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- [00:00]
Danny Hyphens
Foreign.
- [00:20]
Danny Kale
Welcome to the Ring of Fantasy Football Show. My name is Danny Hyphens and I'm joined by Danny Kale and Craig Horlebeck. And if you're listening to this, then A.J. brown just got traded. Probably the Patriots. We're not 100% sure because we're recording this on May 26, 2026, and we were really afraid A.J. brown was going to get traded while we were on vacation. But we also kind of knew about this for months and months and months. So we kind of figured we would just record our reaction to the trade and talk about it ahead of time and just post it and hopefully we got most of it right.
- [00:47]
Craig Horlebeck
This is a true time capsule podcasting for the future experiment that we've never really done. But I'm into it. We can, we should just do more of these. Can we do like week three? The Steelers just lost to the Bengals. Dk, what are your thoughts?
- [01:02]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah, this one is. This one's interesting though, because it's basically the worst kept secret that the deal is all but done. It was a handshake deal, or is a handshake deal already and they're just waiting for June 1st to come by so they can do this. And it is a post June 1st trade, which I guess affects contracts and all kinds of different things.
- [01:20]
Danny Kale
Won't be boring about it, but basically June 1st, it really just means the second half of the year, which for accounting means you can split the cost on one season, cut it in half and split it over two seasons, which makes it easier. And the Eagles structure their contracts to pay their bonuses to players by the beginning of week one instead of March, which means basically other teams, for whatever reason, don't always put the paperwork in to make it easier to trade players later in the year. So the Eagles kind of structured A.J. brown's trade deal to be tradable later in the year. So it's going to save them. I don't know the exact number, maybe 30, maybe more than $30 million of dead cap for this trade to be. Then I it's Adam Schefter has implied for months that the deal is going to be A.J. brown and the New England Patriots for maybe a 2028 first round pick. Maybe. I don't know what else happened. Maybe Kish on Booty's in it. You guys can look it up because we. It hasn't happened yet, but it seems like the bones of it is a 2028 first for A.J. brown. Maybe it ends up being more, maybe it ends up being less. But we'll see what happens. So with that said, though, we did want to talk about the football of it because it does seem like A.J. brown will be the number one receiver for the New England Patriots this year. And it seems like the Eagles are going to go forward with Devonte Smith and Makai Lemon, their first round pick. So I want to just start with just AJ Brown and Drake May on the Patriots for a team that just got waxed in the Super Bowl. And dk, you're the Seahawks fan, your team just destroyed New England. Then for the last game of last season was Seahawks destroying New England. Now week one, the season starts with the Seahawks play New England. How differently do you look as your defense just destroyed them? How differently do you look at The Patriots with A.J. brown and Romeo Dobbs who the signing, free agency?
- [02:50]
Danny Hyphens
I mean, I feel like that, well, the A.J. brown thing is a big upgrade because he is a true number one receiver. If you look back over the last five years, he is, I think, like sixth in the NFL in touchdowns. He's a touchdown scorer, big play creator and a guy that can get open and be the go to guy for a good quarterback. And if you look at the rest of the receivers on the Patriots, it's like a bunch of role players and that's kind of what they had last year. You could depend, I guess you could say that Stefan Diggs was more than that, but at this point in his career, I think he's more of a role player. You have Keisha Booty, who's kind of like the designated deep threat. You have Matt Collins, who's the designated team mascot slash when you need a first down. He's the guy that you go to. Romeo Dobbs, I think is another guy who they brought in the offseason. He's a role player, but this is a move that makes everybody, every other receiver on this team just kind of fit into their spot a little bit better. They're not trying to be something that they're not, if that makes sense. And I think the prime primary thing here is AJ Brown, excellent deep threat, and Drake May is one of the best deep ball throwers in the NFL. So it's a good, it's a good match, schematically, I think, and could end up being the type of move you see in the past, like you've seen in the past, like development with Josh Allen. When Stefan Diggs came to Buffalo was like a huge difference for him. There's, there's many examples of this over the years. I think that's what they're hoping this can be.
- [04:10]
Danny Kale
I mean, I so I think the Stefan Diggs one, the example of the Stefan digs one at Buffalo, that is exactly what it reminded me of, too. I, I, I think that A.J. brown, so he's gonna be 29 at the end of June. Obviously, there's a lot of narrative things going on where AJ he actually grew up a Patriots fan. AJ Brown did. Which front runner? Who knows? AJ Brown obviously could have been taken by the Patriots in the draft. They took Nikhil Harry, and then obviously, Mike Vrabel had A.J. brown in Tennessee, and he was awesome. And then Mike Vrabel was pissed that they traded him away. And then A.J. brown had, like, almost 200 yards versus the Titans, and then the Titans fired the GM. He traded him away. So it's like Mike Rabel gets A.J. brown back. I don't know. Craig, what do you make? I feel like you've gone back and forth on this offseason. What do you make of A.J. brown in New England?
- [04:47]
Craig Horlebeck
Now that I've been separated a little bit from having AJ Brown on my fantasy team, I and how horrible of an experience that was. Yeah, I do think this would be just a much better move for New England than for Philly. Like, I feel like A.J. brown going to the Patriots makes me and Romeo Dobbs, who I like a lot, who I think is, like, a really rock solid, kind of like, number two, number three option, it just fills such a huge hole, and it rounds out the Patriots offensive skill group in a way that feels like this is now a legitimate team that I feel like, if we want to say last year was, like, fluky, that they got to the super bowl. Now I'm like, this is now a roster that I think can win a Super Bowl. And then you flip it over to Philly, and I'm like, for a team that was struggling to throw the ball as much as they were and is now kind of struggling to run the ball, which is what also kind of hurt the passing game. You lose A.J. brown, who is a legitimate, like, you could make a Casey as a top five receiver in the NFL, and now it's like, you have Devontae Smith, you have a rookie, Makai Lemon, and where else are we here? And we're hoping that this Petullo, Kevin Petullo, the former OC who's now gone, you're really banking on that being the reason why all this went to shit and that Sean Manion, who's coming from Green Bay, will come in and everything will Kind of go back closer to 2024 than to 2025. But to me, if this is a late first or 2028 or whatever, it's going to end up being. This is a great trade for the Patriots in my opinion.
- [06:16]
Danny Kale
Do you feel that way, DK let's just call it a 2028 first rounder. And if it's not, then I'm sorry,
- [06:21]
Craig Horlebeck
we should say A.J. brown's currently 28. He'll be 29 this summer, so he'll be 29 for the season. He in his last two seasons has played 13 games and 15 games respectively. So he has missed a little bit of time. He's kind of had like knee hamstring
- [06:34]
Danny Kale
stuff always, but let the league in really upset tweets.
- [06:37]
Craig Horlebeck
Led the league in really upset tweets. He's always got a book with him. He's a bookworm on the bench. But like when even last year, like there was still a stretch when A.J. brown's on and healthy, like he's still like the fifth best receiver in the NFL.
- [06:51]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah, I think Heifen, you posed it to me this way, that they traded for him for a first round pick and then after several years of high end production, they traded him for a first round pick. And if you look at it from the business point of view, from that point of view, it's pretty good value getting a first round pick for a guy after several years of production. But that being said, I agree with Craig that this I feel like makes their offense clearly worse, like definitely thinner at receiver. And maybe they just see this as we're getting a malcontent out of here. The vibes are going to be better. There's not going to be as many questions about the quarterback because I feel like they are protecting Jalen Hurts a little bit here because he's. They clearly are not on the same page. Jalen Hurts and A.J. brown, like whatever, you know, whatever A.J. brown wants, he wants to be at more. Wants more production, he wants more targets, whatever. They're clearly not on the same page. They don't seem to get along. Maybe they see this as like addition by subtraction because of that. But, but on paper, as Craig pointed out, I mean you're left with devonte Smith who is arguably a great receiver, but I don't know if like a true number one prototype in terms of his style, he might be better as a sort of complimentary number two. And, and then Makai Lemon who is in, in college he was more of like a slot receiver you have Don Tavian Wicks who ended up going away. He, he left Green Bay after flashing at times, but being really frustrating with drops and things like that.
- [08:15]
Danny Kale
He got terrible. He's got, he's got Jalen, he's got a agalore hands right the time. I want to ask you about the devonte Smith thing. In a world where Jackson Smith and Jigba just won offensive player of the year, do you still feel like that he's not a prototypical number one thing matters? Like, how different is Devon Smith really from jsn?
- [08:30]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah, maybe not. Yeah, I mean, and that is, that's like kind of the eternal question is like what is a number one? Because you have a lot of receivers in the NFL that have put up elite production that aren't like prototypical number one types.
- [08:43]
Craig Horlebeck
And is it like, could you argue that the offense. It'll just be like, it will be easier to operate when you don't have a guy who's pissed that he doesn't have the ball all the time. And it's like if now you're like, you're trying to rebuild, you're trying to replace A.J. brown in the aggregate with Hollywood Brown, Dontavia Wicks, Makai Lemon, devontae Smith. Is there a world in which like, great, now we can actually focus on what we want to focus on, which is Jalen Hurts and Saquon Barkley and whoever catches the ball when we need to throw is not going to post Instagram stories about it after the game.
- [09:12]
Danny Kale
And you know, it's funny, it's. I agree that from the business standpoint from the Eagles, it just like if you zoom out, it's like they have made a profit. Like they literally are. They gave up a first form. The Titans got freaking Traylon Burks with the pick or whatever and the tight again. The Eagles got the best prime of A.J. brown's career. Made, made two Super Bowls, won one. Frankly, the one. The year they lost, A.J. brown was like maybe the best receiver in the NFL for a stretch. They had the only stretch of 125 yards, six games in a row receivers ever had. And they're getting basically what they paid for him later. Like, I honestly, I maybe by the time this trade goes through, if A.J. brown's dealt for first, that's a very short list of players ever who have been acquired for first round pick and then dealt again for first round pick. It's like Brandon Cooks. I struggled to find another example in the last like 30 or 40 years. Maybe it's happened if, if, if you count the draft that's happened like Ricky Williams but veteran players dealt for first, traded again for first like getting back what you paid almost almost unheard of. So it makes sense for the Eagles but it's also it's worth I think going back and looking like AJ Brown was Jaylen Herz is still I believe Jalen Hurts's child's godfather. Like they were very close and the de.
- [10:19]
Danny Hyphens
The.
- [10:19]
Danny Kale
The unraveling of this relationship has been part and parcel with the unraveling of the Eagles and it has happened slowly and and for a lot of reasons including obviously honestly Saquon got all the ball all the touchdowns in the credit when the Eagles won the Super bowl and A.J. brown had this like Instagram a few days after they won the super bowl and he literally was like after a few I want to read it because to Keith Gates point what does he want he actually said it also his Instagram handle 1k always open it's just I kind of love a receiver with a good Instagram handle. Not as good as can't guard Mike but AJ Brown is Instagram caption like three days after they won the super bowl is I tried to feel how everyone made it seem to be a champion. Unfortunately it was short lived. 2 days to be exact. Lol. I've never been a champion at the highest level before. I thought my hard work would be justified by winning at all. It wasn't. My thrill for this game comes when I dominate. It's the hunt capital H that does it for me. It's when the DB drops his head and surrenders because he can't fuck with me. The intense battles, early mornings, late nights. I love putting smiles to people's faces. Don't get me wrong, but it just wasn't what I thought it would be to win a Super bowl feel like that's common. That's common though I think it happens to a lot of players. Aaron Rodgers said that. But yeah, the point is honest I. I think so.
- [11:28]
Craig Horlebeck
I think there's like something larger there about like success in general in life beyond.
- [11:33]
Danny Kale
Yeah. The way you feel on the mountaintop is it's kind of there's nothing up there like it's just there's nothing on the top of the mountain you got
- [11:39]
Danny Hyphens
to go down now.
- [11:40]
Danny Kale
Yeah. But the A.J. brown thing, I I don't know. I see on one hand I think it makes sense for Howie Roseman if you get a first to get it for him. It is certainly this coming season's a huge Bet on Jalen Hurts. Who is he on? Is this what, his 11th offensive coordinator at 11 years going back to college or 10th or whatever? It's like another change and it's the Russell Wilson thing. Ken Jalen Hurts play in a new offense that's allegedly going to be like more. More play action, probably more drop more middle of the field. And there was a great stat I saw from Ted win at the athletic who since 2020, which is when Hertz came in. Jalen Hurts ranks 85 out of 88. 85 out of 88 eligible quarterbacks in the percentage of their throws between the numbers under 15 air yards. So the dead center of the field, Jalen Hurts is 85th at 88. And how often he taught. Frequently he targets it. That's where Devonte Smith would seemingly be winning. That's where seemingly Makai Lemon would be winning. And it's like Jalen Hurts has been winning a lot on deep shots to the outside in the boundary, which is what you get ag Brown for a lot of screens, a lot of stuff to Dallas Goddard, a lot of screen. A quite quick stuff to Devonte Smith. And so it's like, okay, how does Hertz fit with Devonte and Makai Lemon? And Eagles fans will be like, he can do it. Like, let him get one season with the same coordinators. But we'll see because it does. You know, that article that came out, like a lot of things do seem to be Jalen Hurts over and over again. I. I don't. I'm very fascinated to see what the Eagles are going to be with Devonte Smith and Makai Lemon and like if. If how Hertz adapts to this. But overall though, I look at A.J. brown is. He was not locked in. He was kind of unlocked and I hate that he was bitching and then like would lala gag on routes when if he kept running would have got a touchdown. But I also think that he's probably kind of right about what he was upset about. He's probably right.
- [13:24]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah. Two things can be true at once, right? I agree.
- [13:27]
Craig Horlebeck
It's one of those things where I think, are the Eagles better with AJ Brown? Yes. Do I think the Eagles needed to get rid of A.J. brown? Yes. And sometimes you got it. And honestly, getting a first round pick for it is not bad. And it's just one of those things that had to happen.
- [13:41]
Danny Kale
I completely agree.
- [13:42]
Danny Hyphens
It reminds me, of course, you brought up the JSN thing and that's a good point. I mean, honestly, like, I don't think anyone really looked at JSN as a prototypical number one. He went out and had this amazing season for the Seahawks. And part of that is because they got rid of DK Metcalf, who was, for all his talents, kind of a drain sometimes, emotionally. He would always have these untimely penalties, some. Some like, problems with drops. It's just basically not a very reliable player. And I think he was hurting the overall cohesiveness and maybe just the vibes of the team. And when I. When he left, I was distraught for the Seahawks. I was like, man, that he's just such an important part of their offense. And I think I overestimated that because obviously what we saw this year was pretty great. And I still think DK Mechis is a good player. But I think sometimes the chemistry of a team and the chemistry of the way the offense fits together and the. And the. And honestly, just the OC not having to worry. This guy bitching about getting the ball constantly maybe can free him up to make some different play calls, things like that. So, yeah, this is one of those things where it's more of a chemistry point of view. And I think. I mean. I mean that more from just like players getting along. I think it's more like how does the pieces fit together? How do the different pieces of the offense fit together in the way that we're designing our offense and. And employing it. That's a chance that. Though it's a chance that it works better.
- [15:00]
Danny Kale
That's the right comp, though. DK Metcalf leaving Seattle, being upset, and then JSN literally breaking the Seahawks receiving record by like week 12 is like the right comp. Because frankly, AJ Brown's a better version of DK Metcalf. And in college at least Devonte Smith was a better version of Jackson, Smith and Jigba. And I think that that actually is not. And it's also. It's. The Eagles are probably moving toward closer, as much as close. They can get to something more like what this. Not exactly what the Silks are doing on offense, but I think that that is more what they want. Something a little closer to that. It might be what they want to do. I agree with everything.
- [15:29]
Danny Hyphens
The other thing I wanted to expound on just a tiny bit is that, you know, like, Ted wins stat that he. The frequency in which he passes to the middle of field is like the low or one of the lowest in the NFL since he.
- [15:40]
Danny Kale
Because he's 6 foot 1. And when a quarterback's 6ft or under, it's all we talk about but it hurts is not that tall.
- [15:45]
Danny Hyphens
And, and I think part of it is like part of this trade and, and the overall revamp. You're bringing in Sean Manion and they're. They brought in Makai Levin. They brought in Eli Stowers, who is effectively a receiver. He's not really a tight end. He. He is when he's on the field, he's more of just like a receiving type of player.
- [16:02]
Danny Kale
And Stowers is the tight end at a Vanderbilt who had a higher vert jump at 45 and a half inch vert higher than like Vince Carter's was at the NBA combine.
- [16:11]
Craig Horlebeck
They're doing a lot. The Eagles brought in a. I mean there's a lot of. They're like Hollywood wicks, Eli Stowers, Mai Lemon. Like, hopefully one of these works.
- [16:18]
Danny Hyphens
I think they are. It's more scientific than throwing at a wall and hoping it sticks. But I think they are effectively trying to get more value and more production out of the middle of the field. They're trying to help her. It's out there because it's. It's not like. You mean it's not like no one notices this. This is like the main talking point with Jalen Hurts right now. And so I think they're trying to improve on that, which I think is the only thing they can really do. Obviously Jalen Hurts at the end of the day has to start being more comfortable and throwing at a higher frequency down the middle of the field if they really want to unlock the offense and be the best that they can be because that is a huge chunk of the field that you're just not employing very much. And it makes it things easier for the offense or for the defense if you can't effectively and consistently attack that area of the field.
- [17:03]
Danny Kale
And the again losing the A.J. brown element. I, it's. I, I think. I think we're on the same page honestly about the Eagles thing and we'll see. And like again, it's. It's always I, we. We've all been pretty critical of Jalen Hurts, but it's always dangerous because the reality is Jalen Hurts is going back to college always been incredibly crazy, stacked offenses of talent and he's always won like he's a winner. He's always.
- [17:23]
Danny Hyphens
And he's improved most of most every year that he's been, you know, going back to college.
- [17:28]
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- [19:00]
Danny Kale
but I want to talk now about A.J. brown and the Patriots. So. Well, actually, the last thing about him leaving the Eagles, which is like the bridge to me to the Patriots, is the other last reason to get out of the A.J. brown business. I mean, we're talking A.J. brown had a pretty serious knee injury like six or seven years ago. You know, he had, I think he was flagged for he had issues in college, but like his knee was an issue six or seven years ago. And then he had this contract stuff where it's like, I mean this is a third contract. A lot of receivers don't necessarily get third contracts. So like it could be the classic example, ironically, of what Belichick Patriots always did, which is getting out a year earlier than a year too late. I know that like bitching wise, that was a year too late, like A.J. brown vibes wise, but talent wise, he's still unbelievable. And I think that There's a world where he maybe goes off cliff, but I have to say looking at it, New England, I think I have. I ranked AJ Brown when we first did our blind rankings and we tried not to look at other people's rankings to affect us and try to get. I ranked AJ Brown assuming he'd be a Patriot, like top 15 pick. And I was shocked to see him where he was. And I'm like, his problem was he was really angry. It's a workplace issue, like he was not locked in. I think A.J. brown should be third or fourth, I guess, the top five to lead the NFL receiving yards. It should be like Puka and Jamar Chase and JSN and A.J. brown should be like right there and just talent wise in terms of real life receivers. I think A.J. brown is just as good as some of those guys. He's probably a notch below like Jamar Chase is like a perfect receiver, but I think he's a. He fits perfectly in the New England offense for everything they want to do. And I think it's a smart trade. And DK reminds me a lot of the digs trade to your point for a lot of reasons.
- [20:37]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah. I'm wondering if there's a world, I mean, obviously there is a world in which we are really underrating how big of an impact this could make for Drake May, you know, because I think coming off of this last season, I think there is a little bit of a feeling there's a chance that the Patriots could regressed pretty significantly based on some of the stuff that's happened this off season. A lot of distractions. And there's a chance here that A.J. brown coming in could really unlock Drake May to a point that we haven't even seen it. He turns into. He has puts together like one of the best seasons we've seen from a young quarterback ever. You know what I mean? That is in the. That is in the range of outcomes here if A.J. brown can, you know, do what he's done in the past, which is create explosive plays, create touchdowns, be a, you know, clutch playmaker when the team really needs it, things like that. So I think there is a chance this is like potentially massive for Drake May. So that's kind of another thing that I'm really excited to see.
- [21:30]
Craig Horlebeck
You know, initially I kind of thought the history of trading for star wide receivers in their late prime wasn't great. If you look at the last like 10 or so years, it's. It's not quite as bad as I thought. I basically took guys between like 28 and 32 who were stars who got traded. And I would say the three main comps I looked at is, I mean, Devonte Adams going to the Raiders when he was 30 and I mean averaged 100 catches, 1300 yards and 11 touchdowns with this time in Vegas, even though Vegas was not good. Tyreek to the Dolphins. Tyreek had his two best seasons as a Dolphin of his career. And then DeAndre Hopkins going to Arizona. He was 28 years old when that happened. And his first season in Arizona he had 1400 yards and 115 catches. And so these were all guys who were like in that 28 to 30 range. Do they still have it? I mean, Devonte Adams is still doing it and Tyreek got super hurt. But you know, there are other examples. There's like Calvin Ridley and Diggs went to the Texans when he was 30 and Amari Cooper going to Cleveland and he was okay. But I'm more of a believer looking through this that A.J. brown, who I think is still firmly in his prime, he's just at the tail end of it that this could work out.
- [22:47]
Danny Kale
I, I think you're right and I really do want to lock in on DK's thing. I think the comparison not age wise, but why the Patriots are doing this has a lot common with Stefan Diggs to the Bills. And it's a little different, but it has a lot in common where it's like Jo, the Bills got digs for Josh Allen because Josh Allen had not yet really become a great quarterback. We were kind of still making fun of him. And they Bills felt that Josh Allen was actually a really good deep thrower, even if the, the statistical accuracy wasn't there because they felt that the receipt. A lot of the deep ball stats have to do with the receiver and how much can you track the ball. And they felt like the Bills deep ball receivers were not really tracking well and they went and got Stefan Diggs who was basically like the best deep ball tracker. And then Josh Allen, he helped Josh Allen become Josh Allen and Diggs really unlocked him and they obviously had a ton of success. And A.J. brown's older. But if you think about what Drake May just did, it's not quite the same. Where Drake Bain obviously almost made a Super bowl, he almost won a vp, like he was better than Josh Allen was before they got Diggs. But what Drake May just did. And just to remind people he like Drake May, aside from all the rushing stuff, Drake May had this thing that you like never see anymore, which is his completion percentage last year he led the NFL completion percentage that 72%. But Drake may also push the ball further downfield than basically like everybody in the NFL almost. I think he was second in average depth of target among qualifying passers. So it's like all the completion percentage guys are like dink and dunk, Drew Brees throwing it behind the line of scrimmage or low completion percentage. You're throwing it like Jameis Drake May did both, I think. What the. And so if you look at Bill Barnwell had this great stat for his MVP column that was, I think this was like 16 weeks through the season, not the whole year. That was like, if you look at receivers over expectation, the top two was like JSN and Puka. And then the next three of the next four guys were like Patriots receivers. It was like Diggs and Keisha Booty and Matt Collins. And it's like, that's a Drake May stat. It's the same way Jaden Daniels went like 20 of 23 on fourth down. Drake may just hit all his deep passes. And I think that this is the Patriots saying you can't do that again. Like, you cannot just expect Drake May to be the single best completion percentage deep passer ever again. And we need to go get a receiver who makes Drake May not need to be perfect. You expand the margin for error. I mean, and so that's what they got A.J. brown for. So Drake May doesn't have to be fucking perfect at every D pass. Again.
- [25:01]
Craig Horlebeck
It's not dissimilar to Jaden Daniels his first year in Washington. And then they kind of didn't do a whole lot for him the next year and things took a little bit of a turn. It's funny, I was going to say we should also mention that AJ Brown was with Mike Vrabel in Tennessee and now he is back with him if this trade does go through. And I was going to say that, you know, Philly, it just feels like emotions are riding high at all times. Sirianni, you got big Dom Hertz. There's just a lot going on, the fans. And I was going to say that A.J. brown reuniting with Vrabel and the Patriots, that it was a much more stable, rock solid environment. Obviously things are a little bit topsy turvy with New England's off season, but I do think that there is something to what Mike Vrabel brings to a locker room and A.J. brown in that environment and Drake May to that matter, who also seems like a fucking rock solid, dedicated Guy who's not going to cause drama and also just.
- [25:57]
Danny Kale
I completely agree. And the Patriots, they just need a goddamn receiver can beat man coverage. And like, that's what. What A.J. brown was at his best and maybe the best guy in the NFL. And like, I remember Steven Ruiz was comparing him to like LeBron where he's like, A.J. brown, like, he's the best player in the NFL. It was the double move thing because he was the. A.J. brown was so good on slants. He's so powerful. He's so hard to guard that. But the moment you try to cheat and get play up to try to stop him from catching the ball over the middle is AJ Brown double move became the best player in football. Was the A.J. brown, like, the double move fake like a slant, go. And he's like unstoppable. And like, that's where I think it's going to unlock. And that's why I also think Josh McDaniels, the Patriots offensive coordinator, is going to get you Brown like 160 targets. Because the other part of this AJ literally of every qualifying receiver, like Hunt, like over 120, AJ Brown was in the slot less than anybody. He was literally last. If you sort the column, A.J. brown's dead last. I think Josh McDonald is going to move A.J. brown all over. That's where Romeo Dubs helps a lot because he can play X receiver and. And he can make. A.J. brown can be moved around, but also Dubs can also go to Z and AJ Brown can play over the X. Like, I just think they work together a lot. It's like they kind Patriots kind of shoestring and bubblegum their goddamn receiver core and almost won a Super bowl doing it. But, like, all their receivers are role players. And now they have, like, pro, pro, above average receivers. Tomorrow morning is knocking. Stock your fridge now. How about a creamy mocha frappuccino drink? Or a sweet vanilla smooth caramel maybe? Or white chocolate mocha. Whichever you choose, delicious coffee awaits. Find Starbucks frappuccino drinks wherever you buy your groceries.
- [27:27]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah, and I think, you know, we. We comped the DK Metcalf thing and DK Metcalf and AJ Brown, there's a reason they're comped to each other, because they both went to Ole Miss. They both are incredibly ripped, incredibly athletes. Yeah, they were drafted a couple, like, not very many far picks apart. It was Both in the second round, I believe in 2019. And so they've kind of had, you know, careers that people follow closely, and I think they have A very similar skill set. I'm going back to when the Seahawks first got DK Metcalf.
- [27:54]
Advertisement Voice
And.
- [27:54]
Danny Hyphens
And part of the reason DK Metcalf was so dominant early on in his season is Russell Wilson could throw a moon ball like no one else. I feel like Drake May can throw a moon ball like no one else. I was just watching a replay dude the other day.
- [28:05]
Craig Horlebeck
Remarkable.
- [28:06]
Danny Hyphens
Drops it in a bucket down the field. And there is a big difference. And no disrespect to Keisha Booty, but, like, there's a huge difference between Keisha Booty. I mean, come on, A.J.
- [28:18]
Craig Horlebeck
brown.
- [28:18]
Danny Kale
Time you say no disrespect. It's. It's pretty disrespectful.
- [28:21]
Danny Hyphens
I mean, he did a really good job, I think relative to expectations, at being a deep ball threat for the.
- [28:25]
Craig Horlebeck
Every. Every game he was like one catch, 58 yards.
- [28:28]
Danny Hyphens
But he's not A.J. brown is my point. And I. I just think of the. The Let Russ Cook era of. Of Seattle football was like, God, we got DK Metcalf, we got Tyler Lockett. We're just chucking it deep, and it's so effective and so explosive. And. And a couple of Russell Wilson's best years as a passer were, yeah, early DK Metcalf years. So. So me again, this is like a fantasy discussion more than anything, but it's like, if AJ Brown can unlock that deep ball even more from Drake May, that opens up everything else in the offense, opens up their run game a little bit. And so I don't know. I think it. Of course, there's the variable here, which is AJ Brown is on the decline, and maybe he's just not as good as he used to be. But. But I think this is the right. The right move to pair a guy. I think that can really accentuate Drake May's best talents as a passer is that that deep ball accuracy, the. The willingness and ability to push the ball aggressively changes the way defenses have to play you. So it's really exciting.
- [29:26]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah, he's had hamstring and knee injuries the last two years that he's kind of battled with. And so, like, is there a world in which he's 29 this year and you can see he's slowing down and he's dinged up a lot. Sure. But this is a bet of, like, we give up a late first round pick? Also, is it going to be 2028? Because if it is, kind of a nice little move by New England to not have to give up 20, 27.
- [29:47]
Danny Hyphens
I think that, I think every team is trying to hold on to their 27 first.
- [29:50]
Danny Kale
No one wants to do it. And I think I'm surprised nobody.
- [29:52]
Craig Horlebeck
Like we're talking about teams that need wide receivers and how the Bills traded for Stefan Diggs. Bills could have used A.J. brown. Like, I'm surprised there is no team that would offer a 20, 27 late first for A.J. brown.
- [30:05]
Danny Kale
Well, the difference is when the Bills got Diggs, he was 20. My God, how old is Digs now?
- [30:11]
Craig Horlebeck
He's like 24. Probably was 25.
- [30:13]
Danny Kale
Yeah, exactly. He was like entering his prime.
- [30:15]
Craig Horlebeck
Teams that are like, win now. Like the Bills are like win now. We can win the super bowl any year if we can just get two. Two good years of A.J. brown. Maybe that's worth the 29th pick.
- [30:24]
Danny Hyphens
Well, they kind of did it half heartedly when they would trade it for DJ Moore.
- [30:27]
Danny Kale
Yeah, yeah. I think it's the, I think the short answer is most trades like that, you need someone who feels really strongly about at XNOS and can vouch for the person. It's not that different than a smaller deal, but the Seahawks traded a fourth round pick for Rashid Shahid from the Saints and that's because Kubiak was the offensive coordinator for the Saints. And it's not just does this person fit the offense, it's does this person fit our culture? It's like anything else. I've worked with that guy. I like him. He would fit here. And like you actually, if you're going to do the trade, need that element.
- [30:58]
Craig Horlebeck
And you can have Rabel saying, I know him.
- [31:00]
Danny Kale
It'll be, I want this guy. Like I, I want him. And also he's probably, you know, rose colored glasses and amber from like the Titans, but I'm not going to go to that. But I, I do think that that is usually like a, a factor. It's like you need someone, it's you. Oh, everything even, everything comes out where it's like, oh, the receivers coach has known his father for like 30 years. You know, there's always something like that that like has to push a trade over the edge of. But I don't know. I'm looking fand a lots for offensive player of the year for A.J. brown is 40 to 1. And I'm like, I'm, I'm probably gonna bet that the moment we get off this episode because I'm like, I'm looking at it and like Jackson Smith, the jigba who. I'll find the audio for you guys. I made fun of his Odds last year being the same as Joe Burrows and then JSM won the mv, the offensive player of the year. But like the. I. I don't know. I. I just. I don't think it's very far fetched to think AJ Brown could lead the NFL in yards if he's the centerpiece of a Patriots offense.
- [31:52]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah, I agree. If he's healthy, it could be a huge year. It is. I do think the Eagles. It's like when you just look at this in black and white, I think the Patriots are closer to winning a Super bowl now and I think the Eagles will are further away.
- [32:05]
Danny Kale
Yeah, he's probably right. Okay, so it's big bet on Jalen hurts. And then last thing before we leave, fantasy gut check. This hasn't even happened yet, so it's not even an immediate reaction. It's a pre immediate reaction. Dk, would you like. Who do you think scores more Fantasy Points in 2026? A.J. brown and the Patriots are like CD Lamb.
- [32:23]
Danny Hyphens
Oh, probably would still take CD first.
- [32:27]
Danny Kale
What about Justin Jefferson with Kyler and the Vikings then?
- [32:32]
Danny Hyphens
We're getting close. We're getting close probably. I really like this pairing. Justin Jefferson still by a hair though. I think you're in the right ballpark though, because this is like where we're talking about AJ Brown return to like the elite status like Craig.
- [32:46]
Danny Kale
Are you really going to take Ashton Jensey over AJ Brown in like the top of the second round?
- [32:51]
Craig Horlebeck
It's right there.
- [32:52]
Danny Kale
Yeah. I think it's a high.
- [32:54]
Craig Horlebeck
I think it's right there. I think it's early second.
- [32:56]
Danny Kale
Yeah. Well, I have no idea where other people are ranking. Maybe this is an obvious take, but I. I think he's going to be incredible. Okay, anything else on this Eagles AJ Brown era Patriots off a Super bowl loss?
- [33:08]
Craig Horlebeck
How quickly will Eagles fans freak out if. How many weeks in will it take for Eagles to be like, why the did we trade AJ Brown? Jalen Hurts isn't good. It wasn't AJ Brown's fault.
- [33:20]
Danny Kale
Well, 90 minutes if AJ Brown is a great game against the Seahawks defense in week one. Like 90 minutes.
- [33:24]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah.
- [33:25]
Danny Kale
Yeah. Which I kind of feel like he won't. But Herz, I feel. I don't know. What do you. I feel like Eagles fans would need a month of Herz being bad.
- [33:34]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah.
- [33:35]
Danny Kale
To be like panic to start to
- [33:37]
Danny Hyphens
set in a month in because like you need.
- [33:39]
Danny Kale
It's October.
- [33:42]
Craig Horlebeck
It's just funny because like AJ Brown leaving, it's hard to just look back at Jalen hurts and figure out like what was it? Because we said this before, but the first super bowl against the Chiefs, he was unbelievable. He was outstanding. Every throw he made was perfect. He had the one fumble that was like his only faux paw of the entire game. And then the next two seasons, I feel like he's gotten a lot worse and I don't think it's been A.J. brown's fault and. But then it's like, well, how much are you putting on the offensive line getting worse than not being able to run the ball as well. Kevin Petullo being a terrible play caller and now all that's gone. I, I don't know where I, I land closer to like, I don't think Jalen Hurts is as good as we thought he was, but maybe I'm wrong and it will be like we are underestimating how bad the Kevin Petullo offensive line whole situation was last year. But I lean closer to like Jalen Hurts is more of a middle, middle of the road starting quarterback in the NFL than he is like a pro bowler.
- [34:42]
Danny Kale
He's a very specific quarterback. He's unlike anybody else. He's a literally known for a play that almost got banned for the NFL because it's so easy to run. He also can't throw on the run. He also struggles to throw over the middle, I think because he's a little short. And also his deep ball when it's on is immaculate. It's like Russell Wilson kind of outplayed. I mean, Hertz kind of outplayed Mahomes in the Super Bowl.
- [35:01]
Danny Hyphens
Parallels for Russell Wilson and Hertz are
- [35:04]
Craig Horlebeck
pretty crazy and Russell Wilson did not age super well. No.
- [35:09]
Danny Kale
But. Yeah, we'll see. Okay. Thank you, dk. Thank you, Craig. Eagles fans, Patriots fans, email us in.
- [35:15]
Craig Horlebeck
Who's. Are the Eagles fans gonna be mad at us, you think? Are they gonna be like.
- [35:18]
Danny Kale
Yeah, I mean, we said it was a really good deal for them to get off. It was like a hundred reasons.
- [35:23]
Craig Horlebeck
I think it made sense for both teams in the situations they are currently in.
- [35:27]
Danny Kale
I, I mean, look, if A.J. brown has knee issues going forward, then Eagles fans crushed it. I, I kind of think that it will probably be an immediate win for the Patriots because A.J. brown will play well. But the Eagles getting a first round pick on a guy like that is. They just took a business. Yeah, it just, that's.
- [35:44]
Craig Horlebeck
And you kind of had to get rid of them.
- [35:46]
Danny Kale
Yeah, it had. Yeah. I, I like what you said, Greg, where you're. What did you say earlier? You're like, the Eagles are a worst team without A.J. brown. And also they had to get rid of him.
- [35:54]
Craig Horlebeck
And it's like that sometimes it's run its course and like, there's. There's nothing they could do. And if you can get a first round pick for a guy that you kind of had to get rid of, it's not bad.
- [36:02]
Danny Hyphens
Right?
- [36:04]
Danny Kale
Okay, thank you to always one K. Always open. I hope A.J. brown goes on Instagram life. Thank you, DK. Thank you, Craig. Thank you for listening. Thank you, Cam. Thank you, Abu. Thank you, Carlos. Thank you, Austin. Yeah, email us in if you're fans. If you're also. If you're like one of those fans when a player gets traded in your team and you're just like looking at the news and you're like, how is. I have no idea why people think these things, which is how I felt about the Dexter Lawrence trade. But please email in if you're just bewildered by the general consensus.
- [36:32]
Danny Hyphens
Right.
- [36:33]
Danny Kale
As I was when everyone's like, congrats on losing Dexter Lawrence. And I was like, what a great return. And I'm like, he's like the best defensive tackle in the most important position. I'm like, I hate this, but maybe I'm crazy. All right, thank you, Lord, Lord.
- [36:46]
Danny Hyphens
Thank you, Father John. Misty.
- [36:47]
Craig Horlebeck
Oh, yeah, I saw him once.
- [36:49]
Danny Hyphens
Did you?
- [36:50]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah, he opened. I saw him last year. He opened for Casey Musgraves in LA at the Forum.
- [36:54]
Danny Hyphens
Oh, nice.
- [36:54]
Danny Kale
He opened for K. He's. Wow. I feel like he's big to open for Casey Musgraves.
- [37:00]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah, right there. I don't know, maybe they're friends.
- [37:03]
Danny Kale
Yeah, it's true. I saw him at a. Wow. Some. Yeah, I saw him somewhere in LA because a Hollywood bowler. Forget. He's. He's cool. I also didn't realize that he has accidentally released the last four albums he had on the same weekend as Kendrick Lamar.
- [37:18]
Craig Horlebeck
Oh, really?
- [37:19]
Danny Kale
Is that right? Every album he has? Yeah. No, they don't, though. They don't do it on purpose. Literally when he. Kendrick did gnx, Father John Mystery was like, fuck, I can't believe this happened again. He's like, what the fuck?
- [37:34]
Craig Horlebeck
I couldn't. I was sitting far away. So maybe I'm wrong, but he seemed extremely tall.
- [37:39]
Danny Kale
He does seem like a tall in person. Like a taller in person guy.
- [37:44]
Craig Horlebeck
Real Love Baby is like one of the best songs. That's one of my favorite songs the last 10 years. That song is like the most easy. Listen, throw it on in the car. You're having a great time.
- [37:55]
Danny Kale
That's a good viral I don't think
- [37:57]
Danny Hyphens
I realized that was him.
- [37:58]
Danny Kale
That's good. Viral. Also, the greatest tick tock I've ever seen was to that song.
- [38:03]
Craig Horlebeck
Do you want to describe a tick tock or is that the worst?
- [38:05]
Danny Kale
No, it was the. It was like the. It was the new year. It was like a movie. Shortest movie ever saw.
- [38:10]
Danny Hyphens
About our podcast, we do it a lot.
- [38:12]
Danny Kale
Yeah, it was the New Year's. The person, we're like. It's like a couple and they're dating. And the person so slowly starts to think that, like, the people are being replaced in the video. And he's like, has anyone noticed that? You ever seen the video?
- [38:23]
Craig Horlebeck
I don't think so.
- [38:23]
Danny Kale
I don't know how to. It actually is the best directed tik tok I've ever seen.
- [38:29]
Craig Horlebeck
I hate the lack of monoculture. Sucks. All right, I'm just gonna say it. Everything's too personalized. I hate that most of the time now, someone's like, oh, you know the video. It's like the guy who. He has the turtle and they. They're going. And I'm like, I've never seen that in my life. Like, oh, you know the trend where people are doing that thing where they, like, put on the sweatshirt, they turn. They put it backwards. I'm like, I don't know what you're talking about.
- [38:46]
Danny Hyphens
Make my algorithm.
- [38:46]
Danny Kale
And I can't find the one I want to show you either.
- [38:49]
Craig Horlebeck
Yeah, right.
- [38:49]
Danny Hyphens
I don't know who did it. I don't know what the author is.
- [38:52]
Craig Horlebeck
There's no Google for memes. I don't know how to find it.
- [38:55]
Danny Hyphens
There is. There is a Google for memes, kind
- [38:57]
Craig Horlebeck
of, but, like, not really. Like, if you want to find a TikTok, unless you've already liked it, which is basically the only reason why I like TikToks is just saving them.
- [39:05]
Danny Kale
Yes.
- [39:06]
Craig Horlebeck
It's just bookmarking them. And it's like I live in my little cocoon and I watch my little videos alone and nobody else sees them.
- [39:18]
Danny Kale
Concern for our brains. Okay, did I do the thank you thing again? I did.
- [39:22]
Danny Hyphens
Yeah.
- [39:22]
Danny Kale
Okay.
- [39:23]
Danny Hyphens
Once again, Father John.
- [39:24]
Danny Kale
Misty. Good stuff.
- [39:25]
Craig Horlebeck
Real love, baby.
- [39:26]
Danny Kale
He's good. Real love. Thank you, Lord. Enough.
- [39:33]
Craig Horlebeck
You are losing your mark.
- [39:35]
Danny Hyphens
Worse than me.
- [39:36]
Craig Horlebeck
Oh, it's bad.
- [39:40]
Danny Kale
Goodbye, everyone. Must be 21 plus and present in select states. For Kansas, an affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18 and present in D.C. kentucky or Wyoming. Gambling problem. Call 1-800- GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET. Call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org/chat in Connecticut or visit MD gamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gambling helpline ma.org or call 800-327-5050 for 24. 7 support in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text Hopeny in New York. For Louisiana, call 1-877-77OH, 7867.