November 1, 2022 • 68 mins
"Men of The Couch" (Delkery & Guest Daniel) chat about their teams, divisions, and what drew them into the game of football and other parts of life!
Become a Patron: https://www.patreon.com/cleatsoffthecouch
Follow, Support, and Connect with Cleats Off the Couch: https://linktr.ee/cleatsoffthecouch
Mark as Played
Transcript
Episode Transcript
Available transcripts are automatically generated. Complete accuracy is not guaranteed.
(00:08):
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome in to another episode of Cleats Off the Couch.
Got a special, special day today, the first ever guest episode, having somebody join us, another fan, as I call them, a man or woman of the couch, as I myself am just an average Joe.
(00:29):
We've done predictions.
We've done conversation about what we're seeing each week.
And this podcast is making continuing, continuing to make moves forward in understanding what exactly we want to be doing.
And one of the things that we definitely are doing moving forward is talking football.
That's a nobrainer.
But one of the things we are also doing is looking at where conversation like that can go as if you were sitting.
(00:55):
Think about it this way.
If you're listening to this random or you're watching, you can see into my eyes people sitting on the couch together, just buddies sitting there chatting about football.
What else could come up in conversation? And that's the thing we want to leave available in any conversation, whether it's just me, Delkery, talking with you about football and wherever other things may go, or like today, where we get to have conversation with a fellow football fan, welcoming everybody, Waterless Axis.
(01:24):
We're going to be calling him Dan, the Colts fan.
How are we doing, Dan? Pretty good.
You and I have had conversation, Dan, about some things moving forward.
You've been a big supporter of what we've been doing with this podcast from the very beginning, from the prepodcast stage of where we were just having conversations on TikTok Live, even.
(01:46):
It was what, just right after the draft doing our preseason predictions.
You are a Colts fan, right? If you can't put that together, anybody listening? We're going to be talking about the AFC South today.
And so get your thinking hats ready.
(02:06):
I don't know.
Just get ready for it.
I don't know where I'm going with that statement, but get yourself ready for that.
Jaguars, Colts, Texans, and the Titans, a little bit of conversation about those things.
Let me hear from you.
Everybody always hears from me.
What are your thoughts? We're week seven, right? And we just had our first game of week seven last night, Thursday football.
(02:30):
You were saying that you were really enjoying what you were seeing from who was it? The Cardinals? Yes, Cardinals.
And the saints.
Yeah, Saints.
Got to figure out that quarterback situation.
Honestly, I'm kind of baffled, because when we did our preseason predictions, I feel like we had a lot of high hopes for the better teams, and so far they've turned out not so well, cults included.
(02:59):
And then it seems like the teams that were the underdogs last year are doing phenomenal this year.
Like, the Eagles are still undefeated versus last year.
They were pretty bad second their division.
I think they finished.
Yeah, nine and seven or something like that.
So now they're what, six and owe? And I think the rest of their division is five and one.
(03:24):
Five and one and then four and two.
So their whole division is doing a lot better than everybody expected.
Yeah, I think the Commanders are two and four.
I think so.
Yeah, they're the only ones.
What is it? The Cowboys are even four and one.
And it's been kind of a backward season this year compared to last year, and especially with the Colts because we've got the potential and the players, but we just haven't really been able to make anything happen.
(04:03):
And on top of that, with injuries, hopefully get all the injuries out the beginning of the season, and now once all these guys start coming back this weekend, week eight, week nine, then we can just powerhouse through the rest of the season and hopefully make it to the wild card.
(04:25):
Yes, it is that.
Interesting point in the year where people who are falling, as a Steelers fan, I'm right there with you because the Steelers are in the same boat now.
I don't think the Steelers have the same opportunity that the Colts do.
I want the Steelers to turn things around, but we're not here to talk about the Steelers today.
(04:48):
I can get it.
Don't get me started.
It's that point in the season where some changes need if changes need to be made, they need to be made because this is where we're in week six or I keep saying six or seven.
I think we're in week six and weeks six through twelve really is what really starts to show us those six weeks, what we're looking forward to.
(05:11):
And Tennessee is in a place that if the Colts don't start putting things together now, then they might be able to pull away a couple of games.
And that doesn't bode well.
I mean, even the Jaguars let's not for the Jaguars, man.
Everybody gets, I think, caught up in the fact of they weren't that great last year, but they weren't that great last year because of Urban Meyer, not because of necessarily the Rock.
(05:38):
Yeah, I mean, they weren't a great team, but their defense had pieces coming together and their young guys on offense were starting to get the hang of things.
Obviously, we're seeing the mix with James Robinson and Travis Etienne and even Trevor Lawrence.
Like the pieces there.
The pieces are there for Jacksonville to compete this year.
(06:00):
And so if Indianapolis doesn't get a couple of pieces together, it could be a hard climb.
Exactly.
So the cults needing to get things in order, how are you thinking things are looking when it comes to the rest of the AFC South, when it comes to who's giving you fear, who's giving you concern when it comes to either your Colts or other teams in the AFC South? I'd say, honestly, probably Jacksonville, because they're playing a lot better than they did last year.
(06:38):
Tennessee has always been a pretty decent team.
Trevor Lawrence, he's getting pretty good for young QB, and if he's got a way to pull ahead this year, then that might help him in the long run, especially if he wanted to go to a different team and try to help out and be like, hey, well, he's been a pretty good QB.
(06:58):
Let's get him to help our team because we're the underdogs, and then see how it goes.
Any Jacksonville fan who's listening just was just like, how dare you mention any idea of Trevor Lawrence leaving right now.
He's young, good kid, he's getting better each season.
(07:21):
Turnovers are still a thing.
I haven't watched a ton of jags football, obviously, but turnovers for Trevor Lawrence were terrible last year and I could pull up the stats while you're talking.
When it comes to running backs, our biggest threat is Derek Henry for Tennessee.
But at the same time, Jonathan Taylor could be a really big threat.
(07:41):
It's just he hasn't really been able to get anything going.
Plus he's been out the past few games with ankle injury, so all my time will tell with him and even his backup, naheen, Hynes has been out too.
So we got Philip Lindsay as the backup to the backup, which I think he could do really well.
(08:06):
Like, the college stats for him are there.
It's just being able to get something going, getting a nice hole with the offensive line and just being able to take off, that's the hardest part.
Yeah, I just saw a clip the other day on TikTok, somebody talking.
I think it might have been like Darwin James or something from the Chargers, but I don't remember who it was specifically.
And he had said when asked by the interviewer who was the best trash talker that he had interacted with in the NFL, and he quickly said Philip Lindsey.
(08:36):
And that caught me so off guard.
But anyway, that's just a little side fact, right? Well, I mean, he's a young kid, so I wouldn't be surprised if he's got a lot of that still in him from his college days.
How does that feel for us, to be able to say he's a young kid? It makes me feel old.
(09:02):
Yeah.
These 21 through 35 year olds playing football, obviously the 30 through 35 year olds, not necessarily kids to us yet, but those even 26, 27 year olds, you kids, you got years left in front of you.
Right? But a little update here on Trevor Lawrence.
(09:24):
His stats man have actually last year he tied Matthew Stafford with the most interceptions in the league, was 17 interceptions.
This year already after five games.
Six games.
Six games.
I was right.
Okay, so we're in week seven having played six games.
Why I'm so confused, I have no clue.
But he has 65.5 completion percentage, which is up over 5% from last year, just shy of 1400 passing yards.
(09:53):
Last year he had 3600 total coming up on halfway through that and were not even yet to halfway through the season.
So I I think he's going to definitely exceed his passing total from last year touchdowns.
He already has nine passing touchdowns and only four interceptions.
Last year.
He had twelve touchdowns on the year with 17 interceptions.
(10:15):
His rating is 20 higher at this current time than it was last year.
So we are definitely seeing huge improvement from Trevor Lawrence.
I wanted to make sure of that with the turnover specifically.
I was incorrect in that he's being a lot it looks like he's being a lot better with the ball, a lot safer with the football, which obviously you want with a young quarterback with a growing franchise building franchise.
(10:39):
You don't want to hear that as a Colts fan, but it does look up for what's happening there in Jacksonville.
No matter what, I'll always be a Colts fan.
I've been a fan through Thick and saying, you know, still love my team regardless of how well they do.
Well, yes, not a fair weather fan.
I like to hear.
(10:59):
I do not like when people just do fair weather.
Talking about the AFC South.
Let's go back a little bit.
I know when you and I had talked a little bit last week, preparing for today and this recording, you had mentioned something in your past and I kind of want to go back to this.
Is everybody listening? If I were to ask a question, what drew you to football? What brought you in and made you a fan of football and or a fan of the team you're a fan of? Think about what you would say to that.
(11:30):
And Dan, I want to hear from you.
What brought you into football? Tell me a little bit about that.
Well, let's say the biggest step was my dad took me to my first Cults game in 94.
So I was about three and a half years old, maybe four, depending on when we went in the year.
(11:53):
Because then later on throughout the years, my birthday gift would be tickets to go to the closest cold game for my birthday, whether it was a home game before or after my birthday, going there, being young, seeing all the excitement, I was excited because everybody else was excited.
I still didn't really know a whole lot yet, but then as I got older and went to more games and learned more about the sport, then I was like, oh man, this is awesome.
(12:23):
Like just seeing everybody.
Like, we had one guy every year, season tickets, and he would like, dress up and like almost like armor.
Like he made his own football cosplay for every game he and his wife would be there and just seeing how cool they were and how excited they got and they would dress up for it and wear like insane amounts of Colts gear.
(12:54):
And he'd dye his hair white and blue and they'd have their faces painted blue.
I can only imagine how that would energize and emphasize the experience of a child at kid.
(13:17):
I mean, one, it could completely freak a kid out, right? You got this giant man dressed in an outfit, I imagine like a Raiders fan or a Vikings fan, you know what I mean? Like, dressed in the get out.
And it could either scare or for a kid to be able to go, oh, my goodness, that's so cool.
That's so awesome to energize that and to see the passion that people have for this sport, no doubt, was able to continue to fuel and fuel and fuel what you were already doing and connecting with your dad through memories.
(13:53):
Right.
So memories are people talk about taking the ball game and going to the I was never a baseball fan, but we didn't have football around us, so if I ever went anywhere with family or something like that, it was always to the baseball field.
It was to a minor league, like single A team.
(14:13):
That's really cool for us.
We didn't have a professional, but the minor league team that we had in Indianapolis was actually coowned by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
So a lot of their players would get injured, and then before they would come back, they would play in Indianapolis to recover and then go back to Pittsburgh.
(14:36):
I got you.
Yeah, so that was pretty cool because you'd see some of our players pop up, and they were wearing the Pittsburgh Pirates pee hat.
And I was like, oh, I didn't know they were a major league.
And then I looked it up, and then, sure enough, a lot of times when their players get injured, they go to their brother or their sister team to recover and then go back.
(14:58):
Yeah, the only major teams we have here was basketball, which I'm really not into.
So we had the pacers.
Oh, you were a Pacers fan? Oh, what was his name? Reggie Miller or something like that? Yes.
Oh, man, that's awesome.
(15:18):
Though I think one of the greatest ways that people get connected into football, or any sport for that matter, is when it's handed down.
You know what I mean? Like you said, your dad took you, and there was memories that were built around that.
And so it's something that you're able to continue on with that was born out of that connection, that relationship, that opportunity with your dad.
(15:45):
And for me, it was kind of similar in that way with I grew up in a Miami Dolphins household, surprisingly enough.
Well, maybe not surprisingly enough because my mom and my biological father, they were Dan Marino fans, and so they loved watching Dan Merino.
(16:07):
My mom, I know, stopped really caring about football when Dan Marino retired, I came to my senses and chose the Pittsburgh Steelers.
I made a decision for myself to follow after the Steelers when I was young and fell in love with that franchise, but it was still it was something that I was around all the time.
(16:31):
We never watched on Saturdays, so I didn't get connected into college football.
It was always get outside, go play.
But on Sundays, the game was on Sundays.
So I would see football on Sundays.
And even as I got up and through, there was something that out of that out of that historical memory, those little memories, even if maybe I had a bad childhood and maybe I had pieces of which I purposely repress a lot of, but I still remembered football.
(17:00):
And as I grew up, that was something that continued to feed through in a lot of different areas of my life and a lot of different interests.
And then even then, beginning, like you said, as you begin to grasp and understand parts of football, man, I got so connected into it.
I love the chess game.
(17:21):
I love the strategy and everything that goes on with it.
And now as a high school coach, I get to be a part of that.
When it comes to helping on the side of defense, specifically, and thinking through coverages and all those kinds of things, man, it just a beautiful game.
(17:42):
But looking back at where it came from and what drew me in, just like yourself, you said it was there's those little memories, those little memories that go back to it being handed down, which I think is and that's not the case for everybody, right? But how cool is it for those things to be able to constantly remember the seeds that were planted because of that? I think that's always fun.
(18:05):
Exactly.
Plus, like I had told you last Friday, another part of it that kept me a fan was actually meeting some of the players.
Yes, I was going to ask you here in a minute about that.
So when I was in middle school in Indianapolis, we had some kind of event going on, and so Tony Dungey was there.
(18:30):
That's insane.
Reggie Wayne, Dwight Briny, and then somebody else.
I can't remember if it was like Robert Mathis or another defensive guy, but being able to meet them in middle school was the coolest thing ever.
Like, out of all the schools they could have come to, they picked ours.
(18:53):
I had my Frenzy jersey signed by Frenie, and then unfortunately, after moving a few times, I lost quite a bit of my stuff.
And yeah, that jersey is now gone.
Any other Colts fans who are listening? I give you full permission to just razz him.
(19:21):
Assigned Dwight Freeney jersey as a kid, gone.
Disappeared.
I'm going to blame it on this.
Somebody stole it from you.
Yeah, we'll say that.
That's insane, though.
Is that the only time you've ever met professional players, or is that just one of the one of the earliest times that's the earliest that I remember.
(19:47):
Got you actually meeting them.
I could have met that way before when I was a lot younger, but some of those memories are like way, way back in the locker box somewhere.
So might take me a few days to try to feed through all the files in my head and find any of those members, you know, anybody watching to listen.
(20:11):
I want you to comment wherever you're watching or listen to this, and I want to hear from you guys about what is the greatest to you, what is the best memorabilia that you have that is signed and who is it signed by, what is it and who is it signed by? I want to know what you guys have, whether you still have it or not.
I want to know what have you experienced for access? It sounds like I'm used to calling you Access for Dan.
(20:37):
It was this Dwight Free, New Jersey signed unless you have a new piece, unless you have something other that you didn't mention.
No, nothing yet.
Okay.
Alright, so, I mean, for me, I have a Three River Stadium seatback before it was torn down.
That is signed by Jack Lambert.
That is probably my dopest.
(21:00):
And then I just have a collection football that has like the Super Bowl years from the Steelers, signed by the beard himself, Brett Keasel.
Fun fact, that's actually the only to my knowledge, that's the only professional player I've ever met is Brett Keasel.
And I've never been to a professional football game.
Even as a giant football fan, I've never been to one.
(21:22):
I don't live in a place that is I mean, you would have to make a trip out of it and costs have never been in my favor.
And so who knows if I'll ever get to one.
But anyway, that's mine.
It's assigned.
Three Rivers Seat Stadium back by Jack Lambert.
Oh, it's so insane.
I won that at the Brett Keasel signing thing I was at.
(21:44):
It was insane.
Duty free, though.
Nominated for the hall of Fame class this year, class 2023.
And I know the list reduces to 25 semifinalists in November.
I don't know if it's mid November and then down from there, 15 in January and then ten and five early next year.
(22:05):
But some others in there, joe Thomas, tackle from Cleveland.
Darrell Revis, obviously everybody knows Reevis Island, but that's pretty dope.
Dwight freeney Colts.
Great.
Possibly in the hall of Fame this next year.
Oh, yeah, I would probably freak out like a kid if I see him getting all the way through.
(22:26):
Have you ever been to the hall of Fame? I have not.
Oh, okay.
I know they've done a bunch of renovations there.
I actually went to school right down the street from the hall of Fame and actually played on and filmed at I was a film coordinator and worked beside the college coaching staff after I stepped off the field.
(22:48):
The hall of Fame field.
When it was Faucet Stadium.
Before it was changed so it was cool experience to be able to say that.
Man.
If you ever get a chance there.
How cool would that be to be able to go and see someone like Dwight Freeney in there? Oh, yeah, I'd love to do that.
Take a trip with me and Megan and go down there.
From what I remember, obviously things have changed.
(23:09):
This was already eight years ago.
Cost of being able to get in there and see the different pieces of it wasn't terrible.
And it's in an area where there's plenty of places to eat.
Canton area, Belgium Village right next to it.
There's a ton of restaurants, ton of places, so you'll be able to eat.
It's not like a big city travel.
It's not a big city stay kind of thing.
(23:31):
So that is a nice thing.
That can add to the capability of so, I mean, just putting that out there, I think it's a cool opportunity.
But I'll forgive you for that Dwight freeney Jersey thing.
I'm not even a Colts fan, and that pain to me.
(24:17):
You're a Colts fan.
I'm a Steelers fan.
One of the things I love about conversations like this, thinking about sitting on the if we were a lot of this is over discord, over online calls and conversations.
But one day the hope is here in the studio, if you're watching, this is right behind me where I'm pointing, to be able to have a couch, to be able to actually have a couch in the studio and to potentially have a movable camera capability as well.
(24:48):
Not just a webcam that I have and in that be able to have literal conversations on the couch, how fun it would be to actually have guests here in person on the couch with our cleats off, of course.
So anyway, with that, talking about I said at the beginning of this episode, the idea of we talk football all the time, and sometimes when you're in conversation about stuff with a buddy, it just goes different places.
(25:19):
And one of the things we were talking about last week in preparation for this is looking at what yours into football.
And it took my mind into the place of I'm a man of faith.
I'm a Christian man, and you yourself one of the things you had said in your little bio you sent me that I'd asked you for, you had said that you are a God fearing man, a husband and a dad who works hard to provide for his family while enjoying all things football and wants everyone to know God loves you.
(25:49):
And I do, too.
Go cults.
So with that, this idea of faith, and we're not going to dive deep in we're not going to do Bible study day or anything like that, but I do want to take an opportunity, man.
We talk about and we think through what has brought us into football, what drew us in to our team, what drew us into our fandom.
(26:13):
And when it comes to faith, I wanted to talk about that a little is what drew you in? Maybe somebody listening hasn't really thought about that before, and I'm somebody who truly believes any conversation and topic is on the table, almost any with anybody.
(26:35):
And so when it comes to us talking about football and what drew me into that, you know, what drew you into faith, what drew you into this idea of being a specifically a Christian, a follower of Jesus and just talk a little bit about that? What drew you into that? In the same way of, you know, what we already talked about what you were in football.
(26:55):
Exactly.
And the passion behind both is very similar.
The biggest thing for me was I was born and raised Catholic.
I went to the same Catholic Church for 20 years until I moved out of that area.
But the biggest thing was between youth groups and doing missionary work, just doing the works of God for the less fortunate and then hearing their stories of how if it wasn't for their faith, they probably would have never made it through.
(27:35):
And just seeing some of these houses that we would help repair or put wheelchair ramps up for older people to get in and out of their homes, and they would just have tears in their eyes when we were done, and they wouldn't know why anybody would do this.
Just, one, free of charge to them, and two, it was so far out in, like, the mountains and appalachia that most other companies would charge them literally an arm and a leg just to be able to do it.
(28:09):
And seeing their passion of how after losing their family or their spouse or children to drugs or accidents, alcohol, you know, all types of different stuff, and the fact that they kept pushing forward and they kept praying and they kept asking God for help, and they were like, had I not been a believer, I probably wouldn't be here right now.
(28:31):
You guys wouldn't be here to help me.
And it was just awesome being able to do that kind of stuff.
And then even when we were younger, before we could do missionary stuff, we would have, like, interactive Bible studies, if that makes sense.
So, like, it would be kind of like an activity to kind of, like, draw us in instead of just, hey, just read this and let's talk about it.
(28:58):
It was, hey, let's read this, do this, and talk about it at the same time.
So we kind of being younger, we would stay busy, but then we would make different stuff.
And ended up some things could have just been, like, the Popsicle sticks.
We would make, like, all different types of, like, you know, sometimes if it was Christmas, we would, like, make Christmas reads out of them or crosses and all types of stuff.
(29:25):
So then we would hand them out at church for Christmas weekend.
When people would come in, we sign our names on it of who made it and just being able to bring stuff in.
And even doing, like, where we had the stations on the cross all throughout our hallway or the assembly area.
(29:48):
And doing that was fun.
Going around, praying the rosary, going over each one, talking about it, going on to the next one, and a lot of them, too.
It was like, how did you feel about this? Or, how do you feel about knowing this? And a lot of times, some of the stuff that Jesus went through, it breaks my heart.
Like, I would have either been one of the ones seeing it happen and having to leave because it was just I'd be so distraught, or I'd be one of the ones trying to help Him.
(30:20):
Like this isn't right.
Why are we doing this? It's heartbreaking.
All that's kind of what drew me in.
Like, he gave his life for all of us, and who am I? I know who I am.
I'm one of God's children.
And because of that, because of that, life has been so much better.
(30:43):
I've tried going on the world's path before and got into addiction and all that and was at the lowest I could go.
And then one day, I just asked for help, and I heard that voice in my head knowing it was God telling me, if you don't change today and come back to me, you will die.
(31:04):
And right then and there, I called a rehab facility, and they flew me down to Florida, and I've been sober 13 years now.
Please, God.
So had it not been that little voice in your head which I knew was my higher power, I wouldn't be here talking to you today.
Well, thank God for that.
(31:28):
What an interesting thing to just sit and think about.
That's not a normal question I sit and think about.
I don't know if you do, but just like, man, so what drew me into faith? I claim to be a follower of Christ, and I aim to live that out.
I claim to be a football fan, and I aim to live that out as a Steelers fan.
Right.
You know what drew me into this? And so I think that's a it's a healthy question to sit and think about is what drew me into.
(31:54):
And even if for somebody listening who might not be a follow of Christ, first of all, it's your choice.
I'm not here to slam that down your throat.
My prayer is that all would come to know Christ because I believe he has something better for you.
He has done something for each and every person.
He has given his life for us.
(32:15):
God made.
US to be with him.
Our sin separated us from Him.
Sin cannot be removed by good works and good deeds.
No matter how much we try, it will never add up and meet the standard of perfection.
So Jesus was necessary and paying the ultimate price.
Christ died for us.
He died in our place.
He gave up Himself for us in our stead.
(32:38):
He paid the fines that were due for our lives because of our sin.
And it's a gift that's available to everyone.
And it's life that starts now.
As soon as we accept that gift, it's life that starts now.
A relationship we get to have now with Him, with our Creator, with our Savior, with the One who loves us.
(32:58):
And it's not something that just happens, okay, I'm in heaven when I die.
It's something that we get to have now, and we get to experience a better life.
Like you said.
You face addiction even.
And you face these places of life to where if it was something that was just a golden ticket to get into heaven.
That wouldn't have mattered to where you were now and what you were facing now.
(33:20):
And even the people that you were interacting with and being the hands and feet of Christ with those trips and the different things you were able to do and be a part of and see and witness.
They wouldn't matter to now if it was only about having a ticket into eternity.
A ticket into what's next.
(33:41):
And so part of what I was saying there is to anyone who's not a follower of Christ is to process and think through is, okay, what drew you into what you believe? What drew you into where you are and what you believe or what you don't believe? Because you believe something if you don't believe something.
You know what I mean? And so what drew you into that? It's a good question to sit and ponder over.
(34:05):
And, you know, like in football, we've talked about how a lot of it, for both of us, for both Dan and I have been okay, family and some of these nuggets of memory and then the cool experiences within the sport of football, right? And even what you said, Dan, about what really drew you into faith were the experiences of and with those who have been affected by faith and those who are experiencing the outpouring and the effects of other people's faith and living out, loving God and loving others, what the Bible teaches, right, as well as learning what Jesus went through.
(34:50):
So these pieces that have been handed down, as well as you've been able to experience with your own eyes and with your own heart not just what others have done or others have exampled or told you.
And same for me as well.
(35:10):
I grew up I have an interesting testimony that includes a biological father attempting to take my mother's life.
And there's a lot of story that comes with that.
But I grew up in a family that attended church, and we were at everything but behind closed doors.
(35:34):
That wasn't what happened, not for myself, not with my biological father.
And over the years after abuse and then attempted murder, when he tried to take my mom's life, I dealt with years of not understanding, not wanting to understand, not wanting to believe in the idea of God.
(35:58):
And in that, I witnessed my mom's faith.
I witnessed a woman whose life was attempted to be taken, who wasn't supposed to walk the same, who wasn't supposed to do anything the same ever again, continue to live out of faith and hold a faith.
(36:18):
And I got to experience life with my grandfather in a way of where I saw what it looked to be a man of faith leading his home.
So I got to see these nuggets of memory.
I got to have these nuggets of memory created.
I don't know why that's a phrase for me now, but it is.
But these nuggets of memory, and in the same way with football and how I was drawn into football, I was really drawn into faith.
(36:39):
I saw how people lived it out, how it was true.
And that caused me to really then start to.
Okay.
If I think that okay.
There can't be a God because there can't be a good.
Loving.
And all powerful God because my mom was almost murdered.
Well.
I began to.
Okay.
Well.
If people are living this way.
(37:00):
Claiming that I need to look into this.
Why would they be able to live this way if there is no such thing.
If this is just a big hoax.
If this is a big kook.
Whatever.
I need to look into this.
And as I began to research into it, I began to find validity in the Word, in why I can trust the Bible.
I began to understand scripturally, jesus understanding of forgiveness.
(37:25):
So this book was able to be trusted because of archaeological evidence and because of all these other things I'm not going to get into right now, as well as what was in it, the content in it was so powerful and brought me to see and understand so many different things in a different light.
It brought me deeper into a place of where it's just like, I can't deny this anymore.
(37:49):
I cannot deny that God is real, that God did not cause this.
It's not the attempted murder of my mom and these other negative things that happen in life.
These are not because of God, but getting through them, facing them, growing from them, building, building out of those are from God.
(38:10):
And that drew me into a deep place to where to this day, man, the peace I'm able to draw from God's word and from Holy Spirit, the opportunity each and every day of joy and of enjoyment of stuff like football.
Let alone family and faith.
(38:32):
And faith.
Family is nothing like I had ever thought I would experience.
And that continues to draw me in even more.
Just like seeing how things change in football, I keep getting drawn in some more so every year with different things that happen in the league.
Dan.
(38:52):
You can speak to this in any way you wish.
But it's not far off for us to contemplate what drew us into what we believe and why we believe that out of the same vein of what drew us into some of our favorite things like football.
Or what drew us into having a family.
(39:12):
Or what drew us into the job I have.
Or what drew us into the friend group I have.
Whatever.
Like I said before, it's the passion behind both that kind of helps keep us going.
Yeah.
We just got to remember that bad things happen to good people and it's not always in our control.
(39:39):
And I would say that's not because of God.
Right.
It's because of the effect of sin and what disobedience incurred.
Right.
God gives us the path out of that.
He gives us not necessarily out of it, but he gives us the tools through Holy Spirit, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
He gives us the through his constant presence of His Word, we have in the Bible right next to us, he gives us the tools necessary to be able to face those the temptations, but also the pain and the hurt and the suffering that happened.
(40:15):
Exactly.
That's why one of my favorite books of the Bible is probably Job.
Just the amount of stuff that happened to him and he still believed was amazing because what did his wife say? Just curse God and die? Like, no, I'm not going to do that.
(40:35):
Yeah.
His friends were not helpful to it either.
You must have done something wrong to incur all this.
Yes.
Oh, man, I love it.
Well, thank you for sharing a little bit about that.
I know for anybody listening, this might not be what you've expected to hear or anything like that, but I thought sometimes it's good for us.
(40:57):
We focus on these things that give us escape.
And sometimes it's good for us to think about things that matter out of the things that give us escape.
You know, I think about, like, a movie sometimes it's good for us to process through other meanings and other thoughts, other themes, other meaningful things out of something that's meant to entertain.
(41:24):
I do think it's sometimes good for us to do that.
So I encourage anybody listening, what drew you into? What drew you into football and what drew you into what you believe? What drew you into faith, whether you're Christian or not? What drew you into what you believe or what you don't believe? I'd love to hear about it.
(41:44):
Honestly, I'd love to hear about it.
You can shoot me an email cleats off the couch@gmail.com.
You can leave a comment, whether on YouTube or on podcast, wherever you're listening to this.
One of the things that actually helps the podcast is if you leave a review, it is something that helps to get it out there.
(42:07):
It helps the algorithm to push this podcast forward.
So if you get a chance, please leave a review, let us know how we're doing and also your thoughts to some of the questions that I've been asking.
(42:41):
We're talking about what drew us into places and one of the things you had said there at the end was about surviving through and making and not just surviving, but thriving through pain and those dark things that can happen in everybody's life, that do happen in everybody's life.
And the tools that were given by God through Jesus and through his Word and through friends and family and community brings me back that also idea brings me back to football in the way of.
(43:09):
You know.
Even if you're a Detroit Lions fan or Cleveland Browns fan or a current Steelers or current Colts fan who see and struggle bus happen.
A Carolina Panthers fan.
Whatever it may be that you can still make it.
God will carry you through.
Right.
(43:29):
But that gets my mind rolling about some of the things again back to the Colts and to the AFC South.
Man what's going on with what do you think is going on with the Colts defense, with Matt Ryan, with the wide receiver corps this year? Give me some more thoughts about what you think is going on, what you think some of the reasons for the faulty start have been.
(43:56):
What do you think are some of the possible things to help succeed moving forward this year? Part of it, I feel like the blame definitely goes to the coaches.
Not going to lie.
I really wish we would have kept Carson another year or two because maybe he would have gotten better with us.
I mean, it was his first year playing, so it's like, oh, let's get another veteran Ryan.
(44:19):
Oh, we've got all these high hopes for Matt Ryan.
And it's like, well, if we don't have anybody that could be open or make plays happen, then neither can he.
And then if we put all the blame on him, we can't because really it goes back to the coaches or the other players on the offense.
And when it comes to the offensive line, we have one of the highest paying offensive lines in the NFL right now, and we're not doing very much to show that.
(44:48):
No and the steers are similar in that we have the highest paying defense.
Well, not granted, because we have one of the highest, if not the highest paid defensive player, singularly who's injured right now, but still as a whole, what the heck are they doing if they're paid this much money, you know what I mean? Right.
I just don't know.
My biggest thing is, you look at the last three years of Matt Ryan with the Falcons, and they're not terrible years, but they're nothing.
(45:22):
And first and foremost, I want to put before I believe in honesty and integrity in that.
And I was somebody who I was hyped about Matt Ryan.
I don't know why.
I always enjoyed Matty Ice, and I was hopeful that him with a change of scenery, one or two years left in his system, good years, that he could be the spark of excitement in Indianapolis.
(45:44):
But his final three years, 20 and twelve touchdown interception, radio, 26 to 1126 to 14.
Like I said, not bad.
67% completion, 65%, 66%.
Not terrible.
But my thing was, when it came to Carson Wentz while he was there yeah, his final year with the Eagles, I think there were some bigger issues at play where he had a 1615 touchdown interception ratio, but before they hit a 27 to 721 and 733 to seven, he had some good years.
(46:23):
And then even last year with the Colts and I know you and I have talked about this individually before he had a 3500 yards with 27 touchdowns and seven interception year with the Colts with a 94.6 rating with a very lacking receiving core.
(46:47):
No true.
Number one, I would argue, and he was able to have that kind of year, and they ousted him after a excuse me, after a what? One interception, six sack game and one fumble against Jacksonville to end the season and missed the playoffs last year.
(47:10):
My biggest thing is, why is it always on the quarterback? You look at his stats, and I don't think he did terrible like you said.
I think another year, what would they be doing this year? You know what I mean? I mean, it could be argued he's not doing that well in Washington.
But you said about coaching, I mean, hey, when you got ahead and coach, you throw the quarterback under the bus in week four or whatever it was.
(47:33):
I questioned things.
There was even like the whole hashtag of Fire Frank Reich and who's the GM? Chris Ballard, like, finding just completely new people because they haven't been able to make very good decisions when it comes to the draft or rookie players and coaching just in general.
(47:58):
Well, I wouldn't say that they haven't made good decisions when it comes to draft and when it comes to trades and movement and such.
I just think that they were making snap decisions, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, they have good roster.
They just needed to add to, especially the receiving corps.
If they would have spent this off season agree or disagree with me, if they would have spent this offseason going after a toptier receiver or even right now, they went after, like, DJ Moore or something like that from Carolina.
(48:31):
Since they're getting rid of everybody, I think that would have or would do Indianapolis so much better.
It would do so much more than it was to get rid of the quarterback who had a decent season with them.
And, yeah, they didn't have an excellent game, but he had six sacks.
(48:54):
How many of that was on him? How many of that was on the offensive line? And on top of that, Jacksonville had a growing defense like they had Urban Meyer last year.
It wasn't a great time to try and make a decision based upon their quarterback on one game against a team that maybe they were just like, that team wasn't supposed to be good, and you let them.
(49:18):
No, they were a decent team who just had a crap situation most of the year.
I have no clue.
I don't know.
Those are just some thoughts.
The defense, too, man, moving off of Matt Ryan for a second.
The defense, what happened to them this year? I thought that they were going to be like a top five defense in the league, especially Leonard.
(49:41):
He's been injured, though, hasn't he? He's still not back yet.
Excuse me.
So concussion knows back, but he did have back surgery in the off season and still hasn't played since then.
Well, a lot of my expectations of their defense really fold around dairy floors.
(50:10):
It's been, let's see, Quinnipay was out with an ankle, so that's put like a lot of pressure on some of the other guys in a unique and gone Koy.
That put a lot on his back to try to cover as much as he can with DeForest Buckner with quitty being out and hasn't really been that great fun.
(50:32):
Gilmore's made some good plays, like he's a good one or back.
I think he's going to go far, and as long as they can get Leonard back without him getting injured, I think he's going to do what he does and he's going to disrupt the opposing offenses like he always does it's.
Just being able to keep our guys healthy is the hardest part right now.
(50:54):
He's got to come back in the next four weeks.
Otherwise, I don't know, man.
I don't know what his expected timetable is, but if he doesn't come back and Stefan Gilmore, you had said, I still do not understand what the reasoning was behind him getting sent out from New England before he went down to, I think, Carolina or something like that, and now he's ended up over with Indianapolis.
(51:17):
But Stefan Gilmore always to me was good cornerback material, and he's obviously played pretty darn well for them in Indianapolis.
So here's the fun part.
Everybody has heard from me about my predictions, right? My prediction coming into the season was that Matt Ryan and the Colts would win the AFC South over the Tennessee Titans.
(51:43):
It would be close.
The Titans would take steps back, colts would take steps forward.
And I don't remember exactly what I had them at, but I know that I had them winning.
At one point, I even had said that the Cults were one of my surprise picks for the Super Bowl.
And so I put that out there knowing that those were my picks.
(52:03):
And obviously it's probably not where I would be right now, but I want to give you the opportunity looking this year, the rest of 2022.
What are you thinking? What are you thinking as a Colts fan? Try to be as unbiased as possible.
I know that's so hard to do, but what are you thinking the Colts can actually do through the remainder, the remaining two thirds of this season? Let's see, I think when we first talked about it, you said, what, like, between nine and eleven games? And I think I said like ten to twelve on the winning scale.
(52:35):
Yeah, I had them.
One game over, I think.
Tennessee.
Yeah.
So I still I don't know.
Now I'm kind of looking, maybe hoping for more like last season, maybe nine and eight if we're lucky, depending on how things go.
What are they right now? Three, two and one.
Three, two and one? Yeah, they're half a game back from the Titans.
(52:59):
So I'm hoping, like I said, the biggest thing right now is injuries.
But then the next biggest thing is just being able to get stuff going on offense and then being able to get more points going, more red zone chances, less sloppy plays.
But then also, too, with the defense, trying to see what we could do about being more disruptive, trying to force the incompletions or interceptions, fumbles, whatever.
(53:30):
You have been as hard as you got.
And I feel like part of why we lost against the Jags last year was that we were exhausted by then.
I think that the team just used up way too much of their energy trying to get through those last few games and played kind of sloppy.
Everybody was feeling kind of sloppy, really fatigued.
(53:52):
We just need to try to get more of our guys open.
We still got Pittman Junior.
I think Pascal's back.
We've also got Pierce.
He could be a real good threat in the future if we can make something happen.
Jonathan Taylor the biggest thing is just trying to help get that hole open for him so when he comes back, he could do what he does.
(54:16):
Yeah.
What was that last year? Him and Henry were like, the top two running backs in the league.
Henry got injured last year, too, I think.
Right, right.
Yeah.
That actually happened during the Colts Titans game in Andy.
Yeah.
What you were saying earlier, I don't think the Colts have had a lot of success in Jacksonville either.
(54:40):
Have they? I was going to say that seems to me to be one where Jacksonville usually comes out with a W.
Yeah.
Okay, so that could have definitely been affected last year, too.
I'm looking here at the schedule of what's coming.
You guys play the Titans again this weekend, this Sunday at 01:00, and lost 24 to 17 just a couple weeks ago to the Titans opportunity for redemption, and then play the Commanders, the Patriots, the Raiders, the Eagles, and then end final six with the Steelers, the Cowboys, the Vikings, the Chargers, the Giants, and the Texans.
(55:21):
What I'm seeing, looking at what's coming, and I want to hear from you, is I could see four to six more wins.
Six would put them at nine, seven and one.
Do you think the hardest might be the Eagles? Depending on where they're at at that time, if they're still undefeated or if they're only lost one or two games, or if they start to go downhill from where they are now this weekend, I could see us beaten Tennessee.
(55:51):
I can, too.
I agree with that.
Just so you know, the Eagles actually have to travel to Indianapolis, so I think that goes in the Colt split favor to that.
They're not in Lincoln financial, they're in the Dome in late November.
That actually yeah, home field advantage for us always helps because that stadium gets so loud, even watching on TV, half the time, you can't even hear the announcers, especially in the wintertime.
(56:18):
It's nice to be in the Dome, but, yeah, I'm seeing the Titans and then the Commanders.
The revenge game does.
Carson wentz get the revenge over the Colts.
So you're saying nine seven one is what you think? Yeah, at this point.
All right, we'll quote you on that.
Nine, seven and one is what Dan, the Colts fan, says he thinks the Colts will make it to still hoping.
(56:44):
Now, do you think with a nine, seven and one record, what do you think that entails for them in the AFC South? Hopefully we'll take that number one spot, depending on Tennessee, but if not, we'll definitely be the second place with the one tie would put us just under.
I don't know.
I'm just hoping for the wild card game at the least.
Well, I will say here, I pulled Titan schedule up.
(57:07):
So that way you could hear that to kind of get a picture is the Titans are three and two.
The Cults are three, two, and one.
So the Titans have already had the early bi week, the week four by week, I think it was.
And so that could be big with Derek Henry and how they do things.
They play you guys, and then they play the Texans, and then they play the Chiefs, the Broncos, the packers, the Bengals, the Eagles, the Jaguars, the Chargers, the Texans, the Cowboys, and the Jaguars again.
(57:40):
And so hearing that schedule compared to the Colt schedule now, what does that make you think? Definitely see them losing quite a few of those games.
Yeah, that's what I think, too.
I feel like they'll lose more of theirs than we will of ours.
Like their lost to win ratio, I feel will win more for the rest of the season.
(58:04):
Then they'll lose for the rest of the season, especially going against, like, the Chiefs and the Eagles, depending on if it's in Philly or Tennessee.
They've got a lot of hard games coming.
Even the Chargers, like, I know they're not doing that great, but still, they could pull something out.
(58:25):
I'm looking through this are pretty decent.
They're not great, but they're not bad either.
And then the same with the Jaguars.
I feel like all those games could go either way.
Yeah.
I'm looking at I'm like, Man, I see maybe three to five wins here.
Even if they got the height of that at five more wins, that puts them at eight and nine, at least from my perspective right now.
(58:48):
I'm right there with you.
Where do you think the Titans end schedule wise at the end of the season with that? They're three and two.
Right now, I'd say probably about maybe eight and nine.
Okay.
Yeah.
Because I'm not thinking seven and ten.
Yeah, because I'm thinking through, too, that if the Titans ended nine and eight and the Colts ended nine, seven, and one, the only way the Colts would win the division over the Titans would be if they won this Sunday.
(59:23):
Yeah.
Because they would have to win one of the division games.
Unless the reason that the standings are the way they are is because, literally, the Titans have not played they have not played six games.
They've only played five.
So, yeah, that's what it is.
So, yeah.
Okay.
So you still got hope as a Colds fan? Oh, yeah, I love it.
(59:44):
I don't know if we'll make it to the Super Bowl, but I at least have hopes that we'll go to the playoffs.
(01:00:10):
All right, well, my apologies to anybody who was watching or even listening.
I don't know how it affected things there, but I think my Internet went out twice.
We were just coming to the end of things, and I was just asking Dan about expectations of seating for playoffs.
I'd say probably top of the wild card.
(01:00:32):
Well, okay, wait.
Let's back this up a second.
Are you thinking that the Jags make a play here? Maybe if they could win both games over Tennessee, then that would boot Tennessee down, but that would also bring them up.
Okay.
(01:00:52):
If they beat Tennessee twice, then they would be four and four.
So it depends on how the rest of their season would go.
Got you.
Okay, so the reason why I ask that is because if the Colts end up nine, seven, and one, like you said, and the Titans end up at either eight, nine, or seven and ten, that would put the Colts as the division winner.
So they would be either seated one, two, three, or four.
(01:01:14):
And so it just made me think, when you said about top of the wild card, it made me think, oh, are we having a surprise here from the Jaguars, or do you think the Colts still win the division? I still think we win the division.
Okay, so if you're saying Tablocker, do you think they'll be, like, on fourth? Yeah.
In the AFC.
Okay.
(01:01:38):
Depending on how Kansas City plays out the rest of the season, I could see them taking the number one spot.
Yeah.
There was talk about them trying to bring in CMC, but I haven't seen much more around that.
I've been paying a ton of attention to the Chiefs.
Okay.
So we're looking at third or fourth seed still winning the division, still making the playoffs.
(01:01:59):
I like it.
I like it.
Where do you see the Cults heading next season? Kind of the final thought here with this.
Hopefully a lot better than this season.
As long as we could keep the injuries down and keep everybody healthy, I could see us maybe going that's wise.
(01:02:24):
Depending on how the rest of the season plays out, I could see us maybe being nine and eight or ten and seven, because it always seems like we've been sitting around that area the past few years.
Big quarterback class, apparently good quarterback class in the draft this year.
(01:02:47):
So if people aren't sold on Map Ryan and what he's able to do here for the next two thirds of this season, there's always that potential of being able to bring in a solid rookie next year, too.
Exactly.
Because we still have Nick Foles and Sam Ellen.
Jeremy, like, he played his heart out to stay on the team during the preseason, so he could be a good QB for us if we keep him around, get him a little bit more play time, see how he does.
(01:03:19):
Just got to get the right players and whoever can do what they do best and prove that they want to stay on the team and maybe even start for the team by making all the right moves in place.
That was even my thing last season.
Like, why don't we pick up a rookie, let them learn underneath at the time with Carson, just to get their bearings and learn from somebody that's been through it for a while, and then let them have their shot and see how it goes.
(01:03:55):
Yeah.
And so maybe the best case scenario is we see improvement from Matt Ryan, from the entire unit this year for the next two thirds of the season, and then Matt Ryan there for at least one more year.
Draft one of those quarterbacks, give them a year under mentorship, possibly even take the starting job, but have a mentor in Matt Ryan, in being able to help coach them up, help create a future franchise quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts.
(01:04:29):
Exactly.
Nice.
I could dig it.
I've never been against the Colts except for when they play the Steelers.
Right.
Awesome.
Well, hey, man, I appreciate you giving some.
Time and given your thoughts, giving us a little bit of a look into the Colts into the AFC South from the perspective of somebody who pays closer attention to that than I would as an ASC North Pittsburgh Dealers fan.
(01:04:56):
And I appreciate you sharing a little bit about what has drawn you into football, what has drawn you also even into faith conversation there.
Really appreciate it.
I have had a lot of fun last week talking and preparing for this and today thinking through these things, just having that couch conversation, anything for the good of the order you'd like to finish with, whether it's concerning the Colts, the AC, south, or anything like that.
(01:05:23):
Not that I can think of, at least not off the top of my head.
Just go Colts, right? Absolutely.
Always.
That's a big unless it's called ball.
Then it's Florida State University in Notre Dame.
Oh, man.
(01:05:44):
Now you're going to get some stuff.
Now you're going to get some stuff going from different people.
Everybody listening.
Thank you so much for tuning in today to our first ever guest interview, a fellow man of the couch in Dan Divorceek, and appreciate you being here and letting everybody know too.
If you have not signed up yet for NFL Plus to be able to watch games on the go, I use it literally every week so I don't pay for a cable service or anything like that.
(01:06:15):
I'm able to watch it Amazon Prime on Thursdays and then use my mobile app and watch my Steelers games every week.
It is literally $5 a month or just $30 for the year at the standard rate.
If you want that, check out the description.
Whether you're watching this or listening to it, click the link tree to be able to see that and you support the podcast in the process of doing that.
(01:06:42):
So appreciate each and every one of you.
And also be sure to check out our patreon.
Patreon.
A lot of different things available there.
And I was talking with Dan before this episode a little bit about some of the things that are moving forward.
Some of the exciting things that I'm realizing and finding out and figuring out that would actually benefit those who are patrons.
And the content you're able to get.
(01:07:03):
Whether it's full unedited preparation interviews.
Whether it's sneak peeks at upcoming content.
Whether it's early access.
You name it.
Check out the patreon.
And thank you in advance for any kind of support there moving forward.
We've got some other people already in the process planning out different episodes to be able to have more interviews, looking at other fans from other divisions and getting their thoughts on where their team is, people who are fans of Carolina Panthers, the Baltimore Ravens, the Miami Dolphins, you name it.
(01:07:42):
I'm looking forward to those.
Just like we got to talk with Dan today about the cults and the AFC South.
And so be sure to tune in the future.
And until next time, be blessed and have a good one.
Ladies and gentlemen, welcome in to another episode of Cleats Off the Couch.
Got a special, special day today, the first ever guest episode, having somebody join us, another fan, as I call them, a man or woman of the couch, as I myself am just an average Joe.
(00:29):
We've done predictions.
We've done conversation about what we're seeing each week.
And this podcast is making continuing, continuing to make moves forward in understanding what exactly we want to be doing.
And one of the things that we definitely are doing moving forward is talking football.
That's a nobrainer.
But one of the things we are also doing is looking at where conversation like that can go as if you were sitting.
(00:55):
Think about it this way.
If you're listening to this random or you're watching, you can see into my eyes people sitting on the couch together, just buddies sitting there chatting about football.
What else could come up in conversation? And that's the thing we want to leave available in any conversation, whether it's just me, Delkery, talking with you about football and wherever other things may go, or like today, where we get to have conversation with a fellow football fan, welcoming everybody, Waterless Axis.
(01:24):
We're going to be calling him Dan, the Colts fan.
How are we doing, Dan? Pretty good.
You and I have had conversation, Dan, about some things moving forward.
You've been a big supporter of what we've been doing with this podcast from the very beginning, from the prepodcast stage of where we were just having conversations on TikTok Live, even.
(01:46):
It was what, just right after the draft doing our preseason predictions.
You are a Colts fan, right? If you can't put that together, anybody listening? We're going to be talking about the AFC South today.
And so get your thinking hats ready.
(02:06):
I don't know.
Just get ready for it.
I don't know where I'm going with that statement, but get yourself ready for that.
Jaguars, Colts, Texans, and the Titans, a little bit of conversation about those things.
Let me hear from you.
Everybody always hears from me.
What are your thoughts? We're week seven, right? And we just had our first game of week seven last night, Thursday football.
(02:30):
You were saying that you were really enjoying what you were seeing from who was it? The Cardinals? Yes, Cardinals.
And the saints.
Yeah, Saints.
Got to figure out that quarterback situation.
Honestly, I'm kind of baffled, because when we did our preseason predictions, I feel like we had a lot of high hopes for the better teams, and so far they've turned out not so well, cults included.
(02:59):
And then it seems like the teams that were the underdogs last year are doing phenomenal this year.
Like, the Eagles are still undefeated versus last year.
They were pretty bad second their division.
I think they finished.
Yeah, nine and seven or something like that.
So now they're what, six and owe? And I think the rest of their division is five and one.
(03:24):
Five and one and then four and two.
So their whole division is doing a lot better than everybody expected.
Yeah, I think the Commanders are two and four.
I think so.
Yeah, they're the only ones.
What is it? The Cowboys are even four and one.
And it's been kind of a backward season this year compared to last year, and especially with the Colts because we've got the potential and the players, but we just haven't really been able to make anything happen.
(04:03):
And on top of that, with injuries, hopefully get all the injuries out the beginning of the season, and now once all these guys start coming back this weekend, week eight, week nine, then we can just powerhouse through the rest of the season and hopefully make it to the wild card.
(04:25):
Yes, it is that.
Interesting point in the year where people who are falling, as a Steelers fan, I'm right there with you because the Steelers are in the same boat now.
I don't think the Steelers have the same opportunity that the Colts do.
I want the Steelers to turn things around, but we're not here to talk about the Steelers today.
(04:48):
I can get it.
Don't get me started.
It's that point in the season where some changes need if changes need to be made, they need to be made because this is where we're in week six or I keep saying six or seven.
I think we're in week six and weeks six through twelve really is what really starts to show us those six weeks, what we're looking forward to.
(05:11):
And Tennessee is in a place that if the Colts don't start putting things together now, then they might be able to pull away a couple of games.
And that doesn't bode well.
I mean, even the Jaguars let's not for the Jaguars, man.
Everybody gets, I think, caught up in the fact of they weren't that great last year, but they weren't that great last year because of Urban Meyer, not because of necessarily the Rock.
(05:38):
Yeah, I mean, they weren't a great team, but their defense had pieces coming together and their young guys on offense were starting to get the hang of things.
Obviously, we're seeing the mix with James Robinson and Travis Etienne and even Trevor Lawrence.
Like the pieces there.
The pieces are there for Jacksonville to compete this year.
(06:00):
And so if Indianapolis doesn't get a couple of pieces together, it could be a hard climb.
Exactly.
So the cults needing to get things in order, how are you thinking things are looking when it comes to the rest of the AFC South, when it comes to who's giving you fear, who's giving you concern when it comes to either your Colts or other teams in the AFC South? I'd say, honestly, probably Jacksonville, because they're playing a lot better than they did last year.
(06:38):
Tennessee has always been a pretty decent team.
Trevor Lawrence, he's getting pretty good for young QB, and if he's got a way to pull ahead this year, then that might help him in the long run, especially if he wanted to go to a different team and try to help out and be like, hey, well, he's been a pretty good QB.
(06:58):
Let's get him to help our team because we're the underdogs, and then see how it goes.
Any Jacksonville fan who's listening just was just like, how dare you mention any idea of Trevor Lawrence leaving right now.
He's young, good kid, he's getting better each season.
(07:21):
Turnovers are still a thing.
I haven't watched a ton of jags football, obviously, but turnovers for Trevor Lawrence were terrible last year and I could pull up the stats while you're talking.
When it comes to running backs, our biggest threat is Derek Henry for Tennessee.
But at the same time, Jonathan Taylor could be a really big threat.
(07:41):
It's just he hasn't really been able to get anything going.
Plus he's been out the past few games with ankle injury, so all my time will tell with him and even his backup, naheen, Hynes has been out too.
So we got Philip Lindsay as the backup to the backup, which I think he could do really well.
(08:06):
Like, the college stats for him are there.
It's just being able to get something going, getting a nice hole with the offensive line and just being able to take off, that's the hardest part.
Yeah, I just saw a clip the other day on TikTok, somebody talking.
I think it might have been like Darwin James or something from the Chargers, but I don't remember who it was specifically.
And he had said when asked by the interviewer who was the best trash talker that he had interacted with in the NFL, and he quickly said Philip Lindsey.
(08:36):
And that caught me so off guard.
But anyway, that's just a little side fact, right? Well, I mean, he's a young kid, so I wouldn't be surprised if he's got a lot of that still in him from his college days.
How does that feel for us, to be able to say he's a young kid? It makes me feel old.
(09:02):
Yeah.
These 21 through 35 year olds playing football, obviously the 30 through 35 year olds, not necessarily kids to us yet, but those even 26, 27 year olds, you kids, you got years left in front of you.
Right? But a little update here on Trevor Lawrence.
(09:24):
His stats man have actually last year he tied Matthew Stafford with the most interceptions in the league, was 17 interceptions.
This year already after five games.
Six games.
Six games.
I was right.
Okay, so we're in week seven having played six games.
Why I'm so confused, I have no clue.
But he has 65.5 completion percentage, which is up over 5% from last year, just shy of 1400 passing yards.
(09:53):
Last year he had 3600 total coming up on halfway through that and were not even yet to halfway through the season.
So I I think he's going to definitely exceed his passing total from last year touchdowns.
He already has nine passing touchdowns and only four interceptions.
Last year.
He had twelve touchdowns on the year with 17 interceptions.
(10:15):
His rating is 20 higher at this current time than it was last year.
So we are definitely seeing huge improvement from Trevor Lawrence.
I wanted to make sure of that with the turnover specifically.
I was incorrect in that he's being a lot it looks like he's being a lot better with the ball, a lot safer with the football, which obviously you want with a young quarterback with a growing franchise building franchise.
(10:39):
You don't want to hear that as a Colts fan, but it does look up for what's happening there in Jacksonville.
No matter what, I'll always be a Colts fan.
I've been a fan through Thick and saying, you know, still love my team regardless of how well they do.
Well, yes, not a fair weather fan.
I like to hear.
(10:59):
I do not like when people just do fair weather.
Talking about the AFC South.
Let's go back a little bit.
I know when you and I had talked a little bit last week, preparing for today and this recording, you had mentioned something in your past and I kind of want to go back to this.
Is everybody listening? If I were to ask a question, what drew you to football? What brought you in and made you a fan of football and or a fan of the team you're a fan of? Think about what you would say to that.
(11:30):
And Dan, I want to hear from you.
What brought you into football? Tell me a little bit about that.
Well, let's say the biggest step was my dad took me to my first Cults game in 94.
So I was about three and a half years old, maybe four, depending on when we went in the year.
(11:53):
Because then later on throughout the years, my birthday gift would be tickets to go to the closest cold game for my birthday, whether it was a home game before or after my birthday, going there, being young, seeing all the excitement, I was excited because everybody else was excited.
I still didn't really know a whole lot yet, but then as I got older and went to more games and learned more about the sport, then I was like, oh man, this is awesome.
(12:23):
Like just seeing everybody.
Like, we had one guy every year, season tickets, and he would like, dress up and like almost like armor.
Like he made his own football cosplay for every game he and his wife would be there and just seeing how cool they were and how excited they got and they would dress up for it and wear like insane amounts of Colts gear.
(12:54):
And he'd dye his hair white and blue and they'd have their faces painted blue.
I can only imagine how that would energize and emphasize the experience of a child at kid.
(13:17):
I mean, one, it could completely freak a kid out, right? You got this giant man dressed in an outfit, I imagine like a Raiders fan or a Vikings fan, you know what I mean? Like, dressed in the get out.
And it could either scare or for a kid to be able to go, oh, my goodness, that's so cool.
That's so awesome to energize that and to see the passion that people have for this sport, no doubt, was able to continue to fuel and fuel and fuel what you were already doing and connecting with your dad through memories.
(13:53):
Right.
So memories are people talk about taking the ball game and going to the I was never a baseball fan, but we didn't have football around us, so if I ever went anywhere with family or something like that, it was always to the baseball field.
It was to a minor league, like single A team.
(14:13):
That's really cool for us.
We didn't have a professional, but the minor league team that we had in Indianapolis was actually coowned by the Pittsburgh Pirates.
So a lot of their players would get injured, and then before they would come back, they would play in Indianapolis to recover and then go back to Pittsburgh.
(14:36):
I got you.
Yeah, so that was pretty cool because you'd see some of our players pop up, and they were wearing the Pittsburgh Pirates pee hat.
And I was like, oh, I didn't know they were a major league.
And then I looked it up, and then, sure enough, a lot of times when their players get injured, they go to their brother or their sister team to recover and then go back.
(14:58):
Yeah, the only major teams we have here was basketball, which I'm really not into.
So we had the pacers.
Oh, you were a Pacers fan? Oh, what was his name? Reggie Miller or something like that? Yes.
Oh, man, that's awesome.
(15:18):
Though I think one of the greatest ways that people get connected into football, or any sport for that matter, is when it's handed down.
You know what I mean? Like you said, your dad took you, and there was memories that were built around that.
And so it's something that you're able to continue on with that was born out of that connection, that relationship, that opportunity with your dad.
(15:45):
And for me, it was kind of similar in that way with I grew up in a Miami Dolphins household, surprisingly enough.
Well, maybe not surprisingly enough because my mom and my biological father, they were Dan Marino fans, and so they loved watching Dan Merino.
(16:07):
My mom, I know, stopped really caring about football when Dan Marino retired, I came to my senses and chose the Pittsburgh Steelers.
I made a decision for myself to follow after the Steelers when I was young and fell in love with that franchise, but it was still it was something that I was around all the time.
(16:31):
We never watched on Saturdays, so I didn't get connected into college football.
It was always get outside, go play.
But on Sundays, the game was on Sundays.
So I would see football on Sundays.
And even as I got up and through, there was something that out of that out of that historical memory, those little memories, even if maybe I had a bad childhood and maybe I had pieces of which I purposely repress a lot of, but I still remembered football.
(17:00):
And as I grew up, that was something that continued to feed through in a lot of different areas of my life and a lot of different interests.
And then even then, beginning, like you said, as you begin to grasp and understand parts of football, man, I got so connected into it.
I love the chess game.
(17:21):
I love the strategy and everything that goes on with it.
And now as a high school coach, I get to be a part of that.
When it comes to helping on the side of defense, specifically, and thinking through coverages and all those kinds of things, man, it just a beautiful game.
(17:42):
But looking back at where it came from and what drew me in, just like yourself, you said it was there's those little memories, those little memories that go back to it being handed down, which I think is and that's not the case for everybody, right? But how cool is it for those things to be able to constantly remember the seeds that were planted because of that? I think that's always fun.
(18:05):
Exactly.
Plus, like I had told you last Friday, another part of it that kept me a fan was actually meeting some of the players.
Yes, I was going to ask you here in a minute about that.
So when I was in middle school in Indianapolis, we had some kind of event going on, and so Tony Dungey was there.
(18:30):
That's insane.
Reggie Wayne, Dwight Briny, and then somebody else.
I can't remember if it was like Robert Mathis or another defensive guy, but being able to meet them in middle school was the coolest thing ever.
Like, out of all the schools they could have come to, they picked ours.
(18:53):
I had my Frenzy jersey signed by Frenie, and then unfortunately, after moving a few times, I lost quite a bit of my stuff.
And yeah, that jersey is now gone.
Any other Colts fans who are listening? I give you full permission to just razz him.
(19:21):
Assigned Dwight Freeney jersey as a kid, gone.
Disappeared.
I'm going to blame it on this.
Somebody stole it from you.
Yeah, we'll say that.
That's insane, though.
Is that the only time you've ever met professional players, or is that just one of the one of the earliest times that's the earliest that I remember.
(19:47):
Got you actually meeting them.
I could have met that way before when I was a lot younger, but some of those memories are like way, way back in the locker box somewhere.
So might take me a few days to try to feed through all the files in my head and find any of those members, you know, anybody watching to listen.
(20:11):
I want you to comment wherever you're watching or listen to this, and I want to hear from you guys about what is the greatest to you, what is the best memorabilia that you have that is signed and who is it signed by, what is it and who is it signed by? I want to know what you guys have, whether you still have it or not.
I want to know what have you experienced for access? It sounds like I'm used to calling you Access for Dan.
(20:37):
It was this Dwight Free, New Jersey signed unless you have a new piece, unless you have something other that you didn't mention.
No, nothing yet.
Okay.
Alright, so, I mean, for me, I have a Three River Stadium seatback before it was torn down.
That is signed by Jack Lambert.
That is probably my dopest.
(21:00):
And then I just have a collection football that has like the Super Bowl years from the Steelers, signed by the beard himself, Brett Keasel.
Fun fact, that's actually the only to my knowledge, that's the only professional player I've ever met is Brett Keasel.
And I've never been to a professional football game.
Even as a giant football fan, I've never been to one.
(21:22):
I don't live in a place that is I mean, you would have to make a trip out of it and costs have never been in my favor.
And so who knows if I'll ever get to one.
But anyway, that's mine.
It's assigned.
Three Rivers Seat Stadium back by Jack Lambert.
Oh, it's so insane.
I won that at the Brett Keasel signing thing I was at.
(21:44):
It was insane.
Duty free, though.
Nominated for the hall of Fame class this year, class 2023.
And I know the list reduces to 25 semifinalists in November.
I don't know if it's mid November and then down from there, 15 in January and then ten and five early next year.
(22:05):
But some others in there, joe Thomas, tackle from Cleveland.
Darrell Revis, obviously everybody knows Reevis Island, but that's pretty dope.
Dwight freeney Colts.
Great.
Possibly in the hall of Fame this next year.
Oh, yeah, I would probably freak out like a kid if I see him getting all the way through.
(22:26):
Have you ever been to the hall of Fame? I have not.
Oh, okay.
I know they've done a bunch of renovations there.
I actually went to school right down the street from the hall of Fame and actually played on and filmed at I was a film coordinator and worked beside the college coaching staff after I stepped off the field.
(22:48):
The hall of Fame field.
When it was Faucet Stadium.
Before it was changed so it was cool experience to be able to say that.
Man.
If you ever get a chance there.
How cool would that be to be able to go and see someone like Dwight Freeney in there? Oh, yeah, I'd love to do that.
Take a trip with me and Megan and go down there.
From what I remember, obviously things have changed.
(23:09):
This was already eight years ago.
Cost of being able to get in there and see the different pieces of it wasn't terrible.
And it's in an area where there's plenty of places to eat.
Canton area, Belgium Village right next to it.
There's a ton of restaurants, ton of places, so you'll be able to eat.
It's not like a big city travel.
It's not a big city stay kind of thing.
(23:31):
So that is a nice thing.
That can add to the capability of so, I mean, just putting that out there, I think it's a cool opportunity.
But I'll forgive you for that Dwight freeney Jersey thing.
I'm not even a Colts fan, and that pain to me.
(24:17):
You're a Colts fan.
I'm a Steelers fan.
One of the things I love about conversations like this, thinking about sitting on the if we were a lot of this is over discord, over online calls and conversations.
But one day the hope is here in the studio, if you're watching, this is right behind me where I'm pointing, to be able to have a couch, to be able to actually have a couch in the studio and to potentially have a movable camera capability as well.
(24:48):
Not just a webcam that I have and in that be able to have literal conversations on the couch, how fun it would be to actually have guests here in person on the couch with our cleats off, of course.
So anyway, with that, talking about I said at the beginning of this episode, the idea of we talk football all the time, and sometimes when you're in conversation about stuff with a buddy, it just goes different places.
(25:19):
And one of the things we were talking about last week in preparation for this is looking at what yours into football.
And it took my mind into the place of I'm a man of faith.
I'm a Christian man, and you yourself one of the things you had said in your little bio you sent me that I'd asked you for, you had said that you are a God fearing man, a husband and a dad who works hard to provide for his family while enjoying all things football and wants everyone to know God loves you.
(25:49):
And I do, too.
Go cults.
So with that, this idea of faith, and we're not going to dive deep in we're not going to do Bible study day or anything like that, but I do want to take an opportunity, man.
We talk about and we think through what has brought us into football, what drew us in to our team, what drew us into our fandom.
(26:13):
And when it comes to faith, I wanted to talk about that a little is what drew you in? Maybe somebody listening hasn't really thought about that before, and I'm somebody who truly believes any conversation and topic is on the table, almost any with anybody.
(26:35):
And so when it comes to us talking about football and what drew me into that, you know, what drew you into faith, what drew you into this idea of being a specifically a Christian, a follower of Jesus and just talk a little bit about that? What drew you into that? In the same way of, you know, what we already talked about what you were in football.
(26:55):
Exactly.
And the passion behind both is very similar.
The biggest thing for me was I was born and raised Catholic.
I went to the same Catholic Church for 20 years until I moved out of that area.
But the biggest thing was between youth groups and doing missionary work, just doing the works of God for the less fortunate and then hearing their stories of how if it wasn't for their faith, they probably would have never made it through.
(27:35):
And just seeing some of these houses that we would help repair or put wheelchair ramps up for older people to get in and out of their homes, and they would just have tears in their eyes when we were done, and they wouldn't know why anybody would do this.
Just, one, free of charge to them, and two, it was so far out in, like, the mountains and appalachia that most other companies would charge them literally an arm and a leg just to be able to do it.
(28:09):
And seeing their passion of how after losing their family or their spouse or children to drugs or accidents, alcohol, you know, all types of different stuff, and the fact that they kept pushing forward and they kept praying and they kept asking God for help, and they were like, had I not been a believer, I probably wouldn't be here right now.
(28:31):
You guys wouldn't be here to help me.
And it was just awesome being able to do that kind of stuff.
And then even when we were younger, before we could do missionary stuff, we would have, like, interactive Bible studies, if that makes sense.
So, like, it would be kind of like an activity to kind of, like, draw us in instead of just, hey, just read this and let's talk about it.
(28:58):
It was, hey, let's read this, do this, and talk about it at the same time.
So we kind of being younger, we would stay busy, but then we would make different stuff.
And ended up some things could have just been, like, the Popsicle sticks.
We would make, like, all different types of, like, you know, sometimes if it was Christmas, we would, like, make Christmas reads out of them or crosses and all types of stuff.
(29:25):
So then we would hand them out at church for Christmas weekend.
When people would come in, we sign our names on it of who made it and just being able to bring stuff in.
And even doing, like, where we had the stations on the cross all throughout our hallway or the assembly area.
(29:48):
And doing that was fun.
Going around, praying the rosary, going over each one, talking about it, going on to the next one, and a lot of them, too.
It was like, how did you feel about this? Or, how do you feel about knowing this? And a lot of times, some of the stuff that Jesus went through, it breaks my heart.
Like, I would have either been one of the ones seeing it happen and having to leave because it was just I'd be so distraught, or I'd be one of the ones trying to help Him.
(30:20):
Like this isn't right.
Why are we doing this? It's heartbreaking.
All that's kind of what drew me in.
Like, he gave his life for all of us, and who am I? I know who I am.
I'm one of God's children.
And because of that, because of that, life has been so much better.
(30:43):
I've tried going on the world's path before and got into addiction and all that and was at the lowest I could go.
And then one day, I just asked for help, and I heard that voice in my head knowing it was God telling me, if you don't change today and come back to me, you will die.
(31:04):
And right then and there, I called a rehab facility, and they flew me down to Florida, and I've been sober 13 years now.
Please, God.
So had it not been that little voice in your head which I knew was my higher power, I wouldn't be here talking to you today.
Well, thank God for that.
(31:28):
What an interesting thing to just sit and think about.
That's not a normal question I sit and think about.
I don't know if you do, but just like, man, so what drew me into faith? I claim to be a follower of Christ, and I aim to live that out.
I claim to be a football fan, and I aim to live that out as a Steelers fan.
Right.
You know what drew me into this? And so I think that's a it's a healthy question to sit and think about is what drew me into.
(31:54):
And even if for somebody listening who might not be a follow of Christ, first of all, it's your choice.
I'm not here to slam that down your throat.
My prayer is that all would come to know Christ because I believe he has something better for you.
He has done something for each and every person.
He has given his life for us.
(32:15):
God made.
US to be with him.
Our sin separated us from Him.
Sin cannot be removed by good works and good deeds.
No matter how much we try, it will never add up and meet the standard of perfection.
So Jesus was necessary and paying the ultimate price.
Christ died for us.
He died in our place.
He gave up Himself for us in our stead.
(32:38):
He paid the fines that were due for our lives because of our sin.
And it's a gift that's available to everyone.
And it's life that starts now.
As soon as we accept that gift, it's life that starts now.
A relationship we get to have now with Him, with our Creator, with our Savior, with the One who loves us.
(32:58):
And it's not something that just happens, okay, I'm in heaven when I die.
It's something that we get to have now, and we get to experience a better life.
Like you said.
You face addiction even.
And you face these places of life to where if it was something that was just a golden ticket to get into heaven.
That wouldn't have mattered to where you were now and what you were facing now.
(33:20):
And even the people that you were interacting with and being the hands and feet of Christ with those trips and the different things you were able to do and be a part of and see and witness.
They wouldn't matter to now if it was only about having a ticket into eternity.
A ticket into what's next.
(33:41):
And so part of what I was saying there is to anyone who's not a follower of Christ is to process and think through is, okay, what drew you into what you believe? What drew you into where you are and what you believe or what you don't believe? Because you believe something if you don't believe something.
You know what I mean? And so what drew you into that? It's a good question to sit and ponder over.
(34:05):
And, you know, like in football, we've talked about how a lot of it, for both of us, for both Dan and I have been okay, family and some of these nuggets of memory and then the cool experiences within the sport of football, right? And even what you said, Dan, about what really drew you into faith were the experiences of and with those who have been affected by faith and those who are experiencing the outpouring and the effects of other people's faith and living out, loving God and loving others, what the Bible teaches, right, as well as learning what Jesus went through.
(34:50):
So these pieces that have been handed down, as well as you've been able to experience with your own eyes and with your own heart not just what others have done or others have exampled or told you.
And same for me as well.
(35:10):
I grew up I have an interesting testimony that includes a biological father attempting to take my mother's life.
And there's a lot of story that comes with that.
But I grew up in a family that attended church, and we were at everything but behind closed doors.
(35:34):
That wasn't what happened, not for myself, not with my biological father.
And over the years after abuse and then attempted murder, when he tried to take my mom's life, I dealt with years of not understanding, not wanting to understand, not wanting to believe in the idea of God.
(35:58):
And in that, I witnessed my mom's faith.
I witnessed a woman whose life was attempted to be taken, who wasn't supposed to walk the same, who wasn't supposed to do anything the same ever again, continue to live out of faith and hold a faith.
(36:18):
And I got to experience life with my grandfather in a way of where I saw what it looked to be a man of faith leading his home.
So I got to see these nuggets of memory.
I got to have these nuggets of memory created.
I don't know why that's a phrase for me now, but it is.
But these nuggets of memory, and in the same way with football and how I was drawn into football, I was really drawn into faith.
(36:39):
I saw how people lived it out, how it was true.
And that caused me to really then start to.
Okay.
If I think that okay.
There can't be a God because there can't be a good.
Loving.
And all powerful God because my mom was almost murdered.
Well.
I began to.
Okay.
Well.
If people are living this way.
(37:00):
Claiming that I need to look into this.
Why would they be able to live this way if there is no such thing.
If this is just a big hoax.
If this is a big kook.
Whatever.
I need to look into this.
And as I began to research into it, I began to find validity in the Word, in why I can trust the Bible.
I began to understand scripturally, jesus understanding of forgiveness.
(37:25):
So this book was able to be trusted because of archaeological evidence and because of all these other things I'm not going to get into right now, as well as what was in it, the content in it was so powerful and brought me to see and understand so many different things in a different light.
It brought me deeper into a place of where it's just like, I can't deny this anymore.
(37:49):
I cannot deny that God is real, that God did not cause this.
It's not the attempted murder of my mom and these other negative things that happen in life.
These are not because of God, but getting through them, facing them, growing from them, building, building out of those are from God.
(38:10):
And that drew me into a deep place to where to this day, man, the peace I'm able to draw from God's word and from Holy Spirit, the opportunity each and every day of joy and of enjoyment of stuff like football.
Let alone family and faith.
(38:32):
And faith.
Family is nothing like I had ever thought I would experience.
And that continues to draw me in even more.
Just like seeing how things change in football, I keep getting drawn in some more so every year with different things that happen in the league.
Dan.
(38:52):
You can speak to this in any way you wish.
But it's not far off for us to contemplate what drew us into what we believe and why we believe that out of the same vein of what drew us into some of our favorite things like football.
Or what drew us into having a family.
(39:12):
Or what drew us into the job I have.
Or what drew us into the friend group I have.
Whatever.
Like I said before, it's the passion behind both that kind of helps keep us going.
Yeah.
We just got to remember that bad things happen to good people and it's not always in our control.
(39:39):
And I would say that's not because of God.
Right.
It's because of the effect of sin and what disobedience incurred.
Right.
God gives us the path out of that.
He gives us not necessarily out of it, but he gives us the tools through Holy Spirit, through the death and resurrection of Jesus Christ.
He gives us the through his constant presence of His Word, we have in the Bible right next to us, he gives us the tools necessary to be able to face those the temptations, but also the pain and the hurt and the suffering that happened.
(40:15):
Exactly.
That's why one of my favorite books of the Bible is probably Job.
Just the amount of stuff that happened to him and he still believed was amazing because what did his wife say? Just curse God and die? Like, no, I'm not going to do that.
(40:35):
Yeah.
His friends were not helpful to it either.
You must have done something wrong to incur all this.
Yes.
Oh, man, I love it.
Well, thank you for sharing a little bit about that.
I know for anybody listening, this might not be what you've expected to hear or anything like that, but I thought sometimes it's good for us.
(40:57):
We focus on these things that give us escape.
And sometimes it's good for us to think about things that matter out of the things that give us escape.
You know, I think about, like, a movie sometimes it's good for us to process through other meanings and other thoughts, other themes, other meaningful things out of something that's meant to entertain.
(41:24):
I do think it's sometimes good for us to do that.
So I encourage anybody listening, what drew you into? What drew you into football and what drew you into what you believe? What drew you into faith, whether you're Christian or not? What drew you into what you believe or what you don't believe? I'd love to hear about it.
(41:44):
Honestly, I'd love to hear about it.
You can shoot me an email cleats off the couch@gmail.com.
You can leave a comment, whether on YouTube or on podcast, wherever you're listening to this.
One of the things that actually helps the podcast is if you leave a review, it is something that helps to get it out there.
(42:07):
It helps the algorithm to push this podcast forward.
So if you get a chance, please leave a review, let us know how we're doing and also your thoughts to some of the questions that I've been asking.
(42:41):
We're talking about what drew us into places and one of the things you had said there at the end was about surviving through and making and not just surviving, but thriving through pain and those dark things that can happen in everybody's life, that do happen in everybody's life.
And the tools that were given by God through Jesus and through his Word and through friends and family and community brings me back that also idea brings me back to football in the way of.
(43:09):
You know.
Even if you're a Detroit Lions fan or Cleveland Browns fan or a current Steelers or current Colts fan who see and struggle bus happen.
A Carolina Panthers fan.
Whatever it may be that you can still make it.
God will carry you through.
Right.
(43:29):
But that gets my mind rolling about some of the things again back to the Colts and to the AFC South.
Man what's going on with what do you think is going on with the Colts defense, with Matt Ryan, with the wide receiver corps this year? Give me some more thoughts about what you think is going on, what you think some of the reasons for the faulty start have been.
(43:56):
What do you think are some of the possible things to help succeed moving forward this year? Part of it, I feel like the blame definitely goes to the coaches.
Not going to lie.
I really wish we would have kept Carson another year or two because maybe he would have gotten better with us.
I mean, it was his first year playing, so it's like, oh, let's get another veteran Ryan.
(44:19):
Oh, we've got all these high hopes for Matt Ryan.
And it's like, well, if we don't have anybody that could be open or make plays happen, then neither can he.
And then if we put all the blame on him, we can't because really it goes back to the coaches or the other players on the offense.
And when it comes to the offensive line, we have one of the highest paying offensive lines in the NFL right now, and we're not doing very much to show that.
(44:48):
No and the steers are similar in that we have the highest paying defense.
Well, not granted, because we have one of the highest, if not the highest paid defensive player, singularly who's injured right now, but still as a whole, what the heck are they doing if they're paid this much money, you know what I mean? Right.
I just don't know.
My biggest thing is, you look at the last three years of Matt Ryan with the Falcons, and they're not terrible years, but they're nothing.
(45:22):
And first and foremost, I want to put before I believe in honesty and integrity in that.
And I was somebody who I was hyped about Matt Ryan.
I don't know why.
I always enjoyed Matty Ice, and I was hopeful that him with a change of scenery, one or two years left in his system, good years, that he could be the spark of excitement in Indianapolis.
(45:44):
But his final three years, 20 and twelve touchdown interception, radio, 26 to 1126 to 14.
Like I said, not bad.
67% completion, 65%, 66%.
Not terrible.
But my thing was, when it came to Carson Wentz while he was there yeah, his final year with the Eagles, I think there were some bigger issues at play where he had a 1615 touchdown interception ratio, but before they hit a 27 to 721 and 733 to seven, he had some good years.
(46:23):
And then even last year with the Colts and I know you and I have talked about this individually before he had a 3500 yards with 27 touchdowns and seven interception year with the Colts with a 94.6 rating with a very lacking receiving core.
(46:47):
No true.
Number one, I would argue, and he was able to have that kind of year, and they ousted him after a excuse me, after a what? One interception, six sack game and one fumble against Jacksonville to end the season and missed the playoffs last year.
(47:10):
My biggest thing is, why is it always on the quarterback? You look at his stats, and I don't think he did terrible like you said.
I think another year, what would they be doing this year? You know what I mean? I mean, it could be argued he's not doing that well in Washington.
But you said about coaching, I mean, hey, when you got ahead and coach, you throw the quarterback under the bus in week four or whatever it was.
(47:33):
I questioned things.
There was even like the whole hashtag of Fire Frank Reich and who's the GM? Chris Ballard, like, finding just completely new people because they haven't been able to make very good decisions when it comes to the draft or rookie players and coaching just in general.
(47:58):
Well, I wouldn't say that they haven't made good decisions when it comes to draft and when it comes to trades and movement and such.
I just think that they were making snap decisions, you know what I'm saying? Yeah, they have good roster.
They just needed to add to, especially the receiving corps.
If they would have spent this off season agree or disagree with me, if they would have spent this offseason going after a toptier receiver or even right now, they went after, like, DJ Moore or something like that from Carolina.
(48:31):
Since they're getting rid of everybody, I think that would have or would do Indianapolis so much better.
It would do so much more than it was to get rid of the quarterback who had a decent season with them.
And, yeah, they didn't have an excellent game, but he had six sacks.
(48:54):
How many of that was on him? How many of that was on the offensive line? And on top of that, Jacksonville had a growing defense like they had Urban Meyer last year.
It wasn't a great time to try and make a decision based upon their quarterback on one game against a team that maybe they were just like, that team wasn't supposed to be good, and you let them.
(49:18):
No, they were a decent team who just had a crap situation most of the year.
I have no clue.
I don't know.
Those are just some thoughts.
The defense, too, man, moving off of Matt Ryan for a second.
The defense, what happened to them this year? I thought that they were going to be like a top five defense in the league, especially Leonard.
(49:41):
He's been injured, though, hasn't he? He's still not back yet.
Excuse me.
So concussion knows back, but he did have back surgery in the off season and still hasn't played since then.
Well, a lot of my expectations of their defense really fold around dairy floors.
(50:10):
It's been, let's see, Quinnipay was out with an ankle, so that's put like a lot of pressure on some of the other guys in a unique and gone Koy.
That put a lot on his back to try to cover as much as he can with DeForest Buckner with quitty being out and hasn't really been that great fun.
(50:32):
Gilmore's made some good plays, like he's a good one or back.
I think he's going to go far, and as long as they can get Leonard back without him getting injured, I think he's going to do what he does and he's going to disrupt the opposing offenses like he always does it's.
Just being able to keep our guys healthy is the hardest part right now.
(50:54):
He's got to come back in the next four weeks.
Otherwise, I don't know, man.
I don't know what his expected timetable is, but if he doesn't come back and Stefan Gilmore, you had said, I still do not understand what the reasoning was behind him getting sent out from New England before he went down to, I think, Carolina or something like that, and now he's ended up over with Indianapolis.
(51:17):
But Stefan Gilmore always to me was good cornerback material, and he's obviously played pretty darn well for them in Indianapolis.
So here's the fun part.
Everybody has heard from me about my predictions, right? My prediction coming into the season was that Matt Ryan and the Colts would win the AFC South over the Tennessee Titans.
(51:43):
It would be close.
The Titans would take steps back, colts would take steps forward.
And I don't remember exactly what I had them at, but I know that I had them winning.
At one point, I even had said that the Cults were one of my surprise picks for the Super Bowl.
And so I put that out there knowing that those were my picks.
(52:03):
And obviously it's probably not where I would be right now, but I want to give you the opportunity looking this year, the rest of 2022.
What are you thinking? What are you thinking as a Colts fan? Try to be as unbiased as possible.
I know that's so hard to do, but what are you thinking the Colts can actually do through the remainder, the remaining two thirds of this season? Let's see, I think when we first talked about it, you said, what, like, between nine and eleven games? And I think I said like ten to twelve on the winning scale.
(52:35):
Yeah, I had them.
One game over, I think.
Tennessee.
Yeah.
So I still I don't know.
Now I'm kind of looking, maybe hoping for more like last season, maybe nine and eight if we're lucky, depending on how things go.
What are they right now? Three, two and one.
Three, two and one? Yeah, they're half a game back from the Titans.
(52:59):
So I'm hoping, like I said, the biggest thing right now is injuries.
But then the next biggest thing is just being able to get stuff going on offense and then being able to get more points going, more red zone chances, less sloppy plays.
But then also, too, with the defense, trying to see what we could do about being more disruptive, trying to force the incompletions or interceptions, fumbles, whatever.
(53:30):
You have been as hard as you got.
And I feel like part of why we lost against the Jags last year was that we were exhausted by then.
I think that the team just used up way too much of their energy trying to get through those last few games and played kind of sloppy.
Everybody was feeling kind of sloppy, really fatigued.
(53:52):
We just need to try to get more of our guys open.
We still got Pittman Junior.
I think Pascal's back.
We've also got Pierce.
He could be a real good threat in the future if we can make something happen.
Jonathan Taylor the biggest thing is just trying to help get that hole open for him so when he comes back, he could do what he does.
(54:16):
Yeah.
What was that last year? Him and Henry were like, the top two running backs in the league.
Henry got injured last year, too, I think.
Right, right.
Yeah.
That actually happened during the Colts Titans game in Andy.
Yeah.
What you were saying earlier, I don't think the Colts have had a lot of success in Jacksonville either.
(54:40):
Have they? I was going to say that seems to me to be one where Jacksonville usually comes out with a W.
Yeah.
Okay, so that could have definitely been affected last year, too.
I'm looking here at the schedule of what's coming.
You guys play the Titans again this weekend, this Sunday at 01:00, and lost 24 to 17 just a couple weeks ago to the Titans opportunity for redemption, and then play the Commanders, the Patriots, the Raiders, the Eagles, and then end final six with the Steelers, the Cowboys, the Vikings, the Chargers, the Giants, and the Texans.
(55:21):
What I'm seeing, looking at what's coming, and I want to hear from you, is I could see four to six more wins.
Six would put them at nine, seven and one.
Do you think the hardest might be the Eagles? Depending on where they're at at that time, if they're still undefeated or if they're only lost one or two games, or if they start to go downhill from where they are now this weekend, I could see us beaten Tennessee.
(55:51):
I can, too.
I agree with that.
Just so you know, the Eagles actually have to travel to Indianapolis, so I think that goes in the Colt split favor to that.
They're not in Lincoln financial, they're in the Dome in late November.
That actually yeah, home field advantage for us always helps because that stadium gets so loud, even watching on TV, half the time, you can't even hear the announcers, especially in the wintertime.
(56:18):
It's nice to be in the Dome, but, yeah, I'm seeing the Titans and then the Commanders.
The revenge game does.
Carson wentz get the revenge over the Colts.
So you're saying nine seven one is what you think? Yeah, at this point.
All right, we'll quote you on that.
Nine, seven and one is what Dan, the Colts fan, says he thinks the Colts will make it to still hoping.
(56:44):
Now, do you think with a nine, seven and one record, what do you think that entails for them in the AFC South? Hopefully we'll take that number one spot, depending on Tennessee, but if not, we'll definitely be the second place with the one tie would put us just under.
I don't know.
I'm just hoping for the wild card game at the least.
Well, I will say here, I pulled Titan schedule up.
(57:07):
So that way you could hear that to kind of get a picture is the Titans are three and two.
The Cults are three, two, and one.
So the Titans have already had the early bi week, the week four by week, I think it was.
And so that could be big with Derek Henry and how they do things.
They play you guys, and then they play the Texans, and then they play the Chiefs, the Broncos, the packers, the Bengals, the Eagles, the Jaguars, the Chargers, the Texans, the Cowboys, and the Jaguars again.
(57:40):
And so hearing that schedule compared to the Colt schedule now, what does that make you think? Definitely see them losing quite a few of those games.
Yeah, that's what I think, too.
I feel like they'll lose more of theirs than we will of ours.
Like their lost to win ratio, I feel will win more for the rest of the season.
(58:04):
Then they'll lose for the rest of the season, especially going against, like, the Chiefs and the Eagles, depending on if it's in Philly or Tennessee.
They've got a lot of hard games coming.
Even the Chargers, like, I know they're not doing that great, but still, they could pull something out.
(58:25):
I'm looking through this are pretty decent.
They're not great, but they're not bad either.
And then the same with the Jaguars.
I feel like all those games could go either way.
Yeah.
I'm looking at I'm like, Man, I see maybe three to five wins here.
Even if they got the height of that at five more wins, that puts them at eight and nine, at least from my perspective right now.
(58:48):
I'm right there with you.
Where do you think the Titans end schedule wise at the end of the season with that? They're three and two.
Right now, I'd say probably about maybe eight and nine.
Okay.
Yeah.
Because I'm not thinking seven and ten.
Yeah, because I'm thinking through, too, that if the Titans ended nine and eight and the Colts ended nine, seven, and one, the only way the Colts would win the division over the Titans would be if they won this Sunday.
(59:23):
Yeah.
Because they would have to win one of the division games.
Unless the reason that the standings are the way they are is because, literally, the Titans have not played they have not played six games.
They've only played five.
So, yeah, that's what it is.
So, yeah.
Okay.
So you still got hope as a Colds fan? Oh, yeah, I love it.
(59:44):
I don't know if we'll make it to the Super Bowl, but I at least have hopes that we'll go to the playoffs.
(01:00:10):
All right, well, my apologies to anybody who was watching or even listening.
I don't know how it affected things there, but I think my Internet went out twice.
We were just coming to the end of things, and I was just asking Dan about expectations of seating for playoffs.
I'd say probably top of the wild card.
(01:00:32):
Well, okay, wait.
Let's back this up a second.
Are you thinking that the Jags make a play here? Maybe if they could win both games over Tennessee, then that would boot Tennessee down, but that would also bring them up.
Okay.
(01:00:52):
If they beat Tennessee twice, then they would be four and four.
So it depends on how the rest of their season would go.
Got you.
Okay, so the reason why I ask that is because if the Colts end up nine, seven, and one, like you said, and the Titans end up at either eight, nine, or seven and ten, that would put the Colts as the division winner.
So they would be either seated one, two, three, or four.
(01:01:14):
And so it just made me think, when you said about top of the wild card, it made me think, oh, are we having a surprise here from the Jaguars, or do you think the Colts still win the division? I still think we win the division.
Okay, so if you're saying Tablocker, do you think they'll be, like, on fourth? Yeah.
In the AFC.
Okay.
(01:01:38):
Depending on how Kansas City plays out the rest of the season, I could see them taking the number one spot.
Yeah.
There was talk about them trying to bring in CMC, but I haven't seen much more around that.
I've been paying a ton of attention to the Chiefs.
Okay.
So we're looking at third or fourth seed still winning the division, still making the playoffs.
(01:01:59):
I like it.
I like it.
Where do you see the Cults heading next season? Kind of the final thought here with this.
Hopefully a lot better than this season.
As long as we could keep the injuries down and keep everybody healthy, I could see us maybe going that's wise.
(01:02:24):
Depending on how the rest of the season plays out, I could see us maybe being nine and eight or ten and seven, because it always seems like we've been sitting around that area the past few years.
Big quarterback class, apparently good quarterback class in the draft this year.
(01:02:47):
So if people aren't sold on Map Ryan and what he's able to do here for the next two thirds of this season, there's always that potential of being able to bring in a solid rookie next year, too.
Exactly.
Because we still have Nick Foles and Sam Ellen.
Jeremy, like, he played his heart out to stay on the team during the preseason, so he could be a good QB for us if we keep him around, get him a little bit more play time, see how he does.
(01:03:19):
Just got to get the right players and whoever can do what they do best and prove that they want to stay on the team and maybe even start for the team by making all the right moves in place.
That was even my thing last season.
Like, why don't we pick up a rookie, let them learn underneath at the time with Carson, just to get their bearings and learn from somebody that's been through it for a while, and then let them have their shot and see how it goes.
(01:03:55):
Yeah.
And so maybe the best case scenario is we see improvement from Matt Ryan, from the entire unit this year for the next two thirds of the season, and then Matt Ryan there for at least one more year.
Draft one of those quarterbacks, give them a year under mentorship, possibly even take the starting job, but have a mentor in Matt Ryan, in being able to help coach them up, help create a future franchise quarterback for the Indianapolis Colts.
(01:04:29):
Exactly.
Nice.
I could dig it.
I've never been against the Colts except for when they play the Steelers.
Right.
Awesome.
Well, hey, man, I appreciate you giving some.
Time and given your thoughts, giving us a little bit of a look into the Colts into the AFC South from the perspective of somebody who pays closer attention to that than I would as an ASC North Pittsburgh Dealers fan.
(01:04:56):
And I appreciate you sharing a little bit about what has drawn you into football, what has drawn you also even into faith conversation there.
Really appreciate it.
I have had a lot of fun last week talking and preparing for this and today thinking through these things, just having that couch conversation, anything for the good of the order you'd like to finish with, whether it's concerning the Colts, the AC, south, or anything like that.
(01:05:23):
Not that I can think of, at least not off the top of my head.
Just go Colts, right? Absolutely.
Always.
That's a big unless it's called ball.
Then it's Florida State University in Notre Dame.
Oh, man.
(01:05:44):
Now you're going to get some stuff.
Now you're going to get some stuff going from different people.
Everybody listening.
Thank you so much for tuning in today to our first ever guest interview, a fellow man of the couch in Dan Divorceek, and appreciate you being here and letting everybody know too.
If you have not signed up yet for NFL Plus to be able to watch games on the go, I use it literally every week so I don't pay for a cable service or anything like that.
(01:06:15):
I'm able to watch it Amazon Prime on Thursdays and then use my mobile app and watch my Steelers games every week.
It is literally $5 a month or just $30 for the year at the standard rate.
If you want that, check out the description.
Whether you're watching this or listening to it, click the link tree to be able to see that and you support the podcast in the process of doing that.
(01:06:42):
So appreciate each and every one of you.
And also be sure to check out our patreon.
Patreon.
A lot of different things available there.
And I was talking with Dan before this episode a little bit about some of the things that are moving forward.
Some of the exciting things that I'm realizing and finding out and figuring out that would actually benefit those who are patrons.
And the content you're able to get.
(01:07:03):
Whether it's full unedited preparation interviews.
Whether it's sneak peeks at upcoming content.
Whether it's early access.
You name it.
Check out the patreon.
And thank you in advance for any kind of support there moving forward.
We've got some other people already in the process planning out different episodes to be able to have more interviews, looking at other fans from other divisions and getting their thoughts on where their team is, people who are fans of Carolina Panthers, the Baltimore Ravens, the Miami Dolphins, you name it.
(01:07:42):
I'm looking forward to those.
Just like we got to talk with Dan today about the cults and the AFC South.
And so be sure to tune in the future.
And until next time, be blessed and have a good one.
Popular Podcasts
Crime Junkie
Does hearing about a true crime case always leave you scouring the internet for the truth behind the story? Dive into your next mystery with Crime Junkie. Every Monday, join your host Ashley Flowers as she unravels all the details of infamous and underreported true crime cases with her best friend Brit Prawat. From cold cases to missing persons and heroes in our community who seek justice, Crime Junkie is your destination for theories and stories you won’t hear anywhere else. Whether you're a seasoned true crime enthusiast or new to the genre, you'll find yourself on the edge of your seat awaiting a new episode every Monday. If you can never get enough true crime... Congratulations, you’ve found your people. Follow to join a community of Crime Junkies! Crime Junkie is presented by audiochuck Media Company.
24/7 News: The Latest
The latest news in 4 minutes updated every hour, every day.
Stuff You Should Know
If you've ever wanted to know about champagne, satanism, the Stonewall Uprising, chaos theory, LSD, El Nino, true crime and Rosa Parks, then look no further. Josh and Chuck have you covered.