The 2026 Baltimore Ravens are seen as a potentially strong team centered on a high-impact duo of Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry, with a promising offensive shift under new coordinator Declan Doyle that emphasizes under-center play and play-action. This could unlock explosive efficiency and more one-on-one situations, especially with improved corner coverage and a deeper edge rush. However, key defensive concerns loom large—particularly the return of Mattabique, the aging of core players like Humphrey and Smith, and a lack of depth in pass coverage. The team’s defensive philosophy may shift from last year’s overreliance on single-high coverage to a more man-centric approach, bolstered by players like Nate Wiggins and Jalen Hawkins, though how this translates into game-day execution remains uncertain. In contrast, the Cincinnati Bengals are viewed as having a high-potential offensive transformation, aiming to integrate a more under-center, run-based system to create unpredictability. While the move is strategically sound, early signs from preseason—such as a failed under-center play action—raise questions about consistency and execution. The success of this shift hinges on whether the team can maintain discipline and trust in new play designs, especially under Joe Burrow’s comfort with traditional shotgun offense. On defense, the trade for Dexter Lawrence is promising, but the edge room’s effectiveness—particularly with Shamar Stewart and Miles Murphy—remains questionable, given last year’s poor performance in run defense and reliance on loaded boxes. Ultimately, both teams face significant hurdles: the Ravens in defensive consistency and player health, and the Bengals in offensive execution and defensive adaptability. Success will depend not just on talent but on the ability to execute new systems under pressure.
Welcome to the athletic football show. I'm Robert Mays division previews roll on today. The AFC North lot of fun stuff to dig into. Meet Dave and Derek not wasting any time. Let's get to it. The AFC North preview right now. The division previews rolling on today. We have the AFC North coming your guys way today. Like we did with the AFC West yesterday. We're doing this in order of division odds. So if you were upset with the order we're hitting these teams, that is the reason that is the explanation. It makes sense for this one, you know, like we can't. We don't want to start with. I'm just trying to be consistent. We don't want to start with the Steelers. I'm sorry, like sorry Steelers fans. We don't want to start with this. So we have set each other our answers for this before we started recording. My favorite part about the entire layout of the AFC North preview is that for the what a success for some of the teams it's felt very practical. And for the Steelers, every single one of our answers is just riddled with existential like glooming dread, which I think just says so much about the current state of the Pittsburgh Steelers. If your team evokes Sisyphus as a mental image, yeah, we'll get into it later. We will, we will get to the Steelers, but we are starting with the Baltimore Ravens. Our preview for the 2026 Baltimore Ravens. They're off season in 60 seconds. Higher Jesse Mentors, the head coach, Declan Doyles, the offensive coordinator, Anthony Weaver is the defensive coordinator. Signed John Simpson, Trey Hendrixson, Kalea Campbell, Jalen Hawkins, and later Ethan Postage in free agency. Lost Tyler Linderbaum, Isaiah, likely Charlie Kohler, Patrick Ricard, a low-heed Gilman in the draft, Vega, you want to in round one, Zion Young in round two, Jacobi Lane in round three. For each team, we're going to kick things off with what we are most excited about as it relates to this team heading into 2026. Derek, what are you most excited about for the 2026 Baltimore Ravens? This team still has Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry. It's really as simple as that to me. I remember when they signed Derek Henry initially that I was like, "Over the moon, excited about how cool this could be." We've seen for a couple of years that when it is working, it is the coolest and most effective offense in the entire league. Obviously, there were a couple of reasons some of that fell away last year. Some offensive line issues. Maybe the Marjacks and himself was a little bit banged up. He even talked about today. They were asking why didn't you run as much. He's like, "Well, I was hurt. I don't know what to tell you." I think if he's healthier, Derek Henry, I believe we'll be able to do this until he's 40. As so long as those two are on the field together, this is going to be the offense that I want to watch every single week. Building on that too, last year was an unfortunate reminder of football mortality, just because Lamar Jackson has been at these dizzying heights for, I mean, really most of his career, but definitely the last two years before 2025 and watching him struggle and also not be mobile and run as little as he has in his NFL career and just not look like the Lamar Jackson. We've gotten used to. I hope his decline is a long, long ways off, but it reminded me, of course, we still want to hold him to the standard of succeeding in the playoffs and he wants to bring Baltimore championship, but it's a reminder to enjoy these moments. And I know we joke all the time that Derek Henry will never age, but he will eventually stop don't think he can do this forever. I don't think he can do it forever. I hope he can, but he would be the first one. And so I'm trying to be in the moment with Lamar and Derek Henry this year. And I hope they're at their peak power. And I just want to enjoy it. I want to enjoy what I think will be a better Baltimore offense for all the categories we're hitting. I don't think we have space for this. And so I wanted to just sit here with it for a second while we're talking about the offense. We did not talk about Declan Doyle in the new play call or show Derek, we just ran out of time. And so as you think about Declan Doyle coming over from Chicago, and I know that he spent time with Sean Payton previously, but I think if you're, I'll bet you a lot of money that if we're looking at the offense, the Ravens most resemble this year, it will look most like the Chicago Bears offense from last year, not whatever Declan Doyle was doing in New Orleans in Denver with Sean Payton. So as you think about Lamar Jackson at this stage in his career, Derek playing in a system with those ideas that Declan Doyle is likely bringing over from Chicago, what do you think about that marriage and what do you think this is going to look like? I mean, I think it's going to be pretty good because you know, I think we've talked about this a little bit at different points, you know, beforehand, but they're probably going to be a lot more under center. And Lamar Jackson is not someone who's done that a ton in his NFL career, but when he's done it, he's been excellent. I guess 0.40, EPA per dropback under center since entering the league, which is the best by a mile. And again, I think there's some amount of like the less you do a thing, you kind of have room to be more efficient at it, but he has been incredible at it. And this is something that going all the way back to college, like he actually was the guy who came out of college with some under center experience. Like this is not a thing that was ever uncomfortable for him. And he's always been really good at I think throwing the middle of the field, anticipating he can layer touch to that layer of the field. And you know, I was even watching some of the games from last year, some of the examples where they did go under center. And he's soon as he hits the top of the dropback, he's just chucking that deep overall. Like he is very comfortable doing a lot of that stuff. And so I think the question more is like how do the other pieces of the personnel kind of layer into that? One of them is like obviously coming from the Ben Johnson offense. They didn't necessarily have a fullback, but they put Durham smith in the backfield on about 46 runs last year. Well, he's on the Ravens roster now. So it's pretty easy to see how that would paste over into this roster. So I just think that this is a marriage that is going to work. And obviously they're not as talented at some of the skill positions. And we'll talk about that. But I just have so much faith that Lamar is always able to iterate and do the next thing. All these quarterbacks that we're talking about stepping into a more under center world this year. Jay, Jay Daniels, Jaywin Hertz, Joe Barrow, Patrick Mahomes, they all come from a place where it's fairly foreign or more foreign than it is to Lamar Jackson. Like the idea of well, what's Jaywin Hertz going to look like in an under center world where he may be asked to throw the ball to the middle of the field more often. That's where there's some guesswork involved in that. That's what Lamar Jackson does best. It's really the best thing about who he is as a quarterback. And so a system designed to kind of pry open that area and have him play with maybe a little bit more space because of the play action stuff that they're likely going to lean into. I'm excited to see what that's going to look like. It is interesting that it would take Declan Doyle to ramp this up though, because I assume that's what's going to happen. Like the bears were second in the league in play action attempts last year. The Ravens, it's never like you said, it's never been like Hertz or Jay Daniels or Joe Barrow. He's been under center like a normal amount. It's not been a ton, but it's been a it hasn't been a total outlier like it's been with some of those other guys, but specifically agreed. Yes. But and also with play action, it's not that they don't do a lot of play action. Like they've hovered between 10 and 15 over the last like three years last year. They were second-fewest in the league. I assume some of that is because of Lamar's injuries, but do it more often. Yeah. Like why why are we in 2026 just now talking about doing it a lot? And so I hope Declan Doyle dials it up to the degree that the bears were doing last year because they were awesome at it. You guys are focusing on the offense and what you're excited to watch. I'm excited to see what Jesse Minter can do with like some serious dudes. The chargers have a decent collection of personnel. Derwin James is a good player. Clill Mac still has, you know, Clill Mac is pretty ageless at this point two to two below two ahead of nice season. They've tired tart. They've gotten a lot out of, but we talked about this with the chargers yesterday. The chargers, a lot of the excitement about the chargers over the last couple of years is their ability to get more than they've paid for with some of these guys. I mean, tire tart was available essentially for free. The Ravens have invested in some big name guys all the way across that defense. And I'm excited to see what Jesse Minter can do with this level of defense talent on the high end. Kyle Hamilton, Nate Wiggins. We'll see what we get from Matt and BK, which we'll hit in a second. Malachi Stark's was a first round pick. Try Hendrix and they paid a shitload of money too. And not only what the overall quality of this is going to look like, but how do they play? Do they feel like they can play a little bit more man coverage because they have Wiggins and Marlon Humphrey on the outside. Do they get a little bit match year? The chargers last year were 28th and man coverage rate. And the other thing I feel like is going to be something to work. That's worth watching. That's important here. The Ravens last year specifically, they played a ton of single high coverages. They were the fifth highest rate of single high coverage is in the NFL last year in Baltimore. The chargers were 28th. The chargers played two and a half times the amount of quarters that the Ravens played last year. And when the Ravens were at their best with this core of pieces, two years ago in Mike McDonald was there. It was these ideas. Even if the system in the language was the same with Zach Orr, stylistically, they had really drifted away from a lot of the stuff that they were doing with McDonald when this was the best defense in the NFL. And so I think we'll see them move back in that general direction. And I think with this collection of players and just what we've seen from Jesse mentor over the last couple of years, it's a group that's pretty easy to get excited about. I think the man coverage stuff that you're talking about is really the biggest point to me because I think, you know, the chargers last year, they just didn't really have the personnel to do it. Like I think Dante Jackson can be a decent one on one corner, but they played a lot of match. Or they played a lot of zone for a reason. So I think Cam Hart is really good at that. Still is really good at that. When I look at and honestly, you mentioned the that they were 28th in man coverage rate. If you look at just cover one, they're second to last. The only one that was a lot of cover zero. Yeah, exactly. Like they'll do it a little bit when they play zero. But that went like Like just pure cover one like playing with a rat or a robber didn't really
do a whole lot of that because they just didn't trust their corners. Whereas I think you look at what Baltimore has both at corner like Nate Wiggins can play one on one, Humphrey can play one on one, but also what they have at safety. Like I think if you want to like roll down Starks or Hamilton or Jalen Hawkins as like that robber, but they can absolutely do it. If you want to have Roku on Smith, be the rat. Like he can do it. Like I just, it feels like they have a lot more better personnel to run a lot more of that man stuff, but you just wonder how does that fit into some of the shells and run defense stuff that they like to do because playing a lot more man does change like how your fits work and stuff like that. So I just wonder how he's going to make all that sort of stuff work for them. And even if it's not man coverage specifically, I think one of the bigger differentiators between let's just call it, let's say quarters, right? When they were playing quarters when McDonald was there, there's a little bit more air in that version of quarters than the way that Jesse mentor likes to play it. And I think if you're going to be a little bit matchier and stickier with this group of corners, you can play that way. Even if it's not, even if it's not man coverage, quote unquote, I just think that stylistically some of the things they already want to do are better unlocked with this group of corners and arguably the ones that he had when he was with the chargers, which just feels like such a sigh of relief that the Nate Wiggins injury from a week or two ago doesn't appear to be that serious. And I'm really coming back. The fact that they came back the same day was somebody who picked the Ravens in the defense draft. I was very happy to see them both get back onto the practice field at the exact same time. These teams we want to talk about just what we're watching over the first month of the season, a curiosity that we have some lingering questions about that we think will ultimately be important in determining how the season goes. Dave, let's kick this off with you. What are you watching over the first month of the season with the Baltimore Ravens? Nomdi Mattabique's role if he's healthy enough to have one. I've been beaten this drum since men are took the job. So why stop now? The latest report out of Baltimore's camp is that he was hitting the sled for the first time on Monday, which is definitively progress, baby steps. That's, you know, we're hoping the best form and we hope he comes back great, but hitting the sled for the first time on August 24th, tempers my hopes and dreams a little bit, you know, like if we'll see where it goes, but that makes me think this is more of a gradual process than Mattabique's cannonballing back into this lineup in week one and we're, we're back to the way things were, which we talked about it on a show this summer. The difference when he's been on the field for them, not last year because he was hurt and he played two games, but in 23 and 24, this was such a substantially better defense when he was on the field. Like the on-off splits for success rate, explosive rate allowed, stuff rate allowed our start when he's in there. And I know several things contributed to it, but the Ravens fell from first in DVOA to in 23 to 6th and 24 or 17th last year, not having him in the center of all that is undoubtedly a huge piece of it. So how quickly can he get back and what does he look like when he's back? I mean, maybe the first month of the season isn't even enough time. Maybe it has to be more gradual than that, but I'm going to be watching that like a hawk. It's important not only just for the overall quality of the defense, but when you look at that room specifically, Clayis Campbell is kind of a tweener, but Clayis Campbell's 40 years old at this point. They don't have a lot of twitch among that group. Clayis Campbell. Big boys. Clayis Campbell is 40 and really 40, I think he's 39. Okay. I think he's 39. But John Jenkins is not much younger and Broderick Washington, he is much younger, but he's still 30. Clayis Campbell will turn 40 next week. Yeah, dude. So that's not even an exaggeration. He will be 40 years old next week. They are long in the tooth doesn't do justice to the room behind Mattabique. I will say not having as much past rush pop on the interior and this team is so much better if they have Mattabique doing that. I do think the edge room is a lot deeper and more dynamic this year than it was last year. You have kind of these cool stylistic mirror images of one another where you have Trey Hendrickson and Mike Green as kind of your bendier speed past rush guys. And then you have Zion Johnson and Tavius Robinson is more of your big bodied early down edge players. And that makes of those four guys, if Hendrickson can, we'll talk about that in a second, but Hendrickson getting back to form Mike Green into year two, just thinking a little bit less, even if it's a due defensive coordinator, a lot of the same verbiage, a lot of the same ideas. I think that it just is kind of freed him up to play in a way that he wasn't able to do as a rookie. And then if you have Tavius Robinson talking to Jeff Siribic when I was there, he thinks that Tavius Robinson has a chance to take as big a step as anybody on the entire roster from last year to this year. And so if the edge room is a little bit deeper and a little bit better than it was last season, you can maybe survive without Mattabique in a way you couldn't before, but I still think that having even some version of him in the middle of this thing changes the complexion of what that front feels like. It's worth saying another young guy getting rave reviews in that position group. Neus Peebles in his second year seems to be having an amazing camp. I'm not banking on that though, like that is, that's encouraging, but we'll see, we'll see what it looks like if, if NAMD is not ready to go. What I'm watching, it kind of alluded to this. I want to see what the veterans on this team look like, the expensive veterans on this team. Trey Hendrickson, Marlon Humphrey, Rokwan Smith, what do those players look like early in the season? Because when you look at the Ravens cap coming into the year, after Lamar, the three most expensive players on the Ravens are Rokwan Smith, Nambdi Mattabique and Marlon Humphrey. If those guys are playing well, and I think in Humphrey's case and in Rokwan's case, especially the first half of last season, playing better than they did last year, you can't square that sort of investment. When you have those three guys accounting for 33% of your cap, if they're not going to meet difference making players, and so what do you get out of that trio? And how much do we feel them as part of this team? Because if you're not feeling the three highest paid players on your team outside of the quarterback, I just think it's really, really hard for you to hit your ceiling overall. And I'm glad you mentioned them, because this is actually like sort of my like keeping me up at night, because I think outside of Hamilton, all of the best and elite players on the Ravens defense kind of feels a little bit flimsy for one reason or another, like we don't know when Mattabique is coming back. Rokwan Smith, again, for the first half of last year, I think played the worst football I've ever seen him play. And he got better by the end, but it's like, we still want to see him play another full season like that. Trey Hendrickson is getting a little bit older and he was, he was obviously banged up pretty recently. Marlon Humphrey is getting a little bit older. He's been banged up. Nate Wiggins was banged up this off season. I get just the guys who are the five needle movers who are supposed to make this defense feel different than the charger's defense. If it all hits, holy shit, they're incredible. There's, there's reason to believe that each one of them, like you really do need things to go a certain way for them. I'm with you. That's exactly how I feel. And I think we'll know pretty early, like what are we getting out of it? Because these aren't guys that need to ramp up. These aren't second year players where it's like, oh, maybe they'll improve over the course of the season. Like, I want to see it pretty quickly for me to gauge how I should feel about this Ravens team and specifically this Ravens defense. And I throw in one more thing for the first month. You sure can't. My first special team's a dendom of the pre-use series. I have a loop. Not what? How much did that wind up mattering, by the way, and just throwing that out there? Jordan Stout followed Harbaugh to New York, and they drafted his replacement. Ryan Eckley was puntin the shit out of the football in the preseason the other day, who's average in like 55 yards of pun. I'm so glad you're here. If you laugh, if you want to, I'm not kidding. I'm so glad. That's just something that would never have come up on this show unless you were here. Hey, this is the second year in a row. They're putting specialist duties in the hands of a rookie. And hopefully Tyler Loup has many makes left in his career. But, you know, it loomed large for the 2025 Baltimore Ravens. One of the other things you were curious about that I do think is we're sitting with just for a second is how the defensive backrolls on this team shake out. Because I do think that it's pretty solidified, or at least was when I was at camp. I was there on August 6th. So we're not going on three weeks now. I think she thinks obviously shift. And to me, the most important changeover might be what's going to happen in dime when they have 60 bees on the field because Keon Martin, who's an undrafted free agent. I think they were really excited about what he was giving in those situations. But Chandler Rivers, who they drafted, I think in the fifth round, dog, I feel like that was probably going to be a little bit of a battle. And it rivers has played well enough in a preseason where do we see a little bit more of him in those looks. But other than that, it sounded like when I was there, they really wanted Marlon Humphrey to focus on being a full time outside corner for the first time in a while. Because even last year, Derek, he led this team in slot snaps because Kyle Hamilton, they had to play a little bit more safety because they didn't have that third safety over the course of the year. And so hopefully being a full time outside guy, Hamilton being the full time nickel, having Jay on Hawkins to play another second safety spot. I think that's going to be the five we see for a vast majority of the snaps with some combination of Martin and Chandler Rivers coming in to be that nickel when they move Kyle Hamilton to the timeline backer. And I am absolutely interested because like you said, it's, we haven't really seen Humphrey just stick at a spot in a while because every year we talked about like, oh, the Ravens love to move Kyle Hamilton to fix their issues. They'll move into safety. They'll move to the nickel. The one who moves in conjunction with him is Marlon Humphrey. If Hamilton's in the slot, it bumps Humphrey out and if Hamilton's not, then Humphrey usually goes, goes back in and they're playing Chido Wuzier, whoever on the outside. And so I do think the fact that they are so committed to being like, no, we really do want to just keep him here and let him do this. I think that is probably of benefit to him at this stage in his career. I agree. And I said he was one of the guys I mentioned.
the players that can swing the season show, I think there are probably four or five of those guys on this Ravens team. We're going to be rowquans, one of those guys. Matt, a BK is one of those guys, but I always I said in the moment, I still believe it. If you tell me at the end of the season, Marlon Humphrey had a great season for the Ravens. What do you think the percentage chances that the Ravens defense was good? I think it's really, really like 85%. Yeah, really. For each of these teams, we want to chat about the stuff that a little, a little more worrisome. The things that are kind of linger in there in the back of our minds. What is keeping you up at night, Dave, about the 2026 Baltimore Ravens? I'm rooting for them, but Jacobi Lane's super camp is jumping the shark a little bit and all of a sudden, how dare you? Being excited about a young receiver is doing a lot to distract us from what is otherwise a pretty, okay, group of pass catchers. And that's even, I've come around on Zay flowers and I, I feel vindicated. I commend the Ravens for getting the deal done early. And I think Zay's production last year flew under the radar by myself and by many others, even with Zay in the mix. What's getting you excited about the Ravens pass catchers and less Jacobi Lane really is just a rookie phenom. And I guess that's possible, but I wouldn't bet on it. Mark Andrews was third on the Ravens roster and 46th in the league among tight ends in yards per route run. That's down from seventh in 2024 and down from third two years before that. Behind Mark Andrews, Durham Smythe, he's going to have a role in what the Ravens want to do. He's not a pass catching threat. No, he is a dirty work guy. And last year when you might be the full tight end in Chicago, that you feel a little bit better about how dynamic your multi tight end personal groupings look in the past game. When nervous by this, your third tight end instead of your second tight end. And then, and I mean, they have two rookies there too. But again, how much have you shown a little bit, man? Yeah, he can move. I would even say Kuehbaugh's had a couple nice moments in the Vikings preseason game. So it's not to rule it out entirely, but banking on rookies, specifically day three rookies, third and fifth round picks. Himner was a fifth round pick or fourth round. So fourth round picks in Jacoby Lane and himner is, I do think that we're going to need to see something for those guys for this to feel like it's all kind of coming together. Because I'm with you. The Mark Andrews part of this. It doesn't leave me a little bit worried. And I'm, I'm just not signing up for the Rashad Bayman experience again. That's a person. Rashad Bayman has legal issues. Like he, yes, that is what the case where, you know, he trying to break into a car and stuff like that. And so like you wonder, like, is that going to loom over them for the course of the season? And so I think it's funny, though, that this was like your up at night. And I think that that's totally justified. Mine was more curiosity because I think I'm a little bit bullish on some of these players. Like I really liked Jacoby Lane coming out. Yeah, you're already, you're already carving out Jacoby's bust. Of course, you're excited. I was ready before he got drafted. And then the Ravens took him and I was like, finally a ball winner for Lamar Jackson. And so I'm some amount of bullish. I do think it's a little bit scary if he really does have to be the number two. I do think that that changes things a little bit. But again, I've liked what I've seen from some of the backup titans. And it's clear to see what their roles are supposed to be. And I think I also just have some amount of faith that like if Lamar Jackson's 95% man, he, he won MVP's with the past catching course that were really not that different from this. And so I'm, I'm pretty willing to buy it. Also overall optimistic about this. But what is keeping me up at night is just what if it doesn't work? But what if this change over on offense doesn't work? Because I think I'm with you, Derek, where I'm just pretty quickly being like, oh, there'll be a top seven offense again. I think I have faith in the Deco Doyle part of this. I have faith in those ideas. I've seen them work. I do. I'm really excited about him as a play collar. Lamar Jackson has won the MVP in his first year with a new play card twice. And I think part of that is new ideas and them getting to spring them on teams. And I think part of it is him being excited and bought in when, when something doesn't feel like it's gotten stale. So I, I am overall optimistic about this. But there's a little voice in the back of my mind where it's like, what are the past catchers aren't good enough? The offensive line we haven't even talked about yet. I mean, they've made additions to the offensive line. Keeping you up at night too. And Ronnie Stanley is getting a little bit older. I think, you know, John Simpson is somebody that again, very much in the back half of his career. I'm excited about the physicality that you want. I theoretically brings to the run game, but centers already been a revolving door. I was in Minnesota on the day where Matt Pinter tore his patellar tendon. Danny and Danny Pinter. Excuse me. Matt Pinter is the Matt painter is the Purdue basketball coach. Danny Pinter. That was one of the more bummer moments I've seen in a practice because this is a guy that was a career backup had been practicing with the ones the entire summer because Ethan postage had been coming back from injury. And you could see it in Danny Pinter's face where he was just like, this was my shot. This, this was my shot to change my career because if he had been the starter all year, he was going to be a free agent. What does that end up looking like? He slammed his hand on the cart when he was driving off like he just knew like this is over, which was tough to watch in real time. So I do think there's enough there. And I'll say this. I said in the moment, stand by it. Lamar was not playing well before he got hurt last year. He was not playing well. He looked out of sorts early in the season compared to what we had seen him look like over the previous two years. I have all the faith in the world in this player being able to bounce back and look more like the 24 version when in my mind, it was the best he had ever played was during the 24 season. I absolutely think he can get back there. But the last time I saw him even moderately healthy, he did not look like the player he was in 24. And so while I think all this stuff can come together, there's a little kernel there where I'm if I were Ravens fan, I'd like, what if it doesn't? And what does that mean? How good is the defense have to be? And for the Lamar stuff, I'm still I'm so in the bag for him that like last year was weird and they were they were more feast and famine than I think he'd ever been in his career. And I think that that's the way to explain it like his highs were still there, but the lows were just lower than they had ever really been so much more uncomfortable in the pocket, deeper into downs, taking stacks. The thing that stood out in 24 is that he was so in command. I had never seen him in that sort of command in the pocket as a passer. And that just didn't he didn't feel that assertiveness in the even the first month of last season, like the Lions game, I always go back to where the numbers are fine because they're explosive. But when you actually look at how it feels down to down, that command just was not there. And so can he regain it? Yes, I have faith in that happening, but I do think the last time we saw him even moderately healthy, it just didn't look like he had the game in the palm of his hand and the way that he did in 2024. All right, what does success look like Derek for the 2026 Baltimore Ravens? I mean, I still think that this is a team that should like at worst get to the divisional round and play like a pretty strong game in the divisional round. And I think that they can even be even better than that. Like I still think that this is a really good team and roster than last year was just things got a little bit stale quarterback was banged up, but like I still ultimately think that this is one of the better teams in the NFL. Jesse Minner has the goods and by the end of the year, we view him similarly to Mike McDonald and the Ravens win the division and reclaim their place as a member of the elite. I don't know what that means. It's hard for me to say it's hard for me to say you got to go to the Superbowl under a first year head coach. I think you got to go the AFC Championship game to the AFC Championship game. I mean, if you're among the elite, then that's what we're talking about. You know why? I think putting that on a first year coach is very high end expectations. There are a lot of old players on this team. They trainderson is an older player. Rogue ones get to be an older player. Ronnie Stanley is getting to be an older player. Like you don't have that many more shots with this core of team or with this core of players to be one of the best teams in the league. Like there's going to be some turnover at some point. It's got to happen in one of the next two years, two years, probably. That is the conflict I felt and I thought to myself, can I really expect a first year head coach to win the Superbowl and then everything you just said. And I think I settled on thinking in two, like two years as the window, two years as the window to get it done with this team. I feel better if they were on the doorstep in your one. I want to see them back on the doorstep again. Division around or better would be a successful season for me. But I hear you. Before we get to the Cincinnati Bengals, let's take our first quick break. Get to the Cincinnati Bengals are preview for the 2026 Bengals. They're offseason in 60 seconds. Signed boy, I'm off a Brian cook and Jonathan Allen and free agency traded for Dexter Lawrence, traded the 10th overall pick for Dexter Lawrence. The Cincinnati Bengals are real thing that happened. Michael Boer. In the draft, no first round pick. Cashus Howell in the second round corner back to Cario Davis in the third round, Connor Lou, the offensive lineman in the fourth round, lost Trey Hendrickson and Joseph Osay in free agency this year. David, what are you most excited about as it relates to the 2026 Bengals? My large adult sons are back flying football again, slinging the ball around the yard. And that's no shade to T Higgins either that he's worth bringing up. But Joe Borough and Jamar Chase hold a special place in my heart and always will. And the fact that they play together in the NFL, I'll never take that for granted. I mean, it's as simple as the Lamar Jackson, Derek Henry thing. Like when those two are on the field, well, when those three, I will include to Higgins who technically a tiger, just a different, you know, sort of tiger. True. That's very true. When those three are on the field, they've been a top five offense basically every time. And there's been some waxes and wanes of then
being on the field together, you know, they've all had injury issues really outside of, you know, chase, I think it's at the least issues. But when they're on the field together, they're just pumping out like 300 yard games and they are still one of the best offenses in the NFL, even if I will say the last year or two, it's looked different. It's still always been incredibly good. And so when those guys are out there, it's just like you always know that they give you a chance to just win any game 30 to 28. This may be more appropriate for the next category, but my thought about it as I agree with you guys, that's what I'm excited to watch. Like that, that trio went on the field together is point 180 paper drop, a paper play last year, which would have been, I think, first or second in the entire league that they are, it's a firework show. It's phenomenal. I think this is potentially the most complete team we have seen with the Bengals offensively when you look at every single element of the offense. And we can talk about the transition offensively in a second because I think we all have some curiosity about that. They've never finished higher than six than EPA per play. Since Joe boroughs been there, never been higher than six. I mean, I guess that's yeah, probably because they're all missing time and stuff together and they've had, I think it's a little growing pain early in season sometimes. Yeah. That's part of it. The other part, Joe boroughs never finished in the top five and EPA per dropback ever. It's not one time. Yeah, that tracks even the years where they were really good. He was taken 50 sacks a season. And so this offense, it's been exciting. The town is overwhelming. There are, there are some guys in the NFL when you're there at training camp and you're just watching the move at practice. And it's just like, this is a different tier of athlete, of talent, of human being, the specimen. Jamar Chase is on that list. Like when you watch him move, it's just crazy. And that's when this offense is at its best, those two guys and T going at it together, it's a unique animal. But they've always been right on the doorstep of being this overwhelming force. They'd never quite gotten there because either they're taking a decent amount of sacks or the run game just doesn't have the oomph. Right. That's been one of the issues. And last year, they were a really successful running team in the back half of the season. The offensive line. And then you can make an argument is as good as it's been since Joe borough got there. There's some concerns we can talk about that. But you have two homegrown guys that you feel good about among that group for the first time ever with Dylan Fairchild and Marius Mims. The run game is that's just a higher quality and more consistent. I do think you can get to a place where you can convince yourself. This is the best plan and collection of pieces we have seen for this team offensively, even when they were going to AFC championships game, championship games going to Superbolts. I can't get over the fact that Joe's 2024 wasn't top five because he got sacked 48 times. That's the reason. Well, but I'm with you on this being the most complete version. I think of the team we've ever seen because I put it in my category for this. I was like, yeah, Jamar, Jamar, Joe and T together. On top of it is the most, I think, complete team we've ever seen. The offensive line, I think last year was already probably the best that we'd ever seen with Joe borough. And if you said those young guys take a step, if Mims is even better, if Fairchild is even better, it's like, okay, this really starts to turn into something a little bit different. And then I think outside of obviously the two just freak show receivers, it's a lot of role players, but they do have a lot of them. Like Yoshabas is a totally solid player. I thought Mitchell Tinsley actually played pretty well at wide receiver for them as like a can be outside the numbers, catch some passes up in the air. They're tied into another number of superstars, but they all have a role like Drew Sample's a blocker. You still have guys who like a sec he's on the roster. He can still do some of the past catching stuff. And then Chase Brown is like the most boring, pretty good running back in the entire NFL. Like they just have options even outside the elite guys. Well, you didn't mention your boy, Eric all. Yeah, you bring up Miracle who can actually be there like move around guy. Two guys you did not mention. I think you're worth throwing out Colby Young, who they drafted in the fourth round. They have not really had like a dirty work receiver, even Yoshabas is more of a finesse speed guy. Colby Young, I think is the first guy they've had in a couple of years, where especially if we're going to be a more under center place, which we'll talk about in a second, we got to have a dude that's going to be willing to dig some safeties out. And I think that's the first guy in a while they've had that can do that. And why I think all is important. Drew Sample is a capable blocker. I think Drew Sample and I run the same 40. But Drew Sample is not an explosive player. He is a strong player that you can play in line. All is an explosive blocker. Some of the stuff sifting across the formation, some of the two back things they can do with him. If you're going to be a team that wants to be more diversified in the running game and you have two receivers that will not block anybody, which fine. I wouldn't be asking my $45 million receiver to block anybody. You need some two tight end stuff where both of those guys are capable blockers and different sorts of blockers. And I think all they missed him last year because they did not have that type of snap my hips explode into people guy in that tight end room. And they do now with him back. It's a deep tight end room in general. Just I mean, like they go five. I would guess they're going to have five guys on the roster. It's because Gisik he doesn't really count. Sure. Yeah, it's because he's really just a big receiver. So let's talk a little bit about that offensive transition because I think both of you are really curious about that. Derek, what are you watching over the first month of the season with this Cincinnati Bengals team? Yeah, I mean, I think I've expressed my concerns about it before. It's like how much of this offense really is new? How much of it is is under center? Are they motioning guys a little bit more? Does the run game add some more stuff to it? Because I think you know, you've brought this up Robert that when they got under center, they actually could be explosive. But when they were a shotgun run team, they really weren't. They were pretty efficient, but they were not explosive. And when they got under center, they did have a 9.2% explosive run rate, which was top five in the NFL. Part of that is I think it was a change up that teams just weren't respecting and ready for because they did it at the second lowest rate in the NFL. And so I do wonder because I think in my mind teams that can go under center and run the ball, that is a little bit more of we are running on our terms and we get to decide how this goes. And I still have a question. That's important. I think I think speaking that out is so important. It is. I just I think I'm have a little bit more reservations about their ability to actually get there and tie that into the passing game and what all that looks like. I think it's something that is necessary for them to like you said, get over the doorstep from consistently great to elite and actually defining offensive football in the NFL. I think I just have more questions about what that's actually going to look like and again, what does it actually look like when they put it together on the field and how much are they leaning into it really? This change reminds me of a New Year's resolution where it's easy to say on December 27th. This is what I want to do and I want to lose 15 pounds and here's how I'm going to do it, but like the day in, day out consistency is such a huge part of it. And like, yes, you're doing this to potentially get more explosive. But you have to like commit to the boring aspect of it to see the results. I think they're committed to it. I hope you're right. I don't think this is one of those training camp things where we're going to do more of this. If you look at just percentages, they, the way that I understand it, we're talking like 60% under center during training camp for a reason. They're over indexing on it because they feel like they need to work on it. Last year, they were down near the bottom of the league. I think it was like 20%. I don't think this is going to be a scenario where it goes from like 20 to 25%. I don't think that's how they're envisioning it. I do think they want this to be a more central part of what their offensive identity looks like. How clean that process is remains to be seen. But I don't think this is lip service. I don't think this is something they're gesturing at. It really don't. It's not that I think it's lip service. It's that I worry that if it's clunky in the first six weeks of the season, do they throw in the garbage? Do you throw it in the garbage? Or turn it down? Yeah, especially like if Joe burrows pissed off about what is happening because it's not coming quickly, how do you react to that? And I just worry, like they're so predictable. And obviously they are because they're such a heavy shotgun team, but even when they go under center, like their run past split from under center over the last two years is 75 25. So it's a top five rate. If teams know what you're going to do when you do get under center, it decreases the likelihood that anything's going to hit the way you want it to. I think that's the whole point is that they're trying to make all that stuff be tied together in a way that it never has been needed to. And I think the explosiveness on the ground is part of this. Derek mentioned that they were, I think, 31st in the league and explosive run right out of the gun last year, but they're about about three to bottom five. I can't remember exactly what it was. And then they were second and explosive run rate from under center. So the explosive, it's just the diversity of runs that you can have. You can only run so many things from the gun. And a lot of those are not explosive runs. For them, it was a lot of duo and it was a lot of tight zone. I think you're going to see more mid zone this year. And I think you're going to see some gaps game stuff that they think can be more gashes than the things that they've leaned into in the past. But the other part of this is that if you can get to a place where that run game feels like it has some move to it and people have to start responding to it, that's the situation where you can get one on ones that you have not been able to enjoy on the outside in a very long time per next end last year, 34% cloud coverage is against the Bengals, 34%. There is a bigger gap between them and the Vikings at number two than there was between the Vikings and the team in 13th. It's just a different approach toward them than anybody else in the league is getting. And so there I think their goal is you pick your poison. You want to play like that and we can do what we think we can do on the ground. We're going to have a gear we've never had before and it's
as you have to start accounting for that even a little bit, you are leaving, I think in my opinion, the most dangerous player in the world in more one-on-one situations than you are comfortable with. That is the vision, whether they can actually execute on that is an entirely different conversation, but I understand the pursuit of it. I wholeheartedly understand and appreciate the pursuit. I just hope they're committed to it. And I assume the, we talked about it on one of the preseason wrap-up shows. I mean, it was, it's a very small sample size, but you saw the good and the bad in that preseason game against Detroit. Like they hit the nice dig very big chunk. And then the next time they tried the under center play action, it blew up in their face. And when it counts, how willing are you to commit to the highs and the lows? I hope you're right. And I trust that what you're saying is correct, but I want to see it. I want to watch it closely. That play, which we talked about in the moment, I think is a really good representation of some of the downsides to this. Joe is so comfortable with where his outlets are because they're so used to playing in a very specific way. Like I think he can rattle off like and just feel every single escape hatch and vulnerability in every part of how they used to play. When you're doing this, the picture is just less clear. Just think about it practically. There are so many more bodies crammed into the core of the formation that if you're chase brown and you're dealing with a tight under two into the core and it's all this traffic on some of these play fakes is the linebacker coming is the linebacker not coming. When do I release based on where his body and where his positioning is and whether he's a threat. That stuff is just all going to be murkier than it's ever been in the environment that the Bengals play offense. And that plays a perfect example. And so I think over time, the hope is you get more familiar and more comfortable with where those outlets are and the binary of some of those choices in a way that maybe in preseason game one, you're just not again. And I think some of his outlets because obviously he is really good at that getting to his check downs or even just knowing where to escape in the pocket. But when you're doing the under center play action stuff like the pockets look different where your escape valves are are different when and where your check downs are different. And I think it's a little bit more of like. I got to trust the Jamar the half an inch that Jamar has an outside leverage or on the top leverage of this corner that he can just go get it and I've just got to stand here and throw it. He needs to be like you need to be a little bit more like Matthew Stafford or Ryan Tanaill which is like he's going to be there. I've got to let it go. He's obviously talented enough and accurate enough to do that. That's just not as much the style that they've operated with to this point in his career. It's been it was fun talking to players there about the transition and some of the things they're having to weigh now that they might not have previously like if you're going to be in a lot more 12 personnel and you're going to have a credible run game. I think you're going to see a little bit more base defense than you had in a previous world and the front variety on early downs and base defense is now much more complex than it used to be talking about Ted Harris their center. He had a really interesting observation where he was talking about how it used to be when you were in sub packages. That's when shit would get crazy in terms of things you'd have to identify and just all the moving parts is the center now because of all the front multiplicity the teams are having to use because they're playing a light boxes with these shells. It's actually early downs when you're having to work through more of it and as they've diversified the run game. He was at a place when I was there about 10 days ago where he was long handing the run run responsibilities where he would literally go down the line and be like you've got that guy you've got that guy you've got that guy you've got that guy you've got that guy that's how thorough they were having to be because they just written they weren't ready for the shorthand stuff yet. But I think the hope is over time they get there. The benefit of this is they have a center who is very smart and can get away with some of that stuff. And I think his role in all of this is worth acknowledging because if you had a guy that wasn't in the league for 11 years the way that he's been he's already a smart guy this transition might feel a little bit more daunting than it probably does for them. That's a that's such a great underrated point to make especially when your quarterback is not as experienced doing this stuff as as most others in the NFL would be. We have not touched the elephant in the room here. So let's get into it. What is keeping you up at night Dave about the 2026 Cincinnati Bengals? I think we're going to know by week two or week three whether what they did on defense worked and what's keeping me up at night is that we'll know in September that it didn't work and we're doing the same shit all over again hoping that the Bengals can outscore their way to the playoffs. I mean it's as simple as that like I just and I'm I'm all for the Dexter Lawrence trade. I thought it was good. I know top 10 picks sounds crazy. Look at the players that we're going to go 10th overall on the strap. I'm totally fine trading that pick for a guy in Dexter Lawrence even if he's coming off of like a little bit of a downstretched for him. And I think what you hear from some Bengals fans, I got this a lot when I was talking about and watching their their rookie linebackers from last year is that at the end of the season the Bengals defense did have like a little bit of an upturn. That is the 10th in the NFL on e-paper play in the second half of the season. They were still if you if you remove the final three weeks of the season though where they played the Cardinals, the dolphins and the Browns, which were like by that season the season not real football. That's a useful that's a useful caveat. Yeah. They were they were the worst defense in D.V.O.A. And so that is still obviously you're being anchored a little bit by the early point in the season, but I still just don't think that they got significantly better to the point where I'm willing to make these proclamations that they are going to get better. Obviously I think Dexter Lawrence does do a lot for them, but like trying to you know fight against myself a little bit, the Giants had Dexter Lawrence the last couple of years and they couldn't get anybody in run defense. And so like they were really bad. And I think it's just trying to figure out how good are the players around him. And I a lot of that to me goes down to what does the edge room actually look like because Shamar Stewart was the zero for them last year as a rookie. Cash is how I think has struggled a little bit in the preseason. Miles Murphy actually did come on a little bit at the end of last year like he was he did. He started to leverage that like he's not going to be a bendy get around the edge guy, but he can actually get into the tackles and really push them into the quarterback. And he did that better towards the end of last year than we thought. But they paid a lot of money to boy Mafe who over his course in Seattle had lost playing time and was really only like the third or fourth best guy in an incredible edge room. And now he is arguably they hope maybe they're best guy. And so I think just trying to figure out how good is that edge room actually around Lawrence. I think goes a really long way for whether this is good enough or not. The Shamar and March. Shamar Stewart part of this. I almost think he's a bonus like whatever they get from Shamar Stewart is kind of a bonus. But even if the only improvements to the edge room because I think in some of the five down front stuff Murphy probably plays five technique in those looks. So if you're talking purely edge looks and five down fronts, even if it's just some combination of boy Mafe and then cash is how rotating it on some later downs. It is so much better than what they had last year because I think part of the problem is if you look at what the defense had to start doing last season. This team Sean decide is a senior defensive assistant on this team. Ideally, I don't think they want to be playing a lot of loaded boxes. That's I don't think that was the goal. But when you look at the way that things were unfolding last year, last season, Pernex Gen, the Bengals gave up a 47.1% success rate with a 0.11 EPA per carry on plays where the offense had as many blockers as defenders in the box. 0.11 EPA per per play is the same as Joe Burrow's drop-back EPA during that 2024 season. So every run into a blocked box against the Bengals was a Joe Burrow drop-back from 2024. Jesus Christ. You can't be living that way. They had to play in all these five down fronts because of that. That's like we have to play this way. We can't play with these four down structures. And the only guy they felt really comfortable playing in that other edge roll was Demetrius Knight. So they had their rookie offball linebacker who was already swimming now having to play two different positions. And so the Dexter Lawrence part of this is huge because now can you play more two eye structures because Dexter Lawrence is eating up those blocks, but even having one to two guys, you feel comfortable playing on the edge and allowing Demetrius Knight's role to be a little bit more streamlined. The way that it came up in conversation when I was there and I think it's such a good way of putting it. Last year they did a lot of shit because they had to. And I think this year, because of the improvements, we're in a place where you can do the things that you want to. And I do think that that transition is hopefully going to be enough for them to feel different on that side of the ball. I like Boyet Maffe for the contract that he got. I think Brian Cook is an underrated signing. I even, I like Kyle Dugger. I thought Kyle Dugger did some good stuff for Pittsburgh last year. Do you think any of this holds up the way that it needs to if Dexter Lawrence isn't exceptional? No, yeah. I think he's the most important player on the team outside of Dobra. I think he needs to holding him to the 2024 standard before he got hurt is crazy because he was on an unbelievable tear, but he needs to. He needs to scratch that sort of level. I think if this is going to work at all because I just, I didn't mention Jonathan Allen either, not John, not, not that Jonathan Allen anymore, but like he can be serviceable for you. I don't think any of this stuff holds together if he's not worthy of the number 10 overall pick. And like if he plays that way, I love the trade. I liked the trade at the time if he's that guy. And I, I hope the, I hope the dip in his production over the last year and a half is more about being banged up and that's behind him now than a declining player because if he's a declining player, this is. This is going to suck. There's been nothing but ray reviews. And what Ted Karrist said to me that I think is so important, and the way that he framed it was, every player on the defense gets 10 points better because Dexter Lawrence is out there. And if that's true, that's why you do it, right? That is the argument for why this can work. And if it's not true when we actually get into real games, then I think a lot of this stuff starts to fall apart pretty quickly. I'm, my optimism is soaring right now based on what I've seen through training camp, but I've been hurt before, especially by the Cincinnati Bengals. The area of this team that is still the weakest, and we've talked about it a lot this off season, linebacker or something they did not address. And those guys, Demetrius Knight and Barrie Carter, the combination of them just needs to be so much better. And I think the argument is they put 700 snaps apiece last year. They took so many lumps, but they never broke over the course of the year. And I think that, that experience, if you're trying to talk to yourself into it, it's like that, it was callous, callous thing, but ultimately beneficial. And when you have Dexter Lawrence, Derek, you and I have talked about this. Like if you're fit in the big app as a rookie linebacker and half a second into the play, the big app is three players wide. It's a little bit harder to play. And the whole hope is that Dexter Lawrence and the edges too, that just, the space to get compressed in a way where it makes things a little bit cleaner for guys who are now walking into year two of this system, where things are slowing down for them. And that's the other thing too. You know, we've talked about so many of these other linebackers come into the league and get to play next to a guy who's really good or like, you know, Rick Wandsmith coming over to Baltimore and he gets to kind of help Patrick Queen along a little bit. Well, when it's two rookies next to each other in the first year of a defense and a defense, it's not very good. It's like, you kind of get why it just didn't look very good. Yes. I think they made each other worse. And I think that even like their position coach was coming from New Orleans where that defense is very different than a lot of the structural things that the Saints that the bangles were trying to do. And so I think it was a learning process for everybody. And I think that combined with the talent, front improving and streamlining things a little bit, is everybody just a little bit more comfortable heading into the season. It's a rosier look, right? Like that is the positive spin on this. But I think that is the spin you have to be giving if you're the bangles. What does success look like, David, for the 2026 Cincinnati bangles? Justify the amount of attention that is paid to you as a franchise. Because Joe and Jamar and T means and what they did in 21 and 22 means a lot of talk for a team that has now missed the playoffs three years in a row. Yeah. When the division make the playoffs preferably when a playoff game, resemble the team that was very briefly Kansas City's biggest rival in the AFC. When a playoff game thing when one, yeah, and I like definitely if they get knocked out in the first round, that would be embarrassing, to me, it's you have to win the division. And the reason I say that they are the only team that really has continuity here. And I know that we're excited about the Ravens. We just spent a lot of time on them, but the Ravens are flipping over their staff. The Steelers are flipping over their staff. The Browns are flipping over the and the Browns aren't going to be any good. But like they are the team that like they're kind of keeping a lot of the same horses and same pieces together. This should be your division unless Joe Barrow gets hurt again. That's another thing keeping me awake at night, but I just didn't even want to say. Yeah. We've done not no real needs to mention that. I think it goes without saying. Yeah. I think that's always in the back of your mind. Before we get to the Steelers, let's take one more quick break. Good to the Pittsburgh Steelers are preview for the 2026 Steelers. Their offseason in 60 seconds. Mike McCarthy in as the head coach, Patrick Graham in as the defense coordinator traded for Michael Pittman. They traded for Michael Pittman, signed Jamel Dean, Rico Dotto and Jacquan brisker lost Isaac Sayomaloo, Kenny Gainwell and James Pierre in free agency in the draft. Max Hanna Shore in the first round, Jeremy Bernard in the second round, Jennings Dunker, Drew Aller and Daelin Everett all in the third round, a lot of third round picks for the Steelers this year. Derek, what are you most excited about for the 2026 Pittsburgh Steelers? We talked about it on the new play callers show, but Patrick Graham with this collection of defensive talent. You know, it's a little bit similar to the mentor thing to me, right? Where like, mentor was able to do so much with fine talent. And I think what Patrick Graham had been able to do for years at different teams with kind of so, so talent, even less than that obviously last year, I think, with the Raiders has been always really impressive. And now you have a Steelers team that I know they're a little bit older, but like, Jalen Ramsey's still a good player, Joey Porter, if they figure out the contract thing, really good player. Their defensive front is mean, like, I just, I'm really excited about what this can look like. And also compared to last year for Patrick Graham, having some of the inhibitors taken off. Like, I think last year he was calling the defense a little bit under the Pete Carroll vision, because you know, Pete Carroll was obviously there. I think this year, I think under the duress of both the staff and the talent and the talent on your duress for multiple front, on multiple fronts. Yeah. Like, Pete Carroll was probably telling me to load the box a little bit more and also the fact that like, he just didn't have players was like, all right, we got to at least stop the run. And so I think that that was just, he's always been a little bit more of a kind of like blitz happy, funky friends playing a little bit more man coverage than he really did last year. And I think that the talent that he has here in Pittsburgh, I do think that they are fit for it. And so I'm just excited about what it's going to look like. Also, one quick player shout out on top of all the star players there, the Nico slaughter, who is, I think the backup nickel for them, because it's probably going to be a jail in Ramsey. He's been playing with the ones in the preseason. That dude is a dog. He is like, whether it's like run blitzing, like, he had a really nice plan, like a deep outbreaker, like that dude is nasty. And so if he has to play at any point in the season, I'm really excited to watch him. This is the first time. I mean, the first and only time on a national football podcast, you're going to be hearing about the Nico slaughter in August. I don't know if you're excited about it, but the back up nickel first time for now. He'll, he'll, he'll have his moment. Is there a bigger gap in overall quality in a, when you look at interior defensive line rooms with the Steelers and the Raiders, buddy, maybe not because we, yeah, we, we just talked about like are the Raiders are as bad as anybody and the Steelers, I mean, even if like Hayward's a little bit older and Harman's not perfect, like this is way better than he's had. Just it's going to be hard to move these people compared to what the Raiders were dealing with. And so I'm with you. This, this was mine as well. I think the defensive front talent, I'm very excited to watch. We got three edge guys. I think those guys we moved around a little bit more. We always say that about TJ. What I do think it's going to happen a little bit more this year, you know, count a bet and just sign that contract. Derek Harman is still like a, I think you don't feel some of the disruption that you saw with him at Oregon, but he's still very strong space eating player. Yeah, yeah, but yeah, yeah, black is going to play for them as a nose. Like, there's just so many bodies they can cycle through there. And so I'm excited to see this defense of talent with Patrick Graham. You said it, Derek, 17.4% man coverage last year for the Raiders, which was 31st in the NFL. That's not how he wants to play this. He's a new England guy, like, if it were up to him, if he had his druthers, he'd be playing a shit load of man coverage. They are set up to do that. They are set up to play that way. It's how the Steelers have been playing man with some cover to change ups. I think his Patrick Graham's ideal world and the Steelers can do that. When you think about just the way they had to load the box last year in Las Vegas, that's not going to happen because of the Fred talent that he has. And so this is the first time we've seen Patrick Graham in years as a defensive coordinator with a level of defensive talent where it's like, all right, not how can you get by? But what can you really be the what heights can you reach with the players that you have here? I am very excited to watch with that can look like the Steelers defense having Steelers defense potential again, very exciting. For me, I'm going to let my inner draft Nick come out. I adore Omar Khan's stubborn insistence on nailing the offensive line. I like to imagine him in the war room saying, I said, get another one. Everybody's like, no, but should I get a receiver Omar like, what should we know? They draft Maxie and not sure like two years after going Brodrick Jones and Troy Fathanu back to back. Don't care. Get another one in here. Dr. Jones hasn't really worked out. We'll get another first round tackle. And the offensive line loaded might be a stretch. But there's so much promise and so much potential here. And I love it when somebody I respect confirms my priors because our friend respected here, Brandon Thorn. You see his project where he ranked the entire, the entire entirety of the offensive lineman in the league. It's incredible. I'll probably to report Brandon has Troy Fathanu as his number 10 left tackle in the NFL heading into this season in the same exercise. This one I was really pumped about because I've long been an admirer of Zach Frazier center two in the NFL behind Creed Humphrey. And then Mason McCormick is like a mid-tier guard, Dylan Cook, who stepped in admirably at times last year. He's ranked 28th among left tackles and Brodrick Jones even hasn't been good for Brodrick Jones, but still 34th among 40 graded left tackles heading into this season. Steelers have a lot of talent here. And then you add Maxi and Ochoir to this. I am enamored with the idea that when the Steelers do have their quarterback of the future, he's going to be playing behind a mammoth of a unit. And that's, I'm excited to see how those guys grow and develop. I mean, Frazier and to a lesser degree, Fathanu have already kind of arrived, but how much more can you take it? Like I want Zach Frazier to be more of a household name. I think this is the year where that can happen. I agree. Because I think that unit has a chance to impress in people.
And that's how the drumbeat starts. How to show her his tough, he had hurt during training camp. He's back though. He did get hurt by that. He missed time. And I think for him specifically, the talent is obvious. And the talent was obvious to them physically, but he's just still so inexperienced that missing any bit of time was going to make it harder for him to get on the field early. I'm not. I'm not expecting to see him quickly because again, cook and broader Jones. You have two options. I don't think we see Browder Jones. I think if Dylan Cook gets hurt on a short place, regardless. I don't think we're going to see him early, but in November, December for some reason, are we excited because he's pan-cake in the shit out of people? I can't wait to find out. That group coming together with him getting some late season run, I think would be a little bit of optimism heading into the season, no matter how this ends for the Steelers, which we'll get to here in a little bit. Yeah. I also think that underrated thing about the offensive line, you know, Faustano had mostly played a lot of right tackle. And so the fact that he's like so locked into left tackle now, which is his native position in college. That just, it's very exciting. One more thing I wanted to add to because it ties in together with the offensive line. Rico Dattle and Jalen Warren's really underrated duo of running backs to the going behind what I think is going to be a pretty damn good offensive line. Yeah. The Kenny Gainwell. Kenny Gainwell had a really nice season last year, but the Kenny Gainwell Jalen Warren pairing was always kind of strange. Look at it. I think that Rico Dattle, Jalen Warren pairing does make a little bit more sense if you're trying to put that room together. I mean, part of the reason obviously is that Caleb Johnson just never turned into the guy they hoped to kill Johnson would be. They thought they had a big body downhill runner last year. It turns out they didn't have nothing has ever not happened faster. And Caleb Johnson. Yeah. He, he, he, he, well, he must have one like kick off in the preseason game. They're like, it was over. Yeah. It was completely over. But Rico Dattle, you know, he's in perfect players, mostly a rundown player, but like there was a point in the year. I think he was leading the NFL in a rushing arts last year when the panthers offensive line was healthier. So like, if the Steelers offensive line is like what the panthers offensive line was early in the year, which I think they absolutely have the talent to be that or better. All right. Rico Dattle can just go mash people for four quarters. And I think that that could be a viable way to offense. Rico is one of 12 running backs over the last two years with 50 plus explosive rushes. And then Jalen Warren, I think most people think highly of him. I think both of Rico and Warren, I just think fantasy depresses your opinion of them because it's very hit or miss on a week to week basis, what they're going to do, but they're both good players. And if this offensive line is as good as I think it'll be that that should be a lot of fun. Dave, what are you watching over the first month of the season with these Pittsburgh Steelers? I'll be honest. This wasn't on my radar until the last three or four days. What the hell's going on with Joey Porter, junior man in a pass. Yeah. Direct quote from Mike McCarthy, never want to hear that, by the way. Mike McCarthy says, you know, I understand there's, there's a business side and a football side and we're kind of at an impasse. And then Jalen Ramsey and Patrick Queen are talking about how the Steelers need to pay Joey Porter, junior, what he's worth, not, not what you want to hear if you're trying to get excited about the Steelers defense, achieving a new ceiling in 2026. I do want to shout out as long as I'm shouting out friends and colleagues, Brooke prior over at ESPN had a very interesting nugget to me. She mentioned in her story about this that the Steelers just longstanding, not surprising because they're one of the old original families of NFL ownership. They don't typically do deals after the season starts, which puts a pretty firm deadline on when this can get done. And despite that fact, there's been no progress on talks, even though Porter basically hasn't had a training camp. And she also said the Steelers have not made or even received calls. Why is nobody calling if the Steelers, if the head coach is willing to say on the record that we're at an impasse, why is nobody calling? And what does that mean about what Joey Porter, junior wants? What's he asking for if nobody's calling? I mean, we just saw some pretty significant leaps in the cornerback market and I assume he wants to get it on the fun, whether he should or whether he's worked that, I think, is the conversation. According to BrookPrior, Porter said in June that he feels like he's been the lead guy since he's been, since he's been in the league. So look at the numbers at the top of the cornerback market. I think mystery solved, but it's, we got, we got two and a half weeks till the season and a pretty big piece of this thing is, is not participating in that worries me. Yeah, that whole man coverage plan is a little bit less, a little less scary if Joey Porter Jr. isn't involved. It's a little bit dependent on having like the second or third best press man corner in the league, but and I will say I think what makes probably the calls staying complicated. I mean, there should be some amount of calls. He's an incredible player, like somebody should be at least poking around to what it costs. I do think though he's probably in a weird position where if he's asking for like a lead truly top of the market money, if you're going to have to trade assets for him and then pay him that, I only really want to do that if it's like Patrick's or Tanner Derrick's thing. And I think when you're like a tear-ish below that, I just get a little bit scared about leveraging whatever it might cost to go and do that. Like if it costs you the sauce gardener trade in terms of assets and then you got to pay him, I'm like, man, I don't know, that just feels like a lot. Even for now is that I really like this part of the argument for this. I don't think it'll take you two ones, but part of the argument I think with the sauce garden trade, even if we can all agree that they probably shouldn't have done that wouldn't do it again. He'd already been paid. Yeah. We're getting like a relative discount with the sauce gardener trade in part because you don't have to pay out any bonuses and the market has already settled and is exploded since after you had already accounted for that money. So it's something that's absolutely worth mentioning. Derrick, what are you watching the first month of the season with the Pittsburgh Steelers? I'm just curious if this offense has some sort of other different gear because I think obviously last year Aaron Rogers is what he is. The offense is going to be limited in some capacity and what it's able to do. But obviously like also the receiver talent last year was just terrible. It was like DK Metcalf and then like Ben Scoranic or Roman Wilson, who I still think didn't really have like a super role. Adam Thielan. Adam Thielan at his stage in the career. Yes. Like this is what they were working with. Now they trade for Michael Pittman, who is I think a completely solid starting wide receiver, who they can move around a little bit, which I think helps them when I expect them to play more 11 personnel 11, you know, more three wide receiver sets is what McCarthy does. It's what Rogers had always liked. And then they drafted Jeremy Bernard, who I think is a little bit more like you want to spit the ball out to him. But again, they didn't have a whole lot of that last year outside of being able to do that out of the backfield. And so the fact that they have a receiver now who I think can do that. And he's looked good in the preseason like he just defenders just bounce off of him. He does have like a way with like he's not really elite at anything, but like people just miss when they're trying to tackle him when I do think, yes, just a useful NFL player. So the fact that they've added through those guys to the room. I think that that I just they don't have to be elite, but they were like 15th and DVOA last year. That it's not a bad offense. I don't think there's any world where they're elite, but can that creep up to a really boring and ugly 10th and DVOA? I do. What's that about? What's that about? What's that about? What's that about? What's that about? That's possible. I don't think the receiver talent was ultimately was good and determined that personally. I wanted to say this when you ran through the offseason though, I hear you. And I know he got a new deal as part of it, getting Michael Pittman, Jr. for a swap of six than seventh round picks is ridiculous. I mean, I know, but that's what I'm like, he's a better player than that. I understand the considerations that go into it. Like I'm with Derek. I know Rogers is going to be a big piece of that, but I really like this Steelers receiver score. I totally agree. I like everything about the Steelers except through their play and a core head. We were stepping out with keeping you up and going, let's save it. The Roman Wilson part of this is also interesting. They had he'd been battling with Jeremy Bernard for that third receiver spot early in training camp and even in the middle part of training camp, it's kind of been an uneven preseason for him, but they're very different players. And so just having Roman Wilson is like a vertical slot option in Jeremy Bernard being more of like an underwork dirty work underneath dirty work guy. I do think there are complimentary skill sets between those two guys. I think we'll see all four of them. But yeah, it's drastically improved receiving room. The thing I'm looking just looking at watching very quickly, what does the offense even look like? Like, what does this version of the Mike McCarthy offense look like? And what I, the element of that that I find most curious is that Brian Angelico came over as his offensive coordinator. Brian Angelico was on the packer staff for two to three years when Mike McCarthy was there, but he has spent a lot of time in the Shanahan world outside of that. He was in Cleveland with Kyle Shanahan in 2014, 2015. And then he was with the Vikings over the last few years as they're, I think Titans coach and maybe passing game coordinator, but there is all the lot of stuff that is not necessarily native to the Mike McCarthy offense, wide zone, under center, tons of motion. That's never really who Mike McCarthy has been, even if you look back like the 23 Cowboys when they were doing a little bit more of that stuff, it always felt like they were like cosplaying as that gets like, oh, that looks cool. Let's do some of that. And I think that's part of the reason it ran out of gas is that it was not a native part of who they were trying to be offensively. And I think that you felt them kind of, it was harder to keep tapping into that. Having somebody who really comes from that world and believes in it and is like, no, we're going to do some of this stuff. I'm curious what that version of a Mike McCarthy offense looks like because we really haven't seen that. And his staffs when he was in Dallas is a lot of green Bay guys. It's a lot of like, let's get the band back together. This might feel a little bit different in that specific area. All right. You ready for it? You ready for the conversation? Let's do it. Dave, what is.
keeping you up at night about the 2026 Pittsburgh Steelers, the thought of being someone's wildcard weekend sacrificial lamb for the fourth year in a row and wondering what we're all doing. I totally forgot to make the playoffs last year. They made the, yeah, they should do it. You would be forgiven, by the way. It's four, three years in a row and what, like, five of the last six years, they've made the playoffs and they have lost those games by double digits every time. And I, what keeps me awake at night is going through. It's such a long season. And like, I was the one, you know, Rodgers had a handful of moments last year that I thought were really fun. The defense found itself. That's those three throws that one Ravens gave will never forget them. He did. He had some moments. Okay. Even the year before that, Russell Wilson gave him a shot in the arm. And I was like, maybe, maybe Russ can play well enough. And like, over the course of the season, you can talk yourself into all this bullshit. And then there we are in early January, watching him get trounced. And what keeps me awake at night is doing this for five months for the fourth year in a row and wondering why we did it when it's over. My short term, let's keep it me up at night. Rodgers is not good enough as the rest of the roster shows promise. He's just not good enough. And that's kind of where I sit with this until proven otherwise. The way that he plays the position right now is not viable for you to be like a serious offense. No, not to be like a if it if like the best version of what it's supposed to be is like, can you just squeak into the AFC championship game somehow? How he plays currently, that's not on the table. It's just not. I 100% agree. Like I just, it's not even a matter of like physically he still has it. He just is not playing the position in a way that allows you to be a certain thing offensively, like just the sheer not one. I don't we can go through all the numbers if you want to the sheer number of throws beneath the six. How quickly the ball is coming out, the throws that he's choosing to make. It's it's go balls or it's one on one. Like that is what he is choosing to do. And it's been that way for multiple years now. This is not just last season, it was like this with the jets. And so I just don't have any reason to think another year older, another year of not wanting to be hit is going to make this thing look any better. So that the short term is he's just not good enough to justify all of the relative excitement we have about other areas of this roster. The long term is this team wins nine games and you send yourself back into purgatory. Where it's not just being the wild card sack, wild card weekend, sacrificial lamb, where you being offered up to the Texans, it's your just good enough to be in a spot next spring where it's like who is going to be the quarterback for this team? Maybe it's drew our like that. That's what we're going to have to bank on. Fine. Right. Like maybe that is a viable thing. How many third round picks that are projects end up becoming guys that you're able to roll with when the rest of your roster feels like it's ready to win. And that's my concern is just this is a long bigger picture existential dread thing as it relates to this thing. And I think it's totally justifiable to think existentially with the Steelers because we've done this like what and those dudes are old. Why don't seriously? What do we I know y'all y'all just talked about sneaking into the AFC title game like what do you realistically think the ceiling is because I even I had a moment while I was prepping and Derek highlighted everything that's excited about patch exciting about Patrick Graham. And I found myself thinking, well, if Patrick Graham can just unlock a higher level from this defense, you're sixth and defensive DVOA in 2023 and eighth and defensive DVOA in 2024. How much better is it realistically going to get? I think it can be more resilient. That that to me is the argument. It's not even about overall quality over the course of the season. It's do you have a little bit more optionality? Are you harder to pin down? Are you less predictable? Are you a little bit more dynamic and varied? That I do think that's real. Over the course of a season, they can end up in the exact same spot. Do they are they food in the playoffs? Because that's what it's happened is that they've been good over the course of the season because they had this level of talent. And then we get into the playoffs where you have a Todd Monkin or somebody else that can be like, all right, here are the five things I'm just going to hammer over and over and over again. They're not going to have an answer. And I think that is potentially the biggest change about this defense. It's now where the numbers look like by the end of the year. It's how vulnerable do they feel against the real teams and the real quarterbacks in the most important games? It doesn't regardless, doesn't feel like enough to go beyond like divisional round as the absolute ceiling. That's what I was, I think there's a world where, you know, Dave, I think you actually framed it perfectly. We're like for three years now, when they get into the playoffs, they're the worst team in the advocacy. And whoever they play, you are not picking the other team. You are picking the other team. You're not picking the Pittsburgh series. I think that there's a chance that they are a little bit better than that this year. But I might like what is keeping me up at night is kind of splitting the difference between long term and short term. Like, what if this old roster Robert, like you just talked about just falls apart. Like TJ Watt is old. Cam Hayward. It's kind of a miracle he is continuing to do the defense was old. The offense defense young and the court side of the quarterback. The defense is old, right? That the defense is old and you need them to be good. Jamel Dean is not necessarily old, but he's hurt all the time to same as true of jacquan brisker. And then you just mentioned it, the quarterback is 58 years old. And so I just think that there's a chance that if those guys kind of fall apart and it starts to wither away, that sucks for the short term, right? Because then you're just like this year is kind of nothing. And it kind of hurts for the long term a little bit because then it's like, I just feel like you end up in a weird position where it's like this version of the roster as old as it is with Rogers there. So it's kind of your chance right now to do it. And I think next year is going to have to be some sort of reset. So if you don't do it now, it just feels like you don't have any sort of momentum moving forward. I just think if yours to you as and the worst case scenario here is that you signed up for the Mike McCarthy experience and you put yourself back into the exact same world that you just lived in with Mike Tom one for too long, that that to me is what would be keeping, be keeping me up at night. By the way, Derek, Jamel Dean isn't old. Jamel Dean will turn 30 in October. He's a young contract corner. He's not young. And so you look at it, there are a lot of important pieces of this defense and expensive pieces of this defense that are very much very a lot closer to the end of their careers than they are to the prime of their careers. And so that there is a chance that next year they can turn a lot of this stuff over. If Kim Hey, we're moves on, they figure out something with TJ why they decide to keep high Smith instead of what they have her break a lot of the young defense tackles. They have young pieces there. They can get young and a hurry if they want to and turn the page, but then we're having an entirely different conversation. It's no longer the Pittsburgh Steelers as we understand them. I almost forgot to do what a success mean for the Steelers because I we're so mired and what the existential dread part of this looks like. Derek, what is success for the 2026 Pittsburgh Steelers? I mean, I think the fact that we almost skipped that kind of says it all, but I genuinely do think that like I talked about it a little bit. Success is just not being the team that feels like the automatic win in the playoffs. It like if you go into it and you at least feel like the Steelers have more of a fighting chance than they did last year, that's probably success. I don't think the ceiling is super high here. I think that's right. Do you when we on wild card weekend, if that's where they're playing, are we excited about the Steelers game? Do we find it interesting? Do we find it compelling do we think they have a shot? Is it not just like an obligatory thing we have to put on the TV for three hours? Because that's what it is felt like over the last couple of years. I'm going to keep an existential and I think in a good way, you might say it's bad because I'm sort of I'm writing the Steelers off for the year, but it's easy to imagine a world where we're so excited about the 2027. I actually think that is a lot of success. If like I said, if the offensive line whips ass and the running backs go buck wild and the receiver core is awesome, and all your points about the defense are fair, and who knows how many of those guys will be there next year. But if Patrick Graham lays the foundation for this being a really good solid defense, and you're basically just like if we're plopping a competent young quarterback into this thing, we could go somewhere. And maybe that's Drew Oller, or maybe it's Mac Jones, or maybe it's a guy you trade for. You don't have to figure that out right now. But if this looks like it could be a really kick ass team when Aaron Rogers retires and you get off this ride and look to get younger and better a quarterback, I think that's a successful season. I do too. And I actually think that's right. Like at this point, the playoffs is whatever. We've done that six out of the last seven years. Give me a reason to think the Steelers could be a Super Bowl contender in 27 and beyond. I think that's success. I think you're right. I think that is more important than whatever the playoff success or the playoff performance looks like for the Steelers. Get to our last one here. The Cleveland Browns are a preview for the 2026 Cleveland Browns. Hired Todd Monkin is their head coach, Mike Rootenberg is their defensive coordinator, signs Ion Johnson, Elton Jenkins, Quincy Williams and free agency traded for Titus Howard, just signed Derek Burnett, five million dollars of Derek Burnett. That was like two weeks ago. Well, seven bush, Wyatt Teller, Ethan Positch in free agency drafted Spencer Fano, Casey Concepcion, Denzel Boston, Emmanuel McNeil Warren, Austin Berber in the third round. Did you mention Derek Barnett's there because Alex writes out for the year. We'll talk about it. We'll talk. We'll talk about it. As somebody who drafted the Browns, I'm not very happy. I feel a little less good, not happy. Derek, what are you most excited about with the 2026 Cleveland Browns.
to get your spirits back up. I still think this defense is insanely talented. And obviously, you know, you're swapping out Miles Garrett for Jared versus who, again, Jared versus to reiterate is still a top 10 edge defender himself, even if he's not Miles Garrett. And so this is this is Carson Swessinger. This is like 98% Carson Swessinger is what's coming out of Derek's mind. I think he's making a lot of good points. Keep going. I mean, you do have Carson Swessinger who listen, I truly think that by the end of the year, if he's the guy that we're talking about behind Fred Warner, that is, that is, I would say more likely than not. Like I really believe that he is that level of talent or likely than not. I think he's incredible. He's, I said it when we talked about, I don't even remember when I said this. Maybe I said it for second year breakouts or something like that. He's already broken out, but like he really is the only linebacker that I've seen. He's the only linebacker that I've seen since Fred Warner where I'm like, that guy moves like Fred Warner. And so, and he's big. Like I just, I believe in the talent, even if he's
, I would like to see him get a little bit stronger taking on blocks, but he's still a good player. Even outside, outside of all of his very well researched analytical analysis, Derek just goes, and he's big. He's, he's a big, he's a big boy. He makes a lot of plays that way. So they've got that. They bring back Quincy Williams who we talked about in the play collar show played really well with Mike Gutenberg in New York. And so I think that that can be like really nice for them. The defensive line does have talent. Like Mason Graham, there's a chance that he takes another step. Willie Collins is back in practicing. And if people don't remember, when Willie Collins was healthy last year, he was like the most explosive, destructive defensive tackle in the NFL. He was incredible last season. Yeah. He was unbelievable watching him. And then I still think the secondary is fairly talented. And so like this to me, just like they've got talent all across the board, even if edge depth is a little bit of a concern now that Alex Wright is going to miss the season, I just think that they've got dudes at all three levels. And I'm relatively like my interest is peaked in what Mike Gutenberg might do at this defense. I feel like losing Alex, right? It was funny when I was there. We're talking, I was talking to somebody just about the idea of them having to manufacture a little bit more pressure in a world where they don't have miles, Garrett. And the thought was like, let's just say we lost your adverse for any stretch of time. And with, with when Jim Schwartz was there, it was just kind of like a rush four or even rush five and play a little bit of man. That's what you were going to do. They weren't like a heavy blitz team when Jim Schwartz was there. They don't have to be when miles Garrett's on the team. I think Mike Gutenberg is a coach that if they needed to manufacture a little bit more pressure, you look at what they did in Atlanta last year where they did have to live that way. The amount of zone they're playing behind it. Just the variability behind the blitzes. The Ram, the Browns last year played more man coverage behind when they blitzed any team in the league. I think that there's just going to be a wider menu of stuff behind the pressure looks in a Mike Gutenberg world. And already without Alex, right, you're going to have to start tapping into that stuff. And so I think that is part of the optimistic case for why this defense, even without miles, Garrett, can just feel still dangerous and dynamic because they're going to be doing different things than they did last year. Even if there's a lot of carryover with the DNA that I think allows the players to still be comfortable upfront language techniques, everything else. The defense line coach is the same. There's still enough of, there's still enough carryover where there's continuity and scheme. But I think there's a little bit more diversity on the back end to just give teams a little bit more trouble in some of those situations hopefully. And I think it's pure preseason optimism. But if I was a Browns fan, you're hoping that you haven't seen close to the best from Mason Graham to this point. Yes. Like if he ascends, it's crazy. With the amount of studs that they found in last year's draft, one was the first one off the board. And he's the one that you're kind of waiting on. And if he takes any sort of step this year, that makes me feel much better. We've talked about this a couple of times over the course of the summer. That attack front, it takes a while for guys to get used to playing that way, especially if you've never done it before. And Mason Graham is a perfect example of that. I think of the back half last season, he was getting a little bit more comfortable with that play style. And I think that they expect him to take a step there. And the other guy like he was a throw in in some ways with the trade, Jared versus an incredibly good football player, Jared, Jared versus really good. The reason that the Browns made the Miles Garrett trade isn't because they wanted some picks for Miles Garrett. Jared versus is the thing that pushed that thing over. Because now you raise the floor of what the trade can be. If you get five first round picks for Miles Garrett, and none of those hit, it's a disaster. Now the trade can only look so bad, even if you mess out on those picks, because you know what Jared versus is. The fact that Jared versus a good enough player that you feel comfortable trading Miles Garrett, I think speaks to what Jared versus already is. That's actually a really good way to frame it. I hadn't thought about that because I mean, the Browns are notorious for getting two and three first round picks in years in the middle. It doesn't really amount to anything. But when you bring in a guy like Jared versus where unless he gets injured over the next handful of years, he is a top 10 edge player for probably a long time. Like the trade really only can look so bad. That's a really good way to frame it. He doesn't turn 25 until this sometime this season. We talked about it over the summer. Dave, what are you most excited about watching with the Cleveland Browns? It is, I would say, probable, not even possible. It is probable that last year set my expectations too high. But when you do what the Browns did in last year's draft, I mean, you found a future all pro caliber guy in Derek and I's opinion and Carson Swessinger. You redo the tight end room. You find a really fun tight end in Harold Fanon. The running back room is completely revamped. You have two. And so to get all of those guys, and like I said, you're still hopefully Mason Graham has more to show you in year two to have all of that from one year. And then you turn around and have two first round draft picks and a top 40 pick and Denzel Boston. All three of those guys are expected to start. I mean, that's half your starting lineup in big time draft picks over the last two years that you have sky high, sky high expectations for. It's not fair that I'm over the moon about Spencer Fanon, Casey Concepcion, and Denzel Boston, mainly because of what the rookie class last year did. But if it's even close, if they're even close to as impactful early as last year's rankings were, this is an incredibly exciting team by the end of 2026. My just the young pass catchers, like it's you don't need to care about it. Your favorite. I love Fano, but I just I'm excited to watch the pass catchers. I let, I'll, I'll, I will, I'll embrace exactly what you're saying. Well, I will agree with you. All the employers give me, I'll give me all the young players. There's so many of them. My, my two favorite players in this draft, the Browns drafted both of them. Spencer Fanon, Casey Concepcion. And so the fact that both of those guys are going to be part of this in week one, I'm really excited about that. The Ben, Denzel Boston hype has been crazy during training camp. This collection of, of pass catchers with those two guys and Fanon, like, Fanon was incredible last year. And so the ad Fano to that mix, the young defensive players. I mean, that, that is why this team is worth watching. I'm curious with the pass catching spots, like how it all comes together, because I just don't know what Fanon's role looks like in an offense where you have these options. I think they did so many skimmed up touches for him last year. And maybe Concepcion only takes some of those, but I just wonder how the role shake out. And I don't think they know the answer to that right now. And the other, like, kind of nerdy specific thing is, I don't know what, without in Joku to eat some of those in line snaps. And you can move Fanon around. What does his role look like? Because they do not have an in line player right now. They drive the Joe Royer in the fifth round. He has not practiced and Blake Whiteheart right now is like their other option is an in line blocker. And so if you don't feel good about having an in line, why? What does that mean for Fanon's role? How much 11 personnel can you play with him as the tight end? Like that, it's, it's a fun collection of players. I just don't know how it all comes together cohesively. And I think that's the only thing holding me back from being just overly excited about it. Sounds like something you want to watch in the first month of the season. That is, I probably should have included that. What are you watching in the first month of the season, Dave, when it comes to this Cleveland Browns team? I remember talking about it in March, but it's wild the way the Browns are just microwaving an entirely new offensive line. Yeah. Like to bring the whole thing in, I think Kevin Jenkins is the lone holdover from last year's offensive line. And obviously Spencer Fano is, is the big name there because he's the top 10 pick, which really encouraging in the preseason. He was going against the Bears. So that's probably what he was baptized by fire in the first two weeks. And the first week and half a camp. It's a great point. Having to play against Jared verse when your biggest question mark is overall play strength is a very good early test. I think it was, I think it was Fano who said in early August, I've been practicing against the best football player I've ever played in my life for two weeks straight. Jared verse made to Ron Armstead quit playing in the NFL. Could you imagine if your first taste of NFL football was having to play against that guy like 30 times a day. So not only did he look really good against the Bears, the Browns did not play him in the bills game too good. They just sat him out. Yeah, too good. No, no, we've seen what we needed to see incredible stuff. So I assume it's going to be Fano Zion Johnson, Elton Jenkins, Tevin Jenkins and Titus Howard. That's right. How is it? How quickly does that come together? What is Fano's learning curve in the regular season? How do four guys that have never played together, coalesce and how quickly does it happen? And on top of that, I don't expect the quarterback play to be very good. And so how, how do we parse the performance of the offensive line in a less than ideal quarterbacking situation? Like are they good, but they look bad because of the court.
backplay. Are they outright good? Is it shakeier than that? It's something to watch. I think it has to be better than it was last year. That's like the first place my mind was high bar. But it was so bad last year. And so I think people are looking at this and be like, man, so many new moving pieces. What can we expect from the Browns offensive line? World's better than it was a year ago. Last year, Cameron Robinson played 700 snaps for this team. KJ Levinson, who's a backup guard now, was a tackle who played 650 snaps for this team last year. They were so banged up. They've been so banged up. So I think we have our this idea of the Browns offensive line in our minds where it's like, oh, why it's heller and Joe Patonio and all of this. We have not seen that version of this offensive line in a really long time. Teller must four games last year. Patonio played every single snap. But for the most part, this has been a devastated group. So even if there's a lot of turnover, even if you have a rookie left tackle, I still think it's just going to be a significantly improved overall unit from what we've typically been watching with this team. And I think just specifically, attacker, you feel like you have competency here, right? Like the fact that fauna was as good a prospect as he was and has looked pretty good in the preseason and then tied us Howard over at right tackle, like it's those two positions that the book ends have really been the part that I think has been the most revolving door for them, especially since Jack Concklin really started getting hurt a couple of handful of years ago, like the fact that that feels more stable now, I do think should go a long way for them. In terms of baptism by fire, though, do you know who they get in week one? They get the Jaguars. So Spencer Fondo getting Josh Heinz Allen and Trayvon Walker week one is like, all right, man, let's see it. Let's see if you're up for it. I do think he will be, but that is a hell of a week one for him. It's Tampa right after that. So those jobs being followed by whatever Todd bulls is going to draw up for you. Speaking of Blitz happy defensive coaches, Derek, what are you watching the first month of the season with the Cleveland Browns? I mean, yeah, we can kind of sprint through it because we did this on the play call show, but for me, it really is just like what does the defense look like and how different is it going to be? And like you said, I think a lot of the front structure and language and stuff, a lot of that should be the same. It should be a lot of attacking stuff. I just think on passing downs, this thing is going to look a little bit different. And, you know, Jim Schwartz mentioned a little bit earlier, a lot more man and his change up really was always like cover two. He just love to get some weird cover two stuff. That's what he like to do. The tree that Rutenberg is coming from, it really don't play a lot of cover two. They play a lot, they play a little bit less man and they play a lot more quarters, especially on early downs, which if you're playing it with match principles, it does become man. And so that's more what I expect to see because that's still how you want to use these corners. That's still a Denzel War does best. That's still what Tyson Campbell still does best. And so I think it's going to look a little bit different and how much growing pain do we get in the first four to six weeks where I think every team is really trying to figure out what they want to be and what they want to call. I think that's what I'm most interested in with this team. The one curiosity I have, I agree with all of that. I'm really interested to see what it looks like because I just think that Falcon Staff, it's such a good job last year with their talent of getting the most out of that group. I'm just curious what a manual McNeil Warren's role is going to look like. I asked when I was there and they were keeping that pretty close to the vest like, is he somebody that we see in a nickel role when they're playing some big nickel stuff? How fast do we see him as a starting safety? I just haven't been able to find a lot about what the exact plan for him is going to look like and how early we're going to see that plan come together. So that's another just kind of curiosity thing I have about the defense. I because his role has been so under wraps and at training camp, I didn't even think about him among the rookies and young players, but throw him on the file. There are so many big time draft picks that I want to watch. I mean, it sounds like they're keeping this close to the vest, but did you hear anything about like if they want to do some stuff about getting McNeil Warren on the field like, dealt it maybe playing some of the big nickel? Because he's a player who I think is really good in the box. I don't know if that's something that they ask him to do. I didn't know that I literally asked a specific question about it and it was kind of one of those like, we're going to keep that to ourselves. And so I don't have any information about that. It's really one of the only things that even like in a background conversation, somebody was just like, no, I'm good. I was like, all right, sounds good. I guess we'll all find out together when we're going to see McNeil McNeil Warren this year. The last thing I'll say about just curiosity, things we're excited about. We have not really mentioned this at all. Todd Monkin is already a singular personality as an NFL head coach. Sure is. But I just a man that will say anything. And I think somebody that the comparison I made even when he was hired is, if this goes well, it's just Bruce Ariens. And I do think that they are the closest comparisons in the sense of 62-year-old guy deep into their careers doesn't give a **** about any of this stuff in terms of like what he should be saying and how he should be operating. And so I'm just curious to see how that goes. It could be, it could go off the rails pretty fast. It wasn't a great start in terms of how this whole quarterback situation was handled. But I'm interested in it because there's really no head coach in the league quite like Todd Monkin. Clearly, like just over the last, from the, from the time he was hired going back to the combine and obviously it, it hasn't always been fun with what we've been dealing with the quarterback situation in Cleveland. But that's when I see a Todd Monkin clip come across my timeline, I'm going to unmute and see what he has to say, which I don't do that for every head coach in the league. At the very least, Todd Monkin is 60 years old decent retirement package. I mean, it's if that's it and Todd and Todd's kind of riding into the sunset after this, I think I think it's going to be okay. Fire me. Fine. Sweet, sweet, buy out. What is keeping you up at night, Derek, about the 2026 Cleveland Browns? The quarterback might, the quarterbacks might sink in otherwise pretty interesting offense. And I think more than obviously, I don't think the results for this year really matter. But I do think that there's a chance that it's so bad and it's so naughty that we're not really, we're not as confident as we want to be that the 2027 Browns are like the spot to be in. And I do think that that's where they see it. And it goes back to what Dave was saying about the offensive line too. Like if the quarterback plays so bad that we it's a little bit hard to untangle how good or bad the offensive line is because the quarterback are just putting them in such a bad position. I think that's where this becomes like a really freaky season. The quarterback, this course in general, also just the week to week process of how that's going to go, something to go, every ounce of joy out of what otherwise could be a somewhat exciting season. Yes. Yeah. And on on top of that, the idea that the quarterback play in Cleveland could leave us confused about how good all these young players are. Or you know, if I don't come in here on a Sunday night, dying to talk about what Denzel Boston did, that's sad. If Denzel Boston's just doing cardio and Casey Concepcion's just doing cardio all year and Spencer Fano's fighting for his life because the quarterback play is not good. That's that's just sad for everybody in addition to how toxic this is going to be. And it will be for a variety of reasons. So yeah, I can't say I'm looking forward to it. And I think that brings me into what a success for the 2026 Cleveland Browns is that excitement about the young core maintained throughout the season. But when we get to the end of this year, are we in a spot where you're looking at a collection of guys, Judkins, Swessinger, Graham, Fan and Fano, Concepcion, Boston, McNeil Warren, you're like, man, there is a really exciting promising group of young players here. And we get to the end of the year and all that other bullshit didn't do enough to completely sap whatever optimism you have about what this group can look like moving forward. If we find ourselves excited by the end of the season about what the Browns young players look like, if we find ourselves in a conversation on on December 15th, being like, man, you look at the 2026 quarterback or 2027 quarterback carousel. And the guys are going to be available in the draft and the Browns have a top five pick and imagine name of college quarterback archmaning. Yes. Dante Moore, Dante Moore, no, imagine Dante Moore with this group of players. What can this look like? If that's the conversation we're having after the college football season has wrapped up and we're transitioning to draft time, that to me is success for the 2026 Browns. That is a pertinent caveat. I say it tongue in cheek, but there's there's truth behind it too. Successful season for me is being just as excited about the young players in January as I am right now. And you tune into building the beast every Wednesday during the season. Good luck. Thank you. We're excited about the quarterbacks. And we're not Dan and I in October aren't saying, oh, shit, it happened again. It's a one quarterback class. No, you want there to be two to four guys worth being intrigued by. I think that would go a long way toward building some enthusiasm for 2027. I mean, there's not a whole lot to add. It's the young players look good. And I would say the other small thing is like, I think if the defense mostly maintains its level as like a top 15 unit, you feel good about the change, like that sort of stuff. Like, again, if we feel as excited now about these young players in the defense as we, as if we feel as excited at the end of the season as we do now, that's success. In fact, we're excited all about excited at all about the Browns. I think speaks to how many young promising players are currently involved in this situation. All right. That is all we've got with the AFC North preview. We'll be back tomorrow with the NFC South NFC East NFC East is tomorrow. We decided to let the NFC East take us into the weekend rather than the NFC South. No offense to the NFC South, but the NFC East will take us into the weekend and we'll be at the top of your feet.
Saturday and Sunday. Cowboys, Eagles, arguments going, it'll be good. We've already covered that one. No, we'll do it again. I'm in on the Eagles, I've decided. Coward. All right, that's all we've got for today. We'll be back tomorrow with the NFC East preview. Appreciate you guys. Listen, talk to you very soon. Thanks for tuning in. Make sure to hit that subscribe or follow button. So you never miss an episode. If you enjoyed what you heard, please like, comment, and leave a rating. We'll see you next time. (gentle music)
Podcast Summary
Key Points:
The 2026 Baltimore Ravens are projected to have a strong offense fueled by Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry, with a potential shift to more under-center play under new coordinator Declan Doyle, which could enhance offensive efficiency and create more one-on-one opportunities.
The Ravens' defense is a major concern due to the uncertainty around Nate Wiggins and Mattabique’s return, the aging of key players like Marlon Humphrey and Rookan Smith, and the lack of depth in pass coverage, though the team has improved personnel to support more man coverage and a more aggressive defensive style.
The Bengals’ offensive transition to a more under-center, run-driven system is exciting but risky, as it requires consistent execution and depth in play design; early results from training camp suggest clunkiness and poor execution, raising doubts about whether the change will effectively disrupt defenses or become a sustainable identity.
Summary:
The 2026 Baltimore Ravens are seen as a potentially strong team centered on a high-impact duo of Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry, with a promising offensive shift under new coordinator Declan Doyle that emphasizes under-center play and play-action. This could unlock explosive efficiency and more one-on-one situations, especially with improved corner coverage and a deeper edge rush. However, key defensive concerns loom large—particularly the return of Mattabique, the aging of core players like Humphrey and Smith, and a lack of depth in pass coverage.
The team’s defensive philosophy may shift from last year’s overreliance on single-high coverage to a more man-centric approach, bolstered by players like Nate Wiggins and Jalen Hawkins, though how this translates into game-day execution remains uncertain. In contrast, the Cincinnati Bengals are viewed as having a high-potential offensive transformation, aiming to integrate a more under-center, run-based system to create unpredictability. While the move is strategically sound, early signs from preseason—such as a failed under-center play action—raise questions about consistency and execution.
The success of this shift hinges on whether the team can maintain discipline and trust in new play designs, especially under Joe Burrow’s comfort with traditional shotgun offense. On defense, the trade for Dexter Lawrence is promising, but the edge room’s effectiveness—particularly with Shamar Stewart and Miles Murphy—remains questionable, given last year’s poor performance in run defense and reliance on loaded boxes. Ultimately, both teams face significant hurdles: the Ravens in defensive consistency and player health, and the Bengals in offensive execution and defensive adaptability.
Success will depend not just on talent but on the ability to execute new systems under pressure.
FAQs
The combination of Lamar Jackson and Derek Henry is considered the most exciting, with both players having proven success in a high-efficiency, under-center system that emphasizes mid-field throws and play-action. This pairing is seen as a potential top-five offense in the league.
Declan Doyle is expected to bring a Chicago Bears-style emphasis on play-action and under-center offense, which could unlock more explosive plays and better utilization of the Ravens' current personnel, especially with Lamar Jackson's comfort in that system.
The return and performance of Nate Wiggins, who was injured during the offseason, is a major concern, as his absence and potential impact on man coverage could affect the team’s defensive flexibility and effectiveness.
The Ravens are expected to solidify Marlon Humphrey as a full-time outside cornerback, with a more consistent man-coverage scheme, and potentially leverage Keon Martin and Chandler Rivers in nickel packages to improve defensive depth and coverage versatility.
Mattabique’s return is a major focus, with a positive sign being his first sled hit in training camp. His impact on the defensive interior is expected to significantly improve the team’s overall defensive performance, though his return timeline remains uncertain.
The pass-catchers, including Mark Andrews and rookies like Jacoby Lane and Kuehbaugh, are seen as underdeveloped, with Andrews’ performance declining and rookie contributions still unproven, raising concerns about offensive balance and consistency.
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