Latest / Banter with the Boys / NFL 2025 | *Soup or Bowl* Preview* & "Tent Talk" | Updates, News & Injuries | Banter with the Boys - Gridiron Updates

Transcript

NFL 2025 | *Soup or Bowl* Preview* & "Tent Talk" | Updates, News & Injuries | Banter with the Boys - Gridiron Updates · Banter with the Boys

0:00
get laced up let's go it's time for banter with
0:04
the boys yo what it is old bristles welcome back
0:16
to banter with the boys gridiron updates we got
0:19
the Well, we can verbally call it the Super Bowl
0:23
episode, Kev, I think. Yeah, yeah. It's a long
0:26
title. On the title, it'll probably be called,
0:29
yeah, including the Kev part. Yeah. But on the
0:32
title, it'll probably say the big game because
0:33
otherwise we can't post it or something stupid.
0:36
I don't know. Whatever. No. Soup or bowl. Yeah.
0:40
Soup or bowl. Ooh, there we go. There's the workaround.
0:43
If you were to listen to last week, all the fans
0:45
know that's how it's called. Okay. Soup or bowl.
0:47
I didn't listen. I guess, even though I did.
0:51
I don't remember that part. Anyway, Rob's here.
0:54
Yes. Roberto. Thanks. Excited. This week off
0:58
football sucked. This Monday, I felt really odd.
1:03
There was no football. Yeah, good thing you weren't
1:05
waiting on anybody in a league or anything. You
1:08
could have been playing football video games,
1:09
but you had to wait. Yeah, I know. Maybe that'll
1:12
happen next time, Cordelius. Yeah. Anyway, Justin,
1:18
what's up, buddy? Appreciate you having me. Of
1:20
course, of course. Yeah, I wasn't here last week
1:24
because I was sick, but the week before that,
1:25
Justin Cav, behind the camera, of course, and
1:28
I were at a card show, so that was fun. Anyway.
1:32
Hoping your JJ cards pan out. I don't have a
1:36
ridiculous amount. Did you buy all the JJ cars?
1:39
No. No, I was trying to sell them. They were
1:41
giving them out for free to kids. And not a single,
1:43
nuh -uh. I thought that's why you were wearing
1:46
that shirt. I'm sorry. Oh, my God. Anyway, Jake,
1:51
what's up? Hey. Yeah. Were you saying the deals
1:53
are tight? Oh, my God. These guys. Jeez. All
1:58
right, Kev, let's just head right into our tent
2:01
talk. episode. Dang, I probably can't do that
2:04
this week, buddy. I've got a bid draft. 9 -1
2:13
-1, what's your emergency? Welcome back. All
2:23
right. Anyway. Football, baby. Yeah. Lock in.
2:27
Yeah, you lock in. I'm locked in. You're just
2:29
fucking around. God. Anyway. All right. Injuries.
2:32
I don't know. There's some whatever day -to -day
2:37
stuff, but most likely everybody on both teams
2:40
will play. The only one that was kind of officially
2:43
questionable was Seattle offensive tackle Amari
2:46
Kite. Otherwise, everything is looking good to
2:51
go. Is he officially out? Is that what you're
2:53
saying? No, he's officially questionable. Okay.
2:56
Nobody else was like official, official. So the
2:59
Drake May injury report, is that fake like Darnold's
3:04
oblique injury? It's Super Bowl BS. I don't know.
3:07
But I did see Sam, though, during the... NFC
3:11
Championship game, like, wins a couple times,
3:14
but are you just saying he was acting, probably?
3:16
Yeah, golf simulators will do that in your garage.
3:21
Must be nice. It is. What is going on? Yeah,
3:28
I know. Is that what happens to you in your shed?
3:31
No, I'm just saying it's a possibility, you know.
3:34
They asked Drake that question during the opening
3:37
of the Super Bowl last night, and he said he's
3:39
feeling good and feels like he turned a corner.
3:41
So it feels very similar like it was. uh the
3:44
sam darnold situation he'll be ready to go speaking
3:47
of opening the super bowl last night and i don't
3:50
know if it was bs or not because it wasn't it
3:52
wasn't jimmy kimmel's dude asking him but it
3:54
was like some dude literally asked literally
3:56
asked ravel like if this is a must -win game
4:00
together on the must -win like what that was
4:03
will compton dude i don't know who he was around
4:06
walking around Will Compton is from Bustle with
4:10
the Boys. Yeah, Bustle with the Boys. Oh, wow.
4:12
That's my problem, I guess. Yeah, you need to
4:13
get on the internet more. Yeah, clearly, clearly.
4:16
But yeah, he walked around and asked everybody.
4:18
He's like, so you're thinking this is more of
4:20
a must -win game or can't -lose type of game?
4:26
He's so funny. Oh, man. I'm going to have to
4:28
look that up. He trolled you well. Yeah, he did.
4:31
He got me. I was like, dude, is this guy serious
4:34
right now? What the fuck? Anyway. So, whatever.
4:39
Injuries right now. Not really anything crazy
4:41
going on. We did have some news come out, though.
4:44
New news. This week. News. Lots of news. We'll
4:47
wait about the Vikings thing until the second.
4:49
We'll save that one for last. Naturally. Best
4:52
for last on this show. Matt Nagy becomes the
4:56
Giants OC. I don't know. That just kind of stuck
4:58
out a little bit. Seemed like an interesting
5:00
move, teaming up with old Harbaugh. Working with
5:04
Dart. Mike LaFleur, though, to become Arizona's
5:08
head coach, and you said he was just introduced
5:10
today. Yeah, he just had his press conference
5:12
today. Did you watch it? I did not, but I saw
5:14
that. Matt LaFleur was there, which is cool,
5:17
supporting his brother, and said, hey, years
5:20
back, if someone told you that you'd be a head
5:24
coach and your brother would be a head coach,
5:25
would you believe them? He's like, no, I would
5:28
have said they're full of poo. This is what he
5:31
said for the kids keeping a PC. Yeah, right on,
5:34
right on, right on. I was just curious if there
5:36
was any, like, Liam Cohen awkward moment. Not
5:39
that has been reported yet. Because that would
5:40
be me, like, if I ever got in that situation.
5:43
And it worked out pretty well. I'd dimple, fumble,
5:44
and mumble my words. Hey, that's why we have
5:47
a podcast. Whoa, is he okay? Have you got to
5:49
medically check him out? Like, no, no, it's just
5:52
what he is. It's all good. The Jim Schwartz thing
5:56
is kind of interesting. The Browns hired old
6:00
What's -His -Nuts Monken. Todd Monken. Todd Monken.
6:05
Todd What's -His -Nuts Monken. Yeah, yeah, yeah.
6:08
Write that down there. I'm sorry, Todd. It's
6:10
shit. Sorry. Wow. I know. Got to get it together
6:16
here. Took a week off. Yeah, no doubt. But Jim
6:21
Schwartz kind of seems like he feels a little
6:22
slighted. Do you agree or disagree with? how
6:25
he's feeling right now. There's been a lot of
6:27
no comments coming our way. I think he is completely
6:31
entitled to feel the way he wants to feel. You
6:33
put it into any type of work setting. If you're
6:36
working towards a job and one of your... peers
6:38
colleagues gets that job and now you have to
6:41
go report to them but you're still doing a huge
6:44
piece of the work you're probably going to want
6:46
to shift into a different team or look at something
6:48
else to do if you'd been working towards that
6:50
job and that job was your goal so i understand
6:53
how he feels i think he's justified to feel that
6:55
way i do think he's probably handling it well
6:57
he could come out and be saying all kinds of
6:59
different things he's keeping it to a close circle
7:02
and someone out of that close circle is saying
7:05
things which i don't necessarily have a problem
7:07
with I think it's good to get it out now, and
7:09
hopefully they can figure it out before the season.
7:12
Keep a little filter in between him and the media.
7:15
I didn't say that. That dude said that. And it's
7:19
nothing that money can't solve for them, for
7:21
Cleveland. Because money solves all their problems,
7:24
apparently. Yeah, that seems to go well for everybody.
7:28
Deshaun. Deshaun Watson. Miles Garrett. Yeah.
7:34
Let's see. The Vikings came out with some pretty
7:37
big news this week. Allegedly, Kweisi was at
7:42
the Senior Bowl, maybe, even though he hasn't
7:44
really gone in years past. I saw him there. But
7:47
he was there. Oh, you were there. Yeah. Flying
7:50
my drone. How was it? It was great. It was beautiful
7:52
weather. Where were we? Where was it? But yeah,
7:59
no, Kweisi out. And then, of course, now all
8:01
sorts of different. Reports coming out about
8:05
the handling of the Sam Darnold situation and
8:09
that maybe KOC wanted Sam Darnold, but Kweisi
8:13
just didn't because it wasn't what his PFF chart
8:16
was telling him or whatever. There's rumors of
8:19
that, too. Ouch. Yeah, I know. So I don't know.
8:24
Rob, Roberto. Roberto. How do you feel about
8:28
the Kweisi news? Now that it's out and some people
8:32
have spoken and had some conversations, more
8:34
of what happened on the inside of it, it seems
8:37
like there was multiple things between his draft
8:41
record, the whole Sam Darnold scenario, and it
8:45
doesn't help that now Sam is taking interviews
8:49
at the Super Bowl. And then also, I mean, the
8:52
two -week maternity leave thing, I've saw that
8:54
come across multiple times. Now, that's an interesting
8:58
topic. I mean, that's the reality of corporate
9:00
world. It is what it is. I know everyone wants
9:03
to be happy about everything, but that's just
9:05
not how the world spins all the time. I'd just
9:07
be curious if something comes of that now, too.
9:10
I thought Roger Goodell actually came out and
9:13
said something like, oh, well, we're going to
9:15
look at everything just to appease some of that.
9:18
I think he has, but it blows my mind in the football
9:20
world that you set that type of precedent at
9:23
the top, knowing that when you've had players
9:26
have kids, they're playing in games. I think
9:30
that happened with Joe Montana back in the day.
9:32
He was playing a game while his kid was born.
9:35
So it's really interesting the tone you set for
9:37
your team, and I think that's a culture statement
9:39
there. So it was really interesting that that
9:41
came out and some of the perception around it.
9:43
And who knows if it's even true? Yeah, well,
9:46
right. And then it's like, where is all this
9:47
information coming from, right? And then allegedly
9:50
he was never in the building, you know, never
9:52
really around that much and conversing with KOC
9:57
almost like ever, anything like that. So really
10:00
weird situation to be in. And then the Vikings
10:03
coming out and saying that they're not really
10:04
going to hire a GM until after the draft, which
10:07
is interesting. So like you were saying before.
10:12
I'm thinking this intern guy is probably going
10:14
to end up possibly getting a chance. Yeah, and
10:16
I can't remember. Is that going to get Jim Swartz?
10:18
That's putting a lot of faith in your scout team.
10:23
I mean, if your GM can't get it right with the
10:26
scout team that you have, what confidence do
10:29
you have in your interim? for this year. Or was
10:32
he taking advice from the scout team at all?
10:34
Maybe that was part of the deal. And he's the
10:36
team's vice president of football operations
10:39
since 1999. So he's been at the Vikings forever.
10:42
So it's just like, here you go while we look
10:46
because you've been here forever. Like, here's
10:48
a little reward for a little bit. And the KOC
10:49
might be just making all those decisions, really.
10:52
Or is he the secret sauce? Like, I go back to...
10:56
the Packers throughout the years. And one of
10:57
the secret sauces that everyone in Packerland
10:59
is known as Elliot Wolf. He's now the executive
11:03
of the Patriots that constructed who they are
11:05
this year. So is he one of those people that
11:08
has been kind of quiet through the ranks that
11:11
now is finally just getting his shot? Yeah, it
11:14
says here just at least through the NFL draft.
11:17
It doesn't say anything further than that. So
11:19
maybe we can continue the search. Who knows?
11:22
I get worried if they open that up and they don't
11:24
have their guy inside house, like what type of
11:26
talent are you going to attract for this next
11:29
year, knowing that you're going to be locked
11:30
into those picks and not be able to influence
11:33
free agency and the draft, and you have to wait
11:37
until next year, but you're on contract effectively
11:40
through that whole year. I think that's going
11:42
to be tough if you don't have that guy in house
11:44
already. Is KOC now officially on a head coaching
11:47
hot seat? If he doesn't... do well even with
11:50
i mean i feel like that's safe to say for anybody
11:54
that loses their gm probably it's like well something's
11:57
not been working if one if one of the other loses
11:59
their job then the other should probably feel
12:01
at least a little warm yeah you know well and
12:04
they were talking about this power struggle too
12:07
in the media between klc and the gm so i'm curious
12:11
what came KLC wanted Darnold, and then that didn't
12:14
happen. And then it came out that he wanted Jones.
12:19
That didn't happen. He wanted Rogers. That didn't
12:21
happen. So at one point, if you appease KLC,
12:25
maybe give him a little bit more power, and it
12:28
doesn't work out, I think that's a really good
12:29
point, that he's probably going to be on the
12:31
hot seat. A couple reports, too, of Flores not
12:33
getting along with him, too. With Kwesi? With
12:36
Kwesi. Sure. Well, yeah. Interesting. You're
12:41
adding both coaches that run the offense and
12:44
the defense having issues with the GM. It's time
12:47
for a move, it sounds like, and they got it.
12:52
We're winning the Super Bowl, so whoever's coming
12:54
in here next year is going to be walking into
12:57
it. Yeah, it's the Vikings. Vikings lose every
13:01
year. They just do it. They just lose it every
13:05
year. Anyway. Anything else this week that sticks
13:09
out to you fellas? Yeah. Clint Kubiak got hired
13:13
on as the head coach of the Las Vegas Raiders.
13:17
Is this the most head coaches in an offseason?
13:21
Tied. Tied? Yeah. For most all time? I think
13:23
so. Because it was six or seven years ago, there
13:27
were 10. Let's see what you did there. Tyler
13:33
did. It's all right. That many years ago, we
13:42
had 10. Do you remember the 10 teams? Just spout
13:46
them off. You can't look it up. The only one
13:48
that I really remember was the Texans and Lovie
13:50
Smith got hired. That was 10 years ago? Yeah.
13:56
It goes quick there when you're having fun there,
13:59
coach. Holy crap. Yeah, no kidding. No, I didn't
14:04
say 10 years ago. I said six. Oh, I thought you
14:06
said 10 years. Get ready, Rob. I said six or
14:08
seven years ago. I thought he said 10 teams.
14:12
10 teams. Oh, yeah, 10 teams. Six or seven years
14:14
ago. See, my numbers switched up. You know what
14:16
I mean? All right, whatever. Oh, man. Yeah, it's
14:19
all bad. Yeah, Lovie Smith. That was the cycle
14:21
that I think Matt LaFleur was hired into for
14:23
the Packers, too. It's been about seven years
14:24
he's been on staff. So I think that was a pretty
14:27
big pull. Yeah, write that down. Take a note.
14:29
He's all right. Or in the comments, tell how
14:32
much of an idiot we are. Stupid good buddy. Anyway,
14:35
what else is on your note sheet? Do you have
14:38
any other notes over there? That was a good one.
14:40
I don't know why I didn't have those. Just a
14:41
couple of offensive and defensive coordinator
14:44
things. Jim Leonard is going from the Broncos
14:48
over to be the defensive coordinator of the Buffalo
14:50
Bills. Jim Leonard's got a pretty good history
14:55
as far as being a defensive coordinator at the
14:59
college level. And here in the pros, he played
15:04
for the Ravens and the Bills and the Jets. So
15:06
he's got a whole bunch of experience. I think
15:09
he's going to fit in really well for the Bills.
15:11
He had a nice resume, is what you're saying.
15:13
Yeah. That was a huge get. Yeah. I mean, it does
15:16
help that he was a walk -on at Wisconsin. Yeah.
15:22
Broody. Mm -hmm. Oh, what else I have? Oh, just
15:25
the Ravens OC and defensive coordinator hires.
15:29
Declan Doyle taking off of the Chicago Bears.
15:34
Oh, Doyle rules. Oh, Doyle rules. Yeah, taking
15:36
off the Chicago Bears staff. And then Anthony
15:39
Weaver, the former defensive coordinator for
15:41
the Dolphins, going over and running that defense
15:44
in Baltimore. That's what I got. Love it or hate
15:48
it. I think it's all right. It's an upgrade over
15:54
Zach Orr, and Anthony Weaver was a head coaching
15:57
candidate for the Ravens. So they, for all intents
16:02
and purposes, got two of the coaches that they
16:06
were interested in. The old Bogo? Yeah, there
16:08
you go. Everyone loves a good Bogo. Yeah, for
16:13
sure. All right, so a little excitement there
16:16
in the purple world. That's right. Lamar Jackson
16:20
not going anywhere, probably? I think he's done
16:22
with those rumors, kind of. Yeah, they're kind
16:25
of done and over with to me. He's just retiring
16:27
from football instead. Oh, Lamar? Yeah. And doing
16:31
what? Him and Jameis are going to open up a chain
16:34
of Crab Shack restaurants. Yeah, with a specialty
16:37
of Thai lattes. Okay. Cool. Jeez. Cool. I don't
16:43
know. If you're on the Internet more, you would
16:45
know. I never go on the Internet. Yeah, I think
16:47
Lamar is staying put. Okay, other than the thing
16:49
that I saw about Le 'Veon Bell also now backing
16:52
up what OBJ said about how $100 million is not
16:55
enough money. I mean, it's true. They're spending
16:59
it on trees. Smoking them. Well, and then it
17:03
said all the things they spent their money on,
17:06
but lifestyle being one of them, it's like, well,
17:08
you would think at some point. God, probably
17:11
tone the lifestyle back a little bit if them
17:14
big game checks aren't coming anymore. You know
17:16
what I mean? Don't get me wrong. You get accustomed
17:18
to certain things and totally get that. I would,
17:20
too. I promise you, I would, too. But, like,
17:23
at some point, like... A bite can't be unbottoned
17:26
in your eyes. Like, you'd think you'd need to
17:29
be able to turn something off. Like, oh, shit,
17:31
I got to back off that a little bit because I
17:35
can't afford that shit no more. I don't know.
17:37
Yeah, well, it's that, and then I think Jameis
17:38
came out recently and said how many... people
17:40
in his circle of friends and family depended
17:42
on him, and he was spending a significant amount
17:44
of money just on being a nice guy and people
17:47
taking advantage of them, and that's tough. For
17:50
sure. That's on them. And you want to share the
17:52
love. For sure it is on them. I think they're
17:53
too young, though, too, right? When you're like
17:55
21, 22, you probably don't have the boundaries.
17:58
You have parents and family members that have
17:59
sacrificed so much to get you to where you're
18:01
at, so you have a little bit of guilt there,
18:03
too. I agree with trying to take care of your
18:07
parents and be like your immediate family. but
18:09
like cousins and stuff like that. And then I
18:12
think the NFL still has some kind of like rookie
18:14
orientation where they talk about all of these
18:17
things and like financial responsibilities and
18:20
stuff like that. Oh, it's for sure on them. I
18:23
can just understand the balance of. guilt and
18:26
everything that goes into that. So I should send
18:28
them emails saying I'm like a... I'll be your
18:30
new financial advisor. That I'm like a prince
18:32
from a foreign country and I just need them to
18:34
wire me some money. That'd be good. Like coming
18:37
to America. That happened to me once on Craigslist
18:42
when I was in like 8th grade. I was trying to
18:45
sell a drum set. For like $800. Don't touch my
18:48
drum set. For like $3 ,500. Even in 8th grade
18:52
I was like... This seems wrong. Like, that doesn't
18:55
feel right. Can we write this out? Turns out
18:57
it definitely was not real. Anyway, that was
19:01
weird. Yeah, was that it? That's all I got. That's
19:06
all we got for news. All right, well. Pro Bowl.
19:09
Anything you want to hit on? You want to have
19:10
fun other than JJ? It's officially streaming
19:14
on the ESPN app now. Yeah. As of like 21 minutes
19:19
ago. Okay. Spoilers, you now know what time we
19:22
started recording. They don't need to know that.
19:27
It's in the middle of the morning, real early,
19:30
like 5 .30. Yeah, right. All right, anyway. Anything
19:33
on the Hall of Fame drama? We talked about that.
19:36
Just that Bill Belichick and Kraft both are not
19:40
in it, allegedly. It's not dropping until Thursday.
19:43
So I did some more research because I was upset
19:46
about this, right? Yep. Yep. no they both i think
19:53
we were both kind of like what the heck yes but
19:55
uh so the reason well a reason why and it's not
19:59
just like a spite vote i mean i think there's
20:02
some some of that for sure um but so robert craft
20:07
and bill belichick are in the same pool of candidates
20:11
so there were like three senior hall of fame
20:14
candidates like players that are like soup like
20:17
played super long ago and they're running out
20:20
of their own secondary eligibility so they're
20:25
in the same pool there's five of them and the
20:28
voters can only vote on three out of the five
20:30
in that pool So there's probably some of the
20:37
voters probably were doing a sympathy vote, being
20:40
like, oh, these guys aren't going to ever make
20:42
it. We've got to get them in now, otherwise it's
20:45
too late. Participation award is all I'm hearing
20:49
now. I was just about to say, but I hope that's
20:51
not necessarily how they're evolving. How do
20:53
you not have the greatest coach of all time in
20:55
there? If you're going off of pure success and
20:58
pure wins and pure Super Bowls. I get, like,
21:01
last chance and all that for sure, but then it
21:03
does feel more like what Rob said, participation.
21:06
Now, to even get to that point is insane and
21:09
very small chance, right? So, yeah. But, like.
21:13
I don't know. Change the rules then. But that's
21:16
kind of how it feels like in MLB too sometimes.
21:19
They should split them all up. They should have
21:21
just like the group of the three senior candidates,
21:24
then the contributor, which was Robert Kraft
21:27
this year, and then the coach, which was Bill
21:29
Belichick, and then have each of those as their
21:31
own separate voting pools. And then if they get
21:33
the 40 or whatever, then move on. For sure. Have
21:36
their own wing or whatever you want to call it.
21:38
But this is your logic of some writer probably
21:40
came up with this idea that you heard? is why
21:43
or is that coming out from the office so that's
21:47
so i'm just i'm i'm just saying that this is
21:52
a possibility no i could totally see it being
21:55
it makes sense and if you mix the two together
21:58
because bill belichick only missed it by one
22:00
vote he got 39 out of the 40 that he needed which
22:04
is crazy that he that even missed it and i know
22:07
there's some pettiness is probably the best way
22:09
to put it that came out that came out and i don't
22:11
think the hall of fame committee or the powers
22:14
that be were happy about that and i know they
22:16
went and said like we're gonna look at this address
22:18
it and there's going to be changes where we need
22:21
it and alluding to people that voted in that
22:25
way and expressed it and leaked this out will
22:27
not be part of the committee moving forward so
22:29
it's for sure broken i think the reasoning you're
22:31
talking about is 100 valid but there's something
22:34
broken that needs to be addressed and now everyone's
22:36
freaking out and saying well if belichick can't
22:39
get in craft can't get in brady shouldn't get
22:43
in by that logic which is not okay either and
22:46
if that's the hall of fame i don't i don't want
22:49
to go to it i don't want to be a part of it i
22:51
don't want to be in it so it's it's a lot of
22:54
drama for sure it was weird that it just came
22:56
off the way it did and it's kind of transpired
22:58
and in the same fashion. Yeah, that was a great
23:01
video. I don't know if you guys saw that comedian
23:02
come up there with the little whiteboard and
23:04
going, all right, if this guy with 10 Super Bowl
23:07
appearances in the Hall of Fame, the guy with
23:10
31 is in the Hall of Fame, and it flips to him
23:12
and he goes, yeah. And then the guy goes, no,
23:15
why would you think that? And he just keeps going
23:18
through all the different stats. It's hilarious.
23:22
Check it out on the internet. On the interwebs?
23:24
Yeah. Okay, well, that's probably all the news,
23:29
huh? No, no, no news. News, news. Should we throw
23:34
a transition in there for fun? All right, yeah,
23:36
we're going to do that. Kevin says yes. Yeah,
23:38
he says yes. Where's your paper? Hold on, we're
23:40
not ready. All right, well, with that, Kev, let's
23:43
head into our Super Bowl 60 preview and picks.
24:13
We're back at it. There it is. Transition. I'm
24:15
Smelty. Oh, wait. We already did that part. Okay.
24:18
Hi, Smelty. Everyone knows who we are. We're
24:20
here to talk about... Yeah, unfortunately. Yeah.
24:23
Okay. We're here to talk about the Super Bowl
24:26
60. Yeah. The Super Bowl. The Super Bowl. That
24:30
is... Sponsored by Panetta. In or not in Levi's
24:33
Stadium. Yeah. Sponsored by what? By Panera.
24:38
Super Bowl. I'm not following today. I don't
24:44
know if that's been noted yet or not. I think
24:49
you're still under the effects of the sickness.
24:51
100%. That must be it. I'm not better. Maybe
24:54
you're losing circulation. Yeah, maybe. It could
24:59
be. Anyway. Shoot. Yeah, who wants to start?
25:06
Not me. About the old soup or bowl. We should
25:10
start with Rob. Wait, hold on. I want to hear
25:12
from somebody that feels like the Patriots are
25:14
going to win this game first. Because I'm all
25:16
on the sea chicken side, and I'm going to explain
25:18
why. But not first. Go ahead and explain to me.
25:22
Well, you're pretty much just saying who you're
25:24
picking first. All right, fine. I'll go. No,
25:31
I think the Sea Chickens defensive has shown
25:34
up. Okay, yeah, they played a tough Rams team,
25:37
right? And that game kind of started becoming
25:39
a little bit of a shootout. But, I mean, the
25:43
Seattle defense has been pretty elite all season.
25:46
I mean, it's pretty rare they give up over 21
25:48
points in a game. And I think they've won, what,
25:52
17 or 16 or 17 or some ridiculous stat. I mean,
25:59
the Patriots have won like 13 of their last 14,
26:01
so I'm stupid too. But between that and Kemba
26:07
Walker, yes, Sam Darnold's playing really well,
26:09
and he played outstanding in that NFC Championship
26:11
game. Kemba Walker's back again? I didn't get
26:13
to talk about that. All right, damn it, Kemba
26:15
Walker. I'm sorry. I'm sorry. He didn't want
26:19
to start. Wrong sport. Kenneth. Kenneth. I'm
26:22
sorry, Kenneth. K. Walker. The third. Damn. And
26:26
I'm a big Michigan State fan, too. That's unfortunate.
26:28
Ghost parties. Anyway. I almost said Kemba again.
26:32
Having Kenneth back there, he's been pretty electric
26:35
as well. It sucks not having Charbonnet, but
26:38
I think that running game, that's going to be
26:42
the key for me. I think Kenneth Walker is going
26:44
to have an outstanding day. I like Seattle's
26:47
offensive line slightly better than the Patriots'
26:49
offensive line in that regard. But I don't know.
26:53
I think the Seachickens are going to – it's going
26:56
to be close, but I think the Seachickens are
26:58
going to pull this thing off. And Sam Donald's
27:01
probably going to have another day. Maybe his
27:03
whole MVP is going to be Kenneth. Is who? Kenneth.
27:08
Not the quarterback. Yeah, I got it. Not Kemba.
27:11
Made me think again. But anyway. Do y 'all know
27:16
what the fella said? Well, yeah, let's hear it.
27:20
I should have had that ready to go, huh? You
27:23
were on top of it. For Super Bowl year 1966.
27:26
Dom went Seahawks, too. Dan went Patriots in
27:32
a tight one. He says, I've picked against the
27:35
Seahawks all three times, but this time it's
27:37
going to work. That's right. Ben also says Seachickens.
27:44
A lot of Seachickens right now. That's 3 -1 right
27:46
now. Are you going Patriots, Rob? Well, I think
27:51
this game is going to be really competitive and
27:54
really closer than most people think. I think
27:56
that, you know, you got the matchup between Drake
27:58
and Sam. Both can get the job. I know Drake's
28:04
been not playing as well as, I guess. the regular
28:08
season and during the playoffs. He's dangerous
28:10
with his legs, though. I think that's kind of
28:12
key, too. And that was the game. I mean, the
28:14
snow game, too. Statistically, that's going to
28:17
drop him down in a ton of categories. And everyone
28:19
stares at it and they go, oh, why did he only
28:22
have this many yards? Blah, blah, blah. They
28:23
totally forgot about actually the condition of
28:25
the game. The matchup in the running game, I
28:28
think, is really interesting because it's going
28:30
to come down to the trenches here. The offensive
28:31
lines versus the defensive lines because that's
28:34
where these teams are really, you know, the Patriots,
28:37
I think, I think they're a little bit better
28:38
offense line rushing the ball. So I do see Henderson
28:42
and Stevenson continuing. Stevenson, I think,
28:46
is a really tough back against a Seattle defense
28:48
like this. He's a good player. Because he has
28:49
really good center of balance. And he's one of
28:53
the top guys on kind of contact and staying up
28:56
on his feet. So on a defense like Seattle like
28:59
that, you could maybe see some plays like that.
29:02
JSN versus Christian Gonzalez is going to be
29:05
the huge max up right there. If you don't know,
29:08
Christian Gonzalez is second -year cornerback
29:11
out of Oregon. And that should be really – J
29:16
.S. Adams is an elite in -and -out kind of guy.
29:19
He's really came on to his own this year. So
29:21
everyone – I mean, he's becoming that household
29:24
name, I feel like, in the basketball scenario.
29:26
Edwards said that, but go ahead. Do you think
29:28
Drake Mays is going to have time to throw the
29:29
ball? Well, that's the scenario, whether, you
29:32
know, you got the left tackle, because you do
29:34
have that front four with Young. Was it Maye,
29:38
I think, is one of them, and Jones and Leonard
29:42
that's up front. So they got big cornerbacks
29:47
on the back with Wooden and Witherspoon. And
29:49
then Nick, I don't want to choop his name, Minori.
29:54
Minori. The rookie from South Carolina, the old
29:57
Gamecocks. He's been a beast all year. I mean,
29:59
he might be. considered a defense rookie player
30:02
of the year on the NFC side. Coaching matchups
30:05
really got two defensive guys, so they have had
30:08
two weeks to really study and figure out slowdown.
30:11
I think that for Vrabel, they're really going
30:12
to concentrate, obviously, making Walker go east
30:16
to west more than north and south. Well, only
30:18
if you think it's a must win. True, if it is
30:21
a must win in a scenario. But that's where I
30:23
think actually the defensive line of the Patriots
30:25
can contain him a little bit and make him force
30:28
him to go outside. So there's some opportunities
30:30
there. So that's why I'm thinking this game is
30:32
going to be a lot closer with two defensive minds.
30:34
I could see this game actually be under 30, both
30:37
teams. And I'm going to go with something really
30:39
weird. I'm going to go Patriots sneak this one
30:41
out on a really odd, interesting, like something's
30:44
going to happen in that fourth quarter. I'm going
30:47
to go actually like 23 to 20. So what's the spread?
30:51
I'm thinking 17 -14. If you're saying it's going
30:54
to be closer than we think. I think it's four.
30:57
I think it's four and a half. Four and a half.
30:59
Oh. So I'm going Pats. I just got an odd feeling
31:04
on this one. And I think Charbonnet being out
31:07
and his ability to pass protect, I think is going
31:09
to be the biggest thing you're going to see with
31:11
that Seattle's defense. And I think also, but
31:15
Patriots defense is really a disguise, like Flores
31:19
style defense. And Sam struggles against disguise.
31:21
So if you make him check and think, get him off
31:24
his first look of JSN, which the Vikings did.
31:27
And you saw a string of five games in a row where
31:29
Sam. kind of struggled, and this is that type
31:31
of defense that can do that to a guy like Sam.
31:34
I think a guy like Sam has just got to be another
31:36
game. Like, this is just, nah, week 15. It is.
31:42
Easier said than done, I would imagine, with
31:45
all my Super Bowl experience. Of course. Yeah,
31:47
right, right. Justin. Did I throw you off the
31:56
scent? No, totally. Yeah, all right. Anyway,
31:58
sorry. The Seahawks have seemed like a team of
32:01
destiny as I watched them the last several weeks.
32:04
But I'm also going Patriots. Smart money. I think
32:08
the Seahawks look great. I think it's going to
32:13
be a really good game. I think these teams are
32:16
too close. when you look at the numbers and the
32:19
stats. My big thing is Drake May's performance
32:22
throughout this year, and people can talk about
32:24
they played a weaker schedule. They should because
32:26
they only won four games the year before. But
32:28
look at what he did in the postseason and the
32:30
teams he went up against. He's ready for this.
32:32
He's had two weeks to prepare. And look back
32:34
at the last, what, two or three games he's played.
32:37
How is this team going to be different? What's
32:39
on tape? What's not? And the one thing the Patriots
32:42
have been historically great at in their franchise
32:44
of coaching is what? Taking away your number
32:48
one offensive weapon and making you beat them
32:51
another way. What's their number one offensive
32:53
weapon? JSN. JSN. So Cooper Cupp's going to have
32:58
to step up. Kemba Walker's going to have to step
33:01
up. Sorry, I had to throw that one in there for
33:04
you. But they're going to have to find another
33:06
way to beat this Patriots team, and I can't bet
33:08
against the Patriots in a Super Bowl. He wants
33:11
this. They're wearing white. He wants to prove
33:13
Tennessee wrong. I know it's a revenge game for
33:16
Seattle. They all talk about 2014, 2015 and what
33:18
happened at the, you know, at the one or two
33:20
yard line matters. But I think it does a little
33:23
bit. I think they want ownership. That's it.
33:26
They're getting ready to sell. Good for them.
33:28
They want it. Right. Yeah. Well, true. They want
33:30
this, but I'm still going to go with the Patriots.
33:32
I think it's going to be a really close game.
33:33
I think it's going to be a little scoring. It's
33:34
going to remind me of the Rams and Patriots game
33:38
from just several years ago. You have to be that
33:41
type of style game, but I think the Patriots
33:43
win. Yeah, what was it, like 6 -3 or whatever?
33:46
I believe, if I remember the stat correctly,
33:49
I believe Seattle is number one in points allowed
33:52
this season in defense, and the Patriots are
33:56
number two in points scored on offense. And when
34:00
the defense, though, in Super Bowls is 8 -1,
34:02
when they face the number two or number one offense.
34:06
Do you know what the Patriots are ranked at points
34:10
allowed on defense? Probably number two. Four.
34:13
I don't know if you've had a matchup like this
34:15
this close. Like, you always play good teams
34:17
as you get to the Super Bowl. You are. That's
34:19
the one stat that you got. I didn't even have
34:23
it in my notes. I think you just made it up.
34:25
What? No! Don't go look it up. Don't fact check.
34:29
No, it's true. They're really close. When you
34:31
look at them on paper, the difference is going
34:34
to be Seattle's run game versus the Patriots'
34:37
pass game. And I think, going back to something
34:39
Rob said, Stevenson, amazing on the run game,
34:43
even better on the pass game. What he's done
34:45
in the postseason to rip off some amazing...
34:49
Pass plays is going to be, I think, a major key
34:52
in the game. They let him get going early. It's
34:54
over. I'm curious where you're about to go. Jake's
34:56
about to bring us home here in a second. I'm
34:58
going to bring us home? Yeah. Well, just, you
35:00
know. Let us know what your thought is. Because
35:04
we started getting after it without even having
35:06
your opinion. And then we can obviously... Please
35:10
split the table with me. Oh, so that's... It's
35:14
getting a little warm over here. There's a 20
35:16
under there, right? No, we're good. So, four
35:24
and a half spread. We can't trust that. I agree
35:29
with Rob where I think that this is going to
35:30
be a close game. We're going to probably be under
35:34
three. I think our winner is right where I put
35:37
it, right at three. Yep. So did he. Weather's
35:42
not going to be much of a factor. If at all,
35:44
it's going to be pretty warm, kind of chilly
35:46
for that neck of the woods. Good football weather.
35:48
Right. Like a sea chicken. Low of 49 that evening.
35:53
Weather reports suggest a wind out of the north
35:56
-northwest of about four miles an hour. So they'll
35:58
have a little bit of impact, but probably not
36:00
a whole lot. Break it down there, Kendall. And
36:03
then I started looking at matchups between both
36:06
teams. I think as far as the quarterback position,
36:09
Drake May and Sam Darnall are pretty equal, but
36:13
for different reasons. Drake May has had a lights
36:15
-out season this year. Arguably could be the
36:19
MVP of the year. I don't think that there would
36:22
be anybody really balking at that if he wins
36:24
it. Sam Donald has continued to play lights out
36:27
over the course of the entire year. He's only
36:29
the second player to string together back -to
36:32
-back 14 win seasons. I think that that says
36:35
something about him and his skill set. He overcame
36:38
those Rams bugaboos that he got known for last
36:41
year. Those ghosts. Yep. Running backs, Patriots
36:47
have the advantage. The Charbonnet injury is
36:49
really costly for them. I think both teams on
36:52
par, if healthy, have equally good running backs.
36:57
I believe in Kemba, but Kemba needs somebody
37:01
else. Kemba doesn't have that. He needs YouTube.
37:05
Kemba doesn't have that other person. Advantage
37:10
wide receivers goes to the Seahawks, JSN, but
37:13
they also have Cooper Cup. He's been there before.
37:15
He knows what to do. He's cool, calm, collective.
37:18
Really good possession receiver in a pinch. If
37:21
you're going to need a third down, he's going
37:23
to be able to get it for you. He's going to be
37:24
that target there. Tight ends, I'm looking at
37:28
New England. I think their tight end group is
37:32
better. They'll be able to exploit that defense
37:34
that Mike McDonald runs with just taking your
37:38
center, excuse me, your center, your tight end,
37:40
and just running them down the middle of the
37:41
field. Against that one high center safety. Now
37:44
you know what you're talking about over here.
37:46
Keep going. And the Seahawks do a lot of zone
37:51
man, so they're following a player and then pass
37:53
them off to the next one. If you're just running
37:55
a player down the seam, they're just going to
37:58
go forever. Offensive and defensive lines, I
38:02
think both are equal also. As far as keeping
38:06
their quarterbacks upright, run blocking, things
38:09
like that. Seattle's front four on the defensive
38:13
side does an amazing job of getting to the quarterback
38:16
just with the four. Same thing can be said for
38:19
the Patriots. The only difference is when Seattle
38:22
gets back there, they tackle that quarterback.
38:25
Whereas New England, they just get pressure,
38:27
get the quarterback to get out of the pocket.
38:31
They throw it away, incompletes, whatever it
38:33
is. But still, they're putting pressure on that
38:36
quarterback, right? Right, right. And pressure
38:38
is important because that speeds up their clock,
38:40
and they're wanting to get rid of that. I do
38:41
like how little Seattle has to blitz, it feels
38:44
like. Absolutely. So super strong. Linebackers,
38:48
I think they're kind of a push or a wash there.
38:51
There's nothing too fancy about them. I would
38:54
agree there. They all hustle to the ball, gang
38:57
tackle. Pursuit! of secondaries all the time
39:01
pretty close i think i still give it to seattle
39:04
uh i think they have more depth that's secondary
39:07
whereas with new england you've got christian
39:09
gonzalez and then you're like who else so jones's
39:12
so you're gonna see gonzalez probably mirroring
39:15
jsn a whole bunch and then cooper cup going wild
39:17
and then coaches i think i'm 100 putting i think
39:21
i'm 100 having him follow jsn all over the field
39:25
yeah you know and just make them, it's going
39:29
to be mano a mano. And then as far as coaches,
39:32
I think the coach matchup, it goes to Vrabel.
39:36
He's been around and doing it long enough. Mike
39:39
McDonald, I think he's going to continue to be
39:42
a great head coach, but we don't know anything
39:45
just yet. I'll be very disappointed if it doesn't.
39:48
Vrabel's 5 -3 in the playoffs right now. He's
39:52
6 -1 coming out of bye weeks. I mean, it has
40:00
to be New England. I'm sorry. I'm sorry, 12s.
40:05
I've been like. Cheating on you all year. No,
40:09
I was not hating on them. You said the 12 was
40:11
done. Then I said the 12 was back. And then I
40:14
picked the 12s all the way to the finals. You
40:18
did. You did. But you're just not picking them
40:20
to finish the deal. Unfortunately, I'm not picking
40:23
Seattle to win a shirt that has 11 on it. Shut
40:26
up. What kind of score are you feeling? 17 -15,
40:35
something like that. Something real wonky, which
40:38
is going to be a messy game. Yeah, absolute slop
40:41
show. Defensive battle. That'll be a nice Super
40:45
Bowl board, a 15 -14 finish. Yeah. Or 5 -4. 15
40:50
-14? No, a 5 and a 4 on a board. You ever done
40:54
a Super Bowl board before? Yeah. I think there's
40:58
one other thing that none of us actually, and
41:00
I forgot to talk about this, so shame on me.
41:05
Josh McDaniels, the Patriots offensive coordinator.
41:10
This is his 10th Super Bowl. As many as Tom Brady.
41:14
Yeah. So he's going to have a game plan. I mean,
41:18
he's been there before. He's going to be able
41:19
to talk Drake May through just about anything
41:21
that comes up. And then to your point, as far
41:24
as like Vrabel and the New England Patriots and
41:26
that, it's taking, not only is it taking away
41:30
your best weapon, but it's also situational football.
41:35
And nobody does it better than Belichick, but
41:37
Vrabel's pretty darn close. And he learned under
41:40
him, right? You got to see it. He was coached
41:42
by him. Does either team have, like, a stud kick
41:46
returner? Like, I know Shahid's not horrible.
41:48
Seattle does. Yeah, it's Rashid. I don't know.
41:53
I'm just saying, like, could he, like, take one
41:55
back? Oh, 100%. That's a big difference. They've
41:58
got a plan for him. Let's just put it that way.
42:01
Kick out of the end zone. Yeah, get it at the
42:04
35 every time and don't worry about it. You have
42:06
to actually learn from that Colts -Bears Super
42:10
Bowl and learn not to kick to Devin Hester. Yep.
42:13
And they did it on purpose, too. Like, they wanted
42:15
to kick to Devin Hester. It's crazy to me. It
42:18
blows my mind. Well, we just wanted to show them
42:20
we weren't scared of them, which I'm a big Tony
42:22
Dungy guy, and I'm like, I feel that. Worked
42:25
out really well for the Bears. Not freaking Devin
42:26
Hester, dog. Yeah. Yeah, just think if they didn't
42:29
kick it to Devin Hester, they would have goose
42:31
egged him. Yeah. Right, right, right. Anyway.
42:35
Anywho. Anywho. Team with the most Super Bowl
42:39
wins. That's it. Team with the most Super Bowl
42:41
wins? Yep. St. Steelers. Steelers, one of them.
42:46
What's the other one? It's the Patriots. Patriots.
42:49
Are they tied right now? Yep. City to host the
42:51
most Super Bowls. New Orleans. Ooh, that's a
42:55
good guess. We're not going to hold up all day.
42:58
Miami, 11 times. That's fine. First Super Bowl
43:04
to go to the overtime. There's only been one.
43:06
Atlanta. Yeah. 28 -3 game. Yeah, that was a pretty
43:11
good one. Let's see if there's any other fun
43:14
one. Oh, coldest Super Bowl ever. Does the one
43:18
in Minnesota count? I was going to say, does
43:19
that one count? Because, man, was it cold. The
43:22
plane temperature. Oh. Like location of it? In
43:25
the stadium? Yep. Oh. 48. Super Bowl V, Tulane
43:31
Stadium. So where's Tulane at? You two play college.
43:36
Come on. Yeah. You had to have had a player that
43:38
ran all over him. You two are playing college
43:40
football. I feel like that's in Alabama or something.
43:41
I just know where this is, too. I thought I had
43:44
one more fun one. Oh, what was the first Super
43:46
Bowl you used the Roman numerals? Super Bowl
43:52
IV. Say five. Five. Perfect for marketing on
43:57
the five aspect. New Orleans. Yeah, that would
44:01
be right. The Raising Cajuns, aren't they? No,
44:04
what? We got to close this thing out. That's
44:08
a different team. Yeah, you're losing your mind.
44:10
I am. Yeah, no, I'm clearly in my mind. The blood
44:14
is certainly cutting off to my brain. Anyway.
44:21
Justin, thanks for being here. Appreciate you.
44:22
Thanks for having me. Of course. Oh, by the way,
44:24
we still have our Christmas tree up. Don't worry
44:26
about it. We're waiting for presents, a new GM.
44:29
Yeah, yeah. Jake, thanks for being here, of course.
44:33
Thanks for having me. Yeah, no problem. I live
44:36
here. Roberto. Thanks, Coach. Yep, yep. Thanks,
44:39
buddy. Season's almost over. It is. We've got
44:41
to recap the Super Bowl. Yeah, yeah. And then
44:45
I'm Smeltzy. Of course, Kev here as always. Don't
44:49
forget to like, comment, subscribe wherever you
44:53
listen to The Banter. Whether that's YouTube,
44:55
Spotify, Apple Podcasts, or iHeartRadio. And
44:57
we'll see you probably next week. For the soup
45:02
or bowl. Oh, recap, sorry. I didn't time it up
45:05
good for you. Bye! Don't forget to follow, like,
45:13
and subscribe. Tune in next time for more banter
45:18
with the boys.