What The Football: Amy is in Vegas and Chris Fowler

Hi everybody, welcome to this Super Bowl edition of What the Football.

Suzy Schuster in LA, Amy Trask in Las Vegas. As always, we are brought to you by GameTime. This is the fast and easy way to buy tickets for events near you right now. All of the users get $100 off when they buy a big game ticket with the code Vegas100.

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Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. Amy, great to see you. It feels strange to be here in the studio without you. I miss you. Oh, thanks, honey.

I miss you too. But let's get right to it because let's face it. Everyone's asking me who's going to win the game. And I always say the same thing.

I never prognosticate. I'm a reporter by nature. I like to ask questions. I like to interview and I like to look at storylines. So I never say who I think is going to win. Instead, I like to talk about the storylines that I think are most interesting.

I'll be curious to hear yours as well. But the one that's sticking out to me is everyone is spending the week talking about Patrick Mahomes and Tom Brady and comparing the two quarterbacks who, by the way, in so many ways couldn't be different except for the potentiality of rings being accumulated, Amy. And to me, the story might be instead comparing Tom Brady to Brock Purdy. And you've been vocal about your thoughts on Brock Purdy as he's progressed over the season.

You had a great offer for ice cream this week in Vegas, and I'm sure that he will avail himself if he can for your offer to meet him with that said ice cream. But I just think about it. I think about these two quarterbacks who had such similar approaches and similar ways to become who they are right now. Obviously, Tom Brady, 199th in the draft, in the 2000 draft, and of course, six quarterbacks who went before him.

And as a Patriots fan, anybody who knows me knows that I'm a Patriots fan. Like every woman who ever grew up in New England, we thought Drew Bledsoe was the greatest. And when he got hurt and Tom Brady ascended, no one knew what to expect of Tom Brady. He was a veteran quarterback for Michigan. And he came in because of injuries and won the Super Bowl in his second full season in the NFL. Here's Brock Purdy, who came the same way, of course, behind two quarterbacks. And he was Mr.

Irrelevant. He wasn't drafted 199th. He was the dead last pick. And I thought about the irony of Brock Purdy's first start coming against Tom Brady in San Francisco, only the second time that Tom Brady had gone and played in San Francisco where he is from.

And I just thought about how ironic it is that we're having these conversations now. If you look back at that game on December 11th, 2002, Brady had all these fans in the audience and he in the crowd. And it started the day with Brock Purdy's dad, Sean, crying as he watched his kid take the field and ended the day with a win and a 35 to 7 win over Brady's box. And here we are now wondering if Brock Purdy can win the Super Bowl in his second full season as an NFL professional. And I'm wondering why there's such a discrepancy in how we look at Purdy. And Amy, I talked to Kurt Warner last night. I said to him, what do you think about these comparisons?

And I'll be curious to get your thoughts in a second. With how you came, how you were undrafted, people weren't assailing Kurt and wondering if he was good enough when he made his way to the Super Bowl, and of course, with the greatest show on turf. And we talked about something I think is really interesting, which is that number one, he does believe that oftentimes people don't realize how difficult the San Francisco system is to plan. And that because there are so many great tools that Brock Purdy has and so many weapons, people don't understand the degree of difficulty it takes to be Brock Purdy in that system and how accurate he is. And he said that the one thing that people don't understand is anticipation and how oftentimes, because it's something that you can't measure, it's that immeasurable thing, people don't understand how valuable he is.

And I thought that was really interesting. He also said something that I thought was fascinating, which was the idea that he may not pass the eye test the way the other quarterbacks do. And he may not be doing things that you've never seen before.

Like when Kurt came out, he was doing things that had never happened before. He was throwing the way a quarterback hadn't happened before. And obviously the Niners are a throw first.

Obviously they have McCaffrey, but they throw a lot. But what is it about him that makes people uncomfortable? Is it because he came in dead last? And do people just not like people who come in dead last? What does it say about them?

And I'm curious your thoughts on this. I thought it was just a really interesting take. Is it that people are uncomfortable with Brock Purdy because he was picked last? Are they more comfortable with Kurt Warner because he wasn't picked at all?

What do you think? Well, I can't speak for everyone, of course, but I will tell you, I am never, ever, ever uncomfortable with someone who has picked last. I was always picked last. I am never uncomfortable with someone who's not picked at all.

There were many times I've not been picked for something. And look, we know I shared my thoughts about Purdy on this podcast. I don't regret sharing my opinion. I don't think any of us should ever regret sharing an opinion. I do regret that I shared it in a flippant manner in what I think is a rude manner. I shared it in a manner that wasn't true to myself. And I apologize for that.

But we shouldn't be loath to share our opinions. And the reason I lead into answering your question that way, Susie, is another opinion I have shared throughout my years, both in the league and since being in the league, is the draft is not a science. There's no Enigma code.

There's no Rosetta Stone. I have said that umpteen times. There are a lot of men in the Pro Football Hall of Fame who went undrafted. Tom Brady, as you noted, went one hundred and ninety ninth. Brock Purdy was the last man drafted. Kurt Warner wasn't drafted at all.

And you know what I love? I love when players who weren't drafted, who were drafted one hundred and ninety ninth, who were drafted last, prove everyone to be wrong. So I don't know of anyone who doesn't root for those who are drafted last or not drafted at all.

I do root for them. I always have. And by the way, sharing my opinion, again, regretting the way I shared it, not that I shared it, doesn't mean I don't want to see him succeed. I noted after both of his playoff games, he does have, and I'll use French in this instance, a je ne sais quoi.

There is ice in his veins and that is so important. And he shakes things off. And no, I'm not simply looking to paraphrase Taylor Swift, but he does shake things off and he does what you want quarterbacks to do. He finds a way to win. So I don't root against someone who's been drafted last or not drafted at all.

I root for them. Can't speak for others, though. It's so interesting with him because he does have a talent that you don't see very often. And again, I go back to that anticipation because without that anticipation, he can't make those throws with the accuracy and touch that he has been doing. But we saw in game one against the Packers that he, the last drive that brought the Niners back into play, he only made one throw, as Kurt pointed out to me last night, that wasn't a check down. So he wasn't showing us how exceptional he was. It was in game two that he really used his legs and was able to manipulate the game into the win that as effectively as he did.

And maybe that's what it is. Maybe it's just that he's not as consistent as some of these other guys. You can't pretend to go into this game and not think that Patrick Mahomes is the superior quarterback. He is who he is, right?

We see it week in and week out. And you, oh, I'm sorry. No, go ahead. Well, I was just going to say, you noted this earlier, Susie, you wisely noted the comparison between Patrick and Tom Brady is a whole lot of rings. And that's the goal, rings.

And we're going to see now who gets it done. And remember, you know, the game is not simply about a quarterback. It's about defense. It's about other aspects. It is a team game.

We were talking about it earlier. You know, no matter what happens at the end of the game, if the Niners win, will people say it was because of Brock Purdy or will they say it's because of the system? Will they say it was because of Brock Purdy's play or will they say it was because of Debo? It was because of the Niners defense. It was because of McCaffrey.

And I wonder how much of that is just not appreciating somebody blossoming the way that we're seeing him come. I just know from living in New England, nobody saw Tom Brady coming, you know? And I just wonder, I'm excited for the game. Like I said, I never say who I think is going to win because honestly, I'm not an expert. I'm a reporter.

I love to observe and I love to ask questions, but I'm not an expert. I have no idea who's going to win. All I know is none of us have any idea who's going to win, but I like to root for storylines.

And so for that reason, I'm finding myself a little bit rooting for the Niners just because I love to see him win this game. And I'd love to see a happy ending to this one. You know, I just think that, and I mean that saying, don't go to the comments and say, I said happy ending.

Jesus Christ, get your head out of the toilet people. You know, the only other thing I'll add, Susie, for the kids that are listening to this podcast, because I have received a lot of feedback that there are young people who listen to this. If someone tells you, you can't do something, prove them wrong.

If you are the equivalent of drafted last or the equivalent of not drafted at all, prove them wrong. On the Bigger Pockets Real Estate Podcast, cohost David Green and Rob Abasolo interview real estate investors and entrepreneurs about successes, failures, and hard earned lessons. Joined by author Dave Meyer, who wrote a book. I did write a book. It seems like you're coming out with a book every four minutes. You're one to talk. You've released two books this year.

I've done half as many as you. It is more about strategy than it is about just finding whatever the new buzzword happens to be. Bigger Pockets Real Estate Podcast on YouTube or wherever you listen. America starts the day with America in the Morning. Hi, I'm John Trout, your host for the latest news, politics, entertainment, business, and weather.

Our staff of correspondents provide a fast paced look at the world with specialized reports from where news happens in New York. I'm Sue Allard. I'm Charles. I'm Kevin Carr. I'm Archie Zaraleta. Concise, accurate, and fresh each day. America in the Morning, the podcast available wherever you listen. Yeah, it was fun because I got to have some time.

I never get time to prep. The way we do these on Tuesdays, half the time I'm running around between working kids and Sundays, Rich is in football fog all day and doing that four hour show. So I got time to sit here in the rainstorm in Southern California while I farm my kids out to Star Wars and just sit there reading, deep reading about Sean Purdy, about his experience with baseball, his dad. And I got to read about him playing with Troy Percival, the Angels closer because I covered the Angels for three years and I didn't know all these kind of really fabulous, interesting things about his relationship with his dad that Brock Purdy wears 13 for Marino because his dad is a huge Marino fan.

Ironically, he beat the Dolphins the week before he beat Tom Brady back a couple of years ago. And I just thought it was so funny to think about the fact that here's a kid whose father was the same way. He was a baseball player, a minor league player who never really made it, but he had that same steadfast ability to make things happen.

He just couldn't get to the next level. And here's his kid taking Super Bowl stage for the very first time in his second full year as an NFL player coming off of an injury. And there's just so much talk about the Niner's defense and about Christian McCaffrey and Debo.

And then I just thought I would take this opportunity today just to share how much fun it was to sit there and read about him yesterday. And look, I love watching the Chiefs play. And I say that as an AFC person, but yeah, I kind of have fun. I'm looking forward to this game on Sunday for this storyline in particular. Aime, you've got great experience with what it means to take a team to a Super Bowl from the business perspective.

And one of the many reasons why I love doing this with you is that you're the only woman I know that could actually share this kind of experience. What is it like bringing a team to a Super Bowl? Well, we had a challenge that no longer exists in the league and I hope never again exists in the league. Our year in the Super Bowl was the year that they did not give teams a week off between the championship game and the Super Bowl. That has never happened again.

And for love of ice cream, don't do that again, league. We finished the game. We won the championship and it was boom. Everybody was going, you know, celebrating and going out to dinner and going out to drinks.

We all went straight back to the office, not a complaint, just sort of letting you know the rapidity with which we had to move. Susie, I don't want to go into too many nuts and bolts or any more than you want, but I will tell you teams have so much more to do than is apparent to the fan. And that's the way it should be. And it shouldn't be apparent to the players and the coaches how much the organization has to do. Normally for a road game, you're transporting your football operations, your players, your coaches, your trainers, et cetera. For the Super Bowl, you are transporting and making arrangements for hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of additional people, families, both immediate and extended sponsors, advertisers, business partners, limited partners, equity owners. There's a lot of work and planning.

And you know what? Those are the nights you want to get no sleep. Those are the nights you want to be working like a crazy person, because that's why every team does this. This is the ultimate goal, playing in and winning a Super Bowl. So talk to me about your experience in 2002, because you definitely had a unique approach. So will you share that story?

I really love you to do so. We had a challenge, as I said, no two weeks off. And then we were facing our former coach who knew all of our signals. So no time to really change the signals. That was the football challenge.

They knew everything we were going to do. But we had another challenge and it's very, very sad. Yes, it absolutely impacted us on the field, but it also impacted a human life. Barrett Robbins was missing from our facility in San Diego for a number of days and ultimately didn't play in the game. And I'll back up for one second and tell you that the morning of the game, I went out for a run. And when I got back to the parking lot of the hotel, and this was early, early, early, this was, you know, 5am, you know, before 6am, as I was getting back to the hotel, I saw Barrett getting out of a cab. And he was absolutely fine.

He was, you know, in a state where he could have played in the game. And the reason we had a lovely conversation, he went to his room, I was not aware he had been missing that had not been shared with me. So when I had this conversation with Barrett, I didn't know the backdrop. I didn't know that there had been issues. And I had a conversation with him, which suggested that he was fine and ready to go.

Get up to my room. Few minutes later, Al calls me and says, the coach and the gentleman who was overseeing our football ops had decided they didn't want Barrett to play. They didn't think he could play. And I said to Al, I just saw Barrett. I just saw him 10 minutes ago in the lobby.

He can play. What are you talking about? And Al said, he listened to me. I explained my conversation with Barrett. Boy, Susie, this is bringing back memories.

I haven't shared all this with anyone to this extent ever. And I said to Al, no, he can play. I just had a conversation with him. And he said, kid, the coach, and the guy who is overseeing our football, and I'll tell you, you know, Bill Callahan and Bruce Allen decided they didn't want Barrett to play. And I said, he can play. And Al said, you know, he was leaving it up to Bruce and to Bill. I got off the phone, and I looked at my husband, and I said, we just lost this game. Why wouldn't they let him play?

Well, let me just finish why I said if I could. The reason I said we just lost this game is up until Super Bowl, we had started the same five offensive linemen in every single game that season, regular season in playoffs. And our offensive line was a well-oiled machine. And I knew that when we sat Barrett that I thought we'd lose the game. You know, their view, and I haven't discussed this at length with Bill or Bruce since then, was that he had gone missing. And they didn't think that was the right thing.

And of course, it's not right for someone to go missing. But Barrett had medical issues, which I think should have been taken into account. And they didn't believe he should be able to play with the team. And the point I made to Al, and I make this point a lot, when you sit someone because you're disciplining them, or don't believe they should play because of some sort of behavior, you're not just disciplining that player, you're harming the whole team. So yeah, maybe you wanted to sit Barrett because you didn't think Barrett should play because he had let his team down. And again, there were medical issues associated with it. But irrespective, when they chose to sit Barrett, they harmed the whole team. I can't imagine what that was like. And then how you entered the team.

Did the team want him to play? I can't answer that for you, Suzy, because I was not involved in those meetings. As I said, I wasn't even made aware that Barrett had gone missing. Hell, I'd have gotten in a car like Nancy Drew, or Harriet's a spy, and I'd have gone looking for Barrett, had I known. But the first I learned that he had been missing was when Al called my room and said, they decided they don't want him to play because he had been missing.

And I said, what are you talking about? I just saw him. He's fine.

He can play. And again, you know, many, many, many people were angry at Barrett. And of course, he should not have left the team. But there were very sad medical issues. And the thing that bothered me the most is by sitting by sitting him by sending him home. That didn't just punish Barrett. That punished everyone in the organization. Yeah, no kidding. No kidding. We all know how that game ended up.

Amy, just before we lose you in a minute. I was just curious of what you think it's like from your perspective for the Chiefs. And for the Niners this week as they try to keep their team under wraps, especially in Vegas, right? You know, the good news for them is they're nowhere near the strip. They're nowhere near anything.

They're at a distance. But keeping your team, you know, under wraps to use your expression, that's the goal of both organizations. I used to say on road trips to our team, whether it was for a regular season or playoffs, I'm like, don't you guys just all want to stay in and like we could play jigsaw puzzles, or we could play Scrabble and the players would look at me, they're like, aim, we're okay, we're not going to get in trouble. But no, we're not going to do jigsaw puzzles or play Scrabble with you. But the goal of every team is to keep those players in the room playing jigsaw, doing jigsaw puzzles or playing Scrabble.

And I'm using that facetiously, but yeah, you don't want your players out and about. Yeah. Insane, insane. Do me a favor here. I'm going to take Chris Fowler. He's coming next on what the football I'm going to take this interview because obviously you are in Vegas, but stay safe this week, play a lot of Scrabble. Don't do anything I wouldn't do. I'll think about, I will never do anything you wouldn't do, Suzy. I'm not sure I would do some of the things you would do. You're a lot braver than I am. Oh, stop it.

You're insane. Have a terrific interview and thanks for looping me in from Vegas. Always, always have fun on your pregame show and we will talk to you from studio from right next to me on my left-hand side next Tuesday.

Can't wait. All right. Bye, aim.

Bye. Before we get to Chris Fowler, I'm going to tell you about game time because as I tell you guys, every single week, I'm the one who buys all the tickets. So I'm constantly trying to buy tickets to concerts and performances, what have you, but game time makes it so easy. Right now, all the users get $100 off when they buy the big game ticket with the code Vegas 100. Take the guesswork out of buying tickets with the game time. Right now, all game time users use $100 off a big game ticket with the code Vegas 100.

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Last minute tickets, lowest price guaranteed. Well, guys, I was lucky. I called my friend, Chris Fowler and said, can you do me a favor?

Because you've got nothing else to do in all your spare time, Chris, but to come on the What the Football podcast. But as usual, you did not let me down. And I'm so, so happy that you took the time to be with us this week.

Thanks again. I have nothing better to do, I promise you. I have other things to do, but nothing better than this, Susan. So happy to be here.

Hardly. It's called time with your wife, Jennifer, who I love obsessively. But that being said, Chris, I'm so excited for you with this being your first Super Bowl that you're calling on ESPN. And I'm just curious, and I know who you're going to want to say, okay, yes, it is the Super Bowl that you're calling for New Zealand, right? Correct?

And for Australia. And also, don't forget the cruise ship, people. If you're on a cruise ship somewhere, you all, apparently, I'm told, you also get our feed. So we're speaking to the Pacific Princess and the Disney Cruise Line and the, I don't know what other cruise companies are, because I don't take cruises, but I'm sure they'll have a good time and they'll carve out three hours for us on Sunday. I can't even imagine you on a cruise of all people.

I know you would take out, you'd avail yourself of the spectacular gym, maybe not the disgusting buffets. I don't think I'm going to get any endorsements from cruise lines after this one, but that's like, okay, between you and me, my biggest fear is being stuck on a cruise, but that's a whole different conversation for maybe a different podcast. Well, you're just ruining your own endorsement. You're just ruining your own endorsement. I've said nothing about it since Disney owns cruise ships. I said nothing.

That's it. Well, you're smarter than I am. I'm a free agent, man. I can kind of blow my bridges wherever. I mean, I've done a good job of that myself. But anyway, Chris, what's it like thinking about this? I mean, you love sports more than almost anybody I know, but it's still the Super Bowl. You've called the biggest stages in the world between tennis and college football, but this is that much bigger.

So how are you approaching it? Like it's going to be fun. I mean, it's one of those, but things, you know, it's, it's New Zealand, Australia cruise ships, but it's the Super Bowl, but it's not the Super Bowl is seen by 110 million people here. So it's just a different broadcast. It's, it's, I don't feel the least bit pressure, um, working with, with, you know, Dan Orlovsky at Louis Riddick that we've done six NFL games. So we're comfortable with that. Um, the preparation is not going to be that difficult and I'm going to have a nice time in Vegas and I'll be ready for the game on Sunday, but it's so, so different as you know, from doing this event where you feel a different way to responsibility. I mean, look, the, the audience will be really, really excited when the chiefs get a third down stop and the Niners have to punt because Mitch Wysznowski will run out there and he's an Aussie, as you know, and they love their punters.

So they root for scoreless tie with 12 punts. That's the, that's, I'm kidding about that, but you know, so we know who the audience is. I watched a lot of Super Bowls in Australia because it always was taking place on the Monday morning after the Aussie open.

So for years I'd either watch in the airport lounge or if I could get to Sydney in time, I'd watch at this bar in Sydney that I like to go to. And, um, so I know who I'm talking to when I'm doing this broadcast. So it's kind of fun from that respect. Yeah.

That's what I was thinking. You spend so much time there. You know, the, you know, the personalities, you know, the senses of humor, you know, the fact that these people kick every sort of ball they can possibly kick by young ages because they love that aspect of the game. So maybe you're perfectly tailored for that, but it's gotta be so different when you're calling this game for a specific group of people other than calling these other events that you call on the biggest stages. How much, how much more does levity come into this?

Because you don't have the same pressure to be on that big of a stage, even though it is the biggest stage. I mean, there might be some levity. I don't consider myself professionally funny. So I try to stay away from attempts at outright jokes, but I think we'll have fun with it. I think we're told though, that we don't want to talk down to, we don't want to act like it's a joke because for years people outside the States got broadcast of the Superbowl when they weren't getting the authentic feed, they would have Ozzie sit there and do it. And it was a joke.

And it was not respectful to what the Superbowl stood for. So now we're going to portray this from what it is, and we're going to talk about all the plot lines the same way as talking to the US audience, but we'll be a little bit less technical. And it's interesting because Lewis Riddick and Dan Orlovsky are both, and I say this to great affection, serious football nerds. I mean, they know inside out the X's and O's.

They love to break things down and it'll be interesting to see how they adapt to describing the coverages or the blocking schemes or some of the more technical aspects of the game that our audience might not be that dialed into. Taylor Swift translates to everywhere. So she will come up, I promise you. Well, you know, she has ruined football for everybody in the world. So I mean, she just, you know, I, I just don't want to see her for all of the six seconds that she's going to be out in that 20 minutes that you actually see football.

Might be more than six seconds. I'd take the over on that, but ruined football. I mean, the NFL has got to be like secretly thrilled because they want the chiefs in. So they, everything was fixed to get the chiefs in. So Taylor would be there.

That's the tinfoil hat theory that goes around. Of course, when, when this kind of thing is discussed, but no, no, come on. Are you kidding me? She brings people into the tent, which is already massive as you know, but now there's others who wouldn't otherwise watch the game. I love every second of it. I think it is the greatest. I am here for every bit of it being a Swiftie that I've been to. I'm not going to lie. I don't want to show off to you, Chris, but I've seen her twice. I'm just saying, you know, you were a repeat customer.

That's good. I'm a repeat customer. I had to go twice.

And by the way, I'd go again tomorrow. Is this the first time you've seen these guys in Brock Purdy and in, in Patrick Mahomes? We have not had these two teams. We, we did not necessarily get the elite teams in our package of games. We had a couple, a couple of nice games, but we, we didn't see these two teams, but, but I, you know, you cover, it's weird because Purdy and Mahomes, and I don't know where Amy is. I thought we maybe can break down the quarterback match up here, but we, we say it with affection. No, I think that, you know, look, the quarterbacks are the most important players in the field, the Australians and the Kiwis understand that there'll be plenty of talk about these two guys.

And then there's surrounding casts. They're not guys that I covered in college because Iowa State and Texas Tech at the time Patrick was there were not very good. So it's not like I can go back and have a file of games is over like two or Lamar Jackson or a lot of these guys that I've got covered a lot in college. I didn't see one game of Brock Purdy live or Mahomes live, but that doesn't mean I'm not familiar with what's going on out there. No, no, but you know, it's so funny is that, you know, you think about it, you are known as being the voice of college football and here are these two guys that came up and they would play, like you said, on teams that you wouldn't necessarily see all the time. Do you recall anything from their college careers that you think is most interesting as you look into calling this game on Sunday? Oh, look, I mean, people, we knew Brock Purdy, what he could do. I always say it was good.

They just were not primetime ABC good. College game day didn't go there, but, you know, we knew he could play. It still surprises me the level he's achieved, the place he landed.

We know the cast is great. Coaching staff is well suited, but he's also elevated. And I think, you know, very few would see that coming. Patrick was just an unorthodox quarterback, you know, excuse me, very productive in the system, like all the Texas Tech quarterbacks, but who could foresee this? I mean, both guys have taken their opportunities and elevated their games immensely, especially Mahomes, since getting in the league. How have you seen him change since he came into the league?

I don't know that he's changed a lot. I think his decision-making, like anybody that makes mistakes, built around the bravado of playing the position, he learns, okay, let's throw fewer interceptions. Let's take a little bit less risk.

Let's protect ourselves better. But I think Patrick came in and you don't want to coach all of that out of him, right? You want him to have that creativity, that swagger, let his instincts run out there. And I have seen him play in person plenty of times from the stands and stuff.

And, you know, he's the kind of guy that you'd buy a ticket to see. And that's why the Chiefs have built their massive fan base. They're not just folks that have any connection to Kansas City. They just want to watch him play.

And he plays with an instinct and freedom that's just fun. And I think it's this group of quarterbacks. He's one of them. Allen's another one. Lamar Jackson, another one. Guys who play with that unique brand of freedom and expression.

I think they put their own style into it. And that's what's allowed the league to continue to really thrive and prosper in the post-Payton, post-Brady, you know, Aaron Rogers hanging on, of course. But this whole new group of quarterbacks, Joe Burrows in that mix, you know, Herbert certainly is capable of being in that mix.

And I think Harbaugh will be great for him. So you watch the game because they might do something special. You know, Patrick might do something really special. Purdy is not the kind of quarterback necessarily that's going to do things in that kind of showy way. But, you know, that's what makes an interesting matchup.

There's such different styles. So you just mentioned that about Brock Purdy. And we talked about this earlier in the podcast about the amount of doubters who are out there when it comes to Brock Purdy. What's your take on people's reaction to him? And why do you think people choose to still doubt him as much as they do heading into the Super Bowl, like the guys in the Super Bowl? People doubt everybody. There's people who are convinced Lamar Jackson is not a good quarterback. You know, I just think that's the nature of the things right now.

You turn on any social media platform, look at the comments section, and there's people who will trash anybody. Look, I think that the arguments that he is the product of a great offensive system, great play calling, great defense, great supporting cast, there's a lot of validity to that. But, you know, even though the quarterback is the most important position, it's the ultimate team game, right?

So, you know, of course it helps to have those things in place. If you put other quarterbacks with the Niners, would they succeed? Who knows? That's a barstool argument.

I mean, we don't know, but he, and here's the thing. I don't believe that the only barometer to judge a quarterback is wins and losses. I think that's really simple.

I understand. Well, he's a great quarterback because this is his playoff record. He's a great quarterback simply because his QB rating in the postseason is 1-11. You know, that's somewhat skewed.

You can pick that apart if you want to. The bottom line is he's played well enough for his team to win. He's done his job, what is asked of him, and that's really commendable. But, you know, people tend to judge quarterbacks on raw talent, you know, the eye-popping measurables. And he's not going to be in that department. Mahomes, Lamar Jackson, Josh Allen, et cetera. Yeah. I mean, he just isn't the same quarterback. He's more of a traditional quarterback. He's really smart. He's really accurate. I mean, he has a lot of things that are really important in playing the position.

Yeah. That's what Kurt Warner was saying as well. He says that he thinks that he's a quarterback who anticipates better than almost any quarterback out there. And that's why he has that accuracy and the touch, even though sometimes what he's being asked to do is just the degree of difficulty is so extreme that people say, oh, he didn't make the catch or he didn't make the throw.

It wasn't accurate enough, but it's not an easy system in which to play. No, I don't think so either. That's why, I mean, he's got the mental capacity too.

I think too, look, I don't know if Amy has made this argument or not. I mean, when you have this kind of a season, it's just a fact. It's not slagging him, but, but luck plays a role in that.

Things coming together and more has to come together for a football team than probably any other sport. And whether the opponent drops a couple of interceptions that they should have made, whether or not a team makes a field goal or misses a field, I mean, so many things go into a win and a loss that to say a quarterback is great because when he started his team's won this many to me is a little too simplistic, but listen, he's been a little lucky. He's been really clutched. He's sneaky athletic. As you know, he scrambles strategically. He's not going to be one of the great scrambling quarterbacks at the other three guys I've talked about, but he can get you eight yards in a first down when you need it. And he's done that in the playoffs at big moments. And he's been smart and tactical and fearless when necessary when doing that. So I gave him a lot of credit. I mean, let's see, let's see how he does in the biggest stage in American sports.

And then it'll be a conversation, whatever happens after that. I'm sure. How much of the negative chatter is just because of where he was drafted? Well, there's always doubters, right? I mean, when you come into the league, he was Mr. Relevant or, or just a low round draft pick or, you know, your, your, your dear friend, you mentioned Kurt Warner, I mean, undrafted. So there's still people that think he wasn't any good. I think, you know, now Kurt carried that offense.

Okay. That it's a little different when you are the trigger man of a very pass heavy offense and you rely on explosive plays downfield. And that's the staple. That's the, that's the identity of that team. That's a little different than Brock's situation or a lot of other quarterbacks who are a piece, an important piece of a very talented puzzle. So but yeah, I think, I think, look, I mean, it's not just football. If you're an NBA guy who wasn't highly drafted, there's always going to be people or, or a college football player who was nightly recruited. It takes a long time for people to realize, yeah, he was a three star or a two star, but he can really play because a lot of people were wrong. And I think that it's easier to believe that this guy sucks because he wasn't a high draft pick, but it is to realize, even though it's often the truth that a lot of people were just dead wrong about him and miss, misjudged him, underestimated him. I mean, that's exactly my point that I made earlier. And it's just that the draft is not science and you know this better than anybody because you watch these kids grow up. It's one of the reasons why I love college football compared to pro is that you don't ever really know who's going to pan out. I'm like, even your husband's asked me questions on his show.

Rich, I don't know how good a pro he is because translating Saturday to Sunday, I mean, sometimes it's very blindingly obvious. Like I did, I do think that a lot of us were right about CJ Stroud. I would have taken him first. I thought he was the best guy coming out. I love Bryce, but I thought that CJ with what he showed in big, big moments and his skillset was NFL ready and would be able to adapt to a situation that maybe wasn't ideally surrounding him with talent.

And Bryce is a nightmare situation in Carolina. But most often when I'm asked that question, I just admit that, you know, a lot of people get paid a lot of money to do it. And as you know, and Rich knows really well, they're wrong all the time. They're really, really spectacularly wrong every year or so. And you every year get to be at the Heisman and you see sometimes the Heisman's pan out and sometimes they don't. You just don't know until the quarterback or the player gets a chance to play into a system. I mean, yeah, because the Heisman's a college award.

I'll defend that until I die. I mean, it's an award in what they did in school. It is not projecting what they're going to do on Sundays, but I like it when they do well. I really do. I pull for those guys because you get to know them in the process, having an affection and a respect for the Heisman. I want the award to look good. So when Lamar does well or Baker Mayfield or Kyler Murray or Joe Burrow, I feel it's cool because I have a relationship with those guys.

I become fans of them more than their teams and I want them to kind of do well. Couple more minutes with you. Tell me about your week.

What's it look like? How are you planning your week in Vegas? Well, you know, it's hard to play concierge for people. You try to coordinate things, but as you know, everything is in demand. Everything is in short supply out there.

Everything is super expensive. So I'm hoping to get to a party or two. I am going to take a hike because for me, Vegas is a lot more about being in nature than it is being at the blackjack table. I used to like to gamble a lot, maybe a little too much. I don't do much of that anymore. So I'll take a nice hike and some trails that are off the beaten path and feel some fresh air in the lungs.

There'll be some good meals. There'll be top ranked boxing because I like to watch live boxing and I'm sending a call to voicemail. I apologize. Did that come through in your air? No. Who was it? Now I want to know who it was.

Somebody who's not listening to the podcast, obviously. No, I think, you know, I try to do other things outside of football. You too. I'm going to see you two at the sphere. Very, very excited about that. I know you're going. Rich and I have talked about that.

I've seen you too many times. I'm a huge fan of there, but to see him in this venue, that's Friday night. So there'll be some fun stuff and, you know, Kirk's out there and different people are out there that I'll bump into. So it'll be a great time.

And in between all that, I'll prep for the game. I got my chart here. It's out of focus, but that's the chart. It's not very filled in yet. There's a lot of work to do on the chart, but we'll get there. It's a long flight out to Vegas. But you know, I think as I said, would I do that if I were calling the game for CBS?

No, of course not. But for this broadcast, I feel really comfortable in the level of preparation. I'm going to have a lot of fun when I'm out there. Oh, it's so great. Rich always does his charts on the way on the flight. So I know how I've seen that one before. And by the way, like you'd relate to this with Jennifer, like I'm out there Wednesday.

I'm back on Thursday. Like there's no hanging around in Las Vegas. What is the one storyline that we're not talking about in terms of the media at large that you think will be the most interesting to you?

I don't know. I really like Christian McCaffrey. And I think the idea that he could win a Super Bowl when his dad won one. I like his parents a lot. I had played for the Broncos. I was a Denver fan. And so I think it's neat that you could have your father's son coaching winning the Super Bowl in the Shanahan's and then the McCaffrey's.

That's something that'll translate, Susie, to people watching on Australia, New Zealand, cruise ship, or anywhere. The idea of a father-son connection. In fact, it's only been done once where a father and a son have each won a Super Bowl.

And it was an obscure pair of guys that people don't know. So for Christian, who I really, really like and got to know pretty well when he was at Stanford and the family, the same thing being Colorado people. I mean, you know, you don't pull for a team, but I'd love it if he has kind of like a showcase game. As you know, he's had a great career, but he's also been banged up and paid his dues and bounced around. And this is like a great moment for him.

And I just want him to be healthy and have a great game on that big stage. That's not an untalked about storyline, but just for me, the fact that it's a father-son thing, and then the Shanahan's could do that at a coaching level, I think is pretty cool. And that is something that we'll be talking about with our audience, besides the punting. Besides a lot of punting.

A lot of punting. I just realized as I'm talking to you, the first time I ever went to Vegas, I was with you guys. Now I look back at that. That was the ESPYs. And it had to have been like, I don't know, 99. I think I remember getting ready.

Yeah, I do. I mean, of course I don't think I remember. I remember getting ready with Jennifer before the ESPYs, which is- I only went to one.

There was only one Vegas ESPYs I went to. So that was a good time. That was it. I think Mark McGuire was a buddy at that point. He was hanging around.

Right. That was a pretty good time. Isn't that when we all went back to the mansions afterwards?

I think I remember being with Jennifer. I have a weird memory of being in the floors were heated. We were like, this is the coolest place ever. The floors were heated. That was your takeaway from the whole Vegas ESPYs that they had heated floors? Yeah, of course.

I mean, first of all, Chris, you know me well enough. I want to go to a cool party that no one else is allowed to go to when we were back at the mansions, right? And then of course, it's real estate. Heated floors in the bathroom? I thought that was the coolest thing. I bet your house has heated floors now, doesn't it? Well, Chris, it's been great having you on What The Football. You know my house well.

You do, in fact. And thanks again for the time. I really love having you on.

And I can't wait to listen to you. I will find a way to get to Australia by Sunday, or I will be sitting in my house trying to order pizza in time for the game. It's going to be one or the other, as long as the house doesn't wash away by then. Which, you know, Southern California Storm Watch 2024, people are freaking out. I hope everybody's safe.

That looks pretty serious out there from the reports. I'm not suggesting that people should buy a ticket to Australia or New Zealand to watch the game, because it can be pretty expensive last minute. But I wouldn't, if you're going to do it, I think I endorse the idea of taking a last minute cruise or going to Australia to hear our feed. Don't say the cruise.

Don't say the cruise. Chris, I love you. Thank you again for your time. I can't wait to see you soon. Maybe I'll see you. Maybe I'll sneak onto your hike with you on Thursday morning. I can hike early. I can share the trail. It's no problem.

Deal. I'll bring you coffee. Always great seeing you. Continued success. You guys are doing great.

Love seeing you. Say hi to Stanley. And Don Bui, our producer, found this great shot of Christian McCaffrey on the field of the Super Bowl, one of the years that his dad, Ed McCaffrey, won the Super Bowl three-time champion with the Denver Broncos. But look at him there. He's got to have been. And for those of you listening, it's the shot of him with his dad's jersey on, with the blonde curls out.

He had to have been two or three. And I can't even imagine what it's going to be like for his dad to watch him on the field this coming Sunday. What an incredible thrill. It's been a thrill being with you all season long here on What the Football. We really appreciate all of you who have taken the time to join us to help this podcast grow.

Amy is a dream to work with, as is the entire staff here at Rich Eyes and Show Productions. And we are just thrilled to be able to spend our time with you. We will see you on the other side of the Super Bowl. As always, my thanks to everyone who brings this podcast to you week in and week out. My thanks to my great friend, Chris Fowler. So lucky to be able to call him up and so lucky to be able to call up Kurt Warner and walk things through with him as well. But once again, to all of you who have helped us grow, we say thank you very, very much.

Enjoy your Super Bowl. Talk to you on the other side. Even at the time, I didn't love my music. I always feel like I'm in a room with all these artists and they all respect each other. I feel like no one respects me. Rolling Stone music now, wherever you listen.