NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Cooper Kupp’s Trade Market, Vibes in New Orleans and Remembering Chris Wesseling

Episode Date: February 5, 2025

Gregg Rosenthal is joined by Nick Shook and Patrick Claybon to get you caught up on news from around the NFL heading into Super Bowl weekend. The guys talk about Cooper Kupp's trade market (03:44), Myles Garret wanting out of Cleveland (10:30), Kirk Cousins' future (17:50), the vibes around Super Bowl LIX Opening Night (29:05) and more! The show is wrapped up with some time dedicated to remembering our friend Chris Wesseling (40:57). Note: time codes approximate. NFL Daily YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/nflpodcastsSee omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.

This is an I-Heart podcast. Hey, everybody. Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the 6th, we take you inside the game from breaking down college prospects and NFL rookies to evaluating team building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters. We study the tape, talk to decision makers, and give you a perspective you won't find anywhere else.

It's everything you need to understand the why behind what happens on Sunday. don't miss it listen to the move the sticks podcast on the iHeart radio app apple podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts welcome to nfl daily where we don't need no stinking open a night we're always open it's in the title i'm gregg rosenthal here in the chris wessling podcast studio for the first and last time this week for the last time in this season and i'm sitting next to Patrick Claibon, and joining us from New Orleans is Nick Shook. I will see you there tomorrow. I'm about to go get on a plane. How you doing, Nick? I'm preparing to roll off the red carpet for you, Greg. You know, we're going to get people doing a jazz band, you know, to make you feel like home

like you might have experienced back in your college days. You know, we're going to welcome you back to New Orleans. I can't wait to be there. And right before we started, Patrick asked the question and everyone's wondering, which is, how's the weight room at the hotel that we're sharing? It's in, well, this is an older building that I'm staying in, very typical of New Orleans. And it's in a room, when I walked in, I looked around and I thought,

I think they signed the Declaration of Independence in here. But they have fashioned it into a weight room pretty well. But, you know, as Patrick mentioned before we started the show, weights only go up to 50 in hotel gyms. There's only so much you could do. I need a little more resistance. So we're getting a lot of shoulder workouts in this week. it's champagne problems

you know when you when you've grinded Greg when you put in the work like Shook has you know a 50's not getting done so he's having to do like weird hand grips he's having to put the 20s on top of the 50s to try to do something and he's making all kinds of free multiple 50s or something I don't know

I mean it's a little dangerous to start stacking dumbbells break I don't live in this world where you guys are just like oh the wits aren't heavy enough for us we're men you want to prioritize right you would like to overload the muscle. You don't want to prioritize fatigue. You do it a whole bunch of

reps. It's all about mechanical tension. You know, it's just... No, I don't know. I'm just looking on Google right now. I don't know, but I do hope to get some workouts in in New Orleans. That would be great, but if it doesn't happen, it would be an homage to

my previous life in New Orleans where I definitely wasn't doing any workout. There was like a couple days of when I thought I was going to maybe be on what the equivalent would the practice squad of the tennis team would be. And it's like, nope, let's, let's focus on what's important in New Orleans. And that's drinking and eating and football. I was going a lot of those Saints games back in the day with Aaron Brooks, Mike McCarthy as the, the OC back then. Deuce McAllister. Yeah.

A squad. They were okay. They were like an 8-and-8 team, which for them, they were, they were happy about it. Shout out to, uh, what was his name? Jim Haslett. Yep, that was the Haslett era. Man, I, I always have so much. admiration for that dude how he handled the Katrina season. One of the more underrated coaching performances of all time and they did not win many games

and I hate that you always has to be tied to winning games. That man handled the situation like a boss and everyone in and around that city and team appreciated it in a tough situation. We're going to talk about more fun stuff than this though.

We're going to talk about some news. We're going to talk about what Nick Shook has already learned at opening night in New Orleans. He's already been to the Eagles press conferences there on Tuesday. They don't mess around. We're going to get Patrick Claibon's Super Bowl pick.

This is hot. Oh. Early. It's very takeish. But yeah, let's... And we're going to talk about our friend that this podcast is named after at the end on an important week thinking about

Chris Wessling. But let's start with the Cooper Cup news. I'm taking the train to downtown Los Angeles because I made the mistake of driving to a Lakers game two weeks ago that Patrick rightly told me to take the train to and I regretted it. And so, no, you were right. I should have taken the train.

So to last night, I was going to the great Minokheims benefit show and Jordan Rodriguez was there with me and it was a lot of fun thank you to the listeners that came by afterwards and that were NFL daily listeners. and we see as we're getting down there that Cooper Cup he hasn't asked for a trade like Miles Garrett

Patrick the Rams have told him in no uncertain terms they are seeking to trade him immediately and there were some interesting lines in the cup statement but what stuck out to me was that he did not agree with this decision

but that he believes he has a lot of great football ahead of him and that is what he's going to seek out doing. Yeah, injuries kind of plagued the past couple of years, but it makes sense from his standpoint where he wins the triple crown. He has a walkoff touchdown that I feel like he might have been dealing with a brain injury at the time. And when he scored that touchdown in the Super Bowl, he gets a mega deal that he deserves. And so for his standpoint, with the time remaining on this deal, there's no need to be anywhere else. He could play with the football team

that drafted him in a place that he loves that he spent the formative years of his adulthood. able to celebrate a championship. But the problem for the Rams is looking at this number with a base of 12-5, you know, $4 million peroration, a $7.5 million roster bonus where they're going to have to work this thing, even if they want somebody else to trade for Cooper Cup. But as far as the production in the past couple of years, it just makes sense for Los Angeles to do this. It's a bummer, though.

It's a bummer that it doesn't sound like he had any choice in the matter. I saw some speculation from Florida pro football talk. Like maybe they'll try to get him to take a pay cut event. If they wanted him, I think, to take a pay cut, that that would have been the first route that they did. And he made it clear through his statement. They did not. Do you think Cup has any trade value shook?

Yeah, that's what's crazy is, you know, you often hear parents posting videos of their kids when they're just like toddlers. I saw somebody post them today. And now, I think it was actually, it was Andrew Hawkins. and his kid's like shooting at the Papa shot and he's like almost as tall as Andrew.

And they talk about how time flies. If you look up Cooper Cup, he's almost 32 years old. It feels like yesterday he was being drafted from Eastern Washington where they have that red field and he was this player rising up and he was this stellar athlete and everything else. And yet here we are. So I think that the value that you might associate with the guy who has these accolades to his name is not quite as high because of age.

Now receiver is not a position necessarily like running back where you're going to look at age and be like he's cook. he's toast but with the money that's associated it makes for a significant undertaking for other teams that might be interested having said that if he's healthy he's still a damn good football player

he just has struggled to prove that over the last few years so there are question marks it's a red flag that Sean McVeigh essentially doesn't want him you know he didn't produce at the end of this season when five invisible in this offense down the stretch five for 61 in the divisional round loss

to the Eagles, but his previous four games combined were about the same numbers, five for like 70-something. It was almost no production. And he's someone when I've gone to watch the Rams in person the last couple of years, just doesn't move the same way.

And he feels like he gave his body to that Super Bowl season in a way that it's really never come back from. He was playing through injuries. He just was 145 catches, was that entire offense. The amount of blocking that he did that opened up the whole offense, both him and Robert was, but Cooper Cup, not a, not a huge guy. And it was all around that. And he's just throwing his body around. And he hasn't, I think, physically responded. He doesn't move the same way. So I think to get, get off that. number, the Rams would have to take on some of his salary. He's already owed $5 million guaranteed.

I have a hard time thinking that any team is going to trade for him unless the Rams take on some money and it's basically like a late round pick. I don't think it's going to be a significant trade. And I think it's very possible. They just wind up releasing him and he gets to be a free agent. I think the cautionary tale for the folks who may think it's all over. Cooper Cup has taken too much of a beating over this course of time. He has played hurt. We saw that this year in Austin Echler, who was clearly hurt towards the end of his time in Los Angeles. And then in limited spots looks much better playing for the commanders this season where I think there's still tread on Cooper Cup's tires.

He might not get smashed into the defensive end as much and still contribute. And he was the key part of an offense that in parts, right, has proliferated itself all over the NFL now, where Cooper Cup is going to be able to come in and run successful routes at the very least for a good football team where I think there's value there. But yeah, the Rams got to come up off some of that money

to make that possible in the first place. Let's not forget, though, that playoff run. So just for a little context. He caught 145 passes for 1,947 yards in the regular season, just preposterous numbers. Then in the playoffs, He added 33 more catches.

So we're up to 178 for 478 yards. We're almost at 2,500 yards. He added another 6 touchdowns. That's 22 total touchdowns. That's right there with the greatest wide receivers of all time. And I regretted not saying something to him other than pleasantries when I saw him down in the old NFL network locker room a couple weeks ago that we just said,

I just said, oh, hi, nice to meet you, all that sort of thing. And afterwards, I was like, I should have told him how happy he made my daughter back in the day when she was at that Super Bowl. And he made that catch right into her end zone. And there was like, I have a picture with a tear in her eye after that. It's like, that's what it's all about. It's the memories.

Good luck to you, Cooper Cup. I don't know where he goes from here. He will certainly be in the NFL this year. I don't know if a trade is going to happen. Let's just quickly circle back to the Miles Garrett trade, because I want to get your take shook on what you think about it as a Browns fan. If you missed our show on Monday, obviously, you probably know by now. Miles Garrett has requested a trade in no uncertain terms out of Cleveland.

What do you think? I mean, there's a few things here. One, it's been building for a long time. He's been asked about the trajectory of the franchise, and he essentially staked his position toward the end of the season, which is, look, I'm not here for a rebuild. I want to compete. Not the first time that a player said that,

not the first time that a player in Cleveland has said that. He has also playing for a team that as a general manager who doesn't typically honor trade requests. We could run down the list. He honored the Baker trade trade, but only after the Watson thing was done. He didn't honor Kareem Hunt's trade request. They just let him, you know, walk off into the night.

They honored Amari Cooper's trade request after they'd already kind of renegotiated his deal, but it was more because they were a bad team and they, you know, sent him to a team that was contending. So there's not really a track record of just, I want to be traded and they actually do it. There's also the contract associated and his age. And I think that at his age, he's not quite going to command the money that he once did, but he's still an elite player.

He's still a contender for a defensive player of this year. He won it last year. So it's a combination of, is this a leverage play for money? I don't think so. Or is it the fact that he's done with them? And the way the statement reads and the vibes around this team suggest to me that it's more about the state of the team. and the Brown's kind of just being a rudderless ship at this point in 2025. Now, that could change, but ultimately he probably knows.

He's probably looked at Nick Chub. I've been like, I've been with this guy for a long time. I've seen, you know, the ups and downs and see the end of his career is around the corner or, you know, somewhere in the not too distant future. I don't want to find myself in the same spot. I want to actually chase things now. And I understand the frustration. I don't think it's about the money.

And I've already feel differently about this trade than when I talked about on Monday. and part of it is hearing just a little birdies that I don't think it's about the money. I think he's just made a decision that he wants better, he wants out. You can't blame him. Like look at this organization. Look at how they just kind of wasted the last three years. Can you blame them? And there's not really, things can change fast in the NFL, but they got to fix the quarterback

situation and it's just hard to maybe see that happening this year. Yeah. Yeah. I think back in history, Reggie White was 32 when he went to. free agency in 1993, it became a green. Wow, that's crazy. Like, Miles has already hit these career milestones, over 100 sacks, like 29 years old. He was in, I think back to the 2017 draft where it's like, this is a down year for quarterbacks. One of the best quarterback we've ever seen wound up being in that draft in Patrick Mahomes.

I mean, Deshawn's in there. I guess you can go back, change history, but ultimately, right, Miles is the number one pick. It was clear and obvious that Miles should have been the number one pick based on the information we had at the time. You go back. He's probably going number two. Maybe he's a Chicago bear. Who knows? But ultimately, he does. In terms of what he's done on the field, yeah, he deserves a chance to play for a winner because you look back at like another guy we know.

Like Joe Thomas had a great career in Cleveland. The Browns ultimately failed Joe Thomas. And Miles has seen this. He's seen the whole arc, as you mentioned, for Nick Chubb. go try to do it somewhere else yeah for a second i'm like how dare you say he's now going number two someone was better than my miles garrett and i was like what draft was it oh yeah 15's probably going number one overall that guy yeah that guy who's in his fifth super bowl in six years what and what an MVP before that that dude's ridiculous miles garrett's ridiculous what a number one

overall pick. Sometimes you hear a take that's so right that you realize you just have to accept oh yeah, that's actually, that's actually correct. And I'm going to unfortunately give credit for this take to Daniel Jeremiah. I got it. So again, I'm walking, I'm walking to this to the show Monday night. Really great. Downtown, Los Angeles. And I'm listening. I decided he's already got a podcast up, Jeremiah, move the sticks, about. Miles Garrett. And he said that Garrett's doing them a favor. And he also thinks that the Browns, he didn't put words in their mouth, but he thinks the Browns will view it as him doing them a favor to, that they can say whatever they want publicly about that they have no interest

in trading them. I believe that to be true. I also believe that maybe they knew that this could have been coming. And in a way, it saves them from doing something that makes a lot of sense from their vantage point anyways, but that they almost couldn't do because of how unpopular it would be with the fan base and how difficult it was. And Miles Garrett's almost removing a level of that difficulty. Because the more I thought about it, I think he's right. And then I texted around a couple of people that were not Dana Jeremiah. And they agree that it makes a ton of sense for the Browns. I think they're going to get a lot for them, Chuck. I really do. I think all it takes is really two teams to drive up a price and whether that's two first plus or whether it's

a first plus or it's a first and a pick swap or it's a first in a player. I don't know exactly what it's going to be, but I think it's going to be a lot. And I think it should be a lot. And I think it's going to be a lot because there's so many teams that have a ton of cap space. And obviously there's so many teams that could use Miles Garrett. I keep coming back to the good teams with Cap Space that are the lions, the Chargers, the commanders, maybe the Packers, if they want to go against

type. The bills don't have a lot of space. Maybe they can create it. But I just think this is how a market is created. And I think more than anything, Shook, it actually does make sense for the Browns because they could get a lot. They're also at the two pick. Maybe they will want that quarterback. Maybe they won't. They could be trading back.

You could get a lot of picks and maybe this isn't even their quarterback year. and by the time they're good, like Garrett, he's not going to have that value. He won't be quite as good. It's not a good thing to trade Miles Garrett,

but it might be something where it's a win for Garrett and it's not as big a loss as you would expect for the Browns and their fans. Yeah, their position to... It's not a win for them either, but at least they can make the best out of it.

And they can help out the guy who's given them a lot. This is what he wants. So that's not nothing that they can help him out in this spot. Right, right. They're positioned to play a key, part, despite being one of the worst teams in football last season, to play a key part in this off season in multiple layers. Because that's the number two pick, you know, they could take Penn State's Abdul Carter. I think that's too high for Carter personally, but they're in position to potentially do that and find an immediate replacement. They're also in position where they need a quarterback where they could move a massive lever by maybe making a trade for Kirk Cousins. Maybe Miles Garrett is involved in that trade. Maybe all these moving parts all start and end in Cleveland, home of a team that went three and 14. Oh, man. Okay, let's talk about Cousins. He was,

was on good morning football on Tuesday morning. Let's listen to a little bit. We were six and three was playing well, doing a lot of good things, even if the right ankle wasn't perfect. Nobody's perfect in this league. We're never feeling 100%. So it didn't really affect me too much, but then against the Saints got hit pretty good in my right shoulder and elbow. And from there, kind of dealing with that, you know, was something I was working through and just never really could get it to where I wanted it. And so now the season's over the other time and the energy to say, okay, let's get the right ankle back.

Let's get the shoulder back. Let's get the elbow back. And if we can do that, you know, feel like I got a new life ahead of me here in pro football. Those injuries weren't completely disclosed. He had maintained he was healthy at the time. Healthy enough. Yeah. We were watching, Kurt.

Yeah, but I can see the two. It adds some context. He was limited on the injury report for one day after those injuries. It was week 11. And I think they continued. Adds a little bit of context. Now, you have to start worrying about his body breaking down in general. He takes more big hits than most quarterbacks that are bigger than him.

And he's not like, he's taking a lot of hits over the years. I mean, it's one of the things that's made him make a lot of money. is that he's able to stand in there and just get beaten. But sometimes those guys don't age well. But you mentioned the Browns, Chook, and this is kind of going around now. Kevin Stefansky, they aren't going to have a lot of money to spend here. There's not a lot of good options out there.

Cousins and a rookie or cousins and someone. Are you buying, Patrick? Yeah, I'm buying. In Cleveland, specifically. Yeah, I'm definitely buying. Kirk Cousins in Cleveland. They have to find a quarterback. Kirk needs to find a spot.

He needs to be a starting quarterback. Either that was facial smoothing on his face time or Zoom. He looks incredible. I didn't even see any crow's feet. Put that skincare routine. It's that little button that you press now on those cameras. Where's the button on my computer? Let me find it right now.

I got one now. I think it's with the new camera or maybe it's a stream yard. You can press a button and I pressed it one time. I mean, come on. And I was at that. I was too pretty. So I actually unclicked it. And I was like,

the camera is already such high quality that improves how you're looking to begin with that I did not need to... Like, I pressed it. And I was like, I'm too handsome. I could go join a boy band. I mean, he's even better looking than Ali Connolly right now.

They have a striking resemblance, Kirk. He looks like he's on a cologne ad. Yeah, with the facial smoothing that's going on here. And yes, this is why you've got to sign up for the YouTube. You know, you got to subscribe. You got to hit, like, just to see this still shot here. I mean, he's looking great. No, that's, that's incredible.

So, yeah, if this, if, if Kirk Cousins able to do internally, what he has done to his face with the way to bring it back around. With the work, because, yeah, clearly he was limited. The people compare, right, the Achilles injuries for the aging quarterbacks. Rogers had a significant head start on Kirk in recovery from that Achilles stare. it was clear like mid to late in the season like that was not even Kurt Cousins at a certain point. I don't think he forgot how to play football. You mentioned taking all those shots. Yeah, because we saw Kirk Cousins take getting hit as he throws. He's hitting guys in stride. But all it takes is is knocking you off that peg just a little bit and he was clearly off of it.

Why not have Kirk? He wants to be a starting quarterback. He's willing to play. His highs were higher than Rogers this year for for what it's worth. They were. I mean, there was the two games against the Buccaneers, which he threw for like almost a thousand yards. We were all like, oh, my God, he's back. But there was also the fact that he couldn't move in the pocket because he was coming off the Achilles. He says he had an ankle issue as well, so that explains a lot. But let's keep building. The connection to the Browns theory here, let me just build my entire conspiracy.

Kevin Safansky was his offensive coordinator in Minnesota. Kevin Savansky hasn't had a quarterback that quite fits his play-calling style since Baker Mayfield. And Baker played his last seat in Cleveland hurt, and we all know what happened from there. The fit is there naturally. The familiarity is there, naturally. the history together, naturally there. Let's also go beyond that into the draft. If this is a short-term option,

there's a quarterback out there that's already generating some attraction in Cleveland and he rose up the ranks at the Senior Bowl. He played football at Ole Miss. His name's Jackson Dart. The Browns acquired Kirk Cousins in a trade that involves Miles Garrett and somehow they draft Jackson Dart

even if he rises into the first round, which would make it impossible, unless they get a first round pick from a team in this year's draft and their whole future is set and people in Cleveland are able to sleep at night. It's washing over Greg right now.

He's completely out. No, you convinced me that this all could happen. I think the Jackson Dart thing is just everyone just keeps telling me that he should be great first round pick. I need to do my own research,

you know? To mixie. To use an Aaron Rogers quote. Once you've done that research significantly better than any research Aaron Rogers has ever done on anything, I don't know that you're going to be moved

off of how you feel. But if he, if he's a second round pick or whatever, Cousins and a second round pick, that's fine. It's kind of a get-you-by type of situation. I don't mind that. I don't know if, I don't know if this is the year to invest early. Would Stifansky be in trouble in the event? That's the thing.

If there's a Kirk Cousins and Jackson Dart season that they trade Miles Garrett and it's kind of down. Yes. Here's the thing about like planning your future for Arch Manning or some other quarterback that's coming down the pipeline. Like, Kevin Sfancy is a good coach. There are talented players on that roster. Like with cousins and a rookie, like, it wouldn't shock me if they scrape their way to eight, nine wins. And then you're not in the business for those quarterbacks anyways.

But wow, you guys have convinced me this is happening. A couple other very quick items. I thought it was interesting. The commander's team owner, Josh Harris, did an about face on the team name. And it makes sense. He's had more information. The commanders are here to stay. we're not changing the team name

when he first took over the idea was he was going to change the team name but they kind of kicked the can he said oh we'll wait a year see what that you know and then we'll kind of and I think because they've had such good vibes

and that Jane Daniels has been wearing a commander's jersey that okay that's it they're going to wear new uniforms there's precedent for this and look don't get mad at me Seahawks fans but if your team

had not found a ton of success in the Pete Carroll era you would have changed uniforms by now because with no association with history or success, performance, any of that, those are not good uniforms. But because you can associate them with making the Super Bowl twice

and being good over time, they're now great uniforms. Wow. The same thing happens with the commanders. They'll change their uniforms, but they won't change their name because it's just thrilled into the Jane Daniels era already. Shug hops out of the ring,

runs across the street to another arena, jumps in a spot to take a shot at the seal. Yeah. Just like, put that on my son. That was fiery. You're absolutely right. It's the same deal with the Patriots. And they will change their uniforms.

And they've already started to tweak it. But those Patriots flying Elvai was a mistake. The first day it happened, never liked them. Still don't like them. And at some point, they'll have- Five years later, plus they're still here. Well, I get it. They won a lot with them almost immediately.

But I think they'll have to change it because it doesn't look great. I mean, we're all Pavlov's dog in this instance. Like, yeah, the commanders were the commanders. They had the most magical season that we could have possibly hoped for. So yeah, they're going to keep the name. I think they should still be the Washington football team. But anything is better than what it was. I thought it was going to go back to that.

And yeah, once you say any name long enough, this is true for baby names. It's true for band names. True for podcast names. You just get used to it and it's fine. So yes, we will be going ahead and taking command for indefinitely. Shout out to Carson Wentz. He did it. He made it possible.

Trying to get out to major tutty. His second Super Bowl. title. Carson Wentz. I mean, starts to take command. What a guy, like to first do it, you know, I know he wasn't playing, but take out Tom Brady. And then on the other side, with Patrick Mahomes against his old team, he has a chance to be a two-time champ. Found out on Tuesday, I just wanted to note this for the record. Micah Hyde is retiring. Great career. Underrated safety. Join the bills late this season,

almost as a player coach on the practice squad and always really appreciated him. That was a really big part of the bill's rise to prominence over the last seven years, really. I might be the biggest defensive piece other than Sean McDermott as a play caller over that time. So shout out to Micah Hyde for a really good career. Let's hear from you, Shook, about what's been going on in New Orleans,

but let's hear about it. after the break. Hey, this is Matt Jones. I'm Drew Franklin, and this is NFL cover zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different. Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game. What was that?

Oh, my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week, that is exactly what you're going to get. Listen to NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the I Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. What's up, everybody? Daniel Jeremiah here.

And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Sticks, we take you inside the game from scouting reports and player development to team-building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters. Every week we study the tape, talk to decision makers, and share the insights you won't find anywhere else. It's the kind of conversation that connects the dots, from college football prospects to the NFL stars of tomorrow. We break down the draft, analyze matchups, and evaluate how teams put it all together on game day. Plus, we dig in the coaching strategies, roster construction, and the trends that shape the league year after year. Whether you're a die-hard fan or just love understanding the game on a deeper level, we give you the full picture. If you want insight that goes beyond the box score, this podcast is for you.

Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Six podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Back on NFL Daily. Shout out to Kobe Turner, by the way, part of that, MENA show, which is up on her podcast feed. He just belted it. out a rendition of House of the Rising Sun. Wow. Just on stage out of nowhere.

And I know his voice is good. He was on the Masked singer and all that. But hearing that in person, like, that place was floored. Like, everyone had chills. Like, he's a talent. Shout out to people that are talented musically. I'm jealous. Yeah, me too.

And it's just like, they always seem like the coolest people. Shook, also one of the coolest people. So cool that he was telling us, but between the, during the break here, that he once helped steer Paris Campbell to his high school football team. And now here's Paris and Nick, just two dudes who made it to the Super Bowl.

Yeah, you know, he came in as a freshman right after I graduated from St. Vincent, St. Mary, which everybody on the planet knows that is LeBron's school. It's also where I went to. And happened to be roaming about the final two minutes of opening night last night and turn a corner, and there's Paris. And I haven't seen him since he was 14.

Well, maybe 8, 17 when he was, you know, an All-State star at St. V before he went on to Ohio State. And it was a great little reunion, a nice little moment. Were you highly recruited coming into high school? Absolutely not. No. They didn't see the-the-body. I was a C-Y-O kid. No, because I was a late bloomer, Greg.

When I started high school, I was 5'7, 140 pounds. Wow. We put it in that work. Wow. Well, I'm still there. You know, minus an inch. There it is. There it is.

What have you taken? from your opening night and Eagles media availability experience so far. What's the vibe's been like, first of all? So if you want to compare to the last time these two teams in the Super Bowl just two years ago, it was all about the Kelsey Brothers and the Eagles involvement. There was a lot of pomp and circumstance, but kind of a lot of distraction, even from my perspective back then. This is not the case this time.

All due respect to Mama Kelsey, but she's not coming out and giving cookies, right? This is not that story anymore. the Eagles showed up and they looked like they were all about business at opening night last night. They walk upon the stage. They're there. They do their little interview. They go out and disperse to their podiums and it's all business.

They know what they're going to be asked about. They're not just taking it in. Darius Lay said that I'm not taking it in and having fun and trying to enjoy the moment. This is a business trip for me. And I'm locked in. I'm dialed in. My family's not coming to the hotel to hang out. I'm here to get a job done.

And a lot of them were like that. And I think it's been what they've experienced over the last year and a half that has really positioned them to have success now and get here is they know what it feels like to be at the Super Bowl and lose it to be a team that falls well short of expectations in dramatic fashion to the point you almost lose your coach by you know via firing and then to get back here with after kind of correcting those things and going to that journey with so many of the same guys and they're very much I think mentally prepared for this week they know how to handle it so it's going to be a very intriguing matchup for sure yeah just

looking forward to seeing just how this because I know with history we tend to think oh it's the same team right but there's there's a lot of guys even younger team

other than we're last last time around we're literally the youngest defense in the league and instant results from all of those guys so it's interesting where they have that

dichotomy of a guy like Darius Slay there versus Quinyon and Cooper DeGine right who are really experiencing all of this for the first time and it's so different

it's so new unique. I don't even know if they have time to really consider it because the game's going to be here before Sunday, but they have a bunch of people like, are you ready for this? And those guys shook, I'm sure, like, I don't know that. Like, I've never seen this before, but I've never seen a lot before.

I'm 22 years old. This is their first NFL season for, you know, Jeanne and Mitchell. Like, they're just, I don't know. Like, I've been working at football nonstop since my last college season ended. They always talk about the rookie wall. They are so far beyond the rookie wall at this point in the calendar that it's not even a

thought. And I think that they're just kind of going with it. Like, they're not taking it in. They're just like, all right, it's another game to play. I thought, I think it was Slay who said it. It was interesting to me, too, is the way he described it as, look, this is the last game of the season. Like, we know it's the last game of the season. This is where we're going to try to go out on, you know, a strong note and lock in and play, you know, good football. And the other thing, too, is like, they have such an interesting blend of vets. Like, you talk about Brandon Graham. You talk about Lane Johnson. and, you know, these guys are in their third Super Bowl. Jalen Hertz is in his second Super Bowl.

Sequin's in his first, but he's seen a lot in his career. They appreciate it, and they're not overwhelmed by it, I think. It's just, it was very striking to me in all these years of covering different Super Bowls, where this team just feels very much like they know they belong here. He's doing the thing. He's doing the thing. The team that you cover, you just, you just fall in love with. I did.

I did that thing, too. That's why it hurts so bad. It hurt so bad when San Antonio Holmes caught. that pass and broke the hearts of Darnell Docket and Carlos Dansby. They should have won that game. And that great Cardinals team. I've never been so disappointed. And it was largely because I covered that team that week for NBCSports.com.

And I just fell in love with him. And now Shook's doing the same thing. Can we bring up the Darius Slay picture that Shook took on opening night? Because he seemed like he was, I don't know what this look was. It was maybe a little mischievous, a little bit like, what are you doing, bro? How would you describe it, Shook? That's who he is. Somebody called him out and they didn't, he didn't hear Slay properly.

And he goes, it's Slay. It's Slay. And then the guy in the crowd's like, I said Slay. And he goes, oh, I thought you said something else. Like he, he's cracking jokes. I asked him, how long did it take you to get over that Super Bowl lost to the Chiefs last time? He said five seconds. I was like, oh, okay. Yeah, I have a dad.

I'm a husband. I had to, you know, take care of Daddy Duties is what he said. So he's a unique character for sure. But it's definitely interesting to see the different blend of personalities here and some of the guys who have been there before and, you know, what it might mean for them. I'll tell you exactly what that look is from Darius Slay. Damn, that dude with the phone taking this picture is big as hell. A hundred percent guaranteed, I promise you.

We'll talk about my picture game. I am sure of nothing else more than that. Wow, that's awesome. Darius Slate been on record thinking this is going to be his last day, a game as an eagle. We'll see. He's speaking realistically. He's probably right.

Just because of finances and everything. Although the Eagles, they always offer their guys pretty solid deals. I remember James Bradbury eventually came back to them because he couldn't get a better deal elsewhere. And my guess would be they will attempt to keep Darius Slay, but maybe they won't max out just because it's tough to do for everyone. You talk to some players on Tuesdays, Shook, Jordan Milata, Lane Johnson, Zach Bonn, not in a revenge game again.

the Cheaps, but a revenge game against what was done to him in this city by Dennis Allen, who couldn't take advantage of him. I know it's hurting Saints fans. It's really the underrated Saquan Barclay's storyline that Saints fans are watching this and be like, defensive player of the year came in that? Zach Bond? Like, we had this guy here. Playing out of position. Yeah. Any thoughts? Before we move on, just about your conversations in person with the Eagles here on Tuesday. Oh, that's the old Hassan Reddick line. It wasn't playing the right position in Arizona until his last year.

I think that, you know, I was spending a lot of time with the offensive lineman just because it's kind of where my content was directed. But I think that, you know, the main narratives have been, you know, hey, getting over what happened last year, not the Super Bowl loss, but what happened last year and how that has made them a stronger team has been very interesting to me. And also the transformation of their offensive line after, you know, losing Jason Kelsey, sliding Kim Juergens over to his center and creating a hole at guard. and then Mackay Beckton coming in. Siriani had some nice things to say about Beckton as well as as well as Lane Johnson. I asked him, how long did it take you to get acclimated with playing next to him

because he's a large human? And he actually noted that like the average guard is not his size. And so when it comes to picking up stunts, it makes life easier because there's less space to move through because he's so massive. My lot is hilarious as always, you know, he's just got a nice charm about him.

But it's interesting to see him in where, you know, where he was in their last Super Bowl appearance versus now. Again, more business-like. So nothing like, overly revelatory. They're very much about their business, but it is an interesting,

and a lot of talk about Vic Fangio, too. These guys love Vic Fangio and what they've done. And he's done for this defense as well. He's a true ball guy. And yet no one has made more money this season, I think, than a pair of Eagles in terms of

upcoming free agents. Mackay Beckton is going to get paid. And it would be a great story for him considering everything that went on in the Jets. Whether it's with the Eagles or not, we'll see. and Williams, I think, is going to be a tough, tough player for them to keep as well because,

man, you put on that film from the NFC championship game, he might have been their best defensive player. And he's in a good spot because Jalen Carter soaks up those double teams. But man, to your point, Patrick, this is not the same team. I just think of how much better Nolan Smith was than he was a year ago. Jalen Carter is a better player than he was a year ago. So it's also development.

The chiefs, you know, they've improved as well. We'll talk plenty about the chiefs. We have a big preview with, with some special guests. We have Greg Olson plan to come on to our preview show to help Jordan and I

and you shook look ahead to the game. No better ball, no way than him to give us some insight. He should be calling the game. I know. Can we bring that up?

He has talked about it a little, so that's kind of what I want to talk about, but I don't think we'll focus on that. Before we go, because this is going to be the last time the trio is here, we did the Sunday nights together, And last time during the regular season, that Patrick and I will be in the studio here together.

Although, like, I don't know what you're doing next week, Patrick, but this show continues on. It's not really ending. I want your pick. I want your pick before we get out of here. And I know, you know, it was in the heat of the moment. It was after the AFC and NFC championship games. And I was like, ah, the Eagles are going to win the Super Bowl. Well, I've thought about this game.

I've done a lot of looking at next-gen stats and NFL Pro. I think the Eagles are going to win the Super Bowl, Greg. All right. I think top to bottom, this is a better roster. I know they have the best football player. We've seen in a very long time in Kansas City. But this team is very good. They could absolutely lose.

They could absolutely lose. But I think that they will win the game because I think they're the better team. Wow. You just simplified it. By the way, you mentioned Cam Juergens. He said he's playing in this game. That's a big item there. And I really think just vibes wise that Brandon Graham has a great chance to play in this game.

Yeah, that's the sense I get to. He talked about it. The tone was as if he's going to try to play. So to my point before, it's not the same team. Yeah, they can add their best pure pass rusher. I would say in Brandon Graham.

We'll see what he does. But Patrick's definitive and concise with his pick. On game day view, I mean, you gave them an eight point win. I did. Off Mike, you said they might be up a couple scores here and the Chiefs get one late to make it even look closer,

make them sweat a little, but that you really like them. You don't think it's going to be back and forth them winning at the end. You think they might win it somewhat comfortably. No, I think it works out better for them. And in fact,

you know, it may lead to some conservative hurts throws. Maybe he takes a sack. Maybe he holds on to the ball a little too long because things, I think they'll be able to run the ball. Against the Chiefs, I think the Chiefs throw behind the line of scrimmage a lot.

The Eagles are very gifted in making those tackles in space, where it's going to have to be 15 magic all the way up and down the field and it happened last time a ball bounced directly to Nick Bolton and they end up winning the game I think this time this Eagles team

is significantly better than that last Eagles team yeah yeah I agree I think I think that the the Eagles defense and the blueprint that they produced in the NFC title game while not as drastic is going to play a factor I think you're going to see a turnover or two that swings it in a direction where they take a two touchdown lead to the fourth quarter

and like, you know, Patrick kind of put out there and ends up being like, I have 31.26. It was like my first thought. I haven't really settled on that, but that's probably where we're headed. And Vig Fangio as the defensive coordinator is much better than Vic Fangio as the consultant, like 20 minutes after he finishes a year with the dolphins.

Or is the head coach of the Denver Broncos back in the day, although those defenses, they were tough to play against for Mahomes. And yet Mahomes always found a way to win, literally every time. I'm growing increasingly uncomfortable. with all the Eagles support, because you know that's how I'm leaning. I mean, it just seems,

I'm just saying it seems very widespread in the media. And, you know, it makes us all feel good before the game. And Eric behind the glass is certainly rooting for that because he's a vengeful person who is a hater. Fortunately, I don't think any of us can do anything to make the Chiefs try harder. I think the Chiefs will attempt to win the Super Bowl,

regardless of how many people doubt them, or disrespect them, or believe in them. They will. Before we go, while we're here in the Chris Wesleying podcast studio for the last time this season, I was thinking about Chris this morning. And it's a time of year.

Those who are close to him, I know Lakeisha, of course, thinks about him a lot. He died four years ago on February 5th, actually. So that's tomorrow when we get down to New Orleans. and his birthday, my birthday, we share it, is in a couple weeks too. So it's a time where you reflect. And it's kind of a mind fuck because this week is when he died.

So it was always, it was Super Bowl week. And I think about like how that week was often when we get to this time a year. And that was tough. that was like that was a worst that was a nightmare it's like the worst the worst week of my life and you also think about the times like during during that week i had a chance to to sit with him a couple days before before he passed and and just spoke it's a one-sided conversation at that point and we talked about football you know as we always always did and we talked about family and Lincoln and Kish and his brothers and life.

And that was really special and there's like no words to sort of describe all the feelings that you're having in that moment. But I feel very grateful to to have had that with him and to have had all the conversations that we had thinking about it just from a football perspective about football. Because one of the things I take away from thinking about it, now four years, in some ways, I was just talking about it with Keish last week, and some ways it feels so long. So much has changed. That was, you know, the tail end of the pandemic and our lives have changed and it feels so long.

But on the other hand, you can just feel what that feeling was like. And really for the next year, it's been tough, but especially right in that. that aftermath. But it gets me thinking about what we are grateful for, too, which is having friends to talk football with. And Chris was a special guy to talk football with for me. It was almost like a football soulmate. You know what I mean? Just like someone that was the perfect person to talk football with and just thinking about the Thursday nights that we always spent at the Culver building or at his house in Westchester and watching those games. And as we're approaching this game, which a lot of people do,

enjoying it with their family or their friends or whatever, just appreciating those moments. Because it was obviously more than those moments. It was about our lives together and friends and family. But it was also about those moments. Just chilling. The moments that weren't special, the moments that wasn't that last week.

Because I think there's a tendency, and you guys can tell me if you disagree, that when you lose someone important to you, that last period really sticks with you. And that makes sense and it's natural, but it's almost a shame because everything that came before it is what built up your relationship.

And one thing I think was really unique about Chris was he kind of had a near-death experience the first time he had cancer. He went through chemo and he came out the other side. And yeah, Keisha and I talk about this a lot, the years after that, where they had a great year after that,

and they get engaged and they eventually get married. Of course, Lincoln comes, that he had this awareness of how much to enjoy those Thursday nights watching with me, but also obviously going out with Dan and Mark and obviously all the times he had his brothers. all the times. There were no times that he was not trying to enjoy. And he actually had a little sane and in typical West fashion, a little Excel spreadsheet, which was called Enjoy Every Sandwich.

And he was trying to keep track of every sandwich that he had during that period and to find the perfect sandwich. He wanted to make the perfect sandwich. He wanted to eat all the perfect sandwiches. He wanted to categorize them by different types of sandwiches because he was just a rankings type of dude. He wanted to put him in different cuisines, different regions. Him and Keish drove from Cincinnati to Nashville and just hit up as many

great sandwich spots along the way so he could document it all. And that for him was enjoy every sandwich. He had that at the top of the spreadsheet. I got to dig this up. I got to go find some of those sandwiches.

And that's what I want to think about too during these weeks. You're going to think about the tough times. But like that, to me, as I'm heading down to New Orleans, one of my favorite places in the world and going to see a lot of my favorite people in the world that I'm really grateful to be around.

And you two are obviously included in that is that I'm going to enjoy the hell out of every sandwich. I'm not going to waste a meal down there in New Orleans. I'm not going to waste a great football conversation that I can have with the people that are close to me. And I'm going to think about Chris and we're going to

do the best to honor him. Yeah. People always say that nobody tells you that you're in the good old days. Yeah. But during that that post first bout, Chris was well aware that he was in, he was in the good old days. And to be, to be at the, you know, at the house at that point once they had moved and having the barbecues, like, and seeing that, you know, because people talk about cooking with love, like, it's going in there. He's got love for the people in his life and love for the food and just love for the fact that we all get to do this together and um to to because i'm so glad you pointed out like you see the snapshots right towards the end but it's it's the build up it's the totality of all that um and and kind of soaking in those moments while they happen that that makes you appreciate them more and since then right um like lincoln sage were born within a couple of weeks of each um and seeing them both grow up to this point since then, you know, having seen cancer take more folks out of our

lives that we experience football with like Larry Campbell. You know, you realize that this is not this is not like a workplace situation. These are the people that you get to experience life with. And it brings a joy to football itself because we got to have the opportunity to be around these people in this time and so four years um and feels like feels like hours it also feels like four years and i'm just glad that i had those years of chris it you're right great that it feels like it was a long time ago because of what was going on it's also somewhat coincidental i walked into a deli today next to the hotel and that's immediately what i thought of as i looked at the menu is enjoy every sandwich.

I've never been here, but I thought about Wes, and I thought about that saying and about trying to maximize every experience, whether it's just at a random deli or whether it's the years that I spent out with you guys, the times that we had the gatherings at his old apartment along the beach in Marina del Rey, watching him with the big green egg smoking up I still look back. Don't say too much about those. Those got a little squarely at certain points. I still look back at the video I had at him.

dressing them up or the time that we were together and somebody was in one of those dinosaur costumes and he's got his arm around and hugging it you know we're having a good time and you know every time we do a Super Bowl it's for me you know working remotely it's the time to get together with everybody the people that we form these bonds with through work

who are more than just colleagues, their family and every time there's there's always that feeling that someone's missing that person is West and yet at the same time that that is a constant reminder because this can become routine from year to year, even as things change and everything else. But you can stand at a press conference and it's a reminder to enjoy all this,

savor all of this, as you said. Yeah. And the difficult part about losing somebody is that they're no longer there and that your time with them has run out. But all the lessons that you've gained from that person and the value that you have in the time that you shared together, I think,

still informs you as you move forward and I wish he was here I miss him all the time just like you guys too and he was a special person and he was deserving of much more than just having a podcast studio named after I'll tell you that you know what and he got much more that's what he would tell you

and that he you go back and forth from anger of that he was all the things that he was robbed of but he would have said the loves of his life you know Lakeisha and Lincoln what a gift that they were and yeah just I wanted to talk about him today

obviously with the anniversary of his death tomorrow and everything and we're here in the studio because there is something to there is something to these anniversaries I realize and part of it is he's not going to be forgotten from us but it feels good to talk about him like I think that's the you want to honor him the best way I that's one of them is to talk about him to remember him to not just let the day go by to honor him with everything you're doing and he's

obviously inside of all of us and and that's part of it and on these days to remember him and yeah yeah remember fucking badass uh times and you you remember the pain as well and and that's all it's all wrapped up and football's a big part of it was big part of my my life um with him my relationship it's about me going back to uh going back to rhoda world back in like 06-07. So I appreciate everyone that is with us here, listen to NFL daily and listen to us,

talk about Chris here on this February day. The next time you'll hear us, we'll be on February 5th. It'll be down there in New Orleans. I'll see you, Nick, in just a little bit. And thank you, Patrick, for yeoman's work all season long and that eagle's pick. That it's not even going to be close.

We're not stopping. After the confetti falls and we all just pretend like We're back. We're podcasting, baby, all the way through. We really, we really are. We got to talk about what exactly the schedule is, but it's not going away for long, and it's got to be daily. And yeah, look, when we're already talking about a new Kirk Cousins landing spot in the week before the Super Bowl, you know football is back.

Hey, everybody, Daniel Jeremiah here. And I'm Bucky Brooks. On Move the Six, we take you inside the game. from breaking down college prospects and NFL rookies to evaluating team-building philosophies, coaching trends, and how front offices construct winning rosters. We study the tape, talk to decision-makers,

and give you a perspective you won't find anywhere else. It's everything you need to understand the why behind what happens on Sunday. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Sticks podcast on the I-Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. This is an I-Heart podcast.

Thank you.