The Pat McAfee Show - PMS 2.0 592 - The Birth Of The Washington Commanders, Brian Flores Files Lawsuit Against The NFL, Darius Butler, Al Michaels, Will Compton, & AJ Hawk
Episode Date: February 2, 2022On today's show, Pat, AJ Hawk, and the boys chat about the now Washington Commanders and what it means for the team moving forward, and the news that Brian Flores is filing a class action lawsuit agai...nst the NFL for it's discrimination in the hiring process. Joining the show to chat about the Brian Flores situation and how things can change moving forward is 9 year NFL veteran at Defensive Back and friend of the program, Darius Butler (14:02-33:25). Later, legend, broadcasting GOAT, and friend of the progrum, Al Michaels joins Pat and AJ to chat about this NFL season, his future and what he wants to do, calling seemingly every big moment in sports history, and how excited he is to call this years Super Bowl (35:18-1:04:19). Later, 9 year NFL veteran at Linebacker, co-host of the Bussin' With The Boys podcast, Will Compton, joins the show to chat about the recent Bussin' With the Boys episode with Pat, Coach Rich potentially getting a Head Coaching gig, how he balances coming back for a 10th season with what he is trying to accomplish with Bussin', what Coach Vrabes is like behind the scenes, and more (1:05:29-1:30:44). Make sure you subscribe to youtube.com/thepatmcafeeshow and listen every day on Mad Dog Radio, Sirius XM Channel 82. We appreciate you all for listening, come and laugh with us, cheers. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Transcript
Discussion (0)
Hello, it is Wednesday, February 2nd, 2022, the birth of a brand new NFL team.
There's some litigation going on against the NFL for its hiring practices.
And we're just a week and a half away from the Super Bowl. I mean, let's have a Wednesday.
We got Darius Butler. He obviously stopped by to chit chat about all things happening in the NFL
with the litigation through his perspective. I'm very thankful for him doing as such.
Will Compton stopped by.
Obviously, the boy.
I got a chance to be on Bustin' with the Boys today.
We chatted about that and football as a whole.
A.J. Hawk is here.
Al Michaels is here, front of the show, talking about his future.
The Boys.
I mean, I can't thank you enough for allowing us to be a part of your day.
If you enjoy this, please be a friend and tell a friend.
If not, you know, just, I guess, act like it never happened.
Let's go.
Obviously, there's a lot to talk about.
Brian Flores, former head coach of the Miami Dolphins and assistant of the New England
Patriots, is filing a class action lawsuit against the NFL due to racial profiling in
the coaching searches and other mistreatments throughout the entire
process of becoming a head coach. There's a lot of different reports coming out. He did a sit-down
interview with Get Up this morning and CBS. There's a lot to digest and there's a lot of
things being said that could potentially make the NFL have to really show their entire ass
through this entire process. If you think through the entire head coaching hiring circle,
we've only heard that people hire their friends.
And a lot of their friends apparently are not black coaches
because there's only one black coach currently in the NFL.
Brian Flores is bringing up alarming situations
that he said he has been through and has experienced
that I don't think any of us could have expected.
And also he mentioned in there that Stephen Ross
was offering to pay him a
hundred thousand dollar bonus to lose games during the season so brian flores told him that's never
gonna happen because that's not the way he was wired is what he said on get up to the owner of
the miami dolphins who was asking him to tank so they could get a higher draft position there's a
lot of to this and the nfl is going to have to answer each and every single one of them individually because the racism in the coaching practice that is its own massive ordeal massive ordeal especially
whenever you're talking about a league that has you know a high percentage of African Americans
versus white I was a minority in my workplace whenever I worked in the NFL so that is the thing
that the NFL will have to figure out, should have already figured out,
and they will have to do this publicly with this class action lawsuit happening
and a lot of big names joining alongside Brian Flores.
Now, the $100,000 tanking fee
is an entirely another situation,
especially with sports gambling happening,
the integrity of the league,
the integrity of competition,
the integrity of everything from the top
all the way at the top, all the way down. That's another ginormous thing that is going to
have to get figured out publicly, I'd assume, at this case, especially if there's two lawyers who,
listen, I got a lot of respect for Brian Flores. I appreciate what he's doing. Those two lawyers,
But they're going to be loud, I think, through this entire thing.
And the NFL is going to have to answer all of this.
They've already come out and said that it's without merit, these claims.
And that's less than 12 hours after they were even made.
So it seems like they already had their ducks in a row for if this was to ever happen, what they would do.
It's just they were expecting it.
There's the Rooney rule in there that they knew there was a problem. It's not really changed much. So this is all going to take place right in front of all of our eyes. It's one week out from the Super Bowl. The conversation
will probably only continue. We will also continue with this conversation with Darius Butler joining
us in about five to six minutes. A man who just one week ago threw his name into the hat for the
coaching defensive coordinator job for the
Indianapolis Colts and talked about the hiring practices of coaches and I actually got a chance
to experience former players going into coaching as well not just with AQ where everybody
automatically I think but I've had a lot of former teammates that have gone into coaching as well
the whole process of becoming a head coach from the players perspective all the years and maybe
for some people they get you know slotted right to the top but a lot of these guys who try to become coaches uh and i'm
i'm only speaking from former teammates that i've seen so i don't know if this is everywhere
your playing days don't mean shit coaching is almost like a union job where you have to go in
and it's how long you're there not really necessarily what you do you start here then you
go here then you go here then you go here, then you go here, then you go here.
And through those entire processes, you're eating a lot of shit down there at the bottom.
And I think a lot of players have got into the coaching and tried to get into the coaching,
and they did not want to go back to being freshmen in high school, basically,
when it comes to football. So I think there is a process that could potentially have to be changed
through all of this. I think that's what Darius and I will speak about.
I think he also has a lot more on his mind
because I think he's experienced this a little bit more
as he's tried to dabble into the coaching world.
I can't wait to chat with him and thankful for him for that.
There is breaking news in the NFL today, though,
and this is a day that we've been waiting for for a couple years.
Oh, yeah.
At least.
2-2-22.
February 2nd, 2022 will be the day that the Washington football team is no longer titled after what it physically is, a football team.
Washington football team will have a new name.
February 2nd, 2022.
There was, you know, a lot of people prognosticating on what they thought the name
would be, what a good name would be. There was Twitter petitions. There was fans in different
places causing scenes to get names heard and said. And the Red Wolves had an incredibly viral attack
early months and months ago, but they peaked at the wrong time. The name was nowhere near
the finish line,
so I think it kind of ran its very popular course and went out of there.
The Red Tails is something that was gone.
Allegedly, the Washington Warriors was potentially a name,
but that was shot down due to it still having some relevance
to the Native American community.
So there was names that were floating out there,
and the Internet was deciding which one was good, which one wasn't good.
And then all of a sudden boomer assison the hardest working man in all of the
world came out and said oh it's the admirals all right i got breaking news it is the admirals so
then there was an entire conversation about whether or not the admirals would be a good name
but there was this one company i think called Sports Media, who actually had logos and designs for the commanders just months ago, I think.
Yeah.
Tweeting out that this is going to be the name.
And the Internet said, there's no way that this company knows exactly what it is.
How has the Internet figured out this name that has been withheld from us for years almost at this point?
Then a news chopper zooms in on a on a building or on
the stadium where it clearly has commanders on it it's like there's no way they're gonna let us find
out about this before 2 to 22 with how much has been done with red herrings and buying of patents
and trademarks that weren't the case there's no way we've been able to figure it out this easy
then we woke up this morning there was an announcement in ladies and gentlemen we are now in the era of the washington
commies the red team in the nation's capital the washington commanders are about to take the entire
nfl by storm did they think about potential repercussions? I assume they had a lot of
hard conversations about the Washington
commies being referenced as
the Washington commies.
And the internet has tried its best to figure out
what the chance will be for commanders.
Commanders is a tough word, I guess,
to fit into chance, says Atone Diggs
and most of the internet. Commies
is going to be something that is said
on a regular basis. And I know that, you know, going to be something that is said on a regular basis.
And I know that, you know, that might be something that some people would be pumped about,
which is wild to think about.
Despicable.
Not America, but I mean people.
Wild to think about.
But the Washington Commanders, if they win, everybody will love it.
That's right.
If they lose, everybody will hate it. If the pipes are still dumping poop on them at the games, they're going to hate the name,
I would assume.
But if the Commanders go on to win, this will be described as, do you remember when the
rebranding of the Washington Commanders happened?
At first, there was uproar.
The internet let their jokes fly.
Then the Commanders will go on to win eight games, nine games, 10 games, 11 games, 12
games, and go on to be one of the most beloved, ten games, eleven games, twelve games, and
go on to be one of the most beloved franchises yet again.
That is potentially what's going to happen.
Anytime big decisions are made, we instantly judge it, and obviously hindsight gets a chance
to just beat the hell out of our thoughts.
But Commanders was not one that was a very positive response on the internet this morning,
but rebranding is always going to be a problem.
Yeah, there have been videos actually that have resurfaced of Chase Young saying, oh that was a very positive response on the internet this morning, but rebranding is always going to be a problem.
Yeah, there have been videos actually that have resurfaced of Chase Young saying,
oh yeah, the Commander's name stinks.
There's no way we're picking that.
In a previous interview when they're going through it all, but fitting Commanders into a couple chants,
I don't know what those fans are going to be doing.
Here we go, Commanders.
Here we go.
Here we go, Commanders. here we go. Here we go, Commanders.
Here we go.
Here we go, commies.
Here we go.
Here we go, commies.
Here we go.
That's easy.
That's going to happen.
It's going to happen.
It's tough.
There's a sleeper cell organization.
Hey, no matter what the name.
Listen. I i mean that is
going to be talked about i mean i know the patriots have a new rival it's a goddamn commies
in the south well you're gonna have the you're gonna have the cowboys and the commies yeah
you know taking each other on you're talking you're talking very old school
verse wow what the fuck is going on school?
That is going to be interesting.
What if they win?
Just like everything else in the NFL, if you win, nothing matters.
The commanders are getting mocked completely right now, as it should.
I think there was other names out there that were great.
And who knows who ultimately made that decision?
Was it Jason Wright?
Was it an advertising agency?
Was there so many thoughts that this is one that they put a scoring on and although one person might have had it as like their fifth favorite enough people had it
like their third favorite so connected collected enough points that it beat out whatever it was
potentially a better name that entire decision making process i'm sure we will not find out
about or learn about but i bet it was fucking hell i bet it was not a good time at all to come up with
the name well and it seemed like the whole time like a big part of it was fucking hell. I bet it was not a good time at all to come up with a name.
Well, and it seemed like the whole time, like a big part of it was like,
hey, the fans are going to be heavily involved in making this decision.
Then you see the response to it.
It's like, okay, well, they wouldn't have been happy with anything.
Yeah, I don't think so.
Rebranding is impossible.
Right.
Wolves.
Wolves is sick.
Hogs, baby.
Hogs.
Hogs.
Washington Wolves.
I thought they were going to do it.
You thought it was Groundhogs Day.
I thought it was going to be the Hogs. Oh, you know what? Before we move on. Oh, man. Hogs. Hogs. Hogs. Washington Wolves. I thought they were going to do it. You thought on Groundhog's Day. You thought it was going to be the Hogs.
Oh, you know what?
Before we move on.
Oh, man.
Fuck that Groundhog.
All right.
I want to let everybody know.
Ponsitani Phil is a piece of shit.
Okay?
And I know I grew up in Pennsylvania or whatever, and this is a Pennsylvania thing, and it is
quite a party from what I heard.
Them folks out there are hammered at 3 a.m. waiting for this ground
rat to come out and tell us that
winners come. No shit, Phil.
There's 45 inches on
the way for like 15
of the states. I'm sick of
this fucking rat. I'm sick
of it. I like the party.
I like the good time. But
no son of a bitch that comes into our life
and delivers bad news
every single year
should stick around.
This goes against
everything I stand for.
If you don't like somebody
or you don't like something
on the internet,
unfollow them,
unsubscribe them,
block them.
Somehow we can't do that
to this fucking rat
that tells us that life's
going to be miserable
for another six months
every single year.
Has there ever been a time
where the son of a bitch
didn't go right back
in his hole
because he's a coward whenever he sees all these drunk folks early in the morning? Has there ever been a time where the son of a bitch didn't go right back in his hole because he's a coward
whenever he sees all these drunk folks
early in the morning?
Has there ever...
I don't remember a single time
where this rat has told us good news.
I'm sick of it.
Not that I can remember.
And you know,
where's PETA for this kind of stuff?
Why isn't PETA going in there
and freeing this guy
and getting him the fuck out of here?
Well, I think he lives the greatest life.
That's what I'm saying.
It's a big hustle, though. It's a scam.
It's even more so.
He's got a good condo.
Maybe we think about putting one in between his eyes
before next Groundhog Day.
I wouldn't mind that.
Give me another one.
Feels like he loves the spotlight.
If he had any nuts, he would have told us about
COVID before it got here, too.
How come little Punxsutawney Phil couldn't see a shadow for that fucking world stoppage?
That thing ain't worth a damn.
Wasn't there another hog we found?
He's a Staten Island junkyard hog.
He said, hey, spring's on the way, fucking deal with it.
And we appreciate that rat.
That was Gus, I think, the second most famous groundhog in Pennsylvania.
Nah, Gus stinks, too.
Anyways, this ain't Phil's fault, but
he's terrible at his job.
Remember, we were right into COVID, I think,
at the beginning, and Punk's Tommy Phil was like,
hey, hate to break it to you,
but world stopped, and
it's going to be cold outside.
Phil, get the fuck out.
Knock it off.
Love the groundhog.
Joining us now to talk about some real news, actually.
The NFL might be
staring down a colossal decision that could affect the rest of the nfl's existence brian flores has
filed a class action lawsuit against the nfl about its hiring processes being racist amongst other
claims against the nfl that are not good all, that will all have to be handled individually.
The $100,000 to lose bonuses from the owner to the coaches, well, that questions the entire integrity of the game.
Teams, in Brian Flores' eyes, clearly interviewing him just to check a box and not considering him at all for a head coaching position before even listening to him.
Strictly because they are not comfortable with him,
which also means they are not comfortable with the color of his skin
and leading his organization.
Another massive part of this big lawsuit against the NFL,
which they are going to have to handle publicly.
And, you know, this is a big time.
They just signed a $110 billion deal, and the numbers are only going up.
Who knows how this ends up?
Joining us right now to chat about it, former teammate of mine,
nine-year NFL vet who played
corner, nickel, safety.
He's one of the smartest humans
to ever enter a football field.
Threw his name into the coaching ranks just a week
ago and we chatted a little bit about the entire
processes of it all. Ladies and gentlemen,
host of the Man to Man podcast, Darius Butler.
D-Butt, Punxsutawney Phil
needs to get out of our life.
Groundhog.
Yeah, but you guys down there in South Florida,
you're like, oh, yeah, the Groundhog.
You tell me it's going to be 110 tomorrow?
Don't care.
Don't care.
It's beautiful outside.
We did have a little cold front over that Nor'easter.
That's the wind last week.
A little breezy.
66. No, I got 40s. I have a little cold front over that nor'easter. That's wind last week. A little breezy. A little breezy.
66.
You got that wind chill on there. No, no.
I got 40s.
Whoa.
Yeah, we had all kind of shit going on in the news down here.
But we made it.
We're all right.
Get your jackets out of the closet.
It is 48 with a wind chill at 39.
All right.
Anyways, that's our choice to live up at 39. All right, anyways.
That's our choice to live up here, too, so yes.
Cold's not that bad.
No, it builds.
Cold stinks.
Punxsutawney Phil stinks more than a cold does.
Anyways, let's get to it.
There is a massive thing happening right now in the NFL right in front of our eyes, very public.
Brian Flores was on CBS this morning. He was on Get Up this morning with his two attorneys.
A class action lawsuit against the NFL as a whole for its hiring of head coaching process being racist.
And also $100,000 being offered to him in cash if he loses games to Tank for the draft,
which questions the integrity of the game and the integrity of the hiring process.
It's a massive ordeal.
As we look at it from right now, Darius Butler, your thoughts on the entire thing?
And what do you think is most likely to come of all of this uh you know thoughts obviously um you know not
not surprising um you know we we kind of talked about a little bit uh last week we were talking
about me throwing my hats you know in the coaching ranks and kind of part of the reason why I didn't
get into coaching right after football and this was a part of it you know just kind of um it's
definitely discouraging as a black coach trying to you know just kind of um it's definitely
discouraging as a black coach trying to you know get in there and move up the ranks as you see your
your white counterparts do um but it just it doesn't happen and at the end of the day and
i've said it a couple years ago i say it kind of repeated every year and i don't even get really
upset and worked up about it anymore at this point because the reality is this it's a it's a white
owned league and and you know these are all white billionaires that own their team and nobody's
going to tell them or anybody how to run their company or how to run something that they they
built or bought um who they can hire what they can't do like we we can get upset about it we
can feel certain ways about it but i think you mentioned 110 billion dollars
yeah and we're tuning in every week i'm tuning in every week you are we're talking about it so
until those numbers change if that bottom line gets affected if sponsors maybe come in and say
hey we got you guys got a diversity issue you got to address it or you have competition some type of
competitive other league that go about got the rock know, and his ex-wife, I think, starting up, you know, the XFL.
And maybe that'll be a competition where, hey, we're getting better opportunities over here.
And obviously that's way down the line with the bohemoth that the NFL is right now.
But those are the only real I think that's the only place i think real change will come up to this point it's just
i mean we just had a race norming issue that kind of got swept under the rug like a few months ago
so um it doesn't it's not surprising at all it's definitely disappointing um it's discouraging
still with with coaches um obviously uh b flow he he fell on the sword you know i know him
uh personally so he's pretty much you know sacrificing
you know his future coaching career he's a young young guy 40 years old so um i think he's doing
the right thing obviously how it came about with the text messages and you know now the lawsuit
we'll see what comes of this i personally think it's going to end you know in a settlement and
it'll kind of go away we'll keep going on business. They'll probably have a couple token hires
and then they'll be fired in a couple years.
Unfortunately, that's the reality that I see.
Hopefully I'm wrong.
So a lot of coaches get fired because they stink,
but hopefully there isn't token hires just to get past this.
And I would be intrigued to hear the one per club meetings
on how that whole thing goes because it is obvious.
I mean, it's a glaring thing the fact
that the rooney rule even had to be enacted right i think is admission that there is a problem it
just had to be incentivized to a couple years ago with the third round pick if you you know
advanced gms or something like that a couple years ago so yeah yeah it's very fascinating
they've admitted that it's been an issue in the past. They've made these rules. They've incentivized it. So they've tried to address it, which is what they will try to stand on or whatever the NFL because they got their lawyers as well. You know, we all know that they're going to come back, whatever they're going to do.
trying to buy one of the teams.
He's a, that would be the first black owned team,
I believe in the NFL, if he was to get in there.
Do you think that is really the only way we move forward?
Or do you think that coaching process is also one that has to change?
And although I didn't appreciate the attorneys on there on get up this morning, I didn't, I honestly, I don't know.
I wasn't, I wasn't a big fan of any of the interviews.
I thought, you know, number one, it's too early.
And I don't know, you know, the people that I know that have had legal, you know, things going on.
Usually you don't go on and talk about it.
But, you know, that's something you want to be super prepared for, especially when you're going to court against.
You know, Brady said it a few weeks.
You're not going to beat 30 billionaires in court.
But, you know, I'm sure somebody's advising Flo, and that's above my pay grade.
No, I don't think so.
I think the two people that are advising him, you are above intellectually.
But that's just me personally looking out.
And maybe they're just looking out for themselves.
Who knows?
Robert Smith, though, actually commented about it.
And I think he even put, like, a subtle tweet out there, like,
we need to talk about this whole who's in this for the right reasons and who isn't, which is a part of everyday life. But one of them, the stooge on the right,
actually, he said something that was pretty, I think, profound. He said, the way we fix this
is if we have more defensive coordinators that are black, offensive coordinators that are black,
special teams coordinators that are black. But to get to those points, the amount of shit you've got to go through to get there,
the coaching ranks is almost like a union job.
Now, granted, there's the Sean McVeighs that get hired when they're 30 years old,
Cliff Kingsbury, Zach Taylor.
Those are all white guys that are getting hired very, very early
or who are supposed to be these offensive masterminds.
But normally, it's like a union job.
You come in, you're getting getting coffee you're drawing up plays
you're sleeping on your couch even if you played in the nfl for 13 fucking years this is what you're
doing you're going through that and it's hard for any player to be like i'm going to continue to do
this to make no money and maybe one day do i think there's like an entire process that needs to change
don't you because that's a part of process that I believe is is intentional. You know, so for me, for example, I would be essentially punished for going and going to play at the highest level for nine years and not going to be a quality control guy, you know, out of college.
You know, so instead of starting my coaching career at 22, I would have started at 32.
22, I would have started at 32.
And in that nine years when I was, you know, playing against Aaron Rodgers or Peyton Manning or Tom Brady or, you know, being heavily involved in actually orchestrating game plans and then going out on the field executing them,
I'm punished and I'm behind a guy, you know, that that's put his time in.
You know what I mean? Which I think you do have to put time in on the job.
You do have to learn things. But it's certain. I mean, if you're reading a book about war,
I mean, I would rather read it from a guy
who went on 50 special ops mission
as opposed to a guy who was kind of on the outside
writing down a report about that mission.
But I'm not the guy, I'm not the people hiring these jobs.
Now, that's not to say that the Sean McVeigh's
and the Kyle Shanahan's and these people
aren't qualified for these jobs,
but it's just everyone doesn't have the same opportunity.
And we know life's not fair. It's nepotism. It's all these different things.
But that's those are the issues. So that's why people have been punished.
And like you said, you play in the league, let's say, six, seven years and you're going to coaching.
Like at that point, you've got a family. You're probably living a certain lifestyle.
Like you want to maintain certain things. You want to maybe keep your kids in the same schools and all these different
things. You can't go back to, you know,
making that and doing different things and then sacrificing hours and hours and
hours at the same time when you're over, overqualified for the job to begin with.
So that's a part of the issue. It's a lot of,
a lot of parts that play into it and you know, hopefully we'll, we'll see it,
you know, get fixed down the line. line but you know the realist in me i guess somewhat the pessimist in me i just kind
of see it for what it is and a lot of people try to you know we'll put it uh i know a lot of
conversations i have you know people will say hey man well the league is you know 70 something
percent black when you look at the players how do you say you have a race issue or this is that's the only place in sports where it's a real meritocracy where you really you got to earn it
every day and everybody's judging it from the time you're 16 years old everybody's saying okay that
guy's good he's not good that guy's good he's not good so the people out there earning it
you look at nfl we're really just getting somewhat of fair opportunity playing the quarterback
position you look at the past maybe decade or so so i mean it's the coaching and all the gyms well, we're really just getting somewhat of fair opportunity playing the quarterback position.
You look at the past maybe decade or so.
So, I mean, it's the coaching and all the gyms and all those things. Those would be, I guess, more of the norm down the line, maybe.
But only competition really will breed that change.
If the owners could have, and I'm not saying the owners are intentionally just being racist,
but if it took a while for the first black players to enter these major leagues
for a reason like so if they just had how they could have it would probably be 90 white players
on the field too so it's a lot of issues at the same time um obviously race plays into it you'll
be a fool to to play a blind eye to that uh but it's a lot of factors going into it and i think
as most things come down to in america uh the money and
i think the money the only thing that's gonna really change it yeah money matters so much a lot
for aab how much how much you're suing for a whole lot of money on that real sports on that real
sports that was uh that was quite a moment he has his own gripes by the way with how he was being
treated as a player which is its own thing and obviously, there's the Gruden lawsuit that's happening
because his emails were the only ones that were shown out of 600,000.
Although they were terrible, what else is being shown in there?
Those might come to light, by the way, through this blind Flores entire class.
I mean, the NFL is fighting a lot of different fronts right now.
Do you not believe, and I might be misreading this,
I feel like we're at a time now
and i know you said you're a realist and a pessimist naturally and you think you know
getting into those networks is going to be difficult i feel like we're at a time in history
where more people are more don't you think now is the time for this to potentially make a change
don't you think you know uh you know realist pessimist and i don't know if and black too
so i've been seeing it from this lens man i and i and
right now i got it better than anybody that's looked like me has ever had it right so that's
the part of so when you talk to older black folks you talk to older hey you got it better than ever
and then you go back to 2020 what happened with george floyd and everything that came out of that
and all the fortune 500 companies pledging money and doing all this. This isn't just a football issue.
Like if you look at any major sports network, go look at them.
You're going to look at it.
You're going to turn on the TV.
You're going to see there's going to be certain people on TV all day.
They're going to look a certain way.
And as you go up and you look in the C-suite, you look at the executives,
you look at the real decision makers, the he's and she's in those positions,
most of them are white.
That's just the reality of the situation.
Now, like I said, you create competition.
And we're in a place right now where you can build your own.
Like, for example, you built your own shit.
You're doing it with your boys, with your people.
If I would do it the same way, it would look very similar.
I got a couple of white homies that might, you know, kick it a couple of times and be in there and be in there day to day.
But that's how it's going to look. That's the reality of it.
So when you build your own shit, then you can call your own shots.
But anything outside of that, you're going to be asking for essentially a bone to be thrown to you.
Unless changing the hearts and minds, that's bullshit. That's not happening.
Like it's going to be the money that change it or it's going to be the competition that breeds the change.
So that's the reality of it for me. And, you know other people you know the pledges and the the the end the social
justice and it takes all of us like all that's his tagline just cute but we've seen it we've
heard it for years for decades i read i do research this shit ain't new to me it it just
is what it is and the better shout out to belichick yeah that's what i was about to say
you know that's the most damning
evidence here in this whole situation
and, you know,
it'll be a question, was it intentional, was it
not? Okay. You know,
I know B-Flow, I know Belichick, and Belichick
is the most detailed
human I've ever been around. Yeah, so you
know, I'll leave it at that. Hey, Debo,
we gotta call you back. We lost connection there. We heard you the
entire time, but your face froze there.
I got a follow-up conversation about Bill Belichick a lot there.
He thinks that Bill did this all on purpose.
Yeah.
He thinks that Bill did it all on purpose, which, by the way,
great conspiracy because it is Bill Belichick.
Every time Bill Belichick does anything, they're like,
that was on purpose.
Tactical.
That was on purpose.
He would potentially cut a player that was really good.
Everybody's like, what is he doing this for? Oh, he's doing this so he can get him back at a cheaper
price so he can do this blah blah blah it's like every move that bill belichick has ever made
or done there's so much respect for him and his acumen that's like oh this has to be on purpose
this has to be on purpose i honestly believe there's a chance he just misread a fucking text
message yeah hey d but you're saying that there's no chance Bill Belichick misread that text message?
No, I'm not saying there's no chance.
He is a little up there.
He is a little up there in age.
Maybe he didn't have his glasses on.
Maybe the dog could have had the phone.
So it's definitely a chance.
But like I say, he's very detail-oriented.
And I'm not going to put that on Bill.
Obviously, he has previous relationships with the Giants.
So maybe he didn't do this intentionally.
But, you know, regardless of how it came out, it's out here.
And you see they trying to cut me off, man.
Hey.
Hey, it was literally.
I just want to let you know.
Watch yourself, Pat.
I know.
Literally, as you were in the middle of that entire, your face just froze.
And everybody's first thought was, oh, they're trying to fucking shut him up.
It's unbelievable.
Like, literally, we thought, isn't it crazy that that is an actual thought that we all had though
like all of us it's wild that that's the time that we live in but that is why i think by the way
that now is a good time for these change to potentially happen because everybody although
the word woke is obviously painted in a lot of different ways i think a lot more people are
enlightened to question shit nowadays than they have in the past.
I think people are learning more, experiencing more, seeing more,
meeting more.
I think there's less ignorance than ever,
although there is going to be the ignorant all the time.
I think now is a potential proper time maybe to recourse this entire thing.
Do you think Coach Flo has any chance coaching anywhere other than the
Patriots right now?
No, right?
You sue the NFL.
Yeah, yeah.
You know, and it's similar to, you know, when Cap,
when you knew that was going to be a settlement.
You knew, I knew at least, so I felt like his playing days were over,
like you're going to go one or the other route.
And obviously it's a bigger cause here, brian flores came out and said that um so i i think he's sacrificing his coaching career
uh hopefully i'm wrong because he is young um this is the the best league that we have
and he's been i think he's given 18 years of his you know time already to this league so i hope he
does get an opportunity but uh part part part of the reason he probably came out with this too is
i think he was on the finalist for the houston and new orleans job
so he's probably like man fuck that yeah that one job just hit me yeah yeah you know what i'm out of
here that would uh in all reality i don't think you know i think his coaching career is done you
know you're suing that would be that'd be pretty awkward well it's just like when antonio brown
sued the nfl and then he said he was coming back to the NFL next year.
I was like, I don't know if that's ever happened,
but he's fucking good at football.
He is very good at football.
So I guess there's a chance.
B-Flow is a great coach, obviously, had years of success,
and he was actually winning in spite of ownership, it seems like, down in Miami.
That's wild.
It's going to be interesting to see how that plays out.
That's Stephen Rothstein.
Because, you know, offering 100.
That's, you know, we all you hear it all the times in the meetings, like integrity, the shield, the shield, the shield.
And if those accusations come out to be true, especially with him being fired after that, you know, that's and that's why I mean, I'm sure me and Gump aren't shot.
But that's some wild shit.
Yeah.
Well, I know you're a big time Dolphins fan, obviously, as is Gumpy.
But the integrity of the game is massive.
It's paramount.
The NBA is still dealing with Tim Donahue.
Still dealing with Tim Donahue.
And I guess they have openly tanking teams to try to get a 4% chance better
to hit the lottery, and they never do, it feels like.
Okay, we're going to lose all our games. Our fans are going to hate us,
and then we're not going to do what we tried to do anyways
because it's a low chance of that happening.
I mean, it is a nightmare over there.
But the NFL, it's always been, hey, every game matters.
Hey, we're playing.
We're not trying to lose.
Nobody's trying to tank.
And then you hear that there's potential bonuses going.
I think Hugh Jackson came out.
Now, he would have been super paid.
Oh, yeah.
He might be owning a team.
He was not selling tequila
if they're giving him bonuses.
We love Hugh Jackson on this show, obviously,
but he came out, and I think his lawyer
or PR also came out and said
that they have more information and
more evidence of this, so this is only going to grow.
Yeah, it's a class-agent suit,
and I'm sure there'll be some other coaches that go into it.
Obviously, the coaches that want to continue coaching, probably not,
but there will be some other coaches that don't have the aspiration to be NFL head coaches.
And speaking of Hugh Jackson, it is Black History Month,
and he's down there at Grambling and he announced their new deal
where they'll be paying all the student
athletes down there. So that's huge. So shout out to
Hugh. I'm a big Hugh fan too. Hugh Jack City
down there.
Down there. I sent a video
to Grambling. Me kicking and punting. They never
opened it, I don't think. What? Really?
I don't think. I mean, I was bombing balls in that video.
I don't know how you wouldn't say, hey, come on down.
Normally the only whites on this team, the kickers and the punters.
Hey, you said some quarterbacks, lineman.
I could see you being a punter at HBCU.
Oh, it would have been awesome.
I would have had a great time down there.
Man, me coming into the yard.
Anyways, who's going to win a Super Bowl, D-Butt?
You know what, man?
It's been a wild year, and the thing that will surprise me most is coming into the year,
even more so than Joe Burrow going to win,
that was Matt Stafford beating Brady on his way to winning his first Super Bowl,
and now he'll be kind of the elder statesman at that quarterback position in the league.
So I think Matt Stafford's going to figure out a way to win this Super Bowl.
I'm not sure if he'll cover, but I think he'll win this Super Bowl.
Oh, okay.
A little twofer there in your pick. We can't wait.
We can't thank you enough for joining us for your
perspective on all of this. I know
it probably, you know, enlightened a lot of humans
that were watching that maybe didn't fully understand. So we
appreciate you, man, and we'll see you next week
down there at Super Bowl week. Yes, sir.
I'll be safe. Appreciate you. Hey, you too, ladies and gentlemen,
Terry Spother.
Joining us from an attic in Ohio,
Super Bowl champion,
college football national champion,
COVID survivor, Ryder Cup champion,
A.J. Hall.
A.J., what's up, dude?
Wow, you look... Hey. Whoa.
Hey, today you got a glow. You pregnant?
I might be. I don't know. Should I take a test? Yeah, yeah, yeah. Go pee. With a glow. You pregnant? I might be.
I don't know.
Should I take a test?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Go pee.
With a glow like that.
Oh, wait.
I thought they always pooped on those.
No, just stick it in the pee bottle you have underneath your desk right now.
Yeah.
Stop laughing, man.
I don't think they'd poop to find out if you're pregnant.
I do appreciate or respect the fact that maybe that is the case,
and you have many more children than I do, so you would know better but you look good today hey nice glow to you pal it feels like
you're really oozing with positivity is that what today is going to be like out of the AJ Hawk attic
I don't know I mean I'm always pretty positive I think I'm sweating because like I said I can't
control my heat up here in the attic so it's going crazy sometimes either hot or cold but you know
we'll figure it out uh we had bad I had internet this morning. I went on with Dan Dawkich on his live
show. It was
a Zoom, I believe,
and I was freezing in there. I felt like you.
I'm like, man, I'm bringing this show.
Done. That's 100% on me, but the fact
that you can't control the temperature, the internet,
or have any books behind you
just makes it even more miraculous that you
come in here and deliver every day. We appreciate
you. The Commanders are a new team in the NFL.
Obviously, everybody's going to call them the Commies.
That is just what the Internet's going to do, and that's what everybody's going to do.
Your quick thoughts before we get to our first guest, friend of the show here.
Well, it's not surprising, didn't it?
This was leaked by the great Boomer, wasn't it, like months ago?
No, he said Admirals.
Yeah, have a little respect for the titles, please, and rank, maybe.
Yeah, I don't know.
I feel like we went so long, we might as well just stuck with the football team.
It fit.
I feel like after a while now, it'll take a little bit of time to get used to this one.
And if they win, it'll be all good.
If they lose, it'll obviously get buried.
That is everything in the world that we live.
A man who's been on a winning streak for like 50 years, 60 years on television.
Everybody loves him.
The voice of Sunday night football
and a lot of magical moments in sports history.
Ladies and gentlemen, Al Michaels.
Yeah!
Sir.
Happy Groundhog Day.
No, hey, Al, I don't want to get into it.
I hate that ground rat.
I hate Phil.
I do, too.
I came out of my backyard.
I'm sorry I don't have a tank top because they're all in the washing machine.
I understand.
You have to settle for this today.
I've got an A.J. Hawks cigar.
My wife won't let me smoke that in the house.
I'm out in the backyard.
I saw my shadow a couple of minutes ago.
So six more weeks of winter or maybe it's the other way around.
I don't know what the hell it is.
How are you guys?
Hey, we're good.
But at least you didn't see your shadow and then tell everybody that life's about to be terrible.
That's what Phil does every single year,
this goddamn thing. You know how I hate it.
Punxsutawney, Phil,
I'm telling you. We've got possums
out in our front yard now.
We've got one of those ring things
when there's motion out in front
at 2.30 in the morning, the possum's going back and forth.
I'm looking for a raccoon to take
him out.
Possum is going back and forth i'm looking for a raccoon to take him out no oh yeah okay uh possum is an incredible uh species i believe it's marsupial the only marsupial in north america al i mean yeah hey no big deal we got i got a lot of uh outdoor pets
around my old house my wife feeds them all but let's get let's get to some nfl news al because
obviously we're right around the corner
from the biggest game um the commanders you know new team name this morning and i feel like
everything in the world especially when you rebrand it is going to be hated early the commanders i
don't think anybody expected or wanted but if they win it doesn't matter right as long as they win
nothing matters right and people will get used to it. And you're right. They'll start calling them the commies and
social media will have a blast with this.
I thought the funniest thing ever was when
the Seattle hockey team
named itself the Kraken.
And the name of the building
I think is something like Climate Pledge Arena
in Seattle. But you know what the fans
called it? The Crack House.
So,
that's the risk you run when you change the name of something
yeah after all these years and obviously doing every single sporting event on every continent
it seems like you ever like how do you feel before a football game do you still feel like
you did maybe 30 years ago do you get anxious nervous at all anxious is the word nervous no
you know if you're prepared you're not nervous and i think you know and you know what
it's like you're playing big games you just want it to start and once it starts it's like you're
doing you know you've been there before you're doing the game just get out of the gate like a
racehorse you want to have a clean break and get it going so you know it's it's funny the only time
i'd ever get nervous is if i was not prepared i never let let that happen. And you know, I'm lucky right
now. After all these years in the business, I still love it. And I can't believe I was thinking
the juxtaposition the other day. I did the Cincinnati Reds back in the early 70s. I did
the World Series on NBC because they brought the team announcer up from the local team to NBC to do
the World Series with Kurt Gowdy and Tony Kubik.
So I did a Cincinnati Reds in the World Series in 1972
and the Cincinnati Bengals in the Super Bowl in 2022.
Holy mackerel.
50 years and you haven't missed a beat.
You haven't missed a beat, by the way.
You still, every single game, I feel like a lot of people now,
and I don't want to be the person that bears any bad news ever to anybody, but as people grow older, there's a natural potential downfall.
You are still just as smooth, cool, and quick as you've ever been.
Is there something to that?
Do you train?
Is it just natural?
What do you think it is?
Hey, by the way, people would still love you.
They'd be like, Al Michaels?
We love him out there.
Listen, I don't eat vegetables.
I hate to say this, but I don't eat any vegetables.
Maybe that is the key to life.
Betty White, who lived about two miles from where I sit right now, she was my neighbor.
I didn't know her.
But I read a story about her that she didn't eat any vegetables.
I'll take 99 and 15, 16s, as Betty White did. And she obviously passed away a short time ago.
But Betty White ate no vegetables.
That may be the key.
Think about that.
I don't know why no more people aren't talking about it.
Al Michaels, Betty White, two of the most beloved humans in history,
don't eat vegetables, still got it very –
Betty was – hey, Betty was one of the quickest of all time.
Fantastic.
Do you mean –
I loved her.
You said you never met her.
I assume all these celebrities want to meet you.
Is there anybody that has come up and said like they're a big fan of yours
and you were surprised from outside the sports world?
When I was doing – hey, speaking ofinnati i was doing the reds and a few years ago george clooney comes up to me at a charity golf tournament i'd never met him and he said
i've always wanted to meet you and ask you why did you leave the reds i left the reds to go to
the san francisco giants in 74 i said because they tripled my salary. He said, no, you're a lot better.
So George was a 14-year-old, and he'd
lie in bed at night with a transistor radio and the Reds were on the West Coast and
listened to me at midnight Cincinnati time. So that was a thrill for me. And then we
started talking about Pete Rose and Joe Morgan and Johnny Bench and all of the rest.
So that was very cool.
That's awesome.
Have you ever had any issues with any coaches or players over the years?
I don't ever recall anything happening where you got into it with anybody.
You seem to be highly respected from pretty much everybody.
Yeah, I think there's a mutual respect.
I thought, you know, Buddy Ryan wasn't my favorite back in the late 80s.
He thought I was a soccer announcer, right?
You know, and he kind of barked at me in a couple of meetings.
And, you know,
there's never been really
a confrontation or anything,
but there were some coaches, I basically
had to pull them aside after a couple of meetings and go,
hey, listen, I'm not asking
you to tell us the game plan,
but don't lead us down some primrose
path and tell us stuff that you know
is bullshit, right. So that changed relationships with a couple of guys.
And I think they respected our crew for, you know, saying, hey, listen, just, you know, if you don't want to tell us something, don't tell us something.
But but don't guide us in the wrong direction.
You're a guy. You call it. Yeah.
No, you're a guy. You called the World Series in 1972.
Obviously, do you believe in miracles?
I mean, you've called so many big-time sporting events.
You have the Super Bowl coming up here in two weeks, obviously.
And it's a massive game.
A lot of storylines in there I'm sure you're excited about.
Is the preparation any different? Because now you're hosting a show for the entire globe
which is something you've done on a regular basis but is it different here about a week and a half
out than normally and when do you really start dialing in we're already dialed then i'll tell
you pat this is a little different in the sense that we've had the rams three times this year we
had them a couple of weeks ago against Tampa Bay.
And so we had them on opening night against Chicago. We had them against Tennessee.
So, you know, I live in LA.
I know the Rams kind of inside out,
but even Chris Collinsworth who lives in Cincinnati,
we haven't done the Bengals in years.
So it's kind of,
it's fun in a way because had Kansas city been in,
we had done Kansas city five times this year.
So we knew them inside out.
Cincinnati, we're kind of starting from a little bit of a scratch here.
Hey, that's the vegetable commission.
Who is that?
Yeah, I know.
No, I can't take this call.
How do I decline this right now?
Hold on.
Here we go.
Hey, by the way, there it is again.
Being, I mean, technology.
Hey, you're killing it out.
What can I tell you?
I just, thank God I hit the right button.
The Bengals, it's kind of fun in a way because I think, you know,
I got the sense watching the Kansas City-Cincinnati game.
You know, when the game starts, here's Mahomes.
It's going to be a great Super Bowl.
It's going to be Kansas City again.
Mahomes looked fantastic, obviously, in that first half.
Then I think as the game
progressed, if you didn't have a
specific rooting interest, like for the Chiefs,
if you were a Chiefs fan, of course
you were distressed. I think
most of the country kind of said, wow,
look at Burrow, look at this team.
That's kind of cool. So, that's the way
we're looking at it going into the game. So, it's
going to be exciting, but
I don't want to say starting from scratch i mean we sort of follow every team in the league
but we really have to get down to you know start at the bottom of the cincinnati bangles work our
way up so there was 60 million people at its peak allegedly watching that afc matchup and
i think it didn't average as high as the nfc game but that's because, to your point, there was an 18-point differential at one point.
Everybody thought the Chiefs were just going to go on and do what the Chiefs do.
Joey Burrow and the boys coming back, actual needle mover.
More people than the NFC game watched that comeback in the second half.
They're young.
I don't think they even know what they don't know right now, too.
That is kind of the sense.
They have no idea how hard it is to make it to the Super Bowl, I think.
Joey Burrow's like, this is normal. That's great for the league, Al.
Great for the league. There's no
question about it. The other thing I was thinking about
is that I did the Super Bowl in
1999 when the Rams beat Tennessee
and the game ended
on a last play at the one-yard line with Mike Jones
tackling Kevin Dyson.
Otherwise, that game would have gone to overtime.
Think about this.
The Rams the year before won four games in 1998.
Then they lose Trent Green in an exhibition game.
This guy Kurt Warner takes over, whoever the hell he was at that point.
Great movie.
Yeah, a lot of people thought, well, Kurt Warner,
he's the running back for Seattle. This is the other Kurt Warner.
Of course, we all know what happened. He's the league MVP. He's the Super Bowl MVP.
It's a dream story. It becomes a movie. So here are the Rams
winning it from 98 to 99, going from four wins to the championship.
Can the Bengals repeat? They won four games last year.
Oh, look at all that research you're doing.
can the Bengals repeat?
They won four games last year.
Oh, look at all that research you're doing.
Hey, hey, hey.
I'm just, I'm, yeah.
By the way, if I'm wrong,
anti-social media will let me know in five seconds.
Yeah, yeah.
Well, you're wrong for everything at some point from somebody.
You know, that's just the way the world is.
Go ahead, AJ.
Al, have you gotten a chance to speak with Joe Burrow before?
And if not, like,
what are you going to ask him in your production meeting? I would assume you guys have normal production meetings like a normal game.
Oh, we will.
We will.
And I think they're coming out here and we'll go to practice a few days before the game.
No, I've never met Joe Burrow.
Looking forward to it.
You know, obviously I've read a ton of stuff about him, talked to a lot of people about him.
He seems like a really, you know, cool guy, obviously.
And I'm amazed by the – and I'm sure you guys are too, the poise.
I mean, second year in the league, nothing's too big for this guy.
And maybe it's the new generation.
The kids are coming up and they're used to media attention
and all of the rest and coming through college.
But I'm looking forward to seeing him, to meeting these guys.
I met the coach, Zach Taylor, once briefly.
He came off of the...
He came off the
Sean McVay tree. You think about
that. Sean McVay tree right now.
You know, LeFleur.
And you got Zach Taylor
in the game. He had...
I'm trying to think of somebody else he had
that's in the NFL right now. But his tree
is blossoming.
It's like the Garden of Eden.
There are some coaches in this league, as you know,
their tree, if Adam and Eve had to eat off some of those other trees,
we wouldn't have civilization right now.
Without mentioning some names.
I appreciate the fact that you've thought that out before, by the way.
That is what I like.
Right.
I was thinking about that in bed last night.
I knew I'd be on the show today, right?
I've got to come up with something for you guys.
You're amazing.
Honestly, every time we chat with you, I get so pumped up.
And the fact that we can just reach out to you and say,
Hey, Al Michaels, do you want to come on the show?
It is so cool that you do that.
We are very thankful for it.
This is where I come for my information.
I'm sorry I had some stuff to do yesterday yeah i missed i missed aaron rogers tuesday no no so
what's what's what's the latest aaron missed aaron rogers tuesday too there was no there was no news
then but i assume it'll be coming at some point there uh i want to i want to talk about you know
because your future just like we just said
you're al freaking michaels and when you come on here it's so cool everything you do now is getting
speculated upon there's articles about what your future is going to be what it isn't going to be
then obviously troy acheman does an interview there's a legend his future is up in conversation
as well and he's talking about the number of viewers which immediately talk to you about how
interested people are in the game and there's obviously the Amazon thing looming over everybody's head.
Much like Aaron Rodgers.
That's a good point.
Do you have your future figured out?
Are you still trying to figure it out?
And are you pumped that people still are very, very much wanting your services in a lot of different places?
I assume that is a yes.
Well, that's very cool.
What I said before this season
is my contract is going to end
after the Super Bowl at NBC. I've had a
long-term relationship.
It may be a part of
the future for me. I don't know. But what I wanted
to do, Pat, this year is just
enjoy the hell out of this season. I've worked
with the same producer and director for two decades.
I've had Chris for 13 years. Michelle
is going to wrap up her broadcasting career,
but she'll go on to some other great things as well.
She's the best sideline reporter ever.
Tremendous journalist.
I wanted to not be distracted by anything,
and I'm still trying my best to do that.
Obviously, there's stuff out there.
I do have options.
I do know this.
The one thing, I love doing what I do.
I still have a great time doing
this. I don't want to step away. People say, well, why don't you retire and play golf? I said,
I can play all the golf. I need to play right now. I don't have to step away and play golf.
I can do this. And Marv Levy once said to me when I asked him about retiring when he was in his 70s
with the Bills, he said, if you think about retiring, you've already retired. And that kind of resonates with me to this day.
So I do know this.
I do want to continue to do this.
I have options.
And after the Super Bowl, I will sit down with myself, obviously,
and a couple of other people that I trust and figure out the best plan,
the best course in the future.
But I'll tell you this, unless I'm in the deep divot between now and the beginning of next season,
I'm going to be doing some football.
Okay, the deep divot, I assume, is the earthquake?
Well, not the earthquake.
The deep divot is in the ground.
So the deep divot is...
All right, let's stay away from the deep divot.
No, you want to be on this side of the deep divot.
Options means leverage. Congratulations from us to you you
deserve it man you deserve it whatever you do i'm sure everybody will be excited about it go ahead
aj well i mean it's awesome that how relevant you still are and you're still so much like people
want to see you on tv what's it been like i guess over you you've been on camera through all of this
to where now there's a billion platforms there's all these different places where you can go instead of like what the old
big three back in the day what's it been like to watch this whole thing happen i watched this
happen aj plus i watched technology take us to the point where i think a lot of you know why
football is so popular obviously the game is. You have all of the drama, but technology. I watch these
games. I've been in the business for a long, long
time. I'm still amazed at how beautiful
these games look on television.
I mean, it's a spectacle
and it's live.
There's some good stuff
on TV, as we know, but there's a lot of crap
out there as well.
The NFL...
This is great television yeah technologically it's come
along you know to a to a point where i mean it's just it's it's beautiful it's a beautiful thing
to watch um it's a spectacle and i just see that you know and now we've got social media uh we have
all of these platforms which is a good
thing and a bad thing but i mean how many how many platforms can you watch at one time right i mean
there's a ton of stuff out there you just you gotta pick and choose and hopefully uh most of
these people will be picking the uh the pat mcafee show for a long long time no no no that's not
going to happen but i do know that with more platforms allows you know good leverage position because they're going to want a consummate professional.
They're going to want somebody that brings legitimacy to their coverage as well.
I think the newer days and technology is only good for old Al Michaels,
but I know that that's not exactly how you look at it.
You look at it for the good of the game,
but there's going to be a lot of these platforms who have so much money out.
These people have so much money.
These companies have so much.
$110 billion deal for the NFL, and that can get rewrote to potentially go up even more if new platforms want to get in there.
Amazon's already there.
You've been linked to that.
Who knows what you decide?
We will be excited to watch wherever you go.
But if Amazon gets in, that means means apple's gonna want to get in that means that the other big company google's gonna want to get in i mean there's just like a never-ending and especially
with the nfl only yodel yodel i mean it is this is uh this is a really good time i think in sports
you know here's my goal i want pat mcafee's deal. Well, I'll tell you what, Al. I wanted Pat McAfee's deal before, too.
Once you get it, you realize there's still traffic.
There's still a snowstorm coming outside.
That's right.
Not here.
Not here.
Come on to L.A.
It's beautiful.
It's like 62 degrees.
Blue skies.
The possum's not running around anymore.
That's my only regret.
You killed that thing.
Unbelievable.
I know.
We had a burial.
Big divot, dude.
That thing sounded a big divot.
Went down to Santa Monica, put him in the ocean before.
I got to tell him, Jesus.
Also, within the last handful of years and more recent,
Peyton's retired, Eli, Drew, Phil, Ben's retiring, Brady's retiring.
Who knows what's going on with Rodgers?
We've lost a lot of great quarterbacks to retirement.
But has it ever been brighter for the NFL now that these young guys
seem like their legacies are going to be just as good as these guys
who've retired in the recent history?
Yeah, I laugh every time I hear a certain group of quarterbacks retiring. People
begin to say, well, what's going to happen? The league is going to miss Joe Montana and John
Elway and Dan Marino, but new guys come along and they will again here. There's no question about
that. I mean, all these guys are retiring at Ben Roethlisberger, Brady, of course, we don't know
about, you know, what Aaron is going to do, but here comes Burrow. Here comes Justin Herbert. We know about Mahomes. So it's just a
new group of guys. And, you know, speaking of Roethlisberger, I was just thinking of something
the other day. So I did Ben's last game. We did the game in Kansas City. I retired Brady,
did his last game, Tampa and the Rams.
I did Steve Young's last game.
He suffered a concussion on Monday Night Football.
When I did the NBA, I did Reggie Miller's last game back in 2003 or 2004.
So I think of myself right now as the Grim Reaper.
Yeah.
If things are grim, be the Grim Reaper.
Michael's like, I got you.
Oh, man.
The Tom Brady retirement.
Did you guys kind of know it was going to happen?
Was there like a secret that was kind of behind the scenes by people in the know?
We obviously didn't until I think divisional round weekend when it kind of leaked out that he was thinking about it.
And much like Levy told you, once you've thought about retirement, you're already retiring.
And if Tom Brady didn't put that fire out,
which is what I thought he would do,
especially with his social media team,
it was certainly true.
But I think, you know,
we kind of wanted to wait and see there.
And then there's the entire breaking news thing.
Did you know he's going to retire?
And what are your thoughts on it?
I felt the odds were like,
or the ratio,
I said to our crew,
I said to me,
it's 64-36 that he retires now why did
i say that i you know i know tom i didn't know i had no inside tom information but we had in our
production meeting before the rams tampa bay game i said to tom i said hey uh i said do you ever
think about the perfect ending? And he hesitated.
And we actually used this on the air.
We put a panel up.
And he said it would be at a Super Bowl.
And then he said, but I'm not sure it'll be this year.
So we all kind of like, hmm, what did he mean by that?
And then he kind of went back and forth.
And we put his quote up on the air.
I said, you know, he was kind of talking in switchbacks.
And when you're talking in switchbacks, going back and forth and back and forth,
that led me to believe that he would probably step away.
So I was not surprised.
But, I mean, it's kind of shocking when you think about it, obviously.
Here's a guy, led the league in touchdown passes, led the league in yards,
such an NFL record in completions.
And I was thinking about, you know, in terms of statistics,
everybody's talking about numbers.
And think about this, 32 teams play in the National Football League.
So if you win a Super Bowl every 32 years, that's the law of averages,
you win seven Super Bowls in like 220-some-odd years.
This guy did it in 20 years.
I mean, that's the one statistic that resonates
with me and lost three others that he could have won so that's a career of careers that's babe ruth
i mean that's michael jordan you name it that's tom brady in the ones that he lost there there
were some miraculous plays that were made to change that now granted obviously there was some
on the return side returning favor but i don't think we'll ever see another Tom Brady.
I don't think we'll ever see another Patriots dynasty.
It's so hard to win in the NFL, and everybody compares.
Like Andy Reid, he's been to the championship game two different times,
four years straight, only has one Super Bowl for him.
That's going to be brought up against him.
It's like, well, who are you comparing him to, the fucking Patriots,
who had 20 years of dominance?
I don't know how they were able to do it, Al.
I have no clue how they were able to accomplish
what they were able to accomplish.
Well, you know,
Bob Kraft, it starts at the top,
and obviously Bill Belichick,
and they put the right pieces together.
I mean, going 20 years is amazing.
The 49ers did it.
Remember, the 49ers,
the 80s and 90s,
they had that same sort of dynasty going.
And it kind of worked.
You know, you had Montana, and then you transitioned over to Young.
And then, of course, it kind of fell apart at the end.
It was a little different then because you were able to do certain things you can't do right now.
But in today's NFL world, which is obviously made for parity to get every team to be 9-8, 8-9,
a couple of teams break away from that.
I just think it's almost impossible to have that kind of a dynasty.
So you're right.
In our lifetime, we won't see another Tom Brady
unless some alien spaceship comes in and drops off the next Tom Brady, 2.0.
Okay, just real quick, because Ty has a question.
The next Tom Brady, 2.0.
Okay, just real quick, because Ty has a question.
Obviously, the Pentagon has said, yes, there are unidentified aerial phenomenon.
But the alien thing, I've always been intrigued by it.
Is there something that has always piqued your interest, Al Michaels?
Not at all, frankly.
Really? Honestly?
Nah, nah, yeah.
Well, hold on a second.
No, there's a drone coming over here.
Could be that clown, too.
Not really.
I'm not a science fiction kind of guy, but, you know.
But, I mean, Brady, the whole thing is ridiculous.
Elon Musk.
Brady.
Brady.
And Brady eats vegetables.
That's the only difference between him and me.
In our dotage.
Go ahead, Ty. Al, you've called as many massive moments as you have i assume it just becomes second nature but how conscious are
you in the moment like oh there there's a chance they're going to be playing this or people are
going to be listening to this for the next 40 to 50 years more so now obviously than it was you
know when i was starting my career when you know nobody had a home VCR and you didn't think about everything living in posterity. Yeah, I mean, it's something
that I know is out there and I know you just want to hit it. You want to make sure you
don't screw it up. Is there pressure? Yeah, but I think it's just pressure every time
you do a game. I mean, when I'm doing a Sunday night game or a Super Bowl or a playoff game,
yeah, there's a certain amount of pressure, but you can't let that affect you.
I mean, the players are the same thing.
I don't think, you know, an agent can tell you.
You're not out there thinking about, oh, my God, I'm on television.
30 million people or 40 million or 100 million people are watching this right now.
Yeah, I i mean what you
want to do is just make sure you get everything right and i've had you know i've had my last four
superbowls have gone down to the last play of the game or a few seconds left so you've got
santonio holmes making the catch in 2008 i've got i've got malcolm butler making the interception
of wilson in 14 go back to 99, Mike Jones making the tackle
on Kevin Dyson at the one yard line. I've got to say there's a moment
when you just want to make sure, did I get that right?
Because if I didn't get that right, they'll just play it back and mock you for the rest of your life.
And your grandchildren's lives. There's no doubt about that.
But it's kind of funny.
I think as the game gets toward the end,
and I've talked about this with Joe Buck and with Jim Dance too,
it's like the synapses of your brain open up wider,
and it's almost like I can see the field in 4K.
It's just everything is clear,
and you just hope that you don't mess it up and you get it right.
The only thing I'm rooting for in this Super Bowl,
Cincinnati against the Rams, people think, you know,
they were rooting for this team.
That's a bunch of crap.
You know what I want?
Triple overtime.
That's what I want.
High, high drama.
Yeah, let's have a battle out there for the best of the best in the best league with the best call imaginable without Michaels.
You just said you, Jim Nance, and Joe Buck talk about being able to get into a zone almost.
I think athletes talk about it.
You know, drivers talk about whenever they're at like 180 miles an hour,
somehow the world gets like slower.
It's nice to hear that you get in that similar type of zone,
but that just made me think, do you guys have a group text?
Like, hey, we are the voices of the NFL.
Like, it kind of goes through us.
Do you guys have a sit-down, a meeting, a yearly, annual, quarterly?
What do you have going on?
Not really, but when we talk to each other,
I think we all feel unbelievably lucky and fortunate.
I think Joe and Jim and I, I believe, have done the last 17 Super Bowls,
which is pretty amazing when you think about it.
And we all realize that, hey,
we are the anointed ones. We got
really lucky, and we're
able to sustain it.
So, I mean, there's a
sense of just good fortune, really, more than
anything else. We don't sit there and
go, wow, we're the best and all that.
No, we don't do that. It's like,
you know what? We've got rabbit's feet
dangling from our pockets.
Let's enjoy it. We enjoy you
every single time. Hey, if McPherson
breaks Vinatieri's record there,
I don't know if that's been on your radar yet.
For most field goals in a postseason,
a single postseason, I think he needs
two to tie, three to break it, I believe.
If he gets three, because he's 12 for 12
thus far. I mean,
this dude is unbelievable. You've got some good specialists in this game, Al. I just want to let you know thus far. I mean, this dude is unbelievable.
You've got some good specialists in this game, Al.
I just want to let you know that.
And this kid, this rookie, is next level when it comes to confidence, swing, and everything.
He's unbelievable, Al.
Oh, well, how about what he said going out there to kick the field goal
to put him into the AFC Championship game?
Well, I mean, that's great.
You know, it's amazing.
These young guys, that's so different, I mean, that's great. You know, it's amazing, these young guys.
That's so different, I think, than years ago.
They embrace the moment.
It's not like, it's like with Burrow.
Nothing seems too big for him.
Same thing with McPherson.
Nothing seems too big for him.
I don't know, these kids grow up,
and maybe it's just watching television and watching the way confident athletes,
you know, go about their business. Maybe they can take a page out of that book. Well, and maybe it's just watching television and watching the way confident athletes go about their business.
Maybe they can take a page out of that book.
And also maybe they think, this would be great content.
Yeah.
Hey, I make, all right, so this is a good kick here.
This is good content.
I tell old buddy, we're going to the AFC Championship.
Then I'm going to go knock home a 52-yarder to go through,
and I'm going to look away before that thing even goes through
like he walks off a putt.
It's unbelievable.
I can't wait to hear you next Sunday.
Thank you for making time to join us and enjoy the rest of your afternoon, boss.
I'm coming on after the Super Bowl.
Hey, put me on with Aaron one day.
I've always loved our meetings with Aaron too.
Maybe you and Aaron.
Maybe just you and Aaron come on the show
and then me and AJ just kind of drift away
and hear a conversation between absolute goats, you and Aaron.
I'm signing the contract right now.
You've got options.
Don't sign anything yet.
I'll put an offer in front of you and then use that against everybody else.
You got it.
Yeah, you got it.
You're the man.
Ladies and gentlemen, Al Michaels.
Thank you.
Yeah!
So sorry to interrupt, but I want to let you know
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daily fantasy and free to play games where you can win money.
Shout-out to FanDuel.
Shout-out to you.
Let's get back to the show.
Joining us now, one half of the Bussin' with the Boys podcast.
Man, I got a chance to chat with on the bus down in Nashville.
Absolutely glorious setup and situation.
The podcast has been released.
Audio, the video version on YouTube.com forward slash Bussin' with the Boys,
I believe, will be released here in about
55 minutes or so I think
it was originally scheduled to go out about an hour ago
there was some confusion from the
boy but nevertheless
the always magical maybe
maybe gone into his 10th
year in the NFL
absolute stud
Will
Will how are you? Hey, can we get a, can we do it? AJ Hawk. Hey man,
it's a great to have you here. And I'm excited about how much you love that AJ Hawk champ
because it brings energy to every single place it's a part of.
Dude, I'm telling you, I wasn't lying the last time I was on this show.
A.J. Hawk was somebody I watched when I was a young lad.
When I was a rookie, even when I was a rookie in Washington
and saw him go to the Bengals, I'm sitting there watching tape of my guy,
A.J. Hawk, just because I was a huge fan, bro.
So, yes, we get a moment to do an A.J. Hawk chant,
I'm never going to miss that beat. Well, hey, I appreciate that. Well, I'm a big fan of you and what you're doing,
especially on the field and social media. What was, uh, what was your time like, uh, with the
Raiders and what's the old coach, uh, Basacha actually like, I know you've been, been really
pubbing him and online and letting people know this dude's a good guy. Yeah. Coach Basacha,
man. It's crazy because, you know,
ultimately I've only played.
Oh, no.
The weather.
What is happening?
We were just talking about the weather.
Oh, no.
Good boy.
You guys talking about Bill Gates?
Oh, no.
What?
What happened?
Oh, there he is.
We lost you there for a second.
Y'all can hear me?
Oh, yeah.
Oh, you sounded good.
You sounded, I mean, oh, come on. JP, come on now. We lost you there for a second. Y'all can hear me? Oh, yeah. Oh, you sounded good. You sounded, I mean.
Oh, come on.
JP, come on now.
Keep that one by him.
It's not his fault.
It's not their moment.
This is our moment.
Oh, no.
Oh, no, it's freezing.
It's freezing.
It's not your fault.
I was on a Zoom earlier today.
It was terrible.
We got to call back.
We'll call you back.
We'll go back into the Zoom.
We'll go back into the Zoom. Okay.
Man, what the fuck, dude? It's that 5G thing?
5G, I mean, you can hear
pouring down. Yeah, but how come we got
this guy? He's got the worst internet on Earth.
Well, you know. Might be the Zoom
thing. It could be Zoom. Could be
the entire platform of Zoom. Zoom does
stink. I am on Zoom right now.
What? What are you talking about yeah
every day that's why you're behind huh i don't know i've been wondering i didn't want to point
it out i thought maybe it was just facetime fuckery but you you have been your words have
been about three seconds behind your face yeah well i got a new computer and the new computer
wants me to update it to the old thing so i'm not doing that
i will not update it i'm telling you if you actually stare at the lips and then you listen
to the words it's behind it's a it's a you're in a foreign language film with us right now dude
hey i'm sorry you want me to drop off i can drop off if you need me well you want what's this guy
now he wants to quit if you can't focus if you can't deal with me, you claim I have a three-second delay,
then I'll have to get out of here.
Can you go one to ten, please, so we can get a test on you?
Yeah, I can.
Can you give us a count to ten, please?
I mean, you guys just try.
Like, that's the thing.
I won't be bullied by you, but you let you bully other people.
Callers, guests, you'll bully them.
This is just what you do.
I get it.
It's not messed up.
I don't know if that was just a test call you were
trying to do there. Those fictitious
statements you were making right there, but
it is not matched up. Hopefully
our guest who is back.
It's not his fault. It might be Zoom's fault.
Obviously the production down there is incredible.
We had this similar mistake earlier
when I was on with Dan Dockage
live via Zoom. So this is not anybody
in the boys in the back.
Ladies and gentlemen, Will Compton.
What's up, dude?
What's up, boys?
Should we do it again?
A.J. Hogue.
A.J. Hogue.
A.J. Hogue.
A.J. Hogue.
That might have gotten maybe too much electricity through the Zoom call.
Thank you for dodge, duck, dip, diving, and dodging through the technology with us.
You were talking about Richie Bisacci, and I'm intrigued to hear this answer
because I think you were saying you're only there for a little bit.
But from what everybody says, he was like the consummate leader
and like the perfect guy to take over that position in Las Vegas.
You think you ever see him getting a head coach gig again or no?
I do.
I know he's down interviewing with Jacksonville at the moment.
I do. I know he's down interviewing with Jacksonville at the moment.
And I do.
The fact that he took over this team with everything that happened this year throughout the Raiders organization was.
Oh, no. It got worse.
Something's up.
No.
D-Buck got canceled earlier.
Yeah, D-Buck got glitched.
Is it our show?
I don't think so.
FaceTime-y.
FaceTime-y.
Should we do a show in the Metaverse?
We'll FaceTime you.
We'll FaceTime you.
We'll FaceTime you.
Metaverse.
Metaverse is actually.
Are they forcing us to switch over?
Did someone say?
Do you need Will's number back there?
Yeah.
Just say it.
Just say it online.
All right.
I did that before early in my broadcasting career
that was a problem that wasn't good hey give him a call 317
just to make sure hey is that like a warehouse they have down there
um yeah i think yeah i think so that'd be the best way to describe it it's a massive space it's very
very nice i loved it they have like an unplugged segment set up, too, where local performers come and perform.
The bus, there's meetings, there's offices.
It's very, very nice.
Ladies and gentlemen, joining us now, one half of the Bussin' with the Boys podcast,
an absolute electric factory on the microphone and on the football field.
Could be going into his 10th year in the NFL live from the bus.
Ladies and gentlemen,
Will Compton!
Yeah!
A.J. Hunt!
A.J. Hunt!
A.J. Hunt!
Hey, let's jump right into it.
Everybody probably remembers the question, right?
Yeah.
Yeah, yeah, absolutely.
Bapa Satya.
Hey, how's your family?
Satya, man. So, playing on the raiders like this past year i think i was there with them for five games and in 19 i was
with them for six games so being with them a total of like 11 games dude playing for the raiders
organization specifically coach passaccia all the all the stuff that they went through this year between Gruden, through player headlines of DUIs and guns
on Instagram, the car wreck, all of this stuff, man, to go in and take over, not only win the
first game out of it, they go on a little losing streak, but to pick it up, get our asses whooped
by the Chiefs the first week that I showed up, and then go on a four-game win streak, I think just
speaks a lot to the the man that he is like
a lot of guys as you know when you get to the back end of the year you're kind of out of it
you got an interim head coach it's not your head coach anymore you know changes are going to be
made a lot of guys pack it in they start planning for new year's eve trips uh they start planning
for vacation after the season's over and guys were just dialed in and rallied around Versace
we were going into that Chargers game and not only did the boys want to win for obviously ourselves each other the boys
but also guys wanted to win for coach passaggio because they wanted to give him a real opportunity
at the head coaching job the next year and that's real shit dude like why does that happen will what
you've been around a couple different franchises now obviously tennessee washington las vegas
you've been around why do you think some places just have success
and some don't, late, you think?
You know, Alec Engel came on the pod and said it recently.
He does a really good job not only coaching the player,
but he coaches not only, wait, coaching the player,
but he coaches the human.
He dives into who you are.
So he'll rip your ass, bro.
And I'm telling you, AJ, as a special teams guy like he's not the dude you want to be on his bad side in a
special teams meeting he'll look at something hey comp you like your punts that here like put that
on your fucking radio show and you know he'll bust balls like he keeps it real with you if you have
if you're bad on kickoff return kickoff lane distribution any of it he's coaching you hard
as hell man but the moment you're outside of the meeting you're in the cafeteria you're bad on kickoff return, kickoff, lane distribution, any of it, he's coaching you hard as hell, man.
But the moment you're outside of the meeting, you're in the cafeteria,
you're walking in the locker rooms, he's hitting you on your chest
because he'll tell you he wants to feel your heartbeat.
He wants to know you as a human being.
He asks you about your family.
And not to bring the mood down at all, but when my mother passed in December recently
and we were in cleveland it was
the night before the cleveland game we were in the hotel room out in cleveland my mom had passed i'd
hit up asacha immediately what room number you in he comes to my room and the man just holds me and
he's like one of those dudes who doesn't care about anything you come first as a human being
and i think that's what that's what speaks to why people see him so highly
and hold him in such high regard, because he's a true-ass dude
who keeps it real with you.
Rest in peace to your mom, by the way, man.
Absolutely.
Yeah, that's very difficult.
The mental toughness going through that entire thing
while also playing football.
And I'm happy to hear that Passaccia was a guy that came through for you
in that moment.
You'll remember it forever.
But rest in peace to your badass mom, man, just before we go on any further go ahead aj well that's that's awesome to hear about what
besacha instantly wanting to come to your room i think there's a lot of coaches that wouldn't be
their first thought they would still be worried about the game coming the next day so i think
that story alone tells like all we need to hear about besacha but compare that to rabes i know
rabes cares about the person he's very he's not scared to get on you no question about it him he in tennessee and also how their season ended like
what was uh what was it like playing for raves you have such a good relationship with him too
it seems like and is he is he similar to passaccia at all they have similarities they also have
differences i feel like uh passaccia is more of like since he's a special teams guy uh special
teams coordinator for the majority of his career,
he's somebody who gets to know all those bottom half of the roster guys.
Not that Vrabel doesn't. Vrabel sat in every seat in that team meeting room.
But as a head coach and the trajectory of Vrabel over his course of coaching has just been different than Basaccia.
So Basaccia is more of like that personable guy who is really speaking to those backups,
who are speaking to those special teams guys at all times.
Again, not that Vrab doesn't do that or have that capacity in them.
They're just different.
They've had a different journey.
Vrab, at the same time, you know, in the same breath,
Vrab was somebody who was checking on me every day about my mom's situation.
Taylor was out for that game on Thursday night.
He allowed Taylor to fly in and go to the funeral.
They're sending flowers in Tennessee.
Vrave is the same type of dude.
Pat will tell you, we were in a group chat with him last night.
Vrave, obviously, he's a huge fan of my social media as well
and Bustin' with the Boys.
But he wanted to joke about, he wanted to joke
and we're busting balls in the group chat.
But me, Pat, and Vrave were in a group chat last night
and it's like, you know, Vrave's like a dude's dude, man.
And he's also somebody you don't want to get your balls busted by
because he's one of those alpha dogs that always needs the last word.
Yeah, and by the way, that group text was awesome.
I'm laying in my bed, and all of a sudden I look over at my phone,
and it's Vrabel and Will Compton in a group text.
And I'm like, all right, let me fucking see what this is all about.
And it's Vrabes
sawing down.
I mean, it was amazing.
And I told him,
I was like,
this is ridiculous, you know,
because Will pointed out the fact like,
man, shout out football.
We're on a group text right now.
Never could have expected this.
That is very real.
And then Vrabes,
as soon as that happens,
I shoot him down.
And he said he's in podcast mode 24-7 is what Vrabes said.
Vrabes said he's podcast mode 24-7.
And I agree that that – I mentioned in there that that should be accounted for
when Coach of the Year voting happens.
I agree.
Who is the guy that you would most want to potentially have right next to you
in a fight?
That's what it feels like in Tennessee.
And forgive me if I'm
wrong, but that locker room, like Vrabes, whenever he said, I'll see you Wednesday or whatever,
break it up. And then I think Taylor pushes him and somebody else pushed him. And like,
no, you fucking break it up. Like literally pushing him. I don't know if there's any other
Vrabes around. I think he's an anomaly. And I think it's only a matter of time before he,
you know, gets a chance to maybe hoist a Lombardi at that, at that role.
Yes, bro. I mean, he's, he's an Ohio guy before he, you know, gets a chance to maybe hoist a Lombardi at that role. Yes, bro.
I mean, he's an Ohio guy.
You know your Ohio guys when you see them.
He's somebody that wants to fight.
If somebody, like, shadow fights or anything,
like he wants to go get in the middle of those guys and be like,
oh, I'll beat both your asses.
And it's like, okay, brave, no one's going to swing at the head coach.
Nobody's going to go and try and take you out right now.
But he loves, you know, the team's not going to fight
during practice but at the in the same breath he's the one that wants to go fight the guys for
fighting um but he's all time dude classic ohio guy gritty definitely want him on your side if
you're in the back alley that i can 100 with absolute certainty say that i would want that
man at my side he said uh you know while he was burying Will last night, you know,
he was mocking like, oh, go call daddy, go call Taylor.
I mean, it was a fool.
It was unbelievable.
This thing was like eight minutes long,
and I was just sitting in there like this is awesome.
And Braves, by the way,
everything that you would hope and want in a head coach that I thought from outside I learned in that group text.
Let's talk about your Bustin' with the Boys podcast.
Thank you for having me on.
I very much appreciate it.
It is live right now to be downloaded.
The video is coming out, I think, about 41 minutes or so.
I'm not 100% sure on the accuracy of the time.
Oh, no.
Vrabel.
Oh, no, that's Vrabel right there.
Shut the fuck up whenever you
if that was Vrabel that would be awesome uh the video is coming out soon I don't do that often
I don't get a chance to have those types of conversations it's because I have so much
respect and appreciation for you that I uh you know got a chance to really get in there I appreciate
you for having me man honestly that show's a great show you and Taylor kill it oh bro you to come on
us and squeeze the time in while you're you're about
to do Smackdown number number one I'd love to have all the boys at the National one day AJ I'd
love for you to be on the bus I'd love to smoke a stogie on the bus talk your journey talk all
the good stuff have a lot of fun with you guys but yeah Pat I mean I said it on the podcast man
you've been uh your whole team like the way you guys run everything has been such an instrumental
like influence on the way we do stuff busting not, not only with busing, but me personally, like when
I'm starting and trying to get busted off the ground and I'm looking for ways to kind of be
obsessed with busing. Okay. How do I do this? How do I do that? When you signed with a DAZN,
I hope I'm not butchering that, but the, the DAZN, I mean, it was tough to say the name.
The way you're doing clips and you do work in social media and everything else,
it's just been such an influence on what we've done over here at the bus.
And to have you on, you're somebody who I'm sure there's what,
probably like Aaron Rodgers, 75,000 people watching right now.
But you're somebody who is entertaining the masses on a daily basis for several hours at a time.
You're talking about everybody else's headlines.
You're talking about all the hot topics. You have somebody like Aaron Rodgers come on weekly. You're
in the headlines now with your show. And so for you to come on and be able to talk to you and
talk about your journey, and you get to talk a little bit about how this all came together and
remind people how this has been such an insane journey. I think it's been awesome, man. I'd
love to have you on again, obviously. Well, you're been awesome, man. It's, you know, I'd love to have you on again, obviously.
Oh, you're the best, dude.
And obviously, AJ needs to get on there because I couldn't even fathom how he would.
You should see him on some of these network shows.
AJ goes on some of these network shows.
It is.
It's a whole different AJ.
Breaking news.
Oh, man, I'll tell you what.
They're going to play good sound football, you know, like on that bus.
Jesus.
It had such a good time.
AJ, you coming to smoke a cigar on the bus?
You going to have a stogie with the boys?
Here we go.
Yeah, you had to smoke on that bus?
Yes, bro.
Well, I guess Pat was on there.
It should be.
I should know it's okay.
Oh.
Right?
Yeah, yeah, yeah.
Ocho Cinco lit one up when we were on the bus.
So, yes.
He has his own cigar, doesn't he?
He does.
I know Ray Lewis does as well. Yeah. Hey, man, I look forward to it. I'd love to come down. I think it's awesome what you guys are doing. went up and we were on the bus so yes he has his own cigar doesn't he he does i know ray lewis does
as well yeah i hey man i look forward to i'd love to come down i think it's awesome what you guys
are doing you and taylor are awesome little mix of both you your personalities i think match up
very well i concur completely you guys fucking kill it i'm a big fan i was very lucky to be in
there i know the boys have some questions if that's cool will i don't know how long this
connection is going to go it's not your fault it this... Are you guys getting a bunch of shit today?
We're getting like ice
in like 12 inches allegedly today.
Is that happening in Nashville?
I'm surprised you haven't heard it,
but yeah, it's raining hard as hell
outside of this shit right now.
Yeah, us too.
We got the same type of situation.
I actually looked up at your roof
and I was like,
oh, that's our roof as well.
I assume that is not conducive to silence.
Will, you ever go to Kid Rock's house?
I heard he has a palatial estate out there.
AJ.
I haven't made it out to Kid Rock's house, dude.
I met him one time.
I called him Bobby, and I said, I think I quoted Joe Dirt,
and he kind of just looked at me like, oh, one of these guys.
I haven't really heard from him since.
Well, he could have responded to you in various amount of ways.
I mean, we've seen that, obviously.
Go ahead, Ty, please.
Will, with doing the show now more and kind of diving into it,
I don't want to say it's your full-time gig,
but when you go to these teams and sometimes you get let go
and then brought back, have you thought more about, like,
how much longer you want to play in the NFL
and kind of dedicate everything to busting with the boys?
Or, like, what's that process like where you just kind of always have to be ready
in case you get another shot?
Yeah, I mean, the balance has been harder.
Like, because we started in 2019 that year.
I ended up going to the Raiders last year.
Yeah, it was the Titans.
This year it was the Raiders.
So each year it's gotten harder with, like, the balance of it.
Because as you get older, being a young 32, you know, any GMs,
I know coaches, GMs, Ian, he probably watches.
I'm a young 32 still.
Yeah, yeah, come on. Come on, you young 32 still. Yeah, yeah. Come on.
Come on.
You still got it?
Oh, I still got juice now.
Check the tape.
Check the tape, man.
Hey, the eye in the sky don't lie, okay?
Let that motherfucker talk for me.
That's right, dude.
That's right.
But it just, dude, it gets harder to continue to train and, like, pour into.
And, again, I was talking about this with Pat on the show.
But it's hard to, like, pour into a sport that needs so much like it's a process that deserves everything and it
gets harder to give that process everything when you're built like when we're doing bus with the
boys we're trying to travel the bus to these college towns now we're obviously picking up steam
this past year that we just had and i'm'm getting really like into it, man. I'm getting really obsessed with doing it.
Uh,
getting into our personalities,
building the bus,
getting guests on.
And to do that,
it takes,
that takes a lot of time as well.
So it's kind of hard to balance it too.
I do think about it all the time.
My wife,
she's like,
whenever I went out to play for the Raiders this year,
she's like,
yeah,
you know,
I knew when you said you're retiring,
you know,
you said that for like the last three years,
but anytime you get a shot to go play, man, and balance both and juggle both,
especially in kind of the role that I'm in, I feel like I can kind of do that.
I feel like it kind of just helps the brand at the end of the day.
So speaking on year 10, there could always be a year 10.
You never know.
Hey, I called him earlier.
He was training.
I called him earlier.
He was training.
Full of sweat.
Before this season even ends, the boy's already getting after it. Hey, I called him earlier. He was training. I called him earlier. He was training. Full of sweat. Getting ready. Nice number.
Before this season even ends, the boy's already getting after it.
I mean, he's ready to go cover some kicks, make some plays.
And that punt set, ooh, straight back on a line.
I saw it when I was down there.
Hey, that post hand, too, dude.
Excuse me, Mr. Boy.
Your time with the Manders in Washington, you had Jay Gruen as your head coach,
and then you had Vrabel, and we've seen Jay on a sidewalk.
Which one of those two could drink the other under a table?
You know, I haven't drank with either of them, but I've seen one drink.
I have not.
That one, you know, I've witnessed Jay Gruen. I think that one you know i've witnessed jay gruden i think
that you know there's videos out there um i haven't been around brable but i've heard stories
and i don't think i would bet against brable yes just again he's like an ohio boy and he's probably
one of those aggressive drunks too so i don't i don't think uh i don't think i'd bet against
brable and who could drink who under the table I love the fact that you are echoing the sentiments that I've tried to say on this show a lot.
When you meet somebody from Ohio, you know exactly about them.
AJ is, he is Ohio.
This guy is a FIFO, a fucking idiot from Ohio is how other people describe it.
But it is an awesome tribe of people, Will.
It is an awesome tribe of people from Ohio.
Oh, bro. They're all
about it, man. They have the cult wrestling
following. They're just all backwoods,
just blue-collar grinders.
Hey, AJ, are you
an aggressive drunk?
I am not, actually, but I
can say Braves, yeah. I wouldn't bet against Braves
in anything, but I don't think I'm
aggressive drunk. Hey, AJ told me
this story about Braves, and I don't know if this was
at the exact time AJ was there. I don't know how much
older Vrabes is or whatever. There's this story
about college conditioning is a fucking nightmare.
Everybody knows college conditioning is a nightmare.
I guess Vrabes would show up
literally with smoking cigs
and dips in his mouth.
Then he would win
the sprints and talk shit to everybody
the entire time. 20 gassers.
He'd show up at the 6 a.m. run group and win all 20 gassers against all of us current players.
And he was, by the way, he was not 100% sober, we don't think,
from the night before is how I was told the story.
He's beating the players.
He's a coach at this time.
He's a savage.
He was in the league at the time.
He's an absolute savage.
Like, he will not lose.
Yeah.
Jesus. Hey, that is nuts man hey and i do want to clarify something up and we're not talking about the
aggressive drunk like you get violent like although that could happen i'm talking about
the loud they get louder as the night goes on they're they're grabbing you and kind of tossing
you around and kind of want to wrestle oh you're saying they're they're face to face potentially
like maybe somebody else talking shit to each other that Oh, you're saying they're face-to-face potentially? Uh-huh.
Like maybe somebody else talking shit to each other? That's what you're saying?
Like those types of guys?
Yes, they just get rowdy, man.
You guys have probably been around the wrestlers before.
Oh, the Ohioans.
Yeah, the Ohioans.
The Ohioans.
They'll probably wear a bandana on.
Their shirts will be off.
There'll be no chicks at the house,
but they'll just be ready to, like, wrestle in the front yard.
I mean, you're not lying.
Yeah, that's all right.
That was awesome.
Great parties.
Great time.
Go ahead, Connor.
Yeah, well, speaking of Washington,
how do you feel about the Commander's new name?
It's got a commie!
How are we not going to call them commies?
And would you be interested in becoming a commie in your 10th year?
Commander, Commander.
Hey, 10th year, man, I'll play for anybody, bro.
Anybody who wants to bring the bus and with the boys' crew along'm all about playing in year 10 and i yes i would be a comedy
as far as how i actually feel about the name i think it's trash
dude like you had the wolves were out there at one point red wolves like you had all these
cool names and they go from the washington football team to
where the commanders it's just and then the jerseys bro looks like any given sunday out there like
they look like arizona state like the sun devils oh that's not good to be described as by former
players or just people that are in the football punditry world but i think you are not alone
in that description and they were also the name there was a what an aafl team that was the name
of the commander yeah so obviously yeah so now everybody their hashtag was also take command. Yeah
I'm sure this already be clipped up and I'll be burning at the stake whenever this gets out there from the DC
But it's not a shot at the great fans of Washington
Amazing people a lot of great people out there man.. I love playing for them in my five years.
They were my first NFL team.
They gave me my first shot, so I would love to be a commie.
It's just my objective feeling about, or my subjective feeling about the Commanders.
Listen, the Washington Commander fan base probably likes you more after what you said there,
as opposed to, for me, I put a tweet out saying, it's a good name,
and then I buried it a little bit, and then I said, it's a good name. People were even attacking tweet out saying, it's a good name. And then I buried it a little bit and I said, it's a good name.
People were even attacking me for even saying it's a good name.
I think there's a lot of anger.
But if they win, nothing else will matter.
That's the NFL that people don't understand.
If you win or if you're good, nothing else matters, Will.
I agree.
Winning solves everything, dude.
Winning solves absolutely everything.
I mean, all the stuff that we had going on with the raiders the raiders a perfect example all the stuff that people were up and you know upset about when we're
winning and about to be in the playoffs that stuff kind of goes away the titans before i even went
out to uh washington or not washington before i even went out to vegas i'm talking with taylor
earlier in the year when they lost to the jets they had a bad loss to the cardinals and everything
else it looked like you know every year when you lose, it feels like you're 0-17 until you win.
And then those boys go 12-5, and it's like everybody forgot about the Chandler
Jones and the Arizona Cardinal game and losing to the Jets and everything else.
Winning saw absolutely everything.
Why'd you bring that up?
Why'd you bring the Chandler?
We did forget about that.
That was kind of a little bit of a, you know,
because I immediately thought of Taylor just being like,
I don't know what the fuck happened.
That was a complete thought out of my mind there.
Wow, that's good.
Hey, I can only talk about my experiences, man,
and those are my recent 2021 experiences.
Hey, listen, you speak from your heart, your mind, your experiences.
That's why Bustin' with the Boys is so good.
That's why I'm so thankful I got a chance to join you on there.
The video will drop in 30 minutes on YouTube.
The audio version's already out.
Can't wait to see you again.
Hopefully you get to Indy.
We get down to Nashville.
You're the best, man.
Boys, thanks for having me.
Hey, one last time for the one time.
A.J. Hawk!
A.J. Hawk!
A.J. Hawk!
A.J. Hawk!
Yeah, ladies and gentlemen, Will Connick.
Love you, boys.
You too.
Thank you for allowing us to penetrate your ear holes.
You are the best.
Hashtag in the pod squad.
I appreciate all of you so, so much.
Tweet that thing.
Maybe win some merch.
And we'll be back tomorrow with another big one, hopefully.
Ty, please play some independent music and propel these people into a beautiful Wednesday evening.
See you manana. Thank you. Thank you. Bye.