The Pat McAfee Show 2.0 #1504 — NFL Combine Special

Date: February 26, 2026
Location: Live from Indianapolis, Indiana, “Lahd Hahse” (Lucas Oil Stadium)
Host: Pat McAfee (ESPN)
Co-hosts: AJ Hawk, Toxic Table, Tone Diggs
Special Guests:

• Brandon Beane & Joe Brady (Buffalo Bills GM & HC)
• Nick Caserio (Houston Texans GM)
• Dan Morgan (Carolina Panthers GM)
• Randy Orton (WWE Superstar)
• Governor Mike Braun (Indiana)
• Sean Payton (Denver Broncos HC)
• Others referenced: John Schneider, Frank Gore, Luke Kuechly

Overview

Pat McAfee and crew broadcast live from Indianapolis, the home of the NFL Combine for nearly four decades. This special episode is stacked with high-profile guests from across the NFL and wrestling world as the team dives deep on the start of draft season, NFL offseason intrigue, and the infectious energy pulsing through Indy during combine week. Alongside comeback stories, scouting tales, personnel debates, and a surprise drop-in from WWE’s Randy Orton, McAfee and friends bring their classic blend of expert football analysis and locker-room comedy. Top NFL execs share candid thoughts on prospects, process, and the changing landscape of both the league and sports business.

NFL Combine Headlines & Opening Banter

00:00–10:24

• McAfee sets the stage, celebrating Indy's role as NFL Combine HQ for the 39th year and hinting at hot rumors circulating around the league.
• Discussion of coaching changes and the musical-chairs buzz of team turnarounds: "Ben Johnson in Chicago, McDonald in Seattle. Two year turnaround, they win the Super Bowl." [01:03]
• Hype for the day's show: Interviews with GMs, head coaches, wrestling royalty, and politicians all circling the stadium.
• Key Local Story: Indiana signs a bill to lure the Chicago Bears from Illinois by offering tax incentives and exemptions; McAfee teases an upcoming chat with Governor Braun on this. [01:47]
• NHL, NBA, and PWHL shoutouts, celebrating the thriving sports world.

Combine Gambling & Scouting Metrics

03:05–10:24

• Tone Diggs discusses his combine prop bets, highlighting the wild numbers on the 40-yard dash, bench press, and broad jump.
• "The 40 yard dash...the over under is 4.265, which is absolutely flying." — Tone [03:52]
• Analysis on how arm length affects bench press and positional grading for prospects.
• Laughter about “ash judging” among defensive linemen; jokes about whether broad jump comes down to “bigger asses getting high.” [07:12]
• Nostalgic talk about the classic NFL combine experience, with a tipsy Tone Diggs in full vacation recovery.

Notable Combine Prospects & Viral Potential

10:24–13:33

• Players to watch:
  • David Bailey (Texas Tech) — 14.5 sacks, top-5 prospect
  • Sonny Styles, Arvell Reese (Ohio State) — athletic freaks with massive production
  • Jacob Rodriguez — underdog, ex-QB, Army wife, fan favorite, "feels like everybody wants that guy on their team" [13:45]
• “Production-wise, he’s an absolute monster.” — Tone on Rodriguez [13:24]
• Emphasis on the value of authenticity and accurate pronunciation—fun banter around Pat's own name mispronunciations.

Indy as Combine Host & Behind-the-Scenes

16:16–18:00

• Indianapolis just secured a 2-year extension to host the combine. The GMs and coaches value the medical infrastructure and the comfort/familiarity with the city’s layout for interviews, meetings, and nightlife.
• "It’s a perfect setup for the NFL,” Pat notes, with its mix of business and old-school football culture. [16:28]

Deep Dives with NFL GMs/Coaches

Buffalo Bills — Brandon Beane & Joe Brady

20:57–55:22

On The Combine Process

• Beane: “The whole NFL is here for a week. The funnest part for me is getting in these meeting rooms for 20 minutes…just seeing what these guys’ football foundation is.” [21:49]
• Joe Brady keys into football IQ. He likes asking, “What's one play you want back?” and notes how memorable the answers—or lack thereof—are for identifying driven, self-aware players. [23:22]
• "You only think about the bad plays...there was 14 things I did that were the worst." — Pat [23:58]

On Draft Philosophy and Free Agency

• Beane: "We’re truly looking for best players right now. You never know how free agency is going to play out." [26:52]
• Buffalo's tight cap situation, with Beane quipping: “Not enough [money].” [26:59]
• On Josh Allen: “He earned it, by the way. Golden diapers.” [28:10]

On Measurement Mania

• Discussion of how combine metrics matter, but “it’s all one piece of the puzzle.” Beane: “I can’t remember where some quarterback got dramatically hurt or lost stock because of the combine.” [43:27]

Bills Stadium, Culture & Husk

• Upcoming stadium is 60% covered, finally grass.
• On team-building: “Culture is the most vital part of what you have going on right now.” [30:47]
• “Do we think our culture is strong enough to handle this guy?” — Beane on “risky” prospects [31:10]

Notable Quotes

• "We don’t hate weed in Buffalo. It gets cold up there." — Pat [31:26]
• “You got to match your culture.” — Pat [30:48]
• (On the stadium's massive Bison statues) “27,000 pounds.” — Beane [47:39]
• “If you don't win a Super bowl, everybody say you guys suck. That legitimately is...” — Pat [49:50]

Houston Texans — Nick Caserio

64:12–82:37

• Caserio, a financial markets nerd, draws parallels between general managing and investing.
• On C.J. Stroud rumors: "He's our quarterback. Glad he's going to be here for next season." [67:07]
• On combine: “The performance on the field, what they do on tape...that's going to be the judge.” [68:26]
• Caserio is transparent on how Houston weighs free agency vs draft and the art of day-trading draft picks.
• “We're not beholden to just one particular way and one particular player... we capitalize when it makes sense.” [75:18]
• Closing on officiating/AI: “They have a hard job. Everybody's just looking for some level of consistency.” [78:48]

Carolina Panthers — Dan Morgan

128:30–159:53

• Morgan on Carolina’s resurgence: "We're building a foundation... bringing the right type of guys in, guys that love football." [129:20]
• On QB Bryce Young: “To go through the adversity that he went through...I’m just so proud of him for doing that.” [131:33]
• Veteran backup Andy Dalton a trade target, but Morgan wants “to get a little younger and a little more athletic at that backup QB spot.” [133:03]
• Philosophy on scouting interviews: "We just ask them their story...I feel like if you're going to miss on a player, it's missing on the guy more than the player." [137:07]
• On blue bloods: “Our analytics department, they put together like a blue blood score—how they do against good opponents.” [143:50]
• Fun discussion on “dogs” and how the locker room was “pissed” (not satisfied) even after playoff run [141:00]
• Candor about his own hitting style: “We’re, like, going, like, face first into stuff and practice, knocking ourselves out...Now things are a lot better.” [154:12]

Indiana Governor Mike Braun

110:03–124:35

• On the Bears-to-Hammond, Indiana potential relocation: “We believe it’s mostly due diligence left, just get the I’s dotted and T’s crossed...It’s going to be a lot easier to run a business over the next 40 or 50 years [in Indiana] than there.” [112:29]
• “The stadium will be built as soon as we start on all the preliminary work on real estate, but they'll be in Soldiers Field, the lease goes, I think, through 32 or 3...” [118:27]
• “Open for business. Reasonable regulations, taxes, high wages, low cost of living. What more would you want?” [114:31]

Crossover Segment: WWE’s Randy Orton

83:06–108:23

• Randy Orton reflects on the surprise Euro crowd outpouring, one-of-a-kind entrance song singalongs:
  • “I've had that entrance song since 2008 or 9. No one ever sang it. All of a sudden...they start singing it. Okay, this is my music." [83:45]
• On staying power: “I haven't picked a motherfucker up in 20 years.” [86:23]
• His role in developing young WWE stars:
  • "You get to the point where I realized, oh, that's not possible. They can't take my spot. I’m Randy Orton. Sometimes I gotta remind myself that." [99:51]
• On the "Unreal" Netflix wrestling doc series: “Kayfabe is dead. This is entertainment. I understand it and I also hate it. I think it makes sense, but that doesn’t mean I have to like it.” [105:00]
• On video games and family life: “My wife is absolutely amazing, man. ... I’ve effed up a bunch. But I got a bunch of good people around me—at work and just throughout my career.” [95:02]
• “If you’re a betting man, definitely bet on me. I'm winning that thing [Elimination Chamber].” [96:03]

Sean Payton Impromptu Interview

168:27–185:21

• On Broncos turnaround: “Young and naive can be dangerous sometimes.”
• Heartbreaking moment: Bo Nix's injury ("third to last play of the game") and handling the news locker room. [169:52]
• Giving up playcalling to young coordinator Davis Webb: “I'm excited for him. I'll still be involved. ... it’s not on your timeline, it's much quicker [for these young coaches now].” [176:11]
• Modern training philosophy: “You have to cycle up and down. There’s never this just straight.” [178:05]
• Competition Committee/refs/AI: “The problem is Sunday I had gotten food poisoning...but I like those topics, when you’re passionate about the game...I’m easy to get fired up about some of those things.” [181:12]
• On rumors of Bears coming to Indiana: “Hard to believe, being from the Chicago area, that the Bears are going to be in northern Indiana...but it's happening.” [183:50]

Memorable/Funny Moments & Quotes

• “A lot of ash judging happening here at the combine, because I can kind of tell you the type of athlete...” — Pat [07:13]
• "We don't hate weed in Buffalo. It gets cold up there. Got to be in the house." — Pat [31:29]
• “This is my Nick Eamon Warrior of this year. ... on physically gifted dudes.” — Tone on Sonny Styles [11:19]
• On combine prop-betting: “I don’t believe [you were sober]. I drink a lot on Friday and Saturday, but boom.” — Tone [05:47]
• “You got to have the answer though.” — Pat, on being prepared for player interviews [51:44]
• On the Bills’ stadium: "That thing's going to blow away. ... Some snow on its back, and we're broken back.” [48:04]
• On combine experience: "It's just viral moments. ... All of a sudden, Rich Eisen and Daniel Jeremiah are guiding you through everything else. We're having a podcast. We're talking ball. And then: 'Oh, shit, what just happened out here?'" — McAfee [19:32]
• “The only one that [Super Bowl prop bet] didn’t go over was Sam Darnold passing yards. … Kenneth Walker wins the MVP.” — Pat [04:53]

Key Timestamps by Guest or Topic

• Buffalo Bills Interview: 20:57–55:22
• Houston Texans Interview: 64:12–82:37
• Carolina Panthers Interview: 128:30–159:53
• Randy Orton Interview: 83:06–108:23
• Governor Mike Braun: 110:03–124:35
• Sean Payton Drop-in: 168:27–185:21

Closing Vibes

The show closes with a shoutout to the city of Indianapolis as the perfect host for the NFL Combine, excited reflection on what makes this event unique for the league and sports world, and humorous notes on technology, combine chaos, and the blending of sports, entertainment, and business.
As always:
“Be a friend, tell a friend something nice—it might change their life.”

Summary Prepared for:

Fans, journalists, scouts, and anyone curious about the intersection of NFL Combine noise, front office thinking, and sports culture—with the bonus spice of wrestling and American politics.

End of Summary