Toyota/iHeart Ad Voice (0:00)

This is an iHeart podcast.

John Middlekauff (0:02)

Guaranteed Human the best moments aren't always about where you're going. They're about who's with you on the way. That's why Toyota believes people are the destination. The Toyota RAV4 is built for busy days and spontaneous plans from practice runs to last minute road trips and everything in between with space, comfort and flexibility. It helps turn everyday drives into quality time because when the right people are riding with you, every trip matters. Learn more@toyota.com and find the vehicle that fits your people. Today's podcast is brought to you by Ferguson Home, where it all comes together. Whether you're a homeowner creating your dream space or a pro managing multiple projects, Ferguson Home is where you'll find the top products by brands like KitchenAid. Visit your local showroom or visit FergusonHome.com Can I tell you about my friends at Reef? Reef has taken the same comfort they are known for and built it into everyday men's shoes. You know what I walked around in, what I wore to fly in, and what I took to San Francisco this week. My Reef Del Mars works for commuting travel casual. It looks fantastic. It was really comfortable. It's pearly white. I also got a pair of blue ones. I cannot endorse this product enough. They are going to be my go to shoe moving forward. So check out the Shoreline del mar on reef.com and redeem 15% off your first purchase.

Verizon Ad Voice (1:27)

We all want the best without having to pay the most. That's where Verizon comes in. Get this now you can take your AT&T or T mobile bill into any Verizon store. They'll look at what you're paying and give you a better deal. Period. You get the amazing coverage you want while keeping more cash in your pocket. Visit your local Verizon store to start saving today. Must provide recent consumer mobile bill in the name of the person redeeming the deal. Additional terms and conditions apply.

John Middlekauff (1:58)

The Volume. What is going on my people? How are we doing? Happy Sweet 16 Elite 8. The tournament is coming down the home stretch but today we're going to talk some football because I'm John this three and out and we're going to do a big mailbag at John Middlekopf. Is the Instagram fire in those DMs next week? You know the owner's meeting is actually in my backyard so all the coaches have to talk over the course thing on Monday and Tuesday. So we're going to get a ton of stories, ton of content out of that excited. The GMs are all coming as well. So there are going to be a lot of stories flying and excited to talk about whatever comes out of the Biltmore Hotel where the owner's meetings are. But today, again, just big mailbag fire in those dms. You guys know the drill. If you listen on Collins feed, make sure you subscribe to three and out if you if you want to watch Never miss an episode. You can see my beautiful face. I got a little tan going right now actually. So Netflix set an alert. Never miss a show. Dive right in. We will start with with Rio Question for the pod Just saw a throwback clip when the Raiders drafted janikowski in the first round with the 17th overall pick, how good would a kicker have to be in order for that ever to happen again? And I know there's a better chance of me hitting the powerball than this happening, but how once in 100 years good would a kicker have to be in order for them to get drafted in the top 10? I I think we have some recent history of guys getting drafted on the second and the third round. You know Aguilar, the kicker from Florida State, which he was an all time great college kicker. Disaster. Jim Harbaugh, death, taxes and Jake Moody, the 49ers drafted him in the third round. Disaster. I my personal philosophy, I don't care if the guy looks like the greatest kicker of all time. I don't think I would draft a kicker. I'm drafted other positions. I don't think I drafted kicker or a punter. And I just think we have too many examples of undrafted free agents of guys going on to be really good players. Pretty sure polarizing guy now. But Justin Tucker, undrafted free agent out of Texas. I just think there's a long history of guys getting drafted and being disasters. I've told this story before. Derek or Jake. It wasn't Derek Henry something Henry that we drafted. We let David Akers go when I was with the Eagles who went to the 49ers and at a Pro bowl season and we drafted this kid out of Nebraska, Billy Henry something Henry. And you could tell like the second day of training camp you're like this is a disaster. And I think and he got drafted I think in the fourth round. I think anytime you're like a top hundred pick a kicker, you're obviously automatically the starter. But there's like a pressure to your training camp kicks. Now with social media I when I was on the radio station that had the Raiders, we used to go to Napa at training camp. And by then, you know, Janikowski originally was like this chubby, drunk, big leg guy. By then he was jacked. So when you go to training camp he would always, you know, we'd get there out on the field like 7am they wouldn't practice till, you know, I don't know, 10. He'd always be in the, in the weight room, this kind of makeshift outdoor weight room. And he was just jacked with a huge ass like half a tin of Copenhagen in his mouth. He would never come on the radio show, but he was cool. He'd like joke around my memories of Sea Bass. By then wasn't the most reliable kicker. Still had a huge leg but missed a lot of field goals. Now the Raiders were so bad they weren't playing in big games. Do you know how bad you would have to be as a franchise, which they were for you know, 15 plus years for your kicker to be your most famous player for like half of that. You know, Namdi was probably one of the most famous guys. Jamarcus Russell. But Seabass was right up there. So unique set of circumstances. I don't think we'll ever see that before. Honestly if you asked me what pick Seabass was, I, I wouldn't have guessed pick 17. I would have guessed pick 28. But I don't think we ever see that ever again. Gotta get a booger hanging in my nose. Major League Baseball's 2029 deal is a once in a generation reset opportunity. Instead of 162 low stakes games, shift it to 90. Weekend series format. Team play Friday through Sunday. Standings are built on winning the series, not individual games. About 1350 total games instead of 2,430. Less inventory dramatically higher per game value. Picture Sunday night baseball in August. Two teams tied 1 1. Playoff positioning on the line. Best pitchers ready. Whole country watching. High profile Series business case. Kill the RSNs. They're dead. No blackout national package. The NFL does about 50 million per game in media. Major League Baseball is about 1.5. You don't need to close that gap, just move toward it. Got it. Allergies are killing me. I would say you're on to something like I don't think it's a bad idea. Here's the problem. Your idea would kill the starting pitching market and the union. In baseball, the players union is extremely powerful. They would never go toward, I would say taking money out of players pockets. Because you would need a rotation anymore. You would just, you would just basically need three guys. Now you might Pay those guys more, but you would no longer have fourth and fifth starters. You just have much bigger bullpens. So, and the other thing is, like it or not, and we talked about this yesterday or a couple days ago, that these owners just aren't going to give up the inventory of home games. They're, they're simply not. Even though your idea is good, I mean, these RSNs, I think I just saw the brewers are, you know, in Milwaukee, set to lose 20 plus million dollars this year. I mean, all these local networks are just going to be extinct, extinct over the course of the next couple years beside maybe a couple, even the Lakers, who I think make more like in a week than the Grizzlies made all year long. I think I've heard Windhorse say that that situation's in trouble. Part of the reason why Jeannie Buss, you know, backstabbed or her loser brothers. But I, I, I don't know. I mean, I, I, I think all these ideas, it's fun to talk about, but they, none of these leagues, I mean, it's like the NBA, they have a tanking problem. The majority of their games are not watchable. And they're like, let's add two teams. Let's add two teams. I mean, think about that. And they're going to, why? Because they're going to get, I don't know, 12 to 15 million dollars total paid out between all the owners. And I'm pretty sure, I think Wind Horse has said this too. I mean, that guy's Windhorse bundle of information, they don't have to share that with the players. So whatever the, the total amount comes out, if they add two teams, let's just say average six and a half, seven each. So like $14 billion, they don't have to share any of that money. That just is an influx of cash with the players. So I think that it's all about money, man. And I hear you, I think it's a good idea. But I think one thing we've seen with the big inventory sports is they don't even contemplate cutting games. I mean, Steve Kerr a couple like a month ago was like pounding the table, like we need to cut 10 games out. This schedule is ridiculous. This is a guy who's been playing basketball, you know, at the highest level since like the mid-80s for Arizona and obviously came into the NBA in the late 80s, early 90s. And I don't think he just, he's got a front row seat for it now as a GM and his head coach. Like this is crazy. And you look around, there's injuries left and right. But no, I, I've never heard one owner's like, that's a good idea. Yeah, let's, let's cut it to like 67 games. Like no, that's. There's like add teams add more games. Everyone's in the business of adding more games or maintaining their inventory. John, your rant on how college kids don't care about the history of the programs was hilarious and 100% factual. I like this guy. No different in the private sector. The college sport purists kill me with the traditional nonsense. Nobody cares it if it makes dollars. It makes sense. No question for the mailbag but wanted to thanks for always advocating do work in something you like, blah blah, blah. I appreciate the note wasn't even a question but I just the outdated nature of like the history at Carolina, the Michael Jordan, Dean Smith, Vince Carter, no one cares. What's your nil budget? If it's high, people will come. If it's not. NATO Saint leaving Alabama. Right. Dusty May ain't leaving Michigan. They don't have to. If you can be a top two or three seed at a football school, I'm going to stand by this. If you could consistently be a top four seed and some years be a one or two, but every year be like a consistent top 10 team. That's an elite job because they leave you alone. And then one year you make the final four, you win a national championship like the dude at Florida. You're like a made man on campus. They're already, they just, they. All they're talking about is like football recruiting, the football schedule and you're winning, they'll just throw you some more bones and leave you alone. You're at Kansas, Kentucky, North Carolina, Duke. They are in your shit like a football coach, you know, you're. John Sumrall is going to learn. They're going to be all Sark. I saw a picture today of Sark at the Texas basketball game and you could just see like the stress on his face. This is exhausting. It's like they gave me a $50 million roster, I better make the playoffs. Can you talk about this on one of your episodes and how hard it is to be a rookie sometimes? Do you think Mendoza will struggle? He sent me this picture. Since Bryce Young's rookie weapons after just two seasons later. D.J. chark retired Jonathan Mingo 1 catch TMG 3 catches 20, 24, 0 and 25. Thielen retired Hayden Hurst retired Miles Sanders free agent well typically when you're drafted really high you are going to a terrible team. So like when you're drafted high there's a reason that Peyton Manning or Troy Aikman, you just look at the history of guys. Number one, Matt Stafford, Jared Goff, usually their rookie year, that team is going to suck. So like I, I just think that comes with the territory. The difference with the Raiders is they have two top. I mean I don't. I forget exactly what pick Bowers was but you might as well consider him a top 10 pick. Brock Bowers, who's like the best player in the SEC for multiple years and we're gonna find out truly how good this guy is. But they drafted a running back really high. So I mean he does have a couple pieces on the offense and he has a left tackle. Annie has a coach who's like family businesses to run the offense and just was the coordinator for the super bowl team. So I actually think milk or Next question is about Mel Kuiper to Fernando Mendoza goes to a decent, decent spot and they in theory loaded up the defense especially with Crosby coming back. Do you think this from Will Mel Kuiper should be in the hall of Fame Based upon his contributions to the game, he basically made the NFL draft something when it was nothing. To this day his enthusiasm, energy and knowledge are incredible. Hard to not love him. Yes. Now you can't put Mel Kuiper in the hall of Fame before Bill Belichick. But I. 100 Mel Kuiper deserves to be in the hall of Fame. Yes. He is a integral figure in the business that is the off season of the NFL specifically the draft. Right. It's like when you, there are certain people like you, you think college football like I mean a lot of coaches come to mind but to me Lee Corso is a guy that comes to mind. I think college basketball like Dick Vital is one of the first guys to come to my mind when I think the, when you just say NFL draft like who do you think of? I would say Mel Kuiper would be on the short list. So yeah, I mean I, I would put Mel Kuiper in the hall of Fame. Willie. I don't know you know exactly how that works and you know contributors remember the great Mel Kuiper bit. Was it, was it the Elway draft? So it would have been like the mid-80s, 83 when the Colts GM who was someone's dad. I forget the guys. It's. It's someone famous as dad. I guess he was famous then I forget the Guy's name, but he goes on the rant about, who the hell is Mel Kuiper? Who was that guy? Question. Obviously, the Dolphins sign Willis, but have either traded away or released the majority of the talent on their team. Let's say Malik plays well, but the team only wins a handful of games and they get the number one pick. Are they taking a quarterback with that pick, or would they keep building around Malik Willis? I think we'd have to get a little more specific. You know, if you have the number one overall pick, you usually play pretty shitty. Like, you watch the Titans this year. They were bad, you know, and for the most part showed flashes. But he wasn't good either, the quarterback. So it's essentially kind of like when Sean McVeigh got to the Rams with Jared Goff. A lot of people now, Jared Goff was worse as a rookie than Cam Ward, showed less. But like, that wasn't viewed as like, God, this is, this is an easy gig. And obviously he got golf rolling right away. But I think it also depends on, like, is there any chance that someone would have the number one overall pick this year and not take Fernando Mendoza? I, I, I just, I have a hard time seeing it. I also get very uncomfortable with people going, this has a chance to be the best quarterback draft ever. Like, listen, I was probably too harsh on Arch, right? Clearly banged up as the season went on, he played much better. But this notion that he's the number one overall pick, we have a long way to go. And I like Todd McShay, but I've heard him throw that around a couple times. It's like, let's just relax a little bit. And this notion that this quarterback draft is all time great, I mean, we say that every year. I don't know, I mean, Nussmeier was a lock top 10 pick. The dude was benched by the end of the season and injured. So you just never know. I am like, I think you have a pretty good idea with established position players, as long as it stays healthy. Jeremiah Smith is a top 10 pick, right? And I'm sure I could think of there are probably some other position players around, you know, the country at Ohio State, at Georgia or something that are like, lock really high picks. But I think with quarterbacks, this notion that the trajectory is always up, it's just not the case. And the other thing is you get guys coming out of nowhere. I mean, Baker Mayfield, Joe Burrow, there were years where those guys were not discussed as top 100 picks before the season started. And then There are some years, like when Chris Mortensen RIP tweeted out right after the draft that a general manager told him that Josh Allen will be the number one pick the following year. He wasn't the number one pick, but went seventh. Turns out to be a Hall of Famer. So I, I don't know, like, who's Lenore Sellers? Dante Moore? Like, I got to see a lot more on all these guys before I'm taking them one overall. Can I tell you my friends at Hard Rock bet? My wife looks at me the other night and she goes, why are you rooting so hard for Arkansas? You would have thought that Coach Cal was my dad. I said, 50 to 1. I got the Razorbacks to make a freaking run. Duke, bring it on baby. Today she's like, why are you rooting so hard for the Johnny's? I said, rick Patino, that's my guy. Let's make a run. Got to take down some one seeds. But that's the thing. Even if your bracket is busted, if you gamble, if you bet on these teams, it makes a tournament so exciting. So Hard Rock Bet, they have daily boosts, they have parlay profit boosts every single day. More ways to shoot your shot and get cash with boosted odds. And if you know these heart stopping zero on the clock moments, now they pay. Hard Rock Bet is giving out $25 bonus throughout the tourney if a team you bet to win or cover hits a buzzer beater. That almost happened. I thought Nebraska, who looked like a team of destiny, was about to go home. But they're going to the sweet 16, so don't sit on the bench. Download the Hard Rock Bet app today and let's get the party started, baby. Payable and bonus bets Not a cash offer offered by Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. Offered by Seminole Hard Rock Digital LLC in all other states. You must be 21 plus and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee and Virginia to play. Terms and conditions apply. Concerned about gambling in Florida? Call 1-833-PLAY-WISE in Indiana. If you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1809 with it gambling problem call 1-800- gambler Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee, Virginia cold days, big goals. No time to cook factor makes healthy eating easy with fully prepared meals designed by dietitians and crafted by chefs. So eat well. Well without the planning or cooking. I've used factor meals for a long time. They have no refined sugars which is big when trying to lose some lbs. Quality functional ingredients including lean proteins, colorful veggies, whole food ingredients and healthy fats. They have a ton of varieties, easy to find, whatever you're looking for. Plus the new Muscle Pro Collection supports strength and recovery. Always fresh, never frozen, no prep, no stress. How do you beat that? You don't. Head to factor meals.com john50off and use code johan50off to get 50% off and free breakfast for a year. Eat like a pro this month with Factor New subscribers only. Varies by plan. One free breakfast item per box for one year. While subscription is active. Life moves fast. Work, family, friends, weekend plans and somewhere in between, you find the moments that really matter. That's why Toyota believes people are the destination. It's not just about where you're headed, it's about who's beside you. From early mornings to late nights, from packed schedules to spontaneous adventures, the Toyota RAV4 is built for real life. Whether you're heading to a game, meeting friends for a watch party, or chasing the next big moment, it gives you the space and comfort to enjoy the ride no matter what the day brings. When people are the destination, ordinary drives become shared memories. Learn more@toyota.com and find the vehicle that fits your people. Today's podcast is brought to you by Ferguson Home. Whether you're a homeowner creating your dream space or a pro managing multiple projects, Ferguson Home is where it all comes together. Ferguson Home is designed for the way you want to shop. Experience today's top products by brands like KitchenAid firsthand by visiting a Ferguson Home showroom, where you'll explore stunning displays featuring today's latest products and innovations, or browser their extended selection of products online. Ferguson Home understands that every project is made up of countless decisions, and that's why their expert consultants are committed to helping homeowners, builders, contractors and designers bring all the details together. You can count on support from them start to finish, from choosing the right products to coordinating deliveries with your project schedule. Book a one on one consultation at your local Ferguson Home showroom or shop online at Ferguson Home. Whether you're working on a new kitchen, a new bathroom, or a whole home remodel, you'll find the latest designs and technologies from the brands you trust at Ferguson Home. What's the process of building an NFL draft big board look like? How are scouts involved in it? So the process starts in training camp, right? So you get the list of players for the upcoming year, a tentative list after the draft, you know sometime in probably middle to late May, and then you over the summer. And if you've already done the area, you've already kind of loosely watched them. You start loosely watching a lot of the guys. And then by the time that you go in and training camp, let's say you got the west coast, you hit up usc, you hit up ucla, you hit up Cal, you hit up Stanford, you hit up Oregon, you hit up all these schools, you've already done some loose grades on these guys, and then they start playing games and you start watching and putting grades on them. And over the course of the season, the area scout, the general manager, the scouting director, there'll be a lot of crossover grades. So by the time you get to a couple weeks before the combine, maybe even late in the season, you start doing some tentative draft meetings, and you start kind of gauging where you have the guys on the board. And then by the time, maybe a couple weeks before the combine, you've all kind of put together a loose board based on the grades you have as a staff. And then you kind of work through it. So it's not like one guy's. Now, I. I can't speak to every team, but it's usually like talk through placing them up there. Where do we see this? Some people are gonna agree, some people are not. But it's over the course of like a bunch of people getting involved. And where it gets up is like, by the time, give or take now, the scouting staff has a pretty good idea. We like this guy in the second, we like this guy in the fourth. We like this guy wherever the coaches get involved. And that's where curve balls get set. So I would say tentatively, going into the combine, you feel pretty good. Most teams, you know, I think, make you lock in a grade as a scout, as an area scout, as an over the top scout, meaning you do all the big schools as a college scouting director, like in the middle of January. So you can't go to the combine, see a guy work out well or work out poorly, or interview poorly and dramatically change your grade. Not saying that that won't influence where you guys put the guy on the board, but I think teams get very hesitant of, like, overreactions or knee jerk stuff. But the other thing is medical and character stuff. I would say now through, over the course of the next three or four weeks is really getting factored into. So there are all these variables. So, like, listen, we think so and so is like a lock somewhere top of the second round. Like, he could sneak into the first, but he's a top 45 pick, right? Probably somewhere between 30 and 45, but has some major question marks off the field, right? We, we, we got work ethic questions. We got coaches are down on them. You know, he, he might have had an incident, let's say. And again, this is a hypothetical made up player that's kind of on the gm, the head coach and the owner to kind of figure out. But it's like I, as a scout, you're like, hey, this guy is a lock, you know, multi contract impact player with the opportunity to be like a Pro bowl player, right? But you got to be careful. It's like some guys like turn their life around all of a sudden you get them to the league and he's perfect and vice versa. Some guys who haven't really been a problem get the league and kind of, I don't know, start not acting well. So I, it's. Every team does a little bit different, but it's, it's a pretty fluid process. So like, you know, sometimes coach speak, like we're still working our way through it. That's kind of true. And the coaches that have the juice like a Kyle Shanahan, Sean Payton, those motherfuckers will move shit around when you ain't looking, which can be good. Not they're not always wrong, but they can also make mistakes. How are the Chiefs the favorites to win the AFC west over Denver? I understand it's Mahomes and Reed, but the Chiefs might have four guys that would start on Denver's roster coming off a poor season in a torn acl. Make it make sense. It's all about odds in gambling, right? If I made the Chiefs five to one to win the division like the Broncos were last year, do you know how much money would come in on the Chiefs, which would then give a sportsbook in the casinos a lot of exposure to something they're not comfortable with having exposure to. So it's not, it's, it's. Odds are typically made where I can get the most action on both sides. They don't want it one sided so they are on tilt if it goes wrong. Longtime listener, actually grew up in San Luis Obispo. That's where I went to college. Live in Maryland now. And think about those Firestone Tri Tip sandwiches all the time. Me as well. Elite's greatest Firestone in San Luis Obispo and Doghouse Grill in Fresno are the same restaurants obviously called two separate things owned by the same guy. Dave Billingsley has the greatest Tri tip sandwich you will ever have. And anyone that's ever had those Tri tip sandwiches Will agree with me because I think anytime you hear that you're like okay, I've greatest slice of pizza, greatest cheeseburger. I'm telling you this is the greatest tri tip sandwich you have ever or will ever have had. They're actual the manager in Fresno, Maddie, who I used to work with when I was at Fresno State because we used to get tri tip sandwiches for the team sometimes like on Friday night before games is doing like a 5 to 7 right now for some, for some fraud. But Matty was always cool to me. I always liked him. Knew his wife good. Yeah, I had you buddies these he's in the clink right now. Was just listening to your JSN podcast and you talking about Jack's great name by the way. Trouble sleeping. My first son Calvin also was a nightmare up until about 10 weeks. He's 12 weeks old now. At 10 weeks we got him the Halo baby Merlin sleep suit and now naps four to five times a day in his bassinet and sleeps for five to seven hours straight. Here's the link. I now see this looks like an ad. But I promise you I'm just a normal 30 year old first time dad. I appreciate that. I today it kind of hit me, I was like I got nothing. Mentally I'm shooting blanks. I don't care how many peptides and nad pluses and coffee cold brews I drink just like I'm exhausted. And every once in a while those two, three in the morning now he just, he wakes up, he's got to eat, he's got to eat. Like you said. I mean I at 8, 9, 10 weeks you're hopefully getting right over that mountaintop. But yeah, I don't, I couldn't even come up with a fugazi today. I was like I, I got nothing. You know, the fugazi is me, the fugazi is my mind that is not working. That is like please just free fire, come on, let's go. But we're just, we're just grinding our way through it again. I have it much better than she does. So yeah, I, I just can't complain. Just very blessed to have a healthy child. But you do get used to, you know, you think back of those times where just on a random day like Wednesday night you could just, you're like it, I'm exhausted. I'm gonna get in bed at like 8. You know when you're single or married or whatever, no kids, just going to get in bed at like 8 o'. Clock. Maybe I'll watch shows till 10. Maybe I'll just go to bed, pop a couple melatonins, and be out by nine. Especially on like a Friday or Saturday. And you know what? I might sleep for 12 hours straight just to recharge the old batteries. That's not even. Not an option now. It doesn't even cross your mind of, like, what that would be like. So anyone getting sleep right now? Parents with older kids are just normal humans without kids. I'm jealous, bro. I'm really pretty jealous. What's up, John? Love the pod. Hearing you talk more and more about golf had me wondering what your handicap is. How often do you try to play? What are some of the strengths and weaknesses of your game? On paper right now I'm a two, but I'm probably. I played the other day. I shot 78. I'm probably closer to a five when I'm playing pretty well. I was playing the best golf of my life before Jack, and I got down to about a two, you know, but the strengths, I hit it pretty far. Short game sucks. When I'm on, I play a little baby cut. I played twice in 20, 25 or 26. Typically pre child or maybe as he gets older and we start playing, I'll hit sometimes like Wednesday or Thursday just to get out of the house. Usually not during football season because Thursday night Football, but like a Tuesday or Wednesday, I'll try to go hit balls, you know, like four or five in the afternoon, in the springtime or in the summer. And then typically play either Friday or Saturday. So I probably play golf on average once a week. That was pre child. Now it's, you know, I'm going back to back weeks. I played last Saturday, playing again this Saturday. I feel like I just, you know, hit the lotto. But she has a friend coming and we got some people coming over, so I can kind of bone out. I just usually when I play, even in Arizona, I mean, unless it's like 150, I walk like I play with guys in a money game sometimes on Saturday. And it could be, you know, anything up to like 105 and overall, hop in the car. But I just. If we're playing on Saturday, I'm carrying my bag and, you know, you get a good. Get a good sweat. You feel like you walked a bunch of steps. It's kind of out there in the sun, so it's popping a bunch of my zones and just enjoying myself. It's really like one of the only times I'm social during the week, which is weird because I Talk for a living. But it's. I'm talking into a computer, looking at myself. I know you mentioned several times that your listeners are males and I'm sure most are, but I am a female that absolutely loves hearing your show. I currently check Netflix or Apple Music for your latest pod. Maria, watch out. So you are trying to think of what to call your listeners. How about the Johnny's? Don't hate that. I do have a question. I'm a frustrated Charger fan because they seem to discount shop for the O line and now we seem to be screwed. Any thoughts on free agency or for the O line? Well, you have one of the highest paid tackles in the league who got hurt last year. You have a guy that you drafted fifth overall at the other tackle spot who probably could be better than the guy that's making a bunch of money. So you're all in on the two tackle spots. Like I, I don't know what to tell you on like guards and centers, like who are you supposed to buy? I, I would imagine they will invest in and draft that position. I mean they drafted a running back in the first round last year. They have a high priced quarterback. They have a high priced, I mean technically he's on a rookie contract now, but slot receiver who's a stud. They drafted what's his name, Trey Harris from Ole Miss last year. So to me like you can draft some offensive linemen this year and I think the one thing that's going to be not concerning but you just never know until it plays out is what's the defensive coordinator replacement for Jesse Minner? Because Jesse minter, like Mike McDonald was just a big time coordinator and sometimes when you try to replace that guy, it's not quite the same. And John Harbaugh, I would tell you that and I think Jim Harbaugh is about to find that out. Potentially. Who knows what is one event, sporting event that you want to attend or recommend everyone trying to attend at least once. Mine is the Indy 500 Memorial Day weekend. Fast NASCARs, patriotism concerts and booze. Not much better than that. There are things that I've never attended that I want to attend. I would say the Kentucky Derby, the Masters. I've never been to, you know, an Indy 500, a NASCAR race. I, I would love to do that. I've been to obviously, you know, playoff baseball games, World Series, NBA Finals, been to the super bowl, been to playoff games. Those are all cool. I've never been to the Final Four. I've never been to a college football Playoff game. I one thing I would love to do is just go to an SEC regular season game so that, that you know my first inclined to go Ole Miss but you know I'll bring my wife. I don't know if my child could go but Ole Miss in the Grove would be one I would want to do University of Tennessee, Knoxville would be one I would like to do Georgia, lsu, Bama. I mean I would love to go to an SEC football game, a Duke basketball game. Regular season game would be really fun. Those would be up there on my list. Love the pod. Hope to sleep with the little one is getting better. The other guy about the baby Merlin magic sleep sack. I thought I told actually Maria about this earlier when I was taking the pictures of this. I think you have to wait till they're like 12 weeks to put them in. Funny enough, the person who found the company is no other than Will Howard's mother. Apparently Doylestown Penns legend Will was a bad sleeper. Anyway, this leads me to my question. I get that six round picks don't get to start in the NFL, but I feel like the general public has it all backwards on him. Yes he was a winner Ohio State, but even before then he was a dog at Kansas State. He led Kansas State to a bowl game and won and performed well. Then this year at Ohio State he had similar stats to Mendoza the year Mendoza is the poster child and Will Howard flies under the radar. I get Ohio State's roster was better but Indiana was not bad whatsoever. Giants fan by the way, which is high on Will. Again. I, I don't think any of you guys are wrong. Right. Will's college career. You could argue there's some parallels. Like Bo Nix. I mean Bo Nix was a first round pick. Will Howard starts at Kansas State, transferred Ohio State, has a bunch of success. Maybe not a great parallel to Bo Nix because Bo Nicks kind of got run out of town but you know what I mean. I mean I'm just trying to talk about guys who transferred. So Michael Penix transfer from Indiana to Washington. I don't know. I, I, I can't tell you why people are down on Will Howard. He was obviously really good in that stretch. I, I do think winning at Ohio State you just don't get that much credit for. You really don't. Fair or not, but based on how it's going right now, he's going to have a shot to impress McCarthy. The coffin corner or the Coffee club. I don't hate the Coffee club. You mentioned needing a name for the Podcast followers. What if you merged podcast and middle cough the podcast. See, I just. You just know when you hear it. The pod cuffs. I got it. My first reaction is no. When can we get some live shows on the books? This off season or does your Netflix deal impact that? Well, we've never done a live show. We have it in my contract, you know, because some other people, the volume have done them. You know, like I'm trying to think over the course of the last several years, other shows, you know, kind of their business model was built around that ours wasn't necessarily part of it is that they are pretty labor intensive and pretty costly. So we've just had so much success on the Internet now. I'm never opposed. I, I just my, my fundamental belief is the power that we can distribute doing this. But there is, you could argue, just value. Even if you don't even break, even if you do a live show. And I mean, how many people can we get? Where do we do them? You know, where do we go? You know, this is a pretty like the way this distributes, it's pretty national. It's not like I used to do a lot of live shows and like live, I forgot exactly the, the word that was used. But in radio, you know, through sponsors you would do especially. We were all over the Bay Area, we would do a live show from games, we would do live shows from different bars. But the radio show was based in that area. So it was like an. You knew exactly where you were in these situations. It makes it a little more complicated. Again, I don't even want to sound negative to this or that. I'm anti the idea because we have semi broached it before. It just hasn't really gained that much steam because like you said live shows, I, I don't even know where you are. So if I did one, what if I didn't do them where you were? If you were Cincinnati. This is an old question, but I think it was a pretty good one. Would you listen to Spy Tech and the Raiders? This was before the Ravens backed out of the trade and they offered you their two first round picks this year, their two first round picks next year for Joe Burrow. That would give Cincinnati six first round picks the next two seasons and, and they get Fernando Mendoza as their next quarterback. If he had still, you know, if Eric DaCosta had not backed out of the deal. I think the Bengals reaction to that is still no because they think if he's healthy this year they can compete for a championship and for his greatest Pixar and you know, having a rookie contract. There is no guarantee that Fernando Mendoza is going to be a top 10 quarterback. You know, when Joe Burrow is healthy, he's one of the best players in the league. Not just quarterbacks in the league, one of the best players you have awesome offensive players. I think they would say no to that. Just wanted to let you know I love the pods, especially go low and I love your honest takes also. Congrats on the kid. Nice guy here. If by some miracle you see this, do you have any advice for someone with no experience or degree or who wants to get into the sports media? I've been asked this question over the years and there has never been a better time to have the options to try stuff. You know, 20 years ago, if you didn't get a radio gig or couldn't work on local tv, like you just couldn't break into the business, you can just start doing like Instagram Reels or TikTok takes, start a YouTube channel and just start a podcast or a broadcast, whatever you want to do. So I don't know specifically what you want to get into, but this would be the same advice for someone at college studying to be some broadcaster, some podcaster, some, you know, journalist, whatever. Utilize all these avenues. Even if you're like, I don't even like social media, just use it simply for work. That's kind of what I do. I use my social media for work. I don't really like social media. In a perfect world, like I wouldn't want to have to get on at all, but I use it to distribute my content to. Obviously we put socials up through there for people to discover and it's no different. If you were starting at scratch, it would be the same idea. LinkedIn, Facebook, Instagram, TikTok, YouTube, you name it. Just start doing shit. Would be would be what I would recommend. Life moves fast. Work, family, friends, weekend plans. And somewhere in between, you find the moments that really matter. That's why Toyota believes people are the destination. It's not just about where you're headed, it's about who's beside you. From early mornings to late nights, from packed schedules to spontaneous adventures, the Toyota RAV4 is built for real life. Whether you're heading to a game, meeting friends for a watch party, or chasing the next big moment, it gives you the space and comfort to enjoy the ride. No matter what the day brings. When people are the destination, ordinary drives become shared memories. Learn more@toyota.com and find the vehicle that fits your people Today's podcast is brought to you by Ferguson Home. Whether you're a homeowner creating your dream space or a pro managing multiple projects, Ferguson Home is where it all comes together. Ferguson Home is designed for the way you want to shop. Experience today's top products by brands like KitchenAid firsthand by visiting a Ferguson Home showroom where you'll explore stunning displays featuring today's latest products and innovations, or browser their extended selection of products online. Ferguson Home understands that every project is made up of countless decisions, and that's why their expert consultants are committed to helping homeowners, builders, contractors and designers bring all the details together. You can count on support from them start to finish, from choosing the right products to coordinating deliveries with your project schedule. Book a one on one consultation at your local Ferguson Home showroom or shop online at Ferguson Home at. Whether you're working on a new kitchen, a new bathroom or a whole home remodel, you'll find the latest designs and technologies from the brands you trust at Ferguson Home.