-Can Trey Lance overcome the odds and create a new narrative with the Cowboys?
-Drama surrounding James Harden and Daryl Morey, exploring the implications of Harden opting into his contract and the nuances of handshake deals.
-NFL Preseason convo
-Can Trey Lance overcome the odds and create a new narrative with the Cowboys?
-Drama surrounding James Harden and Daryl Morey, exploring the implications of Harden opting into his contract and the nuances of handshake deals.
-NFL Preseason convo
Just a stat, reggie Johnson, eugene Warren, coming to you from the lovely city of Atlanta, georgia, and Eugene, we have to discuss this disastrous trade. Thank you for watching, listening wherever you may be doing so, and you know this is an absolute disaster, so let's pull it up on the screen for the people here, because we have a tweet that really settles a good bit of how disastrous this is, and we're going to talk our audience through it here.
Speaker 1:Let's go full screen on that so they can make that a little bit clear for them. So for the podcast audience that cannot see what we have on the screen here, this is a Bill Barnwell tweet and I actually saw this on Sports IllustratedSIcom and it states the 49ers moved up from 12 to 3 to draft Trey Lance. In return, miami moved to six and got Jalen Waddle. Billy moved down to 10, took Devontae Smith and Dallas drafted Micah Parsons at 12 with the original spot that the 49ers would have been in and if you thought that was it, it's not it. Miami then used the 2022 first round pick that they got with four other selections to get Tyreek Hill, and they used a 2023 pick that they acquired in that trade and winning, got Bradley Chubb from the Broncos.
Speaker 1:So if you look at all the players involved here, eugene, look at all the players involved here. So in that when you're trading down from where, when you're trading down to where you traded to, so you're always going to look at these drafts as if who was drafted after where you traded down to. So let's say, you trade down to three. I think the same situation happened with the Bears or Trebisky years ago, when they traded down to Trebisky and all these great quarterbacks went after him. They traded down to three and Miami got Jalen Waddle at six, billy got Devontae Smith at 10. And Dallas got Micah Parsons at 12. The original pick All better players in Trey Lance at this point, because they're actually playing the games Micah Parsons on a Hall of Fame trajectory right now. So, before we dive deep into the 49ers, what made it went wrong there? What is your general thoughts on that? Right there, let us sit with the audience.
Speaker 2:You just nailed it. I mean, like all three, all those guys are playing, all those guys like what one's on a team that is projected? You know, maybe it could be a super old favorite than the Dolphins. One's gone to Super Bowl when Devontae Smith and like Parsons and I'm looking at two just imagine if San Francisco State at 12 and draft Micah they drafted. I was looking at when they drafted Bosa. They drafted Bosa in 2019. Could you imagine those two guys together?
Speaker 1:Bosa, micah Parsons and Bosa on the team. What a great, great problem for them. You know, trying to figure out that money, those are kind of contract issues. You want right, you want those contradictions to come around and figure out how do we're going to pay these two guys? That means you have the two guys to pay, right.
Speaker 2:Right yeah.
Speaker 2:And yeah, and maybe that's why they were like, hey, we've got Bosa, we can, they can move up. But yeah, you're right, and we've only seen little glimpses of of of Trey and we the preseason playing the year prior it looked good, that's how everyone points to the Bears game, but that's all we've had, that's all we've seen. And obviously this preseason they weren't building a team around him, they're building a team around Perti and so he's not going to look good when there's not, it's. Yeah, I don't know it could go down as one of the worst trades of all time, unless, you know, I mean Trey. Just he asked him he'd have to be a starter and he had to at least go to a playoffs and I mean and Fort Dodd looked even worse at least win a playoff game. At this point, when you think I mean just just for the 49ers to save face.
Speaker 1:Yeah, yeah, absolutely. I mean, at this particular point, I get why they moved out of them because they traded them to Dallas for a fourth round, or let that sit with you Right, looking with you Give up right. Give up all those picks to get a fourth round pick. Not exactly a great ROI.
Speaker 2:No, no, no 49ers.
Speaker 1:Now let me tell you with the saving grace for the 49ers is Eugene. The saving grace for the 49ers is they don't suck. Right, because the 49ers don't suck, they can get through this. All they got to do is keep winning. Um brought pretty, just fell into their lap, so all you got to do is keep winning here. I'm interested to see. I would like to look at trailances high school correct. I'll put up his high school stats for the people so we could see how many actual games this guy has actually played, because I don't know if it's if he's played 40, 50 football games his entire life. Like I don't know if he has. I don't know if he's played 50 games. I know how many games he played in college. It was like three or four.
Speaker 1:Like he was very minimal amount of games he played in college.
Speaker 2:It was because of the you know, covid and all that stuff, I think. So, yeah, you're right, and that was so we, it's a very look, we, we all, we all seen the all seen the tape. We all seen what he can, what he can do, like we, like you, can look at and go, okay, you, the guy has talent. There's no doubt he doesn't have talent, but that's. But that's all we've seen. We've just seen like glimpses, like we've seen the glimpses of the college career, and then we've seen the glimpses. One is his peroracus.
Speaker 2:So I don't know, is that all we're going to get? And you know, and you know. And then he's going to Dallas, he's going to back up DAC and that's not a bad one to go to because that's going to probably miss a couple of games. So he'll get a chance to go in there and play. But I don't know it's. Look at Dallas. I mean, could it was them? That's a smart move on their play. You know, get a good. He needed a good backup. They got him for a fourth round or, like you said, and and then if he plays remotely well in the games, he backs up and they can, they can put him out there. You know, before draft, draft time comes and maybe there's a team desperate to go, maybe they'll go give a third round or form. So that'd be really interesting, it's it's really interesting.
Speaker 1:So I think that if they don't, let's say trade doesn't start for two more years because we're, I think, putting him he has to beat Cooper Rush and back this year. I think that's going to be hard to do. So I don't think he's starting this year. I think you can take this year out of the, out of the equation. He's not starting this year.
Speaker 2:No.
Speaker 1:If that's the case, then let's say he has a chance two years from now. Let's skip this year and let's go to the year after. If he does not start that year, that means he still has to beat out. I don't imagine that Dax Dax not like, he's 40, you know Dax and he's got big money Right. They signed Dax for big money. I got to look at Dax contract to see where that even makes sense for them to even attempt to bench-dack or or trade him. If that's not the case, if they're not able to trade him and you're just banking on him starting, if he's not able to beat Dak or Cooper Rush or wherever may be there the year after this year.
Speaker 1:Now we're going Eugene on about five years With the kid right. Yeah, four to five seasons of not starting. I Don't know, you do not mean I. I hesitate to call him a bus now only because we haven't seen him right, but there's a lot of bus characteristics here because you have not played and you were drafted third overall. Yeah, I, I do think that there's a little taking it easy on him to a certain degree, but at the same time I feel like, if we were just being fair, anybody else drafted at third that hasn't played for three to four years. It's not starting for your team three to four years later. That's not idea. Because if they would have known that ahead of time, do you would have never drafted them at third, you would never given up all those picks, right? If you know for a fact that he wasn't gonna be your starter three, four or five years from now, right, right?
Speaker 2:Yeah it's, it's like you said. I mean they. I mean I know Dax contracts, is he? I know he'll be a free agent when he, when he had Thirds 30, I mean I don't know if that's what they're thinking. Is you know it's cuz?
Speaker 1:I know that is yeah, cuz tray would be a cheaper option right in that fifth year.
Speaker 2:You know you pick up that fear fifth year option and cuz again, since they sign him in first round. You know, since he's first round player he gets, you know you can either Fifth round option or you know, or or tag him, which I don't think it would tag him in this case he would probably just pick up the option. But yeah, that'd be interesting what, what their thought is there is, let me right now, I mean he's, he's, let just. I mean Cooper rush is good but he doesn't have a better arm than tray. I mean they'll obviously gonna be battling for that, for that second spot, but I mean I would be surprised if, if tray is at some point is Promoted to. You know it's the backup over Cooper, the this year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, I mean, why not? That'd be now. That would be interesting, because Cooper rush one games for them last year. Man, some people are remember the Cooper rush situation. Some people are like, oh, let's keep him in and not have that come back when he gets out there, which is incredibly horrible, by the way it's, yeah, it's it.
Speaker 2:Just come on people. Well, let's, let's not get crazy. I mean, cooper, he, he, he did his job. He's a backup. His job is to come in there, hold, hold the ship, wow, wow, yeah. Well, I mean while your starters out.
Speaker 1:So Obviously, if San Francisco didn't even want him as a third string. It's just hard for me to believe in a guy that you took third and you just settled on the fourth round pick, for that means you don't have faith in this guy, especially when the guy that you have at your first string was injured the previous year.
Speaker 1:Yeah, you still had no faith in the guy. Yeah, when you got, bring in Sam Darnold, sam Darnold, sam Darnold, sam Darnold is being traded and traded. Right, you still have no faith in this guy. Right, it's hard to see him beating out anybody Eugene with it. With stats like that, like you people, they've seen you in years, for, in practice, for years. Right, you saw the situation with Jordan love, but there's no Aaron Rodgers there in San Francisco. And with the Jordan love situation, people were getting antsy about him after a while, like, hey, well is he? Does he suck or not? He's been in a league for X amount of years. You've seen him in practice. It should be time for him to take that next step. Well, how do I don't? Jordan loving draft third draft, a third overall.
Speaker 2:No, he wasn't.
Speaker 1:He's left in there was immense pressure from the start over Aaron Rodgers. Yeah right, people are having this conversation. When Aaron Rodgers was there, people were having this conversation.
Speaker 2:Yep.
Speaker 1:So for trade this doesn't look great. I hope things work out for this guy. I Don't really know if they are, I just want to see it it's what's your play? You see glimpses, you see glimpses man, yeah you squint, you see a starting quarterback.
Speaker 1:But he's gonna have to be able to make that happen and I guess only time will tell. Let's talk a little bit about this James Harden situation here, because this has gotten. You know, we in this time of the year we're usually talking so much football that we don't even have time for basketball at this time. Yeah, basketball will be starting in about roughly a month or so and and it's a exciting time of the year where we get basketball and football at the same time, which is a beautiful thing, right. But this James Harden situation is just escalated.
Speaker 1:You know, I was waiting to see if there was some kind of resolution before we really dove into it, but the back and forth is is spicy enough itself. It's interesting, like the especially given the Darryl Moore situation, because James hard for people who don't know what's going on here, james Harden says there are more is a liar and guaranteed to trade him quickly after he opted into his contract. So you guess he felt like I am gonna be the good soldier, I'm a opt-in. Yeah, here I got kind of a maybe like a handshake deal that you're gonna try to expedite me Getting to another team.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:Yeah. And now you come down the line and the 76ers like, oh well, we expect you down back in the 76ers uniform. This would infuriate me. I'm not gonna lie to you. This would absolutely Infuriate me. I know a lot of times that when you're looking on the outside, looking at me, looking at what the kind of money these guys make, you think like, hey, I want to make 30 something million dollars. That's what he opted into.
Speaker 2:Yeah.
Speaker 1:We're like, hey, man, I wouldn't mind making this, and they're looking at it from their life's perspective, right, but there is a human element here and I'm still a believer in doing what you say you're gonna do. I'm so believer in, like, the handshake deal. If you give a handshake deal, you should be able to see that deal there right, or don't give the deal right, don't give the deal if you can't. Yeah, you can't see it there. Now, I get.
Speaker 1:Maybe this is a situation because you know a lot of politicians when they when they're running for for office and they say things that are so aspirational and then they get into office and the job humbles them because of the amount of human Beings that you need to do certain things. You said something on the trail and then you get into the office and can't really pull that off Because you need Congress or you need a certain percentage of people to kind of sign on with you and it's not as easy as just saying it and doing it Right, yeah. So I see similarities here. Maybe Dara Mori said that and then LA comes back with a deal and he's like I really liked the deal, yeah.
Speaker 2:You only give me Russell Westbrook. No, thank you. I think I'm good. I think I'm going to hang on to Russell Westbrook and, yeah, I'm good.
Speaker 1:Do you think you should have looked around first from a Daryl Moray perspective and I'm just taking everybody out there word as if they had good intentions. So let me just go good intentions here across the board. Like he didn't mean to screw the guy, like you just end up having to screw him because the deal is not materializing the way that you felt it would be there for you. Do you think that's the situation? You think that's a possibility here?
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean, it's got to be, I mean, but the thing is, James should know Daryl at this point, daryl's never, like we talked before we started recording. Daryl's never going to give up an asset without getting an equal asset or something it be equal return. He's just never Like, look at his track history, he's never done that. So and my thing is, why, why would you? Because I think he are all the reports are in. He wants to go to the Clippers. Why? Why would you want to go to the West? That is so packed in the East? Is this kind of more wide open again this year?
Speaker 1:You know that LA is a great recruiting tool.
Speaker 2:man Like it really is.
Speaker 1:Undefeated, bro. Like it's, people want to get the LA chargers. Whether it is a matter of chargers Rams for football, I don't care. Where it is Cindy LA Clippers now looking better than other teams. It'll be easier for the Clippers to recruit than I think teams like the Celtics, teams like Denver even right, Denver was just in just one of championship, Right and I still think it'll be easier to get players to the Clippers.
Speaker 2:Oh, yeah, yeah, yeah, no, it may be easier for, like, if you're like a one year guy and you need to revamp your career. Yeah, absolutely, I want to go play with Yoki. You're going to play with?
Speaker 1:anybody, though at that point, right, like you're hoping that you get some more, you can extend your time here a bit, right, right.
Speaker 2:So yeah, it's just it's. You know now we you know it's, it's been played for fun drama. You know James Harden calling Derra Moore a liar.
Speaker 1:I mean it's the crazy part is it was such a public fashion. Oh, I love stuff like that man.
Speaker 2:Right, right. We usually get that, you know, we do get it in a different country also.
Speaker 1:Yeah, About that. We did it in China in front of the kids, yeah, At a camp. So, gangster man, I definitely appreciated that. I think we all did. We all appreciate hey, man, come out here and say what's on your mind.
Speaker 1:You know the thing is and I and I get it People saying he's going to take less money, I get all that stuff and I'm kind of separating James Harden to player he is. I'm kind of trying to separate that a bit from what the trade value is and all this other stuff. I'm talking specifically about the feeling of mistrust here and feeling like you were told that you were misled, you know. Talking specifically about the situation because if you dive into the, the details of where, of, of who's going to pay, James Harden would and all this other stuff, it does get a little bit harder because I don't know if he's going to be able to demand max money. I don't know if he's going to be able to demand the money that his statistics kind of say that he deserves. Like he averaged a double double last year. That's going to get you a lot of money in the NBA if you can average a double, double and a lot of players are averaging these double doubles aren't averaging it with.
Speaker 1:At the amount that he is, I want to say his at least over 20 on this point scored and a double digit assist. I go back to look at that, but we have a lot of players. I think you can average 12 and 10 and get a sizable contract somewhere. Look at what Dylan Brooks just got. What are Dylan brothers? What are Dylan Brooks stats for your eight? Would you take Dylan Brooks on your team right now or James Harden? Which one would you take?
Speaker 2:Oh, I would rather, james, right, that'd be easy, that's just. I would rather have. I'd rather have the scoring and rather have, I'd rather have.
Speaker 1:James to look at, who just got this massive contract. So when you're looking at stuff like that from a James perspective, I get it, but when you're looking at the history, that's something that Dylan Brooks doesn't have is the history that James Harden has a history of absolutely disappearing. When you need him most right, when you need that scoring most, when you need those stats most, he's not going to be around.
Speaker 2:Dylan Brooks pretty even kill guy and destroying teams, right, I mean he's done a blade, you know, just tearing, burning bridges.
Speaker 1:Also something that Dylan Brooks does not have a problem with, but jumping from team to team to team on a semi annual basis.
Speaker 2:Yeah, yeah and like, and we're furiously to play. I mean, I guess what? Who's going to offer you that kind of money? Or who's wants to give up draft capital? Hey, you're conjuring, and B, there's the last two teams you have like set, you like blaze that you'll just torch the bridge on both the teams on your way out with Houston and with the Brooklyn. So why? And now here we are again, third team, I want out, I want out. So three teams in a row that you're just you're burning the bridge with. And why? Why would I trade for you? Why would he have a draft capital for you? And, like you said in the history of the playoffs, that's that's got to be mentioned. He has great, there's no, we cannot deny he has great regular season up because he does. But he, he disappears when line, when line light comes on versus. You know, look at our play, look at trade. Trade, young opposite.
Speaker 1:trade loves the spotlight, he loves putting a very consistent guy when it comes from from that perspective, right, and James has never had that moment.
Speaker 2:And then when he does it right, the lights do come on. When you, when you're like, okay, when you had those moments against now again, you were going against one of the toughest teams in probably last decade and the Warriors. So I give you a little rope leeway on that, but you had your. You had your moments and last year you had your moment again and you had your players.
Speaker 1:That's what I don't give leeway on, right, people like him and people like KD have always had their players. Like you've had a guy, another Hall of Famer alongside you almost for your entire career, right. When I see stuff like that, it's hard for me, you know, when you look at the, the, the Lillards of the world, the Damien Lillards of the world, the Lillards not playing with another Hall of Famer. I like CJ McCollum, but I don't know if he's going to be a Hall of Famer, right. So it's kind of like I don't Dave's not. You. Look at somebody's career like that. I can let him live more on not making it to the championship.
Speaker 1:Look at some careers like KD, which is a I'm glad he actually got his championships, and then a player like James Harden who played with all these other Hall of Famers You're your side eye in that situation, a little bit like, yeah, you're, you're a common denominator here. You know what a lot of, what a lot of these guys. So, yeah, I don't know if, if this gets settled before the season, does he sit out? I don't really know how this works. I don't really know how this works. Who do you think this gets settled before they Go into the regular season. I think that's like an first week October.
Speaker 2:I want to say yeah, I mean I don't. I mean it could be one of those things where they just they hang on to him and then, and then the other trade deadline comes around and but if I unless something, because we just know Darrell track record, he's not gonna just let him go. He's got, he wants an asset back and I don't blame the other way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, right, I would just like okay, I'm sorry, you know your feelings got hurt, but this is, at the end of the day, it's a business and and and maybe maybe they've had that conversation in behind scenes and then where Darrell said, hey look, I went to LA, I want the clippers and they offered me dot dot dot and I'm just sorry. That just wasn't good enough, you know. And and then the bad part is, too, is like you had the Phoenix. They signed snow for like pennies on the dollar, so they don't need a point guard. Now They've got there, they got their point guard set and they just.
Speaker 2:So if you just start start looking around the league, where is he who's trading for him? Because it's not a lot of teams that kind of needed services. If you just go around league because there's a lot of teams that are, either they built their team to the draft and they're good, they want to see what's going on. Even the batting like I just I don't see Another team though was going to trade for him. So you would even even a light team. But you know, at some point they the way they have this, they have the way they signed to you right, the angel Russell, that contract, that there's a gap in there right to pick up Kyrie. Every that, that is the, that is the. So then I am there, not even waiting. They wouldn't even probably trade for me. Yeah, they're waiting. They hold that money for Kyrie, or, you know, probably one of the when the trade deadline comes around.
Speaker 2:So I just don't worry where you think he's gonna go.
Speaker 1:I Is, I think, a lot of his teams that can use his services, but there's not teams that need his services. If that makes sense, yeah, and that can be a big problem. It could be a big, big problem for the player, because you see this a lot of times. If you might have a guy who would, statistically speaking, that will look nice on a lot of teams. But we look at teams rosters in the way that their teams are constructed. There's not a necessity for him to be around. Yeah, you know what I mean. So it's kind of it ends up being that type of situation. So I don't know, man, I don't know it's. I Think this does get settled. I just don't know where. I just don't know.
Speaker 1:If Harden has to leverage, I definitely agree with him. If I'm him, if I'm, let me tell you something if I am James Harden and I'm in James Harden shoes, you will not see me in a 76ers uniform ever. There's no way I go back. And I made what? A couple hundred million dollars at least. Already. Get out of here, right, beat it. Yeah, no way, nope, no, no way. I'm not gonna be. Take the court and play on your behalf to make you look good and you're not obligating your part of the bill. So I definitely get that.
Speaker 1:I get the angst. I Get the even from a Daryl Mori side. You should have checked in with teams before you said that you shouldn't, just, don't, just don't talk out of your behind. You check you in with teams. See if you're we, if you say something to a guy that you can actually honor what you're saying to him, if you're gonna have him put his name on a contract and say, hey, opt into this, cuz, I believe. Let me tell you something. I was not in the room, but when you see the anger that he has, the fact that he did this in the way he did it, I believe that I believe that he was told something. I don't believe this is just garbage. I don't believe he wasn't told anything. He was told something Eugene, yeah, cuz he's never.
Speaker 2:I mean we can poke fun at James Harden's playoff record and but he's now I know how he's quit on teams. He's never come out, says I'm like this I just don't remember right, I did, but I mean he's come out now again. He's come to camp out of shape, you know, to prove his point.
Speaker 1:Yeah, man, when that last year the Nets man you've been at Duncan's or something man, right, right and but I've never heard him come out in the league.
Speaker 2:So, yeah, you got to put some definitely belief behind that and that you're probably right. It's probably exactly what happened. He talked about Darrell, talked about his behind and he's like, oh man, there's really isn't a market for him, because then he I mean, if you, that's the thing if you just watched what the market was doing, he should have known right away that I shouldn't have made that promise, because the market was made a promise, buddy, right, right and then, if you wanted Because I thought he's the way he struck through the contract was he was gonna get taken care Of. That was always my thought was okay. The way he structured the contract was a allow them to get a Player to help them out, what's the set, what's the you know 76ers team, and then he'll be taken care of one. After he did that. That was my assumption from all this effort happened.
Speaker 1:I think that we're going to. I don't think we're going to see this in the 76th year, for let me just start there, or I'll start there and then I'm going to kind of table it because, I don't know, we don't. It's not like we have a resolution right now. Anyway, no. We'll come back to this subject at some point, but I don't think he's playing for the 76th this year. What are your thoughts on that?
Speaker 2:I mean, I agree and, like I said, it might be like one of the situations where he does like the whole, you go to sit down and we'll figure it out. Like you know, john Wall type of deal and then Fib, where it comes around and he gets in, someone trades for him like a playoff contending team. That you know, maybe you get, maybe you get some pieces of that form. But yeah, I agree with that. I don't, I don't. I'd be shocked if he's that is 76 or so. You form Same.
Speaker 1:And anything's possible. We all know that anything's going to be worked out. There's been teams that have had issues with players before with the Lakers and Kobe and other players before where that player has come back to the team. It's just that if I'm I'm just looking at this as if I was in his exact same situation. If I've made nine figures in the NBA already and I am it's a principle. I'm a very principled guy. I am. It's the principle behind this. You shouldn't have told me that if you knew that you couldn't do it. There's no way I'm going to see you again. It's just over. At that point I want I'm not even going to be in a state. Forget being on the team. I'm going to be somewhere else my life and waiting for it to get it together.
Speaker 1:Let's talk about the NFL preseason here a little bit. We'll give this a few minutes. Yeah, preseason I've always said this about preseason again as it comes to an end here, and is that you can't tell how good a team is in preseason, but I can usually tell bad a team is in preseason. So we look at preseason. If a team is a disaster and losing every preseason game, it's a disaster. They're not usually making deep playoff runs later on in the NFL season. If you look at a preseason team and in the preseason they're undefeated, that has no, it does not mean they're going to make a playoff run either.
Speaker 2:Yeah, we're undefeated last year, by the way, just want to point that out. Last year, the Falcons were either undefeated or we definitely had a winning record.
Speaker 1:So there, we there, we have it. You know it doesn't. I feel like if you're a disaster in the preseason, it's rough for me to think that you're not going to be somewhat of a disaster in the season. And if you're great in the preseason it doesn't mean you're going to be great in the season. So I I've looked at both of those things and as I look around the landscape here in NFL, I don't really feel like the preseason has changed much of anything from my perspective. On a lot of teams. As I look around Arizona, it looks like they're going to suck. Oh my God, there's a little bit of a horrible they look so bad.
Speaker 2:They look bad, the Rams look bad. I mean it's like I, it looks. I love Stetson Bennett, but I mean that if that's going to be, if he.
Speaker 1:I told you we had this conversation about him going to the NFL and being like this guy does not look like he's going to translate it in NFL to me Like maybe he can be a backup player.
Speaker 1:Maybe he can still come on, he can still come on, because I'm not going to kill the kid either. It's only preseason, so I'm not going to kill the kid and make it seem like he can't maybe get into a starting job, because look what happened to Brock Purdy. I mean, we, we see, we've seen what can happen here. So I'm not going to say that he's not going to be an NFL starter, but it won't surprise me in the least if he's not, because those championship games, those college games, a lot, a lot of those guys aren't even playing in the leagues. You're playing against guys that aren't even going to like. That was the last game of their career when they went through the college games. That was the last game they're ever going to have in a football uniform.
Speaker 1:Yep, this is very different. Now you're with the big boys. Now, right, career guys, career NFL players, and they're looking to take your head off. A lot of these guys are, and I'd never looked at Stetson Bennett and said you know what this is, this is it. You know what I mean? Like we, this guy is going to, it's going to, it's going to make it. It's going to make it Now, not to just knock on Stetson Bennett for further the rest of this time here. The Rams do like a total disaster. Let's go ahead and talk about that too.
Speaker 1:He's not as good in the best situation.
Speaker 2:No, he's throwing two out there.
Speaker 1:Well, he does have Cooper cup. At least he'll have that. I mean he does have when he started when he plays, right, when he plays, you know, when he's Cooper cup is, I think, around 30 ish. Yup Injury prone. Great receiver, excellent receiver.
Speaker 1:But I think that we have to see it right Like we have to. You got to think about the NFL and they call the knot for long. You got to see it. We got to see it again and again. You got to put these numbers and the great ones, the ones that you talk about for decades after they retire, are guys that put it up year after year after year after year. Those are the guys that get all the glory right, guys who can put together consistent campaigns. We can go through a lot of players in the past and look at past times and say, hey, remember this guy.
Speaker 1:One breakout year or something like that they didn't put it together for all the years that you would need to be considered legendary. So maybe Cooper Cupps comes back and has that kind of year. But I don't even know Cooper Cupp. I don't think he's a Hall of Fame receiver right now, I just don't. I think he had a great year, but when I look at his numbers I don't see how you put him in. Put that yellow jacket on him you know what I mean and put him in the same conversations with your Randy Mosses and people of that world who put it together year after year after year after year. But can he come back? Absolutely 30. I mean he can still put together a few more good seasons and hopefully Bennett has that there. Stafford's not there. Hopefully Bennett has that there. Shout out to UGA quarterbacks on that team, by the way.
Speaker 2:Yeah, and he'll get a chance to start. Anything else you've seen you think so. Well, yeah, because best stafford's going to be. He's talking about injury problems. How long is he out?
Speaker 1:I don't even know. Stafford was Iron man for a while there man in Detroit, he was Iron man.
Speaker 2:He was but 35-ish, 36. Those injuries start adding.
Speaker 1:Already got the Super Bowl man right. Already got the Super Bowl. You already got the money in the chip man.
Speaker 2:I got the money, got the chip. What are you playing for now?
Speaker 1:As far as I've seen, so far.
Speaker 2:I mean because I've watched a lot of Richardson, a lot of Bryce Young, so I haven't watched a lot of CJ, just a few times I haven't seen as much as him as I've seen of Richardson.
Speaker 1:I like the Indiana approach, the Minneapolis. I like the approach of these kids. You know how I'm an old school guy. I want to see these guys play. I want to see these guys play Not the whole game, of course not. Let's not get crazy. I'm not going to play a guy's whole game. But you're young, you're inexperienced, you're going to get your butt out there quarter. If I'm coaching these teams, you're going to be out there. There's like three pre-season games. You're going to be out there for three quarters at least.
Speaker 1:I need to see and you need to get used to the pace of this game and how this means to me to play. You're not even really all the way used to it in pre-season. There's a lot of the guys that aren't playing, so you're really even. You're not going at the max level, but you're going to the level of the tired in which you have been going at. So I want to see guys play more. I like what they're doing in Indy man. I've seen a lot of Anthony Richardson this pre-season.
Speaker 2:Yeah, I mean he's been out there, bryce's look good. I mean I've like those two guys. I'm excited to see those guys play. I've always. You know, I don't care, I'm always going to be UGA Homer, but when you get to the NFL, I'm an SEC Homer all the way. So I'm cheering for everybody.
Speaker 1:You know I got a root for Bryce. It sucks that he's in my division, but I'm going to be forced to root for the guy man.
Speaker 2:But yeah, I mean those two guys look good. I mean not going to let the Falcons I can definitely see the plan, what they're going to be doing they're not going to put a lot of pressure on our boy. I can't quite a Ritter. You can see they're going to run a lot. You see a lot of them.
Speaker 1:They got all the pieces around them. Man, this is the no-excused team, is what I call this. This is the no-excused team for Ritter. If you are a bomb, it's going to be you being specifically. Yeah, because they got.
Speaker 2:Look, they've got, and that was one of the. I watched one game where they just ran it down to other teams throughout and that's. You can see that's going to be their approach and they made. They're just going to eat up clock and they're it's going to be better. So I'm I'm having with the Falcons. I have to give kudos to the Steelers. I think they're going to be a pretty good team. I love Steelers man.
Speaker 1:I think that's like any picket, is taking an accordion.
Speaker 2:I love. I always like to pick, I love.
Speaker 1:George. I've drafted a lot of him in my fantasy team. I love pickets and the Steelers defense is always there. If we can keep TJ Wadup right, yeah, but the defense there and my guy, mike Tomlin, leading the ship, my favorite coaches man, yeah, leading the ship it's. And you know I like this comment. I don't know if you saw this comment when I asked him about when they questioned him about playing as starters. When he says that the boxing, he says I'm going to paraphrase him but he says you can't learn how to box without sparring and I totally agree with that.
Speaker 1:And when I'm looking at these legendary coaches, play their guys and I'm looking at guys like Patrick Mahomes and Aaron Rodgers get out there and play, yeah, yeah, what do you know? That our guys played a series this whole entire preseason A series. That's all much that the Falcons players played this entire preseason a series. So when I'm looking at that, that's definitely not the team that I would. That's not the approach I would have, because at the end of the day, I want to see you guys get out there. You're young. I want to see you get after it, like these other players that have played a long time in this league or out there getting after it. When you saw Patrick Mahomes and these guys playing, they're playing, you would think this was a regular season game out there.
Speaker 1:They're trying to put in that effort.
Speaker 2:I'm pretty sure you saw it, but the Patrick Mahomes, they like the incomplete pass. Where he jumped he was, he had his foot almost stepped on the out of bounds line. He jumped in midair and through the ball across his body and it was like in the place and it's like that's the best in the past that I've ever seen in my life. But like he's doing those things like it's a regular season, because that's what he does, Obviously he's. He's still trying to practice things. This is, and this is what you said, this is a great time to do it. I remember Pedro Martinez. He was saying in spring training, like I'm going to throw change up.
Speaker 1:Try it all now, man. Try it all now. Try it all out now. Work on whatever you feel. You're going to lab, lab it now, right, right.
Speaker 2:Right, yeah, so yeah, but yeah I, your sentence is exactly right, it's just it's. I'm glad it's three games, because I like four games are just too long.
Speaker 1:But I mean you can, almost you can almost a lot of people weren't playing that fourth game anyway, yeah.
Speaker 2:And this in the and when the. You're right about the Falcons. Falcons didn't play anybody when they played the Steelers at last game. It was everyone, it was all bench players. So, uh, but yeah, it's, I'm ready for it to start. I'm, I'm, I'm happy to get it. You know, get, you know, get all the preseason out of the way. Let's get the season started. That's you know, that's you know all the projections. I mean, I think we're pretty clear on who's going to be terrible. I think I think the clear, clear is Arizona is going to be terrible and that's why they got all the draft picks and they, you know they're they're setting themselves up for next year.
Speaker 1:You think they're going for the Kayla Williams situation or getting rid of the just the the ink still wet on that Kyler Murray contract. I mean it's they've done it before, they did it with Josh Rose, and the only difference with Josh Rose, they didn't pay Josh Rose Right. Well, a little bit of a different situation. Maybe you lean on the fact that Kayla Williams took him beyond that rookie contract, but I don't know. You got to have a stomach for that man.
Speaker 2:Yeah, but you were going to look at this way, this, when you can at least do it, like, okay, you, you draft Caleb, and then you hit that you have that salary cap hit, but you have it on the rookie contracts. So there you go. I mean you're okay, you like okay, you're not going to spend a lot of money anyway, and then, and then they have they've got, they could have potentially have the first and second pick, I believe, for next year's draft, depending on how about Houston is Texans Cause I mean so yeah.
Speaker 2:So they can legit get Caleb and then get Marvin Harris Jr.
Speaker 1:And then they can get him here. Oh, that'd be beautiful, Beautiful. That's like your fantasy draft, right when you started right. Why would you be a great quarterback Like that man? It'd be interesting to see and we'll get a chance. We'll talk some more football right before this season starts. This is just a stat. Ready, john, see you more and check us out. Stitcher, I heard ready. Google podcast, apple podcast, spotify, tiktok and YouTube as of late as well. Thank you All right, my friend yard scheduled.