The Dan Patrick ShowRyan Leaf fills in for DP while Dan id filming his scenes for Happy Gilmore 2. Lions Radio analyst Lomas Brown discusses how HC Dan Campbell has changed the Lions culture. Chargers' Safety Derwin James Jr. explains the impact that Jim Harbaugh has made this season. And college football insider Andy Staples shares which college football head coaching jobs he thinks will open up this offseason.
You are listening to the Dan Patrick Show on Fox Sports Radio.
Lomas Brown, seven time pro bowler, legend for the Lions, he joins us now to talk about the Lions Packers matchup. Almost.
How we doing today, Buddy, I'm doing great, Ryan, Ryan, you look good.
My good many slim. I'm like, wow, you look good, Ryan.
Yeah, that'll happen when you had decided to have kids in your in your fifties. Uh, well almost so do you. I mean, I mean, what was your plane weight, man, you were probably low three hundreds.
Yeah, my first six years, I was three fifteen. My last twelve years in the league with between two seventy five and two eighties. So yeah, you're right about that.
Yeah.
I mean it goes to show when you see a lot of those uh former NFL offensive linement. I mean, to keep that weight on, to stay that strong and physical and be that you know, presence in the in the trenches is huge.
Yeah, it really is.
And you see a lot of these guys, man, you see Joe Thomas and all these guys now and they've dropped all that weight.
But like you say, Ryan, is just necessary.
To carry that weight. Why you in the league once you get out the league, man, let it go.
Let it go. If you're a big fellaw.
I couldn't get over on. I was there Thursday in Detroit calling the game for Westwood One, and I don't know if it was just me, but the offensive line for the Detroit Lions seemingly feels like they're giants. I mean, they're just tall, athletic. They don't have like the dad bought offensive lineman either. It's just it's rough and rugged. Speaking of that Thursday game, hadn't won a Thanksgiving game since twenty sixteen, was dominating first half kick field goals rather than got touchdowns against the Bears team that is very good in the red zone defensively, but then fell apart in the stuff. What did you see from that game, Lomas, terms of a you found a way to win it, but that second half was a trend of what the Lions have been around this time of year every year for the last you know, since twenty sixteen.
Yeah, no, you're right about that, and that's how it's gonna be the rest of this season.
And we got divisional games left, like you said, the night with.
Green Bay, and then we got Chicago coming again, and we got Minnesota again.
So all these games are gonna be this way. It won't be. I don't think it's gonna be any more blowouts.
I don't think you're gonna see us blowing teams out like we did a few weeks back. I think all these games gonna be tough, competitive games because we know each other so well. And like you said, with that Chicago game, man, it started off with us moving the ball but not being able to put up seven points when we need when we got in the red zone, settling for three points and finding a way, like you said, in the end, with some help from Matt Eberflutes. I said, he gave us a little help, but we were able to overcome that, not going to overtime and win that game.
So again we can expect help like that from the head coach.
These are games we're gonna have to go on too from the start, and we're going to have to be able to finish these games.
This football team has been transformed under Dan Campbell. Uh and and thankful that the decision makers there in Detroit didn't get, you know, an itchy trigger finger when things weren't going right right away, and you played during the time where you had, you know, the best running back to maybe ever play and you just couldn't seem to quite get over the top. And it was the Lions. This is different. This this team is actually the highest odds to make the Super Bowl in the NFC, first time ever in NFL history. What's it like to have seen that change there in Detroit with Dan Campbell at the helm and everybody follows suit, maybe slowly but surely, but the fan base is all the teams certainly had to believe before anybody else.
Yeah, it's been great. It's been great to see it.
And just think about the job that not only him, but Brad Holmes and Sheila Hampford. Just think of the job they had to do because Ryan, they had to change the whole culture. It wasn't just a team and an organization. They had to change the whole culture around the Detroit Lions.
Because it was same old Lions.
The fans expected us to lose tight games or to find.
A way to lose a game.
You know, it was always, yeah, they gonna get there, but they're not gonna complete the job. Now it's so different now with the influx of guys that we brought in. This is a team now you have to be able to fit being a Lion.
Now.
It wasn't like that before anybody could play for the Lions. It's not like that anymore. And to be honest with you, who deserves it more are the fans, because the fans have been suffering for so long. Ryan, it was thirty something years years ago when I was here the last time we went to in a you know, other than the last year when we went to a NFC championship game. We've never been to the super Bowl. We don't know what that's like. So we've been suffering a long time. And like I say, I feel so good for the fans around here because they finally have something to really really cheer about.
We're speaking with Lomas Brown, seven time Pro bowler for the Detroit Lions, and the analyst tonight's broadcast. This Packers team a year ago on Thanksgiving, like this was the same time about last year. They came in. No one expected them. I think they were sizeable underdog, and Jordan Love and this Lion or this Packers team found a way and then they kind of went on a run that got them into a position into the playoffs. What's this game like? Uh, you know, after the last week, a full week off since Thanksgiving? What do you think the most important thing for Detroit to stop this? Lie to this, this Packers team is going to be the.
Biggest thing for us tonight is for us to stop their run game. Stop Josh Jacobs. That's the biggest thing we're gonna have to do. Because they want to run the ball. That's their identity, just like it's the identity of the Detroit Lions. That's what we do. We establish the run, Jared Golf and all the rest of the weapons, then they can do what they need to do once the run has been established. So us with us being beat up on the D line, my goodness, run five our D line that won't play tonight.
So we're really really beat up.
So if I'm Green Bay, that's where I'm trying to attack the Detroit Lions with my inside run game and see how we hold up against that. So, to me, the biggest thing we're gonna have to do defensively stop to run. The biggest thing offensively we're gonna have to do is put up seven points when.
We get in the red zone.
We're gonna have to outscore the Green Bay Packers.
Exactly right. I mean, you knew that the Bears weren't going to score in the first half last week, it just it was not in the cards. So three points were okay. But this is going to be a different story tonight. Lomas, thank you so good to see you. Thanks for taking time today and being a part of the show.
Ryan's goods. Then you thanks for having me man.
Yes, sir Lomas Brown. Everybody seven time pro bowler for the said Detroit Lions played against him when I was with the Dallas Cowboys went up to Detroit playing against Barry Sanders, who that was something special. But he's exactly right. I Mean, there's like the idea around what do you fear most? You know, do you fear the two teams that are right behind you in the division or anybody outside the division? Because the NFC West and the NFC East or the NFC South, they're just they're just fighting over each other at six and six or so to get into the playoff and get a first round playoff game. The Philadelphia Eagles they're a different story.
Yeah.
The Eagles are just won eighth straight. Yeah, and they cooled off a lot at the end of last season and a lot of people were down on them to start this season. If you had to pick that game today Eagles Lions, you.
Know, this would not have been the answer that I would have given probably two or three weeks ago. But after seeing the Eagles dismantle I don't care how close that score was last week against the Baltimore Ravens, guys, they dismantled Baltimore. That was a beatdown. That was an early onslaught of just accepting what was happening and then just putting your foot down on the gas and driving through everything, you know. And I was I was very critical of their head coach early on. I was like, hey, you know, he seems to be Nick Sirianni. Seems to be the liability on this football team with some of the decisions. You recall the Jacksonville Jaguars game, like he did everything in his power. I felt like to find a way to lose that game, and the defense and na Kobe Dean found a way to win it, you know, And I was like, hey, do they really need him? I mean, they got Kellen Moore, they got Vic Vangio, you know, and the answers for most people were Howie Roseman, it's his puppet, and so how he needs him there to do what he needs is bidding for. But then there's just this fight and this continuation being beat up, injuries offensively, Davonte Smith being out, AJ Brown being out, Yeah, Saquon Barkley, I mean a running back position. For whatever it's worth, it depends on what team you're on. Dude's been so special. He's been the difference in this football team. He's allowed Jalen Hurts. There's so much off the plate of Jalen Hurts this year. And then defensively, they've gotten better. Those young guys that maybe struggled a little bit last year trying to find in their way, they drafted well. So I'm going to say it if I had to pick a game right now for the NFC Championship to get to the Super Bowl, the way the teams are playing right now, and maybe Detroit can change my opinion after the Knight's performance. Right now, it's the Philadelphia Eagles that the performance against the Baltimore Ravens on Sunday was one of the most impressive performances I think I've seen from a from a team that people were a little skeptical of for a team that a lot of people have a ton of confidence in, Holly, is.
There a third best team? I mean there is, but to you the third most threatening team in the NFC, you know, I.
Would have said the Atlanta Falcons about five weeks ago. Four weeks ago, and they've just absolutely turned tail and run. I'd be a little fearful of the Tampa Bay Buccaneers.
Tampa Bay is six and six, they've won two in a row, and they're the only team in the NFC South that's outscored their opponents this year.
They had a lot of close losses in the first half of the season. Yeah, I mean, Baker Mayfield is an absolute stud. I mean that team, that team would that team would walk through traffic, like five o'clock traffic in l A. They're walking through it for Baker Mayfield. You know, you know they're they're they're forced to go to a bachelotte party on a on a Sunday and in the fall. Uh, they're doing that for Baker Mayfield. Yeah, yeah, Yeah, they're totally doing that. A kid's birthday party whatever the atte party, kids birthday party doesn't matter, Like this, This team would would bend over backwards for him. They're they're willing to jump on the lawsuit to sue his dad too. There's they're they're they're all in it. They're all in it everybody. It has been uh that that's the team in the NFC, the Packers of course, the Vikings. The Vikings just find a ways to win. Kevin O'Connell, he's got it down. He figures out ways to win. That defense with Brian Flores, they do some fun thing. I mean, I think the NFC is going to be very interesting this year, very interesting AFC two. But the Detroit Lions has been the best team. Jared Goff for me, was the MVP for a long time. I think probably stepped off that m VP bus when the five interception game happened.
Though.
They found a way to win, and then he came back and turned around through like five touchdowns the next week, So he knows how to overcome that's for sure. Ironically, it would be completely unbelievable if what Sean mcvagh did to exile him to Detroit, to bring in Matthew Stafford to win a Super Bowl, to then watch Jared Goff ultimately win a Super Bowl in Detroit where it's never happened before, where Matthew Stafford couldn't do it. I mean, I think that would be an incredible thirty for thirty everybody marvith If the Lions win the Super Bowl, who gets a statue? Dan Campbell or Jared Golf? Oh one statue? Oh that's Dan Campbell. It's got to give it to coach because he because he you know, he he referenced biting kneecaps, and I think if you're in Detroit, Jared hasn't said much. Jared is like, you know, very stoic and just kind of goes about his business. And then you go to Dan and Dan's like, yeah, I'm I'm you know, I'm the waiter at Applebee's. I'm freaking biting kneecaps, I'm doing all this stuff seating.
Yeah.
It really feels like he is the identity of that team, and everybody has bought in one hundred percent. You know, there's no question who the figure ahead is there and who the guy is.
So I'm on the field last week pregame and I walk up to Jared and I talked to Jared a little bit and then I'm walking around and talk to am and Ross Saint Brown, and then I see the offensive lineman. I talked to Piney Sewell and I see these giants. But guess what, there's even a bigger giant standing right in the middle of them, walking around talking each to one of them. It's Dan camp Does he lift before the game? And he gets a pumped on me? He looks like he might. It looks like he does, but I think that he's I think that's just natural Dan. I think it's natural Dan. Okay, you guys, talked to you guys.
I agree with you that if there is a statue for the Lions, it's Dan Campbell. Any chance you could have co statues like they did in Philadelphia, it's Doug Peterson and Nick Foles together calling that Philly special play.
That's the statue off the Super Bowl, Well, there would have to be some sort of corroborating play or something that existed between Dan and Jared. I think that that would have to be the corroborating statue Otherwise, otherwise, right now, it's Dan Campbell and Dan Campbell.
Is there anything more weird in sports that Nick Foles has a statue? Outside of stadium? Is that the weirdest thing in sports? If I said it ten years ago. Mike Foles, Well, I think as.
A fan, yes, as a former quarterback and having watched him from Arizona stuff, I'm like, I always always knew he was capable of something like that, but the running, so it's not and it's not it's not super foreign for me. It's weird. Well, he he has the weirdest pro career.
All I love that twenty five touchdown, two interception season. Yeah, then it didn't work out for a while. Then Carson Wentz gets hurt and he leads him to a super Bowl in the season they thought was over.
I mean, the show just goes to show h You know, any player who gets it to the NFL the quarterback level is capable of doing that if they make a run and they have a team behind him like they had that year in Philly. And so I love it. I absolutely love it. For Nick Foles. I recruited him when I was coaching in college. Uh he you know, initially went to Michigan State before he got went to Arizona. And he's from a little on, not a little one. He's from a very you know. Uh, he's from Austin Westlake in uh In, Austin, Texas, where Drew Brees went as well. Very quarterback heavy. All right, we got to go because when we come back, we're gonna all right, we're gonna jump into some I here, there's some random football questions going to be coming my way, very random, very random. All right, all right, we'll find out here. Thanks for listening, everybody. You're listening to the Dan Patrick Shoan. Rianley filling in will be right back.
Be sure to catch the live edition of The Dan Patrick Show week days at nine am Eastern six am Pacific on Fox Sports Radio and the iHeartRadio WAPP.
Derwin James All pro safety for my Los Angeles Chargers joins us. Now, I was just telling everybody Derwin about I lived in LA for the last seven years. Man, I know what traffic. Traffic's like. You know, you get compipited.
Man.
How are you doing this morning?
I'm doing good, man. How y'all doing?
We're doing well. We're doing well. It's been a lot of fun to watch you guys this year. Jesse mentor you know, is just kind of untapped. A little bit of it looks like you guys are having just so much fun flying around young guys, guys that people really don't know. And then you at the out there is the kind of the stalwart on the back end. Just talk about how much fun it's been this year to play under this new defensive coordinator.
Man I can't stop smiling every day come into the building. It's just deciding to come to work with these man Not only did the coaches, but the players. It's just every since Opa, we've been just working on butt off just to go out there and compete. And we finally found a few the results that we've been putting in and we just want to keep going hard. And Coach Mentor, man I can't say nothing but great things about him. He's a man, one of a kind. Man I haven't been around a coach like him and coach Harball.
So you you you spoke incredibly eyely of jimbo Fisher, You're head coach in college. I spent like five seasons with him every fall football genius. I mean, when you when you find guys that can flip that switch in you, Jim Harbaugh shows up. There's a different mentality as a former player. Jesse Mentor you see guys acting different. I mean, I'm watching justin this year. There's like a little swagger with him. He's throwing a touchdown, he's doing some things. I mean, what's the locker It just it's allowed the locker room to be a little freer, it feels, and it comes across.
Yes, sir, everybody's playing free, nobody's playing up tight, and we just create that family environment. Coach Harball, he's you got the families that practice on Friday Saturdays. They's just careting the family environment that I've never been around in the NFL in my seven years. So man, it's just been a lot of fun. And when you can make it about family, man, you just want to go that much harder for that person, and offense get along with offense. Defense get along, and it's just the whole team coming together.
It's it's incredibly different when you walk into an atmosphere like that. I remember that with when I was in Tampa with Tony Dungeye, Like you just go from a coaching staff that's that's so welcoming in terms of what makes things easion. You wonder why that hasn't always been the case, because you want your guys to be the most you know, relaxed going into football games. Talk to me about the Atlanta game. I mean, these games this year kind of fit the Harbaugh mold. Right. It's offense trying to run the football, hold people back. But defense really had to close out that game. Talk about that kind of final play. They went empty. They brought Drake London over the cross in the middle, he kind of stumbles and you just you just knew they had to get to a point. You stepped right in front of an end of the game with that, with that interception.
Uh.
First of all, I feel like coach did a great job all day calling great plays. I feel like we was in position to make all the plays we.
Needed to make.
And like you said, I just seen seeing Drake London in the plot and as soon as I see them released the bar, just try to make a play on it for my team. And like I said, Coach made a great call. And all year long, keys just making great calls. And as a defense, I feel like we just coming that much closer than where we want to be.
Yeah, you get the goes up front, getting after the quarterback Bosa. Uh that that crew, It's it's been fun to watch as a former Charger to see that defense kind of going back into Rodney Harrison Junior say out days, that's that's some fun era of football. And we watched the Alscheizier uh Alshire hit on on Trevor Lawrence. As a defender, they've made it incredibly difficult on you guys in terms of what the heck is the quarterback going to do. Is you're trying to make a little move to get a few more yards, to pick up a first down, to extend a drive, to end a game you got suspended earlier, and Coach Harbor was incredibly disappointed, as was I think a lot of people that watch football, realistic football, how tough is it to make decisions in the moment they'll split seconds to make those tackles and do the right thing. In the eyes of Park Avenue in New York City.
It's extremely hard.
Like you say, you're playing a game at a fast speed, a fast tempo, and as a defender, you're going to just try to get the guy down and sometimes the angle can change. The guy can see you duck sometimes and.
It's just like we got to adjust.
Like I said, they want to clean up the game man, And like I said, I'm all for it, man, and I'm trying to find new ways to get better myself. I'm still working at it, and I just love to play man honestly man. Like I say, it's definitely hard on the defenders, I feel like, especially because you don't know if he's gonna fly, you don't want to give up the first down as a defender.
So it's just tough.
Yeah, they put you in a tough spot. They put you in an absolutely crazy tough spot in terms of what you have to do. Speaking of co Charbaugh, so I don't know if you know this. So Coach Arbaugh was my backup in San Diego. He taught me. When he taught me how to be a professional. You know, it was that quarterback room was crazy. If he could have been a player coach, I bet you we win a ton more games if he had been able to be a coach. What's it been like to have him again? And does he how active is he?
Like?
Is he out there slinging the ball around? Is he catching the ball? I mean, how like? How physical is he with you guys? In practice? Seems like a lot of fun and it looks like he's doing it.
I feel like coach Harball is all in man, honestly.
Man.
Ever since ot As he's been pulling sleds man, honestly, since he's been working out every fourth quarter drill no lie, like he's he's over there doing manuals with us. Man, he's really and he has his cleat on its cleek game is crazy. He got all the different Jordan's, Man, it's crazy.
So man, his his Jordan game from his time in Michigan. That's what that said.
Yeah, yeah, he had his cleats on, man and he all in it man. Like you say here a player coach manning every day i'scribed to be like, I'm like a leader. Man. When it comes to that leader ability to affect the whole room and the whole organization, I feel like he's one of a cond when it come to that.
Yeah, his track record, he goes places, you win, you get a chance to win a championship, That is his track record. It makes me laugh. You've been around Justin for so long. I go and I go away and play golf with Justin every summer, and you know he's the kindest, most kind of under unassuming killers. That's a really good way to put it. He's an unassuming killer. He'll go out and rip your heart out with the way he can throw the football and be a leader. But did you see the video of when when coach Harba did the pregame thing with the quarterbacks he likes to do where he hits him on the shoulders and they touched you like justin didn't know what was coming. And he's trying to like be in it too, but it looks so awkward. What's the strangest kind of pregame thing that coaches kind of come over and batted you up and gets you ready physically. What has he done to get you fired up?
Well, yeah, the same thing. Like I've been a time where he just came and hit me on the bat. Let's go, I need your best, let's go, let's go. So he always just trying to get us ready to go, man, Especially that pregame speech in the locker room.
It's no speeches like hatball speeches. Man.
He always got one of a con for you.
You guys get to see the Chiefs again here soon they're the team at the top. I've never felt like the Chargers have ever in any way fear the Chiefs to Narrowhead or whatever. What's it like going up against Patrick Mahomes as an All Pro safety? And you know, how important is it for your team? I think entering the playoffs to defeat a very good AFC team, the Ravens had a chance a week could go with you guys. When you get a chance to the Chiefs and the teams that you're probably gonna meet in the playoffs down the stretch, how important is it you guys to show up and play well.
First of all, it's always a sighting to go against the Chiefs. I feel like the games come down to the end every time. And like you said, we have to go in on the road and be able to beat those type of teams because if you want to go where we want to go in the playoffs far, those are the type of teams you have to beat. And I trust every man in his locker room, from offense, defense to special teams, and I know we're preparing that way and I can't wait till the game Funday night.
The You know, you get to play a really cool position because you go up against some of the greatest players at the receiver position, in the tight end position, catch us the running backs out of the backfield. But is there a get you out of this with with this question here?
Is there an.
Underrated player that that people don't talk about that that maybe like you know, when you go into a game against someone like that or maybe even somebody on your team when you're going up against him in practice, that that that it's going to give you fits. He's going to be a player that that not everybody's talking about Anna Travis Kelsey, but this guy and and uh, I think that's a that's a pretty cool thing when when you know who you're going up against every single.
Week, I have to say probably a lat mccunkie. Uh, just going against him from training camp, I feel like his track where I speaking for himself, this season lead all rookies in receiving yards, So man, I feel like he's he's doing a great job and open man and becoming that receiver one.
And then Dayon.
Henley on defense, uh out there him a big pooning in the middle. So just those three guys, I feel like a lot of shout outs to those boys. They've been making a lot of plays just under the radar.
Dayon Henley everybody, I don't know if you know this or not, but he's a Washington State cougar. Make sure you uh can give him a shout out for me today when you see him. All right, yes, sir, all right, Derwin James, everybody, thanks for joining us, buddy, appreciate it, Thank you man.
Fox Sports Radio has the best sports talk lineup in the nation. Catch all of our shows at foxsports Radio dot com and within the iHeartRadio app search FSR to listen live.
Our next guest is gonna be uh college football analyst and he covers college football for on three Sports as well. Good friend of mine. I haven't talked to him. I haven't spoken to him in years, it feels like. But Andy Staples joins the show. Andy, what's going on?
Buddy?
Right? He never right?
He never called.
Yeah, we do a tax occasionally though we do chat.
Well.
Well, you usually pointed out to everybody that why are we listening to Will Ferrell call a football game tonight?
It happens to me sometimes, Yeah, where I am I am in one of those multi box situations.
Yep.
And of course unless.
It's like the beginning of a quarter, they're not showing your faces. And at first I'll be like, wait, wait, what is where Farah, we're searching. Oh wait, it's Ryan, that's right Ryan.
Well, Milk was a bad choice.
I know that.
You were at the Texas TEXTA A and M game. I'm talking to the guys a little bit early Andy about what college football is and for me, and this can be, of course a projectionist point of mine, since I called only really the Pac twelve games this year for the cw SO, a conference that was kind of left behind. I see it a little bit as the minor leagues. I didn't follow it that much. Guys are getting paid. I'd rather see if they're gonna getaid. I'd rather see him be playing for the Lions or something like that. But yet, there was one hundred and whatever twenty thousand people in College Station last week to watch Texas TEXTA am reknew that that rivalry. Where do you see the game of college football? What was it like being there and then watching the twelve team playoff kind of you know, start to spin this new version of college football in our eyes.
It's really interesting how it changed our relationship with games.
In November, I mean.
We told the people who wanted to stick to four and the people who wanted to stick to the BCS that this would make the November Games more meaningful for more teams, and they didn't believe us.
Well they believe us.
Now, Like it really changed the dynamics of everything, because we would not have been watching Miami Syracuse with nearly as much interest as we were in the game. I was at so Texas and Texas and m we're playing for a spot in the SEC Championship game.
Yep.
I mean you got all the trappings of that rivalry, the fact that they hadn't played since twenty eleven, and then you add some stakes on top of that.
It was a beautiful thing.
Not a beautiful game. Not a beautiful game, but both defenses much better than most, but then both offenses. But we did. You to see arch Manning as like the designated running running quarterback for Texas, which I did not have arch Manning as the two thousand and six Tim Tebow on my big o'card for the year.
But I kind of love it. So don't forget he's Cooper's kid. He's not Peyton or Eli's kid. Couper was a receiver, it was a wide receiver. He's got he's got some ability on that. Andy Staples here joining us here on the Dan Patrick Show. The Biggest Gripe? What team may have the biggest gripe so far of being on the outside looking in and not knowing what this weekend is going to bridget. But what we found out here on Tuesday night, I think.
Ole Miss, Miami, and South Carolina all have the same gripe because they're not really any different from Alabama. Alabama is the one they picked to be in that last spot. Now, Alabama might not get that last spot. If Clemson were to beat SMU in the a SEC Championship game, they might leave Alabama there. They might only drop Simmutter there and drop Alabama out. So we don't exactly know how that's going to play out. And that has been the argument raging in college football land all week is you know, how dare they choose Alabama? This is so stupid. It's always Alabama. I don't think it's always Alabama. I think it's Alabama in this case. Is Alabama super deserving? No, No, three loss team is super deserving. But they all have flaws, and there's four that are kind of the same, and they got to pick one, and so that's the one they're picking.
It seems like, yeah, is there a team that's most likely this weekend? I mean, because we've had a conversation on the show today about, you know, whether or not these games should even be played. What's the purpose of playing these games? You know you have I would argue that Texas is the SEC champion. They have one loss this season in the SEC that makes them the es.
They lost to the team that they're going to play it exactly so exactly.
That's a big part of that. Is there a team that you see in the title games tomorrow or on Friday and Saturday that you see likely to be knocked out if we're to get that loss.
So Boise State will be knocked out if they lose to UNLV on Friday night. That's that's pretty much a predetermined conclusion. Whether it puts UNLV in or not is another question. It might, but then if Army beats Tulane, then there's a probably probably a conversation between you and LV and Army. But this SMU part is really interesting. We had RTT Lashley, the head coach from SMU, on my show today and he said, look, if we all got COVID and didn't play this game, we'd be in the playoff. Yet you're saying if we lose to Clemson, we might be out.
How is that right?
And my co host Ariy Wasserman asked him, Hey, if that happens, if you would if you did lose and got knocked out, do you think it would change the way coaches approached these championship games? And reht Last is like, yeah, I think coaches would do some crazy things at that point, because if you're in the playoff and you've earned the right to play an extra game, the thinking is it shouldn't punish you. Yeah, but yeah, if I were a coach and I saw that happen to somebody else, it would make me rethink wanting to play in that game.
I mean, there's a real argument to be had that, you know, Ohio State losing may have had a little bit of a benefit because now, listen, I'd take the bye for me is a big deal. The bye is a big deal for me? Is a yeah?
Yeah?
That well?
Also, the five seed is a big deal if you lost the Big Ten championship game, if you're Ohio State, Yeah, because the five seed plays the twelve which may not necessarily be the number twelve team that may be a conference champion.
They got raised up to twelve.
So not only that, who does the five play in.
The second round and it's trying to play the four?
The four which is probably not actually number four. It's some conference champ that got raised, So.
Could be Clemson, I would argue, Yeah, I would argue that that five seed is probably has an especially if you didn't play in a conference championship game, has a nicer path than the one seed, which gets a bye.
But that eight nine winner is going to be somebody nasty.
It could be one of those teams that we talked about. It could be a Georgia, It could be an Old Miss, could be an Alabama team that is a brutal beat physical nature and everything like that. So yeah, first year of playing out, there's going to be a ton of discussion around what this looks like and where you go with it and everything like that. National Signing Day when we're talking with Andy Staples here, National Signing Day was yesterday, and does it what does it mean now with the portal opening, what does it mean to and is it different for certain teams, Like if you are at the very top of the heap, or if you're somewhere at the bottom where you're gonna have to develop and maybe know you're developing for let's say Alabama in a couple of years.
You know you're treating it if you're Alabama, Georgia, Ohio State the same way you always did.
You go get the best high school players.
You try to make that the foundation of your program, especially the big guys like you want to you know, offensive defensive linemen for the most part, are not going to come in ready to play, so you try to stockpile them as best you can. That's not going to be easy because of the transfer portal. Kids are smart, you know, they see how this works. And I think what has happened is those teams can't stockpile the way they used to. Like Alabama's backups used to be better than probably everybody ranked below number five, and that's just not the case anymore. Those guys go, I can just play somewhere else. I can become a first rounder at Arkansas. I can become a first rounder at ol Miss. So why why am I sitting here? And so it's made the market a lot more efficient. So it's really more where guys are going to start their careers, whether they finish them, there is another story. And you know a lot of ways, it's more fair to me because I'm so used to covering the coaching carousel, so I'm used to signing day happens and then oh we forgot, we're firing the wide receivers coach. I'm sorry you wanted to play for him.
Oh don't worry about that, but you're stuck here. Well you're not stuck there anymore. Yeah, you don't have to be hostage to some whims by adults that have no real interest in necessarily what you're doing the coaching carousel. You spoke of what maybe jobs are on the line this weekend, what jobs are are are maybe opening that that maybe people may not think are are ones that could be open here soon.
This is a weird year, Ryan, because normally there's a lot more jobs open, and I think a lot of the Power Conference schools have been afraid to fire their coaches because you've got revenue sharing with the players coming next year, so that you're going to have to devote millions of dollars to that. You don't want to pay these buys some of the buyots have gotten so ridiculous that they're they're almost prohibitive. Like Kentucky and Mark Stoops don't seem to be on the best terms right now, but they would owe him forty four million dollars within sixty days. Like, he ain't going anywhere if he doesn't want to go somewhere right So, like the best jobs open right now are North Carolina, Purdue, UCF in West Virginia, and they're still looking for coaches. I think, you know some of those some of those schools are considering coaches who are coaching in championship games this weekend, So probably get a little movement on that after the weekend. But you know, I think everybody's looking at Columbus right now. Obviously, Ryan Day's in the playoff. He's not going anywhere. I don't think Ohio State is firing Ryan Day. But Ryan Day has a Michigan problem, and he has to decide what to do going forward once this season ends. About that Michigan problem, I'm guessing that he just wants to try to fix it. But you got to be careful because he's varying very dangerously into John Cooper territory.
Right now. It's so strange. It's so strange how that game transpired on Saturday. I mean I watched it in a I covered I called the Oregon Michigan game earlier in the year, and yeah, and they played pretty good at times, but it didn't matter High State. I watched the Ohio State Oregon game as well, and that's a completely different football team in terms of mindset and coaching.
What was shocking to me was Ohio State tried to meet Michigan on its own terms. Like why meet Michigan on Michigan's terms? Dictate the terms? Like you have Jeremiah Smith, who is the best wide receiver in the country. He might be, well, he's not yet, but in a few years he will be the best wide receiver in the world. Like within probably four years, year two in the NFL, he will be the best wide receiver in the world. They target him twice. Yeah, Like, do the things that you're good at. Don't try to beat Michigan in its own game.
It just it's dumbfounding to me. I'd be remiss if having you on you and I talking about our friend Trevor Moat. Oh, yeah, you wrote or co wrote the book with him, It Takes what It Takes and and and you know how important Trevor was to me. But but I think you would have a really unique voice in the understanding of what transpired over the last couple of years with Denver and Russell Wilson because you were intrinsically taught this this neutral thinking because you had to write about it, and so the understanding of that, and I've tried to make it across that that Russell may be the best of anybody who's ever done the neutral thinking aspect of things of what him and Trevor tried to.
So Trevor was Russell's mental coach, Yes, cognitive, but Russell Russell kind of designed a lot of this and gave a name to it. And you know, Trevor and I wrote it Takes what It Takes. And then as as Trevor was fighting cancer, we wrote getting to Neutral, which we kind of wove in the pandemic and like how because we saw a lot of people in the real world trying to have to wrestle with the stuff that that Trevor had to deal with with athletes at a different level.
Yep.
And it was wild watching Russell in Denver, because it was like, if I think if Trevor we're able to talk to him and able to they were able to talk about thinking neutrally and how to deal with these situations, I think it would have gone better. But I do feel like when I hear Russ talk when I see him playing in Pittsburgh, that he's getting back to that now.
Well, and he tried it's trying to watch. Yeah, he tried to compartmentalize, and I think a lot of times when you are in that neutral thinking, because this is also the logic that I used with with the way Trevor worked with me. You know, once I walked out of prison ten years ago, and I would be nowhere I am today if it weren't for him and what he did for me. But you know, Russell can come off like a simulation sometimes and it's just because it's this, it's it's this maintaining a certain thing, and he's the best that that's done it. And I just thought that would you know, I'm usually the one talking about it when I come on and talk about Russell, And you wrote the book with Trevor and you were perfectly situated to talk about it.
I am so glad you brought that up because it's it's one of those things and I was going back through it takes what it takes in getting your neutral the other day because I think about Trevor a lot, and that stuff has helped me so much in my own life, just raising kids, you know, doing doing the things you have to do to live life. And for those who don't know, neutral thinking is a basically you know, the power of positive thinking, very popular.
Book motivational speaker. It's not positive. We just don't allow negative thoughts ever to enter our right. It's basically you you don't allow negative thoughts. You don't verbalize negative thoughts. You just say, hey, here's what I know, here's what I.
Can do, this is what I can You'd be yeah, you'd be shocked how much easier it makes life.
If that's how you're thinking, I don't. I mean, it's it changed my life, bro. I mean, you've gotten to know me. You know, you met me eight years ago, nine years ago we covered the Clemson Alabama game together down in uh in Uh Santa Clara. I just I don't. I don't let anything negative creep into my mind. And it's hard you know, especially with with the way the way the world works and they want to uh talk to you about your life, you know, and so and for Russell to do that, and I think that that got lost a little bit in Denver, and I think we're just giving it given some context. You know, everybody in Pittsburgh has seen and and what what it's come from. But I just thought I would would put that out.
It's fun to watch like that. Yeah, that whole situation has been fascinating. The justin feels to Russ.
And all look at that.
So Russ, Russ, that's like a Jack Lambert Russell Wilson Jersey.
So Russ sent me away and home Jersey this year and I couldn't. I couldn't break him out until he got healthy. And I was just like, I think I might have been the only one that actually said that this is a super Bowl team with a confident quarterback at play. So we'll see, we'll see.
Let's get George Pickens outder control first.
But well, you know, George Pickens is the talent of Antonio Brown in the eyes of Mike Tomlin. And if I've talked to him before, and it's like, you know, the talent. When it becomes an issue where it got to with Antonio Brown and I had to ship him out, That's that's when it Until that time, the talent is so overwhelming for everybody. That's that's why they were putting up with it.
And Mike Tomlins the one guy you trust to get that out of it.
And I trust it and I trust it and because I know that he knows when it's over, he'll pull the pluck and he has and that's why he's still the coach and why everybody trusts him and stuff like that. So I could talk to you all day.
Man.
I miss you, brother. It's good to see you. Thanks for hopping on with us today. Thank you, Ryan, I appreciate it. Yep, good to see you, Andy Staples.
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