The Season with Peter Schrager: Two Seans, a Kliff, and a Handful of Coaching Vacancies (Part 1)

Peter Schreeger. This is the season with Peter Schreeger, and we are now into the playoffs and I'm already so fired up for the week that is ahead in football. We're gonna get to the games. But I wanted to start going through some coaching stuff. I've got really close relationships with a lot of these guys and I want to empty the bag and I haven't done it on Good Morning Football. It's Tuesday's fluid, of course, but let's let's get to the big ones. Uh. Let's start was

Shawan Payton. He was great last week on the podcast. We got a lot of great feedback, made a little news with him saying stuff about New Orleans and it's not looking to go back there. And then also the Brady history with him and that they're most likely to work together at Fox as opposed to somewhere else. Then on Sunday, I was on Fox NFL Kickoff with him, and uh are great producers there were like, that was a good podcast you did with I want to we reenact that and ask him things more up to date

because there was news overnight and we did. But I'll go to Saturday night, Sean pay and Chris and Thompson and I went to dinner in Los Angeles. Um. The three of us had a nice long dinner and we just chatted about life, careers and then Sean Payton and that was the topic. And I think it's really interesting where he's at in his life. He's really happy at Fox Sports, and I know you roll your eyes, Okay,

really happy and money is not an issue. He's gotten paid, So when you have money is not an issue and you're really happy and you're living in Manhattan beach uh and living in life where he literally was saying us last week, he walks the dogs, he plays golf, and then he still gets to be a part of a team on the weekends. It's really appealing to stay, especially at Fox where there's like a culture of you know, they treat uh, they treat their guys really good. And

Sean Payton has treated really well there. Um, He's loved and he knows he's got that as a fallback. So what would it take for him to go? Uh the appeal of returning to coaching, as he said with that great Nascar analogy, he's outside the stadium, he hears the buzz, He's no, he's gonna come back. It's just when. Um. There are things that I think, man, I don't think the money is paramount. I think situation. I think comfort.

I think his ability uh to do things his way and to be able to compete with the guys around him that he wants. So I do think that he wants to bring his own defensive coordinator. I don't think I'm speaking out of turn that I think he'd want to bring some of his front office guys. Not saying he would fire a GM and it's already there, but I think he would want some of his guys and he's got a lot of years of experience working in organizations and people he trusts, and he would want to

bring them. One thing I think is really important. I don't think quarterback is like this end all be all for Sean talked about it. I said Russell Wilson's name on Sunday and he didn't shudder, he didn't. And his point was they didn't have a quarterback in New Orleans and he got there and no one wanted Drew Brees. And yeah, that might have been lightning in a bottle. But guess what. Drew Brees went down. Teddy Bridgewater went five and oh for the Saints a couple of years ago,

and they went to the playoffs. Um last year, Jameis Winston went down. They had a rotating door of Taysom Hill, of Ian Book of Trevor Simeon. Guess what they were into till Week eighteen when they were finally eliminated at the end. Like, I don't think Sean looks at the quarterback position as the end all be all, and he's never had a Justin Herbert or a Josh Allen. He's

never had one of those guys. But I honestly look at the availability of Sean pay and and also the matches that he would make like that Denver's gotta be appealing. Owners are willing to spend money on the team. Forget his salary. The team, I don't know if you guys saw this Week eighteen already eliminated. They put four thousand dollars into the field for just Week eight teen in Denver to make sure the playing surface was that it was was up to snuff. Um. Not every team does that.

That's a real commitment to winning, and that's putting your money where your mouth is. I think that's appealing. I think working for UH an owner that wants to win that badly or wants to put the best product on the field is something that is appealing. I haven't heard of any other teams reach out to the Saints to to get the permission to speak to Sean, But I would imagine of the different vacancies, I would think Arizona.

I don't know if he's gonna go to Arizona. That's so many question marks there, especially with the fact that uh, you know, you also have to build from the bottom, and there's a quarterback that you're married to for all that time that he doesn't know what Kyler Murray. So

let's say Arizona is one Houston. All those draft picks they have the second in the twelfth pick, they have an empty quarterback was and the negatives are the Houston Texans franchise has been more about the last few years, and you'd have to really build that thing from the bottom up. But it's no worse than what New Orleans was in when he got there. And the last one's Carolina.

And I think a very important point that he made on Fox with Me on Sunday with Sean Payton was it's okay, I will coach in the division, and I think the Saints would trade me within the division if the if the compensation is right, and he cited that Bill Parcels went from the Patriots to the Jets. He cited that Bill Belichick went from UH temporarily with the Jets to the Patriots. There have been interdivision trades before

of coaches. It has been done, and it seemed from his indication on Fox Sunday that I don't know if he's had conversation with Mickey Loomis, but they'd at least be listening to what Carolina had to offer. You look at all those destinations right now, and I could be missing one. Am I missing one of them? That vacancy, Oh, Indianapolis, I don't see Indianapolis. I'm just dismissing that. I just I don't I don't think Sean would. I don't know. That just seems like a different kind of deal. Um,

thank you for that, Aaron. I forgot the Colts Right now, As of Tuesday morning, the Cardinals and the Panthers and the Texans have not asked or have gotten permission from the Saints to speak with Shaanpagne. Only Denver has. But I think all four of those are in play. But here's the wild card. And again, I talk all the time with Paine. He has not told me this straight out, but I know his history. I know his relationship with that city where he lived for many years and coached.

If the Dallas job opens up, I think that's the front runner. That would That would take a lot, That would take McCarthy having a colossal failure on Monday. I think it would take a lot. And again, I'm not speaking on behalf of Sean Page. And I just think all these other options you can be vinced on, you can you can twist your Dallas. It's like, all right, former Cowboys offensive coordinator, great relationship with Jerry Jones, lived

in Dallas, raised his kids, in Dallas. Um, certainly something to watch alright, one sewn down? How about the next? Sean McVeigh. Everyone's asking me about McVeigh. Spoke with Hi yesterday. Anyone who tells you that this is a decision has been made is a crooking, a liar, because it has as of Tuesday. Sean McVeigh not fickle, but certainly not someone who's gotta take yet right now. And I knew this for a couple of weeks, and the Rams knew this for a couple of weeks. He's burnt out. We

talked about it. Um, you want to go through the field stuff. Well, yeah, on the coaching field, he has had NonStop since seventeen, just you know, pedal to the metal, got the super Bowl, and you think that this would be this great like feeling of of joy and all right, I've accomplished something. He's not wired that way. So it was right back to work and there really was no

time off. And I think that these injuries, you know, all coming at the same time, and then him trying to muster the same sort of energy and same sort of zest that he had the year before this year was difficult. And he's turned that inward. This is real like psychology stuff that we're talking about now, this is real mental health stuff. These are the conversations they didn't have when Parcels walked away from the Giants, or when we've seen countless coaches leave at their peak and then

maybe hint to come back. And the burnout factor is really strong with Sean. The question is is he so burnt out that he needs time away. Here's how I would envision if he was to step away, going I think I'm fine saying this, and this is why they pay me on a podcast. You know. They want stuff that's different than just what I've said everywhere else. So here we go the plan that I would see, and this is talking to multiple sources within the RAMS and with Sean, that makes the most sense if he were

to walk away, was it goes away. He's still involved with the team in some capacity, whether that be assisting with the draft or popping in here and there, but he would have conversations with the RAMS and how that would go. And they do hire either an interim coach from internal, which would be like a Rahey Morris or someone like that, or they hire an external coach who's willing going and knowing this might just be a one

year deal, and look, it might be forever. McVay might never come back, but I think the expectation is that he eventually would come back and just needs some time away. Whether that's one season, two seasons, I don't know, but that one season would give a coach who might not get a head coaching opportunity elsewhere, the opportunity to show

his chops. That might give a coach that doesn't necessarily have the name um that that other coaches in the league already have who are interviewing, give them a chance to put them on the radar. I would imagine the coaching hire would be inspired and would have input from not only Sean McVeigh um, but from a lot of different people within the Rams organization. Could be internal, could be external. Could be someone who's used to work for the Rams and is now somewhere else and is looking

to get back with the Rams um. But I think, no matter what, if Sean takes a year away or he stays, that important period right now before the draft is going to be spent on mental health, spent on recharging the batteries, and spent on re prioritizing what he wants to do. And this guy's only thirty six, he has no kids, but he's got a lot of responsibilities within that building and also a lot of stuff that's been going on in his life. I don't he would

mind me sharing that. Um, his grandfather was his mentor, his grandfather was his beacon as far as football goes, and his grandfather's passing, uh was not sudden, but was something that really affected him. I also think his wife's family, many of whom are in Ukraine right now. The handling of how do you manage that on a day to

day basis, that's not a one week thing. That is an ongoing thing, and the toll that that has taken on not only his wife, Veronica's family, but his his own being and every day, you know, having to try to get the good news coming there and whether that's coming or not, and what he can do to help, and how to be a better husband and better family member. All that stuff is real, uh. And there's a lot of other little things paper cuts along the way that

would add up. But the truth of the matter is he has been NonStop football seven since he got the job in and you can say, all these guys are, but I think that he has enough self awareness to know. And the flip side is he also has enough self awareness to know. The longer this drags on, the more this puts other coaches in a bad position looking for jobs, or this puts his players in a weird position knowing whether they want to come back to the Rams or not,

And it puts a team in a tough position. So I would imagine before the Super Bowl or combine will have a better ideal. But I don't think he's gonna make a decision in the next couple of days. That's the McVeigh deal. Lastly, Kingsbury spoke to him for about an hour yesterday. Again, I don't think I'm betraying his confidence in me telling you this. I said, it was

actually a really good conversation with bid Will. Uh. Mr Bidwill came in and like he had a really emotional farewell, Like bid Will and Cliff really got along, and Cliff really liked bid Will. Um four and thirteen was just not the season that the Cardinals expected and someone has to pay for that, and it looks like it's going to be the head coach. But I thought Bidwill's comments were classy. Afterwards, he said, uh, you know, no one

works harder. I've never been around a harder working coach. Again, same thing. And I'm not saying because Cliff is single and you know it doesn't have a wife and doesn't have a family, and that this is like what his But Kingsbury lived at the Arizona Cardinals building. And you might say, well, well, how they only win four games. Let's just go real quick through this thing. A quarterback gets the injury, he goes down. You know, they were making things work with Colte McCoy for a while. He

goes down. They go to Mexico City, the offensive line coach gets in some some drama there. They get back the GM. Uh, you know, it takes a leave of absence, and that leave of absence ended up being for the rest of the season, and eventually that's that for him. So you're talking about no offensive line coach, no quarterback, no GM. And you know Kingsbury didn't say a word. He didn't once, you know, say w wait a second, this is not fair or make excuses. He just kind

of ate it and he'll eat it. And guess what he'll eat guaranteed paychecks for the next five years. This is the part I think people don't even know when to talk about the NFL coaching situation. The contracts are guaranteed, so in one way, talking to Cliff yesterday, there was this feeling of, you know, we didn't get it done, and also I feel bad for my assistant coaches because you know, it's all they have to uproot their lives. But on the other end of it is I didn't

ask to get fired. I didn't quit, and now I get five years of guaranteed paychecks until seven. That means every two weeks a direct deposit hits and it comes from the Arizona Cardinals until Uh. He's very quick to say, don't cry for me, I'll be all right, and he's gonna do his best to make sure those assistant coaches land somewhere on new staffs. He's not doing anything until those guys all find their footing somewhere. Uh. But Kingsbury, I don't think he's rushing to get back to coaching.

Everyone's talking about him going to the Patriots being offensive coordinator. I don't see that. I think he's gonna take some time. It's been a grueling twelve months for him. Uh, and he's getting paid out, so it's a paid vacation. He's gonna use it and he'll assess what he wants to do next. Contract wise, it's interesting in his deal there's offset language. So say he was to go and Aaron, give me any NFL team that needs an offensive you

might want an offensive coordinator. You just name any team, really, Okay, So say the Colts they hire um, you know whoever, they hire Hardball as their coach. I'm just putting that out there, and Hardball hires Kingsburyer's offensive coordinator. And money wise, let's say I don't know what Cliff was making. Let's say Cliff was making three million dollars with the Cardinals, all right, and let's say the Colts say, will give you one million to be our offensive coordinator. The Cardinals

still have to pay him the two million. It offsets, so it's it's abtracted from what you're making with that team, and then you get that money left over. So even if he was to take you know, five thousand dollars to be an offensive lot and offensive coordinator or a quarterback coach, the Cardinals have to then eat the rest of that cost. It's it's wild. You know a lot of people are like, why isn't Adam Gates. We haven't

heard from Adam Gates. Adam Gaze was doing that with two teams with the Jets and Dolphins, Like it's it's the truth, Like Adam Gates was making a lot of money the last few years. And it's just what it is. When you're a fired head coach, you're gonna be okay financially. When you're a fired offensive coordinator or a fired offensive line coach, right, it's not the same. You're not making the same money and some of those contracts aren't as guaranteed.

But uh, Kingsbury's gonna be all right. I don't know about that job. And I really like the Cardinals organization. I think bid Will is a good man and I think he wants to win. And look, he's eating these costs. He knows how much it costs. To fire Cliff is a real bold move because you're ripping off the band aid. But the fans wanted it and it was time to start a new But you gotta find a GM, gotta

find a coach. Kyler is probably not ready for the start of the season, and you're looking at a roster that has, you know, DeAndre Hopkins probably at a different stage of his career than he was. You're looking around, you're like, all right, we got two linebackers the last couple of drafts, and Zaven Collins and and uh Isaiah Simmons who haven't really developed in the way that you'd expect first round players to do. Like, I don't see

what's there. So again, true rebuild, great place to live, Arizona, low pressure market. So you kind of like that if you're a coach, knowing that it's you're gonna have some time to at least get your footing. But between Indianapolis, Houston, Arizona, Denver, Carolina, UM, it'll be interesting over the next few days. The one name I would mention and we haven't had him on the podcast yet, and I kind of regret not getting him on, and I think he's gonna be a head

coach is Ben Johnson, the offensive coordinator of the Lions. Um. I'm just hearing a lot of good things, and I think the way that they came out and performed uh Sunday against the Packers in a game that they were technically eliminated from and then giving it. They're all at Green Bay. How about this. I'd be very surprised if Ben Johnson isn't it a a head coach. And I know people want to say, well, what about this guy? What about that guy? I'm not I'm not look, I'm not

weighing in on anything about other guys. I'd be surprised if thirty six year old offensive coordinator math major in college played quarterback at North Carolina like you you could, and then was with Dolphins and Dan Campbell got him here in uh, of course, in in Detroit, and he's been outstanding and creative and he's a communicator, so not a household name. But I'd say, if we're doing this at Super Bowl Week, I would be surprised if Ben

Johnson wasn't a quarterback. Guys. We've got a sponsor to this season with Peter Schreeger. I'm told that's great news. Uh. And it's DraftKings, who I've been partners with for many years, UH through the NFL Network and Good Morning Football. Let's get into the playoff preview presented by DraftKings Sports Book. I'm gonna focus on one game, and that is Seattle in San Francisco. Right now, we're looking at the point spread,

as the forty Niners are ten point favorites. The over under is forty two and a half, and if you want to be real bold, the money line is a plus four hundred for Seattle and minus five hundred for San Francisco. I'm gonna focus on one player and one player only, and that is brock Purty. I went on Good Morning Football on on Tuesday morning of this week and I said that brock Purty should be the offensive rookie of the year, and I got scoffed, I got laughed at. Jason McCurdy almost threw a pen at me

because party has played five games. But I think what brock Purty has done over the last five weeks is as impressive as anything that any rookie has done over the whole entire seventeen game season. Bertie came in in the most adverse situations, thrown into the mix as a Mr. Irrelevant last pick in the draft, and not only has exceeded his expectations, He's been better than Trey Lance, He's been better than Jimmy Garoppolo, and he has the forty

Niners offense playing it's best football of the year. I know this is division rivalry. I know that Seattle and San Francisco has a ton, a ton of history. I also know that San Francisco is likely going to wax the Seahawks this weekend. No Jordan Brooks on the defensive

side for Seattle. Rock Purty getting more and more confidence as the week goes on, and I think brock Purty is a strength, not a weakness for the San Francisco forda Nanits You're gonn see a lot of analysis this week saying well, it's brock Purty's inexperience, going into how many rookies do the Seahawks have. They have two rookies that offensive tackle, They've got Kenneth Walker, They've got to Requall, and they've got boy A mafe Gino Smith doesn't isn't

exactly Tom Brady with his playoff experience. And I think that San Francisco is gonna be rocking early Saturday. Fans are gonna come out and droves. I love the Seahawks fan base. This game was being played in Seattle like it was a few Thursday nights ago. Maybe I say Seattle as a shot, but uh, I might regret this decision and being so blunt about this. I think the forty Niners take care of business, and I think brock

Purty has a day. That was the playoff preview presented by Draft Kings sports Book download the Draft Kings sports Book app and used the code the Season type that in the season, new customers can bet five dollars of Super wild Card weekend and get two hundred in free bets instantly only a Draft Kings sports book with the code the season tony one and over in most eligible states,

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Eligibility in terms of sports book dot Draft Kings dot com slash football terms. I wanted to put all this in a separate podcast than my guest for this week. So this is part one. We're going to title that. I think two. Shawn's a cliff and a bunch of coaching vacancies. I like that, errands at work and no sounds good. Yeah, he's nodding all right. Part two is going to be an awesome interview with one of my

favorite people in the world. Stay on the feed. Uh Brandon Bean is going to take us through the last week. He has said he's the GM of the Buffalo Bills. Thanks for listening, everybody, click on Part two coming up right now. Yeah. Yeah. The Season with Peter Schrager is a production of the NFL and partnership with I Heart Radio. For more podcasts from my Heart Radio, visit the i Heart Radio app, Apple Podcasts, wherever you get your podcasts.