- 2 days ago
Jayden Daniels was dialed in during today's joint practice. He continues to look comfortable in David Blough's offense.
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00:00But there was a lot of work done today.
00:02It was an over two-hour period, and it was all ones and twos.
00:06They didn't trot the threes out there at all.
00:08So they got enough work in.
00:09My guess is you will not see many guys in the preseason game.
00:11So does that include Jaden Daniels?
00:13I would be surprised if he played against the Dolphins.
00:17He threw 16 passes and 11-on-11 work today.
00:20I had him at 12 of 16.
00:22I don't love posting passing stats.
00:24Let's talk about Daniels for a second, though.
00:27I think that's a good jumping-off point for the day.
00:29Man, was he sharp.
00:31Danny, he looks so good under center in play action.
00:34I don't know if this is going to be the way the offense looks all the time
00:38or if this was just what they were working on today.
00:40I can't tell you how many times he was under center running a boot play action
00:44and kind of throwing on the move and doing it beautifully with touch,
00:50layering throws over sinking linebackers, over top of hands,
00:54into the second level, intermediate and deep.
00:56He hit on long passes.
00:57In my notes today, I had a Van Jefferson toe tap on the sideline dime,
01:01probably 25 yards downfield.
01:03Terry McLaurin caught a ball for 30 yards downfield,
01:06got his feet in along the sideline.
01:08Daniels hit Traylon Burks on a deep corner route behind everybody with the Dolphins
01:12for what would have been a 30-plus-yard completion.
01:15He was super accurate.
01:18Four incompletions.
01:19One was a batted ball at the line in the red zone.
01:21One was a bad ball to Luke McCaffrey,
01:23which was the only super inaccurate pass of 16 throws and 11-on-11.
01:27And then there were two pretty well-covered PBUs where he was dropping a ball in the bucket
01:31and a corner made a play.
01:32That's the entirety of his 16-throw practice.
01:35There was 15 throws that were on the money.
01:37He looked really, really good.
01:39So let's get into those things, not just the individual moments of throws
01:43because that's obviously encouraging to hear.
01:44I'd rather hear that than the other way.
01:47I forget the person's name.
01:48I apologize.
01:49But we mentioned Finley had a Giants reporter on talking about how Jackson Darts
01:52got to play in the preseason because, my God, he couldn't hit the broad side of a barn.
01:55So I'd rather hear what you're saying than what he's saying.
01:58Well, let me say this, too.
01:59I was talking to someone out here today.
02:00I want to air him out because they didn't tell me this to go on air.
02:03But they had just been with the Eagles, and they said the Jalen Hurts progression
02:09with Sean Mannion, you know how I've been outspoken about how bad of a fit I think
02:12that is, by the way.
02:13Yeah, you were on record.
02:14But they're like, it's not going very well.
02:16And the point was it's just wildly inconsistent.
02:19Like, there's some times where it looks okay, but the middle of the field stuff,
02:22some of the bootleg play action stuff where you're throwing to the guy running
02:26the over route, like the stuff Daniels was making look easy today has not come
02:30naturally to Hurts.
02:31So I don't want to – I'm not trying to oversell this.
02:35And I'm even trying to calm myself down a little bit as I watched it today
02:39because I don't think the Dolphins are going to be good.
02:41I'm going to keep saying that over and over and over again.
02:45But Daniels has surpassed even my most optimistic hopes for how he would look
02:51running this offense.
02:51He just looks like he's been doing it for a long time.
02:54And some of the stuff that I assumed he could do because he's ultra-athletic,
02:57you always say, well, he should be able to do everything.
02:59And you're right, he's just done it more easily.
03:03I just think of this as a big transition, and he's not making it look like a big transition.
03:08So that's what I wanted to get to is under center, what did we see?
03:13Is it – you know, was that where the majority of the passes came from?
03:15Are we play action?
03:16Are we booting?
03:17That's the stuff that I'm most concerned about.
03:19As you said, a pass being complete or incomplete in a joint practice,
03:23who knows what Miami was doing, schemed up, or whatever defense.
03:27Nobody's trying to win the day.
03:28They're looking to devalue their players, too.
03:30Who knows what their agenda was.
03:31But I care about just how those kind of operational things looked.
03:34What did we see in that regard from Daniels in terms of where they lined up
03:38and how they were getting to these passes?
03:40Yeah, I didn't really see many.
03:43There might have been one or two.
03:44I don't remember them, but like straight drop back from under center, three, five, in the pocket,
03:50standing there, kind of hopping up and down, making a throw.
03:52But they were under center constantly.
03:54I would say – remember, under center in this league at a high rate is about 50%.
03:58So there's still a lot of shotgun, and they were in shotgun plenty today.
04:02But when they were under center, almost exclusively, they were doing a lot of either
04:08handing the ball off and or running play actions with boots,
04:11like where he would be rolling out of the pocket, often to his right, to his throw side,
04:16and he would be throwing the ball down the field.
04:19Now, again, I wonder, is that just the thing that they decided to work on,
04:22the part of the game that they wanted to really hone in on in these 11-on-11 periods today?
04:27Or is that what the offense is going to look like?
04:29I would imagine a little bit of both.
04:31But I can't tell you how many times they would run something and I would go,
04:34that's Kevin O'Connell with the Vikings.
04:36That's Ben Johnson with the Lions and the Bears.
04:38You know, the first down almost every single 11-on-11 period started with like a bill run.
04:44And if you want a little cold water or like some balanced talk,
04:49their interior offensive line couldn't get anything going in the run game today at all.
04:53They really struggled between the tackles, I thought, to run the football.
04:56Having said that, I thought they were okay in pass pro for the most part.
05:00Anytime Daniels was in the pocket dropping back, it was fairly quick,
05:03or they were able to hold up, keeping a guy in, a tight end in, something like that.
05:07Or obviously moving the pocket makes that a lot easier, which they did a ton of.
05:11But, yeah, I think if what we saw today is kind of gospel and how this is going to look,
05:16I think you're going to be really fired up.
05:18Because he looks to me like, I'm trying to think of a comp,
05:23almost like Bo Nix and Sean Payton's offense,
05:25where he's like constantly moving and throwing and it's short and intermediate
05:29and then you take your shots down the field.
05:31There was one particular play where they ran a bootleg and he had a player out in the flat
05:36kind of right away and he could have just thrown it there for four or five yards
05:39and he waited, waited, waited, and then on an over route,
05:42kind of in the middle of the field on the backside, he had, I think it was the Ami Brown
05:45come free
05:46and he just threw a ball only he could catch and he kind of slid and caught it for like
05:5015 yards.
05:51But those are the types of decisions you want to see.
05:53Love that.
05:53Yeah, I mean, there's the, you know, as soon as something's open, throw it, school,
05:58then there's also the, no, no, I know I'm in no hurry here because I know what else is coming,
06:03right?
06:03So if that four or five yards is available after a three count or it's available immediately,
06:08you know, I remember some of those Brady throws and going back to Cousins type throws,
06:13sort of changing the thought process where I'm not going broke taking a profit there,
06:17but you also can, you know, you can have enough wherewithal to say,
06:20I got, I'm not in jeopardy here, nobody's in my face, I don't have to get rid of this thing,
06:24I've got some space in front of me, let me wait for, as you said, the over route or whatever's
06:28coming
06:28to break free, those kind of decision-making bits are something that he's always excelled at.
06:33All right, item number two here on the Danny will love this file, you ready?
06:37Yes.
06:39Stephon Diggs, man.
06:40Mm-hmm.
06:41He is going to be a game changer for them.
06:45Remember when I was like, they don't need another wide receiver, they don't need to sign Diggs?
06:49I still feel like they could have been okay.
06:52We don't want okay, do we?
06:54No.
06:54Do you want okay?
06:54Mm-mm.
06:55This guy is so good.
06:58Running routes, like, again, I'm going to keep doing my caveat of, like,
07:02bad team you're playing against, and also it's practice,
07:04and who cares what's happening on August 12th in the grand scheme of things,
07:07but that's what I was watching today.
07:09He is such a good route runner.
07:11We had somebody on from New England, Current, we had Tom Current on after they signed Diggs.
07:16Mm-hmm.
07:17And he said the first couple days after they signed him, the way he operated at practice
07:21and the way his footwork and how he runs routes, he's like, he's exciting to watch.
07:25And I kind of thought that sounded cheesy or whatever, and now I know exactly what he's talking about.
07:29He's one of the most impressive practice-wide receivers I think I've ever watched.
07:33I'm not even doing a bit.
07:34Like, he's just different.
07:36The way he moves is so fluid.
07:39Like, Terry's excellent.
07:40That's a number one, has been for a long time for them, but he's a different kind of receiver.
07:45The shiftiness and the subtleties and the stop-and-start abilities of Stephon Diggs,
07:49who had a big practice today and was heavily involved.
07:52Like, one-on-one, for people that have never been to a practice or a training camp session,
07:57the one-on-one drills between wide receivers and DBs are designed for the wide receiver.
08:02And so Stephon Diggs should win that.
08:04But, like, dude, he was just, he was dominant.
08:07You know, and it was like, this is a cheat code.
08:09You can't cover this guy in this drill.
08:11So I'm very impressed by him.
08:13I'm breaking out Sharpie.
08:15He's going to have a big season if he's healthy.
08:16They're going to use him well.
08:17He's going to catch a lot of passes.
08:19I believe it, and it's what I advocated for for months, and I'm thrilled that it happened.
08:23I mean, that to me is such a godsend.
08:26I think what you said is totally correct.
08:29I don't want to get away with stuff.
08:30Eventually, you're going to have to get away with stuff, right?
08:33Pat Mahomes and Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson and, you know, the best this game has to offer,
08:38they have to get away with things in those organizations.
08:40Those guys are making $80 million a year.
08:42I don't want to get away with a single thing where my quarterback hasn't started 25 games yet.
08:46They shouldn't be.
08:47And guys like Stephon Diggs should be here, and I'm thrilled that he is.
08:51He's awesome.
08:52Again, I know he may not be the 1,500-yard receiver that he was a couple of years ago
08:57anymore.
08:57Still plenty of gas in the tank for me, for him to be a really impactful player.
09:02Whether he leads the team in catches or not, I know this, they're better because he's here.
09:06Well, their wide receiver room in general looks really, really good.
09:09I mentioned Burks a couple times already.
09:11I thought he had a great practice.
09:12Van Jefferson flashes like a strobe light pretty routinely.
09:15Jalen Lane did some nice things today, both in the practice but also in one-on-ones and stuff.
09:20I thought it was a quieter day overall maybe for Luke McCaffrey.
09:24But just if you go down the depth chart, it's a really good room to the point where I think
09:29whoever they cut,
09:30let's say they cut Van Jefferson, that guy could maybe start on this Dolphins team
09:34or certainly be in the top four.
09:36And this is, you know, it sounds like I'm over the top, but they waived Chris Hilton.
09:41He was claimed right away.
09:42I mean, they're going to cut guys that end up playing elsewhere in the league from this wide receiver room
09:48because Burks is someone you and I were talking yesterday.
09:51Like, are we sure he makes the team?
09:52Do we think he makes the team?
09:54And then you watch him at practice today and you go, he should absolutely be on the team.
09:57He may or may not be.
09:58I don't know if they view, you know, the two special teams guys.
10:01Lane is a punt returner.
10:02He's a lock.
10:03He's Luke a lock.
10:04He's your kick returner.
10:05Would they want to keep Van Jefferson over Traylon Burks?
10:08I would probably keep Burks for his size and red zone abilities.
10:11But I don't know how this is going to sort itself out.
10:13And we haven't mentioned Deami Brown.
10:15I think Brown gives them a deep threat, that Aldrick Robinson kind of layer of this thing that they need.
10:21He also is probably, from what I can see out here, this is just my opinion, I don't know this,
10:25but it seems like he is the closest of any receiver to Jaden Daniels in terms of just hanging off
10:31the field.
10:32So does that mean that that helps him too?
10:34I don't know.
10:35But I think their receivers are actually legit good now.
10:38And Diggs changed the game in that regard.
10:41Well, I'm with you.
10:41Because, again, what we're talking about, who's their three, their four, their five?
10:44That's way different than who's going to step up and be the number two.
10:47Yeah, if Terry goes down, you're screwed.
10:49Right.
10:50Yeah.
10:51I mean, still, you're not good.
10:52You're not as good as you would be.
10:53But I don't think it's the game changer, certainly, that it was last year.
10:56There's nothing dynamic there.
10:57And I'm hoping that what Deami Brown found in the postseason is now kind of the new normal.
11:02I don't know how confident I am in that.
11:04But I would love for it to happen.
11:05And it's no longer required.
11:07It's a bonus.
11:08Right?
11:08But let's say it doesn't work.
11:09Let's say Deami Brown's the guy that Jacksonville was like, yeah, I wouldn't really care and moved on from.
11:14You know, your offense isn't screwed because you still have way better answers.
11:18You have other opportunities there for guys to dominate possession and catch balls and a million other things.
11:23And Diggs is the game changer in that regard.
11:25Just it elevates the room to such a high degree that just, man, it's one of those kind of pinching
11:31myself still that they're actually able to pull that off.
11:33And that there was mutual interest.
11:35There are other situations that are pretty good, too, that he could have gone to.
11:39And I'm thrilled this year.
11:40So I also want to point out, as I said, I didn't watch as much of the defense today.
11:45But I did get to watch the ones in a two-minute period to end practice against Miami's starting offense.
11:52And in that time, there were multiple holding penalties on Miami.
11:55They went backwards.
11:56And Malik Willis threw a couple balls out of bounds.
11:59And Caleb on chase on had a sack.
12:01You know, you're not allowed to hit the quarterback, but what would have been a sack who's had a really
12:04good camp.
12:05And it was clear that they were kind of giving him the business a little bit in that particular series.
12:09So that was good to see.
12:11Amik Robertson had a big, loud pass break up.
12:13And then he chirped everyone on the sideline, kind of pointing at people, going down the sideline.
12:17He's an entertaining, outspoken guy.
12:19Plays with a chip on his shoulder.
12:20I've enjoyed watching him throughout training camp.
12:22But overall, it was a very productive, very good day.
12:25I know you always, Joan, and no sell me on the kickers, but I do want to point this out
12:29for people.
12:30Please.
12:30Big bounce back day today.
12:32Six for six for both of them.
12:34And for the first time in camp, they both attempted a 60-yarder and both hit a 60-yarder.
12:38Stephens cleared it by, I don't know, 60.
12:40That's something.
12:40That's something, right?
12:41Six to eight yards he cleared it by.
12:43Moody hit his pretty truly through the uprights with four or five yards to spare.
12:47But after a day where they combined to go six for 12, and the alarms were sounding,
12:5212 for 12 today for the kickers.
12:53And they both drilled 60-yarders.
12:56So overall, I think it was a feel-good day.
12:58It was a bounce back day.
12:59I guess my question I want to pose to you, Danny, next, and we can open up the phones on
13:03this,
13:03is how meaningful do you think this is?
13:06And how much do you care about the specifics of what Washington did well and not?
13:11Because there were things that gave me some pause.
13:15The offensive line, which I came in a little skeptical about, there's not a whole lot of running room there
13:20early on here in this first team workout.
13:23So I'm curious to see that a little bit more.
13:26I did not think, and I would want to defer to an expert on this that could coach me up
13:29more.
13:30But what I watched, I didn't think it was a great day for Josh Connerly at right tackle.
13:35In both, you know, watching him a little bit of one-on-ones and then in 11s he had a
13:38full start and gave up what would have been a sack to chop Robinson at one point.
13:42So I'm curious what somebody who really watched every rep from him today would grade him out as if you're
13:50a coach.
13:50But there were some things they're going to have to fix, but we can hit the phones on this next.
13:54800-636-1067 is the number.
13:58800-636-1067.
13:59This was the most important practice.
14:01Preseason game coming up on Friday night against the Dolphins.
14:04How much stock do you put into a workout like this against another team?
14:10Not a particularly good one, but a team that's at your facility today.
14:13Grant and Danny on the fan.
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