The Pat McAfee Show - PMS 2.0 007 - Eric Weddle, Mike Florio, & Joe Thomas

Episode Date: September 25, 2018

On today's show, Pat and the guys chat about Tiger winning his first tournament in forever, dive into week 3 of the NFL including the Chiefs and Rams maybe being unbeatable, whether or not Patrick Mahomes is the new prototype, Josh Allen winning in Minnesota, and The For The Brand Super Bowl in Jacksonville.. Also joining the show is 5x Pro Bowler and 5x All-Pro, and current safety for the Baltimore Ravens, Eric Weddle. They discuss whether the game has gotten soft, his foray into free agency, and what's next for him (39:08-57:29). Next, the blogfather, Mike Florio, joins the show to chat about the Everson Griffin situation in Minnesota, reporters bringing up old news and repackaging it as breaking news, and how he thinks the Steelers are going to move forward with Lev Bell (1:05:41-1:19:10). Lastly, Cleveland Browns legend, and the greatest offensive lineman of all-time, Joe Thomas, joins to chat about the Browns first win (1:19:58-1:26:28). It's a good one. Cheers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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And God damn it, week three of the NFL season was a beautiful one. But it wasn't just the football that stole the weekend. beautiful one but it wasn't just the football that stole the weekend a man donning a red golf polo stampeded his way through a golf course in atlanta to bring golf all the way back the sea of humanity following him down that 18th fairway surrounding the green watching him win his first championship in forever mr tiger woods his life is a beautiful thing. I might be wrong here. He kissed that lady. I guess she's been around for a long time. Yeah.

He said, I love you on there, the whole kit and caboodle. At least the last year. Huh? At least the last year. She's been there for the last year? I've seen her at tournaments, yeah. He said, I love you to her. I was like, oh, what is this?

Is this what Tiger Woods is doing? Good for Tiger. I guess she's the GM of some restaurant or some building he has down there. So they met through work, I guess. So Tiger's all wifed up now saying he loves somebody. He's winning golf games, going into the Ryder Cup. I think United States is going to dominate Europe just like we normally do. I cannot wait to watch it.

But football, football, football. I cannot believe the way this roughing the passer thing is happening. Last night on Monday Night Football, it was another level. There was every single play, there was a fucking flag. I bet the under. I bet the under. Because of the rain? Yes.

And also it was prime time. I thought Fitz would get a little tight. I thought that was something that would happen, which did happen early. And his teammates didn't help him much. But I bet the under, and then all of a sudden the refs are just handing out 15 fucking yards. Hey, go score.

Yeah, go score. Please, go score. Then turnover would happen. I'm like, thank God. Yeah, go score. Go score. Now you've got players coming outside jj watt opens by the way when captain america jj watt the man who raises 40 some million dollars for a city

he's been defensive player of the year the nfl has put him over in a super whenever he comes out and just goes hey hey and he didn't say these words but he basically said hey y'all fucking up with this guy there that might as well be what J.J. Watt said. You got quarterbacks coming out saying it's stupid. Aaron Rodgers, I think, said it was dumb. It's bigger than him. Tom Brady said it. Wow. There you go.

Well, Tom Brady and the league have a really good relationship. We all know that. When he speaks, everyone listens. I like the way Tom Brady handled that press conference, by the way, after they lose. The Patriots might be done. By the way, Boston Connors in here can't win a goddamn game on Fortnite, can't win a game of Madden in here,

and the Patriots are now, they've lost two consecutive games. One to the Lions. They're fine. Rob Gronkowski was told, Rob, we're thinking about trading you to the Lions. And Rob goes, whoo?

I'm not going to Detroit. Is that where Lions are? Yeah, Detroit. He goes, I quit. Full on threatened to quit instead of go to Detroit. Now, he spun it and said, Tom Brady's my quarterback. But let's see if an L.A. team was in the mix. If the L.A. Rams were in the mix, I wonder if he was like,

Tom Brady, fuck, yep, I'll go. That was whenever his agent started leaking that Rob is thinking about pursuing a lucrative acting career. Yeah, a lucrative. By the way, Rob's thinking about leaving football for a very, very successful other fucking business

before he's ever acted in his entire life. That was such a good spin zone. But the fact that he almost quit instead of going to Detroit, that has to be tough to feel, Evan Fox. Pretty classic. Everyone retires in Detroit. You guys are winning, though.

Yeah, I mean, we're back right now. Until next week. Did you see? I guess Matt Patricia, I've been hearing to the players listen or listening to the players speak. I guess he's brought a culture in there that they were not used to.

Yeah, that's what I heard him saying. That's why they said he already lost the locker room. Long practices. But they're back. Two-hour practices. I guess he's like, no, this is like Mangini when Mangini went to the Browns. He had rookies going full-on Oklahoma drills on Fridays two days before the game trying to get that hard-ass mentality that the Patriots have.

And it doesn't work normally. This is why Bill Belichick's coaching tree normally doesn't work because everybody's like, hey, dog, you ain't got the resume to fucking Belichick. You can't treat us that way. But now it seems that the team could be buying in. Yeah, I guess that he was making them run, and they all hated that. Just run. Huh.

Run. Everybody hates running. Winning changes everything. Winning cures everything, just like what happened with the Pittsburgh Steelers last night. Now, granted, we talked a little bit about me betting the under because of the thing, and they covered by two fucking points there at the end.

Boswell was doing his best to help me out. Yeah, he was. I don't know what's going on with Boswell. That field was shit, too. So, I mean, there's built-in excuses, but Boswell, he seems to be in his own head right now, but he made a couple good kicks at things like that. But the Steelers, I'm excited to see what happens. It seems like James Conner can be the truth.

He came in, he was a closer. He was, right? Just like what could have happened to Cleveland. Instead, he fumbled then. Now he's learned his lesson. He's a rook, basically. He was holding on tight with two hands. That's good play.

I needed that bat. I was in a state of depression, and another loss probably would have just set me over the edge. I'm very happy we don't have to deal with you like that either, just by the way. I've never experienced you like that. Like this morning, Nick came skipping in here, basically. Nick, I was like, how you doing? He's like, great.

And it was like 7 a.m. I'm like, what the fuck are you? Oh, the Steelers won last night. It's my life, man. It's all I care about. You guys and the Cleveland Browns have the same record. That's got to feel pretty good. But you've got a better record than the Patriots right now.

Not a big deal. Those Monday night football announcers are... I'll probably never get a deal with ESPN. And I don't care to be honest. They're not really my cup of tea anyways. Randy Moss is hilarious. Hasselbeck's a good friend of mine. But those commentators are absolute dog shit.

I have no idea how that is what they choose to put on Monday nights. What about Booger? How do you feel about him? I like him. I think I like him. I think he's the one spot. Witten's so bad, and I've hated Booger for my entire life. I'm starting to like Booger.

It's fucking weird. Witten has no personality. Him on his little pod, by the way, just cruising around. They added another camera angle behind him now. Now there's two camera angles for him. It's just beautiful. And then they have those solo, whenever they put Tessitore,

by the way, I think Tessitore's bad too. You guys say you think Tessitore's good. Everybody says he thinks he's good. In college. Well, I think what happens is the college environment is a lot louder. So that can make up for it. Because in the NFL,

it's not a college environment. So there isn't just a hum or a buzz in the background at all times. So in the NFL, the commentators have to carry the show. Yeah, it's different. You have to really do that. I don't think Destor's good. Well, and he was still always doing the 10, 11 o'clock West Coast game.

He was never on primetime in college, which is interesting that he made the jump to Monday Night Football. Everybody seems to like the guy. His kid's a kicker, which I respect a lot, but I think he's dog shit. And I think Jason Witten, they should never put him on TV. Maybe have him just speak and then come back. But when they put him on TV,

it looks like he's trying to fight Joe Tessitore. Yes, it does. It looks like he... He looks uncomfortable. Yes, he looks so uncomfortable. Now, we should give him a little credit. They thrusted him into this prime time position when he's never been on television before. But he looks terrible.

He looks absolutely terrible. His mannerisms don't match the words coming out of his mouth. It looks like he's getting ready to grab hold and shake him. And he's just like, yes, I agree. You know what I mean? It's like, no, it looks like you're excited. Jason Witten, great football player. I'm sure he's a great human.

I'm sure he's a great husband, great father But he's dog shit on TV I don't know how, they have to be looking in the mirror This morning, just for fun I put in hashtag MNF And then announcers Jason Witten should not do that Jason Witten should not search the same thing I search

And neither should Tessitore And Booger gets a little love there because he's on his own little island down there, but it's bad. It is bad. And we live in a society that likes to bitch about everything, but whenever it is a tidal wave of humans from both sides of the aisle being like,

yo, this shit's bad, you got to take a look in the mirror, but they can't do anything about it now. Can't do anything about it. They kind of made their bed, and now they got to shit in it. I don't know what to do with my hands. That's what reminds me of Will Ferrell.

You know? He doesn't know. It seems like he's going to fucking bust out of his suit. He's a good looking man. Good looking man. But he stares for you watching on YouTube, he stares at Joe Tessitore like this while he's talking and the camera's coming from the side.

So he's just staring at him and yelling and then he goes back to the camera and then he goes back to yelling at Joe Tessitore and Tessitore looks frightened to be in there and then he's got to kind of pull it together and I'm just like this is fucking terrible TV this is bad it is bad bad bad so last night probably the funniest thing that I've ever seen in the NFL happened when that dude ran into the fucking wall. I didn't even wait. Normally, I wait to see if the guy's okay.

I didn't even fucking care. Just immediately sent out LOLOL because I was on my bed fucking crying laughing. Both teams, too. Normally, both of them just... The camera people that were down there with their lenses, they just kind of turned and were just like... You saw the ball go flying and you knew he airmailed it. And they were both running full speed still out of the back of the end zone. Six, seven yards.

Never slowed down. No warning tracker. Oh, man. That wall, though. There's not a lot of give there. I want to give a shout out to the Dolphins stadium designers, too. Me and Ty were watching the game. Theirs is like three feet from the end line.

Oh, yeah. But it's close. Oh, yeah. I mean, that's Jimmy Buffett Stadium, isn't it? I thinks is like three feet from the end line. Oh yeah. It's close. Oh yeah. I mean that's Jimmy Buffett Stadium isn't it? I think it is Jimmy Buffett.

Landshark Stadium maybe? Hard Rock Cafe. Is it Hard Rock Cafe? I think it is. It used to be. I don't know if it still is. That thing was the SunTrust Stadium

at one point and then it was Jimmy Buffett's and then it was that's how you know a team's doing bad by the way. If the name of the stadium

is just changing like fucking hotcakes every goddamn year it's like yep this team's sucking people are just pulling out with the quickness. Roscoe's Taco Stadium. That's like a $200, $300 million sponsorship, by the way.

Hard Rock Stadium, yeah. Yeah, good for them. Hard Rock. Down Fort Lauderdale. That's where old what's-her-face, the lady that had sex with the old guy and then died. She had a kid. Mark Anthony. Mike Lewinsky.

No, the blonde lady. The blonde porn star what's her Oh Jenny Jameson nope she died Anna Nicole Smith she died in a Hard Rock Cafe in Fort Lauderdale I was I was either in for love what a way to go or there whenever she died yeah it was pretty crazy it was a wild scene I mean she was sucking that old guy off she was in love and then she had uh she had a kid with that guy in kentucky yeah you met him in person i met him i i know the san nicole lady because i was in the hotel when she died so i was like intrigued by her then she had a kid with this guy in kentucky i can't remember his name but he lives in louisville we land in newark new jersey and he's just standing right next to us, and nobody has a clue who he is.

Me, I'm like, that's that fucking guy. And Todd goes, who? I'm like, that's that guy. That lady, she died. He had a kid. He's the myth, the whole thing. And I look him up. I Google him, and I go, hey, man, big fan.

He's like, thanks. And I took a picture with him, and then he followed me on Twitter. Now we follow each other. Now me and Anna Nicole Smith's baby daddy have a relationship. So me and that lady have a... That's neither here nor there. He was a handsome son of a bitch.

He was just short about a billion dollars. Whenever you gamble, there's only one place to gamble, and the studio we are in is the mybookie.ag studio. I bet the under last night very, very heavily. Very, very, very. I had a great weekend, too. I had a very good weekend. The Chiefs money line, we'll talk about the Chiefs here in a second.

The Chiefs money line seems to be a very safe bet right now. It's going to be scary numbers. Minus 280 is what I got him at. But that seems to be. And I had a big weekend and then last night i hear the weather reports there's a weather delay there's some rain it's prime time maybe fits is a little tight the steelers are in drama the over under was like 55 or something like that i'm like oh that seems high that seems real high so i go right over to my bookie.ag and i go

hammer time on the under here and i'm to fall asleep before this game's even over. And then by the first quarter, it was like 28-7 or something. I'm like, not good. This is not fucking good. All these goddamn rough in the passers. I'm like, this is not a good situation. And then I watch the beginning of the third quarter, and it kind of slows down.

And I'm like, you know what? This is one of those games where everybody bet the over, and they're like, they thought it was a lock, and it's gonna flip and i'm like i'm in the good seat now now i'm in the seat where it looks as if i'm gonna lose but it's in the end everybody else is gonna get fucked not me and now two points i get screwed in the end my bookie.ag you can get screwed as well use promo code pat 100% bonus on your first deposit. It's the greatest gambling site on earth. Last week in the Beat Pat McAfee,

they actually refunded everybody's money that lost because Zito's faulty boards that he found in Florida. The word they use is incompetent boards. Incompetent boards. They knew that it wasn't fair. They refunded everybody. Their customer service is next level. If you're going to gamble, incompetent boards. They knew that it wasn't fair. They refunded everybody. Their customer service is next level.

If you're going to gamble, where you gamble is just as important as who you're gambling on. And mybookie.ag is the greatest place to gamble. And I'm saying that as somebody who has lost money this past weekend with them just because they're stand-up humans. And you don't find that in the bookie game. You don't find that in the bookie game.

mybookie.ag, promo code Pat. Get 100% bonus on your first deposit. Let's go have some fun. This week's Beat Pat McAfee is a redo of the Cornhole Challenge. They upped the over-under to 23.5. We'll be doing it in the office with cornhole boards that we have here, and I cannot wait for it. Zito set me up for failure in Orlando.

That will never happen again. Beat Pat McAfee 11-50 on Thursday. I'll be doing a cornhole check. Home game in the dome. Home game. Real boards. Real boards. Real boards.

Real boards. Apparently. Well, I don't know. You're trusting him? I don't know. We'll find out today, I guess. Second time's a charm for me. I'm excited.

Whenever I threw the first bag in warm-ups before we went on, I was like, all right, this seems right first of all as soon as you walk into africa orlando florida you just start sweating like just immediately sweating so the humidity is everywhere then it was windy so now you got sticky and wind i'm thinking about i'm like all right so these boards are going to be sticky and windy so i got to throw them a little bit lower a little bit harder so they slide in In the first toss I do, it hits the board and jumps straight up in the air. And then it goes straight back down. I'm like,

I don't even know how science lets that happen. I'm like, that had to be just because it was sticky. Then I threw another one and it springboard off and I call Zito and I'm like, fuck you man. What are you doing, Zito? He just screwed us. We had to go 30 minutes outside of Orlando to get these boards because he gave us the wrong address.

Then the boards were all dog shit. Zito set us up for failure, but we did survive because my bookie are fair people. I got a question. Yeah, bud. What happened to the boards? We had to take them back. Oh, you did take them back.

We had to take them back, and literally we didn't say a word to anybody. We dropped them. They were open. We walked in with the boards. We put them down, and we just walked the fuck out. We didn't even say thank you. Didn't even nothing. Just like almost, I should have told him like,

hey, don't let anybody. I would have tied him to the back of Corey Graves' Mustang. Try to run me over. It was absurd. It was absurd, wasn't it? We're in the middle of a competition here, buddy.

There's money on the line. You had to move like 20 feet to the left. Hey, Corey. Yeah, we're fucking in the middle of something here, bud. Okay, people are gambling. And then he sends out

that apology tweet. It was funny. He didn't mean it. No way. Not a single part of that. He was laughing the whole time. Ultimate heel. He is.

That's exactly what he is. He's a villain. He is a villain. That's what he is. Oh, well. I also love people saying that Zito had the under and he break the entire thing.

Zito's nowhere near smart enough to do that. People are saying that. People are saying that, Zito. Anyways, this Thursday, 11.50, my bookie B-Pat McAfee should be a good time. Hammer the over. Hammer, I think so.

23.5 should be a lot of fun. For sure. I feel real good. Get in early, too, because those lines move. It's currently minus 130. By the time it tees off, it might be minus 300. I'm not putting any money down until I see these boards. Oh, yeah, you're right.

Something to think about. Something to think about. The Chiefs look un money down until I see these boards. Oh, yeah, you're right. Something to think about. Something to think about. The Chiefs look unbeatable. They look absolutely unstoppable. So many weapons on that team. Travis Kelsey, a man who has had a reality TV show, date Travis Kelsey or whatever it was. It was a terrible show.

He would even say it was a terrible show. The man is unstoppable, though, whenever you have a guy like Tyreek Hill on the team and a running back like Kareem Hunt, and you have this quarterback who's young who they shipped Alex Smith's ass out of town for. They're like, yo, we watch this guy in practice, and he just slices and dices us. Andy Reid's like, hey, Alex Smith, we almost had an MVP run there for a little bit, but I need you to get the fuck out of here.

You're going to Washington, D.C. Yep, play for the Redskins. And we got this guy. We aren't even going to remember you were here. We aren't even going to fucking remember you were here. Patrick Mahomes is next level. Who would you compare him to? Maybe a Michael Vick with more accuracy?

Because he is. He's tall, though. So he's tall. And he can decipher defense. And I think he breaks down film. And I heard that Michael Vick wasn't the biggest film star. Really? I heard he wasn't the biggest film star. There's been

numerous things. I think Michael Vick has even come out and said, like, I didn't take it serious enough. I didn't watch. From what it appears, like Patrick Mahomes is dialed in. He is a guy who is Dan Orlovsky, who has no energy at all, put out a video yesterday deciphering a Kansas City Chiefs red zone play, basically, where it looked like a guy was wide open.

But it's all because Patrick Mahomes literally looked off to safety and then he made it happen. So I think he's becoming like a cerebral quarterback as well. I don't know if there's any comparables to him. Aaron Rodgers, maybe? Aaron Rodgers might be a comparable. Yeah, because he's mobile know if there's any comparables to him. Aaron Rodgers, maybe? Aaron Rodgers might be a comparable. Yeah, because he's mobile, but he's not running like Vic did. He's not running because he can outrun everybody.

Just to get out of jeopardy. Yeah, exactly. To get open, keeps his eyes downfield, goes to his reads. I think he's Aaron Rodgers-like. Just taller. And the arm. He's playing a lot like Carson Wentz did last year, too. Yeah, he is.

Very much so. His escapability in the pocket and stuff like that and still being able to find guys down the field that just seems like the new prototype that's what you want a guy mobile like that and it's kind of like ben was back in the day but to a quicker degree ben's a little slow yeah i think i think everybody's looking for a patrick mahomes yeah i think that's the new that might be the new standard is like hey we need because aaron rogers is, he looks like standard white guy, right? Aaron Rodgers looks

like standard white guy. He's not too tall. He's not muscular. He just has an incredible brain, an incredible arm, and he's mobile. So it's like, yeah, we can hope that we find that guy. I mean, they're probably thinking Brogan was possibly being that guy for the Browns, right? Baker Mayfield. We haven't even talked

about that. He's that, but he's shorter. We'll talk to Joe Thomas, Cleveland Brown legend, about Baker Mayfield here in a little bit. That shirt is dope, by the way. Go buy that if you're a Brown fan. I appreciate you supporting the cause and also wearing an incredible T-shirt. But he is just – he's a guy that I don't think there's many that are going to be like him. I think it's going to be very tough to find a Patrick Mahomes,

a guy who can lead, by the way. They have him mic'd up before games, and he's a real – there's people listening to what he's saying. It doesn't sound corny at all either. Spice Adam has put up a video of, like, when a coach's choice of a captain speaks, but he's not actually a speaker, and how everybody's like, it's like when Jameis Winston did the Eaton W's thing.

Like, there is a difference between actual leaders and then, like, puppet leaders, basically. The guys are like, today we're going to leave it all on the field. It's like, shut the fuck up, bro. Patrick Mahomes gave, like, a pregame speech and everybody was listening. It's easy to see, like, everybody was listening.

And he didn't seem fake at all. It seems like he's got it. And when you have Tyreek Hill on the goddamn field. It's a video game offense. Yeah. They're going to make a lot of shootouts because their defense is trash too. So that's the only thing that's going to slow them down. You've got a good punter though.

Dustin Colquitt. You've got a great punter. He's not going to be used often though. That offense looks. But is Andy Reid going to do what Andy Reid does? Like is this Andy Reid and then they're going to somehow, something's going to happen, they're going to suck for five weeks and then there's going to be a climb to get in at the end.

Is that going to be the standard? Who knows? Who knows if that's going to happen? Who was the last rookie to actually take over a team like this? I don't think he's a rookie. So he's not technically a rookie. Carson Wentz would be the guy. I think it's actually his third year, but good call with that.

Young quarterback's doing well. Yeah. Carson Wentz came back this guy. But hey, yeah. I think it's actually his third year, but good call with that. Young quarterback's doing well. Yeah. Carson Wentz came back this weekend, by the way. Like Jesus cometh out of the cave. Everybody was real excited for Carson Wentz coming back. They were talking as if the, because he was just a rookie last year. And I don't want to say just a rookie. He did an incredible job.

But they were talking about how Carson Wentz is coming back. The Eagles are going to be saved again. They didn't win a Super Bowl without him, by the way. It was wild to me to hear the way they were talking about Carson Wentz, and it just so happens to be against Adam Vinatieri in the Indianapolis Colts. What do you think? To your point, Chiefs started 5-0 last year and then lost 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6. Six of the next seven.

Exactly. That's the Andy Reid move. But Carson Wentz comes back, and Carson Wentz is just this towering ginger who is bumbling around on a knee, and everybody in Philadelphia is excited for his comeback. Nick Foles not performing up to task. You won us a Super Bowl.

You're the MVP of our Super Bowl, but we're going to boo your motherfucking ass on opening night in Philadelphia. The Eagles fans went right back to being Eagles fans. They couldn't help it. They win a Super Bowl. They couldn't help it. They just said, no more. What have you done for us lately? Carson Wentz comes out

and ruins Adam Vinatieri's record-tying day. And I don't like it. Adam Vinatieri ties Morton Anderson. Coming for that ass. Morton Anderson, whenever he got this record, he could barely kick a 42-yarder. Vinatieri's Morton Anderson. Coming for that ass. Morton Anderson, whenever he got this record, could barely kick a 42-yarder. Vinatieri's kicking 70-yard field goals now. Still at his old-ass age. Wearing diapers.

Probably can't even hold his poop in anymore. Dressing like he's in a midlife crisis. He's tying Morton Anderson. He's going to break that record. But Carson Wentz and the Eagles, they are in some close games that you wouldn't think they're in close games. The Colts do not look great.

And the Eagles, they took them down to the wire. Took them down to the wire. There's only like the Eagles, yeah, that was a very close game. There's only really like two teams, the Rams and the Chiefs, that have been looked dominant. Everyone else is like just shove them all in a fucking sack and they're all together. Well, Andrew Luck.

So, Andrew Luck gets pulled out for the Hail Mary at the end of the game. And it wasn't really – I mean, it was a Hail Mary I guess because it was a 58. The ball was snapped from the opposite 45. So it had to be a 55-yard ball to the end zone if you throw it from the line of scrimmage. He gets subbed out. Jacoby

Brissett comes in to throw it. He throws it from the 42. So it's a 58-yard ball to the end zone. He makes it like 7 yards in. I think it's 65 58 yard ball to the end zone he makes it like seven yards in i think it's 65 yard bomb he throws and then obviously as colts fans this was a bit alarming yeah because it's not like it's from the 30 it's not like it's from the 35 it's not like you need a jamarcus russell now granted jacoby has a hose let not judge him at all. But whenever you have a quarterback coming back from a shoulder injury who sat out a year and a half to rehab this thing,

you would think he'd be back. And the fact that they pull him, Frank Reich pulls him, and then Andrew Luck afterwards goes, oh yeah, I trust the decision. Jacoby has a gigantic arm. Like, hey, if Andrew Luck is viewing a 55-yard ball as a gigantic arm at $140 million, that is means for concern-yard ball as a gigantic arm at $140 million,

that is means for concern there. That's a gigantic concern. That is a huge concern. Tom Brady, I think, at his age can hit that throw if he has to. Adam Vinatieri probably can go out there and throw that ball. And Andrew Luck's like, yeah, I mean, I'll work on getting my arm to throw the ball 80 yards. It's like, yep, didn't need 80 yards, Andrew.

Only needed 55, 56 yards here. That was something that scared me as a Colts fan a little bit. Yeah, it shakes your confidence as a Colts fan for sure. Yes. Like, if he doesn't have confidence in that arm, then, you know, I have zero. But also, like, defenses see that. Yes. So now they can just fucking...

Yes. Yes. They're sitting on all underneath. Yes. It's like... Wait, did they sub him out? They subbed him out for a 55 yarder let's bring a safety up into the box let's go ahead and load this box up it don't matter if they trade for levy on bell or not which is possible i guess now that steelers are thinking

about it he can't get it over the top of us he can't get it over the top of us at all he can't hit a back shoulder ball if you have to because you have to be able to have a little heat with that. Everything is going to be dink and dump. That's scary to think about. I think Andrew Luck looks good physically, but that whole thing that happened there at the end was very much eye-opening. I was like, wait a minute, a 55-yard toss?

There's high schoolers that can do that. Oh, yeah. There's junior high kids that can do that. I assume you can do it. Guaranteed I could do that, but I'm obviously a freak athlete. I don't like to judge others by my standards. It was very scary. The Bills-Vikings game, fucking mind-blower.

Absolute mind-blower for everybody. It's hysterical. Josh Allen getting up over AB like that, though, is just incredibly nuts. He almost got his tank tickled by AB's helmet. And then they come in, they're 17-point underdogs. 17-point underdogs. That has to be one of the largest in recent NFL history. The NFL is built on parody where any given Sunday,

literally the name of the movie, Bill's fans are just watching a team walk into the fucking Skull Dome and just be 17-point underdogs and then slaughter Zimmer's Vikings. So as a player, what happens in the locker room there? Are guys just like, yeah, we're going to win? So the real cavalier, real casual? I don't know. I honestly don't know because for my job, it was very much me and a ball, right?

So it's me and the ball. So it's not really dealing with everybody else now granted snapper has to snap people have to block gunners have to do their job but for me it was just me and the ball so in every single week i could get ruined so it's like every time i step up i have to do it i guess there is a thought though where some people relax or they kind of because everybody's like oh it's a trap game it's a trap game. It's a trap game. Nobody's focusing on it. I don't really fully believe that because in the NFL, if you don't do your job, other than the top group of guys, if you don't do your job, you're going to get cut.

So there's like no trap game. I think it was more so just the Bills were hitting on everything. Everything was happening for them. I think it was one of those things where they showed what they could be and the Vikings maybe came out a little flat and you just watch the Bills take advantage of that. But let's assume that the Bills will go back to being what the Bills would do, but the future at least has a little bit of optimism with Josh Allen, I think.

He's very athletic. Athletic as a motherfucker. He's in that same quarterback persona. As Mahomes. Yeah, and Wentz, where you're athletic, you have a big fucking arm. Can fucking run. That Superman dive to the pylon, very impressive. And he didn't lose the ball when he hit the pylon either.

Big ants. Draft Josh Allen.com. Didn't lose the ball at all. And then he goes up and over. He was slinging the rock. Very happy for the Buffalo Bills. And Bills Mafia has had an all-out onslaught dealing with their own local government.

No table tossing. It's unbelievable. No dildo throwing. No fun, they say, in western New York. And then Josh Allen goes into Minnesota and does that. They got to feel pretty good up there. But the Vikings, they got, what, Thursday night against the Rams? They got a quick turnaround.

They are flying to la today and that it's that's one of those weeks where you want a week of practice so you can be like so zimmer can hammer home like hey boys but as a player you want a quick turnaround so you can get it out of your mind so it's like two different operations there coaches want to be able to hammer home like y'all motherfuckers ain't it right that's what the coaches wake up call yes but it's also early in the season. For the players, though, too. The players are like, I wish we played on Tuesday so we could get that out of our minds.

So I think the Vikings will be very eager. It just sucks that they're walking into a fucking buzzsaw like the Los Angeles Rams after that. There's some weird shit going on with Everson Griffin, too. Like one of their best defense. Apparently he threatened to shoot some people. So we got Mike Florio coming up. We'll dig into him. We'll dig into that with Mike Florio, pro football talk.

I don't think the hotel story was true. I think that got pulled, but Mike Florio is coming up here in a little bit. He will break down that whole thing. Everson Griffin's a big-time player for the Vikings, and there's some real mental health shit going on. I can't wait to hear about that. I already hammered the Vikings plus seven, though.

That's a lot of points for it. The Rams. It's an overreaction. The Rams already hammered the Vikings plus seven, though. That's a lot of points for it. The Rams. It's an overreaction. The Rams are a buzzsaw of a team, though. They got air. I mean, it's just like the Golden State Warriors. We've said this numerous times. It's just like the Golden State Warriors.

But they let the Raiders hang around, and they let the Chargers hang around a little bit. They blew out the Cardinals, but who isn't going to blow out the Cardinals? But. The Bears. Yeah, but. Came back from a deficit.

Bring it in, Josh Rosen, with four minutes to go. So the Rams, the Rams, the thing about the Rams is I cannot fathom them. If you say they let people hang around, you got to remember football is a physical sport. So it's, and you got a lot of guys over there. I don't want to say they're front runners, but you got guys that are, like in football, if you want to continue to dominate people, you got to hit.

You got to continue to tackle. You got to continue to own at the line of scrimmage. I think they have it. If they need it, they'll just turn it on, if that makes sense. They have it if they need it in the bank. They just, yep, here we go. We'll turn it on. That Ficken kid, the new kicker, he ain't it.

That kid ain't it for the Rams. I'm excited to see what they do there. GZ pulled a groin or whatever. I have no idea what's going to happen with them. But I feel like the Rams have it in the tank at any time they could possibly want it. Goff has looked very good so far this year, too. They're calling him a system quarterback. Why do they do that?

Why do they get labeled system quarterbacks? Just because their system is crushing? I don't know. Because McVay is so good, maybe they think he's just making golf look better than he really is. Because he looked like shit with, what's his name? Jeff Fisher. Jeff Fisher. So the system quarterback thing is a compliment to the coach.

So that is the way media people want to compliment the coach instead of the player? I think so. So they're saying he's a decent quarterback on a great team, basically. Yeah, pretty much. System quarterback. Well, they're saying that the schemes at the court, it's 100% a compliment to the coach. It's like saying this coach is making him good, basically. So this coach's plays are making him good.

Yeah, players as well. To play to his strengths. I have an idea. That's what I think, too. But it's, in my well. To play to his strengths. I have an idea. That's what I think, too. Okay. But it's, in my head. No, that makes sense. So if you have a genius coach or offensive coordinator that can mold an offense to perfectly suit your quarterback. Yeah, maybe Jeff Fisher just ran a shitty system.

Oh, yeah. Every single where he coached. That guy was so bad. I have no idea how. He was the definition of mediocrity. I think worse than that. He was shit. He was so bad. I have no idea how. He was the definition of mediocrity. I think worse than that. He was shit. He was absolute shit.

And people loved him because his mustache and all that. And he was a player. He was good with Steve McNair back in the day. McNair was great. Great athlete. Yeah. And then after that, he was never, never amounted to anything. Manning was a system quarterback.

It's just Manning was the guy who designed the play. So that's what Manning was. The system was. Yeah, it the guy who designed the play. So that's what Manning was. The system worked. Yeah, it's like Tom Brady. Tom Brady and Josh McDaniels are quite a little tag team. Not now, obviously. It's not hitting right now because you need Julian Edelman in there. But is he a system quarterback

because he's Tom Brady? There's no such thing as a system quarterback. It's just a good coach or a bad coach. Right? It's a great question. There's no such thing. No, I think it's a great question there's no such thing no i i think it's just the way instead of complimenting the player who's doing an incredible job it's their way of complimenting the coach without uh saying anything bad about the quarterback and maybe maybe bortles proves that point because his team is just really really, but he's still not dominant. You know what I mean?

I don't think he's a system quarterback. He's just Blake Bortles. He's just, yeah, yeah. Class of his own. Congratulations, by the way, to the Jaguars losing the For the Brand Super Bowl this Sunday. Titans beat them 9-6 down there. What might have been, to the average person,

the most boring game in history, in absolute history. If you're going to get a ticket to any game, though, for me personally, I would like to go to that For the Brand Super Bowl where it's all kickers, all punters, all the goddamn time. For me, watching the Bombers on fourth down is absolutely beautiful. You're only going to one place and one place alone, and that's SeatGeek. SeatGeek is the greatest ticket-buying app on planet Earth. Use promo code PAT. You get $10 off app on planet Earth. Use promo code PAT.

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It's the only place to buy. I wish I could have went to that for the brand game. It was absolutely electric. Ryan Suckup versus Josh Lambeau. Suckup prevails in the end. 9-6, hitting a 28-yarder with four minutes left in the fourth quarter. Blake Bortles, not a system QB, just Blake Bortles. Couldn't score.

Blaine Gabbert, who was a system QB, I assume, for a while. Marcus Mariota, who I pronounced his name wrong on the video with the nfl and everybody came after me from tennessee he couldn't score only the kickers could get your tickets from sea geek sea geek app is the greatest ticket buying app on earth now let's get to the cardinals cardinals bears i bet the bears i think minus three and a half is that what they were i had had them 6.5. Oh, so maybe I got them at minus 5.5 then. That might have been what I got, minus 5.5. And the Cardinals are in a wild place. That new coach, I don't understand his brain.

I don't fully comprehend what he's got going on. I got a call from AQ yesterday. He asked me if I'd seen Rosen's debut and what I thought of it. And I didn't see it because I didn't watch the end of the game. And then I check it out. He was subbed in four minutes left. Oh, yeah. Down two against Khalil Mack at the end of the game.

His first NFL appearance is down two, four minutes left. Wild decision. Even though Bradford was playing like dog shit, he had turned it over three straight possessions. So you put your coach in a bad position there. So I heard the spin zone was that they were going to put in Rosen with like seven minutes left, but didn't get the ball back until like four minutes left,

which even still is. The thing that happened was before the game or the week prior, the coach did say if Bradford does not play good, I'm going to put Rosen in. But like four minutes left, I think he's going to wait until the next week. I think he's going to swallow that one. Cardinals have become a team nobody gives a single fuck about.

No, not at all. Have you heard anybody talk about this? No. No. A rookie quarterback from UCLA, the Rosen one, gets put in with four minutes left down to potential whatever. What did he do, throw a pick, I assume? Three and out, four and out, turnover on downs?

How did it end? He actually had two possessions. The first one, they went for it on fourth and didn't get it, I believe. Turnover on downs. Yeah, and then the next one, he threw a pick six, but the defense was offside, thank God. And then it definitely ended, I believe, with a pick on the right side. There was a pick six.

Oh, yeah. It was so funny. Nick was downstairs watching. I was up in my room. I took the Cardinals. He had the Bears. So we were both fucking on edge. And I just tweeted out,

I can't wait for Rosen to throw a pick six to end this for me. Yeah. Guaranteed to happen. And he did. So the play goes, I see him jump off sides. I see the flag go up. I didn't see the jump. I was like doing laundry.

And then he throws the pick six, and I hear Nick fucking celebrating downstairs. And I'm just chuckling up in my room because I know it's coming back. But, yeah, it was – I mean, he definitely throws. He's more athletic, obviously, because Bradford's had a bunch of surgeries and stuff like that. Bradford's a good ping pong. He's a good ping pong player. He is very, very fragile. I think Rosen's the better

fit, especially since that team's going nowhere. Literally nobody talked about it, though. There was a little buzz on the internet when he came in, but since then, no. Gone. See you later. Nobody gives a single fuck. The Bears beat the Cardinals. Thank God I guess for the Bears fans. Good for you guys. You have a football team again. How did Mitchell look?

He looked good. He looked comfortable. He looked comfortable back there. He could obviously be better. The defense is saving them almost every game. Clomac had another forced fumble. Another two sacks at the end. God damn. If you're a DN, that's like the Broncos, Broncos Ravens.

Yep. Broncos block a kick and a punt on the road in Baltimore and can't win. The probability of losing after blocking one kick, I think is, I think it's below 20%. I think you win like 80% of the time when you block a kick for a touchdown too. Then they block two kicks, one for a touchdown, one setting up.

That might be less than 5% that you lose that game. And somehow the Broncos lose that game because their offense can't do anything. And Vaughn Miller, though, that dude's another guy. Wasn't it 150 yards of penalties? Yes, there was so many penalties. Justin Tucker, shout out to Justin Tucker. He won the brandy. He won the first ever brandy for best performance of the weekend.

Absolutely a round of applause for Justin Tucker. He broke an NFL record for most games with multiple 50-yard makes, six in his career thus far. Obviously, somebody had five. He broke the record. But he would have had a consecutive streak going if it wasn't for the block that went over top of it. I assume this is the stats still.

This is from 2010, but I assume the stats still plays. 90% of games in which a punt is blocked, the team that makes the block wins the game. Yeah, so that's 10%, let alone two kicks now. So you dropped that down probably. They probably had a less than 3% chance of winning that game after having two blocks. Yeah, after getting two blocked and they still go out and win the Ravens still get a win against the Broncos Tom McMahon Broncos special teams coach he's flying home on that plane we did our job what the fuck bro that is honestly if you

look at like the drive start averages on when they score if it inside the 10, I think it's less than 7% of a score. If it's inside the 15, it's like a 19% or 18% score rate. So that's why whenever you win the field position battle, you normally win the game. And if you block a kick, 90% of the time you win the game. Two block kicks plus field position win, and you lose that game to the Baltimore Ravens. That is a wild scene over there in Denver. I don't know how John Elway fixes it. I don't know how he fixes it. You pay Case Ginnem, he's not the guy. That one's tough because Flacco is like Denver's daddy.

You remember the mile-high miracle? I mean, they're just cursed. Because before that week, Case actually looked decent. He's better than anything else they have by far. It is such a – Chad Kelly. You think he's better than Swag Kelly? I love Swag Kelly. How did they lose that game? I don't know how you lose that game. That's

good for the Ravens. That's a lot of grit. We had a chance to talk to a Raven actually about the game and I can't wait for you to hear this. Ladies and gentlemen, this man's beard is next level. Ladies and gentlemen, joining us now fresh off a victory against the Denver Broncos,

is a five-time, five-time, five-time, five-time, five-time pro bowler. Five-time All-Pro safety. Played for the Chargers, now he's with the Ravens. He has the greatest facial hair in all of professional sports. You can follow it at Weddle's Beard. Ladies and gentlemen, elite human being, Eric Weddle. That was a great intro. Wow.

Greatest ever. I think you deserve it, brother. I appreciate that. How the hell did you guys win against the Broncos? Two block kicks and you still win the goddamn game. That's got to feel good. Shoot. You know, we needed it after the debacle on Thursday night against the Bengals.

So, you know, we were coming in and didn't start off very well. But we're a resilient group and get to play, and it definitely gets us at our place. We're going to fight the whole way, and we've got to clutch wins for sure. Well, and Ray Lewis was there. He did the whole goddamn entrance and all that stuff. He did. He did. It never gets old, right?

You've been there for a while now. Whenever you left the Chargers, nobody really expected it because you were like a mainstay over there. Eric Weddle, the gloveless-wearing, beard-having safety, was like, okay, you're going to be home forever. Then you go to the Ravens. You've been there for a while now. You're a big-time veteran on that team.

That team looks a lot better this year than maybe in years past. Is Joe Flacco's change of mindset helping with that, or what is it about the Ravens right now? I think there are a number of factors that go into his play and the new weapons we have on offense. Being the same coordinator for almost three seasons now, and he's healthy for the first time in three seasons. Had a full offseason, full training camp.

And it shows. He's confident. He likes what we're doing. And, you know, when we protect him, for any quarterback, let alone Joe, he could be successful in this league. So we go as Joe goes. Obviously, defensively, we can help out by playing great ball. But he plays well on Sundays.

We have a great shot at winning, and it shows over the season so far. You're a five-time All-Pro, five-time Pro Bowler, mainstay in the NFL conversation for great defensive players. The rules, especially the Clay Matthews hits, I don't know if you've got a chance to see this, the Clay Matthews. Oh, my goodness gracious. As a defensive player, what are defensive players going to do in the NFL? How are you guys going to get around these rules that are fantasy football rules

that are basically trying to diminish everything you guys do? Yeah, it's putting us in a tough position. It's crazy that they're trying to change everything that this game has been built on over one position in that player where defensive players can get cut, blown legs out, knees out by linemen. But who are we really trying to protect? It's all about the QBs, and it's frustrating for us, these game-defining plays. I mean, the one on Clay Matthews, that tilts the play, the game.

I mean, you're talking about one, three to four plays that decide these games in the NFL. And now you're literally changing games, changing wins and losses by ticky-tack quarterback roughing the passers. I mean, it's frustrating to say the least. You just hope that they come to their senses because people are going to just stop watching the game when they see this week in and week out. Games are signing on terrible calls that have nothing to do with the game.

I think a lot of the NFL's core fans are calling the game soft. A lot of players are coming out and saying that the game is getting soft. You see a lot of retired players who I think possibly could be the reason for all of this, by the way, due to the, not all retired players, but the select few who have had terrible issues with CT, the lawsuit, everything like that made the NFL kind of tuck their tail between their legs and change the game. But you're hearing a lot of people talk about how the game is getting soft.

As somebody who has been here since the game was back hard-nosed, before CTE was even a thing, on the defensive side, and now you're watching the game change. Do you think the game is getting soft, or do you think they're just trying to adjust to bad situations? Well, I mean, playing in it, I'm still sore. I'm still throwing it in there like I'm

21 years old as a rookie trying to prove myself. I don't necessarily think it's soft. I think the game is changing towards offensive philosophy, offensive game, offensive-minded. They want scores. They want points. They want action. They don points. They want action.

They don't want to see defense. They don't want to see hard hits. They don't want to see that. So I think the game has changed over my career where it was physical, tough, hard-nosed, run the ball, play actions, and now it's spread them out, get the ball in the perimeter, make guys miss, get out of bounds, that stuff. So I don't think the game's getting solved. I just think officiating the rules they change year in and year out is, you know, the perception is the game is going that way.

But physically, I mean, I give it my all and then throw it in there to these guys. So I still feel the same. Are you an acupuncture guy, massage therapy, hot tub, cold tub? What do you do? What do you do to get the… Oh, man, I just work out. The hardest workout of the week is the day after a game and hot tub and cold tub and sauna.

I don't get massages, acupuncture, all that other stuff. I think it's a waste of money and time. When you have four kids and you're gone as much as I am, to tell them, hey, I'm going to be gone for another two, three hours getting a massage. My wife will look at me like, yeah, right, you're crazy. You're going to be home taking care

of these kids. I've never really gotten them. I know what works for me. I spend enough time away, so if I do have some time, I've got to spend it with my wife and kids. You said your hardest workout of your day is the day after a game. This will be airing tomorrow.

What was yesterday's workout for Eric Weddle? Sure, it's a full body. I'll start out with a run and a good stretch and get the heart rate up get the blood flowing throughout my body and then get in for a full body so it'll consist of some some some type of legs whether it's squats lunges step ups whatever got, it's every four weeks we switch up our workout and then we'll go into shoulders and chest and back and basically hit everything

that full body workout will consist of and anything that's nagging or sore we hit those areas so we can tighten up the joints and get blood into those areas to make the recovery process quicker you know different strokes for different blokes. I used to nap the day after games.

That was my big go-to. Rightfully so, right? Hey, I checked your Wikipedia. It said you joined the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. Are you a Mormon? Yes. Did you go on a mission trip? I didn't.

I got baptized when I was 20. So I got baptized a year later I got married and a year and a half after that I had our first kid so I got right into it Austin Colley was a teammate of mine for years and his he took a mission trip

in Venezuela or something like that and he knows perfect Spanish he knows the whole thing I was excited to hear if you went on one. Yeah, I mean, if I grew up in the church, I most likely would have. But since I got baptized so late, later in life, and I was already two years into my college career, so it was on the back burner after that.

But when the kids are out of the house, I'm sure my wife and I will do a couple's mission when when we're old and retired have you seen the book of mormon have i seen the book of mormon yeah the play by the south park guys no no i heard it's pretty entertaining though i always because austin had left the coats by then and i just used austin as my mormon shoulder to lean on basically whenever Mitt Romney was running for president I was like Austin I want to hear everything I want to learn about it he was very nice very gracious

and then the Book of Mormon the Broadway show came out after he left so I never got a chance to really ask so that's why I figured I'd throw it in there it's all good I can take the jokes and stuff but you know we have good conversations with teammates and let them know that I don't have six wives and I don't believe in certain things.

I believe in that the son of God is Jesus Christ. And once people understand that, then they go, oh, then they look at me a little bit differently. So it's always good to have conversations. Austin Colley and I had a 35-minute basically speed-through of the entire Mormon religion, and I hammered him with every single question. And at the end of it, I was like, oh, this is a much more relatable religion than most of the other religions out there, Austin.

And it was very interesting. Yeah, it's good. Now, he hammers Diet Coke, though, and I think that is kind of something that you guys frown upon, that that's here and over there. Yeah, I mean, what he may not have told you now is on the BYU campus, they actually have vending machines with Coke there now. So they've kind of lightened up on the whole Coke, Diet Coke thing.

Wow, that's insane. That's kind of lighting up on the whole Coke, Diet Coke thing. Wow, that's insane. That's light years, right? How many years are you going to play football for? Forever? No, definitely not. I'm just taking it year by year. Who would ever thought 12 years is

an amazing, amazing feat. As I've told people, as long as I can run and do what I do defensively, I'll keep playing. As soon as I think it's dropping off or my wife is going to leave me, then I'm going to step away and right off into the sunset. But I still love the game. I love the grind.

I love competing. I love being around the young guys and trying to find ways to lead and to relate to them and get the most out of them and to help them have better careers. But I can't play forever. I know that. So whether it's one more year, I have one more year after this on my deal, and if they want me back over the season, I'm going to give it got if not then i'm definitely not gonna play for another team so i know that

eric speaking of your contract and you mentioned you have one more year on the deal uh i have a question this is looking back in the rear view a little bit now i'm always interested to ask this of guys who've experienced free agency what was that like for you because i know myself as a steeler fan i looked at you as a guy when you hit free agency who could potentially anchor this Pittsburgh defense for the next decade, and then you go and sign with a bitter rival. Now you give me nightmares every other week.

What was that process like for you? Was it easy? Was it stressful? Did a lot of teams reach out? Or did you know where you wanted to go right away? Well, yeah. I was the second tier of free agency. knew that going in i'm an older guy i wasn't going to be the first wave of free agents that they get reached out to so it was a more of a patient process i didn't get a really a phone call till you know that

first opening window was monday i didn't get my first phone call until Friday. And, you know, from the teams that reached out initially, they were teams that just wasn't a good fit for me. And where they were as a team, I wanted to go somewhere, you know, great organization in a Super Bowl contending teams or won the Super Bowl in the past. So my teams were, you know, Baltimore, Pittsburgh. I knew the coaching staff in Dallas, so they're obviously one of them. New England.

So the teams like that, Green Bay. And, you know, I thought I was the perfect fit for Pittsburgh. They just were hanging around and not wanting to. Fuck! They had some other options and guys that they needed to get done before me, and they just never wanted to come get it. And I'm really good friends with Ben, so obviously that was a destination that I wanted to make happen, but it just never happened. And Baltimore and Dallas were neck and neck.

And I was torn because I had the coaching staff from Dallas, Rich Versace, I'm really close with, who was the best students coach there. And Baltimore, I just, in my gut, I just felt Baltimore was the best spot for me. So I've loved every second I was here. I always tell people that i felt i feel being here for my third years i was meant to be a raven and it feels like i've always played my whole career here you just heard the soul of two pittsburgh stealer fans just get sucked out of them right there whenever you said that i wish you could have seen this, Eric Gueto. It was hysterical watching the size.

And you heard the profanity just because of the way that is operating. It's funny to hear Pittsburgh fans. They always get on me like, you should have came here. You picked the wrong – it's like, look, man, I didn't have a choice. They didn't really want me. So you guys forget. I can say I want to go to a certain team, but if they don't want you or they don't offer you a contract,

it doesn't happen, and you can't just wait around. Oh, yeah. Might as well just pay Mike Mitchell instead. It's funny to hear that side. Who's the guy in the locker room, the Baltimore Ravens locker room, that keeps it light? Or is that you? Oh, my gosh.

I mean, I always keep it light especially around coaches anyone else it's uh if if coaches are acting pretty crazy i i i step up and say we need to we need to relax a little bit i heard harbaugh has had a couple of those situations in the past just for future reference i won't are the man like listen there's no one that wants to win more than Harbs. And when you have a coach that's honest and genuine at heart, you can always live with those outbursts when you have them because it's coming from a good place. But who keeps it light in the locker room? I would say, like, Sizz is always on one.

He's always funny. He's always cracking on someone. He's always in a good mood. Brandon Williams, Tony Jefferson. I mean, we got some characters. You better not have thin skin because one way or another, you're going to get cracked on, and you better not get all sensitive about it because then your life will be over.

Do you guys feel really good about the Ravens team? Do you guys feel good in that locker room? You guys have been in training camp for seven months before everybody else. Oh, my gosh. The longest training camp in the history of the world. July 15th. Pat, July 15th, I was here in Baltimore. That's absurd.

Why? That should never happen ever. I mean, the Hall of Fame is the worst. That should never happen ever. I mean, the Hall of Fame is the worst. Whoever thought of making guys come in 27 days before their first game is the asinine thing I've ever been a part of in my life. You know, it's Ray Lewis' fault that you were there. I know.

Gosh dang you, Ray Lewis. That'd be so good, didn't you? That'd be so good. But you guys feel good as a team? I assume that 27-day training camp, Lamar Jackson, they were trying to split up the Ravens locker room. Everybody was trying to split that thing apart with Lamar Jackson and Joe Flacco. And it seems as if you guys are a team that just can't be budged.

Yeah, I mean, we've got a close group and a lot of personalities, but no egos, man. It's crazy to be a part of a team that's just about ball, just about the team. And I've said this before, that this is one of the closest teams, if not the closest, of just coming to work, competing, and no one really cares about the notoriety. We just, you know, we haven't made the playoffs three years

in a championship organization. You know, things get changed made the playoffs three years on a championship organization. And, you know, things, things get changed and things get serious real quick. So, uh, this is a close group and,

and we know, uh, with Lamar coming, the distraction could be there, but when Joe plays, like he's played all off season and really put that to rest, it's, uh,

it's really never been, uh, an actual conversation between the two. Alright, well I appreciate the hell out of you Mr. Weddle. Follow him along at Weddle's Beard. How good is Tucker by the way? Man, that guy's a ball. He's a beast. If he just wasn't such an

egomaniac. You just said no egos in the locker room. I guess that comes with being a kicker but I would suck the heck out of them, of those three, him, Sam, and Morgan. They work hard every day, and there's a reason why they're one of the best groups in the league. Well, we're happy to have them.

Sometimes I've got to put them in his place, and he knows it, and we're all good. Ladies and gentlemen, probably going into another All-Pro year, absolute legend of a human. By the way, Mormon Hall into another all-pro year. Absolute legend of a human. By the way, Mormon Hall of Famer, for sure. For sure, Mormon Hall of Famer, just for future reference.

Mr. Eric Weddle, thank you so much, Eric. Appreciate you, dude. Hey, that was awesome. Thanks for having me on, guys. Hey, you're a really cool guy. Did you do that workout yet, or are you doing it now? I'm going in. I'm heading in right now. Golly, I can't believe you go hard like that the day after. Is that the Ravens tell you to do that workout yet or are you doing it now? I'm going in. I'm heading in right now.

Golly, I can't believe you go hard like that the day after. Is that the Ravens tell you to do that or is that your thing? No, I've been doing it for about eight years now.

Jesus. There's a reason you're the great. There's a reason you're great. Jeez. Have a great one, Weddle.

We appreciate you, buddy. Good luck the rest of the year. I will. You're the man. See ya. Not our first Mormon we've had on this show. Nope. Not our first Mormon we've had on this show. Nope.

Not our first Mormon. He hasn't gone on a mission, though, so I don't know if he's... Smart to not become a Mormon until it's after the... Mission time. Yeah, good idea. That's two years of your life

you're spending in third world countries preaching the words of Joseph Smith. I respect the Mormons, though. They stick with it. They stick with it, and they recruit people. They recruited Eric Weddle at the age of 20, God is respect the Mormons, though. They stick with it. They stick with it, and they recruit people. They recruited Eric Weddle at the age of 20, God is asking.

Plus go on your mission when you're a millionaire. Way better than when you're 17. You're not allowed to have a phone. You're not allowed to have anything like that. So I don't know if the millionaire would help you. Probably hurt you. Yeah.

Because you live this awesome life, and then they're like, by the way, we're sending you to Egypt to preach the word of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints. You can't have any money, no cell phone, and can't talk to anybody. Shout out to Eric Weddle, though. Good guy, man.

Talked about that game a little bit, about the roughing the passer stuff, all that thing. The NFL players are turning against them for sure. Yeah, 100%. He's one of the best safeties in the league. Could have players are turning against him for sure. Yeah, 100%. He's one of the best safeties in the league. Could have been a stealer. Could have been a stealer. It's interesting you mentioned the recruitment of Eric Weddle.

Yeah. Seems like it's not very hard to do. He said the Steelers just didn't step up to the plate. Didn't step up to the plate. It's tough to swallow when you hear that. Gotta win. Don't care. We're moving on. It's tough to swallow when you hear that. He's got to win. Don't care. We're moving on.

It's Ravens week. Let's go. Big thanks to Eric. It is it, Raven. This is it. Sunday night football. Steelers, Ravens, Sunday night football. Rivalry.

Rivalry as good as time. Normally, there's cars in the street getting batted with bats with Ravens on them in the south side of Pittsburgh. There we go. Steelers. This is a real battle. I can't wait to watch it. And I'm thinking Eric Weddle probably makes a huge play at the end of that

thing to seal it. And all the Steelers fans, after listening to this, will know that he could have been a fucking Steeler. And that'll be nothing. That'll be a tough pill to swallow, but you got to deal with it. You got to deal with it. I think that Ravens team is very good, by the way. And I think they are a very good football team.

I hope Vance McDonald plants them into the turf like he did last night to Chris Conte. That stiff arm was next level. And then his quote afterwards about trying to be as vicious as possible. If a safety wants to come, or if a D-back wants to come high on me, they're going to regret it, basically. Conte's been giving white safeties a bad name for a long time. White safeties are giving white people a good name,

regardless of how they play. You need to recognize that. But that's like the 12th time he's been stiff-armed to death. Bro, I think that Vance McDonald guy is setting himself up, though, to get clipped. I think he's setting himself up to get clipped whenever he says, if a DB wants to go high on me, it's like, now he's taking a shot at an entire position group, not just Conte.

He's taking a shot at an entire position. It's a long game. Now he's setting up for a hurdle next week. Oh, Josh Allen! I respect that. Speaking of safeties, Earl Thomas had a game against the Dallas Cowboys. Remember, he missed practice on Friday. Who needs to practice? Didn't even show. Antonio Brown also

missed practice on Monday. Not a big deal. Maybe guys should start missing practice more often. Yeah, what is it? Hey, I said it best. Not the game, man. Not the game. I'm talking about practice. Le'Veon Bell's skipping all of it, so I don't know how I feel about that, but Earl Thomas last year sprinted to the

Dallas Cowboys locker room still in his attire. I was watching it live, thought it was a potential fight happening. You don't see that happening unless a fight's happening. Then he stopped playing Jason Garrett or somebody and goes, bring me here, basically, while he's still a Seahawk.

Then he has to walk back to the Seahawk locker room and everybody says, where'd you go? I just told the coach of the other team that I want to be on their team. That's a wild move. So then he holds out. I think he still wanted to be a cowboy. I think he wanted to be a cowboy. Pete Carroll doesn't trade him, doesn't get rid of him. He shows up, misses practice.

I'm assuming it's for the same type of shit. Everybody in Seattle wants to be out of Seattle, it seems like, from the Legion of Boom. Then he plays against the Cowboys, two picks, monster game, and bows to the Cowboys. And once again, like, get me the fuck out of here. Please get me out of here. What else do I have to do? That was an awesome moment.

I enjoyed that a lot. The Seattle Seahawks story will be a fun one to watch. That'll be a fun one to watch. They seem to be the next dynasty. They were the next dynasty. This is it. This is the team. This is the team that's going to ride for the next 10 years and dominate.

And then all of a sudden, ego's getting away. No more future in the locker room. Ba-ba-ba. Pay Russell Wilson. Protect Russell Wilson. Everybody on defense feels disrespected. Throw the ball on fourth and goal in the Super Bowl. Ba-ba-ba.

Marshawn Lynch gone. That thing just out of control. Spiral. They hit on a lot of guys in late and mid-round picks in the draft when Pete was fresh out of college. They showed that and they haven't in a long time. And now, who have they drafted recently within the past three years? Michael Dixon, stud, ball kicker for the Seattle Seahawks.

I like him a lot, but that's probably it, huh? No, they showed a graphic. Like, their Super Bowl teams were all late-round picks that they all hit on, and they haven't hit on one in a long, long time. I think Pete's only got a year left on that deal. Would not be surprised if they went a different direction. Pete's, what, 90 years old? Yeah, 93.

He's old for a head coach, man. He's vibrant, though. He chews that gum, too. You know, if you're going to be that old and that vibrant, you must get great sleep at night. Oh, yeah. You must get great sleep at night. Pete Carroll must sleep well.

Actually, he probably stays up a little bit, tossing and turning, but what went wrong here in the Seattle Seahawks? We had it all there for a little bit, and we kind of lost it all. But I believe if you're going to be that handsome of an old man and that wily, you've got to sleep well at night. And we all sleep great here, don't we? Oh, yeah. Zito, how do you sleep? Oh, very good.

Very alone and very good. You too, Foxy. I've never heard a drought story like yours that I heard the other day. It's wild. We were traveling. I ain't never heard a drought story like this, Foxy's story. It's no good. It's unbelievable. I'm like, Foxy, what are you doing? He's like, I don't know, man. We're so close and theny story. It's no good. It's unbelievable. I'm like, Foxy, what are you doing? He's like, I don't know, man.

We're so close, and then they leave. It's not me. It's them. Oh, yeah, yeah. Of course, no accountability out of that millennial generation. If you're going to sleep well alone or with somebody else, probably not for a while if you're Foxy. There's only one mattress in one mattress alone

that you should sleep on, And that is a Lisa mattress. You go to lisa.com slash McAfee and they'll give you $225 off the greatest mattress to ever mattress in the history of mattresses. This thing shows up at your doorstep. You don't have to go to a stupid bed store. You know those bed stores? I hate them. I feel like they're all a front for drugs, by the way. All of them.

Because you go in there and you're just rolling around and other people's kids spit. Like, oh, there's other germs in these beds. Oh, is this bed good? Yeah, this bed's good. Oh, this one's better. You never know because those beds could be broken in, by the way. Oh, yeah. You have no idea which bed's good.

They tell you, oh, why don't you try it? What are you trying? Lice, probably. From the person that was on there before. I was thinking about Zito rolling across all those beds. Oh, that alone should deter you away from ever stepping foot in one of them goddamn bed stores again. And there's a bed that's more comfortable than all those beds and one that'll show up in your goddamn doorstep.

And they're giving you $225 off and that's Lisa mattress Lisa.com slash McAfee that's L E E S a.com slash McAfee M C A F E E tie. Everybody's wondering my mattress comes in a box. It can't be that good. False. Everybody's wondering my mattress comes in a box. It's probably like Ikea take me 45 minutes to an hour to set up. Also not true. How long did it take? About a minute and a half. Pops out of that box. Bang, now you're sleeping luxuriously.

$225 off right now. Go make it happen. Lisa.com slash McAfee. Backslash McAfee. I will say, though, it's the only lady I fall asleep with every night. It's my Lisa. And Jill. That's a threesome good for zito got a chance

to chit chat with a guy who knows all the ins and outs joining us now is a man who's a trailblazer in the blogging game every single human in the nfl reads his stuff and keeps up with him. A man that's connected like no other man in the NFL's history. He's a paisan from West Virginia, friend of the show, ladies and gentlemen, pro football talks founder, pro football talks leader, a man who never sleeps, the block don't wait, Mike Florio. That was very impressive. I don't know whether that's more Michael Buffer or Bruce Buffer, but I like that.

I like that a lot. That's the best intro I've ever had. Hey, I appreciate that. Speaking of fighting the, um, Everson Griffin story in the Minnesota world is kind of crazy right now. The local news station said he had a gun at a hotel lobby.

Then they retracted that story. Then a story got out that he was at a teammate's house, and then that got retracted. What's going on in Minnesota, Mike? I mean, the bottom line is there's an issue with Everson Griffin that he's receiving some type of treatment for. He wasn't with the team on Sunday for personal reasons. He already was not expected to play due to a knee injury. And the Vikings are in a tough spot here. They play Thursday night in LA. It'd be a shock at this point if Everson Griffin

is with them. He's one of the more underrated pass rushers in the NFL. Without him on the field, the Vikings defense isn't the same. And, you know, I think there were many distractions for the Vikings. On Sunday, I think they were still a little bit upset about the tie against the Packers and they're thinking ahead to the short week game against the Rams. But you throw this Everson Griffin situation on top of it. He's one of the longest-tenured guys with the team. Players are concerned about him, and I think that that made it even harder for them to focus. And now, as they have this short week, they've got to find a way to focus on the Rams while they're also

concerned about their friend and teammate getting whatever help it is that he needs so he can rejoin them and get through these issues that, obviously, the team is going to be very circumspect about it, but it sounds like he's got some issues now that he's going to have to work through, and who knows how long that's going to take. Very scary stuff there.

Let's move to the Pittsburgh Steelers, a team that you are not a fan of, but grew up as a fan of. You have to be very third-party, independent in your profession nowadays. Let's talk about the Pittsburgh Steelers, though. Schefter reported earlier this week, I believe, that Lev Bell trade options are now on the table. Has this been something that's been in the works for a while, or has it just got to a boiling point?

Well, Schefter had reported two weeks before that that they weren't going to trade, and so something changed in those two weeks. And I think the Steelers have just gotten to the point where they realize the endgame here is not acceptable. If Le'Veon Bell is going to stay away until Week 10, which he has every right to do under the terms of the franchise tag, and then show up and make $8.55 a week, and then maybe not practice, not play as much,

maybe say I've got a hamstring thing, try to protect himself for free agency next year. Maybe they just move on. So if they're entertaining trade offers, if the Jets are interested, that's fine. It's just not an easy thing to do, Pat. Here's the problem. You've got to convince the Steelers that you're offering them enough so they part ways with him. And you have to convince Le'Veon Bell to sign a contract, a one-year contract with the Steelers that them would be traded. He can't be traded until he's signed.

And he's made it clear he's not going to play for $855,000 a week. So would it seem like the Jets have to offer him $1 million a week, $1.2 million a week? What's it going to take to get him to show up? Knowing that if you're the Jets, it's a part-year rental, and you have no guarantees beyond the end of the season. You can't sign him to a new contract until the regular season ends. He'd have all the leverage at that point, because the only way to keep him around under the franchise tag

is to pay him $26 million. So why would the Jets do it? Unless Todd Balls, the head coach, is so desperate, he's able to convince ownership to spend the money and go after a guy that may help turn a team around that's now 1-2. I don't know why you do it, because you're paying a huge premium for a player,

you're giving up a draft pick at a minimum to get him, and you're only going to have him for this year. Let's move to news-breaking situations situations i might not be as knowledgeable with this as i should be since i played so much these sunday morning news dumps seem remarkable to me every single sunday morning ian rapaport schefter mort everybody's having a field day just dropping news out of nowhere bang bang bang bang, bang, bang. And there's huge stories. The Andrew Luck snowboard story that has been rumored for years got dropped the first Sunday morning.

What is the deal with the Sunday morning news breaks? And is that a normal thing? Well, Coach Sean Payton calls it the Sunday splash report because typically once a year, he's the subject of the Sunday splash report that this may be his last year with the New Orleans Saints. And look, there's pressure on the folks who do the pregame shows before the kickoff at 1 o'clock Eastern time to have something new, to have something fresh. And let me tell you, the pressure is so great that sometimes it causes guys

to report things that already have been reported. I'm not going to name names. Do it. But maybe I'll name names. Week one of last year, for example, Schefter reported that Drew Brees' contract that was entering its final year has a clause in it that they can't franchise tag him after the 2017 season. That was fine, but that was known the moment he signed the contract,

like a year before that. So it just shows you there's this frenzy to get something new, to bring something to the table, to placate the producers. Hey, here, I'm justifying my salary. Here's something that isn't out there. Here's something new. So a lot of times they'll take stuff, and again, I don't want to name names, but this Schefter report over the weekend about the Grand Council Trade Alliance,

that was all out there. Bits and pieces of that were out there. People knew about it in Boston. It had been reported in different forms and fashions. But here's a Sunday splash report because it's Sunday, because you've got these pregame shows that have all this content. You've got to come up with something new, even if it's not really new. It just has to feel like it's new so they can check the box

and fill the quota and say, we're making our Sunday splash. Not to name any names, but Roger Goodell and the NFL have quite an issue with this sacking of the quarterback, roughing the passer situation. It dominated the game last night for people that bet the under me, just watching refs hand out 15-yard penalties like it's nothing. How are they going to deal with this? I read on your website, I believe, on Pro Football Talk, that they're not going to reword it.

They're just hoping that it will get called differently. What does that even mean? Well, look, I thought the NFL was going to dig in on this. When we saw the consternation about the lowering the helmet foul based upon two weeks of the preseason, and the NFL had a competition committee conference call, and then they issued a statement that in the first sentence said, we're not changing the rule, and in the second sentence

they explained how the rule was going to be changed. It looks like that's where this one's going. I didn't think they were going to do it. I thought they were so determined to keep quarterbacks healthy because they don't want, you know, when the Rams and the Chiefs play in Mexico City, they don't want to be Chad Henney versus Sean Mannion. They want the star quarterbacks to play. That's why they're doing it.

They saw what happened last year when Aaron Rodgers got hurt. He entered Brett Hundley and the Packers fall apart. And any time the Packers are on national TV, nobody cares. So that's what they're trying to do. But now there are multiple reports that the competition committee is going to have a conference call next week, and they're going to talk about the roughing penalty and i guarantee you pat they're going to issue a statement that they're not changing it in the first sentence second sentence they're going to

explain how they change it and there's going to be some shift in the enforcement some shift in the focus to get away from the outcomes that have occurred you got jj watt coming out talking against it aaron rogers tom brady, basically every defensive player in football has come out against it. This isn't normal for the NFL, dealing with players openly bashing something that they're doing. Yeah, I mean, when quarterbacks are coming out and saying it, I mean, that's, now, I think on one hand they may be saying, you know, they don't want to be perceived as not tough, right?

That people would get to come out and say, yeah, I'm glad they call these penalties, even though they're really not penalties, but I'm glad that they do it because I like the 15 yards. So I think it's gotten to the point where they have to figure something out. Even if they don't fundamentally change the way this rule is enforced, they have to do something to push back against the widespread criticism. From my perspective, it's like, hey, if this is what they want to do, we just need to accept it. But you know what?

Enough people aren't accepting it and enough people are yelling about it that maybe the NFL is going to listen and do something about it. New England Patriots completely upside down right now. When Julian Edelman comes back, does all of this controversy about them being done kind of subside? Or is this a season that the dynasty ends? It's still too early to tell, but because we've seen this movie in September before with the Patriots,

but they lost two games in a row by more than 10 points for the first time since 2002. That's alarming. They didn't respond to that loss to the Jaguars with an on-the-Cincinnati ass-kicking of the Lions. I'm shocked by that. And you throw on top of that the possibility of three straight losses. This Dolphins team that is coming into play this weekend, it's legitimate.

Albert Wilson told me after the game on Sunday when they beat the Raiders in the fourth quarter, thanks to Wilson throwing a long touchdown pass and catching a long one, although it was one of those touch passes and he exploded for 74 yards. He said, when we do what we can do, there's no one who can beat us. And if they can focus on themselves and not get intimidated by, you know, the Patriot logo and going to Gillette State and playing to have a one since 2008 during that Wildcat game with Ronnie Brown. You know, they could send the one and three.

You lose three games in a row, and you're the Patriots. Is it over at that point? What happens at that point? And with all this other drama with Belichick and Brady, at what point does it explode? And again, we've seen them turn it around, but they may be digging themselves a hole here. It's going to be very hard for them to get out of.

Do you think Antonio Brown's going to skip any more practices or what? I figure not anytime soon. I don't know what happened last week. I think that it was a combination of the off-field, the on-field, the frustration, the tweets. I think that whatever conversation he had with Mike Tomlin last Wednesday,

it got through to him what's expected of him. He's a leader of that team, and he can't be shutting it down he can't be um you know reacting that that extremely to things that are happening early in the season and you know they got the win last night they tried to blow it i was shocked that it was as close as it was i thought that game was over when it was 30 to 10 and uh you know what happens on sunday night when the Ravens come to town and the national TV cameras are on them again,

can they respond and get back to what would be 2-1-1 at that point? So I think with all these guys, it's a week-by-week proposition. And if they're winning, everything's better. And if they're losing, that's when the pressure gets applied and maybe you're going to see a guy blow his stack. You're the best. Mike mike you're the absolute best you have any news you want to break on this show you know uh you know i i not really i i thought this is a very arcane point as it relates to levy on bell i thought that the steelers could rescind the franchise tender and get like a third round compensatory draft pick next year for him and that would be

a factor in whether or not they trade him because they could still rescind the tender and say hey we're getting a nice draft pick next year but as it turns out if they let levy on bell walk and he signs another team even though he's levy on bell and even though the guys they added were morgan burnett john bostick they would get no compensatory draft pick for levy on bell because if you in the stiller's case add two guys and lose two guys that's it you don't get a compensatory draft pick for Le'Veon Bell, because if you, in the Steelers' case, add two guys and lose two guys, that's it. You don't get a compensatory draft pick, even if the guy you lose is a Le'Veon Bell. So the only way they're going to get anything for Bell is to trade him, and maybe that increases the urgency to try to work something out.

Kaepernick going to play for the Niners again? Listen, you know what? It's a joke on the surface, right, because what are they going to do? They're not going to bring him back. But this turns the whole NFL blackballing Kaepernick on its head because they've got four primetime games between week six and week ten. And if you want big ratings for those four primetime games, do you go with C.J. Beathard or do you go with Colin Kaepernick?

Win or lose, it doesn't matter, right? If 345 Park Avenue has to be thinking, wow, man, we haven't wanted this guy in the NFL for the last year and a half. Maybe now we do, because those ratings are going to be god-awful for those 449ers games in comparison to what they would be with Jimmy Garoppolo or Colin Kaepernick playing quarterback. Has Kaepernick been training at all? Do you know? Yeah, he's still training. He's ready to go. I mean, he is ready to go at any given moment. And, you know, I think that the only thing that's going to happen with him is he's going to have what's essentially a trial. It won't be an open court.

But at some point before the end of the year, I believe, there's going to be something that's going to be kind of like a combination of the trial from my cousin Vinny and the trial from the last episode of Seinfeld. You're telling me two youths. Hey, I appreciate you so much, Mike Florio. I know you got a lot to do. Thank you so much for joining us. Go check out everything at Pro Football Talk, both on NBC Sports in the morning and also the website that is Nonstop NFL.

Mike, thank you so much, bub. Thanks, buddy. It's on. Have a good one. It's on, Mike Florio. Guy knows everything about everything. Everything. I've never understood how a guy knows everything. He doesn't sleep though. He told us a story the last time he was here that he was at dinner with

his family and his wife just knows whenever it's almost football season, like if he just gets up and leaves it's because something just happened and he has to go write a blog. That pro football talk never stops. Very lucky to be friends with him. All those information. How about the Everson a blog. That pro football talk never stops. Very lucky to be friends with him. He's all those information. How about the Everson Griffin situation?

That's wild. Very wild. Lev Belting. I asked him yesterday if he could break news on a thing because I knew he was going to talk about news breakers not breaking actual news, just basically recycling news. And I was hoping he would do that. But big fan of Mike Florio. On Thursday night, the world was shocked.

The world was shocked. And there was one man on TV smiling from ear to ear. Joining us now, an absolute legend of Cleveland, the land, believe land, hard land, you know it. He's the greatest offensive lineman and also the first offensive lineman in history, friend of the show, enemy of the brand, ladies and gentlemen, Joe Thomas. What a true honor it is to be here joining you this morning.

I'm just happy to be able to be talking Browns after the first victory in over 600 days. How do you feel, Joe? How is Cleveland feeling? What's the heartbeat of Cleveland right now? I tell you what, after that Super Bowl that we won on Thursday, I don't think there's any tearing us down. It doesn't matter if the river burns up again every single day the rest of my life. Everybody in Cleveland is going to have a smile

because they've got the one and only Baker Meafield helming the quarterback position, taking us to multiple Super Bowls. It's going to be fantastic. Joe, it seems as if the entire city, the dog pound, the entire world, everybody on earth, you and the Thursday Night Football post game, you did the toe poke before, by the way, great form, great kick, very proud of you, you look very skinny, you look good.

But only human on earth that didn't know that Baker Meafield is the starting quarterback is Hugh fucking Jackson. I'm not a new light. How did that happen? No, it's crazy. I mean, we saw Baker in preseason, and he did a nice job. But I think by all accounts, people that watched definitely still thought that Tyrod was going

to give this team the best chance to win. They figured that Baker would come in and play well, but he would make the classic rookie mistake. And let me tell you, boy, were we wrong because when Baker got his opportunity, he was something special. I mean, he hardly made any mistakes that entire game. He basically only had about three bad throws out of 30 something in that game. And he was just spectacular, just bringing emotion and energy into that offense and uh he was just spectacular just bringing emotion and energy into that offense and coming back from uh 14 to 3 deficit that's not something that's easy to do for a rookie quarterback he seems like such a gamer even in practice it seemed that way whenever we were watching hard knocks he just seems like a gamer in college it was the same thing so much

swag is there a reason hugh jack Jackson's playing like this hard-ass role with him is it because Hugh Jackson brought in Tyrod Taylor and told him he was going to play or is it why do you think Hugh Jackson is kind of playing this like kind of I'm not the biggest fan of you you're is it because he's a rookie quarterback situation well I think that's an organizational strategy to bring baker along slowly and truly i think that just as much from the owner and from the gm john dorsey because what they see is baker mayfield is the franchise quarterback for the next 15 to 20 years in cleveland and they don't want to mess that up by throwing him into the fire too quickly to try to win a couple games this year so i think

truly they they talked about this all offseason after they drafted Baker. And based on John Dorsey's history with Patrick Mahomes in Kansas City and Aaron Rodgers in Green Bay, they saw how beneficial it was for those guys to sit and watch and learn as rookies. And I think they were ready to take that approach with Baker. And other than a concussion from Tyrod Taylor and obviously Baker coming in and playing absolutely fantastic football. I still think he would probably be on the bench watching right now. Cleveland Browns, they ever going to lose again? I don't see it in the future.

Joe, you were great on TV on Thursday night. Are you going to do more of that? Well, I appreciate that. Yeah, I'm planning on doing a couple more games this year. I've got a lot of other commitments in media and with family that I'm trying to balance in this first year. But I definitely had a lot of fun, and I'm looking forward to the opportunity to do a few more games.

I'm not sure they're all going to be as exciting as the one we did last week, that Super Bowl game in Cleveland. But hopefully they're all pretty pretty good close battles that uh i can enjoy and uh throw my two cents in there it didn't seem as if cleveland because the reaction was huge it was the biggest thursday night football game i think nfo network has ever had the reaction was so big in the city of cleveland is that thing still marinating or are you guys past that moving on to the next week? Or is it still a happy city as if it was the Superbowl with specials,

all local donut shops, like since the Cleveland Browns win by six, get Baker's dozen free in that type of situation. Is it still, I'll be, I'll be definitely calling the bigger shop today. I'll be the first guy to line up for it calling the bigger shop today but is the city still electric it's electric i mean i think the optimism is as high as it's ever been since i've been here and i was uh drafted into cleveland in 2007 and i don't think they've ever been as excited as they are right now about the future of the franchise

because they see not only baker mayfield obviously we know that story but you look at what they have at other key positions you look at Jarvis Landry you look at the young Miles Garrett who's probably going to be the next Khalil Mack in the NFL you look at this kid Denzel Ward they drafted at cornerback number four overall who's a turnover machine right now and you're saying oh wow there's some really key positions that we've got really, really talented young players and the future is looking extremely bright. Last question. I know your knees couldn't take it anymore, but do you, watching that game on Thursday night, you were very excited watching it all. When you

laid your head down Thursday night, were you pissed off that you're missing us? Honestly, I just can never separate the way my body felt from the emotion of still playing and i was standing there on the sideline and i never once did it cross my mind like wow i wish i was still out there because i know i just couldn't do it anymore and i was just so happy for those guys and so happy for that city and the fan base um so it never really crossed my mind about wishing i was still out there joe you're an absolute legend. I thank you so much. I know you're busy in the middle of a media run. I bet you the Browns fans and the Browns team wish you were still out there.

That's something you need to keep in mind while you do this run. Thank you so much for taking time. Go ahead and listen to the Tomahawk Show with the incredible Joe Thomas and Hawkins. It's incredible. Thank you so, so, so much, Joe Thomas. Yeah, thanks, brother. Appreciate you having me on. Hey, you know what? Have a good one. That toe poke, though. Maybe a little bit more follow-through.

I'll go fuck myself. Ladies and gentlemen, Joe Thomas. I love Joe Thomas. I'm a big fan of his. he snuck us in between two interviews he told me I was like hey man anyway can we talk about the Browns he was like yeah yeah yeah

I got let me push this one back yeah I'll get you right in between I'm like thank you Joe I appreciate that he was like if you can make it quick it would be nice for me not to skip the next one

I got you Joe I appreciate you so much very happy for Cleveland too Cleveland is a place that is just it's a gritty city. Like Philadelphia Flyers. Oh. Hey.

I thought I was going to hate that thing. I love it. Love it. I absolutely love it. And it's falling all over the place. It's a stick. I think it's a good stick. Everybody's like mocking it for falling.

I'm like, I think that's a stick. It's definitely a stick. Yeah, it falls. It does this. It's a comedy. It's gritty. It's from Philly. You got to falls. It does this. It's a comedy. It's gritty. It's from Philly. You got to be gritty to be a Flyers fan, by the way. Them motherfuckers ain't never win. It ain't ever gonna

win either. You can get a mask on all you want. Ain't nothing like Mr. Igloo. Gotta be gritty to get pelted with beers and batteries and anything else in the arena that they can get their hands on. I like Philadelphia. I do. I enjoy Philadelphia, but you Flyers fans are the worst. Sidney Crosby's the best fucking player to ever play hockey.

Whenever he comes into your goddamn arena, show a little bit of respect, because all he does is teabag your entire team every single time he comes in. That's neither here nor there. Shout out to Philadelphia. Shout out to Philadelphia. Joe Thomas is a man I very much respect, though. First offensive lineman in NFL history. People forget.

People forget. He's a man that is, he would like. First offensive lineman in NFL history. People forget. People forget. He's a man that is, he would like some good meat, wouldn't he? He's actually on the keto diet. I didn't get him on the keto diet, but I got him early and I sent him some recipes. He's all in on the keto diet. That's why he looks so thin on that Thursday night football

game. And whether you're on the keto diet, which is all meat all the time or not, there's always time for some good meat in your mouth. Oh, yeah. And there's only one place to go to, and that's ButcherBox. ButcherBox is the best meat shipping thing in the history of meat shipping things. Yep. Bar none.

Nailed it. Bar none. It's next level meat just showing up here at the office when they send it. It's top of the line. You think you're at the most expensive steak places on earth, and it's just being delivered right to your doorstep. Free shipping, by the way. Free shipping.

Free shipping. Free shipping. You're not paying for it. No way you're not paying for it to be shipped. The convenience is free, they say. The convenience is free. It's high quality, healthy protein that you can trust. It's 100% grass-fed and finished beef.

Free-range organic chicken. Heritage bred pork. That's old world pork before they bred out all the fat and flavor to make it the other white meat. AKA, this is pigs the way they were meant to be. Oh, nice. This is how you're supposed to eat pork before they ruined it with a PC culture. Thank you. Unbelievable taste.

There's a huge difference in taste between animals raised on pasture and those fed grain and concentrated animal feedlot operations. You don't want to be eating those confined stupid animals. No. You want the ones that are grazing the pasture out there. It's delivered right to your door on dry ice. Any of the 48 states free shipping.

That's my favorite thing. There's two other states, but they're not involved in the free shipping. You've got to pay for the water transfer. That's on them. That's my favorite thing. There's two other states, but they're not involved in the free shipping. You got to pay for the water transfer. That's on them. That's on them for being there. Very cool states, we will say. But you are not involved in the free shipping thing. Just the 48 here, the continental they call us.

Continental breakfast, not good. Continental United States, good. Exclusive, hard to get meats. Outside of ButcherBox, this type of high quality meat is hard to find right now get 20 off plus free ground beef for the rest of your life that's two pounds of free 100 grass-fed ground beef in every order for the lifetime of your subscription to get this deal go to butcherbox.com click the banner and enter

the discount code pat at checkout so you're getting 20 off when you use the discount code pat when you click the banner at checkout and you're also getting free ground beef for the lifetime of your subscription butcher box delivers healthy 100 grass-fed and finished beef it tastes better than everybody they got free organic chicken and heritage bread pork this place is a one-stop shop for all the best meat you could possibly need and it gets delivered free shipping anywhere continental united states butcherbox.com click the banner discount code pat twenty dollars off and free beef for the lifetime of your subscriptions very good it is very good. Shout out to ButcherBox.

Shout out to Mike Florio, Joe Thomas, Eric Weddle. Very thankful for them. Also to SeatGeek, Lisa Mattress, and MyBookie. Beat Pat McAfee on Thursday. Get your bets in. Hashtag end gang. Hashtag end game. Go ahead and send us a photo of Adam Schefter looking for news that is already broke to re-break for his producers on TV.

Not to name any names, Florio kept saying. Not to name any names. Do they got a beef, I wonder? I was surprised. Oh, yeah. Really? Oh, yeah. Oh, I love that.

I love that Florio just does that. I love a good little grudge hold. All right. Hashtag end game. Hashtag end game. A picture of Schefter seeking information he can re-break so that old Mike Florio can enjoy it. From all of us to all of you, thank you so much for listening. Ty Schmidt, you got a haircut.

I did. You look like an adult thank you i'm coming at evan foxy what's up people are gonna learn a lot about you on heartland radio's friday episode yikes at viva lazito bears win again at nick maroto shaved the head no longer have the james connor haircut james connor shirts now out, by the way. Pat McAfee show.com. At Diggs with a Z. A lot of people tweeting Diggs with a Z. A lot of people this weekend tweeting Diggs with a Z. You're becoming just quite a little mogul out there on social media. Starting to hate the NFL.

You are? I used to love NFL Sundays. Now all you just get is hate mail all day long. Why? It's coming out to the Steelers. People are just coming out to the Steelers all the time. Steelers are coming out to the Steelers a lot. How about the Steelers get in the window?

Good for them. That's all, McComas. Life is good. Heartland Radio comes out Wednesday, Friday, tomorrow, and Friday. Friday, bangers as well on Heartland Radio. Going to enjoy that. Subscribe. Tell your friends.

Review. Hashtag Endgame. Hashtag Endgame. Even a screenshot of you subscribing, by the way, to win merch. I think we gave away 25 shirts. Last episode, we'll do the same thing now. PatMagzShow.com. Go get your merch.

It's a lot of fun. Other than that, thank you so much for listening. Tweet us, add us, have a good time. Ty Schmidt, hit the music.