Has she made up with Mike Tomlin?

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Minimum $10 per order. Additional terms apply. That's my sneaky, I think it could happen. And his name is neither Usher nor Taylor Swift. I'm not allowed to bet as an ESPN employee and I don't even know if there are odds on that. Wait, they're all doing commercials for ESPN Bet. I know. And I can't.

And you know what's even funnier? My husband works for DraftKings. Okay, but if we're being honest. I like honesty. I have placed one sports bet in my entire life and I went in with two other girls on a Vegas trip. And we put, I think I threw like 20 bucks in, in a pool for the Dolphins to win the Super Bowl. Because we were looking for like, oh, these are pretty good odds, like maybe they could win. I am not a math person. Right. And so, therefore, I have learned that sports betting is a lot of math. It is math.

Yes. And so I just prefer to not. If I can just not do math, I'm going to do that. And I would prefer my version of gambling is buying something that's like final sale when I'm online shopping. Perfect. That is how I gamble. That, that to me is the biggest risk I'm going to take. There is less math.

It calculates it for me at checkout what the discount is. And that's all I'm going to do. That's burned me, Brooke. That has burned me with the Christmas season. Listen, I mean, I have a pair of sunglasses that are sitting on my porch right now that are waiting for me that were final sale.

So I hope I like them. Look, it was it was a saleable sale. I couldn't pass it up 60 percent off.

What are you going to do? It's a risk. Totally, totally understand.

So absolutely get it. I'm also, even though we do it every day. Right. Every single day on this program, we have a segment where we place bets. Right. When when I have have actual money on the line, it does not increase my enjoyment of the game.

It actually takes away for my enjoyment of the game. Two times I've been to Vegas. I don't like the casino.

Right. I'm not a blackjack or a card player or roulette wheel spinner or slot machine person. So what I'll do is I'll go to the sports book.

I'll place, I don't know, 12, however, however many bets. And then I go and do other things. And then at the end of the day, I how did I do? Surprise. You got some money.

Yeah, exactly. I played craps. Went to Vegas for Steelers Raiders at the beginning of the season. It was my husband's birthday. He has been like very into watching videos of guys playing blackjack craps, you name it.

Scouting. Yes, he he he's been very like he gets very obsessed with things. And so gambling was a big obsession point for him for a while, which sounds really bad. But it was really just like watching YouTube videos and things like that. And he taught me how to play craps. There's still there's some math involved.

And so, yes, I just did what he told me to do. But here's the thing. When we're playing at our dining room table, there's nobody screaming at you to like not move your elbow or reach over the thing. I got yelled at so many times playing craps. So it combined the two things I hate getting in trouble in math. And so for those reasons, I'm for sure out. There's also a lot going on on a craps table like there's you have the dice, but there's like nine other people with stuff going on and there's a lot.

And then all of a sudden the croupier comes out and he takes everything, sweeps it all off like house one. And then you're just out 100 bucks. I didn't even know we were playing. So that's for all those reasons is also why I'm not in Vegas for Super Bowl week, because I can think of nothing that just the only thing I would be there for is the football. And the football is such a minor part of the Super Bowl week experience.

So I you know, I removed myself. Plus, Taylor's not singing. Yes. So exactly. We're all week long.

We're bumping with Taylor's room. I love it. I love it so much. Yeah, it's great. And again, I'm just sticking it to the bros.

It's what I'm doing, as you should, including my son, my older son who can't stand it. I'm like, what's wrong with you? What's wrong? Here's the thing. I there's a great piece on the ringer dot com from my friend Nora Princiotti. I started reading it. I've got to finish it.

But it's about the wagonsons. The Renaissance of the wags and how like the Taylor Swift defecation of the NFL is really the culmination of just a more prominent piece of women being represented in the NFL, specifically like the wives and girlfriends of the players. And I love it. I mean, shoot this morning, Brittany Mahomes was announced as being a rookie for the S.I. swimsuit edition coming out.

Yeah, really? Brittany Mahomes is in it. Also, Kristin Juszczak has been designing clothes and that has been gaining traction. She got she got the the NFL to allow her to use like the logos and colors on jackets.

So I think the jacket that Taylor's been wearing with the jacket with Travis Kelsey's, the Red Chiefs colors, that's good. They're going to be selling those. Yeah. Well, so they're auctioning off. I saw this morning she made a Super Bowl vest that has like the Super Bowl logo on it and that's being auctioned off. But like, I just think it is so cool the way that women are being represented in the game and not just as like arm candy. It's like here are these incredibly accomplished women who also have incredibly talented and accomplished partners that are playing on the field.

But hey, they've got their own thing going on and they're showing up to support their partners and their partners are supporting them right back. And I just think that has been the coolest piece of this NFL season. Two things. First, I want you on TV. So slide over a little bit towards me.

I'm just I just got in here and got so comfortable. I should really just put my feet up on the desk. You can do that. Really?

Actually, you could do that if you wanted right now. I'm also a stage manager. And the second is why wasn't Travis at the Grammys? Because he's got a schedule to keep. Look, he they had to fly to what they flew to Vegas that night. You think Andy Reid?

Yeah, I believe so. You think Andy Reid in the week of the biggest game of the season is saying, you know what, Travis? You can take your own flight to L.A. so that you can support your girlfriend and then you just pop on over to Vegas.

This isn't a preseason game. They could have sent a car. What if he got in a car accident? OK, there's so many variables.

There's so many variables. You're not going to mess up a good thing in the most important week of the season. Brooke Pryor from ESPN is joining us here. All right. I teased it. So have you and Mike Tomlin made up?

Sure. There's you know, he's never. It was a it was a perfectly good question, which I think we've talked about before anyway, because there was so much speculation about would he be, I guess, stepping down because I don't think the Steelers are going to fire. No.

So would would his tenure with Pittsburgh be ending, even though he's never had a losing season, which is remarkable? But I thought the question was legitimate. But he walked out.

I think he just had places to go. Right. Here's the thing. It it was the right time for the question, because as I've explained to people that I went to elementary school with that have not talked to me in 20 years that are like, hey, was that you? I think Facebook. It's a wild thing.

The DMS were really going off for the PMs, whatever they're called on Facebook. At that point in time, the only thing that matters is the future of the Pittsburgh Steelers immediately after a playoff loss. Right. It does not matter why Mason Rudolph threw a pick in the end zone. It doesn't matter why the run game didn't get going. They don't have anything to fix for the next game. There is no next game.

Right. The most important thing that's next is what's Mike Tomlin doing? That's what we've been wondering all season. And yes, he was going to talk to us at some point later that week. But it's important to understand what his frame of mind is and at least get that question out there, because I also think it's worth noting at no point during the season, did any of us on the Steelers beat ask him during a weekly press conference if he what he thought his future was going to be in Pittsburgh, because there's a time and a place for those questions and it's after the season is over. It was going to be asked, of course, in the weekly press conference coming or they said the season wrap up press conference. But in that moment, the only thing that I wanted to know and that the fans wanted to know and anybody wanted to know is what is Mike Tomlin going to do? And there had been speculation for weeks about it.

And so my theory with those things is like, let's nip it in the bud. Let's ask the person that's being speculated about and we'll then spend the next 24 or 48 hours just parsing through every single word, body language, all that stuff, which I think is why he walked out, because he didn't want to tip his hat one way or the other. He didn't want to go through the the the parsing of the language of the facial expression, all of that.

So we walked out, which then gave us a whole lot more stuff to talk about, which he then got back in the locker room the next day at the team meeting and said, I'm coming back. So he was going to address it quickly, regardless. But you've got to get out in front of that news cycle. You've got to to spin it forward.

And that's what spun it forward. I had no problem. First of all, your editorial judgment from my perspective is great. So I had no problem at all with the question.

I'm glad you asked it. I'm sad that he walked out. Right. I mean, that that was a rare, you know, not a cool moment for my time. I've been covering this team. This was my fifth season.

He has been asked any number of absurd questions and he has never walked out before. So that that was a new one. When that happens in the moment, my first thought was, all right, wow, this is great.

Like I've got a lot of material to do a hit with. And then it kind of sunk in. Like there's the adrenaline going and then it kind of sinks in like, oh, wow, that that maybe was not that good. And we've just unleashed an insane news cycle. And I knew as soon as those Facebook messages from the elementary school people started popping in that it was it was going to be a bigger deal than I initially thought. It was in the moment where I thought, well, you know, maybe him walking off is a thousand words and that's better. And it was good and bad.

It made that week much crazier than I thought it was going to be. Well, it is. You got on TV a lot. There is that. And, you know, no press is bad press. Right. Isn't that what they say? Yes. All publicity is good publicity. Brooke Pryor from ESPN.

All right. Before we get to the game, did what surprised you from the coaching carousel? You know, I was thinking about this on the drive over here. I will tell you what I am not surprised by that I think everybody else is surprised by. And that's Bill Belichick not having a job.

I am not surprised that he did not land anywhere. And that's because I think that he has a similar issue to the one that Mike Tomlin had at points in the season. And I say that because Art Rooney in his end of season wrap up told us that he thinks Mike Tomlin is still getting through to the players and the players respect him. And that's why he's the head coach. But when I look at some of the fractures that were happening in that locker room and that I hear players like Najee Harris say, gosh, something has to change with the discipline and the structure because guys are just they're not doing what they're supposed to be doing. I look at that and I think that there's a link between Mike Tomlin and Bill Belichick in that.

And that's that the next generation of players respond differently. They don't care about the standard or the aura of this, you know, czar like head coach, the the the lore of Bill Belichick and Mike Tomlin. Like Mike Tomlin is still, I think, more effective than Bill Belichick because Bill Belichick, from all that I know about him, has never been the Mike Tomlin like love on you, tear you down, build you back up. Like he's he's not as personable as Mike Tomlin. I think that Mike Tomlin can adjust more.

And I think that he has more there that he can build on to touch those guys. But Bill Belichick, I think it's just it. The message isn't the same. It doesn't have the same impact on this next generation of guys. These are the guys that have been told since they were in like peewee football that they are the greatest thing ever. And they have been given everything. And then you get to the NFL and you're it's very much the the the small fish in a big pond situation. And they don't respond to that.

Well, like you've got to have more of the the motivator guys, the guys that are more in touch with the younger generation. And it doesn't mean that Bill Belichick is not a good coach. It doesn't mean that everything he's done is invalidated. Like he's absolutely one of the best of all time, if not the best coach of all time. But the game is changing. The players playing the game are changing. The locker room dynamics are changing. And that kind of coach that's removed, that relies on the well, I'm on the Mount Rushmore of coaches. Of course, you should listen to what I'm saying.

Of course, I know what I'm doing. That doesn't have that that that that gravitas doesn't carry as much weight with the next generation. That's why I think it didn't fit anywhere. I think also the the way that the sport is going with a heavy emphasis on data and things like that. Bill wants to be in charge of everything. So anywhere Bill went, he was going to have they were either going to have to clean house of some of some personnel. But I actually think that Dallas would have been a good fit because there's the head coach and then there's the owner. There are fewer things to clean out in Dallas, but I still look at that culture fit and I think he would like it. But that's the only place where I think the dynamic could work because Bill, they've got a good enough team.

Yeah. Oh, they absolutely have the talent on the team. By the way, I want Rex Ryan to get the defensive coordinator job there.

I want that. I mean, it would be it would be a show. It would be a reality show.

I don't think that they're quality. I don't think that they would fit the hard knocks criteria, but man, I would love that. Just Jerry likes being on TV. They love all the publicity. Give me just a Rex Ryan GoPro so that I can see all of his fights with Mike McCarthy.

That's all I want. Back in the day when when I was a Jets fan, I liked Rex Ryan as the head coach. I was the guy that thought he was a good head coach. He went to the NFC championship game his first two years there with Mark Sanchez at quarterback. And that that's a feat. Yeah, that would mean tremendously. Maybe the best coaching job in Jets history, including we view banks winning the Super Bowl.

All right. Patrick Mahomes and Andy Reid. This is in many ways Brady and Belichick with a Hawaiian shirt.

Yeah, the Hawaiian shirt cheeseburger. I mean, is can you close your eyes and see him losing because of how good Mahomes is? No, I was thinking about this, too. Like we had to submit our picks on ESPN for our who we thought was going to win the Super Bowl and the MVP. And I went chiefs Mahomes because you're a fool to bet against Patrick Mahomes. Like, I know that Lamar was the player a couple of weeks ago that threw and caught his own pass. Right. But Patrick Mahomes could probably do something like that, too, if it meant that that's what he had to do to win the Super Bowl. Like he just he has another level and tier that nobody else has, and he finds ways to motivate himself to keep that chip on his shoulder in a situation where it's like, man, you have everything going for you.

How in the world do you feel slighted? But like the chiefs are doing that. I mean, I believe they're underdogs. They were at one point, you know, point point and a half. Exactly.

That's all they need to to fire themselves up. I mean, I felt kind of silly before the AFC Championship game when Justin Tucker was messing around and Mahomes and Kelsey were, you know, I think Travis Kelsey picked up the helmet and threw it in the tee and threw. And I thought, oh, well, now Justin Tucker is going to hit a 75 yard game winning field goal. I thought that would happen.

And then I thought, you fool, that is not what's going to happen. This is this is the moment that Patrick Mahomes is going to take us. That's disrespectful. And he's going to use that and just become this like supervillain and beat the Ravens in Baltimore. And that's exactly what happened. Him and Travis Kelsey just absolutely went off. And so I think that no, no matter what the matchup says on paper, Patrick Mahomes is going to find a way to win this game. Although I will say I was present for the Super Bowl that Patrick Mahomes lost. I was covering that down in Tampa and that felt so unfathomable. But it was the way that that defense played that just absolutely gave him no time to throw.

Right. If the 49ers defense can do that, if Nick Bosa has a good game and just absolutely wrecks that offensive line, they the the Chiefs. The line gets penalties called on them, holding calls, false starts, you name it. I think the 49ers make it close. But that to me, that felt like an aberration that that that loss that they had to Tampa in the Super Bowl. And I feel like playoff Mahomes is just so unless he's just happens to have an off day, you can't beat him. Here's the thing about when I look at this game, Mahomes is the best player on the field. Either Travis Kelsey or Christian McCaffrey is the next best player. But in terms of offensive players, I'm talking about here, San Francisco might have the next four.

Right. Whether it's Debo, Samuel, given health, George Kittle, Brandon, I mean, not the next four, but the next three. Because then you get to Isaiah Pacheco. We still don't know if Kansas City has a reliable wide receiver.

They haven't necessarily needed it in the playoffs because Pacheco has been great. And by the way, that Chiefs loss in the Super Bowl, they had to like offensive tackles, one of which used to play for the Panthers. Mike Remmers was Remmers was one of the starting offensive tackles.

They were hurt, really hurt in the offensive line. But I mean, Mahomes just kind of he controls the game more than any other quarterback in the sport. To me, when I put it in, I was just thinking about this, like in its awards season. So in Oscars terms, the Chiefs have the best actor in Patrick Mahomes. They have the best director in Andy Reid and they're going to win best picture. But the forty niners have the best ensemble cast and the best supporting actors.

But it's not going to be enough to push them over the edge. It's going to be this feels like it's going to be like the moonlight and and la la land situation where it's going to be neck and neck. Maybe maybe moonlight in the ensemble comes out and wins. But the Chiefs feel like they do kind of feel like la la land that they should win.

They have all of all of the best of the best. I don't know enough about like movies, but you just described the forty niners as like Ocean's Eleven. I'm here for Ocean's Eleven. I don't know if they're as funny as as Ocean's Eleven, but I'm I'm a big fan of. I like that. I like that a lot. But I mean, is it Ocean's is it does it take place in Vegas? Oh, yeah.

So I see that works. All three. I have the second one. Second one takes place in Europe. I have only seen the one with all women, which was in New York at the Met Gala. I know I need to go back and watch all the other ones. Was it Ocean's Eight? Yeah, that's that's the one I've seen.

They tried. I liked it because I couldn't compare it to the other ones. There you go. Oh, no. I liked all three.

If it's on at like two o'clock in the morning, that's your go to keeping me up better than an infomercial. Oh, yes. Absolutely. So your pick is the Chiefs. I can't believe we're out of time. Yeah, I'm going the Chiefs because because my my brain knows better. My heart wants to see a new storyline.

My heart wants to see Brock Purdy. But I I know better. My wife's forty niners fan. She's not happy. She she she's going to be a tough day for her.

She fears the worst. I do, too. But I've been wrong a lot. Thank you very much for coming in.

Brooke Friar from ESPN covers the Steelers. We will talk to you again soon. Hopefully welcome. One hundred percent. Well, as long as you don't walk out on me. Okay. I would not. I would never do that. I would never do that. Never, ever, Brooke. I'll answer the questions.