Making a massive deal at the NFL trade deadline would not be unique for the Baltimore Ravens. With needs on the offensive and defensive lines and an urgent need for a pass rusher, Luke Jones and Nestor get creative with the potential deals and conversations and the real NFL menu of Eric DeCosta as a 3-5 seeks to improve and chase an AFC playoff berth.
Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed potential trades for the Baltimore Ravens, focusing on the need for a pass rusher. They highlighted the recent trade of Jalen Phillips to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third-round pick and the potential value of players like Mark Andrews and Marlon Humphrey. Jones emphasized the importance of draft picks and salary cap management. They also analyzed the Ravens’ defensive needs, noting the team’s recent success and the importance of consistent pressure. The conversation concluded with a preview of the Ravens’ upcoming game against the Vikings, highlighting the challenges posed by Minnesota’s offense and the potential impact of any trades on the team’s performance.
Action Items
- [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Analyze the Ravens’ roster and salary cap situation to identify potential trade targets.
- [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Follow up on any potential trades or roster moves made by the Ravens before the trade deadline.
- [ ] Evaluate the Vikings’ offense and identify ways the Ravens’ defense can disrupt them.
Koco’s Pub and Maryland Lottery Promotions
- Nestor Aparicio discusses his excitement about Coco’s Pub, mentioning the delicious crab cakes and cream of crab soup.
- He shares his experience of making sliders with ribs and coleslaw, inspired by Eli Manning.
- Nestor promotes upcoming events at Coco’s Pub and Pizza John’s, highlighting specific menu items he plans to order.
- He mentions the Maryland lottery and GBMC as sponsors, and plans to give away Raven scratch offs on Wednesday.
NFL Trading Deadline and Jalen Phillips Trade
- Nestor and Luke Jones discuss the NFL trading deadline, noting the complexity of trades compared to baseball.
- Luke mentions the trade of Jalen Phillips to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third-round pick, highlighting the value of edge rushers.
- They discuss the trend of increased trades in the NFL over the past decade, including positions like wide receiver and edge rusher.
- Luke points out the challenges of integrating new players into a team’s scheme, using examples like Deontay Johnson and Amari Cooper.
Potential Trades and Player Value
- Nestor suggests Mark Andrews as a potential trade asset, considering his contract situation and the Ravens’ need for a pass rusher.
- Luke expresses skepticism about trading Mark Andrews, noting his recent performance and the difficulty of finding a team willing to trade a valuable player.
- They discuss the importance of player chemistry and the challenges of trading for positions like wide receiver and tight end.
- Luke highlights the potential value of players like David Ojabo and the importance of draft picks in trades.
Ravens’ Defensive Needs and Potential Moves
- Nestor and Luke discuss the Ravens’ defensive needs, particularly at edge rusher and defensive line.
- Luke mentions the Ravens’ cap space and draft capital, suggesting they might make one or two impactful moves.
- They consider the possibility of trading for a cornerback, given recent reports and the Ravens’ depth at wide receiver.
- Luke emphasizes the importance of adding consistent players to improve the team’s chances in January.
Vikings’ Offense and JJ McCarthy’s Development
- Luke Jones provides an in-depth analysis of the Minnesota Vikings, highlighting their offensive strengths and the development of JJ McCarthy.
- He discusses the Vikings’ success last year and the challenges they face with McCarthy as their starting quarterback.
- Luke mentions the Vikings’ talented wide receivers, including Justin Jefferson, and their reliance on McCarthy’s performance.
- He notes the Vikings’ recent win against the Lions and the importance of McCarthy’s continued development.
Ravens’ Upcoming Game Against the Vikings
- Nestor and Luke discuss the Ravens’ upcoming game against the Vikings, emphasizing the importance of the matchup.
- Luke highlights the Vikings’ offensive capabilities and the challenges they pose to the Ravens’ defense.
- They discuss the Ravens’ recent success with Lamar Jackson and the need for consistent pass rush to contain McCarthy.
- Luke predicts a close game, noting the Ravens’ favorable position but acknowledging the Vikings’ potential to upset them.
Potential Trades and Player Impact
- Nestor and Luke continue to speculate about potential trades, considering players like Marlon Humphrey and Rashad Bateman.
- Luke emphasizes the difficulty of player-for-player trades and the likelihood of draft pick trades.
- They discuss the importance of adding depth and quality to the Ravens’ roster, particularly at edge rusher and defensive line.
- Luke highlights the potential impact of trades on the Ravens’ salary cap and long-term roster planning.
Final Thoughts and Predictions
- Nestor and Luke wrap up their discussion, reiterating the importance of the Ravens making a move before the trade deadline.
- Luke predicts a modest trade, involving draft picks and possibly a player like David Ojabo.
- They express optimism about the Ravens’ chances against the Vikings, given their recent success and the challenges posed by the Vikings’ offense.
- Nestor and Luke look forward to the upcoming games and the potential impact of any trades on the Ravens’ season.
Luke Jones and Nestor get crea…s and NFL menu of Eric DeCosta
Mon, Nov 03, 2025 8:24AM • 45:13
SUMMARY KEYWORDS
Baltimore Ravens, NFL trading deadline, Eric DeCosta, Jalen Phillips, Philadelphia Eagles, edge rusher, Mark Andrews, Marlon Humphrey, Rashad Bateman, salary cap, draft picks, pass rush, defensive line, Vikings game.
SPEAKERS
Luke Jones, Nestor Aparicio
Nestor Aparicio 00:01
Welcome home. We are W, N, S, T. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore. We are Baltimore. Positive. I am wearing my Cocos pub shirt here, established in 1985 even though I was established in 1968 it’s been established a long, long time ago. The crab cakes are delicious. The hospitality second to none. We’ll be there on Wednesday, doing the Maryland crab cake tour all afternoon long. Love the cream of crab soup there. I’m such a sucker for getting the same thing over and over again. That a couple weeks ago, I took the ribs home and the coleslaw, and I made little sliders because Eli Manning told me to, and I made them, and they were delicious. So Coco’s pub going on Wednesday, at the very least, get the coconut shrimp, because they’re like, the greatest thing I’ve ever had in my life. It’s all brought to you by the Maryland lottery, as well as our friends at GBMC. I’m going to have the Raven scratch offs to give away on Wednesday, and it’s so nice. We had to do it twice this week. On Friday, we’re going to be at Pizza John’s in Essex, because I need crinkle cut fries and gravy and Old Bay wings and a Cobb salad and a pizza to go, and probably a cheese steak with double Provolone and mushroom. It’s bad enough I’m actually drinking eggnog, as we speak here, and we’re on the front end of this trading deadline that I’m going to pick up my eggnog weight. But two crab cake tours and places this good, Luke might actually join me on Friday at Pizza John’s, but he is tethered to the wnst tech service right now. Brought to you by Cole rufi and Gordian energy waiting purple plumes of smoke. Hey, dude, we had an Oriole manager in the middle of the World Series. We have a press conference right. We got plenty of baseball to talk about, but this trading deadline thing in the NFL, we used to sort of, haha. There is no trading deadline NFL. It’s too complex to bring in a quarterback from Cleveland and make him your starter in Cincinnati and throw for 470 yards like we used to think it was more complicated that that baseball, you rent a hitter, rent a pitcher, it’s an individual game. You know, no problem that football was a much more difficult sport to navigate. And as before salary caps were that becomes another navigational tool as to why, maybe max Crosby might not be a raven by Tuesday at nightfall, which is at 5:03pm, let’s have a little bit of fun here. Man, it’s, it’s trading deadline. What do you think, Luke, yeah.
Luke Jones 02:17
I mean, obviously there’s a lot going on, as you and I were kind of speaking in real time, word trickled out that Jalen Phillips was being traded to the Philadelphia Eagles for a third round pick. I mean, that that was a name that I know many Ravens fans had brought up as a possibility in terms of an edge rusher. And by the way, there’s your price, third round pick, right. So, right. I mean, and that’s for a rental, which is interesting. I mean, obviously, I think, to go back to what you just said just a moment ago, I think we’re finding, first of all, teams have traded more in general, and not just at the trade deadline. I think you’re seeing that become more in vogue in a general sense, around the league. I think you see far more trades beyond just like Draft Day Parade trades, where you’re swapping picks, and you know, you’ve seen more player trades in recent years, I think going back really the last 10 years or so. But I think it is interesting to kind of size up what positions feel like they’re easier to make an in season trade, and that it will work out. I mean, let’s look at last year just as a real, basic exercise, the Ravens acquired Deontay Johnson. We know how that worked out. I mean, that didn’t at all work out, and they didn’t give up much, no worse for wear, but clearly he made no impact whatsoever the bills that they traded for Amari Cooper last year. What impact did he make for the bills? Next to none the Chiefs acquired DeAndre Hopkins. He had his moments, but even he kind of faded to the background for the Chiefs late last season and didn’t do a whole lot in the playoffs for them. So perhaps wide receiver or positions where you need that kind of chemistry, that that’s something that you point to and say, maybe that’s not the best value. But if you’re talking about positions where you know you can kind of acquire someone and plug and play, whether it’s an edge rusher, I mean, I will say this, I wouldn’t have necessarily thought that a low he Gilman would would be able to acclimate to the Ravens defense as well as he did. However, keep in mind he was with the Chargers. The chargers. Jesse Minter is their defensive coordinator. Jesse Minter has ravens roots. So there was a situation where maybe, when you look at scheme, you look at, you know what your defensive system is, or what your offensive system is. For that matter, if there are some roots, if there are some similarities, if there are some connections, you know, one thing that I saw someone point out that, you know, Jalen Carter is reunited or not. Jalen Carter, Jalen Phillips, is reunited with Vic Fangio in Philadelphia. He had one of his better seasons in Miami when Fangio was with the dolphins. So sometimes. It’s as simple as looking at that kind of a connection. Because, yeah, I think it is difficult sometimes to just say, All right, we’re going to go acquire this guy. He doesn’t know our offense. We don’t know what the scheme fit is exactly. And you kind of go down the list, and you start poking holes into how much impact someone’s going to make, but, but we’ve also seen deals where someone does make a big impact. So, you know, it’s fascinating in that way. I’m fascinated to see what the ravens are going to do here. They have cap space. They have draft capital in next year’s draft, when you consider some of the projected compensatory picks as well, to makes make a move or two, you know, it doesn’t necessarily mean it’s going to be an eye popping blockbuster, but make a move or two that can help them. As we said, they’ve already made one with the Gilman acquisition, but at the same time, it costs them an edge rusher. They they really are lighted edge rusher right now. So is there someone they can add that isn’t necessarily going to completely transform that group, but can give you someone else that you can count on to add into the rotation. You know, if you can at least do that, all right, you’re you’re starting somewhere, I suppose, because, as I’ve said to you in a couple different conversations now, and you know, if we’re talking in a couple days and they haven’t necessarily made a move, I do look at their defensive line and they’re edge rushers, and that’s a group that makes me take pause, not so much that they can’t play well enough to win the division, but if we’re talking in terms of what it takes to make a run in January, you know, I look at the state of the D line, I look at the state of the offensive line, and, you know, I just don’t know if there’s going to be enough consistency that you’re going to Find in either of those groups to to have your full level of confidence in winning three or four straight games in January against other elite opponents. He
Nestor Aparicio 06:51
is Luke Jones. He’s Baltimore Luke. He is Luke at W nst.net, he’s also embedded in Owings Mills, before, during after the trade deadline. The difference between bunk on the internet and real deals. All right, so look, man, I’ve done this professionally for going on 35 years, and stoking phone calls and whatever, been accused of all sorts of things in that way. You’ve known me a long time to say that I’m pretty not conniving or sitting around saying, let’s say stupid stuff on the radio and see if we can get calls or get clicks, because this is not who we are, either one of us. That’s why the audience that we have out here, whatever’s left of it, are the thinking people. So I’ll give you a chance to show how smart you are in a moment. But part of this is to your point. Everything you just said salary cap, am I going to need you in January? Where am I dealing from? And I got made fun of over the Colton cowser thing back in May when I was talking about that, like dealing a real player, dealing a real prospect, dealing something, the notion that they would have dealt away four weeks ago for a safety that it’s brotherly love and it’s Joe Ortiz and Eric Decosta, and they’re all from the same bloom, and they can get along, get on the phone and make a deal that makes sense to them, that makes sense to their coordinators and to their scheme and to their future and to their salary cap. I I wonder if Mark Andrews is a guy that could get you a better pass rusher from a rental standpoint. I say that because of the depth of having likely the unlikeliness that they would resign him or give him money, or finding a left tackle somehow when in some other swap or not saying you’re going to get rid of Stanley, but I’m trying to be as thoughtful as I can be. Given that Eric Decosta has dealt for wide receivers, signed, traded and signed roquan Smith and had no thought at all about I will take your lottery pick right here, right now. I will overpay him because I need a heart transplant on my defense. And I don’t know what they think of pass rush, or what they think of the draft next April, or what that will look like, or what they really think of Mark Andrews value to them on the field, if likely, can play that role, or how, but they dealt out of something in the pass rusher department a month ago when they had no pass rush to begin with. And you can insert your punch line here, about a dafeo way at that point, I guess, right to say, like they they don’t have it. He wasn’t providing it anyway. Get rid of him. That it is a little heartless. It is a little cold, it is a little whatever, but some other team that might need a, I’m just throwing Mark Andrews out as a, yeah, to get phone calls. But I’m saying you deal out of your strength or perceived weakness. I mean, Adalia was not like a strong candidate to be dealt out of here in September, whatever the date that was, in some sort of weird way that I was a little like. Well, that’s interesting, but if they dealt someone like Andrews, I wouldn’t be as weirded out, because it would just say to me, they’re not going to sign him. And there’s a little bit of that that, I mean, a lot of that that goes on in baseball that we understand, but there’s more than that that goes on at this point too, to say, am I getting a player for next year at what price against this, against my draft capital, all of that, because, as you know, the cost is awake, later than me and earlier than me, trying to make the football team better. And they leave no stone unturned. And I do think that the OA trade was curious in that they didn’t have strength in that position. And inevitably, whenever you deal the backup, that is something, something something that’s exactly when the starter goes down, you know, like, it’s weird how that works, but this is a time to take chances when you’re a three and five team, right?
Luke Jones 10:55
Yeah, it is. I think for me, I would just struggle. And because you mentioned Andrews, I’ll mention, first of all, there’s still value to what he brings to you. I mean, he caught two touchdowns on Thursday night. I think, I think trading Mark Andrews in March or April is a way different animal than how your franchise quarterback is going to feel about it if you do it in the first week of November. So there’s that, there’s that part of it. But I also I think player for player trades are tricky, especially this time of year, because I’m trying to wrap my head around what team is going to view acquiring Mark Andrews as something that they need to do, that they would give up a really meaningful piece on their defense to do it right? I think, I think that would be more if you were trading Mark Andrews. To me, the scenario would have been the ravens are two and six right now, and Lamar tweaked his hamstring in his return, and he’s out two more weeks.
Nestor Aparicio 11:56
And listen, I’m not saying Mark Andrews has the value or not the value, but they did deal him, and part of it was like Wayne signing him anyway. And we need this right now. And what they need right now is pass rush, which is curious, that they’re going to deal something to get back, something that they just gave away. And that’s all I that is. That’s the shell game of this. And that’s even more the shell game when you get an injury and you find out you don’t have depth at Oliver, at the bills position, to your point, they stepped up their game, but if they didn’t, they’re the one looking the deal for somebody else’s Travis Jones or somebody else’s Colas gamble, or, in the case of the ravens, we’re not hurt on the offensive line. Just stink and we need Kevin Zeitler, because there’s all of that’s open to conversation, and we would be idiots, you and me sitting here taking phone calls at 410-481-1570, right now, all day long, about all of these weird permutations, but it’s all in play now. It’s not stupid internet talk when they’ve dealt a pass rusher away here this month, and their pass rush stinks. That’s all I’m saying, Sure,
Luke Jones 13:03
sure. And I think we have to, we have to be fully cognizant of a big part of that was adapha o way was making $13 million I think if adapio Way was making five, I think that deals probably not as likely to come to fruition in the way that it does. And and even that. Think about this. The Ravens traded a pass pass rusher. They got a safety. I’m not sure that you’re trading a tight end for a pass rusher. You know what I mean to me, you start looking in terms of positional value. What are premium positions so, and that’s not to say that they couldn’t trade mark Andrews and get something of value. I just don’t know if it’s going to be that. To me, it would be, well,
Nestor Aparicio 13:41
if you got the pass rusher from the dolphins for a third round pick, if you got a third round pick for Mark, I’m just trying to see Yeah. And again, they used to talk to me intimately for 26 years now, he leaves on the internet. And I could talk to Marvin Lewis or a million other people about how all of this plays out. But to me, that value would be like, and again, dude, they’re three and freaking five, right? So, you know, mean, the odds are stacked against them in some way. But they don’t feel that way. They feel like, Hey, dude, if we go three and 14, we’re all getting fired around here. I don’t give a damn about you know, what was the Rams guy F those draft picks, right? They’re not that, but they’re also like, all of that has a value. And I think guys you’re going to get rid of at the end of the year have less value, right? And guys you can use in a different way to enhance your team and say, well, we got likely. And of course, the minute you would deal Mark Andrews, likely we get hurt, right? I mean, like, it’s just, but having dealing from where you have depth, we talk about this every year in July, about bullpens, right? We’re trying to get Sir Anthony Dominguez, he’s on the Hill in game seven of the World Series with the ball in his hand, you know. And he was for available for a bag of donuts from the Phillies a year and a half ago, right? So that’s kind of how all this works.
Luke Jones 14:58
Yeah. Yeah. It. Does I just, I mean, the reality is Mark Andrews could have been had back in the spring, right? And I don’t think the Ravens were asking for the moon. I don’t think they weren’t going to give them away, as we said at the time. So I look at that now, and I say, what’s really changed there? And again, I
Nestor Aparicio 15:16
don’t know what an asset piece is at this point. One way or another, the asset pieces, whatever the perception I just this is, right? I just
Luke Jones 15:22
think at this point in time, I think it’s really difficult and and look, I get it. The Ravens did it a month ago. The Ravens and the Chargers did it a month ago. But you had two organizations with two general managers who are very close, they are very familiar with how the other thinks. So I think that was a case where maybe it did work out from a standpoint of the Chargers felt, hey, you know, we’ve got enough safety depth that we feel we can endure this. We feel that. And I’m guessing a big part of that was within their meeting rooms, you know, within their Scout you know, their scouts talking. I’m guessing Joe Ortiz was one of the biggest proponents for adafe away back in 2021 so I’m guessing that’s probably part of it as well. I’m guessing he’s not the guy that was saying, I don’t know. He didn’t have any sacks at Penn State his last year, right? I’m guessing he was someone who was much more on the higher end among their group, collaboration and debate and all that.
Nestor Aparicio 16:16
But well, make the fight. I mean, a deal, right? Just like it’s I just think
Luke Jones 16:20
it’s I just think it’s tricky, because I think in most cases, teams that are looking to buy aren’t really looking to subtract other than a draft pick, right? Yeah. So look, I’m not saying it’s impossible, but,
Nestor Aparicio 16:32
but that’s one way you make salary cap work, too, with two star players, raging players or no question, you know, if the Chargers had a third pass rusher, that that would really be a really good pass rusher for the Ravens. And the Raven could say, well, we could live without Andrews and and the charger said we need a tight end for Justin Herbert here, right here, right now, if that were the case, and they’re all kissy poo and friends, and they know each other, that’s how these deals. I mean, we saw this deal get made a month ago. They dealt the pass rusher for safety because they felt like that. That’s where it was. And to your point, it had $13 million of this, and that this is where all of this becomes very pliable and plausible for the next day. And then on Wednesday, we wake up, we go play the Vikings, right? Exactly.
Luke Jones 17:16
And so much, so much of that chatter ends up being nothing but chatter, right? I mean, your booze will be made, dude, if you would have
Nestor Aparicio 17:22
told me they were gonna get roquan Smith and give him $75 million whatever they gave him, you know, the next day, I’d have been like, 100, sorry, a couple months later, but, yes, yeah, but, but you knew they were, I mean, once they made the deal, that was the deal, right? Like that, players like that, when they’re made available that Raven stuff for Eugene Monroe. I mean, maybe it didn’t work out great, but they were hoping to upgrade the team dramatically. Look, they’re three and five. They might want to upgrade.
Luke Jones 17:50
Oh, I’m not arguing with that at all. I just think the means of how you do that is probably going to be more so on the draft pick side. I mean, I just Yeah, I mean, I just think teams that are looking to do that. Look, it’s not impossible, because the Ravens just did it a month ago, but just because you did it a month ago doesn’t mean that it’s suddenly more likely to happen again, right?
Nestor Aparicio 18:07
Prick for a minute and say they can deal that fourth round draft pick that gets el didn’t take away from him last weekend. There you go. You know, put it to use. That’s like an extra, extra pick in your pocket, a deal and get Matt chewed on or something.
Luke Jones 18:19
Yeah? So, but, but, yeah. I mean, I, but I, but I, also I think the Andrews won. I honestly think he has more value to the ravens and other team. I don’t agree with that. And I think that was, I think that was the problem back in March and April too. I mean, I just, and I’m not sure that’s changed. I mean, it’s not too touchdown game in Miami aside, it’s not like Andrews has put up monster numbers this year. So, you know, I mean, we’re gonna see how this works out. I think
Nestor Aparicio 18:44
it’s, well, that would be my point, comparing it to Colton cowser, or even as we stretch the conversation and muddy the waters, you know, the eggs are gonna get broken with the with the Orioles in the offseason to make sure better, that’s all. And the feelings that are gonna hurt get hurt, and the jerseys that are going to get changed, because
Luke Jones 19:01
that’s the way this works. Yeah. I mean, I again, I am not saying it’s impossible. I just think those are the moves that are really difficult to predict,
Nestor Aparicio 19:11
and it’s hard enough for them find a player they want and a team willing to give that player up, and then to say, is it a second, a third or a fourth? Right? And then one of the bears one to give you form or whatever.
Luke Jones 19:21
Well, and let me take this in a different direction while we’re getting nuts here. Because why not? I mean, it’s 24 hours, and then, you know, we’re gonna see what happens or what doesn’t happen. And then, like the draft, but it’s way more wide open. You know, I’ll throw another name out there that I think again, do I? Would I predict this? Would I anticipate this? Would I expect this to happen? No, of course not. But I’ve noticed Diana Rossini, who’s, you know, national reporter for the athletic she is noted a couple different times now it’s just been like a throwaway line, you know, how reporters will do a what I’m hearing around the league, kind of notebook, and she’s mentioned a couple times the Ravens looking for. Nerd looking for a corner, which, to me, at face value, makes no sense, right? I mean, they just dealt away a corner. They weren’t even playing at all. You know. Enjoy, Alexander, however you start to look at it this through the lens of the big picture. You know, Nate Wiggins is on his way looking like to be a number one corner. Whether he’s going to be Chris McAllister or Marlon Humphrey in his prime, or Jimmy Smith in his prime, that remains to be seen, but he is very much on his way, and you have him under team control for two, if not three years, assuming you’re going to exercise the fifth year option. However you look at Marlon Humphrey, and you see Marlon Humphrey’s contract and how much he’s making, and how much he will make for the duration of this contract. And it’s It’s winding down. You know, he has a 2026 is still there, but his 2026 cap number is $26 million now, that said he’s still a useful player. I’m not saying that you would be get looking to get rid of him, but if you’re looking for some kind of more extreme player for player swap, you know, is there Would you trade him for an edge rusher and you acquire another coin, you know? And again, I don’t know how you do that, because it’s like you would need to have both those moves made at the same time, but, but
Nestor Aparicio 21:26
I think there’s a level of creativity when you’re three and five sure that isn’t, that isn’t Stan Pat, that’s
Luke Jones 21:32
all. And you need some creativity from a standpoint of where you are roster and cap wise, not just right now, but going into next year. I mean, you also get to go to Steve and say, we did something, right? Sure, sure, but, but. And again, I’m throwing Humphrey out there just because of, you know, Diana Rossini mentioning the ravens are looking for a corner, you know, because right now, you kind of look at them long term, beyond this year, assuming there’s a pretty decent chance. I’m not saying it’s a foregone conclusion, but something’s going to have, have to happen with that Humphrey contract, right? Whether you’re going to extend him, whether you’re going to move on from him next year. So is there some kind of scenario where you could deal him and then you acquire some other teams, number two corner that also has an extra year or two a contract, contractual control, I don’t know, like again, I’m spitballing, just like you did. You know, with a I don’t expect that to happen. But hearing that, hearing, hearing some intel out there that the ravens are looking for a corner, puts up my antenna that, okay, could there be something weird like that? But it’s the same thing. I
Nestor Aparicio 22:40
think they’ll do something that will be larger than a single. I think they’re going to be hitting a double or a triple here, and they’re not working around the edges of the roster they’re working on. We need an edge rusher for 28 snaps. I mean, this is not going to be dealing for a part time role here, right? I mean, they’re not looking for somebody to take 10 or 20 snaps. 20 snaps a game. They’re looking for a very good player on a bad team, probably,
Luke Jones 23:07
yeah, but, but again, that’s where you go back to, how good, how long, how much. But a very good player on a bad team doesn’t have an inch, doesn’t have much interest in adding Marlon Humphrey or mark Andrews. And that’s, and that’s the problem, right? So, so, yeah, you I continue to come back to, yes, there could be a player for player, movemate, and they did that a month ago, but that just because they did it a month ago doesn’t mean that that’s likely to occur again. That
Nestor Aparicio 23:33
never happened in the history of the game, draft pick this time of year. Something but dealing player for player, it just feels like it’s way prevalent. And I think it’s because it’s gotten more prevalent. It tells me these guys talk about it more often. Talk more about, like, Hey, dude, I need a tight end. You got two. You need a pass rusher. I got four. You know, that’s kind of how, oh, you need a starter. I’ve got three kids that didn’t 320, in double A, you know? I So, you know, you need this. I need that. And that’s what the Orioles offseason is going to be too, right? I mean, and, and that’s, that’s how the fights are made. Luke Jones is here. He’s Baltimore, Luke, you can find him and us. And if you’re on the wnsd tech service brought to you by coal roofing and Gordian energy, you will get the real deals that they make, not all the speculative, speculations and all of that. And I guess you know across that they’ll, they’ll, they’ll be, you know, then the Vikings, right? Then there’s what do they have, assuming there are no deals or that there’s no major help coming this week. This is a big week for them, and a big road game for them. And the way Pittsburgh stepped up over the weekend the way Cincinnati looks capable, at least offensively, forget the defense, but the teams that they’re going to see beyond the Jets and the browns. This is a this is a week to keep your season alive and not go stub your Tilton, Minnesota. And we saw them coming off a big game. Of course, we saw the dolphins coming off a big. Game too last week, but I was impressed by the Vikings. And I would just say, beware, it’s a tricky week around here.
Luke Jones 25:07
Yeah, no question. And just, just to finish, I wanted to point this out, and then I’ll transition into the Vikings. But you know, the Ravens with the Jair Alexander trade, you know, they have about 1516, ish million dollars in cap space, and they’ve got quite a few draft picks. Now they’re not all you know, it’s not like they have two ones and two twos or anything like that, but they have capital. So that’s where I continue to look at that and say to me, it’s more so draft picks and taking on salary, those are the two things that they have an ability to do that isn’t necessarily going to be subtracting from your current roster. So I don’t know, by the way, if I
Nestor Aparicio 25:41
could bet on that, whether they’re going to they’re going to make a deal or not. Well, I’d
Luke Jones 25:45
be surprised if they don’t make one. I you know, and I’m not saying it’s going to be a blockbuster. I’d be surprised, because at the very least you’re just thin at defensive line and outside linebacker, even if it’s a guy that
Nestor Aparicio 25:58
somebody else will be thick enough to get to do something for a third, you know, like the Eagles did early Monday morning. Or
Luke Jones 26:05
even, you know, even if it’s a fourth or a fifth, a fifth in a future fourth, you know, some kind of conditional. This guy plays X number of X percentage of snaps, the rest of the way a fifth turns into a fourth, right? You see trades like that. So, but the Vikings, I think they’re, they’re, they’re, first of all, they’re a fascinating team, because you see the success that they had last year. You have a head coach that I know you and I have talked about at various times is an impressive guy. You know, you even at the owners meeting, seeing him speak at the coach’s breakfast, at the owners meetings in late March. You know, I know both of us have that had that opportunity in the past to kind of hear him talk, and he’s impressive. He’s kind of has had this reputation as a quarterback whisperer. Right? We saw what Sam darnold did last year in Minnesota, and by the way, he was fantastic and against Washington on Sunday night. I mean, Sam darnold Probably should be getting a little more mentioned, as far as at least in that MVP conversation, like second tier, at the very
Nestor Aparicio 27:08
least. Yeah, I watched his post game after that on Sunday night. It was, he was
Luke Jones 27:11
really good. He’s been, I mean, Seattle in general, Mike McDonald, they’re humming right now. I mean, they’re, they’re looking good. But I think Kevin O’Connell and the Vikings, they’re in such a fascinating position, because they did not keep darnold. They drafted JJ McCarthy last year. Obviously, he gets hurt, he doesn’t play his rookie year. You have all this success. Didn’t, didn’t lead to a deep January run, but they still had a great, great 2024 season. But you let Sam darnold Leave and JJ McCarthy is handed the reins. It didn’t look very good early in the season, and then he gets hurt. Obviously, there was an injury there, but I also think there was something to be said of they were trying to protect him a little bit. They knew he wasn’t, certainly was not in a position or a stage of his career where you wanted him going out there playing less than 100% has a guy that’s essentially a rookie. So there was a little bit of that going on. But now, you know, Carson Wentz has done, you know, shoulder surgery and now out for the rest of the year. And you know, it’s McCarthy, for better or for worse. Now, you know, I think they have a good I mean, certainly they have fantastic wide receivers. Justin Jefferson’s one of the very best players in this league, guy that’s very much on his way to being a Hall of Famer. One day. They have some other talented wide receivers with Addison and, you know, so they have a tight end who can make plays, whether he’s put up big numbers this year, you know, Hawkinson. But they’re such an interesting team, because I think there was a perception of, how was this going to go with McCarthy? And you know, they’re in a position right now where, obviously he missed a lot of time, but when he has played, it’s been shaky at best, you know, and early in the season, it was looking pretty ugly. Now he played admirably, as you and I noted already, as far as them getting the win in Detroit and doing what they did there, he was poised, accuracy. Accuracy was still off at times. You know, he didn’t put up these monster numbers or anything, but how is your confidence to go on the road and beat the bullies? No question, no question about it. But you know, now it’s a case of, can he build on that right? They get a win. They’re four and four. They’re they certainly don’t fancy themselves as being out of it at the same time. You look at where they stand in the NFC, their 10th, just like the havens are 10th in the AFC right now, and they’re in a division that certainly is more formidable, much more formidable than the AFC North looks on paper right now, so I think they’re an interesting team from the standpoint of, I don’t know if there are going to be enough wins for them to get back to the playoffs, but they certainly have plenty of urgency to put their best foot forward and try to find out as much as they can, as what JJ McCarthy is going to be and. Whether he can be the guy for them. And you know you’re looking at, if you’re looking at it from their perspective, they have a Baltimore team coming in that is has won two in a row, has Lamar Jackson back, certainly expects to score points that that defense, just like any team that’s preparing for Lamar Jackson that doesn’t play him, especially the ones that don’t play him very often how challenging that can be. But they’re also looking at the Ravens defense and saying they’re playing better, but it’s also a group that has some obvious flaws, and even Miami between the 20s was showing that you could move the ball against them, at least in that first half, until the dolphins kind of look like they quit. So it is going to be interesting to see how this game plays out. And, I mean, that’s a great test for McCarthy. I think, you know, for the ravens, it’s just, you know, go on the road again. You know, back to back road games. I mean, you’ll have extra rest, sure, and you’d like to think that they can do things to confuse, essentially, a rookie quarterback. But part of that entails being able to get pressure on him. And just, we haven’t seen the Ravens be able to do that training deadline. Yeah, right, exactly. So who can they get? Like, who could they bring in by Tuesday and have up the speed to play on Sunday? So, so, you know, I mean, look, the ravens are favored. The Ravens should be favored. You know, I haven’t made my my prediction so early in the week, but I think I’m picking the ravens to win this game. But this isn’t a layup. I mean, this is a team that, you know, I’m not saying they had the pedigree of the Philadelphia Eagles in the NFC, but they had a really good season last year, and they still have a lot of good players on both sides of the ball, and the big piece for them is, what can their quarterback look like? And I think for them, they’re counting on their head coach who has already been doing all this work and and even last year, McCarthy being out for the year, you knew there were plenty of mental reps going on that it’s like, can you have a little bit of an accelerated learning curve now that you’re back on the field and healthy. So we’re gonna find out, you know, I mean,
Nestor Aparicio 32:04
the ravens are gonna have a pass rush on Sunday,
Luke Jones 32:07
and that’s the thing. I mean, that’s, that’s where I continue to look at this thing and say, Look, Caleb Williams, they were able to get him to make some mistakes, and they were able to cover and do the things they needed to do to win that football game. They stopped the run. That was a big part of it. As you saw the bears, who didn’t have swift even on Sunday, their backup, ran for 170 yards against the Bengals. And obviously Caleb Williams had a good game there. But you know, in Miami look as much as tua, I think in the past, has been a good quarterback. It’s not trending well for him, that hasn’t been a good it hasn’t been a good year for him. It hasn’t been a good year for the dolphins collectively. So you know, you’d like to think as a defense, you’re building some confidence from these last couple games, as they should. The three safety looks have certainly helped, and getting Kyle Hamilton in the box closer to the line of scrimmage has absolutely paid off, and I think will continue to pay
Nestor Aparicio 33:03
off. They were the 32nd defense the first month, month and a half, so they’ve been better than that. Yeah,
Luke Jones 33:09
the last three weeks, to me, they’ve trended more and again, you know, these last two weeks, it’s not like they’ve faced juggernaut offenses, but they’re trending towards being closer to an average, and maybe they figure out a way to be above average. As the year goes on, I still think we go back to the trade deadline, though, and say, Can you add another piece, whether it’s a defensive tackle or an edge guy, that can give you some more juice? Because that’s where I just look at this thing. It’s just not you. There’s only so many different things you can do to try to scheme and manufacture pressure. And look, they’re going to be counting on their back end of their defense to cover, right? I mean, that’s, that’s why they have all these former first round picks playing in their secondary, and a low E Gilman they acquired because they they had a need at that specific spot. So, but, you know, I think this is gonna be an interesting test for McCarthy and for the Ravens just going on the road. You’ve won two in a row. You’re feeling better about them yourselves. I think there, there are, you know you want to after Thursday night’s game to me exhale and say, Okay, we’re three and five. But then it’s we need to get back to work. We still have not fixed things here. You don’t want it to be all right? We’re three and five, and Lamar is back. We’re fine, right? You know, you don’t want players to mentally feel that way, because then that’s where I think you run into some trouble with some of your your flaws. So that’s where I think it is important for Eric to Costa to make a move here. I think it signals to the football team and to the coaching staff that, hey, you know, we didn’t have the best off season. We’ve had some injuries that have hurt we had a bear of a schedule early on. I’ve got you right. We’re going to add another piece that’s going to help here, maybe two pieces. Who knows, but someone’s got to get a. A 10 and seven, right? Yeah, I mean, and again, that’s where I keep going back to something they’re going to
Nestor Aparicio 35:05
need on a field in Pittsburgh, something they’re going to need on the field in Green Bay, something they’re going to need every week from here out that they’ve been missing. That’s why they’re three and five. And that’s
Luke Jones 35:13
also where you look at this thing and to go back to your to the exercise of presenting Andrews, you know, just talking about that. That’s where you also look at this thing and say, Okay, you’re healthy now, in terms of the guys on your 53 man roster, not counting, not counting Matt a BK, not counting Broderick Washington, are Darius Washington. But are you going to stay healthy the rest of the way, or inevitably, are you going to have a couple more injuries at certain spots, and you hope it’s not a spot that you’re I mean, my goodness, they can’t have another defensive lineman go down. They can’t have enough. You know, something happens to Mike Green, as much as Mike Green still proving himself, but man, that position group is just frightening. Hey,
Nestor Aparicio 35:59
dude, I’d say this for the first time in the history of the organization, they have depth at wide receiver. Don’t say that out loud, right? Like, No, they’ve never had that Well, I
Luke Jones 36:09
mean, that’s what’s funny. Look, three weeks never had short
Nestor Aparicio 36:16
No, forget it. Oh yeah, of course, they’ve never
Luke Jones 36:20
had one wide receiver, let alone four? Yeah, yeah, yeah. I mean three weeks ago, and I don’t think that’s the case now. Three weeks ago, I was thinking, you know, it’s quite possible they trade DeAndre Hopkins to somebody, right? I mean, a contender that can use a number three wide receiver with some pedigree. You know, you wouldn’t think that now, but yeah, they do, I mean, and I’ll bring up his name, because he’s he’s been brought up at different times over the last couple years with that thought in mind. And again, I don’t think it’s going to happen, because I think he still has enough value to them, not just this year, but moving forward. Rashad Bateman could probably get you something decent. I mean, when you look at what he is, what his contract is, which is contract for a number two, you know, complimentary receiver type, his contract is very reasonable, if we’re playing the shell game of a player for a player kind of deal or something like that. You know, he might be the guy that would be kind of intriguing. Now,
Nestor Aparicio 37:24
well, you’d say, is he going to catch five, six balls a game? How much impact is he going to make versus a pass rusher, versus something that that we don’t have? I don’t I again. I mean, this is, we’re just playing silly, you know, silly here, but I think this is what they need to talk about there. And it always comes down to somebody who’s at the end of a contract, or somebody you know, you can’t afford, or that still has value in order to pull these kinds of deals off, because you don’t old Rex Barney show, you know, somebody would call in and say, Let’s steal Jack void for Barry Bonds. You know that that doesn’t happen. That’s why I’m saying if you really are trying to make an impact, that’s why the roquan Smith thinks kind of incredible and like a Parsons like you know, the best players in the sport have been dealt frequently and more and more free. It’s not like the NBA, where it happens every minute. These guys pick the teams they want to go to in the NFL. This has happened a lot under my watch, your watch, our watch, me doing this for 30 years. You doing it for going on 20 it’s accelerated to the point where it isn’t outrageous to think any of these things. I mean, and we don’t script any of this, by the way, folks, Luke and I don’t I mean, this isn’t 1057, right? I mean, like I started with Mark Andrews, you went in on Marlon Humphrey. Now, you know, now we’re to Rashad Bateman, because if you want to give you got to get, oh, and this, you got to get to get ready to get it’s
Luke Jones 38:51
like a Tesla song. But this is also where I will, once again, provide the caveat. I don’t think player for player moves are the most likely by any stretch of the imagination. It’s, it’s draft picks and, and that’s not as that’s not as exciting, right? I mean, unless, I suppose, unless you’re dealing a first round pick, right? That’s what a bad team wants. And that’s the thing. I mean, even Rashad Bateman, and look, I think the Humphrey one is very, extremely unlikely, like i i almost regret bringing it up. That’s how unlikely I think it is. A Bateman, it still comes back to like, what’s the fit like, what’s the exact team, what’s their vision, who are they dealing because I would say like, Rashad Bateman right now. And look, look, the Ravens have already redone one extension for him and added more to it. But you look at for what Rashad Bateman is, and look, he’s not a number one wide receiver. He’s a number two wide receiver. He’s a number two wide receiver. But next year, his cap number is 2,002,027 it’s 7.5 million. 2028 it’s 9.5 2029 which, I think, whether he’s a raven or or a jet or wherever he’s playing come 2029 I’m guessing the the deal would have to be. Done, but it’s 11 point 5 million like that is a dirt cheap contract, even for a number two wide receiver in this day and age in the game. So I guess my thought with bringing him up would be if there happened to be some kind of fit for A a team that is looking to deal a pet, an edge rusher on an expiring contract, or maybe has one year left on a deal when
Nestor Aparicio 40:23
you have a bunch of cap space, and the other team’s looking to get a deal
Luke Jones 40:26
right, and they and they like, maybe they really liked Rashad Bateman coming out of the draft in 2021 that maybe it would be Bateman and some kind of pick or something. I don’t know. Again, it’s so tough because I don’t know what team is looking to sell off an edge rusher because they’re not good enough, because you would keep a guy like that if you were good, and once, once a wide receiver on a contract, you know that you’re inherited,
Nestor Aparicio 40:54
by the way, I wonder how in the world the Costa even got roquan Smith in that conversation ever began when they had Patrick queen, Right? Like, you know what I mean? Like, it didn’t feel like, oh, they needed, they had other needs that felt like bigger needs at that point, you know? So we think about it in that sort of cognitive way of saying that, like, and even me saying, Well, we’re dealing strength from the wide receiver position. That’s where you’re strong, where you’re always get somebody in the room saying, Yeah, we’re strong till somebody turns an ankle, and then we’re dilsey Flowers turns his ankle. Yeah. We have no wide receivers in January, so you have, you know, that’s what makes it interesting. And again, this is a conversation we’re having once or twice a year this time of year that we never had in football for the first 1520 years this team
Luke Jones 41:36
was here. Yeah, yeah. So. And again, I, I don’t think any of those player trades are likely, I think it’s much more Isaiah likely they’re trading a fourth round pick, or they’re trading a third and a fifth or something along those lines, if they’re going to get some kind of impactful player. But to your point, even, even the OA trade, what happened to what happened the following week? Tavius Robinson fractures his foot, right? So now, now you’re in a position that you dealt someone that you didn’t love and was making too much money, understanding all that you got a piece that can help you now, but now you have a serious depth issue at outside linebacker right, which they still do, even even throwing Carl Carl Lawson into the mix, which they will presumably this week. They still need more quality and quantity there, quite frankly. So we’re going to find out it’s Whack a Mole dog. I would say this, if they’re making a actual trading a player, I’m guessing it’s much more in line with a David ajabo type that some team wants to take a look at for two months. Right where? The Ravens would say, Hey, you give us your edge rusher. We’ll give you a pick and we’ll give you David a job. We’ll give you two picks and David ajabo or something like that. Again, I don’t think we’re going to see any more player for player trades for the Ravens. I think it’s, I think it’s going to be draft picks, because they have draft picks to deal and they have salary cap to to absorb a bigger contract, right? So we’re going to find out, you know, if I have to guess whether it’s going to be a block a monster, or is it going to be something that’s on the more modest side, I’m always going to be inclined to say on the more modest side. But that said you can always, you can find guys that end up really helping you out big time. So you know, we’re going to see how this plays out. Certainly fascinated, but you know, you and I have spitballed here plenty. I don’t think any of what we mentioned will will come to fruition in terms of the players we mentioned. So we’ll see how this goes here over the next 24 hours, and then we’ll reconvene and and admit how wrong we were even bringing up any of those guys. Probably
Nestor Aparicio 43:44
he’s Luke Jones. He’s Baltimore, Luke. We will have you all gassed up on the wnst tech service brought to you by Cole roofing and Gordian energy. Billy still owes me a coffee mug, so I gotta catch up with him. We’ll get him back on the show here soon. We’re gonna be at Cocos on Wednesday. We’re gonna be at Pizza John’s in Essex on Friday on behalf of our friends at GBMC, as well as the Maryland lottery, I’ll have Raven scratch offs to give away, and it’s been a lucky batch as well. I got some great guests coming out for both shows this week, and we’re going to continue on through the month. It is my colonoscopy month here at wnst. I’ve been putting this off for years. I’ve had dozens of segments with survivors and Hall of Famers and men who were at one point much older than me, but somehow I caught them and passed them. So I will be chatting about all of these important things that little tongue in cheek, little fun, not not fun at all. When I got the instructions, I got to drink what and eat what and do, who and what. So I’ll be talking more about that. But my thanks, my friends at GBMC and you know, and my wife and anybody else that’s proud of me, on to Dr sigman to say, Come on, dude, you talk about this on the air. It’s time to, like, make sure you’re good, make sure that you’re as healthy as you seem to. Be on the radio. He’s Luke. I’m Nestor. We got World Series to talk about. We got things to do. We get crab cakes to eat, and I got crinkle cut french fries and gravy to get a pizza John’s on Friday. Stay with us. You.
