Latest / The Daily Play With Joy Taylor / QB Battle in Atlanta Heats Up, Mendoza’s Solid Raiders Start, and the 2026 Basketball Hall of Fame Class

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QB Battle in Atlanta Heats Up, Mendoza’s Solid Raiders Start, and the 2026 Basketball Hall of Fame Class · The Daily Play With Joy Taylor

• 0:02
  Speaker 1: Hey guys, Welcome to The Daily Play with Joy Taylor.
• 0:04
  Speaker 1: Thanks so much for joining me.
• 0:05
  Speaker 2: Make sure you hit subscribe and follow us on social
• 0:08
  Speaker 2: at The Daily Play Joy Taylor. So Tua Tua is
• 0:13
  Speaker 2: a player that I have covered quite a bit over
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  Speaker 2: the past couple of years, quite intensely. He is a
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  Speaker 2: bit of a controversial figure, and he is no longer
• 0:22
  Speaker 2: in Miami. He is now with the Falcons and he
• 0:26
  Speaker 2: made his preseason debut on Saturday and wasn't great.
• 0:30
  Speaker 1: Went three for five for twenty two yards.
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  Speaker 2: The Falcons offense made just one first down on to
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  Speaker 2: his two possessions to start the game, despite having Jean
• 0:39
  Speaker 2: Robinson and Kyle Pitts on the field with him to
• 0:42
  Speaker 2: pretty talented players. The twenty twenty fifth overall pick is
• 0:47
  Speaker 2: in a quarterback battle. If you know me, you know
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  Speaker 2: how much I love those, But they are in a
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  Speaker 2: quarterback battle in Atlanta with Michael Penick Junior, who was
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  Speaker 2: the eighth overall pick for the starting job. Penix is
• 1:00
  Speaker 2: coming back from an ACL injury and hasn't been cleared
• 1:03
  Speaker 2: for eleven. On eleven, Tua talked about his performance in
• 1:05
  Speaker 2: the twenty seven seven home defeat to the Broncos. He said,
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  Speaker 2: frustrated and disappoint at the way things happened as we
• 1:13
  Speaker 2: went out there. I'm competing, I'm wanting to go out
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  Speaker 2: there for points on the board. I'm not going out
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  Speaker 2: there We'll go three and out three. Now I'm not
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  Speaker 2: being able to perform the level I know I'm able to,
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  Speaker 2: so always looking at everything as a competition, but just
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  Speaker 2: got to be better. Just thinking about what we put
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  Speaker 2: out there is not a reflection of the hard work
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  Speaker 2: that we put in the first two weeks of training camp,
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  Speaker 2: and it does no justice for the work that our
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  Speaker 2: coaches as well have implemented.
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  Speaker 1: So it starts with me. I know I have to
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  Speaker 1: be better than that.
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  Speaker 2: New Falcons head coach Kevin Stefanski had thoughts as.
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  Speaker 1: Well, saying there's planing to clean up.
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  Speaker 2: I thought it was great being in our building for
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  Speaker 2: a lot of us being in there for the first time.
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  Speaker 1: The offense didn't move the ball well.
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  Speaker 2: When he was asked to evaluate to his performance, he said,
• 1:51
  Speaker 2: it's hard to give a grade on that sample size
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  Speaker 2: of only nine snaps. Well, the fans in the media
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  Speaker 2: are certainly going to give a grade on nine snaps,
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  Speaker 2: and that's why he's the head coach and we are
• 2:01
  Speaker 2: the fans in the media. However, there's still a month
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  Speaker 2: until a regular season starts August thirteenth at the Steelers
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  Speaker 2: for the Falcons, and Penix is rushing to get back
• 2:13
  Speaker 2: by then. But I don't see how even if he
• 2:16
  Speaker 2: is back, Tua is not the starter based off of
• 2:21
  Speaker 2: the time that they're going to need to implement Pennis
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  Speaker 2: back into this since he is still recovering.
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  Speaker 1: But this is a hot mess and.
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  Speaker 2: It's it's not a good situation for the Falcons, who
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  Speaker 2: do have a lot of talented players. Sefanski is a
• 2:35
  Speaker 2: good coach in my opinion, but I don't like quarterback competitions.
• 2:39
  Speaker 2: I don't know if Pennix is a certified franchise guy.
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  Speaker 2: I don't think obviously if he was, they wouldn't be
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  Speaker 2: in a quarterback competition, and two it would.
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  Speaker 1: Be the backup. Two has won a lot of games,
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  Speaker 1: but he is also a very unreliable player.
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  Speaker 2: He is physically unreliable from an availability standpoint, and he
• 2:57
  Speaker 2: is inconsistent in play. This is a preseason debut, it's
• 3:03
  Speaker 2: not a big pample sample size, but that's not the
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  Speaker 2: impression that you want to leave, particularly in preseason when
• 3:09
  Speaker 2: you are a guy who was a first round pick
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  Speaker 2: and was a franchise guy in Miami.
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  Speaker 1: So I don't know if he has.
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  Speaker 2: You know, reverted back to some of his old ways,
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  Speaker 2: if he has taken a step back. Overall, I don't
• 3:26
  Speaker 2: think you unlearn how to do something. But this is
• 3:30
  Speaker 2: a this is a tough situation for the Falcons and
• 3:33
  Speaker 2: they're going to need to clean that up very quickly
• 3:35
  Speaker 2: or the noise is going.
• 3:36
  Speaker 1: To get really loud over with the Raiders.
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  Speaker 2: Though, Fernanda Mendoza, number one overall pick in this year's draft,
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  Speaker 2: looks pretty good. He threw his first touchdown pass in
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  Speaker 2: his first preseason game with the Silver and Black. He
• 3:51
  Speaker 2: was ten for sixteen for ninety nine yards and a
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  Speaker 2: touchdown to Jack Besh, which he fired in between the linebackers. However,
• 4:00
  Speaker 2: or He was not happy with his performance. He said, unfortunate,
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  Speaker 2: I let my teammates down today. But it's a growing
• 4:03
  Speaker 2: experience and I feel like we're all growing. It showed
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  Speaker 2: me that I need to grow a lot. Clint Kubiak
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  Speaker 2: saw it a little bit more. How I did was
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  Speaker 2: he led a good scoring drive as far as getting
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  Speaker 2: in out of the huddle and commanding the group and
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  Speaker 2: getting the plays calls down. I saw the same guy
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  Speaker 2: they've seen in practice. I see an as sending player.
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  Speaker 2: The thing about Mendoza is he is a very he's
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  Speaker 2: a very interesting quote.
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  Speaker 1: Now. I like quarterbacks speak.
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  Speaker 2: I like it because I don't want crazy quotes from quarterbacks.
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  Speaker 2: I am a bit of a get off my long
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  Speaker 2: guy when it comes to that. I just don't think
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  Speaker 2: it's beneficial for quarterbacks. It always causes controversy. It very
• 4:40
  Speaker 2: rarely benefits them. They sort of have to be the
• 4:44
  Speaker 2: corporate guy. They're the leader that the face so the
• 4:46
  Speaker 2: woman that gets asked all the questions. It's just usually
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  Speaker 2: better for them and for the team if they're not
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  Speaker 2: the ones who are giving the spicy comments to the media.
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  Speaker 2: But that being said, you don't need to sel be
• 4:59
  Speaker 2: selped out. He did not play poorly. That touchdown pass
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  Speaker 2: was very impressive. It's not a big sample size and
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  Speaker 2: it's your first preseason game.
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  Speaker 1: Just you know, like.
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  Speaker 2: Just lighten up, you know, like you things could things
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  Speaker 2: could be a lot worse and likely will get worse
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  Speaker 2: in his first season with the Raiders, So you know
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  Speaker 2: this whole Like, I let my teammates down. Thing like
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  Speaker 2: save that for when you really did let someone down.
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  Speaker 2: You didn't let anybody down. It's your first preseason game.
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  Speaker 2: The expectations are that you just go out there and
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  Speaker 2: look competent, which you did. Kirk Cousins is going to
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  Speaker 2: be the one who bears the brunt of the start
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  Speaker 2: of this season.
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  Speaker 1: That's what they brought him in for.
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  Speaker 2: So you know, I do get it that he is
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  Speaker 2: sort of like always this this perfect quote Mendoza is
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  Speaker 2: and for a lot of people they feel like it's
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  Speaker 2: fake or it's like methodical.
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  Speaker 1: I don't really feel that way.
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  Speaker 2: I don't care if it's fake or not because I
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  Speaker 2: don't want drama from the quarterbacks. But I do think
• 6:00
  Speaker 2: you have to be measured with this, like at some
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  Speaker 2: point it does become disingenuous.
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  Speaker 1: You didn't let anybody down. You did a great job.
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  Speaker 2: There are very low expectations for you in this situation.
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  Speaker 2: It's all about developments, which for once, the Raiders are
• 6:15
  Speaker 2: getting right. While I usually think that young guys like
• 6:18
  Speaker 2: him should be playing right away in this situation with
• 6:20
  Speaker 2: the Raiders who have habitually taken quarterbacks out of the
• 6:23
  Speaker 2: league and are now in another rendition with another coach
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  Speaker 2: and another system.
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  Speaker 1: I do think this is a place where you.
• 6:30
  Speaker 2: Can ease Mendoza in and set him up for a
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  Speaker 2: successful future in the league. You don't need to put
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  Speaker 2: extra pressure on the situation by saying that.
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  Speaker 1: It didn't go well. It did go well.
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  Speaker 2: You got out of there healthy, you scored a touchdown,
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  Speaker 2: You're coaches saying good things about you.
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  Speaker 1: And the overall read is.
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  Speaker 2: Not that he had a bad game. So and I
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  Speaker 2: don't think that he did, and his coach doesn't think
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  Speaker 2: that he did. And I'm sure his teammates don't feel
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  Speaker 2: that they let that he let them down either. So
• 7:02
  Speaker 2: there's a lot of football left to play. And man,
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  Speaker 2: so you know, you did a good job and let's
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  Speaker 2: keep developing. So let's move on from NFL to some
• 7:12
  Speaker 2: folks that are celebrating incredible careers. The Naysmith Basketball Hall
• 7:15
  Speaker 2: of Fame enshrinment was Saturday at Symphony Hall in Springfield, Massachusetts.
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  Speaker 2: The class of twenty twenty six Shamika Holdsklaw, Joey Crawford,
• 7:25
  Speaker 2: Mark Few, Doc Rivers, Mary Stodameier Atlenta, Della del don
• 7:29
  Speaker 2: Kandae Parker, Mike D'Antoni and the nineteen ninety six United
• 7:33
  Speaker 2: States women's national team.
• 7:36
  Speaker 1: Congrats to everyone going into the Hall of Fame.
• 7:39
  Speaker 2: I had the honor of being at the Hall of
• 7:43
  Speaker 2: Fame ceremony when my brother went into the Pro Football
• 7:47
  Speaker 2: Hall of Fame.
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  Speaker 1: It's a massive honor of obviously.
• 7:50
  Speaker 2: Incredible careers and well deserved celebrations. I do think that
• 7:58
  Speaker 2: it's a bit, uh, it's a bit bittersweet for me
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  Speaker 2: because you know, these are icons of my childhood, which
• 8:07
  Speaker 2: are you know, you know, obviously no longer playing, but
• 8:10
  Speaker 2: are also now in the Hall of Fame. And we
• 8:12
  Speaker 2: just you know, recently saw Russell Westbrook retire, and you know,
• 8:15
  Speaker 2: it's just a reminder that the time is coming for
• 8:18
  Speaker 2: us all and you know, we're just we're looking at
• 8:22
  Speaker 2: different leagues now.
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  Speaker 1: So but big congrats to everyone who went into the
• 8:26
  Speaker 1: Hall of Fame. Great speeches.
• 8:28
  Speaker 2: Was cool to see everyone come together, as it always
• 8:31
  Speaker 2: is at these ceremonies, and we are, you know, we
• 8:35
  Speaker 2: are celebrating our greats. And these were greats that were
• 8:38
  Speaker 2: playing when I was a kid and when I was
• 8:40
  Speaker 2: in high school and college and an adult, and now
• 8:44
  Speaker 2: they're retired and in the Hall of fame, but we
• 8:46
  Speaker 2: love to see it, so congrats everyone. Thanks so much
• 8:48
  Speaker 2: for joining me on the Daily Play For more onless
• 8:50
  Speaker 2: and other top stories of the day.
• 8:52
  Speaker 1: Tune into The Daily Play at urbanwepodcast dot com or
• 8:54
  Speaker 1: wherever you get your podcasts. Make sure you hit subscribe.
• 8:56
  Speaker 1: Follow us some social at The Daily play Joy Taylor