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00:00We talk about everything here on the early line because we've got to get you prepared.
00:04We know the NFL season is still months away, but my goodness, before you know it, you'll
00:07be in training camp and ready to go for the opening day kickoff when the Philadelphia
00:11Eagles receive their rings, show the trophy, and then set off to maybe going back to back
00:16in the NFL season to be Super Bowl champions here.
00:20It's Joe Ranieri.
00:21It's Donnie Wright.
00:22It's Joe Lisi, who, correct me if I'm wrong, first time on the network since the Super
00:25Bowl.
00:26Joe, love to have you back here.
00:27Awesome stuff.
00:28Yeah, this is it.
00:30This is it, Donnie.
00:31You got me up for the early line.
00:32Nothing better.
00:33We got Final Four on the horizon, the lead aid action tonight, and obviously all the
00:37news surrounding the NFL, including your guy, Russell Wilson, doesn't really get better
00:43than this, does it?
00:44No, it doesn't.
00:45Like, I have one guy on here named Joe who works around the clock for the network.
00:49That's Joe Ranieri.
00:50And then Joe Lisi, who I don't even think he works more than two to three times a week,
00:53so I got both my best friends here on the network to try to get after it here.
00:57Now, when we talk about quarterbacks getting after who maybe shouldn't be working in certain
01:03spots here, I cannot believe Russell Wilson ended up signing with the New York Giants.
01:10My head almost exploded, but I don't want to take up any time because I have railed
01:14this week repeatedly on this.
01:15I need your take.
01:17Russell Wilson to the Giants for who, for what?
01:20No, it's a joke.
01:22And I said that to Ben on the radio side, that the New York Giants clearly don't have
01:27a plan.
01:28And the plan is to definitely try and win now to save both of their jobs, you know,
01:33Brian Gable and Joe Shane, because that's the only option that they have.
01:37If they were to draft a young quarterback coming out of this draft, let's say Shadour
01:41Sanders, Jackson Dart, they would have to live with the growing pains.
01:45Now they made their bed, they have to live with it.
01:48When they did this, Donnie, in year number one, when they paid Daniel Jones, the $40
01:52million extension from that point on, it's just been a slow regression.
01:58And that's why you're seeing them trying to scrape things together, throw it together,
02:03put a bandaid on it and hope to be an eight or a nine win football team.
02:06Now I did see that the win total was very low with Russell Wilson, three and a half.
02:11It's up to four and a half, five.
02:13I think they can be a six win football team.
02:15But other than that, there is no clear plan in New York with this organization.
02:20They were better off ripping it down, starting anew, getting a young quarterback that could
02:25be the face of the franchise.
02:28Having Russell Wilson in your organization does you absolutely nothing.
02:32And I'll just say this, you know, the Giants are similar and the Steelers are similar to
02:37what the New York Giants are doing, because they have absolutely no plan heading into
02:42this draft.
02:43If they draft Jalen Milrow and expect to make the playoffs, they are out of their minds
02:49in Pittsburgh.
02:50All right.
02:51So let me, let me ask you a question.
02:54Over or under amount of games before Tommy DeVito is the starter again for the Giants?
03:00Just curious.
03:01Throw it out.
03:02Give me a number.
03:03By week eight?
03:04Week nine?
03:05When does it blow up?
03:06Week 10?
03:07Week 10.
03:09You have to draw the fans in to some capacity, right?
03:13And if Russell Wilson performs the way he did at the end of the regular season for the
03:18Steelers, where he only averaged 175 passing yards per game, he's going to be out and DeVito
03:24will be in.
03:25Jameis Winston might be in there for a couple of games as well.
03:28But after he throws 10 picks in two games, they'll move on and start DeVito.
03:34By week 10, Joe Lisi and also some of the Giants quarterbacks here, which includes Tommy
03:38DeVito, breaking bread at Rayos, saying, you know what, this is the start of a great relationship
03:43here.
03:44He can meet with his agent again, have some fun.
03:45You know, you can do that.
03:46Yeah.
03:47Why not?
03:48Why not?
03:49How about this?
03:52The Giants, like, I'm laughing at the, I loved it, the three and a half set came out
03:55on another, you know, outlet there, now sitting at five and a half at most.
03:59We stole that number.
04:00The Giants are going to win six games next year.
04:01I do believe that.
04:02But if you look at the other team in New York, who would actually thought this just a few
04:06short years ago, the Jets would be a better run franchise than the New York Giants.
04:09And I firmly believe that.
04:10Now, Joe, I know you're a big Justin Fields guy.
04:13I don't necessarily love Justin Fields, but you know what?
04:15I love the move for Fields to go to the Jets.
04:17A free look at a young quarterback on a decent contract that if you find that he's your franchise
04:22guy, you don't have to go to the draft.
04:24But if it doesn't work out, then you go back to the draft because you completely gut that
04:28franchise and start from the bottom with a new head coach and a new general manager.
04:32I like the upside on the Jets.
04:33Talk to me about Justin Fields to the Jets in your mind, what it means for them this
04:37season.
04:38I think it's a great addition, Donnie.
04:39We talk about a young quarterback.
04:41He's a locker room guy.
04:43He's not like Aaron Rodgers, going to take the media hype and fanfare away from the team.
04:48It'll be about the team wholeheartedly and Aaron Glenn in year number one has the ability
04:53to cultivate that young talent and to pick potentially a nine win football team.
04:58Are they going to win the AFC East?
04:59Probably, most likely not.
05:01But you look at their prices right now to win a Super Bowl, $190,000 to $1,000,000.
05:05Are you kidding me?
05:07Justin Fields has won games in the NFL.
05:09He was 4-2 as a starter for the Pittsburgh Steelers.
05:12The offensive line breaks down.
05:14He can make plays with his legs in terms of the RPO game.
05:18He's paired with Garrett Wilson, his former teammate at Ohio State.
05:22They have young talent there, Brees Hall, Braylon Allen, Garrett Wilson.
05:26The sky could be the limit for this offense, and I'm saying overachieving expectations.
05:32I expect the win total to be, what, six and a half?
05:35If that's seven, they can get to nine or ten wins and be a 10-7 football team and make
05:40the wild card.
05:41That'll be great for Aaron Glenn in year number one.
05:44I'm completely bought in to Justin Fields as the starter for that organization.
05:51Joe, are there any quarterbacks that you would, in the top of this draft coming up,
05:58that are worth taking a shot on, or are we going to see a draft filled with a whole lot
06:04of defensemen, offensive linemen, guys nobody's heard of?
06:07It doesn't feel like this is a great quarterback draft, nor should the teams at the top be
06:11reaching for one.
06:12No, I agree, Joe.
06:14I think there's only two.
06:15I think it's Cam Ward, and I do feel that Shadur Sanders is a top-ten talent.
06:20I say that because he put up dynamic numbers with one of the worst offensive lines in two
06:25years in terms of college football.
06:27Sacked 50-plus times last year, still put up dynamic numbers, led his team to a nine-and-ten
06:33win football season and win season.
06:36That's a dynamic effort for that team, and where they were just a couple of years ago
06:41were Carl Durrell.
06:43So I agree.
06:44I think there's only two.
06:45I think if you're reaching on Jackson Dart or reaching on Tyler Shook, they might be
06:50in the first round, but I don't think they're first-round greats.
06:53Tyler Shook couldn't get it done in three teams.
06:56Texas Tech, yeah, he put up numbers with Louisville, but couldn't win a big game at Oregon, and
07:01now the NFL scouts think that he's the second coming of Jim Drunkenmiller.
07:06How did that pan out?
07:07It's unbelievable.
07:08I think there's only two guys.
07:12Drunkenmiller, unbelievable squat numbers, man.
07:14Popping eyeballs out with the draft.
07:20How about Gio Carmazzi?
07:21I mean, is that guy available for some extra reps here in the draft to see if that's—
07:24Oh, with the Italians now.
07:26That's it.
07:27Not the Italians.
07:28A couple of those guys, the Flying Dutchman out there out of Long Island.
07:32But let me take a look at this for you.
07:34Yesterday, we get news, and this involves the draft as well, that the Steelers go, you
07:37know what, Joe?
07:38I think we might want to draft Jalen Milrow in the first round here.
07:41Because why?
07:42Aaron Rodgers is on the market.
07:44It's clear.
07:45Pittsburgh Steelers.
07:46I'm going to tell you this right now.
07:47He doesn't want to actually go there.
07:48But you could overpay him.
07:49You know what?
07:50I might as well go because you're paying me so much money.
07:52Joe, talk to me about Aaron Rodgers.
07:54There's no real places to go that he can win at.
07:58Maybe in Pittsburgh he can do that and get lightning in a bottle and get to the playoffs.
08:02Why does he not want Pittsburgh?
08:03And what is he waiting for then?
08:05Donny, I have no idea.
08:07I don't know if he needs more vacation time, but you're telling me that last weekend Aaron
08:13Rodgers was in the Pittsburgh Steelers facility, and he didn't walk out with a contract.
08:19That's on Mike Tomlin, and that's on the Steelers.
08:21I would have put the contract on the table, said, here's the number.
08:25You want it?
08:26You sign.
08:27You walk out that door.
08:28Don't let the door hit you in the ass.
08:29Be honest.
08:30I mean, what is the Steelers allowing Aaron Rodgers to hold them hostage at this point?
08:35They have no clear plan, and Mason Rudolph is the only guy on that roster.
08:40And oh, by the way, he led them to a playoff win, not a win, a game against Buffalo a couple
08:45of years ago.
08:46They have no clear plan since they drafted Kenny Pickett on how to get out of quarterback
08:51purgatory.
08:53They just can't do it.
08:54Aaron Rodgers is the best option right now, but if he says no or it doesn't work out,
08:59they have to go with a quarterback like Jalen Milrow.
09:01But he's such a project at this point, they're not going to win immediate games.
09:06And oh, by the way, they had Justin Fields there and allowed him to walk out the door.
09:11Why not work with Justin Fields if that was what you wanted?
09:15Aaron Rodgers in vacation time.
09:17Nobody gets more other than Ben Stevens and Kevin Walsh here at the Sportsman Network.
09:21We're up next to Draft Talk.
09:23It's draft season, people.
09:25Get ready.
09:26Teams are going to try to draft their quarterbacks, their tight ends, their offensive linemen to
09:28get ready to go.
09:29But understand this, too.
09:30The smoke screens come out at this time like you've never seen before.
09:34Like you're talking about an LSU lineman out here that is a left tackle and absolutely
09:37dominant heading into the draft.
09:40Puts out unbelievable game film, Joe Lienz, and they tell him, hey, man, I just measured
09:43your arms.
09:44We don't think you can play in the NFL anymore at this point.
09:46So get ready for this stuff.
09:47Xavier Restrepo, one of the better wide receivers in college football, homeruns a 4'8 out there.
09:51Now all of a sudden, he didn't even know he's getting CFL style, maybe back to high school
09:54at this point.
09:55You know what I mean?
09:56The rumors are out there where these kids are trying to prove their drafts by saying,
10:00I dominate on the football field.
10:01Now you don't like me in shorts and a t-shirt.
10:03I don't think it makes sense.
10:04It doesn't.
10:05But having said that, you look at the keys to the number one overall draft pick here
10:08at the Fanblue Sportsbook.
10:09It's Cam Ward.
10:10And sometimes we miss opportunities because it's usually like, you know what?
10:13Let me take a 500 to 1, a 600 to 1, like an extreme long shot on something and sit it
10:18out there.
10:19Well, Cam Ward just a few weeks ago, Joe, plus 140s, minus 140s, minus 180s, up to minus
10:24300s.
10:25Going like, you know Cam Ward's going to be the number one overall pick in this draft.
10:28He now sits at a 12 to 1 price.
10:30What if I told you today, you can lay $1,200 to win $100 back.
10:33Most people say no.
10:34But if I told you that was a lot, that in a month you get $100 bucks back, people still
10:37won't take that.
10:38So for number one overall, what's it going to take for Cam Ward to not be the number
10:42one overall pick?
10:43Is it even possible at this point?
10:45No.
10:46I think if you're Tennessee and you swung and missed on both Malik Willis and Will Levis
10:51last year, a couple of years ago, you have to take Cam Ward.
10:55You have to do right by the organization and take the best quarterback in this draft
11:00class, which is Cam Ward.
11:02The mobility, which we saw Jaden Daniels take games over with his legs, is Cam Ward is dynamic
11:08as Jaden Daniels.
11:10Not so much, but he still has that ability in terms of his game.
11:14If they were to pass up on that, trade out, get more value, get better depth and hang
11:21and just get a coverage of areas in terms of positions, that would be the wrong approach
11:27for the Tennessee Titans.
11:29They have to make right by this.
11:31They have the number one slot.
11:32Cam Ward is the guy.
11:34They should be solidified in that.
11:35It should be minus 2,500 at this point, Donny, because he's clearly the best quarterback
11:40in this class.
11:41The ability to extend the pocket, the ability to locate wide receivers, always keep his
11:46eyes down the field.
11:48We talked about the RPO game a little bit better than Shadur Sanders, who's the pocket
11:53passer in terms of this draft class.
11:55Cam Ward has to be the guy for the Tennessee Titans.
11:58If you swing and miss, at least you took a shot with the number one overall selection
12:03as opposed to picking a quarterback in the third and fourth rounds and second round like
12:07they did with Malik Willis and Will Levis.
12:12It's going to be fascinating, Joe, because you love this time of year because there's
12:15absolutely, I believe, half of what you hear and pretty much nothing of what you see.
12:21When teams are telling me how excited they are about a guy, I usually tend to look the
12:27other way.
12:28But play it out with me here.
12:30It doesn't feel like there is anybody franchise changing that is going to, that teams are
12:37going to have to move up the draft and give away the farm to go get.
12:42Cam Ward stays with Tennessee, right?
12:45Then you've got Abdul Carter going to Cleveland, which is what most people seem to think because
12:50you need an edge rusher.
12:52If I'm the Giants at three and Shadur Sanders is there, I'm not taking him or are the Giants
12:58looking for somebody else to come up and grab him?
13:01What happens here?
13:02Well, I would be, if you're the Giants and now you've made your bet and you've already
13:07got Russell Wilson and Jameis Winston there, you can't then take Shadur Sanders.
13:12When's he going to play?
13:13Well, you know, with both of those guys ahead of him, and then all of a sudden now you're
13:17going to start Shadur Sanders, that would be the worst move for the organization.
13:22The best move, if they're not going to move out, would be Travis Hunter.
13:25And I say that because you have a dual threat player, potentially the most athletic in this
13:30draft class, a game changer at the cornerback position, knowing that you have to go up with
13:35the likes of Washington and obviously the Super Bowl champ, Philadelphia Eagles.
13:40You need a lockdown corner to shut down both A.J. Brown and those elite wide receivers,
13:46including C.D. Lamb for Dallas.
13:48So again, if you could get him to play both ways as well, maybe not 50 or 60 offensive
13:55plays, but get him in a limited package where he could play 10 to 15 plays on the offensive
14:01side and pair him with Malik neighbors.
14:03Now you will at least give Russell Wilson weapons to potentially challenge some of those
14:08teams within the division.
14:10If I was the Giants and you're not going to get a taker for number three, I would take
14:14Travis Hunter at this point.
14:16Yeah, there's no like the Giants did so many wacky things here at this point where it's
14:20like, like, yes, at number three is like, wow, we didn't expect the quarterback to be
14:23there. Now we have him to take him.
14:25You're not starting him over Russell Wilson, which then means you just signed two veteran
14:29quarterbacks that aren't going to play.
14:30And DeVito is already on the roster to let you play and see what happens.
14:34So it seems like a disaster on the outside.
14:35Let me ask you a question, Joe.
14:36Number two overall, right?
14:38It's usually quarterbacks get overdrafted.
14:40I think Abdul Kord is the best overall player, which many would agree with in this draft
14:43where it is. But what should the Browns actually do at number two?
14:46Just take the best player on the board overreach if they don't think Sanders is the right
14:50guy, because they don't have a quarterback either.
14:51Like what are the Browns doing here?
14:53Yeah, I mean, here's the thing, right?
14:55Yes, you're right. He's a game changer.
14:57We saw what Philadelphia did with the defensive needs over the past few drafts, right?
15:02Drafting all Georgia dominant talent.
15:05So, yeah, I would say, yeah, Abdul Kord would be the pick.
15:07And then you're going to, what, pair him with Miles Garrett and you're still hoping on Kenny
15:11Pickett to be that franchise guy.
15:13If I was Cleveland right now, I would take a swing on Shadur Sanders.
15:17I mean, why not take a shot with Shadur Sanders, see if he could change the organization,
15:23make him start from day number one, get the growing pains out and maybe have a Jane
15:28Daniels type of season.
15:29I mean, that would be the best option for the Cleveland Browns.
15:33Hoping that the Sean Watson is going to come back in a couple of years and help you is
15:37not the answer. Kenny Pickett is a backup.
15:39He can perform when counted on in small sample sizes, but he's not the answer to save the
15:45organization. Why not take Shadur Sanders and see if you could catch lightning in a
15:50bottle? Drafting Abdul Kord is basically like a layup need.
15:55It's great. You solidify the defense, but it's not bringing you any closer to challenge
16:00those teams in the division that have elite quarterback play like Lamar Jackson and Joe
16:05Burrow. By the way, answer me this, too, because as I see Albert Brewer tweets out
16:10today, the Titans are working Miami quarterback Cam Ward out privately on campus today per
16:14sources. You had meetings with him.
16:17He had his pro day. He's going to be in shorts again.
16:20Are they saying, look, I just need you to throw that seven yard slant one more time just
16:24to make sure we think you can play football at this point in T-shirts and shorts and with
16:29no defense out there.
16:30I love the NFL, but sometimes they just overcomplicate it.
16:33You knew exactly last year the best quarterback was all season long.
16:36Need another private workout to figure if that's your guy.
16:39What are we doing, Tennessee, instead of using the company jet for useless miles?