00:00But it is time to dive in on some Gridiron Gravy.
00:05Nip it and rip it.
00:09Gridiron Gravy, powered by my friends at Men's Tea Clinic.
00:15It's very powerful.
00:17Trust me.
00:19I don't want to know anymore.
00:22This is good news.
00:24This is actually news that is making me very happy.
00:29Nick Harris is reporting that the Dallas Cowboys are pivoting off of a Patrick Queen trade.
00:37And now looking at Alshair and Jonathan Brooks.
00:42Jordan Brooks.
00:42Jordan Brooks, Jonathan, the running back.
00:44Do not need him.
00:46This is awesome.
00:49This is really cool.
00:51Because Alshair, he's as physical as it gets.
00:56Yeah, he's nasty.
00:57He will light you up.
00:58Now, again, maybe a little too physical sometimes.
01:01Yeah.
01:01It's gotten him suspended.
01:02Yes.
01:03But that's the kind of toughness that you want.
01:07You want a dude.
01:08You ever watch the movie The Replacements?
01:10Yeah.
01:10And Jon Favreau.
01:12He's like, go give me the ball.
01:13He's like, you want the ball?
01:14Give me the ball.
01:15And he runs out there and he knocks the dude out and comes back and hands him the ball.
01:18Like, that's the kind of dude that Alshair is.
01:21I don't know enough here.
01:24But either one or both of these dudes would be absolute home runs to add these guys to the team.
01:33Yeah.
01:33Jordan Brooks would be my pick of the two if I had to choose one.
01:38First team All-Pro in 2025.
01:40Led the league in tackles.
01:42Very productive player that was once labeled a bust in Seattle.
01:46He was drafted in 2020.
01:49Just didn't quite live up to the expectations there.
01:53And he ends up making his way to Miami in 2024.
01:55Had a good first year there.
01:57And in his age 28 season, again, first team All-Pro with a 92% tackle rate.
02:04So he is very sure-handed.
02:06Something happened in Miami.
02:08Something's in the water out there.
02:09He was able to kind of clean things up.
02:12And he is a, like, true, one of the best tackling linebackers in football now.
02:19Which the career pivot, the change of scenery worked out for him.
02:23So that would be fun.
02:24You mentioned Aziz Alshair.
02:25He's gotten himself in trouble for being a little too rough.
02:28But he's a vocal leader as well.
02:31Part of that D'Amico Ryan's defense that we have on this show at least given a ton of praise
02:37over the past couple of years.
02:38For that same physicality and just overall IQ.
02:42And it makes a ton of sense.
02:43We had heard a lot of noise about Patrick Queen just because, A, he wants out of Pittsburgh, from what
02:48I've heard.
02:48And, 2, he's just one of those guys that, veteran, he's a name, he fills a role going into the
02:56draft.
02:57Wouldn't cost you much.
02:58Maybe a 7th.
03:00Maybe a 6th.
03:01Sure.
03:02Why not?
03:03It was kind of like, we settle on this guy because we just need to fill a void.
03:08Those two other names I'm a lot more excited about.
03:10Yeah, Alshair will be 29 this year.
03:15$11 million base.
03:17He's got a $15 million cap.
03:19I don't know how to read this the same way Kevin does.
03:22So, as far as the trade goes, I don't know exactly how this works out.
03:25I'll try to figure it out.
03:26But, when it comes to both of these guys would have void, unrestricted free agent years next year.
03:33So, this is a one-year rental kind of thing unless they worked something to spread the money out just
03:38a little more and say,
03:39hey, we'll sign you to a different contract to keep you around past 30.
03:43But, that's where it would land here.
03:45Again, two fantastic tacklers.
03:48Two news you can line up in the middle.
03:49I wonder how much C.J. Allen's status in his workout is kind of scaring the Cowboys off of that.
04:00Or, if it is at all.
04:01Yesterday, listening to Dawson talk about it, it was a little bit concerning.
04:05Because, Dawson was just like, dude, he's got a little hitch in his giddy-up.
04:09And, if you're watching that, you're not trusting it right now.
04:13And, why would he work out?
04:14Because he feels like he needs to show something in order to get the draft status where he wants.
04:19And, maybe he just was not ready.
04:20But, I don't know exactly where the Cowboys land on this.
04:23But, I love both of these options.
04:25Love that they're involved with that.
04:26You add either one of these dudes to your defense, you have upgraded.
04:30Not upgraded enough.
04:31Still not upgraded enough.
04:33But, you've done enough to upgrade a little bit.
04:36And, then send yourself into this draft.
04:37Still looking.
04:38Still looking for pieces in this free agency period or trade period.
04:42Whatever you can get.
04:44But, I like it.
04:45Yeah, for Al Shair, you would be eating a good bit of money.
04:50As Houston would.
04:51He has a dead cap hit of $12.8 million.
04:54But, his signing bonus prorate is just $2.2 million.
04:58So, they would wear that.
05:00But, he's got a base salary of $11 million.
05:03I do believe that is guaranteed.
05:07Okay.
05:08Because, they have pushed it.
05:09They've already restructured his deal a couple of times.
05:11So, that's why his figure is bigger.
05:13Different.
05:15Yeah, they restructured March last year, I believe.
05:17Right?
05:18Yeah.
05:18So, yeah.
05:20$12 million cap hit that they would have to eat Houston would.
05:23So, you would have to really convince them that it's a good idea for them to move on from a
05:27player that they like.
05:28They do like him.
05:29So, it could be done.
05:31I don't know what that price would be in terms of trade compensation.
05:36Maybe we could get a little bit more of an idea over the weekend.
05:40But, it would be an intriguing move.
05:42The city of Pittsburgh has announced public schools will be closed for the Wednesday to Friday of draft week.
05:50Awesome.
05:51The NFL draft goes to Pittsburgh next month.
05:53And, as we were discussing, we'd like it to be sooner.
05:55But, I understand.
05:55Yes.
05:56Pittsburgh bracing for an influx of humanity, if you will.
05:59The schools will be closed from the 22nd through the 24th.
06:04The development was attributed to the, quote, significant increase in visitors.
06:08We know it's not ideal.
06:09But, it's the reality of a city hosting a big event where we're expecting about 500,000 to 700,000
06:15visitors in our city.
06:17It's going to be completely create sort of an exciting time, but also challenging times.
06:22We think about accessibility, transportation, and safety.
06:26And, for the simple fact that the students, they want to make sure it's safe for them.
06:30And, so, they're saying, we're going to go ahead and shut down school for a few days.
06:34I love that.
06:36Yeah.
06:37Yeah, I understand.
06:37Like, there's a heightened sense of security right now, too.
06:41So, that's a big factor.
06:42But, I do think that, like, in making sure you have all of your security available to it.
06:48I know parents don't love it.
06:49But, I'm thinking as a school kid, I'm like, I love this.
06:52I get three days off.
06:53And, I get to focus on the draft.
06:55Parents, they're like, how am I going to, I have to take three days off work?
06:59Or, leave my kid at home alone for three days?
07:02And, that's always the concern there.
07:03But, yeah.
07:05This is, I think this is kind of cool for Pittsburgh.
07:07I don't often see the city of Pittsburgh as a city that takes many wins or a place that I
07:13would just applaud without being provoked.
07:16But, they did right on this one because I still remember even the last time the draft was here in
07:23Arlington.
07:24The traffic was just so bad around here.
07:28And, actually living in the area near the stadium, it was like, getting home from school was difficult those days.
07:35Because, there was hundreds of thousands of people just adamant to be out there and part of it.
07:41And, it's a cool experience, too.
07:43Like, let those kids enjoy that because, it's Pittsburgh.
07:46When are they going to go back there?
07:48Like, we don't know.
07:50That's not an ideal place to have it.
07:52It's not shots fired at Pittsburgh.
07:55It's just, look at where the league has been having the Super Bowl lately.
07:58California.
07:59Yeah.
07:59You know, they want places with nice weather, like the walkability factors, whatever it may be.
08:04There's a lot of factors that go into picking these things.
08:06So, let the kids go out there and enjoy it, man.
08:08Yeah, I agree with you.
08:09The Commanders also entered the offseason.
08:12They wanted to add another wide receiver.
08:13Turns out, they wanted Alec Pierce.
08:15He re-signed with the Colts.
08:17They were like, Pierce absolutely would have signed with the Commanders if he had reached free agency, is what we
08:22would have had to deal with.
08:23And, realistically, the Commanders are, you know, they were trying to outbid him.
08:27They would have made Pierce's agent and knew that he would have signed with the Colts.
08:31But, they are like, look, Terry McLaurin, we have him, but we still need somebody else opposite of him.
08:37And, they're looking at probably Ayuk.
08:40When the Niners officially move him, Ayuk would make a lot of sense.
08:43For them, Jawan Jennings, DeAndre Hopkins, Keenan Allen, a position where the Commanders would still like to fill the need,
08:52even as free agency slows down.
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