What's Wright - Shedeur Sanders RIDICULOUS behavior, Mahomes vs. The Prince, 49ers-Rams predictions | Nick Wright

Summary

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Podcast Summary: The Herd with Colin Cowherd

What's Wright - Shedeur Sanders RIDICULOUS Behavior, Mahomes vs. The Prince, 49ers-Rams Predictions | Nick Wright

Date: October 3, 2025
Host: Nick Wright (with co-host Damanza)

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Episode Overview

In this episode, Nick Wright dives into the major NFL storylines as the season moves past its opening month, focusing on the shifting identity of teams, the media circus around Shedeur Sanders' behavior, quarterback controversies, Mahomes vs. Trevor Lawrence, 49ers-Rams predictions, and more. The episode is punctuated by sharp opinions, meta reflections on sports media, practical advice for young athletes, and the dynamic between on-field performance and off-field narratives.

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Key Topics & Discussion Points

1. NFL Season State-of-the-Union

• Changing Face of September Football:
  • Nick explains how, post-lockout rule changes and the 17-game schedule, the first month of NFL action now resembles an extended preseason.
  • Teams use September to "figure out who they are," making early handicapping tricky, but by October, "you kind of not are who you are, but you're a lot closer to your final form" ([01:10]).
  • Emphasis on teams like Baltimore and Houston—playoff hopefuls now on the brink because of poor starts.

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2. Shedeur Sanders’ "Ridiculous" Behavior & Media Backlash

The Incident and Media Spin

• Background: Shedeur Sanders, after being passed over for QB2 (still third on the depth chart), responded to a press conference by silently mouthing answers—a sort of protest after media criticism and Rex Ryan's pointed attacks ([11:50-16:07]).
• Nick recaps:

  “He smiled and, in my opinion, looked like he always does, which is charming...but he was clearly saying sentences, but they were dead silent.” ([15:19])

• Rex Ryan Critique: Rex accused Shedeur of lacking work ethic and told him to "shut your mouth," sparking wider media debate.

Nick’s Take & Broader Lesson

• Nick stresses the responsibility of young players to act professionally—no matter how unfair the media scrutiny seems.

  "If Shedeur was your best friend ... and he called you up and was like, 'Hey, when they ask me about it, listen to what my plan is: I’m going to answer their questions silently.' … All of us would say, 'Don’t fucking do that, man. It’s a bad idea.'" ([17:09])

• Suggests the right response is to show team spirit, not to "do a bit in the locker room as the third string quarterback."

• Addresses the danger of Shedeur living in a “Tebow Zone,” where excessive celebrity shields him from needed professional growth.

Deion Sanders’ Role

• Nick argues Deion is, perhaps unintentionally, enabling Shedeur’s missteps by cheering on antics (“Good one son. You did that”).
• Contrasts Deion's generational talent and positional difference (cornerback vs. quarterback):

  "Dion had two things going for him ... he was a super duper star on the field. And ... he wasn’t a quarterback." ([29:31-33:05])

Broader Reflection on Advice

“The idea that you shouldn't have people in your life like, 'Hey man, that's a mistake,' is idiotic... he is risking entering the Tebow zone of your biggest fans hurt you.” ([29:32])

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3. Mahomes vs. Trevor Lawrence – The “Wright Bowl”

• Chiefs vs. Jaguars Preview:
  • Nick states his clear rooting interest: “I really like Trevor. I love Patrick. … I’m rooting for the Chiefs to roll. Now, in a perfect world, they roll and Trevor looks good and the Jags defense has been really good...” ([37:17])
  • Dives into the Jaguars’ use of Travis Hunter—playing both ways, but perhaps to his detriment—“right now they have just gotten one okay player on both sides of the ball” ([37:00-40:29]).
  • Chiefs offense discussion: Nick bullish on improvements, praising Kelsey’s performance, thinking ahead to what happens when missing WRs return ([40:35-43:43]).
  • Jags’ biggest problem: Trevor Lawrence’s play not meeting expectations; “Trevor's got to be better. There's no way around it.” ([43:50])

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4. 49ers-Rams Preview & Quarterback Discourse

• 49ers Dilemma:
  • Purdy out with turf toe, Mac Jones starting. Nick blames 49ers’ medical staff for not managing Purdy better ([44:28]).
  • “I do not think the 49ers have a chance tonight. I think the Rams are excellent and I would be hugely concerned about Purdy's health.”
  • Argues Niners overpaid Purdy, who’s not demonstrably better than other QBs in their system:

    “Once he was not graded as franchise quarterback ... his job description changed massively and he is still carrying himself as if it hadn't.” ([44:09-49:32])

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5. Wide Receiver Rankings & Puka Nacua Hype

• “Is Puka Nacua the NFL’s Top WR?” Discussion
  • Puka’s “ironclad case” for best receiver by numbers, but Nick admits:

    “I cannot wrap my mind around the idea that he's better than Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase ... but Puka is an unbelievable player.” ([51:34])

• Praises Nacua’s team-first demeanor and consistency.

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6. AFC: Ravens, Texans, Playoff Math

• Ravens-Texans Game Stakes:
  • Nick sees more pressure on Houston, but isn't writing off the Ravens even at 1-5, explaining Baltimore’s potential to go on a post-bye run ([51:59-58:39]).
  • Outlines the AFC playoff picture and why he remains optimistic about the Ravens if Lamar returns healthy.

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7. Brief Baseball Postseason Banter

• Rooting for the Yankees for personal reasons, handicapping various playoff matchups, and discussing the fun of different possible divisional round matchups ([61:10-64:39]).

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8. Listener Q&A and Fun Anecdotes

• Dealing with Hecklers:
  • Nick recounts being heckled by Eagles fans at the Ryder Cup, demanding and receiving a public apology ([64:39-68:04]).
• Tattoo Stories:
  • Clarifies his "Never Doubt" tattoo is real, while the “Tackle that Turned the Tide” tattoo was temporary—but still cost a surprising amount ([68:11-70:52]).
• Quick-Hit NFL Qs:
  • On Justin Herbert: "I don't think people care quite enough about Justin Herbert ..."
  • Injury Rates: No, not higher than normal—NFL is always brutal.
  • Bengals QB Talk: Suggests they trade for Kirk Cousins or Jameis Winston if necessary ([72:08-72:19]).

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Notable Quotes

• On Shedeur Sanders:

  "I am asking for him to recognize that this shit works against him and his dad who everybody loves, myself included ... is not helpful." (Nick Wright, [27:03])

• On Handling the Media:

  “All you've got to do is not do a single thing that is going to add to the questions the media is going to ask … and then bide your time, bro.” (Nick Wright, [27:22])

• Mahomes vs. Lawrence:

  “This is like… my actual son versus my pretend son.” (Nick Wright, [37:17])

• On the 49ers QB Situation:

  “Once he was not graded as franchise quarterback … his job description changed massively and he is still carrying himself as if it hadn't.” ([44:09-49:32])

• On Dealing with Hecklers:

  “I’m like, ‘I’m going to need an apology.’ … He’s like, ‘I’m sorry, man.’ I’m like, ‘Thank you.’” (Nick Wright, [66:39-68:04])

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Timestamps for Key Segments

• (01:10) – NFL’s September-to-October transition and team identities
• (11:50-17:09) – Shedeur Sanders, press conference “silent answers,” media and coaching advice
• (29:31-33:05) – Shedeur, celebrity backup QBs, and Deion’s role in the narrative
• (37:00-40:29) – Chiefs vs. Jags; Travis Hunter and Jaguars’ roster construction
• (44:09-49:32) – 49ers, Purdy injury, Mac Jones starting, and the value of quarterback contracts
• (51:34) – Puka Nacua among NFL wide receivers
• (51:59-59:34) – Ravens vs. Texans, playoff scenarios, and backup QB calculus
• (61:10-64:39) – Baseball playoff storylines
• (64:39-68:04) – Ryder Cup heckler story
• (68:11-70:52) – Tattoo anecdote
• (72:08-72:19) – Bengals, Trey Lance, and potential moves

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Overall Tone and Takeaways

Nick Wright's episode blends strong, direct sports takes (“I'm not asking for the kid to be humbled. I hate that commentary.”) with larger life lessons about reputation, advice, and professionalism—while weaving in plenty of good-natured humor and candid anecdotes. If you're after an episode that debates not just sports performance but also the modern athlete's place in a media-saturated world, this one delivers.

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Recommended For:
Fans interested in deeper context around sports headlines, quarterback controversies, athlete-media dynamics, and high-level NFL and MLB analysis.

Transcript

[Nick Wright]

This is an iHeart podcast.

[Matt Jones]

Hey, this is Matt Jones and I'm Drew Franklin and this is NFL Cover Zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Drew Franklin]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that? Oh my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week that is exactly what you're going to get. Listen to NFL Cover 0 with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app, podcast or wherever you get your podcast.

[AJ Jacobs]

Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings appearance on the puzzler with A.J. jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land? Jeopardy Truthers believe in?

[Matt Jones]

I guess they would be conspiracy theorists.

[AJ Jacobs]

That's right.

[Matt Jones]

They gave you the answers and you still blew it.

[AJ Jacobs]

The puzzler. Listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Nick Wright]

Welcome in what's Right with Nick Wright, episode two set or 373. Pardon me, brought to you as always by our friends at Boost Mobile. Busy week in the NFL. And there you know, we are now to where teams are really starting to take shape. First quarter of the season is done. You know, devonte didn't used to be like this. I'm going to sound like, I'm going to sound like an old man here and I might sound like an old man with the Shador conversation. This first one though is not about like taste. It's just reality. That post 2011 lockout when they really changed the rules on what you can and can't do in the off season and in training camp. And then later on when they removed one of the four preseason games, even less padded practices added a 17th regular season game. September really became not quite an extended preseason, but similar to that in a way it didn't used to be. And so teams use September now to kind of try to figure out who they are and get, you know, get. So they are rolling by October, when in the past that's literally what the preseason was. Starters played a lot. Big time players played a lot. They had had a bunch of hard two a day practices. And so it makes handicapping the league the first few weeks of the season a little more difficult because teams really do change over the course of the year. But now we're in October and now you kind of not are who you are, but you're a lot closer to your final form. And the hope is that you didn't dig yourself too big of a hole in September. And so the the two teams that we thought could be legit, certainly playoff and in one of their cases, championship contenders who dug quite a big hole are playing each other this weekend in Baltimore and Houston. Those are the two teams that didn't survive September at at least.500 and now they are their backs are against the wall a bit. Obviously other teams like the Niners dealing with injuries or the Bengals dealing with Burrow being out are in different spots, but from a record perspective. But I think we're going to start seeing really good football and we've seen some good football, but really good football starting that is starting probably not tonight, but this weekend and that I'm excited for. How are you doing this morning?

[Damanza]

I'm doing pretty good, Pops. How are you doing?

[Nick Wright]

I'm doing well. This has been an interesting week because as expected, the there are corners of the Internet and corners of not the not corners and sections of my colleagues that are I don't even think mad at me is the right word. Like just openly. I don't know if mocking is the right word. Something very they're nonplussed about some of my Lamar commentary. The last 72 hours I've seen a little and this is an annual tradition and the only part of it that I actually have been not irked.

[Damanza]

But yeah, like hit home a little bit.

[Nick Wright]

Well, not even hit home, just annoyed. I guess the right word is folks saying it's a straw man that people don't acknowledge Lamar's big game or postseason struggles. I'm like, it is because all of you picked the Ravens to win the super bowl every year. So it feels like that kind of fails to acknowledge it. But I'm not doing Lamar today. I mean we will do a little Ravens because I do think there's a chance he plays. I think there is a chance he shouldn't.

[Damanza]

So I mean we're in a bad.

[Nick Wright]

Situation and I think they could win with with Cooper Rush. And that's not it's not an just if you just run Derrick Henry 35 times, I think you can beat up flailing Texans team. But we'll get to that first we have to get to what we're not going to get to, which is straight to voicemail. Brought to you by Boost Mobile LeBron joins Kaisen at On Stream along with Ty Lil. Big weekend for those three, those streamer guys that I got to spend a little bit of time with back in June in Kai, Ty Lil and Speed Speed hanging out with Brady, Kai and Ty Lil hanging out with Braun. Tyle could not have been more excited. And LeBron cut off Kai's dread. So was that real? He really did that, right? I. I'll be honest, I didn't watch the mafia thon thing, but listen, pretty cool. Kevin Hart also, who was there when I met those guys. Kevin Hart goes on their stream. Everybody's doing the streamers. I gotta get with it. I said I was gonna do it over the summer. I didn't do it. I gotta get with it. Seth Curry joins his brother in the Warriors. Love it. I think I called this six months ago. Not. I think. I don't know. I think I mentioned that I could when we were talking about the warriors off season, that I thought Seth would fit well. I honestly though, you know what I do remember? I think I just said it, like in passing.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

You know, we didn't do like a whole thing on it, but I love that. I think Seth's a really good player in his role and I like the idea of Seth and Steph being together. I also thought the little viral video, even if it was misleading, of the rookies on the warriors being nervous to ask Steph for a picture was adorable. I thought that was really cool.

[Damanza]

It would be like literal splash brothers.

[Nick Wright]

Oh, how about. I didn't even think about that. You're right. You're right. That's a great take.

[Damanza]

Biological splash brothers.

[Nick Wright]

Biological splash brothers. Love it. And the WNBA commissioner is going to lose her job. This is. You can't come back from it. And I'm not going to act like I am an expert on Kathy Engelbert's tenure at the head of the league. I am going to say when a player is good, as high profile, and maybe most importantly, as respected as an A Collier goes full ether on you for five minutes in a prepared statement. Your days are numbered. So I. The. I. There are. I have enough respect for the people that cover and follow the WNBA every single day and have more expertise on it than me that I will leave the details or the. The detailed opinions on that to them. I. I don't want to parachute in on something that I'm. I don't feel fully solid ground on knowing the full background of her tenure, the good, the bad or whatever. But I do know. I feel like I know enough about just business in general that when one of your admirals goes public on the record of we have lost faith in the Central Command, Central Command usually has a change. All right, please like Rate Subscribe Review to the Pod we greatly appreciate that. I did not think we would be starting with the Browns third string quarterback. However, because of the last 24 hours and because this show loves itself some meta media discussion. We are going to start with the Browns third string quarterback. Go right ahead, pal.

[Damanza]

No, I'm kidding.

[Nick Wright]

Joe Flacco's been. You tricked me. Hold on. I was about to say Daman's mic's not working. I, I just want. I went to see if my headset got disconnected. That was really good mouthing of the words. You totally tricked me. All right, good job there. I mean that's for watching. If you're watching on YouTube, you got the bit. If you're the. If you're listening to us on podcast. It doesn't really play but good job. All right, go ahead.

[Damanza]

So Joe Flacco has been benched and Dylan Gabriel is the new quarterback one and Shador responded to that news and oppressor and maybe Rex Ryan with a little bit of memeing or miming action. What are your take or your thoughts on this?

[Nick Wright]

Okay, so let me, let me give the audience the very short history of this. Okay. A week ago she door gave a somewhat innocuous but probably poorly worded comment when he said, you know, I, I'm paraphrasing but I think this is going to be close to an exact quote. You know, I watch the league and I'm better than some of those guys out there starting. I didn't think it was a huge deal. I think it, I think that one of the reasons demand say that I thought that comment was likely to not go great for him was because one could argue the starting quarterback in the league playing the worst was his own. You know what I. So if he had, if he was third string for the Bills and said, you know, I watched the league and you know, I feel like I'm better than some of the guys starting. I think the exact quote was if you see the quarterback play in the league right now, I know I'm capable of doing better than that. Then I think it's less of a problem. When a lot of people felt like and feel like the Brown starting quarterback was playing the worst of everyone in the league, it could have been construed as an unintentional shot at Flacco. I don't think it was that at all, but it was just a little trickier of a spot. Does that part make sense what I'm describing there?

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Okay. Then Rex Ryan goes on TV and makes a fool of himself. Yeah, like Every time I see Rex Ryan, he's just talking about how much someone sucks. It's like the whole bit. It's that Russell Wilson can't play dead in a western. It's the end. His career's over.

[Damanza]

He comes at people like they're the reason, you know, every problem in his life that he has.

[Nick Wright]

Like, yeah, I don't personally like that his style. I'm just going to be transparent on this. I'm. I don't. I don't know Rex personally. I'm not. I don't want. Please. Awful announcing. Don't make this a nick. Right. Of this rage. I'm not trying to do that. I'm to trying. I'm just being honest. I think Rex like goes on tv. It's like, this guy sucks. This coordinator is an idiot. I do a better job with that, bang, I'm out of here. And so I just don't love that. Let me put it like he would. It just if he would not fit on First Things first, you know what I mean? But I mean different styles for different folks and I wouldn't fit on other shows, whatever. I'm really trying to be kind here. But. But be honest with my opinion pretty clearly. And oh, and one of the things he said, he said two things that really struck me with the Shador commentary. One was he basically reported that Shador is not doing the work. He was like, get in there and study. And if I know this, the whole league knows this. It's like, wow, like Rex Ryan elbowing Shefter off the breaking news beat. Like, I hadn't. I had not seen that reported anywhere that Shador has been lazy or not paying attention to meetings, that would be news. But the other thing he said was, you know, shut up and dribble. Not quite shut up and dribble, but shut your mouth. So shedor yesterday was asked about Dylan Gabriel being named the starter and about how he was not elevated to second string. Because that's the other piece of news here. It didn't go flat. Typically, if a veteran quarterback. Not always, but I shouldn't even say typically. Sometimes when a veteran quarterback is benched, he then goes to the bottom of the depth chart. He wasn't a veteran. But last year when Bryce Young got benched for Andy Dalton, that, that first game, Bryce wasn't the backup. You know what I mean? Like, it was. He went all the way down the ladder and then. So there was an opportunity that it was going to be Gabriel 1, Shador 2, Flaco 3. That ended up. Not happening. Just Gabriel and Flacco. Flip. Shador stayed through. He was asked about all of this and he smiled and in my opinion, looked like he always does, which is charming. And seemingly talked without talking, moved his mouth. And I actually wonder if a professional, I wonder if he was giving real answers.

[Damanza]

He was saying, you know what I mean? There I was.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah, like, yeah, I mean, he was clearly, he wasn't like, you know, speaking gibberish. I, I now, I don't know if the sentences were, you know, a inaudible. I was told, you know, on tv, they told me not to talk. So this is me not talking or I don't know if it was an inaudible. I'm happy for Dylan to be getting this opportunity. I'm still working hard. But he was clearly saying sentences, but they were dead silent. And the reason I wanted to start the show with it is because this is just a perfect, just perfect moment for today's media and social media because.

[Matt Jones]

Hey, this is Matt Jones. I'm Drew Franklin, and this is NFL Cover Zero. We think NFL coverage should be enfor and entertaining and twice a week. That is exactly what you're going to get. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Drew Franklin]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that?

[Drew Franklin]

Looks like something that should not be sold.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, my.

[Drew Franklin]

So that was my other big Colts takeaway.

[Matt Jones]

Have you sold that?

[Nick Wright]

Yes.

[Drew Franklin]

Might want to go back to the.

[Matt Jones]

Drawing board at the Colts stadium.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah, I might want to go back to the drawing board on that.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

I thought the shape we had with pretzels was working pretty well.

[Nick Wright]

It's worked for generations.

[Matt Jones]

We're just here trying to enjoy it. We hope you all will join us throughout the year. And let's go.

[Drew Franklin]

I hope I'm as youthful as Pete Carol is at his age. He's a young 73.

[Matt Jones]

He is a young 73. He is spry.

[Nick Wright]

I would say.

[Drew Franklin]

I would fight him.

[Matt Jones]

I would Listen. NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Nick Wright]

If you want, which I don't want to do, to kill Shador. It's an example of just wanton immaturity. I don't want to kill Shador. And if you want to blindly support Shador, the criticism he gets from this will be an example. The kid can't win. He talks and he gets yelled at. He literally doesn't talk. And you kill him anyway. I don't want to do that either, because I'm not an idiot. What? Everyone, every adult has a responsibility to set down for a moment their priors and to ask themselves this honest question. If Shedeur was your best friend, if he were your. I don't want to say son, because prime has, I think, not helped him on this. And I'll get to that in a second. If he were your godson or, or your nephew or you were his high school guidance counselor who he stayed in touch with and he called you up and was like, hey, do you see what Rex Ryan said about me? Yeah, I saw. And you saw that Gabriel's the starter now, right? Yeah, I saw. So when they asked me about it, listen to what my plan is. I'm going to answer their questions silently. What do you mean? You're going to like, write it down? No, I'm going to stand in front of the cameras and act like I'm talking, but not make any sounds. How awesome does that. How awesome of an idea is that? All of us would say, don't fucking do that, man. It's a bad idea. Fair or not, bad idea. Why? They told me I shouldn't talk. Buddy, here's all you gotta say. You're asked about Dylan. Really happy for Dylan. You know, he and I obviously same draft class. We've been working together this whole time. Joe's been great to all of us. You know, it's coach's choice to make a change. And you know, Dylan works hard. He's a really good player. I'm excited, you know, I'm excited to watch him. Well, are you upset, you know, you didn't get bumped up to second string? You know, do you. Listen, I. I believe in myself. I'm not going to lie to you guys and act like I don't. I believe that I will one day be a starting quarterback in this league. But my job right now is to keep doing what, you know, what I've been doing, studying, working hard, being a good teammate, and hopefully, you know, we can get back on the winning track this weekend. That's all you have to do. Everything else is foolishness. And anyone acting like acknowledging that him doing a bit in the locker room in front of the media as the third string quarterback is good for him or smart or productive is a liar.

[Damanza]

Also not the third string quarterback, apparently.

[Nick Wright]

What do you mean?

[Damanza]

It was Joe and then it was Dylan and then they moved him down below Joe again. Like, what's. Why do they do that?

[Nick Wright]

He Is still third string? Like. No.

[Damanza]

Oh, yeah, I guess. Yeah. He's third again.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah. No, he's. Yeah, he stayed third. He didn't. No. They. Listen, I don't, I don't know how he's looked at practice at this point. I don't know how he is in film study. I do. I, I know that he played one preseason game, looked awesome, played another preseason game, looked. Looked bad. I like all of these. So I, I don't know if in that building there are different camps like Stefansky is deeply invested in Gabriel, but the owner wanted Shador and so I don't know any of that. I don't. None of that is relevant to this piece of it. Just control what you can control, bro. You are not right now getting the opportunity to show what you can do on the field publicly. So all you can do is show that you can be a true professional privately or, you know, in your role as backup quarterback. And this is what. And I did Cam Newton's show a couple days ago and Cam has real, excuse me, sympathy for Shador. And Cam feels like a lot of what he did like that. You know, Cam had a real hard time when he had to be a backup and Cam felt his celebrity and aura worked against him at those things. And I said this to Cam and I'll expand on it here. One is, while I respect the. I respect folks who believe shedor does have starting caliber talent and traits and will be a good NFL quarterback, I'm not the I, I. A lot of people I respect have that opinion and fair. No problem. Cam was talking about him as if Cam and Shador were at all similar prospects. They weren't man like Shador is whether he should have been or not. He's a fifth round pick. And the other piece of it that I really wish somebody close to Shador would really explain to him is this man you have. Maybe it shouldn't be this way, but it is. You have one of the only jobs left in modern America where celebrity works against you in almost every other job. I don't care what it is. If it's like, hey, I can do the job. Well, also, oddly, I'm very famous on TikTok. That doesn't hurt you. It usually helps you. The only job where your bosses want you to be as anonymous as possible is backup NFL quarterback. And now maybe the, the, the organizations are too stodgy. Maybe that's stuck it maybe, you know, maybe that'll change. It ain't changing this month. And I do think we have seen over the course of these few months. Some of the reason that once teams and this was the the seminal moment once he was not graded as franchise quarterback coming out of the draft, top 10, top 15 pick and he was graded as backup who could one day compete to be a starter that his job description changed massively and he is still carrying himself as if it hadn't. And I am not asking for the kid to be humbled. I hate that commentary. I'm not asking for him to I change who he is at a personal level. I am asking for him to recognize that this shit works against him and his dad who everybody loves, myself included. Instagramming in response to this video. All these laughing emojis and writing Good one son. You did that is not helpful. Go Demonte, go ahead. I can tell you want want to.

[Damanza]

Say I didn't know that I didn't know that happened but at the end of the day you were one step like I guess he was still third on the dev chart but Joe Flacco getting benched, you were a step closer in the direction that you wanted to be headed. So correct. It was unnecessary and it's just I.

[Nick Wright]

I and this is what's frustrating to me and this is why I wanted to leave the show with it because it is a my favorite topics are when sports a sports discussion is a microcosm for a bigger worldwide, you know, holistic discussion. There are going to be so many disingenuous fools that today try to act like see, damned if you do, damned if you don't. You tell him to shut up and then when he literally does, you criticize him for that too. As if we, we can't hold multiple thoughts in our head at the same time and as if we're not all functioning adults that recognize this was he was running a bit. He is doing 45 seconds of stand up in the locker room as the third string quarterback when all you've got to do is not not do a single thing that is going to add to the questions the media is going to ask Stefanski and then bide your time bro. Because Gabriel's not going to start the last 13 games. I don't think he's good enough. Listen, they are going to give Gabriel a real opportunity. There's no question about that. And Gabriel, I, I, you know, they have a real investment in him. I just don't think Gabriel's good enough to run the table the rest of the way. So he should get a shot. He just has to be ready for it. I Just I, I, I really think he is getting and people thought this was patronizing. When I said he's getting bad advice. They're like, he's 23 year old grown man. Shut up. Monza is 27. I give Demanza professional advice all the time. I'm 40. I, I call my dad for advice on things like the idea that because.

[Damanza]

Three years is you're good, right?

[Nick Wright]

He's always old enough to rent a car without paying the extra fee. He's beyond advice is just idiotic. Like yes, he's allowed now at 23. He's, he's his own man. He can make his own decisions. He can take the advice and throw it in the garbage. I, and so, but the idea that you shouldn't have people in your life like, hey man, that's a mistake. It's it. And, and I really like him. The thing is this. I think, I do think he's charming. I do think he's talented. I do think he is well intentioned. But I think there is a protectionism. He, right now to me is in a really. And they're not a similar player, but he is risking entering the Tebow zone of your biggest fans hurt you where because you are such a celebrity and because they have more. You are, you are not only a person anymore. You are like a vessel for their own wants and desires. That, that works against you professionally and Dion. And the last thing I'll say is this. And this is where like it's tough because you see your own kids through a parent's eyes. You know what I mean? Through the, and I, I get that Deon's gotta recognize, man, you could do this. Your son can't. Why? Because Dion's one of the greatest players in the history of the sport and your son is not. And he doesn't. And you'd be like, well, Dion wasn't that until. No, Dion was. Dion. Dion was. Dion going into the draft was talking about this team better not draft me. I'll bankrupt the bank like that. Like, guess what? People were like, all right, he might be a lot to deal with, but did you see the 40 yard dash time? Did you see him locked down on the side of a field for two years at Florida State? Deion's like, I might play baseball too. They're like, we'll, we'll fly you out there, buddy. Whatever you want. Deion had two things going for him that are very important that Chador did not. One is he was a super duper star on the field. And the Other one is he wasn't a quarterback because as great as Deion was, if he were a poster back instead of a cornerback, it would have been trickier. And so Cam was a quarterback and dealt with some of this. He's the, he had was coming off the single greatest season in the history of college football. And so like he can. I just, I don't know, man. I, I, I legit worry that he is.

[Damanza]

He'S, he's hurt, he's like wounded like all the time. Oh yeah, feelings are always hurt and I think he kind of doesn't know how to deal with it sometimes. Shouldn't say I don't, I don't know the man but like, you know, with that type of.

[Nick Wright]

No, I think that's a great take. The idea that he is cons for the first time in his football life consistently being told, yeah, you're not good enough right now. And when not only was he not told that before he was the best player or second best player on every team he ever played on. Yeah. And so I think that, I think there is something to that. I think the whole thing though, I just, I thought that was a mistake. All right, Today's show is brought to you by our new presenting sponsor, Hard Rock Bet. If you love betting on sports or you just love sports and want to try betting, Hard Rock Bet sportsbook app makes it simple. Plus it's packed with great insights and non stop promos every day of the week. Week five kicks off tonight with the California showdown between San Francisco and la. I'm looking ahead to Sunday though. Hard Rock Bet stats hub right there in the app. Here's what the app is showing me. Kansas City's back. We already knew that they looked great against Baltimore. Now they've got Jacksonville. They beat the Jags eight times in a row going back all the way to 2009. Last time they lost Jacksonville, my pal Matt Castle was their quarterback. Casey's Kareem Hunt has found the end zone in six straight October games. How about that? Xavier Worthy looked good coming back from injury and he scored a touchdown the last five times the Chiefs were favored. And coming off a win. If you still haven't tried your first bet on Hard Rock Bet, there's still time for you to get $150 in bonus bets. And if you win, just place a $5 bet. And if it hits, you get not only your winnings, but also an extra $150 in bonus bets. Plus tonight on Hard Rock Bet, you can get a Thursday night Profit boost for the game. Boost your same game parlay or SGP max so your bet pays extra winnings. New promos every day. So if you're listening to this later, just open the app, check out what they've got. Any day of the week, Download the Hard Rock Bet app today, take a look around and make your first deposit payable and bonus bets. Not a cash offer. Offered by the Seminole Tribe of Florida in Florida. Offered by Seminole hard Rock Digital LLC in all other states. Must be 21 plus and physically present in Arizona, Colorado, Florida, Illinois, Indiana, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia to play. Terms and conditions apply. Concern about gambling in Florida, call 1-888- admit it in Indiana, if you or someone you know has a gambling problem and wants help, call 1-809 with it gambling problem, call 1-800- gambler in Arizona, Colorado, Illinois, New Jersey, Ohio, Tennessee or Virginia.

[Drew Franklin]

Hey, this is Matt Jones and I'm.

[Matt Jones]

Drew Franklin, and this is NFL Cover Zero. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week, that is exactly what you're going to get. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Drew Franklin]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that?

[Drew Franklin]

Looks like something that should not be sold.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, my.

[Drew Franklin]

So that was my other big Colts takeaway.

[Matt Jones]

Sold that.

[Nick Wright]

Yes.

[Drew Franklin]

Might want to go back to the.

[Matt Jones]

Drawing board at the Colts stadium.

[Drew Franklin]

Yeah. Might want to go back to the drawing board on that.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

I thought the shape we had with pretzels was working pretty well.

[Nick Wright]

It's worked for generations.

[Matt Jones]

We're just here trying to enjoy it. We hope you all will join us throughout the year. And let's go.

[Drew Franklin]

I hope I'm as youthful as Pete Carol is at his age. He's a young 73.

[Matt Jones]

He is a young 73. He is spry, I would say.

[Drew Franklin]

I wouldn't fight him.

[Matt Jones]

I would listen NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Nick Wright]

All right, Daman, let's go to Kansas City and Jacksonville, please.

[Damanza]

All right, so we're calling this one the Right Bowl. Your Chiefs go against the Jags on Monday Night Football. So thread the needle on how you would kind of like this game to go for you to come out on top. Cause, you know, obviously these are both your guys.

[Nick Wright]

Well, yes, I mean, they are. They are my guys, but this is like, like. I mean, this is. This is like a Damanze versus Luca Situation. My actual son versus my pretend son.

[Damanza]

Wait.

[Nick Wright]

And so like I like. I really like Trevor. I love Patrick. Like there's not a. This isn't. What was that Macaulay Culkin movie where the mom's at the cliff? Was it the good son she has to pick which were the kids? This isn't like a hard one. Well, one of the kids was evil. It was really tricky. Doesn't matter. But yeah, I mean, no. I'm rooting for the Chiefs to roll now. In a perfect world, they roll and Trevor looks good and the Jags defense has been really good. They, they have been really good primarily because they are forcing three turnovers a game. They have 13 for turnovers through nine games. The most interesting thing going on with the Jags right now though, Demons A is not Trevor, as much as I wish it was because he's just not playing that well. Like he. Not only is he not the reason they're three and one, you could argue that if he could have just taken care of the ball against Cincinnati, they'd be four and oh like the Jags are. If Trevor starts playing better, the Jags are legit dangerous. Yeah, the most interesting thing with the Jags right now is Travis Hunter and they haven't figured out how to use him. And right now it's kind of the worst of both worlds, which is he's not full time either side of the ball. He's. We thought he would play more than, you know, any of these other first round picks. Instead he's playing less than some of them and he's not being super impactful in either spot. And so folks that were saying again, it's been a month, he needs to be full time one way and a bit player the other way. I think right now that looks like that was. That would have been the smarter way to play it through September. Now maybe that'll change. But I think for Jacksonville to justify trading away the fifth pick, a third round pick and next year's first round pick to move up for a non quarterback, it had to be because they thought they were getting two players. I thought they were getting two players and right now they have just gotten one okay. Player on both sides of the ball. So that part, that's the most interesting part for the Jaguars. Go ahead.

[Damanza]

Do you think that the Chiefs will backslide a little bit from their progress that they made with Baltimore as far as the offense?

[Nick Wright]

Listen, I think that the offensive line is getting better week by week. You now have almost, you know, you now have wide receivers 2, 3, 4 and 5. You're still missing wide receiver 1 in Rasheed Rice. Kelsey is looking better than he looked last year. I think the offense is going to continue to look good. And the Chiefs have averaged their last five games with Worthy. Going back to last year, averaged 28 points per game and last year that was with the offensive line kind of, you know, being in shambles to a degree on the left hand side. I now Jacksonville's defense is obviously better than Baltimore's. I don't expect the Chiefs to go eight straight possessions without a punt like they did against Baltimore. But I do think Kansas City goes to Jacksonville, handles their business and then, you know, has a hell of an opportunity on Sunday Night Football against the Lions in the final game without Rasheed. But I, I don't want to get overly excited about Tyquan Thornton, but he's been good and I'm now looking at Juju's been really solid in his role, but he just can't move anymore. Like, you know what I mean? He just has, you know, I don't know what his 40 yard time would be right now, but it feels like it would be like 4, 8. But he's been a good blocker. He's been, he's in the right place, all those things. But I am starting to think about what this offense is going to look like when Rashi Rice is in juju's role. Xavier is on one side and I, at this point I trust Thornton more than I trust Hollywood Brown. And all of a sudden you have Thornton as your number three, Hollywood is your four, Juju is depth and Kelsey with all that space in the middle of the field. Now that won't be the case obviously this weekend or Monday night because Rice isn't back yet. But I think we're going to see more from Travis just by virtue of having Thornton who's a burner and Xavier out there that he's going to have more space to operate with. They still don't have a running back. I trust that seventh round rookie Brashard Smith. We'll see if they incorporate him more. That's the one spot on the team that I would like to see them potentially upgrade in the trade market. But I'm, I would be very surprised if Kansas City can't go to Jacksonville and figure out how to get a win against a really good Jags team. Now if the Jags win, Jags are 4 and 1. You got to really take them seriously. But I don't think they're going to win Go ahead, pal.

[Damanza]

Who do you who's the weak link on the Jags right now? Would you say that Trevor Lawrence?

[Nick Wright]

I mean, he's playing. I don't think he is, but he is playing like it. Etienne's been good. Now The Brian Thomas Jr. Has been disappointed as well and then that he's had a lot of drops. The defense has been great. Like Trevor's got to be better. There's no way around it. I fair is fair. Trevor's got to be better. All right, let's go to tonight's game.

[Damanza]

So Purdy is out for tonight's game. He's still dealing with the turf toe injury. With Purdy's last game, he threw two picks. He had a fumble. Mac Jones and his two games is undefeated. So odds are going to be on that situation. Do you think the 49ers have a chance tonight? And how concerned should the 49ers be about Brock Purdy's health?

[Nick Wright]

I do not think the 49ers have a chance tonight. I think the Rams are excellent and I would be hugely concerned about Purdy's health. I would also be furious with my medical staff. Once again, if I'm the Niners, I it's not like the NFL spins a wheel to determine who's playing Thursday night each week. You, if you're the Niners, you knew that you were playing Thursday this week. Purdy clearly was not 100% this past Sunday they let him play anyway. The injury got worse. He now is definitively going to miss this game and he's not even healthy enough to be like the emergency quarterback for them and could miss more time. I don't understand especially because they did go two and oh with Mac Jones, how they don't hold Purdy out. Demons a this past Sunday and then he gets four extra days before he would be playing against the Rams to heal up that toe. And then 10 days before the next game, you know you could have g. You could have eased him back in three games off and then he plays the Rams then a mini buy before they play the next week. Now this is probably going to be a problem all year. Which brings me to the bigger Purdy conversation. Man, I, I said all off season. Why would you be in a rush to pay this player? He struggle, had his worst year yet last year, has dealt with some injuries and has no leverage whatsoever. Just wait and see. They gave him 50, what, $3 million a year and now like it has been four games into the contracts. If they could wipe it away, would they of course and I know that there's. It felt unfair because he had made no money at all as the final pick of the draft and they had been to a Super bowl and been to a conference championship game and two of his years he had played really well. But you're not in the fairness business. You're in the football business. And the other had they not paid him and then this, you know we see this opening month of the season, it's like oh Mac Jones who is basically on the minimum can be dropped into this offense without all the weapons and it can function. Are we better off spending our money elsewhere? Are we bet like do we need a $50 million a year quarterback unless he's a true difference maker. And that's. That's the other piece of this is it we have so much evidence that that Shanahan system is relatively quarterback proof. Now listen, Purdy's a healthy Purdy is better than Mack and raises your ceiling. But does he raise your ceiling more than having three separate Pro bowl level players that you could get with $50 million a year? I don't know that he does. So I have been. There are very few opinions that have spanned the course of five, six years that have aged better than my. I do not believe the Niners quarterback is as good as his numbers suggest. It's about Shanahan, the weapons in the system than that take. But once again I think that takes going to age quite well. It also should be noted because people are putting out there the Niners wide receiver room and I'm like oh, I recognize those guys. Patrick Mahomes won Super Bowls with them. Demarcus Robinson, Sky Moore, Marquez Valdez, Scantling. What do you expect anyone to do? I don't know. Patrick Mahomes win Super bowl. So like there is that. All right. I know you want to ask me about Puka.

[Damanza]

Yeah. So where would you rank him among amongst your wide receivers? He's number one in yards, receptions and yards. By a lot.

[Nick Wright]

By a lot.

[Damanza]

Stafford loves it.

[Nick Wright]

He's. He's on pace to Monze through 16 games, not even 17 game season for more than 160 catches in the first ever 2000 yard season. So here is.

[Damanza]

All right.

[Nick Wright]

Here is the. Now it's weird to say he has almost an ironclad case that he should be in consideration as the best receiver in the NFL. Yet I cannot wrap my mind around the idea that he's better than Justin Jefferson or Jamar Chase. And I feel like he could have a 2,000 yard season and I still would not be able to wrap my mind around it. But you know, he's doing it with not great quarterback play. He's doing it under. I shouldn't say he's not not great quarterback play. He's. He's doing it when he's not fully healthy. He's been able to just do it and it's. I think he's playing at a higher level than Cooper cup did. And so some of that is, you know, when we saw Cooper cup do it, now we're seeing Puka do it. You, Stafford and McVay get some of the credit. But Puk is an unbelievable player. He is really an unbelievable player and he certainly demons a has to be in your top five. Certainly. I still think Jefferson's the best receiver in football but man, Puk is an unbelievable player.

[Damanza]

Just an unbelievable diva too. Seems like a solid teammate as well. I mean Justin Jefferson as well. But you know.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah, he doesn't, it doesn't seem like he has the like wide receiver curse, but it also helps that he gets 15 targets a game. I think all the series be pretty happy with. You know what I mean? With. With those types of targets. All right, let's talk Houston, Baltimore.

[Damanza]

So I banged up Ravens are playing the lowly Texans. These guys are both one and three. Who, who's this a bigger game for? I mean.

[Nick Wright]

All right, so first of all, let me say the. I think there is a chance Lamar plays. The Rapaport seemed to open the door to it. The only person to slam the door shut on it was a Baltimore sun reporter. So I think there's a chance he plays. I also think even if he doesn't play Damanze, you guys could win like Hughes if Houston's offense has been dreadful for 15 of the 16 quarters this year. Fourth quarter against Tennessee they started scoring but that game was six nothing. Six nothing either late in the third or going into the fourth. And then Houston rolled up some touchdowns. Now maybe that's some momentum. Maybe like I said at the top of the show, they were working through things, new offensive coordinator, all that. But they have looked shaky. So I think the game is more important for the Texans because of this. If they lose, they're just flat bad. If you especially if you can't beat the Ravens when setting going into this game, unlike the Chiefs game, Chiefs game, they went in without force. Defensive starters this game they'd be going in without seven and no Lamar then who the hell are you beating? You can't beat a team who's got A terrible defense and their MVP quarterbacks out. Then where other than the Titans, like, who are you beating? I also, one of the reasons that I am, you know, not going to abandon the Ravens even if they lose is I don't fully trust the Steelers yet. And I still think the Steelers could have a four game losing streak in them and open that division up. So. And, and I do believe that when Lamar is out there, the Ravens have one of the best offenses in the league during the regular season and I think they will continue to. So. But the more disappointing start to the season is Baltimore, the more trouble for either team is Houston. Let me ask you this. If Lamar loses, if Lamar misses the next two weeks.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Because they have the Texans, the Rams and then the buy and they are one in five. If he misses and they lose, do you think it's. That's a wrap for them or go ahead or.

[Damanza]

It's pretty close. I mean, I think it's close. I do like the Steelers being the top dogs right now though, because I have no faith in ar. I watch a lot of his, like when things are going good, he loves it. But the second one thing goes bad and I mean, just like a receiver missing something, he's pissed. So if they start losing the game, if they lose two games in a row, one game, I think it's just going to stack on top of it, on top of itself.

[Nick Wright]

I also. So I tend to agree with you here's. But let's just say they're 1 and 5. If the Ravens are 1 and 5, that the division's out of reach and let's just do a playoff wild card spot. Okay. Yeah. So the Bills are going to be in under this scenario, we're saying the Steelers are going to be in. We're going to put the Chiefs and the Chargers in. Okay. And obviously, let's just say the Colts keep doing what they're doing and they're in those five teams. Did I leave Bills, Steelers? Yeah. Chiefs, Chargers, Chargers, Colts. So that will then leave two playoff spots. The Jags, the Patriots, the Broncos would be the leading contenders.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

Do we think the Ravens could run two of those teams down even at starting one and five if Lamar comes back from the buy fully healthy, my answer to that is yeah, I think they could. Like, I would not write off Baltimore.

[Damanza]

Because like schedule softens up a lot after the Rams, so to speak.

[Nick Wright]

Well, it's really interesting the. So I think they have a brutal December, but a very soft end of October, November. So if you're the Ravens again, if we just play this out and I, I think they are going to win this weekend. Okay, so this at 2 and 4 I think they'd be fine. But if they're 1 in 5 you are after the buy. Home for Chicago, at Miami, at Minnesota, at Cleveland, home for the jets, home for scentsy Baltimore. Absolutely. If Lamar comes back healthy, can go six zero in that stretch. Bears, Dolphins, Vikings, Browns, Jets, Bengals. I know that the defense has been bad but the quarterbacks being Caleb who I think is good then Tua whoever starting for Minnesota, whoever's starting for Cleveland, Justin Fields, Jake Browning, you should be able to go six and up. If you could do that at one and five, you'd be seven and five going into what I think is a brutal final five games. Home for Pittsburgh, who gives you trouble every year at Cincinnati, not terrible. Home for New England, tough at Green Bay at Pittsburgh if you get to seven and five you probably just have to go three and two in those final five to get to your 10 wins Bengals and sneak into the playoffs.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And potentially, you know, have the head to head tiebreaker with New England. Like that game Dec. 21 against New England could be a huge one. Obviously the Steeler games are so I won't point that I'm making is this even if they go 1 and 5 I won't write them off and if they go 2 and 4 I think they'll be fine. Obviously they will need Lamar to be. Yeah, full on Lamar. But Lamar was utterly sensational through the first three games of the year. Like I, I, I do. The bright side to my take being it's all in Lamar's head that he's just not a like a playoff or against the Chiefs type of performer is it's not like oh he's in a slump. Like I think the moment he gets back he's just kicking ass again.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

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[Matt Jones]

Hey, this is Matt Jones. I'm Drew Franklin and this is NFL Cover zero. We think NFL coverage Should be informative and entertaining and twice a week. That is exactly what you're going to get. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Drew Franklin]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that?

[Drew Franklin]

Looks like something that should not be sold.

[Matt Jones]

Oh, my.

[Drew Franklin]

So that was my other big Colts takeaway.

[Matt Jones]

They sold that.

[Nick Wright]

Yes.

[Drew Franklin]

Might want to go back to the Colts stadium.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

Might want to go back to the drawing board on that.

[Matt Jones]

Yeah.

[Drew Franklin]

I thought the shape we had with pretzels was working pretty well. It's worked for generations.

[Matt Jones]

We're just here trying to enjoy it. We hope you all will join us throughout the year. And let's go.

[Drew Franklin]

I hope I'm as youthful as Pete Carroll is at his age. He's a young 73.

[Matt Jones]

He is a young 73. He is spraw.

[Drew Franklin]

I wouldn't fight him.

[Matt Jones]

I would listen. NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts, or wherever you get your podcast.

[Nick Wright]

All right, let's do a few minutes on baseball before we get to the questions from Tuesday that we didn't get to. And also reminder everybody, we do have the gambling show coming out Friday morning with our picks. Go ahead, pal.

[Damanza]

So the MLB playoffs are underway. The Yankees tied up their series with the Red Sox. The Dodgers advanced, and two more Wild Car series will wrap up today. What do you have your eye on in this baseball postseason?

[Nick Wright]

Listen, I hope the Yankees win because I want to be able to maybe do some shows from Yankee Stadium again. It was so much fun. That was a great Yankee win last night. And Jazz Chisholm, who was not happy with his usage in game one, saved the game for him. He made an unbelievable diving stop at second base late in the game and then scored from first, the winning run. So that you know, I am rooting for the Yankees tonight. The pitching matchup for the Yankees tonight is they have Schlitler on the mound and the Sox have Connolly early on the mound. The Yankees are a slight favorite. The Dodgers annihilated the Reds. That's good for baseball. Sorry for Cincinnati, but that's good for baseball. That's exciting. Tigers guardians. I am. I don't know who I'm rooting for because the Tigers kind of deserve to just have this whole thing fall apart on them because they had such a historic league.

[Damanza]

Right?

[Nick Wright]

Yeah. 14 game lead. And then Cleveland ended up winning the Division I. That game's a coin flip to me. And then Padres, Cubs. It's better for baseball, in theory, for the brand of the Cubs, but the Padres have so many stars, and you Darvish on the mound tonight, and the Padres were my preseason pick to, you know, make the World Series out of the nl. I would be rooting for the Padres. Either way, we're going to have sick divisional round, because we are. We're going to get Dodgers, Phillies in the nl, which is unbelievable. And then the brewers are waiting for either the Padres or the Cubs. And in the al, we're getting either Blue Jays Yankees, or Blue Jays Red Sox. A nice AL east battle. And then the Mariners waiting for the Tigers of the Guardians. Kind of feels like Mariners Guardians would be awesome because they both finished the year so red hot. And Blue Jays, Yanks. So you know what? No, I'm not going to bet it because I. I haven't studied any of this, but I am going to go ahead and say I am rooting for the Guardians over the Tigers, the Yankees over the Red Sox, and the Padres over the Cubs. So we get Brewers, Padres, Dodgers, Phillies. Already locked. Blue Jays, Yankees, and Mariners Guardians. That. That's. That's what I'm pulling for. All right, Damante, let's get to some of these questions before we get to our gambling show, which will come out tomorrow.

[Damanza]

So everybody in the chat on Tuesday was asking about how the Ryder cup went.

[Nick Wright]

I really enjoyed going. I had a great time. I don't want to spend too more time on it. Eagle fans are out of their mind. They're out of their mind. And the. I. I actually had to. I, I. Should I tell this story? Yeah, whatever. Who cares? So I was just getting. I was getting the Rory McElroy treatment from Eagle fans the whole day, and these are just like, drunk finance guys in golf shirts, and so, whatever. Fine. Late in the day Saturday, I'm walking to find Hubs, because I went with Danny and Hubs, and there's a long line of people trying to get beer, and I'm about 40ft from it. And again, we're at a golf tournament, man, and I hear, hey, Nick Wright, F you. But they didn't say F. And I'm like, you know what? Not okay. And I. And I could see who it was deep in the beer line, and I'm like, we're gonna go have a chat. And so I, I'm. I walked. I started walking his way, and his friends were, like, tapping or whatever. But again, Demon, this guy is not your age. This guy is my age. And. And I walk over to Him. And I do what I always do in these situations, which is I clasp my hands behind my back, like, because I'm like, this guy's drunk. And like, whatever. Like, I don't want him to think, like, I'm coming over there to, like, fight. But you're going to have something behind.

[Damanza]

There waiting for him, though.

[Nick Wright]

No, no, no, no, I not. And as soon as I get within 10ft, he does one of these. He's like, hey, man, I'm sorry. I actually like the show. I'm just. And I'm like. And I'm like, no, no. He's like, what? I'm like, buddy, we're adults at a golf tournament. Not cool. And his friends were like, yeah, man, sorry. And he's like. He's like. And so he tries to shake my hand. I'm like, I'm not shaking your hand, man. But I also am going to need an apology. And. And he's like. And he's like, what? And his friends who were mortified were like, hey, man, just apologize. And I'm like, I'm going to need an apology. And at this point, again, it's like a 300 person beer line, right? Everybody's looking. And he's like, he's like, I'm sorry, man. I'm like, thank you. And then he tried to shake my hand again. I'm like, I'm not shaking your bleep in hand. And then I went and found Hubs. I couldn't take it anymore. So I had a great time in the Ryder cup, but I just couldn't stand anymore. Come on, man. Like, buddy, you work at. You trade stocks for a living or something. Trying to be Tommy tough guy at a golf tournament wearing khakis and a polo Ryder cup shirt. All right, next.

[Damanza]

Hey, man, he's sorry. He's sorry. Dead ass. Is the tattoo real, Nick?

[Nick Wright]

The Never Doubt tattoo that I never know how to show on camera? I still haven't figured it out. See that? That tattoo is real. No, the Tackle that Turned a Tide tattoo.

[Damanza]

Oh, yeah, was.

[Nick Wright]

Was temporary. That was a. I will tell a story about that, though. I went to the tattoo shop to get them to do the stencil.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And then draw it on for the bit for the show that the lady there was like, yeah, I can do it, but I just have to charge you the same price as if I gave you the actual tattoo. And I'm like, okay, wait, wait, hold on, hold on.

[Damanza]

So the stencil. Am I. Am I tripping? Isn't the you like, print it out, and then you put it on your arm. Like, it's like basically like one of those things. You'd put a quarter in a machine to get a little thing correct. Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And then she got a Sharpie and drew on the stencil, and it was $150.

[Damanza]

That's. I. I would have drawn it on myself.

[Nick Wright]

I wanted it to look good. I kind of played myself because she hadn't quoted me a price. And then I walked up to the thing to pay, and I. And I had a debit card and. Or credit card. She was like, we're cash only. And I'm like, oh, okay, no problem. And I. Again, I'm not trying to sound like a big shot, but I walk around with a. Because I'm a gambler, I just walk around with a lot of cash, you know, Like a lot of money. I always have it on me. And so I. She still hadn't told me a price. And I reach in my pocket and I just grab my cash, and it's. I don't know. It's probably two grand in hundreds. And she's. I see her see it. I'm like, oh, I'm getting so played here now. I was like, there's no. And so. And so. She was like, well, like, the least we're allowed to charge is a hundred dollars. And I'm like, okay. I was like, then I guess it's a hundred bucks.

[Damanza]

So you gave her.

[Nick Wright]

And so. Yeah. And so then I'm like, so I gave her. I gave her two hundreds. And I'm like, hey, can I just have change for this one? For your tip? She's like, oh, yeah. Thank you. And then she's like, we don't have. She was like, we don't. I can't. She's like, I don't have change. We've just opened. And I'm like, oh, okay. And I. And I'm thinking she's going to be like, but the hundred's fine. Like, I'm just drawing the tackle that turned the tide on your arm.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And she goes, you can sell me. And I'm.

[Damanza]

I was.

[Nick Wright]

I just. Whatever. Like, all right, whatever. She was a nice lady. So I. Zelda. Or I venmoed her 50 bucks. So, yeah, whatever. It was good for the bit. It's a good bit for tv. All right, let's get to some of the Thursday questions.

[Damanza]

As Sean says, nick, can you explain why nobody is dogging on Justin Herbert for losing to the Giants?

[Nick Wright]

I've not heard a lot about people. Don't act ju Listen, I don't think people care quite enough about Justin Herbert. I also think he had been playing quite well prior to that game. You know what I mean?

[Damanza]

So like that Giants have a solid defense as well.

[Nick Wright]

Yeah. And so and that was more about Jackson dart whatever it is. All right, next.

[Damanza]

H.J. says hi Nick and Dean, Are you concerned by the already mounting number of serious injuries? Is it just me or is it notably bad this season? Lots of marquee players too.

[Nick Wright]

I actually think it's just you. I I but I like I think it's the turf in MetLife could be a problem. But I think it's like this every year and I I think every year we're like damn, so many guys are hurt. Like it's a brutal, brutal game.

[Damanza]

Next Eclipse asked two part question. Is Zach Taylor on the hot seat or did he or does he get a pass for the burrow injury? And what do you think about Trey Lance to the Bengals?

[Nick Wright]

I mentioned Trey Lance to the Bengals off the air yesterday. I do think the Bengals should trade for either Kirk Cousins or Jameis Winston. And I would like again, let's say that Lamar misses time and they do fall to 1 and 5. And what we're talking about, the Steelers happens. You know, they like that division. They're two and two.

[Damanza]

Yeah.

[Nick Wright]

And Browning's just been brutal. Just been brutal. All right, reminder everybody. Like Rate Subscriber view our pick show, which will be a quick pick show, comes out Friday. Check that out as Damanze tries to give you another winning teaser as he's three and one on the year. My picks are right now decidedly mediocre. I haven't had a terrible week yet. Haven't had a great week yet. But we keep hitting the offer. So all that coming up tomorrow. Shout out to Hard Rock, Bet Boost and of course our friends at Zen. Thank you to the Volume and Blue Duck and shout out also to Marlon Humphrey's podcast. Talk to you guys tomorrow with our Pick Show. See you then.

[Matt Jones]

What's right hey, this Matt Jones and I'm Drew Franklin and this is NFL Cover Zero. We're just here to try to give you an NFL perspective a little bit different.

[Drew Franklin]

Did you see the Colts pretzel? That was my other big takeaway from that game.

[Matt Jones]

What was that? Oh my. We think NFL coverage should be informative and entertaining. And twice a week. That is exactly what you're going to get. Listen NFL Cover Zero with Matt Jones and Drew Franklin on the iHeartRadio app Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcast.

[AJ Jacobs]

Let's start with a quick puzzle. The answer is Ken Jennings appearance on the puzzler with A.J. jacobs. The question is, what is the most entertaining listening experience in podcast land? Jeopardy Truthers believe in?

[Matt Jones]

I guess they would be conspiracy theorists.

[AJ Jacobs]

That's right.

[Matt Jones]

They give you the answers and you still blew it.

[AJ Jacobs]

The Puzzler listen on the iHeartRadio app, Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts.

[Damanza]

This is an iHeart podcast.