Watson Settlement Reaction; 2022 Rebound Candidates

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Speaker 1: So now after discussion, after months, after weeks, after negotiation, after a ruling, and then waiting for Peter C. Harvey to rule in place of Roger Goodell, it is now over. Deshaun Watson not going to take the NFL to court. The NFL not gonna have to listen to these headlines over and over throughout the season. There's a settlement, eleven games, five million dollar fine. Deshaun Watson should be back against his old team he used in Texan to weak their team. Welcome to around the NFL. Dan hans Us with Greg Rosenthal and Mark Sessler. There you heard it from Ian Rappaport. It's the biggest news story of the day and we're gonna talk about it whether we want to or not. And this is a story that Deshaun Watson desperately wanted to go away, a story that Cleveland Browns desperately wanted to go away. And today Thursday, through their actions, I think we learned that the NFL made a calculated decision. It was in their best interest to this sordid story go away. And yet because of the way the day played out, and I believe the length of the suspension, which felt unsufficient, insufficient, and disappointing. I don't think it's going away. And I've talked about this from day one, remorse and that ended up being I think a big theme of of what the day was all about, the total lack of remorse from Deshaun Watson and his agent that he believes he still did nothing wrong, and he threw in some sort of word salad that he apologized to anyone, uh that he hurt, But ultimately he didn't recognize and I don't think the NFL ultimately recognized the scope of his problem like they think. Think of the scope of of his problem, like everything it affected first the women of course, um, and and all the pain that he caused. And there was some talk like, well, it only ended up being four women that that they talked about in the actual you know, suspension. But that was four women and they and they proved it and it was and it was predatory behavior. Um. But think of everything else he caused. He he was on top of the world, had just gotten a huge contract from the Texans. He didn't play football last season. He didn't He's not gonna play football for the first eleven games of this season. He has caused everyone who is in his orbit to answer for him daily and make their jobs all about him for the last X amount of months. That that's the scope of the problem that he has that he's still not admitting is a problem, And I just think it's gonna be harder to move forward because of the way that he spoke. And I have a feeling if he said that he felt like he did nothing wrong and he maintained his innocence, I don't think he would have gotten eleven games. I don't think they would have settled. I think the way he even acted today already should be having the NFL feeling some remorse of their own. All right, let's here from Deshaun Watson once news broke of the final punishment. I've always stood on my innocence and always said that I've never assaulted anyone or disuspected anyone, and I'm continued to stand on that. But at the same time, I have to continue to push forward with my life in my career, and for us to be able to move forward, you know, I have to be able to take steps and pit prior to the side. And I'm gonna continue to stand on my innocence and keep pushing forward, and I've always, you know, stood on not disuspecting or sexual assaulting anyone. And then Greg Mary kay Cabot then who's covered the Browns forever, followed up with a question to Watson, are you gonna take a lot of e for I stand out on the innocence and her I've already seen all of her social media, So what is going to be your response to that when the world comes down and you can standing on your resince the president. Well, I have to do what's best for Deshaun Watson at the end of the day. And I know what happened. Um I was in those situations, but I have to continue to push forward and keep moving forward. There was another question and they were not letting him off the hook that asked, well, then what are you Who are you apologizing for and what are you apologizing for? For everyone that was affected about this situation. There was a lot of people that was triggered, but not the women accuse you list. I'm apologize to all women, So anybody that was affected, even yourself, every everything. So I'm apologizing to everyone that was affected about this whole situation. So he he alludes to people that were triggered by it, but not saying that he did anything wrong. And I think the mixed messaging from him and his agent. His agent tweeted out something David Muller, get it, and and I do want to just kind of get into his involvement of this in a minute, David Mullan, get it, Get it, because I think he was the crucial person in this entire um ordeal other than Deshaun Watson. But he he tweeted out being upset with the ruling, being upset with Judge Robinson and saying that Judge Robinson Sue Robinson, who who put the initial six games on Deshaun Watson UM had made her decision before they even had the first call that had mentioned Deshaun's pattern of behavior. And there was another report from ESPNS Diana Diana Rassini, which is that Deshaun Watson and his camp were very upset that they got this eleven games because they maintained that he did absolutely nothing wrong. And so that lack of contrition makes it very difficult for me to think about the moving forward. Jimmy has M said, like, we believe in second chances, but you believe in second chances if you admit that you did something wrong. He specifically mentioned, look how well Kareem Hunt has worked out for the Browns and and what a great player Deshaun Watson is, which I don't think you need to mention that in this setting. But how is there a second chance if you're saying your behavior, Um, which again caused you to a all this money to these twenty women, all this money that the Houston Texans, by the way, had to pay in settlements, all of this because Deshaun Watson has a problem, and he doesn't seem remotely interested in addressing that problem. And I do wonder if the NFL is looking at today's statement because part of the deal his he's supposed to try to address his problem. And if they, I don't know if they can reconsider or or consider and and throw into the evidence how he's reacting to this. You really think the NFL, though, Mark, I'll ask you this question. Do you think the NFL, after making this this is a very calculated decision to try to essentially put this to bed, um, would take anything that happened today and reopen the candle worms. I think they want to move on from this, even if they're disappointed the way they absolutely will not that this is sealed up now and it's exactly what they wanted. And Greg, everything that you say I agree with. I think when you talk about we've all had secon chances in life, and like I would hope that when when we've gotten them, you learned from them. Not always, and sometimes you're asking for a third maybe, but this is different than a second chance. That that narrative really stuck with me because of his lack of contrition. Because he talks about accountability, I see no accountability. I see high cynicism. And I don't think the league will do a single thing at this point. And I think the problem a little bit is that we we choose to cover a sports league that is highly cynical. It's hard, it's absolutely hard to square And one thing that I thought, and maybe this had been part of the Brown's messaging and I had missed it to this point, but when you have d Haslem, wife of Jimmy, has them the Corners co owners of the Brown facing the media today and they're asking D and Jimmy directly, like how do you square up the apologies that we've heard and the team statements, and the Watson statements with him coming up to a podium and saying I did nothing wrong. I stand on my innocence, and then d has and went down a road where she was saying like, this is gonna take time, This is gonna take accountability, is gonna take therapy, therapy, and it's like that's kind of letting Watson and the Browns off the hook by saying the reason why now he's showing no contrition, uh and and disrespecting the victims of this is because he's not there yet emotionally well. But but he's there enough for you to give him a record setting contract and put him back on the field in December. That that, to me stands out as out of bounds and not the right way to play this situation from a human standpoint, from a team that from the word go, when they made this decision to pay him the money they paid him to bring him, to trade him to Cleveland, that they said, the Cleveland Browns, We've vetted this heavily, we researched this heavily. We're comfortable with this. How could you be? I just I think that that's the major decide. They were also asked about the fans that feel have been affected by this, that have said I can't root for the Browns, and there's a lot of them. It's just it's a subsection of that fan base, no doubt about it. And their response to that to me felt in the sky too, which was, well, we hope in time they'll come back. And I think that's what this is all about, hoping that by the time to Shaun Watson's suspension ends, and especially into next offseason and next season, that like everything else, will forget about it. Because by the way we talk about players. I know, I'm not equating him to other players that have, you know, made major errors in their lives and hurt other people, but we do talk about other players all the time without reviewing the stuff they did. It does wash away and and Greg. As much as I want to believe that people won't forget about this, I think the problem with covering sports and with sports in general in the NFL is yes they will. I mean it'll be just in the context of it. Today's the day we're gonna talk about it. People didn't forget about Ben Roethlisberger. I think that, no, But it's like deep in the context, it's it's not it's not, it's not a drugged Brown's fans are are past it. But I think on this day, specifically the fact that Brown he answered that that's fair, um, at least the ones in my mentor and a lot of them want to move on from it. But the fact that on this day that he answered Mary Kay's question about people uh not being you know, convinced and being upset with his lack of apology, and literally his answer his words were, I have to do what's best for Deshaun Watson. And I know the last like place here, um that we're supposed to go for empathy here is for Deshaun Watson. That's not where I'm coming from when when I'm about to say this, but I don't think the people around Deshaun Watson are looking out for Desaun Watson. Like I was saying, like that this problem that he has has caused so much pain and whether you want to like talk about it or not, it's me it's caused a lot of pain in his life too, and and and made his life, and yet no one really seems concerned about addressing who he is as a human. And that's why I brought up the the NFL part of the shoot because I do think Roger Goodell and the NFL was sincere about wanting him to be suspended for a year. The initial um decision came back, they ended up, you know, landing on this settlement because they couldn't have been totally you know, convinced how it would have ended. You. I don't need to get into that. That's guesswork. But this is Roger Goodell's press release. He said, quote, DeShawn has committed to doing the hard work on himself that is necessary to return to the NFL. This settlement requires compliance with professional evaluation, a treatment plan, significant fine, and a more substantial suspension. So he put that front and center. And I think it has to be disappointing, uh, from the NFL's perspective, to see what Watson did today, what his agent continues to do by fighting it. Because whether you think this is all cynical or not cynical at all, it's obviously in some respects a public relations issue. That's why that's why we all pay this money for public relations. And and it is and and the eleven games is ultimately unsatisfying. And I think disappointing because it's muddled. It It's like an uncle exactly. It's an unclear ending. And then his contribution to it today, I think really makes it unclear, and I think that has to be frustrating for the league. Can't we agree that from a public relations angle, that sealing this up now is better for the league. I'm not saying I want I don't agree with this, but I think if you're the league, did you want a court case dragging on? It's not just about the outcome of the court case. It's about the fact that the story would go on into the season. That's assuming that it would have. You know, the the appeal should have been heard any day now, so we should have found out if the if the NFL was not willing to negotiate here, we would have found out about the appeal soon. It's August eighteenth. It would have happened soon. What you're what you're talking about is the federal case and and who we're not smart enough to know. Some smart people believe it never would have gotten that far at Some people think it does it sound like it sound like the Shawn Watson and his representatives would not have kept fighting if but you would have been up to a judge. Let they don't. They did not want that. They did not want to gamble on that fIF chance. That's my take on it, that they did not want them to be about all season the NFL. They could be disappointed about the things that were said today after this press release DRAP, but they can't be surprised because Watson was laying the breadcrumbs the whole time, right he he It's just it's just frustrating. I think if if Watson was interested in addressing this head on at any point, like we wouldn't have been banging this drain, and and anyone who's in our mentions or or is upset about hearing the reactions of it, like it's it's all about that. He could have addressed this on at any point. Even today he said he didn't want to speak on the fairness of the pension because he wanted to protect his piece. Essentially, he's not ready for the smoke that would come his way. And and but before like, if we're gonna move on the Mulaghetta thing, I know we've talked about it in the off season, but I really do believe the timing of how everything happened was absolutely orchestrated because Deshaun Watson had the most powerful agent that that is in the game right now, that has made a huge move in the last year or two, and that absolutely has friendships and relationships with virtually the entire national media who is reporting on that, And and that affected the timeline of all this happening so he could get his guaranteed money back in March before all the quarterback spots were filled. And it does affect the reporting of it because this was treated as a both side situation when if you just read the civil cases, there wasn't much both sides to it. And that and that's it. Yep, I hear that. And one thing I wanted to say, Greg, you had sent out a tweet this morning that Watson and Malghetta and had played the Browns on some level in terms of negotiations, and I think you could say that, and certainly, um, the fact that he's missing most of the season but not all the season is something maybe if the Browns knew that the terms with the Texans wouldn't be as extreme as they were. But I still look at this. Something I said on this show when Sue Robinson's decision came out that the big winner of this is the Browns, and and it made me think about and I mean this from their perspective, right, Um, when you look at this whole story, and even the Browns just the organizational path when they needed to find a way out of the Baker relationship, there's Deshaun Watson is an option. Then they beat out all the competition for this generationally talented QB. And there was competition. We forget that now, we all put it all in the Browns, but there were a lot of teams that wanted a piece of Shaun Watson. Even with all this out there, then the Browns were able to navigate past the criminal investigation check mark. Then they navigate past the civil lawsuits check checkmark. Then they navigate past the indefinite or full year suspension check mark. And in October, this guy's back in the building. In November, he's practicing with the team, and in December he is the QB one for the Cleveland Browns for four and a half years. And you could say they've taken a nasty pr hit and they've lost really good fans like Mark. But when the Browns stand in front of the media today and and got that out. They'll take the l there because they got what they want in the end. I totally agree, and I see where you're coming from, Greg, But I think the Browns, Jimmy Haslum said it. He absolutely would have done this again, and and that's maybe one of the few things that he said that I believe. I think the Browns knew that a big suspension was coming. I don't think they got played by the agent. I really don't. Well, I really don't, Craig, because I think this this was they You have to remember, this was their mission. They were going to get them. I mean, you got you don't get even if you got into this race, if you were the Saints, the Panthers, the Falcons, they took a PR hit you. They lost that race, and they took the PR hit. The Browns got it. They got there. They are the only ones willing to give the guaranteed money. And I think that was I think that was telling back then. And what I mean by that, uh is and I'm I'm glad he brought it up. The end was that if you knew then that he was gonna be suspended eleven games. I don't think he gets that guaranteed money. I don't think he gets that contract. I think, but he doesn't he doesn't go there. I don't think that he Maybe he does go there. The contract is different. I think the trade terms are different. And why I say that I think they got played is and this is where I had problems with the coverage of it. The agent convinced the Browns and much of the media that there wasn't gonna be the suspension. They as recently as two months ago. Mike Florio, my old boss, who has done a great job covering this story from like a legal perspective, thought there was a good chance Deshaun Watson wouldn't be suspended at all. Like the Watson camp, and there has been many source articles said this. I think successfully convinced teams that the suspension was going to be minimal. And I think the expectation as recently as a month ago or so was that it would be four or six games, and that's all. I mean that eventually all would have happened. But I think the context of it, the fact that he got fully guaranteed, the fact that the Texans got all those picks, I think would have been different if people had the idea that it that basically though, versus had it been the New Orleans Saints and what that contract would have looked like or the Falcons where Deshaun Watson had ties with the Falcon, they partably weren't willing to go as far to your point. So that's the thing. It's like agent or not, um suspension or not. I mean, there's no one, no one in the Browns building thought he's not going to get suspended at all. I get, I get that that was a possible reality based on you know, precedent, et cetera. But if you're if you want to be the Browns and you want to think about the deal, you're thinking there is a very likely, very high likelihood that he misses a bunch of games this season. They're not looking at this season. This was never about this season. And he went out. He dropped the Browns out of the race, They fell out of the derby for him. They came back in because of the money. And it's not unlike a lot of teams, when you're not in Miami, not in New Orleans, not in Atlanta, you've got to pay to get someone into your building, and that's what they did. I think that's part of it. It's it's not just the the the agent snowed them under. I mean that's not Andrew Barry did not get snowed under by the agent entirely. I just I don't know how like ultimately the Andrew Berry, how much his decision making ultimately mattered in all of this. I mean, I don't feel like a lot or ken And that's sort of what I mean where I totally agree. I think it was a really good point, Dan, what you said about the Browns and how they're looking at today. But when I think the Browns, I think of ownership in the in the organization, because there's a very realistic um possibility that this is a peer victory for Andrew Berry and Kevin Stefanski and that this ruins their careers if they don't make the playoffs with DeShawn Watson next year, Not only they will they be fired like all the former gms and coaches that have been from the UH with the Browns, but this will beyond them forever, you know, and and that and that is part of it, is that's part of the calculated the next GM and coach can come in without this on them, right then if they get somewhat of a clean start, even if Watson still in the building. But there's there's that one by the fact that it's eleven games, right, he gets to come back, and it's against the Texans, which again very good. Look. I don't know. There had to be conversations internally by the league about whether that was something they wanted to get involved with. They did, though, but you look at it, he comes back. If they could tread water the Browns and hang around five hundreds, they can make a push this season, and they have the Bengals, the Ravens, the Steelers and those last five or six weeks of the season, and man, there's also a scenario where the Browns and I know this seems impossible, but crazier things that happened have happened. Have seventy five thousand people in their building in January going nuts in a playoff game with DeShawn Watson as a starting quarterback this year like the most anti Cinderella story that has ever been created by the NFL. Unbelievable. Let's take a break. We'll be right back, all right, It's time for a palid cleanser. Let's not even bring up that name for the rest of the show. How about that. Why don't we talk about two season? Let's talk ball. We had a rundown, we had a seg ready for this Thursday. We're gonna do it. You're gonna take it away our joy. This is the best time. You can't take it away. We're excited for the start of a new season. And uh, there are many many players in our league who are also extremely excited for the chance to rebound coming off a difficult season. So why don't we as our palate cleanser, because God knows we need a palate cleanser. Let us talk about some players that jump out to us as real attractive rebound candidates. Greg, do you want to get us going? I thought you were just going to give like a history of you being on the rebound and like different rebound examples in life. Uh, it is very important in life to rebound because they're always going to be disappointments and setbacks, and the people who stay down don't and don't try to get back up. That's a sad thing, but it happens a lot in the world. It does. I was back, I was hoping that Mark could go first, because I feel like we all interpreted this exercise differently and I wanted to hear Mark. But I'm excited um to throw out my first rebound candidates because he's a man that shouldn't even be needing to rebound, Like there s enough on this show lately. This is a man who in his first season as starter in the NFL won the m v P Award. In the second year of his starting in the NFL won the Super Bowl MVP Award. Yet the person to my left, Mark Sessler, is over here saying that some other guy in his own division is the Michael Jordan's of the NA done it Oh in the few days in a row at this in his third season, Oh he lost to in the Super Bowl. Oh sorry, in his fourth season, Oh my gosh, he was outside of the top five quarterbacks in the QB Index for a little while, like, oh my gosh, this guy is falling. Everything went so bad that he put up a forty burger on the Steelers in the playoffs and then did it again the next week on the top rank Bills defense to get to the a f C Championship. That man, of course, is Patrick Mahomes and all of the doom and gloom about Tyreek Hill. And I like the Michael Jordan by the way, I like how you you you stopped short of getting to the next week's playoff game build up here. I think that was a rough, rough and right, and and that is what he's rebounding from, because I'm not pretending like last season was Patrick Mahomes at his best. It was easily his worst season as a pro. And by that, I mean he was like the seventh race best you know quarterback in the regular season and definitely had some down moments. But I think it's easy to forget what he was before that. And to me and West and I got an argument about this, calling him the Michael Jordan, that he was the closest I've remembered. We're having the same arguments we've had on this show back in the day. He is that guy. And I think there's this we're tabling Jordan comments as well. He's that guy because you kind of put him now in a mix with the other guys, you know, Josh Allen and and Joe Burrow and Herbert and and that's fine to me. He's unique, he's special, and there were reasons that they struggled last year, and there's reasons now with Tyreek Killgden to think like it's not gonna work. I don't believe that if I'm picking one guy to go win the m v P this year and to show that he is different than all these other young quarterbacks and is playing by behind an offensive line that's gonna give him a good running game and protect him. And he's gonna do the thing that Tom Brady does and Aaron Rodgers does, and he's gonna make some receivers that aren't as highly touted look better because that's the kind of dude he is. He's going all the way with his reback. Well, I can think of another quarterback that, for most of his career played with what would consider a lesser cast of talented wide receivers around him Tom Brady as opposed to someone like Peyton Manning. I think last year. Part of it is almost any football fan would agree with your assessment of Patrick Mahomes that he is extremely special and unlike any other quarterback we've seen out on a limb on this one. So so when he struggled, though, when the team was struggled right. I think it was the George didn't think that. I was just like, wait a second, Patrick Mahomes is right here. I eat the responsive media. It was a little precious last year when people were tissed, tissed for wondering what was going on with the Chiefs because they did look different. They were there were there were there's a slump going on. It wasn't just Patrick Mahomes. Why it's a rebound right? But now I think now actually a lot of people have come around. I don't hear they're doomed because they don't have Tybreek kill at this point. Because the off season is forty five thou years long. Most people now are like, oh Andy Reid, he's so creative him to Mahomes configure themselves out of any issue. But that ten and a half over under though half more than that, doesn't have more than the Chargers. That's the public though, I know. But like the what was the highest of under of any team this season? Uh? Good question. I think and a half off. They're not far off. I think. I think it's just I think that just makes it a spicier play for betters. You listen. I love Patrick Mahomes I love watching him play, but but it was eye opening what happened in that playoff game and and the slumps in that season on offense. The Kansas City had I opening to me. And I saw a lot of incredible mahomes as well, including the divisional playoff game, including the game I was at. I took my son to see the Chargers and Thursday Night foot on December where he walked them off with Travis Kelsey overtime touchdown. He's still special, He's still in the conversation as the best, if if not one of the best quarterbacks in the league. But I am in a little bit of a hold just because one, you know, skated a little bit. I thought after that collapse on offense in the NFC title game, Andy Reid, and he's pretty and now you take a few of those out of the equation. Doesn't mean it's doom and gloom. But I wonder if the league maybe he has caught up a little bit to this read's game, and I know he's always evolving, and that's I think they did last year. And now is the rebound? Now is the respect. I'm a little in a I'm in a holding pattern like the I guess you're saying he's gonna return if it's a rebound, He's like, m v P. That's sort of why I wanted because I really believe this, and um, I really believe in the Chiefs, and I believe in Mahomes. Yeah, to get to that level to be like, not that it's not like we uh forgot about him or anything, but that he stands apart all right. UM. I want to bring up someone that we were in close quarters with recently, Mark Sessler this spring in fact, and we were actually where in a way we were his teacher. We stood up in front of this man and others and explained what it takes to be successful as a podcaster. And it was the NFL Broadcast boot camp. And this individual sat there and didn't make a lot of eye contact or take many notes, and sometimes appeared more interested in the phone than what we have to say, maybe a little suspicious of you and I as a as an entity. I was gone, So I and you could say, ze, sir, like what like what are you doing here? Like why are you taking shots at this individual for not paying attention during our presentation? I'm not because he's not focused on a broadcasting career. This man not yet, not yet, This man, Darren Waller is focused on kicking ass for the Las Vegas Raiders this fall and into winter. I think he is in a great spot after what was a sneaky disappointing year for I think a guy that has is as physically talented as any tight end in football, and his season last year was weird, very weird. He had nineteen targets in week one ten for one oh five in a touch He had one touchdown the rest of the season and was on about a nine yard pace yardagewise, which is still good. But for those of us that had, you know, kind of put him into the superstar club the previous summer, for those of us that thought this guy had Hall of Fame level talent, it was a step back. So now you have Darren Waller humbled a little bit, went through the broadcast boot camp, said that's not for me. Not now. Anyway, he has the best wide receiver in the world arguably now lining up commanding attention, and I think Darren Waller with Derek Carr is going to eat I think he's going to You're gonna see some regression touchdown regression, double digit touchdowns, a hundred catches, yes, will his target share be down perhaps, but also all the double teams now being commanded by a true number one receiver, Darren Waller, huge rebound Caundidate, and our fantasy extravaganzas next week, by the way, and we have an incredible lineup of guests. I don't think this is the last time Waller comes up. Uh. And there is some connective tissue Greggy in this segment and fantasy talk. Waller is a huge guy in terms of big time all pro production. This would you be all right? I mean, I'm fine with the idea that he's rebounding, um, but the rebounding, rebounding, rebounding, I've always said it for some reason. I think I was taught that. I think I was talking about the way. But um, I mean, I don't need I don't need the numbers to be Titanic for me to think that he's stormed back in a certain way and helps the Raiders in a different situation than he did in the pastor it was like him and Hunter Renfrew on islands. There was no one else, right, I think if you think I think it's a great pick because of thee because of Josh McDaniels. Partly, I didn't even mention Josh m daniels. Thank you for being like there was. He was absent, by the way, for about two and a half weeks in camp, training camp, and no one was totally sure why. Eventually they said it was a hamstring injury. Well he was home. Um, you know there's a thing where you you broadcast the game and you sit there with a microphone practicing announcing reflection. And McDaniel smiled when they sort of asked these working. So it might have been a quiet hold in he is in a contract here, but they said it wasn't holding. They said it was contract here. But if you think of what Josh McDaniels has done, and I think what Derek Carr can do well getting guys open over the middle of the field, delivering the ball over the middle of the field. And I'll bring up another name who um was the yeah, the subject of a very uncomfortable no no, no, not that a subject who he reminds me of a little bit. And it was and it was a subject of another dark day in our work history, and that's Aaron Hernandez as a player. It's just the truth that was Daniels and that was the way that they can use two tight ends. And they have a good blocker in Fabian Morrow, and the way that Waller moves he is very similar to me, and they and McDaniels knew how to get the most out of that type of play. We're just one O. J. Simpsons reference away from bad NFL guy. We're at the point like it happened, but we can speak about, you know, what he was as a player. I did this a little differently, which I now feel embarrassed because every time we do a segment I don't always understand what's happening. But also we did not sit down and you know, totally hammered out that I went rogue, but I just did I did it from the perspective of the player, right, So it's just a little narrative from from the player and here we go. Sure, yeah, speaking of just going to be concerned, uh with what's the best for I guess there's a long narrows like most segments are like funnel into a similar settler mode and I'm looking forward to it. Well, it's it's also not too long, so it won't. It won't tax you, either of you too heavily. This is just h him talking to us. I had no idea what this league would look like. I feel like everyone was telling me you're a home run. You've got this. It's gonna be easy for you, Sunshine. You're a star baby. But it didn't feel like one last season, not at all. My golden mane flows in the southern wind. But I found a strand of gray in there after last season, after seeing my coach kick a kicker, after seeing my coach with a co ed nestled in his lap while the rest of us flew home from Cincinnati. We've got a new coach now, and I'm gonna put him on the phone for you for a second to let him tell you something here. He is then in parentheses, like like phone fumbling sounds Hello, I just want to tell everyone something here. I'm no longer piste off Angelo. You've got Trevor Lawrence and Doug Peterson both as rebound candidates. I get that he was a rookie, and it's like it's a tough freakie season, but I think he was put into dark, dark circumstances had he gone to New England or somewhere else, his season would have looked real different. And so I think he's different than just the normal year one year too rookie quarterback. I think this is the perhaps even safer than Patrick Mahomes. UM. Not not a takedown of your pick. I mean, I want to be I had it on my list to um, but it's just too obvious unless everyone No, I don't mean like that, unless yes, everyone, look, I have it right here. I had Trevor all lined up as well. Unless everyone is wrong, right, like the pre draft process, all that game tape, all the people like the DJ's of the world and Bucky brooks Is of the world, you know they can't all be wrong about the guy that they were this sure about, right, and then you saw, you saw things, even amidst all the chaos last year, you did see some of the light coming through at times. And I just think it makes so much sense for him in a functional UH surroundings with better supporting casts to take a jump, maybe not to Patrick mahomes second year in the league jump, but where it's like, yeah, we have our guy. I feel very confident about I do. But I would also say I mean, I there were little sparkles last season. I actually this is a small sample size, but his play against the preseason game was optimistic too. But until you see it with quarterbacks and generals, what we know, we're not talking about anybody well against the opponent that he faced. But until you see it, it's like, I think people are expecting him to be a star and we just don't know that yet. I think he's an environment where that's much more post Yeah, he he's reportedly looked really good at practice to UM for the most part, like improved a different player. Uh, the question I just would have And sometimes his accuracy goes up and down. I think that's the one concern, but you know, you can you can still be great if you're not the most accurate guy. I guess my question would be to Mark, just like, how did you envision this segment as being different than the offseason inner monologue segment which we did one month ago. I didn't necessarily view it is different. I mean I thought we were. I'm making way. I wish I wish I had done it that way. I also like, uh, I mean, you know, if you went director's cut up like seven more of these, so like that's good. All right, Maybe I gotta pivot here, You don't, you don't? All right, before we continue with a rebound talk, let's take a quick break. All right, We're back to another one. Okay, UM, I will because it's about the same. Um. I am a man who this podcast has made famous even more famous. I'm a man who rise is and falls based on the talent that's around me. I'm a man who at one point was leading the greatest show on turf since the greatest show on turf, the Bengals. So that dastardly, dastard injury came up back then and knocked out my potential m v P Sea and I've basically become a punchline, uh since. But you know what, I'm just landed in a perfect system for my skills, and that's a Pete car Michael slash Sean Payton system where you get the ball out of your hands quickly. And oh, by the way, some nice people around me, Alvin Kamara, Jarvis Landry, Michael Thomas, Chris Alive, Marcus calloway. That's pretty good. Do I want a quarterback like Jamis Winston who's coming off an injury and her and it's gonna be up and down and who takes a while to make decisions? Or do I want a little uh peace shooter in the backfield the point guard like myself. It's just boom boom boo. Uh that's what you want. Maybe I'm not starting week one, but at some point that daltonnissance is coming to New Orleans. He's gonna come in and he's gonna have a moment. I'm coming in. The most fascinating aspect to this is that you're essentially um demistifying Jamis Winston, who is another one of your famis in the process of this. He's not gonna start seventeen games, first of all, James, why won't he start fourteen through? Whether he's already missed time in in uh camp, he's coming off a torn a c l before. That's absolutely fair. Um, how many games do you think Dalton is starting? He's an I have no idea he's about He's an up and down player. I truly believe this that Andy Dalton will play a maybe it'll be a supporting role or a guest starring role, but he will play a guest starring role of major significance. And I really do believe, and I know I'm kind of basing this on practice report, where it's like man that offense. It just makes sense to me that he fits there. And then I think, if he gets a chance, I think he could succeed and win a lot of ball games and have a little moment here. I've always been on this podcast historically the biggest Dalton supporter, but even I had kind of moved on, uh in the last year or so where it just became clear to me that he was what he was. He had peaked as a quarterback and was very you know, backup, a good backup, but very much a backup. I like this idea that he has another moment. He's thirty four. Wouldn't it be crazy if after all that time he finally got I can just sort of imagine it that he gets his first playoff win, not as a Bengal, but like on the road, he's supported by the number three defense and a lot. Can I just say to mean that he kind of fits to me, Jamis Winston is like putting on a weird suit that might not totally fit him, and he did no key job of it last year, but it was like awkward. Can I just make one counterpoint here that please, there wasn't a team that he was on where he came in um and it had to become the starter on an offense that was essentially loaded, and it was the Dallas Cowboys. He started nine games, played in eleven through fourteen touchdowns over UM nine plus appearances and eight interceptions. I mean that's a strong point that, yeah, that's that Cowboys team stunk, right, But no, I mean it was Mike McCarthy stunk. It's a similar offenan the team Dak Prescott was like was on on pace to like break yardage collapsing, but Cowboys were taking on serious water when Dad got hurt. I'm just saying it was the defense. The defense was a disaster. Thefense it's not a terrible place for a quarterback to produce. Like have you guys ever seen the Twitter clips of like Dalton dunking. I mean, if someone's going to get a rebound abound, that's Dalton, Like he's an athlete, put him on the I also think also he he looked extremely nerdy in the past, and his haircut over the last calendar year has him looking um. I would say, like about is attractive. You just want to maximize your own looks. He looks about his track as hipopibly. It's partly what happened the last two seasons with uh the Saints, where they've had like three different starters, that I just expect that it will be a combo platform and that there's not gonna be much difference, and that there's a legitimate chance Andy Dalton has the better quarterback for them. That Dalton relief effort, which included eleven starts, it went six and five with him, and he threw fourteen touchdowns against eight interceptions. He had pedestrian I mean his he was up in multiple performances. He was good. All I'm saying is sandwiched around a COVID nineteen list visit. All I'm saying is we're talking about an explosion in the same so offense with Andy Dalton. I don't don't I think he's gonna he could do the same thing. Of the feelings about the Saints. There's a little too much of gassing up of the Saints right now. Like I think my team's slogan of the Saints was They're gonna be awesome as long as four things go right. And if Winston doesn't get it done and you need Dalton to be the guy, you're already And by the way, he was four and five as a starter. He participated in two other games in a relief effort, where like they stand by statistically that he was very good for a guy coming off the bench. He had multiple games overrating. You're calling him a backup, though, I like, I like to take the step back and just sort of see like the whole arc of a career, and I just can see this as being like his Dano mont. You know, this is the daal Tennisan. Well, he's touchdowns twice. This is like the point where everyone stopped making fun of him and everyone can just kind of appreciate good for him, Like it's not listening to anyone else. He's just barreling through with this absurdity. This is what Gregg's thinking of with Andy Dawnton. Last time he played meaningful snaps Week fifteen Division game against the Eagles, a thirty seven seventeen Cowboys win, twenty two and thirty three touchdowns, a pick one, thirty four point seven passer rating, averaging twelve and a half yards in attempt. Is that still in him? Why not is it in him? Fourteen games in a row. I guess he's gonna have one game like that. But we're now rebound. How about last year that's stirring comeback against Seattle. Oh you missed that one? It was it was exciting three last year when he started six games through eight tons, downs and nine picks. I'll have one more. Um, I have a philosophical disconnect as host of the show with um competing agencies for what the segments about. So I'm gonna stick to the initial plan, which is I'm going to describe this player. I think that's good for it. UM. This is I didn't intentionally like go my own way. I just didn't know what we were doing. Well, that could be I could have saw it, could have sought out more guidance on that front. That's that's another way to you know, to look at that. That could be debated. But we love your your spirit, Mark. I like this guy's spirit because we we've spoken with him multiple times. UM. And if you're looking for a guy who's gonna rebound, case closed, look no further than the guy that gets to line up opposite the Super Bowl m v P. Who's catching passes from a suddenly on the bubble Hall of Famer for the defending champions. Yes, I'm gonna tell you Allan Robinson, I'm gonna pound the table again. I don't know if Alan Robinson was trying last year with the Bears. I'm not going to challenge that. I wasn't close. I would. I didn't have boots on the ground at Bears headquarters to tell you that he was, you know, just going through the motions in his final year. But there were people that did have boots on the ground that got the vibe that Allen Robinson was sick of it. He was sick of being a Bear and what that meant. And can you really blame them, especially when they made that terrible decision to give Naggie one more year. So now fresh start with arguably the best offensive mine in football. Um, if Allen Robson stays healthy, this is going to be one of those seasons. I'm not I'm not saying it's gonna be Randy Moss's first year with a Patriots, but it's gonna be in that kind of realm of the guy that's a stud. Moss is a Hall of Famer, different category but a really super talented all pro level player who is completely revitalized on a good team and a well run organization, playing with other great players. And it would it stunned me if Allen robs ended up with a better final statistical line in two than even Cooper Cup. It wouldn't because Cup. I think that's no disrespected Cup, But very rarely does a player put up a historically great season and then do it again. Cup is probably gonna come ound closer to what he was before UM and then Robinson is going to pick up some of that. I think he's going to be a monster rebounding from a brutal final year in Chico. I think you want to be right about these, and so I would say initially I would say that that was safe because I had him, say I had him too under yards last year, right, and so he's clearly and also that. But you're to say that he's gonna surpass Cooper Cup. That took it to a new level, and I think that's a up there on a ledge. And I like that he's gonna see then more single coverage this year than he ever has in his life. Right with an actual quarterback who's gonna you know how many times, Like he's just been out there by himself for half the game. Uh, in his career. You know who I think is the only receiver and Darnell Mooney came on strong, but they were really great at the same time. Like the only receiver he ever had with in Jacksonville that would get a thousand with him was Alan Hearns. Like he's always been the guy and now he's in this scheme with Cooper Cup It's that's it's a nice. Is there a more nineties sports nickname than the round a bound of rebound? It's pretty great. Let's ask let's ask a millennial justin who is that? You know? Don't google? Don't? Yeah, I mean you don't need to. No, I was looking for that sound um Dennis Rodman? Okay, I mean does he strike you as a round man? Not really? But he also known as that one makes more sense the round mound of rebound rebound? Alright, one more mark alright. So I mean why when we were discussing in the studio here after the show yesterday, I did ask if it we could go someone who's non player but in the orbit of the NFL. Okay, yes, you said yes, So I hope just don't you remember that. Um, here we go. I mean to attempt to do a voice here, which could be a disaster. Suddenly is where playing? I want you to remember that. That's that was said. I'm going to attempt to do a voice, which I'm not good at so but I think it needs it needs this. So here we go. I will get my ways soon enough. My plan was foiled, but I will rebound to achieve my goals. I am goal oriented ever since girlhood. A woman can detect things no man can. I can feel the earth's vibration, also the energy of a man, my special man. I sense that he has worn down. I see him staring out windows, walking alone beside the brook. We had come up with a plan. What accident is this? I don't know. I would support him now. You will understand when you say I would support him now, as I am a powerfully entity worth over four hundred million U S. Dollars. But he went his own way, so I had to do what I did. Conk him out with a tincture of high octane sleeping pills and tie him up in the subterranean living room of our second guesthouse. The team has no idea where he is. Don't fret. He is absolutely fine and sticking to his diet. We are a vegan family, but we are no longer a football family of Giselle has anything to say. I am Giselle bunching and I will get my way. I will rebound. That's good. I didn't know if you could stick the landing there, and then he did it. My favorite Giselle quote will always be my husband can't throw the ball and catch it too? Who was it who got West welcome to the hammer? On that one was welcome. Um. So the the theory here, the bucks don't know where he is and they're just trying to They're trying to pr that softly. And that's why I want to be back in theory two weeks from now. And what I love about this is, I'm guessing you wrote that. Giselle wrote this before uh Thursday's Todd bolls S conference. It was probably not watching that. Um. He did answer an interesting question today on his return. When will Tom Brady return? A fair question. He said, we'll see, we'll talk about it next week. So at some point he said they'll be back after the Titans. Uh. He said, we're gonna play the Titans play a game sometime after Tennessee, no definitive date for me. We'll keep in touch and then we'll find out. It's just interesting, it's strange. I mean he did say the whole thing was pre planned, but they don't have a pre planned return. Just come from the angle that they actually don't know where he is, Like then there would a lot of stuff starts to make. Um. Just remember I told you Tom Brady wasn't retiring, and I'm gonna tell you again, Tom Brady is not retiring. Where he hasn't retired, I mean, thank you, Paul. He will resurface and he will be on the field for Week one. I believe was our it made the finals of our tournament, Cowboys Bucks starting. I'm not that's going that was that's going way out first round. Let me use some um. I hope Tom Brady is back, and I hope everything in the scenes for Tom. There's nothing untoured or unfortunate going on in Mr Brady's life. But we'll see a Week one. There is I even go down this road, I guess, but there is that, like you know, it happened sometimes the guy who retires and then comes to the training camp and it's like, yeah, maybe not no, but it does happen. Tom Brady, though inside he wasn't sure he was the same Tom Brady. That was Greg agreeing with his own point. Um good, I love a good Greg, you know, to use a to use football parlance, Uh, Greg, what Mark does with some of these segments. Sometimes it's like the defensive and who freelances, and the coaching staff is like, man, it's kind of out for you know, his own thing a little bit, but you know, sometimes it makes plays that makes the team better and so we gotta live with it. But we'd like, you know, played within the rules. It wasn't freelancing, so right, I wasn't angling to freelance. I just think it's a great like it can go both ways. Sometimes it turns into yeah, like like trust trust Lawrence Taylor. You know, Donald's been known to freelance. I don't mind those comparisons. But sometimes it turns into like a Jalen Smith situation with the Cowboys last year, and and then you have to make a change. Well, but it's as long as you brought the heat. Ultimately, Giselle did It sounds like a lot more free times to the quarterback in this case, but there are other times where you leave the gap open. Well that's what you get and there goes Jonathan Taylor. He's a top ten football in China. You gotta you take, you take the good with the unexpected. With Mark SESSI really needs to catch on more. Um last things, since we're talking about Mark, and we talked about that team in the first half of the show. I had my doubts initially about your ability to disconnect. But God, are they making it easy for fans to not get back in. Yeah, I don't even feel tempted. I mean, it just kind of like maybe the true test is, you know, if they're six and five and then they reel off not you, But like, do they are they going to recapture a lot of the disenfranchised fans? You know? I would. I'm Greg, I know you're hearing from them when you whenever you mentioned the Browns, But I like have had a couple of Browns tweets here and there, and I've been critical and I really think that a lot of the most of the fans drew that line in the sand a long time ago. And they've either completely dug in on the narrative of why they root for the team over the particulars of the team, and others just have gone away and I don't I don't know if they're coming back. Well those people come back, that's maybe the more the answer, if they because I mean, it is unfortunate. I I you know, understand where you're coming from and and respect that, but it's too bad. You've had this relationship with the team um as a fan, uh through all these years. Like it's like if there four and one with Jacobe Brissette and like the number three ranked defense in the league, the number one ranked rushing attack in the league, and Brissetts like just doing his thing where he holds the ball forever and they win each game seventeen Like that team Browns fans are going to love and it's just gonna be it's just gonna be strange for you either way. I think on Sunday, there is one other option, and this I tabled this, uh maybe last week, but now I'll bring it up since it feels like the right time. Mark God willing you're around a long time, you'll probably outlast the quarterback management ownership. Is it possible in the NFL you're seeing Mark Sessler is on a break and maybe things are different. You return to the Browns, but this is not the Browns that you want to be associated with at this time in your life. Is that a possibility. I think that's because then you're a break friends, you're disassociating everything from this to a new Brown's team. Yeah. But I also say this is a weird thing because I think it's like, well, once you're a fan of a team, you've got to stay with them forever. And that's what I thought I would do. It feels um strangely free and freeing to not have the Browns thing as part of my life. I don't know I thought I would be. But it's also defined the part of who you were, and it was a thing that you loved as much as anything in the world. That that's got to be tough to to lose that part. But what I'm saying actually is what surprised me is it's the opposite. It feels great to not was this thing going back to the middle school of my life, and it's like it's it's it's gone, And I kind of think you just start to recreate. I hope your journey, wherever it takes you, is you. You are in a good place, right, It's yeah, you are gonna, you are gonna you are going to outlast them all. Mark's gonna outlast everyone. It's not going to be until maybe the year twenty eighty one, where it says, here lies Sessy. When does Mark die? Yes, next show, here lies Sesy, fan of the Browns until until he wasn't all right. That's it for this week, Big week. Next week we're getting closer. In fact, today is I think we're damn three weeks away as of today from the kickoff um of Bill's Rams. So next week will be our This is unbelievable to even say this, but it is our thirty eight annual Fantasy Extravaganza next week with a whole slew of special guests from across the fantasy spectrum, both inside our building and out next Wednesday. UM, lots of fun stuff coming up. But that is always one of my favorite shows of the year, and also one as a fantasy competitor myself that I I feel like I glean a lot from and it makes me a better player. So I have reasons for enjoying that episode as well. Thirty eight. I mean it is crazy. I mean, I'm trying to remember when we did that. Um, I mean we were different people then too. You took you reach for Kozar. I remember, I mean it was done on paper and pen back then. It was very totally strange scenario. All right, let's ironically enough, this is the second straight well it looks like lots of change alright, Annual Fantasy Extravaganza next week, as well as two other brand new shows and the Hard Knocks recap of episode three with Connie Fox and myself. So a lot of great a t N content coming your way. But until then, enjoy your weekend. It's a little ugliest in the world. Shut it out, hut in the light. Bye bye, bye bye, case closed. Heed the call.