Talking Grit: A Detroit Lions Podcast
Talking Grit: A Detroit Lions Podcast
E19: Roster Reactions and Practice Squad Surprises
In this episode of 'Talking Grit' with Jason Harwood and Jacob Litton, answer a listener's question about the financial implications for players and analyze the roster's surprising inclusions and exclusions, such as the cutting and re-signing dynamics of practice squad players. The episode also highlights Brad Holmes' discussion about the team's expectations, Jamo's maturity and potential, and the city's response to the Lions' resurgence as a Super Bowl contender. They wrap it up with a 'Honolulu Blitz'
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Welcome everybody to another episode of Talking Grit I'm Jason Harwood and with me is Jacob Litton. You're gonna have to excuse Jacob and I we just got done drafting and Our fantasy teams and we both stole each other's players at different points but we're not gonna bore you with our fantasy football stories what we are gonna talk about today is The practice squad and our reaction to the roster and Brad Holmes had a really long like 36 minute press conference today So there's a couple interesting tidbits set in there. So we're gonna touch on that before we get started. There was a Listener question today, um, Matt on Reddit, asked a question and it was very appropriate. Just happened to lead into what our topic was gonna be today. So, it was like perfect timing, for us. If you're a listener out there and you got a question you can hit us up on Spotify There's the comment section you can do there. There is just uh, send us a text message you can also email us at talkinggritpodatyahoo. com any which way. We're also on Twitter. However you want to reach us. We'd be glad to cover your question on the pod. And it's fun to interact with everybody
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:okay. So here's what, uh, Matt on Reddit says now that the 53 has been finalized, uh, he has a couple. Possible questions. What does it mean financially for a player when he makes the 53 man roster? What does the salary for practice squad players look like? And if a practice squad player is elevated for a game, which is pretty common, what kind of financial compensation kicks in? So we're going to let Jason educate us on these, uh,
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Oh, yeah. Yes. So there is a ton of different scenarios. There's tons of different details and stuff like that, but essentially I got, you know, I got the correct information here. I'm just going to try to be as succinct as possible. So, first question, part of the question, what does it mean financially for a player, uh, if he's making the 53? Basically, you know, if he makes the 53, then he's, uh, You know, whatever they signed a contract in the offseason or the ongoing contract that he's going on. That's what he's going to play for this year. It's not guaranteed at all. However, what I think Matt may have been thinking about is if you are on The roster week one, and you have at least four years of experience. Then your contract for the season becomes fully guaranteed. If you're not on the roster week one, then all that goes out the window. So for all those people that made the 53, their, their money's not guaranteed yet. They could be cut and you know, any guarantee part of their contract obviously is going to get paid, but any non guaranteed is not necessarily going to get paid. Um, the second part of this question was what does the salary for practice squad players look like? There's four different groups of practice squad players. Group one is players that have not accrued any experience at all. Group two is if they have less than nine regular season games of experience. Group three is they have earned no more than two. accrued seasons, so they get no more than two seasons in the NFL, and group four is there's no limitations on it. Now between group three and four, so those are your more veteran players, they, you can only have a max of 10 of those on your practice squad, and for group four with that, you know, may have accrued for more than two seasons, you can have a max of six of those. So you can't just like load them all, your team all up with all veterans. You gotta, you're gonna have to have some, uh, less established players in there. So group one and two, so those are your, you know, newer players, they'll get 12, 500 a week, or a total of 225, 000 if they stayed on the roster all 18 weeks of the season. They do get paid in the bi week regardless, so even though there's not a game, they get paid. Um, that accrues for all of them. Uh, Group 3 is, you know, they've had at least two, um, two accrued seasons. They get 16, 800 per week, or 302, 400 for a season. And Group 4, your most established players, get 21, 000. 21, 300 or 383, 400 for the year. So pretty good amount of money. Um, you know, more than a lot of us see in a, in a year, so pretty good amount of money for 18 weeks, but you know, it's not guaranteed they could be cut at any point and that money goes away. Uh, the last question was if a practice player gets elevated for a game, what is financial compensation kicked in? So they will get paid the veteran or they were going to get paid league And that depends on how many years of service they have. So basically if you're a first year player and you get pulled up, you're going to get 44, 166 for that week,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Real quick, just, uh, what, what difference does that make from the practice squad week? I mean, so you said. If this is a player with no experience or little experience, their practice squad salary was how much for that week?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:500. So you're looking like a 32, about 32, 000 for that week. So,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:meaningful to
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:oh yeah, yes, exactly. It's a huge chunk. I mean, that's like three times your salary that week. So, um, each one year, two years, three years, four to six years and seven plus years, they all have different amounts of money if you're seven plus years in the league, the league minimum is 1. 21 million per year. So you would, you know, divide that out. It's pro rated. you know, divided by 18, that's what they would get paid for a week. If you get pulled up, you're getting a, you do get a minimum of three weeks salary, even if you're up for one week. We talked about that three times the amount, well, they're going to get that for three weeks. So that's a, I mean, to get pulled up to the active rosters, a lot of money for, for some of these guys. So let's move on to, um, we want to talk about our reaction to the initial 53 man roster. So Jacob, what was your thoughts when you saw, what was your surprises? What were you happy about? You know, what, what went through your mind?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:We kind of knew when we made our own roster, when we did our own prediction, obviously we weren't expecting it to be perfect. We knew there was going to be maybe a surprise or two, but for the most part, we, we had it down who we thought was going to be on the team. Really the most surprising, uh, to me. Outside of the fact that they cut to 52, so the roster needs to be cut to 53, that's what your final roster has to be at, and they cut an extra guy and made it down to 52. So, that was surprising to me, um, there's more, I guess, uh, Brad Holmes playing chess instead of checkers, there's more things at play here. But, uh, outside of the number, really, cutting Peko, I think, was the most surprising cut for me. Based on the fact that he hadn't been playing in the preseason, how good he looked in practice and how much you heard about them raving about him and everything that I think was the most glaring thing right away. Um, you know, in hindsight, he's not subject to waivers. I'm sure they had some sort of discussion with him that, you know, the plan was still. Going to be, he was going to be part of the plan. Um, and for the NFL rules, you can only put two players on IR during training camp with a designation to return. Broderick Martin and Emmanuel Mosley were both put on IR. So John Kaminsky, I think the plan was always for him to go on IR, but he had to be on the active roster for one full day before he could be put on IR. So, that seems like that's always what the plan was gonna be, and it has turned out Kaminsky was put on IR. They still have not elevated Peko yet. He's still right now standing on the practice squad, but I think that was the most glaring, you know, surprising cut to me. What about you?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, I, when I saw Petco's name, um, yeah, on the cut list, I was like, what is going on? Especially we knew Brad, Broderick Martin was hurt and I was like, man, we are going to be really light on the line and thought it was really, you know, if we just cut Petco without playing them all preseason, it was, you know, you and I were working together and we were trying to figure out what were the possible motives on all that. But I think it's come clear, you know, commissioned going to IR, you know, You know, Peko, you know, he didn't have to go on waiver, so he wasn't subject to going to another team. So they probably had a discussion with them ahead of time with what the plan is. But I think talking about what we talked about guaranteed salaries for week one, maybe Peko is not going to be elevated. You know, he's going to be like an elevated on game day. Um, and then I don't think he's subject at that point to getting his full contract guaranteed because I think Peko is just There until they know that DJ reader is going to be right and maybe now until broad You know how serious to the Broderick Martin injury is and how you know, how long he's going to be back So, uh, that's why I think they put Peko on The practice squad, but yeah, that was totally surprising The Sudfeld thing was surprising for a lot of people. I You know, I had him that he was going to be out. Especially when the emergency quarterback rule was like revoked, like the day before the cut down. So we had talked extensively on a previous podcast where you can bring up, uh, A quarterback on, you know, that was on your practice squad as emergency role. If your top two quarterbacks got hurt, well, the players association decided to revoke that rule like a day before the cut down. So that totally changed that like whole dynamic on that, which kind of made me think that they were going to keep, keep them both, you know, change the outlook, but They end up cutting Sudfeld and, uh, you know, we talked about, uh, Jake Fromm and he ended up making the practice squad, which that, I mean, that whole deal about, you know, Fromm coming in for two weeks and then all of a sudden he's on the practice squad and Sudfeld's out when he's been on the team for multiple years. So that was, that was shocking to me.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Yeah, no, I was surprised by that too. I really, you know, if you heard the way that Campbell talked about the situation with Hennon Hooker and Nate Sudfeld, it really didn't seem like they were sold on Hennon as the number two guy. Um, who knows if that was just a smokescreen or, you know, what, what they were trying to accomplish there, but yeah, cut Sudfeld, let him go. And then to find out he actually is not even on the practice squad. We want a from for the practice squad. It is surprising. Um, I think that's the right call. I think just in the little small sample size we got from from, we could see that he had, you know, I guess more promise. There was like a higher ceiling for from than what there was for Sudfeld. And I know we've talked in the past. So I felt there's a lot behind the scenes or, you know, he's helping golf. He's helping run scout team. He's helping look for different things. But evidently, that value wasn't enough to warrant keeping him around. And right now, Sudfeld is still on the street. He is not anywhere
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, who knows? I mean, he could end up on the practice squad, but that's pretty packed tight and I don't think there's gonna be room for two quarterbacks on the practice squad. So,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:right now.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I mean, the Lions still have a spot on their active roster that they can use, because like you said, they haven't elevated Peko, so we don't know if that's gonna be You know, who knows, that could be Sudfeld they bring back, but, um, I don't think they'd believe, if that was the intentions, I don't think they'd be leaving Sudfeld hanging in the wind like that, but, maybe. Um, so, that, that was shocking, and then, uh, I guess the other shocker was Lauren Strickland making the roster as a safety. And I think, I don't know, I had five safeties making it, but C. J. Moore was going to be in there and, uh, Lauren Strickland made it, and they, you know, well, they had C. J. Moore initially on the practice squad and then they just cut him today. So, you know, it's quick moving the initial 53 is exactly that, initial 53. It usually changes within 24, 48 hours with the waiver claims and all that stuff.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Yeah. The undrafted free agents making the team, um, was surprising. It was nice. I mean, we both made the call on Isaiah Williams. He looked too good in the preseason to not have on the team. And, uh, you know, Brad Holmes actually said in the press conference, really, that He was somebody on the radar to draft. This was somebody that we considered drafting. Uh, so, you know, he goes on drafting, we're still able to get him on the team, and then he shows out kind of what they thought he was going to do and then makes the roster. I guess if you were betting on which rafted free agent was gonna be making the roster, Isaiah Williams would've been at the top of everyone's list. He was, you know, on most predictions and everything, you know, deserved it.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, well Hatton, your, uh, long snap that we both were wrong on, he ended up making the other unrestricted free agent. So three of them made it, which, you know, for a Super Bowl contending team as such the Lions are, To have three undrafted free agents make the roster, that was very unexpected. I mean, we were all wondering which one was going to make it, if one could make it, and then three of them end up making it. So, I think it just speaks to the, uh, The Lions leadership, if you, you know, show your value, they're going to, you know, it doesn't matter if you've been with the team for a long or not. They're going to take you if, if you, show the talent and show the willingness to practice and show all the, you know, the grit,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Absolutely. Ray Agnew in the press, he said, that's the great thing about this place. If you're the best player, you're going to play. didn't really take too heavy in a consideration where they were drafted or, you know, where they came from. It's what you're doing right now. And ultimately Hatton, I guess, was just, you know, they said extremely athletic and he made plays all camp. You know, it's something we didn't really see a whole lot of just because you think of him as a long snapper, but I know we've talked about this before too. They said, you're going to have to have value outside of just special teams. And I guess that includes the long snapper. Everybody's got to, you know,
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:yeah.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:than one part.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, I think we talked about this in, you know, our last pod, the initial was Hatton's, you know, abilities to, to make plays outside of just snapping the ball. Was that going to be enough for him to make team? You and I both speculated that, you know, the known value of Scott Daley handling and pressure situations was going to be more than what Hogan brought to the table. Now, you could also look back. We have Jake Bates, who's, an unknown quantity with the kicker and now we have a long snapper. Fox is in the middle. We know what he is. He's awesome. But the two people on, on either end of that ball are, uh, you know, we, we don't have any in game experience with them yet. So, it'll be interesting. Um, You know, hopefully we just don't hear his name very much outside of making a tackle or whatever. You don't want to hear his name. You don't want to hear the long sappers name for the most part, because, um, that's usually brought up when bad stuff happens.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Yeah. Time will tell if, know, the long snapping ability matches the athletic ability that he's shown.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:all for the long snapper going down there and forcing a fumble and making a huge hit stick. But. Let's just focus on snapping the ball.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Right. No, that's, that's gotta be number one. who knows he could end up being on the kickoff, you know, being athletic as he is, he could be on a kickoff, you know, blocking team or something like that. We don't, you don't know, but, Whether you want to risk an injury if you have him on those other units and he gets injured, and daily just signed with the Bears practice squad. So, I mean, he's not necessarily available, um, you know, just to bring right up from the practice squad for our own practice squad. So that's something to think about.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Well, you also can't really keep a practice squad position for somebody that's just a long snapper.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:correct. I mean, yeah. Generally, you're not going to do that unless like the only reason you do that is if you know that your long Sapper's dealing with an injury, but you don't necessarily want to put them on IR. So you might have someone on, you know, that you can elevate, hopefully we don't have to do that cause then, you know, you're taking up a valuable spot with a long snapper. We, Talked about Kaminsky went to the went to the IR today. So they held off a couple days They after the press conference, they put them on the IR But they still have not made a move to correspond with that. So they're still just an open spot essentially So we had talked about that. There was When they initially did the list, it was down to 52. Lions made a waiver claim. We got Trevor Nowacki back, linebacker. He was on our team all last year and then injuries happened and we basically tried to get him on practice squad. Arizona picked him up while he got, um, he got waived during these cutdowns this year. And so the Lions put a waiver claim on him. And so he's back on. Deactive roster, which put us up to 53 for a minute until they put commission on IR. So now we're back down to 52. So we have a free roster spot, I'm sure they have a plan for that or, you know, they'll move someone around whether it's up on the practice squad or signing someone else.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:The other guy that may be surprising to some, uh, there was a real 50 50 chance on him was going to be James Houston, the edge rusher. You know, we talked about that a lot, how much value he has, um, you know, rushing the quarterback. And if that was going to be enough to keep him on the active roster, and it turns out that it was, uh, You know, we weren't sure between him and Isaac, uh, if he was going to make the team. We knew pretty much if you cut Houston, chances are he's going someplace else. He's not going to be stashed on the practice squad and turns out the Lions decided to his ability and he stays on the team. How do you feel about it now, um, that you were wrong?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Thanks.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:you're used to that feeling, but about this particular,
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I don't know if I mentioned in the pod, but I think we talked about it at work when we were talking about, you know, James Houston, keeping him or whatever. I fully expect, I thought he was going to be traded. I knew that they were going to either have to keep him. I don't think they were going to cut him for nothing. Um, it was. Just reading Dan Campbell's press conference, I just was very unsure, um, and even AG's press conference, when they, as someone asked him about James Houston, it's very non committed. Uh, they, you know, didn't talk glowingly about him. And so it really made me pause for concern. I thought that another team may value him more than the Lions. You know, a guy that could pass rush, such as him, very valuable. Um, you know, especially if he could stay healthy and we can keep him on the field. There's definitely value there. It's just a matter of, you know, is he more valuable than another player that could help us in multiple areas because he's got, you know, one job and that is, you know, rush the passer on second and third and long. So, But it's a very valuable, uh, skill that he has. So, you know, that's how, how he can make the team, you know, just that one skill. He's really, really good at it.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:right? You got to be really good at it. I still honestly, uh, you know, nothing's guaranteed. We've already talked about that. I still feel like this is kind of a 50 50, like. He's got to show up and continue to show up and practice. And I mean, I guess we'll see from here. Maybe it is still something they're exploring is possibly trading him or trying to figure out what they can do. Maybe the plan's always been just to let him, you know, come in and pass rush situations and see what he's got this year. It's not like he has a very big contract. Um, you know, but he is taking up a roster spot from somebody else that potentially could out in more than just the passing game like that.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah. Well, it also might just depend and he might not make the active roster for the day, right? If we, you know, depending on the team we're playing, um, you know, say they're a heavy rush team. We're gonna want, you know, big bodies in there and people that could set the edge. James Houston is not that, that guy. Um, so maybe they just, you know, he's not active on game day. He's on the active roster, but he's just, you know, he's just not in the active 46. So, I mean, that, in that case, you don't have to worry about waiving him or anything like that. He's just, doesn't dress for the, for the day, but we'll see. I mean, it's, we still got some time. He came in with a sack in the last game, showed his, potential. So hopefully he can do that during the season. The guy had what eight sacks and nine games. That's a special number. So, and he was injured last year, so we really don't know. And they tried them at the Sam and all the stuff that we had talked about before. So hopefully he shows his value. I'm, you know, I'm rooting for the guy just like any other lion. So hopefully he can do it. All right, let's move on to the practice squad.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:I do have the list. I've got it separated by which ones spent training camp with us, because there's a couple guys on the practice squad that we got from other teams.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Okay. Yeah.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:so I'll just go right down. This is the initial practice squad. So the day of, you know, the first day, the practice squad came out. So there's already been some changes on this list. Um, initially we have Mitchell Agude, uh, Kingsley Ikwakun, Jake Fromm, Jamar Jefferson, Jamarco Jones, Tom Kennedy, James Mitchell, Pecco, Smith, Isaac Ukwa, Shane Zylstra, and safety CJ Moore. All right. Who is actually no longer on the practice squad. They removed him from the practice squad and out of it, Donovan people's Jones. Um, but then the couple of practice squad people who were not with us for training camp, we have Pat O'Connor, who is a defensive end. He actually was drafted by the lions. Let's see here. Oh yeah. The big ones, the ones we're all excited about here are going to be our receivers. So we did get some traditional X guys and that's wide receiver, Allen Robinson, who was cut from the giants. Born and raised in Detroit. So that was very cool for him to come back. And then the other one is going to be Tim Patrick, who is the Broncos wide receiver. I think that's somebody that, you know, we're all feeling pretty excited about. And the rumors are that he's here. He's on the practice squad. That's more so to get him acclimated to the playbook and the team and everything. They probably are going to be putting them on the active roster.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah. I think, you know, you got the three wide receivers on the practice squad. So you got Tim Patrick, you got Alan Robinson, you got. Now, you know, Donovan people's Jones, you might wonder why we bring DPJ back. If you know, he didn't make the roster. He was kind of disappointing all through, training camp. My feeling is that it's short lived that he's on. If one of the other two guys work out the Tim Patrick or Alan Robinson, a DPJ knows the offense right now. So if we need to elevate him for week one, we know for sure. He's. You know, at least could be functional in our offense and no, no, the plays and no, the calls and stuff like that, but you know, if Tim Patrick or Alan Robinson pick it up pretty quickly, then, you know, that may make DPJ expendable. So I don't think we're going to carry all three of those. Um, my feeling is DPJ is probably going to be gone unless he really, you know, this is a wake up call and he starts really performing. I think you're going to more likely see Tim Patrick or Allen Robinson. And now the two, uh, Tim Patrick, I think is the one that's, you know, he is a lion, we'll help block, um, big body six, four, it's going to be someone that, you know, we'll get open and give Jared golf a large target, you know, cause we only have one six plus foot target on our active roster right now. So. Um, have you looked at the film on Patrick at all, or, you know, did any research or anything like that, Jacob?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Yeah, so my friend is actually a huge Broncos fan, so I knew about Tim Patrick before, and that's somebody, I think I texted you as soon as I saw that he was cut. I was like, this, we've got to get this guy. We've got to get him here. Um, excited about the possibility of what he could bring to the offense.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:The video that I saw really good about knowing zone coverage is sitting in a pocket being a big target for the quarterback, which is, you know, what the Josh Reynolds role was, you know, someone that Jergoff can count on where he's going to be. Tim Patrick has very good hands, very reliable, which is, you know, what you want on your third down receiver, right? Your big option or someone in the goal line. You want to have reliable hands and, um, just, you know, reliable route runner. So I'm happy with that. So I, you know, if I were going to bet as long as Tim Patrick's healthy, he's been out last couple of years with different various injuries, but you know, he's a hard worker. So he was healthy all the preseason. So he can remain healthy. I look for him to, you know, lock down this position. I, I hope so, at least. Um, you know, and he came from the Broncos, so it's basically, you know, Josh Reynolds stayed over there, and we ended up getting Tim Patrick.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Yeah, you know, that's interesting. Based on how it's played out, you know, the fact we haven't been able to find that guy, nobody stepped up and everything, you know, Where it stands right now, do you think it would have been a better move to just pay Josh Reynolds and keep him on the team?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Uh, for my uneasiness and everything like that, yeah, probably. I mean, but, you know, reportedly, the Lions offered him two years, 5. 5 million, he ended up getting two years, 9 million for the Broncos. You know, the lions know him best. Right. And I was wondering initially if Joshua has left so that he'd have a more active role in a team's offense. Cause you know, he did have a role with the lions, a very important role, but he wasn't going to be the first choice on any of, you know, first choice on, uh, anybody's fantasy board, you know, he's not going to get tons of looks. We'll see how this works out. You know, I'm going to trust Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell on this one. You know, for both of them saying they wanted Josh Reynolds back, there must have been a limit of what they wanted because we have the cap space. You know, they didn't want to commit that much to him, which is, which is interesting.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Right. That's the interesting thing, is that we really, obviously we'll see as the season goes on, but as it stands right now, we haven't really benefited. It looks like it would have been better to keep him on the team, You know, obviously he had a role. He knew his role. He played it pretty well for the most part. He did have those crucial drops, uh, that kind of killed us in the playoffs, but
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I was wondering, do you think that had any role for Josh Reynolds did not want to come back? Those drops.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:you would think you'd want to redeem yourself. I don't know that he really got, obviously he got some backlash and everything from the fans, but I don't know if that really pushed him out of town or like you said, you know, did he want more money? Did he want a bigger opportunity? I don't think necessarily he's somebody that can line up there. As a one or a two inconsistently get open. I think the reason he was so effective is because of how he played in our offense. And exactly, you know, that was ideal for him. That was the perfect spot for him to be in. He wasn't relied on too much, but he was a big target in the red zone. Big target on third down. You've got teams worried about Amun Ra, Jamo, Laporta. You don't really have that in Denver. I just don't see him having as good of a season in Denver as what he even had here last year, even if he gets more targets his way.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Well, I mean you look at Josh Reynolds one year in Tennessee. I mean, I know it's different I mean, but the quarterback situation is definitely different in Denver. It's I mean, they're starting a rookie quarterback So it's not like he's going to an established quarterback over there. You know, he had very good chemistry with Jared Goff You know, obviously his time with the Rams and then coming over here to Detroit He flourished both times with, you know, Jared Goff as a quarterback. It's interesting that he didn't, you know, that It just didn't work out because obviously he's comfortable with golf. So I, it's a weird situation. Uh, I would have thought he had been back, but you know, he's not lying anymore. So, um, we'll move on to, it's either going to be Patrick or Robinson eventually, or DPJ just. Kind of holding on the fort, you know, as a week one week to, you know, just be ready to play if we need to plug someone in, Isaac who made the practice squad, which I'm excited, you know, hopefully he gets an opportunity at some point. I mean, you know, Brad Holmes and Dan Campbell said, you know, all these players on the practice squad are going to get their chance at some point. Injuries are inevitable. I was happy that Uku made it on our team, Mitchell Ogude, I was happy, and Kingsley Gwakwin, super happy those guys are on the practice squad, because I think those guys have a ton of potential. Um, I'm intrigued by Jake Fromm being on the practice squad. I don't, you know, if he makes it up, if he makes up to the roster this year, that's doesn't mean, um, anything good to happen. So if he just remains on the practice squad all year, I'd be all right. Kyle Peko making the practice squad. It was interesting that he didn't make the act of 53, but it may have to do with guaranteed contracts. Um, may have, you know, may, cause they may not want to guarantee that whole contract if they don't plan on him being there all year with DJ reader. But I, it's interesting how they've chose to do this. Um, You know, I don't know how all those deals happen Yeah, and then they had CJ more on the practice squad for like a day, and then they cut him for Eric Hallett Um, today, and I think that has to do with the season accrued. We're only allowed so many veterans on the practice squad. So I think we had to cut CJ more cause he had more, accrued season. So then we, you know, get DPJ on there. We had to cut someone with a veteran status. I think that's why that all that happened. The next thing we're going to talk about is Brad Holm's presser, but this kind of leads into it. He said that he wanted to keep a veteran kicker on the practice squad, so right now it's full, so You know, whether that's going to happen sooner or later that, you know, someone's gonna probably be removed off the practice squad. And maybe they're just going to try to get a look at these wide receivers. And then, you know, we've got four of them on there. They might cut one, but I kind of surprised that when they brought Eric Hallett on that, they didn't, didn't sign a veteran kicker, now we could talk about the Bragg Holmes presser today. It was 36 minutes long, really long press conference. He doesn't do a lot of them. You know, he does most of them all around the draft and he'll do typically one after the, you know, during this period before week one and after the active roster. So I love how open he is in his press conferences. He gives you like actual. like interesting thoughts and he's not as guarded, uh, as some other general manager. I generally enjoy listening to him talk about the team and, I can always learn something when he's talking. anything that specifically that jumped out, um, to you from the Brad, uh, home suppressor?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:yeah, there were a couple different things One really which we kind of just talked about they said that you know Basically the agents of almost every wide receiver and kicker were really trying very hard to get their guys in Detroit obviously the league knows our wide receiver and our kicker situation. So that's no surprise really, that, you know, they're really trying to get their foot in the door. They're trying to compete. And we've talked about that before, too. We've become a destination team. Like people want to come here. You know, I saw something about when Tim Patrick sign. There's a Broncos news story that said, Tim Patrick. Leaves to join Super Bowl contender and it's wild that, uh, you know, the lions are Super Bowl, you know, seeing it like that. Obviously we know what we are. We know that we're Super Bowl contenders, but to see it like that, you know, obviously a great feeling reiterates that we have respect around the league. Now, they know that we are for real. he just said the, the calls with the agents have changed. Like when he first got here, know, you had to, you had to convince a lot of people to try to come to Detroit. You had to try to really sell the city and sell the team and what we were trying to build. And. Now we're built, now we're established, and now guys are wanting to come here, which is, I mean, great. That's best case scenario is that you've built a program and you've built a team that people want to come to. They want to play for Dan Campbell. They want to play for this city. It's just awesome.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, I think it, you know, Uh, hard knocks has a lot to do with the perception around the league of like how this team's run. And just like what kind of coach Dan Campbell is that came at the perfect time for, for the lines as you know, as we're ascending. And so a lot of people got to see that. And then, you know, we didn't start out really well that hard knock season, but then we ended up finish finishing real well. And so, and that's what people remember. And then obviously last year we won the division. So, you know, It's nice to have that in your back pocket, that you're a destination, you, are a Super Bowl contender. Those players that, you know, that can really add some value to your team, those veteran players that, you know, have a lot of experience or whatever, and you can have them step in. Based on an injury or something like that, you're going to have an easier time convincing them to come to your team rather than, you know, you know, we're one in six and, you know, we're the lions or whatever. So I, I'm love this version of the lions. It is so refreshing. And like you said, that super. Well, contender line from, you know, written from the Denver newspaper. That's pretty cool. That means it's not just us as Lions fans talking about this. It's teams around the league noticed the talent level and the expectations. Speaking of expectations in the Brad Holmes presser, someone asked him. What are your expectations for the year? And it was a simple answer, Superbowl winner. It wasn't any coach speak. It was just for real Superbowl, Superbowl or nothing. I mean, that's, that's what I want to hear and we're ready for that. I mean, we've a half away from making it that last year. So, you know. That's got to be the step, you know, we got to take the next step.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Absolutely. I mean, the team building parts over now we're here, we're established. Uh, you know, we've got our squad. We know who we are, what we're capable of. We just got to put it out there on the field and get the job done.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yep, and we got the coach to do it. You know, you got Dan Campbell in there. That's just not going to let them rest on last year's accomplishments. You saw the fights early in the practice. I mean, that was, you know, just how hard they were working. Um, I just think that. You know, this is a team that's built for success. It's a team that's not going to let themselves down, not going to let their coach down, not going to let the city down. Uh, speaking of the city, Brian Holmes had nothing but great things to say about the city. I've gave me goosebumps when he was talking about, you know, this is a different fan base because, you know, you and I, Jacob have been fans for a long time. We've dealt with a lot of adversity. Wanting to be a fan of this team that just kept disappointing you, um, whether injuries, whether having, you know, they're not the right coach or you bring in a GM that doesn't know what they're doing. All those types of things that we've dealt with. And then, you know, we get. A winning franchise, something that everybody can be proud of. And you can see how the city responded and, Ford Field is an electric place. A preseason game sold out, standing room only tickets. That doesn't happen. That doesn't happen everywhere. You know, this is a special place. And for him to recognize that, call that out, thank the fans, you know, part of it is, is, is a very good sports town. This team is built with gritty players that, that we could be very proud of. When I think of like classic Detroit teams, I mean, I think of the bad boys and I think of, you know, Those early 2000 Pistons, when you didn't have a real big superstar in the team, you had, you know, Tayshaun Prince, you had Chauncey Billups, you had Ben Wallace, you know, those weren't, yeah. It was good team basketball and they could overcome, you know, the Lakers with Shaq and Kobe That was a tight, they were, that was a gritty team. I would say that was a real grit team. You know, Tayshaun Prince having an awesome block on Reggie Miller, just hustle and blocking that shot. That is just an epitome of what I think that team is, is all hustle. We're, you know, Rip Hamilton, just. Doing his thing. Those are the type of teams, you know, that you think of the 2006 tigers didn't have a lot of superstars. We had pudge and, but we had the right coach at that time, right? We had the right manager, Jim Leland comes in similar to Dan Campbell, just come in and, you know, The right leader for the team for what you need at the team at that time. And you saw how the city responded in no six and continue to respond by we were, by the Tigers or a playoff contender. So what the city's about, um, you know, the Red Wings, obviously historic franchise. They've had those teams too. Steve Eisenman that's grit, you know, that, that is a gritty player. So. You know, we've had the teams that have done good in this city have been built that similar way. And, um, this is a team that's no different. And Dan Campbell's a coach that is a very special leader. We're lucky to have him. And I view him in the same way as Jim Leland, just a special, person forever in Detroit lore from what he's already done and hopefully what he can accomplish. You know, Jim Leland never got the championship here, which is really a shame with the teams that he had. Dan Campbell, um, I don't think is going to disappoint us in that way. I think he's going to bring one here. Uh, he, he won't rest until he does. So, you know, it's really special thing that They're recognizing the city. You know, we had the draft this year too, which just adds to all that. It just all came out the perfect time.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:This, obviously, Detroit is just a really, really great sports town. I would put it up there with pretty much any other one that they could possibly come up with. Um, as you kind of spoke about already, you know, all the other teams that we have, the Pistons, the Red Wings, um, Tigers right now playing over 500. They're competing for a playoff spot. we really rally around these teams, and for a long time now, we have not had You know, a whole lot to cheer for. And I think that's also culminated. Maybe that's why the response for the lions has been so great too, is that it's just so, so long overdue. We've been waiting for so long for something like this to happen. And. from the top down, it seems like we have the perfect coach, the general manager, the owner, everything, everything's clicking right for us right now. And it just feels like we've really turned it around. And I think that that's rubbing off, you know, on some of the other Detroit sports teams too, as far as, you know, the success that they look like we're set up to have in the near future.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Well, and you know, you had eyes have been turning around the Red Wings. They're one game away from making the playoffs. So, I mean, that, that was an exciting last bit of the season last year. And the Tigers are lined up. They have a very similar. And I'm hoping they can end it up in the playoffs, getting that wildcard spot, that's very doable at this point. So. It's you're right. It's they're all feeding off each other and it's an exciting time to be a Detroit fan at the Pistons can ever do anything, you know, that would be, that'd be the icing.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:They're the ones that still need to turn it around. But yeah, so anybody, you know, anybody listening, that's kind of just a lion's fan, or maybe you're not from the Detroit area, but you've latched onto the team. If you can find a way to get down here to Detroit, I promise you, it's not as bad as you've probably been hearing about. They really get a bad reputation when it's really, it's not. I mean, I love Detroit. I can't say enough positive things about the city. Everything that's down there. Uh, Yeah, just, there's nothing like that environment, being in a Lions game, especially when the team's doing well now. How loud it gets, I know you've all heard the stories and everything, but you've gotta experience that.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:yeah, I, get goosebumps just thinking about a lot of that stuff. And, you know, when I had up there for week one, Sunday night football. Stafford, I'm expecting a, you know, playoff environment. It's going to be, it's going to be a lot of fun. So it's, it is, um, a really good experience being in Detroit. And like you said, Jacob. Downtown has changed a lot in the, like, for me in the last 20 years, it is built up real nice. There's a lot of things to do down there. If you can make it in town, there's it, it's worth it. It's, it's, it's a lot of fun. So, uh, a couple more things I want to hit on that, Brad, but. Uh, Brad Holmes mentioned, uh, talked about the Aleem McNeil contract it's like in its infancy. So, earlier, we kind of, kind of seemed like that might maybe something that could happen before the season, but it does not look like that that's even close. So it's probably going to be something that happens next off season. Um, and it could get a lot more expensive if Aleem has the year that, you know, we're expecting him to have. So,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:There's a very large variable right now, right? I mean, he could play his way into a very big contract, or if he's, you know, playing at the level that he was last year. Which, I mean, he's still a solid player, he still warrants a new contract for sure, I would like to keep him around. But yeah, the dollar amount is gonna be vastly different depending on how this year goes.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:and then the other player that they mentioned was Jamo. And there was a question about him. And, uh, I found that it was interesting. They'd said he has a lot of growth as a person, but also, I mean, as a player, but also as a person. So they kind of admitted that there was some immaturity early on and he needed some growth. And Brad Holmes even said that. You know, having his injury might've been a blessing in disguise that gave him more time to mature as a, as a person and just get ready. Um, cause he loves football and now he's, you know, he's, you know, we saw him in practice. He's a different, he looks different. It looks a lot more comfortable on the field. I think it's a lot to do with the preparation that he did in the off season. He just, he looks ready to play. He looks ready to, you know, contribute on this team, which we're going to really need him. So it was. Really nice to hear Brad Holmes and, Ray Agnew's thoughts on, on Jamo. They both had really nice things to say about him as a player and a person, so, and they're expecting big things this year. So, hopefully that comes true.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Right? Us too. We, we need it. It's time.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Well, especially you, because you stole him in the fantasy draft ahead of me, so, had him in my queue, and you took him, yeah, you took him like five picks before me.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:too long.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I did, I did. I mean, you took him third overall. No, just kidding. Yeah. Oh no. Uh, just kidding. Season's getting closer, man. We are, what? See. Today's Thursday. So a week from today we got football, right?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:more week.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, we got Chiefs Ravens. That was us last year, you know, a week from now. That was us and what a story that turned out to be. We got away at a few extra days, but I think it's gonna be worth it, so. It's gonna be awesome. You know, if we're not on the opening, if we're not on the opening day game, then Sunday night's the next best thing to be on it for opening week. So, all right, that was good. Let's get into our Honolulu Blitz.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:So we talked about the undrafted players making the team earlier. Who is the only undrafted player to win NFL MVP?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:it's Kurt Warner.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Correct. Do
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah. Wow. Um, 2001.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:you're right? I
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Oh, man.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:he, he won twice. It was a 99 good job.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:All right.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:All right. This is the one we kind of talked about already, but, uh, so who do you think is going to have the most receptions for the lions out of Tim Patrick and Alan Robinson?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Um, if it's up to me, it's Tim Patrick.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Will they both play this year for us?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:who? That's a good question. Um, Yeah, you know, Tim Patrick has some injury history, so yeah, let's say that they both have a shot. I mean, who knows? I mean, I want to see Alan Robinson get his chance at Detroit. I mean, we all wanted him a few years ago. And when he was a free agent, it's probably a good thing that I don't know, maybe he would have played better with Detroit. I don't know. It's hard to tell. Um, but he didn't really have, you know, didn't really do that much with the Rams. And I don't think with the sealers, I think that's where he was at last year, right? It's sealers. Pretty sure he played.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:talent level that he's had that it just hasn't translated
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah. Well, then he got stuck with the bears at the beginning. So, you know, that whole situation. So, I mean,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:those turds
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:yeah, exactly. Turds. So mature.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:couldn't think of a PG word
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Okay. All right. Let's go.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:what I wanted to say.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:All right. Right. Turd.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:out, I'll, I'll go on a rant
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:No, we're not that kind of podcast, but I do like the fact that you said turd.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:All right. Uh, last question. How many times has Dan skipper been waved by the lions in total?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Oh, in total.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:cut, whether that's just
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Oh,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:cut injured or just cut, like, you know,
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:oh man,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Officially waived or
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:officially waived, I can't, I know he had the tweet that this 8th time's a charm, but he didn't,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:that was referring
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:was it, training camps, right, I know, so I know it's gotta be, well, and then, can't remember, cause I know like one year he was on the colts, and then we end up taking him after he got cut by the colts, um, man, I'm gonna say 12 times,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:So by my count according to the official transactions at six times
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:okay.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Which doesn't seem like enough, but it was
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:So this was 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, 2021, 2022. He all had, uh, wave claims by the lions for those.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:okay. I was just wondering if it was like during the season if he was brought up and then cut so that's why I went with that. But yeah,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:a couple of those years, he had those two.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:yeah.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:but you know, he also, so he's played for the Cowboys, the Broncos, the Patriots, the Texans, the Raiders, the Colts.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Wow.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:offseason with almost all of them. I, I don't know how many regular season games he had to play with any of them. I know obviously the Lions has been the most, but yeah,
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Well,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:8 times as a charm.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:yeah. Well, I remember this first game that he played the act when he was active that you know Dan Campbell gave him the game ball and you could see that he had tears in his eyes So, you know, it's a lot of work these guys, you know, that's why cut down days so hard These guys work their butts off for their dream and then some just get dashed and never get that opportunity. So, I'm glad for Dan, he seems like a good guy, so,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:for sure.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:alright, so we're,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:of that 53 spot.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:oh yeah, happy for him. So he's a good guy. Alright. I got two questions for you. I have three questions total, but the first two questions deal with your favorite line of all time. So, and that's Calvin Johnson. So when he retired, he held the record for the most consecutive games of a hundred or more receiving yards. So most consecutive, I don't know if he still holds it, but he did when he retired. How many games did he have a hundred or more receiving yards in a row?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Mm, that's tough. I don't know. I'm gonna spit out a number, I'm gonna say 24.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Just eight, a third of that, so. Heh heh heh heh heh heh. Close, man. Close. Close.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:miraculous number and that's why this was a question.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Um, eight's good, though. I mean, eight, you figure a hundred yards, you know, for a receiver, he was just hard to take out of a game.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:on him and it just wasn't happening.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Alright, so, um, speaking of our boy Calvin, how many rushing TDs did he have in his career? Rushing TDs.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:rushing TDs?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Two.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:One. He only had one. I, I was shocked when I saw that. I was like, if he was in today's NFL, he'd have way more than one. They were all, he would have been, he'd be run a lot more than
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:have, like, what year that was?
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I didn't. I didn't look that up any further, but
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:like rookie, like just, you know, they tried an end around for, I feel like it was a, he had a couple of running plays and I know one was like a 20 or 30 yard gain or something. I don't know if that was the touchdown though.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:I just, I think if he was in a Ben Johnson offense, they would just use him. I mean, the guy's huge, has tons of speed. You know, you would think that, you know, I think at today's NFL, you would have them rushing a lot more than what we did back then. So, uh, my last one has to do, JJ McCarthy got hurt. So now Sam Darnold's going to be called on to be the quarterback for the Vikings, you know, and if he stays healthy, maybe all year, how many yards does he end up with passing yards? Does he end up with this year?
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Hmm. Well, let's see. He's got the whole game or the whole season. He doesn't have a rookie threatening behind him. They're probably going to be down a whole lot, so he's going to be throwing the ball. I'll say he throws for 4, 100. Yeah.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:4100. Wow. It's a lot for Sam Darnold. You're really gonna go 4100? They got some receiving threats there. If
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:I just, I think the Vikings are probably only going to win a handful of games. He's going to be thrown from behind, and yeah, he's got the targets, so
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:he throws for 4100, he's gonna make a lot of money next year. You know, either as, not like, you know, top quarterback money, but he's gonna get a job next year somewhere. So he's gonna either, you know, get top backup money, or he's gonna You know, some teams going to sign him knowing, Oh, 4, 100 yards, you know, I don't know.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:Uh, well, I hope that number is 3, 000, but
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah, no, it's going to be 4, 100, but just like 150 when he plays us. But yeah, I don't know. He's going to have to stay healthy and stay on the field. So that's a, that's a large number. I would go, I mean, I get it you got Justin Jefferson, Jordan Addison, you know, TJ Hawkinson comes back, there's a lot of weapons there. So yeah, he, he could throw some Kevin O'Connell, their head coach, likes to throw the ball. There's no, uh, no doubt about that. So if he stays healthy, yeah, but I mean, how many interceptions is he going to throw with that 4, 100? We'll see if it's a Nick.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:a bunch.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Yeah. Nick Mullins. Um,
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:games last year and had 2, 300 yards.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:But I am gonna write this 4100 down and we're gonna go back to it because I gotta have documentation that you said Sam Darnold's run for 4100 yards. Alright, got it. Got it, Randall.
jacob_1_08-29-2024_210643:if he plays 17 games. We'll see.
jason-harwood_1_08-29-2024_210644:Okay, yeah, no, 18 weeks, we'll see if he plays, you know. Uh, All right, man. Well, this has been fun. We're getting, we're inching closer. Um, next week we'll have our game preview. Um, we are going to do an NFL preview. So I know this is the Alliance podcast, but we're going to do an NFL preview show. We'll probably be out Tuesday morning. We're going to go through every division, kind of. You know, predict the placement of all the teams talk about surprising playoff teams, those types of things. And, uh, we're going to have a special guest on that episode too. So, uh, should be, should be fun. That'll come out on Tuesday. And then, uh, a couple of days later, we'll have our game preview and we're going to be getting ready for. Real lions action. It's almost here. So thanks to everybody for listening. Uh, it's been a pleasure talking with all you and, you know, this podcast thing is going amazing and it's all because, uh, you know, you guys keep listening, so we appreciate that. All right. For Jacob. I'm Jason go lions.
