If the first third of the season is about deciphering fact from fiction, and the middle third is about learning who teams really are, the final third is about the playoff push. The final third of the season begins in Week 13, and we've got five great games that are going to help us determine what the early stages of that playoff push look like. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen preview those games on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Chargers-Falcons preview Steelers-Bengals previ...
Nov 29, 2024•1 hr 12 min
The college football regular season is winding to a close, which means our discussions around the 2025 NFL Draft are heating up. Dane Brugler joins Robert Mays to check in on where the class stands on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also discuss the rookie campaigns being put together by Drake Maye, Brock Bowers, Jared Verse and Bo Nix. Before all that, though, The Athletic's Chargers beat reporter Daniel Popper gets on the mic with Robert to recap the Ravens' win over the C...
Nov 26, 2024•1 hr 47 min
On the 49ers-Packers broadcast in Week 12, Tom Brady said that teams aren't who they really are until Thanksgiving. We might not be at Turkey Day quite yet, but it's a late Thanksgiving this year, so we can make an exception. We saw a whole lot of true colors on the field in Week 12. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen are here to break it all down on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Eagles dominate Rams Packers run game...You Have My Attention! Seahawks defense...You Have My Atten...
Nov 25, 2024•1 hr 40 min
If you're the type of NFL fan who wants to watch every game, you've tuned into at least seven different networks and streamers this season. It isn't likely that sort of market segmentation is going away any time soon. So how will we be watching football in 2030, 2040 and beyond? Robert Mays is joined by Andrew Marchand, The Athletic's senior sports media columnist, to dive deep into the NFL broadcasting future on this episode of The Money Down, a special four-part miniseries on the business of t...
Nov 23, 2024•1 hr 1 min
Week 12 marks the end of the middle-third of the regular season and pushes us into the start of the stretch run toward the playoffs. What better way to celebrate that than with the third meeting between the Harbaugh brothers as head coaches in the NFL? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen kick off the Week 12 preview episode of The Athletic Football Show by digging into Ravens-Chargers and 49ers-Packers. The guys also highlight one thing apiece from Eagles-Rams and Cardinals-Seahawks, consider the pla...
Nov 22, 2024•1 hr 25 min
Look, not everyone can be a Super Bowl contender. Plenty of teams aren't even playoff contenders. More than half the league misses the playoffs, and many of those teams are bad. Some are very bad. But that doesn't mean they can't take something from the 2024 season. Robert Mays and Conor Orr from Sports Illustrated and the MMQB find silver linings for those bad teams on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Texans-Cowboys MNF recap Jets fire Joe Douglas Silver lining for the 2024 J...
Nov 19, 2024•1 hr 44 min
The Bills-Chiefs rivalry delivered yet again, with the Bills handing the Chiefs their first loss of the season. The Ravens-Steelers rivalry delivered, too, and now the Steelers find themselves in command of the AFC North. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into those games, plus the Broncos statement win over the Falcons, the befuddling 49ers—as well as the broader picture of the NFC West—Anthony Richardson's triumphant return, and a whole lot more on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. ...
Nov 18, 2024•1 hr 35 min
Justin Jefferson: Four years, $140 million. CeeDee Lamb: Four years, $136 million. Amon-Ra St. Brown: Four years, $120 million. A.J. Brown: Three years, $96 million. The market for wide receivers has exploded in recent years. But what about the players tasked with slowing them down...the cornerbacks? Their market has stagnated. Moreover, the position that defined cool in the era of Deion Sanders seems almost devoid of superstars in 2024. What happened to the star cornerback? Robert Mays explores...
Nov 16, 2024•1 hr
Chiefs-Bills week has become a hallmark of the Patrick Mahomes/Josh Allen era, and the 2024 edition is upon us. But hey, there's more! The first Ravens-Steelers game of the season is on Sunday, too. Seahawks-49ers, Falcons-Broncos and Bengals-Chargers, oh my! Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into all that, and a whole lot more, on a jam-packed Week 11 preview episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Commanders-Eagles recap Game of the Week: Chiefs at Bills Game of the Week: Ravens at Ste...
Nov 15, 2024•1 hr 37 min
The best time to hand out midseason awards is one week beyond the halfway point of the season. Everybody knows this. Bill Barnwell of ESPN joins Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen to do just that on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys discuss Lamar's possible third MVP, the potential of Mike Tomlin winning his first—yes, first—Coach of the Year Award, and a whole lot more. Rundown Dolphins-Rams recap Bears fire Shane Waldron Offensive Player of the Year Defensive Player of the Year ...
Nov 12, 2024•1 hr 35 min
The Game of the Week lived up to the billing in Week 10, with the Steelers pulling out a 28-27 win over the Commanders. That's where Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen begin the Week 10 recap episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also marvel at the Chiefs voodoo magic, highlight the Cardinals' rise, raise an eyebrow in the 49ers' direction, and discuss the rest of the developments that grabbed them on Sunday. Rundown Steelers remain atop AFC North with win over Commanders The Chiefs black ...
Nov 11, 2024•1 hr 38 min
If Bengals-Ravens is any indication of what we're going to get in the second half of the 2024 NFL season, we're in for quite the couple of months. Recapping that fireworks show is where Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen kick off this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys then move on to our Week 10 Game of the Week, Steelers at Commanders. They also discuss the Falcons offense, the Eagles defense, sneaky worries over Sam Darnold, disappointment with the Texans, Christian McCaffrey's likel...
Nov 08, 2024•1 hr 39 min
The NFL trade deadline...no longer a snoozer! We had plenty of activity in the wide receiver market over the last few weeks, and the final day before the deadline brought us plenty of meaningful deals, highlighted by Za'Darius Smith to the Lions and Marshon Lattimore to the Commanders. Robert Mays and Mike Sando wrap up deadline day, plus recap recent news and look ahead to the second half of the season, on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown The Chiefs seem awfully happy with De...
Nov 06, 2024•1 hr 15 min
We're halfway through the NFL season, and the best of the best are starting to separate. Two cases in point in Week 9...the Lions and Ravens. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into those results on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also discuss the Chargers latest win, concerns for the Bears, highlight reel plays from the Eagles, the Rams win over the Seahawks, and a whole lot more. Rundown Ravens dominate Broncos Lions handle Packers Los Angeles Chargers...You Have My Attent...
Nov 04, 2024•1 hr 35 min
Some Games of the Week sneak up on us. Others we can predict before the season even starts. Lions-Packers is one of the latter. We'll spend plenty of time between now and kickoff hoping Jordan Love is healthy enough to play and play well, but either way this is clearly the Game of the Week for Week 9. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen break that one down, dig into the Chargers defense, highlight the matchup between the Ravens offense and Broncos defense, and get into so much more about Week 9 on th...
Nov 01, 2024•1 hr 34 min
Each of this season's four first-round starting quarterbacks—Caleb Williams, Jayden Daniels, Drake Maye and Bo Nix—have shown off some highs and some lows, with the possible exception of lows from Daniels. How does all that shake out in the aggregate? Former NFL quarterback J.T. O'Sullivan, the brain behind The QB School, joins Robert Mays to break down what we've seen from the rookie quarterbacks so far this season. Before that, The Athletic's Giants beat writer Dan Duggan joins to recap the te...
Oct 29, 2024•1 hr 42 min
Alright, we'll admit it. We hand waved this week's slate back on our Week 8 preview episode. And then the league delivered one of the craziest days of the season. From the Browns upset of the Ravens, to Washington's walk-off Hail Mary against the Bears, Week 8 came through for us in a big way. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen recap the week on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Bears-Commanders silliness The Philadelphia Eagles...You Have My Attention Time for a Bengals post-morte...
Oct 28, 2024•1 hr 34 min
We're just more than a week out from the trade deadline, and we've already seen a number of impact deals. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dream up a few more that we could realistically see on this Week 8 preview episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also discuss Bills-Seahawks, the Bears defense, Eagles-Bengals and a whole lot more. Rundown Vikings-Rams recap Bills-Seahawks preview DeAndre Hopkins to the Chiefs Realistic trades we'd like to see Under the Hood: The non-Caleb parts of th...
Oct 25, 2024•1 hr 42 min
Back in August, 50 NFL coaches and executives told The Athletic's Mike Sando that Lamar Jackson is not a tier-one quarterback. Welp, so much for that. Lamar isn't the only QB playing outside his assigned tier this season. On this episode of The Athletic Football Show, Sando sits in for Robert Mays and discusses with Derrik Klassen four other quarterbacks who aren't lining up with where those coaches and execs placed them in Sando's 2024 QB tiers column. Then, the guys break down four more quarte...
Oct 22, 2024•1 hr
The Chiefs are the lone unbeaten team in the NFL as Week 7 comes to an end. They stayed that way by stifling the 49ers in a 28-18 win. The league's other undefeated team at the start of Week 7, the Vikings, suffered their first loss at the hands of the Lions, who also moved into first place in the NFC North. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen discuss those two games, plus Saquon's revenge, disappointment in the Bengals, and a whole lot more on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Lion...
Oct 21, 2024•1 hr 32 min
On paper, Week 7 is the best week of the 2024 season to date. It's highlighted by the Super Bowl rematch, that doesn't quite feel like a Super Bowl rematch, between the Chiefs and 49ers, and it doesn't stop there. Vikings-Lions, Texans-Packers and Ravens-Buccaneers would all be worthy Game of the Week choices, as well. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into all those games on this episode of The Athletic Football Show, but it is, of course, Chiefs-49ers that gets the full Game of the Week treat...
Oct 18, 2024•1 hr 35 min
Never a dull moment for the New York Jets, huh? The Athletic's Jets beat reporter Zack Rosenblatt joins Robert Mays on this episode of The Athletic Football Show to break down the tumultuous week in Jets land. Then, David Helman from Fox Sports hops on with Robert to separate all 32 teams into six tiers, from Super Bowl or Bust (think Chiefs, Ravens, Lions) to Mock Draft Enthusiasts (think Panthers, Browns, Patriots). Rundown Davante Adams traded to Jets Behind the Robert Saleh firing Super Bowl...
Oct 15, 2024•1 hr 42 min
Ravens-Commanders was the best game on paper in Week 6, and it absolutely lived up to the billing. And hey, that 0-2 start to the season for the Ravens feels like a lifetime ago, doesn't it? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen kick off the Week 6 recap on The Athletic Football Show with an in-depth look at the Ravens' win over the Commanders. The guys also talk about the disaster in Dallas, the ascendant NFC North, the suddenly relevant Chargers, and a whole lot more. Rundown Ravens take down Command...
Oct 14, 2024•1 hr 26 min
Some Games of the Week are easy to see coming. Other Games of the Week are Commanders-Ravens. And yet, that's not only the highlight of the Week 6 schedule, but one of the best games to date this season. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen go deep on the Battle of the B-W Parkway on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also dig into Lions-Cowboys, the Broncos and Packers offenses, the 49ers' win over the Seahawks on Thursday night, and a whole lot more. Rundown 49ers-Seahawks recap Co...
Oct 11, 2024•1 hr 45 min
We're used to big news dropping on Tuesdays, but this one was entirely different. The Robert Saleh firing—especially the timing of it—surprised the NFL world, and that's where Robert Mays and Diante Lee of The Ringer begin this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also recap the Chiefs' win over the Saints on Monday Night Football, dig into the Seahawks' run defense and the deteriorating situation in Cleveland, and bat around questions for three good offenses—the Texans, Bengals, 49er...
Oct 08, 2024•1 hr 37 min
Ravens 41, Bengals 38 in overtime. Texans 23, Bills 20. The Jaguars and Colts combining for 41 points in the fourth quarter. And that was all in the early window on Sunday. Yeah, Week 5 was the craziest week to date of this NFL season. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen break it all down on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Ravens beat Bengals in OT thriller You Have My Attention: Texans get huge win over Bills You Have My Attention: Caleb Williams stars in Bears' win over Panthers...
Oct 07, 2024•1 hr 42 min
Four weeks into the season, the 49ers' offense has been predictably great...but in unpredictable fashion. Four weeks into the season, the Steelers' offense has been unpredictably effective. Ravens-Bengals and Bills-Texans as the Week 5 Games of the Week? Well, yeah, not everything can be unpredictable. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen preview Week 5 across the NFL on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Buccaneers-Falcons recap Ravens-Bengals preview Bills-Texans preview What's on m...
Oct 04, 2024•1 hr 45 min
Dane Brugler makes his triumphant return to The Athletic Football Show to start laying groundwork for the 2025 NFL Draft. He and Robert Mays take a big-picture look at the class, and dig deeper into prospects who have caught Dane's eye, including Travis Hunter and Ashton Jeanty. The guys start the show by recapping Seahawks-Lions and Titans-Dolphins, and wrap it up by discussing Malik Nabers, the rookies in the Rams' defensive front and the top-two quarterbacks from the 2024 NFL Draft. Rundown T...
Oct 01, 2024•1 hr 29 min
Ravens-Bills wasn't quite the close contest we were hoping for, but it still gave us plenty to discuss about two teams that are likely among the best in the league. That's where Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen begin the Week 4 recap episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys also discuss the surging Washington football team, the 4-0 Vikings, troubles for the Jets and Eagles, a silly little game between the Falcons and Saints, and a whole lot more. Rundown Ravens trounce Bills Washington Foot...
Sep 30, 2024•1 hr 30 min
Vikings-Packers, Bills-Ravens and Seahawks-Lions highlight the 16-game Week 4 slate and, helpfully, they're all in different game windows. Now that's how you schedule helpfully for the football fan, NFL. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into those three games, plus Jayden Daniels, the Broncos front, Todd Bowles as Jalen Hurts' kryptonite, and a whole lot more on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Giants-Cowboys recap Vikings-Packers Bills-Ravens Seahawks-Lions QB Spotlight: Ja...
Sep 27, 2024•1 hr 48 min
