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Ryan Rosillo
Foreign get ready for the super bowl with Troy Aikman. We're going to talk about Is there anything that actually makes Patrick Mahomes uncomfortable that the Eagle side of things, as you would expect for the Super Bowl. Some other cool stuff on just Troy doing his job, talking about somebody else. NBA Trade Deadline I did not do anything on Thursday. So here you go. Jimmy Butler to the warriors, the butler dilemma, the KD dilemma that's lingering. Mark Williams, DeAndre Hunter, a couple of the other big moves and I spent the day at a museum and we've got life advice. This episode of the Ryan Rosillo podcast is presented by AT&T. There's a lot in life that should be guaranteed but isn't. Like your favorite team making the playoffs are finding matching socks in the dryer. I hate that. And then there's AT&T guaranty. It means connectivity you can depend on deals you want and service you deserve or AT&T will make it right. Visit att.com guaranty to learn more. AT&T connecting changes everything. Terms and conditions apply. Visit att.comguarantee for details. This episode is brought to you by Pepcid Complete. All right, let's talk game day essentials. How do I spend game day? Well, we already know that. Get out of the house, get the blood flowing, try to get some activities going. But man, I had some wings the other night. My brother ordered them. Table wings. It was awesome. And it was also a little reminder you get a little bit older. But there's one guest that isn't welcome on game day and that's heartburn. Because I remember thinking it was made up. I was like, who gets it? What is it? Do you get dumped and you get it? Nope, you just start to get it. Man, I don't know what to tell you. And if you can't fix it, you're in for a tough, tough afternoon. Maybe even into the night. Thankfully, Pepcid Complete starts to work instantly and lasts all day. Just one great tasting chewable tablet provides dual action heartburn relief with an antacid that starts working instantly in an acid reducer that lasts all day. So I can stay focused on the game. Visit pepcid.com to shop now all day based on 8 hour symptom relief studies during the day. Use product only as directed. We're going to do a lot of stuff today, but since I had like the normal week this week, even with the trade deadline yesterday, I just want to start with the trade deadline stuff because we still had some news and some overall thoughts here. The funny thing is being down in New Orleans and leading up to the super bowl, how many nights everybody is still talking about Luka again. I've never experienced anything like this, a Super Bowl. Maybe it's with the Chiefs, Eagles, people just waiting for the game. Not that this is the best polling of this is what I heard. But every single person I've run into wants to talk about the Luka Doncic trade and there's some other pieces, but let's talk about the news. Jimmy Butler to Golden State so I always talk about waiting for perfect and how it's probably not the best plan, especially in basketball. When you see these trades and then the trade gets done and you go, well, does it make him a championship contender? And the first thing I would usually ask after that question is was there a deal the team turned down that was going to make him a championship contender? And I think the Jimmy Butler acquisition for Golden State is a perfect example of that. Now granted, maybe there was a better deal out there. I would have rather had Durant with Golden State. There's a Durant part of this conversation that's definitely interesting. You know, not to do the legacy updates here, but you know, with Durant, a player I've really liked, a personality that I think when he lets it shine through, feels very authentic in comparison to other high profile athletes. But I was wondering, like, when's Durant happy? Where has he been happy? Maybe in the beginning of the OKC years, certainly not at the end. Golden State, a couple rings, couldn't wait to get out of there, goes to Brooklyn, thinks it's going to be happy with Kyrie. That ends pretty quickly. Has a four year extension, asks for the front office of coaching staff to be fired before the summer. They don't do that. He comes back and plays, he wants out, goes to Phoenix and here we are all over again. But so unhappy with his Golden State experience that he actually didn't want to leave Phoenix. You know, I was thinking about Kyrie a little bit because he also has a few I'm not happy hits on his resume. And you know, when I started thinking about the two players, I was like, is there a possibility that Kyrie's had more I'm happy basketball moments than even Durant has had, which is something that I don't know that anybody would have really been able to argue. But there's also a fact that we're probably going to go through this with Durant again at some point because it's not solved. But Golden State had a trade for Kevin Durant and Durant didn't want to go. So then you move on to Jimmy Butler. I feel like Durant's the better fit basketball wise with Golden State because we've already seen him do it. But at the same time, when I watch Golden State now and I think about like their design of what they're trying to do offensively with really only Steph being a guy you can rely on every single night, I, I, I have to admit that, that Golden State perfection with everybody moving, everybody being complimentary, not having ball stoppers, it doesn't really exist anymore. I mean, it does with Steph because he's constantly moving off the ball. It's what makes him so great. But this free flowing thing with him and Clay flying off the screens, re screening for each other and then having all the shooting all over the place and why Durant was such a great fit for them is that he does necessarily stop the basketball the way a Jimmy Butler would. I'm like, is that really what Durant still is? Is that what Golden State is anymore? And I think the answer is no. I mean, Durant's still terrific. He's an all NBA caliber player. People voted him as an all star starter. He still puts up massive numbers. But I feel like there are moments with him with Phoenix where it's just kind of waiting around to see like what shot is available for him in a, in a way that just doesn't feel as granted. He's older, so it's not peak to ramp, but I think you understand what I'm saying, like moments where he's floating a little bit more as Booker is trying to figure out how to break down whatever defense they're throwing at him. I just think there's a lot of Booker conversation about like, is it that he's declining or he's being tasked with, with trying to like solve everything that's happening to Phoenix. And then Durant can kind of be off to the side with, waiting for some sort of release. And he's such a great shooter, it doesn't mean you have to run a play for the guy. So when I started thinking about like Durant's fit with Golden State now I'm like, you might be talking about ancient history for both the player and the team's concept. So it may be irrelevant that Jimmy Butler is more of a ball stopping, attacking player. He gets it out 15, 17ft, he's on the wing, he's kind of thinking about what he wants to do. Does that Slow them down. I think it's one of the reasons why when Paul George is available, Deck George, during peak Golden State years, it was like, is he actually as good of a fit with what they want to do? Well, now it doesn't really matter because I think Butler is a bit more of a ball stopper. But you know what? Butler is at his best, a much better second offensive option, a second offensive creator beyond what they've had all season long. So when you look at Butler's ordeal throughout all this, the Butler saga here from Miami until now, it's also a good reminder of, like, what you are willing to do. And I think that applies to kind of everybody because you can talk yourself into what you think you're going to do, right? Convince yourself that this is all I'm doing. It's like, you sure about that? And maybe it's more about convincing everybody else to believe that the only thing you're willing to do is to go to Phoenix. Windhorse had an awesome report where he said, quote, it was basically, you know, I'm just kind of using the word. The word was admirable. He's like, this is almost admirable what Jimmy Butler is doing. Turning down trade scenarios to other teams, saying, if you trade for me, I am not going to sign a contract extension because he wanted Phoenix so badly. But then like almost everybody, you're faced with your options and you can be convinced that you would only do one thing in this case, Butler, Phoenix. And yet when it comes down to it, you're like, or I'll just do this. Because Butler had two options. Stay with Miami, continue to be suspended, lose money. He could opt out of the $50 million player option this summer. Be a free agent. When you're in your mid-30s and your likability is at an all time low, and be like, who wants to sign me as a free agent? Or you also could have opted in too if you wanted to try to make it even worse. Or you accept the trade to Golden State, where he did opt out of the player option, but he gets a two year extension at $112.5 million. So facing those scenarios, like, hey, Jimmy, you're not going to get Phoenix, but here's what's on the table. Like, or you can stay in Miami and keep losing money with no clear future. Yeah, you know what? I think I will go the Golden State. I, you know what? I've changed my mind. Golden State, I'd probably rather they didn't do this. They didn't give up Much. It's probably smart to get the first round pick that they're giving up here. Top 10 protected in 25, just to get that draft debt out of the way now, you know, it's not like, I mean, they're going to have the 11th pick with Butler. If things kind of work out, nobody's picking them for a title. I think that'd be a little ridiculous. But if you think about what's going out versus what's coming in, you know, just the asset part of this, it. It makes a lot of sense. And Miami Zebras to salvage something from this and get a first. The market's not going to be very good when you're trading a player that's disgruntled everywhere he's gone, is older, doesn't play a lot, and is also telling all of these teams, I don't want to go there. Like, it's. It's tough to sign off on that, to be the general manager and go to your owner and say, no, no, no, this will be a good idea. So I think it's a good idea for now because it makes Golden State better. And again, it was probably the only real option, especially once Durant says, I don't want to come back. But I am a little worried about, like, say, 26, 27. Butler has a year left on his deal. Whether it's that summer, whether it's going into that trade deadline, Steph will be depending on when it happens. He turns 37 in March, so say 37, 38. Golden State can't figure out, the other pieces around could get really ugly. And even though you think it's a win for Golden State and Steph today, it could be a really ugly stretch if Butler turns back into Butler and you're like, now Steph is dealing with this towards the very end of his career, or he's still a very viable basketball player. So that scares me a little bit. The history of Jimmy and the math on the numbers would scare the shit out of me. The Phoenix part, let's go. Like, I understand once they did the Beal deal, really, once they did the Durant deal, they were all in. So every move since then is we're already all in. Like, we can't. We can't start going the other way on all this stuff. Booker was never available. I think it's kind of funny, just the scenario of Beal being like, what are you guys doing? You making phone calls? Oh, really? Guys exploring trades? Yeah, actually, I don't want to go anywhere. Just like, I was content to be in Washington the entire time. Like, you think this is bad, you're going to take me off the bench. I hung with the Wizards for like a decade, man, to get that five year extension. I'm good. I can just hang here the entire time. But the fear and the entire reason why Durant was even available in all this stuff is because Phoenix is so all in and they're worried about Durant on an expiring contract next year. The Durant rumblings go back to last summer where you were hearing he wanted to go to Houston. So this stuff is going to start all over again and they're thinking like, well, if we give Jimmy the extension, is that more certainty than an expiring Kevin Durant? And imagine having that conversation with ownership. That can't be a lot of fun. But I doubt next year will be a year free of any of the Durant speculation. A couple other trades that I want to touch on. I love the DeAndre Hunter deal for Cleveland. Asset wise. It's not a ton that they're giving up levert, which I think they had no issue. Moving on from Niang, who is a really serviceable role guy that plays on winning teams. The three seconds and then a swap. Swap's not going to happen this year. I don't know if it happens in 28. The key here is the money that Hunter's owed. He's 21 million this year, then 23, then 25 million. The funny thing for Hunter, when that deal was done, I've always kind of liked Hunter going back to the draft. The size, the shooting. I think he's a little bit better on the dribble than we can see. But when you're playing with Trey, you're just stuck in the corner. When you're playing with dejante and Trey, you're definitely stuck in the corner. But that's a funny contract in that it went from that's terrible to hey, that's a pretty good number for a guy that's been as productive as him. Now there's a tax question there with Cleveland long term where going into next year, I think they're going to have 10 players under contract and they're going to be 20 million projection right now over the tax for the 25, 26 season. But if you're in that win now window, which Cleveland is, it's a credit to the ownership. Like, hey, we'll worry about the rest of that stuff later. They have the other extensions that they have to start worrying about. But when you Watch Cleveland play Boston and it's not just because Boston won the other night against them. Look at the defensive matchups they desperately need. Needed some kind of wing option that they felt good about. So if you look at the start of the game and then how it plays out throughout it, like Tatum has Mobley on him, which at times you feel like Mobley is as good as he is defensively. Is that a waste of his abilities? Then you got to think about the assignments and how they change when Allen and Mobley are split up. Stre is on Jaylen Brown, Garland is on Derek White, Mitchell is on Drew, and then you put Allen on Przingis for the Celtics. Normal starting five. But there are minutes as the rotations, you know, sub in and sub out where you'll see streuss on Tatum. So like they feel like Streuss is their best wing option and Streuss may be their best spacing option depending on how a playoff game is playing out. But the fact that they have Hunter stru, I think flies off the screens a little bit more, maybe a little quicker on the catch and shoot and getting into his three. So Hunter's three point shooting numbers are really good, but Hunter, at least, you know, look, I'm not telling you he's Lou Dort here, but it's just a far better wing option if Cleveland is facing Boston in the playoffs. And I think that's the biggest motivation behind all this stuff. Kevin Pelton at ESPN had a really good number too. When you look at the efficiency and the true shooting improvement for Hunter, it's really not so much about just becoming a better shooter. It's becoming a better decision maker on which shots he wants to take. Here's the number two pointers outside of the paint, 22, 23. He took 212. He took 286 threes this season. Two pointers outside of the paint, 101 going into this week at threes 247. So that's why the true shooting percentage is up and that's why you've seen a big improvement for him. And even with that's the kind of transaction where I think a lot of owners go like, yeah, I know we need it and I know we're in our window, but man, we could have that tax bill. We're still going to have other roster spots. Credit Cleveland for just saying, screw it. The time is right now. The Mark Williams deal. I cannot believe that Charlotte got the swap and Dallas didn't. I know the swap is probably not going to relay to Charlotte, it's almost, like, impossible that it'll actually happen. I know Windhorst had reported that the Lakers went to Dallas and said, if you want the other first, like, we have to talk to Luca about a possible extension. Dallas, again, secrecy being the priority, not maximizing value for the most unlikely trade in NBA history. Like, no, we just need to keep it. We don't need as much. We just want it to be a secret. I also think it's funny, too, when they keep talking about the Kyrie timeline. It's like, well, if Ant were available, is he too young to play with Kyrie? Like, yeah, he's too young. We need somebody north of 30, because Kyrie, like, that's how you have to do it. All right. I could still talk about the Luca trade all day. So it's obviously a need because the Lakers are rolling out a team with Jackson Hayes as the starting center, and that's just not going to work for anybody. Even playing teams. Like, we can't upgrade this a little bit. So. I like Mark Williams a lot at Duke. I loved how active he was, his athleticism. It's probably not entirely fair to look at him right now and say, this is the finished product, because the guy has missed 105 of 211 career games. He is a really good lob threat, which is exactly what Luca needs. It's why Gafford's field goal percentage and the lively stuff, you know, there's more to lively and there's. I've always kind of liked Gafford, but, you know, trying to defend Luca on those lobs with his size, like, good luck, so that makes sense. But the Williams defensive numbers are alarmingly bad. Like, at the rim, he's allowing 68% field goal percentage conversion. AD was like, 58%. There's numbers that tell you Williams is really low. I think the biggest thing in watching Williams, and I don't know if it's just a big guy with the health issues and he'll be fine, and he'll figure it out, and he'll get back to being what we thought at Duke, this active defensive player. But he. He just doesn't want to move a lot on defense. That's the alarming part. Maybe that's the best part, is that it's totally fixable. It's not his instincts. It's not the health thing. It's just, hey, I'm in Charlotte and I'm just getting back here. But there's a lot of stuff with him where you just think he's not all that interested in being positioned. So maybe with LA, maybe with guys like LeBron, not that he's going to like, hey, Luke has been my defensive mentor, but you get the point. The stakes are raised, more eyes are on you. You're worried about that next contract. A team is invested in you here. They've invested Dalton Connect who we can talk about his defense, but Even though he's 38 as a rookie Connect was an incredibly efficient shooter and also like more than just a shooter. So these are like real assets. They're moving out for somebody they hope fix their center problems which are evident. But that defense has to improve dramatically. The lobs are cool. The defense is probably more important. 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Each $2.5 million prize pool will be split equally among all eligible participants who made the correct picks. Bonus issued is non withdrawable bonus bets, which expire seven days after receipt. Restrictions apply. See terms@sportsbook.fanduel.com gambling problem. Call 1-800- gambler or visit rg-help.com and now it's time for a new segment, New Connections, where we're going to talk about new teammates after the NBA trade deadline. Brought to you by AT&T. The new AT&T guarantee connectivity you can depend on deals you want and service you deserve or they'll make it right. I can't wait to see Luke and LeBron play together at this point. And I've mentioned this in the past, but whenever there was speculation about like who the next guy LeBron could play with. And by the way, some of this negativity about LeBron, like look at all of his teammates. He's played 20 years, guess what? He's had a lot of teammates. Some of them are awesome. And he's also changed teams in a way that modern stars. It's the new normal, but it wasn't normal for decades and decades. So I don't know that there's really any way to compare the two. It's kind of like when Kawhi potentially win another ring with the Clippers. Like he could be the first guy to be the main guy to win three championships of three different teams. No one's ever done that before. Like also people didn't do this in the past. But back to the headline of Luka and LeBron as we speculated about different pieces that could go next to LeBron. I never wanted to be somebody that was so ball dominant that it took away from the brilliance of LeBron having the basketball on his hands. And I think we've even seen this year in a way that we just don't ever expect at 40 years old, that the Lakers best options are still when he's initiating the offense. But I think it's very clear to ask him to do that over the course of a full season and then into the playoff matchups. It's a lot to ask of him at this point. I don't know that I'd ever discredit LeBron and call it the Karl Malone phase of his career because Karl Malone ran down, stood there and had the top assist guy for his entire career. And John Stockton throw him the ball as the first option for like a really long time. LeBron moves more than that. He is more active than that. But Luka being there is actually the right time of his career to make LeBron's life easier because Luka can handle every single possession. And I think some of the Luka Kyrie stuff where they took turns, it was good enough in a turn way that it led to wins playing in the NBA finals or other teams where I think, I think their top two guys are like, ah, they just taking turns. Are they playing basketball? Whatever it was with Dallas, it worked last year. And this is going to be something. Despite kind of handing the baton as the face of the franchise, the Lakers, which I don't know about any all time superstars in a hurry to do, I think at least from a basketball standpoint here with LeBron and Luka, it makes a lot of sense. So yeah, there'll be some overlap. Yeah, There'll be some uncomfortable stuff, but both players are so brilliant and such brilliant passers. I don't know how good the team is going to be, but that fit together. This is the perfect time for somebody like LeBron to take on a talent like Luka. That was New connections brought to you by at&t. And the new AT and T guarantee connectivity. You can depend on deals you want and service you deserve, or they'll make it right. Visit att.com guaranty to learn more. AT and T Connecting changes everything. This is cool. We've done this in the past and it's always a great visit when we get Troy Aikman, super bowl winner. And of course with ESPN and eight beer, I wanted some updates on that. He's rocking the hat today. Good to see you, man. Can't wait for you to get here. I'll be leaving.
Troy Aikman
What's that?
Ryan Rosillo
I'll be leaving. I, I don't think I've ever stayed. I think Saturday's like my limit. Although it's fine. You know, you get older and you kind of know the moves.
Troy Aikman
Yeah, I don't, I don't unless I'm calling the game, of course, but I don't, I don't stay for the game either. I'll pop in and pop out.
Ryan Rosillo
I was thinking about this and I maybe I'll start here with it. It's kind of reverse of what my original plan was, but the NFL honors thing was last night. You know, I have a lot of friends that either whether they played or won, work in NFL media or whatever, and it's just a huge, huge, you know, it's like the Oscars for the league and you can get kind of day to day when you're playing, right. And thinking about the importance, like the short term stuff of it. But then when I see like the players that win and it's kind of like a celebration, a reminder of how special their career was. And then I think of like these great players that never had that chance and they're still in a suit there with their wives. Did you ever even, like, when you would go to those things, would it ever even dawn on you, like, man, this would have sucked to never win one of these things, not, not at.
Troy Aikman
One of those events. But you know, I've thought often that usually it's around this time of year when the super bowl is about to happen that I, you know, obviously I feel, feel fortunate, feel blessed to have, to have won a, a Super bowl and, and then when multiple ones. But you Know, I feel bad for the guys. I, you know, the guy who comes to mind is Dan Marino, but there's, there's others, I mean, that have, that have contributed a ton to the history of the NFL. And although Dan played in a Super bowl, he, he, he didn't win one, so he, he didn't get to walk off the field and really feel what it, what it meant to, to be a champion, you know, and, and there's a lot of others that, you know, obviously aren't as well known as, as Dan Marino, but have given a lot to the NFL that haven't experienced that or haven't even gotten to the Super Bowl. And for those players, I hate that. Every team, when you start up in the OTAs in the off season, you go through training camp, you go through the regular season, it's all for one thing, and that's to play in this game and then win this game. And if you're the one who doesn't win, you know, there's no solace in that. And, and it's a, it's a big letdown. So, so one of these teams, regardless of, of how great their year has been, and they've both been great seasons, to have gotten this far, someone's going to walk away from this game being very disappointed. I don't want to say we'll feel that the season was a failure, but they'll feel that they didn't quite live up to what their expectations were. So the pageantry and, and the excitement around this game has only grown over the years. It's, it's, you know, when you go back to Super Bowl 1 and 2 in the early years and heck, probably even the years when I was playing and you look at how far it's come and where we are today, it's become quite a spectacle. And I am all in favor of making Monday after the Super Bowl a national holiday.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, no, I, I don't, I'm not against it. I mean, who knows, there's a lot of stuff flying around with Bills being proposed, so maybe now is the time. Yeah, really, let's, let's talk about the game. Who are you picking?
Troy Aikman
You know, if I had to pick, which I typically don't, I would, I would go with Kansas City just because of what, what they've accomplished up to this point, but also the year that they've had and being able to win all these one score games, I mean, they've just found ways to win and they found ways to win in games that looked impressive, probable that they just were not going to be able to get it done. And yet they have. And. And we've seen them too many times on this stage. Find a way to get it done as well. So not taking anything away from Philadelphia, I think on paper they're probably the better team, but you got to go play it. And. And nobody's playing it better right now than what Patrick Mahomes is in Kansas City. And so until proven otherwise, I'll stick with the champions.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, I have a hard time picking against Mahomes. I did it against Buffalo. I like, hey, let me be different. Let me. Let me see if Alan can get this done. And granted, it was another really close game, a competitive game, but it's just a different level. When you think about all the games as you point to with Kansas City this season, where you're like, they won that one. Like, is this a flawed team? Is it going to catch up to them? And then we, even last year, with the offensive numbers not being what you'd expect with this offense, just turn the page and then into the playoffs, it's just. It's a brutal spot. I want to talk about the dynamic of Reed and Mahomes, but let's go back to kind of your playing days. So you had played what, two seasons? Then Nora Turner came in, I think, in 91. Is that accurate?
Troy Aikman
That's right, yeah.
Ryan Rosillo
Okay. We can talk about, like, continuity. And if you're an owner and a front office, you'd be like, we want continuity. It's like, well, you don't get that unless you're winning because you want to keep everybody around. If you're not winning, you're just going to keep firing everybody. The Chiefs have that kind of continuity. What was it like for. For you to build on a relationship with Norv and then having the success where you just understood each other? Because it wasn't like you were changing systems every two years. Like seems like it happens with so many quarterbacks.
Troy Aikman
Well, I think, you know, Norv coming in really changed the trajectory of my career, but he also did the same for Emmett Smith and Michael Irvin and Jay Novichek and everyone that was a part of that offense. We were. Prior to north coming in, there were 28 teams in the league, and in 1990, we were 28th in the NFL. We were the worst offense in football. And if we had continued down the road, we had my first two years in 91, we would have been the worst offense in football a third year. So I think coaching matters. Players certainly matter as well. You've got to have both. And when Norv came in, he brought a system that really allowed us to maximize our abilities and it was just a natural fit. So the first year we were a top 10 offense and then we were top five the next two years and won Super Bowls. And then Ernie Zampisi came in who really taught the offense to Norv Turner. So we continue because Norv got the Washington head coaching job. So, you know, when you are a good team, you do lose coaches. So you talk about continuity. We saw it this year with the Detroit Lions. You know, when you play really well, you're going to lose coordinators. And we've seen it with the Los Angeles Rams over the years with Sean McVeigh and all of the assistance that they've lost, but being able to replace those guys and it is important. And when you're able as a quarterback to stay within the same offense, you know, you take Peyton Manning for instance, even though he changed teams, he ran the same offense his entire career. Brett Favre ran the same offense his entire career. I mean that's a real luxury. And then you look at others and, and seemingly they've, they're playing within a, you know, new offensive system or with a new play caller every season. And that's Jalen Hurts. I mean, he hasn't hardly had back to back play callers since high school. So that's, that's all a big part of it. And when you find a good one and they're able to stick around for a while, it's a, it's a really.
Ryan Rosillo
Positive thing on the teammate front though. And that was a great answer. But I'm, I'm also wondering, it must be something special to just understand the tendencies of especially like a Novichek or an Irvin or even like a Harper where you just like, I know like he knows where I want to throw this against this coverage. So we, we may not have the call when we come out, but like the tendency is that this is, this is kind of, we're on the same page in these moments because we've repped it so many times because I know exactly like where he wants the ball. It just feels like Mahomes. Even though he's had so many different receivers, we see it with Kelsey all the time. Some of the zone stuff where you're like, they don't even have to really understand the route. Like they just know what they're going to do with each other. Having that kind of understanding, like how big of an advantage is that over a defense.
Troy Aikman
Well, for Kansas City, it's a huge advantage because you, you could, you could take Andy Reid could go somewhere else and want to do the same things that Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelsey are doing and more than likely would not be able to pull that off. And I think that, that, that is part of Andy Reid's greatness, that when you look at what Kansas City is doing with Mahomes, it's different than what he did in Philadelphia with Donovan McNabb or other quarterbacks that he had. I think Andy does as good a job as anyone of really taking advantage of what his players do well and not being so strict within his offensive system that he's not, that he's not flexible to that. And for Mahomes, I think part of it maybe was his time at Texas Tech and in college, but he, he has an ability to really understand what a defense is doing, where the weaknesses are, and really kind of lay the ball in those spots and expect or hope that a receiver will adjust and, you know, be on the same page as him. We, we see it with Travis Kelce over and over and over that Kelsey's running one route and Patrick finds a little bit of time. He waits and Kelsey finds the soft spot in the defense and they let it go. Or, or Mahomes. I even saw it with DeAndre Hopkins when he just joined the team. He laid one, and it was not exactly as, as it was designed, and yet Hopkins was able to adjust and make the play. So when, when you have players like they do in Kansas City and a quarterback in Mahomes that's able to adjust like that, it's, it's almost unfair because you can have the perfect defense, but if these players are able to adjust on the fly, there's always a weakness within any defense. There's holes in it, and you can't cover everything. So they do, they just do a great job of exploiting that. And it seems like they do it the best when the game's on the line and they need the plays the most.
Ryan Rosillo
Is there anything in all the tape or all the games that you've watched with Mahomes, is there anything you think that's actually a defense can look to like, oh, he's a little uncomfortable with this?
Troy Aikman
No, no, I don't, I, I, I, I've watched him a bunch. I, I think it's funny because I was just talking to Jason Garrett yesterday, the former head coach of the Cowboys and a close friend of mine. We were talking about this game and talking about Mahomes and I, I, having watched a lot of film on him, having covered a lot of his games, I, I don't think, I don't know if there's anybody better in the league right now as far as seeing the entire defense. You know, it's. It's easy to say Patrick Mahomes, arguably the best quarterback in the NFL, but this guy, which is far different. That's a, that's a different statement than saying this guy sees the field better than anybody. I just, I, I watch a lot of quarterbacks. I see a lot of them that I don't know that they really, they really understand coverages or they really know what defender could have taken that throw away or they'll fit a ball in. And I'm convinced they never saw this defender and they just got fortunate that that guy didn't make a play on the ball. But with Mahomes, I think he sees it all. I think he understands what the defense is doing. I think he knows where the players are on the field and he delivers it accordingly. And. Which is a real, real compliment to him because I don't know that quarterbacks, the way that they are trained these days, I'm not convinced that many of them really learn defenses. I think the approach to offensive football and playing the position has changed over the years. And when you find someone like Mahomes, Joe Burrow stands out. There's others that, you know that they know exactly what they're seeing and they're delivering the football where it's supposed to be.
Ryan Rosillo
Did you know, like, over your years, like, okay, look, I'm good. Hall of Fame, whole deal, we've got all these players. But like, this is something I noticed defense is. Think I'm uncomfortable with. Was there one thing that you felt like this is how defenses want to force me to play?
Troy Aikman
Yeah, not. Not a lot. I think in general, not, not directing it at me. I think what they wanted to do against us as a team, one, they wanted to stop emt, of course, but, but within the passing game. So much of what we did in the passing game was timing based that teams that came up and pressed our receivers, pressed Michael Irvin, Alvin Harper, did not give them free access off the line of scrimmage that, you know, we could still beat it, but it, it wasn't as seamless as if they were playing off coverage. And we're just running our play action and throwing these, the skinny post and the comebacks and things like that. They would want to come up and challenge These guys a little bit. We didn't get blitzed a lot because I didn't hold the ball very long. And teams that did blitz, they, they likely were not going to get home and then they were going to be exposed on the back end in coverage. So we didn't face a lot of blitzes as a result of that. And then also, as we continue to have success, we saw more and more teams wanting to come up and try to be disruptive at the line of scrimmage with our receivers.
Ryan Rosillo
You also obviously, as you point to, like the, the Emmett part of it, especially just the way the game was played. We've talked about this in the past too, is, is they may go like, hey, the first thing we need to do is try to find a way to contain this offensive line and contain Emmett. And that's something, you know, I grew up watching going an NFL team can just rely on the run and, and go all the way through the playoffs. Saquon adds an element to an offense that we just like, we can talk about Adrian Peterson getting that team to the, the playoffs. That wasn't very good. Derrick Henry's certainly had some huge years, but this Saquon stuff with this offensive line on top of everything else, it feels like just an old school offense that could go. If we don't like what we have up in the passing game, if we don't like our matchups, if Hertz doesn't feel comfortable, if Hertz isn't all the way healthy, like we just turn around and hand it off to Saquon and still have a chance to win the football game. This feels like something we're just not used to seeing anymore. Troy.
Troy Aikman
We don't see it as much. I think we're, I think we're kind of, I think the pendulum is swinging back to the middle. I think we are seeing more teams that are more balanced offensively. We went, we went over a decade where the, the passing game was paramount. More and more teams were going to the spread and throwing the football. We saw, you know, in last couple years, running backs were, there wasn't a big market for them. They weren't getting paid. I think that's starting to change because of what happened this year with Derrick Henry in Baltimore and then of course Saquon with Philadelphia. But yeah, there's no doubt that Philadelphia, they're, they're built a little bit or a lot like we were during our success. The ability to run the football. I think that, that, you know, we, people say, well, we didn't Throw the ball. That we were a running team. I would say that we were a running team, and we threw the ball as well, if not better than anyone in football. There were a number of years where we. We. We were number one in yards per pass, so we didn't throw it as often, but we threw it really well when we did. And. And there are other teams that are like that, and I think Philadelphia falls into that category with the weapons that they have at wide receiver and their ability to throw the football if they get those looks. But to be a physical offense and a big offensive line like we had, that's a good formula for winning, to go into a game and know that no matter what the defense does, we've got an answer for it. And I also feel that with the offensive line that they have and their ability to run the ball, it permeates throughout the entire organization and within the locker room that it's hard to be regarded as a physical team if you don't run the football. It's just. It's hard. I mean, it's hard to be physical if you're constantly in pass protection. And. And I think that when you're regarded as a physical offensive front and a physical offense, I think then defense plays into that. And we've seen that in Philadelphia. We've seen that. We've seen that over the years in San Francisco with their ability to run the ball and how physical they play then on the defensive side of the ball also. But. And we were that way. We were a tough, physical defense, but we were. It was all built around a real physical offensive front.
Ryan Rosillo
I wanted to ask you about the Hertz part of this because, you know, two years ago, when this matchup happened for the super bowl, like, you go into that next year, like, okay, let's rank the quarterbacks, because, look, I'm obsessed with it, too. I do it too much, but it was pretty much understood. It's like Hertz, number one in the NFC and then everybody else. And whenever that happens, I'm like, all right, are we. Are we already there with Hertz? Is it definitive? And whether it was the injuries last year, the great start, and then falling apart, because I think he was hurt last year. I think these are real excuses. He obviously missed some time this year, but no one's ever saying that now. It's not this undisputed NFC belt for the best quarterback with Jalen hurts. And there's definitely numbers, and you just watch and see, like, there's areas of the field that he's not going to attack. So there may be less of a priority to defend the entire field, specifically the middle, when you're going up against the passing attack with the Eagles, is there something that you see, you know, a more educated eye on all of this, where as good as Herz is and the weapons and how they can put up points and they've been rolling here again, that there's. There's a limitation with him that is. Is it exploitable or is it does not. You know, maybe. Maybe it doesn't even matter, Troy, because here we are in the super bowl with the Eagles again.
Troy Aikman
Well, it, it, it matters, I think, but I believe that there are, you know, regardless of whoever the quarterback is that, that we talk about, all, all quarterbacks have some level of weakness. You know, I mean, whether that's. If you get pressure on a quarterback and they don't have time to set their feet, you know, you're going to struggle. So there, there are those elements. I, I think I go back to. We had, we had Philadelphia, Tampa Bay during. In the postseason after Jalen's first season as a starter in Philadelphia, and it was not, it was not a good game for Philadelphia. It wasn't. Wasn't competitive at all. They were not very good on offense. They didn't take advantage of some of the looks they were getting from Tampa Bay. And then the very next year, they look like a different group. And the reason was, was because of Jalen hurts. So he had put in an enormous amount of time. And, and, and I can't. I can't say that I saw him put in the time. I can't say that he told me he put in the time. But you can't, you can't be from. You can't be where he was in January and then the very next year be as good as he was without really putting in the effort. So I always had great respect for, for the time he put in to get to where he got. And, and they've been a different offense since, you know, now this year they, they started leaning back more on the running game and for obvious reasons. But I like what Jalen's been able to do. I like the progress that I've seen from him from when he first took over. And, you know, he'll continue, as all quarterbacks will continue to improve and work on some of the things that, that he can get better at.
Ryan Rosillo
I always like asking you guys about the production meetings, the access. I mean, this is something you've been doing a long time. When's the Last time that you were really impressed by something a coach said about their approach to that upcoming game.
Troy Aikman
Boy, I haven't been Too impressed over 25 years of broadcasting with that, but I've been impressed with the number of players. I will tell you, you know, coaches in general give you a lot of coach speak and there's not a lot of substance you come out with. There are, there are some coaches we talk to that are pretty transparent, at least with me and our group. But the guy who stands out this year as far as a player goes, it was the most impressive that I spoke with this year was, was Jaden Daniels. I mean he was, he was amazing. And we had him week three and the first two games he had, he had played well, but there were a number of things that you said, wow, he's going to have to be better in these areas. And then, then we had him, then we visited with him and I'd never talked to him. So I, I, I, I didn't watch him much in college, didn't know anything about him, had never heard him, interviewed nothing, and had just watched him on film for two games, his first two games as a pro. And then we talked to him. I was blown away, absolutely blown away.
Ryan Rosillo
I said, what was it? Give, give me, give me a couple examples where you're like, okay, he just.
Troy Aikman
Was really smart, bright eyed, you know, you could tell he was really well raised. And, and, and, and you just as soon as he got, as soon as we started talking to him, there was this energy that, that, that he exuded and you said, this guy's got it, you know, he has whatever that it is, this guy has it. And, and I just remember when we got done, I said to Joe, I said, this guy's amazing. I mean this, this guy's the real deal. Now he'd only played two games and, and it was kind of up and down. He had done some good things, did some things that weren't so great. But, so it wasn't like I didn't have him in week 17 where he's got this, this, this whole portfolio of a season. And you say, yeah, of course he's, but he's, he's an impressive young man and I will be shocked. And we've all seen it. You know, guy comes out of the gate, has a great start and then we're wondering what happened. And we could name some, some of those people. But I'd be shocked if Jaden Daniels is, if we're not talking about him like we did this year. Every Year of his career. I think he's, I think he's phenomenal.
Ryan Rosillo
Great answer. I also put you on the spot there a little bit, so I, I knew that we, we would get there. But I figure your life in football, like, rarely are you listening to a coach where it's like, oh, we're going to do this, we're going to do all these different things. But you gave us a better answer there with the player. I didn't, I didn't even mean to do this. But I, I, maybe I'll just ask because it's been so topical this week. I like, as an aside, and I've told you this before, I like when you, and maybe this sounds wrong. I like when you're negative on a broadcast. I like, okay, like, I, I think it's kind of gone. And as a big NBA guy, I think part of the deal is partner with the league. You got to be positive about things all the time. And I just appreciate those honest moments with you. Whether it's a quarterback that I'm kind of on the fence with or maybe it's a quarterback that I'm, I'm hearing. The way you're talking about it, it's like, do I need to take a better look at this? I like those frustrations because I feel they're very human and I feel they're very honest. And I know probably there's some people like, luckily your resume is long enough and accomplished enough that you could probably get away with it a little bit. But I, I just think those are important things because so much of it now, because of all the partnerships and the money involved, it just feels like, you don't have to tell me something terrible is actually good just because you're on the broadcast. I think it happens too much in the industry.
Troy Aikman
Yeah, I, well, let me, let me first say that I root for, I root for all these players, you know, I really do, especially quarterbacks, because I haven't played the position. I just know how hard it is. And, and I try when, in my analysis, I, I try to keep that in mind. I, I, and I feel that I do, I feel that I'm mindful of how hard the position is to play. But I, but I'm also aware of when a quarterback in particular maybe isn't doing what he should be doing or playing at the level that he should be or, you know, I've been there, I've done it. So I know what a hard throw is, I know what an easy throw is. I know what is expected of that position, and I hope to be able to carry that into all positions. And really, I. I've never been a guy who's been able to just kind of say something if I didn't believe it. You know, I just can't do that now. It doesn't mean I'm brutally honest all the time. I mean, no one is. But, you know, I'll try to. I'll try to answer a question and do it in a way that doesn't compromise my beliefs. And. And as an. As an analyst, I. I do the same. So sometimes I get frustrated, and that comes out. But I love the officials. I. I think the officials have a thankless job. You know, there's a lot of people who think that I target the officials, that I'm critical of the officials. I. I don't feel that I am at all. But if, If, If. If I disagree with the call, then. Then I'm. I'm willing to say that. But I want to do it respectfully because I know how hard it is to do what they do. And I think that even in. During a time when. When we have replay assist and we have instant replay, the games are no less controversial today, with all this technology and our ability to get calls right, it's no less controversial today than it was back when I was playing before they came up with instant replay. So I was never in favor of instant replay. I always felt that the officials did a good enough job. We're all human. We all make mistakes, but that's the road we went. And so now my. My position is if. If it's sometime the week after the game, whether that's. Whether that's 20 minutes after a game, an hour after a game, or two days after a game, if. If we can say, or the league office can say, you know what, that was a bad call that shouldn't have been made, or, yes, that was pass interference. We should have called that. I just think then we've got to. We've got to be able to do it in real time and get it right. And I know we're. I know it's television, but. And I said it. I said it this last week on a podcast that I was on that, you know, the league is partners with a number of gambling services and gambling is being promoted. Gambling is occurring at record rates from where it was in the past. And, and we owe it. We owe it to the fans and for those that. Especially for those that are gambling, we owe it to them to get it right, you know, to get the calls. Right. And I, and I. The league knows that I'm not saying anything that they don't know. And by and large, I think the league does an amazing job. So I would never want my opinion if I disagree with something to reflect poorly on, on the league as a whole, because I do think that the people in charge, starting with Roger Goodell, I think that they, he and they do everything they possibly can to maintain the integrity of the game and, and make sure that it's being played fairly and, and the competitiveness and the, and the field is balanced.
Ryan Rosillo
I wasn't going to ask you this, but I, I think I'll stay on it and then I'll finish here because I, I, you know, I think we do. You do just a good job of being honest about it. The Brady conversation about his role with the Raiders and then having the job that you have. How do you feel about the criticism of having those two roles?
Troy Aikman
I don't know exactly what the criticisms are. I know what the league has done as far as the Brady rules and what he's able to do and what he's not able to do. I find it interesting that, you know, he had been restricted to go into club facilities all season, and now the biggest game of the year, all of that was, you know, taken away. Now he has full access. So I don't, I don't know, I don't know what the logic is in that, but there was a time years ago when, when I was involved with a group that, that made a run at an NFL team and I reached out to my, my boss, Eric Shanks at Fox at the time and asked him, hey, here's what I'd like to do. I want to be part of this ownership group, but I'm not going to move to that city. I'm not going to be active day to day, and I want to continue to broadcast. Is that going to be a problem? And, and he said immediately, he said, absolutely not. Now, obviously, the group I was involved with didn't get the team. But what Shanks told me then, the only real problem would be if that team were to make it to the super bowl and we were calling the super bowl. So that becomes a bit of an issue. And it would, it would if Tom were calling the super bowl and the, and the Raiders were in that game. But beyond that, is there a big conflict? I don't think so. You know, I, I don't think there is, but I think that, let's just take this hiring cycle, for instance. You know, all these, all these GMs, they should anyway know these various coaches, but when you're an analyst, you get a chance to interact and see these coaches a little bit more. So Tom, knowing him, had done his homework. So he had a better idea of, of what he thought the Raiders should be looking for or what people he thought they should be interviewing based on, on his years worth of broadcasting and interacting with some of these coaches.
Ryan Rosillo
I want to talk about eight Beer. I know that you have been invested in this in a while and I gotta tell you, Troy, very vascular today. So the biceps alone, I think you get some Lee Haney veins going. The, the biceps alone would be marketing enough for this beer. But again, if you want to check it out again, it's8beer.com. This is founded by Troy. He's been at it for a while now. Where are you at now? Because I know you have some new stuff going on.
Troy Aikman
We are current. We're in, we're in Texas and Oklahoma. We, we will stay in these two states through 2025. We'll expand in, in 2026. What market? We're not exactly sure yet, but we've got a lot of really good things going on. I hired CEO a year and a half ago. He's been phenomenal. We've continued to build our team. Just like in football. It's, it's about the people. I've got, I've got a great team and more importantly, we've got a great product. It's, it's light beer made. Right. And what I mean by that is, is we are totally additive free and we are the only mass produced beer that can say that. And which means we don't add any syrup, sugars, sweeteners. There's no corn, no rice. It is a better for you beer. And yet it's 90 calories, 2.6 carbs and it tastes amazing. So I couldn't be more excited about it. If you're a light beer drinker and you like the taste of eight, there is no logical reason why you would ever drink anything else because it is, it is the cleanest, best for you beer that's available. Now if you're not in Texas and you're not in Oklahoma, then you might have to drink a different beer because, because we're not available in those states. But we will be soon. So I'm really excited. And we, we continue to grow and, and, and we'll just keep our foot on the pedal and see where this thing leads.
Ryan Rosillo
Next Dallas road trip. I'm In. I want one of those hats to go with it.
Troy Aikman
There you go.
Ryan Rosillo
Hey, man, enjoy the game. I know it's. It's always a special reminder as we talked at the top. So I know the New Orleans run is going to be in and out, which is a vet move. And we'll talk to you again soon, man. Thanks so much.
Troy Aikman
Sounds good. Yeah, thanks so much. Appreciate you.
Ryan Rosillo
So we've got Troy picking Kansas City. I'm picking Kansas City. I could have done 15 minutes on the whole thing. Honestly, I could have just run last year's intro to my pick on Kansas City, San Francisco. So, yeah, Mahomes is good, and I'm scared of death picking against him. We could talk turnover battles. We could talk that kind of stuff. I'm just excited about this game because I think these teams are awesome. It is a little weird being down in New Orleans and there being this man kind of attitude towards the game. And I know that sounds crazy because it's the biggest sporting event of the entire year, the number one sport in this country, but why would you have fatigue about these teams just because they matched up a couple years ago? These teams are stacked. There's talent everywhere. It was a really close game. And I think another important factor in this whole deal is that if it were a new NFC team being here, maybe it's Detroit, maybe it's Minnesota. I mean, certainly you could understand Detroit being like, I can't believe we actually got to a Super Bowl. And now getting over that, like the collective emotion of the week and all the buildup, the best part, like the angle to play, like, hey, I think Philly wins this game because there's so many dudes that just played in this game two years ago. They're not satisfied. I think there's a lot of teams in the NFC that'd be satisfied. And they'd be staring at the Chiefs being like, now, we're not supposed to beat those guys anyway. I don't think Philly has any of that stuff. They're not satisfied. This is old hat to them. They know the deal. They know the buildup. They probably think they're just as good as Kansas City and feel like a play here, a play there. They would have won this game two years ago. So I don't know that there's a lot of breakdown. It's just I'm very surprised. The kind of. Maybe it's the Luca trick, but the. The indifference towards the matchup. And it also might just have to do with why I'm picking Mahomes. It's like Mahomes is just going to win again. Like that's a very consistent like whatever. You could talk hardcore people that played in the league, talk casuals, whatever you want to do, whatever label you want to throw on the thing. There just seems to be this inevitable of, well, Mahomes, just figure it out one more time. And honestly, that's not the worst analysis that you're going to hear. However, let's dig in a little bit deeper with FanDuel Sportsbook.com and some of their options here. One of the bets. It's a little scary, but it sounds good. It's each team, one touchdown, one field goal each half plus 1400. It's a little tricky. I feel like that one never works out. Saquon four plus TDs. That's plus 9,000. Something to think about there. You start playing around with that. Start looking at the payouts. Pretty massive. I'm going to stay away from the four plus touchdowns on any single player in a game. It seems like it's not worth it. How about the I guess I'll just drink now. Parlay Xavier Worthy a catch on the first drive and that first drive for the Chiefs ends in a punt. So you get Xavier Worthy. One catch leads to a punt on that drive. Plus 619. Doesn't happen. Who said egg rolls? There's another Kansas City one here where if you like Kansas City and you are trying to figure out a way to get that number in your favor because they're still minus one and a half. It's been minus one and a half pretty steadily here throughout all. So flip it to Kansas City plus three and a half. Kelsey four more catches down week last week, massive week against Houston. Usually you expect he's going to show up in this game even if he's the primary thing that they want to shut down. Even if you do that, Kelsey's usually good for a couple. Can you get to four? And now you're playing with a field goal and a half with the Chiefs that's minus 143. Again, we're not talking like a massive payout, but if you want to swing the number, that's more about putting the number back in your favor because now you're here. Instead of land points, you've got a field goal plus field goal in the hook on your side of things. But we got to do four legs here. So let's get to it. Building on the Kansas City Kelsey thing that I was hinting at. I know that's not as exciting as the payout thing. But hey, what's wrong with just moving the number in your favor? Something you think it's likely? All right, so Kansas City, let's move it down to plus two and a half. Let's go, Kelsey, four more reception. So building on what we had before changing that Kansas City line again, the two and a half to three and a half is a massive difference. Hurts. 175 more passing yards. You know, I don't know that this game gets into the 30s because I think the talent on the defense is so good. But you know, games have a weird way of getting away from each other where it just turns into free for all. Feels like everybody's hitting on everything. However scenario, however many scenarios you play it out in your head of like all the possible outcomes of this game, I just have a hard time believing Hertz is just not getting the ball in the air enough to at least keep pace, even if it's not necessarily a shootout. So I think that 175 number is obviously doable. You would hope it's doable. And then Devonte Smith maybe being the second priority for the defensive alignment with what they want to do and trying to get A.J. brown shut down first. Maybe it's Goddard thing. So maybe Devonte just finding a way with his exceptional route running, getting over 70 yards. So Kansas City plus two and a half. Kelsey, four more catches. Herz, 175 or more yards. Devonte Smith, 70 more receiving yards. That is paying out right now at +453. That is the play. And don't forget the kick of destiny. I can't believe they got the Mannings. They were available to do this. I've met Peyton, I've met Eli. I've worked with Archie. Eli didn't get in the hall of fame. Let's go with Eli. He is due.
Troy Aikman
You want details?
Ryan Rosillo
Fine.
Kyle
I drive a Ferrari 355 Cabriolet.
Troy Aikman
What's up?
Ceruti
I have a ridiculous house in the south fork.
Troy Aikman
I have every toy you can possibly.
Kyle
Imagine, and best of all, kids, I am liquid.
Troy Aikman
So now you know what's possible.
Ryan Rosillo
Let me tell you what's required. Life advice. The email address lifeadvicermail.com Johnny's number one fan. Kyle, hit me up.
Kyle
Big game today.
Ryan Rosillo
Well, the Providence one, you were. You were texting me and I was like. Like I'm. I'm in the middle of something. So I don't want you to feel like you were ignored.
Kyle
The pro. No, that was for Marquette, which they beat 11 ranked Marquette. And we've got UConn today. Big one.
Ryan Rosillo
I know. Huskies. Oh, this time it's personal, right, Serutti?
Ceruti
I'm not. I mean, I'm. I'm a Connecticut guy. I'm not really a Yukon fan. My wife did go there, so I guess I'm rooting for Kyle's happiness.
Kyle
I love that for me.
Ryan Rosillo
Do you guys like that your wives aren't as into a team as you are?
Kyle
Well, actually, my wife has pretty much decided to go all in on Creighton for obvious reasons. The similarities. And she loves the. She loves the Blue Jay logo and she's bought probably half as many shirts that I have. And the. Johnny's last loss was on New Year's Eve against Creighton, and that was a really tough time to be in my house. So I wish she would not pick teams like her dad's a Bills fan and her sister's an Eagles fan and she could just. Patriots are way down on that list. And I don't know, it seems like she's just doing stuff despite me, but.
Ryan Rosillo
Does she think the Blue Jays are rabbit?
Ceruti
Yeah, I was kind of confused on the obvious connection there.
Kyle
She's a big bird gal, loves birds, has several pairs of binoculars, a couple cameras, lots of bird books that I don't know if she's ever read more than the first time she bought them. She's just, you know, she likes to show her love through purchases for the things that she likes. And I can't say I'm different. It's just, you know, she had to pick a team in the same league, you know, I don't know.
Ryan Rosillo
That seems weird. You just pick Creighton as you were on this Johnny's run here the last couple years.
Kyle
Yeah, she's a big Cock Brenner fan, obviously. I mean, what's not to like about that guy? Started the season with 49 points. I mean, pretty impressive.
Ryan Rosillo
But this is like an episode of One Shiny podcast.
Ceruti
Got to get our guy Doug McDermott back on. Get her some, get her some gear, I guess. To answer your original question though, Ryan, I think every, every March, it's always funny to me because, like, I love my wife, she's great, but like, it's like, oh, now we're just. We haven't watched the Yukon game all year and now we're just locked in. We got to watch them all. And it's just kind of, you know, as like the die hard fan of me. Like, I'm like, all right, like, cool. Like we really have to watch this Yukon game at 4 today.
Ryan Rosillo
That's.
Kyle
I don't know that segment. That section of America is growing by the year though. You know, it's just like March Madness. Still the best tournament, even though I never pay attention. So true. But it's totally on par over 10 years.
Ceruti
This is how it's been and it just is like a guy who watches a lot of games and probably shouldn't let it bother me, but it does sometimes.
Ryan Rosillo
I love, I love that transparency.
Ceruti
That's the resilo rub it off on me there.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, like, oh, so now you're into it.
Kyle
That guy doesn't watch.
Ryan Rosillo
Right.
Troy Aikman
All right.
Ceruti
And then she's like getting all worked up about it and I'm like, you didn't know who this guy was three minutes ago.
Ryan Rosillo
Go.
Ceruti
But okay, yeah, all right, that's all. This is not going to be it.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, but sometimes I think, sorry, yeah, but you know, as somebody that's dabbled in being like a fair weather baseball person in a way that I never thought, like I would have beat me up. Like the younger version of me would have told this version of me to be like, loser. Like, you know, you don't even, you don't even remember when Alan Embry, they couldn't bring him in against, you know, it's just like loser 20 year old versus you know, older person that maybe has a few more things going on.
Ceruti
Yeah, my buddies and I always joke, you know, in our late teens, early 20s, like we could literally do a Madden draft off memory, like just like analog style. And now I'm like, I couldn't tell you who offensive line, who offensive like this. I couldn't tell you who the starting offensive line is on, you know, most teams.
Ryan Rosillo
Well, I think most people are like that. I mean I used to know who like not even the setup guys were. I'd be like, no, they bring this guy in like the seventh, I mean it was, it was nuts and it was not impressive and it wasn't valuable information unless you were working. Like when you're not working in sports and you know all six guys in another team's bullpen, that's not a good use of data storage. Right. All right.
Ceruti
But that stuff sticks in your brain, man. I'll tell you, you remember that for life. I don't.
Ryan Rosillo
It's. Anyway, yeah, right now, remember how mad I used to get about the depth of the Yankees bullpen? I'd be like, then they have this guy, Graham Lloyd, all right, Ozempic breath, lot of follow ups. Lot of follow ups, but I thought this one was perhaps the most specific. A few points about the life advice about Ozempic breath. As an ozempic user, the breath is definitely real and trust me, she probably knows you can taste it. The burps are rancid. And trust me, she knows. Dude, I gotta be honest with you. Is it worth it? Come on, girl. Size six, no problem. I don't even know what a size six is. It just kind of felt bigger than a 410 would have been, I think ridiculous. But I again, I'm not 100% sure. Maybe we get it on that. Anyway, last sentence here, it's temporary. Lasted a couple months for me. Still on it almost a year later. And the bad breath and nasty burps are gone. So this guy is suggesting a dosing window perhaps of a few months where then it goes away, you know, Then some guys just started sending in emails about breath in general. We're like, no, we need to keep this specific, man.
Kyle
That would be tough though if you're like, all right, I just got to give it four months. And then around that three month mark you're like, is it going to be today? That's going to be. The last month is going to be like the home, the home stretch. Because it might not. It's just the way it happened for one person, right? If he's like, all right, I'm not saying anything. I'm dealing. I'm holding my breath for, for four months. And then like the day doesn't come. It's like every day will be like two days.
Ryan Rosillo
Forget about the mental behind it all.
Ceruti
It's like counting down days to Christmas as a kid, right?
Kyle
Except for you don't know when Christmas is.
Ryan Rosillo
It's one of those calendars. It's just different things that smell. It's like garbage can.
Kyle
Like an advent calendar.
Ryan Rosillo
Like rotting eggs on the 12th. Oh, man. And then when you get to 25, it's just a bunch of mints. Crystallized menthol flames just like, we're there. We made it. Okay. Probably not gonna make any of that. All right, let's get to a. Yeah, I'm, I feel like I'm, I'm, I'm hurting our window here. So let's. Let me pick up the pace. Hey guys, thanks for considering taking my question. Well, consider it. Consider gym stats. 62205. Squat 325, bench 225. Deadlift 300. All right, put some, some numbers here. NBA comp Ben Wallace. If literally all he could do was rebound and kick it back out. We live in Denver. Awesome live show by the way. Next time we need to take Kyle around to some of the local haunts, we try to take Kyle. We did Velvet Banjo and we did Herbs. We we taken Kyle to a few spots.
Kyle
I've been around Denver.
Ryan Rosillo
He's no stranger in those streets. We don't have many celebrities here. My wife occasionally sees one of the Nugs Players brothers at a gymnastics class where the three year old son okay, it's player's brother. Yeah, well I think. I think the email builds a bit. Today was different and that Player actually came to class himself. There you go. Payoff indeed. I was driving home from work when I heard this news and implored my wife to get a picture of the player with our son. She was hesitant, but I told her to start the conversation by complimenting his impressive stat line from the night before and telling him that he dominates the Pelicans. Then say, I don't want to cause a scene or be a nuisance at all, but could I get a pic of you with my son afterwards? I kept pushing and said I drive over to class and do it myself and she felt uncomfortable. She did mention that his daughter was there with him, but I assumed he'd get an opportunity when he was away from her. Pop the ask. The Player was quite gracious for her compliments, but ultimately turned down the picture requests. This left my wife feeling awkward as she sees the brother with relative frequency and she didn't really want to push the request in the first place since she since he was with his family. I totally get that and agree, but I thought the phrasing of the question made it reasonable enough. I'm not sure she nailed the delivery, but nitpicking that wouldn't be a fruitful endeavor. Yeah, actually have her write it out for you and then go over it at dinner. Anyway, my wife is over it. I've done way worse things. She doesn't need to talk to the brother when she sees him. However, I'm curious to learn from you LA Star knowers. Was this just an uncool thing to do? Should I have let my wife pass up a pretty sweet opportunity that could have been a cool picture in my memory books? And if I am the asshole here, how big on a scale of 1 to 10, what would you do differently? Yeah, you kind of fucked up here and we could talk about like the picture in your memory books or one that ends up in your phone that you never ever look again. Look at Again, maybe you print it out. I don't know. You shouldn't have done it. Your wife didn't want to do it, and you made her do it. And there you go. It's glad that she's over it. I don't think it's egregious. I don't even know if it's north of a 5, but it sounds like you were a little pushy about it. Sure, it's exciting and all that kind of stuff, but this also means. This guy deals with this all the time. And if he's at something like this, a gymnastics class with his daughter, like, it could be quick, and he could just say yes to the picture. Some people handle it a lot better than other people do. But the fact that your wife didn't want to do it, you kept pushing. You rehearsed the line. You're even asking us if perhaps she didn't execute it to perfection. The way it was prepared tells me you might be. You're giving us some hints that you might be a little pushy, or maybe you were just pushy in this instance. But ultimately, like, I think, you know, you were wrong.
Kyle
Yeah, I think the family's like. It should be like, a safe zone, you know, Kids, zone should be a safe zone.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, it.
Kyle
It should be. I'm just trying to think of a metaphor. I don't really have a good one, but it's like jaywalking. It's usually fine, but if there's a cop there, don't jaywalk. Right. It could. You just don't get what you want. Like, it's usually not harmful, but you just don't do it if there's something there. So in this metaphor, the kid would be the cop. Just, you know, I think. I think these people, like, famous people, are trying to keep things normal in their family bubble. And he probably has enough of it, trying to go out to, you know, breakfast on Sunday with his family or whatever. And I think you should just try. Like, you can look at it as, you know, what does he have to lose? And the other thing is a normal day with his kid. Like, he just. Maybe. Maybe he just wanted two hours where he can just be. It's dad and kid out in public like normal. So you don't think of it that way, but you kind of throw the family unit out of that zone. When you're a stranger coming up to someone about, hey, you know, I love what you do outside of whatever you're doing right now. And it's not bad. It's Just, you know, I think it's just a matter of perspective.
Ceruti
Does who the player is matter? Like if.
Ryan Rosillo
Like, I think so, yeah.
Ceruti
Like, if this is Jokic, I mean, you know, maybe your wife's in social circles with Jokic's brothers. That would be hysterical. I doubt it. Like, does that matter versus, like, you know, the 12th man on the bench.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Where you're like, you should be psyched. Anybody's asking.
Ceruti
Yeah. So I do think it depends kind of who it is, because some of those guys, like, hey, actually, it'd be cool to be asked to take a picture. Like, this is kind of fun. I'm with you, Kyle. Usually, if it's a family thing, I think it's just a hard. No all the time. Just leave him alone.
Kyle
Yeah, I saw that liner on Catalina island throwing a football with his son. And, you know, my buddy used to, like, work with him through immediate. Not with him, but worked at the same company as him. And he was like, should we go over there? I'm like, he's throwing a football with his kid. Let's not. We could walk. We were at this bar facing towards the sand, and they were just on the. So we were watching them anyway, and I was just like, what's the payoff? Hey, we both worked at this company for a little while. We never said anything to each other, but I know who you are. Like, what's the payoff there? So, you know, just leave people alone. I think when in doubt, some people.
Ceruti
Get high off of it, too. Like, I don't know, like, we're a little bit desensitized, I think just because of, like, the industry we work in. Like, we do, you know, we. We met a few people especially, you know, the ESPN days. It was like, you know, we've been.
Ryan Rosillo
Known to rub elbows.
Ceruti
Yeah, it's not. Not a big deal. Although there were some people at ESPN that certainly did not care. Didn't matter how what the. What the celebrity status of that person was they wanted to get.
Ryan Rosillo
That guy's still my hero. He was like, in the PA program and every time we had a celebrity or, yeah, Instagram was jump. We're like, is this guy working radio? What's his deal? And then people kind of were like, is something wrong with the kid? And it was so bold. This is what I actually admired. It was so bold, nobody even knew what to do about it. And it happened. It happened double digit times. Right. Like, i20 might be an exact.
Kyle
What he wants. I can't get a read on this guy.
Ryan Rosillo
But I think eventually. So he's like, what the fuck is this guy? Who is he? What's he doing? I'll never forget when was it Liam Neeson, when he was around and there was like an email. It was like, it's very important that people do not ask him for pictures and, like, leave. We got like, the extra leave him alone memo, which didn't happen very often because, again, there was always somebody there almost every day that was important. And then when he showed up, like, then managers were running down on the radios, pictures with them, which I thought was hilarious. Not as bad as when TV people stole our cookies. But, yeah, I think. I think we are. I think Saruti's point, we're probably a little desensitized and maybe more along the lines. But you're right. Like, some people love it. Like, I'm friends with some people that love when they get asked for the picture. We would bother them if they did. Yeah, I'm looking at some of the game log stuff here. Strother had. He had 15 against New Orleans on Monday and then 10 against them on Wednesday. But I don't know. I'd have to look at the date of the email. So I'm just trying to think, like, specific to the Pelicans.
Ceruti
Trother's a guy. I feel like the line is like, yeah, maybe, maybe.
Ryan Rosillo
I'd also think like 22, but went to Gonzaga. Like, if it's Michael Porter Jr. I would just say, no, it's probably not going to go good.
Ceruti
That's right. There's a lot of brothers, interesting brother situations on the nuggets at the Denver scene.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Cause if I look at the time of the email and then, I don't know, whatever. I think we covered it. I think we're good. Okay.
Ceruti
I saw Zach Rapp coming out of a yoga one day in New York City when I was visiting my sister and we let him pass by and we were talking after, like, should we have asked him? Like, the guy's just trying to get a sweat in, man. Like, I like New York City.
Kyle
That guy, I think, would appreciate it.
Ceruti
Zach Braff.
Ryan Rosillo
I think so.
Ceruti
Some of the most famous people there. I. I don't know. I feel like he gets bothered all the time.
Kyle
It was that guy from that show, but I mean, now he's doing T mobile commercials, right?
Ceruti
That show, dude, come on. Scrubs is a great show. That show.
Ryan Rosillo
I love that show. Shout out Bill Callahan. Shout out Bill Orange. Okay, let's just do one of the. One of the old standards Best friend dating my kind of ex. Longtime first time basketball comp, Earl Boykin. Stature in game with late career Steve Nash's back issues. Wow. Small and hurt. I dated parentheses. Well, he said it. I don't know. Nothing serious. Just consistent random hookups and honest communication of my intentions. Level of interest. Well, you, sir, are a wizard.
Kyle
That always works.
Ryan Rosillo
Foolproof plan 80. Do you want to take off your shirt? I'm not that into you long term. A woman who recently returned to my mountain town from an island life in St. John's don't care if you mention specifics, if you hear it, it was meant to be. Oh, so this guy. We're getting a lot of these lately. I feel like people are like, nothing to lose guys. Yeah, like they know the other person listens. Or someone in the crew listens and this has become some sort of Craigslist shit. Anyway, a woman who recently turned. If you hear it. Okay, I already read that. Put an end to it finally a few months ago, after a couple of years, mostly due to her worming her way in ways that made me uncomfortable. I lost my mom a couple years ago, and her mom followed a year later. Later she started using that as an excuse to try to hang out under the pretense and comfort of and then get sexual. Which I found abhorrent. Okay. All right. So you know your moral compass is aligned with your direction in life. I get it. So the issue of what I need advice on is this. Around Christmas, my best friend was going through a breakdown. Bender spent a lot of time loving and helping, and I thought I lifted him during this time of need. That's an interesting sentence, but I think we got it. She came over after I left Christmas night with I don't understand this at all. And she came over Christmas night after I left with the emotional swoop. And I guess now they're dating. Exclamation question. I gotta stress, I have no emotional attachment to this woman. And my issue with this is far removed from a jealous ex. I miss him more than her. Her. Lol. My issue is she swooped in, told everyone. My issue is she swooped in, told everyone that would listen that they were together, didn't leave for a month, ever. And my boy is just following along. Even after I told him exactly where I was at my feelings and what I had a problem with, and he pressed back and said she was overstepping. Wasn't like that. And he was effing up. My philosophy is not to your girlfriend, it's just, your turn. Wow. Really letting this guy have it. And he adamantly agreed, though. All right. Behavior after. Ain't tracking, though. He's closing up the same box he keeps getting in. And I'm concerned about a friend. I love repeating oh, comma, should have said it. And I'm concerned about a friend. I love repeating the same destructive behaviors and patterns. I see both of them several times a week. Become distant with him because of my feelings. Not sure how to proceed. Literally hung out with him and our good friend tonight, and he went to hug me as I left, and I put my arms around him and was like, nah. Hugged our other friend while he left and felt the dis. And we all laughed. I'm a sardat. I'm a sardonic asshole. They know. Then hugged him on the way out. Ain't the same with us, though. Ain't the same. Even though I'm expressing myself honestly at all times, how do I navigate this? I'm prepared to write a moss. Write them off as I've blacklisted others for way less, but the hell if I won't miss them.
Kyle
I'm so glad you're not in my friend group.
Ceruti
Tough email to get.
Kyle
That was like a. A drunk voice text email. It just.
Ceruti
Yeah, I'm just all confused. I don't know what's going on.
Ryan Rosillo
All right. Could check the time. Wasn't that late. Oh, man. What are you asking us, man?
Ceruti
Can we get like a. Like a summary? A quick summary just of. So he. He was hooking up with his girl, right. And really, like, she became ignored by it.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah.
Ceruti
And then his.
Kyle
And then, I don't know, worms.
Ceruti
His buddy. His buddy. They met on. They just, like, hooked up one night or something. Got together around the holidays or something. Is that what happened? And then all of a sudden, they're, like, kind of dating, but he. But he still thinks it's. It's just kind of a hookup thing. But now he's catching feelings.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah, I guess he's mad. I think what he's saying is he's mad his friend keeps going back to the well, even though he's telling us he doesn't care about the woman at all. And then he misses his friend. And then you fake hugged him.
Ceruti
Yeah. And I didn't understand.
Ryan Rosillo
What do you want?
Kyle
There's a lot of extra words in this email. Yeah, I think it sounded like at the end we came to some sort of question where he's like, should I write this guy off of. Done it before. I'll do it again. Sort of guy. I don't know. I think that's if, you know, I'll just say if I'm gonna pretend you're a serious person. I would. If, you know, this isn't gonna work and you know, this. This girl's gonna go do something else. If you're so, like, you're so sure of. And he's gonna, you know, break this guy's heart, you just wait this out. It's like ozempic breath. It's just like give it three, three, four months and then like another calendar.
Ryan Rosillo
Yep.
Kyle
Yeah. Try on the 25th. It's if they're still together. And. And you're saying that like, oh, I'm afraid that she's gonna have him spiral down into his, you know, sounds like he was having booze troubles or whatever he was using. You can't put that on being with someone else unless she's, you know, going on benders herself. It sounds like. It sounds like, let him bend place and you just don't like it.
Ceruti
Let him bend.
Ryan Rosillo
Let her worm.
Kyle
Let him bend. Yeah, it all good.
Ryan Rosillo
Like, you said some really nice things about your friend. You clearly care about your friend, but maybe just sit this one out. Let him bend. You don't care about the girl. That's what you're telling us. So we're taking your word here because I think some people are like, oh, that means he actually kept. I actually think this email is so weird. I believe that he doesn't care about this woman at all.
Ceruti
Yeah.
Ryan Rosillo
And if he thinks his friend shouldn't be with her and he admits to you that he. He shouldn't be. But, man, like, sometimes dudes just need to bend. And in this case, if you care about him enough as a friend, long term, you're really going to start giving him this hard of a time about it. He agrees with you. You said your piece and he can keep doing it. Like, I don't know. I just would. Not if there are people like my buddies, my male friends. Some of you guys are just way too hard on your other. Like, what's your goal to get at 40 and have zero friends? Like, there's just so many things that get sent to us where I'm thinking, okay, but if I like the dude and he's a good hang, like, why would I want to cause friction that damages that relationship and perhaps even ends it?
Ceruti
Well, maybe he. Maybe he just is annoyed because he feels like I'm just trying to play devil's advocate because I'm kind of with you.
Ryan Rosillo
Guys.
Ceruti
But maybe he feels annoyed because, like, hey, I'm giving my friend who I've really helped out and in some tough times, some needed advice, and he's just straight up not listening to me, and now we're not hanging out, and it's pissing me off. And, like, if he doesn't want my help, then fuck this guy. I don't think. I wouldn't do that. But maybe that's where his head's at.
Kyle
Just look forward to the I told you so speech. That's it. Like, this is. If he says, guess what? We're engaged, maybe then you. Then you're like, all right, I've got this thing prepared. But outside of that, this doesn't sound like it's gonna go the distance, Especially if he's just like, dude, you're just up next. You're not even like, so maybe he gets his heartbroken. I don't. I don't. Like, this is how people learn. Like, there's no class for this. You're certainly not the teacher of it.
Ceruti
Like, we've had guys in the friend group that have dated, hooked up with people that were like, this is a terrible idea. And you just kind of. Yeah. You just let it kind of play its course. I don't. And I was never like, man, like, I'm mad at this guy because we're not hanging out enough. Because he's, He's. I mean, I, I. Yeah, let dudes be dudes. I don't know. He's gonna. He wants to hook up with his girl. Let him hook up with his girl.
Kyle
And the new girlfriend phrase. Usually guys, you know, it's hard to get that one off the Runway. I think they. They're not really, like, usually a couple months, and then they figure out how to get back to doing the stuff that they wanted to do with their friends. Like, I think that new phase, it's like some people are just, you know, they sleep over once and they don't leave for two weeks, and that guy doesn't know how to deal with that. And it'll. It's like a learning curve. He'll figure it out. You know, maybe it's a rocky two, three months, and then, you know, Fridays are for friends, and we do stuff every Friday now. Sounds like it's kind of new. So, like, he might figure out how to, you know, give you what you need as well. You just got to give him a little time.
Ryan Rosillo
These things.
Ceruti
I just, I just wouldn't be throwing away good friends because he needs to. He's going through a little bit of action. Yeah, that's. We, we talked about multiple times in this pod how hard it is to find dude friends. So I just think get a hold on to those if you got a decent one.
Ryan Rosillo
We could have five emails from guys next week being like does this guy want to hang out with me? I just need to.
Ceruti
Can I get this guy's number down?
Ryan Rosillo
He's going through this stuff but he's, he's still out and about. Like there's some people are devastated. You could have Mikey from Swinger situation where you're eating subs on the floor looking at Polaroids. Right? So yeah, you don't. You should be happy that you're not going over to console your friend in that situation. In a way she's kind of doing some of that stuff for you. But I am always kind of. I don't know if I could ever write this out but like the tier of standards, like the standards that we hold people to depending on the relationship, the irony of like what we hope people like adhere to standard wise the people we know the least we hold to the highest standards. One tweet it's like you know, and you just go oh yeah, but you don't even like. And then it's like oh if you knew the person or whatever. And then like the more familiar you become with the person, whether it's a woken conversation. No, but seriously, I guess you could do that. But um, the anonymous post of like that's everything about you to the family member where you're just standards are like I have no choice, like I, I can't pick my family. This is, this is what the deal is going to be. I'm. I'm not explaining this in a great way but like I'm kind of endlessly fascinated with the tier of how like the x Y axis of actual intimacy of relationship. Not speaking sexually. I'm just talking about like how well you know someone and the standards that you hold them to versus the standards. And somewhere in the middle is this guy who's just your buddy who you're like, you know what I'm going to tell you right now as we end this? There's no scenario in three years where if you're still friends, you're hanging around, you're like remember that three month window when you were hooking up with that girl where that altered the course of the universe? It's actually not going to happen. How much more time do we have by the way?
Ceruti
We have, we got time.
Kyle
Whatever you need.
Ryan Rosillo
We have time. All right. Yeah, I'll do a little. Do a little trivia. Well, not a little trivia, because I'm not gonna. I'm not gonna drop it. So yesterday with the trade deadline thing, I ended up not doing anything. So that's why we did the stuff at the top of the show. And for whatever reason. Well, actually, there's a lot of reasons, because usually when I'm like, in and out of New Orleans, there's not a ton of free time. So yesterday before the deadline, I was like, well, I guess if I'm not doing anything, I can just re. You know, look at everything and then I'll go back and prep later in the day and have it for today and some of the different stuff. So I went over, you know, I saw Chris Long and all the Green light guys and hung out there for a little bit, and they were cooking an alligator, and I was like, you know what? Yeah, it was. It was intense in person. Met Kyle Hamilton, best safety in the NFL.
Kyle
Your guy.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. Love that dude. Grew up a huge LSU fan. Yeah. I don't know, there's a few other stories. Nothing like crazy or anything, but here's what I wanted to share with the audience is that that World War II museum here in New Orleans must see. I know people super bowl week, like to party with drugs, alcohol, maybe meet somebody. I like to party with history. And I couldn't even make it through. I spent two and a half hours in there, and I didn't even finish half of it. And, you know, there's some stuff I knew. I feel like my Pacific stuff is a little light. I feel like nobody ever talks about Italy basically. A lot of it's Western Europe, you know, what. What you spend your time looking at. So I definitely have some holes to fill in, some gaps. Some of the stuff was just great. Kurt Vonnegut set up there the. A copy of the original log of Hiroshima from the flight log, or I guess this is a copy that the pilot who kept the log gave to his children. So there's like five copies. But the original, I guess, was bought at an auction. Nobody knows, or maybe people do know where it is, but it didn't say where it was in the museum or anything. So as I'm doing that, you know, and again, I'm starting to be concerned a little bit. Some self awareness here. I appreciate Saruti pointing that out with me, that I'm not like, if I get through this self awareness phase of having none, then I'm worried. But I sometimes don't know if I'm doing a bit or if this is actually who I am. Is that fair, Ceruti? Yeah, yeah, right. Like, I wanted to go to the museum, but was like. I was like, do I want to tell people that I'm going to the museum? Is that kind of like the funny add on that guys are sitting around being like, what do you want to do today? I go, I'm going to that museum. It closes at five. Like, I've always wanted to go. I've never had the window. The window is now. And I'm going so to.
Ceruti
Well, you would do. You would do like complete, you know, the Instagram picture in front of the museum. Not don't tag the museum. Nobody knows where you are. And it would just be like a Churchill quote.
Ryan Rosillo
Well, I haven't done it.
Kyle
Figures it out if you know, you know.
Ceruti
Yeah, right.
Ryan Rosillo
Best Advanced Scouting. I haven't done it yet. I have the picture. I've selected the picture to do just that.
Ceruti
I knew it.
Ryan Rosillo
I thought I was going to. I thought I was going to do it last night. So that's kind of where the story ends, is I go to take a picture while I'm in one of the theaters, the Normandy Theater, right? And I was like, how can I make this as awkward as possible? And it's already pretty awkward because I was at the gym, I was in a cutoff LSU shirt, which I forgot. I packed the one with no sleeves. So I was just walking around all day with no sleeves on for LSU shirt, forgot the sleeves and got a hat on. And I was like, I'll just take a selfie, old guy selfie, bad angle, whatever. And just, you know, put the cherry on top of this entire experience. And so the theater screen is behind me, and I go to take the selfie, and then I look at the picture because I can't see the screen behind me. And then I look at the picture and let's just say the picture snapped at the worst possible time.
Kyle
Not even going to joke, huh?
Ceruti
I don't want to take any guesses. Yeah, yeah.
Kyle
Not even worth a joke post.
Ryan Rosillo
Not even worth a joke. No, because there was no. Yeah, there was no.
Kyle
Just detail of it all.
Ceruti
You didn't look at the. And go, hey, maybe we do a redo. You just took it and.
Ryan Rosillo
No, of course, that's exactly what I did. I was like, well, I have to do another one. But look at people. Skater. I'm even telling this story. It was a World War II museum, folks.
Ceruti
Was, you know, it's gonna be some unsettling stuff in there.
Ryan Rosillo
Yeah. So anyway, battle the bulge, though. Good comeback for those guys. Patton to the rescue. Coming in like Mike Stanton. All right, that'll do it for us on the podcast. Today, Monday, Wednesday, Friday, next week. Right. So we're still a little ways away.
Ceruti
Or Friday Feedback next Friday. Friday Feedback. Get your, get your, get your emails in. Was it Friday feedback? Rr Gmail.com I believe that's the address.
Ryan Rosillo
Like that.
Kyle
Okay, good.
Ryan Rosillo
He's not supposed to know that. Friday feedback rrgmail.com you can leave a little Yelp review on what it is we're doing. Everybody enjoy the Super Bowl. Thanks to Oregon. Thanks to Kyle. Thanks to Ceruti. Check out our YouTube page and of course, subscribe Ryan Rosilla Podcast Ringer Spotify.
Kyle
Foreign.
Ryan Rosillo
Must be 21 and older President select states for Kansas in affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18+ and present in D.C. gambling problem. Call 1-800- gambler or visit rg-help.com, call 888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org chat in Connecticut or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland. Hope is here. Visit gamblinghelplinema.org or call 800-327-5050 for 24. 7 support in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8-HOPE NY or text HOPE NY in New York.
Podcast Summary: The Ryen Russillo Podcast – Episode Featuring Troy Aikman
Episode Information:
a. Jimmy Butler to Golden State Warriors
Ryan Rosillo opens the discussion by delving into the high-profile trade of Jimmy Butler from Miami Heat to the Golden State Warriors. Troy Aikman emphasizes the strategic nature of this move, suggesting that Golden State was likely the only viable option once Kevin Durant opted out of rejoining.
Troy Aikman [25:30]: "The Jimmy Butler acquisition for Golden State is a perfect example of waiting for the perfect plan not being the best approach, especially in basketball."
Aikman contemplates whether Golden State might have preferred trading for a player like Kevin Durant, given their history and Durant's fit within their offensive system.
Troy Aikman [26:15]: "Durant's ability to not stop the basketball was a great fit for Golden State. With Butler, you get a ball-stopper who can help run the offense in a different way."
b. Kevin Durant’s Trade History and Fit with Warriors
Aikman reflects on Durant's tumultuous relationship with Golden State, noting his multiple team changes and eventual dissatisfaction even in Phoenix.
Troy Aikman [24:50]: "Durant's time with Golden State was filled with successes but also a longing to move on, highlighting the complexities of fitting into a team’s longstanding system."
He contrasts this with Butler's arrival, questioning whether Butler’s style aligns better with Golden State's current dynamics compared to Durant.
c. DeAndre Hunter’s Trade to Cleveland Cavaliers
The conversation shifts to DeAndre Hunter's move to Cleveland, where Aikman praises the Cavaliers' acquisition for adding a reliable wing option.
Troy Aikman [27:40]: "Hunter's improved three-point shooting and decision-making make him a valuable asset for Cleveland, especially against tough defensive matchups like Boston."
Aikman highlights Hunter’s shooting efficiency and his ability to adapt his play, which enhances Cleveland's offensive versatility.
d. Mark Williams’ Trade to Charlotte Hornets
Discussing the trade of Mark Williams to the Charlotte Hornets, Aikman expresses surprise but acknowledges Charlotte's need to address their center position.
Troy Aikman [28:30]: "Mark Williams brings athleticism and a strong lob threat, which is exactly what Charlotte needs to bolster their defense against impactful players like Luca."
He notes Williams' defensive challenges but remains optimistic about his potential development within a supportive environment.
a. Troy Aikman’s Super Bowl Picks: Kansas City vs. Philadelphia
Troy Aikman shares his Super Bowl LIX prediction, favoring the Kansas City Chiefs over the Philadelphia Eagles. He cites the Chiefs' consistency and Mahomes' exceptional performance as key factors.
Troy Aikman [25:59]: "If I had to pick, I would go with Kansas City just because of what they've accomplished up to this point and their ability to win one-score games consistently."
Aikman acknowledges Philadelphia as a strong contender but feels Kansas City's experience and Mahomes' leadership give them the edge.
b. Patrick Mahomes: Strengths and Potential Weaknesses
A significant portion of the discussion centers on Patrick Mahomes. Aikman lauds Mahomes' exceptional field vision and decision-making.
Troy Aikman [32:56]: "Mahomes sees the entire defense better than anyone else in the league. His ability to understand coverages and find soft spots makes him arguably the best quarterback right now."
When questioned about any weaknesses Mahomes might have, Aikman confidently states he doesn’t see any significant vulnerabilities.
Troy Aikman [34:55]: "I don't think there's anything a defense can latch onto that makes Mahomes uncomfortable. He's consistently performing at an elite level."
c. Jalen Hurts and His Matchup Against Mahomes
Comparing Mahomes to Jalen Hurts, Aikman discusses Hurts' improvement and acknowledges his strengths while hinting at areas for growth.
Troy Aikman [40:13]: "Hurts has made tremendous progress and has become a formidable quarterback. His focus on the running game adds a new dimension to Philadelphia's offense."
Aikman believes that while Hurts is excellent, Mahomes’ superior field awareness still sets him apart in the upcoming Super Bowl matchup.
a. Balancing Ownership with Broadcasting Duties
The podcast touches upon Tom Brady's unique position of balancing ownership with broadcasting responsibilities. Aikman addresses the potential conflicts and criticisms surrounding this dual role.
Troy Aikman [49:55]: "Balancing ownership with broadcasting isn't straightforward, especially when it involves the Super Bowl. There needs to be clear boundaries to maintain objectivity."
b. Defense and Support of Brady’s Roles
Aikman defends Brady, noting his dedication and understanding of both roles. He emphasizes the importance of maintaining integrity and not letting one role overshadow the other.
Troy Aikman [51:52]: "Brady has done his homework extensively, understanding what the Raiders need. His involvement is strategic and aimed at benefiting the team without compromising his broadcasting integrity."
a. Continuity in Coaching and Offensive Systems
Aikman underscores the importance of coaching continuity in building a successful team, drawing parallels between his playing days and current NFL strategies.
Troy Aikman [27:51]: "Coaching matters as much as players do. Consistency from the coaching staff allows players like Mahomes to excel within a familiar system."
b. The Evolving Nature of NFL Offenses
The discussion also highlights the shifting dynamics of NFL offenses, with teams increasingly valuing balanced attacks that blend passing and running effectively.
Troy Aikman [36:53]: "The pendulum is swinging back to balanced offenses. Teams like Philadelphia exemplify this with their strong running game complementing their passing strategies."
c. Final Predictions and Super Bowl Excitement
Wrapping up, Aikman reiterates his confidence in Kansas City’s chances and praises Mahomes' ability to lead the team to victory.
Troy Aikman [26:42]: "Kansas City has the experience, the coaching, and the quarterback to take another Super Bowl title home. Mahomes continues to prove why he's at the top of the league."
[25:30] Troy Aikman: "The Jimmy Butler acquisition for Golden State is a perfect example of waiting for the perfect plan not being the best approach, especially in basketball."
[26:15] Troy Aikman: "Durant's ability to not stop the basketball was a great fit for Golden State. With Butler, you get a ball-stopper who can help run the offense in a different way."
[27:40] Troy Aikman: "Hunter's improved three-point shooting and decision-making make him a valuable asset for Cleveland, especially against tough defensive matchups like Boston."
[28:30] Troy Aikman: "Mark Williams brings athleticism and a strong lob threat, which is exactly what Charlotte needs to bolster their defense against impactful players like Luca."
[25:59] Troy Aikman: "If I had to pick, I would go with Kansas City just because of what they've accomplished up to this point and their ability to win one-score games consistently."
[32:56] Troy Aikman: "Mahomes sees the entire defense better than anyone else in the league. His ability to understand coverages and find soft spots makes him arguably the best quarterback right now."
[34:55] Troy Aikman: "I don't think there's anything a defense can latch onto that makes Mahomes uncomfortable. He's consistently performing at an elite level."
[40:13] Troy Aikman: "Hurts has made tremendous progress and has become a formidable quarterback. His focus on the running game adds a new dimension to Philadelphia's offense."
[49:55] Troy Aikman: "Balancing ownership with broadcasting isn't straightforward, especially when it involves the Super Bowl. There needs to be clear boundaries to maintain objectivity."
[51:52] Troy Aikman: "Brady has done his homework extensively, understanding what the Raiders need. His involvement is strategic and aimed at benefiting the team without compromising his broadcasting integrity."
[27:51] Troy Aikman: "Coaching matters as much as players do. Consistency from the coaching staff allows players like Mahomes to excel within a familiar system."
[36:53] Troy Aikman: "The pendulum is swinging back to balanced offenses. Teams like Philadelphia exemplify this with their strong running game complementing their passing strategies."
[26:42] Troy Aikman: "Kansas City has the experience, the coaching, and the quarterback to take another Super Bowl title home. Mahomes continues to prove why he's at the top of the league."
In this episode, Troy Aikman provides an in-depth analysis of the major NBA trade deadline moves, highlighting the strategic acquisitions and their potential impact on the teams involved. Transitioning to the Super Bowl LIX preview, Aikman shares his confidence in Patrick Mahomes and the Kansas City Chiefs overcoming the Philadelphia Eagles. Additionally, he addresses the complexities of Tom Brady's dual role in ownership and broadcasting, emphasizing the need for balance and integrity. Aikman's insights offer listeners a comprehensive understanding of current sports dynamics, enriched with expert commentary and thoughtful predictions.