<v Speaker 1>Ends the day May six, twenty twenty six. You are

<v Speaker 1>listening to the Daily Dose Sports podcast and I am

<v Speaker 1>your host, Clint Daily, coming to you from my high

<v Speaker 1>seed here in Denver, Colorado, and we are back for

<v Speaker 1>another week of talking sports with a dose of common sense. Hey,

<v Speaker 1>Happy Wednesday to you. Hope your week is going well.

<v Speaker 1>You are now halfway to another weekend, which is always

<v Speaker 1>a good thing. I hope you, your family and friends,

<v Speaker 1>everyone is staying strong and staying healthy right now. And hey,

<v Speaker 1>we have got a lot to get to today because

<v Speaker 1>those NBA Playoffs, Yeah, they're now down to just eight

<v Speaker 1>teams remaining. And that first round, hey, it was pretty

<v Speaker 1>wild over in the East. The number one Detroit Pistons,

<v Speaker 1>they had to go to a game seven to get

<v Speaker 1>past the number eight seeded Orlando Magic. Not good if

<v Speaker 1>you're Detroit. Also not good for you the Magic, because

<v Speaker 1>they fired their head coach when they lost that. I

<v Speaker 1>don't think they had any business winning that series, but

<v Speaker 1>they still fired their head coach. Detroit will now face

<v Speaker 1>the Cleveland Cavaliers, who also had to win a game

<v Speaker 1>seven over the pesky Toronto Raptors. Both of those teams, hey,

<v Speaker 1>they've got to be exhausted now and now they're going

<v Speaker 1>to try to beat up on each other. Meanwhile, the

<v Speaker 1>New York Knicks will be facing the Philadelphia seventy six Ers. Hey,

<v Speaker 1>the Sixers actually knocked off my pick for the East

<v Speaker 1>to make the finals. I'd picked the Boston Celtics, but

<v Speaker 1>the Sixers knocked them out in seven games as Celtics

<v Speaker 1>superstar Jason Tatum had to sit out with that knee,

<v Speaker 1>and when he did that series really kind of swung

<v Speaker 1>when he went out. Now the Knicks will face the

<v Speaker 1>Sixers and we will get to see Karl Anthony Towns

<v Speaker 1>and Joel Embiid battle for well, I don't know who

<v Speaker 1>wants it less or whatever. In the West, the Oklahoma

<v Speaker 1>City thunder swept the Phoenix Suns pretty easily and now

<v Speaker 1>they will be facing the Los Angeles Lakers, who beat

<v Speaker 1>the Houston Rockets. They started strong, struggled a little bit,

<v Speaker 1>but they finished off the Rockets. Hey, the Lakers had

<v Speaker 1>better bring it against the Thunderbilt. This might be another sweep.

<v Speaker 1>I'm gonna say thunder and five here. I don't think

<v Speaker 1>the Lakers are gonna match up that well. And then

<v Speaker 1>the San Antonio Spurs beat the Portland Trailblazers in five games.

<v Speaker 1>And of course, the Minnesota Timberwolves out toughed my Denver

<v Speaker 1>Nuggets in six games. And you know the more depressing

<v Speaker 1>part about it, they did it with their junior varsity.

<v Speaker 1>The Nuggets have a history of underachieving, if you want

<v Speaker 1>to go back and look it up. I've been watching

<v Speaker 1>this team since they were like in the ABA, and

<v Speaker 1>in all but pretty much two years they have underachieved.

<v Speaker 1>And this year they got back to who they truly are,

<v Speaker 1>underachievers that never win anything. And here's the problem. They

<v Speaker 1>don't really have any moves that they can make to

<v Speaker 1>change their roster all that much. The contracts they have

<v Speaker 1>are staying on the books. I don't know how you

<v Speaker 1>get anyone to take it. So now we get the

<v Speaker 1>Timberwolves versus the Spurs. I think the Spurs get that one,

<v Speaker 1>but I think the Oklahoma City Thunder will eventually go

<v Speaker 1>on to the NBA Finals and I think they'll win it.

<v Speaker 1>And if you have any doubt, just watch how they're

<v Speaker 1>officiated and you'll agree with me. Hey today I'm the dose.

<v Speaker 1>I know it is spring. The Kentucky Derby just ran.

<v Speaker 1>We may have had a horse get upside down a

<v Speaker 1>little bit. And like I said, those NBA playoffs are rolling.

<v Speaker 1>The NHL playoffs are rolling. But you know what, I

<v Speaker 1>know I shouldn't, but I already missed the NFL. Today

<v Speaker 1>we're going to have an NFL flavored daily dose. But

<v Speaker 1>first I do want to talk a little bit about

<v Speaker 1>those other playoffs that are going on, because it isn't

<v Speaker 1>just the NBA that is down to their final eight teams.

<v Speaker 1>The Stanley Cup playoffs are also now pass the first round.

<v Speaker 1>And hey, we have had some wild series playing out

<v Speaker 1>over in the world of hockey as well. Over in

<v Speaker 1>the East. The Buffalo Sabers. Hey they're young, but they're

<v Speaker 1>really talented, and they outlasted the Boston Bruins in six

<v Speaker 1>games and advanced to where they're going to play another

<v Speaker 1>young and very talented team in the Montreal Canadians, who

<v Speaker 1>had to go to a Game seven where they shocked

<v Speaker 1>the veteran Tampa Bay Lightning by beating them. Get this,

<v Speaker 1>two to one in a game in which Montreal put

<v Speaker 1>just nine shots on goal. You put nine shots on

<v Speaker 1>goal and two of them scored. Yeah, that's not a

<v Speaker 1>great save percentage for who is a very good goalie

<v Speaker 1>in Andre Vasselevski. I mean, this guy is one of

<v Speaker 1>the best goalies ever and he had two fluky goals

<v Speaker 1>get past him. It was just that kind of crazy series. Though.

<v Speaker 1>The other series over the East will be the Carolina Hurricanes,

<v Speaker 1>who looked like the top team over that conference by

<v Speaker 1>a long shot. They swept their opening opponent, the Ottawa Centers,

<v Speaker 1>and they made it look easy. Now Carolina will be

<v Speaker 1>facing the Philadelphia Flyers, and I don't think they're gonna

<v Speaker 1>have much trouble with Philly. Meanwhile, in the Western Conference,

<v Speaker 1>my Colorado Avalanche swept the Los Angeles Kings, and no,

<v Speaker 1>the Kings aren't that talented, but Colorado did have to

<v Speaker 1>deal with some physicality, getting punched in the face a

<v Speaker 1>little bit. And now Colorado is in a wild series

<v Speaker 1>with the Minnesota Wild, who knocked out the defending Western

<v Speaker 1>Conference champion Dallas Stars in a brutal series that went

<v Speaker 1>six games. I mean, this Avalanche Wild series, though, it's

<v Speaker 1>going to be insane. I mean, in Game one alone,

<v Speaker 1>you had fifteen goals by fourteen different goal scorers and

<v Speaker 1>the av scraped out a nine to six winners. This

<v Speaker 1>baseball or I don't know. If you're Cleveland football, I'm

<v Speaker 1>sure not every game will be like that, but this

<v Speaker 1>series must see TV. And that's not me being a homer.

<v Speaker 1>I'm just telling you this is must see TV. And

<v Speaker 1>then the final series in the West will feature the

<v Speaker 1>Las Vegas Golden Knights and the Anaheim Ducks, and I

<v Speaker 1>think this series is another one that could be very

<v Speaker 1>high scoring because neither team really cares all that much

<v Speaker 1>about playing defense, so this could absolutely be a shootout.

<v Speaker 1>I know I say every year, but I'm telling you

<v Speaker 1>the Stanley Cup playoffs they are like criminally underrated. And yes,

<v Speaker 1>the NHL has been stupid with the way they see

<v Speaker 1>their playoffs and I get that, but once the puck drops,

<v Speaker 1>tune in you're going to be entertained. It is every

<v Speaker 1>bit as exciting as the NFL playoffs or March Madness.

<v Speaker 1>Every single shift is life or death. The NHL playoffs

<v Speaker 1>are really really exciting. I encourage you to tune in.

<v Speaker 1>I remember you should be stuck by dailydilsports dot com

<v Speaker 1>every week to see what new things we have going

<v Speaker 1>on over there. We have links to the podcast, we

<v Speaker 1>have links to new articles every week. In fact, we

<v Speaker 1>had an article go up this week about the Denver

<v Speaker 1>Nuggets and what a mess that they are. And remember

<v Speaker 1>you can pick up some Daily Dose gear over there

<v Speaker 1>as well. We've got T shirts, hoodies, sweatshirts, baseball caps,

<v Speaker 1>got it all over at Daily dosports dot com, so

<v Speaker 1>make sure you're stopping by. Also, remember you can always

<v Speaker 1>email the podcast at Dailydo Sports at gmail dot com.

<v Speaker 1>We do hear from listeners regularly. I'll always take the

<v Speaker 1>time to respond and sometimes we might end up using

<v Speaker 1>what you send in on the show, so feel free

<v Speaker 1>to email the Dose. So the NFL Draft is now complete,

<v Speaker 1>NFL free agency is well mostly over, and now the

<v Speaker 1>next real step for NFL teams is going to be

<v Speaker 1>training camps opening. However, as we get ready to go

<v Speaker 1>into the summer, I don't care what team you're a

<v Speaker 1>fan of, every single NFL team they've got a few

<v Speaker 1>questions that they need to answer as they get into

<v Speaker 1>the season. And today we are going to look at

<v Speaker 1>every single NFL team and what their biggest offseason question

<v Speaker 1>might be. Let's start off in the AFC East with

<v Speaker 1>the Buffalo Bills, who went twelve and five last year

<v Speaker 1>and made the playoffs as a wild card but in

<v Speaker 1>a season where Patrick Mahomes, Joe Burrow, and Lamar Jackson

<v Speaker 1>all were eliminated the Bills and quarterback Josh Allen they

<v Speaker 1>still couldn't get any further than the divisional round as

<v Speaker 1>they were eliminated in dramatic fashion by the Denver Broncos.

<v Speaker 1>So the biggest question going into this next season will

<v Speaker 1>be did the Bills get enough help for Josh Allen? Hey,

<v Speaker 1>the Bills went out and made a trade for wide

<v Speaker 1>receiver DJ Moore. Is he spectacular? No, but he's usually

<v Speaker 1>there and he's usually pretty steady. They did also sign

<v Speaker 1>ed rusher Bradley Chubb. I don't know if that's that big,

<v Speaker 1>and they picked up safety Chauncey Gardner Johnson. That could

<v Speaker 1>be an upgrade in the secondary, but is it enough?

<v Speaker 1>Because I feel like that championship window is closing quickly.

<v Speaker 1>In Buffalo next to the Miami Dolphins, who after going

<v Speaker 1>seven to ten, decided it was time to make some

<v Speaker 1>big changes. They fired head coach Mike McDaniel and they

<v Speaker 1>hired Packers defensive coordinator Jeff Halfley. Also gone is quarterback

<v Speaker 1>to a Tunguea by Loa, and the Dolphins signed Packers

<v Speaker 1>backup quarterback Malik Willis something about the Dolphins. They really

<v Speaker 1>got a big crush on the Packers. Not sure what

<v Speaker 1>that's about. So I guess the biggest question for the

<v Speaker 1>Dolphins is going to be this was Tua most of

<v Speaker 1>the problem in Miami, because aside from swapping quarterbacks, I

<v Speaker 1>don't know that the Dolphins really did all that much

<v Speaker 1>with their roster. Maybe Halfley is the key. Maybe he

<v Speaker 1>can change something for this group and get them back

<v Speaker 1>on track. Next up, the New England Patriots looked like

<v Speaker 1>they were ahead of schedule last year. They went fourteen

<v Speaker 1>and three and all the way to the Super Bowl. Sure,

<v Speaker 1>they lost to the Seattle Seahawks, but hey, the Patriots

<v Speaker 1>won a lot of games last year. That's the good news.

<v Speaker 1>Here's the bad news. The Patriots played the thirtieth ranked

<v Speaker 1>schedule in terms of strength, and in the playoffs they

<v Speaker 1>faced CJ. Shroud, a broken Chargers team and a backup

<v Speaker 1>quarterback in Denver. Well, this year the schedule won't be

<v Speaker 1>nearly as easy. So the question for the Patriots for me,

<v Speaker 1>is was quarterback Drake may a fluke because in the

<v Speaker 1>postseason he didn't look so good. He threw just six

<v Speaker 1>touchdowns to four interceptions, and really, the Patriots just capitalized

<v Speaker 1>on soft competition. Now maybe May was injured. I'm not sure,

<v Speaker 1>but we're gonna find out this year because the Patriots'

<v Speaker 1>schedule will jump up another level. We finish up the

<v Speaker 1>AFC East with the New York Jets, who seemed to

<v Speaker 1>just keep getting worse every single year. The Jets went

<v Speaker 1>three and fourteen last year, and the bad news was

<v Speaker 1>that once again they seemed to go backward. Hey, we

<v Speaker 1>know the Jets offense is always terrible, but last year

<v Speaker 1>the defense was bad too. But remember last year, the

<v Speaker 1>Jets had high hired former Detroit Lions defensive coordinator Aaron

<v Speaker 1>Glenn to be their head coach, yet they somehow got worse.

<v Speaker 1>So I think the question for the Jets is can

<v Speaker 1>Aaron Glenn improved the interior of that defense, because that

<v Speaker 1>defensive front had some talent. So how in the world

<v Speaker 1>did the Jets give up more than five hundred points

<v Speaker 1>last year? The Jets had better show some improvement or

<v Speaker 1>Aaron Glenn's going to be in big trouble. We moved

<v Speaker 1>next to the NFC East and we start with the

<v Speaker 1>Dallas Cowboys who once again underachieved last year. The Cowboys

<v Speaker 1>were seven to nine to one, and while yes, they

<v Speaker 1>scored nearly twenty eight points per game, they allowed over

<v Speaker 1>thirty points per game and more than six yards per

<v Speaker 1>play in head coach Brian Schottenheimer's first season on the job.

<v Speaker 1>So here's the question. Can Brian Schottenheimer coach defense? Because

<v Speaker 1>remember Mike McCarthy actually had shown some improvement on the

<v Speaker 1>defensive side when he was there, but last year that

<v Speaker 1>defense collapsed under shot and the Cowboys floundered. It better

<v Speaker 1>in prove this year. The New York Giants were showing

<v Speaker 1>some promise last year as well. They beat both the

<v Speaker 1>Chargers and the Eagles early on, but then injuries took

<v Speaker 1>place and the Giant season went south real fast. They

<v Speaker 1>finished four and thirteen. But I mean, when the Giants

<v Speaker 1>had quarterback Jackson Dart and running back Camp Scatibow healthy,

<v Speaker 1>they were at least fun to watch. So here's my question,

<v Speaker 1>can Dart and scatibo actually stay healthy? It isn't just

<v Speaker 1>the luck of a draw with these two. They need

<v Speaker 1>to show the ability, the mental ability to avoid dumb,

<v Speaker 1>silly collisions that aren't needed. Hey, I realize They're both

<v Speaker 1>tough guys. I get it. You can't win games from

<v Speaker 1>the training room. Can the Giants key players stay on

<v Speaker 1>the field. We moved next to the Philadelphia Eagles, who

<v Speaker 1>were again solid last year. They won the NFC East

<v Speaker 1>with an eleven to six record, but then they kind

<v Speaker 1>of came unraveled in the playoffs and they lost to

<v Speaker 1>the San Francisco forty nine Ers in the wildcard game. Look,

<v Speaker 1>I know there are people that say quarterback Jalen Hurts

<v Speaker 1>is a problem, and of course we saw last year

<v Speaker 1>wide receiver AJ Brown was a problem. But here's my

<v Speaker 1>question for the Eagles. I don't think that stuff matters.

<v Speaker 1>Can the offensive line become a strength again, because no,

<v Speaker 1>Jalen Hurts isn't the guy you want throwing the ball

<v Speaker 1>forty fifty times. You want that offensive line to dominate upfront.

<v Speaker 1>You run the ball, you eat clock, you do the

<v Speaker 1>toush push, you grind out first downs. If the Eagles

<v Speaker 1>get back to that, yeah they're gonna be a contender again.

<v Speaker 1>If not, it's gonna be real similar to last year.

<v Speaker 1>We finish off the NFC East with the Washington Commanders,

<v Speaker 1>who showed a few flashes of improvement, But then quarterback

<v Speaker 1>Jaden McDaniels went down with an injury and the season

<v Speaker 1>went with him. The Commanders actually lost eight games in

<v Speaker 1>a row. At one point, they finished five and twelve. Well,

<v Speaker 1>what I want to watch this year is are the

<v Speaker 1>Commanders gonna give Jaden McDaniels some support because in just

<v Speaker 1>seven games he was sacked eighteen times. And the Commanders

<v Speaker 1>need some more help offensively, wide receiver Deebo Samuel he's

<v Speaker 1>getting older. Terry McLaurin is phenomenal, but you need someone else.

<v Speaker 1>You need that defense to get back to creating some turnovers.

<v Speaker 1>McDaniels needs help. He can't do it on his own. Next,

<v Speaker 1>let's move to the AFC North and we will start

<v Speaker 1>with the Baltimore Ravens, who just might have been the

<v Speaker 1>biggest disappointment in the entire NFL last year. They went

<v Speaker 1>eight to nine and missed the postseason for the first

<v Speaker 1>time since twenty twenty one. Then the Ravens fired longtime

<v Speaker 1>head coach John Harbaugh. They have now hired Chargers defensive

<v Speaker 1>coordinator Jesse minter Hey. Harbaugh had been in Baltimore since

<v Speaker 1>two thousand and eight. That's a big move. So I've

<v Speaker 1>got to ask, can the Ravens shake up pay off?

<v Speaker 1>Because here's the thing. You hope you get better, what

<v Speaker 1>if you get worse? Hey, it's possible. I don't think

<v Speaker 1>it's probable. I think they'll be okay, But what if

<v Speaker 1>Baltimore actually regresses? Now we'll keep an eye on that.

<v Speaker 1>We move next to the Cincinnati Bengals, who just keep

<v Speaker 1>doing the same thing again and again and again and

<v Speaker 1>hoping for different results. Last year, the Bengals finished six

<v Speaker 1>and eleven. Why their defense isn't very good and quarterback

<v Speaker 1>Joe Burrow gets hit too many times and he misses

<v Speaker 1>half the season with injuries, and it happened again. Well,

<v Speaker 1>this year, the Bengals have already lost defensive tackle Trey

<v Speaker 1>Hendrickson to Baltimore, so they went and traded for Dexter

<v Speaker 1>Lawrence from the Giants to help out that defensive front.

<v Speaker 1>But as usual, this comes back to one question, can

<v Speaker 1>the Bengals protect Joe Burrow? Now, they did make a

<v Speaker 1>few moves on that defensive line, but then they also

<v Speaker 1>signed Joe Flacco to back up Burrow, which tells me

<v Speaker 1>they're just planning on him getting hurt again. We go

<v Speaker 1>next to the Land of Cleve, where the Cleveland Browns

<v Speaker 1>were terrible again. They went just five and twelve last year.

<v Speaker 1>The defense was at least scrappy with Garrett Miles, but

<v Speaker 1>the Browns offense overaged just sixteen points a game. Now,

<v Speaker 1>if the Browns did anything on offense, they could have

<v Speaker 1>won some games. So here's the question, who's their quarterback?

<v Speaker 1>Should Or Sanders started eight games? Dylan Gabriel started ten games.

<v Speaker 1>They were both awful. But the Browns are paying Deshaun

<v Speaker 1>Watson forty four million dollars this coming season. Shouldn't he

<v Speaker 1>actually get in a game? At some point? The Browns

<v Speaker 1>have gotta find someone to take that quarterback job and

<v Speaker 1>actually do something with it. We finish up the AFC

<v Speaker 1>North with the Pittsburgh Steelers, who had another weird season. Yes,

<v Speaker 1>the Steelers went ten and seven. They made the playoffs,

<v Speaker 1>but then they got throttled by the Houston Texans thirty

<v Speaker 1>to six when they got there. And then head coach

<v Speaker 1>Mike Tomlin resigned and the Steelers went and hired former

<v Speaker 1>Dallas Cowboys coach former Green Bay Packers coach Mike McCarthy. Now, offensively,

<v Speaker 1>the Steelers ran near the bottom of most offensive categories.

<v Speaker 1>So here's my question, are the Steelers really going to

<v Speaker 1>run this back with Aaron Rodgers again at quarterback? I mean,

<v Speaker 1>don't we already know how this ends up? That's not

<v Speaker 1>really your plan, right, You've got something else going, right,

<v Speaker 1>I hope. So let's move to the NFC North, which

<v Speaker 1>actually did get back to being a pretty tough division

<v Speaker 1>last year, and the Chicago Bears won that division within

<v Speaker 1>eleven and six record quarterback Caleb Williams. He kind of

<v Speaker 1>lived up to the hype. He put together a really

<v Speaker 1>impressive season. The Bears would eventually lose to the Rams

<v Speaker 1>in the postseason, but it wasn't because the offense. Now,

<v Speaker 1>the problem for the Bears was that their defense gave

<v Speaker 1>up twenty four points per game. So here's what I

<v Speaker 1>want to watch in Chicago this year. Can the Bears

<v Speaker 1>find a pass rush. The Bears defense had just thirty

<v Speaker 1>five sacks all year. They ranked twenty second overall. They

<v Speaker 1>need some defense if they're going to build on that

<v Speaker 1>success from a year ago. The Detroit Lions took a

<v Speaker 1>big step backwards this past season after going fifteen to

<v Speaker 1>two and twenty twenty four. The Lions lost both their

<v Speaker 1>offensive and defensive coordinators, and they crashed back to earth.

<v Speaker 1>This last year. They went just nine and eight and

<v Speaker 1>missed the playoffs. The defense wasn't great. They gave up

<v Speaker 1>twenty four points a game, but we kind of expect that,

<v Speaker 1>don't we now. The problem was that the offense wasn't

<v Speaker 1>nearly as explosive. After averaging thirty three points a game

<v Speaker 1>in twenty twenty four, they scored just twenty eight points

<v Speaker 1>a game this past year. So the question is cam

<v Speaker 1>that offense get back. Hey, Jared Guff has a lot

<v Speaker 1>of weapons, but they didn't score as many points last year.

<v Speaker 1>Teams found a way to shut them down. Can the

<v Speaker 1>Lions get back into contention? They're gonna need their offense

<v Speaker 1>to step up. The Green Bay Packers were a very

<v Speaker 1>mixed bag this year. They went nine seven and one

<v Speaker 1>and lost of the Bears in a crazy wild card

<v Speaker 1>game in the final minutes. But here is something to

<v Speaker 1>think about with Green Bay. They ranked fifteenth in offensive yardage.

<v Speaker 1>They ranked seventeenth in passing yards, fifteenth in rushing yards. Defensively,

<v Speaker 1>they ranked twelfth in yards allowed, eleventh in scoring allowed.

<v Speaker 1>A case, So my question is, what do you do

<v Speaker 1>well what is this team's strength. The Packers need an identity.

<v Speaker 1>I have no idea what it is. They're just kind

<v Speaker 1>of middle of the pack everywhere. We complete the NFC

<v Speaker 1>North with the Minnesota Vikings, who were hoping to contend

<v Speaker 1>for a postseason birth last year, only to see second

<v Speaker 1>year quarterback JJ McCarthy look like maybe the worst quarterback

<v Speaker 1>in the league. The Vikings struggled to a nine and

<v Speaker 1>eight record and they missed the postseason. So in the

<v Speaker 1>off season, they've gone out and signed, well, if not

<v Speaker 1>a full quarterback, like half a quarterback in Kyler Murray.

<v Speaker 1>Man that's me and the Vikings do have some offensive weapons.

<v Speaker 1>So here's the question. Can Kyler Murray revive his career

<v Speaker 1>in Minnesota? Now that might sound crazy, but I remember

<v Speaker 1>a guy named Sam Darnold and he did exactly that

<v Speaker 1>in Minnesota. We'll see if Kyler Murray can do the same.

<v Speaker 1>Let's go to the AFC South, where the Houston Texans

<v Speaker 1>had a solid twelve and five record. They won a

<v Speaker 1>playoff game against the Steelers and then they got thumped

<v Speaker 1>by the New England Patriots. But for the Texans, our

<v Speaker 1>question is easy. Is quarterback CJ. Stroud okay. He threw

<v Speaker 1>twenty three touchdowns as a rookie. Pretty impressive. Twenty touchdowns

<v Speaker 1>in his second year. Nineteen touchdowns last year, and last

<v Speaker 1>year he only got sacked twenty three times. So then

<v Speaker 1>I start to worry. Is Stroud gunshy because in his

<v Speaker 1>second season he got sacked fifty two times? So is CJ.

<v Speaker 1>Shroud going to rebound? Is he okay? Or did the

<v Speaker 1>Texans break their franchise quarterback? Need to keep an eye

<v Speaker 1>on that. We go next to one of the oddest

<v Speaker 1>teams in the NFL with the Indianapolis Colts. Last season,

<v Speaker 1>the Colts started strong. They had a seven to one

<v Speaker 1>record at the break. Quarterback Daniel Jones was playing well.

<v Speaker 1>Running Back Jonathan Taylor was an MVP contender at the

<v Speaker 1>midway point, and then Daniel Jones got hurt. So the

<v Speaker 1>Colts tried to play Anthony Richardson, they tried to play

<v Speaker 1>Rightley Leonard. They ended up bringing back seventy eight year

<v Speaker 1>old Philip Rivers to play, and the Colts closed the

<v Speaker 1>season by losing eight of their final nine games, including

<v Speaker 1>their final seven games in a row. Now we can

<v Speaker 1>just say, hey, Jones is back. All is fixed. It's

<v Speaker 1>all good again. But I gotta ask, does that kind

<v Speaker 1>of collapse from last year carry over it all into

<v Speaker 1>this year, because the first time you fall behind, the

<v Speaker 1>doubts are gonna creep back in. I want to see

<v Speaker 1>if the Colts are going to be able to overcome that.

<v Speaker 1>The Jacksonville Jaguars finally seemed to put some things together

<v Speaker 1>last year. Quarterback Trevor Lawrence was solid, the defense actually

<v Speaker 1>held its own. The Jags finished the season third keen

<v Speaker 1>and four, but they were beaten in the wildcard round

<v Speaker 1>of the playoffs by the Buffalo Bills. And in that

<v Speaker 1>playoff game, what was it that bit the Jags? Mostly

<v Speaker 1>their inability to rush the passer. They sacked Josh Allen

<v Speaker 1>just one time, he threw for nearly three hundred yards,

<v Speaker 1>and that wasn't just a one time thing. The Jacksonville

<v Speaker 1>Jaguars had just thirty two sacks on the entire season.

<v Speaker 1>So can the Jags find a pass rush because it's

<v Speaker 1>going to be very hard to win big games if

<v Speaker 1>they can't. Let's finish up the AFC South with the

<v Speaker 1>Tennessee Titans, who had a rough year going just three

<v Speaker 1>and fourteen. But hey, this is a young team they're

<v Speaker 1>rebuilding and rookie quarterback cam Ward. He showed some flashes

<v Speaker 1>of eventually maybe being a bona fide starter in this league. However,

<v Speaker 1>he also had some flashes that left everyone in the

<v Speaker 1>building wondering what in the world he was doing. So

<v Speaker 1>my question for the Titans is can cam Ward mature

<v Speaker 1>as a quarterback? Can he start to eliminate those silly

<v Speaker 1>plays and start to look more like an NFL starter.

<v Speaker 1>Let's go next to the NFC South and we start

<v Speaker 1>with the Atlanta Falcons, who seem to just be stuck

<v Speaker 1>in being mediocre. They haven't won more than eight games

<v Speaker 1>since twenty seventeen, and after going eight to nine yet

<v Speaker 1>again last year, they fired head coach Forrahie Morris and

<v Speaker 1>they hired former Cleveland Browns head coach Kevin Stefanski to

<v Speaker 1>see if he can get this offense going. Now, this

<v Speaker 1>offense is going to have both Michael Pennix and two

<v Speaker 1>a tongue of Bailoa as their quarterbacks. Not so sure

<v Speaker 1>about that, and Stefanski is just forty five and fifty

<v Speaker 1>six in his career as a head coach. So my

<v Speaker 1>question for the Falcons is Kevin Stefanski actually the answer,

<v Speaker 1>because this seems like a really big task for him

<v Speaker 1>to shore up. I'm not sure about the Atlanta Falcons.

<v Speaker 1>The Carolina Panthers won the NFC South last year, mostly

<v Speaker 1>by fault, but it still happened, and I'm not positive

<v Speaker 1>that was actually good news. The Panthers went eight to nine,

<v Speaker 1>they made the playoffs, they lost to the Rams and

<v Speaker 1>what ended up actually being kind of a tight wild

<v Speaker 1>card game. But here's where it gets icy. The Panthers

<v Speaker 1>picked up the fifth year option on quarterback Bryce Young,

<v Speaker 1>and I mean, he did play well at times. Will

<v Speaker 1>they say they want to get him signed to a

<v Speaker 1>long term deal, you know, like the Cardinals did with Kyler,

<v Speaker 1>like the Dolphins did with Tua. So my question is,

<v Speaker 1>are the Panthers gonna end up regretting picking up his

<v Speaker 1>player option, because they might. The New Orleans Saints are

<v Speaker 1>in rebuild mode and finish the season six and eleven

<v Speaker 1>last year. That was actually better than I expected. And

<v Speaker 1>you know, the Saints actually think they might have found

<v Speaker 1>their future quarterback in Tyler shut The Saints have got

<v Speaker 1>to improve in their running game. They need to take

<v Speaker 1>the pressure off of both their quarterback and their defense

<v Speaker 1>if they could do that. Speaking of their defense, our

<v Speaker 1>question for New Orlean does pertain to that defense, and

<v Speaker 1>it is can the Saints continue to get production from

<v Speaker 1>aging stars Cameron Jordan and Tomorrio Davis Because your offense

<v Speaker 1>it's probably not gonna bail you out very often, so

<v Speaker 1>your defense is gonna have to carry the load, and

<v Speaker 1>you need those two veterans to continue to play at

<v Speaker 1>a high level, and they're getting up there in age.

<v Speaker 1>We finish off with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, who yes,

<v Speaker 1>also went eight to nine in this terrible division and

<v Speaker 1>miss the playoffs. And you know what, I'm not sure

<v Speaker 1>that quarterback Baker Mayfield can truly be a Super Bowl

<v Speaker 1>contending kind of quarterback. But I know this. The Buccaneers

<v Speaker 1>defense allowed more than twenty four points per game in

<v Speaker 1>every game. That is the worst in this terrible division.

<v Speaker 1>And that's really saying something. So the question here is easy,

<v Speaker 1>can this Tampa defense get better? Because if you think

<v Speaker 1>Baker Mayfield is just gonna outscore people every week, you're

<v Speaker 1>gonna be in for a bad time. You're gonna have

<v Speaker 1>a bad time. We reached the final division in the AFC,

<v Speaker 1>and that is in the West, and we start with

<v Speaker 1>my Denver Broncos, who went fourteen and three last year.

<v Speaker 1>They went all the way to the AFC Championship, but

<v Speaker 1>then they lost quarterback Bo Knicks in the divisional round

<v Speaker 1>to an ankle injury, and backup Jaredstidham was not ready

<v Speaker 1>for prime time. The Broncos lost to the Patriots. But

<v Speaker 1>you know, the Broncos won eleven one score games last year,

<v Speaker 1>and I'll be honest, some of them were a little icy.

<v Speaker 1>So my question for my hometown team is were the

<v Speaker 1>Broncos just lucky last year or have they assembled enough

<v Speaker 1>talent to keep things rolling this year? Because those one

<v Speaker 1>score games they usually tend to even out over time.

<v Speaker 1>Denver has got to be better this year than they

<v Speaker 1>were last year. The Kansas City Chiefs are coming off

<v Speaker 1>of their worst season since twenty fourteen. They went six

<v Speaker 1>and eleven and missed the postseason. Quarterback Patrick Mahomes blew

<v Speaker 1>his knee in Week fifteen, and the season quickly went

<v Speaker 1>down the drink. Well. The Chiefs have brought back offensive

<v Speaker 1>coordinator Eric Biennemy in hopes of revving that stagnat offense

<v Speaker 1>back to life. But here's my question for KC. Are

<v Speaker 1>the Chiefs still truly a contender because remember tid end

<v Speaker 1>Travis Kelce is another year older. We don't know when

<v Speaker 1>Patrick Mahomes will be back. Can the defense keep rolling

<v Speaker 1>the way they have been because they've lost a few people? Now,

<v Speaker 1>are the Chiefs still a contender? We're gonna find out.

<v Speaker 1>The Las Vegas Raiders finished the season with the worst

<v Speaker 1>record in the league last year at three to fourteen,

<v Speaker 1>and they got the number one draft pick where they

<v Speaker 1>took Indiana quarterback Fernando Mendoza. Now, the Raiders still need

<v Speaker 1>some more pieces, but they are slowly rebuilding that offense.

<v Speaker 1>Here's my question, and it's actually on the other side

<v Speaker 1>of the ball. What do the Raiders do with Max Crosby?

<v Speaker 1>Because remember the Raiders had agreed to trade him to

<v Speaker 1>Baltimore and then Baltimore backed out of their deal. Okay,

<v Speaker 1>so Max is back, but does he want to be

<v Speaker 1>there all just forgotten? Does he continue to play like

<v Speaker 1>he used to knowing that team wanted to get rid

<v Speaker 1>of him, or do the Raiders eventually try to still

<v Speaker 1>move him? Going to be interesting to watch because there

<v Speaker 1>have to be some real weird feelings in that locker. Room.

<v Speaker 1>Final team in the AFC West is the Los Angeles Chargers,

<v Speaker 1>who might be the most snake bit team in the league.

<v Speaker 1>It's close. Last year was just for the proof. The

<v Speaker 1>Chargers win eleven and six. They made the playoffs, but

<v Speaker 1>they had so many injuries they just couldn't compete when

<v Speaker 1>they got there. Starting offensive lineman Joe All got hurt

<v Speaker 1>where Shawn Slater got hurt, and so they had to

<v Speaker 1>put backups in the lineup, and quarterback Justin Herbert took

<v Speaker 1>a beating. He got sacked fifty four times last year. Well,

<v Speaker 1>this year I want to look at can the Chargers

<v Speaker 1>offensive line return to form with those guys back in

<v Speaker 1>the lineup, because if Herbert's getting hit that often, yeah,

<v Speaker 1>he ain't gonna make it again. So we finish up

<v Speaker 1>in the final division the NFL on our list today

<v Speaker 1>and that is the NFC West, and we start with

<v Speaker 1>the Arizona Cardinals, who also went three to fourteen last

<v Speaker 1>year and gave up on both quarterback Kyler Murray and

<v Speaker 1>head coach Jonathan Gannon. Rams offensive coordinator Mike Lafleur is

<v Speaker 1>not the new coach, and it looks like maybe Jacoby

<v Speaker 1>Brissett is going to be the starting quarterback. Brissette has

<v Speaker 1>a couple of weapons and tight end Chase McBride and

<v Speaker 1>now rookie running back Jeremiah Love. But that defense in

<v Speaker 1>Arizona is terrible. We know that. So can the Cards

<v Speaker 1>get anything out of Jacoby Brissett because if he's bad, Yeah,

<v Speaker 1>this season's going to be another disaster. Maybe that's what

<v Speaker 1>the Cardinals want. Maybe they just want a disaster and

<v Speaker 1>then next year they'll try to find someone in the draft.

<v Speaker 1>I don't know. Next up, did you know that currently

<v Speaker 1>the Los Angeles Rams have the best odds of making

<v Speaker 1>it to the Super Bowl this year. It's kind of impressive.

<v Speaker 1>The Rams went twelve and five last year. They gave

<v Speaker 1>the eventual champs of Seattle Seahawks their toughest test to

<v Speaker 1>the playoffs. The Rams have veteran quarterback Matt Stafford. They

<v Speaker 1>have physical wide receiver Puka Nakua. They have a very

<v Speaker 1>scrappy defense. Hey, another offensive weapon on this team. Yeah,

<v Speaker 1>the Rams might be the Super Bowl favorite. So the

<v Speaker 1>Rams went out in the NFL Draft and used their

<v Speaker 1>number thirteen pick on a quarterback to sit at Matt

<v Speaker 1>Stafford's knee. Apparently, I don't get it. Here's my question.

<v Speaker 1>Could that draft pick carry some bad feelings in that

<v Speaker 1>locker room? Does the ty Simpson pick have any lasting effects?

<v Speaker 1>Because I honestly, yeah, I think it might. The Seattle

<v Speaker 1>Seahawks went fourteen to three and of course won Super

<v Speaker 1>Bowl sixty behind quarterback Sam Darnold, a two headed running

<v Speaker 1>game and a very opportunistic defense. Now, the Seahawks did

<v Speaker 1>lose Super Bowl MVP running back Kenneth Walker in free agency,

<v Speaker 1>but they lost someone else that might be even more

<v Speaker 1>concerning because offensive coordinator Clint Kubiak. Yeah, he's now in

<v Speaker 1>Vegas coaching the Raiders. What is that offense going to

<v Speaker 1>look like without Kennith Walker and without Kubiak might be

<v Speaker 1>very very different. Our final team in the NFL is

<v Speaker 1>the San Francisco forty nine Ers, another team that had

<v Speaker 1>a rough season from a standpoint of injuries. The Niners

<v Speaker 1>went twelve and five. They actually won a playoff game

<v Speaker 1>against the Eagles and then got blasted by the Seahawks

<v Speaker 1>forty one to six. But, like I said, this team

<v Speaker 1>had so many injuries it's actually pretty amazing they even

<v Speaker 1>made it that far. Nick Bosa, George Kittle, Fred Warner,

<v Speaker 1>Brot Purdy, Ricky Pearsol. They all missed significant time. So

<v Speaker 1>my question for the forty nine ers is simple, what

<v Speaker 1>will this team even look like when everyone is back

<v Speaker 1>on the field, especially defensively because they did lose a

<v Speaker 1>lot of key contributors. Not even sure with Bay would

<v Speaker 1>look like if they had everyone. But I'll be interested

<v Speaker 1>to see when they get everyone back and can they

<v Speaker 1>keep everyone on the Yes. I realized the NFL season

<v Speaker 1>is a long ways off, but now most of the

<v Speaker 1>off season fireworks have settled and we kind of have

<v Speaker 1>a better idea of what to look for as training

<v Speaker 1>camps are going to begin, and they're going to begin

<v Speaker 1>in just a few weeks. It won't be long at

<v Speaker 1>all until we're in the summer and we're seeing training

<v Speaker 1>camps begin to open. Hey, next week on the Dose,

<v Speaker 1>we are going to have something a little bit different

<v Speaker 1>for you, but I think you will genuinely enjoy it.

<v Speaker 1>So be sure you check out the Dose and be

<v Speaker 1>sure you let a friend know to the same. He

<v Speaker 1>wants to say thank you to each and every one

<v Speaker 1>of you for listening to the Deli Dose every week.

<v Speaker 1>Thank you for the emails, thank for the text thank

<v Speaker 1>you for the tweets, but more than anything, thank you

<v Speaker 1>for sharing the show, for sharing the videos up, for

<v Speaker 1>sharing the articles with someone that you know. We absolutely

<v Speaker 1>love it when you do that. Have say thank you

<v Speaker 1>to Jesp could not do any of this without you.

<v Speaker 1>I will see you on next Wednesday. Have a great week, everybody,

<v Speaker 1>You're gonna have a bad time.