AJ Brown, NFL Preview With Kevin Clark, Hard Knocks Episode 1 + Mt Rushmore Of Skills We Wish We Learned When We Were Younger

Summary

Pardon My Take - Episode Summary: "AJ Brown, NFL Preview With Kevin Clark, Hard Knocks Episode 1 + Mt Rushmore Of Skills We Wish We Learned When We Were Younger"

Release Date: August 6, 2025

---

1. Review of Hard Knocks Episode 1

The hosts, Big Cat and PFT Commenter, delve into the first episode of HBO's Hard Knocks, focusing on the Buffalo Bills' training camp.

• Buffalo Bills Spotlight: Unlike previous seasons, this episode features a strong showing from the Bills, highlighting their promising roster and competitive edge.

  • Big Cat (02:59): "We saw football. We saw some nice slow motion throws."

  • Zach (03:23): "We saw Dion Dawkins driving like a maniac, putting his kid in a drift seat."

• Key Players Discussed:

  • Josh Allen: Praised as an exceptional talent and a positive representation for the team.

    • Big Cat (05:27): "Josh Allen is the greatest human ever."

  • Dawson Knox: Noted for his relatable moments off the field.

    • Big Cat (06:18): "His wife's move to perfectly pack his bag was genius."

• Stadium and Environment:

  • The new Bills stadium impresses the hosts with its design and wind management, although Hank humorously debates the reality of wind affecting gameplay.

    • Hank (06:50): "Wind is real, but weather isn't real."

• Critique of Traditional Hard Knocks Format:

  • The hosts express disappointment over the lack of authentic coaching moments and motivational speeches, contrasting with their expectations based on past seasons.

    • Zach (05:56): "I was a little upset that we didn't get to see Sean McDermott's training camp speech."

2. Mount Rushmore of Skills We Wish We Learned When We Were Younger

In a humorous segment, the hosts select key skills they regret not mastering during their youth.

• Selected Skills:

  1. Money Management: Highlighted by Big Cat and Zach with playful banter about their financial savvy.

     • Big Cat (20:17): "We wish we learned money management when we were younger."

  2. Fixing Cars: Zach laments his lack of mechanical skills, especially in preparation for his upcoming drive with the El Camino.

  3. Cooking: Discussed by Hank and Zach, emphasizing the benefits of self-sufficiency and healthier eating habits.

     • Hank (67:23): "Being able to cook really nice meals for yourself."

  4. Social Skills: Memes and others joke about their struggles with small talk and interpersonal interactions.

     • Memes (70:34): "I need to have better social skills."

  5. Throwing a Knuckleball: Zach expresses interest in mastering this challenging pitching technique.

     • Zach (75:17): "Throwing a knuckleball would be awesome."

• Host Interactions:

  • The segment is filled with lighthearted teasing and personal anecdotes, showcasing the hosts' chemistry and comedic timing.

3. Interview with Kevin Clark: NFL Preview

Kevin Clark from ESPN joins the show to provide an in-depth NFL preview, discussing team dynamics, player performances, and league-wide developments.

• ESPN's Acquisition of NFL Network:

  • Kevin explains ESPN's strategic move to acquire NFL Network, securing a 10% equity stake in the league.

    • Zach (18:39): "ESPN acquired NFL Network. Now, the NFL officially owns ESPN with a 10% equity stake."

• Implications for Sports Media:

  • The acquisition may limit independent media’s access to NFL players, centralizing control and potentially increasing advertising.

    • Kevin Clark (93:35): "The league is just gonna make it even more confusing because now guys have to go in the blue tent."

• Team Analysis:

  • Dallas Cowboys: Discussed extensively, focusing on Jerry Jones' management style and his reluctance to trade key players like Micah Parsons.

    • Stephen A. Smith (98:07): "Jerry Jones wants the headlines, but he wants people to be talking about him being a smart football guy."

  • Buffalo Bills and Baltimore Ravens: Highlighted as strong contenders with robust defenses.

  • New York Giants: Viewed as a potential dark horse despite recent struggles.

    • Stephen A. Smith (111:30): "I think their defense is going to be good."

  • Los Angeles Chargers and Pittsburgh Steelers: Both teams receive analysis on quarterback performances and offensive strategies.

• Ownership and Coaching Dynamics:

  • The conversation touches on how different ownership styles impact team performance, emphasizing the importance of trusting coaching staff.

    • Stephen A. Smith (123:00): "Dan Campbell is such a unique coach...he understands...the best culture change I've ever seen in football."

4. Interview with A.J. Brown: From MLB to NFL and Beyond

A.J. Brown, Super Bowl champion and two-time All-Pro with the Philadelphia Eagles, shares his journey from being drafted in Major League Baseball to excelling in the NFL.

• Dual-Sport Drafting:

  • Brown was drafted by both MLB's San Diego Padres and the NFL, ultimately choosing to pursue a career in football.

    • A.J. Brown (56:42): "I miss baseball at times...but football just took over."

• Transition to the Philadelphia Eagles:

  • His move to Philadelphia is portrayed as a pivotal moment, aligning with his career aspirations and market opportunities.

    • A.J. Brown (146:54): "I feel like I was meant to shine here because we needed a big team with a big market."

• Personal Challenges and Resilience:

  • Brown recounts facing hostility during his high school recruitment, including death threats from fans of rival schools.

    • A.J. Brown (147:40): "I was getting death threats...but I was just a kid and my dad took it seriously."

• Literacy Foundation and Mentorship:

  • Highlighting his commitment to giving back, Brown discusses his literacy foundation aimed at mentoring and supporting youth.

    • A.J. Brown (152:22): "My foundation is based on mentorship and giving back."

• Advice to His Younger Self:

  • Brown emphasizes the importance of being present and enjoying the journey rather than solely focusing on end goals.

    • A.J. Brown (165:05): "I would tell the younger me to not be hard on myself and enjoy each day."

• Memorable Moments and Highlights:

  • From his standout high school performances to his current successes in the NFL, Brown reflects on pivotal games and personal growth.

    • A.J. Brown (145:30): "Nick Saban came after a game where I scored four touchdowns, and that's when it became real for me."

5. Additional Segments and Banter

Throughout the episode, the hosts engage in playful interactions, off-topic humor, and light-hearted discussions about personal anecdotes and hypothetical scenarios.

• Smelling Salts Banter:

  • The hosts debate the NFL's ban on smelling salts, proposing creative (and humorous) ways players might circumvent the regulation.

    • Big Cat (15:21): "Shout out Redbird Rizzy, he had a good idea about pocket smelling salts."

• Fantasy Draft and Personal Plans:

  • Plans for upcoming fantasy drafts are discussed with humorous takes on preparations and potential mishaps.

    • Hank (55:34): "I'm going to grind all week on the course and make a trip to Harborside Golf Course this afternoon."

• Technical Difficulties and On-Air Humor:

  • Occasional technical glitches and muted microphones lead to spontaneous comedy among the hosts.

    • Hank (33:36): "I was reading more about it yesterday and I really wanted to emphasize how bad of an event it was."

---

Notable Quotes with Timestamps

• Big Cat (02:59): "We saw football. We saw some nice slow motion throws."
• Big Cat (05:27): "Josh Allen is the greatest human ever."
• A.J. Brown (152:22): "My foundation is based on mentorship and giving back."
• A.J. Brown (165:05): "I would tell the younger me to not be hard on myself and enjoy each day."
• Stephen A. Smith (98:07): "Jerry Jones wants the headlines, but he wants people to be talking about him being a smart football guy."
• Zach (18:39): "ESPN acquired NFL Network. Now, the NFL officially owns ESPN with a 10% equity stake."

---

Conclusion

This episode of Pardon My Take offers a blend of insightful sports analysis, engaging interviews, and the hosts' signature humor. From dissecting Hard Knocks and selecting playful skills regrets to providing an in-depth NFL preview with Kevin Clark and hearing A.J. Brown's inspiring journey, listeners are treated to a comprehensive and entertaining sports discourse.

Transcript

[Big Cat]

Hey, pardon my take listeners. You can find every episode on Apple podcasts, Spotify or YouTube Prime. Members can listen ad free on Amazon Music. Get the crew together and head off to the course in the new 2024 Chevy Traverse. With impressive cargo room, three room seating and the first ever Z71 trim Traverse can handle your buddies and their golf bags with ease. Chevrolet together. Love Drive. On today's part of my take, we have a twofer for the people. We got A.J. brown, Super bowl champion. Awesome interview with him from Eagles camp. And then we have Kevin Clark from espn, formerly the Ringer Come stop in the studio. Little NFL preview was so awesome. Just talking about the entire league. Teams that we think are on the rise, teams that are going to suck. It just feels good talking football with the boys. We're going to do the Mount Rushmore of skills we wish we learned when we were younger. We have Hot Seat Cool Throne of muscles and Hot Seat Cool Throne. Hank is back and he brought it. And then we're going to finish with guys on chicks and it's all brought to you by our friends at DraftKings. The dog days of summer means MLB is fully heating up and so is your shot to score big. Download the Pick six app for the easiest way to turn your baseball takes into actual cash. It's crazy simple. Just pick more or less on the stats for two or more of your favorite players and boom, you're in the mix for big cash prizes. No gimmicks, no weird rules. Land your picks and you're on a title run. Pick six brings major upside with payouts beyond the minimum. If you beat the competition and get this, all new pick 6 customers will instantly get $50 in bonus picks on just a $5 entry. Baseball season. Second half is kicking off. Here's your chance to cash in. Download the DraftKings Pick Six app now and use Code Take. That's Code Take new customers. Play $5. Get $50 in bonus picks instantly. Ride the upside where a few bucks can turn into a bag. Only on DraftKings pick six. The crown is yours. Okay, let's go.

[PFT Commenter]

My take.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, Part of my take. Welcome to Part of My take presented by DraftKings baseball season. Second half is kicking off. Here's your chance to cash in. Download the DraftKings Pick Six app right now and use Code Take. That's Code Take new customers. Play $5, get 50 and bonus picks instantly. Ride the upside where a few bucks can turn into a bag. Only on DraftKings pick six. The crown is yours. Today is Wednesday, August 6th. And we had Hard Knocks.

[Zach]

Football is back.

[Big Cat]

That's my review.

[Zach]

Yeah, Hard Knocks happen. This is. You can set. You can set your watch to this exact week. Every single year. Our excitement for Hard Knocks and then our disappointment once we remember that. Oh, yeah, Hard Knocks is just going to be like a 45 minute commercial for whatever team they happen to be profiling because otherwise no teams would ever do it and the NFL wouldn't allow it. So it was. We saw football. We saw some nice slow motion throws.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

We saw Dion Dawkins driving like a maniac, putting his kid in a drift seat. I didn't know that they made drift seats in child seat versions. That was awesome. And they like ice cream. Yeah, that's my Hard Knocks.

[Big Cat]

It was. Every time we get to this point in the calendar, I do get excited because Hard Knocks does hold a special place in my heart because it usually is. We always do. The football is back. Football is back. I know the hall of Fame game, but this is really like, oh, Hard Knocks. Like, you're watching them in camp, they're talking about the season. It feels like it's all coming around. But yeah, it's really just. And especially because the Bills are good. That's. That's the difference. Like, usually they would not let playoff teams in. I did like the. It was probably about 15 of the 45 minutes. It was just like, Josh Allen is the greatest human ever. That was cool. And then, yeah, the ice. The ice cream was probably the big takeaway. Trudevius White, very bad cone management. But otherwise that ice cream looked incredible. And then the only other note I had was, Dawson Knox, salute to you. Very relatable moment where in front of his wife, he packed his bag and just jammed everything in. And then his wife's like, well, you can't do that. Let me do it. And then she perfectly packed the bag for him. Like, that was just genius move by him because everyone does that. Throw everything in there and it's all wrinkle it. Like it almost. I. The way I pack, as I'm putting my clothes in there, they get wrinkled. Like they get wrinkled on touch of the suitcase. And then. And then the wife comes just like, here, Dawson, let me just do this for you and make it so it's perfect. So great job. I know what you're doing, dude.

[Zach]

It's a. Yeah, it's a classic trick.

[Big Cat]

Oh, I don't.

[Zach]

I don't have any idea how to pack this suitcase. What do you mean by T shirts are going to get wrinkly. I don't understand what you. Oh, you want to do it? Oh, that's awesome. You're so sweet. I bet they've been married for less than two years. That seems like, that seems like a relatively newlywed thing. I, I will always love Hard Knocks. I usually like it when the coach gets up and you get to see a little bit of personality from the coach giving the welcome to training camp speech and they just like rip into something because they've had all summer to prepare. We saw that with Rex Ryan. We saw that with, with everybody for the most part, every team. I mean even last year Eber fl. I was like, maybe Eber flu has the pulse of this team leader of men question mark. But this, it's that they didn't show the Sean McDermott Training Camp Pop up speech. Especially if he had like the redacted 28 pages that he was going to talk about. But like, you know what I'm talking about. Like when he's talking to the team and he's like screaming at them and getting them fired up, that's what I love to see out of, out of Hard Knocks and training camp and we didn't get that. So I'm a little upset.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I wish you hadn't just said Eber Fluss's name because I actually was thinking about that while watching this. I was texting my friend John Greenberg who does great work on the Athletic and saying like, remember when basically hardened HBO tried to pitch to everyone that Iberfluss is a cool guy who totally was competent. That was last year's Hard Knocks for how the Bears season went was basically triumph of the will. That was just straight propaganda. It was this propaganda as it gets. So. But at least the Bills are good. I will say also the new stadium looks awesome. The wind.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Tank, that had to you up a little. Although maybe would you say that confirms wind isn't real or they had to do science. Weather isn't real, but wind is.

[Hank]

Wind is real, but weather isn't real. For over unders weather is okay.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Zach]

So I mean they, they designed the stadium when it came. When they showed the stadium, I was like, I hope they talk about how it gets the wind out. And then they spent the next six minutes talking about the science behind it and how it's engineered to like absolutely make it still to play playoff games, in which I think is probably good for the sport. But also the wind didn't really seem to affect Josh at home.

[Big Cat]

No, no. But you also have to Think this is a stadium that they're building for the next hundred years? Josh Allen's probably not going to play for another 100 years. Yeah, but classy move by Josh. Call him Mr. Pegula the whole time, too. I love that.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

When a grown man calls me a mister, you have to. When it's the owner.

[Zach]

Especially when he signed that big check.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah. All right, what are the.

[Big Cat]

The other two things you had?

[Zach]

All right, two other things. AJ Epanezza, absolute psychopath.

[Big Cat]

Crazy.

[Zach]

Caught a snake with his bare hands.

[Big Cat]

Wait, A.J. epinezza, psychopath? That dog is the craziest dog of all time. He has a dog that barks when he sees a snake, like, the whole time.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Get that dog away from the snake.

[Zach]

No, but the dog is trained to hunt snakes. Well, not even to hunt snakes. The dog is trained to locate snakes and be like, hey, hey, hey, dad, there's a snake over here. Come get it.

[Big Cat]

I. I know what you're saying, but I'm saying, like, I watched that clip. I was like, please get that dog away from the snake. That snake's gonna kill the dog.

[Zach]

I think. I think the dog knew what it was doing, and I think it has trust, implicit trust in its owner. Like, if I was that dog's owner and it saw a snake, that dog would get the fuck out of there and be like, hey, let's bounce. Yeah, but I'm not. I'm not like a 6 foot 3 linebacker that's jacked up and then he goes over there, just grabs the snake. An 11 foot long snake. How is. How is that even possible?

[Big Cat]

Ask Hank the videos. Hey, Hank, did you see that river with the anacondas breeding?

[PFT Commenter]

Scary.

[Big Cat]

There's about never going, I don't know, 60, 000 anacondas that this drone shot got. Looks so real.

[Hank]

And the giant anaconda.

[Big Cat]

Oh, yeah. And the big one at the end. That was real. That one was so real. Okay, what was your other note?

[Zach]

My other note? Bills fans. Turn. Turn off the podcast or just fast forward like 30 seconds right now. If you're a Buffalo Bills fan. I'm. I'm pretty sad for Bill's fans. I'm pretty sad because it is just. It's kind of. It's great to watch. Bills fans. I love. Bills fans are great people. They love their football team. Like, this is. You don't have to go out of your way to make propaganda showing that Bills fans are awesome people.

[Big Cat]

Yes.

[Zach]

But the belief and the hope that they have, like, this is our year. We're finally going to get done. We're finally doing it for all the old guys that made four Super Bowls in a row didn't win a single one. I'm, I'm pretty sad for them, and I hope that I'm wrong. I, I hope that I'm wrong, but I am pretty sad.

[Big Cat]

Bills fans are the best. The, it was, it was also actually cool being because we were there two, two years ago, three years ago. I like that the Bills do do it old school at a, like, small college dormitory. There's what, what they say five, five teams in the entire NFL do that. So I, I like that. And we, we got to see that. We were there. We're in the dorm room. So I know this is dumb brain, but I was like, oh, I know. I know what that looks like. I was also there. Yeah, I know. It's nice.

[Zach]

That place exists. That's a real spot. I know it because I, I there.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I know that's really stupid, but it really, like, if you've been somewhere that that's not, that is then on tv, you're the whole time, you're like, oh, I know that place. I also, yeah, I saw that once. Hank, your review. Okay. Good job.

[Hank]

And yeah, I, I love Hard Knocks and football's back.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

Every year.

[Hank]

I love, I love this first episode. It reminds me so much that football is back.

[Big Cat]

Zach, your review.

[Hank]

And it will be the last episode I watch.

[Big Cat]

You're muted, Zach, but it looks like you're making a great point.

[Memes]

I think that Hard Knocks is about to get so hard knocked.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Memes]

And that I, I, I hope the best for the Bills as well.

[Big Cat]

So what was your favorite scene?

[Memes]

I have been hearing a lot about this ice cream sundae that was being made possibly that could be constructed at a later date.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Memes]

Did you have, like, a, a favorite spot, Big cat, where like, like maybe popped off the page a little bit?

[Big Cat]

No, I think my favorite spot is. PFT and I are gonna, are gonna gift you an HBO subscription. So we're gonna get that for you because we know you're gonna get two of them.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

I appreciate that, guys, but I, I can try to, I can try to lock in with, uh, with, uh. I know my brother might have one, so maybe I'll hop in there. Like, I should have done that earlier.

[A.J. Brown]

But that's on me.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Can we get a quick. I was gonna say, can we just get a quick visual of your apartment? Looks nice.

[Memes]

This is just me at the desk. We've got TV or bed. Wait, sorry.

[Zach]

That's a sick TV setup and then.

[Big Cat]

That's a nice place.

[Zach]

Desk.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Oh, the double monitors.

[Hank]

Look at that.

[Kevin Clark]

Whoa.

[Big Cat]

My guy.

[Memes]

Bad look. I know, but so functional.

[Big Cat]

Okay, where would you eat? The McDonald's.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Memes]

Right here.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

Nice.

[Memes]

This is where all meals are consumed. Yeah, this is it.

[Big Cat]

This is the chair.

[Hank]

How many hours a night are you sitting at that desk?

[Memes]

Most the hours until I. Yeah, all the hours until I go to bed.

[Big Cat]

If we're going to be on like a Saturday.

[Hank]

Like a full Saturday. Nice Saturday this past weekend, it was beautiful out.

[Memes]

Majority of my hours, which. Which is going to. I'm going to do less hours, but a lot of hours right now.

[Zach]

No, there's nothing.

[Big Cat]

It. It's so many hours.

[PFT Commenter]

It is.

[Big Cat]

It is. Be yourself. All right, well, you say pfd.

[Zach]

Well, the one thing that we learned when we were at Bill's camp was they spend most of their time when they're not practicing, just straight up playing video games against each other. That's like the only thing. It's basically like college. I think that Hard Knocks after week one should just be them streaming, playing each other in video games.

[PFT Commenter]

I would love it.

[Big Cat]

I would love it. That would be. That would be worse.

[Zach]

That would be a better show.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I'd agree. Okay, what else? We. So we. We taped the rest of the show in studio. Do we have anything else besides the fact that the NFL is banning smelling salts and we got to stand on. On the soapbox for our guy George Kittle? Because it's. And let me just say this. First they come for the NFL, then they're going to come for podcasters. And some of the best episodes of this show have been after we've done smelling salts.

[Zach]

Yeah, they're trying to outlaw dudes. Rocking.

[Big Cat]

It's crazy.

[Hank]

Is the NHL gonna have to now, too? Like, are they forcing other. Other leagues?

[PFT Commenter]

I don't know.

[Zach]

I read a little bit about it.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Salts give you concussions. That's what I gathered.

[Zach]

Some of the symptoms or after effects of taking smelling salts, inhaling ammonia salts are similar to the after effects of concussions. Yeah, like, if you just rip a smelling salt, you're not going to do great on an IQ test because you're just feeling it, like, how jacked you are. So I don't know if they did the test, like 30 seconds after, 10 seconds after, five minutes after, but I don't know. All I can say for sure is I've ripped probably 400 smelling salts in my life and I turned out fine.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it Might be the Bill. The Bills game against the Texans last year. Do you remember when Josh got hit and then he did the smelling salts and he was very concussed and he came back in. Could have been that.

[Zach]

But I do stand with George Kittle. I think you got to listen to the players on the. You can't. If you know what, you know what Goodell is probably doing. This is probably one of those things where he's getting ready for the next CBA already. He knows they don't have a union, like a union head. They've got an interim guy, he's taking away smelling salts and then he's going to say, I'll give you back smelling salts if you play an 18th game.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

The. Something's going to, something's coming out of the players paychecks or livelihoods and then you're going to get smelling salts back and they'd be like this rocks. I, I will say shout out. Red bird Rizzy. He had a good idea. He said, let's hypothetically say I get a sideline pass for every game and keep, keep a pocket full of salts. Pocket smelling technically isn't illegal. So if George Kittle just goes and smells this guy's pocket every single. Before every single drive, that's not illegal.

[Zach]

Or do you just have a guy soaking his hands in the ammonia and then going up be like, smell my finger.

[Big Cat]

Face masks made out of smelling salts.

[Zach]

Yeah, we can get around this.

[Hank]

We're gonna figure out a way around it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I think we're just, I mean, you just go into the blue tent. I guess that, see NFL, you've now made it even more confusing because now guys have to go in the blue tent, do the smelling salts and then you don't know if they're concussed or not. That's your fault, Roger.

[Zach]

And would you, wouldn't you rather have them doing it in a safe location, not behind closed doors?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I, I would agree.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Let's, let's just be honest.

[Hank]

Give every team, give every team like an ex allotted amount of salts and they can, they can divvy them up how they want.

[Big Cat]

I like that.

[Zach]

Yeah, I agree. Starters only.

[Big Cat]

I, well, I like that because then you could basically be like at the end of the season, you're like, oh, the Ravens got a big game in Kansas City, but they're, they've used all their smelling salts. How do we handicap that? Have to think about it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And you have like some no salts games against cupcake opponents and then you then You. That's when you bet on the underdog.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

That's how you imagine taking it seriously.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

The trash talk in college football being like, we're not even gonna use our smelling salts on you. We know that. We'll beat you no matter what.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

This is open some doors. All right. Do we have anything else?

[Zach]

Yeah, there's a couple things.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Zach]

It's depth chart season.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Zach]

The first depth charts have come out. There's really nothing to. To take from any of them except for the Saints and Browns depth chart. They listed all three of their quarterbacks as first teamers. They've got three starters. I know if you have two quarterbacks, you don't have one, but what if you have three?

[Big Cat]

That's tough.

[PFT Commenter]

That's tough.

[Big Cat]

I don't really know.

[Zach]

Memes isn't on this call, is he?

[Big Cat]

No, he's not.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

I was going to ask for a custom meme where it's the dragon. The dragon meme where two are great and then one is like goofy, but all three are goofy. And then the other news that I had was that ESPN acquired NFL Network. Obviously, we talked about the red zone a little bit already. So they have NFL Network. They have that entire thing under their wing now. They're going to let the NFL Network keep producing some of their shows. But Also now the NFL, as part of this deal, has a 10% equity stake in ESPN. So the NFL now officially owns ESPN as opposed to in the past where all they could do was, let's just go ahead and give them all our shittiest games for Monday Night Football and make them do whatever we want them to do. Then we'll start trickling out good games to them. And now they officially have a 10% ownership stake in ESPN.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, Florio's all over this. All over this. So just remember it. Remember it. Just think about it.

[Zach]

I'm. I'm glad that Florio is all over this, but I. I don't know what differences we're going to see, but I do think that the NFL is going to make it way less likely for other media companies to conduct interviews with NFL players.

[Big Cat]

That's what I. Yeah, I mean, it's. It's like what we said on Monday. I think that ESPN will not rock the boat to start, and then when they have to make more money, they'll start shoving ads, and then we'll just be screwed. And we'll be like, well, we have. Problem is they have us. That's. That's really what the. The issue is. With all these, you know, big conglomerates and, and big, big companies joining forces. They got us. They got us. We're gonna watch no matter what they got us. We cannot do anything except complain on Twitter. And we will, but they got us.

[Zach]

The smelling salts might be a bridge too far for some people. There's definitely one guy out there that saw the smelling salts. News is like it. I'm out. They can only push a man so far.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

The NFL's gone woke. No smelling salts. But then maybe there's one person who comes back because they're like, smelling salts killed my father. And now I can. Now I can watch the NFL again. The only other thing I had was the.

[PFT Commenter]

The.

[Big Cat]

I'm turning into Frank Fleming because the Cub season is. Is spiraling right now and. And the brewers never lose. And I literally have been saying, I've been repeating to myself over and over, the brewers never lose. And like, I. I wish I had something to chew on because I'm getting that frustrated.

[PFT Commenter]

They have.

[Big Cat]

They're on a 119 game win streak clip like the, like from May 25th on. I think they won. They're like 44 and 16. So it'd be a 119 winning season. They just never lose. They never lose. All they do is win. They never lose.

[Zach]

Smiling.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It's all happening. Okay. Oh, yeah. And Schwarber should be MVP because he hit. But we talk about that a little bit later.

[Zach]

He.

[Big Cat]

He did hit two home runs on Monday night. They were mammoths. All right, we got Hot Seat, Cool Throne. A must. Listen, Hot Seat, Cool Throne because Hank's back Mount Rushmore. Skills we wish learned when we were younger. Kevin Clark in Studio NFL preview. Great interview with A.J. brown. And guys on checks loaded show. Let's go. Okay, before we get to Hot Seat, Cool Throne game time, there's nothing like getting to a baseball game, especially last minute. Lucky for me, I always use Game Time, the official ticketing partner barstool sports Game Time makes getting tickets faster and easier. Price on the app actually go down the closer it gets to showtime. Hank, look up some tickets for the Cubs Reds this afternoon. So Wednesday afternoon. Check out those. You can put savings back in your pocket and spend them at the ballpark on a hot dog, a new hat, or some good old fashioned cracker Jack. What are you waiting for, Hank? Give us those tickets.

[Hank]

You can get him for $39.

[Big Cat]

39. So go buy those tickets.

[Hank]

Cubs 120. 54 for the bleachers.

[Big Cat]

Love that. $20 off when you use code PMT. So go get those Cubs Reds tickets for $39 on the Gametime app and say get some great savings. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with Game Time. Download the Game Time app, create an account, use code pmt for $20 off. Your first purchase terms apply again, create an account, redeem code pmt for $20 off. Download the game Time app today. What time is it? Game time. Hot Seat Cool Throne is brought to you by Body Armor. This segment is brought to you by body armor Flash IV. Flash IV delivers faster, longer lasting hydration with over 2000 milligrams of electrolytes and no artificial dyes, flavors or sweeteners like those other drinks. So whether you're training, traveling, or just feeling the heat, work hard, hydrate hard with Body Armor Flash IV and grab yours today at your local 711 convenience store. I got the tropical punch. I'm gonna hit this and take a whack out of this real quick. Body Armor Flash iv.

[Zach]

I got the strawberry kiwi right here. Delicious.

[Big Cat]

That is so good.

[Zach]

Delicious stuff.

[Big Cat]

That is so good. Great for recovery. Body Armor Flash iv. Hydrate hard with Body Armor Flash IV and grab yours today local 711 convenience store.

[Zach]

Tell them old decent.

[PFT Commenter]

You.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, Hank. Hot seat, Cool Throne.

[Hank]

My hot seat is the Speedway Classic.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Okay, wait.

[Stephen A. Smith]

We.

[Zach]

We got more news about this.

[Stephen A. Smith]

This is.

[Big Cat]

This might be a. I know we talked about.

[Hank]

All right, whatever.

[Zach]

You know what this is. I think this could be a new segment. Hank's recap of the last part of my. Take it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Hank]

Whatever. We talked about it Sunday. My Hot Seat is.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, we didn't.

[Hank]

No, we did. We did.

[PFT Commenter]

No, no.

[Big Cat]

I want to hear what the studio Classic one.

[Hank]

It was a disaster.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Listen, you were here in. In. In body.

[PFT Commenter]

I know.

[Zach]

Yeah, Your.

[Big Cat]

Your body, mind, spirit, body was physically.

[Hank]

I was reading more about it yesterday and I really wanted to emphasize, like, how bad of an event it was.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I do. Like this Wednesday show. Hank recaps the weekend.

[Hank]

My other Hot seat. I don't know if it's Seams or Giannis. They're in like a back and forth. Shams keep saying that it's not set in stone that Giannis is coming back. Even though Giannis has made it very clear. Clear that he's coming back time and time again that he's. They would have to kick him out. He's not going to leave. He's subtweeting Shams being like anyone Ms. Woj.

[Zach]

I like that.

[Big Cat]

I like that a lot.

[Hank]

It's good But Choms reported again that it's not set in stone and he.

[Big Cat]

Could be leaving at this point. If Giannis just stays in Milwaukee for his entire career, he retires a buck. He is a one Jersey guy. Will he be the most hypothetically traded player of all time?

[Zach]

Absolutely. Already he might be.

[Big Cat]

It's crazy.

[Zach]

I can't think of anybody that. That would even rival him.

[Big Cat]

I feel bad for Bucks fans just having to deal with this all the time, and it hasn't even. It doesn't feel like it's gotten ever really close. I. This would be the closest we've ever been, but Giannis is out there saying it. I'm not.

[PFT Commenter]

I'm not leaving.

[Zach]

Yeah, it was Dame Lillard. I think he was the number one hypothetically traded guy until he did go to Milwaukee. But, yes, it's definitely, definitely Giannis. Let Milwaukee enjoy Giannis.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it's crazy. So he's subtweeting Shams. I like that.

[Hank]

Subtwining Shams.

[Big Cat]

I feel like Shams is not someone who would appreciate that.

[Hank]

He's probably silently kind of watch why he's tripling down.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

He refuses to give it up.

[PFT Commenter]

One of.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, Giannis. Okay.

[Zach]

It's not subtweeting. It's gyro tweeting when it's Giannis.

[Hank]

A cool throne. Is Dildo throwing in the wnba?

[Zach]

Oh, yeah.

[Hank]

No, I'm just kidding.

[Big Cat]

I actually did get.

[Zach]

I actually had that on my hot seat because there's an update about. There is enough about dildo games.

[Hank]

Yeah, there's an update about the Speedway Classic.

[Big Cat]

What was the update?

[Hank]

It was a disaster.

[Zach]

Even more of a disaster. The more things come out, the more you think what a terrible event it was.

[Big Cat]

Oh, you're a funny guy, Hank. Funny guy.

[Zach]

They should have had an actual NASCAR race going on during the baseball game. That would be.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, I was talking to Quigs about this. He said that NASCAR is trying to implement a electric race so it wouldn't be so loud so that they could do that while they were doing the base.

[Zach]

I don't know how.

[Big Cat]

One of my.

[Zach]

The electric race. Next thing you know, we've got electric. It would be electric power washers.

[Brandon Walker]

It would be impossible to do like the normal race. It's so fucking loud.

[Big Cat]

This is one of my ideas for Arlington Heights and the Bears. Because it used to be horse track. They should build the stadium and then a horse track around the stadium. And all the seats there's. It's glass and all the seats are swivel, so you can Just watch the game. Commercial, turn around, watch the race.

[Zach]

Yeah, I like that. I like the idea of a dual use stadium being used for two sports at the same time.

[Big Cat]

Like a football game's not enough for you. Well, we got a horse race going on every time there's a break in the action because literally just the ADD.

[Zach]

Stadium, whatever the next generation is. Was it generation Beta?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, the betas are here.

[Zach]

Yeah, the betas are here. Their kids, fan, their attention span is going to be so low that they're going to need probably three sports going on at once.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

So let's get, let's get some dual sport sports going on.

[Hank]

That'd be sick.

[Big Cat]

So sick if they were just. Yeah, they're like, hey, here's a commercial break and here's a, here's a race and you just turn around.

[PFT Commenter]

Boom.

[Big Cat]

You can bet on it. Just everything. Just figure it out.

[Hank]

Be awesome.

[Zach]

Good hot seat, Hank.

[Hank]

Thanks. Yeah, couple hot seats, extra work. My cool throne is I have a couple of these two. March Madness.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

NCA boy voted not to expand the tournament.

[Zach]

Thank you.

[Hank]

Say for now. Yep, it's coming.

[Zach]

Don't expand it.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it is.

[Hank]

I agree with him.

[Zach]

They put this out there being like, hey, we're not going to do it. Knowing that now it's, it's. They move the Overton window.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Now we're talking about the expansion and next year they're probably going to let it in.

[Big Cat]

It's not a ridiculous idea anymore because they've gone all the way to a vote.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Like the Tush push, they'll probably ban that next, right?

[Big Cat]

Exactly. That's how they work. These things are like the, the commercials they're going to put on Red Zone on espn. Yeah, that's going to happen.

[Hank]

Okay, then my other cool throne is my Francis Giants, Giants and Giants. Although kind of, I don't know, the original clip, it's a Mike Francesca old radio clip and he was on wfan.

[Big Cat]

Can we play it?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Find it. It's so funny.

[Hank]

It's so funny. The guy calls and he's like, hey, you ever think the, you know, since the San Francisco Giants used to be the New York Giants, when they're ever in town, they do like a lunch or something. And Frances, I hated the call, Was disgusted by the call.

[Kevin Clark]

Dan and Warwick. What's up, Dan?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Hey, Mike, I just got a, a question about the Giants. In your years of experience, have you ever seen, you know, this, how the San Francisco Giants were once the New York Giants? Has there ever been either A franchise to franchise or maybe even player to player get together when San Francisco comes to New York? Like, do they ever say hi, maybe, I don't know, go out to dinner or something?

[Kevin Clark]

I don't know. What are you talking about?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Is there ever any interaction when the San Francisco Giants come to New York or vice versa?

[Kevin Clark]

The San Francisco Giants come to New York and do what? Have a game, you know, they play against the Mets. And what do you want to happen now?

[PFT Commenter]

Did it.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Do the New York Giants ever reach out to him? Either the players or the franchise Giants?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, the football.

[Kevin Clark]

What is the connection between the San Francisco Giants and the football Giants?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Well, they used to be in New York and they got the same name.

[Kevin Clark]

But they have. They have nothing to do with each other, though. There's no connection. Then they have different ownership. There's no connection between the two teams. I mean, there's no connection in any way between the two teams. They have no relationship. Do you think because they're Giants are like brothers or something? That might be the weirdest question I got in a long time. I mean, that might. And. And I think that's an honest question. That might be the strangest question I got in a really long time.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Kevin Clark]

As a matter of fact, they have the Giant picnic. They hold it over in Totoa, I think it is. And then they have the. The Giant relay race and the Giant raffle, and then they all get together for the Giant breakfast the next morning, and then they go to separate ways. That is true. It's a. It's a July weekend every year when it happens.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Kevin Clark]

And then the Rangers in Texas and the New York Rangers have the same thing. They meet usually in Abilene and have that in August every year. Lundqvist is particularly close to you. Dovish. As a matter of fact, there's a kinship there between the two of them.

[Hank]

And they did an actual Giant San Francisco, Eli Manning, players from the San Francisco Giants meetup.

[Zach]

What was the caller's name?

[Big Cat]

Remember someone in war? Because I saw he came back on the wfan, had him on yesterday, and I guess he was not funny and not like with it, which is crazy.

[Zach]

So. All right, this is one of those videos things that's.

[Hank]

It's funnier when Francesco is not like, now that he's in on the joke, it's a lot less funny.

[Zach]

I agree, and I like, like Francesco, but I think he's. He's obviously a titan of sports talk, and he seems like a good dude. Never met him, but I know he's Been in the barstool New York office a bunch. Seems like, great guy. But it is funnier when he's, like, oblivious to the callers, trolling.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

That was the beauty of his show.

[Big Cat]

I liked it. I thought it was hilarious. The only critique I had is it's. It was a promo for Eli's show. I wish it was just like. They're just like, hey, let's make longer the days that they just make funny videos. Just to make funny videos.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

So. But I thought it was hilarious. And it's also a very funny, like, full circle. Ten years, princess. It was the best.

[Hank]

They got to do something with spider Man.

[Big Cat]

I was listening back to. Yeah, I was listening back to the call of the guy who just kept on calling him Michael. He got so upset.

[Zach]

I like the one.

[PFT Commenter]

Michael.

[Big Cat]

Michael. Stop saying Michael.

[Hank]

The Harambe one is the funniest one of them.

[Big Cat]

A gorilla.

[PFT Commenter]

Gorilla.

[Big Cat]

Let's play that one. Yeah, a gorilla. It was in the cave with the gorilla.

[Zach]

And then.

[Big Cat]

Or the guy.

[Zach]

It was Desus's tweet, right? That was like, this guy. This guy dropped a hard R. Yeah.

[Hank]

I think this was, like, on the radio.

[Big Cat]

Mickey Mantle. When he's talking about Mickey Mantle in the triple crown, and the caller's just like, how can he win the triple Crown? He's not a horse. And he's like, you waited four hours to say that. Can you find the Harambe?

[Hank]

Is that not it?

[Big Cat]

There was a gorilla. A Jason Giambi Mike Francesa meetup would go crazy.

[Zach]

Oh, yeah, that'd be good.

[Big Cat]

Do you have the gorilla?

[Brandon Walker]

I don't think this is it.

[Zach]

I also like the one where he just lists.

[Brandon Walker]

I had the other one.

[Zach]

Jacob deGrom's run support. Yeah, he just says numbers for five minutes.

[Big Cat]

01. There it is.

[Kevin Clark]

You're a child in there. You're gonna have people who are gonna say, wait a second. I'm worried about the gorilla. When your kids in there basically maybe seconds from having his head crushed. We live in a world now where you are gonna be more concerned with the gorilla than you are the little boy.

[Big Cat]

What's wrong with you people?

[Kevin Clark]

They're thinking about me. He fell into an area where he's in there with a gorilla taking him around that habitat, and you're telling me.

[Big Cat]

You'Re worried about the gorillas welfare.

[Zach]

It's great radio.

[Big Cat]

Shout out, Shout out. Funhouse.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He.

[Big Cat]

He was.

[Hank]

What's wrong with you people?

[Big Cat]

He would find the funniest things. Oh, man. Good job. Great riffing.

[PFT Commenter]

Great.

[Zach]

Awesome.

[Big Cat]

Cool throne it's great to have practical.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Great work.

[Big Cat]

Your backs from Sunday.

[Zach]

Hardest working man in showbiz.

[Hank]

That's what we do here. All, you know, bits and sticks and jokes.

[Big Cat]

Do you know. Do you know when you're. When you're putting up like a Tony Snell?

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

What?

[Big Cat]

I didn't know. I didn't know if you walked away on Sunday's episode being like, nailed it.

[Hank]

I'm like, I. I'm. I'm awake.

[Big Cat]

It was the moment I, I had. It was when I said the, the someone needs to throw a pocket pussy on NBA. And I go, hey, Kira. You go, no, that was a pocket. I was like, we don't got him. Yeah, there's nothing going on here.

[Zach]

Physically, mentally, where were you?

[Hank]

Rufus to Soul. Still.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You essentially were. You essentially were like in a coma. And we, we went to see you last rights. That.

[Hank]

That wasn't my worst. That was like. But it was, it was definitely Snell. It was, it was snail status.

[Zach]

There's. There's really no difference between it's Saturday and Mincy on Monday after a big show.

[Hank]

No, it's Sunday. It's.

[Big Cat]

It's.

[Hank]

And this is a problem. And this is, you know, summer. Summer's coming to an end because I don't really do it in the. In the regular season. I'm old now. And Saturdays, like Saturdays, regular season.

[Brandon Walker]

You did a double dose of Rufus to Soul.

[Big Cat]

I like that Saturday.

[Hank]

Going out on a Saturday. I can, I can no longer do it. Like, I like. Yeah, I'll be hungover Monday. Like I've been having two day hangovers this summer.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

But it is summer and it was the perfect. Last weekend was the perfect Chicago, like events going on, weather. It just everything.

[Brandon Walker]

You went to a Rufus to Soul concert and then you went to another Rufus to Soul concert.

[Big Cat]

You chased it with the Rufus concert.

[Brandon Walker]

That's. That's a tough. That's a tough Saturday for any human.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Was that at Lala?

[Hank]

It was at Lala and then at a club.

[Big Cat]

You just followed Rufus?

[Hank]

Yeah, I met him.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I met do of Rufus to Soul.

[Zach]

I might do that during Riot Fest this year. Riot Fest looks awesome.

[Hank]

Shout out, John. They want to come on. Great, guys.

[Big Cat]

All right.

[PFT Commenter]

Love it.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Pft. Your hot seat. I can't follow.

[Zach]

I can't follow. Speaking. Speaking of zoos and deaths in zoos, my first hot seat is a zoo in Denmark. There's a zoo in Denmark that's running low on food for some of their animals. So they're Asking people at home if you have any pets that you're looking to get rid of, bring them in and we can euthanize them and feed them to our animals. So what it says you have a healthy animal that has to leave here for various reasons. That you have to leave healthy.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Feel because you can't feed like a disease.

[Hank]

Oh, let me sacrifice my healthy animal.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Feel free to donate it to us. The animals are gently euthanized by training staff and are afterwards used as fodder. That way nothing goes to waste and we ensured natural behavior, nutrition and well being for predators. The zoo says it accepts donated rabbits, guinea pigs and chickens.

[Big Cat]

That's what I was going to say.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

On weekdays between 10am and there's a death drop off zone that you have to hit between 10am and 1pm but no more than four at a time.

[Big Cat]

I. Our brains immediately went to dogs and cats.

[Zach]

Dogs and cats.

[Big Cat]

And that's not what the case is, obviously. But yeah, that's still up.

[Zach]

But if you have a, if you have a rap. Do they accept turtles? Memes.

[Big Cat]

How is Mr. Perry? Give us an update on Mr.

[Zach]

I haven't heard from Mr. Perry.

[Big Cat]

I got a turtle that hibernates. So he doesn't pick games. He's going to. We're going to make him pick games. Should we. I don't want to put more work on your schedule, but should we, should we get a rabbit? Also pick games?

[Zach]

If you don't like it, we can.

[Big Cat]

Take it to the zoo. A tortoise and a hare on every game would be interesting. You can handle a rabbit.

[Brandon Walker]

I think rabbits are much, much more difficult to keep alive.

[Hank]

Maybe another turtle so that Mr. Pair can chill. That turtle can pick games.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

And a rabbit.

[Big Cat]

We need, we need something out of our animals. So I don't know if it's getting a rabbit waking Mr. Pair up. Maybe getting Mr. Pair on some TRT. I don't know. We got to do it.

[Zach]

Mr.

[Big Cat]

Pair is going to pick every single football game this fall. Mr. Perry is a chick too. I just remembered that fact.

[Zach]

So does. Does Mr. Pair have a better record on certain games? Like Thursday night, Sunday night, Monday night?

[Big Cat]

I think Thursday night he went 500 for March Madness.

[Zach]

Can we sort the data though?

[PFT Commenter]

That's not good. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Flipping a coin.

[Zach]

Can you do that? Can we sort the data on. On what night of the week he was best on? Yeah, because he's telling us, he's telling us where his sweet spot is.

[Big Cat]

We need some picks.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

And I. You might have to get a rabbit.

[Brandon Walker]

The rabbit. There's no. We can't get a rat.

[Big Cat]

Why?

[Brandon Walker]

Keeping a rabbit alive and healthy requires significant time, effort, commitment. Similar to owning a dog or a cat. Not easy.

[Big Cat]

Okay, there's. We.

[Brandon Walker]

That would. We can't do this. We can't do that to this rabbit.

[Zach]

Why doesn't. Why don't we just.

[Big Cat]

Billy. What if we get a turtle and call it rabbit? Another turtle and call it rabbit?

[Brandon Walker]

Okay, that's.

[Zach]

Get a lobster.

[Big Cat]

Is Mr. Pear. Need a friend? Mr. Bear.

[PFT Commenter]

Could.

[Big Cat]

Could you.

[Brandon Walker]

Probably another. Another tortoise. What.

[Zach]

What if we just got a rabbit and let the rabbit live inside? Vanny Woodhead.

[PFT Commenter]

Mmm.

[Zach]

That's the rabbit house.

[Brandon Walker]

That rabbit would die so quickly.

[PFT Commenter]

Mmm. Probably.

[Big Cat]

Get out. Oh, my God. Meme should. Memes just sent a face swap.

[Hank]

No.

[Big Cat]

Tony Snell. Nope. You can't do that.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Memes.

[Hank]

Nope.

[Big Cat]

Across the line.

[Zach]

Memes. That's like day. That's day one meme stuff right there.

[Big Cat]

All right, sweet. Denmark's fucked up. We need a rabbit.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep. Okay.

[Big Cat]

That's what we got.

[Brandon Walker]

A turtle named Rabbit, A turtle named Rabbit.

[PFT Commenter]

Any.

[Big Cat]

Any animal named rabbit.

[Zach]

Does anybody that work here, that works here have a rabbit already? Somebody's got to have a rabbit, like, for the kids.

[Big Cat]

Rabbits.

[Hank]

Cindy Wells probably has a couple.

[Zach]

Cindy Wells probably does have a rabbit.

[Big Cat]

Oh, Brandon brought a rabbit.

[Hank]

Oh, yeah.

[Big Cat]

Like a month and a half ago. He has a rabbit.

[Zach]

Brandon does.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

We should just use his rabbit.

[PFT Commenter]

It.

[Big Cat]

But he lives in Wisconsin.

[Zach]

Yeah, but he could film it at his house.

[Big Cat]

He could, but I want to see.

[Hank]

The rabbit of Brandon's house. Film the videos.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[PFT Commenter]

And then.

[Zach]

All right, what if. Yeah, Memes could do that. What if that was our college football? Oh, for Brandon.

[Big Cat]

But Brandon does have a sneaky zoo going on.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, he's.

[Big Cat]

He's got a rabbit. He's got two birds. He's got some gerbils. Just basically anything that we. That is in a video for, like, a second here just goes to Brandon's house.

[Zach]

He's got that one. That one fish in his lake.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep. Yep.

[Big Cat]

Catching.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

Well, it actually. He doesn't even catch it. It's just on a leash.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I feel like when you're country, that's. You won't even, like, consider that having animals. Like. Yeah, I only have, like, a rabbit, two gerbils, and, you know, a dog. Like, I don't really have animals.

[Zach]

I do have a ton of rabbits that live right outside my house.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

No, the street rabbits are real.

[PFT Commenter]

They.

[Big Cat]

I'm always scared that A street rabbit's gonna run into my garage late at night. Because when you get into the alley, like, they see the lights, and they'll just run in front of your car zigzagging.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And I'll open my garage door. What do I do then?

[PFT Commenter]

I don't know.

[Big Cat]

Like, I. I think that's. Out of there.

[Zach]

Oh, that's your rabbit now.

[Big Cat]

I've come close a couple times.

[Zach]

That's. You have to keep that rabbit.

[Big Cat]

I think those rabbits are not. I mean, they're rabies. Well, no, they just live in the alley. They can't be, like, super clean.

[PFT Commenter]

They're.

[Zach]

They're badass rabbits. Like, the. The rabbits that I have outside my house will stare down Blake and not move.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Just be like, come. Come get some, bro.

[Big Cat]

Well, and they get. They survive, like, you know, Agent Orange, Chemical Warfare once a month when they nuke the alleys for the rats. So those rabbits are legit. Okay.

[Zach]

My other hot seat is the dildo thrower. The first dildo thrower who has been apprehended. His name is Delbert, which is a. A plus name for a dildo thrower.

[Big Cat]

Awesome name.

[Zach]

So he got arrested on Saturday. He was the one that threw the dildo during the Valkyries Atlanta Dream game. And he's 23 years old, this guy. He faces charges of disorderly conduct, public indecency, slash indecent exposure, and criminal trespass. So they're throwing the book at him. They're trying to make an example out of Delbert.

[PFT Commenter]

So.

[Zach]

Actually, Aaron brought up a pretty good point yesterday. We were saying that, like, it might be the WNBA that's engineered this.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

He's like, this is actually a sign. It's a bellwether that the WNBA is doing well, that you have fans that are throwing dill. That's like, the more toxic your fan bases get.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

The healthier your sport as a whole becomes.

[Big Cat]

All this stuff, all the discourse, everything.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

The hate. That was my whole point with the Angel, Reese, Caitlin Clark. When people get upset about it and make it this, like, crazy things. Like, this is good. This is. This is rivalry.

[Zach]

You wouldn't go out there and spend $39 or $40 on a neon green dildo and throw it onto a court if nobody was going to see it.

[Big Cat]

Correct.

[Zach]

There's a tree falling in the Ford situation. My cool throne is death. Cool throne death. Because Mike McDaniels in a press conference yesterday said that today's a great day because we're one day closer to death. I saw that do you think things are going well with the Miami Dolphins right now?

[Big Cat]

Bad vibes?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I don't. What was his message behind it? What was his reason? Can we play the clip?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Bad vibes. Bad, bad vibes. We're going to do a preview with Kevin Clark in a minute and I think we talked about that.

[Zach]

Bad vibes. I guess if you're a, if you're a Christian man, being one day closer to heaven's not a bad thing, right?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, he's accepted it.

[Hank]

That's a bizarre way to phrase that, though.

[Big Cat]

Yeah. That doesn't say like, confidence in your quarterback.

[Zach]

No.

[Hank]

You're looking forward to. You'd rather be dead. It's basically like I'm looking forward to death.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Hank]

Like I have to go through practice today. But, you know, on the flip side, I might die sooner.

[Big Cat]

Zach Taylor, like Sean McDermott, Andy Reid, they wake up and they're like, thank God I'm alive so I get to coach this guy again.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay. Play the clip.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You should stand corrected.

[Zach]

Good morning.

[PFT Commenter]

False.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Great morning.

[PFT Commenter]

Let's go. Oh.

[Zach]

Because we're another day closer to death.

[Big Cat]

Oh, so he actually is taking the.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

The approach of he's ready to die.

[Zach]

Ready to die, not afraid to die.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that sounds like death would be better than Miami Dolphins.

[Hank]

He didn't think about what he was going to say until one second before he said it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

And then he probably finished.

[Zach]

It was like, I think maybe the last conversation he had was with Tyreek before he went out there. And then that was the first question got from the reporters.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

Okay. My hot seat. And we are going to talk a little bit about this in a different way with Kevin Clark. But my hot seat is Brian Schottenheimer for the Dallas Cowboys because he has shown up to a press conference with a backwards visor. Colin Coward is not happy. He said he didn't get the memo on how head coaches are supposed to dress. He bumped him down four wins, took their two win team.

[Zach]

Now in Cowards analytics, that's they're going to win more than two games. But the backwards visor is concerned.

[Big Cat]

It's a bad look.

[Zach]

Yeah, it's. That's like I'm. I just got off the golf course and I'm hammered.

[PFT Commenter]

He.

[Big Cat]

That's. Yeah, that's also like he doesn't fully understand that he's the head coach yet. He thinks it's maybe just like he's getting pranked.

[Zach]

Maybe, maybe he's trying to do like a distraction thing. Maybe he's Doing a little Phil Jackson. Make the conversation about the coach instead of about the player. I know what I'm going to do. I'm going to wear a visor backwards. I know that people are going to talk about it.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, the visor backwards. Doesn't like the backwards hat. Does play in certain circumstances. I don't know if the backward visor has ever played.

[Zach]

It's a coordinator move.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

He's still stuck in coordinator. My other hot seat is myself and everyone in this room. And maybe, maybe, maybe someone can explain it to me. But did you guys see the woman who was hired by espn? Katie Feeney? Who did?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

So she used to work for the football team for a while.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Zach]

She was in charge of, like, doing their Kickstarter stuff.

[Big Cat]

She's a lifestyle creator.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

But I saw this hire and I was like, I'm sure, you know, hopefully she has all the success in the world, but didn't know who she was at all.

[Hank]

I still, I've seen her videos when.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Hank]

She did stuff for the commanders.

[Big Cat]

People are mad online.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't.

[Hank]

In Penn State, I mean, getting mad.

[Big Cat]

About this is weird.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It's like she's gonna probably do content that you, if you're mad about this, you probably will never see your content.

[Hank]

I think they're gonna work for football teams.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Hank]

Like, she's been doing sports.

[Big Cat]

I was more like, should I know who this is?

[Zach]

I don't. No, no. She's been like, kind of behind the scenes, but she. Yeah, I guess she gets results. Listen, if you can do social media and get numbers for Sam Howell's Washington Commanders.

[Big Cat]

Well, that's actually. Yeah, yeah, that's true.

[Zach]

Then you're, you're, you're probably doing something right. I saw a lot of people getting mad because they're upset that ESPN is going towards this type of content instead of their traditional, intelligent content, such as having Shannon Sharp and Steve A. Smith scream at each other for four hours. I don't think it's going to take away from that. You're still going to get that at espn.

[Big Cat]

I do like the people who, like, bring back traditional Sports Center. I, I obviously, I love traditional sports Center. It just. How would it work when you can get every single highlight instantly?

[Zach]

Bring back the world that that was.

[Hank]

In and watch the top 10 by scrolling Instagram.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Right.

[Big Cat]

Like when someone hits a home run, you see it within four seconds. Kyle Schwarbert, NL mvp, maybe.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Good point.

[Big Cat]

So many.

[Zach]

That's it. That's a good point. And it's directly related to this conversation.

[Big Cat]

It is. It is.

[Hank]

It is crazy. I, like, I wasn't surprised by it. Like, she's been, you know, it's. It's not that crazy of a hire. It's more crazy to me that, you know, talking 10 years ago, 15 years ago, that ESPN has shifted towards us.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Oh, yeah.

[Hank]

And not the opposite. Like, that is just crazy when you think about, you know, 10 years ago.

[Big Cat]

Like, where we are.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Look at barstool. Look at ESPN. In 10 years, ESPN is going to be doing moves that like, Barstool would do in hiring people in that world and not like, traditional sports.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

No, it's a good point because I, like, I said, I was like, I don't. I don't care. I'm happy for anyone to get a job in a very tough business, but I just didn't know who it was. I was like, should I. Did I miss this?

[Zach]

I did not. I. I was not, like, super familiar, but I knew that she. I'd seen some of her stuff before.

[Big Cat]

Got it, so.

[Zach]

But I don't know what she's gonna be doing. Like, when ESPN puts out a press release saying we're hiring somebody to do lifestyle content.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

They had to have known that press release was gonna like having.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh, yeah.

[Hank]

Having Shetter tweet that. I was crazy. Lifestyle people are waiting for, like, trade deadline and like, NFL News. And it's like, what?

[Big Cat]

That's also the funny part of it to me, because my reaction was, I don't know who this is. I'm not going to get upset about someone. I don't know who it is. Whereas a lot of people, like, I don't know who this is. And now I'm upset.

[PFT Commenter]

Like, what?

[Big Cat]

You have no idea. She could have great content. You have no idea.

[PFT Commenter]

See?

[Hank]

And the Internet's free.

[Big Cat]

Internet's free.

[Hank]

Don't follow.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Don't like it. Don't watch it.

[Big Cat]

Don't go on TikTok. My cool throne is college football fans, because we have our first coaches poll out now.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

That's great because people can talk about how they've been left out, where they might be. We have Texas one, Ohio State two. That will be week one in Columbus. Penn State three, Georgia four, Notre Dame five stack top 25, Illinois 12. By the way, Arizona State 11. Those are. Those are some notable ones.

[Zach]

A lot of great logos on that top 25 right there.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

SMU, Kansas State, Indiana 19, LSU.

[Zach]

Make or break year for Kelly.

[Big Cat]

I'm excited, very excited for college Football.

[Zach]

People are saying JMU might be in the College Football playoff this year.

[Big Cat]

All right, and then also, my cool throne is our former colleague Mantis, because he finally completed his hundred free throws in a row, which was an insane. So Mantis did this stream.

[Hank]

He's done it before, a couple years ago.

[Big Cat]

He did before.

[Brandon Walker]

He didn't finish it. He didn't complete it. This was the first time he actually.

[Big Cat]

Did it that he actually completed it. So the rule was he has to hit the hundredth free throw blindfolded. I. The 100 free throws aside, he shot 6,000 free throws. He was shooting 95% from the line.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It's crazy.

[Big Cat]

It's insane.

[Zach]

One of the best moments was when we brought him in as a ringer for our free throw stream. And Pat Bev was there, and just like, what's going on right now?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And he's just wet up 20. Zach, you got some hot seat Cool Thrones?

[Memes]

I do.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes, sir.

[Memes]

My hot seat today is the River City Mall in San Antonio, Texas.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

There was an injustice served. Duke Dennis was arrested unrightfully. Who's that gentleman? On the Internet. He amp. Amp any means possible. You guys familiar?

[Big Cat]

No.

[Memes]

Yeah, Internet collective.

[Zach]

I am, but Hank. Hank's not. So you should explain who he is.

[Memes]

I can do that. Duke Dennis would be, what I would say one of professional cool guy, if we're gonna go in layman's terms. Also, fantastic streamer.

[PFT Commenter]

And.

[Big Cat]

Okay, there it is.

[Memes]

I was trying to. There was an injustice service. He was just trying to play hide and seek with the boys out at the mall, and he was arrested for playing hide and seek with.

[Big Cat]

For playing hide and seek.

[Memes]

Yes. He may have, like. There's conflicting reports that maybe he tried to flee arrest, but I chalked that up to him being, like, in hide and seek mode still. Like, I don't think he was trying to evade police.

[Zach]

He thought it might be, like, some stream snipers dressed up as the cops.

[Memes]

He was just in that mode.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

And I just think it was an injustice.

[Big Cat]

Can we. I'm gonna throw an idea. I would love to do it. Maybe next. Next year, Grit Week. I would love to do the. You ever see those trainings where you have to hide from, like, SWAT team or the police and they, like, use real humans for trainings?

[PFT Commenter]

No.

[Big Cat]

Imagine us doing that.

[Zach]

Be so, like, practicing hiding from a SWAT team.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Like, a certain amount of time to hide.

[Hank]

We're gonna do for the office what we're gonna do. We had one of our. One of our security Guards was like, a copper or, oh, he's gonna hire a cop.

[Big Cat]

We were gonna get SWAT to come in for.

[Hank]

And they were gonna do a training. No, they're go meeting. And we were like, we should, like, you know, they were asking us if we were cool with it. Me and M. Yeah. And they're like, can we just not tell people in our office?

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's like, no.

[Hank]

And they're like, yeah, you can't do that. We were like, it would be so funny to actually.

[Big Cat]

We said, can you not tell?

[Hank]

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. People freaking out just to. Just to see what the simulation happens. But, yeah, they were like, absolutely not. But it would have been. It would have been very funny.

[Big Cat]

Very funny.

[PFT Commenter]

The.

[Big Cat]

All right, so, yeah, I want to play hide and seek professionally.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

As a show.

[Zach]

Was he just. Was he being really good at hide and seek? Is he, like, an excellent hide and seek player?

[Memes]

A big guy. Got some height on him. I don't know if he's picking the best spots, but you got to be at least putting it all on the line to get arrested playing hide and seek.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Memes]

So he was just going all out there.

[Big Cat]

Was like, to play hide and seek.

[Zach]

Was he hiding too Good. And they thought it was a missing person. Then they found him.

[Memes]

I would have loved that. I don't think that is the case. I think they tried to spin it into a disturbance situation, but you can't get too rowdy playing hide and seek. You're trying to be quiet. You're trying to be coy. Do you guys. How do you guys think you would fare in, like, a bounty hunter hide and seek situation?

[Zach]

I think I'd be pretty good at it.

[Big Cat]

I want to say I'd be good. I feel like I. I would go in with a great plan being like, holy, they'll never get me. I think I would get caught.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I think it depends on the. Depends on the setting. It's like tennis. Like, if it's in a mall or if it's, like, outside in the woods. Like, it. It would. It would depend on. On the setting.

[Big Cat]

Like tennis.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. All right.

[Hank]

Well, yeah. Clay, grass.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Hank]

No, you're good on clay. You can't. You know, some people can't play good on grass.

[Zach]

Zach, are you saying, like, in a actual, like, bounty hunter is trying to find you somewhere in the country situation or just in hide and seek in general?

[Stephen A. Smith]

No.

[Memes]

Yeah, just a bounty hunter leading the hide and seek. Not in, like, a Euro wanted man situation. But I kind of like that, too, if you want.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

Should we just like. So you're saying commit crimes and then see who can go on the run the longest?

[Zach]

Well, just see, you don't have to commit the crime. You could do like, simulate committing a crime and then simulate the bounty hunt.

[Big Cat]

We're recognizable.

[Zach]

Yeah, but the beauty of having long hair, you can other countries, you can transform.

[Big Cat]

How are you gonna get to the other country?

[Hank]

I don't know. I just watched Batman Begins last night and he just. Honestly, he just. When he just decides to leave, he just starts running. It's very funny.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

What if I just, you know, start.

[Big Cat]

Running and never turn back? What do you say, Max?

[Brandon Walker]

How do you transform?

[Zach]

Cut the hair. Maybe. Maybe cut it real short.

[Big Cat]

I think people bleach it. Oh, it's you.

[Stephen A. Smith]

If you're going to.

[Hank]

You got a fake beard. You'd be unrecognizable.

[Zach]

Unrecognizable. Jacked up. I get. I get strong. I would wear shoes with like six inch lifts, actually.

[Hank]

And I could shave my beard.

[Brandon Walker]

You shaved your face? No one would know who you are.

[Hank]

Yeah, I shaved my face and grew out my hair.

[Big Cat]

These are things that take a long time.

[Brandon Walker]

That's actually true, though. If I were to shave my face and. And cut my hair, you guys would have no idea.

[Zach]

Yeah, but you'd be arrested just based on your look. People would be like, I don't know what that guy's up to, but why.

[Big Cat]

Is he talking with his hands? He must be Italian.

[Zach]

Put him in prison.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, we should try to figure out a way to do it. I'd like to do it. Be a fun video.

[Memes]

Yes, sir. I'll try to find some bounty hunters.

[Big Cat]

All right, and then your cool turn.

[Memes]

My cool turn Today. Voted on by roughly 1100 of his peers, Baker Mayfield has made it to number 50 spot on the NFL top 100 list.

[Big Cat]

Let's go.

[Memes]

After not being on the list, so math tells me next year he's number one.

[Zach]

Yeah, that's true.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

If he keeps improving, I believe so.

[Big Cat]

Are we worried about his hand?

[Memes]

Hand contusion. But he's back at practice today.

[Big Cat]

He's dog signed. Who'd you sign?

[Memes]

I know that we tyrod took Tay Bridgewater out for a workout.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then.

[Memes]

Also honorable mention there. Top 10 quarterback in Madden as well for Baker. So a little bit of a great list week for him.

[Big Cat]

Okay, that is good.

[Zach]

Who are the top 10 quarterbacks in Madden?

[Memes]

So the top 10 quarterbacks in Madden are. Number one spot, Josh Allen. Number two, Lamar Jackson, Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Matthew Stafford, Jared Goff, Jalen. Hurts, Justin Herbert, Baker Mayfield. And then Jayden Daniels rounds it off at 10.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Okay.

[Big Cat]

A little different than Max.

[Zach]

Noted.

[Big Cat]

Noted.

[Zach]

Do I owe my.

[Brandon Walker]

No, this one is according to coaches executives.

[Hank]

No, he's gonna get traded.

[Zach]

Did that.

[PFT Commenter]

What?

[Hank]

Oh, you're talking about Jaden.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I think you just gave it to him.

[Zach]

Did I. Did I actually give him my car?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

How did that clip turn out? Because I thought when I walked away from it, I thought, maybe I don't own my car.

[Big Cat]

No, I think you do. Well, but you also could owe Max your car.

[Hank]

Are we doing.

[Brandon Walker]

You may need to buy another El.

[Hank]

Camino, but I do not want to jinx it.

[Big Cat]

What?

[Hank]

PFG said something very scared of me this morning.

[Zach]

What'd he say? It's his preemptive hot seat.

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Hank]

We should talk about. I mean.

[Zach]

All right, so Hank. Hank is doing a great job being CEO of golf operations for PFT Enterprises. He's been all on me, begging me to stop working and to start playing more golf, which is a week away.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

So we're going to go out. We're grinding today. I'm going to grind all week on the course. We're going to make a trip to Harborside Golf Course this afternoon.

[Hank]

Harborside.

[Zach]

It's about 30 minutes away. Would you say maybe an hour and 30 minutes?

[Hank]

No traffic.

[Zach]

Highway driving. I forgot that I was going to have to go on the highway when I left to come into work this morning. So I brought the El Camino in. I. It's going to be a test. It's going to be. I put it. 65% chance I get there. 65%.

[Big Cat]

You go with Hank.

[Zach]

I kind of want to embrace the. The.

[Brandon Walker]

Shane's gonna have to go.

[Zach]

It's a quest.

[Hank]

Yeah, I'll drive. Behind you.

[Zach]

It's a quest.

[Hank]

I'll drive.

[Zach]

I might have to stop for gas twice on the way to get there.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, if it.

[Zach]

Listen, if it breaks down on the way, I will call a tow truck and I will have them just pick it up and drive it to Ashburn, Virginia, and leave it with a note on it, being like, here's your car, Jaden. Have fun.

[Big Cat]

Oh, man, that's. That's nerve wracking.

[Zach]

Yeah, we'll see.

[Big Cat]

That's. That's a. That's exciting.

[PFT Commenter]

I know. I'm.

[Zach]

I'm actually pumped about it.

[Big Cat]

That was your cool throne, right?

[Memes]

Yes, sir.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. All right. Good.

[Big Cat]

Hot seat. Cool throne, boys.

[Hank]

That's great.

[Big Cat]

Great hire.

[Zach]

Hank's so back.

[Big Cat]

We're firing so back. All right, we're gonna do our Mount Rushmore before we do that. Hey dude. What better way to kick off football season than with the official shoe of tailgating? Hey dude is your go to for every game day look, easy to slip on, effortlessly cool, and built for all day comfort. We wore our hey dudes all week long during grit week. From the bus to the field to every interview in between, our hey dudes didn't miss a step. If they can survive grit week, they're more than ready for tailgate season. Whether you're grilling in the parking lot or glued to red zone on the couch, make sure you're ready for every touchdown, turnover and tailgate with hey dude. Gear up for tailgate season. Grab your pair [e-mail] they're super, super comfortable. Great for walking the dog, backyard boat pool, baseball games, tailgates, everything. Hey dudes are so comfortable. You slip them on and we're wearing them. And there's got some fashionable ones too. Really nice. Just not having to deal with like, shoelaces and stuff like that. With hey dude. So gear up for tailgate season. Grab your pair [e-mail] comes PMT recommended. Okay. Mount Rushmore time. Mount Rushmore of skills we wish we learned when we were younger. Skills we wish we learned when we were younger. Do we need to talk at all about Queen Latifah? Queen Latifah is a great pick. I don't know if that was a great pick. Racism is alive and well. Okay. You're going to go that card.

[PFT Commenter]

Wow. Okay.

[Big Cat]

No, great. Queen Latifah is a great pick. Great.

[Zach]

It's a funny pick.

[Big Cat]

A great pick. I.

[Hank]

Because you loved her work in barbershop.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Nailed it.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

It was a very. The closest Mount Rushmore of the season.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It was crazy.

[Zach]

Is what, like,.3% separated first from second.

[Big Cat]

Yes.

[Hank]

Quad box was the right pick. Quest was the fun pick.

[PFT Commenter]

And I.

[Big Cat]

And I.

[Hank]

And big cat got in my head, he's like, just be fun. And quests are fun. But if I was thinking in a bubble vacuum, quad boxes was the smarter pick.

[Stephen A. Smith]

All right.

[Big Cat]

If we. If we switch quavo with quad box, we would have won easily.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

But you also didn't have quad box on your list.

[Hank]

Yeah, absolutely.

[Big Cat]

Oh, you did. I thought. I thought you had it.

[Hank]

I wanted to pick it first potentially.

[Zach]

That was between quad box and quest at the end.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

That's what PFD was like.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I like the two. The two choices.

[Big Cat]

But you got to go with what you like.

[Hank]

Yeah, no, I know, I know. Campaign quests are fun. Quests are fun, but yeah, whatever.

[Zach]

Ten years from now, people are going to look back at that pick. Underappreciated at the moment. It's going to be like Tom Brady.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Zach]

Six round pick.

[Hank]

Oh, yeah.

[Zach]

Greatest of all time.

[Big Cat]

All right, so who's up first?

[Brandon Walker]

We are up first.

[Big Cat]

Okay. And I believe Big Cat and Zach took the lead in Rushmore.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

But it's all within, like, 1.111. Okay, we're down two.

[Hank]

Down one down.

[Big Cat]

Two from first, one from second. Skills you wish you learned when you were younger, correct? Yes.

[Brandon Walker]

Okay, we have the one one.

[Big Cat]

Yes.

[Brandon Walker]

We are going to go with money management.

[Zach]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Good pick.

[Brandon Walker]

Still don't know how to do it.

[Zach]

Put in your mattress.

[Big Cat]

I assume this is okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah. High yield.

[Big Cat]

ET is hard.

[Brandon Walker]

You don't know what that means.

[Hank]

No.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, that's.

[Big Cat]

Wouldn't it.

[Brandon Walker]

Wouldn't it be nice if you knew. If you knew that at a young.

[Zach]

Age, if you start a Ponzi scheme, that's great. Money management. Not if you join one, but if you start one is.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Hank]

And this is definitely me. Just bad learner. But, like, I don't think learning money management when I was young and had no money, I don't know how much that would have helped me.

[PFT Commenter]

It would.

[Hank]

If that makes.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It would help.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it would have probably helped just.

[Zach]

Get a bunch of mayonnaise jars because it's everything.

[Brandon Walker]

It's like budgeting your money. It's like. It's not just financing your money.

[PFT Commenter]

That's.

[Hank]

But then I kind of take the Mike McDaniels method of thinking.

[Big Cat]

We'Re one.

[Hank]

Day closer to death. So, you know, just. Just let it rip. Yeah, let it rip.

[Brandon Walker]

But you also still don't know. So, like, no.

[Hank]

No Bitcoin.

[Zach]

Max, can you break down what you said by it's not budgeting, it's financing?

[Brandon Walker]

I said it. I said it is budgeting. Like, money man. I looked up what money man. I had to look up what money management means. And it's.

[Big Cat]

And it's. We're that far away. We're that far.

[Brandon Walker]

It's all of the incumbent.

[Hank]

What it means.

[Zach]

Which part is it?

[PFT Commenter]

The.

[Zach]

Was it the money or the man? I think it's probably the management part. I think you know what money.

[Brandon Walker]

I know what money means. It's a management part.

[Hank]

You know what a baseball manager does?

[Brandon Walker]

What's confusing about it is the process of planning direct.

[PFT Commenter]

Wait.

[Hank]

Oh, yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

Planning, directing, and controlling financial activities such as budgeting, saving, investing, and spending. I wish I. Yeah. That now you know.

[Zach]

What do you know?

[Brandon Walker]

I wish I knew it better. I know what it is. I wish I was. Had a better skill of it.

[Zach]

When you break down your budget, what do you spend too much money on?

[Big Cat]

Food. Yeah, Food and drink. Budging off vibes is always a bad. You get in a bad spot.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's.

[Brandon Walker]

There are, like, things out there where you can, like, go back and see your. Your budget. And that's bad. Yeah, that's bad. When you see that.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

Do we think if you learn to budget too early, you're, like, boxing yourself out? Like, if you're learning to save money too early, you're missing life experiences on.

[Big Cat]

Like, the stupid things you would have done with your.

[Zach]

Yes, you are.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It can be the smart thing to do, but it's not always the funnest thing to do.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Right.

[Hank]

Sometimes not having money makes you. Makes you, you know, want money that much more.

[Big Cat]

Oh, that's. You're on your gary ve right now. Go off king.

[Hank]

I mean, it's. I don't know how much.

[Big Cat]

Wait. Start to start this. Start the tik tok clip right now.

[PFT Commenter]

Go.

[Big Cat]

Well said.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Every have to get caught.

[Big Cat]

Oh, no. What good.

[Hank]

When you're gambling and you get down and you lose a lot of money, it makes you want to get money back that much more. Whereas if you're hungry, if you save it and you're responsible, then, you know, maybe you're not as hungry.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Every morning I wake up, I light $1,000 on fire just to make myself go out and earn it. That's what you have to do to be successful.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Hank]

You got to feel the pain.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

And then it just feels that much better when you rise up.

[Big Cat]

Every morning I wake up and I suffocate. A small animal watching their last dying breath. That makes me say, hey, you know what? You do have to post more on Instagram.

[Hank]

Today I walk my dog to the zoo and say goodbye.

[Big Cat]

All right, Good pick. That's very funny that you don't know. You had to Google money management.

[Brandon Walker]

That's exactly what. That's exactly where I'm at.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay. Okay.

[Zach]

Is that. That's us.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

All right, Hank, I'm going to take all you.

[Hank]

I don't. You got it.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Zach]

I got this big time. 11 for us. I'm gonna go with fixing cars. We had it knowing what to do, how to fix a car, not just for my personal this could also be foreshadowing for my drive later on today. But it's something that, like some people that grow up in families that fix cars. Your dad teaches you how to fix a car, it becomes second nature, too. You can figure out what's going wrong. The five things that you can, like, try to. Try to manage on it. I never learned any of that stuff. I learned how to fix a, like, flat tire, and that's pretty much it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And jump start a car.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay.

[Big Cat]

All right. That's a good pick. Ours is. Is similar, but a little. Just not car specific. It's. I think we should go with. Our first pick is going to be basic handyman work.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Zach]

We have that on the list.

[Brandon Walker]

I really wish I was simple, good.

[Big Cat]

With my hands, and just being able to do man's man, man's man. Never learned it. Now what do we do? One.

[Memes]

I like.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

One is a great pick.

[Big Cat]

I feel strongly about one.

[Memes]

One or 13. I'm in for both.

[Big Cat]

I and I actually think Hanks can agree with this. I wish I learned how to golf when I was a kid.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

And that was on the list.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I just.

[Big Cat]

I see someone with the golf swing from when they were a kid, and it's like they have the basic tools that they never. They're just always consistent. I did not play golf as a child, and I played golf until I was in my, like, 20s. God damn it. Do I wish I'd had a golf swing since I was, like, five years old?

[Zach]

It would be nice.

[Hank]

I did a golf camp one summer when I was, you know, kid, and I, like, played well and left the camp and was like, mom, golf is so boring. I want to play baseball. Like, I. I never. I'm good with golf. And then now it's all I do. And it's like, I.

[Big Cat]

That's all you think about.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

And imagine it, because you know what I'm saying, when you see someone who's like, I've been playing since I was a kid, they have. They just have a flow to them where it's like they trust their swing because they learned it at such a young age.

[Hank]

And people that if they were. If you were ever able to score, like, let's say you were ever able to shoot in the 70s or everyone would shoot in the 80s, even if you don't play a lot. Like, I'll play with guys like, yeah, I've only played a couple times this year. But they play when they were younger. They can go out and shoot in the 80s. They can go out and shoot in the 70s. Like, if you've ever been able to shoot a low score.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Even if you're not, like, in form.

[Big Cat]

You can like, riding a bike, you.

[Hank]

Can kind of get back there. Whereas, like, if you're trying to get down, it's just a. It's just a war.

[Big Cat]

And here's a message for everyone out there. Guess what? Riding a bike, overrated. When you become adult, Whoa. Golf is way more useful.

[Hank]

Facts.

[Big Cat]

Like, I would trade being able to ride a bike for being able to golf. Well, instantly. Obviously, riding a bike as a kid is very fun, but from age, what, 16? For the rest of your life, being able to golf better than riding a bike would be awesome.

[Brandon Walker]

Did you know there's a co worker that we have here that has never ridden a bike?

[Big Cat]

Oh, man. I do know. Do you know who it is?

[Hank]

I don't.

[Big Cat]

Off the top of my head. Someone people would know.

[Brandon Walker]

Oh, yeah.

[Hank]

Oh, yeah, I do. I do Quigs, quicks.

[Big Cat]

Oh, never.

[Brandon Walker]

Never bike.

[Big Cat]

Also, he probably doesn't think bikes are real. Like, he's got something.

[Brandon Walker]

He said he just, like, never learned as a kid. And he was like, he got to. He got to an age where it's like, you can't learn to ride a bike as.

[PFT Commenter]

As.

[Big Cat]

No, he needs to just go. He needs to, like, have someone close to him go teach him in a parking lot.

[Brandon Walker]

Like, we were. We were going somewhere this. This weekend, and I was like, oh, yeah, it's a quick bike ride. And then, like, as I was saying it, I was like, you don't know how to ride.

[Big Cat]

Ride a bike.

[Brandon Walker]

So we'll take an Uber.

[Big Cat]

Zach, how do you feel on a bike?

[Memes]

I feel good on a regular bicycle.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. All right.

[Big Cat]

Because I was going to say the motorcycle.

[Hank]

Motorcycle.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay.

[Big Cat]

You guys had that as one of your picks?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

Yep, we did. All right, so it's us again.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I'm going to go the top of the list, Hank.

[Hank]

Love it.

[Zach]

Cooking. Cooking. Being able to cook really nice meals for yourself.

[Hank]

Max just said it. I mean, it's. It goes with his money management. My. My budget. If I looked at it, which I don't, because I don't want to be depressed.

[PFT Commenter]

Is.

[Hank]

Is the amount of money I spend on food. And when you buy groceries, you buy, like, 60 worth of groceries that last you a week.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Get one or two meals on. On UberEats or Postmates.

[Zach]

60 bucks I've gotten.

[Hank]

Okay. Being able to cook. Well, Like, I can cook sometimes if I have to. Like, you Think you would.

[Big Cat]

If you could cook well, you would actually cook?

[Hank]

Yes.

[Big Cat]

I don't.

[Zach]

The time thing is an issue.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I have waves where there's no way.

[Zach]

Get really into cooking, and then I run out meal prep you.

[Big Cat]

If you could cook well, you wouldn't be sitting down being like, I'm gonna cook tonight.

[Hank]

Absolutely.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Hank]

Becomes passionate.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

It does. Like, after a long day. It's nice. It can be relaxing. It can put you in, like, a better mood when you go home.

[Hank]

I grew.

[Big Cat]

I agree with everything you're saying, but.

[Zach]

It'S tough to find the time for it.

[Big Cat]

No. You think Hank would go down and be like, hey, hey, guys. Like, can we wrap up the show early? I got a. I got a souffle I'm working on tonight.

[Zach]

I think if he. If he had a lady over, I think he might.

[Hank]

If I was good at cooking, I would want to cook more. Obviously. It's like golf. It's like anything. If you're good at it, you're like, yeah, I want to do that.

[Big Cat]

I still think cooking, like, kind of like dishes and all that stuff. Like, there's part of cooking that just kind of sucks.

[Zach]

I like the cooking.

[Hank]

Saves so much money.

[Zach]

The cooking part of cooking is great.

[Big Cat]

Sometimes it's not even. I feel like I look at it sometimes. You gotta buy so much.

[Zach]

I like grilling.

[PFT Commenter]

Grilling.

[Hank]

I love grilling.

[Big Cat]

Grilling is different.

[Zach]

It's a different sport.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Totally different. That's a pin.

[Zach]

Good pick. Thanks.

[Big Cat]

And shit.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Big Cat]

You guys got to know it is a good pick. I just was more pushing back on you, saying you would cook all the time if you knew how to cook. Well, I don't think that's true. In the summer, that's grilling the office.

[Hank]

I do grill a lot.

[Big Cat]

Grilling is different.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Brandon Walker]

We are going to go with playing an instrument.

[PFT Commenter]

Good one.

[Brandon Walker]

Just, you know, I see PFT in here playing the guitar all the time.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

And I just think about, like, how cool it would be if I learned how to play. Play the guitar. And it's one of those things that everyone, like, as an adult tries to do.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

They're like, oh, I'm going to pick this up. Can't do it. You got to do it when you're a kid or else you're never going to do it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

He gave me lessons for, like, three weeks, and I think I learned, like, four notes.

[Zach]

You need that age when you're, like, 12 to 15, where you don't really have that much else going on at Your house where you can just, like, chill in your room and play guitar. That's where you really learn.

[Big Cat]

What. What would you do guitar? Or would you go piano would be.

[Hank]

Yeah, it's. Those are the two things that you can. It's. It's very cool to be at a house or a party or show up somewhere and it's there, and if you can sit down and play it, like, it's cool.

[Brandon Walker]

Like, when I was very young, I like. I did like the snare drum in my elementary school band. And then I real. I quickly realized when I got home, it's like, you can't play any. There's no songs that you can play on a drone.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Zach]

You just make noise.

[Brandon Walker]

So. So I was. I remember I would, like, go up to my mom and like, be like, do you know this song? And it was just like, nothing. It was just like, sounds. But yeah, no guitar, piano, any instrument.

[PFT Commenter]

Good pick.

[Big Cat]

We had it.

[Zach]

Third pick. We're gonna go with social skills.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh, okay.

[Zach]

Just in general.

[Brandon Walker]

I thought we agreed on something.

[Hank]

What? What Social.

[Brandon Walker]

Thought we were gonna go.

[Big Cat]

You said that one.

[Brandon Walker]

I know that was the funny pick.

[Big Cat]

But memes similar to Max having to Google money management. Have you at any times Googled social skills?

[Zach]

I think it's just small talking shit.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, right?

[Zach]

You're not much of a small talk.

[Big Cat]

Yeah. You're not a small talker. You pointed that one said pick it.

[Brandon Walker]

I pointed at the first one.

[Hank]

Wait, what was the first one?

[Brandon Walker]

Not. We can't. We're not gonna say that.

[Big Cat]

You literally pointed that one to pick it.

[Brandon Walker]

We agree that we would get. We could get that one in the.

[Big Cat]

Last round, but you could have gotten that one in the 20th round.

[Hank]

You're talking to guys on a podcast.

[Zach]

Yeah, I think that's good pick.

[Big Cat]

Okay, Hank, Pft. Zach, get ready where I. Zach, before they go, think 14. Think.

[PFT Commenter]

Hank.

[Zach]

I'm going to go with one of the Cs, and then I'm going to go with.

[Hank]

Well, we have only have one, but I like whatever c you like.

[Big Cat]

10, 14 and 35. Go ahead.

[Zach]

Okay, I'm going to go coding.

[Hank]

Coding AI.

[Zach]

Coding AI.

[Big Cat]

Wait, is it pick coding or coding AI? But how would you have learned that.

[Hank]

Younger the AI, I guess coding coding.

[PFT Commenter]

The.

[Hank]

The, like the Zuckerberg AI thing is crazy.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Coding, though, in itself, I think is going out. Like, I think there was a story I read that, like, computer coding is, like, done well.

[Zach]

No, people are using AI to help them write code. But still, if you know how to write code, You're. You're pretty much going to have a job for the rest of your life. Like, I had a bunch of people that I was friends with that were in, like, the computer sciences departments at some schools, and I was like, this sounds like the most boring ever. And they hated every minute of learning how to do it, but they will never be unemployed.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Okay, Zach, what are we thinking?

[Memes]

How do you feel about 14?

[Big Cat]

14? I like. I think we get freaky with. I have fun with it. I go 1035.

[Brandon Walker]

Social skills.

[Big Cat]

Social skills. It's a funny one. Well, I like 14, but hold on. Like, the question is. So it would. It would be appropriate for you to pick it. I don't know if I could claim that I could have learned it when I was younger.

[Hank]

I don't know if that's something you learn social skills.

[Zach]

You do. You can. You can learn them. Yeah, I think you just have them.

[Hank]

I don't know.

[Brandon Walker]

Everyone's just talking when. In a muted mic back here to you, hank.

[Big Cat]

I said 100. You definitely learn.

[PFT Commenter]

I was a quiet kid.

[Zach]

Meme.

[Big Cat]

Should we.

[Zach]

Should we hire a social skills coach for you?

[PFT Commenter]

Good.

[Zach]

It would like, hitch.

[Big Cat]

What if we go 10 and 14?

[PFT Commenter]

Is. Is.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Would you.

[Big Cat]

10 and 14?

[Memes]

Do you think 10 is the most extreme form of that?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I think it's.

[PFT Commenter]

I.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Listen.

[Big Cat]

I wish I knew it. I wish I learned it.

[Memes]

Yeah, we.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Big Cat]

Go. Go 14 first. And then. And then 10.

[Memes]

Okay, so we would like to take, with our third pick, how to buy bitcoin.

[Big Cat]

It would have been really nice to learn that.

[Hank]

Oh, but we can't pick coding.

[Big Cat]

AI. I mean, Bitcoin's been around for 15 years. How to buy Bitcoin.

[Zach]

Eight years old.

[Big Cat]

Website and just buy it.

[PFT Commenter]

It.

[Big Cat]

This is mine.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

What this is.

[Brandon Walker]

This is investing.

[Big Cat]

All right, fine. No, no, no, no. How to buy.

[Zach]

How to buy bitcoin.

[Hank]

Well, you picked money management, not investing.

[Zach]

Good point. Investing is just a small part of money management.

[Big Cat]

We could. We could. If it's not. If it's. If it's not fair because of the AI thing, that's fine. We'll take it off. No, you know what? No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no. Zach, Zach, you can retract.

[Hank]

You can't retract.

[Big Cat]

Let's start from the top of this.

[Memes]

You're telling us to. That's my. On me.

[PFT Commenter]

How to buy Bitcoin.

[Big Cat]

All right, we have two funny ones that we. That are probably not going to do well in the graph graphic. If you want us to retract.

[PFT Commenter]

We'll go the.

[Big Cat]

We'll go crazy ones.

[Zach]

No, I think. How do you guys picked how to buy bitcoin? I think that's a fine pick. I don't think that there's anything really terrible about that at all.

[Big Cat]

I think you're not being honest. Yeah, it's gonna suck on the graphic.

[Zach]

No, Matt, I thought Max objected unfairly to it by saying that it's money. That's not money management.

[Big Cat]

I would have. I would have been nice if someone taught you how to buy Bitcoin 15 years ago.

[Zach]

That is true.

[Big Cat]

That's really nice.

[Brandon Walker]

That's investing.

[Zach]

You didn't pick investing.

[Brandon Walker]

That is part of money management.

[Hank]

No, it's not money investing. Like I just said, how to invest it. Money management is having money and how to manage.

[Brandon Walker]

The exact same thing of me just saying how to play an instrument and you saying how to play guitar.

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Zach]

No, that's different.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's the same thing.

[Zach]

No, no, different.

[Brandon Walker]

How is that different? It is.

[Big Cat]

Also buying bitcoin is complicated instrument.

[Hank]

And then it would be like, as you took learning how to play freebird, like you. That means you imply you already know how to play guitar. No, good point. Want to learn how to play freebirds. Know how to play.

[Big Cat]

You know how to play guitar.

[Hank]

Want to learn how to play guitar.

[Zach]

As the only member of part of my take who's kind of played the freebird solo, Hank is 100.

[Hank]

There's a huge difference between wanting to learn how to play guitar and then wanting to learn how to play a song on guitar because you already know how to play guitar.

[Zach]

Also, Max, if I took coding, be like, oh, well, that makes you money. So you're just taking money management, too. How to get a job. How to get a job is the exact money management.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And you're already.

[Big Cat]

Also, buying bitcoin is difficult.

[PFT Commenter]

Difficult.

[Big Cat]

I'm talking about. Yes, it is.

[Brandon Walker]

Go on cash app and buy bitcoin.

[Big Cat]

And I go on cash app right now.

[Hank]

Eth's accounts just blowing you up.

[Big Cat]

Being like, all right, our last pick is. Is karate.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

Fighting.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I wish I knew karate, dude. Imagine if someone, like, came at you and you're just like, bro, you don't want this. I'm a black belt since I was seven. Yeah, karate.

[Zach]

Jiu jitsu would be cool, too.

[Big Cat]

Just people up with your hands. I wish I knew karate. I really do.

[PFT Commenter]

You guys like that?

[Zach]

Yeah. We can get a teacher.

[Big Cat]

No, because I wish I. That's a. That's kind of like the golf where it's like if you knew karate when you were young and, like, you like.

[Hank]

It's also like a guitar. Everyone did karate at some point.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It's like I stuck with it. No one did. No one. It's like, I wish someone had said, hey, yellow belt, stick with. Imagine if I was just walking around today and I was like, a plus two handicap and a black belt. My life would be way better. Yeah, way better.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

The idea of someone. It's the idea of, like, you know when you're in your 20s and, like, maybe someone's stepping to you and you.

[Zach]

Just being like, buddy, I know karate.

[Big Cat]

You don't want to do this. I will. I will fucking kill you with three moves.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Don't step. The big guy. He knows karate.

[Big Cat]

He knows karate. He's a black belt.

[Hank]

I like ccpft.

[Zach]

Nope, we're not going to do that.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Oh, come on.

[Big Cat]

We did karate.

[Zach]

No, no, this is a. This is more of a karate one. Hank wants me to take a. Oh, okay. A boring one.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Let's get. What?

[Zach]

Yeah, it's a boring one. I'm.

[Big Cat]

What?

[Zach]

Shut the fuck up, Hank. Our final pick is going to be. What?

[Hank]

No.

[Zach]

What? Say it.

[Hank]

No, it's not boring, but I'm excited for what you're going to pick.

[Big Cat]

Have fun.

[Hank]

Go for it, partner.

[Zach]

Throwing in knuckleball.

[Big Cat]

Ooh, I like that.

[Zach]

Throwing a knuckleball would be. If you worked really fucking hard on it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And you just got to the bigs and you were able to pitch for, like, 25 years.

[Big Cat]

I like that.

[PFT Commenter]

That.

[Zach]

And nobody could figure out how to hit it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, I like that.

[Zach]

Anybody. Because it's one of those things where I. I know this is probably 100 wrong, but I think anybody that really dedicates themselves to throwing a knuckle ball will make it to Major League Baseball.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, Agreed.

[Hank]

That was one of my original, original, like, I don't even think, get rich quick schemes. Yeah. I said this to Dave at one point when I. When this one, I was like, 20, and I was like, I feel like if you just lock. Sent me to a cabin with a coach for a year, I could do it to be a knuckleball. I could make it to the leagues. And then by the time I was, like, 27, it was probably. I think I've talked about on the show.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

It reached an age, but there was like three or four years where I was like, if you guys want a content idea, I think it's before this show. If you want a Content idea. Like, just send me to the woods with a knuckleball coach and I'll come back.

[Big Cat]

It was the idea before mini golf.

[Hank]

Long, long before mini golf. That was.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Even if you didn't make it to the pros, just being able to toss a sick knuckleball when you're like, hanging out with your friends would be awesome.

[Big Cat]

Make them look idiot. Yeah, it's all right.

[Brandon Walker]

Last pick, we are going to go with. Yeah, we're going to go with carpentry for our last pick. I watch a lot of di. DIY stuff on Tick Tock. Have you ever been to a basement where there. There's a.

[PFT Commenter]

There's a.

[Big Cat]

We just did the same thing. I'm not going to argue.

[Zach]

Yeah, I mean, yes, I did fixing around.

[Brandon Walker]

Yes, I did.

[Big Cat]

Carpentry is like. That's a. That's a you guys full blown, like, profession that you have to learn. You pick a trail. Yeah, that's not at all. Not at all. I picked minor home repairs.

[Zach]

This is the.

[Big Cat]

The major of the repairs. We could fix anything.

[Zach]

No, just wood.

[Big Cat]

No, actually, you can't fix anything. No, actually, you couldn't fix anything because it's just wood.

[Zach]

No, we can fix that.

[Big Cat]

Carpentry is just wood. You can't.

[PFT Commenter]

If, If.

[Big Cat]

If the water heater blows out, I can fix it. You can't. No, that's major repair. You're minor. No, no work. That's exactly what you call handyman. No, I said handyman work. A water.

[Zach]

A water heater fix is the.

[Brandon Walker]

You did say. No, we said minor home repairs in our list.

[Big Cat]

Oh, fuck.

[Brandon Walker]

That's where you got mixed up.

[Big Cat]

I was thinking, all right, cool, guys. You guys can build us some stairs.

[PFT Commenter]

Awesome.

[Brandon Walker]

I'm not even saying that. I'm saying, like, low key. They just building tables and shit.

[Zach]

They just took. Jesus.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

All right, let's. Let's do honorable mentions. I got some ones that were. Is.

[Hank]

Is counting cards boring?

[Big Cat]

No, we had. I love that one we had on.

[Hank]

Our list how saying it was boring was crazy.

[Big Cat]

It's more boring than knuckle Zach had that one. It's.

[Hank]

No, it's not. It's illegal. It's like you can get. Like you can get. You're not gonna get thrown in jail or like thrown into the basement of a casino for throwing a knuckleball?

[Zach]

If you're really good at it, maybe.

[Big Cat]

What about.

[Zach]

Yeah, it's like fixing a game.

[Big Cat]

How do you guys think magic would have played? Bad. Bad.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Don't really don't really care.

[PFT Commenter]

No.

[Big Cat]

If you have, like, two or three magic tricks that you can always go to, that's kind of cool. It would have been.

[Zach]

I would rather be a mentalist. Learn mentalism.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, that's.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's cool. What about. How do you think the pick and.

[Brandon Walker]

My guy at the Super bowl, the.

[Big Cat]

Rules to intentional grounding.

[Zach]

I know those.

[Big Cat]

I wish I learned it when I was younger, though, because there still are times you're like, is it. Is it not?

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Even the refs don't know. Also, infield fly.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Zach]

I love it when a softball calls infield.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

He's like, I've trained my entire life for this moment.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

What about just talking to chicks?

[Big Cat]

Social skills.

[Zach]

Yeah. It's one of the social skills, but, like, really being really good at picking up chicks.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Negging.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

We had public speaking, so I guess, you know, similar social skills.

[Big Cat]

Cook the perfect steak.

[Zach]

But, Hank, you do cooking.

[Hank]

No. You would never do it.

[PFT Commenter]

What?

[Big Cat]

I would. I grew.

[PFT Commenter]

We.

[Big Cat]

We all established that. We grill all the time.

[Zach]

We do grill.

[Hank]

You said cook.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Cooked a perfect steak.

[Zach]

Big cat made a great steak. When we had our steak off, stuff.

[Stephen A. Smith]

On the grill, but I would.

[Zach]

On the pan.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Sorry. Make the perfect steak.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

We're in honorable mentions, dude.

[Zach]

Microsoft Excel.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

That'd be a good one to know.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

I've said that I'm proficient on every resume that I've sent. Never once have I approached proficiency.

[Big Cat]

I am so far from proficiency.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It's like the old. Like when Brian Scalabrini would be like, I'm closer to LeBron than you are to me.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Like, I'm. I'm closer to, like, a rabbit than I am to a proficient at Excel.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

That's how far away we are.

[Zach]

One time I was working at a job, and somebody sent me a Microsoft Excel spreadsheet, and all I could think about was like, you were actually putting the entire business in jeopardy by even emailing.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Because I'm gonna up a cell.

[Zach]

Yes.

[Hank]

What about dressing nice.

[Big Cat]

I kind of like that one. Like an adult.

[Zach]

I pretty much got that already.

[Big Cat]

Just know you learned how to dress when you were seven and then you kept it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It's a good.

[Hank]

Listen, once your parents stop dressing you, it was. That was it.

[Big Cat]

Zach had. Spearfish would be cool.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Memes]

If we're ever on Survivor or we're.

[Big Cat]

On an island, we're just. We're dialed.

[Zach]

Hunting, I think. Hunting and fishing in general, I thought.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

In practice, like, boat. Being a boat guy in Theory is.

[Big Cat]

Is.

[Brandon Walker]

Would be great. But in practice, then you have to.

[Big Cat]

Be the boat guy.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

So that's. That's why I kind of.

[Big Cat]

That's just a general.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Also like, guy who knows everything. Kind of like boat guys.

[Hank]

Boat guys, car guys.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, they kind of all. Are the.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Fishing, hunting.

[Big Cat]

It's all tie a bow tie. Probably only has happened like three times in my life, but we had to do the YouTube video every time.

[Brandon Walker]

Did you figure it out with the YouTube video?

[Big Cat]

I think one of my friends figured it out and then tied all of our.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Zach]

You gotta have one guy. The crew that knows that.

[Brandon Walker]

I remember I literally tried for like two hours at a recent. At a recent wedding. And then somebody had to like, drive to. To the house that I was at to do it for me because I.

[Big Cat]

Just couldn't figure it out.

[Zach]

What about being able to sing? Learning how to sing?

[PFT Commenter]

Thought about that.

[Brandon Walker]

But like, what. What does that really.

[Zach]

It's like at this point of your.

[Big Cat]

Life, it's like tone deaf. People will never learn that.

[Zach]

No, but it's like Junior Soprano when he just starts singing out of nowhere and people start crying. You're like, I had no idea this guy could sing.

[Brandon Walker]

That guy's also a little bit of a. Try hard.

[Zach]

Yeah, that's true.

[Big Cat]

It probably says something about us as a podcast that we didn't pick learning a new language.

[Brandon Walker]

We had it on our list.

[Big Cat]

Very incurious. Who cares? Who cares? We had our list and we're like, what did we do? I'd much rather be able to do karate than no Spanish.

[Brandon Walker]

Building a table would be fun. Like, it's fun.

[Big Cat]

You guys are. You guys are second guessing.

[Zach]

I had to build a table as an arm, as a. As a Quaker guy. It's part of my rite of passage into adulthood.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I bought a table at ikea. I assumed.

[PFT Commenter]

There we go.

[Zach]

Built that shit.

[Big Cat]

Drive a stick shift.

[Hank]

Is that real?

[Zach]

Yeah, that's like.

[Hank]

You have to build the table.

[Zach]

You have to build a sturdy table.

[Big Cat]

And you did it with ikea.

[Zach]

I just got it. I just bought a table.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I put it.

[Zach]

I put it together.

[Big Cat]

Who is judging ikea?

[Hank]

Who are you building the table?

[Zach]

It's for yourself. It's about yourself.

[Brandon Walker]

Do you guys see those DIY guys on. On TikTok who like, build like, like overhangs over their patio and shit?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

It's the coolest thing ever that a man could do.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

That's when you're actually a real adult man.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

Like, that shit is so sick. Yeah, like going into like a.

[Big Cat]

Like a.

[Brandon Walker]

Like a dad basement and you just see a. A wood shop in. In there is so sick.

[Big Cat]

So sick. We had calories.

[Zach]

Oh, okay. Learn calories.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

How credit cards work. Kind of like your pick.

[PFT Commenter]

Max.

[Hank]

Credit cards work. Would have been a good one.

[Brandon Walker]

I went on Weight Watchers in the sixth grade.

[PFT Commenter]

I didn't really.

[Big Cat]

I didn't know if that I have.

[Hank]

A credit card till after you.

[PFT Commenter]

Wait, what?

[Brandon Walker]

I went on Weight watchers in the sixth grade, lost 30 pounds, but. So I learned calories early then you ignored them, correct.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I mean exercise.

[Brandon Walker]

I'm getting back in general still, you know, I play. That doesn't help either.

[Big Cat]

What about whistling with your fingers yourself deep.

[Zach]

Oh, yeah, Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I wish I knew how to do.

[Zach]

Put them in your mouth and then.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's just a real like man thing to be able to do. Get Give one of those.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Like the dogs running away.

[Zach]

Along the same lines as throwing a knuckle ball. I had long snapping. Just practicing. Long snapping.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I feel like you'd have a job for life.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

Zach, what else did you have?

[Memes]

I think being able to dunk would be. I would use that for the rest of my life.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's also.

[Hank]

You can learn that after.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, after you're young.

[Memes]

No, I got no shot.

[Hank]

Yeah, no, no, you never try.

[Zach]

We should do a video series about dancing.

[Big Cat]

Dancing we had on our list would be cool if you were like at least a decent dancer.

[Hank]

Especially with, you know, tick tock nowadays. If you committed to dancing every day, you'd be.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, good point.

[Hank]

A lot better off.

[Brandon Walker]

I feel like an obscure Olympic sport would be. It would have been losing like something that, like if you dedicated your life to as a child, like, you could be an Olympian.

[Zach]

Curling.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, like something like. Something like that.

[Big Cat]

I got one that. Oh, do we say jumper cables? I think I know how to do it.

[Brandon Walker]

That's an easy you. That's an easy YouTube look.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Yeah.

[Hank]

I think even with no phone, I would be able to jump a car.

[Big Cat]

Here's one that's gonna maybe get some side looks, but just like floss. The importance of floss.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

Still don't really should probably floss more.

[Brandon Walker]

I know how to do it. Doesn't mean I do it. It doesn't mean I do it more. Speaking of which, I gotta call it.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it's like the calories thing where it's like. I kind of wish they had really hammered that into my head that you.

[Brandon Walker]

Got a floss throw you in on.

[Hank]

Me calling the dentist. Yeah, just add my name. My name to it.

[Big Cat]

Actually. Add me, too.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Zach]

The dentist is.

[Brandon Walker]

I went last week. I had no problems with my teeth.

[Big Cat]

Teeth.

[Brandon Walker]

They said I had a cavity. They filled the cavity, and now two weeks later, my tooth hurts.

[Big Cat]

Like, okay, so the one that they.

[Brandon Walker]

The one that they filled. I gotta call a cat.

[Hank]

I got my mom heavy with that. Have you been the dentist since you've been in Chicago?

[Big Cat]

I was like, I'm going Monday.

[Zach]

I have scheduled two dentist appointments, but I. I canceled both of them, so that counts for something.

[PFT Commenter]

Pmtv.

[Big Cat]

Let's go to the dentist. No, we need.

[Brandon Walker]

Oh, get the.

[Big Cat]

Get the. No, we need a. We need a stoolie dentist.

[Brandon Walker]

I thought you were gonna say the Dave. Dentist guy.

[PFT Commenter]

Come.

[Brandon Walker]

Come in.

[Big Cat]

No, we need a stooly dentist. Let's get a stooly dentist.

[PFT Commenter]

The.

[Big Cat]

Hit us up. You got to be in the city of Chicago. I do need a dentist.

[PFT Commenter]

And I.

[Big Cat]

You guys are going to be like, you don't want to stool your dentist. I had one. I had one in Brooklyn, and he was the man. Because they don't just. You still have to pass dental school. So it's not like they're, you know, idiots.

[Brandon Walker]

I'm cool with. I'm cool with the stooly dentist if he tells him my other dentist was a piece of shit. All right, Telling me I had a cavity. Let's get a dentist giving me a cavity.

[Big Cat]

Some. Someone hit us up. All the PMT boys will show up. We're all gonna get our teeth cleaned and, like, probably 10 cavities and learn floss. Can I still get mine clean Monday?

[Hank]

Nope.

[Big Cat]

No, you gotta go with us, bro.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

All right, good.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Mount Rushmore.

[Big Cat]

Any others? Anyone have any others? That was it for split wood we had there. Chess.

[Hank]

Chess is a good one.

[Big Cat]

Chess would be cool if.

[Zach]

You know, I feel like I did.

[Hank]

Learn chess when I was young. I just forgot it.

[Big Cat]

But that's also, like, something too. Like, if you're really good at chess, like. Like how much you're going to use it later in life because people won't want to play with you.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Zach]

You know, I learned how to do the. The four move checkmate. And then I was like, that's all I need to know in chess. I'm just gonna run this play, and then if they stop me, I'm.

[Big Cat]

Zach had driving through a roundabout. So that just tells me he does not know how to do that.

[Memes]

Yeah, they're just not.

[Big Cat]

They're regional.

[Memes]

You know, you run into them in different states so you haven't encountered them.

[Big Cat]

Before, but they're all the same regional.

[Zach]

No, some places don't have.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, they're big in Europe, but they're. They're the same rule.

[Memes]

So that would be like a left sided roundabout. So then it would be opposite too.

[Zach]

Yeah, it depends on what country, but yeah.

[Big Cat]

Who drives like us in Europe?

[Zach]

I think France.

[Big Cat]

Oh.

[Zach]

I think the only countries that drive on the wrong side are England and Ireland, Germany and maybe Australia.

[Big Cat]

Weirdos.

[Hank]

Yeah, Australia does you know that we.

[Zach]

Drive on the lift?

[Big Cat]

You've been there?

[Hank]

I was a ute.

[Big Cat]

Oh, nice.

[Zach]

Hank asked me if you drive on the right side of the road in Australia. I'll do an accent.

[Hank]

Drive on the right side of Australia in Australia.

[Zach]

Nar.

[Big Cat]

I love the nar. Nar.

[PFT Commenter]

Nar.

[Big Cat]

Okay, let's get to our interviews. We have Kevin Clark in studio and then we have a great interview with AJ Brown from Eagles camp.

[Zach]

Before we get to Kevin Clark, he's brought to you by our great friends over at Truly. Truly Hard Seltzer is all about fun, light, refreshing variety and a bubbly effervescent style to get you and your people in a lively party mood. Truly unruly is an 8% hard seltzer. Full of flavor, but still light, still refreshing. Gets in four flavors. Tropical twist, berry blast. That's my favorite. Citrus Crush and strawberry smash. 8% ABV. You can even grab a big 24 ounce tropical twist single at convenience stores. I was talking to a college buddy over the weekend. We're reminiscing about some of the stuff we used to drink back in college and how bad it tasted to get up to 8%. 9% ABV. Truly has changed the game. 8% ABV. It's a hard seltzer and it drinks light. It's a perfect day. Drink. Tailgating on the weekend, bouncing around for game day. You can't beat something as light and easy, but big on flavors. Truly get unruly. With truly unruly 8% hard seltzer, you can find it anywhere, like your favorite grocery, liquor or convenience store. Or visit trulyhardselter.com use the truly finder to grab it near you. And now, here's Kevin Clark.

[Big Cat]

Okay. We now welcome on a very special guest friend of ours. Never been on.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Never.

[Big Cat]

First time it is Kevin Clark. You can watch this is football on ESPN2. He's everywhere. He's plugged into the league. He's been traveling around all summer. So we're going to get some intel, maybe a little preview. Football's Almost back. He also moonlights as a Geek Squad member at best. So let's start there.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Stephen A. Smith said that you're a member of Geek Squad from Best Buy.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You gotta fight him, dude.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So the content, he was being complimentary of me. He said, you're doing a great job. He had to do a little dig my dad. So an Alpha announcing aggregates it and says everything. Now, they said, Stephen A. Gives Kevin Clark his full endorsement even though he looks like a member of Geese Squad.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So my dad forwards it to our entire family and just lops off the second half of the headline, which was amazing. But, no, I do. Like, I can lean into that. That's fine. Like, I can. I can do the geek stuff. I'm into the numbers stuff, so I'm good with it. I don't have to fight him.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's tall.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You should have just challenged him, because I don't know if he's about that. I don't know if he would have stood on that business.

[Zach]

I don't think Stephen A. Smith fights anymore. I think he's got people that would do that.

[Big Cat]

Imagine if you beat him up, because then his whole fight with LeBron looks really foolish. You kick the shit out of Stephen A. Smith, and then he's. And next time he tries to be like, yeah, LeBron, if you come at me like a man, it's like, dude, Kevin Clark beat your ass.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'd probably get beat up. That'd be my guess.

[Big Cat]

Come on.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That'd be my guess.

[Big Cat]

Who.

[Zach]

Who is a more demanding person to work with, Stephen A. Smith or Peyton Manning?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Well, so I. I've only done two episodes of Stephen A. It's been amazing. We haven't even been in the same room yet. Peyton is a.

[Big Cat]

Sounds like he's really close.

[Stephen A. Smith]

No, no. They're both forces of nature. Like, they're both. So, like, Peyton. The reason I have Peyton Manning's phone number is because he was on my show talking about Kevin o', Connell, and this is just, like, exactly what you think Peyton would be. And I. We wrap up. I go, like, make lunch or whatever. And I got this number that I've never seen before, and just a wall of text. And he's like, hey, just one more thing on Kevin o' Connell's offense. And he just sends me, like, paragraphs about how much he loves the Vikings offense. So it's like. It's that kind of thing where, like, I don't hear from him all the time, but, like, I hear from him enough where it's like he just wants to talk ball. That's all he wants to do. That's all he wants to do.

[PFT Commenter]

I love.

[Big Cat]

Similar to Gruden.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes. All they want to do is just like, hey, I, you know, I have so many thoughts in the Vikings that I'm just going to send a wall of text or voice memo.

[Big Cat]

Do his eyes, like. Similar to Gruden, whose eyes kind of glaze over when you just do any topic besides football? Because Gruden, it's very funny. Like, he. He will not. He's not rude about it, but it's like, he's just like, hey, can we get back to football?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Jack travels with Peyton.

[Big Cat]

What's your.

[Stephen A. Smith]

What's your. What's your take on what happens when. When we're talking here.

[Big Cat]

I'm talking the mic. Talking the mic. No, Kevin's mic. Share. Mike. Mike to Mike. What's the question exactly When. When. When you're not talking football with Peyton Manning, does he get a little. Not bored, but like, hey, can we get back to football?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I mean, I try to keep it.

[Big Cat]

Very surface level questions about football because.

[Zach]

I know the second I start asking about like, like cover two or cover.

[Big Cat]

Three, then he takes it to a next level.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Pretend to understand what he's saying.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

[Hank]

He's dialed on football all the time.

[Big Cat]

I love that.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Football guy through and through, big time.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's what it's all truly like.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

All he cares about.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I think one time we're trying to explain Chapel Roan to John Gruden, and I think to murder everybody.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

He's like, get me the out of here.

[Zach]

Can we talk about quarterbacks again? Let's get back to.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Didn't he say on your show a couple months ago that he was getting dialed in on music a little bit?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, he is. He is listening to new music.

[Zach]

I forget what. What new artist he's really into to these days. There was somebody that he was all about for like a couple that. That's like a true football guy. In the off season, you start to get a little antsy. You start to get new habits in, like, May, June, and then July hits and you're like, oh, yeah, I'm back to football. Forget about music. I don't care about music.

[Big Cat]

Football.

[Zach]

Yeah, it's football season.

[Big Cat]

So you. You are also dialed into football. Like I said at the start, you. You've been traveling around. We got some questions. Like, we'll use this as a little bit of NFL preview Which I feel like you can't do enough NFL previews. I. I just. Just this time of year, it's just like. What do we want to talk about? Oh, let's talk about football, even though they're not playing yet. But let's start with the big news. Micah Parsons. So first question is, Micah Parsons will play Week 1 for probably the Dallas Cowboys.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So there's a couple things about it. First of all, we're just now finding out after 40 years that Jerry Jones doesn't negotiate with agents.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Which is like, one of those things that we probably should have found out a long time ago. I'm just glad. But so I think it's coming out now because Jerry. There's an element of professional wrestling in everything that Jerry Jones does. And there's one guy who in the last 40 years was like, I don't want to do the professional wrestling thing. And because of that, everything, the entire franchise has collapsed.

[Big Cat]

Like, they were like.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, he demanded a trade, which CD Lamb didn't do. Zeke Elliott just went to Cabo instead of demanding a trade. Dak Prescott didn't demand a trade. And so I think it's going to get done. But it just shows you how, like, fragile the whole thing was, because Jerry thought he was doing a bit, and Michael was like, I don't want to do a bit. I want. I want $45 million a year. That was a good bet. My bet. That's my bet. And so now, I don't know. Like, I think this is one. This is the. This is the. The situation that Jerry can't win in, which is that this guy does not want to play Jerry's stupid game.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Zach]

And then I saw Jerry, he said, like, this is all part of the negotiation process.

[Big Cat]

It's mom and Daddy.

[Zach]

I don't. I don't think that Micah knew that this was part of the process.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It should have been. They should have been, like, professional wrestling. And he should have, like, taken him into a back room. Be like, these are the moves. Yeah, I'm gonna do with you. Like, you have to have buy in if you're gonna do a professional wrestling bit.

[Big Cat]

And that also is where I. I feel like it's headed if. If the answer is Dallas Cowboys, it's headed towards Michael Parsons new contract getting announced right before Thursday Night Football.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Big Cat]

Maybe that's what he likes to do. He wants to steal Banner Night from the Eagles. Being like, Micah Parsons.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's what. That's it. He's just obsessed with. With himself. Like, the, the, the, the, the. The guidepost for Jerry is like, he wants to win. Sure. Like in some vague way, but he really wants to get credit for winning.

[Big Cat]

And he wants the headlines.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He wants the headlines, but he wants people to be talking about Jerry Jones being a smart football guy. Like, we already have proof of concept. Like I said on TV a couple weeks ago where I was like, if you, if you, if the football gods were like, hey, you can win three Super Bowls, but you can't give a press conference about it, he'd be like, no deal. Like he wants, Right.

[Zach]

He wants to talk about what's the point.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And people were like, oh, well, I don't know about that. That he fired Jimmy Johnson.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Because he was like, I don't know if I'm getting enough credit for this one. I'm not. Like, I'm not in the inner circle of the coaching staff. I want more power. I want more just shine in this. Like, Jimmy's getting so much shine from these Super Bowls. Like, I don't like this. He'd rather have Dave Campo and, and.

[Big Cat]

You know, Barry Switzer won a Super Bowl.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Harry Switzer, he did. Jason Garrett, like all those guys, he'd rather have that than win. Like there's. And the reason we know this is because if he wanted to change, he would. He's done nothing to.

[Big Cat]

And he's not going to at this point. So. All right, so just let's, let's do a hypothetical. He's not on Dallas Cowboys. What is the cost? And is there even one team that like shouldn't be in the running for this? Because it. To me, it's such a no brainer that every team should be calling The Cowboys all 31.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Like it's, it's not even people like, oh, two first round picks. Who the fuck cares if you have Micah Parsons, you're not going to get a guy in the next two drafts that's better than Micah Parsons.

[Stephen A. Smith]

No. And what's funny is to see that the trade proposals, fan bases cook up.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's like one first round pick and then like our bus defense.

[Big Cat]

Yeah. Our worst player.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, well, maybe we'll par with that. It'd probably be three first round picks.

[PFT Commenter]

Really? Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes. Because the Cowboys want to keep the franchise tag existing.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

When you think about is the craziest thing in sports.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like they're allowed to keep guys for three extra years because they're good at their job.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And it's cost controlled. And that's what the Cowboys will just do like, they will control. Mike is playing on his fifth year option right now, which by the way, there's some dishonest ways to look at this, but they're paying Micah and Dak as much as the Eagles are paying their top four guys, which just hurts my lot. Elaine Johnson and A.J.

[Big Cat]

Brown.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So, like, that's Howie versus how Jerry Jones. Right. Operates.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And that's a huge quarterback contract and then a guy playing on his fifth year option. But I think the Cowboys don't want to trade them. And the franchise tag is the most. It is the best. Less leverage in sports that teams have. Like, no one else has anything approaching that. So I don't. My, my feeling on it. And I've said this before and I haven't. Can't think of a counterfactual. I don't think a team, an NFL team has ever traded a guy they wanted to keep.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Because you think about Rogers and he was like, I went out and they were like, thanks for the suggestion. We're going to keep you two more years until Jordan Love is ready.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Russell Wilson. Same thing in Seattle. Like, there's not never really an element of teams being like this guy. Like the NBA now, like, you demand a trade and they're like, yeah, yeah, well, here's your plane ticket. And in the NFL they've. I don't, I do not think there's ever been a negotiation. Like Jon Gruden traded Khalil Mack. Like, his whole thing was we, we stunk on defense with you. Like, we'll just take the picks and figure it out later. Like, that's the kind of stuff that happens in the NFL. It's not, oh, this guy really wants out. And we're just going to do it as a favor to the agent or whatever is going on in the NBA.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I know Micah Parsons can go anywhere.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Unless Jerry decides.

[Zach]

I mean, I think what might get it done is if they just carbon copy the Herschel Walker deal because then Jerry would be like, that was a great trade for back. We ended up. We ended up winning Super Bowls based off that we got Emmett Smith.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It would have to be massive in the team they're trading with would have a stink.

[Zach]

It would probably have to be the Vikings. It would have to be like the exact same trade.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And then Jerry would be like, okay, I'll do it. Is there a possibility that Micah just sits out?

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't think so. What does that help with? Like, you don't get any. A year closer to Free agency.

[Big Cat]

You don't get money.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You don't get money. You get a year older. And I also think there's an element. The league just doesn't like that. Like the league is just gonna be like, this sucks. And not if you can't get two or three. Whatever would cost first round picks. Now you're not going to get it after waiting out a year. That's not how it works.

[Zach]

What do you think Brian Schottenheimer thinks about this whole thing? He probably was thinking he'll get like a couple weeks or a couple months of a grace period before this.

[Big Cat]

By the way, we should remind everyone that Brian Schopenheimer is the coach of the Cowboys.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Jerry Jones just looked down the hall with and was like, you, you, you coach now.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's what I was going to say is like, he's probably like, oh my God, this is so cool. I got to be the head coach of the Cowboys. Like, he's probably. Whatever happens, we're doing Micah.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Yeah.

[Zach]

Let's do the Micah storyline.

[PFT Commenter]

Cool.

[Big Cat]

Cool.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's just so into it. Like, there's no way.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's like, it's like. Did you guys ever see the movie King Ralph?

[PFT Commenter]

No.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's with John Goodman. It's from like 40 years ago. And I, I, I don't want to get the plot wrong. Obviously a lot of King Ralph guys out there, but yeah, you're gonna see all the, all the members of the royal family die. And this guy in Wisconsin.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

John Goodman becomes the King of England and just because he just got, he got elevated. Such a great plot line.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And it's such an amazing. Can we reboot that?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Who would play that now? Probably John Goodman.

[Zach]

Probably.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, probably still John Goodman.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Probably John Goodman. But like that's, Sometimes you get these head coaches who are in total King Ralph mode and they're just like, I didn't expect to be the King of England.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

This is amazing.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So I don't know how much he's complaining, but he's probably, listen, he's like a good guy. I've interviewed him before. Players obviously like him. I'm not being like flippant about it. He probably, you know, not probably. He obviously wants to win and I think he knows that this is going to get figured out like everything else does.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

What about the other hold ins across the league?

[PFT Commenter]

League?

[Stephen A. Smith]

James Cook was. Yesterday I was in Buffalo business. Business that'll probably get done. Like, I, I don't, I'm not All these. So James Cook is the hold in. Who are the other holding.

[Zach]

There's Terry and Trey Hendricks.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Oh, that's the one you're asking about? It's Terry.

[Zach]

I was dancing around too.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

He would see that we don't care about James.

[Zach]

Don't get it.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't know. This thing about the. The Commanders not wanting to sign a guy over 30 years old for that kind of money.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

People were embarrassed to be Commanders fans until like two years ago. And the entire. Except for you.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

But were you.

[Zach]

I mean, I hated. I hated Dan Snyder.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

I still do.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I hope he's listening right now and I hope he's crying.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'd be surprised if he was listening.

[Big Cat]

I would be surprised if he's crying. He's probably just happy being honest. He's probably on a yacht.

[Zach]

He's cackling somewhere.

[Big Cat]

I think he might be. Better chance he's listening than crying.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Did he ever come back? Remember when he was avoiding, like, testifying. Oh, he's never coming by being in Monaco?

[Zach]

Yeah. No, he's on his yacht.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's still there.

[Zach]

Foreign territory left.

[Stephen A. Smith]

International water.

[Zach]

No, he's just been floating around on his own private yacht for the last, like four years.

[Big Cat]

Still downloading. Pardon my tape.

[Zach]

Still downloading the podcast. Shout out to him.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't know why. I think they should. I think both sides should cave because it's just too important. And like Jaden Daniels, the deep ball needs to get better. I talked to him a couple days ago, as you did, and he said to me, I was like, how can the deep ball get better? Because he was so good at lsu. He was like, better than Joe Burrow as far as like 40 yard trunk plays. And that means he's the best in history. And he said they got to a point at LSU when it was Mike Neighbors and Brian Thomas, where they repped it so much that they knew if they had man coverage, they were going to win. Like, exactly how to. How to get the ball down the field, exactly where to place it, all that stuff. The only way to get that at the NFL level is for him and Ty McLaren to just work on that, that every day for the next 40 days. And then. And then you get there. That's the one place where they left meat on the bone. It's the deep passing. And so I don't. I. I think that they need to give them the DK Metcalf contract and call it a day. Like, I don't understand this. Like, oh, we can't Pay them for over 30. Like you have a chance legitimately to win a Super bowl this year. Like, you can't screw that up. The fan base has ptsd and like, I know, it's like, oh, man, analytics. You can't do this. You can't. Like, you can't use that as a guide. Yes, you can. Like the fan base. Base attitude matters. Like they deserve good things.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Zach]

I think Terry deserves good things too.

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Zach]

Like he's been the ideal football player that you want on. On just objectively shitty teams.

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Zach]

He's the guy that always showed up, worked hard.

[Big Cat]

And it's also like the timeline. Jaden Daniel's on a rookie contract. This is when you can pay those guys. Pay guys.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Go out and get another guy. Screw it. Like trade for Trey Hendrick.

[Big Cat]

I don't know.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Just go out and do it. Like, yeah, Von Miller was playing like 17 snaps a game last year. He's going to be like a fourth quarter guy. You could still use another passenger. Go out and take a swing. I don't. You don't have to be process guy just because the ownership is from the 76, which by the way, the process didn't even work.

[Zach]

Well, no, disagree. The process of the process worked. They got the first picks right.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

The results of the process didn't work.

[Big Cat]

And it's still don't have the results.

[Zach]

Yeah, we don't.

[Stephen A. Smith]

As long as the Ombude is there.

[Big Cat]

It'S not even Joel Embiid. It's just like forever. As long as the process. As long as 1. 1 link back to the process exists, they could win a championship in 20 years and be like kind of work.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's a good point. It's still open.

[Big Cat]

Like if Joan B. Gets traded, those guys then become part of the process.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, it's an open door. It's like the Thunder, the old. The Thunder made a trade with the magic 2016 for Oladipo and Serge Ibaka and like the after effects got them like all of their players.

[Zach]

Yeah, now that's right. You're. You're Magic fan. You are the Magic fan.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm the Magic fan.

[Zach]

Is there. What other Magic fans are there? You're the only one that.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, Steve Ceruti. Tiger woods was one. This is a little bit controversial. So Tiger woods was a Magic fan. He was sitting courtside for like a decade and then they played the Lakers in the Finals and he released a statement basically saying he hopes both teams have fun.

[Big Cat]

Both teams win.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And I think that you've been kicked out of fraternity at that point.

[Zach]

You just gotta pick a side there in the finals.

[Big Cat]

Gotta pick a side.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He was basically like, you know, I grew up there. And first of all, just also don't release a statement. Just don't.

[Big Cat]

No, yeah, just pick a side.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Just don't say anything or just don't.

[Big Cat]

Even go to the games.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Black shirt.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, just don't go to the game.

[Zach]

The Rob Lowe hat.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Keep it to yourself, dude. A couple golfers are Magic fans. That makes sense because the whole golfer community there. But no, same thing. Like it's the same thing as the Terry McLaren thing. Like they went out and got Desmond Bane and they're going to win now because they're going out and taking the swing. And I've been horrified sometimes to be a Magic fan over the past 14 years and they haven't had like a top half offense, top half of league offense since Dwight Howard left. And like, that's a little embarrassing. But the Terry McLaren thing, like, like, you know, he's the best go ball receiver in football or second or something like that. Best tight window receiver in football. Like go out and just, Just fix it.

[Zach]

I agree. Pay Terry.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's pretty Terry.

[Zach]

So what about the Bengals? Because I, I feel like they've gotten off to that terrible slow start for the last, what, three seasons? One was because of appendicitis. I get that he had surgery.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

But they, they just tend to start slow. I do feel like Zach Taylor might be. There's some hot seat talk about Zach.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Taylor if it doesn't, I guess. But the Brown fan. This is the whole thing with Marvin Lewis. If he has a year left on his contract, he's not going to get fired. They don't do. They're not making moves when they don't need to.

[Zach]

That's true.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They're a weird organization. They're the Cowboys. Weirder older cousin.

[Zach]

Yeah. So how would you describe the Bengals to somebody that might not be familiar with how Mr. Brown does business?

[Stephen A. Smith]

They had to sell naming rights to the stadium to sign Joe Burrow. That's a little different.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

My theory on that was that they should have just had. Whoever was gonna buy the rights to the stadium should have just bought the naming rights to Joe Burrow's contract or.

[Zach]

Just to Joe Burrow.

[Stephen A. Smith]

To Joe Burrow. So that way they're saying, like, it's the pay. I think it's a Paycore stadium. So you have to say the Paycor. Joe Burrow.

[Zach]

Joe Paycor.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Joe Paycor.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yes. Yes.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And just do it that way. And then all of a sudden, you know, probably some salary cap relief and pay. Cor gets its.

[Zach]

This might be. That's a. It's a funny situation. Might be a dumb question. Is it. Is an organization like paycor, would they be allowed to pay Joe burrow? Like, here's $50 million.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So I think there's some salary cap circumvention as far as that goes.

[Zach]

But creative with the cap.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You get creative with the cap. There was some of that. There weren't there stories about, like, some teams questioning whether or not the TB12 stuff was cap circumvention?

[Zach]

Right.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Was helping out TB12. And then it's like, is that there were some. There were some rumblings, you know, like 10 years ago from. From team just complain. But back then, there was a lot of, like Patriots derangement syndrome a decade ago where people were just complaining about everything that they did. So that could have been part of it. But I still, like. I assume there'd be an investigation. First of all, if Joe Burrow showed.

[Big Cat]

Up with a different Flora would be on that so fast. Oh, my God.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But yeah, they probably.

[Zach]

What about Jaden Raytheon?

[Stephen A. Smith]

It could. It's. Let's do it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Find out. The only way to find out is to do it.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's true.

[Stephen A. Smith]

We're in the arena. We're making things happen.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Listen, Jaden Raytheon move fast.

[Zach]

Break stuff, right?

[PFT Commenter]

Let them.

[Zach]

Let them punish us after the fact. Who would be a coach that. That might be a surprise hot seat guy this year.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Mike McDaniel's not that surprised, right?

[Zach]

No, no, I don't think so. I mean, he's just. He feels sad. I think he's sad.

[Stephen A. Smith]

What should have worked. It should have worked. Like, they had a really good team two years ago. Tyreek and Waddle, and he made two a lot better. But, like, the one thing that's funny about. About McDaniel is how much ex players on TV hate Mike McDaniel. They really hate him. Like, every time I'm like, I'm gonna go hard on the dolphin, some guy next to me is like, this is the worst team. This is the worst coach in the world. Oh, okay. I'm trying to think who else could.

[Zach]

Could be with Mike McDaniel, though? What happened this offseason with Tyreek Hill? Because Tyreek seems like he's openly being antagonistic to his head coach right now.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't think he wants to be there. He said he didn't want to be there anymore.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then tool was like, he's gotta. He's gotta fix that relationship. It doesn't sound like he's doing it.

[Zach]

No.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And he also. He got worse last year. He had. First two years he was in Miami, he led the NFL in deep receptions. It was 20 each season. Last year he had five. And so. And it's not like he was playing with Tyler Huntley the entire season. Like it was just the number and he was hurt and he had the thing week one that was obviously the craziest thing. So there's context there. Like he wasn't amazing to where a team's going to be like, hey, let's give you the Michael. Let's give you the Herschel Walker trade for the kill. So he's kind of there. So they kind of have. It's kind of a make work there.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And so I don't. It has this. The possibility to be such a sad place this year.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They could lose a lot and then everybody's getting injured.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then they start losing and everybody knows they're getting fired. And it should have worked. And they have a lot of guys under big contracts and just going to be really sad.

[Big Cat]

He seems like someone that would be a really good second job candidate too. Where it's like everything you described. Like, he's a good coach.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's a really good coach. And then he makes quarterbacks better.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And then this happens. All right. So I love this time of year trying to figure out we know how the NFL works. When you look at like who made the playoffs last year, you can just essentially say three of those teams are not going to make the playoffs. And so I try to figure out what's a team that maybe is. Everyone's low on that. You could buy low. I got two teams I want to throw out.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

And I think they might be a little crazy, but I want to hear what you have to say. The first is the New York Giants.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah. I think that's a little crazy.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think it's a little crazy.

[Big Cat]

I think their defense would be really good.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think their defense is going to be good. What. What's going. What's. What's the offense? There is a Jackson.

[Big Cat]

Jamis. Jamis. It's got to be Jameis.

[Zach]

It's rough for the first four weeks. And then they go to James.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Sprinkle in a little Tommy DeVito. But then James.

[Big Cat]

You don't think Tommy surprise people. I mean their deep. Their pass rush should be one of the best units in all of the NFL.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, I agree. I think that the past, the way they've handled it and you look at Abdul Carter, the practice clips are unbelievable and I think there's going to be a step forward there. I just think on offense there's nothing doing and like yeah, it can be a little sad. I don't think Russell Wilson can give you much. I think they're going to go to Jackson Darkness because of job preservation. The only way they save their job is either they win a bunch of games with Russell Wilson which seems. Or James which seems to be.

[Big Cat]

I don't think it's not. This is not. My thought is not predicated on Russell Wilson. Wilson just want that clear. I just not think he's good anymore.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But I think they have to start Jackson dark to save their job. Yeah, like, oh, look at that. We can't start over. We've got a guy. We've got a guy here. So we got to save our job.

[Big Cat]

So I win some ugly games.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Sure. I just don't. When is the one of they won ugly games? Like, I just don't.

[Big Cat]

I don't know. Again, I'd say this is crazy. And then the other one might be even crazier. I actually feel stronger about the Giants than the other one, the Raiders.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's not crazy. But the division is too hard. The Broncos are really good. I think the Chargers are pretty good.

[Big Cat]

I know.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then you have the Kansas City.

[Big Cat]

Chiefs but one of those teams not gonna make the playoffs just by. If you just go historically like, like I said the 17.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Someone gets injured. Yes.

[Big Cat]

Like something happens that we don't see.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think Gino Smith's really good and.

[Big Cat]

I think Pete Carroll gives consistency to that. They haven't had in a while.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Brock Bowers is good. They probably need another receiver. Defense can be okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Pete Carroll is really good. He's a really good coach and he's. And I think that the. The vibes can be high there. But I think it's like a nine win team.

[Big Cat]

Okay. So maybe I'm downgrading them for. From playoffs but I. It's more. Raiders can both be teams. If you look at the schedule and you're like that's a win. Maybe.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think the Raiders have been much better than.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't think it's. I don't think that's that crazy.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. All right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't think that's that crazy.

[Zach]

What about the Chargers in that division?

[Stephen A. Smith]

I love the Chargers.

[Big Cat]

I love the Chargers.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I Just. I don't want to delve deep into this. The Najee Harris thing is weird. Yeah, it's weird because they were.

[Big Cat]

Which. Which one are you talking about? The guy from Fresno that was on tv. That Najee Harris.

[Zach]

There was a different Najee Harris that got injured in a fireworks accident.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

But then the other one also had a firework.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It was crazy. It was a wild couple days.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

So just want to clarify which one you're talking about.

[Stephen A. Smith]

There was a tweet yesterday that was like. It was from a beat writer that was like, hey, Naji Harris is working off to the side. And remember a month ago he was deemed totally fine.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Everything was good. So yesterday it was like, he's working off to the side. And then there was a follow up tweet that was like, never mind. He's just standing there and so. That doesn't sound great. No, he's been. You know, it's. It doesn't seem good. But Hampton, bigger back, they want to run the ball. They probably, again, probably need another receiver. I think Jim Harbaugh is amazing.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So they'll probably win a bunch. I think they're probably gonna make the playoffs.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they're. They're. They are going to be third place in the division and, like, beat teams. They shouldn't or should, whatever. And then, and then still, like, the Broncos and the Chiefs to me are too good. The Broncos are awesome.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Broncos are a wagon dude.

[Big Cat]

So, all right, so then you give us a couple of teams that you could see making it into the playoffs that weren't in the playoffs last year.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So I don't really. I want to. I don't want to give you hope. I think the Bears might be okay.

[Big Cat]

Okay is where I'm fine with. Okay. Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

How are you processing?

[Big Cat]

It's okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

How are you processing Caleb Williams missing a net?

[Big Cat]

AI. Yeah, no, I have of. I'm trying to get more mature where it's like, look, the. What I liken it to is our, like, social team.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I assume all across the Internet, they're basically like police officers at the end of the month. They got to get their quote up. What do you do? You hit the Caleb Williams is bad button. Instant reach.

[Stephen A. Smith]

What if he's bad?

[Big Cat]

He could be bad.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I'm. My take on the Bears this year is I am excited for the fact that we have eliminated everything around Caleb Williams and we will find out if Caleb Williams is good, which is a.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Good thing to do because I didn't Find out.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, gotta find out. The coaches should be great. The offensive line is fixed. He's got weapons. Like, if Caleb Williams has a bad year, I'm not going to sit here and be like, oh, he might, you know, he needs this, he needs that. No, no, he's got it.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's. This got to be Joe Tuney, Drew Dahlman.

[Big Cat]

There's got to be a progression. Like Colson Loveland.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You know, Loveland, Cole Comet.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So no Keenan Allen out there.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

That Keen Allen interception at the end of the year was so funny, though, when he just. It, it's week 18.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Speaking of aggregators, people are still like, keenan Allen still available? What are we.

[Big Cat]

I think he's going to go to the Chargers.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Okay. What's that going to do?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, he's big.

[Stephen A. Smith]

There's a.

[Zach]

He's a big.

[Stephen A. Smith]

There's a. So my friends and I have something we call the Carmelo zone. Remember when Carmelo was, like, on his eighth team and it was like, every show was like, where's Carmelo going to sign? So the league doesn't care about Carmelo Anthony. So, like, why were you talking about this all the time? All respect to Carmelo, had an amazing career, but obviously it's like, blazers. Carmelo wasn't a huge bidding war.

[Big Cat]

Yes.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And so I think in the NFL, we get that even quicker. Like Titans. Julio Jones.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's like, oh, my God, someone's getting a stud. And it's like. Well, not really.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Moves on from these guys pretty quickly. And Keenan Allen is firmly in that zone right now, but we're getting, like, daily updates on him.

[Zach]

Davian Clowney's played his entire career.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

He's really figured it out. That man loves to travel. Where, where is he right now?

[Stephen A. Smith]

I thought the, the ex. He was on Carolina. I think he's a free agent right now. Right.

[Big Cat]

I think he's just waiting.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's just skipping Carolina. Then he went to Baltimore.

[Big Cat]

Wait, so do you don't think the Bears are a playoff team?

[Stephen A. Smith]

No, I think they might be.

[Big Cat]

Oh, okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Domini Foxworth thinks they're gonna win the division.

[Big Cat]

Okay. I'm not. I think the packers are very good.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I, I, I'm picking the Packers.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I, But I think the Bears can make the playoffs. I think Ben Johnson's really good. I think we already discussed all the upgrades. Like, Roma Dunes is really good.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

It's just Caleb. It just got to be good.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's Caleb.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And I think that he was so bad last year.

[Big Cat]

When he held onto the ball, that's a big thing. He's got to know when to quit play.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I have a theory. I don't want to like go into like generational warfare here.

[Zach]

No, I like this. I like where we're going.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think young quarterbacks hold on to the ball too long because they were never punished when they were in high school. Like when, if you were like born in 1985, you were playing on like concrete and then a little turf over it. And if you hold onto the ball too long, you were legally allowed to be like, get a tombstone right into the concrete. That was what happened when you held onto the ball too long in the 90s. And now the way the quarterbacks develop, like they're playing 77 all the time and they're playing high school where you can't hit the quarterback and then college where it's all the spread stuff. You're playing rid of the ball quickly. And so they get to the NFL and they just hold on the ball forever and because they've never been punished where it's like if you were 10 years ago, you just had to get rid of the ball or else you would die. Yeah, Existential thing. And now you've got this whole generation of quarterbacks who are like, I'm just going to pat the ball and just see what happens.

[Big Cat]

I also think you could throw in like, you know, Madden playing Madden where you can just drift backwards. You know what I mean?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Big Cat]

It's like that's not how real world works in the NFL. But like, if you play Madden, you can just be like, I'm not even going to care about a pocket.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm just going to drift back in ncaa. All I do is just, just roll to the right, wait for a crosser to open up. And you're right. 25 yard chunk play right back.

[Zach]

That's had like five broken ribs by the time he gets out of high school.

[Big Cat]

Maybe like, and his dad didn't let him play video games.

[Zach]

Yeah, maybe there's like a European thing.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, you know, Euroball, they say the fundamentals are better. Like is there like a, like an Austrian league where they're just, just punishing people?

[Zach]

Just killing the quarterback. I feel like that does still happen down south a little bit.

[Stephen A. Smith]

A little bit, yeah, probably.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

So we should just maybe don't get a California quarterback.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Don't get a California.

[Zach]

Do not look up where Jaden Daniels is from.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Or Caleb's from dc.

[Zach]

Dc but then, yeah, California. He's like an honorary California.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Where should they be from? Arkansas.

[Zach]

I think Louisiana.

[Big Cat]

I would say western P.A.

[Zach]

Alabama and Ohio.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Ohio.

[Zach]

Ohio quarterbacks.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I feel like Ohio quarterbacks took a lot of burrow. Looks like he's taking hits in high school.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

All right, so what other teams. Teams are going to surprise us. Not in the playoffs last year. You're high on.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I mentioned the Broncos earlier. I think they're a Super bowl contender.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yep.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they're a division contender.

[Zach]

Super bowl contender.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they're amazing.

[Zach]

I love it.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they're amazing. Like they have.

[Zach]

I'm a believer in Bo Nck.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm a believer defensive player of the year candidates. Last year, the boat Knicks thing, to me, like, it makes total sense. Last year in college football, there were six pretty good quarterbacks because the COVID year let everybody find their quarterback. Destiny.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's the Cam Ward story, too. It's like they. They. He kept transferring until he was number one overall pick. Same thing happened. There's a reason there were six really good quarterbacks in the draft last year is because these guys had had five years to figure it out. So Bo Nicks, to me, the fact that he found a home in Oregon and then he played a million snaps. He played like a thousand more snaps than J.J. mcCarthy did. It's funny that the worst quarterback in the draft class two years ago was the guy who went three and out. It was just your quarterback.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So maybe playing a lot of football matters. Maybe that that's a thing, but no, I think the Broncos are amazing. Like, they have one of the five best rosters in football.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay.

[Zach]

What about. What about the Lions? We were just in that division.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Is there reason to panic based off the hall of Fame game? We take a. I did see the.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Aggregators be like major aggression years.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

No, there's no. There's no. The roster is so good. It's just so stacked. That's the best way to like. There's a anecdote in Seth Wickersham's book about. About the Patriots where after the Patriots lost Romeo Cornell and Charlie Weiss, that somebody was on the field and they were talking to another coach and they were like, man, this is going to be a weird year. And the guy was like, it's all Bill. Like, it's all Bill.

[Zach]

No, don't.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Don't swear it. I think that some of these teams like Dan Campbell. I have another theory. This is. Dan Campbell is so jacked that people think he's not an offensive coach.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, he doesn't look like Mike McDaniel.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

You assume he's a. He's like a defensive guru.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. But he played tight end. Like, he. He's the one that nurtured Ben Johnson from an assistant tight ends coach in Miami to an offensive coordinator in Detroit. So the other thing about Dan, he told me once, like, he's the perfect mix of. Of gut feel and analytics and how they dovetail sometimes. So he told me that the reason he goes front and fourth down so much is that when he was with Sean Payton, who's analytically minded, that he would see how freaking scared the defense was.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

When he would go for it, and he was like, I want to do that. Like, that's what I want. I want, like, to see defensive coordinators, like, pissing themselves, basically.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Because we're going forward on fourth and four and taking a shot. Like, not. They're not running the Tushbush. They're, like, trying to go 30 yards down the field. No shot shots at the Tush push. But I just think that Dan Campbell is just so unique, and we. He's weirdly become. Because of Ben Johnson, really become underrated. Like, he had the. He authored the best culture change I've ever seen in football.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Ever. Like, the Lions were a joke for 40 years, and he understood exactly what that franchise needed. He wanted the job. Like, he was tearing up in our interview his first year because he was talking about he was a player there during the financial crisis in 08 and how hard Detroit got hit. Got hit. And he was like, I wanted all of Detroit to know. I feel their pain. And I don't think there's ever been a better story than that in coaching. And yet four years later, we're like, can Dan Campbell really do this?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, it's a joke.

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's a joke. Like, Dan Campbell's gonna do it.

[Big Cat]

The only thing I'll. I'll say about the Lions is, doesn't it feel like last year was such a. Everything was set up perfectly and then.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And they got hurt and then.

[Big Cat]

And then the kind of air comes out of the balloon a little bit, like they're still very good, but that's just kind of how the league works where it's. You know, last year was the year, like, that was the year they had the home field advantage. They, you know, won 15 games, all these things. And then to get back up off the mat, you get the brain drain.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think a lot of it goes to Aiden Hutchinson's health.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

If he comes Back.

[Big Cat]

He was. He was going to be the defensive player of the year, bro.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He was like, top 10 pressures in, like, December.

[Big Cat]

Oh, yeah.

[PFT Commenter]

We.

[Big Cat]

We always would just update it like. Like in the. Like, week 15. We'd be like, oh, Aiden Hutchinson's still number four.

[Zach]

He had an MVP case that he was making.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He really did. He really did. And, like, it's part of it. I always think that they should give retroactive Coach of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year awards, where it's like, I remember there was a year Earl Thomas went out and the Seahawks just forgot to play football.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And it's like, we should just go ahead and start giving DPOIs to Earl Thomas, because you see it right there. Like, Mike Tomlin should get, like, four coach of the years for the. The Antonio Brown, Leon Bell years. Like, just more. Just give him more like that. We should be awarded five years after the fact. Or there should be two awards.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like the retroactive coach of the year, but, like, Hutchinson, same deal. Like, you should have given him DPOI because you saw what happened when he went out.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It's totally different. I think the jets fans are very excited because they've got a new coach from that system. Bears fans obviously excited because they got that. But we've always said about Dan Gamble that the smartest thing that he's done is make people think that he's stuck.

[PFT Commenter]

Stupid.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Zach]

Like, throwing out all the meathead stuff. That's. And I do think he's, like, a significant part meathead. I think he's probably, like, 50 meter. But he's also very smart, and he loves to be underestimated by people. So when he goes on podcasts and he's like, yeah, I'm thinking about getting a lion on the sidelines, then that's good, because now people are like, look at this clown. And he's like, behind the scenes, actually, if you look at the numbers of when he goes for it, that dude absolutely knows the analytics through and through. Because he follows it to a table.

[PFT Commenter]

Yes.

[Zach]

I think he's a very smart guy.

[Big Cat]

And he's going to get the reverse of what I just said. You know, the year. Last year was their year and all that. He just gets to play chip on the shoulder, like people are doubting him. You know, like, that is a big thing.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm going there in two days, so it'd be great if by the time I'm there, he's already clipped this and has it. And so then the players.

[Big Cat]

Chip on the shoulder.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Chip on the shoulder.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Last year was the year.

[Big Cat]

Well, we're massive. Daniel Gamble.

[Stephen A. Smith]

What do you want to trip it right now? So last year. Let's just say last year. Last year was the year. So 20, 25.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You think they have no chance.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I mean, you. They missed their window.

[Zach]

It stinks.

[PFT Commenter]

This.

[Zach]

He was such a good story, and, you know, it all fell apart and he lost all. He lost his boy geniuses.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Aaron Glenn, Boy Jean.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

It's sad.

[Big Cat]

It's actually shocking that Dan Campbell can even, like, get. Find the. Find the facility every day, find his. Without his boy geniuses.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They were putting the address in the GPS every single.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Ben Johnson was sitting shotgun. I mean, like, going to take a left here, Dan.

[Zach]

You see the hall of Fame game?

[PFT Commenter]

It was.

[Big Cat]

It was 10.

[Zach]

Terrible, bad offensive line play. Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I did. I will say this. He did a linebacker returning kicks, which I don't know about that one.

[Big Cat]

That was just freaky with it.

[Zach]

Yeah. I was like, what the.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That was the one thing. You can clip that down. Like, that was our one.

[Big Cat]

All right. Other teams that you're high on that we're not. We're not looking at. Because, you know, like, I think the AFC obviously could say Chiefs, the Ravens, the. The Bills. You like the Broncos a lot.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I love the Broncos.

[Big Cat]

But, like, who's another.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You know who I think's gonna be pretty good is the Tennessee Titans. Oh, I think Cam.

[Big Cat]

Or now that has. No, you're unbiased. We want this on the record. Completely unbiased. I think Evan Clark is not one of those psycho Miami fans that says they're back every single year. They won three games.

[Stephen A. Smith]

This year, they won 10 games.

[Big Cat]

Okay. In the ACC.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Yeah, I know we play in a lot. We play in a big boy lead.

[Zach]

And we also.

[Big Cat]

And we got your earliest. And we got your quarterback who's stuck. Dunk.

[PFT Commenter]

Wait, wait.

[Zach]

It's not my fault you're suing Miami.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Wisconsin is tampering.

[Big Cat]

Miami was tampering.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, we were the first. We invented tampering six months ago.

[Zach]

Miami's never tampered.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Hey, I have a question. Why, when Tanner Mordecai wasn't in the portal, was it reported he was going to Wisconsin a couple years ago?

[Big Cat]

I don't understand. I don't know the portal. Dude, you figured out you're a Geek squad guy. Go back to the Titans.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So I wanted. I will say this. The Syracuse game was the worst thing that's ever happened to me. Like, in Life. I've thought about it. It was the worst thing do to rap.

[Big Cat]

Okay. That's a pretty good life.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah. No, I thought, I thought about that too. How lucky am I? There's a thing I talk about, I think about like every day in the shower is like, we blew a 21.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You just delayed when you're going to get your ass kicked.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, but it been nice.

[Big Cat]

It would have been. No, I agree. It's about the ride in college football, especially making it to the. To the playoff is cool.

[Stephen A. Smith]

All that stuff I have a thing real quick about. So I have my son there and like there were two things about. Number one is I knew we were going to lose when my son, who loves sports, put his hands over his ears during a big third down. I was like, the kids rattled. Yeah, we're done. He's like so happy. And he's like, he's choking.

[Big Cat]

He's choking. Stadium pulse.

[Stephen A. Smith]

My son literally was choking because of the stadium pulse at the Carrier Dome. But then the other thing is when the game ended, my wife was like looking at me like, if he expires right now, like if he hits the eject button like you're. He had been for four hour game. So as soon as Miami loses, I pick him up and I run out and we get him in the car and he falls asleep and I'm feeling amazing. And we start driving back and then it doesn't hit me how awful the loss was for like a week. Like literally, because I'm just. My win was me getting him in the car seat. Right. So my new theory on this is that you should just be able to rent kids for high leverage games.

[Zach]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then that's. You just take care of them. And that way you're not that focused on potential catastrophic. Like if the Bills make the super bowl, we need like a station of kids.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Where it's like, hey, you actually have to watch this kid the entire game.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

You feel fulfilled in some way.

[Big Cat]

I like that.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then you don't. You know, if the Bills lose, we can, we can go from there.

[Zach]

It's not a bad idea.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, no, it's good.

[Zach]

But Cam Ward.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Oh, yeah, Cambord.

[Big Cat]

He said.

[Zach]

But he said the offense was mid.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, but that's his thing. That's his thing. He's like. Well, no, so.

[Zach]

So Brandon was just talking about pretty cool thing. I'll be honest. Like, being a mid quarterback is a great life.

[PFT Commenter]

It is.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Is.

[PFT Commenter]

So.

[Stephen A. Smith]

There'S two types of we suck. There's like The Joe Burrow, like, Joe Burrow a couple years ago was like, this is terrible. And Jamar Chase, like, I can't catch the ball. And then they won. Made the super bowl that year. And then there's like the we actually suck thing. And you have to be able to tell the difference between the two. Like, there's some places where, you know, like, if, if Kellen Moore was like, this Saints team sucks, you'd be like, okay. But if, like, if, if, if, if Baker Mayfield says it, it's like, no, they, they're just in the process. Right. That buck seems really good. So with Cam Moore, I think it's an expectation thing. He knows how to run. Like, the stories that came out of Miami last year were unbelievable. Like, just, just from August, he's a culture changer. He makes everybody better.

[PFT Commenter]

He.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He is so calm and he's almost too calm in the pocket. And.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, he's standing flat footed half the time.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And just like throwing those little piggies. Like, I have a story. I have a friend who was on the sideline for the Gator game. And they, the first drive of that game, they were. It was a touchdown to Cam McCormick, the 27 year old. And he scored. And it was seven nothing. It was like 12 minutes to go in the game. And one of the offensive coaches walked in, my buddy, and was like, this game's over. And he was like, what do you mean? He's like, there's 90,000 people here. The calmest guy in the stadium is the Miami quarterback. Like, he's the only one whose hands aren't shaking. He's the only one who's not doing stadium pole shit. Like, he was just, just. It was, it was the swamp. It was August 31st and he was. It was like he was in his living room just pouring coffee.

[PFT Commenter]

Right?

[Stephen A. Smith]

And I think that that translates to the NFL level. He's not going to be rattled. I think. Hopefully Calvin Ridley's healthy enough. I don't know if Verstappel is going to make the team. We'll see how that goes. But, like, I just think that, like Steve Young said this one time about Mahomes thinking about it all the time, where everybody gives him the credit for the Superman stuff, but nobody gives Mahomes the credit for the Clark Kent stuff stuff. And Cam Moore can do both those things. He can just fire it into a tight end, or he can just run back and forth for five seconds until, as the aforementioned video game thing, someone comes open on a cross. So, like, I think he's going to be immediately good.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

What do you think about the Panthers this year?

[Big Cat]

Are we.

[Zach]

Are we crazy? Talk about the Panthers decent. We think they might go to the Super Bowl.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That might be crazy.

[Zach]

If you look at the stats they.

[Big Cat]

Play, stats do say they're going to go.

[Zach]

They played every time they've played Jacksonville in opening week, I think.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, something like that.

[Zach]

They've gone to the Super Bowl. And also every year that Jennifer Lopez gets a divorce, they go to the Super Bowl.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's.

[Zach]

Numbers never lie.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's rock solid.

[Zach]

But I do. Yeah, I do think that that Bryce Young, he's gotten better. He was great last year for the second half or better.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, he was. He was. No, he was. It wasn't. Is that like the Caleb Williams cope is that he'll get.

[PFT Commenter]

Get.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They'll get better in a second year?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I mean, no, Bryce Young looked good.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, Dave Canalis is really good. Need easy answers. And I think that there's like, the defense can be okay. Like Dan Morgan. I think Dan Morgan's got a little Dan Campbell in him. And they like, he gets up there and he's like, we just want dogs, man. We just want dogs. But then you talk to him and it's like, oh, he actually. He gets it. Like there's a public Persona and a private Persona. Like, he understands. And they have an analytics department that's really robust bust. So I'm like, long on them. It seems like David Tepper is. Has kind of figured out how to trust his people now. So I don't think it's crazy that they're going to be good. I do think it's a little crazy understanding the Jennifer Lopez thing, I also left out.

[Zach]

I don't think that a point. It's also the year after the Ohio State Buckeyes win the championship and they play Jacksonville Week 1 and Jennifer Lopez gets a divorce. That's all happening this year. So the stars are truly lying for Carolina.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's a good thought.

[Zach]

And when with David Tepper, he is in the phase of new owners. I love watching owners, like, figure out how leagues work. This is the phase where he's like, I have to be able to trust my football guys and not medal.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And then once things start to go bad, then he's going to start meddling again.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Zach]

And then two years from then, he'll be like, I've learned that I need to trust my guys and let them do their jobs.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So I think there's three types of owners. There's team Owners that know how to win and want to win. There's owners that don't know how to win and want to win, and then there's owners that don't care either way.

[PFT Commenter]

Way.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And I think that the don't care either way is not. Don't carry their way. But, like, if they win, it's incidental. They're never like, I'm gonna die if we don't win 10 games.

[Big Cat]

It's a lot of the. The inheritance owners.

[Stephen A. Smith]

A lot of it. Well, they don't. They're not cash.

[Big Cat]

Right. Exactly. They're like, hey, we got a good thing going.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

There's.

[Big Cat]

If we get lightning in a bottle and go to the playoffs. Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But they're not gonna, like, yeah, they're. They're not gonna move heaven and earth to win 14 games, which I think some of the new owners are, but I also think they don't know how to win.

[Big Cat]

Like.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Like, I think there are some owners, like, Tepper is one of them. He. If he didn't want to win, he wouldn't fire people all the time. He would just be like, ah, Matt Rule, that's fine. We'll just let you do your contract and figure it out later. Like, he wants to win.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He doesn't know how to. So then it's like, all right, hire Dan Morgan and Brantillis and Dave Canales and then just. Just you guys do this. Which is the best way to do it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

What about the New England Patriots? Are you high on them?

[Stephen A. Smith]

I mean, I'm high on Vrabel as a. As an entity.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they still have a ways to go. Like, I think that the funny thing, like, I thought Drake May was really good, and I was really impressed with him coming in, and I thought that. That what he showed last year, like, with his legs, with just, like, being under assault. Like, he. He had the worst offensive line of football, and he still showed something, which you can't say about Caleb Williams. And so I. I was. I was hugely impressed. And I think that, like, have you guys met him before Drake May?

[Big Cat]

No.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

I don't think so.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He's like. He's got the right. He's got, like, a franchise quarterback attitude. He also told me it's important. Important Philip Rivers trains him, and he said that Philip Rivers beats him in throwing contests, like, all the time. So Philip's still got it.

[PFT Commenter]

I.

[Zach]

So I think that. I'm mad at Kyle Shanahan. I'm mad at Kyle Shanahan for leaking the story that if they had made the super bowl and they had no quarterback, that he would have called Philip Rivers out of retirement to play in the Super Bowl. I'm mad at him for, for saying that out loud because that's all I think about is how awesome that would have been.

[Big Cat]

The coolest thing ever.

[Zach]

Put Philip Rivers in there last minute.

[Stephen A. Smith]

How long do you think we have where that would be a viable option for Phil Privers? Like, could. Would you do it this year?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

If you make this.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And you're missing a quarterback, I still think you need to follow up Brett Favre. Just get him out there just one more time.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think five might be tough.

[PFT Commenter]

Might.

[Big Cat]

Might be. All right, since we talked about some of the teams that will surprise us, who is going to have the number one pick next year? Who's the worst team in the NFL?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Saints.

[Big Cat]

Saints, probably.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I just don't see a path to them winning. The only thing about the Saints is that they, they really like winning games, right? They really like winning games. And so if they get the first overall pick, it's going to be accidental.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay?

[Stephen A. Smith]

It's going to be accidental. They're not going to, They're. They're going to try to win games into December. Like the heartbeat of the, of the franchise, like the heartbeat of the city is through the franchise. So I don't think they can be like, hey, let's be 1 in 16 this year. Yeah, I don't. I think the Giants are going to win enough games. I mean, the Saints are by far.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

What about. I, I think Rogers is going to be better than people think, and I think the Steelers are going to be slightly better than people think. Exactly.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I think they're going to win like nine to 10 games.

[Big Cat]

Well, that's about. That's. That's exactly what people think.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's exactly winning record.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

So you think it's like 12:30, maybe 11:12. I just think Rogers, I think he has. He's got the. Sufficient chip on his shoulder again where it's like everyone was. Was like, this guy should retire. He stinks. The Jets. The jets saying to him, like, we do not want you will make Aaron Rodgers good again.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But why wasn't he good? Green Bay said, we don't want you.

[Big Cat]

Well, no, but he also didn't want Green Bay a little bit. He was, though. They drafted Jordan Love. He won an mvp.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Right.

[Big Cat]

So they basically were. Hey, they waited until.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They waited until they were done with him.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

No, but he got. He was bad. They drafted Jordan Love. He got good again. So like he needs that little. Hey, you stink. Enough of the doubters. And then obviously this is like a renewable resource.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He can keep doing this forever.

[Big Cat]

Correct. And obviously I got that. I do think the Achilles like you know, obviously it was such bullshit when he was like I'm going to be back this year. I think Achilles at that. We saw it with Kirk Cousins. Like it's probably more of like a 18 month, 24 month injury for a guy on the wrong side of the third 30.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Right.

[Big Cat]

So I don't know, I just, I feel like he's got one more year in him because he's just the boogeyman that never dies. And then the Steelers do have a good defense and they just haven't had competent quarterback play in the last five years.

[Stephen A. Smith]

He changed the way he played last year. He was I think it was one of the shortest depth of targets he's ever had. He had a quick release like he was getting rid of the, getting the ball really quickly. And so I think he's a different guy than he was during his MVP years obviously but I don't think he's going to sit, stand back there and just wait for magic to happen. So I think that the ceiling is a little lower but the floor is high. Like he knows where to put the ball. Like we've seen that before with older quarterbacks. They know how to put where they put the ball so.

[Big Cat]

And his arm is still good. Like I do think his arm is still good. I think it's the mobility. That's, that's right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But what is it without mobility? Yeah, of course you go from MVP to just pretty good. So I think he's gonna be like a 15th best quarterback in the win 10 games.

[Zach]

Okay, 15th best would be good for the Steelers.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, they haven't had the 15th best quarterback in a long time.

[Zach]

Better question is are they going to win a playoff game?

[Stephen A. Smith]

No.

[Zach]

Okay, so make the playoffs. Rinse and repeat. Same, same deal.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Both Aaron Rodgers.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. All right.

[Zach]

What about week one? Is Kirk Cousins in Atlanta?

[PFT Commenter]

Falcon?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, I think so. I don't know what they're doing. So like the Falcons to me seem to be their entire. The premise of their entire organization is that Michael Penix is the best quarterback of all time. Like he's the guy. It's like well we gotta draft a quarterback. Even though we signed a guy with like $60 million of guarantee. We got trade up a first round pick next year for my, for, for James Pierce. The whole thing is like, is the whole Boat or the whole, the whole plane is made out of Michael Penix. Right. And so I don't understand a lot of what they've done over the past 18 months. But the other they said my, the Kirk Cousins is going to be a backup and I kind of believe them. Like they gave him the roster bonus. Like they're really committed to the back bit. They're really committed. They gave him like a huge roster bonus paying him all this money. They keep saying nobody believed them that he was gonna be the backup. But then they keep putting their money where their mouth is and he's the backup.

[Zach]

Yeah, no, you're right. It's the entire premise. It's a house of cards and it's built on. The only way you operate in that scenario where you, you draft Michael Penck in the top 10 is if you truly believe he's the best quarterback that's in like the next three or four drafts.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Zach]

And they did it.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They did it it.

[Zach]

And I don't know if he is. That's the thing.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I don't know. I don't.

[Big Cat]

But he might be.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's the thing. I just don't know. What would you like three games, what.

[Zach]

Would you want to see from Michael Penck this year? To be like the Falcons did the right thing. I'm an idiot.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So a couple people have said he's like an elite deep passer. I mean we saw that at Washington.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But like I would like to see just like huge chunk plays this year. Just a proof of concept. I saw that their offensive coordinator studying 2023 Washington like to see the offense a little bit more because it's really, really fun and just throw it up to Roma Dunes and good things were happening and all the Jalen Polk and Jalen McMillan, all those guys like that was really fun. So I could do like spread it out, just throw the ball down the field. Bijan, Kyle Pitts.

[Zach]

Yeah. If Kyle Pitts gets unlocked 12 touchdowns this year I'd say good choice with Michael Pennix. Yeah, that's what it finally took.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm taking the under.

[Big Cat]

I'd agree with that. All right, I got one last question. It's been awesome. Awesome. Kevin. Well, I'll definitely have you back on during the season. Everyone check. You're all over the place. Do you have any big, big things coming up? So you obviously have your show, the Omaha thing.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That'll be on ESPN too and ESPN News all, all season. We don't have any big things coming up. Not really. Like get up first, take NFL Live, probably okay. Going forward. And that's, that's basically it. I don't have much to plug. Just this is football rig of your pods and it's on TV and all that stuff. OMA production.

[Big Cat]

I love it. All right, so my last question. Roback question. Rho, B, A, C, K.com promo code, take 20% off your first purchase. Q, zips, polos, hoodies, joggers, shorts. Roback.com promo code, take. Give us your championship game and super bowl. And winner.

[Stephen A. Smith]

All right, so I've been saying all off season, it's going to be Ravens, Rams.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

Ravens beat the Rams.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Ravens beat the Rams. My concern is Matthew Stafford back week to week. Is not what I want to hear.

[PFT Commenter]

No.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's not what I want to hear.

[PFT Commenter]

No.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So with the caveat that if Stafford's back isn't healthy, I would go with the Eagles. Okay. I'm sure that's a cop out, but, like, we can't be doing week to week. He's, you know, he's 37 or whatever.

[Zach]

Right.

[Stephen A. Smith]

So there's that championship game. Go Rams. Eagles commanders are really good. I want to pick them. I just can't. Sorry, buddy.

[Zach]

No, I hear you.

[Stephen A. Smith]

And then Bears. I'm not.

[PFT Commenter]

I'm not.

[Big Cat]

No, I didn't expect you. Afc.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I'm. Go. Ravens. Bills.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Just a classic.

[Zach]

I was going to say Bronson.

[Stephen A. Smith]

That's another. The Ravens. Ravens. Bills would be a rent a kid situation.

[Big Cat]

Oh, man. Seriously? Seriously. Well, I'm excited because football is about to be back, so. Yeah, I love nothing better. Oh, give us a win total for the Miami Hurricanes.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Two losses. So they open with Notre Dame. Then they have Florida on the third or fourth week of the season. Fourth week of the season, they'll split those.

[Big Cat]

And then they got the acc.

[Stephen A. Smith]

They got the acc. Two November games on the road at Pitt and at Virginia Tech. Pat Narduzzi would love nothing more than just an annoying, like, four turnover, a couple fumbles, probably a night game. And pit. I'll probably be there. My son's probably rattled as hell. Like, I, I, I could see that being the second loss.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[Zach]

Yeah. Stephen A. Smith is going to be shocked. Week one when you're like, I'm actually on the Convicts.

[Big Cat]

All right, well, Kevin, awesome time having you here. Thanks for coming in. Good luck on the rest of the trip. And let Dan Campbell know, like, give him, give him the chip.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I will. Here you go.

[Big Cat]

They said you can't even drive a car without Ben Johnson. Aaron Glenn.

[Zach]

Kevin Clark was brought to you by our good friends at Chevy. For over a century, Chevy has been building trucks that don't flinch and they never quit. Whether you're hauling lumber on the job or if you're trying to get the smoker, the cooler, the cornhole bore boards and the whole crew to the tailgate on time, Chevy will get you there. When Chevy says most dependable truck, they're not just speculating. Chevy trucks have earned more dependability awards for trucks than any other brand. According to J.D. power 2025, they got the stats to prove it. In every Chevy truck, dependability comes standard. The fullback of trucks. It's almost low man season, which, by the way, I don't know if you saw this. Tom Fornelli might be kicked off the low man committee.

[Big Cat]

Oh, no.

[Zach]

He did a position, positional ranking of football positions. He had fullback. I want to say third to last. Oh, maybe fourth to last.

[Big Cat]

Yikes.

[Zach]

Bad look. But the Chevy Silverado, that is the fullback of trucks. We love Chevy. We love fullbacks. Visit Chevy.com for more. Visit JD Power.com Awards for More Award details. Kevin Clark was also brought to you by our great friends at Proper 12. It's PFT here I'm making my Irish entrance with Proper Number 12 Irish Whiskey. How do you make an Irish entrance, you ask? It starts with a shot of proper number 12 Irish whiskey. Because real friends don't let friends Irish exit a party without a story to tell. Original proper number 12 is a rich and smooth blend of golden grain and single malt aged four years in bourbon barrels. Mix it up with some ginger ale, you get a classic and refreshing proper ginger. And if you're in the mood for something smooth but a little sweeter, try proper Irish apple. A delicious blend of proper's award winning Irish whiskey with crisp, crisp, fresh notes of apple. So get out there, make your Irish entrance. Anything else wouldn't be proper. Make your Irish entrance with proper number 12 Irish whiskey. And now here is AJ Brown.

[Big Cat]

Okay, we now welcome on a very, very, very special guest Super bowl champion, two time All Pro. It is A.J. brown from the three time All Pro. My bad. Already bad. I thought it was three Pro Bowls. Two time All Pro, three time all probably Super bowl champion, A.J. brown from the Philadelphia Eagles. It is our grit week presented by. Hey, dudes. We start every interview the same. What does the word grit mean to you?

[A.J. Brown]

Just pushing past a point where.

[Big Cat]

You.

[A.J. Brown]

Your brain or anyone else thinks you can go.

[Big Cat]

I like that. I like that. Have you had that? Is that. How often does that come up in an NFL season where you're like. Like, I'm at the limit right now, but I got to dig deep and.

[A.J. Brown]

Go past that a few times late in the season. Especially when your body doesn't want to respond the way you want it to, and you just. You just keep going. You just, you know, just find a way to, you know, to get through it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And believe it or not, those are some of my best days.

[Big Cat]

Really?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay.

[Zach]

What's an example of that?

[A.J. Brown]

Like, playing hurts the back half of the season. Get my knee drained twice a week. Get my knee drained right before the game, the Washington game. Go out there and have a good performance, then the following week, the following week, the following week and shoot even the super bowl right before the Super Bowl.

[Zach]

How are you feeling now?

[PFT Commenter]

Ready to go?

[Zach]

Pretty good. Is camp hard?

[A.J. Brown]

Absolutely.

[Zach]

Does it get any easier?

[PFT Commenter]

I don't know, man.

[A.J. Brown]

I don't know. You know, we had some tough, tough. Like, the past two days were very, very tough, you know? You know, Nick always say it takes what it takes. You know, us joking with him is like saying it's going to take all of us out. You keep on going at this rate, but it's. It's been tough, though.

[PFT Commenter]

It's cool, though. Yeah. Yeah. The.

[Big Cat]

By the way, the. I don't know if this is a good thing or a bad thing, but it's a good thing for you. Have you seen the completion of the trade from Tennessee to Philadelphia? Might be the. The best trade the Eagles have ever made. And because they got you and everything you've done, does that feel at least good to be in? Like, I. They took a chance on me. They got me, and I basically overperformed to, like, an insane level in terms of the return. Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

You know, I'm grateful that happened, and I. I like to say, like, you know, I. I grew that situation in Tennessee, you know, I'm glad this happened because I. I feel like I was meant to.

[PFT Commenter]

To.

[A.J. Brown]

To shine and this. We needed a big team with a big market, you know, and I. And I think this is the right place and the best fit for me. You know, I am a little sad, you know, for Traylon Burks, and I. I wish he could, you know, get healthy because he's a good kid, and I. And I talked to him numerous of times. I got his number, and it just sucks to see it go down like that.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

But.

[A.J. Brown]

So, yeah.

[Zach]

Was there an adjustment period? Just living in Philadelphia, living in the Northeast for the first time?

[A.J. Brown]

The weather. Yeah, honestly, the weather you know, it gets really cold here, and I wish it was kind of cold now. It's so hot outside.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Starkville, right?

[A.J. Brown]

Yeah, from Starkville.

[Hank]

Okay.

[Zach]

But he went to Ole Miss.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

What was that like? Were people in Starkville mad?

[A.J. Brown]

Oh, absolutely. I was getting death threats.

[PFT Commenter]

Really?

[Big Cat]

Really?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

It was serious, and I didn't really take it serious. My dad, you know, took it very seriously, but. But I was just a kid just getting ready to play football and just kind of brushed it off.

[Big Cat]

Was it between the two?

[A.J. Brown]

It was between Alabama and Ole Miss.

[Big Cat]

Oh, so Mississippi State was never even in the run, so they can't even be mad.

[A.J. Brown]

Yeah, but they just expected me to go there.

[PFT Commenter]

Right.

[A.J. Brown]

So when I closed out the recruiting, I remember telling Dan Mullen saying, I don't want to. You no longer can recruit me. I don't want to. I'm not coming here. And that's when it just kind of started to, like, oh, shoot. Like, look what we done. We done messed up. Up and shoot. Long story short, you know, I had this. I had this Challenger, white, white challenger with a red stripe. Everybody knew it was me. Had the license plate, 1K. And shoot. I was getting followed. People taking pictures of my car, posting online, and I didn't even know it. I'm a kid and my dad was like, oh, this is serious.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. So.

[Zach]

So you're 17 years old and you're having people follow you around.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

In Starkville.

[Zach]

Damn, that's messed up. Was it Brandon Walker?

[Big Cat]

Brandon Walker.

[Zach]

We might know who did that, did that.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, we probably do.

[Big Cat]

We could probably get him.

[Zach]

I'll beat the out of him.

[Big Cat]

We know exactly who did it. I got a dumb question for you, but I feel like this had to have something to do with it. How much was it, the jersey colors to be like Ole Miss over Mississippi State or Alabama? Even Mississippi State doesn't have the best jurisdiction. No, they don't.

[A.J. Brown]

And they are Adidas, too.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

I'm not Adidas fan.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[A.J. Brown]

I'm not throwing shot at Adidas, but I'm not an Adidas fan.

[Zach]

The cleats, that's a shot I did.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's fine. That's fine.

[Zach]

But let's be honest. Like, I decided not to go to the school because of their shoes.

[Big Cat]

But the colors stink.

[A.J. Brown]

I mean, I just. I would just prefer, you know, Nikes, you know, and. But I will tell you this, though. I didn't choose Georgia because I got recruited from Georgia. I didn't choose Georgia because I don't like wearing black socks.

[Big Cat]

Oh, yeah, that may be.

[A.J. Brown]

That may be crazy, but I hate wearing.

[Big Cat]

No, I think, I think people don't ever like, like put in like a 17 year old. Obviously there's, you know, whether you're being close to home or like the coaching staff, but I feel like, I mean, you played the game online, you played the video game. Like jersey combinations do matter a little bit.

[A.J. Brown]

It absolutely does. Because putting on black socks with black cleats is just so slow. It's so hideous. It's slow because when I put on white, I feel so fast, so smooth. Like it's just something about it.

[Big Cat]

What are your fastest cleats? Because non white cleats. Your fastest cleats? Because I have an answer. I don't know if you have the same answer.

[A.J. Brown]

Answer the fastest cleats.

[PFT Commenter]

I don't know.

[A.J. Brown]

Something white. It doesn't matter.

[Big Cat]

No, you had these like neon green ones that looked so fast. I literally, I remember against Tampa, it might have been.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I was just like, this is the.

[A.J. Brown]

Fastest anyone's ever looked NFL said, take those off.

[Big Cat]

Okay. Yeah, cuz you were too fast. Yeah, that's exactly why they were like, those cleats can't be legal.

[Zach]

Did you used to play like NBA Jam? When you go turbo mode, your shoes glow. That's what they were. Yeah, they're like, that's not. That's not allowed.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

So are you faster in Eagles colors than you were in Titan's colors?

[A.J. Brown]

Oh, I mean, I'm faster now.

[Zach]

So you can say that the colors have anything to do with it.

[A.J. Brown]

No, cuz I. I did like the Prada blue uniforms. I loved it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Those are nice. Those are nice. Big store. Obviously you guys win the super bowl, but one of the big stories for you this year was, was reading a book on the sideline interaction excellence. When that happened, were you like, this is insane that it's blown up like this and everyone's going crazy?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

They came and talked, talked to me in the locker room, said, hey, they got you on the sideline reading the book. And I'm like, okay. But I do it every week. It's like, nah, this is, this is big time this time. And. And it just blew up. And obviously, you know, I had great intentions behind it. I wasn't seeking attention or anything, but. But, you know, I'm glad it changed his life, you know, because, you know, from, from what we discussed, you know, from just the hearing, just how the book, just the sale started to go crazy, you know, I'm happy that it changed Someone's life in the process.

[Big Cat]

And you also have a literacy foundation which is doing great work. So what. Tell me about that, because I got. I got a pitch for you after that.

[A.J. Brown]

I have so many ideas, I don't want to really get onto it. We can talk about it after off camera.

[Big Cat]

But you're helping, you know, kids learn how to read and.

[A.J. Brown]

Absolutely. My foundation is based on mentorship and giving back and doing stuff like that. And that's something I'm proud of too, because when I grew up, I didn't used to like to read. I didn't like to read. And so as I got older, I started to learn more and to stop being on my phone so much, because social media, I feel like my brain fries, you know, I have to look at it for so long and it's like I'm looking at stupid stuff, you know, And I just wanted to push myself and educate myself in different areas in different ways.

[PFT Commenter]

So.

[Big Cat]

Okay. All right, so here's my pitch. We're writing a book right now.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

10 year anniversary of this podcast coming out next year. What if you write a chapter in the book so there's less work for us and then. And then everyone in your literacy foundation has to read our books. You got to buy a lot of.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Them, too, but you get to write a chapter.

[Big Cat]

Chapter thoughts. It's pretty good. Pretty good deal.

[Zach]

Think about all the kids that we.

[Big Cat]

Are probably going to be. We might be a New York Times bestseller. You can then say you're a New York Times bestseller. Or.

[A.J. Brown]

Okay, I could just wait until my book comes out.

[Big Cat]

That's fair.

[Zach]

Okay, we'll write a chapter in your book.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, we'll put a chapter in your book.

[A.J. Brown]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

We'll do a home and home.

[PFT Commenter]

All right. All right.

[Big Cat]

This is like a home and home in college football. We want. We. You're going to come and you're gonna do our book in 2026, and we'll do your book in like 2035. We'll go visit your place.

[A.J. Brown]

My book is gonna come out sooner.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. All right.

[Zach]

Where's your book coming out?

[A.J. Brown]

I don't know yet, but it's way sooner than 2035.

[Zach]

What's your book about?

[A.J. Brown]

Myself.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

You can literally. You could plagiarize half our book if you need.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Once it's written, it's.

[A.J. Brown]

I like, I like the idea, though.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

All right. We can work.

[Zach]

The kids want a chapter about Coach K in your book.

[A.J. Brown]

Coach K?

[Zach]

Yeah, they can take that chapter.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

He's a scumbag that's what I'm going to write. I don't know what's going on.

[Stephen A. Smith]

All right.

[Zach]

Are you reading anything right now?

[A.J. Brown]

Am I reading nothing other than the Bible right now.

[Zach]

Okay, you, like, you're actually going through the Bible. Are you going in order?

[Big Cat]

No.

[A.J. Brown]

So I read the Gospels already and I got this study Bible that I use, so I just read First Corinthians, Second Corinthians, and I'm in Galatians right now, so. So sometimes I reread books of the.

[Zach]

Bible, but, you know, so are you a highlighter guy? Do you, like, see things?

[A.J. Brown]

I do.

[Zach]

And then you try to, like, practic whatever you've highlighted, whether it's the Bible or, you know, what you read on the sideline. Inner excellence. And then try to apply that in your. In your day to day.

[A.J. Brown]

Absolutely. That's something that, like highlighting always helped me, especially with the Bible. But when I'm. Whenever I'm reading a book, it's just something that I always want to go back to, like, inner excellence. I had highlighted stuff that I just could flip to it, and it just sparked my interest. But reading the Bob is kind of. It's a little different.

[Zach]

So with inner excellence in particular, was there something that you. You took from that book that you just like, straight up applied to how you go about your day to day?

[A.J. Brown]

I applied it to my process during. On the field.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Big Cat]

Yes.

[PFT Commenter]

So, yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I don't think people talk enough about the fact that you got drafted in MLB as well. So were you ever thinking about, like, being a baseball player and do you miss it?

[A.J. Brown]

I miss it at times. I watched a couple of videos of me hitting the other day on my phone.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[A.J. Brown]

And just the sound of the bat, it just. It's a different type of feeling.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

Yeah. And I do miss it. Did I consider it.

[Zach]

When I was.

[Big Cat]

Like 7 to 18?

[A.J. Brown]

7 years, 17 or 18 years old? Not so much because I started to fall in love with football.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And it just. Football just took. Took over.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

What position did you play?

[A.J. Brown]

Center field.

[Big Cat]

Okay. No. You must have had insane range.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And then how. How are you hitting your senior year? High school?

[A.J. Brown]

I did really well. I batted like, above, like 300.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[A.J. Brown]

But it's high school, though.

[Big Cat]

But it's still, like, impressive to be drafted in two sports. That's not, you know, to be that good to be drafted out of high school in MLB and. And obviously be a high draft pick in the NFL.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And then I went to Ole Miss and I Signed the contract, obviously, just for money reasons.

[Big Cat]

With the MLB team?

[A.J. Brown]

With the MLB team.

[Big Cat]

Who was it?

[A.J. Brown]

The Padres.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And got the signer bonus because it's there for me.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[A.J. Brown]

Why wouldn't you?

[Big Cat]

Right.

[A.J. Brown]

And so I did that and I went to Arizona for, like, rookie ball. And I'm out there practicing with the team and everything and. And I felt like I was the left one out, you know, and everybody speaks Spanish. I didn't speak Spanish. I didn't know any Spanish. And the whole team, it was just, you know, more Dominicans and everything. So it was just. It was tough. Yeah, it was tough. And I was ready to go.

[Big Cat]

You're a young kid.

[A.J. Brown]

Yeah, I was ready to go.

[Big Cat]

And you fallen in love with football?

[A.J. Brown]

I fall in love with football, yeah. I just wanted to get back to Ole Miss as soon as I could.

[Big Cat]

But it was cool that you actually tried it.

[PFT Commenter]

It. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You know, because you got paid.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And I got paid.

[Big Cat]

Right. If you never tried it, you probably. There'd be a small part of you being like, man, what if. What if I had tried that?

[Zach]

Do you remember when you fell in love with football?

[A.J. Brown]

Yes, actually.

[Zach]

Was there a moment?

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Zach]

What was that?

[A.J. Brown]

I was playing against West Point my junior year. I had four catches for four touchdowns and 205 yards. Every time I touch the ball score. And that moment, joking about it with my father because he would say, if Nick Saban ever comes, like, you going to Alabama?

[PFT Commenter]

Right?

[A.J. Brown]

And we would always joke about it. And I was like, no, I'm not going to Alabama. And he was like, well, I'm gonna knock you out and you're gonna wake up in Alabama. And long story short, Nick Saban came, like, after that game, and that's when it was real for me. And I was like, oh, I really can play this game.

[PFT Commenter]

Game.

[A.J. Brown]

And my dad was like, you going to Alabama?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

I said, I'm still not going to Alabama, but I'm gonna pursue this football thing.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And it just took off.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

What was the final score that game?

[PFT Commenter]

I don't remember.

[Big Cat]

Will you beat him? Yeah, we beat him. West Point pretty bad.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's pretty good. That's where.

[Zach]

That's where Brandon Walker, that guy that tried to.

[Big Cat]

Tried to follow you, that's.

[A.J. Brown]

Who's this guy?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's.

[PFT Commenter]

He.

[Zach]

He was double mad at you for that.

[Big Cat]

I'm actually a booster at West Point. I helped fund their state championship rings.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Is this.

[A.J. Brown]

Is this a made up character?

[Zach]

No, no, he's too real. Trust me. I wish I wish he was made up sometimes.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Okay.

[Big Cat]

But now it all makes sense. You said four touchdowns. Four touchdowns. West Point's eye. And they call themselves Point City.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

You were Point City.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay. Yeah. Yeah. Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Damn.

[A.J. Brown]

I'm gonna look up this Brandon Walker.

[Zach]

Don't. Don't you get. Put on a list.

[Big Cat]

We did. Ask Lane and Cam, and I'll ask you the same question. What week this year do you think Nick Sirianni will be on the hot seat from the fan base?

[A.J. Brown]

Obviously, I'm gonna say we're gonna win.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

But, you know, like, one loss and then. And guys like that right there are gonna say, if we somehow.

[A.J. Brown]

Somehow lose the first game of the season, it is up for Nick Sirion.

[Big Cat]

You're not wrong.

[A.J. Brown]

It is up.

[Big Cat]

There will be a fan who will be like, I don't care that he just won a Super Bowl.

[A.J. Brown]

They're gonna call in to wilt.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And it's gonna spark like. Like a wildfire.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

This guy's a fraud.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

We're super bowl champion. Head coach.

[A.J. Brown]

This place is. This place is so unique. And it could be positive, and most. Most important, it can be very negative. So. So quickly. Like, someone can call into a radio show and say the most bizarre thing. And now all the pages on each. On each platform who have big, very big platforms, and they're just gonna run with it, and now it's a whole nother story. And then it gets to the national media and then it's up.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Do they get any. Do they react when you go on Twitter and you. You put out some. Some theories about how many days are in a year.

[PFT Commenter]

Year?

[Zach]

Do you remember that? Because I. Because when you said this. I think I believe you.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

I think I believe you. You said the full year consists of 365.25 days. These are then designated 12 calendar months. However, there are 13 lunar months of 28 day cycles, which are not titled. Each year, the 0.25 of a day is accumulated, making one full day every four years. This designated as leap year. And the extra day is tacked on to the end of February, which Normally has only 28 days. Remaining months. I mean, this is all real.

[Stephen A. Smith]

True.

[Zach]

The remaining months are allocated either 30 or 31 days. I understand that if you were old enough to originate the question and are literate, you already know this and just like wasting time. So how many days are. Are in your year?

[A.J. Brown]

In my year.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

First of all, I did not tweet that.

[Zach]

That was not you.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh, no.

[Zach]

Who tweeted that.

[PFT Commenter]

That's.

[A.J. Brown]

I would never tweet that long again. All right? But I do believe some of that stuff.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay? Yeah. Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

I do believe some of that stuff. You know, I think time is relative, honestly.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Einstein said that.

[A.J. Brown]

I don't know.

[PFT Commenter]

I don't.

[Zach]

It's a safe space.

[A.J. Brown]

It's not.

[Big Cat]

Listen, I. I would pay him bills. Whatever you say next is going to get clipped, man.

[A.J. Brown]

I'm the kid, honestly. Because I know it's about to get clip. I'm the kid. As I. As I grown up, I'm 28 years old now, I'll say, like three or four years ago, maybe even before then, I started to question what's being taught to us, right? And if you question what's being taught to us in today's world, you are crazy. Something's wrong with you. Whatever.

[PFT Commenter]

Right?

[A.J. Brown]

But my question is, who put who in charge to teach us these things? Such as? That's a black table, Right. And to me, that could be a white table.

[Big Cat]

You'd be wrong. Well, how would I be wrong?

[Zach]

It's your definition of black.

[Big Cat]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, yeah.

[Big Cat]

That's what you need to do with your cleats. Hold on, hold on. Dude, you got to tell Goodell these aren't. These aren't neon green. They're white.

[A.J. Brown]

Listen, though. Listen, though. We've been taught. We go to school, they teach us. They put us in place and they teach us all this, all these things, right? They teach us about history, to teach about everything, right? Who put them in charge to say, this is correct and we have to learn this?

[Stephen A. Smith]

Right?

[A.J. Brown]

Like, that may be red to me.

[Big Cat]

I think you're colorblind.

[A.J. Brown]

I'm not colorblind. Okay, I'm not colorblind, but I'm just using this as.

[Big Cat]

No. Healthy skepticism is a good thing, you know?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[A.J. Brown]

And so, like. All right, the moon landing.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, let's talk about stuff like that, right?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

I mean, we were in the middle of the Cold War. We had to beat Russia, right? Like, ussr, the evil empire. We had to flex our muscles. They put that Sputnik up in the sky. We're like, fuck, we got to do something to just get in their heads. Okay. Stanley Kubrick. I'm going to fly you out to Las Vegas. Let's film this shit.

[Big Cat]

Think about this. Think about this. Well, we. We.

[PFT Commenter]

We.

[Big Cat]

We should have you back on because we could. We could talk about all this stuff. I got one last question. It's a Roback question. R H O b a c k.com promo code. Take 20 off your first purchase. Q zips, polos, hoodies, joggers, shorts, roback.com promo code take. This has been awesome, AJ. We really appreciate it. A lot of fun. Zach, we've been telling him he's going to get a question all day. Zach, you got a question for aj?

[Memes]

I got a quick question, if that's cool to you. Man, after six seasons in the NFL, if you could, you know, working on yourself, growing as a player, not only as a player, but as a man, kind of gaining experience, if you could go back to draft night and give yourself one piece of advice, would you do that? And if so, like, what would it be?

[Big Cat]

Oh, good question.

[A.J. Brown]

I would tell myself to not be hard on myself. You know, looking back, because I actually did this yesterday. Looking back, I was watching some videos of myself and watched some highlights and everything I wanted when I was young, I have now. And the 28 year old me wants more, right? Because I'm always searching for the next thing. But I would tell my. I would tell the younger me just to be present and enjoy each and every day, each and every day. Because there's different seasons that I go through that you're gonna go through in this league, and you have to learn to navigate through them. And I just wanted so much, so much, so much so soon. And sometimes I sped up that process by overthinking too much and putting more pressure on myself. But me, now, I just want to have fun. I just want to enjoy the moment, enjoy my teammates, enjoy the process and just have fun and make the most of every single opportunity. And I haven't got relaxed, but I'm just finding ways to be present in this, in this moment, even like this interview, just enjoying myself of being present and so.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Great question.

[Big Cat]

That's great advice.

[Zach]

Do you think that the whole concept of like making it or, or finally getting there is. It teaches us some of the wrong stuff sometimes? Yeah, like you always think, I'll be fine. I'm gonna. Once. Once I make it. Yeah, once. Once I get this, then it's the finish line and then that's. That's it. And then once you accomplish those goals you have for yourself, you realize, well, I still feel the same as I did before I got there, there. And that's when I think a lot of people start to realize, take joy in the process of getting there and just in everything that you do.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, right. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Well, A.J. yeah, this has been awesome, man. Really appreciate it. We'd love to have you back on anytime, maybe get in Some conspiracy theories.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Be fun. Let's talk about it. We get a restraining order on Brandon Walker, we can do it all.

[Zach]

Let's talk about it.

[Big Cat]

Best of luck this year, man.

[PFT Commenter]

Thank you. Thank you.

[Zach]

A.J. brown was brought to you by our great friends at Mountain Dew. You can hear Hank drinking one right now. Delicious. It sounds great.

[PFT Commenter]

Great.

[Zach]

When you crack open that do can, nothing better. It's summertime. You're gonna be hanging with your friends. It's gonna be warm outside. We're gonna be at Camp Barstool in a little bit. We're gonna be drinking some Mountain Dew there. Gonna be on the course this afternoon. Gonna have a do. So refreshing. If you're going to the river or to the lake to go fishing, nothing like bringing ice cold can of Mountain Dew on the boat with you. You might catch a bunch of fish like me and Big Cat. You might catch a fish like Max. You might catch a big fish like Hank. Just bring your Mountain Dew out there. Nothing goes better with summertime than refreshing, citrusy kick of Mountain Dew. And the new graphics on the can. The logo looks awesome. Retro look, established 1948 right there on the can. Good stuff. We love Mountain Dew. Get a Dew in the new packaging and enjoy the refreshing, citrusy kick of Mountain Dew.

[Big Cat]

Okay, let's finish up, guys. On chicks. Henry.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yes.

[Zach]

Hey, I have a question.

[PFT Commenter]

Pft.

[Zach]

In the graphic that memes tweeted out for this guy's on chicks. Who is that guy? Should I know that guy? That guy?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

He was in a video at DJs.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

Okay.

[PFT Commenter]

He's a.

[Big Cat]

He's an ADO variant.

[Zach]

Okay, got it. I. I was not familiar with his game.

[Hank]

Yeah, it's the Rizzler's uncle.

[Big Cat]

The SP would have been so variant.

[Hank]

Washington.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh, yeah.

[Big Cat]

That was awesome.

[Hank]

Hey, guys, I've listened to your podcast in the car against my will. Parenthesis, unnecessary parentheses. My boyfriend's keep. My boyfriend keeps peeing in the sink. Not just after a few beers every single day. His excuse, it's elite clock management because the sink is closer than the toilet. He says all great QBs make quick reads and that you have to take these easy.

[PFT Commenter]

Excuse me.

[Hank]

Mountain Dew burp. Take the easy completion. Last night he legit called it a two minute drill and fist pumped when he finished ramen in the microwave, then ran upstairs to pee, then back.

[Big Cat]

I mean, oh, no stairs.

[Hank]

There's got to be a bathroom downstairs.

[Big Cat]

There's a sink downstairs.

[Zach]

Wait, did he run upstairs to the bathroom and then pee in the bathroom sink?

[Hank]

That's what it sounds like.

[Big Cat]

That's okay.

[Hank]

Now back down before the microwave hit zero. He even brags about his accuracy under pressure. When I'm brushing my teeth right next to them.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

I feel like the sink is. Kitchen sink.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Like, why would you pee in a bathroom sink?

[Big Cat]

I do pee in the bathroom sink every now and then. That's. Hold on. Hear me out. It's when I'm on the road and I don't want to turn on the lights and I don't know where everything is. Like, I'm in a hotel room and.

[Zach]

The sink's easier to find than the toilet.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Or the. Sometimes I'll do in the shower.

[Zach]

I. I'll do that. Sometimes I'll just open up a shower curtain and just pee right down.

[Big Cat]

I just don't want. I don't want to wake up.

[PFT Commenter]

Got. Yeah.

[Zach]

Peeing in the bathtub is way easier. You're a huge target.

[Hank]

So you're saying you're in the bathroom, which is very small.

[Big Cat]

Well, sometimes you're in a. Usually a sink, but sometimes there's like. Sometimes there's another door for the toilet. You know when it's.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Last door for the toilet.

[Zach]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And it gets even darker in there.

[Zach]

And sometimes. I'm just telling you, sometimes you have the sink.

[Big Cat]

Don't judge.

[Zach]

You have the sink in a completely separate room. That's not even the bathroom.

[Big Cat]

Right.

[Zach]

It's kind of in the living room. And it's not in that.

[Big Cat]

That one. We. Last one we say that had that.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Big Cat]

No, that's actually not. That's the opposite of rich.

[Hank]

When the sink is in another.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's a. That's a low class hotel. Yeah, that's literally a low class.

[Zach]

In the living room. Pretty much.

[Big Cat]

It's like, there's a sink, like a microwave, and then there's just like a toilet with a shower.

[Hank]

That one I can.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, that's.

[Big Cat]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Right next to your bed.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

That's as low class as a hotel room can get.

[Hank]

Yeah, I'd pee in that one.

[Zach]

Yeah, I think.

[Hank]

I think peeing in a sink in a bathroom is crazy.

[Big Cat]

I usually do my peeing in the.

[Hank]

I think a kitchen.

[Big Cat]

Kitchen sink. After doing the dishes is a reward for myself.

[Zach]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. After you do the dishes, right?

[Big Cat]

Yeah, I do the dishes, then I pee. Then I just do a little more soap. Done.

[PFT Commenter]

When I.

[Zach]

When I let Blake out at night into the backyard to go pee, I usually just go out with him.

[Big Cat]

Oh, definitely.

[Hank]

Outside. Anywhere outside.

[Zach]

We pee at the same time. And it's the greatest bonding experience you can have with the family.

[Hank]

Yeah, no, anywhere outside. That's, you know.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, you got it.

[Hank]

Perks of being a guy.

[Big Cat]

Facts.

[Hank]

Sup, boys? And our sweet prince Zach. Later this month, my husband will travel to an Airbnb in the mountains for three nights of a. For a fantasy draft. They draft on Saturday morning.

[PFT Commenter]

Whoa. But.

[Hank]

But go up to essentially play golf, drink heavily, and around all weekend.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

This has been going on for 15 years, since they were 16. Don't tell the cops. He is more excited for this weekend and it's helped plan way more of it than our daughter's first birthday, which is upcoming this weekend. Should I be mad or no. Normal behavior.

[Zach]

Fantasy drafts, they kind of replace bachelor parties once you stop going on them. A lot of guys are just like, they. They need an excuse to just get out there with boys.

[Big Cat]

Also fuck off with first birthday parties.

[Zach]

Yeah, that's for you.

[PFT Commenter]

For.

[Big Cat]

For my kids, my oldest, we did. We did them all. And then as my second and third, we started being like, we're not doing a real birthday party until 4, 3 or 4.

[Hank]

Like, yeah, they can pick what they want or they go, yeah, right.

[Big Cat]

And when they have friends, they don't have friends. When they're one, they don't. So the one, a one year old's birthday party is pizza and cupcakes. That's it. That's all you need to do. You take a picture, light a candle. They're gonna probably burn themselves. That's it. In and out. So, no, he's correct. If it was your kids, his 10th birthday party, I'd be like, yeah, that's kind of up. Like get in the mix. And it's gonna be some planning.

[Zach]

It's be this time of year in the future. But the first birthday party, first and second.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, first and second, they won't remember. No one remembers their second birthday party.

[Zach]

It was my. Is my nephew's first birthday party about a month ago. I go down there and I'm like, I'm gonna be a cool uncle. I know he likes like banging on the piano that he's got. So I got him like a plastic ukulele.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Zach]

And I was like, this will be fine. He can drop it, throw it around. He'll just like mess with the string things. I bring it into the house and I'm like, here's your first birthday present. And then I see he has three other ukuleles already. Now he has four ukuleles.

[Big Cat]

Oh, dude. We double up on trucks.

[Zach]

Four Ukulele. That's so many ukuleles to have. And Max couldn't even get me one from Hawaii.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, that's up.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, no, that was up.

[Big Cat]

Just get a truck next time. Yeah, any truck.

[Zach]

Does he want El Camino?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Now given to three people.

[Zach]

Yeah, well, no, I gave it to Jaden so that Max wouldn't get his paws on it.

[Brandon Walker]

Yeah, no, you have to get. That means you just have to buy another El Camino.

[Big Cat]

No, it doesn't.

[Zach]

No, it doesn't. No, it does. You're a liar.

[Big Cat]

First birthday party, though, is whack. So you have no right to be upset as long as he attends. Take the picture. You could even do it on the wrong day. I mean, like, that's the kind of stuff, like, I forgot. Like, I. I think I. When my son started, like preschool, we forgot to take a picture the first day. We just did it the second day.

[Zach]

Yeah, you'll never know.

[Big Cat]

Who cares?

[Hank]

This one isn't the same vein, but I feel like there is a huge. I feel like a fantasy draft is easier to sell. Every year, my boyfriend takes a trip with his friends to a casino to watch the first four days of March Madness.

[Big Cat]

Yep.

[Hank]

This March, they want to go to Scottsdale and we live in Texas. He wants to fly out on a one day trip there to scope out the venue to make sure the setup is to their liking.

[PFT Commenter]

Yep.

[Hank]

Why does he think this gigantic waste of money is okay?

[Zach]

He has to scope it out.

[Big Cat]

That where your seating arrangement for March Madness is very important. Very important. Oh, did I tell you guys my idea? So Saturday night, Eddie had his black block party and he had. We hired the Billy Joel impersonator. Was great vibes, I think for March Madness. I'm gonna hire him and put him in a room. And when you have a bad beat, you can just be like piano man. He just sits in there for like four days. We just pay him a retainer.

[Brandon Walker]

Zero content can be made.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, we could have a video on it. We can't obviously do audio, but you can like, oh, a silent video of you sitting there just like doing a one man concert. Like, think about the vibes. Be like, oh, man, I just got my heart ripped out. I need some scenes from Italian Restaurant.

[Zach]

Max would love that.

[Big Cat]

It would be great. You're in, right? No, it's going to cost a lot of money, but I think it's a good. Yeah, like just an on demand Billy Joel for all of March Madness.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Just think of the visuals of us. Just like, we could probably do it in this studio. And then it is cut to you just sitting there one on one concert with the dude.

[Zach]

I think. I think the audio would be a big part of that.

[Big Cat]

I think it's even funnier with.

[PFT Commenter]

No. Yeah.

[Hank]

It's like a security cam fee.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Right.

[Big Cat]

Have you just sitting there.

[Hank]

It's an interrogation room, except it's you sitting in front of Billy Joel.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

And you're singing Piano man with them.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Good vibes. Just an idea.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Hank]

I like it.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Just like a white room.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Like. Well, that'd be bad for him, I guess.

[PFT Commenter]

All right.

[Big Cat]

Yeah, we gotta.

[Hank]

He's gotta. He's gotta. He's gotta be comfortable. Hey, fellas. Hope all's well. My boyfriend is a huge sports fan. Especially. Especially college basketball. I'm not that big of a sports fan, but went to a large university and he went to a smaller mid major. He grew up hating the school that I went to and still claims to this day that he would rather die a gruesome death. Duke, than cheer for my school. It's so bad. He won't even wear the same color blue as my school.

[Big Cat]

Yep.

[Hank]

In our talks about the future, Duke.

[Zach]

Is not a good school, though.

[Hank]

No, he didn't go to Duke.

[Big Cat]

He went to. He went to a mid major. She went to a major.

[Zach]

She said she went to a big.

[Hank]

School, so probably I think she went to unc.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Hank]

This kid is a fan of Duke.

[PFT Commenter]

Duke.

[Big Cat]

Got it.

[Hank]

But went to a mid major because he couldn't get into Duke.

[Big Cat]

Got it.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Hank]

I mean, same color blue has got to be.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Yeah, yeah, it's got to be.

[Hank]

And it's college basketball.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Hank]

Maybe Kansas. In our talks about the future and children, this is something that I brought up.

[PFT Commenter]

Up.

[Hank]

He said that our future children cannot be fans of both because he can't stand the thought of producing fans of my school. Is he being ridiculous? Thanks.

[Big Cat]

Not ridiculous, but UNC's colors are a lot better. So you're kind of.

[Zach]

If it is unc, you got to let it happen.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Zach]

If it's Kentucky.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Also.

[Brandon Walker]

All Duke fans that didn't go to Duke already.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

Well, it depends if they're rivals, too. Like, if this is Duke, unc, it's.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

I'm including you. If Duke, unc. That's tricky. If it's like a Kansas or Kentucky and I could have went to Duke, how you can, like, go visit.

[Zach]

Worked there.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Brandon Walker]

I have one friend that is.

[Big Cat]

Listen.

[Brandon Walker]

Going to be listening to this. I'm very mad that I Just said that.

[Big Cat]

But good. Him.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah, maybe.

[Zach]

Maybe this person went to Kentucky, the major school, and then the other person went to Creighton, the mid major school. I just love saying that.

[Big Cat]

Here's a. A little tip. Is usually just. You're not that serious. Your kids are just going to do whatever. They might not even like sports.

[Hank]

I don't think it's that. I think this kid's being a little bit of a hardo.

[PFT Commenter]

I.

[Zach]

You do have to. If you've got rivals that are baked in, you have to establish which teams the kid roots for or you have to bargain. That be like, I'll give you football.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah.

[Big Cat]

What Kate got.

[Zach]

I think Kate got Phillies.

[Big Cat]

Yeah. Got Phillies.

[Zach]

The beef. Got the commanders.

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. Yeah.

[Hank]

Tough.

[Big Cat]

It's good trade. Well, I guess the Eagles would have been. Yeah, actually.

[Zach]

Yeah, listen.

[PFT Commenter]

Okay.

[Zach]

You never know.

[Big Cat]

Great show, boys. Great show. Let's finish with numbers three.

[Stephen A. Smith]

I got it.

[Big Cat]

Oh, I think I got.

[Zach]

I think memes had it.

[Big Cat]

Go check it.

[Zach]

I think it was memes by.

[Hank]

I think memes got it. 22.

[PFT Commenter]

I'm here.

[Zach]

I'm gonna go with 40.

[Big Cat]

I'm gonna go with five if I don't have three.

[Zach]

45. I got you by it. Definitely.

[Big Cat]

All right. 60. Great. 60. That was what you guessed last time, right?

[PFT Commenter]

Yep. All right. Perfect.

[Big Cat]

44.

[PFT Commenter]

Shout out. Bill.

[Brandon Walker]

85. 99.

[PFT Commenter]

Pug. What?

[Brandon Walker]

I'd like 85.

[Zach]

Why me?

[Big Cat]

I've got 85.

[Zach]

13.

[Brandon Walker]

You get so mad every time.

[Big Cat]

44.

[PFT Commenter]

44.

[Big Cat]

Were you PFT?

[PFT Commenter]

Yeah. 45.

[Brandon Walker]

Can't take 99s.

[Big Cat]

2.

[Zach]

2.

[PFT Commenter]

Oh.

[Big Cat]

84. 34. 34.

[Zach]

Oh, thank God it wasn't.

[Big Cat]

Sorry for anyone who thought it was 84. My bad.

[Zach]

My dad wanted me to take 84 too.

[PFT Commenter]

That. Oh, that would have been great.

[Zach]

So your dad got it?

[Big Cat]

No, it's 34.

[PFT Commenter]

Love you guys. SA.

[Big Cat]

Folks, it's the foreplay guys. Let's talk Truly Unruly. When you spend every day following the countless laws of golf like us, it's reflected refreshing to get a little unruly. Whether that means using the old hand.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Wedge to escape the bunker or just cracking open a hard seltzer that breaks.

[Big Cat]

All the rules, few things feel better. Truly unruly is the first high alk seltzer that actually tastes good. It's hard hitting, but still light and refreshing, making it perfect for everything from the front nine to the clubhouse.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Find it near [e-mail] locations.

[Big Cat]

That's trulyhardselter.com locations.

[Stephen A. Smith]

Hard Seltzer Beverage Company Boston, Massachusetts.

[Big Cat]

Please drink responsibly.