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Subscribe to NerdWallet's Smart Money Podcast. or if I'm still talking and there's no room for the boom at the end of the show. Now, for those of you who don't understand quite how it works, it's fine.
I get it. It's a little bit of a peek behind the curtain, though, when I tell you that the computer cuts us off at the top of the hour. So every other commercial break that we take is a floating break, meaning it's not a hard time that's set that we have to be done talking. At the top of the hour, so 54 minutes and 50 seconds, the computer cuts us off, whether we like it or not. We could be in the middle of a word, middle of a breath, middle of a syllable, for heaven's sakes, and if you're not done talking, the computer clicks and cuts you off. Because all around the country, we've got affiliates that are computer operated or that are operated by a computer program, and so they cut off so that we can get to the commercial break at the top of the hour. Anyway, there are times where I'm still talking.
Now, that's a rare thing. We call it hitting the post. I'm generally pretty good at hitting the post after so many years of doing it. But when there's a fill-in producer, the producer may have forgotten about the boom, which has dropped in, or maybe I'm talking about a more serious topic, and so he or she, or even producer Jay, decides not a good idea to drop the boom in because it just doesn't fit with the topic at the end of the show. All of that is a science behind the boom, but Jay, would you say 95% of the time when we end the show, we use the boom?
Yeah, 95 at least I'd say. We drop the boom on your butts at the end of the show. If you've never missed it, you might want to go to our podcast and get the very end of a show just so you know what we're talking about. But it's me yelling, and yes I am yelling, boom!
I won't do it now to scare you. If you've never heard it, I would say it's our signature out. It's our signature ending. On Monday evening, I was teaching my third class, my third class in a course that I designed called The Art of Radio, and here on the campus of Syracuse University, it's full circle for me to be able to instruct students a couple decades after I was a student here, and this is where I got my start. I took classes in the very building where I'm sitting right now, though these world-class control rooms and studios were not here when I was here. The money that pours into this school and the facilities they're able to build and allow the students to utilize, it's the reason why Syracuse University and its Newhouse School of Public Communications is the best in the country because they can offer these facilities.
In fact, the ACC network runs a lot of games out of the Newhouse facilities. That's how high-tech and how seamless the broadcast can be out of these facilities because they are top of the line. So I'm in one of the studios right now, but in the same building where I took classes, and now I'm teaching to the next generation of broadcasters. So a couple of the topics that we had on Monday evening included creative elements that you can add to enhance your show or to mix in various voices. In my opinion, the more voices, the more audio, the more sounds, the better, and the bigger. And in our genre, we have so many options when it comes to play-by-play and athletes post-game, but also press conferences.
And then you think about their podcasts and the variety of ways that we can pull audio, and we do. We mix it up pretty much every show, especially in a stretch like this where there are so many playoff games every night. These few weeks where it's all first round of hoops in hockey, I mean, a lot of times you're talking six, seven, eight games in a single day, a single night. So there's a lot to choose from. Major League Baseball also going on. The NFL refuses to go away.
We've got the draft coming up on Thursday. So just a lot happening. So we have our pick of the litter, so to speak, when it comes to audio. So I'm kind of coaching the students on various ways that they can enhance the broadcast. Yes, your voice and yes, your hosting style is the base, and that provides your foundation. But even the best host with changes in inflection and pace with an incredibly unique and entertaining style, after a while can still be tuned out by a listener because it's the same thing.
It could be monotonous. You can drone on and on. So there are various ways to keep the listeners interested and engaged. And one of those is to use creative elements like play-by-play, audio.
In our case, we use a lot of drops. We use different music. Jay is really good at mixing up the various elements. And so I was speaking to them about the boom at the end of the show and how it's our signature. But I also was talking to them about features that create appointment listening, right?
So ask Amy anything. Jay, remember when we tried to move it to a different time slot or move it around in our various hump shows? And it didn't work as well because people were set on listening to it at a certain time, the same time every week. And so that's one of our appointment listeners or appointments that we set with our listeners. Another one is our Sunday night NFL shows where our commitment to you is we hit every game at least once. And so it's kind of fun to share with them some of the elements of our show. And then I said there are other ways to train your listeners. I know I make you sound like you're Pavlov's dog. But there are other ways to train your listeners so that it becomes familiar and routine when they listen to your show.
And that's what we want. We want you listeners to establish a pattern so that you make us a part of your day, your nightly routine. So Jay, I go to the computer that is at the front of the room and I pull up the song that we use to start every single show. You're going to laugh at this. I start to play it. I play it off YouTube.
I have eight students, college students. Only one of them recognized the music. No way. I swear to you, only one of them recognized the music. Now, maybe once Lenny Kravitz had started with American Woman, more would have recognized, but only one student knew what it was before the vocals kicked in. I can't believe that. That's insane.
That's what I thought. A very well-known song, no? I mean, you're asking the wrong person because I've heard it every night for the past 11 years almost.
True. But I feel like it's fairly mainstream and it's pop culture and most people should know it. Now again, this student jumped in before Lenny Kravitz with his vocals. So once he sings American Woman, well then you know. One student said, that's not the version of the song I know, which of course Lenny's is not the original, but it's our signature. And how many people out there, the second they hear two, three, four notes, maybe it doesn't even take that long, they know they're listening to After Hours.
Instantly. If you watch the YouTube, I always have that little teaser of that in the beginning or sometimes end of the YouTube videos. Yeah, it's the song.
It is. It's the song for our show. And I get people that will write to me on social media periodically to say, hey, I heard your song or I was at a concert or I was here, I was there and I heard American Woman and instantly thought of you. So yeah, it's kind of fun to share some of the nuances of the radio business, the radio trade, trade craft, if you will.
And the idea, the premise behind the show is number one, radio is a unique medium. There is no other medium like it and while you want it to sound conversational, of course, I am talking to you, not at you. I hope that you consider me a friend, a companion, part of your normal and typical routine, but I don't just show up and sit down and start talking. As much as it might sound like that, that's the goal, is that we're having a conversation and I sit down and I start talking, but that's not exactly how we prepare for a show. It's not one of those, I take a bath, I eat a good meal, I grab a nap and then I think, you know what, I'm refreshed, I'm prepared. I'll go talk to the peeps for a while.
No, that's not how it happens. So what I'm teaching is a cerebral approach, a cognitive approach, a calculated approach, those are my three C's. Cerebral, cognitive, calculated approach.
There's steps to research, there's steps to preparation, there are various ways to turn a radio show into your own creation. Yes, creative, oh there's another C, I have to add that one as well. Wait, don't let me forget, Jay, what did I say? I said, cerebral, cognitive, calculated, and creative. Oh, brilliant, I gotta write that down.
Those are my four pillars, those are my radio pillars. I'm actually developing my class even as I talk to you. So yes, I've told them, you want it to sound conversational, there could be another C. You want it to sound conversational, but you don't just show up and start talking like you are in fact sitting at a bar on a couple of stools with some friends of yours.
That's not what we do here, even if it sounds that way. So it's been really cool to be able to share examples from our show and not only play them for the students, but also to get them to think about radio in a cognitive way, in a way that they're building their own approach to their futures in broadcasting. So I'm just so grateful for the opportunity, but it's also surreal to be back here on campus and to be staying in the hotel where only the grown-ups would stay, only the adults would stay, students didn't stay at the Sheraton on campus.
It's crazy. And my mom sent me to the bookstore on Monday because she wanted me to purchase a couple of gifts, because we've got some birthdays coming up, and so she wanted me to grab a couple of gifts. So that was also a surreal moment, back to when I was a grad student, first year on campus, and of course you have to run through the bookstore and figure out, oh, should I get this, should I get that? I actually got, the very first time I went to the bookstore, I picked up a bumper sticker that said, my mom, oh no, I'm sorry, I take that back. It was for my mom. It said, my daughter and my money go to Syracuse University.
So that was kind of funny. I did not see that on Monday, but I did get an, Jay, I got an employee discount. I got a faculty discount at the bookstore. Wow, that's big time. That means I've made it, right?
I would say so. A faculty discount at the bookstore. It was pretty cool to be able to run my ID through the computer, and it popped up.
Could you use that when I was in college? No, I'm so old, and yet I like being old. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio.
You can find us on Twitter, After HoursCBS. Speaking of old, I don't care, he's old. Aaron Rodgers to the Jets. Thoughts? Question mark, question mark. Wait until you see the GIF. Is it a GIF or a meme, Jay? That would be a GIF. That's a GIF. Okay, so the GIF that Jay picked to set up our Aaron Rodgers conversation, and many of you are weighing in not only on Twitter, but also on Facebook.
We knew this was happening. It just took a while to come to fruition, but now that it's real, honestly, it's a bit jarring to think about Aaron Rodgers on the Jets, even if Brett Favre did it before he did. It'll be just as odd to see Aaron Rodgers in a Jets uniform, regardless of what number he wears, but it sounds like he's going to wear number eight going back to his Cal days. It'll be just as jarring as it was to see Tom Brady in a Bucs uniform. Or Peyton Manning in a Broncos uniform. Or Joe Montana wearing a Chiefs uniform. And those are just quarterbacks.
I mean, there are other examples that we could give, but those are the quarterbacks similar to Rodgers. This is strange. It is strange. I can't help it.
Now that it's done, even though I knew it was done, it feels strange. So we're going to get to your thoughts. I'm going to read some of your comments. And I promise, coming up following this next break, we'll get to the Jimmy Butler game in the Miami Heat Milwaukee Bucs series, even as Giannis Antetokounmpo returns. But now that I've talked about my class and about my campus experience, I don't want to sell Jimmy Butler short. So how about instead, Jay, we hear from Brian Gutenkuntz. Now we're setting this up because even though Brian was speaking before the trade was announced, before the news broke, Brian, as the general manager of the Green Bay Packers, obviously knew that this was about to happen. He knew that the trade was about to take place, even though at the time the news hadn't broken yet. So why? The big question is, why trade Aaron Rodgers?
I think where our team is that obviously Aaron's up there in age and has, you know, however many years he has, I think he's got some really good football left in him. I think for us, it was just as we got through the off season and started talking about where we wanted to go, this made a little bit of sense for us. We wanted to get his input, like I've told you guys in the past and would have loved to have that and kind of see where he sat with that. That didn't happen. That was a little bit unfortunate and disappointing for me. But at the same time, I just think, you know, as we move forward, you know, we're really excited where Jordan can go.
He needs to play and having him sit another year, I think would really delayed kind of, you know, where we're going and what we're trying to build. We'll talk about the Oren Oren. I don't I'm sorry. I don't I have no I have no excuse for myself. I don't know where that came from. The Oren Rogers.
Jay, I just called him Oren Rogers. Go ahead. You can laugh. I'll wait. It's it's fine. It's totally fine. It's totally fine.
Oren Rogers. I think I was trying to go for Jordan. Does that make sense? I was trying to go. Right. Get over it.
I was trying to go for Jordan Love, but instead I said Oren Rogers. I think I could see that I don't always have an excuse for myself. But considering that I've had a total of six hours of sleep since Sunday morning, I would say it might be.
Actually, I spent more time in the car that I have slept over the past two days. That's a rough sentence. It is. And yet this particular show, it's fairly simple.
There's three main topics with a couple of others kind of sprinkled in. OK, let's also hear from Brian Gooden Kutz on the future of the franchise. We know it's going to be Jordan, not Oren.
It's going to be Jordan Love. Are they rebuilding, though? Are they hitting the reset button and believing that this is a start? It's a it's a new start. It's a do over.
It's a it's a restart. The goals don't change around here. It's going to be the same goals we've always had. Right. There's there's one goal here every single year, no matter what. And just like it was back in the last time, we kind of we moved on from one quarterback to the other. Right. The goals are the same. And it's going to be on those guys to put in the work. And it's going to be exciting to see.
But, yeah, nothing's really changing. Now, this is interesting. And producer Jay called this to my attention. David Bakhtiari is an offensive lineman for the Packers. He's been in and out of the lineup. When he is on the field. It is it's a difference. It's a stark difference, not to mention he is one of or was I guess it's past tense now, was one of Aaron's BFFs on the Packers roster. We know that he's talked about the Cubs.
He talks about the Bakhtiari as they spend holidays together. Yada, yada, yada. So you hear what Brian Gutenkun says about. The focus for the Packers always it remains the same. The goal remains the same. Because of the franchise history, the expectations are so high. They're not rebuilding, they're reloading, they're shifting, but the goals are always the same.
So what about you, David Bakhtiari? Are the Packers in rebuild mode? They're moving on from the whole thing. The Packers rebuild it from Brett Favre to Aaron Rodgers. We're going to say it's not a rebuild.
That is what that is. And that's totally fine. I am not saying that we're going to be bad. I'm not saying we're good. I don't know.
And that's a beauty. No one really knows how good they are. We start the season.
Everyone is batting thousand. No one has any losses. No one has any wins. And let the season play out however it may be. Now, I'm assuming Vegas has their odds and their standards and I'm assuming they're going to put us pretty low. Great. I don't care how good a team is on paper.
You're going to have to go out there and play 60 minutes and then we really see who's the better team. First of all, he dropped totally fine. Do you think that he dropped totally fine in honor of Aaron Rodgers? Totally fine. I don't know.
That might be a nod to his BFF. It's totally fine. That is what that is. And that's totally fine. We need to start compiling a montage of any athlete who ever uses the phrase totally fine. Yes.
That is the new mission. Okay. Can we can we pair those together? Aaron Rodgers totally fine. And his BFF is what? Former BFF? Would you say former BFF?
His favorite Pro Bowl offensive lineman also using the word totally fine. Now, I'll say this about producer Jay and I. Over the past year and a half, we spent a lot of time together, obvi, and we also are friends outside of work.
So sometimes we get together, but we talk a lot away from work. I don't know. Jay, would you say we talk 80 percent work? Is that too strong? Maybe a little high.
Probably a little high. I would say we would talk 20 percent Star Wars, though. Yeah, true. Okay. And then we do talk about sports, but we don't always talk about work. Jay has started to use phrases that I use, and I've started to use phrases that Jay uses, but not nearly as many because his phrases are weird.
So I don't often use the term sick, but every now and then have dropped it. And Jay thinks that that's the coolest thing ever. That is what that is. And that's fine. That's totally fine. That is what that is. And that's totally fine.
I tried something there. When you hang out with a person for a long time or for an extended stretch, you start to sound like them. So David Bakhtiari and Aaron Rodgers, they both use the phrase totally fine. And Bakhtiari honestly has no idea. He doesn't necessarily believe that they're rebuilding with Jordan Love, but how can you call it anything else when you are moving on from a Hall of Fame quarterback?
That's David on the volume with Mike Silver. So I understand the concept. By definition, he thinks it's a rebuild because you're moving on from a Hall of Fame QB.
But as Ben points out on our Facebook page, I don't care. He's old. How many more years does he have? As much as this flies in the face of our sports fan conventions, that a trade would take place this late in Rodgers' career when he spent his entire tenure in Green Bay, nearly two decades. But is it possibly, we will find out, a smart move by the Packers? It worked out the last time they moved on from a Hall of Fame quarterback, did it not? It worked out in their favor, except for those couple of games where Brett Favre was wearing purple. But it worked out. They needed to move on. They needed to get Aaron Rodgers on the field. And that's what Brian Guttenkunst is saying. That's what Packers players are saying. We believe in Jordan Love.
We need to get him on the field. That is what that is. It's totally fine.
And that's totally fine. Thank you, David. Alright, coming up, we have put off Jimmy Butler and the Miami Heat and the cusp of history.
For too long, it's time to pull back the curtain. And is there such a thing as playoff Jimmy? He will answer that question. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports.
Only on the free Odyssey app. And be rewarded for your generosity. Radio. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. 44 on the board for Butler and the Miami Heat are up one with 317 to go with a knee, a desire, a want to be up 3-1 in this series. Rebound by Martin. He gets it to Jimmy.
Everybody clears out. Butler drives up with speed, pulls it back, fires another three, makes another three. Jimmy buckets.
This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. Jimmy Butler is unique in the NBA. There may be no combination of intensity, of fearlessness, of brash, bold personality, as well as play on the court. He is not only fearless when it comes to having the ball in his hands at the end of a game or with a big shot. His defense is tenacious and physical.
He tries to beat you into submission. But it's also the fact that he's so intense. Yes, he's strong physically, but mentally tough too.
And he uses that to his advantage. Big fan of Jimmy Butler. I do consider him to be a superstar.
Maybe the jury is out for other people. I know that the Miami Heat brought him in because he gives them a personality, an identity. He gives them an edge similar to, say, a Draymond Green with the Golden State Warriors.
It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. Jimmy Butler with a career high 56 points in what was a stunning fourth quarter rally by the eight seed. The eight seed. The Miami Heat now have the top seed in the east. The best record in the league this regular season was the Milwaukee Bucks.
They're on the ropes. Even as Giannis returns, the Heat, it was one of those shocking fourth quarter rallies. I still don't exactly know how it happened against a team with a championship pedigree. But the Heat were able to rattle off 13 straight points.
I'm watching it in my hotel room at Syracuse. I can't believe it. It's bucket after bucket after bucket. What is happening? The Bucks are unable to generate quality shots. When they do, they can't make the shots. They were down. The Heat were down 101-89 with six minutes to go. They rattle off 13 points in a row. And as you hear with Jason Jackson and company on the Heat radio network, not even three minutes later, they were actually ahead of Milwaukee. It was that fast. It was that stunning.
It was a shock to the system. I'm just hooping, playing basketball the right way, taking the shots that the defense gives me, stay aggressive. And a lot of shots went in tonight. But my teammates kept feeding me the ball, telling me to attack. Plays were drawn up for me.
They were looking for me in transition. And, you know, you got teammates like that, good things happen. That's a very good basketball team over there, as we all know. And in this game, Jimmy literally guarded every single person on the roster at some point. So, yes, you can count to the 56 points, or you can count to the two-way basketball, you know, where he's defending literally every single situation. And that's what the greatest winners in this league do, is one of the most intelligent basketball players in this association. You know, you can't do what he does on both ends of the court just by running around and trying to figure things out.
He understands, you know, what we're trying to do, and he understands what they're trying to do. I think it's always credit to the player first. Butler was – he hit a lot of shots.
You know, we'll look at the film, see what we could do better. You know, but credit to him. He was very good. Mike Büttenholzer with the understatement of the week. He was very good.
It's after hours here on CBS Sports Radio. Jimmy Butler with 56, but it wasn't just the offense. As Eric Spoelstra points out, he guarded pretty much every other player on the court, every position on the court. And Butler makes his teammates better.
Yes, he had 56. But bam, out of bio, he had eight rebounds, a couple of assists. You know that they're without Victor Oladipo. He was averaging double figures, so they had to get the offense from somewhere. They're trying to figure out now their bench rotation and how that's going to go. It blows my mind that Kevin Love is in the starting lineup.
It just – it blows my mind. He only played 22 minutes, but they're without Tyler Hero as well. I mean, they've lost a couple of critical pieces, starters as well as role players. So it's up to Jimmy Butler as much as he possibly can to spark this team. And he takes 28 shots, double what the next closest guy – well, not quite double.
Almost double what the next closest guy takes, which is bam. And yet there is no part of Jimmy that backs away, that shies away. He knows what he's there for. He knows why Miami brought him in. And the question remains whether or not playoff Jimmy is a thing.
Is playoff Jimmy a thing? Because the guy that we see – now, I happen to believe it's rising to the occasion, all right? So he sees the big stage.
He recognizes the bright lights, the big city, yada, yada, yada. But this is when Jimmy feels the adrenaline when he performs at his best. And this is something a formula can't measure.
It's not analytics. It's human spirit. It's tenacity. It's the ability to perform at your best under pressure.
Not every human being has it, but it's a powerful combination when you've got a guy who's as skilled and talented and also has the clutch team. It's not a thing. It's not.
I just be hooping. It's not a thing. No, playoff Jimmy is not a thing. Hell no.
Hail to the no. It's after hours with Amy Lawrence here on CBS Sports Radio. And he says often that his only priority is the W. This is not a guy who's looking for personal stats. And we've heard that familiar refrain from Jimmy in the past. What he cares most about is getting a ring. And he is like a heat-seeking missile in pursuit of that goal.
I just go out there and I compete. I want to do everything for my team to win along with everybody else on this roster. I think Coach Pat and Spoke wanted me here for a reason. I feel like this is part of that reason. But the job's not done.
So we don't want to get comfortable. We got one more to get. He's in a groove right now. You know, this is the Jimmy everybody always waits for at the end of the year. You know, y'all see sparks of it during the regular season. And, you know, he's one of those players in the playoffs. He can turn it on. He definitely can. It feels like Jimmy Butler always has another gear. And the eyes, the scowl, the body language. He's tough.
I wouldn't want to get into a street yard fight with him, but I would like to do two things. Number one, drink coffee with Jimmy Butler because we know he's a huge coffee fan. But do you know something else that Jimmy Butler and I share? It's, well, it used to be a closet affinity for a boy band. Huge fan of the Backstreet Boys. I mean, seriously, we share coffee in the Backstreet Boys. If you tell me he is a Star Wars nerd as well, then that's it.
I'm certain that we were twins separated at birth. So, amazing game for Jimmy, but for the Heat to be able to overcome the return of Giannis Antinokounmpo. 26 points, 13 assists, 10 rebounds. But, my goodness, how does a team with such veteran players give up a 13-0 run in the fourth quarter with this game on the line?
Recognizing that you are potentially going to fall into a hole that is, I don't want to say insurmountable because it's not. But you have made life so much more difficult for yourself by not taking care of your business in the fourth quarter. I think the turnovers hurt. I think a couple of them were late when I think we were trying to play against the clock and play fast. We'll have to look at the others, see how we could be better. I thought we had some good looks and we weren't able to put them down. Giannis returning from a sore back. Remember in the opener of the series he fell flat on the small of his back and I can imagine it's bruised and it's sore.
His return may be short-lived. This is stunning to me and it's only ever happened, are you ready? Four times in NBA playoff history that an eight seed has toppled a one seed.
Okay, so here they are. And I know for fans of these teams, you certainly remember because these are seminal moments in a franchise history. Going back to the mid-90s, the Denver Nuggets as an eight seed toppled the Supersonics.
Oh my goodness, a blast from the past. So it was Denver over Seattle and eight over a one in 1994. The Knicks were the eight seed. They upset the Heat in 1999.
So that was your second eight over a one. Twice it happened in the 90s. Now this is the one that a lot of people will remember. The Warriors, pre Steph Curry of course, number eight seed over the Dallas Mavericks in 2007.
And then, and our guest mentioned it last hour, Eric Hasseltine, the longtime play-by-play voice of the Memphis Grizzlies. The Grizzlies, they surprised, stunned, upset the Spurs and eight over a one in 2011. So this will be, this could be, let me not jump the gun, count my turkeys before they hatch, before they run after me.
This would be the fifth time in NBA playoff history, but we are on the cusp of history. Alright, coming up, Aaron Rodgers is headed to the Jets with his physical pending. What does that mean for the Packers?
Certainly the Jordan Love era has begun. This is the plan. There's no secret about it, but why do they have confidence in him? And we're asking you on Twitter, ALawRadio, and on our Facebook page, thoughts. Deep thoughts or not such deep thoughts about Aaron.
Rogers finally headed to the New York Jets. You are listening to the After Hours Podcast. I have no problem with the Rappaport, Schefter, I think they really get their jobs. When it comes to me, they don't know ****. They really don't. They don't have, they don't have inner source. They don't have people in my inner circle who are sources. I can promise you that. And anybody who would talk to them is not in my inner circle.
It's that simple. This is After Hours with Amy Lawrence. And later, after Aaron Rodgers delivered that scathing evaluation of NFL insiders and industry insiders, when Adam Schefter reached out to him, he responded with lose my number. I don't have your number.
You're not going to have my number. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence on CBS Sports Radio. The trade officially now hinges on Aaron Rodgers passing a physical, but the pieces are in place. The draft picks, the compensation, as it turns out, the Packers did not give up anything extra. There is a conditional pick that could be worked into this. If Rodgers plays 65 percent of the games coming up, there's a pick that could turn into a first rounder. So it actually might be a trade for a pair of first rounders for this four-time MVP and future Hall of Famer. But it's not compensation if Aaron Rodgers only plays one year. And I don't think that should be on the Packers. The Jets know exactly what they're trading for as they take the second older Packer quarterback in 15 years.
But there was no official announcement on the Pat McAfee show, although I heard, one of my students told me, that he reacted to the news in some type of a social media post or on YouTube. And so it wasn't announced on his show, but going back 40 days ago is when Aaron did come out of the darkness and give the scathing evaluation of insiders who indicated they knew what was happening, but then said yes, he had told the Packers his intention was to play for the New York Jets in 2023. And what Aaron wants, Aaron gets. You do a great job, but not when it comes to my life, so stop talking about it.
So rude. We're asking you on Twitter after our CBS or the Facebook page to give us your deep thoughts or not-so-deep thoughts on Aaron Rodgers finally becoming a member of the New York Jets. Now, while Brian Gutenkunst did not give a whole lot of detail on Monday when he met the media, this is his pre-draft press conference, he did at least hint that the trade was about to be done. There were a few final details, so crossing the T's, dotting the I's. And yes, Rodgers still has to pass his physical, but they wanted to get the deal done before the draft.
And first round comes up on Thursday. The other thing that I thought was interesting coming from Brian Gutenkunst is that they wanted to speak to Rodgers. He has doubled down on that. They wanted to speak to Rodgers to potentially see if they could come to a different agreement, a different end. Ultimately, Brian said that Rodgers and his camp ghosted them. They did not return calls. They did not return attempts to communicate that the next thing they knew, Rodgers and his agents were letting them know that he wanted to play for gang green next season. Who knows, like I said, but you know, would have liked to have it, didn't have it happen, so it kind of is what it is.
Kind of like how he stutters there. Would it have been different? Who knows? I don't have any idea if it would have been different.
Would have liked to at least have the conversation. You can believe what you want to believe at this point, maybe it's water under the bridge. They are moving on to Jordan Love. Like this report from Stacy Dales of NFL Network, how confident are the Packers that Jordan Love can pick up this ball, essentially take the baton, take the bar and continue, if not Hall of Fame play, at least continue a tradition of having long tenured quarterbacks and stability at that position in Green Bay.
They have been impressed with his evolution with mechanics, his footwork. He came into a game last season, if you recall, in week 12, I believe, at Philadelphia. Rodgers is out with some rib issues as he went through that rib injury. Love comes in, goes six for nine, 113, engineers a couple of scoring drives and tried to mount a comeback in that game. And they saw a lot of growth in that game in week 12. And Gudekunst also made mention of the fact that this team goes eight and nine last season. He said it multiple times and also noted, we're going to do whatever we can to make our football team better.
We are chasing Super Bowls. And him saying that is the Packers guys believing that Jordan Love is the guy to take them to the promised land. You know, there have been multiple Packers like Aaron Jones and others who've indicated that they believe in Jordan Love, that they think Jordan deserves an opportunity, number one, but number two, that because of the improvement he's made in the three years sitting behind Aaron Rodgers, that he is ready to take the reins. And it's, again, it's uncanny the similarities between Rodgers' tenure, both how it started in Green Bay versus how Jordan Love's starting experience will take place, right? So he was never going to be the starter until Aaron Rodgers was gone.
That's obvious. But he takes over after three years as well. And then you've got the whole connection with the Jets. So 15 years ago, Brett Favre, he had retired emotionally. It was a bad time for him to make a decision. But in his emotion, he felt like the Packers didn't want him anymore. And he was scarred by a painful loss to end the postseason. So he announces his decision to retire only to come to his senses to think better of it by that time the Packers had moved on. And so they had to find a home for him. Other than now Rodgers had indicated that he was 90 percent retired when he went into his darkness retreat. And that changed while he was under cover of night. I don't know if I believe that, but he says 90 percent retired.
OK, fine. If that's the case, then it's even more similar to the Brett Favre exit. Packers had to do something. They had to do something. And thankfully for them, the Jets needed a quarterback.
Now, from the Jets perspective, I think this is fascinating because what do we know about the Jets? Very often they bungle the moves that they make. Though, though, with Robert Salah, with Joe Douglas, we're seeing signs that a solid foundation is being built. They bring in all these new coaches and Salah's first year was Zach Wilson.
It was a mess. Wilson's learning doesn't get great coaching. The coaching staff is learning on the fly.
They make a lot of obvious mistakes. But Joe Douglas has drafted very well. They have both the offensive and defensive rookies of the year. They've got guys who are coming back off injury. They certainly have guys that they've signed now, like Allen Lazard, who have a comfort level with Aaron Rodgers. They've got the franchise quarterback. It's just, it's the AFC.
Does that give anyone else pause? The Chiefs reign supreme in the AFC. But it's also the Bills in the East Division, same as the Jets. It's the Bengals. It's potentially other teams in the West.
I mean, it's tough sledding in the AFC. It's After Hours with Amy Lawrence, CBS Sports Radio. Visit your local CSL plasma center and be rewarded for your generosity.
Whisper: medium.en / 2023-04-25 06:58:33 / 2023-04-25 07:15:29 / 17