Damien Woody

0:09Welcome to the sports media podcast. I'm your host Richard Deitsch. My producer is James Jackson. One guest on this episode, somebody I have a lot of respect for. I've certainly written that in print and online and I'm really delighted he's joining me. Damien Woody played 12 seasons as an offensive lineman in the NFL, won two Super Bowl titles with the New England Patriots. If you are a sports fan in the United States, you certainly saw him on ESPN. He was with that company from 2011 to 2026, working as an NFL analyst on shows like NFL Live, Get Up, SportsCenter. He's not a hot take artist, just someone who informed people of what was going in the NFL.

0:52And that's something I always appreciated. He has since parting with ESPN, and we will get into that, joined the Wingo Network, where he is a part of the digital and podcast company. The Wingo is part of Trey Wingo. And Trey Wingo, Merrill Hodge, Mark Schlereth, and Damian Woody are on a podcast that I – or sort of a podcast slash YouTube that I highly recommend. You can find that by basically just searching their names or going to the Wingo Network. And I think – and he'll tell us this – I believe they'll be doing that at least weekly, if not more than once a week. And with that, I'm joined by Damian Woody.

1:31Damian, welcome. Thank you. Thank you, Richard. How are you doing? I'm doing well. All right. So let's just start here. What specifically are you doing with the Wingo Network? And for those people who have not heard of the Wingo Network, which is pretty new, what is it? Yeah, it's a network by Trey Wingo, obviously. He has a variety of different shows on his network. But the one that I'm specifically on with Trey and Mark Slareth and Merrill Hodge is called the OG Football Show. And obviously, it's kind of a deal where all of us used to be on NFL Live. And obviously, Richie, you know who I am.

2:14You know, we're a bunch of guys. We never, you know, we're not into the hot take type of stuff. We just want to really inform our fans, educate the fans. And so we got an OG football show with, you know, older guys just kind of, you know, shooting it, talking ball and just trying to inform the fans and enlighten the fans. How did this come about? I mean, obviously, you've probably been friends with Trey for a long time. I imagine you know the other two guys, if not from the NFL, from broadcasting. So what was the process in terms of getting you part of this network? Yeah, it was, you know, once the word got out that I was, you know, not being extended by ESPN, Trey reached out to me immediately and was like, hey, brother, we got this show that I'm thinking about doing with March Slarek and Merrill Hodge.

3:06And, you know, definitely want you to be a part of it. You know, we've always had this great friendship going on years and just trying to do something different. You know, so the pitch wasn't, it was an easy sell for me because, again, you know, we're not trying to do a lot of things like my former employer. We're just trying to, you know, educate the fans and bring some smart analysis because we feel like there's a lane for all of that. And so it was easy to sell for me. So the OG football show, as you mentioned, new digital NFL show with the four gentlemen that we just mentioned, will this be a weekly thing multiple times a week?

3:45And then a lot of times with these digital shows, as you know, if something really big happens, you know, you can essentially just decide, hey, let's go. Let's just do something really quick and get that out there because the entire country is talking about this NFL issue. Yes. Right now, it's going to be a weekly thing. This is something we're going to do every Monday. But, you know, as as time goes on, we're going to expand, obviously, you know, maybe do it twice a week. And obviously, Richard, if there's some type of big breaking news, we can all easily jump online and really discuss this whole thing.

4:17And right now it's in this infancy stage, but we feel really bullish about it. The early numbers are really, really good. And so we're going to build this thing out and have a good time doing it. OK, one thing. So this sort of is a good segue into a couple of things I want to get into with you. Susie Colbert was a guest on my podcast in the last episode. And one of the things she told me, and again, you guys, you probably have worked with her, or if not, you can certainly, you have worked with her, in fact. And I'm sure you can relate. Some of your stories are parallel a little bit. But one of the things that she said that she took a little inspiration from was that she saw that there was life on the other side of ESPN, because there's a lot of people who have left ESPN who have gone on to either create their own companies or go elsewhere.

5:05and find a lot of creative and financial success. Dan Patrick may be the patron saint of this. He left and created his own empire. For your purposes, do you track with Susie in the fact that leaving ESPN in 2026, Damien, at least to me, feels much different than if you did in 1998, where you'd be like, oh my God, I was at the top of the mountain, and now there's no more mountains left. Oh, absolutely, Richard. I mean, this was, you know, when you just look at the landscape, you know, there's a lot of what I call independent media outside of ESPN, where you've seen a bunch of people, whether you're talking about former players or just, you know, people who work for these big institutional companies go out there on their own and really create their own lane, create their own brand.

6:00And so, you know, I know there's a lot of podcasts and things out there, but it just seems like there's an appetite for, you know, independent media out there. And and obviously, you know, this, you know, getting to the OG football show and some other things that I'm that I'm playing as well, you know, allows me the opportunity to have that freedom to speak, you know, things that maybe weren't weren't on the agenda at my former employer. All right. Let's get into this a little bit. How did the end of your time at ESPN come? Yeah, man, it was, you know, I had a producer actually reach out to me, I think mid-July, and told me, hey, man, you know, I'm sorry to bring this news about, but we're not going to extend you.

6:53Your contract, obviously, you know, your contract ends at the end of August, but we're not going to extend you. And, you know, the crazy thing was, man, you know, this producer was very emotional in making that. And it was weird, Richard, in that he was the one that decided to, or they instructed to be the bearer of the news. But it wasn't Seth Markman. You know, I was under the purview of Seth Markman. And so, you know, Seth had found out and he didn't even, no one told him. And so he was shocked when the word came down to him. And obviously he told me, hey, man, listen, you're my guy. I brought you into the company.

7:39Let me talk to the higher ups. And so everything was kind of put on the table for a few weeks. And then ultimately I got the, he came back with the news that, Hey man, you know, talk to the higher ups and ultimately they decided to go in a, want to go in a different direction. And so that's kind of how everything happened. All right. So a couple of things there. Are you, do you intentionally not want to mention the person who told you? And that's fine if you don't, that's okay. Yeah. I mean, listen, the, the other producer was Pete McConville. He, you know, over, you know, overseas, like, you know, first take.

8:11Yeah. Yep. Did they did did whether it was Seth Markman relaying this to you or someone in who's higher in management than Seth? Did you ever get a specific reason as to the why you weren't renewed? No, no, I didn't get a specific reason or anything like that. And and, you know, I just you know, the one thing that the one thing that kind of bothered me a little bit was, you know, as a former player, you're so used to getting feedback from your coaches. you know things that you're doing right things you're doing wrong so you can so you can correct and become better at what you what you do you know that's one thing that you really don't you really didn't get early on in my career at ESPN we had people you know Jerry Madelon that's that's great guy one guy great guy and I'm sure you know him you know he was one of those guys that gave you the feedback you know from shows like hey this you know these are the great things that you did in the show these are the things that you you know that I would like to see you work on But as time has gone on, you don't get that type of feedback.

9:16And in my particular case, and I'm sure a lot of people can speak to this as well, who have ultimately left the company. You didn't get that type of feedback as to why they decided to move in a different direction. I don't want to sort of make a stereotype here, but there is a thought that if you are a professional athlete as you were, someone who at times might be released by our organization, it makes it a little bit easier when word like this comes compared to lay people. Like, is that true or is it not true at this point? Like it was, you know, you took it the same way, you know, a jabroni like myself would take who didn't play in the NFL.

9:55No, like I take it the same way as, as you know, any other professional who works in the media. I mean, think about it, Richard. I worked in media longer than in my playing career. I played 12 years and I was in the media for 15 years. There's a lot of people who know me more from my media career than they do my playing career. And so when you've been a part of a company, you know, for the, you know, for the amount of time that I have and work with all the great people and, you know, you know, on a day to day basis, it's tough. It's tough because you're used to that routine and being part of being a part of something.

10:30And then, you know, for it to abruptly end the way that it did is it's a it's a it's a hard pill to swallow. You were always someone when I watched you on your like measured, right? You're sort of like you would you you were matter of fact, you gave your opinion, but you were not somebody who had take it. You didn't necessarily do performance kind of television. I wonder now, in hindsight, do you think that hurts you at all that you weren't more of a performer? Not to say that you would have done it or tried to be someone that you're not. But, I mean, I do, I hate to say it, I see more in 2025, 2026.

11:06It does feel like if you have more of like a performance aspect to it, you know, maybe you're safer at these kind of places than not. How do you see that? Yeah, I mean, listen, that might be the case, but, you know, I'm never going to go against who I am. You know, I've never been the type of guy that was a hot take artist or performative. performative. My whole thing was, I've always said going into the business, if I can educate the fan, if I can make one fan that much smarter, then my job is done. And so I've always said that, you know, my playing career, 12 years, I wanted to pull back the curtain, let the fans in on things that they don't have access to, and just educate.

11:47You know, the performative type of stuff, that, you know, I leave that for other people. That just wasn't my stick. It might work from other people. And you might be right. That might be the case if I was more performative. Maybe I would have, you know, stuck with the company. But again, that's just not who I am. That's not in my personality. Look, you get to a certain age and you want to be a little more serious when it comes to your shirt. Anybody who's worn a dress shirt knows just how uncomfortable it can be and how annoying it is when they bunch up under a sweater. So you must check out Collars & Co., makers of the Dress Collar Polo.

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14:08And like who, you know, who likes you at a certain period can sort of protect you and and keep your job for a long time. Just I'll ask you this very generally speaking. Did you find it to be a political place when you work there, however you would define political? Well, I mean, listen, when you talk about the suits at ESPN, you know, like it does help if you have certain people in place. And obviously, you know, when when when new people come in, they want their own own people. You know, one thing I had, you know, there was a few people I had referenced, I believe, in a tweet or something like that during my time at ESPN.

14:48Like Norby Williamson, you know, championed me like Dave Roberts championed me like those. You know, Seth Markman championed me. So, like, you know, I made it a point to point out those three people because those three people had, you know, they had influence in my time at ESPN. And two of them are now gone. Two of them now are gone, and Norby and Dave Roberts. And so when you have change, you know, at the very top, sometimes, you know, that trickles down to the talent as well. So you've talked about this before, but so, but I did want to ask you this. How much pressure did you feel to quote unquote, play the hits talking about the Cowboys talking about whatever quarterback was on the hot seat, talking about whatever controversial thing may have happened versus let's say you like you, you happen to see some really interesting line players, something like that in the, in the Buccaneers and lions, but there's producers or there's maybe pressure from the company that's like, hey, man, like everybody's talking about this on X.

15:56Everybody's talking about this on social media. We got to talk about this controversy. Yeah. I mean, listen, man, you know, in a place like a place like ESPN, you know, you're going to go where the ratings are. Like, you know, those people track those type of things. And so, listen, at the end of the day, I've always offered up things that I saw on tape or on film and stuff like that. And, you know, there were times where they were amenable to it, but there were a lot of times where you're going to go where the ratings go, man. Listen, that's just life in television. You know, it's a bottom-sum game, and you're going to be a good soldier in those type of situations.

16:33And I just try to go about doing my job the best of my ability. What moments are you most proud of when you were on the air? What stories were happening when you maybe left the studio that day and were like, that was good TV. I feel good about that. Oh, man, let me see. That's a great question. I think that, you know, when we talked about like Deflategate on television, you know, just being able to get off of my perspective, you know, I thought it was really compelling TV. I remember, you know, myself and Teddy Bruschi. Yeah, a couple of papers. Yeah, yeah. We actually got into a little heated discussion about it.

17:16But I felt like it was very compelling television. And it was something I was very proud of because it drew a lot of emotion from two former guys who were kind of on the opposite end of the spectrum as far as that topic is concerned. But listen, Richard, I'm so proud of so many things that I've done there. And again, the one thing I'm most proud of is the fact that here I am, a guy who grew up, had a speech impediment and had to go through therapy for years. And I found myself talking on television for 15 years. Like, I've had so many people reach out to me, you know, thanking me for the inspiration that I've given them for overcoming that.

18:02So that I would say, Richard, that's probably the most thing that I'm most proud of. That's I'm sure you probably know this, but like whenever I think of people who've overcome speech impediments to be in very public positions, I think of Bill Walton. I think of you. I think of George Springer. Joe Biden. Those are at least those four. Like those are four people who overcame childhood stuttering to be in prominent positions. And there is no doubt that young people, if they find that like your story, who have a child who are, you know, who are young and have a speech impediment can then see you and be like, all right, it's possible.

18:40It's possible with therapy that one day I can be on television. So I'm glad you mentioned that. I imagine. I mean, I don't know this, but I would take a guess. There's probably been some kids who you've met, right, who have said, hey, or you tell your story to and maybe they come up to you and say, wow, like this. Thank you very much for telling me that. Yeah, I've come across like a bunch of people, a bunch of younger people. You know, I came across somebody like, I think like earlier, I want to say May of this year, who heard my story. And it was in New York City, random, just a random appearance in a restaurant.

19:14Young man came up to me and just and talked about, you know, the fact that I had spoke up about it and told my story, my testimony. And it just really inspired him. He was, you know, in college studying to become a sports journalist. And so, you know, just stuff like that, man, you're like, wow, the world is smaller than what it seems. And the impact that you can have out there is tremendous. A couple more on ESPN, and then we'll go to sort of this week in the NFL. You made a decision to stay on air, right, until the end of your contract. Some people might have made a decision once they were told that they're not going to re-up you.

19:57Might have just left and, you know, you cut a deal. But it was important to you, it seems like, to finish your contract. What was your thinking there? Yeah, it's just who I am again, Richard. You know, like my deal was up on August 31st. And so I didn't want to be one of these people that was like, hey, okay, you guys have told me this and I'm just going to run off. That's just not how I was raised. It's not the man that I am. and actually they were they were the ones that's like um told me look if you don't want to do it we get it we understand I told them no I'm going to finish out my contract because you know that's what I got paid I get paid you know I got paid to be there to the end and so that's what I'm going to do and so that's just the type of person I am really was a pretty fascinating week I feel like in the NFL there were some really really exciting games a couple games where I think people were stunned.

20:46That Chargers-Cardinals result was a stunner to me. It also killed a lot of survival pools. And living in Toronto, we get the Bills every week, so I watched them, and that was a phenomenal game to watch with Josh Allen coming back. Your old team, the Patriots, got off to a tough one. Just very broadly, what are some of the things that stood out to you in week one? And I know it's very much an overreaction Monday, but it's still fun to talk about like sort of the broad stuff for week one. What stood out to you? Yeah, I mean, listen, coming into the season, we talked about a lot of a lot of these a lot of teams got new first time play callers in the National Football League.

21:30And one in particular, Declan Doyle with the Baltimore Ravens with Lamar Jackson. And you just see it like you just saw Lamar Jackson just look invigorated. just they put up 41 points and on the road against the Indianapolis Colts Lamar Jackson looked fantastic the Cincinnati Bengals you know you know everyone talked about the additions on their defense they go out and get four turnovers in a game you know against the Tampa Bay Buccaneers and so like there's a lot of storylines obviously in the National Football League but the the new play callers and I think the additions on defense for the Cincinnati Bengals and for the Dallas Cowboys.

22:14I'm always hesitant to bring up the Cowboys, but they got the change on defense and it didn't come out very well against the New York football giants last night. I expect the Rams obviously to be a very good team. I know Miles Garrett looks like he'll be missing four weeks or so for surgery. But I have to admit, I really found it fascinating. And again, I know I'm talking to a guy obviously playing the league, so ultimately it's a side on the field. But I was pretty fascinated by the two approaches that the two organizations took between the Niners and the Rams. One team obviously was there, acclimated itself to its geography.

22:51The other team decided to go very last second, right, and just sort of tried their best to see if they could win leaving Los Angeles very, very shortly for Melbourne. Did you, as someone who probably had made long road trips, maybe never a long road trip to Melbourne, but long road trips, like going into that game, did you think the sleep part would play any factor? And if so, what were you thinking before? We now know the result, obviously, the Niners won big. Yeah, I was very fast. I was fascinated to see how the Rams would come out and play, considering they left at the last second, and then basically 24 hours later, we're playing a football game.

23:31You know, for that longer trip, you know, you just always wonder how your body would hold up. We know the 49ers, they went a lot earlier than the Rams and got acclimated down there, you know, in Australia. And so I was really interested to see, you know, how it would play out. And quite honestly, when you watch that game, it looked like the 49ers were fresher, more violent in the game. And so I just feel like the Rams travel will play the debt, you know, was a detriment to the outcome of that game. Everybody like after game one is always like way over the top on like making, you know, pronouncements and judgments, particularly on quarterbacks.

24:14Like I'm a Drake May believer. He did not play well in that game one, but I think he is a good quarterback. They obviously lost to the Seahawks 13-10 in their opener. You're a former Patriot, so you must, I imagine, just always keep your eye on that team a little bit. What did you make of that game? And does your – I don't even know what your opinion of May was before this, but does that game have any impact on whatever your opinion of May was before the game? Well, I will say this. I think Drake May is one of our bright young players, in the National Football League. Obviously, you know this, Richard.

24:48He was second in league MVP voting last year. But I will say this. You know, the last five games, you know, going back to playoffs and last year and then including the first game, he has not played all that great. And so, you know, he's turned the ball over a lot. His passing, all of his statistics, you know, over the last five games have just gone down from the regular season, you know, backup MVP type of performances that we have been accustomed to seeing from him. So I think there's things he's still got to work on in this game. And he's, you know, a very good talent. But, you know, over the last five games, it just hasn't been what we've been accustomed to seeing from him.

25:31What should I make of a team that scored 59 points in opening week, which the Bears did? Oh, man. Ben Johnson is a mad scientist. You know, Ben Johnson and Caleb Williams they they got something going on you know I don't want to get you know go over the top again because it's overreaction Monday but when you score 59 points on the road yeah you're making you're making a statement to the rest of the National Football League and I know Ben Johnson had made some statements about leading the league and scoring and all that type of stuff well when you score 59 you're off to a hell of a start all right I got one we'll do one more football thing and then I will finish up on a couple of quick broadcasting ones because there's a couple of things I have to ask you.

26:15I always have a specific focus on the Bills because that team is in my backyard, and I lived in Buffalo for five, six years. Again, I realize after game one, but you saw the roster. They added DJ Moore, new head coach, obviously, new defensive coordinator with a whole new system. I don't know how much you got a chance to watch the Bills and Texans, But what are your initial thoughts on them, and what are you thinking about them this year? Josh Allen is unbelievable. He really is. I mean, think about this. Josh Allen, you know, throughout his career has never had any, you know, good luck against the Houston Texans, in particular that defense.

26:59But he played a hell of a game yesterday, and it just shows you, like, the type of player that he is and how free that he plays. And listen, that was a great game. That was a great game to watch because I thought CJ Stroud played well. He did. Until, obviously, the end with the strip sack at the end. But listen, credit Josh Allen in the offense. They were able to go out there against a defense coming into the league that I think most people thought would be the best defense in the league. And he really put on the show. Yeah, the margin, as you know, is just so thin because if the Texans pick off a pass, which they really should have picked off late, they win the game.

27:43The NFL is just an amazing product because every week, things can sort of turn on one or two plays. I've always sort of been fascinated by this, and I don't know if it's just winning. Maybe the answer is winning, but there are so many former Patriots who ended up in broadcasting like yourself, whether it's you, Brady, Gronkowski, Edelman, Bruchy. I'm sure I haven't named all of them, but there is a significant group from that era who ended up in broadcasting. Is there a why to that answer? Well, I think obviously, number one, winning. Winning helps your cause. When you're part of a dynasty like we were in New England, I mean, we had a dynasty that stretched 20 years.

28:27And think about that. It was special. And the guys that are broadcasting, and you just named some of them, whether you're talking about Teddy Bruschi, Tom Brady, the McCourty twins. I didn't even hit Scott Zolak's a big deal at Boston. Yeah, like Rodney Harrison. Rodney, yeah. The list just goes on and on. But I think the common theme is you got a bunch of guys who, you know, smart, who understand the game of football and in their own in their own way can go out there and just tell it and just tell the story where the fans can can understand and relate. So I think it's just a special group. Kind of like the Dallas Cowboys.

29:13You know, you find former Cowboys on television. But I think the theme is you got to, I think winning and winning big really helps you in that department. You were in huddles with Brady. You were obviously in locker rooms and on road trips and stuff. When he was playing, did you get any indication that he would have wanted to go into broadcasting? No, I didn't get any indication like that. I mean, listen, you talk about one of the most intense dudes that I've ever been around in sports in general. But, you know, I never got the sense that that was his deal, his shtick. You know, you know, I didn't even know.

29:48Like, you would like I thought he would just play forever because that's just the type of guy he is. He almost did. Yeah. Yeah. Fall of time ultimately caught up with him. But I mean, the career is just is unreal, unbelievable. but I think he's really grown into himself in the broadcasting arena as well. Yeah. When you see Brady walking runways in Gucci, like what is your thought on that? Like, again, I didn't think that was going to be Brady's thing. I mean, you know, like this dude is just like so humble and obviously, man, like, you know, now he's a superstar and, you know, one of the most recognizable faces in sports and to see him walking runways is always like, it always trips me out because I'm like, that's not the guy that I knew like, you know, a couple of decades ago.

30:40You have four kids. Am I right about this? I have seven. You have seven kids. Okay. And one of them just went to college, right? Or like, congrats. I saw you post that, which is awesome. Yeah, yeah. One just went to, I just dropped my mom at Michigan State. Oh, I love that. Okay. So if Brady even invites you to one of these white parties or very fancy, you can't even go, right? because you have responsibilities at home. I think the wife will let me. She would? Yeah, she would let me because she knows Brady and his family and stuff like that. So I think she would let me get out of the house one time.

31:11All right. And Tumbry's not listening to this, but in the random chance that he is, how about throwing our guy like an invite when you're hanging out with DiCaprio and Margot Robbie and the guy from Fanatics and everyone else. I need a guys night out why not yeah and that yeah and that's you know that that would probably be an interesting party to be a fly on the wall at all right last one Bill Belichick obviously has gotten your former coach got a ton of attention um ever since he went to North Carolina he's won his first two games um so it's a little bit at least now of a different story he's not in the sort of the crosshairs of uh of college football I I of college football writers I Again, I don't know Bill Belichick at all, but my one thought was that this was not going to be a guy who was going to be like Bear Bryant or Nick Saban and be in college football for 10 years.

32:05But you know the guy. I don't. If you had to just take a guess today, is Belichick long for North Carolina? Or do you think that he maybe tries one last run to see if he can get an NFL coaching job? I think the NFL is behind him. I don't know if he's going to be coaching college football for a long period of time. I know his son, Steve, is on his staff. I think he's taking a leave of absence right now. But, you know, like Bill, he just loves teaching. He's the ultimate teacher of the game of football. Like, I don't know of anyone. He's like an encyclopedia of the game of football. I don't know anyone smarter who knows the game, who knows the history of the game better than Bill Belichick.

32:54And so I do think he just loves, enjoy teaching the game of football. When he was getting on you, did he call you by your last name, your jersey number, or did he have a nickname for you? Well, sometimes he just would use language that we can't discuss on here. Figure that out. But no, he would call me by my first name. Like he would do that, but there would be some other explicatives as well. But you don't strike me as someone who was not all in at practice and, like, given 100%. Like, Belichick, you seemingly should not have been an issue for Bill Belichick, at least from my perspective. No, listen, I was a team guy.

33:31Whatever was needed, I was there. You know, I was the type of guy that played multiple positions. From the BC offensive line factor, you guys were taught right. That's right. That's right. So, like, my foundation was strong right from the get-go. And I remember Bill used to tell me, the more you can do, the more valuable you become. And that was the case my whole career. Yeah, he was right about that for sure. Yeah. I mean, yeah, you had an amazing career and you were absolutely part of maybe the best dynasty, or if not, it's top two or top three, depending on where you want to go with some of these other teams.

34:07All right, Damian Woody, you can catch him on the Wingo Network. That's a new digital and podcast company run by Trey Wingo and Nita. What's Nita's last name? She'll give her a shout out. Do you know? Yeah. Don't ask me to pronounce her last name. All right. Yeah. I don't want to screw it up either, but Trey's got a very smart CEO next to him. You can hear their show, which is called the OGs. OG football show. The OG football show. My bad. The OG football show. Trey Wingo, Merrill Hodge, Damian Woody, Mark Slareth. It's once a week right now. We could see the frequency of that get amped up, but check that out.

34:49Those are four guys who really know their stuff. And whenever they were on their various networks, always were informative and thoughtful and engaging. Mark Slareth obviously continues to work both for Fox. I know he does a podcast as well. I think James is his producer, in fact. So check out his work as well. Damian, man, I'm going to be rooting for you. I always appreciate you on ESPN. And I, you know, I've sort of given up in terms of trying to understand sometimes the decisions they make. I personally am somebody who believes like that. If you have people who treat audiences like adults, these are the people who you should keep people with institutional knowledge.

35:33ESPN doesn't always agree with me on that. But just know that there are many, many football people like myself who really appreciated what you had to say and how you approached your job. So thank you for that. And thank you for joining me today on the Sports Media Podcast. Richard, I appreciate all of that. And thank you for having me on. All right, here we go. Five, four, three, two, one. All right, back in the studio. My thanks to Damian Woody. I've always been a long time admirer of his work on ESPN. I think he did quality work. And I mean, I don't know how many times I could sort of say it.

36:04I just, there are decisions I don't understand that that company makes. You know, I don't think Damian Woody is breaking the bank. I get it. These are first world problems, et cetera, et cetera. But quality analyst who always did good work, who always showed up. I mean, you would think that's the kind of employee you would like to keep. All right. Previous podcast, last couple weeks, Susie Culber, obviously that got an amazing amount of attention. Not surprising. It was the first time she had told her story. Thank you very much for your feedback and insight and listening on that. Much appreciated.

36:37for Susie Gabe Spitzer, who is the vice president of Global Live Sports and Entertainment for Netflix. That was pretty interesting, just him talking about Netflix's sports ambitions. We have obviously done a lot of stuff on Tony Romo's future in broadcasting. We will do more, obviously, after J.J. Watt and Jim Nance had their first game, the Packers and the Vikings. I wrote about that for The Guardian if you want to check my piece on that out. And if you're into wrestling, MJF, Maxwell Jacob Friedman, on this podcast August 27th talking about how one the art of doing media essentially as a pro wrestler I always found pro I always find pro people in pro wrestling fascinating when it comes to media and promotion that's why I love having Paul Heyman on I just think these guys are very very and women are very very interesting when it comes to that leave us a review always helpful and always appreciate it want to thank my producer James Jackson for all his hard work thanks everybody to our city for their sport and most of all thank you for listening We'll see you soon on the Sports Media Podcast.

38:04a big one. For all your heating, plumbing, and electrical needs, you know who to call. For all the right reasons, call 866-4-SEASONS.