Patriots vs Seahawks Week 1 | Gruden’s Preview

0:00All right, football's back. Can you

0:02believe it? Wednesday night in Seattle.

0:05The defending world champions take on

0:08the New England Patriots. The defending

0:10AFC champions in a rematch of last

0:13year's Super Bowl. It's this year, man.

0:16Last year doesn't matter. You'll get

0:19what you deserve. Let's see this action.

0:22Let's get into it.

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1:57Okay, Seahawks Patriots. Let's get into

2:00the top of mind here. Two defensive head

2:03coaches, Mike Vrabel of the New England

2:06Patriots. What a job he did last year.

2:08He took a team four and 13 two years in

2:11a row to the Super Bowl. Are you kidding

2:14me? He's the first coach in NFL history

2:16to take a four-win team to the Super

2:19Bowl the next year. And there has been a

2:22little offseason drama surrounding coach

2:24Vrabel, but he is focused. He's going to

2:27have his Patriot team ready to go. You

2:29know, when you get beat 29 to 13 in the

2:32Super Bowl, there's one of two ways you

2:34can go. You can just have that Super

2:36Bowl hangover, boom, and get knocked out

2:38the next year. Or you can use it as fuel

2:42to get back to the Super Bowl with a

2:44case of whoopass. And I got a feeling

2:46Mike Vrabel and quarterback Drake May

2:49have that mindset. Problem is they got

2:51to go to Seattle to play the world

2:54champions who dismantled them last year

2:5629-13. Their head coach, Mike McDonald,

3:00has done a hell of a job assembling a

3:03team that has the mindset, the talent,

3:06and the downtodown intensity to really

3:09become great. McDonald is the first

3:12defensive coach that I know of to win a

3:14Super Bowl that called all the plays as

3:16a head coach. Most of the head coaches

3:18have delegated the defensive play

3:20calling, and there have been a lot of

3:22great defensive head coaches in the

3:24Super Bowl. But I love the fact that

3:26McDonald is involved on a downto-down

3:29basis with his Seahawk defense. The

3:31Seahawks are looking to repeat and only

3:34two teams have repeated as world

3:36champions this decade. I mean, I'm

3:38looking at the Patriots. They did it in

3:4003 and 04 and the Kansas City Chiefs

3:43under Andy Reid did it in 22 and 23. So,

3:47Seattle will try to become the third

3:48team to do that. I like the mindset that

3:51coach McDonald has. You know, when we

3:53won our Super Bowl, you focus on trying

3:56to repeat. You know, how do we repeat

3:58what we did last year? I think Coach

4:00McDonald has said it several times.

4:02We're going to run it forward. Forget

4:04about last year. Let's be true to our

4:06process. Let's keep laying blocks and

4:09worry about what's ahead, not what's

4:12behind. I think that's a great mindset.

4:14You know, last year, these two teams

4:16were a shock to get to the Super Bowl. I

4:18mean, DraftKings had New England 60-1 to

4:22win the Super Bowl. They had the

4:24Seahawks 60 to1. They were wrong last

4:28year. Hell, the Arizona Cardinals were

4:30just 55 to1. But this year, right now on

4:32DraftKings, and I know these odds are

4:35subject to change, but right now, the

4:37Patriots are 16 to1 to win a Super Bowl.

4:40And the Seattle Seahawks are 11 to1. In

4:44this game, the total points scored is

4:46expected to be 44.5.

4:49The Seahawks are three and a half point

4:51favorites. And there's a lot to unpack

4:53in this matchup. And those lines are

4:55always subject to change. Let's real

4:57quick review last year's game. 29-13.

5:00The dark side. The Seattle Seahawks.

5:03They had a death grip on the New England

5:05offense. Six sacks, three turnovers.

5:10Hell, the fourth quarter started. New

5:12England had seven punts and eight

5:15complete passes. The Seahawks did it in

5:18all three phases. Sam Darnold,

5:21quarterback of the Seahawks, put an

5:23exclamation point on an incredible first

5:26season in Seattle. Kenneth Walker, the

5:28Super Bowl MVP, ran for 135 yards. The

5:32defense was dominant. And their special

5:35teams, man, do they play special on

5:37their teams. Jason Meyers kicked five

5:40field goals. He had 17 points in a game.

5:43That's a record for a kicker. And their

5:45punter, man. Michael Dixon, he punted

5:48the ball inside the Patriot six-yd line

5:51three times. Offense, defense, special

5:54teams. Seattle convincingly won the

5:57championship. You know, I start thinking

5:58about Super Bowl champions. They start

6:01the next season typically at home. I

6:03think we're the only team that started

6:05on the freaking road. We had to go on

6:07the road at Philly the next year. We

6:09still kicked their ass 17 to nothing.

6:11But the Super Bowl champ, okay, is 21-5

6:15to start the season in the last 26

6:18games. So, think about how difficult

6:20this is going to be on the Patriots.

6:22Let's take a look at the significant

6:24roster changes quickly on both teams.

6:28New England had some surprising roster

6:31change for a team that went 14 and

6:33three. They brought in AJ Brown, big

6:36receiver from the Philadelphia Eagles.

6:38They used the first round pick. They

6:40also brought in Romeo Dobs, the Green

6:43Bay Packers leading receiver. So,

6:45offensive coordinator Josh McDaniels has

6:48two very good receivers he can feature

6:51in this year's system. They also brought

6:53in Reggie Gilliam, fullback from the

6:56Buffalo Bills. People say fullback.

6:59Well, who the hell led the way for James

7:01Cook, who led the NFL in rushing?

7:04Gilliam will open up a whole new package

7:07of offense for this offensive

7:10coordinator Josh McDaniels. They also

7:12brought in left guard Elijah Vera

7:14Tucker, former first round pick of the

7:17Jets. He's had a lot of injuries. He'll

7:19be the left guard. They're going to move

7:21last year's left guard, rookie Jared

7:23Wilson, into center. We'll get into that

7:25in a minute. And on defense,

7:28they signed Draymond Jones, former pass

7:31rusher with the Titans, with the

7:33Broncos, with the Ravens. He's been

7:35around, you know, he's an ex Seattle

7:37Seahawk, but he's going to be one of the

7:39premier pass rushers for the Patriots.

7:42Harold Landry, who led their team in

7:44sacks, he's still hurt. And Kavon Chson,

7:48he left. He's in Washington. So, they

7:50need Draymond Jones to step up big time.

7:52They also brought in safety man Kevin

7:54Bard from the Chicago Bears who led the

7:56league with seven picks. Both Kevin Bard

7:59and AJ Brown are ex Tennessee Titans.

8:03Where do you think Vrabel coached at one

8:04time, Jake?

8:05>> Tennessee.

8:06>> So there's a connection there. The

8:07Patriots lost 15 players that started at

8:11least one game last year. Over 115

8:15cumulative starts. So, there's a lot of

8:17new people that are going to have to

8:19pick up the slack when they lace him up

8:21on Wednesday night. The Seahawks, they

8:24lost Kenneth Walker, the Super Bowl MVP,

8:27thousand-yard back. He took off for

8:28Kansas City. And running back 1A, Zack

8:32Charbanet is still hurt. He's starting

8:34the season on PUP. So, they went out and

8:37drafted Jadarian Price. Let's hope that

8:40Price is right. They took him with the

8:4232nd pick in the first round. A lot of

8:44unknowns with this kid. Hell, I never

8:46even saw him play much at Notre Dame.

8:48Then I watched the preseason game. I

8:50never saw him play the preseason. So,

8:53what's the price of this guy? I can't

8:54wait to find out. Kobe Bryant, excellent

8:57safety man. He left, took off, went to

9:00the Chicago Bears, and Reek Woolen, big

9:02corner left to go to Philadelphia. So,

9:05you're going to see the Seahawks rely on

9:07Josh at corner. Taio, who played a lot

9:11last year at safety, will fill in for

9:13Bryant. But the biggest change I think

9:15in Seattle is that offensive

9:18coordinator. Remember Clint Kubak left,

9:20went to the Raiders as the headman.

9:23Enter Brian Flurry, former San Francisco

9:2749er tight end coach. He'll be calling

9:29the plays for the first time. I can't

9:32wait to see what his play calling looks

9:34like. The New England Patriots were

9:36incredible last year on the road. I

9:38mean, they went nine and0 on the road.

9:40That's as good as you can do, Jake. Then

9:42they beat the Broncos on the road in the

9:44AFC Championship game. Last I counted,

9:46that's 10 straight wins on the road. But

9:49this year, seven of their first 11 games

9:52are on the road. They play five prime

9:54time games and four of those are on the

9:56road. So, whoever put the schedule

9:58together at the NFL league office, they

10:01weren't happy with the Patriots. They

10:02gave them a tough schedule. New England

10:04had the easiest schedule in the league

10:05last year. The opponent's winning

10:07percentage was just 391. But this year,

10:11the opponent's one loss record is 0.531.

10:15So they're playing the sixth toughest

10:16schedule. And the Patriots are the only

10:19team in NFL history to start the season

10:22with four straight playoff opponents.

10:25That's tough sledding. I mean, how would

10:27you like to open up at Seattle, come

10:29home to play Mike McCarthy and the

10:30Pittsburgh Steelers, then go on the road

10:32at Jacksonville, then they got to go on

10:34the road at Buffalo. So, this is going

10:36to be a critical critical month for the

10:40New England Patriots if they want to get

10:41back to the Super Bowl. The Seattle

10:43Seahawks, the most complete team in

10:45football last year, they won their last

10:4810 games and they were kicking people's

10:51ass. It was impressive. 14 out of their

10:53last 15. They won by the point

10:56differential in the playoffs. They won

10:59by 18.3 points per game. That's the

11:02highest buttkicking since the 2002 TAMPA

11:07BAY BUCCANEERS. We beat the crap out of

11:10people by over 23 points a game. That's

11:12great coaching. The dark side is what

11:15they call this Seattle defense. And they

11:18are dark, man. They give you nothing.

11:21They have a balanced offense and I think

11:23they have the best special teams in all

11:25of football. General manager John Snyder

11:28did a hell of a job. We know that. but

11:30he locked up some of their foundational

11:32players in this off season. So if you're

11:34a Seahawk fan, Jake, we got JSN resigned

11:38for THREE YEARS. JACK SAID SMITH AND

11:40JAGBA THREE more years. How about waking

11:43up and saying we got Leonard Williams

11:45for three more years and then saying we

11:47got Devon Weatherspoon for another three

11:50or four years. They signed Derek Call.

11:53They get Rasheed Shahed resigned. They

11:56signed Charles Cross their left tackle.

11:58These guys are going to be Seahawks for

12:00years to come. That got me feeling icy.

12:04These are the most complete teams in

12:06football. New England and Seattle. They

12:09were in the top 10 of total offense and

12:13total defense. Scoring total yards,

12:16rushing yards, passing yards. I'm

12:18talking about on offense and defense.

12:21You can't run on them. You can't throw

12:23on them. You can't score on them. They

12:25can't stop you running or passing. And

12:27they score at will. So, what gives in a

12:30rematch of last year's Super Bowl? The

12:32turnover battle, just keep an eye on it.

12:34Last year, the Patriots were plus three.

12:38They had 19 takeaway 16 giveaways. That

12:41was 10th. Seattle, they were minus

12:45three. That was 19th in the league. They

12:47took it away 25 times, but they gave it

12:50away 28. Everybody says, "Ah, they

12:53turned the ball over. Sam Darnold this,

12:54Sam Darnold that." How many times did

12:56they turn it over in the THREE PLAYOFF

12:58GAMES? WAMP ZERO. And they took it away

13:01seven. So Seattle was plus seven in the

13:05tournament. And that really enforces

13:08perhaps they've made the correction. And

13:09that Patriot offense wasn't quite the

13:12same in the playoffs. They turned the

13:14ball over eight times. They were a zero

13:17in the tournament. The two quarterbacks,

13:19what a great battle this is going to be.

13:21Both of these guys were number three

13:23overall picks. Sam Darnold went to the

13:26Jets in 2018 as the third overall and

13:28then Drake Mag gets drafted number three

13:30overall by the Patriots in 2024. Last

13:34year was the first Super Bowl you ever

13:36saw two top five quarterbacks that are

13:39under 30 squaring off in a big game like

13:42the Super Bowl. But when you watch the

13:44preeason this year, I didn't see Drake

13:47May or Sam Darnold play one single snap.

13:50So, are they a little rusty? We'll have

13:52to wait and find out. Drake May, what he

13:55did as a young quarterback last year was

13:57historic. 72% complete over a 113 QBR

14:03that led the NFL. I mean, that's the

14:05kind of stuff Joe Montana did in 1980.

14:09That's the kind of stuff Pat Mahomes did

14:11in 2018 when they were young badass

14:14shredding defenses. But Drake May just

14:16didn't do it with his arm. He ran for

14:19450 yards. That's like having Tom Brady

14:23with wheels. THAT'S NOT GOOD FOR THE

14:26other team. I mean, you throw for 4,400

14:28yards, 31 touchdowns, you establish

14:31yourself as one of the top vertical

14:34passers in football. I mean, on balls

14:37thrown over 10 yards down the field,

14:40who's number one in QBR? Who's number

14:42one in completion percentage? And who's

14:45number one with 19 touchdowns? That

14:47would be Drake May. But the pressure

14:50that Drake May was under last year, the

14:53amount of sacks, the amount of hits

14:56doomed them in the very end. He was

14:58sacked 47 times during the regular

15:00season. He was sacked 21 times during

15:03the postseason. And if my Dayton degree

15:06serves me well, that's 68 sacks. But in

15:09the playoffs when New England saw four

15:12top defenses, the numbers plummeted.

15:15Just 58% complete. just an 82 QBR. Six

15:20touchdowns, four interceptions, the

15:22fifth ranked Chargers, the second ranked

15:24Texans, the first ranked Broncos, and

15:27the sixth ranked Seahawk defense. They

15:30put the corrals on Drake May in this

15:33Patriot offense. Sam Darnold, storybook

15:37finish. The first USC quarterback to win

15:39a Super Bowl. I mean, this guy has

15:42showcased some mental toughness. He's

15:44been on multiple teams, but what he did

15:47last year playing his best football in

15:49the postseason, it was incredible and a

15:52great way to say this is the first

15:54quarterback in the 2018 class to win a

15:57Super Bowl, including Lamar Jackson,

15:59Baker Mayfield, Josh Allen. It's Sam

16:02Darnold's mental toughness, physical

16:04toughness that got that done. Remember

16:07that 350 yards he threw for against the

16:09Rams in the NFC Championship. There were

16:13concerns whether he would even play with

16:14that oblique injury. So, not only did he

16:17get it done on the field, he really

16:19showed his teammates how tough he is and

16:21how he can will his team to victory. The

16:23guy went 14 and three in 2024 as a

16:26Viking. Then he goes 14 and three in

16:292025 as a Seahawk. Nobody has won 14

16:32games with two different teams in

16:34back-to-back seasons since Tom Brady did

16:37it with the Patriots and the Buccaneers.

16:39The guy's in rare air the last two

16:41seasons. 8,400 yards, 60 touchdowns,

16:45ninegame winning drives. You got to give

16:48credit where credit is due. And just

16:50like Drake May, this is one of the

16:52premier vertical passing quarterbacks in

16:55football. Seattle, they're not throwing

16:57a bunch of these [ __ ] bubble screens

16:59like everybody else. They push the rock

17:02down the field. And he had 12

17:04completions last year of over 40 yards.

17:0719 of his touchdown passes were in the

17:10air of over 10 yards. That led the

17:12league in football with Matt Stafford.

17:14So, how's he going to deal with a new

17:17guy in his ear? Remember, Brian Flurry,

17:20new offensive coordinator, will be

17:22giving him new information and he'll be

17:24giving the information in a different

17:26manner, a different tone of voice. Some

17:28quarterbacks like a very soft, very

17:32nice, positive voice. I was kind of

17:34like, "COME ON, GUY. LET'S GO." IT'LL BE

17:36INTERESTING to see how Darnold reacts to

17:38a new man in his ear. Let's take a look

17:40at the special teams. I don't think

17:42anybody's better in football than Jay

17:44Harbaugh, the special teams coach of the

17:46Seahawks. We've already talked about

17:48Jason Meyers. Listen to this, Jake Clay.

17:51206 points last year. That's an NFL

17:54record in scoring. He scored more than

17:56Leenian Tomlinson. The guy was awesome.

17:5949 out of 56 on field goals. He was 59

18:03for 59 on pats. Ask me what's weird

18:07though.

18:07>> What?

18:08>> He struggled in the preseason. His leg

18:09must have been tired. I mean, he was two

18:11for four on pats and two for five on

18:13field goals. Maybe he was tired from the

18:15Super Bowl and all that kicking. They

18:17also got a great punter, Michael Dixon.

18:19I mean, he averages 48.3 in his career.

18:22That's top five all time. And they got

18:25the scariest returner in football,

18:27Rashid Shahed. You like saying that

18:30name, Clay?

18:31>> Love it.

18:31>> Say it. Raheem Shah,

18:34>> he had three returns for touchdowns. Ask

18:37the Rams. Don't punt the ball to the

18:39guy. Ask the 49ers about kicking off to

18:41the guy. Pin him into the sideline or

18:44make sure you kick it out of the end

18:46zone or out of bounds. You got to limit

18:49Rasheed Shahed's capability to impact

18:52this game. And over on New England,

18:54their rookie kicker Andy Boragalis, he

18:58got his act together and kicked

19:00extremely well. 27 out of 32 on field

19:03goals. How about that 52 yardd bomb week

19:06five? I think it was to beat Buffalo.

19:09The guy did a great job and they got a

19:11hell of a punt returner named Marcus

19:13Jones. He's taken two back for

19:15touchdowns. I think Marcus Jones has a

19:1817.3 yard punt return average last year.

19:22And I believe his record for his career

19:24is an NFL record. And that's talking

19:26Devin Hester right here. Some of the

19:28guys that have been great. Marcus Jones,

19:31Rasheed Shahed. Limit their impact. Punt

19:35the ball between the numbers and the

19:36sideline or your adult. What's adult,

19:39Jake?

19:40>> Stupid fellow.

19:41>> Don't give these guys much of a look.

19:43Remember, it's a little early here in

19:45Tampa. Kickoff's not for four or five

19:47days. I wanted to get this information

19:49to you early. Injuries. Take a look at

19:52the Patriots. Harold Landry out. He's on

19:56PUP. He's their leading sackman from

19:59last year. Tayvon Henderson, 900 yards,

20:03good receiver. He has an ankle. Keep an

20:06eye on him. They just made a trade to

20:08acquire another back. Ker from Arizona.

20:12Perhaps Henderson's ankle is a problem.

20:15Julian Hill, a tight end who they signed

20:17in the off season, blocking tight end

20:20out for the year. So, they're going to

20:22lean on one of their rookies. But keep

20:24an eye on the injury list of the

20:25Patriots. And for Seattle, Zack

20:28Charbanet, 700 yards, 12 touchdowns,

20:31won't be back until October. And keep an

20:34eye on Emanuel Wilson. This running back

20:36came over from Green Bay. He has a

20:38thousand yards the last two years

20:40combined. He's had a hamstring problem.

20:43Robbie OS, fullback, out for the year.

20:47He hurt his neck. Bud Clark, second

20:50round pick out of TCU. He was drafted to

20:54take over, I think, for Kobe Bryant.

20:56He's out for the year with a broken

20:57ankle. And Jake Boowbo, you saw him

21:00catch that touchdown pass in the NFC

21:02Championship game. He's out for the

21:04season. And their safety superstar

21:06hybrid player, Nick Emanuri, he's had an

21:09ankle that limited him throughout

21:11training camp, knowing him, he'll be

21:13ready to go. But keep an eye on these

21:15injuries before you do anything. Let's

21:18get into it.

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22:37Okay, let's take a look at Seattle's

22:39offense against New England's defense.

22:42The Seahawks on offense. Last year was

22:45last year, but man, they were good in

22:48all categories. They were third in

22:50scoring, eighth in total, 10th in

22:53rushing, and eighth in passing. They

22:56were very productive. The Patriots were

22:58good on defense though as well. They

23:00were the fourth best scoring defense,

23:03eighth in total defense, sixth against

23:06the run, fourth against the pass. It's

23:09going to be a heck of a matchup. The

23:11Seahawks turned the ball over 28 times

23:14last year in the regular season. We

23:16talked about how they addressed that in

23:17the postseason, but I think turnovers

23:20are the key for the Patriots to win this

23:22game. They've got to steal the ball a

23:25couple times from the Seahawks. The guy

23:27to keep an eye on, I think, the most is

23:29new offensive coordinator Brian Flurry.

23:32Who is Brian Flurry? He was a defensive

23:35quality control coach for the 49ers.

23:37Offensive quality control coach. Then he

23:40got promoted to tight end coach. Last

23:42year he was the run game coordinator.

23:45Seven years in San Francisco. Head coach

23:47Mike McDonald took him off the Kyle

23:50Shanahan tree just like he took Clint

23:53Kubiaak a couple years before Flurry.

23:56The plays aren't going to be exactly the

23:58same. What is he bringing that's new?

24:01What is he gonna keep that he saw from

24:03Clint Kubak? And how's his play calling

24:06gonna be? I remember when I was a

24:08first-time play caller, I was a little

24:10nervous. You get a thick skin in this

24:12business. You have a bad series, you

24:14hear the booing, players are complaining

24:16about the play calling. Let's see how

24:19Flurry handles the eb and flow of being

24:21a play caller in the NFL. I'm sure he'll

24:24do great. I like the Seahawks on offense

24:27last year because of their balance.

24:29Almost exactly 50% run, 50% pass. Now

24:34remember, they were running the ball at

24:36the end a lot of these games because

24:38they had commanding leads, but they do

24:40have balance. The other thing I like is

24:42they're under the center, man. 31 snaps

24:45a game, second in the league. Darnold's

24:47under the center. I think it really

24:49helps the running game. It really gives

24:52these playaction passes and bootlegs a

24:55lot of sting. Only the Rams were under

24:58the center more than the Seahawks last

25:00season. When you look at the explosive

25:02plays in this Seattle offense from a

25:04year ago, a lot of it was when Sam

25:07Darnold was under the center. I mean,

25:09these vertical shot plays that they

25:12design off a hard play action, they are

25:15impressive. And they got speed like

25:17Rasheed Shahed that can really rip the

25:20top off. And they got some guys that can

25:22run nasty routes. I mean, can you

25:24imagine blowing the top off of a

25:26coverage with Rasheed Shahed and having

25:30Jackson Smith and Jigba running all kind

25:32of routes with Cooper Cup? Good god. I

25:35mean, when you look at Jackson Smith and

25:37Jigba, he had 31 catches for 730 yards

25:42and an 18yd average on playaction passes

25:45when Darnold was under the center. So

25:47when he does get under, if you're a New

25:50England Patriot, make sure you stay over

25:53the top because they're looking to shoot

25:56the ball over your head. The other thing

25:57is these linebackers and underneath

25:59coverage people of the Patriots, they

26:02got to play with recovery in mind. I

26:04mean, you bite on the fake, you better

26:06turn and get to the junction of where

26:08your zone responsibility is. And don't

26:11get dirty eyes. I mean, if you're

26:13playing man-to-man, don't peek into the

26:15backfield as some of these great fakes

26:16that Darnold makes. Keep your eyes on

26:19the luggage, I used to say, otherwise

26:21your luggage will get stolen. Seattle, I

26:24think they have a tough decision to

26:26make. They've got all four of their top

26:28tight ends back. Will they want to use

26:31two at a time and play 12 personnel, or

26:34do they want to continue to play one at

26:36a time and go with 11 personnel? I mean,

26:38you do have Jackson Smith and Jigba

26:40Cooper Cup and Rasheed Shahed. If you

26:43play 12 personnel, you bring in a Royo,

26:46your second round pick, but you got to

26:47take out one of these receivers. So,

26:49Brian Flurry, the offensive coordinator,

26:51I'm sure he's like, who am I going to

26:53tick off on this substitution? Seattle's

26:56got to reduce the turnovers. I don't

26:58want to beat a dead horse, but that dead

27:00horse will kill you. Last year, only the

27:03Minnesota Vikings turned the ball over

27:06more than the Seattle Seahawks. Almost

27:0915% of every possession in Minnesota

27:12ended in a turnover. And 14.2% of the

27:15time possessions ended with a turnover

27:17for the Seahawks. And I worry about ball

27:20security. I always did in the first game

27:22of the season. Quarterback hasn't been

27:25hit. Your receivers haven't been hit.

27:27They haven't even been playing in these

27:29preseason games. And then you mean to

27:31tell me you're going to have a rookie

27:33running back who carried the ball

27:35basically nine times a game at Notre

27:37Dame, hadn't played in the preeason.

27:40He's going to come out here and run the

27:41ball against the New England Patriots

27:43and prime time TV.

27:45I would say that'll be interesting. But

27:48I do think the running back situation of

27:50the Seahawks is a lot bigger deal than

27:53people think. Oh, we'll just put in our

27:55first round draft pick. We'll be great.

27:57Let's look at his highlight tape.

27:59[ __ ] I'll say this, Price is a

28:02great talent. He's the number 32 overall

28:05pick. He's going to be wearing number

28:07eight, but in three years at Notre Dame,

28:10he caught 15 passes. And have you seen

28:12him pick up blitzes? Well, let's see

28:14what it looks like when Robert Spalain

28:16is flying through the A gap. Remember,

28:19pass protection, catching the ball out

28:22of the back field is a big part of being

28:24a great running back in the NFL. So far,

28:26nobody's seen Price do either. This is

28:29not only the highest paid receiving core

28:32in the NFL. I mean, probably more money

28:34than Cincinnati and Dallas. That's fake

28:37Jake. But you got Jackson Smith and

28:40Jigba. I think the best receiver in the

28:41league. This guy can run some nasty

28:43routes. You got Cooper Cup. They just

28:45resigned Rasheed Shahed. They can create

28:48a lot of different formations and

28:50matchup problems for this New England

28:52secondary. Let's take a look at the

28:54Patriots defense. Zack Kerr. Remember

28:58last year he was the interim defensive

29:01coordinator when Terrell Williams had an

29:04illness. Terrell Williams is back. He's

29:06now the assistant head coach, but Zack

29:09Kerr is now the official full-time

29:12defensive coordinator of the New England

29:14Patriots. Kerr was mentored by Coach

29:17Williams and Vrabel back in Tennessee.

29:20They've had a long history together and

29:23Kerr did an excellent job last year with

29:25the Patriots. As I said, they did a

29:28great job keeping people out of the end

29:29zone. Fourth in scoring, eighth in

29:32total, stingy against the run. They were

29:34number six, and they were ninth against

29:36the pass. They did everything at a top

29:3810 level. My big concern with the

29:41Patriots right now is their edge rush

29:44without blitzing. We know they've got a

29:46couple guys, Bear Moore and Milton

29:48Williams, that can go crazy inside, but

29:51off the edge, they lost Calevon Chase on

29:54to the Washington Commanders. He had

29:56seven and a half sacks. And Harold

29:58Landry, who had eight, is still nursing

30:01that knee that inhibited him last year

30:04down the stretch. So, it's going to be

30:06interesting to see where they're going

30:08to get the rush off the edge. We'll

30:10cover that in a second. They also lost

30:12Kyus Tonga, big nose tackle. He left and

30:16went to Kansas City. And Jaylen Hawkins,

30:19who was a starter at safety, he left to

30:22the Baltimore Ravens. So, they've got to

30:24replace some key performers on the

30:26defensive side of the ball. This is one

30:28of the strongest tackling teams in

30:30football. I always had this statistic.

30:33How many yards does this team give up

30:35after a missed tackle? How many yards

30:38does this team give up after contact?

30:40New England Patriots, one of the best in

30:42football in both categories. They have

30:45some knockback tacklers, meaning they

30:47tackle you, they knock you back. They

30:49don't tackle you and let you move the

30:51pile forward. It's a good tackling

30:54defense. I look for the Patriots under

30:57Zack Cerr to blitz a little bit more in

31:00this game. Not because of Sam Darnold,

31:03but because they got a new offensive

31:05coordinator and they got a rookie

31:07running back nobody knows anything

31:09about. So, let's see if he can recognize

31:11blitzes, especially in the shotgun.

31:14Sometimes your assignment's over here,

31:16but your checklist makes you go cross

31:18key and come under the quarterback and

31:20pick up some of these blitzers off the

31:22edge. That'll be interesting. They're

31:24going to mix coverages. They're going to

31:26disguise coverages. They're going to

31:28blitz and then they're going to give you

31:30the illusion of blitz and bluff out of

31:32there. They're going to try to confuse

31:34the quarterback, confuse the receivers.

31:37They're also going to try to give Sam

31:38Darnold some looks that they haven't

31:40scouted. Very important for Seattle

31:43secondary. Stay on top. Do not bite on

31:47these double moves and be careful with

31:49Rasheed Shahed. They will try to get him

31:53over the top in some of these coverages.

31:55The other thing is if you're a Patriot

31:58defender, have a short yardage plan.

32:00Every third and one, every fourth and

32:02one, be alert for AJ Barner, their tight

32:06end, to become the quarterback. We get

32:08to see the tush push. Hell, they did it

32:1110 times last year. So, don't just gang

32:13up on the sneak either. Don't be

32:15surprised if they have a contingency

32:17play and they express the ball on the

32:19perimeter. Short yardage. Third and

32:22fourth and one. Barner Wildcat

32:25quarterback. Tush push. Be alert for the

32:27contingency play. They call that the

32:29barnyard. Do you guys get that? Barn for

32:32a yard.

32:36I called it all

32:3996 power king. Let's take a look at the

32:41matchups. You know, the Seattle Seahawk

32:44offensive line is homegrown. I mean, in

32:47the last 25 years, very few teams have

32:49won the Super Bowl with homegrown

32:51offensive linemen. The Colts did it. The

32:54Patriots did it. But Charles Cross at

32:56left tackle, outstanding player. And he

32:59plays next to arguably the best left

33:01guard in football in Gray Zable. Zable's

33:04going into his second year. He started

33:06all 20 games. If you look at all, 1284

33:10snaps, you're going to see that this

33:11guy's an ass kicker in a run game. He

33:14will maul you. He's good on a second

33:16level. He can reach block. He can down

33:18block. HE CAN DRIVE BLOCK. He can run

33:20the short trap. He can pull on counters

33:22and powers. I love him. He finished

33:25third in the offensive rookie of the

33:27year. Can you believe that, Jake? I

33:29mean, Quentyn Nelson finished third of

33:31the Colts. Creed Humphrey finished third

33:33of the Kansas City Chiefs. This guy's a

33:36great young left guard. And when you put

33:39Cross next to Zable, that's as good as

33:42it gets. It's like Walter Jones and

33:44Steve Hutchinson. I saw that at close

33:47range. The center is Jaylen Sundell.

33:50He's a heck of a player. He got hurt

33:51last year. They have a capable backup.

33:54Olu Olu Watim. They got two good

33:57centers. Sundell will be in the pivot.

33:59He knows this offense. He can direct

34:01flow and make all the calls. At right

34:04guard is Anthony Bradford, number 75.

34:07And keep an eye on Bo Stevens. He was a

34:10draft pick this year out of Iowa. He's

34:13been well coached by Kirk Fren at Iowa.

34:16I think he could be the air parent. I

34:19believe this is Bradford's final year in

34:21his contract. Right tackle is Abe Lucas.

34:24Good player. He has had some issues at

34:27times in one-on-one pass protection. But

34:29the matchups to me is New England has

34:32got to get Milt Williams, the ex

34:35Philadelphia Eagle, in here against

34:38Bradford. He got the big money because

34:41he's a hell of a player, world champion

34:43with the Eagles. He has a lot of

34:46pressures. He didn't convert him into a

34:48ton of sacks. He had eight tackles for

34:50loss, three and a half sacks a year ago.

34:52But third in the NFL in generating

34:55pressure and they got to get pressure on

34:57Sam Darnold. Milt Williams to me is a

35:00key in this game. And his sidekick

35:02number 90 Christian Barmore didn't have

35:05a ton of sacks, but he was second in the

35:07league in generating pressure. This

35:09guy's very good with his hands. He can

35:12cross face. He can jet up the field as a

35:14three technique. and he has power. So,

35:17both of these inside pass rushers of the

35:20Patriots are going to be very, very

35:22important. Nose tackle. We already

35:25talked about Kyus Tonga. He left. He

35:28went to Kansas City. Who's his

35:30replacement, Jake? Well, it's Cory

35:32Deran. Deran is not a novice. He's 6'4,

35:36310bs.

35:38He played in 17 games last year. The guy

35:40has some production now. He has range,

35:43too. He made 30 tackles, five TFLs.

35:47Deran wears 94

35:49run stuffer. These two defensive tackles

35:53to me, they're good against the run, and

35:55if you can get them ahead in the chains,

35:57they can rush the passer from the

35:58inside. But where does the pressure come

36:01from on the edge? We've already talked

36:03about the players they've lost.

36:05Secondyear man, Elijah Ponder. He is a

36:09very important New England Patriot. He

36:11wears number 91. Undrafted last year out

36:14of Cal Pali. As the season went on, he

36:17gained more confidence. He earned the

36:19trust in his coaching staff. He had four

36:22sacks. He's versatile. He can play in

36:24reverse. He can rush the passer. You can

36:27stunt him. They think Elijah Ponder is

36:30going to be a hell of a player. Wouldn't

36:33you like to see Elijah Ponder make his

36:36presence felt against the great Charles

36:38Cross? And on the other side, it's

36:40Draymond Jones on his fifth team. Here's

36:44a guy that got $39 million to come over

36:47from the Baltimore Ravens. Started four

36:50years in Denver. He went to the Titans.

36:53He went to the Ravens. He went to

36:54Seattle. Now he's back playing for the

36:57New England Patriots. 37 and a half

37:00career sacks. They need Draymond Jones

37:03to make his impact felt big time. But

37:07who are the third and fourth rushers for

37:09New England? They got a second round

37:12pick named Gabe Ais. He's out of

37:14Illinois. And all the reports I've heard

37:17how disappointing he has been. Said he's

37:20a rookie. He's up on the guy, man. He's

37:23a second round pick out of Illinois. He

37:25had 19 sacks, forced a ton of fumbles.

37:28AIS wears number 50, but he's got to

37:31play better and he's got to be able to

37:33come in and give Draymond Jones or

37:36Elijah Ponder some rest. The other guy

37:38you're going to see New England is

37:40number 45 Quintavius Hutchkins, seventh

37:44round pick out of Boston College. There

37:47are some unknown cats coming off the

37:50edge for these New England Patriots. The

37:53Patriots were very fortunate last year

37:55to not have a lot of injuries and this

37:58year, man, they seem to be very thin

38:01right now on the defensive line and at

38:03linebacker. They have two very good

38:06every down linebackers. Robert Spolain,

38:08who led the Patriots in tackles last

38:11year. He is a badass man. I mean, when

38:14he's on the field, the Patriots give up

38:173.7 yards per carry. When he comes off

38:19the field, they give up 4.6. great

38:22communicator. He will stuff some runs.

38:25He reads his keys. Boom. He's gone.

38:27He'll run through on the duo play and

38:29he's a knockback tackler. I love number

38:3214, Spalain. The other one is Christian

38:35Ellis. 76 tackles last year. Very good

38:38linebacker. But who's the third

38:41linebacker? I'm an owl. You mean Jack

38:44Gibbons who played his ass off last year

38:47is in Arizona. He's gone. The other guy

38:49that's gone is Galani Tavi. He's in

38:52Jacksonville. And Mark Tamar Pu, he

38:55left, went to Houston. I think he's on

38:57IR, but these three linebackers played a

39:00lot of snaps for the Patriots last year.

39:02I really don't know who their third

39:05inside linebacker is. But I do expect

39:08some blitzing,

39:10some double A's, some inside backer dog

39:13against this rookie, J Darien Price out

39:17of Notre Dame. The running back I think

39:19that could really help the Seahawks

39:21until Zack Charbanet comes back is

39:24Emanuel Wilson, the ex Green Bay Packer.

39:27You know, Wilson is a goodsized back,

39:30man. He has almost a,000 yards combined

39:32in the last two seasons. He's caught a

39:35lot of passes. He's 225 lbs. He's been

39:39experienced playing in the NFL. So,

39:42Emanuel Wilson, if healthy, could be a

39:45guy, I think, that takes a lot of

39:47pressure off of Jadarian Price. And they

39:49still have George Holani, undrafted

39:52player out of Boise. He caught four

39:55passes last year in the playoffs. He

39:57only ran for 73 yards, but he knows the

40:00system. He is a veteran, so keep an eye

40:02on all three of these backs. But the key

40:05really is Jadarian Price. He is one of

40:08the biggest mysteries in the NFL right

40:10now. And on the outside, the Seattle

40:13Seahawks are led by arguably the best

40:16receiver in football, Jackson Smith and

40:19Jigba. 1793 yards last year receiving.

40:22Led the NFL. That's eighth all time. And

40:25if you look at him carefully, this guy

40:28is able to run routes on the outside.

40:31You can put him in the slot. You can put

40:33him in the back field. This guy has

40:35natural instinctive ability.

40:38Unbelievable late hands. He's got great

40:41stamina. He doesn't get tired and he can

40:44run all kind of routes and he can really

40:46set you up. Things that look the same

40:48that are different. I just love watching

40:51him play. And when you look at guys that

40:54are running real routes, this is the

40:56guy. I mean, he averages 11.2 yards of

41:00ball flight on his routes. He's not

41:02catching bubble screens and quick

41:04screens. This guy's route depth has

41:08increased dramatically. Six yards as a

41:11rookie. 8.4 yards per pass in 24. And in

41:162025, 11.2. That is phenomenal. The

41:20first guy in NFL history to have over 75

41:23yards receiving in 11 straight games to

41:25start the season. Nine 100yard games.

41:28That's a franchise record. This guy

41:31crushed the Rams. 10 for 150 in a score

41:34in the NFC Championship game and he has

41:3744 catches now that went for over 15

41:40yards. It's impressive after the catch.

41:42It's an impressive athlete and a great

41:44receiver. On the other side is Rashid

41:48Shahed. He got here last year in a

41:50trade. He only played 12 games. He

41:53didn't have great production as a

41:55receiver. He just caught 18 passes for

41:58260 yards. But he knows the offense now.

42:01He's had an off season. They've signed

42:03him to a three-year extension. He will

42:05carry the ball a lot on jet sweeps and

42:08reverses. He had 11 carries last year

42:11for 86 yards. We all know about his punt

42:14return ability. But don't forget, this

42:16is a guy that has a lot of Deshawn

42:18Jackson-like skills. Man, when he was in

42:21New Orleans, he had 10 touchdown

42:23receptions of over 30 yards. That's

42:26impressive. Do you know that their slot

42:28receiver or their third receiver is

42:31Cooper Cup? I mean, the 2021 offensive

42:34player of the year. He won the triple

42:35crown, most catches, most yards, most

42:37touchdowns. Good God, this guy's got an

42:40unbelievable career. But Cooper Cup now

42:43last year he was battling some injuries.

42:45He had just 47 catches for 600 yards.

42:49But what he gives them is a mentality,

42:51an unselfish mentality. how to block,

42:55how to prepare, how to be mentally

42:57tough, how to play great without the

42:59ball. There's so many intangibles that

43:02Cooper Cup brings. And he can still run

43:04the choice route. He can still beat you

43:07after the catch. He can run routes that

43:10you dream up late on a Thursday night.

43:12He can make it dance on the grass. I

43:14love Cooper Cup. And keep an eye on this

43:16Tory Horton. I mean, he was hurt last

43:19year, but when he was playing, he had 13

43:22catches. Five of them went for

43:25touchdowns, and he blurred the screen on

43:27a punt return against the Saints. So,

43:30technically, we are not quite sure where

43:32he is with that injury. But when he's

43:35healthy, you got two guys, Tory Horton

43:37and Rasheed Shahed, that can blur the

43:40screen. And you got Cooper Cup, Jackson

43:42Smith, and Jigb, but good lord, they are

43:45a problem. And on the outside for New

43:47England, it's going to be Christian

43:49Gonzalez, number zero. Had a little bit

43:52of a contract squabble during the off

43:54season. I think he's a little upset they

43:56haven't given him that extension yet,

43:58but he's a premier corner, Pro Bowl

44:01corner. He wears number zero, 69

44:04tackles, 10 PBUs. He didn't have a pick

44:07in the regular season. He got one in the

44:09postseason, but 14 times in the Super

44:11Bowl last year, he matched up with

44:13Jackson Smith and Jigba. So, if New

44:16England does turn this into a man-to-man

44:18blitz game, I look for Gonzalez

44:21and Jackson Smith and Jigba to have one

44:23hell of a matchup. But Gonzalez is a

44:25great player. On the other side, it'll

44:27be Carlton Davis, the ex-Tampa Bay

44:30Buccaneer, ex Detroit Lion. Good player,

44:33instinctive, good tackler, recognizes

44:37route combinations, and inside, I love

44:41Marcus Jones. Not the biggest guy. He's

44:43only five foot eight, but he plays big.

44:46Ask Malisk when Justin Herbert was

44:48running down there in the goal line. 55

44:50POUNDS HEAVIER. MARCUS JONES BRINGS HIM

44:53DOWN. Guy's a badass man. He's got a

44:56couple sacks coming off the corner.

44:58Fearless punt returner. Cat quickness in

45:00the slot. These are three good corners

45:03that are exciting. And on the back end,

45:06they signed Kevin Bard, the ex Mike

45:10Vrabel, Tennessee Titan. He's gonna come

45:12in for Jaylen Hawkins who left to go to

45:16Baltimore. And Byard, the one thing I

45:19love about him is his ball skills. I

45:20mean, he's got 36 career picks. He's

45:23been in 10 playoff games. He's a great

45:26communicator, but Bard never misses a

45:28game. And I heard he never misses a

45:30practice. I mean, 164 straight games,

45:34155 starts. This is a quality player. He

45:37signed a one-year deal. And the other

45:39safety is Woodson. Craig Woodson. One of

45:43the steels of last year's draft.

45:46Fourthround pick. He comes in here, has

45:4875 tackles, third on the team. Watch him

45:52in a Super Bowl. He's got 10 tackles,

45:54three PBUs, a couple TFLs. This is a

45:57hell of a young safety. Woodson is

46:01wearing number four because he gave his

46:03number last year to Kevin Bard. He must

46:07be a hell of a guy, too. And these

46:09safeties, they better be ready for these

46:11tight ends of the Seahawks. AJ Barner,

46:14I'm going to say it again, he's one of

46:16the keys to the Seahawks offense because

46:19he can line up in line and pass protect.

46:22He can block the C gap and he can run

46:24all kind of routes. The guy had 57

46:26catches for 530 yards and six

46:29touchdowns. Very good player. Barner,

46:32Eric Cybert, Elijah Aoyo, and Nick

46:36Calerup. All four tight ends are back,

46:39and they'll use a lot of tight ends in

46:42different personnel groupings. Aoyo is

46:45interesting. Former second round pick

46:47got hurt last year. If he wants to get

46:50on the grass, he's going to have to beat

46:52out Cooper Cup or Rasheed Shahed. He's

46:55going to have to earn his snaps. But

46:58it'll be interesting to see what does

47:01offensive coordinator Brian Flurry do in

47:04his first game calling plays against the

47:07defense that's probably going to try to

47:10force Jadarian Price, the young feature

47:13back, to pick up some blitzes. It'll be

47:15a fun game to see.

47:20Okay, this Patriot offense against this

47:22Seahawk defense. Josh McDaniels,

47:26offensive coordinator. what a job he

47:28does. I think in the second year of his

47:31system in New England, you'll see a lot

47:33of these young players, especially

47:35Drake, May play even better. One thing

47:37that's cool about Josh McDaniels is he

47:40has done a great job in the past when he

47:43gets his hands on a blue chip receiver

47:45like AJ Brown. Remember Randy Moss led

47:48the NFL in touchdowns when he was the OC

47:51for the Patriots. So did Brandon

47:53Marshall when he was coaching him in

47:54Denver. Hell, McDaniels was the head

47:56coach calling plays with the Raiders and

47:58Devonte Adams led the league and now he

48:01gets the keys to AJ Brown. I can't wait

48:04to see this combination. Second in

48:07scoring, third in total, sixth in

48:09rushing, fourth in passing. They had an

48:12excellent regular season. I think the

48:14big thing is can the Patriots pass

48:16protect against the Seahawks on the road

48:19in this noise against this outstanding

48:22formidable pass rush. They're also going

48:24to have to pick up blitzes a lot better

48:26than they did in the Super Bowl. Devin

48:28Witherspoon got home. They had a sack

48:31strip touchdown. They've got to do a

48:33better job picking up blitzes and pass

48:35protecting. And their offense, as good

48:37as they were in the regular season, they

48:39struggled in the playoffs. They went

48:41from 28 points a game to 16 points a

48:44game, 380 yards a game to 290. The

48:48passing stats were 250 yards to 170. a

48:51dramatic lack of production against

48:53these high volume defenses in the

48:55postseason. They converted 43% of their

48:58third downs in the regular season, just

49:0132%

49:02in the postseason. And a lot of it had

49:04to do with pass protection. Ball

49:07security. We talked about Sam Darnold

49:10turning the ball over quite a bit. Drake

49:13May had 15 fumbles last year, eight in

49:16the regular season, seven in the

49:18postseason. They've got to clean that

49:20up. Got to keep him better protected.

49:23And that's being put mildly. Drake May

49:26under pressure almost 40% of the time

49:30last year. Justin Herbert, Drake May,

49:33they were under siege quite a bit. But

49:36unbelievably, he led the NFL in

49:39performance under pressure. He had 103.1

49:42QBR under fire. I mean, he had an 8.8

49:46yards per pass. He threw 10 touchdown

49:49passes. Drake May proved he can perform

49:52under pressure. But again, the fumbles

49:55and the sacks, 47 sacks in the regular

49:58season, 21 in the postseason. Too many

50:01hits, too much pressure. It's got to go

50:04away. The scramble drill and the second

50:07act plays are what Drake May can do as

50:11good as anybody. He can create offense

50:13when nothing is there. When you look at

50:15all of his drop back passes, Drake May

50:18took off and ran on over 10% of them.

50:21That's the highest total in the league.

50:23Now, he scrambled for 422 yards rushing.

50:26That's third in the league to Josh Allen

50:29and Justin Herbert. But they need more

50:31plays in rhythm, on time, from the

50:34pocket. And I know Josh McDaniels is

50:36counting on that. McDaniels is going to

50:38use a lot of different personnel

50:40groupings. Last year he put nose tackle

50:42Kyus Tongas in there at fullback.

50:44Anything goes with McDaniels. And now

50:47with AJ Brown, with Romeo Dobs, the

50:50addition of Reggie Gilliam, the ex

50:53Buffalo Bill fullback, good god, there's

50:56a lot of preparation that this Seahawk

50:59defense has to get ready for. Another

51:01guy to keep an eye on is their rookie

51:03tight end from Notre Dame, Eli Rearen.

51:06This guy had 48 catches at Notre Dame,

51:10but he gives them the possibility of a

51:12pretty impressive two tight end set with

51:14Hunter Henry. So, they have a lot of

51:17different personnel groupings. They've

51:19got firepower at wide receiver that

51:21they're excited about. And this is a

51:23very balanced offense. They have two

51:26runners with over 600 yards rushing.

51:29Raandre Stevenson had 603 and Tayvon

51:32Henderson had over 900. And they also

51:36caught over 30 passes a piece. So this

51:39is the only team in the league that has

51:41two backs with over 600 yards rushing

51:44and over 30 catches. You got to keep an

51:46eye on that. These are really good

51:48receiving halfbacks. The ball

51:50distribution under Josh McDaniels has

51:52always been excellent. Hell, they had 11

51:55different receivers in the postseason

51:57alone. But they'll throw the ball to

51:58Henry at tight end. They're going to

52:00move AJ Brown around a lot. I do believe

52:05Romeo Dobs and they got a litany of

52:07different cats that they can use as

52:09their third receiver. We'll get into

52:11that in a second. But I love the

52:13balance, the ball distribution, seven

52:16different receivers, caught over 30

52:18passes and a touchdown last season. So,

52:20you got to account for a lot when you

52:22play against McDaniels. And Mike

52:24McDonald, head coach of the Seahawks,

52:26he'll call the plays on defense. Number

52:29one in scoring defense, number six in

52:32total, third against the run, and 10th

52:35against the pass. I think the number one

52:38objective is let's stop the run just

52:40like we did in the Super Bowl. Kaboom.

52:43Cause some negative yard stuffs and

52:45let's get them behind in a downed

52:47distance. Let's heat them up. It's been

52:50very hard to run the ball against

52:52Seattle's defense. Last year, they gave

52:54up only 28 running plays of 10 yards or

52:57more. Hell, some of these teams gave up

53:0070 or in the mid60s. They're very

53:03stingy. They've gone 28 straight games

53:05without giving up a 100redyard rusher.

53:08So, I wish the Patriots well if they

53:11think they're going to run the ball

53:12right down Seattle's throat. But they

53:15got to contain the pocket. They got to

53:17limit Drake May on the scramble plays.

53:20They've got to plaster on the back end

53:22in coverage. They got to be very

53:25respectful of Drake May's scramble

53:27ability. AJ Brown in his first game on

53:30national TV. What would I do if I was

53:33the offensive coordinator? What would

53:35you do? What do you think McDaniels is

53:38going to do? He's going to try to put

53:39the ball in AJ Brown's hands a lot. So,

53:42I think the Seahawk defense has to put a

53:45bullseye on AJ Brown. He's going to be

53:48the go-to guy. 41. the fullback Gilliam

53:53is going to be a big part of this

53:54offense. There's no way the Buffalo

53:57Bills wanted him to leave and go to New

54:00England. And now it's going to open up

54:02some two back sets and some great

54:04bootlegs and playaction passes. And I

54:07think Josh McDaniels is going to try to

54:10make the Seahawks do something they

54:12don't want to do. Yeah, they got Nick

54:14Eman Wori, the most versatile player in

54:16history probably, and they play nickel

54:19with him as the big nickel 90% of the

54:22time. But what happens when you come out

54:24with two backs and two tight ends?

54:27Aren't you going to want to get into a

54:28three linebacker set? We're going to

54:30find out. But I think Gilliam is a big

54:33chess piece for the Patriots. The

54:36Seahawks do a good job getting pressure

54:38with a fourman rush. They got six guys

54:41last year that had over 30 pressures. I

54:43mean, Lawrence had 51, Leonard Williams

54:46had 45, Brian Murphy had 46, Nasu had

54:5044, Hall had 36, and I know Boy Mafy

54:53left, he had 41 to Cincinnati, but hell,

54:56they got Dante Fowler now. So, they can

54:58heat you up with the fourman rush. But,

55:00you know, when Mike McDonald blitzes, I

55:02know he doesn't blitz a lot, he gets

55:04home. Very creative blitz packages. And

55:07that really paid big dividends in the

55:10Super Bowl last year. I'll show you a

55:11couple. One of the really cool blitzes I

55:13saw from Seattle in the Super Bowl is

55:16they put Ernest Jones over the center

55:18and they jammed the front. We called it

55:20backer jam. And on a snap of the ball,

55:22he took off. Demarcus Lawrence playing

55:26defensive end, he looked like a pass

55:28rusher. He took off and he walled

55:30coverage. And over here they took their

55:33defensive tackle. They bring him into

55:34the far A gap to create some room for

55:37Eman Worry in the A gap. Here comes Love

55:40in the B gap. They bring a fourman

55:43overload. And on the snap of the ball,

55:46Josh Job rotates. The safety cuts over

55:50the top and Drake May throws a hot route

55:53right over here to Henderson. And guess

55:55what Josh JOB'S DONE? GOOD NIGHT. Two

55:57yard loss. But they do a great job of

56:01playing zone coverage on one side,

56:04clouding the other side with a fourman

56:06blitz, and if you're in a scat

56:08protection, kaboom, you better have an

56:10answer. And then down here later in the

56:13game, they love to play these load

56:15fronts where they load one side of the

56:18center with three known rushers. They

56:21got Murphy, they got Leonard Williams,

56:24and Demarcus Lawrence. They load one

56:26side of the center. They force you to

56:28take three blockers that way. They put

56:31Ernest Jones on the backside guard and

56:34they put Nick Emanur on the line of

56:36scrimmage with Derek Hall. And what

56:38happens on the snap of the ball is here

56:39comes Eman Wor off one side. Hall slants

56:42to the inside. Ernest Jones, he falls

56:45out of there and on the snap of the

56:47ball, the free safety cuts to the deep

56:51third. Here comes Devin Witherspoon

56:53flying into the B gap for the sack. It's

56:56double-edgeed pressure with man coverage

57:00and you can't really figure out who's

57:04coming and going. A lot of different

57:06looks with different blitzers and they

57:09are coming at high speed. You know, you

57:11talk about a team that can stop the run.

57:13Normally when you stop the run, you load

57:15the box. Seven in the box versus 11

57:18personnel. Eight in the box versus a two

57:21back set. [ __ ] Seattle plays a split

57:24safety. look almost 80% of the time. So,

57:27they stop the run with really light

57:29boxes and it's a credit to the way these

57:32guys play up front. They have some

57:34unheralded

57:36badass linebackers, man. Ernest Jones,

57:39Drake Thomas, I mean, these guys play

57:43their ass off on an every down basis.

57:46And Drake Thomas, he was let go by the

57:48Raiders. He was undrafted out of NC

57:50State. They picked up Ernest Jones for a

57:53fourth round pick. I mean, they have

57:55done a phenomenal job coming in here

57:57with some unheralded linebackers and

58:00they bring it to you. Let's take a look

58:02at the matchups. I think it all starts

58:04and ends up front. Can New England block

58:07the Seahawks? I mean, in the playoffs

58:09last year against good defenses, the

58:12Patriots gave up five sacks in three

58:16straight games. That's the first time in

58:19playoff history. five or more sacks in

58:21three straight games and then they did

58:23it in the Super Bowl. So, they did it

58:25four straight times. They got to fix

58:28their protection against this crowd or

58:30Seattle will beat them 29-13 again. But

58:34up front, it's Will Campbell at left

58:36tackle. He hurt his knee now in November

58:39playing at Cincinnati. It's a well

58:42doumented injury and he did not play

58:44well down the stretch because of that.

58:46gave up a lot of pressures, gave up a

58:49lot of sacks, and he was really beaten

58:52badly in the Super Bowl by these

58:54Seahawks. The left guard is brand new.

58:56It's going to be Elijah Vera Tucker.

58:59He's going to be the new left guard.

59:00They got him from the Jets, the former

59:02first round pick. If he's healthy, he

59:05can be a really good player, but he's

59:07had tricep injuries twice. He's had an

59:10Achilles injury. He's a versatile

59:13player. He started 20 games at right

59:15guard, 16 games at left guard, six games

59:18at right tackle, one game at left

59:19tackle, but they got a new left guard

59:22who's been injuryprone, and they took

59:25last year's left guard, Jared Wilson,

59:27and moved him to center. So, they got a

59:30new left guard, they got a new center,

59:32and Will Campbell, who struggled last

59:35year as the left tackle. Do these three

59:37guys got a lot to prove? Hell yes, they

59:39do. The right guard is Mike Anwenu. He's

59:43coming back. And Morgan Moses in his

59:4613th season, 35 years old, is the right

59:49tackle. Why do you think they went out

59:51in the first round and drafted Caleb

59:54Lamu a tackle out of Utah? I mean, I saw

59:58Lamu in the preeason play right tackle,

1:00:01then he played left tackle, then he

1:00:02played right tackle. Will he end up

1:00:05taking over for Morgan Moses or will he

1:00:08end up taking over for Will Campbell

1:00:10should they move him inside? Who knows?

1:00:13But keep an eye on Lamu. He might come

1:00:17into the game as an extra tight end into

1:00:19some jumbo sets. But up front for the

1:00:21Seattle Seahawks, they use four

1:00:24different edge rushers. And they'll play

1:00:26these guys between 36 and 56% of the

1:00:30time. So they're always fresh. And it

1:00:32all starts with Demarcus Lawrence, the

1:00:34ex Dallas Cowboy. If there's one guy you

1:00:37should watch as a young pass rusher,

1:00:40it's Demarcus Lawrence. This is his 13th

1:00:42and final season. So he says, I love a

1:00:45factor grade. A guy that does more than

1:00:48just rush the passer. The guy has 14

1:00:50tackles for loss, six forced fumbles. He

1:00:54recovers three fumbles. said he scores

1:00:56two touchdowns, has eight touchdowns, 60

1:00:59tackles, and 25 quarterback hits. Number

1:01:02zero. Get off your feet and cheer for

1:01:04this guy. Demarcus Lawrence. Badass. The

1:01:08other guy is Chenna Noasu. I never liked

1:01:11him. He was a Charger. He used to tick

1:01:13me off, too. Man, this guy's a hell of a

1:01:15player. He's going to be 30 years old.

1:01:17He's in the final year of his deal. 35

1:01:20tackles, seven sacks, 15 quarterback

1:01:22hits. He wears number seven. He had an

1:01:25interception run back for a touchdown in

1:01:27the Super Bowl. Those are two very good

1:01:30players. But keep an eye on number 58,

1:01:33will you? Derek Hall. He power rushed

1:01:35Will Campbell. Had a couple sacks in the

1:01:37Super Bowl. They just resigned him to a

1:01:40lot of money. Hall wears 58. And the

1:01:43fourth rusher is Dante Fowler, the ex

1:01:48Dallas Cowboy Commander Ram. 58 and a

1:01:51half career sacks. Fowler had 10 and a

1:01:54half sacks as a Ram now. In 24, he had

1:01:5611 with the Cowboys. This guy's capable

1:02:00in this rotation of being a pain in the

1:02:04ass. So, they got problems, I think, for

1:02:07Campbell and certainly Morgan Moses.

1:02:11Knock on a grease board if you're with

1:02:12me. But where the rubber meets the road

1:02:14is inside. They're led by Leonard

1:02:17Williams, number 99, who's totally

1:02:19reinvented himself. He's like he's

1:02:21reborn in Seattle. I think this is the

1:02:24straw that stirs the drink. I mean, this

1:02:26cat productionwise,

1:02:29incredible. He can play left side, right

1:02:31side, inside, outside. He and Byron

1:02:34Murphy, the thirdyear man out of Texas

1:02:37are great together. They combined for 14

1:02:41sacks last year and 97 pressures between

1:02:44the two of them. I love them. I don't

1:02:46know where Murphy came from. He had a

1:02:48half a sack as a rookie, then he has

1:02:50seven sacks last year. Nobody saw it

1:02:53coming. Murphy had 62 tackles, 13 TFLs.

1:02:57I mean, this guy's built, man. I wish I

1:03:00was built like Murphy. Then they got

1:03:02Giron Reed, number 90. He's been around

1:03:04kicking ass for about 11 years. So, they

1:03:07got three good D tackles. But you know

1:03:09what the great thing is, Malisk?

1:03:11>> What? Riley Mills, number 98, midround

1:03:15pick out of Notre Dame, team captain,

1:03:18gets hurt at Notre Dame, doesn't play

1:03:20until the Super Bowl basically. And you

1:03:23can ask Jared Wilson, who was playing

1:03:25left guard last year against Riley

1:03:28Mills. What happened? It was like a

1:03:30forklift, man. This guy's got some

1:03:32power. Keep an eye on Riley Mills,

1:03:35number 98. So, they got four guys on the

1:03:38edge, four guys at defensive tackle. I

1:03:42don't like Ernest Jones. I freaking love

1:03:44this guy. I mean, this son [ __ ] has 125

1:03:46tackles and five picks. Hasn't been done

1:03:49since Earl Thomas, man, in 2013. The

1:03:53greatest Seahawk defender in my mind of

1:03:56all time. Ernest Jones is a playmaker.

1:03:59And if you watch him in the postseason,

1:04:01number 13, he is a great everyown

1:04:04backer. And Drake Thomas, yeah, he's too

1:04:07small. He's only 510. He's only 220. He

1:04:11gets cut by the Raiders. He comes over

1:04:13here. He has 41 career snaps as a

1:04:17Seahawk in two years at the start of the

1:04:192025 season. Coach McDonald puts him in

1:04:23for Tyrese Knight in September. Son of a

1:04:27[ __ ] Number 42's all over the place.

1:04:2996 tackles, three and a half sacks, 10

1:04:33TFLs and eight passes broken up. His

1:04:36effort and space play recoverability is

1:04:39great. They got the front seven that'll

1:04:42kick your ass, but where's the strength

1:04:44of this team? It might be in the

1:04:46secondary. That's why they say Mob

1:04:49mission over [ __ ] This defense

1:04:53works. They're a brotherhood. They trust

1:04:55each other and they are violent. At one

1:04:58corner is Devin Weatherspoon. Should

1:05:00have been the MVP of the Super Bowl if

1:05:02you ask me. He comes back about week

1:05:05nine last year and he's playing the

1:05:08majority of the time on the outside, but

1:05:11they will go dime and they will put him

1:05:14back at his nickel position and ask the

1:05:16Patriots. He'll sack you. He'll ruin the

1:05:19game as a blitzer. Witherspoon, highest

1:05:22paid corner in the NFL and he deserves

1:05:25it. 420 coverage snaps last year. I'm

1:05:29watching. Nobody throws the ball at him.

1:05:32You know why? It's a waste of your

1:05:33freaking time. The other corner is the

1:05:37unheralded Josh Job. He got a three-year

1:05:40extension. One of the reasons Reek

1:05:42Woolen is in Philly now is they had to

1:05:44make a choice. Job or Woolen. It's Job.

1:05:48And when you look at the coverage

1:05:50metrics, I know a lot of people say,

1:05:51"Oh, he only has one interception." This

1:05:54freaking guy has a 71.1 QBR against him.

1:05:58Completion percentage is 47%.

1:06:02The guy has 10 targets against him in

1:06:05the Super Bowl against these Patriots.

1:06:07He gave up three catches for 11 yards,

1:06:1054 tackles. They got two good corners.

1:06:13And the best football player maybe in

1:06:16the NFL is Nick Emanur, number three.

1:06:19Son of a [ __ ] He can play dime

1:06:21linebacker. He can play big nickel. He

1:06:24can play safety. He can play outside

1:06:26linebacker. This guy allows McDonald to

1:06:29do a lot of different things because

1:06:31physically he can take on linemen.

1:06:34Athletically, he can cover tight ends

1:06:37and from a quickness standpoint, he can

1:06:39do whatever the hell he wants. He was

1:06:42one of the top candidates to win the

1:06:44defensive rookie of the year last year.

1:06:4717 pressures led all defensive backs, 81

1:06:51tackles, 11 PBUS, two and a half sacks.

1:06:55Number three, Eman Worry, 21

1:06:58Witherspoon, and 29 Josh Job. I would

1:07:01get on the bus just so I could get off

1:07:03the bus right behind those guys. As

1:07:06safety, keep an eye on Tai Okada. He's

1:07:10going to become this year's full-time

1:07:11starter. Kobe Bryant is gone. The other

1:07:15safety is Julian Love. He had some

1:07:17injuries last year. He wears number 20.

1:07:20Good player. Only concern I have is

1:07:23where's the depth at safety after Love

1:07:26in Okada. I mean, even worries his own

1:07:29beast down here. But they let a couple

1:07:32guys go. Rodney Thomas, a free agent,

1:07:34they cut him. DeAnthony Bell got cut. AJ

1:07:37Finley got cut. Second round draft

1:07:39choice. Bud Clark's out for the year.

1:07:41So, if they were to have an injury back

1:07:44here, who goes back there? That'll be

1:07:46interesting. But they're going to have

1:07:48to deal with the great AJ Brown. They

1:07:51got Romeo Doss. And when you look at AJ

1:07:54Brown, he had history with Vable. So,

1:07:57there's a connection there. I think it's

1:08:00important. But since AJ's come in the

1:08:02league in 2019, over 8,000 yards, 56

1:08:06touchdowns, in the last four years, to

1:08:09put it in perspective, only AJ Brown and

1:08:12Jamar Chase have gone over a,000 yards

1:08:14with seven or more touchdowns, four

1:08:16straight seasons. So, it's production.

1:08:1953 catches of 25 yards or more since

1:08:232022. I mean, it's a big play receiver.

1:08:27You can isolate him on the backside of

1:08:29trips. And like I said, I think Josh

1:08:32McDaniels is going to use this guy in

1:08:34ways he's never been used before. And

1:08:37that's exciting for Patriot fans. And

1:08:40don't go to sleep on Romeo Doss. He led

1:08:43the Packers in receiving last year, 55

1:08:46catches, a career-high 725 yards. And if

1:08:50you look at him, he has quietly caught

1:08:53over 200 passes with 2500 yards. He's a

1:08:56premier competitor. He can play in the

1:08:59cold [ __ ] weather. The guy is smart.

1:09:02Great competitor. I love Dobs. Never has

1:09:05had a thousand yard season. I think he's

1:09:08the perfect compliment to AJ Brown. And

1:09:11who is the third receiver for New

1:09:13England? I don't know. But I love M.

1:09:15Collins. Big guy in his ninth year. 46

1:09:18catches, 550 yards. I like watching his

1:09:22YouTube videos and his Tik Toks. He

1:09:24makes me laugh and he's a hell of a

1:09:25player. Played 60% of the snaps. Demario

1:09:29Douglas is back. Good player. He wears

1:09:31number three. 31 catches, 450 yards,

1:09:35three touchdowns. And how about the

1:09:37draft choice, Kyle Williams. Good

1:09:39player, man. Out of Washington State.

1:09:42They got a lot of good players with

1:09:44Eftton Chisum. A big battle for that

1:09:46third receiver spot. And again, tight

1:09:49ends. Hunter Henry, much like AJ Barner,

1:09:54these are real tight ends. They play

1:09:56tight on the end of line. The guy can

1:09:59run routes from a conventional tight end

1:10:02position. He led the team with seven

1:10:05touchdown receptions. Very good in the

1:10:08red zone. And I love him because of his

1:10:12production year in and year out. 70

1:10:14catches, 768 yards. Why do you think

1:10:18Elliot Wolf gave him an extension? And

1:10:20he's the perfect mentor to Eli Raridon

1:10:24from Notre Dame. Keep an eye on number

1:10:2782. I got a feeling he's going to be a

1:10:30big part of this Patriot offense. And

1:10:32the running back position, I just want

1:10:35to go back on Stephvenson. Raandre

1:10:38Stevenson is a hell of a player. They

1:10:41split time last year. He and Tayvon

1:10:44Henderson. Stevenson played 533 snaps.

1:10:48Henderson played 501.

1:10:50But 10.8 yards per catch for Raandre

1:10:55Stevenson. This guy can run routes down

1:10:57the field. So don't be surprised if you

1:10:59don't see a seam route or a corner route

1:11:02from Stevenson coming out of the back

1:11:04field. Big coaching point is both of

1:11:08these backs in pass protection. There's

1:11:11been a big difference. Last year,

1:11:13Stevenson, he was like Nolan Ryan, man,

1:11:15throwing shutouts. He can reject

1:11:18blitzers. Henderson struggled

1:11:20surprisingly. He was great at Ohio

1:11:22State, but he gave up a few sacks and he

1:11:25gave up some pressure. So, I think we

1:11:28should keep a close eye on their blitz

1:11:29pickup. And don't forget Cory Ker. The

1:11:32Patriots sent a seventhround pick to get

1:11:35him in a trade because I think Tayvon

1:11:37Henderson has some ankle issues that

1:11:40could limit him a little bit early in

1:11:42the season. And do you know Cory Conor

1:11:44played at Cincinnati? We open these

1:11:46boxes here. Cory Connor, he would come

1:11:49in here in the offseason, he sent us the

1:11:51second box ever from the University of

1:11:53Cincinnati. We're pulling for you, man.

1:11:56So, I think this Patriot offense could

1:11:58have their hands full in the noise

1:12:00against this vicious front seven of the

1:12:03Seahawks.

1:12:07Well, you got to pick somebody. It's the

1:12:09first game of the year. I just love the

1:12:12Seahawks, especially at home. I can't

1:12:14get over the Super Bowl film. It's going

1:12:16to be 29-13 again. The Seahawks, they're

1:12:21going to start this season and prove why

1:12:23they're the champion.