Lots to Say with Bobby Bones and Matt CasselLots to Say: Fmr NFL MVP Boomer Esiason and Singer Parker McCollum
Who is the NFL Divisional Round more important for, Josh Allen or Lamar Jackson? Matt was teammates with Matthew Stafford and looks forward to the Rams visiting the Eagles. Bobby geeks out on Boomer Esiason dropping by, especially when he tells amazing stories about his playing days including his thoughts on the dirtiest player in the league at the time. Boomer breaks down the young QBs in the league and the next class coming in next season. Singer Parker McCollum joins us to discuss his upcoming tour and the one NFL player that he'd ask for an autograph. Parker is a diehard Texans fan and predicts a Super Bowl win for CJ Stroud at some point. Wrapping up, Bobby and Matt give Divisional Round Picks!
Lots to Say with Bobby Bones and Matt Cassel is part of the NFL Podcast Network
Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle is a production of the NFL and iHeart podcasts.
We got lots just.
We got lost.
Just say what a.
Begger here, and we hope you say because we got lost, just say, yeah, we got lost. Just say here's.
Bobby and that we do have Boomer ascience and coming up, who was my favorite player as a kid, and I were just finished interviewing him, and I get a little I cringe it myself at times because I did tell Boomer and you'll hear in the interview he's my favorite player of all time. And I felt like he just thought it was weird that another adult man was like, you're my fever.
But he's at that age, rore, he's got to now understand the people that if he's your favorite player growing up, we're older.
Yeah, he's definitely older.
I felt like I was a little bit like me, Fee, I love you.
I love you so much. I still have your jersey and I wear it and it's a small.
Wearing it now underneath my cart again.
Boomerasisen coming up and Parker McCollum, here's a question for you, Matt, who has more pressure on them going into this weekend's game.
Lamar Jackson or Josh Allen.
Lamar Jackson without a doubt, really, I feel so, I mean I do because for both of these guys, it's now they're at the stage of their career where they're both MVP candidates. If you could give a co MVP both these guys would be it without a doubt. They're extraordinary and you're sitting there going it's Super Bowl or bust. For either of these teams, they've been on the cusp, but particularly for Lamar winning already what two three MVPs, and he's done everything that he could possibly do in the regular season. This team's loaded, They've got seven Pro Bowlers, they're playing really good football right now. You bring in Derrick Henry and if he loses, it's just another scar on his resume that you just can't remove because everybody's like, when are they going to jump? I mean take that next step where is similar, But I would say for the same reasons. I mean, he's done well, but he's one playoff game. Remember going back to Kansas City game where Patrick Mahomes and all of his greatness.
Gets the ball back for sixteen seconds.
Sixteen seconds I thought that game was over without a doubt, and they're going to take the next step right there, but they haven't been able to recapture that. So the pressure's on both these guys, and I'm excited. I mean, how are you not fired up about this football game? I mean, two juggernauts, everything, all the implications on the line. Probably going to go to Kansas City for that that game more than likely if they take care of business. But then also just these guys and where they're at in their career, like I said, and how they've played throughout the course this year.
It's going to be fun to watch.
The Josh Allen element is interesting to me because, yeah, there's the pressure on both of them. Is the pressure ball basically because both of them are expected to get to and win a Super Bowl sometime soon. I think for Josh Allen, the real pressure is beating Patrick Mahomes because that's the to me, this is our Brady Manning.
Yep.
Like the two guys, and whenever the Colts and the Patriots will play each other, here they go again, Here they go again. Now those guys aren't quite there yet, obviously, but that that to me, that's the parallel, it's it's the Brady Manning and then the winner goes to the super Bowl Kansas City if it's Josh Allen. So I feel like the real pressure on Josh Allen will be next week if he gets there, just just to be he's beat him a regular season, that's a whole different monster.
It's a different monster. And you know, Joe Burrow's already done it.
He's the one guy to look at.
Hey, guess what I've taken you down. And these other guys they're waiting for that opportunity. And he was this he's fifteen seconds whatever it was, eighteen seconds away.
And so I agree with you.
It's one of those type of matchups, legendary matchups where quarterback and quarterback and can you slay the dragon? Because Patrick Mahomes is waiting and he's not scared. Man, there, you got to you gotta knock him off off his post.
Speaking of quarterbacks, A really interesting game because of the quarterbacks is rams at Eagles.
Matt Stafford is just mister consistent. God dang he he can get streaky at times, but I played with him at Troit.
Dude, this guy is so skilled the way the ball comes off his hand. I mean, he's got an explosive arm and he's tough as nails. But he's also like the savant dude. He's got a photographic memory.
Smart guy. Smart guy.
He'd go and watch film on the way home to his house. He had this car that would take him because hes about forty fi minutes away. He'd come in the next day and go, Hey, pull up the Ravens game. Watch the Splitz right here, play thirty four. And I'm sitting there, I'm like, where's his notes? You know, like I'd have to write stuff down if I'm going to bring it up in a meeting, just so I remember what plays those where that might give us a pressure issue or something like that. And he'd go ten plays in a row, all off memory, like he's got a photographic memory or something like that. Really smart, super competitive outside. And it's interesting because the way that they came out and played both offensively and particularly defensively. They had nine sacks in the game against against the Yes exactly, they against the Vikings last week, they had nine sacks in that game. They played outstanding on the defense side. So if that team you talk about building momentum and these wild card team teams that go out and build that momentum and play really well at the right time. That's a team that scares me a little bit because they've got a veteran quarterbacks, been there, done that, they're healthy, and they've got a defense that's playing top notch right.
Now, especially a defense that has not been playing top notch. And getting anything from the defense has been a huge bonus for that team because there wasn't an There was a lot of injuries early and the expectation was we're going to have to outscore every single person. So when the defense does play well, man, it puts that team in such a great place to win.
It really does.
And that's the name of the game and the playoffs. You've got to beat play well on both sides of the ball. And the way that that defense played the other night, they really put them in a position to win that game. Offensively, they did what they needed to do, but defensively with the takeaway and the score late in the second quarter, with the consistent pressure just suffocating Sam Darnold in that game, if they can consistently play that way and go into Philly, now Philly's a different beast. Because they've got one of the best offensive line, Sakon Barkley. That's going to be the priority. And it's hard to say when you look on the outside and see the dudes that they have on the outside, But it all starts and stops with Sekon Barkley. You got to make Jalen Hurts beat you in this game. And again you're sitting here talking about Jalen Hurts. He's been in Super Bowl, probably would have been the MVP of that Super Bowl if they've won that game. But he hasn't played or impressed me this season in that capacity of being able to throw the ball consistently and win consistently to where you're scared as much about that aspect of their offense as you are about Saquon Barkley taking over the game.
Yeah, they didn't throw the ball well last week, No they didn't. And Ajo Brown read a book and I like that he's on the sideline.
How it was fascinating, Like who did you have bring the book out? Was it an equipment manager, was it a trainer?
He was like motivational. I don't even know what he was reading. I don't even know if he was really reading it. If he's just holding it.
Couldn't you have a wristband with a few motivational things on, like a few motivational sentences there that kind of inspire you. But to bring out a book on the sideline when adjustments are being made the hectic nature just was gosh, I've never seen anything like that.
Do you think a bit of it?
Though?
Was first of all his reputation of being very outspoken, But in recent weeks he has been vocal, even after winning yes about not getting the ball, and having a book like that maybe shows people, even if he's not really reading it, that he wants the image of him to shift a bit to someone who cares and is trying.
I really don't think you take that tactic. I mean, if you want to maybe tell him that you're reading a book that's inspirational or not crap all over the offense when you don't get the ball, even when you're even when you're winning. So you know he's disgruntled. He's one of those, you know, alpha male wide receivers that want the ball early and often he wants to prove himself. He's competitive, and I get that. I've been around a lot of those guys in my career. But at the same time, it's usually a bad look when you pull out a book on the sideline and kind of bring because the attention is now going to you and people are talking about for a different reason other than the play on your field.
On the field, if you did not get the ball to Randy Moss, what was his conversation with you during the game.
Cass, what the f man? Get me the ball? I'm wide open, this, that and the other. And I'll be like, really, I just looked at the sheet.
There's two guys on you, but I understand that doesn't mean you're necessarily covered. But it wasn't just me that had to take to his wrath. It was the offensive coordinator too, So I mean, he's one of those guys that we tried to get him anything early, right, a slip screen, a hitch, a stop route, something simple, even a three step route, because it keeps those guys in the game because the longer the game goes on, in the duration of that period that he doesn't get the ball, now the chatter starts a little bit like how are we going to figure out how to And they did a great job of you know, he wasn't stationary. Some of these guys stay stationary in certain offenses that become a little bit more stagnant.
We'd move him around, he'd be in.
The slot, he'd be outside X, he'd go over to the opposite side play Z. So we try to create favorable matchups, but sometimes everybody in the stadium new we're going to try to get Randy the ball so early, and often they would try to double and take him out of the equation, especially because of his deep ball ability.
Would you ever do that as screw it, I know he's down there a chunk.
Oh.
I absolutely did that multiple times. But the thing about Randy is you felt so much confidence as a quarterback because again, even if he was double, he was one of those guys that he wouldn't let the ball get intercepted, so you could throw it up and a fifty to fifty ball becomes a seventy to thirty ball because he's just with his height, his ability to go up and high point a ball and do everything that you want in a receiver. He would do that, or at the very least, I promise you he'll tackle the safety.
He's in a better position to make the play.
These guys that don't throw a lot of interceptions, Sometimes can you throw so few that you probably should have thrown more, meaning you weren't being aggressive enough.
You know, that's a good point.
I think about that often because when you look at some of these guys that have thrown four interceptions on the air, five interceptions, you're like, is it just that your guys are that much better on the outside, or are you not taking risk or within this offensive system where you're not giving a guy a chance down the field?
And there are times that like that.
But what Lamar and Josh Allen, those guys, they've thrown less than ten picks, which anytime you throw less than eight, seven, even ten picks on the season, especially with the athletes that they have on that side of the ball, that's a pretty darn good year in terms of your turnovers. And so I mean they've thrown what forty touchdowns and thirty two touchdowns something like that, So they're obviously putting the ball down the field. Sometimes you're just playing at such a high level that it results in the fact that you know what you're doing. You've been in the system, a similar system for this long period of time and that gives you confidence because you know, hey, they're doing this, that's a risk reward factor.
I'm gonna take the back right now. I'm gonna keep giving it to him.
And so you just over time, especially these guys that are now coming into their prime and been in the same system, they understand what's being asked on every individual passing play.
But you can see a guy that maybe is playing on a sub five hundred team that doesn't have a lot of interceptions and it's just because maybe they don't trust him to throw a downfield more than it is he's on fire.
Oh yeah.
There's a lot of times that coaches will protect the player against himself because they know, hey, he might not read this high low concept or the horizontal stretch very well. So we're going to take that out of his hands. We're going to take that out of the game plan. We're going to keep it simple. We're gonna run the similar plays that all makes sense to him and his mind. But we're not going to take that risk because we've got a really good defense. We could run the football. We're going to take the ball out of his hands because we're not going to put the game in Jeopardy by creating a turnover.
Now all of a sudden, we give the game away.
Boomersize and Park and McCollum both coming up. This is my favorite player going up. I say this, it's slightly awkward. Cincinnati Bangal when they lost to the Niners and the second Super Bowl because I didn't see the first one second one.
I was old enough. I cried.
You cried. Oh so you were that attached to him? Wow, like obsessed.
I was a kid, left handed quarterback, and he was really the only one.
Right, But you weren't at the game.
Like, don't make fun of kid, don't make fun of kind I'm not well, I kind of have to make fun of a child.
You're acting software.
I was a child.
You're starting to show your true self.
That is my that was my child's self. I cried, shut up. Anyways, one of the greats. He's also bringing awesome on television. Super cool to have him on here. He is former Cincinnati Bengal and a jet and a jet remember that. That's kind of weird.
That was kind of weird.
That's like Montana with the Chiefs.
Yeah, exactly, we're going to go there.
Elija won with the Raptors.
Look at you.
Miss messed with the Cardinals. Well I could, but we got to get the boomer here. He is Boomera size. Uh well, let's walk on Boomera size. And and you're my favorite player growing You're my all time favorite football player. And I'm an adult man. I'm saying this another adult man, so that feels weird, but I've never got to do this. You're my favorite all time football player. It's super cool to talk to you. And now I'm such a nerd. I'm gonna let Matt take it from here for a second. But like, yeah, my dude, I was left handed quarterback too in junior.
High All right, left tended quarterback and junior My ties to you. My mom grew up in Cincinnati. We spent every summer there, so we were a big Bengals fan. In my first NFL game was actually nineteen ninety one. You guys were playing in the Coliseum and I was at that game, and that was the game that bo Jackson blew out his hip.
Now I think you.
Guys ended up losing that game. And I apologize if it's a sore subject. But at the same time, some of my earliest childhood memories.
Was you playing football?
And I actually, for one Christmas got the boomer size in Jersey. So I'm geeking out a little bit too. Okay, so hey, I could never throw lefty though, never do that.
No what boys, I appreciate the compliments. Man, I don't know really how to handle this because I'm not used to it. But I will say, Matt, I do remember that game because I was standing on the sideline when Kevin Walker, my teammate, actually had a hip drop tackle on bo Jackson that ruined his the rest of his career. And I was right in front of me, and that was a playoff game and it was at the coliseum and the night before about ten of us got food poisoning.
Oh not really sure.
That happened with Al Davison in the vicinity. But it was not a great memory for sure. But I really felt bad because Boe and I did a lot of stuff together back then, and you know, to see his career and that way was really sad. Yeah.
It was one of those moments where even the hip drop tacticle, you saw it, but he got up and you didn't think much of it. And then soon there after you heard about really the severity of the injury, and it just ended his career. It was sad because the type of player he was, he was so much fun to watch.
Oh, people don't remember this. In nineteen eighty three, I was at the University of Maryland. We played at Auburn, and when he came out on the field before the game to do pregame warmups, I've never seen an athlete look like that. And of course they ran for like four hundred and fifty yards on our Maryland defense that day, and he was a big part of the reason why. He and Lionel James and a guy by the named Tommy Age, they ran the wishbone offense. And to see an athlete like that up close in personal that young. It was the first time we had a lot of good athletes on Maryland, and we played a lot of great teams like Clemson and North Carolina back in the day, but never that I had ever seen an athlete like him. And then to watch what he did in baseball eventually, and then of course how he did start his NFL career. I mean, probably the greatest athlete I think I've ever seen or played against. And that's saying a.
Lot talking about the hip drop tackle, and this is the natural move to this question. Coming into the season, it was no more hip drop tackles, no more. But I don't feel like i've seen that called a lot for the emphasis that they were putting on it.
What do you think has happened so far? Have they stopped doing it for the most part, or are they not calling it?
I think they're not doing it. I think they're trying to stay away from it, much like the horse collar tackle. And I have to say, you know, when Matt took over for Tom Brady, it was a hit below the waist on Tom's knee that ended up ending ending or protecting quarterbacks from that boment on. I mean, when you have injuries to significant players because of way certain hits are being delivered, the NFL is going to react, and they're going to react in real time now because the money is so much more significant than it's ever been. But I'm all in favor of that. You know, I want the best players on the field. I want them to play, you know, from the waist up. I don't want them diving at each other's legs. I mean, this is how we lose so many players year in and year out, ankle injuries, knee injuries, calf injuries, and Kelley's injuries. We have broken feet, we have plant our fasciitis, We have all sorts of injuries that people don't even aren't even really aware of, simply because of the way that a lot of these players or have had delivered hits over the years.
But when you think about your playing career and the time in which you played the game, and now how they do protect the quarterback, would you would you just sit there and be like, oh my god, this is great. You can only hit me from basically my waist to my upper pads, my shoulder pads, like it's changed so dramatically even from when I was in the game. But for you in particular, I mean to get the hell beat out of you.
I appreciate it. Yeah, you know, my generation, Yeah, we did take a beating. There's no question about that. The generation before me probably even worse because they had the head slap that was you know, that was allowed back in those days. There's no question, Matt. I mean, look, I want to see Patrick Mahomes and Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. I don't want those guys cheap shotted, and back in the day, they would chief shot us. And I remember watching tape of a game, and I'll give you a player who I'm not very fond of, and his name is John Randall. He was an oce tackle for the Minnesota Vikings, and he was sought by John Turlink, a defensive line coach. That's a legendary defensive line coach, and he taught those guys to play within the rules back when I was playing. And I remember watching the tape of the vik the Vikings playing the Bills, and we had the Vikings the next game. So I saw the Bills game and the first couple of plays he went right after Jim Kelly's knees. And I told my offensive lineman, you know, I said, look, if this soob goes after my knees, we need to go after him. And sure enough, like in the first series, you dove at my knee, my front knee, my right knee, and I remember we did a you know, one of those chop blocks where they held him up and then they went after his knees. And that's how we, supposedly in a brotherhood, get out of whack. And people end up getting hurt and getting seriously injured. And I remember screaming at Denny Green and Turlink, who was on the sideline. He was so fat, he was on a scooter, and I remember screaming at him, yelling at the top of my lungs at the in the whatever they call the Metrodome and telling him, you know, this is my career and you guys are trying to end it. So yeah, I'm all for safety in the game, and I'm all for our stars staying on the field.
I saw a statement this week, how do you feel about Mark Gastino and his interaction with Brett Farva. I saw that that's maybe another player that you get a little fired up about.
You know, I'm a little weird about this because I understand why he's upset, because I was upset when Brett Farv gave Michael Strahan that sack, and Matt, you know, this is a quarterback. Your offensive lineman don't want to give up sacks. Oh no, you know they And the fact that he and I think some of his offensive linemen said something to him that day against the Giants when Michael was able to secure the sack record and Gastona was in the building, so I think what Brett Park did was completely wrong. So don't get me wrong about that. As far as Gastono is concerned, he was another jackass back in the day who was all about, you know, injuring other players. Now, I know, defensive players are delivering heads and you're going to suffer injuries and they're trying to intimidate you. But the interesting thing that happened with him, we were playing the Jets in Cincinnati and they used to stay at Downtown Weston in Cincinnati, and a bunch of my friends came in from Long Island. I'm from New York, so their hometown team, of course is the Jets, and I'm their hometown player because I obviously grew up in their hometown. So now that they're on the elevator with him and they're like, hey, may we're out here, see Boomerman. Hopefully you guys can beat him, And he says to them, because you tell him the Colin ambuels, because I'm going to kick the shit out of him and knock him out of the game. I'm like, what, what the Because my friends told me this before the game, because I saw him want him sell all of them there on the sideline. They said, gash throw is gonna get you and told you to call an ambulance. An all game long, he's cheap shot man. At the end of that game, he got me and I ended up leaving with a high ankle sprat.
Man to be told that and wondering a little bit like he's kind of a but maybe he's kidding, But then it actually happened, like that's.
Isn't kind of but he isn't kind of?
He was Yeah, yeah, that's uh my TikTok is all eighties and nines wrestling in eighties and nineties NFL, And we're talking about hits delivered, like when guys would go across the middle, because we've seen a couple of injuries this season where across somebody gets hit and you see somebody gets hurt and there.
But it's much more rare than it was then.
But even playing quarterback, you having to place the ball if someone is going across the middle, I mean you really couldn't throw it high or lead them or they an't like they would die if they got lit up.
Right.
Yeah, you know, Matt, I did a bunch of your games I did a bunch of Patriot games Tom Brady, and I used to say about Tom what was amazing to me was how accurate he was. Now, Bronc used to take a lot of hits going down the medic because he was such a big target. But when he was throwing the ball to I don't know whether it be Welker or Edelman or Troy Brown out of the backfield wherever he was thrown at, he had a unique knack to allow the receiver to protect themselves, meaning throwing it away from the oncoming defensive backs. Now I wasn't one hundred percent of the time, but I would probably say eighty to eighty five percent of the time he had the ability to throw it away from the defender. And you know, this week I heard two a tongue of Ilois saying, you know, maybe I could have done a better job of not leading my receiver into you know, potential contact. And that is the thing for us as quarterbacks. We realize, we read defense is good and we process things we shouldn't be putting our wide receivers, tight ends or running backs in a bad spot. Maybe once or twice the game is going to happen because they're going to outthink you or they're going to outscheme you. But this is the problem with playing with rookie quarterbacks because they can't process these things fast enough. And I'll tell you what, if I were a veteran wide receiver or tight end and I were out there with a rookie quarterback, I would wear double the chin straps and I would wear that that concussion helmet thing that they're wearing now, just to protect myself knowing that he doesn't understand exactly where he's throwing the ball.
Yeah, and that's it. Was definitely one of Brady's superpowers. Was no doubt that he understood defense and could always use the leverage. And he coached it too during practice and taught these guys, hey, this is how I want you to come out of this route. This is what I want you to do. I remember taking over for him one of our first games. We're playing Miami and Welker had a little jerker out in the middle. Of course, my dumb ass throws him directly into this linebacker and he gets and there's no worse feeling for a quarterback than one of your boys running across the middle. Or when you lead him into contact and you see it and they're just laying there on the ground.
You run up.
I remember running up to Welker. I'm saying, sorry, Bud, I'm so sorry. He goes f you Castle, What did you do that for? And I was just like, hey, I.
Didn't mean to. I didn't mean to.
Oh God, but it's yeah, it's it's a big quality of playing.
The quarterback position is where you position that ball.
Speaking of young quarterbacks, you know, you've got guys like Drake May, You've got Jayden Daniels having a heck of a season. What do you think about these young guys? Calen Williams obviously struggling a little bit right now, but I think that that's part of the organization, the team itself. But what do you think about some of these young rookie quarterbacks playing right now?
I like all three of them, actually, and I think all three of them have a chance to really be special players. And I'm not even remotely close to giving up on Caleb Williams, because you're right, the organization has a lot to do with it, you know, and you know, firing coaches and bringing in different offensive coordinators in the middle of the year. No matter how close you may be to that coach, it's never a good sign and it never works out. That's the thing. So in this game, what you want is you want structure. You want you want solid people around you, you want consistency around you. It's probably one of the reasons why Brady and Belichick were so good for so long because they knew each other so well. They had so much success, which is never seen in the NFL on a consistent basis. And you can have a twenty year career and be that great with a coach for eighteen years is amazing, But the consistency and the stability around that player is going to be important. So I think Cale Williams is terrific. He does things with that arm of his that very few people can do. He just needs to be rained in a little bit. Remember watching Josh Allen his rookie year and I felt like he was a bucking bronco like he just wanted to take off because he really wasn't sure what he was seeing. And I do believe that ultimately, more time in the same system, the same coach, because he's had Sean McDermot since he's been there and all of a sudden, you know, he relaxes and he gets into his game, and now he's become the top signal caller in the NFL right now. So these rookie quarterbacks are all in good shape. But Chicago hopefully they bring in maybe Cliff Kingsbury or somebody as an offensive coach as the head coach, because I think a quarterback like that needs a guy that understands that position. If they can find the next Kevin o'conne, that you should be the you know, the coach of the Chicago Bears because they have a budding superstar. So all three, I think all three quarterbacks have very bright features.
The inverse in the draft meaning you were the first quarterback off the board second round. But now it's quarterbacks who probably aren't getting wouldn't get a first round grade normally are drafted in the top fifteen twenty just because quarterbacks are needed so much. So it's the complete opposite of what it was back in the day, where a lot of these guys you'll you know, all year wrong a long. They're either like a Beck or even a Youers, and it's like they're going to be first overall. They'll fall a bit, but anybody that's halfway decent now gets drafted in the first round. In a bit, it feels unfair to those quarterbacks when they don't really they don't have first round great grades, but they are drafted in the first round and now the expectations are on them to be a first round quarterback. That seems like a challenge for a quarterback that probably shouldn't have been a first round draft pick anyway.
Yeah, I agree with you. And one of the reasons for that. One of the reasons for that is because everybody knows that they need the next guy. They need to have that guy that they can sell tickets around. They got to have that guy that could be the leader. You know. They go in depth and all these guys, and sometimes they hit and sometimes they don't. I think the three guys that we just spoke about all have the inner character be a great NFL quarterback, and it seems like they all have to want to to want to be great. So hopefully we'll see that as they move forward. You know, I would just say that if I'm not convinced that a guy can walk into a room of sixty alpha males and be the ultimate alpha male. I don't want him to be my quarterback. I need a guy that's in there's going to have some stones, and he's going to lead, and he's going to show guys on the practice field the way Matt was just talking about Tom Brady doing and taking over a meeting room or getting into a huddle and screaming at ten other guys and telling them to get their heads out of their asses. Even when he's playing poorly, you know, he's got to hold himself accountable in front of them. Few people in this world can do it, and can do it on a consistent basis, and can do it at a level of fifty million dollars or more a year. So I mean, this is like the most important position outside of I believe the head coach that any organization can make. And just to take a guy because you think he can be the guy in the first round, to me, is the wrong strategy. You got to take a guy that you are convinced can be that guy in the first round. If you don't think he's your guy, than draft him in the third or fourth round, or find another guy in a third and fourth round and maybe he turns into Brock purty. Who knows, But it's rare to find the combination of both physical tools and the gift of the brain power and the understanding of the position, not just on the field, but off the field, what it takes to be a leader in this league.
But Bro, would you have any intrepidation taking Shador Sanders just with you know, you can describe it as baggage, you can describe it as just an order about himself.
But he's played at a really high level. Do you think he's the first overall worthy? Just why him a little bit?
Think about it? Is, Matt, You know, I watched Patrick Mahomes. His dad was a Met pitcher, so I grew up watching or well, actually his dad's my age. I watch Patrick Mahomes senior pitch for the Mets, and Patrick Mahomes the kid was out out on the field at the age of five, fielding ground balls and taking batting practice, so you knew that he had it in him that he wasn't going to be overwhelmed. I think Shuldor is the same way. I think Schador feels just like his dad does, that he's uber confident. He's got to be in the right city. Though. I just I mean, maybe Vegas is a little bit dangerous, but I do think that it fits perfectly.
If it was happening with your son and they said, Okay, he's going to go number one, Boomer Junior is going to be this year, Boomer Junior is going number one, would you have an issue at sending him to Cleveland or the Giant or one of these organizations where you don't feel like the leadership is ready for a great quarterback.
You know, that's a really good question because I do have a son who's thirty three years old, and I never made anything easy for him in his life, and nothing in his life has been easy. But right now, at the age of thirty three, given all that he has been through in his personal story and it's really because of a genetic disease assistic bibrosis, he has lived his best life and he has lived like a super Bowl champion. And that's because his mother and I, you know, we didn't make it easy for him, and we knew that he had to deal with something. We all dealt with it together and supported him, but he had to learn on his own. He had to figure it out once he got out of college. What he was going to do with his life. I could have knocked out a million doors and opened a million doors for him, but he didn't want that, and I appreciated that. And I would like to think that, you know, Dion, I know he's protective of his children. We all are in a certain way. I would like to think that you want your kid to make it on his own. And you know, I don't know what you know, Lebron and BRONI are doing in LA I'm not so sure that's the greatest thing. But that's them. That's their life, and I don't want to impact that in any other But that's not the life that I would live, especially given the fact that I'd want my son to learn on his own and grow on his own.
You talk about the boomer size and foundation before we go.
I know your son's diagnosed in nineteen ninety three.
So what have you been able to achieve within the foundation that you're super proud of.
Well, we almost I wouldn't say cured the disease, but we have the disease in an arrested standpoint where their lives to see a patient populations, their lives have changed innumerably in so many different ways in twenty eighteen a drug hit. Gunner was on that drug trial and since that time, he's he's gone to business school, double degree at a Touch School of Business at Dartmouth, He's got two children, he's been married. I mean, none of the stuff was supposed to happen when he was diagnosed with this disease. That's the miracle of it. And ESPN is doing an ESPN East sixty on it, and they did one back when he was in high school and it was about a twenty minute one. Now they expanded it to an hour because the story is so miraculous that he is doing really well. So I'm proud of his growth, for sure, and I'm proud of the growth that we've been able to lay out there for all these other CF patients alone with the National Assistic Bibrosis Foundation. So that's my super Bowl, and that's the one that we won back in twenty eighteen, and I'm so very glad that we were able to do that.
For more info, you guys got a Boomer Science and Foundation at Boomer Asis and Foundation Boomer We appreciate you, thank you for the time, both massive fans, and.
Hopefully we'll talk to you soon. You never been to a Parker McCollum show.
I haven't, but I respect the guy and I like his music a lot.
Here he's awesome, awesome live. I can tell you like tall. He wears a gold chain.
The first time I met him, I thought I will not like this guy because well you.
Said gold chain, Like what type of gold chain?
Like, well, his name too is like gold chain cowboy or right, yeah, that's very gangster.
Yeah, And so I'm like, but he's like the kindest dude, and like we hit it off.
He also was a fan because he grew up.
He's younger than us by probably ten years twelve years, but when I was in Texas, he was a big fan of the radio show. So it was when I was living there. So the first time we met, he was like, I just want to be honest. I don't want to be like it.
Like this is what he said to me four or five years ago.
He goes, I don't want to be like you were to boomeris aas in that interview he said, but I'm a big fan, but I love him. I love him as you're gonna hear. He's a massive Texan fan. Check out his music. We talked about his tour here. He is Parker McCollough. What's beautiful about Parker is And I've gone to know Parker a little bit, and I consider Parker Parker need a kidney.
I would at least se if we match, I might not give it to him.
You would consider the kidney that. I mean, you've made quite an impression, Parker.
I would see if we matched at least like like I like him like as a person. But so, and Parker's announced gonna talk about some dates and stuff that he's added on. But my favorite thing is I think at times, as I would to him, Parker just says yes this stuff.
If they're like, hey, Bobby wants to know it, and He's just like yes.
And I can appreciate that because when we lock we got on, Parker sees me, but he sees you, and they're like, that's Matt Matt, Matt Castle and Parker's the quarterback. Yeah, so Parker, so what so we do a show for NFL now, and so it's Matt Castle and I. And first of all, I appreciate you blindly just saying yes and coming on the show. But I like to introduce you to my friend Matt Castle. Yes, the quarterback. So Matt Parker.
Parker, Matt Parker, great to beat your brother. Thanks for coming on.
Yeah, nice to me too, too, man, thanks for having me.
This is awesome. That's funny.
Uh.
So let's do some business first. So I just saw you announced a bunch of dates. Uh, Like, what's happening? The show's killing so much, you're just gonna add some more of what well or what.
Kind of man tour? The Burn It Down Tour ended at the end of October. I can't believe it's been that long already, And so we got what kind of man tour starts it into January and go all the way through February, a little bit into March, and man, it's I'm excited. I'm glad it didn't start tomorrow, but by January twenty third, I will be right and ready to go.
Back on the road.
At Christmas when everybody's together, is there any pressure on you to like grab a guitar?
No, sir, not at all. We don't even have them around.
When I was younger, it was always, you know, Parker plays something, play something.
But now no, nobody, nobody.
Really, which is my brother and I you know, Christmas Day night we usually go up to the barn, make a big fire and have some people over, and you know there's a good chance want to bust out there. But which is where it all really started. That's why I first started playing guitar was at that barn. So it's not as you know, you do it so much throughout the year. It's like, I think they know that you don't want to come home and sing songs for everybody.
I guess it's like distant cousins.
They'd be the ones to make that awkward to ask, like if you're doing something, Yeah.
The ones you didn't know you had, Yeah, yeah, we were.
Matt And now we're talking about that recently too, Like whenever there's some level of success and all of a sudden, people that knew you in second grade or claim to be your cousin start to pop like that's a new level. And when I started to hit that level, I was like, dang, I'm cool. I have cousins I never even met that are like I'm your cousin. Like that has to happen to you when you're on the road sometimes, right, it's it's but.
You know, not in a while I think, you know, it's just so secure nowadays with you know, you're on your bus or backstage, you're not you know, back when you were playing bars and stuff and you're going in the front door, you know, there was there was quite a bit of that. But I've always man, I've always just said, it's a blessing if if you know, people want to if people think what I do is cooled, and you know they probably won't always think that, so I'm just be grateful for a while it's happening.
How about tickets to the shows though, I mean, I remember when I was playing, it was like, Hey, haven't talked to you in a while, but we are going to be in town. Can you get me eight tickets to the game? Like you've got to have a little bit of that.
Well, that's the funniest thing.
So you know when someone's like, hey making you know, me and my wife come or whatever, you notice and everything. And I have so much family and so many friends you know that are always you know, have people here in Chicago, Cincinnati, La, whatever that want to come out, and so we always have a pretty good guest list. But you know, I always think it's funny when people are like, hey, I need fifteen tickets.
I'm like, you know, I was.
I would love to see you. I don't want to see the other sixty or the other fourteen people.
What about before a show? What are you doing to get yourself ready?
Are there any routines that you have that you need to do in order to feel like it's completed before you can go and do the task?
Bobby, I do like a seven eight minute vocal warm up. I have a video from a vocal coach that I've done the same thing for almost two years now every night for the show. You know, lollipop, uh la la, all that stuff, and that really really helps. I mean that really, I didn't do that for many years, and I noticed a massive difference when I started doing it consistently. That's the only thing, though. We're kind of boring in that sense, I think, you know it just we've played so many shows. We've always toured so hard. I've always really kind of prided myself on being a road warrior and just you know, really earning it. I enjoy working hard and I enjoy being on the road. So I've always just done it so much that you know, once the lights come on, in the showtime. I mean, you're a whole new person, but you know, five minutes before you know, you might be taking a nap, So you never know.
Do you get that?
Do you ever get nervous anymore when you're going out to perform?
Never?
The The only time I'll really get nervous, Matt is is if I'm going on stage with someone else to sing their song. Okay, you know, because it's not your stage. It's not you know, your playing is it just things sound different. You know, you didn't sound check. You're just kind of going out there and winging it. I remember that when I was on Thomas Rhetz tour. The very first night was in for New Hampshire and he had texted me at like noon and said, hey, do you want to sing? I came to the It's a beer song. I can't remember what it is. I was like, yeah, absolutely, I'd heard the song. And I went and practice and practice practice all afternoon. And he has a teleprompter. I never sang off of a teleprompter before, and it's like color coded, you know, so, and we went over in sound check even I think, but I never read it from a teleprompter.
I was just singing it from memory.
And then I went out there and for some reason decided to try to read the teleprompter immediately, and it is hard to do. Freestyled over this song for about I don't know, sixteen bars until I got to the chorus, and didn't even know the chorus, but at least I had the melody right, uh, And it was I went out the next night and nailed it every night of the toy after that. But it was he never every time I talked to him, he brings that up.
So we're talking about sports heroes before you came on, and who ours were?
And Matt's was Bread.
Yeah, I was Brett Farv, Tray Ben and then Nolan Ryan.
And then mine was Mark Grace and Boomerasias And who were yours when you were a kid?
My my biggest number one still to this day, He's the only person I would ask for a picture ever. I've never asked anybody for a photograph, it would be Brett Farv.
I was so unbelievably obsessed.
With him when I was a kid, and the Green Bay Packers and the Texans or the Houston Texans didn't exist when I was really young in the late nineties, so you know, they didn't come around till I think thousand and one, two thousand and two, so I didn't that the love for that team didn't start till then. But I was already so obsessed with Brett Faarv. I mean, I saved up all my money one summer worked for my granddad at the ranch. And my mom, you know, I was playing quarterback in junior hide and through the game losing interception. I was all sad and upset, and she came up and she said, Hey, we're going to see Brett Faarv play at Lambeau and actually played. We flew all the way there. It was like thirty degrees. They played the Patriots and Brett got hurt in the second quarter. Aaron Rodgers came in and like snapped his ankle, and then I to get the third string quarterback. But Brett got hurt in the second quarter, didn't return to the game. They lost thirty to nothing.
I was at that game.
What year was that, Yeah, seven, two thousand and six, I.
Think it was.
I was actually there as a participant with the Patriots, and I remember that game because Rogers came it came in he gets hurt now that they've got both of their starting quarterbacks, and we drummed them. They even we dreamed them so bad that I actually got to go in the game in the fourth quarter and hand off the ball.
I was like, I think Matt, I think Aaron.
I think that was his first snaps ever, and those were the first his first snaps ever in the NFL.
Yeah, that's wild.
I think that was that Mat could be wrong, but I looked it up actually recently. It's funny we're talking about it. I went back and looked up this game where to see who that other quarterback, whether the camera who it was but behind Aaron.
But I'm pretty sure that was his first game.
Yeah, did you like to be put in? Did just hand the ball off? Or were you like, did you want the appearance in the game.
Well, you felt good if they put you in and didn't put somebody else in, because if there's three quarterbacks, right, you're like, you know what, I'll take every game rep and all you have to do is really make sure that you get the mic point right. Because it was one of those where, especially in that part of the game, you're probably two tight end sets and sometimes they rotate down.
You're like, just don't mess up the mic point.
Just make sure you point it right so where you got the advantageous look, we can run to the right direction.
So it actually was something that I enjoyed doing.
However, Belichick would occasionally just put you in the game to go take a knee. I was like, now, this is pointless. This is absolutely pointless to put me in.
But I'm always like, I'm always so worried they're going to fumble the snow and I do that with with somebody who hasn't been in the game all game. I'm like, man, would you be nervous to fumble that snap?
One hundred percent you're nervous to fumble the snap, But you're also going out there to take a knee, basically getting negative rushing yards on your stat sheet. I'm just going I mean, Brady literally could come out here and take three knees if he needed to.
Like, why am I going on the field right now to take it? It was the most ridiculous thing. Ever.
What about the Texans, Parker, They're pretty good, now.
Man, They're That's such a sensitive subject, Bobby.
I've been such a diehard fan of that team, for so so, so long, and C. J. Stroud was so electric last year, Demiko was so electric. I mean, just the perfect storm that the level of expectation was so high this year. Stefan Diggs tears is a cl and you know Nico was out I think four or five six games and I watch them adamantly. I mean, my wife is like, how can you love a team this much? And I'm like, this will go on for twenty years. You don't understand.
Do you become a fan immediately when they can when they're in your city? Like were you the shop days, the car days? Were you attached to all those guys?
I remember, I remember being in the Academy Sports and Outdoors in Conrod, Texas, which my hometown I grew about forty miles north of Houston, and you know, there was a little you know, triangle pamphlet thing sitting on the counter and it said the Houston Texans, you know, NFL football team coming to Houston. And I remember just being like in that that year, my little league team or little League for Pop Warner football team, whatever was, we were the Texans, and.
I was just so hooked. I remember I'm drafting David Carr first.
Overall, they beat the Cowboys that first game, Like you know, but I still had quite the affinity for for Brett Farbro And when he went to New York, I was a fan of him on the Jets. When he went to Minnesota and almost went to the Super Bowl, you know, they lost the New Orleans NFC championship game. I was a massive fan then. But you know, the Texans had my heart pretty early.
But they're also in the driver's seat right now, Parker.
I mean, the outlooks not not too bleak.
Yeah, they're they're not They're they're in a bad It's kind of like the Astros man. They just kind of stuck around and and and and the thing about the Texans is there a really good football team when they want to be if you're going to be in a bad division. And congrats on making the playoffs. They've made the playoffs several years, won a wild card game several years over the past you know, five, six, seven, eight years, and have never been able to get that second round dub. So after last season, I told my dad, I said, CEJ Stroud is going to win a super Bowl in the NFL. Now I said the same thing about DeShawn his first couple of years, he was electric. Now he had it was a bad exit. That was a tough look for the city and for for everybody involved. And and uh, you know, I hate that he's not, you know, doing better on the Browns and saying healthier. But you know, there was a lot of expectation with that football team and they were really, really really good. D Hop and uh you know, JJ was still on the team and Deshaun was balling out and then it all went away and all of a sudden we were a two win team again.
And then the c J.
Demiko come along and it's.
Like, holy cow, this is He's the most accurate football season throwing the football I've ever seen from a quarterback that I can remember.
With CJ.
Shroud last year, I mean on a road like out routes, corner routes, post routes, go route screens, you name it, like the ball was on the numbers.
Just he was so good.
If Demko and CJ I don't want a Super Bowl together, I think that's a big disappointment.
I also think that they're really young football team, and sometimes you hit that in the future is bright.
Yeah, the future is super bright.
They've got great young defendive defensive players offense. When you got a quarterback like CJ surround, I think you probably hit that second year lole that some guys go through where he came in, and really when he came in, the expectation level, I think people were still trying.
To figure out is he going to be that dude?
And he came in and lit the league on fire last year and then people slowly but surely start to figure out how to defend him, defend this offense. And you guys have had some injuries, but I think the futures really bright for that organization, that team in particular.
And you hear it all the time, Right, some guy comes in and he's playing well in any sport and like, all right, let him get film on him. You know, same thing at the plate in baseball, Right, let him, let him get through his look a year, get some film on him, and then you know, the pictures kind of figure him out. Defense, kind of figure quarterbacks out. But I just think the level of expectation was so high and it's such a what have you done for me lately?
League?
You know it's c J absolutely has the talent and every single you know, trait you can want a quarterback to have to win a Super Bowl, And I'm not saying that I don't think the future is bright.
I think they will win one at some point.
I mean, this is amazing.
This is sad to early.
This is a true fan that has been scarred.
I'm saying for years of like these defeats, and he remembers them vividly. I mean, it's this is incredible, like he is reliving every one of those tragic moments in the history of this franchise. And right now not very optimistic here, pessimists, No, I just agree.
I just try to be really really honest about like what's going on. I hate to lie to myself about it. And you know, like I said, Jamiko and CJ are electric. You know, I think they just you know, like you said, Matt, teams have kind of figured them out a little bit and they've had a whole season of film on them now, and you know that it just it sucks because the defense has been you know, I think they had twenty takeaways and seven games or six games or something like that and one two of them. But I got a lot of faith in that team. Man, I love that football team. And I think CJ. Shroud and Joe Mixon and Nico Colin are the answer.
Last football question. And try to remember where you were draft last year.
Obviously Texans they traded up in the first round and they take Stroud. Next thing you know, they're calling the linebacker from Alabama trade away next year? Like, how did you feel about that as it was going down last year when they were making those picks in the first round?
Did you like what was happening? Then?
I knew it was down to CJ and Bryce where the two good guys? If if I'm correct, I think we everre just they knew one of them was going to go one, one of them was going to go two. And you know we had had the Davis Mills through the hail Mary touchdown the last game of the season to not lose the division or you know, I think it was against the Jags or the Colts. Maybe I can't remember. You know, last game of the season, we're two and fifteen or whatever, and or two and fourteen, and they thought hail Mary touchdown to win the game. We don't get the first pick, we get the second pick, and you know, he's a Davis is the hero now for throwing that ball. But yeah, I knew it was CJ and Bryce. And CJ was I think six three six four. Bryce was five eleven six foot or something like that. And you know, I'm just always I'm kind of old school. I'm like, I want to you know, like Macmatt right, he's really tall, Like I'd be sold on him instantly in a draft room or a combine or something. I'd be like that, dude, big arm, big frame, big guy, Like know, that's what you want when you CJ was kind of the one that fit that build the closest, and I was like, I knew I wanted CJ at that point over Bryce, which I think Bryce is going to have a great career. I think people are just bailing with him a little too early. I think the heck of a player. And then you know, getting you know, two first rounders back to back like that with will Anderson Junior, who's just an absolute beast on the field, and and he's I don't think he's even close to his max potential and and his peak in his career. I think he's got crazy good year ahead of him. So I was I was pretty in on it, and uh and then obviously I saw CJ in the preseason and he kind of he wouldn't He didn't do anything special in the preseason and came out in his first few games and just I'm like, this kid doesn't miss. I mean, he is absolutely as accurate as I'd ever seen, especially a rookie be consistently with the football, standing in the pocket with a with a patchwork O line.
So you know, what do I know?
To me, Stroud did the thing with the rookie quarterbacks that AP did, Adrian Peterson did with injuries, where it's an unfair comparison now that every rookie that comes in needs to be c J. Stroud because he's kind of shown that you can win immediately when Adrian Peterson went down with towards ac L or whatever and he was back in like four months, four.
Months and then ran for two thousand yards next.
Year, and that's now the unfair comparison.
It's like, well, if he can do so, Stroud has kind of redone that with the rookie quarterbacks now, especially after he scored so poorly on the you know, the Wonder whatever.
It was, and all the controversy behind that.
Well, Hey Parker, congrats on every and all the success and the tours to what kind of Man?
Tour songs? What kind of man? Sixteen new tour dates that he announced.
In Canada, and you're gonna do those one It's warmer though, right like Canadian shows are never in the winter, correct.
Sometimes that's a really good time to go there because no one else is up there. So sometimes we'll go playing in the summertime. Sometimes we'll play them, but it's so over my head the routing. You know, they send me dates and you know, kind of a rough draft of the tour and I'm like, man, just put me on the road, just let's go. I want to play, I want a tour. I want to work hard, and uh, I don't know if I'll always be that way, but for right now, I'm still getting it. So it's uh, I'm glad to be going to candidatecsuse. I feel like we've kind of we haven't been able to make it work every year, so I'm excited to get up there.
We're good to talk to you, buddy, always, always great, and we'll put all Parkers information in the show notes. What kind of Man toward gets your tickets. He's excellent live. I've seen Parker form three feet from me, like the dude can sing us freaking brains out and play as freaking brains out. Good to talk to you, buddy, and hopefully I see you soon.
Hey, Thanks Bobby, Thanks Matt. Great to meet you, and thank y'all for having me.
Chris Brother, thank you.
Let's talk games, all right, Texans at Chiefs. It feels like a pretty easy one to pick, but you go ahead.
I'm going with the Chiefs.
I mean, I like the Texans how they came out and they played this last week, but at the same time they got four turnovers.
I think that's not realistic.
Against the Kansas City Chiefs, they would have to play extraordinarily well, take some possessions away, and C. J. Stroud would have to play out of his mind. I think the Chiefs, especially Andy Reid in the history that he has, with a bye week, in terms of a preparation standpoint, they'll be rare and to go. They'll be healthy at Arrowhead live environment, it'll be I think Chiefs all the way.
And I don't worry about rust with the Chiefs, even though they've had two weeks off. Basically, they said the starters the last week because they've all been there.
Absolutely been there.
This to them is another another game to get to the point where they want to get.
Where the Texans got to be.
Oh yeah, this is our opportunity.
Shout out Texans.
Though they played really well, really well, and the defense played great commanders at Lions.
I mean, I love Washington, what Dan Quinn's done this year, and Jaden Daniels, I mean so impressive the year that he's had, probably one of the greatest rookie rookie seasons of all time. But at the same time, when you think about the Lions and the impressive nature in which they've played all year long, the physicality, David Montgomery coming back, also going to have Gibbs there, and Jared Goff's been outstanding all year long.
They got one of the best offensive line.
I just don't know if their defense can stand up to the physicality of this offensive line, in this Lions offense that they have, in the weapons that they have on the outside. Now defensively, it was impressive to washing them against the Vikings last week in the last week of the season. I should say for the Detroit Lions. But at the same time, I think that Washington come out and score some points.
But I think this is going to be all Detroit Lions.
Jaden Daniels was and still is a little Gidney Kevin Durant treatment where it was like he's too skinny, he's too slight, he'll never make it against the other pros, And yeah, Durant is thin. Jaden Daniels is then, but I think we see that's not going to hinder his ability to be a star quarterback.
No, he's a stud man.
Did you wait from your first year in on on purpose?
Well, I put on weight when in college when they changed me from quarterback to tight end.
How much you put on?
Probably about fifteen pounds. Wow, it wasn't that hard that I just ate a lot. It wasn't muscle, let's be honest. I was like protein shakes, eat more. I was like, oh, you guys are giving me. I love to eat, so like they give me excuse to eat. I was like, oh, yeah, I could put on because I was already playing. At about two thirty three, I was a big, bigger quarterback, and then I jumped up to forty probably two forty two to forty five something like that, pretty quick.
How hard to drop it back? Oh, that was more.
Difficult because I don't know if they still called it baby fat when you're an adult male, but that was a little bit more difficult to get back on the treadmill, and then you're carrying all that extra weight going.
This is terrible decision by me.
Rams and Eagles. This is a fun game to me.
I think this might be one of the best games, but you can't say that when you've got the other one on the deck. But the way that the Rams came out and played against the Vikings. They did this back in twenty twenty two. They're a wild card team. They got hot at the right time, they're healthy. Matt Stafford's been there, done that, And really it's gonna come down to the defensive side of the ball for the Rams if they can stop, say Kwon Barkley in this physical offensive line, because that's where it stops and starts with them.
For the Philadelphia Eagles.
I think they got to try to put the ball in Jalen Hurts hands and see if he can beat them in the past game.
Now easier said than done.
Eagles are a touchdown favorite. But I like the Rams. I do like the Rams because they're healthy. Yeah, Matt Stafford. Again, it goes back to which quarterback would you rather have? Probably it's close Matt Stafford. Probably Stafford's stud, absolute stud. And then which coach would you rather have? And I'm probably gonna go with mcveigh's won Super Bowl before.
It's what will the Rams?
Like you said, if the Rams defense can give them any support at all, right, that'll give them a chance to actually win this game.
That'll give them a champions because it's always with the Philadelphia Eagles right now, a time of possession game because they are able to maintain the ball and run it effectively with say Kwon Barkley and that defense for Philly, Let's be honest, especially they're out standing at front four, front three, front four.
Oh go all that.
Everybody's from Georgia, raise your hand and then go play defensive line for Philadelphia. Right, That's basically it the game. This is the game, Ravens. They're a favorite by a point in Buffalo.
I can see it.
I mean when you watch them here sitting there going, man, how do we stop won Derrick Henry. But then when you see all that Reid option right where they're putting stress and putting defenders in conflict. Even if you have a guy out on the outside, which you try to see the Steelers come over and get Lamar and put account for him. In the run game, he just breaks breaks them down. They rush for almost three hundred yards in that game. I mean, so you've got that. And then Zayflower, I don't know what he's the number one wide receiver. I don't know what his status is for the game, but they've got tight ends. They do have weapons on the outside, and Lamar can get it done in that way too. When you look at when you look at Buffalo's defense, though, I think that they are going to have to stop the run. That's their only way to win this game, because that's it's going to be a fistfight in a phone booth type game for Baltimore. They have to stop the run. And then Josh Allen, he's Josh Allen. I like the way that they're playing right now. Offensively, you look at them, they're able to run the ball with James Cook, which that's something that is really helped Josh Allen this year because it's not all on him. They rushed for almost one hundred and twenty six yards James Cook did last week, and then Josh Allen has to be Josh Allen in those moments, and one of these guys are going to make an extraordinary play in this game.
That's going to be the difference. But I'm going to take Buffalo at home.
I wasn't expecting you to take Buffalo.
I know it's really hard for me to say that.
I was going to jump through a table before the game is take Buffalo as well. Yeah, I still will Bill's Mafia, I see you. I will not jump to a table, but mostly because my wife would get mad if I broke a table.
No, you should. We should definitely do it. I would buy a table, you'd break it, break it a little bit.
Yeah, yeah, yeah, and then I would put like a pad under it that you couldn't see on camera, and then I would jump through.
It, maybe pad it up and heavy sweat. Yeah.
I probably like put like some of the bubble wrap, wrap it under my shirt, all those things I need to do.
Tailbone pad.
I don't think I would give it an option. I don't think I would go tell you have broke a tailbone.
No, I've I've had like one of those bone bruises on your tailbone. Yes, where I was running and I didn't see this guy and he absolutely manhandled my.
I thought I broke it in half, like you threw a pick and he hit you.
No.
I was actually took off running with the football and scramble and he came in from the is a defensive line and he caught his helmet right on my ass. But I mean I thought, I mean, I thought, like literal literally helmet right into your hole. Yeah, and I we had to take a time out.
I could hardly walk. I was I don't know, I think, I.
Mean I was sore for a week and a half from that one.
What a weekend. Thank you guys for listening.
Executive produced by Kickoff Kevin, shot and edited a bit by Reid.
I'd just say a bit. I don't know what Reed does. It's a sist of it in looks at screens. That's Matt Castle. I'm Bobby Bones. We've had lots to say, See you guys next week.
Lots to say with Bobby Bones and Matt Castle is a production of the NFL and iHeart Podcasts. For more podcasts from iHeartRadio, Visit the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.
