Speaker 1: Pro football with our guy, Mike Yam formerly the Pac twelve.
Speaker 1: That's how we got to know him, and now he's
Speaker 1: with the NFL Network. On a Wednesday afternoon, Mike, Happy Wednesday, sir,
Speaker 1: how are you.
Speaker 2: I'm doing great. I feel like neither one of us
Speaker 2: should talk and we should just fade back up a
Speaker 2: little Pearl Jam better man.
Speaker 3: I'm okay with.
Speaker 4: That, Mike.
Speaker 1: I've long said that NFL or excuse me, fmdjs have
Speaker 1: the best gig in the world. They come in, They're like, hey,
Speaker 1: it's thirty degrees outside and here's pearl Jam.
Speaker 4: Then they chill for like six or seven minutes.
Speaker 1: Unfortunately, what you and I do for a living, we
Speaker 1: actually have to fill the content.
Speaker 4: Although you're not wrong.
Speaker 1: All right, let's start with the uncomfortable stuff, which is
Speaker 1: a question I have for you about my freaking New
Speaker 1: York Football Jets. So it looks like they are going
Speaker 1: to move on from Aaron, which I applaud. He is
Speaker 1: a locker room cancer and he's not good at football anymore.
Speaker 1: So what do you make of where we find ourselves
Speaker 1: with the Jets? What do you think is next? Do
Speaker 1: you think they're going to bottom out? And try to
Speaker 1: find their way through the draft.
Speaker 5: So this is a really big subject because if there's
Speaker 5: one team in the NFL where there's a real case
Speaker 5: study on what to do, what not to do, what direction,
Speaker 5: if you're thinking about going down.
Speaker 3: And isn't a good idea bad idea.
Speaker 2: I will give them a lot of credit in this regard,
Speaker 2: and you probably would agree with this. They went for it,
Speaker 2: and they had a really good team a couple of
Speaker 2: years ago that seemed to be deficient on the offensive side,
Speaker 2: so they said, hey, what's our best option right now?
Speaker 2: And they went and they signed Aaron Rodgers. And I
Speaker 2: think there's a couple different ways to look at this.
Speaker 2: It clearly didn't work out, and it's probably a good
Speaker 2: thing that both sides are free and clear of this.
Speaker 2: But I will say this, they just trade for Devonte
Speaker 2: Adams right and were willing to continue even as the
Speaker 2: wheels were falling off, and they had fired Robert Sala
Speaker 2: at that point. They said, hey, let's keep building, let's
Speaker 2: keep trying to make a push here, and clearly it
Speaker 2: wasn't enough. But I think the organization had to say
Speaker 2: it in themselves. This is what Aaron Rodgers does. This
Speaker 2: is the offense and said he brings to the table.
Speaker 2: He's at a stage in his career two years ago
Speaker 2: where it's like, yo, he wants the guys that are
Speaker 2: comfortable in that system understand where they need to be
Speaker 2: when they need to be there, and they're not going
Speaker 2: to make a bunch of play calls and not to
Speaker 2: go on a tangent here. I was talking to a
Speaker 2: polleague of mind an NFL network, Isaiah Standback, and he's
Speaker 2: down in that Dallas area. We were together for the
Speaker 2: Shrine Bowl a couple weeks ago when the Cowboys decided
Speaker 2: to go a shot and Himer and he turns to
Speaker 2: me and you see, you know why this is a really.
Speaker 3: Good move for Dak. It's because he doesn't.
Speaker 2: Have to worry about remaking an entire offense right and
Speaker 2: like learning things from scratch, there's some continuity that is
Speaker 2: going to be in place. Rich On the him are
Speaker 2: in the fold, and I think the same thing could
Speaker 2: be said Faron Rodgers. They try to make him as
Speaker 2: comfortable as possible. Look, it didn't work out. The first
Speaker 2: season gets hurt, obviously. A couple snaps into the game
Speaker 2: and we're now seeing where if you're coming off an
Speaker 2: Achilles injuries. Sometimes you're just not going to look right,
Speaker 2: like as Kirk Cousins, the Kirk Cousins that I saw
Speaker 2: for most of this year, or is he closer to
Speaker 2: the one that I saw two years ago when he's
Speaker 2: really healthy. I would argue like, Kirk's not as bad
Speaker 2: as what we witnessed there. I just don't think he
Speaker 2: was healthy. And I think as Aaron Rodgers started to
Speaker 2: get a little bit healthy as the season went on,
Speaker 2: he did start to look a little bit better, but
Speaker 2: you know, a little too late, and they had to
Speaker 2: go and move on. I feel like I'm not even
Speaker 2: answering your question here, but it does feel like the
Speaker 2: Jets have two paths to go. Do we rebuild in
Speaker 2: this draft and I don't think that this is a
Speaker 2: great quarterback class, which is what they need. Do they
Speaker 2: find that bridge guy and insert him in in free
Speaker 2: agency to sort of piece this thing together? Maybe, but
Speaker 2: there's a part of me that says, you know, they
Speaker 2: might just try to pick this thing apart in the
Speaker 2: draft and rebuild.
Speaker 4: Do you think Aaron's done? Do you think that's it
Speaker 4: for Aaron Rodgers?
Speaker 3: No? I don't.
Speaker 2: I think there's going to be interests because of who
Speaker 2: he is, and I think we saw enough flashes late
Speaker 2: and even where I think there's a team that's like,
Speaker 2: you know, maybe he's got a little left here in
Speaker 2: the tank and maybe it's good enough to bridge the
Speaker 2: gap before we go to either a young quarterback or
Speaker 2: we see what happens in the draft next season.
Speaker 3: There's god.
Speaker 2: I was talking with Brian Baldinger about this the other day.
Speaker 2: You look through the top ten, you make an argument, like,
Speaker 2: sixty seven of those teams need a quarterback. There's not
Speaker 2: six or seven first round arms in this year's draft,
Speaker 2: and lord knows, there's not six top ten quarterbacks in
Speaker 2: this year's draft. Last year, what we saw with the
Speaker 2: run of six guys go in those first twelve picks, like,
Speaker 2: that's not going to happen again this year. At least
Speaker 2: it's not my opinion that that's going to happen. And
Speaker 2: if that's the case, guys like Aaron Rodgers, I think,
Speaker 2: do find a home. And by the way, do you
Speaker 2: think he wants to finish.
Speaker 3: Out this way?
Speaker 2: There's a part of me that says no, like he's
Speaker 2: he wants to get back out there.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I tend to agree with you, and it only
Speaker 1: takes one general manager to believe that. And your point
Speaker 1: about going all in to at least give it a
Speaker 1: shot is very fair. And as a Jets fan who
Speaker 1: has for years wondered when they would actually do that,
Speaker 1: I will admit to having some sort of excitement about
Speaker 1: the endeavor.
Speaker 4: It just didn't work out.
Speaker 1: But let's move off the Jets, and that's actually talk
Speaker 1: about the game that was played, you know, just a
Speaker 1: few days back now, and one hundred and thirty seven
Speaker 1: point seven mili at its peak, and then you add
Speaker 1: the streaming numbers and the Spanish broadcast numbers. So my
Speaker 1: first question, Mike is how has football captured this market share?
Speaker 1: And do you think we're just in for this ride
Speaker 1: where they're because every year it's a new record, it's
Speaker 1: not going in the wrong direction. Do you think we're
Speaker 1: on this trajectory where every year we're going to see
Speaker 1: the audiences grow.
Speaker 2: I'm going to say yes, because there's a huge, huge
Speaker 2: catalyst coming and in my mind, it's the idea of
Speaker 2: the international audience and the expansion that is happening, and
Speaker 2: finding different markets in Europe, finding different markets in South
Speaker 2: America as well. They haven't even come close to tapping
Speaker 2: the Asian market, Like I don't even think. I know
Speaker 2: there's an effort, and there's a lot of progress that's
Speaker 2: being made behind the scenes, but can you imagine globally,
Speaker 2: Because we talked about the NFL at least in headquarters
Speaker 2: as a global sport, and I think there's a real
Speaker 2: argument for it when you talk about these games that
Speaker 2: are selling out in Munich and Brazil, and obviously we're
Speaker 2: going to get in Ireland right now. But that's all great,
Speaker 2: but when they haven't even come close to tapping that market,
Speaker 2: like I haven't heard the conversations about a game in
Speaker 2: Japan or China or insert you know in Asian countries.
Speaker 2: So I think that there's still a ridiculous amount of
Speaker 2: legs for this sport. You think about flag football being
Speaker 2: included into the Olympics, I think there's a lot. There's
Speaker 2: a lot to be said where that audience is going
Speaker 2: to continue to grow, which is mind boggling to me.
Speaker 1: So I don't love the whole like what does one
Speaker 1: loss mean for a player's legacy? But I do want
Speaker 1: to ask you about the winning quarterback instead of leading
Speaker 1: the conversation with the Chiefs and Mahomes because I just
Speaker 1: and look, I am no NFL scout, and I am
Speaker 1: comfortable being an observer and having an informed opinion because
Speaker 1: I've been doing this for a long time.
Speaker 4: But I'm not some expert.
Speaker 1: I just was never on board with the conversation about Jalen.
Speaker 1: I just wasn't like it felt like they were intentionally
Speaker 1: rushing the football because I had a great offensive line
Speaker 1: and they have probably the best running back of this generation,
Speaker 1: and a couple of years ago in the Super Bowl,
Speaker 1: Jalen passed for over three hundred like he can throw
Speaker 1: the football. And yes, I know there are some numbers
Speaker 1: to be critical of and maybe the lack of accuracy
Speaker 1: from time to time, and he might have the best
Speaker 1: one two.
Speaker 4: Punch as far as receivers in the entire NFL.
Speaker 1: But I just I always believed that at some point
Speaker 1: that this dude was going to get it done. I've
Speaker 1: been a fan of his way back in Bama when
Speaker 1: he lost his job and stayed in college and stayed
Speaker 1: the course.
Speaker 4: What did this win do for the narratives around Jalen Hurts.
Speaker 2: I think it changes it dramatically, and I think you're
Speaker 2: hitting the nail on the head, and it was something
Speaker 2: that was bothering me. I do a new podcast with
Speaker 2: Lamar Hurt, who I know is a buddy of yours
Speaker 2: and has probably been on the show a million times
Speaker 2: that we were talking about it last night, actually on
Speaker 2: the episode, and I said to him, like, I got
Speaker 2: to the point where I was really disappointed with and
Speaker 2: it's partly my fault too, right, Like I could have
Speaker 2: spoken up on like the five hour Super Bowl Live
Speaker 2: show that I did last week, right, like You're doing
Speaker 2: all this coverage and I'm thinking to myself, like I'd
Speaker 2: get the low hanging fruit of legacy with my homes
Speaker 2: and going for a threepeat and the tailor shirt Travis
Speaker 2: Kelsey situation.
Speaker 3: But there was one point, Spence, like during.
Speaker 2: The week, I was working with David Carr and in
Speaker 2: one of our commercial breaks, I turned to him and
Speaker 2: I just said, do you see it the way that
Speaker 2: I see it? And he looked at me and he's like,
Speaker 2: where are you going with this? And I said, I
Speaker 2: see a world where the Chiefs win small like, for
Speaker 2: sure they can win this game. I mean, look at
Speaker 2: the season, look at the team, look at Mahomes. Of
Speaker 2: course they can win the Super Bowl. But I see
Speaker 2: it where the Eagles can win a close game. But
Speaker 2: I got to tell you, I also see the Eagles
Speaker 2: smashing this team, and I don't see Kansas City being
Speaker 2: able to say the same thing. And he started to
Speaker 2: laugh and he said, I've been thinking the same thing,
Speaker 2: and I go, I'm not going to say that on
Speaker 2: air just because I'm the host, right, like he's the analyst.
Speaker 3: And he did pick Philadelphia in that game.
Speaker 2: They didn't think it was going to be a wrecking
Speaker 2: ball the way that he didn't say it was going
Speaker 2: to be a wrecking ball the way that it turned out.
Speaker 2: But as Jalen Hurts is on that podium spense, I
Speaker 2: started thinking to myself, why not the Eagles being the
Speaker 2: new dynasty. And I'm not suggesting Kansas City is going away.
Speaker 2: All I'm saying is Jalen Hurts is young. Right, So
Speaker 2: they got a guy who's in place who two years
Speaker 2: ago was in the MVP conversation that who's built their
Speaker 2: coordinators two seasons ago off of that loss, and it
Speaker 2: was a bad year for Nick Sirianni.
Speaker 3: It was on the hot seat. People were talking about
Speaker 3: this losing his job.
Speaker 2: Now he's a super Bowl winner, they get stay Kwon Barkley,
Speaker 2: they got a young defense. Like, think about what Kansas
Speaker 2: City has done. They've built around the home. Philly's got
Speaker 2: Jalen Hurts, they got skilled position players that are in
Speaker 2: the fold. Kansas City kind of lost some of those dudes.
Speaker 2: But the reason why the Chiefs were in this game
Speaker 2: is because of their defense, fense, and what they've done
Speaker 2: in this draft. Look at what Howie Roseman has done,
Speaker 2: their general manager Eagles GM, Like he's starting to build
Speaker 2: a team that's got young studs on the defensive side,
Speaker 2: on the front half of that, in that front seven,
Speaker 2: and in the back end. I just look at that
Speaker 2: and go, hey, Billy, I don't think is going anywhere.
Speaker 2: And maybe I'm just being dramatic because it's they're coming
Speaker 2: off the Super Bowl win. But I really do think
Speaker 2: the framework is there.
Speaker 1: For this team, and that's where I wanted to go next.
Speaker 1: And I know you got to go in a minute.
Speaker 1: So I have one Kansas City question for you.
Speaker 3: I got I got a couple.
Speaker 2: I get a couple, So whatever you need, Okay, cool, Okay,
Speaker 2: I just got a text of a meeting got canceled.
Speaker 4: Oh cool, Okay, great more Mike am is better for us.
Speaker 1: So you know, we talk a lot about you know,
Speaker 1: Mahomes twenty nine, Josh Allen, Lamar twenty eight, Jalen's twenty six,
Speaker 1: and Sequon's twenty eight, AJ's twenty seven, DeVante's twenty I mean, look,
Speaker 1: when you win at a high level, you are going
Speaker 1: to lose coaches, which they have again, and they are
Speaker 1: going to be players that need to get paid, so
Speaker 1: they're not going to run it back entirely. But the
Speaker 1: bulk of their team is in place and they are young.
Speaker 1: What are you willing to say about what is now
Speaker 1: possible after watching them just dismantle this modern day dynasty
Speaker 1: in Kansas City.
Speaker 2: So do I think they can get back and win
Speaker 2: another super Bowl in the next two to three seasons?
Speaker 3: Yes, I absolutely do think that that is the case.
Speaker 2: We and you, and I don't want to put words
Speaker 2: in your mouth, but I've been on with you enough
Speaker 2: to know kind of like we think similarly in terms
Speaker 2: of some of the personnel and some of the teams
Speaker 2: that are out there are like, I don't think this
Speaker 2: is going you know, the hot take like the AFC
Speaker 2: has got better teams collectively but if you said to me,
Speaker 2: who are the most complete teams in the NFL, two
Speaker 2: of them are in the NFC and one is in
Speaker 2: the AFC, and that's the Baltimore Ravens, And then I
Speaker 2: would throw the lines in with the Eagles.
Speaker 4: You know.
Speaker 2: And it's not to say that Kansas City is not good.
Speaker 3: It's not the same.
Speaker 2: Buffalo low if not good, or you know, the Houston
Speaker 2: Texans on the rise, whoever, you know what Washington's gonna
Speaker 2: end up being in the next couple of seasons. I
Speaker 2: just think right now, based off of those rosters, those
Speaker 2: three teams, to me, are the most complete. And if
Speaker 2: you've got the most complete teams, I think you got
Speaker 2: a chance at the end. And to me, that's why
Speaker 2: I think Philadelphia because of some of those ages that
Speaker 2: you reference, and because they have a general manager willing
Speaker 2: to wheel and deal to get this team to this point.
Speaker 2: Like the Eagles always seem to be active, always seem
Speaker 2: to pull the right strings, and it's usually not a
Speaker 2: train wreck like they don't have like these god awful,
Speaker 2: you know, seasons where you just shake your head and go,
Speaker 2: what the heck happened?
Speaker 3: Like maybe they don't live up to the hype.
Speaker 2: But that's why I really do think like the Eagles
Speaker 2: absolutely are in the next the next couple of seasons.
Speaker 1: All right, now, let's move over to the chief side
Speaker 1: of this. And you know, I don't know where you
Speaker 1: were at Will while you were watching the game. I
Speaker 1: was shell shocked. I thought Kansas City was going to
Speaker 1: win a close one because it just got sick of
Speaker 1: I thought Buffalo, I thought it was Josh's year. You
Speaker 1: just get sick of picking against Andy Reid and Patrick Mahomes. So, actually,
Speaker 1: before we get to the Chiefs question, at what point
Speaker 1: during the game, Mike, did you say to yourself, all right,
Speaker 1: that's it, that's a rap.
Speaker 2: So d hops drop made me think to myself, like
Speaker 2: this just might not be it. And obviously at the
Speaker 2: end of the first quarter, Patrick's eyes got I sound
Speaker 2: like so dramatic, dude, Like I don't need to be
Speaker 2: that guy. But they're like, you know, like, am I
Speaker 2: the only one who saw that? Like you're you're sitting
Speaker 2: there and you're you're seeing Mahomes kind of run around
Speaker 2: and you have flashes of the you know, a Todd
Speaker 2: Bowles defense in a huge game like the Super Bowl,
Speaker 2: just like the dude's head was on a swivel, and
Speaker 2: you look at the tackles on that offensive line and
Speaker 2: they weren't holding up, and they weren't holding up even
Speaker 2: when Philly wasn't think I think I saw this guy.
Speaker 3: I should.
Speaker 2: You would think I would have gone through our postgame
Speaker 2: research pack at like eight hundred times. But I'm almost
Speaker 2: positive that Philly did duplits in that game and still
Speaker 2: was able to generate that much pressure.
Speaker 3: So when I see Mahomes have.
Speaker 2: That type of looks, that's at that point I was.
Speaker 3: Like, oh, like this, this ain't going to be good
Speaker 3: for these dudes.
Speaker 1: Yeah, no, you're You're right, and he was seeing ghosts
Speaker 1: and that's what happens where every time you drop back,
Speaker 1: you're running for your life. I mean, I don't really
Speaker 1: view this, and I'm not a I don't think wins
Speaker 1: and losses are a quarterback stat that's just me. I mean,
Speaker 1: we kind of do the thing like Mahomes was eight
Speaker 1: to zero against Vic Fangio prior to the Super Bowl.
Speaker 1: But moving over to the Kansas City side, I mean
Speaker 1: Andy Reid's coming back next year. Mahomes is still in
Speaker 1: his twenties. We'll see what happens with Kelsey. This does
Speaker 1: feel a little bit like the diagnosis we all did
Speaker 1: after the Tampa Bay Super Bowl loss where they couldn't
Speaker 1: protect Mahomes at all. They obviously have offensive line issues,
Speaker 1: but they're among the favorites in some sports books, the
Speaker 1: favorite to win it again next year because they have
Speaker 1: fifteen hundred center. What does the offseason look like and
Speaker 1: do you anticipate a recalibration and maybe a second or
Speaker 1: third act with this Kansas City Chiefs team.
Speaker 2: Look, I think they're going to be in the mix
Speaker 2: again next year because of the Mahomes factor, right, And
Speaker 2: I think it's even more magnified to me. Some people
Speaker 2: might say, hey, that's a lazy take, but my pushback
Speaker 2: on it would be think about what Mahomes was able
Speaker 2: to accomplish this year when there were clearly flaws on
Speaker 2: that team, and I think they were magnified in the
Speaker 2: Super Bowl. And I think the one thing that Bert
Speaker 2: Beach is needing to sort of figure out here in
Speaker 2: the next couple weeks ahead of the draft is how
Speaker 2: do I fill some of these gaps? And there were
Speaker 2: gaps on that offensive line. People felt like the shift
Speaker 2: with Joe Tounei on that offensive line. Moving him to
Speaker 2: left tackle was going to be enough, and for eight
Speaker 2: weeks or so, it was.
Speaker 3: But I think we forgot what the.
Speaker 2: First half of the season looked like for Mahomes. Interceptions
Speaker 2: were piling up, sacks were piling up for him, and
Speaker 2: there was an unsteady nature around this offense. I think
Speaker 2: clearly they need a playmaker on that outside to go
Speaker 2: along with an Xavier Worthy be hop Unfortunately.
Speaker 3: You know, wasn't that guy. They had to deal with
Speaker 3: injuries with Hollywood Brown. You know, they need to.
Speaker 2: Figure out that backfield, but Checko was banged up, you know,
Speaker 2: like they just never really got that production. But first
Speaker 2: and foremost is how do you solidify an offensive line
Speaker 2: in front of Patrick Mahomes? And then how do you
Speaker 2: add some depth and some pieces on the offensive side,
Speaker 2: And more importantly, because it's the defense that carried them
Speaker 2: these last two years, how do you make sure you're
Speaker 2: in a good spot. So I think you know, in
Speaker 2: no particular well actually in a particular order, offensive line's
Speaker 2: got to be like first, second, and third, and then
Speaker 2: it's another playmaker, whether it's a running back or a
Speaker 2: wide receiver. And we got to add some depth to that.
Speaker 1: Defense on a couple of other just questions around the league.
Speaker 1: Then I'll set you loose and if you need to
Speaker 1: hang up on me, Mike, you know you can in my.
Speaker 4: Feelings, So I'm good.
Speaker 3: They just swift.
Speaker 2: I know, I told Porter that I had now time,
Speaker 2: but they just they shifted my meeting. So like, I'm
Speaker 2: good for a few minutes whatever you need.
Speaker 4: Okay, great, because I did want to ask you.
Speaker 1: I mean, Jayden Daniels was nearly a ute and then
Speaker 1: he ended up down to Arizona's date and you were
Speaker 1: with the network and we had him in the Pac
Speaker 1: twelve footprint and I remember watching him and being like, yeah,
Speaker 1: he's fun, Yeah he's exciting, but come on, man, like
Speaker 1: nobody saw this. And I've got a buddy who's a
Speaker 1: Commanders fan, and we kind of below our football misery
Speaker 1: with me being the Jets fan and him being the
Speaker 1: Commanders fan. And if you're a Commanders fan, now they've
Speaker 1: got some work to do because he was so good.
Speaker 1: I think he was able to cover up some real
Speaker 1: holes at Philly exposed. So what do they do this
Speaker 1: offseason to make sure they do not Wiye, who clearly
Speaker 1: is a generational talent and attendant to that, How surprised
Speaker 1: are you to watch this kid do what he's doing
Speaker 1: based off the fact that you saw the start of
Speaker 1: his college career I spent I was.
Speaker 2: At his first start against Kent State. That was a
Speaker 2: game that was unpacked twelve Network. We were doing our
Speaker 2: road show there. He was the first, you know, true
Speaker 2: freshman to get a start in at the quarterback spot
Speaker 2: for ASU, and he played I don't remember the exact numbers,
Speaker 2: but I know it through like maybe two touchdowns in
Speaker 2: that game and he looked good. And it's funny this
Speaker 2: time last year, as he's getting ready for the draft,
Speaker 2: Michael Robinson, one of one of my buzz and colleagues
Speaker 2: of NFL, kept telling me, he's like, yo, man, I
Speaker 2: think I might like I'm better than Caleb. And it
Speaker 2: was so hard for me to boot the skinny, thin kid, who,
Speaker 2: by the way, you know, goes to LSU and has eyesmen.
Speaker 2: It's not like I need to see him play really
Speaker 2: well in his last stop, but it's hard sometimes to
Speaker 2: boot you those early perceptions that you have of a guy.
Speaker 2: He's been terrific. He's the reason why people watch the
Speaker 2: draft He's the reason why there are, you know, a
Speaker 2: bunch of teams in the top ten who feel like
Speaker 2: they are just one player away from changing the fortunes
Speaker 2: of an entire franchise. And it's not to say that
Speaker 2: Caleb's not going to be good, but we saw bo
Speaker 2: Nick have some great flashes for a Denver team that
Speaker 2: we didn't think was going to be able to play
Speaker 2: as well as they did. Kudos to Sean Payton in
Speaker 2: that regard as well. The only pushback and by the way,
Speaker 2: I'm not the only one saying this, and I'm not
Speaker 2: saying it's going to happen, but no, c J Strout
Speaker 2: took a little bit of a step back, I thought
Speaker 2: this past season, and how do you ensure that that's
Speaker 2: not the case for Jane and Daniels. I don't know
Speaker 2: what I would point to other than I think some
Speaker 2: teams figured out how to make CJ a little uncomfortable.
Speaker 2: They had some real injuries that they needed to navigate,
Speaker 2: and I thought that was a factor. They were rushing
Speaker 2: him defenses. I felt like he was under more pressure
Speaker 2: this season than he was in his rookie campaign. But
Speaker 2: it feels like Jane's got a slightly different skill set
Speaker 2: because of his mobility, what he does with his legs,
Speaker 2: where he might be able to negate some of that
Speaker 2: stuff and be just as good, if not better, in
Speaker 2: year two.
Speaker 1: So you're referenced Caleb, and it's interesting. There are a
Speaker 1: lot of people that have dissenting opinions on who he
Speaker 1: can be, and I like him.
Speaker 4: I think there's a lot there.
Speaker 1: I know that some people don't love the perceived Prima
Speaker 1: Donna stuff or whatever. I don't know, man, I think
Speaker 1: we saw a lot during his rookie year that indicated
Speaker 1: that he was getting better, and now they bring in
Speaker 1: Ben Johnson and I don't know, Mike, it's interesting.
Speaker 4: I've never been one to like Nick Sirianni.
Speaker 1: His opening press conference made us all cringe and we're like,
Speaker 1: is this dude okay?
Speaker 4: And he just won a super Bowl.
Speaker 1: There just isn't anything about Ben's personality that I've seen
Speaker 1: so far that makes me believe he's like a Dan
Speaker 1: Campbell culture builder. But maybe you don't have to be
Speaker 1: because he's so brilliant offensively. How does this look now
Speaker 1: that Chicago has an offensive minded coach for a young
Speaker 1: quarterback who I still believe can be really special.
Speaker 2: Huge in it in such a meaningful way. I'm with you,
Speaker 2: and I think the people that I've talked to around
Speaker 2: you know, that team that franchise or at least no Ben.
Speaker 2: I think that's part of the concern, right, Like, can
Speaker 2: Ben get in a room and own it the way
Speaker 2: Dan Campbell can? And by the way, he doesn't need
Speaker 2: to be Dan Campbell. There's plenty of different personalities that
Speaker 2: are out there. By and large, I think there's so
Speaker 2: much optimism around getting an offensive guy who can really
Speaker 2: work and mold the guy that I thought was a
Speaker 2: generational type talent coming out of school in Caleb Williams,
Speaker 2: you know, and I would give.
Speaker 3: This context too.
Speaker 2: Jared Goff was almost left for dead, and I couldn't
Speaker 2: be happier that this guy is balled out the way
Speaker 2: that he has.
Speaker 3: You know, they've had.
Speaker 2: Some great pieces in Detroit around him, but then was
Speaker 2: able to get the best out of Jared Goff. And
Speaker 2: now I think, hey, you've got a guy like Caleb
Speaker 2: Williams and there are pieces to that offense that are
Speaker 2: pretty talented. Can you get this team over the hum
Speaker 2: And there's a part of me that says, you know,
Speaker 2: They're one of those squads who you know, I thought
Speaker 2: they'd be good this year. Obviously there were some real
Speaker 2: struggles for him and the wheels fell off for him.
Speaker 2: But I do think next year I would point to
Speaker 2: them as a team that would be one of the
Speaker 2: more dangerous ones.
Speaker 1: Let me ask you about another Pac twelve kid, because
Speaker 1: as a Jets fan, I actually thought the Jets had
Speaker 1: found their future when they drafted Sam Darnold.
Speaker 4: It did not work out, and maybe that's a Jets problem.
Speaker 1: I'm sure Zach Wilson's family online too as something to that.
Speaker 1: But I was very happy for Sam to see what
Speaker 1: he did in Minnesota this year. Although it didn't end
Speaker 1: the way he was expecting, it feels like he's earned
Speaker 1: a shot somewhere.
Speaker 4: Yeah, where do you think that is?
Speaker 2: I think the Raiders potentially are a good fit. I
Speaker 2: know there's a lot of people pointing to Russell Wilson
Speaker 2: in that regard. I'm with you on Sam. You know,
Speaker 2: I made references. I said this the other day about
Speaker 2: say Kwon, and someone hit me up on social media
Speaker 2: and I'm like, oh my god, Like, you guys are
Speaker 2: so technical. I talked about how remember that Rose Bowl
Speaker 2: I said a couple of years ago, it was twenty eighteen.
Speaker 2: You know, Sorry, my frame of reference sometimes, like I
Speaker 2: don't realize that I'm getting old and I'm forty three now,
Speaker 2: and you know, like twenty eighteen wasn't just two years ago.
Speaker 2: I'd also argue college isn't seen that long ago. But
Speaker 2: you remember that Penn State match against that Sea and
Speaker 2: you know, just kind of like the head to head stuff,
Speaker 2: and there were so much buzz around Sam and I
Speaker 2: know it didn't play out great for him in his
Speaker 2: NFL career, but this resurgence has been has been remarkable.
Speaker 2: And I do think that while the ending was not
Speaker 2: great for Sam, Kevin O'Connell and like the position he
Speaker 2: was in at least in that last game raised a
Speaker 2: couple eyebrows for a few of us at NFL Network
Speaker 2: as we were doing some of our shows around it.
Speaker 2: It felt like there weren't like a ton of great
Speaker 2: adjustments in that game in that second half, and Sam
Speaker 2: obviously struggled. But Sam deserves another opportunity. I think he
Speaker 2: gets it, And you know, do I think he gets
Speaker 2: like a forty million dollar, you know deal somewhere. I
Speaker 2: don't know if that's the case, but you know, hell,
Speaker 2: I mean, you know, three weeks left in the season,
Speaker 2: it was looking like that.
Speaker 3: I don't know what he ends up getting, but.
Speaker 2: The Raiders certainly look like a team that could be
Speaker 2: one of those squads that that would do.
Speaker 3: Well with him.
Speaker 1: I didn't mean to make this a trip around nostalgic
Speaker 1: pac twelve questions, but I have one more question for
Speaker 1: you before I say you lose, because we are in
Speaker 1: a market where we have a lot of Broncos fans
Speaker 1: and I was on the sidelines when Bonicks rolled into
Speaker 1: town with the Oregon Ducks and they just dismantled the Utes.
Speaker 1: But I was pretty skeptical about Bo's potential to play
Speaker 1: NFL football at a high level.
Speaker 4: And I think he answered a lot of questions.
Speaker 1: So I'm gonna ask you the same question before I
Speaker 1: said you loose that I asked you about Washington, I'm
Speaker 1: gonna ask you about Denver. What do they need to
Speaker 1: do to make sure that this momentum continues to roll
Speaker 1: and make sure Bo's ready to go for your two.
Speaker 2: I don't think you're alone in your assessment and what
Speaker 2: you thought it was going to be. And you know,
Speaker 2: I think the two of us are sitting here going
Speaker 2: doing a double take, like, damn they played that well,
Speaker 2: bow balled out like that. I do think another playmaker
Speaker 2: is solidifying that defense with some depth around there. There
Speaker 2: were times as I watched this team and I just wondered, like, hey,
Speaker 2: like what would they be with one of the more
Speaker 2: talented running backs in the NFL. Did feel like bo
Speaker 2: was under a lot of pressure to deliver, and by
Speaker 2: the way he did. You know, Jaden doesn't have Jaden
Speaker 2: season well next to the guy. I mean, it's sort
Speaker 2: of the same conversation, which is how good can Washington be?
Speaker 2: How good could Denver be? Well, it turns out pretty
Speaker 2: damn good. And while people wanted to see Cincinnati sinked
Speaker 2: into the postseason, it was Denver grabbing that last spot.
Speaker 2: And kudos to that team for having that type of season.
Speaker 2: But to me, I really do think another playmaker. And
Speaker 2: I know we had to get to play with his
Speaker 2: college buddy and in Franklin, but I do think there
Speaker 2: needs to be more of a conservative effort on the
Speaker 2: offensive side to build a round bow.
Speaker 1: Mike, before I set you lose, what is going on?
Speaker 1: Follow back? I just followed you again. On Twitter. That's
Speaker 1: so weird. I just pulled up your Twitter page. It
Speaker 1: said follow back. I've been following you for like five years.
Speaker 1: I don't know what the deal is anyway, Twitter's weird.
Speaker 1: I don't know if you've been following the news cycle
Speaker 1: about the dude the team's down the company. But it's
Speaker 1: kind of a weird, weird spot for social media right now.
Speaker 1: I know they call it except Yeah, but before I
Speaker 1: set you lose fried Riyse and Marinara, you've written a
Speaker 1: children's book and you also have a new podcast. So
Speaker 1: tell our listeners where they can go get your work.
Speaker 2: No, I appreciate it, by the way, Like I didn't
Speaker 2: even follow the guy who owns I don't want to
Speaker 2: make this political deal, but like it's almost like I'm
Speaker 2: on his timeline. Like it's kind of crazy to me,
Speaker 2: which is just wild.
Speaker 3: Anyway, I appreciate it as always.
Speaker 2: Man you mentioned in the book, it's a certainly a
Speaker 2: huge passion project for me, Privors and Marinarra.
Speaker 3: It is on Amazon.
Speaker 2: Just if anyone is purchasing a review would be amazing.
Speaker 3: I do have.
Speaker 2: Another one coming out at the end of the year.
Speaker 2: It was just corresponding with some folks about that.
Speaker 3: Got some football ties on that one, and then.
Speaker 2: All ball with Lamar Hurd, one of my best friends
Speaker 2: from my days at PAC twelve is obviously the TV
Speaker 2: analysts for the Blazers. We're doing a little West Coast,
Speaker 2: We're doing some NML, We're doing a little MBA conversation.
Speaker 2: It airs on the PAC twelve Conferences YouTube page and
Speaker 2: you can listen to it as well. So I appreciate
Speaker 2: you a mentally man, even just bringing that up.
Speaker 4: Always good to hear your voice, my friend, be well
Speaker 4: with chat soon.
Speaker 3: Okay, you're the best man. Take care.
Speaker 4: I had the great Mike Yam.
Speaker 1: We got to know him when the PAC twelve was
Speaker 1: a thing kids, look it up YouTube, and now I
Speaker 1: was with our friends at the NFL. Always appreciate Mike's
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