33:52He has decades and decades of experience in the NFL and having a guy like that on your staff with a title
33:59of, you know, pass game specialist or whatever you want to insert here in terms of vague offensive title is great to
34:06just be able to say, Hey, I've got this specific nut that I need to crack the defense that we're playing next week.
34:13What have you done against this in the past?
34:16You know, do I, do you have anything that's going to help me find the angle that we need?
34:22And those guys continue to get roles and have roles around the NFL every single year, because it's a very, very valuable
34:29thing that can, you know, pry off a couple of games from division opponents every year.
34:34And that is worth its weight in gold. So salary be damned, put them on the staff.
34:40Uh, he is a problem solver on offense, the run game coordinator and offensive line coach, Kevin Carberry.
34:45Again, when this team is healthy, they are very good at running the ball.
34:50Past game coordinator is TJ Yates. Gotta have the TJ Yates reference in there because, you know, Texans, great.
34:56TJ Yates also came over from the Falcon. They just poached the entire Falcon staff.
35:01Yeah. On the offensive side of the ball, at least.
35:04Yeah. So should be familiar there in terms of the running back coach.
35:08It's skip Pete. Uh, one of my favorites in the NFL and a tight end coach is Justin Peel.
35:14Yes. The Justin Peel who played tight end in the NFL.
35:18Same guy on defense inside linebackers coach, Mike Caldwell back with Tampa Bay.
35:22He had a previous three year stint in the same role was out of football last year.
35:27The last time he coached was with Las Vegas in 24.
35:31And the defensive line coach. Again, if we're going to talk all this smack about the defensive line and how good they
35:38are, Marcus West is in his first year with Tampa Bay.
35:41I always find this fascinating when you come into a veteran defensive line room that has some of the best players in
35:48the NFL and you are a first year coach.
35:51That is a fun dynamic. You, you definitely have to sort of set some tones and also not bump those guys off their stride.
35:59They have been doing it in this place, in this role.
36:02And yes, you are there to bring them to the next level, but that's a fascinating dynamic.
36:08I would love to be a fly on the wall for that.
36:12Getting into free agency. Speaking of very veteran rooms, a lot of very veteran core players are no longer in Tampa.
36:18Mike Evans, franchise legend. I truly did not think I was ever going to see him wear a different jersey.
36:25And you might not. Yeah, that's true. I got banged up immediately because he went to 49ers.
36:30But like the concept of Mike Evans just doing a photo shoot with a helmet that wasn't a Buccaneers helmet.
36:37It was odd. It was like when Andre Johnson played with the Colts.
36:41I'm like, yeah, I don't like the look. Look at that.
36:44Like great player, all time, all time buck. Really kind of shocked that he didn't finish his career there.
36:50But again, they had other plans. They had other ways they wanted to use their money.
36:56That's just how the league goes. He's joining a long line of Hall of Fame receivers that unfortunately does not play for only one franchise.
37:04Hasan Reddick is also gone. Levante David, speaking of all time bucks, he is now retired.
37:09If there is any justice in this world in five years, he will be a Hall of Fame linebacker.
37:15But we'll see. Unfortunately, never got a lot of the accolades that he should have while playing.
37:20But he's one of the best to ever do it.
37:23Greg Gaines, also gone. Sterling Shepard, gone. Recently signed to the Texans as of yesterday.
37:28Yeah, I was going to say you should get familiar with Mr.
37:32Shepard because he and another veteran wide receiver after the Jaden Higgins ACL news came out were tryouts for the Texans.
37:39And he ended up signing both of them. So Sterling Shepard now to Texan.
37:43I was this morning. I was listening to the AFC South Patreon episode before.
37:48I'm actually going to put that live like after I'm recording this.
37:52And. There's a comment because we recorded that, I think, on Monday.
37:55And there was a comment that I was like, oh, yeah.
37:59And like Texans super deep receiver, like tough lineup to crack.
38:02And three days later, Higgins hurt. Noel's banged up.
38:05I know. Noel's not played throughout camp. And look, Tankdale is the sort of hottest and coldest, right?
38:11When he's on the field, he's super dangerous. But being on the field is a problem because he's been banged up.
38:18And, you know, it reminded me that there is a difference between a lineup on paper and a lineup on grass.
38:25Because the lineup on paper, if healthy for the Texans, is very deep.
38:29The actuality of the Texans receiving room is they're signing Sterling Shepard because they have to.
38:34Like they need bodies in that wide receiver room because their guys that they've drafted have not been healthy.
38:40And we ding teams that do that on other positions like defensive line.
38:44Hey, they've spent a ton of first round picks, but none of these guys panned out or they weren't healthy.
38:50Like we should. I should have been more realistic about the Texans actuality.
38:55Their wide receiver room on grass right now is not great.
38:58The theoretical one, it's kind of like Evans' destination in San Francisco, right?
39:02I was thinking about this the other day. If Mike Evans and Ricky Pearsall and Dejan Stribling are your starting three wide
39:09receivers with Brock Purdy at quarterback, get out of here.
39:13Get out of here. But it's just Stribling. He's the only one that's on this field.
39:18So I could say theoretically the Niners wide receiver room is good.
39:22But practically, it's Stribling and, you know, a bunch of other guys who, you know, we like but aren't headliners.
39:28And it's the same for the Texans, which is why Sterling Shepard is now wearing that helmet.
39:33Dude, it's the same for the Bucs. This time last year when we did the Bucs episode, we're like, oh my God,
39:40Tez Johnson, can you do better for a wide receiver five?
39:44And then it's like, oh wait, actually, for several weeks he's the wide receiver two.
39:49Yeah. Because he needs to be because everybody's hurt.
39:52Yeah. They drafted Ted Hurst this year and like Hurst is going to be the quote unquote wide receiver five.
39:58How long is that going to be before he's playing as a wide receiver three, technically a starter when you're an 11?
40:05Like it's just this team's receivers get hurt all the time.
40:09So it's just reality of the position. Yeah. Teddy Bridgewater.
40:12I think he also retired. Retired. He said it's official this time.
40:16So he had retired before and he said at this point.
40:19And it was, interestingly enough, injury related. So Teddy Bridgewater had the massive knee injury in the middle of his career and
40:26he did come back from it, which is a huge credit to him.
40:30And he played for many years after that. But he mentioned in his retirement announcement, hey man, it just doesn't respond like it used to.
40:38I can't make this knee do what I want to anymore.
40:42And, you know, I'd like to walk for the rest of my life.
40:46But I, you know, it used to be I could get treatment and offset the effects of being on turf, being on
40:53grass, being, you know, just walking around the practice field even.
40:57And now I can't. And so it's time. My body's telling me it's for good this time.
41:02Like this isn't going to turn around. Had fun.
41:05Great career, honestly, for, you know, not the career we expected maybe coming out or projected when he was healthy.
41:11But like still a great NFL career. I mean, it was 10 years ago now when that injury happened and he damn near lost his leg.
41:20Correct. So to be an NFL player for 10 more years after that is medical miracle.
41:25Truly. Rashad White. He's also now gone. He's with the commanders.
41:28Charlie Heck is with the Dolphins. Michael Jordan. Not that one.
41:32Is with the Eagles. Christian Izian is with the Lions.
41:35Jamel Dean, who was their best corner last year.
41:38He's now with the Steelers. Paired together with Joey Porter Jr.
41:41Liked that a lot. And then Logan Hall. Speaking of the Texans.
41:45Also signed with the Texans. Because they need more defensive linemen.
41:49A lot of names there. Each. A lot of turnover.
41:52Of guys who played a bunch of snaps. Yeah, very familiar names.
41:56But again, if you go back to what we said about Jason Light when we were talking about the GM.
42:02Like he does not build cap bubbles. He does not play the game with emotion.
42:07Right? If he did, Mike Evans never would have left town.
42:11He would have just planted his flag and basically said, I am not going to be tagged as the GM that let Mike Evans not retire a buck.
42:19And look, Mike Evans is still going to retire a buck whenever he retires.
42:24But like that would have been the play. Instead, Light looks at the overall cap situation and says, look, we've got injuries on the receiving core.
42:32Mike's been part of that for the last couple of years.
42:36Unfortunately, we need to, you know, go in a different direction.
42:39And we can't pay what Mike Evans is probably truly worth if he's healthy.
42:44And we're not going to take that risk. And that is not an emotional decision.
42:49That is a very practical financial. This is how I build my team decision.
42:53So a lot of names moving on. A lot of them needed to, right?
42:58We're talking about guys that eventually retired, you know, haven't been signed.
43:01Guys that were street free agents for a while.
43:04That's what you need to do. You need to carve that top off your team every year and make space for the
43:11fresh, young, honestly cheap guys a lot of the time.
43:15And this is how you do it. You can't do it with an emotional bent.
43:19So I appreciate Light's approach to that and practicality of like, yeah, they were great players while they were here.
43:26Obviously, many of them. But they're not needle movers for us where we are right now.
43:31Or we need to move the needle in a different direction in a different position room.
43:36And that requires the money that we're currently paying these people.
43:39So those are the choices you have to make every year as a GM.
43:44And I think Jason Light does it as well as anybody in the NFL in terms of how they spent their own money to keep their own guys.
43:53Dan Feeney comes back as a backup at left guard.
43:56Cade Otten, $10 million as a tight end. I actually like that signing.
44:00I think Cade's been very good for them coming out of the University of Washington.
44:05Been their starting tight end. Is a good blocker.
44:08Not a great blocker, but solid in that role.
44:11And also a very good receiver in the role they put him in.
44:15He is not necessarily the big seam stretcher. He's not the Arondae Gadsden type.
44:20But he's been very good in the short to medium as a safety outlet release.
44:24And good after the catch as well. Tough football player.
44:28Sean Tucker, not going to get through this segment without mentioning Sean Tucker.
44:32Running back, gets $3.5 million. Again, a guy that suffered an injury.
44:36Was a good pickup at the time. We highlighted that.
44:39Him coming out of Syracuse. And has found a role.
44:42Is he going to be RB1? No. Can he be RB1 for three or four weeks?
44:47He can. So, good use of money there by the Bucs.
44:51I'm going to have to fight Kenny Gainwell for that, though.
44:54He is. They did bring in Gainwell to, I guess, be the Rashad replacement?
44:59Yeah. And dare I say Rashad upgrade? Yeah. I think that's a fair statement.
45:03When Bucky got hurt, like they, like, not that the run game was bad, but when Bucky got hurt, boy, they really
45:10missed what Bucky brought them in the past game.
45:13Yeah. Some horsepower left the lineup. And they needed to replace it.
45:17And they did it with Gainwell. And I would agree with you that it is a slight upgrade.
45:23I like Rashad White, but I'm not going to say that, you know, Gainwell's not a better player.
45:28He is. And it was very apparent that, again, Bucky originally when he was brought in, a lot of people, cough, Brett Coleman undersold him.
45:36And once he ascended to their own lineup, everybody was like, oh, this is a one.
45:41Like, this is a one. He can, you know, he's a one in the run game.
45:47He's a one in the pass game. When he left, they were like, oh, now we're trying to pin it together in the aggregate.
45:54But the overall, they didn't. They weren't able to pin it together in the aggregate.
45:59They were like, oh, we need greater pieces in case this happens again or until he comes back.
46:05They went out and got Kenny Gainwell. And I think that's, again, a wise decision to be honest about where your team is.
46:12Not like, hey, Rashad's been a great player for us.
46:15He has. Like, I would say he's probably outperformed his draft status that a lot of people had on Rashad White.
46:22But at the same time, can we make an upgrade?
46:25Can we keep pushing the envelope because everybody else is in our division as well?
46:30And if we don't, we're going to lose pace.
46:33Other guys they also brought in, Alex Anzalone at $8.5 million.
46:37Again, getting a linebacker. He is 32, but he just, he can actually cover still, even at 32.
46:42And they just didn't have anybody else that could really do it.
46:46So for $8.5 million with where the current linebacker market is for that specific skill set, I'm good with that.
46:53A'shaun Robinson at 31, just giving them another interior defensive lineman that could stop the run.
46:58And I anticipate this team's going to be, I don't know how many years it's been where they've just been one of
47:05the five or six best run defenses every single year.
47:08I imagine they're going to be that again this year.
47:11And then Jake Browning brought him in at $1.3 million to add to that quarterback room.
47:16Again, not a whole lot of money spent on outside guys, but that's also a product of them drafting well and having
47:23their own great players they have to pay like Vita Veya.
47:27Yeah, and Jake Browning matters because again, teams do not play one quarterback on average throughout the season.
47:33They play almost three. I believe it's 2.4, 2.6, something like that.
47:36Don't have the number in front of me, but Jake Browning more than likely is going to be taking snaps as the QV2 for this team.
47:45It has some experience. Again, another Washington guy. Not the same from a mobility standpoint that Baker is, but has a good arm in the pocket.
47:53Prove that he could operate an offense and you're going to need that.
47:57You cannot have backup quarterbacks in the NFL anymore that are guaranteed 65% losers.
48:02If you've got five or six games where he's got to come in and be the guy, you've got to know that
48:09you have a chance to win three or more of those.
48:12Because if you don't, you're going to see the same kind of stretch you saw for the Bucs last year.
48:19Different reason, right? It wasn't because of Baker, but if you're guaranteeing that you're going to lose four out of five or
48:26five out of six when your quarterback comes in, that's not good enough because the likelihood that that player steps on the field is very high.
48:34All right, let's get to the draft. Go from March to April.
48:38First things first, what the hell? Like, how does he fall to 15?
48:42I legitimately have no idea how Ruben Bain fell to 15.
48:45There is no universe where he was the 15th best player in this class.
48:50I'm not even sure there was a universe where he wasn't one of the five best players in this class.
48:56I thought he very easily could have gone second overall.
49:00And then he just kept falling and falling and falling past teams that need edge rushers, by the way.
49:06Yeah. And for him to end up at 15.
49:09To a team that like, yeah, they could use Ruben Bain, but that wasn't like their top need.
49:14That was very much a well, fuck it. If you guys aren't going to do it, we're going to do it.
49:21It just blows my mind that he was available that late.
49:25Yeah, it's a combination of, I'm going to say type and teams do have types.
49:29They have measurement thresholds that they, you know, will not go against or will only go against in case of absolute, you
49:36know, category five storm emergency, which in this case they should have.
49:40But there were off field concerns as well. Again, those concerns, some teams more than others.
49:45Some, all the teams knew about it. Everybody had it vetted and had their stance on it in terms of whether or
49:52not that is something they thought was going to affect him as a player or affect his availability or affected him as
49:59a person, depending on, you know, where the team stance was.
50:03But it is a combination of a few teams saying, nah, we, you know, we don't like short arms regardless of what
50:10the tape said, which is a dumb stance in my opinion, but it's their stance.
50:15And so instead of being a top five or certainly a top 10 player in this draft, which he is on film,
50:22there's no denying that against long arm, against everybody, against power tackles, against speed tackle.
50:27Like he won against everybody in college. It wasn't like some of, I will say many of the other edge rushers in
50:34this class where you looked at the tape and everybody said, oh, he's good at everything.
50:39And, you know, game and a half in, you're like, no, he's really good at this, but he's not good at everything.
50:46Bain was one of the very few, and I'm talking about two or three guys in this edge class that were good at everything against everybody.
50:54And, you know, does he have things to improve on?
50:57Sure. But had he proved beyond a shadow of a doubt, you know, high functional NFL capability, my answer would be yes.
51:04It's just a combination of factors and Tampa Bay becomes the lucky recipient.
51:09Some teams apparently were projecting him at DT compared to edge.
51:12And I'm like, cause he's shorter. Like some people were like thinking like, oh, he's going to be the new college.
51:19I'm like college. You can't see never had edge reps like Bain does now.
51:23And can see was like, obviously like really, really explosive in college.
51:27And he was, people were unfairly comparing him to Aaron Donald, Aaron Donald at power.
51:32Can't see. He didn't really have that kind of power, but he, you know, he was quick and fluid and slippery and all that kind of stuff.
51:41Bain brings fluidity. Like he's really, really bendy, but he has unbelievable power.
51:45Again, I'm not comparing him to Aaron Donald, but like if anybody was going to get compared to Aaron Donald, it was going to be Bain, not Kansi.
51:54Cause Kansi doesn't have that kind of raw power.
51:57Whereas Bain does like everything is built off of power and he's also super fluid and he's just mean.
52:03Yeah. He's a fucking Terminator, man. Like I still think one of the scariest things I've ever seen was just him walking
52:10to the stage when he got drafted. Like he looked like he was about to tear everybody's head off.
52:16He was so pissed and he's been pissed ever since.
52:19Yeah. And he's going to take that out on the rest of the league.
52:23I don't have any doubt he's going to be an effective player at all.
52:28And I mean, high level effective. I don't mean just like another guy, just another guy.
52:33He is, he's not a jag in that way.
52:36He is a, he is a guy that is going to be a difference maker, a needle mover.
52:42He was in college. And I, again, I think he has the skills that translate to the league.
52:47Sometimes guys that move needle in college are not guys that move needle in the pros.
52:53That is not the case with Ruben Bain. He is going to be that guy.
52:57And the draft lesson of course is never compare anybody to Aaron Donald because Aaron Donald was an outlier size wise.
53:04He was an outlier strength wise. He was super duper strong.
53:08He also had what I'm just going to call like legendary twitch.
53:11But the thing that separated Donald and made me be a defender of his pre-draft was hand usage.
53:17Aaron Donald's hand usage as a collegian was off the charts.
53:21Like if you see defensive tackles with like two really good moves, and I know that sounds like very few.
53:27Go watch college tape. If you see two really polished moves that they can hit all the time, they're good.
53:34Donald had like six that he hit all the time with the power, with the speed.
53:39And I'm like, he's in addition to that, he's that technically refined.
53:43He's going to be fine. I don't care about the 285 or whatever he weighs.
53:47This is a player. And of course, the Bears missed out on him by one spot.
53:52But there you go. And Leonard Williams. I think they missed out on him by one spot.
53:58Yeah, it's two years. It's two years in a row, man.
54:01I was like, oh, come on. It's all right.
54:04They got Shea McClellan. He who shall not be named.
54:07All right. In the second round, the Bucs get Josiah Trotter, who we mentioned earlier.
54:12Again, NFL lineage at pick 46. The linebacker out of Missouri.
54:16Good player. I like Trotter's tape. And I reached out to somebody I know that covers Mizzou during the draft process after I watched Trotter's tape.
54:24And I was like, so, you know, Trotter, obviously name recognition, but like he's pretty good.
54:29And I said, and I think he's going to get a little bit lost in this draft class because there are other
54:36bigger, more high profile names, flashier certainly in their game.
54:39But like Trotter is really good and he's been good against top quality talent in the SEC.
54:45And the guy that covered Mizzou was like, yes.
54:48I was like, okay, just validating my take after I watched him, which was, I think he's a good player.
54:54So I'm not, I was not upset with him in the second round.
54:58Again, does he solve the Bucs particular issue? No, but in a vacuum, I think Trotter is, I think that's an appropriate value for him.
55:06I probably would have picked him around later myself, but I don't think that they're going to look bad for this in the future.
55:14He's just yet another name that makes me think running on this team on first down to suicide.
55:20Yeah, no. Because between Vida, Aishon, Diaby, Bain, Trotter, they're armies of safeties and nickels that can tackle.
55:26Why would you ever run the ball on first down on this team?
55:30Terrible idea. Yeah. You're going to get hurt if you do, and he's going to be part of that.
55:36So I think a solid pick, again, maybe a hair early, but actually when you watch the tape, not that early, he is a very fundamentally sound player.
55:45He is a good athlete, obviously, as NFL lineage, knows how to leverage those assets on the field.
55:51And if he grows in... I would say good athlete linearly.
55:54It's the lateral stuff that worries me. But again, if his job...
55:58Let's say we're playing man coverage. If his job isn't to cover Bijon one-on-one, I think he can survive.
56:04It's if you're asking him to cover Bijon one-on-one when you're going to get absolutely destroyed.
56:09But his role, his narrow cone of a role, he's very, very good at.
56:14You just have to make sure he's only playing that role.
56:17And again, not being a team that plays man if you don't have the guys that can play man.
56:23I'm going to hammer that point home. Yeah, absolutely.
56:26I think you're correct. And Trotter, as all players coming into the NFL, does have to improve against the pass.
56:32He cannot just be a 30-degree cone forward player and be elite at that and play multiple downs in the NFL.
56:39He is going to have to get better at...
56:42Even if it's just watching his area in zone and understanding how to influence those routes by his positioning, even if it's not the lateral agility.
56:50So third round, I know one of your favorites at pick 84, Ted Hurst, wide receiver out of Georgia State.
56:57Big, fast. That's the headline of the scouting report.
57:00Also, very good catcher of the football, which big, fast guys are not always.
57:04But tough, physical player down the boundary. Can step into being...
57:08And I don't want to say sacrificial. Just can step into being an X.
57:12That's what he was there for in college. And I think the role that he will eventually occupy on this roster as
57:19well because they have a lot of other guys that are good at the other stuff.
57:24Slot Z. Ted Hurst is a guy you can put on one side, line up, and send down the field.
57:31And with a fairly high confidence to say, he's got a good chance to win.
57:36I think he's the insurance policy that keeps Emeka off the ball.
57:39Right? Because Hurst is one of the most experienced receivers in college football against press coverage.
57:44He had more snaps than almost any other college receiver last year against press despite only playing 12 games.
57:51The Indiana kids who played 16 didn't pass him in reps against press until the national championship.
57:56So that's how much they just left him on the line of scrimmage and said, Ted, you go be Ted.
58:02So the fact that looking at the current makeup of their receiving core, their starters right now are Godwin Emeka and Jalen McMillan.
58:10They're kind of all guys that thrive off ball.
58:13Yep. I don't want to just make him a sacrificial ex to steal a term from Matt Harmon, but like, you know,
58:20if the cleat fits, he's your ex. Have all the other guys be really maximized as Zs and slots, and you just leave them.
58:27Tez Johnson, you're not going to make Tez Johnson an ex.
58:31So I think you draft him. Well, yeah, he's like 150 pounds.
58:35Tez is a really good receiver. I cannot imagine him lining up against press 85% of the time on one side.
58:41That's funny. Hey, Tez, go wrangle Pat Sertan over there.
58:45Yeah. Did you watch Broncos preseason game last night?
58:48No, I didn't. Okay. So Sertan blows a rep, which is not great.
58:52Like, it almost never happens. Literally next rep where he's around the ball, absolutely unloads on a receiver at the sideline who
58:59basically was like, hey, I lift weights too, and leaned in, tried to make an impact, and Sertan didn't even look like
59:06it was like a bug off a windshield. It was loud enough that the commentators were across the field in the press box.
59:13They're like, we heard that over the crowd up here.
59:16We heard that. So, yeah, a little Pat Sertan love for you.
59:20But no, Ted Hurst, can we settle on functional X, effective X, not sacrificial X?
59:25Because you're still going to like, there are going to be times when Baker's going to look over, and Baker is an absolute classic for this.
59:33So talking about landing spot and situation really mattering.
59:36Baker will give his guys a chance. He has always been a guy that's like, oh, you're even?
59:42You're Ted Hurst. I'm going to throw it up there.
59:45And his receivers love him for that. And Ted Hurst is going to pay that off more often than not.
59:52So I'm going to erase the sacrificial thing and say functional or engaged X that is going to make a difference over there.
59:59It's his best role. It makes a lot of sense.
60:02It puts the other guys in the right roles too.
60:05But don't tell me Baker's not going to occasionally look up and go, man, we got to get that guy running a backside dig.
60:13Because if we can just get him to square that off, I'm throwing it to him.
60:18Because that's a receiver that I am going to develop some trust with, I imagine.
60:23Fourth round, one of my favorite players in the entire draft.
60:26At 116, they get Keontae Scott. We've already said his name.
60:30Safety out of Miami. This is a hitter and somebody whose tape for me was so much fun to watch.
60:36And honestly, if I was being honest with myself, pre-draft process, I probably should have tabbed him as a future buck because he fits tight.
60:44He's got size. Absolutely fearless against the run. And Miami did this and now they're teammates in the pros as well.
60:51Like Reuben Bain and Keontae Scott. They would line up Reuben Bain on the edge and they would snug Keontae Scott right
60:58up on his hip and basically be like, good luck running to that side because Bain was going to handle his blocker or destroy him.
61:06And if he didn't, Keontae Scott was going to absolutely annihilate whoever you put out and you're going to try and chip him with the tight end.
61:15No, you're going to try a little insert with a slot receiver.
61:19Good luck. He's going to turn that guy into a fine pink mist.
61:23Like that was the whole reason you couldn't run to one side on Miami was Bain and Scott together just teeing off on that side of the offense.
61:32And now they get to do it with the pros.
61:35Again, it's another one of these, of course, type picks.
61:38Like just, of course, they get him. Perfect fit.
61:41But, you know, him and what's interesting is like him and Tyke together on the field.
61:46I don't know who's going to do what because they like Jacob Parrish as their nickel because, again, Parrish is one of
61:53the only other guys that could cover a man.
61:56Had ups and downs, but like the highs were cool.
61:59Jacob Parrish, he's good. You know, gave up three touchdowns, but I don't necessarily think they were like Jacob Parrish.
62:06Like it can't cover more so like Jacob Parrish fell down mid rep.
62:10And it was just like, ah, you know, as a rookie, it's going to happen.
62:15He'll learn from it. But so if they want somebody who can cover and man as a nickel, it's going to be Parrish.
62:22But if they want somebody who can absolutely obliterate the run as a nickel, they have three guys.
62:28They can do that. Right. If you if you want Tyke to do it, if you want Keontae to do it, if
62:35you want to give Antoine some reps down there, get him closer to the ball.
62:40Like they have so many options for these hybrid safety nickel types.
62:43And right now he's listed as the backup nickel.
62:46But it's like, I kind of want to just get him on the field.
62:51And like maybe maybe Parrish could survive outside. And we have him and.
62:55I don't want to say. I don't want to say McCollum because a lot.
62:59I mean, maybe him and Morrison are two starting corners outside.
63:03And then we put Keontae at nickel on the field and like then our starting five.
63:08Could be Morrison, Parrish, Tyke, Winfield, Keontae. Like maybe that's the solution here.
63:12But I feel like he's too good to be a backup.
63:16And they have all these guys that play the Keontae role.
63:19It's just Keontae so good. Like what are they going to do?
63:23Not draft him? Like they couldn't let him fall anymore.
63:26Yeah. And it's a bit like looking at their wide receiver room in a mirror.
63:31Or if you're looking to like, well, who's the slot slash Z?
63:35You're like, well, I don't know. We got all these guys.
63:39Who's the X? So it's this one guy. And if you're looking at the role that Keontae Scott plays in their defense,
63:46it's like, well, who's the whatever big nickel dimebacker third seed?
63:49Like a star, whatever you want to call him.
63:52Right. And they're like, I don't know any of these guys.
63:55And you're like, who's our true outside corner that plays man?
63:59And they're like, uh, this guy. So hopefully Ben Morrison.
64:02Hopefully Ben Morrison. Maybe Zion bounces back. Like if Zion bounces back this year, then you have three real options at corner.
64:09Yeah. Good problem. And you have four options at safety.
64:12Like now the secondary is looking better. But it does rely on Zion McCollum not looking like 2025 Zion McCollum.
64:19Yeah. No, this is the buck secondary is Jason Light just collecting gems for the gauntlet.
64:24But they're all the same gem. He just keeps getting the same type.
64:28The next two picks in the fifth round for the books, I think are low key.
64:33Some of my favorite, like day three snipes in the entire NFL draft.
64:37So fifth round one 55, they get to Monte Capehart defensive tackle from Clemson.
64:42Now Capehart's stats were not gaudy. I will say that if you are a stat scouter, you're not going to be a Devante Capehart guy.
64:50If you're a tape person, you might be a Demonte Capehart guy.
64:54Not because of the bulk of his tape. Like it's not the bulk.
64:58It's the flashes. Six, four, three, 12. And not even necessarily once a game, but sometimes three times a game.
65:04Sometimes just once in a game. Sometimes only once per half.
65:08Demonte Capehart would do something on tape when he was healthy.
65:11And you were like, what? And you would back it up and go, hold on.
65:16Like, and again, the consistency. If you believe in your defensive line coach, if you believe in the development pipeline, if you
65:23believe in the vets you've got in a room to bring somebody along.
65:27Demonte Capehart in the fifth round is well worth the gamble.
65:31And at 160, they get, again, a gamble on the other side of the line.
65:36This plays to type of Jason Light building the trenches.
65:39Billy Shrouth, the guard out of Notre Dame. Billy Shrouth got hurt last year.
65:43Actually, one of the guys I talked to at the combine because he had some of the most, again, fascinating but, you know, not consistent tape.
65:52Billy Shrouth was ascending. He was hitting that, like, here comes Goku moment of I got it against USC.
65:58Go watch Billy Shrouth against USC and tell me that is not a top, easily 10 guard in this class, possibly top five guard in this class.
66:06Go watch that tape and tell me that's not that guy.
66:10Then he gets hurt, basically shuts down the season right there.
66:13And the tape before that was not that good.
66:16So as an evaluator, you're left with, like, hey, he was improving.
66:20He was ascending. Like, you watch that tape and you go, oh, yeah.
66:24And unfortunately, like, in the end of that game, he gets hurt and that's it for his season.
66:30He is a fascinating player. And if this turns out and Light got another one at 160, like, Shrouth has starter ability in the NFL.
66:38Would it break your heart to know that he's sat out the last few practices with knees or knees orness?
66:44Yeah. It would not. I would not be surprised.
66:47Again, given the timing of his injury, he's not even a year past.
66:52And I know we're used to Achilles magically healing themselves in six months and guys running at full speed again.
66:58But it takes time and it takes time for power to come back.
67:02So that makes this an appropriate pick in the fifth of, like, hey, he might not contribute at the beginning of his rookie season.
67:10We might have to put him on the pup, right?
67:13It might take until Christmas until he gets back.
67:16And it might take a full year from that until he has all that pop that he had at that moment before the knee injury.
67:24But even so, if in the middle of next year he comes in for an injured buck starter and basically just lights
67:31up and locks it down, like, don't be surprised.
67:34You'll have to remember all the way back to this podcast in August, a year and a half ago.
67:40But heard it here first, like, Billy Shrouth with a healthy knee is well worth it.
67:45And even if you miss, it's a fifth rounder at 160.
67:48So it is worth the potential coin flip at that point.
67:52They finish up the draft, sixth rounder, 185, Bower Sharp, the tight end out of LSU.
67:57One more note on Demonte Capehart. If you take the 10, not even 10, 15 best plays, specifically as a run defender,
68:04is there any defensive linemen, not even just DTs, defensive linemen in this draft that have a better 15 play highlight really against the run that Demonte Capehart?
68:13I think there might be one and their teammates.
68:16It's Ruben Bay. Yeah, I was going to say, like, two.
68:20But it, you know, if you're cutting it down that way and you are a coach that believes, again, there are two schools that thought about this.
68:28One is if I've seen him do it before, you can do it again.
68:33I just need to coach it out of with consistency.
68:36And there's other coaches that say, hey, consistency is more important in terms of impact.
68:41Like, just depends on your coaching philosophy. But if you are among that group that says, hey, here is what he can do.
68:48Here is what he has done. He has demonstrated.
68:51He has done this not often enough, but he has demonstrated that he can do this.
68:56And the fifth round, well worth that kind of a gamble.
69:00As far as UDFAs, the three that I find most notable, A, Jalen Daniels, who looked good.
69:05I like this. In week one. I think he's, I think he might stick his QB3 here legitimately.
69:11Some Bucs fans are like, oh my God, he's going to be QB2.
69:15It's like, it's going to be tough for him to beat out Browning for that.
69:20But like, there's something there for them. So he might stick his QB3.
69:24Eric Rivers was productive the year before, then went to Georgia Tech, who was 14th in the ACC and passed Tepspur game.
69:31So that cuts down on production a little bit.
69:34And then Jack Pyburn I wanted to bring up.
69:37For a very specific reason. Can't say I've ever seen an NFL edge hit the transfer portal.
69:42But he was one of 14 or 15 current college players that had a court victory recently that allowed them to go back for another year in college.
69:51And so you saw the on three graphic of like, Buccaneers edge Jack Pyburn hits transfer portal.
69:57And that's a sentence, a brand new sentence, by the way, that we're all going to have to reckon with because there's
70:04a bunch of guys doing that now. And again, we are recording this August 22nd.
70:08Court decisions are flying fast and furious. College football starts in like two weeks.
70:13NFL football starts in three weeks. I don't, I don't know what's going to happen with this.
70:18But the fact that it's even possible to have a guy play college football, sign an NFL contract, and then maybe go back, like play.
70:26Yeah, I was going to say play in a preseason game.
70:30That's a little different. And then go back to college, maybe.
70:33And there's so many different scenarios and questions that I have.
70:37And like, I reached out to our friend Brad Spielberger, who knows more about this than any, anybody, anybody else I know.
70:44And I was like, hey, like they, they still retain his rights, right?
70:48Like he can't go back into the draft if he goes and play college football.
70:53And it's like, yeah, they still have his rights.
70:56Like, it's like, I guess they could cut him.
70:59And then I think it was Charles Robinson that says that like guys that go back to college have to be cut.
71:06But I'm not sure that's, I'm sure I'm trying to get other sources that say like they have to be cut.
71:12Because I don't know if there's rules for this, right?
71:16And so I'm envisioning a scenario where somebody plays college football, plays in the NFL, goes back to playing college football.
71:22And the college season ends earlier than the NFL season, by the way.
71:26So it's like, could you then midseason, if the Bucs still own your rights, go back and play?
71:32Or let's say the Bucs take on injuries, but they still own your rights.
71:37And they're like, we're calling you up from the minors kit?
71:40Like, I don't know how this works. Right. And nobody else does either.
71:44And it's funny because it's, well, it's not funny.
71:47It's interesting or more interesting to me because there are multiple players here that we've called out multiple times.
71:53Daquan Wright was one of the first tight ends I chronicled like late October in our very early Patreon draft episodes.
72:00I really like his ability. You know, interestingly enough, he and Zavian Harris, who's the defensive tackle from that Ole Miss team, also in this group of players.
72:09We talked about him, right? And we had just said, oh, he got cut in the episode we recorded for his team.
72:16And maybe this was the reason because he knew this was looming and he's back in the transfer portal.
72:22So it reminds me, I think you have to go outside of the NFL, right?
72:27You have to go to a different structure because this has not been the way.
72:32This has been a very specific one-way pass. And it used to be if you signed with an agent, forget whether or
72:39not you got drafted or played in a preseason game, certainly.
72:42But if you even signed with an agent, you were not eligible to go back to college.
72:48So the first point to remember with all of this is the NCAA has had like 15 years to get out of this particular position.
72:56And they find themselves literally in the worst possible, most toothless position they could possibly be in.
73:01And it's their own fault. That's that's number one.
73:04There's a lot of ways they could have done this right, wrong or otherwise.
73:09They could have made a decision instead of having it made for them by the courts.
73:14They did not. That's what I'm going to say about the NCAA.
73:18In terms of the model and how it works, you have to go to something like international soccer where you have the
73:25U-17 teams and you have the U-23 teams. And then you've got the true development, the junior teams for, you know, like
73:32Premier League teams, junior team for Man U and whatever.
73:35And like they do, they call guys up and sometimes they're 18 and sometimes that doesn't work out for them.
73:41They're just not ready and they put them back in the pool.
73:45And that happens in baseball, too. You're up to the majors for 20 games and then you're going back to AAA because
73:52you got shelled or, you know, you couldn't hit the curveball or whatever it was.
73:57And guys will do this between the second highest level of the sport and the highest level of the sport.
74:03That happens in other sports. It has not happened in the NFL between the NFL and its de facto feeder system, farm
74:10system, college football, because that's where, again, the high 90th percentile of NFL football players come from.
74:16So it is the farm league. You can say whatever you want about it.
74:20But nobody's ever been able to have like two way flexibility up and then back or, you know, pro and then back
74:27to amateur or at least in this case, NIL.
74:30So it is a brave new world. It is not figured out yet.
74:34Nobody has the answers. It is not regulated. It is being poorly regulated.
74:38Dude, the agents aren't even accredited. No. The people negotiating these deals for these kids, they're not accredited.
74:44You just anybody could just. Yeah, I'm an agent for college football players.
74:48Give me your money. OK, it is. It is Wild West and everybody's trying to figure it out.
74:54Nobody's done it yet. And it is going to take agreement among an organization that largely is one of the poorest at reaching consensus agreements pretty much ever.
75:03So and that's the thing is like all the conferences.
75:06Yes. Just do their own thing. Correct. You know, it's not like the NFL where like there is a central body that has firm control over everything.
75:15And their only, quote unquote, opposition party, really counterparts, better way to put it, is the players union.
75:21There's no players union in college. There's no central body.
75:24I mean, as NCAA likes to say, they're not like they don't have any power.
75:29Right. Like the league, the league office has power over NFL teams.
75:33Because NFL teams concede that power in the name of organization and not dealing with chaos like this.
75:38Yeah. Right. The price of not having chaos is conceding power to a central governing body that really does have power.
75:45SEC doesn't want to give up power. Big Ten doesn't want to give up power.
75:50ACC and Big 12 are fighting for scraps because they saw what happened in the Pac-12.
75:55So you have all, not to mention like there's the mid-majors, then you got the FCS level.
76:00Like there is no central body. You have hundreds of schools organized into several conferences that do not have any sort of shared goals.
76:08Like I guess technically the SEC and Big Ten do, but like not really.
76:13Yeah. So the only way this gets fixed is if all of them come together and agree we're going to negotiate media
76:20rights together because the money is the only thing that can keep people in line.
76:24Right. Similar to the NFL. We all, we come together in the league office is negotiating the media rights.
76:31So everybody stays in line because the money comes, comes to one spot and flows out from that one spot.
76:37You have to have every single division one school, FBS and FCS level, or at least FBS level come together, negotiate media rights together.
76:45There needs to be a process for accrediting agents.
76:47They need to come up with some standard for eligibility, like something.
76:51And I, I don't necessarily want the government to get involved because I don't think the people that would be writing the laws get it.
76:59But at the same time, the government might be the only people that can actually go to the SEC and the Big
77:06Ten and bitch slap them into compliance. But again, I, I, I don't, I don't know what we're going to do.
77:13We're going to do what we're doing right now, which is this chaos of like, it's two weeks until you could be
77:20playing football on either side of this coin. One side was typically previously unavailable to you because of the decisions you've made.
77:27Now, both sides are open. Like, and again, can you just jump back and forth across this line as many times as you want?
77:35Could you literally play a couple of games for LSU and then have the bucks go like, Hey man, we're short this week.
77:42Like you want to hop up? Like it's a short ride from Baton Rouge to here.
77:47Um, and he goes up and plays two games and then he's back to the minors again.
77:53Like baseball, like the total transfer squad stuff. It's possible.
77:56Like you can squint and see that from here.
77:59And that is a crazy world because you know, does then how does he count for the 53?
78:05Do you have to release him to your point?
78:08Does he need to be cut? Does he need to be resigned?
78:11How does that work? What is his per game?
78:14Like all that is established and has been established again, not super well in baseball with minors to majors and back and
78:21what you get for that and how you accrue service and all that.
78:25Like it's all been worked out and everybody does it.
78:29Every team engages in that system or those systems every year and everybody plays by those rules.
78:34And if you don't, you get docked again by a central governing authority.
78:38So right now, no governing authority, no doc, no rules in terms of you, you know, theoretically, at least you could go
78:45up and down multiple times between, you know, college.
78:48There's no law that says you can't. Right. And if there is a law that says you can't, you go find a
78:55judge that's an alumni and they'll say otherwise. And then you're good.
78:59So we're at this place where it is teetering in terms of everybody's known that college football has been, you know, organized
79:06and I'm going to say it pro athletics for a long time.
79:10College players have been receiving large amounts of money to play sports for no other reason.
79:15You know, lots of other reasons were given, but those are the reasons for a long time, decades.
79:21And everybody's like, no, no student athletes. We need to hold this veil and say this is not happening.
79:27It's been happening. And now it's out. And now you have to try and figure out how to go collect them all
79:34the conferences, the players, the agents, the non-regulated agents, and get them back into one big central fence and say, look, it
79:41will be better if we all play nice here and come up with some framework, some framework, because right now we have zero framework.
79:49It's everybody for themselves, conferences, players, agents, whatever. And it's complete chaos.
79:52And the NFL is just kind of like, hey, man, we're not going to take it over because that's a whole level of hassle we don't want.
80:01And we've had not to do this. Like, this is a huge benefit.
80:05This is a huge professional benefit for the league.
80:08They have had an organized feeder system that they have not had to dive into, invest in, regulate.
80:14They can just be like, yep, give us all your best.
80:17And that's worked out well for decades. Might not be working out the same way as soon as this year.
80:24The NFL is pissed because the drafts have thinned out.
80:27Guys used to leave because their only way to, like, really make money was going to the NFL.
80:33And now these draft classes have thinned out because, again, guys can either stay for six years, sometimes seven years.
80:39They're making good money in NIL more than they would make on a practice squad.
80:44It's also, like, kind of more guaranteed, I guess you could say.
80:48Because if you are a practice squad level edge in the NFL, you're probably a starting level edge for insert Big 12 team here.
80:56Yes. And you're probably going to make more money.
80:58Mm-hmm. So guys are like, yeah, I'm just going to go back to school.
81:03And it's eliminating the entire middle to lower class, not entire, but eliminating a lot of the middle to lower class of each draft class.
81:11So, like, the type of talent you're getting in the fifth round is not the type of talent you get in the
81:18fifth round a few years ago because they're all staying in school.
81:22But the byproduct of that, the even more downstream effect of that, I should say, is when these guys don't leave, it
81:29means they're taking snaps from other players that are either coming out of high school or they were underclassmen.
81:35Now they're upperclassmen. They're not getting snaps. And so they're not developing.
81:39And so now a lot of the guys that are in college football are not actually becoming the best versions of themselves
81:46in college, which then impacts their ability to get drafted.
81:49Yeah. And so then they feel like I got to stay for year five to develop.
81:54So then they're taking roster spots and snaps from guys.
81:57And it's just this. The snake is eating its own tail now.
82:01Really, the true losers are the 19, 20 year olds that want to get on the field and can't because the old guys aren't leaving.
82:09Yeah. And it's terrible. Look at players that have transferred four times in six years.
82:14You know? Yes. And we talk about pro quarterbacks all the time.
82:18Oh, it's his third offensive coordinator in the last four years.
82:21He's not getting a stable platform. He's having to change horses every offseason.
82:25It is difficult to develop. That's exactly what's happening to those college players.
82:30They're not only getting different coaches. They're getting different everything.
82:33Different coaches, different teammates, different offensive strategies, different university.
82:36Right? Different. You don't have the same like, oh, look, man, I've been in the Big 12 for the last three years.
82:43I know the guys that, you know, back in the day Texas had and Oklahoma.
82:48Like, I know these guys. I've played against them.
82:50I've played against them coming up. Like, I have some familiar.
82:54That's gone. Like, the whole landscape shifts every year.
82:57And yeah, you have these guys who are good at a younger age, 19 or 20, who are looking for reps.
83:04And they usually have to transfer to do it these days.
83:07And that is, that's a difficult spot to be in.
83:10And yes, the NFL is going to be very upset because they have enjoyed the fruits of this system without any costs for a very long time.
83:19And that's going to change. And I think we'll probably hear stronger and renewed calls for a true developmental league.
83:25Right? Where we don't have any farcical class requirements.
83:28Like, you do not have to go take like beginning ping pong defense 101 to get credit.
83:34You know, Lenora Sellers. My wife took a history of garden art class in college.
83:38There you are. It's like all that. Yeah. Physics for Poets.
83:42No, it's Lenora Sellers is not taking any classes as the quarterback this year at South Carolina.
83:47How is that even possible? His only class is an internship at a driving range.
83:52And I'm like, he is legit living the real life tin cup right now.
83:57Let's kick back and be an assistant driving range pro and a quarterback in college football making NIL money.
84:03Like, I was going to say he's probably the highest paid person at the driving range.
84:08Yeah, I would not leave either. Like, what are you going to tell me?
84:12What are you going to tell me? So, yeah.
84:15Good times. Anyway, back to the Bucs. Back to the Bucs.
84:19Let's talk about ceiling and floor. Yeah. Nice little detour to college football.
84:23My ceiling for this team, I really wanted to push it to 12 plus, but I just can't quite get there yet.
84:30I need to see what the defense looks like.
84:33I think the defense could be really good, but I thought it could have been really good last year.
84:39And we saw how that turned out. So, I'm going to say ceiling of 11, which I think would win the NFC South.
84:46So, you know, three seed, four seed, somewhere around there.
84:50Typical Bucs range, right? Yeah. The three seed that nobody wants to play.
84:54I think that's their ceiling. Floor, I would put it the exact same spot they were in last year because a hell
85:01of a lot went wrong last year. The entire offense evaporated.
85:04Baker got hurt. Receivers got hurt. Running backs got hurt.
85:07Offensive line got hurt. I think Kate Otten might have been the only player in the room that didn't sustain a major injury.
85:15So, and the defense, again, had its issues too.
85:18So, I would say floor of eight because last year, I think, really was the floor.
85:23And they added some really good talent in the draft.
85:26Yeah. We're thinking about this team in a very similar way.
85:30My ceiling is 11. My floor is seven. Now, for the ceiling, why it could all work.
85:35The team gets the pass game together, and that is mostly about health.
85:39It is not about assemblage of talent. They have the assemblage of talent at the quarterback spot, at the offensive line spot, and at the receiving spots.
85:48So, it's not about, you know, they need to figure it out.
85:52And, again, Zach Robinson, capable coordinator. I think he's going to enjoy all the parts that he gets to play with on this team.
85:59And they need to get the pass rush ironed out.
86:03Again, they have the parts. They've assembled some good parts.
86:06They have the talent to do both. If that happens, I think, and again, Bucs are going to think this is, Bucs
86:13fans are going to think this is backhanded praise.
86:16But it's not. Even when they were winning the division consistently, they weren't putting up 14 win seasons.
86:21This was always a team that was winning 11 or 12 games and still winning the division.
86:27So, 11, I too think could take the division.
86:30You know, if they get the defense up, and that's largely about playing two personnel, let's put it that way.
86:36If those numbers improve from like 22nd and 20 to something like 17th and 15th, and the offense just stays healthy, it's a very dangerous team.
86:44And they will probably win their division. How could all fall apart?
86:48If the coaching staff is unable to maximize the talent that Light has assembled and win a playoff game, I think they're
86:55going to be on the hot seat at the end of the year, right?
87:00If this team, again, is second or third in the division and maybe just misses out on a playoff spot, I think
87:07you have to look at the roster. You have to look at all the talent assembled.
87:12You have to look at the potential and say, hey, are we getting that?
87:16And the temptation to move on to somebody that can is going to be there if that happens.
87:22I'm not going to say it's going to happen, but if they did come in at this floor of seven wins and
87:29you just looked at the roster and went, hey, man, I know injuries are a thing.
87:34Maybe injuries were a thing for a second year.
87:37Come on. That is better than a seven win team.
87:40There's a lot riding on this year for a lot of people, right?
87:45Not just coaching staff. Baker as well. Like Baker.
87:47Baker wants a new deal. They didn't give him what he wanted.
87:51And if there's anything I would be fearful of as a DC, it is a Baker Mayfield with a chip on his
87:58shoulder because that historically has been a force to be reckoned with.
88:02So you have a pissed off Reuben Bain and a pissed off Baker Mayfield.
88:07Good luck, NFC South. Let's go. It's going to be fun.
88:10Should be a fun season. Yep. Should be a fun season.
88:14So once again, thank you to all of you for watching and listening.
88:18We're going to be happy watching and listening. Again, reminder, if you're a Bucks fan and you need something to drink to
88:25get you through the season, go check out Woodinville at the link in the description below or the QR code on the screen.
88:32I am done with my rye coffee. So unfortunately, I'm done with my Woodinville for the morning.
88:38But it is excellent stuff. Goes well either in a cocktail or by itself or in coffee.
88:43Sneakily excellent in pancake batter as well. Oh, and they make syrup information.
88:47And they make syrup too. Oh my God. So put the bourbon in the pancake batter and then put the syrup on the pancakes.
88:55I literally said to a friend of mine, hey, Woodinville Reup, they're sponsoring Summer Series.
89:00And he was like, literally the first question out of his mouth.
89:04Again, this is a spirits company. First question out of his mouth.
89:08Did you get their syrup? I was like, yes, I did.
89:11And it's excellent. It is phenomenal stuff. Can't recommend it highly enough.
89:15It's great. Go check it out. Speaking of our partners, again, thank you to Buzzer for co-producing this series with us.
89:22Tomorrow's episode is on the Panthers, reigning division championship Panthers or champion Panthers.
89:26That episode, as always, goes live over on Buzzer.
89:29We get the episodes live a day early. Sometimes AFC South Week was a little bit rough on me schedule wise and internet wise.
89:36But ideally, if you're watching this, we've gotten back on track by now.
89:40So Panthers episode should be live early over on Buzzer.
89:44And then we have our NFC South Patreon wrap up going live on Friday.
89:48Most of the time over on Patreon. Let's see.
89:51Who am I missing? Homage. Thank you to Homage for being our clothing partner.
89:56Again, if you want to get Bucks gear, you can find that down in the description below or at the QR code on the screen.
90:04They've always been wonderful to work with for years at this point.
90:07I think I'm out of plugs now, but either way, thank you all for watching and listening.
90:13We will see you tomorrow slash today for the Panthers.
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