Adios To Aaron Rodgers (Hour 2)

It is the JR Sport Brief show on the Infinity Sports Network. I'm coming to you live from Atlanta, Georgia. Thank you for listening wherever you might be all over North America. This show gets started every weekday at 6pm Eastern, 3 Pacific.

I'm in Atlanta, Georgia. Our super producer and host Ryan Hickey. He is in New York City.

Man, we've already had a full first hour. We talked about this rumor of Trevor Lawrence. The Steelers interested in trading for Trevor Lawrence. The Jags are stupid, but why the hell would they be interested in sending him up North?

Crazy rumor. I don't see that one happening. Kansas City Chiefs giving Travis Kelce a deadline. He has until about a month to make up his mind whether or not or whether or not he's going to play. On March 15th and Travis Kelce's old $12 million.

Chiefs want to know whether or not they need to write the check or not. And then right before we went to break, we heard from Kellen Moore, the newest head coach of the New Orleans Saints. After winning a Super Bowl with the Philadelphia Eagles, he didn't have to travel far. He just stayed in Louisiana.

Good for him. He's going to be heading up to Pennsylvania for the parade tomorrow. Hey, Hickey, we talked about Valentine's Day.

The the parade falls on Valentine's Day. You know, it'll be there'll be a lot of red out there with the green, I think. Yeah, definitely.

I don't know about in Philly, but plenty of other places. You don't think people are going to be wearing you? We won't see smatterings of red. Come on. No.

Tomorrow at the parade. No way. Yes. No. Somebody is going to be wearing a heart.

Somebody wear a head, you know, something. Come on. That will be all Eagles all day. It'll be a little red in there.

We'll see. Hey, if you missed the first hour of the show, go ahead and hit rewind on the free Odyssey app. Thank you to people listening live on their local Infinity Sports Network affiliate.

If you have Sirius XM, it's channel 375. And if you have a smart speaker in your vicinity at home at work, wherever the hell you are, or phone, ask it to play the Infinity Sports Network. We'll be hanging out with you for the next three hours. How about this in about 20 minutes or so, we're going to have a conversation with someone who won a Super Bowl championship with the Denver Broncos played for Notre Dame, you can catch him on CBS, you can listen to him on Westwood one, we're going to be joined by Ryan Harris. And of course, I'm going to ask him about this rumor earlier today involving Trevor Lawrence. We'll talk all things NFL what he saw this past Sunday and the Super Bowl. Looking forward to that conversation with Ryan in a few minutes and then next hour to talk specifically about the Steelers. We're going to be joined by Andrew Filippone from 93 seven the fan in Pittsburgh.

A lot of questions for him. Trevor Lawrence is that actually makes sense for the Steelers? Or should they go with Russell Wilson? Should they keep Justin Fields? And are you a fan of Mike Tomlin? A lot of people in Pittsburgh are sick of him. We'll have that conversation with Andrew Filippone.

We'll go ahead and do that next hour. So much more to get into a Travis Hunter has a designation for the NFL combine to be taking should be taking place in a few weeks. That Alex Bregman Yeah, I know baseball is starting up. This man said goodbye to the Houston Astros. He's going to be a member of the Boston Red Sox and then look at Don should she played a second game last night. And maybe he is still out of shape. He hasn't played since Christmas really.

He stunk. We'll get into it all. You want to be a part of the show you can the phone number is 855-212-4227. That's 855-212-4227.

You can find me online at JR sport brief. This is kind of crazy. Not really. If we got any better news on Super Bowl Sunday. A couple hours before the start of the game. Jay Glaser was on Fox. And he basically said that the New York Jets have given Aaron Rodgers the boot. What we knew this was the case, but they came through. And they basically said today via their own social media, because why not?

The messages are hilarious. The New York Jets said last week we met with Aaron and shared our intention that are excuse me share that our intention was to move in a different direction at quarterback. It was important to have this discussion now to provide clarity and enable each of us the proper time to plan for our respective futures. We want to thank him for the leadership, the passion and dedication he brought to the organization and wish him success moving forward. That is coming in from the new head coach Aaron Glenn and their new general manager, Darren Moogie. And then Woody Johnson, the bandaid man, he just told a bunch of lies.

I won't even read it to you. He wanted to thank Aaron Rodgers for being a jet. He says that he embodied what it meant to be it. What does it mean to be a jet? What does that even mean? The Jets are a bunch of losers. Historically, they're losers. I was literally about to say, I think it means to be a loser. Yeah, you came in and you fit right in by being a loser.

Great. It says that Aaron Rodgers embraced our fans. He immersed himself in the city. Every time I looked, he was flying back to California. Yeah, he was not here as much as or he was here, I should say, as little as possible. I mean, outside of when Aaron Rodgers showed up and he decided to go to a New York Knicks game or New York Rangers game.

I don't know. Maybe he went to a play on Broadway. I didn't see Aaron Rodgers anywhere else in New York. It's like, oh, he's on a plane in New Jersey. Oh, he's in the mountains doing ayahuasca.

I don't know. He rehabbed in California. Yeah, right. Not in New York. Now the Jets just there for a few games to be seen.

Yeah, popping in, popping out. Even Pat McAfee, you know, sitting in his house in California. Not the consummate teammate. Reportedly, when the New York Jets met with Aaron Rodgers last week, they pretty much asked if he would just cut out all of his media appearances.

I mean, who wants to be undermined with all that crap? And we all know and remember why Aaron Rodgers was even with the New York Jets. Packers had Jordan Love. They had enough. The New York Jets realized that Zach Wilson stunk despite taking a number two overall behind Trevor Lawrence.

They had enough. They're like, man, we got an offense with weapons. We got a defense, one of the best in the league. All we need is a quarterback. And then Aaron Rodgers got hurt four plays into the season two seasons ago.

And that was basically all she wrote. This year, this year, the New York Jets with Aaron Rodgers at the helm, they went five and twelve. Aaron Rodgers was still slow, stuck in molasses to begin the season. He's now 41 years old.

Later on this year, he'll be 42. I still think he has something left in the tank until he gets hit again. I mean, it's not like Aaron Rodgers is going to wake up and be better. I don't think he's going to bounce back and have an MVP caliber year. He's not going to be a five time NFL MVP.

Go ahead and throw that idea out the window. But I still believe he could be a valuable starter. And so the New York Jets in desperation, the way that only the Jets could do. They wanted Aaron Rodgers and they got him. All of them throughout both years.

You can go ahead and check the box. The New York Jets having another QB at the end of his career who was busted up and did not work. Sorry, Vinnie Tusta Verde. Sorry, Chad Pennington, although he was young and his arm just went to a noodle. Hey, sorry, no, I'm not sorry to Brett Favre.

And then now Aaron Rodgers. Picky what the New York Jets should do. They should have a Hall of Fame for quarterback losers. That's what they should do.

The Hall of Flame. Yeah. Would you put Mark Sanchez in there? I would. His bust would be eating a hot dog on the sideline.

Oh, not the butt fumble. Oh, wow. OK, we should put his face to ass. OK, yeah.

That's a better idea. What a world. Aaron Rodgers is gone. It was only yesterday that Aaron Rodgers showed up. And this sounds so odd to say. Aaron Rodgers showed up opening press conference. Listen to what he said. You know, I'm an old I'm an old guy, so I want to be part of a team that can win it all.

And I believe that this is a place we can get that done. That that didn't happen. They they hit him with the eject button today or last week. Today we found out publicly via the Jets. OK. And then he gets hurt because the Jets offensive line stunk. And then at the end of the year.

Throughout rehabbing in in California. Sitting around being the West Coast coach of the New York Jets. Basically making Rob Salah have to answer to him in a whole nother part of the country. At the end of the season. His first season, the one that he didn't play. Aaron Rodgers had the nerve after he sat on TV every week and did an interview. And by the way, he's not playing.

He's rehabbing. He had the nerve to say that the New York Jets need to stop all the distractions and kill all the noise. This coming from the biggest distraction. Anything in the in this building that we're doing individually or collectively that has nothing to do with real winning needs to be obsessed. Everything that we do has to have a purpose to step in the building. There's intentionality with everything that you do. And it's not a half the time thing. It's not a sometimes thing. It's not a most of the time thing. It's an every time thing. If you want to be a winning organization and to put yourself in position to win championships and be competitive, everything that you do matters. And the bull that has nothing to do with winning needs to get out of the building. Now, isn't that the pot calling the kettle black? And this is one of the reasons why I find this man just to be insufferable.

Like the awareness for him to stand in front of a microphone and talk about distractions being eliminated from the building. And you are the biggest distraction. You might be the most accomplished player.

No, not not even might be. He is. He was the most accomplished player on the team without a shadow of a doubt. But you should lead by example, not with your words, because you're talking out of both sides of your mouth, standing there at a press conference, telling everybody we have to eliminate distractions. Meanwhile, you're pseudo coaching the team while getting paid a million dollars a year for interviews.

Come on, man. But he's not a stupid man. He's just a selfish one. Because Aaron Rodgers, he's not dumb. He predicted his future. He predicted his fate and not just his own. Aaron Rodgers took a look at Rob Salah, former head coach. He took a look at Joe Douglas, now former GM. And Aaron Rodgers, he took a look at himself. And he basically said at the beginning of the season from training camp, he said, you know what? If we don't win this upcoming year.

Well, listen to what Rodgers had to say. If I don't do what I know I'm capable of doing, we're all probably going to be out of here. So I like that kind of pressure, though. I know there's, you know, it's a tough market to plan.

It's not for everybody. I relish that opportunity. As you get older in the league, if you don't perform, they're gonna get rid of you. Well, he knows. How does he feel? I'm sure we won't get the answer today.

Maybe we'll get it into the future. Would he say that he failed? Would Aaron Rodgers say that he did things the way, the best way possible?

Or would Aaron Rodgers tell you that, yeah, man, I could have done better? Absolutely. Pathetic. They deserved each other.

Misery and company. The New York Jets and Aaron Rodgers, they deserved each other. From the minute that the New York Jets brought this man in, it was a potential for a swing in the mist. They're standing at the plate with the bases loaded. And they tried to go for the grand slam. They struck out. On three swings, you know, Hickey, which is worse, is it striking out on three swings, striking out on three swings that are all balls are lining out, which one is worse?

Striking out on three swings, all balls? Yeah. So the New York Jets did. They got what they deserved and Aaron Rodgers got what he deserved. And if you go by the odds, which we shared with you, according to Vegas, the Pittsburgh Steelers have the best odds of procuring the services of Aaron Rodgers, followed by the Las Vegas Raiders, then the San Francisco 49ers, the Minnesota Vikings. You would assume that Sam Darnell is going to get a better deal somewhere else. And we got the Tennessee Titans, who people keep saying the Titans.

I'm just like, why? If I'm Aaron Rodgers, I'm going to go somewhere where I don't want to just play because at that point, he'll look like a loser. At that point, Aaron Rodgers would look like more of a crybaby if he just wanted to take the approach of I just want to play. After all the whining and complaining he did with the Green Bay Packers to now just stick around and play for rebuilding franchises. Oh, the New York Jets. There was hope quickly got dashed because they quickly got dashed. But to see Aaron Rodgers playing for the Browns or the Titans, just because he looked like a fraud, a phony.

He'd be better off sneaking back into the woods and drinking that stuff. And good luck to whatever team picks Aaron Rodgers up. I think it might be the Steelers. Let's see if they change their approach.

At least we know they know how to get to a winning record. It's the JR Sport Brief Show on the Infinity Sports Network. We're going to take a break.

When we come back, we're going to talk and ask these questions and more. Having a conversation with Ryan Harris, the Super Bowl 50 champion with the Denver Broncos. You can catch him on CBS and Westwood One. Let's talk to this former player and get his thoughts on everything going on in the NFL today.

You're locked in. It's the JR Sport Brief Show, the Infinity Sports Network. You're listening to the JR Sport Brief.

It is the JR Sport Brief Show here with you coast to coast on the Infinity Sports Network. Oh, you thought the news would stop after the Super Bowl? Oh, no, we're getting ready for the combine, getting ready for free agency.

There's still a lot. The NFL is year round to talk about the league, what we saw this past Sunday, what we're getting this week, what we could expect over the next several weeks and months. Joining us is someone who played in the league, won a championship with the Broncos, Super Bowl 50. You can now catch him in various places, whether it's Notre Dame football, Westwood One, CBS. Joining us right now is Ryan Harris.

Ryan, how are you, man? Always great to join you, my friend. Appreciate it.

Always a pleasure. Let's let's work backwards just a little bit before we get to Aaron Rogers and the Jaguars and Travis Hunter and whatnot. What are your thoughts on what we saw this past Sunday, that big old whooping at the Super Bowl? We saw a team beat the most talented player and team will always defeat talent. You can look at Super Bowl 48 with the Broncos and the Seahawks. You can look at pretty much any Super Bowl in history. Trent Dilfer says hello.

Brad Johnson says hello, right? And at the end of the day, the Chiefs lied to themselves that they could build any roster in any way they wanted because they had the quarterback and you needed more talent. And you needed more talent specifically that understood they had to improve. I think one of the biggest things that's gotten missed is in the post game, which I credit Patrick Mahomes for being accountable and showing up in an interview and not blowing up this media because he lost the game.

He said, look, we got a lot of guys here. All they know is going to Super Bowls. And think about that, JR. You have three seasons of rookies that expect to go to the Super Bowl for the last two years. Patrick Mahomes is going to do something that's going to win us the game. And you went against a team in the Eagles who not only had Saquon Barkley, but had a team that had a chip on their shoulder, including Slay and others, who said, I'm going to improve every week to play my best so I can help my team win.

And that was the difference in the game. Well, Ryan, we know what we talked about earlier in the show, that Travis Kelce, he has about a month to decide whether or not he wants to return cash that check. What do you think his future is? Will he return? And what does the future look like for the Chiefs? I believe he'll return.

I think any player of his talent would not want that game to be the last game that he plays. And I think Travis did a good job on his podcast talking about how there are plays that he wishes he had back. And I've been there as a player. It is devastating to think that you may have been either laid off the ball one snap or you missed on one block.

And that was the difference. And unfortunately for many players on the Chiefs, the difference was in about five to six plays where they just were not competitive across the board. So I think he comes back.

I think he casts that check. I think he absolutely can win another Super Bowl with Patrick Mahomes. I think this team's different with Rasheed Rice on it. But this team needs to learn, the current Chiefs team needs to learn you can't depend on Patrick Mahomes for everybody to win games. They kind of made it through the season that way. It's ridiculous to say out loud that they had a center at left tackle, right? I mean, even in Tony's stance, he was opening up his shoulders, something you can't do as a tackle. So from coaches to players, everyone has to increase their willingness to work and their attention to detail. Otherwise, they may get bounced earlier next year than where they were at the Super Bowl in New Orleans. Former tackle and Super Bowl champ Ryan Harris is here with us on the JR Sport Brief Show. When you talk about the team that did walk away with the Vince Lombardi, the Philadelphia Eagles, how open is their window? We know Saquon signed to a three-year contract.

Are they open for as long as he's there? Do you have faith in Sirianni Pastis? What are your thoughts on these Eagles? I have faith in Jalen Hurts.

I mean, let's be clear. Saquon Barkley, although I think he totaled about 90 yards, he didn't really affect the game in the Super Bowl the same way that he did the regular season. Now it absolutely helped that he could do those things because less pressure was on Jalen Hurts, but let's be clear, this is about the payback king. This is about the winningest quarterback in terms of his football career that we've seen. He has an SEC, I think he has two SEC championships, lost the national championship to Deshaun Watson as a freshman, got bench in the second one, came back the next year without transferring, helped him win another SEC championship, and then he goes out to the NFL where people, not only did they ask him if he wanted to be a receiver at the combine, but they didn't even like him initially in Philadelphia. So to think about what Jalen Hurts has persevered through whilst being superior as an athlete and a passer, the window for the Eagles is as open and long as the contract for Jalen Hurts to play there exists.

And we know he's making 51 million dollars a year. We know with success, the teams start pilfering and not just necessarily on the football field, but earlier today we heard from Kellen Moore, former offensive coordinator, now the new head coach of the New Orleans Saints. How do you think things are going to turn out there in New Orleans? We got Derek Carr, his contract situation, it just seems like they're going to line up for a mulligan year. Well let's be clear, the Saints as an organization haven't been competitive since that big pass interference penalty, what was that, five years ago with Sean Payton? The contract situation has been a mess for 15 years, getting back to when Drew Brees was there. They have aging talent and it seems like they're unwilling to do the things necessary to be competitive. Now happy for Kellen Moore and let's be clear, that's the second offensive coordinator that Jalen Hurts has gotten a job. Is it the coach or the player?

You hear what I'm saying? So I think that the NFC South is the most winnable division in the NFC. You're going to have to figure out the quarterback situation. Alvin Kamara is not the most happy running back in the NFL, I think that's an issue. So to me, if I'm Kellen Moore, I'm going to deconstruct and rebuild this year to build the team with the roster that I need, with the salary cap space to when we get talent in the building, we can make a run in two to three years. Hey Ryan, if we take a flip from the the NFC South and take a look at the AFC South, there was a rumor running around, it's been debunked by a few people earlier today, about Trevor Lawrence potentially, you know, the interest in the Steelers and trying to bring him in. What are your thoughts on that?

It just seems, I know the Jags have made a lot of bad decisions. That doesn't sound like something they've entertained. Am I wrong? Well, absolutely. You take every phone call, right? I got unlimited nights and weekends, you know what I'm saying? They are if you're a DM. But you have to consider that two things come into play.

One, it's whether or not, what's the return there? And two, if I'm Trevor Lawrence, I want to stay in Jacksonville. They just got Shane Waldron, one of the best offensive minds in the NFL who, oh, by the way, got Geno Smith to two consecutive Pro Bowls. That's the guy you want to play for. He won a World Championship with the Rams. He was a part of the Patriots when they won championships. And he knows how to coach offense and relate to players. So I think if you're Trevor Lawrence, you squashed this immediately because the best chance for success is with your current coaching staff and your current roster. And if you're Pittsburgh, you got to get a quarterback.

I might even draft two of them this year. And what great shade, too, by Nick Sirianni, by putting Kenny Pickett in at the end of the game in the Super Bowl. Just a little shade throwing at the Steelers there. So Ryan, what do you think the Steelers should do? I don't want to call them mediocre.

They're good enough to get to the postseason every year, but they don't have a quarterback or a roster full enough, dynamic enough to actually compete for a championship. Are you going with Fields or Wilson? Would you entertain Aaron Rodgers? I would never entertain Aaron Rodgers. He's a distraction. He's a cancer. He's proven it now in multiple locations.

And you got to believe somebody when they tell you who they are. If I'm the Steelers, I'm going to look at how I get Will Howard out of Ohio State in this draft. I think Will Howard, after what I saw this season, watching college football, he's the most put together and was able to manage three different snap counts in a national championship, had handled defeat, improved as a player. I think you go young if you're the Steelers because you have the talent. Now let's be clear, it's not just quarterback. I mean, Pickens has a problem.

It's a maturity problem. And it's funny to me how the Steelers always find these great talents that sometimes have maturity issues. And that's something where if I'm the Steelers, I'm figuring that out first. If Pickens wants to play, we got to figure out a way to get him to manage his emotions and compete every play. If he's unwilling to do that, I played for Coach Tomlin. I love his saying. He wants volunteers, not hostages.

So they'll get rid of them. But if I'm the Steelers, I'm going with the young quarterback that has the tools, that has experience. And to me, that's Will Howard in this upcoming draft. And you can catch Ryan Harris on CBS Sports.

You can catch him on Westwood One. You talk about young quarterbacks as we wait a few months for the NFL draft. We hear it's a two team or not a two team, but a two person draft between Cam Ward and also Shadore Sanders.

What are your thoughts on what a team like the Tennessee Titans and the Browns and the Giants should do? There's only two QBs and quite a few teams who need them. Well, I really think the most of Cam Ward in that situation. I think Shadore Sanders did an excellent job of increasing his ability and his talent at the quarterback position, detail oriented. He was also handicapped by having Pat Shermer as his offensive coordinator. So we really don't know how good Shadore Sanders can be.

And yet Cam Ward, here he comes in learning multiple playbooks, understanding the different types of coaches that he's going to see. He's got, I think, the best arm talent and quickest release to the point where I thought he'd come out last year and probably would have went in the first round. I know I'm in the minority, but hey, I'm a champion.

I'm in the minority anyways, JR. So I like Cam Ward. I like what he does with the football, with the command. The only issue for Cam Ward is that whole situation where he played a half a football in the bowl game. A lot of teams are going to question his love of the game because of that, right or wrong. But that's going to be an issue that we'll be asked about extensively at the combine coming up here at the end of the month. Ryan Harris here with us, Super Bowl champ with the Denver Broncos.

That's not the only big name. Earlier today, we heard and learned that Travis Hunter, he has to be designated as something at the NFL combine. He'll be a defensive back.

How do you think he's best situated? Where would be the best spot for him to land in the NFL? Well, first, I think it's brilliant that he's going to go as a defensive back. And what he's saying to the NFL is, I'm going to go against the fastest people and athletes in the field of this rookie class, and I'm going to dominate them.

Then you know he can be a receiver, right? So I mean, that's what I love is the strategic choice to take that challenge head on and to put your numbers against some of the best and fastest that will touch a football field in the NFL. I mean, if I'm the Jets, I can't get enough of them. If I'm the Panthers, I can't get enough of him.

I mean, I think I don't see him falling past two. But it's but to me, you have to remember, JR, these these teams that are drafting high in the first round are there because they have made the wrong decisions in the front office and probably for some time. And I wouldn't be surprised if in this draft, we start to see players say I'm not going here now like the Eli Manning situation because players, players are getting tired of going to bad teams or bad organizations that make bad decisions. Oh, we've seen a lot of these things make bad decisions.

Oh, my goodness. We see that if you you hit the jackpot on a quarterback, whether you're the Washington commanders, whether you're the Texans, you can have a turnaround. Is there a team that you look at that if they just tweak things just a little bit, they could turn things around later this year in 2025? The Atlanta Falcons hands down, they should have won the division this year. I think if Pennick starts all year, he wins. The interceptions that Cousins threw were just destructive to the season. But I think that team is the Atlanta Falcons, and I think they'll do it.

Well, I certainly hope so. Everybody here in Atlanta have been waiting on that for a long time. Ryan, where do you think Kirk Cousins ends up based on what has taken place over the past few weeks?

I think he ends up in a broadcast booth. I mean, at the end of the day, nothing terrifies teams and teammates more than leading the NFL in interceptions. Now, you can do that if you're Brett Favre and you're doing it because you're also throwing, you know, you're leading in touchdowns, right? But Kirk Cousins regressed this year, and when age hits the quarterback, you can see it.

I don't know any team. And the other thing that hurts Kirk Cousins is seeing the aging quarterbacks in the NFL that had some success that then started throwing interceptions in the playoffs recently. Thinking about the backup quarterback at the Colts right now, can't forget his name. Blacko?

Blacko, right. Blacko throwing those picks at the Houston game last year in the playoffs. That started the weariness of aging quarterbacks. And you look at what Aaron Rodgers did this year. So teams have to be compelled to go after an aging quarterback. And let's be clear, Kirk Cousins is a Hall of Fame baseball player of quarterbacks. He has all the stats except for where it's most important to the point where Dak Prescott has a better playoff record than he does. Wow.

Ryan Harris is why we have you come through here and drop all of the facts. Where can people follow you? You're a busy man. You're publishing books. You're speaking. You're doing this. You're everywhere.

Notre Dame. Where can we keep up with you, Ryan? Hey, man, Ryan Harris underscore 68. That's on Twitter.

That's on Instagram. And check out my website, Ryan Harris, 68.com. Always good to chat with you. We'll catch you on down the line soon, Ryan. Thank you so much. Thanks, JR. Peace.

All the time. It's the JR Sport Brief Show here with you on the Infinity Sports Network. Ryan Harris. Hey, where's best for Kirk Cousins?

The broadcast booth. Would you bring on Aaron Rodgers? Nah, he's a cancer. Ryan Harris gets right to the point.

And we appreciate that. It's the JR Sport Brief Show on the Infinity Sports Network. 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4227. We're going to take a break. When we come back, we're going to get right to it, too. I have to let you know about a big signing made in Major League Baseball. And then we'll talk about a big trade that took place in the NBA. It's Luka Doncic. He's still looking to find his stride.

And then you know what? Since Ryan Harris had some thoughts about Travis Hunter, we'll get to talking about Travis Hunter at the top of the hour. How's he going to perform in the NFL?

Where should he go? You're listening to the JR Sport Brief. It is the JR Sport Brief Show here on the Infinity Sports Network. 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4227. Thank you so much to Ryan Harris, former NFL player, Super Bowl champ with the Broncos. Now you catch him on CBS and Westwood One. Thank you to Ryan for joining us in the last break.

We went through everything going on in the NFL. If you missed the conversation, go ahead and hit rewind on the free Odyssey app. This portion of the show is sponsored by the all new Hyundai 2024 Santa Fe equipped for adventure with capable features like available H-Track all-wheel drive and standard third row seating. 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4227. We talked a lot of football, especially with all the news from today. A rumor about the Steelers inquiring about Trevor Lawrence, Aaron Rodgers and the New York Jets officially parting ways. I mean, part of the conversation we even had with Ryan Harris in the last break was about Travis Hunter. And so we'll get into Travis Hunter a little bit more at the top of the hour. Before we do that, right after we got off the air last night, as we discussed, the spring training is underway. Teams are starting to show up in both Arizona and Florida. Pitchers and catchers. It's a good time of the year if you're a fan of baseball.

And then it looks like for the most part, we got all of our free agents settled in. Pete Alonso got his deal. And last night, I don't want to say the guys is hated, but he played for the Houston Astros and he plays for the Houston Astros no more. Alex Bregman, a two-time Super Bowl champ.

Excuse me, is Super Bowl on my mind? A two-time World Series champ, a two-time All-Star. Alex Bregman is now going to play in Boston. Listen to this from CBS Sports HQ. Breaking news out of Major League Baseball. Alex Bregman headed to Boston. Their basement has agreed to a three-year $120 million deal with the Red Sox.

The deal includes an opt-out after the first and second season. Two-time All-Stars spent his entire nine-year career in Houston, winning two World Series championships with the Astros. This past season, batted 260, 26 homers, 75 RBIs for the Astro, won a Gold Glove Award as well. And now, he brings that Gold Glove to an already stellar Red Sox infield. Yeah, I mean, you think, forget the infield, you think about the entire team in the lineup right now. If Trevor Storey can actually stay healthy, you think about the outfield and having Duran and we all know about Devers, you put Bregman in that mix and Casas, like they're going to do some damage. Now, what happens with this rebuilt starting rotation for the Red Sox?

I have no idea. Traded for crochet from the White Sox. It's not like the White Sox need any talent. And then, they got Walker Bueller.

It'd be nice if he's actually healthy. Red Sox will appreciate them. They've been pretty average sitting at or around 500 the past couple of years. Last season, they finished at exactly 500. Let's see if the starting pitching or the pitchers can hold up there into the bargain.

I think if the offense can stay healthy, the Red Sox should do some damage, put a little bit of a scare into the New York Yankees. 855-212-4227. That's 855-212-4227. Alex Bregman, getting ready to put on a new uniform. Cameron is here from Oregon. I just talked about how much I love Oregon. Hey Cam, you're on the JR Sport Brief Show. What's up?

Hi, long time listener, first time caller. I just wanted your thoughts on why Travis Hunter chose to be corner and not wide receiver. You mean at the NFL Combine? Yeah. Okay. Well, how about this Cam? If you wait 10 minutes, about 12 minutes, I'll give you an answer.

Is that okay? Yeah. And also, I wanted your thoughts. I don't know if you're familiar with Travis Bizana. Number one, he got Travis first overall MLB. But I was wondering your thoughts. Do you think he's going to start this year?

No, man. What school did he go to? Oregon State. And he's playing for what team? Cleveland Guardians. He was the number one draft pick in the MLB.

No, man. I haven't seen this guy pitch. When he starts making his way up the rung and he's getting closer to the majors, I hear about him. But I'm glad you told me. Thank you. All right. Thank you.

Thank you so much, Cameron, for calling from Oregon. Man, I can't keep up with every level. I mean, I watch the pros.

I watch college. But I mean, I can't sit around and watch that. How am I going to give you an honest opinion? I might as well give an honest opinion on, I don't know, every Japanese guy the Dodgers brings over.

It's impossible. The Sasaki? Is it Roki Sasaki? That's his name? Yes. I think you nailed it.

Yeah, you nailed it. I've never seen this guy pitch in my life. I can't give an I can't give an assessment on him, let alone a guy in college.

You can only look at the numbers when he gets closer to the bigs. I have an idea. I knew about schemes, though. I knew about that guy. Eight five five two one two forty two twenty seven. And he just he's in the bigs winning awards and he still looks miserable. Chris is here from Alabama. You're on the JR Sport Brief Show. What's up, Chris?

Well, let me talk to you, JR. How's it going, man? I got this may be a hot take button issue, but I got an opinion by Aaron Rodgers. It's not too favorable to the city NFL consensus.

And then Aaron Rodgers, I would much rather he retire. But but but if you want to keep playing, I would say you've worked your way back up into the fold to being a starter and not expect to automatically be a starter because recently. Yeah, because recently your your history and your work history ain't complacent all of what you've done in the past.

And you feel like you just coast about what you've done in the past. And it don't sit right with me. So let me ask you this.

Well, slow down. Let me ask you this, Chris. Aaron Rodgers threw twenty eight touchdowns, almost threw for 4000 yards and had 11 interceptions last year. Based on some of the quarterback play that we saw all across the league, are those not numbers of a starting quarterback? Not good enough for me because because you know, I'm not I'm not I'm not I'm not asking about you.

Given some of the other quarterback play throughout the course of the league, is that not better than other starting QBs? No, because no, because you still got people that's breaking that mold and then some. Oh, OK. All right. That being said, all right. That's not to mind you. Yeah. But someone who just walks in and expects seniority and and in the OTA, you decide, you know, take time off. You got to you got to you got to you got to earn your stride, man.

Otherwise, you shouldn't just walk in and take it. Well, I put it I put it this way, Chris. We get what you're saying.

Thank you for calling from Alabama. If Aaron Rodgers wants to play next year, I think there'll be a team or two or three that might be willing to give him that shot. If you want to take a dump on Aaron Rodgers for his attitude, his leadership style, style or how he responds, how he behaves in public. I think that's all good and dandy. If you want to take a look at his injury history, ripping up that Achilles and how he came back from that, what he looked like to begin last season, what he looked like to end last season.

I think that's all good and well. But to say that, I don't know, to say that he's not a starter, it's real simple to me. If I got to take a look at all 30, excuse me, all 32 teams and I have to look at their starting quarterback situation from last year, I would be dishonest to say that what he did and what he accomplished, it doesn't matter how far he slid on down the Aaron Rodgers talent scale. He's still better than some of these other guys that we've seen. I'd take him over Aiden O'Connell. OK, I would certainly take him over Gardner Minshew. I'll take him over Will Levis. Come on. We can't be, we can't be that damn foolish. All right.

That's not fair. It's the JR sport re-show on the Infinity Sports Network. 855-212-4227.

That's 855-212-4227. We're going to take a break. When we come back on the other side, shout outs to Cam for calling for Oregon. He asked me about Travis Hunter. Why is Travis Hunter going to be at the combine as a defensive back and not a wide receiver? And what does his future look like in the NFL? Who should draft Travis Hunter? We're going to talk about this Heisman Award winner on the other side of the break, and then we're going to be joined by Andrew Filippone. To talk all things Steelers is the JR sport re-show, the Infinity Sports Network.