This episode is brought to you by all State. Some people just know they could save hundreds on car insurance by checking all State first, Like you know, to check the date of the Big Game first before you accidentally buy tickets on your twentieth wedding anniversary and have to spend the next twenty years of your marriage making up for it. Yeah, checking first is smart, So check all State first for a quote that could save you hundreds.
You're in good hands with All States Savings. Very terms apply All State Fire and Casualty Insurance Company and Affiliates, Northbrook, Illinois.
All right, Welcome in episode one thirty four, What's Right with Nick Wright? After the let's call it mixed reviews of my sweatsuit from yesterday from uh Thursday's show, I've decided I'm just gonna wear I'm gonna wear as many shows in a row some type of sweatsuit or tracksuit until I run out of it. They won't all be exactly coordinating, monochromatic. I should say the way the first one, the way the one on Thursday was. However, it's gonna
be like this. Also, before we even get intoday Today's show, I'd like to say something about the local radio business. If I will, if I may, and I may. So I'm a radio guy through and through. I've done television now for amazingly God. I got hired by Fox April twentieth of twenty sixteen, so almost seven years. I'm a month away from seven years at Fox. But I did radio in college in Syracuse. I did radio for five years in Kansas City. I did radio for four years
in Houston. During the TV show, I did two years of mad Dog Radio. And that's why I like doing this podcast. This podcast has a radio feel to it, and sometimes the local radio industry is just maddening. So on two different coasts, in two different, drastically different sized markets, there were two I don't even know if you'd call them firings, but two guys were let go and both are indefensible for different reasons. One guy I know, one
guy I don't. And I just want to spend ninety seconds on it here to start the show before we get to the NFL free agency and everything. So in Syracuse, New York, Brent Axe, who has been the voice of Syracuse sports on a sports talk in a sports talk capacity, was let go yesterday or was it Sunday. It was announced yesterday, and they're not hiding what happened. The guy, the owner of the station, said he was too critical of Syracuse. Jim Beheim also happens to be an equity
owner of the station. They're doing a lot more stuff with Bayheim now the BAM's retired. And the guy put quotes in the newspaper saying he bleeded Syracuse Orange and thought Brent was too critical, which would be an embarrassing quote to give for anyone. It's particularly embarrassing when you're talking about a region or a city, most notably a school that is supposed to have the best journalism program in the country, and saying you wish Brent Axe covered
Syracuse the way he covered is the Buffalo Bills. Will the Bills my poking at them? Notwithstanding are going through the best period they've had in thirty years, while Syracuse football, basketball, lacrosse is going through arguably the worst period it's had in thirty years. So that I thought was mortifying. I feel sick for Brent, even though I don't know him. Then, on the other coast, Damon Bruce, who I do know, who I think is one of the three or four
or best sports talk guys in the country. He got let go by my former employer, and best I can tell, and I haven't talked to Damon, but best I can tell he was a victim of longevity and success. Damon just crushed in the ratings. He worked for the game in San Francisco, which is owned by the same company that owned the station I worked for in Kansas City and Houston, and was number one in the ratings, beating
the other station had been there a decade. And these companies because so many of the of the programmers aren't actual programmers. They're salespeople or whomever they got promoted that don't understand the value of the actual human being. To generate the ratings, to generate the success, they were like, well we got a cup budget. And again I haven't
talked to Damon. It's just my guest. He probably was making a lot of money because the show is very successful, show continue to be successful, and so they just think they're like, well, you get rid of him and Ray Ratto save the most money. That's the best show, and so listen. I'm sure Damon will land on his feet. He had probably outgrown that local radio anyway.
Maybe not.
But it's just as a guy who when I got out of college I thought I would do I would do radio and radio only forever.
Man.
Tough business. Tough business where one guy in a smaller market who has been doing it for twenty plus years gets fired for being honest, another guy in a major market gets fired for being too successful. Just brutal. All right, here's what's not on the show today. My Kansas City Chiefs signed Juwan Taylor to a huge deal. Well, in rumors they still might trade for Laramie Tunzel, which would give them far and away one of the best offensive lines in modern NFL history. We'll see if they end
up making that happen. They're letting Orlando Brown, my buddy walk, the Chargers, Austin Eckler's eyeing a trade, and the Oscars did not make the show. Does Nick watch movies? Is on the screen? I do? I love movies. One of my favorite hobbies is watching good movies. But I don't have an Oscar's take. I was actually watching during the I watched Rihanna's performance, and then other than that, I was watching the Lakers blow a game to the Knicks. All right, demand let's get the show started.
All right, man. So it's about ten forty five am on Tuesday, and we still don't know if Rogers is going to the Jets. Yeah, this is pretty low, even by his standards of always making everything about him. Uh huh. Well, the deal reportedly in place. All he has to do is make the decision yes or no, and he can't even do that if the Jets are still doing everything to get a guy doesn't even really seem like he
wants to be on the team. Sure reports of that New York is pursuing Allenzard to get his favorite wide receiver from the last team. My question is, what is the point in the Jets doing this? Doesn't it seem like it's bound to fail.
Okay, Well, the point is, and it's very simple. Last year, thirty seven quarterbacks through at least one hundred and seventy five passes. Yeah, by passer rating, the thirty fifth, thirty sixth, and thirty seventh rated. The three worst quarterbacks in the league by passer rating were Joe Flacco, Zach Wilson, Mike White, the three Jets quarterbacks. The Jets have not had competent
quarterbacking in consecutive seasons in my adult life. They had a good year of Chad Pennington, a good year of Vinnie Testaverdi, a decent year of Brett Favre, but they can't string it together, and so they are desperate for any type of quarterbacking that is not awful. Rogers is a year removed from winning league MVP, so I understand why they feel like this is the move. Do I think it will work? No? But to me, the more notable thing is this Rogers. The one thing he has
been consistent on is I won't drag this out. I understand that the Packers, the Jets, he didn't say the Jets, but the Packers and whomever else. They need to know what I'm doing before free agency starts. Free agency started yesterday, and we all know he's not retiring. Listen, if Aaron Rodgers actually retires, and because that I believe could be a torturous and difficult decision. Yeah, oh, you were watching
FS one yesterday. I promised to do that yesterday. If he actually retires, I will apologize, and more than apologize because then all understanding. But I don't think there was ever a chance he was retiring. I don't think there's a chance he's retiring. You don't fight for a new contract to walk away from the best part of the new contract, which is the sixty million guaranteed he gets
for playing this year. By the way, we'd get another forty million for playing next year, but sixty million guaranteed this year. So I believe this is just a bit of look at me, the Packers don't want it. You can argue the merits of that. But Mark Murphy, their team president, came out and said, the Packers don't you know that essentially said they don't want him. Did say, and I don't even realize after my little Syracuse thing, I'm wearing you drinking out of a Syracuse w a
R mug uh. The Packers said they're ready to turn the page to Jordan Love. They're ready, and it sucks. What sucks, that just.
Sucks with him that they ended up, you know, going with Jordan Love. That Rogers didn't abstain.
Well, I know, I think they are choosing that. I think that they want to just move on, that they're done with this drama, that antics all of it, and they need to see Jordan play. And I think but here is the problem. The problem is and let me let me grab my computer so I can get this exactly right. Uh when I say free agency opened, yes yesterday, guys, if we have seen so many deals. We saw Jalen Ramsey traded. We just saw Jacobe Meyer sign. We saw
Shaq Mason traded. We saw Taylor Heineke sign. We saw the Chiefs sign. We just mentioned him the right tackle Juwan Taylor, saw TJ. Edwards sign, We saw Tremaine Edmonds sign. We saw big deals by a lot of teams. Now, let me go to what the Jets have done on spot rank. The Jets have done nothing other than sign their own player, Quincy Williams to a contract extension and signed Greg Zerline a kicker. Okay, the Packers, let's see
what they have done. The Packers agreed to a one year, six million dollar contract with a special team or slash corner. And that's it. You know why those teams haven't done anything because they're in a holding pattern, Rogers, and if you want to end up competing for a championship with either of these teams, you want them to have the information as soon as possible. And now, if the answer is Rogers has one more ask, and that ask his sign Alan Lazard, and then all agree to a trade.
I suppose that's his prerogative, but I don't think that's the fastest path to getting him a Super Bowl.
What if he's waiting to announce his decision when he shows up on Pat McAfee's show on Tuesday, So see him doing something like that.
I that would be That would make what I'm saying here even worse. If you're making the Jets, you know, unable to participate fully in free agency, unable to like the Jets. Gotta know, do we have Aaron Rodgers? If we do, do we? I don't think they would? But do we want trade for DeAndre Hopkins? Would they have wanted to trade for Jalen Ramsey? Jalen Rams went for a third round pick, Sauce Gardner Jalen Ramsey as your
two corners. That seems fun. There's a lot of things to do, and I don't even know if he's going on McAfee today.
That was drew S's question, By the way, I mean.
I think some people are speculating that, even by Rogers standards, to me, that would be beyond all right.
Next, all right, so a lot of people like the Jets to make a playoff run if Aaron Rodgers decides to go there. But Miami made a big splash over the weekend, like you just said, trading for Jalen Ramsey. Uh, and they got to an insurance policy in Mike white Er usual. You can never count out Bill Belichi.
You can count him out out Beligium. The team says, okay, weapons they just lost j Kobe Myers to the Raiders. Maybe they're gonna trade for DeAndre Hopkins and they have far and Away. Assuming Rogers goes there by a mile, the worst quarterback in the division, you can count out the Patriots.
I say, we'll see. Okay, but none of this matters considering Buffalo's probably the overwhelming favorite to win the Super Bowl this year.
Okay, stop that. First of all, my aunt, listen, Miami's on their ass. Now, Miami was right there last year until Tua got hurt. You Now, I am not a huge to a guy, but the results were super positive obviously when he was healthy. Just for context, Well, the Bills, Wow, the Bills are I mean, there's Co's second favorites. The Chiefs are six to one, and then Eagles, Bills, Bengals, and Niners are all nine to one. So all those teams are tied at nine to one, and then the
Dolphins are down all the way at twenty eight to one. Oh, that's different to win the Super Bowl, not to win the division or AFC or anything. So the Chiefs are the favorites by a healthy margin, and then Eagles, Bills, Bengals, and Niners are all nine to one. I the Bills Leslie Fraser retired or took a year away from football as their defensive coordinator. They're losing guys in free agency as we speak. We'll see. I don't listen. Josh Allen's
going to have a lot of opportunities. However, this iteration of the Bills, their best chance might have been the last two years if you just look, or the last three years. If you look at the Bills last three years, they make the AFC Championship Game, and then the next year they don't play that well, but then they peak at the very end of the season, play amazing in the final few weeks, play a perfect game against the Patriots, have the Chiefs down with thirteen seconds left, and then
this year they end up with the two seed. They get a fourth string quarterback in Round one in Miami. Oh yeah, and then they blow a home game to the Bengals. I do wonder if they take a step backwards. Now, that doesn't mean they don't win the division. But Miami is Zavian Howard and Jalen Ramsey plus the other stuff they're doing, Miami can't be dismissed.
All right, next, all right, Josh McDaniels and the Raiders finally got their Super Bowl winning former Patriots quarterback and Jimmy g. Yeah, Jimmy had pretty solid numbers last year, and now it gets ja Kobe Myers plus Davante Jacobs and Waller. Is Vegas the team that will give your Chiefs the most trouble in the division.
The Raiders are not as serious. They got worse at quarterback what Derek Carter and Jimmy g they got.
Finally saying the Saints shouldn't have traded for.
Well, the Saints shouldn't have signed him because the Saints need to admit they're and rebuild. But I think the Jets should have signed him. I think Carl Listen Carr is the definition of a league average quarterback Jimmy's a below average quarterback, but gimme, the Raiders are the least of my words, the Raiders are likely going to finish last in that division. The Raiders, here's fun fact a few of them for you. First of all, Jimmy Garoppolo has as a starter, has spent the entire time of
his career in the NFC. Despite that, other than the Seattle Seahawks, do you know Jimmy only this unbelievable stat By the way, Jimmy only has nineteen career losses tomorrow, say four of them have come to the Chiefs. He's zero and four against the Chiefs, and the Raiders since Mahomes got there are one and nine against the Chiefs.
The one time the Raiders beat the Chiefs, they took their buses on laps around Arrowhead Stadium, and they've never beaten them since, and hadn't beat them in a couple of years prior to go ahead.
Is Jimmy g cheaper than Derek Carr. He's got to be cheaper than that.
He is cheaper than Derek Carr.
So what if this is like some two way move to then get Brady Well cheap quarterback?
The thing is Brad that Eric I said this on the show yesterday, Man Jeanie floated the idea of Brady coming back not at the beginning of the season, but later in the year. If a team suffers a quarterback injury, what is the quarterback most likely to get injured? Jimmy g O. Jimmy g has been is injured. You know, he's been injured almost every year of his career in some capacity. You add to that the oh you add to that that that the Raiders Josh McDaniels, they know
the offense. That's an offense Brad he's used to. I could see that happening at some point, But right now they're playing as Jimmy g and that's a bad plan. Flatly, that's a bad plan. Right If you're power ranking the AFC West, it's very very simple. It's the Chiefs number one with a bullet, the Chargers lingering, then a big
gap the Broncos, and then the Raiders. The Broncos are gonna get a boost because Russell won't be the worst quarterback in the AFC this year, and Sean Payton will be really good for them.
You don't think that Russell's gonna have. Like, I know, this is kind of off topic. You're right, quarterbacks, You don't think Russell's gonna have like a comeback season.
Well, I think you'll bounce back a bit. And like I said, he won't be the worst quarterback in the AFC, but I don't think he's gonna be top ten. I don't think he's gonna be very good.
All right, next, All right, the draft isn't for a few months, but the Bears are already looking like winners man It traded back to the ninth spot for a bundle of assets and are set up for the future. Now they're definitely winning eleven games again this season.
What are we showing?
Well, flashback one of your hot takes. Oh, okay, see this, this is so misleading and unfair. This was you see how we're still remote? This was.
I do a I do a thing every year where the day after the schedule comes out, I pick every single game. And that is I am not tied to that. It is not my official predictions. It is it is I go through all two hundred and seventy two games week by week, kind of agnostic of what it would mean the team's record is. I just look at Week one, and I pick winners week two, Week three, Week four, et cetera. And then at the end of it, I
see what everybody's record is. So I was not in a the Bears winning eleven games go ahead.
I was just gonna ask, I mean, what type of season did it? Because I just became like a real football Yeah, that's sure, I guess. So I asked My question was what was the Bears record the year before that?
On wasn't good, but they were starting a rookie quarterback. Two years prior, they had made the playoffs with Mitch Trubisky as their quarterback, but they had the Bears. After I did that, they tore everything down, They traded away all their players, they cleared the books, and we're not rehabbing a take that wasn't even a take.
Go ahead, all right, everybody's saying the Bears won the trade. But this means that they're choosing fields over the number one quarterback in the draft.
Yeah.
Will this Will this end up being a huge missed opportunity?
No, I think it's smart because if they are, they now have a number one receiver for fields and Dj Moore they are they have a legitimate receiving core with with DJ Moore, Chase Claypool and Mooney, they still so what they got was the ninth pick. Carolina's the ninth pick this year, a second from Carolina this year. Whi's like thirty seven or something. The Carolina's first next year that's important, and Carolina's second in two years? So why
is Carolina's first next year important? Carolina is gonna be starting a rookie quarterback. They don't have Christian McCaffer anymore, they don't have DJ Moore anymore. They're in a rebuild, so they're gonna be terrible next season. They are probably gonna have a top five pick next season, but that goes to the Bears. So now, what the Bears can do is barely evaluate justin fields and next year, if he's no good, they'll have a good draft pick plus
Carolina's good draft pick. They can then draft their quarterback next year. If not, if he is good, right off into lineman the ninth pick of the draft. And if he is good, you can then use those two picks next season to upgrade the defense or do whatever you want. So I think this was smart by the Bears. They traded down a lot. Now you could have traded with the Colts at four, but you wouldn't have got what
they got. Carolina is number one next year, which is intensely valuable because Caroline's gonna be starting a rookie quarterback and not any good a second rounder, A good second rounder from Carolina this year, which is valuable, a future second rounder which is semi valuable. And Dj Moore, who if you tried to trade for Dj Moore, you'd probably have to trade a late first. So they got the ninth pick this year, the equivalent of a future first.
And Dj Moore because that's what you would add trade for him, and what I think will be a great first round pick next year. And two seconds. That's as good as you could have done. Now, you need Justin Fils developed as a passer, but I like Justin fields and is an athlete, and you just gotta be a
little more refined as a passer. And the other part for me is this, I would feel like it was a huge missed opportunity of Caleb Williams within this year's draft, the quarterback from USC that won the Heisman this past year, who I think is going to be a superstar, but Bryce Young's too small. Ohio State quarterbacks don't have a good track record in the NFL. Let's c J. Stroud. And then there's Anthony Richardson who is intriguing, but number one overall picks seems a stretch for me. So if
there was, I think they made the right move. I like it, and I understanding Carolina finally saying, all right, let's go get our quarterback. All right, quick break, don't forget you guys. Canna ask questions, We'll answer them the C block, We got some games play and I go over my all NBA ballot, next, What's right?
This episode is brought to you by Unstoppable. Discover the inspiring true story about Anthony Roblast, who defined every expectation to become a national wrestling champion, and Unstoppable, a new original movie from Amazon MGM Studios and director William Goldenberg. Evoking the excitement and camaraderie of classic sports and thrilling wrestling matches. Unstoppable features an all star ensemble cast including Jerrel Jerome, Jennifer Lopez, Don Cheatle, Michael Panya, and Bobby Kanavalli.
Watch Unstoppable now exclusively on Amazon Prime Video all.
Right, Welcome back in what dry with Nick? Right? Episode one?
Four?
Uh, demand before we get to the game or whatever game we're playing today. I think it's right or wrong. Talk a little wall, NBA.
All right, the MVP debate is front and center, no pun intended. That's boring since obviously Yokic should win.
I don't think yok is gonna win.
You think it Beat's gonna win.
I think is gonna win. I you know, if you have a boat, you're not allowed to gamble on it. The NBA, egregiously won't give me a vote. I don't understand why. I don't understand how am I not one of the one hundred most qualified people, probably the way.
You're talking about the future three time MVP.
Okay, well okay maybe uh But because I don't have a vote, I can gamble on it, and I bet I got. I made two big NBA bets yesterday. Really yeah, I did futures. So I bet a significant amount on EMBIID to win MVP at plus three hundred. I think right now it's a coin flip. Right now, I think it's like forty five percent EMBIID forty five percent, Jokic ten percent, Yarns and I got embid at three to one. I also bet the Lakers to win the title. What do you you're laughing at me? What do you think? Okay,
you're laughing. Just wait a second. What do you think? I got him at.
What's sixteen to thirty two to one, forty nine to one?
Yeah, dude, forty nine to one, forty nine to one to one. Say, this is this is the old Adam?
Uh?
What's the Adam Sandler? This is how I win? Meme? Seeing that Oh from have you not seen Uncut Gyms?
No?
Oh, you would love that movie now that you're a gambler. Oh, you got to go watch it on Netflix as soon as you get home today. Kevin Garnett's in it. It was really good. It's stressful. That movie is stressful. But you know how I was this close to winning that fifty thousand on the Chiefs Niners Super Bowl exacta.
As you were drunk at two in the morning on some random what do you mean me? No, the how'd you come from?
No, that's how you lost you? No, the Chiefs Niners Future from before the year. I picked it and I wouldn't hedge out of it. Our whole season long bet. Yeah, I put a thousand bucks on the Lakers at forty nine to one, So that's not that's forty So I'm just letting you know, and I won't hedge out of it. But I like the Lakers chances right now. But that's either here or there. Let's get at the All NBA stuff.
The more interesting debate may just be the All NBA debate. Yeah, you released your ballot on Twitter. Do your best rationalize having Lebronz, Steph and Katie on there while all while missing half the season.
Okay, so let's go. Let's go through. Uh, let's go through the list here of what we've got the for the All NBA. What my tweet was? Okay, so my tweet what was a lot can change in the final month. As of now, my All NBA teams would be So I am going to go with the traditional rules that a center is a center. So I'm not putting Jokic and in Bid both on my first team. I know they pardon me. They changed the rules last year so
you could. But that's ridiculous, Jokic, you'r All NBA teams should theoretically be able to take the court together, and Jokic and Embiid would never be on the court together. Neither one of them will forward, so you have to choose between them. So I went Embiid center. Some of these are obvious. Tatum's got to be a first team forward, Giannis has to be a first team forward, Embiid or Jokic have to be a first team center, and Luke has to be a first team guard. So that then
leaves one guard spot available. I'm rewarding winning how clutch he has been. Daron Fox gets my last first team guard spot. As of now, they are are they still the two seater? Did they fall technically to the three line? Last night? They're the three seed by a game. He's been outstanding. I don't think there's gonna be a lot of argument there. Now we get to second team, so Jokicic is the center. It's either Jokic, Embiad and Beaid. Jokic is the center. We'll get to Lebron the forwards
in a moment. Durant, well, so here's the problem, So well let me get there. Okay, So this is where I say it can change, because right now, when it comes to games play, So the Lakers have played sixty six games, right, sixty eight games. Lebron's played forty seven, okay, Steph has played forty three, Durant has played forty two. All right, you out of six forty seven forty five forty two out of sixty six is barely enough, but enough forty seven forty five, forty two out of eighty
two is not enough. You gotta play at least a little more, you know, more than half the season, So Durant could fall off it. If Durant doesn't come back at all, Steph is healthy and playing, we'll see how much longer Lebron's gonna miss? Can we throw that back on the screen though the All NBA ballot right now? Though all of those guys have played enough in my opinion to qualify. So Lebron was underrated, how exceptional he was despite the roster being fully broken to start the year,
despite the fact that Anthony Davis was out injured. Lebron for the season is thirty points, eight rebound, seven assists on better than fifty percent from the field. Now Durant is similar numbers, worst passing more efficient. However, Durance missed more time and I am flatly and I think it's fair gonna ding you a bit for demanding a trade from a team you built like. So there's that. Plus he's played less, so that's Lebron over Durant. Jimmy Butler,
Lauri Markinin. Lari Markinin's numbers are better. I have Jimmy Butler's second team. Lauri markin in thirteen numbers are better. Jimmy is such a winning player and if you watched last night, a defensive play to help win the game he hit. He never shoots threes. He had huge three last night. To me, he's just one of the fifteen best guys in the league. And now there really and then guys big men who missed or frontcourt guys who missed.
Kawhi missed. Kawhi is close. Kawhi has only played forty one games and his numbers are only twenty four points per game. But since mid January he's been unbelievable. But because he's played so little and a lot of those games who's on a minute restriction, he just misses and Bam misses. Because I think the Kings deserve two guys, and Demontes Sabonis has been awesome, so Demontes gets my final center spot.
So Kawhi could take Durant's spot in a few get more games.
Yes, absolutely, Kahi absolutely could take Throw that back on the screen again, guys, Sorry, Kawhi absolutely could take Durant spot. In fact, I would anticipate he might take Durant spot. And then there's the guard stuff and it's the hardest. So Steph has been unbelievable for a bad team. He's carried them. I know he's missed time, but he's one of the greatest players ever. He's having an awesome season. He's averaging thirty a game. He's shooting forty four percent
from three. He's averaging thirty six and six. Donovan Mitchell has been the difference for the Cavs this year. He's giving you also around thirty a game and then Dame his team stinks is the problem. But he is averaging thirty to a night and shooting thirty eight percent from three. And I think James Harden's been underrated in what he's done with Philly, and Philly could win the title. Harden
this year. I think people are discounting him. His scoring is down, but he's twenty two point six rebounds eleven assists on four and three, and the Sixers deserve two guys. But that does leave Sga off it entirely, which feels unfair, but they also are now losing a lot. Jalen Brown doesn't make it and Anthony Edwards doesn't make it. Sga was the hardest one to leave off. Maybe I end up taking Dame off for him, but I do think Dame's better than him. But that's my all NBA as
of now. It can James, there's a month left.
Can you bet on all NBA?
Maybe I've never seen it, but maybe you can't. Oh sure, All right, let's go to the game.
All right, today we're playing right or wrong? First up, we got with Rogers assumedly going to the Jets and the Dolphins signing Mike White to an Inevita in that place. Yeah to At some point, where does that leave Mac Jones right or wrong? Back? Jones is the fifth best quarterback in the AFC East.
Well, I actually think right, but not because of Mike White, because I think Zappi is better than him. I think it's Josh Allen, Tua Well, Josh Allen, Rogers and Tua Zappi. Mac Jones, So I think that's right. Fifth best quarterback in the AFCs. Next, jeez, with uh.
With Rogers and Brady out of the NFC, the conference's quarterback situation is looking pretty dicey, right or wrong? The second best quarterback in the NFC is Jared Goff.
Yeah so no, no, no, no, no, he's not so if we're just gonna say, Jalen Hurts is one, DA's gotta be two. Yeah, Stafford's gotta be three. He was out injured this year. Stafford's gotta be three. And then and then I don't know. Golf is in the gino. Golf fields are all in the discussion. I'm leaving someone out that you want to include Daniel Daniel, your guy Dan? All right? Next?
Uh? The forty nine ers signed the top defensive lineman and free agency and stayed away from the quarterbacks. That means that they have full belief in Lance party right or Lance or party yep, right right or wrong? Trey Lance will hold back to forty.
Nine Ers wrong. If he's healthy, They're gonna be really good guys. They went to a Super Bowl and an NFC championship game with Jimmy Garoppolo. They then went to an NFC championship game with Brock Purty, the final pick of the draft as a rookie.
The idea, I think Rock Party would nice though, Wait no.
I don't know. I don't think he was very good Rock Party. I think he played well because Shanahan's offenses quarterback proof. I think Trey Lance will be an upgrade for them if Trey Lance is healthy. That's why I picked them to go to the super Bowl. If Trey Lance is healthy, I believe, well, I just I mean, he's played fine in his opportunities except for the Monsoon game against the Bears to Week one this year, He's
had very limited opportunities. I believe in the talent, and I believe a mobile, mobile running quarterback in Shanahan's system could be unbelievable.
Next I'm excited to see it. Yeah, all right. Reports out that Tom Brady's replacement in Tampa could be your old Powell Baker Mayfield. Ready to buy a bit of right, ready to buy a bit more Baker's dock right or wrong. Baker will be the start the Bucks starter week.
One, so that's interesting one. I think he will be, and they do still have good receivers, and I think that's a good buy low Chris Godwin, I think it's a good by low opportunity. I don't think they'll be very good. They're you know, they're slowly trying to rebuild. They just traded Jack Mason. But I think I think Baker could be fine there if he can stay up right.
Next, all right, your crusade against the Saints cap decisions and Derek Carr may have made you public enemy number one in New Orleans. Right or wrong, Saints fans are now the number one nick right haters.
Well, I Saints fans are being misled by Saints media. I I and the Saints media. Guys, we all know what's happening here. And I'm not going to name names, but I had three separate prominent national media people DM me yesterday when I was in this tet, a tet with Saints media, saying to various degrees, get them. These people are insufferable. Uh. And guys, we all know what's happening.
Mickey Loomis and or Dennis Allen feed you information so you feel beholden to them, so you defend what is indefensible. And these guys acting like oh, you just don't understand what the Saints do with the cap. Yes, I do, pardon me that. It's very simple what the Saints do with the cap. Let me explain it briefly. What the Saints do with the reason they can owe they're in terrible cap shape, but now they're okay, is they convert salary into signing bonus. Salary must hit the cap that year.
Signing bonus can be pro rated over the life of a contract. So if a guy is scheduled to make twenty million dollars in salary this year, he's a twenty million dollar cap hit. Okay, But if you turn that into one million in salary and a twenty million or nineteen million dollars signing bonus, you can then divvy that
up over the remainder of the contract. Say he has four years left on the deal million five million, five million, five million, and now this year, all of a sudden, he's a six million dollar cap your salary plus this year's signing bonus. The problem is the bill comes due. The problem is eventually every dollar you pay a player must be accounted for in some year's cap, and the same thing like, oh well, the cap goes up and
we add void years. So void years are too nerdy to get into, but it's essentially fake years on the end of a deal that you can tack that signing bonus pro ration onto. But the player when those years come, they're not on their they're not under contract anymore, so then they hit your cap that year. I understand it very very well. It is of the many things you could try to gotcha on me? Gotcha nick on me is understanding the finances and the mechanisms of salary caps
is not one of them. It's not astrophysics, guys. It's basic accounting practices. And what the Saints have done is continually kick the can down the road, so this year
they can feel the most competitive team possible. The problem is, as they're walking down that road, they keep stumbling over previous kicked cans, and those Once a player is no longer on your roster, that pro ration hit you instantly, so you have what's called dead money, which is salary cap space allocated to players who are not on your team. It hits you that season, so two years ago, because they had done I understood them doing all of this. By the way, when you have a Hall of fame
quarterback at the end of his career. You should go for it. You should say I'll pay this bill later. Let's get as many great players on the team right now as possible. That's what they're with Breeze. But then Breeze retired, and they had all these bad contracts and most notably Breeze's money came on the books, so they had forty million in dead money. So the salary gap, call it two hundred million, you're operating with one sixty. It puts you at a disadvantage. You have twenty percent
of your cap not available to you. What they should have done is take their medicine and say, Okay, we're not gonna we missed our window. Drew retired, Let's clean up our books. Do what the Bears did. Bottom out for a year, clean up our books and move forward. Instead, they pretended they could win a Super Bowl with Jameis Winston, and then they saw they couldn't. And they did it again last year, and they saw they couldn't even win or come in second, maybe they tied for second, or
remember the worst division in recent Infel history. And then they went and signed Derek Carr to pretend they could do it this year, and I understand the mechanisms. I understand what they're doing. I also understand that it is not a sustainable model, and the only way to justify it is if you are in a true win now, super Bowl window for a great quarterback at the end of his career. So right now the Saints actually have
legit cap space. It's unbelievable, but they do. But next year, for the contracts they have on the books again, the solar CAP's at two hundred and twenty million. Next year they're at three hundred and forty four million, So they're more than one hundred million over next year's cap. Why is that, Well, they just restructured Jamis, so Jamis has those void years after this year that that hit the cap.
Derek Carr this year's cap hit seven million bucks, next year thirty five million dollars and then forty five and fifty five. So you know what they'll do next year, They'll turn Derek Carr's salary into signing bonus and again have it inflate long term. What about Alvin Kamara this year eight million, next year eighteen million. Michael Thomas this year fourteen million next year sixty million dollars for receiver that doesn't even play anymore. Now will they actually pay that, No,
of course not. But then all that bonus money pro ration comes due. Let's go to their Taysom Hill. This year seven million for Taysom Hill, which is an abomination, Next year fifteen million, the year after that fifteen million, and then void years of five million. A third string tight end who's two million this year, seven million next year, and then five million dollars avoid years that are going to hit their cap. We can go up and down
the list. Ryan Ramchick, their their right tackle. Eleven million this year, twenty seven million the following year. Guys Cam Jordan who needs a new deal. Cam Jordan's on the last year of his deal. He's only fifteen million on the cap this year, He's twenty three million on their cap next year. To not play for them, that's a disaster. And so you guys can say, I don't understand what I'm telling Saints fans. One of my favorite cities in the country, New Orleans. Your local media is misleading.
Someone someone said the Saints sound like degenerate Cambler's.
Well, it's it's just they Oh there's the This is how I win. It is the Saints operate the salary cap the way I would expect someone to operate their America an Express card if the doctor just gave them a terminal diagnosis, like you have six months to live, Like, well, screw it. I'm never paying this bill by everything I want. But assuming the Saints believe the NFL is going to exist over the next decade, they are not operating smartly
or correctly. Quick break answer your questions. Talk a little march madness. Next, What's right.
When it comes to towing, seeing is believing. That's why Chevy Truck's advanced camera technology offers up to eight available cameras for fourteen unique views, so you can focus on the view that really matters. Chevrolet. Together, let's drive. Learn
more about Chevy Truck's at Chevy dot com Safety. Your driver assistance features are no substitute for the driver's responsibility to operate the vehicle in a safe manner, with the vehicle owner's manual for important future limitations and information.
All right, welcome back in What's Right with Nick Wright Episode one thirty four. Before we get to your questions, demant say you had a March madness thing you want?
Yeah, so it's the Sea Block ye the week of the tournament, and we still haven't talked about March madness. Man, what is this? All right?
Well, so listen. I think it is my, particularly on this show, my responsibility to talk about things that either I am passionate about or I know a ton about. Going into the NCAA Tournament, I'm not the guy to get your college basketball placks from. I'm not watching a ton of regular season college basketball, and I unlike and I won't name names, but many of my colleagues across national sports media, I'm not going to pretend that I
have real insight on who the sleepers are. So, like, what you're going to see is this from folks that are not watching any Now. Obviously a lot of people do watch college basketball. Listen to them. But you know what you're gonna hear. You're gonna hear a lot of this. Oh, I gotta tell you be careful. Utah State little sleeper team over Missouri in the Southern bracket for someone that couldn't name half a player on Utah State or on Missouri. Oh, guys, let me tell you, Let me tell you what my
final four is okay. You know, in the South, I'm going with I'm going with Alabama despite all the controversies around in their program, too much talent. I like Alabama.
In the Midwest, yeah, I think they do too.
In the Midwest, we're going Houston. So top of the bracket, we're going Chalk. But it's gonna get a little crazy out West. Kansas upset they didn't get, you know, the Midwest brag where they get to play in Kansas City. I think Bill Self's tendency of losing to lower seated teams continues. You can upsets Kansas and the Sweet sixteen, but making it out of that bracket. You know what I gotta tell you. I like Gonzaga. People think they're no good because of the soft schedule. I like the
the veterans on that team. And then out East. So we've got two ones in a three and out eas This is where your brackets get busted. Everybody in a year, everyone rode them off. Coach cal and Kentucky rally get it together at the end of the year and come
out of the East. So we've got Alabama, Houston. We've got a minor upset out West with Gonzaga making another final man Mark Few, never underestimate Mark Few, and then out East coach cal Is a one seed he under achieves in a year where they say is on the hot seat, he makes his twelfth career Elite eight makes another Final four. There it is, it's all fake. You
know who watches college basketball and you know who doesn't. Now, I will be locked into the tournament because it's the tournament, and after this weekend, I might have some opinions once I've watched these games, all of them, and watched all these teams, But right now I don't have a take other than my take every year, which is, if you want to be able to brag about your bracket, you are only allowed to fill out one. You can't have
six different final fours, an upset bracket. Talk bracket of this bracket, and then tell me about how good your bracket is. Now, let's get to the listener questions.
All right, First we got Ryan Fitzgerald. He asked, how is Rogers to the Jets not another version of Russ to the Broncos.
Well, they're not going to give him a new contract and they're not going to trade all those picks. So it's not going to be as devastating for them. But with the latest news, Schefter said they might be signing Randall Cobb two, So that's what that. Evidently what's taking so long is Rogers is making them sign as friends before he goes and plays for him next.
Alix Fries said, is it possible teams are waiting until after the draft to make Lamar an offer so they can keep this year's draft pick, assuming next year's pick will be later in the first round.
That's possible, and I think that might happen with the Colts. So the Colts want a Bryce Young. They were talking about trading up for the number one pick. They didn't. Now they're sitting at four. If it goes Stroud Young one to two, the cults of the fourth pick. If they were to try to sign Lamar now and the Ravens were to not match, they give up the fourth
pick and next year's pick. They wait until after the draft, they give up next year's pick in the year after, and you would think with Lamar it's not gonna be the top four pick. So I do think that's absolutely in play. I also think Detroit is a sneaky Lamar contender. They could wait till after they have two first round picks that there are sixteen and eighteen I think, or six and eighteen, pardon me, wait until after the draft,
and then trade Golf for probably two get Lamar. It could happen next.
All right? Aurora Robriguez said, what's one player you want the Chiefs to sign or trade for?
I think Odell might go to the Chiefs, and I think that is hard leaving Hardman's gonna be gone. Juju might be back if they let Juju walk. I would sign Odell, and there seems to be a little bit smoke around them trading for Laramie Tunsell. It would be surprising to me after they just signed Jawan Taylor to four years eighty million. But that your tackles, I guess would be set. All right.
Next Negative four and two said, do you think the forty nine ers getting Sam Donald is a further hit that they want to trade Trey Lance?
Absolutely not. I think Sam Donald is a hint that they're not certain Brock Purdy is going to be healthy for Week one and they need a backup quarterback.
Next Ryan Patierano, Nick, what are your thoughts on the reports? That players will need to play a minimum number of games to qualify for NBA awards.
I think that's one solution. You got to figure something out, guys. You can't. I'm not trying to sound like old man here, but and it's a lot of the teams doing it, imposing it on the players rather than the players asking how the games. But it's it's reached a tipping point. There's too many. Either you turn on Sunday Night ABC and Gyannis isn't playing. I know he has a wrist injury, but Warriors bucks like it's too much of a crap shoot. And the tickets are two weeks defensive for fans to
not know who's gonna play. That has to get tightened up. I don't know how they do it. That's an idea Coward's been big on that you gotta do something. We gotta have because the other reason is this. You can't even be like, well, the bright side is because of load management, guys are suffering less injuries. That's not the case. So it's not even we don't even have data that load management is working. All right, we'll be back on Thursday talking to you guys. Right as the before the
NCAA Tournament tips off. We will talk to you guys. Then have a wonderful day. See on TV today, what trick