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Dan Le Batard
You're listening to Giraffe Kings Network. All set for your flight?
Stugotz
Yep. I've got everything I need. Eye mask, neck pillow, T Mobile headphones.
Mike Ryan
Wait.
Stugotz
T Mobile? You bet. Free in flight wi fi 15% off all Hilton brands. I never go anywhere without T Mobile. Same goes for my water bottle, chewing gum, nail clippers. I'm gonna leave you to it.
Dan Le Batard
Find out how you can experience trav@t.
Stugotz
Mobile.Com Travel qualifying plan required. Wi Fi were available on select US airlines. Deposit and Hilton honors membership required for 15% discount. Terms and conditions apply.
Jessica
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Dan Le Batard
Shadow Show Shadow Show Shadow Show Shadow.
Stugotz
Show Shadow Show Shadow Show Shadowing it. Shadowing it. I can't tell you how rare it is at this early on a Tuesday morning to see Stugarts and Mike Ryan Maximum locked in on sports. Just snorting. Snorting the highest level of tennis. Even though it's just a quarterfinal snorting joke quarterfinal.
Dan Le Batard
That feels like a final. Dan.
Stugotz
I mean you too. Mike Ryan has been jumping around popcorn jumping around, watching here he wants what do you want here? Clearly you just want this match to go on forever.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, and I'm not going to get that. Imagine if this were ma. If this match were any good, but just Djokovic with. With Andy Murray coaching him right now is just too strong. But I do love early morning tennis. Reason to feel alive on a Tuesday. I've got so much money on this. I'm about to lose. And I really probably shouldn't be betting this heavy on tennis.
Stugotz
The. The room is a little light today because we've got illness and Jessica is simply feeling sick. She's back. We're trying to get into contact with her, but we've got a lot of soldiers down with sickness. And Stugac is asking because he's a bit of a hypochondriac.
Dan Le Batard
Well, I mean, we should be concerned, should we not? I mean, no one's here.
Stugotz
Stugatz is saying, what is it? Do you know what it is? It's a viral strain of what that has all of these people knocked out today.
Mike Ryan
Have you read about the diarrhea strain? It's not that. At least I don't think it's that brown wave.
Dan Le Batard
What about it?
Mike Ryan
There's a really bad, violent diarrhea thing like where you get it and within minutes you're vomiting and pooping.
Stugotz
And we just pulled out of the World Health Organization.
Mike Ryan
Oh, please don't. Can we not do that today?
Billy
I had so much look behind him. I hate to tell you.
Mike Ryan
I saw that. I'm like, guys, this show's been cooking the last few months. We haven't talked to anything just. All right, so what? He did a Nazi salute. Let's move on.
Jeremy
Yeah, I mean, I did have the over on a day and a half before there would be a Sig Heil in this new administration. But unfortunately I lost my money on that behind Dan.
Stugotz
Now I can't have without comment, which is how I was going to do it all show before you guys got carried away. I can't without comment have that behind me and not have you guys say that I'm making it political when I was going to do it and am going to do it without comment.
Roy
Hmm.
Mike Ryan
I don't trust you on that one.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah, it seems tricky.
Billy
I have over under four and a half.
Mike Ryan
I bet dollars to donuts you're going to mention politics today.
Stugotz
What are we going to. What are we going to do? First of all, I still don't understand. It is we bet dollars to donuts. I believe that I'm going to abstain from a couple of things today. I'm going to go try to go the day without talking about Jimmy Butler. Even though Jeremy is dying to talk about Jimmy Butler because he was in the most awkward locker room he's ever been in in his life. He said all six days of his life.
Mike Ryan
You're talking about it.
Dan Le Batard
That's a loss.
Jeremy
Yeah, I just wanted to talk about Khalil Ware and Bama to buyer.
Stugotz
The show hasn't started yet. I'm not talking about anything yet. The show starts in earnest when the intro plays. This is a shadow show. Anything can happen here. And this is not show. This is something that is before the show. And so I was going to avoid politics and I was going to avoid Jimmy Butler and I was going to talk just football, just the way it is that you want me to do it. But when you told me about a brown wave, I didn't bring that up. Billy jumped in there. All of a sudden he put between a red wave and a blue wave. He put a brown wave. Once he puts that in there, I'm like, oh, yeah. And did you see? We checked out of the World Health Organization. Now Mike Ryan is sick to his stomach because Yokovic wins. Mike Grind's sick to his stomach or.
Billy
He has a virus.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, yeah, I'm bummed.
Dan Le Batard
Diarrhea strain.
Mike Ryan
Dan asked me if I hated Djokovic. I'm like, no, I don't hate him. I just dislike him more than any other tennis player. But it's not hate. I respect him. And look, he's going right now and he's celebrating with Andy Murray. And Andy Murray is one of my all time favorites. So it does bring like a little slight dash of likability to a guy. I. I would actually really like Djokovic if he were more of his true self. Because when things don't go his way and the crowd gets behind the other person, he of this villain character that I wish I saw more of.
Stugotz
That villain character, when you're as excellent as he is is really such a strange thing to see in the modern age dugouts because back when you and I loved tennis because American tennis was great, we had an assortment of divas at the top of the sport. But this guy being a villain, this guy, this kind of excellence. When he broke, I remember when he broke at, he was like 20 years old. And it was here on Key Biscayne where everyone in tennis was talking about what this was going to be. And at the time, he had all sorts of conquerors ahead of him. But Federer has been in charge of this sport for so long that seeing him come and take it from him and then become villainous. Has been an interesting turn.
Mike Ryan
And I really like this era right now because you have Alcaraz, who was, you know, arguably best in the world prior to this matchup. Here, look, Djokovic lost to Riley Opelka a couple of weeks ago. This is a sunning turnaround. He was, he had a light off season. There's a reason why this matchup is in the quarterfinal. You have Djokovic being all time great and now keeping the young ones at bay. You mentioned American men's tennis. We're on the precipice of something very special. A golden generation of American males are coming, and this guy is being the gatekeeper right now. And I think I might actually hate him.
Billy
This is the Dan Levatar show with the Stugats podcast.
Stugotz
I'm curious because I'm sure that everyone listening to this understands the feeling that I'm about to express right now. And it's a feeling that you can't control. When I'm watching Lions in Washington going into that game in my head, unemotionally attached, I'm like, man, it'd be really nice for Detroit to feel good for a while about its football since it hasn't happened in my lifetime.
Dan Le Batard
Right?
Stugotz
To feel like they have a legitimate chance and they got the buy. And generally speaking, if you've got the buy, you win that football game. Just I don't know whether it's a 70 or an 80% clip, but it's pretty surprising for Washington to go into Detroit and be able to do that as a nine and a half point dog, a rookie quarterback, to become, you know, win two road games now and is the best rookie quarterback since we got to say Marino. Right? We've got to, we've, we've already got to say that in terms of impact as a rookie, you're not supposed to learn the position this way. In college, this guy somehow averaged 10 yards of play, a first down, a play at LSU, and now just ransacked a Detroit team that had the most hope of any of my lifetime. But what surprised me about Saturday night is I switched allegiances quick and I went to rooting against the Lions and then laughing at the Lions fan base. And I had no control over what it is that was happening to me. It just happened.
Dan Le Batard
You became a commie.
Stugotz
That's what happened.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah, huh?
Stugotz
I didn't have this in this America. I became a commie, huh? On Saturday night.
Dan Le Batard
Interesting.
Stugotz
I. Because this makes me to hate the Lions, to hate this Lions team. Dan Campbell, you're going to throw. You're going to do. You're really going to do. The trick plays. They don't look cute when. When all you have to do is have golf, not be golf. We knew he was going to be golf. We knew at some point you were going to get golfed. And. And were you guys with me on laughing at Detroit or did you feel bad for Detroit?
Mike Ryan
I was laughing at Detroit ahead of time because I didn't understand there were about four franchises in that league where nothing good will ever happen to them.
Dan Le Batard
Yep.
Mike Ryan
And for them to be consensus favorites to go to the Super Bowl.
Stugotz
Really?
Mike Ryan
The Detroit Lions favorite. We expect the Detroit Lions and their fans to feel joy. Like, hold on. Like, let's temper our expectations just a little bit. We still have to see it. And also, I know they made it to an NFC championship game, but this core, I don't know if that's enough suffering. Certainly the franchise and fan base has suffered plenty. Don't get me wrong. But, you know, more obstacles. Jaden Daniels is a really good quarterback. I was just really confused as to why that franchise and its fans were so confident.
Dan Le Batard
So you need more suffering from Lions fans and for the Lions organization because they haven't suffered enough.
Mike Ryan
I need the amount of suffering around this core of Lions players for them to go into a big game and not be cocksure.
Dan Le Batard
Right.
Mike Ryan
And they walked into that game cocksure.
Billy
Are the Commanders not also a suffering fan base?
Stugotz
Yes.
Billy
So do you not feel good for them?
Dan Le Batard
Yeah. But the Commanders had a run in the 80s and 90s that most. I mean, most fans of any organization would take. I would take that run.
Stugotz
The commies hadn't won a playoff game since 2006. They've now won two on the road. And he's threatening to do something. Stugots. I mean, to ransack a league by surprise. You're two wins away. I don't expect them to win in Philadelphia either. But that was a slop football game. And Philadelphia and Buffalo were ready to give away those games at the end. Like both. Both of those games were ready to go. When. I want to get back to Detroit in a second, but I want to. Since we were talking about the Buffalo and the Raven game because I want to talk about Mark Andrews. To have your excellence. Bill Buckner like that. Mark Andrews has more touchdowns than anyone in the history of that franchise. That franchise has been really good.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Stugotz
For him to have a Bill Buckner moment where, oh, you're going to remember that he should have caught that when I keep arguing on behalf of Stugats and I know Mike and others tell me that I'm soft for doing it, man. It's got to be hard to catch a hard, slick football in the cold. Like, that's an un.
Dan Le Batard
It's your job, man.
Mike Ryan
Especially when it's not totally on the money.
Stugotz
I know.
Mike Ryan
When it's not totally on the money.
Stugotz
I know. But I want to Harbaugh drop a.
Billy
New two point conversion play.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Billy
Every single time is the exact same play. I don't know if it's worked once.
Stugotz
It's not a stoppable playing.
Billy
It is very stoppable. It's been stopped every single time he's done it. I don't think he succeeded it once. I saw three different examples of when it was stopped. It hasn't worked one time. Drop a new play. How about give it to Derek Henry and have him just run it right up the gut?
Dan Le Batard
That's a good plan.
Stugotz
Fine. That is.
Billy
He's huge.
Stugotz
That is a plan. Yes, he is huge.
Dan Le Batard
Hard to tackle.
Stugotz
Dan, you want the MVP with options is better than Derek Henry. One option.
Billy
That's a pretty good option.
Stugotz
Agreed. Agreed.
Mike Ryan
But.
Stugotz
Okay.
Billy
Ever heard of Isaiah? Likely it's because Mark Andrews sucks.
Stugotz
Now the reigning mvp, he might actually.
Mike Ryan
Win a third, which means he has as many MVPs as postseason wins.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Stugotz
Yes. He's got. This is an interesting thing. Okay. Because he's got. In a league, you cannot do this anymore. He's got multiple turnover games. Half of his playoff games are multiple turnover games. And when I say you can't do this anymore. Stugatz, the winning team in the playoffs that we just saw this weekend, threw for an average of 166 yards. What's changing in that sport is. No, that's fine. We'll play it in a tiny, tiny phone booth. But our quarterback will not give it up. CJ Stroud will get sacked eight times because there'll be pressure up the middle. But our quarterback will not, not be turning the ball over. In fact, Patrick Mahomes, worst season of his life, we're seeing right now. This is the worst statistical season of his life. You want to guess how many 300 yard games he has?
Dan Le Batard
Two.
Stugotz
Three.
Dan Le Batard
What?
Stugotz
Three. All season. He's got three 300 yard games. Patrick Mahomes has been mediocre and has double digit turnovered it. But this is what I wanted to tell you about the Bills and why I think the Bills are going to win the super bowl even though they are a team. Why would they Ever expect good things to happen to them? Right.
Dan Le Batard
The Bills.
Stugotz
The Bills. The Bills are.
Mike Ryan
They're one of those four.
Dan Le Batard
They're one of the teams. Yeah.
Stugotz
Well, who are the four, by the way?
Mike Ryan
But they've done so much suffering.
Dan Le Batard
Well, it's the Jets, Jets, Browns, Lions, Bills. Yeah. I mean, the Bills have. They've been the four Super Bowls.
Mike Ryan
Yeah. But then what happened?
Stugotz
You lose all of them.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Stugotz
Notre Dame season's not going to be remembered.
Dan Le Batard
You can't win it.
Stugotz
Really.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, it really should be remembered. Man, there's so many football storylines. I want to take that one now.
Stugotz
You don't remember second place. You don't remember it like Notre Dame sometimes.
Dan Le Batard
You know, the Gaines, Ohio State.
Mike Ryan
Are we letting Lamar off the hook? Look, because an opposing quarterback scored more.
Stugotz
Than one second, I'm terrible. No. The thing that I want to talk about, because it's in the weeds a little bit on football, but to me it's fascinating because we spend the whole season trying to get to a metric that tells us who's best. One game samples. We understand some of them in the snow. You tell me the importance of coaching and coaching and coaching and coaching. And largely at the end, it was all the best quarterbacks, largely. Sam Darnold became Sam Darnold. Jared Goff became Jared Goff. Everyone's still terrified of Stafford. You're lucky to beat him with hertz and a buck 22 in. In passing because he doesn't turn the ball over. And Philadelphia would just run straight at you and like the way that team plays is crazy.
Dan Le Batard
Yes.
Stugotz
Like in the modern age, to beat you 50 yards at a time with Saquon Barkley because Lane Johnson is just bigger than everybody. But to have the Buffalo Bills advance to now a game that is the weakest Chiefs team, even though it's only.
Mike Ryan
Lost twice, how do they keep getting away with this?
Dan Le Batard
What's going on here?
Stugotz
The weakest Chiefs team that we have seen in the Mahomes era and certainly the weakest offense that we have seen in the Mahomes era, what Buffalo takes into that. And Stu Gaza, I want you to help me examine this because it legitimately is something I do not understand and have not seen. A quarterback who was wildly inaccurate coming out of college and unbelievably reckless with the football, has become now a quarterback who we haven't had in the league since 1970, because that's the last time you'll find somebody who fumbled as little and threw as few interceptions and took as few sacks. Negative plays from A quarterback as this one. Josh Allen has become the greatest protector of the football in the sport. This is a historic. This is an offense that is historic in protecting the football at a time. Everyone's protecting the football. Why'd you beat the Ravens at home? Even though you hadn't lost at home all season, they turned it over and you did not. That was the difference between those two teams, both of which we know can be super bowl winners, both of which we'd all acknowledge. Yes, those are two teams that are good. But Baltimore was favored in that game. Buffalo hasn't lost a game at home all season. And everyone saw. No, that's the number one defense against the number one defense since week 11. Josh Allen can be trusted to not turn the ball over. Get out of here. Like, how is not. How is not everybody in the world talking about, you know, what the difference in that sport is? All the analysis, all of it. That quarterback doesn't make mistakes.
Dan Le Batard
How, like you're confused by this.
Stugotz
How can I not be? I said he was terrible at football.
Dan Le Batard
I think what the Bills have done, I mean, he threw the ball 22 times. They're not putting him in spots where he's going to turn the ball over. Like the offense, it's kind of like he's been, you know, it's kind of like a game manager. Like, it's, it's, it's time of possession. It's take as much time. It's keep the other quarterback off the field. And Josh Allen is not throwing 45 times a game to win.
Stugotz
The reason it's not game management is because you're still terrified of them on 3rd and 11.
Dan Le Batard
Well, of course you are, but.
Stugotz
But that's what I'm saying. That's why he's so great that no game management with Alex Smith, you weren't terrified of anything on when there's a cruc play.
Mike Ryan
Alex Smith isn't keeping the ball in.
Dan Le Batard
His head, but it's the rare game manager who can also just win the game by himself.
Stugotz
Okay, but. So you see.
Mike Ryan
Did you manage Josh Allen?
Dan Le Batard
I am.
Mike Ryan
Can we put this narrative to bed before it starts?
Jeremy
Josh Allen's playing the cleanest football of any QB in NFL history per NFL on CBS this season. He has the lowest percentage of plays with a sack, fumble or interception since the merger. Only 4.2% of plays end that way for the Bill.
Stugotz
So, Stugach, this season, the Bills have basically had half a turnover a game. Half a turnover a game is the average on what the Bills. How you Steal the football from them.
Dan Le Batard
Sounds like he's due.
Billy
That's the worry. It's bound to happen at some point. Bad weather happen to anyone.
Mike Ryan
And I understand Lamar for his postseason, that was one of his better performances. But statistically, he's quite literally half the quarterback he is during the regular season. In the postseason, you juxtapose that with what Josh Allen is to his team, a team that spent their entire offseason taking away talent from him, while the Ravens just stack talent on talent on talent. So many first rounders across that team. And the difference is Josh Allen played a clean game, Lamar Jackson couldn't. And I know Andrews is the foil because a defender made a great play with a peanut punch and he didn't catch that ball. But Lamar Jackson's fumble was stupid, dumb, worse trying to do too much. In fact, you could watch it over again and wonder, how does this even become a fumble? How do you have the opportunity to fumble it, let alone almost be a fumble 6? The criticisms of Lamar have long since.
Stugotz
Fumble 6 is not a thing.
Billy
It can be.
Mike Ryan
It was almost a fumble 6.
Stugotz
It can't be a thing. But I'm just saying that that phrase doesn't work. A pick six works. A fumble six does not work.
Dan Le Batard
You're right. We need to come up with a different name.
Stugotz
We need another name for that. That's not good enough.
Mike Ryan
I mean, it's not my word.
Stugotz
I. It's not a phrase. That's okay. You need pick six rhymes and we allow it. Fumble six. That's the first time I'm hearing it, and I don't want it. Fumble. Even though I know exactly what you're. What you mean. And I do want to keep examining stugouts because we won't leave Mark Andrews alone. Because what came over me on Mark Andrews felt really bad.
Dan Le Batard
Scooping score.
Billy
Fumble five plus one.
Dan Le Batard
Oh, wow. I like that math inefficient.
Stugotz
You were pointing. You're pointing at Billy supporting football. Fumble five plus one. Which is truly terrible.
Billy
How so?
Mike Ryan
We had scoop and score right there.
Jeremy
Plus a potential other one.
Dan Le Batard
I quickly bailed on my own and went to Billy's defense.
Stugotz
I want to talk about Lamar Jackson stugats and. And Mark Andrews because at the end of that game, Lamar Jackson did what you require from the MVP on the road. At the end of the game, the punctuation falls to someone other than Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. Which is why I feel so bad for Mark Andrews because we were about to get what. What. What Roger Goodell does to solve Every problem. More football. We're going to get 18 games. We were about to get overtime between Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson or we were about to get Josh Allen goes right down the field. Not going to be a game manager, going to win the game. Or turns it over. Josh Allen. And we laugh all off season because you didn't turn it over at all. But then you turned it over.
Mike Ryan
I wanted to yell at McDermott for kicking the field goal.
Stugotz
Well, so let's talk about this for a second.
Dan Le Batard
Can't do it.
Stugotz
This is Stugotz. This is where this is.
Dan Le Batard
Even though you should.
Stugotz
We knew that Sam Darnold was going to Sam Darnold. We suspected that Josh Allen. I'm sorry. That Jared Goff was going to Jared Goff. Where the Bills collapse is with us just watching them and being like, well, is it going to be the Turnovers or is McDermott going to get you at the end? Because that's when he's going to shrivel up and say, I've got one of the best running weapons that there is. Yeah, you stopped him that time. But Ravens, the best I got is this. This is the best I got. I got Josh Allen with options rolling around, needing to get a yard to got. The difference between the Rams and the Eagles season is the Eagles can't be stopped on third and two. And the Rams were a couple of times like, what can you do on third and two in this league? And what can you do in third and 11 in this league? That game was one. McDermott could have choked out Lamar Jackson at the end and instead kicked a field goal in the snow. When even if you, even if you go forward and miss, you're still putting Baltimore in the situation. They gotta go the whole field and get a touchdown.
Dan Le Batard
But don't you guys think. Because that touchdown was scored with 90 seconds remaining on the clock. So if they convert the two point conversion, it's a tie game. I do think Josh Allen's taking them right down the field and they win it game over.
Stugotz
But you can do that in fiction and hypothesis. But. But it could also not go like that. And then we're laughing at you the rest of the way. Stugats. Do you know how close we were to laughing at the Eagles? That you're up. That you're up. You're going to waste the Saquon Barkley game up with five minutes left by allowing the Rams to score two touchdowns on you on your field. Like, and if. And if Stafford had done it, how surprised would you have been? Not Very.
Dan Le Batard
No, not at all.
Mike Ryan
I love watching him at this age.
Dan Le Batard
So do I.
Mike Ryan
If, if Matthew Stafford in Detroit had the brains that that Rams Matthew Stafford has right now. Yeah, he'd genuinely be an all timer KG vet. There's just nothing that you can do to surprise him. He's seen it all.
Dan Le Batard
I'm not going to put this on Mark Andrews though. It's. It's squarely like listen, he had a bad day. I'm not going to deny that this is squarely on Lamar Jackson. When you're talking about Josh Allen not turning the ball over, Patrick Mahomes not turning the ball over, Jaden Daniels a rookie never turning the ball over and Lamar Jackson a two time mvp and I do think he is one of the greatest quarterbacks I have ever seen. But my fear for Lamar Jackson is he's going to turn into Dan Marino. There are too many good quarterbacks for all of them to win Super Bowls and that's on Lamar. That's the glory position. That's the position everyone is watching. You cannot turn it over twice in that game.
Stugotz
So Stugots is not wrong about anything that he's saying but this is the context I would offer you. And the reason I say he's not wrong is he wasn't wrong all that time ago when he gave me the same analysis analysis on Peyton Manning and the beginning of his career and he was this loud about why Peyton Manning wasn't as good as you think Peyton Manning is because he didn't win championships after eight playoff games. Both Peyton Manning and Lamar Jackson are three and five and over seven seasons when you win 80 plus games the only one to not make it to a Super bowl other than these Ravens is Peyton Manning's Colts. So yes you got to win in the playoffs and he had a couple of turnovers but for you to skip past Andrews, a guy touching the ball seven times in the game, fumbling it once and then dropping the tie and saying it's all on Lamar Jackson. When Lamar Jackson made the throw at the end that needs to be caught to tie the game. Like you're not showing any nuance there like in well I never have been.
Dan Le Batard
A little bit better start today.
Stugotz
I mean it could have been, sure it could have been a better throw.
Mike Ryan
And don't forget like the Derrick Henry one too or Henry has to slow down because he's wide open. Like all these, these are the little.
Dan Le Batard
Things, little missed throws.
Mike Ryan
I know I'm nitpicking but I nitpick greatness.
Billy
Derek Henry also Dropped the ball.
Mike Ryan
That should have been a touchdown, but no, no, no. But that's the one that I'm talking about. Like Derek Henry has to catch it by his shins because the pass is so bad. The dude is wide open. You got to hit Derrick Henry full stride. That's a. That's. That's a touchdown if he does.
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Mike Ryan
Peace.
Dan Le Batard
Billy.
Billy
Yes?
Dan Le Batard
You know what we've been talking about all season long?
Billy
Smeared off.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah. How'd you guess?
Billy
I knew it. I'm a good guesser.
Dan Le Batard
You are. They are the official sponsor of the Dan Leitard show with to God. So you already know that it's an official vodka partner of the NFL. And Super Bowl 59, we're going to be there.
Billy
Oh, yes. I can't believe we're by 59 already.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Billy
Time flies.
Dan Le Batard
It does. Yes.
Billy
We're old.
Dan Le Batard
I'm old.
Billy
Hey, you know what? Us two guys, I was thinking.
Dan Le Batard
Yes?
Billy
Since football season's winding down, super bowl is coming up. Super Bowl 59. We've been celebrating football all year. I have an idea.
Dan Le Batard
What?
Billy
Let's do a toast.
Dan Le Batard
Okay. Oh, wow.
Billy
To football.
Dan Le Batard
Really?
Billy
Yeah. Me and you. Let's toast football.
Dan Le Batard
So, just a toast. So we're raising our glasses of Smirnoff vodka.
Billy
Yeah.
Dan Le Batard
All right. And we are toasting. To football.
Billy
To football.
Dan Le Batard
To football, everyone. What we love about Smirnoff is that you can get the world's number one vodka without breaking. Breaking the bank. This feeling is what the good folks over at Smirnoff call. Billy, you want to take a stab at this? Yes.
Billy
Smirnoff Strawdinary.
Dan Le Batard
Nailed it.
Billy
I told you I'm a good guesser.
Dan Le Batard
And right now Smirnoff has partnered with Complex, letting fans get their hands on some amazing items handpicked by celebrities, including NFL legend and super bowl champion Vernon Davis, for the unbelievable price of 12.99. Just like a bottle of Smirnoff. So head on over to smirnoff drops.com to check out upcoming drops. And check out. Oh, Billy, you want to take a guess again?
Billy
These smearn off strawberry items. Oh, look at us. What's the website?
Dan Le Batard
It is Smirnoff drop.com Smirnoff. We do game days. Please drink responsibly. Smirnoff number 21 vodka distilled from grain, 40% alcohol by volume. The Smirnoff Company, New York, New York. Pricing is at the sole discretion of the retailer and may vary by state. Please do not share with anyone under legal drinking age. Billy.
Billy
Yes.
Dan Le Batard
You know what we've been talking about all season long?
Billy
Smirnoff.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah. How'd you guess?
Billy
I knew it. I'm a good guesser.
Dan Le Batard
You are. They are the official sponsor of the Dan Lepatar show with Stugat, so you already know that. It's an official vodka partner of the NFL. And Super Bowl 59. We're gonna be there.
Billy
Oh, yes. I can't believe we're by 59 already. Yeah, time flies.
Dan Le Batard
It does. Yes.
Billy
We're old.
Dan Le Batard
I'm old.
Billy
Hey, you know what I was thinking?
Dan Le Batard
Yes.
Billy
Since football season's winding down, super bowl is coming up. Super Bowl 59. We've been celebrating football all year. I have an idea.
Dan Le Batard
What?
Billy
Let's do a toast.
Dan Le Batard
Okay. Oh, wow.
Billy
To football.
Dan Le Batard
Really?
Billy
Yeah. Me and you. Let's toast football.
Dan Le Batard
So, just a toast. So we're. We're raising our glasses up.
Billy
Yeah.
Dan Le Batard
All right. And we are toasting to football.
Billy
To football.
Dan Le Batard
To football, everyone. What we love about Smirnoff is that you can get the world's number one vodka without breaking the bank. This feeling is what the good folks over at Smirnoff call. Billy, you want to take a stab at this? Yes.
Billy
Smirnoff Strawdinary.
Dan Le Batard
Nailed it.
Billy
I told you I'm a good guesser.
Dan Le Batard
And right now, Smirnoff has partnered with Complex, letting fans get their hands on some amazing items handpicked by celebrities, including NFL legend and Super super bowl champion Vernon Davis, for the unbelievable price of $12.99. Just like a bottle of Smirnoff. So head on over to smirnoffdrops.com to check out upcoming drops. And check out. Oh, Billy, you want to take A guess again.
Billy
These Smirnoff strawdinary items. Oh, look at us. What's the website?
Dan Le Batard
It is smirnoffdrop.com Smirnoff we do game days. Please drink responsibly. Smirnoff Number 21 vodka distilled from grain, 40% alcohol by volume. The Smirnoff Company New York, NY. Pricing is at the sole discretion of the retailer and may vary by state. Please do not share with anyone under legal drinking age.
Billy
Don LeBatard and then that Stafford.
Roy
Oh, there's a brand new kid in.
Billy
Town out of BYU Stugats they call.
Stugotz
Him.
Billy
Quarterback is not named to us. This is the Dan Levatar show with the St. Josh Allen didn't turn the ball over, but Lamar had a better game than Josh Allen except for the turnovers. The Ravens had a better game than the Bills except for the turnover. They outgained them 416 yards to 273. Lamar, like the passing was better from, from Lamar. The running was better from Lamar than Josh. They just held on to the ball and they secured the ball. That was the difference.
Dan Le Batard
All the teams that had more yards this weekend lost the game.
Mike Ryan
Crazy. Crazy. That's a wild stat. The Peyton Manning thing, I think kind of kind of clicks a little bit like more since he's been in the league, he's won the MVP about like 15% of the time that he's been in it. And we were saying these things about Peyton Manning for a long time and I think quite honestly like, like Peyton might have had like top to bottom better teams. This is the best team I think I've ever seen Lamar Jackson have. And to go up against one of the weaker Buffalo Bills teams. The only difference is this Bills team has the best Josh Allen we've ever seen. And that's the standard. That's who we compare. Yes, by yards. They had a better game. But I don't think Lamar was better than Josh Allen.
Billy
I mean he had a better rating, he had a better qbr.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, but Josh did the things to win. More importantly, he did the things to not lose. And Lamar did certain things in that game, be it be off by a beat an inch or two, not be perfect on his opportunities, the turnovers. I just think, okay, Josh was better.
Stugotz
This is funny and you can say whatever you want about who was better in that game. But I do find amazing that by limiting Josh Allen as much as I possibly can, that's how I'm going to beat Lamar Jackson, who needs to be not an inch Off. Not, not, not a step slow. This person, Lamar was late. Look, this is what I'm going to say is fair about your criticism. Because the winners get to write the history. The losing is forever. He can make all the excuses that he wants. We already did this 20 years ago. The part I'm finding funny is that Bill Polian didn't think Lamar Jackson could be a quarterback because he's exactly the same as Peyton Manning is in the playoffs. Like statistically, their teams are the same. Wow, great, great, great expectations. And then they fall flat in the playoffs. And I spend the entire time arguing to anyone who will listen, Peyton Manning is a better quarterback than Tom Brady. And I am wrong internally because he had the start that Lamar Jackson did while Tom Brady was winning right out of the gate. Because we do believe there's a knows how to win. And Patrick Mahome and the Chiefs are the ones that have that now because none of us even understand. We'd all be willing to dismiss them as the worst team remaining in these playoffs given how limited their offense is. But they keep winning every which way, including against the Texans in a way that was a bit baffling.
Dan Le Batard
They have 12 wins by single digits.
Stugotz
It will be funny.
Dan Le Batard
Think about that.
Stugotz
Will be funny to see if they win again. Just because they know how to win and none of us understand how they know how to do that. But, but to watch Lamar Jackson play the career arc out of Peyton Manning stugats. And I'm going to give you, we have more metrics now than we did back then. In 1999, we were really doing win clutch and that's why Peyton Manning can't win in the postseason. Now we have the math that tells us that in tight window throws this season, tight window throws, Lamar Jackson was far and away the best quarterback in the league. Like not. It wasn't even close on accuracy.
Dan Le Batard
Right?
Stugotz
So Lamar Jackson, you may think of a certain way, but he's kind of Drew Brees. Like in terms of, in terms of accuracy, you might see a quarterback the same way Bill Polian did and be like, nah, not a quarterback. Doesn't look like a quarterback because it's too much. Randall Cunningham, it's move around. It's a lot of athleticism, but also tight window throws better than anyone in the sport. While the Bills are saying, josh, no more tight window throws. No just easy throws. Tuck it and run.
Dan Le Batard
Yes.
Stugotz
Run for six yards. Knox and Kincaid, no problem.
Dan Le Batard
Speak for yourself. On clutch. I've been talking clutch since 1980. I mean, fair enough.
Stugotz
You Understand? You do understand what I'm saying though, right?
Dan Le Batard
Of course I do, yeah.
Stugotz
That Lamar Jackson is going to get all of it today. And that's what happens when you lose. And I really do feel like everything's fair under those circumstances. Like that's the contract in sports. The fan doesn't have to be reasonable or perspective filled about these things.
Dan Le Batard
You know, you say that, you know, with Peyton Manning making that comparison, there was only one quarterback for Peyton to overcome and it was Tom Brady. And my fear for Lamar Jackson because you watch him and you see the obvious talent and you know you're watching one of the all time great quarterbacks to ever play the sport. But Manning only had Brady to deal with. Lamar has Mahomes, Allen Burrow, Jackson, Jaden Daniels, all those guys can't win Super Bowls.
Mike Ryan
So he's like Philip Rivers.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah, I don't know. Like that's my fear for Lamar Jackson. We're not going to remember him the correct way.
Stugotz
I will say that the dollop of perspective I would put on the punctuation to their season is he did the things at the end that you want him to do. It can't, except when it can't. Look, I understand stugats, but you and I remember Tom Brady winning a Super bowl because Pete Carroll didn't just hand the ball to Marshawn Lynch. Tom Brady was on the sidelines. No more clutch, no more of a winner. He was watching the way the rest of us were watching, watching on the play and in the drive that was needed from Lamar Jackson, he went down the field on the road and tied the football game.
Dan Le Batard
I know, but he puts himself in those positions with the turnovers. That's the point. Like Dan, that's a game. If you really watch the game and break down the stats and look at it, Baltimore should have blew him out.
Stugotz
Correct. And turnovers are that important. And I've watched Scott, one of the great frustrations of my aesthetic football lifetime is oh please don't make Patrick Mahomes play that way. Like don't, don't make the sport change. And so much with the athleticism that now Patrick Mahomes, I'm looking at him statistically and he'll win at the end, but he's a totally mediocre quarterback. And what used to be I can get 177 yards to just Tyree kill is I get 177 yards and 117 of them are to Travis Kelsey.
Dan Le Batard
16 to 25, 1 77, 1 touchdown, no interceptions. He's Alex Smith.
Stugotz
Come on. It's.
Dan Le Batard
It's bad.
Stugotz
Like I, it's. It's frustrating. It's frustrating to watch that's going to win. Okay, so we're just going to. Andy Reid, squeeze it to death. We're just going to. How do we get to 22 points by any means necessary. If we could just get to 20. That offense that I was always scared to bet the under on 30 and 31 and a half team total. That offense is at the top of the sport. Had kind of the easiest game this weekend. Unless you want to go with the comments dummies. And now you're set up where the analysis of all of this from the start should have been some form of, you know, who's going to be remaining at the end. The people I think are the best quarterbacks. And also Jalen Hurts because Philadelphia is playing a different. Philadelphia is saying, you know what, what I love about what Philadelphia is doing, it's great. It just is. It is so great and it's so great for that city because that city considers itself rugged. I don't know how high Saquon Barkley has now climbed on Philadelphia sports legends for all time, but beating a football team to death with his thighs in the modern age. Yeah, like beat. Instead of going space age. Just saying, you know what we're going to do? We're going to break off a 70 yarder here at some point because he's too big and strong and you're going to get tired of tackling him.
Dan Le Batard
Jalen hurts threw for 128 yards.
Stugotz
What the. What Philadelphia has in its backfield that is so great. It's not just that their offensive line will mall you. Okay. Because Stugats. I don't know how much, how much of the Rams Eagles did you watch this week? Weekend?
Dan Le Batard
Not a lot.
Stugotz
Okay. All right. So there was one storyline they were playing up all game that was, that was fun to watch. Okay. And I. Jared Verse said before the game and he's a menace. He went to fsu. He also went to somewhere smaller before that and he's just so fun. And he said he hated Philadelphia and that their fans weren't that smart. And then around the stadium before the game, he's, you know, showing muscles in the cold, just taunting fans.
Dan Le Batard
He went to school at Albany, Dan, before the Great Danes.
Stugotz
I mean, tell me something about Albany. Tell me something about the capital of.
Mike Ryan
New Yorker went there.
Stugotz
What was this human being doing to other human beings at Albany? Because he's a menace of a man. And and he's a first round pick. And he goes into that game and he starts taunting Philadelphia. And also after a sack where he really. Rag doll Jalen hurts, who's got one of the. You know, he doesn't get rag dolled very much. Jalen hurts because of what his lower body strength is. He gives the. He said it felt like the gladiator spectacle. Stu Gotz, where he's in the center of the field and he's giving Philadelphia fans double thumbs down. But he's going up all game against Lane Johnson, who's about twice his size. Like when you see those cameras from the back, what you're watching is he just keeps getting. All of these players just get engulfed in Lane Johnson, who hasn't allowed a sack. And I don't know how long. The Rams were this close to guts.
Dan Le Batard
Oh, they were.
Stugotz
They were this. They were this close. Nobody has to go through Detroit anymore. The Ram. We all know that.
Dan Le Batard
This close to hosting the NFC championship game in Glendale, the Rams.
Mike Ryan
I think I would have been at SoFi.
Dan Le Batard
Really?
Mike Ryan
Yeah.
Dan Le Batard
I was rooting for LA. I really was too.
Mike Ryan
Did you watch?
Dan Le Batard
Not a lot.
Stugotz
Can I ask you guys this question about Mark Andrews? Because my eyes may be lying to me on this one. Jeremy, if you could look this up for me, I would appreciate it. I think of Mark Andrews as somebody and I may have this totally wrong. DeAndre Hopkins, Larry Fitzgerald, these two human beings were statistically people who had more tackles than drops in their careers. They tackled people after interceptions more often that you would throw the ball, hit them somewhere within a radius. That was seen as catchable and it ended up being a drop. I don't think of Mark Andrews as someone who ever drops the football.
Dan Le Batard
However.
Stugotz
However whatever the sport does to the human body, that guy is one of the first kind of gronky people that there have been leading the Ravens and touchdowns. If you throw the ball near that person, it's not guardable. The DBs aren't big enough. If you throw the ball accurately, he becomes for Lamar Jackson what all those receivers were for Drew Brees when it was all timing accuracy, timing accuracy, not guardable. Always open. Third and 11. Whether it's Michael Thomas or Mark Andrews, always open. And if you throw it over there, the DB is not going to be able without interfering to get around his body to get near the football. Is Mark Andrews a dropper late in his career? Because I was trying to think on the way in here today, did Mark Andrews just Bill Buckner, like in whatever the modern equivalent of Those things can be Jackie Smith. That's old school.
Mike Ryan
Although I know who that is. Well, so is Buckner, but for the people that don't.
Stugotz
But Jackie Smith is. What year are we talking about? 1990s?
I
No, that's the Cowboys, Steelers, Super Bowl.
Stugotz
70S. Okay. So, Roy, you went old school there, and you always frightened me and surprised me when you do that because you went old school beyond the old school. And you went to the original Super Bowl.
I
It wasn't the original.
Dan Le Batard
It wasn't super bowl. In Roy's defense. I mean, your world series was 86.
I
Yes, but I mean, it's the comp. I mean, Jackie Smith was a tight end. He dropped the ball in the end zone.
Stugotz
So Jackie Smith. If you were to look that up, I don't know if we'd get in trouble with football footage. We probably would. But if you guys could find Jackie Smith. Jackie Smith was wide open in the end zone. This was just. He. They threw it at his chest and he failed to catch it. I think that was also in the snow. If I'm not. If I'm not.
I
No, that was in Miami, wasn't it?
Stugotz
Was.
I
It was in Miami.
Stugotz
All right, we will find out in a moment. He was just standing in the end zone.
Mike Ryan
Mark Andrews had 69 targets and four drops during the regular season. Season.
Jeremy
So it was the best catch percentage of his career, actually, this year at 79.7%. He's always been above 65.
Mike Ryan
He catches roughly 94% of the catchable passes thrown his way.
Dan Le Batard
Catchable, though, right?
Mike Ryan
I mean, that was certainly a catchable pass. It could have been better.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah. Larry Fitzgerald, for his career. Dan had 29 drops and 41 tackles.
Stugotz
I think DeAndre Hopkins is something like that. It's. It's an amazing couple of stuff. Stats. I just felt this. I know you guys make fun of me all the time for my weepy, syrupy. I feel bad for so and so for the Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson game with some stakes on it. That felt like a Super bowl to end in incompetence instead of competence. Made me hurt. For a Hall of Famer of excellence that we can all agree has his name associated with greatness. Most touchdowns in the history of the franchise. But might have just got stamped out by a moment because I don't know what Jackie Smith did in his career. I don't. I remember last week when we were talking about Bob Uecker. I failed to mention, like, Bob Uecker, for his career, batted 200 and, like, had 145 at bats or something like just. It didn't play very much. But the rest of his career ended up being his legacy. The thing that made me feel bad for Mark Andrews beyond just an athlete not being competent in a moment that demands greatness for all of us, to have that as the ending of that game when I know how great that guy is and was I just watching everyone diminishing that name to something that's less than great because of the size of that moment and the size of the incompetence.
I
Super Bowl 13 was in Miami. Jackie Smith's career numbers is 7,918 yards.
Dan Le Batard
40 touchdowns, no snow.
Mike Ryan
Yeah, I don't know if there's any coming back from Mark Andrews from that, with that organization. For a lot of reasons. For a lot of reasons. He's an all time great for that, for that franchise. But if you've watched him, he's had the injuries, he's got this bigger frame, he's got a bigger number attached to his contract. And Isaiah likely has been coming for his job. And if you remember that moment, what happened right before that play, Isaiah likely is there for Lamar Jackson just like he's been there.
Stugotz
Isaiah likely the last three seasons. This is. This has felt fun to watch visually because it's sort of the evolution of the position and to watch it happening on that team. Stugats for that position. When you're watching. Tell me I don't have this right because this is pretty rare in football. I think I have watched Mark Andrews age in a way that's obvious to the eye. I've watched a lot of his career, a lot of those touchdowns. So when he's moving, I can see. Not unlike I can see with Patrick Mahomes scrambling. Oh, that's where football all stole some of his youth. It's the same number. It looks like the same body. I'm expecting it to look the same at the end as it did at the beginning, but it doesn't. And the reminder is in his own huddle when Likely runs down the field and he doesn't look like he needs WD40.
Dan Le Batard
Right.
Stugotz
It's not chunks of rust that are. No, he's young, he's fast.
Mike Ryan
Andrews is only 29. Like he played with Baker.
Dan Le Batard
Yes. By the way, Jackie Smith made it to the Pro Football hall of Fame. Also, he's white.
Stugotz
Put it on the pole at Lebbetard show. Maybe that's what I thought. With snow.
Mike Ryan
Oh, has there ever been a white Jackie the Rapper?
Stugotz
I don't know. Put it on the Poll at lebarton, has there ever been a white male Jackie.
Billy
Jackie Moon Harbaugh also went for two, by the way, in the third quarter. Like, had he just kicked extra points both times, the game would have been tied and they wouldn't have had to go for two at the end of the game.
Mike Ryan
Maybe McDermott doesn't kick that. That stupid field goal, though.
Dan Le Batard
Jackie Gleason.
Mike Ryan
Belt buckle to the side.
Dan Le Batard
Back to you, Dick.
Stugotz
Who wore Jackie Gleason or Stu Guns? Who wore their belt buckle.
Mike Ryan
Jackie Gleason off to the side, Belt buckle on the side.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah, he did.
Stugotz
Why?
Mike Ryan
I don't know.
I
He's a big man.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Stugotz
Am I right when I frame it in that as the historical perspective that Mark Andrews is now. We now have a moment that's the opposite, opposite of excellent, that the football weekend was marred by, instead of greatness, this hall of Famer, a. An. An immortal, really, at the position. You. You'd say yes.
Dan Le Batard
No, no, no.
Billy
He's just a guy.
Dan Le Batard
Yeah.
Mike Ryan
Wow. You got him as a Jag.
Billy
You think he's like a top. You think Mark Andrews is an immortal? He's like a top five type.
Mike Ryan
He put together, like, three more seasons.
Dan Le Batard
You have Mark Andrews, Tony Gonzalez, and guys like that.
Mike Ryan
Well, I mean, I got to see the numbers, but I think, like, if he puts together three, four more seasons of what he's done in his career, he might be a borderline Canton.
Billy
I could. I could make an argument that no one would get behind that. I think George Kittle might be the best tight end that we've seen, because George Kittle has not had the quarterbacks that the great tight ends have had.
Stugotz
Or Bowers. I could go Bowers.
Mike Ryan
Oh, Bowers is already there.
Stugotz
But before I best blocker Billy, that was great. And I want you to sharpen that. We. Because we're sharpening boldest take here.
Billy
I mean, Travis Kelsey's had. Patrick Mahomes, Gronk had break. Who has Kittle had?
Stugotz
He's great. He's indisputably great. And, And.
Billy
And by the way, half the time they just use him for blocking. Like they haven't even unleashed him to his full potential.
Stugotz
I would say that George Kittle is probably better than Mark Andrews now and forevermore, but I don't know how you're defining immortal, so perhaps I'm getting carried away. I just think of this player as one of the best I've seen at the position. Totally unguardable. But when you talk boldest take, we now have a sponsored boldest take you guys have been leaving them vi by voicemail. We're keeping alive the voicemail stugot landline and the voicemail. You haven't heard about this. I expected you to be on here spewing takes on your way home because we've got a sponsored take line and this is our boldest take from the weekend.
I
The Boost Mobile boldest take from the weekend is presented by Boost Mobile, the newest 5G network in the country.
Roy
Hey yo, I ain't gonna hold you. I've seen the success of lavar Ball now with the three of his sons. Lamelo All Star Lonzo. He's cooking in Chicago. So here's my proclamation. LiAngelo Ball is going to the Grammys this year. Not only is he going to the Grammys, he's winning one Rap Song of the year. Baby Tweaker. I might swear up in that corner.
Mike Ryan
Whoa whoa.
J
From fireside conversations to football Sundays, winter means more moments with the coolest people in your life. Make these moments even better with Miller Lite. I know I do. The Great Tasting Light Beer for people who love beer, a new year is a perfect time for friends, family and great tasting light beer tastes like Miller Time. Recently I had family over and while everyone's palate is different, I knew they all like beer and they all look like people who want to drink beer that actually tastes like beer. So I brought out a nice little silver platter of Miller Lite. That beautiful white can was an instant winner.
Mike Ryan
Trust me.
Stugotz
Me.
J
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Podcast Information:
In this episode of The Dan Le Batard Show with Stugotz, hosts Dan Le Batard and Stugotz, along with guests Mike Ryan and Billy, delve into their reactions to the latest NFL playoff games. Broadcasting from the vibrant Elser Hotel in Downtown Miami, the discussion centers around pivotal performances, quarterback analyses, and the overarching narratives shaping the postseason landscape.
The conversation kicks off with an enthusiasm for the ongoing playoff season, as Dan humorously remarks on the high-stakes nature of the games:
Dan Le Batard [02:24]: “That feels like a final.”
Stugotz and Mike Ryan discuss the unexpected outcomes and surprising performances in recent matches, notably highlighting the Washington vs. Detroit Lions game. Stugotz expresses mixed feelings about the Lions' performance, initially rooting against them but later empathizing due to their winning streak and the remarkable play of their rookie quarterback.
A significant portion of the episode is dedicated to analyzing the performances of Josh Allen and Lamar Jackson. Stugotz praises Josh Allen for his exceptional ability to protect the football, stating:
Stugotz [17:06]: “Josh Allen can be trusted to not turn the ball over.”
In contrast, Lamar Jackson receives a more critical assessment. Dan Le Batard voices his concerns about Jackson's tendency to make turnovers in high-pressure situations, drawing parallels to Peyton Manning’s early career challenges:
Dan Le Batard [23:52]: “I don't think Lamar was better than Josh Allen.”
Mike Ryan adds to this analysis by highlighting Josh Allen's clean gameplay compared to Jackson’s more erratic performance:
Mike Ryan [31:22]: “Josh Allen did the things to win. More importantly, he did the things to not lose.”
The hosts draw comparisons between current quarterbacks and legendary figures like Peyton Manning and Tom Brady. Stugotz reflects on Peyton Manning's struggles in the postseason despite his regular-season prowess:
Stugotz [23:08]: “Peyton Manning and Lamar Jackson are three and five and over seven seasons when you win 80 plus games.”
Dan Le Batard expresses concern that Lamar Jackson may not receive the recognition he deserves due to his lack of Super Bowl victories, aligning him with quarterbacks like Philip Rivers who were highly skilled but never secured a championship:
Dan Le Batard [35:25]: “I don't know. Like that's my fear for Lamar Jackson. We're not going to remember him the correct way.”
Mark Andrews' performance in the playoffs becomes a focal point of the discussion. Stugotz laments what he perceives as a pivotal drop in Andrews' gameplay during critical moments, drawing a parallel to Hall of Fame tight end Jackie Smith’s infamous plays:
Stugotz [40:44]: “Is Mark Andrews a dropper late in his career? Because I was trying to think on the way in here today…”
Mike Ryan counters by presenting Andrews' impressive statistics, noting his high catch percentage and reliability:
Mike Ryan [42:10]: “Mark Andrews had 69 targets and four drops during the regular season.”
The debate underscores the tension between statistical excellence and game-critical performances, questioning whether a single play can overshadow a player's season-long contributions.
While the primary focus is on football, the episode briefly touches upon the state of American men's tennis, hinting at the emergence of a "golden generation" poised to challenge established figures like Djokovic. The hosts express optimism about the influx of young talent and the evolving dynamics of the sport.
The episode underscores a nuanced analysis of playoff performances, emphasizing the importance of quarterback reliability and the impact of critical plays on a player's legacy. While Josh Allen is lauded for his steady hand and low turnover rate, Lamar Jackson's inconsistency in high-stakes moments raises questions about his long-term standing among NFL greats. Additionally, Mark Andrews' performance serves as a reminder of how single moments can influence perceptions of a player's career, highlighting the delicate balance between statistical achievement and game-impacting actions.
The hosts collectively express a forward-looking perspective, anticipating the rise of new talents in both football and tennis, and the continuous evolution of these sports fueled by emerging athletes and shifting dynamics.
Note: This summary excludes advertisements, intros, outros, and non-content sections, focusing solely on the substantive discussions and analyses presented during the episode.