February 11, 2025 • 20 mins
Stephen A. Smith is a New York Times Bestselling Author, Executive Producer, host of ESPN's First Take, and co-host of NBA Countdown.
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Episode Transcript
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Speaker 1 (00:03):
Joining me now to breakdown Super Bowl fifty nine is
Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame wide receiver, the one
and only Chris Catt. All he did was catch touchdowns.
What's up, Big Time? How are you doing, my Land?
How's everything?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Thank you for invitation day after the Super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (00:16):
It wasn't the type of game that we would like,
but you got to give it up a Philadelphia.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
That's where I was going. It was an ass kick. Yeah,
it was an ass kick and Chris forty two to
forty to twenty two does not indicate how dominant this
damn game was, make no mistink about it. What stood
out most to you about this game?
Speaker 3 (00:35):
I was totally shocked that they were able to rush
four people the MIDI amount of rush people and put
the maxims amount of pressure by doing that. And I
know that Andy Reid and Patrick Mahoons have been doing
this the last five years with hocus focus, but they
really got exploited as far as their weakness on that
offensive line. Their left tackle is not a left tackle
(00:56):
and their right tackle is not a good right tackle.
Soladelphia was able to do that and play all his
own coverages and keep all eyes on Patrick Holmes It
was a great game plan, but they had the personnel
to do execute that game plan.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Christmas. One thing for me if I see a game
and it's like something's developing and you recognize that you
might have an advantage, so you exploit it. It's another
thing entirely when the Philadelphia Eagles appear to walk into
the game knowing exactly what they were going to be
able to do, seemingly having little to no concern whatsoever
(01:30):
about their defensive line being neutralized in any way by
the Kansas City Chiefs offensive line. Is that what you saw?
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Well, I think that they had a lot of confidence
coming into the games. Anytime that you see a dominant defense.
If we've seen the top defense in the NFL be
in this game thirteen times now eleven times, that top
defense has won the championship, only losing twice. So when
you have two weeks to prepare, you can find out
(01:57):
the weakness of the opposition like no other week during
the seas. So there was a time and two bow
where we saw a lot of blowouts. Now not of late,
we've had a lot of close matchups, but this was
a blowout from the beginning in it because of one unit,
and that was the defensive front. Yeah, they had a
great game plan. They didn't have to put their safeties
and their linebackers in Manda Man and you didn't and
(02:17):
you didn't have to blitz Patrick Mahomes because that's what
Fansio has figured out in the last eight times that
he faced Patrick Mahons.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Guess what, I haven't beat him. Guess what I did.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
I blitzed it off a lot. He's great against the blitz.
So he was able to have that game plan, have
the personnel be able to play a style that he
won to and he got the support of the offense
putting points on the board, which led to Kansas City's panting.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
You know, I'm looking at some of these number CC
and I got to tell you something. When the Eagles
were up twenty four to nothing in the first half,
which was a shot in and of itself, I knew
Patrick Mahomes had already thrown a pick six. I knew
he had thrown another interception at his own fourteen yard line.
But I'm looking at some of these numbers. Twenty four
to nothing, zero first downs, one total, well, one first down,
(03:04):
I'm sorry, twenty three total net yards, zero for six
on third down. What about Patrick Mahomes.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Here, Well, we have seen the greatest players in this game,
and that's why football is the ultimate team game. We
give credit to the quarterback all the time, and then
we also give blame to the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
But he can't do his job if he can't.
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Get to the top of his drop when you have
a four man rush and he has five people protecting them,
and the numbers advantage is on the offensive side. The
Philadelphia they flipped that. So, yes, Patrick Mahomes, he played
an average game. All you have was two fifty you know,
three touchdown passes. But the pick sixers and trying to
(03:47):
force the ball was because he saw that not only
do we not have an answer to this defense, but
you know, offensively, Philadelphia is also putting points on the board.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
So that sped up. Patrick mho owns his clock.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Even though in the previous Super Bowls that he won
he had been down by ten points, this was a
different beast that he was facing in yesterday's Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
I saw the Kansas City Chiefs get blown out by
the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I've now seen them get blown
out by the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowls. They've been
outscored by forty points in three Super Bowl losses. Tom
Brady has been outscored by just fifteen points somehow, some way.
No matter what the Giants passed Russia looked like, not
(04:30):
once but twice, No matter what the Philadelphia Eagles, you know,
their defense looked like. No matter what the Legion of
Boom looked like when he ended up beat Seattle because
Pete Carroll and Darryl Bello decided for Russell Wilson to
try to throw a pass at the half yard line
instead of giving it up to beast Bode. We've never
seen Tom Brady look so lost, so discombobulated, so destroyed
(04:53):
in the game the way that we saw Patrick Mahomes
is the goat conversation over for now.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Anyway, Well, I wouldn't old my breath about it. You know,
people try to get ahead of what history really is.
People try to prognosticate compared to watching it and seeing
where it goes. I mean, Tom Brady was never put
in this situation. Also because Tom Brady had Bill Belichick.
Bill Belichick would have never had a game plan like
that against an offensive line like that. You know, so
(05:21):
that's part of the equation there. When you talk about
Tom Brady, you have to put Bill Belichick. I thaw
him at the Super Bowl. I'm excited to see what
he's gonna do for the North Carolina two year olds.
But preparation that to me, that line was not prepared
mentally nor physically for what the Philadelphia Eagles are going
(05:42):
to do, which we didn't see in Tom Brady. So
now when you start to separate, now he's three and
two in Super Bowls, tom Brady seven and three in
Super Bowls. It's a hard time to get back.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Up that mountain. But there's a lot of football left
to be played.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
But I doubt, I doubt that he's going to pass
Tom Brady as the greatest quarterback as we sin play
in the National Football League.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Now, I was just talking about the God conversation for
the time being, But you know you brought up Bill Belichick.
This is Andy Reid is no slouch. Andy Reid is
one of the great great coaches and all history. So
what are we to think about Andy Reid and how
ill prepared the Kansas City Chiefs looked to go up
against the Philadelphia Eagles, especially since he made virtually no
(06:24):
attempt to run the football at all yesterday.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Right, I think Andy Reid is going to go back
and look at it, just like he did in Tampa Bay.
They do a good job as far as personnel, and
given some of the economics since then, as far as
some of the players they had to get rid of
Tyrek Hill to be able to afford Patrick Mahomes' new contract,
they'll retool. They realized that their left tackle is a
very good All Pro guard and he can't play left tackle.
(06:48):
They realized the right tack is gonna jump off side
an awful lot. He's only going to be an average player,
so they will retool. Their defense was very very good, outstanding,
didn't have a good day yesterday. So that's what they'll do.
For personnel's department, They're gonna put good players around Patrick Mahomes.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
His receiving corps will be absolutely better.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Next year than the one he had this year, just
because of injury, subtraction, adding subtraction, and he hasn't been
loaded at the wide receivers file for the last couple
of years.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
So there's ways that they can improve the roster.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
Don't pay tool, and they were Patrick Mahlmes will play
in another Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
Spagnola, the defensive coordinated, the legendary dispensive coordinating in the
eyes of many, who should be a Hall of Famer
in his own right. Not once, but twice he's been
lit up by Philadelphia Eagles. Now he gave up thirty
five points to Super Bowl fifty seven. The Eagles dropped
forty yesterday even though a pick six and another interception
basically set up another touchdown, you know by interceptions by
(07:48):
Patrick Mahomes. What are we to make of Spagnola, Well, if.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
You look at the personnel, this defense does not match
up well against Philadelphia because especially this year's version of it, well,
they can smash it. That you with Barkley, everybody thought, oh,
make them throw the football. That's not what you want
to do because when you do make them throw the football,
typically you're in man demand because you got to put
all those guys up at the line of scrimmage because
(08:11):
of the box and Jalen Hurt's ability to be able
to be accurate with the football at an all time high.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
He only keeps getting better.
Speaker 3 (08:20):
He got Bence to the National Championship Game for Tua
Tua come back and throw and throws one. He has
to transfer, goes to Oklahoma, start to learn the passing game.
Doesn't get drafted in the first round. He's still learning
the passing game. He never gets enough credit. All he
does is win. All he does is get better. And
the personnel around him offensive line six six six steven
(08:41):
a three point thirty, they're.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Monsters in the NFL. They are monsters.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
I mean they look but heemus compared to Kansas City's
defensive front, and that's what they're getting. And let's not forget.
I'm gonna say this. Philadelphia has been the best team
in the NFL in last year and a half. Last
year that started season ten and one. Now their head
coach is growing. They had some inside stuff going on
the team, but they were ten and one and then
(09:08):
now we know they fell apart. And then this year
they win the Super Bowl. So they've been doing a
lot of winning there in Philadelphia, ironing stuff out. And
I do believe their head coach is only going to
mature even more, and the players play hard for him.
It's a special combination. So I can understand Fagot. Yes,
he does a great job, but the personnel Philadelphia, Davonte Smith,
(09:33):
aj Man Sakwan, I'm hurt man.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
They provide mismatches.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That he doesn't necessarily have answers to, and that's why
they've been so productive in those two media.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
Let me throw something at you about Jalen Hurts because
I don't listen. The man deserves major, major props, no doubt, congratulations,
the whole nine. But when I think about Jalen Hurts
and what he's done in the postseason over the last
three postseasons, people don't realize it's about him. His record
is six and two. He's been the two Super Bowls,
He's now won a Super Bowl Championship. He's completed sixty
(10:04):
nine and a half percent of his passes one oh
two point five passer rating, nineteen touchdowns, just two interceptions,
nine pass ten runs, and just two turnovers. So those
are great numbers on a part of Jalen Hurts. What
I would push back on you, Tho, Chris, is this
people act like folks were just hating on them, and
(10:24):
I'm of the mindset, wait a minute, we needed to
see We suspected you could do it, but we needed
to see it. And there's no crime there because since
Week five, the Eagles have rushed the football more than
anybody else in the National Football League, and they've thrown
the football, you know, less than anybody in the entire
(10:45):
National Football League. So whatever question marks we may have
had about Jalen Hurts was created by the Eagles more
so than anybody else.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
To that, you say, what, well, most teams run the
football because they have a dominant offensive line.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
They have a great running back.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Or philosophy, or the fourth thing is their quarterback doesn't
have the arm talent to be able to lead the
team and throw on the ball forty times.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
The Eagles, they don't have that in Jalen Hurts, but their.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Other answers to winning are better than him dropping back
forty times because of their offensive line. Say, for the
last eight or ten years, they've been dominant, and now
they have won the best running back that they've ever
had in their history. So now how am I going
to choose to win games? After the bye week? They said,
just out an offensive line coach, great guy, underrated in
(11:39):
their system. We're going to run the football. Everyone bought
into it. So when they're running the football, they get
a lot of man to man on the outside, So
there's a lot of ways to win games. Jalen hurts
his development has been very, very different than a lot
of other quarterbacks that we've seen, so a lot of
times to me, I'm like, I need to see a
little more too, so I can understand that, yes, you
(12:00):
need to build a Seymour, but sometimes people are not
just running the ball because lack of arm town.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
It's because of.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
The overall way to build a win a football game.
Utilize the talent that we have as far as man,
we're bigger than them, we're more physical than now, and
there's a mentality from the team that goes to the
fan base and the mentality of Philadelphians. So I think
those different windows and his and his passing is still developing.
(12:28):
It gave people that opportunity to say, you know something,
he's not as good as Lamar, he's not as good
as Patrick, he's not as good as Josh.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
And some of these other players.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Well is he now? Yeah, you gotta give it to him,
all right, give it to him. WHOA, WHOA. I'm asking
you a specific question. Give it to him. How do
you have him as a top five quarterback in the
National Football League?
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Right?
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Now, right now, if I got a draft and if
Jalen Hurts is not drafted right after that, it's just
because we are in elite.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
Time in quarterbacks. Okay, now I'm a Jason.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Do you think if Joe Burrow wasn't in Philadelphia they
wouldn't have won some Super Bowls?
Speaker 2 (13:04):
If Josh Allen.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
Wasn't in Philadelphia, they wouldn't have won a Super Bowl
if Lamar was in Philadelphia. So I'm not going to
say top five, but he should be in the top ten.
And just because he's not in the top five, that
is not a slap in the play man. We're in
the golden age of dudes that can throw that football.
Got it understand he happens to be one of them.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Let me move on to a fraternity that you are
a member of the Hall of Fame. Their class at
twenty twenty five was revealed. It obviously includes Antonio Gates,
Eric Allen, the one and only Sterling Sharp who I
was just with the other night, and former Viking Jared Allen.
Your thoughts on the class that includes only four inductees
(13:46):
this year.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
People think it's just a no brainer. Every year, six
seven eight guys are going to go in. That's not
the truth. The Hall of Fame is still trying to
be selective and you need to get eighty percent of
the vote. So guess what happened this year, Stephen. We
have four people that got eighty.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Percent of the vote.
Speaker 3 (14:05):
Now, would I've liked to see another receiver get in,
given the receivers that are on the happening waiting, that
being Tory Hope, that being Reggie Wayne, that being Stephen A.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Smith. Seen.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
All these guys are going to be Hall of Fame.
But I had to tell some of them too, even
after this. Hey, if you would have gotten in, Sterling
Sharp wouldn't have gotten in. But let me tell you
something which you might not know. And I had to
go back to maybe your daddy was thinking about court
and your mama.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
This dude was a base. This dude was one of
my role men.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
He said about Sterli Shop, about Sterli Shop. Yeah, oh
he was.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
He was a master.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
People don't realize that of a monster.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
He was. Hall of Fame was a crime. And only
reason why he hadn't reached.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
The accolades for which he should have received was the
guy broke his neck. Right, So for me, man this
is one of the greatest stories ever. Not on I
need his story to get to the Hall. But by
the way, man, he grew up in an awful situation
with another kid who's in the Hall the first time.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
It ever happened. Right now, Steven A, I'm gonna give
you some numbers. Three hundred and.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
Fifty million people have played football in some form of fashion.
Twenty eight thousand us played the National Football League. Only
fourteen thousand of us played more than four years. Only
three hundred and eighty two of us in the Hall
of Fame. And now Stirling number three eighty two. It's
(15:34):
an unbelievable story. Man, it is unbelievable. I'm I'm moved
deep in my soul. Man.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Have them guys in the.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
Hall because of their ability to be able to overcome
adversity and make themselves better through football.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
He deserved.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Last thing I'm gonna say about Stirland, he gave me
my first opportunity to go to the Pro Bowl. When
he heard his we were at the Super Bowl in Atlanta.
We were in the hospitality suite. He found out that
I was the alternate. It was my first thousand yard
season and he was like you know, brun Man, congratulations.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
I was like, yeah, he had just finished his third
straight one hundred cat.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Season and he's congratulating me on a thousand yard season,
and I said, yeah, man, I'm altered.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
He got on the house phone and called Green Bay
and came.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
Up with an injury. Called the training room, said my
hands brings hurt. The NFL called me twenty minutes later
in the hospitality suite and was able to go to
my first provo of eight provos. But at that time,
Serling Sharpe, Michael Irvin, Jerry Rice, and Andre Rison, those
(16:44):
were the receivers in the NFC, and it was him
and Jerry Rice as the who's the best? All right,
So I can't make people forget that conversation that dude
was worthy of its.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
The other Cats, they will get their recognition.
Speaker 3 (16:59):
A great class, small class you know, Ea, you know
from Philadelphia came into the league. After my second year
in the league. Him and I had a lot of
battles man in practice and then throughout the league. Jared Allen,
how special he was at GIL to rush the passer,
like all these guys have just unusually very very you know,
(17:20):
special special stories that will be told in Canton this summer.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
I'm looking forward to it.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
I totally agree with you. And it was great seeing him.
I was there at night when he got the announcement.
Obviously his brother, you know, Shannon is my dog, and
you know, and and and just it was. It was
real emotional for them. But I've known Stirling for many,
many years, man, and he's a great, great guy. And
people don't realize what a great receiver he was when
he was healthy. It was Jerry Rice and it was him.
People forget that this was before Randy Moss. So everybody
(17:47):
forgets that last question for you, sticking with the Hall
of Fame, Travis Kelsey will be in the Hall of
Fame without question when he retires. Is it time for him?
Do you believe it's time for him? Or do you
think that after such a catastrophic loss yesterday, he's going
to come back.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
No, I think he's going to come back. You know,
I know him very well. He works out here in
South Florida. He came down here I'm getting ready for
the combine and he's been coming back every year with
the trainer who worked out in the gym I'm very
familiar with.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
So I look for him to use this as fuel.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
That's what the great players do. He has no need
to look at any part of this season besides this game,
because there was no hint, there was no breath, There
was not even a stench that he had lost his edge.
Even given the high profile relationship that he's in, people
might question, he's handled that strategically amazing and still playing.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
At a high level. No. I look for him to
come back.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
But the thing about it is as you get older,
people exploit your weaknesses. One thing that Philadelphia last night,
they was not worried about him being a blocker. Right now,
him not being a dominant blocker the end of the
line of scrimmage, that's been a tremendous advantage. But as
you get older, they start, they start, they start honing
in on your fastball. They start making you do things
(19:13):
that you're not as comfortable doing. So that's something you
have to be able to manage. So I think they'll
keep growing that offense. They'll do some things that they'll
protect them. But I see him playing another two seasons.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
Two seasons, not one true.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
I see him playing another two seasons. When he starts
trying to go home and he ain't special, like it
ain't nothing special he do like football. I know he's
doing this podcast and all that, but hey, there's a
lot of pressure right there with the woman, these agents.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
I don't think she gonna quit no time, so so
I keep going to work even see see.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
I holler back at you, my brother appreciate all your
contributions to the show during the football season. Man had
to cap it out with you.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Man.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Thanks so much. Bro, you take it ease
Speaker 3 (19:53):
There right, No, thank you for all love bro, all
love always
Joining me now to breakdown Super Bowl fifty nine is
Hall of Fame, Hall of Fame wide receiver, the one
and only Chris Catt. All he did was catch touchdowns.
What's up, Big Time? How are you doing, my Land?
How's everything?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
Thank you for invitation day after the Super Bowl.
Speaker 3 (00:16):
It wasn't the type of game that we would like,
but you got to give it up a Philadelphia.
Speaker 1 (00:22):
That's where I was going. It was an ass kick. Yeah,
it was an ass kick and Chris forty two to
forty to twenty two does not indicate how dominant this
damn game was, make no mistink about it. What stood
out most to you about this game?
Speaker 3 (00:35):
I was totally shocked that they were able to rush
four people the MIDI amount of rush people and put
the maxims amount of pressure by doing that. And I
know that Andy Reid and Patrick Mahoons have been doing
this the last five years with hocus focus, but they
really got exploited as far as their weakness on that
offensive line. Their left tackle is not a left tackle
(00:56):
and their right tackle is not a good right tackle.
Soladelphia was able to do that and play all his
own coverages and keep all eyes on Patrick Holmes It
was a great game plan, but they had the personnel
to do execute that game plan.
Speaker 1 (01:09):
Christmas. One thing for me if I see a game
and it's like something's developing and you recognize that you
might have an advantage, so you exploit it. It's another
thing entirely when the Philadelphia Eagles appear to walk into
the game knowing exactly what they were going to be
able to do, seemingly having little to no concern whatsoever
(01:30):
about their defensive line being neutralized in any way by
the Kansas City Chiefs offensive line. Is that what you saw?
Speaker 3 (01:36):
Well, I think that they had a lot of confidence
coming into the games. Anytime that you see a dominant defense.
If we've seen the top defense in the NFL be
in this game thirteen times now eleven times, that top
defense has won the championship, only losing twice. So when
you have two weeks to prepare, you can find out
(01:57):
the weakness of the opposition like no other week during
the seas. So there was a time and two bow
where we saw a lot of blowouts. Now not of late,
we've had a lot of close matchups, but this was
a blowout from the beginning in it because of one unit,
and that was the defensive front. Yeah, they had a
great game plan. They didn't have to put their safeties
and their linebackers in Manda Man and you didn't and
(02:17):
you didn't have to blitz Patrick Mahomes because that's what
Fansio has figured out in the last eight times that
he faced Patrick Mahons.
Speaker 2 (02:25):
Guess what, I haven't beat him. Guess what I did.
Speaker 3 (02:27):
I blitzed it off a lot. He's great against the blitz.
So he was able to have that game plan, have
the personnel be able to play a style that he
won to and he got the support of the offense
putting points on the board, which led to Kansas City's panting.
Speaker 1 (02:42):
You know, I'm looking at some of these number CC
and I got to tell you something. When the Eagles
were up twenty four to nothing in the first half,
which was a shot in and of itself, I knew
Patrick Mahomes had already thrown a pick six. I knew
he had thrown another interception at his own fourteen yard line.
But I'm looking at some of these numbers. Twenty four
to nothing, zero first downs, one total, well, one first down,
(03:04):
I'm sorry, twenty three total net yards, zero for six
on third down. What about Patrick Mahomes.
Speaker 3 (03:11):
Here, Well, we have seen the greatest players in this game,
and that's why football is the ultimate team game. We
give credit to the quarterback all the time, and then
we also give blame to the quarterback.
Speaker 2 (03:23):
But he can't do his job if he can't.
Speaker 3 (03:25):
Get to the top of his drop when you have
a four man rush and he has five people protecting them,
and the numbers advantage is on the offensive side. The
Philadelphia they flipped that. So, yes, Patrick Mahomes, he played
an average game. All you have was two fifty you know,
three touchdown passes. But the pick sixers and trying to
(03:47):
force the ball was because he saw that not only
do we not have an answer to this defense, but
you know, offensively, Philadelphia is also putting points on the board.
Speaker 2 (03:58):
So that sped up. Patrick mho owns his clock.
Speaker 3 (04:00):
Even though in the previous Super Bowls that he won
he had been down by ten points, this was a
different beast that he was facing in yesterday's Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (04:08):
I saw the Kansas City Chiefs get blown out by
the Tampa Bay Buccaneers. I've now seen them get blown
out by the Philadelphia Eagles in Super Bowls. They've been
outscored by forty points in three Super Bowl losses. Tom
Brady has been outscored by just fifteen points somehow, some way.
No matter what the Giants passed Russia looked like, not
(04:30):
once but twice, No matter what the Philadelphia Eagles, you know,
their defense looked like. No matter what the Legion of
Boom looked like when he ended up beat Seattle because
Pete Carroll and Darryl Bello decided for Russell Wilson to
try to throw a pass at the half yard line
instead of giving it up to beast Bode. We've never
seen Tom Brady look so lost, so discombobulated, so destroyed
(04:53):
in the game the way that we saw Patrick Mahomes
is the goat conversation over for now.
Speaker 3 (04:58):
Anyway, Well, I wouldn't old my breath about it. You know,
people try to get ahead of what history really is.
People try to prognosticate compared to watching it and seeing
where it goes. I mean, Tom Brady was never put
in this situation. Also because Tom Brady had Bill Belichick.
Bill Belichick would have never had a game plan like
that against an offensive line like that. You know, so
(05:21):
that's part of the equation there. When you talk about
Tom Brady, you have to put Bill Belichick. I thaw
him at the Super Bowl. I'm excited to see what
he's gonna do for the North Carolina two year olds.
But preparation that to me, that line was not prepared
mentally nor physically for what the Philadelphia Eagles are going
(05:42):
to do, which we didn't see in Tom Brady. So
now when you start to separate, now he's three and
two in Super Bowls, tom Brady seven and three in
Super Bowls. It's a hard time to get back.
Speaker 2 (05:53):
Up that mountain. But there's a lot of football left
to be played.
Speaker 3 (05:56):
But I doubt, I doubt that he's going to pass
Tom Brady as the greatest quarterback as we sin play
in the National Football League.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Now, I was just talking about the God conversation for
the time being, But you know you brought up Bill Belichick.
This is Andy Reid is no slouch. Andy Reid is
one of the great great coaches and all history. So
what are we to think about Andy Reid and how
ill prepared the Kansas City Chiefs looked to go up
against the Philadelphia Eagles, especially since he made virtually no
(06:24):
attempt to run the football at all yesterday.
Speaker 3 (06:26):
Right, I think Andy Reid is going to go back
and look at it, just like he did in Tampa Bay.
They do a good job as far as personnel, and
given some of the economics since then, as far as
some of the players they had to get rid of
Tyrek Hill to be able to afford Patrick Mahomes' new contract,
they'll retool. They realized that their left tackle is a
very good All Pro guard and he can't play left tackle.
(06:48):
They realized the right tack is gonna jump off side
an awful lot. He's only going to be an average player,
so they will retool. Their defense was very very good, outstanding,
didn't have a good day yesterday. So that's what they'll do.
For personnel's department, They're gonna put good players around Patrick Mahomes.
Speaker 2 (07:04):
His receiving corps will be absolutely better.
Speaker 3 (07:08):
Next year than the one he had this year, just
because of injury, subtraction, adding subtraction, and he hasn't been
loaded at the wide receivers file for the last couple
of years.
Speaker 2 (07:18):
So there's ways that they can improve the roster.
Speaker 3 (07:21):
Don't pay tool, and they were Patrick Mahlmes will play
in another Super Bowl.
Speaker 1 (07:25):
Spagnola, the defensive coordinated, the legendary dispensive coordinating in the
eyes of many, who should be a Hall of Famer
in his own right. Not once, but twice he's been
lit up by Philadelphia Eagles. Now he gave up thirty
five points to Super Bowl fifty seven. The Eagles dropped
forty yesterday even though a pick six and another interception
basically set up another touchdown, you know by interceptions by
(07:48):
Patrick Mahomes. What are we to make of Spagnola, Well, if.
Speaker 3 (07:51):
You look at the personnel, this defense does not match
up well against Philadelphia because especially this year's version of it, well,
they can smash it. That you with Barkley, everybody thought, oh,
make them throw the football. That's not what you want
to do because when you do make them throw the football,
typically you're in man demand because you got to put
all those guys up at the line of scrimmage because
(08:11):
of the box and Jalen Hurt's ability to be able
to be accurate with the football at an all time high.
Speaker 2 (08:17):
He only keeps getting better.
Speaker 3 (08:20):
He got Bence to the National Championship Game for Tua
Tua come back and throw and throws one. He has
to transfer, goes to Oklahoma, start to learn the passing game.
Doesn't get drafted in the first round. He's still learning
the passing game. He never gets enough credit. All he
does is win. All he does is get better. And
the personnel around him offensive line six six six steven
(08:41):
a three point thirty, they're.
Speaker 2 (08:43):
Monsters in the NFL. They are monsters.
Speaker 3 (08:47):
I mean they look but heemus compared to Kansas City's
defensive front, and that's what they're getting. And let's not forget.
I'm gonna say this. Philadelphia has been the best team
in the NFL in last year and a half. Last
year that started season ten and one. Now their head
coach is growing. They had some inside stuff going on
the team, but they were ten and one and then
(09:08):
now we know they fell apart. And then this year
they win the Super Bowl. So they've been doing a
lot of winning there in Philadelphia, ironing stuff out. And
I do believe their head coach is only going to
mature even more, and the players play hard for him.
It's a special combination. So I can understand Fagot. Yes,
he does a great job, but the personnel Philadelphia, Davonte Smith,
(09:33):
aj Man Sakwan, I'm hurt man.
Speaker 2 (09:36):
They provide mismatches.
Speaker 3 (09:39):
That he doesn't necessarily have answers to, and that's why
they've been so productive in those two media.
Speaker 1 (09:43):
Let me throw something at you about Jalen Hurts because
I don't listen. The man deserves major, major props, no doubt, congratulations,
the whole nine. But when I think about Jalen Hurts
and what he's done in the postseason over the last
three postseasons, people don't realize it's about him. His record
is six and two. He's been the two Super Bowls,
He's now won a Super Bowl Championship. He's completed sixty
(10:04):
nine and a half percent of his passes one oh
two point five passer rating, nineteen touchdowns, just two interceptions,
nine pass ten runs, and just two turnovers. So those
are great numbers on a part of Jalen Hurts. What
I would push back on you, Tho, Chris, is this
people act like folks were just hating on them, and
(10:24):
I'm of the mindset, wait a minute, we needed to
see We suspected you could do it, but we needed
to see it. And there's no crime there because since
Week five, the Eagles have rushed the football more than
anybody else in the National Football League, and they've thrown
the football, you know, less than anybody in the entire
(10:45):
National Football League. So whatever question marks we may have
had about Jalen Hurts was created by the Eagles more
so than anybody else.
Speaker 3 (10:54):
To that, you say, what, well, most teams run the
football because they have a dominant offensive line.
Speaker 2 (11:02):
They have a great running back.
Speaker 3 (11:04):
Or philosophy, or the fourth thing is their quarterback doesn't
have the arm talent to be able to lead the
team and throw on the ball forty times.
Speaker 2 (11:13):
The Eagles, they don't have that in Jalen Hurts, but their.
Speaker 3 (11:17):
Other answers to winning are better than him dropping back
forty times because of their offensive line. Say, for the
last eight or ten years, they've been dominant, and now
they have won the best running back that they've ever
had in their history. So now how am I going
to choose to win games? After the bye week? They said,
just out an offensive line coach, great guy, underrated in
(11:39):
their system. We're going to run the football. Everyone bought
into it. So when they're running the football, they get
a lot of man to man on the outside, So
there's a lot of ways to win games. Jalen hurts
his development has been very, very different than a lot
of other quarterbacks that we've seen, so a lot of
times to me, I'm like, I need to see a
little more too, so I can understand that, yes, you
(12:00):
need to build a Seymour, but sometimes people are not
just running the ball because lack of arm town.
Speaker 2 (12:06):
It's because of.
Speaker 3 (12:07):
The overall way to build a win a football game.
Utilize the talent that we have as far as man,
we're bigger than them, we're more physical than now, and
there's a mentality from the team that goes to the
fan base and the mentality of Philadelphians. So I think
those different windows and his and his passing is still developing.
(12:28):
It gave people that opportunity to say, you know something,
he's not as good as Lamar, he's not as good
as Patrick, he's not as good as Josh.
Speaker 2 (12:36):
And some of these other players.
Speaker 1 (12:38):
Well is he now? Yeah, you gotta give it to him,
all right, give it to him. WHOA, WHOA. I'm asking
you a specific question. Give it to him. How do
you have him as a top five quarterback in the
National Football League?
Speaker 2 (12:49):
Right?
Speaker 3 (12:49):
Now, right now, if I got a draft and if
Jalen Hurts is not drafted right after that, it's just
because we are in elite.
Speaker 2 (12:57):
Time in quarterbacks. Okay, now I'm a Jason.
Speaker 3 (13:00):
Do you think if Joe Burrow wasn't in Philadelphia they
wouldn't have won some Super Bowls?
Speaker 2 (13:04):
If Josh Allen.
Speaker 3 (13:05):
Wasn't in Philadelphia, they wouldn't have won a Super Bowl
if Lamar was in Philadelphia. So I'm not going to
say top five, but he should be in the top ten.
And just because he's not in the top five, that
is not a slap in the play man. We're in
the golden age of dudes that can throw that football.
Got it understand he happens to be one of them.
Speaker 1 (13:25):
Let me move on to a fraternity that you are
a member of the Hall of Fame. Their class at
twenty twenty five was revealed. It obviously includes Antonio Gates,
Eric Allen, the one and only Sterling Sharp who I
was just with the other night, and former Viking Jared Allen.
Your thoughts on the class that includes only four inductees
(13:46):
this year.
Speaker 3 (13:47):
People think it's just a no brainer. Every year, six
seven eight guys are going to go in. That's not
the truth. The Hall of Fame is still trying to
be selective and you need to get eighty percent of
the vote. So guess what happened this year, Stephen. We
have four people that got eighty.
Speaker 2 (14:04):
Percent of the vote.
Speaker 3 (14:05):
Now, would I've liked to see another receiver get in,
given the receivers that are on the happening waiting, that
being Tory Hope, that being Reggie Wayne, that being Stephen A.
Speaker 2 (14:17):
Smith. Seen.
Speaker 3 (14:19):
All these guys are going to be Hall of Fame.
But I had to tell some of them too, even
after this. Hey, if you would have gotten in, Sterling
Sharp wouldn't have gotten in. But let me tell you
something which you might not know. And I had to
go back to maybe your daddy was thinking about court
and your mama.
Speaker 2 (14:33):
This dude was a base. This dude was one of
my role men.
Speaker 1 (14:38):
He said about Sterli Shop, about Sterli Shop. Yeah, oh
he was.
Speaker 2 (14:42):
He was a master.
Speaker 1 (14:43):
People don't realize that of a monster.
Speaker 2 (14:45):
He was. Hall of Fame was a crime. And only
reason why he hadn't reached.
Speaker 3 (14:49):
The accolades for which he should have received was the
guy broke his neck. Right, So for me, man this
is one of the greatest stories ever. Not on I
need his story to get to the Hall. But by
the way, man, he grew up in an awful situation
with another kid who's in the Hall the first time.
Speaker 2 (15:08):
It ever happened. Right now, Steven A, I'm gonna give
you some numbers. Three hundred and.
Speaker 3 (15:13):
Fifty million people have played football in some form of fashion.
Twenty eight thousand us played the National Football League. Only
fourteen thousand of us played more than four years. Only
three hundred and eighty two of us in the Hall
of Fame. And now Stirling number three eighty two. It's
(15:34):
an unbelievable story. Man, it is unbelievable. I'm I'm moved
deep in my soul. Man.
Speaker 2 (15:41):
Have them guys in the.
Speaker 3 (15:43):
Hall because of their ability to be able to overcome
adversity and make themselves better through football.
Speaker 1 (15:52):
He deserved.
Speaker 3 (15:52):
Last thing I'm gonna say about Stirland, he gave me
my first opportunity to go to the Pro Bowl. When
he heard his we were at the Super Bowl in Atlanta.
We were in the hospitality suite. He found out that
I was the alternate. It was my first thousand yard
season and he was like you know, brun Man, congratulations.
Speaker 2 (16:11):
I was like, yeah, he had just finished his third
straight one hundred cat.
Speaker 3 (16:14):
Season and he's congratulating me on a thousand yard season,
and I said, yeah, man, I'm altered.
Speaker 2 (16:20):
He got on the house phone and called Green Bay
and came.
Speaker 3 (16:24):
Up with an injury. Called the training room, said my
hands brings hurt. The NFL called me twenty minutes later
in the hospitality suite and was able to go to
my first provo of eight provos. But at that time,
Serling Sharpe, Michael Irvin, Jerry Rice, and Andre Rison, those
(16:44):
were the receivers in the NFC, and it was him
and Jerry Rice as the who's the best? All right,
So I can't make people forget that conversation that dude
was worthy of its.
Speaker 2 (16:56):
The other Cats, they will get their recognition.
Speaker 3 (16:59):
A great class, small class you know, Ea, you know
from Philadelphia came into the league. After my second year
in the league. Him and I had a lot of
battles man in practice and then throughout the league. Jared Allen,
how special he was at GIL to rush the passer,
like all these guys have just unusually very very you know,
(17:20):
special special stories that will be told in Canton this summer.
Speaker 2 (17:23):
I'm looking forward to it.
Speaker 1 (17:24):
I totally agree with you. And it was great seeing him.
I was there at night when he got the announcement.
Obviously his brother, you know, Shannon is my dog, and
you know, and and and just it was. It was
real emotional for them. But I've known Stirling for many,
many years, man, and he's a great, great guy. And
people don't realize what a great receiver he was when
he was healthy. It was Jerry Rice and it was him.
People forget that this was before Randy Moss. So everybody
(17:47):
forgets that last question for you, sticking with the Hall
of Fame, Travis Kelsey will be in the Hall of
Fame without question when he retires. Is it time for him?
Do you believe it's time for him? Or do you
think that after such a catastrophic loss yesterday, he's going
to come back.
Speaker 3 (18:08):
No, I think he's going to come back. You know,
I know him very well. He works out here in
South Florida. He came down here I'm getting ready for
the combine and he's been coming back every year with
the trainer who worked out in the gym I'm very
familiar with.
Speaker 2 (18:23):
So I look for him to use this as fuel.
Speaker 3 (18:27):
That's what the great players do. He has no need
to look at any part of this season besides this game,
because there was no hint, there was no breath, There
was not even a stench that he had lost his edge.
Even given the high profile relationship that he's in, people
might question, he's handled that strategically amazing and still playing.
Speaker 2 (18:49):
At a high level. No. I look for him to
come back.
Speaker 3 (18:52):
But the thing about it is as you get older,
people exploit your weaknesses. One thing that Philadelphia last night,
they was not worried about him being a blocker. Right now,
him not being a dominant blocker the end of the
line of scrimmage, that's been a tremendous advantage. But as
you get older, they start, they start, they start honing
in on your fastball. They start making you do things
(19:13):
that you're not as comfortable doing. So that's something you
have to be able to manage. So I think they'll
keep growing that offense. They'll do some things that they'll
protect them. But I see him playing another two seasons.
Speaker 1 (19:24):
Two seasons, not one true.
Speaker 3 (19:26):
I see him playing another two seasons. When he starts
trying to go home and he ain't special, like it
ain't nothing special he do like football. I know he's
doing this podcast and all that, but hey, there's a
lot of pressure right there with the woman, these agents.
Speaker 2 (19:40):
I don't think she gonna quit no time, so so
I keep going to work even see see.
Speaker 1 (19:46):
I holler back at you, my brother appreciate all your
contributions to the show during the football season. Man had
to cap it out with you.
Speaker 2 (19:52):
Man.
Speaker 1 (19:52):
Thanks so much. Bro, you take it ease
Speaker 3 (19:53):
There right, No, thank you for all love bro, all
love always
Host
Stephen A. Smith
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