December 31, 2025 • 30 mins
00:00-23:40 – Amid a new starting QB announcement, Joel A. Erickson of the Indy Star joins to talk all things Colts vs Texans. What does this week look like for Riley Leonard and the Colts? What does next year look like at QB and beyond?
23:41 -30:40 – Pat Boylan of the Pacers Radio Network joins to talk about the Pacers upcoming game against the Orlando Magic.
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Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
Speaker 1 (00:00):
Joela Ericson joins me now on the Java House peel
and port guest line. Java house dot com is the website.
What a better way, think of a better way you
can to start twenty twenty six than going to java
house dot com and using Jake twenty five And that's
not for the year that we're turning. That's twenty five
percent off you get with your bundle order at the
peel and poor pods of Java House, Java house dot
(00:22):
com the website. Joel Ericson joins us now speaking of
refreshments and beverages. I think we went over this already, Joel,
did we not? You had mentioned that, And I want
to know where things stand on the stock of the
last delivery from the beer faery.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Uh, it's it's uh, you know, it's it's taking some hits.
It's taking some Okay, the amber, the tailwagger amber, that's
a newer one that I haven't had yet. That one's
pretty darn good.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
That one's really darn good.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
But yeah, it's it's taken some taking some it's taking
some lumps over the over the holiday season.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
Well, my understanding is ration is the keyword, because my
local connection to the beer Faery. The Wisconsin Beer Ferry
tells me that they're going to be a while before
the beer fairy is back up in that area, So
got a ration, be gotta be careful. All right, let's
get to this. Shane Steichen has said what that was
(01:16):
of note if anything today in regards to the Colts
preparations in the most meaningless of meaningless games.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
Riley Leonard will be your starter.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
It sounds like, barring something ridiculous, Seth Hennigan will be
your backup. Philip Rivers is going to hang around and
you know, be a mentor of the Riley Leonard this
week is he either goes through his first start and
Anthony Richardson will not be activated if he still has
visual limitations. That's all of it, real fast, Okay, lots
(01:47):
of quarterback stuff, Joel.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
I want you to think we're gonna do a little
game here. Okay, this time one year ago, in twenty
twenty four, you were still living in the same house
that you currently reside, correct, Sure you were working for
the same place of employment that you work today. Correct,
(02:11):
that's true. So twenty twenty five to you represented stability
to an extent. I mean, just in terms of your
job and where you went to bed each night. Correct.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Yeah, that's that's that's fair.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
Yeah. One year from now, on New Year's Eve, getting
ready to turn twenty twenty seven, if someone were to
talk to Anthony Richardson, would he be able to say
the same about the twenty twenty six calendar year that
you were able to say about the twenty twenty five
calendar years.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
No, I do not believe.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
So. I think I think twenty twenty six for Anthony
Richardson is going to be a year change. I think
he's he probably ends up in a different city and
in trying to say figure get things back on track there.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
That's that's my best guess.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
The reason I ask, and I'll just say it this directly,
and I'm not saying it is anything that is rooted
in any negative intention or anything like that. But it
seems to me now that I have enough and maybe
I'm stating the obvious. And I don't know that Shane
(03:21):
steiken is the head coach next year. I think he
will be, but assuming that he is, the one thing
about Shane Stikeen that I am more confident saying than
anything else is I believe that Shane Steiken is completely
over Anthony Richardson, and so long as Shane Stikeen is
the coach, unless there is absolute catastrophe in the quarterback
(03:43):
room and Richardson is the only available, he has taken
his last snap as an Indianapolis cult I think.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
I think that's fair if if Stykeen is back, if
Tyken is back, I think. I think the other part
of it is that they're all in on Daniel Jones.
And I understand, trust me, I am stand the Achilles concerns.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
I have the same concerns.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
There's been a lot of guys that they've bet on
with Achilles concerns of this franchise, and they have not
been themselves the next year. But I think from their perspective,
if you tell me, if I'm trying to tell you
what they're thinking, I think it's probably Daniel Jones. I
think if Daniel's back, then it makes it hard to
keep Anthony Richardson.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Around, Okay, which leads to this other point, and I
brought this up yesterday, Joel follow me here, which I
know can be a difficult thing to do sometimes right
Sometimes when I ask people to follow along with my
train of thought, someone pukes that, you know what I mean.
But having said that, let's just say for the sake
(04:43):
of discussion, and I think this is a Joel you too,
Stop me when I start to say something that you
think is outlandish or or does not have possibility to it. Okay,
If Daniel Jones is brought back to be the Colts
quarterback next season, and if there is still some uncertainty
as to whether or not Daniel Jones is going to
be one hundred percent ready to go for the first
(05:05):
game or two, I would say three. Three would be
the max based on timeline. But let's say that throughout
training camp or whatever, there's a soreness with the tent,
you know, whatever it might be, and they say, we
don't want to push it just yet. If Chris Ballad
and Shane Steichen are both still in their respective positions,
they're going to know how big a year it is,
(05:27):
and they're going to know, with that being a huge
year for them and for the franchise, they need to
win each and every game regardless of who the starting
quarterback is. So if they need to have a quarterback
that is going to keep the seat warm until Daniel
Jones takes over. It has to be one that allows
for a seamless transition of power at the quarterback spot,
(05:50):
and Richardson would get a little bit messy there, and
I don't know that they at this point trust Riley
Leonard in that spot. Therefore, the question becomes, who do
you think is the best option for them to be
a short gap donut tire starter to keep them and
the point where they then at the end of the year,
once Jones is clicking on all cylinders, they did not
(06:12):
lose ground and get behind the eight ball in the beginning.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah, the answer there, I think is some version of
Mac Jones, what Mac Jones was for the Ninmers this year,
where it's a guy who has started somewhere else enough
that he's got the experience, but you know, for whatever
reason it is, and you kind of try to do
like a lower level of what you did with Daniel Jones,
(06:39):
where you're bringing somebody in that you think can be
better with you than he was somewhere else, or what
the Packers have done with Malik Willis.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Malik Willis actually has done all right, right, you know
what I mean?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Yes, yes, yeah, what they've done with what the Packers
have done with Malik Willis. Is shocking that any of
us who covered any games that involved Malik Willis with
the Titans.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Okay, I'm going to give you a couple of those
names that would be a possibility. And I'm saying this
just so that people have an idea of where we
are here. Right. This is the quarterback free agency list.
Obviously Daniel Jones is one of them, and we're going
to assume that he says, look, this is where I
want to be, Gino Smith, Russell Wilson, Marcus Mariota, Tyrod Taylor,
(07:22):
Zach Wilson, Joe Flacco, Trey Lance, Mitchell Trubisky. You start
getting into the graveyard of the Anthony Richardsons of quarterbacks past,
don't you. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
I mean, especially when you get to especially when you
get to Trey Lance.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
I would think, of of that list, Mariota's probably your
best option, would you agree? Yeah? Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
And he's you know, he's starting this year, He's got
some you know, he started several games this year. I think, yeah,
I think it's probably Mariota. And he can also do
the movement stuff that you need. Some of those guys
on there can't do that movement stuff anymore, and that's
that's a pretty big part of the offense. And you think,
but like Tyler Warren and some of the stuff they
did earlier in the.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Season, does Tyler Warren become And I was mentioning this
earlier Joel Joeli Erickson is my guest Jaba House Peel
and poor guest line. Tyler Warren was so dynamic right
out of the box, right, I mean, it's like, man,
they can put this guy anywhere and he's making plays,
and he's yard after catch guy, and he's had you
pointed this out on the expost Twitter yesterday. You know,
his numbers are still all nearly historic for a rookie
(08:26):
tight end, but it does feel like there has been
rookie walls maybe the wrong word, but that things have
slowed down a little bit for him. Now you correct
me if I'm wrong there. Then I look at a
Riley Leonard and what you're going to need out of
the tight end brahps of that position, and it feels
like at the end of the year, this might be
kind of a shot in the arm again of that
for him at that position and the necessity of him.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
I think with Warren, I think the biggest thing is
if you look at his production, it really the dividing
line is when they stopped being able to be mobile
in the in the in the pocket and once and
I'm taking that back to before Jones was out, when
Jones was dealing with the fibula, and you know, he
was kind of moving around, but not really moving around
(09:12):
like that's the kind of stuff that they built a
lot of Warren's plays around early in the season and
once they lost that because obviously you don't have that
with Philip Rivers. Daniel had two games there where he
was much more stationary than we've ever seen him. That's
that's kind of what hurt Warren, I think more than anything.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Joel, just out of curiosity tonight for midnight, which which
network do you go with? What do you tuned in?
Like at the ericson house when you're rationing things off
from the beer ferry at about eleven forty five, what
channel are you watching? His midnight it's about to roll around.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
I mean, I assume that I'll be on is the
playoff game on ESPN? I assume that's where I'll be
is the I believe it's Miami in Ohio state because
It probably starts at eight, and college football games takes
six and a half or seven and a half hours.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
It feels like, who are you rooting for in that game?
Speaker 2 (10:12):
Miami?
Speaker 1 (10:13):
You know how? I knew that? Definitely Miami, because no,
you're not from Ohio, You're from Wisconsin. There's no one
that's not from Ohio rooting for Ohio State, right, is
that right?
Speaker 3 (10:23):
I don't. I don't think so.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
There's a lot of Ohio State fans around us, but
I always just assume they have some tie to Ohio somewhere.
I stopped. I gave up on any Ohio State thing.
Do you remember when they had a linebacker in the
Big Ten?
Speaker 1 (10:40):
I can't remember.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
It's a Big Ten championship game. It was just a
normal game against Wisconsin, but he leaned on I think
it was Jim Sorgie's larynx and he had to leave
the game because he couldn't talk anymore.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Yeah. I don't remember Sorgia having to leave a game
because he couldn't talk anymore. It's clearly that was taken
care of by the time he got on the Colts
Radio network, right. Yes, yes, there were actually times on
the Cults Radio Network where that people wanted them to
lean on his larnings. I love Jim Sorgie, great dude,
and his son's a really good player, by the way,
(11:14):
really good player. The reason I ask, the reason I
ask where you're what you're going to be watching at
midnight tonight is because it is now we are still
ten and a half hours away, but we're already focusing
on as a culture on New Year's Eve? What's going
to happen at midnight? This is New Year's Eve, We're
(11:36):
turning to twenty twenty six, and it feels like that's
the way this cult season is. You forget that there
is still a game to be played, You forget that
there are still ten hours to go here, right? I
mean literally, it feels as meaningless as meaningless can get.
But are there still positions be it players or front office?
(11:57):
Are there still positions that you believe could be in
flux or influenced by what happens on Sunday?
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Well? I think the biggest one is Riley Leonard. I
think is what does what Riley Leonard looks like? I
think informs the discussion we were just having about who
your backup is going into next year? Because if Leonard
gives you a reason to believe that he can he
can be a full fledged backup. Maybe we're talking about
(12:24):
you know, not Mariota, but some of the other guys
on that list as a as a veteran, you know,
kind of number three emergency option as opposed to having
a true number two. And obviously Leonard played against Jacksonville.
But this is this is a chance for him the start.
You get a chance to see him against a really
good defense, and if he surprises you, I think there's
(12:45):
a chance that maybe you go, well, you know, maybe
we feel good about Ryley Leonard everybody else. I think
in this game coming up on Sunday, I think it
would probably be a mistake to base any decision making
on what they see.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
Do you think there was any discussion at all about
whether or not rather than or would start Sunday. I
think there was.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
There was probably a little bit just sort of out
of a feeling of you know, we've got Philip here,
he came here to play, you know, do we let
him go out for one last ride? But I don't think,
just from talking to people today, I don't think that
lasted very long.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Let me give you my a and we should come
up with a name of this on the program, mostly
as a warning to people the depth of the query
brain overthinking it. Okay, to me, there was never an option,
and the reason being and maybe and I want to
give you this scenario, and then I want you Joel
(13:46):
Erickson at the Indianapolis Star, to tell me whether you
whether you think it's even remotely possible that this was
in play. Okay, if I'm Chris Ballad or I'm Shane Steichen,
I am saying to myself, Okay, I am here in
this position because the ownership trusts that I can pick
(14:08):
talent and get players to develop. Or in the case
of Shane Steiken, that would be Ballad. In the case
of Shane Stikeen, I Shane steike am here because I'm
thought of as a coach that can develop quarterbacks and
come up with schemes that allow them to flourish. And
if I'm either of those two men, I'm looking at
(14:30):
it and saying, if I start anybody other than Riyley
Leonard on Sunday, then knowing that I'm going to have
to go in for a postseason interview on Monday with
the person who's going to decide my fate. I would
expect them to then say, if I'm trusting you to
pick talent or if I'm trusting you to grow quarterbacks,
and you have a guy that you didn't feel comfortable
(14:53):
enough to put out on the field and the most
meaningless of games that has nothing to do with our
season in Week seventeen, and instead went with the guy
that's the former high school coach. Novelty act for another round.
That tells me everything I need to know about your
incompetence at your position that you're trusted to do.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
I think that that definitely could have come into play.
But I also think that this team does like Riley Leonard.
I do think they like what they've seen from him
so far this season and wanted to give him a chance.
But at the same time, you know realistically what they're
what they're going into the games they were going into
before this, Because I know a lot of people are
(15:33):
still wondering why why Rivers over Leonard? They felt like
they had a better chance with the veteran. But obviously,
like you said, now, this game doesn't mean anything from
a standing standpoint, So yes.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Then you go with the guy you like.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Okay, is there any chance Joel one thing that And
I can't speak for Daniel Jones here. I thought Daniel
Jones did a pretty nice job of going through his
progressions and making the right Certainly through the first eight
games he was making the right decisions. I thought Pittsburgh
rushed him a little bit and that maybe throughout a blueprint,
(16:09):
and then of course the injury comes into play. But
Philip Rivers, who was out there, you know? I mean,
you could tell when Philip Rivers walked out of the
huddle that he was an aged guy. But his ability
to walk up to the line and recognize things defensively
and process was very impressive and it's something that young
(16:32):
quarterbacks can learn from, even a Daniel Jones. Any chance
that Philip Rivers has a future place within the franchise
simply as a liaison that can teach and pass along
that of which he's able to so quickly process.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Within the franchise, I don't think so. Because Philip has
always had this desire to coach his sons in high
school football the way his dad coached him. And as
we all know, Philip's youngest son is actually quite young.
He will be in high school for a little while.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
So I do think.
Speaker 2 (17:07):
That that that keeps him, you know, as the head
coach is Saint Michael Katholick, because I have seen a
lot of people going, you know, could he coach at
this level?
Speaker 3 (17:15):
Obviously? I think he could coach at this level.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
He's he's very, very smart, but he is at least
my understanding was always that his sort of vision for
what he would do is he was going to coach
his sons. Now the flip side of that, though, is
that Riley Leonard has already worked with Philip Rivers in
the offseason.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
The last two I believe the last two off seasons,
and just by going to Fair Hope.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
And so if you wanted to say to Daniel Jones
or whoever is going to be your quarterback, Hey, if
you're looking for someone to go go talk to and
train with or whatever, I bet Philip would love to
talk ball for however long you want to. So I
think it would be more informal than formal. But yes,
obviously I also wonder there's a piece of me that
(18:01):
also wonders if it's got to help hearing from Philip Rivers.
But there's a piece of me that just wonders, you know,
given his physical limitations and given the fact that he
was able to play reasonable football those physical limitations, like,
is this something that like no matter how much he
talks about it, he can only impart so much.
Speaker 3 (18:24):
I don't know if there The more we watch him, the.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
More I think that maybe a handful of people have
ever seen the game the way he sees it pre snap.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Now, there are a couple of questions I have for you,
Joel in terms of future if you will predictions. Okay, Now,
do you recall a while ago? I believe I asked you.
It might have been this time of year ago. I
asked you who would be the starting quarterback Week one
of the twenty twenty five NFL season for the Colts,
(18:55):
And you said, Daniel Jones, do you remember this? Yes?
I do. I think. Actually it wasn't even me. I
believe it was Robin the Genie. Who was it?
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Not?
Speaker 3 (19:08):
It was it was? And Robin is still holding out
of my million dollar probably.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Well here's what's interesting, Okay. My understanding is Robin the
Genie offers one million dollars to people, right, And my
understanding is he's he's up to his rear in arrears
and while other the beer fairy brings you beer. My
understanding is Robin the Genie when he comes to parties,
brings grape soda because he welches on everything. That's what
(19:33):
That's what I've been told. Now, I don't know if
that's true or not. You have not gotten payment from
Robin the Genie, Is that correct? I have not.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
I have not in dollars or in grape soda.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Okay, well, you know what funny you mentioned. It appears
as though he might actually want to be here to
defend himself. It would appear. I'm not even positive on this.
He said he's a friend. The beer ferry from wisconcent
clothes me on mythical phone to let me know that
Joel has been talking a little trash about my inability.
(20:05):
If you pay my billings, Robin, you know I appreciate that.
Does that mean that you would like to do it?
I would like to offer for Joe the opportunity of
a double or nothing proposition for twenty six two million
bucks on the line. Joe, you down for it?
Speaker 3 (20:23):
I am this is this is definitely a favorite Jennie.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Though, because we have such an unknown coming on and
what they're gonna do here in a week.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Well, the other thing that makes this fun is that
the helium has gotten into the phone line, and so
it now sounds like I'm dealing with a child. Yeah,
that is true, Robin. Okay. So, Robin, did you have
a question. I do have one question for Joeli Erickson.
I'm going to mention a player, and Joe needs to
tell me if Sunday is the last time we will
see him in a coach you in the phone? Oh,
(20:52):
I would think Anthony Richardson he is an ir pay attention.
Please sorry, Robin. Okay, Robin, the genie has go ahead, Robin.
Then what I'd like to know from you, Joel Ericson?
Do you believe Sunday is the find on opportunity? I
will have to wear my Alec Pierce coach jersey while
watching my team play. Very good question, Joel. Two million
(21:16):
bucks on the line for you.
Speaker 3 (21:21):
I think he's back.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
Do you mean Robin or Alec Pierce.
Speaker 4 (21:28):
I don't feel confident in that one, but I think
Alec Pierce is back.
Speaker 1 (21:32):
Do you believe that's? Because? And thank you Robin, by
the way, happy he is, Happy New Year to you? Yes,
do you believe that Alec Pierce is back, Joel, because
just the fact that you know, obviously the incumbent, you know,
it's your safest bet as always, that of familiarity, and
he's been within the roster and you know with the
(21:52):
locker room, and you know he has flourished this year,
or because of the fact do you think that he
comes back because even though he has played well for them,
he is not going to get on the market what
he could get out of Indianapolis because it would appear
to me he's played himself into a pretty big contract.
Speaker 4 (22:10):
My my understanding is that Pierce wants to be back,
and not in the way that everyone says they want
to be back and they kind of mean it, but
depends on what the dollar figure is. My understanding is
that Pierce really really wants to be back here, uh
and so. And I also know that him and Daniel
Jones are pretty close. So if I'm kind of basing
(22:30):
that guess and that that on on if Jones is back,
Pierce is going to want to be back with with
the organization. Now you know this, this is where this
is where the genie might get me if if they
decided to move on from everybody, then all that.
Speaker 3 (22:45):
Goes out the window.
Speaker 4 (22:46):
So but based but based on what we know, I
think he's probably gonna be want to be back with
Jones and with this organization.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Okay, lastly, Joel, because uh, the Helium Ferry has arrived.
Kick the beer Perry out of the way. Yeah, So
can we just get you real quick if we could
on the air, and you've been a good support about
this in the past, can you say to me with
using the and you don't even need to doctor your voice.
The Helium Fairy does it for us. Can you simply
say I'm Joela Erickson and I'm also the beer Fairy.
(23:16):
Can we get you to say that.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
I'm Joeli Erickson and I'm also the beer Fairy?
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Okay, well there you go. All right, Joel, Happy New
Year to you. Ration yourself, all right, I'll.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Do my best. It's tough to ration. It's tough.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
It is tough to rashing, Yes, Joela Erickson joining us
on the Java House peeling poor guest line, Pat Boiling
joining us on the Java House Peel and poor guest line.
Kind of it's actually the direct line over the gamebridge
Field House Pacers, Magic tonight, and the lineup continue to
kind of be shuffled around. Pat, who's in or who's out?
(23:55):
Give me the familiarity of what we see here in
the last lineup for twenty twenty five for the Pacers.
Speaker 5 (24:00):
Well, the good news, Jake is that's trending in the
right direction. The Pacers are healthier than they've been in
quite some time. Ben Sheppard questionable, he's going to play.
TJ McConn probable, he's available. So the Pacers right now
are really just missing Tyree Saliburt and Isaiah Jackson and
Obi Toppin. And I shouldn't say just with that, because
those are three very important players, including your best player,
(24:21):
of course, but considering what the injury report has been
for a lot of the year, that is a much
slimmer list than most of the season.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Pat, do you get the impression. I've talked about this
with Scott Agnes a couple of others, but I'll get
your thought on it. You know, the Pacers have gotten
points from twenty four players this year. They have had
to do ten day contracts, They've had to do hardships.
Tony East and I've talked about this as well. Do
you get the impression that even though there are times
they're having to go out of roster necessity to put
(24:52):
players out, that they're also always looking at potential pieces
that could be players next year, that are in the
mix for them, that could work their way into say
a two way or some sort of an end of
roster deal. Are there constantly auditioning that or is this
more just out of literally necessity.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Well, I think both of those things are probably true.
If you look at the recent example Micah Potter, he
was brought in in large part because Isaiah Jackson went
down and Tony Bradley broke his thumb in a short
period of time and they needed some frontcourt depth. But
I think the other part of your question, or perhaps point,
if you were making it, is valid. I think everything
is under review this year. I think you're seeing a
(25:34):
lot of players that are perhaps auditioning for future roles
as this team hopefully gets healthier and brings Tyreee Haliburton
back next year. You know that includes guys like Andrew
Nemhart I think who are established very good players in
this league. Guys like Jeris Walker are obvious. But I
think it's accurate all the way down the roster. This
is a really good opportunity and a really good audition
(25:55):
for a lot of different players. And as you say, now,
with the two ways, you know you can carry eight guys,
and the amount of players the Pacers have had on
this roster has been substantial. I think Rick Carlisle is
evaluating everything.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Has ben Nick Matherin been playing hurt?
Speaker 5 (26:12):
He has been playing not one hundred percent. He's referenced
it a few times that the toe is just not
back to one hundred percent and that it still bothers him,
but not to the level where he or the team
views he should be sitting out. So is that, you know,
part of what's happened here in his last handful of games,
I don't know. You know, when he came back, he
was actually playing really well into early mid December. His
(26:36):
numbers were great, and a lot of that you would
assume was with that toe bothering him as well. So
he had a pretty good game in Miami, But otherwise
the last three weeks or so for him have been
a challenge. He's not one hundred percent, though, and I
think that probably should be taken into the calculus of
any sort of evaluation on Mathron.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Right now, Pat, when I was a younger guy, late nineties,
early two thousands, I'll use the NDY five hundred as
my example here, there was a changing of the guard,
and Rick Mears and Emerson Fitipaldi and al Once or
all these names that we'd known forever all retired within
about a three to five year span, and then you
had new names that we were unfamiliar with that we
(27:15):
had to get to know Lio Castrovis, Ton Knain, Scott Dixon.
The same is true in virtually all sports. Right have
we seen that in the last year. It seems to
me that we've seen this changing of the guard and
this kind of shift with halftime shows, Like some of
the halftime shows we've gotten to know and love seemed
to be phased out or retired or moved on to
(27:37):
other things or on the IR and now sometimes you
and I have commented on this. Some of them are okay,
and some of them feel like TIMU, but it feels
like there's a new we have a new era of
halftime shows. You see all of them? Am I correct?
Speaker 5 (27:51):
I'm sitting here gearing up to have the debate with
you on whether it's no longer Lebron James and Steph
Curry's league and then and then we go halftime here.
So yeah, I think that's probably accurate, although the gold
standard to me is Red Panda, who is the Lebron
James of halftime act. She just goes and goes and
goes and shows no sign of slowing down. Including how
(28:14):
impressive was it that she did it on the turf,
or at least I assume that's impressive. I would imagine
it's harder to do that on the turf at Lucas
Oil Stadium. And frankly was a little jealous that I
wasn't there to witness it as many times as we've
gotten to see it. That was a first for her.
So she's still the gold standard and she's still going strong.
But yeah, it does feel like we're seeing a little
(28:36):
bit of a changing of the guard there. I would
agree with that.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
I'm a little played out with the guy that balances
the ladder on the chin. I mean, it's you know
what I mean, like, Okay, it's impressive, but then after
like by the time he gets a bicycle on there,
you're just kind of like, okay, which is ridiculous because
it's hard to do right, I mean, but it just
you know, you start to feel bad for him because
you wonder how much he's driven off friends.
Speaker 5 (29:01):
Well, we've had this discussion before. To me, the number
one question I would always ask any of these guys,
including that guy, is how did you learn that you
had a skill for this? I now on you once
you started learning you have a skill, anybody can practice it.
But it's almost like a chicken and an egg thing
to me, because a did you realize that you could
start balancing large objects on your chin just kind of
(29:24):
out of the blue, or did you come to this
realization that that would be a really cool thing to
do and worked at it. I wish we could sit
down with the ones that are regularly on tour and
ask them.
Speaker 1 (29:34):
That I'm not saying specifically which cases I'm talking about
because I want to protect myself from a legal standpoint here, Pat,
But in some of the cases of the question you ask,
I believe the answer goes as simple as this alcohol
may have been a factor.
Speaker 5 (29:47):
Well, with any question, you can never totally take that
out of.
Speaker 1 (29:51):
It, out of the equation.
Speaker 5 (29:52):
Although although if that guy, if that guy could balance
ladders and bikes with any sort of alcohol consumption would
be extremely impressive.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
Listen. I mean, it's cool to watch him balance the
ladder until the one guy that looks like he might
be some sort of an Eastern European wrestler comes out,
puts a pole on his chin, and then a girl
gets up and starts swinging off of it, and I think, okay,
well that kind of trumps the ladder guy. The subtle
competition of these folks is always entertaining, all right, Pat
will be entertaining as well, along with the competition of
(30:22):
the pacers and Magic. Mark Boyle will be there Eddie
Gill as well. Pat. Happy New Year to you.
Speaker 5 (30:26):
Man Hey, same to you, and thanks for allowing us
to take a half hour out of your show today.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
Of course, of course, my pleasure on a holiday, right
on New Year's Eve, So Pat boy then we will
send it out there just a couple of minutes
Joela Ericson joins me now on the Java House peel
and port guest line. Java house dot com is the website.
What a better way, think of a better way you
can to start twenty twenty six than going to java
house dot com and using Jake twenty five And that's
not for the year that we're turning. That's twenty five
percent off you get with your bundle order at the
peel and poor pods of Java House, Java house dot
(00:22):
com the website. Joel Ericson joins us now speaking of
refreshments and beverages. I think we went over this already, Joel,
did we not? You had mentioned that, And I want
to know where things stand on the stock of the
last delivery from the beer faery.
Speaker 2 (00:36):
Uh, it's it's uh, you know, it's it's taking some hits.
It's taking some Okay, the amber, the tailwagger amber, that's
a newer one that I haven't had yet. That one's
pretty darn good.
Speaker 1 (00:48):
That one's really darn good.
Speaker 2 (00:49):
But yeah, it's it's taken some taking some it's taking
some lumps over the over the holiday season.
Speaker 1 (00:54):
Well, my understanding is ration is the keyword, because my
local connection to the beer Faery. The Wisconsin Beer Ferry
tells me that they're going to be a while before
the beer fairy is back up in that area, So
got a ration, be gotta be careful. All right, let's
get to this. Shane Steichen has said what that was
(01:16):
of note if anything today in regards to the Colts
preparations in the most meaningless of meaningless games.
Speaker 3 (01:24):
Riley Leonard will be your starter.
Speaker 2 (01:26):
It sounds like, barring something ridiculous, Seth Hennigan will be
your backup. Philip Rivers is going to hang around and
you know, be a mentor of the Riley Leonard this
week is he either goes through his first start and
Anthony Richardson will not be activated if he still has
visual limitations. That's all of it, real fast, Okay, lots
(01:47):
of quarterback stuff, Joel.
Speaker 1 (01:49):
I want you to think we're gonna do a little
game here. Okay, this time one year ago, in twenty
twenty four, you were still living in the same house
that you currently reside, correct, Sure you were working for
the same place of employment that you work today. Correct,
(02:11):
that's true. So twenty twenty five to you represented stability
to an extent. I mean, just in terms of your
job and where you went to bed each night. Correct.
Speaker 3 (02:22):
Yeah, that's that's that's fair.
Speaker 1 (02:23):
Yeah. One year from now, on New Year's Eve, getting
ready to turn twenty twenty seven, if someone were to
talk to Anthony Richardson, would he be able to say
the same about the twenty twenty six calendar year that
you were able to say about the twenty twenty five
calendar years.
Speaker 3 (02:43):
No, I do not believe.
Speaker 2 (02:44):
So. I think I think twenty twenty six for Anthony
Richardson is going to be a year change. I think
he's he probably ends up in a different city and
in trying to say figure get things back on track there.
Speaker 3 (02:59):
That's that's my best guess.
Speaker 1 (03:00):
The reason I ask, and I'll just say it this directly,
and I'm not saying it is anything that is rooted
in any negative intention or anything like that. But it
seems to me now that I have enough and maybe
I'm stating the obvious. And I don't know that Shane
(03:21):
steiken is the head coach next year. I think he
will be, but assuming that he is, the one thing
about Shane Stikeen that I am more confident saying than
anything else is I believe that Shane Steiken is completely
over Anthony Richardson, and so long as Shane Stikeen is
the coach, unless there is absolute catastrophe in the quarterback
(03:43):
room and Richardson is the only available, he has taken
his last snap as an Indianapolis cult I think.
Speaker 2 (03:50):
I think that's fair if if Stykeen is back, if
Tyken is back, I think. I think the other part
of it is that they're all in on Daniel Jones.
And I understand, trust me, I am stand the Achilles concerns.
Speaker 3 (04:03):
I have the same concerns.
Speaker 2 (04:05):
There's been a lot of guys that they've bet on
with Achilles concerns of this franchise, and they have not
been themselves the next year. But I think from their perspective,
if you tell me, if I'm trying to tell you
what they're thinking, I think it's probably Daniel Jones. I
think if Daniel's back, then it makes it hard to
keep Anthony Richardson.
Speaker 1 (04:20):
Around, Okay, which leads to this other point, and I
brought this up yesterday, Joel follow me here, which I
know can be a difficult thing to do sometimes right
Sometimes when I ask people to follow along with my
train of thought, someone pukes that, you know what I mean.
But having said that, let's just say for the sake
(04:43):
of discussion, and I think this is a Joel you too,
Stop me when I start to say something that you
think is outlandish or or does not have possibility to it. Okay,
If Daniel Jones is brought back to be the Colts
quarterback next season, and if there is still some uncertainty
as to whether or not Daniel Jones is going to
be one hundred percent ready to go for the first
(05:05):
game or two, I would say three. Three would be
the max based on timeline. But let's say that throughout
training camp or whatever, there's a soreness with the tent,
you know, whatever it might be, and they say, we
don't want to push it just yet. If Chris Ballad
and Shane Steichen are both still in their respective positions,
they're going to know how big a year it is,
(05:27):
and they're going to know, with that being a huge
year for them and for the franchise, they need to
win each and every game regardless of who the starting
quarterback is. So if they need to have a quarterback
that is going to keep the seat warm until Daniel
Jones takes over. It has to be one that allows
for a seamless transition of power at the quarterback spot,
(05:50):
and Richardson would get a little bit messy there, and
I don't know that they at this point trust Riley
Leonard in that spot. Therefore, the question becomes, who do
you think is the best option for them to be
a short gap donut tire starter to keep them and
the point where they then at the end of the year,
once Jones is clicking on all cylinders, they did not
(06:12):
lose ground and get behind the eight ball in the beginning.
Speaker 2 (06:16):
Yeah, the answer there, I think is some version of
Mac Jones, what Mac Jones was for the Ninmers this year,
where it's a guy who has started somewhere else enough
that he's got the experience, but you know, for whatever
reason it is, and you kind of try to do
like a lower level of what you did with Daniel Jones,
(06:39):
where you're bringing somebody in that you think can be
better with you than he was somewhere else, or what
the Packers have done with Malik Willis.
Speaker 1 (06:47):
Malik Willis actually has done all right, right, you know
what I mean?
Speaker 2 (06:50):
Yes, yes, yeah, what they've done with what the Packers
have done with Malik Willis. Is shocking that any of
us who covered any games that involved Malik Willis with
the Titans.
Speaker 1 (07:00):
Okay, I'm going to give you a couple of those
names that would be a possibility. And I'm saying this
just so that people have an idea of where we
are here. Right. This is the quarterback free agency list.
Obviously Daniel Jones is one of them, and we're going
to assume that he says, look, this is where I
want to be, Gino Smith, Russell Wilson, Marcus Mariota, Tyrod Taylor,
(07:22):
Zach Wilson, Joe Flacco, Trey Lance, Mitchell Trubisky. You start
getting into the graveyard of the Anthony Richardsons of quarterbacks past,
don't you. Yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:33):
I mean, especially when you get to especially when you
get to Trey Lance.
Speaker 1 (07:37):
I would think, of of that list, Mariota's probably your
best option, would you agree? Yeah? Yeah, yeah.
Speaker 2 (07:46):
And he's you know, he's starting this year, He's got
some you know, he started several games this year. I think, yeah,
I think it's probably Mariota. And he can also do
the movement stuff that you need. Some of those guys
on there can't do that movement stuff anymore, and that's
that's a pretty big part of the offense. And you think,
but like Tyler Warren and some of the stuff they
did earlier in the.
Speaker 1 (08:03):
Season, does Tyler Warren become And I was mentioning this
earlier Joel Joeli Erickson is my guest Jaba House Peel
and poor guest line. Tyler Warren was so dynamic right
out of the box, right, I mean, it's like, man,
they can put this guy anywhere and he's making plays,
and he's yard after catch guy, and he's had you
pointed this out on the expost Twitter yesterday. You know,
his numbers are still all nearly historic for a rookie
(08:26):
tight end, but it does feel like there has been
rookie walls maybe the wrong word, but that things have
slowed down a little bit for him. Now you correct
me if I'm wrong there. Then I look at a
Riley Leonard and what you're going to need out of
the tight end brahps of that position, and it feels
like at the end of the year, this might be
kind of a shot in the arm again of that
for him at that position and the necessity of him.
Speaker 2 (08:51):
I think with Warren, I think the biggest thing is
if you look at his production, it really the dividing
line is when they stopped being able to be mobile
in the in the in the pocket and once and
I'm taking that back to before Jones was out, when
Jones was dealing with the fibula, and you know, he
was kind of moving around, but not really moving around
(09:12):
like that's the kind of stuff that they built a
lot of Warren's plays around early in the season and
once they lost that because obviously you don't have that
with Philip Rivers. Daniel had two games there where he
was much more stationary than we've ever seen him. That's
that's kind of what hurt Warren, I think more than anything.
Speaker 1 (09:33):
Joel, just out of curiosity tonight for midnight, which which
network do you go with? What do you tuned in?
Like at the ericson house when you're rationing things off
from the beer ferry at about eleven forty five, what
channel are you watching? His midnight it's about to roll around.
Speaker 2 (09:51):
I mean, I assume that I'll be on is the
playoff game on ESPN? I assume that's where I'll be
is the I believe it's Miami in Ohio state because
It probably starts at eight, and college football games takes
six and a half or seven and a half hours.
Speaker 1 (10:07):
It feels like, who are you rooting for in that game?
Speaker 2 (10:12):
Miami?
Speaker 1 (10:13):
You know how? I knew that? Definitely Miami, because no,
you're not from Ohio, You're from Wisconsin. There's no one
that's not from Ohio rooting for Ohio State, right, is
that right?
Speaker 3 (10:23):
I don't. I don't think so.
Speaker 2 (10:25):
There's a lot of Ohio State fans around us, but
I always just assume they have some tie to Ohio somewhere.
I stopped. I gave up on any Ohio State thing.
Do you remember when they had a linebacker in the
Big Ten?
Speaker 1 (10:40):
I can't remember.
Speaker 2 (10:40):
It's a Big Ten championship game. It was just a
normal game against Wisconsin, but he leaned on I think
it was Jim Sorgie's larynx and he had to leave
the game because he couldn't talk anymore.
Speaker 1 (10:53):
Yeah. I don't remember Sorgia having to leave a game
because he couldn't talk anymore. It's clearly that was taken
care of by the time he got on the Colts
Radio network, right. Yes, yes, there were actually times on
the Cults Radio Network where that people wanted them to
lean on his larnings. I love Jim Sorgie, great dude,
and his son's a really good player, by the way,
(11:14):
really good player. The reason I ask, the reason I
ask where you're what you're going to be watching at
midnight tonight is because it is now we are still
ten and a half hours away, but we're already focusing
on as a culture on New Year's Eve? What's going
to happen at midnight? This is New Year's Eve, We're
(11:36):
turning to twenty twenty six, and it feels like that's
the way this cult season is. You forget that there
is still a game to be played, You forget that
there are still ten hours to go here, right? I
mean literally, it feels as meaningless as meaningless can get.
But are there still positions be it players or front office?
(11:57):
Are there still positions that you believe could be in
flux or influenced by what happens on Sunday?
Speaker 2 (12:04):
Well? I think the biggest one is Riley Leonard. I
think is what does what Riley Leonard looks like? I
think informs the discussion we were just having about who
your backup is going into next year? Because if Leonard
gives you a reason to believe that he can he
can be a full fledged backup. Maybe we're talking about
(12:24):
you know, not Mariota, but some of the other guys
on that list as a as a veteran, you know,
kind of number three emergency option as opposed to having
a true number two. And obviously Leonard played against Jacksonville.
But this is this is a chance for him the start.
You get a chance to see him against a really
good defense, and if he surprises you, I think there's
(12:45):
a chance that maybe you go, well, you know, maybe
we feel good about Ryley Leonard everybody else. I think
in this game coming up on Sunday, I think it
would probably be a mistake to base any decision making
on what they see.
Speaker 1 (13:00):
Do you think there was any discussion at all about
whether or not rather than or would start Sunday. I
think there was.
Speaker 2 (13:10):
There was probably a little bit just sort of out
of a feeling of you know, we've got Philip here,
he came here to play, you know, do we let
him go out for one last ride? But I don't think,
just from talking to people today, I don't think that
lasted very long.
Speaker 1 (13:24):
Let me give you my a and we should come
up with a name of this on the program, mostly
as a warning to people the depth of the query
brain overthinking it. Okay, to me, there was never an option,
and the reason being and maybe and I want to
give you this scenario, and then I want you Joel
(13:46):
Erickson at the Indianapolis Star, to tell me whether you
whether you think it's even remotely possible that this was
in play. Okay, if I'm Chris Ballad or I'm Shane Steichen,
I am saying to myself, Okay, I am here in
this position because the ownership trusts that I can pick
(14:08):
talent and get players to develop. Or in the case
of Shane Steiken, that would be Ballad. In the case
of Shane Stikeen, I Shane steike am here because I'm
thought of as a coach that can develop quarterbacks and
come up with schemes that allow them to flourish. And
if I'm either of those two men, I'm looking at
(14:30):
it and saying, if I start anybody other than Riyley
Leonard on Sunday, then knowing that I'm going to have
to go in for a postseason interview on Monday with
the person who's going to decide my fate. I would
expect them to then say, if I'm trusting you to
pick talent or if I'm trusting you to grow quarterbacks,
and you have a guy that you didn't feel comfortable
(14:53):
enough to put out on the field and the most
meaningless of games that has nothing to do with our
season in Week seventeen, and instead went with the guy
that's the former high school coach. Novelty act for another round.
That tells me everything I need to know about your
incompetence at your position that you're trusted to do.
Speaker 2 (15:12):
I think that that definitely could have come into play.
But I also think that this team does like Riley Leonard.
I do think they like what they've seen from him
so far this season and wanted to give him a chance.
But at the same time, you know realistically what they're
what they're going into the games they were going into
before this, Because I know a lot of people are
(15:33):
still wondering why why Rivers over Leonard? They felt like
they had a better chance with the veteran. But obviously,
like you said, now, this game doesn't mean anything from
a standing standpoint, So yes.
Speaker 3 (15:46):
Then you go with the guy you like.
Speaker 1 (15:47):
Okay, is there any chance Joel one thing that And
I can't speak for Daniel Jones here. I thought Daniel
Jones did a pretty nice job of going through his
progressions and making the right Certainly through the first eight
games he was making the right decisions. I thought Pittsburgh
rushed him a little bit and that maybe throughout a blueprint,
(16:09):
and then of course the injury comes into play. But
Philip Rivers, who was out there, you know? I mean,
you could tell when Philip Rivers walked out of the
huddle that he was an aged guy. But his ability
to walk up to the line and recognize things defensively
and process was very impressive and it's something that young
(16:32):
quarterbacks can learn from, even a Daniel Jones. Any chance
that Philip Rivers has a future place within the franchise
simply as a liaison that can teach and pass along
that of which he's able to so quickly process.
Speaker 2 (16:48):
Within the franchise, I don't think so. Because Philip has
always had this desire to coach his sons in high
school football the way his dad coached him. And as
we all know, Philip's youngest son is actually quite young.
He will be in high school for a little while.
Speaker 1 (17:06):
So I do think.
Speaker 2 (17:07):
That that that keeps him, you know, as the head
coach is Saint Michael Katholick, because I have seen a
lot of people going, you know, could he coach at
this level?
Speaker 3 (17:15):
Obviously? I think he could coach at this level.
Speaker 2 (17:17):
He's he's very, very smart, but he is at least
my understanding was always that his sort of vision for
what he would do is he was going to coach
his sons. Now the flip side of that, though, is
that Riley Leonard has already worked with Philip Rivers in
the offseason.
Speaker 3 (17:35):
The last two I believe the last two off seasons,
and just by going to Fair Hope.
Speaker 2 (17:39):
And so if you wanted to say to Daniel Jones
or whoever is going to be your quarterback, Hey, if
you're looking for someone to go go talk to and
train with or whatever, I bet Philip would love to
talk ball for however long you want to. So I
think it would be more informal than formal. But yes,
obviously I also wonder there's a piece of me that
(18:01):
also wonders if it's got to help hearing from Philip Rivers.
But there's a piece of me that just wonders, you know,
given his physical limitations and given the fact that he
was able to play reasonable football those physical limitations, like,
is this something that like no matter how much he
talks about it, he can only impart so much.
Speaker 3 (18:24):
I don't know if there The more we watch him, the.
Speaker 2 (18:27):
More I think that maybe a handful of people have
ever seen the game the way he sees it pre snap.
Speaker 1 (18:33):
Now, there are a couple of questions I have for you,
Joel in terms of future if you will predictions. Okay, Now,
do you recall a while ago? I believe I asked you.
It might have been this time of year ago. I
asked you who would be the starting quarterback Week one
of the twenty twenty five NFL season for the Colts,
(18:55):
And you said, Daniel Jones, do you remember this? Yes?
I do. I think. Actually it wasn't even me. I
believe it was Robin the Genie. Who was it?
Speaker 2 (19:06):
Not?
Speaker 3 (19:08):
It was it was? And Robin is still holding out
of my million dollar probably.
Speaker 1 (19:11):
Well here's what's interesting, Okay. My understanding is Robin the
Genie offers one million dollars to people, right, And my
understanding is he's he's up to his rear in arrears
and while other the beer fairy brings you beer. My
understanding is Robin the Genie when he comes to parties,
brings grape soda because he welches on everything. That's what
(19:33):
That's what I've been told. Now, I don't know if
that's true or not. You have not gotten payment from
Robin the Genie, Is that correct? I have not.
Speaker 3 (19:40):
I have not in dollars or in grape soda.
Speaker 1 (19:42):
Okay, well, you know what funny you mentioned. It appears
as though he might actually want to be here to
defend himself. It would appear. I'm not even positive on this.
He said he's a friend. The beer ferry from wisconcent
clothes me on mythical phone to let me know that
Joel has been talking a little trash about my inability.
(20:05):
If you pay my billings, Robin, you know I appreciate that.
Does that mean that you would like to do it?
I would like to offer for Joe the opportunity of
a double or nothing proposition for twenty six two million
bucks on the line. Joe, you down for it?
Speaker 3 (20:23):
I am this is this is definitely a favorite Jennie.
Speaker 4 (20:26):
Though, because we have such an unknown coming on and
what they're gonna do here in a week.
Speaker 1 (20:31):
Well, the other thing that makes this fun is that
the helium has gotten into the phone line, and so
it now sounds like I'm dealing with a child. Yeah,
that is true, Robin. Okay. So, Robin, did you have
a question. I do have one question for Joeli Erickson.
I'm going to mention a player, and Joe needs to
tell me if Sunday is the last time we will
see him in a coach you in the phone? Oh,
(20:52):
I would think Anthony Richardson he is an ir pay attention.
Please sorry, Robin. Okay, Robin, the genie has go ahead, Robin.
Then what I'd like to know from you, Joel Ericson?
Do you believe Sunday is the find on opportunity? I
will have to wear my Alec Pierce coach jersey while
watching my team play. Very good question, Joel. Two million
(21:16):
bucks on the line for you.
Speaker 3 (21:21):
I think he's back.
Speaker 1 (21:25):
Do you mean Robin or Alec Pierce.
Speaker 4 (21:28):
I don't feel confident in that one, but I think
Alec Pierce is back.
Speaker 1 (21:32):
Do you believe that's? Because? And thank you Robin, by
the way, happy he is, Happy New Year to you? Yes,
do you believe that Alec Pierce is back, Joel, because
just the fact that you know, obviously the incumbent, you know,
it's your safest bet as always, that of familiarity, and
he's been within the roster and you know with the
(21:52):
locker room, and you know he has flourished this year,
or because of the fact do you think that he
comes back because even though he has played well for them,
he is not going to get on the market what
he could get out of Indianapolis because it would appear
to me he's played himself into a pretty big contract.
Speaker 4 (22:10):
My my understanding is that Pierce wants to be back,
and not in the way that everyone says they want
to be back and they kind of mean it, but
depends on what the dollar figure is. My understanding is
that Pierce really really wants to be back here, uh
and so. And I also know that him and Daniel
Jones are pretty close. So if I'm kind of basing
(22:30):
that guess and that that on on if Jones is back,
Pierce is going to want to be back with with
the organization. Now you know this, this is where this
is where the genie might get me if if they
decided to move on from everybody, then all that.
Speaker 3 (22:45):
Goes out the window.
Speaker 4 (22:46):
So but based but based on what we know, I
think he's probably gonna be want to be back with
Jones and with this organization.
Speaker 1 (22:55):
Okay, lastly, Joel, because uh, the Helium Ferry has arrived.
Kick the beer Perry out of the way. Yeah, So
can we just get you real quick if we could
on the air, and you've been a good support about
this in the past, can you say to me with
using the and you don't even need to doctor your voice.
The Helium Fairy does it for us. Can you simply
say I'm Joela Erickson and I'm also the beer Fairy.
(23:16):
Can we get you to say that.
Speaker 3 (23:19):
I'm Joeli Erickson and I'm also the beer Fairy?
Speaker 1 (23:23):
Okay, well there you go. All right, Joel, Happy New
Year to you. Ration yourself, all right, I'll.
Speaker 3 (23:30):
Do my best. It's tough to ration. It's tough.
Speaker 1 (23:33):
It is tough to rashing, Yes, Joela Erickson joining us
on the Java House peeling poor guest line, Pat Boiling
joining us on the Java House Peel and poor guest line.
Kind of it's actually the direct line over the gamebridge
Field House Pacers, Magic tonight, and the lineup continue to
kind of be shuffled around. Pat, who's in or who's out?
(23:55):
Give me the familiarity of what we see here in
the last lineup for twenty twenty five for the Pacers.
Speaker 5 (24:00):
Well, the good news, Jake is that's trending in the
right direction. The Pacers are healthier than they've been in
quite some time. Ben Sheppard questionable, he's going to play.
TJ McConn probable, he's available. So the Pacers right now
are really just missing Tyree Saliburt and Isaiah Jackson and
Obi Toppin. And I shouldn't say just with that, because
those are three very important players, including your best player,
(24:21):
of course, but considering what the injury report has been
for a lot of the year, that is a much
slimmer list than most of the season.
Speaker 1 (24:29):
Pat, do you get the impression. I've talked about this
with Scott Agnes a couple of others, but I'll get
your thought on it. You know, the Pacers have gotten
points from twenty four players this year. They have had
to do ten day contracts, They've had to do hardships.
Tony East and I've talked about this as well. Do
you get the impression that even though there are times
they're having to go out of roster necessity to put
(24:52):
players out, that they're also always looking at potential pieces
that could be players next year, that are in the
mix for them, that could work their way into say
a two way or some sort of an end of
roster deal. Are there constantly auditioning that or is this
more just out of literally necessity.
Speaker 5 (25:13):
Well, I think both of those things are probably true.
If you look at the recent example Micah Potter, he
was brought in in large part because Isaiah Jackson went
down and Tony Bradley broke his thumb in a short
period of time and they needed some frontcourt depth. But
I think the other part of your question, or perhaps point,
if you were making it, is valid. I think everything
is under review this year. I think you're seeing a
(25:34):
lot of players that are perhaps auditioning for future roles
as this team hopefully gets healthier and brings Tyreee Haliburton
back next year. You know that includes guys like Andrew
Nemhart I think who are established very good players in
this league. Guys like Jeris Walker are obvious. But I
think it's accurate all the way down the roster. This
is a really good opportunity and a really good audition
(25:55):
for a lot of different players. And as you say, now,
with the two ways, you know you can carry eight guys,
and the amount of players the Pacers have had on
this roster has been substantial. I think Rick Carlisle is
evaluating everything.
Speaker 1 (26:06):
Has ben Nick Matherin been playing hurt?
Speaker 5 (26:12):
He has been playing not one hundred percent. He's referenced
it a few times that the toe is just not
back to one hundred percent and that it still bothers him,
but not to the level where he or the team
views he should be sitting out. So is that, you know,
part of what's happened here in his last handful of games,
I don't know. You know, when he came back, he
was actually playing really well into early mid December. His
(26:36):
numbers were great, and a lot of that you would
assume was with that toe bothering him as well. So
he had a pretty good game in Miami, But otherwise
the last three weeks or so for him have been
a challenge. He's not one hundred percent, though, and I
think that probably should be taken into the calculus of
any sort of evaluation on Mathron.
Speaker 1 (26:54):
Right now, Pat, when I was a younger guy, late nineties,
early two thousands, I'll use the NDY five hundred as
my example here, there was a changing of the guard,
and Rick Mears and Emerson Fitipaldi and al Once or
all these names that we'd known forever all retired within
about a three to five year span, and then you
had new names that we were unfamiliar with that we
(27:15):
had to get to know Lio Castrovis, Ton Knain, Scott Dixon.
The same is true in virtually all sports. Right have
we seen that in the last year. It seems to
me that we've seen this changing of the guard and
this kind of shift with halftime shows, Like some of
the halftime shows we've gotten to know and love seemed
to be phased out or retired or moved on to
(27:37):
other things or on the IR and now sometimes you
and I have commented on this. Some of them are okay,
and some of them feel like TIMU, but it feels
like there's a new we have a new era of
halftime shows. You see all of them? Am I correct?
Speaker 5 (27:51):
I'm sitting here gearing up to have the debate with
you on whether it's no longer Lebron James and Steph
Curry's league and then and then we go halftime here.
So yeah, I think that's probably accurate, although the gold
standard to me is Red Panda, who is the Lebron
James of halftime act. She just goes and goes and
goes and shows no sign of slowing down. Including how
(28:14):
impressive was it that she did it on the turf,
or at least I assume that's impressive. I would imagine
it's harder to do that on the turf at Lucas
Oil Stadium. And frankly was a little jealous that I
wasn't there to witness it as many times as we've
gotten to see it. That was a first for her.
So she's still the gold standard and she's still going strong.
But yeah, it does feel like we're seeing a little
(28:36):
bit of a changing of the guard there. I would
agree with that.
Speaker 1 (28:38):
I'm a little played out with the guy that balances
the ladder on the chin. I mean, it's you know
what I mean, like, Okay, it's impressive, but then after
like by the time he gets a bicycle on there,
you're just kind of like, okay, which is ridiculous because
it's hard to do right, I mean, but it just
you know, you start to feel bad for him because
you wonder how much he's driven off friends.
Speaker 5 (29:01):
Well, we've had this discussion before. To me, the number
one question I would always ask any of these guys,
including that guy, is how did you learn that you
had a skill for this? I now on you once
you started learning you have a skill, anybody can practice it.
But it's almost like a chicken and an egg thing
to me, because a did you realize that you could
start balancing large objects on your chin just kind of
(29:24):
out of the blue, or did you come to this
realization that that would be a really cool thing to
do and worked at it. I wish we could sit
down with the ones that are regularly on tour and
ask them.
Speaker 1 (29:34):
That I'm not saying specifically which cases I'm talking about
because I want to protect myself from a legal standpoint here, Pat,
But in some of the cases of the question you ask,
I believe the answer goes as simple as this alcohol
may have been a factor.
Speaker 5 (29:47):
Well, with any question, you can never totally take that
out of.
Speaker 1 (29:51):
It, out of the equation.
Speaker 5 (29:52):
Although although if that guy, if that guy could balance
ladders and bikes with any sort of alcohol consumption would
be extremely impressive.
Speaker 1 (30:01):
Listen. I mean, it's cool to watch him balance the
ladder until the one guy that looks like he might
be some sort of an Eastern European wrestler comes out,
puts a pole on his chin, and then a girl
gets up and starts swinging off of it, and I think, okay,
well that kind of trumps the ladder guy. The subtle
competition of these folks is always entertaining, all right, Pat
will be entertaining as well, along with the competition of
(30:22):
the pacers and Magic. Mark Boyle will be there Eddie
Gill as well. Pat. Happy New Year to you.
Speaker 5 (30:26):
Man Hey, same to you, and thanks for allowing us
to take a half hour out of your show today.
Speaker 1 (30:30):
Of course, of course, my pleasure on a holiday, right
on New Year's Eve, So Pat boy then we will
send it out there just a couple of minutes
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