00:00:03
Speaker 1: It's a pleasure to be with you once again. Damon Bruce and Ty Butler in for Nick Wright here on What's Right with Nick Wright, episode number 495. You've got to count these things. If you don't keep your own stats... Nobody will. It's brought to you by Boost Mobile. We're so happy to be with you one more time. It's been our pleasure over the last two weeks here, Ty, filling in for Nick. We got one more show to get through together, and this one's going to be a fun one. This is wide open today, and it's a pleasure to be with you again, man. How are you?
00:00:29
Speaker 2: Fun, but also depressing because, as you just stated, it's the last one. So I'm dressed for the occasion. I've got the all black on. It's the funeral. We're being eulogized and being sit-packing. Our guys, Daniel and Paul, back in the studio, not really happy with our performances. So they told the bosses, get these dudes out of here. We need Nick Wright back on Tuesday. So it is a pleasure to be with you. All jokes aside, man, I'm excited. I'm really excited.
00:00:58
Speaker 1: It's been an awful lot of fun. And again, we thank everyone at The Volume. Thanking our producers. Working with these pros has been just... It's been so much fun. It has been so much fun these last couple of weeks. Nick, if you want to extend that vacation, you know, you got one more week before the NFL starts. If you're having that much fun in Spain, you need a little bit more paella. Maybe you've taken up flamenco lessons and you really want to perfect it before you come on backstage side. Stay where you are, Nick. We will try to get this show back to you in good shape, but he should be back next week. Indeed. And the sports world will indeed be better for it. In the meantime, if you're going to try to call Nick now, it's going to go straight to voicemail and that's brought to you by boost mobile. And look at what we got here today, coming up on straight to voicemail, Serena and Venus playing doubles at the U S open. Now, pardon me, Ty. I'm not much of a, of a tennis guy, but, this isn't the first time this has happened, right? The two of them have played doubles together before in the past, but with Serena basically coming out of retirement, I guess that's what makes this one a little sexier. I do know ticket prices, and all of the scalpers in New York around the tennis center are thrilled with this story.
00:02:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, and her having to bow out her last performance due to injury. So this should be pretty cool. Not good news for those of us in New York City dealing with all the traffic. I saw... couple of races with NYRR get canceled, but I'm excited to see the sisters in action.
00:02:27
Speaker 1: Let's go. Pro Serena and Venus, no doubt about it. Let's see Jonathan Kaminga start counting his regrets. Oh my gosh, think of all the decisions that were made around Kaminga, and now he signs with the Timberwolves for an offer that is less than the Lakers might have put on the table, certainly less than what the Warriors offered him before That relationship fell apart. Jonathan Kaminga is one of the biggest scoops of just a guy to ever command this much attention and speculation. And the Warriors could never figure out who he was. They were held accountable for that. But guess what? No one can really figure out who he is.
00:03:04
Speaker 2: He's the reverse Kirk Cousins. Kirk Cousins keeps getting the bag. Kaminga keeps searching for the bag. It is funny, though. Maybe this is just my algorithm. But the amount of people who are like, yo, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, look out for Minnesota, Kaminga's in town. I don't quite have the same reaction. Now I'm rooting for him. I still think he is really talented. And obviously the LaMelo trade brings a little juice to Minnesota. But I don't think that this elevates them beyond where they were before they signed him. Like they're, to me, pretty much the same team that they were 24 hours ago.
00:03:43
Speaker 1: A little bit of a lateral move. They are bouncier, though. I'll give that. Kameka can jump out of the gym. They got bouncier for sure. But is it a difference-making move? That remains to be seen. To me, this is the best decision of maybe the football year, to be totally honest with you. The NFL is getting rid of the Pro Bowl. I've been saying for years now, Ty, the Pro Bowl should just be a list. If you're on it, congratulations. You're going to get a bump in salary the next year. Nobody wants to play the game. Nobody wants to watch the game. Football without intensity is a bad, bad TV show. And I know it still gets good ratings. And I know that the gambling community and the degenerates need a little something. But it was right to put this to bed. Players don't even want to go to the Pro Bowl. If I offered you two Pro Bowl tickets, would you even want to go to the Pro Bowl? No, not really.
00:04:31
Speaker 2: Now, it's also very telling that we used to remember not that long ago when listing a player's accolades, talk about, you know, MVP finishes, all pros, bring up Pro Bowl appearances. And now it's become such a joke because, you know, I think about... And with all due respect, I know you're in San Francisco. Mac Jones was a pro bowler with the Patriots. And that told me all I needed to know about what that game was about. And so, yeah, good riddance. A lot of people, it's funny, learned yesterday that the Pro Bowl was still in existence. So good for the NFL for making this decision.
00:05:08
Speaker 1: From Pro Bowl to No Bowl, and nobody cares. Nobody is arguing. Give me back the game that I care about so much. No one. Not one person. You can email whatsrightmailbag at gmail.com. Leave a comment if you will. And of course, thanks to everyone here. Thanks to Boost Mobile. And let's hop into it. When you think, Ty, of what every single team wants to accomplish in the preseason, the number one thing is just getting through it healthy. You can have 15 bad practices in a row, but as long as everyone leaves the field healthy, you had a good practice. I really do think that. Jamar Chase just put the scare. into Cincinnati with an injury that, you know, he hyperextended his knee at practice. They immediately said, let's quit practice and we're done here. It turns out he's going to be okay, but there are very few, an entire city now holds its collective breath injuries. That would be one of them for sure. Bengals dodged a bullet and everyone is just trying to get out of this preseason unscathed. That's the mission.
00:06:14
Speaker 2: So hyperextended knee and you hope that this is like the last you hear about it because there have been far too many times where you thought you dodged a bullet and then all of a sudden it creeps up on you. But in the age of social media, could you talk about fan bases collecting or holding their collective breath? In the age of social media, where it's not just the reports you see, you actually see the video immediately, it's like, man, are we cooked? And so to see Jamar Chase in what we know is a monstrous season for the Bengals, monstrous, to see him be healthy is obviously excellent news because the Bengals are going to be a lot of people's picks to, you know, that playoff team that wasn't– the team that didn't make the playoffs last year, making the playoffs this year. And if he's hurt, then you take significant, it's a significant loss. So shout out to him for being able to come back. And you just hope that this is not something that lingers.
00:07:20
Speaker 1: How hot is the Zach Taylor seat? And did it cool down with them dodging a serious injury? I would think so.
00:07:27
Speaker 2: Yeah. So I tried to do this exercise, the hot seats in the NFL, just to start the season. And let me know if I'm missing one, Damon. I've got my football coach, Aaron Glenn of the New York Jets. Todd Bowles, who I think a lot of us were surprised didn't get fired after Tampa Bay last year, not making the playoffs. Nick Sirianni, which is still the funniest one because it's like, man, two years ago, you're winning the Super Bowl and now you're still on the hot seat. So I think among those three names is where you insert Zach Taylor, who probably... should have, could have been fired years ago, if not for the fact that Cincinnati is not in the business of being an organization that's just paying coaches not to coach for them. And you do have the built-in excuse of Joe Burrow, twice in the last three years, not playing a full season. And so Zach Taylor, every year, this feels like a conversation we're having on August 27th, but absolutely monstrous year ahead for him and the Bengals.
00:08:33
Speaker 1: It's probably the wrong thing to do to assume that Cincinnati runs its team in a normal way at all. But a normal team you'd think would constantly be having like a conversation with their legitimate franchise quarterback, not just a quarterback in the room, but a franchise guy like the way Burrow is. And they got to ask him, what do you think of your coach? Are you comfortable with this? Is this something that you want to keep going with? And I'm guessing that Burrow keeps on endorsing the guy to keep the job, right? I think Burrow's got enough juice to where if he wanted to move some chess pieces around the board, he could flex his muscles out. And do that in Cincinnati. I think that there is a good relationship. Speaking of relationships, everyone wants to always give credit to one more guy than the other. You know, it takes two to tango. Somebody's got to throw the ball. Somebody's got to catch the ball. Now there are clear. OK, this quarterback is dominant. This wide receiver is just a guy. The most important person here is the quarterback. For Jamar Chase and Joe Burrow, it's a little bit different. Because you could argue that these guys are both state-of-the-art, top three at their position in the world right now. Which guy makes the other guy? That's a totally unfair question, by the way. But I'll ask it.
00:09:41
Speaker 2: I don't think that... So if the question is, who would you rather have? I think the obvious answer is Joe Burrow. You'd rather have the superstar quarterback with a league average receiver versus the opposite, a superstar receiver and a league average quarterback. But that's not the question. The question is who needs who more? And so while I don't think that if Jamar Chase didn't have Joe Barrow throwing to him, He wouldn't be Jamar Chase. He would still be an excellent receiver. But if it's as far as winning, which is the ultimate goal, getting your team to a Super Bowl, having to win the Super Bowl, I think it's Jamar needs Joe. Because we've seen that combination, and now we're getting further and further removed from it, Back in 21, they're in the Super Bowl. Back in 2022, they're in the AFC Championship against the Chiefs. So that combination works to the degree of us having team success if they're both healthy. And I think it has more to do with the quarterback than it has to do with the receiver. And again, that's with all due respect to Jamar, who I think is... It's tough. I was going to say, is the best receiver in football. It's him and Justin Jefferson right there.
00:11:01
Speaker 1: They're right there.
00:11:02
Speaker 2: They're right there together. And so you're kind of splitting hairs. But I think Jamar needs Joe more than the reverse because here's the deal, man. Though I didn't like the decision to pay both Chase and Higgins. Let's just say Chase is unavailable. You do still have T. Higgins. And while he's not Jamar Chase, I think it's still plenty good enough for Joe Burrow to work with.
00:11:28
Speaker 1: Didn't Joe Flacco, though, kind of prove that anybody with Jamar is pretty damn good, right? I mean, he is that good. I think Jamar had one of his better games with Joe Flacco as a quarterback.
00:11:37
Speaker 2: Against the Steelers? Was that the Steelers game? It might have been that Steelers game.
00:11:42
Speaker 1: It all gets fuzzy to me now.
00:11:44
Speaker 2: 500 yards, I believe it was. I'm just talking about if we're trying to win a Super Bowl.
00:11:48
Speaker 1: Oh, yeah. Without a doubt. It all starts with a quarterback. We all know that. I mean, there's a reason why every single NFL quarterback game has a close-up of the quarterback and a close-up of the head coach in between each and every play. Those guys really do matter an awful lot. But as we're trying to play out the string here, Ty, of the preseason, let me ask you this question. What would be, outside of the position of quarterback, the most devastating preseason injury should it arrive? What injury would completely move a team off of its spot? One guy, changes the entire equation, who do you think it would be?
00:12:30
Speaker 2: Oh, I think it's right in your neck of the woods. It has to be San Francisco with Christian McCaffrey because there's proof of concept. When that trade is made between Carolina and San Francisco, the biggest question was, can McCaffrey stay healthy? And we've seen that when he's healthy, not only are the Niners really good, but they're in the Super Bowl. So in 2023, Christian McCaffrey, Offensive Player of the Year, top three MVP candidate, they go to the Super Bowl. In 2024, he gets hurt, they win six games. I would say there's a correlation between those two things. And last year, despite the fact that Purdy was injured, I think Purdy played eight games or nine games, they still went 11-6, won a playoff game, And wouldn't you know it, Christian McCaffrey, once again, top four MVP candidate. And so the only guys to finish that high the last three years is Saquon in that title season for Philly. And Christian McCaffrey has done it once, as I mentioned, top three and top four finishes. And so that, and I know they've added Mike Evans and they bring back Debo. I get it. But Christian McCaffrey, is still the best player. He is still the engine on that team. And as we've seen the last three years, like there, there is tangible evidence of it. And so I would say it's, it's a Christian McCaffrey.
00:14:00
Speaker 1: Thank you. I mean, thank you. If I answered that question, people are going to say, well, that's a little, you know, location bias. You cover the Niners. Of course, you're going to say that you're correct. I believe that is the correct answer. Other candidate, though, wearing a 49ers uniform who I think does apply to this is Trent Williams. This is an average offensive line with Trent Williams. Without Trent Williams, I think they dip below average in a way that might be unserviceable to this year's goals. So I'll give you that. And to get out of San Francisco and to continue to answer this question with another running back, I think Derrick Henry lives in the same world that Christian McCaffrey is living in. He is what are the Ravens if something were to happen to him? That would just change the calculus and the math and the carries and the load that Derrick Henry carries for that franchise. So I think that would be a huge one for sure. So no injuries. Let's get out of this final preseason week as cleanly as possible. I wish the entire league health. That's my only wish.
00:15:06
Speaker 2: Let me throw one more at first. It's a bad sign for Lamar Jackson. A two-time league MVP, if we're saying their season goes to hell, and I get Derrick Henry is Derrick Henry. But if you're Lamar, and I'm a big Lamar fan, while maybe not a Super Bowl contender, you should still be able to make the playoffs if you're a two-time league MVP. Another guy I thought about, Damon, was someone who was involved in a blockbuster trade this past offseason, and it's Myles Garrett. Miles Garrett, who is one of the best players in football, I think undeniably top 10. The problem is he goes to a team that's loaded and he is now this is different from being on the Browns where like you're one of the lone bright spots. But he's on a team now that it obviously wouldn't be ideal, but I think would be able to suffer from, let's say he gets hurt for an extended period of time. because they've still got tremendous, they added McDuffie and Watson as their corners. And of course they have the reigning league MVP and their offense should be explosive. They also have the best head coach or one of the best head coaches in the league. And so Moz Garrett was a name I floated out there and flirted with, but because of where he is now, I think you have to see to Christian McCaffrey.
00:16:28
Speaker 1: You know, I know that last year's MVP had a spectacular year. But at the same time, I don't think Stafford's season goes down in like NFL history. Miles Garrett, I thought should have been the MVP of last year. His season goes down in NFL history. I think he was a bigger outlier at his position than the guy who won the award was an outlier at his. But unfortunately, we've decided a very long time ago that all MVPs must be quarterbacks. And that is That's a problem with postseason voting. It really is. I do not like that. I know that quarterbacks are very important. But, man, find me. Find me someone who had a better year maybe ever than the year that Miles Garrett had last year. He was unbelievable. He should have been the MVP.
00:17:18
Speaker 2: Yeah, I guess it goes in line with, you know, whenever we talk about, like, what are the most important positions in sports? You know, hockey fans will tell you it's the goaltender. more generalist fans would say it's the quarterback. So if the quarterback has a great season, then he has to be the most valuable, according to a lot of people.
00:17:40
Speaker 1: Hit him with the Boost.
00:17:42
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00:18:30
Speaker 1: Boom. Look at that. Just teeing it up. How about this? It's time to talk about this upcoming NFL season. The regular season is a glorious thing. We love it. We're obsessed by it. It's the only thing all of America can agree on. Football's awesome, and we miss Dolly Parton. Those are the two things that all of America can absolutely agree on. Let's have ourselves a regular season games draft. We're each going to pick five games. What we think are going to be the biggest games of the NFL season. No repeats here. Let me be the best possible co-host. And gentlemanly, I can possibly be here. Ty, I grant you, sir, the very first pick. You're on the clock. You're at the podium.
00:19:11
Speaker 2: All right. So this might, I guess, defy logic. But I've got to start in week one, Monday Night Football, Denver at Kansas City. You've got both quarterbacks returning from season-ending injuries. I thought the Broncos would have won the Super Bowl last year if Bo Nix doesn't get hurt at the end of that game against the Bills. When you take a look at all that, you know, the storylines amassing. Eric Bien-Aimé is returning. Is this Travis Kelsey's final season? The Jalen Waddell trade helps the offense for Denver. And obviously, Bo Nix, people are not really sold on him. I think he's a really good quarterback. He's one of the winningest quarterbacks since he's entered the league. And for Kansas City, it's redemption tour times two because Nick told us last year was the redemption tour after they got stomped out by the Eagles in the Super Bowl. And what did that lead to? That led to them finishing their year with one more win than the Cleveland Browns. And so Denver swept the Chiefs last year. We always get week one overreactions. But this one you could see coming from a mile away because if Kansas City wins, it's like, oh, here they go. They're back. Don't count out the champs. And then for Denver to be OK. See, last year was a fluke. They won 14 games, 12 of them. They were trailing in, which is just insane. And so I'm looking forward to week one, Monday Night Football, a clash of the Titans, division rivals, Denver in Kansas City.
00:20:55
Speaker 1: I will see your standalone AFC West game and raise you a standalone NFC West game right in week one. I'm starting in the first week as well. And I am taking you all the way to the land down under, baby. We got a huge one in Australia. An absolutely huge one in Australia. And don't tell me, Damon, this is because you covered the Niners. No, this is a big game. This is the team that the whole world is picking to win the Super Bowl and the LA Rams. And it's the 49ers who, if we're talking about teams with a big variance, like you were saying last show, you know, the Niners are either going to have a really impressive year or this whole thing feels like it could dangle on a thread and fall apart quickly. Now, and I did on Twitter promise that this would be a trailer park free show, the extra headlines and pressure that, you know, the latest week of Jed York news has sort of surrounded the 49ers with this incredibly embarrassing story. It's just, you know, forget about coming into this year under the radar. I thought that was going to be like an asset to the 49ers, and that's all gone now. But this is a big, big game. It's a game that the Rams did not want at home because they were going to be drowned out in their own stadium by Niners fans. Guess what? They're going to get drowned out by Niners fans in Australia as well. The Niners are going to come into this game hot, frisky, And I am telling you, the winner of this game will win the NFC West. Wow. The winner of this game will win the NFC West based off four quarters of football. That is a preposterous prediction. But it's what's right with Nick Wright. So we're going to go ahead and we're going to make it. Rams, Niners, Australia, week one. You better have Netflix. That's where you're going to watch it. It's going to be a monster. It's a big game.
00:22:47
Speaker 2: All right. Let's go to week eight where we get the Baltimore Ravens traveling to Buffalo new stadium. And you've got a pair of Superbowl contenders with new head coaches. You've got Josh versus Lamar. And look, since they last met in the playoffs, two quarterbacks that have won Superbowls are Hertz and Darnold. And you know, Those teams are stacked. But every year when we run through predictions and, you know, we figure out who the contenders are, the first attribute is who that team has a quarterback. And so with these guys having watched, I would say, lesser names, not just a win, but get there before them, the pressure is only intensifies. And so I'm looking forward to watching, uh, MVPs, Josh and Lamar go at it. And we know going into this game, the story is going to be, if this is a potential playoff preview, which team is best set up to go on a run Buffalo, by the way, I should point out, uh, we'll be coming off of a buy. Meanwhile, Baltimore is coming off of a divisional game against Cincinnati and they're into a short week against the Jags. And so I would imagine just based on this, and obviously we don't know where the teams are injury-wise, just based off of that information, it's in Buffalo and the schedule. The Bills are going to be favored, but it should be an excellent game.
00:24:17
Speaker 1: Why?
00:24:17
Speaker 2: Because it's Baltimore and Buffalo.
00:24:20
Speaker 1: I'm going to steal a little bit of your first overall pick. I'm going to marry it to a little bit of your second overall pick, and I'm going to package the whole thing. on a holiday that screams football. For my second overall pick, Ty, I am taking you to Highmark Stadium for a Thanksgiving Day game. Chiefs and Bills on Thanksgiving. You want to talk about something that might flirt with the concept of biggest rated game of the NFL season. If the bills are cooking and Highmark Stadium is officially open and rocking and everyone decides that despite the sight lines, we really like this place, this place is working, let's see what the Chiefs are by the time we're in Thanksgiving. Patrick Mahomes will have either shown us he still wears Superman's cape or he just maybe isn't the guy he used to be and the Chiefs are having trouble holding on to that magic. There are only so many 70-yard field goals that Harrison Butker can bomb through. to make things happen. So it's a huge game. Another just an AFC absolute heavyweight. Chiefs-Bills at the new stadium on Thanksgiving. There will be no folding tables safe in upstate New York. They will all be broken.
00:25:31
Speaker 2: All right, so let's stay on Thanksgiving. And I've got a pair of NFC East division rivals. How about a little Hurts and Dak Prescott action? What if they're both awesome? and both MVP candidates. I really like the Cowboys this year. I've been saying that for weeks. I love what they've done on defense. And if they could just be middle of the pack, we know their offense, as long as Dak is healthy, is going to be absolutely cooking. And with Jalen, feels like he's one of the most disrespected quarterbacks in the league. And so he's got a lot to prove this year. And I know it's a cliche, but A.J. Brown trade People are expecting Philadelphia to kind of fall off of a cliff. Sirianni gets fired. Jalen Hurst has run out of town. But I think both of these teams are going to be really good. And last year, we did have that broken streak of winning your division in consecutive years for the NFC East because Philly went back to back. But you have two, as I mentioned, of the most disrespected quarterbacks in football. And for different reasons, Hurts, people just don't think is good. People know Dak is excellent, but they put a lot of these playoff exits on his shoulders, despite the fact that the numbers say differently. And so I'm looking forward to week 12, Philly at Dallas Thanksgiving Day.
00:26:49
Speaker 1: I'm also sticking with a division rivalry that absolutely matters and will determine how the deck shuffles out. Week five, Bears at Packers. It's a big one. It's the NFL's longest-standing rivalry, obviously. Games at Soldier Field feel like they're being played in Indiana. We need a classic NFL stadium now, and so bring me to Lambeau to do and find just that. Bears and Packers, we know what it means. Chicago, when you're really talking about how the Bears have a season that matters, Do they need to start 3-1? At Carolina, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and then the Jets. Then they're going to Lambeau Field. This is a big game right off the rip. If the Bears want to be tracking with the expectations that are big, big in Chicago, they need a good start. You want to talk about a game that lingers? Bears-Packers lingers. It stays in players' minds. It stays in the media's minds. It stays in the fans' minds. This game matters. It always has. It always will. And as Chicago's trying to find out whether or not it's really a big boy now, that's a big boy game for the Chicago Bears. Week five at Lambeau. Go get it done.
00:28:06
Speaker 2: All right. Now, if my man Nick Wright were participating in this game, He would call this a Super Bowl preview. You've got Kansas City taking on the Rams week 13. Kansas City at the Rams week 13 Thursday night football. Super Bowl preview. Maybe we saw that in the preseason a couple of weeks ago when your man Bucker hit the 69-yard field goal. Chiefs fans are feeling good because Mahomes is jumping up and down that knee looks right. How does this young Chiefs defense look against a high-powered defense?
00:28:45
Speaker 1: Offense.
00:28:46
Speaker 2: For Kansas City, when I pulled up the schedule, they are in the midst of a bit of a tough stretch when they play this Week 13 game because it's Week 13 against the Rams. But before that, they're in Buffalo. So it's at Buffalo, at the Rams, at the Cincinnati, home for New England, home for San Francisco, and at the Chargers. So That's a tough six game stretch. This is a very important game. And again, a lot of people are going to be saying this is a Super Bowl preview. So you've got Mahomes against Stafford. Top five quarterbacks, MVP versus MVP. We haven't gone anywhere, says the Chiefs. I'm looking forward to this matchup week 13.
00:29:31
Speaker 1: I'm sold. I'm in on that matchup for sure. That's a big one. You want some NFL royalty, though? Let me cook you up some NFL royalty. When we're talking about the crown jewels of this league, it doesn't get bigger than Niners and Cowboys. It doesn't. It doesn't get bigger than Niners and Cowboys. It really does not in week 10, which is the Sunday before Thanksgiving. We got the 49ers at the Cowboys. It's NFL ratings royalty. If both are contenders, that game could be the game that delivers the single biggest standalone weekend afternoon ratings delivery for Fox. It is a monster. This is the kind of game that makes networks spend all that money on TV packages, and it's star-studded all around. There are household names in this game. It's Niners and Cowboys, and again, watch the Niners play. turn Jerry Jones's Death Star red. There will be more 49er fans at that Cowboys game than Cowboys. The 49ers travel like Kentucky basketball in the early 90s. I don't think there is a fan base that gets up and goes to an opposing stadium as much as Niners fans do. Wait until you see that week one in Australia. You will see that. A huge game. Niners, Cowboys, Cowboys. setting up Thanksgiving week, week 10. It just doesn't get bigger than that. Like we could have taken that number one overall. That's how big that could be if both teams are cooking at that time.
00:31:06
Speaker 2: Now it's a dangerous game to play when you go ahead to week 18 because it's on the table. It might not matter, but we saw this a year ago. Or I guess a couple of months ago. It was in January. But a season ago, we saw Pittsburgh and Baltimore with a chance to win the division. Winner goes on to the playoffs. Loser goes home. And then we saw change ensue after that. And so I'm going Steelers at Ravens. Week 18. The game last year was in Pittsburgh. This year, it'll be in Baltimore. Rodgers, his final game, possibly him walking off the field for the final time. of an illustrious career. And imagine the story, y'all, if Baltimore, for the second straight season, lose this game and miss out on the playoffs, the type of conversations we're going to be having about the organization. Could Lamar be out? It's a failure for Jesse Minter because, yes, you're a rookie head coach, but it's an already made team. And so you've got to come in there and deliver.
00:32:14
Speaker 1: They'll fire John Harbaugh again.
00:32:16
Speaker 2: They'll bring him back and they'll fire him again. So Pittsburgh, Baltimore, week 18. Does it get better than that? Ty Butler says no. So I don't know why I spoke in third person, but here we go, week 18.
00:32:32
Speaker 1: So we both determined that we would have a couple backup games here in case we had games that we stepped on. We didn't want to both draft the same game. But let me show you how great minds here, Ty, do think alike. Because with my final pick in the draft, I'm just going to read you exactly what I wrote. Week 18, Aaron Rodgers' final NFL regular season game at Baltimore. Lamar will either be a media darling by week 18 once again because he's still Lamar or the knives are going to be out because the season did not go well. Rodgers, whatever your opinion is of him, is one of the greatest quarterbacks of our lifetime. And there's no denying that in his place in football history. And it could be his last ever game. I have the exact same game for my final pick week 18 and all that could come with it. We know that Pittsburgh and Baltimore gives you extra nasty defensive football. Whenever that game breaks out, that could, I've got it too. Now, if you're saying no, here was my backup. And this is a little, give me, give me the worst game of the year. What is the worst game on the NFL schedule this year? I think I looked it up and I found it in week one. Jets and Titans.
00:33:46
Speaker 2: Come on.
00:33:47
Speaker 1: Jets and Titans. No one wants that game. No one wants that game. Nobody wants that game. Except for Robert Sala. It's the revenge game, baby. Let's see what happens. It's a game only a mother could love or a sad Jets fan could love. It's an ugly game. It has zero appeal. It has questionable talent in it. But Robert Sala's revenge is what I might be watching for. It's the worst game of the year. It could be the best game of the year.
00:34:17
Speaker 2: Listen, you can't say that on a show with a Jeff fan. That's disrespectful.
00:34:23
Speaker 1: You know who you are. You know the path you have chosen. And you know that I'm right.
00:34:28
Speaker 2: Listen, I think it's a fantastic game. You've got, listen, who's not signing up for Cam Ward versus Geno Smith? Who's not on the lookout for Aaron Glenn and what his situation could be if they lose this game, knowing that afterwards the Jets play the Packers, the Lions, and the Bears. So 0-1 could quickly turn into 0-4. So this is like the Super Bowl if you're a Jets fan. If you're a Titans fan, it's like, all right, Cam Ward ended last season playing pretty well last month. So now he's got Carnell Tate. He's got offensive genius Brian Dable.
00:35:05
Speaker 1: I want to congratulate you on your week one Super Bowl. Maybe the Jets can do that. Maybe they can. Oh, my gosh. There you go. Good draft. I mean, a lot of good games. This season cannot start soon enough, man. I am so ready for it. I love football. I feel normal when football is on my TVs on Sundays. It helps me get through my week. It really does. I need football. I'm so glad it's almost back. You want to talk about some disrespect, though. I want to take you to a conversation out here that's happening on the West Coast, and it's about the Rams and Seahawks and who really deserves to be the team that people are saying is about to win the NFC West. Now, I threw the 49ers in there, and I do think the 49ers are being slept on a little bit, but they're, like we said earlier, big variants to their season. We don't know how it's going to go. We all know that the world is picking the Rams before the season even starts for some reasons. Decent reasons as well. There is an incredible amount of top shelf liquor sitting over in that bar for the St. Louis Rams, or excuse me, for the Los Angeles Rams. Sorry, St. Louis. The problem for the Seahawks is that Sam Darnold is just sitting on the, he'll never be counted on. People count against Sam Darnold more than they count on Sam Darnold. And winning a Super Bowl didn't exactly change that. Maybe Jalen Hurts can sort of identify with that. Sam Darnold is very, very good, though. But he lost the guy who was named Super Bowl MVP. And I think that alone is the reason why the Seahawks are coming in under the radar and sort of disrespected for a team that is the defending Super Bowl champs. There's really no one talking about them as a threat to repeat. That's for sure. What do you think gives between the Rams and their hype and the quiet nature of the hype around the Seahawks?
00:37:00
Speaker 2: It's amazing that we've only done three and a quarter shows together, and yet we're like 85% of the time on the same page because I also have, look, it's not really disrespect. The facts are you lost your Super Bowl MVP, you lost your offensive coordinator, and there's still, to varying degrees, some Sam Darnold skepticism. Like when we look back 20, 30 years from now, and we're like, oh. In the 2020s, you had two quarterbacks get to back-to-back Super Bowls, Patrick Mahomes and Sam Darnold. Do we think that that's going to be the conversation? I don't believe so. And so you look at the Rams are just on paper a better team. They added Watson and McDuffie. They traded for Myles Garrett. Aaron Darnold might be coming back. And so I look at it as maybe it's a little bit of disrespect for Seattle, but it's also hard to get back to a Super Bowl. But it's more about history. The tremendous respect we have for the Rams, who we know have the better coach and many people believe to have the better head coach. I'm sorry. We know have the better quarterback and many people believe have the better head coach. So I say this is more Rams based optimism and praise and adulation than it is like doubting the Seahawks.
00:38:21
Speaker 1: I think you're right. I just think that the Rams get so much ink in the headlines. It just kind of muscles the Seahawks off the page. But if we were sitting around talking about, you know, the five best teams in the NFC. One of them has to be the Seahawks, but it feels like they're the one team that doesn't make everyone's list. They just, for whatever reason, are left off of it. Maybe it's Pacific Northwest bias. I really don't know. But if the Seahawks wore Giants uniforms, the hype would be through the roof. But they don't. They wear Seahawks uniforms.
00:38:59
Speaker 2: So this is where the Sam Darnold aspect comes into play. If they had a number of different quarterbacks, we would be saying it's Seattle's title to win or lose. But it's Sam Darno. And look, I love the story. Drafted by the Jets. So, you know, I was rooting for him. But that's really what this comes down to.
00:39:22
Speaker 1: We want to thank everyone for watching hit like and subscribe not only here to what's right with nick right but our channels as well damon bruce plus is where you can find me on youtube got a look out for my man ty follow him everywhere as well thank you so very very much and when nick is back next week i'm sure one of the things he will do like every single sports talk show host in america is give you his predictive list of awards to be won in the NFL this year. And since there's a couple guys filling in for him, it's not just what Nick thinks. Let's give him some other footage to go back and nitpick at the end of the year. You can cue up the, what, the cold takes? Cold takes exposed?
00:40:06
Speaker 2: Freezing cold takes.
00:40:07
Speaker 1: Freezing cold takes. Let's see if we might not qualify here. Who is the MVP of the upcoming NFL season before we have thrown a pass?
00:40:19
Speaker 2: So I flirted with a couple guys. Dak Prescott. As I keep saying, I'm high on the Cowboys. Their offense is going to be excellent. They could win that division. And obviously, I wouldn't be surprised if they win double-digit games. But where I landed, Damon, was with a team we talked about earlier in the show that's got a lot of pressure on them. Head coach is on the hot seat. Quarterback could be gone next year. Via trade. And that is Joe Burrow. Because he's got the improved defense. When he's healthy, you know he's going to put up the numbers. And people wanted to give it to him a couple of years ago when he missed the playoffs. And so with him being the only guy of the big four, of Josh, Lamar, Patrick, not winning an MVP, this feels like the best chance he has it. It has, because as I mentioned, the moves they made on defense that blockbuster trade with the Giants to get Dexter Lawrence. And he also has some of the narratives going in his favor. Missed the playoffs last year. As I said, the head coach is on the hot seat. And I think it'll actually work in his favor if the defense isn't.
00:41:37
Speaker 1: Top five.
00:41:38
Speaker 2: But if it's just mediocre, it's like, hey, see, told y'all all Joe Burrow needed was just a halfway decent defense and he could get the team to the playoffs and maybe get a top two seed. And so I'm rolling with Joe Burrow this year to win the MVP, assuming he stays healthy, which is an aggressive assumption. But I got Joe Burrow.
00:41:58
Speaker 1: Look, health matters, and whoever doesn't stay healthy is going to have no chance to be in this conversation. I'm looking for a guy who's got a good track record of health. I'm looking for a guy who is in a situation that I think has improved. I'll admit that every single team in this league has talent everywhere. Who coordinates that talent? Who sets up that talent for success matters? I think Mike McDaniel to the Chargers is enough of a threat to open up a level of offense which could deliver an MVP to Justin Herbert, a guy who has been very good early on in his career, has not delivered in the postseason, obviously, but this is not a postseason award. Big regular season numbers, Justin has put those up. I think he's got the right team, the right head coach, and the right offensive coordinator to put up some gaudy numbers this year. I'm going to go with Justin Herbert, who's like plus 850, plus 1,000 everywhere. I'm looking a little bit further down the board. I don't just want an odds-on favorite. I'm going with Herbert. And if I had to take a sleeper or a dark horse, even though the Madden curse is definitely upon him, if the Chicago Bears are going to do the things that Ben Johnson is talking about, that will have meant that Caleb Williams had a monster year. He didn't regress. He actually progressed. He got better. He's the first bears quarterback to ever throw for 4,000 yards, which feels like it should automatically trigger an MVP since that's never happened in the history of the Chicago bears. So let's, I think that he will be absolutely at the center of all good things in Chicago or all bad things in Chicago. Like all quarterbacks are at the center of, you know, praise or criticism. Caleb Williams is my dark horse. I would bet Justin Herbert.
00:43:52
Speaker 2: I like it. I think that with Harbaugh, though, for Herbert, they want to be more of a run-heavy offense. But look, I like it. At some point, Herbert's got to win a playoff game.
00:44:01
Speaker 1: That's all right. Here's the thing. Run your fanny off. That's just going to make life for the quarterback easier. Yeah, it really is. If running your fanny off means you're scoring touchdowns instead of settling for field goals, quarterback wins more games. Helps the MVP case.
00:44:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, listen, I like it. The dark horse one, Caleb, fantastic. I know Danny Parkins is on the volume a lot, so that would be an incredible, incredible feat for him to celebrate. What's the next one we got coming up here?
00:44:31
Speaker 1: Offensive rookie of the year. May I go first?
00:44:35
Speaker 2: Go ahead.
00:44:38
Speaker 1: I need talent and opportunity meeting together. My dark horse would have been, and I guess is, Dajon Stribling, but Kyle Shanahan doesn't like rookie wide receivers, even if they're spectacular and he hasn't had many spectacular rookie wide receivers, but watch the coach suppress those numbers. I don't know if the opportunity is going to be there. It should be, he should be a starting receiver on this team right now against across from Mike Evans, but Debo's arrival, they're going to try to get, you know, something there, there, there's not a lot of ball distribution. And then once Kittle comes back, I don't know how many times the rookie is going to get targeted to put up the numbers. I need talent and opportunity. And who's going to have more talent, meeting opportunity than Jadarian Price? We talked about how they lost the Super Bowl MVP. Will they gain a stud rookie running back? Who is going to get the opportunity, the carries, the chance to be in this conversation? I'm going with Jadarian Price up in Seattle. Offensive rookie of the year.
00:45:43
Speaker 2: So you talk about talent and opportunity, which is perfect because it sets up for a guy... like Makai Lemon, to have an incredible offensive season. Now, look, I don't love that he had been dealing with this hamstring injury the past couple of weeks in training camp. He was a full participant a few days ago for the Eagles. But if they are going to be great this year, Philadelphia, their offense is going to have to pop. And with no A.J. Brown, Devontae Smith, and Wicks, I understand all that. I'm looking for Makai Lemon to be a big part of this offense as he develops rapport with Jalen Hurts. And, you know, we all love touchdowns, right? That is going to be one of the metrics that just jumps out to people when they're voting on this award. And so when you look at red zone targets, you've got Saquon that defenses have to account for. You've got Smith and Wicks that defense has to account for, and Goddard. So does that open the door for a guy like Makai Lemon to become that guy who scores a bunch of touchdowns? Obviously, a popular pick is going to be Jeremiah Love, but he's already hurt. Fernando Mendoza, I don't know that he's going to play enough this season.
00:46:57
Speaker 1: Opportunity, right? Might not get it.
00:46:59
Speaker 2: Yeah, warrant him getting that award. Carnell Tate was someone I thought about as well, and I raved about Brian Dable's offensive genius and what he'll be able to do in Tennessee. But I think Makai Lemon, who's right now at plus 1,400 in a lot of places, that's a nice little sneaky pick for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
00:47:17
Speaker 1: Defensive Rookie of the Year? I got to go with the guy who I think could be a candidate to when we have the conversation three years from now. Like, let's redraft the 2026 NFL draft. Who would have gone number one? That guy could be Caleb Downs. Caleb Downs might be one of the most talented rookies we've seen come into this league in a while. He's got incredible instincts. He was a total stud in college. And I think if Dallas, who I'm like you, I'm starting to believe in Dallas a little bit. Now, they can kick out the plug on that real quickly. The Cowboys have a way of talking me out of the Cowboys quickly. But if it's coming together for them and they're playing really good defense, I'm imagining he's having a really good year on that back end. He is one pick six on a standalone Monday night, Sunday night game from getting all the hype in the world. And we know that the Cowboys machine is considerable when it comes to getting across some some media appeal. But Caleb Downs is is legit. This guy is special. Dark Horse. I tell you, he scared the hell out of me in the national title game against Indiana. Reuben Bain Jr. down in Tampa Bay. I know that he just hurt his shoulder. Hopefully he's all right there. I like the talent and opportunity of Arvel Reese is meeting the right coach, I think, to get him wired right to have a good career in the NFL in New York with Harbaugh. So I'm going with Caleb Downs, though, my defensive rookie of the year, and he might be the best player in this draft.
00:48:49
Speaker 2: That was my dark horse because it's the Dallas, it's the Cowboys. I think there'll be a really good team. And they were the worst defensive team in football. So if they... Take a significant step in the right direction. We're going to be looking at some of the playmakers on that defense, and I think Caleb Downs will be that for Dallas. Call me a homer. How can I not pick David Bailey, the second pick in the draft? He's been lighting it up in camp, and I know it's like whatever. preseason. Did pick up a sack this past week against the Steelers. But he was viewed, because you just brought up Arvel Reese. The Jets, on their board was Arvel Reese. But David Bailey was viewed as someone who was like a safer pick because he was the more NFL-ready prospect. And Reese... While he might have a higher upside, it's still a project. But David Bailey's been lighting it up in camp for the Jets. Aaron Glenn did tell me, did tell the media in New York, did tell the world that defense is his superpower. Calling the NFL defenses is his superpower. So if I pair Aaron Glenn's superpower with the second pick in the draft, who's been having a hell of a camp, I am led to believe David Bailey has an excellent shot at being this year's defensive rookie.
00:50:13
Speaker 1: Of the year. J-E-T-S. Jets. Jets. Jets. I'll give you that one. I have no teasing you about that at all. He is a stud. And obviously, unleash him. Let him play every single down. Let him play. So opportunity is certainly going to be there. Real quick, we're about to head into overtime here. Coach of the year, give me a Super Bowl matchup.
00:50:37
Speaker 2: All right. So coach of the year, I'll go Kevin O'Connell. Vikings over under is eight and a half. I'm starting to believe they've got a real shot at making the playoffs. If Kyler just stays on the field, which he hasn't been able to do two of the last three years. I do like Kevin O'Connell and that team. We know about their offense. They're going to score enough points to keep them in games. So it's just about being able to close a Super Bowl matchup. You might like this one. It's a rematch from Christmas a couple of years ago. And that is the Ravens and the Niners. Ravens-Niners. And I think this was the game that lost Brock Purdy the MVP that year and helped clinch it for Lamar. So Baltimore, in this game, finally gets it done for the first time since, what, 2012. They take down it, and it's another heartbreaking Super Bowl loss for San Francisco. But I've got Lamar. out-dueling Brock Purdy and winning the Super Bowl this year. Take that, John Harbaugh.
00:51:41
Speaker 1: Hopefully the game doesn't end with Colin Kaepernick throwing fade passes to Crabtree as Frank Gore isn't allowed to touch the football on the goal line. That is going to rub Niners fans wrong the rest of their lives. Look at you taking the 49ers in the Super Bowl. By the way, my Super Bowl is an all SoFi Super Bowl, baby. The Super Bowl's at SoFi. It's going to be Rams and Chargers. Rams and Chargers in the Super Bowl and all LA Super Bowl in both of their home stadiums. Why not? It's crazy. I'm picking it. I don't have that much conviction in it, though. I really don't. Ryan Schottenheimer is your coach of the year. Again, if Dallas is good, they're going to be looking to hand this to him. If they win the NFC West, they're going to want to give this to him. And honestly, given the turnaround of Dallas's defense, if they're the reason why this team is respectable again, I think Brian Schottenheimer is going to be a very good candidate for coach of the year.
00:52:43
Speaker 2: All right.
00:52:44
Speaker 1: Are we officially in overtime? I think we're ticking into overtime.
00:52:48
Speaker 2: We're in overtime where your Niners were the last time they were in the Super Bowl.
00:52:54
Speaker 1: But at least we know the overtime rules. And I don't know if that argument could be made that year. for Kyle Shanahan. A little coast versus coast. Now, again, I grew up in upstate New York, in Schenectady, New York. I know the ecosystem well. I know how the Buffalo Bills have always had trouble crashing the New York football party, even when they were going to Super Bowls. I know that the Knicks are riding high on the hog, and I know that the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees forever. Give me If you would, please. Your New York City most important team power ranking. Who are the top five teams in the state of New York?
00:53:39
Speaker 2: All right. So this is a little prisoner of the moment just because we did see the gravity of winning the championship and what it did for the city, what it did for the nation, because their fans certainly travel. But I'd have to go Knicks at number one. The Yankees are still top two. You can't slide them any further down than two. I'd go Giants at number three. They are still a cornerstone franchise in the NFL. I would go Jets at number four. And with all due respect to the Bills fans, Bills aren't a New York team, man. That's upstate. That's like Canada. So I'm going to go.
00:54:22
Speaker 1: You called him Canadian. You're going to put a 50% tariff on him? Wow.
00:54:27
Speaker 2: Yeah, so I'll stick with baseball. I know they haven't won in 40 years. I know they've become one of the biggest jokes. They've got a rich owner spending a lot of money, and they can't make the playoffs. But I'm going to put the New York Mets at number five. New York Mets at number five.
00:54:46
Speaker 1: I can't believe the Mets are still on the list. Poor Rangers, poor Islanders. I guess they don't make it. The Islanders never. Well, let me ask you who lives a sadder existence, a Nets fan or geez, I don't know.
00:55:04
Speaker 2: Oh God.
00:55:06
Speaker 1: You mean the Sacramento Kings?
00:55:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's a good one. Cause like the Nets had like five minutes of fame a couple of years ago when you have the KD, Kyrie, Harden super team that, by the way, should have won the title, if not for injuries. They were going to win the championship that year. They were up 2-0 in that series on the Bucs. Harden gets hurt. Kyrie gets hurt. It still goes to seven games. They were going to beat the Suns in the finals the following year. Now the Ben Simmons, Harden's asking now. So they got ruined by injuries and drama, but To go from where they were just, like I said, five years ago to basically irrelevant now, I guess by proximity, because I'm closer to them, I've got to say the Nets. Because the Kings did have to light the beam here, that first round series against the Warriors.
00:56:00
Speaker 1: And let me just say, what the Kings have and the Nets don't have are fans that care.
00:56:05
Speaker 2: Yes, correct.
00:56:06
Speaker 1: I mean, that's the thing. The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. I just feel like there is a huge level of indifference being projected by the Nets to the Nets. They're still New Jersey's team. You can put them in Brooklyn. Nobody's fooled. No one cares about the Nets where there is an awful lot of pain in your life if you care about the Kings, but at least you care. At least you care about them.
00:56:32
Speaker 2: You did not have... In that playoff run that went seven games, and Theron Fox, if he doesn't break his finger, maybe it goes differently. What you did not have is a star player on the Kings on social media begging fans to buy playoff tickets, which we saw James Harden doing for the Nets. Like, just imagine that. It's New York City. You're one of the favorites to win the championship. You've got three megastars, and one of them is on social media begging begging fans to buy playoff tickets. So that was just the height of embarrassment.
00:57:08
Speaker 1: For shame. For shame. How much do you think the Nets had to pay Harden to tweet that out, right? I mean, there's no way he did that voluntarily. That's got to be a bonus clause in there.
00:57:19
Speaker 2: And you feel shame doing it. It's just like, we've been reduced to this. Like, I'm Harden, man. Like, I'm an MVP. I've won multiple scoring titles. I was playing in the biggest games in the Western Conference Finals. against your dynastic warriors. And I'm here with like half the building. It's empty, man.
00:57:39
Speaker 1: What a mess. Have you gone to bar? I haven't, I've not gone to Barclays. Is it as sleepy as it looks?
00:57:45
Speaker 2: You actually went to a, a net sixes playoff game with Nick. Yeah, I went to a Nets-Sixers playoff game, and I've been there a few times. Knicks-Nets, where it's just 99.9% Knicks fans. But yeah, it's nice and chill, but definitely the energy is a lot more palpable for Liberty games than there is Nets games.
00:58:11
Speaker 1: Should we hit listener questions?
00:58:13
Speaker 2: Let's do it. Is that next?
00:58:14
Speaker 1: Let's do it. Let's go. And oh no, was I supposed to give you my top five teams?
00:58:18
Speaker 2: Look, we're screwing up. See, this is what we couldn't have happen. It's the final day, last iteration of the audition, and we're already screwing up.
00:58:28
Speaker 1: I'll just make it real quick. The number one team in the state of California is the San Francisco 49ers. By far, not even close. The second biggest team in the state of California isn't even in the state of California anymore. It's the Raiders. The Raiders are still the second most important team in the state of California. After that... you got warriors Lakers fighting for most important basketball team in state of California. And in terms of most important team in LA, it is the Lakers followed by the Dodgers followed by USC. I would say USC is more important than the chargers will ever be in Los Angeles. So there is your California power rankings from uh oh we even got a fight on baby being written down here which producer went to usc we have a usc producer oh dan dan went to us i fight on dan there you go i had no idea uh demetrius says you are sick jamar definitely better than Joe at his job. Jamar Chase better than, look at it this way, when we're measuring how many guys in the NFL can give you a representative performance that Joe Burrow gives you, there are probably more good quarterbacks around Burrow's level than there are wide receivers around Jamar Chase's level. So I guess I get that argument.
00:59:55
Speaker 2: So I get it because Jamar is a better receiver than Joe is a quarterback, right? Because Jamar, you could make a legitimate argument. He's number one. And if he's not number one, he's number two. Whereas Joe Burrow, at this point, he's not the best. He's not the second best, not the third. Some would argue he's not in the top five just because they haven't made the playoffs since 2022. So I understand it from that perspective. All I'm saying is.
01:00:22
Speaker 2: If the ultimate goal is winning, I would take Joe Burrow over Jamar Chase. So I think that the superstar quarterback is more important. And when you have a receiver as good as T. Higgins right behind Jamar Chase, he's not Chase, but he's still pretty damn good. I can work with that if I'm Joe Burrow.
01:00:46
Speaker 1: Here's the thing. The guy who's touching the football the most is probably the most important, and the quarterback's going to handle it every single play. You don't know if your wide receiver's going to touch the ball. You want him to, but unless you're direct snapping it to him or something, that's just not going to happen. Vinny says if Sam stayed in San Francisco, they would have gotten a Super Bowl. Well, how? He's the backup quarterback. In the scenario to where Sam Darnold delivers a Super Bowl win to the 49ers, Brock Purdy's out of the equation. At no point did Sam Darnold ever threaten Brock Purdy's starting position with the San Francisco 49ers. And no point has Mac Jones threatened Brock Purdy's position. Both of those guys can be on the Niners. They're both backing up Brock Purdy, period. So I don't think that we're going to have, oh, if Sam was there, they would have won it already. How? He's carrying a clipboard. He wouldn't have played.
01:01:42
Speaker 2: He never would have gotten the opportunity.
01:01:44
Speaker 1: Yeah. Would the Niners, would Niners fans trade Purdy for Darnold now? No. I don't know.
01:01:53
Speaker 2: I don't think so.
01:01:54
Speaker 1: No, I don't think so. I mean, here's the thing. We don't need to cut Sam Darnold's legs off to make Brock Purdy look taller. I'm not here to disrespect Sam Darnold, but I do think that Brock Purdy is the better quarterback.
01:02:06
Speaker 2: I do.
01:02:07
Speaker 1: I really do. We'll, we'll, we'll find out right now. We all know that the, the only way we measure quarterbacks, the Darnold is winning that count one to nothing. He's got a super bowl. Brock is still looking for his Zion says, dang, these guys are pretty good.
01:02:23
Speaker 2: We like that.
01:02:25
Speaker 1: Hey, we like pretty good, pretty, but you know what? I'll take pretty good. I'll take pretty good on a Thursday, wrapping things up. I do have to tell you this tie. I don't think you're pretty good. I think you are very good. And whether we ever fill in for Nick again, I want to have you on my YouTube channel, man. I want to keep working with you. I've really, really, truly enjoyed our back and forth over these four shows. And let's keep it up, man. I feel like I got a new friend in this snake ridden, God forsaken industry that we have chosen.
01:02:52
Speaker 2: Listen, just watch Toy Story five, maybe a month or so ago. Damon, you've got a friend in me, my man. This has been absolutely fun. tremendous, tremendous stuff. And I know we got to get out of here, but I was talking to my wife because she asked like, how'd the show go? And I was like, it was great. And I think like it, what makes it so like fulfilling is Damon and I had never worked together. Like we couldn't be more different. He's a white dude on the West coast. I'm a black young guy on the East coast.
01:03:23
Speaker 1: Thank you for not saying the word old. I appreciate it. Thank you. Thank, thank you very much.
01:03:28
Speaker 2: Well, you reminded us that you are older than the Jed York. You're older than Jed York.
01:03:32
Speaker 1: I am.
01:03:33
Speaker 2: But we've got so much different as far as our profile. And yet, I felt like we flowed pretty well. So this was fun, man. Definitely will come on your show anytime. And I would love to have you on mine as well.
01:03:45
Speaker 1: Done. Did we just become best friends?
01:03:48
Speaker 2: I think we did, baby.
01:03:49
Speaker 1: There it is. It's like stepbrothers. Hey, thanks to everyone. Most importantly, everyone at The Volume and Blue Duck who has been working with us. It has been an absolute pleasure to work with these true pros. And speaking of true pros, Nick Wright is going to be back next week. And this guy, here's the thing. If you don't like Nick Wright, first of all, thank you for watching. That means he's really good at his job, that you would go out of his way to watch the YouTube channel of the guy that you do not like. But if you don't like Nick Wright, it's because he said something about your favorite sports team and you just rubbed you the wrong way. If you ever got a chance to know Nick, you would find one of the most down, loyal, supportive dudes, again, in an industry full of snakes. and just people who are not looking to reach back and help anybody. Nick is constantly looking to help everybody, and that is why we have a legitimate friendship, and I truly respect the guy, and I hope he had a wonderful vacation and will be recharged and ready to hop into the NFL season with everyone. I'm wrapping up here. I'm going to let you have the last words. young man, since you have the energy that my old man doesn't have to wrap up the show. But hey, like and subscribe all the way around. And thanks so much again to Boost Mobile for making all this happen. Ty, the floor is yours.
01:05:10
Speaker 2: Listen, I'm looking forward to Nick being back on his show as long as he stays away from my least favorite take, which is that Kobe was the best player to never be the best player in the NBA. He knows I hate it. I text him every time I see it show up. Uh, but outside of that, Nick is my homie. That's my big brother. I got nothing but love and respect for him. And I do appreciate, he's not a sentimental guy, but he, yo Nick, I'm going to send you a sentimental text because this was a tremendous opportunity, possibly opening some doors. And I got a chance to work with some amazing people. Shout out, uh, to, to Daniel, uh, shout out to Paul and all of the folks behind the, behind the glass. This was a lot of fun. And, um, Hit me up at Ty D. Butler, Twitter, Instagram, subscribe to the YouTube channel. Damon, this was a blast. The next time you see the What's Right show, it will be with your boy, Nick Wright. So until we meet again, peace and love. Holla at your boys.
Speaker 1: It's a pleasure to be with you once again. Damon Bruce and Ty Butler in for Nick Wright here on What's Right with Nick Wright, episode number 495. You've got to count these things. If you don't keep your own stats... Nobody will. It's brought to you by Boost Mobile. We're so happy to be with you one more time. It's been our pleasure over the last two weeks here, Ty, filling in for Nick. We got one more show to get through together, and this one's going to be a fun one. This is wide open today, and it's a pleasure to be with you again, man. How are you?
00:00:29
Speaker 2: Fun, but also depressing because, as you just stated, it's the last one. So I'm dressed for the occasion. I've got the all black on. It's the funeral. We're being eulogized and being sit-packing. Our guys, Daniel and Paul, back in the studio, not really happy with our performances. So they told the bosses, get these dudes out of here. We need Nick Wright back on Tuesday. So it is a pleasure to be with you. All jokes aside, man, I'm excited. I'm really excited.
00:00:58
Speaker 1: It's been an awful lot of fun. And again, we thank everyone at The Volume. Thanking our producers. Working with these pros has been just... It's been so much fun. It has been so much fun these last couple of weeks. Nick, if you want to extend that vacation, you know, you got one more week before the NFL starts. If you're having that much fun in Spain, you need a little bit more paella. Maybe you've taken up flamenco lessons and you really want to perfect it before you come on backstage side. Stay where you are, Nick. We will try to get this show back to you in good shape, but he should be back next week. Indeed. And the sports world will indeed be better for it. In the meantime, if you're going to try to call Nick now, it's going to go straight to voicemail and that's brought to you by boost mobile. And look at what we got here today, coming up on straight to voicemail, Serena and Venus playing doubles at the U S open. Now, pardon me, Ty. I'm not much of a, of a tennis guy, but, this isn't the first time this has happened, right? The two of them have played doubles together before in the past, but with Serena basically coming out of retirement, I guess that's what makes this one a little sexier. I do know ticket prices, and all of the scalpers in New York around the tennis center are thrilled with this story.
00:02:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, and her having to bow out her last performance due to injury. So this should be pretty cool. Not good news for those of us in New York City dealing with all the traffic. I saw... couple of races with NYRR get canceled, but I'm excited to see the sisters in action.
00:02:27
Speaker 1: Let's go. Pro Serena and Venus, no doubt about it. Let's see Jonathan Kaminga start counting his regrets. Oh my gosh, think of all the decisions that were made around Kaminga, and now he signs with the Timberwolves for an offer that is less than the Lakers might have put on the table, certainly less than what the Warriors offered him before That relationship fell apart. Jonathan Kaminga is one of the biggest scoops of just a guy to ever command this much attention and speculation. And the Warriors could never figure out who he was. They were held accountable for that. But guess what? No one can really figure out who he is.
00:03:04
Speaker 2: He's the reverse Kirk Cousins. Kirk Cousins keeps getting the bag. Kaminga keeps searching for the bag. It is funny, though. Maybe this is just my algorithm. But the amount of people who are like, yo, San Antonio, Oklahoma City, look out for Minnesota, Kaminga's in town. I don't quite have the same reaction. Now I'm rooting for him. I still think he is really talented. And obviously the LaMelo trade brings a little juice to Minnesota. But I don't think that this elevates them beyond where they were before they signed him. Like they're, to me, pretty much the same team that they were 24 hours ago.
00:03:43
Speaker 1: A little bit of a lateral move. They are bouncier, though. I'll give that. Kameka can jump out of the gym. They got bouncier for sure. But is it a difference-making move? That remains to be seen. To me, this is the best decision of maybe the football year, to be totally honest with you. The NFL is getting rid of the Pro Bowl. I've been saying for years now, Ty, the Pro Bowl should just be a list. If you're on it, congratulations. You're going to get a bump in salary the next year. Nobody wants to play the game. Nobody wants to watch the game. Football without intensity is a bad, bad TV show. And I know it still gets good ratings. And I know that the gambling community and the degenerates need a little something. But it was right to put this to bed. Players don't even want to go to the Pro Bowl. If I offered you two Pro Bowl tickets, would you even want to go to the Pro Bowl? No, not really.
00:04:31
Speaker 2: Now, it's also very telling that we used to remember not that long ago when listing a player's accolades, talk about, you know, MVP finishes, all pros, bring up Pro Bowl appearances. And now it's become such a joke because, you know, I think about... And with all due respect, I know you're in San Francisco. Mac Jones was a pro bowler with the Patriots. And that told me all I needed to know about what that game was about. And so, yeah, good riddance. A lot of people, it's funny, learned yesterday that the Pro Bowl was still in existence. So good for the NFL for making this decision.
00:05:08
Speaker 1: From Pro Bowl to No Bowl, and nobody cares. Nobody is arguing. Give me back the game that I care about so much. No one. Not one person. You can email whatsrightmailbag at gmail.com. Leave a comment if you will. And of course, thanks to everyone here. Thanks to Boost Mobile. And let's hop into it. When you think, Ty, of what every single team wants to accomplish in the preseason, the number one thing is just getting through it healthy. You can have 15 bad practices in a row, but as long as everyone leaves the field healthy, you had a good practice. I really do think that. Jamar Chase just put the scare. into Cincinnati with an injury that, you know, he hyperextended his knee at practice. They immediately said, let's quit practice and we're done here. It turns out he's going to be okay, but there are very few, an entire city now holds its collective breath injuries. That would be one of them for sure. Bengals dodged a bullet and everyone is just trying to get out of this preseason unscathed. That's the mission.
00:06:14
Speaker 2: So hyperextended knee and you hope that this is like the last you hear about it because there have been far too many times where you thought you dodged a bullet and then all of a sudden it creeps up on you. But in the age of social media, could you talk about fan bases collecting or holding their collective breath? In the age of social media, where it's not just the reports you see, you actually see the video immediately, it's like, man, are we cooked? And so to see Jamar Chase in what we know is a monstrous season for the Bengals, monstrous, to see him be healthy is obviously excellent news because the Bengals are going to be a lot of people's picks to, you know, that playoff team that wasn't– the team that didn't make the playoffs last year, making the playoffs this year. And if he's hurt, then you take significant, it's a significant loss. So shout out to him for being able to come back. And you just hope that this is not something that lingers.
00:07:20
Speaker 1: How hot is the Zach Taylor seat? And did it cool down with them dodging a serious injury? I would think so.
00:07:27
Speaker 2: Yeah. So I tried to do this exercise, the hot seats in the NFL, just to start the season. And let me know if I'm missing one, Damon. I've got my football coach, Aaron Glenn of the New York Jets. Todd Bowles, who I think a lot of us were surprised didn't get fired after Tampa Bay last year, not making the playoffs. Nick Sirianni, which is still the funniest one because it's like, man, two years ago, you're winning the Super Bowl and now you're still on the hot seat. So I think among those three names is where you insert Zach Taylor, who probably... should have, could have been fired years ago, if not for the fact that Cincinnati is not in the business of being an organization that's just paying coaches not to coach for them. And you do have the built-in excuse of Joe Burrow, twice in the last three years, not playing a full season. And so Zach Taylor, every year, this feels like a conversation we're having on August 27th, but absolutely monstrous year ahead for him and the Bengals.
00:08:33
Speaker 1: It's probably the wrong thing to do to assume that Cincinnati runs its team in a normal way at all. But a normal team you'd think would constantly be having like a conversation with their legitimate franchise quarterback, not just a quarterback in the room, but a franchise guy like the way Burrow is. And they got to ask him, what do you think of your coach? Are you comfortable with this? Is this something that you want to keep going with? And I'm guessing that Burrow keeps on endorsing the guy to keep the job, right? I think Burrow's got enough juice to where if he wanted to move some chess pieces around the board, he could flex his muscles out. And do that in Cincinnati. I think that there is a good relationship. Speaking of relationships, everyone wants to always give credit to one more guy than the other. You know, it takes two to tango. Somebody's got to throw the ball. Somebody's got to catch the ball. Now there are clear. OK, this quarterback is dominant. This wide receiver is just a guy. The most important person here is the quarterback. For Jamar Chase and Joe Burrow, it's a little bit different. Because you could argue that these guys are both state-of-the-art, top three at their position in the world right now. Which guy makes the other guy? That's a totally unfair question, by the way. But I'll ask it.
00:09:41
Speaker 2: I don't think that... So if the question is, who would you rather have? I think the obvious answer is Joe Burrow. You'd rather have the superstar quarterback with a league average receiver versus the opposite, a superstar receiver and a league average quarterback. But that's not the question. The question is who needs who more? And so while I don't think that if Jamar Chase didn't have Joe Barrow throwing to him, He wouldn't be Jamar Chase. He would still be an excellent receiver. But if it's as far as winning, which is the ultimate goal, getting your team to a Super Bowl, having to win the Super Bowl, I think it's Jamar needs Joe. Because we've seen that combination, and now we're getting further and further removed from it, Back in 21, they're in the Super Bowl. Back in 2022, they're in the AFC Championship against the Chiefs. So that combination works to the degree of us having team success if they're both healthy. And I think it has more to do with the quarterback than it has to do with the receiver. And again, that's with all due respect to Jamar, who I think is... It's tough. I was going to say, is the best receiver in football. It's him and Justin Jefferson right there.
00:11:01
Speaker 1: They're right there.
00:11:02
Speaker 2: They're right there together. And so you're kind of splitting hairs. But I think Jamar needs Joe more than the reverse because here's the deal, man. Though I didn't like the decision to pay both Chase and Higgins. Let's just say Chase is unavailable. You do still have T. Higgins. And while he's not Jamar Chase, I think it's still plenty good enough for Joe Burrow to work with.
00:11:28
Speaker 1: Didn't Joe Flacco, though, kind of prove that anybody with Jamar is pretty damn good, right? I mean, he is that good. I think Jamar had one of his better games with Joe Flacco as a quarterback.
00:11:37
Speaker 2: Against the Steelers? Was that the Steelers game? It might have been that Steelers game.
00:11:42
Speaker 1: It all gets fuzzy to me now.
00:11:44
Speaker 2: 500 yards, I believe it was. I'm just talking about if we're trying to win a Super Bowl.
00:11:48
Speaker 1: Oh, yeah. Without a doubt. It all starts with a quarterback. We all know that. I mean, there's a reason why every single NFL quarterback game has a close-up of the quarterback and a close-up of the head coach in between each and every play. Those guys really do matter an awful lot. But as we're trying to play out the string here, Ty, of the preseason, let me ask you this question. What would be, outside of the position of quarterback, the most devastating preseason injury should it arrive? What injury would completely move a team off of its spot? One guy, changes the entire equation, who do you think it would be?
00:12:30
Speaker 2: Oh, I think it's right in your neck of the woods. It has to be San Francisco with Christian McCaffrey because there's proof of concept. When that trade is made between Carolina and San Francisco, the biggest question was, can McCaffrey stay healthy? And we've seen that when he's healthy, not only are the Niners really good, but they're in the Super Bowl. So in 2023, Christian McCaffrey, Offensive Player of the Year, top three MVP candidate, they go to the Super Bowl. In 2024, he gets hurt, they win six games. I would say there's a correlation between those two things. And last year, despite the fact that Purdy was injured, I think Purdy played eight games or nine games, they still went 11-6, won a playoff game, And wouldn't you know it, Christian McCaffrey, once again, top four MVP candidate. And so the only guys to finish that high the last three years is Saquon in that title season for Philly. And Christian McCaffrey has done it once, as I mentioned, top three and top four finishes. And so that, and I know they've added Mike Evans and they bring back Debo. I get it. But Christian McCaffrey, is still the best player. He is still the engine on that team. And as we've seen the last three years, like there, there is tangible evidence of it. And so I would say it's, it's a Christian McCaffrey.
00:14:00
Speaker 1: Thank you. I mean, thank you. If I answered that question, people are going to say, well, that's a little, you know, location bias. You cover the Niners. Of course, you're going to say that you're correct. I believe that is the correct answer. Other candidate, though, wearing a 49ers uniform who I think does apply to this is Trent Williams. This is an average offensive line with Trent Williams. Without Trent Williams, I think they dip below average in a way that might be unserviceable to this year's goals. So I'll give you that. And to get out of San Francisco and to continue to answer this question with another running back, I think Derrick Henry lives in the same world that Christian McCaffrey is living in. He is what are the Ravens if something were to happen to him? That would just change the calculus and the math and the carries and the load that Derrick Henry carries for that franchise. So I think that would be a huge one for sure. So no injuries. Let's get out of this final preseason week as cleanly as possible. I wish the entire league health. That's my only wish.
00:15:06
Speaker 2: Let me throw one more at first. It's a bad sign for Lamar Jackson. A two-time league MVP, if we're saying their season goes to hell, and I get Derrick Henry is Derrick Henry. But if you're Lamar, and I'm a big Lamar fan, while maybe not a Super Bowl contender, you should still be able to make the playoffs if you're a two-time league MVP. Another guy I thought about, Damon, was someone who was involved in a blockbuster trade this past offseason, and it's Myles Garrett. Miles Garrett, who is one of the best players in football, I think undeniably top 10. The problem is he goes to a team that's loaded and he is now this is different from being on the Browns where like you're one of the lone bright spots. But he's on a team now that it obviously wouldn't be ideal, but I think would be able to suffer from, let's say he gets hurt for an extended period of time. because they've still got tremendous, they added McDuffie and Watson as their corners. And of course they have the reigning league MVP and their offense should be explosive. They also have the best head coach or one of the best head coaches in the league. And so Moz Garrett was a name I floated out there and flirted with, but because of where he is now, I think you have to see to Christian McCaffrey.
00:16:28
Speaker 1: You know, I know that last year's MVP had a spectacular year. But at the same time, I don't think Stafford's season goes down in like NFL history. Miles Garrett, I thought should have been the MVP of last year. His season goes down in NFL history. I think he was a bigger outlier at his position than the guy who won the award was an outlier at his. But unfortunately, we've decided a very long time ago that all MVPs must be quarterbacks. And that is That's a problem with postseason voting. It really is. I do not like that. I know that quarterbacks are very important. But, man, find me. Find me someone who had a better year maybe ever than the year that Miles Garrett had last year. He was unbelievable. He should have been the MVP.
00:17:18
Speaker 2: Yeah, I guess it goes in line with, you know, whenever we talk about, like, what are the most important positions in sports? You know, hockey fans will tell you it's the goaltender. more generalist fans would say it's the quarterback. So if the quarterback has a great season, then he has to be the most valuable, according to a lot of people.
00:17:40
Speaker 1: Hit him with the Boost.
00:17:42
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00:18:30
Speaker 1: Boom. Look at that. Just teeing it up. How about this? It's time to talk about this upcoming NFL season. The regular season is a glorious thing. We love it. We're obsessed by it. It's the only thing all of America can agree on. Football's awesome, and we miss Dolly Parton. Those are the two things that all of America can absolutely agree on. Let's have ourselves a regular season games draft. We're each going to pick five games. What we think are going to be the biggest games of the NFL season. No repeats here. Let me be the best possible co-host. And gentlemanly, I can possibly be here. Ty, I grant you, sir, the very first pick. You're on the clock. You're at the podium.
00:19:11
Speaker 2: All right. So this might, I guess, defy logic. But I've got to start in week one, Monday Night Football, Denver at Kansas City. You've got both quarterbacks returning from season-ending injuries. I thought the Broncos would have won the Super Bowl last year if Bo Nix doesn't get hurt at the end of that game against the Bills. When you take a look at all that, you know, the storylines amassing. Eric Bien-Aimé is returning. Is this Travis Kelsey's final season? The Jalen Waddell trade helps the offense for Denver. And obviously, Bo Nix, people are not really sold on him. I think he's a really good quarterback. He's one of the winningest quarterbacks since he's entered the league. And for Kansas City, it's redemption tour times two because Nick told us last year was the redemption tour after they got stomped out by the Eagles in the Super Bowl. And what did that lead to? That led to them finishing their year with one more win than the Cleveland Browns. And so Denver swept the Chiefs last year. We always get week one overreactions. But this one you could see coming from a mile away because if Kansas City wins, it's like, oh, here they go. They're back. Don't count out the champs. And then for Denver to be OK. See, last year was a fluke. They won 14 games, 12 of them. They were trailing in, which is just insane. And so I'm looking forward to week one, Monday Night Football, a clash of the Titans, division rivals, Denver in Kansas City.
00:20:55
Speaker 1: I will see your standalone AFC West game and raise you a standalone NFC West game right in week one. I'm starting in the first week as well. And I am taking you all the way to the land down under, baby. We got a huge one in Australia. An absolutely huge one in Australia. And don't tell me, Damon, this is because you covered the Niners. No, this is a big game. This is the team that the whole world is picking to win the Super Bowl and the LA Rams. And it's the 49ers who, if we're talking about teams with a big variance, like you were saying last show, you know, the Niners are either going to have a really impressive year or this whole thing feels like it could dangle on a thread and fall apart quickly. Now, and I did on Twitter promise that this would be a trailer park free show, the extra headlines and pressure that, you know, the latest week of Jed York news has sort of surrounded the 49ers with this incredibly embarrassing story. It's just, you know, forget about coming into this year under the radar. I thought that was going to be like an asset to the 49ers, and that's all gone now. But this is a big, big game. It's a game that the Rams did not want at home because they were going to be drowned out in their own stadium by Niners fans. Guess what? They're going to get drowned out by Niners fans in Australia as well. The Niners are going to come into this game hot, frisky, And I am telling you, the winner of this game will win the NFC West. Wow. The winner of this game will win the NFC West based off four quarters of football. That is a preposterous prediction. But it's what's right with Nick Wright. So we're going to go ahead and we're going to make it. Rams, Niners, Australia, week one. You better have Netflix. That's where you're going to watch it. It's going to be a monster. It's a big game.
00:22:47
Speaker 2: All right. Let's go to week eight where we get the Baltimore Ravens traveling to Buffalo new stadium. And you've got a pair of Superbowl contenders with new head coaches. You've got Josh versus Lamar. And look, since they last met in the playoffs, two quarterbacks that have won Superbowls are Hertz and Darnold. And you know, Those teams are stacked. But every year when we run through predictions and, you know, we figure out who the contenders are, the first attribute is who that team has a quarterback. And so with these guys having watched, I would say, lesser names, not just a win, but get there before them, the pressure is only intensifies. And so I'm looking forward to watching, uh, MVPs, Josh and Lamar go at it. And we know going into this game, the story is going to be, if this is a potential playoff preview, which team is best set up to go on a run Buffalo, by the way, I should point out, uh, we'll be coming off of a buy. Meanwhile, Baltimore is coming off of a divisional game against Cincinnati and they're into a short week against the Jags. And so I would imagine just based on this, and obviously we don't know where the teams are injury-wise, just based off of that information, it's in Buffalo and the schedule. The Bills are going to be favored, but it should be an excellent game.
00:24:17
Speaker 1: Why?
00:24:17
Speaker 2: Because it's Baltimore and Buffalo.
00:24:20
Speaker 1: I'm going to steal a little bit of your first overall pick. I'm going to marry it to a little bit of your second overall pick, and I'm going to package the whole thing. on a holiday that screams football. For my second overall pick, Ty, I am taking you to Highmark Stadium for a Thanksgiving Day game. Chiefs and Bills on Thanksgiving. You want to talk about something that might flirt with the concept of biggest rated game of the NFL season. If the bills are cooking and Highmark Stadium is officially open and rocking and everyone decides that despite the sight lines, we really like this place, this place is working, let's see what the Chiefs are by the time we're in Thanksgiving. Patrick Mahomes will have either shown us he still wears Superman's cape or he just maybe isn't the guy he used to be and the Chiefs are having trouble holding on to that magic. There are only so many 70-yard field goals that Harrison Butker can bomb through. to make things happen. So it's a huge game. Another just an AFC absolute heavyweight. Chiefs-Bills at the new stadium on Thanksgiving. There will be no folding tables safe in upstate New York. They will all be broken.
00:25:31
Speaker 2: All right, so let's stay on Thanksgiving. And I've got a pair of NFC East division rivals. How about a little Hurts and Dak Prescott action? What if they're both awesome? and both MVP candidates. I really like the Cowboys this year. I've been saying that for weeks. I love what they've done on defense. And if they could just be middle of the pack, we know their offense, as long as Dak is healthy, is going to be absolutely cooking. And with Jalen, feels like he's one of the most disrespected quarterbacks in the league. And so he's got a lot to prove this year. And I know it's a cliche, but A.J. Brown trade People are expecting Philadelphia to kind of fall off of a cliff. Sirianni gets fired. Jalen Hurst has run out of town. But I think both of these teams are going to be really good. And last year, we did have that broken streak of winning your division in consecutive years for the NFC East because Philly went back to back. But you have two, as I mentioned, of the most disrespected quarterbacks in football. And for different reasons, Hurts, people just don't think is good. People know Dak is excellent, but they put a lot of these playoff exits on his shoulders, despite the fact that the numbers say differently. And so I'm looking forward to week 12, Philly at Dallas Thanksgiving Day.
00:26:49
Speaker 1: I'm also sticking with a division rivalry that absolutely matters and will determine how the deck shuffles out. Week five, Bears at Packers. It's a big one. It's the NFL's longest-standing rivalry, obviously. Games at Soldier Field feel like they're being played in Indiana. We need a classic NFL stadium now, and so bring me to Lambeau to do and find just that. Bears and Packers, we know what it means. Chicago, when you're really talking about how the Bears have a season that matters, Do they need to start 3-1? At Carolina, Minnesota, Philadelphia, and then the Jets. Then they're going to Lambeau Field. This is a big game right off the rip. If the Bears want to be tracking with the expectations that are big, big in Chicago, they need a good start. You want to talk about a game that lingers? Bears-Packers lingers. It stays in players' minds. It stays in the media's minds. It stays in the fans' minds. This game matters. It always has. It always will. And as Chicago's trying to find out whether or not it's really a big boy now, that's a big boy game for the Chicago Bears. Week five at Lambeau. Go get it done.
00:28:06
Speaker 2: All right. Now, if my man Nick Wright were participating in this game, He would call this a Super Bowl preview. You've got Kansas City taking on the Rams week 13. Kansas City at the Rams week 13 Thursday night football. Super Bowl preview. Maybe we saw that in the preseason a couple of weeks ago when your man Bucker hit the 69-yard field goal. Chiefs fans are feeling good because Mahomes is jumping up and down that knee looks right. How does this young Chiefs defense look against a high-powered defense?
00:28:45
Speaker 1: Offense.
00:28:46
Speaker 2: For Kansas City, when I pulled up the schedule, they are in the midst of a bit of a tough stretch when they play this Week 13 game because it's Week 13 against the Rams. But before that, they're in Buffalo. So it's at Buffalo, at the Rams, at the Cincinnati, home for New England, home for San Francisco, and at the Chargers. So That's a tough six game stretch. This is a very important game. And again, a lot of people are going to be saying this is a Super Bowl preview. So you've got Mahomes against Stafford. Top five quarterbacks, MVP versus MVP. We haven't gone anywhere, says the Chiefs. I'm looking forward to this matchup week 13.
00:29:31
Speaker 1: I'm sold. I'm in on that matchup for sure. That's a big one. You want some NFL royalty, though? Let me cook you up some NFL royalty. When we're talking about the crown jewels of this league, it doesn't get bigger than Niners and Cowboys. It doesn't. It doesn't get bigger than Niners and Cowboys. It really does not in week 10, which is the Sunday before Thanksgiving. We got the 49ers at the Cowboys. It's NFL ratings royalty. If both are contenders, that game could be the game that delivers the single biggest standalone weekend afternoon ratings delivery for Fox. It is a monster. This is the kind of game that makes networks spend all that money on TV packages, and it's star-studded all around. There are household names in this game. It's Niners and Cowboys, and again, watch the Niners play. turn Jerry Jones's Death Star red. There will be more 49er fans at that Cowboys game than Cowboys. The 49ers travel like Kentucky basketball in the early 90s. I don't think there is a fan base that gets up and goes to an opposing stadium as much as Niners fans do. Wait until you see that week one in Australia. You will see that. A huge game. Niners, Cowboys, Cowboys. setting up Thanksgiving week, week 10. It just doesn't get bigger than that. Like we could have taken that number one overall. That's how big that could be if both teams are cooking at that time.
00:31:06
Speaker 2: Now it's a dangerous game to play when you go ahead to week 18 because it's on the table. It might not matter, but we saw this a year ago. Or I guess a couple of months ago. It was in January. But a season ago, we saw Pittsburgh and Baltimore with a chance to win the division. Winner goes on to the playoffs. Loser goes home. And then we saw change ensue after that. And so I'm going Steelers at Ravens. Week 18. The game last year was in Pittsburgh. This year, it'll be in Baltimore. Rodgers, his final game, possibly him walking off the field for the final time. of an illustrious career. And imagine the story, y'all, if Baltimore, for the second straight season, lose this game and miss out on the playoffs, the type of conversations we're going to be having about the organization. Could Lamar be out? It's a failure for Jesse Minter because, yes, you're a rookie head coach, but it's an already made team. And so you've got to come in there and deliver.
00:32:14
Speaker 1: They'll fire John Harbaugh again.
00:32:16
Speaker 2: They'll bring him back and they'll fire him again. So Pittsburgh, Baltimore, week 18. Does it get better than that? Ty Butler says no. So I don't know why I spoke in third person, but here we go, week 18.
00:32:32
Speaker 1: So we both determined that we would have a couple backup games here in case we had games that we stepped on. We didn't want to both draft the same game. But let me show you how great minds here, Ty, do think alike. Because with my final pick in the draft, I'm just going to read you exactly what I wrote. Week 18, Aaron Rodgers' final NFL regular season game at Baltimore. Lamar will either be a media darling by week 18 once again because he's still Lamar or the knives are going to be out because the season did not go well. Rodgers, whatever your opinion is of him, is one of the greatest quarterbacks of our lifetime. And there's no denying that in his place in football history. And it could be his last ever game. I have the exact same game for my final pick week 18 and all that could come with it. We know that Pittsburgh and Baltimore gives you extra nasty defensive football. Whenever that game breaks out, that could, I've got it too. Now, if you're saying no, here was my backup. And this is a little, give me, give me the worst game of the year. What is the worst game on the NFL schedule this year? I think I looked it up and I found it in week one. Jets and Titans.
00:33:46
Speaker 2: Come on.
00:33:47
Speaker 1: Jets and Titans. No one wants that game. No one wants that game. Nobody wants that game. Except for Robert Sala. It's the revenge game, baby. Let's see what happens. It's a game only a mother could love or a sad Jets fan could love. It's an ugly game. It has zero appeal. It has questionable talent in it. But Robert Sala's revenge is what I might be watching for. It's the worst game of the year. It could be the best game of the year.
00:34:17
Speaker 2: Listen, you can't say that on a show with a Jeff fan. That's disrespectful.
00:34:23
Speaker 1: You know who you are. You know the path you have chosen. And you know that I'm right.
00:34:28
Speaker 2: Listen, I think it's a fantastic game. You've got, listen, who's not signing up for Cam Ward versus Geno Smith? Who's not on the lookout for Aaron Glenn and what his situation could be if they lose this game, knowing that afterwards the Jets play the Packers, the Lions, and the Bears. So 0-1 could quickly turn into 0-4. So this is like the Super Bowl if you're a Jets fan. If you're a Titans fan, it's like, all right, Cam Ward ended last season playing pretty well last month. So now he's got Carnell Tate. He's got offensive genius Brian Dable.
00:35:05
Speaker 1: I want to congratulate you on your week one Super Bowl. Maybe the Jets can do that. Maybe they can. Oh, my gosh. There you go. Good draft. I mean, a lot of good games. This season cannot start soon enough, man. I am so ready for it. I love football. I feel normal when football is on my TVs on Sundays. It helps me get through my week. It really does. I need football. I'm so glad it's almost back. You want to talk about some disrespect, though. I want to take you to a conversation out here that's happening on the West Coast, and it's about the Rams and Seahawks and who really deserves to be the team that people are saying is about to win the NFC West. Now, I threw the 49ers in there, and I do think the 49ers are being slept on a little bit, but they're, like we said earlier, big variants to their season. We don't know how it's going to go. We all know that the world is picking the Rams before the season even starts for some reasons. Decent reasons as well. There is an incredible amount of top shelf liquor sitting over in that bar for the St. Louis Rams, or excuse me, for the Los Angeles Rams. Sorry, St. Louis. The problem for the Seahawks is that Sam Darnold is just sitting on the, he'll never be counted on. People count against Sam Darnold more than they count on Sam Darnold. And winning a Super Bowl didn't exactly change that. Maybe Jalen Hurts can sort of identify with that. Sam Darnold is very, very good, though. But he lost the guy who was named Super Bowl MVP. And I think that alone is the reason why the Seahawks are coming in under the radar and sort of disrespected for a team that is the defending Super Bowl champs. There's really no one talking about them as a threat to repeat. That's for sure. What do you think gives between the Rams and their hype and the quiet nature of the hype around the Seahawks?
00:37:00
Speaker 2: It's amazing that we've only done three and a quarter shows together, and yet we're like 85% of the time on the same page because I also have, look, it's not really disrespect. The facts are you lost your Super Bowl MVP, you lost your offensive coordinator, and there's still, to varying degrees, some Sam Darnold skepticism. Like when we look back 20, 30 years from now, and we're like, oh. In the 2020s, you had two quarterbacks get to back-to-back Super Bowls, Patrick Mahomes and Sam Darnold. Do we think that that's going to be the conversation? I don't believe so. And so you look at the Rams are just on paper a better team. They added Watson and McDuffie. They traded for Myles Garrett. Aaron Darnold might be coming back. And so I look at it as maybe it's a little bit of disrespect for Seattle, but it's also hard to get back to a Super Bowl. But it's more about history. The tremendous respect we have for the Rams, who we know have the better coach and many people believe to have the better head coach. I'm sorry. We know have the better quarterback and many people believe have the better head coach. So I say this is more Rams based optimism and praise and adulation than it is like doubting the Seahawks.
00:38:21
Speaker 1: I think you're right. I just think that the Rams get so much ink in the headlines. It just kind of muscles the Seahawks off the page. But if we were sitting around talking about, you know, the five best teams in the NFC. One of them has to be the Seahawks, but it feels like they're the one team that doesn't make everyone's list. They just, for whatever reason, are left off of it. Maybe it's Pacific Northwest bias. I really don't know. But if the Seahawks wore Giants uniforms, the hype would be through the roof. But they don't. They wear Seahawks uniforms.
00:38:59
Speaker 2: So this is where the Sam Darnold aspect comes into play. If they had a number of different quarterbacks, we would be saying it's Seattle's title to win or lose. But it's Sam Darno. And look, I love the story. Drafted by the Jets. So, you know, I was rooting for him. But that's really what this comes down to.
00:39:22
Speaker 1: We want to thank everyone for watching hit like and subscribe not only here to what's right with nick right but our channels as well damon bruce plus is where you can find me on youtube got a look out for my man ty follow him everywhere as well thank you so very very much and when nick is back next week i'm sure one of the things he will do like every single sports talk show host in america is give you his predictive list of awards to be won in the NFL this year. And since there's a couple guys filling in for him, it's not just what Nick thinks. Let's give him some other footage to go back and nitpick at the end of the year. You can cue up the, what, the cold takes? Cold takes exposed?
00:40:06
Speaker 2: Freezing cold takes.
00:40:07
Speaker 1: Freezing cold takes. Let's see if we might not qualify here. Who is the MVP of the upcoming NFL season before we have thrown a pass?
00:40:19
Speaker 2: So I flirted with a couple guys. Dak Prescott. As I keep saying, I'm high on the Cowboys. Their offense is going to be excellent. They could win that division. And obviously, I wouldn't be surprised if they win double-digit games. But where I landed, Damon, was with a team we talked about earlier in the show that's got a lot of pressure on them. Head coach is on the hot seat. Quarterback could be gone next year. Via trade. And that is Joe Burrow. Because he's got the improved defense. When he's healthy, you know he's going to put up the numbers. And people wanted to give it to him a couple of years ago when he missed the playoffs. And so with him being the only guy of the big four, of Josh, Lamar, Patrick, not winning an MVP, this feels like the best chance he has it. It has, because as I mentioned, the moves they made on defense that blockbuster trade with the Giants to get Dexter Lawrence. And he also has some of the narratives going in his favor. Missed the playoffs last year. As I said, the head coach is on the hot seat. And I think it'll actually work in his favor if the defense isn't.
00:41:37
Speaker 1: Top five.
00:41:38
Speaker 2: But if it's just mediocre, it's like, hey, see, told y'all all Joe Burrow needed was just a halfway decent defense and he could get the team to the playoffs and maybe get a top two seed. And so I'm rolling with Joe Burrow this year to win the MVP, assuming he stays healthy, which is an aggressive assumption. But I got Joe Burrow.
00:41:58
Speaker 1: Look, health matters, and whoever doesn't stay healthy is going to have no chance to be in this conversation. I'm looking for a guy who's got a good track record of health. I'm looking for a guy who is in a situation that I think has improved. I'll admit that every single team in this league has talent everywhere. Who coordinates that talent? Who sets up that talent for success matters? I think Mike McDaniel to the Chargers is enough of a threat to open up a level of offense which could deliver an MVP to Justin Herbert, a guy who has been very good early on in his career, has not delivered in the postseason, obviously, but this is not a postseason award. Big regular season numbers, Justin has put those up. I think he's got the right team, the right head coach, and the right offensive coordinator to put up some gaudy numbers this year. I'm going to go with Justin Herbert, who's like plus 850, plus 1,000 everywhere. I'm looking a little bit further down the board. I don't just want an odds-on favorite. I'm going with Herbert. And if I had to take a sleeper or a dark horse, even though the Madden curse is definitely upon him, if the Chicago Bears are going to do the things that Ben Johnson is talking about, that will have meant that Caleb Williams had a monster year. He didn't regress. He actually progressed. He got better. He's the first bears quarterback to ever throw for 4,000 yards, which feels like it should automatically trigger an MVP since that's never happened in the history of the Chicago bears. So let's, I think that he will be absolutely at the center of all good things in Chicago or all bad things in Chicago. Like all quarterbacks are at the center of, you know, praise or criticism. Caleb Williams is my dark horse. I would bet Justin Herbert.
00:43:52
Speaker 2: I like it. I think that with Harbaugh, though, for Herbert, they want to be more of a run-heavy offense. But look, I like it. At some point, Herbert's got to win a playoff game.
00:44:01
Speaker 1: That's all right. Here's the thing. Run your fanny off. That's just going to make life for the quarterback easier. Yeah, it really is. If running your fanny off means you're scoring touchdowns instead of settling for field goals, quarterback wins more games. Helps the MVP case.
00:44:16
Speaker 2: Yeah, listen, I like it. The dark horse one, Caleb, fantastic. I know Danny Parkins is on the volume a lot, so that would be an incredible, incredible feat for him to celebrate. What's the next one we got coming up here?
00:44:31
Speaker 1: Offensive rookie of the year. May I go first?
00:44:35
Speaker 2: Go ahead.
00:44:38
Speaker 1: I need talent and opportunity meeting together. My dark horse would have been, and I guess is, Dajon Stribling, but Kyle Shanahan doesn't like rookie wide receivers, even if they're spectacular and he hasn't had many spectacular rookie wide receivers, but watch the coach suppress those numbers. I don't know if the opportunity is going to be there. It should be, he should be a starting receiver on this team right now against across from Mike Evans, but Debo's arrival, they're going to try to get, you know, something there, there, there's not a lot of ball distribution. And then once Kittle comes back, I don't know how many times the rookie is going to get targeted to put up the numbers. I need talent and opportunity. And who's going to have more talent, meeting opportunity than Jadarian Price? We talked about how they lost the Super Bowl MVP. Will they gain a stud rookie running back? Who is going to get the opportunity, the carries, the chance to be in this conversation? I'm going with Jadarian Price up in Seattle. Offensive rookie of the year.
00:45:43
Speaker 2: So you talk about talent and opportunity, which is perfect because it sets up for a guy... like Makai Lemon, to have an incredible offensive season. Now, look, I don't love that he had been dealing with this hamstring injury the past couple of weeks in training camp. He was a full participant a few days ago for the Eagles. But if they are going to be great this year, Philadelphia, their offense is going to have to pop. And with no A.J. Brown, Devontae Smith, and Wicks, I understand all that. I'm looking for Makai Lemon to be a big part of this offense as he develops rapport with Jalen Hurts. And, you know, we all love touchdowns, right? That is going to be one of the metrics that just jumps out to people when they're voting on this award. And so when you look at red zone targets, you've got Saquon that defenses have to account for. You've got Smith and Wicks that defense has to account for, and Goddard. So does that open the door for a guy like Makai Lemon to become that guy who scores a bunch of touchdowns? Obviously, a popular pick is going to be Jeremiah Love, but he's already hurt. Fernando Mendoza, I don't know that he's going to play enough this season.
00:46:57
Speaker 1: Opportunity, right? Might not get it.
00:46:59
Speaker 2: Yeah, warrant him getting that award. Carnell Tate was someone I thought about as well, and I raved about Brian Dable's offensive genius and what he'll be able to do in Tennessee. But I think Makai Lemon, who's right now at plus 1,400 in a lot of places, that's a nice little sneaky pick for Offensive Rookie of the Year.
00:47:17
Speaker 1: Defensive Rookie of the Year? I got to go with the guy who I think could be a candidate to when we have the conversation three years from now. Like, let's redraft the 2026 NFL draft. Who would have gone number one? That guy could be Caleb Downs. Caleb Downs might be one of the most talented rookies we've seen come into this league in a while. He's got incredible instincts. He was a total stud in college. And I think if Dallas, who I'm like you, I'm starting to believe in Dallas a little bit. Now, they can kick out the plug on that real quickly. The Cowboys have a way of talking me out of the Cowboys quickly. But if it's coming together for them and they're playing really good defense, I'm imagining he's having a really good year on that back end. He is one pick six on a standalone Monday night, Sunday night game from getting all the hype in the world. And we know that the Cowboys machine is considerable when it comes to getting across some some media appeal. But Caleb Downs is is legit. This guy is special. Dark Horse. I tell you, he scared the hell out of me in the national title game against Indiana. Reuben Bain Jr. down in Tampa Bay. I know that he just hurt his shoulder. Hopefully he's all right there. I like the talent and opportunity of Arvel Reese is meeting the right coach, I think, to get him wired right to have a good career in the NFL in New York with Harbaugh. So I'm going with Caleb Downs, though, my defensive rookie of the year, and he might be the best player in this draft.
00:48:49
Speaker 2: That was my dark horse because it's the Dallas, it's the Cowboys. I think there'll be a really good team. And they were the worst defensive team in football. So if they... Take a significant step in the right direction. We're going to be looking at some of the playmakers on that defense, and I think Caleb Downs will be that for Dallas. Call me a homer. How can I not pick David Bailey, the second pick in the draft? He's been lighting it up in camp, and I know it's like whatever. preseason. Did pick up a sack this past week against the Steelers. But he was viewed, because you just brought up Arvel Reese. The Jets, on their board was Arvel Reese. But David Bailey was viewed as someone who was like a safer pick because he was the more NFL-ready prospect. And Reese... While he might have a higher upside, it's still a project. But David Bailey's been lighting it up in camp for the Jets. Aaron Glenn did tell me, did tell the media in New York, did tell the world that defense is his superpower. Calling the NFL defenses is his superpower. So if I pair Aaron Glenn's superpower with the second pick in the draft, who's been having a hell of a camp, I am led to believe David Bailey has an excellent shot at being this year's defensive rookie.
00:50:13
Speaker 1: Of the year. J-E-T-S. Jets. Jets. Jets. I'll give you that one. I have no teasing you about that at all. He is a stud. And obviously, unleash him. Let him play every single down. Let him play. So opportunity is certainly going to be there. Real quick, we're about to head into overtime here. Coach of the year, give me a Super Bowl matchup.
00:50:37
Speaker 2: All right. So coach of the year, I'll go Kevin O'Connell. Vikings over under is eight and a half. I'm starting to believe they've got a real shot at making the playoffs. If Kyler just stays on the field, which he hasn't been able to do two of the last three years. I do like Kevin O'Connell and that team. We know about their offense. They're going to score enough points to keep them in games. So it's just about being able to close a Super Bowl matchup. You might like this one. It's a rematch from Christmas a couple of years ago. And that is the Ravens and the Niners. Ravens-Niners. And I think this was the game that lost Brock Purdy the MVP that year and helped clinch it for Lamar. So Baltimore, in this game, finally gets it done for the first time since, what, 2012. They take down it, and it's another heartbreaking Super Bowl loss for San Francisco. But I've got Lamar. out-dueling Brock Purdy and winning the Super Bowl this year. Take that, John Harbaugh.
00:51:41
Speaker 1: Hopefully the game doesn't end with Colin Kaepernick throwing fade passes to Crabtree as Frank Gore isn't allowed to touch the football on the goal line. That is going to rub Niners fans wrong the rest of their lives. Look at you taking the 49ers in the Super Bowl. By the way, my Super Bowl is an all SoFi Super Bowl, baby. The Super Bowl's at SoFi. It's going to be Rams and Chargers. Rams and Chargers in the Super Bowl and all LA Super Bowl in both of their home stadiums. Why not? It's crazy. I'm picking it. I don't have that much conviction in it, though. I really don't. Ryan Schottenheimer is your coach of the year. Again, if Dallas is good, they're going to be looking to hand this to him. If they win the NFC West, they're going to want to give this to him. And honestly, given the turnaround of Dallas's defense, if they're the reason why this team is respectable again, I think Brian Schottenheimer is going to be a very good candidate for coach of the year.
00:52:43
Speaker 2: All right.
00:52:44
Speaker 1: Are we officially in overtime? I think we're ticking into overtime.
00:52:48
Speaker 2: We're in overtime where your Niners were the last time they were in the Super Bowl.
00:52:54
Speaker 1: But at least we know the overtime rules. And I don't know if that argument could be made that year. for Kyle Shanahan. A little coast versus coast. Now, again, I grew up in upstate New York, in Schenectady, New York. I know the ecosystem well. I know how the Buffalo Bills have always had trouble crashing the New York football party, even when they were going to Super Bowls. I know that the Knicks are riding high on the hog, and I know that the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees are the Yankees forever. Give me If you would, please. Your New York City most important team power ranking. Who are the top five teams in the state of New York?
00:53:39
Speaker 2: All right. So this is a little prisoner of the moment just because we did see the gravity of winning the championship and what it did for the city, what it did for the nation, because their fans certainly travel. But I'd have to go Knicks at number one. The Yankees are still top two. You can't slide them any further down than two. I'd go Giants at number three. They are still a cornerstone franchise in the NFL. I would go Jets at number four. And with all due respect to the Bills fans, Bills aren't a New York team, man. That's upstate. That's like Canada. So I'm going to go.
00:54:22
Speaker 1: You called him Canadian. You're going to put a 50% tariff on him? Wow.
00:54:27
Speaker 2: Yeah, so I'll stick with baseball. I know they haven't won in 40 years. I know they've become one of the biggest jokes. They've got a rich owner spending a lot of money, and they can't make the playoffs. But I'm going to put the New York Mets at number five. New York Mets at number five.
00:54:46
Speaker 1: I can't believe the Mets are still on the list. Poor Rangers, poor Islanders. I guess they don't make it. The Islanders never. Well, let me ask you who lives a sadder existence, a Nets fan or geez, I don't know.
00:55:04
Speaker 2: Oh God.
00:55:06
Speaker 1: You mean the Sacramento Kings?
00:55:08
Speaker 2: Yeah, that's a good one. Cause like the Nets had like five minutes of fame a couple of years ago when you have the KD, Kyrie, Harden super team that, by the way, should have won the title, if not for injuries. They were going to win the championship that year. They were up 2-0 in that series on the Bucs. Harden gets hurt. Kyrie gets hurt. It still goes to seven games. They were going to beat the Suns in the finals the following year. Now the Ben Simmons, Harden's asking now. So they got ruined by injuries and drama, but To go from where they were just, like I said, five years ago to basically irrelevant now, I guess by proximity, because I'm closer to them, I've got to say the Nets. Because the Kings did have to light the beam here, that first round series against the Warriors.
00:56:00
Speaker 1: And let me just say, what the Kings have and the Nets don't have are fans that care.
00:56:05
Speaker 2: Yes, correct.
00:56:06
Speaker 1: I mean, that's the thing. The opposite of love is not hate, it's indifference. I just feel like there is a huge level of indifference being projected by the Nets to the Nets. They're still New Jersey's team. You can put them in Brooklyn. Nobody's fooled. No one cares about the Nets where there is an awful lot of pain in your life if you care about the Kings, but at least you care. At least you care about them.
00:56:32
Speaker 2: You did not have... In that playoff run that went seven games, and Theron Fox, if he doesn't break his finger, maybe it goes differently. What you did not have is a star player on the Kings on social media begging fans to buy playoff tickets, which we saw James Harden doing for the Nets. Like, just imagine that. It's New York City. You're one of the favorites to win the championship. You've got three megastars, and one of them is on social media begging begging fans to buy playoff tickets. So that was just the height of embarrassment.
00:57:08
Speaker 1: For shame. For shame. How much do you think the Nets had to pay Harden to tweet that out, right? I mean, there's no way he did that voluntarily. That's got to be a bonus clause in there.
00:57:19
Speaker 2: And you feel shame doing it. It's just like, we've been reduced to this. Like, I'm Harden, man. Like, I'm an MVP. I've won multiple scoring titles. I was playing in the biggest games in the Western Conference Finals. against your dynastic warriors. And I'm here with like half the building. It's empty, man.
00:57:39
Speaker 1: What a mess. Have you gone to bar? I haven't, I've not gone to Barclays. Is it as sleepy as it looks?
00:57:45
Speaker 2: You actually went to a, a net sixes playoff game with Nick. Yeah, I went to a Nets-Sixers playoff game, and I've been there a few times. Knicks-Nets, where it's just 99.9% Knicks fans. But yeah, it's nice and chill, but definitely the energy is a lot more palpable for Liberty games than there is Nets games.
00:58:11
Speaker 1: Should we hit listener questions?
00:58:13
Speaker 2: Let's do it. Is that next?
00:58:14
Speaker 1: Let's do it. Let's go. And oh no, was I supposed to give you my top five teams?
00:58:18
Speaker 2: Look, we're screwing up. See, this is what we couldn't have happen. It's the final day, last iteration of the audition, and we're already screwing up.
00:58:28
Speaker 1: I'll just make it real quick. The number one team in the state of California is the San Francisco 49ers. By far, not even close. The second biggest team in the state of California isn't even in the state of California anymore. It's the Raiders. The Raiders are still the second most important team in the state of California. After that... you got warriors Lakers fighting for most important basketball team in state of California. And in terms of most important team in LA, it is the Lakers followed by the Dodgers followed by USC. I would say USC is more important than the chargers will ever be in Los Angeles. So there is your California power rankings from uh oh we even got a fight on baby being written down here which producer went to usc we have a usc producer oh dan dan went to us i fight on dan there you go i had no idea uh demetrius says you are sick jamar definitely better than Joe at his job. Jamar Chase better than, look at it this way, when we're measuring how many guys in the NFL can give you a representative performance that Joe Burrow gives you, there are probably more good quarterbacks around Burrow's level than there are wide receivers around Jamar Chase's level. So I guess I get that argument.
00:59:55
Speaker 2: So I get it because Jamar is a better receiver than Joe is a quarterback, right? Because Jamar, you could make a legitimate argument. He's number one. And if he's not number one, he's number two. Whereas Joe Burrow, at this point, he's not the best. He's not the second best, not the third. Some would argue he's not in the top five just because they haven't made the playoffs since 2022. So I understand it from that perspective. All I'm saying is.
01:00:22
Speaker 2: If the ultimate goal is winning, I would take Joe Burrow over Jamar Chase. So I think that the superstar quarterback is more important. And when you have a receiver as good as T. Higgins right behind Jamar Chase, he's not Chase, but he's still pretty damn good. I can work with that if I'm Joe Burrow.
01:00:46
Speaker 1: Here's the thing. The guy who's touching the football the most is probably the most important, and the quarterback's going to handle it every single play. You don't know if your wide receiver's going to touch the ball. You want him to, but unless you're direct snapping it to him or something, that's just not going to happen. Vinny says if Sam stayed in San Francisco, they would have gotten a Super Bowl. Well, how? He's the backup quarterback. In the scenario to where Sam Darnold delivers a Super Bowl win to the 49ers, Brock Purdy's out of the equation. At no point did Sam Darnold ever threaten Brock Purdy's starting position with the San Francisco 49ers. And no point has Mac Jones threatened Brock Purdy's position. Both of those guys can be on the Niners. They're both backing up Brock Purdy, period. So I don't think that we're going to have, oh, if Sam was there, they would have won it already. How? He's carrying a clipboard. He wouldn't have played.
01:01:42
Speaker 2: He never would have gotten the opportunity.
01:01:44
Speaker 1: Yeah. Would the Niners, would Niners fans trade Purdy for Darnold now? No. I don't know.
01:01:53
Speaker 2: I don't think so.
01:01:54
Speaker 1: No, I don't think so. I mean, here's the thing. We don't need to cut Sam Darnold's legs off to make Brock Purdy look taller. I'm not here to disrespect Sam Darnold, but I do think that Brock Purdy is the better quarterback.
01:02:06
Speaker 2: I do.
01:02:07
Speaker 1: I really do. We'll, we'll, we'll find out right now. We all know that the, the only way we measure quarterbacks, the Darnold is winning that count one to nothing. He's got a super bowl. Brock is still looking for his Zion says, dang, these guys are pretty good.
01:02:23
Speaker 2: We like that.
01:02:25
Speaker 1: Hey, we like pretty good, pretty, but you know what? I'll take pretty good. I'll take pretty good on a Thursday, wrapping things up. I do have to tell you this tie. I don't think you're pretty good. I think you are very good. And whether we ever fill in for Nick again, I want to have you on my YouTube channel, man. I want to keep working with you. I've really, really, truly enjoyed our back and forth over these four shows. And let's keep it up, man. I feel like I got a new friend in this snake ridden, God forsaken industry that we have chosen.
01:02:52
Speaker 2: Listen, just watch Toy Story five, maybe a month or so ago. Damon, you've got a friend in me, my man. This has been absolutely fun. tremendous, tremendous stuff. And I know we got to get out of here, but I was talking to my wife because she asked like, how'd the show go? And I was like, it was great. And I think like it, what makes it so like fulfilling is Damon and I had never worked together. Like we couldn't be more different. He's a white dude on the West coast. I'm a black young guy on the East coast.
01:03:23
Speaker 1: Thank you for not saying the word old. I appreciate it. Thank you. Thank, thank you very much.
01:03:28
Speaker 2: Well, you reminded us that you are older than the Jed York. You're older than Jed York.
01:03:32
Speaker 1: I am.
01:03:33
Speaker 2: But we've got so much different as far as our profile. And yet, I felt like we flowed pretty well. So this was fun, man. Definitely will come on your show anytime. And I would love to have you on mine as well.
01:03:45
Speaker 1: Done. Did we just become best friends?
01:03:48
Speaker 2: I think we did, baby.
01:03:49
Speaker 1: There it is. It's like stepbrothers. Hey, thanks to everyone. Most importantly, everyone at The Volume and Blue Duck who has been working with us. It has been an absolute pleasure to work with these true pros. And speaking of true pros, Nick Wright is going to be back next week. And this guy, here's the thing. If you don't like Nick Wright, first of all, thank you for watching. That means he's really good at his job, that you would go out of his way to watch the YouTube channel of the guy that you do not like. But if you don't like Nick Wright, it's because he said something about your favorite sports team and you just rubbed you the wrong way. If you ever got a chance to know Nick, you would find one of the most down, loyal, supportive dudes, again, in an industry full of snakes. and just people who are not looking to reach back and help anybody. Nick is constantly looking to help everybody, and that is why we have a legitimate friendship, and I truly respect the guy, and I hope he had a wonderful vacation and will be recharged and ready to hop into the NFL season with everyone. I'm wrapping up here. I'm going to let you have the last words. young man, since you have the energy that my old man doesn't have to wrap up the show. But hey, like and subscribe all the way around. And thanks so much again to Boost Mobile for making all this happen. Ty, the floor is yours.
01:05:10
Speaker 2: Listen, I'm looking forward to Nick being back on his show as long as he stays away from my least favorite take, which is that Kobe was the best player to never be the best player in the NBA. He knows I hate it. I text him every time I see it show up. Uh, but outside of that, Nick is my homie. That's my big brother. I got nothing but love and respect for him. And I do appreciate, he's not a sentimental guy, but he, yo Nick, I'm going to send you a sentimental text because this was a tremendous opportunity, possibly opening some doors. And I got a chance to work with some amazing people. Shout out, uh, to, to Daniel, uh, shout out to Paul and all of the folks behind the, behind the glass. This was a lot of fun. And, um, Hit me up at Ty D. Butler, Twitter, Instagram, subscribe to the YouTube channel. Damon, this was a blast. The next time you see the What's Right show, it will be with your boy, Nick Wright. So until we meet again, peace and love. Holla at your boys.
