New Heights with Jason & Travis Kelce: EP 178
"Julian Edelman & Cooper Kupp on Super Bowl 60, NFL Beauty Pageants, and Burger Flipping OCs"
Release Date: February 4, 2026
Podcast: New Heights (Wondery)
Overview
In this high-energy Super Bowl 60 edition, the Kelce brothers welcome two of the NFL’s most celebrated wide receivers—Julian Edelman and Cooper Kupp—to go deep on Pats vs. Seahawks, career-defining plays, and life inside the league. The conversation is classic New Heights: big game analysis, personal stories, football nerdery, and loads of brotherly laughs. Also featured: the viral Philly fan kid Sam Salvo, a madcap discussion of O-line beauty pageants, and—of course—a master class in coffee.
Main Segments and Timestamps
- Eagles’ New Offensive Coordinator: Sean Mannion (01:19 – 08:55)
- Super Bowl Pre-Game Vibes & NFL Stories (10:01 – 15:07)
- Julian Edelman Interview (Patriots Perspective) (16:16 – 32:38)
- Cooper Kupp Interview (Seahawks Perspective) (36:24 – 68:13)
- Stamp of the Week & Beauty Pageant Bit (71:07 – 78:41)
- Viral Philly Kid Sam Salvo Joins (79:03 – 89:40)
- Final Super Bowl Thoughts & Plugs (89:40 – End)
1. Eagles’ OC Hire & Scheme Talk
Timestamps: 01:19 – 08:55
- Sean Mannion Hired as Eagles Offensive Coordinator
- Jason and Travis break down Mannion’s McVay-Shanahan-Gary Kubiak roots and why this means “the Eagles offense is going to look drastically different” next year.
- Jason:
“It’s a signal the Eagles are going to change drastically and probably in a way a lot of Eagles fans want… a lot of run play action, motion offenses.” (03:10)
- Travis is excited to see Jalen Hurts “under center more” and how this will impact Saquon Barkley, emphasizing the importance of play action and outside zone runs.
- Jason praises Mannion’s rapid rise and hints at planned film breakdowns to analyze what Eagles fans can expect.
- The brothers riff on how Mannion needs to “win over the Philly faithful”—Jason jokes he should “go preemptively egg the house of the biggest, baddest Philadelphia Eagles fan... take the fight to them.” (07:44)
2. Super Bowl Week Vibes & Family Stories
Timestamps: 10:01 – 15:07
- Travis shares his excitement for the Waste Management Open Pro Am, calling it “iconic for how much of a party it is all weekend. Infamous.” (10:13)
- Jason plugs ESPN’s new “Philly Special” documentary (airing Feb. 6), recalling memories of Super Bowl LII in freezing Minnesota:
“I was just thankful for all the skywalks… not having to go outside.” (13:32)
- Brothers reminisce about childhood Super Bowl parties at “a house covered with Kurt Warner memorabilia—something about that’s just stuck in my brain, as a kid.” (15:07)
3. Julian Edelman Interview – Patriots in the Super Bowl
Timestamps: 16:16 – 32:38
Introduction:
- Jason: “Here to represent the New England Patriots… three-time Super Bowl champion and MVP, Julian Edelman!” (16:16)
Key Discussion Points:
- Pats’ Confidence:
- Edelman believes Pats are being underestimated:
“These narratives… this organization has dealt with before… I’m excited to see what Vrabel and his coaches game plan for this one.” (17:41)
- Edelman believes Pats are being underestimated:
- Advice to Young Players:
- “Keep the routine the same… it’s a marathon, not a sprint. The team that makes the least mistakes wins.” (19:17, 20:08)
- Travis agrees, noting the pressure to “be the greatest” is real, but “big plays come by just being you.”
- Vrabel’s Impact:
- Edelman credits team turnaround to “the perfect storm”—ownership, front office synergy, hitting on free agents and picks, and Vrabel’s leadership.
“The crappiest team is not as crappy as you think in this league. They’re three, five players away.” (25:00)
- Edelman credits team turnaround to “the perfect storm”—ownership, front office synergy, hitting on free agents and picks, and Vrabel’s leadership.
- Patriots’ Keys to Victory:
- “Patriots win if they get the ball off Sam Darnold and win the turnover margin… getting pressure in the middle of the pocket…” (27:31)
- Jason echoes: “Interior pressure... disrupts the run game and pressures the quarterback.” (28:54)
- Favorite Super Bowl “Welcome” Moment:
- Edelman:
“First kickoff… just flashes everywhere… that, and the National Anthem. That’s when you feel how big this is.” (30:27 – 32:00)
- Edelman:
- Football & Coffee Banter:
- Edelman asks Kupp for French press tips; brothers joke, “Coffee is the only legal performance enhancer in the league!” (26:51)
4. Cooper Kupp Interview – Seahawks in the Super Bowl
Timestamps: 36:24 – 68:13
Introduction:
- Jason: “Please welcome the 2021 NFL Offensive Player of the Year, Triple Crown winner, Super Bowl and SB MVP: Cooper Kupp!” (36:24)
Key Discussion Points:
- Returning to Super Bowl:
- “Just don’t take these things for granted… I’ve been on teams we thought would get here and didn’t.” (37:55)
- Seattle Vibes and “Juice”:
- “It wasn’t like… day one, we’ve got all the pieces. It was truly… a slow build, belief in one another, great energy in the locker room.” (38:44)
- Travis: “You could feel the energy in preseason… these guys love playing the game.” (39:35)
- Sam Darnold’s Redemption:
- Kupp:
“Quarterbacks in general are on the highest pedestal... for Sam Darnold to push through all those things... and just ball out like this... it’s not talked about enough how special and how difficult that is.” (40:31)
- Jason: “Once the narrative’s set, it’s hard to get a next opportunity… it’s hard not to root for the Ginger Cuz.” (41:33)
- Kupp:
- QB Meetings Nerdiness:
- Why Kupp still attends QB meetings: “I want to be watching film with the QB… understand their perspective, progression, when the ball’s coming… It really changes how I run my route.” (43:09)
- Route Running Masterclass:
- Kupp (explaining 'indicator'):
“I gotta use my body to communicate to the quarterback… he’s gonna be letting the ball go when my back’s turned, so he needs to know: ‘it’s happening now.’” (45:00)
- Travis: “He never gives the indicators to the defense… that keeps timing so true.” (45:34)
- Kupp (explaining 'indicator'):
- Playing for Mike Macdonald vs. McVay:
- Kupp notes: “If you don’t have a great day, it’s fine; defensive head coach is just pumped for the defense… offense didn’t matter as much. But both dudes are doing it at the highest level.” (46:57)
- Stafford vs. Darnold:
- “Matthew’s like an AI center in his head—he stores every look, every pressure. Sam’s so process-driven… so prepared it’s almost ‘over-prepared’.” (49:17)
- Insights on JSN and Seattle’s WR room:
- “JSN is one of the best I’ve seen… he can run a 15-yard outbreaking speed cut and never change the level.” (54:50)
- Coffee Deep Dive:
- Julian’s French press questions return; Kupp gives a step-by-step and gently roasts Edelman for “chewing” his coffee.
“Attention to detail! For Julian Edelman, one of the most detailed receivers, to just throw things together... it broke my heart.” (57:55)
- The brothers and Kupp swap bean stories and brewing preferences (“black coffee all the way”), resulting in Kupp promising to send Jason a real coffee setup.
- Julian’s French press questions return; Kupp gives a step-by-step and gently roasts Edelman for “chewing” his coffee.
- Welcome to Super Bowl Moment:
- Kupp, with disarming humility, shares:
“Standing on the sideline, feeling the chaos, when Belichick decided, ‘we’re going 6-1 all game’ and flipped the script on us... That was my ‘this is the Super Bowl’ moment.” (64:48)
- Kupp, with disarming humility, shares:
- Seahawks’ Keys to Victory:
- “Be us… run through people’s faces, run the ball, pass the ball, defense runs and hits. Do what got us here.” (67:05)
5. Stamp of the Week & NFL Beauty Pageant Bit
Timestamps: 71:07 – 78:41
- The Kelces review viral/laugh-out-loud NFL and sports moments:
- A toupee goes flying in a fight (“I think he won the fight, though!”)
- Indoor lacrosse big hits: “Are you allowed to do that in lacrosse?… That’s clean, I don’t care what anybody says.” (73:35)
- Iowa’s Jennings Dunker’s mullet and O-line physique.
Jason: “If you designed an offensive lineman in a lab, this is what he’d look like.”
- Bit about creating an “offensive line beauty pageant” akin to best-in-show for dogs and horses.
Jason: “Quarterbacks walking them around on a leash, up on the stage… measuring their ass.” (75:21) Travis: “We can’t be putting guys on leashes…” (75:33)
- Joke about the Titans filling their staff with bald coaches (“I’d hate to be in the stands with all the shining heads!”).
6. Viral Philly Kid Sam Salvo Joins
Timestamps: 79:03 – 89:40
- Sam Salvo, the Philadelphia kid known for his “A.J. Brown, pack your bags!” viral rant, comes on for his take.
- The spatula-as-mic bit returns—Sam holds a spatula during his call.
- Sam’s verdict on Eagles OC Sean Mannion:
“If he could work with Jordan Love and make him a top tier passer... maybe he could work with Jalen better.” (82:21)
- AJ Brown take: “Not 100% sure… build around Schmitty but having someone to rely on is good.” (82:49)
- On what he wants from the Eagles’ run game:
“Run it more to the strong side… more outside zone plays. If we could get Jalen reading the defense better...” (83:17)
- Sam’s knowledge and passion draw praise; Jokes about whether he’s regurgitating his dad’s takes.
- Sam: “None of it! I came up with it all, except AJ Brown packing his bags.” (85:52)
- Sam picks the Patriots to win the Super Bowl:
“Even though Drake May hasn’t played his best ball… he’s gonna come up huge in this game.” (86:38)
- Sam’s dad joins, confirming the kid “has been wild since he came out the womb” and roasting his own quarterbacking in youth football:
“He’s screaming from the sideline, ‘You’re the biggest bum quarterback in this league!’” (88:02)
- Sam shouts out his school friends and plugs his own merch.
7. Final Thoughts & Super Bowl Predictions
Timestamps: 89:40 – End
- Travis leans toward Seattle but is emotionally rooting for Sam Darnold’s redemption.
“He’s playing better than he’s played all career.” (90:53)
- Jason and Travis reflect on how Super Bowl week has turned into an NFL convention.
- Thanks to all the episode’s guests and a closing nod to Sam Salvo’s “Table C Boys”—Jason: “He’s a natural. Get the plug in. Well done, brother.” (87:29)
Notable Quotes
“Eagles fans have been voicing their displeasure... This is a clear sign that’s going to be drastically different next year. I’m excited to see what this looks like.”
—Jason Kelce on Philly’s new OC (03:10)
“It’s not the team that makes the most plays—it’s the team that makes the least amount of mistakes.”
—Julian Edelman, on Super Bowl keys (20:08)
“Quarterbacks...you don’t have a whole lot of time to prove yourself before you get counted out. For Sam Darnold to do what he did...it’s not talked about enough how special and how difficult that is.”
—Cooper Kupp on Sam Darnold’s journey (40:31)
“If you designed an offensive lineman in a lab, this is what he’d look like. Look at this guy.”
—Jason Kelce on Jennings Dunker (74:30)
“Coffee is a performance enhancer in the league—you’re not drinking coffee, you’re doing yourself a disservice.”
—Cooper Kupp (62:46)
“If he could work with Jordan Love and make him a top tier passer...maybe he can work with Jalen better than Petullo.”
—Sam Salvo, age ~10, on Sean Mannion (82:21)
Tone and Banter
- The show is playful, irreverent, and packed with football insight and family humor.
- Candid player analysis seamlessly blends into goofy side tracks (toupee fights, O-line dog shows, coffee hot takes).
- Guests match the Kelces' energy, especially on personal routines, post-championship life, and what it takes to win when the stage is largest.
For More
- Watch film breakdowns and off-air video at the New Heights YouTube channel.
- Super Bowl party tips, football-centric merch, and more at KelseyClubhouse.com.
Summary by Theme — The Takeaways:
- *Super Bowl nerves and preparation are real—routine, mental stamina, and not forcing the big play are echoed advice from Edelman, Kupp, and both Kelces.
- “Being yourself” under pressure is a recurring message from both guests, reframing the idea that the Super Bowl is “just another game”—but with the volume cranked way up.
- The special mix of football intelligence, locker room culture, and pure fun that makes New Heights an audience favorite is on full display: big laughs, inside details, and grounded commentary about what actually drives success in the NFL.
Highly recommended segments:
- Julian Edelman’s practical advice to rookies and his glowing, real-world praise for Vrabel (19:05–24:46)
- Cooper Kupp’s QB/WR nerdery and process talk (43:09–46:45)
- Sam Salvo’s viral analysis and rapid-fire takes (79:03–86:44)
- The O-line “beauty pageant” riff and playful banter about NFL culture (74:11–76:49)
Perfect for:
- Fans seeking a blend of big-game anticipation, real player insight, and unfiltered fun ahead of Super Bowl 60.
Go Birds, Go Table C!
