10-14-25 Hour 3 of Broncos Country Tonight with Grant Smith

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Denver's football first nap of overtime here tied at twenty
three line of scrimmage. The Bronco twenty shotgun for Tim Tebow.
Short motion is Eddie Royal. Tim playfakes in.

Speaker 2 (00:08):
The pocket, sets froze past talk, Damary's Thomas out over
the forty five midfield.

Speaker 1 (00:13):
Here we go, forty thirty five foot race, twenty fifteen
ten touch down Denver.

Speaker 3 (00:19):
It's over.

Speaker 1 (00:20):
It's over a Deadver.

Speaker 4 (00:22):
That, of course, the overtime winner for Damarius Thomas and
Tim Tebow throwing the ball accurately for once as the
Broncos took down the Steelers. I'm Grant Smith filling in
for Benjamin I hope right on Broncos.

Speaker 5 (00:34):
Country a night. That man you here laughing is Nick Ferguson.

Speaker 4 (00:37):
And the reason I play that highlight tonight, Nick, is
because the Broncos are honoring DT this weekend, and you
had a chance to honor him at the Boys and
Club Boys and Girls Club event earlier today.

Speaker 5 (00:49):
Tell me a little bit about that. Yeah, that's awesome.

Speaker 6 (00:52):
And before I get into that, for me, you know,
this whole thing this weekend is big. It's it's alumni
weekend and and having so many guys come back that
that part is important because it takes me back to
mister b and mister Bolan was big on doing a
lot of work in the community, hence the Boys and

(01:14):
Girls Club, and Demarus Thomas spent a lot of time
at the Boys and Girls Club. So this is kind
of a weekend where we can, in my opinion, that
we can honor mister b we can also honor, you know,
a guy like Demeris and the work that he was
doing in the community, because sometimes when cameras are not around,
people don't really see exactly what you do and what

(01:35):
you contribute to society, and there's always, you know, critics
that come out of the will works that criticize you
as a man of father, a friend, and an athlete.

Speaker 1 (01:46):
So to be there to.

Speaker 6 (01:48):
Represent the Denver Broncos and also just pay homage to
Demarus Thomas and the work that he was putting in
over at the Boys and Girls.

Speaker 1 (01:57):
Center, to me that that was big. It's always big.

Speaker 6 (02:01):
And seeing so many you know, former players there, his
former teammate David Brutin, he was there, and this is
kind of a it's a somber celebration if you will
because we're remembering the life and the legacy of Demeris,
but we're also remembering the legacy of you know, Mr

(02:23):
b in my opinion, and it's not to take away
from the moment of the guys from Super Bowl fifty,
but it's just to say that, you know, we are
family and we have to patrol our own community. We
can't leave it to outside people to do the things
that we know need to be done. And you know,

(02:45):
I going back over there, man, it just brought back
a lot of memories because I too would go there
and you can't go to that community center without seeing
Darren William's statue coming and going. And for me was
it's still emotional for me because that was my dude,

(03:05):
that was my teammate. And to know that we've had
several former Broncos players to pass to me. Man, I'm
looking at this weekend as a massive celebration. I can't
wait to see the rest of my my Brotherren and celebrate,
you know, just being a part of this great organization,
but most importantly just kind of showing life, legacy and

(03:29):
love for Jamarius.

Speaker 4 (03:30):
Yeah, and I mean I can tell that it's still
you're emotional about DT and also Darren Williams. But the
impact you leave on the community, I think is something
that is very overlooked when it comes to athletes.

Speaker 5 (03:43):
You know, we see it with Garrett Bowles.

Speaker 4 (03:44):
We're going to hear from him in a couple of minutes,
and his work with the Kodiak Foundation and so many
countless others, you know, just doing what they can. Nick
Benito starting a thing this year, you know, playing awesome
on the field, but do I need a more awesome
things off the field? And I think that's something that
needs a or light shined upon. It is because these
dudes are you know, going out and busting their butt

(04:05):
every weekend to provide entertainment to us as fans in
Broncos Country, but they're leaving a much larger legacy off
the field and the impacting of lives and especially kids
to show.

Speaker 5 (04:16):
Them that hey, they can do great things as well. Well.

Speaker 6 (04:18):
You know what, Grant, This is why I love your
Take It for Granted podcasts because in the world we
live in now, there's more of a central focus on
the negative things, and God knows, we have a lot
of negative things that are taking place in our society.
So to highlight you know, athletes and show people there's

(04:39):
another side to us, because we are human and when
when you talk negatively about us and all of those things,
they do have an impact on us. But having like
I said, opportunities with like with your podcasts to show
individuals who are working in sports, whether they are in
front of the camera or behind the camera, give them

(05:00):
an opportunity.

Speaker 1 (05:01):
To tell their story. Because here's the thing.

Speaker 6 (05:03):
You never know where inspiration will come from, and sometimes
it's staring you right in the face.

Speaker 1 (05:09):
And we all have.

Speaker 6 (05:10):
Our trials and tribulations that we go through. But having
someone put a hand on our back saying okay, well
this is okay.

Speaker 1 (05:18):
But more importantly, I see you right.

Speaker 6 (05:21):
Just think about how many times you walk around in
life and.

Speaker 1 (05:24):
People they don't see you.

Speaker 6 (05:26):
Yeah, I mean they see you physically, but they don't
see you enough to acknowledge the hard work you put in.
That's why I anytime I can I validate people. I
talk about the Broncos defense, I talk about Van josep hell,
I even talk about you and what you provide not
just to this show Broncos Country Tonight, but in my opinion,

(05:47):
the station as a whole and I feel as though
those are the things that should be talked about because
I learned this from being in this Broncos organization. When
you validate people for what what it is they do
and you don't take them for granted, guess what you
get more of that high productivity.

Speaker 4 (06:07):
Yeah, and I mean the bonds that you create too,
And I appreciate the kind words that you laid upon me.
And from the seven to two to oh on the
KOA Common Spirit Health text line, you guys are awesome
and inspiring. Love the show, Thank you well, thank you
for listening. And also from the eight to eight Ronnie
Hillman also passed away and was on that Super Bowl roster.

(06:28):
They will also be honoring Ronnie Hillman with a video
tribute at halftime, I believe as well.

Speaker 5 (06:33):
And I think that just speaks.

Speaker 4 (06:35):
So much about the Broncos organization and the new ownership
group is like, yeah, we weren't here for those moments,
but we understand the gravity of them and how much
they mean to this community and how much those two guys,
in particular Hillman and DT meant to Broncos country.

Speaker 6 (06:51):
Well, you know what, Grant, I always every fan base
say they're the best fan base, and there is a
Broncos nation or Kyle whatever it is. But I've seen
this team and this fan base and the city of
Denver go through a lot of painstaking, agonizing losses and

(07:13):
we are family and that's when you come together. So
you know, once again, I'm looking forward to it. Just
the honorant of the Marius and like you said, they're
gonna probably do something for Brinnie Hillman. All of those
things are important that lets you know that you belong
to a group and you will always be part of
Broncos Country and the family here. And that's the one thing, man,

(07:35):
I freaking love about this fan base. Sometimes I don't
always agree with them. They don't always agree with me,
especially when Brian Vers is reading the text line. Sometimes
I wonder if he's texting that stuff in himself. But
the whole idea is that, like my mom said, truth
and tongue fall.

Speaker 1 (07:53):
Out, but they need one another.

Speaker 6 (07:56):
And it's during the hard times that we need to
lean on one another. Regardless of your race, ethnic background,
socio economic background, or whatever political party that you support.
At the end of the day, we're all damned people
and we need to start supporting one another.

Speaker 1 (08:14):
So that's me on my soapbox.

Speaker 4 (08:16):
I love what you get on your soapbox. Man just
puts a smile on my face. Restores my faith in humanity.
You know, working in a business like this, and you know,
we're a news, talk and sports station, so you get
to hear all that horrible news every day, every half
hour on the hour. You know, you get to hear
all this crappy news every single day. And I think

(08:38):
it's nice for people to be reminded that there's just
as much good in the world out there as there
is bad, and it just needs more of a light
shine on it than all the negative stuff.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
And then we are able to provide that.

Speaker 6 (08:50):
When I say we not just an individual, just not
the station, but we as people.

Speaker 1 (08:56):
And I wish that people.

Speaker 6 (08:59):
Were more or were willing to agree to disagree, they
were willing to talk to one another, because look, not
to get too deep into weeds and get all personal,
but they're people who I know who for whatever reason,
may not choose to talk to me. But that doesn't

(09:21):
necessarily mean that I'm gonna take the same approach that
those people take. Because I believe in putting my arm
around someone else letting them know, like, look, man, we
all have our struggles. Look different or we all have them.
Don't think because I'm a ten year veteran that, oh
my life is just great for Nick Ferguson, No, I

(09:42):
deal with issues all the time, but it's how I
deal with them and being around being around you. Man,
I really have to tell you this, and this is
me not just saying this, grant just because you're sitting
in front of me. You know, I tell my wife
about a lot of discussions that you and I have,
and I would say that we don't always agree on
every single thing, but the fact that I can have

(10:02):
a logical conversation with you, man, you have no idea
how that helps me in dealing with a lot of issue.

Speaker 1 (10:09):
So brother, I appreciate that.

Speaker 5 (10:10):
Hey man, I appreciate you.

Speaker 4 (10:12):
And on those days when I don't have my positive
mindset or attitude, you come in here grateful just to
be alive another day, and that reminds me that we're
all lucky, you know. And to have those conversations with
other people that you don't agree with, I think that's
when you learn the most. I think that's you know,
just like you know when you're an athlete, you learn
through the mistakes more than you do through the successes.

(10:33):
You learn more about yourself and how strong you are
in your own beliefs, whether it be about sports, or politics,
or religion or whatever's going on in the world. You
learn a whole lot more when you're talking with someone
who is informed in their decision and their beliefs and
they don't align with yours.

Speaker 6 (10:49):
Absolutely man and I truly believe in mankind. I believe
in our purpose and our belief in our ability to
change not only our situation, but the change situation of
other people.

Speaker 1 (11:01):
And that's what I truly believe.

Speaker 6 (11:04):
Real power is being able to know that you can
do certain things you know, both positive and negative, but
leaning more on the positive than the negative, Like you
can be the change that you want to be right,
and all you need is someone not trying to give
you a handout.

Speaker 1 (11:23):
You just want to hand up right, give me an opportunity.

Speaker 6 (11:27):
And I wish more people who were in and I'm
giving air quotes here positions of power, truly believe that,
and they wanted to change mankind the same way I
want to. By giving everyone the power to live their
best life.

Speaker 1 (11:41):
They can't and whatever.

Speaker 6 (11:42):
That looks like, right, I mean, if you want to
be a store owner, be a boutique store owner, be
the best store owner you can. And if your idea
is that, you know what, I want to be a
stay at home dad. You know what, be the best
stay at home dad you can. But just be a
support system for your family. And what's that for everyone?

Speaker 5 (12:01):
Perfectly stated?

Speaker 1 (12:02):
Man?

Speaker 4 (12:02):
And you know someone who was very misunderstood and hated
on in Broncos country at the beginning of his career,
Garrett Bowles, And man, what a turnaround he's had in
his career and also the amazing stuff he does off
the field. He joins KOA Sports every week on Tuesdays,
does tremendous work with the Kodiak Foundation. We were talking
a little bit earlier with Steve Atwater about the left

(12:24):
guard situation for the Broncos, and Garrett Bowles addressed that
earlier today on KOA Sports.

Speaker 3 (12:30):
All know, as soon as you guys know, I think
that's tomorrow. But you know, whoever it is, I'm looking
forward to the challenge. You know. I think just from
playing next to me, I think I can make him
sol comfortable, you know, being the best that I am
and being this out left tackle I am in this
league and just making sure he feels, you know, has
the safety nets when he needs him. But I also

(12:50):
know that I'm going to be there for him an
area especially going to get into a good defensive tackle
and you know, I'm gonna hold space for him and
I'm gonna protect him as best as I can. And
then you know, just communicating with when when you know
the linebackers on the ball, or you know when the
safety drops into the box, or you know as they
they move the front or stem the front, or you
know whatever they're going to do. As I go and

(13:10):
ahead to watch this film, but you know at the
center and make sure it loops comfortable, making sure that
you know when he has two guys on the side
of them, and that you know the rock and just
you know, be that rock for him as much as
I can. I played with a lot of guards, you know,
throughout my career to the Denver Bronco, and I just
feel like, you know, that just makes sure I am.
I'm very versatile player that can play with anybody. So

(13:31):
I just want to make him feel as comfortable as possible.
And I'm excited for the challenge.

Speaker 4 (13:36):
That's Garrett Bowles from earlier today on KOA Sports and Man, Garrett,
I'll take you behind the curtain just for a second here.
You know, I get to talk to a lot of
Broncos players and former Broncos players and NFL media from
around the country, and you never know how they're going
to be to someone who's behind the board, you know,
the producer, not the person that they're going to be
on air with. Yeah, but Garrett Bowles every single week

(13:59):
asked me doing tells me how much he appreciates the
opportunity to join the show. And then you can tell
he's authentic and genuine. And I think he was so misunderstood,
you know. Of course, his play on the field didn't
help him get understood in Broncos country. You know, every
time you heard a holding penalty, you thought it's number
seventy two Garrett Bowles. But he's turned into an All
pro left tackle and like he said, has been playing

(14:22):
alongside numerous cards and still getting the job done. He
just seems like everything you want and a teammate.

Speaker 1 (14:28):
Yeah, he does.

Speaker 6 (14:29):
And the one thing you find out about yourself, Grant,
is the struggle you go through. And I think struggle
kind of makes us who we are. And I remember
when Garrett first came here, and there's certain members of
the media who I heard say negative things about Garrett.

Speaker 1 (14:47):
And I'm the type of.

Speaker 6 (14:48):
Person I don't care who you are, where I'm at,
I'm gonna pull your car. And I'm like, well, no,
don't say that about this particular individual. And let's just
say that we all have issues in channe, lenges that
we face with, and the idea is that you try
to help people through those issues. You don't compound him

(15:09):
by put writing articles or just kind of spreading no
negative narratives about the particular individual. But Garrett has come
a long way, and I'm sure his struggles earlier they've
made him a better player, they've made him a better leader.
More importantly, they've made him a better father, and they've
made him a better husband.

Speaker 4 (15:30):
Yeah, you're so right, man, and the kaa Common Spirit
Health text line five six six nine zero The three
ZHO three agrees with you. Well said, Nick, Love you
guys in the show. Big fan of Grant's podcast, thank You,
You can find that on the free and redesigned iHeartRadio app.
Taking it for granted, but most importantly, he wraps up
the text message he or she says, pay it forward.

(15:50):
Demarius was one of a kind, rip to a rare man.

Speaker 1 (15:54):
You know.

Speaker 4 (15:54):
I think that is my lasting memory of DT. I
never got the pleasure of knowing him when he was around.
But everyone you talk to, you know, when certain people
pass away, you know, you hear mixed reviews on how
they were as a human.

Speaker 1 (16:07):
Yeah.

Speaker 5 (16:08):
I've never heard one bad word said about DT.

Speaker 4 (16:10):
It was always yeah, he was a hell of a
player on the field, but an ever even better man
off of it.

Speaker 6 (16:15):
And you know what, that is something that I think
about all the time. And you know, the measure of
a man. And there's a quote and I can't remember
who it was, but it was in the Broncos you know,
training room, and they said, well, you could tell a
lot about a man by what he does when no
one's watching, right and and I and I do that

(16:38):
right now. And I watch certain people to see what
they do when no one's around, because anyone can put
up a front when the cameras are there. But it's
gonna be a great weekend. I can't wait to Sunday.
The only part of it. It just goes so fast.
It just go so fast.

Speaker 5 (16:52):
It always goes too fast.

Speaker 4 (16:54):
And just like this show, we got one segment left
on Broncos Country and Night coming up next right here
on KOA nine, Grant Smith filling in for Benjamin Albright
as he was on Ko's KOA Sports earlier today. I
will also be back in tomorrow for Benjamin Albright, alongside
the one and only one of the greatest human beings

(17:16):
I know, Nick Ferguson.

Speaker 5 (17:18):
Nick, this has been a fun show man.

Speaker 4 (17:20):
Have you got come up with a name for the
Broncos defense other than mcguiver or yet? We got a
couple more suggestions on the KOA Common spiritual text. What
do you have five six six nine zero if you
want to weigh in the hammer? Because for everything, for them,
everything is a nail.

Speaker 1 (17:39):
Okay, I like. I like that.

Speaker 5 (17:41):
Next one we got mile high Crushers.

Speaker 1 (17:44):
A high crushes That sounds like something else I think.

Speaker 4 (17:51):
I still like of the of the text line suggestions.
Orange Fury's growing on me A little bit orange fury,
but nothing, nothing competing with mcgiver.

Speaker 6 (18:02):
I'm just telling you, you know, you know why I
chose mcguiver, really quickly. Obviously. It was a show that
I loved watching growing up in the eighties and nineties.
But mcguiver was always one of those individuals. He didn't
use guns. He was like Batman unmasked, right, because he
just looks around the room and he uses what he

(18:25):
has around him, Like here is this a trash can
in here? Right, So he would take the trash bag
out and make a parachute out of it, and you're like,
how did he do that?

Speaker 4 (18:34):
Because he's mcguiver, Because he's mcgiver. That's what the Broncos
defense does.

Speaker 6 (18:38):
Yes, they just they just come up with spectacular plays
and you're looking at it, go.

Speaker 1 (18:42):
Like, how did that happen?

Speaker 4 (18:44):
Yeah, no matter what situation. Yeah, you know Troy Franklin
from fumble long kick return, I.

Speaker 1 (18:50):
Don't worry about it.

Speaker 5 (18:51):
That does matter.

Speaker 4 (18:51):
Mc guy's got it covered. Mcguiver's got it cover covered.
I sent you a little homework before the show today.
I'm glad you participated in it. The NFL Power Rankings.
This was from The Ringer, which I absolutely love their website.
But after week six, a third of the NFL season,
this is their power rankings. We'll go one to thirty two,

(19:13):
number one, Kansas City Chiefs, number two, Detroit Lions, number three,
Green Bay Packers, number four, Buffalo Bills, even after those
two tough losses, number five, Los Angeles Rams, number six,
Philadelphia Eagles, number seven, Seattle Seahawks, number eight, Tampa Bay Buccaneers,

(19:36):
number nine, Indianapolis Colts, and number ten LA Chargers. Eleven
through fifteen look like this Pittsburgh Steelers, Washington Commander, San
Francisco forty nine ers, your Denver Broncos at fourteen, little
low on the list for my take, and number fifteen
Jacksonville jaguarres.

Speaker 5 (19:55):
How does this match up with your NFL power rankings?

Speaker 1 (19:58):
All right? So here's the way that have been.

Speaker 5 (20:00):
It's you just did ten, right? Or how many nine
to fifteen? Oh? Perfect?

Speaker 6 (20:04):
Okay, I did fifteen. So you want me to go
from the top or the bottom.

Speaker 4 (20:07):
I want you to go bottom to topoteen to one.

Speaker 1 (20:10):
All right?

Speaker 6 (20:11):
So at fifteen I have the Chargers at fourteen, the
Minnesota Vikings thirteen, San Francisco twelve, the Commanders eleven, the Chiefs.
At ten, I have the Denver Broncos nine, the Seahawks eight,
the Steelers seven, Buffalo six, the Rams five, the Eagles four,

(20:34):
Detroit three, the Colts two, the Patriots and number one
Tampa Bay Buccaneers.

Speaker 2 (20:42):
Patriots at two. Yes, can I tell you get Please explain? Okay,
So the reason.

Speaker 6 (20:49):
Why I put the Patriots at two is because you
look at what Mike Brabril has done in a short
period of time with that particular team. Now they have
they have a couple of injuries, like a lot of teams,
but I love how their defense is now starting to
play together, feeding off of the performance of Drake May,

(21:10):
who many wrote off and say, well, the Patriots made
a mistake drafting him as high.

Speaker 1 (21:15):
As they did.

Speaker 5 (21:17):
Fair point. That's a fair point.

Speaker 4 (21:18):
And I mentioned it earlier to Steve Atwater when he
was in the studio about the Giants and the resurgence.
It feels like all the veterans have gotten on that
team because of the energy of Cam Scataboo and Jackson
Dart And you can feel that same thing with the
New England Patriots, like that whole fan base has hope again.

Speaker 6 (21:36):
Oh and once again, let me let me let me
put this in context, just in case anyone wants to
get mad at me. Why I put the Broncos at ten.
The reason I put the Broncos at ten when I
look at some of those other teams, they have a
little more balance from a run game, quarterback play, quarterback efficiency,
and defense. Even though the Broncos are more superior. Right now,

(21:59):
the Broncos are not getting play or production on all
three levels. You're getting mostly on the defensive side. We
need a special teams and an offense to come around,
so these numbers can change. But I based that based
on what are you doing on all three phases and
what we're doing at or what teams are.

Speaker 1 (22:18):
Doing from a quarterback standpoint. So you now have to
give me your your list.

Speaker 5 (22:23):
Well, I didn't put together a list.

Speaker 2 (22:26):
You didn't put again No, wait wait, I just wanted
to hear Nick Ferguson here it is.

Speaker 6 (22:31):
I'm thinking that you're asking me about a list because
you too have your own lists.

Speaker 4 (22:36):
No, but I do like that you have the Broncos
ahead of the Kansas City Chiefs on your rankings. I
don't know how the Ringer has the Kansas City Chiefs
at one. I'll give you my top five. How about that?

Speaker 1 (22:45):
Okay, give me a top five.

Speaker 4 (22:46):
You want me to go five to one or one
to five, five to one, surprise me. Okay, Number five,
I would go with the Indianapolis Colts. Okay, I think
they're a very good team. I don't think they're a
great team. I think they're riding the wave of moment
him right now, but I think that catches up with
them when they get into the playoffs and play the
other top tier teams. Okay, Number four, Seattle Seahawks. I

(23:10):
think they are the real deal. I love Kenneth Walker.
I think Sam Darnold has found a home there, not
somewhere where they're trying to look for the next person
to replace him. And he's proven that Minnesota last year
was not a fluke. Okay, number three, you got to
comment on that one first.

Speaker 1 (23:28):
Oh No, I's gonna ask you who do you have
a three?

Speaker 5 (23:31):
Number three? The La Rams, the La Rams.

Speaker 1 (23:35):
Okay.

Speaker 4 (23:36):
For all the talk about Matt Stafford and his back
injury before the year, I think they just look so
impressive on offense. I think the Puka Nakua injury, we'll
see how serious that is. I think that is a
big deal if it lasts the entire year, but if
he's back for the home stretch of the season. I
think they're a real super Bowl contender this year.

Speaker 1 (23:54):
Okay, we have two.

Speaker 5 (23:57):
Number two.

Speaker 4 (23:58):
I think this might sound surprise people after last night's
outcome and Monday Night football the Detroit Lions. Okay, I
think Dan Campbell as a head coach, you can't underestimate
the value of a great head coach and someone who
believes in his guys, like he takes the blame and
he also backs it up and respects his players. I

(24:18):
think Charlie Morton running that offense has figured it out.
I don't think he had the best game plan against
the Kansas City Chiefs last night, but I think they
are on track to be a great offense again and
their defense is going to be good. Like I think
they are just built for it, and I think a
lot of my thoughts on.

Speaker 5 (24:35):
Them as just it's building.

Speaker 4 (24:37):
It's been building for the whole Dan Campbell era, and
I think this is a year they may take the
step past the NFC Championship Game and get to the
super Bowl.

Speaker 5 (24:46):
Okay, Number one was number one.

Speaker 4 (24:50):
I'm agreeing with you Baker Mayfield and the Tampa Bay Bucks.

Speaker 5 (24:54):
They have been depleted by injuries.

Speaker 4 (24:58):
You saw like Buka this week he already had Godwin
and Mike Evans out. When all those guys come back
and are healthy, including Bucky Irving, they are going to
be a force to be reckoned with. And Baker Mayfield
in the clutch, like some dudes just have that it factor,
and he has it, and we talked about it earlier
in the show. People have given up on him multiple
times in his career and he just keeps coming back

(25:20):
stronger and better. And the way he chirps, he's got
to be so beloved in that freaking Tampa Bay locker room.
Like that's exactly what you want in your quarterback, right
is a dude that's going to go out there talk
trash but also back it up on the field and
play at an MVP level.

Speaker 5 (25:37):
I love that.

Speaker 4 (25:37):
And you got Todd Bowles as your head coach, a
defensive genius. I wouldn't say their defense has been great
so far this year, but planning competent. I think they
are the Super Bowl favorites right now. If they can
get everybody healthy before the end of the year.

Speaker 6 (25:50):
Well, you know what, that's a great thing about doing
these lists because now in this kind of a midseason
list based on.

Speaker 1 (25:55):
What we've seen thus far.

Speaker 6 (25:57):
And I had the pleasure this offseason of going down
and spending some time with the Tampa Bay Buccaneers, And
I'm thankful for the Glazer family and Tabows for giving
me that opportunity, so I got a chance to see it,
you know, firsthand.

Speaker 1 (26:14):
And every single year you worry about the players.

Speaker 6 (26:17):
You bring in guys who are coming back off the injuries,
and that's the biggest part for Tampa Bay. I mean,
they still have receivers who are injured and they find
ways to win games.

Speaker 1 (26:29):
And this is why I like what San.

Speaker 6 (26:31):
Francisco forty nine ers are doing too as well. It's
unfortunate for them they lost Fred Warner for the season.

Speaker 4 (26:37):
I don't think that's going to be an injury they
can overcome. Like he was everything on that defense. Yeah,
Green Dot guy could cover backs out of the backfield
better than any other linebacker in the league. Like of
all the injuries they sustained this year, including their franchise
quarterback and Brock Purty, like, I think that's the one
that you can overcome if you're the forty nine.

Speaker 6 (26:56):
And the reason why it makes a difficult grant is
because you mentioned that's the guy who has a green dot.
He's the guy that's getting all the information from Robert
Sala and he's got it disseminate it to everyone else.
They He's got to get guys lined up, and sometimes
you have to make up for other guys' mistakes in
the run game and the coverage as well.

Speaker 1 (27:16):
And I was there in.

Speaker 6 (27:17):
San Francisco coach with the forty nine ers when Frey
came in as a rookie and you could just see
the bright spot that he had as far as the
way that he attacked the game.

Speaker 1 (27:28):
And you know, he has some great.

Speaker 6 (27:30):
Coaches at the time, Johnny Holland, who was a linebacker's
coach when I played for the Houston Texas, and Damiko
Ryans also was in that linebacker's room. So there was
a wealth of knowledge that Fred Warner was had the
ability to absorb.

Speaker 1 (27:46):
And that's going to suck.

Speaker 6 (27:47):
And this is where you really find out who you are,
who you made of or what you made of whether
as a.

Speaker 2 (27:54):
Team, the culture that you've built. Yes, because we know
injuries are a part of the game. And I always
tell people with this all the time.

Speaker 6 (28:01):
When we see the last two teams in the Super Bowls.
It may not always be the best teams, right, It
may be the teams who were the healthiest. And that's
the thing when you start to get.

Speaker 1 (28:13):
Injuries, can you keep things moving like the Broncos.

Speaker 6 (28:18):
Now you've gone through one guard been been Powers, now
it's Matt Parrott and then now you're in your third
guy at at that position.

Speaker 1 (28:27):
So to me, and let'sten, what the Broncos.

Speaker 4 (28:29):
Can do, Yeah, we'll see. I mean, you gotta love
the position you're in. I mean, if you would have
told anyone at the beginning of the year you're four
and two after six games, I think every one in
Broncos country would have taken that it didn't fairly play
out the way a lot of us thought it was
going to with the teams they won and lost against.
But four and two after six games, you're in prime
position to make a playoff Bush And this.

Speaker 1 (28:50):
Is why in my estimation when I look at my list,
I put them at ten, right, because we haven't seen
this offense at its best. And just imagine if you get.

Speaker 6 (29:04):
This offense at its best on a consistent basis, that
means both from the passing game and the run game,
and then you coupled that with the defense. That changes
everything because well, you look at what Kansas City is
and Kansas City put on the list that you sent me.

Speaker 1 (29:21):
Kansas City is number.

Speaker 5 (29:21):
One, right, which is ridiculous to me.

Speaker 6 (29:24):
They're having issues now some of that. Sometimes their issues
don't always show up because they may be wind aided
or assisted, if you will.

Speaker 4 (29:35):
Well, speaking of that study out of UTEP came out,
I think it was today, maybe yesterday, but you sent
this to maybe before the show. UTEP study shows NFL
officiating favors the Kansas City Chiefs. The line of this
article made me think of you. No, you are not
being paranoid or delusional. Actually, science and research suggest you

(29:58):
might be onto something. Research done by a team at
UTEP presents evidence that the Chiefs have benefited from slanted
officiating from twenty fifteen to twenty twenty three, a time
that coincided with their rise as one of the NFL's
most marketable franchises. I'm just saying, real search, back it up.
Class you've been You've been laying them down for the

(30:19):
past couple of years.

Speaker 6 (30:20):
I've been saying this and individuals are saying, well, you know,
you're just being a Broncos homer and you just, you know,
being a sore loser and you're wearing.

Speaker 1 (30:29):
A tenfoil and a hat. I'm like, no, I've watched games.

Speaker 6 (30:32):
It just seem as though in those critical moments, more
or less in the fourth quarter, there are no penalties
for the cancit the chief. Now we can say there
is coincidence, or we can say that there's some kind
of collusion.

Speaker 1 (30:43):
All I know is I know what I'm seeing and
it's not happening.

Speaker 4 (30:48):
Spencer Barnes, PhD, Assistant Professor of Finance and UTEP's Woody L.
Hunt College, that our findings suggests that when the league's
financial health is at stake, real enforcement may subtly shift
to protect market appeal. Went on to say the fact
that postseason penalties consistently favored one franchise while similar dynasties

(31:09):
showed no such pattern, points to the powerful role of
financial incentives and shaping supposedly neutral decisions. The study shows
that during the playoffs, with which the research team identified
as the NFL's most commercially valuable period, penalties against opposing
defenses of the Chiefs offense were significantly more likely to
result in first downs, cover more yardage, and fall into

(31:32):
subjective categories such as roughing the passer or pass interference.

Speaker 5 (31:37):
I mean, this is crazy.

Speaker 2 (31:38):
I can't believe this doesn't getting more run day listen subjective.

Speaker 6 (31:42):
I remember when Russell Wilson was a quarterback and the
Broncos had an opportunity to win that game in Kansas City.
I remember Chris Jones dumping him on his donut, meeting
his head and the fisher was standing right there with
his hands on the flag and he doesn't throw it.

Speaker 1 (32:00):
And I'm like, if that's not roughing the passer, I
don't know what the hell is.

Speaker 4 (32:04):
Yeah, and then you see some of the calls Patrick
Mahomes gets and you're like, what the hell's going on here?

Speaker 1 (32:09):
Think about how the season started. They're in Brazil.

Speaker 6 (32:14):
He's starting to run out of bounds, but he doesn't
look like he's going to.

Speaker 1 (32:17):
Run out of bounds. The Chargers defenders slow.

Speaker 6 (32:20):
Down, and then he runs him over and then he
points at him.

Speaker 4 (32:24):
That's taunting, well, and that's also because defenders are so
scared to hit him because if you touch him, even
if he's thinking about going out of bounds, you're getting
that fifteen yard penalty and you're setting yourself up for failure.

Speaker 1 (32:36):
Yeah.

Speaker 2 (32:37):
I see, But last year Kan'tasity playing in San Francisco.

Speaker 6 (32:41):
Mahomes runs and slows down like he's going to run
out of bounds. The defender stops, he keeps going to
sports a touchdown.

Speaker 5 (32:51):
Yeah, I'm running through his face.

Speaker 4 (32:52):
I'm just glad there's finally you research from UTEP to
back up your claims that maybe the officials have been
working in the case the city chief's favor.

Speaker 5 (33:01):
I'm just saying. I'm just saying.

Speaker 4 (33:04):
Nick, always appreciate your time, man, Thanks for making this
easy as I fil in for Ben.

Speaker 6 (33:08):
Appreciate it, man. It's always good being on with you man.
Until next time.

Speaker 4 (33:12):
Next time, as tomorrow, I'll be back on Broncos Country tonight.
I'm Grant Smith alongside Nick Ferguson. I'm koa a fifty
AM ninety four to one FM.

Speaker 6 (33:20):
Like my mom said, tooth and tongue fall out, but
they need one another.