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00:05It's a town we call East Rutherford, Baltimore North.
00:08John Harbaugh has already filled his coaching staff with some familiar faces,
00:12and I think he's likely to fill the locker room with some as well.
00:15No pun intended.
00:16So we're talking free agency moves that make sense for the Giants.
00:20And here's a name that I am circling in red.
00:23Isaiah Likely.
00:25John, Joe, and the entire fan base knows exactly what this kid brings.
00:29He ain't just a tight end.
00:31He is a matchup problem.
00:32And I think he'd add so much value to Matt Nagy's offense because of his versatility,
00:38and that's exactly how Andy Reid and Kansas City's offense use Travis Kelsey.
00:43But the difference is Likely still has some juice in him to get down the field.
00:48So here's a couple of plays that I feel like is really going to show Likely's skill set
00:53and what he'd bring to the Giants' pass game
00:56that needs a consistent threat in the middle of the field
01:00in today's Blue Rush free agent profile.
01:04All right, let's get to the film.
01:07Isaiah Likely.
01:08You see him lined up here in the slot as a third receiver.
01:12Let's watch the play and then break it down.
01:15Got 12 personnel here.
01:17Mark Andrews.
01:18Isaiah Likely has the two tight ends, two wide receivers, one running back.
01:22You see him game on the line, fourth and I believe seven.
01:26You see him go up, reach up, make a big boy play for Lamar Jackson.
01:30Let's kind of break this down on how this, I mean, having a tight end like this,
01:35a true route running tight end could do numbers for Jackson Dart,
01:42could do numbers for this Giants' pass game.
01:44Obviously, with Mark Andrews here, this would more than likely be Theo Johnson.
01:50This gives him a chance to kind of emerge as more of a pass-catching tight end.
01:57I know he had a couple drops last season, but Isaiah Likely can come in and be that TE1 right
02:02away.
02:02Again, you see him number three in the slot.
02:05There's one to the outside.
02:06There's two in the slot.
02:08Number three, the third receiver.
02:10That's what we mean when I say that third receiver.
02:12They're running basically all go with he's got the deep cross.
02:17He's got the deep over.
02:18You go under the first defender over top of that second defender.
02:25Usually, you're going under the Sam over the mic,
02:27but with the way that the Steelers are playing here, I believe in this cover three defense,
02:33you'll see how it kind of plays out.
02:36So, you've got their blitzing, one, two, three, four.
02:39Nothing different, nothing crazy, not a real blitz.
02:42Not a blitz.
02:43They're rushing four.
02:45They're dropping seven.
02:47Cover three.
02:48Look here.
02:48He's got this deep over.
02:51Again, the spot is 18 to 22.
02:56That's what we're taught.
02:57Get to 18 to 22 over here, and Lamar or whoever that quarterback, Jackson Dart,
03:02they're going to find you.
03:03You see them, usually you want to go over top of this defender,
03:09but this defender kind of plays to that outside.
03:12You don't want to chase too much.
03:13Again, it's fourth and seven.
03:14You know all about this pass rush.
03:16You've got to get to your spot.
03:18So, he goes underneath this mic here, goes over top of 56.
03:21I believe that's what?
03:23Hightower, high water.
03:25But it's, boom.
03:26Rout's there.
03:28He's covered.
03:29They've got it.
03:30Lamar's about to get hit.
03:32But, I mean, you've got the in route here.
03:35You've got the in-breaking route here.
03:37This ball is going to likely.
03:39Everyone out there knows it's going to likely.
03:43He climbs it high.
03:44But this is why you want to reunite him with John Harbaugh
03:50and have him as that tight end one for Jackson Dart.
03:54Look at the catch rate.
03:55There's not too many receivers in the league that are going up,
04:00extending it, high-pointing it, coming down in traffic, 50-50 ball,
04:05contested in a big moment in a football game.
04:09Isaiah likely has shown that he's got hands like a wide receiver.
04:12He's got wiggle, but he's got the body of a tight end.
04:15And, I mean, just think of how many drops the Giants had on third down last season,
04:20bringing a guy in that can kind of, that's a sure thing when it comes to his hands.
04:26Doesn't drop the ball much.
04:27Has all types of confidence in his hands.
04:30That is a big play.
04:32The Giants could really use a big play like that in 2026,
04:35and likely is that tight end that could come in and do that on day one.
04:40All right, we've got the Bengals game here.
04:44And, again, you can move him in different places.
04:48If I'm Matt Nagy, I'm going, I'm calling Todd Munkin,
04:52and I'm asking where and how did you get the most out of likely.
04:58He is a tight end that can pretty much run the entire route tree.
05:04Watch the route that he runs here,
05:07or this jerk route or whip, whatever you want to call it.
05:10Watch this route that will break it down.
05:13There aren't too many tight ends in this league that are running routes like this,
05:17that you call to run routes like this.
05:19And it's going to show his yak ability as well.
05:22You see him motion down.
05:23Looks like he's about to crack a little.
05:26He's got that one-on-one.
05:30I mean, it's almost like he's playing backyard football,
05:33but look at the run after the catch element.
05:35Get in the zone.
05:38I think they called that a touchdown.
05:40I believe they called that a touchdown after it was reviewed.
05:43But let's not look at that.
05:44Let's not focus on that part of it.
05:47Let's focus on the actual route.
05:51So motioning him down.
05:52You motion him down to get some sort of idea of what this defense is going to run.
06:02You've got this safety out here locked on to him, man-to-man.
06:06He goes with him.
06:07So you know they're in some sort of cover one here, some sort of one hole, some sort of one
06:12high look, cover one.
06:14They're playing.
06:14He's man-to-man.
06:15He's man-to-man.
06:16He's man-to-man.
06:17He's man-to-man on the back depending on which way that he goes.
06:21Isaiah Likely, Lamar Jackson knows that, and they're going to set him up with the route.
06:26So a lot of times when he comes down to this second receiver, he runs a lot of out routes,
06:31runs a lot of speed, speed outs, option routes, but he breaks out a lot.
06:36Usually you're going to take that when it becomes man-to-man.
06:40You're going to run the out route version of it.
06:43So knowing that, still makes it look like he's still running that out route, setting this defender up.
06:51And you can see him trying to play, usually they try to play over the top, but he's trying to
06:56get under it and jump it.
06:58Sells it with his eyes.
07:00Sells it with that left foot in the ground.
07:04Puts his foot into the ground, and then he returns.
07:09Not the greatest route.
07:10Obviously, you would want him to come flat and be in front of this backer here because you never want
07:17that miscommunication of him going over the top
07:20and then him getting that interception, jumping that route and getting that interception.
07:25But Lamar sees it, sees that it's covered, sees that he goes over the top.
07:29Lamar is able to extend the play just like Jackson Dart is able to extend the play.
07:35And look at the separation he has on this route.
07:38There aren't too many tight ends that are getting separation like this, running away, makes a catch that's thrown behind
07:46him and stays up.
07:47A lot of receivers, especially tight ends, when that ball is thrown behind them like that, they're going to catch
07:53that and fall.
07:54Or you didn't get enough separation from this defender to where you have to go back and make a spectacular
08:01catch like that.
08:02This defender has now closed on that separation and rallies to make that tackle.
08:08No, he puts his foot into the ground, gets north and south, and I think gets into the end zone.
08:14They call it a touchdown, but I think he was overturned.
08:17That was unfortunate.
08:18But I think it was a touchdown.
08:20Who knows?
08:21Doesn't matter.
08:21We're just watching the yak capability.
08:23And just imagine if you have a tight end in your offense that one can go up for the football,
08:30make a contested 55th catch, a 50-50 catch,
08:33but also run a route like a receiver, gain separation, and get yak off of it.
08:41Last but not least, you know Matt Nagy coming from a Kansas City Chiefs offense where Andy Reid and Patrick
08:48Mahomes ran a lot of RPOs.
08:50You expect Jackson Dart and Matt, you expect Matt Nagy to do the same thing with Jackson Dart.
08:59Don't know who the running backs are going to be in that backfield next year.
09:04Obviously, Cam Scadaboo's there.
09:06Tyrone Tracy Jr.'s there.
09:07Do they make a play at Jeremiah Love at number five?
09:10Do you go get a Kenneth Walker in free agency?
09:13Who knows what they do at the time of this?
09:15I'm recording this.
09:17That third back is unknown right now.
09:22But you know John Harbaugh is going to want to run the football.
09:27John Harbaugh is going to want a pass game that's complementary to the run game.
09:33And the RPO is going to be a big part of the Giants offense in 2026.
09:40So let's watch the play.
09:42You see, likely here, lined up in that tight split.
09:47Off the RPO.
09:51Gets yak.
09:53Yeah, this is just scheming your guy up.
09:56That's all this is doing, is scheming your guy up.
10:00Now, I don't think this is Mark Andrews here.
10:03I believe Mark Andrews was hurt on this one.
10:06So likely is now the TE1 in this situation, which is why he's probably here in this wing split.
10:12He's cut his split down one by one from the tight end.
10:15It's looking like some sort of run formation, right?
10:18This receiver has cut down his split.
10:21Usually, when we got the ball in the middle of the field, we're around on top of the numbers, maybe
10:26bottom of the numbers.
10:27But now he's cut it down.
10:28Looks like he's in a cut split to kind of dig out this safety right here.
10:33Look, everything you see here is RPO or run action.
10:36Looks like they are going to run the football.
10:39Again, 12 personnel.
10:40We've seen that before.
10:42Two tight ends, one running back, or one running back, two tight ends, 12.
10:48You got the two receivers.
10:50Everything looks like they are going to run the football here.
10:53Amar Jackson has that little quick flash fake.
10:57But watch, likely, on this route.
11:02He doesn't get stuck to that outside.
11:05You see this defender, this safety that's down in the box.
11:08He's playing to the inside.
11:09He knows he has to win and cross face on this.
11:13It's looking like it's cover three here because if it was cover one, they'd be playing these guys a little
11:18bit more man and not having their eyes to the quarterback.
11:21So now that you know it's cover three and he's spot dropping, he's going to be more of a curl
11:26to flat defender.
11:28You now know as a receiver or a route runner or tight end, doesn't matter.
11:31You're running the route.
11:33You know that you can win to the inside.
11:34You know you're not going to get captured to that outside because this defender now has to honor all that
11:41space out there.
11:42And again, he runs a lot of out-breaking routes.
11:46Beats him to the inside and stays skinny.
11:49Stays skinny because if he flattens it too much, now this backer comes into play.
11:54He flattens it too much.
11:56You get too close to this backside backer to where now he could also come into play into this second
12:02window here.
12:03Stays nice and skinny and just gets to his spot.
12:08Good hands catch.
12:09And then again, yak ability.
12:11Having a tight end that can catch and run, it could be and should be, will be, needs to be
12:20a flex for the Giants in 2026.
12:23I think he and Theo Johnson could be a pretty solid pass-catching core of tight ends for the Giants.
12:31And then you just have that third tight end to be that either hybrid guy or that blocker.
12:36Or maybe you go and get an H-back or a fullback.
12:39Who knows what John Harbaugh is thinking right now, who they target and free agency.
12:44But just, I mean, just these three plays alone just show you that Isaiah likely is ready, ready to take
12:51over and be one of the top tight ends in this league.
12:55And these three plays show that.
12:57And it also shows why he would be an absolute force for Jackson Dart and Matt Nagy in this Giants
13:03offense.
13:04If they bring them in and free agency.
13:09Big plays across the board.
13:11You got to love watching this kid's tape.
13:13I love this breakdown.
13:14I mean, you can even go back to the 2024 season when he had his best year.
13:19And that's going to show you how he's now ready to be in the conversation as one of the best
13:24tight ends in the league.
13:25And not just a complimentary piece to Mark Andrews like he was in Baltimore.
13:30He would be the TE1 in New York.
13:33But I think the biggest thing that he'd bring to the Giants offense and the development of Jackson Dart is
13:40how physical he is at the catch point.
13:42He high points the football.
13:44He wins the contested throws.
13:46And once he gets the rock into his hands, he's slippery enough to get some yak with it.
13:52The plays that Isaiah likely made in Baltimore build momentum.
13:56And the Giants could use that.
13:58And like I mentioned before, he'd be a great fit in a Matt Nagy offense coming from Kansas City.
14:03Because I imagine Nagy would want an athletic tight end that can get down the football field and push things
14:10vertical.
14:11Here's what I mean.
14:12Because when Nagy was the Bears head coach, the 2020 and the 2021 season, Jimmy Graham had a 50 catch
14:19season.
14:20And Cole Komet had a 60 catch season.
14:23The tight end gets the rock in a Matt Nagy offense.
14:26You can flex him, split him, put him in the slot.
14:29Do what you want with him.
14:31Be creative.
14:32He's a mismatch.
14:33So all in all, signing likely gives Jackson Dart in the Giants pass game a physical presence in the middle
14:39of the football field.
14:40And that's a must.
14:42Let's see if he reunites with John Harbaugh in the Big Apple.
14:45I think it's likely.
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