We Predict Some Major Trade Deadline Deals

There's a couple more teams that I, we should just run through real quick.

The Kansas City Chiefs need a receiver, Albert, uh, you're kidding.

Uh, it's not like we've been here every single year since 2019, the year of our Lord.

My God.

Um, are they gonna get one?

So, yeah, I, I think that they've definitely been making calls.

Um, the Steelers are the other team is sort of sniffing around out there for receivers.

Um, I've been told on pretty strong terms that Garrett Wilson is not available.

So we can kind of put that one to bed.

Um, Stefon Diggs, I, I, I think would be interesting, and I think maybe the commanders would have listened if McLaurin hadn't gotten hurt and if they had lost on Sunday.

I think now, It might be harder to get him out of there.

Um, Calvin Ridley is another one, you know, what are you willing to give the Titans for him?

What are you willing to give the Titans for him?

Um, and, and, and like that like Pollard is like about like, all right, we, we need to evaluate our young quarterback, you know, so are we, you gotta give us something good for, for, uh, for, for Ridley.

Although Carnell Tate coming out, coming on might like open that up a little bit.

Um, Uh, the one name that I think is interesting for Kansas City is Brian Thomas Junior.

And like to this point, the Jaguars have not made him available.

And the reason why, I know he hasn't produced, but He, he's not the best fit for what they do offensively.

They need, they, they value, I mean, it's the Rams type of system, so they value kind of the gritty, tough over the middle guys that can produce after the catch and, you know, Parker Washington, Jacoby Myers are more of that, where Thomas is more down the field weapon.

However, the threat that Thomas brings down the field does serve them.

He's still on a rookie contract, so he's cheap.

And He's not a problem, right?

Like he's not causing an issue for them.

So, in a way, like being a good soldier might damage his ability to get traded, you know, because he, he is, he has been OK, but I think he'd be a better fit in Kansas City.

And maybe somebody where you're buying on the upside with him, where it's like, if Mahomes can get this guy going, maybe that's a creative way to find the number one receiver where our resources to do that, you know.

I like that because they're always gonna be picking at the bottom of the first round and all that different stuff outside of last year.

Like this might be a creative way to attack something that, you know, that that's been a problem for us for a few years.

That's why I wondered if a couple bad teams wouldn't be in on Brian Thomas too, right, because, you know, like, does Brian, does he cost them one?

I mean, is this a move?

Is it you have to give the Jags a one, or do you think it's like a, you know, I don't think it's a one.

I don't know if it's a one.

I think a 2, they would definitely, I mean, uh, again, like I, they haven't been available at this point, so I don't know if it's like really a price tag on his head.

But I mean, if I'm the Jaguars and somebody's willing to give me a 2 for him, and he's sort of fallen into like, you know, not disuse, but like he's just sort of a decoy in their offense, a valuable decoy, but a decoy, um, I would at least think about it, you know.

And then the, the other question, maybe, and maybe you get creative, you know, and if you're the Chiefs, you've got like a defensive tackle you can throw the, so the, the Jaguars, you know, so that's, that is my question, right?

So Jacksonville, I think.

They're still recovering and you saw it last year based on who they were keeping and letting go.

They're playing the comp pick game for the long term, right, with Gladstone and with Liam Cohen.

So all this has got to fit into the formula, but at the same time, they're one of the 3 best teams in the NFL right now, and I wonder if Brian Thomas, they're really, really good, and does the Brian Thomas Jr trade set them up to be players in.

Whatever is left of the defensive tackle market because they needed one before Devon Hamilton now, and I think that this is one of those situations where, you know, Jacksonville can say all they want.

No, no, no, no, no, no, no.

Brian Thomas doesn't fit into this offense.

He just doesn't.

And so if you can get a 2 and use that as ammo and not jank up your formula, I, I think that's, I think that's the path forward for Jacksonville, right?

And it's like, God, you do wonder.

If they just had held Pat and took Mason Graham.

And again, like, you know, Travis Hunter's, he's starting to get involved in all three phases now, he was returning punts last week.

Like, I do think he will eventually materialize as a player that you're like, worth it.

Um, but man, like in the right now, like, can you imagine that team with Mason Graham and, and, and having had a healthy Devon Hamilton playing the way that he was.

Uh, I, I think that would be interesting, but the Jags competing against the Jaguars there, uh, I think in the DT market a little bit, and then I think the, the, the Steelers are interesting too.

They're asking around on receivers.

Like I think for them.

You know, it might be like more of like a complimentary guy, um, you know, and, and, and, and maybe they need some sort of speed element, you know, a lower-end like pickup would be like a Hollywood Brown, you know, where maybe they could get him for a little bit less.

You know, Ridley, um, you know, Ridley is another one that I think, you know, would be a nice compliment to, to DK's a different type of receiver, um, you know, they've got a, a rookie that I, you know, I, I've got high hopes for in Jeremy Bernard.

Like I think he's gonna be a good player.

So, you know, you, if you can add a receiver to that group, I think that that's, that's another team that, you know, you, you, you, you maybe you're like kind of like in that strike while the iron's hot type of place, even though.

Draft picks are gonna be valuable to them over the next couple of years because they're gonna need to get a lot younger.

I'm, I'm like trying to run through my internal Rolodex and be like, which one of Aaron Rodgers' friends is still available, but I, you know, the, the whole idea of that, like the way that Bernard is playing in Pittsburgh flies in the face of this idea that Rodgers can't work with a new person, he can't work with an unfamiliar person.

And while he's still very loyal to his guys, he's at the end of his career, I don't know what changed, but is breaking in.

Uh, a rookie wide receiver who is playing some really valuable snaps for them .

And so I do wonder if you could kind of paint with a little bit broader of a brush, but I like the idea of like a Hollywood Brown or, you know, like, would the commanders take a call on Steph Diggs at this point, especially if they lose this week.

I don't know.

I mean, I think that's like an interesting, yeah, we talked about how interesting their locker room is, and then you throw Steph Diggs in the mix.

Sometimes you just gotta be like, listen, this is a weird party already chaos, whatever, you know, more chaos and let Papa Mike handle it.

Uh, he'll figure it out.

Uh, the Vikings, Albert, are a team that fascinates me.

Listen, before you start, I just want to say this, they are going to regret.

Not calling the Raiders, and just yanking Kirk, like making an offer for Kirk Cousins that they can't refuse.

And everybody, like I said this, I'm gonna get all Nick right with it.

And everybody's gonna say that, no, uh, that, you know, a 2nd round pick or a 3rd round pick for Kirk Cousins is ridiculous.

This team is built to go to the conference title game right now.

If they had adequate quarterback play, they are arguably the 2nd best team in the NFC and maybe the 2nd best team in their own division, right?

But you cannot.

Glide by, like, and, and everyone's like a 2nd round pick for Kirk Cousins, a 3rd round pick for Kirk Cousins.

You're crazy.

Going to the conference title game, that's the goal.

Like, you know, what do we need?

Another backup safety next year to replace Harrison Smith?

Go find him somewhere else.

Like, who gives a shit?

Go to the conference title game.

Go get Kirk Cousins.

And I know, I, I saw Schefter saying he's not available.

Well, Jeffrey Simmons wasn't available.

You know, go call them and blow their minds.

Freak them out.

Like, get a quarterback in here.

Kyler Murray is not it, man.

And Kevin O'Connell told us that over the, uh, last week when with like 3:30 to go, he wouldn't let him go for it on a 4th and 4 and punted the ball.

He doesn't trust Murray.

But he likes Murray more than I, I honestly think like that was the Was that not the difference between the Vikings and the Lions?

Yeah, like, Jared Goff, like his numbers weren't great.

There was something from that game.

I, I mean, this is a little bit of an aside, but I thought this was really interesting.

I was able to ascertain when I was writing about the Lions yesterday, um, you remember the big play, um, in the first half to Jamison Williams that converted like a 3rd and 13, right.

So that play happened because the Lions were coached that the Vikings read eyes constantly.

And so, you can take advantage of them.

The one way you can take advantage of them, if you can buy time, you can use their eyes against them, right?

And so Jared Goff on that play, if you go back and you watch, he has an option to throw the flat, throwing the flat to Gibbs.

And he looks over there and then you see Theo Jackson move up like 3 steps when he sees the, he sees Goff looking at Gibbs and Goff turns back around and puts the ball right over Jackson's head to Jamison Williams and it was like that's really high-level quarterback play against a really good difficult defense and that's why the Lions will beat the Vikings when it counts, you know , and so.

Is Kirk Cousins a world beater?

No, but I would think that like, O'Connell would look at something like that and it would frustrate him, because it would be like, I don't, I can't do that right now.

You know what I mean?

Like, I can't do that with my quarterback right now.

And I think like having, I know, by, by the way, I, he can't do that with Went either, like he doesn't have a quarterback on his roster that can do that right now, you know, and those are the sorts of plays that, that win, and I think I'm, I'm with you on this one, like you've thrown some stuff out there that I haven't, I haven't agreed with, um, but I, I, I do not mind at all, the idea of bringing Kirk Cousins in because I do think you have a championship-level defense, and, you know, I brought, I picked that one play out.

The margins were so thin and beaten the Vikings' defense that it took something like that to do it, you know.

You let Sam Darnold walk out of the building.

You let JJ McCarthy walk out of the building.

You let Daniel Jones walk out of the building.

You're breaking in a new GM.

Would you call the Colts on Daniel Jones?

Yeah, but like I, it's just so expensive is the thing the money expensive, yeah, like what, what's the, and then are you pont committed to him for next year, you know what I mean?

And I think that's the problem.

I am that man, man, if that happened, I mean, party in Florham Park.

I mean, it already is, right?

um, now, you know, with the Jets, it's interesting because like who's gonna show up to actually be a quarterback that they can draft?

Everybody seems like they're running back to college, I guess.

Drew Massmaker to Jersey, right?

Yeah, you're gonna love it here, Drew.

Um, yeah, I mean, I, I, I, I don't know why I'm so dug in on this, but Uh, and again, well, I, I know why, because they've got an aging defense and there's an expiration date on what they're doing on that side of the ball, and, and Flores will figure it out with the younger group.

I, I don't think, I, I don't think, but it won't be the same, the same as this, because he, he has a group now that is perfect for him that will help, helps leverage all of the different things that he's able to do, and you cannot do that if you don't have Cashman and Van Noy.

And Van Ginkle and Murphy and Harrison Smith, you, you just, it's impossible to do that if you, if you, if you don't have players like that.

Let me explain this to the people who don't realize it, and this isn't like a condescending thing.

I think it's just a common misconception.

Brian Flores is not calling the plays on defense.

Brian Flores designed the structure of the defense.

And Harrison Smith and the rest of those guys are using those tools to see what is happening on the field, and they're saying, OK, this, that, this, that, this, that, this, that.

So it's not like, you know, Brian Flores is not, like, by losing Harrison Smith and like, uh, the reason I was so excited when Harrison Smith came back and everyone's like, he's 38, he's cooked, he's kind of like a second defensive coordinator and you need that guy on the field to be able to make sure everybody's lined up, to be able to make sure, hey, if I run.

This guy, we cool on the back end, all that kind of stuff.

I mean, I remember talking to, I mean, when Wink Martindale and Jesse Minor and Mike McDonald like basically reinvented the Ravens defense in 18, you know who the key was, was Eric Weddle, right?

It was like we have Eric Weddle like and other defenses don't, and so how can we take advantage of it?

We can.

We can, we can adjust and change what we do right to the snap of the ball because we have a we have an air traffic controller back there.

And that's what Harrison Smith is for the Vikings.