Rahimi, Harris & Grote Show - Full Show — March 11, 2026

Episode Date: March 11, 2026

Leila Rahimi and Marshall Harris reacted to the Ravens backing out of their trade to acquire star defensive end Maxx Crosby from the Raiders after Crosby failed a physical with Baltimore. Should the Bears get back in the Crosby trade sweepstakes?

The score! This hour is brought to you by Menards. Save big money at Menards. The views and opinions of Laila Rahimi, Marshall Harris, and Mark Grody should not be taken too seriously. Especially when they give advice. Do not take Marshall's analogies, literally. Especially when it comes to Russell Dorsey.

The sports thoughts of Rahimi Harrison Grody may change at any time. It's just sports. Okay, thanks. Bye. Rahimi Harrison Grody. 10 to 2 on 1043, The score. The Cowboys are bringing back to Finsers. and Sam Williams, that is a report of one-year three million dollar deal for the NFL network.

Sam Williams got arrested twice for speeding. Jerry Jones brought this logical thought to the table. This shot sounds a little hollow, but he does and is maturing. And he is. What was he going 66? Was he going 66 miles now? Last year? No, this year.

So he's 34 miles an hour less than this year than he was last year. 9866, so that's improvement. It is marked improvement. You know what? I'm with Jerry Jones on this. Y'all are out here making fun of girl math. Ben has been doing poorly in his classes as well. Einstein flunked math.

If I cut 32 miles per hour off between speeding and fractions, I think I should be celebrated. I should be punished, but I should also be, okay, well, you're not that extreme. Because you know, you're going like down a downhill straight away and lose track of how fast you're going when you're younger. Like now I just put it on cruise control and I'm doing the speed limit because I'm an old fuddy-duddy.

The hair, the clothes, they're fuddy-duddy. personality. How about Miles Garrett? So last, last week, he was clock going 94 miles in a 70 mile in Arizona on the interstate in northeast Ohio. There was his ninth speeding ticket since entering the league in 2017. All we've got on tram and company, a couple low rent weapons charges and outstanding speeding tickets. I like that this is once a year. It's kind of an annual tradition for Miles Garrett. So that's improvement. We're definitely going to be running all of that drop. I only spent $15 on something I didn't need today. So that's improvement.

Okay, I have an announcement. You pushed down a lot at the window. No. No, no, that is not funny. I love my employees, even though I hit one of you with my car, for which I take full responsibility. So that's improved. Lila Rahini, Marshall Harris, Mark Grody,

Midday's 10 a.m. to 2 on Chicago Sports Radio 104.3. The SCORE. Ah, yes. The Rabies Awareness Pro Am Fun Run for science. On the score. Is that what that is? Yeah, that's the Office Fun Run episode where he hits Meredith with his car. I forgot about that.

So did Meredith. She had rabies. There was a lot of twist and turns. Similar to today, actually. I see what you did there, Tyler Beaterba. Just now. Just now, this is Rahimi Harrison Grotie on 104-3 The Score, and we were all left wondering late last night, what happened? How on earth did we get to the point where the Raiders are issuing the wamp-womp full-screen graphic that says,

the Ravens have backed out of the trade for Max Crosby. There will be no further comments at this time. See what had happened at first were. I feel like it really was a situation of you see what had happened was because that's how it felt. Depending on how these two teams go forward, the 30 for 30 on this is going to be amazing. Like at the rate,

what if the Ravens win the Super Bowl this year? I'm pretty sure the, the medicals will let the 30 for 30 happen because that's what it sounds like. I had so many questions last night, but I had one thought. and my first thought was, oh, Trey Hendrickson's still out here, and Max Crosby costs two first-round picks.

And regardless of whether it's a medical thing or not, because, you know, you can pass, fail, a physical, whatever. My initial thought, Layla, was like, they're definitely going after Trey Hendrickson. And Trey Hendrins is just still sitting out here so they'll probably get him if they give him anything close to what he is actually seeking. So that's the part of this is, I think we all put our GM half.

on and we all understood the assignment. Number one, Max Crosby set the market as the pass rusher. Marshall has now put on a hat. It's kind of, we could say it's a GM hat in theory. It's really the marathon record hat, which is really cool that Kerry Pankowski got you. To be clear, I do not hold the record for any marathons as I have not run a marathon. But they do record the men's and women's world records that were achieved at the Chicago Marathon. So the point is, he has put his elite hat on, if you will. But that's it. Max Crosby set the market.

There's a reason we all talked about him ad nauseum. Are we even to the point of a nauseam? Yeah, I don't think we are because it's still out there. There's still, so you're telling me there's still a chance. Max.

Max. James might be in the mix. The zombie Ray and Tyler Max Crosby Horde is back. The Max and Nistas. You just walk around Max. Collectively. Max.

Collectively. The Maxisistas are out here. People are alive in this scenario. Like The Undertaker and the GIF. That's what they are. Your hopes for Max Crosby are the Undertaker. Yes. Bring me Max Crosby.

And what? What? At a discounted rate? Bring me Max Crosby. So the guy who set the market suddenly was theoretically back on the market. So what did that mean for Trey Hendrickson, who was a known commodity at this point and didn't have as questionable of a surgery. did still have the core muscle issue and the surgery that happened there.

But you knew a little bit more about what you were getting. Core muscle as opposed to a knee, that makes it a little bit different of calculus. We knew Trey Hendrickson was the next best guy. We also knew the price on Trey Hendrickson, as opposed to Crosby, where we knew his salary at the cap hit being about $35.8 million, but we didn't know which teams wanted to give up the two first rounders, all the Maika Parsons package. So then the next best guy is still out there, kind of like the draft board next best available. And lo and behold, my first thought was, Trey Hendrickson gets the bag now, right?

Like he becomes the guy with the crown. He is now the best available. And then we get the news this morning. In fact, the Raiders and the Ravens both had a plan B. And the Ravens' plan B was Trey Hendrickson. not just Trey Hendrickson, but Trey Hendrickson for a deal that's reportedly worth $112 million with incentives up to $120. And if you do the math on that, that's that magical $30 million per year number

that Trey Hendrickson said he was not selling for anything less. Well, and that's it. So what number gets you to sign the deal that you want? But take advantage of timing and take advantage of timing Trey Hendrickson did. and the incentives are really important here because I think they sweetened the deal when it comes to his age. It's just good negotiating. For people concerned about Trey Hendrickson's age,

because he is older than Max Crosby, how is that going to shake out? And it does. He gets the deal he wanted. However, I don't think the Raiders are going to get the one they want now after this. I would be shocked if they got two first rounders, especially, now it might be different if this goes on and on, but the problem is the draft exists.

and if you don't do a deal before the draft, you become slightly vulnerable. Like we saw what happened with the Cowboys. If they had done that deal before the draft to trade away Michael Parsons, they would have gotten more for Michael Parsons. The Cowboys' timing has always been poor. That's fair. I mean, they operate with poor timing. Very late lately trying to get to that whole NFC championship thing.

Think about the concept of franchise tagging George Pickens, and if they had extended him, that would have given them a lot more space to work with to free up more cap money because they were $56 million over. But timing is important in this. We've talked about quesido Femensa. Why did Sam Darnal dictate the Vikings timing on his firing? So that said, Trey Hendrickson, your second favorite pass rusher is now off the board.

And in the meantime, there are domino effects from this. It's the cat money that's available. It's understanding that a lot of teams, once they thought Max Crosby was off the board, went to their respective plan Bs. And I think that's why Marshall, you and I talked about a lot of other pass rushers immediately going off the board. Adafé OA comes to mind, you know, as somebody who we thought the bears might focus on.

Their prices respectively went up because of timing and teams motivated to make sure they got who they wanted. So let's listen to what Tom Pelliserro said when it came to what happened. At this point, I would say this, the reaction from other people within the NFL, that I am getting is predominantly about how the Ravens pulled the rug out, regardless of what their reasoning was. This just does not happen.

It has happened on multiple other occasions in the past on much smaller trades or agreements involving the Ravens. However, when you're talking about trading two first-round picks, this is not an unknown issue with Max Crosby. Everyone knew he had a knee injury. Everyone knew he finished on injured reserve. Everyone knew, based on Ian's reporting, that he had a meniscus surgery that was actually not just a trim, but a meniscus repair that has a longer-term type of a timeline. But that did not stop several teams from offering a first-round pick and more as part of a trade offer.

It did not stop the Ravens from offering two first-run picks. This is not a situation where you put in a bid in an online auction. Then if you don't like the item, you return it via Amazon. This is a trade involving a superstar player in the NFL. Clearly, they came to the conclusion that there was something they were not comfortable with. And again, it does bear mentioning. 32 teams, 32 doctors, 32 degrees of risk tolerance. What one team might be willing to accept, whether it's in the draft process,

a free agent signing a trade, is something that another team might say, we're simply not going to go there. That's why every year, we're going through the pre-draft process right now, you'll hear about players having medical flags. There might be 31 teams who say, we won't pass this guy. We won't put a uniform on him. But if one team is willing to do it, then that player is going to play in the NFL. Max Crosby is a known commodity with a known injury.

Clearly, something happened. He was in Baltimore today posting on social media, obviously went through a medical process, after which the Ravens for one reason or another. And again, to your point, we have not heard from the Ravens to this point, the Ravens decided we are not following through with this trade. It does not happen often in the NFL. It definitely does not happen at this level, this type of a blockbuster trade.

Max Crosby, once again, is on the Raiders. He is right back on the trade block. Other teams, again, I will emphasize this, the Cowboys would remain interested. They were the runner up to the Ravens. Other teams that I'm calling, I'm missing the calls right now from other teams trying to figure out what's going on because all the other pass rushers have gotten agreements to the Ravens now who didn't get a pass rusher, try to flip one of those players

that agreed to a deal someplace else because now they need another pass rusher for that defense. There are so many different tentacles to this. We never see this happen. It is going to be a free agency frenzy that has now gone into a physical frenzy. How about that, Patrick Claybott, on a Tuesday night? Physical frenzy.

Wow. Double challenge, physical challenge. I like the double entendre there with physical. frenzy because obviously he allegedly did not pass a physical and now things might get physical between all these teams. But I think he's right to point out this may not necessarily be about whether or not you think Max Crosby is a good decision to have him on your team or pick up the $35 million salary cap hit. This may be about how injured is he or how physically healthy is he based on the asking price of two first round picks. The price. The price.

may have changed, the value of Max Crosby may have not. Both of those things can be true. And that's where this comes into play. It may not be, oh, he's hurt forever. That's, I think, where a lot of people mentally go. They think, well, there's a setback in an injury. Well, not necessarily. This may just mean, we do not think his physical state is worth your asking price. And it's funny they mention the Cowboys, because there have been multiple reports out of Dallas saying the Cowboys maintained, we will not give up two first-round picks. What did Danny Parkins say on our show last week? He's on with us at one.

He did not think Max Crosby was worth two first-round picks. That may be the deciding factor in this. It does seem like a buyer-beware type situation for all those involved. But anytime someone's coming off a surgery, that's always the case. He hasn't been cleared. He's not back ready to go to practice tomorrow. we've heard explanations from doctors, real doctors, internet doctors, that this is where you are after a surgery like this,

we know it's going to take longer. And no one is surprised that he's not fully ready to go. It's just there's, if you want to believe what's coming out of the Ravens, there was something they didn't like on the medicals. I tend to believe I like Trey Hendrickson as an option at a much lesser rate. Well, outside of Trey Hendrickson, you mentioned doctors. and one of the most qualified on this topic in the city is here. Dr. Brian Cole, who is the team orthopedist for both the White Sox and the Bulls.

He's with Rush. He's very well known, the Midwest Clinic at Rush, an actual orthopedic surgery for NFF, not just NFL teams, but pro teams. So he works on professional athletes. Talk to Mullian Haw about what he thought about what Tom Pelliserro had to say. I mean, this is a complicated issue that's not just sort of the physician of the medical side of it. I kind of agree with Tom Poster. That is comments.

You know, this is something that radius between how an office makes a decision, what they know going in. Does it end up, you know, being buyers or more sort of when someone comes in and does an inspection of a home, this is the last chance you have to get out of a trade? You know these things going in, and there's a fundamental difference between, relative risk for a menacectomy, which is when you partially remove a meniscus versus a meniscus repair. So the calculus is actually much more complicated than, hey, what did this guy have done? Because they kind of knew this going into it.

But to hone in on the answer to your question, a menacectomy, which is just a trim, is often, especially in the NFL, a four to six-week recovery, assuming the meniscus cares what's causing the person's pain. You know, relatively young player often doesn't have much in the way of other concommonent or associated problems like arthritis. and so forth. So a simple metacectomy, meaning a trim, if that's what's causing pain, is a predictable operation. The alternative is a menisco repair, and a minister repair is a procedure where we actually put sutures or stitches in the meniscus to preserve it. From a longevity perspective, it's desirable

to preserve it. However, it's associated with significant recovery differences, often four to six months rather than four to six weeks. And then in the NFL, the NBA, in collision sports, there's a one to two and five chance of a re-tear happening once they get back after they've had that prolonged recovery. And then it's the issue of what you and I don't know if what else is going on in his knee is it just a meniscus. So there are many factors. And then the teams have a lot of jurisdiction and flexibility when it comes to, quote, failing a physical. It's not just can you play or can't you play. There's a lot of other factors that go into it.

So there it is. Brian Cole, Dr. Brian Cole, who is with Rush to Midwest Clinic, who is a, an orthopedic surgeon who works on professional athletes tells you about the variables involved with that specific injury and why it's not just as simple as one or zero. He's either good or he's not. And the end of what he said there really hits home because we don't know.

We don't know the specific reason if it's a medical reason strictly. Let's say it really is a just strictly medical reason, which I, you'd have to convince me of that. All the reports indicate that that's the case. Listen, I understand that. But here's my question. If Trey Hendrickson's not available, and you see the dearth now of past rushers available, when now that Trey Hendrickson is off the board.

Or that were available, yeah. Yeah. So if he's not available, do you think this deal still gets rescinded? That's, I guess, the question. And the answer could be yes. but it's hard for me to believe because of the timing of everything. The timing of everything. League year starts at 3 o'clock.

That's when deals can be done and become official. Happy league year. In a what, less than 12-hour span of time, they re-nig on the trade with the Raiders and also sign Trey Hendrickson? Well, that's it. You're only as good as your options are. And when they had other options,

they went to their second option. And I think that's what I'm saying. That's what I'm saying, Layla, if that plan B doesn't exist, are you just 100% confident that this deal gets taken off the table from the Ravens point of view? I don't necessarily know. I think that every NFL team has multiple sets of plans and contingencies and scenarios. And I think what we saw was what happens when it's two of the biggest names in the sport and it's real time. and the concept of every player affecting somebody else's market in your position group is the case. So I think both are true.

But I think, again, that's why your physical may have just determined, based on the time he will need, based on what our doctor says about recovery, perhaps two first round picks is no longer the right price for us. And that's where I feel like some of the gray area lies. Now, they didn't want Trey Hendrickson initially, and they wouldn't have had to give up a thing for him. They already understand they have that cap money available. So I think that was still their first choice because ultimately it was the choice they made first. Whether or not Trey Hendrickson determined how they felt about it, I think when you know you want a plan B and you know you want a pass rusher rather than live without him, they told you what their priorities were. So I think that for them, the Ravens, they had something specific in mind.

If your options are Max Crosby and Trey Hendrickson, good on you. If that's who you want to go get and these are the guys that you want to see, I call that a luxurious problem to have. We call that living high off the old hog is what we call that. High on the hog, yeah. And that's part of it. That, you know, that means you're eating the top of the, the bean on the pig.

The bears, they have first world problems. The Ravens clearly have first class problems. The Ravens are still in a very fluid situation. Fluid situation with an MVP quarterback is pretty good. Yeah, but now the scenario where I mentioned that they could have Tyler Linderbomb and Max Crosby on the same team building from the inside out, if you will, well, that's happened. But it's not how they wanted it. timelines don't match up. So I think the question now becomes, do you think Trey Hendrickson gets moved?

Do you think the bears should get on this? And we want to know what you think, too. 312, 644, 64, 67, is our number. So you can give us a call or text. You can also join us on Twitch. Twitch.tv. The Score Chicago is our address. Our Twitch mob is up there chatting with you and me. and you can also join us on YouTube, YouTube TV. The Score Chicago is our address on YouTube. It changed, but we're still there for you, The Score, Chicago. So do you think the Bears should get in on the Max Crosby Sweepsticks now that it is looking like there might be a discount? We are Rahimi Harris and Grody, Marshall Harris, Laila, Rahimi, with you, Ray Diaz, Tyler Bueberbaugh, and Brandon Fryer are our producers.

We also have a video team of Connor O'Donnell, Jacob Studs, and Max, Max, Curtis, and we broadcast live from our scores Hyundai Studios, brought to you by your local Hyundai dealers. So join us in the conversation because we thought it was over. Do you get back in on Max if you're the Bears? Next. Rahimi Harrison Grody

Midday's Tyndal 2 on Chicago Sports Radio 1043, the score. Williams and the Raiders defense answers yet again. Max Crosby intercepting Caleb Williams, that from the

Barn Burder of the 25-24 Raiders and Bears game. I'm sorry to laugh, but I have to bring this to the air. We were just talking about the concept of Tooby. So, of course, I was talking to Marshall about it and Ray as well. And then Marshall goes, I can't believe some of these world baseball classic games are on Tobey, to which I said, I watched a whole Super Bowl on Tooby. And then I had to explain to Marshall that Fox owns Tube.

No, I knew Fox owned Tooby, but I thought that they weren't putting their actual network programming on 2B. Isn't it supposed to be like everything else but the networks? But see, this is how they try and push people over to Tubeby. They give you a little sampling of the real stuff. We are talking about football. We're going to push them, push them down the line down to Tubey. So that's how you try and get people to watch.

You got to download a whole new app though if you don't have it. But Tube is really convenient. I have Tooby and there are many independent films on 2B that are great to check out. I'm a fan. You should check them out. You should have Tooby already if you don't. A lot of reading class movies on Tooby. No, but Tube has other stuff too.

Like, didn't they carry Gossip Girl for a minute? They did. They do have other programming. Yeah, so Tooby was our during the break conversation. And it's valid to you because World Baseball Classic games are on Tooby. And you might be surprised. And no, nobody's paying me to say this. It's a select number. It's just an interesting concept.

We'll talk about the World Baseball Classic at 1125, by the way. This is Rahimi Harrison Grotie on 104. three the score and I asked everybody to put your GM hat back on. Knowing what you know about the Max Crosby trade and how the Ravens backed out and knowing that many reports indicate there was an issue with the physical. Let's also rewind back to when the Bears had an issue with a physical on an offensive lineman, that was back with the Larry Ogenjobe scenario, which I didn't think we would end up talking about. Ogunjobe ended up playing over 110 games after that moment where the Bears had to back out of the trade.

He ended up with the Steelers. And again, I think it just came down to the price. Was the contractor, was the asking price worth what a team was willing to get in on based on the physicals? So I say that, asking the question again, knowing that the Bears did commit to, backup defensive lineman and Gallaborn Street, knowing that the Bears still need a pass rush, are you back in on Max Crosby? Are you asking me, Laylor, Hewie, if I'm back in on Max Crosby?

Not just you, and you, the listener. 312, 6444, 67, 67 is our number. My answer is very simple. I ain't never left. Like, what? I was the one saying, okay, now go get Trey Hendrickson, because he's the most viable guy remaining. Guess what?

Go get him. Hendrickson now appears to be off the board as of 3 p.m. or so today when the actual new league year starts. So now you go get Max Crosby. And guess what? You don't even have to pay that much for him. So I guess the better question, Layla, is what are you willing to give up for Max Crosby? Because some people, I understand, it's going to be absolutely nothing. I don't want him.

Matti, Montezed, DJ Moore. Sir, DJ Moore's already been traded. So understanding that. because I was one of the people who said, yeah, give up two first and DJ Moore to get Max Crosby. He solved some cap issues and also get a guy who makes your pass rush now elite with sweat on one side and him on the other. I do not see how the Raiders get two first rounders after this.

Oh, no. It was already questionable. That was the whole sticking point with the rest of the league was there were a lot of teams interested, but not for that price. in the words of the laws, yesterday's price is not today's price. I never thought it would go backwards, though. Inflation is a hell of a drug.

Well, in this case, it's the opposite. So yesterday's price on Max Crosby is not today's price. So the better question becomes, at what price are you willing to go get Max Crosby? Okay, follow me on this. For me, the Bears have multiple second round picks. I'd be willing to give up a second round. round pick this year and a first round pick next year.

That's what I'd be willing to give up. Go get it, baby. That's what I'd be willing to give up. Yeah, that's a discount. So do you understand why I'm okay with giving up next year's first round pick? Because you think it's going to be worse. I think it's going to be later. I really do.

Especially if you get Max Crosby on your roster. Mega trade idea from 312. Oh, what we got. Well, we got. Raiders trade number one pick to someone else needing a quarterback. And then trade Crosby to Bears for first. second in Bejant. I don't even think you need first second and Beijing.

Dare to dream. Dare to go with a crazy trade. Second next year's first. Bejian and a second rounder is 708. Yeah. Yeah, of course the Bears would take that deal. What about this from 708, Leila? I'm back in on Max as long as the trade is for no more than an old style,

a shot of Malort, the famous Chicago handshake, and of course, a Portillo's cake shake to be named later. That's from Dodger boy. Now, would you, my price that I said, would you give that up for Max Crosby? A second and a first? Yeah. If a player wasn't involved, yes. Okay.

I think that that's fair. Because of his salary, a second rounder is a lot more fungible than a first. Bears theoretically would be a late first. So that part of it also stands. I think you're always in on it if the price is reasonable. And I firmly believe that. this entire issue with the trade terms was that the Ravens decided we didn't want to give up two first rounders for what we saw in a physical. And then you know what else I thought about guys was

maybe you shouldn't have been on the trampoline after the knee? Like is that something you asked Dr. Brian Cole about? Yes. Dr. Cole. Is that a good idea to be on a trampoline with my daughter who's a toddler? But here's the after this surgery? No, that was before the surgery, wasn't it? That was, yeah, Because that was when he was mad that he had been shut down. He hadn't had it yet. That was the shutdown. So like any damage I'd do on this knee on this trampoline, they're going to clean it up when they go inside this knee anyway.

And we heard Dr. Brian Cole say the relative risks with a meniscus. It's not like a Patel or like Ozzie Tripillo. Yeah. That's why, that's why, again, I'm holding strong to my idea that this is more about Trey Hendrickson being available without having to give up draft capital at a much cheaper price than you thought he was going to cost than anything really being wrong with Max Crosby.

630 says if we have Max and Montez who's wearing 98, here's how you do it. You line them up on a 2x4 and then you put them in a 3-point stand to make sure they're all helmet and pat it up and then whoever goes down first, that's who doesn't wear 98. Well, I know one of those guys has never been told

he needs to win his one-on-one matchup. So I have a feeling how that's going to go. I don't know how that's going to go. I have a feeling Max Crosby also probably did the two-by-four drill. Let's go to our phone. 312, 644-67, and Jesus and Jefferson Park. You're on Rahimi Harris and Grotie. Rahimi and Harris-Grady.

Good morning, guys. Listen, Marshall, I can't, I agree with you. I think this was buyer's remorse from Baltimore. Just the timing of the way their news came out. And then when Henderson was available, you can't tell me otherwise. You can show me all the medical. but I totally agree with that. Now, I'm fine with giving up the number one and two.

I mean, you think about the number one this year is 25 or something like that. That's almost a second round pick. Give it up this year and go ahead with the second. You've got enough second rounds this year to make up for it. Let's go. Let's get it. Okay, so you would give up this year's first. They have too many needs for me to give up this year's first.

Yeah. I think they need that first and a second, and they'd still have a first and second round pick this year if they give up this year's second and next year's first. I just think there's probably a team out there who is willing to give a first that they have this year. And guess what? It's probably higher than the Bears first. Right. And that was a report that was out there. Don't get fooled by the bananas and the tailpipes, people. Don't get fooled. Now there is a report from our friend Greg Gabriel who says on Twitter, this is an hour ago,

breaking, just got a text from a very credible agent who said it is their belief around the league that the Bears will look into trading for Crosby. And I think that that's fair to report because, again, when the price changes, everybody's going to look back into this. It would be malpractice if you did not. Malpractice, negligence, all the above. It's like, you know, drafting someone number one overall without going to check out the competition.

And Greg worked in a front office as well, so this is valid. He says, if the Bears were to attempt to trade for Crosby, my feeling is they don't, they need to find out why he failed in Baltimore, of course, and then, get a medical here should a trade be made. I don't know that you find out. That's the thing. It's how proprietary is that information. He says the return can and won't be too firsts

there is an obvious risk now, and last they would be taking on a $30 million salary. And that cap hit at least on the Raiders was 35.79. So that's it. You just want to find out with your own data at least what to search for based on what the other team thought they saw. The other factor in this is a lot of money has been spent since the news came out that Max Crosby was getting traded to the Ravens to begin with. So a lot of teams may not have the flexibility to even absorb his contract.

That's it. Like that's a big part of this is he's not the only pass rusher who's off the board. So because of that, you've just seen how many other edge rushers are now gone. Do you want to do the, do you want to do the Higon? Should we get the Higon? Let's do it. Trey Hendrickson is now with the Ravens. Jalen Phillips signed with the Panthers.

Begum! Adafé OA signed with the commanders. Begum! John Franklin Myers signed with the Tennessee Titans. So think about all of the players. I don't know how you feel about this based on the money he got, but I still consider Rishon Gary somewhat of a pass rusher guys. despite his second half of the season.

And he got traded to the Cowboys who were supposedly interested, but not interested in the price for the Cowboys, for sorry, Max Crosby. I will say this. Just to be clear, when you're saying signing, they're planning to sign after 3 p.m. Now I'm a little hesitant to tell people that,

hey, this guy's definitely going here because all these are deals that have been agreed upon to go and be signed once the league year. starts at 3 p.m. today. That's another question. This is known as negotiating, quote, legal tampering, whatever you want to call it, how solid are the commitments overall? That's what the next question then becomes. It makes you wonder watching something like this go down in the manner that it did with the biggest guy available, whether you want to talk about a free agency or otherwise, Crosby was that name. Indeed. 312, 644, 67, 67 is our number.

You can text us. You can call us. What do you think? Should the bears get back in? Are you looking at another price for the trade? 917 says Arlington Heights racetrack straight up for Crosby, solves the where will the stadium be questioned and fixes the pass road? Well, those are assets.

So at least you know one's condition immediately, which is the land. The racetrack isn't there anymore. But at least you've got the land. So I don't hate it. And one doesn't count for the salary cap. So there's that as well. All right. I'm interested.

I'm interested in finding out what other people think. 312, 4, 4, 6767. Are you back in? Never were in. Have you changed your mind? Are you hedging your bets on Max Crosby to the Bears? What would you be willing to give up? And what would be a cost too high?

773 says we have no pass rush. Well, take that up with the contracts that were signed last year. Here's where we are. We have one call on hold, so we want to hear from you. Should the Bears get back in? on the pursuit of Max Crosby. Max Ineis does unite on the score. Rahimi Harris and Grotie.

Midday's 10 to 2 on 1043, the score. Okay, I'm still somewhat giggling at the Bayesian in a second rounder. How do you think that phone call is going to go with John Spitech if you're the Raiders? What was that? Oh, I'm sorry. You're breaking up. Got to go. Bye.

This is Rahimi Harrison Grotie. At what price would you trade for Max Crosby? Do you want in on the sweepstakes? Should the bears get back in? I think the price is going to be a little higher. 312, 644, 67, 67. We go to Frank in Las Vegas. Frank, you're on Rahimi Harrison Grotie.

Good morning, ladies and gentlemen. I have two reasons why they should. I would give up the first this year and a second next year because who knows where we're picking next year because of injuries and stuff. Plus, if I'm not mistaken, Booker is similar size to Crosby. You get him in there and let him show him that he gives 110%, show him some moves. And can't you next year, as a cap casually, of sweat, if Booker continues like he did

at the last quarter of the season? And just a little off topic, cannot the Bears sue the NFL? because clearly Ian Cunningham met the requirements of, you know, being elevated to general manager. Are you familiar with the cliche, judge, jury, and executioner? That is Adam, excuse me, Roger Goodell right about now. So they can't sue them. This is league business. This is how the league operates.

The commissioner works for the 32 teams. Yeah, but, I mean, if you look through the past, they've always screwed bears. Yeah. You know, some way or another, there's got to be some kind of remedy that they can look at. I know that, you know, if you mess with them, they're going to try to penalize you later. Would it maybe, if they do ever get a new stadium, they may not want to do a Super Bowl here or something like that. But somebody can't even somebody else, even NAACP, get involved and say, hey, you're breaking a rule that you said to help, you know, minorities, you know, can't they get in, somebody getting,

about because clearly Ian Cunningham was elevated to a good position, higher position than what he had here. You know what? There's a chat bot. If you go to contact the NFL office, NFL support, submit a request, which I'm pretty sure probably has more to do with the actual function of the website. But maybe that's, there's got to be another way. Yeah, because since this is on everyone's minds and the bears can't seem to have any recourse,

That's not to say we can't contact them. Are we about to start a grassroots movement to contact Roger Goodell? You write an email to Roger Goodell. Let him know how you're feeling and how the lack of compensatory picks for Ian Cunningham is affecting your life, Bears fans. No, I'm not kidding. You might as well email somebody. Just find the contact us information or the contact information on the NFL.

And the more they get from this, then at least we've made it a nuisance for them. and that may be the best thing that we can possibly do. Here's what stinks. It probably gets the next person the compensatory picks for their respective team. That's what it probably does. Because they won't admit they were wrong on this one, but we can remind them that they are.

I have no problem with doing that. So Frank, that's my suggestion. And I'm not kidding. Contact the NFL. If they won't listen to us, then have it registered somewhere. So thanks for your call. 312-644-67. This is Rahimi Harrison Grody.

on 1043 the score. We go to Pete in Rockford. Hi, Pete. Hey, how you doing? Right. I wanted to point out something. From the very beginning, Ryan Poles has always said that he's going to grow the bears to the draft, and he didn't want to put any kind of financial burden or restraints on the bears.

He's gotten us out of bad contracts, and he's gotten us in a good position right now. And as much as I want to see a healthy Max Crosby on a Bears team, I still think that it's too early. I think that we'll be putting too much money into them. And it's not the path that Ryan Poles wanted to take from the get-go. So with that, I'll listen. I think the number one thing is when you're saying that, though, he's not always going to have Caleb Williams,

if things go the way that we think it's going to go on a rookie contract. This is the time now to take advantage of that. before you have to really make cutbacks and pay your quarterback. I think everybody wants to build through their draft. But when the facts in the matter change, we change. I think that the Bears thought that Jervon Dexter was going to be a different player in the final year of his rookie contract than he's turned into now. I think the Bears drafted a lot of hopes and prayers or people they thought that they could change

based on relative athletic score and traits, especially early on in Ryan Poles' time with the Bears, and that they haven't come through. And somebody needed to say these players are good enough. Furthermore, you saw it happen. The league showed you. So when you can't build through the draft, the next thing you try to do is sign free agents, which is what they did on the offensive line,

and it's what they did on the defensive line, respectively. So they had to fix the problem somehow. But you're right, drafting should be the solution, and it should be the very first thing that happens. But when it doesn't, you've got to fill in the gap somehow. 312-644-67-67 is our number. Brandon in Madison, Wisconsin. We go to you next.

Hey, Brandon. Hey, how's it going? We're good. How are you today? Good, good. I just want to say I grew up listening to you guys with my dad in his car. So thanks for all you guys do, first of all. Thank you.

And I am for the Max Crosby trade for a few reasons. I think the attention he brings to opposing offenses with our new signings of Devin Bush and Jackson, being able to free those guys up to fly around. It's really important as well as the flexibility we have next year in the cap with $77 million prior to cutting guys like Deo and Grady and those guys, freeing up another $30 million to make other moves like re-signed Darnell Wright. I just think he would change the trajectory of this rebuild and this phase that we're in, as well as to amplify the young guys and bring juice to our defensive line. What would you be willing to give up, though? I think I would be willing to give up probably a first and a next year's second.

And part of the reason that is, I think, with Ben Johnson, we've proven that we can draft later in the draft and still find value guys like Luke Newman, Manung guy, you know, even those second round picks that we've had, like we've proven that we can get value. So those two picks to me become, you know, less relevant when a guy like Max Crosby's on your roster. I like your logic, Brandon. Thanks for calling in. And thanks for picking up where your family left off, two generations of score listeners. We'll take it.

We love to hear it. But I just don't think it's as simple when it comes to being able to cut players like Dio Dainbo, for example. Like this year, it's a $22 million dead cap hit. That's a lot of money. So that's not happening this year. Grady Jarrett would be a $21 million dead cap hit. Both of those are higher than their respective contracts and cap hits this season. We will have one more call, and it is Kendrick on the south side.

Hi, Kendrick. Hey, how you guys are going? I'm finally able to get in on one of these conversations, so I'm very excited. Well, we're happy to have you. All right. I'm for the Max Cosby trade. And me personally, with everything that went down, of course, his value is not going to be two first round picks anymore.

So I would probably do like a first and a second, like this year's first and probably next year's second. And the only way I would even consider doing two first round picks is if they take, I owe the dangbo contract away from us. That's the only way I'll be looking at to give you our two first round picks. But I think we have the time is now. Like we have this little window and the time is now for us to make that push to be able to get over there hump the way we should before we have to start looking at the paying Caleb 50 to 60 plus million dollars.

And we still have Roma Dunezay. He's probably on demand another $27, $28 million. You know, so it's like we, The time is now. If we can capture one now, and our biggest issue, which was proven for us last year, was that we couldn't get to the quarterback. Montez Sweat, me personally, I got one more year with him before I decided to ship him out somewhere. But I think if you pair of Max Crosby with him, we can be able to do something. And I think it could be very special if we can make that happen. Kendrick, I like your timeline, especially on Montes Sweat. And I like the thought process overall.

I'm glad you got in on the conversation. We thank you for your call. So we have to get to a break here because we have to hear from Mike Florio next. What a perfect day to talk to Mike. It could not have lined up any better. The creator and editor of Pro Football Talk, who I'm sure has heard some hot gossip since, I don't know, I'd say last night around 8 o'clock or so.

We'll talk to Mike next. This hour is brought to you by Menards. Save big money at Menards. Ladies and gentlemen, joining us now is a man who's got a massive brain. Mike Florio. He used to be a lawyer, then he decided to take his talents to the internet. NBC Sports. I'm sorry, I'm late.

I was talking to Robert Kraft. That is at the time for an airing of grievances. Pro football talk. I got a lot of problems with you, people. No, you're going to hear about it. On Chicago Sports Radio, 1043, the score. I want to keep talking Legos. Well, it turns out that there's a lot of problems.

with a lot of people right now, and we know just the guy to talk about it. Mike Florio, he is the creator and editor-in-chief of Pro Football Talk. He joins us every week at this time, Wednesday's at 11. Today is no different. He is at Pro Football Talk on Twitter, and he is on Twitch. Twitch.tv slash The Score Chicago. Mike, thanks for joining us on this wildly busy day. Yeah, you know, free agency was actually kind of boring at first.

I know that there are transactions that Bears fans are interested in, but there really wasn't a whole lot of sizzle when the biggest quarterback on the market is a guy with six career starts and the most discussed and highest paid relative to the market signing as a center. We needed a little B-12 shot, and we got one last night and it continues today. Mike, what's your reaction to this and your understanding of when people talk about a failed physical, it seems to be very vague and very much at the behest of whoever or whichever organization is doing the evaluating here. And that is a reality for every trade that happens, every signing that happens.

I remember a few years ago, Jimmy Garapolo signed with the Raiders, and the reporters were in the press room waiting for the press conference, and it was delayed, and they basically said, Allah the Wizard of Oz go home and come back tomorrow, because they found something in the physical that required. the deal to be reworked. So none of these deals that have been negotiated since noon, Eastern, 11th Central on Monday are done until they're done and they can't be done until the teams get a chance to look at the guys. These deals are done sight unseen for the most part. You've got to

bring the guy in and make sure that everything's fine. For trades, it's the same thing. Before the Ravens, we're going to commit a couple of first round picks and presumably adjust Max Crosby's contract because his average of 35.5 million per year was well below the going rate at the high end of the market of 46.5 million for Michael Parsons, you want to make sure that you're comfortable. And, you know, in hindsight, now we raised the flag that, hey, hey, none of these deals are done until they're done. Both teams have to communicate the terms independently and identically to the league office. Anyone can back out for any reason and it violates no rules. I wish I had been more clear on

the reality that you've got a guy who just had a meniscus repair in January. So you're not, assessing whether or not he can pass a physical and play today, you're making a projection that he's going to be able to pass and play later. So it's a big gray area. And for the Ravens who had never before traded a first round pick for a player in franchise history, they got to be damn sure that they're making the right move here and it's not going to blow up in their faces. And Adam Schaeffer reported last night, this wasn't just one doctor going rogue or getting a wink and a nod from somebody in the front office who had cold feet about this transaction. They consulted with multiple doctors and they decided they weren't comfortable moving forward.

Mike, that's it. I feel like there's been a general understanding of where Max Crosby was going to be physically at this point in time, but that the price of the two first round picks was the real concern for multiple NFL teams. We've seen multiple reports. I believe it was an issue of perhaps they just didn't feel like they just didn't feel like that first round pick asking price made sense anymore for them to the tune of two of them? Yeah, you're taking on a significant risk that you're not going to get a return on your investment of two

first round picks. And it never got to this point, but I believe his contract would have been renegotiated on the way through the door because the Ravens were inheriting four years at a total average payout of $29 million. Why wouldn't you expect something more that puts you better in line with the market, especially if the Ravens think enough of you to give up two first-round picks. And that's always, you know, it's a sliding scale, the components of a trade. What do we have to give up to get the guy? What do we have to pay to make him happy? We saw what the Packers gave up for Michael Parsons and made him the guy who's at the top of the market.

So you just better be sure that you're comfortable with the medical side of it. And the problem is this. The Raiders dropped this bomb on Twitter last night saying the Ravens, backed out of the agreement, we'll have no further comment at this time, it creates the impression the Ravens did something dirty, that they did something they shouldn't have done. And the Ravens have been silent about it. I think from a PR standpoint, the Ravens would be wise to find a way to get their story out there directly, not by leaking anything to reporters, but issue a statement that, hey, this deal wasn't done. None of these deals are done until the physical is passed,

and we decided not to pass. You know, what they could have done, they could have waited until the deal was official today, pending a physical, and all of this could have happened tomorrow. That would have been an even bigger mess, but that's the thing we've seen from time to time. We've seen trades fall apart after the deal's done, after it's announced pending a physical,

and the physical isn't passed. This isn't the first time that's happened. It's just the most dramatic and jarring way that it's unfolded. Mike Floreo joining us here on Rahimi Harrison Grotty as he does each time this week. He's the creator and editor-in-chief of pro football talk. And Mike, maybe I am a conspiracy theorist. But it's hard for me to believe that this would have gone down in the manner that it did.

If Trey Hendrickson wasn't out here, still dangling, no one meeting his price. The price kind of lowers for what people think he's going to get on the open market. And in less than 12 hours, they go from backing out of this deal to signing Trey Hendrickson. Does that make me a conspiracy theory? Because I don't think that the Ravens do this unless they have the backup because I see the dearth of available edge rushers after free agency the frenzy was over. You know, the phrase conspiracy theory is a lot more or a lot less fun than it used to be. Now you don't want to be labeled a conspiracy theorist. There was a time where it was kind of cool.

But consider the way this all played out. And at a minimum, the Ravens got lucky because Trey Hendrickson, if his demands weren't unrealistic, and he came into this process wanting a lot more than the market was going to bear. There was a report from Jonathan Jones of CBS yesterday that there was a $10 million gap between what Hendrickson wanted and what teams were offering. It reminded me of one of my good friends' father's favorite sayings, if I could buy you for what you're worth and sell you for what you think you're worth, I'd be very rich. And if Hendrickson had just been more reasonable, he'd been gone on Monday.

But because he was being stubborn, he was there, and the Ravens could swoop in and get him for $28 million a year, a million per year less than what Crosby was going to cost them without a renegotiation of the contract. Crosby was going to be 29 and two first-round picks. They get Hendrickson for 28 and no picks of any kind to be surrendered to the Cincinnati Bengals. Mike, how many teams do you think are left now interested

in Max Crosby still in the end? NFL? Well, I think plenty of teams are interested if they can pounce on this, this weakness that the Raiders may now be dealing with because they've gone out and blown their budget on a bunch of free agents. And reportedly, they're going to honor the agreements. It'll be interesting to see if one or more of those guys fail their physicals on the way through the door. But the Raiders could, if they want to, they could call up the age of retaliate of Lindabombeam and say, you know, we made this offer under the notion that Max Crosby's $30 million salary for this year was going to be off the books. Now that it's back, we've got to reconfigure and we're sorry, but we can't proceed with

this deal. The Raiders have every right to do that. So they're going to proceed, but they do have a problem now. And even though they can automatically restructure Max Crosby's contract and reduce the cap number for this year, it's still $30 million in cash. And these teams all set a budget for each year of the cash they're willing to devote to free agency and to the rest of the roster. So, you know, they got to go back to Mark Davis and say, hey, you know, that budget that we came up with, we need to, we need to add 30 million back into it now if they have to keep him. And right now, all indications are, and who knows what to believe, because it could be posturing, the Raiders are content to keep him. Crosby is content to stay. And he may have had like an epiphany.

Hey, I want out, I want out, I want out. He goes through this experience in Baltimore, and now he comes back. He's like, you know what, I'll just stay here, and I'm happy with all these guys we've signed. Maybe we're going to be competitive now. So he may truly be interested in staying, but this is all part of the pushback to get the next team, if there is one, to be more reasonable in what they think they can get him for. And I look at it this way. We talked earlier today on PFT Live about whether or not a trade could still happen.

I think it can happen, but maybe it's going to happen. once he's able to pass a physical. Maybe it's going to happen later in the year, maybe even after the draft. Maybe they still get two first round picks, but it's 27 and 28, not 26 and 27, after the dust settles on a lot of things, and after the doctors of whichever team

may be interested in Max Crosby can get a look at not where he is and might be, but where he actually is after months of rehabbing this meniscus repair on his knee, which is usually a three-month injury. Mike, these are excellent points you're bringing up. And it makes me so curious because I feel like now is the window if you're willing to take the risk where you're going to get the low deal, the low value of getting him in your building. And if he builds it back up and he's back to playing, isn't that going to be back to two first rounders?

Well, I think it would be. But here's the other reality, too. And this is why it's in Max Crosby's interest to take a step back and continue to rehab and get himself healthy. because if part of this transaction is about getting Max Crosby a raise, the team's going to be reluctant to do that too. So let's wait and thread all the needles at the same time. Trade and contract. You want to get that new deal done as you go through the door.

Once the trade is over, so if he would be traded right now and the team would say, we'll take a look at your contract once you're healthy. There's less urgency to do it. And they've got four years where they can squat on it. So I think that for both the Raiders and for Crosby, it makes sense to wait. And yes, it's going to be hard to get two first round picks again, but it's a very different situation if Max Crosby is fully and completely recovered, gets a clean bill of health from the doctors, not just the team doctor, but anyone else that the team that would trade for him would be consulting with. and the Raiders, instead of getting the 14th overall pick this year and a first round pick next year, they're going to get maybe a first round pick next year and a first round pick the year after that.

So should the Bears do this or what? I think it makes sense to monitor the situation. If they were interested in it before, it makes sense to see where it goes from here. And this could be a guy that you get at the start of training camp if he's healthy. But I would definitely want to be sure that this guy. is good to go because the knee could be a problem. If you have that many doctors looking at this thing after a meniscus repair and having red flags, and think about what happened here. And, you know, Max Crosby was mad when the Raiders finally shut him down at the end of the year

with two games left. He'd been playing all year with this meniscus injury. And I talked to an orthopedic surgeon last night. It's going to make it worse. And it puts stress on other elements of the structure of the knee, this incredibly complicated joint with all these different interconnecting, interlocking pieces that need to be all working right for the need to operate the way it needs to. So that's really the key. Will he be good to go? When will he be good to go? And if the bears were interested before, if and when we get to a point where we know that he's healthy now, and I would suspect that any physicals that may be conducted in the future by a prospective Max Crosby trade suitor, those are all going to be done very quietly and discreetly.

and no one's going to know because nobody is going to want to be in this position where they're pulling the plug on a trade and the Raiders don't want it to happen again. Crosby won't want it to happen again. So I think that the passage of time and if he can get healthy, that's the thing that could change everything. So the bears just need to monitor. Anyone that's interested in Max Crosby needs to see how the next few months play out. Looking at the rest of free agency, have there been anything that's really stood out as far as a big surprise or a team maybe more active than you thought or just the amount of money that's being handed out, say, I don't know, a center gets, resets the market by getting 150% of the value of the previous high for a center.

Well, that really was crazy to me. No one. And what I want to know, and I've been trying to find out, and it's hard to get to the truth on this. Everyone, as best I can tell, is saying they were at 22. The Ravens were at 22. The Giants, I have heard, bowed out once it went above 22. The commanders, they were supposedly around 22.

Like, if he goes to the Raiders for 27, who finished second? Was somebody at 269, 265, 26, where was it? And they clearly overpay. A 50% bump in the market, that is ridiculous. And you can say, well, that's what a dysfunctional team has to do to kind of reset the narrative. You've got to overpay. You've got to find a way to win the jump balls. Ideally, you're a team that can offer as much and maybe even a little less than whoever else is out there for a guy to say, I'll take less and go there.

And Nevada's got no state income tax. They've got some positives, but the team has been bad. But to go 50% over, I want to know who they were bidding against, and whether or not at the end of the day they were simply bidding against themselves. A fair question. And I think also with all the reports, Mike, and we've talked about this before, regarding Tom Brady and how much he's actually running the team or running the team by proxy. I couldn't help but think of that part of this,

in addition to John Spitech as a general manager. I feel like his influence is larger than even has been reported and perhaps what we may think. I don't disagree with that. And last year, Brady managed to avoid any of the blame for the complete and total train wreck that was the 2025 Las Vegas Raiders, even though it was the first off season during which he had a piece of the team, owner Mark Davis made it clear last January, January 2025,

that Tom's basically the new right-hand man. He's the guy who's going to stabilize the organization. He's the guy who fills the shoes that were vacated by John Gruden when he was pushed out in 2021. And it's amazing that Brady has avoided that scrutiny. And I think one of the benefits of Brady being spread too thin, no one really stopped to say, hey, this is Tom, Brady's mess. Well, moving forward, if it is a mess, it's Tom Brady's mess. And I think at some point

to do the job right, you got to be all in, which means giving up your 37 and a half million per year from Fox and rolling up your sleeves and getting to work and not being involved in this and being involved in that and living in Miami. You got to move to Las Vegas at some point. You truly have to be all in to do it right. But there's also a chance if you would ever do that, it's still not going to be any better. Why do we think that because Tom Brady won seven Super Bowls, he's magically going to be this great leader and builder of a football program? I mean, the Falcons are taking a risk that Matt Ryan can do that. Was anyone else trying to hire Matt Ryan to come in and run a football operation? I think all the way back to John Elway with the Broncos. Who was trying to hire him to be

a general manager? Now, they won a Super Bowl because he was able to get Peyton Manning through the door and he made some other good moves. But that's really the question. Number one, you, you You can't do it right if you're just halfway in. And number two, even if you go all in, do we have any reason to think that Tom Brady knows how to build a winning football team? Don't ask Michael Jordan. I'll just leave it at that. I do want to ask you, on behalf of our listeners,

it's still something that gets brought up pretty often. And I know you touched on this yesterday with Mully and Haw. But the lack of compensatory picks where the NFL awards 15 teams, compensatory picks, 33 total, and the bears are not one of them. if there's a way for them to voice their frustration that's more effective than talking to us, they want to try to get a message to the leak, what do you recommend? Well, I assume that the announcement of the compensatory picks earlier this week means that any and all available internal appeals have been exhausted,

that whatever the bears could do to say, hey, 345 Park Avenue, we'd like you to reconsider this situation. To me, this is one of the most. strange, unforced errors that the NFL has ever committed. There was no reason not to give the Bears the compensatory draft picks for Ian Cunningham elevating from assistant GM to GM of the Falcons. And it only got worse when Matt Ryan says, well, hey, Ian Cunningham's running everything. And you've got both teams saying, yeah, I think the Bears should get the picks. Think about it this way. I always look at a controversial outcome where people have legitimate reasons to complain by flipping

it over. If the other thing had happened, who would have complained? If the bears had gotten the two third round picks, who would have said, whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa, uh, Matt Ryan's really the primary football executive in Atlanta. The bears should not have gotten those picks. No one would have said that. So the whole thing is just stupid to me, and it's another example of how the NFL tries to avoid true accountability for its failures in hiring, both as to coaches and executives, over decades, by coming up with these clunky, band-aid, PR-driven excuses instead of addressing the real problem. And as DeMora Smith, the former NFLPA executive director, explained to me, we had an interview at the Super Bowl, Radio Row, you can find it on our YouTube page.

The problem is there's never any real accountability. It's the commissioner. Every February it is Super Bowl press conference with a word salad answer when the question comes up. And then it's like Punc Satani Phil, which is perfect because this year it happened on February 2nd. You disappear for a year. Nothing happens. And then the next February, the commissioner comes out for the press conference, gets asked about it, gives his word salad response, and disappears for another year. And nothing ever changes. So the whole thing is a mess. And it's going to continue to be a mess until there's real accountability. The problem is there is not.

Oh, that's bleak. But we appreciate it regardless, Mike. Thank you so much. Thanks so much, Mike. Have a great week. You too. Thanks for the fireworks as well. Mike did the fireworks on Twitch.

Well, he's got those special powers that he knows how to use that stuff. I can't even get the thumbs up to work on my end. Well, and he did it while he was talking. Awesome. As like a casual, you know, background. He's just like, phew. Yeah, I can make this happen.

Also, everything Mike just said in that last answer, just echoing my sense. about the NFL and just that's why you have to know when to hold them no one to fold them no when to walk away no one to run nah eff that fight the power i mean two 24 uh gave us what they think is roger goddell's email at the risk of of doing something i'm not sure that that's it yeah and then i looked and i googled it myself and a different email address came up so don't be giving us your ex's emails over here don't be giving us some email you want everybody the hoard to go mail when that's not who that is.

This is like the Bears Stadium site search all over again. Don't be given us your personal vendettas over here. Okay, maybe you should do that too. I'm going to find, does anybody have a fax machine? Maybe that's what we do. We send a fax campaign. What's the most annoying

possible communication? Facts. Not even close. Maybe a singing telegram. There are ways. Singing telegram is not bad. Coming up next year on Rahimi Harrison Grotie, I don't know to call this. I don't know that it's overconfidence,

but it's some sort of misstep that should have never happened. As bad as what it is, Leila. I wouldn't call it a national disgrace. Ah! I would definitely call it a national oop. What is Team USA doing at the World Baseball Classic? That's next. on Chicago Sports Radio

1 4 3 So it's a pitcher Azzurro is a montage encore at the launch at disposition to do it

not there we're we've done we're 1517 we're 17 30 seconds even 18 like this

the K the Kpa the Kpa of Greg Weissert the Italy does the story the Italy

battle the States United the World Berysball Classic That is the Italy batte the United

at Houston 8 to 6 and then That is the very beautiful Italian call of Team Italy's 8 to 6 win

over Team USA in Houston I made out Houston I made out World Baseball Classic I made out United States that's all I got out of that this is Rahimi

Harrison Groti on 1043 the score and here's the thing that's fun it's beautiful Lavita, Bella, as they like to say in Italy. But at the same time, it causes a bit of a problem for Team USA, Marshall. A bit of a problem.

Why is it a bit of a problem? Because they thought they had already clenched advancing to the knockout stage before, you know, that game. And then accordingly, they didn't win. And then they realized, oh, wait, we have not clenched. Now we're depending on outcomes of other games as to whether or not the United States of America will be able to participate. in the American pastime when there's only eight teams left. You see, what happened was...

Perfect example of usage. It really was. And why do I feel like that happened twice yesterday with the Max Crosby trade that wasn't and Team USA, who was down eight to nothing? This was not some casual, hard-fought game. Pete where Armstrong had two home runs. Way to go, Pete.

One of them was a three-run Jack. That was very important. Pete did his part. So did his part. heel. So did Sam Antinacci. Not just for the White Sox, but for Italy. And then they got to drink espresso in the dugout and it looked lovely, especially in Houston inside. You don't have to worry about the heat or humidity. It all sounded pretty great. Team Italy was rocking and rolling and ended up winning by that final of 8 to 6. But Mark DeRosa had had this quote after the game, Dero, as he is

called, is the manager for Team USA. Tone of respect for Italy. It's weird. We want to win this game, even though our ticket is punched to the quarterfinals. The ticket was not punched to the quarterfinals. You cannot pass go. You cannot collect $200. You now have to rely on tiebreaker scenarios

because Team USA may be eliminated without playing another game. Mark DeRosa, of course, is an MLB network analyst. So, of course, he was on before the game. And we had warning signs that, wait a minute, this might not be what it appears to be. There were signs. There were definitely not signs. There was one of those neon oversized billboards glowing flashing that something was a miss. Oh.

Because when you heard Mark DeRosa on the network he works on, he talks about baseball for a living. Every day, MLB Central. He's talked about it with us as well. And to understand that he didn't quite have the scenario understood, and I'm trying to figure out, is that on him or is that on someone within Major League Baseball as far as Team USA? I want to know. Oh, we have the audio.

Oh, yeah, we have the audio. I thought I was trying to set you up for that, yeah. So you got nine bodies ready to roll today, I would imagine. Absolutely. I'm going to look at it. I'm going to get some guys. off their feet. No question about it. I'd like to get Goldie a start. And, you know, he has been awesome, just a leader of men behind the scenes with Aaron Judge. I'd like to get him in there.

I'd like to get Gunner in there again. A ton of respect for Italy. It's weird. We want to win this game, even though our tickets punched to the quarterfinals because Mexico plays Italy actually tomorrow. So this, the way the schedule will lines up, this is an important game for us. Nolan McLean will start. He's on the bump and he's good to go. maturing. Is he good to go? You see, what had happened was... Is he good to go?

Is Nolan McLean good to go? I asked that. Because Nolan McLean pitched three innings and gave up, well, you talked about it. Kyle Teal, get yours. Sam Antanachi. Touch them all, Sam Antinachi. You show him what for. And so back-to-back home runs tells me he was indeed not good to go.

Three innings. three runs, all of them are in, two walks, four strikeouts. So that's improvement. And an eight to nothing lead for Team Italia. Eight nothing. Yeah, it was, it was a whooppin. And I guess somebody told him after the game or during the, when do you think he found out?

Do you think it was like us when we found out on the air about Drew Dalman retiring? Yeah, it was probably like that. The look of, oh, no. Mark DeRosa did speak after the loss to Italy. Yeah, I misspoke. I was on hot stove with a couple buddies today and completely misread the calculations. We knew that Mexico was going to play Italy and then running all the numbers if we lost tonight with the runs allowed and run scored and outs. So I just misspoke.

He owned it. But I don't think he misspoke. I think he didn't know. When you say I misspoke, they said they had the ticket punch. He thought they were headed to the quarterfinals regardless of the outcome. On the newly created Luis on Helicunya scale. Oh. Is it to the level of saying four times in an offseason that you thought the guy was a switch hitter?

On four different occasions. Like, four. That part. It wasn't four times like in a segment we do on the radio. Right. It was like four different occasions he was talking about this player that he had traded for. and said he was a switch hitter. So that's improvement.

I think this is right there. I think this is actually worse. I haven't heard any of that. I didn't hear all of it. I heard a lot about most of it. But what I did hear, I did not hear any of that. So that's improvement. He actually contradicts himself,

Trustman, in the soundbite, because he says he didn't hear it, but he did hear it. Yeah. So here are your tiebreaker scenarios now, just in case you need them. If Italy wins, then Italy and United States advance. Mexico is also guaranteed to advance with a win. Assuming a nine-inning game,

United States will advance if Italy gives up five or more runs and losses. Assuming a nine-inning game, Italy will advance if they lose but give up four or fewer runs. And much to our chagrin here on Rahimi Harrison Grotie, Italy and Mexico will now not be on Tooby, our favorite network. Your favorite network. It'll be on for real Fox Sports One. I have never watched Tobey.

Fox Sports One for real. I've never watched Tooby. I guess I need to check it out. I watch the Super Bowl on TV in Thailand. All I've ever seen on Tooby is like clips from those independent films that Ray was talking about with really bad jump cuts and just things that don't make sense. I like it. Things that look like they were shot in a student project of an elementary school. And now like a Tooby product, we now have to figure out Team USA's fate in the world baseball classic.

If they don't make it, Leila, if they don't make it. I don't think it's national disgrace. I think it's a national ope. No, it's a national disgrace to have the World Baseball Classic, and it's your sport. This is like the Canadians not making the knockout stage of hockey. That's what this is like. Somewhere in here is a joke about an American lack of preparedness. Oh, that's us.

Somewhere in here is a joke. it's bad, Layla. This is already bad, but it becomes so much worse if they don't find their way into the quarterfinal. I just, and it was obvious in watching the game that you knew that USA didn't think that that game counted based on not just the lineup as we mentioned, but it just felt that way. Like when you were watching it, that's how I felt. Like I was happy for Kyle Teal and Sam Antanachi. Let's not get a twisted there. You know what?

Four of the home runs were Chicago people. Maybe if they had started Bryce Terrang, who went one for two off the bench, they would have won the game. How dare you? Maybe they would have won the game. I still cannot cheer yet for Bryce Terang. You might have to. You might come up with a situation where if they make it to the quarterfinals, if he gets it, look, if he gets another plate appearance at the World Baseball Classic, that's what we're talking about right now.

I mean, Aaron Judge, when I'm having to read a quote from Aaron Judge where he says, it's out of our control. Now we just need a little luck and we'll see what happens. Aaron Judge. How ridiculous is that? How ridiculous? Eric. Who made Minutemate Park,

aka Dakin Park, looked like a bandbox the other day. If you're depending on Italy. It actually is a bandbox. In baseball. To help you out. I just want to, like Mexico I get.

Like Mexico, that's a baseball. This is what happens when you give up eight runs to Italy. Well, that's it. Now that the team who beat them handily is, is going to have to be the team who helps them out, because that is also a bit of symmetry.

And now that, you know, you do have to rely on a game that involves Mexico. My, my, my, my, how the turn tables, as we like to say. How the turn tables. Coming up next, it is halftime here on Rahimi Harrison Grotie. And as we all look for the, how do I put this? As we all look for the fountain of youth, I have found a reason why people age that I think you will all want to be interested in. So as soon as the mouse is back on the hamster wheel here at Rahimi Harrison Grotie for the Wi-Fi, I'll get that story to you post-haste. Next.

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This is halftime, and it is a day of what seems like you see what had happened was. So, Trey Hendrickson is now a Baltimore Raven. That's not Max Crosby's name. He's still in Las Vegas for now. For now. Potato potato. Team USA needs help from

other teams to advance in the world baseball classic because they lost to Italy. Embarrassing. Starting Paul Goldschmidt and Nolan McLean. So embarrassing. Better options were available. And we're trying to figure out if the bears are somehow still in the mix for Max Crosby. The mix is with two X's.

I know you asked. Mike Florio talked a lot about it as well. And we're all still trying to figure out what's the most annoying way to contact the NFL to let them know we're not happy about that. the Bears having two compensatory third round picks for Ian Cunningham getting promoted. I got to find my inner Karen and unleash her. I think, but Karen is on the side of bad. This is the side of good.

No, sometimes Karen's can just be complaining, like, even though they know there's nothing that is going to be done, they just continue to make things bad by complaining. Taking up space. 217 says, oh, boo-hoo, better team won last night. and I said he didn't start Bryce Harper he had Nolan McLean as the starting pitcher. Rather have Bryce ready for the actual season. You're a Phillies fan calling the score?

You'd rather have Bryce Harper ready for the Phillies. I don't understand him. Bryce Harper played in the game. Bryce Harper was a pinch hitter. Just like Bryce Terang. Take that out. So that actually brings me to my next story. Dealing with difficult people might aid you faster, study finds.

Might. Might. You don't say. In this study published last month in the Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences, I call it the Department of Obvious. Researchers found that people with more hasslers in their life or those who create problems or make life more difficult have a higher biological age compared to their actual chronological age. You don't say.

Quote, these results suggest that the Hasslers in one social environment may constitute an overlooked but consequential biological risk factor. Overlooked, you say? The study even accounted for several other factors. Occupation. I would say that that comes into play. Adverse childhood experiences and smoking. But still, the impact of negative social ties remained significant. We have a number.

each additional Hassler is associated with 1.5% faster biological aging in roughly nine months of additional biological age among individuals of the same chronological age.

So that puts me at 87. That's how you feel? Look, I'm going to try to be less difficult, okay, going forward. I don't want to age you. You are not the problem. I don't want to age you, really. Did you tell me you'd rather have Bryce Harper

ready for the regular season despite him physically playing in the world baseball classic last night? I did not tell you that. Interesting. Listen. I posted this information from this story you're reading on my Instagram because I was like, that's me. Yeah, because I was like, that's me.

I don't actually deal with difficult people unless I'm forced to and I look to a solution where I, A, can disassociate myself with the difficult person, or B, come to understand what the difficult person needs to alleviate the situation and make them less difficult for me personally. I use it for content. Well, clearly, we're using it for content the two of us right now. But I think you just have to stay away from difficult people. Like, there are choices you make early in life, right? You can't control who you're in school with, who you're in classes with.

A lot of times you can't control where you work early on in your career. right because you you need money but if you excel at what you do you're going to have more options it's just like the dating pool if you are better you're going to have more options because people look at you and they're like I want to be with that person I want to be around that person if only it were that simple and linear I think it is that simple in a lot of ways I think if for you oh for me okay I can only speak for myself I think it is that simple we all fly is a little bit different for you. We all deal with difficult people.

My thing is how do you blot out the difficulty? How do you lessen the difficulty? I think there's multiple ways to do that. But I completely agree. People say I age in reverse. I've been called, among other things, the Black Benjamin Button, the finder of the fountain of youth.

Shapeshifter. Shapeshifter has also come to my attention. I've said that a time or two about Marshall. But you'll notice, on the rare occasion, where I do leave my humble abode, it is only to hang out with people I want to hang out with. And my first question, if there is a gathering of any sort that is more than,

let's say, three people, who all going to be there? See, I don't ask that question. You need to ask that question. No, I go. If I get invited to something and I want to do the thing that that person is doing, I don't want to be, I think it's rude to ask who's going to be there.

Why is it rude? I think my piece is worth. It's disrespectful to the person inviting me. I'm either going because that person invited me or I'm not. So, so back to that point, guess what? People now know if they invite me somewhere, they know it's a contingency.

These are my people. They're not difficult because otherwise they wouldn't be inviting me. Well, then you wouldn't have to ask. Exactly. But you just said you asked. If it's somebody I don't know. If I don't, like if it's a fringe person that I've just met and they want me to be a part of something and I don't know them that well. But my

core people in Chicago and otherwise, they already know what time it is. They know I'm going home by nine. They know all the martial rules. I've seen you out past nine. Special occasions. Special occasions happened. Remember I had to go to a birthday dinner like two weeks ago?

The dinner itself was at 8.30. I'm out past nine because the dinner is at, and I left immediately after that dinner and went home. So Hasslers were also associated having them with multiple adverse mental and physical health outcomes like depression, anxiety, and a higher body mass, index. Wait, what?

I can't say I'm surprised by any of this. So being used as target practice by people is not a fun time. Yeah, don't leave. Leave. Paying rent is good. That's where the occupation comes in. Well, rent. Paying rent is important.

That is actually more important than these other things. Yeah, you've got to have a place to escape all the people. These findings together highlight the critical role of negative social ties and biological aging as chronic stressors and the need for interventions that reduce harmful social exposures to promote healthier aging trajectories. I like that idea, healthier aging trajectories. I mean, I guess it's good that we finally get an actual study that verbalizes what a lot of us already knew.

This is hilarious. 815. When I started my current job, my boss made us all go to a seminar on dealing with difficult people. And the irony is, he was the most difficult. person we all had to deal with. I think he was trying to give them a little self-help. Like, hey, you guys are going to work with me.

I'm difficult. Here's some advice on how to deal with me. I like that, actually. Yeah, see, 513 has the point here. What do you do when the hasslers are family or coworkers? Well, you can limit the time you spend with... Or your clients. Let's just be honest.

Like, clients are a big part of this. You can limit time with your family. That's easy to do. First of all, move. And also... Well, if they're your children or it's your wife or something. Excel at what you do and find. another job. Like Marshall's single. He doesn't have kids. So that's where that comes in.

I miss my family all the time and I go see them. And then when I get there and I've had enough of them, I leave. And I'm sure they're appreciative of that. I like my family. We goof off together. They would alleviate my stress. But then I'd be homeless because I couldn't get a job there and I'd have to live with one of them. And then I would be the hassler. Why do you say you couldn't get a job there. You can get a, you could get a job. This is our, this is the business we have chosen. But you could also choose another business. They live in the number two market in the country.

You can also choose another business would be my argument to that. I think they bring up good points, this study. But I'm not quite sure how necessary it was to, to conduct. Also, are you, are you offended if you were part of the study and you were considered one of the hasslers? No, because sometimes you need to hassle people to keep the difficult people way. But that's the point though, is then, didn't you know that you were one of the people involved in negatively aging someone? As long as I'm not aging, we're good. I say we hassle the NFL about

these picks. Never stop doing that. Five on it is next. It's time for five on it. Rahini Harrison Rooney. Bring you five topics on their minds today. This segment is brought you by almost free teeth.com save on dental implants today. Number one. The Ravens backed out of the Max Crosby trade yesterday, and we are going to play this question by the commandment of Fat Joe himself. Yesterday's price is not today's price. So we asked the question on a scale of 1 to 10 on the newly created discount meter, trademark.

How much of a cost reduction will suitors get on Raiders pass rusher, Max Crosby? Didn't he also say he misses? He did. He did. He's my uncle Georgia. Who's he seeing at the crossroads? I called him the laws earlier, but that is a law. Yesterday's price is not today's price.

And in a rare turn of events, today's price is lower. Lower. Yeah. The corporations, the billionaires, they're not happy. This is not the way it's supposed to go. This isn't even a billionaire issue. This is a millionaire issue. It's a Maxinier issue.

Maxinistas. I think that the discount, eater is high. I want to say it's at an eight or a nine. Ten would be the trade that one of our texters proposed, which was Tyson-Bagin at a second. I saw that and I was laughing. Also, that person does not

count on the you-take-away months of my life because that was funny. Yeah, laughter adds ad years to your life. I don't even know anymore. Your longevity. I have no idea how old I'm going to be, whatever. But I think it's high. It's

It's an eight or a nine for me on the discount meter because the rest of the league, it sounds like those who were interested thought that two first rounders was steep. So if that's the case and understanding that there were medical concerns here, then I don't think that you're going to get two first rounders this year for Max Crosby. Mike Florio said, wait. I don't know that the Raiders want to do that. Given that they've already spent a lot of their cap space, they still have a ton of cap space.

As of yesterday, they had $88 million in some odd, according to over the cap. That'll get updated today at about 3 o'clock with the league year. Max Crosby is about 35.7 of that. So if that's the case, then they still have more money to spend. I just don't think that it's going to come at a super discount. Maybe one of those first is a still first and the other one is a second. And Tyson, Bajun. No, no, not Tyson Bajon.

Yeah, not Tyson-Bagent. Second in Tyson-Begent was amazing. Someone brought up something interesting on the text line earlier. If you take into account that DJ Moore was traded for a second, the Bears now have two seconds, honestly, if I had told you before this all started, would you trade DJ Moore and a first for Max Crosby, would you not have lap that up immediately?

You've been like, yes, I'm in on that. DJ Warner first for Max Crosby. Yeah. So when we talk about a first and second, I just want to make sure people are looking at it the same way I'm looking at it. That's the equivalent of what this is that we're talking about, the possibility.

So when I tell you this, first and a second, I think that's a reasonable price. If the physical and the medical's clear. Now, if the physical and medical is clear, obviously no. I mean, he may end up going for a first and a third, but at that point, the Raiders shouldn't trade him.

if the Raiders aren't getting a first and second, why are you trading Max Crosby? That's the question. Right, that's it. It's how do you want to rebuild your team or do you want to keep one of the best pass rushers in the league? So as for the actual question of how much of a cost reduction will suitors get on Raiders pass rusher, Max Crosby, on that newly created discount meter trademark, I'm going to go with a six. because I don't think it's ever going to get that low. Like, it's going to be, six is pretty high on a scale of 10.

But I just don't think you're going to get less than a first and a second for him. Number two. How encouraged were you to see Cubs outfielder Pete Coromstrung hit two home runs in Team USA's loss to Italy in the World Baseball Classic last night? I was happy to see it, especially the three-run shot where there were ducks on the pond, as we like to say. Paul Goldschmidt, Bryce Turing.

So that cut the deficit of Vitale's lead to 8 to 4. But more than anything, just the way the ball was hit, was still true to him, but he found a good pitch to hit and he hit it. Is this Major League baseball pitching? Not necessarily. But it's still nice to see. Pete Crowe Armstrong in a high-pressure situation late in a game, turn on two hits of consequence for home runs.

That's a big deal. Pete Kerr Armstrong hitting the nine hole. That means he was going to get the fewest played appearances of anybody in the starting lineup. Turn that lineup over, though. Turned it over. Turned it over hard like a well-grittled pancake on one side. Thing is, Pete Crowe Armstrong put the number three hitter on notice last night.

because you know who else have four-plate appearances? Aaron Judge. Ask me how many hits Aaron Judge got his four-plate appearances. Not a single one. So I'm pretty impressed that Pete Kro Armstrong is out here outshining multiple-time MVP Aaron Judge. And it could be a harbinger of things to come. Number three.

This is five out of one-on-four-three, the score with Laila Rahimi and Marshall Harris. And speaking of home runs, according to our friend Jim, Margalis of Sox Machine. The White Sox hit 165 home runs in 2025. Will the Southsiders go over or under that number in 2026? I think they go over. I think they go over pretty easily because of simply games played in a season. That would mean Colson Montgomery is going to play more than 71 games,

all things considered, knock on your wood, in the regular season. He had 21 home runs in 71 games. Up. Up. The price goes. Lenin Sosa, who I've reason to believe it. Lenin played in 140 games. He had 22 home runs. Do we think that that number goes up? I think it does. Andrew Bennett's Indy. I know who you are. You probably hit 20. Probably 20.

I think it's probably less just because nobody's depending on you to hit home runs. It's not really what you do. Miguel Vargas's number might go up Although that swing change didn't last very long As far as the fruit of the labor But It's safe to say that Miguel Vargas Probably hits more than 16 home runs in the year

Luis Robert hit 14, he's not here anymore So I think based on the core alone Kyle Teal, I think he goes over eight I think Chase Midroth goes over five So if that's the case, yeah, I think the socks hit over that number this year. And if they don't, that's not good. I mean, something's gone wrong, doesn't it?

Do you know how many home runs the Chicago Cubs hit last season? Total no. Does anybody want to take a guess as to how many home runs the Cubs hit last season? Just a guess. I have the number in front of me. I just want to see where your heads are because, you know, we have an impending wager that depends on such matters. The Cups hit 223 home runs.

Okay. The White Sox will hit more than 223 home runs. What was the number you presented to me in this question, Ray? What was the number you presented? Was it in the 160s? That number was 165 last season. Number of home runs the White Sox hit in 2025. The White Sox will hit over 225 home runs this season.

You were really inspired by that performance in the world baseball classic. It's not just that. No, it's not that. No, I know. bet on it. He's trying to find other stats to justify his bet. No, no, no. Hold up.

Hold on. Dollars are not that expensive. They're just one dollar. It's not that simple. I think there's going to be at least seven players who hit 20 home runs for the White Sox next season. At least. You also said that you think there's going to be more home runs hit by the White Sox than the Cubs. Yeah, it all feeds into that, yes.

But that's what I'm like, oh, you're just finding things to justify. which is frankly the basis of an argument. So I can't hate on the shrewd move counsel. So Miguel Vargas, yes. Yeah, and Miguel Vargas, more importantly, he's hitting more than he did last year, right? Yes. Lenin Sosa, yes. I believe in Lenin Sosa, when a lot of you never did.

Kyle Till's going to hit 20 home runs. Write that down. He had eight last year. In 78, I think that number is at least doubling, right? Yeah, that's what I'm saying. At least. Ben and Tendi, write that down. What are you going to do about the four home runs that Andrew Vaughn hit for you, White Sox?

Wow. It was five, but okay, I get your point. Your point is taken. Oh, yeah, it was five. Tim Elko hit four, my bad. Your point. Tim Elko is not going to be hitting 20 home runs for the White Sox this season. I can tell you that.

He's not supposed to be. Yes. Although he earned a spot. He did earn his spot. But more importantly, more importantly, my last guys, Munei, Mune is hitting 20 home runs. also Colson Colson's hitting 20 home runs

and actually those last two How's that ball looking when it's thrown over 92? I don't know I just see the ones that leave the yard I told you what kind of line he's going to have he's going to have like a 200 you know with an OBP of 280 no you know what

250 a slug You're just making upstock right now I'm saying I think he's going to bat like No you're saying the socks are going to hit more home runs as a team than the Cubs is making up stuff. No, it's not. Morikami does not account for the delta between the home runs that the Cubs will hit

compared to the home runs that the White Sox hit. It does not. I saved the best for last. The Sox will be better. I saved the best for last. Colson Montgomery. Between him and Mune, they're going to combine,

combine for 70 home runs. Is anybody writing this down? He's got a little... I got my notes. He's recording. This whole thing can be played back later. It's fine. But yeah, I think the White Sox are going to hit more than 165.

My favorite is when you look a little scared when you say it out there. I'm not scared at all. I do not look scared? I'm not scared at all. This is the year the White Sox sluggers come up big. White Sox pitching, that's another matter entirely. Yeah, that's really the thing here. That's what's determining your games.

And it's not even necessarily. It will still be for this team the starting pitching, yes. But the last thing that you successfully build is any sort of rebuild is the bullpen. Because it's the hardest thing to get right. What do you mean? They went out and got a closer. I have no idea what Sir Anthony Dominguez is going to do. He's going to close games.

You have to be in a position to close games to close games. They were in a lot of positions to close games last year, Leila, and then they blew those games. But they weren't not in the ninth inning. They weren't. Well, seven, eight, nine. He's going to. He's going to... 789, the third of the game.

Well, that's the third of the game, which your best relievers come in and face the heart of another team's lineup. I just said bullpen. Yeah, 847. This is hilarious. Marshall Harris, blind, stinking drunk at 1210. This is up there with the ceiling is the Super Bowl. That's how you feel.

Tyreek Stevenson's ceiling was the Pro Bowl. Well, it was. That's how ceilings work. I didn't say the floor. I said the ceiling. You don't always get to the ceiling. When I was a little kid, I could not touch the ceiling. As a grown man, I can touch most ceilings.

I can't. There you go. Number four. Bulls forward Montes-Buzellas had a sneaky milestone game last night dropping 41 points for a career high. Does this make up for not dropping last night's game to continue the tankathon? I just moved the microphone on purpose, sound effects,

because I had lean back. Lean back. A lot of factual references to it. A lot. A lot. I miss my uncle George, Jill. Do the rock away. I do dance, though. And I don't need to pull up my pants ever.

They're up, always. They have fallen down. I refuse to pull up my pants just because I don't believe in respectability politics. That's another matter for another day. Here's the thing. I do love that Mada's had a career high. His development does matter. And as I was saying to Adam Amin yesterday,

there are still individuals out there on the Bulls who have the opportunity to make more money for themselves, to redefine their careers, to help define them. That matters. That always matters. That is, I think, especially in these cases,

something that you always consider. You want to cheer for people. But then there's the aspect of the team. The Bulls had no business beating the Warriors last night. In their house, on the road. In overtime?

The team goal needed to be paramount here. And unfortunately, that did not happen. Like, I don't, where, are they just going to get the seventh pick again? Is that what happens here? Because the NBA has decided that tanking is bad now that the Bulls want to do it. And you remember there were so many years where the Bulls had higher odds and they're just like, yeah, seven. I'm sorry, did you say seventh pick?

That's very optimistic out of you. I'm telling you, there were some years where the Bulls had real bad years and they just ended up with the seventh overall pick. one of them they used on Kobe White. Didn't they use the other one on Denzel? Was Denzel picked that high? He was a lottery pick. Well, the way it works this year, Lila, I'm here to tell you, they're not going to have

the seventh pick. I can guarantee you that. There were times where their odds were supposed to be in favor for the fourth. Well, let me tell you something. They're not getting that high, so they won't be able to slide. The only way they're going to slide is down. Not going to be, you're either a top. Denzel was 14.

Okay, thank goodness. They're either going to be a top four pick, or they're going to be 19. they're lower. You know how I know this? Because they keep winning freaking games. Well, think about they came within a coin flip of getting Cooper flag. Okay. We blocked that out of our minds. And that would be a top four pick. I'm telling you what they're not going to be. They're not going to be a fifth pick team, a sixth pick team, a seventh pick team, or an eighth pick team because they keep winning. The teams directly behind them in the standings, the ones they're trying to lose like. Well, those would be the Dallas Mavericks and the Memphis Grizzlies. The Mavericks have lost eight in a row.

Grizzlies have lost five in a row. Meanwhile, the Bulls have now won three of their last five games and are experiencing a winning road trip. The team directly in front of them in the standings, by the way, the Milwaukee Bucks, now that you've won three out of five, they're back sliding right to the Bulls and the Bulls are about to have the 10th pick at best in the draft, if not a top four pick. It was Wendell Carter Jr. That was the other pick at 7. That was 2018. As far- 2017, they had Justin Patton at 16 and Jordan. Bell at 38, but that was the trade for cash considerations, if you all recall.

As far as the question itself, the sneaky good highlight career high, 41 on 16 of 28 shooting, a true shooting percentage of 72 to go along with the two steals, the two blocks, the six rebounds, and the two assists. And by the way, only one turnover despite such high volume and 45 minutes of action played. 2019 was a pretty good draft when you consider it was Kobe White and Daniel Gaines. Gaffirner, 38. And Daniel was a starting five on a NBA finals team. Last night we saw exactly what we need from Modis Puzellis.

I will gladly take more Modis Puzellis 30 and yes, 40-point games in exchange for wins. Because I am out on the Bull's ability to tank. I question if they could do it. I said they probably could not. And all they've laid in front of me is more evidence. They can't tank. If you want to tank, you know the most sure fireway? Zipzer was 48th in the Denzel Valentine.

The most shirt fireway of tanking last night. You know what it would be? Do you know who played last night, Leila, and hadn't played much lately? Jalen Smith, remember you had the calf injury and, you know, calves lead to Achilles, and you want to keep his minutes down and not have him be a problem in that area? This is how you tank. You put a minute's restriction on Jalen Smith, and he doesn't play 34 minutes last night.

That's how you lose games like last night. They're not committed to the tank, Leila. So if you're going to pick something to be committed to, I'm going to sign up for the development of Modis Buzellis, who's only 21 years old. They can't tank. They don't know how. They are incapable of tanking.

So yeah, modest. And even when they do tank, then they get some decent draft picks. But then. Patrick Williams happens. He was picked fourth overall. Yeah. Oh, was Lowry 7th 2?

There were a lot of 7s, guys. When they should have picked a higher. that's why I'm just like what in doubt Ray what draft pick do you think the Bulls would have what in doubt seven that's it

again I guarantee you they will not have the seventh pick this year I cannot be any stronger in that that it's from a mathematical standpoint

it can't happen so we've got a couple of things they were they were within a coin flip of first overall if you understand how the NBA draft lottery works you understand why

they cannot have the seventh pick I would go ahead and explain you might as well bet bet money on that's is you're out here making crazy prediction. Would you like to make a bet on the Bulls getting the seventh pick and I'll give you odds? Yeah.

I'll give you 10 to one odds. The Bulls won't have the seven pick. I'll take it. All right. Let's make a $10 bet with each one of you. Is that good? Are we good? Yeah.

10 bucks? Each one of you? All right. I'm in, Marshall. I cannot wait to collect this $30. This is going to be the easiest money ever made. As usual, the street will reward me for my wager. You're going to pick up a $10 somewhere?

I bet. All right. You should you guys owes me a $10. It's fine. Do your thing, lottery. This is five on it. If you really exist. This is five on it on 104.3, the score.

This is our final question of five on it today. Team Italy has an espresso machine in their dugout. If you could have a modern life convenience and you are metaphorical or for all my players out there, an actual dugout, what would it be? So when I was growing up, and I think everybody probably did this. You had some sort of dream house aspect of your life. Did you not, like if I had money for a place of my own as a child, what would I do? I really wanted to be an adult. Then I got here and now I'm losing 1.5% of my life with every minute of the day.

So I wanted a water fountain. I thought it would be the coolest thing ever to have a water fountain somewhere closer to me than the kitchen. And it didn't really occur to me that I could just get my own cold water and that would be convenient enough because I was young. I was a child. I wanted a balcony and I wanted a water fountain. I have a balcony now. And I don't have the indoor refrigerator water, but I have a zero water filter,

which I love. As you know, Ray and I are obsessed with zero water by Colligan. We think it's the greatest thing ever. You can taste the difference. It's crisp. They're not paying me to say this. It's just that. I have it too.

Zero water? Yeah. Why haven't we talked about this? I thought that was kind of a standard feature amongst first world individuals, which I am. People use other filters. You know, they use the indoor refrigerator filter that you can replace. They use other filters like a Brita.

No, zero water is not the only filter for people. Tyler, have you heard the good news about zero water? I don't think so. It's remarkably different. I'm not even kidding. It's not even close. The filter's massive. And yeah, I got popped by the feds when I went through security at the airport because they had to swipe the thing.

And I was like, yeah, you can do that. It's a zero water filter. And then they were like, why is this so intense? And I was like, because it filters that much of your water. They swiped it for explosives. There were no explosives. It was only explosively good water. I got that thing on me.

Is this limited to one thing or can I do two things? Don't forget my last name is Rahimi. I'm going to limit you to one thing because of the time on the clock. Okay. They're related. And I was going to say an abacus and a calculator, but I realized y'all probably don't know how to use an abacus. So I'm going to go a calculator. So y'all can understand that the Bulls cannot have the seven-pig.

in this year's NBA draft. How do you feel about a drafting calculator where you can play games on it? The TI 83 with games. That works for you guys because maybe you're better off playing the games because if you just look at the standings and understand how the NBA draft lottery works. It doesn't work. That's the point. It's rigged.

Listen, it's an unprecedented situation. If you just understand how the actual lottery works, you have a chance of advancing to the top four. If you don't do that, you're stuck where you are. sliding down further if a team behind you gets to the top four and slides you further down. The Bulls have no way to get to number seven is my point. They have no way to get to the number seven. You all owe me money. So a giant calculator built into the wall of the dugout from Marshall Harris.

Got it. You know what I just heard? I just heard him pick something else again to justify a prediction. I can't. What did you as a child want? A calculator. A graphing calculator was the end of the L. Just to make sure that my math was correct.

I mean, I'm pretty good at math. I would just double check my... One time I was sick and my dad was like, do you need anything? And I was really frustrated by my battery powered calculator. I was like, yes. Can you give me a solar power calculator? I'm really tired of changing out the batteries and the other one.

And he's like, yeah. And then I got a solar power calculator. And I thought it was the coolest thing ever. Ever. It's the little things. Fine. We'll go to break. Coming up next year on Rahimi Harris and Grotie,

The Bears made moves yesterday. They did not make a move for Max Crosby, even though I want them to. That actually hasn't happened. So let's talk about the moves that they did make. And let's hear from experts on some of the moves that happened when the negotiating window began. We'll do that next.

Lela Rahimi, Marshall Harris, Mark Grody, Rahimi Harrison Grody on 1043 The Score. This is Rahimi Harrison Grotie on 1043 The Score. And we've talked a lot about players who are not actually on the bears, like Max Crosby dominating our day to day. I like the acknowledgement of Fat Joe, by the way. Yesterday's price is not today's price. At least not on him.

If you miss the big news, Max Crosby is still with the Raiders. And in the meantime, the Baltimore Ravens decided to extend their contract offer to Trey Hendrickson, four years, $112 million to report a deal after, quote, backing out, end quote. of the Max Crosby trade. So he is off the board. Beep. Beep. It was a backing up of the truck.

But that was according to the Raiders. That's how they put it. They issued the statement they said that. And in the meantime, the Bears got more work done yesterday. So that included getting the services of more to help the defensive line. And I thought that that was a big part of this as well when it came to what the Bears wanted to do. So we found out after our show that the Bears also decided to get more depth on their defensive line. They decided to add, as we've mentioned, to their secondary.

And they're in a different place now than they were yesterday. I don't know that, you know, my position of just being overwhelmed, not overwhelmed, underwhelmed, has changed at all. But I will say this. I don't dislike any of the moves. it's just maybe hoping for a little more wow factor, a little more Shazam, if that makes sense. And Kobe Bryant, good player. You could argue he's an upgrade over Kevin Byer

just because of the age alone and his versatility, which Kevin Byer does his thing very well at the safety spot, where as this could be more of a Kyler Gordon type of situation when you talk about Kobe Bryant. Devin Bush, I like that. I like the speed because they said they want to. wanted to get faster. That was a stated goal of Ryan Poles. And I think they did that with getting Devin Bush, a guy who led the entire league last year in interception return yardage, the fact that he

had two pick sixes also tied for the lead in that category. And when you talk about Gallimore, I don't know. Like, I just don't know. Nive Gallimore. Yeah, Neville Galvonore, the defensive tackle, I don't know what to expect. I want to see how he's used. I just know the line is where they need the most help, right? And Contavia Street, I feel like this is a Dennis Allen direct call. Like there's been several Dennis Allen direct calls. And I'm just more focused on defense than I am offense because that's where more need is right now. Contavia Street was acquired yesterday. Cam Lewis was acquired yesterday. That was shortly after Nashan Wright signed a one-year deal with the New York Jets. So Nashon Wright goes off the board. I think we think we

thought that was going to happen a little bit sooner. So Street, Lewis, and then the Bears also adding with their receiving corps as well. So that made a big difference in Kaleef Raymond. And I feel like there's some known commodities here when it comes to the details guys. That was something that Brad Biggs talked about as well, was that there were going to be players who you knew they were going to add on the second day of the negotiating window, on a day like today, or even after the league year actually begins that are going to make differences. Nishon Wright was one of those guys last year. I feel like Kaleef Raymond is a bigger difference maker.

He's a known commodity a bit, especially on special teams. But with Lomene Zakiya's gone, I wonder how much Raymond fits into that. And then additionally, so when you get another defensive back, Cam Lewis, a cornerback, they've still got space they need to do when it comes to safety. They've still got three spots they need to fill. So I think that that's a concern as well. of this team, but they are in a more set space yesterday than they were this time yesterday. We didn't get news about Cam Lewis. We got news about, sorry, Kali for Amen, later, but we didn't

get news about that until like at the very end of our show. With the Cam Lewis thing, and I don't know if this is because of the timing of it, it felt like, hey, Nashan, if you want to be here, we got a spot for you, but at this price. And then if you notice, Leila, immediately after he signs with the Jets, Cam Lewis gets signed. So it may be coincidence, but that's how it felt watching the news transactions rolled through. Well, and Brad Biggs asked the question on Monday, what are the Bears going to do at quarterback? I think it was with that understanding that perhaps Nashon Wright gets a big payday, leaves the

building. He ends up going for five and change. So what was going to happen when it came to the rest of the quarterback group? So I think we see some sort of backup there because they were going to have to add a spot. I wonder what the Bears offer was to Nashan Wright. Because to only take a one-year deal worth just over $5 million doesn't feel like a break-the-bank type move. It sounds like another bet on yourself season, but with a 400% raise. Yeah, one-year deal $5.5 million, according to Jordan Schultz, who is a friend of the show.

And Nashan Wright also double-stamped it. He retweeted it and said, Just what's good. So in that case, that sounds like he's confirming. the salary there at least. Case Canem is back, as we've mentioned, but the big ones were Khalifa Raymond and then Street and also Cam Lewis. In the meantime, we're trying to figure out how this gets put together. And Dave Wonstadt was on with Mully and Hae yesterday morning, so that was before those three came into the picture. And he talked about what he thinks about what the Bears linebacking corps is going to look like coming up. You know, both those

line packers, I mean, last year, one thing we did do, we got a chance to see all those backup linebackers, you know, in live action because of the injuries. But I like that. I mean, I was never going back on our shows, you know, I was never a big fan of giving linebackers a lot of money. The only one in all my coaching career anywhere where I've been, Zach Thomas, and Zach Thomas was a three-down linebacker. I mean, he could cover, he stayed in every down force in Miami.

So, but I never wanted to give linebackers big, big money. and put it in those linemen in corners. So I like what the Bears did. They opened some gaps space up, and they got, I think, two quality linebackers. And, you know, let's draft one. Let's go draft one. You know, let's draft a linebacker. Let's draft.

We're going to, even before Dalman retired, I said on your show, we need to address a good, young offensive linemen, a tackle, possible. I was never a big fan of the left tackle when teams are in the gun, because the ball's coming out so quick. It don't make a darn protect the backside of the quarterback. That's just plenty of talk if you're not going play action, and if you're not running the ball. Well, guess what?

The bear now are a play action, run team, a major part of their offense. So that left tackle position is going to be a little bit more valuable, guys. So I would be looking serious there, whether it's free agent or draft. And the offensive line is great as they were. We need another really good young guy that can play inside. So I would see offensive line, defensive tackle would be my first thoughts as far as looking at young players draft-wise down the road. So Coach Wonstat making a lot of sense.

sense out of the needs there for the bears and what's next. Here's something in connection, by the way. Brad Biggs reported an hour ago. I'm told the bears had a large contingent of scouts and coaches at the Kansas State Pro Day on Tuesday with a focus on center Sam Hecht. Hecht is one of many prospects I'd expect the team to get a close look at in the pre-draft process. Now that's center. But it sounds like their definition and direction of what is happening in the draft may be getting a little more clear as well.

Well, I think once they start filling these holes, you kind of prioritize what you actually need in the draft. And, of course, when you say need, it could be an immediate need or a need a year or two down the road. Because developing guys is kind of what they've talked about doing. And certainly guys like Austin Booker, for instance, they have taken steps with certain players in development. Just because you're not a first round or second round pick doesn't mean you can't help the team in a major way in the years to come. as we still fill in the gaps to me safety, I don't think you're going to get three of them to the caliber you want in the draft.

Maybe you get one that you intend on being the starting safety or at least a capable backup for this team. But I would assume at least one more, one more player that you think is of a higher caliber is probably something that happens today or within that smattering of, you know, sightings that usually happens on today, tomorrow, somewhere around there, where they get a whole bunch of guys they tell you about where they sign them for a certain amount of money,

like a million or so. But in addition to Kobe Bryant, we still don't know what's happening with Kevin Byard, by the way. Still. Yeah, and that's the question now is Kevin Byer was not a part of the first wave of free agent's sign. The question is, will the bears get their next safety, their second safety through the second or third wave of free agency. That's the question.

What do you consider this? I feel like we're still in the first wave. Even though it's Wednesday, even though the league technically starts a new year or three, I still feel like we're in the first wave. I think the first wave ends, because we have had a whole negotiating period, the first wave ends after the first day

a free agency is officially open. So tonight would be the last wave. Anything that happens tomorrow is the second wave. You know? Yeah. And I think the Crosby deal kind of punctuates that in a way because him having that deal rescinded, seeing Trey Hendrickson signed by the Baltimore Ravens, lets you know we're definitely still in the first wave because he was the biggest free agent available.

When the league leader and interceptions in the regular season still doesn't have a landing spot yet, I wonder how much of this was affected by the big names, the Max Crosby discussion, the Trey Hendrickson signing. Did that whole process stunt the rest of the progress in the league today? I'm not sure. I don't know if it's so much that. I think with him specifically, Kevin Byard, it may just be him deciding, do I need another, quote-unquote, bigger payday,

or do I just want to go somewhere where I can win? Because there may be teams offering good money, but he knows I'm probably not going to be on a contender this coming season. his time is running out. If you're curious, by the way, the Ravens have restructured. Lamar Jackson's contract to create space. That according to Adam Schefter, it's supposed to free up nearly $40 million in cap space. That helps.

Hi, Trey. That helps. And I'm sure he's like, yeah, defense needs some help. Good. Let's do it. So by triggering a clause that automatically restructures Jackson's deal, Baltimore reduced his 2026 cap figure of 74.5 million. that was the second highest in the NFL.

So 34.54. A little bit more reasonable. Coming up next year on Rahimi Harrison Grotie, we will continue to track free agency and we will continue to give you the latest as we get the news here on Rahimi Harrison Grotie, especially regarding the Bears. In the meantime, there was a practically historical night

that happened in the NBA last night. And you'd think it should be celebrated. Nope. Is this petty? Next. Rahimi Harris and Grody. Spares tight end. Cole Kamet. Cole, welcome to the party, pal. Well, thanks for having me. I heard it was a big day. So naturally, I dropped everything I had going on today. You've complained a lot through the years about not being able to hear the score on the 670 a.m.

dial when you're inevitably cruising around downtown. And now that we have an FM signal, Cole, you can now hear the score. all day, all the time, all you want. You can hear all the Bears hot takes you want. Well, that's perfect. I'll make sure I blast that in the locker room. Beautiful back! Rahimi Harris and Grody, Midday's Tyndal 2 on 1043, the score.

It's for Bama. It's not just a special number to the score. It's now a special number to BAM out of bio. 83 points. The second, there it is, the second highest scoring game in NBA history. And it happened last night in the heat's. 150 to 129 win over the Washington Wizards. This is Rahimi Harris and Grotie on 1043, the score.

And number two, only to Will Chamberlain. He passes Kobe Bryant, the other Kobe Bryant, the original Kobe Bryant. How do we do this now with a Kobe Bryant on the Bears? It's not the Kobe Bryant that the Bears just signed. How about that? The original Kobe Bryant. Original Kobe. Kobe with a K.

There we go. So he passes Kobe for second highest scoring game in NBA history. And his line was incredible. First of all, the heat scored 150 points. Let's start with that. Ban played 42 minutes. He had 83 points. 20 of 43 from field goal range.

7 of 22 from 3 point. He shot, though, this was his free throw number, and this is where it gets exciting. Also, not to be outdone, he had three assists and nine rebounds. He was 36 of 43 from the free throw line. He got to the line a lot, Marshall. Quite a bit, I'd say. Okay, here's what's crazy. Congratulations, by the way, to Bam Adebio.

Also, do you know who Bam Atabio's girlfriend is? It's Asia Wilson. Asia Wilson. They were signing taking pictures for people in the crowd during the condensation game at the United Center. That they were. A girl came up to her with an Asia jersey on. I was like, this is wild. But also, congratulations to the WMBA.

I hope you'll get your labor matters worked out. Savvy crowd at the United Center. People are out here straight up hating. And I think it's a source of two things. One, for some reason, since social media has started, we just hate on anything positive. And I say we, not because it's me, but we as a collective just hate on anything that happens.

And another is the Kobe stands were out in full force last night. Oh, this isn't, Kobe did it the wrong. right way. But I want to point something out. Bamadabio had 31 points after one quarter in a game that was an 11-point game. They were up 40 to 29 and he had 31 points. By the end of this game, Eric Spolstra and the Heat gave the OK and said, go for it, basically. Go for, at least breaking Kobe's record.

Go for 80 points. Go get it, baby. because after three quarters of this game, Bamatabio had 62 points. Now, the game was not out of reach by NBA standards because the heat were up by 16, which is a sizable lead, but as we know, 16 points can disappear in a hurry.

Not enough to just let guys go out and get theirs. Yes. Not enough to abandon the game plan. And if you didn't watch this game, you wouldn't maybe know this, but the game turned into something else in the fourth quarter. It was the heat deciding they were going to try to get this man past Kobe's 81. And the Wizards deciding we're, I don't know why, but for the first time tonight,

actually going to try to stop Bam, Atabio. Hackabam. It was like hack a shack, but worse, because it wasn't Shaq. They were doubling and tripling this man, and he was drawing fouls, and he ended up 14 of 16 from the line for 21 fourth quarter points. And that fourth quarter breakdown is key here. And so the heat, even with a minute left, we're intentionally missing free throws to get Bam more chances to get the basketball, which I understand you're looking at and you're like, well, that's not the spirit of the game. But also, at any point, some run from the Wizards could just try to stop Bam at a bio.

And if you hadn't had a horrible time in giving up 43 points in the first half to this man, you wouldn't be in this situation. So I applaud him in his efforts. It's the, it's what you just said, though. It's the fact that you have to consider the opponent somewhat as well. And I think that's where the shade starts to come in. You know, I call it offensive efficiency in the NBA when you can score at the line because you're not scoring on a possession. Your team increases its offensive efficiency numbers.

It's not just Steph Curry, Jack, and threes. It's guys like James Hardin who know how to draw a foul and get to the line. And at one point here it was Demar DeRosa, knowing how to draw a foul and get to the line. And then you make your free throws, which he did. Kelly Ubre, Jr. started the shade that we heard after the game.

Well, one, I'm going to say, it's definitely legendary. The box score, right? The number, but and shout out to Bam, right? You know, he's just implemented himself in history. And I'm kind of salty that he bested Kobe. It's one of my favorite players for sure.

But I'm going to just say this, man. Joel did it efficiently, and he did it in three quarters. And that was a choice for Joel to come out of the game. And you'd just be happy that Joel played three quarters because Joel Embed. That's the other part. So because Joel came out of the game, that's better? Do you think Kobe Bryant would have come out of the game after three quarters since we're here, since we're doing this?

I mean, as a lifelong Golden State Warriors fan, I know y'all remember those seasons where Steph was averaging in his MVP seasons, back to back, averaging 30 points. and he did not play many, many, many fourth quarters in which he had 40 plus, 50 plus point games. But Kobe? Kobe's playing the whole game. That's why you can qualify all of this. I didn't expect to hear it from Emey Udoka.

I don't know if you saw that Bam at a bio had 83 points tonight. I'm sure you know, Bam, what are your thoughts on that and such a historic night? Yeah, first thing you think is how, you know, because of, not because of him, but because of the way he plays, you know, and I saw only made six threes, but 40 free throws or something like that. Tells the story right there and the Washington Wizards.

Is that petty? Eme, you don't have enough I'm back capital to just be out here throwing shade at other teams. I mean, he's the head coach of the Houston Rock. It's a team that is one of the front runners to come out of the West. Is Eme's... Emey calling people out. He may has no reason to be called out for anything? No reason.

I think people have called him out, though. I think people have called him out for his previous situation in Boston. Here's one more for you. J.J. Reddick. It's incredible what he was able to do. I walked in and I saw the score. He was at the free throw line and I saw the score and they've been playing great basketball lately.

And I said to my coaching staff, Oh, he'd roll it. And they all kind of look to each other. They're like, are you kidding right now? I was like, no, what's up? They're like, they're 36 and 28, or whatever they are. They're getting ready to be 37 and 28. And there was no, ban has 77.

And I was like, huh? And then I watched the last three minutes and that was a different type of basketball. It was a different type of basketball. That's the point. He still did it. It's like when people say, oh, well, you had a no hitter, but he walked four guys. It's still a no hitter. still qualifies.

It's not a perfect game. Still a no-hitter. I'm sorry, the no-hitter thing kills me because my girl, Krista Ruck, executive sports producer over at CBS Chicago. She did not want to give people credit on the no-hitter if it was like a bunch of walks and all that stuff. It's still a no.

Did they get a hit? Yes or no. No, they didn't get a hit. Did he score 83 points? He did score 83 points. It can be that simple. I love it. And I hope this,

forces other players to like lean in a little bit. Well, there was a, there was like a week-long stretch in the league. Do you remember? And it was during the Joe L&B three-quarter 60 burr, where guys were just rattling off ridiculous games. Is that when Luca had his 72? Yes, I believe so. And do you remember Kevin Durant reacted? Because he's like, the scoring in the league is incredible right now.

And then it was never like that again. Although I think Durant's got one of those in him. Absolutely. He still does. Because he's that dude. Sniper. Easy Money Sniper, in fact. They distribute the ball differently in Houston now,

and it sounds like EMA may not want people to get theirs. God develop those young players. KD ain't going to be around. Well, I say that. I was going to say he's not going to be around forever. He's probably going to be around for another five years. He's kind of like you. He ages backwards, I feel like.

I use more lotion. Don't need a brand sponsorship. Don't need a brand sponsorship to keep my ankles from getting too ashy. In Houston, that alleviates itself a little bit. It's not like being here, for example. Fair. You get some of that back. Coming up next year on Rahimi Harrison Grotie, it is time for Danny Parkins.

We got to talk to him because that Max Crosby prediction looks even more prophetic now, and we have a special programming note to pass along to you. Ray Diaz has dialed up Roberto Garza, the former Bears Center, so we will talk to him at 125. We're excited to talk about, frankly, the news of the day a little bit with him as well, and also maybe what he wants to see out of a Bear Center. So we'll do all of that coming up in the next hour. It was a skin incident

I could do Stephen A's job guys It's not that far Denny Parkins QB1 party All are invited Host of Fox Sports 1's first thing first Coming in number six though The team that should be the favorites

In the NFC North though the odds makers Say they're the third best team My Chicago Bears Why can't the Chicago Bears Be the best offense in football? The Bears plenty of reason to doubt them Caleb Williams No

Former host of 670 The score before he abandoned us. That's the Caleb Williams custom, baby. Jersey number one is going to the Raptors. You guys made it seem like a Chicago Bears fans. We had our guy. Danny Parkins, all these guys. Danny Parkins on 1043, The Score.

This is Rahimi Harrison Grotie, and it is a Wednesday at 1 o'clock, and that means we talk to our friend Danny Parkins. Danny, formerly with us here at the score, I don't think he abandoned us, but that's what our open says. He hosts First Things First on Fox Sports One. You can check out the newly expanded edition from 4 to 5. He joins us on our hotline and on Twitch, twitch.tv slash the score Chicago. Hey, Danny, how are you?

I'm great. And this week with Nick Wright in Japan, I'm in for the full three hours. So I'm in from 2 to 5 Central. I think you've got a victory lap to take in just under an hour because you predicted you did not think that Max Crosby was going to go for two firsts. Well, by default and frankly by order of backing out of the trade, I'm pretty sure you're going to be right. Yeah, and I said he wasn't going to go for what Michael Parsons went for, which was two firsts and a player. So I was already right when he just went for two firsts, although some people didn't agree with that characterization.

But it was true. And then, yeah, now the price is going to come down. You know, this is a very, very, very weird story with obvious bears ramifications that we can get into if you want. But you go back and you look at the history. I think we did this last week on the show. Like, the guys who have been traded for who were non-quarterbacks for multiple first round pick were all 25 and 26 with one 27-year-old in that mix over the last decade. And then Crosby was 29 coming off of knee surgery. And then when the Ravens did it, I was especially shocked because there's a big difference between a late first round pick and the 14th pick in the draft. So I think the Raiders are rightly furious.

I think the Ravens are correctly getting questioned. And now there's huge ramifications for the rest of the league. But it was a huge gamble that Baltimore took. And I think on some level they got cold feet. And the question now becomes, Danny, outside of that criticism that you're talking about, and then both those teams trying to figure it out what they're doing next. Well, we know what the Ravens did, obviously, with the Trey Hendrickson News. I wonder should the Bears be in on him, and I think they should,

but I wonder what is the actual cost at this point going to be for Max Crosby? What do you think? I don't think the Raiders will give him away. Right. You know, they came into this offseason with about as much cap space as anybody in football. they can still afford him because of it. Like they were trying to trade Crosby because they were trying to get younger

and line up assets around Fernando Mendoza, not because they could not afford Max Crosby, right? Like there is a difference. Like where Sean Gary got traded to Dallas because it wasn't really tenable for Green Bay to keep his cap hit, right? The D.J. Moore got traded to Buffalo, not because he's a bad player,

but partly because it wasn't tenable for the Bears to, they needed to reallocate those financial, resources from offense towards defense. The Raiders could afford Crosby. They just didn't think he was in line with their timeline. So I don't think all of a sudden Max Crosby is going to be available for like a second round pick. But I think that the complications of the trade are just like, they're going to have to be conditional. Like we'll trade you a second this year in a future first, but that future first becomes a future second or third if he misses games this year with a knee injury, or if he's not able to play week one because of a knee injury.

And obviously it would be pending a physical. So, you know, I think it really complicates the trade. But I do think, like, if you're going to say, like, teams that would be interested, I think the Bears and the Patriots would be the teams that make the most sense because, you know, the Bears have the 25th pick and the Patriots have the 31st pick, and they have the cap space, and they have the need. So, you know, I could see it happening for a reduced cost with some conditions around some draft picks, either this one or the next one going. Like, I don't think they're out of it yet, but, you know, I think the odds are here that he's going to be a raider for a while. Danny Parkins talking to us on Rahimi Harrison Grady. And it's a fascinating one

to work through. Sorry if that wasn't like the most concise answer. No, no. There's a lot of, there's a lot of, like, qualifiers that you have to put on this story. No, no, just so you know, what I said earlier in the show was a second and a first, like this year's second and next year's first, because they have multiple second round picks this year and then next year's first. If you have Max Crosby, it's supposed to be pretty good season for you. Yeah, like, that's fine, and you get to do the physical.

The thing with the physical that's so weird and why I think Baltimore, Baltimore is taking a lot of heat for this and why they deserve to take a lot of heat for it is, obviously he's not cleared to play right now. Like, we knew that. The guy was on crutches a week ago. He had surgery at the end of this past season. This season ended just a couple of months ago. And so, like, this idea that, well, they, you know, they did the medicals and they saw the,

they didn't, they didn't like it after the, they, he's, he's not clear. to play. Like, everybody knew, of course he's not cleared to play. So you can do it. You're operating in self-interest. Hendrickson is a hell of a consolation prize, though Crosby is a better player than Hendrickson. He's younger than Hendrickson.

He's way better against the run than Hendrickson. But obviously, it doesn't cost you two first-round picks. So, you know, I don't even know. I think what you're saying, Marshall makes sense. But Ryan Poles is going to need. to be convinced on the medicals, and are you really going to trade for someone that another team flunked him on the medicals because then if he gets hurt or if that knee is bulky and he doesn't play well, you know, you're going to take a lot of heat for it. So I don't know what

GM is really going to stick their neck out for when another team flunked him. So I honestly don't really know how to handicap what it's going to cost to get Crosby. I think that's the, that's the rub here. That's the million dollar question, or in this case, 35 million. $35.8 million is trying to figure out what the price should have been to begin with based on what they think the medicals are. Like that was the issue. I think it came down more to Danny whether or not the knee was a problem enough to say whether or not it was worth two first round picks in this case or if the price needed to be determined to be lesser than because of it. I feel like that was the issue more so than whether or not he's healthy. People have a general idea of how healthy he is.

It was just, I think, to the tune of what expense? Listen, if the Bears traded a first and a second for Max Crosby, I would celebrate it. Like, I would. I would, I would, I would, I would, I would, I would, I would, it's a huge need and he's an excellent player. But of course, that is always under the condition of you are trusting the medical evaluation. But like, this is like maybe what my, what. the headline should be. And I don't know if you guys have already seen this or talked about it.

But have you guys seen Caleb Williams' most recent retweet? Have not, but I'll look now. I think it came out during our show. Yeah, well, a couple hours ago. Yeah, so that would be during the show. Yeah, but yeah, we're all on Twitter. So Lewis Riddick tweeted, Yesterday's Price is not Today's Price.

And Caleb retweeted it. It's like, well, he's interested. He likes Max Crosby. They are friends. They do podcast together. Like, there's no doubt in my mind that when the reporting was, you know, that the Raiders took calls last night from other teams on Crosby. Like, there is no doubt in my mind that one of those calls is Ryan Poles. Like, Rich Eisen said they were a team that had offered multiple firsts. Caleb and Crosby have been flirting with each other all off. season. That post from Caleb. Caleb also commented on the league's announcement of

Trey Hendrickson signing with the Raiders with a little smiley face. Like, listen, a little bit of this is like millennial and Gen Z detective work and sleuthing, but like Caleb wants Crosby to be a bear. Crosby has at least at times been very interested in being a bear. I do think that there's a price at which Ryan Poles is willing to get to. And by the way, it might be two firsts. He might have no problem with it and just have some big old brass ones and put him down on the table and say after the medicals. He might. He might.

That's a bridge too far considering everything. I think that that be a foolish purchase at this point based on what just happened. Well, no, but okay. But Marshall, what if the Ravens really didn't flunk him on his medicals? And they're just using that as an excuse because they realized that they can just pay for Trey Hendrickson and they got cold fee. That is what my belief is as well. that is my actual belief at this point is that even though people are saying flunked medical,

like you said, you could do anything you want to a physical if you want to find a problem with a problem, especially one that's not clear to actually play football. I talked to Willie Colon last night on the phone because he was so surprised by the story and he wanted to be sure that he wasn't being duped by the internet. He said he failed four physicals during his career. Like not like retirement physicals, like not like end a career. Like he's like, yeah, I would flunk physicals, but then you'd still get contracts because like the season wasn't starting.

I was like, oh, okay. So, like, you, it, now, listen, flunking Crosby on his physical to then need to pay Hendrickson means you are going to overpay Hendrickson because it hurts your leverage there. I understand that. But let's put it this way. There is no part of me that believes the first time the Ravens reached out to Trey Hendrickson's representatives was after they flunked Crosby. Like, they didn't flunk Crosby until they knew they could get Hendrickson. Like, I definitely believe that. Like, if that makes me a conspiracy theorist, then so be it.

But so if Baltimore just got cold feet and decided to save their draft picks and pivot to just spending money on Hendrickson, then he didn't really have bad medicals. Then Ryan Poles' previous evaluation should still hold serve. Like, I absolutely think the Bears are live for Max Crosby as we sit here today. Like, would I predict it? No, again, I said most likely he goes back to. the Raiders just because of like egg on the face and the price being driven down on them and they're going to take some time to sort this whole thing out. But I guarantee Ryan Poles made that call last night.

I guarantee it. Well, I mean, any GM should. You know, any GM should find out what the new, what the new price would be for a Max Crosby trade. You just summarized the last 10 minutes. In the last, I'd say a couple of minutes, you just summarized like the last hour of our show. We all said yesterday's price is not today's price. If you like watching the NFL, I don't know if that means Caleb Williams is interested or not. I think the podcast, there was definitely some flirting going on. It reminded me, Danny, of when Bryce Harper was flirting with the Cubs. That didn't end well for the Cubs.

Bryce Harper wanted to be a Cubs. Bryce Harper's dog is named Riggly. Like him and Bruce Bryant were best friends. That wasn't flirting. Like that that was heavy petting. Like they, they, they were. No, no, it wasn't heavy petting. Some articles of clothing had already been removed because Bryce Harper told us after the fact,

I wanted to be a cub. This is totally going to get aggregated the wrong way. I don't, yeah, whatever. Like, yeah, they were, like, they were rounding second. Yeah, I'm with you. Like, that was that had to, we were like, we were like in the group chat bragging about it. Like, you can't, we won't believe. believe what I did last night. Yeah, absolutely. Like, I thought Bryce Hartford would have been a Cubs and should have been a Cubs. No question. Yeah. Got to pay the man. Got to pay that man. I lost over Bryce Harper in a Cubs uniform. Are you kidding? I know. But that's the point. We all did. It was like this dance that everybody participated in. And safe to say there's been some association here, but I don't know that it's been as strong as you two both. If it was a dance ladle, though, it was the type of dance where the teacher comes over and tells you to please put your hands back.

up a little higher. It was square dancing class in elementary school. More contact than that. Yeah, exactly. It was, you know, like a snowball at a bar mitzvah, but when they say snowball, you're not going to any other partners. You're just staying there with your one boo thing. Like, yeah, they were absolutely, that's a Jewish reference there that maybe flew right over it.

It's okay. No, we figured it out. Yeah, you explained it well enough. Yeah, I think I explained it well enough. I just wanted to see boo thing again. I don't think I've ever heard anyone say boo-thing ever. I've heard Boothang, but not Boothang, but I like it. Yeah, that's the difference right there.

That's that's the difference. I'm not going to totally appropriate. Appreciate you for that. Yeah, no problem. No problem. But yeah, listen, will I, so if they traded for Max Crosby in 14 minutes, would you really like not be happy about it? Oh, I would be ecstatic.

I told me, we are Maxinistas here on this show. Okay. Like, you'd be worried about the medicals, but like, we should have been worried about the medicals six days ago, 60 days ago. Like, they sat him out for the last few games of the season because of it. Like, this is, he had surgery. He was on crutches. Like, this is not new.

Like, there's nothing, there's nothing. If they had not signed Hendrickson, I'd be more worried. worried about the medicals. But because they did, I'm like, oh, they just got cold feet and pivoted. Yes. So, you know, I absolutely want the Bears to be invested here. Again, don't be dumb. I thought two first rounders was a lot.

I told you guys that at the end of the year. But like, for the right price, of course, go get them. Danny also, just quickly, what do you think about the Bears free agent moves so far and then the direction they might take in the draft after seeing what you've seen? you know listen I fine you know I don't I don't nothing is we were all debating Bayard or brisker now it's probably going to be Bayard and Brisker that go right so like that's a that's probably the biggest headline uh that comes out of it Kobe Bryant is a nice versatile safety who's got experience for an elite defense and a championship team so you know I think I think

that is nice I think spending money on the defensive side of the ball is nice I thought the Edmonds thing was inevitable. I thought the second round pick for DJ Brown, DJ Brown, DJ Moore was nice. Like, you know, I think, I think it's been, it's been fine. And if, like, I make like a macro point out of it, the bears are back to back to back offseason champs. Right?

Like, and so this year, it looks like we're going to be a six and 11 team in the off season. and we aren't going to be able to for Pete as offseason champs, but it translated to you want a playoff game, and you've got one of the most exciting coach player combinations in the NFL and probably the most exciting player coach combination since Ditka and Walter Payton in Chicago. So, like, it's pretty good.

And so, like, I'll take a slower off season for a more juicy, regular and postseason. But, you know, I think it's been a little underwhelming so far. And then as for the draft, you know, do they have, let's see, do they still have their pick? You know, as of now they do. I certainly expect one of those premium picks to be on the offensive line and then basically the rest of them to be defense. So, you know, it's when you guys start doing, you know, like player to pick, it's, I always found like once, if you were picking lower than like, basically like second half of the first round, it's just much, much, much. much harder to slot a player to the pick.

Yeah. Like trying to line up the 25th pick and a specific prospect is going to be a very difficult exercise for you guys to do because there's just so much information and so many different permutations out there. So I would just like generally in terms of resources, I would say one of the first round pick and two twos, I would say one to the offensive line and two to the defense would be like how I feel about it today. Yeah, I'm sure we'll talk about it in the coming.

weeks. And in the meantime, Danny, I know you got a show in just under an hour. So we'll see you on Fox Sports 1. Thanks, Danny. Thank you. Yeah, FS1 for the full three hours. Hit me up if you want to be involved in the radio phone. Let's go. Hit me up. Companies, high net worth individuals, big announcements coming. Mitch, when can I make some announcements? When can I make the announcement? He was just in our producer's studio. Yeah, good question. And of course, naturally, he's not there anymore. So we'll find out. Danny, thanks again. Around opening day, Mitch says he popped that in around opening day. Around opening day.

Tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick, tick. You got what, two weeks? Sounds like a conversation that might have to happen offline. Yeah, it sounds like I'm offline. Oh, that's true. Opening days in March, huh? They're going to be playing. It's in two weeks.

It's two weeks in one day. From today. Or no, today's Wednesday. Yeah, two weeks from tomorrow. Yeah. Two weeks from tomorrow? Yeah. How long did you think it was away from?

Dude, I don't know. It's football season where I work. Hey, not on your network right now. It's World Baseball Classic. We don't know what's happening in the Team USA. Yes. You know what? I'm going to have a hot World Baseball Classic take.

Yeah. Know the rules. Thank you. That's what I take. You should know the rules. Especially if you're in a, I don't know, position of authority. Yeah, well, listen. How about one person?

He has bench coaches. Somebody. Can one person know the rules? That's embarrassing. Guess not. That is crazy. That is crazy. It's a big record scratch.

Like, wait, what? And it wasn't like, oh, I misspoke in an interview. And then, like, I corrected it at the, like, a pregame interview, I misspoke. And then I corrected it at a pregame press conference. It was like, no, we played a game. a lot of time passed before they were like, oh yeah, my bad. So yeah, that wasn't great. Danny, have a great show.

Thanks for joining us today. See you, Danny. All right, guys. I'll see you around opening day in two months. Two months. Coming up next, the former bear, Roberto Garzo. We will ask him about the physical process and more next. The Chicago Bears are the oldest franchise in the NFL.

over 90 years of history. And in that history, no bear has started more games consecutively than Rio Hondo's own Roberto Garza. And now with a new contract in hand, the former Bobcat and Havillina has a chance to extend that record. They know I want to be a Chicago bear. They know I want to retire a Chicago bear. Officially 49 yards.

Friend Brad Biggs, friend of the show, I heard him on a score this morning and said he was talking to my guy out there in Texas, Roberto Garza. I remember the first time I got hit, the first time I gave a hit and was like, man, this is fun. I enjoy this. With Rahimi Harrison Groney on 1043 The Score. How about this?

We ask and he appears. Roberto Garza and yes, Rio Hondo's own and I can't believe I heard a havelina reference here on 1043, the score. He went to Texas A&M, Kingsville. That is their mascot. And the former Bears Center now joins us on our hotlight. And he's nice enough to join us on Twitch.

Twitch.TV slash The Score Chicago. Roberto Garza, thank you for joining us today. This is great. Of course, got to get the havelinas in there. Not too many people know

what the havelina actually is, but it's between a rat and a pig. There's not much to it, man. It's a wild boar. Yeah. Yeah, it is. It is. They run all over Texas

and kind of just overrun, unfortunately, the wilderness population. Get in the way of hunters when you're out there trying to hunt a white tail and then you hear all you hear is those Havilinas kind of get in the way and scare your deer way. It's not a fun time.

Thank you for successfully explaining this. I have on my North Texas hoodie today, and I did not think we would get into havelina talk, and you even have a bear's backdrop on Twitch. So I feel like we're spraying to all fields today on the score. Thanks so much. I appreciate it, man. Thank you guys for having me,

and looking forward to talking to all the day. Well, us too. And I think you know, the biggest news of the day, Roberto, is essentially a process that you know all too well. You know, in 2005, $7 million, three-year deal, and correct me if these numbers are wrong, because this is the report with Baltimore. And your physical didn't go through. And you end up in a different place.

You end up ultimately becoming a Chicago bear. You know, take us through the mental process of going through all of that and then ultimately ending up in a different place. Yeah, you know, you get excited. You finally get that first opportunity to sign the contract. I finished my rookie deal in Atlanta. And at that time, I had a one year of a tender, and then they offered a tender, and I thought I was worth more.

Went to Baltimore, you know, everything's, but just signing the contract. You know, they go through your physical. I just got done playing 17 games. That's the year we went to the NFC championship games with the Falcons, loss to the Eagles. So I literally just got done playing football and we're taking the physical and they had surgery in my knee a year and some change from the day of the physical and the doctor's like, you don't have an ACL. Like, what do you mean? I had surgery a year ago. I just got done playing 17 games. Like, what do you mean I don't have an ACL? Nope, you don't have an ACL.

So they did an MRI and of course, I mean, it comes back. I don't have an ACL. So they obviously at that point they had some concerns and just so right they don't want a 25 year old offensive linemen sign a new deal with a torn ACL

but I just told them and I said look man I just got done playing I had no issues after that it was about two months and I didn't get a phone call and it started to wonder am I going to get a chance

to keep playing football obviously I love playing football wanting to keep playing the NFL not until Chris Ballard who was at the time a scout for the bears, now the gym for the Colts, was one of my college coaches at Kingsville for the fighting Havillinas. Yeah, and an A&M alum, yeah.

Absolutely. And he's the one that told Jerry's like, hey, man, give this kid a chance. We have, at that time, I went to a doctor here in San Antonio that said that I had, I can't remember what the term he said, that I could play with a tourney C.L. I just put a brace on it. And at the time I signed a, if I got, if I was to get hurt by, if I have to hurt that right knee, the bears wouldn't be liable for that, for that first year as kind of insurance for the team to take a risk on me. And, you know, like to say, the rest is history.

You know, at the time it happened, you kind of think about why did the ravens do this to me, but I understood, it took many years to understand the big picture, right? At the, at the time when you're young, you kind of just think about what they did. and how they took that opportunity away from you. But obviously, in hindsight, it became a good thing because I was able to go and play for a great organization, a great team, and play with some of the best guys that I could have played with in their locker room

and obviously do some fun things in Chicago during my 10 years there. Roberto, it's so interesting because you didn't have an ACL, but apparently you didn't feel any adverse effects from it. And so it gets us to thinking about when we talk about physicals and players passing or failing physicals, do you think of that process completely different after having gone through that? And as you see news like this come out about what happened with Max Crosby?

Absolutely. Because, you know, the body is obviously limitless and how you prepare for the season and how your preparation is obviously the key, keeping your body as strong as possible, keeping your body to be able to do what do you ask of it. And that's the key. For me, I was fortunate that I had, I always loved to squat. I always loved to train.

So that was a big part of my off-season work in preparation for the season. So I continued that, and I thought that gave me the ability to go out there and play without an ACL for those 10 years in Chicago. Obviously, I braced up and never had any issues. But your training and what your body can do is obviously endless now. So, and the guy that you hear about that works as hard as match cross. Cosby, obviously, to get themselves ready to play. So obviously, you understand they have all the research and they have all the, you know, the background to say, obviously, if you have an ACL, there's not many people, obviously,

they play with a torn ACL. I mean, you know, they have surgeries for that for a reason, right? And they get the opportunities to come back and rehab and stay healthy. But fortunate for me, I was one of the guys that could keep playing, right? And I would imagine that Max Crosby, a guy that goes out and plays the way. he does does his offseason work just as intensely to get ready for the season. We're talking to Roberto Garza

the former Bears Center. He's also on Twitch with us here on Rahimi Harrison Rode Twitch.tv.tv slash the score Chicago. I think it is important too when you talked about what for you is a formality because that process led you to then playing for the Bears and playing 10 years like you

mentioned. It was part of a means to an end for your career. But I think you let us in on part of the process and how they try, executives try to just make sure what they're financially responsible for. You know, when you talk about that process and then what the knee means if there's a financial concern or an issue, it sounds like there's liability there. Can you detail that process for us a little bit more just when it comes to what you experienced?

Well, you know, in a case like Max Crosby, they're investing a lot of money into a player that you're hoping will change your franchise, right? will be a French face, obviously alongside Lamar and some of the current players. But you're investing, obviously, in his case, probably over $100 million, right? So you want to make sure that you have your return on your investment. It would be the way the team looks at it's a business. If I put in this money, but it's a damaged product, where can this be, right? So they got to protect the interests of the team.

Is that right? Is that wrong? I don't know. For a player like Max Crosby, that can be. a difference maker is the key, right? And that's a gamble that you take because now I know I took it for myself that I was going to prove them wrong. I was going to go on the field and obviously get the opportunity to compete and then get

on the field and say, you know what? I'm going to go play for 10 years. Obviously, it all worked out. Obviously, not all cases happen that way, but you would think of Max Crosby's going to go out there and have a hell of a year next year and show Baltimore that they should have picked him instead of the guy that they signed. obviously both incredible talents, but you get that chip on your shoulder, like, all right, then this team doesn't want me. They don't want to invest in me. Then I'm going to go out there and prove

myself that I can be that kind of player. And the emotional side of it, as you know, can mean a lot because it can feel you to, oh, I don't know, be part of a Super Bowl team. But when it comes to the aspect of you had to sign something when they separated the knee injury, can you just describe a little bit more what that was? Like if you get injured because of this, then who who's responsible? Is that along the lines of what happened? Like, correct me if I'm wrong here. No, you are exactly right. So I signed a one-year deal.

Any injury that came from the knee, the team wasn't going to be liable for that need. So they wouldn't have to pay for my rehab. Anything like that, he could just cut me on the spot, not responsible for any other payment at that point. So after that year, when I signed a six-year contract, We took that out. And then it was like, all right, you just proved that you can pay on that knee with no issues. And then that was taking out of the contracts from then that point on. But I had to prove to them that I wasn't going to be a liability, that that knee wasn't going to be a liability.

They could count on me to go out there and compete a week in and week out and stay on the field, which for me was one of the most important things is to be able to snap up that helmet week in and week out. Roberto, I just got to ask you, like, did you understand, like, how different were the feelings in your legs? And does that persist today? I'm just curious, since you clearly didn't know that you didn't, that you had this problem. Right. Even, you know, actually, my other knees, I want to hurt some more. I had a lateral meniscus years after against Green Bay.

And that's the need that I get more pain in than my knee that I don't have an ACL. I still haven't had it repaired because I haven't had any issues with it. But you know, as crazy is I think the year that I was cut in 2015, that September was the first time that knee swelled up on me. And then I guess it was just my time to retire or get asked to retire. But, you know, it was just interesting that even to this day, I still don't have any issues with it. So obviously, I still work out and still kind of keep my body moving

so I can not have the effects of playing as long as I did. but I do enjoy the gym, so it keeps me motivated to keep my body functioning the way that I can. And Roberto, one more thing. I know we're up against a break, but I have to ask you, when the Bears got Drew Dalman, everybody said it was the first bona fide center since you that the Bears had gone out and gotten in free agency. 11 years is a long time. And now that Drew's retired, the Bears traded for the Patriot Center, Garrett Bradbury, what do you hope for the consistency or just what you want to see in a center for the bears?

Obviously what the offensive line was able to do last year was impressive, right? What Poles was able to do with bringing all the guys in solidifying that position is impressive. Obviously, it starts with the offensive line coming from an offensive line with that's what you're going to hear. But that team transformed last year and became a threat in the NFC and the NFL. So when you combine what Ben Johnson is doing with Caleb is doing, doing with those receivers and with a smart center that can go out there and change those protections, get everybody on the right page and give you 16 games, 17 games now in a row, keeping those guys on the field, they're working together and keeping that chemistry.

That's what it's about, right? Making the right calls, getting those guys to go out there and compete together and have each other back. And that's what we saw this past year. And you would imagine they continue that. They've set a standard for the way they play football in that building. And it starts with the offensive line and obviously the defensive line. And you expect the new center to come in and step in.

And some of the older guys that were there last year and set that standard and practice a certain way and prepare a certain way to go out there and build on what they did this past season. Well, Roberto, this has been a really great time. Thank you so much for joining us and providing some really priceless perspective on it all. Thanks, Roberto. Thank you guys. Y'all. Have a good day, man. You too. That is Roberto Garza, the longtime Bear Center,

as you mentioned, for 10 years. Nice enough to join us here in Rahimi Harrison Grotie on 1043 the score and on Twitch. We have big breaking news. This is according to Tom Pellisero three-time Pro Bowl safety. Kevin Byard is signing

with the Patriots. A one-year, $9 million deal. and it was negotiated by the famous agent David Mugoletta of athletes first. So that is the news regarding Kevin Byard, no longer a bear. I don't know if it was as much money as we thought he was going to get and as many years, one year and nine million. Definitely a raise from the 7.5, but less guaranteed money.

I mean, yeah. Fewer years. It's tough. A lot of people thought it would be two in the neighborhood of perhaps 10 each, but this is cheaper than that even. clearly wanting to stay with a winner and getting a raise. I think he's probably at his age on a year-to-year basis now to get that type of money anyway.

Sad. It's not great. He was such a respected leader on that team and what he did leading the NFL in Interceptions with 7 in the regular season. He will be missed. We will have more on that next. In the meantime, join me, Laila Rahimi, next Thursday, March 19th, from 7 to 9 p.m.

at Old Crow Smokehouse in Wrigleyville for the finals of Bud Light's official mini hoops mania. Hang out with Bud Light and the score as one Chicago winner heads to Vegas for a chance at $10,000. That's Thursday, March 19th, starting at 7th at Old Crow in Wrigleyville.

We'll react to this and have more next. Rahimi Harris and Grody. Midday's 10 to 2 on 1043, the score. This is appropriate music, Because I will admit, I thought there was a chance. I thought there was a chance the Bears would keep Kevin Byrd. It didn't happen. Here's the thing, Lela.

Marshall just looked at me and just slow blinked. No, but I really thought when he name-checked him at the press conference at the end of the season, that Ryan Poles was going to make Kevin Byard a priority. And look, look, with the Kobe Barrett. Bryant thing, I get it. I get it. He's a younger guy who's more versatile in maybe the things that Dennis Allen wanted to find on his defense when he looked up and down the roster. And that goes back to when he name checked Kyler Gordon at his introductory press conference. And when you take into account that we all knew, it's funny. Because a year ago, the things we were saying

about this team and this staff and this front office, we're like, well, you know how it usually goes. For most teams, that first year, you're just sorting out what you have on your roster, and a lot of these guys will not be back. But a couple of things. We didn't envision this level of success in year one. And I don't think any of us were like, and leading the way will be Kevin Byard, who will be a first team all pro safety for the third time in his career. And when you add all of that up and you let it soak in that now he's going to be on another winning team, a team that played in the Super Bowl last year. Right.

And they're going to benefit from all of the experience, the expertise, and the still on a plateau play. It hasn't fallen off from Kevin Byard. That's what makes me, I guess that is the word for the bears, for the fan base, for the city of Chicago, understanding how influential and important. and he was not only on the field, but just in that locker room and in that space. It's the room that I wonder about as well. And that secondary group where he was very much an anchor.

When guys like Kyler Gordon and Jalen Johnson aren't as available because they're injured, you remember what Ben Johnson said when he said he felt like he didn't even know Kyler Gordon because he wasn't able to be doing the same work as the rest of the team because he was having to rehab and come back from his injury. And that's what made Byard's presence even more important, not just the 93 tackles that he had last year, but also the seven interceptions, which we've mentioned a lot because it led the NFL,

led to him having that all-pro season. And so it was a renaissance for him, but it was also still in his age 32 season. And how much did that factor in to what Ryan pulls and what Dennis Allen ultimately wanted to do? Kobe Bryant is 26, and we knew he had four interceptions, and he's not going to have the same amount of tackles

because he was playing on a defense that spread that around. But this is a loss for the Bears. He was a huge anchor for this team. He was a reliable presence and one who showed not just leadership, as you mentioned, but success walking out the door. And to go to the Super Bowl team who lost to the Seahawks and the Patriots

lets you know good teams still think very highly of Kevin Byard's services. And I was wondering what it would cost to keep him around. I was like, ah, you know, two for 20. He ends up getting one for just nine. It just makes me wonder what the bears offered him, right? Like, what was the offer? Or did they just say, go out and do your thing.

And if we can match it, we can match it. Obviously, you want to get paid and be in a good situation. Clearly, he's in an excellent situation. And I think the real thing, the reason maybe why this makes me a little bit more sad than I thought I would feel because I suspected this would be the end result after the signing of Kobe Bryant is the answer to this question. Are the bears better defensively

than they were last year? And right now the answer is no. Well, and like you said yesterday, it's an incomplete. We don't know who the other three safeties are going to be on this team. Do we necessarily know if the cornerback group or even the linebacker group is a finished product?

The Bears added with two backups, what we think are backups on the defensive line. But do we know if this is going to be the team? and everybody's in the same spot when it comes to where we think the bears are going to add more defensively. It seems like we've all resigned ourselves to thinking they're going to have to essentially have the same kind of draft for the defense this year

that they had for the offense last year, where the role players that you expect, everybody is seeing significant time offensively, at least intentionally, before Ozzie Tripullo got injured, from what we saw in last year's draft. They're going to have to have a symmetrical, similar type of year out of who they think is going to produce in this year's draft defensively. I'm assuming that's where a lot of this is going to have to go. And remember when Ryan Poles was hesitant to say that they would go out and make like a big splash in the manner that obviously they did on offense last year was what they did with the interior of the offensive line.

And then, you know, it followed suit in the draft with getting three huge playmakers on offense. when you look at Colston Lovin, Luther Bird and the third, and of course in the seventh round, Kyle Monongai, guys who are all instrumental in them winning the North in the first time and forever. I guess as I look at this, I hope Ryan Poles has one more move up his sleeve. And I hope it's the addition of Max Grosby. That's what I'm hoping. I know. I just took it there.

But that's, I'm sorry, I'm going extremes today. Yes, you are. But because, you know what? You know what I'm probably sounding more extreme than I intend to sound? it's because that first wave of free agency is coming to an and remember I marked us at by the end of the day to day I'll mark this as that first wave of free agency. Kevin Byer going during that first wave,

there's not that many playmakers left that can make a huge upgrade to what you have defensively through free agency. And so if it's draft or bust, that gives me a little bit of pause. I know you did in our office. I don't know that I trust that you'll do it again on defense. Yeah, the defensive resume as a whole doesn't give you a touch. ton of belief, although Kyler Gordon and Jaquan Brisker were two of their very first picks as a front office.

That was a long time ago. I hear you, though. I hear you. Still big factors on the team. There's been other picks. Injury precluded Brisker from playing more of the season that you know he wanted to play the year before last. I think my thing is just the recency of who have they drafted on defense that's been a high

impact player. Yeah, especially on the line. Maybe Austin Booker. That's about all. Well, Javon Dexter at 6X, that was second on the team. Everything's relative. But I get it. As an interior guy, that's a good number.

Yeah. They need more. They signed out a free agency. Tremaine Edmonds, they signed out a free agency. You see what I'm saying. No, I mean, that's been the issue. But the fact of the matter is, they got a deal on Kevin Byard when they got him. They knew it.

So, did they want to offer the same deal again? and if he goes to the Patriots for one year, nine million, it makes you wonder what they thought the deal really was. And Kevin Byard himself talked about how Ryan Poles mentioned him by name. So that let you know what he was thinking too. He led everybody down the same path that we were already going down. It's just unfortunate. And I hope Ryan Poles has more moves, like I said, up his sleeves.

One big move up your sleeve. I don't need like multiple big moves. But one, like, this dude is a difference maker. he's maybe short of a game wrecker at this point, but they got to get some more guys on defense. And it certainly makes sense as to why the Patriots after last year thought that they needed his services. Fair.

That makes it make sense. Coming up next year on Rahimi Harrison Grady, it is time to make way for our afternoon show. Lawrence Holmes and Matt Spiegel are next.