The Ryen Russillo Podcast - NFL Draft: Favorite Picks and Biggest Risks With Booger McFarland, Plus New Colts QB Matt Ryan and Chris Paul’s Closeout

Episode Date: April 29, 2022

Russillo shares his thoughts on Chris Paul’s historic performance in the Suns' series-winning victory over the Pelicans, the 76ers closing out their series with the Raptors, the Mavericks' series win over the Jazz, and what’s next for Utah (0:27). Then Ryen talks with ESPN’s Booger McFarland about the NFL draft—who had the best Round 1, the players with the highest upside, and more (15:26). Then Ryen is joined by Colts QB Matt Ryan to discuss his move to Indianapolis, calling Peyton Manning for advice, his time playing under Kyle Shanahan, and more (55:40). Finally Ryen answers some listener-submitted Life Advice questions (1:19:06). Host: Ryen Russillo Guests: Booger McFarland and Matt Ryan Producers: Kyle Crichton and Steve Ceruti Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

We are loaded today. We got the first round of the draft in the books. Booker McFarlane from Vegas. We got Matt Ryan, now the starting quarterback of the Colts. We're going to get some story time with him as well. And I'm going to talk about the NBA playoffs. Some of those series wrapping up last night. And life advice. The OGs of my NBA podcasting history will remember that we actually used to do

Gregorian chants for some of the top performers at times. People seem to like it. It's been a while. But I thought it was needed. It was needed after history being made and Chris Paul's perfect game six against the Pelicans. Let's run through it. The Suns move on. Plucky Pelicans team. Very tough. That's not really the story here though. Chris Paul, 14 of 14 from the floor. 33 points. 8 tough. That's not really the story here though. Chris Paul, 14 of 14 from the floor. 33 points, 8 assists, 5 rebounds. The most playoff points without missing a shot. Most playoff field goals

without missing a shot. And he absolutely carried this team. If you think of his... He had 19 points in the fourth quarter of game one and in game three. And he was needed last night because, look,

the Suns were down 10 at the half to the Pelicans. You're like, is this actually going to go back to game six? We knew that Booker was back. He clearly was a little limited, hit that huge shot late to the left side. Aiton was terrific, but still there's always this moment with Aiton where I just worry about him a little bit with the basketball in his hands he needs to be stronger with it um but Chris Paul once again showed why I have defended him as much as I have now if you look back at his recent history in some of these closeout games let's take a look at the last three closeouts uh game six against the Clippers

41 eight assists four rebounds he was seven to eight on threes with zero turnovers and that's when pat beverly shoved him game four against denver that series a little bit easier and that sweep sons and four guy 37 points three boards seven assists he didn't actually take a three and that was because they were just abusing roke uh yokich and some of the mid-range stuff all right so in these closeout games now going back to last night and then the Denver series, he's shooting 77%. The regular season, he and Booker actually close clutch times in regular season games

at 57% each. They're both right at 57%. What does this mean? Well, it doesn't mean that anybody goes, because what's my favorite thing to say? Our least favorite thing to do is to change our mind. I don't think at this point, if you were anti-Chris Paul,

you watched last night and you said, oh, you know what? I get it now. Because you know what's going to happen is that there's another game four right around the corner, whether it was game four in this series where he just didn't make many shots, game four in the finals last year where I remember watching this going, what is wrong? And then we found out later he had surgery, but it just didn't make any sense. The campaign was being given the basketball back to close out some major possessions. And then you had round one against the

Lakers where he hurt his shoulder, where he was in the single digits for five of the six games against the Lakers who were also hurt. So as I throw all that stuff at you and Paul has the game that he does last night, and we spend a lot of time on who's top five and who's top 10. I love doing it too. All right. So I'm not so I'm not criticizing the exercise of going through this and going, who's top ten, who's all these different things. There are ten guys who can do what Chris Paul did last night. There just aren't. There aren't. So are there better players? Sure. Are there more skilled guys? Yes. At 37 years old, soon to be, as Reggie Miller keeps reminding us. I get it, but sometimes in a basketball

sense, we need these playoff moments to remind us and be going, all right, I know what this guy can do in the regular season and certain players that I argue for and use their stats and certain players that have great stats that I still argue against. And I'm always going to do that because I just don't want to completely give in

to look what this guy averaged. He's better than this guy. Because Chris Paul's a lot better than the guys that put up huge numbers in comparison to him. And he proved it it again last night let's talk about the Sixers and let's talk about responding and real toughness because that's what it was last night incredibly impressed with the 76ers now I know what you're saying hey the Raptors didn't have Van Vliet there is a side Van Vliet discussion in there for the Raptors you know how I always talk about some bigs and series where it's like you're not just gonna completely take a guy out of the equation. Although Memphis

has done that with Adams, where I think at times, like, is it worth throwing him a few other minutes? Anyway, Memphis, Minnesota, we'll do that later. Van Vliet defensively. And I also, I think a little bit more limited than peak Van Vliet. I mean, he's not playing in the games. It was hurting Toronto defensively. So that felt like it was part of the story of their turnaround, although I'm sure they would have loved some of his shooting during that disastrous third quarter that we're going to get to here. But Philly, you know, hearing the whispers,

all right, and Embiid, who hasn't had playoff success, even though I like Embiid and Harden's playoff resume, which I'm sure you're aware of now if you're listening to this podcast. Maxie, who's unproven. Harris, who can disappear. Danny Green, who doesn't necessarily hit a ton of shots is playing more minutes because diable isn't playing the games in toronto and then doc's own history of his disastrous blown leads which he tried to address this week which i also understand why he did it he felt like hey can we add a little

nuance to this thing that i keep getting shit on now for years and years and years it's like yeah but they're on your resume and an all-timer was staring him in the face. Now, again, it's 3-2, but you're at Toronto in Game 6. Nobody would have picked Philadelphia if they had lost this game in Game 7. I'm not sure that I would have picked Toronto to win Game 7 because I don't think this version of this team is terrific. I think they're a little tough to play. They've got all this length. Who knows? The variance in shooting alone could be the reason why this happened. Philadelphia, the assists. But the stats part of it with Maxey going off, Danny Green carrying him for a stretch,

and Bede doing what he normally does. Harden making a lot of plays with his passing. Although I'm still worried about Pete Carden because I don't know if we're going to see that this year. Well, actually, we're probably never going to see it because now I started thinking back to like 18 and 19. I'm like, why would I think he's going to look like that again in 22? So the biggest part of this was, all right, this could get a little weird. We're feeling some of that pre-doubt pressure. How will we respond?

And the Sixers absolutely respond. I mean, they smashed him. That third quarter alone, they made every shot. Toronto couldn't make anything. So it was a combination defense. It was a combination of Toronto not being able to take care of the basketball, Maxie going off when he needed to. So I thought that Sixers win was serious. It was like a wake-up call for them and a wake-up call for us to take them more seriously against Miami. So very impressed with them and how dominant that third quarter was like, all right, enough of this shit. Let's just do

this and blow out this team that we just know that we're better than despite the whispers of how bad this could potentially be. Final one here. Dallas advances past Utah. McDonavich misses a wide open three that would have sent it to a game seven. That did not happen. Dallas advancing for the first time since 2011.

Luka has a playoff win. Now he was terrific again. They went Gobert hunting. They shot 53% of their shots from three and made 40%. That's kind of the story. They went small, like we thought, after game one, into game two. They still flirted with Powell at certain times. He was not part of the closing group.

So you look at the three-point shooting and go, okay, how is that Gobert's fault? I'm going to bring some Gobert stuff to this, but I just want to throw that in for Dallas. And I wasn't one that was looking at Luka as an all-time great. Let me not say all-time great. Let me say currently one of the great players in this league. I had him top five for MVP, first

team All-NBA. But it would have been weird if they were to lose to a Utah team that nobody likes, which is still a possibility. I picked Utah because of the Donchus part of this, and I ended up being wrong because Donchus did come back, and he looked even stronger as the series progressed, so I feel good about that part of it if you're Dallas. But I wasn't necessarily anti-Luka going, hey, what the hell? How come this guy isn't going to play off series if he's so great, which is a very popular thing to do. That would have happened and would have been warranted had they lost to Utah.

So Dallas moves on. Let's take a look at Utah. Quinn Snyder, the first question, will he stay? He's got a year left in his contract. He's been there eight years. He's now the fourth longest tenured head coach in the NBA. There have been whispers all season long that he's out of there and that it will be up to him. I don't know the answer to that.

This is a jazz team that is third in wins over the last six years. Regular season wins, they are third behind Milwaukee and Toronto. They were a one seed last year. Statistically, they've held up really well in a lot of key areas, whether it's three-point shooting over the years, their offensive efficiency, defensive efficiency. The team could be deeper, but I think on the fly, what Justin Zanuck has done by adding Bogdanovich,

by bringing in Mike Conley, who is another question mark. I respect what they've done. I respect that they've been competitive, but they have major, major problems beyond the Quinn Snyder part of it. The first thing is, what do you do with Rudy Gobera? He has four years left, including a player option in the back end. Probably going to pick that one up for almost

$50 million. Four years left and $170 million. We have gone around in circles talking about Gobert and what he really means. Statistically, there are people that have argued absurd things for him. As much as I love John Hollinger, I don't think

he has an MVP vote, but he said last year he had Rudy Gobert number two in his MVP. That's insane. That's insane from a guy that I think is incredibly smart about basketball. But I bring it up a lot because I want to point out the extremes. Because of the plus minus, the on off, the defensive stuff,

all the screen assist, all these things, right? It is a fact that it is different in the playoffs. And yes, it'd be great if some of the perimeter defenders for Utah gave a shit. I don't know what Donovan Mitchell's doing on some of these possessions defensively. And yes, it'd be great if some of the perimeter defenders for Utah gave a shit. I don't know what Donovan Mitchell's doing on some of these possessions defensively, and Conley's just not there anymore.

So it isn't all on Gobert, like the Clippers series last year, where he's asked to cover the corner and the rim, and he just got worked. But this is an alarming trend here, where you tell me Gobert is something, and then I see all of these good teams, whether it's the regular season, decide to get him in every action towards the end, because part of it's strategically to pull him away. Him covering all these three-point shooters and closing out of them isn't fair to ask of him all the time, but it is a fact now. For six straight years, the Jazz have been worst defensively in the playoffs in the regular season,

and sometimes alarmingly so. Let's go through it. This season, they were 10th in defense, 110 per 100 in the playoffs, allowed 115. 21, they were third in defense, 108 per 100. That dropped to 121.7 in the playoffs. 2020, they were 13th in defense, slipped a little there, 109 per 100, dropped to 117 per 100. In 2019, they were the second best regular season defense, 105 points allowed per 100 possessions. That dropped marginally to 108. 2018, they were number one in defense, 103 points allowed,

dropped to 106. In 2017, they were third in defense, just under 105. They dropped to 110. So if you're telling me that Gobert is all of these things, I'll agree in the regular season. He can't be a $40-plus million guy who anchors your salary and your team. So do you move on from him? I don't know. Does Mitchell factor into this? What you can't be doing is get rid of other guys to make Mitchell happy if Mitchell isn't going to be happy.

Mitchell also has four years with an option in the last year remaining. I've not talked to one guy that's like, yeah, he's staying. Now, I don't know that that means he's going to leave immediately. I don't know if he's going to go nuclear option. I don't know that anybody will ever do what Ben Simmons did. And I'm not saying Mitchell would do that. But I want to be careful in how this is consumed. I'm not saying I know for certain he's asking out this summer because there's very

different levels to this. I mentioned the Ben Simmons part of it. Harden is not shy. Other guys just don't like doing it. I mean, Kevin Garnett wanted to leave for years apparently, but he didn't want to be that guy, and it was different then too because it was less accepted. I think Demi Lillard struggles with it a bit, but I've also been told that Lillard likes the idea that the franchise, like it's his franchise and he can kind of do what he wants. Not to say he's doing anything bad, but like he calls the shots. I don't know how long that'll last. You have to be a little pushy if you want to get your way. And I don't know if Mitchell is there, but the sharks are circling. Before I finish the open, we get to our interviews.

I want to admit something I'm not sure other people would admit. As a new NBA voter, I want to change my vote about something, but it's obviously the vote is already in. After watching the Nuggets and Warriors series,

I regret my vote. I think I should have voted Steph Curry six-man of the year. The playoffs are here, and you can make every game feel like Game 7 on FanDuel Sportsbook. An official partner of the NBA, FanDuel is hooking you up with free bets throughout the playoffs. It doesn't matter if you're a new customer or already have an account. Just be sure to check out the app for exclusive weekly same-game parlay promos. All right.

Let's do some damage, folks. So we've got Game 6, Memphis at Minnesota. Looking at just the straight line on this one, Memphis is favored by a point and a half at Minnesota here. I feel like Memphis is the better basketball team. I don't think that's a shocking thing. The other thing that we gave out,

we gave out two unders, and they both went under. Because of the high scoring profile of both teams, this was set at 240 for game one and then another time it was set at 230 and both went under. I don't know if the entire series has gone under, but they're still pretty high at

228 is the total on this one in FanDuel. The way these teams just beat on each other too has kind of had a high number get exposed a few times. All right. There's also a double-double play for Brandon Clark, which is almost doubling your money on the odds there. And considering he jumped to 37 minutes and was the offensive rebound hero in game five, could be something you could look at. The first basket thing is just too dicey for me.

It just is. So even if the payout is great by throwing that one in there, you have no idea what's going to happen on that. Unless it's the Kendrick Perkins first touch Oklahoma City era where they ran it to him in the post to start every game. FanDuel has so many ways to play. And best of all, when you win, you'll get paid faster than a fast break. New to FanDuel, just download the FanDuel Sportsbook app and sign up with the promo code RyanRYEN.

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or text NEXTSTEP to 53342 in Arizona. 1-800-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org forward slash chat in Connecticut. 1-800-GAMBLER or visit fanduel.com forward slash RG in Colorado, Iowa, Indiana, Illinois, New Jersey, PA, Virginia,

or 1-877-770-STOP in Louisiana, 1-800-270-7117. For confidential help, Michigan, 1-877-8-HOPE-NEW-YORK or text HOPE-NEW-YORK, 467-369-NEW-YORK, Tennessee Red Line, 1-800-889-9789, Tennessee, or visit 1-800-GAMBLER.net, West Virginia. The first round of the NFL Draft in the books and on the desk for the coverage. Berger McFarlane joins us, friend of the podcast. What's up, man?

It's good to see you out there. We got 32 picks in. How are you doing? Doing good, man. It was good to be up there. Bummer that our buddy Mel couldn't be there in person, but hopefully the satellite feed held up all night and the viewers got their taste of Mel. Yeah, I thought it worked out, man.

I think the story does start at number one. I mean, people talked about, hey, this is going to be the craziest thing ever. I mean, there's storylines. I don't know if crazy is the right way, but you'd heard rumblings that Walker out of Georgia, the defensive end, was going to end up jumping Hutchinson, jumping the tackles there. But it's a rather muted response to the Jags going in this direction. What was your take on why they picked him number one?

Well, I just think that the fit was better, Ryan. I think when you look at Jacksonville, they want to be a super athletic defense, a super twitchy type defense. And I just think that Trayvon Walker was the better athlete. I mean, nothing against Hutchinson. I mean, Hutchinson's a good athlete. He's 6'6", 260. He's kind of the NFL-ready defensive end. He's got all the moves.

And I think Jacksonville and their defensive line coach, Brinson Buckner and Doug Peterson simply said this, are we drafting for right now or are we drafting for what this guy could be for the next eight or two years? Because the upside on Walker is ridiculous. I mean, he's 6'5", 270, runs a 4'5", and he's raw, man. It's almost like you're going by a Ferrari and says, you know what? I'm not going to drive it on the 5. I'm just going to drive it through Beverly Hills up and down and look at LeBron's house. I'm not going to open the Ferrari up. That's what Georgia did with this kid. They didn't let him get on the five and say, go. And I think Jacksonville feels like when you put

him out there and you give him the space and the freedom that other defensemen gets, he's going to be dominant. Now, that is a big, big bet because most of the time we believe what we see, not what we can't see. We don't have faith and everybody sees what Hutchinson did. And we really haven't seen the production from Walker yet. But if you believe in upside and you believe in what a player can be, not what he is today, I understand why they made the pick, but their defensive line coach,

where I know what I played against uh he's he's got one hell of a job to do so when you watch trayvon you you saw like the glimpses the same way you know and i always use probably too many draft analogies with basketball where i can see like the 611 kid who can hand a little bit who hasn't made a shot but i go okay but if this guy ever figures it out like i get it but it so you see those things with walker you you whether i mean because george is almost this weird defense whereas you pointed out i think on twitter this morning where after next year's draft you could have seven of their 11 starters for this title team all being first round picks um so it's almost it's almost funny that you feel like some of these dudes can actually get lost because of their teammates. Yeah, it's unreal, man.

That defense is crazy. But to your question, yeah, I've seen it. I've seen the flashes. If you go back and watch it, and here's the game that I think, if you want to say what game changed the mind of maybe Jacksonville, go back and look at when Georgia played Michigan. I didn't know Hutchinson played, to be honest with you, Russillo. I didn't

know he played. In the biggest game of the year, where your team is trying to make a statement, and you're the best player in America, and you don't make an impact, I think if you're Jacksonville, that kind of sat in the back of Doug Peterson's mind and in the back of Brinson Barkner's mind, the defensive line coach.

Whereas, I mean, Trayvon made plays. He may not have gotten the sacks, the splashy plays. But, man, you go back and look at where he buckled that offensive lineman from Michigan. Go back and look at the chase down play and some of the plays he made against Alabama. In the biggest games, he showed up. So, yeah yeah you saw that

and by the way you're 6'11 basketball player who can't shoot reference um all I could think about was Ben Simmons and we see where that's at right now by the way yeah yeah I guess I don't know I don't know if that evaluation is still open to TBD on that one um in fairness to Hutchinson in the Georgia game, though, and we had Daniel Jeremiah on about this. We had McShay on it about it. And I had asked him because I know they had talked about it. I go, like, well, what did you see on film with Hutchinson

in that Georgia game? They're like, we saw a team build this entire blocking scheme around one guy. Yeah, but those are excuses, man. Like, come on, like, listen. Okay. How many times listen rossillo how many times do teams build their entire game plan around and i'm not comparing

him but i'm using star player team builds game plan around how many times have we seen people build a game plan around aaron donald how many times have we seen them build it around steph curry like i can go on and on when you're great player, it doesn't matter what the other team does. You affect the game somehow, some way. I don't necessarily buy into, hey, they just came playing. You're playing against dudes that are going to be farmers and accountants the next day.

I don't care if they put two farmers on you. At Georgia, I don't know how many of those guys are going to be farming. Georgia's offense is not great, first of all. I mean, let's understand that. I know, but. Okay.

It's like you're going to Manhattan Beach, and you're seeing two dudes over there, and it's like, hey, you want to play some pickup basketball? And the dude, you know, it doesn't matter if they put two or three of them on you, you're going to score. It doesn't matter. A couple years ago, maybe.

All right. See, but I do think the Hutchinson thing, it turns into like when he got crumpled on that left side and that becomes the tweet. And then it's like, hey, this is big boy football. And as pro-SEC as I am, that's the SEC argument that becomes like, oh, see, it was a completely different thing. I don't know.

I felt like those guys were emphatic about how specific that game plan is. And by the way, if Hutchinson isn't Aaron Donald, all right, nobody's going to be. Your point is valid. I'm not disagreeing with you I just felt like they were specifically over the top and pointing out something despite your point of the game plan being like of course everybody game plans against the biggest who would you have taken who would you have taken number one you watch as much college football as anybody yeah yeah good luck with that one uh you know i look this is a weird it's a weird number one you know so if there was a year

to do it with trayvon then then okay you know i i remember the mario williams stuff people were a little bit like wait a minute what are you guys doing this wasn't miles garrett you know miles garrett the only thing about Miles Garrett that people weren't sure about is when he came to ESPN and people were like, what's this guy's deal? And then it was like, none of that matters because he is an absolute game wrecker and he has been that since he's been in Cleveland.

But I remember when Mario was drafted, it wasn't so much of like, oh, Reggie Bush or Vince Young has to go to the Texans because there was a lot of that too. There was still a little bit of like, wait a minute, what's going on? But that NC State defensive line was really good. It was really talented at the time. And Mario still had a really good career. I don't think

he was ever peak Miles Garrett. Yeah, I agree. It's funny you bring up Miles Garrett because that's my athletic comp for Trayvon Walker. Now, he didn't have the production that Miles had at Texas A&M, but if you look at the numbers, and I realize that your big numbers, 25 on the bench, 480 on the squat, whatever the numbers are,

I think Walker's numbers compare favorably to what Garrett's was. And I know somebody like you will appreciate that. Okay. All right. Yeah, because Garrett, to me, is like, you know, I would not put him there. By the way, when's the last time we squattedatted by the way uh I'll put 315 on just see how it feels and I'll do it I'll close with that I you know I'm getting to the point where I don't really know how heavy I want to go to prove any is that a front squat no no okay back squat No. No. Okay. Back squat. But for reps, it's not. I'm not max squatting anymore.

Okay, good. Are you okay with this? Yeah, I'm fine with it. I stopped squatting years ago, so I just want to know if you were still doing it. Yeah, it's fucking stupid. I don't know what else to tell you. There's been temptations to be like, wait a minute, you're feeling pretty good today.

And then one of the trainers was like watching me. He's like, don't get dangerous. Don't get dangerous today. And I was like, all right. I was like, I think you're probably right. Because you're just going to fuck up your week. He's not going to mess up the whole week. He's going to mess up multiple weeks.

Okay. Keeping this moving, were you surprised we only saw Pickett go in the first round? I wasn't surprised we only saw one quarterback go. I was surprised the quarterback was Pickett because Mike

Tomlin has said all along he wanted a dynamic athlete at the position because he's seen Lamar Jackson and what they do to him. Pickett's a good athlete, but he's not the athlete that Malik Willis is. But I think if you're looking for a quarterback that is safe and you take Kenny Pickett, he's got what?

49 starts. He's played in 53 games. He's thrown a lot of football. Like there's a lot of tape to go out and evaluate. And I think this is just the opposite of what we saw with Walker and Hutchinson, because if you're Pittsburgh and it came down to Willis and Pickett,

you said, I want to go with what I've seen proven, maybe better than what I don't know in the upside and Malik Willis. I think Kenny Pickett's going to be a good quarterback. Mark Whipple, his OC, who I talked to, says, man, this guy's got all the goods. He's got the makeup of a quarterback.

And I think the mentality of the position is more important than the mentality of a defensive end. Like, a defensive end, I want a dude. I want somebody that, you know, is – I'm not concerned about your – I just need athleticism and a dude that has raw skills. At the quarterback position, like, we've seen Chad Pennington have success. Like, you don't have to have the strongest arm. You don't have to be mobile.

You better have a very cerebral thought process and an ability to make great decisions. And by all accounts, Kenny Pickett has that. So good luck to Mike Tomlin. Kevin Colbert's last draft pick on his way out was a quarterback. And it's amazing. I thought one of the greatest quotes I saw

is from Mike Tomlin. He said, we scoured the country looking for a quarterback. And in the end, we just walked across the hall and got the guy that was in our building. That's a great quote, man. It could have saved a lot of dollars and a lot of frequent flyer miles. Was there a rookie that you remember? Maybe it's a first round guy with a high profile or whatever. Is there somebody that when you were playing like day one,

you went, okay, we got, we got to do. Cause I, I always love talking to you guys about that moment where you can do all the prep. You can make all the phone calls.

You watch all the film, but you don't really know until you have them in your building and you're around them a couple of days. Like the, the real evaluation can be more important than those 24, 48 hours. The first time you actually line it up. Was there somebody that jumps out at you that you knew immediately like okay we got somebody uh yeah it was actually an offensive lineman because that's who the guys that i go

against we took devin joseph out of oklahoma when i was in tampa and like the first day the dude walks out and you look at him and he's got this barrel chest and he's got thin ankles and his thighs, he just looked like a guard and he moved like a guard and he was strong as hell. I took one rep against him in one-on-one pass rush and I was like, yep, I see it. You can see it. And conversely,

there have been dudes that come out there drafted in the second round or maybe third round where the dude takes two reps and we all just turn and look at each other like, I truly hope there's more. I'm not going to name the guy because I don't want to get kicked off. There's no one you're going to name?

Okay. Defensive being out of Louisville, Dwayne White. Dwayne was a second round pick. Coming to our room as a defense, we had Simeon Rice. Like, we had all these dudes that were first-round picks. And we saw him, and it's like he was kind of soft.

He was kind of mentally weak. And it's like, hey, dude, it's 97 degrees in Tampa. Like, it's hot. Get used to it. Because, like, the first day, he almost passed out because of the heat. And we're like, it's really all mental. Like, you're in good shape, but the fact that almost passed out because of the heat. And we're like, it's really all mental. Like, you're in good shape, but the fact that you can't deal with the heat. Like, he was one of the most mentally weak dudes that I'd ever been around.

And the fact that he got drafted so early was, like, a real shock to us. Because we were used to dudes coming in that could absolutely go. Like, dudes that had a mentality, that were ready to get down. And also, I've gone against guys in games, other teams where my defensive line coach said, hey, supposed to be that number one pick.

Let's go show them a little something. A couple guards. And those are the guys that I have the most experience with because I dealt directly with them. But players know. Like you know within one rep, within one rep, whether the dude can play. Other than the quarterback position, because that position is different. But all other positions besides quarterback, you can tell within one rep,

one movement, one little interaction. You're like, yeah, we got something. Or like, man, who the hell is drafting these guys? What was your favorite pick in the first round? I got them. Let me see. I like Kayvon Thibodeau, and here's why. Because it's going to be a fascinating case study, Ryan.

Because this dude, I'm telling you, I've been around him a little bit and just watching him. Man, you would have thought he was third, three-time first-team All-Pro and got 50 sacks already. And now he's going to New York. Rosillo, he's not going to Green Bay or

Kansas City where he could just kind of lay low. He's going to New York, dude. And you're going to take a kid from California that went to Oregon who has this huge personality, who's a little cocky, arrogant already, and he really, I don't know, he hasn't earned it.

Now you're putting him in New York and that pressure cooker, man, as the old folks say, he's going to barbecue a meal, dude, real quick. I mean, really, really, really quick. So it's going to be a fascinating case study because he's got the first, he's got the best first step of anybody. His first step is better

than Hutch. It's better than Walker. It's better than Ojabo. It's better than them all. But he reminds me of Clowney. Okay. So here's what I'll ask you. I'd love to get your opinion. If I told you Kayvon Thibodeau, who was drafted at number five, was the day beyond clowning. And you're a New York Giants fan. Are you happy? Probably not. And clowning is like a two-part conversation because of who the dude was at the beginning of South Carolina. Okay.

And then his last year before the draft, he was a different guy. And I actually not, I mean it it speaks to maybe how competitive you are but i also can understand i mean hell sting at lsu mailed it in towards the end because the guy was like i'm just not going to play the way i used to play because i'm worried about my draft status and i want to get to stingley at some point here so i think clowny's thought of is generally is kind of a disappointment based on what we thought this guy could be and yet he still had a really good career. I mean, the guy was still playing.

So this isn't like some bust. This isn't somebody who's not good at football. He's very good. But we get excited about the unknown or hoping to see something we've never seen before. And that was the way we used to talk about Clowney when he first was at South Carolina. So if you just tell a Giants fan who's into it, like, okay, Kayvon becomes Clowney I bet you, they'd be like, Oh,

it's kind of disappointing, which is what happens with anyone that's new. Yeah. Every, I mean, hell there's guys that go 10th that you're thinking, Oh my gosh, did we get a safety for 10 years? You're like, you might be, you might be not picking up his option in two. So I agree with you. I think Clowney has had a very good career. I think if he would have accepted who he is, I think he would have, the perception would be different. And here's where Clowney is. Cl expected to be a great run defender and a great pass rusher and he's not that i don't know if k-bon tibido will ever be a great pass rusher and when you're drafted at number five that's what you're expected to be remember cleland farrell

from clemson yeah they just took him at four he's a he's a good solid player he's a terrible pass rusher we label him as a bus and so the expectations are driven large part by where you're picked especially as a defense being a quarterback because those are two premium positions but i think at his at his worst tibideau is going to be clowny and i think people are going to look at him as a disappointment the cave-on thing was a very predictable timeline of events. Like I had heard stuff that wasn't awful, but it was, you know, when you have a different personality,

you're a bit of a free thinker. Football hates that. And college football is probably even more against it. Cause people just don't like younger people that are thinking for themselves. I mean, it's just kind of the way it is. I'm not saying it's right.

Um, but then it became kind of like, well, what's going on with this personality? And then it came full circle where then other people would jump in on the story. It'd be like, it's right. But then it became kind of like, well, what's going on with his personality? And then it came full circle where then other people would jump in on the story and it'd be like, it's absurd this guy's even being questioned. And I'm like, I don't know what to make of it. You know, the Herbert stuff is one of my favorite ones because, I mean,

it's just a coincidence that happens to also be Oregon. But I heard all sorts of stuff from guys going, I don't know, man, when you're in the huddle looking back at him, I don't know the other 10 guys are locked in. And now he looks like he's going to be one of the great quarterbacks in this league in the next 10 years. So it can happen where people are totally wrong about the personality stuff, but I would, I would always push back on people that think it just comes out of nowhere. Like this stuff doesn't just come out of nowhere and it can be wrong, but you know, I don't, I really don't, I don't love the idea that it's just invented.

Let's talk Stingley, because if it's the dude we saw from the National Championship game, going number three is probably too low. But it's an injury. It's being in and out of the lineup. And yet he still goes number three, which I think, again, it's the mock process, so it doesn't mean it was right. But this ended up being on the higher end. So what do you think his story is now as an NFL player?

Here's what I'll say. I think if you look at 2019, three is definitely, again, it's the floor. I mean, you could argue he was the best player in the country in 2019 as a freshman. And I think when you're that high so young, there's only one way you can go. I mean, everybody starts to pick your game apart. Mentally, you're like, man, I just need to reserve this lottery ticket. Like, why am I going to go out here? 2020 COVID hits.

Chase opts out. Burrow's gone. Like, all this stuff happens. Coach O is, I mean, it's a shit show down there. 2021, the Liz Frank injury. He tries to play through it. So, like, everything that happened in those two years are not excuses, just reasons. And I just watched him at that pro day. And when he ran for three and when he did everything he did at LSU, I, I, I simply put that, uh, and I think I tweeted this out. Um,

he showed he was the best cornerback in the draft. Everybody said, Oh no, sauce, sauce, hot sauce, red sauce. Okay, whatever sauce you want. Hey, this dude is legit. I was surprised he went at three-door with Sillow because everything about the third pick, what the Houston Texans said is otherwise. Lovie Smith, defensive coach. All right, when he was down in Tampa with us,

we were built with a defensive line. He went to Chicago. What did they do? Tommy Harris, Alex Brown, defensive line. Like, they were going defense, and that's how he wants to play. What did they do? Tommy Harris, Alex Brown, defensive line. They were going defense, and that's how he wants to play. Nick Casario at New England. When's the last time we've seen New England take a corner this high?

I don't remember. So the two people in charge, they went against all their tendencies, and I love Sting. I think Sting's the best corner in the draft, but maybe the last corner that changed the franchise. Dion,

maybe. Yeah. I mean, it's been a Woodson perhaps. Yeah. I mean, Jalen Ramsey to an extent, like my whole point,

it's hard. I really like true font coming out. Like I'm talking about the first one. Like I'm, I'm going back to that Terrence. Yeah. No, like a corner changing it. Yeah. I yeah i mean i i'd love to have one but that's my point like it's like hey um but in this draft but in this draft maybe this is where where sting goes through because there aren't two

or three quarterbacks everybody's fighting over i agree and i can make the case that in a draft where, what, seven wide receivers win the first round, who's going to cover those guys? You better get you some corners. So I see where the NFL is going. I love Sting. I'm happy for the kid because here's a case, man, where since the guy was 16 years old, everybody knew what he was and what he could be.

And oftentimes, how many times have we seen that child prodigy, that person that had all the talent, five or six years later, not achieve what you thought they could? And so I'm super happy for him and his family that at 15 or 16, everybody saw it, and five or six years later, it came to fruition. So I'm happy for him because of that, because it's a life-changing moment, and it's a lesson to a lot of kids out there. I'm happy for him because of that, because it's a life changing moment and it's a lesson to a lot of kids out there now.

I mean, he's going to go into the AFC South and play for Lovey Smith and Lovey's a great mentor for him. Lovey's phenomenal. I've seen Lovey mentor a lot of people, Hall of Famers. OK, like Derrick Brooks is is a classic case. I saw it up close and personal. He took somebody with a ton of talent and he literally helped mold them into what they are. And they're still close today. But, man, like, this is a new NFL, okay? Like, you better come in when you're drafted third overall of the scrutiny. He's going to Houston. Houston is probably, what is that, four hours from Baton Rouge.

So he's going to be close to home. Everything is set up for him. But now you got to come in and play like all that. Hey, I'm saving myself for the NFL. Like all that stuff is going out the window now. So good luck to Sting. I think he's going to be really, really good. But it was a little surprising taking the corner at three.

Hey, by the way, I'm looking around at your Zoom setup. And is this your master bedroom? No, this is not. This is a guest bedroom. It kind of looks like the master. You got a nice TV there and nice little comforter. I like the guests to know that I'm taking care of them.

Yeah, with no pictures on the wall. I love it. What are you getting on my case for? By the way, Trufant, I just hope that it's not taken as that I thought he changed the Seahawks franchise. I just remember how much I loved him before the draft. That was 2003, a long time ago.

Give me your favorite wide receiver then. I am a Garrett Wilson guy. I just think that his ball skills, His ability to separate The way he can do things How he catches the football He's a hands catcher

Not a body catcher And I think the number one skill Of a receiver Is can you separate from the DB Okay Like can you Can you get open Where the quarterback sees you

And can throw you the football Like every job has a Has a bottom line prere open where the quarterback sees you and can throw you the football? Like every job has a bottom line prerequisite. Like the quarterback, you better be accurate. I don't give a damn if you can throw it 90 yards like Jamarcus Russell. If you can't throw it through the eye of a needle, it doesn't matter to me. Like a receiver, you better be able to separate. And Wilson can separate. I love him.

That's the opposite of Drake London. Like, Drake London, you're a USC guy out there on the West Coast. He couldn't get open in college. Everybody said, man, the contested catches. Listen,

if you can't get open against Utah and Colorado and you're making contested catches against them, what are you going to do with Jalen Ramsey? What are you going to do with Carlton Davis? What are you going to do with some of these top-notch corners in the National Football

League? That contested catch turns into a PBU. So Drake London really never entered my mind as a guy I would have taken as a first receiver. It was Jamison Williams, Chris Alave, dudes that can get open. And in the end, Russell Oak, Jamon Williams may be the best one of them all. He's the closest thing I've seen to Tyreek since Tyreek. Like, he's got a gear that I don't think the NFL has seen since Tyreek.

And I just hope that Detroit can chill out a little bit, let him get healthy, and then I don't know if Jared Goff's arm is big enough to get it to him, first of all. But he better figure out a way to get it to him. Because when this dude is healthy, he's a big play waiting to happen. Yeah, look, I love Jamison.

And I think there's a very strong argument if he doesn't get hurt in the title game, we're talking about another one for Saban. And I think Wilson was the more dynamic of the two at ohio state where a lave is more the technician um but i i was not surprised but i you know i would love to know did you guys get any i don't know if you can tell me this or not because you also have the reporters and everything flying through with it going wilson 10 a lave 11 i imagine the saints to pull that off. I wonder if they were going, ah, Wilson went right here. We'll take a lave.

I'd imagine if they're taking a lave, maybe their evaluations, they liked him better for what they want to do. I don't know if you had any insight on that. No, I don't. What I would say is that if you're the Saints and you got Michael Thomas, who's more of a 15 to 20 yard inside

receiver that's going to work inside the quick outs, slants. He's not a speed guy. So you needed raw speed. You needed somebody to go with Deontay Harris, a guy who could be an efficient route runner, to help Jameis Winston, to add some speed to the offense. You hope you get Alvin Kamara back. So I see what they were doing.

You're getting something you need. You don't need another big dude. You need a guy that's got some juice, that can get in and out of his route because Jameis Winston has a chance to be their quarterback not just the next two years, but if he stays healthy, he could be their quarterback for the next several years.

And Jameis loves to push the ball down the field. So I understand what they were doing. They went receiver. They went tackle. Two positions of need. Because quiet as it's kept, Rosillo, when I talk to people in New Orleans, you know what they say?

Hey, we've beaten Tampa Bay four out of the last five times. And if Tom Brady coming back makes them the favorite, then what the hell are we? What are we when we've dominated them four out of the last five matchups? So New Orleans think they can win now, man.

And they drafted that way. I love the Hamilton pick just because I love him as a player. And then he ends up going to the Ravens. You're like, Oh, okay. I, you guys said something on the desk that I did think was interesting. And it's, you know, the, the 40 time thing of four, five, nine, I think it's a little overblown because that's not the way he looks on the field, but will he stay the same size? Because it's six, four", 220, and when you put up the graphic, too, of where he is lined up, we're not talking inside.

We're talking linebacker, middle linebacker, slot. I mean, it's insane how versatile he was in college. But I do think you guys are on to something, being like, you know, he's going to want to hit the weights. He's going to want to work out and all that stuff. But he can't really let himself get much bigger, I wouldn't think, if he wants to remain that versatile. No question.

And, like, these kids typically don't stay this, like, it's natural. Like, as you get a little bit older, your body feels out. You start to kind of put the muscles on a little bit. So, let's just say he gains, like, seven, eight pounds. Now he's 228. He's almost 230. Like, that's outside linebacker. Like, he's better at or near the line's outside linebacker. Like, he's better

at or near the line of scrimmage. Like, I know everybody goes back to the play against Florida State, and they're like, man, look at the range. Twitter goes crazy. Top five, here we go. I saw you. Top five, here we go. Look at this range. But that's really not his game. Like, center field, Ed Reed, like,

he's more of, and I'm not comparing him to Troy, but Troy was always so good as a playmaker. Palomaro. Kyle Hamilton wants to be that same type safety. He doesn't have the range of Troy. He doesn't have all that, but he has that mentality. I want to be at or around the ball. And so, yeah, I agree with you. It wouldn't surprise me in two years if he is 6'4",

and 2'29", 2'30", and is like, hey, where are we going to put you, big fella? Let's come down and be that nickel linebacker. Wouldn't surprise me at all. Yeah, and I think that's part of the reason why we see him go to the middle of the first round because he was as productive as any, I think, defensive player, like impact-wise over the course of games. I know there was an injury there as well.

You mentioned the receivers early, so I don't need to do it all over again. I don't know that there's ever been a receiver class where I was like, yep, love that guy too, which may be a bit more of a testament to how wide open the game is everywhere. to Han Dotson and what he pulled off with Penn State this year. And Trelon Burks was not only just the production, but when you watched Arkansas, you're like, that guy, he makes basketball plays on the football field. Like, all right, enough of this. I got to do something. I got to figure out a way to get us a huge play, especially with a younger developing quarterback in Jefferson.

So that's another part. Trelon wasn't exactly getting favors here from somebody that's going in the first round when he comes out of the draft. I'm going to keep it moving here because a couple more things before we finish up. The Cole Strange pick to the Patriots, it's right out of the playbook. I do think that Belichick likes to do things that are different. I think in a weird way, he almost likes to make things harder by trying to do something different to prove something.

But last time he did it, just as Mel mentioned in the broadcast, when they drafted Logan Menkens, everybody's like, what the hell is going on here? And Logan Menkens is a terrific interior offensive lineman. And so if there's going to be a way that I imagine the Patriots are going to get it right versus getting it wrong, this isn't a receiver. If he's going to be drafted a guard that's a bit off the radar,

then he saw something, and I'd imagine that it is going to work out. It just comes down to a matter of value and whether or not you thought you could get him later, which Belichick said he thought he would be gone by the time they picked again. Let's say he's right. And let's say he gets a really good guard. He already had one. And Shaq Mason, they traded him to Tampa for a fifth round pick. And Shaq wasn't making $20 million. Shaq was only making like $7, $8 million. So let's say he's right. Like, did your team really get better by trading a proven guard? A guy who played a lot of football for you?

A guy who was really, really good? Trading him away for a fifth round pick? Like, I don't, like, I question the pick.

Like, how come you didn't just keep Shaq Mason and get, like, your quarterback needs a receiver? I love Nelson Aguilar, Kendrick Bourne, the tight ends,

but like, you need a dude. Like, they need a number one, a guy that can dictate coverage. They hate number ones. Okay, but you need a dude. They need a number one, a guy that can dictate coverage. They hate number ones. Okay, but they also hate winning. I mean,

post-Tom Brady, they got to think different. Brady made everybody so much better. Matt Jones needs some help. He needs a number one dude that can help make him better until he matures into whatever he's going to be no that's the that's the counter to all of it i mean they're they mean belichick's been terrible

with the receivers um drafting i mean it's it's atrocious and yet they could always get away with it because they had that guy back there and to say hey we're gonna have the same philosophy and they went on the spending spree when they were kind of zagging during free agency last year and they had all this cap space. But I don't know why. We'll see. Look, there's still six rounds to go here. So it doesn't matter. It's just classic Patriots to move around a million times and then take somebody that nobody else thought would go that high.

Two things before we finish up. I have to ask about N'Kobi Dean. The rumbling started happening more and more. This guy isn't going to go in the first round. When I watch them, his instincts, the impact, I know the knocks. I still can't believe it. Your take on it.

I just think that he got caught up in a position where he was often the best player on the field on Georgia's defense. But when you look at all the other guys, his measurables are probably the worst. 5'11", 227. He reminds me a lot of Jonathan Vilma. And in this day and age, there's only certain teams that want that type of back,

run and hit back or net defense. He's a small middle linebacker, a small weak side linebacker. And I just think he got caught in a situation, man, where there was a run on the receivers. The defensive lineman jumped out. His own linebackers on his team were more NFL fits. Like, if you look at Tyndall, Quay Walker.

I mean, Quay Walker is built. I mean, he's 6'4", 240. When he walks off the bus, you're like, yep, that's a linebacker. That's what I need. Like, when Kobe Dean, like, walks off the bus, you're like, yep, that's a linebacker. That's what I need. Like, when Kobe Dean, you look at him, you're like, is he a fullback, or is that a big tailback? Like, you don't really, you don't see it. Now, the production

is there. When you watch him play, he jumps off on tape, but I just think when you look at him, you're like, okay, how can he be the same type player? Like, we're going to have to get Jordan Davis-like players in front of him where he can just run and hit. And I think that's what he got caught up in.

Now I do think he'll go in the first five picks today. I think he'll be early. And I feel bad for the kid because, you know, he came to, came to Las Vegas, brought his family and all that good stuff. And that's always a bummer when these dudes get all dressed up and you got 20 people in the green room. And to me, like, like this is the moment and follow me here. The camera goes to the guys that aren't getting picked. They're like, it's like pick 27 and it's still 10 guys in the green room and they go to the green room and everybody's all the agents on their phone.

Everybody's looking down and I'm like, what are you doing? Like, nobody's calling right now, dude. Like just chill out. I always find that moment funny when the cameras go in there. But he's a good player. It was a disappointment. But nobody remembers where you were picked once the draft is over. All they remember is, can you play? And I think for him, he's got to go in with that chip on his shoulders. It's been a lot of small linebackers, Vilma, Sam Mills, Derrick Brooks,

guys that weren't 6'4", guys that could run, guys that made all pros, Hall of Famers. He'll be fine as long as he keeps that mentality. I only had one question, but you mentioned Derrick Brooks again. What was it about him? Because I got to know him a little bit at ESPN. Just the way he carried himself. Once you just spent five minutes with him, you're like,

okay, this dude is a little different. And that can happen with a lot of you guys especially on the defensive side of the football but what was your whether it was the moment or getting to know him i imagine you're pretty close but just kind of like you know everybody says oh this dude's different or this dude's different but brooks has something with his personality and his eyes and the way he and he was always cool as hell but you could just sort of tell like this is the kind of guy i want to go to war with he is the only guy that i've ever played with on defense that looks at the game and prepares like a supporter back like he's always looking at the fine details the minute details you know how like and i always use paid manning because he's the most famous guy comes to the line of scrimmage

and he's looking he's pointing apple 52 omaha like he's doing allton Manning because he's the most famous guy. Comes to the line of scrimmage, and he's looking. He's pointing. Apple, 52, Omaha. Like, he's doing all those different things because he sees it. He knows it. He understands it. He's almost a step ahead. Brooks was that way as a linebacker. And you combine that with a guy that could run 4-4,

a guy that could tackle in space, a guy that could cover. I mean, he was a prototypical outside linebacker in a 4-3. And his ability to cover and turn interceptions into touchdowns, like he won defensive player of the year. Did he score five touchdowns that year or something like that? Like it was stupid. His demeanor, though, how he carries himself on and off the field is unreal. And he learned from John Lynch. He learned from Hardy Nicholson how to be a professional,

like how to be a pro, man. And it's a mentality. Talent only gets you so far. The mentality in which you carry that talent ultimately takes you places that you never thought you could go. And some players have both. And the rare ones have that plus innate ability when the moment is big, they play.

I thought a very underrated pick was the Jets when they got Jermaine Johnson because something he said to me, or not to me, but to the NFL live crew, he said, when the moment is biggest, that's when I want to get down in my stands and I want to get a sack. He's like, I love the big moments. And this dude, I mean, you go back against Clemson, we had a sack fumble, super scored touchdown. Like if you look, he was the ACC defensive player of the year. It's something about dudes, Rosillo, when a moment is big,

like they want the ball, like they want the ball in their hands. They want, they want to make the play. You know, this from basketball, like in crunch time. And always you always look at this because, you know, he's an LSU guy. But Ben Simmons, Ben Simmons don't want the ball in crunch time. He don't want him. He's scared to shoot it. And then that's that's not talent. That's mentality. And I think that Derrick Brooks and players like that, man, it is something that is ingrained and learned. And you can't teach it. And when you recognize it as an evaluator, when kids are in college, you got to you got to grab a hold of it. It's hard to recognize. That's why I think the Jets had the best draft. I know you didn't ask this question, but I'm going to give it to you anyway. This is a bonus. So you can sell this as like a little teaser.

Love it. I think the Jets had the best draft, man, because they arguably got three of the top 15 players in the first round. Sauce Gardner, a little handsy, but hey, he's a big corner that can cover. Love what he did there. For them to get Jermaine Johnsonson uh i mean you you could argue

like i would listen to you if you said that he was the best defensive end in the draft i'd listen i'm gonna agree uh and then to get garrett wilson to help the young quarterback out i mean you get three of the top 15 players i think joe douglas should should really set back and be like, you know what? Hey, my job is done. I'm going fishing today. Last thing. What's it like for you being out there? You know, Vegas, first round, main desk, the coverage. You know, I like you a lot as a guy. It's just, you know, those are those little moments in the career.

I think you kind of, you know, count it down, looking around and going, all right, I'm sitting here. This is awesome. You know, it's cool, man, because it just means that like somebody believes in you, dude. Like when they put you in the prime position, they're saying, hey, we think you're the best for what we're about to do right now. And that means a lot, especially in your career when you're doing different things. I don't care whether it's a podcast, whether it's on TV. I don't care whether you're on the golf team

and the coach puts you out first in a match. Like, that means they believe in you. And I think that's always a cool feeling. I haven't played football since 2006 or 2007. And I mean, it's been 15 years. But there are certain times in certain moments where you're in position on TV where the energy is palpable and it almost feels like you're in the game again like you get like there's nothing ever close to run out of tunnel but I'll ever

experience again but there's certain moments man where it's, yeah, I'm in the mix again. Okay. When that football song played on, that intro song played on Monday Night Football and we're about to come on TV. Yeah. Like, I mean, like the hair stood up on my neck. When that music starts playing and Greeny is there and you hear Mel and we're talking, it's the draft. And you realize that, dude, that's 10 or 15 million people watching. Like, it means something. And those moments are special. I don't take them for granted.

But once the red light comes on now, it's just time to be me because that's the reason they got me there is to be me and have some fun and mix it up. And I enjoy it. Don't take it for granted, man. But it's a good feeling when you're wanted and you're put in positions because people believe you. Well said, Booger.

Enjoy it. Again, by the way, the draft will start 7 Eastern, round two, with all the guys live from Vegas on ESPN. Thanks, buddy. All right, later, dude. Matt Ryan, quarterback, Colts. Yeah, all right. So that's how we're introing him.

Okay, Matt, let's get to kind of the timeline of all these things. Where and when did you know, where were you when you found out you'd been traded last month? So I was at home. I was in Atlanta at the house. I knew it was going to happen. You know, I guess it went through on a Monday. And I had meetings with the Colts Saturday night. I had requested the opportunity to kind of look into my options

and had a good meeting with them Saturday night. Talked it over with the family on Sunday and knew, you know, Sunday, Sunday afternoon that this was going to happen on Monday. And so I was at home, but kind of knew it was coming. Right. This is different. This is not an NBA trade deadline, and all of a sudden your phone gets blown up and you're like, wait a minute, what's happening?

So somebody who's been in the league, certainly with quarterbacks and more of the movement. So I do want to get a deeper understanding of that. I think it'd been flirted with the idea that maybe you would ask out or Atlanta would try to do you a favor with all these landing spots. Like how, how was it different this off season? How does it end from season to meeting with Arthur Blank to meeting with management and going, what do we all want to do here? Where we feel like we're all on the same page and we get a result that we're all happy with. Yeah, I think the end of the year, there was nothing really different. It was, how do we get better? What do we got to do, I kind of got filled into the loop

that they were going to look into Deshaun Watson. You know, and then at that point, you know, I said, OK, you know, I understand, you know, but I also need to look into what I need to look into. And if this doesn't go down, find out if this is probably still the best fit for me. And as that week went on and just, you know, kind of looked into on my end, what might be the best possible landing spot or what was the best for myself and my family moving forward. As we did that research, to me, it became, you know, one spot. And you never know though, in that situation, whether or not that one spot

is also going to feel the same way about you and you know for me fortunately they did and and they have you know the belief uh in me and what i can bring to this team and um you know so from that standpoint i think it worked out perfectly on my end from what i understood on the deshaunun Watson part of this was that it was understood like the night before the Cleveland thing happened is that it was Atlanta and that it was done. And then Cleveland added on all sorts of extra money and Deshaun ends up there. If that pursuit isn't as aggressive for Atlanta, are you still a Falcon? You know, if it had none of this gone down there's probably a chance you know a pretty good chance but it did you know and so you know when it does when the situations change and the circumstances change you know I had always thought like everybody when you're drafted there

and you play there this is where I'm going to play my entire career. For 14 years, every day I woke up, it was to try and help the Falcons win a championship. And, you know, that had been reciprocated on the other end for me. And so when that changed, you know, I had to look into it. And it's certainly been, you know, a big change, you know, for sure, but a good one. And, you know, a big change, you know, for sure, but a good one. And so it's hard to say, but I think, honestly, you know, it's more than likely I probably would have still been there had circumstances been different. But I'm excited with where I'm at. Yeah. And I think this is the disconnect that we always have is, you know, in the NBA. Again, I'll use that example because it's starting to leak into the NFL a little bit with quarterbacks where we see a situation where

like, well, that guy has to get out of there. And so for the last couple of years, as the team wasn't as competitive, like, oh, well, you know, they should trade him for picks or he must want to get out of there. But it's the sense I get from you is that you never felt that way, that you were always kind of happy to show back up and be the face of the Falcons? Yeah, I always thought there was a great responsibility that came with that was, you know, you were going to be a part of turning it around. And it's disappointing, you know, when you're going through it and you're not winning games hard. There's no doubt about that. But, you know, I always felt we were closer than we were far away there. You know, I always thought it was another piece or two and a win

here or there and you're in the playoffs. But it just never shook out like that. My family was growing at the time too. You factor in all those things as you're going through it. I loved every minute of it.

There's no doubt about that. Not bitter about how it ended, but from the football standpoint, I do feel a sense of energy, like a rejuvenation that comes with going into a new place, new team, really good football team, great teammates, a lot of talent in the building. And that part is really, really exciting.

So what did Ballard, what did the coaching staff, what did they say to you that made you go, okay, I'm doing this? I had a meeting with them on the Saturday night before I got traded. We were on a Zoom meeting for a couple of hours. And one of the things Chris started the meeting with was a rundown of his time in Indianapolis.

And it wasn't a highlight reel. It was, here's some of the things I've done well. Here's areas I feel like we've excelled. Here's some of the things I try and be that way myself. And beyond all the other things that they had to pitch, which was give the football team a great place, you know, great fan base, great city. That part to me was the part I really liked. What is true about the Peyton Manning part of this story like did you did you reach out to him

about what it's like to finally turn the page and and try something new I did I I called him um you know he he's he's been a good friend to me throughout the years and so early in that week um I just you know called him number one, to say, we're in similar spots. I mean, a little different, but similar spots, 14 years in the same place. And what are some of the things you have to weigh when considering wanting to do this? What are some of the things to expect if you go through the transition? He's always been a great resource for me from that end. And so I had a really good conversation with him and he was really candid the entire time. And I'm thankful, number one, to have him as a friend and somebody

you can reach out to because he's got such a wealth of experience specifically, too, in this situation. On both sides, to be honest with you, too, on the first side and the second side. Yeah, because, right, I mean, I'm looking at it from the veteran, you know, new chapter, new surroundings, and yet we're talking about the most important cult of all time. So what did he tell you about the city and the franchise and stuff that other people just can't tell you? Well, you know, he loved it. He loved it here. Uh, loved living here, loved playing here. Um, you know, it's, there's, it's a, it's a cohesive building. Um, you know, there's, there's not fractions in it that are going in different direction. Everybody's, everybody's really rowing, you know, the boat in the same direction,

which I think is, is so important. Um, even, even to afterwards about, you know, contacts, you know, for this, contacts for that, uh, he's, he's just been, he's been awesome to me through, through the transition. And, um, but, but really it was about inside the building, you know, the people that are still there, he's still close with some of the new people that, that are, uh, in the building, you know, since his time there, I think they lean on him, uh, and value, you know, his,

his opinion on, um, you know, all things football and all things football operations. And, uh, you know, so he had, he certainly had unique insight into things. Legend has it that when Manning was trying to figure out his next spot after leaving the Colts is that he met with Harbaugh and they were like, what are we going to run? And Harbaugh's like, we're going to run what I want to run. We're going to run my stuff, which is if you know Harbaugh, like, yeah, okay. And then there's another part of the story where Harbaugh was basically comparing his arm to Peyton's post surgery being like yeah you know it's not that far off from where you're at uh and then i'd heard the denver part of it where denver and he asked elway and elway was like we're gonna do whatever you want to do whatever you want to do is what we're gonna do and that's what we'll run and

manning's like okay this makes more sense so your situation going into it where you want to be appreciative you know but you're still thinking like i can play how going into it where you want to be appreciative, you know, but you're still thinking like I can play, how important was it for you to not always be the good soldier, but like knowing there's going to be conflict in, in how you see the game or what you want to do. And, and knowing that like, I have to come into this from a position of strength and not a position of, you know, help me keep my career going, which you certainly, you know, you're not in that second category, but I think there's some balance there of standing up for yourself,

but also wanting to be a good new teammate as well. Sure. Yeah, absolutely. And I think part of that was talked about in that Saturday night meeting of, you know, listen, they've done things really well here on the offensive side of the ball.

And they've ran the football and been big and physical up front. But there's also some things I think I can bring to the table. I've been in really good offensive run schemes that married up the play-action pass really well with it. And I've done it with different coordinators. You know, I think that's one thing, you know, it's hard when you're going through it as a player, but when you have a lot of coordinator change, I think it helps you later in your career

because as you go through transitions, you have this smorgasbord of things that you've done throughout your career and you can kind of pick and choose the things you liked along the way from each of them and try and incorporate that into how this offense is going to work. So I got a good sense of that from the start of it being collaborative. I certainly understand Frank is the head coach. There's no doubt about that. But as a former quarterback himself, I think he values input from that quarterback position.

And he wants to put you in positions to feel comfortable and to go to what you know in certain situations. Where are you right now as a quarterback? Because I'll answer a little bit before I get your answer in that I know that I've been a defender over the years um because I don't know it just seems like well hey you know this is somebody who still has some time left and I felt like people were kind of talking about like oh well you know maybe you get a pick here or there for them um and then I look and see what like Brady's doing or what Rogers did after what looked like a down year and then turns back into MVP seasons like I I kind of know what your answer is going to be, but I feel like there's probably a massive gap between maybe some

perception outside of watching you as you get a little bit older and probably how you feel about how many more years you have left. Yeah. I mean, I feel like I can still, you know, play at a high level. My body feels as good as it ever has.

You know, I think there's reasons for that. I think the rule changes have helped guys like myself, or you mentioned a Tom or an Aaron, uh, the way they protect the quarterback is, is certainly better than what it was early in all of our careers. Um,

I also think, you know, I've done a good job of, of taking care of myself. I've been lucky, you know, to, to not have had,

you know, any real major shoulder or back or neck injuries, uh, you know, which can, can derail you a little bit. So I feel like there's, you know, still a lot of football in front of me and a lot of really good football in front of me.

And, you know, I'm excited, you know, to be a part of a team where, you know, there's other guys to lean on too. And you can turn around and hand that thing off. JT can go for big numbers for us. You got good wide receivers, good tight end, great offensive line, really good defense. To me, that's one of the things that has me most excited. Can I ask you about the difference between having,

because I guess we kind of look at it and go, all right, what is the Shanahan impact, right? Because it looked like that was some of your best offensive output. And then you could see what he's doing in San Francisco, depending on what you think of Jimmy Garoppolo. I'm not going to ask you that. But is there a level that he is at where you go, okay, this is different.

Like, I'm just trying to understand something most of us would never understand with having a play caller and a coach like that who seems to have, like, people that really understand the position will say, no, no, he's just different. What's the best way to describe that or explain that to us that don't get it? You know, when Kyle and I were together, you know, he was awesome. But, you know, he's, there's no question about it,

he's a great play caller. But, you know, I think that the two things I think of were, number one, he pushed me outside of my comfort zone. You know, pushed me into a spot of, of asking me to do things I had not done prior to that. Uh, and, and, and trusting him, uh, that I could number one, do it, but also number two, uh, it was going to work, you know, these, these, these route combinations were going to work. And then number, number two, were going to work.

And then number two, the thing I think he's exceptional at is he knows his scheme so well. He knows exactly what kind of players he wants for specific spots. And his talent evaluation to me is really good. Like your X wide receiver should look like this.

His skill set should be this. The F should be this. The F should be this. The Z is this. I want my tight ends to move. And he's able to adjust to certain guys. There's no doubt about that. But I think he's very good at finding ways to get guys that fit what he does well.

Can I ask you about 28-3? You wouldn't be the first. I've answered it a few times what was that night like it sucked you know what'd you do we had

so they had the thing that's messed up about when you lose the Super Bowl is they still have these like Super Bowl parties and you're like yeah I'd like a few drinks. There's no doubt about that.

But I'm not really here to like, I don't really want to bullshit. I just have my drink, uh, and go to bed. So it was, you know, I saw family, uh, everybody was kind of miserable. So everybody, you know, it was like, hang in there, have a good night. You know, we'll, we'll catch up whenever I can talk. And so it was, um in there have a good night you know we'll we'll catch up whenever i can talk and and so it was um it was a tough night you know for sure uh you know and but it's part of it man you know somebody's gonna feel like that at the end of the night it was it's probably especially rough the way the game shook out but you know at the same time i do think

you become you know, more callous, you know, those kind of things for having gone through something like that. Yeah, it's a great point about the parties because the teams have already set this thing up ahead of time. Like they have musical acts planned, like the whole deal. And it's like, well, all this money has been spent and it's very private.

It's a hard thing to get into. This isn't like some Maxim deal in the early 2000s. This is a high-end party put on by ownership and so you're still supposed to go i mean i've heard about these things don't you end up having like younger teammates they're like whatever i've been in the league like two years it's not like it's all on me so let's have a great time and it's it's got to be like a really weird thing to deal with yeah it is you know the falcons luckily had me set up like with a private room too, like a private conference room or whatever for my family. Just so if we won, we could have kind of bounced through.

And so I actually never made it to the big party. I was in that, you know, that smaller room. And then, you know, I was up in my room my room you know in the hotel not long after that because everybody's trying to figure out the right thing to say to you and there isn't a right right it's nothing everybody's trying their hardest around you like i will give people credit for that they're trying to to make you feel better uh but you're in that that spot where you just don't really care what anybody has to say. I know.

I don't want to sound weird here, but I sent your wife a note. I felt so bad. And I think she was like, wait a minute, because we're both from the same area. She's like, you're probably a Pats fan, you asshole. No, no. She's like, oh, it's nice. But like, is it really that nice? No, that was nice of you. Yeah. Do you think playing at Boston College makes it a weirder topic than it already is

in some weird way? I don't know if that was ever part of like, I still have to hear about this in a different way that's probably more annoying because of my connection to the state. Probably comes up more, you know, know oddly enough because we're back there you know visiting her family and and in that area so you're like jeez you know we have to go back again i'm gonna hear about that again but uh there's a lot of layers wait wait wait okay so you're back where she's from again you know we're talking cape and islands areas here so has anybody when you're out in the Cape, has anybody ever said anything to you that you didn't love

when they recognized that it was you? Yeah. Yeah. Give me a story then. There has to be one. Or probably plenty. I remember I was actually up there for a buddy's wedding. He got married in Marblehead, Massachusetts.

And so we were in Marblehead. And we were at like a, you know, it was like the rehearsal dinner or whatever the night before. So it started at the dinner and then it went to this bar or whatever. And we were in there. I was kind of standing in my business in the corner. And somebody in there is like, this is Tommy's town, Matt. Like, get out.

And I'm like, dude, I hear you. Get it. And then, you know, 28 to 3, that kind of stuff comes up. And I'm like, I'm just, I'm here for a wedding, man. Like, I'm here for a wedding. So it's all good, though.

It's all good. No, that isn't all. That's, that guy, this is the part of the disconnect between those of us that care about sports and like the guy who actually plays and was in the game like you actually think because you bought a hat that you can talk you can talk to me like this and then you haven't heard it's all good it's it's you know i say that but luckily he was he was not a part of the wedding he was he was not a part of the wedding. He was not a part of the wedding party.

So it was just, we kind of overflowed into this bar and it was somebody else. So I'll give him at least credit that I didn't know him. So he wasn't trying to be funny. He was trying to be like serious. I think he was kind of serious. I think he was a little bit serious. I was like, all right. I was with all my college buddies. So I was like, all right. I was with all my college buddies.

So I was like, all right, boys, it's time to go. Let's go somewhere else. Did they want to kill him? The night's fuzzy. But that part for me was not fuzzy. All right. Last thing on this, I promise. But you, you know, as I first started asking about

it and you're like, yeah, here we go. Um, I don't know. Everybody's different, right? Like some people could be haunted by it. Some people could be motivated by it. You talked about the calluses, you know, yourself, um, the haunting thing could actually be, you know, there's, there's a point that it goes past motivating you to try to fix something that can't be fixed, you know? So I, what's the best way to explain it to us of like going through something that's never going away, but using it, but also not having it be used in a way that's detrimental to the rest of your career. Yeah. I think that here's the thing. Like I'm not, I don't replay it over and over and over in my head every night when I go to bed. It's just, that's just not it.

I think one of the things I did after that was to go back, rewatch, and then also make like notes from the entire week, the lead up, all of those things on when we're back there, when I'm back there. What are the things I learned? What can we do better? And so I feel like one of my strengths throughout my career has always been that. Good or bad, being able to turn the page, that's obviously more difficult. But I also feel like losses are wasted unless they're learning opportunities, unless you're better for it. opportunities unless you're better for it. And there is a lot to learn from that experience. And certainly, I'm in a position now where if we were ever to get in that position again, what great experience, what great lessons to have learned and to be able to teach people moving forward. This feels like a good pairing for, for a bunch of different reasons. Um, but I think you're going

to be what the seventh different week, one starter at quarterback and in seven years to the Colts. I think that number's right. And when I read it, I was like, wait, that's, that's crazy. But you know, you're 36 years old. This is, this is not Phillip rivers at the very end. This isn't, you know, we're, we're trading for somebody somebody the other team is ready to move on from, which maybe it feels a little bit like that. But it feels like a marriage where it's like, no, we're trying to get this right now. We're doing something different, but we're also going to try to get this right. And that's going to be, that at least when you're talking about rowing in the same direction, rowing the boat in the same direction, that at least from the surface feels like what this marriage is about right now for you in Indianapolis I certainly feel that way you know I you know from the beginning feel you know was honest like I feel like there's a lot of football left in the tank I know my motivation my competitiveness uh is is the same as it's always been right And it's a passion to be the best I can be, to work at it every day, and to try and, you know,

do whatever we have to do to win games. And so, you know, I know I have a lot left in the tank. You have to go out there and prove it. You have to go do it, you know, every year. You know, I also understand that. But I do feel like, you know, hopefully I can bring stability to the position, you know, in this city, in this organization for however long I can do it. I'm rooting for you this year, man. I'm happy that you've found a place that, you know, I think you're excited about. So I can't wait to check in and see how it goes. Thanks for the time. You got it, brother.

You want details? Bye. I drive a Ferrari. 355 Cabriolet. What's up? I have a ridiculous house in the South Fork. I have every toy you can possibly imagine.

And best of all, kids, I am liquid. So, now you know what's possible. Let me tell you what's required. Life advice is lifeadvicerr at gmail.com. Kyle got engaged.

We got that. We had another question about your fitness journey. I feel like this is a quick answer. What about it? What happened to Kyle's fitness journey? The Nigerian guy? I've been waking up early doing some solo stuff. A little jog walk thing.

What's solo stuff mean? Jog walk thing. It sucks jogging. It kind of solo stuff. A little jog walk thing. What's solo stuff? Jog walk thing. You know, it sucks jogging. It kind of hurts the knees a little bit right now. So I'm going to wait until it doesn't hurt to really ramp up to a run. But what can you do doing that in the morning? But yeah, no, that's never. I saw my friend yesterday, but we didn't work out.

You know what I mean? You saw your Nigerian friend yesterday, but you didn't work out. Yeah. Didn't you buy like supplements and stuff? Never. All natural. All natty. Yeah.

Respect it. So that's it. There's no, there's the journey's over. It never, they never left the Harbor. Pretty much. Yeah.

There's always time to start. Right. So your guy's not bugging you anymore though. Like he's not like he was, he seemed pretty gung ho and getting you in the gym. No, I mean, honestly,

it was fell away pretty quick. Fell away pretty quick. I mean, the guy's got kidsging you anymore, though? Like, he's not... He seemed pretty gung-ho on getting you in the gym. No, I mean, honestly, it fell away pretty quick. Fell away pretty quick. I mean, the guy's got kids, got a couple jobs. I think it's more of a relief that I didn't... I think he's more relieved that I didn't stick to it

more than I'm relieved that he's not still bothering me about it. You know what I mean? It's one of those things where he was like, yeah, we should get you in shape and then immediately regrets it because he realizes

what the time commitment would be. And he's like, all right, I'm just not going to say anything if Kyle doesn't say anything. I mean, half the time, he comes like an hour and a half, two hours late to work anyway. And the guy's behind the bar. He's like realizes what the time commitment would be. And he's like, all right, I'm just not going to say anything if Kyle doesn't say anything. I mean, half the time he comes like an hour and a half, two hours late to work anyway. And the guy's behind the bar is like, what the fuck? I'm like, I'm checking IDs. I'm like slinging

drinks. This is crazy. So if you know, I would have been pissed off if actually I had to show up to work out with him. And he's like, oh, yeah, 40 minutes. I'll be in there 40 minutes. Like, all right. Well, this won't happen again. So I think we just saved all of ourselves disappointment all around. How many appointments were actually scheduled?

Probably I could count on, maybe I would need two hands to count, but wouldn't need more than that. So more than five, less than 10. Yes, exactly. Unless you have abnormality. That's correct. From birth. So more than five times you guys said tomorrow's the day.

Yeah. Or Tuesday. Yeah. Tuesday's great. Tuesday's the day. Whatever. And then crickets on the text chain. Correct.

You're basically playing a game of chicken to see who doesn't, who responds first. How many, how many of the appointments were scheduled after beers? Well, all of them most of them yeah most of them for me and maybe one or two of them for him yeah okay no look we've been there a lot of great plans have been made over beer yeah we should start a business no no you gotta start training for like the beer don't don't they have like those beer 2ks where you drink a beer after

every like you know mile or kilometer or whatever i feel like that's awful i think i think i need i need more water than the average bear if i'm uh exercising so i think uh i don't think you ran out i didn't know no i do not yeah you just hear him talk about his knees now we're gonna throw in a couple he's working his way up he said once a couple cold ones you know yeah all right um it's a micey hot figure it out here's the other part of the fitness journey you were at least mentally kind of gearing yourself up for this and it sounds as if whatever that was whatever that wiring was about those days that doesn't exist like that was a um it was it wasn't a workout fad it was a thinking about workout fat you know that it did it was it was thinking about like going hard but then also now that i was i was still excited to like work out i've got some 30 pounders that

i wish were 25s uh and you know in my house dumbbells and you know i wish i wish i didn't i wish i wasn't like yeah probably probably 30s is for me to start out again i wish i wish it was less than that but so i have that and also i wake up now, wake up super early and usually just roll out of bed. And I've got like a three hour. No, I mean, yes, but also because but when it's normal and we start at like eight, it's like I'll wake up at

I'll roll out of bed at like 545 and I'll just do like a three mile walk jog thing. And oh, yeah, I'm doing that now. Now that's all right. We take it all back. I know that this felt like a collection of soft jabs at you. And now you're telling me you're doing power walking in the morning before the sun might be out.

Yeah, I'll run across the crosswalks. And if there's a few tents, maybe I'll pick up the pace. But yeah, it's been good. You don't like camping, huh? Okay. This is a full circle of like, now there's tons of respect you're doing stuff you're out there you're moving around don't worry about the 30 why can't you work your look curling 30s out of nowhere yeah that's no fun great time it's not a great time that's what i

mean 30s is a lot uh what can't you just do some just maybe some some bench stuff and just lay on the ground? I saw some video about some guy who's like, I guarantee you'll never get hurt. Because he just always makes sure his range of motion is never elbows below the shoulders. Maybe you just do some stuff like that. Jesus. What do I know? Yeah, why not?

Maybe you could do some front deadlifts with him. Moving on. OK, before we get to a couple of these, so Rudy, do we have an announcement as well? Yeah, man, I'm pretty excited that starting in October, maybe November, I will be able to say as a parent on this podcast. Yeah, I know some people are like, hey, you know, wait a bit like way to big up

Kyle. You couldn't let him have a week or something. I'd swear we didn't plan this. Kyle's super happy for you, but yeah, my wife and I are having a baby, so baby girl. I heard that too. I didn't know what the fuck this guy was talking about. That's awesome, dude. Congrats. Thanks, man. Doing Halloween. Pretty excited. What the fuck is Priscilla going to do now? Do you got anything to say, Ryan?

I don't know. I'm looking at boats. Getting a boat. That's what I'm thinking. Maybe a boat. Looking at boats. So, you know, we'll see.

Awesome, man. We'll see. All right. Well, congratulations to Rudy. This is crazy. Big adult week on the pod. Guys are growing up all over the place. It's pretty crazy.

All Growns Up. I don't know that I ever loved. I only think I like when Vince Vaughn. All Growns Up. I don't know that I ever loved. I only think I like when Vince Vaughn says All Growns Up. I think everybody else sounds like an idiot when they say it. I think only Vince Vaughn is cool enough to be able to pull that off. That's fair. That's fair. Okay.

All right. Let's get some advising in. This is a really good one. Really good one. It's complicated. Hey, Ryan. Five, nine, 180 and rising. Getting old sucks.

Can get buckets if left open. I have a dilemma. Bought a house a few years ago, decent neighborhood. There's an apartment complex across the street. Not ideal, but it's fine. At the start of COVID, I purchased a basketball hoop. I play regularly and wanted to stay in basketball shape as all of my seasons got canceled. A few months ago, a few of the neighbor kids from the apartment complex started playing on my hoop. I'm guessing around middle school age. At first they they came around. We left the house. We have a doorbell camera so we could see it. We gradually became more constant. I finally went

out to talk to them, say it was fine, but there had to be some ground rules. Typical stuff. No fighting. Don't break anything. But I also ask that they be done by 7 as I have a 2-year-old whose bedroom faces the driveway where they play. To say they've taken advantage of the situation is an understatement. They now play every single day

from 3.30 until 7, and all day Saturday and Sunday. There's always at least one kid shooting, usually more. The dribbling of a basketball is all we hear during our waking hours. Bikes are always parked in the lawn. All of our solar lights around our planters are destroyed. The lawn around the hoop is completely torn up.

I can't imagine what will happen when my wife plants her usual flowers in the front lawn. I think we can imagine what's going to happen to those flowers. It's not going to be good for you, pal. You just start putting cactuses out there. Cacti. The plural of. Pricker bushes.

With all that said, they're good kids! Exclamation point. They quiet down when I ask them to. They're usually good about leaving at 7 p.m. They wave at my daughter when we get home from daycare. All good stuff. Man, this sucks. It sucks.

My question, even though I truly hate it, do I just let this happen knowing it's probably a good thing they're outside playing in a safe environment rather than whatever else they could be doing? Am I a jerk for honestly just not wanting them there, am I, or am I a jerk for honestly, just not wanting them there all the time or feeling like their parents treat my house like some sort of afterschool daycare program. I really would much prefer they're not there, but I'm not sure I can just tell them to leave. How do I handle this? Uh, this is,

I think it's like some people are going, it's not impossible. You tell them to leave. And some people are going, what are you going to do? I think it's great that you care this much. Clearly reading the email, like this is a dilemma because you want to, you want to help the kids. Like you don't want to be the guy in the neighborhood that goes, Hey kids, fuck off. Literally get off my life. Yeah. Right.

And they're kids and they're, they're junior high kids. You could come up with something where it's like, if they're respecting the 7 o'clock thing, can they respect off days? Can we get some DNG load management in there for junior high kids? Every other weekend. I don't know if that's going to happen.

The lawn part of it, here's what I know about. They don't mean to trash your solar lights. They don't mean to trash your lawn. They are kids. They just don't get it. They'll never get it. I had two 14-year-old roommates here for a week. There were some things that you would go,

what the hell are you doing? And I didn't say it out loud. It was also weird for me as a recluse to have activity like that. But then I would go, oh, the reason he did that is because he's a kid and you don't, you know, you don't worry about it, but this is tough because your daughter's going to get older. Your wife is going to get more annoyed. Your lawn is going to get worse.

And these kids are going to get older and they're going to start smoking cigarettes and stuff. And this, you know, who knows, who knows what's going to happen. So I would try, Who knows? Who knows what's going to happen? So I would try. Again, this is like when one of my roommates from college came to visit me to work in construction during spring break because we didn't have money to go anywhere. So we decided to make some money. And my youngest sibling at the time was very, very young.

And he was crying. And my buddy's like, can you tell him to stop? I was like, are you? You're the youngest in your family. Can I tell? Yeah, let me just go tell him to stop? I was like, are you like, you're the youngest, huh? And your family, can I tell? Yeah, let me just go pull them into the side and have a one-on-one with them. Like, hey, buddy, I know you're two, but my roommate from college is really just not into your crime. It's really inconsiderate.

So I really don't think I have an answer to this one. I don't, because I don't want you to tell a bunch of kids to stop doing something that they really enjoy, which is clearly what you don't want to this one. I don't, because I don't want you to tell a bunch of kids to stop doing something that they really enjoy, which is clearly what you don't want to do either. We can talk about parameters, having this day be basketball day. I think it's kind of great that you've allowed it to come to this. And like I said, that you care, but it's going to get worse. It's going to get worse. And for me to say blindly, tell them to never play your basketball hoop, I don't want to say that. And for anybody else that says you can't do that. All right, put a hoop up at your house and have all the neighborhoods kids come by. And that's just how kids are going to be. They're

going to be like, this is awesome. It's a basketball hoop. Like, let's go. This is our hangout. This is what we're going to do. But to have it be all day, every weekend, and then every day, three 30 to seven, that's going to drive the nicest person crazy. then every day 3 30 to 7 that's going to drive the nicest person crazy and i don't know that you can pull that off as your family you know keeps moving on in the family process we can ask the rudy about this now yeah so a couple months from now but uh i just remember back in the day and i look back on it now and i'm like how did my friend's parents not hate all of us like we would break couches pool lin liners, like everything. And they would just be, you know, and there was never really any like real repercussions.

And you just look back and go, how did they not get more annoyed by that? I guess when you're, first time I'll throw it out there, when you're a parent, you're probably just happier they're around, right? And like, you know, you can kind of at least supervise and see what the deal is. But and you don't want to kind of ruin their happiness as long as they're having like good hearted fun. So I think that's kind of it. I think you just kind of have to deal with it. Right. But you as a parent, now you're only seeing it through the parent eyes. Like these aren't his kids. So he's not, you know what I'm saying? Like I can understand you thinking that

way when your daughter has all her friends over and you're like, well, at least it's at our house. So we know what's going on, but these aren't even his kids this is a tough one and i honestly anybody that sends a follow-up saying they know exactly how to handle this maybe you do you probably don't yeah you could end up getting your house egged or tp'd or whatever but i mean it's and they're probably not even those kids i have one idea and it's gonna uh it's gonna take one second a big comedy club guy what if you could work out something like the red light where you don't have to go and be like hey guys be like hey you just tell them like hey listen when the when the sound plays or when that shit in my window starts blinking or whatever it's time for you guys to get out of here and like and sometimes it won't go on sometimes it will like

you could just be like whenever it's pissing you off you just push the thing and be like hey either respect the light or one day this hoop's gonna be turned around the other way or something i don't know like i don't hate the light idea i don't i don't think they're going to listen to you yeah and then they'll be and by the way there'll be some parent in the other complex is like oh red light guys on you know it's like okay well it's his house yeah correct because no matter what the more you start to expand the the number of people involved in this activity there will be the one parent that actually will find a way to blame you for what you've done here right at its core was a really great thing and you'd like to

find a way to still have this happen you're not saying just shut it down you're not saying take the hoop down because i can't do it anymore i'm just there's no way this isn't going to get worse and i feel for you because you're in a really tough spot i mean maybe you could take the hoop down and put down like what baseball and it'd be like kids would be like oh this sucks i was just trying to think of an act i was trying to think of an activity badminton i'd be over there every day i'm in i'm in love i love badminton all right let's do another one here i do i guess we covered it in that that's complicated to your point though like about the baseball thing like you can just give kids like raw materials and they find a way

to fuck shit up like it doesn't even matter what it is like they're just gonna do it all right we're getting a lot of is this dealings and this one uh hits close to home so i want to i want to do this one five ten and a.5", 170, 12% body fat, but minor knee arthritis. Okay? Thank you. I was like, man, 5'10.5", 170. I wonder how his knees are.

Oh, okay. Minor. Minor. Okay. 12% body fat. First time, long time. Hope you guys can help set up an argument for me. A buddy of mine goes to Chipotle three to four times a week for the past several years.

The last time I went with him, he was grabbing napkins and utensils, then proceeds to put an entire bottle of Tabasco sauce in his to-go bag. Tabasco sucks anyway. Why are you stealing Tabasco? Cholula? Are you a Cholula guy?

I'm a Louisiana hot sauce guy, but that's neither here nor there. Go Tigers. Like vinegar based sauce. I was dumbfounded and immediately called him out and accused him of stealing his argument is that it isn't stealing is that they don't put any of those plastic to go sauce cups out for him just put a little in and they don't have tabasco sauce with them behind the counter in the assembly line and put it in

his burrito for him he says he takes an entire bottle once a month or so and then uses it for the rest of the month and says it's part of the implied cost of his burrito. I think this is asinine. He should just pay the $5 at the grocery store for his own Tabasco. Am I crazy to think that this is blatant stealing? No, your friend sucks. Okay? Because once again, this is one of those theories that I propose is that if everybody fucking did this, then, and by the way, because people do this, this is why when you go to some Chipotle's, they don't have it out anymore.

There was one in West Hartford, West Hartford Center, when I used to live there. Guess what happened? They had Cholula out and everybody liked throwing on the burrito. And then guys would just take their own. The kids from Hartford would come over. Not the city of, the college would come over and be like, all right, well, I'm just going to take this. It got so bad at the West Hartford one, they had to actually stop putting out different utensils. They'd only put knives out there or forks, but they couldn't put spoons out.

You'd have to ask, and I'd be like, what's going on? We have to keep a lot of the utensils behind the counter because the college kids would just be like, cool, utensils for the rest of the month. And so I get it because I remember being young and thinking, cool, utensils, salt shakers. Guys started stealing stuff from the cafeteria left and right. That's the cafeteria. Tuition's going up. Implied cost. Maybe I can hear that one a little bit because all these younger kids are getting destroyed anyway. It actually reminds me of this, the selfishness of how people can be. There were recently, I forget who it was. I think she was in the media

and she said something about loan forgiveness as we're talking about tuition. And she had said, I just paid off my college loans. And if this debt forgiveness is enacted afters, I'm going to be so pissed. It's like, fuck you. That's not the point, is it? Is it? Because it's hilarious how some of this stuff plays out publicly. It's like, you want debt forgiveness because you think it's a really good thing for this younger generation that continues to be forced into absurd borrowing against ridiculously rising tuition costs. These schools just keep jacking it. It's awful.

Okay, it's awful. No one should be on the other side of this argument. Fuck the bank stocks, okay? But this one person was like, I'm all for debt forgiveness, but if it happens after I paid off my student loans, I'm going to be mad because how it affected me. How it impacted me, the one person. No, a greater good is about to happen, but you're mad that it's going to happen to you,

that the timing was bad for you. All right. And I understand if you're in this spot, like, oh, that sucks. Yeah, it did. But it's actually a greater good for everybody in this, again, next generation is getting hosed, not only in the housing prices, but being forced into debt because of ridiculous tuition. All right. So pivot that back to this. It's still a hot sauce. Right.

Still a hot sauce. Back to Nebraska. Green or hot? No, this girl's tweet. It was so ridiculous because you just go, I guarantee you are all for this until you were like, oh, actually, it's going to be inconvenient for me, though. I'm like, yeah, right. All right. So, yeah, your friend's a stealer. He steals shit. And this is stupid and it sucks. And him being like,

oh, I'm low on Tabasco. Time to steal another bottle from Chipotle. And it's all factored in. I mean, it's great. You go three or four days a week. But you're the reason why there's other ones that we can't even get a plastic knife unless we ask for one because of you. So way self-centered, probably an only child or the youngest that asks his friends, kids to tell their two-year-olds to be quiet. And I didn't mean to say acts.

Go ahead. Yeah, I agree. And I just think it just sounds like one of those people that walks around feeling like they're owed something. Like the way I look at it, it's like when you buy something from a place, what you get is what you bought. I mean, yeah, there's some other things, but it's like, oh, well, they don't do this and their whole system doesn't allow it for it automatically to give me a little mini Tabasco or they don't automatically hand me this thing. So this is what I'm owed. It's like really what you bought and paid for is what you got. There really isn't anything else outside of the transaction. So if you're not happy

with how something went after you already did the transaction and you just think that you're owed more, that's on you and you should live with that. And if what you decide to do is steal, then yeah, you're a stealer. I think it's a terrible red flag. Weird about bills with roommates. He's the kind

of guy who's going to be asking for a raise after four months. He sits in the interview and is like, what's the kind of guys can be asking for a raise after four months. You know, what's the vacation? You know, he sits in the interviews like, what's the vacation program here? I read flags all over this kid. I don't even like him. I don't even know him. I agree with you guys. But I need a ruling on maybe some of my behaviors because I don't know if this kind of like crosses because I think the thing is, this is it's not like it's a it's a it's a full bottle of Tabasco sauce, right? So that's the difference. It's not like a miniature thing.

You know, like in some takeouts, they'll give you like that little mini bottle of Tabasco. It's not like you're taking a bunch of those. No, that's for you. For example, when I go, this is pre-COVID, I guess, but when I would go to Taco Bell, I would take like two heaping handfuls of fire sauce

and just dump them in my bag. Oh, they used to do that anyway, though. It was a lot of sauce, but I never really thought that that was that bad about myself because they were individually wrapped is this just because it's like a big bottle yeah it's a communal thing totally yeah and taco bell's notorious for throwing like a bag of sauce like just a bag you just get a bag of sauces anyway from them and that drive-thru sometimes yeah i mean fire sauce is legitimately fire and they do bottle it but it doesn't't taste the same as the packets that you get from there. So I always go in, I can't do it anymore because you can really only do drive-thru.

So it's just because it's in a regular-sized bottle. Yeah, I guess that makes sense. And Taco Bell, you pick the Taco Bell, and they're the most liberal with their sauce giveaways. Yeah. Yeah, not the same thing. You're within the bounds of the law on this one, I think. Not the same thing. Nothing else to add.

Anything more on banks? Get a new friend. Anything else on banks? Yeah. I don't know. I've even owned some bank stocks, but sometimes when I look at the value of something and you go, well, there was concern the stock price could go down if they changed the loan program you're like well who's you know nobody's going like hey this guy's in cnbc be like

okay it'd be great for debt forgiveness it'd be great to figure out a way to change the borrowing of students be like yeah but you know what's going to happen to this bank like no one no one cares unless you own that stock which is another cycle of selfishness that's happening. I'd love for kids to have some debt forgiveness, but I have a large position in this one bank that actually deals in student loans. So I don't know if I want that to happen. Anyway, we covered all this on the debt track thing with that author where we got into the cycle of something that started sort of altruistic with Lyndon Baines Johnson, who was like, look, I needed to borrow money. You know what? Do you guys want this history lesson again?

I'm going to stop. I can't believe you took the bait. I can't believe you took the bait. I'm very passionate about it. Very passionate about it. All right. We will talk to you with Bill on Sunday because the playoffs have been awesome and I'll be back on Tuesday. Thank you.