The Dan Patrick Show — Hour 3

Date: December 18, 2025
Main Themes: Quarterback controversies, Travis Kelce’s language around the Chiefs' future, stadium injury reports, fan engagement, sports memories, and the evolution of college football.

Episode Overview

Hour 3 of The Dan Patrick Show dives into the NFL's latest quarterback shakeups (especially in Miami), Travis Kelce’s telling “distancing” language regarding the Chiefs, freshly revealed stadium injury rate data, and plenty of sports-and-pop culture banter. Through fan calls and the signature back-and-forth with the Danettes, the episode is punctuated by memorable stories, pie bets, and music debates.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Miami Dolphins Benching Tua Tagovailoa (00:00–08:50)

• Dolphins announce Tua as benched/deactivated: Coach Mike McDaniel names Quinn Ewers the starting QB, Tua drops to emergency third-string.

  • Dan’s take: “I think Quinn gives this team the best chance to win… but what has changed?”
    (03:11)
  • Dan questions the logic: “Quinn yours has thrown eight passes now… Did he all of a sudden become a better quarterback in the last week or so? This is a Tua, 'Thank you. Some nice parting gifts for you.' Feels like it’s hard to come back from this now.”
  • Speculation that the Dolphins could be prepping for a full reset, including leveraging their draft capital.

• Fan & crew reactions:

  • Paulie wonders if the Dolphins are evaluating themselves against AFC rivals’ quarterbacks and considering a bigger rebuild.
  • “They sort of rebuilt. I don’t know. They would have traded Tyreek Hill if he’d stayed healthy.” (06:10)

2. Joe Burrow & Quarterback Mindsets (08:51–12:48)

• Burrow on returning from injury:
  • “Everybody’s trying to do everything in their power to make me not play football, and I feel like I’m fighting it…” (09:24)
• Dan’s commentary: “Feels like he’s fighting himself. This isn’t fun, but I want it to be fun. I want to continue to play.”
  • Reiterates that the media isn’t against him; Burrow’s inner struggle is with himself.

3. Travis Kelce “Distancing” Himself from the Chiefs? (12:49–16:55)

• Kelce’s podcast quote:
  • Discussing Mahomes: “He’s going to make sure that he comes back stronger than ever, and hopefully the Chiefs can get him back… for the Chiefs as soon as possible.” (13:52)
• Dan & the Danettes’ take:
  • Dan: “Where’s the ‘we’? Why is he saying ‘the Chiefs’ and not ‘we’?” (14:05)
  • The crew pokes fun at Kelce’s language, interpreting his detachment as a subtle hint about his own future.

4. Pie Bets, Banners, and Fan Calls (16:56–28:21)

• Pie to the face bets:

  • Listener Adam bets on Rams vs. Seahawks, with the loser taking a pie to the face.
    • Dan: “Any kind of pie works for me. It’s the holiday season, so you should be able to choose.” (18:54)
  • Hilarious debate about which pies are best/messiest.

• Banner-worthiness debates:

  • Caller Tony asks if beating Mickelson in junior golf (but placing third) is banner worthy.
    • Dan: “Sure, why not? You only have to answer to you.” (20:06)
  • Referencing the LA Kings taking down Taylor Swift’s banner.

• “Who would you want to party with?” Poll:

  • Caller Randall writes in Johnny Manziel as a party buddy; Dan questions if he measures up to Michael Irvin.
  • Crew reminisces on Manziel’s incredible college stats and his chemistry with Mike Evans.

• Cheap Trick/Breath Strips Story:

  • Dan shares a story about Rick Nielsen from Cheap Trick wanting to show him dissolvable breath strips in his hotel room.
    • “He goes, ‘I’ve come up with this...’ For your breath, and it’s a little piece of, like, you know, I don’t know what you would describe it… I just remember he’s like, do you want to come up to my room?” (25:20)

5. If Aliens Landed: Rock and Roll “Bangers” Debate (28:22–32:51)

• If you could only play five songs to explain rock and roll to aliens, what would they be?
  • Seaton: “Cheap Trick, Surrender. That’s one of those songs I would play.” (28:44)
  • “You got your five. I feel like at one point in time I did.” (32:21)
  • Comedic back-and-forth over what counts as a “banger,” with Dan lamenting Seaton’s taste.

6. NFL Stadiums & Injury Risk Data (32:52–38:35)

• Revealed NFL data shows certain stadiums (MetLife, SoFi, Ford Field) rank “high” for non-contact injuries (ACL, Achilles, hamstring).

  • Dan: “You don’t want to play on that field, that surface.”
  • Seaton: “There’s a very clear split… the bottom teams… all play on grass, and then all of a sudden it starts getting yellow and red, and that’s when turf starts getting introduced.” (36:08)

• Natural grass is preferred; “Players want to play on natural turf.”

• Paulie wonders if uniformity across practice and game fields would help; environmental factors may make that impossible.

  • Dan jokes: “Maybe it’s only appropriate that it’s MetLife insurance. If you’re going to play there, sounds like there’s a good chance you’re going to get significantly injured…” (37:46)

7. “Greatest Partiers” in Sports & Dennis Rodman Stories (38:36–44:13)

• Caller Doug nominates Doc Gooden, Daryl Strawberry, and Eddie Miller as top partiers.

  • Dan: “Doc is partying and he misses... the Mets parade. He went out with the team to a club … and then he went to his dealer’s place…” (41:00)

• Dennis Rodman story:

  • Dan recounts a wild bar night in Chicago: “He was full of energy, just running up and down. Steve Kerr goes, ‘How do you feel?’… He goes, ‘He’s a professional.’ ... I think that night [Rodman] had 20 rebounds.”

8. Travis Kelce: Gone Gone? (44:14–46:02)

• Caller Denny: “I believe Travis Kelce is gone. Gone.”
  • Dan speculates Jason Kelce knows Travis’s plans, but won’t push until season’s end.

9. Will College Football Become Like Pro Baseball? (46:03–49:35)

• Caller Dave: “It seems like college football is going the direction of pro football… I’m kind of afraid it’s going the direction of pro baseball, that it’s going to be the haves and have-nots.”
  • Dan: “It’s been this way and nothing’s really changed… All you need is a couple of big boosters, because you’re going to get your money, you'll have [NIL] money, and then your collectives, you need to tack on about $20 million more…” (48:00)

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On Tua’s demotion:

  • Dan: “Did he all of a sudden become a better quarterback in the last week or so? This is a Tua, ‘Thank you. Some nice parting gifts for you.’” (05:10)

• On Kelce:

  • Dan: “Where’s the ‘we’? … It’s like he’s talking about the Bills!” (14:05)

• On stadium injuries:

  • Seaton: “There’s a very clear split… the bottom teams… all play on grass… and that’s when turf starts getting introduced.” (36:08)

• On banner-worthy achievements:

  • Dan: “You only have to answer to you … Or if you're, you know, the LA Kings and you take down Taylor Swift’s banner, I mean, you have to answer for that.” (20:06)

• On Rodman:

  • Dan: “He was full of energy, just running up and down… Steve Kerr goes, ‘He’s a professional.’” (43:32)

Important Timestamps

• 00:00–08:50: Dolphins QB situation, Tua deactivated
• 08:51–12:48: Joe Burrow’s mindset & future in Cincinnati
• 12:49–16:55: Travis Kelce’s “distancing” language on Chiefs podcast
• 16:56–28:21: Pie bets, banners, fan phone calls, and Cheap Trick story
• 28:22–32:51: “Explain rock and roll to aliens” music debate
• 32:52–38:35: NFL stadium injury risk report and discussion
• 38:36–44:13: “Greatest partiers” and Rodman stories
• 44:14–46:02: Kelce’s future & fan speculation (“Gone, gone.”)
• 46:03–49:35: Is college football becoming like MLB?

Tone & Style

• Conversational, candid, and peppered with humor
• Dan’s irreverent analysis, Danettes’ witty banter
• Fans participate through calls, sparking organic, sprawling conversations

Conclusion

Hour 3 delivers all the Dan Patrick essentials: sharp takes, inside-sports insight, off-beat storytelling, and laugh-out-loud moments, all while tackling meaty storylines (Tua benched, Kelce’s weird Chiefs language, stadium dangers) that define today’s sports landscape. If you missed it, this summary will have you caught up—and maybe craving some pie.