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Great to have you guys with us, Mark Ryan in for JR. You're listening to the JR Sports Brief here on the Infinity Sports Network as we roll on until 10 p.m. Eastern Time, 7 p.m. Pacific Time.
So, a surprisingly large number of NFL stories going on for this time as we get set for NFL training camps. People are figuring out who their Super Bowl contenders are. Hot seat coach lists are already happening. But one thing that is transfixing me. is the money that is going on going on right now, the money that is that is really being thrown out right now in the NFL is something the likes of which we've never seen before.
Now, the mistake that you and I make is we just assume that it's inflation.
Okay, this is why there's more money now than there's ever been before. Do you know that J.J. Watt, in his 12-year career, made $129 million? TJ Wada, his brother, in three years. Just signed for 123.
And J.J. Watt quipped. I better never have to reach for my wallet again when I go out to eat with my little bro. That better never happen.
Well, I'll tell you this. The highest paid player in the NFL in 1986 was Jim Kelly. He made $1.4 million.
So you're saying, okay, well, inflation, you know, yada, yada. You know what inflation does to that number? 1.4 million dollars. It makes it $4.1 million. Any good quarterback today is making more than 10 times that amount.
This has nothing to do with inflation.
So what is it? You know, in 2000, the NFL salary cap was $65 million. Adjusted for inflation, you know what that would be? It would be 119 million. Guess what the NFL salary cap is this year?
$279 million. How did we get here? Is there any end in sight?
Well, joining us right now on the show is Odyssey NFL Insider Jason Lockhan Fora, host of the Odyssey Original podcast, In the Huddle. Make sure to check out In the Huddle on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcast.
So good to catch up with you, Jason. Man, truly do appreciate it. How do you make sense, Jason, of how we got here? This is so far and away. This is ten times over.
the rate of inflation with where we've arrived today. But you didn't. Help me there is um What did Jerry Jones buy the Dallas Cowboys for? And what did they have today? Right.
Exactly. And imagine what NFL players would make if the owners weren't colluding. That's what I would say. Like, that's the real question for me. Like, imagine if Lamar Jackson, when he was.
Essentially An untethered, unrestricted free agent, because that's what happened when they put the non-exclusive franchise tag on him. Imagine if someone actually made him an offer. What he might be making now. Imagine if everyone just didn't systematically pretend he wasn't available so that they could try to. you know, pound down the union and make sure that that Deshaun Watson contract.
look like an outlier. Um I mean, these guys get what? What they deserve, if anything, I would say they get less. And they deserve because the salary cap is an artificial fake mechanism that allows billionaires to basically engage in corporate socialism. Is there is there a salary capital CEO?
Salary, capital, and CEO salaries. I'm not aware of any in any industry. Have you ever heard anyone put a cap on earnings? Like, hey. Hey Jerry, uh you you you made you know $750 million the last three months.
Now you got to pay more in taxes and give some of that back. Like, hey, there's a cap, right? You've you've made a billion dollars in the last 18 months. You gotta stop. We don't even really know.
what they make, right, or what they pay all their family members.
So, I mean, that that's sort of more how I I think of it. Um But yeah, I mean the NFL I mean, in 1986, if you would have told people we're about to go to 18 games, and between week three and week. Yeah. In perpetuity, the NFL is going to be playing a game on another continent. You just said, what?
But that's what we're, you know what I mean? That's what we're on the cuffs of. If you would have told people in 1986, Right. Um the NFL is going to add in Friday games. early in the season on top of Thursday games.
Um there to say. What? Right, but that's that's where we are.
So I guess, as you know, a former and current Washington Post employee, I would just say follow the money and trust me, none of those players. None of those financial examples you gave for a player. would be happening. to any degree. if the owners weren't making exponentially more.
So Jason, is the difference then between 1986 and today that players are just getting a larger share of the pie, they are getting less screwed over than they were in 1986? I don't know about that, but the pie the pie is I mean, the the pie is grown. In ways that weren't even imaginable. Again, like no one would have believed you in 1986 that you were going to play football. days away.
Right. Yeah. You know what I mean? Like, oh yeah. Saturdays are totally in play.
Uh-huh. Thursdays are part of the schedule on top of Mondays, which did exist then. And we're going to start sprinkling Fridays. You know what I mean? Like they wouldn't.
Oh, yeah. Or Christmas Day, Christmas Day, whenever it falls. Or think about what it took to make the playoffs in 1986 versus what it takes. If we want to inflate our franchises, then we'll act like we're better at what we actually are.
So most of these owners aren't very good, but Many of them Almost most of them every year will go to the playoffs anyway because they keep adding rounds to the playoffs and adding teams to the playoffs. in ways that didn't exist in 86. In 1986, you had three networks to negotiate. T V contracts with. Right.
Like in 86, no one would have even taken ESPN seriously enough to do it. Like even. Ted Turner was busy doing wrestling, right? He had the Braves and he had wrestling. He wasn't.
He wasn't on board with the NFL, right? He eventually eventually got some Thursday night games on Turner for a while, I feel like way back in the day. But like, think of who you had to negotiate your TV rights with. Oh, yeah, and nobody abroad gave a damn about the NFL in 86. And now you're making legitimate, now you're seeding.
You're ceding the rights. Like, you get the marketing rights to Brazil. You get the marketing rights to this part of China. You get the marketing rights to Spain. Like, that's unfathomable.
They weren't even broadcasting the games.
Now you get to sell the global TV rights. You get to negotiate with not just the three over-the-air people, but every sports network that now exists, digital, right? Amazon and all these streaming, like. Netflix, right?
So I just think, I mean. Go from three channels to infinite channels to go from Pre-internet to now not just internet, but the ability to stream and the internet becoming. In essence, YouTube, whatever, those are all basically broadcast channels. I mean, they have basically the same reach that CBS had in 1986. Like how much the world has changed, how interconnected the world is, how they have succeeded in making their game far more global.
It's only right that players get. You know. what they're getting and they still get crappy Uh most of them really crappy. Post-playing tear. And post-playing benefits, and it's still really hard to get fully vested.
And the games is whatever, despite whatever they want to tell you with their numbers. Joe Geek's gonna ask anybody who plays and risks their neck every Sunday, like or Wednesday, or Thursday or Friday or Saturday. It's as dangerous as it's ever been. They're bigger, faster, stronger, and they're playing on Newt Rocky's field. We still have issues with playing surface, like, right?
I mean, in the 70s, they want them to literally play. On fake grass on top of concrete.
Now they won't give them regular grass, right? We're not playing on infields anymore. But like Go ask anybody who's played at the Meadowlands about that surface or any of these other ones.
So, player health and safety, whatever, I would argue they're underpaid. If there was no salary trap, what would they make? Right, right, you're exactly right. Jason Lockhan Fora joining us. Jason, will the Aaron Rodgers Steelers experiment go down as a success?
I don't even know how to measure that because I don't think anything less than a Super Bowl, according to the Steelers, qualifies as a success. And I don't think that's feasible with where their roster is right now.
So how would you define success for them with Aaron?
Well, they haven't been within their country knowledge of a Super Bowl for a long time.
So I don't know that this is the year. Um I I think a success for them realistically for me is to go further Than they have for a while, which would be to win a playoff game or two. And I think that will probably prove to be a stretch. But I think he, at the very least, will keep them at the baseline of where they've been, which is viable through the regular season, playing the final week of the regular season with something at stake. Maybe already clinching a wild card or something by then.
I do still think they can make the playoffs. The fact you can get plus money on them to make the playoffs, I think. Yeah. something that I've certainly uh Um Taken in. It's a strong organization that has guardrails that did not exist for Aaron Rodgers a year ago.
They know how to win football games. The defense is a strength. I think they'll run the ball better this year now that Najee Harris isn't clogging things up. And they'll get heavy with those two tight ends and spread people out and run Warren. And I think that'll be successful.
I think they'll complete a lot of high percentage passes between five and 15 yards downfield. I think they'll be methodical, but that's fine because it keeps the defense on the sidelines resting. The special teams have been excellent for years. They have legitimate specialists. The kicking game is a strength.
If you have to go and kick in their place, their kicker can do it. Yours probably can't.
So, like, I look at all that and say, will Aaron Rodgers be better than Russell Wilson was last year? I think he will. I don't think it'll be exponentially better. I think he'll be better and I think he'll keep his I think he'll he'll understand. At the sideshow antics have to be reined in.
So, I think they'll. No, I think they could go in the playoffs and if they get in maybe the planets align and they upset somebody. But I think they're more in line with what they've been. But that at least keeps them from falling off a cliff for another year. At some point, they probably need to fall off a cliff and reboot, though.
Jason, we have seen two teams that played each other in the playoffs have very different offensive offseason philosophies. When you talk about the Detroit Lions and the Washington Commanders, the Commanders clearly going all in. Debo Samuel, Von Miller, Larry Tunsell, Brad Holmes in Detroit. What's that? Old guys.
Those guys are way back to the end in the prime. Right, right. And Brad Holmes is. Brad Holmes is yeah, you're right. Brad Holmes is certainly more of the measured approach.
We would like to maintain competitiveness a year over year, whereas the commanders are pushing all the chips in the center of the table. Whose offseason did you like more between those two teams? I don't love either. I think that I think the Commanders are overly ambitious and a too much of a George Allen over the hill gang. Get the band together thing, and I don't think the lines have been ambitious enough.
You can go back to trade deadlines when. Hutchinson's playing like the best defensive player in the league. Really needs a robin to his Batman, and they used he saw guys change hands. And I'm not saying Chase Young's the NLB, but he did end up playing in a Super Bowl. And they might beat San Francisco if he's on their side.
They should have beat him anyway.
So. Like, I don't think they've ever smelled the blood in the front office the way they should and really gone for it. Way they could have in a the last couple of years. And now I think the brain drain is going to make it harder to get back to what they're the regular season terrain they're used to standing on. And I think Washington, even like paying all those guys and having Okay.
McLaren there's been I mean You can make the cases Been their best player since Dan Snyder bought the team in terms of what he's endured with. team having three different names and two different owners and You know, I think he's played with like 13 different quarterbacks, most of whom totally suck. And for him to be that classy and to be. the people's champion and to be that popular in that city. And then to give bring Debo in and do all this weird stuff with their money.
And he's got to sort of grovel about an extension. Um While they're talking about building a Four billion dollar stadium or whatever. I just think there's something's a little off to me there. The quarterbacks I think generational and he'll. Will keep them from progressing too much.
But I think both those teams are going to regress. I don't think either of those teams is going to attain. and degrees of postseason success in particular that They they've been accustomed to in Detroit and that Washington achieved last year. Jason Lockanfora joining us here. I am in Detroit.
The folks in Detroit, none too pleased with what he said, but I don't disagree with him. I do not see the Lions as a Super Bowl contender this year. I think this is a year of transition for them. We are seeing Jason, you know. Larger salaries in terms of non-quarterbacks than we've seen: Jamar Chase and TJ Watt and Miles Garrett.
What do these salaries mean? for the likes of Micah Parsons. Is he beneath that of a DJ wat TJ Watt level? Is he at that level? Because it it just doesn't uh no one gets the sense that Dallas is spending responsibly or wisely.
Like, if I represented Michael Parsons, I would just go to Jerry and say, look, you're. You're a star. You you had a star culture here forever. Stars make money. Stars help you sell that star on the side of the helmet.
And you're paying your quarterback $60 million, but I'm the guy. who's selling all the jerseys. I'm the guy who's moving the needle. I'm the guy who is bringing attention. I'm the guy who, you know, when we're all prime time, they're talking about me and whether this is the year I get the sack record or, or whatever.
So, like. Right. You make as much money off me as anybody.
So that needs to be reflected. In my annual compensation, I don't care that I'm not a quarterback or whatever. And look, it'll eventually get done. It always does. It might have to get a little sideways.
But like CD eventually got his and took Gary to the cleaners, and Dak's taken her to the cleaners several times now. And so I think Michael will. Um Bye. Look, there's probably a part of Jerry that will even maybe get off on the fact that they get out to Oxnark, California, and there's some drama there, and there's some intrigue, and there's people talking about the Cowboys all the time because when's Micah going to get done? Like, Micah's not going to play in the preseason, and nothing matters with Micah until week one.
I have a hard time thinking that Micah won't have the same end result, you know, Ezekiel Elliott. They've been down this road with a lot of guys. And if you are that true needle mover, and this young man is. And Jerry's gonna, he understands what that thing is about. It's a bit of a Ponzi scheme.
But as long as he's got enough stars who can sell enough jerseys and attract enough attention and have people on the SPN talking about him this time of year when football's not as much in the news cycle yet, like he gets it. He gets that part of it. And I think he honestly, and some part of him, gets off on the fact that it becomes a national story before it gets resolved. Jason, who enters this season coaching-wise under the most pressure, given the fact that now we have as the backdrop that Nick Saban could get back into coaching. And I just was thinking about this fancifully, Jason, because I think he's got such a distaste for the lay of the land in college football.
I think he would love to show that, hey, man, I would have been great in the NFL too if our physician had approved Drew Brees. Do you look at a certain situation in the NFL and say, man, this guy's on the hot seat. Nick Sabin might be a fit there? I don't really factor the saving part of it into it. I don't know how.
how real you know what i mean that's going to turn out to be and i think that would have to be I mean, a real certain fit, like that Cinderella in the glass slipper, like that, that's. He doesn't have a shot at 32 places. You know what I mean? Like, there's a really small number of owners. the franchises um that he would ever work for and then they'd have to be in a position where They're ready to move on him.
So I don't I put that aside, but like. I mean The one place that stands out the most is the one he was. briefly in. I mean, it's Miami. That that I think is Almost in its own its own tier and then i think like brian dable with the giants sure Um But like, I I d I mean, with what's going on there, like, I don't see Able like Having to look over his shoulder in September or October, thinking Miami gets off to a slow start, and Tyreek Hill is popping off.
And you know. Jalen Ramsey and Jonu Smith are winning football games in Pittsburgh and they're getting their asses kicked in the trenches 'cause they spend on dependent positions instead of independent positions. Like, and and two is getting knocked around. I I don't. I don't think he's long for there.
I wanted to interject here, Jason, and ask your opinion about one situation where elsewhere in the sporting landscape, we saw Tom Thibodeau lose his gig with the New York Knicks despite having objective success. And I'm curious how long. Buffalo is going to be patient with Sean McDermott never really kind of taking the next step. Um I mean, look, I I I'm pretty high on the Buffalo Bills. I think Buffalo's going to run away with that division.
And one of these years, Buffalo or Baltimore is going to break through. I mean, it didn't happen that often, right? I mean. Tom Brady stood on that AFC mountain, either him or Peyton Manning. For a long time, but like Flacco got through once, Ben got through a couple times, you know, like other people did, and so at some point.
That's that's gonna happen there. Um For somebody other than Burrow, right, who to this point is the only one Who has other than that? It's kind of been Brady or Mahomes. But like I I I don't He's really aligned with the general manager. Like, I I don't think that ownership group looks at them as What's holding them back, or has held them back?
They're going to move into a new stadium. Um like Who are you upgrading from him to, you know, like I think it's a real Short list. I don't put him in anything like the tier that I would put, you know. a McDaniel or a Gable or you know, maybe a a a few of these other guys who who might be, you know close to on on borrowed time. Um They'd have to have a real I think they'd really have to have a kind of season that I just don't Per C.
Like, I think the Buffalo Bills will be playing. Yeah, we'll be one of the four final teams standing. And we'll see, you know, or or certainly eight final teams standing. And we'll see if if they can break through this year. Jason Lockanfora is our Odyssey NFL Insider.
Invite you to get to him on social media on X by the same name, L-A-C-A-N-F-O-R-A. Always enjoy the candor, Jason, and the insight and conversation. Thank you so much for joining us here on JR Sports Brief today. Always my pleasure. Enjoy the D.
I love Motown. Thank you so much. Me as well, Jason. That was Odyssey NFL Insider Jason Lockhan Fora, host of the Odyssey Original podcast, In the Huddle. Make sure to check out In the Huddle on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts.
Well, you heard us talk finances with Jason Lockhan Forah, and coming your way next, it is the money mistake. That I can't believe teams are still making. And it's next. My name is Mark Ryan, in for JR, here on JR Sports Brief, right here on the Infinity Sports Network. Not all meals are created equal.
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Uncg. edu to apply today. You're listening to the JR Sport Brief. What's good, my friends? Hope you're doing well!
My name is Mark Ryan here on the JR Sport Brief, the Infinity Sports Network. Truly do appreciate you making us part of your evening on this Friday evening as we roll on until 10 p.m. Eastern Time, 7 p.m. Pacific Time here on the show. This portion of the show is brought to you by O'Reilly Auto Parts.
Think O'Reilly Auto Parts for all your car care needs. Get guaranteed low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts. There is a money mistake that NFL teams keep on making. And I'm going to share that with you momentarily. But before we do that, let's get to Josh in Pennsylvania, who is up next on the show.
Hey, Josh, you're on the Infinity Sports Network. What's good, man? Not much, you? Good, good to talk to you. Yeah.
I'm here to talk about um The main mistake. Or MJ.
Okay. Yeah. So I'm not really of a Steelers fan, more of a Ravens, but it's glad to see the other side. And I saw that Jiggy what? I haven't watched a lot of his games the games for him, but So I saw he wasn't doing good in some of the games I saw.
Okay. Right. I mean, he is the best player on the Steelers. He's had 30.5 sacks the last two seasons.
So he has been very, very good and he's been a dominant player. And this deal that he signed, three years, one hundred twenty three million, will allow him to finish his career in Pittsburgh. Yeah. I'm glad about that still. Not from a negative standpoint.
from a positive.
Okay. So what what would you like to say? Yeah, I like Um Not r really much.
Okay. Well, I do understand the point, man, and I do appreciate the phone call. And TJ Watt, 30.5 sacks, gets the three-year, $123 million extension with the Pittsburgh Steelers. People are wondering, what does this mean for Micah Parsons?
Well, he's not TJ Watts' equal. He's younger, but he's not his equal.
So, all of which brings us to the money mistake that I cannot believe that NFL teams continue to make. Folks, I cannot believe this. Mm-hmm. And that is the that the data is right here in front of you. You know, number one.
Quarterbacks cannot make more than thirteen percent of your salary cap, or you do not win the Super Bowl. The only exception to that in the history of the National Football League has been Patrick Mahomes. He is the only player with a cap hit above thirteen percent that has ever won the Super Bowl. That number this year, salary cap of $279.2 million, your quarterback has to be making with a cap hit of $36.3 million or less. But it's not just quarterbacks anymore.
Oh, no. Listen to this. TJ Watt, forty one million. Jamar Chase, forty point three. Miles Garrett, forty.
Daniil Hunter 35.6, Max Crosby 35.5, Justin Jefferson, 35 million dollars. What are we doing? It's not even just those guys. Nick Posa, thirty four, Chris Jones, thirty one, Sauce Gardner, thirty point one, Derek Stingley, thirty.
So here is the thing, guys, that I want people to acknowledge and I want everyone to be aware of. How successful Were these teams that are paying non-quarterbacks quarterback money? How successful were the Steelers? Last year. Oops.
Well, they make the playoffs, but they they have had they've had eighteen consecutive non losing seasons.
So they just had another typical average Pittsburgh Steeler year where no one thinks they're anything to be afraid of. Jamar Chase. How did the Bengals do last year? Anybody? Bueller, Fry?
Miles Garrett, how did the Browns do last year? You notice a theme here going on when you pay through the nose for non-quarterbacks? To Neil Hunter and the Houston Texans. How did that offensive line do protecting C. J.
Stroud last year? Oh, oh, oh, the offensive line of the Houston Texans was sponsored by Denny's. You know, the restaurant always open? That offensive line was always open. Coming at C.
J. Stroud in that last year. How did the Raiders do last season? Max Crosby and all his money. Uh and uh please speak to me.
About all of the playoff success. that the Minnesota Vikings had with Justin Jefferson. These are the six highest paid non-quarterbacks in the National Football League. And their teams can accomplish nothing. Nunca, Nada.
Zilch. Why am I the only one who sees this? Why aren't the NFL teams seeing this? I mean, I know I'm not the only one, but I'm one of the only ones seeing this. How come the other NFL teams aren't aware of this?
You can't afford to do this. What Pittsburgh is doing by giving TJ Watt this $41 million. Per year deal is they are making one last desperate plea. Yeah. Oh, the only chance we have of relevancy is if we pay through the nose to keep our very, very best player.
That is the only chance we have. Only chance we have TJ Watt here back in January. says look You know, I desperately want to win a Super Bowl, but I got news for you. If he wants to desperately win a Super Bowl, his best shot is not to do that in Pittsburgh. And it's not just him.
Pittsburgh's best shot is to do it without him. They should be taking one step back. Clearing their cap to take two steps forward in the future. But instead of doing that, the Pittsburgh Steelers lead the NFL for the third year in a row in defensive spending in an offensive league. They have become the newspaper of the NFL.
So they can cling to relevancy and by bringing back TJ Watt, but that very contract, as evidenced by what's going on in the rest of the National Football League, is the very thing that's going to prevent them from fielding a contending roster. Let's go to Robert Innapolis. Who is up next on the show? Hey, Robert, good to talk to you. You're on the Infinity Sports Network.
What's happening? Hey, well, thanks for taking my call. I was just hearing your comments. You're missing your call in life. You should be an NFL GM.
You know exactly. I think exactly as you are thinking, and people keep saying, oh, it's the market. It's the market. If I'm a GM, I'm not going to pay my players based on what some idiot GM on another team does. I'm going to pay him how I evaluate the position he plays.
And how I rate how he plays that position.
Now, I've had to concede with the quarterbacks. I probably had to give in because they kind of do have the leverage because there's only a handful of them that can really do that. But when we're talking about edge rustlers and receivers is the one that really gets me. Yep. Jamar Chase, fine, excellent receiver.
You want to call him the best in the league or Justin Jefferson. Does he contribute more to an offense than a Saquon Barkley or a Derrick Henry? Why are these receivers getting all the money these running backs account for? The top end running backs, if you go through the stats, They handle the ball twice as much, so they're taking twice a beating. They also are accumulating in twice of the offensive production.
And then you've got to go to your offensive linemen who are engaging in collisions on every play. I'm paying those guys before I pay the guy who's. Robert, I got to interject here. I got to interject here. An old football wise man told me that your importance in the game of football is in direct proportion to the distance you line up from the football when it snapped.
In other words, the closer you are to the football when it's snapped, the more important you are. The more further away, the less important you are. And the best teams, Robert, assign a number money-wise to each position in terms of what they can afford to spend at that position while being a contender. What these teams that are doing, like the Browns with Miles Garrett, like the Cowboys with Dak Prescott and his absurd $60 million a year, despite not being a top 10 quarterback, and A.B. DCD Lamb, and they're about to do it with Micah Parsons.
They're ensuring that they're never going to have the roster to win anything. I just shared with you what is happening to these teams dropping $40 million on non-quarterbacks. What are they winning? They're winning nothing.
So, why do they keep doing it? All right, let me close out with this because I know you're coming up on the end. You may have another caller or two. Here's the thing. You you can't buy your sway to a championship.
You have to you know, some of these GMs, because they can't draft players, that's why they go out and pay big money for other teams' players. But you have to have the guys On the offensive and defensive line, and if you pay these. outside receivers and whatever, all this money. You can't retain them. You have that constant turnover, and that's what affects the ability to do it.
And on contract, Why is it that when a player signs a contract and he's coming up to the last year of the contract he signs, all of a sudden he deserves big money raise? How many players have come back and said, you know, I really didn't fulfill this contract, so I'm going to have to take a reduction in. Thank you for taking my call, my friend. Bye-bye. No, Robert, thank you very much.
And the reason you see the holdouts in the NFL and nowhere else is because their money's not guaranteed, and it's because it's the most violent game.
Nowhere else do you say do you see you know, like How much is Tarek Schubel with Detroit outperforming his contract? The guy who's making ten million a year deserves to be making forty. It's going to win back-to-back Cy Young awards. But you don't see that in Major League Baseball because the money's guaranteed and it's not as violent of a game. But I continue to see these desperate teams.
You know, do not do things out of desperation. I once flew halfway across the country to try to talk a girl out of breaking up with me who already had broken up with me. Don't fly halfway across the country to talk a girl out of breaking up with you who doesn't want to be with you. And do not spend forty one million dollars a year on an aging TJ Watt, a contract the likes of which is going to prevent you from competing. Would you please stop doing this?
Coming up next on the show. I will tell you this, we had a viral cheating moment in our society that took place over the last forty eight hours, which brings to light a fun sports question for you. And that's next. My name is Mark Ryan. Great to have you guys with us.
You're listening to the JR Sport Brief on the Infinity Sports Network.
Now it's time for a sports update with Rich Ackerman. Ready to take the next step in your career? The Bryan School of Business and Economics at UNC Greensboro offers a range of affordable, fully online undergraduate programs designed to prepare you for in-demand business roles. With flexible courses, dedicated faculty, and a strong return on investment, it's a smart choice for your future. Develop the skills employers want and gain the confidence to stand out in today's competitive job market.
Apply now to start in the fall. Visit brian.uncg.edu. You're listening to the JR Sport Brief. Great to have you guys with us, Mark Ryan in for JR. You're listening to the JR Sport Brief right here on the Infinity Sports Network.
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Who could ask for anything more? I'm at Mark Ryan on Air. That's at M-A-R-C-Ryan on Air on Facebook, X, and Twitter. There you go. Wherever you are, I am at.
And unfortunately, we had a situation at Fenway Park the other night. Where the Boston Red sucks Who have not been Red Suxing too bad of late. They did lose to the Cubs today, but had won 10 games in a row prior to that. We're holding a cold play concert. And there were some people out there.
There were some at Gillette Stadium, I'm sorry, there were some people out there that wish that the situation would have been more private than it was. You know, in the Boston area. If you are living under a rock right now, you might not have heard this, and that is not an insult, but it is the only thing. Like, would you go as far as to say, Ryan, that This is one out of every two or one out of every three posts that you've seen on social media the last couple of days is this debauchery. Just over and over again, memes and videos and spoiler alerts and slander and all of these things going on.
I do not remember the last time we had something so viral. It's it's pretty bad. I can't go like. Yeah. two seconds without seeing it besides it's Superman and then that.
And I can't get away from it. And I have had the misfortune of being viral for people being mad at me. Uh one that I can remember um is That I said to people that you accept every team from a city as your own or you get none. Because what was happening was in the Carolinas and in Charlotte, there were people that were claiming the Carolina Panthers and claiming the Atlanta Braves, but not claiming the Atlanta Falcons. And I'm like, you don't get to cherry-pick the Atlanta Braves.
You get the Falcons and you get the Braves or you get neither. And I went viral all across America because people hated that.
Well, guess where people love that in Detroit? Detroit is one of the most insular, loyal, passionate places you've ever seen, and nobody here has any problem with accepting every team here or getting none of them.
Well, Unfortunately. There was a CEO. Of a startup, a $1.3 billion startup, and his head of HR at Gillette Stadium. that uh were enjoying cold play music. The problem is, they got cold played because there was some warm play.
Going on. Here is what this sounded like. Lead singer from Coldplay. They did that thing. You know how, like, when you're on camera in an arena, they do like a kiss cam, or they will go around from people to people to people.
They'll show kids, they'll show adults. The camera goes around. That's a known thing that if you're at a game, that's what's going to happen.
Well, here is what happened on Wednesday night. Oh look at these two.
Alright. Oh come on, you think? Oh, what? Either they're having an affair or it's very shy. Oh dear God, either they're having an affair or they're just very shy.
Well, what happened?
Well, the CEO of the company. um was doing the stand up spoon with the HR head of the company. Which well, they're consenting adults, Mark Ryan. What's the problem? The problem is Both are married with children to somebody else.
So, What would have happened if they just played it cool? Be cool, my babies. What would have happened is People at the stadium would have seen them. But nobody else. But because they both freaked out and ducked out of view, it was obvious that they knew they were doing something wrong.
And that's when it went viral. Ryan Botcher, do you think they would have been outed for adultery? Had they just rolled with it and kept their posture, during the three seconds that they were featured. If they didn't immediately try to run away. Would they have been outed for adultery?
100% not. Just because the way they reacted. She dropped and he ducked and rolled.
So, anyone who's a fire either. You know how they say stop, drop, and roll when there's a fire? He was doing the fire routine. There was no fire. We didn't start the fire, but you guys did.
You guys created that. It was a headrock. It was bad because it was so out of the normal. That it distracted Chris Morton from his singing or whatever he was doing, and he saw it on the camera. Like, if they were just play normal, it would just be like any other fan in the crowd.
There's probably what 70,000 people there. They wouldn't have reacted to it. And unless you knew the CEO personally, or the HR person personally. Then you would have picked it up and nobody else cared, but you're doing whole gymnastics routines trying to get out of the way. I mean, we had the tuck and roll, we had the triple sow cow, we had the reverse double axle, we had every sort of move trying to get these people off the camera because they knew they had been seen by thousands upon thousands of people doing something they didn't want other people to see.
They were all over each other. Hands all over each other. Since that has taken place, Since that has happened, the CEO has come out with a statement of his own. which in and of itself is ridiculous. He goes on to say that he was having a private moment that became public without his consent.
Uh, bro, his name is Andy. You are in a public place. Any time you are in public, What happens can happen. without your consent. You were on camera, sir.
This is what happened.
So, what does this have to do with sports?
Well, they were caught cheating. When have you felt in sports that your team has cheated on you? Uh I'll share my examples with you next and we'll take your phone calls. My name is Mark Ryan. Great to be here with you right here on the JR Sport Brief, the Infinity Sports Network.
There's a time in a plate for a fillet of fish. But breakfast. It's for sausage biscuits. McDonald breakfast comes first.
