11-22-24 Hour 1 of Broncos Country Tonight

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Well theme to it.

Speaker 2 (00:00):
Broncos Country Tonight, but with all Brian Dick, Ferguson, Grant Smith,
the Denver Broncos get flexed into Thursday night football. First
time since nineteen twenty six that a football team has
played two short week Thursday night football games in a season,
the Broncos.

Speaker 1 (00:17):
It's actually expressly against the NFL rules.

Speaker 2 (00:19):
The Broncos would have had and weaved that in order
to get that, and we'll have plenty to talk about
that here in a little bit.

Speaker 1 (00:25):
It's funny, though, because.

Speaker 2 (00:26):
I found out about this at ten forty last night,
and I didn't believe it was happening. I had a
buddy of mine who does a lot of the schedule
break stuff, reach out to me.

Speaker 1 (00:36):
You talk to Guide NBC.

Speaker 2 (00:38):
You told him that this guy that Broncos were getting
flexed into Thursday, and I was like, there's no way,
there's no way they're going to do two short week
Thursday night football games this year.

Speaker 1 (00:48):
And then several hours later, I looks like an idiot.

Speaker 3 (00:52):
Grant tell me you have that.

Speaker 1 (00:57):
It's just too easy to make Ben look gun these days.
I really admitted, I said it.

Speaker 2 (01:04):
I have not yet begun to defile myself now, I
that was one of the yeah, ten forty I was
looking back just to make sure, just to see what
time he told me last night, ten forty two last night,
and I did not believe him.

Speaker 1 (01:13):
And I was like, there's no way. I was like,
come on, there's no sure enough.

Speaker 3 (01:17):
So we'll get into a little bit of.

Speaker 1 (01:18):
Talk about that.

Speaker 2 (01:19):
As the the Broncos and Chargers now inflexed into Thursday night,
why they possibly could have wanted to do that. I
have a theory we'll get into. We'll get into some
of that stuff as well. Vinnie bon Signiori is going
to join us top of the seven o'clock hour talk.

Speaker 1 (01:31):
About the the Raiders.

Speaker 2 (01:32):
Samantha Previdi eighto five to talk about fantasy football some
the prop bets always geted fun getting a chance to
talk to her about that. We got the NFL six
pack fun game last night in the snow. Well, I
guess if you're Browns fan, fun game last night in
the snow as Jameis Winston leads the Browns over the
Pittsburgh Steelers.

Speaker 1 (01:50):
And I don't know how much of that game you watched.

Speaker 2 (01:54):
I had some serious problems with what in the world
were you doing having Justin Fields throw a deep ball
when Russ, one of the best deep ball throwers in
the league, was passing seventy five percent in that game.
Trying to deal with they getting too smart, like what
in the laureld was going on with the Steelers offense.

Speaker 4 (02:10):
For me, they were doing too much because once again
I can understand what Justin phils and he has a
certain skill set and you want to make sure that
you use every ounce of it to keep defensive units
on the heels. But sometimes that can disrupt the offensive
risk rhythm, especially in critical situations, knowing that you are
playing a division rival, whether it's cold, and as the

(02:34):
game went on it got colder, we saw the snow.

Speaker 3 (02:37):
To me, you never wanted to.

Speaker 4 (02:38):
Run a risk of breaking the rhythm, and I felt
as though that's what they were doing.

Speaker 3 (02:43):
And I get it. Justin Fhilds is.

Speaker 4 (02:46):
Kind of a younger version of Russell, But Russell has
won three games in a row. If I'm not mistaken
doing whatever it is that he's doing, and they're not
really asking Russ to do too much, just go out there,
be the quarterback, make the throws. You need to hand
the ball off when you need to the Naji Harras
throw it to pet fire move and just let the
defense do work.

Speaker 3 (03:05):
And it was excellent philosophy.

Speaker 4 (03:07):
And I had a feeling that Cleveland was going to
maybe somehow win this game. I wasn't sure, but division
of games are always tough, and Cleveland, even though this
season is not going that well, it's a division rival,
it's a staple game. He's a team that will be
in the playoffs.

Speaker 3 (03:25):
You're not, so you.

Speaker 4 (03:27):
Have an opportunity to just kind of upset things for them.
But I couldn't, for the love of me understand why
the Steelers did it. Like one time, yes, I'm fine,
but you start doing it more time.

Speaker 2 (03:39):
I was okay with a couple of those players letting
him run all that kind of stuff, but that was
a third or fourth down where they had him throw
the deep ball, and what even close?

Speaker 3 (03:49):
Are you trying to win or are you trying to lose?

Speaker 2 (03:51):
He apparently because it looks to me, and I'm like, man,
I just got through hyping up Arthur Smith and talking
about him all that kind of stuff. I just gotten
through talking about how great Russ has been doing that.
The Steelers went from twenty points per game to thirty
two points per game moving from fields to Russ and
then they come out and do that and it was
I mean, Russ took a couple of sacks that he takes.

Speaker 1 (04:10):
We saw that all, like I said.

Speaker 5 (04:11):
But Russ is throwing seventy five percent for the game,
like it wasn't like he was missing a bunch of
passes already, that kind of stuff, and it was passing
the ball pretty well.

Speaker 4 (04:21):
When we go back and look at the game really
with a fine to come as I did. And I
was looking at the game because for me, these games
come down to defensive playing key moments, even though we
talk about the offense and quarterbacks.

Speaker 3 (04:39):
There was a moment where the.

Speaker 4 (04:40):
Pittsburgh Steelers defense had a chance to really shut down
the Browns and just kind of eliminate them from getting
that score after Pittsburgh went up.

Speaker 3 (04:50):
But there was some miscues.

Speaker 4 (04:53):
Jerry Judy cart a pass got to on the scoring
drive to extend the drive.

Speaker 3 (04:58):
I just thought that Mika Fens and the DB's didn't
play it well.

Speaker 4 (05:02):
You see a guy in the cut split, you know
he's gonna run over because Jerry Judy normally lines up
outside the numbers. Now he's in the slot on the ball.
What are they telling you they're going to do? Mika
then cut the cut the over route when you needed
to cut it. Jerry picks up the first down, Chubbs
run it, runs it in for a touchdown. And there

(05:24):
was a conversation coming into the game, Miles Garrett or TJ.
Watt In the game last night, Mile Garrett. Miles Garrett
actually won the game for the Cleveland by ye totally.
It was all Miles Garrett last night. One of the
other things you mentioned Nick Chubb.

Speaker 2 (05:39):
One of the other baffling decisions was inside two minutes
you had Nick Chubb running the ball and the Steelers
like let him through initially and then stopped him at
the two. You should have shoved his backside into the
end zone and given them the touchdown, and then you
would have had forty more seconds to try and get
that drive together, and those forty seconds would have come
in handed them. I'd have got there.

Speaker 1 (06:00):
It was.

Speaker 5 (06:00):
I was sitting there as they were doing it, screaming
at the TV.

Speaker 1 (06:03):
Shove him in the end zone, shove him, do what
you doing, Let him score.

Speaker 4 (06:06):
What was crazy about the game. It's like the same thing.
Like you rewind a week ago when the Stellers were
playing Baltimore. You know, and Justin Tucker, one of the
best kickers of all time in the league, missed like
two kicks and you're thinking, okay, well Boswell ended up.

Speaker 3 (06:24):
Being the hero in that game. But now it was
worked out opposite in Cleveland.

Speaker 1 (06:30):
He missed the one that ye had a start or whatever.
But this was one you.

Speaker 2 (06:33):
Had the Browns driving, you had you were under two minutes,
you had one time out, and they were They're gonna
score like they were there. But but shove Nick Chubb
into the end zone. It doesn't matter. Touchdown, field, goal,
doesn't matter.

Speaker 5 (06:44):
You need the time to get back down the other direction.

Speaker 1 (06:46):
Those forty seconds were more valuable than the points.

Speaker 4 (06:48):
It makes you wonder if those in game situations were communicated.

Speaker 3 (06:54):
On the sideline. Okay, here's where we.

Speaker 4 (06:55):
Are, man understanding situation of football, all right.

Speaker 3 (06:59):
I did either we're going to stop them and give.

Speaker 4 (07:01):
Our ball, get the ball back to our offense outright,
or if we cannot stop him, the idea is to
allow him to score. Now we've seen it before where
the running bags actually understood the situation and instead of.

Speaker 3 (07:14):
Scoring, dropped down on the one exactly.

Speaker 1 (07:17):
I've seen that, but at this.

Speaker 2 (07:19):
Case, Pittsburgh should have just knocked him into the It
was a snow, he had his arms around him, it
was moving him wherever he wanted.

Speaker 1 (07:25):
Just push him into the end zone and be done
with it.

Speaker 2 (07:27):
Because that forty second set, I mean, your comeback was
removed because you could those forty seconds.

Speaker 3 (07:32):
You need it when you're.

Speaker 1 (07:33):
Running in the snow, try to get up and get set.

Speaker 2 (07:35):
You got to add an extra seven eight seconds to
get everybody up there when you're doing that in the snow.
And so when you have when they got the ball back,
I think they got it back with like fifty six
fifty eight seconds something like that. I'm like, okay, you've
got five maybe six plays here, depending on how many
out of bounds you get. And you know, of course
they used twenty seconds on the first play, and I
was like.

Speaker 1 (07:54):
It's over.

Speaker 2 (07:55):
You didn't the situational awareness football, like Q says, shove
your opponent in the end and saved the forty seconds
so you get out and score. Because at that point,
it didn't matter whether they got the two point conversion,
whatever it was. At that point, it did not matter.
You needed the touchdown, you knew you needed the touchdown.

Speaker 4 (08:11):
You need the time or when the Browns actually proved
it is a given fact, especially this time of year, being.

Speaker 3 (08:21):
Able to run the ball, but having your.

Speaker 4 (08:23):
Defense show up when they need to make plays. Because
looking at the beginning of the game, Cleveland only had
ten points going into halftime. That third quarter shut out,
nothing at all zilt. But when they needed to make
the plays, when Jamis needed to make the plays, the
receivers needed to make the plays, they made them, and.

Speaker 2 (08:44):
They had a few more they could have gotten. I mean,
Joku dropped one.

Speaker 1 (08:47):
In the end zone. There was I mean there was.

Speaker 5 (08:49):
A Newsday wide open just drop the ball, and there
are other players that could have made.

Speaker 3 (08:54):
But the big thing to me.

Speaker 2 (08:55):
That stood out was Pittsburgh throw this thing away. You
had the opportunity. First on fourth down, you kept missing
up downs. You couldn't get a yard. You couldn't get
a yard two three times on fourth down?

Speaker 5 (09:04):
How yeah, Dowgie Harrison, Jayla warn back there and you
can't get a yard. How on God's green Earth?

Speaker 4 (09:11):
Fourth and one more than once you can't pick up
a yard. To me, that's detrimental and it's a bad
look for your offensive line. And when we could talk
about the weather conditions or whatever, well, it didn't seem
like the Cleveland Browns were having that.

Speaker 3 (09:27):
Much trouble in the fourth quarter.

Speaker 1 (09:28):
Both of all playing in the.

Speaker 4 (09:29):
Same conditions, same conditions, and it's just.

Speaker 3 (09:31):
Like watching TJ.

Speaker 4 (09:34):
Watt try to come off the edge, what's entirely.

Speaker 3 (09:37):
Different than watching Miles Garrett come.

Speaker 4 (09:41):
Like Miles Garrett just came with like a certain hunger,
like he had at mee jet rockets attached to his back.

Speaker 1 (09:50):
It looked like he put the long spikes in. I'm
just saying, I.

Speaker 4 (09:53):
Mean everyone has, you know, right to the same level
of equipment.

Speaker 1 (09:58):
I'm just saying, so we.

Speaker 4 (09:59):
Can't say one team was points shaving.

Speaker 3 (10:01):
Yeah, there was it.

Speaker 4 (10:02):
But whatever the Cleveland Browns were doing in those key moments,
it worked and that was the reason why they won.

Speaker 2 (10:09):
Yeah, I mean it was to me, I felt like
Pittsburgh choked that thing away.

Speaker 1 (10:13):
I felt like they had it and they choked it away.

Speaker 2 (10:15):
And there were, like I said, fourth down calls that
you couldn't get a yard fourth down decision that was awful.
What are you letting fields sole a ball in your
main quarterback. That's like bringing Taysom Hill in to throw
a deep ball when you got dre a breeze, Like,
what are we doing?

Speaker 1 (10:27):
Well?

Speaker 4 (10:28):
I mean, come on, in all fairness, I mean, when
Taysom Hill came in, it was the gids you gadget put.

Speaker 2 (10:34):
But there were some times where you could see back
in the Saints when Sean Payton would bring tay and
you could.

Speaker 5 (10:37):
Tell it it was like put a boat anchor on
a ferrari. You know, you have your offense clicking, and
then you bring a Taysom Hill in for something. You're like,
what are we doing here?

Speaker 1 (10:44):
What are we doing?

Speaker 4 (10:45):
Because you're hoping in that moment been for something special.
The defense hadn't seen Justin Fields all of a sudden
he's gonna give him something.

Speaker 5 (10:53):
Well he did with his legs, but I mean that
fourth and one, I'm like, man, you out you.

Speaker 1 (10:56):
All smarted yourself on that one.

Speaker 4 (10:57):
Well, okay, but but if that's the case, and he said, okay,
well we have a player with a special, unique skill
set that well, Justin Fields may be a little more
mobile th ij Ow than russellis will be more creative
with the four down play runs.

Speaker 1 (11:11):
We're a QB sweep or something. You know, you take
a use of his like.

Speaker 3 (11:14):
Do something like that.

Speaker 4 (11:15):
This is the thing that drives me nuts when when
coordinators have guys with certain skill sets and they kind
of put those guys and send ont.

Speaker 3 (11:24):
Of a box themselves with the play call. This make
any sense, Like.

Speaker 2 (11:28):
Well, you know, we have this guy who's been throwing
the ball pretty well all night.

Speaker 1 (11:31):
We just take him off the field, bring.

Speaker 2 (11:32):
The guy in who hasn't thrown a pass at all yet,
and have him throw the deep ball on fourth and
one or whatever it was, fourth and three.

Speaker 1 (11:38):
I don't even remember.

Speaker 2 (11:40):
You dude, quarterboat justin fields and had that big six
foot seven tight end come parallelmit the line of scream
and you just put a jump ball up to him.

Speaker 4 (11:46):
Come on easy or I mean even though if you
don't use him, use fine mooth.

Speaker 3 (11:52):
Yeah, well you put both.

Speaker 5 (11:52):
A minute, but I'm just saying you have six foot seven,
put him on a pole, those stick put the.

Speaker 3 (11:56):
Ball up for him. Yeah, come on once again?

Speaker 4 (11:58):
That was That was a game that I feel as
though Mike Tomlin's going to go back and look at
even though the game was, you know close, that they
the Pittsburgh Stiller should have won. And in these situations
as you close out the season, you never want a
second guess.

Speaker 3 (12:15):
But knowing how close.

Speaker 4 (12:19):
These races are at the end of the season, as
teams are trying to precisely get seating, to me, you
don't want to leave anything or take anything from granted.
If you had an opportunity to win the game, win
the game, no matter what where are you at, no
matter who the point.

Speaker 3 (12:37):
It is, even if it's at a Walmart parking lot.

Speaker 2 (12:39):
The only time I take it for granted, I want
to listen to the Taking It for Granted podcast over
on the Totally Free ass in My Heart Radio. Mike
Tomlin in his presser today was asked a question because
apparently Antonio Brown has said that he wants to come
back to the Steelers and play for free. Mike Tomlin
had a very succinct response to that, staring into the
camera and then just saying no, oh.

Speaker 1 (13:03):
You should see like the look on his face too.

Speaker 5 (13:04):
They got it.

Speaker 1 (13:05):
Somebody got it. The video we're sitting there doing like this.
You get the beanie on. He bulleled up, he said,
looking like kind of crazy at the and he's like, now.

Speaker 4 (13:14):
Yeah, so that's one of those things that you don't
need to get into deep thought to figure out. And granted,
you know, I'll say this, Ab in his planning days
he was one of the better.

Speaker 3 (13:28):
He was helvers. I mean, he was freaking amazing.

Speaker 1 (13:31):
The question was always was the juice worth to squeeze
with him?

Speaker 4 (13:34):
That's what you're worry about with a lot of players
at that particular point. I mean, is the talent worth
a much larger headache? And could he guy like Ab
help out Pittsburgh in this moment? Absolutely, I have no doubt.
Right But for me, for if I want more bang
for my buck, I'd rather go get a fifty year

(13:54):
old or fifty one year old wide received by the
name of Tara Owens. And I know that sounds crazy,
but he's still sha He's still the shame. He still
gets you, like, you know, maybe six targets, five receptions,
maybe about sixty yards.

Speaker 3 (14:09):
I still believe he could do that.

Speaker 1 (14:10):
How many games you played in the snow?

Speaker 2 (14:11):
I know you were up there in Canada for a minute,
did you did you play an the NFL games in
the snow?

Speaker 4 (14:15):
Though? Yeah? You know, matter of fact, when I was
watching the game with my son. I was telling him
about a game we played here against rich Gannon and
the Raiders, and it was a game where I think
Tyrone Wheatley was running back and I remember this fourth
down play right, You can go find it on YouTube
where Tyrone Wheatley was coming through the hole and he
was trying to leap over the top and he was

(14:36):
met by number fifty six Al Wilson and he just
went pow hit right in his mouth. He said, him
right on his backside. And we went nuts. And I
told my son because he was like, how can you
play football games where you can't see the field? I said, well,
we had one of those games. And they came out
with one of those snowblowers or a leaf blowers and
just they were blowed the lines and.

Speaker 1 (14:58):
They trying to get the hash mark.

Speaker 3 (15:00):
Say, man, it was one of those games. It was.

Speaker 4 (15:02):
It was fun for me because growing up in Miami
where it doesn't snow. It was fun for us because
the play defense was awesome because I could tackle the
guy and put his face in the snow without anyone,
no consequence, no consequences, no ability at all. Right, It
was it was some of the best football ever. So yes,
I played in those snow games.

Speaker 2 (15:22):
It's always fun to watch those, but it does it
does change the way that you do things.

Speaker 1 (15:27):
They different teams have had different approaches with it.

Speaker 2 (15:29):
There was a Philadelphia Eagles game a couple of years
ago where we saw the team just continue to throw
the ball because they knew they could double move dbs
in the snow and they couldn't get any footing.

Speaker 1 (15:36):
Whereas conventional wisdom says we're.

Speaker 2 (15:38):
Gonna get heavy and run the ball because we you know,
but they went the opposite direction with it, and we're
making Hey.

Speaker 4 (15:43):
If I'm not mistaken. There was a game that I
think the Patriots were playing Buffalo. I could be wrong,
but I know Buffalo was playing and Sean McCoy was
playing for the Bills, I believed during that time, and
the Bills kept running the ball and he would check
it down to him out of the backfield, and you're thinking, like,
footing is off with the snow. The snow has covered

(16:04):
the field, but somehow Shady McCoy was able to stop
on a dime, make cuts and then get into the
end zone.

Speaker 3 (16:11):
I was like, I've seen it all.

Speaker 1 (16:13):
That was very impressive. Ice doesn't matter, He's yes, it.

Speaker 4 (16:17):
Just it just just doesn't matter because his balance, his
lower body balance was just like so much better and
superior than the defenders he was facing.

Speaker 1 (16:26):
Again, so it was a lot of it was.

Speaker 2 (16:27):
It was pretty funny because there was a lot of
talk before that game last night that Jameis Winston had
never played a game in the snow. Uh for obviously
at Florida State for college and down there Tampa, uh
for a long time. That in New Orleans for like,
he's never been in a snow game it ever and
uh and then he uh, you know, he gets out there.

Speaker 1 (16:42):
And plays one of the snow. He had nothing but
great things to say about him.

Speaker 6 (16:45):
I'm so happy and grateful that the Lord has best
me to play in some snow, to be in true
football weather in Cleveland, Ohio at Huntington bay Field today
to get him the glory.

Speaker 1 (16:56):
It's a beautiful day.

Speaker 3 (16:57):
Sure feels like you're playing in the AFC.

Speaker 1 (16:59):
Northsratical, thank you.

Speaker 2 (17:01):
I thought he was about to sell me some amway
there for a minute. There was he was winding up
for a minute.

Speaker 1 (17:05):
But you know, Javis, the Browns have responded to him
coming in a quarterback.

Speaker 2 (17:10):
You know, with the Shawn Watson it was largely a
lethargic offense. They're putting up yards, you.

Speaker 1 (17:14):
Know, and then they put up the points and up
points to win against the Steelers there at home.

Speaker 2 (17:20):
I think it's probably too late for the Browns in
terms of the playoffs this year, but you know they
could play a spoiler down the stretch.

Speaker 3 (17:29):
Well, that's the.

Speaker 4 (17:29):
Case for a lot of teams being able to play
somewhat of a spoiler because your season obviously is not
going to end the way you wanted to.

Speaker 3 (17:39):
But this is where coaches, if you.

Speaker 4 (17:41):
Are one of those teams and you know Cleveland, the Giants,
the Jets, that you get a chance to really evaluate
your roster because nine times out of ten, if your
GM didn't get fired or your head coach didn't get fired,
you're lucky. But most likely they are, and you want
to make sure when you're watching tape, you're looking to

(18:02):
see which guys are still competing as though the playoffs
are around the corner. And to me, it's the same
when we're watching college players coming from the collegiate level
looking to be drafted. I don't want to watch film
of your best game where you're blowing teams out. I
want to go back and watch games where you know
what you can't you faced you know better competition, and

(18:24):
you you were not able to do what you were
you typically would do against other opposing teams when they
figure your talent. I want to see how players kind
of adjust to that and who's still playing.

Speaker 2 (18:35):
I say, one player that was playing last night was
our friend Shelby Harris. Shelby Harris was all over the
field last night. I kept calling his name, kept calling
his name. I was like, shall we still out there,
tak that's the gas in the tank?

Speaker 4 (18:45):
Well? Shall we trying to show what he still can
do at this stage, whether it's for Cleveland or whether
it's for someone else. Now, does Kevin Stefanski survive? I
think he's going on does okay? Well if he survives
now now as a veteran, because teams look at it
this way, are you aging, do you have injuries? And

(19:06):
how much money you're gonna cost this? Because if they
can check the boxes on all three of those nine
times out of ten, they're gonna try to move you out.
But showill be constantly showing up in games like that,
on a Thursday night where everyone's watching against the division rival,
will just be Baltimore.

Speaker 3 (19:22):
To me, that's what you want to do.

Speaker 2 (19:24):
And the Brown's next game is against gasp, your Denver
Broncos on Monday night, one week from Monday, so they
get little le extra rest before they get the square
off against the Broncos. That'll be it'll be fun a
first Monday Night game for the Broncos this year.

Speaker 1 (19:39):
We come back. Daniel Jones was.

Speaker 2 (19:41):
Released by the Giant Stag a little chance to talk
about that this ne Broncos Country night. Kat Where got
a really good question during the break there said, Hey, guys,
love the show and I have a question that's been
on my mind about the concept of tanking. Do you
know if a team that is actually purposely tanked to
get a draft pick that may not even work out?
I just aunts the elite athletes quitting and not playing

(20:02):
hard because they're told to lose. Has that ever really happened? Well,
I think there's two things can be true at the tank.
At the same time, I think as an organization, you
can be tanking right or trying to lose games, while
at the same time the players on the field may
not be doing that. You may not be telling the
players to loaf, but you may be removing certain players
from the equation, whether putting them on IR or trading

(20:25):
them or cutting them.

Speaker 1 (20:27):
I'm looking at you, giants.

Speaker 2 (20:29):
You may be putting yourself in a situation where you
can't field athletes that are going to enough athletes that
are going to win you a game, right, and so, Nick,
you probably can wait you on this. I can't never
see any athlete tanking because what's happening you're putting the
team in a better position to draft your replacement.

Speaker 4 (20:49):
Yeah, for the most part, most players are not going
to go out there and throw games now from a
team standpoint, based on draft position that they're seeking out.
We know of some alleged tails, one from Brian Flores
when he was with the Miami Dolphins saying the owner
Stephen Ross so to get to YEA incentivize him to

(21:13):
do that.

Speaker 1 (21:13):
And they got him anyway.

Speaker 4 (21:14):
Yeah, but he didn't. He didn't want to do that.
But there's certain organizations that will definitely do that. Remember
the whole Suck for Luck campaign there was that.

Speaker 2 (21:22):
I was going to talk more recently about the Houston
Texans hiring an inexperienced coach one year. Uh and then
because they knew what they were doing, they were trying
to reload the whole thing.

Speaker 1 (21:30):
They hired an inexperienced coach and David Cully and fired
him after one year. And then Lovey got.

Speaker 5 (21:35):
Some revenge on him, but the revenge back towards them
into what they want because Lovey won that last game.

Speaker 1 (21:39):
Remember that.

Speaker 2 (21:40):
I remember Lovey new was getting fired when Ahead won
that last game out of spite and then turned around
and it allowed the CJ. Stroud to fall in their
lap at two instead of Bryce Young at one, and
it worked out for him.

Speaker 4 (21:54):
Not every team and teams sport are trying to win.
Thomas de Metroz famously said that about a year ago
that some teams are just trying to win enough games
to keep their job and just so it happens if
they win enough games and they make it to the
playoffs or the super Bowl.

Speaker 3 (22:13):
Hey, it's the plus. You're not going to have that many.

Speaker 4 (22:15):
Franchises that show that they're committed to winning like the
Pittsburgh Steelers are. And all you have to look in
order to gauge the Pittsburgh Steelers.

Speaker 3 (22:26):
Just look at the.

Speaker 4 (22:27):
Number of coaches they've had in their franchise history. Not
the players, but the commitment to the coaches that is
so vital to a lot of situations. And players man
for the most part, players trying to go out there
and they try, they want to win. But sometimes teams
can sabotage their players, their organization and one may ask, well,

(22:53):
how and why would they do that?

Speaker 3 (22:55):
Right, because arrogance runs deep.

Speaker 4 (22:57):
Not just in professional sports, but.

Speaker 3 (22:59):
In this business as well.

Speaker 4 (23:01):
So you can choose or elet not to call certain
plays and not put your players in position to succeed.

Speaker 2 (23:09):
Not go for it certain times, or not take a
field goal and go for it, and you know there
are ways that you can stack the deck as an organization.
I don't see the athletes on the field deliberately trying
to lose, because again, all you're doing at that point
is putting up tape on why they should replace you, right,
or why they shouldn't pay you on your next contract
or whatever. Like your performance on the fields, your DNA,
that's how you get paid, that's how you keep playing.

(23:30):
And so I can't see an athlete on the field
doing that. I could absolutely see a front office trading
away certain players or placing them on IR. I can
absolutely see a coach not dialing up certain things in
an effort to further that endeavor. Remember Alexander who used.

Speaker 4 (23:45):
To play for the Seattle Sea Augs Sean hann Sean
Alexander had an incentive in his contract that stated that
if he rushed for a certain amount of touchdowns, he
was going to receive a bonus.

Speaker 1 (23:57):
They kept pulling him at the goal on.

Speaker 3 (23:59):
They kept pulling at the golah.

Speaker 4 (24:01):
There is someone inside every organization who understands players contracts.
They know when certain players about the hit bonuses. So
either they're going to allow you to hit said bonus
or they're going to stop you. And that is the
most simplistic thing that I can give you. If one
would ask, why would a team that signed you to
a contract known as though that incentive is in your contract,

(24:25):
prevents you from getting it.

Speaker 2 (24:26):
And I'm trying to remember who it was that was
one of the Auburn running backs that saw that said somebody,
its either Ronnie Brown or Cadiac Williams. I can't remember
who changed the incentive and their deal because the team
was trying to get them to swallow a touchdowns incentive,
and he did put yardage on there. Put yardage on
there because I can't take that away that they have
to sit me completely down. Put yardage on there, and
so that he changed his incentives from like twelve touchdowns

(24:48):
to twelve hundred yards and he ended up hitting it.
So yeah, it was you know, there is some of
that that goes on. There are cheap owners that try
to prevent it. Right now, you've got the Giants doing that.
Why you think Tommy DeVito's in there, because Drew Locke
has playtime and statistical accomplishment, and he would hit them
like there's enough time left that he's got.

Speaker 1 (25:09):
He would hit them if he were out there.

Speaker 4 (25:10):
If I'm a Giants fan, I am upset with the
Giants for so many reasons.

Speaker 3 (25:15):
I mean, looking at what happened with Daniel Jones.

Speaker 4 (25:19):
John Marra, who is part of the owner group for
the Giants, I mean, this is me paraphrasing, but he
said in a statement I think maybe about a year ago,
that they did everything possible to screw up Daniel Jones
by constantly changing head coaches and offensive coordinators.

Speaker 3 (25:40):
And my thing is, if you're going.

Speaker 4 (25:41):
To draft a quarterback in the first round, you have
to be committed to him.

Speaker 3 (25:47):
So you draft Daniel Jones.

Speaker 4 (25:50):
Then you fire the coaching staff, you bring over Joe
Shane because I think it was Dave gettoo Gettleman, who
was the former GM at the time. I think Gettleman
drafted Daniel Jones. Right, So you bring in Joe Shane
from Buffalo, and you bring over Brian Dabele.

Speaker 3 (26:08):
Joe Shane mean, he's not tied to Dave Jones.

Speaker 4 (26:12):
He wants his own guy. But he came out and said,
you know what, We're gonna ride this thing to the
will fall off. But now we to a point where
Dave Jones saw the writing on the role and he
was like, you know what, a man, John Mar, let
me up out of my contract, give me up out
of here. And Mar saying, look, this is the best
thing for you and the best thing for us.

Speaker 3 (26:30):
But they never really set him up.

Speaker 4 (26:32):
How many times been if we watch quarterbacks drafted and
then not really get a chance.

Speaker 3 (26:38):
Yeah, you have to have a vision and a.

Speaker 2 (26:39):
Two year plan to set that they get up for success.
And we see in Denver that whatever you think of
Sean Payton, he had that for boat DICKX, whatever you
think of his the way that the relationship with Russ
and all that kind of stuff, he definitely had a
vision and a plan for boat CKX and it's working right.

Speaker 3 (26:54):
They didn't have that New York.

Speaker 2 (26:56):
They didn't commit to the offensive line, the skill position players.

Speaker 1 (27:00):
Really, you know, they really didn't do much there.

Speaker 2 (27:02):
The one guy that they did get, Saquon Barkley, was
the engine, the straw that stirred the drink, and they
let him walk in free agency to the division rival.
The way the Giants have done business over the last
six years and frankly longer, but really the last six
years is an embarrassment.

Speaker 4 (27:17):
Well, the reason, okay, when they let Saquon go and
the hold on to Daniel Jones, because the whole idea
is that, hey, if you don't have a quarterback, you
don't have, you know, a guide to lead your franchise
for it. But then they gave somewhat of an extension
to Daniel Jones, like, well, why are you doing that? Well,
you're doing that because you're trying to appease the Giants

(27:38):
fans who were gonna come after your head and ask
you why did you let Saquon go. So now, hey,
we got our quarterback. We just gonna build around them.

Speaker 3 (27:46):
We draft.

Speaker 5 (27:46):
You didn't have to let Saquon go. You could have
paid him.

Speaker 3 (27:49):
And let DJ go.

Speaker 4 (27:49):
What you did anyway, but once again built upon the rules,
all in the policies of the NFL that states that
the quarterback it's the most important. But how important is
he if you're not putting talent around him? That's a
stupid philosophy.

Speaker 1 (28:05):
I agree. The quarterback of our traffic coverage though, is
Dave O'Brien.

Speaker 2 (28:11):
We're talking a little bit the last segment about the
concept of tanking and how organizationally you can be doing
that even if the players are on the field aren't
at times.

Speaker 1 (28:19):
By the way, no.

Speaker 2 (28:21):
Get senter Nicole Yolkich, who's been out since November tenth.
We'll return to the lineup tonight versus the Dallas Mavericks.
For those of you who did not know that, now
you know, y'll Kich. Welcome to Newborn Sun Thursday night.
So that's why he was out.

Speaker 4 (28:38):
I kind of figured as such, he you have your
first job. This is like this is not his first job,
but maybe third it but is this his first son?

Speaker 1 (28:50):
I think so that sounds right. I'm not a hundred
on that I mean to.

Speaker 3 (28:53):
Be told on is just because it's nikolee Jokice.

Speaker 4 (28:57):
If he says that I need some time with my family,
you give it right because you think about how much
he's given to this city, to the Nuggets organization, and
I you know.

Speaker 1 (29:09):
Look, yeah, he has a daughter, now, he has a son.

Speaker 4 (29:14):
I've had the fortunate blessing to be there for each
one of my kids when they were born. And I
encourage every single man to be in that room with
your wife here, a significant other, your girlfriend or whatever,
because it definitely changes your life. It's interesting that it
will be interesting to see how Nicola responds in his game.

Speaker 3 (29:36):
When he returns. So that's gonna be really interesting to watch.

Speaker 1 (29:39):
Yeah, that's uh, you know, he and he.

Speaker 2 (29:43):
There was some some radio people that were talking about
that because the first night he was out, Mike Malone
stayed back to watch his daughter compete in like a
volleyball championship.

Speaker 1 (29:52):
I think I think it was like a her flast
volleyball game.

Speaker 2 (29:54):
And there was some you know, that's a hot take
radio guys or so they're not giving it all the
game and you know on all.

Speaker 1 (29:59):
This of stuff, and man, I you know what, here's
eighty two games at a basketball season. I'm all right,
there's a little different.

Speaker 2 (30:05):
I mean, football is only sixteen seventeen games now, I
guess you know in the season, so maybe a little
bit different week to missing a game.

Speaker 1 (30:11):
And even then, if I wouldn't be grudge somebody'll be
for the birth or child, go'll be there for the
birth of your child.

Speaker 4 (30:15):
Look, man, there are moments in your life that you
can't get back, and those with your family and friends. Look,
I mean we are a couple of days away from
Thanksgiving and those moments are really precious. So coach Malone
spending time to go to his daughter's volleyball game. How

(30:37):
many times in the time since he's been a Nuggets coach,
He's taking off time for something like that. So I mean, look,
the dude has brought a title he had had one
to forty seven years.

Speaker 3 (30:48):
So if someone in this.

Speaker 4 (30:50):
Market or nationally have some issue with Coach Malone or
Nicola Jokic, kickrocks, that's what.

Speaker 1 (30:57):
I say too.

Speaker 2 (30:58):
It wasn't in this market, and I thought it was
uh pretty untoward to sit there and suggest that they
you know that Nicola jokichose the fans to be out
there and all that kind of stuff.

Speaker 1 (31:08):
It's just ridiculous to me. Anyway, he's gonna be back tonight.

Speaker 2 (31:12):
So for those of you wondering on that, we also
got the news at Rock Party and Nick bosill be
out for the Niners against Green Bay. I know last
night when I was talking with Zach Segers, I had
the Niners in that game. I'm gonna have to flip
that pick to the Packers now because Brandon Allen, the
pride of bridging Joe Flacco and Drew Lock here in Denver,
the guy who lasted those at six quarters I think,

(31:33):
and he was something like that, did he play, uh,
played the Minnesota game and then halfway through the Buffalo
game or whatever, then that was it? If I remember correctly,
Brandon Allen, Did he last like two games here and
then it was on to Drew Lock as quickly as possible?

Speaker 3 (31:45):
Yeah it was.

Speaker 1 (31:46):
But look, and I think it was the Buffalo game. Yeah,
he's trying to cut the wind, and yeah.

Speaker 4 (31:53):
He wasn't set up for a success, let's be totally honest.
Then he then he basically went to the Rams Ribes there.
He was there a couple of games for them. But
this is kind of the life of a backup quarterback.

Speaker 2 (32:06):
No, he said, the Ramses with the Brockos, Okay, he
went to the Bengals afterwards. For three years he was
at the Grant grand Smith's Bengals, and then he's with
the Niners this year.

Speaker 4 (32:13):
Well, I tell you what, man, the if you want
longevity in the NFL, there are like three positions that
you need to play. Long snapper, I'm gonna say, being
a kicker of any sort, Phil golds putter, and a
backup quarterback.

Speaker 3 (32:32):
You play in the league a long time, A long time.

Speaker 1 (32:35):
Asked Chase Daniel about that. Yes. Yeah.

Speaker 2 (32:39):
Brandon Allen, who originally started with Jacksonville, has started nine games,
played in sixteen over the course of his his NFL career,
thrown ten touchdowns over that span, most of which came
in that either in the year that he was here
with Denver, in which he played three games. It was
the brown Remember he won the Browns. He had the
Vikings game and then the Buffalo game. By the Buffalo
game alright, ended we're on to Drew Locke. Most of

(33:02):
those came in that span. As far as that, he
does have a career positive touchdown interception ratio ten touchdowns
to six uh interceptions, so you know a little bit
of that. Brandon famously played college ball for for Arkansas.
You know, back in the day. He and his brother
were both pretty good, pretty good quarterbacks. The thing that
sticks out about me, that always just stuck out about

(33:24):
me about Brandon Allen is how tiny his hands are, right,
what you mean his tiny hands, like tiny hands.

Speaker 3 (33:32):
Right, But saying that, like he has like six year.

Speaker 2 (33:35):
Old hands, bro, His hands are like eight and seven
eight inches and he had to get like besides, because
we was at the senior bowls like eight and a
half it was eight eight inches eight and a half
inches hands.

Speaker 1 (33:44):
Now I've got nine on a quarter hands, all right,
So you got smaller hands than me, you got something.

Speaker 2 (33:49):
You know, it's tough to grip a football. But the
fact that he has like these tiny hands and still
able to grip a football like that is is if.

Speaker 3 (33:56):
I'm not mistaking, that was kind of like a draft story.

Speaker 2 (33:58):
I can't remember who it was him and he got
the massages six three, Yeah, it was him.

Speaker 1 (34:04):
He was at the Cedar Bowl. He had like an
eight and three inch hands or whatever, and.

Speaker 2 (34:06):
You're like, bro, there's some ridiculously tidy hands.

Speaker 3 (34:11):
But he's played in the playing quarterback in the league.

Speaker 1 (34:14):
For a while, played quarterback in the league for a while.

Speaker 2 (34:18):
The I'm trying to remember when what year it was, uh,
sixth round, two hundred first overall pick in the twenty
sixteen NFL draft of the Jacksonville Jaguars. They played behind
such luminaries as Blake Portles and Chad Henney.

Speaker 4 (34:32):
Well, I guess that puts that story bid that you
can't play in the NFL with small hand.

Speaker 2 (34:36):
Now he's not a starter, He's managed to play in
the NFL with small hands.

Speaker 3 (34:40):
I'm just saying it's possible.

Speaker 1 (34:42):
See Rocos Country to Night back after this