PMS 2.0 1401 - NFL KICKOFF THURSDAY, Cowboys vs. Eagles Preview, Adam Schefter, Peter Schrager, Mike McCarthy, & AJ Hawk

20:18That Matt Iberflues has done a really good job in the past with defenses, and he can come in and implement his scheme and his system, and you hope for the type of improvement that Dallas has been seeking. And again, when Jerry sat down after the Micah trade to explain his thinking on it, that was really one of the big takeaways, is that they felt like they really had to do something with their run defense. And it was interesting because they didn't really draft anybody in that area until I believe the seventh round. So if it was such a priority now, it should have probably been in April as well, and they didn't address it the way they wanted to or needed to in the draft.

20:52So by trading for Kenny Clark, they feel like they got a run stopper and you know of course I think Matt Ibrafluse knows Nick Sirianni well you guys would know this probably better than me I'm guessing this up to my hey weren't they both coordinators in Indianapolis at the same time together

21:06Pat McAfee:yeah Frank Reich Sirianni and Ibrafluse they know the way that each other thinks pretty well and Ibrafluse will be up to implementing his system and it's up to him to make sure that this Dallas defense which was really poor last year is much better. And look, they've been worried about their own defense. We'll find out tonight because they're going up against a team that runs the football about as well as any in the league. Yeah, better than anybody in the history of the NFL. Most rush yards for an offense after Super Bowl, obviously got to count the playoffs and everything like that in the history of the NFL for Saquon Barkley.

21:40Pat McAfee:And also, if you were to just account for Saquon Barkley's yards before contact last year, he would have been a top five rusher in the NFL. So saying that they got to stop the run is not just because they feel like that's a weakness for the team. That is also the strength of the team in their division who is currently the Super Bowl champion. I remember stories from back in the day. Houston Texans took Mario Williams over Reggie Bush. And the GM, Charlie Casserly, he got fired. And he said the reason why he got fired is because he drafted Mario over Reggie Bush. But he said, Reggie Bush isn't tackling Peyton Manning.

22:13Pat McAfee:I'm trying to beat the Indianapolis Colts. I'm not trying to do anything else. I'm trying to win the division to get into the dance. So I got Mario instead of Reggie. and the fans didn't really care. They didn't want to hear that. But that is really how a lot of these people who are putting teams together think is if we win our division, we're in the dance. We get in the dance, we're good. Who's at the top of our division? Oh, the best in the world. And they run the rock all over the place. I can respect Jerry Jones saying that. I think he could have got another one. I think he could have. I think he could have leaned.

22:41Pat McAfee:Maybe a three at least. Yeah, I think he could have got a little lean on him at the very end. Hey, you give me one more one. This deal's done, you know. Well, you say that. It's funny. I had somebody call me yesterday. They're like, you're going to tell me that Jerry Jones at the last moment had said to Green Bay, okay, you're giving us two ones at Kenny Clark. You know, to close this out, we need another three. We need another three. Another one. Green Bay would have thrown it in. Yes, definitely. I actually said the exact words this morning as I was in here. It was like, Jerry maybe has lost his fastball.

23:12Pat McAfee:Because at the very end, everybody's happy. We're almost close to a deal getting done. and then it's like second gets this thing done right now. Actually, another one gets this deal done right now. We're going to throw this away over a one. You guys got a deal done with Micah. You already got that figured out. We already got the other assets figured out. One more one three years from now. That ain't going to be... Well, I don't know if they would have gotten three ones, Pat, but I think at that moment you make a request for one more pick. The way that somebody explained it to me was I would have asked for a third, and I think that that's plausible.

23:42You want to ask for something, but not a ridiculous amount. You have the trade in place. Hey, guys, to close it, I need another three. I'm talking about my people. Just throw in another three and we'll close it out. Mike is yours.

23:53Pat McAfee:Okay, so there was also a report that another team was involved. I think that was was that you that reported that? I'm not 100 % sure. And it was the Eagles? Howie calls in and goes, hey, heard you have a problem over there? Didn't know if you wanted to trade them in a division. Is that real? That's real. And yeah, I reported the story. Basically, the The way I understand this is that the Eagles definitely were in on Micah. Now, again, I want to be very clear. I don't think the Dallas Cowboys ever were going to trade him. But that was not for a lack of effort from the Philadelphia Eagles. And there are a few things that I found really interesting about it.

24:33Number one, there are a lot of teams out there that say, look, we'd love Micah. We just can't afford it. We can't make it happen. Well, here's the Philadelphia Eagles who have paid Jalen Hurts, who have paid Saquon Barkley, who have paid A.J. Brown, who have paid Devontae Smith, who have paid people on their defense like Zach Vaughn, and they're saying, you know what, I know we can't pay, but it's Micah Parsons, and we're going to find a way to pay. And I don't know what they would have done, but I think it's common sense to think we're just talking about what the Green Bay Packers wound up giving up to the Dallas Cowboys, two ones in Kenny Clark.

25:05I don't know the Eagles' specific offer, but I would bet anything it was a richer, more lucrative offer than what the Green Bay Packers offered because it had to be because if the Eagles were even going to get the Cowboys to think about trading him in the division which I don't think they would have done for the record it was going to be an offer that the Cowboys couldn't say no to and even then they would have said no probably so yes, the Eagles tried the Eagles tried on Mike but they were told no

25:36Pat McAfee:Jerry, I got to text you I mean, in the division, no way. We've got to go double everything if you do that in the division, especially with the rivalry. You know, the Eagles-Cowboys rivalry over the years. Cowboys fans, I mean, it was loud to begin with going to the Packers, you know. Yeah. If Michael would have ended up with the Philadelphia Eagles. Oh, man. It would have. They would have. I love that how he's just snooping around, though. Hey, how's everything? What do you got going on down there, Jer? Everything okay? I don't know what hotel you're staying in whenever you come up for opening night.

26:06Pat McAfee:I've got a new place to open up. I think it'll be great. Also, Micah, what are we – you guys moving on from – Jerry going, I can't. I can't. No way can I. Well, what if we – Can you imagine Micah back in Pennsylvania where he grew up playing with Saquon Barkley? I mean – They'd riot. On that D-line? Yeah. With that D-line already? I mean, it would be – They would go to Jerry. This is Kevin Durant heading to Golden State. Yep. You know, that is a – because he would just be able to do whatever he wants on that defense. Him and Jalen Carter? Hey, we'll take care of everything else. He's not good against the run.

26:38Pat McAfee:Okay. Yeah, don't eat him to be. That's not why you're here. Yeah, we got that going. You just got to go do whatever you need to do. It is a – that would have been insane if that would happen in the division. Obviously, it didn't. Green Bay Packers now have Micah Parsons. How will that work out? We shall see. We'll talk to Coach Mike McCarthy in the second hour. Can't wait to catch up with him on his thoughts on everything. Tone has a question for you. Chef D. Yeah, Chef D. Another pass rusher got paid this morning. Nick Benito got a four-year extension,$120 million,$70 million guaranteed. We were talking a little earlier before the show that$70 million guaranteed,$120 million total is quite the discrepancy.

27:10Do we know anything about the situation there as far as incentives or anything like that? And then also, do you know any other team besides the Denver Broncos that everyone is so high on coming into this season? Well, they certainly are one of these picks that's a little bit trendy and a little bit hot right now. And I think part of the reason they're hot and trendy is because they have done such a great job of keeping their own players. They give Bonito that deal. It comes out to be the highest paid non-quarterback in Broncos franchise history. They went and paid Cortland Sutton this offseason, this summer.

27:42They went and paid Zach Allen. So they've kept their core guys that have been important to this team. There are some people that are picking them, and when you're in a division with the Chiefs, everybody is usually an underdog. So here's where you can pick a great team. and you say, okay, well, they're an underdog to Kansas City. They're in a division with Jim Harbaugh and the Chargers. Harbaugh, five in games. I mean, that division is loaded. And the other team is coached by Pete Carroll, who will become the oldest coach in NFL history on Sunday when he goes up against the Patriots. So it's a great division.

28:19And the Broncos have done all the things they want. And, again, I don't know the specific incentives, Tone, but I would just say this. That's a lot. Yeah, it's$70 million guaranteed. So, you know, read into that whatever you want. Like, I'm sure maybe the deal isn't exactly what, but it's going to be a damn strong deal. And these owners in Denver, Greg and Carrie Penner, they are going to make their mark, and they are going to be around a long time, and they are going to be amongst the best owners not only in just football, but in all of sports. And the pockets that they have that enable these deals to happen, they're building their own training facility they're going to get a stadium built there in Denver these people are big time, big time and they're going to mean a lot to that city and that franchise

29:06Pat McAfee:Walmart, pretty good little business yeah, not bad yeah, it ended up being okay, didn't it? yep, he's slashing prices the Walton family, that is the daughter I do believe who you just referred to, who is acting owner of the Denver Broncos I'm happy they're investing in football I like that, I appreciate the fact that they're investing in the NFL Bill. We also saw there was maybe$106 million in total from Spotrak, but he had a year left on his contract. That's still a lot of incentive-based money. I'm excited to see. There's a lot of ways you could look at this. And I know Tone asked that question, and I saw last night, we reported that the Niners sweetened Juwan Jennings' deal.

29:43And I want to bring that up for Tone on purpose, because I think it's a situation like that. And there's the deal. Basically, Jawan Jennings had wanted a new deal. He's going into the last year. 49ers offered a multi-year deal. He opted to take this particular arrangement, which is$3 million more of incentives this year, which could boost his salary to about$10.5 million, which is still for a number one receiver, a great deal for the Niners. But if he balls out this year, he's going to crush it on the free agent market and have a chance to really get paid. But I bring up this deal for Tone because I wonder, I wonder if the people in Pittsburgh can't pay attention.

30:24Pat McAfee:Yeah, well, people in Pittsburgh are looking for a wide receiver any way they can get it. But whenever you talk about that Jawan Jennings deal, that's$3 million in incentives. That's a lot. $3 million is a lot in incentives each year. $5 million, a lot. Over$10 million in incentives each year is crazy. That is a crazy number. Like, what is Cure Cancer? Like, what is the Cure COVID? 35 sacks. Like,$10 million is a lot of money in – because he kept saying up to, up to, up to. I think that was AJ's first reaction whenever he read the thing, up to. Like, that's a lot of money. $50 million that's being reported is a lot of money.

31:01Pat McAfee:That's almost 100%. I mean, what is it, 80 % of what – Yeah, but, you know, no defensive player gets his full deal guaranteed. So, up to$120,$70 guaranteed. I mean, I don't – $70 is good. $70 is good. I just didn't know if we knew the incentives. You've got to win a Super Bowl. You've got to have three touchdowns. The devil will be in the details. A couple pick sixes. It'll be a strong deal. Need a pick six in the Super Bowl to pick up$2.5 million. That$10 million is a lot of money. Nick Benito is certainly a game wrecker, and I don't love that this was the first highlight. Sure. I just got to run every single time.

31:34Pat McAfee:That's a good read. Okay, rookie, he didn't know what he was looking at. A guy popped up out of nowhere. Is that Troy Paul Mall or Ed Reed out there? Who the hell is this guy? Why would you do that? No, it's Nick Benito out of Oklahoma, and he's a dog, and he just got paid$70 million guaranteed. Schefter, with some of these players, did they have to tell them last year, like, hey, we're so strapped for cash because of the dead cap, like you need to wait until next year and we'll take care of you? Well, which players are you talking about? Broncos. Yeah, Broncos. Like Cortland Sutton, Zach Allen, like all these guys they paid, a lot of them vet leaders.

32:04Is that why they? This is the choice that I think all teams make, right? Like you try to figure out when is the best time to assign your guys. And the price, if you wait, and the guy performs and he stays healthy, usually goes up. And look, by the way, let's look at it at the flip side too, right? Sometimes it goes the other way. Elijah Vera Tucker is going to be a free agent after this year. And he tears his triceps in practice on Tuesday. It's not ideal. So now, you know, when you're Elijah Vera Tucker next year in the free agent market, you're probably going to have to sign a deal, a one-year deal, and get back to that point and then try to hit the free agent market again in 27.

32:39So sometimes it makes sense for players to wait. Sometimes it makes sense for players to sign an extension. Everybody's different. You have to factor in the player, their history, what the offer is. There's a lot of different factors at play. There's no simple answer to any of that.

32:53Pat McAfee:There's also, what,$60 million in dead cap for the Broncos last year or whatever. By the way, that's probably a big part of why they had to wait to pay these guys because Russell Wilson was getting his lion's share. And by the way, I think there's still money left over now, this year, on Russell Wilson. 32 million. Good question, Ocon man. Yeah, I'm just trying to get to the bottom of it. Very good. Any other... Excellent insight from Pat. That was very good, Pat. Thank you. Yeah, we try to do a little bit of that around here. Try to do a little bit of something. People don't believe it, but we try to do it.

33:27Pat McAfee:We're just a Disney show for something that isn't on ESPN for two years. We might not be on ESPN at the time that that is even happening for Red Zone. What are your thoughts on the Red Zone news? The commercial. I accidentally said, we don't care without context of like, we're still going to watch whenever they put the playthrough red zone commercials in there. LRAP and playthrough commercials is what they're saying. Obviously, it would be better without any of that. Sure. Give me the shit. Yes. Give me the full shit. But you've been around the NFL how long now? This is my 35th or 36th year covering the league since 1990.

34:00Okay.

34:00Pat McAfee:So you've been around the league for 36 years. I grew up in Pittsburgh, which is NFL town. I had a very lucky opportunity to be a part of it. I feel like my brain operates in a little bit more of a business fashion than some people. So as soon as I saw the NFL get a little bit of cash from those LRAPs on that Red Zone channel last year, I was like, oh, they are starting to... Oh, that is starting to... They were definitely going to put something in there is what my thoughts were. But I'm just saying, the NFL makes the decision to charge for the coronavirus. It's not ESPN. It's the NFL. It's not on ESPN for two years.

34:34This happened last year, too.

34:36Pat McAfee:Yeah, it was happening last year as well. So it's like the amount of things that I had said to me that were very, very rude. I would like to let everybody know. Shocker. They're very rude, but I'm built for it. I'm supposed to take these things, I guess, because I signed up for this. I'm supposed to just be told things that aren't true and terrible about myself on a regular basis. But it's like I did say we don't care. We do care. We would much rather it not be in existence, but we're still going to watch. I guess people are saying they're not going to watch. It's like, okay. Prove it. Okay. Red zone has become a necessity, basically, which is why it's the most ingenious concept that the NFL or any sport has really come up with.

35:12Pat McAfee:And I do think that people are such big fans of it, like we are, are like, don't ruin it. You're going to ruin it. You're going to ruin it. You're going to ruin it. Well, if somebody ruins it, it's the NFL because it's their product. And it's a genius product. And I think we all knew they were going to try to profit a little bit more off of it, which is not great, I'm saying. But I'm just saying I'm still going to watch. Yeah, and you can also say that. And we'll see what you're doing when that first Sunday comes along when your local affiliate isn't carrying a game at 1 p.m. So you got nothing but news on.

35:38And then guess what? The 4 p.m. time slot? Oh, no, that game sucks. It's shit.

35:43Pat McAfee:You know who you got? Seven hours of red zone football with Scott Hanson. They got us. They know they got us. They were definitely going to try to profit more off of that. So when I said we don't care, I miss that. I should have said we would rather it didn't. It's not the end of the world. But we are going to watch. Yes. And they know we're going to do it. We're part of the problem, but we are definitely going to watch. And people who watch The Grum know what you were saying. If you don't follow the program, then it would be hard to understand that. But the way you said it wasn't like, well, nobody cares.

36:15There's commercials. Everyone is okay with that. That's not what you were saying. And people who took it like that, I'm not going to say the word, but it's a word they use in England and Australia, and I'd like to use it. But those people suck.

36:27Pat McAfee:Okay. That's growth, baby. It rhymes with? Yeah. It doesn't rhyme with anything. Yeah, I think so. In other countries, very normal. Ain't that good descriptor of these particular situations? But here, we will never do that. Okay, let's talk about tomorrow. Chief Chargers. I heard there's bad practice field down there. These boys are trying to do a walkthrough down in Brazil, and they can't do it because the field's shit. It is absolute shite. Now, whenever we went and played in England, we were staying at a hotel slash golf course. We did our practice and walkthrough on like a field that was kind of in the back.

37:01Pat McAfee:It was obviously not a desirable football field, but it was kind of like a park situation. And we weren't really going hard. I mean, it was just like kind of test out the legs a little bit. Let's move around. They're probably doing walkthroughs out here. Still have to get work done. What is the conversation around? That guy's locked in, by the way. That guy is not. Don't even think about it. Don't even look at the grass, actually, with that guy. They're lucky they're filming with that guy on patrol, to be honest. What is the conversation about Brazil? How does everybody feel about how the game's going to go?

37:31Pat McAfee:Because obviously the track last year, a little slick during the game as well. Well, it's a repeat of last year is what it looks like. I would think that it should be and would be better this year. I have not gotten any firm reports about the field condition being an issue, but if there are early complaints, as you're saying, that's not an encouraging sign. That doesn't look great right there. But I think you understand that when you step outside of our country into one of these games, you just don't know what you're going to get. And the elements are different all the time. Remember the teams there last year, this year, they're told to just stay in the hotel.

38:04They don't want them leaving. They don't want any security concerns. They don't want any security risks. It's a strange thing. And I think week one is such a unpredictable, challenging week for so many people. And when you introduce a game like this, it becomes that much more challenging and difficult to navigate. But here you have two great teams where they have excelled and shined in spots like this. Andy Reid has been superior when he's given extensive time to prepare for an opponent the way he is in an opener with the Chargers. And Jim Harbaugh's 5-0 in opening day games in the NFL. He's done a great job getting his teams ready.

38:42So two AFC West juggernauts going at it in probably a little bit less than ideal conditions. But the league wants to continue to grow the sport all over the world. They were very pleased with the experiment in Brazil last year. their backs again this year and i would imagine they'll keep going back there and keep growing

38:57Pat McAfee:the sport i remember we were doing uh some business with the zone and they talked about countries that love the nfl that they have the international rights for brazil was always one of those countries that they were like hey they love the nfl down in brazil last year you know had a green team involved that was a big conversation this year they said we're not doing that again smart send a blue team down there say red team down there let's go ahead and get this all cleared up we appreciate the fact that our game is being spread throughout the world and uh Shout out to the boys. They seem jovial over there.

39:25Pat McAfee:Here's Patrick Mahomes and Travis Kelsey in their opening press conference from Brazil. We've had a plan for this all summer long, and now we're just ready to play football again. Travis, what was last night like at the airport? Oh, man, it was crazy. It was a lot of fun seeing all the fans there. He had that one coming for telling everybody I didn't know where Brazil was on the map. There was a little geography conversation between Pat and Travis. Sounds like they're jovial, and I think they get it too. Like, hey, we are the team. Like, the NFL is going to want to shop us. Yeah, the world's team and the kingdom.

39:57Pat McAfee:They are going to want to shop us around. They're going to want us to be on opening night. And if we're not on opening night because we didn't win, okay, we're going to create a Friday night game, and you're going to be playing down in Brazil showcasing it to the world. I think they appreciate that honor and opportunity. Justin Herbert, Derwin James, Harbaugh and the boys out there, I'm excited to see if this is the year they all piece it together. That should be a fun Friday night. You bring up all these football stars, and they are football stars and football standouts. But when you take a step back and look at it, is there any bigger celebrity in the NFL right now than Travis Kelsey, in all honesty?

40:33Nobody. I think his worldwide popularity right now exceeds Patrick Mahomes. Yeah.

40:40Pat McAfee:Yeah. Yeah, I would say so. Yeah. Which is crazy to think about because I think the reason why he was perfect for Taylor is because he was in Patrick Mahomes' shadow for so long. Like tight ends don't care about being the star. Tight ends are literally offensive linemen. They're never going to be the one that is being promoted, which is why I thought he was perfect for Taylor. It's like he's not going to be scared that his lady is a lot more popular and powerful and influential and liked way more than he is because he's a tight end. That's how that goes. So I thought that was all good, but now that you mention it, yeah, I do think he's probably more well known.

41:17Pat McAfee:Especially if he's out on a date night anywhere in the world. They're going to be tracking him. Congrats to this kid from Cleveland. Kid from Cleveland. I hope Mahomes doesn't mind. Oh, you think Patrick Mahomes is going to be a little sour? I think there might be more worldwide interest in Travis Kelsey than any NFL player. He has more Instagram. Travis has more Instagram followers. I don't know if that's right. Oh, but then if we start doing that, then we start getting into all the soccer players, and then nobody really matters. Dwayne Johnson. Dwayne Johnson. Remember that cricket player? Dwayne Johnson, yeah, super famous.

41:50Pat McAfee:We're talking about those two. Yeah, but as they grow the game, there was a thought maybe Australia. As somebody that did that trip, I think Australia would be great for the NFL. I think they would love our sport. I think it's a combination of both their sports that they like with a little bit more padding and everything like that. And a lot of Aussies have been doing American football. because of the similarities to Aussie rules football with punting and how good it is to get into our sport. So definitely going to grow in popularity in Australia. How would that work? It's so far. It is so far.

42:18Pat McAfee:It's 16 hours from L.A. The one thing that I've learned with the NFL, I went to Australia back in the late 90s when the Broncos were playing an exhibition game there against... Oh, this has happened before, you're saying. Okay, got it. Yeah, no, they've done it. It was in the preseason. I went to Australia with the Broncos when I covered them back in the early 90s, they played a preseason game there. So look, here's the deal. If the league feels like it's worth its while and it's going to make enough money to go play a regular season game in Australia, it's going to go play a regular season game in Australia.

42:54And I would think that it's only a matter of time. The time difference, they'll figure it out. Maybe there's a buy on the back end. Maybe there's a Thursday night game the following week. or like they'll make it work so that it's doable if it's attractive enough and produces enough revenue.

43:10Pat McAfee:I would say. Nowhere. Nowhere's off limits, Pat. Nowhere. I would say worldwide. They're going to come on the moon. Yeah, and they're going to try. They're going to try. I think we're going to get. Elon's trying to get them up there and do a game, you know, at least to Mars in its entirety. If we could do more with Australia, I think that'd be good. Australia is a beautiful country. It is just so far. So far. It is so far. And the time zones are completely backwards. I mean, they're winter right now going into spring, okay? We're obviously summer going into fall here. Just everything completely backwards.

43:41Pat McAfee:I was a day ahead of everybody. I was letting them know what tomorrow looked like when I was talking to people back here in Indiana. So it's like figuring the logistics out would be crazy, but I think that country would be great football fans. Now let's talk about the NFL a little bit with some more injury information. Go ahead, Conman. Yeah, Shrefty, CJ GJ got hurt during training camp, but I think we all assumed that he was going to be out for the year. It was reported as a very serious knee injury. And then you reported this week, I forget if it was yesterday or earlier in the week, that he's actually going to be playing on Sunday against the Rams.

44:14Is this another Wolverine blood situation when it comes to healing quickly? Or did CJGJ not have as serious of an injury? And is the rehab facilities at the Texans just better than everybody else? Well, first of all, I love that CJGJ. That is an awesome thing. It kind of flows off your tongue. Yeah, I just invented it, brother. Put on a T-shirt, patent it. You should patent that right now. Okay. But when he went down with a knee injury in training camp, I believe it was Thursday, August 8th, off the top of my head. And there were some reports that he had torn his ACL, that he was concerned. He tore his ACL.

44:51But that was never the injury. The injury was such that it just wasn't as bad as some people thought it was. and they always felt like there was a chance that he was going to be back in the opening game. And obviously a credit to CJ, GJ, that he made it back this quickly. But he should be out there for the first game of the season for the Texans. He'll be playing safety. I'm sure he's going to be starting and he's going to be looking to make some plays against a tough Rams team.

45:16Pat McAfee:Shefty, I don't know how big the rock is that you live under so that you can do the job that you do, but I do appreciate it. Don't we? Oh, yeah. Always. You never hear in CJ, GJ, just means you're so locked in that you don't even got time. I don't even got time in this entire thing. He's a tone setter, though. Oh, yeah. He is a guy that when you bring him in, you know exactly what he's bringing. When he's absent, I assume not only can you feel it on the football field, locker room, sideline, everything. What a boost he brings to everybody. And the other team hates him. Yeah. Immediately. By the way, and conversely, if we're going to tie it all together, the Texans have C.J.

45:48G.J. on Sunday and the Philadelphia Eagles. Those are like without C.J. G.J.

45:56Pat McAfee:Oh. We caught the tail end. You froze there in the middle, but we still got the punchline. That's good news. I will like to see Vic Fangio's Philadelphia Eagles defense without CJ GJ. He was a beast. I'm pumped for tonight. What is your – we have another question, but just as we're talking about the Eagles here, what is your feel for tonight? I think this can go both ways. I think this can be a very close game. Dallas Cowboys can pull a lot of motivation from being, hey, this is the dumbest America's team has ever looked, and yada, yada, yada. They haven't won. And I think the Eagles could maybe blow them up.

46:25Pat McAfee:I have no idea how it's going to go, which I think is a good thing. Sportsbook's saying eight and a half. That's the biggest spread of the weekend. That being opening night is Jerry Jones saying, doesn't matter. I am on opening night. The biggest numbers, you need me. What are your thoughts from talking around the league on how people see this all going? I think that opening weekend is always very difficult to predict. If we go back a year ago, I remember my father. I'll give him a little shout-out. Jeff Shefford telling me, are you kidding? I got my survivor figured out. The Cincinnati Bengals are a lock, and lo and behold, the New England Patriots go in and beat Cincinnati in Cincinnati.

47:01So the one thing about opening week is really these teams, there are some results that always come out and shock people. Now, maybe it's Dallas going into Philly tonight. I think Super Bowl champions since 2004 have a 15-5 record in this game. Dak Prescott has played very well against the Philadelphia Eagles. He didn't play in either game against the Eagles last year. And so Dak, when he's played against the Eagles, has been at his best. So I think Dallas is going to play with him tonight. And I can tell you that some people within the Eagles organization are uneasy because you just don't know how this is going to go.

47:37It's the opening game. Everybody's going to be fired up. You know, is Dallas going to be fired up to prove a point without Micah or is the defense going to suffer without him? But they have, obviously, Kenny Clarkson. It's just a lot of changes, a lot of unpredictability, a lot of uncertainty as we go into the opener. Look, Philadelphia is at home. There should be a ton of emotion and energy. They should find a way to win the game. But I don't see it being a blowout at all.

48:01Pat McAfee:Eight and a half is a lot of points, especially for the opening week. But what if they all come out fired up, the Eagles, and their offensive line just picks up the Dallas Cowboys D-line and just walks them down the field and Saquon Barkley's doing his shit from night one? There's a chance. There's a chance that that's going to happen. I mean, that could certainly take place. Kenny Clark, though, can say, I don't think so. Excited for tonight. It's going to be beautiful. Last question here. Let's stay in the NFC East. Go ahead, Ty. Yeah, Shefty, it was reported that the Cook-Coke family is buying, you know, 10 % of the Giants for a billion dollars.

48:37We've seen this happen a couple times now, you know, with a few teams. Why isn't every team currently doing this? And are you surprised that the Giants are now, what, the second most valuable team in the NFL? if this is to be correct? Well, I am surprised that not every team is doing this. Like, some teams have done it. Jeffrey Lurie with the Eagles did it and made it such that whatever he paid, he got back more and still retained 90%. Oh, by the way, back to before, I just got a text that the league announced Super Bowl week that they're going to play multiple games in Melbourne, Australia, beginning in 2026.

49:13Pat McAfee:Okay. Yeah, that's what we're saying. So how would that – never mind. So, but, uh, Rams are the designated team, but back to the giants. Yes. I'm surprised that there aren't more teams. Like every team is not selling 10 % of their team, getting back a billion dollars or whatever it is, putting that money in your pocket. There are some teams that could absolutely use that cash. Um, a number of them have done it. It seems like the sharper teams have done it and they still control, you know, 90 % of the team. So it's a no brainer with some of these private equity, uh, deals and these companies that are now allowed to buy into the nfl i don't know why more people aren't doing it yeah as soon as they pass the rule that yeah you can take vc money right up to 15 if you want that was them voting hey we're allowed to just snag a few hundred million maybe a billion dollars right yep okay deal we all say yes yes i thought it was just going to be everybody kind of doing it now the cook is it cook brothers or coke brothers how do you spell that how do you say that i mean i don't know how to pronounce it i think it's cook i've heard both i i've heard coke so we had a cook, John, that spelled it that way at our high school.

50:20Pat McAfee:Sure. K-O-C-H. Could shoot the three ball. He was a beast. He was a beast on a soccer field, too. I mean, he was way too big to be a soccer player. John Cook was older than me. He looked out for me as a freshman soccer player. I appreciate Mr. John Cook a lot. I think he's just outdoorsman right now. He's probably in the woods trying to kill something as we speak with it. He's probably got I would assume top hand, but maybe stand across the top and cope across the bottom. if I had to guess with him, but he said Cook, K-O-C-H. You never really know. They're saying it's Coke, though, in the back.

50:53Yeah, I thought I heard Coke. It's Koch. Could be Koch. It's not Koch. Yeah, except those Coke industries. And like that people would Like a cola? Yeah, exactly. And that was the confusion.

51:06Pat McAfee:Is it? No, I'm serious. Whatever. Welcome to the NFL. We have no idea who you are, but way to go. Way to go. We're happy for you. And congrats to the Giants. Mara might not be able to sleep, but his team is now valued up over$10 billion in actual valuation because of what he was able to sell it as opposed to just pontificating on what the value is. Congrats to him. Congrats to us. We made it to NFL season. We appreciate the hell out of you, Shefty. Guys, have a great week. Enjoy the first game of 272 tonight. It should be awesome. When you say it like that, it's going to go so quick. I know. Don't put a number on it like that.

51:39Pat McAfee:There's only 271 starting tomorrow morning. Jeez Louise. The countdown to the Super Bowl begins. That's the way it works. But you know what? Then there'll be more next year. So that's 272 regular season, Pat. Then we get the playoff games, too. So there's even more, so don't worry about it. Okay. We don't need any thinking about that. Yeah, what the hell? Yeah, all right. We appreciate you, ladies and gentlemen. We'll see you on Monday, Adam Schefter. Yay, Schefter! Love Schefter. The man. I love Schefter a lot. You know what else I like? What's that? We don't take commercial breaks, but there are a couple of advertisements.

52:11Pat McAfee:That's right. Only for companies that we really like. Sell out. Certainly. Somebody's got to pay for this fucking set. Yeah, exactly. Ram truck. Let me tell you what. The V8 is back. What? It's not just a V8. No, what? Say it. A Hemi V8. Oh, no. Fired up and... Get in on it. Motor Trend has chosen the Ram 1500 as its truck of the year for 2025. Wow. Let's go. Motor Trend's handing out awards. These awards matter. That's a big deal. Motor Trend says, hey, who's the greatest? Boom. Ram trucks, 1 ,500. It's like the Oscars of trucks. Yeah, and those matter. Oh, big time. Legacy definers. The people that are voting on it, no.

52:56Pat McAfee:They do. If they would have asked us, we would have said Ram 1 ,500 truck. That thing is like you're riding on clouds. It's got all the technology you need but still can haul anything you want. That 1 ,500, whenever I hit that gas pedal, sounds like a Ram 1 ,500. But it's not obnoxious, you see. I still want to be able to go down Main Street, stop at a little cafe. Then I want to be able to hop back in there and go to the farm. I want to be able to pull some hay. I want to be able to pull a truck. And I want to be able to live large and ride high. That's Ram Trucks to a T. That's 1500 Hemi V8 Ram Truck available now.

53:28Pat McAfee:Ram Trucks are also back on the track and returning to NASCAR Craftsman Truck Series for 2026. Good luck to all the other trucks in the Craftsman Truck Series. Might as well not even show up. You're screwed. I wonder if your truck's going to quit once it hears the ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram, ram. That's the best truck down the line. Get that the truth. That's ram trucks. All right. Some things we did not talk about. Damon Payne, who currently plays for Michigan, defensive lineman. It's not good for Kalen DeBoer. He was allegedly in a conversation and said, yeah, man, I feel better this year because we actually work out at Michigan.

54:02Pat McAfee:That's basically what he said. Alejandro Zuni.

54:11Pat McAfee:I don't know how to say the name. It's 100 % on me. Michigan D-line coach on Alabama. Transfer Damon Payne. We talked this week because we're playing Oklahoma. They played him last year when he was at Alabama. And there's a couple clips of him on tape. And I said, man, you look different on an Alabama team versus us. And he goes, coach, we run a lot more here. We work out differently. I feel way better. Man. Uh-oh. The hits keep coming for Kalen DeBoer. Yeah. This is Michigan, Oklahoma. Kalen DeBoer is in his office down there. Very clean. just the whole world is spinning around boosters are reaching out to on three we're about tired of this guy he's just sitting in there trying to figure out how to win a game gets all the way through the week and he's like all right i got everything alabama related out of the way we gotta have a big one this weekend i get it but at least last week's done and then bang from michigan oklahoma game wow alabama doesn't work hard down there questioning their entire culture out there this is just one hit after another for caitlin deborah and whenever you lose especially one of these high-profile schools, they're going to be looking and seeing everything.

55:09Pat McAfee:This is a story, though, because Alabama fans are going to see this and go, What do we do? Michigan? They don't work. They don't work hard under Kalen DeBoer. And then they immediately go, You think Saban's boys ever said we're not working hard around here? No way. Saban's in that building still. You know, that's because he's so addicted to ball, still addicted to his routine. I don't think he wants to have all of the responsibility of being a head coach anymore. He's 70. He feels like he's given enough to the game. He's already won enough. He wants to help. He wants to be around. But Kalen the Boar walks down that hallway and just sees his office and goes, that's the ghost I'm hunting with.

55:45Yeah, the guy was good.

55:46Pat McAfee:He walks on his way. Then he comes back. How'd you do it? How'd you do it? How am I supposed to do it? And then just puts his old visor on. Then just walks away. All right, Coach. And Nick Saban's like, all right, you've got to fucking at least work hard. At least have him working out out there. This guy's got to be in shape. They've had the same strength coach since 2020, so it's not like DeBoer brought a new guy, but he'd tell the old guy, hey, let's not work these boys as hard as Saban did. With that being said, I think we have same strength coach from when Neil Brown was there now with Rich Rod, and I do believe there's been a little bit different direction to the strength coach.

56:28Pat McAfee:Hey, CJ Donaldson had to lose 20 pounds when he got to Ohio State. Let's not have that happen anymore. Yeah. Sounds like that's close to what happened with Payne here from Bama to Michigan. Kalen, we're fans. We're sorry you're taking shrapnel, but also, I know. Yeah, and no pressure. You lose another game, it's over. There's a lot of pressure. We'll be back on the other side. That's Alabama football, baby. Amen. Roll Tide. As you know, managing maintenance, repair, and operations is never easy. But for the ones who always rise to the challenge, Grainger has your back. From professional-grade products you can count on to fast, dependable delivery, they're there to help you keep things running smoothly.

57:12Pat McAfee:Plus, their technical product specialists are here to help answer your toughest questions. And because Grainger knows safety is always a priority, they're committed to being your partner in protecting both your people and your facilities. Call 1-800-GRAINGER, click grainger.com, or just stop by. Hey Chicago, class it up with Crocs You know back to school is coming in fast So why wait to find your new fave footwear Step into a local Crocs store and step into your new look Try it, style it, make it yours Because the right pair doesn't just show up, it shows off First day fits, handled Walk out ready for whatever's next Visit your nearest Crocs store today

58:01Pat McAfee:Football is majestic and we're so incredibly lucky that tonight we have an NFL game. The Philadelphia Eagles host the Dallas Cowboys to kick off the greatest season in NFL history. An eight and a half point spread for the home team. Will they be able to cover and be dominant like they were in the Super Bowl 207 days ago? Or will this scrappy Dallas Cowboys team, who's been counted out all offseason without Michael Parsons, go into the city of brotherly love and keep this thing close? That's what we're all trying to predict as we lay down our wagers on this NFL kickoff Thursday. The Talks at Tables here at Boston Conner and at Ty Schmidt.

58:42Pat McAfee:It's glorious day, Ty. It is glorious day. You know, listen, the last several weeks I've been trying to kind of keep my mind occupied and saying, And, hey, listen, I still got the Yankees. I'm excited about that. I got Iowa football. This is great. I woke up this morning and I felt alive. I really did. And, listen, the Packers aren't even playing tonight. We have NFL football back. I mean, you hate to say it because a lot of what you do in your life matters, clearly, but it feels almost like nothing really matters until you wake up this morning and you understand that the NFL – Because we've been waiting all of us through Thursday night.

59:14Pat McAfee:Is that debuting tonight? New Sunday Night Football song? Let's hope. Because Sunday Night Football is on this evening. We love the offseason. We love sports. We appreciate sports. Derby was fun. Home run derby was elected. Thank you to the MLB for allowing us to be a part of that. NFL season just feels special. Let's go to one half of the hammer. Cowboys AP Tone. Happy NFL football day to you. And to you. Thank you. What are your thoughts on tonight's spread? Tonight's spread, I think it's a little high, but as we've talked about it. What's your chat GP Tone say? it's funny you say that the NFL one started processing this morning it's not done yet so oh late to the dance a little late to the dance you're right caught up in college football if it finishes by the time the show's over whatever it's still percolating in there I will let you know what was that they shoveling coal at the Chad G.P.

1:00:10oh I'm sorry

1:00:14Pat McAfee:oh boy they're not going to like you. Yeah, you should watch what you're saying about these things. These things listen, and these things like to gossip. I talk to mine every day, and we're on a great relationship. I'll tell you what, mine wasn't bad. I asked it how many days it was since the Super Bowl popped up 207. Then I immediately don't believe it. So then I go search it somewhere else. So I feel like I have trust issues with my potential AI. I operate with Grok. I haven't gone to the GP tone yet. But I do appreciate that you're over there trying to get the books for us. If I had to take a guess, I would assume it would have the spread be more than seven just because right now it's using stats from last year, and last year Dak didn't play.

1:00:53They didn't have a running game. Their defense was terrible. What? But this is a new Cowboys team. When you have CD and GP and Ferguson and Javante Williams comes over the Broncos and you got Dak back, I think the offense is – I'm actually – that's not who I normally am. I might take that over.

1:01:11Pat McAfee:Whoa! Whoa, really? We're going to score some points, even though normally opening game, a little bit of a cagey affair on the offensive side as everybody tries to feel it out. Joining us now, ladies and gentlemen, is a man who has the most tackles in the history of the Green Bay Packers. Mike Parsons is going to be chasing them. Yes, he will. He's a college football national champion, a Super Bowl champion, and a Ryder Cup winner. Ladies and gentlemen, A.J. Hawk is here. Happy NFL football day to you, A.J. Yeah, it's a beautiful day for everybody. But is anybody going to pick the Cowboys tonight?

1:01:38And do you. For what? For spread or straight up? Straight up. Is anyone going to pick – you know, when we see the things the pregame shows, is it going to be all Eagles?

1:01:46Pat McAfee:Over the past two days, I have not seen a single star pop up on any of the predictions. It's not just this game, though. There's a lot of games where everybody feels the exact same way. And I think that goes back to what Schefter was talking about, and we all agree with him. Early in the season, we have no idea. That's like why Coach Lee Corso going perfect, college football week one is insane because nobody has a clue who's going to show up except for Coach Corso. Nobody has an idea of what team's going to be what. Of course you assume the Philadelphia Eagles are just going to pick up where they left off last year at the Super Bowl.

1:02:19Pat McAfee:Of course you're going to think that the Philadelphia Eagles learned who exactly they were during that playoff run when they were very dominant, and they're just going to carry that into the season. There's still a bunch of new pieces. There's new operations. There's a new feel. It's a new time of year. There's so many different new things that you have to have a question mark around all the things that we assume to be true. And for the Dallas Cowboys, it's like they can be very motivated. Yeah. And motivation is a big deal in football, especially with how physical it is, especially on opening night where things can be a little bit ugly, maybe not put together.

1:02:47Pat McAfee:It's like Shadi getting his opportunity to lead the Cowboys. It's like you're welcome for the amount of shit that you could just pull from and motivate the boys. I have no idea what's going to happen tonight, genuinely, but I think the safe thing and the easy thing to do is just the Eagles are going to win. And that's what everybody has done on these shows that are picking, AJ. Yeah, I mean, the Eagles, believe me, they are absolutely stacked and loaded when it comes to talent and where everybody is. But the Cowboys, this is like a win-win situation. They could have a moral victory if they keep it close and look pretty good.

1:03:18So I think for the Cowboys, like, they have great things. Hey, guys, nobody's giving us a chance. Here we go. We can shock the world here week one.

1:03:25Pat McAfee:But what if they lose by 20? Yeah. That's tough. It'll be loud. It'll be loud. Exactly. And I think that's a possibility. Like, I think there's so many possibilities for this game. Like, UNC-TCU, I actually said during my pick, this could go very different directions you know like could bill belichick figure out how to out fundamental and out scheme tcu maybe there's a chance that first drive oh here it is it's happening we knew tcu's offense was going to score so were they just going to battle possibly but then for tcu to blow them out i was like that was always a possibility nobody had a clue who was on this north carolina team feels like for this game anything's possible this dallas team has won on a regular basis in the regular season.

1:04:06Pat McAfee:That is what it is. This is a regular season game. Getting eight and a half points in of itself disrespectful. The entire world calling your team dumb for letting one guy leave the building. And I haven't heard a lot of people coming out saying we miss him. No, not at all. Nobody has. I haven't heard that. Now, nobody's been asked. Maybe they've been told not to say anything. I think Dak was like, nothing needed to be said and just kind of moved along. We don't want to cause any more drama. There's already been enough drama. there's a chance that that is very real. But it feels like both sides happy with the trade, team included.

1:04:38Pat McAfee:So if you're shoddy, you're sitting in a good spot for things that you can put up on the bulletin board to let the boys know about. Yeah, like aside from the broken heart tweets from a couple of them, there really hasn't been the glowing, like, hey, without Micah, we're going to miss him so much. He meant so much to this team. There hasn't been any of those. But even just looking at the Cowboys' offense as a whole, it could be Dak's best offense he's ever had. You know, we've never seen Shoddy as a play caller, but just when you're thinking skill, George Pickens, C.D. Lamb, both. I mean, you could argue C.D.

1:05:10definitely already in his prime. George, you could argue kind of getting there. Maybe this will probably be the best quarterback he's ever played with, George Pickens. Ferguson just got paid a bunch of money. We always talk about that year one to year two jump for rookies. Their rookie old lineman Booker from Alabama, he's supposed to be their dude this year up front. So who knows? Eight points is a lot.

1:05:30Pat McAfee:He points it a lot. Connor's heavy on the Dallas Cowboys, as you can hear through him talking through the first hour and eight minutes of this show. Once again, we are commercial-free for this second hour. What? Terrible guy. Coward sellout. Commercial-free. Now, it doesn't mean we're advertising-free, but we are commercial-free. It's almost as if that is what we would prefer, you know, in most things, as if we stood on a table for that to be a thing, and we do it every single day. With that being said, the ESPN bet is taking bets now. Now, for anything that you would potentially want to wager on this evening's NFL kickoff, ESPN Bet is there for you.

1:06:07Pat McAfee:Bet$10, get$100 in bonus bets. That's what it says. You should look into it entirely to see how you get that$100 in bonus bets. That is just smart. And use promo code GET100. Yeah. Definitely look at the asterisk, though, to see how you can get that$100. Without a doubt. And whenever you're betting on that, know that this first week, it's going to be tough to predict anything. It's very. A lot of heart betting here in the first couple weeks. and that's not where you want to be if you're trying to really be cerebral in your sports gambling world. But right now, it's all in your heart what you think.

1:06:36Pat McAfee:Do you believe in Nick Sirianni and the boys? Yes. Yeah. Do you believe Shottie will have the boys be able to keep this a fight? Connor says yes. Does everybody else? We shall see. Well, that's the thing. You just said it right there. You bet him with your heart early on. This isn't heart. This isn't like, hey, Cowboys have so much to pull through from. This isn't Eagles fall off Super Bowl. This is strictly like eight and a half points in an NFL game. We talk about it all the time. When it's week 12 and one of the teams is two and, you know, 10 and the other is 12 and two and it's a 14-point spread, okay.

1:07:09But it's week one. Like, we have no idea. So saying like, oh, yeah, definitely this year's Eagles team is the, you know, the eight points better than this year's Cowboys team. It just feels like with the Micah stuff, with the Jerry stuff, also with how good the Eagles have been, it's easy to do that.

1:07:25Pat McAfee:The year we were 2-14, I think it was nine games that were one-score games. So if we end up winning those ones that we lost, we have 11 wins right there. And it's like if the ball bounces a different way, happens to bounce up into D. I don't think D-Boat was on the team. No, he wasn't on the team. He came afterwards. Happens to bounce up into Gerard Powers' hands, and he scores a touchdown late, we win. It's very difficult to blow people out in the NFL because everybody's professional football players. But, boy, you listen to the internet a little bit. It feels like Dallas Cowboys are going to get absolutely murdered.

1:08:00Pat McAfee:Go ahead, Tone. Yeah, and this stat I'm going to give you is not 100%. It is 60%. Since 2010, when teams are underdogs of six points or more, they have covered 60 % of the time. Now 60%, not 100%, okay? It's not 100 % stat. But gambling, we like to live in the – This feels like the fourth down graphic on the screen saying 60%. Go for it. Go for it. We like to live in the margins. 53 % will get you home and get you a winner for the season. Joining us now, ladies and gentlemen, is a man who has a prediction special airing at 3 o 'clock on ESPN. Friend of the program, former guest host, Emmy Award winner, ladies and gentlemen, Peter Schrager.

1:08:36Pat McAfee:Schrager, Schrager, Schrager, good to see you. Happy NFL kickoff day. It feels so good. It feels like a holiday. I'm in Bristol, Connecticut, where Pat, AJ, you'd be happy to know. I already got a corner office with a view and everything. Is that Foss's office? It is. It's Mr. Foss's office. We're here at the big boss's office, and I'm using it as my studio here for the Pat McAfee show. Yeah, well, we appreciate Foss lending that corner office for you. He does have a good view. I believe right outside that, if you look to your left right there, there's a wall of windows, and then there's a bunch of people out there.

1:09:08Pat McAfee:Yep. Huge fans of ours. Tell them we said hello. All those people. You want to see him? We could see him. I'd rather not, yeah. Hey, good to see you guys. Foss. Foss. Foss. Good to see you, Foss. Foss, don't make any noise out there, Foss. Foss is the man. Everybody behind Foss, massive fans of ours. Yeah, it's good up there. Oh, come on. Happy family. We don't tell I'm here. This is it. Everyone's been very nice. Yeah, to you. Sure. So let's talk about tonight's game. And let's talk about the prediction special that you have at 3 o 'clock. Is it predicting tonight's game? Or what exactly does the prediction special with Peter Schrager at 3 p.m.

1:09:41Pat McAfee:on ESPN entail? So every year when I was on Good Morning Football, I would bring out this Super Bowl prediction with great pomp and circumstance. And I've been very accurate. I had the Rams winning the Super Bowl. I had the Bucs going. I had the Chiefs all these years. And I came to ESPN. I said, I kind of like the flavor of that. Can we put a group together and can we do a special around actual official predictions? And it's not just a Super Bowl prediction, Pat. You got to tell us your seven teams in the AFC and your seven teams in the NFC. Seat them out and let's go. And guess what? When you do that, there's going to be a lot of fan bases that say, hey, wait, you said all offseason we were going to be good.

1:10:16Why didn't you pick us? It's easy just to say every team's going to be great. Now you put your money where your mouth is and your name where your heart is. And I have got my seven teams in both conferences. And I have my Super Bowl pick, which I will unveil at 3 p.m.

1:10:29Pat McAfee:Okay, I can't wait to see that. Who all is doing this with you? Just you? Who's signing up to get their shins bashed by? That's exactly what it is. It's like, it's not pleasant. Like, I was going to ask you guys. I'm like, there's no win to doing this. But here's the group. We got Jason McCourty, who's been through this wreckage before. He worked with me on Good Morning Football. Got Orlovsky. He said he's going to do it. He doesn't know any better. Born in the dark. Born in the dark. Definitely, I would love to do that. Let me piss off how many people? Yes, I'm in. That's it. And then Field Yates is smart.

1:10:57I'm like, let's go with him. He'll say no. He didn't say no. He's like, yes, let's do it. So Field, who is maybe the nicest guy on the universe, is going to do it and is going to find some hate online after he doesn't pick everyone's team to make the playoffs.

1:11:08Pat McAfee:His hair, though, is going to be tough for people to hate on him with how he looks right now. He is truly phenomenal. Cannot wait to watch that, see all the predictions from everybody and see who they pissed off or omit. Let's talk about tonight's game, Shregs. How do you see this evening going? Obviously, you talk to a lot of people. We know that whenever things get close to actually happening, that's when you have the most information. Go ahead. Go on. No, no. I was going to say, I was going to give you credit and flowers for draft night and everything about a week before draft night. You might not have all the answers.

1:11:36Pat McAfee:Draft day, you have all the answers. Before kickoff day, maybe don't have all the answers, how everybody feels. Kickoff day, feels like you have it all. Feels like you don't try to rush your shit. You just say, hey, when I get it, I'll have it. What are you hearing about tonight? What are your thoughts on NFL season kicking off as a whole? I so appreciate that. It's why I don't do a mock draft in December. It's why I don't make my Sewell prediction until about three hours before kickoff. Because I like to see everything and I like to know. I will say this. Yeah. As much as this network and every other network has been destroying Jerry Jones over the last two weeks for this trade, and maybe rightfully so, the Cowboys don't feel like their defense is going to be 32nd in the league.

1:12:16In fact, the Cowboys feel pretty darn good with their defense, even without Micah Parsons. Now, there might be egg all over that face of theirs, but I have heard a lot of people in that building tell me, you know, you guys are underestimating what Dante Fowler can bring, what Sam Williams can bring. We drafted a kid in the second round at a Boston College who can rush to passer. There are several different voices who feel like this Cowboys defense might be okay without Micah Parsons, and this isn't going to be the worst trade in the history of the NFL.

1:12:44Pat McAfee:There's a lot to pull from if you're shoddy. And Iberflus, obviously, his first year back with Dallas. And obviously they've got stars on their team still, but they've been disrespected heavily. And the point spread, 8.5, is certainly just the latest of the disrespect that the Dallas Cowboys can try to spur some motivation from. Go ahead, AJ. Yeah, Shregs, when you're looking at this Cowboys offense, I feel like Dak has kind of flown under the radar throughout this offseason. I think he might be poised to have a big year. What are you expecting this offense tonight? Guyton, ultimately, can this offensive line hold up?

1:13:15Because I feel like they have so many weapons on the perimeter that they could do some great things. That's going to be the big question. They've got such a young offensive line with all those first-round picks that are going to be playing, whether it be Guyton or Smith and, of course, Booker now. You've got youth all over that offensive line. If they can hold up, this is going to be an explosive offense. They have continuity with Brian Schottenheimer now as the head coach. He was the obvious play caller last year when he was doing it with McCarthy. And then now you look at this and you add George Pickens, who has a carrot at the end of the season of you can get a monster contract like you just saw Terry McLaurin get or you just saw DK Metcalf get if you have a good season.

1:13:53George Pickens is in the final year of a contract. They did not renegotiate his deal. The rap on him is that he is a bad vibes for the locker room guy. So far in Dallas, he's been great in the locker room. He goes out there and he takes some of the pressure off CeeDee Lamb. There is a great reward for him, a pot of gold at the end of the rainbow. And Dak was second in the MVP voting two years ago. So, AJ, I'm with you. I don't know where this thought of Micah Parsons was the entire Cowboys identity. I know that thing was ugly, and it got weird. And when they traded him, it was like, well, the Cowboys aren't doing anything.

1:14:24They don't feel that way. And that's all I can say as far as the vibes coming out of Dallas right now.

1:14:29Pat McAfee:And Jerry said, we got four first-round picks over the next two drafts. Don't think I won't just do something right now. Stay tuned. We'll see how it looks on Thursday night. I say we need another pass rusher, maybe I go hunting for it. We got full first round picks. Pat, did you watch the doc, the cherry doc? I've seen portions of it. I have not gone all the way through it. Darius is watching it for a second time. Everybody in here is telling me. Peter Berg said it's the greatest sports doc that he's ever seen. It's up there. Really? Yeah, there is. There's a lot of people that really, really love it that have been telling me I need to watch it.

1:15:03Pat McAfee:And I'm like, all right, I'm going to try. I'm going to try. I'm going to try. But I want to really commit to it before Sunday. you know, cause I think, yeah, now that the season is starting. Yeah. I have to get into it. Yeah. So I'm going to try. I think a lot of, a lot of what you're seeing in the last two months with this Micah thing is explained in this documentary with how this man lives his life, how he goes about his business and how, when the haters and the, those who dismiss get louder and louder, it makes him want to zag even more. It's not stubbornness all the time. Sometimes it is ingenuity, but sometimes it is stubbornness and sometimes it is, I'm going to do it my way.

1:15:39through hell or high water. And it worked early on. Question is, at 82 years old, is this trade going to be their undoing or not? They don't think it is.

1:15:47Pat McAfee:He was 50 million in debt and he was still trying to get more money. Jerry Jones is going to sit in the pocket. I think that is a trait that he certainly has from the parts that I've seen. But yeah, I think it's all been on display. And even on the red carpet of the documentary out there at Netflix, he goes, if they're not talking about something, I'll give them something to talk about. You know, it's always nice to have the Cowboys in the conversation, which then leads to Cowboys fans saying, Jer, maybe at one point when you were trying to build the business, that was good. Now we are an established business.

1:16:16Pat McAfee:Let's try to win the Super Bowl. Well, their fans voted allegedly on The Athletic. Connor has a question for you. Yeah, Shrags, we have a Hopo Meter article, and this was taken, you know, survey basically from people who do surveys online. And it's basically just optimism for the season and then pessimistic for the season. the good teams I assume are great, but is there anything for the bad teams that you got here? Not the Colts because we know, hey, the Colts are obviously, they're going to figure it out. They're just upset with the Believers. But what about these teams down there? I think you see the Cowboys.

1:16:51Pat McAfee:Cowboys are third lowest. I mean, that's ridiculous. Cowboys are a good team. They're going to compete this year. I see two other teams that I'm very high on that are awfully low on this thing. Yeah, the Fins. Your Fins are up there. That's what you said last time. My Fins. My fins are 82 % in the tank. I mean, come on. The Miami Dolphins bring back just about everyone on offense. They have a healthy team for the first time. They had 100 % participation in their offseason program, and they get their two great veteran defensive players, Bradley Chubb and Phillips, back from injuries who didn't play last year, in addition to Chop Robinson.

1:17:28I don't know why everyone's so down on the Dolphins. I like the Dolphins. I'm high on the Dolphins. The other team, a couple notches above them. why would people be down in the Bengals? They did everything you asked them to do and they finished it and they got it done before the start of the season and they're finally healthy. So Dolphins and Bengals I'm very high on despite what this athletic confidence-o-meter doop-doop-doop-doop-doop

1:17:51Pat McAfee:Yodaly, yodaly, yodaly, yodaly Yeah, people are up there. Now, I do have to add in because one of the only classes I went to was a sociology class with Professor Nancy Feather and I appreciate the hell out of her. Nancy Feather. Shout out. Yeah. that's a great name she was great she was awesome she was g um massive class or like small 20-person lecture what are we talking pretty big class pretty big class i'm sitting like left hollow there uh professor feather professor feather that is so cool in the hand or passive uh me i'm not in the room yeah i'm hands down like this and i'm just i'm learning i'm learning i'm learning you know what i'm learning i'm trying to learn it's not my world i should not be speaking in here you know I would like to understand what's going on here.

1:18:31Pat McAfee:I don't go to a lot of classes. I've heard this one's interesting. I would like to hear you speak. She was. She was very interesting. I appreciated sociology as a whole. I think it's helped me out as I've kind of moved on. But one of her first classes was about polls being absolute bullshit, basically. She was like, you just need to understand that polls are absolute bullshit. If you were to go and survey 100 people here in Morgantown versus 100 people in Pittsburgh, and then you just said you surveyed 100 people, don't you think both those people would have complete opposite answers so you always have to think about who are the people that were filling out the poll like who was going to the athletic reading the athletic and then deciding to vote on this you know like you have to you have to categorize the human who is the poll and then realize that's how these humans feel about the poll but i don't think you can just dismiss it completely i don't think you could just say like nah those people don't represent the rest of the fan base i do think this was a pretty good take on how basically the vibes of the team.

1:19:28Pat McAfee:I do think it was very... My natural reaction is normally pulls are bullshit. That is normally my reaction. But whenever I looked at this, it was like, feels like you could certainly find a significant group of every fan base that does feel this way. So I think it's good. I'm going to call it the feather corollary. What is it called? The collary? Ty Schmidt's smarter than me. What is it? What do you call it? The corollary. Corollary. I'm going to call it the feather corollary here and I'm going to say this is all BS. It's all before the season. And every year, Pat, we get turnover of four to five different playoff teams and we never go back and revisit what the August vibes on ESPN talking head shows were, right?

1:20:06Like to me, I look at the rosters. I look at the continuity between the Bengals and the Dolphins. I would also add in that conversation, the Cowboys that with the exception of Micah Parsons and Zach Martin, you know, they pretty much brought all their stars back and they're healthy so i would feel better about those teams and as for the broncos look sean payton's one of my closest sources sorry gave it away one of my favorite people sean payton's been been talking doing a victory parade all offseason about how good they are and it seems like everyone just went with that and it's like well sean payton says to the local media that we feel pretty good about bo nicks he must be going to the hall of fame so i'm going to put the pause signal up there just for now and say let's see it before we go all in and say they're 100 % optimistic they're going to dethrone the Chiefs this year.

1:20:48Pat McAfee:AFC West obviously loaded. Broncos, everybody likes. I think your interview with him in the Schrager Hour didn't hurt anything. I think it went over pretty positively. Congratulations on the Schrager Hour being announced and happening. New podcast. 2025, new podcast is the right time. That is the right time to do that. I felt like there weren't enough out there. It's just this kind of little niche thing, the podcast, where the marketplace hasn't fully been. So I figured that's what people need, another football podcast, and that's what I'm going to do. Well, Schreger, anything you do, we're happy about it.

1:21:20Pat McAfee:We're watching and listening, and I think a lot of people feel that way. But I do appreciate that there was a big announcement for another podcast. Look at the photo. For another podcast, yeah. It's like, yeah, I appreciate it. Schreger, anything you do, you're going to be great at it. Yeah, yeah, Schreger. We want you to know that. But you interviewed Sean Payton. It was good, and I think it was super positive. But that AFC West is crazy. Chiefs charges Friday night. What are your thoughts going into that? Obviously, Harbaugh is looking to institute his full culture. Andy Reid and the boys are trying to get back on track after getting blown out in the Super Bowl in the biggest stage.

1:21:49Pat McAfee:They're still the AFC champions. They're still the best in the AFC. They have been, will be. Everybody has a sour taste in their mouth because of the Super Bowl. Is that what you're thinking whenever it comes to the Chiefs? And how do you feel about Friday night? I think people forget that Patrick Mahomes last year for the majority of the season was throwing catch with Sky Moore and Justin Watson and, you know, a beleaguered offensive skill set positions that he usually had loaded rosters with. And that's nothing against those guys, but DeAndre Hopkins being acquired midway through the season and, you know, Kareem Hunt being taken off the scrap heap in week three and being asked to start and play big roles.

1:22:29That's not ideal. I think this year you come in and you've got a fresh and – can you hear me? Yeah, you're still on.

1:22:37Pat McAfee:You're still clear. You're still very clear. We've got a fresh Hollywood Brown, a rejuvenated Isaiah Pacheco, who's coming off the injury and is apparently looking great. I think they feel very good about their team. And just because they lost to the Super Bowl, to the Eagles, and lost that way doesn't mean that they're suddenly off a cliff. They still won the AFC. That said, this thing is a wild card. The fact that it's being played in Brazil, and we don't know the playing surface, and we don't know the travel situation, and we don't know it's the ultimate neutralizer when you go to a field in a stadium in a country that's 12 hours away like the nfl is promoting this international stuff big they want this to work and it's great this is not arrowhead or sofi there is a giant variable and whatever team adjusts quicker and can make a couple plays early on and get their footing i think it's going to make a big impact in this one you would think back-to-back years for the chiefs probably helps them out a little bit right having to go on a road play to something like that you would think it would help them.

1:23:34Pat McAfee:They seem to be pretty jovial. They understand that they are representing the NFL everywhere they go, and I appreciated the fans last year. Place is packed, so let's see if it happens again. Let's see if it happens again. Last question here from a team you're also very close with out there in Los Angeles. Go ahead, Tone. Yes, you are, Shregs, and it was reported this week that Matthew Stafford is fully healthy and ready to go. What do you think the sigh of relief is with that Rams team, especially now they have Puka and Devontae and that offensive line and running everything that that team has.

1:24:06What's your vibe coming out of Los Angeles from that stuff? If Matthew stays healthy, they've got a shot to win the whole thing, and that's the huge if. And as much as he's healthy week one, we don't know if he's going to be healthy week four, week 10, week 15. This is a long season, and people know now that there is a guy who's got back stuff going on under center. So that is going to be the topic of the day for them. Every time they go and take the field, can Matthew make it through the week? truth of the matter is Jimmy G was out there all summer while Matthew wasn't and was lighting up defenses too they did the intercamp practice with the Cowboys I told you guys Jimmy G looked incredible during those few days and they feel like they've got a really capable backup but to your point Puka, Devante, Williams you got Tutu as your speed guy they feel like the rookie at Oregon at tight end Ferguson's going to be a star like they feel very good about this team in this offense and the defense exceeded expectations.

1:24:58So it's really to me just who's standing at the end of the season. And if Stafford's under center, I wouldn't want to face him.

1:25:04Pat McAfee:All right, you want to give us a couple little sneak peeks at some predictions from the Prediction Show at 3 p.m.? AJ, don't you think we should maybe get a couple little predictions? Yeah, maybe one or two, I think, Shregs. Yeah, let's go, Shregs. AJ, a couple predictions. Number one, I don't have the Detroit Lions making the playoffs. Wow. All right, Shregs. Whoa. What happened? Whoa. Whoa. They're the number one seed in the NFC. Wow. Number one. Had 100 injuries. I was playing defense. I don't hate them. I don't hate them. I love them. I think that NFC North is loaded, and I think the loss of two coordinators is not being discussed enough.

1:25:44Those two men are absolute Gs at what they do, and that's Ben Johnson and Aaron Glenn, arguably the two best coordinators in all of football last year, and I think we look at a healthy Aiden Hutchinson. We look at a healthy couple players. We say, okay, well, they're back. I think there's going to be a steep drop-off without those two men calling plays on offense. He's dying on Detroit. Wow. I did not see that coming. This is why we do the prediction show because it's easy just to say, here's my Super Bowl teams. I like the Bills and I like the Rams.

1:26:13Pat McAfee:Yeah, yeah, piss off Detroit. Number one seed in the NFC. You take big swing. Welcome to ESPN, Shregs. I hope you don't see NFC DC. Welcome to ESPN, Shregs. Yeah, take the hat off. Let me see you in your eyes. Let them see your eyes. All right, do you have another team you want to piss off or a team that you want to make happy or anything like that? I'll make – you want another piss-off one? I'll do another piss-off one. Jeez. Yes, love it. Oh, my God, Shrakes. You just told Detroit that they're the same old Lions. He's wrong. Not the brand new Lions. They were the number one seed in the NFC last year.

1:26:45Pat McAfee:Okay, they're not going to make the playoffs. 15-2. 15-2. That's Peter Schrager. That's Peter Schrager's prediction show that you can watch the three-plus. It's so easy to go on any network and just pick the chalk. It is bold and it is fun to take a risk. And I'm going to take the heat from the Lions fans. I hope I'm wrong. Of course. Now, another prediction. Another prediction. Here we go. From the office of Peter Schrager via Mike Foss. The Cincinnati Bengals are going to the playoffs. And Joe Burrow will be your league MVP. Let's go. Oh, that's a big prediction. Paid a lot of money. Hold on, hold on, hold on.

1:27:26Pat McAfee:Boom! Crank that, soldier boy, dog. I like that. Maybe a little bit more of a buildup on that one. Yeah, there you go, there you go. Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Ah, you got it, okay. You see that John Hark's jersey behind me? One of the great American soccer players of all time. He played with courage. He played with pride. that's what I'm going to do at 3 o 'clock Eastern on ESPN on the Worldwide Leader. Good luck, Shrags. We're pulling for you. Where's your shin guards, ladies and gentlemen? Peter Shrag. Wow. Geez. Wow. I mean, that's just a classic new school dude pick.

1:28:02Pat McAfee:He doesn't care about grit at all. He doesn't care about trenches at all. The Bengals are not tough. Probably the least tough team in the league. And then he says the Lions, the most tough team in the league, aren't going to make the playoffs. that makes no sense to me. Cincinnati's eating actual rubble for lunch at work. Who's on there off the line? Shrek is doing this to Foxy right now. He's just playing him like a puppet. He's got him big time. That's what you're doing to him, Shrek. You got Foxy just like this. Shrek. He's got him. He's playing you like an absolute puppet over there, Foxy.

1:28:40Pat McAfee:And you know what? MCDC's just going to show that to the team and say, look at this asshole on ESPN. He doesn't believe in you guys. Let's go beat Greenback. All right, Shreks. We appreciate that, Shreks. I love you guys. I love you guys. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah. Ladies and gentlemen, Shreks. Lit last one. Love him. Same old line. Yep. Joe Burrow winning the MVP. That'd be a big deal. I mean, if their defense was pretty good, he would have won it last year. Yeah. And is that why they're going to give it to him this year if they make the playoffs? Play it pretty well. You earned it last year, actually.

1:29:14Pat McAfee:It was a two-year thing. And H, I want to let you know, a lot of chatter from the boys before we started this commercial free hour. A lot of chatter from the boys about your hair, about you sticking with it and how proud we are. Yeah, I'm firmly in the camp of, hey, keep going, brother. Fight the good fight, man. Don't give up. There's nothing to do either way. I'm just growing my sides out, yeah. It's going to be weird for a long time. A long time, yeah. But what we're saying is there's going to be a lot of mornings you're going to go and look at that mirror. You're going to go, Jesus, his hair.

1:29:45Pat McAfee:just not doing anything that it should do. That's every day. Just take a compliment. I don't know if it was exactly a compliment. I don't know if you guys can tell. I'm a bit sweaty. This room is 82 degrees. We're waiting on a few pieces for our furnace, so there's no window to crack. Yesterday, it was going through. I got a little thermometer over there. I see that sucker hit 82, so I'm trying not to sweat profusely on here. Well, if you were to start sweating profusely, we would respect it. Just want to let you know that. 82 degrees, no window to crack. Furnace has a couple issues. what's the issue it won't turn off is that is that kind of you know i'm up in the attic and it won't blow cold air so the dude came out and had to shut it all the way down now to get the new part tomorrow okay so you're just kind of sitting up where all the hot air rises to yeah there's nowhere yeah there's no like if you could crack a window it'd probably be all right but you know i don't who knows where the closest window is well probably right behind that book shelf behind the show this is the shelf up in the attic so there's no you know there's no windows around me it's probably that'd be terrible actually room for a tornado it's like the buried top of the house.

1:30:47You wouldn't be able to see it coming, though.

1:30:49Pat McAfee:Wouldn't be able to see it coming, which is certainly an added advantage. I appreciate you being as gritty as you are today, showcasing that toughness, wearing long, thick sleeves that you can inside 82 degrees.

1:31:04This episode is brought to you by Facebook. So you were scrolling on Marketplace, and there it was, the bike you'd been searching for. You sent a message, and it turned out the seller was super chatty, kind of funny, and an avid cyclist. The next thing you know, you're in a cycling crew. Well, a community cycling group. The thing about Facebook, you might find more than what you're looking for. From a browse to a bike ride, this summer, find more on Facebook. This episode is brought to you by Google Chrome. You think you know a browser, but Gemini and Chrome? That's new. It can help you with practically anything on the web, like restoring a vintage motorcycle from a 50-page restoration block, or finally break down that long article you've had open for weeks.

1:31:50Gemini and Chrome is here for it. Ready to make anything online make sense? There's no place like Chrome. Check responses set up required compatibility and availability varies 18+.

1:32:03Pat McAfee:A former coach of yours is going to be incredibly proud of you. There's a Yenzer that has represented the city in football so damn well as a head coach for 17 seasons in the NFL. Most recently with the Dallas Cowboys. Obviously, you all came to love this man as the head coach of the Green Bay Packers. He's a Super Bowl champion. He's a Yenzer legend. Ladies and gentlemen, joining us every single week on Thursdays. Coach Mike McCormick. Yeah, Cole! You look awesome. Holy hell. This is, yeah. Thank you. No, it's great to be on, Pat. I missed you guys. Go ahead. You look, Did you know this is how he was going to look?

1:32:41Pat McAfee:I am so sorry. I'm so jacked up. I had no idea you were going to look this cool. The backdrop, awesome. Beautiful. Super Bowl championship. The hat, the button down. Kind of the loose, casual. Professional. With the night photo in the back. Coach, you look awesome. We want to let you know that. We appreciate the hell out of you. Okay. I mean, I don't even know what to say. What the hell was you expecting me to look like, AJ? Help me on. You got a great camera setup. I think your production value is very high. you look great coach you look amazing oh thank you well i got a lot yeah a lot of people give credit to there obviously my wife jessica took care of me behind me so i'm gonna go dance great artist great artist we've been in there before an incredible artist uh we appreciate you joining us today's a great day to have you on obviously dallas cowboys opening up the nfl season tonight taking on the philadelphia eagles you obviously understand that rivalry you understand that nfc east better than anybody that would be talking into a microphone at this point what are the emotions of this evening and how much do you think shoddy and the dallas cowboys are drawing on how much everybody has kind of counted them out since the micah parsons trade oh i think they're enjoying it clearly um i think just like anything this is a huge division game it's a rival game uh i guarantee everybody in that locker room is expected to go out there and win tonight so i'm looking for a super competitive game i know they're excited about it you know obviously last year you know away to two games when you know the outcome of last year's two games but yeah this is going to be a hell of a football game i'm excited to watch it uh if you're shoddy are you thankful for everything that has happened during your short tenure thus far obviously trading away micah has uh created a lot of noise around the team a lot of people saying it's the dumbest franchise a lot of people saying they have no chance a lot of people kind of burying them if you're shoddy do you like that as a coach that you can draw from it or what are your thoughts on having that be the start of your coaching career in Dallas with all the chaos that kind of took place outside?

1:34:38You know, I think the thing for Brian is he understands it. I mean, there's always two components that you learn when you work there. And the pure football part of it's excellent. I mean, there's so much to love about this Dallas Cowboy football team. And I know he realizes that. So, and when you just keep it about football, like I said, this is a very good football team, a very young football team. And, you know, and this is always a great game, you know, Philadelphia and Dallas. So I think you just got to keep it more about that. Now, all the other stuff that goes on, that's part of the environment there.

1:35:12You know, that's part of the content-driven business that Jerry's the master of. But, and you just got to learn to separate that. And, you know, personally, it took me a couple years. And frankly, it was a conversation that I had with Jerry. I think it was about 2022, where just everything we talk about right here, that's what counts. And all the other stuff is business. And I think when you realize that, and I think the players there now realize that too, the current players, because this is a hell of a locker room. I'm really high on these guys. I know we've talked about these guys during the draft visit, but I think this is a young, ascending football team.

1:35:51I like the additions that they've made. So I look for a super competitive game tonight. Okay, go ahead, AJ. Coach, any time we've been around you, you're very high on Dak Prescott and everything that he does as a quarterback and as a leader of that team. I guess, what do you expect from him not only tonight but the rest of the season? Number one, stay healthy. He stays healthy. He'll reach every goal that he has set out for his team and himself. I do believe that in heart of hearts. I think Dak is clearly what I would call a full operational quarterback. You know, when you get into the postseason, you start building your offense for the upcoming year, the concepts you're looking to build off of the variations that you want to change.

1:36:32He's full operational. There's nothing that you really get out of. You know, now he obviously ran more in his younger days. And frankly, once he received a bigger contract, we tried to be more selective with that. I'm not sure what direction they're going here in the future here. But he's full operational. I thought, you know, we increased the three-step emphasis. I thought he was excellent at that. So the play action, the keeps and all that. So I really like him in those situations. Everybody talks about his leadership and his hard working, but this man's a hell of a football player. I just love the way he stands in there and makes those throws and doesn't blink.

1:37:06Pat McAfee:Okay, so let's talk about him standing in there and making those throws. You've obviously had to game plan against Vic Fangio's defense, this defense that is currently with the Philadelphia Eagles. What do you think Shadi, Dak, and that offense are going to try to do tonight to this Philadelphia Eagles defense? How do you have success against them? Well, the biggest thing, too, it always starts up front. It doesn't matter who you play in. It definitely starts up front when you play against this Philadelphia Eagles defense. You know, when I view defensive lines, this is a group that can apply pressure inside and out.

1:37:37So with that, you just got to be very aware when you're talking about time clocks and expectations. And personally, I prefer to throw the ball on them up in Philadelphia on the grass than inside because I did really – I can remember a safety that Fletcher Cox had in the earlier games in 21, I think it was, where, you know, when you have that combination of inside and outside, you've got to be smart with the way you throw the ball. You know, and I'm talking now particularly to your pass sets. You know, you have to make sure you short set these guys more than you probably would think. So, I mean, I think that's something that will definitely be the start.

1:38:15I know that's what I'll be watching. I'll be watching the up front. I'll be watching the fits. I'll be watching the chipping, you know, the edges if, you know, if they're making Dak throw off his back foot and so forth. But, you know, this will start in the trenches, and it will start with running the football and having the opportunity to take advantage of that run game on first and second down. But when it comes down to the situational stuff, you know, you've got to block them. And this is a hell of a defensive front.

1:38:38Pat McAfee:You said something in there that was kind of just a throwaway comment for you, but I think he's very interesting. You said you'd prefer to play them on grass, that D-line, up in Philadelphia as opposed to maybe turf. Is that what you were trying to get at there? Because maybe the footing's a little bit more loose now. It's obviously opening night, Philadelphia Eagles and everything like that. Grass is going to be, I mean, it's going to be immaculate tonight. But it does have the possibility to be a little bit more slick than turf or maybe in a dome or something like that. Is that what you were getting at there with playing against this Philadelphia?

1:39:08Yeah, I'm not even talking about slickness. I just think it's the reality of playing on grass versus turf. and compliments to the Philadelphia grounds crew. They do a great job up there. I mean, the grass is great up here in November, December when we went up there. But I just think it's more about we're at that level of a defensive front. When defensive fronts have the ability to apply pressure inside and outside, you've got to make sure you really change up the pass sets and those types of things. It's not like, oh, I prefer to play them. I mean, I prefer to throw the ball in Philly and not at Dallas.

1:39:40That's not what I'm saying. I'm saying you just got to be conscientious in the game plan and more particularly in game to make those adjustments. Because, you know, I think you saw them in the Super Bowl. You know, that game was on turf. And, I mean, those guys, I mean, they were playing pressure from the first quarter all the way through. So I just have a lot of respect for their defense, a lot of respect for Vic. But it starts up front, always does.

1:40:04Pat McAfee:D.C. Fangio goes from Miami where he was told he was Fangiover basically. Can't relate to the modern players. Then he goes up to Philadelphia to win the Super Bowl. Then he's got everybody back, and they got the Dallas Cowboys on opening night. Are you guys going to be able to repeat the success you had last year? We shall see. Connor has a question for you, Coach. Yeah, Coach, another new OC for Jalen Hurts and the Eagles. Obviously, when they have a lot of success, those OCs are going to go and be head coaches. Kellen Moore being the most recent one who you were with for some time. But what do you expect for Jalen to kind of struggle and go through early on in the game if he struggles at all with the new offense?

1:40:44And do you see them just continuing to kind of lean on Saquon in the O-line and no point to change what they have done, you know, the past two years? Yeah, I'd be very surprised if there's any struggle from a systematic approach. I mean, the first OC is still there, Nick. I think Nick's done a great job, you know, not only the overall football team, but keeping the formula for success intact. I mean, they definitely play to their strengths. I mean, ground and pound and control that clock, and they've got a dynamic offensive perimeter group that can play with anybody. So I think that, you know, the operational part of it will be seamless.

1:41:17You know, the biggest thing in my experience is September football. The things I'll be watching for is, you know, just the fundamentals, you know, the time clocks, the timing, the combination blocks, you know, the pad level and footwork and those types of things. And that's for both teams. But I would think Jalen would just, you know, I'd be surprised if they don't kind of pick up where they left off and, you know, hopefully they've had a good camp. But yeah, I don't think that the OC change is going to be huge in my opinion.

1:41:43Pat McAfee:As we wrap up for tonight's game and move on to other NFL stories, we'd be remiss if we didn't ask you about the entire Micah situation. Obviously, we assume you have a different view or perspective on this as somebody that was literally in the building in a very prominent role and have a relationship with Jerry Jones. As you're watching this from outside in and kind of all unfold, what are your thoughts, especially with the release of the documentary where a lot of people are learning that Jerry is the consummate businessman and promoter and kind of learning his ways while all this is taking place in the news.

1:42:14Pat McAfee:What were your thoughts on it as former coach there? Well, I mean, honestly, personally, I tried to get as far away from football as I possibly could since, you know, my time ended there in Dallas. And I was able to accomplish that for the most part, as far as much as what people would allow me. And just the quality of time that I've had with my family is something I've never had before. but I will say this I you know I did have an opportunity to meet with Jerry uh in June before we moved back to family moved back to Green Bay and um you know one of the first things we talked about just the you know the offseason program you know how excited he was about the draft class and he talked about Micah I mean he was he was excited that you know he felt that him and Micah had they had a deal and um in his future and you know and he's earned that and I think we all recognized you know the impact and you know the performance from a performance perspective on you know Micah Parsons earned this contract I mean there's no question about that so I mean that was my position on I'm gonna say early June so I just and obviously being there I mean this is a contract you know from a cap management standpoint you're talking about the last two years I mean then you know you got Dak you got CD and now you got Micah so I mean these contracts obviously affect your approach or outlook on other contracts.

1:43:31So I always anticipated it would get done as far as, you know, that meeting in June. But, you know, one thing I've learned and, you know, the old saying in business, you know, time kills deals. And as training camp got going and people were asking me and what was going as I was trying to, you know, get some boat time up there in Door County, I just always felt, hey, no, they're going to get it done. They're going to get it done. Jerry's, you know, this is the businessman, Jerry, you know, keeping the, you know, the cowboys at the front of the news cycle and just really didn't pay much mind to it.

1:44:01But, you know, as this thing went on longer and longer, you know, I think anytime, you know, business transactions, you know, are held up, you know, the decision makers, there's more emotion that comes into play here. Opinions are heard more and more. And I mean, this is what can happen. So this is just my opinion. I'm not acting like I have any inside information, but I just felt this was a deal that It took too long. And then, frankly, I think both sides will benefit. I think Greenville will benefit here in the short term. And I like what Dallas is doing. I love that Deron Blaine got a contract, Hunter.

1:44:37These guys, I mean, as I'm looking here at AJ, he's the perfect example of it. The draft and develop process is built on second contracts. How many second contracts are done on your draft class? And I think Dallas is now in that, you know, on that path. And so, you know, where the pass you may, you lose a guy or two because you are projecting these big contracts. So I think these are two good young football teams. I clearly see, you know, Micah making a huge impact because regardless of what you think about him, when he gets off the bus, he's getting double teamed. He's getting chipped. He's being identified.

1:45:18he's making the whole front you know the whole front seven is better because the opportunity he's that he's he is creating for them and that's just the facts I mean there's no ifs and buts about it so Green Bay now has that you know so now what does Dallas have I mean Dallas has five real pass rushers you know I'm excited about those guys you know Sam Williams it's his time I mean Sam was ready last year you know he had that big knee injury in in training camp so I mean we were excited to see Sam and Micah, you know, line up last year and it, you know, it didn't happen. So, you know, they're, these teams got depth, uh, both Green Bay and Dallas, I'm talking.

1:45:52So, uh, it'll, it'll be exciting to see the course of the season, but I'm telling you, don't, don't, uh, don't, you know, the emotion of what's surrounding the Cowboys right now. Um, I, I'd never, you know, put too much into that. And I think when you just look at the brass, you know, the brass facts of football, um, I think Dallas Cowboys got a good, really good football team.

1:46:11Pat McAfee:Cowboys plus eight and a half tonight. I'm taking Cowboys all day long. Come on, coach. All right, let's move off of it tonight. We appreciate you addressing Micah. And also, you saying that in June when he talked to Jerry, Jerry was like, hey, Micah's going to be a Cowboy and be a deal. And then you saying time kills all deals. Feels like there was a lot of things that happened in that time and then a lot of avoiding each other, it felt like. Anytime you get that public shit that started coming out too, that's never a good thing. But hey, Jerry could have made magic at the end, decided to send him to Green Bay, and now Packers fans are excited.

1:46:43Pat McAfee:And now maybe he stays in your house up there. Tone has a question for you about another Green Bay legend. Yeah, Coach, I do. Obviously, you were with Aaron for a long time up in Green Bay, and I wanted to hypothetically put you in Steelers offensive coordinator Artie Smith's shoes. They have a young O-line. They have a young running back. They have talented tight ends and obviously DK on the outside. If you were the offensive coordinator in week one, how would you handle this offense with Aaron, and what does he do for a young offensive line in particular? Well, I think the biggest thing is, you know, with Aaron, you know, playing with new members on the offense is just getting the rhythm of it.

1:47:21I mean, you're talking about a cadence. It's probably one of the best weapons in offensive football that I've been around. I mean, he regularly used, you know, nine cadence variations in our time together. And, you know, I just think the fact that you're able to use that. So, I mean, how much of that are we going to do is where I'm going with this. So just get into a rhythm, get these guys started, you know, get them off on the right foot. I'm excited about Pittsburgh because, you know, lifetime Steelers fan. I can openly root for them this year. And I'm excited to see Aaron, you know, in the black and gold, too.

1:47:54And I like their formula, you know. I love what Mike Tomlin stands for. You know, I think, you know, trust your tradition. You know, this team's been about defense since the 70s. So, I mean, I think they've got an outstanding defense. You know, play to that. And, you know, you're going to be in every football game. And I guarantee there's no one that's run more two-minute drills than Aaron Rodgers. So, I think they have a really nice formula to be successful.

1:48:19Pat McAfee:Going to be KG Affairs, the Cardiac Steelers, back for another game, another season. They spent a lot of money on a lot of people, seemingly going all in. Hopefully, Cam Hayward is a part of the entire thing. Also, Chris Boswell, they have a couple things that have kind of been lingering overhead business-wise. but if they put that team on the field and everybody's there very evident that they're trying to make a run this year Steelers fans are pumped but if it goes south coach you know how Pittsburgh is go ahead AJ go ahead AJ yeah coach you mentioned Aaron's cadence and just makes you think like what you've been around some great quarterbacks obviously in your time what does he do that separates himself from other people I've seen it firsthand I know defenses it drives them crazy but like what is he doing how is he using inflection of his voice how is he different than other quarterbacks maybe?

1:49:01Well, great as far as the variation, but the self-scout. I think he, I mean, all the way back to the early years, I mean, obviously we built that over time, but his ability to self-scout throughout the season, being totally on top of Chicago week one, Chicago week 12. So I think just because obviously since they put the microphones on the center and guards, I mean, the audio out there, You know, everybody's aware of it. But I think just being on, you know, the variations, one thing, but the percentage of the variations and more importantly, you know, the timing, you know, young, young defensive end in the game.

1:49:41OK, great time to go double count those types of things. So I just think his experience is is, I mean, top of the line, been around a lot of great quarterbacks. quarterbacks I think his application of information at the line of scrimmage is is as good as anybody that's ever played the game I mean his ability to to absorb information um you know there's times and you've been there AJ he's he's almost on the sideline of the other team because he's over to listen to the defense you know uh coordinator talk to the you know to players and he's acting like he's over to BS and so um you know he just his ability to gain information during the course of the game and apply it.

1:50:18I always thought it was very unique.

1:50:20Pat McAfee:Yeah, the last second time out, too, whenever he can't figure it out. That shit's dancing. One, zero. Yeah, look at you. Yeah. Yeah, it does get real good. Yeah, I don't want to get blamed for this shit all the time. Oh, yeah. I just fucked that up. Hey, when it gets to three or two, can we make a decision as opposed to at the hat? Every single time, it was fantastic. Green Bay Packer owner who lived those rides with you, Ty, has a question. Yeah, Coach, the last several years, the only thing we've talked about with the Bengals at the start of the season is like, hey, Zach Taylor doesn't have these guys prepared.

1:50:52They don't start fast. And with how good the AFC and the NFC are now, a lot of teams can be shit out of luck if they start 0-4. Is there any way going into a season you can ensure like, hey, we're going to start fast this year and we're not going to put ourselves in a hole where we have to win six or seven games down the stretch to get into the playoffs? Blame it on the CBAs. That's what I would say. No, I tell you, it's tough. it really is I think training camp is the most important time a year as far as training your football team it's the only time really the offensive line who are at a huge disadvantage in the training you know in the training formats that are out there because they really don't get into the real training into the you know the fifth practice of a training camp so I think you have to coach September football a little differently you know September football is not the best of the year you know and I think that you know the fact that you have 17 games, I'm actually thankful for it because you still have opportunities because, you know, you see it every year that the fundamentals are, you know, they're just not as good as they were in the early days.

1:51:56And that's just probably a product of a guy that's been fortunate to be in a league for, you know, for three decades. But, you know, I think some of that, I'm not trying to make an excuse for any coach. I just think you do have some of that September football. And as far as being ready, you know, there's change that, you know, each team every year you talk about another great division you know I mean that's that's that's a tough hard-nosed division as as any in football too so yeah I I don't think there's a you know a you know a right way and a wrong way um to to go about it because you you got to train your football team as hard as you can in training camp but it's really you train them to the you know to the health of your team too so that's the you know you got the mechanisms of GPS and all those things that go into it.

1:52:39But, you know, that's, you know, your timeline of training camp getting a team ready is a bit of a challenge for everybody.

1:52:47Pat McAfee:That's good self, Scott, especially with all the mechanisms that we've gone out there. Coach, we appreciate you. This was wonderful. We know you're on the Cowboys. We appreciate your takes on that. And we can't wait to chat with you next week. You're the man. We appreciate the hell out of you. All right, thank you, man. Look forward to next week. Have a great week. Ladies and gentlemen, Super Bowl champion who looks very cool right now. Coach McCarthy. Yeah, Coach. I love that. Did you expect him to pop up in front of a nighttime picture? I think it was a big screen. Wasn't that a big old screen?

1:53:18He might change it next week. It's going to be something else next week.

1:53:20Pat McAfee:His wife is an actual artist, like a painter and everything. We had a chance to see her studio. She has a massive studio. And he's like, yeah, wife did all it. It does look pretty cool, doesn't it? He didn't even see that. No. He sat down there, had no idea. We good? We good. I'm sitting here. He's the best, man. He was great with us at the draft. Yes. Hanging with us the whole thing. We're thankful he'll be joining us every Thursday. He's making selections. Yeah. Cowboys plus. Oh, yeah. I don't know if he's planning on doing that, but we just got one out of him. We'll see. We'll see how it goes.

1:53:54Pat McAfee:We are one minute into a hard out here on ESPN. Remember, Peter Schrager has his super duper prediction special coming at 3 o 'clock Eastern on ESPN. We'll be live tomorrow overreacting to everything. I'll be live in Oklahoma. Oh, nice. Tomorrow, Friday, obviously, we're kicking off another incredible college football weekend. Oklahoma, Michigan is taking place in just a couple of days. Obviously, tonight, Philly and Dallas kick off the NFL season. Tomorrow night, Chiefs and Chargers. Sunday night, Ravens, Bills. Are you kidding me? We're in it. We did it. AJ, it's a great time to be alive. We're lucky to be here.

1:54:30We're absolutely lucky to be here. I mean, tonight, tomorrow night, everything. saying, yes, this is a beautiful time, and we are just at the beginning, just scratching the surface, so I can't wait.

1:54:38Pat McAfee:It is just the tip, isn't it? Just the tip. Not even yet, really. Not even. Almost. It's about to be, and we're about to feel how great it's all going to be. We're very thankful for that, and remember, we don't love that there's commercials, but it was obvious it was coming, and we're still going to watch. That's the Red Zone. Nailed it. Nailed it. Nailed it. I was getting attacked for that. ESPN, Disney show, it's like, they're not even on Disney. It's not even on ESPN or Disney. and also it's on Google currently with YouTube. They're not the ones deciding that either. It's the NFL is deciding that and as soon as we saw the L reps we all knew what was coming.

1:55:14Pat McAfee:People are fucking dumb. Don't love it but we're still going to watch it. As long as you don't go to even if it's sometimes when they keep the game going and they split screen, I'm like just do that. That's what they're doing. They're doing four of them 15 seconds long allegedly over the 7 hour period. That's it? Now I did see Brandon Perna Denver Broncos fan and YouTuber I guess he came out and said am I a marketing genius? I think so Bud Light should just say commercial free football presented by Bud Light I think Bud Light would have a lot of people that maybe were still about Bud Light going hey you know what alright maybe Honey Bud Light likes football They don't want me seeing these commercials.

1:56:03Pat McAfee:There's a chance that that is a thought. But if it's not Bud Light, another one of the league sponsors could come in here and really be a hero here. Great opportunity there. DoorDash coming in and saying, hey. You're telling me people were mad about one minute over seven hours? It's bullshit. That's one more minute I could have had. I got some terrible things said to me. I got some very terrible things said to me for this. I did not expect it. And as soon as I started reading them and they were like, we don't care we do care you fucking shill and i'm like i obviously would rather not have it i mean my show has none the one that i negotiated the one that people were pushing for for me to have them i obviously don't want it it's not on espn but we're still gonna watch aren't we are we all still gonna are you gonna not watch they got us they're not cutting away they're not cutting away from Hanson.

1:56:57Hanson will be on screen the whole time, correct?

1:56:59Pat McAfee:Yes. Play through is what they're saying, allegedly. Come on. When it's play through, I'm all for it. Yeah, we all are, but we'd rather it wasn't, though. To be clear. Of course. How's the world work? To be clear. It's also not 1992 where it goes to a commercial and you're just like, fuck, I gotta sit here and just watch this commercial now. You can take your phone out. You can go take a piss. You can go grab a beer. You can go get something to eat. How about the other quad bucks? Yeah, exactly. Oh, shit. Okay, I'm just going to watch the local game, or I'm going to watch this game that I don't like.

1:57:29Pat McAfee:Once again, we're not happy that it's happening. No. But we knew it was going to happen just by knowing the NFL. The NFL is a cash cow. That's what they are. Yeah. That's why they're the number one league on earth. Yeah. Players are getting a lot of money because of a lot of these deals. It's as soon as the NFL saw that they could sell maybe one game for a holiday to one of these streaming platforms. It was like, how much money is this? How many hundreds of millions for this one? Oh, we can certainly cook up a Black Friday game. We got a Christmas Eve game. we got four Christmas games don't we yep what other days can we make up we make up an NFL day we make up a Wednesday afternoon we'll sell as soon as that's what the NFL is that's why the league is headed where it's headed which is why you know we don't love it that they are just capitalizing on absolutely every dollar that they know they can get and we're not going to change our watching style like they put those 15 second commercials up there and it's playthrough okay we're all going to still watch and they knew that and they were like how much more money can we get do we think these nfl fans are going to stop watching because of these no all right so we're leaving money on the table we don't do that give us that now everybody is worried that once you do once the nfl does that maybe they'll then start doing the break-in commercials and they'll like gobble gobble gobble gobble gobble keep going certainly a possibility and at that point we will certainly raise hell by hey we can't be doing this because we did a college football Red Zone.

1:58:52Pat McAfee:It had a commercial every four minutes. It turns out it sucks. It does. I hope the NFL understands that that is why Red Zone is Red Zone. That's why people are paying a subscription fee. As soon as they started marketing on it, that was seemingly inevitable for the NFL. I'm still going to watch. I don't love it. I don't love that I'm that easy. I'm that committed. I love that they're doing it. but it was obvious they were going to do it. You can have the best of both worlds. You can still watch, and then when it goes commercial, you can tweet like, it's fucking bullshit. Fuck the NFL. You got to have good service, though, because to get that tweet typed and sent in 15 seconds.

1:59:33Pat McAfee:Exactly. But it's a fun little game. We should do something. I don't know who would do this, but the people that are super mad about this, if they go to take a piss at all during Red Zone, someone should come out of their closet and just punch them right in the face. Can I say they're missing it? Yeah, but it's on their time. It's not on Red Zone's time. And Red Zone, by the way, operated by the NFL. The NFL is one making a decision to do this. We all knew the NFL would do this if they could do this. Which is why... People mad about this aren't NFL fans. I don't think so. Nobody who is actually mad about this will hear this.

2:00:09And nobody who's actually mad about this will watch Red Zone every week. You're talking about what I'm saying right now

2:00:14Pat McAfee:explaining myself they did not hear it. No, no, all those people on the internet. Whenever they go to get Red Zone the first week, they're going to go, Disney, these fucking assholes. And they say, it's not on Disney, actually. It's on another platform. Wait, I thought. Oh, well, fuck them still. They would have done it. Yeah, they would have. Okay. It's early living, God help us all. Exactly. We're lucky to be here. That's right. We get to be here. We do. It's fun reading, walking in traffic because I said that I'm still going to watch Red Zone. This fucking guy likes commercials. Do you believe in shit?

2:00:45Pat McAfee:Fucking piece of shit. Thank you, dude. Sorry I said it. This goes in. They're not going to do any commercials. Okay. That'd be sick. High stakes. I'm trying. Make up for it. Yeah, exactly. Big shot. Big shot. Ah! Fuck! A little strong. A little good. The NFL making money off something, they're going to do that. I'm bummed out. All right. Let's run through the stories that we have not covered or given enough attention to, and then let's make our picks and let's enjoy the hell out of NFL kickoff day. Conman, what have we not talked about that we definitely should be talking about? Yeah, there's one thing we definitely haven't talked about that we need to be talking about, and that's because you studied night and day yesterday to come up with your top five players of the Philadelphia Eagles and Dallas Cowboys rivalry.

2:01:34Pat McAfee:That's a great call, actually. I was almost going to maybe not do it just because it was so much pressure. So much pressure. How do you pick your top five favorite players that played for the Philadelphia Eagles and the Dallas Cowboys. Just in the history of the teams. Your top five favorite players combined. Combined. It was not easy. It's a lot of pressure. We don't do a lot of lists, but to kick off the season, the greatest season the NFL was ever going to have, I couldn't help but pay tribute to guys that have donned these uniforms, put on these helmets, and built this rivalry in these franchises to what they are today.

2:02:09Pat McAfee:Let's start with number five, Jason Kelsey. Now, listen, Jason Kelsey's the youngest guy that's going to be on this list. I think it was all retired players. It's not active players. He's recently retired. We love Jason Kelsey. Guy slams beers. Obviously, he's representing football in a huge way, not only with his podcast, but with everything he's doing. And he was a dog on the field. Undersized, but could outrun you and outgrit you. He actually would gnaw on your Achilles. He would gnaw on your Achilles to get a good block. And then he would talk to the boys, and he'd get emotional right in front of them because they're such a damn tight family.

2:02:43Pat McAfee:And then he would motherfuck somebody, and then he would hop on a ball, score a touchdown, and then they would create a play called Tush Push that would be literally his ass being pushed by other men that are being pushed and create something that's unstoppable. Jason Kelsey, phenomenal Philadelphia Eagle. And as somebody that is not an Eagle or a Cowboys fan, I would say he's in my top five favorite Cowboys and Eagles. AJ, do you agree with the pick of Jason Kelsey in the top five? Absolutely. He's an absolute legend. And people, I think, because he's out there and he's so good in the media, people forget this guy was an absolute monster on the field.

2:03:16Pat McAfee:Absolute monster. All pro. One of the greatest centers, if not the greatest center of all time. That's like Travis Kelsey. One of the, if not the greatest, tight end of all time. Ed Kelsey's got two goats. Yep. Three, it sounds like. Yeah. Hey-oh. Maybe many more. Who knows? All right, at number four, top five favorite players, Randall Cunningham. Oh, hell yeah. Listen, Randall Cunningham, obviously, let's go through the stats here. He's a college football Hall of Famer. He's a four-time All-Pro. Threw for 207 touchdowns. Had 35 rushing touchdowns. And, oh, yeah, at one point in his career, had a 91-yard punt down there at the Meadowlands.

2:03:56Pat McAfee:Third longest punt in NFL history. Backed up. Got to get it off. Randall Cunningham says, don't worry about it. Let me fucking bomb on Don here. 91-yard punt. AJ for quarterback Randall Cunningham, who led the Philadelphia Eagles to a Super Bowl, not to win one. But shout out to Randall Cunningham for all he's done for kicking, punting, and quarterbacking. I'm old enough. You guys aren't old enough. I was old enough to remember Randall Cunningham and watch him play in person. He was ahead of his time, man. Super athletic and can throw the ball about 7 ,000 yards. I don't know if he made it to a Super Bowl.

2:04:31Is that what we're saying? Oh, no. We were saying that wasn't a 91-yard punt. Oh, that was not it? I mean, that had to be the clip. Well, if you count from the end zone, if you count the end zone. Yeah, so basically if you count what they don't count. Oh, so it's an 81-yard punt. Yeah, well, the guy in the guy returns it. I don't know if it – No, it's just gross. Gross punt. Well, the ball kept going past 91 yards then. Okay, so that ball snapped from the one? Yeah, and I think it goes all the way down to like the seven. That's nice. Yeah.

2:05:00Pat McAfee:Yeah. To the 6-6. Yeah. Oh, well, they did count it to where he returned it to. 96 minus one would be a 95-yard punt. And then he returned it to, like, the 13. I think he has the record then because they counted it as a 91, I believe. Right. I think it's longer than that. Unless there is another clip of him hitting another punt. Maybe it's a preseason one. I mean, it's close. It could be. So that's from the one-yard line. So if he was to hit it to the end zone, that'd be a 99-yard punt. It gets stopped six yards from the end zone, right? Seven yards from the end zone? Yeah. Six-yard line. Right in there.

2:05:36Pat McAfee:So, 7 yards. 7, yeah. So, that's 92 yards, right? 99 minus 7 would be a 92-yard punt. So, he got ripped off a yard. I don't think it would be record. Yeah, the record we saw was like 98 yards. But, again, they're not including their return. Like, if you punt the ball. That would be your net punt. This is gross punt. Gross punt. Gross punt, net punt. Nonetheless, Randall Cunningham, AJ's gone. Yeah, he's sick of it. I'm tired of talking about punting. All right, let's go to the number three overall player whenever it comes to Eagles and Cowboys, Michael Irvin. The playmaker, absolute dog. Obviously on the field, there's highlights galore.

2:06:18Pat McAfee:All the way back to his draft night where he was told the Green Bay Packers were going to draft him out of Miami. And he said, I'm not going to, just because he didn't want to go up there. Told him he'd go back to school and he would not go there. Kind of force his way to the Dallas Cowboys. throughout the documentary of Jerry Jones' business life and the Dallas Cowboys build as a whole. Michael Irvin's really a superstar in there because not only on the field was he tearing it up, off the field he was as well. Guy was wide open. He was always himself. And then whenever he would transfer into television, he'd be one of the most electrifying people on a microphone.

2:06:48Pat McAfee:Michael Irvin has to be listed in one of our top five favorite players whenever we're talking Dallas Cowboys and Philadelphia Eagles. Had him at number three. I don't mind it. I like number three overall. And I think people will respect where we put him at. Yeah, I think it's perfect, especially when you look at the total players in this. It was very hard just to get down to five, let alone thinking about the legends that have played in this type of rivalry. Yeah, because, I mean, T.O. is somebody that we respect and like a lot. Obviously, he's a big part of the story. T.R. Romo. Sure. Obviously a guy that we spend every single Sunday with while watching games.

2:07:24Pat McAfee:I mean, there's just numerous amount of superstars that we could have picked from this rivalry. How about number two? Who do we got? Oh, yeah. The one, the only, Deion Sanders. Come on, Brown. Deion Sanders. Now, he had five punt return touchdowns as a member of the Dallas Cowboys. He had a couple pick sixes. He had a fumble recovery for a touchdown. And he had a receiving touchdown whenever he was there. He was there from 1995 through 1999. Became an absolute problem. Massive piece of the documentary as well, especially with them trying to get back onto the mountaintop, bringing in Deion Sanders and him becoming prime time for Jerry Jones' Dallas Cowboys.

2:08:00Pat McAfee:Obviously, he just kicked some ass in the offseason, battling an illness, back on the sidelines for the Colorado Buffaloes. How's this season going to go for them? We don't know, but what we do know is this dude is certified. We appreciate the hell out of pride. You look good, you feel good. You feel good, you play good. You play good, they pay good. They pay good, you live good, you live good, you die good. Shout out to Deion Sanders for what he's done for football and also as a member of the Dallas Cowboys. It was awesome to watch them on TV every single week. AJ, I think this list is coming together nicely.

2:08:31Pat McAfee:Don't you think so, pal? Yeah, you got me eagerly wondering who your number one pick may be. There's so many to choose from here. Yeah, there's a lot of people that we really could have kind of gone with. A lot of people that represent both teams so perfectly. You know, a couple offensive linemen on both sides could have got picked. A couple defensive linemen could have got picked. You know, it's strictly players, so we didn't think about adding, you know, Big Dom could have been slated, but he's not a player. Nick Sirianni, obviously he's active, so we wouldn't have been able to pick him, but we loved his coaching style.

2:09:02Pat McAfee:Andy Reid not going to get picked. It's just strictly players only. And there was only one player that depicted its city and its team better than all of the others. And we searched and scoured every roster, every player since the beginning of these teams. Our favorite player in the history of the Cowboys and the Eagles organization. Drum roll, please.

2:09:28Pat McAfee:Paisa! Vince Papali. Wow, yeah! That was a bartender. What? That was a bartender. Guy was a fucking bartender. Excuse me. In Philadelphia. Worked his ass off. Went to a tryout. Made the team. Not only did he just make the team, the guy became the special team's captain for the Philadelphia Eagles. You're talking about the city of Philadelphia playing for the Eagles. Reincarnated in one Italian man. with a sweet name and a sweet flow. NFL Films is able to give us some footage, maybe footage that you have not seen before, of Vince Papali calling his own shot, calling his own number on a punt, knew it was going to happen.

2:10:07Pat McAfee:Because earlier in training camp, he learned a vital lesson of if the knuckles are red or the knuckles are white, it means they're coming or going. He saw the knuckles. He breaks free. He lets the guy straight at the punter. Gets down the field. Sees the punt returner. Eyes it. Times it perfectly. It's a catch, not a muff. That means that's a fumble. Vinny Papali. The city of Philly's going crazy. That's our guy. Holy shit, that's our bartender. Hey, yo, barkeep, they're saying at the moment. The Paisons are losing their mind. He scoops it. No way this fucking guy is going to score a touchdown.

2:10:43Pat McAfee:The city of Philadelphia, from barkeep in barback to glory, pay dirt. Vince Papali is the Philadelphia Eagles. Vince Papali is Philadelphia as a whole. And Vince Papali, he's a touchdown scoring captain of Philadelphia Eagles. So I think that is really a tough list to put together. Other people that did not make the list but should have, the garbage-picking, field-goal-kicking Philadelphia phenomenon. Great pick. Barney Gorman. Yes. Yeah. Barney Gorman almost made it. He should. He was this close. I'm actually embarrassed I didn't push for him harder pre-show. This close, Barney Gorman. Okay? Because it was a specialist as well.

2:11:29Pat McAfee:What position was Barney? He's the garbage-picking, field-goal-kicking Philadelphia phenomenon. I'm not familiar with Barney. Oh, Jesus. He's a field-goal-kicking, garbage-picking man from Philadelphia. Same story as Vince Papali, just not a bartender. Just a guy who happened to wear a boot, a working boot, and boot the shit out of a football for the Philadelphia Eagles. So Barney Gorman almost got the call in the top five. Other specialists that could have made it, David Aker is obviously a dog. Sav Roca, an absolute beast out of Australia. So a lot of people almost in there, including Barney Gorman.

2:12:05Pat McAfee:But Vince Papali takes the cake because of how much he represents what it's all about to be an Eagle, I think. And then Dion, Michael Irvin, Randall Cunningham, who got ripped off on a yard, I think, for his punt. And then Jason Kelsey wraps out the top five, AJ. And to be clear, I don't think anything's ever been more right. Yeah, I mean, credit to NFL Films for giving you that footage. That's amazing footage we got from the field and all those amazing coaches. And shout out to the Eagles as well. They were ahead of their time. They got field turf in like 1978. See the knuckles? Pretty amazing.

2:12:39We got field turf back in the day before it was even invented. NFL Films was doing great. No, it was grass. What are you talking about? It's natural grass. Yeah, open your eyes. Oh, my bad. This is before all the seeds with all

2:12:50Pat McAfee:the shit in it. Oh, you're right. That was pretty unfamiliar. It's hard to call that in the middle of a punt as well. I think modern day it's going to be tough to make a check like that. Is he playing wing? What position is he? He was a gun lined up at wing and then he lets a guy go right at the punter. He said, you take the punt. He kind of just threw him at the punter. I'll tell you what, that'd be a one-way trip out of town if I was stated back there in charge, which I would not be, but I liked that he made the play, knew that he could kind of rip and toss around, have a clear shot at the returner, and then that ball popping out, that was nothing but the football gods blessing Vince for doing something right.

2:13:30Pat McAfee:We're thankful it happened. We're very thankful it happened. How long did Papal play for? 10, 12 years? I don't think that is accurate. I think it was three years. I believe he played in 41 of 44 games for the Eagles. Oh, is this Vince from the Philadelphia Bell? No, he played in the Philadelphia Bell before he played for the Philadelphia Bell. Okay, okay. He was sharpening his sword because he had many on his head. His brain, his hands were... His feet, his hair. Lightning, tougher than a fucking$2 steak. Yeah, and then his feet, obviously, like Shorebird, if you need it. But he's going to bring the thunder right here, though.

2:14:07Pat McAfee:He's going to say grazie the whole time. Vince Pali number one overall. That was an easy decision. Barney Gorman, though. No, that's strong. I'm surprised Kelsey made it now when I look back on it and think of Barney. Yeah. Well, that actually, I'm not going to say anything. That's my list. Okay. Barney Gorman, 5A. Yeah, I think so. Donovan McNabb, also in there. Sure. Reggie White, nah. No. Reggie White, I remember him more as a Packer, but I agree. Me too. Should be in there. I love Reggie White. Should have made the list. He wasn't a bartender. Yeah. And that's Papel. Or sanitation worker. Not over Papel.

2:14:46Or Tony Danza.

2:14:47Pat McAfee:Tony Danza just edged him out for 5A. Barney Gorman. There's multiple 5As. Tony Dorsett, Pittsburgh. There's a few of those guys. Yeah, for the Cowboys, I like him. Terramoose Johnston. Danuch. Brad Danuch. Terramoose. Cooper Cush. Cooper Cush, definitely. Lee. Andy Dalton had a run there. We saw him the other day. I like him. Sean Payton. Sean Lee? No, not Sean Lee. Jason Garrett, excuse me. Jason Garrett. Great quarterback. Great on TV. Rabbit out of the head coming back. Jason Witten, yeah, unbelievable. T. Martin. T. Martin, yeah. Tennessee. Albert Hainsworth. A lot of great players. So many.

2:15:33Pac-Man Jones. Jones. Holy fuck.

2:15:36Pat McAfee:I remember him as a bangle. I should have put him on. That's on me. That's on me. Yeah, but he'd be cool with it because you stood on me. Oh, yes. I did. Especially with the Vince Papali pick. Nobody saw Vince Papali's number one, but then once I explained it, it kind of makes sense. Alright, let's make our picks for tonight. Peter Schrager's Super Duper Prediction Show coming up in about 42 minutes right here on ESPN. So pumped for it now. Detroit Lions, not making a playoff. Sorry. I love that. He's just hopping right into fire. I don't want to put you on the spot, but since Reggie's doing it, are you doing Super Bowl picks?

2:16:08I don't do that.

2:16:09Pat McAfee:I live in a moment. Amen. With that being said, really like the Eagles. But the Chiefs is still the Chiefs. And Danny Dimes, don't let them look at the hopo meter and get too much motivation, you know, and what is going to happen. Let's start with the toxic table. At Ty Schmidt, your pick tonight is the Cowboys are eight-and-a-half-point dogs on ESPN bet to kick off the NFL season. Yeah, I was on the Cowboys all morning, and the more I look at it, I'm just seeing the potential of Saquon rushing for 175 yards. So I'm going to flip, and I'm going to go with the Eagles, and I think they cover. Okay, you like the Eagles covering 8.5.

2:16:47Pat McAfee:I think so. A little bit too much positivity for the Cowboys on this particular show? Yeah, I don't know. It's just weird when so much of the consensus is these guys have done everything wrong for the last several weeks. These guys fucking suck. This one player was their entire team. But then a lot of – I mean, we talked about their offense, their defense. They still got a lot of good players. I just, man, I can just see the Eagles really going belt to ass tonight. Okay, that is certainly a possibility in everybody's eyes. Boston Conner, you've had one pick all morning. Feels like I'll show you've been feeding that narrative.

2:17:15Pat McAfee:I don't know if he is kind of flippy floppy like you potentially had on this particular game. Conman, who do you like? No, I'm steadfast at eight and a half. I don't think anybody knows his team better than Mike McCarthy who was just there. So if he feels good about it, I feel good about it. If you're going to bet an underdog that is greater than seven, though, throw in a touchdown for the other team. It'll help the algorithm, give you better odds. So, like, a Cowboys plus eight and a half Jalen Hurts touchdown will really give you a little juice for tonight. Okay, Jalen Hurts, we assume, is going to get a tush-push special at some point.

2:17:46Pat McAfee:One half of the hammer. Done. Cowboys AP tone. Don't want to give away too much for hammer. Done. It's just going to be electrifying today. But who do you like in the game? I also waffled a bit. I didn't know coming into the show, but Big Mike really convinced me to ride with the puppies tonight and the Cowboys plus 8.5. Okay, Tone's on the Cowboys plus 8.5. So is Connor. Ty says Eagles blow them out. AJ, your thoughts? I mean, Big Mike does sway whatever you're thinking, I think, when he's so diehard on the Cowboys. But I was leaning Cowboys. I'm definitely taking the Cowboys plus 8.5. I'm going to take the over as well.

2:18:20Pat McAfee:Okay, I will pick the Cowboys plus 8.5 as well. Okay, I – You're going to jump in on that over? No, no, no. I mean, yeah. Sure, why not? Just so you know, 47 and a half. I think it was the same last year, and the score was 27-20 when Isaiah likely ended up. So they're on it when the over-under is early. Okay, well, I'll go with the over as well. I enjoy the over. I like the Cowboys plus eight and a half. I was Philadelphia Eagles as the show started, and then the more and more I thought about it, I was like, it's going to be a cagey affair. Divisional game, doesn't matter. Like, it's going to be tight, I think.

2:18:54Pat McAfee:Can the Philadelphia Eagles blow them out? Definitely. We are big fans of Philadelphia Eagles. Philadelphia Eagles win. Cowboys keep it tight. Jalen Hurts scores a touchdown and he overhits. I mean, that is how I feel like the game is probably going. Does that mean that's going to take place? Absolutely not. Could be the complete opposite. We could be in a war fest tonight or it could be anything. That's why the NFL is the greatest. We have some news out of the NFL. Amari Cooper has announced his retirement from the NFL. He signed with the Raiders at the end of camp. It says hopeful for a reunion with the team that drafted him.

2:19:25Pat McAfee:Now he is headed home from Las Vegas. Amari, hell of a career, buddy. Hell of a career. Quiet, right? Yeah, just loves ball. Super quiet, loves ball. Obviously, he was with Coach Saban. We learned about him through him. He's bounced around a little bit, but he's always a playmaker. We appreciate him coming to the decision of retirement. And if it's forever, just know you did great on a football field, pal. And if you end up coming back, don't feel bad. You're allowed to do whatever the hell you want, Amari Cooper. With that being said, all eyes are on tonight. Let's get excited for tonight. Hell yeah.

2:19:56Pat McAfee:Let's get excited for the time that we are currently alive. There's a lot taking place over the next few days, and that just kicks off a season of wonder that we are about to have. I cannot wait from the road from tonight all the way to February. I cannot wait to see who becomes a superstar, who becomes the villain. Who gets screwed over, and who defies all the odds. That's football in a nutshell. We're lucky for it. Tonight's going to be electrifying. thank you to all that are covering it be a friend tell a friend something nice it might change their life we're in this thing together and we're probably gonna watch no matter what they do the nfl red zone sue us don't actually team on me team on three one two three three goodbye hey it's ryan reynolds here from mint mobile now i was looking for fun ways to tell you that Mint's offer of unlimited premium wireless for$15 a month is back.

2:20:51So I thought it would be fun if we made$15 bills. But it turns out that's very illegal. So there goes my big idea for the commercial. Give it a try at mintmobile.com slash switch. Upfront payment of$45 for three months,$90 for six months, or$180 for 12-month plan required. $15 per month equivalent. Taxes and fees extra. Initial plan term only. Greater than 50 gigabytes may slow when network is busy. See terms. Uncovered windows can make your home feel up to 20 degrees hotter. Stay cool and save up to 45 % off custom window treatments during the Summer Black Friday Mega Sale at Blinds.com. From outdoor shades to room darkening blinds, finding the perfect fit is easy.

2:21:26Get free samples, expert design help, and professional measure and install services, or DIY with confidence and support every step of the way. Shop up to 45 % off site-wide, plus huge savings on doorbusters right now during the Summer Black Friday Mega Sale at Blinds.com.