NFL Daily with Gregg Rosenthal - Gronkowski Retires; Annual League Meetings: Rapoport, Kitchens, McDermott Oh My!

Episode Date: March 25, 2019

A resort filled with heroes - Dan Hanzus, Gregg Rosenthal, Chris Wesseling and Marc Sessler are down in Phoenix, Arizona for the NFL annual league meetings. The heroes react to Rob Gronkowski announcing his retirement (00:27) and Ian Rapoport stops by to go over the latest news in the NFL (14:05). Head Coach Freddie Kitchens stops by to chat all things Browns, (35:15) and the heroes sit down with Bills Coach Sean McDermott. (48:23)Learn more about your ad-choices at https://www.iheartpodcastnetwork.comNFL 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. I'm Marcus Grant. And I'm Michael Florio, and together we host the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast. Ready to dominate your fantasy league this season? Then you need the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast, your ultimate source for player news, draft tips, and winning strategies. Whether you're a rookie manager or a fantasy vet. We've got the insight to help you crush your opponents.

Listen to the NFL Fantasy Football podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL. Visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. From the Rams 31, shotgun snap to Brady, dropping back, lobs a throw. Forkronkowski, left side, makes the catch over two defenders, tumbling to the two. First and goal to go. I just told you they're going to bleed him. He's going to think.

He's going to dump you. He's going to set you up. The Rams, they can't line up. Brady sees it, and it's a 29-yard strike to the big boy. His favorite tight end, the old world tight end. What a catch. All right, we have a big show coming up today. A lot to get to, Freddie Kitchens, Sean McDermott, Ian Rappaport.

But first, we have to share the biggest news in the league. Right now, Rob Grinkowski is calling it a career. He did it on Instagram. It read like this. It all started at 20 years old on stage at the NFL draft when my dream came true. And now here I am about to turn 30 in a few months with the decision I feel is the biggest of my life so far. I will be retiring from the game of football today. Nine seasons.

Greg Rosenthal, Chris Wessling, Mark Sessler, record after record, Super Bowl titles. an absolute hall famer, Rob Grinikowski, and it ends before he turns 30, Greg. As a Patriots fan, how you feel? I'm selfish, but I love seeing him go out on top. And I understand that there's different ways to look at these kind of moments, but Gronk is such a singular, dominant force, maybe the most dominant tight end of all time,

the most dominant tight end I've ever seen. And as a fan, I love that his last catch in his career won the Super Bowl. It was such a gronk physical catch. And the game before that, it was a vintage gronk performance bodying up some little cornerbacks against the Chiefs to go win an AFC championship game on the road. And he's a guy, I didn't want to see his decline. I didn't want to see more back injuries and him become more of a blocker.

I think it's cool because he's just in an upper-tier great player to go out in that style. It hurts the 2019 Patriots, but that's not the point. Like, this is how I want to remember, Gronk. I remember writing a couple of pieces like five years ago, one that he was pieced together by the football gods. You needed like a cornerback's ball skills, a safety's athleticism, and a linebacker size and physicality to have any prayer of stopping him one-on-one. He's just, I agree with Greg, the most dominant tight end I've ever seen, the best tight end I've ever seen, all around as a blocker. I think what I remember the most about him are his hands. And the way mid-stride, a guy who was six foot six, 270 pounds could bend down, pluck a ball off the turf, keep his balance and keep running.

We forget because he was slowed down last year, but this guy at the height of his powers was not only the best red zone monster in the league, but the best run after the catch monster in the league before he lost that speed. I mean, you can look back at the tight end position at Kellyn Winslow Senior, guys like Ozzie Newsome. But forget all that because Grunk completely evolutionized and changed the position in a way that no other player at the tight end spot ever has or probably ever will again. And the one thing I think about him too is the incredible resilience to come back from all the injuries he had. come back as an improved version of himself. Absolutely. And, like, I'm with Greg that, like, I could see why Patriots fans would have wanted one more year.

Right. And I did. Of course, too. I have mixed feelings. But this poetic end versus having to go out after the Patriots lost one of those Super Bowls that you go out for him. He was knocked down the stretch of this season for not being the same guy. And to help them win the Super Bowl the way that he did, it's the perfect end to a career that completely altered football. Or, you know, to go out on injured reserve.

Or. Yes, before that, the final two games where he kind of became a part of that offense again, he had disappeared for stretches. So I think it's a decision that is both probably smart from a physical standpoint because he took a beating over the years, the arm, the knee, the back, and all that. But the writing was a little bit on the wall that he was getting older and was advancing in age faster than maybe he would have liked. And I think ultimately what you're saying is absolutely right.

He made a decision. Like, I'm a guy that I look at my career and my life, it's not just going to be football. I think he definitely has an eye on something in the entertainment industry. He'll be living in the Hollywood Hills like four weeks ago. I think this is, I think, one part of his career ends, and I think he has a whole team of people that have been building this gronk brand. And he decided he didn't need another year of bumps and bruises. And if he gets to go out on top holding a Lombardi, even better. He, he was the secret sauce.

he you know i i hate what i've heard some talk that he's not a lock hall of fame and we don't even need to get into that now because that's just stupid but but even in the arguments of like who's the greatest tight end i that that i understand can totally be an argument but but to me i will take those nine years of dominance i will take when he's at his best there's no doubt he was better than tony gonzalez and i even think than shannon sharp and and you can go back to guys that I didn't watch, you know, at the time, like Kellynne Winsle or something, because of the blocking, because of the way he just changed offenses. We were talking earlier today, West, the Patriots never had an outside receiver.

But the second they drafted Gronk, they were the best offense in the league. It's not just the Patriots have had this stretch. No offense has ever had a nine-year stretch like the Patriots offense has had since they drafted Gronk and Aaron Hernandez, which was a big part of that at the time in the two tight ends. But Gronk was obviously the main part, the enduring part. And to me, along with Brady, of course, like he is the reason those offenses were so great. They weren't as consistent before he arrived.

Well, he changed the way that offenses operate and the way that you would want to draft the tight end. But he also changed defenses because teams had to figure out suddenly how to stop this ultra-sized, incredibly athletic giant. I remember the other article I wrote back about five years ago was Tom Brady's numbers with Rob Grogakowski on the field. We're basically Aaron Rogers elite and his numbers without Rob Grancous Ron Cousie on the field made him Andy Dalton. I like the sound of that.

That's a pretty drastic drop off just from one guy not being on the field. I mean, you think about it, he is the quarterback is turning, what, 42 in August? And they're the reigning Super Bowl champions. So it is what it is. They'll probably still be in the mix next year. But you cannot throw it out. You have to look at what's happening now that Brady, despite all his greatness, definitely showed signs of decline last year. He's another year

older and now Gronk's gone. If the AFC has not been this wide open. Sure. Ever. And I think this is the end of an era I think for the Patriots and the end of the era for the AFC because Brady and Gronk dominated on a QB to tight end level

like nothing we've ever seen. Yeah, I mean this era should have been ending many different times but this sort of marks the official beginning of you know, the key people leaving. And Gronk is at a much lower level than Brady. But he's the key one after Brady and Belichick. And they had an issue with receiving talent before this. You know, they were going to talk later in the show about Jared Cook

didn't get him signed. They wanted Adam Humphreys. Didn't get him signed. All they have to catch a football right now is Julian Edelman and Philip Dorset and a whole lot of nothing. You know, Matt LaCost at Titan, a whole lot of nothing. So they're a team that can figure things out moving forward in the off season they can trade there will be the draft it's the off season's not over but they have a a lack of weapons right now it it the timing of it was difficult i don't think the patriots necessarily knew his decision until it happened uh they get to more cap room but they might have run things a little different that's unfortunate for them you know you're gronk you can do what you want to do end of an era greggie

end of it was a beautiful god damn era thank you gronk for coming in to all of our lives. Thank you for that back surgery. Your last year at Arizona, no one wanted to take him. I remember he hobbled up to the Combine podium back in 2010, was it? And the people were like, this guy's good, but he might not last a year or two in the NFL. That was kind of the talk. They took the chance, and, man, he changed them.

All right. There you go. This is not the last time we're going to talk about Gronk this week, I'm sure. But that's it for right now. We have an amazing show coming up. Like I said, Freddie Kitchens, Ian Rappaport. Sean McDermott and other headlines around the league. Here we are at the Biltmore in Arizona.

Let's get to the rest of the show. The Around the NFL podcast. It's loose on one, Cheetos and Soda. Welcome to another edition of the Around the NFL podcast. My name is Dan Hanses and I am joined in a conference room filled with heroes. Mark Sessler, Chris Wesley, and Greg Rosenthal. What's up, boys? Hey, Dan.

Somebody got a little loose on something other than Tito's yesterday. You know, here we are at the Arizona Biltmore at the owner's meetings. And yes, Greg and I spent a nice day together by the pool. Nice little summary date, yeah. A nice little moment, you know, and drank some of the margaritas that they offer. And then Steve Weish and his lovely wife, Dee, invited us up to their balcony. for a little wine mixer party. And there's something about the ultraviolet rays

and drinking for like multiple hours straight, the old zoos are out to take a break. I mean, I got a photo from an unnamed source midway through this jaunt that you were on and you looked like a hijack victim. The sun's a powerful thing. But if we want to, I mean, I have some photos. Is this the first time you've ever been on vacation

or drinking in the sun? You know, it's interesting. Like, I really think, because I don't do... I mean, you're married. You had a honeymoon or whatever, right? It was a long time ago. But I imagine laying in the sun drinking, I got, you know, well lubricated then as well. So it was a nice learning lesson.

I recovered, made it out for dinner. Nice recovery. I like that Ian's just now part of the show. The listener must be like, wait a second. Was that Ian Rappaport's voice? Didn't even get introduced. All right. I'm really hungover.

I will introduce him. He is the NFL Media Insider. He hosts a podcast. called rap sheet has friends Ian Rappaport Welcome to the podcast Definitely not the name of the podcast It's close

It sounds like yeah It's like rap sheet has friends But not close enough Where we would put their name in the title I mean I could put their name in the title I'm not going to But they're good friends And theoretically if I was a better person

Are they annoyed by that Sort of low level You know broadcasting of who they are I mean they only They only bring it up like every other show So I don't think they're that annoyed Ian is nice enough to join us. He just got off an airplane

and from New York and also a bit of a flex slash humble brag posted on Instagram a photo with his family celebrating a new five-year pact with NFL media to remain the insider or at least employed.

Did they make any promises that you'll stay in this top post? Do you have assurances? I'm assured via my performance that it will continue. All right, all right. And now what we're going to do with this part of the show,

we're going to compare salaries, he's Mark Cecil reverses Ian Rappaport. Mark, you go first. Making a little bit more than like $30,000 a year, have a side job as a librarian. Any truth to the rumor rap sheet, you know, Garifolo breaks that Beckham news. You start feeling the heat a little bit

and then you put the pen to paper and get that contract aside. The timing's interesting. I would say the deal was already agreed in principle by that point. That said, I was very happy for my friend, Mike. to break that massive story. You know what he compared it to? We got lunch and we bumped into him.

He compared it. Oh, no, this should be great, Tom. He compared it to when, like, two girls, one of them announces that she's engaged and the other one tries to be happy for her, but you can easily see the pain. Not at all, though. An anguish that exists right behind this opening the surface.

I would be lying if I said I wasn't a little envious of the amount of retweets that he got. Right. Okay. You said the right things, but he could tell what was really going on. So I'd be concerned if you weren't, like, a little annoyed. I mean, now, the big picture is it was on our network and not any other network, and that night was fantastic.

Meanwhile, the same night, I broke the D-4 to the 49ers tree. Nobody cared. Nobody cared. At all. It was like 45 minutes later. It was tough timing, because otherwise, that would have been the biggest news. I was like, should I put this out? I mean, I guess I should.

People think, oh, great, okay, D-4, go away. See, I respect, like, your, your source. and your ability to create news enough. I almost thought, like, you cooked that up after he broke it. And he's like, I need something, John Lynch. Like, I need something, people. Put something together for me to, like, at least respond. And then you got it.

Can you guys just do this trade? Like, you've been talking about this answer. I just could do it tonight, please. So I like this. This is the beginning of a, what seems like a tradition. Last year in Orlando, rap sheet joined us, sat in on the news. And that's what he's going to do again today here in Arizona at the owner's meetings. I do want to interrupt for a second.

I'm sorry, I know you're doing your host thing. Yeah. Dan asked me to come sit in on the news, and I had literally no idea what he was talking about, just so you guys know. Well, now you know. No, I'm going to forget next year this time. Probably you will.

We're going to go spin through the headlines with the insider. Also, I mean, again, you're going to get upstage here, Ian, because Freddie Kitchens, the head coach of the Cleveland Browns, joining us today, as is Sean McDermott, head coach of the Buffalo Bills. That's a show. I mean, that's a banger of a show. Let's do it.

You want to get into the news? Please. Let's do some news. Beza a a little of everything. Yes. I'm a fiesta. All right. Let's start here, actually.

Before we get into the headlines, Ian, obviously you're here. Owners meetings. What's kind of interesting on the docket right now? What's coming up that's got you tickled in the nipples? If you had asked me nothing, literally nothing. If you had asked me last year at this time, I would not have said the Giants May Trade Odell, because remember that came out,

John Mayer just basically said it, the beginning of ownership being. Absid something like that, this would probably be about the rules and replay, and are they going to make pass interference penalties irreparable, are they going to make personal foul penalties? football only penalties ejection

worthy like there's some rules stuff are they going to make you know some of the non-calls slash non-calls that we saw in the title game make those reviewable so there's some review things that we're going to hear

there's also and I was just talking a member of the competition committee about this the possibility that instead of an on-sides kick they're going to have a one fourth and 15 play from the 30, I think. I love this.

Where basically, if you're down, let's say you're down, you can only use in the fourth quarter. If you're down in the fourth quarter, you can, instead of kicking off elect to go fourth and 15 from the third, if you convert it, you get the ball. If you don't, then the other team just gets the ball. So exactly the same as an onside kick instead. It's a play.

And basically what John Elway decided to do was get a play that had the same hit, and he was the one who recommended it. the same percentage, 15% of converting as an old onside kick did. Why not just love it? What about the idea of just going back to the old onside kick rules? Because obviously the tweak to the rule essentially destroyed the play. What was wrong with the first onside kick? Concussions.

And there weren't that many being picked up. Greg Shiana doesn't get enough love. He literally proposed this idea seven years ago. Is that who? That's who came up with the AI. I'm just saying he came up with this exact idea. and now it got recycled back, but he's been... Oh, so the overloading, the line and all that,

that's player safety. Yes. So they can't go back to that. And the lack of running starts. And you can't just, you know, used to be able to just drill a guy, but now you can't. Wait, so is there a possibility that happens? Like, is that a real...

That would be actually a big deal. This rule idea came about because of Eric Lagrand. Remember the Rutgers player that was a concussed? And Shiana was sort of... sort of thought of what could be something that would replace a kick. Paralyzed. And that was it. Paralyzed.

Sorry. I didn't. I did not know that. That's interesting. Maybe Freddie Mitchell will come out of retirement. Fourth and long specialist. I'd be amazing. Yeah, that keeps his career alive.

He just comes in for one play every four games. All right. So there you go. That's what's coming up. We'll keep an eye on that because that is very interesting. Let's go through the headlines. Let's start here. Justin has a home.

Everybody was wondering. Ian, when the Colts were going to strike. They had all this cap money, and Chris Ballard, who, by the way, Ian, you're part of Peloton Nation like me. I'm on the Peloton here in the gym, Humble Greg. And who's next to me on the Stairmaster, Ballard? And I'll tell you what. Crushing it, I bet.

Crushing it. Yeah. Like, I mean, I could not have more respect for what he was able to do on that machine. But anyway, good job. It's a racehorse. Just so you know. I don't know if I wouldn't know what was good or bad on a stairmaster. It's not a stearman, Mr. Greg.

You got to grind on that thing. And he was grinding hard. What are you going to say? He's a guest on the Rap Sheen Friends podcast on Monday, FYI. You were going to have Dan on what happened with that. I don't think that was actually ever going to happen. I mean, I probably told him it was going to happen. Right.

No, that's cool. We have Freddie Kitchens and Sean McDermereman and you. So really, why would you need to go to your podcast for that? To answer this very question, right here, this question, right here, you'll get the answer to on Rap Sheet and Friends. No, what was interesting about the Houston thing, so he was trying to get $10 million a year and could not do it. And he was talking to Raiders, Ravens, I believe, a couple other teams, and all of a sudden the Colts open up and it's 12. And, you know, and it's, I mean, it's, it's real money. It's actually 11 for 23, not for 24, but it doesn't matter.

Same thing, real money. And all of a sudden, the Colts just kind of jumped in and everyone was like, what are they going to do? They have so much money. You know, Ballard doesn't love free agency. I don't, it just doesn't like the concept of it. I don't like to spend money on, you know, bloated salaries for players who a lot of times are not the best players. But in this case, you know, it kind of dove in and I think that'll help a lot. Wes, I feel like this is a move that you like for your cults.

I do. I think that makes sense where the Colts, the Devin Funches thing, too. They have the money now, so they're spending it short term. And this will not affect locking up all their guys at their draft. They had a great draft last year, and I'm sure they think so far ahead, well, we're going to have to lock these guys up. We're going to have to lock up the rest of our young players. So it gives them the freedom to do things in the future.

And you can be free agency averse when you're drafting the way that Chris Ballard is drafted in the way he's built. Right. And ultimately, though, I thought he was the best player left. and free agency by the point he signed by far. And they're like the team, you know, not to be too dorky, the auction, you know, fantasy league draft where they have all the money at the end. And now they wait and they see Houston is out there.

Didn't expect they would get someone like him, but it fits in perfectly. They got money to spend. I love that. And they need pass rusher. And I mean, obviously, Bauer was integral in drafting him and scout him. The thing that's weird to me is like they have a, they ended up last year where they ended up, but they have a good, fun, young team, and whoever they signed in free agency,

whichever, like, mid-level free agent would have to beat out whoever's currently on their roster. Right. And, like, trying to figure out who would be better than they currently... I mean, they were in the mix for some of the safeties, like, for Landon and for... I don't know about Earl, but definitely for Landon and a couple other safeties. But, like, who would actually be better

and more productive for them long-term on their roster? Like, I didn't see a lot of guys, you know? Here's another move. I think we all like the Houston cult's move. The Saints add another weapon on offense. Jared Cooker, it appears to be heading that way. It doesn't seem official. Ian, is this definitely happening?

We'll start here. It is happening. It has the actual contract they don't believe has been agreed to language-wise, but they had an agreement in principle like, I don't know, when I was at the Knicks game, so what night was that? We're not sure. But you've been scouting my, it was on Instagram. No, I was told about the Instagram photo.

I didn't see it myself, actually. I don't know that doesn't sound. But anyway, it's been in, you better, I don't follow you though, so it's actually. Yeah, no, we're good. No, so that, I mean, that's going to happen. But this is that kind of interesting because every year we all talk about the Saints have no money. They have cap issues. And, you know, they breezes cap number in like 2035 is going to be like 50 million.

And they kind of find the space for stuff they really need. And, you know, I don't, it's going to be $8 million fully guaranteed in year one. It's really just a one year deal. It's a lot of money. Patriots came in at the end and had a big-time push, big-time, like, presentation to cook. But in the end, I mean, I think this is something that Sean Payton needed and was willing to pay for the perfect fit. Moving forward, the Los Angeles Rams are making moves in their backfield. Todd Gurley, you know, it's a little weird what's going on with him right now.

Maybe we talk about that a little bit, but we'll talk about their depth chart. Malcolm Brown, he stays in L.A. he according to Ian Rappaport and then announced by the team the Rams are matched the Detroit lines offer sheet for the restricted free agent running back so it's a two-year deal with 3.3 million base salary

so he sticks around and he ended last season on injured reserve which paved the way for C.J. Anderson who is not happy and this is what C.J. Anderson had to say on Twitter he called the disrespect real mark. I've heard you say that all. But, Mark.

Disrespect is real. It's a phrase, man. Just to want a 16 is all I ask. He wants 16 games. Well, I think, I mean, the Malcolm Brown thing is interesting, and I love a good restricted free agent deal because they never happen. It's kind of fun. But this really, to me, this story really is about C.J. Anderson, like, basically saying

goodbye to the Rams on Twitter. He said that's not what he meant, and he has since told me that he, that is not what he meant. However, clearly he wanted to be on the Rams. they talked public about how they wanted him back. And then they paid a lot for a guy who was a backup who broke his club. They didn't want him. They didn't want C.J. Anderson. Not a lot of gratitude for what he did for him.

Maybe they thought lightning wouldn't strike twice. But it's interesting because ultimately they're not in the Super Bowl. He didn't. I would agree with that. You also can point out that he didn't do much in the final two playoff games. So he didn't end the season as hot as he was when he first took over the job. But you would think he would, there would have been some type of interest from the Rams. but apparently they didn't think much.

The bigger Ram's story to me, I am stunned by the fact that, and I get it, Les Sneed, like he's always doing the football thing, watching film, Sunday plays. He's never heard of the television show, The Office. Am I honestly to believe that? That is not true. His wife tweeted that out, Kara. Kara Henderson, that he's never heard of the.

This is bothering. Wasn't she a guest on Mark's on our show? Mark's radar. You seem like you're questioning the reporting, frankly. No, no, I believe her. Do you know what it is? I just find it odd. We're on the same page because we get it, and when we interview these coaches,

they always seem to be a little disconnected with pop culture and things of that nature. But not knowing what the office is is a bridge too far. It's almost like it's either a put-on just to show how hard you're grinding or... Which I respect, by the way. Which is fine. Or it's... That's a flex that I can get behind. Right.

Or it's a truth of almost a cry for help. Because the office is part of the American landscape. Yeah. And by this time, it's shocking. I agree with your analysis. There's nothing wrong with not being plugged into pop culture, but it's a little too far to say that you don't know what the office is. I have never watched The Office except more than like a half an episode,

but at least I know what it is. Exactly. I don't need you to be a completist, but the idea that you've never heard of the show. What's going on with Todd Gurley? What are we hearing here? Is this a, have we seen the best of Todd Gurley? Is it now the long decline? I don't think we've seen the, I hope not.

It would be, if that was the case. case, that would be really depressing, especially since he signed a nice big deal and looks like his career is going in the right direction. But I do think that it's going to be different from now. I'm like, I don't think it's going to be, and not that he was ever like a 30-carry per-game guy anyway. One offensive player of the year. Right. But, I mean, he's going to, he's still going to get a lot of run, but I do think they're going to have to have like a, like, if they draft a running back this year, I wouldn't be surprised. Well, they just paid a lot of money to get Malcolm Brown in the mix, I think. Not that much money.

Oh, but for a backup running back in almost $2 million. And, you know, I just don't think he's going to be the workhorse that he was. Like, it was very clear that, and talked to the running backs coach before the Super Bowl basically said this, was like, it is going to be different now for him. Like he's going to be more like split carries, use him in spots kind of guy. And that's sad. It is sad, although like at that position, I feel like it's always going to be like that, unless you're Adrian Peterson. Yeah. This next news item, I'm going to hand it to Greg because he.

basically forced it into the show. No, I said after you guys were pushing back, we don't need to do it, because I know Wes is sick and tired of hearing about Malcolm Mitchell. No, now I want to hear it. Dan doesn't think it matters. Well, Malcolm Mitchell officially announced his retirement. I saw your love song on Twitter. Wes thinks like, oh, I've already heard you mention Malcolm Mitchell enough over the years.

Well, West can continue talking when he catches five passes for 63 yards in the fourth quarter of the greatest comeback ever, and it turned out to be the last football game he ever played. That's an incredible story, and people are coming at them saying, oh, that's not that big of a deal. Give me a break. What did you accomplish in life? This guy at the biggest moment played his very best.

They wouldn't have won the Super Bowl without him. He's a hero. He's a children's book. I've heard this 5 for 63 story more times than I've heard the Fish's and Loaves story. You know what this sounds like? You're trying, and like the Patriots need more legend around them, But you're trying to, are you saying that Malcolm Mitchell is your version of David Tyree? I mean, David Tyree caught one lucky pass.

This guy was five. This was five for 63 in one quarter. He was the only outside receiver. Eddie Spaghetti, how about David Tyree? Give him a little love. I don't think there was anything lucky about Tyree's catch. But I will say this. So my wife doesn't, you know, she doesn't know a ton about football or football players.

I mean, she knows my world a little. But she's more curious, like, who broke a story as opposed to, like, who caught the winning touchdown. How disappointed was she with the O'Dell Beckham thing? Were you on the couch? No, I'll tell you this. So I had to, don't even come into this bedroom. I had to leave the house for 20 minutes that night. She asked me to do something.

I left the house for 20 minutes, and I text Mike and Tom, like, and Dave shot our steam boss or whoever it was. And I was like, yeah, I'm going to leave for 20 minutes, like, because we were done with total access. Stuff could happen. Leveon was going to, his mixtapers dropping that night. So we felt like the news was going to drop. And I was like, I'm going to leave house for 20 minutes. minutes, Mike and Tom got out, like, don't let anything happen, but I'll be right back. And Garifold is texting me when he gets wind that this is happening.

And we're all starting to make calls. And then he just breaks it. Meanwhile, I'm not in the house. And so I made the mistake of saying to Leah, my lovely bride, I can't believe I left the house when the O'Dell thing was happening. And her response was, do you think you would have broken it if you hadn't left the house? Is that what you're saying? And I was like, that's a good reporter question. And I, of course, my answer is yes.

but I can't say that to her because then she would feel like I'm blaming her for Garifold breaking who I'm so happy A little slippery slope this is So I had to just never mention it again You see what's going on here? He's now using his wife as a way to let everyone else know No, I'm just telling you that I

You sign the contract. I can never bring this up to her ever again I sapped on a podcast My way except for right now No but I was explaining to her the Malcolm Mitchell story yesterday because it is actually really sad. I mean, he was, you know, mid-rounder who looks so promising. Like, looked like he was good.

That's a rookie wide receiver they've had. In period. What? Absolutely. They just haven't. They haven't been many. Right. That just says that they haven't had any great rookie receivers.

But it's a tough system to learn as a rookie. He had the best rookie under Belichick. Yes. And high character guy, like, big in the community, big in, like, children's book. I mean, it was such. He started a literacy foundation for kids. He's fine. He's a good guy. What do you want?

Why do you hate kids? All I can say is this. I'm glad we talked about Malcolm Mitchell. I'm sorry about his misfortune. I'm glad that he's working with the kids. That's good. But that's it. Moratorium, fire off the cannon, Ricky.

Malcolm Mitchell, that is the end of his life here on the around the NFL podcast. Not his life. There's no canon on the podcast. Before you go, I like to check in on this. Like, where are you with, you mentioned this year ago, with your female fan base? Is it a burgeoning subset of foul? I would say, you know, a couple a year try to slide in the DMs on Instagram.

That's such a lie. It was like two or three a year. It's your wife? No, I mean, well, yes, everyone's a while. That's one. Got to keep things saucy. Speaking of keeping it saucy, Cam Newton was on James Corden, that late night show. And this was weird.

Let's listen into what Cam brought up kind of on his own. And then March, I'm giving, I hope this is an adult crowd. I looked like it is. No climax. Shut the front door. Straight up. No? I'm going through a transition right now.

Like, where? Oh, my. I'm gone. They should at least done it in February. You got 28 days in February. David Dorniesz. That's actually a great line. Good line.

So, Cam, New. announces that he's abstaining from intimacy, physical intimacy. That's not what he announced? For one month, yeah. Well, not what he said. Exactly. It's more specific. We're reporters.

Like, that's not, this is those things that people are like, people are like, oh, can you believe that denial? And I'm like, that's not a denial. He did not say he's abstaining from sex. The headlines are all wrong. He said he's abstaining from climax. Totally different situation. Okay.

I mean, one sounds horrible. It seems pointless. Passable. I mean, John Elway used to do. do this during the playoff runs he would not have sex for a full month or in this case mark is a believer in this science i would just say fuzzy science you should get him on the podcast and ask him i'm sure there is a huge movement out there where i think cam newton he didn't come up with this on his own it's a definitely a movement out there's another there's another there's another movement out

there that's been going for tens of thousands of years it's been it's been way more fun i like that what movement is that i think literally you met humanity mark's our plug guy that's plugged into like the subreddit channel of a lot of different things. Some of it like after dark and it goes on deep, deep into an evening. So you're saying there's, I think what you're ending up,

there's a whole subculture of what he may be referring to? There's a very popular hashtag that I'm not sure I'm allowed to say on this show. Say it and we'll bleep it if we have. What is it? It is called the n-

hashtag- but that's different. But that's part of it too. I think essentially it's to the same end where you're not trying to have the release of bodily fluids. Do you just stop in the middle? Shadowwick finger is fainting in the corner of the room right now.

That's as much information as I will provide. I've never seen Erica look as kind of just disgusted or disappointed as she does right now. Well, live with it. And then what do you do? You just... I don't know. I think you're right to parse the words the way you did, but I don't think... I think he was getting at more the, you know, Rocky's trainer thing.

You know, it's bad for the legs. He would have said that. He would have said, he would have said, I'm not having... We got to follow. look can you reach out i'll send him an email yeah thank you all right rap sheet has friends it's a podcast you can get uh anywhere where podcasts are available i think yeah uh and you are the NFL media insider uh at rap sheet and yes there there may be a home and home uh i might appear on the show um but probably what we're hearing if we need if we really need guess like in may

or something okay well if that happens i may be on the show And, Ian, good luck. And listen, Garfowl, I know he's your friend when he joined the company. You liked it because you thought it was, all right, this is a guy that I respect, but I don't think he's going to be out scooping me on the regular. Then he gets a scoop of the year. Don't let it get to you, though. It's all, it's all.

This pep talk is fantastic. It's all in the game, as they say. Well, I, for one, feel warmer now having listened to that pep talk. Congrats. Congrats on your extension. Thank you. I appreciate it. That is.

Some people are nice, Dan. I'm a nice guy, too. I actually reached out privately and texted you to congrats yesterday because it is quite a achievement. Because, listen, being an insider, that's a stressful job. I can't believe you signed up for five more years of it. It's tough. I mean, he was on the same row as Adam Schaefter on the way there.

Couldn't even speak to each other. It's not true, by the way. We did exchange cordial greetings and some small talk and some banter. All right. Well, have a glass of champagne here at the Biltmore to celebrate your. great achievement. Ian Rappaport, thank you, buddy. Thank you. All right, now it's time. This is what we've been waiting for. Ian was great. Great appetizer. Set the table. Set the table in a beautiful way. But now, Mark, it's time for Freddie Kitchens.

How you feel it? I could not be happier about this moment in my life. All right. Here we go. Hit it. All right. Joining us here on the Around the NFL podcast, he is the new head coach of the Cleveland Browns, Freddie, Mitchins. Woo! Welcome to the show. Sound effects. I didn't know we were getting that.

I didn't know I signed up for the techno. Like if you could choose a walk-up song, would that be it? It definitely would not be. What would you go with? Probably like my hometown by like Garth Brooks or something. Country. It's not something country. Something like EDM electronic.

Yeah. Yeah. I got it. Freddie, welcome to the show. We're so happy to have you here. You have in a very short period of time become a fan favorite within the around the NFL podcast because we like coaches that kind of keep it real. And it seems like one of the reasons why you've been a breath of fresh air and why the

Browns kept you around is that you bring that sensibility to the team. And I feel like that's welcome. And it seems like the players respond to it. Yeah, I think it's amazing when you just kind of tell us. truth isn't it that's like the thing we should try that yeah hell somebody should um in today's society i mean you never know you've got either got to be politically correct or you got to blow smoke up people's tails to get anywhere and you know it's good that you know hell it's good i'm in cleveland because i feel like uh we kind of get along with the city and in the town the community uh

and the brown's organization you know it says something about the organization that they allow you to be yourself at a time when a lot of the job is image in putting that image out there and being polished and you're allowed to just be yourself. Yeah, and I think that was the thing I kept hearing after I got the job, you know, from everybody from ownership to people within the organization. And, you know, I think I had a lot of support

to get the job within the organization in general. It could have been the janitor or the people in the kitchen. But I think those people are important too. and everybody has a role to play and when you make everybody feel that way then of course you're going to have their support because not everybody does that. But I do think they have a significant role

in what we're trying to get accomplished. Do you get that sense after a year of being in Cleveland? You mentioned that you kind of vibe with the fans and it works that well. Like do you start to understand how you hold all of these people's kind of broken hearts in your hand? Like Mark here, we were talking before the show as a big-time Browns fan, like how much you mean to me.

Because they're like afraid to love again, but I think they're finally opening up. I've heard that before. Like not from Browns fans, just in general. But the thing I would say is with the Cleveland Browns fans and the people that have been fans their whole life, it's very similar to, I played football at the University of Alabama, so I know what passion is all about.

and it's very similar and probably even more so than in Alabama. I'm going to get killed in Alabama for saying that, but, you know, the passion. Now, when you have passion for things like that, you can have great successes. I mean, hell, you'd think we won the Super Bowl and we were seven, eight, and one. They had struggled so long, and hopefully those days are behind them, but we've got a lot of work ahead of us to get there because they expect to. chases are so hot now. The thing I find so unusual, as a fan that goes back to the 80s, the drive, the fumble,

all the heartbreak, and essentially everything that happened since the team came back after the move to Baltimore is just that there is a competent quarterback. It has been one side show after the next. Brandon Whedon getting lost under American flags, like all sorts of stuff that you just cannot believe is happening to quarterbacks. Did that really happen? It did. It did, yeah.

You should look it up on YouTube. It's one of the great NFL moments of this. decade to keep that juju away from the Browns at this point for you though having been there with Baker from the first minute that he was with Cleveland was there a moment where before any of us realized you thought wait a minute this guy's got it going on yeah I think when you saw him practice I mean just in general just throwing the ball you know I don't know how much you can teach accuracy and like I'm sure there's some guru out there that can do it all right or at least they can tell you that they'll do it I mean I've worked with some of those that will tell you

they can make them accurate, but it didn't work for, well, it didn't work for some people. We can think of some examples. Yeah, definitely. Just look at Arizona. So, but, you know, but at the end of the day, when he picks up a football, he's very accurate with the football. And you saw that initially. It doesn't matter if he's warming up or throwing routes on air or whatever the case.

He's accurate. And that's, I don't think you can teach that necessarily. I mean, it's making it too simple, but when it comes to the quarterback, skill set of accuracy is more important than having a cannon for an arm just the ability to put the ball where it needs to be yeah because i think from the time that uh you know the arm strength sometimes gets overblown from the standpoint of when he decides to throw the ball to a certain receiver and the receiver gets the ball in his hands that's the time that it takes to get there now you can do that by arm strength if you're accurate or you can do it by like processing the

information and and seeing it come open before it actually is open so it's all about the timing that the ball needs to get there from when the quarterback decides to throw it not necessarily starts his action but decides to throw it and it ends up in the receiver's hands is the time that I think is more crucial than arm strength would you have a problem after this interview if I were to take your phone and tax Baker may feel just some of my personal thoughts about him yeah no not at all He's actually just down the road So you can go see him in person I love it

Mark's about to faint Freddy Where were you Never love again right I mean that's what we said Where were you when you found out It was official Freddy Kitchens's offense

Was going to have O'Dell Beckham Jr. on it And what was your reaction? I was sitting in the draft We call it the draft room We were sitting in the draft room You know talking to all the parties involved So You know

So sitting there and the middle of everything, I guess. So you, and I imagine for you, it's a slam dunk. It's like, go get this guy. Was there, I mean, was there any way once it became possibility that you guys were going to pull back? Could it have been some type of terms in terms of the trade that you would have said that's too much? Or the opportunity to get Odell Beckham was just too great to pass up no matter what? I don't know what would have happened for us to, you know.

At the end of the day, you know, it was a thing that was presented to us and we were able to. What was the reaction right afterwards? Was it like a draft? Because sometimes when you're like, you know, you have the cameras on draft day and they show the Jones family and everything and the player, you know, that they really want false. And they're like really doing some like white guy high fives. They're getting all like really fired up.

Like where was that the reaction when you find out you finally get it? He's talking about it. No, it was like, you know, John, you know, John's very good in those like situations. So it was kind of fun for me to. to sit and watch him work and communicate with other GMs around the league and and how the back and forth goes. It's almost like a car auction or something. It's just, it's very unique and to see the respect that the two men had for each other

as men and put a deal together like that. It was just, it was really my first time of experience in it on a personal level like that. All right, Freddie. It's time for the speed round. Okay. I was ready for this? Speed in my name has not been. That's Ricky Hollywood.

She's our producer. She's going to hit the music, and we're going to fly. Techno music or what? No, it'll be a little bit more palatable. Here we go. Favorite athlete growing up? Michael Jordan. Best bar food.

Wings. Better vintage MTV programs. Singled out or remote control. Don't know either one of them. Netflix and Chill or Hot Night on the Town. net at home being started quarterback of a prestige college football powerhouse that was probably fun it was at times is lebron allowed to be a browns and cowboys fan no come on thank you like that if you fumble out of the end zone it's a turnover that's dumb right uh yes be honest you wish you had

more screen time on hard knocks a little more pop not at all come on i did i did enough over under baker mayfield awards before 2030 one and a half is the over under oh wow i'm not i don't i'm not in the prediction that's the over yeah who will sit on the iron throne uh baker that's good worst of my shark attack or elevator malfunction oh uh shark attack greatest meat product greatest meat product uh ribs there you go madonna overrated underrated properly rated uh underrated uh underrated Ooh, I like that. Is it time to believe in Cleveland? Uh, yes.

Good answers. He did it. That wasn't too bad, right? Yeah, no. That was a name. You never saw it singled out. Jenny McCarthy, Chris Hardwick, dating show, 1993. That's like regular college.

Yeah. Right in the wheelhouse, huh? Yeah. You were busy. All right, Freddie, thank you so much for joining us. I know you're a busy guy and a man in demand. So coming on our little podcast is a thrill for all of us, but especially Mark. Yeah.

Thank you. Well, this is fun, fellows. I appreciate you all having me. Best of the luck. Freddie Kitchens. All right, there he goes. Freddie Kitchens, as advertised, a laid-back dude. And I think we actually have, Mark, an outside chance at some point of getting drinks with him.

I just feel like it's in the cards. I mean, we asked him after the interview what his drink of choice is. And it reminded me a lot of my old friends. He's like, you know, in my refrigerator home, I have some natural lights, some natty light. And, like, I'm a bourbon drinker. We are going to heat seek him. We are going to find him and have a drink. As he should be.

Yeah, I'm giving it a better chance than Dan did. I mean, I'm ready to just make them the team of ATL, like, right now. I feel like this is, it's all going to happen. We're all in love. We're smitten. Maybe it's one of those things that people just say to be polite, but he repeated three times after the interview. If we're ever in Cleveland and want to get drinks, let him know. No, we're getting blasted together.

It's like, I'll be there tonight, by the way. So don't, you know. We're in the bag. He said something interesting during that. We were talking about the accuracy of quarterbacks, and he mentioned the Cardinals. For a second, it was like, oh, was that a Josh Rosen shot? But not at all.

It's a reference to all the years he was there, right? Yeah, he was there for a decade. That's very rare that a guy's with one team for a decade. And he was not the quarterbacks coach for almost for most of it. He was with Carson Palmer, but as a tight ends and a running back coach, he saw some dreadful Cardinals quarterback, John Skelton, Kevin Cobb, John Navarre, Derek Anderson.

Like the people that they went through, it's true. Like Bruce Ariens and him, like that, those two eras are a great example of, like, you have a quarterback. You can maybe make the Super Bowl. If not you're totally sure. Right, you may not be the quarterback's coach, but everyone loses their job when the quarterback sucks. He said shark attack over or worse death than elevator malfunction. Do you guys agree? are you talking like the elevator would suddenly like the wires disconnect and you're soaring

right i feel like i would go with shark attack i don't want to be attacked by a shark right i would definitely go with elevator in that circumstance but when you said that i thought am i like trapped in because i was thinking about this yesterday there was one off the elevator at west's because we were on little different buildings there was like a 5% chance someone gets trapped in that elevator and west's building uh this week and has to like have a scenario where you decide to am I going to eat the person I'm stuck with or are they going to eat me and we're going to die? Why would that be the first thing that comes to your money?

It won't be right away, but, you know, after a few days. Or you could just, like, hit, like, the emergency button. I've taken this elevator many times in the past two days and solved no issue with it whatsoever. It's scary. I was telling Erica before the show that, like, one way I do want to die very quickly is like a curvy female assassin comes and takes me out and they're just, like,

lauding my journalism skills. Like, he died on the job. He's such a hard way. Yeah, that would be a big. You get a lot of pop from me. Especially, like, at an NFL event. Anyway, Brady Kitchens. He was great.

Oh, wait, this is on. We enjoyed it. But we have more coaches to talk to. Coaches like... They are lining up to talk to us. I mean, the amount of people that wanted to spend time with us is just staggering. Here is Sean McDermott of the Buffalo Bills. All right, now joining us.

He's entering his third season as the head coach of the Buffalo Bills. Sean McDermott. Welcome to the round of the NFL podcast. Good to be here. Okay. Is that your kind of music? Well, a little bit. I like, it's just like rave culture.

Yeah, okay. What is the rave culture in the western New York these days? Oh, it's off the chain. Yeah. Yeah. Every night, um, warehouses down there by the canal. I think people, I think people taking some buses up to Canada, getting their rave in.

I mean, that's a thing. You sound like you know what you're talking about. My brother went to McGill. Yeah. There was a scene there. That was a while ago. I bet. I'm probably in bed three hours before that.

It kicks off, right? Well, welcome to the show, Sean. It is a interesting time in the AFC East, I feel like, because the Patriots, they win again. Everyone's over it. But, and I'm going to. This is a Jets fan, right? You said that.

You said it. Yeah, focusing more on the bills and the Jets. They are, you guys are making moves to make a charge potentially. in that division. I imagine you were happy with how the offseason is unfolded in free agency. Yeah, to this point. I mean, look, it's about always evolving and really subscribing to that growth mindset. We're always trying to grow, always trying to learn, always trying to improve our football

team, always trying to improve individually and then collectively as a team. And Brandon and his staff did a nice job of targeting some guys that we went out and got them, and I think they'll add to the players that we already have in Western New York and continue to, you know, work to put our best foot forward. Have there ever, you know, in-house inside the Buffalo Bills organization, a plot hatched or discussions around kidnapping Bill Belichick and just simply removing him from human society? That's the best way to try when you think.

I don't know. It's possible. I mean, look. This is Mark's fantasies coming out in this question. No, we have a lot of respect for, look, for what they've done. So that's a no. Certainly I know that there's a lot of, you know, we'll call it rivalry between Bill's fans and the Patriots.

But that said, listen, if you don't at least study someone in your industry that's had success over the course of time like they've had, then shame on you. But that said, we're committed to continue to try and close that gap and put our best foot forward as an organization. You're out of cap jail this year, and we see some good moves with the offensive line and John Brown and Cool Beasley. And then you guys also pursued Antonio Brown. one of the reports was that you did not pursue O'Dell Beckham.

Was the price just too steep there? Well, I mean, that's a conversation that honestly never even took place between Brandon and myself, to be honest with you. So, you know, I just think that, you know, we're looking for the types of players. We've got a checklist of the types of players that we're looking for. And so we moved in a different direction with the players that you mentioned, Cole Beasley, John Brown, so we feel good about those additions

and the guys that we already had. We had some young players get some valuable experience last year. and that'll be important for us as we move forward. How was it from your perspective, you know, when that report comes out that, you know, from our network, that this trade could be coming and you're the Bill's coach. Like, how did that greet you? And, like, what was your part of that process?

Yeah, I mean, look, you can only control what you can control. And so Brandon and I talk a lot, and we have a lot of conversations about, you know, players, and sometimes it goes somewhere, and you're able to drill down a little bit deeper and do some more research and things, and sometimes it stops with only one conversation. So that's all part of trying to improve as a football team. And as Brandon has mentioned time and time again, that we have to have those conversations, right,

whether it's Odell Beckham or whether it's in this case Antonio Brown and great football player and a tough matchup, a tough guy to take away. And so, you know, we're not, to me, in a place where we can't have that conversation, right? In terms of, hey, well, we've already arrived. we're still building and so we have to look at every avenue pursue every avenue or every option to improve our football team and that was a conversation we had what is with josh allen entering year two in terms of what you expect and hope for in his development what do you want to see from him that maybe you didn't see as a rookie well i just think it really to continue his evolution

continue his development growth in every area which is a the curiosity of the game um leadership those are the off-the-field areas and then continue to grow on the field as well. Hey, what did now NFL second year NFL defenses look like? How are they going to adjust to what your skill set, in this case, Josh, what his skill set is and with his mobility that maybe some people didn't anticipate, maybe in year one? That's a question I get a lot. And so continuing then to build also the continuity with the receivers

and the tight ends and the backs and the offensive line, and that's kind of probably a little bit of a hidden piece that I think is important as it relates to football and in particular offensive football. I know you're a wrestling guy. I, in seventh grade, lost to a girl in wrestling, and that sort of ended my career. For you, what would be your finish?

It changed a lot of things about your life. It really did. I'm sure that did not happen to you. It sounded like you were more successful as an athlete. What was your finishing move? How do you drop someone out of the competition? How do you end it? I love the straight face.

you kept for the last minute after dropping that on us. Yeah, I mean, listen, I'm kind of like in shock right now, but no, I would say my best, I like this low single leg takedown, and I'm a big wrestling fan came last night from the NCAA wrestling championships in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, and I was able to watch Penn State win another national championship there with Kel Sanderson, and what a great program they have and um and so but what a great fun you got in at like two in the morning because you wanted to be there watching them yeah got in late uh or early however you want to say it but just a neat experience it's a but it was a bucket list thing for myself and was able to experience

that with uh with terry pugula our owner and and uh just a neat neat deal and but you never lost to a girl nothing i can't say that's right it's fine that that happened to me i can't say i did but there's a lot of there's a lot of uh girls wrestlers now that are pretty tough i'll tell you that uh watching the sport and in the way it's it's uh developed over the years it's it's not just a male sport it's there's some good girl wrestlers out there the one mark two lost two though was not very good no it's no i mean it was her first time wrestling yeah i'd had a few matches you were a couple a couple years in um Greg i've been waiting for you to jump in on this but since you haven't yet i will Greg your favorite player

Frank gore he is now matriculated up to western new york That's the second time I heard that word today. Really? It's uncommon. Very uncommon. Who do we have to thank for that? Is it Hank Stram? Matriculate the ball down the field?

Absolutely. Frank Gore, the ultimate veteran leadership addition. Wes is always saying like it's going to be his last year. It's like, oh, he's over there. And then here comes Frank Gore, still piling up four and a half yards per carry, 10 yards per catch. Is that like Frank Gore or Frank the tank? That's right.

Inconvenient truth. Your thoughts on adding Frank Gore to the back field? Yeah, I think it's a great addition. I really do. I mean, this is, look, he's X amount of years old. I don't even know how old he is at this point. I think he passed me in the last year. He may have.

Maybe he's older than I am. I don't know. But at the end of the day, look, it's about production. It's about being able to go out there and love the leadership component, as you mentioned. And I love that he's driven to be the best. And coached against him a couple times in my NFL career, but then to meet him firsthand over the last month here, you see why he's been successful.

You see why he's been the back that he's been in a potential Hall of Famer. And I'm just excited to have LaShawn and Frank in the same backfield. And just even more so than that, to watch them to make each other better throughout an entire season. I know they train together sometimes in the offseason. And for two, look, I mean, look, what we'll do is I think we'll just pull up the bus, the senior citizen bus up to the field

when they're done, right? And just load them all there. And then we'll bring them back for practice the next day. Perfect plan. We'll get them out of their early at like 2.30 so they can get the early bird special dinner. It makes sense. And I just think that, I mean,

what better way to challenge one another with a guy for LaShawn that has been there and done that and done a lot of the things that LaShawn's done at a high level? And I just, I think iron's going to sharp. an iron in that situation. I thought you were going to defend them, and you're just cracking jokes on the poor Franklin. Well, I'm just saying what everyone else thinks.

I had a question about one of the guys. You're developing one of the great underrated linebackers in the NFL. Do you see Matt Milano as a guy who has pro bowl in his future and maybe would have been a pro bowl or last year if not for the injury? Yeah, I thought Matt had a pro bowl caliber or worthy season up until the point where he had the injury late in the year there and didn't get a lot of probably notoriety for his play this season, but I think he's off to a very good start just two years in, and I'm anxious to see him come back this off season and attack the off season and get off

to a great start for us next year. You know, this is a game we call they say, okay? We wouldn't say it. They say. We wouldn't do it. We wouldn't do it because we're plugged in. We understand what you're trying to do up there in Buffalo. But they say, like a move like Frank Gore joining the bills, why?

The bills are not ready to compete. Why would you bring a guy and that's like a playoff compliment type guy to put you over the top? That's what they say. What do you say to those people that say the bills are not close and they think they are? Well, I would say that we've got a lot of work to do. And we're going to continue to focus on what we do and how we do it. And, you know, try and block all the noise out. I mean, we're not into the world of distractions and noise and people can say what they want.

And we're going to continue to work hard. That's the way you get to where you're trying to get to. I love how your GM came out and defended Buffalo and West. I was born in Rochester. I know that part of the country. And it's just like the bills, maybe if you started the NFL from scratch today, there would be no team in Buffalo. We get that.

But the fact that it's there and that there's a chip on the shoulder sometimes to say, listen, forget about all this nonsense. We'll get the free agents we need. Buffalo is, there is pride here. It's one of the toughest places to play. Yeah, I mean, listen, you know, when you're interviewing for head coaching jobs in the NFL, there's only 32 of them. So you're looking for, you know, just the opportunity to get one.

And I just think I'm very grateful that for me, that opportunity came in Buffalo because the fit has been so right for me and my family. The types of people that are in Buffalo, the culture in Buffalo around the city, that's what I grew up around. That's how I was raised. And so I'll defend it until the day I die with, and because of the people that are there. It's really, it's not the city. It's the people around the city.

You know, it's South Buffalo. It's West Seneca. It's all these towns around Buffalo, Orchard Park. I mean, and the history and the tradition of the Buffalo Bills, let's not forget what they did in the early 90s for so many years. And I just think that people sometimes forget that. All right. It is time for the speed round.

We call it the crucible. It's going to be tough. You know, he's in like flip-flops. He thinks this is going to be his evening. No. You have to matriculate. Resort casual wear. Resort casual.

You have to matriculate your way through these to survive, okay? Here we go. Ready? Hit it, Ricky. First album you bought. Michael Jackson. The Internet. Has it helped or hurt man more?

Helped. Does life exist beyond our planet? Yes. I like it. Do you own any jean shorts? Not currently. Are there too many superhero movies? Yes.

Who's your favorite athlete growing up? Brian Bosworth. The Bond. I love that. I did a box. book report on the boss in third grades, right up. Gotta P. B.

Would you let your children attend to Bill's tailgate? Yes. Good. Every area of the tailgate? No. No. You have to cook one meal to save mankind. What is it?

Ice cream. One TV show you can watch with your wife and you both enjoy it. Hmm. This is tough. Everybody loves Raymond. You can say that. No, no. Let's go with Cosby Show.

All right. All right. And Michael Jack. All right. Hard knocks, training camp with the Buffalo Bills. Who says no? Give me the question again? Hard knocks, training camp with the Buffalo Bills.

Who says no? Who says no? Do you say no? You on board? Skip. Beyonce, overrated, underrated, properly rated. Underrated. That's one.

Big fan. Lake effects, no. Real or government conspiracy. Real. That's right. That was it. The Crucible, you survived. You handled it well.

You did, great. I need more. I need more. We had Freddie Kitchens. He was sweating. Yeah. Was you really a little fun? Yeah, he was trying.

Same questions? Little Dewey. You gave it from a little. Different questions. All right. Oh, he did think that Madonna was underrated. Absolutely. Yeah.

What did you say about Beyonce? Underrated. Well, we've learned that you guys believe in the divas out there. Yeah. You and Freddie. Sean McDermott. Thank you guys. I am a Jets fan.

And I, we have a kinship with the build. we want to take the AFC East over. One of us has to do it. That's it. If it's not going to be my jets, it's got to be the bills. So good luck to you. Yeah, thank you. We appreciate it.

Great to be with you guys. All right, Sean McDermott. And out goes Sean McDermott. He was delightful as well. Look at these coaches. So likable. We're total like that we just fall for anyone that we meet. Like any like girl that gives us just like a little.

bit of attention we're just like oh she's hot i think it helps us that we're not like i don't know let's take that out of the show no no that's staying in i'm kidding it's the end of gregg's career it helps that we're not asking like hard-hitting journal questions we're just you know trying to get along just like the um like the bores at nfl network it's it's got to be you know a grind to be a head coach and just face the same questions day after day so we try to we try to mix it up with these guys but he he's a guy that's easy to root for and i liked his answer about you know how he kind of reps buffalo and western new york it just seems like a good fit between city team and head coach which is what you want right and the bills for a long time had the issue where the general

manager and the coach were not brought in together and the relationship was fraught we heard stuff that wasn't even reported about past clashes and these two really like each other and get along and they have the supportive ownership so there's a patience there that in other cities might not exist. I mean, he went to a wrestling match with the owner. It's a good sign. That's a good sign that everybody's in a good place. All right.

Good talk, guys. We will be back on Wednesday. We will have more action from here at the owner's meetings for you. We don't want to tease it out just yet. I'll be a surprise who's going to be on the show. Why not? We got a big-time head coach coming out. Do you want to drop it?

A little Matt Lafleur action. We got the new head coach of the Green Bay Packers coming up on Wednesday. So make sure you check that out. And maybe we'll have some more special. special guest. So thank you to everyone for listening. And now it is time. And thank you to Ian Rappaport. Thank you to Freddie Kitchens. Of course, Sean McDermott. Now it's time to get to the pool, you know. Please. Yeah. Get some raise. Mark, I want you in a speedo in about 20 minutes.

That's the only swimwear that I own or wear to everyone's delight. All right. That's it. This is Dan Hansa signing off from Phoenix at the Biltmore for Quiet Storm, the mailman, the old. old boss, Ricky Hollywood, killing it. Sitting crisscross applesauce style on the floor. That's what they say now. On the floor. Till Wednesday. Hey, everybody.

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 Sundays. Don't miss it. Listen to the Move the Sticks podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple

podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts. I'm Marcus Grant. And I'm Michael F. Florio, and together we host the NFL fantasy football podcast. Ready to dominate your fantasy league this season? Then you need the NFL fantasy football podcast, your ultimate source for player news, draft tips, and winning strategies. Whether you're a rookie manager or a fantasy vet.

We've got the insight to help you crush your opponents. Listen to the NFL Fantasy Football Podcast on the IHeart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts. Toyota, the official automotive partner of the NFL, visit Toyota.com slash NFL now to learn more. This is an IHeart podcast.