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Our bust alert hits the NFC East. We have potential busts for all four NFC East teams. The Eagles looking to win that division for a third straight year. But we got to start with the Dallas Cowboys with John Breach and Emery Hunt. The Cowboys gave up the most touchdowns in the league last season. They revamped that defense to try to turn things around this season. Emery, that includes using both of their first-round picks on that defensive side of the ball. Yeah, when you think about them drafting Maliek Collins, right? Now, I feel like you have to practice patience with this because they went out and signed Rashaan Gary. They also still have Damontre Moore and quite honestly, I think James
Houston in his sub package role is a better pass rusher than Maliek Collins. And it's not saying Collins can't get there, but when you watch his film, I felt like his teammate Najee Goode Kelly was a better pass rusher who's with the Green Bay Packers than he was especially versus the better tackles. Now, he dominated the weaker tackles, but he has a lot of room to grow, a lot of room to get better, keep his pad level down to where that he doesn't end up on the ground a lot. So, I think he's probably a year away, but I know he's a first-round pick, so people will expect him to hit the ground running. That's why I say bust alert here for the first-round pick.
Yeah, it's interesting, Emery, cuz the Cowboys have made a lot of defensive moves this year. They hired a new defensive coordinator in hopes that this defense will be better, but maybe there is that chance it doesn't improve. It's cuz what we're talking about. You just mentioned a possible bust alert on the defensive side of the ball. I am also going to sit stay on that side of the ball. Uh and the guy I have in mind is linebacker D Ware. So, we know the Cowboys just made a trade for him earlier this offseason, brought him over from the San Francisco 49ers who almost seemed eager to give him away, which maybe should have been a red flag. But when you look at what Ware did in San
Francisco, and I think you have to look at last season specifically for why he could be a bust alert in Dallas. And he got to play next to Fred Warner, one of the best linebackers in football, a perennial All-Pro. Well, we know that Fred Warner got injured last year. So, when Fred Warner was on the field, Dee Winters played very well. But, after Warner got injured, missed the final 11 games of the season, Winters' production dropped off a little bit. So, when he's in Dallas in that defense, he's not going to be playing next to an All-Pro linebacker. So, I think now there's going to be a little bit more pressure on him, and we're going to see his play fall off a little bit.
Okay, so both bust players on that defensive side of the ball. Let's move on to the New York Giants. And on the count of three, I want you both to say which Giants player is on bust alert. Ready? 1 2 3. Cam Akers So, you guys agree it is Cam Akers. Breach, why don't you start us off as to why he is on bust alert? Well, Emery and I are clearly on the same page here, which is unbelievable. I think when I look at Cam Akers, you look at the way he runs the ball. The guy is a battering ram. He does not back down from contact. And in some cases, that can be a good thing. But, when you are a younger guy coming
off a fractured ankle that caused you to miss most of your rookie season, I think that maybe that's not a good thing. You don't have to always look for contact. So, his style just is something that has to make you worry a little bit if you're the New York Giants. You want him to tone it down a little bit, but that's also part of who he is. That's part of his personality. That's why he's doing backflips on stage on fractured ankle that he's still rehabbing. So, I do think that his numbers aren't going to be probably where most people think they are. Not that he's going to fall off a cliff here, but I do think that uh he is a bust alert this year. That's where I'm going with a breach. I don't think his numbers will be what
people expect him to be because you still have Tyrone Tracy there. That gives you a lot of what Cam Skattebo brings to the table in terms of being able to be a runner, but also an excellent receiver. Now, being out there at rookie mini camps and OTAs, we saw him running around with no ill effects of the injury, so he's fully in back in the fold and being integrated into the offense, but John Harbaugh also kept bringing it up after practice outside of Malachi Fields running slant. He kept bringing up well, you know, if we're never going to not look at other options perhaps bring somebody in if there is availability out there for. So, he was alluding to perhaps bringing in another back and you have to save Skattebo from
himself, which is why I think he'll be splitting time with Tracy as opposed to being the lead guy. All right, we're moving on to the Philadelphia Eagles, the back-to-back division champs. We're looking for potential bust players this season. Eagles obviously traded away AJ Brown to the Patriots and they hope, Emery, that their first-round pick can help them fill that void. Right, but I'm going to defensive side of the ball. I'm going with Marcus Epps. I feel like Epps to me, the starting safety right now, is kind of holding that place in lieu of Kyzir White starting in his spot at some point in
the season. He was my number one strong safety out of Texas Tech, 6'3", 215. Um has great range, ability to play the run, also can cover and I think that right there, plus being younger and cheaper, gives him a little bit more range. Now, you don't have that play making ability with Epps out there that you had in Reed Blankenship and I think that's where Blankenship is going to be missed, but that's why I think Kyzir White has a chance to win that job, Breach, and steal it away from Marcus Epps. And Emery, I'm going to go to the offensive side of the ball. I think this is the guy that Hass was hinting at and that's the Eagles first-round pick, Makai Lemon. Now, I don't think Makai
Lemon is going to be a draft bust. I mean, he's not going to be the next John Ross, a first-round pick who just kind of fizzles out. But I do have him on bust alert because I'm not sure how much success he's going to have in this Eagles offense in year one. You look at what Philly did in the passing game last season, it wasn't much. I mean, I'm guessing this is why A.J. Brown seemed to be frustrated every week. This was an offense that averaged under 200 passing yards per game. Saquon Barkley is the star of the show there. They need the offense to revolve around him, and let's not forget DeVonta Smith is still there.
Yes, they traded away A.J. Brown, but Smith is absolutely going to get a lot of targets. So, I don't think Makai Lemon is going to be a guy who goes out and has 80-90 receptions and 1,000 yards in his rookie season. I think he's going to have an okay year, but I don't think the number's going to be quite where you would maybe expect a first-round pick to be in their rookie season. Eagles making news on Monday signing Jalen Carter to a record contract. Four-year extension worth over 150 million, 38 million average annual value. That's the most for a defensive tackle in the NFL. But Breaches, we move
that to the Commanders, why do you have concerns about a linebacker that they signed to a $100 million deal this off season? Yes, Hassle, they did sign Odafe Oweh to a monstrous contract. If you're the Commanders, I understand the logic. They had one of the worst defenses in the NFL last season. You have to do whatever you can to plug those holes and fix those problems. But I think my concern here, and the reason I have him on the bust alert, is that he only started two games for the Chargers last season. He was essentially a rotational player, and he was very good as a rotational player.
Well, when you're giving a guy $100 million, you got to be a little bit more than a rotational player. You have to be a full-time starter who is playing a lot more snaps. And so, if he's going to be out there and starting every single game, I'm not sure how he's going to handle that physically. He's also been able to play next to some superstars. We saw him next to Cleo Mack in LA. What's going to happen when he doesn't have that superstar next to him in Washington? Is his play going to drop off? So, I do think there is a lot of pressure for Odafe Oweh to produce, especially after getting that $100 million deal. I'm not sure he's going to be able to live up to those to that mighty big contract he signed.
Breach, I feel the same way about Brian Robinson, the second-year running back for the Commanders. When you look at what he did last year, great average, 4.6 yards a carry, but for me, if the hole was there, and yeah, if he hits it at full speed, he can hit a home run. Problem is finding a hole that's not there. His pre-line of scrimmage work is not where it needs to be, which is why I think he's better suited as a complimentary back, which is also why we saw the Commanders go out and make a move for Rashad White and draft Kay'Shawn Allen out of Penn State. Both of those guys are going to be your pace setters in the run game, just like Chris Rodriguez was last year for Brian
Robinson, and then he can come in and hit those quick hitters like he did last season. So, people are expecting him to be this 1,200-1,300 yard rusher. Nah, what we saw last year is probably what we're going to see this year in terms of him as a sub package guy, a complimentary role as those two other pace setters go ahead of him. All right, Emory Hunt, John Breach, thank you so much as we ramp into training camp and get geared up for the preseason, closing in on a couple of weeks until most teams have their preseason openers, including those Commanders. They are the first team in the NFC East to get going in the preseason, Friday, August the 14th against the Dolphins.
