Dak Getting $60 Million?!?!? (Hour 1)

Hey Mel, Bri here. Gotta work from home today because the whole family caught a nasty- Daddy! Hey, Mikey!

If you're gonna puke, find the popcorn bowl! But my availability is 110%. Coincidentally, so is my fever.

Kidding. Mel, I'm so cold but hot. But I'm gonna get you that budget. Just as soon as- Mikey!

Popcorn bowl! Press 1 to use Instacart and get your family's sick day essentials delivered in as fast as 30 minutes. Press 2 to keep working. Do not press 2.

Just use Instacart, Brian. 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 play 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 Tuesday edition of the Zach Gelb show across all the great local CBS Sports Radio affiliate Sirius XM Channel 158 the free Odyssey app and of course streaming on YouTube, youtube.com slash CBS Sports Radio 8 5 5 2 1 2 4 CBS number to jump on in 8 5 5 2 1 2 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. Jordan Schultz, NFL insider for Bleacher Report. He's going to join us coming up at 5 p.m. Eastern, 2 p.m. Pacific to have Moist Mike and also Stuart Kovacs rocking and roll with me all the way up until 6 p.m. Eastern, 3 p.m. Pacific. Okay, let's start off with actually a piece of information from NFL insider. Jordan Schultz is going to join us later today, and he has said that Dak Prescott, who's in the final year of his contract with the Dallas Cowboys, he could actually command a contract this offseason worth up to $60 million a year. And if that happens, I will fall on the floor. I will roll over and I will probably suffocate myself in terms of just how much laughter I will have.

I'll suffocate myself in laughter. Now I understand you don't need to be a great quarterback to get great quarterback money. A lot of times good quarterbacks or very good quarterbacks command great quarterback money. But the Dallas Cowboys just simply can't pay Dak Prescott $60 million a year.

There has to be a fine line here. And I know the salary cap keeps on increasing and keeps on growing exponentially. And it's the most important position in sport is the quarterback position. And I know that a lot of Cowboys fans will call me up at 855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227, and they'll say, Zach, but if you don't give Dak Prescott this contract, what are you going to do at the quarterback position?

It's a fair argument. And that's why we're in this conundrum here where good quarterbacks get great quarterback money. And Dak Prescott, let's be honest with our assessment about him. He had a fantastic regular season.

He was dreadful in the playoffs, but think about it. The Cowboys would be potentially paying this guy $60 million a year, and you can't even guarantee yourself with Dak Prescott, forget a Superbowl, forget a Superbowl appearance. You can't even guarantee them a spot in the NFC title game because this organization, the last time they made the NFC title game was in the 1995 season. But Dak could potentially become a $60 million man this off season. And this is only football, where when you say that it is absurd, it's ludicrous, and it's just so foolish.

But usually when something is absurd, ludicrous, and foolish, you would go, oh, it won't happen. Yeah, I fully anticipate this to happen because the Cowboys are in a tough spot where you probably shouldn't double down. But the end of the final year of his contract and his cap hit for this upcoming season is almost $60 million. So in one breath, you know you shouldn't give him a contract worth $60 million a year.

But in another breath, you're like, yeah, we can't go into this season with the cap hit being almost $60 million. So the Cowboys are screwed. Because when you look at Dak, he's a good quarterback. There are a ton of teams that would rather have Dak Prescott than their current quarterback.

But he's never a quarterback that evokes a big time feel or a quarterback that you expect is going to kick your ass come playoff time. And we have now seen it multiple times against San Francisco a few years ago. Team got off to a terrible start. Dak is driving at the end of the game.

They couldn't even get the ball snap. Then we saw two years ago the defense was championship caliber and the offense, after they lost Tony Pollard, couldn't do anything. Dak had multiple turnovers in that game.

And then this past year, I can't put it all on Dak, the entire team didn't show up. But Dak Prescott allowed a younger quarterback in Jordan Love who doesn't have nearly as much experience as Dak Prescott had to come into his house and basically make Dak Prescott's house Jordan Love's home. So I'm at a point where Dak Prescott, like you asked me who Dak Prescott is like, he's basically Kirk Cousins, who you could put up solid regular season numbers, really good regular season numbers.

You could talk me into him being a great quarterback because of the numbers. But your eyes tell you that Dak Prescott is not a great quarterback. And there is never a belief that Dak Prescott is going to lead a team into the final four of the NFL. And if you think about it, you look at this year, it was as open as ever going to be just for the Cowboys bare minimum to get to the final four.

And they couldn't even get out of the first round, right? You had the Eagles collapsing. You had the 49ers clearly being the best team. The Lions had a heck of a team.

But outside of that, like, what were you really intimidated about? The Dallas Cowboys were the two seed, the two seed. Let me remind you after getting a gift from the officials in the Lions game, that should have been enough for the Dallas Cowboys this year to win two playoff games. And they couldn't even do that. They couldn't even win one playoff game. And I'm not setting the bar high here.

I'm not asking for a lot. All I am saying is if you couldn't get to the NFC title game this year, what makes me think that Dak Prescott is going to get to it in future years, there is something called it. And right, even Steve Young said before the start of the season, Brock Purdy has it Brock Purdy has the force. That's good, but Dak doesn't have the force. Dak doesn't have it. I'm never expecting Dak to get to an NFC title game. And that's a problem where now when it comes to the quarterback position, we're all in agreement that we know the salaries are stupid and we know great players or guys that are good players are getting great players money and we all just kind of accept it because the other side is, well, what do you do if you get rid of Dak?

And that thought of fear and that thought of the unknown scares the crap out of these owners. And it makes these owners give a guy like Dak Prescott in all likelihood $60 million this off season, which I don't understand how the Cowboys can do it, right? When you hear $60 million to Dak Prescott, your heart just gets like set on fire. Your gut saying, what the heck are you doing? But then your brain goes up. That's just what happens in the NFL.

But we shouldn't just operate and just say, oh, yeah, that's what happens. And you look at the other average annual value salaries right now at the quarterback position. Joe Burrow is the highest AAV player, $55 million a year. So even though the salary cap is going up, how are we going from in this off season where you enter the off season, Joe Burrow is the highest paid quarterback at $55 million a year. And now Dak's going to get $60 million a year potentially according to Jordan Schultz.

It just doesn't make any damn sense. Now, I know this topic infuriates Santa. Santa has made it abundantly clear and he's been dead on that it is absurd and it is surreal that we pay quarterbacks this much money when they aren't worth it. So I will just open up the floor to Santa and I just want your reaction when you hear this report from Jordan Schultz is going to join us later at 5 p.m. Eastern that Dak Prescott might command a contract worth up to $60 million per year. This off season.

Go ahead. I love deck. I like tech as a quarterback. I love deck as a person and as a player in general, it would be the dumbest. The Cowboys would never ever even sniff the NFC championship game. The amount of money that they would be tying up in deck and therefore losing out on signing guys like Micah or Demarcus Lawrence or, you know, Trevion Diggs.

They're going to lose out on all their star talent around deck and what makes the Cowboys great right now or great. What makes the Cowboys a 10-12 win team year in and year out. It's not Dak. Dak is definitely an above average quarterback, but it's their defense. It's their run game is their o-line and it's their skill players.

Dak doesn't hold them back, but he doesn't advance them forward significantly either. When you start giving a quarterback like Dak this kind of money, you're you're going to lose all that other talent around you. The only guys that can command this kind of money are Joe Burrow, Patrick Mahomes, Tom Brady, those kinds of guys. Josh Allen?

Probably. Josh Allen's right on that cusp. If you were to get that money, I still think the Bills could win because if you put the game on his shoulders, he can win. There's just something missing similar to like Aaron Rodgers. There's just something missing with Josh Allen.

But yes, I do think that Josh Allen is probably worth the money. All right. Well, let's do this. Let's go to Micah Parsons. He was on the Stephen A. Smith show the other day and Micah Parsons wanted to defend Dak Prescott, who's an NFC quarterback against AFC quarterbacks.

Listen up. This is Micah Parsons. Besides Patrick Mahomes, what other quarterback in the AFC has accomplished anything to get more credit than Dak? Joe Snorry.

Josh Allen. Did he finish? No, but they got further. It doesn't matter how far you get. If you're going home and you're not entering the ring, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter.

If we get sent home, it doesn't matter. It doesn't matter. That's no difference. It doesn't matter. You didn't bounce to the wildcard game. It's no difference.

That's ridiculous. If you're not the Super Bowl champion, it doesn't matter. You haven't accomplished anything. When you go to the Hall of Fame, are you doing anything? Does it say made an NFC championship final? It gives you a Pro Bowl, an All-Prayer, and Super Bowl.

Those are the only three things that they consider. They don't say, oh, you made it to the NFC championship. You deserve this. And you do not win the big one. It does not matter. So then you know how I would have followed up with Micah Parsons? Then are you deserving of a big lucrative contract? Are you consider, like, what have you accomplished then? Because Micah Parsons just said, if you don't win a Super Bowl, it doesn't matter. But then he also just said, the quarterbacks in the AFC outside of Mahomes, how are they more accomplished than Dak Prescott? Well, just for starters, and I'm just saying guys that are more accomplished, whether that's to a little degree or a big degree, that's a different conversation.

But it was more accomplished. Well, Lamar Jackson has struggled in the postseason just like Dak Prescott. Last time I checked though, Lamar Jackson has two MVPs, Dak Prescott has none. Lamar Jackson's more accomplished than Dak Prescott. Joe Burrow, he has made it at least to a Super Bowl. Dak Prescott hasn't even made it to an NFC championship game. Joe Burrow's more accomplished than Dak Prescott. And Joe Burrow's only been in the league for what, four years?

And he's been injured for two of them. Then we go to Josh Allen. Josh Allen has played well in the playoffs. His teams have not won enough games, but at least Josh Allen has made it to an AFC title game. Dak Prescott has not made it to a conference championship game. So just those three quarterbacks, and I know Rogers is known for an NFC quarterback and he just got hurt, but Aaron Rogers has won a Super Bowl.

He's now an AFC quarterback. Dak Prescott can only dream about getting to a Super Bowl. So there are a lot more accomplished quarterbacks in the AFC than Dak Prescott. Now you may not view those accomplishments as just getting to a Super Bowl or getting to an AFC championship game or winning two MVPs as significant, but it's still more than what Dak Prescott has been able to do. And I will go as far as to say this, entering the 2024 season, there are 10 quarterbacks that I would rather have over Dak Prescott, just 10 for starters. And I don't think Dak Prescott, in my opinion, entering the 2024 season is a top 10 quarterback even after just having a really good regular season. Rather have Patrick Mahomes than Dak, Joe Burrow, Josh Allen, Lamar Jackson, C.J.

Stroud, he was magnificent, Aaron Rogers, Jalen Hurts, Justin Herbert, Matthew Stafford, who is a Super Bowl champion, and then even Brock Purdy. That's just for starters, those 10 quarterbacks I would rather have over Dak Prescott entering this season. And Dak Prescott, according to Jordan Schultz, is going to potentially command the contract of $60 million a year.

You get your money when you can. I will never fault someone for signing a contract if someone's willing to pay you. But there has to be some middle ground here for good quarterbacks like Dak Prescott to not get great quarterback money and to reset the entire market.

And I get it. Some of those quarterbacks that I just mentioned are just good quarterbacks and they got paid great money. But this is just at a level now where even when the salary cap keeps on rising and rising and rising, eventually we can't keep on giving out $60 million a year contracts to guys that probably shouldn't get it because, as Samter said, and I'll say it again, if the Cowboys couldn't get the job done this year, then when Dak gets more and more money, how are they going to put out a better product on the field and how are they going to put out a better team? The answer is they won't. And the farthest Dak will ever go is just getting to an NFC title game. And I don't even know if they'll be able to do that in Dallas. The Cowboys will never, under Dak Prescott, be in a Super Bowl, let alone win a Super Bowl. What would your reaction be if Dak Prescott got a $60 million a year contract?

855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We'll take a break. When we come on back in five minutes, are the Atlanta Falcons just a quarterback away? When the whole family comes together to watch the game, nobody wants to miss a second of the action to run to the grocery store. With Instacart, you can get all your weekly groceries in as fast as an hour. Less time shopping means more game time. Let's go visit instacart.com to get free delivery on your first three orders.

Offer valid for a limited time, $10 minimum per order. Additional terms apply. 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. Okay, picture this. It's Friday afternoon when a thought hits you. I can spend another weekend doing the same old whatever, or I can hop into my all new Hyundai Santa Fe and hit the road with available H track all wheel drive and three row seating.

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2024 Santa Fe available early 2024. It is Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio coming up later. Maybe we'll play some sound of JJ Riddick criticizing Doc Rivers, which is very interesting to me because Doc Rivers used to coach JJ Riddick. And now JJ Riddick just replaced Doc Rivers on the broadcast team because Doc Rivers elected to go back to coaching the Bucks that he's not doing a good job. And this is now led to a beef between JJ Riddick and Pat Beverly. So get your popcorn ready. Some fun stuff here.

We'll delve into that later on in the show. But first, let's play a little Terry Fontenot, the GM of the Atlanta Falcons. He was on the NFL report with Steve Weiss. And this is what Terry Fontenot had to say about finding a quarterback for the Atlanta Falcons. Yeah, we won't close any doors, Steve.

You're right. That's the top priority for us. This offseason we have a lot of really smart people in the building. We're going to spend a lot of time together. Make sure we attack that the right way. We're not going to close any doors, be it trades, free agency, the draft. We'll make sure we keep an open mind there.

We're going to attack it and make sure we get it right. So we know that the Falcons are going to be bringing a new quarterback. Taylor Ham Heinecke, as much as I love his nickname, he is not the guy. Desmond Ritter was put in a bad situation this past year where all he needed to be was a game manager and Arthur Smith, who's now the offensive coordinator of the Steelers, but was his head coach this past year. He tried to make him something more than a game manager and they went away from their bread and butter, which should have just been Bijan Robinson and Tyler Algier really getting most of the reps this year and getting the football in their hands more times than Desmond Ritter actually throwing it to other players. So now you need a quarterback because you look inside the NFC South, there's no team right now inside the NFC South that should scare you. The Panthers don't have their damn act together. The Saints, they're a solid team, but no one believes in Derek Carr and the Saints when they were supposed to be the team this year in the NFC South, they couldn't even win their division. And then you have Tampa Bay who it's expected that Mike Evans is going to hit free agency. It looks like Antoine Winfield Jr. is going to get franchise tag and I would think Baker Mayfield is going to be back and Baker Mayfield had a good season this past year under Dave Canales, but now Dave Canales is the head coach of the Carolina Panthers. So I look at the Falcons as a team with an opportunity this year and I thought they had an opportunity last year to win the NFC South. And I talked to Arthur Blank in person on Radio Row and then I also talked to him off the air in person on Radio Row.

Let's play the on air part of it though. This was from February 9th when Arthur Blank joined us in Las Vegas and I asked him, you know, what is the ideal way this offseason? Is it to get a veteran or is it to draft a quarterback here as the owner of the Atlanta Falcons?

The last great quarterback we had was Matt Ryan. I mean, that's really what you want it. That's really the kind of franchise transitions you want to see.

It's not easy to do. Obviously done in Green Bay. They drafted Jordan Love early, kept him on the bench for a while, played vine Aaron. Aaron moved on.

Jordan stepped up this year, played at a high level. So you're looking for a long term solution. Sometimes in a long term solution, you have to have an interim solution, too.

So you got to do some sometimes mixture of both. But ideally, long term, you're looking for that franchise quarterback. So the Falcons are picking eighth in the draft this past this upcoming year. You could get a quarterback at eight, but if you stay at eight, in all likelihood, Caleb Williams going to be off the board. Drake May is going to be off the board and then also Jayden Daniels going to be off the board. Now we've seen teams move up in the draft from further back than eight and propel themselves into the top five into the into the top three.

We've seen that happen before, but it takes two to tango. I don't think the Bears are trading their pick. I don't think Washington is trading their pick. And I would lean more on the side that the Patriots won't trade their pick. But out of the three, if there is someone that is the most likely out of the top three to trade the pick, I would say it's the Patriots sitting him at number three.

So let's say you can't get into the top three. Who's the quarterback that you're potentially picking at eight? I would not use the eighth overall pick on Michael Pennick's junior. I would not use the eighth overall pick on J.J. McCarthy.

And I would not use the eighth overall pick on Bonex. And those are probably and I don't even know if I think Pennick's has a chance to be a first rounder. I think McCarthy he shouldn't be a first rounder, but I think he has a chance. I would not say Bonex should be a first rounder.

Spencer Rattler could also be a name thrown out there. There's no way he'll be a first rounder. So in all likelihood, what I'm getting at here, I do think it's unlikely that the Atlanta Falcons this off season find their quarterback of the future, even with what Arthur Blank just said about how you have a bad and then you draft the youngster and that's the ideal way, like what Kansas City has done, what Green Bay has done. I don't think that's likely where their position this year in the draft. So let's say you can't draft a quarterback or it doesn't behoove you to draft a quarterback.

Then you have to go via trade or via free agency. And there are three names right now that I think could be in play for the Atlanta Falcons. I think the most underwhelming name out of the three I'll give you first, it's Russell Wilson, because I don't believe anyone actually believes Sean Payton last week when he's like, Oh, Russ wants to come back.

You know, we still have a door open and a window open for him to return. You don't like Russell Wilson, his contract. He's overpaid. He declined quickly, could still be serviceable, but he's not a great quarterback anymore. I don't think Falcons fans, even though Russ could be a game manager in Atlanta and use and be used the way that Desmond Ritter should have been used this past year and would have been an upgrade.

I don't think Falcons fans are jumping up and down like a fat kid in a candy store. I really do believe for the Falcons, it comes down to two names. And I believe the conversation on what they should do is fascinating because when I talked to Arthur Blank off the air, Arthur Blank made it clear to me.

And I agree with him. I think they have a team that's a quarterback away. I think they have a really good roster. Now you could ask me, Zach, a quarterback away from doing what? A quarterback away from being a division champion and potentially winning a playoff game. Like, that's what I think the Atlanta Falcons could do this upcoming season if and it's a big if they just get some positive, productive play out of the quarterback position and the conversation this off season when it shouldn't be Russell Wilson and it shouldn't be drafting a quarterback because I just don't think they're gonna be able to get one of the quote unquote big three is going to be between Kirk Cousins and Justin Fields. And the reason why I think this conversation is fascinating is because Kirk Cousins would be on a short term deal contract, probably like a three year contract.

And you're gonna have to in all likelihood guarantee all the money. But Kirk Cousins is a good quarterback, not a great quarterback. And he could win a division and he could win a playoff game like the Falcons get Kirk Cousins.

They will have in a huge way, dramatic. And I know the bar was so low but dramatically improved their quarterback position from a year ago. And Kirk Cousins is more than just a game manager.

And all you need is a game manager. The other name is Justin Fields. And for Justin Fields, it's one of those situations where it's based off potential. Like a few years ago, people thought the Falcons should have drafted Justin Fields. Instead, I believe they ended up taking Kyle Pitts.

I want to say that was the same draft. And Kyle Pitts, I don't think has been utilized the right way. And he's been underwhelming so far as an NFL player.

And I think most of it is because they just haven't used him the correct way. But if you go get Justin Fields for, let's say, a second round pick, you got to make sure he hits. I think the safer play is Kirk Cousins. The longer term play could be Justin Fields. But what happens, even though we all just assume that the shortcomings in Chicago for Justin Fields was more the Bears' fault than Justin Fields' fault, what happens if he never turns that around when in a better environment with the Atlanta Falcons? So I could see why there would be an appeal and a higher intrigue probably from fans to go with Justin Fields for a second round pick because you think he may be able to be the guy long term. But I think when you have a new coaching staff in Raheem Morris, you have a new offensive coordinator in Zach Robinson, and you have a team that is ready to win now in some capacity. And I understand that's not winning a Super Bowl, but that is winning a division and maybe winning a playoff game. I would say that the better play is Kirk Cousins on a fully guaranteed, in all likelihood three year deal. Let me ask around the room here though, and let me ask you this first answer. You are running the Atlanta Falcons.

You are Terry Fontenot. Would you rather trade for Justin Fields this offseason or would you rather give a three year deal to let's say Kirk Cousins fully guaranteed? Which one would you rather do? I guess it depends what I have to give up for Fields.

I'm not giving up. Second round pick. If it's just a second round pick, I would probably do that because as you heard from Arthur Blank, what he said to us was you want to build around a franchise quarterback. Bringing in a vet feels like a band-aid.

It doesn't seem like he's all that thrilled with that idea. Maybe having a vet as kind of like a bridge guy, but Kirk Cousins isn't a bridge guy. You bring in Kirk Cousins, he's your guy for two or three years, he's not a bridge guy. Now also let's remember Kirk Cousins is coming off an Achilles injury too. So even though I was on the side of Kirk Cousins, I will throw out there, even though we've seen players come back from injuries now, we don't know how mentally impacted Kirk Cousins is going to be.

Physically we know what the recovery time is, but how many times from just ACLs do we see guys come back, they're playing but they don't look like themselves until a full year after the injury? 100%. So I wouldn't do the Kirk Cousins thing. It doesn't seem like that's the route they want to go. I think it's either Fields or try to move up and get one of those top guys.

Okay. Stu, what would you be doing? I would actually go to Cousins route. As much as I like Fields and the potential that he brings, there's still so many question marks with him.

And I know there are question marks with Cousins too, especially with the health and getting up to their age. It's a safer bet though. It's a safer bet with some players that they're kind of built to kind of win now, like they have some talent around the quarterback position.

So I think going with a guy who is the more sure bet right now is what I would do. And I said this to Bijan Robinson right to his face on Radio Row. It made no sense why they would limit his usage this year because all we're told about the running back position is the shelf life is so slim and so short. And why would you then limit his usage in year one where who even knows if he's going to get a second contract from the Atlanta Falcons and when your team is based really first and foremost through the run with guys like Robinson and Algier. And you have a very good wide receiver in Drake London and you had a defense. I know they have a new defensive coordinator now, but Ryan Nielsen did a sensational job improving that team last year.

You have a very good young up and coming secondary. It seems like they wasted a year of Bijan Robinson and I just can't afford to waste another year where, yeah, sure, the offense may be more explosive with the speed of Justin Fields as well. But what happens if Fields gets to Atlanta and he's kind of similar to the player that he was in Chicago? Then all the takes start turning from the Bears ruined him to know it was actually more Justin Fields than Chicago. That's why I just think Kirk Cousins for what I'm asking out of the Falcons for the next two to three years is the right move and also to what Arthur Blank said, you bring in a guy like Kirk Cousins, you could pass on drafting a quarterback this year in the first round and maybe you could go move up and it's going to be tougher because in theory you'd be better. But we've seen it happen before with teams like the Bills who got Josh Allen and teams like the Chiefs who got Patrick Mahomes.

Then you wait another year or two to go move up to go get that quarterback and you still have the insurance of having Kirk Cousins to buy you that time because at least you know you're getting a good quality quarterback in Kirk Cousins. Alrighty, Zach Gelb Show, CBS Sports Radio. We will take a time out when we come on back. We'll update you some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio.

That is the news brief but update time first. Here is the act man, Rich Ackerman. The defensive player of the week is sponsored by the Navy Federal Credit Union who proudly serves their armed forces, DUD, veterans and their families. Their members are the mission.

Learn more at Navyfederal.org. This week's player is Red Wings goalie, James Reimer. In Detroit's 5-0 win over the Flames on Saturday, Reimer saved all 38 shots that came his way. Earning first star honors, Detroit currently holds the second wildcard spot in the Eastern Conference playoffs with 64 points. You do have a good game tonight in hockey at Madison Square Garden between the New York Rangers and Pete DeBoer's Dallas Stars as well.

So how about that? We got some pucks, baby. Stu's a pucks guy. I'm a pucks guy. Pucks, pucks, pucks and more pucks for all, right, Santer? We're going to be talking a lot of hockey here on CBS Sports Radio.

You down? I was going to say something like that involves puck. Yeah, there you go. Something like that. But I figured that would be inappropriate. Yeah, it probably would have. But if you think something's inappropriate, then usually if you give it up, leave it up to me in a 50-50 scenario, I'll end up saying inappropriate.

Yeah, I have a very, very low bar. Yeah, that is true. Anyway, let's update some of the biggest stories of the world of sports with some audio. We go to a news brief. Time for your daily news brief. We get you caught up on the rumors, reports and reconnaissance from the day in sports. So we got a guy in JJ Riddick who used to play for Doc Rivers on ESPN, crushing Doc Rivers.

Let me just set this up. So Doc Rivers was once a coach for JJ Riddick. As you all know, Doc Rivers was promoted to, well, he got fired and then he got hired by ESPN and he was the number one color analyst and he was going to be on the A team in the NBA finals along with Doris Burke and Mike Breen because for some reason they thought they had to get Mark Jackson and Jeff Van Gundy fired at ESPN. But nonetheless, the Bucks after record-wise having a good team fired Adrian Griffin and then they hired Doc Rivers.

So slides up JJ Riddick from the two team to the one team to replace Doc Rivers and he was on first take earlier this morning, if you're still following all this, and he was slamming his old coach and the guy whose job he took when Doc went back to the NBA and not taking any ownership for his struggles with the Bucks and always making excuses. Listen up. I've seen the trend for years.

The trend is always making excuses. Doc, we get it. Taking over a team in the middle of the season is hard. It's hard. We get it. Just like getting traded in the middle of season is hard for a player. We get it.

But it's always an excuse. It's always throwing your team under the bus. They lose to Memphis. Oh, it's his players play.

Memphis was playing G League guys and two-way guys. Then you look at his quotes over the weekend. Now he wants to take credit for the James Harden trade to the Clippers working out. He wants credit for that. There's never accountability with that guy.

So I appreciate a good rant, but I'm just going to be fully transparent here. I do not like JJ Riddick as a broadcaster. He always just sounds so angry. Like if I was his agent or if I was a broadcasting coach to JJ Riddick, like you could smile here and there.

It won't kill anybody. And quite frankly, I know my our boss for however longer that is, Spike Eskin before he goes down the turnpike to host afternoon drive in Philadelphia. I told Spike this. I'm not going to look forward to big playoff games when JJ Riddick is on the call because for whatever the reason is, JJ Riddick as a broadcaster just annoys me. And I wish he would just smile here or there. And this is coming from someone that loves to rant and rave and scream and go crazy on the radio. But I never hear it feels like JJ Riddick whenever he's talking about something, it's always angry.

There's never any like laughs or having any fun. But the one thing I will counter to JJ Riddick, who I will say it's a good rant and there is a lack of accountability with Doc Rivers and he makes a lot of excuses. Do you have that same energy for the players that have failed as well? Because James Harden made a lot of excuses and took no accountability. Paul George, when it didn't work out in L.A. with Doc Rivers, he threw Doc right underneath the bus and he took no accountability and made a lot of excuses. So is that just an anti-Doc thing? Is that just an anti-coach thing?

Or is it you're just going to use someone to kind of detract from the players in the past that have taken no accountability and ownership? Now, Pat Beverley. Let me just make sure that this is actually Pat.

It is. He tweeted to JJ Riddick. This man Doc actually saves your career, started you when no one else wanted to and you retire, go on TV and say that JJ Riddick? Oh, get your popcorn ready as T.O.

would say. JJ Riddick responds back with Pat my guy. Whenever you start something off with my guy or bro or buddy, it's about to really turn up the heat in this you know what. Pat my guy.

I had a four year offer with a player option for the same money to be a starter for a different team. F.O.H. saved my career. Alrighty. Good job, guys. I like that. That's a good little social media spat. That's a good beef. You have JJ going after Doc.

Then you have Pat defending Doc going after JJ. This is pretty good. I like this. Let's continue it. But JJ just like working a smile here or there.

I just need a smile here or there because it always seems like you're so angry yelling about things. Here is Antonio Pierce on the rush with Max Crosby. This is Antonio Pierce, the new Raiders coach on the Mahomes rules. You got the Jordan rules and I'm calling out from now on as long as I'm here, the Patrick Mahomes rules.

So you remember when Jordan was going through with the Pistons, all those guys in the 80s before he came, Michael Jordan, the Air Jordan, the Pistons used to whoop his. Any time he came to the home, elbows, filling them, love taps. We touched him.

We're in the head mentally, physically, emotionally, spiritually. I'm touching you. So I show those guys Jordan getting his **** whooped. Greg Williams is on line one with Bounty Gate.

Greg, how are you? I actually don't have a problem with that. I think the way that this is being talked about is a lot worse than that actually sounded. I purposely avoided listening to that audio and I was just reading the reaction to it.

People are making this out as this is Bounty Gate 2.0. He's basically saying we're going to play physical football and we're going to go after Patrick Mahomes. Does anyone have, like Stu, you hear that? I know you're a Raiders fan, so you're biased, but is there any problem? Not at all. Love it.

Samter? I don't. At first I heard the Bounty Gate thing too. I don't think it's Bounty Gate level.

Well, let me be clear just real quickly. I didn't hear Bounty Gate, but people are making this out as if he basically said we're going to intentionally injure and harm Patrick Mahomes. So I'm not getting that specifically, but what I am getting is we're going to be physical with the quarterback of the Chiefs, a multiple MVP, a three-time Super Bowl champion.

Here's what you're asking for. Late hit penalties, roughing the passer penalties, and a bunch of nonsense penalties that are going to hurt your team on third down and long and all these other things. It's great to be physical.

It's great to be tough. It's great to be like hardcore, but you just can't do that to the quarterback in today's NFL. Whether it's Bounty Gate level or not, if you're saying I want to get physical with the quarterback, especially Patrick Mahomes, you're going to get penalties and you're going to screw your team over and your team is going to lose because of it.

That's where the issue I have is. But here's the thing, I know they beat the Chiefs at the end of the season, but nine times out of 10, whatever anyone is doing right now with Patrick Mahomes, even when they were vulnerable the last two years, hasn't been good enough. So if you have to try this approach and you have to be physical in football, I'm okay if that means you get a few penalties here or there.

They just better not come on third down when you're trying to get off the field because then that is a different conversation. Let's go to Ocho Cinco, who I think is now going back to being called Chad Johnson. He's hearing a little bit about Russell Wilson going to the Steelers.

A little birdie told this, cheap, cheap. Nightcap for Shannon Sharp. We got to work on the Steelers. Now, if a little birdie told me, and I say this many shows ago, if Russell Wilson coming on over there to the Steelers. I think right now I saw DraftKings, the betting favorite is Justin Fields to end up in Pittsburgh. No, he's going to Atlanta. I told you, I got the script. I thought it would be Michael big 2.0 in Atlanta on that turf indoors.

Oh, that's fast now. So I know people use the word script as like kind of a joke now with the NFL, who has the script and all that. But can I take that Chad Johnson is just hearing something as it being actually serious.

Like that to me is not a report that is like, who knows who told him that information? Now, I don't think it's impossible for Russell Wilson to land with the Steelers, but I can't sit here and say that it's definitely going to happen. Um, and you look around right now, Justin Fields to Ocho Cinco's point, I would like, you know, I would not, I would not object to him landing in Atlanta. I think Kirk Cousins is the better decision, but what happens if Kirk stays in Minnesota? So then it's like, who do the Steelers go out and get? But in that same breath, we just had the Jerry Dulac report come out the other day where he said the Steelers aren't expected to pursue a quarterback that intends to start this year. So that would eliminate Russell Wilson as well. This is the best way of saying it. No one has a damn clue is going to be quarterback of the Steelers this year.

You just don't. But I appreciate the conversation, the entertainment that Chad Johnson did bring. Let's go to Jimmy Johnson. He was on the Joe Rose show on 560 WQ a.m. Jimmy Johnson says Bill Belichick doesn't need GM power. Bill is upfront about it.

He said, Hey, I don't need to be in charge of everything. It's just that's what happened up in New England. It kind of fell into that deal. And it's not necessarily that he pushed for it. It's just that's what happened because he was there for so long. But he's more than willing to give up some of the personnel decisions to the general manager and the personnel people, which is fine. But also, Bill has to work together with that person. And clearly, Bill didn't think or people in the Falcons organization didn't think that Bill could have worked with Rich McKay or Terry Fontenot. And that's why I believe we went from the point where Arthur Blank wanted Bill Belichick and then ended up passing on Bill Belichick, because people don't genuinely believe that Bill's going to play nice with people in the building within a year.

A lot of those guys would have been fired. And finally, let's listen up to Anthony Rendon. This was a bizarre exchange when he was asked. Is baseball his top priority right now? Is it still a top priority for you? That's never been a top priority for me. This is a job.

So I do this to make a living. My faith, my family come first before this job. So if those things come before it, I'm leaving. Is it a priority?

Oh, it's a priority for sure. This is my job. I'm here. Do you want to be here? I don't want to talk to you guys at seven in the morning or whatever time it is.

So I mean, do you want to do you want to be here playing baseball? I have answered your question. So why do you keep thinking that? Oh, yeah, you technically answered it.

Thank you. So I actually don't think that's as bad as what people are saying. Now, it's a bad person for me to be coming from because of him being a failure with the Angels and him not living up to that contract. You've been coming close to living up to that contract.

It is a bad look. Don't get me wrong. But if anybody else came out and said, Yeah, my top priority is pretty much my family and my religion.

And then it's my job. I think we would be fine with that. But it just doesn't sound right. And you got to have more of an awareness that you're going to get dragged for this when you're Anthony Rendon, who won a World Series and was a great story with the Nationals. But ever since going to the Angels, he has just faded off.

And I know he's had some injuries, but it seems like right. You're kind of mailing it in. No, no, you're getting this money either way. So I understand the outrage to it.

But the audio wasn't as bad as the way that I saw the reaction was in the last 24 hours. 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 return. 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.

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