Latest / Football Junkies podcast / Ep.22 Source off

Transcript

Ep.22 Source off · Football Junkies podcast

• 0:00
  Bag alert, bag alert, bag alert, bag alert folks. That's right. We got a loaded episode.
• 0:08
  We got a really loaded episode. Okay. I'm talking about we're going to go in multiple
• 0:14
  different directions, but just know buckle in because guess what? This is going to be
• 0:19
  a long drive. Okay. Pete Warner gets paid. Brandon IU
• 0:23
  would drama continues. Who has the upper hand in these trade talks? Does the trade make
• 0:29
  the Steelers a playoff contender? If if it happens, as well as did the Niners wait a
• 0:36
  little bit too long to trade Brandon IU? Don't you think? I don't know. We'll talk about
• 0:41
  that. As well as how can the Niners stay competitive if they do lose Brandon IU and the most important
• 0:49
  topic of it all, the Pittsburgh Steelers. You are six time, six time, six time, six time,
• 0:58
  six time, six time champions play today in about few hours. So guess what? We got a lot
• 1:06
  to talk about. Okay. Because guess what? I want to watch the Steelers play. Okay. So
• 1:11
  guess what? You know what we always got to do? We got to lock it. But before we do all
• 1:15
  that, okay? I'm still Braga Domes. I'm still your GM. Okay. I am all these things and more.
• 1:23
  But most importantly, I am your host, Kale. Let's lock in.
• 1:49
  All right, folks, let's just get right into the news. Okay. This is episode 22. We are
• 2:08
  only eight episodes away from hitting the 30th mark, the 30th episode of the podcast. We're
• 2:15
  going to keep this thing going. Okay. We're going to give, we'll talk about that, you know,
• 2:20
  when we get to that huge milestone. Okay. But we got to get into these baguettes. Okay.
• 2:23
  Because we got a lot. We got to talk about with this episode. Okay. Because every single
• 2:29
  every time I do it, it always comes to pass. Last week, I think we had two of them. Jordan
• 2:34
  Love got paid the same day. Let's see what happens this week. Okay. So Pete Warner, a
• 2:41
  linebacker for the New Orleans Saints, ain't a three year 22.5 million dollar deal to stay
• 2:46
  with the Saints. Okay. He gets a $5.5 million signing bonus, 17.4 million in total guarantees,
• 2:53
  11.1 in guarantees at signing, and he'll be making 7.5 million a year according to who?
• 3:01
  Spotrack. Okay. Shout out to them. Now, when you look at his, excuse me, when you look
• 3:05
  at his stats, right? For the 2023 season, all he has is one interception, one past
• 3:12
  deflection to from recoveries for tackles for loss and one quarterback hit according
• 3:16
  to who pro football reference. Now, when you look at it, you know, the this was more of
• 3:23
  a role player type of extension. It wasn't necessarily something that, you know, it's
• 3:28
  always going to reset the market or, you know, do anything crazy like that. Like, no, this
• 3:33
  is a routine, you know, extension just to make sure that they lock up a player that,
• 3:37
  you know, contributes, you know, to his respective side of the ball. And, you know, making sure
• 3:43
  that things, you know, stay the way that they are, which I mean, honestly, it's a pretty
• 3:47
  good deal. You know, you're making 7.5 million, you know, this year. So I mean, you know,
• 3:53
  that's actually relatively pretty good. It is. And, you know, you're still on somewhat
• 3:58
  of a pretty good defense. I'm not saying it's an elite defense, but it's a pretty good
• 4:02
  defense. You know, they can give you some problems on a good day. So, you know, I guess
• 4:07
  that's, yeah, that's that's that's really it. You know, I don't think there's really,
• 4:12
  I don't think there's not a whole lot really to talk about it. But, you know, congratulations
• 4:16
  to him. Now, going into the meat and potatoes of this episode, okay, Brandon IEUIC. Yes,
• 4:26
  I know. Yes, I know, I know, I know, you're probably pounding at your table right now.
• 4:33
  You're probably screaming to the top of your lungs. You're probably saying, why are we
• 4:38
  still talking about Brandon IEUIC in August? Well, guess what? We got more things we're
• 4:43
  going to talk about. Okay, we do. I know. I wanted to end just like how you do. I do.
• 4:49
  I really do. Is it going to end? I hope so. I really do because this is starting to get
• 4:54
  old and it's gotten to the point where it's just like, yo, if it happens, it happens.
• 4:59
  If it don't, it don't. Okay, that's where we are at this point with this whole conundrum
• 5:05
  that is this trade. Okay, so these are just a few notes that I just had to, you know,
• 5:11
  take down with this entire situation. Okay, so apparent, well, no, not apparently, but
• 5:16
  according to Diana Rossini, right? She, you know, she tweeted out. I don't know if it
• 5:21
  was yesterday or the day before yesterday, but she basically said, you know, the 49ers
• 5:26
  are looking for a positional player in return, mainly a receiver, but are open to other positions.
• 5:32
  Right? Okay, cool. Now, Adam Schefter reported, right, that the Patriots when they were in
• 5:38
  it, you know, to try to get Brandon IEUIC, the Patriots were willing to make Brandon
• 5:42
  IEUIC the, you know, a top five highest paid receiver, right? But, you know, Jerry Doolack
• 5:48
  of the Pittsburgh Post, Pittsburgh Post Gazette, try saying that five times, right? You know,
• 5:54
  tweeted out that the way that I did it is to prove a point, right? All three of those
• 6:01
  people can go to for football information. Okay, they have their hand on what's going
• 6:08
  on behind closed doors. Okay, they're not this, you know, random entity that, you know,
• 6:15
  you don't know nothing about and they don't have anything credible and they don't, you
• 6:19
  know, they're not well respected within their own industry and whatnot. No, these are people
• 6:25
  who are credible resources that you can take whatever that they are saying to the bank.
• 6:30
  Now, have insiders got it wrong? Yes, of course, things happen, right? But what I'm, but what
• 6:36
  I'm trying to get to you, and I said this in the previous episode is we have to be careful
• 6:42
  on what we put out, especially with a situation like this, right? Because I don't in and this
• 6:48
  is not directly for anybody, but if it is, but if, but if you feel like it is for you
• 6:53
  within it is for you at this point, if you do not have credible information about what's
• 6:59
  going on with this situation or any situation, you should not be putting out any, you should
• 7:04
  not be putting anything out because there was a particular person who will remain anonymous
• 7:11
  who basically was saying, you know, the, you know, for a minute, there were a lot of stealers
• 7:16
  fans that were like, Oh my God, it's done. It's done. It's done. It's done. It's done.
• 7:19
  It's done. And it's like, no, it's not, it's not done until you see a press conference
• 7:26
  for Brandon IEWIC and he is holding another team's jersey that he was traded to. And unless
• 7:32
  they take that picture, this thing is still going. Okay. It is still going. Now, can I
• 7:40
  say, you know, when and where it's going to end? No, I can't because I don't have any
• 7:45
  credible information to report on that. I have to go off of the resources that I know
• 7:50
  and the people that I trust that are, you know, that are credible with whatever information
• 7:55
  that they put out. That's what I have to go with, right? And so the reason why I'm saying
• 8:01
  all this is, you know, you may have, you know, accounts like CTE, you know, ESPN, you know,
• 8:07
  you may have people like Ricky with the picture of the dog with the hat on it. You know, you
• 8:13
  may have this person who says, you know, I'm a part of, you know, NFL draft blood. I mean,
• 8:18
  I'm not bloods NFL draft buzz, not bloods. That's funny. That's a funny one. That's a
• 8:26
  funny joke. But you know, you may have different people who say that they're credible who,
• 8:32
  you know, they may have this blue checkmark to try to validate what with whatever they're
• 8:36
  saying. But the fact of the matter is they don't know anything what they're talking about.
• 8:40
  Okay. If and you know, and this is something that that I want to that I want to repeat
• 8:45
  games to you guys. A lot of the insiders have been quiet on this. Because why this is still
• 8:52
  a very fluid situation. Things are still ongoing. And you know, there's nothing really
• 8:57
  to report on. That's not if the if the credible insiders are not saying anything, right? What
• 9:05
  makes you think that you can put out something and say, Oh, yeah, I have sources that say
• 9:10
  this, this and this. No, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, no, that's not what you do. Because
• 9:17
  guess what? It's going to if you they'll see a fan, a fan will will see that tweet and
• 9:23
  they will lose their mind. Right. And so it is, I feel like it is your responsibility
• 9:30
  to make sure that whatever you put out that you think is credible, make sure that you
• 9:35
  make sure that it is credible. Because if it's not credible, you're going to have someone
• 9:39
  like me who's going to get on his podcast, regardless if it's, you know, well known or
• 9:45
  not well known, but this will be well known very soon. Mark my words. It still does not
• 9:53
  give you the right to put out any accurate information. It doesn't. Better yet, it puts
• 10:01
  more pressure on you to make sure that whatever information that you are putting out is credible.
• 10:07
  It's resourceful. And it's true. Because if you don't, your credibility, whatever little
• 10:14
  credibility that you have is gone. And it's hard to get it back. Right. It really is.
• 10:21
  It's like the boy who cried wolf. You can keep on saying that you saw the wolf and nobody
• 10:25
  ever saw it. But the one time that you do see the wolf, guess what? No one's going to believe
• 10:29
  you because why you kept online the, you know, all those other previous times, right? So
• 10:35
  I just had to put that out there. Now, when we look at it with this situation, right,
• 10:41
  Brandon I you again, you know, things have just gotten to a point where it's just really
• 10:47
  messy. It really is. It's messy on just both sides, you know, there was a report, you know,
• 10:53
  probably like in the earlier part of the week that was basically saying that, you know,
• 10:59
  the Steelers really weren't in it. And then it was just between the Patriots and the Browns.
• 11:05
  And then next thing you know, you know, Shepter puts out a tweet basically saying that, you
• 11:10
  know, the Steelers are back in it and that, you know, their conversations are fluid and
• 11:13
  the Patriots back out of it. And it's like, okay, you know, you have a lot going on. But
• 11:19
  at the same time, you know, how is this going to go because it can go anyway. It really
• 11:25
  can't. Because again, the ball is in Brandon IUX Court. It's not in the 49ers Court. It's
• 11:32
  in Brandon IUX Court because he gets to dictate where he wants to go. That's just what it
• 11:38
  is because the Patriots and like I just said, the Patriots were willing, willing to meet
• 11:46
  his financial demands. They were willing to do that. But Brandon IUX didn't want to go
• 11:51
  there. And Brandon IUX has basically said, Hey, I want to go to Pittsburgh. That's what
• 11:57
  he's done. And so the question is, what is it going to take to, you know, to put the
• 12:03
  bowl on this present? That is the question. And I think everybody wants to know because
• 12:09
  whether we realize or not the, the draft stock for Brandon IUX as the days go by is going
• 12:17
  to continue to dwindle, right? Because remember, leading up to the draft, if I'm not mistaken
• 12:24
  and I can be wrong, but leading up to the draft, the Jaguars were trying to get Brandon
• 12:30
  IUX and they were, I think, and I think they were willing to give up their first round
• 12:33
  pick and a player, another receiver, right? And the 49ers said no. So it makes you beg
• 12:42
  the question of what the hell is it going to take for them, you know, for this trade
• 12:47
  to just go down? What's it going to take? Now, I've heard and, you know, I've seen various
• 12:55
  different things that, you know, the 49ers are going to try to, you know, flip, flip
• 13:00
  whatever picks that the Steelers or whoever trade for, you know, trade for him and, you
• 13:06
  know, try to get a receiver. I've seen, you know, they might, they might try to do a three
• 13:10
  way trade. I don't know. I really don't know. I will say this. It's a little bit harder
• 13:16
  to do a three way trade in the NFL than it is in the NBA, for instance, right? Because
• 13:23
  in the NBA draft picks isn't isn't as high as it is in the NFL, right? When we get to
• 13:31
  start talking about first round picks, oh my God, GMs, they, they get buttoned up in
• 13:37
  everything. They borderline want to fight you, right? And, you know, when you look at
• 13:43
  the NBA, they'll throw all first round picks and, you know, this pick and that pick and
• 13:48
  this pick and that pick and, you know, the next three years of a first round picks or
• 13:53
  whatever, just for one player and one thing twice about it. They've done that before.
• 13:58
  A lot of the major trades that we have seen, you know, throughout the years and involved
• 14:05
  a boatload of picks and guess what? They just don't care about it. That value for them isn't
• 14:10
  isn't as high as it is for the NFL, right? And so, you know, it's a situation where,
• 14:18
  you know, as, as the days go by, who is really going to win this situation? Because as of
• 14:25
  right now, if I'm not mistaken, the Steelers are like the, are like the primary team that
• 14:30
  is like really content on trying to get Brandon I you. And we all have seen what Omar Khan
• 14:36
  has done, you know, in the past when it comes to these trades, he's been a beast with it.
• 14:42
  Okay. And he's not showing his hand. And so what you're seeing is a matchup between GMs
• 14:49
  of who was going to blink first. This is a game of GM chicken. This is what that's what
• 14:56
  it is at this point, because it's either the 49ers aren't satisfied with it or this person
• 15:03
  isn't satisfied with it, or it's not working for this person was not working for that side
• 15:07
  or whatever the case may be, right? And, you know, and I'll continue to say this as the
• 15:14
  days go by, if the Steelers are going to win that trade, because guess what? Brandon I you
• 15:20
  is value is going to go down because why you still have to pay him top dollar money. You
• 15:25
  still have to pay him 30 plus million dollars, right? That's what you're going to have to
• 15:31
  pay him. That's what he said that he wanted, right? And so, you know, it went from a first
• 15:38
  round pick, you know, in the earlier part of the year leading up to the draft. But now
• 15:43
  at this point, you could probably give brand now you would for maybe a second or a third
• 15:48
  round pick. And maybe, you know, you probably throw in the player just to sweeten things
• 15:53
  up if you really wanted to. That's what it is at this point. Because you this is what
• 16:02
  I'll say. I'm trying to find the words to say the value of a player will the value of
• 16:09
  a player that does not get traded will continue to go down the more the more that the more
• 16:17
  time passes that he is not trading, right? And you know, whether we want to admit it
• 16:23
  or not, the 49ers are trying to turn water in one. They're not trying to. This is this
• 16:31
  is so this is such a tricky situation. This is such a tricky way to say it. But the 49ers
• 16:36
  are trying to are trying to flip are trying to turn mud into gold bricks. That's what
• 16:42
  they're trying to do, right? And you know, am I saying that they can do it? No. But it's
• 16:50
  just it's just a weird situation. It's just weird. It's it's drawn out. I think people
• 16:57
  are just over it. I think people are just tired of you know, hearing about it. I think
• 17:02
  people are tired of the fake lies and the fake rumors and the fake sources. And I think
• 17:09
  they just want things to just, you know, be done so they can just so we can just move
• 17:14
  on to the preseason games, the cut downs and then the start of regular season. I think
• 17:19
  that's where everybody is at this point. Okay. Now, the real question is if the Steelers
• 17:26
  do get Brandon, are you does that make them a playoff contender? Now in my eyes, I don't
• 17:34
  know. I don't know. I really don't know. And the only reason why I say that is because
• 17:39
  you know, the Steelers have a very tough schedule. They do. They have a very tough schedule,
• 17:44
  right? And the only way that they could really, you know, position themselves to be high within
• 17:52
  the playoffs and potentially, you know, compete to try to win the division is they got to
• 17:56
  come they got to come out of they got to come out of the season guns blazing, right? It's
• 18:03
  not no, you know, going to a two game losing streak or a three game losing streak or whatever
• 18:09
  the case may be, they have to come out of this thing guns blazing, right? And if they
• 18:15
  do not come out of this thing guns blazing, that second half of the season, it's going
• 18:21
  to be a killer. It's going to be a crusher. I'm going to read off exactly the second half
• 18:29
  of the season. I'm going to show you the will not show you when I'm going to tell you the
• 18:33
  match ups, right? Ravens, Browns, Bengals, Browns, Eagles, Ravens, Chiefs, Bengals. That
• 18:41
  is a gauntlet. That is a gauntlet of a matchups that you're going to have to go up against
• 18:48
  that you are going to have to win. Okay, it's not like how it was in the previous seasons
• 18:53
  where you you go up against some of your divisional rivals in the early parts of the season. No,
• 18:58
  you're going up against them where every single game matters where you have to win them in
• 19:04
  order to not only get into the playoffs, but to have a higher seed in the playoffs to potentially
• 19:11
  get to having, you know, the number one seed will not the number one seed, but a high seed
• 19:16
  enough to where you can probably get a first round by. That's what it is, right? And so,
• 19:22
  you know, the Steelers right now from a roster standpoint, and I'm just, I'm just going to
• 19:29
  be completely honest here. I don't really care. Honestly, they're in a position where
• 19:35
  their defense is a playoff contender, but their offense, I feel like it's still, I don't
• 19:44
  know. I don't know. I really, I can't, you know what? I got it. It just came, the light
• 19:51
  bulb just came on. The plate, the Steelers chances of the playoffs rides on how well
• 19:58
  and what version of Russell Wilson are they going to get, right? Because if you get the
• 20:05
  version of Russell Wilson last year, then there's a chance. There's a chance. I'm not
• 20:12
  saying it's a high chance. Not saying it's a low chance. Not saying it's in the middle
• 20:16
  chance, but I'm saying that there is a chance that they could possibly, you know, make a
• 20:20
  playoff run, right? But if you're getting a Russell Wilson that is showing, you know,
• 20:27
  that he has the clients and significantly, then you're going to have a problem because
• 20:33
  Justin Fields on the other hand, Justin Fields, he has the potential, right? But his mechanics
• 20:42
  and his decisiveness and all those different type of things, they aren't, they aren't
• 20:47
  up to par to where they should be. And so, you know, you're going to need somewhat of
• 20:52
  a veteran quarterback, you know, that can get you a win from some of those games. That's
• 20:59
  what you're going to need. Okay. This isn't, you know, just rainbows and unicorns like
• 21:04
  no, this is going to be a gauntlet. And this is, you know, knock on wood. You better hope
• 21:11
  that nobody suffers a significant injury. So I say all that to say this, if the Steelers
• 21:19
  do get Brandon IE, it doesn't necessarily make them make them a playoff contender, but I
• 21:24
  will say this, that's two or three extra games that they could probably win. That's two or
• 21:30
  three more W's that they could definitely get that definitely, you know, puts the odds
• 21:37
  in their favor to win certain matchups. It does. But to flat out say that, oh yeah, this
• 21:43
  makes them a Super Bowl team or oh, this makes them a playoff calibre team. No, I'm not going
• 21:47
  to say that. I still feel like the Steelers are probably maybe one or two more years away
• 21:54
  from entering their Super Bowl window. I truly believe that the defense is the defense is
• 21:59
  the defense, right? It's about investing into the offense, right? Because and I'll continue
• 22:07
  to beat on this drum. And I know there's Steelers fans out there, they're saying you're not
• 22:11
  a real Steelers fan. I am a real Steelers fan. I am a logical thinking Steelers fan. That's
• 22:17
  the difference, right? Because again, we're going after someone who was looking for 30
• 22:24
  plus million dollars a year while we won't even know who the quarterback is going to
• 22:29
  be next year, right? Because we have two quarterbacks on our roster right now that that that are
• 22:36
  on one year deals, essentially. And so there's going to be a lot of turnover come this this
• 22:44
  offseason, right? You're going to have to figure out are you going to pay Russell Wilson? Are
• 22:49
  you going to pay Justin Fields? Are you going to go after that press card? Are you going
• 22:52
  to go after somebody in the draft, even though me personally will not do that? What are you
• 22:57
  going to do, right? Not to mention you have to figure out are you going to pay? Not as
• 23:01
  you hear us are going to pay Pat Friar move. Are you going to figure out what you're going
• 23:05
  to do with, you know, with other different positions and whatnot? There's a lot of question
• 23:11
  marks that that, you know, will not be answered, you know, already, right? And so investing
• 23:20
  a lot of resources into a receiver when you don't have a quarterback under contract next
• 23:26
  year is just ludicrous. It is ludicrous to me. So and and I've been I've been on the
• 23:34
  I've been on the hill that's been saying it was the point in going after Brandon IEU.
• 23:39
  I know I went on a tangent, but I just had to get this off my chest. What is the point
• 23:45
  in going after Brandon IEU? Right? It's not like we have it's not we have, you know, George
• 23:51
  Pickens is out for the rest of the season, not going to wood or anything like that. Right?
• 23:56
  If that was the case, then, you know, you have to be a little bit more aggressive to try to
• 23:59
  see the deal and, you know, get Brandon IEU right? But if we are run heavy team and we
• 24:06
  have a run heavy offensive coordinator, then why would we want to go after Brandon IEU?
• 24:11
  I'll let you think about that one once this episode once you're done listening to this
• 24:16
  episode. But I say all that to say this. The Steelers have a lot of question marks that
• 24:23
  they have to figure out. And you know, them just making this one move doesn't necessarily
• 24:30
  seal or set them in a place where they are a playoff contender, or they are a Super Bowl
• 24:37
  contender, or they can beat this team, beat that team or whatever the case may be. I that's
• 24:43
  just me. Okay, I'm just I just call it the way that I see it. Now, I think another question
• 24:51
  that doesn't need to be asked is, did the Niners take too long to trade Brandon IEU? Because
• 24:57
  let's be real here, there were teams that were inquiring about Brandon IEU before the
• 25:03
  draft. So what exactly is this problem that we are in right now? Right? Because you knew
• 25:13
  that this was going to be a situation. You knew that he was going to be in a contract
• 25:18
  here with Justin Jefferson and CD lamb and Jamar Chase and T Higgins. Okay, you knew
• 25:27
  that. So if you knew that, then why in the world didn't you guys try to take care of
• 25:32
  it the previous years before? Why didn't you do that? Because now you're in a situation
• 25:38
  where guess what? Not only is he disgruntled with you, he doesn't even want to play with
• 25:42
  you. That's the situation that you're in right now. And you know, from what I've heard, and
• 25:48
  I don't know if this is credible or not. But from what I've heard, they haven't even had
• 25:52
  contract negotiations since May of this year. It's August. Okay, not counting May. That's
• 26:00
  what June, July. That's three months. Three months that you guys have not had a conversation
• 26:08
  about contracts. You should have been traded him by now. What is the point in holding on
• 26:14
  to a player that you have not had contract talks with since May? What is the point in
• 26:19
  holding on to a player when you have multiple teams who are willing to not only meet your
• 26:24
  demands but surpass your demands? What is the point? I don't care that you prioritize
• 26:32
  his player. I don't care that you like this player. I don't care that he plays this X
• 26:38
  role on your team. If a team wants him, and if you're not willing to pay him, let him
• 26:44
  go. Let him go. In the Disney movie, let it go. Let it go. Let him go, man. Just let
• 26:51
  him go. You're taking too long. By now, he should be practicing and learning a new playbook
• 26:59
  and building chemistry with his new quarterback or whatever the case may be. That's just what
• 27:03
  it is. Okay, this is for all the GMs out there, for all the people out there who cover football.
• 27:11
  Let this be a lesson that you cannot, when you see, Jesus, there's so much I have to
• 27:20
  say about this topic. When you see that there is a situation like this that is looming over
• 27:26
  the horizon, nipping in the body immediately. Don't wait till it grows because now they're
• 27:33
  in the situation or now they're desperate. Kyle Shanahan is hating this. He's hating
• 27:39
  this. He cannot stand this. So guess what? The longer that this draws out, the more
• 27:45
  this is going to irritate Kyle Shanahan even more. People don't even realize that not to
• 27:51
  mention you have Christian McCaffrey that is dealing with an injury. You have Ricky Purcell,
• 27:58
  Peersaw that's dealing with an injury. You have players on the offense that are dealing
• 28:02
  with multiple injuries. And guess what? It would be great to have Brandon IEWIC in-camp
• 28:08
  practicing. But guess what? You guys don't want to pay him, nor do you guys want to trade.
• 28:14
  So again, what exactly is going on at this point? That is the question because it's not
• 28:20
  like it's not like the 49ers are in a situation where, oh, we're, we're skilled deprived. We
• 28:26
  don't have as much on the offense and what are we going to do? Oh, what was me? What
• 28:32
  was me? It's not what it is. It's not. You still have George Kittle. You still have Christian
• 28:39
  McCaffrey. You still have Joanne Jennings. You still, you just got Ricky Peersaw, right?
• 28:45
  You just signed Robbie Anderson yesterday. Juju just got released by the Patriots today.
• 28:51
  So you got options, right? Shoo. Go after one of those receivers with the Texans. They got
• 28:58
  a whole bunch for receivers for no reason, right? Do that. Do that. Everybody will want
• 29:06
  to, will want to play for the 49ers because why? They're a Super Bowl team. That means
• 29:11
  that I mean, honestly, the only team that you have to go up against that will probably
• 29:15
  give you problems is who the Eagles and the Lions. That's it. Otherwise, guess what? You
• 29:22
  are literally skipping into the Super Bowl, skipping literally. So again, what is the
• 29:31
  hold up, John Lynch? What is the hold up, Kyle Shanahan? What's the hold up? Because
• 29:37
  the longer that this goes out, the more this makes you guys look like fools. And when you
• 29:42
  guys get fleeced because there's going to happen, I'm not saying it's going to happen
• 29:45
  by the con artists. No, no, no. I'm going to, it is going to happen. But the longer that
• 29:51
  this thing draws out, the worse is going to look on you guys. Because guess what? There's
• 29:56
  teams that are looking for receivers, but I don't even think they're going to be willing
• 30:00
  to go into this fight. I just don't, I just don't believe it personally, but I could be
• 30:06
  wrong personally. So again, it sucks to be them. It sucks to be 49ers. Fool. Now on to
• 30:15
  bigger and better things that we actually care about because why we have football tonight,
• 30:21
  but not just any type of football. Okay, not just any type of team. You know who I'm talking
• 30:26
  about. Now for the people that have their headphones in, you might want to turn it down.
• 30:30
  Just a little bit. Just a little bit. Just give me a hand right now because guess who
• 30:35
  plays tonight? You are six time, six time, six time, six time, six time Super Bowl champion
• 30:48
  Pittsburgh still players play tonight. They go against the Texans in Pittsburgh. We have
• 30:55
  to talk about it. These are just a few things that I just decided to write down just to
• 31:00
  cover. Okay. So the things that I'm looking out for to start things off is the offensive
• 31:05
  line. Right? I want to see how things are going to roll out. Now I know for sure they're
• 31:11
  probably going to, aside from Isaac C. Amalo, probably everybody else is going to play on
• 31:15
  that offensive line. But for starters, I really want to see how things are going to go with
• 31:21
  both Broderick Jones and Troy Fatano. Okay, I really want to see that because, especially
• 31:26
  for Troy, for Troy Fatano, because I'm really interested to see if he really is that good
• 31:32
  like what people have been saying as a right tackle. Okay, I really want to see that. I
• 31:37
  really want to see, you know, is Broderick Jones more comfortable on the left than he
• 31:41
  is on the right or vice versa, whatever the case may be. I really want to see that because
• 31:46
  let's be real her folks. The Steelers invested two first round picks in the both of them and
• 31:51
  back to back drafts. Okay, this thing has to work. It has to work. It has to there's
• 31:58
  no if ands or buts about it. This has to work at this point. Okay, as well as you know,
• 32:05
  maybe I don't know Mason McCormick is going to play or Zach Fraser or or or or Nate Herbie.
• 32:13
  But I just want to see what the offensive line looks like so far with this new scheme
• 32:18
  and whatnot. I want to see are they ready? You know, do you know, do they have chemistry?
• 32:23
  I want to see all those different types of different types of things. Okay, now for the
• 32:27
  next thing, Justin Fields. Now you're probably thinking well, Justin Fields can run and do
• 32:32
  it only. No, I want to see his mechanics. I want to see has his has his mechanics improved.
• 32:40
  I want to see is his decision making improved. I want to see has his play calling improved.
• 32:46
  I want to see all the various aspects of what is needed for an elite quarterback. I want
• 32:52
  to see has that improved because we have seen bits and pieces of it, right? We've seen bits
• 33:00
  and pieces of it, but we have not seen it consistent. That's the part where we're trying
• 33:05
  to get at right now. We want to see more consistency with his play calling with his execution,
• 33:13
  you know, with his decision making all those different types of things, his footwork, all
• 33:17
  of that. We want to see more of that consistently because we live in a time now where if your
• 33:23
  quarterback is not elite, you are not going to go anywhere. You are not going to be successful.
• 33:30
  Okay, that's just where it is. And I truly believe that the Steelers are going to invest
• 33:37
  into Justin Fields long term. And I think, you know, them, them putting him into, you
• 33:43
  know, this preseason game is definitely going to show, you know, is that the right decision?
• 33:48
  Is that the wrong decision? Moving forward. Okay. Receivers specifically for the Steelers,
• 33:54
  I want to see exactly how these, how these receivers look. Okay, because depending on
• 34:00
  how these receivers look, I think we'll have a direct effect on the brand and I you a trade.
• 34:05
  I think if they're just horrible or somebody is seriously hurt and whatnot, I think that
• 34:11
  deal gets done a lot quicker than what it is. I truly believe that. I just want to, I
• 34:18
  mean, George, George Pickens is George Pickens. That's, you know, that's an outlier, but I
• 34:23
  want to see exactly has his route running gotten better. I want to see, you know, just
• 34:29
  his body control. I want to be able to see has he gotten a better, has he become a better
• 34:33
  receiver than he was last year? That is the number one thing that I emphasize the most.
• 34:40
  Have you become a better player in your position than what you were previously? Because if
• 34:45
  you're still doing the same things that you did last year, then to me, you haven't done
• 34:49
  anything, right? And for George Pickens, if he really wants to stick out and if he really
• 34:55
  wants to be an elite receiver, you got to work on your route running, bro. Got to work
• 35:00
  on it because if you cannot create separation at the line of scrimmage, what are you good
• 35:06
  for? Now granted, I mean, you are a bigger receiver and whatnot. That's cool and all.
• 35:11
  But if you get that crazy, that crazy, um, crazy footwork in, man, oh man, that's, that's
• 35:18
  a problem right there. Okay. Now moving forward, the Texas offense. Okay. I want to see exactly
• 35:24
  how does this offense look? How's it going to flow, especially with, you know, their
• 35:29
  acquisition, not accusations, their, um, you know, with the moves that they made in the
• 35:33
  all season to get Joe mixing and Stefan Diggs, I want to see exactly how things are going
• 35:38
  to mesh because that's a very crowded receiver room. And I would not be surprised if somebody
• 35:44
  gets traded fairly quickly. I would not be surprised because they have Nico Collins,
• 35:50
  Farrell Brown, um, Tank Dell, now Stefan Diggs, they got the receiver from the Rams as well.
• 35:58
  And I think they also have Robert Woods. So if I'm not mistaken, they have six receivers,
• 36:03
  six of them. So it's like, it's a crowded room and you already know Stefan Diggs is going
• 36:09
  to get his tank. Dell is going to get his Nico Collins is going to get his right. It's
• 36:15
  just a matter of where everybody else fits in on this puzzle. Um, and the same thing for
• 36:19
  the defense as well. I definitely want to see exactly how does the patch rush look? How
• 36:24
  does the defensive line look and not to mention, um, how does their secondary look? Because
• 36:29
  and I know, you know, people are probably saying, well, you're just throwing a bunch
• 36:33
  of ifs around. No, because on paper, the Texans should be a top 10 roster, right? They got
• 36:43
  the Neil Hunter, they got Will Anderson, right? They got, um, Derek Stingley Jr. They have
• 36:48
  CJ Henderson on the defense, right? Then on the offense, Stefan Diggs, CJ Stroud, Joe
• 36:54
  Mixon. Um, I think they still have Bolton Schultz. If I'm not mistaken, Tank Dell,
• 36:58
  Nico Collins, that is a stacked roster. That's a really good roster. That is a team right
• 37:04
  there that is going to give other teams problems because why they're young, they're hungry
• 37:09
  and they are trying to prove something. Okay. CJ Stroud is going to go on a tear. You heard
• 37:15
  it here first on the 22nd episode called source off on the football junkies podcast. You heard
• 37:22
  it here first. Okay. Um, another thing that, that, that definitely has, has caught my attention
• 37:27
  is the Steelers pass rush. Um, and I can, I can sort of get into a now and cause this
• 37:33
  is somewhat of a breaking news. Marcus Golden, um, has retired. Yeah. Um, Marcus Golden has
• 37:41
  officially retired from the NFL. Um, so now this somewhat puts a hole for the fourth position
• 37:49
  for, you know, for outside linebacker, you know, for a patch rusher. So it's, it's a
• 37:55
  matter of exactly what, you know, how things are going to roll out because, you know, TJ
• 38:01
  Y and Alex Highsmith, that's a given. Okay. They're, they're, they're going to do their
• 38:05
  thing. They're going to be the game records, the mallers that they need to be, right? But
• 38:10
  it's a matter of what's going to happen when you have Nick Herbic and whoever else, because
• 38:16
  now this, you know, this could, you know, speed things up for them to try to maybe go
• 38:21
  after another patch rusher or whatever the case may be at this point, because they, they
• 38:27
  need it because at some point TJ Watts going to need to break Alex Highsmith is going to
• 38:32
  need to break somebody else who have to come in, right? They think you got to keep that
• 38:35
  thing going. You have to not to mention exactly, you know, what's going to happen with Dean
• 38:42
  Lowry and Isaiah Lauer milk and, you know, the Marvin Lee, especially the Marvin Lee
• 38:47
  out because from what I've heard is he has had a really good training camp so far. And
• 38:52
  so I want to see is that going to transition over to the known to the preseason games because
• 38:58
  let's be real here. He is, you know, on the outside looking at, okay, he is trying to
• 39:03
  get a roster spot. His roster spot is not guaranteed at this point. So the pressure
• 39:08
  is on him to show up and show out and to prove why he deserves to be on this roster. Because
• 39:14
  if he doesn't, he's going to get cut. He's going to get cut. Now, granted, I understand
• 39:19
  that the Steelers somewhat hindered his progress because coming out of college, he was a little
• 39:24
  bit of a tweener. He, you know, really didn't have, you know, experience in just one specific,
• 39:31
  you know, position, but at the same time, when you kept on moving him around, you know,
• 39:36
  outside linebacker, you know, D line, you know, in this that the other that it messes
• 39:42
  things up. It does. So definitely want to see exactly how was that going to go? And then,
• 39:48
  you know, finally, Steelers secondary me personally, you know, aside from Joey Porter, junior,
• 39:55
  I do have question marks. Well, and I'll say Jackson, well, no, no, I'll say that. I'll
• 40:02
  say that for, you know, in the coming moment, I do have a lot of questions about the secondary.
• 40:07
  I do. I definitely do because, you know, Joey, Joey Porter, junior is, is, is the light
• 40:13
  for the cornerback room. I just want to see exactly how things are going to go with everybody
• 40:17
  else because beanie Bishop from what I've heard, he has been doing his thing has been
• 40:23
  making plays. He's been consistent, you know, since I think rookie mini camp, if I'm not
• 40:29
  mistaken. So I just want to see how everything else is going to go because after Joey Porter,
• 40:35
  junior, you have Dante Jackson, but is it, you know, what version of Dante Jackson you're
• 40:41
  going to get? You know, is there going to be somewhat of a fall off or not me personally?
• 40:46
  I don't think so. I think he's going to be, you know, fairly good. I do believe that.
• 40:51
  Um, and you know how things are going to go with cams, son, you know, going to be suspended
• 40:56
  for eight games. That's the real question because, you know, you got to figure out what's with
• 41:02
  Darius Rush, what's with Corey Trice and company. You have to figure out all those different
• 41:06
  type of things because let's be real here, folks. There's a lot of good corners that
• 41:11
  are still available in free agency. I keep on saying it stuff on Gilmore, Xavier and
• 41:16
  Howard or Dory Jackson. Who else? Who else? Who else? Um, there's a lot of court. I'll
• 41:26
  just say that there's a lot of corners that are available. And you know, if you need to
• 41:32
  to make a move, make a move. Okay. For any of those type of corners, especially someone
• 41:36
  like a ghillie, if you get a ghillie, that does a lot. You're talking about ghillie is
• 41:43
  what Patrick Peterson was supposed to be for the Steelers. Right. So when that is experienced,
• 41:48
  that has played, you know, at the highest peak, who, you know, has done a lot, but you
• 41:54
  know, can is ready to pass it on to the next generation. That's what he is. Okay. And so,
• 42:02
  you know, I say all that to say this, there's going to be a lot of questions. I do have
• 42:06
  a lot of questions leading into this game. Hopefully they get answered once the game
• 42:12
  is over. Maybe I'll do something, you know, once the game is over or not. I don't know.
• 42:16
  But you know, just, just stay tuned. But as always, if you guys like what you guys are
• 42:21
  listening to, please, please, please, please, please like, share, subscribe, send it to
• 42:26
  somebody. If you don't mind, leave a five star review or wherever you listen to the
• 42:31
  football junkies podcast, shout out to Apple podcast, Spotify and all the places that we
• 42:37
  are able to give our football junkies their daily fix. Okay, cool. Now you can follow
• 42:43
  us on Instagram, TikTok and YouTube at football underscore junkies pod. Again, that is football
• 42:50
  underscore junkies pod junkies pod is not space. It is one word together. Okay. Also,
• 42:58
  also, also, also, what else? What else am I, I know, I know there's something I'm forgetting.
• 43:02
  Please, for the for the YouTube people, like, share, subscribe, leave a comment below. What
• 43:08
  do you think about the, what do you think about the episode? Am I right? Am I wrong?
• 43:12
  What are your thoughts? Exactly. You know, I want to, I want to have a healthy, not argument,
• 43:18
  but a healthy conversation about certain things. Okay, let me know, please inform me. And please,
• 43:24
  let me know exactly what you guys want to talk about. Okay, what team, what team that
• 43:27
  you guys want me to cover more because honestly, I'm tired of talking about brand. Are you
• 43:32
  I really am until the trade happens, I might just go on a brand. Now you would strike.
• 43:36
  I might just do that honestly. As always, I hope I gave you guys the fix that you guys
• 43:42
  need. I love you guys. I appreciate you guys so much for being with me on this journey.
• 43:47
  Again, we are eight episodes away, eight episodes away from 30 episodes, right? Do you not know
• 43:57
  that a large majority of podcasts do not even make it to the 20th episode? We are about
• 44:03
  to be 20, 22 episodes in 22, 22 episodes in that deserves a round of applause. Not only
• 44:13
  for, for me, because you know, I definitely put in a lot of work for this. I definitely
• 44:18
  pushed through a lot of things to get to this point. But for y'all for supporting me and
• 44:23
  helping me to get to this point and continuing to, you know, help me to give you guys the
• 44:28
  fix that you guys need. So as always, I love you guys. I appreciate you guys. Please be
• 44:33
  safe out there to all the people that may be impacted by the storm. My thoughts and prayers
• 44:37
  are with you guys. Hopefully you guys, you know, are able to rebuild and, you know, be
• 44:44
  stronger. As always, I love you guys. Peace.