Steve Spagnuolo Joins! (Hour 1)

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Instacart for the win. A peanut butter M&M's production. In a world where Super Bowl winners get the world's admiration and a fancy ring, but the runners up get nothing, one retired cop returns... That's one retired quarterback. Read the script.

Oh, sorry. One retired quarterback returns to claim what's his. Um, that's claim a ring with diamonds made from M&M's peanut butter, but you're on a roll. The Ring of Comfort, coming soon to a Super Bowl new you. Live from the police show yet not overly ostentatious studios of CBS Sports Radio here in beautiful New York City, sitting on top of the 10th floor of 345 Hudson Street, welcome on in to a Thursday edition of the Zach Gelb show across all of our great local CBS Sports Radio affiliates, Sirius XM, Channel 158, the free Odyssey app, and of course streaming on YouTube. YouTube.com slash CBS Sports Radio 855 212 for CBS's number to jump on in 855 212 42 27. You could always get at me on Instagram where I'm straight flexing or via the good old cesspool of Twitter at Zach Gelb.

That's Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B. We're rocking and rolling all the way up until 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific. Got Stuart Kovacs and Moist Mike with me coming up at 5.20 p.m. Eastern, 2.20 p.m. Pacific. We react to Steve Wilkes getting fired by the San Francisco 49ers yesterday and also all the antics and shenanigans from Draymond Green with a host of 95-7 The Game in San Francisco, Bonta Hill. And coming up momentarily, we should be joined by the legendary defensive coordinator for the Kansas City Chiefs, a fourth time Super Bowl champion in spags in Steve Spagnola. I kind of feel like this is starting to become a yearly tradition where spags wins the Super Bowl. The defense plays their ass off.

They kick ass. They take names and then momentarily after winning that Super Bowl, he's always benevolent with us to join us on the show. So looking forward to that conversation with Steve Spagnola, which should be happening momentarily. I see Samter is busy working the phones.

We're having a little Zoom issue in the connection and getting spags up. But the wait will be worth it because, man, what a career Steve Spagnola has had when you already knew what he accomplished with the New York Giants winning a Super Bowl. And being a part of that team that upset the Patriots and prevented them from perfection and then being out of the league for a year and landing with an old friend in Andy Reid in Kansas City. And now he has been one of the focal points of this Chiefs dynasty. Like when you look at the Chiefs, you think of Mahomes. You think of Kelsey. You think of Andy Reid. You think of Chris Jones.

And then you think of Steve Spagnola as well. Like those are the first five guys that you think of that we see the most and hear the most out of with this Chiefs dynasty. And don't get me wrong, like the owner of the team is very important in Clark Hunt.

The general manager in Brett Veitch is very important as well. But to see what Spags defense has done this year, it has been really impressive. And this is a defense where it's tough to get any shine their way because of obviously when you have Mahomes and Kelsey, that's where most of the attention and Andy Reid is going to go because you have one of the greatest coaches of all time, one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time and one of the greatest tight ends of all time. But then in another breath, you have to acknowledge that Steve Spagnola is one of the greatest defensive coordinators to ever participate in the NFL. And you have people like Kay Adams, Eric Eager and yours truly who are now singing the praises of Spags where it's not only wow, what a great job Spags did up against the 49ers.

What a great job Spags did up against the Baltimore Ravens. But it has turned into that when you win four Super Bowls and you are a defensive coordinator, you don't need to just be a head coach from a coaching side, in my opinion, to get in the Hall of Fame. And the goal of the Hall of Fame is to tell the history of the sport.

And how can you tell the history of a sport and the greatness of the sport? And even those Spags didn't have success as the head coach of the Rams without mentioning and without having a bust in Canton, Ohio, for Steve Spagnola. And I know, right, assistant coaches have never got into the Hall of Fame where they're only known for assistant coaches. But Spags just signed an extension. And let's say that he his final job is with the Chiefs. And this is his last run in the NFL. Who knows how many more championships the Chiefs are going to win?

And with each championship, you climb rankings and you improve the legacy of already phenomenal legacies. Like look at Mahomes. Mahomes is already moving up the all time great quarterback list where it feels like he's already in the top three. Travis Kelce is a top five tight end of all time.

Andy Reid, I don't know where you rank him, but he's one of the greatest coaches of all time. And when you go through it and when you evaluate the other people as well, there's no doubt about it. That Steve Spagnolo is one of the greatest defensive coordinators and one of the greatest defensive minds that we've ever seen. And look at some of the opponents that he's had to play, whether it was Brady or the great offensive mind of Kyle Shanahan.

And you see the results that have unfolded. They are just absolutely spectacular. So now we are in a moment of history where you see this Chiefs dynasty and you know what this Chiefs dynasty has done, where now you're going to just see these guys just catapult right up the all time list. And I don't think a guy like Spags should be forgotten. And clearly he made an enormous impact this year with what he's been able to do with the Kansas City Chiefs and quite frankly, what he's been able to do in all three of these Super Bowl runs. And it takes a team to win. And sometimes when you have an all time great quarterback, it's tough to get that great defense.

But that's what the Chiefs have been able to do. And now joining us is one of the legendary defensive coordinators in the history of the NFL. He is now a four time Super Bowl champion. And once again, he is Steve Spagnolo, kind enough to join us after another world championship on the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Spags, always appreciate the time. Congratulations to you and your family. And how you doing? I'm doing great, Zach. I apologize.

I'm not a technology guy and I couldn't figure out the audio here. I can see you though, so I'm waving to you. Just so you know, I see the Kansas City Chiefs hat in the background and great to be on with you.

Well, that's awesome. And I think we'll give you a pass, coach. You know, you're an old school coach. We know what you're doing with the defense. If you can't figure out the zoom, I guess we'll get that squared away for the next parade for Kansas City, right?

Give me a pass on the not figuring out the zoom. I appreciate that. I hate to start it off this way, but obviously yesterday turned from a great day into a scary day. How did you kind of process everything that happened at the parade, which was definitely a somber moment after celebrating a world championship? Yeah, Zach, I'm glad you brought it up here at the beginning because obviously prayers go out to the lives lost, one that we're aware of. And then obviously the injuries and children involved and just a sad, sad thing to have happen in a really glorious celebration. I mean, we're there for the people, for our great fans and that to have it in that way was tough. I hope it doesn't take away from the fact that, you know, our guys kind of accomplished something really great.

But because this is real world stuff, I think we should acknowledge the prayers that go out to those people. Yeah, it was just absolutely surreal. And it was crazy how quickly it happened. You know, we all saw Travis Kelce being a bit intoxicated and singing yesterday.

I saw Willie Gay was lying in the streets with the shoes off and a bottle of Henny in his hands. And the next thing you know, you see just a frantic scene. When did you kind of realize that, hey, this is something serious and something wrong was going on?

Because it just seemed like it happened at a snap of a finger. Yeah, well, it felt like we were winding down with the stage portion of it and we were kind of getting off. And then they said, everybody's got to get out of here quickly. So we weren't really sure what was going on. As you can imagine, in those situations, there's a lot of unknown and we really didn't hear anything. But everybody was concerned because of what has happened in the past in this country. So they kind of scuttled us through and there was a kind of a tense moment there where we were trying to get to the buses. And then people couldn't find that.

The hardest and the most, really the most scariest thing about it was when you couldn't find a family member. And you knew possibly something was going on outside of the building we were in. You know, that got concerning and you could see it in the faces of people. So I thought the police department in Kansas City and all those policemen that were involved did a tremendous job. The people that responded, I think a lot of credit goes out to them.

And the people that actually put these events on, I think did a tremendous job. You can't say it any better. Spags, Steve Spagnolo is here with us. I remember not that long ago, you, me and the Cuz, Anthony Gargano, were hanging out at a Super Bowl. And the next thing we know, we already knew you were a great defensive coordinator with the championship, even though you beat my Patriots in that Super Bowl.

But then you get reunited with Andy Reid and now you've won three more Super Bowls. What is this chapter for you? Congratulations on the new extension, by the way. What has it meant to you when you've been able to process it for a bit? Well, first of all, Zach, I mean, you know me, I give all the glory to God and I'm blessed and so very fortunate that I was able to come here because of the relationship that I had with Andy, obviously, prior. And him having the confidence in bringing me here meant a great deal.

And listen, since the day I've gotten here, the day he decided to bring me here, all my goal has been is to make him look right in his decision. And you never want to let Andy Reid down. I think every guy that plays for him or coaches for him says that and it's the truth. I mean, that's what we want to do. We want to uphold our part of the bargain. And being around him, being with him, working for the confidence he shows in us as coaches and players goes beyond even talking about he's unique.

He's a Hall of Famer. I'm glad I've had the chance to work with him. I'm glad I get a chance to continue to work with him. And I'm looking back at some of our old text messages from earlier in the year, Spags.

And I'll take you back to Friday, September 22nd, where I texted you and I said, You got those guys humming this year. Defense looks really good. Not getting enough praise. And you said, Were you okay with no praise? Our guys are all in and just want to help the team win.

Got to do it again. I'm just wondering, because it was evident to me how special your defense could be. When did you start to sense this season that you guys not only had a good defense, but a great defense? Well, you know, it's a great question, Zach. And, you know, you go through the season, I'd have to go back in the world with X in my mind to remember that. But I do I can say this. There was a concern when Nick Bolton got hurt somewhere.

I don't know. Game 345, whatever it was. And when Drew Tranquil stepped in there and we really didn't feel like we skipped the beat because he was so good at getting in there in the middle and control. When you lose the quarterback of your defense, like when you lose the quarterback of the offense, sometimes there's a step backwards. But that didn't happen to us. They rallied around Drew.

And it just kind of showed me what the other 10 were like and how they functioned as a unit and every guy kind of bought in. That was probably it for me when we kept a high level of defense, even though, you know, the guy in the middle was on the sideline when Nick got hurt. You know, it's kind of crazy because you have so many big name players, so sometimes people get lost in the shuffle. But what Nick Bolton has been able to do the last two Super Bowls has just been sensational.

And also, I know you're close with Mike Pannell and I want to bring him up as well. Man, what an unsung hero he was on Super Bowl Sunday. Before I got on here, Zach, I was watching the second half for the third time or whatever.

I watched it on the TV copy. But I'm sitting here doing the coach's copy now and you're right about Mike. There were some key downs in there where he just physically overwhelmed the guy that was blocking and made key stops for us. And we had so many guys do that. He put Trent Williams on his ass, coach.

I've never seen someone do that. No, that's a good point, Zach. And it's all about leverage and how we played that day. And going back to Nick, I mean, there was a key moment in that game.

You guys will remember it. That third and four where we got him to kick the field goal was huge for us. And the clock was winding down. They decided to take it to two minutes. We had called a particular defense to defend that third and four. But when they let it get down to two minutes, I looked at my sheet and I said, this is like a fourth down. I looked at my fourth down calls and I got on the headset with Nick. Now, he can't respond to me.

I'm just looking out in the field. And I was looking for his reaction. I said, Nick, what do you think about this call? And he was bobbing his head and he was all for it. So I knew when Nick Bolton said, yeah, that's the one I want.

I knew that was the one to go to. And, you know, Trent came through, knocked the ball down. It was a key stop.

So getting back to Nick, that's him. I mean, having the confidence in him, all the other guys feel the same way. He gets everybody lined up and then he goes and plays really good football. And I know you just talked about the McDuffie play.

Then how about in overtime? Because they had some guys open. But Planet players, you know this, coach, they make Planet plays. And my oh my, Chris Jones stepped up in the biggest moment.

Yeah, I just watched it not ten minutes ago before getting on here. And I'm not so sure that maybe their offensive line didn't make a mistake. I mean, you'd have to ask the 49ers. But Chris obviously has a unique feel and skill for when the quarterback's going to throw that football.

And they give him a little bit of lane and he can accelerate. And he made them throw it a little bit quicker than I think they wanted to. And fortunately for us, the ball went incomplete. Talking to Steve Spagnuolo right now, fourth time defensive coordinator as a Super Bowl champion.

I got to ask you about overtime. It was adamant from your side that you guys wanted the ball second. And your defense was on the field first. When you heard that the 49ers won the toss and they took the ball, were you surprised by that decision with these new rules? I guess I was, Zach.

But I will tell you this. From a defensive standpoint, you know you're going to have to go out at some point. Like the way the rules are now. You know it used to be you waited for that coin flip and hope we won the coin toss and got the ball, right?

It's not like that anymore. So we were just preparing for a series of defense. So the difference for us would be if we go out first because 49ers got the ball, there's a chance it's a three down situation and you get them to punt. If you go out second and we have put some points on the board, then you know it's a four down experience.

So we were just waiting to see what it was going to be for us. It ended up us going out first. The play that kind of sticks out to me, I wish that we had had back or somehow had been successful. It was a third and 13. We got the penalty on Trent. They flagged them and that gives them a first down. They end up taking a field goal. But all in all, we know who we have as our quarterback. So we felt like I think in our minds, we don't want to give up field goals. But if we could hold them to a field goal, we know Patrick's got a chance.

Yeah, I was just going to say that. When they kicked the field goal, I think everyone thought Mahomes was marching right down the field. When you saw the final play where he finds McCole and you guys are world champs and it's a walk-off, just how did you kind of process that, relive that for me, Spags?

You know what, Zach? I can relive it exactly the way it happened. Before that play happened, I noticed that Drew Tranquil was to my right. I didn't know that was going to be the touchdown scoring play, but I just had that in my mind.

Drew is a guy that did not experience a Super Bowl. I'm always really pulling and want to win for the guys that haven't felt it. And the minute McCole scored, I grabbed Drew who had his head buried on the ground because he was so happy. And I just told him how happy I was for him since he had not felt this before. And certainly happy for everybody, but especially those guys. We were so fortunate to get Drew.

He hadn't won a playoff game in his career, and here he was now a Super Bowl champ, which I was really, really happy for. So I know that Chris Jones said yesterday that he's not going anywhere. I know that he needs a new contract, and that was a storyline even before the season started. Is it inevitable that they'll get this thing done in Kansas City in your opinion? Well, I certainly hope so. We've got all kinds of confidence in Brett Veach and his crew. I know Chris wants to be here, and we want him here. Every year changes, right? I shared this with other people, Zach.

I'll share it with you. Throughout this playoff run, right from the first game against Miami, before every game, I prayed, Good Lord, give me another week with these guys. Because it's a special group, and I know it changes every year. And hopefully Chris is with us, but I hope that for, I don't think there's about 10 or 11 defensive guys whose contracts are up. And I know we can't keep everybody, but I want to keep as many as we possibly can because it's unique. But I'm realistic. I know that it'll change a little bit.

Hopefully Chris is not one of those, but we'll see as we go forward. It's a different kind of business in that way. I feel like every year when we have you on after you win a Super Bowl, I make the case where you should get another opportunity to become a head coach. Have you been kind of surprised that you haven't even got another sniff at a head coaching job? Well, I guess there's some disappointment and surprise.

I would at least like to be able to talk to people and see what their thoughts are. Listen, I don't lose sleep over it. I've told you this before, Zach. But do I want it? Yeah.

I mean, we're all prideful guys, right? We want to prove the way we did things in St. Louis. I mean, we had it on the right track after that second year. We're one game away from, if we win the last game of the season, we're in the playoffs at 8-8 and play New Orleans at home. And that didn't happen. Then we ran into the lockout. So would I?

Yes. But I always finish by saying this. If it never happens, I'm a blessed man. I got a great job. I work for a great organization and a great head coach, so I'd be good as well.

And here's the other thing. Your rise, we all know what you have done and what you have accomplished. You have Kay Adams, Eric Eger. I did a sports minute on it the other day. We're making the case for spags to get in the Hall of Fame. I don't think you need to be a head coach again to get in the Hall of Fame with what you've done.

So what does that mean when you hear those words of extolment? Can I be honest with you, Zach? I can't even wrap my arms around that.

That has never been in. I haven't had the dream go that far in my head, to be honest with you. Listen, I don't even know how to comment on it. I just kind of keep coaching hard and hopefully winning games and whatever happens after that would be great. But I do appreciate you guys even saying that. I'm humbled to even be considered in that regard. But I think it is all about players. You know I'm always going to go back to that, Zach. I've been blessed to be around some great assistant coaches who should get a lot more credit than they do.

And then the players, certainly, they do it on the field. By the way, when I was at the AFC Championship game after you guys punched another ticket to the Super Bowl, Andy revealed that your wife has been making some good desserts for the coaching staff. What's the legendary dessert, spags?

Let me tell you this. She makes them every Friday for all the defensive guys. That filters into the equipment room, training room, and all that. And then we have a little award that she makes a big pasta dinner for. We'll call it the Cram Award.

The guy that gets the biggest hit gets that. But here's where I'm going. I always make sure in that dessert bunch that I pull one out, put it on the head coach's desk, so when he comes off the field on Fridays, he's got that waiting for him. So I think part of the reason I was able to be asked to come back here was because Coach Reed didn't want to miss out on that. Well, I was going to say that so I know Coach isn't retiring, because if he retires, he's not going to get those desserts. There you go. I know my wife would probably be sending to him in retirement, too.

That's how she is. Last thing I'll ask you, you know what it's like to lose a job in this league. How did you react to Steve Wilks going from coaching into Super Bowl and then shortly after that getting fired yesterday?

Shocking. Listen, my heart goes out to any of the coaches in this league because they get let go. Now, we all know that that's the reality and it can happen. It's a little shocking when it happens when somebody goes that far, but I've been on all ends of this thing and I do know this. It's a forgiving profession and Steve Wilks is a good football coach and he'll end on his feet because he is.

And sometimes, you know, sometimes when one door closes and a window opens and hopefully that will happen for him and he'll get back on his feet. And that's the crazy part to me is that in regulation, they held the great Patrick Mahomes to one touchdown drive. It's not as if the defense was the reason why they lost that Super Bowl. I thought it was their offense.

No, you're probably right about that. I mean, listen, I'm just happy that we ended up winning this thing, but I do feel, I mean, you're bringing it up and I do feel for Steve. I don't know him that well, but for any coach that has to go through that, it's hard. Well, Spags, hey, I always appreciate you. Once again, congratulations to you and your family and can't thank you enough for giving us time right out of the gate today on the show. Yeah, always a pleasure, Zach. Good luck to you and I'm sure we'll talk again. Appreciate it. You got it.

Thanks so much. Steve Spagnolo joining us right here on the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. A lot to react to from that. We'll get to it on the other side, off and running on a very busy Thursday edition of the Zach Gelb show. But where else?

CBS Sports Radio. Listen up, I won't sugarcoat it. This is the longest cold flu analogy season we've ever seen, but we're not alone. We've got Instacart. Sure, you may be a coughing snot faucet who just wants mommy, but you're not giving up. Not when cold medicine, fragrant herbal teas and honey shaped like bears can be delivered through Instacart in as fast as 30 minutes. Now, let's go win the sick playoffs. Daddy, I just want my soup. Oh, sorry. Sport App says it'll be here in a few minutes.

Instacart for the win. A peanut butter M&M's production. In a world where Super Bowl winners get the world's admiration and a fancy ring, but the runners up get nothing. One retired cop returns. That's one retired quarterback. Read the script.

Oh, sorry. One retired quarterback returns to claim what's his. That's claim a ring with diamonds made from M&M's peanut butter.

But you're on a roll. The Ring of Comfort. Coming soon to a Super Bowl new you. Hyundai.

There's joy in every journey. Twenty twenty four Santa Fe available early twenty twenty four. All right. Welcome back in.

It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. I think every year when you ask, how do you remember a Super Bowl? There are multiple answers.

You know, some years it's a singular answer. But I think this is a Super Bowl where if I ask this question, I think you could get like four or five different answers. And the way that I process it is that number one, it's another blown lead for Kyle Shanahan. But also, let's see how they blew that lead. Well, you look at the defense of the Kansas City Chiefs. That's the biggest reason why they won that game. Because that defense for Kansas City up against.

Right. The great forty niners offense. They, while the Chiefs offense made some mistakes, an interception and a fumble, you never had the Chiefs break. And that was an enormous part where Mahomes throws a pick. Pacheco fumbles the football. You have turnovers in a Super Bowl. When you're going up against the likes of Debo and Ayuk and Purdy and McCaffrey and Kittle and even Jennings, you're thinking they're going to capitalize. But two turnovers and the Chiefs defense answered the bell and they answered the bell in a big way.

And I go back to the muff punt. And when it hit off a player for the forty niners, that to me was a huge point in the game. Because even though the next drive, the forty niners answered the bell and they came storming right back down the field and put the ball in the end zone. It just kind of further showed you more proof that it's going to take everything to knock Kansas City out of the game. Because Kansas City for almost three quarters on offense did nothing.

Like you look back and just think about it this way. If I were to tell you before the start of the Super Bowl that the great Patrick Mahomes, one of the greatest quarterbacks of all time, would only have one touchdown in regulation. You would have said the Chiefs would have lost the game.

How many points of the Chiefs lose by? But you look at their last two games, the AFC Championship game and then also the Super Bowl. The story, even though we talk about it as the greatness of Mahomes, the greatness of Andy Reid, the greatness of Travis Kelce. That's not the reason why they won those games.

And when you go through other great dynasties, there are sometimes where the biggest people associated with the dynasty, there will be a Super Bowl or two that they're not the biggest reason why they won. And you look at the AFC Championship game and you look at the Super Bowl, Patrick Mahomes even said it. In the second half of the AFC Championship game, he became a game manager. In the second half of that AFC Championship game, they scored zero points on offense. But that Chiefs defense just dominated Lamar Jackson, dominated him. And then you get to the Super Bowl with Mahomes only producing one touchdown in regulation. And with how you had the team of the Niners just look better than the Chiefs. But it wasn't shown on the scoreboard.

It was because of that defense coached up by the guy that just joined us a few moments ago in the legendary defensive coordinator of Steve Spagnola. 855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227. Let's go to John in Arkansas, who I always wonder if John is really from Arkansas. John, what's happening? Good afternoon, my friend, John.

Hi, it's John in Arkansas. Once again, it's one of my favorite people to talk to in this world. The great Sully, who may have been the greatest host I've ever experienced in Las Vegas. He took us to the Golden Knights game.

He took us to one of the greatest restaurants I've ever been to on Wednesday. These days, Sully was the star, I think the star of CBS Sports Radio. And I can't tell you how many times Sully was in the background of one of our interviews and didn't realize there was a camera on us.

Even though he streams the show every day, youtube.com slash CBS Sports Radio. And Sully was talking to someone that was very important. Every interview I look back at, there is Sully in the background talking to star after star after star. Hey, this is John in Arkansas. I don't know who the Sully guy is, but he sounds like an amazing individual. Yeah, you know, he's actually a jerk, John.

I've never seen John from Arkansas and Sully in the same room, so maybe that's something. Zach, what's up, dude? I'm phenomenal. I feel great. Even though I just spent a week in Vegas, I feel phenomenal even though I'm still jet lagged. Because that meal that you got us to on Wednesday night, I'm still dreaming about it. And then they come visit you in Vegas in like two months just to go to the Italian restaurant. Buddy, so on Saturday night I was telling Santa, we went back, me, the fabulous schmoopy, B-Mac, his wife, and a couple of their friends went back to Piero's. Really? Oh, we went back to Piero's and crushed it again.

Oh, it was outstanding. Now, did McFadden the mooch, did he pick up the tab? McFadden's not a mooch.

McFadden knows what time it is. Nah, I'm just teasing. I'm teasing. I want to say thank you to everybody at CBS Radio for even including me into the whole thing, because for me, having you guys around in the city that I live in was an absolute joy. To be able to go to places that I love and have friends that I care about side by side with me, to me, that's what life is all about, Zach. It's nice to be able to say these things, but for me, it's beautiful and it fills my bucket when I get to experience things that I really, truly enjoy with friends that I love and I care about. So thank you for always including me.

No, I appreciated it, and I'll just say this. I don't want this to turn into a slobberfest, but I said this to Samter, the best parts of the trip were when we were just hanging out and having fun and enjoying ourselves. And trust me, we got to a lot of great parties, you got to see a lot of great things, but that dinner on Wednesday was so cool because we were in a back private room and it was just EJ, Samter, myself, Perloff, a few other people as well, we were just hanging and having a good time with our guy, Sully. Buddy, that's what it's all about. And I'm now currently in Boston, so I also took the red eye, took the red eye last night.

Jet lag is real, jet lag is real, no one cares, no one wants to hear about it. But what I want to talk about is, you were just talking about the game. You were there, you got to be part of the whole situation, and it's always different when you're at the game compared to when you're watching it on TV, right?

What does Zach Gelb think? Coin flip, overtime, Sam Fran takes the ball. What, don't lie, what did you really think was going to go down? Did you know the major difference between playoff, overtime, or did I? Hold on, I knew the new rules. I did not know that the clock wasn't a factor, but I knew both teams got a possession and that they matched, it did go into sudden death. I actually did not have a problem with Shanahan taking the ball first, so I'm not going to crush him for it. The thing I do crush him for, and I've been saying it all week, and Steve Young said it the other day on our show, is how the heck is your team not prepared and your team doesn't know the overtime rules? Like, you think of the great coaches at Andy Reid, Bill Belichick, they meticulously prepare for everything. You had two weeks to get your guys ready for that game, and a guy like Kyle Juszczek, who's a smart guy that graduated from Harvard and attended Harvard, he doesn't know the new overtime rules? That's ludicrous to me, it's bad coaching. The situation in football I thought was interesting too, and you know, look, Kyle Shanahan, he's a great offensive mind, but for some reason he always gets tight when the game's on the line. Hey, chokes in the big moments. He did it when they played the first time against the chefs, and then that third down pass play, you know, I don't understand, run the ball, try to take the risk, you know Spagnola, whatever.

Everything can go back and forth, you can say this, you can say that. I loved being home watching the game. For you being at the environment, you're a neutral fan, I wanted to hear your perspective because the overtime rule, I literally had to look at Schmoopy, I'm like, hey, what did he just say? I knew that both teams get the ball because of the whole Kansas City, Buffalo, I'm complaining because I don't get the ball type thing in overtime, but I didn't know the whole, like you said, the time doesn't matter, the third possession I didn't understand, like, I just thought it's a score, it's a score, and then I didn't know it was sudden death after that.

So that was a new learning experience for me, and I thought I knew football. Well John, Sully, whoever you are, we appreciate the time, and you calling and being great all throughout the week to us in Las Vegas and giving us the red carpet treatment. Regardless of what I think, here's what I think we could all agree on now moving forward. When that happens, and you get this situation unfolding now, I believe that most teams moving forward because of the way that Andy Reid and the Chiefs approached this and what happened with Shanahan, the idea now is going to be never get to the third possession, that this is going to be first drive, you score a touchdown, all right, maybe you kick the extra point, but the second drive, if there's an opportunity to score a touchdown and go for two, you're going to go for that and go for the two instead of giving the ball back to the other team where they just need a field goal. So I guess whether you agree with it or not, I'm not crushing Shanahan for taking the ball first, but moving forward, the team that wins now in the future is going to defer, and they're basically going to say, even if we allow a touchdown, then we're going to march down the field, get a touchdown, and we're going to go for two.

That's what I think we've all learned, whether you knew things or you did not. Zach Gelb shows CBS Sports Radio, Steve Wilks shouldn't have been fired, but who could replace him in San Francisco? I have a big name that I'm going to suggest.

So we return, update time first. Here's the act band, Rich Ackerman. You can buy it on the Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. Listen on the free Odyssey app or wherever you get your podcasts. This portion of the show is brought to you by the new Hyundai Tucson, available with complimentary class-leading Blue Link Plus.

Now it's easy to use your phone to control your Tucson. Zach Gelb show, CBS Sports Radio. So yesterday we reacted to this on the air, that Steve Wilks was fired by the San Francisco 49ers as their defensive coordinator. I said this yesterday. I'll say it again. I think Kyle Shanahan is scapegoating Steve Wilks for the Super Bowl loss. That's what I just think it is.

There's no bigger conversation about this. I know earlier in the season the defense did not perform well. I know in the postseason there were flaws with the defense. But in the Super Bowl, if you are going to get rid of Steve Wilks when he holds Patrick Mahomes in regulation to one touchdown, that just doesn't sit well with me. They held Mahomes in regulation to under 20 points, and the only touchdown they allowed was because of a special team's blunder.

It was directly correlated to that ball bouncing off a 49ers player, McLeod not being able to recover it, and then the next play, boom, they hit MVS and Marquis Valdes scaling. So the fact that Steve Wilks got fired is ridiculous. But Kyle Shanahan has every right to make that decision as the head coach of the football team. But the problem with Kyle Shanahan is I don't think Kyle Shanahan cares about public perception, but he doesn't look good here. Because you think about from when the 49ers lost the Super Bowl, Shanahan has downplayed his players not knowing the overtime rules. He has also gone out of his way to say that they know how to win big games, and now you're firing a defensive coordinator who, even if everything wasn't perfect, you're more of the reason, Kyle Shanahan I'm talking about, why they lost the Super Bowl compared to Steve Wilks. And I know what Nick Bosa said, and I know that Shanahan had to use a timeout in the overtime of a Super Bowl, but still, you can't take those timeouts home with you. And also, you know, you being a brainiac offensive mind and a wizard who is overrated, Shanahan is overrated. This is not me saying Shanahan sucks, Shanahan's awful, he's the top five head coach in the league. But you have been right there and no one wants to criticize this guy? You know, people still believe now that Shanahan's going to break through, maybe he does one day, but outside of the overtime decision, this guy hasn't received any criticism. Don't get me wrong, he's been blasted for the overtime decision, but I'm not even blasting him for the overtime decision. I'm blasting him for his guys not knowing the rules and also his offense practically being a no-show for 60 minutes in a Super Bowl.

Think about that. Has anyone this week really done a full dive on the ineptitude of that offense? Like, we spent a week crushing Lamar Jackson and crushing Munkin for not being ready. We spent a whole week talking about them and their offensive shortcomings.

The only thing that people are crushing Shanahan on is taking the ball first. How about we discuss why that offense wasn't able to put the game away? And sure, you've got to credit spags. Sure, you've got to credit the defense. You've got to credit McDuffie. You've got to credit guys like Chris Jones as well.

But let's also look at this offense. With the players that you have, you can't afford in the biggest game of the year Friuk to basically be a non-factor, Kittle to be a non-factor, and Samuel to be a non-factor. But when you look at all the players you have, it's inconceivable to me how all those guys didn't show up. And I remember, and I'll just use a hockey analogy here, the Rangers last year, the New York Rangers, they put together a really well-rounded team with big superstars like Mika Zabenejad, you had Patrick Kane, Tarasenko, Panarin, Trochek, that's a well-rounded team.

And all those guys, pretty much outside of Kreider, didn't show up in that postseason series. So in the biggest game of the year, how do you have this many great players from Kittle? One of the best tight ends in the league. Samuel, one of the more versatile players in the league. You have McCaffrey who's a stud. You have Ayuk who was a 13, 1400-yard receiver this year.

How do three of those guys not show up? And Purdy was fine in the game. He was fine. He was good. McCaffrey, outside of the fumble, led the team in rushing, led the team in receiving. But to have the brainiac and the offensive wizardy of Kyle Shanahan not be able to get anything out of Samuel, Kittle, or Ayuk, that's mystifying. So I do think it's weak, I think it's gutless, and I think it's a lack of accountability since losing another Super Bowl and blowing another Super Bowl league stemming from Kyle Shanahan.

Now, the question is where do you go next? I know that Mike Zimmer, former head coach, he got the job in Dallas. Is Ron Rivera going to be in play for San Francisco? I guess.

But I think there's an enormous fish out there. And for any other team, I would probably say no shot. I still don't think it's likely that he's going to wind up because I do believe that it's beneath him to take a defensive coordinating job. But I remember after Shanahan choked Super Bowl 51 as the offensive coordinator of the Atlanta Falcons, shortly after that Super Bowl, Bill Belichick reached out to Kyle Shanahan and the two have become extremely close. Bare minimum, after getting rid of Steve Wilks, which is the wrong decision and completely unfair, Kyle Shanahan has to pick up the phone and see if Mr. Mumbles and Bill Belichick is at least interested in the defensive coordinating position. And in all likelihood, Belichick will say, you know, Kyle, I like you. I consider you a good friend and a good young coach, but I'm not going to be the DC of the 49ers. It's just not going to happen.

But you at least have to hear that no. Because you know guys are addicted to coaching. When Larry Brown once got fired, he was coaching like a middle school youth league team. I'm not asking Belichick to coach some middle school team. This is still being a defensive coordinator in the NFL for one of the better teams in the league.

You at least have to make that phone call. And I understand from Shanahan's side of things where people are starting to turn on Shanahan, the top five coach, you know, definitely a top ten coach in the league. You bring in Belichick and you fail to get it done in the big moment, then guess what? A year from now, everyone's praising Bill Belichick and they're saying, oh, Belichick should take over for Shanahan. But I have to think that, like, if you just swapped out Shanahan for Belichick, Belichick's not blowing that lead up against Andy Reid. I don't think he would.

But that's not what I'm saying. I'm saying you get rid of Wilks, which you did. You got to at least make that phone call to Bill Belichick and make him say no. And in all likelihood, he will. But you can't leave that stone unturned, kind of like what you did in your preparation for overtime in the Super Bowl.

You have to cross all your T's and dot all your I's. Now, maybe you reach out to Mike Vrabel, too. But I would assume that Vrabel, Belichick will say no because they're getting ready for the next head coaching jobs next year.

But you at least have to hear that word no instead of just assuming that it's going to be a no. So that becomes a fascinating offseason storyline. And I'm sure that we'll get that answer sooner rather than later. I got to imagine that's coming in the next two, three weeks, where we find out who will replace Steve Wilks as the next D.C. of the San Francisco 49ers.

But how long will this window be open for? You keep on getting close. When you keep on getting close, eventually you bottom out. No one's going to predict that the Niners will bottom out next year.

But it's not crazy to say because there's a mental and physical grind when you keep on getting so close, when you keep on getting to the Final Four, but yet so far. Should Belichick be the next D.C. of the 49ers? 855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227. I got five coaches that are under the most pressure in the NFL for next season. We discuss when we return on the Zach Gelb show.

A peanut butter M&M's production. In a world where Super Bowl winners get the world's admiration and a fancy ring, but the runners-up get nothing, one retired cop returns. That's one retired quarterback. Read the script.

Oh, sorry. One retired quarterback returns to claim what's his. Um, that's claim a ring with diamonds made from M&M's peanut butter, but you're on a roll. The Ring of Comfort, coming soon to a Super Bowl new you.

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