Podcast Summary: Don, Hahn & Rosenberg – Dec 19, 2025 (Hour 2)
Main Theme:
This episode is a classic Friday blend of New York sports talk and interactive listener calls, focusing on two main themes: the ongoing struggle of the New York Jets to develop quarterbacks (particularly through the lens of Sam Darnold’s recent success elsewhere), and the always-entertaining “Fraud Alert Friday” segment, where the hosts judge the legitimacy of fans’ allegiances.

1. Quick Recap – Game Results & Uniform Rants

• Hosts open with reactions to Thursday Night Football (Seahawks' comeback win over the Rams), with some classic sidebars about uniforms and team history.
• Uniform Discussion: The crew riffs on the Rams and Seahawks’ various uniforms, particularly Don’s disdain for both teams’ looks.
  • “Didn’t it Always feel like the Rams numbers were ironed on their jersey? It just never felt. They felt looked cheap.” – Don La Greca [02:00]
• Game Analysis:
  • Stafford’s no-look passes impress, but the second half belongs to Seattle in an improbable comeback.
  • Don: “I got the best of both worlds. I wanted Seattle to win the game, but I thought the Rams would cover... Seattle to win the game and the Rams covered.” [04:01]

2. Main Segment: The Jets' Quarterback Development Black Hole

The Sam Darnold Conversation ([04:45]–[13:00])

• Darnold’s Redemption Arc:
  • Alan Hahn discusses his mixed emotions as a Jets fan seeing Sam Darnold now thrive:
    • “Yeah, I’m happy for Sam, but I’m sick to my stomach thinking that’s how bad the Jets are. That’s how poorly run they are. They had no idea what they had and they let it walk out the door because they took a worse quarterback.” – Alan [07:14]
  • Debate over whether the Jets failed Darnold or vice versa. Consensus: The organization’s instability and poor coaching doomed QB after QB.
  • Don: “They failed the quarterbacks, not the other way around. And listen, it took time, right? Carolina screwed up worse than the Jets... and now he’s a really good quarterback.” [08:15]
• Broader Jets Issues:
  • Jets’ inability to develop QBs is a franchise curse.
  • Comparing failed picks: Mark Sanchez, Sam Darnold, Zach Wilson—failure traced more to management and coaching than raw QB talent.
  • “The Jets are where quarterbacks go to die. They don’t develop quarterbacks, they’ve got defensive minded head coaches, they just don’t know how to do it.” – Don [11:04]

System Fit & Coaching Philosophy ([10:58]–[14:00])

• Jets’ latest offensive coordinator is inexperienced (Tanner Angstron), “hired because no one else wanted the job.”
  • “I cannot stand when coaches... say, ‘this is my system, you’ll fit in,’ versus ‘your skill set, I’ll build around that.’ Which is what they did with Lamar Jackson in Baltimore. That’s to me how you should have done things here.” – Alan [11:58]
• Lesson from Other Teams:
  • Success comes when team builds around their QB’s strengths (e.g., Lamar in Baltimore; Brees & Payton in New Orleans).

Culture & Legacy Impact ([13:00]–[17:50])

• Franchises’ quarterback reputations matter for new players—past failures cast a shadow.
• Giants, Saints, Patriots—examples of turning points when strong coach and QB unite.
• “The Jets have been chasing the two areas that you have to fill—the two boxes you have to check if you have any chance to win: Where’s the coach? Where’s the quarterback? And that’s been the issue.” – Don [17:31]
• Rare examples of Super Bowl teams winning without great QBs—always accompanied by legendary defenses (Trent Dilfer, Brad Johnson).

3. Listener Calls & Frauds: Uniforms, Fandom, & "Fraud Alert Friday"

Callers Weigh In ([18:48]–[21:34])

• Lewis from NJ mocks Seahawks' and Rams' uniforms:
  • “Seattle is wearing uniforms that look like they were designed by a kindergarten class that wrote the letters and numbers in glue and had them roll and sprinkle in sparkles for some reason.” [19:14]
• Recap of the wild 2-point conversion in the Seahawks game: everyone (players, refs) confused, but Seahawks luck into a key conversion.
  • “That’s like a critical two point play. He throws off somebody’s back, it falls to the ground, play is dead, everybody stops... If he picked the ball up and walked the other way, what is it?” – Alan [21:04]
• Reflection on how rule changes, like the two-point conversion, have positively impacted football’s drama.

4. Extended Segment: FRAUD ALERT FRIDAY ([26:02]–[46:50])

A staple where listeners write or call in to have their fandom “judged” as real or fraudulent.

Email Highlights & Judgments

• Ohio State Fan Who Attended Maryland
  • Verdict: Not a fraud—served in the Army, originally wanted to attend OSU, Maryland only for academics.
    • “I just don’t know why if you didn’t go to a school, you’d root for them. But... since she served our country—a fraud? No.” – Don [28:47]
• New Devil’s Fan Inspired by Don
  • Verdict: Not a fraud—you never had NHL allegiance and now have a genuine connection.
• Alabama Fan Whose Son Attends, Ignoring Daughter at Maryland
  • Verdict: Fraud—you’re picking teams out of convenience (and ignoring financial/parental ties to Maryland).
    • “Well, here’s why he’s a fraud... Because he didn’t attend Alabama. Just his buddy was a Bama fan... and his daughter went to Maryland and he’s not rooting for any of their teams.” – Don [33:51]
• Michigan State Fan by Family Legacy
  • Verdict: Not a fraud—father and brother played football there.
  • “They’d call you a fraud if you didn’t root for them.” – Alan [35:15]

Listener Calls of Note

• Giant Fan Who Roots for Home Team on Stadium Tour
  • Verdict: Massive fraud—Giant fan rooting for Cowboys and others simply because of location.
    • “If you did not have a football team but you’re a Giant fan, consciously going to Dallas and rooting for the Cowboys ... that’s lifetime fraud.” – Don [37:55]
• Indiana vs. Penn State Split Sports Allegiance
  • Verdict: Fraud—rooting for whichever team is doing well; not loyalty, just bandwagoning.
    • “He was motivated by how they’re doing. And so the second a Penn State falls off ... he pivots, and that Pivot is a fraud. I’m sorry.” – Don [44:04]
• “Can I Root for My Husband’s Team if My Chiefs Are Eliminated?”
  • Verdict: Not a fraud (if it’s support and not full-on jumping on the bandwagon).
    • Alan cautions: “You can support your husband’s team, but ... I don’t think you should be high fiving, jumping up and down, celebrating anything. Then it feels very fraudulent.” [45:10]
    • Don’s final word: “I’m the judge... you can high-five in the spirit of, I’m happy that my husband’s happy.” [45:44]

5. Notable Quotes

• “The Jets are where quarterbacks go to die. They don’t develop quarterbacks, they’ve got defensive minded head coaches, they just don’t know how to do it.” – Don [11:04]
• “When you see the throw to first base, how they just get the guy in time, you’re like, boy, that’s the perfect distance, right? Football, they got the scores right. Three for a kick, seven, six for a touchdown.” – Don [22:29]
• “He was motivated by how they’re doing... he pivots, and that Pivot is a fraud. I’m sorry.” – Don [44:04]
• On uniform crimes: “My soul’s vomit.” – Don, joking about the Seahawks’ look [36:41]

6. Tone & Overall Vibe

• Classic New York Sports Radio: Passionate, opinionated, irreverent, and accessible.
• Listener Engagement: The Fraud Alert segment brings out humor, sports Catholic guilt, and strong opinions about what makes “real” fandom.
• Language: Casual, witty, sometimes self-deprecating, and occasionally sentimental when talking about what it means to be a fan.

7. Segment Timestamps

• [00:44] – Show open, Thursday Night Football recap, uniform rants
• [04:45] – How Jets fans should feel about Sam Darnold’s resurgence
• [10:58] – Analysis of Jets’ current regime & QB development failures
• [13:00] – Historical “QB & coach” pairings and why culture matters
• [18:48] – Start of listener calls; uniform hot takes; 2-point conversion drama
• [26:02] – Fraud Alert Friday begins (various cases debated)
• [37:01] – Special callers: stadium tours, sporting allegiances, and final verdicts
• [41:26] – Near episode close, more calls, prepping for the Knicks pregame

In Short:
This hour is a fast-paced, debate-heavy episode with spirited debate on Jets’ QB failure, sympathy for Sam Darnold, and lots of laughs adjudicating sports fandom “fraud.” If you’re a fan of locker room banter, inside-baseball (and football), and creative calls, this is an ideal sample of why Don, Hahn & Rosenberg is a staple in the New York sports world.