Nightcap Hour 1: LeBron hits game winner vs Pacers, TJ Houshmandzadeh joins the show to talk all things Bengals!

Summary

Podcast Summary: Club Shay Shay - Nightcap Hour 1

Episode Title: Nightcap Hour 1: LeBron hits game winner vs Pacers, TJ Houshmandzadeh joins the show to talk all things Bengals!

Release Date: March 27, 2025

Hosts: Shannon Sharpe, Chad Ochocinco Johnson, and TJ Houshmandzadeh

In the inaugural episode of "Nightcap Hour," NFL legend Shannon Sharpe hosts former NFL star Chad Ochocinco Johnson and Bengals' insider TJ Houshmandzadeh. The trio delves deep into recent NBA happenings, specifically LeBron James' clutch performance, analyzes the Los Angeles Lakers' season trajectory, explores player contracts and Hall of Fame considerations, and touches upon interpersonal dynamics within professional sports. The episode is a blend of insightful sports analysis and lighthearted banter, offering listeners a comprehensive look into the current sports landscape.

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1. LeBron James' Game-Winning Performance vs. Pacers

Key Highlights:

• Clutch Moment: LeBron James delivered a decisive tip-in in the final seconds, securing a narrow victory for the Lakers against the Pacers.

  Shannon Sharpe ([11:05]): "He ended up 4:12. So he was 3:11 before that tip in Ocho. So he ends up going four of 12..."

• Season Streak: LeBron maintained an 18-year streak of scoring at least 10 points per game, the longest in NBA history.

  Shannon Sharpe ([11:05]): "He has a streak. 18 years. He scored at least 10 points in every game for the last 18 years."

• Comparative Performance: Shannon compares LeBron's perseverance and ability to perform under pressure to legendary players, emphasizing LeBron's multifaceted impact on the game beyond scoring.

  Shannon Sharpe ([12:37]): "A lot of great players, they can play bad no matter the sport... but when they absolutely have to have it, they can dig down."

2. Los Angeles Lakers' Season Analysis and Playoff Outlook

Key Highlights:

• Defensive Struggles: The Lakers consistently allowed high points in the third quarter, leading to squandered leads and close losses.

  Shannon Sharpe ([11:35]): "Every time they gave up 37 points in the third quarter... that'll get you beat."

• Player Contributions: Focus on key players like LeBron James, Luka Doncic, and Anthony Davis (AR), discussing their individual performances and synergies.

  Shannon Sharpe ([16:03]): "He's on pace to be the youngest Laker to average 30 points in a single month since Kobe in 2003."

• Playoff Seeding and Strategy: The discussion revolves around the Lakers' need to secure a top-six seed to gain home-court advantage, emphasizing the importance of maintaining player health, especially LeBron at age 40.

  Shannon Sharpe ([22:10]): "They need pressure. Tom. Ain't no pressure in the first round."

3. Player Contracts, Team Management, and Hall of Fame Discussions

Key Highlights:

• Jamar Chase's Contract Negotiation: TJ Houshmandzadeh explains the Bengals' strategy in compensating their top receivers, highlighting the challenges in balancing offensive and defensive contracts.

  TJ Houshmandzadeh ([37:28]): "Nobody else on that team earned it outside of Trey Hendrickson."

• Hall of Fame Eligibility Debate: A spirited exchange about Chad Ochocinco's qualifications for the Pro Football Hall of Fame, with both hosts advocating for his inclusion based on his performance and professional conduct.

  Shannon Sharpe ([49:15]): "I agree."

  TJ Houshmandzadeh ([49:15]): "Chad was top three in the league for five of them."

4. Interpersonal Dynamics and Mentorship in Professional Sports

Key Highlights:

• Mentorship Role: TJ discusses his efforts to support younger teammates like Jermaine Burton, emphasizing the importance of mental readiness alongside physical performance.

  TJ Houshmandzadeh ([55:22]): "He gets that you can't want him to be what you don't want him to be."

• Legacy and Personal Growth: Conversations highlight the relationships and mutual respect among former teammates, with reflections on personal growth and professional aspirations.

  Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([35:17]): "I'm ready, man."

5. Humorous Side: Planning a Boxing Match

Key Highlights:

• Fight Proposition: In a lighthearted segment, Chad and TJ entertain the idea of Shannon Sharpe stepping into the boxing ring, showcasing their camaraderie and playful rivalry.

  Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([63:31]): "I'm gonna toy with him in the octagon."

  Shannon Sharpe ([67:00]): "Let me tell you. Let me tell you."

• Exchanging Jabs: The trio engages in a humorous back-and-forth about the logistics and outcomes of the proposed fight, adding an entertaining element to the episode.

  Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([66:08]): "We gotta learn to stand up to bullies."

6. LeBron James' Interview and Reaction to Stephen A. Smith

Key Highlights:

• Incident Recap: Shannon provides context on LeBron's confrontation with Stephen A. Smith, discussing the fallout and public reactions.

  Shannon Sharpe ([69:14]): "LeBron broke his silence on the incidents... referring to the fallout as a Taylor Swift tour run for Stephen A."

• LeBron's Perspective: Analysis of LeBron's stance on protecting his family and addressing personal disputes, highlighting his preference for handling conflicts privately rather than publicly.

  Shannon Sharpe ([72:05]): "He's going to be smiling ear to ear when this comes out... he knows he's going to be happy as hell."

• Stephen A.'s Approach: Reflection on Stephen A.'s tendency to engage publicly, contrasting it with LeBron's more reserved nature.

  Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([73:18]): "Anytime anyone says anything to or about Stephen A. He's going to have an answer."

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Conclusion:

The first hour of "Nightcap Hour" successfully set the tone for the series by blending in-depth sports analysis with engaging personal interactions among the hosts. Shannon Sharpe, Chad Ochocinco Johnson, and TJ Houshmandzadeh offer listeners a multifaceted perspective on current sports events, player dynamics, and the intersection of personal and professional lives in the high-stakes world of professional sports. The episode not only provides valuable insights into the Lakers' playoff prospects and the Bengals' team management but also fosters a sense of community and camaraderie through shared experiences and humor.

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Notable Quotes:

• Shannon Sharpe ([11:05]): "He ended up 4:12... he's sensational."
• Shannon Sharpe ([16:03]): "He's on pace to be the youngest Laker to average 30 points in a single month since Kobe in 2003."
• TJ Houshmandzadeh ([37:28]): "Nobody else on that team earned it outside of Trey Hendrickson."
• Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([35:17]): "I'm ready, man."
• Chad Ochocinco Johnson ([63:31]): "I'm gonna toy with him in the octagon."

---

This summary encapsulates the essence of the "Nightcap Hour 1" episode, providing a comprehensive overview for those who haven't listened while highlighting the engaging discussions and key takeaways presented by the hosts.

Transcript

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Wow, wow, wow. What a game. LeBron did not shoot the ball particularly well, but when it mattered most, he came up with the a last second tip in thank you guys for joining us for another episode of Nightcap, brought to you by Boost Mobile. Visit your nearest Boost mobile store or boostmobile.com to join their nationwide 5G network today. Y'all know me, I'm your favorite uncle, Shannon Sharp, number 85, Liberty City's own bingo ring of fame honoree, the Pro Bowler, the All Pro, that's Chad Ochocinko Johnson. Please hit that subscribe button. Please make sure you hit that like button and go subscribe to the Nightcap podcast feed wherever you get your podcast from. Thank you guys. We thank you. And I can't thank you enough because every time we come on, you guys show up for us. You watch our videos, you like our videos, you retweet them. You tell your friends, family and loved ones about them. And we greatly, greatly appreciate that. So hopefully you will continue your loyal support for Nightcap featuring UNC and Ocho because we greatly, greatly appreciate you and we understand one thing and it's very, very simple. Without you, there can be no us. Make sure you go check out Shay by La Portier. We do have it in stock and thank you every city that was on the tour that we stopped in and had a bottle signing. We greatly, greatly appreciate you showing up for us. But if you can't find it, any city or state near you, we will be there shortly. But if we're not there now, reach out, order it online, we'll ship it directly to your door. And please drink responsibly and stay safe. Go follow my media company page on all of his platforms. Shay, Shay Media and my clothing company 84 with 84 being spelled out, everything has restocked. The link is pinned at the top of the chat and supplies are limited. So please grab yours while supplies last because once they're gone, they're gone. Tickets for the Not Safe for Work tour went on sale this morning. Our eight stops Friday, June 13 Baltimore Saturday, June 14 Philly Saturday, July 12 Charlotte yeah Saturday, July 19 Louisiana Friday, July 25 Miami Saturday, July 26 NYC Friday, August 15 Chicago and Detroit closes the show out August 16. Tickets can be found on shayshaymedia.com tour. We pinned the link in the top of the chat. I guess lineup is Looking insane. You guys don't want to miss out on this one. Grab your tickets while you can. Hold on. Go ahead.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I know you may. I know you're making an announcement, right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

As I know the fans want to know. And you know I'm nosy as hell. Y'all don't never tell me to line up because I can't hold water. Right, Right. Can I just get, Can I get one guest name for Baltimore? Just, just one. I just want to get excited.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes. We've got tj, who's Mazadi, Tony Baker joining us later tonight in the show without the T. We just want you to put two S's on the energy. We got T.J. hoochmanzado, former teammate of Ojos. And Tony Baker, the very funny, very funny comedian and voiceover guy. Tony Baker joins us a little later in the show. But first. Go James. Go James. Go James. He went. He. For the first time, he entered the game in the fourth quarter where he hadn't scored a field goal. He had three points, if I'm not mistaken. I think he only had two points at the half.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

At the half.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yep. And he has a streak. 18 years. He scored at least 10 points in every game for the last 18 years. It's the longest consecutive streak of double digit games in NBA history. And he kept the streak alive because he was sensational. I think he scored 12 points in the fourth quarter, but none bigger than the tip in at the buzzer to give them the win. The Lakers beat the Pacers 120 to 119. Lakers had a 17 point lead. They squandered that again, Ocho. It was the third quarter.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Huh? What quarter? Third. Third.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Every time they gave up 37 points in the third quarter. Remember the other night, they gave up 34 points in the third quarter and it looked like they, they scored 60, little over 60 points in the, in the second half. And that'll get you beat. And the Lakers are going to have to find out until it's important to them to take care of the basketball, to play better defense. They're going to find themselves in these kinds of games because they allow teams to hang around because they turn the ball over when they can stretch a lead to 20, 22, 23, they turn the ball over in a couple of quick threes. And now all of a sudden a 17 point game is down under 10. But when it mattered the most. And that's what good players, that's what great players do. They can play bad no matter the sport. Ocho, they can play bad for a particular period of time, but when they absolutely have to have it, they can dig down. Now, a lot of times, you and I both played the game of football. Sometimes when things are not going our way, we'll allow it to creep in our game.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Creep.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Creep into our minds. It'll affect our overall play.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yes, sir.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I thought he rebounded the ball extremely well. He had 13 rebounds. He led the Lakers in rebounds. He did a great job of facilitating considering Luka is the primary ball handler now, let him assist with seven. But when he needed it, he dug down. Into the fourth quarter, he got it going. He played half primarily had the ball in his hand while Luka was on the bench getting his rest to start the fourth, he got his double digits and then he turned it back over to Luka and Luka got hot again down the stretch. I think Luka ended up with 34 points. Arkansas, Austin Reeves had 24. But it was LeBron at the end of the ball game. They got the tip in at the buzzer because this would have been heartbreaking, but this would have been a gut wrenching loss.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

If they lost this game, they would have let this. They on the 03. They're on the 03 skid then. 03 skid for one. Like you said earlier, they can play in stretches in the game and get a lead, but because of lack of defense and always being effing, beating, transition, being lazy, turning the ball over, they allow teams to come back in team that they should be dominating.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yep.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Obviously the game of basketball is about to get is a game of runs, but still you're playing the Pacers. I'm not saying the Pacers are horribly sorry, but when it comes to the Lakers, if you're serious about not only making the playoffs or keeping the seed that you're in, this is a game that you're supposed to go in and dominate quarter by quarter. But yet again in the third quarter after, after having the lead they had, they almost squandered that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

And then LeBron, the Panthers ended up taking the lead. Ocho, they took the lead and then Roy.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I don't want to, I don't want to butcher his last name. Roy. Ruy Rui Hachimura, brother. Hachimura Hakatana hit the two threes towards the end of the game and LeBron had to come through in a magical moment in the game. They should have lost, honestly.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, honestly. But they should have lost. Hey, he owed him that one. LeBron owed him that. He know he's in the locker room say, hey, knowing LeBron, he probably locker room guys like, hey, that was a big win.

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[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, I owe you for that first.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Half for the game. Because I think what was. He ended up 4:12.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

So he was 3:11 before that tip in Ocho. So he ends up going four of 12 and he's. He knows 07 from the three. He knows he didn't his overall game. But the thing is about a great player, you find other ways to impact the game. Look at his defensive rebounding. Look, I mean look at his rebounding. Look at his assist. His, his assists let him in assist, let him in rebounds. But that's what great players do. They find ways to impact the game. Even though he wasn't scoring a lot of times a score when he's not scoring o Joe, he mopes, he pops. And all of a sudden it impacts other areas of the game. Can you impact the game when you're not doing what you normally do to impact the game? Find other ways to influence the game. Rebound the basketball, can I facilitate? Can I play defense? Can I draw a charge or things of that nature? And I was very happy to see LeBron then pull it out. Had a lot going on today. Luka in the month of March, 31.4 points a game, eight and a half rebounds, 8.6 assists, 43 point. So basically 44% from the three point line on 11 on a. On 11 attempts per game. He's on pace to be the youngest laker to average 30 points in a single month since Kobe in 2003.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Nah. Hey, I like the Lakers chants. I love all the mantras, all the quotes of Lakers in five. But I honestly think they need one more piece. As, as great as Hakatana. As great as Hakatana Ruri is playing. Yeah, they need, they, they, they need something else. Huh? Another, another score. LeBron has an off night. Then Luka gives you what he does. Tonight he was kind of off and on, but he still ended up with 34. But I think if they just had one more person to give him just a little bit more. I know Reeds is good. I know Ru can RUY can score as well. They just need one more, one more piece of that puzzle.

[Shannon Sharpe]

What they were hoping for that Alex Lynn could give them something. Now I don't know what they seen from Alex Lynn since he been in the league.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, you don't like buddy man.

[Shannon Sharpe]

It's not about like or dislike. Oo. I mean I think the Chatter would agree. They've watched him at many different stops. I think he's been in Washington. I think he's been with the suns. He's been different places. He's what he is. He's what he is.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

I don't care. You take a grizzly bear out of the forest, whether he in Alaska or he's in Canada or he's. It does not matter. You take him out of that and you put him in a different environment, he's still a grizzly bear. Grizzly.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Okay. Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

His instincts does not go away. So in other words, if he's sorry over here, what do you expect him to be over there? He. That. I mean, it's not like he was good at one point in time, Ocho. And you say, you know what? Hopefully he can summon that up again. But he has not been good at any stop. He's tall now. Coaching is calling his name. It is what it is. And I'm just being factual. There not anybody else out there that can help a mocho. And the problem is, is that when. When Jackson Hayes goes to the bench, there are a small team. They have another big.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Basically, go to the five.

[Shannon Sharpe]

LeBron has to go to the five. Or you bring in Dorian Fennie Smith and he has to play the flat five. But they're a very, very small team. And that's the problem that you have, because you're really not playing Jackson Hayes more than 25 minutes a night, right? And he's a guy. And the thing that I love about me, you love and you hate is that you don't run plays for Jackson Hayes. He's a lob guy. He gets off the rim, he gives you second chance opportunities. But he's not a guy that you can run to the part and say, hey, he gonna put. Hey, put his back to the basket, throw it to a hand, and he's gonna do something with. That's not what he is. That's not who he is. Right?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Now I got a question. Now. Now, listen, you know, my knowledge of the game of basketball is a little limited. I'm getting better at it, though. Now, listen, if they got to go small, if they got to go small, shouldn't the Lakers, at times, depending on who it is, be at an advantage when it comes to, you know, playing small and having to transition up and down the court as opposed to, you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Know, yeah, for the other team, go small. But what happens when they got Jokic out there? What do you do then? And that's the problem. Okay, let's just say you play, you play Memphis, right? Memphis got Zach Eady, who's seven, seven, three.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah. So even if he's not in the coach though, huh?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Huh?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He's at clogging up space. He's not advantageous on offense at all. Or am I wrong?

[Shannon Sharpe]

He gonna give you. He's gonna give you extra possession because of rebounding.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Okay?

[Shannon Sharpe]

And without rebounding, there are no rings. Without rebounding. And that's the problem that the Lakers gonna have. Even when LeBron LeBron has an off mat, you still have AR and Luka that can carry the load. If luka is struggling, LeBron and AR can, can carry the load. If AR is struggling, Luka and LeBron can still carry the load. So look, you got three guys that can score. AR is giving you like 20 a night. LeBron is giving you 25, Lukas giving you a 30, right? Okay, that's fine. One of those guys struggling, the other guys can take, can take over. Need a little bit better production consistently from the bench. You got some good minutes tonight, but JJ is just going to have to trust Dalton, connect. I think the thing is that he loses his way sometime on the defensive end. And being around JJ the little bit I had working with him at espn, he doesn't like that. He likes students of the game. He likes smart guys. Smart guys you can win with even if they're not the most talented, supremely talented. Guys that doesn't have basketball IQ get your ass beat. And that frustrates JJ because JJ wasn't the most talented. Although he was a great player in college and a really good player in the NBA, he was very smart. He knew where he was supposed to be when he was supposed to be there, right? Boom. So he could play and listen.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He did all the small things right. Very detailed.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Very disciplined.

[Shannon Sharpe]

And when you're not athletic, Ocho, you're not supremely athletic. You're not six, eight, six, nine.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You gotta do everything right or you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Don'T have handles like a Kyrie. You're not quick. So what other way can I find a way to get on the court, stay on the court and not cost my team? And if you look at it O2, I think there's 10 games left and you look at three through eight, there's only four games difference. There's only four games difference. You're basically, you're three, four games back. Denver Nuggets have the same win loss record as the Lakers. And they're in the three seed. Lakers are four, Memphis is five. All of them have 28 losses, and then you got the Clippers, Golden State with 31 losses, which are three games back, and you got Minnesota at 32 losses at a game back of them. So four games separate three through eight, and there's 10 games to go. Right, 10 games to roll. Excuse me. 10 games to go. So the rubber got to meet the road. Something got to give.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah. What's, what's, what's the high? What's the highest seed? Or what do you think is preferable for you as a Laker fan? For them?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Well, I think the thing is that you want to get them.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

What would be easier for them, best case scenario, to be able to get out of the first round or at least have a chance, get into the.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Second round, have home court advantage. So you need to be. You need to be one through four to have home court advantage. They're not going to get the 1 seed because OKC has run away with that.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

So the one seed is already etched in stone. Now, could they get the two seeds? Yeah, that's a possibility. They got the Rockets on the schedule. They need to close out this road game strong and then go home and close out that home stand strong. Right. I could see them three or four, Right? Three or four. So that means if everything remains the same, that means they get Memphis in the first round.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

What you like about that matchup in.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

The seven games here?

[Shannon Sharpe]

I just stay away from okc. We need to get some rhythm before we see okc. We need some pressure. Tom. Ain't no pressure in the first round. They need pressure.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

So you saying Memphis ain't no pressure?

[Shannon Sharpe]

No, not for the Lakers. I like. I like that matchup against Memphis, but.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You know, you know who Memphis got over there.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, Ja.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. I give you. I give you Jog. I give you a Luca, who you taking?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Okay.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I give you Jon. I give you LeBron. Who you taking?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Okay.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Okay.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

All right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Now they got Jaren Jackson, who's a DPOI play candidate who made the All Star Game. Bang. Has played well in the absence. Jaws nursing a hamstring or something, but he's been up and down. Now when he's been in, he's Ja. I mean, he's the second pick in the jab. He's been an All Star, so you know what he can do. I mean, nobody's surprised. I mean, just to actually go to a game and watch him and to watch the way he elevate and the way he can contort his body. He's special. He's a guy that, you know, I paid my good money to go see because that's what he is. Look, I basically, if I'm paying my money to come see him, I ain't paying my money to come see you. I mean, I don't give a damn how many points you average. You're not interested. What does that got? Nothing to do with me. Ja's interesting because he can finish above the rim. Got a nice little float game, mid range shot. He's gotten better to shoot in the set three, but he's fun to watch. I like that matchup. Do I think they can beat anybody? Yes. In seven games? Absolutely. Cause Luka and LeBron can both take over a game and give you 40. So those two guys. But the thing is, Hojo, in the playoffs, your three best guys need to be really good. Two of the three need to be great damn near every single night. Now if I'm getting 80 points, 60, if I'm getting 65 to 80 points for my big three, I'm gonna need the other. I'm gonna need the other six guys. Cause you're not gonna go that deep. Playoff start. You might go 9. As you go further, you reduce that. But I'm gonna need those other, other nine guys. If those three guys give me eight, I'm gonna need those other guys to give me 35. And they're gonna have to get a little bit more production from the bench. Gabe Benson is shooting the ball a little better. Bennie Smith is doing a little better. But they gotta make a decision. What are we gonna do at Dalton? Connect, because he can shoot the three, but he gets lost. He gets lost on defense and he gives up easy buckets. And I don't know what something is being lost in. Translation, Ocho, he's a liability. Well, all of them. Look, Luke ain't playing no defense. Blessing Heart ain't playing defense. LeBron can't sit in the chair no more. LeBron is mainly a help side defender. He does use his body really well. Guys try to go around him, he'll body him up because that's a big man to try to move. And so he slows him down like that. But LeBron can't sit in the chair and no one expects him to. Ojo, he farted. What guy you know played defense at 40? Kobe didn't. Jordan. I'm talking about historically great players. Even Pippen that. Pippen that didn't play till he was 40. He couldn't slide those feet like he could when he was in his in his prime. Right, we understand that because you and I talked about it the other night. The lateral quickness is what you lose as he starts to age.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

So with that being said, Ocho, I, I, I like the Lakers. I believe they could beat anybody in the Western Conference. Yeah, it'll be a struggle, but okc, although you see that five, we still, we still, we still winning the five. So you want to hold up? Going to the next topic, Ash. Okay. Ocho.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yo.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I don't know if it was this morning or with yesterday. I'm thinking it this Morning.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

What happened?

[Shannon Sharpe]

LeBron went on the Pat McAfee Show.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, yeah, I saw that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He had a lot to say today.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, but he, that was, that was out of character, him. I've never seen him in that setting before. And actually just talking freely like that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. So we're gonna get, we're gonna get to that in just a second while we wait for TJ to connect. But the Lakers, I'm looking at the Clippers, I think. The thing is, Ocho, you're trying to stay out of seven through 10 because you don't want to play any more games than you have to. You won't rest, and it won't start until the 7, 8, 9, 10 is determined to play. And who's going to be 7? Who's going to be 8? To that determine. So you need rest. LeBron James is 40. He's been playing. He played what, 38, 39 minutes tonight, so he's going to need rest. Any bumps and bruises, you want to try to get those guys as healthy as you possibly can. Now, the best thing about the playoffs, you don't play every other. You don't play back to back.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I mean, the first game you play, and then you might have a couple of days off, and then you get into the routine. You play it every other day. Okay, you can live with that. But you try to get LeBron, LeBron's going to need as much rest as he possibly can because he is 40. Here's what it is. And so once they determine who they're going to, once they are, if they can secure one of these top six seeds, you avoid the plan. You get an opportunity, gets a couple of days of rest, and then, hey, right, for the markets, for all the game.

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[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, he joined us. D T. What's up, TJ ain't no better than I am than working at technology. Yeah, you talk.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

What'd you say?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Can you hear us?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Yeah, I can hear y'all.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, no, you can hear us now. Don't pretend like you can hear us all alone.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I couldn't. I ain't know what the hell, man. I ain't know what D. What's up, boy? What's happening?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, look, 18. Look, I'm swole.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, I see you got your little ass back in that weight room. You need to get on.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You got to get on that Shannon Shark player. We love the.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hold on, hold on. Hey, I'm on the Shannon Shark playing.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, slide your boy one of them things.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, I got you. I got you. Hey, listen, listen. You put it under the tongue, boy.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Does one is.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You hear me?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, slide your boy.

[Shannon Sharpe]

What?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Let me. I got you.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I got you, got you.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I got you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

How did I. How did I get involved in this how did I get involved with this? Hey, tj, let me ask you this. When you first met Hooch, I mean, when you first met Ocho, what was your impression of this dude, man?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

So we. We met in college. He was just real chill. Real, real chill. Chad don't really talk no shit till it's like the competition start. Other than that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad chilling. And then when the competition start, that's when all the shit. So, you know, I thought Chad was hella quiet. And then we went to practice. I said, oh, shit, who was this? It was just a different guy. Who is fool, man? Straight up. Who is this fool? Exactly.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, them some good days, man. Them some good days. Oh, there's some good days, tj.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Been knowing Chad since we was teenagers, basically.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

That's crazy how many years it's been. Listen, my man.

[Shannon Sharpe]

If you were teenager, it'd be 28, Chad.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

That's damn near 30 years, bro.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Golly boy.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, you know what's crazy, though, Chad? I was just telling somebody this. No, we still look the same, boy. God done blessed us when we was.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, hey, you know.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You know.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You know what they say. The black of the juice is sweeter than berry.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, Chad.

[Shannon Sharpe]

God bless something like that.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

God said. That's my son. He hit us with that stick.

[Shannon Sharpe]

That.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, he did, tj, when he blessed.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You to keep your hair, he didn't bless Ocho with that. Oh, wait.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, tj, can you tell Uncle I can grow a full set of hair now?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, he always had a bald head. He ain't never had no. He'll grow some hair here and there. He always had. Yeah, see, see, Sporad is sporadic.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I know.

[Shannon Sharpe]

As a matter of fact, tj, oh, your hair is kind of like my sex life.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Sporadic. No, don't. Don't. Don't do that. You know that ain't the truth.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Now, what if I ain't got no spark? Cut me out of my deal. I can't. I can't get no spark. Because he ordered them all.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, I got. Hey, I got. I got about three boxes full.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Elijah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Boy, you.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You always in la. You come to la. You in and out, holla at your boy.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, matter of fact, I'm gonna be in LA. I'm gonna be in LA on the 30th. But you gotta understand, these are prescribed specific for me based on the questions I had to ask before I ordered them. So they're prescribed to you. Now, I'm not sure if you would be able to use mine. Cause mine is like, it's like putting 93 in your car. You hear me?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. He got that hot tip gas.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, listen.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I know. Huh? I know, Chad, I know, I know.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, I know.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Y'all got my head hurting already. Hey, T.J. you think the Bengals resigned? They resigned, T. We knew they were going to resign. Chase. That was a no brainer. You talking about one of the top. The top three receivers in the league, and I'm not sure he's two or three. You make the case. It's easy to say he or Jetta, based on the last three years, they're one. One, A one. Whatever the case, you want to. Are you surprised that the Bengals were able to get a deal done with with a. With T?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No, not at all. Who else earned it? Them two dudes earned it. When you go outside of Trey Hendrickson, nobody else on the team has earned that money. We knew they was going to pay. Jamar. They. They always gonna pay. They best receiver in the quarterback. They always gonna do that. What shocked me, T, when he fired David M. He. He basically told the Bengals, I want to stay in Cincinnati, right? I fired my agent because I want to stay here. Y'all can make that happen. He took a pay cut to stay in Cincinnati.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Absolutely.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

He. He really did. And so, no, it didn't. It didn't surprise me. But who else earned it? Nobody else on that team earned it outside of Trey Hendrickson. So you gotta pay somebody. The Eagles paying everybody. The Bengals pay somebody.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

But this is what you gotta think about when you think about the Eagles. I mean, Lori with Lori and. And Young Bull is over there doing. Yeah, yeah, brother, brother Roseman. They paying everybody a little bit early. They can't. They catching them early, but they not. They not paying top dollar, actually, for the players that they Pacific position. But the Bengals, we waiting on the back end. We waiting on the back end and forcing. Forcing the players to bet on themselves.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, you ain't know.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

So they could have had. They could have had Jamar, what, 35, 36.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

They could have had two years ago. Two years ago. And they know this is the truth because I told them they could have had T. Higgins, 5 years, 100 million. They said that was too much, right? And I know this because I told them this, right? But the Eagles, they paying. AJ Brown got paid at the top. Devontae didn't get paid at the top. Jalen Hurts got paid at what organization? You know, sign a dude to a deal, he ball out. And they say, you know what, man, you outplayed your deal. We gonna give you another deal after one year the way they just did. Saquon Barkley gave 20 mil. I'm praying if I'm a rookie coming out that I get drafted to the Eagles the way they.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Absolutely, man.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right, right, right, right, right, right, man. But then also, you got to understand how special Saquon Barkley is. This is just not your average running.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Back, especially New York. If they wouldn't pay him.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, you know, being special when you under that contract. Dang. You no more money.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Nope.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right, right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But also.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

But, but look, you got to understand the importance and value that he brought to that team in general. Some of the pressures that he took off Jalen Hurst throughout that season, what he was able to do for them offensively, actually getting them over the hump and getting to that. And getting to that super bowl run. So I understand, especially everything he's been through, the storyline in general. That's one of the greatest stories right now. Giants, we gonna tag you because we don't really. We don't really value the position anymore.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

They should have got a. The Giants should have got a Super bowl ring for how dumb they are letting Saquon go to Phil. They should have been given a Super bowl ring. They don't.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, so listen, knowing. Knowing the Bengals and understanding what we need, the way we look last year, how we finish understanding what we need to do offensively, obviously we need to start fast. But on the defensive side of the ball, what do you think we need to do? Come draft, what do we need most?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

We gotta be able to stop the run. I believe Jenkins, this will be his second year. If he anything like his daddy, he gonna be better. So your pops was a hell of a defensive tackle. He's gonna be better. Just his bloodlines and a year of experience. We just gonna have to draft well on defense, man, we gotta be able to draft well. Like we draft Miles Murphy out of Clemson in the first round. He got to start playing like that. Now this going into his third year. He ain't playing like a first round draft. He got to play like that. We need Cam Taylor, Britt to play how he played in 2023. Jay Turner was playing well, then he got hurt. And so they can do it. It's just they cannot miss. We can't mess with draft picks on the defensive side of the ball. When you gonna pay the offense, you gotta draft and develop on the defensive side of the ball. That's gonna be the key. We gotta make sure we get three starters out of this draft on defense, if you notice. Wait.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, wait.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Three stars that could come in and.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Start right now, right now, right? Your first round pick, your second round pick and somebody else that. That just surprises you, right?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You're trying to jam.

[Shannon Sharpe]

What do you see from the Eagles? What do they get? Jordan Davis, Jalen Carter, brother Mikael Dijon. You see what they did?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

All Mikey Shield, all those. Nicole Dean, Nolan Smith Jr. All on defense because we're paying all the money. 55, 50 plus million for Hurts. We got 33, 34, 33 million tied up in A.J. we got 28 million tied up in Devontae and we paid our entire offensive line. Lane, Johnson, Dickerson, my lotta.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

And we done.

[Shannon Sharpe]

We gotta hit it out the park on the defensive side of Joe because we can't pay top dollar. That's why they let those guys leave. Think about the guys that left went to New England. One guy went to Arizona because we can't pay him now Jalen Carter.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, yeah, he gonna even hit him.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He about to get 41, 42 million. Yeah, go ahead and give him to it now before you have to pay him 50 million. Yeah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

@ think. Think about how bad our defense was.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Right?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

And obviously they paid t. They paid. They paid Burrow. We paid Chase. What do you think about Trey Henderson? Do we pay Trey Henderson market value or is he going to give him a home team discount?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Nope, he not.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

We pay him market value, Chad. But what's market value? What's market value?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I mean, he got 33, what, 36 sacks in the past two seasons.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He got 35 the last two years. 35 sacks.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

This is what I'll say. I'm a pain, but I'm not making him one of the highest paid defensive players. I'm not doing it.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You can't.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Whoa, how. How you not gonna do that?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Be number one. Number one. This is where you. We call this hustling backwards. I ain't holding out. I'm trying to get money. I'm not gonna hold out and lose money. You do that. We hustling backwards now, right? Right. He not gonna hold out. So I'm a doing ma giving. He's supposed to make $17 million. I believe this year, if the Bengals would be fair, they bump him up to 28 to 30. The 30. 30 would be the max that I would give him if I was the Bengals. We got to understand, he a hell of a player. He had five sacks against the Raiders. Five sacks against the Raiders. And so he showed up big Time. The last game against the steelers, you got three. With him being 31, you can't give this man a four year extension at 35 plus a year. I'd give him 28 to 30 million. I believe the Bengals will do that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

How much are you gonna give him guaranteed? How much are you gonna give him fully guaranteed? Because that's what I'm looking at. Damn them big ass numbers if they get paper.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

See now, Shannon, you talking now, now talking like that agent right there, like.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I say, I say about. I'm gonna give me 45 guaranteed. 45 minutes guaranteed.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

That's about.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I don't know if he gonna take that, tj.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He ain't taking that tea.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No, no, no. This is the thing though, because if you look at T. Higgins contract, if I'm guaranteed 30 in the first year, just say, just say 35 in the first year. 35 in the first year. If you Trey Hendrickson and then I give you a $10 million roster bonus in the off season. I'm not releasing you. Your base salary for that second season is pretty much guaranteed. It's just not part of the fully guaranteed part of the contract. So now your base salary is somewhere along 15 million. That's $60 million in two years you gonna make. And it ain't fully guaranteed, but 15 of it is. As long as you got that $10 million roster bonus, they're not gonna give you 10 million in off season and release you.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey, they say y'all. Did y'all see what they did to Aaron Rodgers? Did y'all see what they did? Y'all see what they did to Russell Wilson? They will release you. Hey, even if you, Even if you got 30 plus Russell had 36 billion guaranteed, if it not Russell Wilson did.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

To himself when he was playing.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah. All right. I think, TJ for me, I think he might be content if you fully guarantee the first two years at about $60 million. Because you said that $30 million level, you're not trying to put him at. You're not trying to put him at 34 million. You're not trying to put him in Miles Garrett, which is. Which is 40 million. So I'm thinking two years at 60 million. The last three years are going to be V. But he's gonna probably, he's gonna want something, a big number to make a big splash. But you're gonna probably have to give him 60 million fully guaranteed.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, this, this year, man, we, we gotta do something. We gotta do something. We gotta play in the preseason because the last few years, we ain't been playing in the preseason.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Exactly. We start off. We start off slow.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Every race kills us, bro. The first game of the season last year was. Is. Is Chase gonna play? Is he gonna. Oh, he gonna play. He acted. And it goes to the Patriots. And that now is a game that.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Would have got y'all in the playoffs. But you know what we're talking about Trey Hendrickson. But we saw Pratt, your outstanding linebacker that led him in tackles. Now, you lost Hubbard, who retired. Hendrickson, is upset because of his contract. Pratt said, y'all ain't got no money for me. Cause y'all just played burrow. Y'all played T. Y'all paid Chase. Y'all ain't got no money for me. And y'all need to pay Hendrickson. Y'all need to let me go. You can't keep losing these good defensive players, tj and expect you to think you gonna win.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You can't, Shannon. But I hate doing this, man. I hate doing this, man. We was players. But if you played on that defense and you not Trey Hendrickson. What you want? What you want? What did you do during the season that says you deserve more money?

[Shannon Sharpe]

I want more than 7 million.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Then you could have played like you wanted more than 7 million.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Damn, TJ damn, damn.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You talk about me? Oo, look at TJ. Hey, TJ cutting them up.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I'm. I'm saying, outside of Trey Hendrickson, who on that defense could literally say, I deserve a pay raise, right? Trey Henderson was the only one that showed up each and every game when he was needed. Now, Jermaine Pratt has some games, but he done had some plays where. Ah, we needed that play. Ah, we needed that play. Meaning if you'll start line, if you start in any position in the league. We all know this. And you get enough opportunity, you gonna make enough plays. But what about the plays you don't make?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Right when I.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Look, hey, we.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Go ahead. Go ahead.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

And I would get ready to say, obviously, you and I have been playing together since college, and obviously, I view. And I've always said it before, I think Chase is probably, to me, the greatest banger receiver, you know, whoever. Don't think.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, stop, stop, bro.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Wait, wait. Let me finish. Let me finish.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No, no, no, that's not true. That's not true.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Isaac Curtis is downtown Freddie Brown.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No, that man right there with them lopes on is. Huh? Like, listen, I've never.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I never won a triple crown, though.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Listen, listen. Because you had me. Listen, though. And Chad Know this Shannon. He know what I'm about to say, man, Chad's supposed to be in the hall of Fame, man. They fucking this boy over, man.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, I put on my own jacket.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

No, no, no, no, no. Chad, Chad, you jump. You know I'm serious about this because I tell you this all the time. Chad is the greatest receiver in Bengals history. Now, Jamar Chase is on his way to trying to equal or pass Chad. But where we sit right now, man, Chad is here. It's Chad. It's. Chad is AJ Green, is Isaac Curtis. That's what it is to me. Now, Ja'Marr Chase is on his way to getting there. But come on, Chad, you can't do it to yourself. You know how I tell you this all the time? Shannon? You in the hall of Fame. Let me give you my hall of Fame criteria, because for some odd reason, I think my criteria is the best, and nobody listens to it. Okay, For a period of 5 years, were you a top 5 player at your position? If you gotta think about it, you're not a Hall of Famer.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I agree.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

So now you go to 2002. 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8. That's seven years. Seven of those years, Chad was top three in the league for five of them. He led the AFC five years in a row. How this man can't even be a finalist like that. That makes no sense. He was leading the AFC in a year. He didn't lead it. I did.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I did.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

So you tell me how he ain't in the hall, how he not even a finalist. But you got dudes that wasn't even top five at their position they getting in.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

But I was a villain. The villain. They never letting the villain in, but they never.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

They.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Listen. I understood that. Why do you think I donned the jacket in the first place? Cause I understood the politics that came.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Behind it to me.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I don't like the. Listen, I don't like the business side of football. Remember we talked about that the other day? I talked about contracts, the reason why I played the game like a little kid, having fun and entertaining. Now, the flip side of things. Okay, I know how y'all gonna play. Me, I choose. I chose not to conform. I'm playing the game the way I felt it should be played. So regardless of what my numbers would be, T. I understand what you're saying.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You earned it. You earned.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, but.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You earned it.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

But you gotta. You gotta play by their rules. If you don't play by their rules, they not letting you in there. You Know how I feel about it.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You know what all the stuff that you was doing, you can do now. You don't even get fined for it. They owe you back pay.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, but here's the thing, though, Ojo. You had no off field issues. Now, what happened was the thing that's going against you and you still don't have this is that they wanted to keep to out so bad, they changed it. They said anything that you did on the sidelines or in the locker room could be used against you. Where before, they said even off field activities couldn't be held against the player. That's how bad they wanted to keep. To be in the first ballot hall of Fame.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Yeah, that was criminal, that TL.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Then.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

They had the nerve not to let him in. The first year.

[Shannon Sharpe]

The second year, though. The first year. And I. And I think even though. And y'all know how I feel about Teo, I said, he's the second greatest receiver to me. Some people push back and say it's Randy, but we know. I think. I think you and I. I think TJ and I are more aligned. I think Jerry's the greatest receiver. And it ain't close. That's my preach. Now, tj, you might have. You might say Randy, you might say Tio. But for me, I think those three are the top three receivers as we sit here and discuss it today. Now, Chase and Jetta and somebody down the line might have something to say about. But I sure hope I'm alive when I can see the receiver that say, hey, he right there with Jerry. I want to be allowed to see that receiver.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

That ain't gonna never happen. Jerry Rice was getting a thousand yards in year 20, bro.

[Shannon Sharpe]

40 years old, got 1200 yards.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

That's never gonna happen. We'll never see somebody do what Jerry Rice has done. But Jamar Chase, Justin Jefferson, they on their way. But they got to make sure that they don't hit any bumps in the road because Odell Beckham was on his way as well.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

And then he hit those bumps in a row that he could never recover from that. And so I just feel like Chad is the best bingo receiver in the history of a team. He knows that. I know that now. Chase is on his way. I just. I tell Chad this all the time because he never gonna say nothing about it, man. It's just a crime that he can't be a Hall of Fame finalist when his game on the field, he earned that shit.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Broke through that.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

And that's one thing about Chad. Like when you Talk about work hard. This dude is gonna run himself to death. Like, Janet, we was in year nine and we was taking all the scout team reps. Like, we were still rookies. Every time, every time, every practice. Wednesday, Thursday, Friday, we did all the offensive reps, all the scout team reps. I left the Bengals and went to other teams. Them dudes is like, bro, chilling. Scouting, I just always had done it. And so people don't realize, like, Chad worked hard. We similar paths. We both went juco. We both had like, ain't no way they making it to the league. Oh, shit, they made it. And to be successful, I mean, that right there within itself, pat yourself on the back. But, yeah, Chad should be in the hall of Fame, man. Any chance I get, I'm gonna say that because I know, I know who the best receivers were, and I'm not gonna put nobody down. But some of these dudes, they not better than him. And them dudes even know they not better than him.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Last season, you stepped up to help out rookie Jermaine Burton. We saw the struggles. A lot of it played out publicly. Ocho say he's gonna. He's gonna try to intervene this year. We got two great Bengal receivers that's trying to help the younger generation. Like, bro, there's a lot. There's a professional aspect of it, which is what you do. You're an NFL, that means you're a professional. And then there's a pro P R O, which is the way you go about handling your business. We need to get you to become a bro.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You know, with Jermaine, like, I. I was talking to him a lot during the. Prior to the season starting. Cause, you know, he was having problems prior to the season, and Bengals knew that I was close with him, so they was reaching out to me before anything ever became public. Certain games he wasn't even gonna be active in, they were letting me know the night before. And so I'm giving Maine a call, like, bruh, what's going on? How you doing? I'm gonna just see if he gonna tell me what's going on before I gotta ask him what's going on.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Right?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You got all the talent in the world, but at some point, I can't want you to be what you don't want to be.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Don't you? What I tell my kids, I can't want it more than you want it for yourself.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

He gonna have to figure that out. And I just. I just talked to him today. I just talked to him today, and to me, it ain't about anything physical. On the field, he gotta make sure. Mentally and off the field, he ready to go. Because the league gonna move on. He got one more strike, they gonna move on without him. It don't matter who you are, man. This NFL, this thing gonna keep rolling with you or without you. You gonna hop on the train and roll with us, or you gonna get your ass rolled over and get left behind. Yeah, I hope he figured out, man. Cause he's so talented. He comes from a background where he can really change his family's fortune. And I'm gonna do all I can. Chad know me. I'm a talk.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I'm gonna help him as much as I can. But ultimately, I can't want it more than you want him.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, man, listen, I, I don't, I don't. I don't know brother Burton like that. Obviously, when I, When I go to the stadium, when I do have my, my, my times and chances where I'm at the field, you know, I don't, I don't. I don't want to do that, be that father figure. I don't want to be that guy. Because when, when I was playing, the people come in. I wasn't trying to hear that stuff.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Football.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

When you out here, you gonna pull up to the training. That's, that's what you gonna do. You're gonna pull up to the training.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, I'm gonna bring my cleats, too.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I don't know if you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey, hey, I, I keep telling T.J. tell him to let it go. T.J. hey, hey.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

What? Hey, hey, man, it's just different, Chad. Hey, hey. Right now, like I, I, I lightweight hurt myself thinking I could. Hey, man, and your mind say, I got this. As soon as you get on that field, boy, your body be like, boy, you better sit your ass right on down.

[Shannon Sharpe]

There's a reason why we hung the police up, tj.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, we, we can we look the part. But I don't know if we are.

[Shannon Sharpe]

The part is that it's that lateral. And I keep trying to tell Ocho. Yes, Ocho, could you run straight ahead? Yes. It ain't no it is that. That.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

See, Chad might be the only. I'll give you mad Chad lateral movement was that is out of this world. That's one thing Chad was so quick. Even if he lose quickness, he. Bout what everybody else is now.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

See, Uncle, I told you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

But here's the thing, though, T.J. even though he might be what? Because his quickness is. Because he's so light See, you and I like to play through contact. We wanted somebody to try. We wanted somebody to be up there, Ocho. I mean, tj. So we can snatch a pool or rip through the ass. Yeah. Here I'm at 185hit lateral quickness right there. Man, they gonna shove his ass up under the beach.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

About five pounds, Chad. Probably about 180 right now.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right now I'm two or five.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Okay, you a damn lie.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Look at this.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, Chad, you got. You got a big bicep, you got a big chest, you got big calves. Yeah, that's it.

[Shannon Sharpe]

He got no leg. But all you wait is the weight is from waist down. That's what. That's what. That's what a weight is, Ocho.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, you know what? Promise say prime promise say the horses ain't got no big legs neither. You see how they run?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, exactly.

[Famous Smoke Representative]

Fairbread.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Fairbread. Look at. Look how skinny the ankles are now. Clydell. Got them big ass legs and ain't moving nothing. They pulling stuff. Yeah. Cloud horse and a race horse. Hey, tj, who you got? Cause we know we got this fight coming up this year. Ocho versus James Harrison in ML.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Listen, man, Chad, my dog, bro. What kind of is it at?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Don't say nothing wrong.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Don't say that kind of fight. Is it just by.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Nah, mma.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, don't do the mma, bro. I love you, dog. Chad, whose side you on?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You got on my side, Chad.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Listen to what I'm saying, bro.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hold on, hold on.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Are you on my side, bro? Take the lokes off, Chad. Boxing. I got you.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Mma, man. What that mother, James. You and me at the same time. Well, you know how strong James Harrison is.

[Famous Smoke Representative]

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[Jeff C.]

It's Jeff C. From Club 520 podcast here to share my latest fresh take on the 2025 NCAA tournament. Brought to you by Wendy's the official hamburger of March Madness. This past weekend was a great round. 32. I had the best game of the year. Had to be the Maryland versus Colorado State game. It ended with a game winner. It was exciting. Derrick Quinn Good shot. Looking ahead to the Sweet 16. I'm really looking forward to watching it. Arkansas versus Texas Tech. I'm looking forward to it because it's similar styles. They both play hard defense, they both greedy teams and they play in the post. It should be a battle for the ages. I'm also looking forward to the Duke vs. Arizona game. Both elite programs. Legendary status. It should be A battle that we all looking forward to. Probably be the game of the night. And when it comes to the Final Four, I'm all in on Duke and Houston. Two great coaches, two legendary programs. Should be exciting for their road to the Final Four. More from me soon. But while you're watching the games, remember, the freshest deal in fast foods. Gotta be Wendy's. Right now, you can get a Junior Bacon cheeseburger or a Double stack for $1 with the In App offer and purchase again. Head to the Wendy's app to grab a $1 Junior bacon cheeseburger or a $1 double stack with the In App offer and a purchase for the freshest hamburger around. Gotta be Wendy's, the official hamburger of March Madness.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, I don't care nothing about strength. You know how strong.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

If he can wrestle, I can do. Huh? If he can grab you, you do.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He's not gonna be able to grab me, T. He's not gonna be able to grab me, T. I'm gonna play with him, T. Listen to me. I'm gonna toy with him. I'm gonna toy with him in the octagon. Listen, I'm gonna hit him at will when I want to, T. I'm gonna be jabbing.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I'm gonna bounce around. I'm gonna move around.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, watch out. Yo.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Watch out. And listen. I'm telling you. Let me listen.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I got you. I can't do it.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Let me tell you. Let me tell you. You got. You need to have faith in the mustard seed. I'm gonna tell you. I'm gonna do it. I'm gonna choke him out with a guillotine, and I'm gonna run straight to you and jump in your arms.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, man, this is. This is the old. This is the old pride fight. No weight class. This pride fight. Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Back in the days. Back in the day, back in the 60s.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Now, the boxing thing, because he got all that muscle, he gonna be tired fast.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

If it's just what you think. Gonna be an octagon.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Cause he gonna shoot and take you down.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He can't shoot.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You. You can't shoot. I'm gonna keep. I'm gonna keep him a distance not.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

To get close enough to throw a punch.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes. How you gonna throw a punch? How you gonna throw a.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Easy. What you mean? I'm a gazelle punching.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, hey, man. I just hope. James Harrison, man. James, if you watching, have mercy on my boy, man.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, James, if you watching, I'm a punch. You got a punchable face.

[Shannon Sharpe]

See, TJ? What you done started?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, what month is the fight?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Whatever month you want it to be. I was hoping somewhere around August or September.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I thought we were doing a Super Bowl.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You wanted. Oh, so you wanted to be a Super bowl in San Francisco next year?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah. So? So. So all the former current players could be there to see him get his ass whooped.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Well, what about our show?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

He said we can do it tonight. You ain't gonna be able to do it. That's what he said?

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yes. That'd be perfect, too. We had a fight before the show. Not the same day. I'm saying, like a few days before.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, Lord have mercy.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

You gotta remember, super bowl is seven day. Seven day. Seven day event. Seven day event. So we can schedule it. Oh, Lord. I bet. I bet he. I bet you ain't heard from him because I told him to send the contract.

[Shannon Sharpe]

So we have. So we'll have a fight that Friday night. We'll do our show that Thursday night. Bingo, man. Yeah.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, just pay him off. Back in the 40s and 50s, man. Just pay him off.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hey, Bam, take a dive. Like Harlem night.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Pay him to take a dive, man.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, listen, I'm not doing. I got too much priority, if it's possible. I gotta. Listen, I gotta show them. I gotta show the world. We gotta learn to stand up the bullies. We gotta learn to stand up the people that's bigger than us. And stop. Stop looking at people that have size and strength and allowing that to intimidate us.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Oh, you know, I ain't scared if it's box.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

So remember. Remember the story. Remember the story of David and Goliath, right?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Same thing.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

That's what it's gonna be.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

All right, I'm with you.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

It's gonna play. It's gonna play out in real life. That's all I gotta say.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You know, I'm with you. I just. I'm advising you. Make sure it's just hands only. Just these. Just these. Hey.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Oh, hey, T. I got.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

I got.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I got the quickest feet in the world. You know, they used to call me Liu Kang back in high school. Mortal Kombat. Liu Kang.

[Shannon Sharpe]

That man get his hands on you, Ocho.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, Unc. That's the same thing as to say on Sundays if they get their hands on me. And only one person was able to.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Do it, who that Reavis you just got. No, you was. See, when Revis did that, you was one foot in, one foot out. You just went all the way in. You weren't all the way in.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, well, I sure hope he all the way in. When he fight James, he'll be on both feet. Out.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, I've been working on my wrestling techniques, too.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Oh, no. See, what you said, tj, this man told me he gonna wrestle.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, man, no, I'm talking about in the third round.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

He gonna be tired.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

It ain't gonna get to the third round. You better go get with one of them Gracies and get on some jiu jitsu so that when he. When he grab you, you.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Wait a minute. Wait a minute.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Hold on.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I'm a black belt, tj.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

What you talking about, Chad?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Nah, that's Hermes. That ain't no. That ain't no jujitsu belt.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, you better go get with one of them, Gracie. Somebody teach you some jitsu. When you got him, that's your best bet.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Jon Jones to teach you. You go to New Mexico. Albuquerque, New Mexico. That's what John. That's where he trained out of. Go to Mexico for like a. A month.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yeah, I. I'm.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I'm.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

I'm ready, man. Yeah. The fact that y'all don't believe me, that. That kind of hurt, man.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Chad, that meant, hey, wrestling. That's all the big dudes do. That's all they gonna do.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Hey, hey, wrestling, fighting. I don't. Man, it don't matter what. Anything. Combat sports, he's going to be tired in 20 seconds because the first thing you're going to do is, ah, done gassed.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Okay.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Hey, it don't take much energy to grab somebody that can't get away.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You do realize that man played the NFL, so. He did. He rushed the quarterback. You know, when they was going on no huddle, he was still rushing the quarterback. Okay, I'm just.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

All right.

[Shannon Sharpe]

I just let you know.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Listen, I tell you what. I done enough talking tonight. I can show you better than I can tell you.

[Shannon Sharpe]

All right? Tj, man, thanks for joining us, man. We got to get you to come back on. On the reg, bro.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Man, y'all gotta holla at your boy. Hey, Boost Mobile. Man, let me get that shirt, man. I see they both got the Boost marble in the background.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Appreciate that. All the best. Thanks for joining us tonight.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Yo, D.J.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Who'S Mazado? Former Bengal great, Ojo's teammate in college and in the NFL. Ocho. Now, LeBron James went on the Pat McAfee show today, nearly three weeks after confronting Stephen A. At a basketball game. Yeah. LeBron broke his silence on the incidents, referring to the fallout as a Taylor Swift tour run for Stephen A the bee started. Excuse me. Over comments Stephen A. Made regarding Bronny. I initially wasn't going to say anything. I wasn't going to talk about it. I didn't. We didn't talk about it. Y'all didn't hear anything from me for. About yesterday, for three weeks ago. But now LeBron just went on PMAX and we have to talk about it now. LeBron said he hasn't been too happy with how Stephen A. Has reacted to the situation. He's on a Taylor Run Swift tour right now. It started off with, I didn't want to address it, but since the video came out, I feel this is LeBron talking. I need to address it. He completely missed the whole point. The whole point. Never would I allow people to talk, not allow people to talk about his sport and criticize players about what they do. This is your job to criticize. Or to a position where there's a guy that's not performing, you know, that's all a part of the game. But when you take it and you get personal with it, it's not my job to not only protect my damn household, but protect the players. He's going to be smiling ear to ear when this comes out, talking about it, because I know he's going to be happy as hell. Me, I wish Stephen A. Would just left it alone. Once he addressed it, once it happened the first time, address it. This is what happened. He came over to me, said what he said, I want to address it now, and I'm going to be done with it.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

Because as my grandma used to say, boy stirring up old ish, it still smells. So every time Stephen A. Talks about stirs it up again. And look, I see both sides. I see both sides of the equation, but Stephen, they just need to let it go. He needs to let it go. And now you're like, well, if he'd have hit him, I don't think LeBron was coming to hit you. LeBron was coming to tell you, bro, just stop talking about my son. He said, because you said, oh, as a father, now you making it personal. You're making it personal because now you're making it seem. And this is how LeBron, I think, took it. You making it seem that I'm not. Not a good father, that I'm not putting myself in. Putting my son in the position to be successful. And so you're like, you're pushing this. And so LeBron took it a certain way. And am I surprised LeBron responded the way he did so publicly? Because LeBron is a very private person. He might have an issue with someone and you will never know it.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

You never know it.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yeah, you would never know it. And so for him to do that at a game, and it wasn't after the game, it wasn't before the game, it was the third quarter during a timeout, lets you know how upset he was at Stephen A. And what Stephen A. Had been saying. But at this point in time, I understand LeBron, they asked LeBron about this. But if I'm Stephen A. Hey, guys, I've already addressed that. He said what he said. I understood his point. I said what I said. Now it's time to move on. Look, it's not gonna stop me from talking about LeBron James, the basketball player on the court, but the incident, I feel that we've talked about it ad nauseam. I feel we've talked about it enough and now it's time to move on. That's what I wish Stephen A. Would do. But like he said, I mean, look, I get it. That's LeBron James is the biggest name in pro North American sport. And when you mention his name, good, bad or indifferent, people don't want to click and hear what you have to say about him. But the one thing I know about this guy, and I know him a little bit, I don't know him as well as a lot of people do. Right. That man loves his family. He gonna protect his family now.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Always.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Always.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

And I think when you think about it, and you go back to the way things happen with LeBron actually addressing Stephen A. Courtside is. Well, with what Stephen A. Said, obviously was said publicly on a public forum, on tv. So he addressed it the exact same way publicly, courtside in the middle of a game.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Yes, yes.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Now, as a father, and like Stephen A. Said, he understood where LeBron was coming from. Knowing Stephen A. I think in the individual that he is, LeBron said what he had to say today. I'm sure Stephen A. Is going to respond to that. Because you need to think about anytime anyone says anything to or about Stephen A. He's going to have an answer to whatever is being said. That's just him, and it's always been him. I know you would like him to leave it alone, but I don't think that's. That. That's not how this gonna go.

[Shannon Sharpe]

The only thing I would've said was, Stephen A. Look, I know people are Gonna like, man, LeBron should have stolen you. LeBron should have did this. Man. They just talking. Stephen and me, you Say, man, I'm about to be 57, you about to be 58. That ain't even your MO, right? You ain't gonna fight nobody. I don't. LeBron wasn't gonna swing on you, and you weren't gonna. And LeBron wasn't gonna swing on you, so there would have been no need for you to swing on him. I'm glad you guys stood there and y'all talk. Look, he said what? He said, you seem to be receptive at the time of it. You understanding. You said you understood because he was speaking to you as a father and not LeBron James the basketball player. And you seemingly. You said you understood that. Let it go now. Let it go now. Look, I mean, I've had issues. I remember I had a conversation with Kevin Durant when he first got traded to Phoenix. And I walked into the hotel. I was like, damn, that's kg. And he said, oh, let me holler at you right quick. I said, what's up?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Okay.

[Shannon Sharpe]

You know, so, you know, I'm like, damn, I ain't get no dab, no dabble. Let me holler at you right quick. So what's up, bro? He said, man, what's it. What it is? You got beef? You don't like me or something? I said, now, why you say that? He said, man, the way you talk. I said, kd, bro, I'm passionate. I say, any topic that we discuss on that show, I'm very, very passionate. I spent a lot of time researching it, and I'm very, very careful to what I say. I said, kd, it ain't about no like or dislike. I say, I don't know you personally. All I talk about is what you do on the court. That's it. Whatever you may or may not do off the court, I don't give a damn.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

I said, you can ask your mom. I've had. I've talked to your mom ad nauseam, or she used to come on the show. I've seen that event. I said, KD ain't no like or dislike. I said, I'm just passionate about topic, bro. I said, I ain't got no. I don't dislike anybody because I don't know anybody to dislike them. It's not like. Like me and Oak when I used to hang out with Oak.

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Oak used to work out Charles Oakley.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Charles Oakley used to run on the track with us. Oak used to come to the gym and work out with me. Oak and I used to go out to Houston's. That was his favorite Restaurant, the N word. Always got the cheese toast. Me and Oak had a. Have a relationship. I pick up the phone and call Oak. I said, I don't know any of these current players like that. I said, but I'm just passionate about topics. I say, bro, I ain't no like or dislike. I said, but if I probably didn't let. If I didn't like you, you know it, right? He said, all right. He said, man, I just. He said, I just, you know, I said, cool, bro. I said, I ain't got no problem with you. I said, anytime. Hey, here, give me your phone. We exchanged numbers. Left it at that. He saw I was at the game the other last year. A couple of years ago, I took my daughter to the first. Well, it might have been this. Nah, it was two years ago. But anyway, yeah, had to talk to. Hey, talk to him on the bench, Laughing, talk. I ain't got no problem with nobody on Joe, and I'm not trying to go for bad or nothing like that, but that ain't how I am. And guys. I think when guys see me, they know I ain't all about that, man. I'm just cool. I just want to vibe, have a good old time. But like I said, I appreciate. Instead of him like, like, you know, Brill, Twitter and, And. And. And. And the Internet, trying to blow it up. Hey, somebody got a problem with me, just, hey, come to me, right? Just come to me. I ain't got no problem. I talk to anybody, anybody anywhere about anything. You got a problem with what I said why you said that, Sean? Why you said that?

[TJ Houshmandzadeh]

Right?

[Shannon Sharpe]

This is why. This is why I said that. Go ahead.

[Chad Ochocinco Johnson]

Right? And you know what I do like, though? I'm not sure how the people. I'm not sure how the people in the chat feel, but I enjoy when you talk about Kevin Durant, players of that magnitude, elite players. I mean, obviously, we talk about one of the greatest scorers of all time. I love the way Kevin Durant uses social media. I love the way he's so accessible to the people, to be the star that he is with LeBron and allowing himself to be vulnerable. What LeBron did today, I've never seen LeBron do before, what he did on the Pat McAfee show, sitting there for an hour straight and actually just being vulnerable, talking about everything. I really, really enjoyed that, because there's some from LeBron that we've never. That obviously I've never seen before, and I really, really enjoyed that. And I wish more superstar elite athletes would do that be a little bit more open, be a little bit more accessible. And I mean, it was just enjoyable. It was enjoyable to see him outside that, that normal setting of, of not being, not being viewed as the king, if that makes sense.

[Shannon Sharpe]

Well, most of the great players are going to be guarded because they're going to, they're only going to give you so much. They're going to allow you to see so much of what they want you to see. If you look at all the great players, they've always been very, very guarded. They're not going to totally let you inside, especially while they're a current player. The volume.

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