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OPE Season 3 Episode 50 We Don't Need No Stinkin Quaterbacks
26 Plays6 days ago
Aloha and welcome to another episode of OPE! This week, the gang is back together as Mike and Iowa Joe talk Quarterbacks in their last positional group breakdown for the 2025 NFL Draft! We look at the current group, free agency and any possible Quarterbacks who could fit the Packers Mold!
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Transcript
Intro
Podcast Introduction and Host Welcome
00:00:20
Speaker
Hello, hello, hello, and welcome to another episode of the Ohana Packers Edition podcast. We are Ope. I am Iowa Joe. That's Mike Kiwano, or what's left of him.
00:00:31
Speaker
Mike, it's been a bit since you've been on so we're treating it like you're actually a guest host today. So were we're in the last legs of our draft run-up. We're talking about positions that are very low on the totem pole. So there's some of the easier ones to talk about because we can really dig into some deep dives in it and not have to worry about it being a need.
00:01:01
Speaker
So Mike, What's been going on
Mike's Absence and Family Time
00:01:04
Speaker
with you? Tell people why you've been leaving me high and dry. So two weeks ago, it was my birthday, turned 35. Marisol surprised with a weekend stay at Aulani. That's the Disney resort out here. So I was catching sun and vitamin D and all that kind of stuff and making my sure my kids don't do anything too stupidly wild or crazy at the pool. And that vitamin did you no good.
00:01:32
Speaker
No, because I have two plague children and when they decide to bring home the plague to me and Marisol, we're shit out of luck. So that's what happened last week. but so well
00:01:46
Speaker
You know, as much UV rays as I may or may not catch out here, they do little to nothing for the crap my kids bring home from school. Well, my son brings home from school and my daughter brings home from being around my son. So alas, here we are.
00:02:03
Speaker
Well, like I said, we're in our last little trails where we're kind of discussing what we want to do because we've got the final mock, which will be two two weeks from this episode.
00:02:16
Speaker
So we've got an episode in between this one and the final mock. We're trying to decide because I don't think either one of us really want to talk about place kickers and punters and long snappers.
00:02:27
Speaker
So we're getting to the nitty gritty. We're almost to the goal line when it comes to the NFL draft in Green Bay this year.
Packers' Quarterback Situation
00:02:39
Speaker
Today's episode is going to be quarterbacks.
00:02:43
Speaker
And obviously this is not a huge need for the Green Bay Packers. I was kind of shocked by some comments lately from like Jason Wildey and, and a couple other, I think it was mainly just Wildey where he said he views Guttekunst and Jordan Love kind of the same where they're good, but are they good enough?
00:03:07
Speaker
i was just kind of surprised by that because, you know, Guttekunst had a hell of a job or done a hell of a job as a GM. I mean, you could you can question some of these things because if you look at, you know, some of his draft classes have, you know, how long are they on the roster, blah, blah, blah.
00:03:27
Speaker
But really, he's drafted for the what the Packers need at the time the Packers need it, and it suffices until they can get other people in there to fill that spot. So he's been able to do a heck of a job to keep this team as a contender.
00:03:41
Speaker
And I think you can say the same thing about Jordan Love, is he's still going through the process. A lot of the guys that we're probably going to be talking about today are the same age, if not a couple, of maybe even a couple of them are older than Jordan Love.
00:03:54
Speaker
So Jordan's still got time to go. But again, this is not really a need, but we're going to talk about it anyway because it is a position that, you know, who knows.
00:04:06
Speaker
we were all kind of surprised with the way they went about building the quarterback room as is with the trade for Malik Willis last year. They drafted Pratt last year, but he didn't end up sticking around.
Quarterback Trade Strategies
00:04:19
Speaker
You know, Sean Clifford is floating around somewhere there So Mike, what are your, your opinions on this QB room as of right now? Yeah, like you said, don't expect much of it.
00:04:33
Speaker
Kind of expect them to stand pat, you know, to take it from... I think it was Tom Moore. so Whoever inside of the Colts franchise during the height of the Manning era, as they said, like, you know, to question who our second quarterback is, that's that's concerning about what we do when we're fucked and we don't practice fucked around here.
00:04:56
Speaker
And realistically, like... I mean, for all intents and purposes, the Malik-Willis trade was like...
00:05:06
Speaker
I don't even know how to necessarily grade that trade because honestly, I think from Goode's point of view, he was like, well, shoot, like Clifford still sucks and Pratt doesn't look like he's going to be ready anytime soon. and you know Some people say like it was great you know foresight. and but I honestly think Goode was like, well, you know if he goes out and rolls an ankle stepping on someone else's foot, we want to have someone who can you know toe the line for us kind of thing. I don't think he was expecting...
00:05:33
Speaker
so the outcomes that he did that, you know, Willis was going to go 2-0 in starts and realistically finish off another win when he came in to close the Jacksonville game. So, you know, in a sense, he was like 2-1⁄2-0, sort of speak, kind of thing.
00:05:48
Speaker
I think more so he was just like, well, shoot, like, we don't want to just absolutely suck, you know, donkey balls kind of thing if Jordan gets hurt. And... You know, if they go with a quarterback at some point this year, it'll happen for one of two reasons.
00:06:04
Speaker
If someone calls and is like, hey, Goot, we hate our quarterback room. We're not getting Shadour or Cam Ward this year. you know, we're willing to send you a day two pick.
00:06:18
Speaker
And whether that's this draft or next draft, I don't think Goode can say no to that. Like, I think that would be malpractice on his part. And I know some people will say, like, well, Jordan got hurt last year.
00:06:29
Speaker
It was a... pretty shit luck injury. And I know it dogged him all season, but you can't turn down a day to pick in this or the next draft because you're concerned about what happened last year. Like, it's not like Jordan, you know, it's not the like Christian Watson hamstring or the clay Matthews hamstring kind of incident where it's like this, like soft tissue injury. That's dog tip. It's sort of like a instance, you know, crappy occurrence injury kind of thing. So I think, know,
00:06:59
Speaker
Outside of that, they're not taking someone above like the sixth round. And that's where, like I said, they'll do their usual, like find the guy with the physical tools and, you know, we'll get him into QB school and stuff like that. But unless that Willis trade happens, I don't expect to see
Exploring Free Agent Quarterbacks
00:07:16
Speaker
anything done. You know, it'll be like a Pratt kind of selection like it was last year. And and that's the thing, you know, Goody has shown that if the right,
00:07:28
Speaker
price is met, he'll make the trade. We saw that with Razul. and and you know And we kind of saw it trading for Malik Willis. Who'd have thought they've given up a seventh round pick for guy?
00:07:44
Speaker
i do have to go back a little bit, though, because there were always rumors that the Packers liked Malik Willis when Willis was coming out for that year of the draft. and And a lot of people were wondering, i was seeing mock drafts with Malik Willis being taken. and And so there was always something there for them to like.
00:08:08
Speaker
And I think just the opportunity arose. and and like you said, you know Clifford is Clifford. He's going to give you some things, but he's not i you know he's probably not going to be the guy that you can rely on going you know to win you games.
00:08:22
Speaker
And Pratt was what he was. you know I know a lot of people wanted it wanted him in the draft, and it was just basically because of his raw tools. He wasn't anything... he wasn't refined enough to start as a seventh rounder. you know It was going to take him a couple years before, kind of like a Matt Flynn or something like that, where...
00:08:44
Speaker
Obviously, he had more arm talent than Flynn did, but he was still raw and and needed to work on things. But, yeah, who would have thought that Jordan Love would have suffered the injured injury he did?
00:08:58
Speaker
And who would have thought Malik Willis would have come out and did what he did? But, you know, I think we're pretty set. And if there's anybody out there that has any kind of inkling to say, well, maybe Malik beats Jordan Love out for the starting job, that's not happening.
00:09:14
Speaker
they've given Jordan Love way too money for that too much money for that to happen. They've invested way too much time and stuff into Jordan for that to happen.
00:09:24
Speaker
And you also have to remember, for as long as he's been in the league, he's been in the league since 2020, so this is, what, year six he's going into? He's only started for two years.
Evaluating Potential QB Prospects
00:09:37
Speaker
In both years, he's been injured at some point. So... year this year three should really make or break what he's going to do. So with that being said, we might as well run it the way we've been running things all off-season long.
00:09:56
Speaker
Is there anybody in free agency that you would even think of filling the spot? Maybe even if they did trade, but let's look at it if they did trade Malik. Is there somebody that you think would come in and and fill that role as a backup guy in in the event that they trade Malik but don't have – they don't draft anybody.
00:10:18
Speaker
Hold on. Let me pull the list up to see who's out there still. I guess Trey Lance is technically still a free agent. Drew Locke is free agent. No, he signed with – Trey signed with Chargers for a year, I think.
00:10:35
Speaker
Oh, you're right. Yeah, yeah, yeah. Over the cap. Updick your shit. but If we go down the the rabbit hole of, like you kind of brought up with Willis, of the whole, you know, someone that the Packers were rumored to be interested in at the time of the draft, Drew Lock fits that mode. I can't believe he's 29 already. That blows my mind. Or he either is 29 or this is his age 29 season. But either way, that blows my mind.
00:11:00
Speaker
Yeah. You go the vet route. According to Sport Track, he's 28.3 years old. Yeah, so I think it's just that he's going to turn 29 during the season. So over the over the cap does it that other way.
00:11:14
Speaker
And I think you have a pro person wins out because he took a coaching job. okay. There you go. If you want to go the Iowa route, CJ Beathard is still out there.
00:11:25
Speaker
Yeah, and that's shocking that he's 31 years old. He'll be doing going on 32 years old. And really, you know, that's a kid that I was surprised that didn't – I was surprised with where he got drafted, but I'm also surprised he didn't get as much opportunity to be a starter because in his limited time, he did look like he had the potential to be a starter in the league. But, you know, who am I? Yeah.
00:11:55
Speaker
But yeah, there's really not anybody in free agency. Now, we were kind of joking before about like conspiracy conspiracy theories and that we could bring Aaron Rodgers back to be the the backup for Jordan because nobody seems to want to sign him.
00:12:14
Speaker
you know The rumors were it was down to like Minnesota and Pittsburgh, and Minnesota's moved on per their GM, and Pittsburgh's kind of getting pissed off because he won't make a decision.
00:12:28
Speaker
So it's very limited where he can go right now. Yeah, you know, I see it, like, this isn't a Packers thing, because i think I think it shouldn't be too hard to tell where we stand on that.
00:12:42
Speaker
No, it's not happening. I think Goody, LeFleur, and Love would all have to fall in a ditch and disappear from the face of the earth for that to be remotely a possibility.
00:12:53
Speaker
And... the The part with Rodgers that I'm going to speak of is the whole, like, oh, he could sit out this season. I just don't know how he can do that at this age. Like, I know he... Yeah, he you know, they all the, like, whatever he does whatever.
00:13:10
Speaker
But, like, that would be a thing that I would believe Brady could do because, you know, he does all of his, like, diet and sports fitness. Like, if Rodgers sits out a year, who knows what's going to be in his bloodstream at that point? Yeah.
00:13:23
Speaker
like i don't i don't I don't know if they're all necessarily illegal by the NFL, but you you know what I'm getting at. But you know, Rodgers was also one of those that was very health conscious when it came to strep.
00:13:38
Speaker
And that was one of the things I remember hearing early on is that he refused to have like his ankles taped because he had like a strong regimen of doing things that he knew that he wasn't going to have those kind of issues.
00:13:51
Speaker
But... Outside of that, I don't even think Brady could. it Now, it would be different if they were like 37, 38 compared to 41 and what's Brady. He's going to be 44, 45 this year or whatever. yeah But they're getting to the point where it's harder to rebound from things.
00:14:12
Speaker
Trust me, I know I'm getting up there too. I'm only like four years younger than Aaron Rodgers, and I can feel it when I injure something. So I don't see how he could sit out.
00:14:23
Speaker
Yeah. But again, he's running out of places to go. Yeah. Jets aren't going to take him back. The Giants signed ross Russ and they signed Jameis.
00:14:36
Speaker
Oh, that's right. Cleveland, I don't see him ending up in Cleveland because they've already got so much money wa wrapped up in Rapist Watson.
00:14:48
Speaker
Minnesota seems set to be a going on to J.J. McCarthy, which is kind of interesting considering he's returning from an ACL injury and nobody knows what how he's doing.
00:15:00
Speaker
Yeah. Pittsburgh is the main place right now. But like I said, Tomlin and them seem like they're getting kind of pissy because Aaron's not making his decisions.
00:15:13
Speaker
And that's so about it. I mean, ah Seattle signed Darnold for a big contract. Chicago, but they just Drafted Caleb Williams last year. I don't see them taking a shot at him.
00:15:33
Speaker
Detroit's not going to because they've got golf wrapped up for a bit.
00:15:38
Speaker
Maybe Orleans. I mean, they've got car down there, but. How does that even work for them? Yeah. Wait a minute. Jacksonville.
00:15:50
Speaker
Jacksonville. But they've got Lawrence. They've got to figure out what Lawrence is kind of thing.
00:15:58
Speaker
Carolina's not because they've got enough money into Young. Yeah. it You never want to say never and that it everything is set in stone kind of thing. But that's the only place that seems to like... Forget like...
00:16:16
Speaker
It's not just a needs or a, like, they're the only place that has an inkling of wanting him at this point. And yeah as you pointed out, even that, he's sort of he's sort of setting the bridge on fire before he even gets there. So it's like, you know, people are who are they are. He's also got to realize that no matter where he goes, they're going to still draft a young kid because they know they're not go to be able to keep Rodgers for another 10 years.
00:16:46
Speaker
like But anyway, we've made it too much into a Rogers Fest, and we got rid rid of Rogers a couple years ago. so I think we've i think we have used up our 10 minutes on him. I think we've burned the 10 minutes. It's a funny conspiracy that you know if he had nowhere else, you know he could always come home to be the backup.
Detailed QB Prospect Analysis
00:17:07
Speaker
But then you're in the far situation where I'm not going to back up the young kid, so yeah whatever. Yeah. So let's go ahead and jump into some some prospects, some guys that probably could be on the board.
00:17:21
Speaker
And this is not looking at like a Shador or a Jackson Dart, Kim Ward or anything like that, because we know that's not a possibility.
00:17:32
Speaker
The only way they're going to take one of those guys is if it's a Brian Brom situation where he's supposed to be a surefire first rounder and he falls, he just takes a tumble.
00:17:43
Speaker
And if one of the, well, Dart's a little different, but if either of Ward or Sanders fall, it's going to be for a reason that the Packers wouldn't touch him anyway. and And before anyone says it, this is not Ope saying that we hope this befalls any draft prospect. No, we're just putting it out there that the only way some of these guys will get to Green Bay's range is if you know, the the what's the LSU wide receiver's name? Lacey or whatever, the one who was supposed to be a top 15 pick, and now it's like, ooh, is he going to play football before he's 27 or something? so
00:18:21
Speaker
Well, if the next team he plays on is like the Mean Machines in the Longest Yard or something. so
00:18:30
Speaker
But, you know, and this is me saying something. I could see Shador being like a Johnny Manziel because I think he's got the personality type that he's going to rub a lot of people the wrong way.
00:18:43
Speaker
And I wish he would have went somewhere else other than Colorado because he had daddy behind him too much pumping up that, that ego. And this isn't saying he's not going to be a good player or whatever. I really didn't watch him. I don't know.
00:18:59
Speaker
But you just sometimes hear some of the things that come out and you see some of the things that are being done and you just kind of worry about it a little bit.
00:19:10
Speaker
Like I said a couple weeks ago for the – or did I say it last week with Andrew that we kind of got onto to wide receiver a little bit.
00:19:25
Speaker
And we were talking about the kid from Arizona whose first name I could never seem to pronounce. Tet. turn Yeah, whatever. McMillian. Yeah. He said in an interview, and I never went back to watch the interview, and I never... So it could be completely taken out of context.
00:19:48
Speaker
But he was asked about film, and he said, I never watch film on myself. I never watch game tape on myself. It's like you're not watching the game film your coaches are telling you to watch.
00:20:02
Speaker
and that's And that's something I could see Shador being is, oh, well, I don't watch this or I don't do this. or you know So it just that has my worry level. But luckily, we don't have to worry about that as a Packers fan. That's more as a as a draft guy worry.
00:20:23
Speaker
So all right, Mike. There's no Michigan players coming out at the quarterback. There's technically no Hawkeye quarterbacks coming out.
00:20:37
Speaker
Who do you want to talk about first? oh I guess. Okay. The only guy that I could see Green Bay taking before day three would be like a Jalen Milrow, and you do it in, like, kind of a...
00:21:01
Speaker
It's sort of like you'd almost have to be doing it like a Cordell Stewart kind of thing, where it's like you're maybe getting some use out of him at other positions. Not saying that he maybe can't play quarterback later kind of thing, but you...
00:21:15
Speaker
it It sort of turns into he's your like Willis replacement kind of thing. you like He's so athletic that you want to get him on the field and see if you can use him in other ways kind of thing.
00:21:26
Speaker
But... Like I said, doubt i don't think Green Bay has the the excess of draft picks to spend a pick on a guy like that. So it's one of those where like that would be the only way I could sort of see it happening.
00:21:42
Speaker
But honestly, i just like that's that's so many loose strings that I'm pulling together to say that that would be the guy they would take before day three.
00:21:54
Speaker
Yeah, but that would be that would have to be based purely on just athletic ability, wouldn't it? And I'd hate to see them spend a high-ish amount athletic ability on just athletic.
00:22:07
Speaker
I mean, let me change that. Because we see the Packers take high-athlete guys. But it's usually at the position they play. Whereas Milrose, a high athlete guy, but is he going to play quarterback? Is he going to do this?
00:22:23
Speaker
Is he going to do that? I lump him in really with like a Taysom Hill where, you know, he can go out and throw the ball, but you're going to use him more as a tight end wide receiver in wildcat formation or a special play or end rounds or something.
00:22:41
Speaker
i So I had a different name if you wanted to possibly, and maybe this guy would be taken before day three, but he's more of your athletic type.
00:22:57
Speaker
And that's Brady Cook out of Missouri. Yeah. And, you know, he his all his motions I have are smooth, where you could see him. it was just, and there was no herky-jerky to, like, handoffs, play action, you know, zip throws, all that kind of things. It seemed smooth.
00:23:17
Speaker
He's got scrambling ability. He tested really high on for his Razs. I think he ran like a 4.5940. So for a for quarterback, you know, that's pretty solid.
00:23:32
Speaker
i I question his accuracy sometimes because it's like he either overshoots or undershoots the ball. There were too many times that the ball was like hitting below the knees or over the head.
00:23:45
Speaker
So I question that a little bit. He looks like he's got some solid arm strength. And then, like I said, he tested pretty good. Now, I reached out to friend of show, Joey Van Zoomeren, because, you know, he's the Missouri guy And this is a quote from him, and it's kind of a long reach. So hang in there with me.
00:24:04
Speaker
he's an inner he's an interesting one to evaluate, right? The fall off in deep passes from 2023 to 24 was just bizarre. He couldn't throw anything over 20 yards this last year.
00:24:14
Speaker
But I think that's a chance teams would be willing to take on him. He also said at the combine that he specifically was targeting that this offseason after his coach tried to pretend like it wasn't an issue all year.
00:24:25
Speaker
Running is obviously good, and he knows when to tuck it down and scramble, especially on third and fourth down. At worst, he's a game manager with an inconsistent deep range. At best, he's a solid reader of defenses, mobile, and can deliver impressive throws at right time.
00:24:40
Speaker
So a little bit of a Sean Clifford, but younger and faster. Now, there's one thing I have to disagree with Joey on when it says that. He says maybe a little bit of a Sean Clifford, but the way he described the deep pass thing,
00:24:55
Speaker
And some of the ability things, that's Jordan Love. How many times have we talked about Jordan Love has a strong arm, but he has issues with the deep pass accuracy?
00:25:08
Speaker
He's got the running ability, but he's not like a super fast runner. you know He knows when to tuck it down. He knows when to hold on to it. And you know just treating that and some of the things I saw on there,
00:25:23
Speaker
it makes you think more of a Jordan Love than a Sean Clifford because he's got the arm talent. He's got the rush around a talent. But is there a deep accuracy to him?
00:25:34
Speaker
Yeah, i think I think actually, like, yeah, kind of a, you know, a discount Jordan Love is sort of a good comp for, for excuse me, wait.
00:25:46
Speaker
is a good comp for Brady Cook. Kind of comes from a similar system. It's a little bit more of a spread, almost run and shoot kind of play play style. Like you said, you see the athleticism on the field. He's a solid runner. Tough, tough runner, too.
00:26:00
Speaker
maybe Maybe at times a little too tough of a runner for his own good. But... you know Honestly, kind of liked how he played at times. There there were moments where Missouri got down in games and then you know he would lead pretty spirited comebacks.
00:26:14
Speaker
But I think the thing I like about him most is you wouldn't lose throws because of the arm strength. you know Not like with Clifford where you're kind of like, well, that plays out of the playbook because he can't get the ball there.
00:26:25
Speaker
Right. And I do like that he's got, you know, it's not, he's not a, he's not Millrow. He's not Willis, but he's got enough requisite running ability that you're like, okay, if love gets hurt, we can kind of screw around with the offense and, you know, do some things that are a little different to create some, some,
00:26:45
Speaker
create some offense and, you know, create but ways to move the ball that aren't just like, okay, Brady, drop back and throw the ball 25 plus times in a game kind of thing. So I do like that out of him.
00:26:58
Speaker
And like you said, it's always kind of weird to talk about these kind of players because it's like, okay, we're taking this guy under the guise that we don't ever want him to play.
00:27:12
Speaker
But if he does play, we won't be totally up the shitter
Packers' Draft Strategy Insights
00:27:16
Speaker
kind of thing. So I could see him... you know I'll put it this way. I would like... to watch him play football more than Sean Clifford play football.
00:27:26
Speaker
Like, that that's how I rate him comparatively as a prospect. So I do think that Cook would be a decent, you know, lottery ticket, backup quarterback option.
00:27:39
Speaker
Yeah, i don't it's always so hard to tell with where backup quarterbacks are going to go because I feel like it almost always is like, you know you have your whoever your surefire top you know top of the first round guys are, those guys are always going to go you know top 10, 15, whatever kind of thing.
00:27:58
Speaker
And then after that, you get you know you Sometimes you can tell where those Jalen Hurts kind of guys are, where they're like you're like, that's a definitive... No one's going to spend a first-round pick on him, but there's too much talent not to take him on like the second round or something.
00:28:14
Speaker
But then usually, if you don't fall into one of those categories, it's sort of like Russian roulette in terms of where some of these guys are going to go, because it's like, they could go... third round they could go seventh they could go undrafted kind of thing and stuff so yeah it it i like you kind of do in terms of how you don't put rounds on guys i'm not even gonna bother putting around on a lot of these quarterback prospects so don't worry we have a visitor we have a guest podcaster to today
00:28:50
Speaker
she is back
00:28:53
Speaker
yeah oh
00:28:58
Speaker
There's the little germ spreader. yeah
00:29:03
Speaker
she's the She's the aggregator.
00:29:06
Speaker
Typhoid Mary.
00:29:09
Speaker
But, you know, I agree with you, and that's the thing that I struggle with is trying to put a round grade on them. Because really but everything that you see with Brady Cook he could be a first rounder because of the athletic ability and, you know, the system he's played in and stuff like that.
00:29:28
Speaker
But, you know, then again, he could take a slide in the draft and I didn't do my due diligence. I never look at the ages for these guys. So that could be something that, you know, that could hurt because I don't know how old he is and stuff like that.
00:29:43
Speaker
But, You know, who knows? So is there anybody else you can think of that you kind of want to talk about? Because I've got a couple of guys, but... I guess one that would make a lot of so the Wisconsin Green Bay fans, I don't know which way they would go. They probably mostly want to shoot themselves, but if... If...
00:30:08
Speaker
You know... but She wasn't even happy about that one. let's It's the whole, like, you know, I know Wisconsin fans will definitely say otherwise, but there's, there's talent on his shoulder.
00:30:26
Speaker
he does some he's able to do some things with the ball. We can you know point to, was it the O-line situations, the receiving situations, all that kind of stuff, but if you're throwing a round seven, we've covered every other base we want to.
00:30:40
Speaker
We want to get another quarterback in the room. why not see if to one of the recent saviors of the Wisconsin football program has anything in the tank to, you know, potentially like that's all you're doing is you're just trying to see if you can get someone who can take Sean Clifford spot at this point, because that's turning that portion of the bottom of the roster.
00:31:05
Speaker
Yeah. And, you know, I, I'm not going to speak much on Mertz because, you know, he's a badger. So I don't really, you know, whatever. But really, you know, it's possible.
00:31:17
Speaker
Where'd he transfer to? It was Florida, Florida. just Yeah, Florida. And who knows when you get out of Wisconsin, maybe you end up playing a little bit better or something. I don't know. Who knows?
00:31:33
Speaker
But I suppose I can speak on this guy. Spencer Petras. is another one, you know, I've noticed him.
00:31:42
Speaker
and Yeah. Mike just did a double take on that one. Cause I mentioned, but didn't realize he was in this draft cycle.
00:31:51
Speaker
Yeah. oh He's
00:31:55
Speaker
Spencer Petras. I have to say, I had all kinds of hopes for when he, when he came to Iowa, because he had, he had something special. If I remember right, he went to the same school that Jared Goff did, same high school, and and like destroyed every single one of Goff's records.
00:32:16
Speaker
So when he came to Iowa, there was a lot of hope. But as I've said before, and I will continue saying for probably the next couple of years, there's one thing that hurt his development, and that's the Nepo baby Brian Ferencz.
00:32:34
Speaker
and When you've got guy that basically just an offensive line coach, coaching as your offensive coordinator, as your O-line coach, as your quarterback coach, as your wide receiver coach, as your passing game specialist, and has all these titles trying to teach a quarterback how to throw a ball, it just doesn't work that well.
00:32:59
Speaker
So the thing about Petras is he had tons of arm talent. You could see he had tons arm talent. He just needed somebody to help him refine it. And he just couldn't get it done at Iowa where, you know, Iowa is going to run the ball, run the ball, run the ball, and maybe pass once in a great while.
00:33:18
Speaker
Honestly, a lot of us thought he was done because there towards the end of his time at Iowa, he suffered a shoulder injury and he... became and and what they call a player assistant or something like that, where they become an assistant to the coaching, but they're still technically on the roster.
00:33:38
Speaker
So I thought he was done, but then he ended up going in the transfer pool and or and or portal, and guess where he ended up? The same place where the starting quarterback of the Green Bay Packers ended up, Utah State.
00:33:54
Speaker
And while the numbers for like completions and that weren't great, I think there were times that he was completing like 40-some percent of his passes.
00:34:05
Speaker
The yardages were up. The touchdowns were up. All these other things were up. And he showed that his arm, you know, his shoulder was decent. I don't think he had the same power as when he started at Iowa, but he still had enough strength that he could be a quarterback in the NFL if if he can get into a quarterback school and can get run through that process and have a little bit time to sit.
00:34:33
Speaker
Is he a day two, day day one type of quarterback? Hell no. He's not going to be taken like that. But if somebody can not nab him on day three and say, all right, we've got our starter.
00:34:47
Speaker
We got a question mark at, at back up at our number two, but we've got a guy that we think can be there. We just want a guy that be number three and just sit back and hold the clipboard and learn.
00:35:02
Speaker
I think Petras probably could do it. I never was one that hated Petras. Like I said, I had a lot of hope for him because he was heavily hyped coming out of high school.
00:35:14
Speaker
And, you know, i did like him, but then it just started pissing you off because Iowa just couldn't use him right.
00:35:24
Speaker
He really, really suffered from the downturn in your guys' quality of O-line play because he he missed what's it call he missed all guess he played with... Linderblom?
00:35:40
Speaker
How do you say that? Linderblom, yeah. Yeah. so But he missed Alaric Jackson and Tristan Wirfs. I guess he overlapped a little, but what's his future? He was a freshman when... Yeah.
00:35:53
Speaker
But, yeah, it always is kind of a – like I said, it was one of those where it's like we're probably going to pressure him into some bad throws. But if he ever gets to set his feet, he could uncork one kind of thing. Like he's one of those kind of kids where it's like – Like you said, the physical talent is there. Yeah, he'd have to go through the battery.
00:36:13
Speaker
I honestly didn't get to watch a lot of Utah State games. And so I don't know how the shoulder really looks after last year, because like you said, you know, he, it he had to take a whole year off. Like if you look at his stats, it's, you know, 18 to 22 at Iowa, nothing. And then this past season was at Utah State. So, and Like you said, not the stats weren't anything to like write home about, but he had... And I know it's a different system and yada, yada, yada, but he had his highest career completion percentage by 8%, which is not nothing on...
00:36:49
Speaker
at least 40 more throws than he had at any of his years at Iowa. And touchdown to interception ratio wasn't great, but also, you know, I don't know who he was throwing to and stuff like that. So, and like we said, you're just throwing darts at this point where Green Bay is realistically going to be taking a quarterback.
00:37:05
Speaker
And so, well, you know who one of his targets were. Royals. You guy Jalen Royals. That's right. Yeah. So, but in terms of the, you know, like you said, you're like looking for a specific kind of guy at this point.
00:37:21
Speaker
I point to, I like backup quarterbacks who do, who give you a little extra dimension kind of thing stuff But in terms of what Green Bay is looking for, if they're looking for someone to take Clifford's spot, Petras is a guy who in the in the in the Clifford mold has seen and done almost everything in college and He went a step further than Clifford is. He actually was a coach at one point. So he's even got that in his back pocket and it would be kind of a, I don't want to say useful is necessarily the right term, but I do think that that's kind of what they're looking for from that backup position is to be a guy who's like kind of, you know, able to talk the game with love and go over the film with him
Conclusion and Listener Engagement
00:38:05
Speaker
and stuff like that. So yeah.
00:38:08
Speaker
The only thing that's hurting him right now is he will be 26 this year. Right. But Clifford – yeah, is he cliffd he is Clifford's classmate, isn't he?
00:38:18
Speaker
Yeah. Yeah. Yeah. So, yes, I know that he's like the same age as Clifford now kind of thing. But at the same time, it's sort of like, whatever, it's your backup.
00:38:29
Speaker
I'm – not losing sleep over the fact of how old the backup quarterback is and stuff. So actually he's a year younger. He's 99. Clifford is 98.
00:38:41
Speaker
So, but yeah, I, like I said, we're just, you're just throwing out options at this point. Another guy that earlier, there's no real need for the Packers to pick one up unless there's a Malik Willis trade in the pipeline.
00:38:58
Speaker
yeah I mean, Goody has said that he'd like to get more draft picks, but Goody says that every year. yeah you know He always wants to get more draft picks. And that may be one of the most truthful things that Goody actually, because he does every year, even the years he's moved up in the draft, it's because he's either created or in the draft creates a a a positive a net positive of picks to trade up with.
00:39:21
Speaker
so Yeah. I do believe that that's something like I said, it would take a certain conversation, one that I'm not sure has been had because, you know, as we were just discussing with the Rogers discussion earlier, it seems like all the quarterback seats are kind of taken, but you never know. Maybe, you know.
00:39:40
Speaker
There may be more, what's it called? There may be more of a demand for a guy like Willis who hypothetically has upside and potential longevity at his age and you know level of athleticism as opposed to a 40-whatever-year-old Aaron Rodgers.
00:39:58
Speaker
and then Well, right now it's the whole Pittsburgh thing. you know Is Pittsburgh going to ride it out with try to wave for Rodgers or... You know, do they call and say, hey, we don't like any of the guys in the draft right now?
00:40:11
Speaker
You know, we're not going to be in position. Yeah, exactly. We'll give you like a third round pick this year's third round pick for, you know, Malik. Yep. art you Would you fault Goody in saying yes?
00:40:26
Speaker
and Oh, no, absolutely not. Because you just flipped a seventh-round draft pick into a third-round pick. And as much as people are saying, like, but you can get a cop pick for him, it's like, well...
00:40:38
Speaker
he's Are you going to get it in a third round? Yeah, no. he's not signing He's not one of those kind of quarterbacks that's signing a deal that's going to lock into a third-round pick. And also, hypothetically, Green Bay should have free agency money to – not to go big game hunting next offseason, but any comp pick, you know, the – what's it called? The – the formula will get thrown off by anything they do in free agency next year too. So if you lock in a day two pick for like this year, or even if it is for next year, you are locking in that you are definitely getting a day two pick. And like you said, it would be bad process if Goot says no to that kind of deal. Because like I said, for whatever that sect of Green Bay fans wants to say, they're not winning a Super Bowl with Malik Willis.
00:41:27
Speaker
Like... if they're not favorites to win one with love, you're not going to win one with a guy who's not the thrower. And, you know, like he doesn't do all the, the, the ability with his arm that love does. You're not going to win a super bowl with that guy either. So,
00:41:46
Speaker
If LeFleur turns Willis from a seventh round out into a third round in, that's good GMing and good you know good combination of GMing on his part and coaching on LeFleur's part.
00:41:59
Speaker
And like you said, the only hope that you have is all of a sudden Malik Willis grows Jalen Hurts' arm talent. yeah Because he's already got the mobile ability. He just doesn't have the strong arm ability.
00:42:12
Speaker
Yeah, or the, the like, touch ability, because he does have a pretty good arm on his shoulder. So the only other the only other dart I really have in my quiver is... This is a long-running joke that I've had for two years, is that the guy who fits... So...
00:42:31
Speaker
if we go back and look at the guys that have been rumored as guys that LaFleur and Gurkens have liked, there's a few, oh there's a few traits that have stuck together that haven't, that haven't always like kind of put you in the biggest, like what, that's a successful quarterback, but it's a strong armed, big bodied quarterback with questionable athleticism.
00:42:57
Speaker
Love has turned out. They've also been linked to, They also have rumored to have been linked to – I just said his name earlier. Drew Locke. Drew Locke was the big one LeFleur's first year. that The year before, you know, in 2018, they traded for Kaiser, who was supposedly big in the Packers draft room.
00:43:19
Speaker
And carrying on that tradition would be – DJ Uyunglele, the former Clemson, former Oregon State, now former Florida State quarterback.
00:43:32
Speaker
And this would be your ultimate shot in the dark. You know, he was the top, I think he was the top two-way quarterback prospect. It would sort of be like a Petrus, like, you know, like, I know that a lot of the luster has come off of Uyunglele.
00:43:46
Speaker
You know, some of it, his doing, some of it, the the situations that he was in kind of thing. But, If you're looking for your give me the biggest athlete I can get at the end of the seventh round of the draft, DJ Yu is that guy. Still got a big arm.
00:44:06
Speaker
Like I said, he gives you the the ability to run a different kind of offense if he comes in. you He can run some power QB read and QB option kind of stuff to you know sort of get his feet wet as he gets in a game. But That would be the ultimate, like, flyer, get a highly physically talented kid in and see if LeFleur can mold him into a legitimate NFL quarterback. It would sort of be like your Aaron Brooks Hasselbeck kind of reclamation project kind of thing. So, yeah, that's...
00:44:40
Speaker
Really the last guy. And i I guess another name that I'll throw into that hat too is Riley Leonard. I actually liked him a lot more when he was at Duke than what Notre Dame kind of had him do. i thought I thought that Duke's coaches were a lot more... They were a lot more creative with how they used them than Notre Dame. So to each their own.
00:45:02
Speaker
But yeah, those are the two guys, like I said, that check off a lot of the boxes I have in terms of like... big arm and have the athleticism to bring a different dimension if they were to ever have to go into a game kind of thing.
00:45:16
Speaker
And see, there's, I mean, I've got like four guys that I could talk about. Two of them are, long shot being drafted, they would have to take a tumble. And that's Tyler Show out of Louisville and Will Howard out of State.
00:45:31
Speaker
I mean, those guys are solid guys. Their Raz is amazing. They put out some solid tape. But that would have to be a day two type deal.
00:45:41
Speaker
And again, unless the Packers make a move to get rid of Willis... i I honestly would hope that the Packers could start doing what they used to do in the 90s, where they would draft a guy mid to late rounds, keep him around as a backup for a couple of years, and then trade him off for you know a good haul of picks.
00:46:00
Speaker
But unfortunately, that hasn't that trend has kind of fallen off with the Packers. But, you know, Shaw or however you pronounce his name from Louisville and Howard would be those type of guys that I would get.
00:46:13
Speaker
I would draft those guys, let them get comfortable in the system, show them off a little bit in the season if you have to, and then trade them off for, you know, a couple day two picks or whatever later on.
00:46:28
Speaker
But the two that I think that could either be preferred undrafted guys, maybe seventh round guys, if they've got a, you know, who knows what kind of trading Gudekun still do.
00:46:40
Speaker
And, you know, maybe they end up with a couple extra seventh rounders or whatever. You got Cam Miller out of North Dakota State University. and And then I was just watching this kid a little bit before.
00:46:53
Speaker
And that's Matt Morrissey out of Eastern Kentucky. Now, Cam Miller kind kind of
00:47:00
Speaker
falls into, I'm not saying talent wise. So I hope people understand that. I'm not saying that, Oh, this is the next. No, he falls into the drew breeze type of side for quarterback because he's only like six foot and a half and weighs only like 190 some pounds.
00:47:19
Speaker
So, I mean, he's a smaller size quarterback, He's got scrambling a ability. He's not super fast, but it's enough. I watched him take it for like 60-some yards up the middle because he had a wide open lane and he didn't have anybody catch him.
00:47:34
Speaker
He's got good accuracy, solid placement. Again, I think this arm strength is serviceable, but I don't think it's like super strong. But the thing that I found hard to watch a lot of these guys on was you didn't see a lot of deep passes.
00:47:50
Speaker
so it was hard to gauge what kind of strength, but there are a couple passes I did see from him that were deep, and it looked like he had to put a little bit more loft on it, so it makes you wonder if his strength is maybe a little out there.
00:48:05
Speaker
the other guy, Matt Morrissey out of Eastern Kentucky, what I really liked about him is he had a quick release, and I will say that, just to touch back on Will Howard, the one thing that i wish that he would do speed up his release because it looked like too often that wide receivers were having to wait for the ball to come to them.
00:48:30
Speaker
And it wasn't because he had a bad arm strength or anything like that. it was because it was taking so long to get from the motion for the ball to show up to him. So back to Morrissey, he had a wonderful quick release. I loved it. It kind of reminded you of Roger's quick release where it was up and out before you even knew what was going on.
00:48:50
Speaker
Again, I'm not saying he's the next Aaron Rodgers. I'm just saying this is how you kind of show what you're talking about. He's not a speedster, but he was a thumper. I watched him like level a linebacker on a rush.
00:49:03
Speaker
And i just I sat there and laughed because that was amazing. oh eight Again, I didn't really get to see him in-game throw too many deep balls, but they did actually have his Pro Day tape on YouTube, so I was able to watch it, and he had pretty decent deep accuracy, or not accuracy, deep strength, that it wasn't like he had to wind up to do it.
00:49:27
Speaker
He could just fling it, and it was going deep. Now, there were a couple of times, like on a rollout or something, where you saw he had to take a couple extra steps to get the ball down, get enough oomph on the ball to get it down there. But when he was just in the pocket, dropping back and let loose, he could let it loose for at least 50 to 60 yards. And that's what usually you ask of for your quarterback. You're not looking for an 80-yard deep ball pass or a Mike Vick on his knees throwing it into the stands type deal.
00:49:58
Speaker
You just want a guy that can get you 50 to 60 yards consistently. And so Those two I could see being, like I said, late 6th, early 7th, or even preferred UDFAs if that's the way Green Bay goes about things.
00:50:19
Speaker
And I'm going to say I'm probably guaranteeing you haven't watched either one of them, so I don't expect you to throw too much input into it. Nope, we're going to just put a nice bowl on that one. I trust your eye, my friend.
00:50:34
Speaker
yeah well The bad thing is is, and I know I've said this for other positions, but with quarterbacks, it's usually hard because they can be tremendous college quarterbacks, but they struggle to put it together in the NFL and NFL system.
00:50:52
Speaker
How many quarterbacks have we seen be tremendous NCAA quarterbacks, but they don't even get drafted in the NFL because they can't put it together? So trying to find guys, I mean, I can sit there and watch quarterback tape all damn day and, hey, that's a hell of a pass. Hey, that's a good read. Hey, that's, you know, that's that's a tremendous play.
00:51:15
Speaker
But is he going to be able to do it the NFL? Yeah, you can tell Marisol we're about done. Yes, I know I've kept you long enough. She just doesn't want to appear on camera. Oh, what we don't even put the video out.
00:51:32
Speaker
And it's not like you swinging the little samurai around, so we're all good on that shit.
00:51:39
Speaker
But, yeah, we're about done on this thing. Mike, are there any final things that you want to put out there for... Let's just stay for the whole draft class, because I really don't think we're going to touch much on kickers and punters this next week.
00:51:54
Speaker
Yeah.
00:51:57
Speaker
I've tried to think if I have any overarching stuff. I...
00:52:03
Speaker
I don't... I really don't know. because like Just trying to get the pulse of the organization this this this draft season and stuff. There's no real big holes to fill.
00:52:13
Speaker
No, and that's the thing. like There's going to be a lot of... That's why I do think they're going to take up more... like They always do, but even more so, I feel like they're going to go high ceiling route.
00:52:25
Speaker
Maybe a couple guys in the mid-rounds who could come in and like really contribute right away kind of thing, but... I just have this feeling that they're going to expect a lot of internal development.
00:52:36
Speaker
You know, we've seen, you know, we're used to seeing the Rashawn offseason training film, but there's some Lucas ones that are popping up all over the place and stuff like that. ri he He looks like he cut about 15 pounds. Like, I don't know how to really gauge that, but he looks like he might be down to the mid-260s kind of thing.
00:52:54
Speaker
He looks like he could eat me. Yeah. But yeah, it's like i I do think like obviously they'll never say no to a draft pick coming in and tearing it up kind of thing.
00:53:07
Speaker
But I do think they're expecting a lot of the improvement to come from the guys that they picked last year, the year before and all that kind of stuff. you know the One of the big stories is the Jordan Morgan potentially, you know but that they're going to lay the red carpet out at left tackle, but they're really trying to light the runway in that direction.
00:53:27
Speaker
see, I kind of took it the opposite way. I took it as they're still trying to justify the pick. That too. I don't... think no i thought I don't think they were prepared for both Walker and Ryan to prove out like they did last season.
00:53:43
Speaker
And I agree to a certain like in a certain direction, but so I think, i think it's, I think they do really like him as a prospect, but also they're like really battening down the hatches on he's going to play left left tackle for the reasons you just brought up. But like you said, there aren't a million points on this roster where you're like, they've got to find it, especially with what they did in free agency.
00:54:11
Speaker
Maybe they're not the guys that we all wanted and, you know, that kind of stuff. But I do feel like they did enough... And obviously receiver is the one where you're kind of like, oh, what's the plan there? Especially, i mostly say that because of the Watson injury. You know, it would be different if Watson was going to play to start this season.
00:54:33
Speaker
But because he's out, you're like, okay, I'm going play. is the uptick we saw in Devon or in Dontavian Wicks down the stretch of last season, is that real? How much more can they get out of Dobbs? How much more can Reed do and all that kind of stuff is, you know, is Musgrave going to stay healthy this season, but that's all internal improvement. You know, that's all that side of the, you know, that's all that side of the street. So obviously there's going to be guys that they're hoping can contribute early, but I do think for the most part,
00:55:05
Speaker
They're going to be expecting internal upgrades. And then a lot of the guys, they're going to be, you know, it pisses off a lot of fans, but they're going to be looking at guys who are going to improve this roster in another couple years kind of thing. that's That's just where I see you know if If the right guys fall to their – even if a Will Johnson falls to their range, like that's a guy who's going to contribute right away.
00:55:34
Speaker
But I feel like it's going to be a lot of future-sighted stuff unless they just break the mold with like taking a Colston Loveland or – a Matt Golden in round one kind of thing, which I just, you know, it really depends how the board, especially on the golden side of it. But the board would have to fall in such a specific way for them to go either of those routes, unless they're like, you know what?
00:56:00
Speaker
We really think that this is our year. And not that they're like, that's the one guy, that's the player away kind of thing. But they're like, we so believe in the the guys that we're bringing back back on the roster this year that with a couple guys who can contribute day one, we can really get this thing rolling and you know to be a Super Bowl contender. and And not just like by the end of the season, they look that way. From week one, it's like, this team is different this year. so Long answer short, I expect Goode to kind of go with his, like, i' he's done his work for this year, last year, the year before, and in free agency.
00:56:37
Speaker
And come, you know, draft day when they're they when Goodell is calling names in Titletown, USA, it's going to be with the eye for a couple years down the road. And if they contribute early, great, kind of, you know, that usual approach.
00:56:54
Speaker
And really the only position, well, I guess there's technically two, but I think the one big one that really sticks out for something that is is going to be a year or two down the line is wide receiving.
00:57:08
Speaker
Because both Watson and Dobbs are free agents at the end of the season. Watson's obviously coming back from the injury. Do they re-sign one? Do they res re-sign both? Do they re-sign none of them? You know, does Wicks take the next step up? Does Reed take the next step up?
00:57:22
Speaker
Obviously, I'm not thinking Nicole Hardman is going to be the savior for this wide receiver class. ice I still have hope for Malik Heath, but I think that's becoming less and less of a chance.
00:57:36
Speaker
Bo Melton, I i like what Bo can do, but I just don't think he's going to be anything more than a four or five on a... He and Hardman are basically battling for the same roster spot at this point.
00:57:48
Speaker
right Especially if they draft someone relatively early. And see, that's what I was getting to. I was going to say that if they're going to take a chance on a honor on a position that could help them this year but is more looking towards the future, wide receiver is the way to go.
00:58:05
Speaker
and And really with what Goody said the other day about they're not really thinking Edge is too much of a need because he thinks they can generate enough pass rush with the guys that they have.
00:58:18
Speaker
I even questioned a little bit of the past, you know, is you know do they take an edge rusher in the draft? I mean, in the first round. I could see they're still taking a guy in the draft, but is it at a first-round pick?
00:58:30
Speaker
Defensive line, maybe, because that that's where the giant holes seem, but I think you can get guys a little bit later in the draft that are going to do you the same as what but you can get at 23 unless somebody major falls.
00:58:43
Speaker
So... I think that's where we're setting. So I think we can pretty much wrap this up. you You know, I hope everybody enjoyed our our draft lead up, run up, whatever your preview.
00:58:56
Speaker
We do still have a couple episodes to go, but this is probably going to be our last of the positional groups. So, you know, let us know. Did we miss anybody? Did we, you know, not did we talk shit about somebody you really like? You know, let us know on that.
00:59:11
Speaker
know Thank you to all our past guests and and stuff like that for coming in and and talking draft with us. You can find the show at Ohana underscore Packers on Twitter.
00:59:25
Speaker
Ohana Packers edition on all the other social media platforms. Me on bluesky at iowajo.bsky.social Mike is anywhere and everywhere.
00:59:37
Speaker
Kiwano Mike. please go over to the website, ohanapackers.org, for all our great articles, past episodes, merch shop. get us you know go buy some Go buy some merch, help support the show.
00:59:54
Speaker
you know the little kid's got to eat over there. Mike's got two of them, two typhoid marys over there. We've got to make sure they stay healthy so Mike doesn't miss any more shows. So you know if you buy merch, that helps create the medical fund for those two germ factories.
01:00:10
Speaker
Uh, you know, please go buy merch, support the show. You can always get ahold of us. Let us know what you think. let We're going to be getting to, you know, hear what the drafts in three weeks, two and a half weeks, something like that.
01:00:24
Speaker
We're going topics for episodes. So, you know shout us, you know, shoot us some topics you'd like to see us cover. And like Mike would say, Mike, won don't you give your tip since you've been gone and haven't been able to do it, your your typical outro.
01:00:41
Speaker
So we're gonna say, as usual, go Pack Go and aloha.