August 1, 2025 • 9 mins
Mitch Lyons joins for a special Friday segment, talking the preparation that goes into the preseason when you're trying to make a roster spot, and reflects on playing against some members of the 2025 Hall of Fame class.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Welcome and a good friend of ours and a guy
(00:01):
who played in the NFL for a long time as
a tight end with the Steelers and the Falcons, and
he can speak to preseason football, the meanings of it
and what he witnessed last night. It is Mitch Lions
from Mitch lionswealth dot Com. He's with us on this
Friday morning. Not Mondays with Mitch, but it's Fridays with Mitch.
How are you, my friend?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
I'm doing great, had a good week. How about yourself?
Not bad?
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Not bad at all. How much stock do you put
in a game one of the preseason?
Speaker 2 (00:31):
About zero? Actually? I love I love the knee jerk
reactions over an exhibition game with a bunch of guys
that probably aren't going to be on your roster. But
you know the things you're looking for, and I think
you're alluded to it a little bit earlier, says quarterback
play right. You want to You want to see the
quarterbacks look sharp, making good decisions. You know that could
(00:52):
have been better, obviously, but I thought, you know, for
for guys that are trying to make the team, it's
it's important right want to go out there. You want
to make an impression. You know, you're not going to
turn the ball over five times and win too many games,
as we found out last year in the playoffs, and
certainly you can't, you know, drop two kickoffs and give
him a ten yard field. So it's it's tough to
win games that way up. So they kind of you know,
(01:13):
he didn't really get a good look at it because
it was kind of a stacked against the against the
defense from the get go. But you know, I think overall,
I really I was impressed. The kid I was watching
was Tesla, and he didn't hit the point. That kid
is the real deal. I'm excited to see him progress.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
I'm with you on that had a couple of catches.
Thought he caught the ball well with his hands. I
liked what he did after the catch as much as
anything else. So I don't want to be negative here.
I think that that's easy to do when you when
you get trucked thirty four to seven. However, when you
see a team generate just one hundred and ninety seven
yards of offense and you turn it over five times
(01:56):
and have eight penalties, it did look at times a
little chaotic. Forget about the players, for a moment. What
about the coaching management, not to play calling, but those
those are the little things that I know you look for.
Are guys in the right spots? And are are the
units running on and off the field at the appropriate time.
(02:19):
The penalties are a little bothersome maybe it's nerves, but
overall eight penalties you can't win with that either.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, I think the thing I look at there is
how do they how do they play next week? Right?
A lot of these guys, you know, they're in a
position where they're there, don't find themselves a lot starting
the ball game, going out there, and they know they're
you know, you got a lot of pressure you're trying
to make You're trying to make a team for most
of these guys, right, the guys that aren't dressed in uniform,
you know, they're chilling having a great Hall of Fame weekend.
But these other guys are out there playing for their
(02:47):
lives and and and a lot of them in the
uncomfortable positions in terms of you know, being in a
position to play more than they're accustomed to. So I
would look, you know, nobody watched wants to watch a
game like that, right. It's it was horrible football. But
I think you look at okay, and same thing for
the quarters. Let's not judge him. I'm not on one
game here. Let's give him, you know, a week to make,
(03:07):
make some correction, to get guys in the right spots
and then see how they look like next week. But again,
a lot we're playing with a lot of guys that
we're not going to see on Sunday, you know, when
the Packers and the Lions go to battle.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah. Look, there's a saying in golf where you can't
win a tournament on Thursday, the first day of a
tournament unless you're playing in the live, but you can
lose it. Do you think if you can't make the
team with one game or the first preseason game in football,
can you get yourself eliminated from a team on the
(03:39):
first preseason game in football?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
I think you can definitely put yourself in a hole, right,
I mean, if you're battling a guy, because these guys
that are getting the time now, they're not necessarily going
to get all that time Eventually, you know the starters
are going to have to play something and get some
reps in there. So you've got to strike while the
iron's hot while you've got the opportunity. And if you're
a guy that's battling another guy in camp and he
comes up and he has a whale of a game
the first game, and you have less than the best
(04:03):
you know, and in the coach's eyes, you're kind of
behind the eight ball and you're going to have to
bounce back. I mean, you maybe can climb out of
that hole, but it certainly doesn't help you. So, yeah,
these games are hugely important. I mean I was a
guy that was you know, I was always battling for
a spot, right. I was never the first round stud
that you know has got a guaranteed spot. Let's just
say I wasn't without my shoulder pads a lot of
games in preseasons. So these games mean something to those guys.
(04:27):
So can you lose a spy, Yeah, you know you
can say yourself way behind, that's for sure, But you
never know what's going to happen with injuries and stuff.
You might get a second chance, but you want to
make a good impression on that first game and then
every day in camp for that matter.
Speaker 1 (04:40):
Mitch Lions joining us here on Exis and Bros. Mitch
Lions wealth dot Com. Uh, talking a little bit about
the Lions of the preseason game. Is there a part
of the coaching staff, not that you want to see
all those negatives, but they are teaching moments, right, So
when the coaches look at this film, what do you
think they're going to dwell on.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Attention to detail? I mean the penalties. You know, you
can't have that many penalties. Obviously, you got to hang
out of the ball. That's a that's a no brainer.
You shouldn't have to coach that a whole lot. I mean,
these guys are all, you know, football players, they play
their whole lives. They know, taking care of the balls
and important. And you know we come right out and
we handed to him on the opening kickoff and on
another kick you know, So it's attention to detail. It's
(05:21):
are we making that you know, maybe we didn't execute
it at the quarterback position, but are we making the
correct decision? At least I would say too. On that
pick in the end zone, I thought it was you know,
I thought Tesla got got bumped illegally there and kind
of knocked him off so he could make a play
on the ball. So I don't put all that on
the QB there. I thought, you know, if he doesn't
(05:44):
get bumped by the other dB, I think he's you know,
he's able to get up there and make a play,
and he kid with that talent. That's the position you
want to give me. You want to throw that ball
up and let him go get it, because he's a
he's a freak athlete. But yeah, it's it's attention to detail,
to detail and making those improvements over the course of
the next few is getting ready for that next game.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Yeah, I agree with you one hundred percent. I thought
the other interception when he was bird dog and or
staring down Tom Kennedy was a lot worse than the
one in the end zone. I said the same thing
out loud. I said, man, that's a bump, that's past
interference right there. You want to throw it there, but
you sure don't want to throw it the way he did.
But I think the read was probably correct. The Hall
(06:23):
of Famers and really enjoyed the interviews with the Hall
of Famers Jared Allen. Eric Allen underrated, Yeah, Sterling Sharp
who was a Lions killer. And of course Antonio Gates
you as a tight end yourself can respect, especially what
Antonio Gates was able to accomplish in his Hall of
Fame career. What do you appreciate most about him as
(06:46):
a player.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
Man, It's just that's one of the greatest stories in
the NFL history. Really. I mean, you never played it
down a college football. Came right off the basketball court
and was able to transition and just make that jump
at the high slot. That's just that's so hard to do.
I mean, you know, I played one of the greatest,
you know, two sport athletes of all time, Dean Sanders.
But it wasn't like Dion, you know, just took like
(07:08):
four years off from playing any ball. You know, he
was playing all along baseball and football. But what's uh,
you know what Antonio Gates did was it was pretty amazing.
And to do it for the length of time he
did and the consistency. You know, he was a he
was a great athlete for sure, and he took that
that those basketball skills and he he morphed him right
into being a great tight end. And you know, it's
(07:29):
I'm glad to see him get in there. All those
guys those are my era. I mean, for a lot
of us, get Eric Allen. I mean, he was playing
back then Sterling Sharp. So you know, it's fun to
see guys that you were on the field with, you know,
get put in the canon. Pretty cool deal. Also makes
you feel a little old.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Yeah, it does make you feel a little old. The
Gates the Gates path was so interesting because he wanted
to go to your alma Manter. He wanted to go
to Michigan State, play football and basketball, football for Nick Saban,
basketball for Tom Izzo, and then ends up I believe,
transferring to Eastern Michigan for a short period of time,
then the Juco route and then Kent State, so never
(08:05):
get a chance to play football for Nick Saban. I
think they wanted him to move to defense, I believe
was the story, and he wanted to stay on the
offensive side of the ball. I think they wanted him
as like a defensive end or something like that. But
the basketball prowess shows you that, I mean, guys can
do it. I wonder if he could have been a
guy who could have played both sports, much like as
(08:28):
you mentioned, Deon Sanders played both sports.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
Yeah, you know, that's that's when you've never really you
never you've never seen you You've seen the football, baseball combo.
You haven't seen too many dudes go out there and
try to play NBA in NNFL.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Because they coincide, right, Yeah, Yeah, it's a little different,
a little different.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
You know, you know, receiver tall receiver. You know you
could see it. But you know, there's not too many
big fellows that are seven footers that are are thick
enough to go out there and play you know, left
tackle or something. So but those skill guys, you know
maybe someday, but yeah, like you said, they overlap. So
it's kind of tough. But the Gates, the Gates story though,
I mean, it just shows you that, you know, success
(09:09):
is and linear and uh, there's a lot of there's
a lot of ways to go from you know, from
nothing to greatness, and uh, you know a lot of
paths you can take and they aren't always straight up
right and bounced around, you know, went to smaller school
a juco. I mean, I love those stories because it's
just hey, don't give up. You can get where you
want to be. I mean, for those kids out there
that are they're dreaming of doing anything, whether it's sports
(09:30):
or otherwise, there's just so much to be gleaned from that.
You know, sports is a microcosm of life. I always say,
and man, that's a great story to see and try
to try to copy for those young people out there.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, it's absolutely a great story. We appreciate you sharing
some stories and sharing your takeaways from the Lions preseason
game number one. We'll talk to you next week. Have
a great weekend, Mitchelliance. Thanks Ally, Buddy.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Take care.
Welcome and a good friend of ours and a guy
(00:01):
who played in the NFL for a long time as
a tight end with the Steelers and the Falcons, and
he can speak to preseason football, the meanings of it
and what he witnessed last night. It is Mitch Lions
from Mitch lionswealth dot Com. He's with us on this
Friday morning. Not Mondays with Mitch, but it's Fridays with Mitch.
How are you, my friend?
Speaker 2 (00:20):
I'm doing great, had a good week. How about yourself?
Not bad?
Speaker 1 (00:24):
Not bad at all. How much stock do you put
in a game one of the preseason?
Speaker 2 (00:31):
About zero? Actually? I love I love the knee jerk
reactions over an exhibition game with a bunch of guys
that probably aren't going to be on your roster. But
you know the things you're looking for, and I think
you're alluded to it a little bit earlier, says quarterback
play right. You want to You want to see the
quarterbacks look sharp, making good decisions. You know that could
(00:52):
have been better, obviously, but I thought, you know, for
for guys that are trying to make the team, it's
it's important right want to go out there. You want
to make an impression. You know, you're not going to
turn the ball over five times and win too many games,
as we found out last year in the playoffs, and
certainly you can't, you know, drop two kickoffs and give
him a ten yard field. So it's it's tough to
win games that way up. So they kind of you know,
(01:13):
he didn't really get a good look at it because
it was kind of a stacked against the against the
defense from the get go. But you know, I think overall,
I really I was impressed. The kid I was watching
was Tesla, and he didn't hit the point. That kid
is the real deal. I'm excited to see him progress.
Speaker 1 (01:32):
I'm with you on that had a couple of catches.
Thought he caught the ball well with his hands. I
liked what he did after the catch as much as
anything else. So I don't want to be negative here.
I think that that's easy to do when you when
you get trucked thirty four to seven. However, when you
see a team generate just one hundred and ninety seven
yards of offense and you turn it over five times
(01:56):
and have eight penalties, it did look at times a
little chaotic. Forget about the players, for a moment. What
about the coaching management, not to play calling, but those
those are the little things that I know you look for.
Are guys in the right spots? And are are the
units running on and off the field at the appropriate time.
(02:19):
The penalties are a little bothersome maybe it's nerves, but
overall eight penalties you can't win with that either.
Speaker 2 (02:26):
Well, I think the thing I look at there is
how do they how do they play next week? Right?
A lot of these guys, you know, they're in a
position where they're there, don't find themselves a lot starting
the ball game, going out there, and they know they're
you know, you got a lot of pressure you're trying
to make You're trying to make a team for most
of these guys, right, the guys that aren't dressed in uniform,
you know, they're chilling having a great Hall of Fame weekend.
But these other guys are out there playing for their
(02:47):
lives and and and a lot of them in the
uncomfortable positions in terms of you know, being in a
position to play more than they're accustomed to. So I
would look, you know, nobody watched wants to watch a
game like that, right. It's it was horrible football. But
I think you look at okay, and same thing for
the quarters. Let's not judge him. I'm not on one
game here. Let's give him, you know, a week to make,
(03:07):
make some correction, to get guys in the right spots
and then see how they look like next week. But again,
a lot we're playing with a lot of guys that
we're not going to see on Sunday, you know, when
the Packers and the Lions go to battle.
Speaker 1 (03:18):
Yeah. Look, there's a saying in golf where you can't
win a tournament on Thursday, the first day of a
tournament unless you're playing in the live, but you can
lose it. Do you think if you can't make the
team with one game or the first preseason game in football,
can you get yourself eliminated from a team on the
(03:39):
first preseason game in football?
Speaker 2 (03:42):
I think you can definitely put yourself in a hole, right,
I mean, if you're battling a guy, because these guys
that are getting the time now, they're not necessarily going
to get all that time Eventually, you know the starters
are going to have to play something and get some
reps in there. So you've got to strike while the
iron's hot while you've got the opportunity. And if you're
a guy that's battling another guy in camp and he
comes up and he has a whale of a game
the first game, and you have less than the best
(04:03):
you know, and in the coach's eyes, you're kind of
behind the eight ball and you're going to have to
bounce back. I mean, you maybe can climb out of
that hole, but it certainly doesn't help you. So, yeah,
these games are hugely important. I mean I was a
guy that was you know, I was always battling for
a spot, right. I was never the first round stud
that you know has got a guaranteed spot. Let's just
say I wasn't without my shoulder pads a lot of
games in preseasons. So these games mean something to those guys.
(04:27):
So can you lose a spy, Yeah, you know you
can say yourself way behind, that's for sure, But you
never know what's going to happen with injuries and stuff.
You might get a second chance, but you want to
make a good impression on that first game and then
every day in camp for that matter.
Speaker 1 (04:40):
Mitch Lions joining us here on Exis and Bros. Mitch
Lions wealth dot Com. Uh, talking a little bit about
the Lions of the preseason game. Is there a part
of the coaching staff, not that you want to see
all those negatives, but they are teaching moments, right, So
when the coaches look at this film, what do you
think they're going to dwell on.
Speaker 2 (05:00):
Attention to detail? I mean the penalties. You know, you
can't have that many penalties. Obviously, you got to hang
out of the ball. That's a that's a no brainer.
You shouldn't have to coach that a whole lot. I mean,
these guys are all, you know, football players, they play
their whole lives. They know, taking care of the balls
and important. And you know we come right out and
we handed to him on the opening kickoff and on
another kick you know, So it's attention to detail. It's
(05:21):
are we making that you know, maybe we didn't execute
it at the quarterback position, but are we making the
correct decision? At least I would say too. On that
pick in the end zone, I thought it was you know,
I thought Tesla got got bumped illegally there and kind
of knocked him off so he could make a play
on the ball. So I don't put all that on
the QB there. I thought, you know, if he doesn't
(05:44):
get bumped by the other dB, I think he's you know,
he's able to get up there and make a play,
and he kid with that talent. That's the position you
want to give me. You want to throw that ball
up and let him go get it, because he's a
he's a freak athlete. But yeah, it's it's attention to detail,
to detail and making those improvements over the course of
the next few is getting ready for that next game.
Speaker 1 (06:02):
Yeah, I agree with you one hundred percent. I thought
the other interception when he was bird dog and or
staring down Tom Kennedy was a lot worse than the
one in the end zone. I said the same thing
out loud. I said, man, that's a bump, that's past
interference right there. You want to throw it there, but
you sure don't want to throw it the way he did.
But I think the read was probably correct. The Hall
(06:23):
of Famers and really enjoyed the interviews with the Hall
of Famers Jared Allen. Eric Allen underrated, Yeah, Sterling Sharp
who was a Lions killer. And of course Antonio Gates
you as a tight end yourself can respect, especially what
Antonio Gates was able to accomplish in his Hall of
Fame career. What do you appreciate most about him as
(06:46):
a player.
Speaker 2 (06:48):
Man, It's just that's one of the greatest stories in
the NFL history. Really. I mean, you never played it
down a college football. Came right off the basketball court
and was able to transition and just make that jump
at the high slot. That's just that's so hard to do.
I mean, you know, I played one of the greatest,
you know, two sport athletes of all time, Dean Sanders.
But it wasn't like Dion, you know, just took like
(07:08):
four years off from playing any ball. You know, he
was playing all along baseball and football. But what's uh,
you know what Antonio Gates did was it was pretty amazing.
And to do it for the length of time he
did and the consistency. You know, he was a he
was a great athlete for sure, and he took that
that those basketball skills and he he morphed him right
into being a great tight end. And you know, it's
(07:29):
I'm glad to see him get in there. All those
guys those are my era. I mean, for a lot
of us, get Eric Allen. I mean, he was playing
back then Sterling Sharp. So you know, it's fun to
see guys that you were on the field with, you know,
get put in the canon. Pretty cool deal. Also makes
you feel a little old.
Speaker 1 (07:42):
Yeah, it does make you feel a little old. The
Gates the Gates path was so interesting because he wanted
to go to your alma Manter. He wanted to go
to Michigan State, play football and basketball, football for Nick Saban,
basketball for Tom Izzo, and then ends up I believe,
transferring to Eastern Michigan for a short period of time,
then the Juco route and then Kent State, so never
(08:05):
get a chance to play football for Nick Saban. I
think they wanted him to move to defense, I believe
was the story, and he wanted to stay on the
offensive side of the ball. I think they wanted him
as like a defensive end or something like that. But
the basketball prowess shows you that, I mean, guys can
do it. I wonder if he could have been a
guy who could have played both sports, much like as
(08:28):
you mentioned, Deon Sanders played both sports.
Speaker 2 (08:32):
Yeah, you know, that's that's when you've never really you
never you've never seen you You've seen the football, baseball combo.
You haven't seen too many dudes go out there and
try to play NBA in NNFL.
Speaker 1 (08:41):
Because they coincide, right, Yeah, Yeah, it's a little different,
a little different.
Speaker 2 (08:47):
You know, you know, receiver tall receiver. You know you
could see it. But you know, there's not too many
big fellows that are seven footers that are are thick
enough to go out there and play you know, left
tackle or something. So but those skill guys, you know
maybe someday, but yeah, like you said, they overlap. So
it's kind of tough. But the Gates, the Gates story though,
I mean, it just shows you that, you know, success
(09:09):
is and linear and uh, there's a lot of there's
a lot of ways to go from you know, from
nothing to greatness, and uh, you know a lot of
paths you can take and they aren't always straight up
right and bounced around, you know, went to smaller school
a juco. I mean, I love those stories because it's
just hey, don't give up. You can get where you
want to be. I mean, for those kids out there
that are they're dreaming of doing anything, whether it's sports
(09:30):
or otherwise, there's just so much to be gleaned from that.
You know, sports is a microcosm of life. I always say,
and man, that's a great story to see and try
to try to copy for those young people out there.
Speaker 1 (09:39):
Yeah, it's absolutely a great story. We appreciate you sharing
some stories and sharing your takeaways from the Lions preseason
game number one. We'll talk to you next week. Have
a great weekend, Mitchelliance. Thanks Ally, Buddy.
Speaker 2 (09:49):
Take care.
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