December 16, 2025 • 37 mins
Los Angeles Chargers HC Jim Harbaugh reflects on how they were able to contain Patrick Mahomes and touches on the Sherrone Moore situation. Pro Football Hall of Fame OL Joe Thomas discusses the desperation of the Colts to sign Philip Rivers and explains why Myles Garrett is essentially unblockable one-on-one. Mike Golic Sr. sees the Rams as the league's most complete team and wouldn't be surprised if Aaron Rodgers runs it back again next year in Pittsburgh.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:00):
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox
Sports Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
We were talking about the rash of ACL injuries this year,
led by Micah Parsons and Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes got hurt,
that was contact in the Chargers game. Michaeh Parsons non
contact injury. And yesterday the NFL said that they announced
they're going to have a study to look at turf
and these are new rules or at least a new policy,
(00:26):
a new approach to this. And people, I think were
surprised at the number of torn acls so far this year.
Thirty so far. Now, that seems like a lot, And
the reason why it seems like a lot is because
there's some big names in here. In twenty twenty four
there were thirty eight torn acls, twenty twenty three, forty three,
twenty twenty two point fifty one, twenty twenty one, fifty seven,
(00:51):
twenty twenty forty two. You can go back to twenty
thirteen there were sixty three torn acls. So it seems
like we're trending down. But why can't we come up
with universal fields that can prevent at least the non
contact injury. So we bring in the head coach of
the Chargers, Jim Harbaugh. Those numbers alarming to you, surprising
(01:13):
to you. Anything we can do to improve those number
of a c ls.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Yeah, I mean that that discussion has been going on
for a long time with the UH, with the turf
and they and they they're very scientific about it. Uh.
You know my understanding almost like you know, stint meters
in UH in golf. But those numbers to me, I
mean it's it. Uh, it's like one a year, you know,
(01:39):
that's it's kind of my my recollection from UH, you know,
from coaching all these years and and UH and playing
as well as about UH one guy and the team
will get an a c L. And there was a
day where that, uh, that a c L would be
career ending. You know, think back then, Yeah, you know
Gail Sayers and UH and now UH you know it's
(02:00):
UH advancements in UH in safety and medical UH. You know,
UH are are really incredible and getting getting better all
the time.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
But when you were at Michigan, all of your linemen
had to wear braces, knee braces.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Yes, that was that was.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
And how preventative is that? I know, Jake Buds got
hurt and Blake Krum you know, got hurt as well.
Those are contact But did it Is it that helpful
in preventing a c LS?
Speaker 3 (02:29):
I thought so, I really did, Dan. Uh, the the
running backs, tight ends didn't didn't wear them, but we
had the defensive linemen wearing uh knee braces in practice. Uh,
and that would Uh it doesn't prevent prevent like a
but whatever injury it would have been, it makes it
(02:52):
a lot less in in my experience, and uh and
uh trainers in the medical experts.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
What was different about the Chiefs this year as opposed
to previous years.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Oh, there's there's it's just the most the most historic, incredible. Uh.
You know job that that team has done year in
year out. Andy Reid, Uh, you know the best, he's
the best. Uh. Patrick Mahomes incredible competitor, And UH that
(03:26):
was I was talking to one of our our assistant
coaches yesterday, and now we could just do half, We
could just do half of what they they've been able
to accomplish over the last seven years. You know, we
I do it. I know I would do a cartwheel.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
But what what's the game plan of of Mahomes? He
seems like he's running a lot more. He had been
running a lot more than in previous years and had
been their most dangerous runner. But as a defensive philosophy,
what was it going into this game?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
There? There there's adversity in the offensive line. Uh, different combinations,
different different you know, really good players out. But uh
they uh guy stepped in and uh they were chiefs
are still operating at a at a very high level.
And I was, I mean, I was for the competitor
(04:21):
that Patrick is. I mean that was was just hope
and praying that uh that he would have dodged a bullet,
and uh, you know, unfortunately he didn't. But uh, he's
he's already, you know, getting ready for surgery, and you
just just know his mindset it's going to be it's
gonna be surgery and then and then rehab. He's just
(04:41):
he just he's he just he just wants to be
doing and so that's uh, really we're trying to replicate
that here and in Los Angeles, and uh.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
What are you trying to force him out of the pocket,
because he loves to go right, But I you know,
it's it's easier said than done that we don't want
let him go outside the pocket.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Patrick Mahomes. Yeah, oh, uh, you know, you try to
contain him, you really do that. Uh. The the discipline
in the in the rush lanes you gotta have. It's
got to be coordinated with with all five or four
or six or seven rushers. Uh, you know, every single play,
(05:25):
and he's still and he still finds ways to uh,
you know, to make the impossible possible. But uh, it's Tuesday.
It's uh it's our feet are moving. We're up, and
we're gonna keep it moving because uh we got Dallas
this year this week, and uh, I really think they're
the They're the best offense we've played in a while. Uh,
(05:46):
really good receivers, really good quarterback. Uh, very good upfront
and running game that we're gonna try to figure out
how to stop as well.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Talking about that, Jim Harbaugh, Chargers head coach, you coach
any differently in December than you do in September?
Speaker 3 (06:04):
That's a great question. You know they all count the same,
you know they count the same, but uh, yeah, it's different.
It's almost it's like the fourth quarter in a in
a game, you know, and then you know, you get
down to the to the end and it's you know,
then it's it's like like the two minute drill, you know,
in the in the in the playoffs, or you know,
(06:25):
trying to get into the playoffs. But everybody, everybody is
fighting for their lives. Everybody's fighting, you know, really for
their their playoff destiny. And and that's and the and
the and the teams that aren't don't have a chance
to be in the playoffs, they're fighting at the at
the highest level. Uh, you know, for pride and for
(06:46):
for for their team and for their for their their organizations.
It's it's that competitive season. Tis the season for competition.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
How much does it help playing the position as a
head coach, helping Justin Herbert play the position.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
I've been asked that a bunch of times, and I
don't have a great answer for that, because he is
just so much better at everything, uh, every every part
of the game.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Uh Is there anything you do better than or did
better than Justin Herbert?
Speaker 3 (07:22):
There's nothing. There's nothing, nothing, And I don't want to
demonstrate anything. I mean, it's just not gonna it's not
gonna look right. Uh So I just uh, you know,
really really focus on uh, you know, number one, protecting
him and but it's just, yeah, a tremendous blessing to
(07:44):
have him, Derwin, James, Justin, Herbert Khalil Mack. Uh the
absolute best leaders I've ever been and playmakers leaders and playmakers,
Uh that that I've ever been associated with.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
You said you were still processing the Sharone Moore situation.
What are you processing?
Speaker 4 (08:05):
What are what?
Speaker 2 (08:06):
What? What is going through your head or trying to understand?
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Yeah, it's it's uh really still and still don't have
my head wrapped around it. Dan, Uh, It's yeah it Uh,
it's a tragedy and just praying for all concerned. I
love my alma mater, love Michigan, and but I love
(08:32):
the Chargers too. And uh, I'd been doing a disservice
if I wasn't putting all my focus on the on
this game. This is the most important game for us.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
When's the last time you talked to Sharon Moore?
Speaker 3 (08:44):
Uh? Have it early early December?
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Uh?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
But I I have texted.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Him nothing, nothing since he was arrested, just texts, Oh
you have Yeah? How are his spirit?
Speaker 3 (09:01):
Uh? I think I think there is it's a trgedy.
What uh the worst days of his life? And uh,
you know, keep it together and and uh, and take
care of your family. That's you know, that's the message.
And I getting spiritual guidance. Uh. You know it's really critical.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Are you helping Michigan at all find their head coach?
Speaker 4 (09:26):
No, I'm not.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
All focuses on uh the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Well, congrats on the win, and uh, good luck against
Dallas and then you host Houston, then you're at Denver.
Who's the best team you face? You talked about Dallas
will be the best offense. Who's the best team?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
So we played definitely uh that we played in a while,
you know, right the team that you know stands out, Uh,
you know the ones that that uh that got the
best of us. But these last two games, chiefs uh Eagles,
I mean football at uh, you know, at at the
(10:04):
highest level. You know, that's been and I think it's
I think it's I think it's made us keener and
sharper and finer too to go through those two games.
And uh, and we expect the same challenge this week.
Speaker 2 (10:17):
Do you want to play in the snow?
Speaker 3 (10:20):
I prefer the snow then, uh, then thirty five or
thirty three in rain? So uh, as soon as soon
as the temperature goes below thirty. Uh, I know it's
not gonna rain, and uh I prefer that.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
Uh, but you look at the doll like the dolphins
don't win games under forty degrees? Like what how does
that imp?
Speaker 3 (10:41):
Like?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
There are guys that aren't from Miami, but you know
they don't win in cold weather. Why is that?
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Uh? That's that's Ah, that's something I can't. I can't.
I am kind of an expert at uh growing up
in uh the Midwest and and Michigan, Ohio, chicage, playing
in Chicago. Uh, you know, it's it's really a function
of like my dad used to tell us when we
were kids. He'd say, you you you, you know, get
(11:12):
out of the house, Dan, it's cold out there. Get
your feet moving and keep it moving. You'd walk out,
and then then the click of the door would click
behind you.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
Uh wait they locked the door.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
Yeah, you hear the click. Okay, we're our feet moving
and keep it moving. But it's that's that's that's the secret.
That's the answer. The the you become your body becomes
like a human hot tub because your your your heart
is pumping warm, hot blood, especially when you're young and
you know that goes from the the heart to the arteries,
(11:47):
to to the capitillaries, to the to the tissue, and
it's you know, the more muscle you got, that's the
more UH. That's the more UH insulation that you have.
High school anatomy tell it goes back back to the
lungs and reaction to eights and it just keeps keeps
falling like so you just you just keep moving. And
(12:07):
then when you're not playing, you go to the go
to the sidelinket by that that heater in that warm bench.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Who had it better than you did in cold weather?
Speaker 3 (12:16):
I mean a lot of experience there, nobody.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
Dan, There you go, there you go.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
I know the answer to that one.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
I was worried. I was worried about you there. Thanks
for joining us. Good luck against Dallas. Appreciate it, coach,
Thank you, Dan. That's Jim Harbaugh, second year's charge, your
head coach.
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Speaker 2 (13:14):
He's Joe Thomas, Hall of Famer joining us on the program.
Good to see you again. We've been talking about the
playing surfaces and the fact that yesterday the NFL says, hey,
we're going to conduct another study here on the playing surfaces.
Why are we here where we can't have a universal
playing field up, you know surfaces either astro turf or
(13:37):
regular turf. And why did it take maybe injuries to
a couple of more quy players before we all of
a sudden have everybody's attention.
Speaker 6 (13:46):
Well, it just comes back to the fact that the
owners didn't want to all agree to spend the money
to invest in the fields because you got teams like
the Cincinnati Bengals, they don't want to even pay to
get the snow removed from the seats of the fans,
so they're saving every dime they pass we can, Whereas
you have some teams that are willing to spend the
money on player safety. I think it was the Baltimore
(14:08):
Ravens a few years ago. They realized that, hey, turf fields,
they're not good for players' bodies. And the people that
suffer the most are our own players because they play
the most games in our home stadium. So let's make
this the best surface we possibly can that's going to
reduce the most injuries possible and keep that consistent and uniform.
And so I think it's just a matter of those
(14:28):
NFL owners haven't all been able to agree on what
it takes to get that consistency, and the union really
just doesn't have enough power to be able to force
the hands of the owners.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Worst playing surface you ever played on.
Speaker 6 (14:43):
Well, I hated playing in Cincinnati on their old turf
because of how hard it was. I mean just standing
on that, I could feel it in my back and
my knees. But I would say playing in Soldier Field
like at the end of the year, or playing in
the old Heinz Field when the I think they still
maybe do play like the high school championships there they
played pitt on Saturdays and the thing is just a
(15:05):
mud pit by the end of the season, and so
there is no consistency at all with your footing. But
I'm not a fast guy as it is, so hey,
I was happy that everyone was a little bit slower
and we were all a little bit more at the
same speed when we played in those really greasy, nasty tracks.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
As a Hall of Fame lineman, how would you put
into perspective what Miles Garrett is on the verge of
doing setting the all time sack record.
Speaker 6 (15:30):
So until Miles, I don't ever remember watching NFL defensive
lineman from my college days all the way through the
days that I was playing, and now as a fan
where I said, I'm watching him, eh, I don't think
that I can block him more than my fair share
when I'm at my best. And that's what I say
about Miles when I watch him. I played against him
(15:52):
when he was a rookie and I was in my
last season and I barely had a chance to try
to block him and get a glove on him then,
and he's like thirty forty sent better than he was
at that time, and so I watch him and I say,
I don't know how I would have been able to
block him when on one. And I think that's the
mentality that a lot of offenses, basically every offense that
he's gone against this season has said, because nobody's blocking
(16:14):
him one on one. Even the best tackles in the
game right now are not allowed to go against him
one on one because he is so dominant. There's nobody
in the game that can block him consistently throughout the
course of an entire game.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
How surprised were you that he kind of took back
the trade request when the Browns were willing to make
him the highest paid defenship player.
Speaker 6 (16:35):
I was really surprised because I'd talked to him throughout
that the course of the holdout, where he said he's
not coming back and it doesn't matter. He's all about
trying to win championships. And you know, I go on
the radio a lot in Cleveland especially, and you know,
I want to make sure that if I'm saying something,
you know, it aligns with what he's thinking and what
(16:56):
you know he is trying to get done, because I
want to make sure that this is true. What I'm
saying about him, and you know, he was telling me
that it doesn't matter what the money is. You know,
he's frustrated. He's ready to leave, and unless something drastically
changes from the vision that they have, he was not
really ready to come back. And of course they decided
(17:17):
to make him the highest paid defensive player, which was
surpassed by Michael Parsons later on.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
But the vision didn't change.
Speaker 4 (17:24):
Joe.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
This is not a good team. He's not winning anything
anytime soon, and maybe not in his career.
Speaker 4 (17:31):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 6 (17:32):
So I'm trying to tell you that they must have
said something in the Little Witch's Brew that they had
going on before they gave him that drink.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
I think they just said, how does forty million dollars feel?
We're not going to win anything? Forty million dollars, all right,
you know what, I don't need to win.
Speaker 6 (17:50):
I think it was partly that, but I do think
that they had convinced him of some vision that was
more convincing than the fans have gotten of.
Speaker 4 (17:59):
Hey, we're to win a championship. You're going to be
part of it.
Speaker 6 (18:02):
And I think a lot of it probably honestly had
to do with Jim Schwartz on defense, as his defensive
coordinator loves him, and they do have a really good defense.
Didn't play well last week against the Bears, but I
think they kind of built up the fact that you
could be part of this great historic defense. You could
do amazing things like chase the sack record, and oh,
by the way, we're going to invest in our offense.
Maybe not year one, but we're going to get it
(18:22):
right on offense with a quarterback, adding some weapons on
the outside. And then in year two we're going to
be competitive and have a chance with this great defense
led by you.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
And oh, by the way, you can finish.
Speaker 6 (18:33):
Your career where you started, which is very rare in
the NFL. And so I think all those things kind
of put together made up maybe forty percent. And then yeah,
like I said, sixty percent was hey, we'll pay a
lot of money. Like, okay, that sounds good too.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Have you seen enough of Shador Sanders to offer a
definitive opinion.
Speaker 4 (18:51):
Not yet.
Speaker 6 (18:51):
We need to see him the rest of the season.
We saw a really great game a few weeks ago
where he had over three hundred yards passing. He led
their team on a long drive to finish the game
to put them in position to make a two point
version and tie the game going overtime. Of course they
called a weird play and should or wasn't on the
field for that, but that's a different topic. But at
(19:12):
least he did the things that you need to do
to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL, which is
you've got to get the points and the yards that
you need when you need it, and that's usually in
the two minute drill in the fourth quarter. And he
was showing steady improvement, but then last week there was regression.
And it's a little bit challenging because his offensive lines
banged up as receivers are playing hot potato and throwing
the football out of the defense, and so it's a
(19:32):
little bit difficult to look at everything he's doing out
there on Sundays without being in those meeting rooms and
know what he's being asked to do and properly evaluate him.
But with the amount of up and down that we've
seen so far, you need to see him in these
last three games to be able to declare him the
franchise quarterback of the future.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Could you come out of retirement like Philip Ridle, No way.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
I had my hip orplace in the spring. I'm sore
enough after sleeping.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
You got him over, you got a new hip.
Speaker 4 (20:03):
Yeah that's right. Hey, there we go. I'm fixed.
Speaker 6 (20:05):
Let's do the bo Jackson. I'm ready to fix the
other one. Fix the knees in the back. Just turn
me into a robot, bionic man, give me an AI brain,
and I'll be ready to go back out there. Sign
me up today for maybe some future gains potentially.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
But could you imagine trying to protect philip rivers. Let's
say you're playing at your all pro level and you
got a forty four year old quarterback adding to even
more pressure, and you're playing against Seattle. Are you are
you gonna hold onto your defensive lineman a little bit
longer than normal.
Speaker 6 (20:37):
There's definitely gonna be some decisions in their minds about, Okay,
I got beat. Should I just let him go and
not get a penalty, or should I save this man's
life the same age as my dad and just go
and tackle him around the knees and not allow anybody
to touch my quarterback. Because yeah, there's a lot of pressure.
You know, there's a lot of pressure when you got
a quarterback that can move a little bit, and that's young,
(20:58):
and they can stand some hip. But I'm not sure
that Philip Rivers is there anymore.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
Yeah, but he's out there. He's out there.
Speaker 4 (21:06):
I don't give it as best. I give him credit.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
I mean, okay, we get to this point, Joe, that
our best option is a forty four year old guy
who hasn't played in five years and never had a
strong arm and certainly doesn't have that now.
Speaker 6 (21:22):
He did a pretty good job last weekend. I'm not
sure how long he's gonna be able to do it.
I mean, hey, he gave his team a chance to win.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
He did, but the defense, the defense gave them a
chance to win. They played really good defense. Philip had
a touchdown.
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Pa.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Look, I know it's a great story, but I gotta
I gotta call it as I see it. His arm
is so weak, and I'm just amazed. Like some of
those passes they're bad, really, they just float.
Speaker 6 (21:50):
I mean they were floating when I was playing until
years old, so you can only imagine it's probably not
going the other direction.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
So you give him credit.
Speaker 6 (21:58):
But it does say something about the development of that
quarterback room in Indianapolis that they didn't trust any of
those guys. They'd rather have Philip come off the couch
at forty four with a noodle arm and say, hey,
here you go, prop them up there. Hopefully you can
give us at least a few passes off throwing an
interception and we might win the game.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
How would you feel if you're against Miles Garrett and
he needs one more sack to break the record fourth
quarter and you're blocking him.
Speaker 6 (22:25):
So I'm assuming that we're winning because we're playing against
the Browns. Unfortunately, so we're winning.
Speaker 2 (22:31):
Yeah, you're going to win the game, but you're going
against Miles Garrett. He needs one sack to break the record,
and it's fourth quarter.
Speaker 6 (22:40):
I wouldn't give it to him. But what I would
say to my quarterback is, hey, hold onto the ball
as long as you need to throw the ball into
the end zone. If we get a touchdown, great, But
if Miles sacks you, that's okay too. Because I always
cheer for players, I don't always cheer now for teams,
obviously the Browns, but I love Miles. I think he's
(23:01):
doing it the right way on the field. He's given
incredible effort, playing the game the right way. He's a
great team player, he says the right things off the field,
and so for him to be able to hold that
sack record I think would be special. And to be honest,
I was a Packer fan, and when Brett Favre rolled
out and laid down on the turf to give Michael
Strahan that record, I felt like it was a little
(23:21):
bit tarnished. And I would love to see Miles with
that sack record where everybody says, without a doubt, this
is the deserving sack champion of all time in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
You're joining us on behalf of the officially licensed UNU
game of the NFL. What's going on with UNO in
the NFL?
Speaker 4 (23:42):
That's right.
Speaker 6 (23:43):
I'm not shoving Hall of Fame beefsticks in your mouth
this time like it was last time when we were
there in Green Bay.
Speaker 4 (23:49):
But it's really cool.
Speaker 6 (23:50):
I'm super excited that UNO, which is one of my
favorite family games, has put together this UNO Elite Playoff
tournament being held right now all over the country on
hobby shops and anybody can sign up. It's free to enter,
and if you register, you get a chance to win
an amazing thing that UNO's given away three days two
nights trip to Las Vegas for their UNO Elite Championship.
(24:13):
The winner is going to walk away with ten grand
but most importantly, the most coveted trophy of all time.
If you're a child in America or if you're a
parent of a kid, and that's the UNO Elite Trophy,
you're walking around with that peacock in a lot better
than if you had a Hall of Fame bus like I.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
Have behind me.
Speaker 6 (24:28):
That is really the taj Mahal of trophies. If you're
a dad or if you're.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
A kid, fans can sign up at UNO Elite Championship
dot com. Great to talk to you again. Happy holidays
to you, Joe.
Speaker 6 (24:44):
Happy holidays, Dan. Thanks for having me on the show again.
Great to see you, yt see you.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
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. Search FSR to listen.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Mike Golick, senior co host of Golick and Golick on
fan Duel Sports Network. He was well. He was on
the call for the Dolphin Steelers Monday night pregame halftime
show in Westwood One Radio and good to see you again, buddy.
Explain the Dolphin situation to me moving forward into next season.
Speaker 7 (25:22):
Well, obviously, you know you're talking about the quarterback.
Speaker 4 (25:26):
What do you do with Tua?
Speaker 7 (25:30):
We know that was a big dead money cap hit
with Russell Wilson when he left Denver. I believe the
post June first cut for next year, if they were
to go down that road, the dead money would be
like sixty seven million dollars, where his cap hit if
he's on the team is fifty five million dollars. So
(25:51):
you know, the question will be have you seen enough
of him? Are you willing to start over? And if
you start over, do you start over with a draft
pick or do you start over with a veteran? And
are you going to be much better, uh with with
a veteran or do you just kind of retool everything
and you're sitting there at six and eight. You'll probably
(26:12):
finish just a little under five hundred. You're not going
to have a really high pick. And oh, by the way,
this incredible quarterback class coming out of college that we
all thought before the season is really not an incredible
quarterbacks class coming out at the end.
Speaker 4 (26:29):
Of the season.
Speaker 7 (26:30):
So I Mike McDaniel may may have saved may have
saved his job, which seems weird because we thought he
was gone, but he may still be around.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
How would you describe the Steelers' playoff potential as far
as getting in? What can they do when they get in?
Speaker 4 (26:50):
I Dan, I don't think they can do much. I
really don't this.
Speaker 7 (26:56):
Pittsburgh has normally been a running team and a defensive team.
Speaker 3 (26:59):
Now.
Speaker 7 (26:59):
They ran a pretty well last night, Gainwell and Warren
basically split carries I think thirteen and twelve, so that
was good. Defensively, they haven't been what they normally have been.
And as far as Aaron, Aaron was incredibly effective last
night twenty three or twenty seven, but most of those
passes were to gain Well, which were short passes when
(27:20):
he ran an unleashed one. He certainly did a couple
of times for sure, but I don't think now. The
one thing that's in their favor is you don't have
a dominant Kansas City team in the playoffs. You don't
have a just below Kansas City dominant Buffalo Bills team.
This year, Buffalo will get in to the playoffs, but
(27:42):
is it the dominant Buffalo team. The team that's been
giving up a lot of run rushing yards on defense.
So I look at all the division leaders and I
could find a flaw in all of them where it
wouldn't surprise me if they got knocked off.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
And Mike Tomlining vive another one and done in the playoffs.
Speaker 7 (28:03):
You know, I think if you step back and look
at it, if you get past the losing in the
first round of the playoffs, having just good enough record
to not pick late in the first round or not
pick early in the first round, I would say this,
what what are.
Speaker 4 (28:23):
You going to get out there that's better? What?
Speaker 2 (28:26):
What?
Speaker 4 (28:26):
What?
Speaker 7 (28:27):
What are what are you going to get that's going
to make them win two more playoff games? I remember you,
and you remember too, Dan Marty Schottenheimer went to a
couple of AC title games in Cleveland, didn't get him
past the point and got fired.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
Well where's Cleveland been?
Speaker 7 (28:44):
I mean, it's it's not like they've they've found somebody
to ride past that. So I think we we kind
of knee jerk. Though this knee jerk has been for
a couple of years with Mike Tomlin. But my thought is,
when you settled down and you think about it, You're like,
who are we going to get that's better? Are we
going to get a retread that we know or a
(29:07):
young new, first time head coach that maybe injects something
new into the team.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
But is this sort of like Penn State though, like
it's a cautionary tale of yes, they waited over fifty
days for his replace. They were quick to get rid
of him that decision, But then you didn't exactly have
the treasure trove of candidates that you thought you would. Now,
the Steelers would be attractive because of the stability there.
(29:36):
You know, Mens State mat Amble, and while he's really good,
he doesn't have a good record against you know, top
ten opponents either.
Speaker 7 (29:43):
No, I mean all the I mean there was really
the one bell of the ball choice this year and
that was Lane Kiffin. Right, some are who Someamraw went
to Florida was certainly up there as well, and a
lot of coaches change hands. But look at it. What
do you look at when you go to a new team.
You look at obviously ownership, then you look at the
(30:04):
quarterback situation.
Speaker 4 (30:06):
What's overall?
Speaker 7 (30:08):
The Steelers are a better situation then, But are they
better than the Giants?
Speaker 4 (30:13):
The Giants have a quarterback. The Steelers don't.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
Does Rod Rulers play next year?
Speaker 4 (30:18):
Pardon me?
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Rodgers play next year?
Speaker 4 (30:20):
In your opinion, boil boy, it.
Speaker 7 (30:22):
Seems like it seems like he's had a really good
experience with Pittsburgh. But again, if they don't go that
far this year, what's the expectation that they're going to
go far next year? Eventually, whether it's this year or
next year, they have to start over a quarterback yet again,
and they haven't found their guy to take them anywhere
(30:45):
since Ben Roethlisberger. So and it's normally a team that's
built on defense and the run game anyway, but they
still haven't been able to find a quarterback.
Speaker 2 (30:54):
Let's look at the draft right now. The Giants have
the number one pick. Are you confident that they would
not be interested in Fernando Mendoza.
Speaker 4 (31:03):
No, they will not. Jackson Dark.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
They found their quarterback in Jackson Dark. Yeah, okay, yeah, Raiders, Jets, Cardinals,
Cleveland quarterback, quarterback, quarterback, quarterback.
Speaker 7 (31:18):
Yeah, I would say yes, But how many top quarterbacks
are available?
Speaker 4 (31:26):
Now? We know the quarterback position gets over valued.
Speaker 7 (31:29):
So you have Fernando Mendoza, you have Dante more from Oregon, who,
by the way, can go back to college. You have
Ty Simpson who can go back to college as well.
And most of the mock drafts I've seen there have
been three quarterbacks taken, Ty Simpson taken later in the
first round. So while the top of the draft you're
(31:49):
going to have a number of teams that need a quarterback,
as a quarterback worth a number, is there a third
quarterback out there in college that's worth a number four,
number five?
Speaker 4 (32:00):
That's going to be the question.
Speaker 7 (32:01):
We thought this was going to be unbelievable class, but
it turns out it maybe isn't and Dante more can
go back to school, even though in Oregon he did
lose his offensive coordinator.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
Talking to Mike Golig Senior, Golick and Golick on FanDuel's
Sports Network every weekday from three point thirty to five
thirty Eastern, we spent a lot of time talking about turf,
natural turf, artificial turf, the number of acls, the fact
you have a couple of marquee guys getting hurt, Michael
Parsons non contact. What was the worst playing surface? Probably
(32:35):
I probably know this, It was Philadelphia by far.
Speaker 4 (32:41):
Was it was like playing on a.
Speaker 7 (32:44):
Twenty year old carpet over concrete except where the pitchers
mound was for the Phillies and it was metal.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
But could you explain, could players complain to ownership? Can
we make this better?
Speaker 7 (32:57):
There was every dan, every visiting team filed a grievance
with the NFL before their game in Philadelphia.
Speaker 4 (33:07):
Never went anywhere.
Speaker 7 (33:08):
But I mean, remember Wendell Davis from the Chicago Bears
went up for a deep ball, came down, blew out
both Betel attendance.
Speaker 4 (33:15):
Just on the turf.
Speaker 7 (33:17):
You could literally stand on that turf, not play it
down in the game, stand on the turf and your
back would be just so hurt, so sore after the game.
It was by far the worst turf.
Speaker 6 (33:27):
I mean, they're playing on a cushion of the gods
today compared.
Speaker 4 (33:32):
To what we played on. But I get.
Speaker 7 (33:34):
Their thoughts that if you're getting a lot of non contact,
I don't care what kind of artificial turf it is.
Is that bad for the player and is it enough
for the owners? Because we already know the owners have
come out with our own report that kind of disputes
the players report. The NFLPA Report of non Contact injury.
(33:56):
So it doesn't sound like the owners want to go
change it anytime soon.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
How about we bring the owners out and somebody tackles
them and let them land on the field.
Speaker 7 (34:04):
The owners couldn't last that long out on the field.
That would be a good test for them, though they'd
be unconscious after taking one hit. We'd have to use
the smelling salts, which are now illegal, to wake them up.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Yeah, it's shortsighted, but it's all about money and if
you don't want to spend the money. And this is
where it feels like the commissioner should say, let's protect
these players. If we're going to add an eighteenth game,
shouldn't that be in there that let's do all we
can do to protect them from themselves with you know,
(34:40):
the blue tent and concussions and all of that. But
the playing surface, I mean, go back to an RG three.
Got hurt, Mike, Yeah, my backyard looks better than that.
Speaker 7 (34:51):
No, listen, I agree, and listen, there's natural graphs, natural
grass surfaces that are horrible as well. I mean, you
you have I think in Vegas and in Arizona. I
know in Arizona where they roll in the grass for
the game. That seems to be one of the best
choices right now. You're only using the grass for a
football game, nothing else to make your extra money. And
(35:15):
going back to what you said about about Roger Goodell
and the commissioner, Well, at the end of the day,
who does the commissioner work for?
Speaker 4 (35:22):
Works for the.
Speaker 7 (35:23):
Owners, So I don't know if he'll he would be
able to make a decision like that.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Is there a great team in the NFL?
Speaker 7 (35:36):
If push came to shove and you made me name one,
I would say the Rams. I would say the Rams
are the most complete team in the NFL, close to
the great team, but the most complete team. Now losing
to Vante Adams, we'll see how long he's out with
a hammy could hurt them. But I could make a
(35:56):
case for every leading division team in the AFC knocked
off right. I was part of the Me and Ryan
radkey for US with one called the Washington hosting the
Denver game. Washington had a wide open receiver on a
two point conversion to win that game with a backup quarterback,
but Nick Benito blocked the ball, so they actually won
at twenty seven to twenty six. So I mean they're
(36:19):
they're winning one score games, kind of like Kansas City
did last year. You're on the verge in the playoffs.
One doesn't go your way all of a sudden, you're
going home.
Speaker 2 (36:28):
Yeah, and we saw what happened with Kansas City. You
know these teams that have these one you know, all
these one possession games, one score games, I always say
I go against them the following year, because you can't.
It's not sustainable. I mean the Chiefs were I think
twelve to zero in one score games last year. I
think they were one in seven so far this year.
Speaker 4 (36:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (36:51):
It's that, and it's it's turnovers like turnovers now like
the Chicago Bears.
Speaker 4 (36:59):
It's ridiculous.
Speaker 7 (37:01):
They're plus twenty and they have thirty takeaways, twenty one interceptions,
nine fumble recoveries. I would not bank on that happening
next year. Yeah, right, So I put that in one
score games kind of in the same box of you
cannot count on that year to year.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Great to chat with you, my best of the family.
Happy holidays there you too, Dan, Thanks, thank you, Mike.
That's big. Mike Gullik
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox
Sports Radio.
Speaker 2 (00:04):
We were talking about the rash of ACL injuries this year,
led by Micah Parsons and Patrick Mahomes. Mahomes got hurt,
that was contact in the Chargers game. Michaeh Parsons non
contact injury. And yesterday the NFL said that they announced
they're going to have a study to look at turf
and these are new rules or at least a new policy,
(00:26):
a new approach to this. And people, I think were
surprised at the number of torn acls so far this year.
Thirty so far. Now, that seems like a lot, And
the reason why it seems like a lot is because
there's some big names in here. In twenty twenty four
there were thirty eight torn acls, twenty twenty three, forty three,
twenty twenty two point fifty one, twenty twenty one, fifty seven,
(00:51):
twenty twenty forty two. You can go back to twenty
thirteen there were sixty three torn acls. So it seems
like we're trending down. But why can't we come up
with universal fields that can prevent at least the non
contact injury. So we bring in the head coach of
the Chargers, Jim Harbaugh. Those numbers alarming to you, surprising
(01:13):
to you. Anything we can do to improve those number
of a c ls.
Speaker 3 (01:18):
Yeah, I mean that that discussion has been going on
for a long time with the UH, with the turf
and they and they they're very scientific about it. Uh.
You know my understanding almost like you know, stint meters
in UH in golf. But those numbers to me, I
mean it's it. Uh, it's like one a year, you know,
(01:39):
that's it's kind of my my recollection from UH, you know,
from coaching all these years and and UH and playing
as well as about UH one guy and the team
will get an a c L. And there was a
day where that, uh, that a c L would be
career ending. You know, think back then, Yeah, you know
Gail Sayers and UH and now UH you know it's
(02:00):
UH advancements in UH in safety and medical UH. You know,
UH are are really incredible and getting getting better all
the time.
Speaker 2 (02:08):
But when you were at Michigan, all of your linemen
had to wear braces, knee braces.
Speaker 3 (02:13):
Yes, that was that was.
Speaker 2 (02:16):
And how preventative is that? I know, Jake Buds got
hurt and Blake Krum you know, got hurt as well.
Those are contact But did it Is it that helpful
in preventing a c LS?
Speaker 3 (02:29):
I thought so, I really did, Dan. Uh, the the
running backs, tight ends didn't didn't wear them, but we
had the defensive linemen wearing uh knee braces in practice. Uh,
and that would Uh it doesn't prevent prevent like a
but whatever injury it would have been, it makes it
(02:52):
a lot less in in my experience, and uh and
uh trainers in the medical experts.
Speaker 2 (02:58):
What was different about the Chiefs this year as opposed
to previous years.
Speaker 3 (03:03):
Oh, there's there's it's just the most the most historic, incredible. Uh.
You know job that that team has done year in
year out. Andy Reid, Uh, you know the best, he's
the best. Uh. Patrick Mahomes incredible competitor, And UH that
(03:26):
was I was talking to one of our our assistant
coaches yesterday, and now we could just do half, We
could just do half of what they they've been able
to accomplish over the last seven years. You know, we
I do it. I know I would do a cartwheel.
Speaker 2 (03:42):
But what what's the game plan of of Mahomes? He
seems like he's running a lot more. He had been
running a lot more than in previous years and had
been their most dangerous runner. But as a defensive philosophy,
what was it going into this game?
Speaker 3 (03:58):
There? There there's adversity in the offensive line. Uh, different combinations,
different different you know, really good players out. But uh
they uh guy stepped in and uh they were chiefs
are still operating at a at a very high level.
And I was, I mean, I was for the competitor
(04:21):
that Patrick is. I mean that was was just hope
and praying that uh that he would have dodged a bullet,
and uh, you know, unfortunately he didn't. But uh, he's
he's already, you know, getting ready for surgery, and you
just just know his mindset it's going to be it's
gonna be surgery and then and then rehab. He's just
(04:41):
he just he's he just he just wants to be
doing and so that's uh, really we're trying to replicate
that here and in Los Angeles, and uh.
Speaker 2 (04:51):
What are you trying to force him out of the pocket,
because he loves to go right, But I you know,
it's it's easier said than done that we don't want
let him go outside the pocket.
Speaker 3 (05:03):
Patrick Mahomes. Yeah, oh, uh, you know, you try to
contain him, you really do that. Uh. The the discipline
in the in the rush lanes you gotta have. It's
got to be coordinated with with all five or four
or six or seven rushers. Uh, you know, every single play,
(05:25):
and he's still and he still finds ways to uh,
you know, to make the impossible possible. But uh, it's Tuesday.
It's uh it's our feet are moving. We're up, and
we're gonna keep it moving because uh we got Dallas
this year this week, and uh, I really think they're
the They're the best offense we've played in a while. Uh,
(05:46):
really good receivers, really good quarterback. Uh, very good upfront
and running game that we're gonna try to figure out
how to stop as well.
Speaker 2 (05:55):
Talking about that, Jim Harbaugh, Chargers head coach, you coach
any differently in December than you do in September?
Speaker 3 (06:04):
That's a great question. You know they all count the same,
you know they count the same, but uh, yeah, it's different.
It's almost it's like the fourth quarter in a in
a game, you know, and then you know, you get
down to the to the end and it's you know,
then it's it's like like the two minute drill, you know,
in the in the in the playoffs, or you know,
(06:25):
trying to get into the playoffs. But everybody, everybody is
fighting for their lives. Everybody's fighting, you know, really for
their their playoff destiny. And and that's and the and
the and the teams that aren't don't have a chance
to be in the playoffs, they're fighting at the at
the highest level. Uh, you know, for pride and for
(06:46):
for for their team and for their for their their organizations.
It's it's that competitive season. Tis the season for competition.
Speaker 2 (06:56):
How much does it help playing the position as a
head coach, helping Justin Herbert play the position.
Speaker 3 (07:06):
I've been asked that a bunch of times, and I
don't have a great answer for that, because he is
just so much better at everything, uh, every every part
of the game.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
Uh Is there anything you do better than or did
better than Justin Herbert?
Speaker 3 (07:22):
There's nothing. There's nothing, nothing, And I don't want to
demonstrate anything. I mean, it's just not gonna it's not
gonna look right. Uh So I just uh, you know,
really really focus on uh, you know, number one, protecting
him and but it's just, yeah, a tremendous blessing to
(07:44):
have him, Derwin, James, Justin, Herbert Khalil Mack. Uh the
absolute best leaders I've ever been and playmakers leaders and playmakers,
Uh that that I've ever been associated with.
Speaker 2 (08:00):
You said you were still processing the Sharone Moore situation.
What are you processing?
Speaker 4 (08:05):
What are what?
Speaker 2 (08:06):
What? What is going through your head or trying to understand?
Speaker 3 (08:11):
Yeah, it's it's uh really still and still don't have
my head wrapped around it. Dan, Uh, It's yeah it Uh,
it's a tragedy and just praying for all concerned. I
love my alma mater, love Michigan, and but I love
(08:32):
the Chargers too. And uh, I'd been doing a disservice
if I wasn't putting all my focus on the on
this game. This is the most important game for us.
Speaker 2 (08:41):
When's the last time you talked to Sharon Moore?
Speaker 3 (08:44):
Uh? Have it early early December?
Speaker 4 (08:49):
Uh?
Speaker 3 (08:49):
But I I have texted.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
Him nothing, nothing since he was arrested, just texts, Oh
you have Yeah? How are his spirit?
Speaker 3 (09:01):
Uh? I think I think there is it's a trgedy.
What uh the worst days of his life? And uh,
you know, keep it together and and uh, and take
care of your family. That's you know, that's the message.
And I getting spiritual guidance. Uh. You know it's really critical.
Speaker 2 (09:22):
Are you helping Michigan at all find their head coach?
Speaker 4 (09:26):
No, I'm not.
Speaker 3 (09:28):
All focuses on uh the Dallas Cowboys.
Speaker 2 (09:32):
Well, congrats on the win, and uh, good luck against
Dallas and then you host Houston, then you're at Denver.
Who's the best team you face? You talked about Dallas
will be the best offense. Who's the best team?
Speaker 3 (09:43):
So we played definitely uh that we played in a while,
you know, right the team that you know stands out, Uh,
you know the ones that that uh that got the
best of us. But these last two games, chiefs uh Eagles,
I mean football at uh, you know, at at the
(10:04):
highest level. You know, that's been and I think it's
I think it's I think it's made us keener and
sharper and finer too to go through those two games.
And uh, and we expect the same challenge this week.
Speaker 2 (10:17):
Do you want to play in the snow?
Speaker 3 (10:20):
I prefer the snow then, uh, then thirty five or
thirty three in rain? So uh, as soon as soon
as the temperature goes below thirty. Uh, I know it's
not gonna rain, and uh I prefer that.
Speaker 2 (10:35):
Uh, but you look at the doll like the dolphins
don't win games under forty degrees? Like what how does
that imp?
Speaker 3 (10:41):
Like?
Speaker 2 (10:41):
There are guys that aren't from Miami, but you know
they don't win in cold weather. Why is that?
Speaker 3 (10:49):
Uh? That's that's Ah, that's something I can't. I can't.
I am kind of an expert at uh growing up
in uh the Midwest and and Michigan, Ohio, chicage, playing
in Chicago. Uh, you know, it's it's really a function
of like my dad used to tell us when we
were kids. He'd say, you you you, you know, get
(11:12):
out of the house, Dan, it's cold out there. Get
your feet moving and keep it moving. You'd walk out,
and then then the click of the door would click
behind you.
Speaker 2 (11:22):
Uh wait they locked the door.
Speaker 3 (11:25):
Yeah, you hear the click. Okay, we're our feet moving
and keep it moving. But it's that's that's that's the secret.
That's the answer. The the you become your body becomes
like a human hot tub because your your your heart
is pumping warm, hot blood, especially when you're young and
you know that goes from the the heart to the arteries,
(11:47):
to to the capitillaries, to the to the tissue, and
it's you know, the more muscle you got, that's the
more UH. That's the more UH insulation that you have.
High school anatomy tell it goes back back to the
lungs and reaction to eights and it just keeps keeps
falling like so you just you just keep moving. And
(12:07):
then when you're not playing, you go to the go
to the sidelinket by that that heater in that warm bench.
Speaker 2 (12:12):
Who had it better than you did in cold weather?
Speaker 3 (12:16):
I mean a lot of experience there, nobody.
Speaker 2 (12:18):
Dan, There you go, there you go.
Speaker 3 (12:21):
I know the answer to that one.
Speaker 2 (12:22):
I was worried. I was worried about you there. Thanks
for joining us. Good luck against Dallas. Appreciate it, coach,
Thank you, Dan. That's Jim Harbaugh, second year's charge, your
head coach.
Speaker 1 (12:34):
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan
Patrick Show weekdays at nine am Eastern six am Pacific
on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio app.
Speaker 5 (12:43):
Hey Is Cavino and rit from Fox Sports Radio Now,
in addition to hearing us live weekdays from five to
seven pm Eastern two to four Pacific on Fox Sports Radio.
We're excited to announce a brand new YouTube channel for
the show.
Speaker 2 (12:56):
Yep, that's right.
Speaker 5 (12:57):
You can now watch Covino and Rich live on YouTube
every day. All you gotta do search Cove No and
Rich FSR on YouTube again. Go to YouTube search Covino
en Rich FSR. Check us out on YouTube, subscribe, hit
that thumbs up icon and comment away.
Speaker 2 (13:14):
He's Joe Thomas, Hall of Famer joining us on the program.
Good to see you again. We've been talking about the
playing surfaces and the fact that yesterday the NFL says, hey,
we're going to conduct another study here on the playing surfaces.
Why are we here where we can't have a universal
playing field up, you know surfaces either astro turf or
(13:37):
regular turf. And why did it take maybe injuries to
a couple of more quy players before we all of
a sudden have everybody's attention.
Speaker 6 (13:46):
Well, it just comes back to the fact that the
owners didn't want to all agree to spend the money
to invest in the fields because you got teams like
the Cincinnati Bengals, they don't want to even pay to
get the snow removed from the seats of the fans,
so they're saving every dime they pass we can, Whereas
you have some teams that are willing to spend the
money on player safety. I think it was the Baltimore
(14:08):
Ravens a few years ago. They realized that, hey, turf fields,
they're not good for players' bodies. And the people that
suffer the most are our own players because they play
the most games in our home stadium. So let's make
this the best surface we possibly can that's going to
reduce the most injuries possible and keep that consistent and uniform.
And so I think it's just a matter of those
(14:28):
NFL owners haven't all been able to agree on what
it takes to get that consistency, and the union really
just doesn't have enough power to be able to force
the hands of the owners.
Speaker 2 (14:39):
Worst playing surface you ever played on.
Speaker 6 (14:43):
Well, I hated playing in Cincinnati on their old turf
because of how hard it was. I mean just standing
on that, I could feel it in my back and
my knees. But I would say playing in Soldier Field
like at the end of the year, or playing in
the old Heinz Field when the I think they still
maybe do play like the high school championships there they
played pitt on Saturdays and the thing is just a
(15:05):
mud pit by the end of the season, and so
there is no consistency at all with your footing. But
I'm not a fast guy as it is, so hey,
I was happy that everyone was a little bit slower
and we were all a little bit more at the
same speed when we played in those really greasy, nasty tracks.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
As a Hall of Fame lineman, how would you put
into perspective what Miles Garrett is on the verge of
doing setting the all time sack record.
Speaker 6 (15:30):
So until Miles, I don't ever remember watching NFL defensive
lineman from my college days all the way through the
days that I was playing, and now as a fan
where I said, I'm watching him, eh, I don't think
that I can block him more than my fair share
when I'm at my best. And that's what I say
about Miles when I watch him. I played against him
(15:52):
when he was a rookie and I was in my
last season and I barely had a chance to try
to block him and get a glove on him then,
and he's like thirty forty sent better than he was
at that time, and so I watch him and I say,
I don't know how I would have been able to
block him when on one. And I think that's the
mentality that a lot of offenses, basically every offense that
he's gone against this season has said, because nobody's blocking
(16:14):
him one on one. Even the best tackles in the
game right now are not allowed to go against him
one on one because he is so dominant. There's nobody
in the game that can block him consistently throughout the
course of an entire game.
Speaker 2 (16:26):
How surprised were you that he kind of took back
the trade request when the Browns were willing to make
him the highest paid defenship player.
Speaker 6 (16:35):
I was really surprised because I'd talked to him throughout
that the course of the holdout, where he said he's
not coming back and it doesn't matter. He's all about
trying to win championships. And you know, I go on
the radio a lot in Cleveland especially, and you know,
I want to make sure that if I'm saying something,
you know, it aligns with what he's thinking and what
(16:56):
you know he is trying to get done, because I
want to make sure that this is true. What I'm
saying about him, and you know, he was telling me
that it doesn't matter what the money is. You know,
he's frustrated. He's ready to leave, and unless something drastically
changes from the vision that they have, he was not
really ready to come back. And of course they decided
(17:17):
to make him the highest paid defensive player, which was
surpassed by Michael Parsons later on.
Speaker 2 (17:22):
But the vision didn't change.
Speaker 4 (17:24):
Joe.
Speaker 2 (17:24):
This is not a good team. He's not winning anything
anytime soon, and maybe not in his career.
Speaker 4 (17:31):
Yeah, I agree.
Speaker 6 (17:32):
So I'm trying to tell you that they must have
said something in the Little Witch's Brew that they had
going on before they gave him that drink.
Speaker 2 (17:41):
I think they just said, how does forty million dollars feel?
We're not going to win anything? Forty million dollars, all right,
you know what, I don't need to win.
Speaker 6 (17:50):
I think it was partly that, but I do think
that they had convinced him of some vision that was
more convincing than the fans have gotten of.
Speaker 4 (17:59):
Hey, we're to win a championship. You're going to be
part of it.
Speaker 6 (18:02):
And I think a lot of it probably honestly had
to do with Jim Schwartz on defense, as his defensive
coordinator loves him, and they do have a really good defense.
Didn't play well last week against the Bears, but I
think they kind of built up the fact that you
could be part of this great historic defense. You could
do amazing things like chase the sack record, and oh,
by the way, we're going to invest in our offense.
Maybe not year one, but we're going to get it
(18:22):
right on offense with a quarterback, adding some weapons on
the outside. And then in year two we're going to
be competitive and have a chance with this great defense
led by you.
Speaker 4 (18:32):
And oh, by the way, you can finish.
Speaker 6 (18:33):
Your career where you started, which is very rare in
the NFL. And so I think all those things kind
of put together made up maybe forty percent. And then yeah,
like I said, sixty percent was hey, we'll pay a
lot of money. Like, okay, that sounds good too.
Speaker 2 (18:45):
Have you seen enough of Shador Sanders to offer a
definitive opinion.
Speaker 4 (18:51):
Not yet.
Speaker 6 (18:51):
We need to see him the rest of the season.
We saw a really great game a few weeks ago
where he had over three hundred yards passing. He led
their team on a long drive to finish the game
to put them in position to make a two point
version and tie the game going overtime. Of course they
called a weird play and should or wasn't on the
field for that, but that's a different topic. But at
(19:12):
least he did the things that you need to do
to be a franchise quarterback in the NFL, which is
you've got to get the points and the yards that
you need when you need it, and that's usually in
the two minute drill in the fourth quarter. And he
was showing steady improvement, but then last week there was regression.
And it's a little bit challenging because his offensive lines
banged up as receivers are playing hot potato and throwing
the football out of the defense, and so it's a
(19:32):
little bit difficult to look at everything he's doing out
there on Sundays without being in those meeting rooms and
know what he's being asked to do and properly evaluate him.
But with the amount of up and down that we've
seen so far, you need to see him in these
last three games to be able to declare him the
franchise quarterback of the future.
Speaker 2 (19:50):
Could you come out of retirement like Philip Ridle, No way.
Speaker 4 (19:56):
I had my hip orplace in the spring. I'm sore
enough after sleeping.
Speaker 2 (20:00):
You got him over, you got a new hip.
Speaker 4 (20:03):
Yeah that's right. Hey, there we go. I'm fixed.
Speaker 6 (20:05):
Let's do the bo Jackson. I'm ready to fix the
other one. Fix the knees in the back. Just turn
me into a robot, bionic man, give me an AI brain,
and I'll be ready to go back out there. Sign
me up today for maybe some future gains potentially.
Speaker 2 (20:18):
But could you imagine trying to protect philip rivers. Let's
say you're playing at your all pro level and you
got a forty four year old quarterback adding to even
more pressure, and you're playing against Seattle. Are you are
you gonna hold onto your defensive lineman a little bit
longer than normal.
Speaker 6 (20:37):
There's definitely gonna be some decisions in their minds about, Okay,
I got beat. Should I just let him go and
not get a penalty, or should I save this man's
life the same age as my dad and just go
and tackle him around the knees and not allow anybody
to touch my quarterback. Because yeah, there's a lot of pressure.
You know, there's a lot of pressure when you got
a quarterback that can move a little bit, and that's young,
(20:58):
and they can stand some hip. But I'm not sure
that Philip Rivers is there anymore.
Speaker 2 (21:02):
Yeah, but he's out there. He's out there.
Speaker 4 (21:06):
I don't give it as best. I give him credit.
Speaker 2 (21:08):
I mean, okay, we get to this point, Joe, that
our best option is a forty four year old guy
who hasn't played in five years and never had a
strong arm and certainly doesn't have that now.
Speaker 6 (21:22):
He did a pretty good job last weekend. I'm not
sure how long he's gonna be able to do it.
I mean, hey, he gave his team a chance to win.
Speaker 2 (21:29):
He did, but the defense, the defense gave them a
chance to win. They played really good defense. Philip had
a touchdown.
Speaker 4 (21:35):
Pa.
Speaker 2 (21:35):
Look, I know it's a great story, but I gotta
I gotta call it as I see it. His arm
is so weak, and I'm just amazed. Like some of
those passes they're bad, really, they just float.
Speaker 6 (21:50):
I mean they were floating when I was playing until
years old, so you can only imagine it's probably not
going the other direction.
Speaker 4 (21:57):
So you give him credit.
Speaker 6 (21:58):
But it does say something about the development of that
quarterback room in Indianapolis that they didn't trust any of
those guys. They'd rather have Philip come off the couch
at forty four with a noodle arm and say, hey,
here you go, prop them up there. Hopefully you can
give us at least a few passes off throwing an
interception and we might win the game.
Speaker 2 (22:14):
How would you feel if you're against Miles Garrett and
he needs one more sack to break the record fourth
quarter and you're blocking him.
Speaker 6 (22:25):
So I'm assuming that we're winning because we're playing against
the Browns. Unfortunately, so we're winning.
Speaker 2 (22:31):
Yeah, you're going to win the game, but you're going
against Miles Garrett. He needs one sack to break the record,
and it's fourth quarter.
Speaker 6 (22:40):
I wouldn't give it to him. But what I would
say to my quarterback is, hey, hold onto the ball
as long as you need to throw the ball into
the end zone. If we get a touchdown, great, But
if Miles sacks you, that's okay too. Because I always
cheer for players, I don't always cheer now for teams,
obviously the Browns, but I love Miles. I think he's
(23:01):
doing it the right way on the field. He's given
incredible effort, playing the game the right way. He's a
great team player, he says the right things off the field,
and so for him to be able to hold that
sack record I think would be special. And to be honest,
I was a Packer fan, and when Brett Favre rolled
out and laid down on the turf to give Michael
Strahan that record, I felt like it was a little
(23:21):
bit tarnished. And I would love to see Miles with
that sack record where everybody says, without a doubt, this
is the deserving sack champion of all time in the NFL.
Speaker 2 (23:33):
You're joining us on behalf of the officially licensed UNU
game of the NFL. What's going on with UNO in
the NFL?
Speaker 4 (23:42):
That's right.
Speaker 6 (23:43):
I'm not shoving Hall of Fame beefsticks in your mouth
this time like it was last time when we were
there in Green Bay.
Speaker 4 (23:49):
But it's really cool.
Speaker 6 (23:50):
I'm super excited that UNO, which is one of my
favorite family games, has put together this UNO Elite Playoff
tournament being held right now all over the country on
hobby shops and anybody can sign up. It's free to enter,
and if you register, you get a chance to win
an amazing thing that UNO's given away three days two
nights trip to Las Vegas for their UNO Elite Championship.
(24:13):
The winner is going to walk away with ten grand
but most importantly, the most coveted trophy of all time.
If you're a child in America or if you're a
parent of a kid, and that's the UNO Elite Trophy,
you're walking around with that peacock in a lot better
than if you had a Hall of Fame bus like I.
Speaker 4 (24:27):
Have behind me.
Speaker 6 (24:28):
That is really the taj Mahal of trophies. If you're
a dad or if you're.
Speaker 2 (24:33):
A kid, fans can sign up at UNO Elite Championship
dot com. Great to talk to you again. Happy holidays
to you, Joe.
Speaker 6 (24:44):
Happy holidays, Dan. Thanks for having me on the show again.
Great to see you, yt see you.
Speaker 1 (24:48):
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. Search FSR to listen.
Speaker 2 (25:00):
Mike Golick, senior co host of Golick and Golick on
fan Duel Sports Network. He was well. He was on
the call for the Dolphin Steelers Monday night pregame halftime
show in Westwood One Radio and good to see you again, buddy.
Explain the Dolphin situation to me moving forward into next season.
Speaker 7 (25:22):
Well, obviously, you know you're talking about the quarterback.
Speaker 4 (25:26):
What do you do with Tua?
Speaker 7 (25:30):
We know that was a big dead money cap hit
with Russell Wilson when he left Denver. I believe the
post June first cut for next year, if they were
to go down that road, the dead money would be
like sixty seven million dollars, where his cap hit if
he's on the team is fifty five million dollars. So
(25:51):
you know, the question will be have you seen enough
of him? Are you willing to start over? And if
you start over, do you start over with a draft
pick or do you start over with a veteran? And
are you going to be much better, uh with with
a veteran or do you just kind of retool everything
and you're sitting there at six and eight. You'll probably
(26:12):
finish just a little under five hundred. You're not going
to have a really high pick. And oh, by the way,
this incredible quarterback class coming out of college that we
all thought before the season is really not an incredible
quarterbacks class coming out at the end.
Speaker 4 (26:29):
Of the season.
Speaker 7 (26:30):
So I Mike McDaniel may may have saved may have
saved his job, which seems weird because we thought he
was gone, but he may still be around.
Speaker 2 (26:42):
How would you describe the Steelers' playoff potential as far
as getting in? What can they do when they get in?
Speaker 4 (26:50):
I Dan, I don't think they can do much. I
really don't this.
Speaker 7 (26:56):
Pittsburgh has normally been a running team and a defensive team.
Speaker 3 (26:59):
Now.
Speaker 7 (26:59):
They ran a pretty well last night, Gainwell and Warren
basically split carries I think thirteen and twelve, so that
was good. Defensively, they haven't been what they normally have been.
And as far as Aaron, Aaron was incredibly effective last
night twenty three or twenty seven, but most of those
passes were to gain Well, which were short passes when
(27:20):
he ran an unleashed one. He certainly did a couple
of times for sure, but I don't think now. The
one thing that's in their favor is you don't have
a dominant Kansas City team in the playoffs. You don't
have a just below Kansas City dominant Buffalo Bills team.
This year, Buffalo will get in to the playoffs, but
(27:42):
is it the dominant Buffalo team. The team that's been
giving up a lot of run rushing yards on defense.
So I look at all the division leaders and I
could find a flaw in all of them where it
wouldn't surprise me if they got knocked off.
Speaker 2 (27:58):
And Mike Tomlining vive another one and done in the playoffs.
Speaker 7 (28:03):
You know, I think if you step back and look
at it, if you get past the losing in the
first round of the playoffs, having just good enough record
to not pick late in the first round or not
pick early in the first round, I would say this,
what what are.
Speaker 4 (28:23):
You going to get out there that's better? What?
Speaker 2 (28:26):
What?
Speaker 4 (28:26):
What?
Speaker 7 (28:27):
What are what are you going to get that's going
to make them win two more playoff games? I remember you,
and you remember too, Dan Marty Schottenheimer went to a
couple of AC title games in Cleveland, didn't get him
past the point and got fired.
Speaker 4 (28:42):
Well where's Cleveland been?
Speaker 7 (28:44):
I mean, it's it's not like they've they've found somebody
to ride past that. So I think we we kind
of knee jerk. Though this knee jerk has been for
a couple of years with Mike Tomlin. But my thought is,
when you settled down and you think about it, You're like,
who are we going to get that's better? Are we
going to get a retread that we know or a
(29:07):
young new, first time head coach that maybe injects something
new into the team.
Speaker 2 (29:13):
But is this sort of like Penn State though, like
it's a cautionary tale of yes, they waited over fifty
days for his replace. They were quick to get rid
of him that decision, But then you didn't exactly have
the treasure trove of candidates that you thought you would. Now,
the Steelers would be attractive because of the stability there.
(29:36):
You know, Mens State mat Amble, and while he's really good,
he doesn't have a good record against you know, top
ten opponents either.
Speaker 7 (29:43):
No, I mean all the I mean there was really
the one bell of the ball choice this year and
that was Lane Kiffin. Right, some are who Someamraw went
to Florida was certainly up there as well, and a
lot of coaches change hands. But look at it. What
do you look at when you go to a new team.
You look at obviously ownership, then you look at the
(30:04):
quarterback situation.
Speaker 4 (30:06):
What's overall?
Speaker 7 (30:08):
The Steelers are a better situation then, But are they
better than the Giants?
Speaker 4 (30:13):
The Giants have a quarterback. The Steelers don't.
Speaker 2 (30:16):
Does Rod Rulers play next year?
Speaker 4 (30:18):
Pardon me?
Speaker 2 (30:19):
Rodgers play next year?
Speaker 4 (30:20):
In your opinion, boil boy, it.
Speaker 7 (30:22):
Seems like it seems like he's had a really good
experience with Pittsburgh. But again, if they don't go that
far this year, what's the expectation that they're going to
go far next year? Eventually, whether it's this year or
next year, they have to start over a quarterback yet again,
and they haven't found their guy to take them anywhere
(30:45):
since Ben Roethlisberger. So and it's normally a team that's
built on defense and the run game anyway, but they
still haven't been able to find a quarterback.
Speaker 2 (30:54):
Let's look at the draft right now. The Giants have
the number one pick. Are you confident that they would
not be interested in Fernando Mendoza.
Speaker 4 (31:03):
No, they will not. Jackson Dark.
Speaker 2 (31:06):
They found their quarterback in Jackson Dark. Yeah, okay, yeah, Raiders, Jets, Cardinals,
Cleveland quarterback, quarterback, quarterback, quarterback.
Speaker 7 (31:18):
Yeah, I would say yes, But how many top quarterbacks
are available?
Speaker 4 (31:26):
Now? We know the quarterback position gets over valued.
Speaker 7 (31:29):
So you have Fernando Mendoza, you have Dante more from Oregon, who,
by the way, can go back to college. You have
Ty Simpson who can go back to college as well.
And most of the mock drafts I've seen there have
been three quarterbacks taken, Ty Simpson taken later in the
first round. So while the top of the draft you're
(31:49):
going to have a number of teams that need a quarterback,
as a quarterback worth a number, is there a third
quarterback out there in college that's worth a number four,
number five?
Speaker 4 (32:00):
That's going to be the question.
Speaker 7 (32:01):
We thought this was going to be unbelievable class, but
it turns out it maybe isn't and Dante more can
go back to school, even though in Oregon he did
lose his offensive coordinator.
Speaker 2 (32:12):
Talking to Mike Golig Senior, Golick and Golick on FanDuel's
Sports Network every weekday from three point thirty to five
thirty Eastern, we spent a lot of time talking about turf,
natural turf, artificial turf, the number of acls, the fact
you have a couple of marquee guys getting hurt, Michael
Parsons non contact. What was the worst playing surface? Probably
(32:35):
I probably know this, It was Philadelphia by far.
Speaker 4 (32:41):
Was it was like playing on a.
Speaker 7 (32:44):
Twenty year old carpet over concrete except where the pitchers
mound was for the Phillies and it was metal.
Speaker 2 (32:51):
But could you explain, could players complain to ownership? Can
we make this better?
Speaker 7 (32:57):
There was every dan, every visiting team filed a grievance
with the NFL before their game in Philadelphia.
Speaker 4 (33:07):
Never went anywhere.
Speaker 7 (33:08):
But I mean, remember Wendell Davis from the Chicago Bears
went up for a deep ball, came down, blew out
both Betel attendance.
Speaker 4 (33:15):
Just on the turf.
Speaker 7 (33:17):
You could literally stand on that turf, not play it
down in the game, stand on the turf and your
back would be just so hurt, so sore after the game.
It was by far the worst turf.
Speaker 6 (33:27):
I mean, they're playing on a cushion of the gods
today compared.
Speaker 4 (33:32):
To what we played on. But I get.
Speaker 7 (33:34):
Their thoughts that if you're getting a lot of non contact,
I don't care what kind of artificial turf it is.
Is that bad for the player and is it enough
for the owners? Because we already know the owners have
come out with our own report that kind of disputes
the players report. The NFLPA Report of non Contact injury.
(33:56):
So it doesn't sound like the owners want to go
change it anytime soon.
Speaker 2 (34:00):
How about we bring the owners out and somebody tackles
them and let them land on the field.
Speaker 7 (34:04):
The owners couldn't last that long out on the field.
That would be a good test for them, though they'd
be unconscious after taking one hit. We'd have to use
the smelling salts, which are now illegal, to wake them up.
Speaker 2 (34:18):
Yeah, it's shortsighted, but it's all about money and if
you don't want to spend the money. And this is
where it feels like the commissioner should say, let's protect
these players. If we're going to add an eighteenth game,
shouldn't that be in there that let's do all we
can do to protect them from themselves with you know,
(34:40):
the blue tent and concussions and all of that. But
the playing surface, I mean, go back to an RG three.
Got hurt, Mike, Yeah, my backyard looks better than that.
Speaker 7 (34:51):
No, listen, I agree, and listen, there's natural graphs, natural
grass surfaces that are horrible as well. I mean, you
you have I think in Vegas and in Arizona. I
know in Arizona where they roll in the grass for
the game. That seems to be one of the best
choices right now. You're only using the grass for a
football game, nothing else to make your extra money. And
(35:15):
going back to what you said about about Roger Goodell
and the commissioner, Well, at the end of the day,
who does the commissioner work for?
Speaker 4 (35:22):
Works for the.
Speaker 7 (35:23):
Owners, So I don't know if he'll he would be
able to make a decision like that.
Speaker 2 (35:32):
Is there a great team in the NFL?
Speaker 7 (35:36):
If push came to shove and you made me name one,
I would say the Rams. I would say the Rams
are the most complete team in the NFL, close to
the great team, but the most complete team. Now losing
to Vante Adams, we'll see how long he's out with
a hammy could hurt them. But I could make a
(35:56):
case for every leading division team in the AFC knocked
off right. I was part of the Me and Ryan
radkey for US with one called the Washington hosting the
Denver game. Washington had a wide open receiver on a
two point conversion to win that game with a backup quarterback,
but Nick Benito blocked the ball, so they actually won
at twenty seven to twenty six. So I mean they're
(36:19):
they're winning one score games, kind of like Kansas City
did last year. You're on the verge in the playoffs.
One doesn't go your way all of a sudden, you're
going home.
Speaker 2 (36:28):
Yeah, and we saw what happened with Kansas City. You
know these teams that have these one you know, all
these one possession games, one score games, I always say
I go against them the following year, because you can't.
It's not sustainable. I mean the Chiefs were I think
twelve to zero in one score games last year. I
think they were one in seven so far this year.
Speaker 4 (36:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 7 (36:51):
It's that, and it's it's turnovers like turnovers now like
the Chicago Bears.
Speaker 4 (36:59):
It's ridiculous.
Speaker 7 (37:01):
They're plus twenty and they have thirty takeaways, twenty one interceptions,
nine fumble recoveries. I would not bank on that happening
next year. Yeah, right, So I put that in one
score games kind of in the same box of you
cannot count on that year to year.
Speaker 2 (37:18):
Great to chat with you, my best of the family.
Happy holidays there you too, Dan, Thanks, thank you, Mike.
That's big. Mike Gullik
Hosts And Creators
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