From The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny: A Pat on the Back for New England and other winners of the 2025 Draft, Apr 28, 2025

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mina-kimes-show-featuring-lenny/id1437647915?i=1000705245053&r=1347

MINA: All right, who's your next team?

BEN SOLAK: Yeah, there was a very good NFL analyst, I can't remember who it was, who said, "Whoever team Jihad Campbell falls to is gonna get the steal of the first round!”

Certainly, it's a Howie season pick. He fell, whatever. He had like a labrum. We all knew he was gonna fall to some degree.

It's more to me like a Vic Fangio season pick, in the sense that Campbell was recruited to Alabama as an edgerusher. He was a very high caliber edgerusher recruit. They didn't have room for him in the edgeroom. They kicked him to stack linebacker. They needed help there. And he really emerged and blossomed. But it's still not yet like a finished product there. It's like, okay, clearly he's a stack linebacker. There are several teams for whom if they drafted Campbell, the plan would be tricky to figure out. How many snaps are gonna give it to him? Where are we gonna get them?

MINA: We need to print it. With Zach Baun the plan is already there. The blueprint exists. That's so infuriating.

BEN SOLAK: It's a harder blueprint to copy than you would think. And when you have one of the progenitors, Vic Fangio with Baun was incredible. Fangio was there for Roquon Smith coming out of Georgia and getting him there. Fangio was with Navarro Bowman and Patrick Willis in San Francisco. Fangio was very, very good for stack linebackers, for off-ball linebackers. He understands how to work with those players.

And so the way Roseman talks about Campbell, they're going to give him a lot of edge looks. That's kind of where they need snaps right now. But Nakobe Dean is coming off a major injury.

He is a rising free agent. Campbell's also going to get looks at stack linebacker. I have a lot of faith that they're going to get that guy right.”

From The Mina Kimes Show featuring Lenny: A Pat on the Back for New England and other winners of the 2025 Draft, Apr 28, 2025

https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/the-mina-kimes-show-featuring-lenny/id1437647915?i=1000705245053&r=1347

BEN SOLAK: Following Campbell, it was Andrew Makuba, the safety out of Texas, who was just one of my favorite players in the class.

MINA: So, yeah, sorry to interrupt you, but I didn't talk about him at all in the defensive pod with Deontay, because he's not a first-rounder. He is a maniac. I wish I did because I did love watching him.He is an absolute lunatic out there. I mean, sometimes it gets, the phrase plays with their hair on fire, it gets overused when you watch players like this. I cannot believe.

Yeah, he's just an awesome fit for this defense.

BEN SOLAK: The way that Chauncey Gardner-Johnson is coded in terms of like, "I’m not the biggest player on the field, but I'm the biggest player on the field.” A lot of fight in that dog. It's the exact same way Makuba is coded.

Now, Makuba is even smaller than Chauncey was. We're talking about a player who's 180 pounds. He's one of the smallest wingspans of any defense back in combat for the last 25 years.

But Howie has historically given these guys shots. Graylen Arnold was super small and super short. Josiah Scott was super small and super short. Well, he has stubby arms. The Eagles bring them in and make them work. He's going to be in that Chauncey role.

Makuba will be sometime in the slot, sometime in the box, and they have a thumper in Sidney Brown. So they'll bring him along slowly. I love the intelligence on the player. I love the intensity on the player. He's a really smart player too. I was so pleased when they got him.”

No Jaken Hurts there.

51 minutes ago, RememberTheKoy said:

No Jaken Hurts there.

They know the Eagles drafted his replacement this year and his time is limited

12 hours ago, Iggles_Phan said:

They don't worry me either. But they don't play all the snaps. The Eagles use a heavy rotation. Who plays the other snaps and produces?

Don’t forget Bryce Huff in a contract year!

12 hours ago, Iggles_Phan said:

That covers the loss of Milton Williams. Who is going to offer what Josh Sweat and Brandon Graham brought? I am less optimistic about EDGE. They added Uche, Ojulari and APR. And Campbell might get some snaps there.

OLB not Edge. The positions are almost interchangeable because OLBs are going to have similar gap assignments, most of the time. When the Eagles play 3 DL, the lineup might include Carter, and/or Robinson, Ojomo, Booker at DE positions (with Hall, Young competing) and with any combination of one or two of the OLBs or ILBs rushing. Richardson is likely one of the starting OLBs. I figure Hunt has the inside track at the other starting OLB based on his play to close the season. I figure Ojulari, Huff (make or break for him) and APR are fighting for the back up roles (with Henry and Uche trying to compete).

13 hours ago, BigEFly said:

Of the UDFA WRs, Morin got most of the discussion. But Cooper had better performance at college. I suspect Darius Cooper is a candidate for the PS. Prolific receiver at Tarleton State, who apparently went the Q route and stayed when bigger schools came calling. Just became a receiver in college. Was a QB in HS. Smart kid, was an Academic All American. Typical of smaller schools, not a lot of routes in the offense so still has some learning to do. Okay but not blazing speed. (4.49)

Found this write up from his school.

Texan News Service

From overlooked believer to best kept secret: Darius Coop...

How Darius Cooper started his career in football and where he's going to go.

Darius Cooper has the NFL in his sites

I have never heard of Texas New Service. Do all the articles use poor or incorrect English?

It is like a post from EMB. 😶

8 hours ago, RememberTheKoy said:

No Jaken Hurts there.

He's on his honeymoon in Asia.

Popped on some highlights from LIX this morning to have in the background while I finish up a few things. A very underrated call from the game is when the Chiefs get the ball back down 37-6.

Burkhart: So here’s Mahomes. What’s he got left? Pressure again. Decked. Ball is out! Aaaaaaand the Eagles have it! Milton Williams with the strip sack!

33 minutes ago, Arsenal79 said:

Don’t forget Bryce Huff in a contract year!

I am hoping that APR shows in OTAs and TC that he is a keeper for the 53 man roster. If that happens, then Howie can comfortably seek s trade of Huff to a designated pass rusher hungry team.

The Eagles scouts are almost surely scouting the 31 teams to identify which ones fall into that designated pass rusher hungry category.

17 minutes ago, pallidrone said:

Darius Cooper has the NFL in his sites

I have never heard of Texas New Service. Do all the articles use poor or incorrect English?

It is like a post from EMB. 😶

Tarleton State Texans. It is like an Ezine for the school.

28 minutes ago, BigEFly said:

OLB not Edge. The positions are almost interchangeable because OLBs are going to have similar gap assignments, most of the time. When the Eagles play 3 DL, the lineup might include Carter, and/or Robinson, Ojomo, Booker at DE positions (with Hall, Young competing) and with any combination of one or two of the OLBs or ILBs rushing. Richardson is likely one of the starting OLBs. I figure Hunt has the inside track at the other starting OLB based on his play to close the season. I figure Ojulari, Huff (make or break for him) and APR are fighting for the back up roles (with Henry and Uche trying to compete).

Richardson?

27 minutes ago, mattwill said:

Richardson?

Nolan Smith. How I typed Richardson instead is a mystery to me.

2 minutes ago, BigEFly said:

Nolan Smith. How I typed Richardson instead is a mystery to me.

You must have been going through 40 minutes of hell.

11 hours ago, mattwill said:

That is the Scottish pronunciation

What's the Scottish pronunciation of "raspberry"?

1 hour ago, ManuManu said:

Popped on some highlights from LIX this morning to have in the background while I finish up a few things. A very underrated call from the game is when the Chiefs get the ball back down 37-6.

Burkhart: So here’s Mahomes. What’s he got left? Pressure again. Decked. Ball is out! Aaaaaaand the Eagles have it! Milton Williams with the strip sack!

"Going for the dagger!" can never be overrated.

23 minutes ago, ManuManu said:

You must have been going through 40 minutes of hell.

He won me a bracket pool in '94.

30 minutes ago, pallidrone said:

Darius Cooper has the NFL in his sites

I have never heard of Texas New Service. Do all the articles use poor or incorrect English?

It is like a post from EMB. 😶

I just read the article. Intriguing prospect. I won’t be surprised if he makes the 53. I also looked for the grammar faux pas … but couldn’t find it

35 minutes ago, BigEFly said:

Nolan Smith. How I typed Richardson instead is a mystery to me.

I have 77 of those mysteries every day.

33 minutes ago, ManuManu said:

You must have been going through 40 minutes of hell.

Or 50 shades of grey.

Outside of the Eagles draft, I thought just in terms of the first two picks, the Ravens might have had the best first two picks. Character stuff aside, just in terms of the players, if you told me the Eagles could have come out of the first two picks with Starks and Green I would've been like no way. There was a time where many thought both would be gone before the late 20s, and the Ravens got both. I think the Ravens are the best team in the AFC. I thought they were in 2024 as well, but for whatever reason that team always shot themselves in the foot all season long. And their season ended the same way. Andrew a critical drop and a critical fumble.

I want to see if Howie is just prepared to roll into the season with what he's got at Edge or if they make another move. Berman said the other day he doesn't think they're done at Edge and if they make another move it's probably there. Unless they trade Goedert of course, then he'd expect them to make a move at TE to add someone better than what they've got currently.

12 minutes ago, Sack that QB said:

Outside of the Eagles draft, I thought just in terms of the first two picks, the Ravens might have had the best first two picks. Character stuff aside, just in terms of the players, if you told me the Eagles could have come out of the first two picks with Starks and Green I would've been like no way. There was a time where many thought both would be gone before the late 20s, and the Ravens got both. I think the Ravens are the best team in the AFC. I thought they were in 2024 as well, but for whatever reason that team always shot themselves in the foot all season long. And their season ended the same way. Andrew a critical drop and a critical fumble.

I want to see if Howie is just prepared to roll into the season with what he's got at Edge or if they make another move. Berman said the other day he doesn't think they're done at Edge and if they make another move it's probably there. Unless they trade Goedert of course, then he'd expect them to make a move at TE to add someone better than what they've got currently.

Im completely fine with the picture at edge. I wouldnt mind someone like Matt Judon or Von Miller still being brought in cheap. Miller started 0 games and still had 6 sacks last year. Still effective in a limited role, and a great vet for the young guys to learn from.

May the Fourth be with you.

14 minutes ago, HazletonEagle said:

Im completely fine with the picture at edge. I wouldnt mind someone like Matt Judon or Von Miller still being brought in cheap. Miller started 0 games and still had 6 sacks last year. Still effective in a limited role, and a great vet for the young guys to learn from.

I'm uneasy about Hunt just being given a starting spot. I think he has a lot of upside, but this time last year we were talking about him being two years away and incredibly raw. Looked good when he played, but I don't think I've seen enough to declare him definitely a starting Edge. He didn't play very much and the sample size was really small. He may prove to be, but I can't be confident in declaring that. I don't think it would be the craziest thing in the world if we start the 2025 season and he looks like he's not quite ready. And I'm not an Uche fan at all.

Can make a case the Eagles lost at a minimum 2 of 4 of their top pass rushers from 2024 and maybe 3 of the top 4 if you consider BG a better pass rusher than Nolan. Still, that's a lot. I'd like a guy added where you know what he is. Someone who won't get you 10 sacks but you know isn't a liability and can play. It's why I've championed Za'Darius Smith.