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Nicki Jhabvala joins the program to preview Washington's OTAs this week.
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00:00Fired up to jump on the Rude Guest Hotline now and talk with our friend Nikki Javala
00:04from The Athletic. Covers the Commanders. Hello, Nick. How do you do?
00:08I'm good. How are you guys? We are good. I am
00:13like, you gotta temper your excitement
00:15because we're talking about football in May without pads and probably without perfect
00:20attendance. All of that said, I'm excited to go to Ashburn tomorrow
00:24and see this football team. Do you share that?
00:28I'm excited to watch some football being played in any capacity.
00:31It's been too long. So, yes, I do. I agree. Now, you had a story
00:35this morning, I believe, in The Athletic, kind of where
00:39your concerns are, what you're going to be watching.
00:43For me, I think the thing I'm most excited to see tomorrow, and this might be nerdy,
00:48is David Blau running the offense. I'm
00:51curious for you, what's the top of your list?
00:55No, I'm actually, I'm with you totally. I want to see, I want to see the communication
00:59because we've only seen him in one capacity as like an assistant quarterback's coach
01:03where he's, you know, he's just sort of helping out where, where they need.
01:09But to see him run the show, we've yet to see that. So, yeah, I want to, I want to
01:13see how he kind of
01:14takes lead of the group. I want to see the concepts that are on repeat. I want to see just,
01:20you know,
01:21how he works with Jaden, how he works with all the skill positions. So, yeah, I think that's a big
01:28one, especially, you know, just given his minimal experience as a coach, period, not just him being a
01:33first year coordinator. I think it'll be really interesting just to see how he runs the show.
01:38And then I, like one step further, I want to see Jaden under center. I want to see Jaden run
01:43a bootleg.
01:44Like I want, now, I don't know if you're agreeing with me. I am sure in Blau's brain and maybe
01:51even
01:51on his computer or on paper, whatever, he has like developed the concepts of what his playbook was
01:58going to look like. Yeah. But he had to legit build that thing out since January. And that's a,
02:04that's a tall order. And to install it, like, I think there's going to be some moments of
02:09teaching and like learning. And there's probably going to be some miscues and stuff. Like,
02:13I'm excited to see what the hell this offense is going to look like.
02:17No, definitely. I mean, yes, I think he's, he's probably always had a framework of how he would
02:22run an offensive given a chance just because when he, I mean, once you get to coaching at this level,
02:27you're probably thinking about where you ultimately want to go. Um, and he just seems like the type
02:33that's kind of always been wired to that, you know, like, you know, we've, we've heard stories
02:38from Cliff about him, you know, bringing in some of these trick plays that he's, you know, learned
02:42over the years as a player, but, you know, either from, from or, uh, Ben Johnson or others. Um, but
02:49we
02:49know he, he's had sort of these concepts and these convictions of how he wants to run an offense and
02:57seeing it unfold start to finish. I think it's really interesting. Um, especially for a first
03:02time where, because you get to see sort of, you know, it's not just putting the full playbook
03:06together. It's how do you go about teaching it? How do you go about teaching it to different
03:10players and finding which ways they learn best and, um, you know, really trying to get through to
03:16a whole new group of guys. I mean, they brought in a lot of new players that he's not familiar
03:21with
03:21either. Um, so this is, it's a massive adjustment for the team on both sides of the ball and for
03:27it to happen in year three, a critical year three for Glenn is, it's going to be really
03:32interesting. Totally. And then the other side of the ball, you've got another new D coordinator
03:36that's going to be installing a new system. I, in some capacity, Oh way styles. I I'm really
03:47excited to watch that Chanel. Like we haven't seen his speed in person. Like we've seen him
03:51playing for KC, but not a practice. You know what I mean? Like the defense is going to be
03:55very different. Yes. I mean, I think they achieved their biggest goals. The office this off season,
04:03which was to get faster, to get younger and to really address some of their key positions of
04:08need. The only ones they, they didn't totally address were receiver, but they did with Antonio
04:14Williams. It's just a matter of, you know, figuring out what he is at this level. Um, but
04:20yeah. And I, I, I agree with you. Those two, just their, their speed, their power. I just
04:25think it'll be really interesting that group and how he, how he, how Durante Jones utilizes
04:30them the best. Um, because that's part of it too. And I think that's what Dan Quinn did
04:34really well in Dallas is figuring out how to get the most out of, you know, an athletic
04:39freak like Mike Parsons and, and the guys on the D line that they had. And that's going to
04:44be a huge part of it. And I, I think Durante Jones has a really just in, you know, the
04:49few
04:49times we've talked to him and just a really good sense of how he wants it to look. And
04:54then once he gets these guys on the field, I think they'll really develop a good sense
04:58of where these guys should fit. And I think that's the other thing with OTAs too, is I
05:03feel like that everybody hangs on like the narrative of each day, but a lot of it is a lot
05:08of it
05:09is experimentation at this point. You know, guys are going to shift around. Um, and because
05:14they play one position, you know, tomorrow doesn't mean they're going to play that position
05:17the next week or, you know, whether they're one or two, one day doesn't mean they're going
05:22to be one or two the next day. So I would really caution people to maybe look at the overall
05:27trends instead of the day by day, but we should not grand assumptions from may football without
05:35pads on. The only grand one I think you could safely say is that Jaden Daniels will be the
05:40starting quarterback. I feel good on that one. Yeah. I feel good on that one too. Yeah.
05:44Speaking of Jaden, how excited are you to see Jaden just slinging it, running around? I think
05:49he's talking with us tomorrow. Um, just kind of get a vibe check from, from one of the best
05:54vibes guys around. Yeah. What does that mean from Titanic? It's been 84 years. It's kind
06:00of what it feels like, um, from the last time we've seen Jaden and no disrespect to Jaden.
06:05I mean, he's the one dealing with injuries and rehab and whatnot, but we saw him, but it's
06:10been a, yeah, healthy on the field and like, yeah. So, um, yeah. I'm talking about our
06:20friend Nikki Javala here from the athletic. You can give her a follow at Nikki Javala N
06:24I C K I J H A B V A L A. Something that kind of was under the radar.
06:31Um, Dave Gardy was
06:33brought into Washington from the league office and his, his title was pretty nebulous, but
06:40like my understanding was he was really influential and key in late game scenarios, timeout scenarios,
06:48challenging scenarios. And, and Gardy has left Washington to take a job in Tennessee. Uh,
06:55it's a promotion, right? EVP of football ops. Yep. Huge promotion. What if, what if anything
07:01do you make of losing Gardy? Yeah, I think that's a significant loss. I think he's one of those
07:07that you don't hear the name often, but he's just so instrumental behind the scenes. Um,
07:14and yeah, he was involved heavily on game days and the headset doing, you know, with situational
07:19stuff, but his background is just so unique. I mean, he was, he was in the league office
07:23for more than 20 years, like the New York office where they do all the replays. He helped build
07:29that out. He helped make that. So it's, you know, every stadium has immediate replay and
07:35the booth. I mean, he helped develop that whole system. Um, so he was instrumental just not
07:41just on game days, but in, you know, developing the overall strategy, um, for the team on, on
07:47how they want to handle third and fourth downs. And, you know, especially with the chain rule
07:51changes, you think about all the hip drop stuff. I mean, to have a guy that knows the rules
07:57probably better than anyone outside of the, you know, the folks in currently in New York
08:01for the league office is huge. Um, so I don't know that you can fully replace somebody like
08:07that, but it sounds like the plan is just to, you know, see what they have in the house
08:12and then, you know, eventually kind of fill it in. Yeah, it, it is. It was just, it caught
08:19me by surprise. Like I talked to Garty at the owner's meetings and you know, obviously he
08:24was looking and dude, when you get to be the executive vice president of football
08:29officer and NFL team, you're going to take that, right? Like I don't begrudge
08:33it whatsoever. It's just, it did catch me by surprise. I feel like that's probably not
08:37on a lot of fans radars. What I think is on a lot of fans radars, the cornerback
08:42position and do they have enough at it? Where do you land on the corners?
08:49Yeah. I mean, I, I, I agree with the, you know, the general sentiment that they don't
08:54have, you know, they, they need to add to that group. The secondary is a whole, they
08:59need to add to that group, but there's two parts of that. I mean, just saying it. Okay.
09:03But who, I mean, to say, Oh, they need to just go get a corner. There's elite corners
09:08aren't just sitting on the open market, you know, generally, but especially this time
09:12here. Um, and this in the free agent class this year was, was heavier on slot corners
09:17and it was outside corners. So it wasn't really a great year to go and find like a
09:24replacement. Um, it's just that, you know, these are the lingering effects of the
09:28Marshall and Latimer trade. And I don't, I go back and forth on this, but at the time
09:33I don't disagree with the trade at the time it made sense. It seemed like it would be
09:37an upgrade over what they had at corner back then. Um, it just didn't pan out
09:42that way. And then you lose the picks and it costs you in the draft and it, you
09:45know, it has a ripple effect, but I agree. They need corners. It's just, there's
09:52not, it's not a great year draft free agency. And even now to, to find that
09:57immediate starter. And I don't, you know, even if they were to draft one with, you
10:02know, a third round pick, I don't know that you could argue that any of those
10:05players would be seen as better options than make Robertson or Mikey
10:10senior still at this point in their careers. Yeah. It's, uh, it's a tricky
10:15situation I would say, but do you believe there's some theory that kind of this
10:21Durante Jones defense will generate enough pressure that there's less pressure
10:25than on the corners? Does that track for you? Yeah. I mean, he didn't, it's not
10:31like he had an elite group in Minnesota either, but they had a heck of a line and
10:37we don't know yet what, what Washington's D line is going to look like with all the
10:41new parts. I mean, on paper, it certainly looks improved. I would think, I would
10:45hope that pass rush is much improved, um, from before and you hope they can stay
10:49healthy. Um, but until we see them together, we don't really know. And I
10:55don't, you know, I'd be hesitant to, you know, compare what Washington has to what
11:02Minnesota has just because of that. There's, they're kind of a mystery team
11:05which in some ways could work for their favor.
11:07It could, uh, talking with our friend Nikki Jabala from the athletic here on the
11:12rude guest hotline. Um, what do you make of the receiver position? I think the
11:19corner position, we all agree they could add. I, my, my worry with the corner
11:24position is, is where's the floor of that. And that's a position where you're
11:28going to have five or six corners playing throughout the year. The receiver
11:32position, I think they, I think they addressed the floor, bringing Deami back,
11:36bringing in Van Jefferson. Like the floor is way higher than it was a year ago
11:40where Chris Moore was your fifth highest targeted receiver. Do you think though
11:47Steph digs could end up here? Do you think Brandon, I you could end up here?
11:51Like, do you think they could still add, maybe there's another veteran out there
11:55that'll get released post June one or, or get released in camp? Um, where do you
12:00think they are? I mean, I think they add to the group and maybe they get lucky.
12:06I mean, Noah Brown was a late August release from Houston. Um, ended up being a
12:10starting. You don't find that too often where you find starters, you know, from the,
12:14you know, pull roster cuts or, you know, late camp releases. Um, but perhaps they
12:19find one there. Maybe it's for depth. I would like to see the map of that room.
12:24I mean, I think that's kind of been a storyline for years really in the States
12:27back to before Adam Peters and Dan Quinn was just a depth at receiver. I mean,
12:32I'm still watching. It felt like you had Terry and everybody else. Um, and they,
12:38they tried, I mean, John Dawson didn't totally pan out, but they, you know,
12:43that was what, a couple of years with him. Um, I thought Debo had a good year,
12:48but they couldn't utilize them the way they initially planned to utilize them.
12:52I mean, he's not a true number two in the sense of, you know, he's that starter,
12:57the workhorse, you know, lays every down. That's not what he should be. He's his best
13:02when he's, you know, has the freedom to be a little bit more dynamic and he's used
13:06on, you know, specialized plays, but that because the injuries, they couldn't use
13:10them like that. Um, so I liked that they brought back Deami, but in some ways it
13:16kind of feels like we're just back to where we were two years ago. Um, and then
13:20you also have to consider that, you know, Terry could have a spectacular season, but
13:24he's also got a massive like cap hit next year. And what do they do then? Do they
13:30try to rework it and keep them? Do they ultimately let them go and save the money?
13:34Like there's, there's just still so much uncertainty at that position. So you just
13:38worry that there's not the depth in that second threat that you would like this
13:44season. And you just don't know where it's going beyond this year. I think it's
13:50important for anybody that wants to contend for a deep playoff run or the Super
13:53Bowl to think beyond one year.
13:55You know, what's interesting as like the way you phrase that is, are they like, how
14:01long-term is the thinking here? They clearly like the kid out of Clemson. They
14:07had their pick of the litter of that third round run of receivers and that's
14:10who they rolled with. Um, I don't know that it, how, how much pressure do you
14:17think DQ feels? I don't know if you agree with me, but GMs tend to have longer
14:21leashes than coaches and hell Joe Shane just got an extension in Baltimore and
14:26New York. Right. Like, right. I don't think Peters is under the same kind of
14:30pressure Quinn is, but in, in, in an off season where you get rid of both
14:35coordinators and you're coming off a five and 12 year, like I think there is some
14:40real pressure there.
14:42I would agree. And it's the schedule doesn't know favors, unfortunately, you
14:47know, if they get, and somebody asked this question in the mailbag that I did
14:51today, but you know, so they jump out to a slow start and they're one in four or
14:56one in five to start. Then what I think, I mean, the urgency in the NFL is greater
15:00than it ever has been. And that's the case for coaches, for quarterbacks. And it's, I
15:05don't think it's a good thing, but you know, I'm old enough to remember when like
15:08two years seemed like, Oh my gosh, that's all that he got before they fired
15:13him. Now they barely get a season is that, you know? Um, so to come off, you
15:19know, and that's a great season, despite taking the team to the NFC championship for
15:23the first time in three decades, um, the year before that, you know, he could be, he
15:30could be on a hot seat if they struggle.
15:32And dude, he's, he's added pressure. One thing I kind of applaud him.
15:38Is we live in like a self-preservation society, right? And he could have just
15:43hired two veteran coordinators and that probably alleviates the pressure, especially
15:50from a really hard early schedule. I mean, their first three games, I think might be
15:55the hardest three game stretch in, in football. Um, they get started on three and
16:01like Blau doesn't get any, like if they opened in Arizona, maybe that gives Blau a
16:07little breathing room. Like you're going to open in Philly, dude, the third and five
16:11late in the third quarter down a touchdown is going to be super important. And that
16:14place is going to be going realistic. Like it's going to be difficult, but DQ added
16:19pressure to himself going that route.
16:22He did, but he felt strongly about it. And I'm with you. I applaud him for taking the
16:28risk, the gamble that, you know, he, he felt strongly about, you hope that it works out
16:32for all sides. Um, because the other thing you got to consider is not just him. It's just
16:36if they, if they are on another head coaching search after this season, that means probably
16:42new coordinators, probably a new staff entirely, probably a new system, which means Jaden is on
16:46his third system in four years, just in time to pay him. And who knows what happens to
16:54the roster then. And it's just a people after a people after a people. And how do you, how
16:59do you, I mean, it's been done. Like two coaches have come in and, you know, taking the team
17:03to the Superbowl in their first year, I mean, Rabel and you know, it's, it's, it's, it's
17:09happens, but you know, it's not often. Um, and to find that stability where you can do
17:15it, not just one year, but you know, many years after that is, is very difficult.
17:19Last one, Nick, how worried are you about the center position? My man, Mitch Tischler
17:23is very worried about the center position.
17:25Yes. I mean, it's a concern, but of all the positions on the line, that'd probably be my
17:30least concern. Um, I mean, the center is important because he's, you know, directly
17:35dealing with Jaden, but the center doesn't win you games. I don't know that a center center
17:39could totally lose you games unless he just implodes spectacularly. So I
17:44feel like the other positions are a little bit more important. Um, but yeah, they
17:48need to find a guy, a guy that doesn't, you know, totally wreck the line.
17:56This may be biased just cause I liked the guy a lot. I, I think Alec Reddy will get
18:00the job done.
18:02I mean, I think he's got the best shot. I mean, of the two they have on the roster
18:06right now, but I mean, him and Goldman, who doesn't have any NFL experience. I
18:09think he's, I think he'll be fine. I mean, he, he played center and he played some
18:12than last year. I think he'll be fine. I also think there'll be under center
18:16more, which will be a little bit better. Yeah. Um, thank you for the time, dude.
18:20I'll see you tomorrow. Sounds good. See ya. All right. That's our friend,
18:24Nikki Javala from the athletic. Give her a follow at Nikki Javala. Check
18:28out all of her work in the athletic does a great job. I mean, I've been an
18:32athletic subscriber for a few years now, but now commander's coverage, you get
18:36D a Nikki and Sreluga. That's that's bang for your buck.
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