00:00Daryl Ryder is brought to you by
00:01And he joins us right now. Good morning, Daryl.
00:06Hello, boys.
00:07Daryl, former NFL general manager, Rand Carthon,
00:10told the guys in the afternoon that he was picking Deshaun Watson
00:16for comeback player of the year.
00:20Thoughts?
00:21Wow.
00:23Um, okay.
00:26I mean...
00:27Daryl!
00:30All right.
00:32He clearly did not watch any of training camp for the preseason.
00:35Oh, Daryl.
00:38All right, so...
00:39Any lies told yet, Ken?
00:41No, not at all. Not at all. Not at all.
00:46Look, I mean, for, I guess, Browns fans' sake,
00:49yeah, I mean, I guess that's what you're rooting for.
00:52But I don't know.
00:53Are Browns fans really rooting for Deshaun to be successful?
00:58Well, that depends.
00:59I think as we get closer to Week 1,
01:01they might have a little bit of an open mind.
01:03I think that they are skeptical.
01:05If he's successful, then that means your receivers are doing well.
01:08Your offensive line's doing well.
01:10Todd Munkin is gaining trust.
01:12So, what?
01:12You'd prefer, and the Browns fans would prefer the alternative,
01:15him just being terrible,
01:16and everybody just being down on the team
01:18in the first month of the year?
01:20Well, I mean, that's why I asked the question.
01:22I don't know what the answer to that is,
01:23but let's be honest about it.
01:25Deshaun Watson isn't exactly the most popular guy in town these days.
01:29Is he the most unpopular guy in Cleveland?
01:31He might be.
01:32Yeah.
01:33I mean, he very well might be.
01:35And, I mean, look, if he plays well, that changes.
01:39Let's be honest about it.
01:40Oh, yeah.
01:40Everybody knows that.
01:40Yeah, I mean, if he goes out and plays well, that changes.
01:44But let's also be honest about the fact that
01:46I certainly don't expect him to go out and play well.
01:50So, you know.
01:52But, yeah, I think the Browns underestimated
01:57how unpopular that decision to start Deshaun was.
02:01But also, at the same time,
02:04they have to make decisions based on what they feel
02:08gives them the best chance to win.
02:11And clearly, they feel that Deshaun does that.
02:15So, it's obviously now up to Deshaun to go out there
02:19and validate their thought process.
02:23All right, Daryl.
02:24Well, obviously, by judging the reaction we saw
02:27when no one would take his card last night
02:30at our event at Dave & Buster's, which was...
02:31By the way, one of the funniest things ever.
02:34I'm not going to lie.
02:35I know I'm supposed to be impartial.
02:37But that was pretty funny.
02:39But here's the thing, too, is even attaching the Shadour autograph card
02:45did not raise the enthusiasm spectrum for that card either.
02:50I thought it did a little bit.
02:51A little bit, but not much.
02:54I'm partial.
02:55Go ahead, Tom.
02:55I keep hearing so many people,
02:59they just flat out think Todd Munkin is lying
03:01about who the better quarterback is
03:03or who's more ready to start right now.
03:06Daryl, you've been out there every day.
03:07We played Albert Breer audio.
03:09He said last night on the afternoon show
03:12that he doesn't know anybody in Cleveland
03:15that is there every day that's with the team
03:17that doesn't think Deshaun was better.
03:20Do you disagree?
03:22Yeah.
03:22I mean, look, I think Deshaun...
03:26I don't know if better is the word that I would use.
03:29I would say more ready to play.
03:31That would be the phrase that I would use.
03:34I think Deshaun is more ready to play than Shadour.
03:38But I think that Shadour will probably...
03:42By the time we get into the season here a couple of weeks,
03:46I think that that can change.
03:48And I think Shadour will be ready to play.
03:51And ultimately, this thing's going to get turned over to him
03:53at some point for one reason or another.
03:58That's just, I think, something we all are expecting to happen.
04:03The unexpected would be Deshaun
04:05to keep starting the entirety of the season.
04:09And that's why I kind of scoffed
04:11at the whole comeback player of the year thing.
04:13You actually have to be available to play
04:14to win that award.
04:17And Deshaun has not been available to play much football here
04:21since he got that massive contract from the Browns.
04:24So I don't...
04:28I just didn't see much separation between the two guys.
04:31They both had their moments
04:34where you're just like,
04:36whoa, that's awesome.
04:37This would be really exciting to watch this season in games.
04:41And they both had moments where it was like,
04:44I can't believe I just saw that.
04:46So...
04:47But I do think that Deshaun...
04:49And it's probably part of the reason that
04:51Todd Munkin went that route
04:53was the comfort level.
04:55And the fact that Deshaun's a veteran.
04:57He's done this thing before a lot,
04:59at least a lot more than Shadour has.
05:01And we'll start with him.
05:03And if it's not working,
05:04then we can fall back on Shadour
05:05and give him his chance.
05:07And I think that that was the message
05:09that Munkin relayed to Shadour Sanders
05:12when he informed him of the decision
05:14that he would be QB2.
05:17Is that, hey, to use Todd's words,
05:19we're playing the long game here.
05:21We've got to play the long game.
05:21Well, the long game is
05:23get yourself ready to play
05:25so when I put you in there,
05:26you can have some success.
05:28Thana brought up on the afternoon show
05:30earlier this week
05:31the possibility of one and done
05:33for Todd Munkin.
05:35Well, I said that when he was hired.
05:37Oh, Daryl.
05:38Well, then fine.
05:41But my attitude's kind of changed on that,
05:43having watched him this offseason,
05:45watched him during training camp.
05:47Like, I think he's done a good job.
05:48I have been pleasantly surprised.
05:50I mean, it's been a very professional outfit.
05:53The practices have been very structured.
05:55The players seem to respond to him.
05:59So, I mean, as long as they hit
06:01Jimmy Haslam's over,
06:02I think there's a good chance
06:04he'll be back in 2027.
06:06Well, you know, I listened to
06:08Catherine Hickman's press conference
06:09with you guys,
06:10and I got bothered after the fact.
06:14Not about any of the other stuff
06:15we argued about, but it's like,
06:16hey, you know, we've got to be careful
06:17about the one and done stuff.
06:18Like, if we get to December
06:20and it has to happen,
06:20and I guess it has to happen.
06:22But damn, man,
06:23it's not just a head coach.
06:24It's a whole coaching staff.
06:27Right.
06:27And there are some coaches on there
06:28we do like,
06:29and they are bragging about
06:31how young they are.
06:32Right.
06:32You've got to help develop guys,
06:34and we're switching around
06:35coaches at positions
06:36and coordinators all the time.
06:37Like, that's going to get
06:38in the way of things.
06:39Well, the organization
06:40obviously looks at things
06:42from a completely different lens
06:44than the fans do.
06:45True.
06:45And if the organization sees,
06:48to your point, Ken,
06:49the development of the younger players,
06:51and I think that was one of the
06:52major problems that they had
06:54with Kevin Stefanski,
06:55is I don't think the front office
06:57felt that the younger players
06:59they were bringing in
07:01were developing
07:03at the rate
07:04or whatever
07:05that the front office
07:06felt that they should.
07:07And I think that,
07:08you know,
07:08aside from the fact
07:09that they won eight games
07:10over two years,
07:11which given
07:11what they had
07:12to work with
07:13at quarterback
07:14is a tall task
07:15to expect more than that.
07:17But it came down,
07:18I think it came down
07:19to player development.
07:20So if these young guys,
07:21you know,
07:21the class of 2025
07:23takes the next step,
07:24this draft class
07:26looks good, right?
07:27And you see
07:28that development,
07:29but they win
07:30six games, right?
07:32Well, you can say
07:33one more than we did
07:35last year.
07:36The young players
07:37are progressing,
07:38and yeah,
07:39it becomes easier
07:41to justify
07:43sticking with
07:45Todd Munkin
07:46and the staff
07:46because you sit there
07:48and say,
07:48hey, they're doing
07:49what we want to do
07:50because, you know,
07:51fans want wins now.
07:53Fans are tired
07:54of the losing.
07:55You know,
07:56the Browns are always
07:57playing the long game,
07:58whether it's this regime,
08:00whether it's previous regimes.
08:02That's all we hear about
08:03is, hey,
08:03we're trying to develop
08:04sustained success here.
08:06Well,
08:06how about some
08:07temporary success?
08:08Could we get that?
08:09Could we start there
08:11and then worry about
08:13the sustained success?
08:14And that's how fans think.
08:16But the organization,
08:17you know,
08:18they're trying to build
08:19this long-term winner
08:20that can be competitive
08:21for years to come,
08:22and the way you do that
08:23is you build your team
08:24through the draft.
08:25And you look at
08:26these last two drafts,
08:27it's very hard
08:28to argue with anything
08:30that Andrew Barry
08:31has done in the draft.
08:32And the results
08:33have been pretty good.
08:34We'll see what this class
08:35looks like,
08:36but right now,
08:37based on what we've seen
08:37in the offseason,
08:38based on what we've seen
08:39in training camp,
08:40the arrow's pointing up.
08:41Looks like another
08:41really, really good
08:42draft class.
08:43So if we see progress
08:44from those young players
08:45and they're able to,
08:47like I said,
08:48hit Jimmy Haslam's over,
08:49which I think is six games,
08:51then I really do believe
08:53that everybody stays in place
08:55and they run this thing
08:56back in 27
08:57with hopefully
08:58their new up-and-coming
08:59young franchise quarterback
09:01that they find
09:02in the draft next April.
09:04Darrell,
09:05listening to people
09:06talk about how good
09:07the defense is going
09:08to be this year,
09:09it is interesting.
09:10I thought they lost
09:11the two most valuable
09:12components of their defense,
09:13Myles Garrett and Jim Schwartz,
09:14yet it's not stopping people
09:16from thinking they're still
09:17going to have an elite defense.
09:18So what do you think
09:19they're going to look like
09:20this year?
09:20Well, I don't know
09:22that they're going to be
09:22at the same level
09:23we've seen here
09:24in recent years.
09:25I mean, look,
09:25they had three really,
09:27really good years
09:27under Jim Schwartz
09:28and I think Jimmy Haslam
09:30or J.W. Johnson.
09:31I forget which one said it,
09:33so I apologize,
09:34but one of them
09:35when we spoke to them
09:35in training camp
09:37had mentioned,
09:37hey, it's really hard
09:39to have a top five,
09:40top ten defense
09:42for years and years and years.
09:44And so, yeah,
09:46I expect there to be
09:47a little step back,
09:48but I also expect that
09:49to be countered
09:50with a step forward
09:51offensively,
09:52if that makes sense.
09:53So, you know,
09:55Jared Verse,
09:56I think,
09:56is a very good player
09:58and I think Andrew Barry
09:59made a very smart trade there.
10:01I still get texts
10:02from friends of mine
10:03that are Browns fans
10:04that hate the trade
10:05and I try to explain to them,
10:07hey, would you rather have
10:09draft picks
10:10that you don't know
10:12are going to pan out
10:12or would you rather have
10:13a player,
10:14a young player
10:15that has a very solid,
10:17proven resume
10:18early in his career
10:20and is one of the better rushers
10:21in the National Football League
10:24entering his third year.
10:26Okay, so he doesn't finish,
10:28finish the sacks
10:28as much as Miles Garrett does.
10:30Nobody does.
10:31But he can still
10:32apply the pressure.
10:33So I think they're going
10:34to be able to apply
10:35pressure up front.
10:36They kept Grant Delpit
10:37extending him.
10:38Denzel Ward,
10:38they extended him.
10:39Look, when Denzel's healthy,
10:41he is, I think,
10:43one of the top three cornerbacks
10:45in the National Football League
10:46bar none.
10:47I just think he's that good.
10:50So I expect the defense
10:51to be very good,
10:52but I don't expect them
10:54to, I guess,
10:55put up maybe some
10:56of the statistical numbers
10:58we've seen in recent years,
10:59but I still expect them
11:00to be very, very good.
11:01Darrell Ryder joining us
11:02on the show.
11:02I was actually surprised.
11:04I'm glad you brought up Denzel.
11:05I thought he was snubbed
11:06on that ESPN preseason top 100.
11:09I felt Baker was too,
11:10but I was like,
11:11I can't believe these guys
11:11were in the same draft,
11:12only a couple of picks
11:14away from each other,
11:14a few picks away
11:15from each other.
11:16You're telling me
11:17Denzel Ward is,
11:18they're trying to tell me
11:19Denzel Ward isn't a top 100
11:20player still?
11:21Yeah, I don't understand
11:23that because there were
11:24games last year
11:25and we talked to Denzel
11:27about this.
11:28I mean, teams weren't even
11:29looking in his general direction.
11:31Now, I also understand
11:33the Browns got a little thin
11:34last year in the secondary.
11:35Well, you remember
11:36that Pittsburgh game?
11:37He was playing injured
11:37at the end of that year
11:38and they did try to come down
11:40and challenge him
11:41and he knocked it away twice.
11:42Yeah, and even when
11:44they did go after him,
11:46he wasn't giving anything up.
11:48So, I was, you know,
11:52it's part of the reason
11:53I kind of discount
11:54that top 100 thing
11:56because, you know,
11:57I kind of feel like
11:58there's a part of it's
12:00a popularity contest,
12:01a resume thing,
12:03and, you know,
12:05the fact that Denzel
12:06got snubbed the way he did,
12:08I mean, it just lends credence
12:09to my argument
12:10because when he's out there,
12:13he's one of the best
12:14in the game.
12:15I mean, you know,
12:17if I'm building
12:18a Super Bowl champion roster,
12:23he's on it, okay?
12:25So, the fact that he didn't
12:28get a whole lot of love
12:29from his contemporaries
12:33was a little surprising.
12:35Daryl, do you care
12:37what executives wear
12:39or the messaging
12:40on their outfit is
12:42when they're doing interviews?
12:44Uh, no.
12:45I don't.
12:47But, um,
12:49I also understand
12:51that you are representing
12:54the organization
12:55when you're in front
12:56of the cameras
12:57and microphones.
12:57I think there's,
12:58I, sorry, go ahead.
12:59I just think someone,
13:01you know,
13:01I'm not one for comment.
13:03Listen, I'm not,
13:03anyone sees me
13:05dressed every day.
13:05I'm the last person
13:06to be commenting
13:07on anybody's wardrobe.
13:08But at the same time,
13:09I understand the argument
13:11that somebody could have
13:12tossed her a brown shirt.
13:13Your, your turtlenecks
13:17are magnificent.
13:19So, don't even start.
13:20I've seen your turtlenecks
13:22in here.
13:22They're fabulous.
13:23I do think there's
13:24a difference, like,
13:25okay, if Mason Graham
13:27wants to wear
13:27an old ratty t-shirt,
13:29go wear an old ratty t-shirt.
13:31Uh, quarterbacks wear suits
13:33to the games on reasons,
13:34for reasons.
13:35Uh, we've even done
13:36the whole, remember
13:36the Dorian Thompson-Robinson
13:38breakdown of why we knew
13:39he was starting that day
13:41because he wore a suit.
13:42Uh, and I also think
13:43that, yeah, top brass,
13:45you don't have to be
13:46in a suit
13:47during, getting ready
13:48for practice
13:49in a press conference
13:51before, but yeah,
13:52I don't know,
13:53the whole Los Angeles thing,
13:54people were freaking out.
13:55I'm like, yeah, you know,
13:57if they were 13-4 last year,
13:59people wouldn't be
14:00freaking out,
14:01but they were 5-12.
14:03Yeah, and unfortunately
14:05for her, every time
14:06she speaks,
14:06she seems to go viral
14:08for the wrong reasons,
14:09and that's unfortunate
14:10because I, I do think
14:11she's really good
14:12at her job.
14:13Um, I, I, I think
14:15she's done a, uh,
14:16a fantastic job
14:17working with Andrew Berry,
14:18helping him out
14:19in the front office,
14:20uh, you know,
14:21and we tend to speak
14:24about things
14:24that have nothing
14:25to do with, uh,
14:27you know, the work
14:29she does, uh,
14:30for the Browns.
14:30And again, that,
14:31that's unfortunate,
14:32but also, I think,
14:34not our fault at times.
14:35Daryl, uh,
14:36thank you very much
14:37for the time.
14:37It was wonderful
14:38to spend time
14:39with you yesterday
14:40at Fan 15,
14:41yesterday evening.
14:42Uh, blessings to you.
14:44We'll talk to you
14:45again next week.
14:46All right, look forward
14:47to it.
14:47Week one is finally here.
14:49All right, dangerous
14:49Daryl Reiner.
14:50And he's brought to you
14:52by...
14:52...Jive and Jewelers,
14:53Cleveland's
14:53Premier Jewelry Store.
