What Has Us Shook?

They Around the NFL podcast spent too much time in the sun. Welcome to another edition of Around the NFL. I am Dan Hans's I have a reddish hue to my pale skin tone, joined as always by a man who always looks a little pale on camera, Greg Rosenthal.

Yeah, I've changed the locations. If you watch us on YouTube, you can see my new garage setup. But I still haven't found the correct lighting to give me the color that I truly have.

You do get quite dark in the summer there, Danny.

I do. I do. Let's see if we can do better. Though. Let's welcome in another man who has to be very careful in the sun, and if you have to be careful in the weight room when he's around you. Yes, one of our favorites. It's a great Nick Shook, what's up, Bud?

I am wearing a hat because I was not careful in the sun in la last minute.

There he is, Shookie Shooky, of course, is invaluable on our Sunday flagship programs helping out watching games, talking about him and that will be coming back, and my goodness, less than two months, and Shook, it's great to have you here. I have to say you come on a great day for the NFL, on a great day for Commanders fans, because yes, it's happening. It's over today. According to PFT and other outlets, the owners will vote to approve the sale of the Washington Commanders from Daniel Snyder

Yeah, I mean, stop new stadium. Everything's looking up for them. Maybe we'll see, but I mean to eliminate what was essentially an albatross from them in the form of ownership. It's great, it's fantastic. You don't have to worry about it anymore. Now you can move forward, start the new era.

I mean, they could go six and eleven, and I feel like this is gonna be the greatest year for the Washington franchise since the nineties. Like, no matter what happens, and they might be kind of frisky, maybe maybe we'll even get to that. But they might be, they might be frisky, and as recently as a week ago, there was some thought this could get gummied up and messed up at the last second. So hopefully we're taping this before that official meeting. Hopefully they don't bang us here.

Yeah, and this time I think it's gonna happen. And it comes a week after I don't know if you guys talked about it last week, but the ESPN deep dive on how Snyder nearly survived but made a few crucial missteps in the last couple of years that opened the door for the owners to finally make the move.

Greg, Yeah, it's a weird thing where he's like a relief pitcher that we only bring in during the World Series, like in our biggest, highest octane moments, but for some reason he doesn't get enough regular season.

It ands I with you, Manuel class a type that's a shock to us.

Yeah, except I have a slider and not just a cutter and a fastball, and I mean I have some more breaking stuff, not just one hundred and three miles an hour.

So instead shook of me sharing some of my dad's old records, please share with the audience and us your top three Desert Island albums. If you had to take three albums records with you for the rest of time, what would they be?

Well ahead of the time, as anybody has it has experienced when they've considered this scenario, you need something that has longevity, something that you can listen to no matter the mood, something that could potentially set the mood get you through one more day out there on the Desert Island. Right, So we're going to go first off the top of the list, a semi recent album. This is Tyler the Creators I think it was twenty seventeen album flower Boy,

It, beautiful choices there, Shook and perhaps an all time backfire for you. Greg. Famously Greg likes rap and you've had that corner I mean, you've been on that corner for this program, and now here comes Shook, not just with like basic stuff, but kind of going deep and showing his knowledge of rapp and hip hop culture. You're a little upset, I know, impressed probably, but also maybe deep down it's bothering you a little bit that Shook just dropped the hammer on your ace.

I mean, I feel like it's bothering you. You're the one that put me on the Greggs rap corner. You're right, Uh, Shook Legs rap bother me. There's no way I'm going all three rap albums on my desert list. So so I think Shook officially likes rap more because he's talking about setting the mood, I mean, setting the mood for what a little like self love if anything. Then you want a little variety, You want a little variety. But

Internet, you'll find, uh, You'll find that it's not. It's more like it's it's almost neo soul, not quite there. It's a it's a blend between that and hip hop.

So there's perhaps we learned today that Greg likes rap. Well, we knew that, but Shook loves rap.

I do like Tyler though I'm a big I like that album. That's great.

Let's do some news. Raven's trying to end it here. She'll tell you step so Colton.

Pros it's complete cultortd Tyler Toyd.

Tons down remarkable. The Cincinnati Bengals have stunned this crowd. Any Dolty delivers he has. We learned on Monday that there's at least one player in the NFL that've used Andy Dalton as a future Hall of Famer. That's my favorite Dalton Bengals memory. Twenty seventeen, knocking the Ravens out of the playoffs in Baltimore, putting the Bills in for the first time in a couple decades with that miracle

Yeah, because the Bills ended up getting back to the playoffs before the Browns did at that time. The Browns most recent time was two thousand and two. So understanding the drought and what you go through in the in the pure joy when you finally get through, when somebody else helps you. It was a great moment. And yeah, if it happens to a division rival, as it did, yeah, it just cherry on the top.

One little note here is just like if someone were rude enough to try to make the case against Andy Dalton as a Hall of Famer, you know, if he does come up, I do think you could point out he's zero to four in his four playoff games. The highest his team scored in any of those games was thirteen points. He's had one touchdown and six interceptions and took twelve sacks.

I don't know why Andy thought they need to do that.

I just I just drew it up and I was like, well, we can't get a better moment than Andy Dalton.

But no, actually that was the best moment.

That was just totally unnecessary.

Greg, what is this the Basketball.

Hall of Fame? It was worse that I thought though.

I was just like, I've just thought i'd bring up the old postseason game lag.

I was like, was it really that bad? And it's like, yeah, was that bad?

Oh my goodness. You know. I went to just pull up some news on Zach Martin, the star guard of the Cowboys, who may be holding out instead, I accidentally pulled up a NFL dot com article about Zach Martin joining the ninety nine club for Madden What. I understand that things are slow right now and they're just starting to pick up. The Jets reported for camp yesterday speaking of the Browns shook Mia with the opportunity to report,

I feel like this is planned because I'm here because this is my corner and I'm leading this coverage and working with EA on this. Like this is just I mean, not you.

Know, unintentional shook, but maybe important that we're having this conversation.

I went out there and played the new game last month in their studios. I know, yeah, I'll tell you, Dan, it's awkward. We're supporting them, you know, let's get through this awkward moment together. We're supporting the league's official product, the official licensed video game of the NFL, MAD NFL twenty four, available in August.

WHOA, that was weird.

He's officially the first guard ever to be ninety nine. Well, this is this is back to our metric days. It's the same reason why Terrell Pryor got a lot of articles. Those Madden articles do great.

They do great. The Peyton Hill is the number of articles written about Peyton Hill is being the Madden cover boy in twenty twelve. I have carpal tunnel syndrome from it. Still anyway. Six time All Pro, eight time Pro Bowl guard Zach Morton reportedly unhappy with this current compin and will consider skipping training camp. According to ESPN's Adam schefter, a source also told Schefter that Martin believes quote he

Consistency more than anything. Guys is frequently available, and this is an offensive line that's undergone a ton of changes. Not only that, but he's playing at a high level when he's available throughout his career. Number of all pros as he just listed Pro Bowl appearances. Guy gets the ninety nine rating for a reason in Madden because he is one of the best and has been one of

I'd like a little extra like drama heading into Oxnard. You know, they always have the It's like other Cowboys are getting off there playing in ox Snard. It's a big day here in southern California. And now, like there aren't many holdouts anymore in the NFL. But if you're gonna hold out, if you can do it when you're like a future Hall of Fame guy who's already made twenty million dollars, and you know that the Joneses would

And that offensive line shook has regressed in recent years. It was one of the best in the league. So Mart seen more in part important because he is the anchor there. He doesn't miss much time at all. He's only missed eight games in his career. So you know, at a time we'll get to a little bit later, you know, the running backs and that ongoing storyline this summer,

Yeah, I mean he's nearing thirty three, turns thirty three in November, so like there's the time to cash in is now. This is the moment to get your last big contract and you know, maximize your value and play good football until the wheels fall off, because offensive line is one of the toughest positions, and it's there's a reason that we pay attention to Jason Kelsey, whether it's coming back every year. Yeah, he still plays an elite level,

In other news, Greg, do you remember Draft Night? I want to say the pandemic year.

I know, where are you going with this? And yes I do.

Yes. My father in law a great man, raised an incredible woman, my wife Emily Bob Bates dds he retired. He came on our program on Draft Night at the end of the conclusion of the twenty twenty draft and the Jets is selected why receiver Denzel Mims out of Baylor, and my father in law was raving about Denzel Mims and his abilities and his production while with the Bears down there in Waco and said he'd be a star. And I have to connect with g Bob for official

Yeah, Lesser remembered for good reason on that night, was was me supporting your boy, Bob Bates.

I can call him your boy. Can you call your father in law your boy?

I would not, It seems a little overly chummy. Uh, he's more a figure of respect.

Right if I if I called Watson Abvis on that, actually I may no longer be in the family.

You bring great disgrace to the family.

I supported him on this. Denzel Mims take. I like Denzel Mims coming out of college. I should have known Baylor wide receivers coming out of college. For whatever reason, Uh, it just hasn't worked. I hope Taekwon Thornton breaks that streak for the Patriots, but so far, not so good. Corey Coleman was kind of a bus There was one more too. I guess Josh Gordon should have been good.

Uh player.

I hate my least favorite thing about stories like this is everyone being like, hey, you gotta hand it to Joe Douglas. You gotta hand it to Yeah, he always gets some value always.

That's really a thing that seems a little strong man.

Yeah out there he got the A six to seventh round pick is nothing.

It doesn't matter.

I mean, it's fine, it's better than not getting anything, but it's as little as you can get. Once you get in the middle of those draft, they're trading those like seventh round picks around like Pez Dispenser's.

It doesn't matter.

Isn't it fun that a Jets team that was lacking for receivers just a few years ago is now just jetsoning receivers in the offseason left and right because they they've upgraded. They're better now. They don't need those guys that didn't produce immediately.

Well, Cory Davis actually sticks. That's my one thing I want to say, and this makes.

Sense, I'd say that I have, you know, concerns that Elijah Moore reaches his potential in Cleveland. It's certainly possible. He's very talented, so I would say I'm a little worried about that. I'm not so worried about mims teaming of a Jared Goff to Wreek havoc in Motown. But we shall see the Steelers doing some business. Alex high Smith had a breakout season in twenty twenty two, and the Steelers have agreed to terms with the pass rusher

Fourteen and a half sacks in a year in which he operated largely without TJ.

Watt.

That's pretty good numbers. This is a guy who I think had the raw ability and needed to just kind of acclimate and getting a full NFL body. He looked really good at the combine and given the opportunity to really show off his skills without Watt on the other side, he performed. He produced, and now they're gonna get wapped back and we got two really good edge rushers, so they're gonna pay him as such because again they're not paying a quarterback, so they have a little bit more money to spend.

I do like when teams have like a consistent profile and them having two great outside linebacker edge rushers has basically been the story of the Steelers for most of the last fifteen years. And high Smith steps right, and I feel like not a lot of people know him. He got better and better every year. Wasn't that, you know, highly touted coming out of college and laugh year was awesome.

And finally in the news yes, I went with an Andy Dalton highlight for the news drop today. Perhaps Chad Johnson deserves love too, he was a big time performer for Cincinnati in the previous decade. Dalton Love thrown to Chad Johnson or Chad Ocho Cinco, and he will be inducted into the team's Ring of Honor on September twenty fifth,

Yeah, I'm like, is there a backstory if I'm if I'm if I'm Boomers Sias And I'm almost annoyed that, like, I'm going in the same time as Chad Johnson. I think it does have to do with Assias and asked for a trade out of Cincinnati. You know that he forced his way out. He set the playbook that Carson Palmer would later follow, and grumbled a little bit about ownership.

So it took a while, but it's good to see.

I have some info just so we're this is very Cincinnati as well, although of course they've kind of gotten their act together now they have a potential Ring of Honor quarterback in his prime right now. But Cincinnai didn't even establish their Ring of Honor until twenty twenty, so okay, maybe Boomer should have been part of the first class or whenever that was, but yeah, that or twenty twenty. But yeah, he got in in one of the first groups. So I guess we could stand down a little bit.

I was gonna say it felt like Burrow's arrival woke up the Bengals to the fact that they're an NFL franchise, and they've been steadily improving their club since then. They renamed their stadium with you know, they got the corporate dollars, the build the practice facility. Now they're doing the Ring of Honor. You know, they're getting up to speed now.

One of my favorite parts of this, and it makes me feel a little old at like Chad Johnson is old enough to do this, because I do think people remember him more for changing his name and the touchdown celebrations and kind of forget he had about seven seasons where he had Hall of Fame production. I think he's a legit Hall of Fame conversation, He'll probably be on the edge, but like thirteen hundred yard type seasons a.

Year after year.

But this also reminded me that Corey Dillon absolutely destroyed Mike Brown like two weeks ago for not being part of their Ring of Honor. I don't know if he knows they just started a few weeks ago, but on this he called it BS and he was very upset about being held out of there. He said, I'm pretty sure they will put effing John Kittna in there before they put me. A matter of fact, Scott Mitchell will end up in that mother effer before I do.

That was Corey Dillon. A few I appreciate it.

Why I challenge, Why challenge a team to hold you out? I'm gonna name some guys. This is good stuff here from the Athletic Paul Denner Jr. Who has been on the show. I believe correct, Yeah, yeah, here are some guys if they're assuming Cincinnati goes with two guys a year in the Ring of Honor. Some names that are out there Corey Dillon obviously, but it might have to simmer down a little bit. Uh. This is for Chris

I was thinking TJ. Housman Zata might make it in there. I don't know, maybe not.

Yet on the list, but will be on the list eventually when they hit whatever. You know, maybe it's five years.

Like they can all second facade within the stadium where they put the names on right.

Geno Atkins, AJ Green, Andrew Whitworth all feel like future additions, but they are not eligible yet. So we have you totally covered on the Cincinnati Bengals Ring of Honor beat.

I'm glad.

We threw it out there six straight eleven hundred yard seasons and most of those four of those were over thirteen hundred yards.

That's pretty good, jud Jets.

Yeah, and Boomer was unbelievable. In nineteen eighty eight, he won League MVP and I still, yes, I still picture his final pass of the Dan Reno fake spike game going through the back of the end zone and through the uprights at Giants Stadium, kind of rubber stamped, like his legacy in New York being the QB of that team in that game. However, you know it worked out for Boomer, who's a fantastically successful radio guy in New York and obviously get paid, gets paid a lot for

All right.

Welcome back to Around the NFL. This is our last remote show. I'm in Jersey. I'm in Jersey. That's my Springsteen. Greg back in California, Shook in Ohio. We'll all be back next week. I've booked by the Way Gregy, one of our favorite guests and one of my favorite segments. We'll be back at Connor Orr will be joining us next week for Team Slogans for twenty twenty three, so make sure you're there for that. Everybody.

It's Big Monday, Yeah in the studio, and I guess we assume Sessler's you know, we'll return from his family trip, but you never know.

It's just an assumption. And as you might expect, the Hard Knocks podcast will also be returning in a couple of weeks. That just so happens that the New York Jets are the team, so kind of works out nicely there for Zeuser getting an entire sub podcast series based off coming off the Around the NFL Tree. Connie and I will be doing weekly recaps every Tuesday, and we'll be doing a preview show that's gonna land soon, so that's exciting housekeeping. Finally, this is the Nick Shook episode

Tell me what you guy, Now, we followed your suggested format of nineties, two thousands and two. And there's gonna be a little bit of blurring at the lines here because some of these had been running for quite some time and could you know, encompass multiple decades. But starting with the nineties, what choice is there other than Seinfeld, one of the greatest sitcoms of all time, dominated the decade,

I still watch it all the time and Shure, you're you're significantly younger by I think, like a decade of Greg and I something like that. I remember that night specifically, when Seinfeld went off the air in May of ninety eight.

I think you just broke the news to shook based on the look on his face, Frank Sinatra is dead.

It's Frank Sinatra. Sinatra dies the same day Seinfeld ends, which is the last great sitcom of the twentieth century.

That's you know, that was a big day, harrowing news from the ABC News.

I love that you threw that out there, but it does remind me of one of my all time favorite or are you kidding me? Segments where Connor just spent ten minutes destroying Seinfeld saying that it was overrated. Yeah, it was terrible, and that people like yourself, and I'm always shocked our friend Sean Kelly, who's one of the production people NFL, who's in his mid twenties, huge Seinfeld fan. I'm almost surprised how much it's connected with the youth.

I think it's a bit of a tired take, and I've gone a O'Connor every once in a while when when his his takes seemed just designed to to to shock an awe uh. Going after Seinfeld is not being as good as people say it. I mean, I feel like just people showing their ass and not realizing what that show was doing and how different it was in its era. That's my two cents.

I mean, he's no Skip Bayless, though he believed it. He believed That's why I loved.

It all right.

Number two show number two, we go to the two thousands, and although it is still running because it came back a cousin of Seinfeld Curb your Enthusiasm. Okay, great show with both.

I think, yeah, kind of the same genre basically, yes, yeah, I kind of a spinoff in a way. Really, it's kind of yeah, kind of.

I'm a genre guye. This show gives me a lot of anxiety because I don't like conflict that much, and so I can't watch it before bed like I do watch Seinfeld. But when I'm not going to bed, I enjoy it very much.

Great show, probably should probably should go away, but it's fine, right, Larry David could do whatever he wants.

I feel like I'm the ultimate. Yeah, I don't think this was the intent, but it's like people fight over credit a little bit. Everyone wants their credit, like different coaches want credit. Larry David doing Curb sort of was the ultimate, like I'm gonna go win five super Bowls on my own when I won three with you and prove who is the real the real there is.

There are some Brady Belichick parallels with Brady to the Bucks being curb your enthusiasm.

Which is crazy because if you think about it, Seinfeld would be Brady and Belichick would be Larry David. Literally number three and finally number three the twenty tens. This is a show that actually started in the two thousands, and I watched this from when I was in high school and I still watch it. It's always sunny in Philadelphia. Now, this show has lost some steam in recent years and this new season right now, it's hit or miss. One

I like this because I understand your sensibilities now shook, and it is a great choice. I do agree. I love the early years, especially when the show in addition to all the characters being grimy, look grimy, it just looked cheap. And now I've when I stumble upon a recent episode, I'm taken aback by how they all kind of look like TV stars and the lighting is better. But it's followed that always sunny. Excuse me, it's followed

I like how they stay topical too, Like they even made an episode related to the chest cheating scandal that happened last year where Frank ends up getting inserted into the chess tournament. And yeah, it's just hilarious. St hilarious.

Greg, we're learning about him.

I we need to do this more.

All right. With that said, I feel.

We learned that he liked F one.

By the way, everyone should check out his his podcast that combines football and F one, the grid Iron Podcast, which I have to admit, Shook, I've seen you promote on Instagram and everyone and I thought it was a combined football weightlifting podcast and that the Iron men, because you guys, you know, you're a big guy. I don't know about your co host, but so I thought that's a weird angle. The weightlifting football podcast F one makes more sense to me.

It's a new segment idea. Why not let's incorporate Wait.

How about this? How about this? You're knowledgeable in all three fields, So grid represents F one pumping that would be the weightlifting component, and then Iron for football Grid pumping Iron. That's just keep on drawing this out and adding elements of the show. It's a it's a three.

Header grid pumping sizzling iron, we get cooking involved, you know, just keep going, going and going till it's a giant mouthful like you never get out.

All right, Nick Schuck has a great name, a great last name, So we just built an entire segment on it. With training camp and a new season upon us, it's time for us to share what has a shook in the NFL right now? And it's uh. I think it's it's pretty self explanatory, like things that are just gnoying at us a little bit, things that have us a little annoyvous. Perhaps you annoy us about certain things. As the season kicks off.

I feel like Shuk's last name has been the subject of many different segments, like I've seen it on NFL Network, but none of better than what hasse is Shuck. This was there the whole time, Shuck. You could have taken it.

You blew it.

Yeah, good morning football. If you want to have Nick on, there's a free bee for you.

I don't have any agency over my name. In fact, I just push people away from using my name because this is the first reply I say something on Twitter, I'm shook. Would you see that? But here it's fine?

All right? Great, and again sorry about the cross contamination with your Madden business relationship. That was totally unintentional.

You know how many emails I don't have to send? Now, Dan, everybody back into good graces.

All right? So why don't we get it started with Nick Shook? What has you shook about the NFL right now as we enter a new season.

Maybe I'm just off base, maybe I'm out of touch, but I find it hard to believe that Ron Rivera would tie his future in the NFL as a head coach to a quarterback who played just one games rookie last year. That seems to be the prevailing wisdom. And if that actually does happen, I'll be shook because, quite frankly, you couldn't choose a less stable way to go about trying to keep your job, especially with Jacoby Brissett on the roster. I mean, that's why you go sign the

It has been a little surprising that coming out of the offseason workouts that there doesn't seem to be a battle. That it's one of the few big surprises of the ota season, like that actually they gave Jacoby Brissett all that money, more than any other backup in the market got, and that he's not going to get a chance to compete.

But I'm not shook about this.

I like it, all right, Yeah, I am. I'm definitely shook about it. Talked about it on the show. It seems like Ron is just in a vulnerable place. We led the show today obviously talking about the sale of the franchise and the inevitable transition and that comes with new ownership. And I feel like Ron is kind of in a knowing situation here unless something really unexpected happens, like Howell plays his ass off. That's like the is that the only way Ron keeps his job here? They

Hell Mary, maybe I think they got to make the playoffs. With a new owner, you have to make the playoffs. It's his year four. I think it's a decent looking roster. I did the NFC East preview actually with Mina Kimes on her podcast people to check that out, and like, I went back to watch that that Howell start in a little bit of his preseass. I know it's just one start, but I'm very intrigued. I think he went

The Commanders than I have been such a I get it, it's good and obviously good to watch a tape, but one game is such a small sample size that you know the opponent, how they good.

In the preseason two I would say like, yeah, I know it's not that much, but I'm but I'm saying that one game.

I was thinking about it.

I went back and looked at I did little grading the QB Index stuff, and it's like it was probably better than any start Daniel Jones made his rookie year, or like Drew Locke made his rookie year. I was trying to think of like mid level quarterbacks, and like it was a really good performance.

That's all I think.

Go ahead. If you're worried about your job. It's such a risky play, and with new ownership, you can almost guarantee that you're gone, unless, like you guys said, you make the playoffs. Putting writing with that, I mean, you're being the caretaker of the club that's probably not going to keep you around if you're just trying to develop this guy.

If I was Eric b Enemy, I'd be a little shook too that this is his big chance. But I think they think they're gonna win with running defense.

We'll see it just kind of similar this topic, so this will be a good sag. I part of me likes, like if I'm a Bucks fan, part of me likes their decision to not say, oh, well Tom's gone now Tom, by the way, you know, he lost thirty million dollars in the collapse of FTX thirty million, and I know he's got a lot of money, but he's also you know, getting divorced or just got divorced, Like thirty million. That hurts.

I think I think that is a level that is a significant amount of pain for Tom Brady.

Okay, I don't know how rich you have to be for that not to hurt.

I'll tell you what if if you called me and said you're you just lost thirty million dollars, yeae, I'd be shook.

Would it be enough for Tom maybe to end up playing another year. It's the only way for Tom Brady to make thirty million like that is just to play one more season in the NFL. I don't know, it doesn't matter, or it does, we'll see, But the Bucks did make this decision not to just start over post Brady, and I don't necessarily agree with it. But at the same time, if you're a Bucks fan, you look at this division, the NFC South, they say, all right, I

I think the circumstances that give the Buccaneers fans hope with this situation, like oh, the Baker just needs to be like average and we have enough talent around him to win, is the same circumstances that leave me shook, which is that if he's not that guy, everything's falling apart. I mean, cleaning house top to bottom. That was what would leave me very word going to the season. No longer can Tom Brady protect you? And he did his best to protect you last year and you barely got

I'm so there. The odds makers most likely team to finish in the cellar in that division by far, like it's the other three, the Falcons and the Saints especially

Bowles is miserable.

And all these guys who won Super Bowls are just like slogging through a bad season. They are high up there on the like potential unwatchable teams, So I hope they at least can just like stay mediocre.

Yeah, and you know, I know Brady finally did regress last season, and I would say, like, I don't know if you guys agree, but the last season of Tom Brady, if that was, he was maybe a replacement level or a touch above because of obviously his genius knowledge of how the quarterback position has played, and he still had an arm. It just it wasn't happening. But remember how how much of a slog they were to watch with Brady at a lesser, lesser level or closer a league

Up, Okay, I'm shook that the Packers are behind the Bears in the preseason odds. I'm leaning hard on the preseason odds. Like I'm shook that the expectation is that the Bears are going to be much better and that the Packers are this disaster team that's gonna be in the cellar there. Not like the odds are too different, But this makes no sense to me. Not just like looking at which team has won more games over the last two or three years, Like I think that's a factor.

I hope he's good.

But the optimism I've seen from Bears fans this offseason, where they just they think it's all happening right now, worries me a little bit. It has me shook that they're gonna be disappointed, and especially for the rest of the division. Who thinks, Okay, Aaron Rodgers is finally gone, like we can finally do our thing.

I don't know, man.

I think Jordan Love has a chance to be good, and more importantly, the rest of the roster is good, and they're they are not going into the cellar.

I'm shook.

Yeah. For as much as we depend on quarterback value quarterback in this league, at the same time, if your team around it is around that quarterback is much better, I think you have a better shot. I mean, we've seen teams go win Super Bowls with you know, average quarterbacks. Great, that was a while ago, but it happens. I'm not saying they're going to win a super Bowl. But the

We are all in lockstep on this one because one of my possibilities here, if it hadn't been brought up, was me comma and Bears fans Comma are over our skis with the Justin Fields type because you can and I'm sure you guys have seen it as well when you if you read about this team, you could pop the hood on a lot of fields as stats and beyond the playmaking, there's reasons to be concerned about his

Yeah, our friend Adam Rank, you know, big Bears guy, I had them going twelve and five on his.

That's what I mean.

It's like, just be careful, you're setting yourself up here, all.

Right, Chuck, give us another one, Bud, all right.

I am shook by the idea of playing a Super Bowl in Las Vegas. I'm shook by the the the challenge it will be not to not have a good time, but to not have too much of a good time for some of the folks that will be involved in the super Bowl weekly festivities. You know, no, no, come on now, I'm I'm a mature adult and a professional. But I don't know if everybody else that's around the super Bowl is gonna be it's gonna be a mad house.

All right, Well, we got through the Draft last year without incident. Obviously, that's a different vibe, far less parties and things of that nature. I have to I have to be honest with you guys. I well, a little bit of personal news, family news. My my father injured his achilles a couple of weeks ago and needed to

Get the bet on time kids a lot, by the way, like one of those things that you put on the wall to count down by them by the second to kickoff.

Feel better, Keith, I, I didn't know that. I know he's gonna have a heroic recovery in time for this Jet super Bowl.

What a story that would be.

I mean, he's the real you know hero here of the the Around the NFL podcast. That would be an amazing plot line. I'm not as worried about, uh, the Vegas, but you're just because it's going to be crazy. And I'm all about Nick like at this point, not saying we've done everything, but we've been to a lot of super Bowls in this seems so different from any super Bowl that we've ever done.

That that excites me.

But I also hear you that six seven nights in Vegas feels feels like too much. Probably yeah, any recommended maximum for anyone. Uh and this is the year. Actually I promised Walker that he would make his first one. It's it's close enough, you know, they can get there quickly. So my son will, I hope, see his first super Bowl in Las Vegas.

That's beautiful. Yeah, we're we're getting old, Greg, and our kids are starting to grow up. I've thought about that myself, about when we're fortunate enough to be able to take people to the Super Bowl when when the games occur, that's cool, all right, Now, I'm up one more from me. I'm a little bit shook that the report that came out of the jets of band cameras from filming cuts

Have any team ever done that in the path?

I think there are been teams that may be more on the it wasn't kind of reported because this has become like the story around the season is that the team doesn't want to do it. So I think there's more reporting around this season for that reason. But I think it's definitely been de emphasized but not entirely eliminated for the most part. And we mentioned Chad Johnson one of the most memorable hard knocks and it's an unfortunate

I just was like, this is this storyline has gotten a lot of airtime, that's all.

I think it's deserved. I think it's a very a just cause that these running backs are are speaking out on because it is bonkers to me, the point that it's gotten to. Anyway, here's Saquon talking about his situation on the Money Matters podcast. I would say cut the giants.

I'd say to my teammates and be like, you want me show you my work? I want to show you how much how valuable I am to the team. I won't show up, I won't play it down. And that's a that's a that's a that's a play I can use do I anybody knows me knows that's not something I want to do. But like it's something that has

I don't know. I don't think Barkley will hold out. I think he's even saying it there like because he's not h he's not willing to do that to his teammates and and disappear for a long stretcher the whole season. And we saw with Le'Veon Bell what happens sometimes or potentially if you walk away for a year. Greg Pro Football Talk, your old boss Florio had a good post

Right, I mean, I think Jacobs and Barkley are in Pollard to a lesser degree, are interesting examples of that. They didn't have that leverage they've they had up and down careers coming off year three. Like that's I don't think it's overheated. I think it's an interesting conversation. But like Joe Mixon, Dalvin Cook, Alvin Kamara, all those guys actually did get paid because they were consistently.

At a high level.

And when you look at the salaries or running backs they're similar still, Like even though they've they've stagnated, there are in the ballpark of tight ends and safeties like no one no one's crying for the safety market getting overlooked in free agency every year, And that kind of makes sense to me that those three positions would be

Yeah, I think about you know, you talk about that year three Mark. I think about a DeVonta Freeman, you know, he drafted in fourteen, extended in seventeen and the Falcons regretted it shortly thereafter. I mean, there's there's been enough lessons in the last decade or.

So, right, Cook didn't get to the end of that contract. These running backs usually don't.

Neither did Zeke obviously, Yeah, yeah, and Girly kind of a similar case as well.

See they did mix in for that matter. He just got he had to take a pay cut.

Yeah, So it's it's really tough to be a running back. And this is very legion of doom though this this text chain, I like this. I liked them sitting around and speaking with you know, I don't know lawyers or we're all gonna because by the time that CBA comes up, they're done. But maybe they're going to pass it on to the next generation and get theirranks out in the meantime.

And Derek Henry, who did get that second contract with the Titans, and by the way, he's performed well throughout the life of it as the entrance his last year four years fifty million. Like that money though, Greg like that puts him like in line with what like number two wide receivers, get right, I mean he for so, what these true star players are saying is like, if you're gonna pay out a wide receiver, I think that's the closest positional group in terms of playmaker on the

Yeah.

I think people, I think the fact that it's not just PFF, it's people who think like PFF that work for NFL buildings just think wide receiver is twice as valuable a position.

Hmm. I don't think that's true, but Okay, that's the way.

I just think that's the thinking that has gone into it, that they just think wide receivers are more important.

All right, give us one more Greg, here we go, baby, Okay.

I'm I'm a little shook about the Cowboy offense in general, the way Mike McCarthy talks in general, the fact that he hired Brian Schottenheimer and Mike Solari. Schottenheimer enough said. Celari has been on the Cowboys coaching staff previously. It was under Tom Landry. That's how long their offensive line coach has been around. Like this is as old school as it gets, and then specifically when it comes to McCarthy a little shook. How they're like looking at this

I mean, they kind of ran into this situation last year. This is what they dealt with. I was the succession plan. All right, he can play guarden and then Tyrann's going to retire and Tyler's going to take over, and you know Rench was thrown to the plans. I agree with you, but I also see their logic to get the best

He talks like they're just gonna run more, but they already were running too much ineffectively, and now they don't really have any depth behind Pollard, who's coming off a serious injury.

It's a little weird.

We'll see Zeke's gonna end up back there. It feels like, right, just feels like for a team that is conservative and how they're kind of rolling this plan out wouldn't they bring back the guy that knows their scheme that they could trust to, whether it's blocking assignments or know, you know,

Offensively, I'd feel differently about them if they signed Cook. I think that'd be the best spot for him. Maybe Kareem Hunt even, but someone one.

Of those guys makes sense.

We'll be doing our annual head coach hot butt rankings in a couple of weeks, and McCarthy's an interesting one because I'm just one thing I'm not sure about is what constitutes an acceptable level of success for McCarthy to have another year on the sidelines. Like what is Jarah expecting from this team? I mean, he's expecting a super Bowl because he's Jerah, but like what would be deemed a fireable offense in terms of a bottom line result for the twenty twenty three Cowboys. Kind of stick a

Yeah, I think getting read of your offensive coordinator exposes you to that and makes it something that we definitely have to watch for sure.

Good call. That is one of those things like when you're trying to figure out how safe a coach is if they made a coordinator change, that's kind of using their mulligan, if you will. That's their little protection card, and once that's done, you're more in the firing line. All right, shooky, damn man, you said it all. I feel like we learned a lot about Nick today, Greg.

I mean same, I don't know if people don't. We go back pretty far with Nick. How when when were you hired Nick?

I mean the first time or the second time?

The first time, because I believe I was the one who did the hiring.

Hired. I hired Nick shook back in the day.

Way back in the year twenty fourteen.

So like we've got that's what I realized.

Like Dan, we've been around at this company long time, you've you've been around even longer.

But we've both both been there, been doing this job a lot.

Like I still think of shooking Patrick Clayban, for instance, as like, oh, yeah, they're kind of new arrivals. It's like, no, it's been nine years now for both of them.

We're like two like old ass like Gandalf wizard types, just like survivors that see everyone as kids at this point, right.

But the reality Shook's been in here, been there that most of the time we have too.

I'm shook by the passage of time about that.

When I walk in the newsroom in the one time I go out to LA every eighteen to twenty four months and I see one of the younger DCPs, I am also shook because that was what's me.

I remember Shook. You know, you might have hired Shook NFL, but I also signed Shook to a softball contract and his lovely are you guys married now? I know you're you're engaged now or yeah, married as soon to be wife when they were just young pups, like just falling in love on the softball field and saying, wow, these kids got a chance as we h you know, just roared to our second consecutive championship in Los Angeles.

I was going through some stuff in my basement a couple of weeks ago and pulled out my jersey and my championship.

Gorgeous were we were actually the free agent class. You were like, you were like, I'm trying to think of a great GM in history. You know, you were making some great sign means that year. Me and Schuck really added to the added to the mix, mading sure you didn't fall off.

It was you know, it was That's why I always called Wes, Mike and Siglieri, because we put a little more thought into the roster construction than people might have realized during work hours. Probably you were the boss at the time, Greg, so we probably hit it from you. But you know, there was, you know, a lot of discussion what's the best version of the team. And when Shook hit the scene with those shoulders and the biceps, you're like, oh, we just found our number five hitter.

But I have one question for you, Dan, when you were working with WESN really charting this out and envisioning a championship, not only winning but defending roster, were you a spreadsheet guy or were you a magnet on the board type of magnet on.

The board big time. Yeah, we don't. We don't pop the hood with softball. We just said, who's a good hang who played sports at any time in their life? Who can we count on to.

Coming off the bus that's going to intimidate the other team exactly?

A big factor, A big reason for the Shield success was we were not a twenty five cabs twenty five guys at the end of the day type team, and Shook you a great addition.

I always happy to be part of it.

All Right, that's it for another edition of Around the NFL. We'll be back, Like we said, first show in first week in a while, Greg, We're going to be doing three shows next week as training camp kicks off in earnest across the league. So make sure you're there for that. Any oh final ooh, just in time before I say goodbye here, guys, I have an official statement from Bob Bates DDS retired on the Denzel Mims era in New York.

There it is, I gotta say evidence.

If you're Bob Bates, the Lions might be your number one draft pick. If ever, there was a spot that Mims could make the team, maybe make some impact. With Jamison Williams out at the beginning of the season as kind of their their deep threat guy, this is his chance. But I guess I'm not as optimistic. But I hope I'm wrong.

All Right, There we go, and it should be noted on the way out the door. Eric Roberts just chimed in our producer myself a Randy, big Randy behind the scenes, and Sean Kelly won the softball champion Chip last season with the NFL two squad. How about that? So the next the next generation carries on the dynasty. Unbelievable. Thank you.

I want to know who is the George Seaffert to year Bill Walsh, Dan.

Good questions question another time, another discussion. All right until next week.

He's a call.