The Patriots fan's guide to surviving Year 1 of a rebuild | Pats Interference - video Dailymotion

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Before an exclusive interview with Patriots safety Jabrill Peppers, Andrew opens with a short intro. on Jacoby Brissett being named the team's starting quarterback, then welcomes WEEI's Meghan Ottolini and Mike Mutnansky to the pod to dish out fan advice for how to watch this Patriots season. Subscribe to Mut's substack at Mutstack.com!   ************************************************ Patriots Content Brought to you by....  Prize Picks - PrizePicks.com/CLNS Download the app today and use code CLNS for a first deposit match up to $100!  Gametime - https://gametime.co Take the guesswork out of buying NBA tickets with Gametime. Download the Gametime app, create an account, and use code CLNS for $20 off your first purchase. Download Gametime today. Last minute tickets. Lowest Price. Guaranteed. Terms apply.  Merch Store - https://shop.clnsmedia.com  Social Media!!!!  Patriots Twitter- https://twitter.com/patriotsclns  Patriots Instagram-  https://www.instagram.com/patriotsclns/  Facebook- https://facebook.com/clnsmedia  LinkedIn- https://www.linkedin.com/company/clnsmedia/about/  Tik Tok - https://www.tiktok.com/@clnsmedia *********************************************************  ABOUT PATRIOTS COVERAGE ON CLNS:   Welcome to the CLNS Media Network’s YouTube channel for New England Patriots  football.  CLNS Media is the leading online provider of audio/video coverage for the 6X Super Bowl Champions.  Get complete inside access to the New England Patriots at Gillette Stadium in Foxboro and everywhere on the road. CLNS Patriots credentialed insiders Greg Bedard, Andrew Callahan, Tayler Kyles, John Zannis, Alex Barth and Mike Kadlick provide instantaneous news and analysis all in real time, as well as full access to complete videos from the players, coaches, ownership and everyone else inside Patriots Place.  If you enjoy CLNS’ Celtics  All Access and are craving more Boston sports content, you head over to CLNS’ Patriots  Press Pass at   https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCqX7G3pEDTseNxtoDU27PEg?sub_confirmations=1   __________________________________________________________________________  For Celtics Content:    https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmp3kivpOg3lzoJC7yV7VjQ?sub_confirmations=1   https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCmp3kivpOg3lzoJC7yV7VjQ?sub_confirmations=1    Celtics Twitter - https://twitter.com/CelticsCLNS   Celtics Instagram - https://instagram.com/celticsCLNS  Twitter Main- - https://twitter.com/clnsmediaCLNS  Main Instagram - https://instagram.com/clnsmedia ******************************************************* Check out over dozens of sports podcasts from CLNS Media here: https://clnsmedia.com/ OR for all 200 shows, go to https://northstationmedia.com

Transcript

00:00:00Okay, so a lot of people say to start us on podcast somewhere about whatever, they got

00:00:17a big, big show today, but here at Pat's Interference, we got a big, big show today, Jabril Peppers

00:00:23joining us.

00:00:24Actually, just a couple of hours ago, finished recording with him at Gillette, where he headed

00:00:27to practice another four-minute drill, in case you're new.

00:00:30This means football and non-football questions, Jabril Peppers revealing he's a big old softie,

00:00:35big old romantic.

00:00:36Before that, we have Megan Ottolini of WEI, Mike Minanski, formerly of WEI, joining the

00:00:42show to give you the headline of this episode, the meat of today, a Patriots fan's guide

00:00:48to surviving your one-over-repo, because folks, we all know, even if you are the optimist

00:00:53out there, the way this offensive line looks, now playing without Matthew Judon, Jacoby

00:00:58Brissette is going to start, we're going to get to that in a second.

00:01:02This season is going to be the middle of every horror movie you've ever watched.

00:01:05There's a lot of pain.

00:01:06There's probably going to be a little bit of blood, and you're going to be scared at

00:01:08some point for someone who probably goes down in the end.

00:01:11We're here to get you through that, okay?

00:01:12We have a little bit of fun with this.

00:01:14You can't drink, I wouldn't advise, every single Sunday to some point, but some days,

00:01:18pick it up, do whatever you need to.

00:01:20Aside from that, actual advice on how to approach this season, Megan also is a long-suffering

00:01:24Washington fan, has some tangible advice where Mutt and I mostly mess around, but to the

00:01:29football part of this, and there's some real football talk in the upcoming conversation,

00:01:33don't get me wrong, Jacoby Brissette is the starter for a lot of reasons.

00:01:38Number one, in my mind, is that the Patriots are just not ready for Drake May, and it's

00:01:42not because Drake May is perfectly ready himself.

00:01:45I think what Alex Van Pelt has cited multiple times to us, to Yahoo Sports when he spoke

00:01:49with Jory Epstein on Sunday, quotes that I tweeted about, have cited in multiple columns

00:01:54now, saying, look, Jacoby's just much more equipped to start week one because he knows

00:01:58our whole offense, and he knows all of the blitzes and simulated pressures and creepers

00:02:03and everything he's going to see, and we'll have answers for it, and Drake doesn't, because

00:02:06Drake's 21, and we can say that for one more day, his birthday's on Friday, but everyone

00:02:10is going to cling to that, and so we're just going to give him more time.

00:02:14But the second part is, not only are the Patriots not ready for this offensive line, Jacoby

00:02:19has been prepared as a starter all spring and summer.

00:02:21He took over 98% of the snaps in training camp.

00:02:24He started not just all of those team periods, but all three preseason games, and at the

00:02:29end of the last preseason game, Jarrod Mayo goes, yeah, Drake's our second best quarterback.

00:02:34Well, there you have it.

00:02:36Now you might ask yourselves, why didn't we get here sooner?

00:02:39That's a great question, and if you would ask that today at the press conference, first

00:02:42of all, you would have asked one of two questions that Jarrod Mayo took before get addling of

00:02:46what was a, it might be the first time anyone's ever been described as an NFL head coach skedaddling,

00:02:53but that's exactly what he did.

00:02:54He skedaddled after two questions for a press conference that was scheduled after the fact,

00:02:58because he didn't want to announce it on Wednesday.

00:03:00Fine, whatever, and to be honest, I'm tired of writing about Jarrod Mayo in the press

00:03:04conferences.

00:03:05I did this all spring.

00:03:06I've mentioned the OJ column multiple times, spilling it on himself.

00:03:09He's still spilling OJ, by which I mean there's a lot of unforced errors, including today

00:03:14when he goes, we decided, oh wait, I decided, because only now he's publicly taking ownership

00:03:19of the biggest decision on the team, which he should as the head coach, but also then

00:03:23saying to Kobe Brissett is our starter for the season to which our mind and yours, Doug

00:03:29Kide asked him with the second and final question, Hey, does that mean Drake can't start it all

00:03:34this year?

00:03:35If he's your starter for the season?

00:03:36He goes, Oh, I don't, I don't want to get hypotheticals.

00:03:39That was a good answer, hypothetical, but again, digging himself out of problems.

00:03:42I'm just tired of talking about dry mail behind the mic.

00:03:44I would love, and we'll soon see and get to critique and scrutinize dry mail football

00:03:50coach on the sidelines.

00:03:51Cause that's what he's getting paid to do, but this whole thing was made more complicated

00:03:54because of his comments.

00:03:55Not only just those, but admitting that Drake may has outplayed Jacoby Brissett and he did

00:03:59the last two weeks.

00:04:00It's absolutely a factor, but the bigger factor is this whole season is not about trying to

00:04:04win week one against the bangles.

00:04:06It's about Drake Mays development.

00:04:08And that dude is not going to be helped if he's thrown to the wolves, even if he could

00:04:12pick up all of the answers and blitz solutions and counters and this and that in the next

00:04:17week or two or three, it's about developing him long-term into the franchise quarterback.

00:04:22You and I watched this preseason ago.

00:04:25That's the good stuff.

00:04:26Okay.

00:04:27So if it takes some time to take some time, this was the right decision.

00:04:30It was too convoluted.

00:04:31We took a scenic route that really wasn't all that scenic.

00:04:33It was really just more frustrating listening to Rod's comments, but it's over.

00:04:37He's done with it.

00:04:38And so, yes, absolutely.

00:04:40Just as I did, everyone should take their fair shot at Gerard for the PR stuff.

00:04:45PR stuff is for now over.

00:04:47The competition has been won.

00:04:48It's Jacoby Brissett's job.

00:04:50He was treated like the starter from the get-go and lo and behold, he's going to be that week

00:04:53one.

00:04:54So that's my take.

00:04:55You'll get much take next.

00:04:56And Megan's going to join in.

00:04:57And we had a lot of fun with this episode.

00:04:59So here we go.

00:05:01Your guide to surviving the Patriots 2024 NFL season.

00:05:04Okay.

00:05:05I don't count on his appreciation necessarily in the world famous Muttstack letter on Fridays,

00:05:10which you should be subscribing to because he described himself as bottom of the totem

00:05:14pole.

00:05:15But let the record show on my own podcast, Mike McNansky of the world famous Muttstack.

00:05:19I've asked you to come on before today and you turned me down or you couldn't do it.

00:05:23I'm glad to have you back, Mike.

00:05:26Bullcrap.

00:05:27It was once.

00:05:28You asked me last minute on a Tuesday for a Thursday.

00:05:30I couldn't do it.

00:05:31Every other time I've come on here because your coverage is very good.

00:05:36And you went to UConn.

00:05:37That's it.

00:05:38That's the only reason.

00:05:39You're not a great guy.

00:05:40You're not like awesome at your job.

00:05:41Your coverage is good, but you went to UConn.

00:05:44So that's helpful.

00:05:45Yeah.

00:05:46Good.

00:05:47All right.

00:05:48And this is why you're on is to tell me the truth and to say it just like that.

00:05:49And today's perfect because after what I just watched or listened to for 75 seconds today

00:05:54at your last day.

00:05:57Yeah.

00:05:58Yeah.

00:05:59Okay.

00:06:00So here's the deal.

00:06:01And I emailed this to you partly.

00:06:03I want three spicy takes from you.

00:06:05I want two right away, two giant apps, and then I want your spiciest for last.

00:06:10And you can choose whatever order you determine them.

00:06:12I don't even know what you're going to say.

00:06:13I've said my piece, A, about the press conference and the worst kept secret in the NFL finally

00:06:17being out.

00:06:18Jacoby Prezet is going to start week one.

00:06:20A completely unnecessary journey that we all took following Gerard Mayo through this woods

00:06:27of word salads that he had for us on and on again.

00:06:31So let's get right to it.

00:06:32If you're opening a show today, what are you saying?

00:06:34What's your take?

00:06:36Mayo seems completely overwhelmed.

00:06:38And the media part of it has been since day one when they've done this thing, and we may

00:06:43have talked about this with the hiring.

00:06:45When him and Elliott Wolfe did this thing, Andrew, where it was like, we're not Bill

00:06:48Belichick.

00:06:49We're the anti-Bill.

00:06:50It's friendlier.

00:06:51And they told everybody that.

00:06:53And Mayo went above and beyond too much.

00:06:56And through training camp, the stuff that I've watched, the stuff that you've covered,

00:07:00it looks like way too much.

00:07:02And then today with the quarterback announcement, he says, yesterday, I'm going to make the

00:07:06announcement today.

00:07:08You show up at 830.

00:07:09You can't say this.

00:07:10I will.

00:07:11It is ridiculous.

00:07:12You had to go down there today.

00:07:14Ridiculous that they brought the media down there for 75 seconds.

00:07:18And I've just seen a guy who doesn't quite know how he wants to interact with the media.

00:07:22Hello, friends.

00:07:24Like right out of the gate, it gives you that thing today.

00:07:27And I'm worried.

00:07:28I'm worried that he's so overwhelmed with the media that that stuff's happening with

00:07:33the team.

00:07:34And I'm hopeful that the football side of it is better than the media side, because

00:07:38the media side is bad.

00:07:39The media, him going on Monday on EEI and saying Drake May is winning the quarterback

00:07:44competition and then naming Brissette the quarterback on Thursday, saying we and then

00:07:48I, almost purposely, it has been bad.

00:07:52I thought Bill Belichick had to go.

00:07:54I was ready to move on.

00:07:56This has been a wildly overwhelming, underwhelming, underwhelming turnover from Belichick to Wolf

00:08:01and Mayo.

00:08:02And that's my biggest concern, is that this guy's not ready.

00:08:04Long way of saying he doesn't appear ready to me.

00:08:06Yeah, look, I I'm going to say the column again, because I just think it has been exceptionally

00:08:12more than I expected foretelling about what would happen when in March he's trying to

00:08:16make a bill joke with the orange juice spills on himself.

00:08:18And you're like, oh, this keeps happening.

00:08:20Or to curry favor with the media or be positive.

00:08:22And some of this was organic to him.

00:08:24I don't think he's putting on in this sense, but he's doing something not in the best interest

00:08:29of the team.

00:08:30It's in the best interest of his relations with the media, which I think are important.

00:08:33But it comes back to bite him.

00:08:35That happened again today.

00:08:36This press conference was done as a favor to us and then ends up not being a favor because

00:08:42he lets it end, as you said, after 75 seconds.

00:08:45I will say the other part is it's no coincidence that it was leaked to Ian Rappaport and Adam

00:08:48Schefter from the meeting before he comes to talk to the local media, at which point

00:08:53to send out a statement.

00:08:54I will say, though, he genuinely wants a good relationship with the media.

00:08:58It's the messaging that's getting boxed and I'm with you.

00:09:00We can put the PR stuff aside.

00:09:01That's not going to put anything in the scoreboard or in the standings.

00:09:03And that's what we're all here for is the football.

00:09:06But in the meantime, there's no way you can just hear the easy part and be like, oh, you'll

00:09:10nail the hard stuff when it's a team meeting in week five and you got guys are pissed about

00:09:14not playing or being on for.

00:09:17You mentioned the Rapp sheet and Schefter getting it before he was just how business

00:09:21is done.

00:09:22Like, I'm just curious.

00:09:24And I'm taking on the curtain because you you guys know much more about this stuff than

00:09:29we do.

00:09:30Who leaks that?

00:09:31Is that it's not a player.

00:09:32There's no benefit to a player doing it.

00:09:33Is that Elliott Wolfe or is that Gerard Mayo or ownership ownership?

00:09:40In build time, it was none of the above, which is what I mean, somebody's doing it now.

00:09:44This happened multiple times.

00:09:47The in in the previous administration.

00:09:50And this is not to back out of your answer, because, again, ownership is relationships

00:09:53with those guys.

00:09:54People in the front office to coaching staff.

00:09:56Absolutely.

00:09:57It was always Bill's right hand man, Bears and Jerry.

00:10:00And that's in Seth Wickersham's book.

00:10:02That's how he handled a lot of anonymous sourcing and this and that.

00:10:05That's not new information.

00:10:06But everything when Bill would leave a press conference and then it got leaked.

00:10:10That's how and why it happened.

00:10:11It was from the head coach indirectly through his personal assistant.

00:10:13Yeah.

00:10:14So that's it.

00:10:16All right.

00:10:17You have another take.

00:10:18And then we're going to get to the fans guide for the rebuild.

00:10:21Is this something non-Mayo related or what else you got?

00:10:24Well, this is a little bit of a caveat, but and again, this is based on terrible preseason

00:10:29football and it was bad, bad, bad, bad.

00:10:32Actually don't hate the wide receivers.

00:10:35And I hated the wide receivers now for a couple of years.

00:10:38But I see in Douglas, Polk and Keyshawn Booty and obviously K.J. Osborne's an okay player.

00:10:46I know you sent me an email, we may use it next week on Muttstack about maybe type on

00:10:51for you.

00:10:52Keep it tight.

00:10:53Stop writing.

00:10:54This is too long.

00:10:55The Mayo quarterback thing devoured whatever you were going to talk about.

00:10:58So we'll put a pause on that.

00:11:00But like even Booty, like that group, athletic, good hands, Javon Baker, like there is something

00:11:07there.

00:11:08But what I'm hopeful is that they realize, you know, Elliot Wolfe, especially, and maybe

00:11:12we know this from the Brandon Ayuk stuff, they're still missing the number one guy.

00:11:16It's an upgrade of wide receiver core, but none of those guys really matter until you

00:11:20get Ayuk, Steph Diggs, J.J., Jamar Chase, like that.

00:11:25That's the game now.

00:11:26Okay.

00:11:27And that is the game, the way it's played in the NFL.

00:11:29You make sure you have, if you don't have the elite, elite, elite quarterback, you better

00:11:32have a number one wide receiver.

00:11:34And they have a bunch of good athletic young receivers that I like.

00:11:37I like some of the plays I saw from Baker and Polk, especially in preseason, but they're

00:11:41still lacking that number one.

00:11:42But I thought the receivers were going to suck eggs and it turns out they might be okay.

00:11:48They still need one more guy.

00:11:49Suck eggs.

00:11:50I don't remember the last time I heard that phrase.

00:11:54I will absolutely be using it soon though.

00:11:56Maybe not the Disguised Patriots receivers that they end up playing to your expectation

00:12:00here.

00:12:01But yeah, I think that's fair.

00:12:03Look, they have not had the number one receiver.

00:12:05We all know this.

00:12:06We've all seen this.

00:12:07The optimism tied to Jalen Polk and Pop Douglas is earned.

00:12:10Taequann Thornton, I want to see it in the game.

00:12:12He's been tracking deep balls better.

00:12:14He's had stronger hands.

00:12:15He's physically stronger, added about eight, nine pounds of muscle, but still looks like

00:12:20a receiver four to me and one of the worst receiving cores in the league.

00:12:22I'm interested to see if and when Kendrick Bourne comes back.

00:12:25Is he trade bait?

00:12:26Because we already know he was in those conversations and I know and have reported other teams called

00:12:30about him last year, since then, and nothing got done.

00:12:35But right now, that would put you at seven receivers again, if and when he comes back

00:12:38in week five or sooner.

00:12:39He should be.

00:12:40He should be trade bait at this point.

00:12:41They're not trying to win this year.

00:12:42If you can get a draft pick for him, they should be tradable.

00:12:44Unless at that point, Drake Mays, and you're trying to develop May, maybe he helps.

00:12:48We'll see.

00:12:49We'll see.

00:12:50Yeah, we'll see.

00:12:51All right.

00:12:52You ready to talk rebuild?

00:12:53Tank season?

00:12:54Yeah, I'm ready to talk rebuild.

00:12:55Good man.

00:12:56All right.

00:12:57Let's bring on a tank commander from Washington.

00:12:58Watched many a tank before, Megan Adelini from WEI, perfectly timed.

00:13:02Also with a Husky in the background.

00:13:04Not much time.

00:13:05Mine Husky is in the heart, but we have a Killington.

00:13:07Is she about, Megan?

00:13:09She just sat up.

00:13:10So I'm a little worried that she's going to join and try to talk, but we're going to fingers

00:13:15crossed make it through.

00:13:17We're going to ride this out.

00:13:19Do we blame her real quick?

00:13:21That this surprise she ruined yesterday by texting, saying she didn't know you were coming

00:13:25on, Megan?

00:13:26Oh, sorry.

00:13:27Andrew, when it's a surprise, it's like a surprise party.

00:13:32You have to tell them that it's a surprise.

00:13:35It's fair.

00:13:36That was also a diet too, that changed hands very quickly.

00:13:38The small.

00:13:39Did that make the...

00:13:40Oh yeah.

00:13:41Hey, if anyone ever thought I just did this as a bit, it's not.

00:13:44I'm in my own home right now.

00:13:45No, it's not a bit.

00:13:46It's a big one.

00:13:47Hi Mike.

00:13:48What's going on?

00:13:49Sorry to ruin the surprise.

00:13:50Wasted the good surprise on you.

00:13:52Okay.

00:13:53I didn't respond back.

00:13:54So I was like, maybe Callie had double booked the podcast and I didn't want to be the one

00:13:57to tell him that.

00:13:58He was concerned.

00:13:59Yeah.

00:14:00But hey, old show partners back together.

00:14:01So you guys had me on Callie's time.

00:14:02So I told him I wanted to do this last year and then he just kept ignoring me basically

00:14:06until this week.

00:14:07So that's good.

00:14:08He does that.

00:14:09Yeah.

00:14:10He doesn't respond to your text.

00:14:11He's actually, he's like very rude off air.

00:14:13The whole thing is his on air personality is like, oh, he's fun and he'll say a little

00:14:18bit of snark, but he's pretty nice.

00:14:20And then in the real world, just like the biggest a-hole, it's horrible.

00:14:24It's like when they take the kids out to the supermarket and they're in public, but as

00:14:28soon as they get in the car, there's yelling and screaming and you'd see him gesturing

00:14:31through the window because that's like private.

00:14:33You can't hear them anymore.

00:14:35That's my family.

00:14:36That's my eight seconds out of the car.

00:14:37They're fine.

00:14:38They get back in the car and they're killing each other.

00:14:39Yeah.

00:14:40That's how it works.

00:14:41Do either you or your wife really quickly, do like the scream whisper at your kids in

00:14:46public?

00:14:47No, we're now screaming fully.

00:14:49We've embraced it.

00:14:51It's not worth hiding.

00:14:52When I was a kid, my mom, God bless her, we were going to be in Marshalls or TJ Maxx.

00:14:57My brother and I would be complete.

00:14:59I won't use that word, but we were like little a-holes.

00:15:00That's fine.

00:15:01We were pirates.

00:15:02I was going to say, what can we say?

00:15:03You can say whatever you want.

00:15:05It's just more work for Amit, my producer, who dislocated his kneecap in the media game

00:15:09three weeks ago, which I bring up because I had not seen him since today when he walked

00:15:12in looking perfectly okay.

00:15:15But as an Italian family, we yelled in public.

00:15:17We're yelling in public at the kids.

00:15:18We yell in the backyard.

00:15:19Last night, outdoor dinner, yelling at the kids.

00:15:22And I noticed the back neighbors, Meggo, they were outside also eating dinner, so they got

00:15:26to hear my youngest son being screamed at for sitting like a lunatic in his seat.

00:15:30It's just out loud.

00:15:31For sitting?

00:15:32His feet up at the table.

00:15:36It was a scene.

00:15:37It was a scene.

00:15:38It's early in the school year.

00:15:39Wildness, wildness.

00:15:40It sounds a little swaggy.

00:15:42It sounds like he was sitting with swag.

00:15:44Nothing swaggy.

00:15:45Yeah, Meggo, where would he have gotten that from?

00:15:47It's certainly not from dad.

00:15:48No.

00:15:49I don't know.

00:15:50I haven't met Mrs. Mutt, so it had to come from her.

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00:17:18PrizePix.

00:17:20Run your game.

00:17:21All right.

00:17:22The Patriots also having no swag.

00:17:24They deserve to have their feet on the ground.

00:17:25They might be sitting on their asses as it is.

00:17:27I have an article coming out in the Herald on Sunday, and this is exactly what it's about.

00:17:31How can people survive 18 weeks, 17 games of a team that probably in all likelihood

00:17:35is going to suck?

00:17:37Megan, before I even texted you, I failed to realize you've done this plenty of times

00:17:41rooting for Washington, whatever iteration they've been.

00:17:44What is number one in your list of this is how to survive sucky football for 17 games?

00:17:48Okay.

00:17:49I'll start out with like the bright spots, which is what you have to find in a rebuild.

00:17:54And this is, I call it finding your own Super Bowl, which sounds horrible, but this is your

00:17:59life now because you're not going to go to the Super Bowl again anytime soon.

00:18:03So for me personally, as a Washington fan, it's like any big stages that you could possibly

00:18:09win on.

00:18:10So as a Washington fan, that was always Dallas.

00:18:13If you beat Dallas, if you at least just split with Dallas, because for whatever reason,

00:18:18Dallas is always relevant, then major win in your column.

00:18:22You can celebrate that.

00:18:23You can ride that high for a week, if not longer.

00:18:26There was one time a couple of years ago when I was at my cousin's house for Thanksgiving

00:18:31and Dallas and Washington were playing on Thanksgiving.

00:18:35And I rode that high for like six weeks.

00:18:37That got me through like, and then there was a little Heineken jump after that.

00:18:41So I got that.

00:18:43So it's like you just, I guess part of it is saying that you really have to lower your

00:18:47expectations so low that anything that feels like it's more than just a routine win of

00:18:54a team, even more worse off than you is, it feels like a Super Bowl because you just had

00:19:01the glom onto that.

00:19:02And I feel like the Patriots have been irrelevant largely for enough years that you can start

00:19:09practicing this.

00:19:10So I don't feel like as debasing as it would four or five years ago.

00:19:15That's a good point.

00:19:16Mutt, I don't know how well you know the schedule, but are any games screaming to you, okay,

00:19:20I can do this week three for London or other games like Megan's talking about?

00:19:26I've not, I've not done that.

00:19:27I would say the divisional games against Buffalo and Miami, those be, and I guess the Jets

00:19:31at Rogers, the divisional games, I don't care if they're prime time or not.

00:19:35If you're able to beat those teams, that's a good thing.

00:19:38But I mean, that's to Mego's point, you know, as you get older in life, your expectations

00:19:42of dating get lower is what I'm told.

00:19:44I got married very early, so I can't speak to that, but that's what it feels like.

00:19:47Megos talking about here is that, and it sounds awful, by the way, that we have to point to

00:19:53divisional games and be an upset here or there, like on the road as being the highlight as

00:19:57a Patriots fan.

00:19:59That's just talking about dating for a second.

00:20:00Does that take a look in the mirror, you know, take a look in the mirror.

00:20:04I'm not the person you were in your senior year of high school yearbook, and you have

00:20:08to recognize that about yourself.

00:20:10For some of us, that's a good thing.

00:20:13Yeah, yeah.

00:20:14Very good thing.

00:20:15Except actually, I take that back.

00:20:16I wish I had that hair back because it was, believe it or not, a flow once upon a time.

00:20:20Are there Callahan flow pictures somewhere?

00:20:22Like actual hair?

00:20:23Yes.

00:20:24But no, that is, that is like, I don't think my wife has even seen most of those.

00:20:28I'm talking about the full length, shoulder length, eighth grade, kind of let it go.

00:20:33Don't care.

00:20:34Care for, yeah.

00:20:35Shoulder length.

00:20:36Andrew, we're like roughly the same age.

00:20:38When was shoulder length and style for guys?

00:20:40Were you like in a Hanson?

00:20:43You're trying to bring Hanson back in the mid-aughts?

00:20:47It was a time in history that it worked.

00:20:50I think it was like late 04, early 05, certain girls in our school were down.

00:20:54So I was like, so that was it.

00:20:57Down is probably the wrong use of it.

00:20:59How old were you when they were down?

00:21:01It went well.

00:21:04I just gave you a giant hint though when I threw that to you about, oh, is it week three?

00:21:07Is it week four?

00:21:08Is it London or any divisional games?

00:21:10Week three is Thursday night against the Jets, Patriots only primetime game this season.

00:21:14I would say that.

00:21:15Megan, does that count?

00:21:16Sorry.

00:21:17My dog is eating a squeaky toy in the background.

00:21:20I can't tee up anybody today.

00:21:23That's a yes.

00:21:24Week four, San Francisco, you win, four o'clock game.

00:21:27I think most of the country will probably be watching that.

00:21:29You've got a big-

00:21:30Andrew, Andrew, Andrew.

00:21:31What?

00:21:32These expectations are way too high.

00:21:34You think you're going to beat San Francisco?

00:21:36This leads me to my next point.

00:21:37And I've never-

00:21:38If you beat San Francisco, the rebuild is off.

00:21:42I'm just saying-

00:21:43You're taken off.

00:21:44Now there's expectations.

00:21:45To your point about pick the games that have got a bigger stage, right?

00:21:49San Francisco is a stage.

00:21:50They make Super Bowls.

00:21:51The Jets is a Thursday night.

00:21:52You hate them.

00:21:53You beat them.

00:21:54It feels better.

00:21:55But if you go to the San Francisco point, the upset, a big upset is coming for the New

00:21:59England Patriots.

00:22:00And if you think I'm insane for this, get it out now because I'm about to tell you why.

00:22:06Tell us why.

00:22:07I mean, I think the Niners, thinking that you're going to beat the Niners is a little

00:22:10wild.

00:22:11Yeah.

00:22:12No, no.

00:22:13I would never bet on that.

00:22:14I would never bet on that.

00:22:15Here's the thing, though.

00:22:16The last four teams-

00:22:17You might bet on it, though.

00:22:18You can bet whatever you want.

00:22:19As long as you're down like the girls from Mansfield Middle School in 04 and 05.

00:22:23The last four teams who earned the number one pick in the draft, in the order before

00:22:27they traded it, all beat playoff teams during the regular season.

00:22:31So the worst teams in the league experience the ultimate any given Sunday.

00:22:37And so even though the Patriots suck and their offensive line is terrible and the receiving

00:22:40core still lacks a number one target and all this and that, even last year, they got a

00:22:44quote unquote signature win when they beat Buffalo in late October.

00:22:48The team is perhaps worse now.

00:22:50We're getting another one of those, whether they like it or not.

00:22:53I don't know.

00:22:54Man.

00:22:55Kelly likes that.

00:22:56He agrees.

00:22:57Yeah.

00:22:58I guess so.

00:22:59Persuasive or not?

00:23:00Yeah.

00:23:01I'm a numbers guy.

00:23:02So if you're telling me the numbers say they're going to win one of those games, then I would

00:23:08believe it just based on the preseason, based on the quarterback to start the year, the

00:23:13offense.

00:23:14It's hard to picture that now, but who knows what players get hurt, who steps up where.

00:23:20If you're telling me that I believe you, then I believe the numbers.

00:23:22I believe in the numbers.

00:23:23You're saying that, then I'll believe it.

00:23:25I just ask you what those numbers and I don't want to be putting a damper on any of it.

00:23:28How much of it has to do with teams who either found something partway through the season

00:23:35that wasn't there before?

00:23:37If you're talking about these playoff teams or teams that at the end of the season, are

00:23:42there any mitigating factors of fitting starters because you've already got it locked or anything

00:23:48like that.

00:23:49I know that's less of a case than it was maybe five or 10 years ago.

00:23:53Are there any of those factors at play?

00:23:54Because if that's the case, sure.

00:23:57I can see the Patriots upsetting the Bills in one of those last couple of week games,

00:24:04but I'm not sure that I would write that in as like, wow, what a moment for the season.

00:24:09So the definition here, the operational definition is just beating a playoff team, a big upset,

00:24:14which will be, I would say nine points or more for a spread.

00:24:18That's significant.

00:24:19Mutt, checking in on the betting side, nine points or more.

00:24:21Major upset.

00:24:22Yeah, touchdown plus is big.

00:24:23That'd be a big upset.

00:24:24Yeah.

00:24:25So when I mentioned these last four teams who picked number one overall, go back to

00:24:272020, the Jaguars won one game, but they beat the Colts, who obviously was a divisional

00:24:32team.

00:24:33The next year, the Jags earned the number one pick again.

00:24:35They beat the Bills and then beat the Colts again and eliminated them from playoff contention.

00:24:41The Bears the following season beat the Niners in the season opener and the Panthers got

00:24:45lucky and beat the Texans before the Texans were the Texans.

00:24:48So the trends in there say it's a team you know, like it's in the division, the Jags

00:24:51and Colts, or you get somebody so early before teams settle in by like Halloween, you know

00:24:56who's good, you know who's not, you know who everyone else is in the middle, because those

00:25:00are really the instances where this has happened for the worst teams in the entire league still

00:25:04beating playoff teams.

00:25:05Okay, good work by everyone.

00:25:06Can I give you my next, my next piece of advice for a tanking team?

00:25:16We boxed him out here.

00:25:19So I want to, I want Mutt to give us some.

00:25:22And to be fair, mine are not, you had a good one on your list that you sent me, Andrew.

00:25:25Mine are not that serious because I think the on the field product is going to be very

00:25:28tough to watch and the offense is going to be atrocious.

00:25:30It's going to be 1987 football.

00:25:32I'm having a hard time selling you on the field.

00:25:35So number one is just like last couple of years, enjoy your college football.

00:25:38This team's not going to be good.

00:25:39They're going to have a high draft pick.

00:25:42Hopefully, Elliott Wolf, you recognize you need a number one receiver.

00:25:46Go sign a lineman in the free agency.

00:25:47Don't spend a top pick on a left tackle, you know, you wasted the entire off season not

00:25:51getting one.

00:25:52I'm watching all the top wideouts and I'm begging this team is bad enough.

00:25:55They get one of the two or three best wide receivers.

00:25:57He's the eventual number one.

00:25:59And then Drake May has the group he has now, plus the number one.

00:26:02So even more than last year with the quarterbacks, I'm going to be, I'm committing to college

00:26:06football this year and stalking these wide receivers, hoping one's that ends up into

00:26:09it.

00:26:11Mutt, you and I both went to UConn as well, documented on this podcast.

00:26:14So we did not really grow up watching big time college football, Megan, you're in the

00:26:18Notre Dame family.

00:26:19Have you watched, though, Mutt, like other teams have you adopted in LSU?

00:26:23Do you take a I'll watch the ranked games on Saturday?

00:26:26I know betting is somewhere in here or baiting, as we say here in this podcast.

00:26:31But what like what's your attitude now towards college ballgame?

00:26:34You didn't grow up, but grow up in it.

00:26:37The primetime games on Saturday are just awesome.

00:26:40The way that they have, and I feel this, maybe it's different in Boston, the Celtics are

00:26:44still right there.

00:26:45But I think as a country, we've decided NFL is one.

00:26:49College football is two.

00:26:50And the amount of production and effort put into it.

00:26:52And then on top of that, every Monday or Tuesday, you get these draft guys then telling you

00:26:56who the best players are.

00:26:58Like I am way more into that was as a kid, like unless you were a Boston college fan,

00:27:03you didn't care about college football.

00:27:05And you had Glenn Foley, you had a couple of Mike Cloud, those old BC teams, a couple

00:27:10of teams made a run.

00:27:11But Northeast college football is not great.

00:27:14You know, again, Donald Brown at UConn, I guess, Terry Cawley, shout out running backs.

00:27:19So I like the primetime games and the high scoring offenses, like Oregon, like the SEC

00:27:25teams.

00:27:26Obviously, LSU has been a wide receiver factory.

00:27:28So that's what my focus has been.

00:27:30And those games are always in primetime on Saturday nights, which is awesome.

00:27:33Megha?

00:27:34Yeah, I think it's an interesting point, because it like you say, Matt, that college football

00:27:39is now the number two sport overall kind of community sport among the country.

00:27:46There are parts of the country I mean, like where I grew up, there was still a big Washington

00:27:50fan base.

00:27:51And if you weren't a huge Washington fan, you were probably a Ravens fan at some point.

00:27:57But I feel like at times, college football was a bigger deal than NFL where I grew up.

00:28:05So that's not such a new thing to me.

00:28:06I think what's different to me now is what you guys are pointing out, which is the connection,

00:28:12the pipeline from the individual college talent to the NFL draft and who might end up on your

00:28:18team.

00:28:19And I think it's fun to pick that out, because it's almost like a fantasy approach, where

00:28:23you're looking at specific receivers.

00:28:25How would this guy work with Drake May?

00:28:28Anybody else if you're a total dork, and you're looking at offensive linemen, which the Patriots

00:28:32certainly need right now, but you're like, oh, look at that big boy, left tackle is going

00:28:36to be eaten for a while in the NFL, then that, I guess if that gets you going, like, go ahead.

00:28:43I just feel like it's a little bit of a crapshoot to totally invest yourself in the entire college

00:28:49game, just so that you can pick out, hey, these are the guys that I like come draft

00:28:54season.

00:28:55Yeah.

00:28:56I want to have an opinion on these guys at the end and be able to separate them, because

00:28:58I, and I, and I, and I hope there was enough of them that are, I haven't looked at the

00:29:022025 draft yet, my bad.

00:29:04There's enough that are good enough that there's somebody there for the Patriots.

00:29:07So I'm sure Calhoun will have a column this week on the 2025 draft.

00:29:10Well, how about a couple of names for you right now?

00:29:13Okay.

00:29:14Of course.

00:29:15Especially when I can't pronounce them.

00:29:17Well, again, there's like a story actually coming out Sunday where I have this exact

00:29:20thing.

00:29:21It says dive into college football, because look again, as someone who grew up in Connecticut,

00:29:24the weirdest sports state in the union, uh, didn't really know college football, covered

00:29:28it for two to three years and had an absolute ball.

00:29:30I still watch and not just Penn state, but like all the top 25 games, because there are

00:29:34more teams, more schemes, more drama, generally more fun.

00:29:38If you want to hone in though, and be a dork, as Mega put it lovingly felt like that was

00:29:42you're talking about offensive linemen in college.

00:29:45You're yes.

00:29:46Yep.

00:29:47Fair.

00:29:48If that, if that gets you going, I think as you said, anyways, you figure out your mic

00:29:53because you've been muted for too much offensive line erotica talk, um, Travis Hunter for Colorado

00:29:59is potential topic plays receiver and cornerback.

00:30:01How easy is that?

00:30:02They're playing tonight against North Dakota state.

00:30:03They're play a lot.

00:30:04They're going to play Nebraska next week.

00:30:06Watch Colorado, Missouri's Luther burden.

00:30:08The third expected to be a top 10 pick.

00:30:10I would never watch Missouri.

00:30:12I'm going to put that on now because they've got a receiver who might affect my job next

00:30:15year.

00:30:16Arizona has one.

00:30:17His last name is McMillan.

00:30:18I'm not, I'm not taking a shot on the first name and then Ohio state, like LSU, another

00:30:21receiver factory.

00:30:22Speaking of LSU, again, for the dorks, Will Campbell and Emory Jones, Jr.

00:30:26Both tackles.

00:30:27You don't have to watch one.

00:30:28You can watch both.

00:30:29Those dudes are all projected to go in the first round.

00:30:32Maybe top five might be top 10.

00:30:33So if you don't want to do what Martin and I are doing, the primetime games, the top

00:30:3725 ones, they're your, they're your scouting guys to, uh, to watch.

00:30:42Can I ask you something that is a little bit of a tangent, but since we're having offensive

00:30:45line talk, um, do you feel like when you're, I guess for lack of a better term, scouting

00:30:51these offensive linemen from college?

00:30:52No, it's a great word.

00:30:54That's a perfect word.

00:30:55I'd say what it just makes you sound like you're taking this incredibly seriously, which

00:30:59makes me worry for you and Alicia.

00:31:02But if you're doing this, do you have the expectation that these offensive linemen who

00:31:07are not at the level of say, Joe alt from this previous draft, but a run in the mill

00:31:13guy, who's going to be a high, higher draft pick first couple of rounds, what is the expectation

00:31:18that they're actually going to be prepared to play say next season on the line for Drake

00:31:24May?

00:31:25Cause you hear so much chatter about how much less offensive linemen are allowed to do terms

00:31:29of once you get into camp and Hey, we've seen guys like Cole strange who struggle with the

00:31:34body type.

00:31:36Sometimes that's expected to come in and everything that goes along with ramping up to actually

00:31:39being an NFL level offensive lineman.

00:31:42Yeah, it's a really good question.

00:31:44And I mentioned this, uh, I think a couple of episodes ago, it's a good, good refresher.

00:31:49It's just to say that no matter, even if you're digging in the top five or top 10, there's

00:31:53a learning curve more with offensive tackles or were appreciably worse than other guys

00:31:57in that area of playing other positions as rookies.

00:32:00They usually develop into it.

00:32:01And the example I keep giving is Andrew Thomas because it's the most extreme example with

00:32:05the giants who looks like this all time freaking bust.

00:32:08And now if you were to pick up man tomorrow, you're like, Oh, the giants have a tackle

00:32:12is an 89 or a 90.

00:32:13That's great.

00:32:14That's what you want.

00:32:15So I don't think they have much of an impact.

00:32:16Even if you get someone that high level, I will say this though, what you're looking

00:32:20for are exceptionally rare traits and then players like Joe wall, um, or ideally more

00:32:25of an LSU type who have faced the closest level of competition you would have in the

00:32:29NFL.

00:32:30You know, physically, this is not an issue.

00:32:32He's already an NFL athlete and he's seen as much, you know, NFL competition as one

00:32:37can just based on a schedule.

00:32:38Everything else.

00:32:39I was a crapshoot and I just, it's not a red shirt rookie year, but like Kaden Wallace

00:32:42is not going to end up starting a bunch of games this year.

00:32:45If he does, it's bad news.

00:32:46Cause he's a rookie.

00:32:47I wish somebody called Elliot Wolfpack cause, uh, yeah, yeah, me too, but that was an absolute

00:32:55rant on offensive line scouting.

00:32:57I was not expecting that on my, you know, car today.

00:32:59Bring the listeners back in, be a teammate.

00:33:02This is what it's like to cover a team that sucks.

00:33:05Welcome.

00:33:06Okay.

00:33:07So I'll start with number two.

00:33:08It's okay to cheat on your team this year, Patriot fans, where you will get a second

00:33:11TV or you would like to just change the channel.

00:33:15Red zone is your friend.

00:33:16Subscribe.

00:33:17Watch Scott Hanson.

00:33:18He never goes to the bathroom and those games are good.

00:33:21And by the way, when you're watching that, if the paths are in a close game, you can

00:33:24always flip back.

00:33:25But going back to the offense, I love offensive football.

00:33:28We all should.

00:33:29I think it's offense with percent at the helm is going to be atrocious.

00:33:32Even with some younger wide receiver talent, it's okay to cheat on the team with Scott

00:33:36Hanson and red zone the year, the days of you have to not do anything.

00:33:41In my opinion, during that three hour Patriots block, those are done.

00:33:46Those are done.

00:33:47They need to prove to me this year.

00:33:48Like they're going to be worth watching because my spiciest take will tie into this, but there's

00:33:52a real chance there.

00:33:53You know, one of, if not the worst team in football, you don't have to watch every game.

00:33:56Do not feel guilty is my point.

00:33:58So you are dating again, though.

00:34:00It sounds like you're on the market.

00:34:01You're doing the thing you said you would hate to do again.

00:34:03You're doing this just with football.

00:34:04Uh, yes.

00:34:05I, well, I, the teams on red zone, uh, that I've, I gambled on are definitely like in

00:34:10my radar.

00:34:11Like it's, it's that, that's that meme where it's like, so let's look at the Patriots.

00:34:15Then my, my, the team I bet all walks by.

00:34:17So I turn around, look at them.

00:34:18That's okay.

00:34:19This year you can look, you can watch the whole thing.

00:34:21I don't care.

00:34:22I don't care.

00:34:23Megan, what's acceptable football cheating for someone who did a relationship segment

00:34:25for a long time.

00:34:27So I take it even further.

00:34:29I've been doing this for a long time because my team has rarely been relevant.

00:34:34So I'd always say, well, I have my team and then I have my playoff team.

00:34:37So I'd like almost have to commit to another team and you can change it year to year.

00:34:43You get to have fun with this.

00:34:44It's basically like, who do you think is the spicy team that year?

00:34:48Who's the fun team that year?

00:34:50Who's the team where you think you see something in that nobody else sees in or like, don't

00:34:54go for the chiefs, you know?

00:34:57Don't go for the bills.

00:34:58Don't go for someone in your own division, but choose someone in the opposite conference.

00:35:03So you know, if you decide that you're going to, I don't know.

00:35:06Who did you pick?

00:35:07Like the last two years?

00:35:09I mean, I kind of stopped doing this when I started doing sports full time because...

00:35:14Well, take us back to 2016 or whatever you were doing.

00:35:17A lot of attention to the Patriots.

00:35:19For me, an easy one was always Baltimore because I always felt a little bit like I lost something

00:35:25there because I remember when they came back, you know, cause I grew up and it was all about

00:35:31Washington and the Colts had taken off in the middle of the night and you had all these

00:35:34sad old guys who would talk about the Colts.

00:35:37And then they brought in the Ravens and I was like, that's so dorky, who'd go be a Ravens

00:35:41fan.

00:35:42And then they won the Superbowl a few years later.

00:35:45So I was like, wow, really think I missed the boat on that one.

00:35:48So for time to time, it's been the Ravens, but for me, a lot of different AFC teams.

00:35:52Obviously like the Bengals are fun to root for because I think Joe Burrow is just an

00:35:58ideal human and I love everything about him and he's just fun to root for as a football

00:36:04player.

00:36:05But just go out there, find somebody in the other conference, somebody that you find entertaining.

00:36:11Basically the style of football, and again, this goes to you Mike, like you're probably

00:36:15not watching the games for defense.

00:36:18So if you find an offense that you like, if you're watching Philly and you're like

00:36:23the rest of the league gets so pissed off about the push, push, but I like that and

00:36:29I like the little drama on the side that's going on between Sirianni and Hurts and what's

00:36:34going to happen there.

00:36:35And I really like the weapons they have.

00:36:37Okay, go watch your Philly games.

00:36:39Don't buy gear, like don't take it too far, but at least you can get a little bit emotionally

00:36:43invested in a different group and say, Hey, I still see you over here.

00:36:48I'm still watching you, but I need something else to emotionally fill this void.

00:36:53So one thing they don't tell you about this job is you get one question a lot.

00:36:57Hey, do you get tickets?

00:37:00No, I don't.

00:37:01I have one press pass.

00:37:02It's got my name on it.

00:37:03I am the only person I can let into Gillette Stadium on Sundays to watch the Patriots play.

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00:38:15Just download Game Time today.

00:38:17What time is it?

00:38:18Game time.

00:38:19Yeah.

00:38:20This is the reality of it.

00:38:21That's so depressing.

00:38:22Damn.

00:38:23I know.

00:38:24Guys, you don't understand what it's like to be in this for decades.

00:38:30No, I won't say for decades, but again, you guys are younger than I am.

00:38:34If you're in your mid forties, this is the Patriots growing up.

00:38:36It was Scott C. Kules, Steve Grogan, Scott Solak, Vincent Brisby, just terrible football.

00:38:42So there's a younger fan base that doesn't know what it's like.

00:38:45If you're a Patriots fan since like the, you know, after like after 86 on the Super Bowl,

00:38:50like those early nineties, pre Parcells, like sort of feel like it'd be one of those years.

00:38:55So it's not been that long since Pat's fans had to deal with this.

00:38:58Rod Rust, you think?

00:39:00Rod Rust, Dick McPherson.

00:39:03Man, I guess Michael Timpson, some old Patriots.

00:39:07Do you want to be honest?

00:39:09Is there a little piece of you that wonders or I think that there's a piece of like Patriots

00:39:18fans that are excited about sucking this bad because they can prove that they're like real

00:39:25Patriots fans.

00:39:26I think there are people of Andrew and I's age group where they've been spoiled for most

00:39:31of their lives, where they've actually been able to pay attention and follow and care

00:39:35about football.

00:39:37And they hear all the older heads saying like, you don't know what it was like.

00:39:40You don't know what it was like before the old Fox Orioles stadium, blah, blah, blah.

00:39:43And it's like, okay, whatever boring we're there for the greatest dynasty of all time.

00:39:49And now it's like, no, I can prove that I actually care about football and I should

00:39:51care about my team.

00:39:53I'm not just there for Brady and Belichick.

00:39:55I think what that is, is yes, people in new England are excited to tell you I'm better

00:39:59than you.

00:40:01I think I'm better than you.

00:40:02And that's it.

00:40:03Cause I'm hanging out here a little bit longer, but I don't, I think they're excited maybe

00:40:05to see people go away or came in and joined like zappy hour.

00:40:08And we're like, Oh, this is like the posters are gone.

00:40:11Yeah, exactly.

00:40:12But it's not, it's not about them.

00:40:14I'm not proving anything.

00:40:15It's getting away, you know, the garbage that I'm, that I'm better than.

00:40:18So that's.

00:40:19Oh, what?

00:40:20That's a great job.

00:40:21Zappy.

00:40:22What are those people do now?

00:40:23The ones who bought the jersey of a backup quarterback and cheered for him and cheered

00:40:25over Mac Jones.

00:40:26So those people, they still wear those.

00:40:27Did they burn them?

00:40:28Did they just leave?

00:40:29They bought them.

00:40:30They drink.

00:40:31That's what they do.

00:40:32I don't know.

00:40:33They deserve some sort of punishment.

00:40:35I'm not going to go that far.

00:40:36Doug put this very eloquently and fairly last episode.

00:40:40He's, he's not the most screwed over quarterback.

00:40:42He got to play.

00:40:43He got a couple of wins under his belt, whatever, but he's, he's not very good.

00:40:47And he stepped into a garbage couple of seasons with the offensive coaching staffs.

00:40:51And that's too bad.

00:40:52But people who saw a starting caliber quarterback in him were always wrong.

00:40:56Have been wrong.

00:40:57I'm not celebrating.

00:40:58I'm not telling them I'm better than you, but I'm just saying like, yeah, it's all time

00:41:01to move on.

00:41:02He's surely very happy in Kansas city.

00:41:03And that's, that's just it.

00:41:04I don't know what they have to do.

00:41:06Maybe, maybe stadium stairs.

00:41:07Once they get into their next home game, just do, just do have the stadium.

00:41:11No, I think this is like, if you, if you actually had a Zappy Jersey, I can't imagine there's

00:41:17so many out there.

00:41:19We saw them on TV with the Sunday night football.

00:41:21But if you had them, you, you should have to have that tattooed, like the Jersey name

00:41:27across your shoulders and everything.

00:41:30I'm not saying the number, but you should have to be like branded Zappy, like they have

00:41:35on the Jersey, just across your shoulders.

00:41:37And that's, that's what you, that's the way you go through the rest of life.

00:41:40I think there's a guy on the beat who has one of those, or will have a tattoo like that.

00:41:48Yeah.

00:41:49Yeah.

00:41:50He, it's one of those websites, not Nesson, maybe mass live.

00:41:53I don't know.

00:41:54We'll come back to it.

00:41:55But I think he is happy.

00:41:56He would have been a young player coming up and he's not anymore because there's a new

00:42:00quarterback Drake May.

00:42:01My, my other idea for how to survive the season, just watch the kids.

00:42:04Like if they're going to play and be the future and the plate jurors only really care about

00:42:09Drake May and Jaylen Polk and Jayvon Baker and DeMario Douglas.

00:42:12Oh, Keon White can hang out, Christian Gonzalez, watch them too, because they're going to be

00:42:15around here for a while.

00:42:16So you will take more joy in watching them develop from, oh, he got burned this time

00:42:22or Keon White hasn't had a sack.

00:42:23Next year, they take off.

00:42:25You'll have had stock at the lowest point and you will have enjoyed that because you

00:42:28went through the struggles of this year because they're all going to play.

00:42:31You might as well just hone on them.

00:42:32Like they have, you have a separate fantasy team of guys who were just in the Patriots

00:42:35and may or may not suck right now.

00:42:37That's not like a terrible fantasy team.

00:42:41God, that sounds like Christian Gonzalez.

00:42:44Yeah.

00:42:45I think I had to do it until the end though.

00:42:47You know, like just, just watch the kids.

00:42:48It only makes sense.

00:42:49You know, like if, if, if an area low gives up a sack and you're not really watching the

00:42:54whole offense, you're just watching the receivers.

00:42:55You don't care that much.

00:42:56Like you didn't see it.

00:42:58Can I tell you the number one way to get through this season?

00:43:01Oh yeah.

00:43:02Please.

00:43:03Okay.

00:43:04Fill your heart with hate.

00:43:06Like pick out the team that you actually root like hell against them.

00:43:12Because I will say, you know, as you get older, it doesn't matter really if you work in sports

00:43:16or not.

00:43:17At some point, you're never going to be the fan that you were when you were 12 years old.

00:43:21Your brain changes, the bearing chemistry changes, your life hopefully changes.

00:43:28I hate Dallas more than I did when I was 12 years old because I had to live through the

00:43:35Tony Romo era.

00:43:36Now I had to live through the Dak Prescott era.

00:43:39So nothing makes me happier than being able to sit there and like laugh my ass off every

00:43:44time that the Cowboys implode in the playoffs.

00:43:47And people are looking at their starting quarterback going, is he good?

00:43:51I don't know.

00:43:52We don't know if he's good.

00:43:53Should we be paying him this much?

00:43:54I don't know.

00:43:55What's our coach going to do?

00:43:56Is Jerry Jones just crazy?

00:43:58And I'm like, yeah.

00:43:59Who's that team for Patriots fans?

00:44:00Is it Aaron Rodgers or the Jets?

00:44:01You have to decide for yourselves.

00:44:02Is it going to be the Jets?

00:44:03The Jets feel too easy.

00:44:04I think there's some clear options here.

00:44:06I think the Dolphins are kind of fun.

00:44:10No.

00:44:11Bills.

00:44:12Bills.

00:44:13Bills.

00:44:14The Bills.

00:44:15Josh Allen's the next.

00:44:16It's got to be Buffalo, right?

00:44:17They beat Buffalo a couple years ago.

00:44:18Or Rodgers.

00:44:19Yeah, you might be right.

00:44:21Divisional team.

00:44:22That's the team.

00:44:23Pick one.

00:44:24Yeah, it's usually a divisional team.

00:44:25I mean, we'll put it this way.

00:44:26Who would you say has been the Patriots' biggest rivals when they were good?

00:44:29Well, that's been so long ago.

00:44:32I think all the rivals are gone.

00:44:34I remember writing about this in 2020.

00:44:35Like they're playing the Ravens.

00:44:36Hey, they're not going to see them for another two years.

00:44:38And they haven't seen them in two or three of those rivalries dead.

00:44:41Steelers and you are both like hanging out.

00:44:43The Patriots usually win.

00:44:44And you're both pretty average right now.

00:44:45Like they're gone.

00:44:46Buffalo and Miami beat you almost every single time.

00:44:51I think it's Buffalo.

00:44:52And I think Buffalo is actually prying to underachieve this year compared to where everybody

00:44:57expects them to always be because of having Josh Allen.

00:45:01And I feel like it's going to be a lower year for them.

00:45:04So it would be more fun if you're a Patriots fan and you want to circle Buffalo and say

00:45:09like, okay, like we're going to make fun of you because a couple years ago you thought

00:45:13that you were going to be us because you had Josh Allen.

00:45:16And now look where you are.

00:45:17You're just stuck in neutral.

00:45:19The issue with last season was you could have had this with the Jets, especially with Aaron

00:45:24Rogers when he got up there and the Sunday night promo or Monday night promo, whatever

00:45:28it was when he's saying, I don't know why everyone's are so afraid to say Superbowl

00:45:32out loud.

00:45:33But then he goes and blows the Achilles and you don't see him for the entire year.

00:45:37So you didn't even get to like revel in the failure of the Jets because it happened so

00:45:40quickly.

00:45:41So I would say fill your heart with hate, pick out your team that you legitimately hate.

00:45:47This has to be a real emotion.

00:45:48You can't just manufacture it like someone who bothers you and don't pick the Chiefs

00:45:53because that's just jealousy.

00:45:55Like you're just jealous and you'll make fun of Patrick Mahomes voice.

00:45:58You'll make fun of Travis Kelsey and Taylor Swift, but that's just you being like incredibly

00:46:02jealous and it's just a bad look.

00:46:04So pick another team, decide how much you hate them, who really bothers you.

00:46:09And odds are they're going to fail to win the Superbowl.

00:46:12So then you can revel in their failure.

00:46:13Yeah.

00:46:15Andrew hates many people on the Patriots beat.

00:46:17He won't say it on this show, but we've talked privately.

00:46:19We all know.

00:46:20It's true.

00:46:21Yeah.

00:46:22I mean, two in particular.

00:46:23It's actually just jealousy.

00:46:25That's what it is.

00:46:26That's all it is.

00:46:28If you don't want to hate the way Mago does, here's what you want to be happy every week.

00:46:32You want to be enjoying the Patriots game because somebody will fail.

00:46:35Well, you might be richer, though, if I think I know where I'm going to do.

00:46:39You can gamble on that failure.

00:46:40If you're of legal age, you should be gambling every week on the NFL.

00:46:44You can take your favorite player for the Patriots, play their player props.

00:46:47You can bet with the Patriots.

00:46:48I think they're going to pull an upset route for them.

00:46:50You can bet against the Patriots as an emotional hedge.

00:46:52If they win the game, you're happy.

00:46:54If they lose, you lose some money, but they've won your hearts by winning a game.

00:46:59I think gambling is the way to get through.

00:47:02Sports betting on football gets you through a terrible Patriots season.

00:47:07Responsibly, responsibly, responsibly, responsibly.

00:47:11Okay, well, your last take, Mago, I asked Matt for his three spicy takes.

00:47:17He's given us two before you came on and he saved one for the end.

00:47:20Is that betting related?

00:47:21Because if it's not, then I want just a bet or two now that you think could help people

00:47:26get through either a long-term bet or week one or a prop or anything that you feel could

00:47:32make people a little bit happier, if not richer moving forward.

00:47:36Yeah, I think what I've seen in preseason, I'm all over the Patriots under a four and

00:47:42a half wins.

00:47:43And the caveat is, and maybe I'm reading it wrong, I read the Mayo thing today is like

00:47:50Wolfe is making the decision and Brissette's going to play as long as possible.

00:47:53And the more he plays, the worse they're going to be.

00:47:56Actually, I think they'd be better with Drake maybe because he can avoid some of this trouble.

00:48:00He's going to make mistakes, but he's athletic enough to try to make use of this awful, awful

00:48:04offensive line.

00:48:05So I think they're going to be bad.

00:48:06And I also think sneakily, probably not a word, they want to be bad.

00:48:13Is it?

00:48:14Okay, good.

00:48:15I think they want to be bad.

00:48:16I think that Wolfe would like a very high draft pick.

00:48:19So I think a good bet is the Patriots under four and a half wins.

00:48:23And I think a longer shot bet is Patriots have the fewest wins in the NFL, which depending

00:48:28on where do you look, the odds are, you know, various, but I, as a chance, they win the

00:48:32fewest games in the NFL.

00:48:33They protect Drake may really all year, uh, and there's not very good.

00:48:37So do with that what you will, but I think it'd be very bad.

00:48:41I have not bought into anything I've seen this preseason.

00:48:44I've been wrong before.

00:48:45They look like a really bad wandering, different people thinking different approaches, GM coach,

00:48:54offensive coordinator, uh, not on the same page, bad year for the Patriots.

00:48:58High draft pick under total wins, fewest wins in the NFL.

00:49:03So I don't have the lines in front of me of what exactly they would be, but I would place

00:49:10individual bets on the under for almost everything offensively with the exception weekly, weekly

00:49:18with the exception of two guys.

00:49:20And Andrew, you can tell me if you think I'm totally off base with us.

00:49:24I would look, I would at least entertain the over in catches and yards for both DeMario

00:49:33Douglas and Antonio Gibson.

00:49:37Now I have more experience with the Antonio Gibson.

00:49:40And so I understand his cases of the drop seas, but I do think that those are two guys

00:49:45who on a largely unexperienced group of weapons around whoever is going to be the quarterback

00:49:52are going to function as something like a binky, a safety blanket for whoever's out

00:50:00there moving down the field.

00:50:02I wonder if when they get back into the red zone and Andrew, I feel like you're dying

00:50:06to jump in here, but if they, when they get into the red zone, I think that's, did you

00:50:10pull them up?

00:50:11No, I was, I was efforting.

00:50:12I wasn't, couldn't find the exact lines that I was talking about, but I go ahead.

00:50:16I'll let you finish.

00:50:17Week by week though, I would, I would look at those guys as just depending on the matchup,

00:50:22but I feel just by the way, this is going to be a really, really bad offense.

00:50:27And if you want something that makes you happy to root for, pick out an individual guy who's

00:50:32actually going to get a lot of targets and run a lot like the obvious ones in there are

00:50:38remandering Stevenson and even in the red zone, Hunter Henry, if they can turn him back

00:50:43into the red zone weapon that he was in 2021.

00:50:46But I think that I would look at those two guys if I was going week to week.

00:50:51Is there a way, and this is just because I'm not fully in the betting world.

00:50:55Are there any dates that you can bet for week to week for Drake may start?

00:51:01I have no idea.

00:51:02I have not seen anywhere.

00:51:03What was that again, Andrew?

00:51:06No, go ahead.

00:51:09I don't know if I haven't looked today to see if they've updated that to see like what

00:51:13it, what the over under start date is for him.

00:51:14I don't, I didn't look for that today.

00:51:18And that also might just be fluid anyway.

00:51:20You know, like Jacoby percent got hurt in the last game he played and he lasted one

00:51:23series.

00:51:24So they might be like, we have no idea because it could be not a game.

00:51:28It could be the second half of the opener to your point about pop Douglas and Antonio

00:51:33Gibson.

00:51:34I also don't know the lines.

00:51:35I think that's pretty crucial to giving out betting advice, but the theory, the reason

00:51:38behind it is super sound.

00:51:41So the Gibson one between the two of them, I think is worth exploring a little bit more

00:51:45because people go, yeah, pop Douglas.

00:51:47I've heard about him in camp.

00:51:48Yeah.

00:51:49He's like leading the team and catches.

00:51:50He was the best receiver last year.

00:51:51Yada.

00:51:52Yada.

00:51:53Antonio Gibson is their third down back.

00:51:54Like that's, that's what he is.

00:51:55And so when they are behind and they are trying to play catch up and every defense is in this

00:51:59too high shell, it's going to be a check down or dump off or whatever you want to call it

00:52:04to Antonio Gibson.

00:52:06Who's got very good hands at a very good camp.

00:52:08And I already mentioned the drops.

00:52:10It's more of the fumble itis.

00:52:11It has me worried that he just might be laid up week six for a couple of games with that.

00:52:15Cause he's been benched and can't play.

00:52:16But inevitably you just have to play your best players.

00:52:19And right now he's, I think at worst fifth, maybe six on this roster.

00:52:24As far as guys, you want Haley ball, him, pop Douglas, Hunter Henry, Jalen Polk, Marjorie

00:52:29Stevenson.

00:52:30And then I think that's it.

00:52:31It's also what smart teams are doing.

00:52:32Now you look around the NFL, they all have a receiving back.

00:52:35They have their running back first and second down receiving back.

00:52:37And Antonio Gibson is a legit good receiving back.

00:52:40I think he'll be a viable play.

00:52:41If you're playing daily fantasy this year where it's one point for reception, he's going

00:52:44to get to make those points.

00:52:46Some games can have four or five, six catches out of the backfield because that's the safety

00:52:50net.

00:52:51That's the cheat code.

00:52:52Get them against a linebacker.

00:52:53So I, I like those.

00:52:54And those are two guys.

00:52:55And especially gives them a monitor from week to week is their player props go up.

00:52:58They're going to be worth looking at for like receiving yards and reception, especially

00:53:02early in the year.

00:53:03Yeah.

00:53:04And I still like the lines there.

00:53:05Oh yeah.

00:53:06It's it's imagine if the lines existed.

00:53:09Yeah.

00:53:10Yeah.

00:53:11We, I think we'd have a very different podcast right now.

00:53:13Can I also just give us a pat on the back for not just jumping after 45 minutes now

00:53:17straight to drinking, like the way to get through the season is just to become an alcoholic

00:53:22like that.

00:53:23That would have been the easy, you know, joking solution.

00:53:26It's still on my list to be clear Sunday when this comes out in a print newspaper, somehow

00:53:29still being made near of our lower 2024, but a good job by us.

00:53:33Are we, have we missed anything here?

00:53:35Trying to think I was, I mean, my main ones find your playoff team, find your own Super

00:53:41Bowl, uh, revel in others failures.

00:53:45That's my favorite.

00:53:46All the pride, the gambling responsibly, but like, if you want to pick a team, you think

00:53:49the chargers are going to be way better though.

00:53:50They've been like a sexy pick or, you know, the Jags or I don't know, Washington, like

00:53:54you think they're going to be good.

00:53:56You'll be a lot more motivated when it's your money on the line this year.

00:53:59I don't lose all your, don't lose all your self-respect maybe.

00:54:06I have none.

00:54:07Nope.

00:54:08I have zero self-respect.

00:54:09I have a newsletter, but no self-respect.

00:54:11All right.

00:54:12Uh, but as a spicy take to give, uh, Megan, I would say you can either match with your

00:54:18own or we can both just react to much and get out of here.

00:54:21Well, let me hear what months is.

00:54:23That was mine, right?

00:54:24That my spicy take was that under you think they'll have the fewest wins in the NFL.

00:54:29That was it.

00:54:30Yes.

00:54:31I think they'll the fewest wins in the NFL.

00:54:32And the asterisk I put on there was unless they decide early in the year to go to Drake

00:54:35may.

00:54:36Cause I think the team could be more explosive offensively with Drake may a quarterback.

00:54:40I just don't see it happening.

00:54:41So I think they could have the fewest wins in the NFL this year and come up with the

00:54:44number one pick.

00:54:45And that's very, not likely, but very possible for a team that says they're trying to win

00:54:50with Jacoby Brissett.

00:54:52Okay.

00:54:53My spicy take, and I don't even know that it's that spicy is I think that Drake may

00:55:00is the starter by week six.

00:55:03I think that they are going to have some early blowouts in this season, and that will

00:55:08give them the opportunity to at least have Drake may get out there and get the feeling

00:55:13of, Oh my God.

00:55:14Oh my God.

00:55:15I'm behind this horrible offensive line in a regular NFL season game.

00:55:19And if he, the big mystery is who handles him day to day during the season, if it's

00:55:26Ben McAdoo, it's the quarterback's coach, cause probably Van Pelt is going to be off

00:55:31doing the install and everything for game prep that week.

00:55:35Can they get him to a place where on scout team, he's impressing.

00:55:39And he's showing you that he's actually good enough to do more than mop up dirty for Jacoby

00:55:45Brissett.

00:55:46But all that aside, like Andrew, even as you said, Jacoby Brissett, God bless him.

00:55:50He knows what his job is here, but he's also not the most durable quarterback.

00:55:55So he's already coming in with a, with a shoulder that, okay, who knows what happened there?

00:56:00He's behind a horrible offensive line and so an Ironman and you are not surviving this

00:56:05entire season unless the offensive line improves, which of course is a great podcast conversation

00:56:10because we don't know how cohesion will come.

00:56:12And I will note today, probably too late in this episode, Mike on one, it was still back

00:56:16at right tackle.

00:56:17Okay.

00:56:18And it's not because he ballooned up 80 pounds, which was nonsense for Michael Lombardi, who's

00:56:21shameless story from a Karen, by the way, yes, it's just shilling for bill who will

00:56:26say the things he doesn't want to say in any of his six different media gigs to Michael

00:56:30Lombardi, who will then say the things, um, Michael, when he can play tackle, he looks

00:56:33like the same player, but that is a big game changer for this offensive line.

00:56:37And then by extension, Drake may, because the other things you'll hear from people who

00:56:41don't want to go on the record about them, let's say national reporters in Rappaport

00:56:44had a segment today that he tweeted out about the offensive line situations in flux, and

00:56:49you don't know the cohesion and the guy next to you, you need to develop trust in him.

00:56:52And it just takes time to figure all that out.

00:56:55See I got a little case of deja vu.

00:56:57And I heard that because the last time we heard from Elliot Wolfe, he was saying the

00:57:01exact same things.

00:57:02And partly because it's just true, but secondarily for a guy who has not spoken in a press conference

00:57:07and Ian was the first person to hear about the quarterback news today.

00:57:12I'm not sure that's an accident.

00:57:13I don't leave that right there.

00:57:14But anyway, the offensive line is a big part of that.

00:57:16And you can't separate the quarterback conversation from that line, because as I wrote to Kobe's

00:57:21being paid to be a pinata right now, and that's just sadly and brutally what it is real, real

00:57:27quick follow up before we get out of here to Megos point about week six being the potential

00:57:30targets.

00:57:31I think she's on to something.

00:57:32I think five or six, those back to back home games, like if they are in a blowout in week

00:57:37five, that feels like a perfect time to throw the kid in there, DM survive fourth quarter

00:57:44mop up duty.

00:57:45Sorry, my real quick and then start in the following week.

00:57:48How much what do you feel like ownerships of appreciation of this is Andrew because

00:57:53they have a young quarterback, but they had it.

00:57:56They've had a rough year.

00:57:57The bill exit was atrocious.

00:57:59They brought him up with that terrible handshake.

00:58:01Bill buried them.

00:58:02He bet it was bad blood.

00:58:04And now they have taken a lot of crap now for almost going on a year.

00:58:07Do you think they're motivated to win games this year to the point where if they're losing

00:58:11to Megos to Megos point where they go down and say, Elliot and Gerard, we need to win.

00:58:16Put Drake May in what's ownership stance going into the season.

00:58:19No, I do not know.

00:58:20And I want to make this impossibly clear what ownership stance is, their level of involvement,

00:58:26any of that.

00:58:27But it is not hard to imagine that's a full end of period sense.

00:58:29I do not.

00:58:30None of this that follows is reporting.

00:58:32It's just talking out loud.

00:58:34If your ownership to your point, you just took L after L after L after L in the offseason,

00:58:38your one win really was Drake May, which you wanted.

00:58:42And the quarterback is here and the GM one of them, the head coach one of them.

00:58:46And everyone is excited based on what he did in preseason and you're struggling to

00:58:49fill seats, which we will see at Gillette Stadium, still among the most expensive stadiums

00:58:52to fill in the NFL by average ticket price.

00:58:55Yeah, of course, I think Jonathan, who I believe will at some point probably be more hands

00:59:00on than Robert.

00:59:01And if he's already a little bit more hands on because Robin Glazer's new title is direct

00:59:07senior advisor to the head coach.

00:59:08So she's somewhere in the circle, maybe not inner circle, but she's there.

00:59:12Well, her direct link is to Jonathan.

00:59:14So I don't know if there's a lot of pressure or any pressure at all.

00:59:18But of course, it's easy to conceive of that, right?

00:59:20That's just what it is.

00:59:22If you're 0-4, 0-5, you're taking more literal L's and you can't fill a stadium to those

00:59:27back-to-back home games that Megan just highlighted, Miami and then Houston.

00:59:30And then you go to London because what triggered all of this last year, remember, right?

00:59:34Belichick loses to the Colts, international disaster.

00:59:38Tommy Kern here's days later, he's done, it's over.

00:59:42Anytime holds on to that for a few weeks.

00:59:44But if it's another international disaster, I bet the next call is not the head coach

00:59:48is out.

00:59:49It's the young quarterback's in.

00:59:50Yeah, makes sense.

00:59:51Makes sense.

00:59:52All right.

00:59:53That was fun, guys.

00:59:54Yeah.

00:59:55Yeah.

00:59:56Have you all fun?

00:59:57You really have fun back there, Megha?

00:59:58She was sequestered into a different room by my wonderful husband who came home at some

01:00:04point.

01:00:05And that's why I was having to put my microphone on mute because she started howling at the

01:00:09top of her lungs.

01:00:10So, but you know, they don't need her hot takes on the podcast, quite frankly.

01:00:15Next time.

01:00:16Next time.

01:00:17But you're still fine up there looking as gorgeous as ever.

01:00:20Yeah, I've had two different contractors bail.

01:00:23I'm desperate to get rid of this thing.

01:00:24We're trying to, so if someone's watching and they want to, I got to build cabinets,

01:00:27dude.

01:00:28This looks so, I mean, it's like a college dorm room.

01:00:30What's going on behind you?

01:00:31What's the problem with that?

01:00:32It's your basement.

01:00:33No, I want to look better.

01:00:35So if you're a cabinet builder and you want, you know, shoot me a DM on social media, I'll

01:00:38get a quote.

01:00:39We'll, we'll coach up here.

01:00:40Are you selling that Husky?

01:00:41Like we went actually do a Facebook marketplace, but like over the blanket, no, I'm not selling

01:00:46a blanket.

01:00:47I'm not getting rid of the, I'm just, I mean, I want to make it look more professional.

01:00:50So it's not a blanket hanging.

01:00:51It's been a, been a year of blanket up there doing these shows with you, your blankie.

01:00:56You know what I think is a good look in your background.

01:00:58If you hang like a bunch of your race medals behind you from running or whatever those

01:01:03competitions are, Andrew.

01:01:05Oh, so I know where you were going, but you, you, you slipped on the dismount.

01:01:08There are credentials.

01:01:09Those are credentials.

01:01:10Oh my God.

01:01:11That's even worse.

01:01:12Just throw them away.

01:01:13What are you collecting credentials for?

01:01:14You?

01:01:15You're out of your mind.

01:01:16Are you?

01:01:17Wait, that's psychotic, Andrew.

01:01:18That's also not even half of it.

01:01:19But hey, look, if you want to appreciate where you are, you got to remember where you've

01:01:24been.

01:01:25So up there it's like.

01:01:26I thought that that was like your marathon medal.

01:01:27And I thought, well, that's cute.

01:01:28But like, maybe not in this show.

01:01:29No, no.

01:01:30First of all, that would be one single medal.

01:01:31Is there a medal over there?

01:01:32Oh, there is.

01:01:34Penn State Purdue game I covered and it was so good.

01:01:37Oh, Penn State, Ohio.

01:01:39What a thriller that was.

01:01:40Excuse me.

01:01:41This was Arianne High School versus New Canaan in February 2014, baby.

01:01:45So no Penn State Purdue for me.

01:01:48We'll go through it next time.

01:01:49How about that?

01:01:50We'll do it there.

01:01:51That sounds good.

01:01:52See you guys.

01:01:53Bye.

01:01:54Awesome.

01:01:55Thanks, guys.

01:01:56All right.

01:01:57Edition number four of the four minute drill here with number five, Debrel Peppers.

01:01:58Excited to have you on.

01:01:59We got a long list of guests, but I'd be lying if I said I wasn't looking forward to having

01:02:00you on a little bit more than some guys that come up.

01:02:03All right.

01:02:04So here's the deal.

01:02:05Alternating football with non-football questions.

01:02:06Once I start the clock, we'll go.

01:02:08You can't run out the clock.

01:02:09That's the only rule.

01:02:10Ready?

01:02:11Set.

01:02:12There we go.

01:02:13All right.

01:02:14Debrel, you take a lot of pride in being a physical dude.

01:02:15How hard you hit.

01:02:16Have you ever in your entire football career hit someone so hard you felt bad?

01:02:20A little bad?

01:02:21No.

01:02:22Never.

01:02:23Never.

01:02:24No.

01:02:25That's the name of the game.

01:02:26All right.

01:02:27I'm not trying to injure anybody, but I definitely want you to feel me.

01:02:29Yeah.

01:02:30All right.

01:02:31Off the field.

01:02:33You know, I'm a lover boy.

01:02:34I can't lie.

01:02:35You won't believe it by how I play football, but you know, I got a little romance to me.

01:02:39Can you give us an example?

01:02:40You know, flowers at work, you know, date nights, flower petals on the floor, things

01:02:49like that.

01:02:50All right.

01:02:51Yeah.

01:02:52I get into it.

01:02:53That sounds like a Pro Bowl romantic right there.

01:02:54Going back to football, looking back at the last two years, I want you to give us an example

01:02:57of one of your favorite coverage disguises.

01:02:59So what you guys were showing on one play, what it ended up being, and then how the play

01:03:03went.

01:03:04Could have been a pick, pass deflection, or just an incompletion.

01:03:07I think it was my first year here against Miami.

01:03:11We were showing a max blitz look, then we broke out into like a match cover two look.

01:03:16Doug got a pick six on that.

01:03:18Stiff arm, Teddy Bridgeward in the face.

01:03:22And then probably the Steelers look, where I got the pick, we were trying to show not

01:03:27max but a little pressure, try to show opposite.

01:03:31You know, I kind of rolled into my half from, you know, a man-to-man alignment, you know,

01:03:36made a great play on the ball.

01:03:37Yeah, there's a sim pressure there.

01:03:38That wasn't even a full blitz.

01:03:39Yeah.

01:03:40Simulated.

01:03:41Yeah.

01:03:42Good.

01:03:43All right.

01:03:44Running down two and a half minutes here in the four-minute drill.

01:03:45What are you watching at home?

01:03:46Like, give us a show, a couple movies.

01:03:48Blacklist.

01:03:49I just finished Your Honor, Presumed Innocent.

01:03:55I was watching House of Dragons, but I think that's on standby right now.

01:03:59Why is that?

01:04:00I don't know.

01:04:01I just think that's how they did it.

01:04:02Or maybe it was the season finale, I'm not sure.

01:04:05And Power, The Book of Tyreke, or The Book of Ghosts.

01:04:08That's on standby.

01:04:09It's coming back out in September.

01:04:10All right.

01:04:11If you've got to recommend one, which do the people watch?

01:04:13Definitely Presumed Innocent or Your Honor, for sure.

01:04:16Okay.

01:04:17Back to the field.

01:04:18If I'm chirping Jabril Peppers at the start of a game, and you don't really know me, I

01:04:21know you're up in your scouting report, but I'm a practice squad guy, and you don't know

01:04:24me.

01:04:26What would Jabril Peppers say back to me?

01:04:27Like, who are you?

01:04:29That's it?

01:04:30That's keep it sweet and not so simple?

01:04:31Keep it short and sweet, because that'll hit hard, and then you're going back and forth

01:04:34with him.

01:04:35All right.

01:04:36Guys have done that to me, so I know from experience.

01:04:37Really?

01:04:38Yeah.

01:04:39Because that leads to the next question, is that I think you were, at one time, the biggest

01:04:42recruit in the country, number one in the entire country, which would then make you

01:04:44famous.

01:04:45Everyone should have known high school, college, who Jabril Peppers was.

01:04:48So that makes me wonder, what was the first time someone asked you for an autograph?

01:04:52Definitely high school.

01:04:54Really?

01:04:55Yeah.

01:04:56How'd you take that?

01:04:57It was new.

01:04:58It was new for me, coming from Pop Warner.

01:04:59I went up and played for the number one team in the country at the time, ended up starting

01:05:03on varsity, had a good year, got some scholarships, and after that, the rest is kind of history.

01:05:08Do you know for a fact that, is he on eBay anywhere?

01:05:11Do you think that person made money off of that, like holding on to it?

01:05:14Probably if he was smart.

01:05:15He probably held on to it, probably sold it by now, but if he did it, it's got sentimental

01:05:19value in that.

01:05:20All right.

01:05:21Under a minute left.

01:05:23In the locker room, would you least like to date your sister?

01:05:26Uh, shoot.

01:05:31Probably like Pop or Taekwondo, one of those guys, one of the receivers, probably.

01:05:37All right.

01:05:38So you just did them dirty, but you played by the rules.

01:05:40Give us one quick reason why.

01:05:42I don't know.

01:05:45If I had a sister, I wouldn't let anybody, none of my teammates date my sister, but if

01:05:49I had to choose, it'd probably be somebody out that receiver room.

01:05:51Okay.

01:05:52I got it.

01:05:53A receiver thing.

01:05:54Very good.

01:05:55Last one.

01:05:56I've asked everyone this question.

01:05:57What is your least favorite media question?

01:05:58I feel like I've been doing this for so long, and I could kind of answer anything.

01:06:05I just remember that I can control my answer.

01:06:08I can't control what they ask, but I can control my answer, for sure.

01:06:10Good man.

01:06:11You can control the clock.

01:06:12That was at the buzzer, Drew Bell Peppers, all-star, all-pro performance in a Pro Bowl

01:06:16romantic.

01:06:17We got to learn about that.

01:06:18Thank you, bro.

01:06:19Appreciate you.

The Patriots fan's guide to surviving Year 1 of a rebuild | Pats Interference

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