2023 Hot Butt Rankings

In a room full of heroes - Dan Hanzus, Gregg Rosenthal, and Marc Sessler bring you the 2023 edition of ATN's Hot Butt Rankings. Before things heat up, the heroes make a major announcement about the show (04:40) and get caught up on the news including one of Dan's favorite things of the summer (12:20), an update on Jonathan Taylor and the Colts (18:06), an injury update for Cooper Kupp (23:56), and more! After the break, the heroes tell you which coaches they think are under the most pressure headed into the new season (26:48). Is Bill Belichick still safe (39:37)? Which coaches should feel more heat than the rest (53:15)? 

Note: Time codes approximate. 

See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
The Around the NFL podcast has been golfing but is
decidedly not golfer. From the Chris Westling podcast studio, It's
Around the NFL. I am Dan hansis heroes here, Greg Rosethal,
Mark Sessler. Do we need to litigate the golfing?

Speaker 2 (00:23):
I don't relocated Skiven Eetquette and I think he's floating
away from us.

Speaker 3 (00:28):
So we're here. We're in a new season, a football season.

Speaker 4 (00:32):
I thank you everybody for respecting my space. I needed
that Wednesday after what happened with the Ravens. Just clear
my head and really go for a walk, a long one.

Speaker 3 (00:42):
So well, it's it's tough for you.

Speaker 5 (00:44):
I guess on a few fronts because I don't know
if you remember on the show Monday, if if you're
going to bring it up right away, we should revisit
something that you said.

Speaker 4 (00:54):
John Harbaugh does care and it's a big round number
twenty five.

Speaker 1 (00:59):
There is zero chance.

Speaker 4 (01:00):
Oh I mean, I won't say anything else. If you
want to those desert folk. There is zero chance that
the Ravens lose this game. And don't lay any wood
you lay out, chop it. They will chop that wood.

Speaker 1 (01:14):
M that hurts.

Speaker 2 (01:16):
Well, you went on to suggest that you would issue
an apology.

Speaker 3 (01:21):
Yeah, that was where that was where you went thatology.

Speaker 4 (01:25):
Well, I won't go that far to actually keep my word,
but I'll just say it was really heartbreaking to see
that end it but also and also at the same
time conflicting, because that's a good job by you, Joey
Sly in a big spot.

Speaker 5 (01:40):
Sure, yeah, yeah, we we did hit it at length, right, Sure,
but I just figured we had to revisit that and
good to know about this test of character.

Speaker 1 (01:49):
I'm not a desert.

Speaker 5 (01:50):
You won't be a man of your word. You said
you would apologize.

Speaker 1 (01:53):
I will not.

Speaker 3 (01:54):
What I mean, sure, I.

Speaker 2 (01:57):
Don't know reverse now right in reverse? If we it
suggested that if we, you know, proclaim something to the
international and national audience and say, if I'm wrong, I
fail all of you, that I'll apologize. And now you're
you're saying that's not an option.

Speaker 1 (02:12):
It's a different standard for me and you guys.

Speaker 2 (02:15):
Okay, well yes, and you can.

Speaker 3 (02:17):
We're all three co hosts of the show, so.

Speaker 1 (02:19):
Well maybe in their mind should be the same that
the people know the truth, and the people know that
in my heart, the Ravens will start another streak, now
a losing streak.

Speaker 4 (02:32):
Maybe, but anyway, good to be back we did. Uh,
this is a big one. And again it has to
be made clear not a celebration this segment. And I
know there's this idea that once again, uh you know,
the idea that I am showing some character flawed by

(02:56):
celebrating the idea the coaches could be fired. No, just
a reality, like everybody wants to be everybody in this
business wants to be.

Speaker 1 (03:03):
Like, oh, these these are people. Yeah, they are people,
and we understand that. But we also understand that there
will be five to eight dismissals at the end of
this year.

Speaker 4 (03:13):
And we're going to talk about not who we want
to be fired or who were predicting is going to
get fired, just who's in the most danger in the
head coach ranks of the NFL of losing their job
during or after the season.

Speaker 1 (03:24):
That's all it is.

Speaker 2 (03:24):
It's an exercise and also settle down a little bit
on the gravity. And I again, I don't no coach
wants to get fired. It's it's a low career moment.
But unlike a bricklayer, if they're fired a year into
their five year contract, they get paid the rest of
that money, right you and and many of them then
take a year or two off and they, you know,

(03:44):
go have this Mike McCarthy like come to Jesus thing
where you actually look at other offenses around the league
and have this you know, evolution. But they get healthier,
they're well paid, nothing changes. It's like, this is not
the common man trying to pound out a nine to
five job. Who gets you know, let go.

Speaker 5 (04:02):
Well, there's also like the handful who is their careers
and right there because they're an assistant wide receivers coach
and they don't have any good connections and that's it.

Speaker 1 (04:09):
But we're not talking about those guys. Ye, but I
understand it's all connected.

Speaker 4 (04:12):
Yeah, but you know, there's some people out there that
like to use stuff like this to show that they
think differently.

Speaker 1 (04:19):
Right, it's virtue signaling, and it's ugly.

Speaker 2 (04:22):
We're tired of it.

Speaker 4 (04:23):
We're gonna We're just gonna tell you what it's like
for these coaches, the pressure they might be under that
even if they're not going to share it with the media,
they know they know these guys know that it's hard
to hold an NFL head coach job and keep it.

Speaker 1 (04:37):
We're gonna get into it.

Speaker 4 (04:39):
But first we promised a big announcement, a big announcement,
A big old announcement, Eric, huge, massive announcement. He's only
got nine fingers. We can't technically do we give him

(04:59):
a little bit of grace on drops going forward. I
think you have to half second grace.

Speaker 3 (05:04):
Yeah, well, let's see he's missing part of the thumb.
We'll give him. Yeah, five percent.

Speaker 2 (05:10):
It's gonna grow back though, according to that one doctor.

Speaker 1 (05:13):
Is it is it possible that if it grows back,
he could be better like quicker.

Speaker 2 (05:17):
That's how the body works.

Speaker 4 (05:21):
The theme of the rookie, right, Tommy John, Yes you
are now Eric Rowan Gardner.

Speaker 1 (05:27):
Uh. Here's the big news around the NFL, which is this.

Speaker 3 (05:35):
It's a podcasts.

Speaker 4 (05:36):
It's this it's a podcast, But it hasn't always been
a podcast. We've had different things iterations connected to the show,
whether it's NFL network programming for instance, which we've.

Speaker 1 (05:48):
Been on the network a bunch.

Speaker 4 (05:51):
This company has a new streaming platform, new Wish called
NFL Plus that I'm not telling the tales out of school.
It's a big deal for NFL.

Speaker 1 (06:04):
Media.

Speaker 4 (06:04):
They're putting a lot into this, and with that knowledge,
it's good to know that they wanted around the NFL
to be part of the NFL Plus roll out for
twenty twenty three. With that said, starting September seventh, you
will get extra atm goodness.

Speaker 1 (06:20):
On that platform.

Speaker 4 (06:22):
You'll need an NFL Plus subscription here in the States
and with it you'll get all that Plus has to offer,
which is plentiful.

Speaker 2 (06:33):
It's a lot.

Speaker 1 (06:34):
You get NFL Network, you get Red.

Speaker 3 (06:40):
Zone, you get games, get gained.

Speaker 5 (06:43):
I mean that's the key thing to me. You get
your lot, your local and your primetime games.

Speaker 4 (06:48):
Exactly as well as now two news shows per week
from around the NFL, starting on September seventh, on Mondays
every Monday. I'm not sure if it will drop Tuesday,
but we'll record every Monday our atn Game of the
Week where we'll pick a game that we enjoyed the
most from Sunday and then we kind of chop that up,

(07:12):
a shortened version of that game and break it down
and have some fun with it, share some hot takes,
perhaps some special guests. We're figuring out the format, but
excited about that. And then Thursdays it's our kind of
look at it like a bonus show. It will feature
some of your favorite ATN segments of the past and
present some new ones as well.

Speaker 1 (07:32):
For you community fans out there, remember the community sitcom
on NBC.

Speaker 4 (07:38):
Sure, I see it as atn's Dreamatorium, the special play
area that was in Troy and Abed's apartment, the second bedroom.

Speaker 1 (07:48):
You can go anywhere and have any type of adventure.
That's the Thursday show.

Speaker 5 (07:52):
And it'll be quick too. We'll get you in and
out of there in like twenty minutes or something. It'll
be a segment and that's it. And the key I
think for our our podcast listeners is we're not taking
away any podcast content.

Speaker 3 (08:05):
In fact, we're adding to the amount of.

Speaker 4 (08:06):
Well look give me one second, because we got to
there's something we need to make sure because I know
there are a lot of people listening right now, are
international listeners, and they're thinking, we don't.

Speaker 3 (08:16):
Have access to NFL plus, this is blocks.

Speaker 4 (08:20):
That's how they all talk. That's true or something like that.
And we have great news for you guys. This new
ATM content will be available with the same Dozone subscription
that gives you access to the games, which you probably
already getting anyway, or a lot of you.

Speaker 1 (08:34):
I would think.

Speaker 4 (08:36):
No added charge, mad for it, you know what I mean?
So that's covered. But that's not all.

Speaker 5 (08:43):
And we didn't even mention game Pass. What's the artist
formerly known as game Passes? Part of all of watching
the condensed games and everything, it's all part of NFL BLUs.

Speaker 3 (08:52):
It's all like one.

Speaker 4 (08:53):
Beautiful all under the same umbrella. And as Greg said,
announcement horn number two, Oh it just it doesn't have
the same reach it once did.

Speaker 2 (09:04):
That's no, it's a you know, half.

Speaker 4 (09:06):
It's not that he's half softer in mind, it's physical.

Speaker 1 (09:10):
The thumb doesn't have the reach.

Speaker 2 (09:13):
I mean, he's courageous, though.

Speaker 1 (09:18):
The hell do that takes so long?

Speaker 6 (09:21):
Uh?

Speaker 1 (09:21):
That's not all. Greg tell the people about changes to
our ATM podcast schedule this year.

Speaker 5 (09:26):
Okay, so we got the Sunday Night recap show, same
the flagship show, always a classic.

Speaker 3 (09:32):
You love it. It's there. It's going up Sunday night, Monday
morning in London.

Speaker 1 (09:37):
By the way, a program which when we started it,
they didn't really exist, and.

Speaker 3 (09:42):
Now it's everywhere. It's everywhere.

Speaker 1 (09:43):
Everyone's week. The Sunday Night we.

Speaker 2 (09:45):
Were the exclusive.

Speaker 5 (09:46):
That's why No One Flat one has the sound. No
one has it all, no one has No one has us. Frankly,
Uh Monday Podcast. We're adding kind of a news recap
show on Monday because that's the biggest news day of
the week, so we're going to get that out to
you Monday after noon.

Speaker 3 (10:01):
So that is a new show for us.

Speaker 5 (10:03):
And on top of that, we're doing a Monday Night
recap podcast where I know that first night it's gonna
be all three of us and we might rotate in
and out whatever it is, but we'll have that Monday
Night recap. So that was me last year with a
special guest, but this year we'll all be involved with it.
Tuesday were dark, got a rest, a little get ready
for the rest of the week.

Speaker 2 (10:23):
Studying tape is I thought we were dark the rest
of the week.

Speaker 1 (10:26):
I thought, no, no, no, no.

Speaker 3 (10:27):
That's it.

Speaker 5 (10:28):
I mean we added the extra show Bunny. We got
three shows between Sunday and Monday, so we got to
give them a day to catch up. But we are
adding a Wednesday show. I hope we're getting Colleen involved.

Speaker 1 (10:38):
Will be on our Wednesday show every week.

Speaker 3 (10:41):
That'll be fun.

Speaker 5 (10:42):
We might start throwing in some game previews into that
Wednesday's show. We got our Thursday show as always, previewing
the games of the week, and.

Speaker 3 (10:56):
That's it.

Speaker 2 (10:56):
Are we doing Thursday.

Speaker 1 (10:57):
Nighty night, Thursday Night recap? Yep?

Speaker 2 (11:02):
Then on Friday, don't even try to find us on Friday.
Don't even You're not going to locate us Friday.

Speaker 5 (11:07):
There's so much to go over. But yes, we are
doing a Thursday Night recap. For a second, we've had
so many different plannings of different iteration to this. I
was like, where did that one leave it? But yes,
we're going to be putting that game up right away
Thursday night.

Speaker 1 (11:19):
Mark. Will you be involved with these projects?

Speaker 2 (11:21):
Absolutely? I mean the lot, there's a lot riding on
the fact that the employment continues.

Speaker 3 (11:26):
That's true.

Speaker 5 (11:26):
You know, if you do sign up for an NFL
Plus and look, I hear if you guys at are
all skeptical and you'll see how it goes whatever. But
if and when you do sign up, you're going to
get your money's worth, even if we weren't there, but
especially if you're coming to see us, like I don't
even know how it works. Just let NFL plus knows, No,
we sent you because we want to stay employed at

(11:48):
this company, and it might not happen if we don't
get enough people saying that we sent you to NFL plus,
we might just get pushed out on the side of
the building.

Speaker 1 (11:57):
That's what they do.

Speaker 4 (11:58):
Excited about this. This isn't just like stuff we're gonna
be knocking out. Uh, there's a reason why we're writing
less on the site. It is to give more time
to do this project, which we're all serious about. And
as I said before, if it's not for us, it's
not gonna be for you.

Speaker 1 (12:15):
M M. That's the truth.

Speaker 7 (12:19):
Let's do some news a little easy on that, buddy,
because you know we I think we're we're pretty tough
minded people and uh, if we need to get scrappy,
we can get scrappy too, just saying it's.

Speaker 1 (12:33):
To clapping back, as they say. On ESPN, analyst Ryan Clark,
who and I can't this isn't me for comedic effect
or whatever, sugarcoating this or trying to add a little
juice to it. He literally on ESPN Ryan Clark called

(12:54):
to a fat stripper that.

Speaker 2 (12:57):
Was the parallel.

Speaker 4 (12:58):
Absolutely, And I I know Dolphins fans can be sensitive
and about two especially, and I understand it because two
is so has shown how how much of a playmaker
or a high end quarterback he could be when he's healthy.
But he has been healthy a lot, and there's this
big question around the team whether he's the guy. But

(13:22):
even me, as a Jet fan, I understand why Dolphins
fans were super annoyed with Ryan Clark, who again called
their quarterback an overweight dancer, exotic dancer.

Speaker 1 (13:34):
Ryan Clark gets killed, gets killed, as.

Speaker 4 (13:37):
You would imagine, all over the place for this comment,
and one of my favorite things of this summer had
a very serious apology kind of apology on Twitter yesterday too.

Speaker 8 (13:50):
Were talking about a little I had to answer questions
about something I said on Monday, something that I truly
just felt like was a joke to me that I've
realized as the has gone on, if this man has
to answer questions about it, if so many Miami Dolphins
fans are offended by it, then people ain't taking it
as a joke. So let me be very clear. If

(14:12):
I've offended you to if I've hurt you, if I've
disrespected you, if anybody that supports and loves you feel
some sort of way because of what I said.

Speaker 3 (14:21):
I truly apologize, but only if that. If not, I'm
fine with that.

Speaker 1 (14:26):
Well it's even worse than that, actually, because this is
so This drives me crazy when I see quote unquote apologies.

Speaker 4 (14:33):
Like this, because it's not even it's disingenuous. Ryan Clark
saying it was a joke. No, the joke was he
looks like a dancer from Atlanta, a local strip club
in Atlanta.

Speaker 1 (14:44):
That was a joke. But he also said that he
physically thought that Tua looks soft and essentially out of shape,
and that wasn't a joke. No, And now he's making
it all seem like it was. The comment. Here's here's
the last part of his very serious minded apology.

Speaker 8 (14:59):
I've reached out. I hope to talk to you soon, brother,
But just no, I wasn't questioning the way you work,
you are how much it mattered to you, Yes, you were.
It was what I can consider, no, a bad joke,
but for me, it's been a lesson.

Speaker 1 (15:16):
I'll be better.

Speaker 8 (15:17):
Thank you.

Speaker 5 (15:21):
Ryan Clark's usually pretty great, so I'm gonna give him
a slight path. But what I don't like, I didn't
need it because immediately after when people started getting on him.
His immediate response for twenty four hours was just like,
please stop being soft.

Speaker 3 (15:34):
I'm joking.

Speaker 5 (15:34):
And then as it like continued to be a story
and two I had to answer for it. Then it's
like a day later he's like, I gotta nip this
thing in the in the butt. I'm an Emmy winner.

Speaker 1 (15:43):
Also, you know, on the I I think that's totally fair.

Speaker 4 (15:46):
If clark is body of work suggests it's okay to
give him a pass whatever, it's not the end of
the world. But I then I saw a bunch of
people saying, this was so big of you, Ryan, amazing,
like you're You're what it's all about.

Speaker 2 (15:59):
Like, but that this is sort of like my my
angle is less about Ryan Clark. Just there's so much
needless content occurring everywhere, and then there's this endless conversation
between people on X or whatever you want to call it,
going back and forth. It's just like, drop a nuclear
bomb on the entire thing, that apology for your kids,

(16:21):
you know college. No, I mean, like the back and
forth on absolutely like unnecessary to me and like demoralizing,
and this like his the first part of his apology,
I'm cool with like the second part. We didn't need that.
You just I didn't need the second part. I just thought,
oh the fact that you essentially body shamed an NFL quarterback, right, And.

Speaker 4 (16:40):
To say that it was to couch it all as
a joke when it wasn't like it was actual criticism.
Uh maybe it wasn't well researched or thought out, but
it was. And then you made the joke at the end.

Speaker 5 (16:49):
I mean, the funny thing is as to have pointed
out and and what what came right before that quote
we heard on our show was like, look, I'm Samoa,
so he's basically just like, don't mess with don't mess
with this month. He also pointed out, like you think
I just put on all this muscle by mistake. It's
funny because I think Tua has a certain body type.

(17:09):
Maybe it's like the muscles aren't popping, but he's way
bigger this seat off season by accident, So it I mean,
I mean not by accident, Like he is a stronger
looking individual, and he he put on fifteen pounds this
off season on purpose.

Speaker 4 (17:24):
Now that I could buy in, like the I was
having some fun earlier this week about the jiu jitsu thing,
and that helping him land without hitting his head, beefing
up and becoming kind of build yourself like a tank
to maybe protect yourself a little better.

Speaker 1 (17:38):
That's that I can buy into.

Speaker 4 (17:40):
And that's obviously what he's done anyway, silliness and I
just when there's silliness and then there's self seriousness and
it's out in kind of disingenuousness, it's like, I kind
of love it, actually, but we had to hit on.

Speaker 3 (17:54):
It, all right, let's get to it. It was very Michael
Scott like that.

Speaker 1 (18:00):
It was cringey. It was Scott's Tots level cringey.

Speaker 4 (18:05):
Update on Jonathan Taylor, the former All Pro running back
who is obviously desperate to get out of Indianapolis. The Colts, finally,
after initially saying they wouldn't either a give Taylor an
extension that he wanted or be trade him, have now
allowed him to be moved for the right cost. And

(18:27):
here's the latest NFL Network's Cameron Wolf. So the Dolphins
have some interest in acquiring Jonathan Taylor, but only up
to a certain price. We've also heard there are multiple
teams that have submitted offers for Taylor, and that the
Cults have given Taylor's people Tuesday as the deadline for
the trade.

Speaker 1 (18:47):
Is there any reason why Tuesday is the deadline?

Speaker 5 (18:49):
Well, it's cut down day on Tuesday, and that might
have to do with getting your salary cap books in order.
Wanting to know basically how you're moving forward with the season.
If you're gonna have to replace Jonathan Taylor, you would
want to be able to know to replace him. I
guess on Tuesday because they might have to bring in

(19:09):
other running backs.

Speaker 3 (19:10):
And we talked about this that.

Speaker 1 (19:11):
Lant you mentioned it. No, yes, that's the deadline.

Speaker 4 (19:15):
He'll be required to miss the first four games of
the regular season if they don't remove him from that
list by Tuesday, and he.

Speaker 2 (19:20):
Can't do a thing where he pulls the I'm sitting
out for a big chunk of the season because he
has to accrue at least six games to have it
become his fourth NFL season and become an unrestricted free agent.
So I think he's in a tough spot here. I
mean the Dolphins also, they're not just heat seeking Taylor.
They've apparently inquired about Josh Jacobs, but they're not gonna

(19:42):
No one is going to give the Colts a first
round pick for a one year rental running back. I mean,
I think the Colts are kind of doing the thing
where you could I've seen a parallel drawn to some
degree to like what the Ravens did with Lamar Jackson. Yes, sure,
here's your chance. You go find out how much real
and we're not gonna give you away, But like the

(20:02):
Colts are kind of done with like we're gonna suppress
your career. Go try.

Speaker 5 (20:07):
We hit this one pretty hard on Wednesday, so I
won't belabor it. But there's a couple of things that
are interesting. That they are getting offers and that the
Tuesday deadline thing happened makes me think that this could
happen if they really do just want to get rid
of him, Like they could probably get a third round
pick for him, or maybe a third that turns into
a second, or or a couple of mid round picks.

(20:29):
And I'm glad you brought up the pup thing because
he's due to make four point three million dollars this
year and you think, like, okay, maybe he could sit
out some games and miss that. That's more than he's
made in his entire career if you add up his
first three years so that's it's a three hundred percent
raise he's getting this year off of anything he's made before.
I think he's gonna want to show up for that,

(20:50):
even if that's not as much as he wants to make,
It's it's pretty signific.

Speaker 2 (20:52):
I think it's like, it's it's your avenue to get
into free agency. It's like, I don't think it is wise.
I mean, we don't know how much money he wants,
we don't know exactly what he wants asking the Cults for.
I mean, I think all that is like kind of
a hazardous trade scenier. It was ten years ago this
year that a team actually gave a first round pick
for a running back and it was Trent Richardson. Oh

(21:13):
my god, and it was the Cults.

Speaker 3 (21:14):
That was a great move by them.

Speaker 4 (21:17):
In other news, Isaiah Simmons' time with the Cardinals is over. Well,
do we have the clip of this from Monday show
called User predicted it? Isaiah Simmons. They're moving them to safety,
the Cardinals. It's not working out, according to reports, and
then he gets moved.

Speaker 1 (21:36):
And I had mentioned he couldn't make it. Seems like
a guy that would make sense. Fresh start it's not
working late round pick. It's exactly what happens.

Speaker 4 (21:42):
Schefter reported that the Cardinals agreed to a trade of
the twenty twenty first round pick to the Giants. That
Johnson was sending a twenty twenty four to seventh round
pick back to Arizona in exchange for Simmons.

Speaker 1 (21:54):
So there you go.

Speaker 4 (21:56):
Mark, this is a guy that was seen as this versatile,
big time playmaker at a CLI, and he was there.
Cardinals kind of couldn't figure out how to make him
go as a pro, and now the Giants are taking
a shot.

Speaker 3 (22:06):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (22:06):
I jumped on your comment from Monday saying that it's
the kind of situation where he's gonna wind up somewhere
else where he's used better, and he's gonna tell tales
about how he was not used in Arizona. I mean
they put him in a terrible position. He was flailing
as a safety. I think the Giants are a good match.
You know, we'll see if he can still play. But
wing Mark and Martindale, their defensive coordinator, I think he's

(22:29):
gonna he's someone that is interested in taking Simmons, using
him in different ways. Day Ball called him explosive, athletic
and said there was a multiple role potential. We got
to see it, but it's like this team is wanting
to put him back where he belongs.

Speaker 5 (22:41):
If any team, any coach I think could use his creativity,
well it would be wing Martindale.

Speaker 3 (22:47):
I think he'll play some linebacker.

Speaker 5 (22:48):
Reminds me a little of our our friend Wes his
infatuation with Dayan Buchanan, a very similar player also drafted
by the Cardinals, who could play multiple positions. Did it
a little better off the top than.

Speaker 4 (23:00):
The Cardinals, So they traded their first pick in twenty
twenty on Wednesday, also their second pick in twenty twenty.

Speaker 1 (23:08):
He was a third rounder.

Speaker 4 (23:10):
Josh Jones, offensive lineman, started eleven games of the Cardinals
last season.

Speaker 1 (23:14):
He was moved to the Texans.

Speaker 4 (23:17):
He's in the final year of his rookie deal, so
maybe a depth piece there for Houston and Arizona continues
to kind of just turn things over in real time.

Speaker 3 (23:26):
That was weird.

Speaker 5 (23:27):
He like pff Adam graded very highly last year and
yet they re signed a couple older tackles in Arizona,
those nice movers.

Speaker 3 (23:35):
What's the it's hard to find tackles.

Speaker 1 (23:37):
What's the value, Like, what did the Cardinals get back
in this.

Speaker 5 (23:40):
Trade we have, it hasn't been reported. I'm guessing it's
not very a starting tackle. Well, they have two starting
tackles unless they move Titus Howard inside. He's coming off
of an injury, so right now Josh Jones is probably
replacing him, but he played well as a replacement tackle
last year.

Speaker 1 (23:56):
You know who else is coming off injury?

Speaker 4 (23:57):
Cooper Cup the All Pro wide receiver who won the
Triple Crown for wide receiver twenty twenty one when the
Rams won the Super Bowl. God, that feels like a
long time ago. He was back on the practice field
today Wednesday for the first time since suffering a hamstring
injury three weeks back, and apparently it looked very good.

Speaker 1 (24:19):
Mark here is Matthew Stafford's quote. I thought Coop looked great.

Speaker 4 (24:22):
Just happy to see him running around, smiling, having fun
playing ball again. And on the flip side of this,
the Broncos, who, man, they can't seem to catch a
break this summer. Their top wide receiver Jerry Judy, who
we've been waiting for him to go for a while now.
And this a lot with a lot of reasons to

(24:43):
believe a Sean Peyton there and Russell Wilson potentially rejuvenated
this would be the year. Well he was carted off
the field on Wednesday with a right hamstring injury. Heard
it during eleven on eleven's against the Rams in a
joint practice. Peyton said after practice that Judy will undergo
an MRI and we are r August twenty fourth mark,
where about two weeks plus out from week one.

Speaker 2 (25:05):
Not good timing, No, I mean you get what you
get these teams every year where it's like the injury
bug ravage is a position group and Tim Patrick out
with an achilles. Tim Patrick might have been their best
wide receiver. kJ Hammler waved non football illness heart conditioned
situation Jaalen Virgil had on season ending I are you're

(25:26):
leaning on Courtland Sutton and Marvin Nims at this point
to take you there, And it's like, this is such
a huge season for Russell Wilson and all of this
happened essentially after Sean Payton flamed everyone on Earth with
his verbal comments, and it's like all I'm not seeing
is connected. It's just like now you're.

Speaker 1 (25:42):
Gonna like it.

Speaker 2 (25:43):
You're gonna be challenging. Although I don't know's I'm not
saying it's great.

Speaker 3 (25:47):
You mentioned like a position girl destroyed.

Speaker 2 (25:49):
I don't know if it's I don't know.

Speaker 3 (25:50):
I don't know.

Speaker 2 (25:51):
I don't understand what my momentum is anymore.

Speaker 3 (25:52):
I mean, there's a momentum of this position group.

Speaker 1 (25:54):
Happened.

Speaker 3 (25:55):
This happens every year, right, the same players train going
off a mountains.

Speaker 5 (25:58):
Unfortunately, the wide receiver group for the Broncos seems cursed.
And my son, who for some reason won't prepare for
the fantasy draft that he's doing next month.

Speaker 3 (26:08):
I like that, but he had in there.

Speaker 5 (26:09):
He does this other thing where he's doing like an
all NFL draft where he's pretending to start the franchises
over and like drafting players to different teams.

Speaker 3 (26:18):
And he had Jerry Judy as a top twenty pick
in the.

Speaker 5 (26:21):
Entire edite that and I was just saying, like, that's
too high for Judy.

Speaker 3 (26:25):
He just is like I like Jerry Judy, so that
it was not a good pick.

Speaker 5 (26:28):
I gotta say, if you're starting the NFL from scratch,
he's not one of your top twenty players in his reality.

Speaker 2 (26:33):
In the Nferry Judy injured or is he hell before
this is harly.

Speaker 3 (26:37):
I don't know.

Speaker 9 (26:38):
I don't think he's aware of his injury history. All right,
that's what's happening in the news. Will take a break
and then it's hot butt time. All right, welcome back.

Speaker 4 (26:51):
It is time to talk about it. Every the data
backs it up. The data is the data.

Speaker 1 (26:59):
You know.

Speaker 4 (27:00):
We could be happy in smiles and pretend like this
isn't happening, but it's a results oriented business and head
coaches will lose jobs. A couple of them lost them
in the middle of the season last year, right, we
had both Matt Ruhle and Nathaniel Hackett mid season.

Speaker 3 (27:19):
Frank Raich.

Speaker 4 (27:20):
Frank Reich Hackett was a first year coach, which is
almost unheard of.

Speaker 1 (27:26):
It It's happened very few times.

Speaker 5 (27:28):
It happened twice. In fact, he was the earliest that
any first year could.

Speaker 2 (27:32):
It happened twice two years in a row in Houston, and.

Speaker 3 (27:36):
This during the season.

Speaker 2 (27:37):
That did inform one of the coaches are not as rare.

Speaker 3 (27:40):
It's gonna fly around like a butterfly.

Speaker 4 (27:43):
Some guys they find where they should be and then
they get that one promotion and then they got to
come back down. That's Nate Hackett. Now, it did inform
me when I was putting together, and we all did this.
Of the thirty two coaches, four different tiers safe first agree,
butt burn, second degree butt.

Speaker 1 (28:02):
Burn, third degree but burn.

Speaker 4 (28:07):
Last year and in past years, I think I pretty
much put every head coach save for one last year,
for instance, all the rookies are safe. To me, I'm
thinking differently a little bit of year, guys. So let's
do it this way. I'm going to go down in
alphabetical order my list of safe quarterbacks. If you have

(28:30):
a guy that is not safe, raise your hint and
we're going to talk about that that player. Okay, So
let's here's the Zeusser's list of guys that coach head
coaches can I can.

Speaker 3 (28:39):
I speak to because the odds speakers.

Speaker 1 (28:42):
As much as you want. Oh, you mean like raise
your hand and say me me me.

Speaker 3 (28:45):
Well, No, No, I just mean if I'm raising my hand, no,
one's good.

Speaker 1 (28:48):
Well, because I will address you immediately. It's not like
Eric trying to use that left thumb to hit the
button diverge from Yeah, just give a heads up.

Speaker 5 (28:58):
In terms of safety. I've never had more safe guys.

Speaker 3 (29:02):
Than this.

Speaker 1 (29:03):
I am with you.

Speaker 4 (29:04):
It's beefy all right, here we go, and if you disagree,
raise your hand or yell me me me. Dan Campbell,
Pete Carroll, Brian Dable, John Harbaugh, Matt Lafleur, hawse In okay, Mike.

Speaker 1 (29:22):
McDaniel, okay, thought about that one.

Speaker 4 (29:25):
But Sean McDermott, Sean mcvayh Kevin O'Connell, Sean Payton, Shane Steichen,
Doug Peterson, Frank Reich, Andy Reid, Kyle Shanahan, Nick Siriani,
Zach Taylor, Mike Tomlin, Mike Rable.

Speaker 1 (29:50):
Those are all my safe guys.

Speaker 2 (29:52):
Every one of them.

Speaker 3 (29:53):
Yeah, I had every one of them.

Speaker 5 (29:54):
Shout out to Zach Taylor because I believe in this exercise.
A couple of years back, I had him as like
a second or third dar type of coach. So you
can get off that list. All you gotta do is
make the super Bowl and then the AFC Championship.

Speaker 4 (30:06):
Is there anyone that I did not mention that is
on your safe list?

Speaker 2 (30:11):
Did you mention Dimiko Ryans?

Speaker 1 (30:14):
I did not.

Speaker 2 (30:14):
So that's that's my thing, is Like I think like
that team could be they could struggle. I think he is.
He's on a safe list for me because I cannot
fathom a reality where the Texans fire a first year
coach three years in a row.

Speaker 1 (30:29):
All right, let's move to first degree.

Speaker 5 (30:31):
Okay, Yeah, I also had Ryans, and I feel strong
on that one too. I think they would give him.
He's as safe to me as a first year coach
almost could be. Because of that situation, and because I
think they're really putting a lot into who he is.
I think they love it. He could go one in sixteen,
and I think it'd be sick.

Speaker 4 (30:45):
You know, everything you guys say I agree with, and
I think across the league people are very high on
Ryan's's chances here to be a good head coach.

Speaker 1 (30:54):
This is organizationally.

Speaker 4 (30:55):
If you fire a head coach, a rookie head coach
two years in a row, I just don't give you
the benefit of the doubt the people that are making decisions, Yeah,
to make the right one and give this guy the road,
because the first last two guys deserved more rope too.

Speaker 3 (31:08):
Fair enough, but he's a very different hire. Both of
those hires felt like.

Speaker 5 (31:14):
Guys that weren't going to be there that long on
day one, whereas Dimiko Ryans feels like they want him
to be agreed, but like you know, they're different. It's
different than hiring love Smith the third time.

Speaker 2 (31:23):
I see what you mean. But like he has like
Texans ties, like I do honestly think he's going to
be a coach that, like we saw in San Francisco,
connects with the entire locker room. He's a new age
type of coach. And it's not about him for me. I
know you're it's fair to say you don't about trust
the Texans, but like they literally are in a psychotic
modive fire a third straight coach after one.

Speaker 1 (31:43):
I think it is kind of psychotic. They fired two
in a row.

Speaker 2 (31:45):
That's why I'm like, we talked to Lovey Smith. He's
a good guy and everything, but like that always felt
like a placeholder higher and this just does not to me.
But we'll see, all.

Speaker 3 (31:56):
Right, first degree first degree.

Speaker 6 (32:00):
Here we go, oh oh ah, really when you're pushing back,
hey oh.

Speaker 10 (32:13):
Ah ah?

Speaker 3 (32:19):
So it does not painful, but gotta I mean this whole,
this whole like straw man thing at the beginning where
it's like, oh, what's up?

Speaker 5 (32:26):
We gotta respect, Like, uh, what coaches where you're pushing
back against people that you think are coming at bonies me,
you're coming after me because like eight years ago on
this exercise, I neiged to like take issue with some
of the burn victim stuff.

Speaker 2 (32:43):
How did you find like these are people? What did
you like a two minute long semi burn sound bite
like this?

Speaker 1 (32:49):
Like that's home made, baby, Jason, Come on, go on, bro, you.

Speaker 3 (32:54):
Gotta you gotta recommend.

Speaker 5 (32:55):
I was just so lost in the perform you've never
hung out with or you're just like I've hung That's exactly.

Speaker 3 (33:01):
What he sounds.

Speaker 1 (33:03):
First degree for me. Here we go. Raise your hand
if you disagree, or if there's someone that because I
have four names.

Speaker 3 (33:08):
On here, I have five.

Speaker 1 (33:10):
I got four, Bill Belichick, you have deeper the first deep?
Oh interesting, okay. Jonathan Gannon, Yes, I have that.

Speaker 5 (33:22):
Oh wow, I guess I had him safe. I just forgot,
like a lot of people that Jonathan Gannon uh is
a part of He was on my list.

Speaker 3 (33:30):
He's on my safe list.

Speaker 2 (33:31):
I like, I don't trust the Cardinals, but for the
same way you're coming up with the Texans. I think
things could go poorly enough where they aren't a reboot.
I like what they did to set up next to
your draft.

Speaker 3 (33:42):
They're trying to get the one pick. Well, they can't
fire him for getting the one pick. I feel like,
I don't.

Speaker 1 (33:46):
Know, Hey, they've fired a quarterback. They took him the
top ten.

Speaker 5 (33:49):
Yeah, and next year to take a quarterback in the
top ten want a draft him necessarily?

Speaker 2 (33:53):
That feels chaotic there, So.

Speaker 4 (33:55):
This too, I got. That's a little on my radar.
There's there's a little bit of is there is a
Hacket situation?

Speaker 1 (34:02):
Maybe?

Speaker 5 (34:03):
Okay, you guys have kind of convinced me into this.
The reason I didn't was because Monty asen for it.
The GM is also new, and you're right, I'm willing
to put him into first degree.

Speaker 3 (34:11):
I'm gonna move him.

Speaker 1 (34:12):
You've convinced me.

Speaker 4 (34:13):
Okay, I had to Meeke Oryan's you guys have him safe.
And then I have Brandon Staley first degree.

Speaker 2 (34:21):
Wow, I have Staley somewhere else.

Speaker 1 (34:23):
Okay, you got anybody else have first degree?

Speaker 5 (34:25):
Yeah?

Speaker 1 (34:25):
I do.

Speaker 5 (34:26):
But we could talk Staley because I have him there.
I think even though the outside wants Staley to be
under a lot of pressure and on the hot seat,
I don't think inside that building the way the Chargers
run things that he is. He's had two winning records.
It's kind of, I mean overlooked a little bit. They've

(34:47):
they've they've won back to back years. He's on a
four or five year contract. I think they really like him,
and I also think to LESCo, their GM has been
there so long, it's all about like everyone keeping their
jobs together. So to me, he's only first degree because
I think he could. He could have another year very
similar or even like a nine and eight type of
year and eight to nine and I think he would survive.

Speaker 2 (35:09):
I think there have been some especially bad optics around
this daily experience. I think it's a good coach, but
it's like the way last year ended, some of the
fourth down stuff, which we all super agree with analytically,
but there are a lot of people out there that
don't agree with a lot of his decisions. And I
think it really matters that the Chargers have a different
type of ending to this season. It's been two bad

(35:30):
endings two years in a row. You've got justin Herbert,
your two new coordinators. You're always on thin ice. I
think when that's a situation that does work out, that's positive.

Speaker 1 (35:37):
But I might second.

Speaker 2 (35:38):
Agree, I got them in third whoa yep.

Speaker 3 (35:41):
See to me, they're in an organization that's like happy
winning ten games a year.

Speaker 2 (35:44):
Wow, so that.

Speaker 4 (35:45):
The games and I know, twenty seven nothing and all that.
But yeah, this was a playoff team.

Speaker 2 (35:50):
So maybe maybe I'd be willing to rethink it a
little bit. But just like part of me was like,
someone's got to be in third degree, and he's in
that category. But I think he's under a lot of pressure.

Speaker 5 (35:59):
Interesting, Oh well, I've got a few other names in
first degree. Go ahead, four extra names, go ahead, I
haven't mentioned well number one. Was he on your safe list?
Or is he deeper?

Speaker 1 (36:09):
Robert sala I have him the next tier?

Speaker 2 (36:12):
Though, Wow, well I've slid first degree. Really you think
that they would like I feel if anything like hard
Knocks has done him a service, he's a little bit
Lit'll be too many models that I maybe I've forgotten if.

Speaker 1 (36:22):
This season goes to hell.

Speaker 2 (36:24):
But he's I don't feel like he's the problem, that's all.

Speaker 4 (36:27):
But that doesn't necessarily mean again, it's not necessarily about
the coach.

Speaker 3 (36:31):
Not predicting who's gonna get fired.

Speaker 4 (36:32):
It's about the organization and how would Woody Johnson react
if this season instead of being eleven and six, is
six and eleven.

Speaker 2 (36:42):
Yeah, I think Woody Johnson is a huge factor there.

Speaker 5 (36:44):
I think if sala, I think that's a fair point,
and maybe I should put him in second degree because
I think they believe in him. I think he is
a good coach. He showed that progress in terms of
the defensive side, that he's only first degree going into
the year. But you're right, if they go eight to nine,
oh the odds are he's gone. So maybe that's a
second three. This is his third year.

Speaker 4 (37:03):
If this is a and I mean, Woody Johnson just
showed up on Hard Knocks with a necklace, like a
two million dollar necklace, and well that was absurd with Woody,
and let's go jets on it. And you know they're
they're leaning into the hard Knocks and having the celebrities
come in and Aaron Rodgers is here and all this
and then Dalvin Cook this, this ownership is all the

(37:27):
way in on this season, and I just do not
know how they would react if this doesn't go the
way that I and Jetsman.

Speaker 2 (37:33):
Would you see in that scenario, Joe Douglas hits the
road too.

Speaker 1 (37:36):
I think he would be safer.

Speaker 4 (37:39):
I think that the general thought with Douglas is that
other than a few high profile and misses, a couple
of high profile missus, Wilson being one of them. Obviously,
he's been very good for the organization and I would
think he would he would survive, but the coach would
go if the.

Speaker 2 (37:53):
Thing is so Zach Wilson, obviously the miss you're referring to.
If the Aaron Rodgers experience turns into a flop or
a massive disaster, then I think Joe Douglas has he's
got problems because you're missing on quarterback after quarterback at
that point, right.

Speaker 4 (38:09):
And I also we should say with Aaron Rodgers is
gonna have a major voice in this too if he
likes Robert Sala even if the season goes outwa Let's
say he pulls a calf and misses six weeks and
they go down the tubes like but if Rogers likes
Sally could protect him.

Speaker 1 (38:24):
He has that much sway in that organization.

Speaker 5 (38:25):
Maybe I'm just getting nicer as they get older, but
I just feel like they just like Robert Sallas so much.

Speaker 3 (38:30):
That's why I only put him.

Speaker 2 (38:31):
I get that feel too, but that's now, that's in August.

Speaker 5 (38:34):
I put Eberflus in first degree, so I guess you
guys must have had him harder. A second year coach
with an ownership group that isn't known for making overly
quick changes, although they've had to at some points, and
so he set the bar so low that I actually
think that sometimes helps the guy. If they win six
games this year, I think he's back. So I'm only

(38:55):
putting him first degree.

Speaker 2 (38:57):
I have him deeper down. I think it's kind of
like Zach Taylor a couple of years ago. What is
it that you do that's special? And if you have
this massive rebuild going and there's a coach that becomes available,
that is a much sexier proposition. Mattybraflues, I think is
under pressure to prove to Bears fans and people like us,
like what difference do you make? I mean, we just

(39:18):
don't see it. Well, there's not a lot of idea
of who Maddy in the coach's photo. It's like he's
the one guy no one could figure out who he
was a part.

Speaker 5 (39:25):
Yeah, A lot of it is the organization for me,
this CE ownership CEO GM. I just I don't think
they're going to be wanting to restart the machine again
unless they had the number one overall pick.

Speaker 2 (39:37):
Can I mention who else I have in this one?
I have Belichick in this one.

Speaker 1 (39:40):
Okay, I'll talk about it, and well, I just think.

Speaker 2 (39:42):
That it's been never in this exercise would he have
been anywhere but safe. But it just feels like this
season is very important for Bill Belichick to not go
six and ten or wins or six and eleven or
win seven games and have the whole thing just not
look good. The owner has talked so pray with so
much praise about Jared Mayo. I just wonder if, like

(40:02):
whether it's Bill or whether it's Craft, that maybe things
hit divorce period. But he's only in first. I just
think there's more pressure on the Bill Belichick experience than
there's ever been before.

Speaker 1 (40:12):
Well, the fact that all three of us have him
out of say for the first time this year. What
do you have him second?

Speaker 5 (40:17):
I have him second, ye, Because I don't think there's
many guys where there's been public back and forth, for
lack of a better word, between ownership and coach, right
almost a gauntlet being thrown down, and even some very passive,
aggressive sniping between the coach and and yeah, I think
they would like have him like step Away or who

(40:38):
even knows. But if they have, like you said, I
kind of thought about it, like if these teams go
with let's say seven and ten, are they back or not?

Speaker 3 (40:45):
Right they went seven and ten. I'm not sure.

Speaker 5 (40:48):
That's why I put it second degree, not third, but
I think there's a good chance he's gone if they
go seven and ten.

Speaker 2 (40:53):
The other guy I haven't in first degree is Arthur Smith.

Speaker 1 (40:55):
Okay, hold that thought. Oh okay, you both have him.

Speaker 4 (40:58):
Let me just say one more thing on Belichie that
the one thing that I pushed back on that is,
let's say they go seven and ten. What rank them
in the AFC East right now? Does anybody have them
anywhere other than fourth?

Speaker 5 (41:13):
Nobody seems Connor or I believe, might even have them
winning the division, which I you know, I love you conn.

Speaker 3 (41:20):
So very Connor crazy. He's like langing the drum that
they're like.

Speaker 1 (41:24):
Connor's takes are getting bigger as the agent.

Speaker 3 (41:26):
I enjoy it, so they're like gonna make the AFC Championship.

Speaker 5 (41:28):
There is a little Patriot fan inside of me that
could see it that that has some optimism, but that's
only because they do well on years where they're not a.

Speaker 1 (41:38):
Lot of right.

Speaker 4 (41:39):
But another I guess my point is there's like, yeah,
so much talent AFC's this year that yea to can Bell.
Now you could say the fact that they are the
team that has the least talent in this division. That's
against Belichick too. He's the de facto GM. I see that.
I think it would have to really, it would have
to be a double digital loss season and more like and.

Speaker 2 (42:00):
The relationship falling apart between That's it.

Speaker 5 (42:02):
That's why I put him second degree because I feel
like there's a little Jerry Jones, Jimmy Johnson vibe, not
in the not in the just in terms of egos
and credit and craft wants to get into the Hall
of Fame.

Speaker 3 (42:14):
And there's just like a lot, a lot of stuff.

Speaker 1 (42:16):
All right, let's move to second degree.

Speaker 2 (42:18):
One item. First, Yes, I I this is my list,
and so I had to create a category because this person,
to me just belongs in their own world. Okay, it's
zaddy degree. I think Mike McCarthy is just out there
in his own little place in between first and second
because I think second is a little hot for him
because I think.

Speaker 1 (42:36):
It's going basically with your I know, I think he's.

Speaker 2 (42:39):
Just created his own world, Zaddy degree, and he's just
he sits there and there's a lot here. The play caller,
now you moved on from the coordinator. Jerry Jones is impatient.
The Cowboys are always this cauldron of expectations, and Mike
McCarthy cannot go and lose another ugly playoff game, which
is why I believe.

Speaker 8 (42:58):
Where nobody's underlog Zaddy stop it.

Speaker 1 (43:01):
Second degree.

Speaker 11 (43:04):
As bad, it's gonna blister, make this year more uncomfortable.

Speaker 5 (43:22):
This is actually less uncomfortable than the old ones used
to be because it's somewhall, it's funny. Whatever we're paying him,
it's not enough. It's well well performed.

Speaker 1 (43:31):
Second degree alphabetical order for me.

Speaker 4 (43:34):
Dennis Allen of the Saints, Matt Eberflus, who we discussed
of the Bears, and my comment on eber Flues.

Speaker 1 (43:42):
You guys have talked about him.

Speaker 4 (43:44):
This will be his second full year with justin Fields.
They're obviously still very very much invested in Fields. If
he plateaus or doesn't show growth, I could see them
being like, shoot, he's entering your four of his rookie
deal next year. If this isn't working, we don't feel good,
let's get him out of there. I'm not saying that's
what I think is gonna happen. I'm just saying, yeah,
when you look at like the outcomes potentially for the season, that's.

Speaker 5 (44:06):
Why my scenario, like, you're right, it's a OC getting fired,
it's Luke Getz getting fired.

Speaker 4 (44:10):
Okay, that makes sense too. I have Zaddy Mike McCarthy
here in second degree. You mentioned the reasons why Mark.
I just think they're reaching a stage maybe where he
needs to take that next step, and Jerry Jones is
not getting any younger.

Speaker 1 (44:25):
I just think this is a big year for Dallas.

Speaker 3 (44:27):
I'm with you on second second.

Speaker 1 (44:29):
I got Josh McDaniel's second degree.

Speaker 2 (44:32):
Hmm, I got him somewhere else.

Speaker 1 (44:33):
Okay, hold that thought, uh mentioned.

Speaker 2 (44:37):
Unless it's McDaniel, let's yeah, I create him on another.

Speaker 1 (44:40):
Robert sala I had second degree. We talked about that,
Arthur Smith.

Speaker 4 (44:44):
Let's talk about Arthur Smith because I know everyone loves
Arthur Smith and the Falcons in this room. But for
the same reason, I have Robert sala in this tier.
You do not get a fourth year in the NFL
if you don't get to the playoffs in the first three.
And this is his third season and they have yet
to make the playoffs have a winning record.

Speaker 2 (45:01):
I think click that was one where I looked at
the organization and Arthur blank patient. I think he's shown patients.
I think number one, you could say that where they
were two years ago identity free, mostly a disaster. They
have an identity. Now it's got to go translate on
the field. But this is Arthur Smith's identity. And it's
like I kind of like when a coach in the

(45:22):
course of two seasons can create a roster in a
type of offense which is his specialty that looks a
lot like what he was able to do in Tennessee,
and it's like, you're working well with the general manager.
It has to they can't go to have the same
record as last year, but he doesn't feel like it doesn't.
It feels like low drama in Atlanta. So I think
a lot would need to change over the next five

(45:43):
or six months.

Speaker 5 (45:45):
I think he took the job in a true rebuilding
situation and they knew it. They pressed like the explode
button in terms of their salary cap issues. They sort
of took a year or two off. They love them.

Speaker 3 (45:57):
But you're right, Mark, I mean, Dan, it's it's extremely.

Speaker 5 (46:01):
Rare to get a fourth year without a playoffs because
the guys it almost does that. Ron Rivera technically made
the playoffs as Commander's head coach, but he you know
he I don't think he has a winning record yet,
but it almost never happens. Happens once in a while.
I think Arthur Smith could be a rare case. Actually
he would get a fourth year, but you're right. He
probably has to win eight or nine games, and if

(46:21):
he went seven to ten using my own test, that's
fifty to fifty at best whether he gets a fourth
so second tier you've actually convinced me again, I think
I was too nice put him in first year.

Speaker 3 (46:31):
Second thear make sense.

Speaker 4 (46:32):
When you bang the demolition button on your organization, you reboot,
and that includes hiring a young head coach or whatever.

Speaker 1 (46:40):
I think it is two years.

Speaker 4 (46:42):
That means that guy gets a two year grace period
unless he's terrible in the eyes of the team, and
then that third year it's go time. So that's a
I think and there's very it's not a big time
division that they're in. We like a lot of elements
of their roster. There's a lot of reasons why put
it this way. There's no excuses for them to be
above five hundred team right year. And I think Arthur

(47:02):
Blank would struggle with that if we're looking at the
same seven eight win team for a third straight year
with the same head coach.

Speaker 2 (47:09):
Yeah, I think, like anything, you know, if you project out,
you know, four months and they've won six games, like,
the feeling around the team is going to be completely
different than it is right now.

Speaker 5 (47:18):
Right ownership and GM situation is such a big part
of this. You mentioned McDaniels and Alan who to me
are very different second year coaches. I had them both
in this category as well, So I agree. McDaniels has
a owner who's a little more capricious, a little more
emotional like he you could see him getting booted out

(47:39):
of there. I think if the vibes it's not just
win lost to it's like what's going on around the team?

Speaker 3 (47:46):
Does the quarterback situation look any better? I think they
could go.

Speaker 5 (47:50):
Seven to ten and he could keep the job as
long as it's not like drama filled, as long as
it's not embarrassing, as long as what he is supposed
to be good at offense is on tap. But I
think he's in a tough ownership situation, whereas Dennis Allen.
I feel like they're looking for a reason to keep
Dennis Allen and and I have him second degree. I
thought about first degree, like, I feel like the bar

(48:11):
is very low for Dennis Allen because he had a
terrible first year as a head coach. They underachieved, and
it didn't seem like much buzz at all about him
losing his job.

Speaker 2 (48:19):
I wait, so did you already list your second degrees?
Do you have more?

Speaker 1 (48:22):
He did?

Speaker 2 (48:23):
I just okay, So I threw Ron River in here,
although if I could revise that, I think he belongs
in third. New ownership, all sorts of stuff going on there.
Kevin Stefanski in second. You could argue for him being
third two, but I think Stefanski is is a good
football coach, and like if I think if they succeed,
he'd have to really be the reason that someone like

(48:43):
Deshaun Watson fails. It has to be not Deshaun Watson.
It has to be Stefanski.

Speaker 3 (48:47):
But to separate that, well, Deshaun Watson fails, Sefanski fails.

Speaker 2 (48:51):
Well, I would say that, like, first of all, he'd
lose the power. There's obviously the power you know, situation
with with Deshaun. But I think Stefanski last year with
Jacoby Brissette proved that he's a very good offensive coach.
So I he's just gonna lose the power battle to
de Sewan. But I don't think it would be Stefansen's
fault necessarily.

Speaker 3 (49:09):
Wow, but that's not what we're debating.

Speaker 5 (49:11):
To me, as the hottest seed in the league, he's there,
he's number really well, I think he's the most.

Speaker 2 (49:15):
I see, I go Josh McDaniels.

Speaker 3 (49:17):
I thought, really, so he's he's all right, you think he's.

Speaker 2 (49:20):
Hot, right McDaniels, like has lost portions of locker room already.

Speaker 4 (49:24):
Let's hold that then before So if you think he's
the hottest, hold that for a second. I just want
to circle back to the Raiders and you say that
there's some capricious ownership there is that. I know his
dad was, but I'm looking at like the the Mark
Davis era. So Dennis Allen got two and a half years.

(49:44):
Jack del Rio got three years, John Gruden got three
and a half years before.

Speaker 5 (49:48):
They even just signing John Gruden into a ten year contract,
Like that's just kind of crazy, you know, Like that
that was I don't know if capricious is even the
right word, but just like I think that was like
surprising and unpredicted, and.

Speaker 2 (50:02):
Those those coaching tenures you mentioned line up with year.

Speaker 4 (50:07):
Right working what I know now it does because Gruden
is a blackball from the league.

Speaker 1 (50:12):
But like or not really, but like the fact.

Speaker 3 (50:15):
That I think he might be on that Saint Steph,
I really have a feeling.

Speaker 4 (50:19):
As I was saying, I was like, yeah, actually he's
working with a team closely. But when the tenured it
made sense. Yes, it was a lot of money, but
he was a he was a kind of a Raiders hero,
a previous generation and all that. Like I don't know,
he just hasn't had one of those like one and
done firings yet or two and done even so we'll see.

Speaker 5 (50:40):
I mean, that's why I put him in second degree.
I agree with that Dan.

Speaker 4 (50:43):
Daniels has been He was so bad in Denver the
way that ended, and if this there's no results here,
you know who remembers him being bad in Denver. I
would think Mark Davis like it's like if we made
a mistake here, we gotta we got to get out
of this.

Speaker 5 (50:56):
They also like hired, you know, his handpicked GM, so
they'd have to probably get rid of the whole operation.
You're right if Davante Adams like starts being upset and
stuff like that, that's fair. But I actually think Davis
is like, Okay, do it with your guys. You can
get rid of Derek Carr. I don't think he ever
loved Derek Carr anyways, but like this, he had to
take a year to get rid of some guys he

(51:18):
didn't want.

Speaker 2 (51:18):
They might be the third or fourth worst team in
the AFC, and like, I don't think they're gonna win
a lot of games. You've got players all over the place,
like Josh Jacobs, what happened with Derek Carr year ago?
DeVante Adams, that situation just feels slightly tnt ish.

Speaker 1 (51:35):
Certainly back to Zadi real quick. This is his fourth
year with the Cowboys, six and ten in year one,
twelve and five, year two, twelve and five, year three,
pretty damn good, especially if they this end of the
season's ended poorly, right, in an almost embarrassing fashion, of course,

(51:55):
but there are not too many.

Speaker 4 (51:57):
Look at the recent history of the Cowboys back to
back twelve win seasons and he's that been the head
coach of those.

Speaker 3 (52:03):
Well, there's none.

Speaker 5 (52:04):
They'd have to go back to when they won the
Super the good old days that was that was basically
their trademark, even under Jason Garrett, who was more successful.

Speaker 3 (52:12):
Is one one good year, one bad year.

Speaker 1 (52:14):
They would have to.

Speaker 4 (52:14):
Really I think maybe maybe I'm even now talking myself
him back down to one.

Speaker 1 (52:19):
Maybe you're exactly right, Mark, Like.

Speaker 4 (52:21):
He's a really tough one, a bubble guy, because it's
almost like the Cowboys have to go like five and
twelve with no injuries wrecking their season for Jared to
be like, oh, I don't like Michael cart Yeah.

Speaker 2 (52:32):
I think he's like a tough person to place easily
in first or second for me, and like that's why
I did what I did. But I also feel like
if they don't make the NFC title game, there could
be problems.

Speaker 1 (52:43):
It's like I don't know, like if they have another.

Speaker 3 (52:46):
He controls them and he's like the perfect Cowboys coach.

Speaker 4 (52:48):
Like well, we saw it there when we were at
the camp, Like, he's so comfortable there. I think him
and Jared obviously get along well both like longtime football
guys think.

Speaker 2 (52:56):
But if they have another like ugly meltdown to exit
the playoffs.

Speaker 1 (53:01):
If they were in the playoffs, I don't know, it
would have to be.

Speaker 3 (53:03):
I think they'd have to have a losing record.

Speaker 5 (53:07):
If they had a losing record, all bets are off
and that's why first or second works.

Speaker 1 (53:12):
All right? Third degree?

Speaker 2 (53:18):
No, no, I mean he's still alive.

Speaker 3 (53:29):
Sounds like Kirk Cousins on The Quarterback Show getting off
the field.

Speaker 2 (53:36):
I wish we had a video of some well recording this.

Speaker 1 (53:39):
That's a good call.

Speaker 5 (53:40):
Next year, I only had two guys. I withheld one
of the names because I figured.

Speaker 1 (53:45):
Yeah, I have two guys. Also, I have Todd Bowles
and Ron Rivera.

Speaker 5 (53:49):
I have Todd, I have Ron Rivera and Kevin Stefanski.
Stefanski would be my pick. And again it's not projecting
how the team goes. But like if I had to
say every team in the NFL starts zero to four,
or like if you just pretend that I think he's
the most likely to get fired, like at that point
in the season or or whatever it is, one in seven,

(54:11):
I think Rivera is close, and that's why they were
my two, the two hottest ones for me and Bulls.
You could talk me into I only put him second degree.
But but Stefanski, to me, he's been there a long time.
They've made their bed with Deshaun Watson, and I just
think if it goes sideways, that Jim Schwartz is there also, Like,

(54:33):
I just don't think there's any leeway.

Speaker 3 (54:35):
I think he's a playoffs so.

Speaker 1 (54:36):
You gotta get Jim Schwartz in there at the end. Coach.

Speaker 5 (54:38):
Yeah, I'm just saying his playoffs or bust to me
for a team that on paper is third or fourth
in that division, even if they're a very talented roster.

Speaker 2 (54:46):
I totally agree that he's in a tough spot. I
think it's easy to just look at the ownership and say, oh,
it's been a while since they've done something, you know,
jaw doppingly insane. I do think they've changed a little bit.
I just think that they've calmed down a little bit.
They've got a good general manager. Like, but you're right,
he's under a ton of pressure, and I think I
don't like the situation because I don't think we know
who Deshaun Watson is right.

Speaker 5 (55:07):
Now, right, But it wouldn't be insane either. If Deshaun
Watson plays poorly, this combo is not working.

Speaker 2 (55:13):
And that's basically but I mean, I hope job, I
hope there could be some we don't you know. I
don't want to go down the Watson conversation, but it's like,
if he's not a good quarterback anymore, like he's a
Russell Russell Wilson situation, then it's like it's I but
in that case, the Nathaniel Hackett got shot out into
the universe.

Speaker 5 (55:30):
If it's that case, though, Jimmy Hasl was just looking
for a coach that can prove him right, right, He's
the one that wanted to right.

Speaker 4 (55:37):
I mean, you look at see I have him. I
have him firmly. Stefanski and two second degree just because
his first year is a major boom season for the organization.
They win eleven games, they win a playoff game against Pittsburgh,
and then the next year was a big disappointment. But

(55:58):
I think time is kind of revealed like that. Some
on Stefanski they tied themselves with the wrong horse and
Baker and that kind of shipwrecked their season in a
lot of ways. And then they moved away from Baker
and I don't care obviously Deshaun Watson.

Speaker 1 (56:12):
Last year.

Speaker 4 (56:13):
They punted on twenty twenty two for Watson in terms
of the money and the deal looking ahead to this
season and beyond, and you got to say the same
thing for the whole team in a and it was
a very strange time I would imagine to be a
Cleveland football fan, because you knew once they signed that
deal and they knew that suspension was going to be hardcore,
and then Watson missing two years or whatever, there was

(56:36):
going to be potential growing pains as he re entered
the lineup. Like I don't hold anything against Stefanski, I
guess what I'm saying is, like I think Stefanski, it's
unless there's some you know, capricious decision making that can
go on to Cleveland, which is certainly possible.

Speaker 1 (56:54):
I think he gets kind.

Speaker 4 (56:55):
Of a fresh start here with DeShawn Watson, and I
think he could get multiple years two years even if
this season doesn't go beautifully, which is why you have
him in second degree. I think there's a lot of
pressure on him to make things go this year, but
I don't think it's like I.

Speaker 5 (57:12):
Just think there's very specific. I think it's pretty much
winner else. And I also think it's if Deshaun Watson
is not a top twelve, fourteen quarterback you know in
the NFL, then.

Speaker 3 (57:23):
You lose your job. That that that could be tough.
We'll see.

Speaker 1 (57:28):
Where do you guys. I have Todd Bowles.

Speaker 2 (57:30):
I had him in second, but I like that that
goes really poorly. Like Todd Bowles is in hot water.
You still have arians there and stuff.

Speaker 1 (57:38):
So it's like, seriously, they really have I believe he's
in the complex on a daily basis.

Speaker 4 (57:46):
I think I've hit on this four so I don't
want to dwell on it. But I think this is
a transition year for that organization after they sold out
in the Brady years. I think they you see it
in the way they're handling their quarterbacks this year with
Baker and Trask. I think unless they really surprise people,
which I don't think they're going to, I think they're
going to be a very middle of the road or
worse team the season. That this is going to be

(58:09):
a reset after the season and he will be swept
out and he will be very hotly contested out there
to be somebody's DC.

Speaker 1 (58:16):
But I think this could be the end of the
road for Todd Bowles.

Speaker 3 (58:19):
I'm gonna move him. I'm moving him into my third tier.
I don't know why I'm so like eight people. I mean,
I don't like it, but I'm just.

Speaker 5 (58:27):
Thinking about it. He's right that Bowles underachieved a year ago.
I think that's probably the key part of it. Yes,
they made the playoffs, but that they should have won
more games than they did.

Speaker 1 (58:39):
They were a mess.

Speaker 5 (58:39):
They were disappointing on both sides of the ball. And
I think Bowles is a good defensive coach, but that's
what it is. And he's one of the worst in
game decision makers in the league. I mean that division
is a disaster between him and Dennis Allen. I like
Arthur Smith, fine, but it's like in right, but like
those two guys in a game that they're low on
my list of who I want like making any sort

(59:01):
of like decision on the floor.

Speaker 2 (59:03):
I think it goes back to the fact that, like
the Arians stepped away, Todd Bowles made sense to come
in as like a like a. It's like someone that
I think could they knew the organization, knew the players,
they knew him, and it was a smooth transition. But
did they really go pick Todd Bowles as their number
one guy? I mean, is that how they see him
as my number one?

Speaker 5 (59:22):
I think they were just trying to you know, arians
had some sway and they were trying to keep it going.
Jason light who I think has done a good job
overall in terms of player personnel. They're all close. They
won a Super Bowl together, and they wanted they they
basically wanted to extend that. Uh that that entire era.
I'm a little we all have Rivera here. That was
the one one we agreed on, yeah or no, I

(59:44):
had Rivera in second?

Speaker 3 (59:45):
Whoa because to me, he just because of the new ownership.

Speaker 5 (59:49):
It's I'm optimistic that they could be a surprise team,
but they're gonna have to be that. You know, he
can't using my seven and ten method. I think he's
gone with the seven and.

Speaker 1 (59:58):
Ten completely at the mercy of things that have nothing.

Speaker 2 (01:00:03):
Didn't you have something about Washington winning the division? Right?

Speaker 3 (01:00:05):
But we're not.

Speaker 5 (01:00:06):
I thought this exercise is not us what we think
that's you know, I'm not looking at what I think
I'm looking like, if this season is a disappointment, is
he gone?

Speaker 3 (01:00:16):
He's right there? Maybe number one on they just.

Speaker 2 (01:00:19):
Whenever there's a new owner right here that But I
also think Ron Rivera's has a special quality to seem
to win these people over and stick around when I
could have you can got rid of Ron Rivera two
years ago, I wouldn't it.

Speaker 5 (01:00:28):
David Tepper got rid of him pretty quick. I mean
he let him do one year and you got rid.

Speaker 4 (01:00:32):
Of I think that's what's happening here. I think Ron
knows it too. He's a smart guy. He's been around forever.

Speaker 5 (01:00:36):
He's kind of said it actually out loud that he
knows how much this year.

Speaker 4 (01:00:41):
Yeah, Like, so he's his He needs a bit of
a a Hail Mary completion. And I think maybe maybe
Sam Howe can play the guitar and and they hang
around in that division and maybe that's enough. But you
would think this ownership group, did you guys talk about
the handshake?

Speaker 3 (01:00:56):
By the way, we did not know the handshake.

Speaker 5 (01:00:59):
We spent about fifteen minutes on that game, and yet
that was rough hit the him.

Speaker 2 (01:01:04):
I think The best part was Kroy Aikman kind of
like had a little rise smile after he saw what happened.

Speaker 4 (01:01:09):
You know, oh my god, that guy is you know,
he's dying to make a stamp on the organization. And
I think that stamp next year is very likely to
be new head coach, new quarterback.

Speaker 3 (01:01:20):
Yeah, they win ten games, then he's then he's good.
He's great.

Speaker 5 (01:01:23):
I just think, bless Yeah, and he's good because I
think they they've even asked him, and Josh Harris has said, look,
we're valued and everything. But you know, we've talked with Ron.
He knows, he knows how important this year is. Like
they've all they're all on the same page. They're all adults,
which I like.

Speaker 4 (01:01:38):
You know what's interesting this year and this is good
because I talked about it last year. Nobody wants to
be entering a season. This job is hard enough. Nobody
wants to be Matt Ruhle Uh. Nobody wants to be
Adam Gase. You never want to be the guy that
it feels like you're a dead man walking and and
then sure enough it almost always plays out that guy
rarely even makes it through the season. I don't think

(01:02:00):
we have that guy could like for me Bowls or
of Era. Could they get let go during the season
and things go terribly Sure, but don't. I don't see
a coach out of the thirty two who feels truly
doomed entering the season. And usually I feel like there's
at least one.

Speaker 2 (01:02:15):
I'm with you, and I don't know if I've ever
had so many in the safe category.

Speaker 3 (01:02:18):
Same I thought the same thing.

Speaker 5 (01:02:19):
It's a lot of because there's a lot of first
year coaches, and there's a lot of coaches who have
had nice recent rebounds, Like Pete Carroll was in my
first or second tier a couple of years ago, and
now like I was thinking, like he actually could survive.
I think a bad year he would be fine.

Speaker 1 (01:02:34):
Yep.

Speaker 3 (01:02:34):
There's a lot of coaches like that.

Speaker 5 (01:02:36):
Like I can't Rabel even though he's coming off a
bad year, like he's earned it, Like it's good. Maybe
we won't have as many firings this year, Dan, I
think it could be a light year. I hope it
could be like a light year is.

Speaker 4 (01:02:48):
I want to apologize to Eric and Randy behind the glass.
I had them build out boards that we could show.
But you guys have been changing all your tiers.

Speaker 2 (01:02:56):
So I haven't changed a single thing.

Speaker 1 (01:02:58):
Oh you haven't show him?

Speaker 3 (01:02:59):
It could show it doesn't matter, Greg up the boards.

Speaker 10 (01:03:02):
It makes more sense how you guys are doing it,
like kind of go up coach by coach instead of yeah,
cross refing reading.

Speaker 1 (01:03:06):
Yeah, flash them up here. Let's for the YouTube audience,
you know, like.

Speaker 5 (01:03:09):
The YouTube audience is growing, they're going to be joint
plus audience. Forget about it.

Speaker 1 (01:03:18):
And you have uh, I want to make sure we
hit this.

Speaker 4 (01:03:20):
You have Brandon Staley third degree Mark So, yep, that
is that's pretty hardcore third degree.

Speaker 1 (01:03:28):
He isn't just as much danger as Todd Bowles and
Ron Rivera.

Speaker 3 (01:03:31):
Interested we all.

Speaker 2 (01:03:32):
Have my world more than Todd Bowles Ron Rivera, So
I don't know, maybe iways on it.

Speaker 5 (01:03:37):
He had McDaniels as his such mcder degree. So there's
a lot of disagreement among us, which I think to
Dan's point, there's no one that feels totally doomed. There's
room for disagreement on almost all these guys.

Speaker 1 (01:03:46):
Yeah, look at his bored great job behind the glass, Salah,
Salah on the second tier, Danny, Hey, listen, this is
boom Er Bust.

Speaker 4 (01:03:55):
There's never been a boomer bust team like this in
memory for me as a fan.

Speaker 10 (01:03:59):
This this, uh, the Safe one was definitely one where
I was like, this probably wouldn't play you had the
Safe one.

Speaker 3 (01:04:06):
I give any names? Too many names?

Speaker 1 (01:04:08):
All right?

Speaker 2 (01:04:09):
WHOA that is an eye store? Not not because of
you guys, just.

Speaker 1 (01:04:14):
You know that name you old copy diarrhea.

Speaker 3 (01:04:17):
Yeah, if you want to, if you want to.

Speaker 10 (01:04:19):
I was trying to figure out how we could like
digest this, and it's like, you guys send me twenty
names on the safeboard.

Speaker 1 (01:04:25):
I'm crap.

Speaker 2 (01:04:26):
We could if you're listening to this on audio, don't
check this out.

Speaker 5 (01:04:30):
Or we could turn it into a T shirt and
I'll wear it, you know, like Sean mcvay's style.

Speaker 3 (01:04:36):
It'd be great.

Speaker 2 (01:04:37):
And now we should make T shirts out of this.

Speaker 1 (01:04:40):
Yeah, that's sure, the Safe.

Speaker 2 (01:04:41):
Yes, I love it. Let's do it and just wear
it around.

Speaker 1 (01:04:43):
We've been talking about Merge for a long time. Yeah,
this is maybe this is it turn that key And now,
just to cover my basis, I hope all thirty two survives.
I hope they all. I hope they all go twelve.

Speaker 2 (01:04:59):
And yeah, but from that angle, you're telling us that
there are so many other talented human beings that would
not get this chance to do this job that you
don't want, those people don't want.

Speaker 4 (01:05:09):
In my heart, I can't imagine these men losing their employment.
So even if there is a butterfly effect that hurts
other men, and you know what, Mark, women.

Speaker 2 (01:05:20):
Sure of course, I don't doubt that. But I don't
luck to everyone. I don't buy a word of what
you're saying. So I think I think.

Speaker 1 (01:05:31):
Neverybody all right.

Speaker 5 (01:05:34):
You think if they make more money than you, they
just don't have feelings. You know that's not true. I
hate to break it to you, Dan uh common man
ring M. You make we make a lot more than
a lot of those assistants out there.

Speaker 1 (01:05:48):
How about that?

Speaker 3 (01:05:49):
How about that? What do you mean you don't know?

Speaker 2 (01:05:53):
I know that for a fact.

Speaker 5 (01:05:57):
What are you saying you're not worried about?

Speaker 3 (01:06:00):
Yeah, these assistants, they're they're out there.

Speaker 5 (01:06:03):
They're not all they're not all uh fat cats moving
around every year.

Speaker 1 (01:06:13):
All right, Greg, you're right, you've done it again, Greg, Mark,
any final words before we say goodbye?

Speaker 2 (01:06:20):
No, I just really want that T shirt. I'm not
kidding about that.

Speaker 3 (01:06:26):
It's a great job.

Speaker 1 (01:06:28):
Talk.

Speaker 2 (01:06:28):
Well, were his kids hearing this another room?

Speaker 3 (01:06:34):
That's definitely you gotta wait for them to be.

Speaker 1 (01:06:36):
Part of his UH contract agreement to be the voice
of God is he had to leave his family. He
lives in a bunker in Connecticut now where he just
does sound drops for us period.

Speaker 2 (01:06:47):
That's why he moved. That's said, Yeah, I liked his family.
I mean from what I knew of them.

Speaker 4 (01:06:54):
Let's you put it in the past tense and that
was the look. I thought it was important that he
focused on the UH and he said yes pretty.

Speaker 3 (01:07:01):
Quickly, tough sits for the family, Eat the cop.

Speaker 7 (01:07:16):
Im warm.

Speaker 1 (01:07:19):
A geez, geez, little little I think it's a little warm.

Speaker 6 (01:07:23):
Yeah, God, gode oh geez.

Speaker 1 (01:07:30):
Ah, well right.

Speaker 6 (01:07:34):
A wow, Uh, I'm a little I'm a little concerned.

Speaker 1 (01:07:40):
Uh can uh just turn it turn it down a little?

Speaker 10 (01:07:45):
Ah?

Speaker 1 (01:07:46):
Yeah, it's it's it hurts. It physically hurts my butt,
Okay just a little bit. Yeah, it's definitely gonna be
a first degree burned, you son of a bitch.