The 2026 Fantasy Football Football Take Purge
STACKED extracted the fantasy-relevant player signal from this podcast and kept the full transcript here for context.
1 hr 22 min
Duration
Estimated from transcript
Sep 7, 2026
Published
Mon, September 7, 2026
29
Player insights
26
Players mentioned
Topics
Brock BowersCaleb WilliamsPatrick MahomesA.J. BrownBucky IrvingCam WardCarnell TateCeeDee LambChris GodwinChristian McCaffreyD.J. MooreDerrick HenryDrake MayeGeorge Kittle
Player analysis
Player insights
A.J. Brown
PositiveValue44:14
The source highlights A.J. Brown as a strong value at 40-1 odds for Offensive Player of the Year, arguing that his potential to lead the league in targets, catches, yards, and touchdowns is being underrated by the market.
Insight pageBrock Bowers
NegativeValue3:38
Craig Horlbeck argues Brock Bowers is the most overrated fantasy pick, noting he is being drafted near his ceiling (13th-14th overall) despite finishing as the TE22 in 2024. Horlbeck highlights that Clint Kubiak's offense is likely to be more balanced and slower than the Raiders' 2024 scheme, and points out that no tight end attached to a rookie quarterback has ever led the position in scoring since 2000.
Insight pagePositiveBreakout190:06
The source expresses excitement about drafting Brock Bowers for the upcoming season, stating that he is 'the shit'.
Insight pageBucky Irving
PositiveValue49:09
Bucky Irving is considered one of the best values in fantasy drafts. Despite the narrative that he is small and slow, he is expected to be a high-touch, productive back in a Buccaneers offense with a potentially elite offensive line.
Insight pageCaleb Williams
NegativeProjection7:43
Danny Kelly expresses concern that Caleb Williams will struggle, citing poor underlying 2024 statistics including a 32nd-ranked adjusted completion rate and 40th-ranked catchable throw rate. Kelly notes that Williams led the league in throwaways (44), suggesting the Bears' offensive hype may be misplaced given the team's sixth-hardest schedule and historical struggles at the quarterback position.
Insight pagePositiveProjection55:27
Caleb Williams is cited as one of the few quarterbacks in a stable, well-coached situation, with the source expressing confidence in his development under the Bears' current offensive structure.
Insight pageCam Ward
PositiveBreakout33:58
The source projects a major year-two leap for Cam Ward, comparing his trajectory to Caleb Williams. Ward finished his previous season strong with 10 touchdowns and one interception over his final seven games. With Brian Daboll now overseeing the offense, the source expects significant improvement, citing Ward's physical talent, arm strength, and work ethic.
Insight pageCarnell Tate
PositiveBreakout32:33
The source believes Carnell Tate is a smash candidate and a potential WR2 in fantasy. Despite a quiet preseason, he is a former five-star prospect with elite tools, including automatic hands and the ability to run a full route tree. Reports from Titans beat writer Easton Freeze indicate he has looked great in practice, and the team simply hasn't schemed for him in preseason games.
Insight pageCeeDee Lamb
PositiveValue12:55
CeeDee Lamb is identified as a priority target for a 'zero-RB' or receiver-heavy draft strategy, as the hosts argue that the industry's consensus to draft running backs early is a potential trap given the high probability of injury.
Insight pageChris Godwin
PositiveBreakout41:36
Chris Godwin is identified as a top-15 wide receiver candidate who is currently undervalued. He is healthy, a year and a half removed from a major ankle injury, and expected to command high volume out of the slot with Mike Evans gone and other teammates dealing with injuries.
Insight pageChristian McCaffrey
NegativeUsage14:26
Christian McCaffrey is cited as a high-risk player due to his 413 touches in the 2024 regular season, with the hosts arguing that betting on such high-volume backs to remain healthy is a strategic error for fantasy managers.
Insight pageD.J. Moore
PositiveUsage8:24
The hosts suggest that DJ Moore's desire to leave Chicago may have been justified by Caleb Williams' inability to consistently complete passes outside of broken plays, validating Moore's perspective on the team's offensive limitations.
Insight pageDerrick Henry
NegativeBust14:15
The hosts express concern over drafting older running backs like Derrick Henry, noting he is the oldest running back in the league and that the industry's shift back to 'running back heavy' draft strategies ignores the high injury risk associated with the position.
Insight pageDrake Maye
PositiveValue12:58
Drake Maye is noted as a value player who has been falling to the fourth or fifth round in drafts, making him an attractive target for managers who choose to wait on the quarterback position.
Insight pageGeorge Kittle
PositiveInjury43:47
The source highlights George Kittle's recovery from an Achilles injury at age 31 as miraculous, suggesting he remains a key part of the 49ers' offensive success.
Insight pageJ.J. McCarthy
NegativeProjection168:31
The source is highly critical of J.J. McCarthy's performance in the NFL, suggesting his play is so poor that it makes the Michigan cheating scandal appear more significant than previously thought, implying he may have had 'the answers to the test' in college.
Insight pageJayden Daniels
NegativeProjection55:42
The source expresses concern regarding Jaden Daniels' situation in Washington, specifically questioning the experience and capability of the team's young offensive coaching staff.
Insight pageJonathan Taylor
NegativeUsage14:21
Jonathan Taylor is highlighted as a high-risk asset due to his heavy workload in 2024, specifically his 370 carries, which contributes to the hosts' broader fear that top-10 running backs are being overvalued and are likely to suffer injuries.
Insight pageJustin Herbert
PositiveProjection50:26
The source is highly optimistic about Justin Herbert, suggesting he could throw 50 touchdowns and win MVP if the Chargers stay healthy. The source dismisses concerns about his playoff record, comparing his situation to LeBron James being punished for reaching the NBA Finals with inferior rosters.
Insight pageJustin Jefferson
NegativeValue12:55
The hosts suggest that the optimal draft strategy this year is to pivot away from early-round running backs and instead target elite wide receivers like Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb, especially given the high injury risk at the running back position.
Insight pageMalik Willis
PositiveProjection95:31
The source expresses personal support for Malik Willis, noting that he is a nice guy and they want him to succeed, despite the challenging situation he is being set up to fill in Miami.
Insight pagePatrick Mahomes
NegativeInjury37:36
Mitchell Schwartz has expressed concern regarding Josh Simmons' use of the 'snatch technique' on the offensive line, arguing it puts Patrick Mahomes at significant risk while he recovers from a torn ACL and prepares for a season where he will be in the pocket more frequently.
Insight pageNegativeInjury60:52
The source expresses a recurring fear that Patrick Mahomes could re-injure his ACL. This concern is linked to the 'snatch technique' used by left tackle Josh Simmons, which former Chiefs lineman Mitchell Schwartz has criticized as dangerous for Mahomes' legs.
Insight pageQuentin Johnston
PositiveBreakout55:49
The source predicts Quentin Johnston will outscore Ladd McConkey and emerge as the Chargers' WR1. Comparing his development to Davante Adams, the source believes Johnston finally has the right offensive situation to reach his potential, citing his 6'4" frame and 4.3 speed.
Insight pageRicky Pearsall
NegativeInjury43:35
The source notes that Ricky Pearsall is frequently injured and has barely played, making his role and impact on the 49ers offense difficult to project.
Insight pageSam Darnold
NegativeBust39:27
The source expresses a genuine worry that Sam Darnold could regress significantly, noting he led the NFL in turnovers last year and faces increased pressure in his current situation, potentially mirroring Geno Smith's career trajectory after leaving Seattle.
Insight pageSaquon Barkley
NegativeBust14:29
Saquon Barkley is mentioned as a player whose age (approaching 30) and high-volume usage make him a risky investment, as the hosts fear that the industry's reliance on top-tier running backs will lead to widespread disappointment due to inevitable injuries.
Insight pageTrevor Lawrence
PositiveProjection55:27
Trevor Lawrence is highlighted as being in a favorable position with Liam Cohn, providing stability compared to the younger, less experienced offensive coordinators currently entering the league.
Insight pageTua Tagovailoa
PositiveProjection58:26
The source shares a proxy take from Carlos, who believes Tua Tagovailoa will win a playoff game before Justin Herbert. The source acknowledges this is a surprisingly hot take but suggests Tua could be genuinely good this year.
Insight pageFull transcript
Episode Transcript
0:00Every game day you show up for your team.
0:03Now it's your time. Ask your prescriber about Wegovi, semaglutide injection 2.4mg, a GLP-1.
0:07Call 1-833-4WEGOVI or visit wegovi.com to view the medication guide and to learn more about Wegovi.
0:11Why wait? Queen Carvana stood haloed by the morning sun.
0:14An army hung on her every word. My champions, I have sold my chariot on Carvana.
0:19It was a lovely SUV, an inexplicably queenly offer.
0:21They're even coming to the castle to collect it.
0:24Tonight we feast. An offer you can feast on.
0:26Sell your car today on Carvana. Pick up fees, may apply.
0:29Welcome to the 2026 Annual Take Purge. My name is Danny Heifetz and I am joined by two men ready to cleanse their souls.
0:36Danny Kelly and Craig Horlbeck. Men, are you ready to embark upon a journey of catharsis?
0:41I need to be cleansed. I'm nervous. I'm a little scared.
0:44But I'm also ready. You should be scared. There's a lot in here that I want to be out there.
0:50Right. I can't wait to feel lighter. We are going to embark on an incredible journey together.
0:54But first, an incredibly natural, well-timed advertising break. Do it again.
0:58Give me one more. Smoother and lower voice. But first, a very natural ad break.
1:02Not whispering. Just be like, but first, a really awkward ad break.
1:05But first, an awkwardly timed ad break. This episode is presented by Verizon.
1:09Let me tell you all about Verizon's new simplicity plan.
1:12You get one plan, one price, just $30 a line per month, even for a single line.
1:17So while everyone is running four trade analyzers before offering a backup tight end, Verizon said, one plan, one price.
1:22Sometimes the simplest move is the best one, like the simplicity plan.
1:26Head to verizon.com today. For new customers who switch to Verizon, $30 per line includes auto pay and switch discount.
1:32Additional taxes, fees, and terms apply. DK, you always get nervous for the take perch.
1:36Mm-hmm. Why is that? There's a lot of pressure on making sure you get the right takes out.
1:41Sometimes the takes themselves are a little bit scary.
1:44Just even say them. Even within the confines of the purge, which is like severance.
1:48What happens inside the purge is not who you are outside of the purge.
1:52You don't remember what happens inside the purge. That's exactly right.
1:55I don't know what I've ever said in there.
1:58Was it bad? I couldn't tell you. I mean, look, there's just all this prep, all this research.
2:03There's just a lot of intrusive thoughts. There's a weight on my shoulders right now.
2:07I need to get that off my shoulders. Unwanted ideation.
2:10Can you imagine if we had to carry these things with us, just walk around with them every day and didn't have an outlet at some point?
2:18What I'm most worried about is my professional credibility being at risk, which is why we invented the take purge so that
2:24my sterling reputation as an NFL analyst won't be jeopardized.
2:27Right. For you specifically. Thank you. Because you set the bar extremely high.
2:30Yes. The highest, maybe. I would maybe agree with you.
2:33So it's nice that we have this opportunity to get these intrusive thoughts off.
2:37Oh, my God. This is not a test. This is your emergency podcast system announcing the commencement of the annual take purge.
2:43At the siren, all takes, including things you don't actually believe, will be legal for 60 continuous minutes.
2:49No players, coaches, or media members of any kind will be granted immunity.
2:52All rational thought, logic, and professional credibility will be suspended.
2:55The Ringer Podcast Network thanks you for your participation.
2:58May our take God, Chris Sims, be with you all.
3:01Whoa! It's purge time, baby. Wow. Don't worry, we're not going to do, we're not going to give our takes with these masks on.
3:07We're not doing the whole pod. That'd be bad audio.
3:10For those watching on Netflix and Spotify, we do actually have the giant weird mask that they have.
3:15I'm going to take it off. I have no idea how you sound.
3:19It's time. We're here. We're on the clock. I feel like I've been asleep for 364 days, and I've finally awoken like
3:25Ripley in Alien after a 53-year sleep. Yeah. Why don't you bat off here, Craig?
3:30I feel like you're just itching. Your soul looks heavy.
3:33You've got to get something off your chest. I think Brock Bowers is the most overrated pick in fantasy this year.
3:39Goddamn. And we're all just going way too hard on this shit.
3:42I just heard a bang in the other room that was Austin hitting the ground.
3:46We talk about Brock Bowers' rookie season like he's fucking Randy Moss in 2007.
3:50My guy had 1,100 yards and five touchdowns. He caught a lot of passes.
3:54He averaged 12 fantasy points a game. Let's all settle down.
3:57He was—if you include wide receivers and tight ends in 2024, his rookie season, he was the wide receiver slash tight end 22.
4:04He's the 22nd highest rated guy. And we're all like, oh, Clint Kubiak's coming.
4:08This is going to be awesome. Clint Kubiak throws the ball way less than the Raiders did.
4:13Seahawks were 29th in pass attempts last year. The Raiders in 2024 were fourth.
4:17They threw the ball 170 more times than the Seahawks did last year.
4:20Also, Jackson Smith and Jigba ran 100 less routes than Brock Bowers did in 2024.
4:25I think he's great. I would also like to add in that since the year 2000, only three tight ends have ever
4:31finished as a top three tight end in fantasy with a rookie quarterback playing eight or more games.
4:36No tight end attached to a rookie over that span has ever led the position in scoring.
4:41So I think we need a little settle down juice about Brock Bowers.
4:45That's deep in my soul. He's typically saying we.
4:47Obviously, he's talking about me. I'm like, people are taking this guy like 13th, 14th overall.
4:52I'm like, this guy's going to be like a top 20 or 30 wide receiver probably.
4:56Like last year didn't even happen. Give me Trim McBride.
4:59I've said three things. One, I love Brock Bowers.
5:02This is obviously about me. Two, I'm afraid you're right.
5:05Three, for like almost none of those reasons. I'm afraid you're right, which is terrifying.
5:09PCL? Not good. You brought up like, I mean, the Raiders throwing more passes, the Seahawks throwing less.
5:14That's like because the Seahawks defense is great and the Raiders defense is ass.
5:18I'm not as worried about that. The point I thought you were going to bring up is the Raiders quarterback situation is just like might be worse.
5:26Like Kirk Cousins is old and Mendoza's a rookie.
5:28And my fear is that. I thought I just brought up the whole rookie quarterback thing.
5:33But okay. Well, that's the, like the pass rate stuff, that'll get ironed out.
5:37But to your point. I just think Kubiak runs a slower offense.
5:40And they're just, I don't think. They're going to run a lot.
5:44Yes. More balanced. In any world. The Raiders were, you think the Seahawks are going to be fourth?
5:49Or do you think the Raiders are going to be fourth in pass attempts this year?
5:53Well, how many were completed? No, I think that it's about the efficiency.
5:57But I think that the fear I have with Bowers.
6:00And I actually kind of feel this way a little about the Chargers too.
6:04Is there any world where we're not just repeating ourselves next year?
6:07We're like, well, last year, like, you know, the Chargers were healthy.
6:11Last year, the Raiders, that was Mendoza's rookie year.
6:13Now Mendoza gets a whole offseason. Now we should take Bowers.
6:17I am afraid that, I kind of think Bowers will break the receiving record at tight end.
6:21And it might just be, like, in two or three years and not.
6:25And picking Mendoza's rookie year as the year to be in is, I will admit, it's a little scary.
6:31I don't love that he had tape on his knee at practice as well.
6:35Don't love that. Especially with what happened with. His knee?
6:37What's his face? The guy from the Niners. Pearsall.
6:40I don't know. It does worry me. I will say this is a great take.
6:44Because I have chickened out in the second round of every draft I've taken so far, and I've not taken him.
6:50It's just been, like, something that's been festering in me.
6:53I love Brock Bowers. I think he's fantastic. Festering is the perfect word.
6:57But I'm like, I just don't know if it's going to be, like, as explosive as a season as everybody thinks.
7:03Yeah. I, he's so polite. He has to, basically, we're drafting him near his ceiling, right?
7:07Like, he has to go absolutely off. Dude, we're drafting him as the seventh best wide receiver in the NFL.
7:13That's pretty damn high. That's, like, basically, he's got to have, like, CeeDee Lamb's average season.
7:18That's kind of high. He can come in first.
7:20He can come in second. He can come in third.
7:23Hell. He can come in fourth. I get it.
7:26It just comes down to if Mendoza looks like a rookie at all and plays earlier, and Kirk Cousins looks old.
7:32And you're like, well, that was bad. Okay. Look at him.
7:35Looks lighter already. Look at Craig's bouncing around. I just wanted to get on base, you know?
7:40DK? I got another one that the word festering really works for.
7:43This has been festering in my soul a little bit.
7:46But the crowning of Caleb Williams. I'm afraid Caleb Williams is going to suck again.
7:50And all our Bears takes are going to look like shit.
7:53Daniel. Madden curse? Daniel. I mean, I didn't say it.
7:56We literally were in the commercial. We were in a Madden commercial, and we are doing the EA Sports in the game for part of Madden.
8:04And we literally may have overlooked the Madden curse.
8:06I feel obligated somewhat to say that there were a lot of bad, like, underlying statistics of Caleb Williams last year.
8:12In particular, his accuracy, which was absolute shit. It was shit.
8:15It was shit. I watched Highlander! It was shit.
8:18It was shit! I mean, if you just look at some of, like, completion rate over expected, it was, like, 32nd adjusted completion rate.
8:2534th, this is according to Fantasy Points. 40th in catchable throw rate.
8:28Maybe DJ Moore was right. Maybe he wanted to get out of there just because Caleb Williams couldn't complete a goddamn pass
8:34when it wasn't, like, him scrambling around. DJ Moore was right is the great take here.
8:39DJ Moore's right. All the receivers who left their teams are right.
8:42DJ Moore's right about Erks. DJ Moore's right about Caleb.
8:45I will say, the reason why this is so genius is, I think, similar to Brock Bowers, this is, like, at the
8:52tippy top of the mountain of, like, things we are desperate to believe is true.
8:56A hundred percent. That the Bears are good and Caleb is good and it's real and everything's fun and this is, like,
9:02all the crazy shit that happened last year is not an anomaly.
9:05Yes. And this is, like, the new team. All the Bears hype.
9:09Look, we want it so bad. I love Caleb Williams as a prospect.
9:13I was so excited to see what he did last year, the improvement that he made.
9:17But all this Bears hype when it comes to a quarterback is making me a little itchy.
9:22I don't know how to feel about it. I really want Caleb Williams to be good.
9:27And I really do believe in Ben Johnson. But the whole, like, next step, we're going really far on Luther Byrne, like, all over Roma Duneza.
9:34Well, okay, settle down now. This might not be Luther Byrne's fault is what I'm saying.
9:39You've lost me. You know, they've got some injuries on their offensive line that are still, like, Ozzy Trapilo or whatever his name is.
9:45I don't know how to say his last name.
9:48Trapilo, which is also what his knee's resting on.
9:51He's coming off of a patellar injury. He was good for them last year.
9:55You know, Braxton Jones had a—he won the competition at left tackle this preseason, but he wasn't very good in the games.
10:01There's some concern there. The Bears, honestly, they're going to struggle to run left sometimes.
10:05Yeah. Like Zoolander. Yes. So, I don't know. It's been nagging at me.
10:09All the Bears talk. It's good. And I really do want him to do awesome.
10:13And he could. But I'm also just like, man, when has the Bears quarterback been good?
10:18Yeah. I mean, Chicago's literally never had a 4,000-yard passer.
10:21Also, they have the sixth hardest schedule this year.
10:23And that's the thing. It's like the same way that the Chiefs had like, you know, they went like 11 wins in one score games two years ago.
10:31And then they had like six wins in the final play.
10:34And then last year they went like, what, one in eight or something in one score games?
10:39The Chicago had one of the greatest snip snaps ever where they lost on a Hail Mary and then lost 10 straight games after that.
10:46Then that was two years ago. And then last year, Chicago goes around and they won, I think, seven different games where
10:52they were losing at the two-minute warning. And it's just like, it was a very thin margin thing to be like, all right, well, we're good now.
11:00It's, well, if Kyler Murray had done what the Bears did last year, we probably wouldn't be racing to be excited about it.
11:07Caleb last year led the league in throwaways, 44 throwaways.
11:10That's the Rodgers. That's the Aaron Rodgers. Bryce Young and Cam Ward were the two that were right behind him.
11:15That's my pushback. Stats are created differently. Caleb Williams' stats, the profile is similar to Aaron Rodgers.
11:20Nick, you compare him to Aaron Rodgers. Not a lot of turnovers, not a lot of...
11:25He doesn't turn the ball over. It's not there.
11:27He throws it away. He puts it in a place that either his receiver can get it at a low rate or nobody.
11:34Yeah. He's not putting it really in the vicinity.
11:36But adjusted completion rate, I believe, eliminates throwaways. So what about burden?
11:40Still really low. Are you worried about all the Bears?
11:43Yeah. That's what, I mean, that's basically, I mean, as a cascading effect, I'm worried that we're way too high on all the Bears players this year.
11:50This is devastating. This is good. But it's also great.
11:53Okay. Can I get something off my chest? Yeah, please.
11:56This is like not just like a silly little take purge.
11:59This is like a strategic error I think we've made.
12:02It's not your grandma's take purge. What other members of our team can we attack here?
12:07Because we've attacked... We just killed Austin and the kill.
12:10And the kill is devastated. Yeah. This is for us.
12:12All of these top 10 running backs are going to get hurt.
12:16And us telling everybody to go running back heavy this season is going to make us feel so stupid.
12:21They're all going to get hurt. We all did it in the draft, in the Ringer Fantasy League draft.
12:27The Ringer draft, all of us went running back, running back.
12:30We drafted 10th, 11th, and 12th, and we'll probably finish 10th.
12:33In a three-receiver league. In a three-receiver league. Literally, we have just had the healthiest two-year stretch for running backs that any of us can remember.
12:40And then the industry, the entire industry, just was like, you know what?
12:44You've got to go back to running back heavy.
12:47Running backs are fine now. Running backs are fine.
12:49Running backs don't get hurt. The most obvious fade ever is, you know what I'm going to do with my last pick?
12:55I'm going to take Justin Jefferson and CeeDee Lamb back-to-back.
12:58And then Drake May inexplicably falls to you in the fourth or fifth round.
13:02I'll do that. And the whole wait on tight end, wait on quarterback.
13:06I did a draft yesterday, and I couldn't believe it.
13:09I had the 45th pick. Like, it was a fourth round.
13:12I forget. I almost got Josh Allen. Josh Allen went one pick before me.
13:16He went 44th overall. No one took a quarterback for 44 picks.
13:19And I just remember thinking, I've never seen that.
13:22Yeah. And I remember thinking, I think there's a world where fantasy advice is actually, in a weird way, ubiquitous now.
13:28Right. Because it jumped the shark a little. Yeah.
13:31Everyone is so online that everyone kind of agrees on a strategy by August 1st, and the models, and the projections, and everything kind of align.
13:38You wouldn't have seen that in our draft. Certainly not.
13:41When kickers went in the seventh round. But the game theory of it, I'm like, at this point, should our fantasy advice
13:47next year be like, let's just see what everyone else decides on and do the opposite out of principle?
13:52That's usually where you find the value. Right. Literally zagging.
13:55Zero running back as a concept. Like, oh, we'll just take elite receivers, elite tight ends, elite quarterbacks, and then we'll just
14:02find backup running backs from guys who get hurt later, and that's how you win.
14:06Started because everyone else was going heavy running back.
14:08And I am worried that that was very obviously the strategy, but we didn't realize that everyone was kind of touting the same thing.
14:15And I'm like, Derek Henry, I love him, but I'm like, he's the oldest running back in the entire league.
14:21Jonathan Taylor had 370 carries last year. Christian McCaffrey had 413 touches in the regular season.
14:26Saquon's almost 30. Like, all these guys, like, we are really banking on these guys not missing any time.
14:31It's also been a horrific preseason for injuries. Yes.
14:34Just, I don't know. Anyway. The vibes are low on that.
14:37It's a good one, and it's basically betting on the position that is most likely to get injured will just get injured.
14:43Yeah. And we're all betting that it won't for three years in a row.
14:47Damn it. So, yeah, that's been bugging me. Um, I got something that I've been thinking more and more as we've gotten through the summer.
14:54I did not feel this way months ago. And things have changed, whether I want to admit it or not.
15:00Okay. I think Mike McCarthy is going to go 12-5 with the Steelers, win a playoff game, and it's going to make
15:06all of us completely reconsider Mike Tomlin's career in Legacy.
15:09Wow. Wow. I think the Steelers could come out of the gate and be a really competent, above-average offense.
15:14I think Patrick Graham, as DC, is going to be an above-average, dare I say, great defensive coordinator.
15:20And it's going to make us go, so what really was Tomlin doing?
15:23This team, with the same roster pretty much and the same quarterback, won 12 games, won a playoff game.
15:29The offense is legitimate. I think they're going to average 24 points a game.
15:33And we're going to be like, huh? Maybe Mike Tomlin was a good quote, and Mike McCarthy is a good play caller.
15:39A good quote. That's good. That's like a catchphrase.
15:41That's like a fear, but it's also – that would be exciting.
15:45I kind of think Craig's right. I will say, I have a personal connection to this in a way.
15:50A very parallel kind of situation happened with the Seahawks where Pete Carroll left.
15:54I was upset when Pete Carroll got fired. I mean, he kind of got fired.
15:59It was a weird little situation. And I thought the Seahawks were making the wrong decision by letting him go.
16:04I had this incredible amount of nostalgia for Pete Carroll, almost like a father figure.
16:09He took us to the Super Bowl. It was amazing.
16:11It was like the greatest era of Seahawks football I've ever seen in my life.
16:16It was so great. But I will say the last however many years, seven or eight years of Pete Carroll's tenure there,
16:22were pretty Steelers-y where it was like good enough to go to the playoffs, not good enough to do anything else.
16:28And then the Seahawks hired Mike McDonald, and I didn't really know what to expect.
16:32I was excited about it and everything, but immediately I'm like, he's the greatest coach in the NFL.
16:37I fucking love this guy. I would die for him.
16:40I trust him with my life. What were we doing the last eight years?
16:44And we won a Super Bowl in his second season.
16:47You don't realize how outdated something is until you replace it.
16:50You're like, oh my God. Unfortunately, I think about this.
16:53I kind of wonder if Aaron Rodgers is going to look great.
16:57Okay, just the whole, like, what if it just works?
16:59When he's not busy throwing Rowan Wilson under the bus.
17:02Yeah. Well, I mean, he couldn't part of this, isn't it?
17:05Well, yeah. Greg, this is a great take. Do you think they went, do the Steelers win a playoff game?
17:11Imagine if McCarthy immediately wins a playoff game. Yeah, I do.
17:14I think that. Okay. Tough division, though. Right? Yeah.
17:17I don't know. The Steelers are always good against the Ravens.
17:20It's like the fucking Bengals, and then you have the Browns.
17:23Like, I think the Steelers have the best roster in the division.
17:26Can I give a related one to this? Sure.
17:29I think the Ravens are also going to be so much better without John Harbaugh.
17:33Oh, yeah. Of course. Is that a take, Birch?
17:36Oh, maybe it's not. Oh, maybe it doesn't even count.
17:39I was wondering, like, a lot better. Well, it is kind of because he now has John Harbaugh as his coach.
17:45But I feel like McCarthy coming in has been this punchline.
17:48I don't think Minter and Doyle have been a punchline.
17:51Fair enough. Because, like, he's really the Mike McDonough.
17:53You're right. I guess it's not really a take, Birch.
17:56It's just like, I mean, I do agree with you.
17:59No one's talking about the Ravens as a Super Bowl contender, but it's exactly the same as what the Seahawks did.
18:05We have Pete Carroll there forever, and they hire it.
18:08And I think that everyone says, and I'm not wrong, that Mike McDonald's kind of like the Sean McVay of defense.
18:14And that was a lofty thing. But winning a Super Bowl in year two, it kind of is.
18:19If that's true, Jesse Minter's like the Kyle Shanahan of defense.
18:22Like, especially his dad, you know, has been around forever.
18:25It's kind of the right comparison. So, I guess it's not a take, Birch.
18:29It's a good take, though. I do agree with it.
18:32And I agree with you that it kind of feels like Josh Allen and Lamar.
18:36Everyone's like moved on past them as like Super Bowl contenders.
18:39It's like, well, there's a new era now, and there's like cool plate collars, and we have Ben Johnson.
18:45And I'd probably just be like, I'll just bet on Lamar and Josh Allen.
18:49I like it. Somewhere out there is a Chevy truck.
18:51And the person who drives it, well, that's a Chevy person.
18:55You probably know one. Your buddy. Your sister. Ones who always show up.
18:58They're the first to rise, the last to leave.
19:01They always have that little extra something. And maybe you've got it too.
19:05Chevrolet. Together, let's drive. Visit Chevy.com slash trucks to explore the lineup.
19:08This episode is brought to you by Brooks. Whether it's for a moment, a mile, or a marathon, Brooks knows that when
19:14we move together, we become something bigger than ourselves.
19:17That's the power of connection. And no matter where you are in the world, running can help you find your people.
19:23So let's lace up and start sharing more than the road.
19:26Let's share our stories, our motivations, and our passions.
19:29Because connection doesn't just help push us forward. It can help lift us up.
19:33Let's run there. Learn more at BrooksRunning.com. All right.
19:35I've been saving this one. I've been biting my tongue the last couple of weeks because it's been just in the back
19:41of my mind for a while now. Anytime we fixate on a player or a team, talk negatively about them for weeks
19:48and weeks and weeks, say basically no positive things, I've been very anti this team, which is the Titans.
19:53I think Carnell Tate is going to smash this year.
19:56I think he's going to be a wide receiver too in fantasy.
19:59So I think we've quickly forgotten how good he is.
20:02I know that he wasn't considered a Jamar Chase-level prospect, but this is a former five-star guy who has every tool that you want in his bag.
20:10I mean, he was literally the best catcher of the football last year in college football.
20:15I mean, he had automatic hands, win at the catch point.
20:18He can go deep. He can run a full route tree.
20:21He's a really good player. I know that he didn't do anything in the preseason games, but our buddy Easton Freeze, who
20:27covers the Titans, says he's looked great in practices, all that stuff.
20:30They haven't been scheming anything up for him in these games.
20:34I'm convinced he's actually going to be the guy that we completely missed on in the preseason.
20:38I'll do you one further. Sitting number two in my lineup here on my take purge is that Cam Ward's going to be the next Caleb Williams.
20:46Yes. Oh, yeah, the big year two lead. Total year two reversal.
20:50We are incredibly overreacting to meaningless preseason crap. He had a horrible situation in year one with Brian Callahan, a fired coach,
20:56a terrible roster, just like Caleb Williams. You have Brian Dayball coming in, a guy who's Josh Allen, Daniel Jones, like a person that you trust.
21:03I think his style works with Cam Ward. Cam Ward closed the season not that bad.
21:08Ten touchdowns, one interception in his final seven games.
21:10I actually looked this up the other day because I was looking up Tyler Shuck stats.
21:15The Titans had as many touchdowns as the Saints did in the final like eight games of the season.
21:20It wasn't like they were horrible. Cam Ward in 2025 stats looks very close to Caleb Williams in 2024.
21:26Yeah. And you look at like physically capable, arm talent, all that stuff.
21:30Also like off-field work ethic. Coaches love him. Swag level.
21:32The way that Salah talks about him. Like this is a guy who I would want to bet on.
21:38We'll figure it out. And look at the last three first overall picks at quarterback.
21:42You have Trevor Lawrence, disaster first season, went 3-14.
21:45Bryce Young and Caleb Williams. Those are all three guys who have rebounded.
21:48Why wouldn't Cam Ward be able to do it?
21:51What do they all have in common? A coach that immediately got fired.
21:55Right. Yes. And they had a better coach. I mean, I know Salah is the head coach defensively, but he has Brian Dable offensively.
22:01Again, we talked. His track record is solid with quarterbacks.
22:04We were a little worried that because Cam Ward can't run, Brian Dable won't know what to do with him.
22:10But the reality is, again, Dable has made everyone better for like 10 years.
22:14So we've been afraid of the Titans. This is good.
22:17It is like if Cronelty is good immediately, we will think a lot about the Jamar Chase.
22:22Can't tell what the white line's on the ball because the ball in college and NFL is different.
22:27Like why did we give a shit about the preseason?
22:30We've just all agreed that Cam Ward's bad. Yeah.
22:32It's over. And we've all agreed based on like two preseason games that Cronelty is the worst pick in fantasy.
22:38And again, I know I keep saying I'm the last person on earth who thinks Robert Sala's Jets tenure is underrated.
22:44But I just think the Titans will be good.
22:47I think the Titans are – if you just look at every team that came in last place in the division last
22:53year, in the AFC, the Titans are the best candidate to win the division.
22:57I agree with that. Like it always – there's always one team every year.
23:01It doesn't mean it's a law of nature. Sure.
23:03But like if the Titans are kind of – there's not many candidates.
23:07Maybe an NFC South team probably. I think that or just also I think – well, did the Lions – who came
23:13in last place in the NFC team? The Lions did.
23:16That doesn't really count. That was going to say.
23:19That doesn't really count. So, okay. I like that one a lot.
23:22I also think they have a chance to have a pretty good offensive line, which is such a force multiplier.
23:28It's like they have Cornell Tate, Wanda Robinson. I'm like this is a much better team.
23:33This is the number one overall pick. He had one bad year and we're all out.
23:37There was like good flashes last year. And the other thing about the Titans, they spend a lot of money on free agency.
23:44And generally that's not always a great strategy. But it usually does work in the year you do it.
23:49Like those players usually do deliver immediately. That's great.
23:52Can I give another one that's been weighing on my head and that I really want to talk to you guys about?
23:58If the 49ers lose this Australia game, their season is over.
24:01It's over? It's over. This is the first ever.
24:04I like where your head's at. It's the first must win game in week one in NFL history.
24:09So we are coming off of the Super Bowl as the first Super Bowl that is not a must win game for the New England Patriots.
24:16And now we have a week one must win game for the Niners.
24:20You can convince me that Seahawks-Patriots game is more important.
24:23This one's more important than the Super Bowl. Not everything.
24:26But here's the thing. So the Niners, first of all, we're recording this Take Perch Thursday, September 3rd.
24:31They're in Australia right now. The Niners are in Australia already.
24:34They got there eight days before the game. Did you see Keon White, the defensive end on the Niners?
24:39There was a video. He's like, I don't know if you can overdose in melatonin, but I'm going to try for the flight.
24:46So the Niners are there for eight days. You could Google that, you know.
24:50So you can Google that. If the Niners are there for eight days and then the Rams are going, they're showing up
24:56like what, 16 hours before the game? They're going to play.
24:59Fashionably late. They're going to be there like 30 hours.
25:02If the Niners show up and the Rams just kind of waltz in, whip the Niners butts and then just get on
25:08the plane, the 49ers are going to have a 15-hour plane ride back where all they do is bitch about why the
25:15fuck were we just in Australia for a week and it didn't even matter.
25:19Now we're on Australia time. Now they go home to their families.
25:22They're going to have a lot of fun. And they're like, that shit didn't even work.
25:27And it's going to set the land speed record for how quickly a great coach can lose a locker room because everyone's
25:33going to be so mad about how long they were there and out of their routine.
25:37And you cannot underrate how much athletes give a shit about their routine.
25:41Like think about pitchers, everything. They're all kind of like that.
25:44They're going to, this plane ride on the way back home from a loss will break the team.
25:49We just got a text that they're actually currently on the plane.
25:53They have two more hours until they touch ground in Australia.
25:56Dude, these guys are resistant. We got flight aware.
25:59We got flight aware going on here. I want to, I want to 180 your take.
26:03Oh, please do it. Fuck the substation. The Niners are fine.
26:06This is not an off season from hell and they're going to win the NFC West.
26:11Yeah. If you actually look at what's going on, it's like Ricky Pearsall got hurt.
26:15He's hurt every year. I don't even know what the Niners are with Ricky Pearsall.
26:19He's barely played. He's barely played. You have Kyle Shanahan who miraculously made it through what could have been something way worse and seems to be okay.
26:27You have George Kittle who's having a miraculous Achilles recovery at 31 years old.
26:31Christian McCaffrey is healthy. Mike Evans is going to play week one.
26:35They nailed this random wide receiver that nobody liked in round two with Dejan Stribbling.
26:39They have the seventh easiest schedule in the league.
26:41I think the Rams are super old and top heavy.
26:44The Seahawks just lost their Super Bowl MVP and their real Super Bowl MVP, their play caller, Clint Kubiak.
26:50And I'm staring at the Niners and I'm like, you know what?
26:53Debo, Kittle, McCaffrey, Brock Purdy, Kyle Shanahan. They're going to be fucking good.
26:57This is good. This is a great zag because we have never shot up about this substation.
27:02Yeah. And I'm like, actually, this team's fine. It's funny.
27:04The substation to me is funny. I don't actually believe it's like doing anything really other than it's super ugly and maybe it makes the vibes go down.
27:12Yeah. Just looming over them. Getting bigger with every day.
27:15Shadow. Yeah, I mean, that shit's funny. Like a dark cloud.
27:18Yeah, I'm kind of just like, eh, we're overthinking this Niners thing.
27:22The Niners are always fucking good. How much fucking electricity is buzzing around us right now?
27:26Niners won 12 games last year. And everyone's like, we don't even discuss that now.
27:31With everyone, yeah. With the NFC West. It's like, is it the Rams or the Seahawks?
27:35And they had like all their guys injured on defense too.
27:38Yeah. Well, I don't like that. That's good. But it does make sense.
27:42I can see that happening. I think that's a phenomenal thing.
27:45Woo! Feel lighter? How you doing there, Chip? I'm feeling good.
27:48I'm dropping weight. I love the way he's talking to you, Deacon.
27:52I love the way he's talking to you, Chip.
27:54You brought the heat. Rewatchable's coming out later today on Talladega Nights.
27:58Yep. Hell yeah. With us three. I'm sticking in LA.
28:01I'm going with Omari and Hampton as this year's Jonathan Taylor, but it's going to last all year.
28:06And by that, I mean, he's going to score three touchdowns in like four or five games.
28:11So he'll be number one player advantage. He's going to score like 20 touchdowns.
28:15He's going to like break the touchdown record. Yeah, I believe very strongly.
28:18We saw this like back in the day with Ezekiel Elliott.
28:22I'm not saying that Hampton is Zeke level talent, but just having an offensive line that will dominate the line of scrimmage.
28:28Again, such a force multiplier for an offense. I think the Chargers, if they can stay healthy, which is of course a
28:34big if, I think we're kind of just assuming they're going to fall apart.
28:38Maybe this year they fucking keep it together. Maybe this is the year where the offensive line stays healthy.
28:43Obviously, Herbert really finally reaches his potential and they just score a shitload of points.
28:48And Hampton is going to be the guy to do that because he's the hammer.
28:52And in the run game, he's a really tough physical downhill runner.
28:55And I think he has a chance to just go off in the same way that we saw during the first half
29:02of last year with Jonathan Taylor is just scoring touchdowns left and right.
29:05I don't know if he's going to be a big part of the passing game.
29:10I think he might be just kind of a Derrick Henry-esque type of runner.
29:14But I think we're not giving the Chargers enough leeway to actually be healthy like a normal team for one time.
29:20Just be normal. Just be normal, Nicky. Just be normal.
29:23And obviously, McDaniel. Neither of you saw Obsession, did you?
29:25No. Okay. That's all right. Heifetz has an opposite take here, I think.
29:29Oh. He's smirking at me like an asshole. I think both are, if you are going to go the way, I think both are right.
29:36Because I actually, I think there's like in a weird way, we haven't overrated, we haven't overreacted enough to Mike McDaniel in LA.
29:43And then I also think there's the classic pushback where it's like, eh, it's not going Don't just get hurt.
29:49Yeah. Well, I will say, I do think once the Chargers get hurt, we'll all be really embarrassed that we fell for the Chargers shit again.
29:56No. The coach can, I think, make up for it with his scheme.
30:00That's what we've been, no, I know. And I agree.
30:03And it's funny because the Chargers. The Dolphins ran a bunch.
30:06The Chargers, even with all the Mike McDaniel stuff, are just very acquirable.
30:09If you want to just have literally Justin Herbert and a Marion Hampton and Kamani Vidal and Keaton Mitchell and Ladd McConkie
30:16and Quentin Johnson, it's not even that hard to do.
30:18And you don't even have to sacrifice that much to get it.
30:22It's very easy to make happen. And on one hand, I agree with DK.
30:26I kind of, honestly, man, I kind of think Justin Herbert might throw 50 touchdowns this year.
30:31If the Chargers play the full season, I kind of think Justin Herbert will literally throw 50 touchdowns.
30:36Oh my God, diamond in an ice storm right now.
30:39I kind of think he'll be MVP and people, like, I think people like Bill and Sal who have questioned Justin Herbert
30:45will be, like, take-wise washed out to sea. And everyone who, like, doesn't believe in Herbert will have to, like, go back
30:51and delete everything because, like, it's embarrassing. But also if they get hurt, we're those people who falling for it.
30:57It's really embarrassing. And it's one or the other.
31:00Do you think the Herbert thing is weirdly, like, generational?
31:02It feels like people over a certain age are out on Herbert and people under a certain age are sticking with him.
31:09The old heads? I think it's just the old heads you know.
31:12I think some of the younger people, like, because my dad loves Herbert and he's old.
31:17Oh, my dad is like, he doesn't want to playoff game.
31:20It's the old, it's the boomer, like, foundation. I think boomers hate Herbert.
31:24It infuriates me. The playoff game thing infuriates me with Herbert just because how many quarterbacks last year get the Chargers and
31:30their eight left tackles to the playoffs? It's like LeBron, Michael Jordan never lost the finals.
31:34Well, I'm sorry, Michael Jordan couldn't drag those shitty other teams to the finals like LeBron did.
31:39You know what I mean? LeBron's punished for making the finals.
31:42So you're on record saying LeBron is better than MJ.
31:45That's what you're saying? Michael Jordan should have dragged, sorry, you couldn't get past the Pistons, MJ.
31:50Sorry, you took all, you needed that as Rodman.
31:53So the answer is yes. You're saying LeBron's better than Michael Jordan.
31:56Take purge? Yeah, fuck it. Whatever. That's good. Basically what I'm saying, this is funny that's coming in a take purge because
32:02I actually do feel this way in my heart, in my real life, in whatever, what's the opposite of when you're in the- Your Audi?
32:09Yeah, yeah, your Audi. I don't believe in curses.
32:12Like a curse is not a real thing. You don't believe in curses?
32:16No, I don't believe in a curse. I don't think it's a real thing.
32:20The fucking Chargers aren't actually cursed. I'm an adult.
32:22So- Please. Grow up, Peter Pan. Do you guys remember when we were- Count Chocula.
32:27We were watching games one week at Bill's house and it was Giants were playing the Ravens.
32:31Oh, you did the little- And Justin Tucker was, who at the time, none of the stuff had come out.
32:37And Justin Tucker at the time had made like 40 consecutive, I think it was more than that, field goals under 60 yards.
32:44And there was a 43 yard field goal which he hadn't missed in four years.
32:48And I went up and I do a little X in front of the field for an important, at the TV.
32:54And all of you looked at me and I didn't know that you didn't believe- And you looked at me like I was insane.
33:01And you were like, there was no chance that that stupid X you drew will have an impact on the kick.
33:07Right. And then he missed the kick. Yeah, that's a coincidence.
33:10Have you ever done the X and it didn't work in your life?
33:14It's perfect. Yeah. Yeah, 100%. Sure. In front of you guys.
33:17As far as you know. You had no impact- You don't believe in curses.
33:21You had no impact on that outcome. But you don't believe in curses at all.
33:25I don't. That's the idea of a curse infecting the minds of the players.
33:29I believe in that. That's psychological. That I think at a baseline is absolutely true.
33:33Yeah, sure. I'm not against that. The substation thing is actually the real example of that where Brokentate and the players now
33:40actually kind of believe it and that affects them at the minimum.
33:43I had a mini follow-up. Now that you said the Herbert 50 touchdowns thing, I had a mini purge follow-up which is
33:49that Quentin Johnson's just going to outscore Ladd McConkie this year.
33:52Yeah. And end up being the number one wide receiver on this team.
33:56Didn't he do that last year? And he's basically- Did he outscore him?
34:00He's counting stats because he missed some games. But I'm like, Quentin Johnson's just going to be the next Devontae Adams where it took a little bit.
34:08Devontae Adams didn't have 1,000 yards until his fifth season in the league.
34:11This is Quentin Johnson's fourth. And he finally has the offense and the situation to do it.
34:16Maybe this is- I saw one preseason play. But when you look at a lot of the stuff he did last year
34:22when he was healthy with Herbert- One in parentheses?
34:25Yeah. One. Meanwhile, I'm like, Cam Ward, don't look at that preseason crap.
34:29I'm like, but Quentin Johnson, look at that. But I do think there's a chance that- Look, maybe it's just like Lads White.
34:35And I'm like, he'll settle into a nice little role-playing situation as a gritty little slot guy.
34:40But I do think, Quentin Johnson, there's a shot that this season ends and he has like 1,400 yards and 10 touchdowns.
34:46And we're like, oh. It is kind of funny that we're like afraid to say that the 6'4 guy with a 4'3 speed is good.
34:54Right. You know what I mean? Like he was a first-round pick.
34:57Right. He was actually picked higher than Ladd McConkie in the draft.
35:00And we're afraid to say he's good. While we're on the Chargers, I have to give one more take purge.
35:06So Carlos is not on the show anymore, but Carlos asked me to do a take purge on his path.
35:12A proxy purge. A proxy purge. A surrogate purge, if you will.
35:15Carlos wants it known that Tua will still win a playoff game before Justin Herbert.
35:19Oh my God. Wait, is he a boomer? How old is Carlos?
35:23You mean on the bench? Starter. He'll watch his team win a playoff game from the bench?
35:28He's after the preseason. He saw it. He's like, I don't care.
35:31Tua's still going to win a playoff game before Herbert.
35:34This is actually a fucking great take that Tua might actually be good this year.
35:38It's amazing. That's like too hot for this. Because Heifetz was out on Tua because he fumbled a snap.
35:44No. Well, he did it twice. The fumbled snap was better than anything he did with the ball.
35:49Fool me twice. Fumbled twice. Shame on me. Right.
35:51I was afraid of Tua because of what he did when he kept the ball in his hands.
35:57It might have been worse. That's fair. I thought that was incredible.
36:00I like that. And Carlos is now the resident boomer of the podcast.
36:04He also fucking hates the moment of Zen, which is one of the greatest takes ever.
36:08Oh, that is the best take maybe in the history of the show.
36:12Carlos hates that moment of Zen. He doesn't not like it.
36:15He hates it. He has sneaky. I mean, Carlos hates Guinness.
36:18We're at the Guinness factory. He's like, you think they got a Moscow mule?
36:22Yeah. This is overrated. Doesn't like baseball. He's just fucking calling it.
36:26It's amazing. That's great. He doesn't like baseball. He's also debunking my Herbert generational boomer theory.
36:30So can I? All right. I have another purge if I can spill one.
36:34This is like, it's not just takes that you're afraid to say.
36:38There's also intrusive thoughts. This is not a take.
36:40This is like something that keeps coming up in my head.
36:43You're worried about it. That I actually like really keep thinking about.
36:47You don't want to believe. And I have not verbalized this.
36:50Like, I just think, I keep thinking about it.
36:52I think Patrick Mahomes is going to tear his ACL again.
36:56Oh, Jesus. Oh, my God. What is that about?
36:58Because you think he's rushing back and he's going to re-injure it?
37:02That is part of it. But the other reason is, so Josh Simmons, the left tackle.
37:06No, this is not just like a thing. This is like a premonition.
37:10So, yes. So, Josh Simmons, the left tackle. He has this move where he basically, it sounds funny to describe it, but
37:16you kind of grab him by the shoulder pads and throw him down to your left.
37:21Like, it looks great in individual drill. It's going to hit him into his legs.
37:25Yes. And you know who has an, and it's the actual name of it.
37:29You know, everyone calls things different names. It's called the snatch technique.
37:32Because you basically, like imagine drill and the lineman throws the defensive end down.
37:36Yeah. You know who thinks that this is a terrible move with Patrick Mahomes coming off a torn ACL and thinks that
37:43that is really putting Patrick Mahomes at risk? Mitchell Schwartz.
37:46Mahomes is former tackle. Who was the right tackle for the Chiefs when they won the first Super Bowl and was like
37:52the best player on their offensive line that year, just keeps posting on Twitter that Josh Simmons should not be using that
37:58technique because it eventually, Patrick Mahomes will be there and he's going to be in the pocket more this season because of the mobility.
38:05And he thinks they should stop. Josh Simmons shouldn't do that anymore.
38:08And Josh Simmons is still doing it. And it's really weird.
38:12This is Heifetz's version of, I hope you have beautiful, articulate sons and they lose their legs.
38:16I hope their legs can take away. No, I'm like, I'm not just like.
38:20Don't you put that evil on me. I'm not just sitting there like, oh, he'll come back and hurt his ACL.
38:26The right tackle of the Chiefs is like, wow, that is a very weird technique to use with Mahomes very vulnerable this year.
38:33This is a grim take. Yeah. You're going to say great?
38:36And I was like, I don't know about that, but grim, yes.
38:39Put it this way. Every Chiefs snap the first month of the season, I'm just watching Josh Simmons.
38:45That's fair. So are you like completely out on Mahomes in fantasy?
38:48No, it's not a take. I'm just, when the game is on, I'm going to be watching Josh Simmons.
38:53And if he's just throwing defensive ends. Do some of your weird voodoo X things.
38:58Is there an opposite of it? If you make a circle, does the player score?
39:02How does that work? We'll have to find out.
39:05Okay. Yeah, we'll do that. It works every time.
39:07Do like, yeah. Anyway, that's a real, do you have any other intrusive thoughts like that?
39:12Where it's like, I don't want that to happen.
39:14It just keeps coming up. Now that you say that, yes, I do.
39:18Okay. This is, I saw what we've pissed Austin off.
39:21We've pissed Nikhil off. Raiders, Bears. Don't you fucking do it, Craig.
39:24I don't want to believe this. And I don't believe it.
39:27But there's something, a kernel inside me, where I'm like, what if Darnold just turns back into a pumpkin?
39:33He did, he was second in the NFL in turnovers.
39:36He was first, my guy. Oh, first, fuck. Fuck.
39:38I'm kind of like, so Darnold had Kyle Shanahan when he was a backup.
39:42Then he had Kevin O'Connell in Minnesota. Then he had Clint Kubiak.
39:46And I'm like, okay. So now he has this guy, Brian Flurry, the Niners tight ends coach.
39:51I'm like, Sam Darnold led the NFL in turnovers last year.
39:54Are we underrating Clint Kubiak leaving in this current situation that Darnold is under?
39:58He's fixed. Where a lot more pressure is going to be on him.
40:01And I'm like, what if it's a fucking mess?
40:04And everyone's like, should we bring back Darnold? And then we're just right back.
40:08And then it's honestly, remember when Geno Smith left Seattle?
40:11What happened to him? I'm like, what if that just happens to Sam Darnold?
40:15This is a masterpiece. I don't like it. It is a worry of mine.
40:19Has it been in the back of your head?
40:21Part of the reason that the Seahawks won the Super Bowl or a big part of the reason the Seahawks won the
40:28Super Bowl, obviously their defense is awesome. Darnold had zero turnovers in the playoffs after leading the NFL in turnovers in the regular season.
40:34He had 11 fumbles last year. And it was always kind of the thing that's, is the expression stuck in my craw?
40:41It stuck in my craw. It really bothered me the whole season.
40:44I'm just like, can you just be normal? Can you just go one game without doing the CJ Stroud thing where you
40:50fucking freak out and give the ball to the other team four times?
40:54That's all I need you to do. Be normal, Nicky!
40:57I can't! That's Darnold. Yeah. Yeah. And I love Darnold.
41:00Like, he got us that Super Bowl. I fucking love him.
41:03I will be loyal to him forever from now on.
41:06But we're in the take purge. It's a worry.
41:08It's a legitimate worry. I don't want to believe that.
41:11I like Darnold. I want him to have success.
41:14I'm not rooting for this at all. But it's something that is like deep in my gut.
41:19Yeah. I'm like, what? Diki, do you have anything like that?
41:22Like an intrusive thought or anything? Just a take you want to get off your chest?
41:26This is more of just a... It's been in the back of my head.
41:30I don't know why we haven't really brought it up or talked about it.
41:34But like this Buka injury is probably a big deal.
41:37And I think Chris Godwin's going to just flat out outscore Mika Buka this year.
41:41I think we're also forgetting about Chris Godwin too much.
41:44He was coming off a fucking major like leg ankle break that is really debilitating when you get back the first year back.
41:51Prior to that injury, he was the wide receiver two in fantasy.
41:54That's correct. Wide receiver two! With the same quarterback, obviously a little bit different offense, different offensive coordinator.
41:59But I still do think he's going to be a high volume receiver for them out of the slot.
42:05He's healthy now. No one's talked about him. I haven't talked about him once, I don't think, this whole preseason.
42:11Maybe one time. DK, we're kind of vibing right.
42:13You know when the two Avatar people, the Na'Vie, they connect their ponytails?
42:17At the bottom of my list here, sitting here, is Chris Godwin's going to be a top 15 wide receiver this year.
42:23I just think he... Baker Mayfield was talking about it on a serious interview the other day that he looks like the old Godwin.
42:30He looks like he's ready to do what he was doing before he got hurt.
42:34And he's now like a year and a half removed from this injury.
42:38Yes. And I think we're probably trying to wish cast the Sabuka injury into it's fine.
42:43He probably has turf toe. It's the take lock.
42:45It's the desperation. Like week one, we loved him before he got hurt.
42:49Now it's like, fuck. He might not be... Ian Rappaport and Schefter are going to post like, yeah, he's missing week one.
42:55He has turf toe. He'll be back. Don't worry.
42:58And then you're like, oh my God, I spent my fourth pick on someone with fucking turf toe.
43:03Or higher. Godwin was the second best wide receiver in fantasy in 2024 for half the season.
43:08He was on pace for 121 catches. Dislocated his ankle.
43:11Came back last year. Played a couple games. Kind of got hurt again.
43:14But he really... Right, he tried to come back too quickly.
43:17He did. Yeah. He finished the season playing five games.
43:20This is, again, coming right off the dislocated ankle.
43:23He was the 24th best wide receiver. He averaged 11 points a game last year.
43:27Now Mike Evans gone. Ibuka toe. McMillan's still dealing with a knee.
43:30Ted Hurst is a rookie. Kind of like Chris Garvin just sitting there.
43:34We... I don't know why we haven't brought this up in regular talk.
43:38He's 30. You know? Like, this almost is not a take purge.
43:41It's almost just like we should have probably been talking about this for the last month.
43:46Yeah. That's a great one, DK. I'm in lockstep.
43:48All right. Navi. What is it called? The Navi.
43:51Yeah. The Navi. The Ringer Fantasy Football Show is sponsored by FanDuel.
43:54Before the season, every team is undefeated. Every fan believes this could be the year.
43:59The year their team wins the division, makes the playoffs, lifts the trophy, and with FanDuel, you can bet on any of it.
44:05From who will win it all and division winners to season win totals and playoff futures, FanDuel has all the ways to
44:12bet on the season before it even begins. A.J.
44:14Brown for Offensive Player of the Year is 40-1 to be the Offensive Player of the Year.
44:19I think A.J. Brown's odds of just leading the NFL or being top five in targets and catches and yards in receiving touchdowns is so high.
44:26I think people are totally underrating the revenge season that A.J.
44:30Brown might have for the Patriots this year. I know he kind of fell off in Philadelphia, but I think there was legitimate grievances.
44:36I love A.J. Brown this year and I think it's totally possible that he just is the best receiver in the NFL
44:43this season by the eye test and statistically. So 40-1, I love that bet.
44:47So get your football futures in today. Download the FanDuel app to get started.
44:51FanDuel, play your game. 21-plus select states or 18-plus DC or Wyoming.
44:54Gambling problem? Call 1-800-GAMBLER, call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org slash chat in Connecticut.
44:58When the sun goes down, the appetizers come out.
45:00Yeah, you heard that right. Late night half-price appetizers are here at Applebee's.
45:04Saucy, sweet, and spicy boneless wings. Crispy, cheesy mozzarella sticks.
45:07Creamy spinach and artichoke dip. Your favorite app's half-price available every single night because why should appetizers have curfews?
45:12Tap the banner to learn more. Dining only for a limited time at participating locations.
45:17Restrictions apply. Copyright 2026 Applebee's Restaurant LLC. I, hmm.
45:19What else is on your mind, son? Fantasy. I have like random things about players, but something that I really have just
45:25truly just been a take I need to purge.
45:28Doing all these drafts now. I really wish I could just take the Seahawks or Texans in like round 10 of my fantasy drafts.
45:35No defenses. But I'm a coward because I'm like a professional and I'm not supposed to.
45:39But every time someone does and I'm taking like Rashad White, I'm like, fuck, I wish I could just have the Texas Seahawks.
45:46This is, this is. You know what's funny? When Chang was talking about Cam Little, he's like, look at the points.
45:52He scored just as many as all these people.
45:55I was kind of like, fuck. Well, that's dumb.
45:57The kicker thing is ridiculous to me. But he's talking to me in points.
46:01I can't really argue that. Taking him over Brandon Aubrey, I'm like, that's stupid.
46:05Like kickers, it's hard to predict. I will say.
46:08Yeah, they're logs. They're logs. I don't know. Who cares?
46:11You can't predict it. It used to be you take a defense in the second to last round and a kicker in the last round.
46:18And now all the nerds got all uppity and they're like, you know, defenses are even less predictable than kickers now.
46:24So you should take a kicker in the second to last round then take a defense.
46:28In the last one, don't even roster a defense or roster a kicker.
46:32Just play matchups. Yeah, yeah. Just do that every week.
46:35And then like I go and I'm like, oh, well now I have to play matchups every week.
46:40Now you're like, I guess I got to start the Bengals this week.
46:44Pain in the ass. And I'm like, a kicker?
46:46No. I don't even, I have a lot of teams, I don't even have a kicker on my roster right now because
46:52I'm like, I'd rather like hold out to see if a running back gets hurt and I'm an extra.
46:58I don't even have kickers on my team. But the defenses, defense is a little more stable year to year now.
47:04And I'm like, there's five I really want. It's like Seahawks, Texans, Ravens I think will be great with Jesse Minter, the
47:10Vikings, the Rams is just a fun one. And when those five are gone, I'm like, man, wish I had one.
47:16I feel like Squidward watching SpongeBob and Patrick play.
47:19And I'm like, that must be cool to not think about that anymore.
47:22Yeah, it's a bit of the bell curve where like sometimes the guy who studies the least is just like, I remember
47:29like 10 years ago, a guy won our league or maybe got like second or something and he took like the Bears
47:35defense in like the fifth round and everyone's like, you're such a fucking idiot.
47:39Is that the Cleo Mack year? Yes. The Bears scored like 23 points a game and I was like, this is the
47:45single best asset in the league right now is the fucking Bears defense.
47:49There was a, yeah, there was a year of the Patriots 2019.
47:52Remember when they started, it was the Seen Ghost Darnold year.
47:56Well, they had a bunch of defensive touchdowns. They kept scoring.
47:59There was, I mean, it was the most incredible beginning to a half season ever.
48:03The Patriots defense was like one of the top 10 scorers in fantasy.
48:07And I'm like, man, they're going to be so good.
48:09How is it going up against Cam Ward, Daniel Jones and Trevor Lawrence?
48:13But every year I'm like, I'm taking that elite defense.
48:16Well, why aren't you? It's like, cause I'm smart.
48:19Yeah. I study this all the time. That's why I don't want the good one.
48:23I'll take Michael Pittman instead. Yeah. There's very much to like a, when we talk about something on a pod and then
48:29we don't do it on like a public, in a public forum, people are like, what the fuck?
48:34You told me to, you told me this, that or the other.
48:38That's why I had to put my money where my mouth is with, with Luther Burden.
48:42Yeah. It's like, I'm fucking doing it. I appreciate that.
48:45For better or for worse, we took our own advice.
48:48So yeah, I just kind of like, hmm. I like that one.
48:51I kind of had the same thoughts in the, and I was like, wait, do we need to revisit why we're not doing this?
48:58No, we probably don't. Like with the defenses early and everything.
49:01Anyways, I'm going back to the Buccaneers. The Buccaneers are a team I'm wanting to bet on this year and it is related to their offensive line.
49:09You know, potentially being top five, top three, maybe even the best offensive line in the NFL if everything falls right.
49:15I think Bucky Irving is one of the best values in drafts right now.
49:19Wow. We haven't talked about him at all. No, we haven't.
49:22That's good. Like at all. Basically, I think, and the assumption is, and a lot of times these assumptions will end up
49:29right, but a lot of times too, they're just completely wrong based on what we're, what everybody kind of agrees on in the preseason.
49:35The assumption right now is that Bucky Irving is small and slow.
49:39That was what the assumption was when he's coming into the NFL too.
49:43And he had an incredible rookie year. You know, he was one of the best values in drafts that year.
49:48He was the starter for that team. He split reps with Rashad White and he still had a great season.
49:54I think it was like RB 17 or something.
49:56You could have gotten him in the last round of your drafts.
50:00This year, and by the way, last year, he averaged 20 touches a game.
50:04He was the fourth in, in touches a game.
50:06He was fourth, behind like Christian McCaffrey, B. John Robinson, and maybe it was like Jonathan Taylor.
50:11You're not worried about Kenny Gainwell? Well, I think Kenny Gainwell is just the new Rashad White.
50:16I think they will split time. I think there's very few running backs that are just going to get like all the carries.
50:23But I still think they trust him and I think he's a very good running back.
50:27He's still, I love this. He's healthy now. Like last year, he had a shoulder injury and an ankle injury, or no,
50:34sorry, a Lisfranc injury, which is terrible. It's like incredibly painful every time he's like trying to cut or run.
50:39And yeah, and so I don't know. To me, I'm just like, it feels like we've gone way too far on the
50:46reaction to Bucky Irving's season last year when he was hurt, the offensive line was hurt, and Baker Mayfield was hurt.
50:52And they also didn't really give him any red zone touches, but his rookie year, they did.
50:56So I don't know. I just think we're overreacting to this Bucky thing and he has a chance to be just like a really productive, high-touch guy.
51:04This is an excellent take and I actually have another Buccaneers take.
51:08It's not fantasy related, but I think Ruben Bain, the defensive end out of Miami that Buccaneers got with the 15th pick, Fuck yeah, do it.
51:15is going to not only win Defensive Rookie of the Year, he is literally going to be a Hall of Famer and
51:21him falling to 15th in the draft will have been infamy.
51:24A Hall of Fame? I thought you were going to say he'll win Defensive Player of the Year.
51:29I, maybe not this year, but I do actually think Ruben Bain's like a Hall of Fame caliber defensive player.
51:35But his arms are short. Halftime of week one, we are going to be like, oh my God, how did we let,
51:41how did Ruben Bain fall in the draft and we're going to talk about him on the draft show every year as
51:48the, when guys with weird measurables are great in college, stop thinking about it.
51:52Aaron Donald? You know how like, yeah, you know how like in fantasy drafts there's always like a couple of players who fall like Kyron Williams or something?
52:00For some fake reason. Exactly. And then the second somebody drafts him, everybody goes, fuck.
52:04Good pick. The second Ruben Bain got drafted, I was like, ah, great pick.
52:08Him walking down the tunnel. He set the record for a minute.
52:11He walked down the tunnel and he just, that whole like mirror selfie stage with a hat, he just grabbed the hat and kept walking.
52:19I'm like, Hall of Famer. And then every single thing, the preseason of how professional, also doesn't wear gloves.
52:24Dude, he's just going. This is a great one.
52:27Also, it's so funny because the Buccaneers reaction when he was there at 15 for them was so classic.
52:32They were like, fuck, what? Like we had, we had no, under no scenario did we think that this was going to happen.
52:39They, they like basically were like, there's no world in which Bain is available for us.
52:43They had been connected to his teammate, Messador, the entire pre-draft process and they were like, fuck, we get like the guy
52:49who's however many years younger and just better and man, yeah, so I really like that take.
52:54The Buccaneers, maybe we're just all in on the Buccaneers this year.
52:58I know, Bucs. Yeah. That's fun. I like when we kind of come together late in the season for a team.
53:04Any others? I have one that, like, this is more of an aggravation and just something I feel like, you know, we're overextending a little bit.
53:11I kind of think we're doling out offensive coordinator jobs for 30-year-olds a little too much.
53:16Everybody's trying to get the next big day. I think the young guru OC bubble is going to pop.
53:21We got Declan Doyle, David Blau, Davis Webb, Sean Mannion.
53:24I'm like, are these coaches or is this the new cast of X-Men?
53:28I can't tell. Let's go through these. Declan Doyle, 30 years old.
53:31Younger than you guys. He was an OC for one year in Chicago, wasn't calling plays behind Ben Johnson.
53:36There's a real shot Declan Doyle doesn't remember 9-11.
53:39That's how young he was. He was five when 9-11 happened.
53:42You have David Blau for the Commanders. 31 years old.
53:45He was the assistant quarterbacks coach for two years in Washington.
53:48That's it. Not even the quarterbacks coach. Assistant quarterback coach for two years.
53:52That's his entire coaching experience is that you have Davis Webb, the Broncos, offensive pass game coordinator and quarterbacks coach for one year and is now calling plays.
54:00With Sean breathing down his neck. Sean Mannion for the Eagles is 34 years old.
54:04His coaching history, his entire coaching history, 2024, he was the offensive assistant for the Packers and he was the quarterback's coach last year.
54:11That's it. Now he's the offensive play caller for Jalen Hurts, Saquon Barkley.
54:15This is excellent. Yeah. Also, you think about just all these guys kind of sitting in the office like, so what happened to the last guy?
54:22Like Sean Mannion's in Philly. Like, oh, what happened to the last guy?
54:26Oh, yeah, people egged his house. He was literally run out of town.
54:30Literally run out of town. This is fantastic and I think it speaks to something.
54:34There's just a shortage. It's, like, this is a role and there's not that many people, there are more jobs at this
54:40point than people who can do it because I think, are there any offensive coordinators that have been in offensive coordinator at this point for three consecutive seasons?
54:48I think, I don't think there's any left. You know, it gets a little funny and he reads really the coordinator of Kansas City.
54:55OC versus play caller, right. But the title of OC, I don't think anyone's been there more than three years in any
55:01role and they're running out of people who can do it because there's no pipeline.
55:05They're finding kids playing Madden on Twitch giving them jobs.
55:08It is true. That might be kind of an edge.
55:11We talked about this at the end of last season as a tattoo.
55:15Gen Z coordinators. I don't know. We're like, doesn't it make more sense to kind of, and we're shitting on them now
55:21to focus on the guys that we know are good are Ben Johnson and the Bears with the number one pick Caleb
55:27Williams, Liam Cohn and the Jags with the number one pick Trevor Lawrence and we were like Mike McDaniel and the Chargers and Herbert.
55:34Those guys are good. Men in their 40s. Yeah.
55:37Everyone else who's like isn't marinating in the same system.
55:40I mean, Jaden Daniels in Washington is really concerning.
55:42David Blau? No. What's he doing? I don't know.
55:45No one knows. Because the truth is, you know who's really nervous for them?
55:49Those guys. 100%. They're really worried. Like it's incredibly nerve-wracking to just go out there and play golf.
55:54There's just like a million things to do. I mean, you've kind of talked about this before in the past.
56:00Like the checklist of things that a quarterback has to do before the snap.
56:04Like think about how quickly the OC has to get the call in.
56:07He's looking at his card. You have five seconds.
56:10Panicking. Like, oh God. And like, by the way, you see this a lot on the sideline.
56:15They're still trying to figure out like was that a first down?
56:18Where'd they mark that down? Yeah. What do I, do I start over a series now?
56:23Like are we getting a first down? Declan Doyle's like hitting puberty in the middle of the game.
56:28It's a lot. His balls drop in the third quarter.
56:31Dude, Davis Webb and the Broncos. That's basically just Reese Bobby and he's just like screaming at Davis Webb.
56:36Like, come on son, Columbia. Cops are on their way son.
56:39Yeah, that's true. You got hair on your peaches or what?
56:42Davis Webb's going to be coaching with a live cougar next to him.
56:46That is, this is really good. I just, I'm like, we're getting, we're really getting crazy.
56:51We're flirting with just hiring dudes in their 20s.
56:53Like we're getting as close. I think Declan Doyle might've been 29 when they hired him.
56:58This is really good. We're just really, really getting close.
57:01Speaking of which, I have a few, I kind of just want to rattle some off.
57:05Okay. And I don't even know if these are going to rattle you guys or not.
57:10I only have a couple more that are minis.
57:12I want to throw lingering. Just a few at you.
57:15One, I just don't think Miami's going to win a game.
57:18Ooh. 0-17. I don't think they're going to win.
57:21Miami is clearly the worst team behind even Arizona or Cleveland.
57:24I tried talking myself into like, what if they're better than you think?
57:28And then you, I'm like, you look at that receiver.
57:31Malik Willis is being set up to fill. I actually like him.
57:34He's a very nice guy. I want him to succeed.
57:37Sure. I am. The Dolphins receiver room really is the worst I've ever seen.
57:41It's worse than like that Jets one I've ever made fun of in like 2019.
57:45It's the worst receiver group I've ever seen. The offensive line, I actually think it's quite a bit of potential, but man, they are raw.
57:52Like Caden Proctor at guard, like they're big, but I think they all could be good, but this is a raw team.
57:59H. Chan was great under Mike McDaniel. And then I'm like, their linebacker, like the green play caller is going to be
58:05Jacob Rodriguez, who I like in college, but that's a rookie green dot play calling linebacker.
58:09Like it is like a little bit like Ted Lasso season one.
58:13Like they're trying to like embarrass themselves. It, I, they want Arch Manning man and I actually want them to be good, but I don't know.
58:20They, I'm just looking at their roster on our lads.
58:23It's unbelievable. They have zero depth. Like they have some good players on defense, but if anybody gets hurt, it's going to
58:29fucking collapse like a house of cards. Cause like, I'm just looking at their, like just the people who are the second team players.
58:36It's a bunch of undrafted players and free agents.
58:39And they're just, they're just like filling out. No one's talking about it enough.
58:43This is like, when's the last time you feel like a team has kind of like soft tanks openly?
58:48It's the dolphins. So in the Browns. So here's, first of all, I take the tanking thing very seriously.
58:54It's not like the NBA where the coaching staff's a little in on it.
58:58And they're like, that's the deal because you can't die playing basketball.
59:01But football is so physical that you can't, a coach can never lead a locker room of men where they think you're trying to lose.
59:08The whole thing, everything you're doing for risking your life, your body, players need to try to win.
59:13So in football, the front offices set the coach up to fail and the coach kind of knows the deal.
59:19So like the implications and a lot of these losses from Ryan Flores, allegations, like Hugh Jackson, the 0 and 17 Browns.
59:25Why was he not fired after not winning a game?
59:28It was kind of maybe understood the assignment. He maybe understood the assignment.
59:32Brian Flores in these like legal things is saying Stephen Ross like maybe allegedly offered him money to lose per loss.
59:38So like the Dolphins have already... Didn't they lose a first round pick for that?
59:42Yes. Like it was a real big deal. It's a real thing.
59:46And so like this team has already tried this recently.
59:48They're trying to lose. Yeah. And so I... And they want a quarterback.
59:52So I think really Dolphins might not win again.
59:55I do think the leadership of this team is not being set up to fail.
59:59They just know that they're... This is a rebuild.
60:02But... You know. Can I zoom out a little bit?
60:04Please. I want to... I want to dip my toe into college football as we head into the season and we prepare for the 2027 draft class.
60:12I think Arch Manning is just Marvin Harrison Jr.
60:15for quarterbacks. And we're just doing it all over again.
60:18Because of the name? We're looking at the name on the back.
60:21This is famous family blindness. And we're just doing it again.
60:24And every... The March for Arch... Some... Whoever... What poor team is gonna...
60:28Arch Madness. They're calling it. Bill is sucking. Arch Madness is great.
60:31The Dolphins are gonna take Arch Manning. He's gonna suck.
60:34That's what I think. I'm not prepared to have a take on this yet.
60:38But I like this take. It's a fun take.
60:41This guy's not that good but his name's Manning.
60:43It's just Marvin Harrison Jr. Again. There was Arch Manning.
60:46Maybe he'll be fine like Marvin Harrison Jr. is fine.
60:49Mm-hmm. But he's not generational. And we're just doing it again.
60:52It's funny because also the problem is he's generational.
60:55Literally. Like he's literally generational. Maybe he'll be calling plays for the Dolphins when he's 30.
60:59That's not bad. Yeah. That's pretty good. Do you guys have any...
61:03I have... We were gonna do one non-football one.
61:05Do we have any more football? Yes. Can I...
61:08Well, can I throw out a couple intrusive thoughts I've had recently.
61:11One, I think J.J. McCarthy's so bad in the NFL that I actually think the Michigan cheating scandal is worse than I thought.
61:18Okay. Yeah. He had the answers to the test.
61:20I keep... Like I need to see him improve before I might have to revisit my thoughts on that.
61:26My expectations were low but holy fuck. Yes. We should make that a category.
61:30Oh, we have I think. Maybe we have. Yeah.
61:32A random one I have. So this is like a real intrusive thought and if you say this outside the take purge
61:39I will deny that I ever said this. I will never admit it.
61:42Well, we won't know. Naturally. Yeah, as a Giants fan I would never stoop to saying something like this.
61:48I kind of want to watch Jerry Jones win a Super Bowl.
61:51Oh. Wow. What? On here I have like can we all be real?
61:55Jerry won the Micah Parsons trade. Jerry won the Micah trade.
61:58That was a year ago this episode. It was the Micah trade a year ago.
62:02He cares so much about That's right. This was on the take for last year.
62:07It was the take for a year ago. Holy shit.
62:09Jerry, they kind of are winning what happened. Cowboys are kind of cooking right now.
62:14They got Kenny Clark Quitting Williams Malachi Lawrence. They kind of rebuilt their defense.
62:18They got a fourth that they traded back from a pick that they got from Micah Parsons that turned into Rashawn Gary.
62:24If they have it They were so embarrassed. If they have a top If they have a top 10 defense by points
62:30per game I think you could call it. That's good.
62:33I think Jerry knew Micah Parsons was going to tear his ACL.
62:37He doesn't know where the sun's going to be but he knew the ACL was thin.
62:41It's a rickety ACL. He knew. It's an inside job.
62:44He knew. He knew. And he let it happen.
62:47I love that. Here's the thing. I don't want the Cowboys to win the Super Bowl.
62:51This is great. I don't want Dak to win the Super Bowl.
62:54You want Jerry Jones? God damn, I want Roger Goodell to hand Jerry Jones a trophy.
62:59On that podium? I would pay a disgusting amount of money to hear what Jerry Jones says into a microphone to 120 million people holding a Lombardi trophy.
63:07I want it to happen before he dies. I'm kind of with Heifetz on this one.
63:12I had never thought about that until right now and I'm like, you know what?
63:16I agree. Cosign. He's going to just go and we're never going to see that again?
63:20Also, we get to see Sal on Bill's pod.
63:23Yeah. I don't want the Cowboys fans. Just Jerry.
63:26Just Jerry. Just Jerry. I want the Cowboys fans.
63:28Any other football ones you guys have? No, I'm cooked.
63:31I feel like that's a good natural spot to end with the football takes in particular.
63:36Okay, DK, do you have a non-football take you want to get off your chest here?
63:40I apologize in advance if I've already told this to you guys and or if I've already said this on the podcasts
63:46but bacon ruins everything except for bacon. You're such a piece of shit.
63:50Piece of shit. You sick fuck. Respectfully, with all due respect, who the fuck do you think you are?
63:56Walk in here and say that to me. First of all, one question.
63:59How dare you? So let's go through this because I believe a few days ago, Daniel, you told me that you bought a BLT.
64:06No, it was a club. Right. You bought a club sandwich and took the bacon off.
64:11Yeah, yeah. Why did you not just order a turkey sandwich?
64:14Because they didn't have one on the menu. Okay.
64:16Really? Yeah, it was like a limited minute. It was room service.
64:20So you're eating a club sandwich and you're like if the bacon were gone this would be so much better.
64:25No, when the bacon is gone it is better.
64:28What about a BLT? No, I just think bacon I don't really eat BLTs.
64:32What about just the crisp? I just think bacon is bacon is good on its own.
64:37I like the taste of bacon. Would you have it with eggs and hash browns or something like that?
64:42The smell of bacon is great. Yeah, if you're just eating it like a piece of bacon.
64:47Okay. I like the taste of bacon. I'm not saying bacon tastes bad.
64:51Mm-hmm. I like it on its own and when it's cooked right it's like fucking delicious and it smells great but when
64:57it's in other food it fucking it's just like you're eating bacon flavored something other and I don't like that.
65:03It's a really good flavor. It's like chocolate in a dessert.
65:06It overpowers everything you're saying. No. I'm saying I don't like the flavor of bacon in other stuff.
65:11It's like I don't like mint in ice cream but I chew mint gum.
65:15It's just not a good combo to me. Bacon is like mint is somehow more controversial.
65:19I just don't like I don't like to your chocolate thing I don't like fruit in chocolate.
65:24I just want the chocolate. I don't like strawberries in chocolate.
65:27Would you throw bacon on a burger? No. No.
65:30I like the taste of a burger. Greg is furious.
65:33A BLT. If I handed you a BLT for lunch and it was that or like Would you rather eat the BLT
65:39or would you rather eat the LT? Yeah. Just lettuce and tomatoes.
65:43I mean I don't think I would do that.
65:45I think BLT is the best sandwich. Wow. I think it's this Just rattling that off.
65:50I just think it's the simplest best flavors. I feel like It's like the purest balance of three flavors.
65:55I think it's like the most perfect example of a sandwich from a flavor profile.
65:59You know it's funny you say that because it's really just like the American version of like a caprese really I guess.
66:06With me. I guess there's like prosciutto in that.
66:08Yeah. Isn't caprese just mozzarella tomato? Yeah I got that wrong.
66:11I was just saying it. I think it's just I add me too.
66:15I feel like not having Kai on this podcast is bad for my overall.
66:19Because now you're becoming Now I'm like the fucking little kid like a pallet guy.
66:23No. Little kid Step right up the little kid pallet guy.
66:26Check out his this fucking guy's order. I don't want to go after Craig in these non-football takes unless you don't love yours.
66:33No go ahead. I don't have anything I don't well I don't know I don't know how you guys will feel about any of my takes.
66:40I never do. I love plastic bags. What? I love plastic bags.
66:44What does that even mean? And I feel What kind of bags?
66:47You mean getting shamed at the grocery store to get paper bags?
66:51Yeah like in the grocery store or CVS or something you go and you have a plastic bag.
66:56Yeah. And now we're trying to get rid of plastic bags and I want my plastic bags back and I hate that
67:02people with the cotton tote bags are like shaming me and cotton totes are now like this status symbol and I'm like
67:08a bad person if I forgot my cotton tote and I dare need to have a plastic bag.
67:14I hate that and I need plastic bags. I like having them around and I don't want to be judged for having a plastic bag.
67:21Heifus just litters constantly. I do think there's something to this take where the plastic bag shame is like big corporations somehow like turning it around on us.
67:29Like it's our fault. It spins. Oh it's like oh the nuclear waste that you're pouring into the river that we drink out of.
67:36It's like don't look at the animals covered in oil that guy's using a straw.
67:40How dare him use a fucking plastic bag. It's like paper straws don't work all this stuff and I'm not saying I
67:46don't care about plastic or the environment I do.
67:49However the cotton tote thing. First of all do you know how many times first of all woven cotton uses a lot of water.
67:55Do you know how many times you have to use We don't have to we don't have to bring down the people that are using totes.
68:03I'm gonna it's the New York Times has this article do you know how many times you have to use a woven
68:09cotton tote to offset the water that it created because the answer is 400,000 times and I have 20 of them.
68:15Jesus. What's the stats on the plastic? How many fucking animals are you killing with that thing?
68:20It's fine it's not It's fine Oh my god Don't look at it I will say I use paper towels at such
68:26a reckless rate Same I love using paper towels They're compostable or compostable Compostable Is that right?
68:31I don't even know I love using just like mounds of paper towels for shit I know it's like maybe you're supposed
68:37to use a rag or something that you can wash I just Dude I have a cat I gotta clean my litter
68:44You want me to use a giant fucking hefty garbage bag for that No I want a little CVS Target bag It's
68:50a plastic bag You know the famous tweet that it's like please people my family's starving help me fix my budget and
68:56it's like you know food, rent whatever medical bills and then $1300 for candles That's how I feel about like making a
69:03big deal about plastic bags I'm like there's so many bigger fucking problems right now that we need to concentrate on Rick
69:09and Morty line where Morty takes an aluminum can out of a garbage and puts it in recycling and he feels good
69:15about himself and Rick is like congrats Morty aluminum's 8% of the earth good luck with that I use totes I'll say
69:21it I don't judge him for not using totes but I use totes so get off my fucking back There's nothing wrong
69:28with using a tote it's just it's not better than the bags it's just different that's some Bellingham hippie shit it's just
69:34different people in LA use them all the time I should I own totes and I never take them to the grocery
69:40I always forget you forget the bag leave them in your car I walk to the grocery store it doesn't even rain
69:46in this city god forbid I have paper bags at Whole Foods god forbid it rains on the east coast and now
69:53I'm like fuck this is everything this is like finding one stat it's like people who drink 12 beers a day live
69:59exactly as long and I'm like that's all you had to say I'm drinking 12 beers a day there's one alcohol who
70:05lived to 100 and everyone's like let's do that say less I'm doing it all the other ones died at 50 but
70:12that guy lived I think it's just hyper focused on this water stat that like means nothing alright Craig um I think
70:18magicians should be the most famous people in the world god damn it we don't give them enough credit they're the new
70:24saints we don't give them like in the way that we use the Revere pilots you know they like wear suits down
70:30in the terminal you're like oh my god what magicians man you ever seen a magician in person it's fucking crazy they're
70:37basically deities I don't know how they do any of their shit they should be way more famous David Blaine should be
70:43the most famous person in the fucking world he's doing the craziest shit you've ever seen it's the closest to literal Jesus
70:49miracles why do they have such a terrible people don't I get Job in Arrested Development I demand to be taken seriously
70:56I went to the Magic Castle in LA can you explain the Magic Castle I've never been there oh my god dude
71:02the Magic Castle is just basically it's like the best magicians in Los Angeles the Arrested Development the society is based on
71:08the Magic Castle it's a real place where it's like they have a restaurant and then like crazy magician stuff and I
71:14honestly it was the most fun I've ever had in this fucking city was walking around the Magic Castle we went on
71:21our senior trip back in high school and one of the stops on the senior trip it was like you know how
71:27I don't know if you guys do that in California or not but like senior trip senior trip where everybody goes on
71:33an overnight trip and like a bus takes you to like five different places and everybody hangs out do you do that?
71:39you mean like sorry I don't know it's like a senior party like grad night type thing?
71:44yeah kind of prom or no no no it was like we would do like an all night thing that the high
71:51school would sponsor on graduation night yes that's what it is so anyways we did this on our graduation I don't think
71:57it was the same day but whatever and one of the stops was this magician and people were fucking going bananas like
72:03getting up out of their seat running up and down like freaking out it was the craziest shit I've ever seen in
72:09my life they should be fucking mega celebrities this is like how I feel about Cirque du Soleil I'm like these people
72:16these people should be revered there's nobody talking about this my buddy for his birthday hired a magician for like 15 of
72:22us and it was incredible he blew our minds he stood right in front of us he was five feet in front
72:28of me I watched him like fill a coke can with soda after he poured it out I don't know how he
72:34did that yeah sometimes like sleight of hand is not it's not an acceptable answer I'm like no I was watching his
72:41hands yeah so what do we think about Pablo Torre who obviously has been in the news because Kawhi Leonard and the
72:47Clippers just got the big punishment you're talking about O's so he wins the Pulitzer and then he comes out and the
72:53first thing he's like O's the Mandalist not actually reading people's minds and I was like alright how is this the Pulitzer
73:00I agree it's like I didn't want to know that yeah obviously I know he has a trick up his sleeve that's
73:06the point I agree I kind of wanted to know though with that one I always want to know well I found
73:12out and you know what the answer sucked he did he uses like a fake Google oh don't tell him oh my
73:18gosh because I I just saw the thing it's not a magician it's more like fraud or something yeah when the Niners
73:25guy knows that everyone gets angry yeah anyway wow that's really good good take out of nowhere that's fantastic sure you pulled
73:31that out out of your ass and I liked it remember when David David Blaine has like the best special ever he
73:37made a fucking space shuttle disappear dude the Harrison Ford one where he's like get out of my house get the fuck
73:44out of my house um yeah dude do you remember that space shuttle thing mmm I don't know I think it was
73:50David Blaine what was the one I oh oh it was Franz Harari wow not David Blaine where am I that's it
73:56what were we talking about what were those things how long has it been what were we talking about were we just
74:02cryogenically frozen clowns I don't know wow anyway can't wait to draft Brock Bowers this year yeah Steelers are gonna suck Bowers
74:09is the shit man I'm excited about Arch this year he looks good I'm excited what totally no idea what you're talking
74:15about hate magicians it's always good so I want everyone to email us at Ringer Fantasy Football I don't know what happened
74:21in there I feel way lighter though I feel like I just took a 10 pound shit I want everyone to email
74:27us at Ringer Fantasy Football gmail.com email us your take purges and also you can join our discord where there is a
74:34channel for take purges that is gonna be open for a couple more days and yeah email email the take purge post
74:40them in discord and we'll post the best ones there's a lot already I don't even know when we're gonna run this
74:46cause there's like more good ones than I anticipated to be honest but I wanna see everyone's take purges yeah I love
74:53it I'm excited for that should I read you one that someone said no okay no cause we're not in it no
74:59that's a good point yeah we'll dedicate a whole segment to it okay the next episode is oh no it's a power
75:05hour so do you want to tell people our in season episode cause now believe it or not we're in season this
75:11is the week the season begins so now now that the regular season is here we will be posting four episodes a
75:18week Sunday night reacting to the games Monday afternoon we're doing waiver wire ads Wednesday we have a power hour where we
75:24power rank something different every single week and then on Friday we do our previews and that's all season so yeah four
75:30episodes a week stick with us can't believe the season's here I know it's kinda weird a week from now we'll be
75:37watching the Seahawks Seahawks play the Patriots no Niners Rams in Australia three days from now oh three days from when people
75:43are listening sure or two days okay thank you DK thank you Craig thank you to Cam thank you to Austin thank
75:49you to Nikhil thank you to Carlos for take Purge I can't remember Carlos asked me to sit I can't remember what
75:55it was so wise thank you to Chris Sims as always thank you to our take God Chris Sims thank you to
76:02everyone in the Ring of Fantasy Football League we're also gonna be giving updates on that all season and thank you everyone
76:08for listening to us for your drafts good luck in all your drafts we hope you did great and you know enjoy
76:14those running back running back starts I'm sure that'll go great but most of all thank you Lord Lord do you wanna
76:20do it today with the 80s hits no do you have one we're doing we're doing the 80s were the best month
76:27the most 80s songs ever month what do you have I got for you right now and technically this is from 1990
76:33but it counts oh okay spiritually 80s what a terrible start you shouldn't have said that she's my cherry pie from Warrant
76:39oh yeah she's my cherry pie that was like the easiest song on Guitar Hero I would've put my life that that
76:46was an 80s song it counts it counts they wrote it in the 80s you can tell Berlin Wall Berlin Wall was
76:52still up she's my cherry pie that should be the rule for this the 80s are until the Berlin Wall came down
76:58that song is included I think yeah there's a little bit of leeway there but it's spiritually spiritually really 80s it takes
77:04a couple years for the decade to end culturally and then it begins like in 91 or 92 is really when the
77:1180s and the 90s start the 20th century ended Berlin Wall 90s are this weird in between and then 9-11 is like
77:17the 21st century everything in the 90s was like a little silo cherry pie great one hold on actually I don't know
77:23anything about warrant yeah I was gonna say I just I'm so do you ever just google I googled cherry pie and
77:29I'm like what the fuck did I think would come up I don't know much about warrant god damn it now I
77:36typed in cherry pie google this is what's great about the 80s glam metal formed in 84 in Hollywood they were formed
77:42they were formed not far from here who is this guy who is this guy they had a success from 89 to
77:4896 why do all these people look like Val Kilmer their debut album was dirty rotten filthy stinking rich because Val Kilmer
77:55was awesome in the 80s you know what was their debut DK used to say dirty rotten filthy stinking rich was the
78:01name of their first album yeah man we're just not doing it like that knew what to do they also had an
78:07album called doggy dog okay sick are they American did you say that they were formed in Hollywood yeah American glam metal
78:13nice glam metal yeah glam metal because they're really glamorous but they're metal I love it 80s month is crazy it's gonna
78:20be an amazing playlist she's my chick there's so many bands dude like like 38 special cheap trick the names I think
78:26were the best we're gonna get into all that there's a lot of place names Boston Europe for sure America America I
78:32don't know Boston yeah Boston's got some bangers Boston what's the I always confuse Boston songs and Europe songs but they're not
78:39Boston's like foreplay long time more than a feeling more than a feeling great song but Boston I believe is like a
78:45little bit more 70s yes I think they started a little earlier Boston's older than Europe they sound 70s more 70s to
78:51me I would guess they're late 70s early 80s the fucking Bee Gees are also kind of late 70s the band Boston
78:57was formed in Boston in 75 so yeah I could've that one I bet I could've guessed that one yeah no 80s
79:04is like 80s get fucking weird 80s songs are like bordering on like is this bad or it's like really early like
79:10futuristic sounds like erasure you know like Rush sure like Rush oh Rush dude my Jackie's dad is like into a lot
79:16of songs like that he showed me Rush we played that album 2112 Rush is great on this hour drive I was
79:22like this is the greatest thing I've ever heard you go on a journey also journey journey dude that Rush album the
79:29concept is they're like they just find a time traveling guitar and these like it's like interstellar elders the drugs back then
79:35were so good play the guitar and you'll find your way yeah I love that shit the 80s dude I had friends
79:41tears for fears I still have friends that are in like I don't know glam metal or just 80s like hair rock
79:48bands like cover bands they're in them right now yeah it's like this has really like established itself in the heart of
79:54my specific generation that's cool yeah I'm excited for 80s month and I'm excited for the NFL season with you boys yeah
80:00email us your 80s 80s suggestions oh that's great you guys are leaving this is your last show in LA it's a
80:06bummer yes so we're doing this backwards this is we're recording the players nobody's talking about after this yes but as the
80:13people hear it as the people hear it this is the last one in person in the start of the season a
80:19little peek behind the curtain yeah well we could do LA breakdowns but I was gonna do that the next one oh
80:25we could do that I wanted to do LA breakdowns there great alright goodbye everyone must be 21 plus and present in
80:32select states for Kansas in affiliation with Kansas Star Casino or 18 plus and present in DC Kentucky or Wyoming gambling problem
80:38call 1-800-GAMBLER or 1-800-MY-RESET call 1-888-789-7777 or visit ccpg.org slash chat in Connecticut or visit mdgamblinghelp.org in Maryland hope is here visit
80:44gamblinghelpline ma.org or call 800-327-5050 for 24-7 support in Massachusetts or call 1-877-8 hope NY or text hope NY in New York
80:50for Louisiana call 1-877-770-7867 this episode is brought to you by Whole Foods who has your back to school eats sorted wow
80:57we're going back to school already they've got your fast and easy breakfast covered with frozen waffles and pancakes lunch boxes are
81:03looking tasty with organic seedless grapes and baby carrots and essentials like cheese sticks then for dinner you can build your own
81:09meal choose from a variety of entrees like chicken scalopini and two sides and it's all good too Whole Foods has banned
81:15more than 300 food ingredients store wide shop back to school must haves at Whole Foods market in store or online you
81:22matched on hinge you're vibing then her energy completely changes what do you do I'm Raven Smith and I wrote and read
81:28a real love story about this exact sitch listen to the free audiobook now