The Vikings capped off day one of free agency with a couple of big moves, bringing back Byron Murphy Jr. and bringing in Jonathan Allen. They picked right back up on the morning of day two, signing Will Fries and reportedly agreeing to a deal with Javon Hargrave. They were the big spenders on day two of free agency, but they certainly weren't the only spenders. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dive into day two on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. The guys discuss Dre Greenlaw to the Bro...
Mar 11, 2025•1 hr 11 min•Transcript available on Metacast Geno Smith? Traded! DK Metcalf? Traded! Sam Darnold? Signed! The Seahawks entirely made over their team by the end of day one of free agency, and they weren't alone in completely recalibrating their outlook for 2025. From Davante Adams to the Rams, to Laremy Tunsil to the Commanders, to a defensive spending spree in New England, this offseason's free agency window got off to a roaring start. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen recap it all on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown The Se...
Mar 11, 2025•1 hr 28 min•Transcript available on Metacast Khalil Mack, Jevon Holland and Josh Sweat headline the available free agent defensive players. Add in a likely Trey Hendrickson trade and a potential Myles Garrett trade, and it could be a fun week for teams that need help on defense. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen preview free agency on the defensive side of the ball on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Then, The Athletic's Lions beat writer Colton Pouncy joins to discuss what it will take for them to get over the hump. Host: Robert M...
Mar 07, 2025•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast Are you ready to tamper? The NFL sure is, with the legal tampering window on the horizon and the new league year beginning next week. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen preview free agency on the offensive side of the ball on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Who should make a play for Chris Godwin? Where's a logical landing spot for Sam Darnold? What veteran trades could realistically happen? The guys answer those questions, and a whole lot more. Then, The Athletic's Bills beat writer Joe...
Mar 06, 2025•2 hr 35 min•Transcript available on Metacast The first checkpoint of the offseason—the combine—is now in the rear view mirror. Next up is free agency. We kick off our free agency coverage in earnest by opening up the mailbag on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen tackle questions on reclamation projects at quarterback in this class, players making position changes after signing with a new team, where teams can find bang for their buck on the market, and more. Then, The Athletic's Packers beat writer M...
Mar 05, 2025•2 hr 44 min•Transcript available on Metacast Dane Brugler, The Athletic's NFL Draft expert, spent a long month in Indianapolis last week, and we are all the beneficiaries of his dedication. Dane sits down with Robert Mays on this episode of The Athletic Football Show to share his big takeaways from the 2025 NFL Scouting Combine. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen With: Dane Brugler Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple Spotify YouTube Follow Robert on Bluesky: @r...
Mar 03, 2025•2 hr 42 min•Transcript available on Metacast The combine may be a draft event, but behind the scenes it's as much about the players already in the league as it is anything else. So what discussions are going on in back rooms in Indianapolis about Matthew Stafford, Kirk Cousins, Sam Darnold, Tee Higgins, Trey Smith, and the other big names who could be on the move in the next month or so? Dan Graziano of ESPN joins Robert Mays to dig into all that on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Then, The Athletic's Ravens beat writer Jeff Zr...
Feb 28, 2025•1 hr 27 min•Transcript available on Metacast The third and final entry in the annual TAFS Most Interesting Teams of the Offseason series is here, and it's a doozy. We've got Paul Dehner on the Bengals, Alec Lewis on the Vikings and Chad Graff on the Patriots. Will Tee Higgins and/or Trey Hendrickson still be Bengals in 2025? What's the Vikings plan with Sam Darnold and the quarterback position? How will the Patriots use their immense resources this offseason? Robert Mays gets into all that with the beat writers, and a whole lot more. Host:...
Feb 27, 2025•1 hr 15 min•Transcript available on Metacast The second entry in the annual TAFS Most Interesting Teams of the Offseason series features Zac Jackson on the Browns, Matt Barrows on the 49ers, and Ben Standig on the Commanders. How do the Commanders make sure that 2024 wasn't a flash in the pan? Is the window on this version of the 49ers still open? Are the Browns willing to commit to a rebuild? Robert Mays gets into all that with the beat writers, and a whole lot more. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen With: Zac Jackson, Matt Barrow...
Feb 26, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Welcome back to The Athletic Football Show's favorite combine week tradition: mining our ridiculously knowledgable beat writers for all the insight they have on their teams. We handpicked nine teams we deemed the most interesting of this offseason after the Super Bowl, then scheduled time during combine week to talk with each of their beat writers. This is the first entry in that series, featuring Jourdan Rodrigue on the Rams; Daniel Popper on the Chargers; and Tashan Reed on the Raiders. When a...
Feb 25, 2025•2 hr 31 min•Transcript available on Metacast It may be combine week, but we're still opening up the TAFS mailbag. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dig into questions about successful GM/head coach dynamics, how urgent teams should be in the draft when they need a quarterback, the Jets, Saints, and Vikings, offensive line composition, and more. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple Spotify YouTube Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertm...
Feb 24, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Transcript available on Metacast Who's going to own the 2025 Scouting Combine? Which players are going to crush the testing? Which lesser-known prospects are going to turn heads? Who has the most at stake during the interviews? Draft expert Dane Brugler joined Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen to run through everything that really matters next week in Indianapolis. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices
Feb 21, 2025•2 hr 30 min•Transcript available on Metacast For years, free agency lessons are typically framed about how teams falter in the market. But the 2024 Eagles were a shining example of how the right injection of free-agent talent can propel a team to a championship. With this year's champs in mind, Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen looked through the past decade of Super Bowl participants to see what lessons we can learn about the right ways to use FA. How many teams spent big? How important were the right bargain signings? And what advice, if an...
Feb 19, 2025•1 hr 21 min•Transcript available on Metacast Would you rather have Matt LaFleur or Dak Prescott? Is Trevor Lawrence Gen-Z Matthew Stafford? Would you rather be the Bills or Ravens for the next three years? Those are just three questions that Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen answer in this edition of The Athletic Football Show mailbag. Rundown QB vs. coach value The Chargers offseason Converting contracts into signing bonuses Is power football all the way back? The Eagles as a blueprint The most entertaining division in the league Which QB ha...
Feb 17, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Where will the on-the-move quarterbacks get off the carousel? How will the Bengals address their defense? Will the Rams turn the page to a new era? Where will the big-name free agents land. Those are just four of the offseason questions Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen addressed on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple Spotify YouTube Follow R...
Feb 14, 2025•1 hr 10 min•Transcript available on Metacast OK, enough with the 2024 season, it's time for 2025! Dane Brugler's post-Super Bowl Top 100 is out, and he joins Robert Mays on this episode of The Athletic Football Show to get us firmly pointed toward the combine and the draft. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen With: Dane Brugler Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple Spotify YouTube Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass...
Feb 13, 2025•1 hr 14 min•Transcript available on Metacast The return to bully ball was one of the stories of the 2024 season. So perhaps it's fitting that the story of the Super Bowl was that of the Eagles utterly dominating the trenches on both sides of the ball in their 40-22 triumph over the Chiefs. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen break down Super Bowl LIX on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple...
Feb 10, 2025•55 min•Transcript available on Metacast The NFL season is a 285-game march to the Super Bowl. Friends, we have reached that 285th game. Super Bowl LIX between the Chiefs and Eagles is here, and Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen dive deep on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. What are the key matchups? Who and what will the guys be watching on both sides of the ball? What does this mean for the legacies of the key players, coaches and executives involved. Robert and Derrik get into all that, and a whole lot more, on our Super Bow...
Feb 07, 2025•1 hr 6 min•Transcript available on Metacast Consider what you thought about Saquon Barkley before this season. How about Trent McDuffie? How about Nick Sirianni? Might feel a bit different about them now, right? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen discussed nine people involved in Super Bowl LIX who have changed the way we think about them this season on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Saquon Barkley Nick Sirianni Howie Roseman Vic Fangio Zack Baun Trent McDuffie Joe Thuney Andy Reid Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klasse...
Feb 06, 2025•1 hr 3 min•Transcript available on Metacast Way back in September, it didn't necessarily feel like we were going to end up here. The Chiefs may have enjoyed their status as the NFL's latest—and perhaps greatest—dynasty, but it was clear the Bills and Ravens would push them in the AFC. The Eagles, meanwhile, began the season 2-2, and saw their coach getting in shouting matches with fans at their own stadium. And yet, here we are, getting ready for Chiefs-Eagles in the Super Bowl for the second time in three seasons. How did these teams mak...
Feb 05, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast Robert Mays and Dianna Russini kick off Super Bowl week with a crossover episode of The Athletic Football Show and Scoop City. The duo discusses Dianna's takeaways from the Senior Bowl, the behind-the-scenes elements of this year's head coach hiring cycle, the most interesting quarterbacks of the offseason, and more. Rundown Senior Bowl takeaways Coaching carousel roundup Brock Purdy/Niners negotiations The Matthew Stafford domino Sam Darnold's market Could Russell Wilson and Pete Carroll reunit...
Feb 03, 2025•1 hr 20 min•Transcript available on Metacast It's been far too long since we heard from you, our dear listeners. And so we're happy to say that the TAFS inbox is open! Not just for this episode, either. We're going to be doing this all offseason long. In the return edition of the mailbag, Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen discuss the point of fandom, the Bills best path to getting over the hump, if it's lame for neutral fans to root for the Chiefs in the Super Bowl, what they'd do this offseason if they were Sam Darnold, and a whole lot more....
Jan 31, 2025•1 hr 17 min•Transcript available on Metacast No team advances to its Conference Championship Game by accident. They get there through a combination of players, coaches, scheme and the way they were built. So what lessons can we learn from the Chiefs, Eagles, Bills and Commanders—and the Lions, let's be real—this season that we can apply to finding winners in future years? Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and old friend Nate Tice dig into that question on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen With:...
Jan 29, 2025•1 hr 22 min•Transcript available on Metacast One of the signature NFL franchises announced its head coach on a Friday night at 10 pm, and that was the second craziest development of the weekend in the coach hiring cycle. So, yeah, it was a wild weekend on the coaching carousel. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen discuss Pete Carroll to the Raiders, Brian Schottenheimer's ascension in Dallas, Liam Coen's on-again/off-again/on-again partnership with the Jaguars and more on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Pete Carroll to the R...
Jan 28, 2025•1 hr 20 min•Transcript available on Metacast A season that presented us with so many possible new Super Bowl teams—the Lions! the Bills! the Ravens! the 14-win Vikings!—ended in an awfully familiar place. How did the Chiefs and Eagles win their respective conferences to advance to Super Bowl LIX? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen recap Championship Sunday on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show.....
Jan 27, 2025•1 hr 20 min•Transcript available on Metacast Chiefs-Bills for the AFC Championship? Yeah, sure, anyone could've seen that coming back in August. Commanders-Eagles for the NFC Championship Game? Ummmm, what? These matchups—two predictable heavyweights adding another chapter to their recent playoff rivalry on one side, one mini-surprise and one out-of-nowhere team playing for the third time this season on the other—illustrate one aspect of what makes this sport so great. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen preview Conference Championship Sunday o...
Jan 24, 2025•1 hr 12 min•Transcript available on Metacast One week ago, the Lions were one of the favorites to win Super Bowl LIX. Now, they are an eliminated team that has lost both of its coordinators. Zack Rosenblatt joins Robert Mays to discuss Aaron Glenn signing on as head coach of the Jets on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Then, Colton Pouncy jumps on to dig into where the Lions go from here now that Glenn and Ben Johnson have left for head coaching jobs. Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen With: Zack Rosenblatt and Colton Pou...
Jan 22, 2025•48 min•Transcript available on Metacast The Lions letdown turned out to be the Bears opportunity, with the latter hiring Ben Johnson 48 hours after the former's playoff loss. On this episode of The Athletic Football Show, Robert Mays welcomes on Albert Breer of The MMQB and Sports Illustrated to cover the latest in this year's coaching cycle. Then, Kalyn Kahler from ESPN joins the show to discuss her story on the surprising amount of power agents hold in the head coach and GM hiring process. Host: Robert Mays With: Albert Breer and Ka...
Jan 22, 2025•2 hr 31 min•Transcript available on Metacast And then there were four. So how did we get to Bills-Chiefs on the AFC side of the bracket and Commanders-Eagles on the NFC side? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen break it down on this episode of The Athletic Football Show. Rundown Ravens-Bills recap Commanders-Lions recap Rams-Eagles recap Texans-Chiefs recap Host: Robert Mays Co-Host: Derrik Klassen Executive Producer: Michael Beller Producer: Michael Beller Subscribe to The Athletic Football Show... Apple Spotify YouTube Follow Robert on Bluesk...
Jan 20, 2025•2 hr 43 min•Transcript available on Metacast It seems as though this entire season in the AFC has been prelude to a three-team tournament among the Chiefs, Bills and Ravens. We've finally reached the beginning of that tournament, with what could ultimately be the game of the season wrapping up the Divisional Round. Will it be the Ravens or the Bills advancing to the Conference Championship Game. Will Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen put an exclamation point on what would be an deserving MVP season for either of them? We can't wait to find out. ...
Jan 17, 2025•52 min•Transcript available on Metacast 
