The Kevin Sheehan Show - Howell's Benching Was Telling

Episode Date: December 19, 2023

Kevin and Thom today with an excellent offering of Commanders' conversation which includes the significance of Sam Howell's benching Sunday in Los Angeles. The boys talked about the Eagles' 3rd straight loss last night in Seattle, Taylor Heinicke named starter in Atlanta, Montez Sweat, the new Godzilla movie, the Barry Sanders documentary and more.  Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices Hosted by Simplecast, an AdsWizz company. See pcm.adswizz.com for information about our collection and use of personal data for advertising.

You don't want it. You don't need it. But you're going to get it anyway. The Kevin Cheon Show. Here's Kevin. Tommy's here. I am here. The show is always presented by Window Nation.

Call them at 86690 Nation or go towindonation.com if you need new windows. Hey, don't forget to rate us and review us, especially on Apple and Spotify. It's a big help for us, especially on those two platforms. subscribe to the podcast. That helps a lot. And also follow us on Apple and on Spotify. That's helpful as well. Tommy, this is a good one. This comes from, because I'm going to be real passionate about reading this, this comes from the Iceman. I don't think George Gervin, but a 2508 Iceman via Apple podcast. Gave us five stars, gave us a very, very nice rating. He titled, his review Capitals Hatred or Jealousy. Kevin, I love your show. I've listened every day since day

one, and I will continue to do so. I have one issue with you. Your hatred for the Capitals. The reason I say hatred is because I know when you were speaking passionately about something. An example of that is when you were talking about Maryland basketball. Although, remember, we had somebody send us something a few weeks ago that says, I don't do it anymore. We don't do enough Maryland basketball in the show. But you're right. I am very passionate in talking about Maryland basketball. They play UCLA Friday night, Tommy, at Pauley Pavilion. When you explain to all of us that you are not a hockey or a Caps fan,

you do so in the same passionate voice that you use when speaking of your alma mater. It's as if you have a hatred for them because it is them, the hockey team, that has the most success out of the four major sports teams in town over the past 16 years. Maybe a little jealousy is in play there. Many of your listeners are Caps fans, and I bet there are more than a few of us that find that off-putting. It is fine that you could care less about the Caps. I could care less about the Wizards. Maybe just don't speak so passionately about it.

God, that's so good. That's so good because there is definitely with me. There have been times over, you've read this pretty spot on, not the hatred part, not at all, because there is very little passion one way or the other, but there's no doubt that there's been some jealousy at times. Like when the caps were gaining steam and people were like, you know, Look, I know a lot of these people that were putting on jerseys of players they didn't even know the names of two months before the playoffs started.

It was irritating. There's no doubt about that because I consider the Caps to be the biggest bandwagon team in town. And by the way, that bandwagon got really big in 2018. But yes, I would be dishonest if I didn't say that at various points in time, time, I was like, oh my God, can the skins just fucking win 11 games get to the playoffs so we can talk about them as a good organization too? It's true. I, it's not that, I mean, I think also some of it was personal in that I know a lot of people that couldn't from when's the hockey season begin Tommy October from October until March.

Don't watch one game. And during the Stanley Cup chase, they could have named Ovechkin, Holtby, Bxtrum. And then if I had said $100 for one more player before that playoff run started, I would have won $100. But then three weeks into that thing, I mean, they're wearing the jersey. they're wearing the jersey of some player they didn't know the name of before it started. Now, that is also a little bit of jealousy and a little bit of condescension

because I do know that there are many hardcore caps fans. And I appreciate those people. Like, they're really into it. They are diehards. They go. They watch every night. They actually probably could have a conversation about hockey in the same way that the large majority of sports fans in the area can have a conversation about football, basketball, or even

baseball, and think they know what they're talking about. But no, you're right. There have been times, like, I mean, this is awful, but I remember Cooley, it wasn't, we did it once with me, but he did it with Zabe and Galdi, and Zabe really got angry at Cooley. Cooley decided one day, on their show. And he did it once with me too. Of course, I yucked it and laughed at it. But I think it was Koken that they had on. And Al has a great sense of humor, as we both know, and is a great guy. But it was like before the playoffs started and Cooley asked him, like, you know, like he was his turn to ask a question and he said, so for the playoffs, do they sharpen their skates more than they do in the regular season.

And then, like, the follow-up was, now, explain this to me. Can I just show up and get in, or do I have to buy a ticket to go to one of these games? Like, it was so off-the-cuff, stupid, but Cooley couldn't stand hockey. And, by the way, was friends with several of the hockey players. Like, he knows Ovechkin really well, knows Carlson and some of these other guys really well. But he was just trying to do that. And I And Zabe was so upset

Because Zabe does like hockey I think he really does like hockey Yeah, no I laughed at this when I read it Because There's no doubt at various points in time Over the last 10, 15 years I've been like, Jesus, enough

Because what happens, Tommy, for us Is that then you get the people like Ted who's lectured us once or five times over the last many years, not in recent years, but used to lecture us many years ago. And we'd get emails occasionally, and Andy and Steve and others in the market would too about how you're not talking about enough, you know, you're not talking about the hockey team enough on your show. And we did finally say to him, Ted, if we talked about the hockey team as much as you wanted us to talk about the hockey team,

we just wouldn't have any audience at all. because you can't do that during football season. We do it during the playoffs, and I do love playoff hockey. I do. And I actually like watching the Caps playoff games and then coming in and talking about them because you know why there's really nothing else going on at that time other than the NFL draft. But, yeah, I, that sometimes a lot, like sometimes their runs in the postseason,

which there were a lot of short runs, very short runs. But it was like, God, man, why can't the football team be better? Why do we even have to have the conversation about the Caps being number one in town? You know, remember, and there are a lot of Caps fans that believe because they're so into it that, you know, they're the number one team in town. Well, there are no numbers that would reflect that. Did I mention this on the podcast yesterday? People, Tommy won't know because he doesn't listen to the podcast when he's not on it.

But I think I mentioned that the Dallas Buffalo game on Sunday outrated the Washington Rams game in D.C. And it still drew 350,000 viewers. Well, I mean, a regular season hockey game, by the way, a regular season Wizards game. basically draws one-tenth of that, sometimes not even one-tenth of that. Yeah. But understand, 82 games versus 17, yada, yada, yada. And I also know that there's this direct TV issue that apparently the CBS affiliate Channel 9 wasn't a part of. So people who had direct TV, I guess, couldn't watch the game.

I also did mention, and I had a friend of mine reach out to me who kind of follows this stuff that said it's happened a lot. But I said yesterday, I'm pretty sure this has happened before with Cowboys games and Ravens games in the market outdrawing Washington games over the last 10 to 15 years. He said with both teams it's happened at least 10 times. You know, where you've had a big cowboy game or a big Ravens game outrate locally in D.C., the Washington game that was on at the same time. but still, it's still in terms of the number of people that actually did watch the game on Sunday, a four and nine team with the Cowboys on against the Bill's opposite, it's still a massive number compared to anything any other team in town draws.

Like, it's just not even close. But that's only one way to measure it, as you've said many times. Yeah, it is. but generally. Look, there's all kinds of ways to get to the end of the road for success. Would you have a problem if all of a sudden the commanders were good and people who barely knew who was on the team started showing up to support them? I don't even know how to answer that question.

I don't think I'd have a problem with that, but I think the bigger part of my answer is that there's not a lot of passion in the answer. with this team anymore either. So, no, I'm kidding. There's more, a lot more. I mean, I don't think, like, who's going to show up in jerseys that haven't been a part of the painful last 25 years,

or 15 if you're younger, or 10 if you're much younger? Well, I'm just saying if they did, if all of a sudden they did start showing up. I mean, it still contributes to your team. I mean, just because the people, you know, weren't foolish enough to go through the pain or didn't really pay attention before. Now they're on board. This only helps your team. Why would anyone resent that?

I mean, so, you know, I mean, Capps fans who have jump on the bandwagon during a playoff who, you know, couldn't name more than five or six players on the team, it still helps the team. Yes. What's your point? My point is, you would be okay with it if that happened to the command. Sanders too, right? Yeah, I just don't think it would be as significant, do you? It depends. If they were 12 and 4, or 12 and, if they went to a season when they won 13 games all

a sudden, just like that. Well, look, there's a bandwagon element to any team doing, you know, exceptionally well, almost anywhere. But it's the, you know, how much of those people are coming in via bandwagon versus those that were already there. And I just think every team in this town to a certain extent, you know, we're a different sports team than a sports city than a lot of other cities, especially in the Northeast, where, you know, there is incredible passion for more than one team in the market. And, you know, the bandwag, there's always a bandwagon effect. there are casual sports fans who will jump on to something. It's just, I guess, how many people were there to begin with?

Like, what I have a problem with it? No, I wouldn't have a problem with it. I wouldn't have a problem with it. You better hope that there's some bandwagon fans if the commanders play good. Because if this is it, if what's there is it, then you've got a problem. No, it's a really fair point because the bandwagon effect. for the football team if they ever become good again will be the biggest it's ever been

because the actual fan base size has shrunk so much. Yes, yes. The core is smaller than it's ever been. It's a third of what it once was. If it balloons into something big, like the caps, like the analogy of the caps, it may offend your sensibilities that where were you people before, but it's all good for your team.

You know, it just, I wasn't planning on talking about this, but it's a segue into the opening game of the year against Arizona and that incredible moment of celebration, relief, new day, dawning, all of that. and a sold-out stadium, all fans of the team. And, you know, what that, you know, for a lot of people, it was like, see, told you everybody would be back. And I remember saying, look, I think that a lot of people are coming back just because Dan's gone, but things had changed. You know, the name, the length of time that people had been checked out for, you know, and I said it's not as easy anymore.

as just Dan leaving. There's more to this. And there was. The name is a big part of the, you know, there's more to it now than just Dan. Because in 2015, if Dan had sold the team, that's all it would have taken for everybody to come back. But it was different. But it did seem like for a brief moment on September 10th, and the lead up to September 10th, and then the win, and then by the way, a 2-0 start, Doesn't that seem like eight years ago? That everybody was back. But I remember talking to John Oran from Sports Business Journal about this. And by the way, I think he left Sports Business Journal for Puck.

So congrats, John. I know you listen to the podcast every once in a while. I know that this is a big move for you. So best of luck. But I remember having him on early in the season. And, you know, the measurement that we have, which, you know, is a little bit, you know, it's representative, but maybe not. as representative as it used to be. You know, I understand that. I can see that. But television

ratings, and he was like, yeah, I mean, the Arizona game just was slightly up from last year. And then week two, just slightly up, you know, it wasn't overwhelming. And then what we saw when we got to week three with the second home game of the year against Buffalo, yeah, it was a sellout, but it was mostly Buffalo fans or a lot Buffalo fans. So everybody's not back yet. And the season didn't help out either. obviously, which got worse even Sunday, but much more interesting on Sunday. But I don't know. I guess to the point of ownership changed a lot, definitely changed their revenue bump

with corporate sponsors and things like that and even tickets. But, you know, everybody's not back yet. And it's complicated on how to get everybody back. Winning's the most important thing. Winning's the most important thing, because then you do get the people that haven't been hardcore before that say, hey, I live in this town. That team's pretty good. Let me jump on the wagon here.

But consumer habits have changed since the last time dramatically. Of course. Since the last time people cared about this team. Yeah. And they've even changed in the last couple of years just because of COVID. Right. So it's not a. return to the past, it will be a different level of success.

Yeah. I don't know how COVID's affected the attendance or the watching of sports, though, you know, in 2024. I've said it's affected consumer habits, period. Yeah. Well, it's certainly impacted work habits. Yes. Yeah.

Okay. Let's talk about. Have we delayed long enough, the inevitable? I mean, how about just kind of watching a game, and then all of a sudden, we have a conversation, more than a conversation. We have intrigue, interest. Man, that was nice job, Ron. We should thank Ron for doing that.

That was very nice of it. them to consider the interest in content providers like ourselves. I do want to, yeah, so you were watching the game or were you partaking in some sort of Christmas event because you're so into Christmas this year? I was watching the game. Okay. Oh, I'm just looking at this news. Aaron Rogers says in the Pat McAfee show, if I was 100% today,

I'd definitely be pushing to play. So does that mean he's... Yeah, what a shock. Does that mean he's not playing? He's not playing. Okay, good. Yeah. He got his attention out of it.

I didn't think he'd play. So, I mean, I was shocked. What was your thought when he put percent into the game? When he benched, when he benched howl? Seriously? Were you even on the podcast with me last week?

What was your? was last week. What did you say? Oh, you've got to be kidding me. I swear to God. You have got to be kidding. What are you talking about? Did you... When I made the prediction that Sam would be benched and the score, I predicted that Jacoby percent will come into the game. And it wouldn't be for just one snap. I swear on my kids. Oh my God. I did not remember that. Oh my God. Oh my God. Oh my God. that's awful. That is so terrible. It almost makes me want to edit it out, but I can't because you've done this to me many times where you've said, I have no idea what you said last week.

I don't remember anything. I swear to you, I remember your prediction was a route, right? Didn't you say a... Yes. Yeah. It was like 38 to 19 or 38 to 17. And you predicted Brissette would come in for how? Yes. Okay. Yes, I did. Stay tuned because I'm going to find that. I'm going to play it at the end of this show. You'll hear it outgoing. I apologize. I must not have been paying attention, which, by the way, after now 15 years of working with each other, it happens on occasion. I would say you, I'd say you lose track of what I say much more than I do with what you say. But that is funny. We're not talking about you today. We're rarely talking about me right now. Awesome.

Nailing of the prediction of the year. That is awesome. Good for you. Good for you. Nice job. Seriously, that's great. I had no idea I couldn't. I don't remember.

That was Thursday. That was, that's like months ago. I know. That's an eternity. Oh, boy. So you, but, but okay, with that said, because we make a lot of these, you know, predictions when we predict the games like, you know, score and more?

You were shocked when you saw it, right? I was surprised. Yeah. I was surprised when I saw it. Yeah, I was. How excited were you when you saw it, given what your production was? By what, I was more surprised by what happened after that in a way. Right, me too.

But, yeah, I was surprised. So I want to. I want to play something that Ron said yesterday for everybody. Nikki Javala asked him a question. You'll hear the question. You'll hear the answer. And then I want to get into, you know, as we sit here, nearly 48 hours after it happened, and not quite 48 hours, more like 44 hours after it happened.

What we think of it, you know, in hindsight, and was it significant what Ron did? But I want you to hear this Nikki Javala question from the Washington Post during Ron's Monday day after presser. Ron, if the team were 4 in 10 and you were competing for a playoffs, would this be the same scenario? Would you continue forward with Sam? Or is this about developing him versus turning to Jacobi? Well, if this was about playoffs and we're right in the middle of it and stuff like that, that's something you have to most certainly consider. Do we still have that opportunity to continue to win?

And that's one of the things you always consider because, again, you want to make sure everybody's getting the opportunity to be successful. So Ron was asked this question. Nikki clearly asking a question to find out whether or not Jacoby Brousset would have been the starter had they not been eliminated this coming week against the Jets. I said this morning Tommy to Denton, I'm like, at least he didn't say, I didn't know we weren't eliminated, as he did last year. But, you know, this is the kind of answer that you can't give.

You've got to be a little bit quicker on your feet. You can't address a hypothetical like this. It's like, I don't address hypotheticals, Nikki. We're 4 and 10 right now. Sam wasn't playing well, and we wanted to give him a break in Jekyllis. Kobe's been working hard all year. We were down 28-7. We thought we'd give him the reps to finish up the game.

Sam's our starter Sunday. But that's not what he said. What he said was much more interesting and important, as Ron. Ron usually says not important, but interesting. I think this is both because he basically told you that if the game Sunday meant anything, and it nearly did because if they had come back and won the game, they wouldn't have been eliminated. So we would have seen Jacobi Brewery.

Preset maybe against the Jets at five and nine. They didn't nearly come back. I mean, they made it, you know, within shouting distance. But he told you, basically, that Brisset would be, you know, is the guy that would give them the best chance to win right now. So what was your reaction to that? Well, my reaction was, yeah, Ron, I think you're right. I think that's the conclusion you should have come to.

before the season started, that your best chance to win games this year was to start Jacobi for set. I mean, which was really supposed to be the point. This whole idea of dedicating the season to developing a fifth round draft choice into your starting quarterback in your fourth year of three non-winning seasons before you was really stupid. And really, your point should have been to have won games this year. And Jacoby Preset gave you the best chance to do it.

I'm not saying, you know, he's a quality NFL starter. I know what he is, but I tell you what, he's the best quarterback that this team has had since Alex Smith. How many games more would they have won with Jacoby Brissette starting? They might have won. They might have had an eight-win or nine-win season. Really? Oh, in total. In total.

Okay. So instead of being four in ten right now, you think they might be seven and seven. Right. Which given the landscape of the playoffs right now where you've got like 2,500 teams vying for the playoff spot, they would have been in a hunt for a playoffs. Right. Okay. Now, it would it be a meaningful playoff appearance? Probably not.

but what if they want a playoff game? What if they finally want a playoff game? I mean, it's just one game. Shit, they almost beat the Bucs a couple years ago with Taylor Hineke. They didn't really almost beat the Bucs. So, I mean, so I just think he short-changed a lot of people, and he wound up costing people jobs as a result. You know, players are going to lose their jobs

because he flushed away this season. I mean, Terry McLaren basically has a lost year in his career right now because of this decision. You know, you asked that question early in the year. I remember you saying specifically, you know, this idea of, you know, developing a guy when a guy like Terry McClorn can't have another year wasted. Because I remember you specifically pointed that example out. Like, that's not fair to Terry McLorn. I don't know. They probably would have won two more games.

They'd be six and eight. Maybe they'd be seven and seven. I think Jacoby Brissette's a better quarterback. I think going back to the beginning of the year, we said that if they want to win nine games or more, nine games and be in contention for a wild card spot, Brissette's probably the way to go. But if you want to learn whether or not this fifth rounder that has armed talent

and has mobility and apparently, you know, has a lot of intangibles that people like. If there's any, you know, potential upside, you know, to him, then that's what this season should be about. Ultimately, you know, Ron kind of boxed himself in after the Dallas game last year. And, you know, we talked about that all offseason. And this summer, I just want to point out that, you know, if it had been a true competition, if Ron hadn't boxed, He boxed himself in. You know, one of the reasons he boxed himself in is because there weren't going to be a lot of options anyway. And, you know, we all said at the time, and actually it was Ben who really got it started, it's like the Cleveland answer to not knowing you'd been eliminated for the playoffs.

Like there was a real thud that last season ended with. And it was kind of all pointing back to Ron. The decision on Wentz, the not knowing they were, you know, eliminated from the playoffs. And it was like, hey, but did you see the Dallas game? look what we got here. But, you know, the actual training camp, the way it played out, nobody who was there every day, nobody who was there every day said, oh, Brissette just looks so much more advanced. Because we did.

No, they did. Yeah. So there's that. But I actually think what Sunday and sort of thinking about this for the last, you know, day and a half plus, is all season long, this has been about development, development, development. You know, letting Sam work through some of these tough moments. They didn't take him out of the Buffalo game. They didn't take him out of, you know, any of these games where he was not playing well.

And the team wasn't playing well. I mean, this hasn't all been about Sam. I mean, some of you have reached out to say, man, you guys are dumping on Sam all of a sudden after one game. I mean, the defense was bad again. It's all true. The team's been bad all season long. But this season's been about Sam from a certain point, if not from the beginning of the season. And Ron, you know, especially after losses, has really emphasized the, this is a development,

and this is about Sam's progress, and, you know, trying to make what he said before this season come true. You know, I'm going to leave you with all these players in a quarterback, and I'm going to be vindicated. And if they end up winning the Super Bowl, send me my ring, you know, which just, you know, in hindsight, just makes them look so foolish. But even at the time was a silly thing to say. I think the interesting thing to consider here, and I talked a lot about it on the show yesterday when I recap the game, but I want to get your thoughts too, is what changed Sunday with seven and a half minutes to go from developing, developing, developing, we're going to let him play through these tough moments to yanking him and putting in Jacoby Brissette. Well, Kevin, for the first time maybe in the history of the NFL, we had a quarterback pulled for compassion. Really? Is that what it was? Compassion?

I mean, he said, you know, we're trying to protect him. Well, you know, you've got to feel compassion for somebody in order to want to protect them. So I think this is the first time a quarterback's actually been pulled, or at least publicly acknowledged. that he we got him out of there because we feel sorry for him. Yeah, but you don't think that, really, because when he said protect him, this wasn't a game in which we've seen games in which he's been battered. This was not one of these games. Far worse beatings. Yeah.

No. In fact, I expected him to take a worse beating in the game that he did, but Aaron Donald was not his self, so they were saved that. But yeah, but that was the reason. reason they gave. I can't fathom what was the point of pulling him at that point, other than frustration by the head coach. And was he frustrated with the quarterback, or was he frustrated with the quarterback and the

offensive coordinator? So that's the answer, I think, that, well, that's my answer. I think that they've, and I said this yesterday in the podcast, and I'll say it again for those that didn't listen yesterday, and for time. his benefit. I think they just got really frustrated. It's possible he got frustrated with the offense in general, but his defense wasn't playing better either.

I think they got frustrated with Sam, and I think it's cumulative. I think that, you know, what's been happening is the stuff that a lot of people that watch the games, you know, because they see Sam's mobility and his ability to extend plays and make plays, you don't get to see what they spend a lot of time on, which is what he missed before he got to going off schedule. And I think there's been some frustration over what he's not been seeing and not been getting to. And I think it just kind of built up. I think it was cumulative because we've heard them refer to, you know, decision making and how he's getting to decisions.

You know, Kime wrote last week, it was perfect timing for this about how they want to see, you know, the process and the decision making. You know, that's really the progression that they want to see more of. And by the way, also to include pre-snap checks and pre-snap protections. And, you know, why do they have free runners coming off more often than other teams do? You know, is that offensive line? Is that scheme? Is it quarterback? And I think they just got to the point where.

When I say they, I think Ron, but probably Ron and Eric together, they just got to the point where they got frustrated and they just said, we got to put Jacoby in, you know, and we got to see the offense run the way we think it should be run. And Sam's getting frustrated, you know, they're coming back. He's coming back on the sidelines after that interception where Terry was wide open before he finally went off schedule and then through to Terry when he wasn't wide open. And they just, you know, for Sam, too, it's like he's coming back and he's probably saying, oh my God, I can't believe that I missed that. I didn't see that. Sorry, whatever. And they just wanted to give him a break.

And I don't know that they thought Jacoby was going to go in and lead him to two touchdowns. I don't think they expected that. I don't think they expected what happened. But I do think that they understood that Jacoby Bressett at some point during the season, especially in this recent stretch when they started to play better defenses, that they probably thought that, you know, they would have had a better chance with Jacoby. But at this point, they've already been, they're all in on the Sam development year. Now it doesn't matter. So I contended at the beginning of the season it matter.

Now it doesn't matter. Now there's no point not to play Sam Howe for a number of reasons. But the fact that they got to that point, if we are right, and I've talked to some people, and I had Nikki Javala on the radio show today, and she said it's exactly that. She said, I think it's exactly that. I've talked to Ben, I've talked to other people. I think everybody kind of has this sense that it wasn't to protect him from the battering.

It wasn't because they were fearing he was going to throw another pick six. It was that they got frustrated. And maybe he was frustrated too. Maybe there's some element of, we want you to see what Jacoby looks like running this. You know, because they knew Jacoby would get to what they wanted him to get to. in sequence, in timing, you know, whatever. I don't know, maybe it was an Eric B. Enemy push, you know, like, look, this is a big year for me, and it's starting to look a lot worse than it did three or four weeks ago.

Let me get 12 in there to show people how my offense should be run. In fact, Eric B. Enemy's interviews should just include those two drives at the end of the Rams game. But anyway, I think what's important... And let's make it clear about the Rams game. okay, what the Rissette did. Okay, granted, it was the fourth quarter with a team with a 28 to 7 lead, but they weren't in prevent defense.

No, they were not. They were running pretty much their normal defense. They may have been a little laid back, but it was not just prevent, they were just not going to sit there and say, okay, well, let them, you know, just take us down the field because it doesn't mean anything. I don't think that was what they,

I don't think they expected what happened, Yeah, no, no, there was no pre-vent. Is it possible that they were a little bit more vanilla and basic? I guess, I mean, you'd have to go back and really look at the whole thing. But I know what pre-vent looks like. All of you know what pre-vent looks like. They were not in pre-vent. They rushed four on every single dropback.

And by the way, from Washington's perspective, and I don't think I emphasize this enough yesterday, every single drop-back was a pure, you know, drop-back. There was no quick game. There was no design, get it out quickly. it was amazing how blocked up everything seemed to be. But anyway, I don't think obsessing over what Berset did is the point here. I think yanking Sam, if we're right, it being about frustration is very telling. And it's very significant in the conversation about quarterback with this franchise.

Because, you know, I'm not going to hack away the howlers out there that have been telling us to shut up and sit down if you don't think he's, you know, Joe Montana or Steve Young. I mean, which I just did anyway. The point is that none of us had gotten to a point yet. I think, well, some of you had. I know some of you have said to me all year long, she can't. Just say it.

He's not the answer. So some of you have felt that way all year long. But I think most people have had at various points in time, the feeling of could be. I mean, there's a lot to like. He can really make some plays. You could put me in that category. There was a lot to like at various points.

And by the way, I don't know that that's changed. I think one thing I've learned about Sam Hal in 14 games, he's going to be in the league. You know, now if he weren't a good guy or if he wasn't a good teammate, you know, it's possible he might not be in the league for long. But Sam Howe's the kind of guy that you actually. he's Gardner Minshu. I mean, Gardner Minshue is actually pretty damn good. And he might be the starter in a playoff game this year for the Colts. But, you know, he's going to be in the league. You know, there was no guarantee of that happening. I know a lot of you thought there was after the Dallas game last year. But he was a fifth round pick for a reason. So if, by the way, if Ron leaves us with a really good backup quarterback,

in some ways he'll be vindicated, but not for what he thought he would be vindicated for. But I guess the point here is, for the first time publicly, we learned that they're frustrated more likely than not with his progress. And that maybe, you know, as some of us have suggested, and I think reasonable people, most of you, there are some flaws here that are serious. flaws. There are some limitations that he has. You know, except for a few of you, nobody's really seen the next coming of an elite quarterback. What you were hoping was, or maybe what I was hoping for, I'll speak for myself, is maybe there's an Andy Dalton in there somewhere, which wouldn't be half bad to have a guy that was right around the middle of the pack of starting quarterbacks in the NFL,

and that you could build around if you decided on the quarterbacks in this draft, you didn't love anybody. But I think they told us more than anything that the next regime when they come in, there are questions about Sam Howell, many more than there were before Sunday. I think there were a lot of questions about Sam Howell. But I think there are, you know, the fact that they kind of bailed on this developing, developing, developing. He's going to work through it. I'm going to be vindicated because I'm going to leave you with a quarterback.

You don't, you know, uh-uh. Let me ask you this, then. Can they do it again? Can they pull him again? Tommy, I don't think they should have pulled him on Sunday. I think what we're talking about right now, we wouldn't be talking about to this extent. We would have been talking about another bad performance.

you know, in a stretch of very, you know, subpar to bad performances in a row from Sam, but we wouldn't have been talking about it the way we were talking about it. And maybe that doesn't, that shouldn't even matter to a certain degree. But from their standpoint, you know, they, I don't know if they benefit from what they did publicly. I don't think they do. I don't think they do. But my question is, if they do it, can be? they do it again. And if they do it again, is it over? If they do it again, then those that think and

want Sam Howell to be the long-term answer should just be thankful that this won't be the coaching staff next year, because if it happened again, then Sam would not be the frontrunner with this group to be the starting quarterback in 2024. They would absolutely, as they should be, by the way, be focused on the quarterbacks in the draft and continuing to look for a bona fide starting quarterback because they wouldn't think that they were, you know, had one. But, you know, some of you might say, well, it's the coaching staff that's the problem. It's not Sam. So a new coaching staff might really take to him and figure out something that makes more sense for him. You know, I keep coming back to one thing that I've said all year long. There are games in which

I've watched Sam and I'm like, yeah, he just looks like more of a Gardner, Minchu, Taylor, not Taylor Heineke, you know, Colt McCoy type, because he's got the arm strength and he's got the mobility, but he's small, he's short, he plays small, he plays short. Jacoby looked big, because he is big, you know? He is a big dude. He is a tall dude. Can they do it again? I didn't answer a question.

Can they do it again? They can, but they won't. So they won't. I think they will. You do? I think they will. Listen, it's house money for you now. It's house money.

I know. I know. I mean, they're playing. Look, the Jets has certainly a winnable game for the team. The Jets offense is putrid, but the Jets' defense is good. And that's who Sam Al has to play against. He's not playing against the offense. And then you've got the 49ers after that.

You know, I think that the chance of Sam melting down increases significantly in the next two weeks. And then you'll see another compassionate poll. They are playing the next two games, the next three games. They're playing the number three defense in the league per DVOA, the number four defense in the league per DVOA, and the number six defense in the league per DVOA. So we knew that the better defenses were coming. And we knew, you know, kind of hindsight, because, you know, a lot of people believe Philadelphia's defense

was going to be a dominant defense. And his two best games of the year are probably the two Philly games, right? Yeah, absolutely. Philly's defense has proven to be not a very good defense for much of the year. So from that extent, you know, I actually want, I actually want a side with you, but I don't want to side with you because then I'm just jumping on your Sam Howl's going to get benched bandwagon. I think it's going to be hard for them to do it. What would you do it for?

I guess you would do it for the next time legitimately fearing for his health if he's getting battered because he's not seeing things. What if now he started? And Sam Howe, from all counts, I've never met the man, from all counts is a very likable young man and liked by his teammates. And it hasn't been a peep too much at all, if at all, about frustration from his teammates. But after that little display by Jacoby percent, frustration may boil to the surface a little bit quicker. You know, John Dotson, his sophomore year is a wait. It's done. you know, it's finished for this year as far as accomplishing anything. You know, that may percolate the idea that you might finally see player frustration in these final two or three games.

Who cares at this point? There's three games left. There's going to be a massive overhaul of the roster probably anyway. We know a massive overhaul on the coaching staff and the front office more likely than not. You know, it's funny because, you know, we know that Sam Howells attempted more passes than any player in the league. He's also completed more passes than any player in the league with the exception of Mahomes. And yet, you know, Dotson has been, for the most part, missing in action this year. They've just spread it around so much.

But, yeah. Yeah, I just think that what happened Sunday was pretty... The fact that they basically went public with, were kind of frustrated with Sam. And then when he had the opportunity yesterday with the Nikki question to just shut it down and say, no, no, no, Sam's been fine. We really just...

We're down three touchdowns. Sam, you know, had thrown an interception. We just thought he needed a break. Jacoby wanted some, you know, needed some reps because he's been such a great guy for us all year long. But no, Sam's our guy. And he couldn't even handle that. And as I said this morning, Tommy, when he answers a question that he shouldn't answer, he's telling the truth.

And that's a question he shouldn't have answered. And I believe him wholeheartedly that Jacoby Brousset would have started against the Jets had they won the game against the Rams and still been mathematics. automatically alive. A hundred percent believe that. So do I, I think. And I think the odds of Washington drafting a quarterback based on what happens Sunday, you know, doubled. Like I thought they were kind of high anyway, and I certainly wanted them to explore all of these quarterbacks, but I think that at least as far as this group goes, we learned a lot.

Here's one other quick angle on Jacoby Brissette. What if Eric Bianamy just says, man, I got three games left here. I mean, if Sunday starts off the same way, I got to prove to people that I can design an offense without interception, sacks, batted balls, and low QBR and low passer rating numbers. I mean, the attempts in the yards are one thing, but everything else is near right. bottom, if not at the bottom. Look, I think the ship on Herrick the enemy for him has sailed. I think he was almost as tied

to the development of this young quarterback as Ron Rivera was. We have other things to get to. We'll start that process right after these words from a few of our sponsors. All right, Tommy, tell us about Shelly's. Okay, it's getting awfully close. Christmas is less than a week away.

And if you're panicking out there as to what to get for a Christmas present, let me tell you, gift cards from Shelley's Backroom, that's the ticket, baby. You go online, shelley's backroom.com. They have gift cards in amount so I think $5 up to $500 to use to buy cigars there for eat, drink, and merriment, all available on gift cards from Shelley's backroom. This is, you know, don't go running around scrambling for a last-minute present. All you got to do is take your mouth, click on shelley's backroom.com, order a gift card for a good friend.

They'll appreciate it. They'll thank you for it, and you go with them and enjoy that gift as well. Shelly's backroom at 1331 F Street Northwest in the district. And tomorrow night, Wednesday night, I will be having my little Christmas celebration with my boys at Shelly's. Like I said, I'm staying in the night in D.C. Oh, that's right. Tomorrow night. Yeah. So I'm fully invested for an evening at Shelly's.

And you know what? You'll be able to hear everybody much better. By the way, I was thinking maybe I should have had the hearing aids. on Thursday show your new hearing aids. How are they working out for you? What are they working out? I remember that part of the show. Yeah, one of them is the right one doesn't seem to be working for some reason.

The left one's more necessary because my left ear is the one that has the worst hearing. But I have an appointment to go back next week for any changes and adjustments. So I'll sure I'll get it worked out then. but when I've worn them, I've been happy with them. And they've been easy to wear. That's awesome. Good for you. Yeah.

So, did you watch the Monday night game last night, Philly in Seattle? Yes. Yes, I did. All right. Awesome. I did. I am, I'm, I'm kind of, I'd say I'm surprised. I'm shocked at how bad Philly has played a elite and how they're not as good as most of us

thought they were, particularly their defense and their pass rush. I mean, I thought they would generate much more pressure as a pass rushing team. And they've been a major disappointment. Yeah, last night, I actually did people. I ended up betting Seattle plus four. I did not give it out as a smell test pick. I wanted to thought I would on Friday. But all the quarterback uncertainty, that's why I passed on the game last night.

but I ended up betting it right before. And the reason I ended up betting it right before is the Monday night crew, which Scott Van Pelt, my very close friend, you know, he runs that pregame show now on ESPN. And he's got, you know, Alex Smith with him and Ryan Clark and the whole gang, including RG3, who, oh my God. I'm assuming you didn't watch any of the... First of all, he raced the Seattle hawk. He raced the hawk, right?

Yeah, he did that. That's fun. Good for him. But towards the end of the show, they make all of their predictions. And everybody picked the Eagles to win. And then Scott, you know, because the two of us basically bet the exact same way, Scott just said, give me, you know, give me the Seahawks if all of you have the Eagles. And so that's when I fired in on Seattle plus the four.

last night. But real quickly, RG3, when he gave his prediction, he said, one of the reasons I'm giving this prediction is because Nick Siriani just came over to me and said, man, I know you can still do it. You can still play. I mean, it's just some, I swear to you, I swear to you. And the reaction from the guys on the set was priceless. Yeah. Did you hear the interview that he did with Sam Howell last week on his podcast. Did we talk about that? I talked about it on Friday. He had this long winding question for Sam about Eric, about Eric B. Enemy and, you know, people are saying, and rumors, and I hate rumors, and I hate anonymous sources and all of this. And I just said, after playing it, I just said, anonymous sources, rumors, the head coach said it in August. Like,

And what's so disingenuous about that, look, I'll give him some chance that he completely forgot about it, is if I recall, he went off on Ron, like everybody did, justifiably so, for saying what he said in August and throwing, you know, Bien to me under the bus and saying that players had come to him to express concern. It was just so hysterical. But, yeah, no, he said, I'm not picking Philly just because Nick Siriani came over to me, fellas and said, hey man, I know you can still do it, you can still play. I swear to you, he said that.

And then, oh, there was something else I'm not going to get into. Anyway, I ended up betting Seattle because everybody seemed to be picking Philly. But I actually never thought at any point in watching that game last night that Seattle was going to cover, let alone win the game. I actually thought Philly looked better on defense with Matt Patricia calling the defense for much of that game. I thought Jalen Hertz actually looked more spry. He looked faster. He looked a little healthier last night.

He ran for 82 yards last night, and he looked much quicker doing it. I never gave Seattle a chance. and, you know, Kenneth Walker, the 3rd's been one of my favorite backs going back to Michigan State. But, you know, Drew Locke, you know, wasn't great. And then all of a sudden, down 1713, I mean, 92-yard drive with one timeout that they never used in the final minute 52 seconds was really impressive. Did you watch his post-game interview with Lisa Salters? It was fantastic. You know who it reminded me of?

You know who it reminded me of? Who? Colt McCoy after he came in in the Tennessee game for Washington and let a comeback win. He was so emotional

because, you know, he didn't know if he'd ever be on the field again at a, you know, in a game. Right. At that point.

And I think Drew Locke had that same feeling. Like, he didn't know if he'd ever have that moment. It was really, it was really, a great interview. And I think anybody, and I don't know anything about Drew Locke, but if you just wanted to reach out and say great job, young man,

that's so awesome that you got to do that because it was a signature drive. You know, first of all, they had to win to stay not mathematically alive, but to stay legitimately alive. And he made big time throws. He did. Cooley loved Drew Locke coming out. I remember Cooley was a big fan of Drew Locke and thought that there was a chance he would go in the first round. And, you know, one of the reasons Russell Wilson did not get traded to Washington by Seattle was that John Schneider, the general manager of the Seahawks, who was here with Marty Schottnheimer, by the way, in 2001, he was a big fan of Drew Locke.

He wanted Drew Locke to be part of the deal. I think he also wanted to trade Russell Wilson to the AFC. and I think Russell Wilson ultimately with his wife wanted to stay closer to the West Coast. But one of the reasons Schneider said it, he said, I'm a big fan of Drew Locke, and they got Drew Locke in the trade, and then Gino Smith beat him out. They did not anticipate that going into training camp last year. But that was, I never thought watching. He had entirely way too much time to throw.

I mean, the Philly Passed Rush and I thought was going to be strong. That's not been. And I tell you what else had an issue with? And I'm not big on the play calling that much because I'm not on the sideline call the place. The Phillies' last play, the interception, I mean, they have 12 seconds left. They have two timeouts.

They have to go 15 yards to kick a field goal, and they go deep in the double coverage. The stupid play call. Yeah, I don't know if that was the answer. actual, I mean, they took a shot and they were taking a shot to A.J. Brown. By the way, last night, and I'm not a big fantasy guy, but I am, I was one of the final four teams here with four weeks to go alive in Paul Charchee in one of his guillotine leagues, which is a league where basically the team with the lowest points each week gets chopped.

You're not playing head-to-head with somebody each week. Lowest score is out and then the last man standing. It's kind of like a survivor pool for fantasy football. Well, I'm one of the final four, and it came down last night to AJ Brown needing a modest night to beat me. And all he needed was one more reception in the game, and I'm out, all right? This is what it came down to. And I was like, I had Seattle, and they're down 17, 13, and so I'm pushing. So I want him to score a touchdown, but if they score a touchdown, then Philly's going to get the ball. ballback, they're going to be throwing, and A.J. Brown's probably going to get his last

reception, and then they could kick a field goal, and they could win an overtime by six, and I could lose the bet. So I was really messed up last night. But ultimately— Really conflicted interest going on. They took two shots at A.J. Brown. He caught one ball out of bounds on that last drive, and then that last pass that you talked about, they certainly didn't need a bomb down to the Seattle 17. Now, that was a hell of an interception. You don't...

Yeah, but they did. I mean, I figured, you know, they had a chance. They had at least two plays left to get down to the field goal. Yeah. You know? Yeah, no, they did. And they had timeouts. And they didn't get there.

And they had a kicker with, you know, a big, big leg. So Philly has... You know, Phillies lost three games in a row. The 49ers, Cowboys, and Seahawks on the road. Now, they finish with the Giants twice in the Cardinals. All right. The Cardinals in between the Giants twice. You know, they'll be big favorites in these games.

I think they're an 11-point favorite over the Giants on Christmas Day. And so I think they'll get it together in terms of winning games here down the stretch. It's just weird. I thought the game was weird last night because for most of the game, I thought Philadelphia was the superior team. And I thought that they had actually, you know, I was like, man, They're playing much better defensively. And then it kind of changed, and Jalen Hertz threw two picks in the fourth quarter.

Bottom line, they lose 20 to 17. In the NFC, though, there's going to be a lot of jockeying for, you know, position and divisions and seating. Tommy, if the 49ers stay healthy, they're just not going to lose at home. No. I don't see anyone stopping them. And that leads me to this. Christmas night, Ravens at 49ers, will be one of the Super Bowl. It will be one of the biggest regular season games between an AFC team and an NFC team,

late in the season that we've ever seen. Now, I remember when Dan Marino lit up the Bears, the 85 Bears, late in the season in December on a Monday night. And that was, you know, people thought it could be a preview of the Super Bowl. The Bears ended up playing the Patriots in the Super Bowl because the Patriots, beat the Dolphins in the AFC championship game in Miami, by the way, in an upset. So that almost was a preview of the Super Bowl. And the Bears, who didn't give up anything all year, gave up, you know, 38 points to the dolphins that night and lost.

That was a hyped game, a massively hyped game. This game, Christmas night, the two best teams maybe in the NFL, certainly the 49ers, the best team in the NFL. you could debate the Ravens. And they're playing on Christmas night. I mean, how many of you out there are preparing your significant others if they're not football fans like my wife is not with, oh, by the way, sweetheart, the Christmas dinner? And fortunately, we're not entertaining a large group.

Maybe we can start that thing at around, you know, 6 o'clock, 6.30, because at 8.15, it's Ravens and Niners. Wow, what a game. I mean. Yeah, absolutely. And, well, you know, the Ravens, they had a big win on the road against Jacksonville, but they had a big loss with Keaton Mitchell. Oh, huge loss.

He's such an explosive player for their offense. Torne ACL, yep. Yeah. Yeah, that's a shame. So there was something else I wanted to mention. Did you know that Montez Sweat currently? leads two teams in sacks. He is still the sack leader for Washington with six and a half,

and he leads the bears with six sacks. He had two and a half sacks in their loss to the Browns, to Flacco in the Browns on Sunday. He's really playing, well, he's got 12 and a half sacks for this season. Yeah. With still three games left. Amazing that he wasn't this dominant in Washington or this consistently dominant. But, you know, the sack, the best for him in terms of sacks in his career was nine in 2020.

So he's already at 12 and a half and climbing. I guess the coaches were right. We all heard that inside the building, sweat was the one they wanted to keep. He was the one they wanted to keep. that is that is 100% true um i know there was one other thing i didn't ask you about as it related to sunday's game i mean how did they go that long with cameron cheeseman they replaced him by the way today with tucker addington um he was recently in in jacksonville during training camp how does how do you do that when you know you've got a problem they put tressway at great

They put everybody at great risk by continuing to put this guy out there. And I know he had two excellent years to start his career. But this has been an issue all year long, and it was a time bomb ticking. That's a level of negligence as far as football is concerned. There was so much evidence of bad coaching from that, from a bad organizational decisions on display Sunday. The Cheesman one was certainly one of them. Taking three minutes from the goal line to score was another one.

And then honestly, that was bad. That was really bad. But knowing that the snapper had the yips, you got to go for two after that score. The analytics people will tell you go for two anyway. But, I mean, the fact that you also had a snapper that literally had the yips, and you can't put him out there again. Yeah, I agree. Especially if you've got an option, and he had an option, and he didn't choose it. By the way, one other quick NFL note, Taylor Heineke's back in the starting lineup for Atlanta on Sunday against the Colts.

And so he is in the same position. There's a coach who's going to be losing his job, Arthur Smith, right? I don't know. I actually think Arthur Smith is pretty good. I think he knows what he's doing. I do. I don't know if he's a head coach, though. Yeah.

Desmond Ritterer threw a pick late in that game, and it turned out to be a pick in which the parent-panthers took over and ate the last seven minutes of the clock off and kicked a walk-off field goal to win the game. So I mentioned, you know, the news that Heineke was starting today. And then I read this DM that I got from our friend Sabah. Sabah wrote, Kevin, remember Taylor got us into the playoffs. Ron kicked us out with playing Wentz and benching Taylor for the Browns game.

Please stop denying that. Well, you know, Taylor got you, you know, was the quarterback of a team that was in contention for the playoffs. And then what happened, just as a reminder, is they lost a game to the Giants at home in which he had three turnovers in the game. And then they lost a game against a better 49ers team on the road in which he had two turnovers in the game. So in two consecutive weeks, they were. 7, 5, and 1, and he had five turnovers in two games. And so they may not have gotten

into the playoffs if Taylor Heineke had played the Cleveland game. Let's not litigate to Taylor Heineke season again. Oh, I mean, even I don't want to do that. I know, but it's just so unbelievable that the Taylor Heineke Huyvers, or whatever they call themselves,

actually forget that he wasn't very good in the games that mattered most, before the Cleveland game. And the Cleveland game was a defensive loss, too, which I've, you know, I've described many times in the past. Enough about that. But you know what?

Taylor has a chance to totally make all of the Taylor Heinekept people look good. Atlanta is one game out in the NFC South. They play the Colts on Sunday, a playoff contender, but definitely a beatable team at home. They play the Bears on the road after that, and they finish at the Saints in a game that could mean the division. So Taylor Heineke, look, I understand with the way Ritter's playing why you would then turn to Heineke. He's a good backup quarterback in a pinch. And by the way, there's Taylor Magic every once in a while.

There's no doubt about that. Yes, there is. All right. A few more things to finish up with when we come back. right after these words from a few of our sponsors. This final segment of the show is brought to you by our good friends at Surfside. Surfside's fajita boxes are so good. Over the holidays, you've got people in town, you got people over, you don't want to cook.

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The food is great. They make great tacos if you know Surfside, but I'm telling you, their fajitas are incredible. Learn more at SurfsideDC.com. So I've got a couple of things for. you real quickly. All right, before you get to Godzilla, which I didn't ask you about last week. Right. So I watched the Barry Sanders documentary on Amazon Prime.

I'm assuming you haven't seen it, right? No, I have not. It was very good. I really enjoyed it. He was definitely, the way he retired, faxing his retirement from London, was very controversial in Detroit. I mean, it is a Detroit, you know, there was a lot of disappointment at the time. They love Barry.

I mean, you know, he's one of the all-time great lions and revered lions. But in the moment, it was not something that, you know, people in Detroit loved. And there's, you know, there's still a lot of mystery around it. So the mystery is somewhat answered to a certain degree. But I really enjoyed the documentary and I enjoyed him. He's definitely odd and a little bit nerdy. but you can just tell he's a really good person, just incredibly introverted and humble.

When he won the Heisman trophy, he didn't even want to win the Heisman trophy because he didn't want any attention. There are many examples of that. But here's what it got me into a conversation with one of my sons about. My son watched it as well and said, So, Dad, is Barry Sanders the greatest running back of all?

time. A lot of people think he is. And I said, no. I mean, well, first of all, time, me, let me just tell you. Barry Sanders' father, you know, said over and over again, Barry Sanders is the third greatest running back of all time. All right? Jim Brown's number one, like everybody, his father's age, Jim Brown's number one, not just running back, but football player. And then his father, who was incredibly extroverted, said, I'm number two, because apparently he was a decent player, And then my son's three. But so if we took Jim Brown out of the conversation in discussing the greatest running back of all time, who is your greatest running back of all time?

Taking Jim Brown out of the conversation because everybody... So Peyton's number one for you? Yeah. Taking Jim Brown out of the equation, yes. Second part of the question, who's your favorite of the great running back? of all time. Maybe not the greatest after Jim Brown, but your favorite. I think we have the same favorite. I'm surprised you haven't answered it yet. You were a big Earl Campbell fan, weren't you? Yeah, but he's not my favorite. Okay. I go with Walter Payton is my favorite, too.

Okay. I have a hard time answering this question. I, and I love the position, and I've, you know, the position was much more prominent. You could say that for the 70s, 80s and probably even 90s, it was as big as the quarterback position was in the NFL. Don't you think so? I think so. The biggest superstars were running backs. We're big starts.

There's so many running backs that I think fit the greatest of all time after Jim Brown, and I didn't see Jim Brown. Walter Payton's definitely in the conversation. Gail Sayers and the meteoric career, rise, the quick career that he had. A lot of people will say that. You know, Big Tony texted me and just said, Bo Jackson in terms of power and speed combined, but Bo Jackson didn't have a long football career. It's too short. You know, I was a huge fan of Eric Dickerson. My favorite, though, was really, I loved watching Earl Campbell play. I thought he was the most dominant, physical, and athletic

speed in one body for that era. And he was just great. I was not a massive Barry Sanders fan. I think Adrian Peterson, by the way, is kind of in that same mode of Earl Campbell. By the way, Rigo was in the mode of Earl Campbell as well. I mean, I think a lot of people forget how fast Rigo was and how incredibly athletic he was. He wasn't a fullback, you know, in the true sense. I always turn to Gilbrant for Gilbrant, the late Gilbrant's lists for these, because I think he's one of the great kind of football guys who was also kind of a historian. So he put his running back list out a few years ago. Number one, of course, is Jim Brown.

Number two is Walter Payton. Number three is Gail Sayers. Four, he actually has Bo Jackson. Five, Lidani and Tomlinson. Six, Eric Dickerson. I was a big Dickerson fan. And then he's got seven Barry Sanders. Eight's Earl Campbell, nine's Tony Dorset.

He was a Cowboys guy. But he didn't have Emmett, number one, because he had Emmett 11. O.J. Simpson was 10. O.J. Simpson was 10. Emmett was 11. I mean, Emmett Smith is the all-time leading rusher in NFL history. And a guy who's a Cowboys guy. Now, he was more of a TechSram Landry guy, not a Jerry Jones guy.

So Gil Brant wasn't around for those Cowboys Emmett Smith teams, right? I think I'm right about that. Right. But Emmett Smith is the, you know, I think one of the things that comes out about the Barry Sanders thing is that the retirement, the early retirement, you know, after, you know, 10 years in the league is he would be more likely than not. He'd be the all-time leading rusher. And if he were the all-time leading rusher and he sat number one ahead of Emmett Smith,

which he would have gotten to had he played, you know, two, three more years, would we consider Barry Sanders to be the greatest of all time after Jim Brown? I think a lot of people think he's the greatest ever anyway. Not for me, though. Run and shoot, lost a lot of yards in games. He was special, no doubt about it. I mean, he was really an incredible back. I mean, some of the runs.

I mean, to me, his running style was comparable to Gail Sayers. Don't you think Sayers is the comp for Sanders? I think so. Yeah. I would agree with that. Anyway. Good documentary on Barry Sanders if you're looking for a football doc to watch. All right, tell me about Godzilla. I know you went to it the other night, and I think you really liked it. I think Neal and Rockville told me that you really liked it. Somebody told me that. I went last week with my son. You know, monster movies have always been kind of like a connection with us. could talk, and we both really enjoy them.

I was blown away by this movie, and I think in part because I didn't expect it to be a good movie, I mean, which is different than the good Godzilla movie. You know, I mean, we're not talking about Citizen Kane generally with Godzilla movies here. Okay? There's a certain thing that you like about the monster and all that, but this, was a good movie. It was a great story about post-war Japan taking place in this movie that was moving, that was interesting, and Godzilla's in the middle of it.

It's such a remarkable, remarkable accomplishment that to walk out of that theater to say, wow, that wasn't just a good monster movie. That was a good film. I highly recommend it. to everybody, I think you'll be surprised. I think that's the biggest thing, is people were surprised. Like, it's got like 98 or 99% approval on Rotten Tomatoes. And I'll be curious to see what happens down the line when they give out awards.

It's a Japanese film. It's got subtitles. So I think it would probably qualify under foreign films, I would think. but it's that good. It's that good of a movie. So do you think that somebody like me who loves shows with dragons with really good character development that are really good shows, even though they have dragons in them? Do you think somebody like me would like a movie with monsters,

but it's a really good movie and good characters and good story line? Do you think I'd like that? I think it's above your pay grade. You are just something else. I mean, you love the upside down. You love monsters. But for some reason, these dragons, they just, you can't get over the dragon thing for some reason. That, you know what, that show is definitely above your pay grade, no doubt.

In fact, I'm going to stop trying to convince you to watch it. Because you'd actually come in here and tell me that you didn't like it. Godzilla, where do I, will it be? available for me to watch at home at some point? I'm sure it will at some point. I mean, it wasn't fully released in all movie theaters. I think it is now. But it's really good.

And there's an emotional story to be told there about post-war Japan that I'd never really considered before. So it's interesting. All right, there we go. Godzilla, recommendation from Tommy. It's got monsters in it. So those of you that don't like, you know, shows or movies with, you know, fantasy stuff involved, you may not like it, but Tommy highly recommends it.

Can't wait. I'm going to, you know what? I actually, the fact that you mentioned post-war Japan is a big part of this movie is why now I'm really interested in watching it. Very interesting. Well, you should be. It's a good story. All right. Do we have anything else to mention on this show today?

I think you did a really good job today. I just can't get over that I did not hear you say or register that you predicted. That's so typical. It is typical of you and atypical of me. But I'm so glad that I matched you today. I matched your forgetfulness today. Maybe it's me who needs the hearing aid. back

back tomorrow with a guest on the show see you I would take that over if I was everybody Rams 38 commanders 20

38 to 20 and my asterisk is that Jacoby Berset will wind up in the game Thank you.