Raiders Could STILL Draft Shedeur (Hour 2)

All righty, welcome back in hour number two of our radio program. So we were speculating, what's the hold up here? Why is Aaron Rodgers not already announcing that he's going to be a Pittsburgh Steeler? That's where he's going to sign and it not be the New York Giants? Because I don't see why he would go to the Giants over the Steelers.

And we went around the room, right? Stu talked about maybe he just wants to stay in New York. Samter, what was your, your explanation, Samter? That the Steelers would not be him. Yeah, yeah, yeah. With Tomlin and you were basically saying basically he could walk over everybody in the Giants organization.

I said the only thing to think of is maybe it has to do something with money. So Andrew Filipponi of 93-7 the fan in Pittsburgh, he has Mike Florio on. And 15 minutes ago, Mike Florio said on 93-7 the fan that the issue between the Steelers and Aaron Rodgers, that the Steelers thought Aaron Rodgers would come cheap. Mike Florio also said that Aaron Rodgers will sign for less than two years, $90 million.

It's a question of how low will he go? So that's the latest, I guess, from Mike Florio on the Aaron Rodgers situation. So I would still say that I would take less to go to the Steelers to the Giants eventually who are probably offering a more, just get tired and pivot to Russell Wilson. I guess we'll have to wait and see when it comes to the Aaron Rodgers front. But I would ultimately be surprised.

I can't say you're ever shocked with Rodgers, but I would be surprised if he doesn't land with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Rich Gannon, former NFL MVP, is the co-host of the Sirius XM Blitz with Bruce Murray on Sirius XM NFL Radio, channel 88, and on the Sirius XM app. And Rich is kind enough to join us once again on the Zach Gelb show.

Rich, good to have you on. I know it's been a while. How you been?

Zach, doing good, my friend. It's been a crazy, crazy couple of days. I'd say I'd love to be an NFL agent right now. You know, those guys are just busy on the phones making a lot of money for their clients.

Yeah, no, it's not a bad life. So let me ask you a little bit about your Raiders to start. I know that it's been obviously more than a few weeks, but what was your reaction when they ended up hiring Pete Carroll to be the next head coach?

Well, I thought it made a lot of sense. Look, they've been through nine coaches since 2011, so they've had so much turnover. In fact, as much as any organization in football, I think Jacksonville had nine as well.

So they needed to find some stability. They hired a new general manager. They brought in a head coach that has been around the game a long time. In fact, Pete and I were together in Minnesota in 1987.

He got hired by Bud Grant in 1985. So we know about his background as a position coach, as a coordinator, certainly as a head coach for a number of different organizations in college as well, winning a national championship at SC. So Pete brings some stability, some leadership, some know-how to kind of changing the culture and the environment in Las Vegas. And of course, he brings a quarterback you may be familiar with as well, Geno Smith. So I think you look at the decisions that they're making, still they're not done, but I think when you look at what they've done initially, I think it makes a lot of sense.

Well, that's the big thing, right? They go make the move for Geno Smith and they trade a third-round pick for him. We'll see what happens contractually. But now a lot of people wonder, Rich Gannon, what the Raiders will do with the six pick. If Shadore Sanders is somehow some way still available with the six overall pick, do you think the Raiders should select him?

I do. Look, if they've done all their due diligence and feel really good about, you know, Shadore, then they should pull the trigger. Look, yeah, I think you look at the model that the Packers have had when they had Brett Favre and they decided to take Aaron Rodgers when they had Aaron Rodgers, they decided to take Jordan Wilde. I think, you know, you look at Geno Smith, he's done some really good things the last three years.

He's 34 years old. I think you're always looking for competition at that position. The other thing I would say, Zach, is that, you know, they've got a quarterback behind Geno Smith that I think there's certainly some familiarity with and some comfort level with inside the organization. Aidan O'Connell's first year went five and five, won three games in the division against the Chiefs, Chargers, and Broncos.

And despite the fact that they retired as head coach and replaced the play caller and they did that again last year with the play caller. So, you know, I think there's some upside there. I think there's some experience. I think this is a guy that can step in at a moment's notice and put your team in the finish line. But, you know, I think Geno Smith is a guy that can provide some stability, some leadership, and some production for the Raiders moving forward.

But you always have to be, you know, you always have to be looking at that position. And if there's a quarterback, it may not even be in the first round. I mean, I think you look at what happened last year even Bo Nix, you know, in fact, there was a run on quarterbacks and then we weren't sure what the Broncos were going to do. But you look at those quarterbacks last year, all of them.

I mean, whether it was Drake May, whether it was just, you know, Jayden Daniels, Bo Nix, they all, you know, they all played well. And, you know, I think there's some real merit to having that conversation in house. I don't know how much you're able, Rich Gannon, to watch Adore Sanders, but when you see them play, just what are your thoughts on him as a quarterback? Well, I like the pedigree.

Let's start there. I mean, that's the fact that he's been around football his entire life. The fact that, you know, he grew up in a household where football was important.

I think everywhere he has been, you go back and you study him at Jackson State before transferring to Colorado. He did some good things there. And even last year, I mean, he set a school record with 64 career passing touchdowns, led the FBS.

You know, his school record, 74% of his passes were completions. You know, he does some things well. I think the fact that, you know, he's got good arm talent.

I think the ability to, you know, change the launch point when needed. Good eye discipline. I think he shows a willingness to stand in the pocket, take a hit. That's really apparent when you watch him.

The guy's not going to flinch. I think very good ball placement and accuracy when he throws and moves inside the pocket. So, you know, I think he has a lot of competitive reps out there.

I think you just have to do your due diligence. I think, overall, very talented and experienced prospect. He's been around the game his entire life. I think he knows what success looks like. I think like a lot of these quarterbacks in this draft class, Zach, I think he's going to need some, he's going to need to be in the right system. He's going to need a staff and team around him to be patient with him to reach his full potential. I don't know that we're going to find a Jayden Daniels in this draft class that splashes onto the scene and wins 14 games and takes his team to an NFC championship.

I don't know. I think we set the bar pretty high last season. Yeah, I also think the fascinating thing, and once again, I don't even know if Chador is going to be available with the six pick as Rich Gannon is here with us. Brady knows so much about him because they had a relationship before Brady even became the minority owner of the Raiders. So Brady's influence on this when it comes to maybe picking the next quarterback to me is going to be really intriguing.

Well, I think the fact that you have someone around the organization that's one at the highest level that knows what success looks like, knows what a culture and environment that's conducive to winning looks like. The one thing I would throw out there is that he's not in a building every day. He's got a home in Florida. He's doing NFL games each and every week. So I think he can certainly weigh in on some of these decisions and certainly be another set of eyes for spy tech and for Pete Carroll.

But look, they've got people in the building. They've got a pro staff, a college staff, a college scouting department that has to go through all these quarterbacks. I mean, it's not just Chador Sanders. I think when you look at Jackson Dart, when you look at Quinn Ewers, one of these guys may fit the bill in terms of what they're looking for. They may even circle back at a second runner later in the first round and grab a quarterback. We don't know what the Raiders are going to do, but kind of in that catbird seat when you look at a couple of teams in front of them that need quarterbacks.

Rich Gannon here with us. If you're Caleb Williams, you've got to be pretty happy. You got three new offensive linemen. You revamped that offensive line, Rich. And also you get a brilliant play caller in Ben Johnson. We'll see how he makes a transition to becoming a head coach. But it seems like the Bears have had a good offseason so far.

You know, it's incredible. When I looked at Caleb Williams last year, Zach, I think there's a lot of things that you're pleased with. The fact that he played every game. He showed some real toughness and resolve despite the fact that he got sacked more than any quarterback in the league. I think the expectations were really high.

I think what happened to him last year was unfortunate. They are the head coach. They replaced the play caller and they replaced the play caller where someone doesn't have a lot of experience doing it. The offensive line play wasn't great. And I think when you look at what they've done with, you know, Tooney and Jackson and Dalman, that's a great start. You know, we always talk about when you build a football team, you want to be strong down the middle.

And I think that's what they're trying to do in Chicago. They got this good, talented young quarterback. Want to make sure that he's upright. Make sure he's got a cleaner jersey this season than he did last season. Let me get your thoughts on Justin Fields landing with the Jets on a two-year deal.

Thirty million dollars guaranteed. What can you expect out of Justin Fields this year in the Big Apple? He did some good things last year at Pittsburgh before they, you know, they yanked him and threw in Russell Wilson.

I thought he handled the situation well. I thought that he, you know, I think he showed improvement over what we saw from him the first three years in Chicago. There's no question in my mind that Justin Fields is an ultra talented quarterback. I mean, he can make all the throws. He can create an extended manufacturer offense where he has to be better is functioning from a pocket. He's gotta be better on third down. He's gotta be better in the red zone. He's gotta be better in situational football. But, you know, I think the big thing with him is can he learn to slow down the game, quiet his feet and sit in there and be better with anticipation and accuracy when he has to throw the ball in the pocket. Rich Gannon here with us, the coast of the Sirius XM Blitz with Bruce Murray on Sirius XM NFL Radio Channel 88 and on the Sirius XM app. Rich, right now I feel like Roger's gonna wind up with the Steelers and then you're gonna see Russell Wilson go to the Giants and maybe the Giants will still find a way to get a quarterback in the draft.

Is that kind of what you're expecting as well? You know, I think if you're Aaron Rodgers and you're sitting back and you're just looking at what's already transpired, you say to yourself, what's the best landing spot for me, maybe even before, you know, Daniel Jones finding Indianapolis and some of these other situations with, obviously, Darnold going to Seattle and such. I think this is a great situation for Aaron Rodgers. If I were Aaron Rodgers, I'd be pushing my agent to get a deal done as soon as possible.

Why? Even despite the struggles they had last year at the quarterback position, this team still won 10 games and made the playoffs. They've got a good football team.

They just went out and got DK Metcalf. They have George Pickens. You know, you've got some talent at the running back position. They've got a good defense.

They've got one of the best defensive players in football, TJ Watt. I think the big thing with Aaron Rodgers, he's got to be willing to be uncomfortable. He's got to be willing to work with the coaching staff and Mike Tomlin and the folks in Pittsburgh and just simply say, you know what, I'm going to commit myself to the entire off-season program. I'm going to do everything that's necessary.

I'm not going to go on any trips during the season or during mini camp. I'm just going to commit to being, you know, the guy in the building every day and being one of the guys in Pittsburgh. And if he's willing to do that, I still think there's plenty of talent there. He's obviously not the same player he once was, but if he really studied the tape from last year, he's still got great arm talent.

He still can move a little bit, protect himself. I just think he was so frustrated, Zach, with what happened last year. The coaching situation, firing the head coach, replacing the play caller, lack of communication, you know, guys that weren't held to a certain standard, guys that didn't know what to do, guys that weren't running the right routes, guys that weren't getting the right depth. He needs to go somewhere where there's some professionalism, accountability, attention to detail. He can get that in Pittsburgh with Mike Tomlin and Arthur Smith. You know how quarterbacks, though, could be, especially when they're disestablished and they get to their older years. I just like I think Rogers should go to the Steelers, but I don't know how much different of an Aaron Rodgers you're going to get in terms of the commitment and all that stuff.

Well, the thing is, that's what you have to decide. Like if I'm Mike Tomlin, that's where we start. Like we sit down. We're not going to talk about the tape. We're not going to talk about football.

We're not going to talk about the offense, what that's going to look like today. I'm just going to sit there and say, hey, what do you want? What do you want with your career?

You're at a point in your career, you'll be 42 in December. Do you want to go out before you go to Canton and get that gold jacket? What do you want to accomplish? Do you want to have a chance to compete for a world championship?

Here's the place. I've never had a losing season, but here's what I need from you before we even sit down there and talk about dollars and the contract and our offense. Are you going to be all in? Are you going to come to Pittsburgh, get an apartment, get a townhouse, move here, be in the building, be in the weight room, be in the meeting rooms, be out in the practice field, be in the OTAs.

I need a total commitment from you. And if you'll give me that, what I'll do is we'll put together a great offensive football system that you're comfortable with. We'll tweak what we have to tweak, but we're not going to become one of these wide open systems of football where we throw it 40 times a game just so we can... We're going to be true to who we are. We're going to be physical. We're going to run the football. We're going to play action. We're going to change the launch point. We'll be aggressive, but you have to work with us. And I think that's what Mike Tomlin has to figure out. Is this guy going to be all on board or are there going to be distractions that are going to be some things that he's not as comfortable with? Like, I'm not really at this point, if I'm Mike Tomlin, I don't want to go down that road.

I don't want to set my program back to accommodate one player. And that would be a huge mistake if, in fact, you don't get a total buy-in from Aaron Rodgers. Last thing with Rich Gannon, the former NFL MVP.

Let's get two questions here into the pretty much a similar topic. J.J. McCarthy, I think that he could be just as good if not better than what Sam Darnold did in Minnesota. And I think a lot of people are knocking J.J. I think he's in a perfect fit spot with Kevin O'Connell, Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, T.J. Hawkinson, and et cetera. And then for Sam Darnold, I thought it was a fine move by the Seahawks.

$55 million only guaranteed. I'm just curious to see what he does with fewer pieces around him. How about a little on J.J. and then Sam to end up the conversation? Well, I really like J.J. I've known him. Actually, he remembers the same golf club in Minneapolis. Well. If you can imagine that. But not that he played a lot of golf in Minnesota this time of the year.

But let me say this. I think he set up for success there. I think he benefited from what happened last year despite the injuries in the building. He was a big part of game planning.

He was out on the practice field watching the reps. I think he was staying involved as much as he could mentally. And I just think that, you know, they're really excited about him. I think he's got a lot of upside. I think, you know, it's a great offensive football team. It's a good defense.

It's a head coach that played the position, that's coached the position, that sees the game through the eyes of the quarterback. I think it's a really good situation for J.J. McCarthy. Now, certainly the expectations are based on what happened with Sam Darnold last year.

They're not going to be very patient. But I just think he'll be fine. I think it's a good situation for J.J. I think he was well trained at Michigan with Jim Otterball.

And I think Sam Darnold. Let me just say this. I'm pleased.

I'm so pleased for this guy. I did a lot of his games for CBS when I was calling games in New York. He struggled. He struggled with S.C. taking care of the football. He struggled in Carolina.

And he had that red shirt here in San Francisco before going to Minnesota last year. The best thing he did last year was clean up the decision making, take better care of the football. And he played great football with the exception of the last two games of the season.

But I don't think they played well around them. I think it's a great situation for him in Seattle. It's a great organization. You've got a good young coach. And you've got a play caller that I think understands protections and how to put the quarterback in a position to have a chance to be successful week in and week out.

He's rich again in the former NFL MVP is also the coast of the Sirius XM blitz with Bruce Murray on Sirius XM NFL Radio Channel 88 and on the Sirius XM app. Rich, always appreciate it. Thank you. Exactly the best. Thanks, brother.

Thanks so much. There he is. Rich Gannon joining us on the show. A lot to unpack from that conversation. Well, let's tackle some of those topics and some of those answers when we come on back.

Yo, yo, it is the Zach Gelb show on the Infinity Sports Network. Some really good stuff with Rich Gannon. So what's your biggest takeaway? I think I know what the answer is gonna be, but I think many people could listen to that and many people could have different takeaway.

So let's go around the room here. Stu, your takeaway was what? I kind of perked up when he said the Raiders should still kind of consider Chidor Sanders or quarterback at six if he is there. Right.

That's easy stuff. Former Raider. You want his opinion.

MVP. They get Geno Smith. He was fine with the Geno Smith trade. Obviously fine with the Pete Carroll hire. Bring him back to hopefully respectability. But, you know, they go through their scouting report and they still really like Chidor Sanders. You take him is pretty much what he was saying. I agree with that.

Samter, how about yourself? Your biggest takeaway from the Rich Gannon interview was what? Just everything he was saying about Aaron Rodgers. And I think that he's 100 percent right that the Steelers have to sit him down and have a conversation with him. But at the end of the day, Aaron Rodgers, he's the right fit there. It's just a matter of whether or not he's going to buy in because Mike Tomlin is no nonsense. And, you know, there's a lot of coaches who would probably sell their soul. And I don't think I don't think Tomlin is. So Gannon kind of echoed that. And I think it's really interesting. So my biggest takeaway is what he said about Rodgers, like you just said, Samter. But it was just how how his voice kind of did rise a little bit towards that and how adamant and passionate he was on this.

And, you know, that's not right. Like, no, no offense to Chase Daniel, but like a backup quarterback saying that this is a guy that won a league MVP. Now, did Rich Gannon have the career that Aaron Rodgers did?

No. But Rich Gannon won an MVP. He's been in a Super Bowl and he was a very good quarterback in this league. And I think that quarterbacks that know what it takes to be great. I think they're annoyed with the lack of commitment with Aaron Rodgers.

Right. And how much drama Rodgers brings like is Brady doing this stuff that Rodgers is doing? Probably not. You know, is Rich Gannon doing that stuff? Probably not. Is Peyton Manning doing that stuff?

Probably not. And I think that there is a fraternity of quarterbacks where. Right. There's a different wing where there could be Hall of Famers and Rich Gannon is not one of them. But MVP, he is one of them. Super Bowl champion.

I get it. Rich isn't one of them, but he played in a Super Bowl. But I think that there is a higher group of quarterbacks that sure. You could say, oh, what does it matter if the quarterback isn't there for some of the offseason stuff? You know, what's a big deal if he goes to Egypt? What's a big deal if he, you know, does ayahuasca and goes to these darkness retreats and, you know, goes on McAfee?

And quite frankly, right, I've been in some of that camp where it doesn't really bother me. But to hear Gannon get so fired up about that and basically say the Steelers need to get the answer from Aaron. And even if Aaron gives the answer, yeah, I'll be all in.

I don't believe him. But that his line of thinking was Tomlin and him need to have that heart to heart and they need to figure out what kind of Aaron Rodgers and how committed Aaron Rodgers is going to get with the Steelers, because if not, then you don't bring him in. But my question then becomes the Steelers. If you don't bring in Aaron Rodgers, then where do you go? And right, Russell Wilson. Now, Russell Wilson is still out there. Now, I talked about let's see if Russell Wilson gets a little creative here. And Russell Wilson tries to put some pressure on the Steelers or the Giants, because if you ask the Giants or the Steelers right now, who do you want to be your your quarterback next year? You know, if you take up the draft, the Steelers are going to say Aaron Rodgers, the Giants are going to say Aaron Rodgers. Now, if you don't get Aaron Rodgers, Pittsburgh, what are you doing? Oh, we're bringing back Russell Wilson. Giants. Oh, we're going to pivot to Russell Wilson.

So I threw out early in the show. What happens if Russell Wilson says bleep this? I'm not waiting to be the second here for the Giants and for the Steelers. You may even be third or fourth if we're serious, but we'll be nice to Russ, Mr.

Unlimited. But with Russell Wilson, I said, like, imagine a Tennessee just swoops in here and takes him right off the market before Rodgers makes this decision, which people have now said, Peter Schrager. And I don't believe this, but you never know the Rogers that this Rogers decision could take up to four weeks, which if that's the case now, get me a bag and I'll just barfing it because I don't want to talk about this for four more weeks.

If we're talking about Aaron Rodgers for four more weeks on him making a decision. So that would take us through April 9th. We would already have an NCAA champion crowned in men's and women's college basketball. We would already have opening day.

And I'm not talking about like when you start the season in Japan and then you start the actual season like three weeks later, I'm talking about opening day on U.S. soil and we would be two weeks away from the draft. So I don't need to be talking about where Aaron Rodgers is going to go come April 9th if I'm just being fully transparent with you. But here's the latest from Ian Rappaport a rare QB visit Steelers former starter Russell Wilson is scheduling a visit to the Browns this week per. I love how Rappaport says Perme and Tom Pellicero a potential option in Cleveland. So Cleveland's another one of those teams where.

OK. The Browns just traded for Kenny Pickett if they bring in Russell Wilson. You just heard Adam Schefter. Now this is the wind horse stuff. What does this mean?

The windy fingers. You just had Adam Schefter go back on his claim that the thing he's most confident in is that the Cleveland Browns take a quarterback with their first round selection. So it's one thing to trade for Kenny Pickett. Do I think that Kenny Pickett sorry Chris in California for listening to. Do I feel that Kenny Pickett prevents you from taking a quarterback at two?

No. But if you bring in and trade for Kenny Pickett and you then go sign Russell Wilson. I'm not saying you can't take a quarterback at two. But it feels then pointless to take a quarterback at two because you have two options there. If it was just one and not the other then I think you take a quarterback at two. But if you bring in Pickett which you already did and Russell Wilson Mike that makes me then think if they do sign Russell Wilson because this could just be a Russell Wilson.

Hey Giants and Steelers. I got other options. So one of you better pivot to me until you wait till till Aaron Rodgers emerges off what this beach that you told us he was on Samter.

So this could kind of be Ross one of those you know. Hey I'm interested in someone. They're not willing to make a commitment. I'll go out of the town and maybe they get a little jealous if I'm talking to somebody else that could be a Russell Wilson spot. But if the Browns do sign Russell Wilson with also having Kenny Pickett on the roster even though I don't think either a long term options for Cleveland it could take them out of the running of taking a quarterback with the number two overall pick. And even if Kirk Cousins becomes in play for the Browns we've heard the Titans talk about wanting a generational player. Now the Browns seem potentially out on a quarterback. The Giants might just stumble into getting Cam Ward or Chidor their first pick at quarterback in number three. It doesn't seem like teams want to trade up for either of those guys and it sounds like the Titans and Browns might not be super high on them either. We could see you know the first quarterback go number three or even later who knows if they drop. So the draft conversation is a fascinating one.

I am with you. I do not think the Browns are trading up to the number one overall pick. I do think the Giants are interested and would be willing to move up to the number one overall pick.

But still I'll bring you into the fold. If let's just say the Raiders are at six they already traded for Geno Smith. Tennessee doesn't want to take a quarterback at number one. Tennessee obviously would rather move down to three if they don't want to take a quarterback because then one way or another they're still in line to get either Abdul Carter or Travis Hunter. Like for Tennessee if you're not taking a QB at one and you trade back you still want to go get Abdul Carter or Travis Hunter. So okay if you do that you may not get as much for the first overall pick. So let's say the Giants say okay you know the Browns don't have a market.

We'll give you two threes and we'll swap one. You'll fall down to three and then in all likelihood Giants take Cam Ward one. I would imagine the Browns were just resigning. Myles Garrett would then take Travis Hunter at two and then the Tennessee Titans could go get Abdul Carter at three.

All right. But what happens if Mike Burgon he says I'm a new GM. I'll probably if I don't love Callahan be able to hire another coach and still be able to keep my job. Let's call up the Raiders because we don't love that we're only swapping first round picks with the Giants even though we would still get Abdul Carter. But we don't like that we're only getting a two threes back. So maybe we call up a team like the Raiders who could be respectable this year.

Right. Like eight wins the Raiders. It's not crazy to say the Raiders get to eight wins with Pete Carroll but they do play in a tough division. There's also a chance that the Raiders could be well south of the eight win mark. So let's see if we could get a first round pick. The Raiders will take our number one overall pick.

We'll fall back to six where Tennessee has a bunch of holes anyway. So you could get a lineman at six. You know if you like Tyler Warren you could get him.

I don't think they'd be in the ash and gente market. You could get a corner you could get one of the defensive players. There's a lot of options still available at six. You're not going to get Travis Hunter you're not going to get Abdul Carter but you could still get a very good football player and then you could get an additional first round pick for the Raiders because the only way I think the Raiders move up to the number one spot is if the Raiders are willing to give a future first round pick. Stu would you be interested in giving next year's first round pick if it was just hey you swap ones and let's say you give up a one next year and maybe a four next year.

Would you do that to move from six to one to go get Cam Ward potentially. Probably not. Really.

Yeah. Why. I don't know I don't I'm not as I'm not as sold on Cam Ward to be honest. You'd rather have Chador. I'd rather have Chador. Okay so fine then you could go up to one and maybe get Chador. I don't think they have to do that though if they really want him. That's fair. So you still think huh are you starting to think Chador is going to be there at six. I think it's very possible.

Okay so now your optimism is growing. But I also could see a scenario where he's there at six and they still don't take him. But I think they I mean it leaves the Gino Smith thing is great because it allows them to still do that.

What to pass on him. No to take him. Oh absolutely.

Yeah. Like if you would have brought in Sam Darnold even though I don't think the world is Sam Darnold I'm not saying Sam Darnold is going on out there and getting replaced by or I don't think they're drafting Chador Sanders or quarterback in the first round they're going to you know go get a receiver if it's McMillan from Arizona or Genteve the running back from Boise State or I don't think they'll take Tyler Warren because they got Bowers but I think they would go get a lineman or a defensive player they would go somewhere other than the quarterback if it was Darnold. But Gino Smith being there does not prevent them especially since there's no new contract yet taken care of. It does not prevent them from taking a quarterback.

I'm just trying to think of the way that Chador falls to six. And I guess the only way that would happen is if the Giants move up to one Browns pass on a quarterback they take Hunter at two then let's say Tennessee takes Abdul Carter at three Patriots won't take a quarterback at four and the Jaguars take a quarterback at five. But if a trade doesn't happen let's say Cam Ward goes one to Tennessee then Travis Hunter goes two to Cleveland. If the Giants sign Rogers I think it's more difficult to draft Chador but I don't think it's impossible. But if they sign Russell Wilson then I think the Giants would take Chador Sanders at three because Joe Shane has to have it out here where if whoever he brings in if it's Rogers going to be tough to have it out. But if you bring in Russ and Russ after the first six seven games is no good you can at least create some excitement fabricated or not with the fan base by going to Chador or waiting towards the end of the year to get to Chador with even if you have a bad season you put lipstick on a pig and you give some excitement. Oh that's the guy that drafted Chador Sanders.

So there is a road for Chador to still be there at six. So so your line of thinking is fascinating because you like Chador Sanders more than Cam Ward which should be fair. At the end of this college football season I thought Chador Sanders the best quarterback in this draft class. And recently when I go through more of my process I get the slight edge to Cam Ward over Chador Sanders. So your reasoning I not want to move up to one is I don't want Cam Ward you want your door and then you don't think you got to move up to one in order to get your door because you're not going to be the first overall pick in the draft.

The only person that told me to be the first overall pick in the draft was the mock draft that Charles Davis did. And even he said that subject to change. So that's kind of where we're at now still. Yeah. And I don't think they have to the fact that they got you know look if they love love one of these quarterbacks then you do it. But I don't think you have to overpay.

And still more process to go through. That's the yeah the part that I never really believed. I thought these teams would already know enough. But Sean Payton even said at the combine pretty much. And also if you if that's it let's say John Spytek as your line of thinking we like Chador better than Cam or maybe Brady says hey we got to go get Chador.

You may not have to move up to one like maybe you give up lesser resources to get to three or get to four or get to five in the draft. You know it's definitely on the table there. Two more things that I like that Rich Gannon said I agree with them. The Tomlin Rogers conversation is going to be an interesting one. Also that Chador Sanders still at play at six for the Raiders even after the trade of of Geno Smith. But I do find it interesting between these three quarterbacks who are going to be talking about the most positively at the end of the year. Forget Geno Smith for a second. But Sam Darnold going to Seattle. J.J. McCarthy almost said Mike McCarthy there for a second. J.J. McCarthy now becoming the guy in Minnesota.

Right. You have those two guys and then Justin Fields going to the Jets. I wonder who has the best season between J.J. Sam Darnold and Justin Fields.

What would your answer be still. I think it's McCarthy. I think he's the best setup even though he will be technically a rookie based off of never playing an NFL game.

I think he has the most to set him up to succeed. Samter J.J. McCarthy Justin Field Sam Darnold. Who do you think has the most successful season next year. I'm going to go with Geno Smith.

Oh no I'm sorry. You didn't say Geno Smith. I'm going to say Sam Darnold then.

Okay. Who would you three be. Sam Darnold J.J. McCarthy and Justin Fields. McCarthy Darnold Fields.

So you're down the Jets going to Fields. No I you know honestly I think I give McCarthy the edge even though he hasn't played it down yet. He was highly regarded by the Vikings.

He's playing indoors. He's got great receivers. He's got a great coach. It's too tempting to pass on. But you know I think Fields can do something with the Jets.

But I want to give I guess this part of me has got a heart. I want to give Darnold the benefit of the doubt that he'll be able to do something maybe not replicate this because you're not going to win 14 games in Seattle. But you know maybe he does does something good there.

I'm with you and you're a three order. Exactly. J.J. because of the environment that he's in with Kevin O'Connell Jefferson Addison Hawkinson they bring back Aaron Jones Darris.

So hopefully he's healthy this year at the left tackle spot. I think that's a great environment to succeed in. You know what you got to do is I mean just don't just don't try to do anything. Yeah keep it simple silly. Exactly. And look playing indoors is also very very big. I mean you know what do they do they have nine home games next year whatever it is. But you got nine and then you're playing one on the road in Detroit. Yeah that's 10 games that's potentially 10 games indoors. I haven't looked at their schedule.

Sure you could have a few more crossover conditions though. And then also I go Darnold two over Fields three is just because even though up until this past year most of Darnold's career was a disaster. This past year he played really well. So that's more that I could tangibly touch than what Justin Fields has done.

Yeah. And I look at Darnold. Yes it's a drop off in talent but you know can he be average.

Sure. Justin Fields he's a great runner. He needs to show me more throwing the football and luckily for Fields he goes to a tough market. Don't get me wrong and her offensive line that's a big question mark but there's familiarity there with the really good young wide receiver in Garrett. Yeah but he's also a he's got a he's got you know Darnold did it last year. Whether you believe it or not is one thing but yeah he did it. Justin Fields hasn't done that yet.

He's also got a new offense he's got to learn and whereas Darnold goes to Seattle and he's with Clint Kubiak who he knows from San Francisco. I give I give him a slight edge. Alrighty we'll take a time out when we come on back we'll do a little take five Wednesday I'll give you my five best offseason moves so far. So we will do that on the other side. Update time first.

Here's Zach. The football season might be over. What over?

Did you say over? Nothing is over until we decide it is. But don't you worry there are still rankings to be made.

So get ready as Zach gives you his top five in this week's special edition of Take Five Wednesday. We are 47 minutes in to the new league year. I told you since all the news happened on Sunday even some on Friday then a lot on Monday and then Tuesday it kind of dried up and today there's really nothing. So here are the two biggest news items I guess and it shows you how slow of a news day it is when the new league year did start forty seven minutes ago. Adam Schefter. You have Evan Ingram signing a two year deal with the Denver Broncos and then Darius Slay is going to the Steelers. He reached an agreement on a one year fully guaranteed 10 million dollar deal with the Steelers.

The deal was negotiated obviously by Drew Rosenhaus and Robert Bailey. Okay so today's topic is the best new off season acquisitions. Now this has nothing to do with coaches.

This is only players. So no resigning no restructuring just new player on new team who's the best. In at number five Milton Williams to the New England Patriots. The Patriots beef up their offensive line.

A little uncertainty with Christian Barrymore with the unfortunate blood clots. You have Keyon White as well. Milton Williams was unbelievable especially down the stretch of the Philadelphia Eagles. Still a young player.

Patriots they went out there they broke the bank form. Really good move and that gives them another identity player for this organization moving forward on the offensive side of the ball. It's Drake May. You need more around Drake May and then on the defensive side Christian Gonzalez is a stud and then in the trenches you add big ol Milton Williams. So Milton Williams in at number five. Number four.

It's a combination of two. It's two guys that are getting up there in age. Two guys that you wonder how much wear and tear with how much wear and tears on their body how much mileage they have left. But I still think the next year or two these guys could play at a very high level and could go help a young quarterback in Jayden Daniels and also continue to move this commander's organization new look commanders organization in the right direction where they just went to the NFC championship game. And that's Laramie Tunsell and Deebo Samuel going to the Washington commanders. Deebo nice complimentary piece to Terry Mclaurin Laramie Tunsell even though I don't think he is as elite as what people think he is. You love to go protect a young quarterback especially at that position. And that's what Laramie Tunsell does. There's more positives than negatives with him.

And number three. Devontae Adams going to L.A. Now if I would have just said that two weeks ago Devontae Adams going to L.A. I would have thought the Chargers. I didn't think about the Rams and I love that the creativity that could happen here with Sean McVeigh basically being the offensive guru there. Matthew Stafford slinging the football. Kyron Williams who's a touchdown machine.

You got Puka Nakula. Cooper Cup is now released. But you bring in Devontae Adams to be the number two. I think that's an upgrade over Cooper Cup which unfortunately Cooper Cup the last three years only played 33 games. And also hopefully you get a full season out of Tyler Higbee coming off the late start to last year because of the injury that he did suffer. But Devontae Adams going to the Los Angeles Rams.

I absolutely love it. And I put that in at number three. Number two. We don't know who the quarterback is going to be. I think it's going to be Aaron Rodgers.

If it's not Aaron Rodgers I believe it's going to be Russell Wilson. But I love love love love love love the Steelers trading for DK Metcalf. Is DK Metcalf a top seven eight wide receiver in the NFL. No but DK Metcalf is a really good wide receiver. He's going to get more targets this year with not having Jackson Smith and Jigba and Tyler Lockett with him. It depends on who the quarterback is going to be.

That's a big one but I do think it's going to be Rodgers. And also this challenges George Pickens to grow up because George we just not only traded for DK Metcalf we gave him a five year hundred fifty million dollar deal. We like you but the juice a lot of times isn't worth the squeeze with you.

So we're going to have someone infringe on your territory. You're basically going to be the number two wide receiver. You'll get plenty of targets but let's see if you could handle that. And then if so we will either at the end of the season give you a new deal.

You know there's a chance to stop tagging you or we'll just let you walk. But I like the DK Metcalf deal for the Pittsburgh Seals and also to address the need as the Steelers have been trying to get another wide receiver for a long time. They were in an IU. They were in a few other wide receivers as well.

And in number one I think this is the Zach Yale dancer because we respect the big fellas. I love the Bears revamping their offensive line. Yeah the Bears they go out there and they get Grady Jarrett on the defensive side of the ball. Yeah they bring in Ben Johnson to be the head coach. But you go get Drew Dolman you get Joe Tooney and Jonah Jackson three new offensive starters on the offensive line. The biggest thing this off season was the Chicago Bears needed to protect Caleb Williams better. And now they're putting Caleb Williams in a position to succeed with these three offense alignment. So Milton Williams to the Pats in at five. Laramie Tunsil and Debo Samuel to the commanders in at four. Devante Adams to the LA Rams in at three. DK Metcalf to the Steelers in at two. And the Bears revamping their offensive line with Dolman Jackson and Joe Tooney.

Stuart Kovacs speak now or forever hold your peace. Yeah what about some of these quarterback moves. Let's start with Sam Darnold going to the Seahawks. You know what I just realized that I didn't have a quarterback in the top five.

And it just shows you this. I don't love not I don't like I don't love any of the quarterback moves. I think Sam Darnold is low risk high reward going to the Seahawks. There's also questions about Sam Darnold in terms of what are you going to be without Justin Jefferson and Jordan Addison.

Sure you still have Jackson and Jigba who I like but there's now more on Sam Darnold's plate. I think he could be solid. I think he could be average. Is he going to be good. Is he going to be very good.

He's going to have to prove that to me. So it's a fine move. The Seahawks got younger at the position and they didn't hold them down that long term but not enough to enter the top five. The guy who Darnold is replacing in Seattle Geno Smith goes to the Raiders. I think it's tough to evaluate until we see what they do with the six overall pick. Do you take a quarterback and it shows that Geno Smith even though he's up there at ages more of a stopgap or do you take a young quarterback and Geno Smith's the mentor or are you trying to be a more respectable product this year. You take a non quarterback and then that could bolster that offense or maybe even defense with Geno Smith leading that team. What about the Broncos landing 49ers safety Telenoah Hufunga.

I love this move. Benito great season. Breakout season. You then had Pat Sertan I thought was the best defensive back in football. He was the defensive player of the year. And you had Dre Greenlaw and then Hufunga as well. And that's just someone that I think makes that defense even better. It's a really really good acquisition. I think it kind of flown under the radar and that's why it just sits out sits out of the top five. And last one Najee Harris going to the Chargers.

I love this one. And I thought about putting it in at five but it's not a superstar running back. I think the fit with Harbaugh is really good.

I think Najee Harris is going to have his fifth straight 1000 yard season. But I just look at the area and the position. You know I put offensive lineman here. I put wide receivers here. You know I put a defensive lineman in there.

Those positions just more valuable to me. Yeah. Saquon Barkley's great. Yeah. Derek Henry's great. Those last year would have been in my top five. But Najee Harris isn't one of those running backs but he could still be very successful and also help the Chargers and Justin Herbert this year. Coming on back with Ryan Hantekekis at the Kelp Show Infinity Sports Network.