Running It Back Super Bowl XL Preview!

It’s Media Week 2026, and while the league builds the stage for Super Bowl XL, a coaching "Red Wedding" has left the NFL landscape looking like a chaotic game of musical chairs. In this episode, Mike Palmer and Tarlin Ray break down the fallout of the massive coaching turnover and a Super Bowl matchup defined by redemption stories and "Harvard-style" job interviews.

The guys dive deep into the hiring trends of the year—from the rise of the quarterback-influenced front office to the confusing lockout of the winningest coach in history from the Hall of Fame . We're also paying homage to the 11th anniversary of the 2015 Marshawn Lynch era, reminding everyone that sometimes—"We’re just here so we don’t get fined" .

Key Takeaways:

🏈 The Quarterback Bequeathment: In an act of "tremendous generosity," Mike hands Drake May over to Tarlin while betting his own reputation on a Sam Darnold redemption tour .

🤡 The HoF "Clown Show": Why Bill Belichick's first-ballot denial is being labeled a total farce and what it means for the future of coaching legacies .

🩸 The Coaching Red Wedding: From Eric Bieniemy’s demanding accountability to the "Harvard interview" essays in Cleveland, we track the bloodbath across the league .

🧬 Bloodlines & Systems: A look at the Kubiak family tree—Clint, Clay, and Klein—and how coaching dynasties are tightening their grip on the NFL .

📉 A Low Watermark: A candid look at the current state of minority head coaching hires in 2026 and why the numbers are hitting a historical low .

Timestamps:

00:00 Tactical shovels and the "sharper, more substantive" way to dig out of a Brooklyn snowstorm

02:35 Tarlin’s "Titanium Hip" update: The bizarre experience of meeting a surgeon for 20 minutes and then being "released to the wild"

03:55 Media week and the all-time press conference GOATs: From "Practice" to "I'm just here so I don't get fined"

06:55 Bequeathing Drake May: Why Mike is holding onto the "distressed asset" of Sam Darnold for the Super Bowl

15:55 Bill Belichick and the Hall of Fame snub: Is the voting process a "clown show"?

18:45 The Red Wedding: Analyzing the Eric Bieniemy dilemma and the "accountability" he brings back to Kansas City

31:30 Mike McCarthy goes home: The "Yinzer" homecoming in Pittsburgh and the end of the Mike Tomlin era

37:45 The Rooney Rule final tally: Exploring the "low watermark" and the movement of coaches like Robert Saleh

39:15 Super Bowl predictions: Can Sam Darnold actually matriculate himself to the Vince Lombardi trophy?

If your GM forced you to write a "Harvard-style" essay just to keep your job, would you cite your sources or just walk out like a coach heading to Cancun?

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