Bunkercast! ™️ & NFL Cuts

say human civilization, at least in modern culture. So here we are. Well, I think we should explain where we are. We're in five different houses, littered across the Los Angeles area on some Google hangout. The Erica tamposting did a great job setting up. Great job, Ricky. Yes we are. We are littered across the south Land and per the

rules of our company, the National Football League. And really, you know, as everyone knows, across the this country and across the world, a lot of people now are not able to work from their office. We are no exception, at least for today. Um. That might change next week, in fact it probably will, But for today we are going this route and who knows, depending on where things

go with this coronavirus pandemic. Uh, this could be a regular way that we stay in communication until we the show goes from five people to four three two, and then me just me as the host. I'd be cool. Oh I'm alive, by the way, I just want everybody to know I'm okay. I it was a medium See it was an accurate description it um wait medium C is the coronavirus? Oh? Is that what that was decided? Yeah, you had the little sea maybe like the medium rare sea.

I don't. I had strep throat and I am back to now and it is a weird time also weird week to get sick. But I was never concerned that I had anything associated with this coronavirus, thankfully. And how are you guys doing? What's going on? I mean, arguably you could have milked that for much much more, um, you know, company wide and probably at this point listener wide sympathy. Were you just to say it's it's up

in the air. You can't get tested for corona. You might need six or seven weeks away from the grind to find out where your body is at that crossed my mind actually yesterday that this was the ideal Sessler scenario where I could have been like, it's a little Karna, and then they'd like stay away, stay far away, and all of a sudden Mark is out for a year, three years something like that. Well I've learned. Uh yeah,

I may have learned pretty quickly. I think this was, um, you know, a distant fantasy of mine, some sort of nation earth shaking uh you know issue. But now that it's here, and now that, for instance, my kids are suddenly home on a Friday versus being tucked away at their school in our houses. Um utter chaos, Uh saved for this hour that we're taking this. I'm not so sure that I'm excited about what's happening. I am less excited. This is rough, It's this is rough. This one of

my big takeaways. Um As this is now coming into focus, and schools are being closed across the country, as as I already said, offices are now sending everyone to work from home. All businesses and movie theaters and malls and concerts and everything is all shutting down. Everything is going into the home. Everything's funneling Backmark to the home. This coronavirus, and you know, God willing its does not turn into

something much worse. But if this is kind of where it ends up, in this kind of general zone, it will still test marriages and family structure like nothing we've seen before. That bottle of that bottle of Tito's over your right shoulder from on the way that we're seeing it, that could be tested soon. I believe that will be tested and defeated. Just don't test it as a hand sanitizer. Tito's released an official statement this week it does not have enough alcohol to to try to make some homemade

hand hand sanitizer. Good to know, Yeah, very true. How you doing, by the way, very sexy, Ricky, I know you do such a great job over on the social and v a t N podcast on Instagram and around the NFL on Twitter. I'm sure some people will be able to see this Google hang out. We have set up West is his commode with string light string lights behind him, some well worn books, including a autobiography on We've You Bank the Great Jets Coach from Dr Z

Paul Zimmerman. There it is Dr Z and you have some plants hanging a lot of good fun situation this is good functuation. This is Lakisha has put this room together. She calls it her green room. Got a little bohemian feel to it. It's good energy back here, very good energy. That's good. And Greg, you are you're a guy who doesn't think anything really matters or nothing is a big deal. Is this a big deal? I don't agree with the

premise of your question. There's nothing more important than than right now, Dan, right here, right now, Jesus Jones, this is this is a time I like having the kid. I don't know, it's take advantage of the positives of it, you know, I kind of love it. But I say that now while while my children five and three, their daycare is yet to close. Um. So I know I know what's coming here. Um all right, so let's let's get into it and just talk about where we're at.

So obviously, earlier in the week, the World Health Organization officially declared the coronavirus outbreak a pandemic. And I missed Wednesday show, uh with that illness, but not the corona. Um. And it's crazy what happened just from when you guys finished your recording with Omar Louise. Good job Omar, Thanks for helping out to what happened a few hours later, which was kind of an unprecedented um hour that I

don't think any of us will will forget. If you were kind of plugged in the social media between Trump's speech where he was very solemn and it became clear that the our government was taking this seriously at this point and was finally aware of what we were up against. Uh, you had the NBA season shutting down on the spot after Jazz Center Rudy Gobert test positive for the coronavirus. You had Tom Hanks and Rita Wilson announced that they

had tested positive. And if if Tom Hanks can get it, any of us can get it, what am I missing? I feel like there was one other thing in that kind of six pm Pacific nine pm Eastern window where everything kind of changed, And we talked about it on Monday, how there was in the air, things were shifting, But really from Wednesday night to where we are now, the whole world is essentially shut down, and we're gonna get into the NFL implications of that all. But these last

you know, seventy two hours have been wide. We've seen things like this in the past. You know, after nine eleven, sports shut down for a little bit. During World War Two, they shut down for a while, and of course sports didn't get big until the middle of the nineteenth century when the Industrial Revolution, like the results of that happened and there was leisure time for the masters. We were engaged as humans in survival for all those thousands of years,

and now we're engaged in survival again. This just happens every time there's some kind of worldwide pandemic that shows us that sports are important for some reasons, but they're never as important as the human race surviving. That's a good call, West And you know, like the other weird thing about this, yes, nine eleven, and from a surreal standpoint,

this does bring back some memories of that week. It's not the same level in terms of shock and tragedy um at this point, but still kind of like you wake up in the morning like, oh my god, what is going on right now? Disneyland is closed, you know, just like that type of like what's happening in the world right now? But sports went away for that week and then they came back, and I think the weird thing that's making this there's a lot of reasons why

this is a unique situation. But sports are just gone. Every sport is gone indefinitely. So UM NFL obviously we're in a situation where it's the off season, but we know all these different various UM league calendar events are are getting stepped on. Potentially the owner's meetings have been already canceled, and we're waiting to hear about the start of free agency and the league year, which is supposed

to start next week. But MLB, NBA, Major League Soccer, at the NHL, p j A A, p g A Tour, golf, sorry Greg, the World Tennis Tour, all the European soccer leagues, the XFL, the March Madness Tournament, all that stuff gone. And that's what's kind of That's what to me, you know, as a sports junkie, my whole life, and somebody that, as cliche as it is, sports is like one of those centering things. It's like, well, I's still got sports, and you can kind of take your mind. The fact

that that's gone right now. Uh, that is that messes with my head a little bit. And I think a lot of people feel the same way. I think one thing, like you know, with nine eleven, it was stuff that

you're used to seeing worldwide. You hear about, you know, a bombing, an attack, and it just feels like a distant news report from somewhere that you'll never go and Corona personally, it didn't take it seriously on any level until suddenly it wipes out the NBA and then the Tom Hanks thing happens, and I think that was obviously like a major turning point for everyone's awareness, and then there's all this Then it's a pr angle, like all these other leagues have to respond in kind and look

like they're as attentive to it and caring about the fans and the players, and there was this sort of watershed moment and then suddenly, you know, kids are being sent home, and what happens if like like a police force gets coronavirus and there's no police on the streets or fireman. It's like we I think this is a little different than nine eleven because a couple of weeks after nine eleven, I wouldn't say order was restored. The world was changed forever, but it wasn't like the next

huge thing was happening. We just don't really know the way forward with this, and I wasn't taking it seriously at all ten days ago, and now it is U thoroughly on the radar. Right. We taped this on Friday, and the next time we tape, assuming we do tape on on Monday, which were scheduled to do, it's a lot more is going to happen, and it's probably very

early in the process. Uh It. It's been said kind of no one cares about UM, something like this happening a pandemic until you know someone that's been affected someone compared UM, the HIV you know, being spread into in

coming into public consciousness was never a thing. The government really didn't care about it until Rock Hudson got it been around for twenty years, and it's like this has been happening that the half of the largest country in the world was essentially on a far more aggressive shutdown

UM in a dystopian existence two months ago. And people always think like, oh, the world so connected with the internet and everything like that, and ultimately like this country wasn't two two into it, you know, it wasn't affecting us, and so it wasn't that big of an issue. And I think, I mean from our perspectives like what what is going to keep changing? The NFL is in a

lucky spot. I guess that if they want to just push back the off season, they can, but no one really knows at this point how long all the other sports are going to be gone. I think the difference now and Dan and Mark no, this is Browns and Jets fans. For of us. Every year the season ends in disappointment and despair. But the key is there's always next year. And even in the twenty century, there's next week or next month with news about your team, updates

about your team. And the difference here is always next year, always next week doesn't doesn't apply because things are kind of suspended and we have no idea what's going on. And I think I used to think why our sports importment? And I would think of the lofty stuff, the art where it's close to theater, Look what humans can do.

And I think when you have um like anxiety issues or depression issues, it's because sort of the sharper the pain of life, maybe the more intense the desire is for like a temporary reprieve, cannot get a few minutes or a few hours where it all goes away, and you know, the happiness those pure moments you get from sports are sort of like the respites from despair or anxiety from the norm of life, and you get these

ascended moments. And there's a lot of anxiety out there right now, and this is one of the things we do need sports for. It raises the question, and I'm sure the NFL has talked about this on a number of levels. When free agency is next week, at this

point they have said there's no plans to move it. Uh. Mike Florio Pro Football Talk is reporting that the league is discussing pushing it, but they might not do it until Sunday, which would be the day before free agency basic least starts, but a day after the c b

A is voted on by the players. Um does the NFL like kind of way the possibility of like this isn't the worst time for some mindless entertainment as a distraction, uh, in a world where ultimately they could run free agency probably if they want to, or as Florio indicated based on his sources, are they worried um by the optics of it, which is my least favorite word and feels like you're hiding behind something that they think it's a bad pr move essentially to do free agency. I think

it's a fair question to ask. I don't really personally have like a strong answer on either side of that, but I think it'd be hard. It'd be hard to come out the winner on that though, because I don't think the NFL wants to pitch itself as mindless entertainment. That's not what I mean. I just mean that, like life is going on, Like we are still living, we're going, we're going, we're eating, we're taking care of our family.

This is just like do you do this thing as a small distraction we're all watching, like people are gonna be watching Netflix like crazy. Essentially, that's all like NFL free agency is. It's just like a trivial little thing that is going on. And if they wanted to, if they think it's going to interrupt their own business in terms of like they can't do it the way they

would want to do it, that's a different question. But the pr angle of it all, I think I think there's a case to be Here's my take with that, which is I think they would survive the Twitter blowback of how could these guys be making money that that seems silly to Meybe and the optics ever since we have that boss who didn't let us do the podcast all at the same time because they thought the optics were bad that we were in all in the newsroom. Um,

I've hated the word optics. I think more from a practical standpoint because as things dominoed, um starting like I said, Wednesday around nine pm Eastern, when when Trump got on and he he made the travel banner now spends and everyone's like, holy f and then the Tom Hanks thing, Tom Hanks man all that, and then the dominoes they all fell once. Once that happened, the league, basically, team

by team very quickly shut down their operations. They pulled their scouts off the road, they closed the team offices. How does that impede what is a huge week of decisions, multimillion dollar decisions that teams need to make. If they are at all at a deficit in terms of where they are bandwidthwise, why wouldn't they just push it a week and see if things clear up enough where they

could put people back in offices. This that to me seems logical, But at the same time, maybe they think that's not necessary, and they still think they should keep to their schedule and they find that important for different reasons as well. It's all it's gonna be interesting to track. You can look at one season it's not too long ago, which was after the lockout, when obviously free agency in the overall NFL calendar was totally ed up and it

created actually something pretty great fan wise. I thought that free agency period was instructive in one in one sense for the league, And I just think that if you want to maximize, if the NFL wants to maximize the excitement of free agency, I just don't think that Monday is the day to do that. Like that would be to me, like moving it two weeks. You can recover from that schedule wise, and you have a lot of people maybe in a better or a different headspace. I don't.

I don't have an I'm not offended by free agency occurring, but I just think you've got a lot of people that are thinking and focusing on the unknown and things much more important that where Corey Littleton winds up and what his signing bonuses. It just seems absurd to me. There's another element here which should be overlooked, is that The stock market is in crisis right now. The US stocks said their worst day on Thursday since the nine Black Monday crash. Um, we are it's a bear market.

People are in panic. I mean, the fact that the league is run by billionaires is that something is that connect to this at all. It's a situation where the owners are like, we gotta we gotta get some things locked down in our own personal affairs and things of that nature before I turned my my attention or put any focus on my little plaything, which is my team. Um So there's so much unknown right now, and it's a little bit overwhelming when you start going through it all.

And that's why that the Tito's will be opened up shortly after the completion of today's show. Well, I think the timing is so weird that the players are voting for the c B A and and maybe we'll get to some you know, small level news, but it's still happening, Like teams are putting the franchise tag on players on Friday, So for now it's business as usual. But the vote happened Saturday night. Then you have like a twenty four hour period thirty six really till Monday afternoon. When tampering

is supposed to begin. So you would think Sunday would be the day. But here's the NFL network, you know, the NFL owns it at this point, has I think eight plus hours of live programming on Sunday to kind of cover the expected frenzy that was supposed to happen before.

So it's all like in a very short timeline. And I'm with you Dan that there's there's no neg there's the downside to pushing it all back, and based on reading between the lines of what Florio wrote, and it's tricky we can't talk about you know, the big NFL

network reporters aren't reporting on this yet. But based on reading between the lines of what he wrote, if he's accurate, I am thinking it's gonna get pushed uh if that's just a total guess, and our free as are pushing back against that, yet Florio continues to kind of pound

that drum that it's going to happen. Well, the league is officially saying at this time there are no plans, which I'm sure is accurate, but there it seems like just doing leg work and talking to all these teams and I don't know if some teams are run differently than others, and it just seems like there might be a bit of a competitive advantage or disadvantage scenario to weigh.

Also about how each of these franchises are operating, because it's like they're it's almost like federal versus state law. Each of these teams have uh put forward similar solutions, but they're not all the same. I mean a lot of them are probably running their front office the way that we are right now, looking at each other on Google hangouts or filling the blank technological platform. Mark. You're glowing by the way I am. Your skin looks great,

are you? Are you taking this time away from the office. Are you getting into one of your little smoothie kicks? Any time away from the office is a meshes into self care of various forms. Do you have any You did have a humble brag the other day you texted You're like, oh, the gym today less than yesterday. Well, you know I will also, if you want statistical correctness, that's the third time I've been to the gym in two years, So I'm not I'm it's not that much.

I didn't even have anybody to spot me on the bed. Well, that's true, that individual was not there, Ricky, what's going on with you? So West Hollywood? What a mecca it is for youth culture and you know, partying and just to be alive and young. Take us through where you're at emotionally, physically and otherwise. Well, yesterday it was crazy. I went to Trader Joe's. Everything's off the shelves, I tweeted about it. Got it like empty. Some guy called me a B word for standing. I wanted to follow

up with you on that. Why did he call you the B word for being in line? I but that's what I don't know. He was like, he was like, hey, be like can you move up? And I was like, I'm in a line, Like I can't move up? Like what what are you talking about? Like it was it was like really he was like sweating and like seemed really let me just say, I'd like to hear his

side of the story. Yes, there's other things happening here, but you know what was I was literally just standing there with all my you know, end of the world items like a normal person. The lines were out of control. It was it was pouring rain. I can't take my dog out, you know, things are tough over here. Well, there's there's some different experiences going on in l A. Because I saw Charlie you posted a video two of

a grocery store where shelves were empty. I went to the store last night, probably about eight thirty or nine o'clock, because I try to go when nobody's there, and it was like a normal grocery shopping existence. The shelves were stocked, everything was there. There weren't that many people in line. It was I wouldn't name the store West if you

keep I'm keeping that to myself. Yea, all right. I just keep reading so much, so much stuff on Twitter, and you have to be careful about what you're actually sharing because you don't know what's real and what's true. That I'm two minds on this, there's something, uh, like everyone else, you kind of conflicted about what social media and twitter um has done to the world. But it is kind of cool that we're everyone is still connected even when you're shuttered behind your the doors of your homes.

But it also does like create that ability to create panic. Like I was listening I never listened to Joe Rogan's podcast, but I think it was like Mike Giardi on Twitter tweeted out, um something yesterday like that. Giardi had a guy that was a some type of expert in the medical field of disease control. So I clicked into it and I started listening to the podcast, and I feel like, fifteen minutes, I have to shut this off because I'm

sure this brings a lot of clicks. But there was some like doomsday talk going on and I and I'm I was talking to my wife last night and we had had a long talk because she had a lot of anxiety about where things are. Like we are in a situation all of us actually on this podcast where we are not close to our families, um from where we're from. So you're end of a bid on an island, and it adds to some of the anxiety. So social media can kind of beat into that. So it's a

good time to stay. Like my friend, I have a good friend that's basically offline. I mean not totally, but he's not on social media. I'm just saying it's a nice it's a nice time to stay offline. I like, I I'm very opposite to you guys. I whatever I read UM, whether it be on Reddit or Twitter or or wherever. I just simply believe and allow it to form my thoughts and opinions. You know, like any city at Los Angeles has very strong strong points and very

weak weak points. And I've sort of made my peace with the traffic and the shallowness of the people. But a new problem I've I've had developed with Los Angeles is sort of that anxiety where dances. It's a city full of people who are away from their families for the most part, so they move out here and you don't get that normalizing influence, that love, the stasis of having a family involved, and it's a bunch of weirdos who have no one else in their lives, so they're

way more into themselves. I know it is. That's that's my mania with Los Angeles. Wess point. Los Angeles is a city as cliche as it is. It's true of dreamers, the people that came from all across the country to become successful, whether it's an entertainment or whatever. For us, it was sports. And when you are when you quite when you classify as a dreamer when this type of stuff hits, maybe not the classification of people that handle

with the best that is well said. I can report that the John Gonzalez Colleen Wolf household is taking it very seriously. They they are or Gonzo is definitely the couple that is, you know, loading up on everything at bonds and taking it away from you. Gonzo had They had a quiet birth a celebration which they really debated on inviting everyone because they didn't want anyone to come over. But I have to say, Colleen makes like an unbelievably good upside down cake. She's a talented woman. I mean,

she can do it all. Colin can cook, I mean an incredible an incredible cake professional grade. I would say, yes, what a catch. And she could fly a plane. She could do it all. It's pretty amazing, you know, Gonzo. Gonzo did well. I think gonz has been told that many times in his life. But I think he's sick. Yeah, I would imagine he is, but probably it's at the end of the day it all works out for him. I think Colleen did well, by the way, absolutely standing

gentleman in person. And yes, happy birthday to Mr Gonzalez. I wish I wish his birthday fell on a different time of the year because we had all planned. We had all, yeah, we had all planned. This is how quickly these things shifted, by the way, because I'll I'll do two examples one again in the sports world before um,

before the Jazz game, who were they playing? Was the Jazz of the Mavericks Before that game, right before tip off got shut down, Mark Cuban, the owner of the Mavericks, was in the locker room having a meeting with players, and he was asked, what are the chances that this the league suspends play? And he told his players two hours before tip off ten to fift chance cut two. Two hours later, they're walking back to the locker room and the NBA is shuttered completely. Okay, that's how quickly

this thing is mutated. Now, you pull back to our personal experience last Friday night, we're getting loose. We're out in downtown Culver City, and I like to think of it now in retrospect as it was our John Gonzale's birthday party. We met up and maybe the last time we'll ever all hang out together in play. We met up at an Irish pub to start, and then we moved over to our old haunt, Rockos. We went back to the famous Adultery bar. Mark and the and the

alley way behind Rockos to close. That's how we want to advertise. That does not that's how we view that. It's Marks Adultery Bar. You know, there's a there's a bar in downtown Culver City, and if you were, if you live in this area, if you know downtown Culver City, you might know what we're talking about. Mark and I in our younger years, we're we're real bar flies, you

could call us of this region. And this particular bar is tucked in and the alley it's very dark, and we just as men who are faithful to our women, we still we have we have takes. And one night we were in there, we were like, this would be the place a guy who was looking at cheat and his wife would go. This is in an alley, it's dark, it's tucked away, not a lot of people know about it. So it became the Adultery Bar. Now, have have we

committed adultery No at that bar. No, not at all, But that is that's how we are clean and that esteff But anyway, so we were talking about Gonzo at that last Friday night. We had a whole plan set up that revolved around actually was gonna be last night, on John's actual birthday. We're gonna have a huge gathering and we were gonna watch Once Upon a Time in Hollywood, and that totally melted away to I guess just Mark and Greg and his upside down cake and like two

buddies from Billy Right. Yeah, although he did watch Once upon a Time in Hollywood and that was my only second time seeing it, and I know you guys are obsessed in it, and it really does reward a second viewing. It's delightful. There you go, a great hangout movie. Yes, it was awesome. Take that, Jane later later takes a shot less. I heard your take on the Women of NFL Network, and now it's almost like a take back with a little Jane later. No, See, when you respect

women to the extent that I do? You just have this easy rapport where you can joke around with him? When do you respect women to the extent that I do? Chris Wesling, all gang, let us move into more traditional around the NFL podcast. There, Ricky, let's hit the news. Oh my god, Okay, it's happening. Everybody sayre all right? Since we have started today's highly unique and very special edition to Around the NFL Podcast presented by blah blah blah blah blah blah. We have a number of transactions

to get through, so let's let's see what is going. What, Ricky, what do you mean to say? Blah blah blah blah blah. Well, we're contractually obligated to do it twice, right in the front and the back. So if they wanted a third time, peel out the guap. Anyway, as my dad would say, nothing's on the arm here, all right, Danny's the bonds, everything on the arm. It's like yeah, yes, all right, Um, all right, let's get into it. There are several cuts

as teams and just their rosters as they prepared. Yes, whether it's Monday is the legal start of the tampering period, or it's pushed back a week, teams are still getting you know, like an Independence Day. Not to bring up a disaster movie in these times, but in the Independence Day when the spaceships all start to get into sequence across the planet to prepare for their synchronized attack, that's

what teams are doing right now. They're all getting ready for free agency and to make their attack on the market. So let's start with the Tennessee Titans who part ways with tight end Delaney Walker. Move that, Um, we'll save them over six billion dollars on a six and a half million against the cap. He is years old now and it seems like injuries have been the thing that have held him back. He's always been a guy with high upside in Tennessee, but it very rarely did it

did it play out that way? So he is now looking to catch on somewhere else. The Titans say goodbye to the Landy Walker. Well, you mentioned off the air that you were surprised how old he was, because I was he he started his career, and you know, all through his rookie contract and even a year or two after that, he was a backup and special teamer, rarely

used behind Vernon Davis. And it wasn't really to his last couple of years in San Francisco and then Tennessee where he broke out and he had the prime of his career in his thirties instead of his twenties. UM. But when he came back from that, um, was it a compound fracture? The leg injury came back from last year, it was pretty obvious. Did he he was a shadow of his former self and they were a much better

team when John hu Smith was on the field. Well, he's one of the best free agent signings of the last ten years. I think the Titans probably got more value out of him than just about anyone. And so they also cut this week Dion Lewis and Cameron Wake. So that's three guys, Wake and Walker at the very end of their career. As we'll see if they get another job, maybe not. Dion Lewis turned out to be um more or less a disastrous signing, but they can

live without him after he arrived in New England. But that frees up a lot of money. It just makes you realize, like they need to free up a lot of money. They already had over fifty million dollars in cap space, so it's not like they were close to

the cap. But you need a lot if you're gonna franchise tag Derrick Henry and signed Ryan Tannehill or franchise tag Ryan Tannehill, which if they don't move the league here and they don't move the franchise tag deadline is kind of the first big quarterback domino, you know, to fall. We'll find out I think they'll go with Derrick Henry

with the tag and just see what happens with tan Hill. Well, there was a you know, Ian Rappaport noted reported yesterday that they are the Titans are focused after the Tannehill addition to hand big money to Henry. That was the quote in big Money. So you know, I I just love that they're keeping both of them, or that they're going to try to because I don't like either one of those guys nearly as much anywhere outside of Tennessee.

And let's give him a little love. And I'm doing this because I love my man, handsome Hank Henry Hotchen, vice president of International for NFL Media. Cameron Wake, if this is the end, He's thirty eight years old now.

He just turned thirty eight earlier this year. And speaking of guys that got a late start in their career, he didn't arrive on the scene with the Dolphins until he's twenty seven and put together one of the great runs as a you know, outside linebacker defensive end type, including a first team All Pro bid at his age

thirty season. So I wonder if this is the last time we'll see Cameron Wake, But quite a career after a guy who started I believe in the CFL right, CFL Defensive Player of the Year, I think twice he's got a outside shot at least to get a little Hall of Fame talk, especially right Warren Moon got credit for his CFL season, so Cam Wake should too. I feel like that's somebody the Jets to throw a lot

of money at um it might happen. Caberin Wake three years seventy million solved that problem on the edge since they haven't had a true edge pass rush option Chris Westling since blank in two thousand five. John Abraham, that is, the Kansas City Chiefs wide receivers haven't had a touchdown of two thousand and seventeen. Stat of Jets history. You had Calvin Pace stumbled into a ten sex season and other than that, nothing bunk um all right. In other news,

Xavier Rhodes his tenure ends with the Minnesota Vikings. The one time standout defensive back really fell off it in the past season. He's twenty nine years old. The Vikings they peel eight million dollars off their cap eight point one million, but they're still gonna eat almost five million, which tells you that they were ready to move on from Rhodes. And it is a reminder. People talk a lot a lot about why you don't want to do big business with running backs because the way that they

age and they're easy to replace at a cheaper rate. Well, cornerbacks, it's a buyer beware situations. As somebody speaking of the Jets who went round to the Rell revis as he reached his thirties. For me Johnson, as we just saw things could fall up very quickly at that position, especially if you're a big cornerback like Xavier Rhodes, it's easier. You know, when you're quick, your drop off isn't quite as sudden as when you're a big corner you don't

move as well. And last year he got exposed. I remember seeing a stat from our research department when the playoffs started that he had basically the worst cornerback season in ten years. Was being beaten one on one. He was just getting beaten so often. At this point, that's two down seasons in a row. You just wonder if this if he's going to be starting anywhere next year. I like Mike Zimmer was sort of overtly frustrated with him.

And also trying to verbally back him for such a long time, and it you know, a lot of the roads meltdown seemed to happen in nationally televised games to where you know, you get this close up of him walking across the field after getting toasted by somebody. Not not a great look in the Vikings defense. And I think we mentioned this before on our show, that it's had the same cast of leading characters for such a long time, and it's that's not the case going into

next season. There's some big names out the door. Right The question was just like how much are they going to blow things up? And we're learning now with Rhads being done that was expected. They also announced, uh or we found out on Friday that Lynval Joseph, who has been there and been great in the middle of their defensive line, has gone Everson Griffin for now as a free agent. They essentially don't have anyone in their secondary. They have Harrison Smith, Mike Hughes, a cornerback when they

drafted two years ago. Holton Hill has been had some suspension. They have three other there four other significant free agents in their secondary, so they're starting from scratch. They have about as much to do this offseason as any team in the league. I just learned from my wife. So I am my wife. I'm in the living room because of the WiFi connection. She's working in our office garage because she is now working from home as well. And I just saw her come into the house with a

horrified look on her face. I accidentally locked her out of the house and she hadn't gotten not the remedy that she had been trying to get in. I never even saw it. And then she had to find the um spare key that's hidden on the grounds of hands its manner to get in, so like in one of those fake rocks that you couldn't peel off the bottom of the rock. And I have I have no further comment that, but it's amazing how spot on you are Mark and um So, I just want to apologize to

my wife for for being a bad husband. I didn't need that, honey, did you? Though? Like I said, this coronavirus is gonna test relationships like nothing our country has ever seen. You better enjoy spending time with each other. Exactly. Sorry, dear, you broke out a deer. She just gave me a way. She doesn't even like me, referencing her on the program, I love Emily, Tell her, I love her, Tell her, I love her. Erica says, she loves you, But is

it really true? I believe the last time she appeared on our show, Dan was actually the Debate Club episode many years ago when she came on to talk about Eric Berry's um fear of horses. That's right. Emily was on the A t L. Debate Club talking about as my wife has a horse riding background as a youngster. And I thought she was quite insightful on that episode, and then she decisively um made it clear she would never appear on the show ever again. And she's stood.

She stood by that declaration. All right, Moving on, honey, make sure you put the key in the fake rock and return it to the article. She said, what is wrong with you? All right? Corny glad in The Bengals have parted ways. Cincinnati was attempting to move to the veteran tackle be a trade didn't work out. Despite being a nineteen game starter. You know, he's a jag as they say, Uh, just another guy, that dude, maybe somebody and for some depth on the pre agency market. But

he's thirty years old. Um. These guys will still have a market because they seem to kick around. Mark. These offensive linemen as long as they're not total disasters that are not old and a guy like Glenbert probably get

a little bit of scratch. I think what's notable to me is how Glenn got there because they made the mistake of not keeping Andrew Whitworth and they let him go, and then they made the mistake of drafting the wrong tackle sort of over and over, and you've got Glenn and he was really never at the top of his game with them. He was a patch but surrounded by you know, jag would be a complimentary term to describe some of the other lineman they've had float through there

in recent years. And it's affected Andy Dalton, who was certainly affect any rookie quarterbacks. So I think I can't think of too many teams that have more work to do along the line. They've got a couple of young guys, but something that just had not panned out. Mark, Can I just tell you that we might be days away from the ultimate scenario in terms of Cessila rage, Mitch Travisky,

Andy Dalton, same team. I think it's actually effective to if you have multiple enemies scattered around to get them into one room and then you just nuke the room again. Independence Day, Corollarry, Well, they chose specific markings across the realm and then shot the laser down to get rid of enemies in a concentrated area. You know, I know, I know on this show, I'm supposed to actless that Andy Dalton is, you know, some sort of special performer

at the position. But like you have, if you have had the Mitch Robinsky problem that you've had, and you go out and you tell this fan base that hasn't really had a great quarterback in their mids for so long, we've solved it with Andy Dalton. I just think you're you're gonna have, you know, Ryan Pace, You're gonna have to work with that message from a pr angle. It's not going to win everyone over, that's what you say now.

But if Dalton signs with the Bears, he's going to be one of your favorite quarterbacks in the league by August. Check with me on that one, because he took over from Mr Bisinus. I just think you've got to slow you find yourself falling more and more in love with Andy Dalton, I would I would much prefer Andy Dalton. But I'm just saying that of all the options, of all the creative avenue avenues you could have gone down to solve this age old quarterback problem, Andy Dalton feels

like a you didn't exactly shoot for the stars. You didn't go the distance there for your fans. But I'm sure he'll be wonderful. The Broncos placed the franchise tag on safety Justin Simmons. Let's get it to some franchise tag talk. He is one of the best safeties in the league. The tag will make him about thirteen million dollars this year, but it seems like the Broncos from what we're hearing, I want to do long term business

with Simmons, so that could be something that still happens. Yeah, he was an All Pro last year, their best defensive player. He's in the prime of his career. This was inevitable. Hunter Henry also gets the tag the Chargers. Uh, this was an expected move. We're going to put the tag on the tight end who has battled injuries throughout his

young career. But when he's on the field, Greg this guy is one of the better tight ends of the league, and in this market, um and and in a draft class where there isn't a ton of tight end talent. From what we have been told, Hunter Henry was probably gonna get a saucy offer and free agency, so the Chargers lock him up with the franchise tech. Yeah, he's someone who doesn't have better numbers, particularly than Austin Hooper,

who will get to free agency. But to me is a much much better player, and I think would have gotten paid a ridiculous amount. But Hooper now as the only really top shelf free agent. Eric Ebrown is probably number two at the position in terms of free agents. According to Tom Peli, Sara is gonna get like crazy money, like he I think every free agent is gonna get crazy money this year, and just every position is gonna

get reset. But it wouldn't surprise me if he's you know, if Austin Hooper is getting fifteen million dollars a year, because I think all these positions are gonna have to reset to a new reality, you know, assuming you know, COVID nineteen doesn't change everything that the that like the cap space is supposed to just explode in this new c b A and every team has way too much cap space in my mind to begin with. It's like, and I think we're gonna go back. It's like a correction.

You see this in sports. Every team saved up for a while. The NBA did that for a while. It's like, oh, flexibility, flexing, you know, that's what we need. And then all of a sudden it went the other way and you saw a ton of terrible contracts again, and I feel like, now it's time for the NFL to switch back to some terrible Dion Sanders getting fifty million dollars from Dan

Snyder type contracts. I was gonna say, if you're gonna give Austin Hooper is a very nice players, you know, tight end with has a Hall of Fame level quarterback playing with him in a dome for a team that can't stop anybody in big place. If he's getting fifteen million dollars a year, I other different positions, But Jet's pony up and keep Robbie in your building. Holy to the acquired coronavirus live than you. I've also never seen

somebody panic at that level from sneezing. It wasn't hat Chew, it was Oh no, I think she knew, you knew that Mike was right by your mouth, and there was no getting it off in time. And I could see like the little green microbes like crawling around on your like hair and jacket and the cord of your mic. You always cancussed yourself, slam my head on my table. But what's that sound. It's men in yellow suits radioactive at your door to take you away to the CDC

Center in Atlanta. I'm sweating, I think on my sweatshirt the workout. Yeah, I'm anxious. Robby Anderson, any of these guys fifteen million dollars, we're giving Austin Hooper million and you've got you have the back with you on the Jets, Come on them in the building. I'm with you. I don't I think like I think the Jets receiving corps

goes down to bare bones. And I one thing on the Chargers if I'm a Chargers fan, and there's a lot to not like about what's happened with the team, you know, and for a lot of reasons, but that they still scouted to resign and keep Austin Ekeler, and that they realized they're gonna you can give us all the Song and Dance and Dog and Pony Show about Tyrod Taylor. They're gonna have a rookie starting week one.

I would I would gamble at this point and to not lose your tight end and have that position be vacant, because if you're a rookie quarterback and awesome running back in a in a proven playmaking tight end, that's the recipe right there. And they and they did a good job. This offse great receivers to to just put, you know, to clean things up a little. But they also cut Thomas Davis today. They cut Brandon me Being so this

actually is the most active day of cuts. Team are teams that are kind of operating as if free agency is going to happen. I guess for now they have to Thomas Davis. That might be the end um of another great career NFL Man of the Year And and I don't know if he gets another job. But I had a great run a guy that came back from I believe three a c L reconstruction surgeries. Not too many guys can say that. Here's one last franchise tag

situation that's different. Matt judean linebacker of the Ravens who had a big year for the a f C North champions twenty eight years old. But there is much speculation that Baltimore is going to go a different route with Judean and perhaps tag Ben trade Um the standout defender, and you would imagine he would have a very healthy market for teams in the mix for a disruptive playmaker

on the line. Yeah, he's an interesting one because last year when the Ravens let terrell Sogs go and they led Za Darius Smith signed with the Packers, the word around Baltimore was, Hey, they need to save money so they can lock up Matthew Judon, who they like better than those guys, And now we're hearing they might trade him, which would leave them with what at at pass rusher. But the trade is the trade would be because they want a long term deal and they can't get one,

and you get something formed for nothing. From another angle like super Bowl window still open? Why not? Why would you dare go into the season without Matthew Judon unless you've drafted or acquired something in its wake. They're trusting the process. The Ravens have always found a way to to to find these guys, and I guess they're thinking that they can do it again, especially at that position, but this offseason specifically, that is their biggest need with Judon.

They don't have pass rushers, they don't really have front seven talent like they would want, and he's their best player there. So I actually am skeptical that they could get a d Ford or Frank Clark like trade were Jude On. So it might just end up that that he returns, their teams might see him as kind of a product of the system. Maybe not. But I also don't think they're gonna want to open up like a massive need, which which that would be there. They're in

the bottom half according to over the Calf. They're in the bottom half of the league in calf space, but they're not in terrible shape. They have right now almost thirty eight million dollars. Yeah, I guess that. To me, it was a little bit surprising. I'm with you guys that with the window the way it is and he just had a breakout season, maybe he's a guy you would keep it. He would always seem like an ideal

guy to tag. Yeah. I agree, I would think so too, But that's what they can keep tag and keeping meant anyway, any other news guys that you saw that you that got you all hot and bothered. Well, speaking of Austin Hooper, one of the spots he's connected to quite a bit is Green Bay, that the Packers will be chasing him, and they released Jimmy Graham with Yeah, I mean I thought that that was that was only a matter of time him. He just can't get it done anymore. You

don't want He's sort of like Jason Witten. He's in the progress stopping stage of his career. He's not helping you win games. Grahams you're saying they both are. Oh, yeah, I don't That is not something that excites me at all. Austin Hooper to Green Bay, if that's what really, I think he'd be great. I meant grahamar in the progress stopping that Hooper would be a good Hooper is fine. Hoop Hooper is I'm saying, yeah, I feel like you would be in an upgrade over Graham. But that's really

not saying much. I don't know I would say that with the Packers if that was, if if he was the Big three agency splash they make to upgrade the offense, I would not be thrilled, but maybe other people feel different. Well, I still have a lot of options. I mean, what do we care about um Gronk finding work of his own as a grappler, Yeah, Dallas more Mark, Well, I don't have you know, I'm not a We have people in the building to consider themselves to be sort of

adult wrestling aficionados. I'm not one of those people. But join the wrestling Officials thirty eight and I'll still go to wrestling matches. That's well, I mean, I don't I have might I don't have the funds of the interest for that. But how smug both of you, the old men of the group. But I love I am. I am not a professional wrestling but I know I know

your laugh last that's the I agree laugh. I am not a professional wrestling fan actively, but I one of my pet peeves as people who really whatever it is that look down upon people for what they're into, and this idea that you could as like as example, went Mark, not to attack you, but because it anyway that goes to like that goes to the Star Wars Star Wars opening night and it's probably pumped about twenty dollars into that franchise. Over your life, Like, how is that any less?

You know, but you make professional wrestling? But yeah, but you, but Dan, you you in print and in verbally make fun of Star Wars and people that like stars all the time. I could find tweets and also all that is absolutely I you and you get out there are now in search and delete all your past little hot takes on this. They are out there and everyone knows it, and that's fine. But it's like, I'm I'm not sitting around preoccupied that certain men in our or women in

our building love wrestling. Good for them. There's a lot of worse things you could be into. It feels a tad juvenile, and it's also not a real sport. But those are separate bullet points. We're good. But anyways, Gronk, it is now a wrestler. So what do you want?

What do you want me to tell you? As far as my Star Wars digs, the farthest I go is a you know, occasionally dropping in like Star Trek instead of Star Wars just to get you guys fired, right, And I like, and I what I get annoyed at is being, you know, like anyone chunked in with these like clowns. Dressing up is like, you know, mace window or something. I'm not doing that. I don't own any

garb or walk around like that. And I guess wrestling wrestling fans would probably would not want to be grouped in with like that famous vital clip guy who was like, Ricky, can you dig this up? It's real to me, damn it? Like I just want to thank each and everyone to help for all you're doing. It's still really thank you. Not all wrestling fans are like that. They just like the theater of it and they don't see it as a professional sport. They are very very nuanced grouped the

very very nuanced stuff. I don't doubt. I don't doubt that at all. In your little pea code in your living room. This house was built in there's no internal heat. It's freezing in here. Hey. I love doing the podcast like this, but my laugh contains multitudes and it's not so easily predictable. I know you, guys, I know you. I was laughing at Mark because I figured that somebody in our office who likes wrestling is going to hear that, and then he's gonna have to hear from them. I

mean Adam Adam ranks many interests. I don't think of him as only a wrestling fan. From what I know, Gronk, I will if you go back in the relatively short lived lifespan of the End Around on NFL dot Com, which was a brief Hansas imprint that burned burned out

after a beautiful life. Um. I had a running joke where I predicted that Gronk would be in the w WF in the lead of almost every article I wrote when he would show up these different league events, and that it's always been a matter of time, and now it's gonna happen, and hopefully he's back. Holds up. Yeah, but for the first time, I don't think he's coming back to football. I did. I pounded the table on that all through last year. I think he is enjoying

life as the child. My daughter Ellis just jumped in, I'm with you. Gronk is like, Ellis, they want you to come back. Oh, but she can't hear us, right, She said, you would have to put the headphones on, But she says, no, I have no control anyway. Good

for Grunge and and Mark, Good for Star Wars. Can I tell you one thing with all due like seriousness, Mark I, I have opened up the door because it's so all consuming Star Wars pop culture that my my children now are justifiably curious about it, because they'll see certain kids at the daycare and they'll see the non stop garage and the various video platforms that they look at. That I did open the door. I said, do you want to watch Star Wars? You want to watch them

watch the movie? And so far they just go, no, that's ballrowing. But I am going to keep the window open and I will watch it. I have not seen Star Wars since about NI, but I am open to watching it again. Well, we will not spend more than six more seconds on this, but I would suggest that you only watch three of the nine. Not if I were introducing my two boys, which which movie should have been seven? A New Hope, Empire strikes Back, Return of the Jedi. I would be fine if you didn't watch

anything beyond that at all. That's just my take. Other people would would have me shop or saying that, I think that's you know where I'm at. Okay, what an olive branch to behold? There? That was? That was the world. I mean, the world's on fire at this point. The idea of fighting and quibbling over something as silly as Star Wars or you know, like if if my kids, if I want to introduce them to Captain Spock, I will. I mean, that's just the way the way it's gonna be.

What's going on in football? I think that's it. I think we covered everything pretty we did. We covered a lot of news. There more to come. Xfl'am yeah, and you know what good speaking there. There's a nice uh, there's a nice segue west because Vince McMahon of the w W E of course I got yeah you do. Oh, very well done. Um job who hosts the Fox Lego Show, which is uh staff to bobcast Joan of the Throwback

pot watch it popular show in our house too. I think Joe the biblical figure, but I didn't get it. George Oscar Blue Um, Vince McMahon and the XFL that yeah, it did shut her as well. And this gives them an easy out, by the way, because they could say, well, we were really making progress and it was looking at and there are people in the sports landscape, I think, for desert reasons that have been carrying the water for that league making trying to tell the public that it's

been a success. I would imagine this would give Vince a nice little out if he decides that this isn't working, where he could just point to Corona as the reason why it didn't work, and then we could get ready for another launch and about well, I have no idea what the finances are, whether like they're willing to lose some money in the short term, and how the different team operations go and everything. But people get go crazy, Oh,

the ratings were dropping. The ratings, Okay, that that's that's all true, like, but it's still even at its lowest, is out rating tons of sports that are on all the time, like an MLS game that they put like that is a thriving league right now, twenty years in, and it still couldn't compete in ratings with the XFL, others, you know, smaller sports, tennis, whatever, whatever it is. Even like some basketball game like NBA games like the XBL

was getting ratings. There was interest, Like there were a couple of cities that embraced it pretty hard. It was definitely had fans in the crowd. St. Louis loved at Seattle loved it, like I don't know, like the finances of how much you have to do it, but it's like that that what more do you want people in the crowd. You've got people watching like I'm not gonna watch it in particular, but I can't imagine they'd be that just they'd be disappointed about this the first five weeks.

So it's all I feel like it. It pays the way for them to come back, because the final note on it isn't oh the ratings sunk every week. It was a plague essentially was dropped on the landscape and that ended the XFL, and they have an opportunity to

come back. I do. I do think that it's important that some a couple of these players um get NFL tryouts and get maybe some NFL work to to have it function as a developmental league on some level, because otherwise, if it's like none of these players are leaving the XFL, I don't know, then I start to unpload. They all are allowed to now they're out of their contracts and they can sign with NFL teams. I'm sure some will.

It's I guess the question whether they make any impact, and I just I'll just throw this one last bit of data out there, Greg to kind of counter to your point. A report two days ago from the Sports Business Daily as that the XFL ratings have dropped sixty three since week one. Yeah, so, I mean I get it. I just mean like because I read pretty closely their last Sunday night and it's like, yeah, it's on ESPN,

but it's and it's dropping precipitously. But it's like building on their MLS audience, and it's building on their other programming on Sunday, so as like a TV property, Like it's building on some college basketball game from you know, the Big Ten on a on a Sunday. It's like they're putting that's making TV. So why not I see that. There's two ways to look at it. The other way is that they've lost half their audience since they started

a month and a half ago, which is not great. Sure, I mean, I think that's that's the blueprint we'd like to follow on this show. It's never yeah, it's never gonna maintain that initial initial bus. I don't know, I have no need for it. I literally didn't watch a second but uh, it's like people, people were into it you're just a football junkie. He's claiming he didn't watch one second of it, but I mean it's not claim, it's the truth, right, all Right, here we go. Need

for more XFL please, so we will. This is the last time we heard from us this week. Like we said, it's possible there's an announcement from the league on Sunday, possible that they push back the league calendar a little bit here because of what's going on with the coronavirus. If that does happen, it will change our schedule next week. But as of right now, we've got a huge week

coming up. On the podcast. We have three video shows that will be available digitally UM Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday covering free agency. Will also have multiple audio podcasts UM three,

four five. We don't know. We're gonna hit it pretty hard if free agency does indeed happen, So just be aware that you're gonna have a ton of content from us coming if the league calendar col holds, and if the league calendar does not hold and there is a postponement because of the coronavirus, we will also be with you in a lesser form in terms of amount of shows will do a couple shows, I'm sure next week, but that will change how much you get from us.

So just the heads up there and of course everyone out there, we have listeners all over the world to you know, take care of yourselves and wash your hands. What do they say, twenty seconds get and you gotta get that whole hand. You gotta get the palms, the fingers, the other side, and the crevices in between your fingers, get your fingernails, and and don't touch your face so much unnecessary anyway, get your hands out of your face,

and and uh, and be kind to each other. And one last thought, like I said, old surgeon general, hands this here like this, listen, mine's just as effect. Remember when Greg told us on the show like a week and a half ago, the virus disappears in summer. Where all the joke that was not a joke, that was said in a very serious way. Um, let's let we're out the summer, yet be kind to your loved ones

within your home. It's stressful for everyone. Well. Wishes to my brother Tim, who's going through some surgeries of his own, non related to any viruses or anything, but Tim, thinking about you, Love you and get well. All right, Get well soon, Tim, and be well everyone. Thank you for listening. We were happy to do the show today looking for that normalcy that sports the sports world can't give us right now. So thank you and everybody for your support

and all that good stuff. Ricky, thank you for giving us the technology hook up and making this happen. There's literally no way we were doing the show today without your ability to be a youthful ambassador and in in addition to being a beautiful woman, intelligent and savvy and technologically efficient at an extremely high level. This doesn't sound

so Surgeon General at the moment. I think you you've veered off of the You're almost suspiciously educated on technology, like you might be a double agent for the government. You've been tracking us for three years. Yeah, this is all going into my records. But thank you, Ricky, especially the part in the beginning where you're like Dan, Dan said, Erica, don't put any of this on Instagram. I've got all

of that, did you? Could you could put us under It's like Don Draper said, uh, lucky Strike could turn out our lights. That's what Ricky could do for this podcast if you wanted to and mark and enjoy the rest of your afternoon in the old shack and behind your house. This is my house, this is about his. They got the luxurious, and they got a little You've got the you know facility in the back. You got

you got your own little private domain back there. I am actually in the house across from Greg's street and I've been spying on him for three days. So be careful what you wish for, all right, everybody, Um, this is Dan handsOn signing off for Mark Sessler, the Quiet Storm, the Mailman, the Old Boss, Ricky Hollywood from West Hollywood until Monday,