HOUR 2 - Trip Around the AFC South + Do Astros Need the Anti-Espada? + Solak Predicting Big Things for Texans

Summary

Payne & Pendergast – Hour 2 Summary

Date: July 2, 2026
Hosts: Seth Payne, Sean Pendergast
Main Theme: In-depth trip around the AFC South, including Texans’ outlook, NFL analyst takes, Houston Astros’ manager mindset debate, and big 2026 predictions for the Texans.

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Episode Overview

Hour 2 of “Payne & Pendergast” delivers classic H-Town sports analysis: a focused tour of the AFC South’s offseason, including Greg Cosell’s observations on C.J. Stroud and Texans' offense, frank takes on the Jaguars, Titans, and Colts, and a lively debate on if the Astros need a hard-nosed, “anti-Espada”-style manager. The hour closes with Benjamin Solak’s bold prediction of the Texans as AFC champions, and some fun banter on generational gaps, parenting, and recent NBA trades.

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Key Segments & Insights

1. AFC South Deep Dive

(03:11–21:48)

• Greg Cosell’s Breakdown of C.J. Stroud and Texans Offense

  • Cosell acknowledged Stroud’s intelligence but stressed that learning a new offense—where the QB sets protections (a New England-style system)—slowed his processing:

    “When you have to make that change, … it slowed down just his whole processing. And I think there were times where I thought he was indecisive … not as anticipatory.”
    (Greg Cosell, 04:33)

  • The challenge was magnified by a first-year OC and a lackluster, inconsistent run game, even after adding Joe Mixon (07:41–08:51).
  • Texans’ remedy: Overhauling the offensive line and bringing in David Montgomery.

    “They need to be more consistent ... Can you run for a half yard when you need a half yard?”
    (Seth, 09:13)

• Jaguars’ Approach: Running It Back

  • Jacksonville retains 20 of 22 starters but let go of key players. Cosell’s take:

    “I’m not one of those people… I don’t rip teams … but at this time of year, I’m going to assume that they know.”
    (Greg Cosell, 13:29)

  • Seth and Sean see this as passive-aggressive skepticism—unsure the status-quo will keep the Jags ahead (14:35-15:26).

• Colts and Titans Outlook

  • Titans: “Their defensive line is freaking big. … They can go 7, 8 deep with quality players.”
    (Greg Cosell, 15:57)
  • Texans’ offensive line will be heavily tested against the Titans and others with revamped, aggressive defenses early in the season (17:23–18:03).

• Division Power Rankings

  • Hosts: Jaguars likely to regress, Colts projected to finish last, while Texans made real strides.

    “The Texans made a ton of moves to get better … tore the offensive line down to the studs.”
    (Ben, 19:00–19:33)

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2. Texans’ Running Back Room & Text Reactions

(23:47–25:15)

• Texts pointed out Texans’ fragile RB situation—one injury from trouble—suggesting a veteran pickup.

  “Texans would be fools to start the season with the running back room they have right now. Sign Najee Harris now…”
  (Listener Text, 23:47)

• Seth skeptical about relying on aging/injured backs: “I would prefer ... a trade for a younger player instead of an aging guy with one Achilles tendon.” (24:57)

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3. Can C.J. Stroud Overcome Playoff ‘Shell Shock’?

(25:15–26:30)

• Listener concerns about Stroud rebounding from playoff struggles.
• Payne notes even legends struggled in big moments early in their careers.

  “Peyton Manning is probably the best example ... for the first half of his career, ... sucked in the playoffs.”
  (Seth, 25:58)

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4. Astros: Do They Need the “Anti-Espada”?

(26:30–32:28)

• Espada criticized for “too nice” public approach after another rough Imai pitching outing.
• Audio from Will Clark (former All-Star):

  “I am not going to pat you on the back ... when you’re hitting 220 and you strike out a hundred times. All right, you actually suck ... and if you don’t make an adjustment, you’re going into minor leagues.”
  (Will Clark, 28:13)

• Hosts ponder if Astros could use some tough love, but debate if Clark’s style is too harsh for any era.

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5. Rockets, NBA Trades, and Jalen Brown to the Sixers

(32:28–35:26)

• Jalen Brown’s trade to Philly prompts listener questions if Rockets missed out.
• Reminder of NBA’s strange personal dynamics: Brown previously called Embiid “one of the worst floppers” right before becoming teammates.

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6. Bonus Banter: Generational Gaps, Eagle Scouts, and Parenting

(35:26–38:06)

• Playful jabs at generational differences in motivation (Eagle Scouts, driver’s licenses).

  “By the time we were 16, we knew what the deal was. Parents these days are all about ... as much precious time with you as possible.”
  (Seth, 37:13)

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7. Benjamin Solak Predicts Texans as AFC Champs

(43:05–53:37)

• NFL analyst Benjamin Solak picked the Texans to win the AFC and reach the Super Bowl in 2026 (with the disclaimer he may revisit if Bo Nix’s health turns for the Broncos).

  “He thinks that the Texans are going to represent the AFC in the super bowl this year.”
  (Ben, 44:22)

• Solak sees the improved O-line and defense as difference-makers, banking on a Stroud leap.
• Other Solak predictions reviewed:
  • Chiefs miss the playoffs: Hosts agree KC’s attrition & roster erosion could finally catch up.

    “If you’re taking the logo out... it just looks like any other team ... back on the rebuild process.”
    (Seth, 49:02)

  • Vikings win NFC North: Hosts skeptical, not convinced by Kyler Murray & defense.
  • Jonathan Taylor traded to Bears: Would be “awesome” for the division, but hosts doubt Taylor’s durability and Indy’s willingness to deal.

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Notable Quotes

• Greg Cosell on Stroud’s Challenge:

  “When you have to make that change ... it slowed down just his whole processing. And I think there were times where I thought he was indecisive ... and therefore was not as anticipatory as we saw him in his rookie season.” (04:33)

• Will Clark on Modern Baseball:

  “I am not going to pat you on the back and tell you you're doing a good job when you’re hitting 220 … you actually suck. ... this is a big boy game, not a little boy game.” (28:15)

• Seth Payne on Texans’ O-Line Overhaul:

  “They tore the offensive line down to the studs ... it’s a more legitimately competitive situation.” (19:19)

• Benjamin Solak’s Big Texans Prediction:

  "He thinks that the Texans are going to represent the AFC in the super bowl this year." (44:22)

• On Chiefs’ Projected Fall:

  “You lose enough by attrition over time that at some point ... you’re back on the rebuild process.” (49:02)

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Timestamps for Major Topics

• AFC South breakdown / Cosell’s Texans take: 03:11–21:48
• Houston Texans running back room concerns: 23:47–25:15
• Playoff ‘shell shock’ and C.J. Stroud: 25:15–26:30
• Astros manager mentality / Will Clark audio: 26:30–32:28
• NBA: Jaylen Brown trade and Rockets angle: 32:28–35:26
• Generational/parenting banter, Eagle Scout chat: 35:26–38:06
• Solak’s Texans/Super Bowl prediction & other bold takes: 43:05–53:37

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Tone & Style

The discussion is lively, irreverent, and packed with honest criticism, playful teasing, and real football talk. Sean and Seth balance skepticism with hope about the Texans’ outlook, sprinkle in personal anecdotes and fan texts, and aren’t shy about calling out both local and national sports trends.

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For the Houston Sports Fan

• The Texans are building real depth and competition, notably on the O-line.
• National analysts like Solak are bullish on Houston—could this be the year?
• Winning the division is plausible if the running game and Stroud both make a leap.
• The Astros’ “gentle” approach under Espada draws heat; some want an old-school, hardline leader.
• Rockets fans: the Jaylen Brown trade is a reminder that NBA deals sometimes come down to coach/player connections and unpredictable front office motivations.

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This episode is a must-listen if:

• You want inside-out analysis of the AFC South race in 2026
• You’re tracking C.J. Stroud’s development and the Texans’ offensive reboot
• You enjoy heated (but fun) debates about coaching philosophies and sports culture

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Summary prepared by: [Podcast Summarizer AI / 2024]

Transcript

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[Seth]

We there's only one Ozempic.

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[Seth]

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[Ben Pendergast]

all right, into the 7 o' clock hour we go pain and pender gas we we got talking about the Boy Scouts in the first hour because David Montgomery, I did not know this until you brought it up, was an Eagle scout and is an ambassador for Scouting America. I feel like Eagle Scout probably throws you way up a demico Ryan's big board, you know.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

The amount of discipline that it takes to do that. Not a lot of guys stick through all the way to do that.

[Seth]

Well, you know, and especially you know, when you're a really good football player, sometimes you get pushed along through the right because they need you out there on the field. Eagle Scouts, they don't push you along. No, you're a good football player.

[Ben Pendergast]

Gotta earn it.

[Seth]

They're not gonna be like that's not they're gonna be like okay, sure. That's not a sailor's knot. And the boat would have come unmoored and people would have died. But you're. So you rushed for 1500 yards. So here you go.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

No, you gotta earn it. That's why I quit.

[Seth]

Yeah,

[Ben Pendergast]

but it's funny. I was joking. I did. I quit. As soon as we had to go on campouts where the temperatures were below, like 15 degrees, I'm like, nah, I'm out.

[Seth]

See, I wish I would have been in your Boy Scout troop. They sounded like they're doing it the right way.

[Ben Pendergast]

That was.

[Seth]

My guys seemed, like, terrified of the outdoors.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

Yeah, you.

[Ben Pendergast]

When you get. When you said before that you dropped out of the Scouts because there wasn't enough camping. Yeah, I actually dropped out because there was too much camping. I'm like, no, no, I'm. I need running water. This text right here, my son had boy. My son was in Boy Scouts and he was done when they said, we're going to dig a hole to use the bathroom. Amen, brother. Amen.

[Seth]

Was he cool with just pooping on the flat ground or was it the actual day of it, pooping into a hole?

[Ben Pendergast]

I think it was the being outdoors and pooping thing. You know, just.

[Seth]

You gotta ask these questions, though. You can't just assume that's true.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's true. All right, we'll get to more of your text. 713-572-4-610. Greg Cosell was this from his hits with Ross?

[Seth]

Yeah, this is on the Ross Tucker football podcast.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay. And Greg Cassell, who. I mean, that's his thing is he watches film and he watches it with a very educated eye. So I like his take on some of these things.

[Seth]

And they started off when Greg was. They're going through the AFC south preview and Ross just flat out kind of asked open, open question, like, hey, Texans, go. And Cassell. Cassell had this to say as he's reflecting on C.J. stroud during this off season.

[Greg Cosell]

C.J. stroud the last couple of years has been up and down. Now, keep in mind, his first year in the league, he was in a Kyle Shanahan type offense with Bobby Slo. Now, in that offense, the quarterback has nothing to do with calling protections. And then they got off to a slow start his second year and they fired Slowik and they made a fairly significant change in approach, which has now continued. And they went more with a New England Patriot style of offense. And in the New England style of offense, the quarterback is responsible for setting protections. That's a major Major adjustment for a quarterback. It adds to the mental part of playing the position.

[Will Clark]

The.

[Greg Cosell]

And I've met CJ Stroud. He's a very intelligent young man. But when you have to make that change, and it's a process, and he'll get better and better at it, but I think it slowed down just his whole processing. And I think there were times where I thought he was indecisive playing the position and therefore was not as anticipatory as we saw him in his rookie season.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay, so that was a. Just. So I'm keeping track of. Because he talked about slowed down. That was a bad version of slow down.

[Seth]

Bad version of slowed down. Yeah. Sometimes he says sped up and slowed down.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Almost synonymously. Yeah, it feels like. But I think that one thing is that just like everything that he said, you know, we've heard before, we've talked about before, it's always nice to hear somebody else say it. But the big thing about it is that it's also. It's one of those things where it's an explanation, but that's also not a guarantee that it will happen and that he will adapt to the offense. I think the part there where he talked about, you know, that, you know, he's met C.J. stroud. He's a very intelligent young man. You know, that's reflected by what a lot of other people have said who have sat down and watched film with. With CJ Stroud. But there's knowing it on the whiteboard and then doing it in person, and just a lot of it just flat out takes reps. And that's the part where, you know, if you're. If you're on the side of, like, okay, well, C.J. just needed some time in the system, then. Yeah, you should. You should stay on with that line of thinking. There's reasons for you to think that it should be better this year. But I also do understand that people will say, look, yeah, look, lots of quarterbacks have tried this, and they've continued to struggle with it as they get into their second or third year of the system. It's not a slam dunk guarantee that just because you've got time in the system, you're going to get good at it.

[Ben Pendergast]

How. How much did it exacerbate things? Do you think that in combination last year with CJ Being in the system for the first time, and it's not easy, as Greg Cosell just outlined, that you also had a guy who was an offensive coordinator for the first time

[Seth]

teaching this system right well, you know, and that's. And that was actually one of my live stream listeners corrected me on this yesterday. And I'm glad he did it was because, you know, Drake May's done a really good job with Josh McDaniels up in New England. But one thing that Josh McDaniels did also with Drake May is he's.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

He.

[Seth]

And he did this with Mac Jones. You know, he's knows exactly what they can and cannot handle and incorporate elements of the things they did in college. And that's, you know, that's Josh McDaniels having a whole bunch of experience working with various quarterbacks through the years. You can say whatever you want about Josh McDaniels. As a head coach, he's been a disaster. But as an offensive coordinator, as a guy who works with quarterbacks, it's not just Tom Brady that he's worked with and done a good job. And I think that's. Yeah, like, would. Would it have looked better with Josh McDaniels as the offensive coordinator last year? I'd have a hard time arguing that it, that it wouldn't just by. He's done it time and time and time again and he's had a lot of experience doing it. So with Kaylee, I think it was. That was part of the learning curve.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep. And then what's getting brought up quite a bit this off season with C.J. stroud is the lack of a running game that he's not just last year. That's been a theme for the entire

[Seth]

time that CJ Stroud, including when Joe Mixon was here. It just wasn't the. It wasn't consistent. Yeah. You know, it came in fits and starts, but like, the overall success rate of their run game was really bad. And it's just, it's hard for a quarterback to work with that.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep. Here's Greg Cosell on that very topic.

[Greg Cosell]

They could not run the ball. Now, it's always easy to say, well, he. Stroud's not been great because the run game's bad. And obviously there is a correlation. I'm not going to sit here and say there's no correlation. But they brought in David Montgomery and they revamped their entire offensive line. They're going to have three or four new starters.

[McDonald's Announcer]

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[Greg Cosell]

They brought in Braden Smith to play right tackle. Wyatt Teller, who for a couple of years there in Cleveland was as good a left guard as there was in the league, particularly in the gap scheme run game as a puller. Keelan Rutledge, who played guard the Rookie out of Georgia Tech. He'll probably play center. So they're going to have a brand new offensive line and ideally, at least a serviceable run game. And David Montgomery is one of those backs. He's a. You know, it's so funny. People always talk about backs being special and all that, but you know what? You don't have to have a special back to have a consistent, sustaining run game.

[Seth]

Yeah, I think that part of it, too. Is that something you just hear people say over and over again? You know, nobody's saying that the Texans have to be a top five offense or have a top five rushing attack. When you have a defense like you do, they just need to be more consistent. You gotta be able to convert in the red zone. And a lot of that just simply comes down to can you, can you run for a half yard when you need a half yard?

[Ben Pendergast]

Yes.

[Seth]

Last year there was a whole lot of. They could run for a quarter yard when they needed a half yard, they could run for one yard when they needed two yards. And like that, that one. It's just that one big speed bump that kept them from being, I think, a genuinely, like, impressive offense or at least in the top third of offenses. It's just that they just couldn't run the ball. I guess the flip side of it could be, man, they focus so heavily on running the football with the offensive line and the tight end that they drafted and bringing David Montgomery in that not all those guys are great pass protectors. So they're kind of hoping that the presence of the run game gives them enough. It gives them enough to threaten the defense with that they can handle the pass protection side of it just by getting into second and five. Yeah, it's, you know, like if you're in second and 10, third and 10 consistently, you can have the best offensive line in the league. They're only going to be able to do so much.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yes. The key for them will be having the full playbook available on second and third down and then keeping the defense off balance. You know, that's you. You improve your pass protection by. Through the mystery of the defense not knowing or at least limiting what's available to you. All right, so that's Greg Cosell on the Texans. Okay, let's continue our journey.

[State Farm Announcer]

Seth.

[Seth]

So he goes, this is interesting. We'll do these. I had to, I had to be really careful when I labeled this, this audio because what he said about Shane Steichen working with Daniel, there's one that

[Ben Pendergast]

I can't wait for.

[Seth]

I'm sounded very similar to what he said about Liam Cohen working with Trevor Lawrence. But this is. This is on Shane Steichen and how good he is at getting the first read open.

[Greg Cosell]

Every pass play, you know, concept is put in during a game with the idea that we want to be able to throw it to the primary. You know, obviously it doesn't always work out like that, but sometimes when you see some, you know, some coaches and some teams, it just looks like that's the way it plays out. And, you know, again, that's so critical for a quarterback because the comfort level just increases because he hits his back foot and he delivers the football.

[Seth]

So that's what it was with Daniel Jones, and they made it. You know, he was able to really just, you know, just let it fly in the first half of the last season. But then usually what happens with quarterbacks who are primary read guys is that the league catches up to them. The best example of it that we've seen is Tua Tungavailoa when he was playing the Texans. And he's playing a defense that just knows that Tua, only Tua, wants to get rid of the ball fast, and he wants to get rid of the ball to his primary read. And if you've got a good feel and beat on where that's going to be, you just pounce on him. And over time, it looks really good for the first half of a season, you do it. Or in the case of the Jaguars, when it clicks for the quarterback in the second half of the season. Remember what he just said about Shane Seichen working with Daniel Jones? This is Cassell talking about Liam Cohen working with Trevor Lawrence.

[Greg Cosell]

Liam Cohen got Trevor Lawrence. He became, you know, a primary REIT operator a year ago and looked more comfortable than he ever has. Particularly, you know, as he got later in the season when he got more and more comfortable within the offense. There's. It's just a great example of that.

[Seth]

Yeah. So you know what Greg forgot when Doug Peterson in the second half of his season.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Got Trevor Lawrence really comfortable with his offense, and it looked like, wow.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Trevor Lawrence is finally delivering on all of those lofty things people said about him coming out of college.

[Ben Pendergast]

This feels very similar. It feels very similar to that.

[Seth]

The difference, though, with the Jaguars this year compared to previous years is they've decided that, look, they won the AFC South.

[Will Clark]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Why? Why tinker with a good thing?

[Will Clark]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

If it ain't broke, don't fix it

[Seth]

all 11, all 22 of their starters on the depth chart. Right now are returning starters.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay.

[Seth]

They, you know, they let go of Travis Hn because apparently they just love Tootin all that much and they let go of Devin Lloyd on the defensive side of the ball. But they're just going to run it back. They're not even running it back. They're saying running it back minus a couple of guys and our draft class. So Greg Cassell is never one to throw shade on people. Tell me if this is a little bit of a passive aggressive throwing of shade. This is. When asked about that strategy of just running it back.

[Greg Cosell]

Okay, look, I'm not one, I'm not one of those people. And you know me well enough to know I don't rip teams like they, they know more about their players than you and I do. So, you know, at this time of year, I'm going to assume that they know and they're going to get the benefit of the doubt.

[Seth]

Yeah, that sounds. Getting the benefit of the doubt until he doesn't.

[Ben Pendergast]

By saying that I don't normally rip guys.

[Seth]

Yeah, you're kind of ripping the guy you'd like to rip them for this.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. Basically what you're doing. Greg Cosell, it's a brilliant move because he still maintains his reputation of being a nice guy.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

But by, by even acknowledging that, that the, the potential ripping of somebody for someone like that is like ripping them.

[Seth]

Right, Right.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yes, that is shade. You asked me, you asked me the question.

[Seth]

Yes, we all love, we all love, you know, seeing somebody that thinks they're smarter than everybody else get their comeuppance. The problem is that sometimes, sometimes they don't get their comeuppance. Sometimes they genuinely were smarter than everybody else. So you got to be careful about saying, oh, yeah, this guy thinks he's going to reinvent the wheel because every now and then they actually do reinvent.

[Ben Pendergast]

What are the odds that Gladstone is the smartest guy in the room?

[Seth]

3%.

[Ben Pendergast]

3%. Okay. So you think this thing is going to fail. Yeah, I'm with you on that. I just. To me, it's the whole drafting thing. Like the whole just drafting and not that the consensus big boards are some sort of gospel or anything like that. Like they were carved into tablets and Moses walked down from the mountain with the big boards, the consensus big boards. But when all of your draft picks are off kilter from what everybody thinks about all of them. Like, all of them, and they drafted like 10 or 11 guys and when

[Seth]

this is the biggest thing is like where the arrogance shows up is the way that Gladstone after the draft said is pretty much like every single guy that we wanted to get. We got.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

I'm like, yeah, okay. Because nobody else thought that they were worth drafting where you drafted them.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Seth]

You think you're smarter than everybody else. Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

And the whole thing where he was relishing the moment of shocking the world, you know, drafting the tight end out of A and M there in the second round. I don't know. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I don't know. So we'll. Good for you, Cosell. All right. What's he saying about the Titans?

[Seth]

Titans. This is where Texans fans need to take note. Because if there's one thing we know is that the Texans have struggled in recent years with big, strong, physical defensive linemen like the Seahawks have and like the Patriots have. This is, this is what he has to say about the Titans defensive line.

[Greg Cosell]

Their defensive line, it is freaking big. And they can go 7, 8 deep with quality players. And that's the way Robert Sala wants to play.

[Seth]

Yeah. And again, that's. That's the truth. That's how it's been with Tennessee. Even when Tennessee's defense hasn't been good, when they had. When Tavandre Sweat was still there and Jeffrey Simmons was healthy, when those guys were both healthy and on the field at the same time, they just devastated the Texans. Even in games where the Texans won, they were just manhandled up front. And even though Tavandre Sweat's not there, it's a different front. They do have like, they've got those seven or eight guys that they can rotate through. So it's going to be a bit. It's going to be one of the big tests early in the season for the Texans offensive line, the revamped offensive line and likewise the Bengals are going to be a big test early in the season because the Bengals brought in Boyer Maffei and Dexter Lawrence, multiple, multiple guys on their defensive line. Line.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

They Texans struggled offensively against the Titans last year before even got there.

[Seth]

Right. And even when they weren't a good defense, that was it. I remember I used to like, be. When I would do previews for those games, people would say, seth, what the hell are you talking about? The Titans are the, you know, 28th. Right. Ranked run defense or whatever. I'm just, just, I watch the, just watch this upcoming game and tell me how well they handle those defensive tackles.

[Ben Pendergast]

No, no, no. Styles make fights sometimes, man.

[Seth]

That was the thing. The one thing I've noticed is I started just kind of just you know, doing my way too early previews and study, trying to study up on each of the Texans opponents is that they do. They face a slew of teams that had horrendous defenses last year who also spent very aggressively on trying to fix those defenses.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

And just by epa, I think the Titans, the Bengals and the Cowboys were all in bottom five. And all of those teams have at least five new starters, some of them say. I think the Cowboys have six new starters on defense and they play all

[Ben Pendergast]

of those teams in the first five weeks of the season.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

Bengals in week two, Cowboys in week four, Titans on the road in week five.

[Seth]

And, and also, I mean, and I'm not saying that to say like, oh, they're going to be awesome defenses because they spent heavily. No, it's, it's going to be fun to watch to see which ones actually work out and which don't. Which are improved. The Giants, I would add to that. They weren't as bad defensively, but they have six new starters on their defense.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay, so there's our trip through the, through the AFC South. How you feeling right now about the division here on July 2nd?

[Seth]

I feel pretty good. I mean like just, it all goes back to everything we've talked about on the offense all offseason. But I just, I don't, I don't feel, I feel like the Colts, I mean, I think they're set up for a quote unquote fall.

[Ben Pendergast]

I think they're going to finish in last place.

[Seth]

Right. Because it's not like they finished with an awesome. They lost their quarterback midway through the season. But I don't think it's going to be anything like what it looked like in the first half of last season.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

But I think the Jaguars will still be a good team. I just don't. I. I think it's going to be tough for them to match their record from last year.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah. I just think that. And the Texans, to your point with the Jags, like, okay, what did you do this offseason to. To get better? Like, I think the Texans made a ton of moves to get better. Like they made a move to improve safety. They made moves to improve the few, the few glitches they had on defense. On offense, as Cosell pointed out, they, they essentially, they tore the offensive line down to the studs. It's Ariante Ursary is the only one that's left that's kind of guaranteed a spot right now. Other than that, the other four spots are probably.

[Seth]

There's not.

[Ben Pendergast]

And Ed Ingram.

[Seth]

Yep, you're right.

[Ben Pendergast]

No, no. So two of them. You're, you're absolutely right. But, but yeah, so that's still 60% of the offensive line because I, I think they're heart of hearts. I don't think they want Jake Andrews to be the starting center. I think they want Keelan Rutledge.

[Seth]

Unless. Well, you know what I mean? I don't know. I would frame it differently in that I think that if Jake Andrews proves that, like, wow, look at, he took a great leap forward, they're cool with him starting if he beats out Keelan Rutledge. Yeah, you know, they're not going to turn their nose down at it, but they also hope that Keelan Rutledge is going to be a formidable force. Yeah, I think that the biggest difference between this year and the last couple years is that you have, I think you've got bonafide starters competing for those spots. They're competing with other bonafide starters and, or a first round draft pick. And it's just a more legitimately competitive situation where sometimes in the past couple years, it's either been, all right, a guy who sucked his whole career is written in pen as the starter on the depth chart, or it's a competition between two guys that would be backups on a lot, a lot of other teams to be the starter. It just doesn't, it doesn't feel that way this year.

[Ben Pendergast]

It's definitely a deeper room. Like, it's like, I actually feel okay about the backups right now. If the depth chart played out the way that we think it's going to, and that's not been the case the last few years. Text messages 713-57246 and we get a lot of texts on the Astros and that Jaylen Brown trade. We'll just, as long as we're on football here, a couple football texts. I think the Jags are more likely to win nine or 10 games than winning 13 again. Yeah, I'm with you. They're not winning 13 games again. They just, they, they, they got worse, in my opinion, this offseason. I don't think they got better.

[Seth]

And I don't think that. I think they're reading way too much into that second half surge on offense and that they kind of forgot that, hey, we couldn't actually run the ball, even though they were passing the ball really well, and that, all right, teams are going to look at you and they figured out exactly what you can and cannot do with Trevor Lawrence. And I don't think people still I think people still look at Trevor Lawrence as a first read quarterback. Like like other defenders have said about Trevor Lawrence in the past.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

And that it's this will be a this will be a real big test for Liam Cohen this year.

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[Ben Pendergast]

Hey, this is Richard Deutsch, the host of the sports media podcast. If you're interested in what's happening with all the places where you consume sports, the sports media podcast has you covered. I've been turning down interviews all week. CodeCAPI reached out. Oprah George Stephanopoulos so I said no. I was booked on the Deitch podcast before the Taylor Swift phenomenon. I must live up to my responsibility. Listen wherever you get your podcasts.

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[Seth]

Refreshers contain caffeine.

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[Ben Pendergast]

text message Texans would be I agree with this text message. Texans would be. Texans would be fools to start the season with the running back room they have right now. Sign Najee Harris now because Montgomery is not carried a quote full time load and marks should stay third down and change of pace. He won't cost. He being Najee Harris won't cost more than 2 to 3 million. I am with this texter in that if Something were to happen to David Montgomery. We're right back to where we were the second half of last season.

[Seth]

We are, I mean, as Najee Harris coming off an Achilles tendon tear. So. Right. Which was early last year. Or am I, I don't remember.

[Ben Pendergast]

I don't remember the time. It was last year for sure. I, I, when I say I agree with it. Not necessarily Najee Harris part.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

But I, I do think a veteran running back in that room.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

That is trustworthy that you know. And I, I don't know what names are out there right now.

[Seth]

As of March, he's been doing straight line sprinting on a treadmill.

[Ben Pendergast]

Well, you do that as a running back sometimes. That's good news.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

So. Yeah, I, Whichever.

[Seth]

Yeah. Whoever you bring in. Like, honestly though, but I would prefer that if they bring in a running back and not be an experiment like Cam Akers coming off of his second torn Achilles.

[Ben Pendergast]

Sure.

[Seth]

Nick Chubb coming. Still, still recovering from his injury from a couple years ago. But then also just an older running back that I'd like to have somebody a little bit more juice and then maybe it ends up being a trade for a younger player instead of, instead of an aging guy with one Achilles tendon.

[Guest Analyst]

Yep.

[Ben Pendergast]

Last one here is from Ocho. Sean, I feel good about the Texans now, but I'd feel better if I knew CJ Stroud could be one of the few quarterbacks to overcome shell shock. Shell shock. Like it's a disease.

[Seth]

One of the few quarterbacks to overcome shell shock. The boy. I, you know, there's various quarterbacks that have thrown multiple interceptions and bad playoff losses. You know, Tom Brady, I think Tom Brady's career high is four. Or maybe he only had three. He had three and one battle.

[Ben Pendergast]

He had three in a game they won.

[Seth]

I remember in the game they won. Peyton Manning is probably the best example of a guy that, I mean, for the first half of his career, he was viewed as a guy who was awesome in the regular season and sucked in the playoffs.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, he, yeah, early Peyton Manning was worse than what the body of work CJ's put out there.

[Seth]

He threw four interceptions in a game, in a playoff loss in the AFC Championship game in New England one year. But he had better regular seasons to kind of offset, offset that. But there was a, there was a perception that Peyton Manning just sucked in the choker.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Yeah, I know. Like where to me, like CJ's had good games in the playoffs and didn't look like it was the spotlight or the limelight. Or anything else like that that was affecting me or anything. It's just this last year was. Was ridiculously weird and bad.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep. All right, shifting gears, you. You mentioned earlier, Joe Espada, I did not see this video or audio from the game last night. We didn't get it in our email this morning. But I guess he had said, Seth, that in defense of imai, because he might. Was awful last night. Gave up five hits, four walks, two home runs in less than two innings. That he'd been. He'd been good his last few.

[Seth]

Last few games. Yeah. Like, few games. No, no, it was three games ago that he lasted two thirds of an inning. Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

I guess the spot has got a different. Different definition of few than maybe most people do. And that's. That's kind of on brand for Espada, I think A spot. A spot, it definitely skews way more to the side of being nice, being not hard on the guys, at least not publicly in the media. You know, I'll give him the. I will. I will leave open the possibility. Kind of like we hear about d', Amico, where d' Amico is a certain way publicly, but then, you know, he's. He's hard on guys. Privately, maybe a spot is that way. So I saw this video clip of Will Clark yesterday. Will Clark, former all star first baseman, noted Bitterman. He is very, get off my lawn, old school baseball guy. Okay? So Will Clark, the question came up on his podcast, like, hey, you know, do you think you could manage or do you want to manage? And Will Clark lays out why he couldn't be a manager. And I got thinking. I'm like, huh, do the Astros maybe need some of this? Like, what Will Clark's bringing to the table?

[Will Clark]

Hate to say it, but I said

[Ben Pendergast]

it in my jersey retirement speech. You were right there.

[Will Clark]

It's a participation trophy game now, you know.

[Ben Pendergast]

So you think you're. We're making it too easy for the players.

[Will Clark]

Oh, hell yeah. You make it too easy for sure.

[Ben Pendergast]

Too much coddling going on.

[Will Clark]

Oh, and that's why people have asked me why I don't get into coaching, why I don't get into managing and all that. I am not going to pat you on the back and tell you you're doing a good job when you're hitting 220 and you strike out a hundred times. All right, you actually suck. All right? I'm gonna tell you you suck. I'm gonna tell you to make a adjustment. And if you don't make an adjustment, you're going into minor leagues and somebody else is gonna take your spot. Sorry. That's the way the game goes. This is a big boy game, not a little boy game. And you have to have thick skin. You don't have thick skin. Get out the way, because I'm gonna steamroll you.

[Ben Pendergast]

I want at least one season of Will Clark as the Astros manager.

[Seth]

I love it. Will Clark, though, I feel like. I feel like his perception of what managers used to be like is still way more extreme than, like, the most extreme of. The most extreme of managers that used to operate. Yeah, things have gotten kinder and gentler over the years. Yeah, I'll definitely concede that. But I feel like Will Clark might have been. He might have been labeled like kind of a. Kind of an a hole manager in any. In any era if you were to just put his full board. Personality. Personality.

[Ben Pendergast]

I will steamroll you hitting.220. I'm going to tell you, you suck. I'm like, you know what? We may need a couple months of this guy, you know, if you end up firing a spot in August, let's just experiment with Will Clark coming in and telling everybody except Jordan Alvarez that they suck. You know, I'm gonna tell you, Will Clark is funny, man. He is.

[Will Clark]

He.

[Ben Pendergast]

He's. He's a piece of work.

[Seth]

Who's the. Who's the grumpiest recent manager? Like Terry Francona?

[Ben Pendergast]

No, Frank Kona, I think is.

[State Farm Announcer]

Is.

[Ben Pendergast]

I don't think he's grumpy. I mean, I think he's.

[Seth]

He's gruff at times. He's older. He's not a. Yeah, he's not.

[Ben Pendergast]

He's not. I'm trying to think, like, who is the. I'll tell you the one who. When I was early in my radio career, I would go to a lot of Astros games and go to the clubhouse afterwards. You know, I was just. You know, I was in my formative years and I wanted to do everything, and so I went. The biggest jerk that I was part of a media scrum with after a game was when the Astros are playing the brewers and the local media, you know, the. The opposing manager typically did their media, like, from the little office they had right there sitting at his desk. Ned Yost was an a hole. He was just. He was just a flat out jerk.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

If he didn't like the question, he would talk about what a stupid question. It was. Like, he was.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

He.

[Ben Pendergast]

That was so. That was. And I was probably on the other end of one of that. The reason I probably feel bitter about it is. The reason I probably feel bitter about that is the same reason, like, when I saw yesterday that Warren Sapp was being investigated over an alleged battery at a senior home in Florida.

[Seth]

Oh, yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

That I was rooting for. When I saw that no charges were brought, I was like, ah, damn. I really wanted him to be charged. Warren Sapp's a big jerk that. You know, I've told that story before at Radio Road. Just like, what a. What a jerk he was.

[Seth]

No, he's not known for having pleasant interactions.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

Now.

[Ben Pendergast]

I even asked Chat GPT just to make sure I was. I was going to check myself, Am I being unfair to Warren Sapp? And I asked Chat GPT, does Warren Sapp have the reputation of being a jerk? And ChatGPT was like, oh, yeah.

[Seth]

I had one teammate that went to the Raiders while he was there that said, man, I met the first guy who's going to hell. Like, he'll be first in the door. He gets swooned right up to the front.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, he's a bad person. I couldn't believe.

[Seth]

Those are his words, not mine.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, yeah. No, you're just conveying the story. Yeah, yeah. I just. I. I couldn't believe that. I. I couldn't believe they hired him at Colorado, that Dion hired Horn SAP to be the defensive line coach there. That was. He's not there anymore. He was.

[Seth]

A lot of people that are kind of. There's a lot of people that try to, like, they've been. They're jerks in any generation, but those are the people that love to act like, oh, it's only modern society that can't handle me. Like, they would have been the. He would have been the most popular dude in town back in the day, like in the 1950s or something. Ah. Now I think he's just kind of a jerk. Yeah, they had jerks back then, too.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep. We. A couple texters saying, hey, if Jalen Brown went to the Sixers for such an underwhelming package, and if you missed it, Jalen Brown last night sent to the Philadelphia 76ers from the Celtics. Celtics Kit Paul George, who's aging and not nearly the player he used to be. And then a bunch of draft picks, couple first couple seconds in future seasons. And so we have some people asking, like, hey, could the Rockets have done that to you? Like, if he went for such an underwhelming package, like, if the Rocket. And there's a couple of people, Seth wanting to say, well, why didn't. Why didn't we do Kevin Durant and a couple first round picks for J.

[Guest Analyst]

Right.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Because it does seem. Well, this seems like one of those classic scenarios, kind of like with the James Harden trade, where it might have just been. Yeah. A matter of who was. Who was around and available and listening because the Celtics just had to do something for whatever reason. Brian Winhorst said it was. It's the kind of deal that you only do if you're under duress. So I don't know what that duress necessarily is or what, like, what the speculation is on all of that, but. Yeah, I know, like, what's. What are the. What are the barriers to the Rockets having made that?

[Ben Pendergast]

Well, I think maybe the Rockets. I mean, all the talk with the Rockets and Jaylen Brown have been.

[Guest Analyst]

They're just.

[Ben Pendergast]

They're just not in on it.

[Seth]

They weren't interested. Maybe they thought it was going to be a much higher price.

[Ben Pendergast]

Maybe. Maybe. I mean, he may coach Jaylen Brown, so he's got that intel on what makes Jaylen Brown tick. So it might. Yeah, it could have been any number of things. This is where it's going to get maybe awkward in Philadelphia. This was Jaylen Brown, if you remember the day after the Sixers knocked the Celtics out of the playoffs this year. Jaylen Brown, at his press conference after the elimination game and then the next day on his Twitch stream, was adamant that Joel Embiid is one of the worst floppers in the NBA.

[Guest Analyst]

I mean, this is my personal opinion on basketball. Some of y' all might disagree, you know what I mean? But argue with your grandma. Flopping has ruined our game. Joel Embiid is a great player. One of the best bigs in basketball history.

[Seth]

Flops.

[Guest Analyst]

He know it. This ain't. This ain't breaking news. Just saying, you know what I mean? It is what it is. I can clip it up, like I said, post it on these paid accounts that y'. All, these bot. Whatever. That's just my opinion.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah. And he's your teammate now.

[Seth]

Yeah. He's already frank about it. You gotta. Just gotta own that when you talk to Jalen over your Shirley Temples or whatever. When you first get.

[Ben Pendergast]

Get together and beat. Seems like Embiid seems like an easygoing enough guy where he'd be like, nah, I flop.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

I'm also injured all the time. That's the bigger issue with me, is I'm just not available all the time.

[Seth]

Some of those flops are actually his design tuck and roll that he uses to keep from getting injured so much.

[Will Clark]

Yep.

[Seth]

That's what he would tell you.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's right. That's right. So now you're. Hey, if you're Jaylen Brown, now you're benefiting from Embiid being a flop.

[Seth]

Jaylen Brown. I was like, I don't need a burner account. I speak my. I speak my truth.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's true.

[Seth]

Out in the wide open for everybody to hear.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yes. We are also being told, Seth, that you guys. This is a text. You guys are underplaying the Eagle Scout thing. Crazy amount of hours.

[Seth]

Oh, yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

I'm an Eagle Scout.

[Seth]

Yeah, yeah. Did we underplay it? We said it was a really big deal.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, we said it's a big deal.

[Seth]

What do you want me to do? Go through, like, a 10 point dissertation about exactly how hard it is to become an Eagle Scout?

[Ben Pendergast]

Hey, what do you think?

[Seth]

Listen, listen, little Eagle Scout dude, I appreciate that you put that effort in, okay? Now get to work.

[Ben Pendergast]

Did you just pat him on the head and call him a little Eagle Scout?

[Seth]

Some 37 year old want me to give him extra credit for his Eagle Scout? No. At certain point, you got to move on.

[Ben Pendergast]

Easy amount of hours.

[Seth]

Yeah, no, I know. It's a big deal.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, no, of course. That's why we talked about it. It's. And that's why we gave David Montgomery.

[Seth]

Hey, Sean, next time we mentioned any doctor, you know, if we talk about Dr. Lowe again, the surgery that he performed. Do you realize I'm Fred Van Vliet? Do you really realize how many. How long an orthopedist has spend as a resident?

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Seth]

To become an orthopedist.

[Ben Pendergast]

What do you think about this as a parenting method?

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

My discipline motivation for getting my Eagle Scout was the rule from my parents that I couldn't get my driver's license unless I got my Eagle Scout.

[Seth]

Oh, I like that. That's good.

[Ben Pendergast]

Pretty good.

[Seth]

Good Carrot on a stick.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's a good carrot on a stick. Back in the days when kids actually wanted to get.

[Seth]

When they wanted their driver's license. Yeah. Nowadays you got like, why would I expose myself to harm and liability when I could be on my phone in my bedroom?

[Ben Pendergast]

That might be one of my biggest disconnects between the current generation and our generation. Is that the. It seems like not everybody, but by and large, the younger generation has kind of done a 180 on the desire to get a driver's license. Yeah, that was a huge deal. Like, we were counting down the days to get it.

[Seth]

Part of it is that. The. The part of it, though, too, is that this is a generation that's accustomed to their parents actually wanting them around. Where in our generation, more times than not, I think it was mostly our parents would just wish we'd get the hell away from them. Yeah, it was. You weren't allowed back in the house until. Until dinner time. Like, you were just like, please, please get away from me, you child.

[Will Clark]

That's true.

[Seth]

And we took our cues from that.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

By the time we were 16, we knew what the deal was. Parents these days are all about like, oh, let me spend as much precious time with you as possible until you have to leave the nest, etc. Okay. Which is probably the better way to live. Don't get me wrong.

[Ben Pendergast]

There's definitely more love involved in something

[Seth]

like that, if you're a believer.

[Guest Analyst]

Yeah.

[Seth]

Yeah. No, I'm not knocking it.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah.

[Seth]

I'm not going all Will Clark on you.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, yeah.

[Seth]

I'm not acting like our parents. Acting like it was more important to get a martini than to look at your report card was actually a good way to rear your children. Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep, yep. The. The. The head of the head, Nick Adams, who is. He's. He's part of Trump's cabinet. He's the. He's. He's. He's. I think he's in charge of some tour, you know, some aspect of tourism with the country here. He's the one that invited Freddie, the German superfan, to the White House.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

And so there's a big question after Freddie deleted his Twitter account this week, is he still invited. Nick Adams put out a statement yesterday and it's finally happened where, like, the Freddie thing has now been totally politicized.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

I arranged a visit to a really pretty statement on Twitter. I arranged a visit to the White House for Freddie, the viral World cup tourists from Germany, to cap off what's been an epic FIFA World cup visit to the United States. Despite the hateful and angry radical left's vicious attempts to dox Freddie.

[Seth]

Oh, dear.

[Ben Pendergast]

Launch personal attacks and intimidate him into submission, ultimately forcing him to delete his social media accounts to protect his peace and safety. The West Wing visit will still take place. I never got the sense that the. The, for lack of a better word, bullying of Freddie or negativity towards Freddie was ever motivated by politics. I always got this impression it was motivated just by people that were a. Jealous. Like me. But I never bullied Freddie. I never interacted with Freddie. I was just admittedly jealous of all the things he got to do, the people that interacted with him. I thought it was More people that were just skeptical that he was more like this commercial mechanism disguised as a super fan than anything political.

[Seth]

I don't know. I just. Yeah. So maybe he goes and visits. Yeah.

[Will Clark]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay.

[Seth]

I wonder if he's like. But he hasn't had his face. If he goes to a visit at the White House, he's gonna have his picture taken and it'll be publicized all over the place.

[Ben Pendergast]

I think that. My guess is that would be a condition of him going there.

[Will Clark]

There.

[Seth]

Right, Right. Well. Or that. I mean, just don't worry. The politician says he's not going to take your picture. Like. Like, you got to be careful about all of that. I don't. I'm. I would put odds on. I think he bails out of this visit just. Just for no other reason than he just doesn't want any publicity at all at this point.

[Ben Pendergast]

My guess is he said his flight is set for July 23rd. If I had to guess, I. That that was the other reply he was getting yesterday or two days ago. Whenever he said, I'm, I'm here till the 23rd. The day Germany lost, people were like, you know, you can move your flight. Don't act like you're stuck here for the next three years.

[Seth]

He wanted. Nobody wanted. He wanted to keep traveling around and maybe presumably go to some World cup matches or something.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yeah, yeah, yeah. We'll see. All right. Pain and pender gas with you. All right. Big prediction from a. A. An NFL expert who really likes the Texans this year. How do we feel seeing that these are his other predictions that he's got for the upcoming season. We will go through that exercise coming up next

[Jimmy Conrad]

as the US Men's National Team takes center stage at a home World Cup. Make sure you're listening to Call it what yout Want, part of the CBS Sports Podcast Network, where you can join me. I'm Jimmy Conrad alongside Charlie Davies, Tony Miola, Marcelo Balboa, and Benny Fieldhaber throughout this tournament for previews, instant reactions and analysis of every US Match. Then all summer, we're back every Tuesday and Thursday, covering all things U.S. men's National Team. Download and follow call it what yout Want on Apple Podcasts, Spotify and wherever you get your podcasts.

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[McDonald's Announcer]

At McDonald's get an $8 McChicken or a $9 McDouble FIFA World cup meal deal. They come with small fries, a soft drink, Four Piece McNuggets, one of nine

[Seth]

legendary cups at participating McDonald's for a limited time while supplies last.

[Commercial Voiceover Announcer]

All rights reserved.

[Seth]

20:26 McDonald's at FIFA World Cup 20:26

[Ozempic Announcer]

I'm Anna Garcia, host of True Crime News, the podcast. Every week we bring you in depth coverage on cases making headlines as well as those that go under the radar. Tune in for murders that defy explanation, mystery seeking exploration, and shocking secrets that will leave you breathless. Each week we honor the victims by going beyond the salacious in our search for justice. Crime never stops and neither do we. Listen to True Crime News, available now on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Ben Pendergast]

I painted Pendergast with you on a on a Thursday. Appreciate everybody getting up with us, especially if you're off for this week and offer next week or whatever. We always appreciate you guys tuning in either on the radio or the free Odyssey app. We thank you for that. So Benjamin Solak, who we played some audio from on the show earlier this week. He was a guest on Garrett Houston Stressing Stressing's YouTube stream a few days ago. He's a big fan of the Texans. He just he likes the team. He thinks they're going to be. He thinks they're going to be good this year. He did his 10 predictions Seth for the upcoming season, trades division winners, things like that. And he predicted he had the ultimate Texans prediction. He thinks that the Texans are going to represent the AFC in the super bowl this year. Texans will win the afc. He has a disclaimer he said I deserve or I reserve the right to change this prediction before week one as we get more news about Bo Nick's ankle and his health because he really likes the Broncos overall roster. But obviously Bo Nicks is dealing with some fallout from his injury he suffered in the playoffs last year. But we know that Benjamin still a CJ Stroud believer.

[Seth]

It sounds like he believes in the Broncos more than the Texans. He just wants to be double about Bo Nix's health before the end of the season. Yep. But that's neither here nor there. Yeah, he's. I think he's one of the guys that I saw somebody on Twitter yesterday say that, man, like, Texans are in two camp. On the national media, there's people that are swayed completely by the playoffs and they think he's trash. And then there's another set of national media people who just feel like anybody who doubts CJ Stroud is an idiot and doesn't know ball, when in reality, I think there's, there's room in the middle ground somewhere. But I think Solak's one of those people that thinks that the people who doubt CJ Just don't know ball.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's what, that's what, in my opinion, makes CJ One of, if not the most intriguing players in training camp this year around the league is his contract situation and just the divergent opinions out there about him. It's, it's, it is the there, there. It's, there is very, there are very few people hanging out in the middle ground with him.

[Seth]

Well, it is interesting, though, because, like, people rightfully point out that the run game's been atrocious. They don't even really talk about the pass blocking as much as they should. But it's like the pass blocking wasn't great last year either. But the run, the lack of a run game is what really is just holding the entire offense back. So I think they finally, because I've been kind of annoyed that a lot of the people that really liked CJ Stroud after his rookie year, like the people that the real, like the guys that watch film of all 22 teams and everything, they've really been holding it in reserve with CJ Stroud the last couple years almost to where they're just, they're tabling their opinion until they see everything that they want and need to see. And I think this year, if the run game is there for the Texans, that's the, that's kind of the corner everybody's painted themselves into. It's that, all right, he's had rookie offensive coordinators, he's had bad offensive lines, he's had this, he's had that. If they actually have a good rushing attack and the offensive line performs okay, then they're either going to be proven correct or incorrect on just what the upside is for CJ Stroud. So this year, this year. And I think the Texans might be looking at it that way, too. They'd prefer to wait and pay CJ Stroud, possibly until after they see exactly what he looks like with better surroundings.

[Guest Analyst]

Yep.

[Ben Pendergast]

Okay. So, so that's, you know, I was like seeing positive predictions from people who follow the game closely about, about our team. That's always nice to see. And then I read the rest of the article and I'm like, okay, I would like for the person making the prediction about the Texans, I would like for most of their other predictions to make sense to me. So there's five in this article where I was like, I don't know, man. And I'm, I'm guessing part of this is you're making bold predictions to get eyeballs on it and there's that aspect of it. So there's a few of these here. Seth, I want to run by you and do these predictions make you feel better or worse about the Texans prediction that Solak has the Chiefs will miss the playoffs again. Are you simpatico with Ben Solak on the Chiefs missing the playoffs in the upcoming season?

[Seth]

I think we've seen in the last couple years kind of the steady drain and the effect of just trying to maintain all of these players on our roster and them doing a really impressive job of getting by without, you know, losing, losing, you know, their best defensive backs at various times, Rasheed Rice going to jail, all of those various things. And yet they haven't been a genuinely impressive offense for a couple years.

[Ben Pendergast]

No.

[Seth]

And I just don't know how much just Kenneth Walker iii, who I like, I, I really like Kenneth Walker iii and I would have loved to having him as somebody to, you know, like, try to build an actual credible rushing attack and everything. But he's going to a team that still has some of the same concerns with the receiving core and their offensive, not their offensive line, as long as they're healthy, I guess. But I don't think that, that it's with a coach that's just in his entire career has never really cared about using the run game all that much. Even when they're capable of running the ball, he goes away from it. So no, I think missing the if I had to flip a coin right now, I would, I think I would have a weighted coin that would say no playoffs.

[Ben Pendergast]

No playoffs. You agree with him on that? Yeah. Yeah. I don't think it's the craziest prediction in the world. I, you know, the world I live and I live in the world with the odds boards and things like that and, and that's certainly. That's driven a lot by public perception. And as long as you got Andy Reid and Mahomes, that will always be perceived to be a team that can compete for a championship. Your points are the same points Solak makes about the roster, which is. No, the roster is just deteriorating over time. It's the guys that are the most important guys are old on that team.

[Seth]

Well, and you get a signing. Yeah, you, you lose Trent McDuffie and it's like they've, they've done a good job of, of losing some of their better players, but then they brought back what's his name there from the Titans. Yeah, the Jerry Snead who's just been a shell of himself. Maybe, maybe being back with, with Spagnolo is just the, the ticket for him. But it just. If you're, if you're taking the logo out of just looks like any other team that was really, really good for a while and then they have a painful period where things just kind of. You lose enough by attrition over time that at some point you're. You're back on the rebuild process.

[Ben Pendergast]

Fanduel or.

[Will Clark]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

Fanduel's odds board for Super bowl winner in 2026. Rams far and away number one, five and a half to one. Then the Bills at 10 to one. The Ravens at 11 to one. The Seahawks, the defending champs, are 12 to one. The Chargers are fifth on the board at 16 to one. And then the Chiefs. So the Chiefs in the eyes of the betting community at least. Still, I don't know how much action they're getting, but they're fairly high up the odds board. Okay, Solac prediction. Vikings will win the NFC North.

[Seth]

What's he basing that on?

[Ben Pendergast]

Let's see here. What is he basing that on? I had looked at what he was basing the next two Vikings will in the AFC North. He's got a lot of words in here. He says that the Vikings, they were the clear. The sportsbooks have them in last place right now. They're coming off a JJ McCarthy year in lots of various quarterback stuff. They signed Kyler Murray says Kyler Murray should elevate them back to above average quarterback play so they will be better at quarterback the other side of the ball. The Vikings are the only defense that he trusts in that division. Yeah, he trusts the Vikings defense more than the Lions defense, the Bears defense and the packers defense.

[Seth]

I can't at this point, I just

[Ben Pendergast]

can't say I'm a no on this

[Seth]

one at this point I can, I'm intrigued by Kyler Murray. But it's not like this is the first time Kyler Murray's been in Shanahan type system. They tried that with him in Arizona. So maybe, maybe Kevin o' Connell will be just that much better at implementing it. And you can see where, you can see where the potential is with him running that system. But it's just he's still, he's still very much in a like you have to prove it to me mode. But Kevin o' Connell is also the guy who turned Sam Darnold's career around. That's. They're intriguing. It's very, very intriguing. But I, it's not enough for me to say oh yeah, they're going to win that division.

[Ben Pendergast]

Yep, this is one that I hope happens again. These are Benjamin Solax big predictions. He predicts the Texans are going to win the AFC this year. This is the one I'm really other than that one, the one I'm really hoping for. He predicts Jonathan Taylor will get traded to the Bears before the trade deadline.

[Seth]

Oh, that would be awesome because the

[Ben Pendergast]

Colts are going to be underwhelming this year.

[Seth]

They'll be underwhelming and they'll do oh boy. How much, how much does he say he thinks they'll get for Jonathan Taylor?

[Ben Pendergast]

I don't get question he the part where he gets to the actual trade of Jonathan Taylor. It talks about he compares them to the other backs, you know that that might be available.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

He says the Colts. If the Colts come out of the gate slow and consider a change at mid season, Taylor will surely draw trade interest. His start to 2025 prove that he still has best running back in the league potential playoff. The the trades I've seen Seth I just don't want to read an entire paragraph on the air. The, the trades I've seen involving Jonathan Taylor typically are like a third round pick.

[Seth]

He probably didn't put a price in here anyway. I just, I'd be really surprised if Jonathan Taylor got traded away. I think the Colts. The Colts will probably be. Boy, I don't know. It's. They're gonna have to put it all on Jonathan Taylor and Jonathan Taylor is not a guy that's been able to stay healthy consistently in his career. And depending on how much. I mean like if Daniel Jones isn't all that mobile and he was only doing 7 on 7 during minicamp, he wasn't doing team stuff. It takes a big part of his threat away from him. And then it just becomes, okay, we got to load up against Jonathan Taylor, and the Colts will be all too happy to run him 25, 30 times a game.

[Will Clark]

Yep.

[Seth]

And it could get really, really ugly. I don't know. I don't know if he makes it to the trade.

[Ben Pendergast]

That's the thing I was thinking. I'm like, yeah, or, or if you're trading for him at the trade deadline, you're going to get a guy who's got, you know, 14 games worth of tread.

[Seth]

Yeah.

[Ben Pendergast]

On his tire through only seven or eight games of the season. You know that they just used him and abused him. All right, pain and Pendergast with you. Good job. Benjamin Solak, Texans coming out of the afc. I'm here for it. All right, coming up next, let's circle back to the Astros. Tatsuya Imai did a terrible thing to me yesterday. He made me look stupid. Not that it's hard to do, but he made me look really, really dumb. And we will explain why as we head into the 8 o' clock hour. Coming up next, Lamine Yamal steps into

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[Ben Pendergast]

A steal by Henry, who pulls his own collectible cup.

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[Seth]

All rights reserve 2026 McDonald's at FIFA

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