Matthew Stafford is Most Trustworthy NFC QB (Hour 2)

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You'll be glad you did. Yo, yo, what's shakin'? Zach Gelb's show. Our number two of our radio program, the College Football Fix for the year of 2024, is going to debut 15 to 20 minutes from now, as Florida State head coach Mike Norvell will join us. From now until the start of the college football season, once a week, we will do a College Football Fix and we will feature a coach, a player, big-time national analyst, somebody that is involved in the college football world. And we'll start things off with one of the biggest topics from last season, and that was the Florida State Seminoles, with them getting squeezed out of the college football playoff, even though at the time they were an undefeated ACC champion. And now DJ Uwe Ungolale, maybe one of my favorite names of all time after playing at Clemson, then transferring over to Jonathan Smith's old school in Oregon State. He has now made the decision to transfer and go back into the ACC, direct-to-direct competition between Clemson and Florida State. And we will get to see DJ Uwe square off against his old school, maybe more than once this year. So Florida State Clemson, the two teams right now, two big-time teams, football and the ACC, and I know that Miami fans will also say, hey, what about us with Cam Ward, who we thought was going to the NFL draft and then ultimately landing back at Miami.

We'll see who else does pop up this year in college football inside the ACC, but we'll spend a few minutes talking about the Florida State Seminoles with Mike Norvell 20 minutes from now on this show. Alrighty, I'm going to give you a statement here, and I just want the initial reaction from Sam Turinstoe. Matthew Stafford is the best quarterback entering the 2024 NFL season in the NFC. I think he's the preeminent quarterback in the NFC entering the 2024 season.

Just give me a quick snippet, very quick initial reaction, Sam Turinstoe, go. No, I don't think he's the best. Okay, Stu? I agree with Mike, I don't think he's the best.

Alrighty, then let me ask you this question as a follow-up. Sam Turinstoe, who would then be the best quarterback in your opinion in the NFC if it is not my guy, Matthew Stafford? I still think that the best is going to be Jalen Hurts. I think Dak is probably right now better as far as just talent and ability. I think Kirk Cousins might be better depending on coming off that injury. Jordan Love?

No, don't go through the whole list here. No, Jordan Love might be better. Who is the best quarterback in the NFC? Yeah, I think those are the four guys that I would put ahead of Matthew Stafford. And Brock Purdy, as being better quarterbacks than Matthew Stafford. Okay, I think that is extremely, extremely disrespectful, but that's fine.

That will go into further my point in just a second. Stu, who is the best quarterback in the NFC if it's not Matthew Stafford? I think it is still Jalen Hurts, even though he had some issues last year, I would still go with Hurts at this point. By the way, I don't know how much we should look into this, but I think Jalen Hurts is all business for this year. And I think Stu and Sam Turinstoe would like this because they're Yankee hunks and Yankee homers.

But did you see what Jalen Hurts happened to do today? He is now clean-shaven. The goatee is gone.

So maybe this is a new start of the season. Shave the goatee. He's clean-shaven. And we're going to get back to the old version of one Jalen Hurts.

Does that change the conversation at all? I know not for Stu, because he just said Jalen Hurts is the best quarterback in the NFC. But Sam Turinstoe, guy is clean-shaven now in the offseason, is this you being a Yankee hunk? Oh, everyone's got to trim the beard, trim the mustache, all that stuff. I think for Jalen Hurts, I think for Jalen Hurts, he had the long hair, then he cut his hair and he got better. And so maybe if he shaves the beard, he'll get even better.

Seems like the less hair that this guy has, the better he is as a quarterback. This is what we're doing now. This is what sports media has become. And I guess it's partially me to blame because I started the conversation just in a jovial way. And my answer was clearly ridiculous. No, you were being serious, because you know why? He's like Samson.

You know why? I think you unintentionally sent the message right there. When you were clean-shaven a few weeks ago, I will say I thought that was some of your best work as a producer on the show. Now the beard is back and they're calling you Sam to the slacker around here at CBS Sports Radio.

I do use slack very often. I know you do. Maybe I have to send a message, send a DM to Mrs. Samter and say maybe you need to start pushing to your husband once again that he needs to get the clippers out and shave that beard. You don't have to push her very hard. She hates it. She does.

Oh, the baby loves it. The wife does not. So how have you won this power battle right now with your wife that you are keeping the beard because I feel like in most relationships, even though, right, we could all be like macho man and we could say, oh, no, my wife won't tell me what to do. My girlfriend won't tell me what to do. 9.9 times out of 10, the woman in the relationship wears the pants and ultimately what they want, they get. The only like one tenth or tenth of the time that we get what we want is if they did something wrong and then they feel bad and they feel guilty and they have to to make it up to us and maybe understand, OK, you got to kind of genuflect here the one day out of the year. So I'm actually surprised that your wife hates this beard and you still have this this bushy beard just roaming around CBS Sports Radio.

So have you been able to hold off the walls here and prevent your beard from just getting taken off? It's all about the baby. Whatever the baby likes goes. So I mean, nothing that my wife likes matters if the baby doesn't like it and vice versa. At this point, whatever the baby likes is what we're doing. It just makes life easier.

So like, you know, make our lives less convenient and interesting based off of making it easier for the baby and then in turn becomes easier for us. I do think babies like facial hair because my niece and I don't have much facial hair. But when I have like a little bit of a beard and I shave pretty frequently, my niece will grab the little part of my beard that I have.

So is your baby because of how much beard you have? Is she just like ripping patches of beard out each and every night? She likes to like run her fingers through the beard. She does, however, and this might be too much information, she does try to rip off the chest hair. She does like to grab full on handfuls of chest hair and just yank. And it's painful and it's awful. But you know what? Like I said, when you have a kid and you just want her to be happy because when she's happy, she's not crying.

And when she's not crying, she's more likely to sleep and not bug you. The pain of pulled chest hair is way better than all the other crap that you have to deal with. OK, now I will get my back. I don't have a ton of back here, but I will get my back waxed. Get a lasered. I haven't.

I don't know. I kind of want to feel the pain. I'm a little weird that way.

No, I'm just kidding. I get my back waxed. That's a tough thing to say one to two times a year. And every time I get my back wax that the lady that does the waxing, she goes to me, you ever think about getting your chest wax? I can't understand for the life of me how anyone, when you have a good amount of chest hair. Would get their chest wax that as a male, that's got to be the most painful thing. And honestly, I don't like the look, at least for me. I mean, I guess if I had like six pack and pecs and all that would be different. If you look like Dave Canales, you'd definitely be getting waxed all the time.

But the look of a completely bare male chest is kind of weird to me. So like I'll do the I'll take the clippers and I'll trim it down. Right. As opposed to being like, you know, an overgrown, you know, jungle down, you know, around my chest. Down there. Whoa, whoa, whoa. Wait a second, Chief.

Get your mind out of the gutter. No, but like down there, a little trim of the chest is good to shorten it up. But yeah, the whole completely bare male chest is very weird to me, unless you're a bodybuilder or something.

Yeah, which professional wrestler. I'm just going to go out on a limb here. If you're watching us at YouTube dot com slash CBS Sports Radio, look at us. Three handsome hunks, us handsome gentlemen. I would not say the three of us are a bodybuilder. None of us. Stu, no. Me, no. Samter, I think he may think he is a bodybuilder. Oh, I hide it well.

No, there's nothing underneath here. Anyway, get him back to this conversation. Stafford's the best quarterback in the NFC. Here's why.

I know what I'm getting. Matthew Stafford coming off the injury had a phenomenal season this past year. And there was a question of how much longer is he going to do this? He erased that in one season. And not only that, they now have another emerging star in the sport where they already had a number one wide receiver, Cooper Cup, who, quite frankly, I think it's disrespected because whenever you do these top five wide receiver lists, people just don't say Cooper Cup.

It wasn't that long ago where he won a Super Bowl MVP and had the Triple Crown in wide receiving that year. And now you just added one of my favorite names in the NFL. Now, in college, it's D.J. Young-Gillilay. And in the NFL for a while, it was Tua Tunga Vailoa.

But Pukanukua is just an absolute sensation. And I think it's only the beginning of what we got to see this past year. And that's just such a dynamic duo. And then you got Williams going in the backfield towards the late of the season. You have the brain of Sean McVay as well. The outlook of the Rams and Stafford this offseason compared to last offseason is a difference of day and night.

It's a complete 180 from where we were a year ago. I look at all the other quarterbacks in the NFC that would be in this conversation. I have to throw out Kirk Cousins right away because we don't know where Kirk is going to go.

I think Kirk is landing in Atlanta. I think Kirk will stay in the NFC. But if he's not, and let's say he goes to someone in the AFC that we weren't thinking about, then this conversation with Kirk being the best quarterback in the NFC is irrelevant. But even so, when I use Stafford as the standard, Stafford has won a Super Bowl. And Stafford, even though I like Kirk and I think Kirk sometimes gets dragged through the mud, Stafford's just a better quarterback than Kirk Cousins. Jalen Hurts. Jalen Hurts had one great season. And Jalen Hurts is someone where I don't want to compare him directly to Stafford because I do think the ceiling for Hurts is higher than the ceiling for Stafford. But for Hurts, he was in a similar spot to not necessarily where Stafford was last year, but just a perception of we don't know what the future is going to look like for Jalen Hurts. For Dak, I think Dak and Kirk Cousins are very similar. Where the regular season numbers will always be good, but come playoff time, there's just not that conviction.

There's just not that belief that they're going to get the job done. Love is starting to pick up a lot of steam, Jordan Love, but it's one year so far. Let's see some consistency there. Jared Goff, I think it's a similar conversation where we know that he's taken some teams far in the playoffs. He's been to an NFC title game with the Lions. He went to a Super Bowl with the LA Rams.

But I don't ever think you look at him and use the word great. Brock Purdy had a good season, is in a good environment. He's not better than Stafford. Here's the one people are sleeping on, Kyler Murray. I think everyone's forgotten about Kyler Murray, who was a good quarterback, then got hurt, had the the collapse in the playoffs and the collapse down the stretch of the regular season with Cliff Kingsbury, came back, played solid. Marquise Hollywood Brown probably to go somewhere else in free agency, but in all likelihood, you are getting Marvin Harrison Jr. And there is significant upside in Kyler Murray. Like that's the thing with all these quarterbacks in the NFC. Like Hertz is the guy with the highest ceiling, I think.

But there's that unknown. I know what I'm getting with Stafford. And Stafford was underappreciated in Detroit because there wasn't a lot of great talent outside of Megatron. And then in L.A. first year there, he won a Super Bowl, then had to go through the injuries, the thought of retirement, then coming back. And this past year, he put up some really good football. So I think at first, a lot of people hear me say, oh, Stafford's the best quarterback in the NFC. He's the quarterback I trust the most. Like, whoa, wait a second, because it doesn't resonate that right away.

But when you go through it, who are you really putting your money on? Is it Hertz? Is it Dak?

Is it Love? Is it Goff? Is it Kirk? Is it Brock Purdy? Is it Kyler Murray?

There's a lot of question marks there. At least I know what I'm getting with Matthew Stafford. I'll just say this very quickly before we break from Mike Norvell.

I think it's a different conversation between who's the best and who's the most trustworthy. I don't think Stafford's the best. However, if you had to ask me to put my money on any of these NFC quarterbacks in a big game, who do I trust the most to make a run or to play well in the playoffs? I would actually agree, shockingly, that it is Stafford. I think Jordan Love is a better quarterback right now than Stafford, but I just don't know yet if I can trust him. Dak Prescott, I think, is a better quarterback than than Stafford, but I just don't know if I can trust him.

Brock Purdy, same thing. So I think there is a difference between better and more trustworthy. And I think that you're correct that Matthew Stafford. And it's weird to say it because when you first said it doesn't feel like it. Even I said it.

No, I'm listening to you talking like there's no way. I think he's the most trustworthy quarterback in the NFC, and that's weird to say. It shows the discrepancy in all the great quarterbacks of the AFC.

And maybe we'll do this another day. How many quarterbacks in the AFC would you rather have if like we put them in the NFC? Like who would be in the top three just in the AFC if we just switch them over into the NFC? Top of my head, I'm saying 10. I don't know if the number is that high, but like Mahomes, Burrow, Allen, just for starters. You know, you can throw Rogers in there was in the NFC forever. Just for starters, Lamar Jackson to Herbert Stroud Stroud.

Like you got six guys right away to over most of those guys. See two and her, but I think is a different conversation, but we're up against it. We'll get back to that at another day or maybe later on in the show. All right, well, come on back.

College football fix with Mike Norvell. Yo, next round is about to start. You ready? Yeah, yeah. Just shopping for a car in Carvana for real. Yeah, Carvana makes it super convenient to shop whenever, wherever. For real. That's a ton of car options. Yep, and these are all within my price range. For really real? You can afford that?

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Visit Carvana.com to shop for thousands of vehicles under $20,000. Old man winter here. If I had it my way, it would stay winter all year long. Short days, wind chill, black ice, and a good polar vortex.

Heaven. Wait, is it getting warm in here? Your cold snap is over, old man winter. Spring has arrived.

Spring. Spring is here, which means it's the perfect time to get away in the Hyundai you've always wanted. Visit the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event, where you can get great deals on all of our award-winning Hyundai models, like the tech-filled Tucson and Kona, as well as the spacious Palisade. Enjoy wherever you go with the peace of mind that comes with America's best warranty and three years or 36,000 miles of complimentary maintenance.

But hurry in. These deals won't last. Add more joy to your journey at the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Now get 0% APR or up to 1,500 bonus cash on the Hyundai Tucson. Now during the Hyundai Getaway Sales Event. Offers end soon.

Call 562-314-4603 for details. Dana Carvey and David Spade here. You might know our podcast, Fly on the Wall. We decided to do a spinoff called Superfly, and it's fun. It's just two of us riffing on current events, pop culture. Maestro is an Oscar-nominated movie Bradley Cooper's in, and I'm sure it's a perfect quality, well-done movie, but it looks a little boring. Honestly, I fell asleep during the billboard.

Listen to and follow Superfly on the Odyssey app, or wherever you get here. We miss college football. Milrose stands in. He throws into the end zone. He caught it. It's caught by Isaiah Bond in the corner of the end zone. Touchdown, Alabama!

We can't wait for the 2024 season. Hands it off to Ebert who will bounce it outside. Got him at 40.

Got him at 30. Donovan Ebert is in the clear. His second touchdown run of the ballgame.

This time for 46 yards, and Michigan has taken a 13-3 lead on the second touchdown of the night from the man who was not tripping. And we're counting down the days to kick off. Are we there yet? No. Are we there yet? I said no. Are we there yet?

What's wrong with your ears? Here is your college football fix, only on The Zach Gelb Show. Welcome back in, and this is Zach Gelb Show, coast to coast on CBS Sports Radio. 170 days away until Florida State kicks off their 2024 football season, and they're going to Dublin, Ireland to do battle with Georgia Tech. And now joining us is the head coach of the defending ACC Florida State Seminole Champions, and that is Mike Norvell, kind enough to join us on CBS Sports Radio. Coach, appreciate the time.

Thanks so much for doing it. How you been? Oh, everything's been going good.

Appreciate you having me on. And we're excited. We're a couple days away from kicking off spring practice. It's been a great winter program for our guys. We wrap that up here tomorrow. And just excited about seeing this team come together. And obviously, there's a lot of work that's been invested, but a lot of work that's still left to be done.

But definitely fired up about getting out there on the practice field. Let me start you off with last season with how it ended. That message and what you guys accomplished sometimes from a broader standpoint gets hijacked because what you guys did, it turns into should you guys have been in the playoffs or should you guys have been left out? When you look back at the season and just move on from the decision by the committee, how do you kind of look back at what you guys accomplished and what you proved to the rest of college football? I mean, I thought it was a special year to be able to go and find yourself 13 and 0 to really be able to do some remarkable things as a team, to face and respond to adversity the way that we did, to see that team come together to become ACC champs. It was really a special year.

Obviously, there's some things that happened at the end that were disappointing. But for us, we're jumping into this new year and just excited for the chance to go get better. And that's been our focus since we've been here, is just to continue to push, continue to come together as a program and as a new team here this year. We have some guys that are returning that are stepping into bigger leadership roles, some newcomers that have joined the program from the high school and high school ranks and some transfers that have come in as well. But I'm just excited to see this 24 Florida State team come together. We can look back and grow from the experiences that we've had.

But now it's time to go build the new experiences for what this team has in front of it. We know this conference, seven out of the last nine seasons, has been won by Clemson. You guys, though, are the most recent ACC champions.

Do you feel like this conference now goes through you and you guys are the team to beat in the ACC? You know, we're excited about where our program is. We're excited for the opportunity to go get better. And what we did last year is not going to really make any impact on what this team is, other than trying to grow from it. But, you know, I'm definitely fired up about the way this team has embraced the challenges that we presented, you know, the way they've responded to the adversity that we've had to kind of work through. And, you know, definitely looking forward to spring ball and that next step that's in front of us.

Mike Norvell here with us, the head coach of the Florida State Seminoles, recent ACC champions. I love what you guys did. I love how you attacked the transfer portal each and every year, bringing in D.J. Uyengalole. Time to take me through that transfer portal process, land of D.J.

U to Florida State. You know, D.J. is a young man that has great experience. You know, he's been through it all. He's had some tremendous moments throughout the course of his careers. And then he's had some challenges that he's had to overcome and really work and grow through. And, you know, when the opportunity presented itself and we got a chance to go through that recruiting process, you know, I really fell in love with this, the young man. I mean, you see the ability, you know, the arm talent, you know, the size, the strength and all those things. But, you know, when you get a chance to know the character that he has, you know, the excitement that he had about Florida State and the opportunity that was here and, you know, not just coming in to play a position, but to come in and be a part of this group and to be a part of this family.

And, you know, he's really hit the ground running. You've done a great job in the quarterback room with, you know, Rock Glenn, with a couple of our young quarterbacks that are in that room with him. I mean, I think it's a really good chance to be a special group and just the way that he's embraced this team and the standard of how we operate, but also how this team has embraced him. I'm excited for what this year can be for everyone involved. And he's replacing an incredible quarterback for you guys. I love what Jordan Travis was able to give to the program. So it's good to have some experience in that room and a player that has played at a very high level in D.J. Uenglele, but like what type of quarterback on the field with some of the good and the bad that we talked about, do you think he could put together and kind of have for you guys this upcoming season?

Yeah, I mean, I think the sky's the limit. I think he's really learned throughout his career. He's had, he's been in multiple offenses, was with something that really was kind of attractive to us as we've seen him, you know, in kind of a true spread offense is what he did, you know, in Clemson. And then, you know, kind of more of a pro style approach and, you know, a variety of things that he was asked to do there at Oregon State this last year.

And to be able to have, you know, kind of a mix of both and how we operate here is something that I'm excited about. The playmakers that we'll be able to surround him with and, you know, obviously a chance for him to come in and grow and get better. And, you know, for us, it's just continuing to push the consistency of him being the best that he can be. But, you know, I love his mindset. I love his approach. And, you know, really done a good job, you know, investing the work into this team and into learning all the things that we're going to ask him to do. Selfishly, from a coverage standpoint, I love the storyline. And I know that there was Oregon State in between, but you get the former Clemson quarterback now going to have to go up against Clemson and be your quarterback.

Is there any personal motivation? Do you sense that? Maybe DJ trying to get a little revenge up against Clemson now being back in the same conference? I mean, it's just really going to capitalize on this opportunity. And, you know, he's got one year, he's got a chance to go and continue to get better, to continue to improve and just go be the best him. And, you know, at the end of the day, I think there's plenty of times in this world and throughout the course of your life that you can, you know, you can get distracted by, you know, outside circumstances or situations. But, you know, as long as you just focus on continuing to improve and, you know, you build upon the consistency of the areas that he's gotten better, you know, definitely excited about, you know, what the results will end up being. Spring Ball is a crucial time for your program, Mike Norvell, because you really have taken advantage of this transfer portal. And it's kind of like speed dating.

I always say, like, you think you know what you're going to get, but until you actually meet the person and go out on a few dates with them, you may not know what type of players you will ultimately have. How have you guys kind of perfected building that chemistry with having so many transfers that come in each and every year? Well, I mean, when you look at it, it's just about finding the right fit for Florida State. And, you know, last year we're about 66 percent high school players that came in. You know, we've got about 33 percent transfers, but it's still about finding the guys that fit our program. And whether it's a specific position, whether it's a specific need that we think a young man can address and come and help make our football team better, you know, we're going to explore all those options.

But regardless of what the path to get here, when guys step foot on campus, there is the same expectation. There is the same approach of what we're trying to do to build the best team here in this season that we have in front of us. And that's what I've loved is, you know, we've got basically had 12, I think it was 12 or 13 high school freshmen that joined here in January with 12 transfers that came in. And so it's been good to see all those guys join the program.

And, you know, obviously the way that they've meshed with the returning players, I mean, it's been really remarkable. And, you know, it's always about building those relationships, building that trust and continuing to push that standard of how we operate, you know, to grow together as a team and as a family for this year that's ahead. To the guys that are coming back and experience the pain of how last year finished, do you just try to nip that in the bud right at the start of spring ball or do you kind of use it as motivation? Well, I mean, you know, the pain that was experienced, that was back in December and January, you know, now it's about building for what's ahead. You know, I think in life you always look back to experiences that you've had and, you know, you try to learn the lessons. And, you know, a lot of things that are in your control that you can be able to have an impact on.

And then sometimes there's things that are outside of your control that you still have to work through and go through. And so for us, I mean, once we started back in January, it's all focuses on what we could do today, where we can go, where we can get better, the things that we can grow upon as a team and as a program. And that's been our sole focus. And when we go into spring practice, I just want to be better than we've ever been. And, you know, our guys understand that expectation. It's been the same expectations for the last four years.

And you're definitely fired up about the group I get to do this with. So now the CFP, as Mike Norvell is here with us, is going to 12 teams. There's already talks that it's going to be going to 14.

I don't like going to that many teams. If I'm going to expand, I would have gone to six or eight. But what are your thoughts now as you get ready to embark on year one of a 12-team college football playoff and potential expansion down the road? You know, you just try to continue to grow and put yourself in position to achieve all that you can. And, you know, I've got a lot of confidence in this team. I like where we've started with our winter program. I like the steps that we've taken. Really enjoy coaching this group. And I'm excited to get into spring practice. But, you know, we know that this is a team that we want to compete to be our best.

And, you know, here at Florida State, there is a standard of excellence. And we want to be in the conversation and put ourselves in position to be competing for championships. But at the end of the day, I mean, if we could take care of the things that we ultimately can't control, you know, I believe in where we're going and what we'll be able to have in front of us.

But whether it's 12, 14, whatever that number eventually becomes or, you know, whatever that is, you know, we don't have all the say when it comes to that. But if we can go be our best and put ourselves in a position to take that step and to get into the playoffs, and, you know, I'll be really proud of what we've been able to accomplish and what we'll be able to do. We all read the Chris Lowe article that came out the other day and it was talking about how Alabama was interested in you and Kalen DeBoer. How do you kind of just reflect back at that experience? I know it ended up working out well for you.

You get the extension from Florida State and you stay at a place where you have it moving in the right direction. Well, I'm excited about the opportunity we have here and excited about the steps that we've taken. I'm excited about what we're building. Definitely excited about where we're going. And this is a special place.

It's a special place with special people. And I'm honored to be the head coach here at Florida State. And I've got a great responsibility for what we need to do and where we need to continue to grow.

And there's been a tremendous investment within our program to help impact the student athletes of what they're trying to do on the field, off the field, in the classroom. And we just are continuing to push to be better in all areas and definitely excited about what the future holds here in Tallahassee. Now you are the guy at Florida State and you have a lot of buy-in and a lot of people have belief in what you're doing with what you guys have shown in the football field the last two years.

Like, let's say now, since we know that you're staying here, administration comes to you. There's all this talk about the future of Florida State and the ACC. Like, just what are your opinions on Florida State's future with all these rumors that maybe it's the Big Ten or the SEC that's going to come call it?

You know, for us, it's control of things that we can control. And that's what we do as a football team. And, you know, obviously as a program continuing to get better, you know, obviously we got a great history in the ACC. And, you know, obviously coming back into this season is defending ACC champs.

I mean, we know that we're not going to be sneaking up on anybody. And obviously the opportunity to go and continue to grow, continue to get better, you know, and put our best foot forward as a program. But, you know, right now, none of that really impacts this team and what's ahead. So for us, we're just going to go continue to take those positive steps. And you're definitely excited to see our team and this program continue to move towards the top. Two more for Mike Norvell. I'll ask you about some of your older players in just a bit as they get set for the NFL Draft.

But we talked about DJ Uwe Ungolay extensively. Who are just some other players that you're excited, whether they're newcomers or back with the program that you're just ready to see take a big step for you guys this upcoming year? Yeah, we've got a couple of newcomers that you offensively, that, you know, Malik Benson, you're joining the program, receiver coming over from Alabama. You've really been impressed with him in the first eight weeks of our spring season.

You know, we're looking forward to spring practice and getting him out there, looking at our offensive line. We got a very experienced group up front that I think has a chance to continue to improve, continue to get better from where we've been and what we've been able to do defensively. I think when you look at our defensive front, yes, we were, you know, we graduated a couple of great players. But when you look at guys like Pat Payton, Josh Farmer, Darryl Jackson, that I think have really taken some tremendous steps. You have a couple of newcomers that are joining the program, excited about them. And then, you know, just you're looking at that defense as a whole. I think we've got a great mix of young explosive players with guys that got that also have a great experience like a DJ Lundy, Zari Thomas, you know, Fittrell Cypress, Shaheem Brown. I mean, you know, guys that have really done some great things for us. So I've just seen that mix and how those guys all come together.

And it's definitely setting up for what's going to be a fun spring ball and looking forward to seeing those guys go and grow and get better. I remember this time last year, we were talking about Jared Vers and we were talking about his top 10 potentially NFL draft. Keon Coleman entered that first round conversation as well and then Fisk with what he was able to do at the Combine.

I saw Todd McShay the other day said he wouldn't be surprised if he's a first round there. Just how about those three guys who could all be first round picks for you guys coming up at the end of April in the draft? I mean, all those guys are special players. They showed that throughout the course of this last season. Obviously, as you go to the Combine and you see the way that our guys just as a whole perform, I mean, it was really special and just some tremendous performances. We had 12 guys that went and multiple of those guys were in the top three, top five of their position in all testing. And it shows the preparation.

It shows the training, the development, all the work that's been put in. You're definitely a great shout out to Coach Josh Storms, the strength and conditioning coach and his staff and what he was able to do with some very talented young men. And you're seeing them go and perform in that moment. I definitely fired up for their futures in the National Football League. And I truly believe that for all the things that they do on the field, each of those guys that were there, I mean, they're special young men off the field. And they'll definitely make any NFL organization proud of how they represent them.

And it's just truly a special group. Well, it's a credit to their hard work, but also a credit to what you and your staff has really built there at Florida State. Appreciate you taking a few moments today and we're excited.

I know it's 170 days away, but it's going to be coming up sooner rather than later. And we can't wait to see another season of Florida State Seminoles football. So thanks for doing this, coach.

Yeah, I appreciate that. And to go Knowles. Sean Salisbury scheduled to join us coming up 15 minutes from now. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. Our poll question today. You can find it on social media on Twitter at Zach Gelb or at CBS Sports Radio.

Make sure when you're at those pages, you give them a follow. ZCH GLB or at CBS Sports Radio. Will Russell Wilson be on the Steelers next season? 53.4% say yes.

46.6% say no. Now, I knew Russell Wilson was interested in the Steelers. I didn't know if the Steelers would have interest in him. And what they're doing per the report by Jerry Dulac is that they're going to bring him in and they're going to meet with him.

So they'll have some meeting. It doesn't mean that he's going to get signed. I think this is a bigger point to Kenny Pickett where I do believe down deep. The Steelers believe that Kenny Pickett is going to be their guy for this upcoming season. But I don't think that they have an abundance of confidence in Kenny Pickett. Like if they just bring back Mason Rudolph, does that really intimidate Kenny Pickett? Does that really make Kenny Pickett understand, hey, my job is on the line this year? Or do you kind of look for excuses to make like blaming Matt Canada last year?

Or getting injured as well? I think when you flirt with a quarterback, even though Russ's stock is not in the best situation right now, but a guy that's won a Super Bowl and he's been to nine Pro Balls, I think they're trying to kind of put football smelling salts maybe underneath the nostrils of one Kenny Pickett and say, let's go. Let's wake you up, Kenny. And let's get the best version of Kenny Pickett here in your number three with the Pittsburgh Steelers. 855-2124, CBS 855-2122-27. So I do think Kenny Pickett will be the starting quarterback of the Steelers this year.

I don't think that's the best decision though. Let's go to Chris in California next up on the Zach Gelb show. Chris, what's shaking? Hey, what's going on, Zach? Doing great.

What do you got for me? So the last time the Steelers won a playoff game was back in 2016. And I think that's probably when Kenny Pickett started his college career. So how is all of this any of Kenny Pickett's fault? I mean, give the guy a chance to develop. I feel like he hasn't got a fair shake from the get-go.

All I heard from the beginning when he got drafted is he had small hands. And then the next thing you know, you throw him in at halftime in week four and with little preparation at his rookie year. And then he gets hurt. It's like the Steelers have not give this guy a fair shake. And I've seen multiple quarterbacks that possibly don't deserve more of an opportunity. Like who? And like the guy from Chicago.

But hold on. Kenny Pickett's in a better situation by far than Justin Fields has ever been in. But the thing is, Kenny Pickett started out, he was a rookie, you know? And he had wide receivers talking behind his back, you know? And you didn't have a solidified old line.

Well, you got to control what you could control. The guy has played in 25 games in the NFL and he's a pedestrian 13 touchdowns at 13 interceptions. Now I can't sit here and say that Kenny Pickett is going to be the star when there was even a question heading into the draft what his ceiling was going to be. And a lot of teams didn't believe in him because he fell to what, 20th? And he was the only quarterback in the first round? The thing is, what people fail to realize is Kenny Pickett is a team player.

It doesn't matter if you run the ball in the end zone. He is a team guy. No, Matt Castle was a team guy. Doesn't mean that we should be advocating for him to be a franchise quarterback.

No, no, no. These are two different people. Kenny Pickett has all the intangibles. If you need him to win a game, he will win you a game and he's proven it to do so. It wasn't his fault that he got hurt. But who played better at the end of the season? Mason Rudolph. Mason Rudolph, he didn't do anything.

What do you mean? He took the team to the playoffs. Those were three team wins. Come on, you can't get mad that people don't make excuses for Kenny Pickett. And then you're trying to take away when someone else does something. How do you know that Kenny Pickett wouldn't have won those three games as well?

I don't know if he would have, but I can't sit here and say that he would have. You guys are quick to run Kenny Pickett out of town, bench him, and then- I just said he's gonna be the starting quarterback next year, did I not? I'm not talking particularly about you. I'm talking about the mainstream media. Well, you're talking to me.

You're not talking about everybody. You're talking on this show to me. But again, you represent the national sports news. So that's why I'm calling in and you went ahead and put a poll on Twitter to see if Russell Wilson was gonna be with the Steelers or not. So that's why I'm calling in. Hey, you and Brandon Stokely share something in common. Blaming me for everyone else's takes.

I'm not blaming you. I'm just frustrated on why, you know- So let me ask you this. Let me ask you this, Chris. Chris, let me just ask you this. You are a frustrated Kenny Pickett supporter. What is the ceiling of Kenny Pickett? Five years from now, Kenny Pickett is doing what in the NFL? He can go toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes.

Oh, my goodness gracious. Yes, he can. Mahomes? He can go toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes, yes.

Based off of what? Just give me something that you could tangibly latch on to here that makes you think he go toe to toe with Patrick Mahomes. A decent O-line and some level-headed wide receivers, some targets. If you had level-headed wide receivers in the Pittsburgh Steelers room, you know, they possibly would have had a lot more points. I mean, a lot of these, what, six touchdowns he had? A lot of them weren't basically on Kenny Pickett. There was drops, and then also go look at that, George Pickens, where he wasn't able to put his last foot in bounds to make that touchdown.

There's many factors that play in... You know a lot of quarterbacks have overcome not level-headed wide receivers and still have gone on to have greatness, right? You know that. Yes, but have many of them won anything? Yeah.

I mean, I'm not going to go back in history. Troy Aikman? Was Michael Irvin the most level-headed person?

Chris, I appreciate the phone call. You got to be related to Kenny Pickett. And I'm not, I don't believe Kenny Pickett's going to be great. And I think there's better options than him. Like the guy that he just trashed from Chicago and Justin Fields, I think Russell Wilson would be a better option. I'd have more, like, tomorrow Michael Penix Jr. and Kenny Pickett are both coming out the same year. Who you picking? I'm picking Michael Penix Jr.

So like, what are we doing here? But like, if he would have said, I think Kenny Pickett could be, hmm, give me like an average, like an above average quarterback in the NFL, like a solid quarterback in the NFL. Derek Carr. If you tell me he could have been Derek Carr, I don't think that's a ring endorsement, but like Derek Carr has had a long career. At times, he's been on the cusp of being a top 10 quarterback, but he's never consistently been a top 10 quarterback, unless if you ask his brother, David. But if you're going to swing for the fence and tell me he could go toe for toe, punch for punch with Patrick Mahomes, what are we doing?

What are we doing? Because let me tell you what would have happened. If Patrick Mahomes would have had George Pickens this year and didn't have George Pickens, this year and Deontay Johnson compared to who? Rashee Rice and Marquis Valdes-Scantling? Mahomes just won a Super Bowl with nothing. What would he have done with George Pickens and Deontay Johnson? I understand Pickens and Johnson, they're on the verge of killing one another, but there have been a lot of quarterbacks in this league that have had to deal with wide receivers, like Donovan McNabb had to deal with Terrell Owens. Did they get to a Super Bowl?

Yeah. Tom Brady, right? There was a perception about Randy Moss. Moss got to New England. Moss behaved himself with Brady.

They almost went undefeated. It's like you could win with receivers that caused some problems on the sidelines, but Kenny Pickett doesn't have the right, like right now. You have receivers that are annoyed, okay, play better. And there's excuses to be made, but to call up and say, he could be Patrick Mahomes based off what? The guy has had one good season in his career. And that was when he was at Pitt, in the final season at Pitt. And I'm not a Kenny Pickett hater. I'm not saying the guy sucks, but I'm not going to sit here and say he's great. He's a top 10. You know, if Kenny Pickett ever turns into a top 15 quarterback in the NFL, that's successful for him.

Because outside of one year at Pitt, it's not like this guy has a lot to latch on to. All right, Chris in California, Kenny Pickett's Stan, how about that? By the way, where's Ryan and Santa Barbara been? He was on hold once after the Super Bowl, and he never got through.

And we haven't heard from him since his 40 whiners lost the Super Bowl. So we're part of the Batman signal out there, Ryan and Santa Barbara. Because Chris and Ryan, that could be an epic call off. If you get both of them going, Chris on the Kenny Pickett love, and then Ryan obviously with his delusional love for his San Francisco 49ers. Coming on back, Kenny Pickett, the next Mahomes.

How about that? Old man winter here. If I had it my way, it would stay winter all year long. Short days, wind chill, black ice, and a good polar vortex.

Heaven. Wait, is it getting warm in here? Your cold snap is over, old man winter. Spring has arrived.

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