January 5, 2026 • 38 mins
Dan and Monse discuss the Black Monday firings, specifically the Browns parting ways with Kevin Stefanski. Dan and Monse welcome former Chargers' GM Tom Telesco onto the show to talk about all of the firings around the NFL. Plus, Dan and Monse talk about an exchange Aaron Rodgers had with Melissa Stark.
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
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dot com and within the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
I wore black for a reason, Monzy. It's Black Friday
of the National Football League, and some head coaches learn
the hard way. We dive into that in so much more.
A Happy New Year to you. We could still say
it on January fifth, can.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
We still say? I guess it is early, still right,
still in the first week. What's up everybody?
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Do you think when Kevin Stefanski walked into Jimmy Haslam's
office to me, He's like, happy New.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Year, Just to have a have you new year for me,
not so much for you.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Sit twenty twenty six not your year right now. Kevin
Stefanski one of the head coaches to lose their job today,
maybe the most notable. But as we look at the
landscape of the National Football League, it's this Cleveland Browns job, Monzi,
that rises to the level. Now we've had We've had
(01:00):
a variety of of oustings today. Isaac just ran down
some of them. So we had Jonathan Gannon in Arizona gone, okay,
Pete Carroll in Las Vegas, pig gone all right? Uh,
Kevin Stefanski.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Haig gone.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
We had Raheem Morris last night, Brian day Ball earlier
in the season, Brian Callahan. I don't think made it
to week eight? Pig am I missing anyone? Isaac? Did
we miss anyone of our?
Speaker 5 (01:32):
Of our I think Tennessee, Yeah, Tennessee.
Speaker 4 (01:34):
That was the one.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
I was thinking, Yes, that was the That was the
last one. So that Sue's all gone. Right. Oh, the
question is now who is in in Cleveland? But before
we get to that, this was in the makings. Kevin
Stefanski's time in Cleveland is not just a one time,
(01:58):
one thing deal in it's not just should or Sanders,
but should or Sanders was the straw that broke the
camel's back. I truly feel it's a three strikes in
your out sort of deal. Aside from Miles Garrett getting
the sack record and having the Browns just not be
a good football team this year, I feel that there
were three key moments in Kevin Stefanski's six year tenure
(02:21):
that brought him to today, and the first one was
giving up on Baker Mayfield. I think that is a
really tough one to come back from considering Baker's success.
I know you're a big fan of the way that
Baker plays and the energy that he brings, and that
was actually one of the reasons why he was brought
into Cleveland. How the room responded even after a playoff
(02:42):
appearance with Baker Mayfield as you're starting quarterback. Kevin Stefanski
did not believe in Baker Mayfield and ushered his way
out of Cleveland. I think that was strike one. I
think strike two, fairly or unfairly, was that Deshaun Watson
was not the same quarterback after the scandal, after the
year sitting out, after all of his issues with the
Houston Texans coming to Cleveland, and just not being a
(03:05):
good quarterback. But the final strike three, right down, fastball
down the middle was ultimately how he handled this entire
Shador Sanders situation this season. I can remember on draft
Day looking at the shot of Kevin Stefanski and Andrew
Berry almost like they're being interrogated, sitting there with no
(03:25):
expression on their face, as the Browns just drafted shaud
Or Sanders in the fifth round, and we all said
had to be ownership. Ownership had to make that decision.
But then it was Shoudour not getting the reps, Shoudur
being put into a preseason game where he wasn't necessarily qualified,
seeing the other steps along the way, Dylan Gabriel's play,
(03:46):
Joe Flacco's play, and ultimately Shador's play that I think
was the ultimate reason that Kevin Stefanski lost his job.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Today, I don't disagree with you. I like how you
put it.
Speaker 6 (03:54):
It was the straw that broke the camel's back, because yeah,
it's hard to come back from the Baker Mayfield although situation,
although it was the best thing for Baker Mayfield right
like he needed to also get out of that situation.
And so it's like, Okay, bad for you, but really
good for Baker Mayfield.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
That Deshaun Watson bad from top to bottom.
Speaker 6 (04:12):
All of that With Shador Sanders from the beginning, it
was just kind of like, Brown's what are you doing?
Speaker 3 (04:18):
What exactly is your plan? I really wish I could have.
Speaker 6 (04:21):
Been a fly on the wall during those conversations, because
sometimes I was wondering if Kevin Stefanski himself throughout the
season was just going through the motions because he was
upset with ownership, or was he really in on it
from the beginning, and then he just didn't handle it well?
Speaker 3 (04:39):
Which one?
Speaker 6 (04:39):
You know what I'm saying, Like, was he against it
from the beginning and kind of just going through the motions,
or was he in on this decision and then he
did not manage.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
The entire season?
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Right?
Speaker 3 (04:50):
I don't know what it is, but I thought when
I when.
Speaker 6 (04:54):
They finally fired him, I don't think Kevin Sevansky was surprised,
if I'm being honest with you. He saw how this
season went back to back. He's being last place right
in the division. Aside from Miles Garrett, as you mentioned,
what have the Browns? What have you done for me lately?
Except people talk about us in the most negative way possible.
You needed to change, He needed to change. I don't
think he's surprised about it. But all this says is
that the Browns chose Shador Sanders to move forward with.
(05:19):
You could not keep them together all season. The questions were, Shador,
how do you.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
Get along with Kevin? How do you get along with
your head coach?
Speaker 6 (05:25):
How are things with you and Kevin's Every single time
it was a question for Shador Sanders, and he I
thought handled them pretty well every single time. He even
would say, man, you guys are trying to get me
in trouble with these questions like that. People were trying
to stir the pot here. So you could not continue
with both, you could not. And so maybe the Browns
are like we are, we are going to move forward
(05:46):
with Shador Sanders give it. Give him the number one,
you know, the number one reps all season, not just
for a couple of weeks, and see what happens. And
Kevin Stefanski, thank you so much, Coach of the Year,
Thank you. Good luck somewhere else, ken I get it.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Yeah, Kevin Stefanski's resume isn't littered with success stories everywhere.
There are the case Keenum resurrection story with the Minnesota Vikings,
one of the reasons why Kevin Stefanski ended up being
where he was. But when you look at the failures,
and I would add a part C to your deal,
(06:19):
I don't think he was in on it. I think
that he on the drafting of Shador. I think that
he wanted to do his own way and his own thing.
I do believe he was probably in on the drafting
of Dylan Gabriel. And when you see how the two played.
Dylan Gabriel the one part that's not talked about a
lot is I think, well, we all know now it
(06:41):
was in extreme reach for Dylan Gabriel at that spot.
Even at the time of the drafts, some people were
like Dylan Gabriel third, and then then while Shador' still
on the board, Dylan Gabriel went ahead of him. Dylan
Gabriel probably shouldn't have been a third round pick. And
then to have the plan that they had in Cleveland
of Gabriel being the backup when they let go and
let can He Pikett leave and shipped him out of Cleveland.
(07:03):
The other factor in this, and it probably has nothing
to do with Chador, was Joe Flacco played better when
he was out of Cleveland. Yeah, is you forget about that?
That this season for such a weird sort of feeling.
Joe Flacco in Cincinnati, even though they win any football games,
looked like the quarterback with the Browns two years ago
that led them to the playoffs. So if he's coming
(07:24):
in this year and is not having the success and
then he goes to Cincinnati on a trade and immediately
goes in and beats the Steelers, and throws for like,
you're wondering what is going on here? Is it just
the talent around? Sure, it's nice to have Jamar Chase
and t Higgins, But I think that Joe Flacco's success
in Cincinnati probably wasn't a good thing for Kevin Stefanski
of why is Joe Flacco now the guy that he was?
(07:47):
And ultimately it does come down to Shador. You hit
it one hundred percent nail on the head, But I
don't think if he didn't jettison Baker. By the way,
if he didn't jennison Baker, they may never needed Shad
or Sanders. They wouldn't have needed Deshaun Watson. If they
didn't do any of those things with Baker, we wouldn't
have gotten to this point. But if it was only Shador,
(08:07):
I think didn't maybe do another season to try to
work it out, try to figure things out and realize
their mistakes. But there were just too many mistakes leading
up to it, and at your point, it just became
a fork in the road. Do you go Shador, do
you go Stefanski? And I think they chose Shador.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, And then especially like let's compare the Raiders this
season right. What was good for the Raiders Not much,
not much right right?
Speaker 6 (08:31):
So not much with Cleveland, they've been good defensively, Like
it's like sure, so it's like, oh, we only need
to fix this part. We only need to plug this
guy in here, and then we can balance out and
we can put some wins together.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
And it hasn't.
Speaker 6 (08:45):
Happened when you've had a good defensive team for your
entire tenure there pretty much, you know what I'm saying,
And it has not. You have not been able to
put the other side together, and then you've let go
of quarterbacks.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Or got rid of quarter who have had success elsewhere.
Speaker 6 (09:02):
Like, it's not as much of a good coach as
Stefanski is because he's gonna get picked up really easily.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
I think. I don't think he's gonna be.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Giants were thought to be.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
And I bet you there's more Raiders. I bet you
there's more. He's not gonna be a free agent for
very long. But you needed you needed a change because
you were providing what I feel like teams wish they
had a defense, as we are seeing in this season
how important it is to have a defense that can
stop a bleed. They were doing it all.
Speaker 6 (09:29):
They were doing it all season, they were doing it
all last year, and then Stefanski just could not get
the offense going.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
For whatever it is, I don't know.
Speaker 6 (09:36):
So I I get moving on and I think you've
hit it on the head with all of the reasons why.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Probably they decided.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
To move on because I think there's gonna be a
group of people that say Shaudor got Kevin Stefanski fired,
and I don't think that that's no. I don't, And
I think that there's a bunch of stuff leading up
to it. I think that Shador is a part of it.
Andrew Berry, the GM stays right right. So so for
as bad as the Dylan Gabriel draft pick, they did
keep their GM and felt like they needed a new
(10:04):
voice with their players. To question now, Jason Stewart's our
executive producer, is who is that new voice for the
Cleveland Browns. Mike McDaniel's name has been tossed about if
Stefanski were to leave and the Dolphins ended up making
a move, But it doesn't seem like the Dolphins are
going to make a move. So now it's who's next.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
I want to know this. I want to know how
much work right now is being done in the back
channels by Dion Sanders. Could the Browns hire Dion Sanders
and would that not be the biggest marketing win for
the very shortest term ever?
Speaker 2 (10:36):
It would be league altering. The Browns would be back,
Not like they weren't the team that we focused on,
but it felt like when everything was even bad with Cleveland,
we were always talking about what was going on with
the Brons. We still were with Shador. They would be
the team. They would have twelve primetime games next year
(10:56):
coming off of a five win season if Dion ended
up being the head coach. And for those that may
say that's ridiculous, that's crazy to hire Dion Sanders as
the Browns head coach. The Arizona Cardinals took quite the
leap of faith in bringing in Cliff Kingsbury as their
head coach after a tenure at Texas Tech that did
(11:19):
not scream NFL head coach availability. In fact, he was
USC's offensive coordinator for about a day before he became
the Arizona Cardinals head coach. So you don't have to
have the full qualifications and resume in college football to
make the leap to the NFL, and one of the
reasons why Cliff Kingsbury was able to go and make
(11:40):
the jump was of his offense, and then his offense
was able to draft Kyler Murray. So then those two,
with their relationship in the past, were able to work
together in Arizona. Well, who's got a better relationship with
shadhor Sanders than his dad. I don't think it's as
(12:00):
crazy as it may sound when Jason says that there's
some underground talks going on, because it actually would make
more sense than other head coaching higres we've seen in
the National Football League.
Speaker 6 (12:16):
I would not be surprised if the Browns decided to
do that because it would be an instant win for
ticket sales, marketing for all of that. Now, could they
actually win a game?
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Could they turn the season around? I don't. I mean,
I don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 6 (12:35):
Deon Sanders to me is Deon Sanders, so he doesn't
even need to have a resume.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
I feel like he's just gonna get the job because
of his name. But does Deon Sanders want that?
Speaker 6 (12:45):
Does he want that? I feel like he likes being
the guy in Colorado. Yes, he's the guy. Yes, he's
a god there.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
Oh well, yes to some extent.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
But in that small you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yes, started to dwindle the last couple of years and
Colorado went one and eight in conference.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Right, No, no, the egg and so let's make them
an NFL coach.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
That's that's the crazy part about it. And that's why
I bring up Cliff Kingsbury's because somebody would say, like
Colorado won three games this past year, how is he
going to be a head coach. If there's anybody to
get the most out of Shador, it is probably Dion,
And Dion wouldn't have to mess with the defense. Just
paid Jim Schwartz a lot of money to stay as
your defensive coordinator. Right, isn't that the ultimate move? Dion
(13:30):
has his CEO role, Find an offensive coordinator that Deon
sees fit to work with Shador. Let the defense be
the defense. That's fine, just be on their side of
the things. It's not as crazy a of a thought
considering I think a lot of the eggs are in
the basket of Shador, and there's no guarantee Deshaan Watson
is going to be ready or the same quarterback and
(13:53):
I'd rather have a young Shador than an aging and
aching Deshaun Watson coming off of an achilles in for
my quarterback in twenty twenty, twenty twenty six, to see
what's ahead. Dean doesn't have to have the job for
three years. If it doesn't work next year or the
year after, move on, you know, get a get a
new quarterback if he's if he's awful next year. Pete
(14:14):
Carroll got fired after one season. But I do think
that the Browns would have to look at Dean Sanders
if you're truly trying to figure out a way to
max up, maximize it or Sanders you.
Speaker 6 (14:23):
Know, no, absolutely the thing that stopped me in my
truck in my tracks right now, right now you were talking,
I had a glitch when you were like the Shawn Watson,
what we're really entertaining that?
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Well, he was, he's Are they going to be paying him?
Speaker 6 (14:34):
Manzie, Listen, the Raiders are paying a bunch of guys
to not coach, so they could continue to pay him
to just not play, because are they really entertaining the
idea that Deshaun Watson can be your starting quarterback?
Speaker 2 (14:46):
I just got an email that said I can't believe
you would entertain Deshaun Watt. Did you send this email
to me as well? No, I think he's a part
of the plans. I think he is. I think he
has to be by default. It's truly by default, because
you don't have all the answers with Shador. He is
a veteran, that's there. You have two first round picks.
(15:06):
I don't think you're gonna use one on a quarterback.
You could make the team better, you can build the
team around it. But yeah, I think he's I think
he's definitely an option to playing twenty.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
Do you guys remember in the spring when I think
Jimmy has them gave an interview to the local paper
and he said about Deshaun Watson that it was a
big swing and miss. And I remember in the immediate
aftermath of that was that means Deshaun Watson's never put
in on a Browns uniform again. And then this entire
seasons to fans gain everybody else, we're entertaining questions about DeShawn.
(15:39):
You know, will he be practicing, will he be playing
by the end of the year. The whole thing just
doesn't add up. It was a big swing in the
miss by the owner back in the spring. But I
guess DeShawn were led to believe it's still in play
for the quarterback position.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Oh, I just I don't think it's an awful option
if Shador is your main guy, and to see Deshaun
Watson travel with the team and be available to the
team where he was basically behind the seat. We hadn't
seen anything during his rehab, but then he starts traveling
with the team and is on the sideline, tells me
that he's a bit more a part of the team
(16:12):
than maybe we had realized. And so now if he
comes back in a backup situation, I mean maybe should
or shouldn't be handed the job. Maybe he should be.
I don't know. But instead of going out and trying
to find someone else and paying the money that you
have for Deshaun Watson, why don't you just utilize them
and have him be the backup. I just think that's
(16:33):
by default.
Speaker 6 (16:33):
Yeah, I think that's that's probably the right way to
put it. By default, And it isn't a bad thing
to have should do or have some competition.
Speaker 3 (16:41):
You're right, You're right.
Speaker 6 (16:42):
I just it's crazy that I feel like I'm in
the upside down.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
I know it is. It is crazy. I don't know
if you're looking at the jobs, like the Raiders job
is the is the job where there the cupboards are empty,
the caroline or they excuse you. The Arizona job. It's
a mix. Like I thought they've fought hard for Jonathan Gannon,
like they had running back injuries throughout the year, then
(17:08):
at the end of the season it just kind of
all just fell apart. I'm not sure that there's tons there.
It doesn't seem like Carler Murray's feature is in Arizona.
I don't know about Marvin Harrison's junior, Marvin Arison Junior's
future in Arizona. He's gotten off to a rough start
in his first two years, so I don't know if
that's really appealing. But when you have a defense like Cleveland,
(17:28):
it is. Yeah. Yeah, I think that there there may
be and you look at that division, there may be
more opportunities. But if they really want to make Shaduur work,
I think you have to give Diana chance. Wow, she's
Mancy Blago. So I'm Dan Byer. This is Fox Sports Radio.
Jason Stewart's here Iowa. Sam is here and Isaac Lohenkron.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
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Speaker 2 (17:57):
She's Marncy Blago, so I'm Dan Byer. It is Sports Radio.
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You can find me at dan Byer on Fox. Isaac
(18:17):
Lohin Crown will be with us in about ten minutes
or so. He'll give us the latest of what's happening
on a busy day in the NFL, and I know
it's probably the worst of the three hundred and sixty
five for gms and front offices around the NFL. We
are now joined by Tom Telascill, former GM of the
Chargers and Raiders, joining us now give us some of
the emotions of what these front offices are dealing with today. Tom,
(18:40):
Happy New Year, I should say, And now to the
bad news. It is Black Monday in the NFL. What
is this like around the National Football League?
Speaker 7 (18:49):
Yeah, Happy New Year to you guys too. Yeah, always
a very difficult day. I've been on all sides of
this before. You know, it's tough. When you're at the
GM and you're working with your head coach. You're working
side by side every single day, every hour. You end
up spending more time with the with the head coach
they do with your own family and your wife throughout
the fall, so you know you're working constantly with that person,
(19:13):
and then all of a sudden, the season stops. You know,
usual if you don't make the playoffs, everything it's like
the train that comes to a whole and then if
you have to make a decision and make it, make
a change. It's difficult as a GM if you're letting
your head coach go because you know, look, you're part
of this, You're part of the reason why the team
isn't doing as well as it is. But there's certainly
situations where maybe a new voice is needed, something refreshing,
(19:34):
a different approach, and you move on. But like every
head coach every GM, when you take the job, you know,
nine to nine percent of the time, it's not going
to end the way you want it to end, and
we all know that going in. It's a very difficult business.
It's a pressurized business, but it's what we love to
do and you love the challenge, you love the competitive
competitiveness part of it. But you know this day is
coming for everybody at some point. It's just the nature
(19:56):
of the business.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
One team that decided they needed a new voice, the
Cleveland Browns.
Speaker 6 (20:01):
Were you surprised that they parted ways with Kevin Stefanski.
Do you think there was something in particular that caused
them to part ways with Kevin Stefanski.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (20:12):
I think he's an he's an excellent coach. He's he's
shown that. I mean he's you know, if you've bear
one place for it for six years, I means you're
doing something right. And he's a really outstanding offensive mind.
He's shown that and he can lead a football He
won't be out of work for long, I can tell
you that. But I think, like a lot of organizations,
sometimes it's just time for a fresh, new approach. Obviously,
(20:33):
they are a team that's going through a lot of
transition with their roster coming off that the Deshaun Watson
trade where they just lost a lot of assets, not
only draft picks, but but a lot of cash and
cap space. So, uh, it's a team in transition. The
defense is actually really strong, but you know they didn't
played expectations this year, and you know the head coach
usually takes the fall for that. But I think he'll
(20:56):
definitely if he wants interviews, I think he'll have plenty.
I think he shown a lot. I love it leadership
a billy. I love how he handled this year. This
has not been an easy year for the Browns. He
handled it publicly extremely well. Even it's press conference yesterday
that I was watching, just handled everything. That's what you
need as a head coach is someone a leader that
can handle adversity. He's shown he can do that, So
I think he's gonna be okay in the end.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
Tom Telasco joining us here on Fox Sports Radio. She's
Monzi Blanios. I'm Dan Bayer, Tom the former GM of
the Chargers and Raiders. So I understand the sensitivity with
this question from the move that was made in Las
Vegas today, But what are some of the challenges for
a Raiders organization who now will have the first overall
pick in the draft coming up this spring. What are
(21:38):
the challenges that you face, I guess in that building
and trying to make this team a playoff contender.
Speaker 7 (21:45):
Look, there's a lot of good resources there, and they
just have to get to the point where you get
some stability. I know they haven't had that in a
number of years. I do believe at this point, and
I know the fans have probably get tired of hearing
of this, but I think at this point they're going
to get the right per with the right alignment going
into next year, and any built from there. You've got
the first round pick, it's going to be a quarterback.
(22:06):
That's the person they've struggled to find in clearly when
I was there, as far as a young quarterback to
build around. But you have to get some stability. And
it's been the last three drafts the team that's drafted
for head coaches that are no longer there, So this
will be the fourth one. So that kind of stunts
the rebuild because you're drafting players for a certain head
coach and a certain scheme and then all of a sudden,
(22:27):
the scheme changes or the philosophy changes and that's changed
for four consecutive years. I do feel like at this
point there get the point where they're all aligned moving forward,
They'll have a quarterback that have some pieces on offense
that the offensive line, they get Colton Miller back, they
get JPJ Jackson Powers Johnson back, They're going to have
some players. It's going to take a little bit of time,
and I know nobody wants patience, but for the next
(22:49):
head coach, there are some pieces there to work around.
But I know it's just been a long haul for
everybody there.
Speaker 6 (22:54):
Out of all, out of all of the teams looking
for a head coach, which one do you think seems
the most appealing.
Speaker 7 (23:01):
Oh, that's a tough question. Look, there's only thirty two
of these jobs. They all have their positives, whether people
you know see it or not. But obviously you want
to look for a job. If you already have a
quarterback in place, like the Giants have with Jackson Dirt,
you know that's going to be the appealing part of it.
That's the hardest piece to find is the franchise quarterback.
The Giants have that with Jackson Dirt. They have a
(23:23):
really good front office with Joe Shane and Kevin Abrams
and Tim McDonald. So they have some stability and some
experience there and they have some pieces. But their defense
has players. I can't quite figure out why they hadn't
didn't play as well as they should have this year,
and that's something they're gonna have to work through, and
that's gonna be a big part of the interview process
is what's the plan for the defense as well? Not
only Jackson Dart, but how do we get some of
(23:44):
these talented defensive players to play to their abilities. But
New York's a big market, they have a quarterback that'd
be a really interesting job for head.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
Coach Tom telasco joining us here on Fox Sports Radio.
My question now shifts not from the teams that are
looking for coaches, but teams that are looking to advance
in the playoffs, and specifically about the Philadelphia Eagles, because
they obviously made a decision yesterday to rest their starters.
They ended up being the three seed, but they got
(24:12):
some help from the Lions and beating the Bears, but
the Eagles didn't take care of their end of the bit,
so they're gonna end up being the three seed. How
much is the general manager in that conversation with a
coach on how to approach week eighteen. What approaches did
you like when you were in that seat if Week
eighteen mattered or maybe didn't matter for a team that
was going into the playoffs. What's the GM's role in
(24:34):
those sort of discussions.
Speaker 7 (24:36):
It's certainly an organizational decision that you would sit down
with the head coach and discuss it and certainly be
a sounding board for the head coach. And I've been
through a situation before, and I gotta say most gms
would rather go on a side of the rest and
not putting players out there that could with risk the injury.
Because at this point of the year, if one of
your main starters goes down, there's nowhere to go. Pass
(24:59):
the trade deadline, there's obviously no free agents in the street.
They're going to come in and start for you. So
as a GM, you're you're always worried about that, and
usually the head coach is more worried about Well. I
don't want to get rusty, but I will say I've
seen teams do it both ways. There's no one single
way to do it. I've always been on the more side.
If you have a chance to get players some risk
and pull away the risk of getting hurt in that
(25:19):
last game. That doesn't mean anything. That's the way to go.
There's no other teams that have gone the other way
and say, he look, we need to keep playing to
stay sharp, like the Rams did the other day. I
think each situation is unique. I think for the Eagles
this works for them, and they've played a lot of
games the last couple of years, so I do think
just trying to get some fresh lays going into playoffs,
but don't play anybody anywhere. I don't think they're worried
(25:40):
about who they play, so I was I was fine
with the decision.
Speaker 6 (25:44):
Is there any team that is in the playoffs right
now that has surprised you?
Speaker 3 (25:48):
I'm looking at the Jaguars and how they ended the
season on an eight game winning streak.
Speaker 6 (25:53):
You know, any team like the Jaguars or another team
that surprises you, Well.
Speaker 7 (25:58):
I think the first I mean the Jaguars jump out immediately,
and just how they've played the last points and a half,
which is the most important part of the season. But
I have been impressed with it, with their head coach,
how they've handled the whole situation and just how he's
handled even even Trevor Lawrence with the inconsistencies of what
he's He's shown some really high highs, but he also
had the low of the lows. But he's really even
(26:20):
out of play and played at a high level. They've
turned that around quickly, and I think if you're a
team right now you're looking for a head coach and
you look at what the Jaguars have done, like what
the Patriots did, he kind of gaves you some hope
that you know these are not This isn't like baseball
we have three or four and five year rebuilds and
turnarounds like you can do it quickly.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Now.
Speaker 7 (26:37):
Obviously those two teams I mentioned already have franchise quarterbacks
that are young. But I've been really impressed with the Jaguars.
You know, their defense and how aggressive they've been, how
they create turnovers. I'm sure everybody's gonna be picking the
Bills in this game because Jacksonville, you know, as Sean
Payton said, you know, it's a small market and they
are not on national TV as much, but they've got
this home game for a reason. They're really strong on
(26:59):
both sides, and they're a really interesting football team for
the playoffs.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
I got one last one for you. Tom telasco joining
us here on Fox Sports Radio. The Falcons, a lot
of things are open. Terry Fontt knows out. Rahie Morris
dismissed last night as head coach. It seems like Matt
Ryan has a sort of role there. Would you look
at the Falcons situation as one that is appealing because
you could do coach GM sort of deal the quarterback situation.
(27:25):
You do have Michael Pennick's junior there, but he's coming
off of his knee injury. How do you assess what
Atlanta has done after dismissing both GM and head coach.
Speaker 7 (27:34):
Well, it's gonna be a lot of change. You know,
I've been around a lot of search firms. I've never
seen it before. We have two different search firms working concurrently.
And even when they brought in a consultants to kind
of audit the football operations, you kind of knew where
that was going to go because I can never see
a consulting firm coming in to look at football operations
(27:54):
and going back to the owner saying, hey, everything's great.
Just kind of keep going.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Sure, you know.
Speaker 7 (27:58):
That's not going to happen is that there's going to
be major change, and there's a major change now between
not only GM and head coach, but also president as
far as moving Rich McKay into a different role. Rich
McKay is outstanding in what he does, but he's gonna
I guess he's gonna take on a different role. So
so I guess you have a blank canvas there to
start fresh. They do have some talent on offense, but
(28:20):
there's a lot of questions at the quarterback position. Now
They've put a lot of assets into it, but right
now you've got Kirk Cousins, who you know, who knows
he may retire, but he's up there in age. And
you've got Michael Penk's coming off of major knee injury,
who's had durability derbilly issues going back to college. So
that is certainly an uncertain situation. It's the most important position.
But you're walking into a team that has some talent
(28:41):
on both sides of the ball, and it's you know,
a clean slate to work with with a GM, a
head coach, and you know whoever the president's going to be.
I've heard great things about Matt Ryan, So I guess
what we shall see.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Did you like draft cams? Because I feel that's what
got Terry Fott knows we've seen over the last twenty
four hours him explaining to Arthur Blank why they took
Michael Pennick Junior. Did you do you like the draft
cam when you were in the hot seat.
Speaker 7 (29:02):
As a GM honestly, not really, But it was a
two way street because look, if you want to get
something back to your fans, they kind of show them
what goes on in the draft room. And there was
just a lot of a lot of hunger see how
things are done, how the decisions are made. So whether
it was recording the phone call to the player drafting
to having a camera and a microphone in there, I
(29:23):
kind of got used to it. I was old school.
I came up in the Bill Polly and he would
never have a camera in the draft room. I had
to change and evolve, and I did, but sure comfortable.
They always say, hey, don't worry about it. You won't
even know what's in there. So yeah, that's part of
the problem. I don't even know it's on. God knows
what I'm going to do, so but look, it's part
of the NFL nowadays, and I think it's something to
give back to your fancy just for content. But look, yeah,
(29:46):
this is the downside to it. They see it all,
but that's part of being a GM.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
Great stuff, Tom, We appreciated. Best of luck in twenty
twenty six. Enjoy the NFL playoffs. We'll talk to you
again soon.
Speaker 8 (29:57):
Sounds good.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
Thanks for both you. Take care, Tom.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
To a Lasco joining here at Fox Sports Radio. She's
Matzi Blajos. I'm Dan Byer. Let's go to the news deck.
News desk, guys Aglowing Cron joining us.
Speaker 5 (30:07):
An odd situation involving New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson.
He revealed today that he tore his hamstring prior to
Week two of the regular season. He would start in
two more games after that and appear in three additional games.
Of course, NFL teams are supposed to, you know, disclose injuries. Sure, However,
(30:29):
Wilson tweeted on social media a short time ago, and
I quote not the Giant's fault. They didn't know because
I didn't want to tell anyone because of the circumstances.
I just had to play through it to try and
go ball. Thought we were going to win that wild
crazy game unquote. So apparently, kudos to Russell Wilson for
(30:53):
successfully hiding a torn.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Hamstring standing Yeah, Iowa, Sam and Jason scenarios Danson and
tell anybody on.
Speaker 3 (31:04):
His feet standing ovation for the former Seahawk.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Yet he was able to climb up probably for uh,
for four pieces of scaffolding to be there on New
Year's Eve with Siarra on uh with Ryan Seacrest on stage,
all with the torn hamstring. Please clap.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
Ciara, Sierra. That doesn't Okay, that doesn't matter, got it?
You know?
Speaker 9 (31:32):
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Speaker 2 (31:46):
Yeah, don't blame the giants. I didn't tell him.
Speaker 3 (31:47):
I didn't tell them.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
I didn't tell him. I'm sure Brian Davills like great.
I had a one legged quarterback out at all time.
Now I don't have a job. Unbelievable. This guy, seriously,
this guy.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
So he tore it in that overtime game? Is that
what it is?
Speaker 4 (32:03):
That?
Speaker 7 (32:03):
What it is?
Speaker 5 (32:04):
He tore it during the week before the Week two game.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
Okay, so he threw for four hundred and fifty yards
on one leg on one leg and then didn't then
couldn't do anything else the rest of the season.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
But why is it a story? Why is it Why
has the NFL been informed of this? Like why is
this a thing?
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Well, because he would need to be reported on the
injury report. But Russell Wilson, which I don't know how
many of us actually believe he tore his hamstring, which
I that's part of the problem as well. He's now
coming out and saying what a great guy he was
by not telling anyone he was hurt. And by the way,
don't blame the Giants.
Speaker 5 (32:39):
So he he revealed it this morning during you know,
locker room cleanout day. Then when the media got a
hold of it, they're like, wait a minute, this is
kind of this should be investigated because you're literally supposed
to report injuries. And then after that he issued that gotcha.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Ok Yeah, So Russell Wilson did no one any favors
except himself today truly, like that's what he did. He
made himself look better, like he played hurt.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
Well.
Speaker 10 (33:05):
He also he also makes himself look kind of like, oh,
I wasn't healthy when I was playing, Like I'll be
healthy in the future.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Maybe better that aids Russell Wilson. It does no good
for the Giants. But but do you really think that
it's the hamstring why he's stunk? He hasn't been good
for four years. It's not the hamstring. It's Russell Wilson
that's the issue. But hey, let's make it about me.
Went in doubt and make it about me. That's the
(33:31):
Russell Wilson motto.
Speaker 10 (33:32):
Yeah, all right, on Russell Wilson's hamstring tour. But did
you did your chair fall apart? My chair broke, well,
the arm did.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I don't know, chairs hamstring break or tear.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Literally, that's the hamstring of them.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Apparently this has been broken since week two and until
it just fell apart today.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
Fox Sports Radio had the best sports talk lineup in
the nation yet. Catch all of our shows at Fox
sports Radio dot com and within the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (34:01):
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Speaker 8 (34:22):
Here's the snap, here's the hole, here's the boot by
loop and that kick is.
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Right and your Pittsburgh Steelers are HEC North Chippions.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
It took me for a loop seeing that kick miss
courtesy of one to two point five w DVE Steelers
Radio Network. I thought it was meant to be when
they gotten they got that fourth down, and I guess
it wasn't.
Speaker 3 (34:51):
So I watch on a streaming.
Speaker 6 (34:53):
I think I've told you guys you have DirecTV streaming,
so still streaming, but the channels right, Yes, I lost
signal before the kick, and then my Twitter went off
and I read Steelers AFC North Champs and I was
like what because Boswell had just missed a kick.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
Yes, so like I could not, I didn't see it.
Speaker 2 (35:13):
I had.
Speaker 6 (35:14):
Then I went back and I saw it, but I
could not believe it.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
Unreal, unreal.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Did your signal come back in time to hear the
postgame interview? Yes?
Speaker 3 (35:22):
No, no, no, yes, of course.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Aaron Rodgers, Cam Hayward, TJ. Watt All, surrounded by Melissa
Stark and Melissa Stark had this exchange with the soon
to be Hall of Fame quarterback.
Speaker 8 (35:34):
It's pretty emotional, honestly.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
It's been a great year.
Speaker 8 (35:37):
So I'm thankful for these guys and excited to be
going to the playoffs for the first time in a
long while.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
Does that mean you're riding off into the sunset after this.
Speaker 8 (35:45):
No, I'm just just been a you know, it's been
a grinding here and two years before that were's up
as well, So it's been It's been an absolute blessing
to be here with these fans, in this organization and
Mike Tea and a leadership that we got with these guys,
and you know, I think we just we found that
little bit that's something special, which is belief tonight on
(36:06):
the offensive side. And I'm proud of our guys the
way we responded in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
I had to ask it.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
I had to ask it. Come on, Cam, come on in.
She knew she messed up.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
Girl.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
What There's nothing that Aaron Rodgers said previously that what
made you think that this is it? Right? Like, there
was nothing nothing that he had said in those previous
four or five sentences to make you think that this
was going to be he was about to play his
final game, maybe next week or this was the final run.
There was nothing that was said, and Melissa Stark just
(36:39):
went that way. It was way off base, way.
Speaker 11 (36:42):
Off base, righting off into the sunset. He's got another
game to play. What sunset are you talking about? Aaron
Rodgers glitched. If you watch that, his eyes have like
he can't believe she just asked.
Speaker 6 (36:55):
She just asked him that, and then he has to like, Okay,
do not tell her how stupid of a question you
just ask? I have the rap respond in a more
you know, appropriate for a TV way. Uh what he
glitched because he wanted to tell her how stupid she sounded.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Jason Stewart's our executive producer. You uh, you didn't love
this either. You hitted the ending more than anything.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
Yeah, her saying at the end gave it all way
she said. She's saying I had to ask was her
way of saying that was a really bad question at
the wrong time.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
I had to do it, had to do it.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
No, you didn't. I don't think anybody felt like you had,
including your producer.
Speaker 6 (37:31):
Someone told her to do it. That's what that was,
like a producer, you know what I'm saying. Like she
was like, I had to ask, because why why did.
Speaker 4 (37:37):
You have to guys?
Speaker 5 (37:38):
In her defense, Melissa Stark actually tore her hamstring before
week two.
Speaker 3 (37:43):
Of the season stop Stuck.
Speaker 5 (37:46):
But Monci, I actually think you have it right on.
I don't know this for sure, but I would almost
guarantee you it was someone saying it in her ear,
either beforehand or.
Speaker 3 (37:55):
During the interview, right like, hey, don't forget to bring
that up. But again, out of pocket life. He didn't
say that.
Speaker 6 (38:01):
If you would have said I'm really excited for it
to be maybe my final playoff game, he didn't say final,
and he didn't indicate any of that.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
You guys had a beautiful wedding. Did you guys sign
a prenup or not? It's that and this is beautiful today.
I just curious. I had to ask. I had to
ask you guys. She's Watson Belanios, I'm dan byer Isaac
Low and Crown, Jason Stewart, Iowa Sam are here. Love
and Hate from a Magnificent Weekend. Next
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in
the nation. Catch all of our shows at foxsports Radio
dot com and within the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
I wore black for a reason, Monzy. It's Black Friday
of the National Football League, and some head coaches learn
the hard way. We dive into that in so much more.
A Happy New Year to you. We could still say
it on January fifth, can.
Speaker 3 (00:23):
We still say? I guess it is early, still right,
still in the first week. What's up everybody?
Speaker 2 (00:27):
Do you think when Kevin Stefanski walked into Jimmy Haslam's
office to me, He's like, happy New.
Speaker 3 (00:32):
Year, Just to have a have you new year for me,
not so much for you.
Speaker 2 (00:39):
Sit twenty twenty six not your year right now. Kevin
Stefanski one of the head coaches to lose their job today,
maybe the most notable. But as we look at the
landscape of the National Football League, it's this Cleveland Browns job, Monzi,
that rises to the level. Now we've had We've had
(01:00):
a variety of of oustings today. Isaac just ran down
some of them. So we had Jonathan Gannon in Arizona gone, okay,
Pete Carroll in Las Vegas, pig gone all right? Uh,
Kevin Stefanski.
Speaker 4 (01:19):
Haig gone.
Speaker 2 (01:20):
We had Raheem Morris last night, Brian day Ball earlier
in the season, Brian Callahan. I don't think made it
to week eight? Pig am I missing anyone? Isaac? Did
we miss anyone of our?
Speaker 5 (01:32):
Of our I think Tennessee, Yeah, Tennessee.
Speaker 4 (01:34):
That was the one.
Speaker 2 (01:35):
I was thinking, Yes, that was the That was the
last one. So that Sue's all gone. Right. Oh, the
question is now who is in in Cleveland? But before
we get to that, this was in the makings. Kevin
Stefanski's time in Cleveland is not just a one time,
(01:58):
one thing deal in it's not just should or Sanders,
but should or Sanders was the straw that broke the
camel's back. I truly feel it's a three strikes in
your out sort of deal. Aside from Miles Garrett getting
the sack record and having the Browns just not be
a good football team this year, I feel that there
were three key moments in Kevin Stefanski's six year tenure
(02:21):
that brought him to today, and the first one was
giving up on Baker Mayfield. I think that is a
really tough one to come back from considering Baker's success.
I know you're a big fan of the way that
Baker plays and the energy that he brings, and that
was actually one of the reasons why he was brought
into Cleveland. How the room responded even after a playoff
(02:42):
appearance with Baker Mayfield as you're starting quarterback. Kevin Stefanski
did not believe in Baker Mayfield and ushered his way
out of Cleveland. I think that was strike one. I
think strike two, fairly or unfairly, was that Deshaun Watson
was not the same quarterback after the scandal, after the
year sitting out, after all of his issues with the
Houston Texans coming to Cleveland, and just not being a
(03:05):
good quarterback. But the final strike three, right down, fastball
down the middle was ultimately how he handled this entire
Shador Sanders situation this season. I can remember on draft
Day looking at the shot of Kevin Stefanski and Andrew
Berry almost like they're being interrogated, sitting there with no
(03:25):
expression on their face, as the Browns just drafted shaud
Or Sanders in the fifth round, and we all said
had to be ownership. Ownership had to make that decision.
But then it was Shoudour not getting the reps, Shoudur
being put into a preseason game where he wasn't necessarily qualified,
seeing the other steps along the way, Dylan Gabriel's play,
(03:46):
Joe Flacco's play, and ultimately Shador's play that I think
was the ultimate reason that Kevin Stefanski lost his job.
Speaker 3 (03:52):
Today, I don't disagree with you. I like how you
put it.
Speaker 6 (03:54):
It was the straw that broke the camel's back, because yeah,
it's hard to come back from the Baker Mayfield although situation,
although it was the best thing for Baker Mayfield right
like he needed to also get out of that situation.
And so it's like, Okay, bad for you, but really
good for Baker Mayfield.
Speaker 3 (04:09):
That Deshaun Watson bad from top to bottom.
Speaker 6 (04:12):
All of that With Shador Sanders from the beginning, it
was just kind of like, Brown's what are you doing?
Speaker 3 (04:18):
What exactly is your plan? I really wish I could have.
Speaker 6 (04:21):
Been a fly on the wall during those conversations, because
sometimes I was wondering if Kevin Stefanski himself throughout the
season was just going through the motions because he was
upset with ownership, or was he really in on it
from the beginning, and then he just didn't handle it well?
Speaker 3 (04:39):
Which one?
Speaker 6 (04:39):
You know what I'm saying, Like, was he against it
from the beginning and kind of just going through the motions,
or was he in on this decision and then he
did not manage.
Speaker 3 (04:47):
The entire season?
Speaker 2 (04:49):
Right?
Speaker 3 (04:50):
I don't know what it is, but I thought when
I when.
Speaker 6 (04:54):
They finally fired him, I don't think Kevin Sevansky was surprised,
if I'm being honest with you. He saw how this
season went back to back. He's being last place right
in the division. Aside from Miles Garrett, as you mentioned,
what have the Browns? What have you done for me lately?
Except people talk about us in the most negative way possible.
You needed to change, He needed to change. I don't
think he's surprised about it. But all this says is
that the Browns chose Shador Sanders to move forward with.
(05:19):
You could not keep them together all season. The questions were, Shador,
how do you.
Speaker 3 (05:23):
Get along with Kevin? How do you get along with
your head coach?
Speaker 6 (05:25):
How are things with you and Kevin's Every single time
it was a question for Shador Sanders, and he I
thought handled them pretty well every single time. He even
would say, man, you guys are trying to get me
in trouble with these questions like that. People were trying
to stir the pot here. So you could not continue
with both, you could not. And so maybe the Browns
are like we are, we are going to move forward
(05:46):
with Shador Sanders give it. Give him the number one,
you know, the number one reps all season, not just
for a couple of weeks, and see what happens. And
Kevin Stefanski, thank you so much, Coach of the Year,
Thank you. Good luck somewhere else, ken I get it.
Speaker 2 (05:58):
Yeah, Kevin Stefanski's resume isn't littered with success stories everywhere.
There are the case Keenum resurrection story with the Minnesota Vikings,
one of the reasons why Kevin Stefanski ended up being
where he was. But when you look at the failures,
and I would add a part C to your deal,
(06:19):
I don't think he was in on it. I think
that he on the drafting of Shador. I think that
he wanted to do his own way and his own thing.
I do believe he was probably in on the drafting
of Dylan Gabriel. And when you see how the two played.
Dylan Gabriel the one part that's not talked about a
lot is I think, well, we all know now it
(06:41):
was in extreme reach for Dylan Gabriel at that spot.
Even at the time of the drafts, some people were
like Dylan Gabriel third, and then then while Shador' still
on the board, Dylan Gabriel went ahead of him. Dylan
Gabriel probably shouldn't have been a third round pick. And
then to have the plan that they had in Cleveland
of Gabriel being the backup when they let go and
let can He Pikett leave and shipped him out of Cleveland.
(07:03):
The other factor in this, and it probably has nothing
to do with Chador, was Joe Flacco played better when
he was out of Cleveland. Yeah, is you forget about that?
That this season for such a weird sort of feeling.
Joe Flacco in Cincinnati, even though they win any football games,
looked like the quarterback with the Browns two years ago
that led them to the playoffs. So if he's coming
(07:24):
in this year and is not having the success and
then he goes to Cincinnati on a trade and immediately
goes in and beats the Steelers, and throws for like,
you're wondering what is going on here? Is it just
the talent around? Sure, it's nice to have Jamar Chase
and t Higgins, But I think that Joe Flacco's success
in Cincinnati probably wasn't a good thing for Kevin Stefanski
of why is Joe Flacco now the guy that he was?
(07:47):
And ultimately it does come down to Shador. You hit
it one hundred percent nail on the head, But I
don't think if he didn't jettison Baker. By the way,
if he didn't jennison Baker, they may never needed Shad
or Sanders. They wouldn't have needed Deshaun Watson. If they
didn't do any of those things with Baker, we wouldn't
have gotten to this point. But if it was only Shador,
(08:07):
I think didn't maybe do another season to try to
work it out, try to figure things out and realize
their mistakes. But there were just too many mistakes leading
up to it, and at your point, it just became
a fork in the road. Do you go Shador, do
you go Stefanski? And I think they chose Shador.
Speaker 3 (08:22):
Yeah, And then especially like let's compare the Raiders this
season right. What was good for the Raiders Not much,
not much right right?
Speaker 6 (08:31):
So not much with Cleveland, they've been good defensively, Like
it's like sure, so it's like, oh, we only need
to fix this part. We only need to plug this
guy in here, and then we can balance out and
we can put some wins together.
Speaker 3 (08:44):
And it hasn't.
Speaker 6 (08:45):
Happened when you've had a good defensive team for your
entire tenure there pretty much, you know what I'm saying,
And it has not. You have not been able to
put the other side together, and then you've let go
of quarterbacks.
Speaker 3 (08:59):
Or got rid of quarter who have had success elsewhere.
Speaker 6 (09:02):
Like, it's not as much of a good coach as
Stefanski is because he's gonna get picked up really easily.
Speaker 3 (09:08):
I think. I don't think he's gonna be.
Speaker 2 (09:09):
Giants were thought to be.
Speaker 3 (09:11):
And I bet you there's more Raiders. I bet you
there's more. He's not gonna be a free agent for
very long. But you needed you needed a change because
you were providing what I feel like teams wish they
had a defense, as we are seeing in this season
how important it is to have a defense that can
stop a bleed. They were doing it all.
Speaker 6 (09:29):
They were doing it all season, they were doing it
all last year, and then Stefanski just could not get
the offense going.
Speaker 3 (09:34):
For whatever it is, I don't know.
Speaker 6 (09:36):
So I I get moving on and I think you've
hit it on the head with all of the reasons why.
Speaker 3 (09:41):
Probably they decided.
Speaker 2 (09:42):
To move on because I think there's gonna be a
group of people that say Shaudor got Kevin Stefanski fired,
and I don't think that that's no. I don't, And
I think that there's a bunch of stuff leading up
to it. I think that Shador is a part of it.
Andrew Berry, the GM stays right right. So so for
as bad as the Dylan Gabriel draft pick, they did
keep their GM and felt like they needed a new
(10:04):
voice with their players. To question now, Jason Stewart's our
executive producer, is who is that new voice for the
Cleveland Browns. Mike McDaniel's name has been tossed about if
Stefanski were to leave and the Dolphins ended up making
a move, But it doesn't seem like the Dolphins are
going to make a move. So now it's who's next.
Speaker 4 (10:20):
I want to know this. I want to know how
much work right now is being done in the back
channels by Dion Sanders. Could the Browns hire Dion Sanders
and would that not be the biggest marketing win for
the very shortest term ever?
Speaker 2 (10:36):
It would be league altering. The Browns would be back,
Not like they weren't the team that we focused on,
but it felt like when everything was even bad with Cleveland,
we were always talking about what was going on with
the Brons. We still were with Shador. They would be
the team. They would have twelve primetime games next year
(10:56):
coming off of a five win season if Dion ended
up being the head coach. And for those that may
say that's ridiculous, that's crazy to hire Dion Sanders as
the Browns head coach. The Arizona Cardinals took quite the
leap of faith in bringing in Cliff Kingsbury as their
head coach after a tenure at Texas Tech that did
(11:19):
not scream NFL head coach availability. In fact, he was
USC's offensive coordinator for about a day before he became
the Arizona Cardinals head coach. So you don't have to
have the full qualifications and resume in college football to
make the leap to the NFL, and one of the
reasons why Cliff Kingsbury was able to go and make
(11:40):
the jump was of his offense, and then his offense
was able to draft Kyler Murray. So then those two,
with their relationship in the past, were able to work
together in Arizona. Well, who's got a better relationship with
shadhor Sanders than his dad. I don't think it's as
(12:00):
crazy as it may sound when Jason says that there's
some underground talks going on, because it actually would make
more sense than other head coaching higres we've seen in
the National Football League.
Speaker 6 (12:16):
I would not be surprised if the Browns decided to
do that because it would be an instant win for
ticket sales, marketing for all of that. Now, could they
actually win a game?
Speaker 3 (12:32):
Could they turn the season around? I don't. I mean,
I don't know. I don't know.
Speaker 6 (12:35):
Deon Sanders to me is Deon Sanders, so he doesn't
even need to have a resume.
Speaker 3 (12:40):
I feel like he's just gonna get the job because
of his name. But does Deon Sanders want that?
Speaker 6 (12:45):
Does he want that? I feel like he likes being
the guy in Colorado. Yes, he's the guy. Yes, he's
a god there.
Speaker 2 (12:54):
Oh well, yes to some extent.
Speaker 3 (12:57):
But in that small you know what I'm saying.
Speaker 2 (12:59):
Yes, started to dwindle the last couple of years and
Colorado went one and eight in conference.
Speaker 3 (13:04):
Right, No, no, the egg and so let's make them
an NFL coach.
Speaker 2 (13:07):
That's that's the crazy part about it. And that's why
I bring up Cliff Kingsbury's because somebody would say, like
Colorado won three games this past year, how is he
going to be a head coach. If there's anybody to
get the most out of Shador, it is probably Dion,
And Dion wouldn't have to mess with the defense. Just
paid Jim Schwartz a lot of money to stay as
your defensive coordinator. Right, isn't that the ultimate move? Dion
(13:30):
has his CEO role, Find an offensive coordinator that Deon
sees fit to work with Shador. Let the defense be
the defense. That's fine, just be on their side of
the things. It's not as crazy a of a thought
considering I think a lot of the eggs are in
the basket of Shador, and there's no guarantee Deshaan Watson
is going to be ready or the same quarterback and
(13:53):
I'd rather have a young Shador than an aging and
aching Deshaun Watson coming off of an achilles in for
my quarterback in twenty twenty, twenty twenty six, to see
what's ahead. Dean doesn't have to have the job for
three years. If it doesn't work next year or the
year after, move on, you know, get a get a
new quarterback if he's if he's awful next year. Pete
(14:14):
Carroll got fired after one season. But I do think
that the Browns would have to look at Dean Sanders
if you're truly trying to figure out a way to
max up, maximize it or Sanders you.
Speaker 6 (14:23):
Know, no, absolutely the thing that stopped me in my
truck in my tracks right now, right now you were talking,
I had a glitch when you were like the Shawn Watson,
what we're really entertaining that?
Speaker 2 (14:31):
Well, he was, he's Are they going to be paying him?
Speaker 6 (14:34):
Manzie, Listen, the Raiders are paying a bunch of guys
to not coach, so they could continue to pay him
to just not play, because are they really entertaining the
idea that Deshaun Watson can be your starting quarterback?
Speaker 2 (14:46):
I just got an email that said I can't believe
you would entertain Deshaun Watt. Did you send this email
to me as well? No, I think he's a part
of the plans. I think he is. I think he
has to be by default. It's truly by default, because
you don't have all the answers with Shador. He is
a veteran, that's there. You have two first round picks.
(15:06):
I don't think you're gonna use one on a quarterback.
You could make the team better, you can build the
team around it. But yeah, I think he's I think
he's definitely an option to playing twenty.
Speaker 4 (15:15):
Do you guys remember in the spring when I think
Jimmy has them gave an interview to the local paper
and he said about Deshaun Watson that it was a
big swing and miss. And I remember in the immediate
aftermath of that was that means Deshaun Watson's never put
in on a Browns uniform again. And then this entire
seasons to fans gain everybody else, we're entertaining questions about DeShawn.
(15:39):
You know, will he be practicing, will he be playing
by the end of the year. The whole thing just
doesn't add up. It was a big swing in the
miss by the owner back in the spring. But I
guess DeShawn were led to believe it's still in play
for the quarterback position.
Speaker 2 (15:52):
Oh, I just I don't think it's an awful option
if Shador is your main guy, and to see Deshaun
Watson travel with the team and be available to the
team where he was basically behind the seat. We hadn't
seen anything during his rehab, but then he starts traveling
with the team and is on the sideline, tells me
that he's a bit more a part of the team
(16:12):
than maybe we had realized. And so now if he
comes back in a backup situation, I mean maybe should
or shouldn't be handed the job. Maybe he should be.
I don't know. But instead of going out and trying
to find someone else and paying the money that you
have for Deshaun Watson, why don't you just utilize them
and have him be the backup. I just think that's
(16:33):
by default.
Speaker 6 (16:33):
Yeah, I think that's that's probably the right way to
put it. By default, And it isn't a bad thing
to have should do or have some competition.
Speaker 3 (16:41):
You're right, You're right.
Speaker 6 (16:42):
I just it's crazy that I feel like I'm in
the upside down.
Speaker 2 (16:46):
I know it is. It is crazy. I don't know
if you're looking at the jobs, like the Raiders job
is the is the job where there the cupboards are empty,
the caroline or they excuse you. The Arizona job. It's
a mix. Like I thought they've fought hard for Jonathan Gannon,
like they had running back injuries throughout the year, then
(17:08):
at the end of the season it just kind of
all just fell apart. I'm not sure that there's tons there.
It doesn't seem like Carler Murray's feature is in Arizona.
I don't know about Marvin Harrison's junior, Marvin Arison Junior's
future in Arizona. He's gotten off to a rough start
in his first two years, so I don't know if
that's really appealing. But when you have a defense like Cleveland,
(17:28):
it is. Yeah. Yeah, I think that there there may
be and you look at that division, there may be
more opportunities. But if they really want to make Shaduur work,
I think you have to give Diana chance. Wow, she's
Mancy Blago. So I'm Dan Byer. This is Fox Sports Radio.
Jason Stewart's here Iowa. Sam is here and Isaac Lohenkron.
Speaker 1 (17:47):
Fox Sports Radio had the best sports talk lineup in
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Speaker 2 (17:57):
She's Marncy Blago, so I'm Dan Byer. It is Sports Radio.
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You can find me at dan Byer on Fox. Isaac
(18:17):
Lohin Crown will be with us in about ten minutes
or so. He'll give us the latest of what's happening
on a busy day in the NFL, and I know
it's probably the worst of the three hundred and sixty
five for gms and front offices around the NFL. We
are now joined by Tom Telascill, former GM of the
Chargers and Raiders, joining us now give us some of
the emotions of what these front offices are dealing with today. Tom,
(18:40):
Happy New Year, I should say, And now to the
bad news. It is Black Monday in the NFL. What
is this like around the National Football League?
Speaker 7 (18:49):
Yeah, Happy New Year to you guys too. Yeah, always
a very difficult day. I've been on all sides of
this before. You know, it's tough. When you're at the
GM and you're working with your head coach. You're working
side by side every single day, every hour. You end
up spending more time with the with the head coach
they do with your own family and your wife throughout
the fall, so you know you're working constantly with that person,
(19:13):
and then all of a sudden, the season stops. You know,
usual if you don't make the playoffs, everything it's like
the train that comes to a whole and then if
you have to make a decision and make it, make
a change. It's difficult as a GM if you're letting
your head coach go because you know, look, you're part
of this, You're part of the reason why the team
isn't doing as well as it is. But there's certainly
situations where maybe a new voice is needed, something refreshing,
(19:34):
a different approach, and you move on. But like every
head coach every GM, when you take the job, you know,
nine to nine percent of the time, it's not going
to end the way you want it to end, and
we all know that going in. It's a very difficult business.
It's a pressurized business, but it's what we love to
do and you love the challenge, you love the competitive
competitiveness part of it. But you know this day is
coming for everybody at some point. It's just the nature
(19:56):
of the business.
Speaker 3 (19:57):
One team that decided they needed a new voice, the
Cleveland Browns.
Speaker 6 (20:01):
Were you surprised that they parted ways with Kevin Stefanski.
Do you think there was something in particular that caused
them to part ways with Kevin Stefanski.
Speaker 2 (20:12):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (20:12):
I think he's an he's an excellent coach. He's he's
shown that. I mean he's you know, if you've bear
one place for it for six years, I means you're
doing something right. And he's a really outstanding offensive mind.
He's shown that and he can lead a football He
won't be out of work for long, I can tell
you that. But I think, like a lot of organizations,
sometimes it's just time for a fresh, new approach. Obviously,
(20:33):
they are a team that's going through a lot of
transition with their roster coming off that the Deshaun Watson
trade where they just lost a lot of assets, not
only draft picks, but but a lot of cash and
cap space. So, uh, it's a team in transition. The
defense is actually really strong, but you know they didn't
played expectations this year, and you know the head coach
usually takes the fall for that. But I think he'll
(20:56):
definitely if he wants interviews, I think he'll have plenty.
I think he shown a lot. I love it leadership
a billy. I love how he handled this year. This
has not been an easy year for the Browns. He
handled it publicly extremely well. Even it's press conference yesterday
that I was watching, just handled everything. That's what you
need as a head coach is someone a leader that
can handle adversity. He's shown he can do that, So
I think he's gonna be okay in the end.
Speaker 2 (21:17):
Tom Telasco joining us here on Fox Sports Radio. She's
Monzi Blanios. I'm Dan Bayer, Tom the former GM of
the Chargers and Raiders. So I understand the sensitivity with
this question from the move that was made in Las
Vegas today, But what are some of the challenges for
a Raiders organization who now will have the first overall
pick in the draft coming up this spring. What are
(21:38):
the challenges that you face, I guess in that building
and trying to make this team a playoff contender.
Speaker 7 (21:45):
Look, there's a lot of good resources there, and they
just have to get to the point where you get
some stability. I know they haven't had that in a
number of years. I do believe at this point, and
I know the fans have probably get tired of hearing
of this, but I think at this point they're going
to get the right per with the right alignment going
into next year, and any built from there. You've got
the first round pick, it's going to be a quarterback.
(22:06):
That's the person they've struggled to find in clearly when
I was there, as far as a young quarterback to
build around. But you have to get some stability. And
it's been the last three drafts the team that's drafted
for head coaches that are no longer there, So this
will be the fourth one. So that kind of stunts
the rebuild because you're drafting players for a certain head
coach and a certain scheme and then all of a sudden,
(22:27):
the scheme changes or the philosophy changes and that's changed
for four consecutive years. I do feel like at this
point there get the point where they're all aligned moving forward,
They'll have a quarterback that have some pieces on offense
that the offensive line, they get Colton Miller back, they
get JPJ Jackson Powers Johnson back, They're going to have
some players. It's going to take a little bit of time,
and I know nobody wants patience, but for the next
(22:49):
head coach, there are some pieces there to work around.
But I know it's just been a long haul for
everybody there.
Speaker 6 (22:54):
Out of all, out of all of the teams looking
for a head coach, which one do you think seems
the most appealing.
Speaker 7 (23:01):
Oh, that's a tough question. Look, there's only thirty two
of these jobs. They all have their positives, whether people
you know see it or not. But obviously you want
to look for a job. If you already have a
quarterback in place, like the Giants have with Jackson Dirt,
you know that's going to be the appealing part of it.
That's the hardest piece to find is the franchise quarterback.
The Giants have that with Jackson Dirt. They have a
(23:23):
really good front office with Joe Shane and Kevin Abrams
and Tim McDonald. So they have some stability and some
experience there and they have some pieces. But their defense
has players. I can't quite figure out why they hadn't
didn't play as well as they should have this year,
and that's something they're gonna have to work through, and
that's gonna be a big part of the interview process
is what's the plan for the defense as well? Not
only Jackson Dart, but how do we get some of
(23:44):
these talented defensive players to play to their abilities. But
New York's a big market, they have a quarterback that'd
be a really interesting job for head.
Speaker 2 (23:51):
Coach Tom telasco joining us here on Fox Sports Radio.
My question now shifts not from the teams that are
looking for coaches, but teams that are looking to advance
in the playoffs, and specifically about the Philadelphia Eagles, because
they obviously made a decision yesterday to rest their starters.
They ended up being the three seed, but they got
(24:12):
some help from the Lions and beating the Bears, but
the Eagles didn't take care of their end of the bit,
so they're gonna end up being the three seed. How
much is the general manager in that conversation with a
coach on how to approach week eighteen. What approaches did
you like when you were in that seat if Week
eighteen mattered or maybe didn't matter for a team that
was going into the playoffs. What's the GM's role in
(24:34):
those sort of discussions.
Speaker 7 (24:36):
It's certainly an organizational decision that you would sit down
with the head coach and discuss it and certainly be
a sounding board for the head coach. And I've been
through a situation before, and I gotta say most gms
would rather go on a side of the rest and
not putting players out there that could with risk the injury.
Because at this point of the year, if one of
your main starters goes down, there's nowhere to go. Pass
(24:59):
the trade deadline, there's obviously no free agents in the street.
They're going to come in and start for you. So
as a GM, you're you're always worried about that, and
usually the head coach is more worried about Well. I
don't want to get rusty, but I will say I've
seen teams do it both ways. There's no one single
way to do it. I've always been on the more side.
If you have a chance to get players some risk
and pull away the risk of getting hurt in that
(25:19):
last game. That doesn't mean anything. That's the way to go.
There's no other teams that have gone the other way
and say, he look, we need to keep playing to
stay sharp, like the Rams did the other day. I
think each situation is unique. I think for the Eagles
this works for them, and they've played a lot of
games the last couple of years, so I do think
just trying to get some fresh lays going into playoffs,
but don't play anybody anywhere. I don't think they're worried
(25:40):
about who they play, so I was I was fine
with the decision.
Speaker 6 (25:44):
Is there any team that is in the playoffs right
now that has surprised you?
Speaker 3 (25:48):
I'm looking at the Jaguars and how they ended the
season on an eight game winning streak.
Speaker 6 (25:53):
You know, any team like the Jaguars or another team
that surprises you, Well.
Speaker 7 (25:58):
I think the first I mean the Jaguars jump out immediately,
and just how they've played the last points and a half,
which is the most important part of the season. But
I have been impressed with it, with their head coach,
how they've handled the whole situation and just how he's
handled even even Trevor Lawrence with the inconsistencies of what
he's He's shown some really high highs, but he also
had the low of the lows. But he's really even
(26:20):
out of play and played at a high level. They've
turned that around quickly, and I think if you're a
team right now you're looking for a head coach and
you look at what the Jaguars have done, like what
the Patriots did, he kind of gaves you some hope
that you know these are not This isn't like baseball
we have three or four and five year rebuilds and
turnarounds like you can do it quickly.
Speaker 2 (26:37):
Now.
Speaker 7 (26:37):
Obviously those two teams I mentioned already have franchise quarterbacks
that are young. But I've been really impressed with the Jaguars.
You know, their defense and how aggressive they've been, how
they create turnovers. I'm sure everybody's gonna be picking the
Bills in this game because Jacksonville, you know, as Sean
Payton said, you know, it's a small market and they
are not on national TV as much, but they've got
this home game for a reason. They're really strong on
(26:59):
both sides, and they're a really interesting football team for
the playoffs.
Speaker 2 (27:03):
I got one last one for you. Tom telasco joining
us here on Fox Sports Radio. The Falcons, a lot
of things are open. Terry Fontt knows out. Rahie Morris
dismissed last night as head coach. It seems like Matt
Ryan has a sort of role there. Would you look
at the Falcons situation as one that is appealing because
you could do coach GM sort of deal the quarterback situation.
(27:25):
You do have Michael Pennick's junior there, but he's coming
off of his knee injury. How do you assess what
Atlanta has done after dismissing both GM and head coach.
Speaker 7 (27:34):
Well, it's gonna be a lot of change. You know,
I've been around a lot of search firms. I've never
seen it before. We have two different search firms working concurrently.
And even when they brought in a consultants to kind
of audit the football operations, you kind of knew where
that was going to go because I can never see
a consulting firm coming in to look at football operations
(27:54):
and going back to the owner saying, hey, everything's great.
Just kind of keep going.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
Sure, you know.
Speaker 7 (27:58):
That's not going to happen is that there's going to
be major change, and there's a major change now between
not only GM and head coach, but also president as
far as moving Rich McKay into a different role. Rich
McKay is outstanding in what he does, but he's gonna
I guess he's gonna take on a different role. So
so I guess you have a blank canvas there to
start fresh. They do have some talent on offense, but
(28:20):
there's a lot of questions at the quarterback position. Now
They've put a lot of assets into it, but right
now you've got Kirk Cousins, who you know, who knows
he may retire, but he's up there in age. And
you've got Michael Penk's coming off of major knee injury,
who's had durability derbilly issues going back to college. So
that is certainly an uncertain situation. It's the most important position.
But you're walking into a team that has some talent
(28:41):
on both sides of the ball, and it's you know,
a clean slate to work with with a GM, a
head coach, and you know whoever the president's going to be.
I've heard great things about Matt Ryan, So I guess
what we shall see.
Speaker 2 (28:51):
Did you like draft cams? Because I feel that's what
got Terry Fott knows we've seen over the last twenty
four hours him explaining to Arthur Blank why they took
Michael Pennick Junior. Did you do you like the draft
cam when you were in the hot seat.
Speaker 7 (29:02):
As a GM honestly, not really, But it was a
two way street because look, if you want to get
something back to your fans, they kind of show them
what goes on in the draft room. And there was
just a lot of a lot of hunger see how
things are done, how the decisions are made. So whether
it was recording the phone call to the player drafting
to having a camera and a microphone in there, I
(29:23):
kind of got used to it. I was old school.
I came up in the Bill Polly and he would
never have a camera in the draft room. I had
to change and evolve, and I did, but sure comfortable.
They always say, hey, don't worry about it. You won't
even know what's in there. So yeah, that's part of
the problem. I don't even know it's on. God knows
what I'm going to do, so but look, it's part
of the NFL nowadays, and I think it's something to
give back to your fancy just for content. But look, yeah,
(29:46):
this is the downside to it. They see it all,
but that's part of being a GM.
Speaker 2 (29:50):
Great stuff, Tom, We appreciated. Best of luck in twenty
twenty six. Enjoy the NFL playoffs. We'll talk to you
again soon.
Speaker 8 (29:57):
Sounds good.
Speaker 7 (29:57):
Thanks for both you. Take care, Tom.
Speaker 2 (29:59):
To a Lasco joining here at Fox Sports Radio. She's
Matzi Blajos. I'm Dan Byer. Let's go to the news deck.
News desk, guys Aglowing Cron joining us.
Speaker 5 (30:07):
An odd situation involving New York Giants quarterback Russell Wilson.
He revealed today that he tore his hamstring prior to
Week two of the regular season. He would start in
two more games after that and appear in three additional games.
Of course, NFL teams are supposed to, you know, disclose injuries. Sure, However,
(30:29):
Wilson tweeted on social media a short time ago, and
I quote not the Giant's fault. They didn't know because
I didn't want to tell anyone because of the circumstances.
I just had to play through it to try and
go ball. Thought we were going to win that wild
crazy game unquote. So apparently, kudos to Russell Wilson for
(30:53):
successfully hiding a torn.
Speaker 2 (30:55):
Hamstring standing Yeah, Iowa, Sam and Jason scenarios Danson and
tell anybody on.
Speaker 3 (31:04):
His feet standing ovation for the former Seahawk.
Speaker 2 (31:08):
Yet he was able to climb up probably for uh,
for four pieces of scaffolding to be there on New
Year's Eve with Siarra on uh with Ryan Seacrest on stage,
all with the torn hamstring. Please clap.
Speaker 3 (31:27):
Ciara, Sierra. That doesn't Okay, that doesn't matter, got it?
You know?
Speaker 9 (31:32):
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Speaker 2 (31:46):
Yeah, don't blame the giants. I didn't tell him.
Speaker 3 (31:47):
I didn't tell them.
Speaker 2 (31:49):
I didn't tell him. I'm sure Brian Davills like great.
I had a one legged quarterback out at all time.
Now I don't have a job. Unbelievable. This guy, seriously,
this guy.
Speaker 3 (32:01):
So he tore it in that overtime game? Is that
what it is?
Speaker 4 (32:03):
That?
Speaker 7 (32:03):
What it is?
Speaker 5 (32:04):
He tore it during the week before the Week two game.
Speaker 2 (32:07):
Okay, so he threw for four hundred and fifty yards
on one leg on one leg and then didn't then
couldn't do anything else the rest of the season.
Speaker 4 (32:15):
But why is it a story? Why is it Why
has the NFL been informed of this? Like why is
this a thing?
Speaker 2 (32:21):
Well, because he would need to be reported on the
injury report. But Russell Wilson, which I don't know how
many of us actually believe he tore his hamstring, which
I that's part of the problem as well. He's now
coming out and saying what a great guy he was
by not telling anyone he was hurt. And by the way,
don't blame the Giants.
Speaker 5 (32:39):
So he he revealed it this morning during you know,
locker room cleanout day. Then when the media got a
hold of it, they're like, wait a minute, this is
kind of this should be investigated because you're literally supposed
to report injuries. And then after that he issued that gotcha.
Speaker 2 (32:55):
Ok Yeah, So Russell Wilson did no one any favors
except himself today truly, like that's what he did. He
made himself look better, like he played hurt.
Speaker 7 (33:05):
Well.
Speaker 10 (33:05):
He also he also makes himself look kind of like, oh,
I wasn't healthy when I was playing, Like I'll be
healthy in the future.
Speaker 2 (33:11):
Maybe better that aids Russell Wilson. It does no good
for the Giants. But but do you really think that
it's the hamstring why he's stunk? He hasn't been good
for four years. It's not the hamstring. It's Russell Wilson
that's the issue. But hey, let's make it about me.
Went in doubt and make it about me. That's the
(33:31):
Russell Wilson motto.
Speaker 10 (33:32):
Yeah, all right, on Russell Wilson's hamstring tour. But did
you did your chair fall apart? My chair broke, well,
the arm did.
Speaker 2 (33:40):
I don't know, chairs hamstring break or tear.
Speaker 3 (33:44):
Literally, that's the hamstring of them.
Speaker 2 (33:46):
Apparently this has been broken since week two and until
it just fell apart today.
Speaker 1 (33:50):
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sports Radio dot com and within the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 2 (34:01):
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Time now for our tire Iraq play of the day.
Speaker 8 (34:22):
Here's the snap, here's the hole, here's the boot by
loop and that kick is.
Speaker 4 (34:27):
Right and your Pittsburgh Steelers are HEC North Chippions.
Speaker 2 (34:39):
It took me for a loop seeing that kick miss
courtesy of one to two point five w DVE Steelers
Radio Network. I thought it was meant to be when
they gotten they got that fourth down, and I guess
it wasn't.
Speaker 3 (34:51):
So I watch on a streaming.
Speaker 6 (34:53):
I think I've told you guys you have DirecTV streaming,
so still streaming, but the channels right, Yes, I lost
signal before the kick, and then my Twitter went off
and I read Steelers AFC North Champs and I was
like what because Boswell had just missed a kick.
Speaker 3 (35:11):
Yes, so like I could not, I didn't see it.
Speaker 2 (35:13):
I had.
Speaker 6 (35:14):
Then I went back and I saw it, but I
could not believe it.
Speaker 3 (35:18):
Unreal, unreal.
Speaker 2 (35:19):
Did your signal come back in time to hear the
postgame interview? Yes?
Speaker 3 (35:22):
No, no, no, yes, of course.
Speaker 2 (35:24):
Aaron Rodgers, Cam Hayward, TJ. Watt All, surrounded by Melissa
Stark and Melissa Stark had this exchange with the soon
to be Hall of Fame quarterback.
Speaker 8 (35:34):
It's pretty emotional, honestly.
Speaker 2 (35:36):
It's been a great year.
Speaker 8 (35:37):
So I'm thankful for these guys and excited to be
going to the playoffs for the first time in a
long while.
Speaker 3 (35:42):
Does that mean you're riding off into the sunset after this.
Speaker 8 (35:45):
No, I'm just just been a you know, it's been
a grinding here and two years before that were's up
as well, So it's been It's been an absolute blessing
to be here with these fans, in this organization and
Mike Tea and a leadership that we got with these guys,
and you know, I think we just we found that
little bit that's something special, which is belief tonight on
(36:06):
the offensive side. And I'm proud of our guys the
way we responded in the fourth quarter.
Speaker 3 (36:10):
I had to ask it.
Speaker 2 (36:12):
I had to ask it. Come on, Cam, come on in.
She knew she messed up.
Speaker 4 (36:16):
Girl.
Speaker 2 (36:16):
What There's nothing that Aaron Rodgers said previously that what
made you think that this is it? Right? Like, there
was nothing nothing that he had said in those previous
four or five sentences to make you think that this
was going to be he was about to play his
final game, maybe next week or this was the final run.
There was nothing that was said, and Melissa Stark just
(36:39):
went that way. It was way off base, way.
Speaker 11 (36:42):
Off base, righting off into the sunset. He's got another
game to play. What sunset are you talking about? Aaron
Rodgers glitched. If you watch that, his eyes have like
he can't believe she just asked.
Speaker 6 (36:55):
She just asked him that, and then he has to like, Okay,
do not tell her how stupid of a question you
just ask? I have the rap respond in a more
you know, appropriate for a TV way. Uh what he
glitched because he wanted to tell her how stupid she sounded.
Speaker 2 (37:10):
Jason Stewart's our executive producer. You uh, you didn't love
this either. You hitted the ending more than anything.
Speaker 4 (37:16):
Yeah, her saying at the end gave it all way
she said. She's saying I had to ask was her
way of saying that was a really bad question at
the wrong time.
Speaker 2 (37:26):
I had to do it, had to do it.
Speaker 4 (37:28):
No, you didn't. I don't think anybody felt like you had,
including your producer.
Speaker 6 (37:31):
Someone told her to do it. That's what that was,
like a producer, you know what I'm saying. Like she
was like, I had to ask, because why why did.
Speaker 4 (37:37):
You have to guys?
Speaker 5 (37:38):
In her defense, Melissa Stark actually tore her hamstring before
week two.
Speaker 3 (37:43):
Of the season stop Stuck.
Speaker 5 (37:46):
But Monci, I actually think you have it right on.
I don't know this for sure, but I would almost
guarantee you it was someone saying it in her ear,
either beforehand or.
Speaker 3 (37:55):
During the interview, right like, hey, don't forget to bring
that up. But again, out of pocket life. He didn't
say that.
Speaker 6 (38:01):
If you would have said I'm really excited for it
to be maybe my final playoff game, he didn't say final,
and he didn't indicate any of that.
Speaker 2 (38:08):
You guys had a beautiful wedding. Did you guys sign
a prenup or not? It's that and this is beautiful today.
I just curious. I had to ask. I had to
ask you guys. She's Watson Belanios, I'm dan byer Isaac
Low and Crown, Jason Stewart, Iowa Sam are here. Love
and Hate from a Magnificent Weekend. Next
Host
Doug Gottlieb
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