- 2 months ago
Washington Commanders Reporter Ben Standig from The Last Man Standig Podcast and Substack joins The Kevin Sheehan Show to analyze the fallout from Laremy Tunsil's triceps injury and how moving Brandon Coleman to left tackle reshashes the offensive line. They also cover key training camp storylines, including a rough day for the kicker competition, secondary depth issues and more!
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00:00Every Monday and Friday and sometimes in between,
00:03Ben Standig is the show's Washington Commander's Insider.
00:08He's at camp every day.
00:10He writes about the team every single day.
00:12I would encourage you to subscribe to his sub stack called Last Man Standig.
00:17You can link to it very easily if you follow him on X at Ben Standig.
00:24He joins us right now.
00:26Wow, that was a blow on Saturday.
00:29They moved quickly, and I think you were one of the first to report it,
00:32if not the first, that they were moving to Brandon Coleman.
00:35But just give me your reaction to what you've kind of felt in the wake of this kind of injury
00:44because I think if we had done a segment, which I had planned on doing at some point during camp,
00:50who's the player they can ill afford to lose more than any other on the team, not named Jaden?
00:54I think Tunsil would have been the answer for a lot of people.
00:58So, how is everybody dealing with this loss, and what do you make of it?
01:04Yeah, well, I'll just go.
01:05Quick plug, it's 20% off an annual subscription for the next 72 hours.
01:10Just go to lastmanstandig.substack.com.
01:13Cool.
01:13All right.
01:14So, I did a story like a week or so ago.
01:17Like, who were they?
01:17It was a period when Alegrady and John Bates went out.
01:21You're looking at, you know, what happens if those guys are out.
01:24I'm like, okay, I think this is a good time to do the who are the most indispensable players on
01:27the team list.
01:28I do it kind of every year.
01:29Yeah.
01:29And this was before the Diggs signing, so I had Jaden 1, McLaurin 2, Tunsil 3.
01:36But then once the Diggs signing happens, I would have flipped McLaurin and Tunsil.
01:40So, yes, I mean, it is impossible to overstate what's going on here.
01:46It isn't just the one position.
01:47It's not just you have this guy who's going up against some elite pass rusher, and that's the focus.
01:54It's way more than that.
01:55It's the idea of, okay, we don't have to send any extra help over there.
01:59We can send it to some other place because we know he's going to be fine.
02:03We know that any play we design with Laramie Tunsil involved, it's going to get executed to the highest degree.
02:10Obviously, even, you know, the quarterback, you know, not that Jaden necessarily has happy feet,
02:14but, you know, you're going to have it less when that guy's over there than not.
02:19And then there's even ripple effects down to the bench, which is the whole other story now.
02:24So, yeah, I mean, it's impossible to overstate how big of a loss this is.
02:31I do think they're a little bit fortunate in that the guy who's coming in, I think, can play the
02:35position.
02:36Not every team has a viable backup left tackle, but, yeah, it is not the same thing to lose Tunsil.
02:43I mean, look, just from the pure investment standpoint, they make the trade for him a year ago,
02:47give up a net free draft pick.
02:49They sign him this offseason to a two-year, $60 million extension, all fine.
02:55And so there's this huge investment you make, and it blows up in your face for no reason.
02:59You can't do anything about it.
03:01And this is part of the nature of football.
03:02And in this case, this absolutely sucks.
03:07I've seen the video, but for those that haven't, just describe how it happened for everybody.
03:13Yeah, so he's going up in a one-on-one against Owe.
03:17It looks like Owe was just coming at him and sort of threw at his arm towards Tunsil
03:23and it looks like he just hit him on the left arm.
03:27Tunsil immediately kind of grabs at it.
03:30But, you know, I'm not a medical expert.
03:32My first thought was maybe more bicep, but, okay, it was the tricep.
03:35And Tunsil sort of, the video we saw was just some fan shooting it, so it didn't stay with Tunsil.
03:40It looked like he was sort of about to crouch down a little bit, like, you know, he's in some
03:43legit pain.
03:45And then, you know, I was watching a different part of the field at that moment,
03:48but he went into the tent right by the field, and he only stayed in there for a moment
03:53and went back straight up into the building, which, you know,
03:57seemed to suggest there may be something more going on, but you never know.
04:00And then there was the initial report from NFL Network that doesn't seem like it's a big deal,
04:06but then, obviously, it went completely sideways once they do the actual testing.
04:12So it seemed like there wasn't really much of a doubt in the minds of Dan Quinn, Stapleton,
04:21the offensive line coaches, you know, et cetera, on what the plan would be to move Coleman to that spot.
04:29Do you think they gave anything else that much consideration?
04:33I mean, we heard the Quinn soundbite about Connerly and the possibility of that,
04:37and he didn't want the shuffling, but they seemed like they moved quickly and confidently.
04:43Is that fair to describe it that way or not?
04:47I think so.
04:48I mean, I'm sure, because I go to anything else, they do their due diligence,
04:50but to me it was the only move that made any sense.
04:53I've seen people say, oh, they don't trust Connerly to move up there.
04:56No.
04:57Like, right tackle is kind of important.
04:59It's not a number of position or anything.
05:02It's important.
05:02So he's there, and because Tunsell is going to be back at some point,
05:06and maybe it's next year, you don't want to disrupt everything.
05:09So they're leaving Connerly there for him to continue to be the starting tackle,
05:13which is important.
05:15And, yeah, if you move Connerly, now you're – and you say you're moving Coleman to right tackle,
05:19well, now you're affecting two positions instead of just the one.
05:22And so I don't imagine that.
05:26And then in terms of adding somebody, you know, Taylor Decker, the former Lion,
05:30is still a free agent.
05:33I think he had some sort of a contract issue with the Lions,
05:35and that led to his release.
05:37But, you know, I checked with somebody who covers that team,
05:39and they're like his shoulders are pretty messed up.
05:42Maybe he can play and power through it because these guys are maniacs.
05:46But he's still out there.
05:47I mean, if he was a viable guy, somebody would have signed him by now.
05:49You know what I mean?
05:52So it's reputation that you're banking on.
05:55And, again, maybe he would be fine.
05:57Maybe to a degree if you have Coleman at left guard, that would be better.
06:00But it's not like, oh, this is some panacea.
06:03But with Coleman, again, he played the last three games last year at tackle.
06:07They got to see it.
06:08You know, and I think there was legitimate improvement over what we saw the
06:13previous year with him at the same position.
06:16So, you know, I don't think there's any question that he has the tools
06:19to get the job done.
06:20He's very, very athletic for a guy his size, smart kid.
06:25I think last year one of the issues was he was missing a lot of time in
06:28practice with injuries.
06:30And, you know, I'm not going to say somebody should play through pain,
06:33but I think there was some degree of like, hey, man,
06:35like you've got to have to play through some pain here because we need you.
06:39And if you're not going to be able to do that, then, you know,
06:41what are we going to do?
06:42And then on top of it, he was kind of struggling at guard as well.
06:45So, you know, if he's – if that part of his game has been raised up,
06:49the, you know, playing through whatever, then I think that's a huge deal.
06:54I will also say that, you know, we're talking about the left tackle position
06:57because that's where Tunsell played.
06:59I think this is potentially a huge impact on Chris Paul at left guard.
07:03Chris Paul came out of nowhere last year to have a pretty solid year,
07:06really good as a pass blocker.
07:07And, you know, in talking to him last year and talking to Tunsell,
07:11like that relationship was a big deal, both from like a mentor,
07:14mentee standpoint, but also, like, again, like Chris Paul last year
07:19had Tunsell to his left, Tyler Biotis to his right.
07:21Those are – you know, Tunsell's obviously an elite player.
07:23Biotis is a solid player.
07:24And that helps you so much when you're a guy who didn't have a lot of experience.
07:29Now you've got Coleman to the left.
07:32Allegretti at some point will be back out there.
07:34But right now it's obviously not the case.
07:36And, you know, now Chris Paul's going to be more exposed
07:39because he doesn't have that safety net of having a Tunsell there.
07:42So how that unfolds is a big deal as well.
07:46You know, so, yeah, I mean, that's what I'm saying.
07:48The ripple effects go just beyond who's playing left tackle.
07:52Yeah, no, that's really, really good stuff.
07:55And I think also, you know, and I discussed it earlier in the show,
07:59I think there was a lot going on with their feelings about Brandon Coleman.
08:04He did a nice job as a rookie.
08:06And certainly when you come off a season, Ben, in which you win 12 games
08:10and you're 60 minutes away from the Super Bowl,
08:12and it's the offensive side of the football that's the – you know,
08:16had the majority responsibility for the success in 2024,
08:22and you drafted the rookie that stepped in at left tackle and played
08:26and played adequately enough.
08:27You know, you're not typically going out aggressively to get – now, look,
08:34Tunsell's availability and that opportunity was there,
08:37but there was something that we as fans sometimes don't catch about what they see
08:45or what they feel about the player, at least at that point in his career
08:49and his readiness to be a full-time left tackle and a full-time protector
08:54of their number one asset, their quarterback.
08:59So I think there was a lot going on.
09:01I think you'd agree with their decision to trade for Tunsell,
09:05eventually the decision to move Coleman inside,
09:07and then, as you mentioned, the further decision eventually to move Paul
09:14into Coleman's spot.
09:16But he's 25, and it sounds like they feel like he's grown in a lot of different ways,
09:21and they're confident in putting him in there.
09:24Well, not just that.
09:25They drafted Josh Connerly in the first round.
09:27Yes.
09:27A month after getting comfortable.
09:29They really went all in on offensive tackle.
09:32And, again, to be fair, a lot of people pre-draft in 2024 thought Coleman
09:36would be best served at guard.
09:38Yes.
09:38So, you know, just like we went through this with Brandon Scherf a few years ago,
09:41you know, maybe they were like, okay, we see that as well.
09:44We think he can be a lead guard.
09:45Let's do that.
09:46But you could tell, like, to the point of, like,
09:48they may see something that we don't.
09:50In that week two last year, they benched Allegretti from guard.
09:54Okay.
09:54Well, like, you know, Allegretti is a guy who's, you know, been around,
09:58a bit of a journeyman, you know, not a huge deal.
10:01Okay.
10:02But then to bench Coleman, a guy who did, you know, have a bit of an investment
10:07and a guy who does seem like some upside,
10:08it felt like that was much more about more than, like, more, you know,
10:12whatever PFF grades are going to tell us.
10:14And, you know, again, I think Coleman has – I think he's a really nice kid.
10:20This is a quick, like, anecdote.
10:22So, last year when I was doing my survey at the end of the year with the players
10:25and one of the questions was, if you only get one Pro Bowl spot,
10:28who would you pick for this team?
10:30A lot of people went console, you know.
10:32Brandon Coleman went with Chris Paul.
10:33And he gave me all the reasons that Chris Paul well.
10:36And I said to him, like, dude, I've got to be honest with you,
10:38I think you're a bigger man than me.
10:40I don't know that I'd be able to point to the guy who replaced me.
10:44He's like, well, look, it's not his fault.
10:45I mean, he didn't do anything.
10:46He did a good job.
10:47And, you know, I see it like I see it.
10:48And, you know, to me there was a certain amount of maturity there.
10:51There's a certain overly niceness, you know, about the kid.
10:55He works hard, smiles a lot.
10:56But, you know, now it's just a matter of, hey, you're a huge guy.
11:02Be a huge guy on the field and take advantage of the tools you have
11:05and get after it.
11:07So, yeah, I mean, look, the offensive line in general,
11:11when we talk all this offseason, they've got to get more help at receiver.
11:14They need more help at corner.
11:15They did those things.
11:16The offensive line now is a huge question mark.
11:18And, again, it's not just that Tuntles out,
11:20but it exposes the issues they have of other spots, including the depth.
11:24So, very much a work in progress,
11:27and I'm sure Adam Peters is trying to figure out some solutions.
11:30All right.
11:31Talking to Ben Standig.
11:33So, Trey Amos got banged up Saturday as well.
11:37I played the, you know, the Dan Quinn sound on that.
11:41But is there – are you hearing anything?
11:42Is there any real concern about him?
11:46Well, I mean, you know, it's not like Quinn definitively said
11:49he'll be back in like a day.
11:51Right.
11:51It kind of was like, you know, we'll see where we're at in a couple days
11:55and whatever.
11:56And, obviously, you know, you said ankle,
11:57but this is, of course, a player that just literally, you know,
12:00two days prior had just gotten off the pup list following his broken leg
12:06he had last season.
12:08So, maybe these things are not related.
12:09But, at the same time, it's hard to wonder, you know,
12:12is there something there?
12:13So, yeah, I mean, I think there's at least some kind of a question.
12:15And, you know, I just mentioned, you know, they added Rasul Douglas with Trey Amos.
12:20You know, they got Mikey Sanders still and Meek Robertson.
12:22Like, okay, a little solid little quartet.
12:25You know, maybe, you know, we can quibble about this or that.
12:27But, you know, you take Trey Amos out of that, and now all of a sudden,
12:31you know, I don't even know who the fourth corner is necessarily.
12:33The guy who might have been the next man up retired.
12:38So, yeah, it's definitely a question.
12:41And, you know, hopefully this is just one of those deals,
12:44and it's not a big matter.
12:47But considering, again, that this was a guy who had missed, you know,
12:51months with a different injury, it's like, ooh, okay, well, hopefully these things
12:56are not related and it's just random.
12:58But, yeah, you've got to be a little bit concerned.
13:00But, like I said, I mean, my guess would be we probably don't see him this week,
13:03meaning practice and the Miami joint practice would be a guess.
13:08That's just a guess.
13:09But, you know, that's unfortunate.
13:12Yeah.
13:13Witherspoon is the player that Ben was referring to in terms of the player
13:17that retired that happened last week.
13:19I'll get to your 53-man projection, your first one here in a moment.
13:25But apparently the first really bad day for the kickers today.
13:29Can you share with us how bad it really was?
13:34Yeah.
13:34So they did the same situation they've been doing.
13:37Start around, like, the 31, 32, and then each kicker goes consecutively.
13:43Today they only did five kicks.
13:44Usually it's been six.
13:45They go back five yards and keep going.
13:48And Moody, he made the first one and then proceeded to miss four straight.
13:52And that is real.
13:55I mean, you know, that's hard to do for these guys, you know, four straight.
14:00And I think at that moment we were all like, okay, well, I don't know.
14:04We can stop debating about this competition.
14:07Except that Drew Stevens, who has been pretty lights out most of camp,
14:11no matter the distance, he proceeds to miss three of five.
14:15So, I don't know.
14:16Maybe we got to check in on the holder.
14:18I'm kidding.
14:19But, like, something was amiss today that just had not been there to that degree.
14:24So, you know, again, Stevens has been pretty efficient, lights out for the most of camp.
14:30So, hopefully that's just a one-off and maybe there was something weird going on
14:35in terms of the field or the ball.
14:37I have no idea.
14:38But, yeah, not a good day.
14:39And Moody has missed now a ton of kicks in the last, I think, four practices
14:44where the kickers were at were involved.
14:46And, you know, it feels to me like that competition is getting to the point of not a big one.
14:52I mean, as long as Stevens doesn't sort of, you know, vomit all over himself
14:55in the actual preseason games, and I don't think he will.
14:58He's just a pretty confident kid.
15:00But I feel like he's kind of taking this job right now.
15:04Do they practice the kickoffs enough to know if there's an advantage
15:09with one or the other on kickoffs?
15:12Because it is a true specialty now.
15:15Yeah.
15:15No, they really haven't now.
15:17Again, maybe they're doing it away from us.
15:19But when we see special teams, and sometimes they do have it where the returners are in the game,
15:24it's often like somebody just throws the ball down the field
15:28or they're not doing those types of kicks.
15:31Now, I'm sure they're working on it to some end.
15:33And you're right.
15:34That is a huge deal.
15:35It isn't just the old days where they'll kick the ball out of the end zone and call it a
15:38day.
15:39You've got to get it inside the 20 there and all that.
15:43So, I can't tell you for sure what's going on.
15:45I guess we'll probably get to see it against Miami, as soon as they score a little bit.
15:51But, yeah, no, it's a good question.
15:53So, yeah, that would be another variable.
15:55But, again, you'd like to imagine that it can't be that big of a deal for him to learn how
16:00to do that.
16:01Joint practice on Wednesday, the game on Friday night.
16:05I forget what Quinn's told us the last two years leading up to the first preseason game.
16:11Has he revealed starters' minutes prior to the first preseason game the last two summers or not?
16:19I mean, a little bit.
16:21I mean, let's not forget, Jaden Daniels, the play that to me was the most important play of the Jaden
16:26Daniels era
16:27was the preseason game when he audible that they wanted a simple, yeah, simple.
16:32I was like, oh, okay, this kid's got some moxie.
16:35So, you know, they did have, obviously, the starters in.
16:38Then, I asked him today, like, in light of the Tunsil situation,
16:41does it give you any trepidation about using guys?
16:44And he's like, no.
16:45I mean, look, it's football.
16:46It's contact.
16:47These things are going to happen.
16:49So, how much are they going to go with the starters in this game?
16:52I mean, honestly, I still would kind of bet not much in light of what we're doing.
16:57What we're discussing here.
16:59Look, again, even if, let's just say Jaden goes out there,
17:01you're currently looking at a center in Julian Good-Jones,
17:06who I didn't even put on my 53.
17:07Maybe I'm wrong, but, you know, I don't know that he's making the team.
17:11And then you have two guys on the left side who are, well, one guy is learning,
17:14you know, getting back out to a position he hasn't played all summer.
17:18So, the most ideal scenario to throw him out there.
17:21At the same time, you know, are you going to play Stephon Diggs?
17:24It would be good to get some chemistry there.
17:25By the way, that combination already looks pretty mid-season for me.
17:30In practice, Diggs is so smooth getting open.
17:33So, that's a good sign.
17:34But, yeah, no, we don't know for sure.
17:37I mean, basically, Quinn said they're going to have a conversation internally
17:41to figure out what they want to do.
17:42And the joint practice comes first.
17:45So, I think a lot of it also will come down to do they feel they accomplished
17:48what they wanted to in the joint practice.
17:50And if they do, then maybe they don't see the point of bringing Jaden or others
17:55onto the field.
17:57Talking to, of course, our team insider, Ben Standing.
18:01I read this quote from Quinn last hour.
18:03And I just thought it was interesting because I know somebody specifically asked him
18:08about Trelon Burks.
18:09But he gave, you know, a pretty lengthy answer.
18:13He does that on occasion.
18:14I'm not saying that he doesn't have a lot.
18:16But sometimes it's not, you know, of substance.
18:20I thought this was.
18:21I'm wondering.
18:23I don't even know who asked him this question.
18:24Maybe you did.
18:25But he said, you know, first of all, Burks came in leaner.
18:29And he's got more speed than he previously had.
18:33He's routinely one of our top speed guys at practice.
18:36He can really cover ground.
18:39He's been working kick returns, punt returns.
18:42But at that Z position, which for those of you who don't know, that's the other outside
18:48receiver.
18:50Terry would be the X.
18:51The other outside would be the Z.
18:53He writes, we really feel his impact.
18:55Deep routes, in-breaking routes.
18:57He's got a long catch radius.
19:00And that's the thing that you feel on a regular basis.
19:03And he went on and on and on.
19:05But I just, when I read that, because I read the transcripts if I don't hear the press
19:11conferences, that he's working on kick returns and punt returns.
19:15I just wondered whether or not that's so that if it comes down to him or Lane or him or
19:21McCaffrey, that he's got that ability as well.
19:25Did you make anything of Quinn's response the other day about Traylon Burks?
19:31I think the return part is just purely in case of emergency, like last year when they had
19:35to throw Mikey Sanders still in.
19:36I think it's more just that.
19:37I can't comprehend.
19:38Didn't he fumble against the Dolphins in Madrid?
19:41Sanders still?
19:41Yeah.
19:42He did.
19:42Yeah.
19:43I can't imagine a guy with Burks' injury history that they would expose in that regard.
19:47They have other guys.
19:49Okay.
19:50But, you know, that aside, yeah, look, I, the thing was, you know, so they bring in
19:54Diggs, and at this point of Diggs' career, it looks like he's probably going to be more
19:58of a slot guy than he is an outside guy.
20:00And they already have Antonio Williams, Jalen Lane, and Luke McCaffrey, all of whom seemingly
20:05are best served coming out of the slot.
20:07So now all of a sudden it's like, well, wait, who is going to be on that other side?
20:10And then obviously they'll mix and match, and Diggs will be there.
20:13But Burks is one of the few guys that they have who can really, well, not one of the few,
20:17but he's one of the guys that can play that spot, and it gives you something unique because
20:22he's a tall guy, vertical ability.
20:25I've heard he's hit 22 miles an hour running in camp.
20:29So, yeah, I mean, I get it.
20:32I mean, I think in my 53 that you mentioned, I have them keeping seven receivers.
20:38It pains me to not include Van Deverson because I think he's been, other than McCorn, maybe
20:43the best receiver out here practice after practice.
20:45But I think with Diggs, I think there's a lot of duplication now between these guys,
20:49and Burks gives you something a little bit more unique.
20:52So, yeah, I can see them keeping Burks.
20:54It is also possible he may have to figure out how to play on special teams because if
20:58he's going to be active, right, Terry's not special teams, Diggs is in special teams.
21:03All the other receivers might need to be just from a numbers game.
21:07So maybe he's got to figure out a niche.
21:08But, yeah, I mean, I totally understand why they would be, you know, excited for what he
21:14can do because it's at least unique relative to the other guys they have.
21:17Well, I think that in addition to the kick and punt return part catching my ear was just
21:24that he's been one of the best speed guys in camp.
21:27That's not what I would have thought going into camp.
21:33Yeah, no, I mean, I had heard, like, last year when they signed him that he had, you
21:36know, been clocked in that 22-mile-an-hour range.
21:39I mean, that's why he's such a tantalizing guy because, you know, look, he was a first-round
21:44pick, you know, the same year Jahan Dodson was.
21:46This isn't a guy that just – it's not like Jaden Bradley who we're all talking about to
21:51a degree who's a UDFA.
21:52We're probably all overstating what he is.
21:54Burks is a guy that, hey, was a first-round pick, justifiably so, but injuries kind of just
21:58direct him, and at Tennessee he didn't always have good quarterback play, so there is a
22:03huge upside here if it clicks.
22:05The issue has been his health for the most part.
22:07Also, I would say, like, sort of play-to-play consistency.
22:11The thing here is, though, like now, especially with Diggs, they don't need him to be out there
22:14all the time.
22:15They just need him out there in certain circumstances, and yes, with his ability to make, you know,
22:22to make ball – to make plays with the ball in his hands and get down the field, that's
22:26obviously a huge deal.
22:27The lack of playmaking was a big problem last year, and even, you know, at points this
22:31offseason, we were all kind of like, eh, I don't know if they have enough, but now if
22:34Burks is all of a sudden your third or fourth receiver and he's healthy, yeah, that's a
22:38huge weapon potentially for this team, especially, again, when Diggs and McLaurin aren't the
22:43biggest guys, to have a guy like that would definitely be a weapon, but he's got to stay
22:48healthy, and hopefully the consistency that he's shown somewhat, I think for the most part
22:52here in camp can remain.
22:54Burks ran coming out of Tennessee before that draft.
22:58He ran a 4-5-5-40, not necessarily a blazer for sure.
23:04All right, I wanted – oh, on your 53-man, was receiver the hardest position, or was there
23:10another position harder to determine the spots?
23:15Yeah, I mean, typically I only keep six, just in a general sense.
23:19This time I went for seven because, like I said, I just think that these guys have all
23:23looked pretty good.
23:23I think I said, like, De'Ami Brown I wanted to put as a lock because I know how much
23:28Quinn
23:28likes him.
23:28He helps on special teams.
23:29He could play the X when McLaurin's off the field, but, you know, he was maybe having a
23:33little bit quieter of a camp relative to some of the other guys, and then the first play
23:37of practice today, he gets a 40-yard play down the field from Jaden.
23:41So, scratch off the quiet part.
23:43So, yeah, I mean, it was a little tough.
23:45Like I said, last year, not only is Van Jefferson making the team, I might have had him starting.
23:50You know, and this year, I just don't know if there's going to be room for him.
23:54But the other one is the offensive line because from a – obviously the Tunzel situation,
23:59but when you look at the depths and you factor in that Dan Quinn just the other day said
24:03the reason they brought in a bunch of veterans free agents is because he wanted to see more
24:08competition out of that group.
24:09And they didn't just bring in guys who are like camp bodies.
24:12They brought in three guys who have played over a combined 200 games in the NFL and started
24:16over 100.
24:17So, like he's looking – they're looking for more than just, you know, help to get through
24:22the summer.
24:23And because of the fact that Tunzel just got hurt and these guys basically haven't done
24:27anything yet, I'm like, I don't even have to justify who anybody would be for the ninth
24:32spot, the last spot in the offensive line.
24:33And so, I left the TBD because I'm like, this isn't a cop-out.
24:38I'm like, I've got to see these guys play.
24:40Like, you know, clearly they didn't like something.
24:42So, if I'm just going to put down the names of the guys who are here, that seems like that's
24:46going against what they're kind of looking at right now.
24:48All right, I'm going to end with this because several people sent this to me over the weekend
24:54and I know you tweeted it out as well.
24:56Stefan Diggs on social media tweeted out, essentially, you got to help me, guys, get number seven.
25:06He wants to wear number seven.
25:08He's wearing 18 in camp.
25:10There's no number 18.
25:12Other numbers that he's worn in the NFL, 14, the rookie Antonio Williams is wearing that.
25:16Eight, he wore that last year.
25:18That's Marcus Mariota's number one.
25:20He's worn that in Houston.
25:23And, by the way, that was his college number at Maryland.
25:25Rashad White is wearing that.
25:28So, are they going to give him Joe Theismann's jersey number?
25:33I mean, that was a big mistake with Dwayne Haskins.
25:36God rest his soul.
25:38Snyder completely effed that up.
25:40Seven ways to Sunday to put that on Joe.
25:42I thought it was despicable what Snyder did.
25:45Just disgraceful to put that on Joe.
25:49But, you know, Dwayne Haskins was Dan's pick and he wanted to please him.
25:54And Haskins won in number seven and he put Joe on the spot.
25:57And Joe didn't want to look like, you know, look like a jerk by saying no,
26:01even though the entire fan base, I think, would have supported Joe in that moment.
26:05So, is that what he's – he wants number seven, right?
26:09He wants number seven.
26:11Will the team give it to him?
26:14Well, you know, I think to your point of it being a disgrace.
26:18Like, his number is one of those that's, like, been unofficially retired, right?
26:22It's been a protected jersey.
26:24Now we're retiring jerseys, so they may think differently about that.
26:27That's why I'm asking you.
26:28What do you think?
26:29Yeah, I mean, I think if they're going to play the bit of we're keeping certain numbers out
26:34and then just because somebody asks for it doesn't mean we should change our mind,
26:38they have to make that decision.
26:39Like, they should not be putting it on Theismann.
26:42They should say, hey, you know, we've reconsidered the policy
26:44and we're starting to retire numbers and, you know, at some point we run out of numbers.
26:49So, we're going to make all these numbers now available and, therefore, if Diggs wants seven, so be it.
26:55But if it's going to be like, hey, Joe, what do you think?
26:57Nah, screw that.
26:58Like, don't put this on the guy.
27:00Because, yeah, I mean, what is Joe going to do?
27:02I have seen a lot of pushback from people saying, no, don't do that.
27:05That's, you know, sacrilegious.
27:07But I'm sure there are a lot of people going, oh, come on, give him what he wants, make him
27:10happy.
27:11We need him to play.
27:12So, yeah, I just hope that whatever happens, they don't put it on Theismann.
27:16And, yeah, you know, I don't know, you know, if the question at some point is,
27:20should he have the actual number retired?
27:23I mean, he won the Super Bowl the first one.
27:26He won an MVP.
27:27You know, he was, you know, a huge piece of the Joe Gibbs getting this thing going.
27:31But, you know, I don't know that we're talking about retirement there.
27:36But, again, if you're going to hold it out, then hold it out.
27:39Like, don't, again, don't put it on the player.
27:42Look, I've done this, you know, a hundred times over the years, even before they decided to start retiring numbers.
27:49Joe's on the debatable list for me.
27:52He's not a given.
27:52The no debaters are Sonny, Daryl Green, Sammy Baugh, Riggo, Bobby Mitchell, and Art Monk.
27:59There's one left on the no debate list, and that's Charlie Taylor.
28:03Charlie Taylor's jersey should be the one that goes in next year and gets retired.
28:07And then after that, you know, Joe's jersey and Larry Brown's and Chris Hamburger's and Jake's and Russ Grimm's and
28:15Ken Houston's.
28:16Those are, you know, jerseys that can be debated.
28:19And I wouldn't have a problem with any one of those being retired.
28:25I just don't think it's a no debate.
28:27I think there's a debate there.
28:28I gave you the seven that, to me, are no debates.
28:31Obviously, Sean Taylor's jerseys retired as well.
28:34But it should still be a protected jersey, and it should not be given to Stefan Diggs, in my opinion.
28:40And to your point, beyond that, the team has to make that decision and not put it back on Joe.
28:47That is the cowardly way out, and it's unfair to Joe.
28:51You're the organization.
28:52You choose which numbers get retired and which get protected.
28:56If we're protecting jerseys, Joe's jersey's at the top of the list of the remaining jerseys that haven't been protected,
29:03other than Charlie Taylor.
29:0442 should be retired, actually.
29:07And Joe should be protected, and Stefan needs another number, not seven.
29:12That's my opinion.
29:14I agree.
29:15As you were going through it, I couldn't think of any other players that I would say should be on
29:19the new Dallas.
29:19I mean, you know, we want to discuss Doc Walker, 88, maybe.
29:23But other than that, no, I mean, I'm with you.
29:28Obviously, it took a long time to get some of this done.
29:30They're getting the numbers done.
29:31Whether Taylor is retired next year or, you know, soon, that should be the one.
29:36And then, yeah, like you said, after that, we can have some debates.
29:39But, yeah, either the numbers are available or they're not.
29:43At some point, it does become tough.
29:45I mean, you can't, you know, you run out of numbers.
29:49Yeah, of course.
29:50But that's why you also make it, you know, very difficult to get a jersey retired.
29:58And they have retired the appropriate jerseys.
30:01Sean Taylor's was very much a debatable, and that's more to the discretion of the owner at the time
30:06because of the circumstances surrounding Sean's career and life, obviously.
30:12But, no, there can still be some protecteds.
30:15Joe's would be at the top of that list after Charlie Taylor.
30:18Hopefully next year.
30:18I would guess that 42 is going to be retired next year.
30:21And then, you know, Diggs said via social media,
30:27y'all got to help me get the GOAT, Theisman, to bless me with that number seven.
30:33That's what he wrote on his Instagram story requesting to wear number seven.
30:40Personally, I think he should wear 14 and tell the rookie to find another number.
30:46That makes sense to me.
30:48I couldn't figure out why seven.
30:50And somebody told me he had a dog, that the dog's name was seven.
30:54I don't know if that's accurate.
30:55No, it's his good counsel number.
30:57It's his high school number.
30:58Oh, is that what it is?
30:59Oh, okay.
30:59Yeah.
31:00Yeah.
31:01He wore seven good counsel.
31:03Yeah.
31:03I mean, you know, again, yeah, I kind of wish he had not done it that way,
31:07but it is what it is with him.
31:10Look, this isn't a big deal to some out there listening.
31:14That's fine.
31:15You know, Ben is to a certain extent.
31:19I am to a certain extent.
31:21You know, we understand the team's history and what's important to a long-time passionate
31:27fan base that has dwindled, obviously, in recent years.
31:31But this is something that I think is a bit of a test for ownership.
31:35You know, I think that you do not go to Joe.
31:39This is not Joe's decision.
31:41You don't put it in the hand.
31:42That's unfair to Joe.
31:43It was unfair last time.
31:45And that's number one.
31:48Number two is I think the right decision is to protect it and tell Stefan he's got to get another
31:52number.
31:53And if he wants 14, I mean, come on.
31:56Antonio Williams has never taken an NFL snap.
31:59He can wear 18.
32:00And Stefan can wear 14.
32:02Or Stefan can pay for 14.
32:06Or, you know, one or whatever else he wants to wear.
32:09All right.
32:09I got to run.
32:10Thanks.
32:11See ya.
32:12Ben Standing, everybody.