Speaker 1: Joining us now is the head football coach of the
Saint Louis BattleHawks.
Speaker 2: You're saying, well, Matt, why are we talking XFL right now? Will?
Speaker 3: We will?
Speaker 1: But we're also going to talk about the New York
Jets tonight's Texans opponent. And the man who calls the
games with Bob was shoesing on the Jets network as
Anthony Beck, who was a former tight end, did some
games against for the Houston ESPN for the Cougars years
ago with American Athletic Conference and joins us here on
Sports Talk seven. Anthony, it's Matt, thanks for joining us.
How did you celebrate National tight Ends Day last week?
Speaker 4: You know, it's nice because you know a lot of
my you know, constituents in the past, my wife and
some people that know me. They post some pictures of
me and stuff like that make me feel good since
it's been hell what now, almost twenty thirteen years since
I put on the uniforms.
Speaker 3: So it's good man. I celebrated.
Speaker 4: Obviously, I called the game, so I was able to
watch football. But it was good to see some some
throwback West Virginia picks on mine and a couple of
Jet picks online so it was good stuff.
Speaker 2: Who is the greatest tight end in NFL history?
Speaker 3: Greatest tight end in NFL history, I'll go with Gronk.
Speaker 4: I just think, you know, his run was was pretty
impressive and he did everything. I mean, you know, we
can pull clips of him block and a guy out
of bounds into the into the bleachers, right, So I
like complete tight ends. You know, I got a lot
of appreciation for the for the tight ends that play
now in their skill set, but Gronk was one of
a kind and he did everything great for.
Speaker 2: Sure, for sure.
Speaker 1: Anthony joining us here, Anthony Beck with his on Sports
Talk seven and now, obviously the Jets get a lot
of national attention with all the games and being in
the market, and we focus obviously on the on the
Houston sports side of things. I am perplexed, Anthony, that
the Jets have gone off to the start they have
so far at two and six, and you've seen every game,
you've been in, every one of them. Is there a
way to wrap it up in a nice package to
explain what has happened? Because you've got great running backs,
you've got skill position receivers. I don't think Aaron's career
is over with your defense has got one of the
best corners in the game in Sauce Garner. Help me
to the Houston audience, what has gone wrong this year?
Speaker 2: In a nutshell?
Speaker 4: Yeah, you know, I just think from a week to
week's standpoint, it's been just a lack of execution by
multiple players taking their turns that have really, you know,
set this team back. And I think as the weeks
have gone on, you know, I think Aaron's played decent.
I just he's not the same Aaron Rodgers. But I
don't think, at least I didn't. I didn't want the
Aaron Rodgers of you know, twenty eighteen. I wanted a
guy that can run a system, get the ball where
it needs to go, and what the playmakers this team
has go make some plays. You know, I think we're
second in the NFL and drop balls. That was an
issue early on. There was some penalties and some games
there wasn't a lot of penalties, but some of those
penalties were strategic moments in the game where it costs us.
The special teams hasn't been great obviously, It's documented Greg
Greg's airline struggles throughout the year.
Speaker 3: And then defensively of late.
Speaker 4: It's it's not been at its best, you know, especially
in the fact when you let the Patriots drive down
the field, and I think a couple of things come
with that. I mean, you have a decimated safety situation,
and also you know your head coach is now you
was your full time defensive coordinator. And me being a
head coach, you know, I want to sit in on
offensive meetings and be a part of that game plan
for the entire time that we put the run install
on the play installs. But I might be in there
twenty minutes and all of a sudden, I get pulled
out because I get to do other head coaching duties,
so I'm not there for the hall install.
Speaker 3: So you know, I can imagine late nights those things.
Speaker 4: I mean, ideally, Jeff Olbrick is a head coach in
this league somewhere at some time, but in the circumstances
that it's in, it's not a propositions.
Speaker 3: So combine all those things.
Speaker 4: I just think, to me, it's a lack of execution
all the way through. And Aaron's kind of pressing him
right now. I think he's trying to do maybe a
little too much. And and you know, with the changes
and everything. I think, you know, everybody's trying to get
it right. But I think simply just going out and
just playing good ball is enough for this team to
be good, to be one of the better teams in
the league. But until they show that, you know, they're
just a collection of really good players right now.
Speaker 1: So you mentioned it's a different Aaron Rodgers in terms
of is it types of plays, is it getting rid
of the football a second too late, maybe getting to
a lot of scrimmage a little bit. Tell me some
difference is if no one had seen him as a
Jet this year as compared to maybe the last year
or so in Green Bay.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean he's doing things at times where you're like, man,
that's the legit Hall of Fame quarterback. And then there's
times where maybe he doesn't quite trust the protection but
it's there, or he trusts the protection and it's not there.
Speaker 3: So now it's like now, you know, getting into a rhythm.
Speaker 4: I mean, the best game he played all year was
against the Patriots in the in the first game they played.
I mean, creating plays on the move, getting out of
the pocket, doing all these things. You know, he's a
little nicked up in those areas. He's not that guy.
He can't do it week to week that in that moment,
that looked like a guy that was trending in the
right direction. Unfortunately, that's not a guy that can consistently
do that at this point in his career. So so
winning from the pocket obviously has got to be elite.
And for him, you know, being able to have some
type of run game around him consistently that that has
not been there of late, and you know, for him
to go out there and do it all now and
to the other slip side is you know.
Speaker 3: He's not quite hitting.
Speaker 4: You know, I'm a layup guy, right, Like you know,
if you're a really good quarterback, you're a little older, right,
but you got I mean you could see do everything.
Like to me, the Jets for the last ten years
haven't had a quarterback to just hit the layups right
like Zach Wilson tried to, but he couldn't complete him
because he was just so inaccurate.
Speaker 3: Right.
Speaker 4: So for like for me, it's like sometimes you see
him pull the trigger back on a couple of circumstances,
like just get the ball to the guys.
Speaker 3: And let them do their things.
Speaker 4: Move the sticks, move the chains and just execute at
that level. I just think that consistency right now has
to be the thought process, the plays and whatever it's been.
Speaker 3: I actually think that, you know, from from a standpoint
of the outfense, this is his system.
Speaker 4: I mean, this is the him and Hackett work together,
and Todd Downing is running the same side. I actually
think Todd Downing's called some you know, two good games
since he's been here. But again, it's it's just this
this execution situation and.
Speaker 3: At the end of the day, man, players got to
go out there and play.
Speaker 4: Your best player's got to show up consistently, and they're
not doing that. It's not just Aaron. I mean, they
got a lot of good players. You just talked about it.
They got a lot of good players on this roster.
But it may be the loft guard one time, the
right tackle one time, might be a receiver, it might
be the running back, it might be the tight end.
But you cannot have that. And it starts from the
top down. You know, it's got to be handled, got
to be dealt with. Guys have to take accountability, and
every team's dealing with it. But you know, at some
point the Jets have to get over the hamp and
play a good game completely, and they haven't done that
really since they're win versus the Patriots about five five
weeks ago.
Speaker 1: Yeah, a couple more minutes here with Anthony Beckkells the
color and analysis on the Jets Radio network. The Texans
are sending a woeful offensive line to East Rutherford tonight.
Tell me about the defensive pressure of the front four,
really the front seven. Do you think that's a way
the Jets can get to CJ stride is by maybe
using one of their strengths.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, listen, you know CJ's obviously missing a
lot of his key receiving options, and I think just
watching him the last couple of weeks is he may
be holding all the ball a little bit too long,
waiting for some of those other targets to kind of
get open. I think for me, it gets a little simple.
I think everything has to flow through Joe Mixon in
this game for them to have the success that they want.
You know, I think their line has been okay, but
they are struggling obviously left guard. You know, Green seems
to be just from what I'm watching, a bit of
a weak link. Right now, and then you know some
some other injuries have caused them maybe.
Speaker 3: Uh to to have a setback at that day.
Speaker 4: But I think CJ. Strauda is a enough down. Do
you have enough weapons to get done?
Speaker 3: Sure?
Speaker 4: I mean, you know, you look at a guy like,
you know, Tank Dell, you know, you just don't have
a receiver, one guy you can lean on. I think
Dalton Schultz, I think becomes a big priority. And if
you look at the history of the Jets defense last
couple here, the tight end has been kind of a
place where they've had some issues, you know, containing a
tight end. And I think he's really talented. It was
really high on him when he was a free agent
coming out of Dallas. He felt like he could be,
you know, a game changing tight end, and that's what
he was in Dallas.
Speaker 3: So I think c J.
Speaker 4: Shaud just got to just looking at from their perspective,
is just kind of change what the priorities are. I
think he's so good and then I watch him, I
and they so talented. He's just so smart with the football.
I mean, you guys are fortunate, you know, to have
a guy like that. And I'm just kind of doing
like a little bit of a study because this big
talk right now is about you know, why these quarterbacks
coming out or you know, have so many struggles, And
I think it comes down a couple of things, like,
you know, how many games did they play and start
in college?
Speaker 3: You know how much experience did they have in their
completion percentage?
Speaker 4: And when you look at him and just his year,
I don't think anybody had more than thirty games starting
out of college. But he was kind of the enigma
of that draft class of twenty twenty three. But it
was almost a seventy percent pass completion at the quarterback position.
So you know, I just think, you know, he's another
guy you can can use his legs a little bit
as well. I mean a lot of man and man
defense the Jets are going to play. I mean, you've
seen the quarterbacks a week. The week they've getting out
of their lanes. You know, maybe you take off from
run instead of holding onto that a little quicker, so
there will be a pass rush tonight. It is good
will McDonald is a good player and hasan reddick didn't
show up in staff Bots last week, but he did
open up the ability for Quinn Williams to have a
big game last week, so that that's what happens when
you add the other pass rusher. Now, Quinn Williams has
a less to have occupied to him on certain situations,
and he showed up. So when you're talking about quarterbacks
and young quarterbacks, probably one place you don't want to
have your pressure is in your face and you're gonna
be facing one of the better ones in the NFL,
and Quinn Williams.
Speaker 2: We mentioned at the very top of you are also
a coach in the XFL.
Speaker 1: We have seen broadcasters in baseball and basketball leave the
booth to get onto the field. Is the NFL part
of your dream or are you kind of like having
the flexibility of kind of doing both.
Speaker 4: Yeah, I mean, right now, my priority is coaching, you know,
anytime you can. I mean, the job that I took
on with the Jets probably you know, it's been a
twenty five years since they had somebody different, so.
Speaker 3: You know, at some point I'll probably get fired.
Speaker 4: Right now, I'll just do this for the rest of
my life, So whenever that happens, I got something to
fall back home.
Speaker 3: But yeah, you know, my goal is is to continue.
Speaker 4: To be a head coach in the UFL's which was
formerly the XFL.
Speaker 3: And yeah, I just keep doing that.
Speaker 4: I mean, you know, continue to win, continue to to
build my resume. I'm trying to expedite that process. I
do want to be a head coach in college football,
and of course the NFL is well. I think college
is a path for me that makes sense now where
I can get there the quickest.
Speaker 3: And you know, working on those things moving forward. I've
had some.
Speaker 4: Opportunities to kind of slide into the NFL at a
positional standpoint, and and I just think right now, continue
to be a head coach, continue to be a leader.
Speaker 1: Man.
Speaker 3: I'm a CEO guy.
Speaker 4: I'm a guy that oversees uh extremely detailed.
Speaker 3: Excels and messaging, UH.
Speaker 4: Knows how to handle people very were and and and
and tries to really be elite in the in the
situational part of the game because I don't call the play,
so I have to be elite in that in that department.
And I learned every week from college coaches at the
NFL head coaches and what and what not to do. So,
you know, being a former player, being in those circumstances
as a player. Now as a coach, you know, those
those things are a premium for me. So just continuing
to grow and be at my best and then you know,
like I said, I love to make the transition to
be a head coach college when that time comes. Maybe
when my son graduates to that probably be better to
watching him play at Iowa State.
Speaker 2: Yeah, for sure.
Speaker 1: And we saw the Cyclones there certainly a very good
team in the Big Twelve. I got thirty seconds left
and thank you so much for your valuable time here.
A lot of us here in Houston think this could
be a potential trap game. Short week long travel up
to New York. Beat up offensive line, defensive players are
an issue. If the Jets win tonight, what happens for
New York for that to happen.
Speaker 4: Yeah, they have balanced offensively. I mean, yeah, I don't
think it's a trap game. The Jets are a good team.
They're just record, isn't there? If when they show up
and it turns on and the leg goes, I mean,
they're gonna be a hard team to deal with. So
you know, I don't know if that's going to happen tonight.
It's a wait and see. But Bresall brailing out are
problems in the backfield. You know, they are offensive line,
they're you know, outside of Elijah via Tucker being out,
they're they're pretty good, you know physically up front, they
just haven't been able to maintain and get.
Speaker 3: To the second level. And you know their receivers are dangerous.
Speaker 4: DeVante Adams does he take a big leap from from
two games that playing and and and Garrett Wilson obviously
is a guy that can you know, beat anybody one
on one.
Speaker 3: So a lot of matchups, we gotta block your edge guys.
Speaker 4: If we don't block the edge guys, then it's going
to be a problem to night for obviously a quarterback
like Aaron Rodgers who isn't moving around as well as
he wants to, So the ball's gonna come out of
his hands pretty quick if that's the case. So if
they get some time, can have some balance and take
advantage of some of those edge rushers and what their
strengths are, then if this is a dangerous game for
Houston or anybody they're playing, but until they show it,
that ultimately is going to be the goal.
Speaker 2: Continued success to you and your family. Thank you, Anthony
for the time.
Speaker 3: We really really appreciate it, You got it, Matt having
me on, but you got it.
Speaker 1: That's Anthony Beck joining us, the radio announcer part of
the broadcast team of the New York Jets, head coach
with the BattleHawks in the UFL