December 12, 2025 • 30 mins
John Schmeelk sits down with Fox Sports Play-By-Play Announcer, Kenny Albert, to talk about Mike Kafka’s time as Interim Head Coach, his evaluation of Jaxson Dart this season, and the outlook for the AFC and NFC teams in the final four games.
:00 - Jaxson Dart and Mike Kafka
4:50 - Commanders preview
12:00 - NFC outlook
16:00 - AFC outlook
18:45 - Giants in the long term
22:30 - Balancing calling two sports
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Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
It's time for another edition of The Giants Little Podcast,
brought to you by Citizens, the official bank at the Giants.
I am John Schmelk happy to be rejoined on the
program by front of the program, New York.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Legend Kenny Albert Kenny. What's going on?
Speaker 3 (00:10):
Man?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
How are you?
Speaker 3 (00:11):
I'm great? John? How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
I'm doing great? Kenny?
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Is the Call of Giants and the Commanders on Fox
at one pm on Sunday. And Kenny, you had the
Giants a few weeks ago when they took on the Lions.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Here. Can you believe that we're in week fifteen already?
Speaker 1 (00:26):
By the way, I mean, it's kind of bizarre that
we're kind of here already.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
No, it really is hard to believe.
Speaker 4 (00:32):
Every year the season seems to go quicker and quicker,
and I feel like our crew were just in Atlanta
for Week one against Tampa Bay, and since then we've
been to London, We've been to Madrid, so it's been
a bit of a whirlwind this season.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
But here we are in week fifteen.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
Absolutely, And I know you have a lot going on
with your travel. I want to get into that because
I just think it's fun for all the new york'spot
fans out there to kind of see how you're managing
all this type of stuff.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
But you had the Giants.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Against the Lions a few weeks ago, a little bit
of a different Giants team at that point, as you
a Jamis Winston as a starting quarterback, not Jackson Dart.
But what was your general impression from talking to everybody
here heading into that Lions game and calling that Giants
Lions game a few weeks ago.
Speaker 4 (01:14):
Well, that was game two under Mike Kafkas, so that
was our first opportunity to speak with him. It was
Jameis Winston at quarterback. Like you said, it was a
fun game. You know, the Giants obviously had the lead
in the fourth quarter and a couple of trick plays
right the touchdown pass to Jamis and the other trick
play earlier involving Olschewsky. So for us, it was a
(01:37):
fun game to call. We've actually worked three Lions home
games this year, four Lions games overall. They've actually won
all four, but that was the closest of the three
home games, a couple of blowouts earlier. So the crowd's
always great there. It's a fun atmosphere, So that was
certainly one of the more memorable games that our crew
(01:57):
has worked all season.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
What was your impression talking to Kafka coming off that
first game and just kind of the vibes you got
from him in terms of how he was approaching the
head coaching position.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
Right, you know, he was real positive heading into the game.
You know, I remember calling some of his games as
a player. I was doing the Eagles preseason back in
you know that two thousand and eight, nine, ten, eleven,
twelve era, So I remember him coming in in the
second half in several of those preseason games. I remember
talking to Andy Reid about him. You know, obviously he
(02:26):
was a smart guy, having gone to Northwestern, very cerebral,
got into coaching pretty quickly after the playing career was over,
and you know you could tell when talking to him,
you know, coach Fitzgerald, Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern saw something
in him pretty quickly and hired him as a graduate assistant.
(02:47):
And then it was on to the NFL with Andy
Reid and the rest is history. But you know, interesting
side note, I'm looking forward to asking Marcus Mariota what
he remembers about Mike Kafka from there short time together
with Tennessee back in the twenty fifteen season.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
Wow, Yeah, you're right, I forgot about that. That's a
good point.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Are you excited to see Dart after getting the Jamis
Wissey experiences? By the way, he's always entertaining and he
actually played really well in that game.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Are you excited to kind of get your first taste
of Jackson Dart?
Speaker 3 (03:15):
I am.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
You know, I've been following from Afar this year, haven't
seen him play in person, but really looking forward to
calling the game on Sunday with Jackson starting a quarterback,
looking forward to chatting with him. He's obviously been a
big story in New York this year.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:30):
I've always been a big fan of Jamis Winston, called
so many of his games through the years with Tampa
Bay and then New Orleans. And he played really well
that day in Detroit, and I thought he did an
excellent job on the Fox pregame show.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
The other day. I was in a cell room in Arizona.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
Getting ready for the late game between the Rams and Cardinals,
and he was on the early show, the Fox NFL
kickoff show and then the Fox NFL Sunday shows, and
I know he did some work during Super Bowl week
as well with Fox. So I think, you know, if
he wants to move in that second career whenever is
playing career is done, he certainly has a head start.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yeah, and he certainly has the chrisma four.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
When you guys talked to Darth this week, and you know,
you and Jonathan wille will get these guys on conference
calls heading into the game, what are some of the
things you want to talk to him about? And think
some of the big stories are with him heading into
the final four games of his rookie year.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
You know, it's usually a combination.
Speaker 4 (04:19):
When we talked to the players, a lot of it
is obviously about the game and the season, but we
also try to get some personal stories, you know, about
their upbringing, about who their favorite quarterbacks, who their favorite
players were growing up.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
You know, so it's a bit of a combination.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
We try to get some of those personal anecdotes out
on the air as well, because you don't want it
to be all about the x's and o's.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
No, no, absolutely right, no question.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
What was your feel from three weeks ago about how
this Giants team is kind of fighting through such a
rough year, the coaching change, I mean, you could tell
by how they played against the lines that they're still
into it. Obviously, their last game before the bu against
the Pats did not go quite as well, but do
you sense this team is still kind of locked in
and ready to go and playing hard going into their
final four?
Speaker 3 (05:07):
That Detroit game, they certainly were.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
I think a lot of people thought it was going
to be a blowout, you know, just based on the
trajectory of both teams this season. But I was impressed.
You know, the defense played hard. We saw what the
offense was able to do with the trick plays. They
kind of caught the Lions off guard. They gave them
a taste of their own medicine. It's usually Detroit, you know,
especially during the Ben Johnson or as offensive coordinator, but
(05:32):
even this year we've seen some of those trick plays
from the Lions. But they gave them a taste of
their own medicine in that game. And certainly that game,
it certainly looked like they were playing hard on on
you know, in all three phases. The New England game
obviously went in the other direction, and now they've had
to buy, you know, a little bit of a stretch
to get away for many of the players and take
(05:54):
their minds off it. It's been a tough season, obviously,
but you know, these divisional matchups. I've worked so many
Giants Washington games through the years, and you could throw
out the records, it really doesn't matter. It's a divisional game,
NFC East December weather. So they're always a lot.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Of fun you partner with with Jonathan Viillma on these games.
Curious we saw at the end of that Lions game
that Jimior Gibbs had those two big runs that really,
you know, tilted the games towards the Lions, helped them
win the game. The Giants rush defense all year, Kenny
has just been bad. It has not been good. So
what does Vilma's take on kind of why the rush
defense and the defense overall has struggled and and just
what are some of the things they need to do
(06:30):
to kind of improve that.
Speaker 4 (06:32):
Well, you know, when I'm trying to think back to
that game, I know he pointed out that Dexter Lawrence
was on the sideline prior to that play, So Vilma
picked up on that right away. You know, not to
put words in his mouth, but I know in our
conversations about the team. It's obviously been a down year
for some of the players compared to what we've seen
in the past. Obviously a huge bright spot is Brian
(06:53):
Burns and what he's done this year. There have been
some injuries as well, so you know, again, talked a
little bit to Vilma this week. We had a crew
zoom call yesterday, and we'll talk more over the next
couple of days and get a better idea for what
he's thinking. But I know he did pick up on
the fact. Like I said that, you know, whether it
(07:13):
was injury or later or not. Dexter wasn't on the
field for that play, and Gibbs, you know, obviously did
what he did.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, and Gibbs as that do a lot of teams too,
by the way, one of the best running backs in
the league.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
How many times have you seen the Commanders this year?
Speaker 3 (07:29):
I saw them twice.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
We had them in Madrid against Miami and then we
had them the next week against Detroit. The first game
went to overtime. The game in Madrid, both teams had
chances to kick field goals to put them ahead in
the final minutes and both went forward on fourth down,
so wound up going into overtime, and then the Commanders
had an unfortunate turnover right at the start of overtime
(07:53):
and Miami had a short field. And then the game
against Detroit the next week, Lions, you know, did what
we used to see them doing so but it was
a close game for a while, so we saw them
in the two games back to back.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Hoddle up, get in here.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
If you're lined up here, you gotta go over the
middle with at the score great. How do we make
that happen?
Speaker 2 (08:15):
I don't know, but Tennyson does. It makes sense of
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Speaker 1 (08:23):
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Speaker 2 (08:33):
You know it's funny, Kenny.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Obviously, it's a step back going from Jaya and Daniels
to Marcus Mariota. Jane and Daniels when he plays is
one of the better quarterbacks in the league. But the
offense with Mariota has really still been effective. They've done
a really nice job moving and scoring the ball. And
it's almost been a bit of a resurgence for Mariota's
career after it kind of did not work out for
him in Atlanta.
Speaker 4 (08:55):
He's had some nice games this season, and I remember
in talking to the opponents prior to the games, again
it's Miami and Detroit. Although they acknowledged, you know, how
great Jadan Daniels played last season, tremendous rookie year, they
felt that, you know, there wasn't that much of a
drop off as far as what they had to concentrate
on defensively going from Daniels to Mariota. He's a veteran,
(09:17):
he's smart, he's been around the league. So those teams
certainly weren't taking Mariota lightly. You know, came in as
a Heisman Trophy winner, top pick, and like you said,
moved on to Atlanta and things didn't work out. You know,
that great for him there as far as getting a
lot of playing time, and here he is sort of
(09:38):
taking advantage of the second opportunity in Washington. Has started
a number of games this year and he's one of
three Heisman Trophy winners. You know, the Heisman Awards show
this week and there are three of them on these rosters.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
We have Jamis and.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
Mariota and obviously Daniels won't be in uniform, but you
have three Heisman Trophy winners on the rosters of these
two teams on Sunday.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Yeah, that's pretty good. And much like the Giants, the
command this big issue. Kenny's been on defense with Dan
Quinn as their head coach. They you know, had a
lot of takeaways last year that hasn't quite come together
this season and it's just been a real struggle for
them defensively.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
They can't seem to figure things out.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
Yeah, it has been you know, injuries have certainly played
a part as well, but you can say that about
every team. But remember this is a team that played
in the NFC Championship Game last year. They beat Detroit
in the Divisional round and go to the championship game.
And you know, obviously the Daniels injury has been a
huge part of it this season.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
He was on such a role last year.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
But you're right, they haven't been able to take the
ball away on the defensive side. Somewhat similar to the Giants,
some of their key players haven't put up the performances,
you know, as they did last year, and you know,
it's come crumbling down a bit this year in Washington,
but the Daniels injury is certainly a major factor. They
(10:55):
are also without Terry McLaurin for a number of games now,
they've lost Zach Ertz, so it's been a you know,
bit of a rough year in Washington, especially compared to
last season.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Quinn does a good job of being enthusiastic and keeping
things positive. Do you still think overall the vibes down
there are positive in terms of the long term future outlook.
Speaker 4 (11:14):
And it's a Jersey guy. He grew up in Morristown.
He coached at Hostras, so he has a lot of
local ties. Yeah, he's such a positive guy. And I
think if you get a healthy Jaden Daniels back next season,
it's a whole different story. You know, he was the
main reason, along with the defense, that they went so
far in the playoffs last year. You know, first playoff
(11:38):
win in close to two decades and you know, first
trip to a championship game since the nineteen nineties.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
So if Daniels can bounce back, He's had.
Speaker 4 (11:48):
The elbow injuries as we saw a couple of weeks ago,
and then the relapse this week, so yeah, I think
they could certainly bounce back with a healthy Jade Daniels.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
I know you get more crossover games now with the AFC,
but I'll stick with the NFC because that's where most
of your games come from. Obviously working for Fox. Do
you think the Rams right now are the team to
beat in the NFC?
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Based on what you've.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
Seen, They're certainly up there. I would say in the
top three. We've had them a number of times. We
had them last week against Arizona. Matthew Stafford's playing at
an MVP type level. I think Stafford and Drake may
are probably the top two candidates at this point.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
When you look at what.
Speaker 4 (12:29):
Puka Nakua, DeVante Adams, the running backs, Karen Williams, Blake
Korum had a career game last week. So the offensive
line is playing great. I think they've allowed the third
few of sacks. It was seventeen going into the game
last week, so the offense has been terrific. And then defensively,
when you look at some of the young players they
have there with Byron Young and Jared Verse and Braden
(12:50):
Fisk and right on down the line, Chris Shule is
an up and coming coach. He's been the coordinator for
a couple of years. He's the grandson of the Hall
of Famer Don Shula, and he and Sean McVay go
back to college together. And Sean McVay actually used to
go with him during spring break to Don Shula's house
in Florida, and Sean McVay would pick Don Shula's brain,
(13:13):
you know, during his collegiate days because he was with
Chris Shula. They became good friends. He's in his second
season as a coordinator. So the Rams are certainly on
a roll, but you know, you look at that division.
Seattle also has ten wins. The Rams have ten wins.
San Francisco has nine wins, so they're not even guaranteed
of winning a division at this point. But and then
(13:34):
they have a couple of division games down the stretch.
But they've been really impressive in the games that we've
done involving the Rams.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Yeah, and the Rams still have a game against Seattle.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
They beat him in that matchup early when they really
kind of threw Sam donal for a bit of a loop.
But the Rams still have to face the Lions. They
have the Cardinals again. So, yeah, they have some tough
games coming up. We'll see what happens. Who do you
think their biggest competition is You mentioned the other teams
in the West. Out of the teams in the North
and the East, what other teams do you think could
could make the biggest run here in the NA You.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
Know, you look at the North with that's a huge
game the Lions and Rams this weekend, because the Lions
certainly aren't guaranteed a playoff spot. If they can win
the game this week, you know, that would be huge
for Detroit.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
Which is crazy, by the way, because I think they
are one of the best teams in the conference.
Speaker 4 (14:16):
Yeah, I agree, I agree, but they've lost a couple
that they wouldn't have lost last year. You know, you
look at what Green Bay's doing. That tie could really
come into play with the final standings when the regular
season comes to an end, and Chicago, you know, probably
the surprise team in the NFC under Ben Johnson. So
you have three potential playoff teams in the North, three
potential playoff teams in the West. You'll probably only have
(14:39):
one get in from the South, and you have to
put Carol line up there with Chicago. I'm on the
surprise teams for sure. But you know, like I said,
I've seen four Detroit games. They've won all of them,
so we've probably seen them more than any other NFC team.
We had Chicago once. They were blown out by Detroit
week two in the game that we had. We had
(15:00):
the Packers once out in Arizona. Haven't seen Seattle or
San fran in person, so it'll be a great race
down to stretch in all the divisions. You know, you
have Dallas still with a chance, Philly coming off the loss,
so it should be some great races over the last
four weeks.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Have you done any Philly games yet this year?
Speaker 3 (15:18):
Not this year. We haven't done Philly this year.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
So it's on the outside looking in.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
But this feels an awful lot like twenty twenty three,
right with the way this is kind of going. Where
they started so hot, they were winning a bunch of
close games. I just I think the last four games
were Philly will be very very interesting because I could
see it swinging wildly in either direction.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
Yeah, you're right, it does feel a lot like the
twenty three season. And you know, at one point it
looked like Dallas was dead and now they've come up
with a couple of big wins. So you know it'll
be fascinating to watch the NFC East down to stretch
as well. You have teams looking to play spoiler all
around the conference and all around the league. So you know,
this is such a real, such a fun time heading
(16:00):
into week fifteen.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
And then it's crazy in the AFC.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Kenny, I know you don't do a ton of the games,
but you looked all the teams heading into the year.
You talk about Justin Herbert and the Chargers, all there's
super quarterbacks Burrow and the Bengals, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens,
Mahomes and the Chiefs.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
A lot of those teams aren't even gonna make the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Justin Herbert's running for his life with his two offensive
tackles hurt. Josh Allen's the only one that has his
team securely in right now. It's just been such a
topsy turvy AFC this year, with teams that no one
expected sit in the top their divisions.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
No, it really has been.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
I think going into the season when you look at
you looked at the AFC Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati, like you
said Chiefs, And the Chiefs were probably the top four
in a lot of people's minds, and you know, three
of them probably underperforming, but you know, that's why they
play the games. It's the best reality TV. And we'll
see how it plays out down the stretch. We threw
(16:51):
out a note in our RAMS game the other day,
and I'm not sure if it changed last week.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I'd have to go check the numbers. I haven't looked yet,
but I said.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
To Jonathan Villema on the air, if I told you
that the three highest yardage games from a quarterback this
season up until week thirteen, So heading into week fourteen,
the three quarterbacks with the biggest games as far as
passing yards were Joe Flacco won, Jacoby Brissett too, Russell
(17:20):
Wilson three.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
What would you have said? And that's a fact.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
It was those three quarterbacks, Flaco, Brissett, Wilson had the
three highest yardage games heading into week fourteen. So you
just never know.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
And that's why the NFL is the best sport going
out there. All right, let's bring it back to this
game very quickly. Kenny, how do you think this game
is going to go? What's your feel? Do you think
we could be in for a shootout here. We might
get a little snow on Sunday too, which which which
might give a little atmosphere.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
I feel like this could be a bit of an
up and down game.
Speaker 4 (17:51):
It sounds like there could be a little weather, cold,
maybe a little snow. Was it two years ago we
were working the game, the tie game Giants and Commitsions, right.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Yeah, two weesons ago?
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Well, so you know who knows our crews had a
bunch of overtime games this year. But I could see
it being a high scoring game, you know, with the
way both defenses have been this year, and you know,
I would assume if it's a if it's a weather game,
you know, we'll see a lot of you know, both
teams running the ball. But yeah, I could see it,
(18:20):
and I'm usually wrong with my predictions, So who knows
the game here? Yeah, I could see it being somewhere
in the high twenties, low thirties, you know, as far
as the final score.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
If you want to know how to manage two minutes
of crunch time football, I'm your man.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
But if you're wondering about a long term financial plan,
you should talk to citizens.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Hey, I can also talk long care.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
I'd like to learn about an mowing routine.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Yes, I knew I could help make sense of your
money with citizens. Yeah, I'm with you all right. And
now Giants long term here, Kenny, this isn't your purview.
I get it.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
But as someone that's around the York, you talk to
Giant fans, they have a feel for what's going on. Well,
what do you think just some of the priority is
going to be when they kind of do their head
coaching search in the offseason, when they think about the
type of candidates that they're going to canter and guys
that could be the best fit for kind of taking
over and finally trying to get this franchise back on
the right path, right.
Speaker 4 (19:07):
And I know we've all seen a lot of the
names that have been thrown out there, and you know,
certainly living in the area and following the league as
closely as I do, I'm certainly well aware of the
cycle at the head coaching position that's gone on with
the Giants franchise over the last decade. But you know,
depending on how they perform over the last four weeks,
(19:27):
does Mike Kafka have a shot? He's you know, a
great offensive mind. You look at the success he's had,
you know, especially in Kansas City working with Andy Reid
and Patrick Mahomes. And does he get the opportunity to
work with Jackson Dart moving forward, We'll see.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
You know.
Speaker 4 (19:43):
I know Chris Shula, who I mentioned a few minutes ago,
his name's been out there in the in the newspapers,
you know, online over the last couple of days. I'm
really impressed with what he's done in Los Angeles, and
he comes from that Sean McVay tree, which has had
great success. You look at all the coaches that have
worked under McVeigh, and you know before that, under Mike Shanahan,
(20:04):
with Kyle Shanahan, they were all together in Washington, uh,
you know, with the with the Commanders, uh, the Redskins
at the time. You know, Mike Shanahan was the head coach,
and then you had you had Kyle Shanahan, you had
Sean McVay, you had Matt Lafleur, you had Kevin O'Connell.
You know, all those guys were on that Washington staff.
So it's a pretty good track record. So when I
(20:26):
read Chris Shule's name the other day, you know, I
said to myself, boy that that could certainly be an
intriguing possibility as well. But you know, I'm sure there
are a number of other names on their list, and again,
we'll see how it plays out over the next four weeks.
If they win two or three of these games and
Dart has great success, uh, then I'm sure Mike caf
will be, you know, right at the top of the
(20:47):
list as well. So uh, you know that's for people
a lot higher up than you and I and the
food chain, John, But we'll see how it all plays out.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Yeah, I think Mike McDaniel to another coach that was
on that staff in Washington to have remember correctly.
Speaker 4 (20:57):
Right he was at one point, and he and Dan
Quinn also worked together in Miami, so you have all
kinds of these. When we did that Washington Miami game,
we talked about their history together. So it's always fun
looking back at you know, who worked where with whom.
Dan Quinn, you know, speaking of the Commanders this week,
he and Raheem Morris were together at Hostra when Raheem
(21:19):
was a player and was a coach in that staff
and the Jets were practicing there still, you know, at
Hostra at the time, and Herm Edwards was coaching the Jets,
and there was a lot of crossover with the Jets
at Hostra and they gave Raheem Morris an internship with
the Jets in two thousand and one and he was
(21:40):
in the dB room and Aaron Glenn was one of
the players at the time. So when we did the
the so many coaches that moving around to take to
keep trap. But when we did the Jets Atlanta game
a couple of weeks ago, we talked about it with
Raheem and Aaron Glenn, the fact that they were together,
one is an intern, one as a player. And then
Herm Edwards winds up recommending Raheem Morris to Tampa and
(22:03):
he goes down there and wins the Super Bowl as
a quality control coach in his first year with the Buccaneers.
But for Raheem Morris and Dan quinn are all started
at Hostra back in the early two thousands, and.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Then Raheem would overlap with McVeigh, going back to what
you're talking about before, So all these coaching things are
all interacting.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Raheem for McVeigh with the Rams and they won a
Super Bowl together.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
Absolutely right all right, So Kenny, obviously, besides the stuff
you for Fox, you're doing the Rangers on TV for MSG.
You got some T and T stuff going on. Give
fans an idea of what which is now the busiest
time of year for you, tod of November December is
like for you and even October, trying to balance your
two sports and kind of what your travel looks like
each week, because I always find this stuff fascinating.
Speaker 4 (22:46):
Well, right now, as we speak on Thursday, I'm actually
home for a week, believe it or not, because of
the Giant's assignment on Sunday and the Rangers are off today,
they're off tomorrow, they play at home Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.
So actually home for a week, which is very unusual
this time of the year. I'll take you back about
a month ago, three weeks to four three to four
(23:07):
weeks ago. Woke up in Madrid on a Monday morning,
following that Commander's Dolphins game. Flew to Vegas via Chicago,
so it was a one hour flight from Madrid to
Chicago and then four hours to Vegas. Had a Rangers
game in Vegas on Tuesday, took a red eye to Washington,
d c for a TNT NHL telecast, went back to
(23:32):
Denver for a Rangers game on Thursday, and then went
to Detroit on Friday to start the prep for the
Allions Giants game that weekend. So that week was very unusual.
It's not that's sort of an aperation. But woke up
in Madrid on Monday, Vegas that night and Tuesday, and
then Washington, Denver, Detroit. So that was a five day
(23:53):
stretch in November.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
And those are I'm trying to can them.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I head four or five different time zones, that's pretty good.
Was Yeah, you got Pacific, Central, Madrid, New York. Right,
you got four different times though, I had.
Speaker 4 (24:06):
Every time zone in the US, right because Central time
zone Chicago on the layover Denver is in the Mountain
time zone that's right zone. So yeah, I had every
times on that week plus Madrid. So that was you know,
usually it's not as crazy as that, but between football,
the Rangers and TNT, it is a jigsaw puzzle of
(24:28):
the schedule at this time of year.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Now you're doing TV now for the Rangers, do you
miss the differences between TV and radio, Because obviously for
people that don't know the call of a game on
TV and radio is so different. On radio you really
have to tell people what's happening. On TV, they're seeing
what's happening. In you're providing a little bit more insight
(24:50):
into what's happening. So do you miss some of the
differences between the radio call and the TV call.
Speaker 4 (24:56):
Yeah, it's a great question because there are differences, and
on radio you are describing everything that goes on. You're
giving the score and time a lot more often because
on TV the viewers can see it, they can see
what's happening. I was so fortunate to work twenty nine
years on the radio side with the Rangers and so
excited to switch over to the TV side this year
(25:17):
as well after Sam Rosen retired the Great Hall of Famer,
and I got to bring my partner with me because
Joe Micletty retired as well, so Dave Maloney and I
we thought we were done as far as working together
after twenty years on the radio, and then Joe retired
after the season and Dave's on the TV side as well,
doing a great job along with Brian Boyle. So yeah,
(25:39):
there are probably certain elements of radio you miss because
it really brings you back to the fundamentals of starting
out for me calling minor league hockey games back in
the early nineties in Baltimore, but TV has been a
lot of fun as well. And looking forward to the
stretch coming up of the three home games for the
Rangers in four days with a Giants commander's game right
smack in the middle.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
I've never called hockey before. I've done the other sports.
What are the mechanical differences for you? Maybe the different
challenges between play by play hockey versus play by play football.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
People ask me all the time, and I've been lucky
enough to be heavily involved in all four right, football, hockey,
and then basketball and baseball as well. To me, hockey
is the easiest because you're just calling the game, the
pucks in action for sixty minutes. Yes, you're talking less
on TV than radio, but you're calling the play. Similar
to basketball, which is slower. There are more whistles, but
(26:31):
it's forty eight minutes of continuous action. Football is the
most rhythmic. It's one play and then it's twenty or
twenty five seconds. So you set up the play, you
call the play, your color analyst comes in, and then
you recap the play. Baseball, to me, was always the
most challenging. I usually did and still do, about anywhere
between eight and twelve games a year. Back in the day,
(26:53):
it might have been a little more with Fox, but
because of the downtime, you know, between the pitches, between
the batters, which has gotten a lot better with the
implementation of the pitch clock. I think that's really helped
out broadcasters because there is not as much downtime. But
for me just coming in once in a while doing baseball,
that was always the most challenging. I've also had the
opportunity to work some other sports, some boxing through the years,
(27:16):
which is a lot different. There's no ball, there's no puck,
and what I learned is you want to use a
lot of your best information early on because it could
end there'll be a first or second round, so you
don't want to leave your great nuggets on the cutting
room floor. I've also worked some volleyball and water polo
and track and field at the Olympics, so those were challenging,
(27:37):
but they were a lot of fun to learn a
new sport, learn about the rules, the history, the strategy.
But of the four major sports, hockey to me is
almost like riding a bike. I've done it for thirty
five years now, and you're basically calling the play and
then working in some anecdotes and stats and obviously leading
your color analysts into things. But football is definitely the
(27:59):
most rhythmic. It's the one play twenty or twenty five seconds,
another play twenty or twenty five seconds, and you know,
obviously there are replays and graphics and other elements involved.
And we have a tremendous crew with our producer Fran Marrison,
director Matt Gangle, Jonathan Willem, and Megan o'levy's our Sadeline
reporter who lives in Vegas now, but she grew up
(28:20):
in eastern Pennsylvania went to Seaton Halls. So it's a
for Megan this week as well.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
Very good and I know you've done TV, so it's
not like he was like telling you how to do
the job. But we all know what a good dude
Sam Rosen is, and not just like one of the
best guys in the industry, like one of the best
guys on the planet, Like Sam Rosen's just terrific. What
was it like kind of getting that torch from him
and then taking over the legacy that he kind of
built as the Rangers play by play guy on TV.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
No, you're right, Sam's one of the best people who'll
ever meet. Hall of Fame broadcaster still involved. The Rangers
have these centennial nights this season for their one hundredth anniversaries,
so he'll be there this Saturday m seeing the ONI ceremonies.
Speaker 2 (28:59):
Good.
Speaker 4 (29:00):
But we've all been part of the group, you know.
I was sitting next to Sam on the plane for
twenty nine years. We were all together. It started as
sal Massinoo was my partner, and then you had Sam
and John Davidson on the TV side, and then on radio,
I had Brian Mullen for a couple of years, Dave
Maloney for the last twenty. Joe Micletty replaced JD on
(29:20):
TV in two thousand and six. So we're all a family,
all part of the same traveling party. Countless flights meals together. So,
you know, sliding over into the TV booth, not much changed,
you know, as far as the schedule, the travel or
the prep. Because I was with the Rangers for twenty
nine years, it's just a little bit different. Like you
described doing it on the TV side, instead of the
(29:43):
radio side.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
Kenny, this is awesome. It's always when they catch up
with you. Man.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
Enjoy the rest of the year, Have good luck and
save travels all your hockey stuff, and we'll see on
Sunday afternoon.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
Don really appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Always enjoy listening and watching your work. And guess what,
we'll see you again next week for the.
Speaker 2 (30:00):
Oh you got us two weeks in a row. I
didn't know that. That's awesome.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
Wow, so you don't have to travel two weeks in
a row for Fox Man. I imagine the phone call
you with the placers. How to get that happen? That's
pretty good.
Speaker 4 (30:11):
Well, you know, sometimes, like you said, sometimes the weeks
are crazy and once in a while you got to
stay home. So uh, at least on the football side
for the next two weeks, I'll be close to home.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
Oh that's awesome, Kenny. Thanks for the time, man, I
appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
Thanks Jean.
Speaker 1 (30:24):
That's the Giants Total Podcast, brought to you by Citizens
Official Bank of the Giants.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
We'll see you next time. Everybody
It's time for another edition of The Giants Little Podcast,
brought to you by Citizens, the official bank at the Giants.
I am John Schmelk happy to be rejoined on the
program by front of the program, New York.
Speaker 2 (00:08):
Legend Kenny Albert Kenny. What's going on?
Speaker 3 (00:10):
Man?
Speaker 2 (00:10):
How are you?
Speaker 3 (00:11):
I'm great? John? How are you?
Speaker 2 (00:13):
I'm doing great? Kenny?
Speaker 1 (00:14):
Is the Call of Giants and the Commanders on Fox
at one pm on Sunday. And Kenny, you had the
Giants a few weeks ago when they took on the Lions.
Speaker 2 (00:23):
Here. Can you believe that we're in week fifteen already?
Speaker 1 (00:26):
By the way, I mean, it's kind of bizarre that
we're kind of here already.
Speaker 3 (00:29):
No, it really is hard to believe.
Speaker 4 (00:32):
Every year the season seems to go quicker and quicker,
and I feel like our crew were just in Atlanta
for Week one against Tampa Bay, and since then we've
been to London, We've been to Madrid, so it's been
a bit of a whirlwind this season.
Speaker 3 (00:48):
But here we are in week fifteen.
Speaker 2 (00:50):
Yeah.
Speaker 1 (00:50):
Absolutely, And I know you have a lot going on
with your travel. I want to get into that because
I just think it's fun for all the new york'spot
fans out there to kind of see how you're managing
all this type of stuff.
Speaker 2 (00:59):
But you had the Giants.
Speaker 1 (01:00):
Against the Lions a few weeks ago, a little bit
of a different Giants team at that point, as you
a Jamis Winston as a starting quarterback, not Jackson Dart.
But what was your general impression from talking to everybody
here heading into that Lions game and calling that Giants
Lions game a few weeks ago.
Speaker 4 (01:14):
Well, that was game two under Mike Kafkas, so that
was our first opportunity to speak with him. It was
Jameis Winston at quarterback. Like you said, it was a
fun game. You know, the Giants obviously had the lead
in the fourth quarter and a couple of trick plays
right the touchdown pass to Jamis and the other trick
play earlier involving Olschewsky. So for us, it was a
(01:37):
fun game to call. We've actually worked three Lions home
games this year, four Lions games overall. They've actually won
all four, but that was the closest of the three
home games, a couple of blowouts earlier. So the crowd's
always great there. It's a fun atmosphere, So that was
certainly one of the more memorable games that our crew
(01:57):
has worked all season.
Speaker 1 (01:58):
What was your impression talking to Kafka coming off that
first game and just kind of the vibes you got
from him in terms of how he was approaching the
head coaching position.
Speaker 4 (02:06):
Right, you know, he was real positive heading into the game.
You know, I remember calling some of his games as
a player. I was doing the Eagles preseason back in
you know that two thousand and eight, nine, ten, eleven,
twelve era, So I remember him coming in in the
second half in several of those preseason games. I remember
talking to Andy Reid about him. You know, obviously he
(02:26):
was a smart guy, having gone to Northwestern, very cerebral,
got into coaching pretty quickly after the playing career was over,
and you know you could tell when talking to him,
you know, coach Fitzgerald, Pat Fitzgerald at Northwestern saw something
in him pretty quickly and hired him as a graduate assistant.
(02:47):
And then it was on to the NFL with Andy
Reid and the rest is history. But you know, interesting
side note, I'm looking forward to asking Marcus Mariota what
he remembers about Mike Kafka from there short time together
with Tennessee back in the twenty fifteen season.
Speaker 2 (03:02):
Wow, Yeah, you're right, I forgot about that. That's a
good point.
Speaker 1 (03:06):
Are you excited to see Dart after getting the Jamis
Wissey experiences? By the way, he's always entertaining and he
actually played really well in that game.
Speaker 2 (03:12):
Are you excited to kind of get your first taste
of Jackson Dart?
Speaker 3 (03:15):
I am.
Speaker 4 (03:16):
You know, I've been following from Afar this year, haven't
seen him play in person, but really looking forward to
calling the game on Sunday with Jackson starting a quarterback,
looking forward to chatting with him. He's obviously been a
big story in New York this year.
Speaker 3 (03:29):
Yeah.
Speaker 4 (03:30):
I've always been a big fan of Jamis Winston, called
so many of his games through the years with Tampa
Bay and then New Orleans. And he played really well
that day in Detroit, and I thought he did an
excellent job on the Fox pregame show.
Speaker 3 (03:41):
The other day. I was in a cell room in Arizona.
Speaker 4 (03:44):
Getting ready for the late game between the Rams and Cardinals,
and he was on the early show, the Fox NFL
kickoff show and then the Fox NFL Sunday shows, and
I know he did some work during Super Bowl week
as well with Fox. So I think, you know, if
he wants to move in that second career whenever is
playing career is done, he certainly has a head start.
Speaker 2 (04:04):
Yeah, and he certainly has the chrisma four.
Speaker 1 (04:06):
When you guys talked to Darth this week, and you know,
you and Jonathan wille will get these guys on conference
calls heading into the game, what are some of the
things you want to talk to him about? And think
some of the big stories are with him heading into
the final four games of his rookie year.
Speaker 3 (04:18):
You know, it's usually a combination.
Speaker 4 (04:19):
When we talked to the players, a lot of it
is obviously about the game and the season, but we
also try to get some personal stories, you know, about
their upbringing, about who their favorite quarterbacks, who their favorite
players were growing up.
Speaker 3 (04:36):
You know, so it's a bit of a combination.
Speaker 4 (04:38):
We try to get some of those personal anecdotes out
on the air as well, because you don't want it
to be all about the x's and o's.
Speaker 2 (04:45):
No, no, absolutely right, no question.
Speaker 1 (04:48):
What was your feel from three weeks ago about how
this Giants team is kind of fighting through such a
rough year, the coaching change, I mean, you could tell
by how they played against the lines that they're still
into it. Obviously, their last game before the bu against
the Pats did not go quite as well, but do
you sense this team is still kind of locked in
and ready to go and playing hard going into their
final four?
Speaker 3 (05:07):
That Detroit game, they certainly were.
Speaker 4 (05:09):
I think a lot of people thought it was going
to be a blowout, you know, just based on the
trajectory of both teams this season. But I was impressed.
You know, the defense played hard. We saw what the
offense was able to do with the trick plays. They
kind of caught the Lions off guard. They gave them
a taste of their own medicine. It's usually Detroit, you know,
especially during the Ben Johnson or as offensive coordinator, but
(05:32):
even this year we've seen some of those trick plays
from the Lions. But they gave them a taste of
their own medicine in that game. And certainly that game,
it certainly looked like they were playing hard on on
you know, in all three phases. The New England game
obviously went in the other direction, and now they've had
to buy, you know, a little bit of a stretch
to get away for many of the players and take
(05:54):
their minds off it. It's been a tough season, obviously,
but you know, these divisional matchups. I've worked so many
Giants Washington games through the years, and you could throw
out the records, it really doesn't matter. It's a divisional game,
NFC East December weather. So they're always a lot.
Speaker 1 (06:10):
Of fun you partner with with Jonathan Viillma on these games.
Curious we saw at the end of that Lions game
that Jimior Gibbs had those two big runs that really,
you know, tilted the games towards the Lions, helped them
win the game. The Giants rush defense all year, Kenny
has just been bad. It has not been good. So
what does Vilma's take on kind of why the rush
defense and the defense overall has struggled and and just
what are some of the things they need to do
(06:30):
to kind of improve that.
Speaker 4 (06:32):
Well, you know, when I'm trying to think back to
that game, I know he pointed out that Dexter Lawrence
was on the sideline prior to that play, So Vilma
picked up on that right away. You know, not to
put words in his mouth, but I know in our
conversations about the team. It's obviously been a down year
for some of the players compared to what we've seen
in the past. Obviously a huge bright spot is Brian
(06:53):
Burns and what he's done this year. There have been
some injuries as well, so you know, again, talked a
little bit to Vilma this week. We had a crew
zoom call yesterday, and we'll talk more over the next
couple of days and get a better idea for what
he's thinking. But I know he did pick up on
the fact. Like I said that, you know, whether it
(07:13):
was injury or later or not. Dexter wasn't on the
field for that play, and Gibbs, you know, obviously did
what he did.
Speaker 1 (07:21):
Yeah, and Gibbs as that do a lot of teams too,
by the way, one of the best running backs in
the league.
Speaker 2 (07:26):
How many times have you seen the Commanders this year?
Speaker 3 (07:29):
I saw them twice.
Speaker 4 (07:30):
We had them in Madrid against Miami and then we
had them the next week against Detroit. The first game
went to overtime. The game in Madrid, both teams had
chances to kick field goals to put them ahead in
the final minutes and both went forward on fourth down,
so wound up going into overtime, and then the Commanders
had an unfortunate turnover right at the start of overtime
(07:53):
and Miami had a short field. And then the game
against Detroit the next week, Lions, you know, did what
we used to see them doing so but it was
a close game for a while, so we saw them
in the two games back to back.
Speaker 2 (08:08):
Hoddle up, get in here.
Speaker 4 (08:09):
If you're lined up here, you gotta go over the
middle with at the score great. How do we make
that happen?
Speaker 2 (08:15):
I don't know, but Tennyson does. It makes sense of
your Money with Citizens Official Bank of Eli Manning.
Speaker 1 (08:23):
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with Citizens. Learn more at Citizens bank dot com slash Giants.
Speaker 2 (08:33):
You know it's funny, Kenny.
Speaker 1 (08:34):
Obviously, it's a step back going from Jaya and Daniels
to Marcus Mariota. Jane and Daniels when he plays is
one of the better quarterbacks in the league. But the
offense with Mariota has really still been effective. They've done
a really nice job moving and scoring the ball. And
it's almost been a bit of a resurgence for Mariota's
career after it kind of did not work out for
him in Atlanta.
Speaker 4 (08:55):
He's had some nice games this season, and I remember
in talking to the opponents prior to the games, again
it's Miami and Detroit. Although they acknowledged, you know, how
great Jadan Daniels played last season, tremendous rookie year, they
felt that, you know, there wasn't that much of a
drop off as far as what they had to concentrate
on defensively going from Daniels to Mariota. He's a veteran,
(09:17):
he's smart, he's been around the league. So those teams
certainly weren't taking Mariota lightly. You know, came in as
a Heisman Trophy winner, top pick, and like you said,
moved on to Atlanta and things didn't work out. You know,
that great for him there as far as getting a
lot of playing time, and here he is sort of
(09:38):
taking advantage of the second opportunity in Washington. Has started
a number of games this year and he's one of
three Heisman Trophy winners. You know, the Heisman Awards show
this week and there are three of them on these rosters.
Speaker 3 (09:51):
We have Jamis and.
Speaker 4 (09:53):
Mariota and obviously Daniels won't be in uniform, but you
have three Heisman Trophy winners on the rosters of these
two teams on Sunday.
Speaker 1 (10:00):
Yeah, that's pretty good. And much like the Giants, the
command this big issue. Kenny's been on defense with Dan
Quinn as their head coach. They you know, had a
lot of takeaways last year that hasn't quite come together
this season and it's just been a real struggle for
them defensively.
Speaker 2 (10:14):
They can't seem to figure things out.
Speaker 4 (10:15):
Yeah, it has been you know, injuries have certainly played
a part as well, but you can say that about
every team. But remember this is a team that played
in the NFC Championship Game last year. They beat Detroit
in the Divisional round and go to the championship game.
And you know, obviously the Daniels injury has been a
huge part of it this season.
Speaker 3 (10:33):
He was on such a role last year.
Speaker 4 (10:35):
But you're right, they haven't been able to take the
ball away on the defensive side. Somewhat similar to the Giants,
some of their key players haven't put up the performances,
you know, as they did last year, and you know,
it's come crumbling down a bit this year in Washington,
but the Daniels injury is certainly a major factor. They
(10:55):
are also without Terry McLaurin for a number of games now,
they've lost Zach Ertz, so it's been a you know,
bit of a rough year in Washington, especially compared to
last season.
Speaker 1 (11:06):
Quinn does a good job of being enthusiastic and keeping
things positive. Do you still think overall the vibes down
there are positive in terms of the long term future outlook.
Speaker 4 (11:14):
And it's a Jersey guy. He grew up in Morristown.
He coached at Hostras, so he has a lot of
local ties. Yeah, he's such a positive guy. And I
think if you get a healthy Jaden Daniels back next season,
it's a whole different story. You know, he was the
main reason, along with the defense, that they went so
far in the playoffs last year. You know, first playoff
(11:38):
win in close to two decades and you know, first
trip to a championship game since the nineteen nineties.
Speaker 3 (11:45):
So if Daniels can bounce back, He's had.
Speaker 4 (11:48):
The elbow injuries as we saw a couple of weeks ago,
and then the relapse this week, so yeah, I think
they could certainly bounce back with a healthy Jade Daniels.
Speaker 1 (12:00):
I know you get more crossover games now with the AFC,
but I'll stick with the NFC because that's where most
of your games come from. Obviously working for Fox. Do
you think the Rams right now are the team to
beat in the NFC?
Speaker 2 (12:11):
Based on what you've.
Speaker 4 (12:12):
Seen, They're certainly up there. I would say in the
top three. We've had them a number of times. We
had them last week against Arizona. Matthew Stafford's playing at
an MVP type level. I think Stafford and Drake may
are probably the top two candidates at this point.
Speaker 3 (12:28):
When you look at what.
Speaker 4 (12:29):
Puka Nakua, DeVante Adams, the running backs, Karen Williams, Blake
Korum had a career game last week. So the offensive
line is playing great. I think they've allowed the third
few of sacks. It was seventeen going into the game
last week, so the offense has been terrific. And then defensively,
when you look at some of the young players they
have there with Byron Young and Jared Verse and Braden
(12:50):
Fisk and right on down the line, Chris Shule is
an up and coming coach. He's been the coordinator for
a couple of years. He's the grandson of the Hall
of Famer Don Shula, and he and Sean McVay go
back to college together. And Sean McVay actually used to
go with him during spring break to Don Shula's house
in Florida, and Sean McVay would pick Don Shula's brain,
(13:13):
you know, during his collegiate days because he was with
Chris Shula. They became good friends. He's in his second
season as a coordinator. So the Rams are certainly on
a roll, but you know, you look at that division.
Seattle also has ten wins. The Rams have ten wins.
San Francisco has nine wins, so they're not even guaranteed
of winning a division at this point. But and then
(13:34):
they have a couple of division games down the stretch.
But they've been really impressive in the games that we've
done involving the Rams.
Speaker 2 (13:39):
Yeah, and the Rams still have a game against Seattle.
Speaker 1 (13:42):
They beat him in that matchup early when they really
kind of threw Sam donal for a bit of a loop.
But the Rams still have to face the Lions. They
have the Cardinals again. So, yeah, they have some tough
games coming up. We'll see what happens. Who do you
think their biggest competition is You mentioned the other teams
in the West. Out of the teams in the North
and the East, what other teams do you think could
could make the biggest run here in the NA You.
Speaker 4 (14:01):
Know, you look at the North with that's a huge
game the Lions and Rams this weekend, because the Lions
certainly aren't guaranteed a playoff spot. If they can win
the game this week, you know, that would be huge
for Detroit.
Speaker 1 (14:13):
Which is crazy, by the way, because I think they
are one of the best teams in the conference.
Speaker 4 (14:16):
Yeah, I agree, I agree, but they've lost a couple
that they wouldn't have lost last year. You know, you
look at what Green Bay's doing. That tie could really
come into play with the final standings when the regular
season comes to an end, and Chicago, you know, probably
the surprise team in the NFC under Ben Johnson. So
you have three potential playoff teams in the North, three
potential playoff teams in the West. You'll probably only have
(14:39):
one get in from the South, and you have to
put Carol line up there with Chicago. I'm on the
surprise teams for sure. But you know, like I said,
I've seen four Detroit games. They've won all of them,
so we've probably seen them more than any other NFC team.
We had Chicago once. They were blown out by Detroit
week two in the game that we had. We had
(15:00):
the Packers once out in Arizona. Haven't seen Seattle or
San fran in person, so it'll be a great race
down to stretch in all the divisions. You know, you
have Dallas still with a chance, Philly coming off the loss,
so it should be some great races over the last
four weeks.
Speaker 2 (15:15):
Have you done any Philly games yet this year?
Speaker 3 (15:18):
Not this year. We haven't done Philly this year.
Speaker 2 (15:21):
So it's on the outside looking in.
Speaker 1 (15:23):
But this feels an awful lot like twenty twenty three,
right with the way this is kind of going. Where
they started so hot, they were winning a bunch of
close games. I just I think the last four games
were Philly will be very very interesting because I could
see it swinging wildly in either direction.
Speaker 4 (15:38):
Yeah, you're right, it does feel a lot like the
twenty three season. And you know, at one point it
looked like Dallas was dead and now they've come up
with a couple of big wins. So you know it'll
be fascinating to watch the NFC East down to stretch
as well. You have teams looking to play spoiler all
around the conference and all around the league. So you know,
this is such a real, such a fun time heading
(16:00):
into week fifteen.
Speaker 2 (16:01):
And then it's crazy in the AFC.
Speaker 1 (16:03):
Kenny, I know you don't do a ton of the games,
but you looked all the teams heading into the year.
You talk about Justin Herbert and the Chargers, all there's
super quarterbacks Burrow and the Bengals, Lamar Jackson and the Ravens,
Mahomes and the Chiefs.
Speaker 2 (16:14):
A lot of those teams aren't even gonna make the playoffs.
Speaker 1 (16:16):
Justin Herbert's running for his life with his two offensive
tackles hurt. Josh Allen's the only one that has his
team securely in right now. It's just been such a
topsy turvy AFC this year, with teams that no one
expected sit in the top their divisions.
Speaker 3 (16:29):
No, it really has been.
Speaker 4 (16:30):
I think going into the season when you look at
you looked at the AFC Buffalo, Baltimore, Cincinnati, like you
said Chiefs, And the Chiefs were probably the top four
in a lot of people's minds, and you know, three
of them probably underperforming, but you know, that's why they
play the games. It's the best reality TV. And we'll
see how it plays out down the stretch. We threw
(16:51):
out a note in our RAMS game the other day,
and I'm not sure if it changed last week.
Speaker 3 (16:57):
I'd have to go check the numbers. I haven't looked yet,
but I said.
Speaker 4 (17:00):
To Jonathan Villema on the air, if I told you
that the three highest yardage games from a quarterback this
season up until week thirteen, So heading into week fourteen,
the three quarterbacks with the biggest games as far as
passing yards were Joe Flacco won, Jacoby Brissett too, Russell
(17:20):
Wilson three.
Speaker 3 (17:22):
What would you have said? And that's a fact.
Speaker 4 (17:26):
It was those three quarterbacks, Flaco, Brissett, Wilson had the
three highest yardage games heading into week fourteen. So you
just never know.
Speaker 1 (17:34):
And that's why the NFL is the best sport going
out there. All right, let's bring it back to this
game very quickly. Kenny, how do you think this game
is going to go? What's your feel? Do you think
we could be in for a shootout here. We might
get a little snow on Sunday too, which which which
might give a little atmosphere.
Speaker 2 (17:49):
I feel like this could be a bit of an
up and down game.
Speaker 4 (17:51):
It sounds like there could be a little weather, cold,
maybe a little snow. Was it two years ago we
were working the game, the tie game Giants and Commitsions, right.
Speaker 3 (17:58):
Yeah, two weesons ago?
Speaker 4 (18:00):
Well, so you know who knows our crews had a
bunch of overtime games this year. But I could see
it being a high scoring game, you know, with the
way both defenses have been this year, and you know,
I would assume if it's a if it's a weather game,
you know, we'll see a lot of you know, both
teams running the ball. But yeah, I could see it,
(18:20):
and I'm usually wrong with my predictions, So who knows
the game here? Yeah, I could see it being somewhere
in the high twenties, low thirties, you know, as far
as the final score.
Speaker 2 (18:28):
If you want to know how to manage two minutes
of crunch time football, I'm your man.
Speaker 1 (18:32):
But if you're wondering about a long term financial plan,
you should talk to citizens.
Speaker 2 (18:36):
Hey, I can also talk long care.
Speaker 1 (18:37):
I'd like to learn about an mowing routine.
Speaker 2 (18:39):
Yes, I knew I could help make sense of your
money with citizens. Yeah, I'm with you all right. And
now Giants long term here, Kenny, this isn't your purview.
I get it.
Speaker 1 (18:48):
But as someone that's around the York, you talk to
Giant fans, they have a feel for what's going on. Well,
what do you think just some of the priority is
going to be when they kind of do their head
coaching search in the offseason, when they think about the
type of candidates that they're going to canter and guys
that could be the best fit for kind of taking
over and finally trying to get this franchise back on
the right path, right.
Speaker 4 (19:07):
And I know we've all seen a lot of the
names that have been thrown out there, and you know,
certainly living in the area and following the league as
closely as I do, I'm certainly well aware of the
cycle at the head coaching position that's gone on with
the Giants franchise over the last decade. But you know,
depending on how they perform over the last four weeks,
(19:27):
does Mike Kafka have a shot? He's you know, a
great offensive mind. You look at the success he's had,
you know, especially in Kansas City working with Andy Reid
and Patrick Mahomes. And does he get the opportunity to
work with Jackson Dart moving forward, We'll see.
Speaker 3 (19:43):
You know.
Speaker 4 (19:43):
I know Chris Shula, who I mentioned a few minutes ago,
his name's been out there in the in the newspapers,
you know, online over the last couple of days. I'm
really impressed with what he's done in Los Angeles, and
he comes from that Sean McVay tree, which has had
great success. You look at all the coaches that have
worked under McVeigh, and you know before that, under Mike Shanahan,
(20:04):
with Kyle Shanahan, they were all together in Washington, uh,
you know, with the with the Commanders, uh, the Redskins
at the time. You know, Mike Shanahan was the head coach,
and then you had you had Kyle Shanahan, you had
Sean McVay, you had Matt Lafleur, you had Kevin O'Connell.
You know, all those guys were on that Washington staff.
So it's a pretty good track record. So when I
(20:26):
read Chris Shule's name the other day, you know, I
said to myself, boy that that could certainly be an
intriguing possibility as well. But you know, I'm sure there
are a number of other names on their list, and again,
we'll see how it plays out over the next four weeks.
If they win two or three of these games and
Dart has great success, uh, then I'm sure Mike caf
will be, you know, right at the top of the
(20:47):
list as well. So uh, you know that's for people
a lot higher up than you and I and the
food chain, John, But we'll see how it all plays out.
Speaker 1 (20:53):
Yeah, I think Mike McDaniel to another coach that was
on that staff in Washington to have remember correctly.
Speaker 4 (20:57):
Right he was at one point, and he and Dan
Quinn also worked together in Miami, so you have all
kinds of these. When we did that Washington Miami game,
we talked about their history together. So it's always fun
looking back at you know, who worked where with whom.
Dan Quinn, you know, speaking of the Commanders this week,
he and Raheem Morris were together at Hostra when Raheem
(21:19):
was a player and was a coach in that staff
and the Jets were practicing there still, you know, at
Hostra at the time, and Herm Edwards was coaching the Jets,
and there was a lot of crossover with the Jets
at Hostra and they gave Raheem Morris an internship with
the Jets in two thousand and one and he was
(21:40):
in the dB room and Aaron Glenn was one of
the players at the time. So when we did the
the so many coaches that moving around to take to
keep trap. But when we did the Jets Atlanta game
a couple of weeks ago, we talked about it with
Raheem and Aaron Glenn, the fact that they were together,
one is an intern, one as a player. And then
Herm Edwards winds up recommending Raheem Morris to Tampa and
(22:03):
he goes down there and wins the Super Bowl as
a quality control coach in his first year with the Buccaneers.
But for Raheem Morris and Dan quinn are all started
at Hostra back in the early two thousands, and.
Speaker 1 (22:14):
Then Raheem would overlap with McVeigh, going back to what
you're talking about before, So all these coaching things are
all interacting.
Speaker 3 (22:21):
Raheem for McVeigh with the Rams and they won a
Super Bowl together.
Speaker 1 (22:25):
Absolutely right all right, So Kenny, obviously, besides the stuff
you for Fox, you're doing the Rangers on TV for MSG.
You got some T and T stuff going on. Give
fans an idea of what which is now the busiest
time of year for you, tod of November December is
like for you and even October, trying to balance your
two sports and kind of what your travel looks like
each week, because I always find this stuff fascinating.
Speaker 4 (22:46):
Well, right now, as we speak on Thursday, I'm actually
home for a week, believe it or not, because of
the Giant's assignment on Sunday and the Rangers are off today,
they're off tomorrow, they play at home Saturday, Monday and Tuesday.
So actually home for a week, which is very unusual
this time of the year. I'll take you back about
a month ago, three weeks to four three to four
(23:07):
weeks ago. Woke up in Madrid on a Monday morning,
following that Commander's Dolphins game. Flew to Vegas via Chicago,
so it was a one hour flight from Madrid to
Chicago and then four hours to Vegas. Had a Rangers
game in Vegas on Tuesday, took a red eye to Washington,
d c for a TNT NHL telecast, went back to
(23:32):
Denver for a Rangers game on Thursday, and then went
to Detroit on Friday to start the prep for the
Allions Giants game that weekend. So that week was very unusual.
It's not that's sort of an aperation. But woke up
in Madrid on Monday, Vegas that night and Tuesday, and
then Washington, Denver, Detroit. So that was a five day
(23:53):
stretch in November.
Speaker 2 (23:54):
And those are I'm trying to can them.
Speaker 1 (23:56):
I head four or five different time zones, that's pretty good.
Was Yeah, you got Pacific, Central, Madrid, New York. Right,
you got four different times though, I had.
Speaker 4 (24:06):
Every time zone in the US, right because Central time
zone Chicago on the layover Denver is in the Mountain
time zone that's right zone. So yeah, I had every
times on that week plus Madrid. So that was you know,
usually it's not as crazy as that, but between football,
the Rangers and TNT, it is a jigsaw puzzle of
(24:28):
the schedule at this time of year.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Now you're doing TV now for the Rangers, do you
miss the differences between TV and radio, Because obviously for
people that don't know the call of a game on
TV and radio is so different. On radio you really
have to tell people what's happening. On TV, they're seeing
what's happening. In you're providing a little bit more insight
(24:50):
into what's happening. So do you miss some of the
differences between the radio call and the TV call.
Speaker 4 (24:56):
Yeah, it's a great question because there are differences, and
on radio you are describing everything that goes on. You're
giving the score and time a lot more often because
on TV the viewers can see it, they can see
what's happening. I was so fortunate to work twenty nine
years on the radio side with the Rangers and so
excited to switch over to the TV side this year
(25:17):
as well after Sam Rosen retired the Great Hall of Famer,
and I got to bring my partner with me because
Joe Micletty retired as well, so Dave Maloney and I
we thought we were done as far as working together
after twenty years on the radio, and then Joe retired
after the season and Dave's on the TV side as well,
doing a great job along with Brian Boyle. So yeah,
(25:39):
there are probably certain elements of radio you miss because
it really brings you back to the fundamentals of starting
out for me calling minor league hockey games back in
the early nineties in Baltimore, but TV has been a
lot of fun as well. And looking forward to the
stretch coming up of the three home games for the
Rangers in four days with a Giants commander's game right
smack in the middle.
Speaker 1 (26:00):
I've never called hockey before. I've done the other sports.
What are the mechanical differences for you? Maybe the different
challenges between play by play hockey versus play by play football.
Speaker 4 (26:10):
People ask me all the time, and I've been lucky
enough to be heavily involved in all four right, football, hockey,
and then basketball and baseball as well. To me, hockey
is the easiest because you're just calling the game, the
pucks in action for sixty minutes. Yes, you're talking less
on TV than radio, but you're calling the play. Similar
to basketball, which is slower. There are more whistles, but
(26:31):
it's forty eight minutes of continuous action. Football is the
most rhythmic. It's one play and then it's twenty or
twenty five seconds. So you set up the play, you
call the play, your color analyst comes in, and then
you recap the play. Baseball, to me, was always the
most challenging. I usually did and still do, about anywhere
between eight and twelve games a year. Back in the day,
(26:53):
it might have been a little more with Fox, but
because of the downtime, you know, between the pitches, between
the batters, which has gotten a lot better with the
implementation of the pitch clock. I think that's really helped
out broadcasters because there is not as much downtime. But
for me just coming in once in a while doing baseball,
that was always the most challenging. I've also had the
opportunity to work some other sports, some boxing through the years,
(27:16):
which is a lot different. There's no ball, there's no puck,
and what I learned is you want to use a
lot of your best information early on because it could
end there'll be a first or second round, so you
don't want to leave your great nuggets on the cutting
room floor. I've also worked some volleyball and water polo
and track and field at the Olympics, so those were challenging,
(27:37):
but they were a lot of fun to learn a
new sport, learn about the rules, the history, the strategy.
But of the four major sports, hockey to me is
almost like riding a bike. I've done it for thirty
five years now, and you're basically calling the play and
then working in some anecdotes and stats and obviously leading
your color analysts into things. But football is definitely the
(27:59):
most rhythmic. It's the one play twenty or twenty five seconds,
another play twenty or twenty five seconds, and you know,
obviously there are replays and graphics and other elements involved.
And we have a tremendous crew with our producer Fran Marrison,
director Matt Gangle, Jonathan Willem, and Megan o'levy's our Sadeline
reporter who lives in Vegas now, but she grew up
(28:20):
in eastern Pennsylvania went to Seaton Halls. So it's a
for Megan this week as well.
Speaker 1 (28:26):
Very good and I know you've done TV, so it's
not like he was like telling you how to do
the job. But we all know what a good dude
Sam Rosen is, and not just like one of the
best guys in the industry, like one of the best
guys on the planet, Like Sam Rosen's just terrific. What
was it like kind of getting that torch from him
and then taking over the legacy that he kind of
built as the Rangers play by play guy on TV.
Speaker 4 (28:46):
No, you're right, Sam's one of the best people who'll
ever meet. Hall of Fame broadcaster still involved. The Rangers
have these centennial nights this season for their one hundredth anniversaries,
so he'll be there this Saturday m seeing the ONI ceremonies.
Speaker 2 (28:59):
Good.
Speaker 4 (29:00):
But we've all been part of the group, you know.
I was sitting next to Sam on the plane for
twenty nine years. We were all together. It started as
sal Massinoo was my partner, and then you had Sam
and John Davidson on the TV side, and then on radio,
I had Brian Mullen for a couple of years, Dave
Maloney for the last twenty. Joe Micletty replaced JD on
(29:20):
TV in two thousand and six. So we're all a family,
all part of the same traveling party. Countless flights meals together. So,
you know, sliding over into the TV booth, not much changed,
you know, as far as the schedule, the travel or
the prep. Because I was with the Rangers for twenty
nine years, it's just a little bit different. Like you
described doing it on the TV side, instead of the
(29:43):
radio side.
Speaker 2 (29:44):
Kenny, this is awesome. It's always when they catch up
with you. Man.
Speaker 1 (29:46):
Enjoy the rest of the year, Have good luck and
save travels all your hockey stuff, and we'll see on
Sunday afternoon.
Speaker 2 (29:52):
Don really appreciate it.
Speaker 4 (29:54):
Always enjoy listening and watching your work. And guess what,
we'll see you again next week for the.
Speaker 2 (30:00):
Oh you got us two weeks in a row. I
didn't know that. That's awesome.
Speaker 1 (30:04):
Wow, so you don't have to travel two weeks in
a row for Fox Man. I imagine the phone call
you with the placers. How to get that happen? That's
pretty good.
Speaker 4 (30:11):
Well, you know, sometimes, like you said, sometimes the weeks
are crazy and once in a while you got to
stay home. So uh, at least on the football side
for the next two weeks, I'll be close to home.
Speaker 2 (30:20):
Oh that's awesome, Kenny. Thanks for the time, man, I
appreciate it.
Speaker 3 (30:23):
Thanks Jean.
Speaker 1 (30:24):
That's the Giants Total Podcast, brought to you by Citizens
Official Bank of the Giants.
Speaker 2 (30:27):
We'll see you next time. Everybody
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