- 2 days ago
The Draft is just around the corner, and Dane Brugler from The Athletic joined the GBAG Nation to break down all things NFL Draft. Brugler discussed the Cowboys’ aggressive draft strategy, potential trade-up scenarios, evaluations of top defensive prospects like Sonny Styles, Caleb Downs, and more.
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00:00The Beast is out on The Athletic, Dane Brugler's annual NFL Draft Preview, and Dane joins us now here to
00:07talk about all the angles.
00:09Good afternoon, Dane. How the heck are you?
00:12Good afternoon, gentlemen. How are we doing?
00:14Doing wonderful. Enjoying all your content, perusing the Beast.
00:18Gotta start with maybe the biggest Cowboys storyline or rumor going into the draft.
00:24How sure are you that the Cowboys and Browns have a trade that'll get done next Thursday night?
00:30I wouldn't put it at any type of confidence level.
00:33It's more about understanding that the Cowboys are in position to be aggressive, and we know the Browns are always
00:40willing to move.
00:41And so, you know, like obviously the Cowboys aren't going to tell me what they're going to do.
00:44But when you talk to other people around the league, they feel like the Cowboys are in a position to
00:49maybe go get the guy.
00:51If they have their eye on somebody, whether that's Sonny Stiles, one of these pass rushers, Caleb Downs, they have
00:58the ammo to do it.
00:59And I think there's a good chance we see at least one trade in the top ten, and the Cowboys
01:03are kind of that team that other teams feel like could make the most sense to go and make it
01:10happen.
01:10So if you're trying to go up to six, how good of an idea do you have of what the
01:15top five picks are going to be right now?
01:18You know, again, I wouldn't say that we have a high confidence level, and just a week out, obviously we
01:24know the quarterback will be one, and then at two is going to be an edge rusher.
01:28And then the Cardinals at three become a little bit of a conversation.
01:31Do they go to the right tackle, or do they go with the edge rusher that doesn't go at number
01:36two?
01:36And let's just say it's the edge rusher, then all of a sudden four and five become pivot points in
01:41the top ten, with Tennessee at four, Giants at five.
01:44You know, you think about the Titans and Robert Sala, and he had Fred Warner in San Francisco.
01:52Does that mean that he would lean towards a guy like Sonny Siles, and what that could mean for that
01:57Titans defense?
01:59Would they go with Reuben Bain there?
02:02We know they want a full stable of pass rushers.
02:05Or would they go with the most explosive offensive weapon in the draft, with that being Jeremiah Love?
02:10And so, then with the Giants, John Harbaugh, this is a John Harbaugh pick, but John Harbaugh, he's not an
02:16offensive guy, he's not a defensive guy.
02:18He's a CEO type of head coach, and over his time in Baltimore, they were all over the place in
02:24terms of where they went in the first round.
02:26They drafted a safety three times in the first round over his tenure in Baltimore.
02:30So, I don't think there's anything that we can point to to say, yeah, they're definitely going to go offensive
02:36line here,
02:36definitely going to go with Love if he's there, definitely going to go with Stiles or Downs.
02:40Those picks four and five really are a little unpredictable at this point.
02:44When you're going through your mock scenarios, how much does what the Giants do at five,
02:49depending on if they take Downs or Stiles' impact in your thinking what the Cowboys would do moving up to
02:55six?
02:55Is it, we'll take whichever of those players they don't, or is it specifically a Sonny Stiles thing for them
03:00to move up?
03:02Yeah, I think that's a good question because, obviously, I think they would feel good about either of those guys,
03:08but it's a lot to move up.
03:11If we're talking about giving up, that they are both first-round picks,
03:14and obviously getting back that second is a big part of it.
03:17They don't currently have that second-round pick, so getting back into the second round,
03:21the player you draft at 20, probably the grade's not all that different than who you're going to get at
03:2639,
03:26and so that's a key part of it, but you're still, it's an aggressive move.
03:31So do they have a similar grade on Stiles as they do Downs?
03:36Potentially.
03:37I think if one of those pass rushers were to get there, I think that also changes the math
03:42because I think that's something that they'd also be interested in.
03:44So I think there are several players on the board that they could be aggressive,
03:49and maybe it's not the Browns, maybe they move up with the Chiefs at 9,
03:55or if Stiles has gone at 4, say, to the Titans, maybe instead of making that move up to 6,
04:02maybe they make more of a short move up to 9 with the Chiefs where they look to get,
04:08whether that's Bain or whether that's Caleb Downs,
04:11and so maybe it changes the trade and how aggressive they're willing to be,
04:15but that's something, obviously, we're still trying to figure out at this point.
04:19Dane, who are teams having the most problems with right now getting a handle on, Bain or McCoy?
04:27Yeah, both, right?
04:28I mean, I think if you're going to have a list of the biggest wild cards in the first round,
04:33obviously Ty Simpson's in there.
04:35Just when that quarterback, too, come off the board,
04:37is he still around by the time Friday starts in round two?
04:41I think Caden Proctor, the offensive tackle from Alabama, is on that list.
04:45Keldrick Falk, the Auburn defensive lineman.
04:49But then also the two guys you mentioned, I think, are on there as well.
04:52And with Jermon McCoy, it just comes down to each team's appetite for risk, right?
04:58In terms of that knee and not having the 2025 tape is obviously not ideal,
05:04but you love the 2024 tape, so we feel good about that.
05:07But if we're worried at all about long-term and that knee,
05:11that's the type of thing that throws a wrench into everything.
05:14And for some teams, you won't be on the board.
05:16For other teams, they might be willing to take that risk at a certain point in the first round.
05:22But I don't think it's going to be Dallas.
05:26I know that's been widely reported, and I think that makes a lot of sense.
05:30Dane Brugler with us, Sean 105.3 The Fan.
05:32Bain, in the arm length, for you, when you talk with teams,
05:36for us, we just see a great player, right?
05:38You know, an untrained eye here.
05:39I'm like, man, I'm watching Reuben Bain Jr.
05:41He's a phenomenal player.
05:42Why wouldn't you take him?
05:43But what makes the arm length so important to these teams?
05:47Yeah, and I think that functionally, there's obviously, the longer you are,
05:53the easier it is for you to take on contact, shed, and just initiate the action.
05:59But I think more so than that is just the fact that in the last 25 years,
06:06since the change of the century,
06:07there hasn't been a single edge rusher drafted in the first round with under 31-inch arms.
06:12And so you think about the teams that are just, they're out on a running back in the top 10.
06:17They won't do it.
06:18Or a safety.
06:19You know, they just, they don't, they're not going to draft a safety that high.
06:22There are some teams that look at the historical outlier stuff and say,
06:26look, we're not going to be the team that drafts an historical outlier in the top 10.
06:31We like the tape.
06:31We think he's a good player, but we're not going to be that team.
06:35And from that perspective, I understand it.
06:37But I'm more in the camp of, you know, what you're saying.
06:40The tape shows a good player.
06:42I think it's, he wasn't as consistently dominant throughout the season, the regular season.
06:47You know, he only had four sacks during the regular season.
06:50But once the playoffs, you just watch those games and you're, you're in.
06:53His ability to deconstruct blocks, especially in the run game.
06:57His ability to put pressure on the quarterback.
07:00That's something that is, he's going to go top 12 in the draft.
07:04It's just a matter of, you know, where, where is that going to be?
07:06I think the Chiefs are in on him.
07:08The Bengals at 10, I think would certainly take a long look.
07:12And then the Cowboys at 12 would be interesting.
07:14Dan, when you think about the Cowboys nickel position and Christian Parker and that this,
07:19this hybrid stuff, are you thinking more of like a safety who can cover well or a true nickel corner
07:24who maybe can be physical and play in the run and do some of those things?
07:28Yeah, I think it's, you keep an open mind to, you know, who's going to be there for you.
07:33If they get wiped out with those top options, is Dylan Thienemann somebody, you know, if they don't trade at
07:4012 and they stay put,
07:41Dylan Thienemann, is that somebody that would interest them because of that versatility?
07:47And, you know, he could be a nickel for you.
07:49He could play single high in certain looks.
07:52Because, you know, it's all about matchups.
07:55That's what the NFL is.
07:56It's today's NFL is personnel matchups and being able to, the offense is going to show you one thing,
08:02being able to adjust with the personnel you have on the field.
08:06And a guy like Dylan Thienemann, he gives you that because he has the versatility.
08:10One snap, he can be one thing, and the next snap, he can be another.
08:13And not only do you have to have the athletic ability, but also the mental capacity to have that type
08:20of role.
08:20And I think teams believe he can do that.
08:22So, now, in my seven-round mock that came out today on The Athletic, in that trade that I had,
08:29I had them in the second round at 39 going trading Stooks.
08:31And he's more of that nickel who, you know, you throw in the Arizona tape, and that's what he did.
08:36Now, he has experience at outside corner.
08:38He has experience at safety.
08:40So, you like that about him.
08:41But the fact that you can see him be a nickel has to give you some confidence that, yeah,
08:46this is going to be someone that's going to translate pretty well to the next level.
08:50So, trading Stooks, coaches have been blown away by this guy.
08:53You know, same thing with Caleb Downs and just his ability to, you know, talk schematically,
09:00just understand what the concepts are.
09:03And so, I think that's going to help him be a top 40 pick in this draft.
09:07Just a matter of, will it, can he sneak into the late first round?
09:10Will he be picked 35?
09:11I think he's going to go somewhere pretty early.
09:13I think it would be an awesome haul to be able to get Stiles and Stooks.
09:16You did break my draft heart with, in the division, Downs and Jacob Rodriguez going to the Giants in your
09:23mock.
09:24If the Cowboys did not go with Sonny Stiles in round one, let's say Tennessee does take him at four,
09:29and they're left now still looking for a linebacker, what other options do you think they have?
09:35Well, C.J. Allen, for the Georgia linebacker, he ran today.
09:39It's kind of an interesting thing.
09:40There was one scout there, and so that one scout kind of, you know, shared the numbers.
09:47But it was, the numbers were between like a 4-4-4 and a 4-5-2,
09:53and so I think teams are going with 4-4-7 for C.J.
09:57And that's a good number for him.
09:59That's, you know, hearing from teams, they think he has an outside shot of getting into the first round.
10:06So, you know, think about this linebacker.
10:08Is a linebacker, too, going to go in the first round?
10:11Could it be Jacob Rodriguez?
10:12Could it be C.J. Allen?
10:14And there's a chance one of those two could get in there.
10:17Could they go as high as 20?
10:18I think that'd be a little surprising.
10:20But at the same time, like we said before, the guy, the grade you have on the player at 20
10:25isn't all that different than who you have at 40.
10:28And so I think there's room for some volatility in those final 12 picks of the first round,
10:35just because I don't think teams are going to be worried about the quote-unquote reach at that point,
10:39because grades are going to be so similar.
10:41We're wrapping up with Dane Brugler here on the fan side.
10:43Yeah, no problem.
10:44The times I did have on Allen, 233 pounds, Dane, 162 in the 10, 271 in the 20, and 447.
10:53As you said, in the 40, they had some other times of a 450 and a 449 were the other
10:59times
10:59that they had on Allen as well.
11:01Dane, who's the biggest reach going to be in the first round of this draft?
11:07It might be Ty Simpson.
11:09Listen, you know, do we get an Aaron Rodgers decision before Thursday night, next Thursday night?
11:14If we do, and if he is done, do the Steelers, do Ty Simpson become more of a discussion point
11:21for them at pick 21?
11:23I think that's certainly on the table.
11:26But like I said, because the grades are going to be so similar in the back half of round one,
11:31I do think we could see a surprise at that point.
11:34And, you know, whether that's, you know, like Peter Woods, for example, the defensive tackle from Clemson,
11:39who if you grade to the flashes, okay, I get it.
11:43But at the same time, the body of work just does not say first round.
11:47But this is also a light defensive tackle class, and it'd be pretty surprising if we went the entire first
11:52round
11:52without a defensive tackle.
11:54So does the Bears at 25 or one of these teams in the back half of round one need a
12:00tackle that badly
12:01that they reach a little bit to get that first tackle?
12:04And is it Peter Woods?
12:06That'd be interesting.
12:07Dane, is the one position group, at least initially, that people don't have a great handle on is wide receiver?
12:15Are you finding that everybody's board is a little bit different on first-round grades on wide receivers?
12:21Yeah, and I think it's not necessarily that, you know, not having a handle.
12:25It's more just, I mean, I learned this from you, Brad.
12:27It's just ice cream flavors, right?
12:29It's just all these guys offer something a little bit different.
12:33If you want more of the outside receiver, then maybe you're not going to lean towards Mekhi Lemon.
12:39Or how do you feel about the durability with Jordan Tyson?
12:43You know, Denzel Boston, is he an X or is he a big slot?
12:46Like, just every team has a little bit of a different opinion about how these receivers project at the next
12:52level.
12:52But these guys are going to go.
12:54And it's partly because of the contracts being heated out right now at wide receiver.
12:59I mean, obviously, the Cowboys got two of them earning a lot of money.
13:02Alec Pierce, no disrespect to him.
13:04Go get as much as you can.
13:05But the idea of a rookie on that rookie, that rookie receiver on a rookie deal looks awfully appealing to
13:13a lot of teams.
13:14And so that's why these guys are going to get snatched up quickly.
13:16Yeah, Dane Brugler here with you on the fan.
13:18By the way, a fun thought in Pittsburgh is that maybe Aaron Rodgers would announce his return at the draft.
13:25Like, hey, I'm Aaron Rodgers.
13:26I'm coming back.
13:27And here's the 21st pick in the NFL draft with the Steelers and everything.
13:30Just something to look for.
13:31It would be even better if he announced Ty Simpson, too.
13:36Awesome.
13:36Wow.
13:37That would be something.
13:38Hey, what is Keldrick Falk's most likely role as a player?
13:42I'm trying to get prepared for the possibility the Cowboys take him.
13:46How much do you think he would help the Cowboys need to get pressure off the edge?
13:51Yeah, I mean, look, you're dealing with a guy that's 6'6", 275 pounds, almost 35-inch arms, 21 years
13:58old.
13:59And what he was asked to do at Auburn, where playing in a three-man front, a lot of 4
14:05-I, 5 technique, wasn't asked to just scream off the edge.
14:08And so I think that explains why the production, the backfield production, wasn't greater.
14:14But I think you have somebody that's just kind of scratching the surface of what he can be.
14:18Now, I mean, he's not the most twitchy, he's not a super bendy guy either, but he wins with his
14:24hands, he's an instinctive player, especially in the run game.
14:28So I don't know that he's ever going to be a double-digit sack guy, but I think he's going
14:33to be someone that you can win with.
14:35Somebody that is going to make your defensive line better versus the pass and the run, and somebody that ends
14:41up being a positive for anybody's defensive line.
14:43The Ultimate Draft Preview, The Beast, is up on The Athletic from Dane Brugler.
14:49Anything else you want to say about that before we let you go, Dane?
14:54No, I've been doing this a long time, and we try to set the bar higher every year, and I
14:58think hopefully we did that this year.
14:59And so it's been fun to hear all the feedback.
15:01And the digital version on The Athletic is really cool.
15:03A lot of smart people behind the scenes, you know, dressed it up, turned my PDF into this, you know,
15:09get all the artwork and navigation.
15:10So I appreciate everybody checking it out.
15:12It looks great.
15:13I missed the PDF, Dane.
15:14I ain't going to lie to you, bro.
15:16It's on there, too.
15:17I made sure.
15:18The PDF download is available, so if you want it that way, it's still there.
15:22I remember when you and I were selling that thing out of a trunk for $7 a shot, bro.
15:27Keep it rolling, man.
15:28Keep it rolling.
15:29You're the best, man.
15:30Thank you so much.
15:31Cheers.
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