Transcript of MetLife Realism, August Fluff & Superhero Fandoms with Dan Hanzus

there would be a stone-faced, like, anchor guy talking about Ray Rice's suspension, and then in the deep background distance, Sheck would be doing the move where he's pretending he's walking down the steps.

It wasn't during Ray Rice's— it was probably for much more important news, like, hey, coach says that they're gonna be, uh, bringing this number 2 receiver up to make him their number 1, and how is that going to impact the chase in the NFC West this season, kind of thing. And yeah, I'd be in the— I'd be in the background I'd be walking down doing the back.

So nothing's changed.

All right, my fellow football Americans, the regular season is drawing ever closer, and we've got He Da Calls Dan Hanzous bringing the view from New York, even though he's in LA. He's going to explain why the Jets outlook at MetLife isn't quite as grim as advertised, then truth squads the biggest training camp storylines and helps us figure out which sports teams fictional New Yorkers like Peter Parker might actually support. Then 10-Day Tony's in with a very spicy team that is not going to the playoffs, and he actually believes it. And we continue our ascent of Mount Lombardi. Who's going to the playoffs from the NFC East and the AFC East? We haven't a moment to spare. Let's start the show. Yes, hi and hello, my fellow football Americans. Welcome to Football America, presented as ever by our pals over at DraftKings. DraftKings Sports, if you haven't heard the news, get ready. Now in all 50 states, that's good news for everybody. And here's more good news for you. You already know it because you're listening and or watching us, but you can subscribe. You can be a hero to all of your friends or your enemies, depending on your opinion of this show.

You can subscribe to it. You can comment on it. We'll bring in Major Randy to read your comments off of YouTube and otherwise. Football America is where you find that on YouTube and wherever you find your favorite podcasts It's episode number 78. Like I say, Dan Hanzo's joining us momentarily. 78, hello fellas down in Miami behind the glass. Who wore the number 78 best in NFL history? And before you jump in here, Buddy and/or Gino, we are joined by one of our favorites. It's 10-Day Tony. Hello to you, 10-Day Tony.

What's up, Davey?

You have off the top of your head at number 78 in NFL lore?

Wow, 78, that's a tough number. Offensive lineman, I can't even think of one off the top of my head.

Be a good matchup, be a good a high-end matchup between Anthony Muñoz and Bruce Smith, eh?

Yes, it would.

Bruce Smith wore 78?

Yeah, man.

Wow.

I don't think of defensive linemen as wearing 78.

Is he— he's the all-time career sacks leader, right? NFL record? Yeah, I think we do. Yeah, 200 sacks.

I think that's right.

I got Mr. Lister coming.

Well, I'm not going to jump in on Mr. Lister right now, but, uh, Tenday Tony and fellas, Art Shell also makes the list. From the mighty Pittsburgh Steelers dynasty of the '70s. Mad Dog Dwight White, one of the 4 original members of the Steel Curtain. And speaking of that, '78 equals 1978, the 14-2 Pittsburgh Steelers on anyone's shortlist of greatest Super Bowl era football teams.

You never miss an opportunity, man, do you?

I mean, listen, the Super Bowl's only been around for 60-some years now, and the Steelers loom prominently over those 60 years. I think we can all agree. But we're not talking about the past. Let's talk about the present and the near future. We like to dig in on the teams that are going to be playing in January. That's why we're going to pay a visit to Mount Lombardi in just a little while here and see which teams from the NFC East and AFC East will ascend that to make one, uh, to make the playoffs and claim one of those 7 spots in the, uh, in either conference there. In the meantime, that means that some teams will not be paying a visit to said Mount Lombardi. Instead, they'll be sent off to Bummer Hill. Tony, I start with you. You were real spicy with us last time you were in. You said the Washington Commanders would not be making the playoffs. That's a, that's a pretty, pretty ballsy place to start here. I turn to you now, Jaden Higgins, the presumed second option for the Houston Texans. A lot of people bullish on those Texans.

Do you want to name the Houston Texans as a no-playoff team for you? Don't let me steer you though. Take it away.

No, no, no. I was looking at Houston, but I haven't really felt the need to put them on my list as of yet. I'm gonna keep going spicy here. I know everybody wants to take the easy, the easy fruit off the bottom of the tree. I'm gonna take the San Francisco 49ers to miss the playoffs this year.

Spicy indeed!

How do you like that one?

How do you like that one?

You can see that, right?

All of a sudden the pieces start filling together. 20% of the roster right now is injured. They're not practicing.

What's going on with that substation?

The substation, people don't want to talk about it. I talked to the guy. And he said that it's a real thing. And I'm going to continue listening to that guy because he's been right every time.

We're banking on Pablo Torre, right?

Over— yeah, I talked to the guy who actually did the math and did the science, not Pablo Torre. Whoever he was talking to, I don't know.

The Niners GM's not doing himself any favors here. He's got a bunch of guys over 30 on offense.

I mean, he's just got Mike Evans next to the substation. What are we doing? How did that—

how did that get through?

How did that get through of all people? So yeah, I'm going to take the San Francisco 49ers. I like Brock Purdy. I like Shanahan. I just don't think they have anybody else outside of that that can make any plays.

As ever, Tony, a man of science. Buddy, you want to step up here? Name another no playoff for you team. As a reminder, last week Ty Dunn paid us, paid us a visit, and he went spicy too. He named the Pittsburgh Steelers as a team that is not destined for the playoffs. I happen to agree with that, but it is a, like I say, a much easier, the low-hanging fruit. Go with, go with the Jets or with the Dolphins as a for instance. But to jump in with the Steelers, I like, I like the spice there. Buddy, take it away.

Yeah, I'm gonna go kind of down a similar route there with the, uh, kind of like spicy route, I would say. Although I don't know how spicy this one is considering the preseason results. Dave, you told us don't pay attention to anything going on in preseason, but it's hard not to pay attention to what's going on in Atlanta right now. This might be the worst quarterback situation in the league when it comes to Tua and Penix. Tua can't beat out Penix, who was just very bang-ass average last year. I don't see anything in Atlanta's future right now. I know we say they're kind of one of those teams that you're like, well, if everything breaks right, maybe they can go 9-8 and sneak into the playoffs in a weak NFC South, but I just don't see anything breaking right for them this year considering what's going on at quarterback. I'm gonna say the Atlanta Falcons miss the playoffs.

Well, I think the bigger issue for them is that they kind of sort of saw— they looked into, uh, into the crystal ball and recognized that they lacked a pass rush, and it seemed that they fixed that a year ago, but now those guys are banged up or suspended or otherwise, plus the quarterback issue. Even in a mediocre to poor NFC South. I kind of agree with that. Falcons and Niners, no playoffs for you. Uh, buddy, I hope you're keeping a running list of everybody. Mina Kime said she went low-hanging fruit, right? She went, uh, she went like Jets or Dolphins or somebody like that.

Yeah, I mean, those are the easy ones, right? Those are the ones we all want.

Browns and, uh, and Cardinals. Um, you want to throw one more in here?

I've been looking at it, and I'm— the one that sticks out to me, and I think last year was just an aberration, and I think it's gonna, you know, the end of the year is going to continue on for them this year, is the Colts. They're just—

they were on my list last time.

Yeah, Danny Dimes is not— is, you know, he's coming off an Achilles, um, it's just— I don't feel it this year. I didn't feel it last year, to tell you the truth, so maybe they'll surprise me.

But well, the other thing is too, you always have to be mindful of the neighborhood in which these teams inhabit. And do you— do you like the Jags? I think most people do. Do you like the Texans despite the, the Higgins injury? Getting outsized attention right now. They remain a contender in the AFC too. So those are two obstacles in their path immediately before you consider anything else. I'm with you. Sorry, Indianapolis Colts and Danny Dimes. No playoffs for you. That's according to Geno though. All right, let's put a pin in that conversation for right now. And I'm not here to talk about why the Jets are not playoff-bound. Perhaps he'll even talk us into his New York Jets being a player come January. Meantime, you him as the guy with the dynamite head of hair steering Heed the Call with another hero named Mark Sessler riding shotgun, Conor O'Rourke, the Gravedigger, in the back seat. They started out a decade and a half ago on the Debate Club. Now this fella's a world champion thanks to his Knickerbockers. It's our old pal, still with a dynamite head of hair, looking svelte as all get-out.

It's Dan Hanzoos. What's the poop, fella? How are you, Dave?

Oh, what a fun time of year. Thank you for the intro. And as everyone knows, Dave started the Debate Club, so you are— I owe everything to you and you never let me forget it.

Oh, shush. I had nothing to do with anything. Um, okay, let's— I, I, I hate to, uh, start heavy here, but, um, I know, I know you focus in not just on football but also the game of life. Scale of 1 to 10, how concerned are you about Brad Pitt's drinking? No, I mean, I don't really care what you think. I mean, what are we doing? What are we doing? This is what we're talking about. We're talking about the A-listers boozing.

I did the article or whatever where it came out. I think it was one of those things where, of course, he wasn't meaning to reveal it, and then he just grabbed the glass of wine and the interviewer was like, ooh, I got something here. And Pitt was like, hamana, hamana, hamana. He's like, well, every once in a while. Good luck, Brad.

You know what I mean?

I just want him to be happy and healthy.

Leave Brad Pitt alone. Now listen, that's not my biz. That's not our business. But our biz, let's talk about that. I have an idea for a limited run podcast, Dan Hanzus, and you might be a perfect participant for it. The idea is called This Was NFL Network. What do you think? We just tell stories about what happened at NFL Network when we were there, remember?

I, I believe what this is connected to is something that as soon as I saw it, I was like, oh, Sheck's going to love that. Sheck's going to love that. This, this is NFL Network. I would love, I would love to be a part of that. I would do that. I would do that.

Newsroom getting berated for, for laughing in the newsroom about taking away from the important work being done around pro pigskin. Remember, I got shouted down by, by one of our bosses once.

Unbelievable. I had to make her genuinely hated by the, uh, over-serious, uh, old-time newsman who ran the Culver City newsroom back in the day. I, I was talking to our old buddy James Palmer a few weeks ago.

As we've seen what's happened, congratulations to him, and he's an upcoming visitor here on Football Talk.

Very nice. Yes, he just got that Netflix gig, and well deserved. Like, just talking about, like, I'm now going to be a little bit more, um, you know, nostalgic than maybe your bit was setting up there, Dave. But we were there for the heyday of NFL Network. And like, I look at Scheck, you've had like a crazy career. I don't even know if people realize Scheck's career, that all the great writing credits and an original staff writer for Jimmy Kimmel and all the Comedy Central stuff, the terrestrial radio. I imagine you have a lot of great stories over your career. For me, uh, as like a guy, like NFL Network is my origin story and I look back at all the fun stuff we did in that newsroom and all the trips we went on and all the money that the league was spending on the network and dot-com for a period there and all the friends you made. And like, it was— I have no bitterness or anything towards that, that whole empire because we were there during the golden age. I mean, I won back-to-back softball titles, co-ed softball titles, some of the best times of my life.

So I wasn't a part of the actual softballing, but I did participate in the celebration at least once.

Yeah, I did. You did.

I'm completely with you on exactly what you said. And it's, you know, some of the— I mean, bittersweet for obvious reasons, but I do still love once in a while a tweet or something from social media pops up that Chris Wessling liked of mine or him agreeing with me and the validation. I can't wait for 2026 for Wes and his humor and, and for the boss's humor and for all the good times. That we had with our guy Handsome Hank thriving over there in Europe and making pro football now an international thing and all the rest of it. But another guy who I mentioned—

just one more thing. Can I just share one memory that people don't understand? To have Sheck in the newsroom, like, keeping everyone from doing their work. You would have someone, they would do the live hits of, like, you know, on the top of the hour for NFL Network, and there would be a stone-faced, like, anchor guy talking about Ray Rice's suspension. And then in the deep background distance, Sheck would be doing the move where he's pretending he's walking down the steps.

It wasn't during Ray Rice's. It was probably for much more important news, like, hey, coach says that they're going to be bringing this number 2 receiver up to make him their number 1. And how is that going to impact the chase in the NFC West this season kind of thing? And yeah, I'd be in the background, be walking down, doing the back.

So nothing's changed. Nothing's changed, Dave.

You're the same guy you've always been, Dave.

And then I was called into the boss's office and told—

Right, the guy who used to be Peter Jennings's right-hand man and for some reason didn't view us or you as serious journalists by comparison.

He would wear a Hawaiian— this is the mark of a swell, is a guy who wears a Hawaiian shirt but tucks it in. Also, also, also the guy, he would show up to the office as though he was just coming off of his latest round or whatever at the Tour de France. He was rolling with his bike dressed in those tights. And this is a middle-aged man, by the way, with his little hat on. And the, the gap between how cool he thought he looked versus how the rest of us perceived him was gargantuan. All right, listen, let's talk about Mark Sessler for a second because I did hear him mention earlier this week on Heed the Call, or you mentioned, yeah, that he now has a little crush on one Drew Aller. And it seems a lot of the Steelers have fallen for Mike McCarthy. I don't know how much nationally people have, um, but it's striking to me, maybe not even that they love McCarthy so much as they have fallen out of love with Mike Tomlin, and they're now willing to concede that. A guest last week on Football America, Tim Benz, just had a conversation this week with Mason Rudolph.

Here's what Mason Rudolph said about the two young QBs, Drew Aller and Will Howard. Take a listen.

People want to have hope for the future, obviously beyond this year. And so I think we've got two great quarterbacks, you know, that are both young and both really progressing. I mean, I'm, I really am jealous about just the structure they've had in this program and this quarterback, um, grooming system, the way that Coach McCarthy has done it, because I feel like they've made a lot of strides. So Mm.

I mean, you're picking up on that too.

Oh, yes.

Being catty.

I mean, let's, let's be real though. It's not like Mason Rudolph hasn't gotten ample opportunity from this organization and in multiple eras to have an imprint in his career. But yeah, I know. I guess what he's saying is during the development period when he was a younger player coming out of college, maybe the structure wasn't set up for him to, to grow. Yeah, you see it a lot. Like, we had Tyler Dunn, who does such an awesome job covering the Bills and all things NFL on his Go Long Independence site.

He was with us just last week.

There you go. We all interview the same people. It's all incestuous. But he was saying, like, the breath of fresh air that Joe Brady is compared to Sean McDermott, who, you know, the same Sean McDermott that once, you know, said that the 9/11 hijackers were paragons of organization and coming, coming through in a big spot like just getting people getting fresh air and you feel that. And apparently Lamar Jackson feels similarly in Baltimore right now. And sometimes you just do have to refresh things. And maybe with the Steelers, even though the whole idea of the Mike McCarthy, Aaron Rodgers things, from an outside perspective and a non-hardcore fan or Pittsburgh perspective, it just does— it feels kind of pointless. But Mike McCarthy having a chance to develop a younger quarterback. Okay, you could buy into that. Is in this era of Steelers football parked in the cul-de-sac of elite mediocrity, we could be actually building towards something. And I just hope Aaron moves out of the way sooner rather than later for the whole organization.

I like that elite mediocrity. That's well put. Yeah, like I, like I said in April, as soon as they took Drew Aller, it makes all the sense in the world. Why else do you get Mike McCarthy? And for people who have amnesia or maybe just aren't aware in the first place, There was a guy out of Cal who was a high-end prospect who held the ball up by his ear weirdly, and somebody had to coach him out of that. The guy who did that was Mike McCarthy, along with Tom Clements, and made Aaron Rodgers into the— in part helped make him the first ballot Hall of Famer. So why not Mike McCarthy here? On the other end of the spectrum, it sort of presents, based on what you just said about the breath of new fresh air and all of that, Aaron Glenn, or should I say Woody Johnson, kind of is doing the George Costanza thing, that one Seinfeld episode where Costanza does the opposite of all of his instincts. Woody, had he not just fired another coach or was not in a run of doing that and being bludgeoned for doing so, I think would have fired Aaron Glenn, but was like, I better deny those instincts and just stick with, with my head coach for once, right?

How say you?

Yeah. And I think they, they were so certain that Glenn was the guy and he could still turn out to be the guy, although there's plenty of signs pointing to that not being the fact that they gave him the type of contract where even for a billionaire nepo baby like Woody Johnson, it would have been just swallowing a lot. And it just made sense where the organization was to give this another year. And then if things, things don't get better, then you hit the hard reset. Um, with a head coach/play caller and an incoming rookie. I, I've been a little bit, um, frightened by some of the logic around the Jets. And, and the only, the only part that hasn't been kind of checking out to me is Aaron Glenn himself. And it was a little rocky if you go back and how he handled his coaching staff. You, you know, first-year coach who fires half his coaching staff after the season. That many of the guys that got let go thought they were safe for a week or two after the season, only to learn they were out. There was like a hesitation with who he was going to hire at DC, and then he decided to take play calling back, and then he tried to demote his OC before Engstrom left, and he brought in Frank Reich, who is 64 years old and maybe not the guy you look to as a, you know, future-seeing offensive specialist.

But all that said, the Glenn thing is the Glenn thing, but everything else around the Jets I have some optimism about because I really do think Muji knows what he's doing. And, um, I think there's— there, there are players in place on both sides of the ball.

Tons of players.

Yeah, that this— you know, could just get protected and not fall off a cliff here. And I don't think he's going to. I think they're going to be a competitive team this year.

I agree. I don't love the schedule. There's some real heavyweights on it. Um, but I do like the idea of Reich with Geno Smith. You don't need a super progressive guy. What you need is a guy who's going to take care of the ball and be fairly— I mean, the defense has a chance to be real good, but then again and they have the ability to maybe beat some teams up with the offensive line they have. So as one focus of yours is obviously, you love the tropes of the offseason.

Sure.

I love the mirage of August and how it has very little relevance once you get to the games that actually matter. August is a month-long lie for your eyes. It's a Civil War reenactment. But as reporter notes from camp swirl this week about the Patriots defense dominating Jalen Hurts and the Eagles, and people in my mind overreacting to that, what training camp storylines have you determined are in fact real, Dan Hanshues, for 2026?

Hmm, real training camp stories. I do think, like, if we're talking about— we're just talking about the Bills, um, hearing the, the excitement around how that offense and defense is revitalized. And there's a heaviness that came to grow around that organization under McDermott that getting him out of the building and bringing in Joe Brady— who, by the way, also one of the storylines you're hearing is Joe Brady and Josh Allen like each other, which maybe wasn't the case between Josh Allen and Sean McDermott. So like teams that these that got out of long-term relationships with head coaches. Uh, it's risky when the head coaches have had success, but I, I like it as a bold move. And I think you're going to see it, um, uh, play out with a team like Buffalo, even though you want to talk about schedule. Have you seen the Bills schedule the first 5 weeks of their season going into their bye? Like the first 6 games, they'll be lucky, I would think, to get out of there 3-3 and survive. But yes, teams that, that have moved on. So who would that be? It'd be the Ravens, long-term, your Steelers and the Bills.

I think all three of those teams are going— you're going to see them be more successful this year because it was time to, to freshen things up. So I buy into that storyline.

Like I mentioned, you're a Knickerbockers fan, so you're celebrating that. You're a weird New York-based fan in that you like the Yankees, but you like the Jets. And I once, as you may recall, I had the chance to sit down with, with Don Draper. Himself to ask him, because you and I had kind of talked about this in advance in, in the newsroom once, I remember. Who would Don Draper in like 1969-ish, who would he have been rooting for, the New York Giants or the New York Jets? And I asked, uh, one, uh, what was his real name, Dick Whitman, John Ham, whatever it was. Take a listen to that. Don Draper, you said, to root for a pro football team in 1969, New York Football Club, right?

There are two.

Which one did he choose?

There are the Giants, the professional Football Giants?

I think he would— see, I think he would like— I think he would be a Giants guy, but because he's establishment, he's old school.

Yes, yes.

But he fancies himself a creative, and he probably—

he's not fancying, he is. He's a creative man.

I'm not— it's not, it's not, uh, denouncing you on any level. You understand you're not actually Don Draper.

No, I know, I know, I know.

Trust me, that, that's come and gone, Fred. It has, you know. Move on.

It was a good—

I didn't bring it up.

Okay, you're right. Um, but go ahead. What's the—

so I think the answer is, and I think that you'll like both of these sides, that you're correct. Don generally does not pick a side, but when he does, he tends to pick the wrong side of history on many things. Not an Ali guy.

Yeah, right.

More of a Liston guy. So I think he would like the Giants and not the fancy '80s Phil Sims. No, no, no. He didn't— Elton Tuna, Jack.

By '85, gone. But yeah, by '87 or whatever, he was like a Bills fan. Old man Draper's like, yeah, back in my day we wouldn't have let LT carry on like that. Big Chuck Knox guy.

Um, but I do think the one guy he could get behind, Broadway Joe.

So there you have it. I, you know, so basically he would have straddled the fence, and I kind of agree with that take. And we also know from the— I can't remember, the Vesuvius was Is that the name of the restaurant that Tony Soprano always went to?

Uh, Suvio? Yeah, something like that. Yeah.

Anyway, Soprano met up with the Jets head coach, so we know he's a Jets guy. But you, pretty plugged into the tri-state. I was curious for your thoughts on who some other fictional prominent New Yorkers would root for between the Jets and the Giants. Peter Parker. It's on the record that he likes the Knicks and he likes the Mets, but it's indeterminate, undetermined whether he rooted for the AFL or the NFL. How say you?

I would think as a Queens native, that definitely is Jets territory. I will say I did, I did think about this one because you mentioned this to me, that he— if you're Spider-Man, you look at crime rates in New York City and the crime crime rate will dip, um, in the winter months, which would ostensibly give Peter Parker more time to actually watch football. So while, like, I just saw the new Spider-Man with my sons, he does have the Knicks or the Mets banner in his bedroom. Um, no Jets. I think he is quietly a big Jets fan, actually, and, um, a long-suffering Jets fan. That's how I like to— there's no way Peter Parker living in Queens is a fan of the Giants.

How about the taxi driver Travis Bickle?

I think he— Bickle would be like disturbingly passionate about the 1977 New York Yankees. Like, yeah, like, you know, you don't want— if they—

is he on Billy Martin's side or Reggie's side?

Definitely Billy. I think he would view Reggie as part of like the filth that needs to be cleaned from the streets, you know what I mean? He— and he loved Thurman Munson. He loved Munson.

How about the Friends? Ross and Rachel and all the rest them?

I would say that none of them were legit sports fans, but they would jump on bandwagons. So obviously they, during like the core 4 Yankees dynasty was the heart of the Friends run, um, they would identify as Yankees fans and wear the hats. Um, but like, I don't think they could have named a single Jets or Giants player. And then I was thinking about the Knicks. So do you remember the episode when Yeah. Half of them go to the Hootie and the Blowfish concert. And the ones that don't, the, the, the friends that had money went to, were able to go to the Hootie concert. And then the friends that were poor couldn't go. And there was some friction between them. I would think, um, Chandler and maybe Joey during his Days of Our Lives arc would be able to go to some of those Garden playoff games during the Riley run. And the other ones wouldn't be afford, uh, wouldn't be able to afford to get into the Garden.

I mean, I'm tempted to push back, but you're— but you've studied this subject so carefully apparently that I, that I wouldn't dare. Next up, Cookie Monster. I'm just going off of the colors. Maybe I'm a person, but Cookie Monster, Giants, Big Blue, definitely Oscar the Grouch, Jets, right?

You couldn't be— there couldn't be a puppet that would be more aligned with a pro sports team than Oscar the Grouch and the New York Jets. It's perfect.

Where do you think Big Bird goes, comes down on it?

I think Big Bird's just like an idiot. I don't think he even like knows what's happening around him.

I just hope they both have fun.

Yeah, just shut up. Go, go away.

Just a couple more quickly. Archie Bunker.

Whatever team had the most white people. So like maybe the Boston teams.

Yeah.

Okay. This is a tough one. Michael Corleone. Did he have time for it? Listen, his family's making book out in Vegas and everything else. Surely he had some understanding of what was going on out there.

Out there?

I would see, like, I would find, guess that like Michael Corleone would view rooting for sports teams as a weakness, like certain carnal acts with a woman. Like, it would just be like, you don't, you don't put yourself out there like that for root for laundry, like that type. I think it would be seen as something that some hump like a Jamoke does, you know?

Yeah, a sucker, sucker wastes his time watching other men run around, do things. I'm, I'm doing stuff.

My—

yeah, I bet you that is his worldview. Lastly, John McClane, when he isn't Die Hard, you know, he's, he had to root for somebody. I have my—

Oh, right, because he was New York, but the Plaza was in LA. Huh. That's a good one, actually, because Die Hard was what, '88?

Yeah. He's a Giants fan. He's proud of being a New Yorker, so much so that his wife moves to LA. He's like, I got to stay here. I think he's tried and true Giants.

Yeah, I think that's fair. I think the traditional Yankees, Giants, Rangers, Knicks setup for John McClain.

And then he feels good about it even more once Jeff Hostetler wins. He feels emboldened.

There's a kinship there, I think. Absolutely.

Yeah.

Yes.

Hey, I also see you talking about one Puka Nakua and It occurs to me that while everybody is falling all over themselves for the LA Rams, and I understand why for any number of reasons, I think they're awfully thin top to bot— top to bottom. And specifically, they are built around Puka Nacua. Were he to go down for any stretch of time, they'd really be doomed, I feel like. No, no matter if they have the reigning MVP and McVay and all the rest of it, is Puka Nacua the biggest Jenga piece? And for anybody who isn't aware, the Jenga theory is if you remove the wrong piece from the equation, the whole thing's gonna implode. Is there a name out there that if he goes out, the whole team's chances of a Super Bowl run are out the window?

Yeah, let's see. I, I think the NFC West in general, I think you could have like Christian McCaffrey. If you take him out of San Francisco, um, I think they fall apart. We're not counting quarterbacks, right? That's too easy.

Quarterbacks are too—

yeah. Um, I think JSN, uh, would be similar to Puka. And like, if you removed Jackson Smith and Jigba from Seattle Um, and you see if you're watching Hard Knocks, like they absolutely understand how special that guy is. They, they obviously paid him that way, but his, uh, when, you know, the evolution of Hard Knocks and their production values, did you see the route tree in live, in real time? Like showing it with the video, like the different angles. Like, yeah, I think if you took him outta that offense, you would put Sam Darnold potentially in a situation where he's gonna have to make tougher throws into tighter windows and things can go go big time sideways. So that would— I think JSN is in that Puka bucket. But I almost saw—

that's a great— that is a great call because they would really be— but you know, like I say with Puka, you know, that you'd be down to Davante Adams, who, if nobody— if people forgot, 34 years old.

Yeah, but at the same time, they have two capable backs, they have some interesting tight ends, and I think McVay deserves the benefit of the doubt. And Stafford's ability to, you know, cerebrally, he's kind of mastered the sport at this point, right? Like, I think they would get by, um, if you took him out for the season. If we're talking about Super Bowl, then it gets a little foggy, but they— I think they could survive a stretch without Puka. I don't know if anybody could lose a guy that good though.

I am also going to throw Quinnen Williams onto the shortlist there if you do consider the Cowboys to be a real contender, which I happen to. Quickly, two things on your way out the door, Dan. Hanzo, need at least one no-playoff-for-you team. One team that is definitely not making the postseason.

No chance?

Yeah, no chance.

I mean, again, the Dolphins have no chance to make—

no playoffs for you. That's a little bit easy, but I'm gonna let you off the hook in favor of—

you know what, let me do, let me do, let me do it. Let me be fair about this. The Colts. It's not happening.

Oh, there we go, two mentions of the Colts in one show.

No, also Jonathan Taylor. Sorry to step on that bit. Uh, I— Jonathan Taylor is another Jenga piece guy. Also, if you take Jonathan Taylor off that team, we are— and by the way, guess who owns the first round pick of the 2027 draft from the Colts? The New York Jets.

And you're saying that into existence here. Last thing, as a, uh, as a music guy, very quickly, worst popular music of our lifetime, nu metal or hair metal? Or a third if you want to go with another option. You're more than—

what about the new McAfee album?

That's too—

there he goes, everybody, from Heed the Call, dynamite head of hair as ever, Dan Hanzo. Dan Hanzo's Gino, you feeling good? He agrees with you about them Colts.

I mean, it's right out there in front of everyone, and he's right.

If Jonathan Taylor goes down, that team is Yeah, that one's borderline a little too easy to say, to go with the feature back, you know, every-down back and all that. But listen, Colts is, uh, is bolder than going Dolphins there.

If you're gonna do Christian McCaffrey, then you get— you got to do Jonathan Taylor.

I was gonna say, is there a back that's more important to their team than Jonathan Taylor? Christian McCaffrey, I guess, because the Niners still have a lot of pieces other than Christian McCaffrey.

I know, but if, if they don't have Christian McCaffrey, they can't control Jameer Gibbs. He did.

Well, now Kyle Shanahan would make me into an 800-yard back, right?

Yeah, that's what I'm saying.

Yes, but yes, get me in there on third down, I would also catch probably 50, 60 passes as well.

Yeah, he would make you into an 800-yard back, but that doesn't make you a 2,000-yard back. Like, Christian McCaffrey is a threat for 100 catches, 1,000 receiving, 1,000 rushing every year.

No, it's a good point.

Yeah, take it up with 10-Day Tony. He's the one who said the Niners ain't making the playoffs. I like that.

I give you guys two solid takes the last couple of times I've been on. Washington, see ya. San Francisco, see ya.

Yeah, they're picking at the top of the draft. There's no question.

I agree with them.

Thank you.

For what it's worth there, any, uh, any argument about, uh, none of you guys are New Yorkers and neither am I, but I think Dan did a pretty good job identifying which teams the fictional— the team the fictional guys would root for.

Yeah, I'm a big Friends guy, Dave. I feel like Joey He's got, he's got Jets vibes to him. He's kind of that like hardcore New Yorker, you know, he's like a Queens guy, grew up with Italian, he grew up with 9 sisters or whatever it was. They just seem like a Jets family, the Tribbianis. And then I imagine Ross and, and, uh, and, uh, wow, I'm blanking on the first— Monica. I'm a huge Friends guy, big Friends guy. Yeah, Ross and Monica, uh, Long Island rich kind of. I, I see them as Giants fans, but I see Joey, he's the sneaky Jets fan in that group I agree with you.

Yeah, probably. Yeah, probably chip on the shoulder, more blue-collar type of kid growing up. Those are the people who vibe to the Jets, uh, as far as I can understand it. Either way, all right, glad 10-Day Tony sitting in along with Buddy and Gino here as it is time for us to gaze upon Mount Lombardi once again. Much like Bob Barker and Drew Carey on The Price is Right, they have their mountain climber going up the hillside. We have the same thing But for football today, our focus will be on the two Easts, the AFC and the NFC. And let's go last things first as we start off with the AFC side of things and close to home for all of you guys in Miami, the Dolphins, who've announced they're not trying to make the playoffs. So we'll give them their wish. For the record, were I to even illustrate them appearing on Mount Lombardi, I would use their real helmet with the Dolphin wearing the helmet. I, I I can't stand that we pretend that, that head injuries matter in pro football and then they take the helmet off of that dolphin. Shameful stuff, right, fellas?

Yeah.

I miss the cartoon logo, Dave. I miss the logo from when I grew up as a kid. I certainly like when the logo was actually a dolphin, not a whale.

They should have an alternate uniform with, with that M on it. Just, just to pay homage.

Just, just the M. That would be cool, actually, if the— if we wore the helmet that the dolphin wore, that would be sweet.

Well, that dolphin, as I've pointed out, for, for a quarter century now at least. That dolphin— I know it's hard to find a, a dolphin that plays football, so I understand, but still, that dolphin isn't on the Miami Dolphins. He's on a team that wears an orange M on the side of itself. So it's a weird— it's a, it's a weird message that they were delivering. Still, the dolphin should wear a helmet if he's playing football. That's my, uh, that's my counsel for all the kids out there, whether they're human or dolphin. Or any creature in the sea, really. Now, can we get serious, please, and talk about the Buffalo Bills, who are in fact a serious contender? Their win total according to DraftKings Sports, 10.5. Joe Brady and Jim Leonard, twice as nice as Sean McDermott. DJ Moore, the big acquisition, certainly offensively. I know some hand-wringing about the overpay. It's not your money. And what really matters for the 2026 season is the role he will play. He will boost that offense. He will boost Josh Allen. Probably the guy who does the most for his team, with all due respect to Lamar Jackson and Joe Burrow and Patrick Mahomes and anyone else you want to mention, probably carries his team as much as any quarterback does in the QB league.

On defense, like I say, Jim Leonard is going to elevate that defense even from Sean McDermott's Bradley Chubb. And they drafted Clemson's TJ Parker early in the second. Plus, for their role in the playoff picture, They get Miami twice and the Jets twice. Are they a playoff team though? It's time to find out. Here begins their climb. The Buffalo Bills, not a wild card, the, the 2 seed. How say you, fellas? The AFC's 2 seed, the winner of the East, obviously.

Uh, I don't know if I like that. I mean, last time we talked, funny enough, we talked about the Bills and what their schedule is going to look like. I don't love who they're playing. They play a lot of tough teams to start off the entire season for the first like 6 or 8 weeks of the season. I, I don't know if I like them as a 2 seed. That makes me a little nervous.

The thing is, they're always— like you mentioned, Dave— they're always going to get fat off the AFC East, right? So that's pretty much at least 4 probably guaranteed wins between the Dolphins and the Jets. And then let's say they split with the Patriots, that's 5 wins right there. So they're always going to be around. They're always going to win 9 or 10 games. If the math just—

remember, Texas, Texans, Lions, Chargers, Rams, Patriots, uh, Baltimore, Minnesota, Kansas City, New England twice.

And they have to play Green Bay, they have to play Chicago. It's a brutal schedule. I could see them falling down a little bit and winning 10 games and not necessarily being the 1 or the 2 seed this year.

I think they've got—

to your point, You're exactly right that their schedule is a brute, and that's why their win total is set at 10.5, which seems underwhelming until you do dig in on that. Nevertheless, I do have them as the 2 seed because all the other, all the other players have some rugged, uh, some rugged matchups as well. But let's turn right now to the Jets, their season win total set at 5.5. I do think, for the record, they're going to go over that, 2 against the Dolphins, plus us. Titans, Arizona, Raiders, Browns. The rest of it though, a bunch of heavyweights out there, which probably depresses how far they can get in one season. The roster though, pretty good. We talked about Frank Reich and the relationship with Geno Smith, and if Geno can just take care of the ball and get away from, uh, plum disastrous QB play to merely average, and let's say Garrett Wilson stays healthy and the offensive line in fact is a strength, as I suspect it can—

are you talking yourself into the Jets making the playoffs. Yeah, man, is that what you're doing right here?

Caveats. Well, listen, I, I'm just trying to make a case that they are a punchline team, but what they actually are going to field this year is not garbage.

No, I agree with that.

Playoff-bound though. Let's take a look. No, on the Bummer Hill. Oh no, I was just trying to be nice, everybody. All I said was they're going over 5.5. Let's not get nuts with everything, right?

I mean, at least they got on the graph The Dolphins, right?

I was gonna say, I'm surprised you even put— you even gave the Jets a video. I figured you would just put the Jets right on a bummer hill with the Dolphins too.

But the Jets are trying. The Dolphins are not. If they don't respect themselves, I don't— I don't owe them any respect. Lastly, from the AFC East, apparently 10daytony is bullish on team— on this team. It's the Patriots. They're defending AFC champs. They had a nice quiet offseason. Yeah, yeah, yeah, whatever happened.

Anything happened?

Like the Buffalo Bills, 10.5. You know, I have to say again, because he finally acknowledged it, and it is sort of weird how we get amnesia about what we just saw and yet put great weight also on what we just saw. That paradox through the long offseason— Drake Maye was hurt for the Super Bowl. What might have happened in that game We'll never know. AJ Brown in, Romeo Dobbs in, they represent a major upgrade to pass catcher, obviously. O-line upgraded, defense was already good. Now a tough first 4 games for him: at the Seahawks, Steelers, at the Jaguars, at Buffalo. Also, this is the key detail as far as I'm concerned. Roughly, if you start at, uh, the, um, the start of the century. Roughly half the Super Bowl runners-up have made the playoffs. Only half have even made the playoffs. Just 5 of the 25 have made it to the conference title game, and only 1 has made it back to the Super Bowl. Are the Patriots gonna buck that tradition? By the way, I should mention the one team that did go back to the Super Bowl after losing it was the Patriots, but they also had the, the GOAT on their team at that point.

So what's it all add up to? Are the New England Patriots going to the 2026 playoffs? Let's take a look, shall we? Here we go. Good luck, everybody. Patriots on their way up the hillside, and it looks like they are gonna—

whoa, they're right there! Back it off!

No, back to bummer! Hey, they tricked us! Hey, they duped us!

Wait a second, you duped us, Dave! Interesting, Dave. So you don't think they're gonna make the— because I'm looking at the schedule, and I will say, like, there's not only got 4-week stretch to start the year, but you have to go Green Bay, Detroit, bye week, at the Chargers, Buffalo, Minnesota, at Kansas City. Yeah, the Jets there last year, yeah, is gone. And then the Broncos in Week 17. That's a brutal schedule. So you've got the Dolphins and Jets mixed in there, but there's no weeks off really because you also have to play the Bears And then it's basically some of the best teams in the league, and then the Dolphins, the Jets, and the Raiders. Dave, this is a brutal schedule, but there's— I, I do still think like I'm not a big believer.

History is relevant. I'm not talking about something that happened in 1978. I'm talking about the last 25 years. They're the team that's gonna buck all of this. Tony, go ahead, make your case for the Pats. Look, you obviously think they're winning the division, right?

I think they're going to win the division, and I think they're, they're going to have a very long uphill climb, not only up Mount Lombardi but up their schedule, right? You talk about what I think personally is the best division in football is going to be the NFC North this season. I, I think maybe— I don't know if like it's possible, but I think 4 teams have a chance to make the playoffs, right? The entire division has a chance to make the playoffs. And when you play some of those teams, we're going to find out really quickly how much the distraction of this offseason is going to go into not only Drake Maye not only to the defensive side of the ball, but like, how are we gonna do when, when the rubber meets the road on some of these really tough teams? Are they gonna be able to pull out wins like they did last year? Obviously cakewalk schedule last year, but this season is gonna be a completely different monster. So the, the regret— the regression to the mean for Drake Maye— is he gonna get better with AJ Brown? Is AJ Brown gonna be a declining asset, or is he gonna have one good season where we see, all right, this is the AJ Brown of old?

Like, there's a lot of questions I still have running back quarterback. Like, do they want to fully lean into Travion Henderson? I don't know. That's not really of Rabel's MO. I like Christian Gonzalez on the back end of the defense. They have a decent pass rush. Like, I think the Patriots are going to win the division. I, I don't hate where you, you know, you got the— if I saw the graphic correctly, it was the Bengals and the Ravens kind of somewhere in 4 and 5.

He's got the Ravens, the Bengals at 3, and the Ravens at 5.

I feel like 4 is probably the max height for this Patriots team.

And I will say, Dave, just, just one thing on them. I don't think they're as much of schedule merchants as everybody said last year. Drake Maye is one of the best quarterbacks in the league. He's fantastic. He's only going to get better, especially with AJ Brown. I think they can run through a tough schedule and still make the playoffs. It's just gonna be how much are they hungover from a deep run last year, the first time this team has gone on a on? And how much as well were they a year early to get that far in the playoffs for a young team that was terrible the year before?

I buy team trends. The Patriots are obviously on the rise collectively. They have the answer at the most important position. I also believe in the pattern of overall history, and that's why I'm picking against them. Only half the teams, as I already said, who are the Super Bowl runner-up this millennium make it even back to the playoffs. I'm riding with that, but I agree with Buddy and with you, Tony, that the idea that, well, they played a soft schedule— yeah, but Drake Maye is going to be better this year than he was a year ago. And so I think that kind of offsets the thing. Then again, I'm also looking at how tough the schedule is practically, and I do think that's going to get in their way to some degree. Now let's bounce over to the NFC side, the NFC East, and we'll start things off start it off with America's team. And boy, Tony, you just said the toughest division in football is the NFC North. I think this one has a certain balance to it, and I can't wait to hear your answer on who's going to finish in 4th place in that division.

But like I say, we'll start it off with America's alleged team, the Dallas Cowboys. Win total set by DraftKings Sports at 9.5. I think one of the, um, more under-discussed changes, transactions, or whatever in football America this offseason is Christian Parker going out from under Vic Fangio in Philadelphia and becoming the defensive coordinator for the Dallas Cowboys, the arch rival there, who believes just like Fangio does in going multiple. Listen to Christian Parker on what he has to work with in Dallas.

The first thing is going to be, we're going to be multiple. Um, I think that whenever you form a defensive structure, it's about the players that you have. Um, so core principles, I mean, we'll 3-4 by nature, but, you know, 4-3 spacing will be appropriate, 4-2-5 in nickel, different front structures, coverages behind it. Um, but I would say being multiple, um, is probably the most important thing about it.

Now listen, the Dallas Cowboys of 2026 do not have the pieces that the Philadelphia Eagles have had, but the cupboard ain't bare, everybody. And I know everybody's celebrating Caleb Downs, but he really is a Swiss Army knife. He is, he is perfectly positioned. He is the personification, I feel like, Tony, of what a lot of pro football teams are looking for. How he fell in a world in which Kyle Hamilton sort of surprised a lot of people. How this happened again, it appears to me, in the NFL. I think the teams in front of the Cowboys in the draft this year are going to be kicking themselves for the next decade. How say you?

I think he was probably one of the most complete draft prospects we'd seen in a really long time, and it felt like a lot of the people in the first 11 picks were like, ah, I don't think we can spend that kind of draft capital on a safety. There's another place that we can get offensive line. You know, quarterback, receiver, what have you. And I'm looking at what fell into the Cowboys' lap. It's like they needed a playmaker at safety that could be kind of the quarterback of the defense, which they've been so starved for. They've had the corners, they've had the linebackers, they've had the pass rush, but never really that guy in the secondary that is a complete game changer. He can play big in a nickel, he could play safety, like he can be all over the field. Like he said, as a Swiss Army knife. And like, that's the key to unlocking what they can do with Daron Bland on the, on the other side. With Williams, with all the guys that they have over Sean at linebacker. Like, I really like this defensive secondary and defensive squad for the Cowboys, Dave.

All right, let's find out the fate of the Dallas Cowboys. Here we go to Mount Lombardi. Dallas Cowboys there at the 5. No, they keep climbing all the way to the 2 seed. How say you, buddy Budowski? Level shot.

That's aggressive, Dave, I gotta say. Yeah, I like a lot of teams I, I do like the Cowboys. Uh, oh, 2 seed though. Listen, I'm a big Dak guy. Like, I, I think Dak, he gets so much flack because he's the quarterback of the Dallas Cowboys, but he is such a fantastic player, and I don't think people give him enough credit. I just, I think there's too many good teams in the NFC, and I think there's a team in their division that's better than them that people are just kind of sleeping on again for whatever reason, even though they're still the best roster not only in this division and probably not only— I guess, but Dave, he just won a Super Bowl 2 years ago. He won a Super Bowl 2 years ago, and so did Jalen Hurts. Like, people will say, oh well, Jalen Hurts— Jalen Hurts just won a Super Bowl. He's outdueled, uh, he's outdueled Mahomes twice in 2 Super Bowls.

People just go back to the last thing they saw. Yes, and I get it, but don't realize the same thing happened before, and then they needed to retool with the offensive and defensive— well, offensive coordinator this time, and I think they'll be back too. I really do.

I, I just— I'm not picking against the Eagles until they just fall off completely. They're still, in my opinion, the best roster in the NFL, and I, I just— I wouldn't pick Dallas over them, even though I do like the Cowboys.

I will say, I don't think you're crazy for any of that. Who do we have next here, Danny B? Are we gonna go with the team in our nation's capital, the Commanders? Are we really rolling with the Commies still? Bill as the name of that team. Very strange. Their win total stands at 7.5. I'll keep it simple here, or the top line at least reason for my conclusion. Laremy Tunsil is their Jenga piece. When he goes out from a mediocre offensive line, they become downright crummy. Jayden Daniels might be a stud. I know Tony agrees that Okonkwo is a big upgrade from Zach Ertz. Stefon Diggs is a big upgrade from a non-existent person as a starter level number 2. Kinlaw, Lou Vu, Oweh, and Sonny Styles, the rookie right in the middle there. I think things are pointed up. It happens to be a really tough division. The Commies, let's find out their fate in the playoff chase, Mount Lombardi style.

There they go off the bummer hill. You agree with Tony's take from earlier in the year, don't you, Dave?

Well, well, well, I had a hard time with this because I always accuse everybody of having amnesia. Specifically about Jayden Daniels, I feel like last year everybody just forgot of his existence and the fact that he played in the title game as a rookie against the mighty Philadelphia Eagles. Nevertheless, this is a tough division and you agree with me, eh, Tony?

I do. I just feel like when you look at what this team needs to be at full strength to win in this division, they need Laremy Tunsil. They need guys that are going to be there the entire season, day in and day out. And Jayden Daniels, I don't— I have a question if he can be that guy. Right? Like, he's— he's dealt with injuries in, in college, he's dealt with injuries at the pros. Like, we see what the peak is. The peak is, I'm a guy that can transform a franchise literally at the snap of a finger, but I can also completely tank if I'm injured. And I don't know what we're gonna get. I hope we don't get RG3 2.0 in year 3, but I, I have to see it to believe it, right? I'm doubting Thomas for right now.

Tough schedule too, Dave, tough schedule. Obviously you have the NFC East, one of the better divisions in all of football. They go up against against, uh, the NFC West this year. So they've got another one of the toughest divisions in all of football— the Seahawks, the Niners, the Rams— and then they also have Minnesota on this schedule. They've got Jacksonville, Houston, and Indy on this schedule. This is a really, really tough schedule for the Commanders here, for a team that's trying to get back to playoff and NFC Championship, you know, status that they had just 2 years ago.

I'm not, I'm not blurring the lines between RG3 and Jayden Daniels, but I think Tony's exactly right that, you know, that he is the example. A guy who was running into a lot of crazy car accident type of collisions, RG3, and then Jayden Daniels at LSU. We didn't see a ton of that. Well, there was some— there was— there were some examples of him getting himself into trouble with his legs even in his great rookie season. I do think this is a big year to see what kind of pro-level quarterback Jayden Daniels is because he's just not wired. Not built to take a beating game in and game out, season after season. So this is a big year for him. Next up, the New York Football Giants, win total set at 7.5. New head coach, of course, Jon Harbaugh, the alleged floor raiser. Arvell Reese out of Ohio State joining Brian Burns and Abdoul-Kader. They're loaded up there, plus they add some old man strength on the defensive line. They hit free agency real hard. In the QB league though, they have the fourth best quarterback, fourth best quarterback in the division. I don't necessarily, like I just said about Jayden Daniels, trust Jackson Dart to stay healthy.

And they won 4 games in 2025. How far are they supposed to elevate just because they hired John Harbaugh? Let's take a look to Mount Lombardi. We go for the answer. Are the Giants playoff bound?

Oh, that's not a surprise.

Yeah, there they go, back to it. Bummer Hill. Any quick thoughts on them?

Yeah, one thing I think you missed there, Dave, is Malik Nabers is back this year, and that kind of changes everything.

We'll see.

That, that changes a lot for—

I—

we'll see what he is after an ACL tear. Obviously he's an explosive player, you know, you never know what's going to happen when you go through that type of injury. But if he comes back healthy and sharp and Dart can just avoid—

you guys trust Dart, huh? Yeah, you guys trust him.

I don't trust him. If you look, it's a good player.

If you look at this roster, this, this team needs to lean on its defense. This team It's got Skadaboo. It's got—

I mean, neighbors, you trust Skadaboo right now?

No, no, not— well, I think there's a reason, right?

There's 3 guys on offense you can't trust at the most 3 important positions, right?

There's a big if there, which is if they all stay healthy. But if they do, with John Harbaugh and with a very talented defense, I do think this is a team that— but the NFC is so difficult. Like, I'm not picking them over Green Bay.

Let's say you consider these 4 teams relatively evenly matched. Matched, then stack them up in the quarterback league, stack up the quarterbacks. Is Jaxson Dart capable of being anything more than the, the third best quarterback in the division?

I think that's—

I don't—

that's the one thing they have on their side, Dave, is that you don't know yet with Jaxson Dart.

You've got—

you've got— it looked good at the beginning, and quarterbacks tend to progress in their second year. So if he progresses and he progresses a lot, then maybe, maybe it's not out of the question that they could make a jump.

Now, the guy who everybody's down on, who nevertheless in my book, if he go— I mean, listen, already Jalen Hurts, whether you like or not. It's kind of sort of tracking to the Hall of Fame. That now counts as a hot take as we sit here in August of 2026, but it shouldn't. He went to two Super Bowls, won one of them with the MVP, and won— he's a Super Bowl appearance away from being a guaranteed Hall of Famer. You can argue with me all you want about that, but facts are facts. Eagles overall win total, 10.5 for them. I think a big factor is Sean Mannion, unproven offensive coordinator, young guy now Now jumps in there Vic Fangio, stays on the defensive side. Now joining Smith among the pass catchers, they, uh, Dontavian Wicks and Makai Lemon, and Hollywood Brown is their number 4 wide receiver. And the defense remains loaded, and they add Jonathan Grenard and Reek Woolin. But the O-line for me is the issue. So much has been predicated for the last decade to 15 years— the Eagles, whether you realize it or not, way back to Donovan McNabb even, have been in the playoff picture way more seasons than they haven't been.

And so much of it has had to do with the line of scrimmage. Lane Johnson is nearing the end of his road. There are some questions at least on what was the best offensive line for a half a decade at least. That gives me some pause. Let's see where the Philadelphia Eagles land on Mount Lombardi as they begin their climb. Take it away, Eagles. There they go. They are—

okay, so into this wild card. Wow.

Wild card team, you're 5 seed in the NFC this year.

So you've got the Cowboys ahead of the Eagles in the final standings.

That's fun, right?

It's fun.

It's fun.

It's fun.

I don't know if it's a good take, but it's fun.

You want to know what my first observation here about this offense is? Look how many wide receivers you can fit in with the amount of money you would have to pay AJ Brown. You've You've got Dontavian Wicks, Makai Lemon, Hollywood Brown is your fourth guy, Elijah Moore, who is, you know, he's still there. But that's, that's 4 guys you were able to add to your offense in place of AJ Brown.

Here's the thing. Isn't that classic quantity over quality? And some of it a roll of the dice, obviously.

A lot of it.

Yeah, star, but he already seems a little flaky. Here's the thing. AJ Brown wasn't.

It's kind of like replacing Giambi in the aggregate, right? In Moneyball. Here's the thing I'll say about the Eagles and about Jalen Hurts. Hertz, uh, Dave, you mentioned the Patriots and teams that have made the Super Bowl and then how often they've gotten back to the playoffs or lost in the Super Bowl. Jalen Hurts was the first quarterback in like 19 or 20 tries that lost his first Super Bowl and got back and won. Not only, not only got back, but he won, right? Like, he was the first guy to even get back to a Super Bowl. You go, you go through Purdy and Garoppolo and all those guys dating all the way back to like the early 2000s, the late '90s, never got got back to a Super Bowl again. So for me, I still— and, and again, he outdueled Mahomes. They lost the first one, but he played better than Mahomes in that first one. It came down to a kick at the very end and a holding penalty, right, on the defense. I still believe in Jalen Hurts in a big way. The training camp videos, they're training camp videos. You told me don't believe anything you see in August, Dave.

At the end of the day, like, if it comes down to it, I still think he is good enough to take this roster and get them into winning the division and making another deep playoff run in Philadelphia.

I mean, I also think when we talk about Jenga pieces, obviously you shout out Lane Johnson. So many on this team that, uh, you know, they have depth, uh, beyond everything else. You want to keep Saquon out there though as a massive X-factor, um, and what he did 2 years ago. Lemon kind of has to rise up. Smith remains smallish though. He's hung on pretty good though, um, since he arrived in the league. For all of the concern about whether or not he was going to be big enough to make it in the NFL, clearly has proven that he can do that. But anyway, the answer to me remains Nick Sirianni. Despite the two Super Bowl runs that he's made, I remain skeptical of that guy. Doesn't make any sense. I thought coaching mattered, and that's your coach? That troll guy is your head coach? Either way, 10-day Tony, we're better for your presence here. We appreciate you making time for that. And the same goes for you, my fellow Football Americans. Make sure you're subscribing wherever you find your podcasts and/or on YouTube. Make sure you leave us a comment there for Gino, for Buddy, for, uh, for Soup Campbell and everybody else.

We'll be back on Tuesday with a little more conversation for you as we get ever closer to the regular season kickoff. Until then, thanks so much, my fellow football Americans. It's been a thin slice of heaven.