The 49ers Are Closer to MISSING Playoffs (Hour 1)

Live from the play show, yet not overly ostentatious, studios of the Infinity Sports Network here in beautiful New York City, sitting on top of the 10th floor of 345 Hudson Street. Welcome on in to what is a Tuesday edition of the Zach Gelb show across all the great local Infinity Sports Network affiliates, Sirius XM channel 375, the free Odyssey app, and as always, streaming on YouTube. 855-212-4227 is the number to jump on in. That's 855-212-4227.

You could always get at me on Instagram, where I'm straight flexing, or via the good ol' cesspool of Twitter, at Zach Gelb. That's Z-A-C-H-G-E-L-B. A whole lot to do today as we are in the second day of the legal tampering window, which legal tampering could be my two favorite words in sports. I think they are better than Game 7. I think they are better than World Championship. I will say this, too.

I think that's also a great misnomer. And while people do that so cheesy, the best two words in sports, Game 7. Don't get me wrong, I love me some Game 7s, but I'd much rather say World Champion than Game 7.

Now, sometimes you have to win a Game 7 in order to become a World Champion, but that's always a little thing that has always annoyed me. Seth Payne's gonna stop by, coming up at the top of the hour. We'll try to make sense out of what the Houston Texans are doing. Trading away Laramie Tunstall yesterday, but then being aggressive and finding a way to go get C.J. Gardner-Johnson today, which was a trade that did catch me by surprise. But I want to start off in the NFC, and I want to start off with the San Francisco 49ers.

Adam Schefter perfectly put out a tweet this morning. The 49ers have traded Deebo Samuel this offseason. They have got rid of, in cutting them, Kyle Juszczek, Leonard Floyd, Javon Hargrave, Emily Collins. And then in free agency, they have seen Dre Greenlaw, Traverius Ward, Talanoa Hufunga, Aaron Banks, Jalen Moore, Elijah Mitchell, and Josh Dobbs all depart the organization. Now, some of those names are big losses.

Some of those names are not. But you look at the San Francisco 49ers, they were a team that for the last four, five years, we walked into the football season. We said, okay, the 49ers are expected to win the NFC West. The 49ers are expected to go compete for a Super Bowl championship. And we've seen the Niners get to two Super Bowls. We've seen the Niners up 10 twice to the Kansas City Chiefs, not be able to secure the Lombardi Trophy and finish the game. Now the 49ers have gone through a wave, and they've been close, but yet so far, and now they need to reshape their organization a bit. Where it's difficult, but guys that have done a lot of good things to that organization are going to either leave on their own power because the money's not good enough in San Francisco with how many guys they've paid, or you've got to start to trim the fat in San Francisco and say goodbye to guys that have helped you throughout the last four, five years. It's difficult, but this is the life of the NFL when you have a very good roster, one of the best rosters in football, and you've been so close, but yet so far, and guys naturally get older, and also guys that are expensive either aren't worth it anymore, or you got to say goodbye to them because you need to pay other people.

And the Niners had a window here where they tried with two rookie quarterbacks, and it didn't work out with Trey Lance. They found a way to quickly to pivot to Brock Purdy, and now Brock Purdy is in line for a big contract extension. Now I don't know how much money Brock Purdy is going to make. Do I think it's going to be what was out there last week of only $45 million? And I say only, once again, as we learned yesterday, that is what the market is, right, for the position. For most people, $45 million, right, it's a ridiculous amount of money. For a quarterback, though, $45 million a year, if you are considered to be a very good or a great quarterback, or if you're in that market, you could talk yourself into that market, is really not that much money for the quarterback position.

Relative to the position. So you could have an opinion on Brock Purdy. I think Brock Purdy has the ability to be a good quarterback.

Brock Purdy has won a lot of games in this league. Do I view Brock Purdy right now, today, as a top 10 quarterback? I do not. Do I view Brock Purdy today as an elite quarterback? No, I do not. Do I view Brock Purdy today as someone that there's no doubt about it to me as a franchise quarterback in this league?

No, I do not. But no matter how he got there, Brock Purdy, the last two years, has won a lot of games. Brock Purdy has put the 49ers in a position to be in an NFC Championship game, be in a Super Bowl, and unfortunately this year, the injuries caught up to the San Francisco 49ers.

So I don't really think the Niners have a choice here. I don't think the Niners are going to get rid of Brock Purdy. You've had Joe Montana on this radio program say, hey, there's a lot of guys that have done a lot less than Brock Purdy that have been paid a lot more. Ultimately, I do think Brock Purdy this offseason is going to get paid, and the dollar amount per year is going to begin with the five.

I do. I think we're looking at 50-plus million dollars a year and maybe then some for Brock Purdy. If he, 53, 54, 55 million dollars a year, that's what I think we're seeing for Brock Purdy. And I can hear the phone calls now.

I can read the comments now right in the YouTube chat. Zach, what are you doing, Brock Purdy? He's not worth 53, 55 million dollars a year. I understand the point. I'm not saying I would comfortably give Brock Purdy 53, 54, 55 million dollars a year. I'm just telling you what is going to happen. You do the math here, and I'm not great at math, but you look at the guys that the Niners are getting rid of.

Deebo, Juschek, Hargrave, you know, Trevarious Ward, Hufunga. Like, you go through some of these guys that have done a lot of good things with the San Francisco 49ers in a small amount of time or a long amount of time, potentially seeing Brandon Aiyuk, who they just paid last offseason, also potentially getting dealt. And you're telling me that with all those guys leaving and the mass exodus of players that we see saying goodbye to the 49ers and going somewhere else, that they're not getting ready to give Brock Purdy a massive extension?

Of course they are. And we're going to ultimately find out how great Brock Purdy is and what the ceiling of Brock Purdy is, because right now I don't know what the ceiling of Brock Purdy is. All I know right now is Brock Purdy is a good quarterback, Brock Purdy is a solid quarterback, and Brock Purdy has won a lot of games but has also been on a really good team. And obviously, you need a lot of good players in this league around you to go on out there and win a Super Bowl. Like, we just had the same conversation with Jalen Hurts, and I get it. In the biggest game twice, Jalen Hurts outplayed Patrick Mahomes not only once, but twice. But some people with Jalen Hurts go, oh, it's because he has AJ Brown, oh, it's because he has Devante Smith, oh, it's because he has Saquon Barkley, Saquon Barkley. Or, oh, he has Dallas Gotter, right? Oh, look at the offensive line.

Little PSA. You need good. You need great players around you to win. Every quarterback needs it. It's a team game.

It's not an individual game. So, how great can Brock Purdy be? I don't know. Has Brock Purdy been more good than bad the last three years?

Yes. But ultimately, we're going to find out the true value of Brock Purdy in the next year or two. Because going into this season, there's no more Deebo Samuel. I don't know what we could expect out of Christian McCaffrey coming off the injury. Kyle Juszczek, who I get is just a fullback.

He's more than a fullback. He's no longer on the team. Trent Williams is still great, but he's only getting older and older. You've now lost some other players as well on the defensive side of the ball, and you still may lose on the offensive side of the ball, Brandon Iuch. So, there's a chance that Brock Purdy could go into this season without Deebo Samuel, without Brandon Iuch, Kittle getting another year older. And, oh, yeah, by the way, you don't know how healthy Christian McCaffrey is going to be.

And you're going to be holding your breath game in and game out whenever he's on the football field. So, we will learn the true value of Brock Purdy, not with the contract that he gets this offseason, but in the next year or two. And if the Niners are still in the mix, if the Niners are still in the contending hunt, and you take a glance and you look at the Niners and we view them as you head into Thanksgiving as a team that is top three, top four, top five team in the NFC, then even if you're not a Brock Purdy believer, even if you don't right now rock out with your Brock out, or even when you look at Brock Purdy right now, you don't look at him and say, oh, he looks Purdy awesome. If you're not saying those things now, if Brock Purdy, with everything working against him this offseason, several weeks into this upcoming season, 10-11, if the Niners are back to looking like the Niners, if they're back and just saying, hey, the Niners last year was an outlier, it was injuries, it was a bad storm, but we're looking back to being the team that they were, winning the NFC West, contending for the Super Bowl, then Brock Purdy is better than what you think.

I'm not saying that's going to be the case. I'm just telling you how this is going to go, where Brock's going to get paid, and ultimately, we're going to see the real value of Brock Purdy after he gets his money. Now, with that being said, how do I view the San Francisco 49ers heading into this season? They've lost a lot. They're not rebuilding.

They are shuffling the deck, because they need to make way to give a mega contract to Brock Purdy, and unfortunately, some guys had to be cap casualties. Some guys, getting older, you have to say goodbye to them, even though they've done a lot of good things for this organization, as the Niners, for the last five to six years, had been a contending team, right? Bunch of NFC West championships, and two appearances in the Super Bowl. But with all that being said, I enter this football season with the San Francisco 49ers, and clearly, it's not just, oh, because they didn't make the playoffs last year, but with all that they've lost in this offseason already, and the minimal additions they've made, the Niners have clearly taken a step back. The Niners are still going to be a good team, but the Niners aren't just playing anymore with Kyle Shannon as their coach, with John Lynch as their general manager, to be a good team. They're trying to go win a Super Bowl still, and I don't enter this season looking at the 49ers, even though they have a bunch of still great players, saying that's one of the top three teams in the NFL. You know, that's a top team in the NFC. That's an elite team in the NFC.

I don't say that anymore. I look at the NFC heading into this season, and I say the Eagles are the best team in the NFC. Then after that, it's the Lions. And right now, I would say just inside their own division, I would give the edge to the Rams over the 49ers. Like, if you ask me right now, who are your four division winners?

Eagles, Lions, Bucks, Rams. So if that's the case, okay, there's only three wildcard spots. Would you rather be the commanders or the 49ers right now?

I'd rather be the commanders. So that's a, you know, those are five spots off the board. And then it leaves you with two spots left, and you have teams like the Packers, the Vikings, the Bears, yes, the 49ers, and the Atlanta Falcons, and you pick two. Can the San Francisco 49ers make the playoffs this upcoming year?

Absolutely. But in years past, we would walk into the season, we'd be doing these predictions, and without hesitation, you would say, Niners win in the NFC West. Niners a top three team in the NFC. Niners Super Bowl contender. Niners NFC champion. Niners Super Bowl champion.

That's the way that you would feel in these predictions. Going into this season, I think the Niners are good. Can the Niners be great? We'll have to see. And ultimately, Brock Purdy, who has been really good with a lot around him, now has fewer options around him, and there could be more being taken away from him if they say goodbye to Brandon Auk as well.

And he's going to get paid this offseason, but he will ultimately have to prove how great he will be and what his worth is in the next year or two. And I look at the Niners right now as they've taken a step back. Yes, they still have a chance to get to the big game.

Yes, they're still a good team. It's not inconceivable to say that they're going to go to the Super Bowl. But heading into this season, I do not expect the Niners to win the NFC West. I expect it to be the Rams. And I do not expect the San Francisco 49ers to be a team that is playing in the Super Bowl. I don't. And even if the Niners win the NFC West, are they going to be the number one seed?

Probably not. So they'll get a home game and then have to go on the road twice to get to the Super Bowl. But right now, I view the Niners as a wildcard team.

And if that's the case, then they're going to have to go on the road in all likelihood three times to get to the Super Bowl. And do I think this group right now, as we sit here on the 11th day of March in the year of 2025, do I think the Niners are a Super Bowl contender? Do I think the Niners are one of the three best teams in the NFC? Do I think the Niners are even the best team in the NFC West?

No, I do not. And that's the step back that the Niners have taken, where it was a foregone conclusion for almost the last half decade. Niners will win the NFC West. Niners are going to be in the Super Bowl hunt. And now they're thrown into, maybe they win the division, but probably not. The Rams are better. And they're in the wildcard contending hunt to go make a sixth or a seventh seed. That's where I view the Niners right now.

I think the Niners right now are closer to missing the playoffs than they are to being the number one overall seed or being a team that gets back to the Super Bowl and hoists the Lombardi Trophy. They're good. They're not very good. They're good. They're not great.

They're good. They're not elite. And that's where they've fallen because they were elite for a while. I'm not even saying they're great right now.

I'm not even saying they're very good. They're a good team with upside. But now there are some questions and we haven't had a lot of questions for the last half decade with the San Francisco 49ers.

So how do you view the 49ers 8-5-5 2-1-2 42-27 8-5-5 2-1-2 42-27. We'll take a break when we come on back. Aaron Rodgers to the Steelers has to happen. Come on back in five minutes. Zach Yelb Show Infinity Sports Network. I'll get to Aaron Rodgers in just a second and why he needs to go to the Steelers.

But first, I'm going to go around the room here. Luka Nakua, one of my favorite players in the league is changing his jersey number. He was 17. Stu, what do you think his new number is going to be? You got to take a guess. 85. Samter? One. If this was the Price is Right, Samter, come on down. Right? Because you have to be low on the Price is Right.

You can't go over. Correct, Amundo, in terms of your guess? Correct. One dollar. Mm-hmm.

Honestly, unless if he was zero, there's no way that you could have lost. He is changing his number from 17 to 12. I love Puka Nakua. He wore 12 at BYU.

12 to me for Puka Nakua just doesn't seem right. So that's one great. Second question. We're not going to get political, but I just have to ask this question. And I'm curious what your answer is. We have official word on this after much speculation.

Do you think, Stu, that the Philadelphia Eagles will attend the White House? I have seen this already, so I will bow out of answering the question. Okay. Do not answer the question. Yes.

Thank you. Samter, do you think the Philadelphia Eagles will attend the White House? I think that they will, although I think that maybe a few players might choose not to go.

But I think that the team will go. Yes or no? Yeah. Okay.

Stu? Yes, they will go. The Eagles, according to John Clark, NBC Sports Philadelphia, will be going to the White House on Monday, April 28th to celebrate their Super Bowl championship. I don't know if the whole team's going to go. Right.

It's not a mandatory event. I always say this about the White House. I don't care who's in office. If I won a Super Bowl, if I won a championship and I had an opportunity to go to the White House, I would still go.

That's just me. But if you go, great. Enjoy it.

If you don't go, I don't think we need to shame you. That's kind of the way. I know that's very politician answer right there. But that's my kind of answer on that. Okay.

I have not told either of you the answer to this question. I have got a verbal commitment from a potential huge guest that could be joining us as soon as next week. I was at the DMV today. I did not run into this person, by the way, at the DMV, but I had to go to the DMV because I need to do that enhanced license. You could do either the real idea, the enhanced license. And I think by April 7th, you need it to fly.

You don't have to bring a passport. So I made the appointment a month ago. I said, I'm going to put it in my calendar.

I don't have a printer where I live. So yesterday I left the office and I had to print out a bank statement to prove my address and also a form. And I got to my apartment last night.

I watched the reunion of season three of The Traders, which is a great show, by the way. And then I'm sitting there after I made myself dinner last night. What did I have? Oh, I made myself a salad with chicken sausage, some onions and some string beans in it.

You know, I wanted to do something healthy. And I'm sitting there and it's nine o'clock and I go, oh bleep. I forgot to print out the form.

I forgot to print out the statement. And I said, I got to go back to the office because my appointment's at 10 15 in the morning. And I wanted to go to the gym before the show.

So I it's only a 10 minute or less subway ride. I got in the subway, got to the office. I may have played a prank last night. I walked into the studio and I said to Hickey, you guys are off the air. I said to him, they just and I could hear J.R. like he's talking. And I go, David just called me, said I need to come in because you guys aren't on the air. And Hickey frantically was looking around and I go, I'm just kidding.

I have to go get my enhanced idea. And I forgot to print something out. So anyway, said hello to Hickey, said goodbye to Hickey, printed out my forms, was back on my couch by no later than 10 o'clock for the rest of the evening.

So that's what I ended up doing. But I'm in the DMV this morning. And for this new idea, you know, the last time I got an updated photo on my license was the first photo I took.

It was for my permit when I was 16. So they make you with this new idea, take a new photo, even if you just got a new photo. So they call they make they made you wait for 20 minutes. They call you up for the photo. Then they send you back. It's not like once your number is called, you take the photo and then you go get the forms done.

So they then make you go sit back down. I'm like, all right, 20 minutes. Already got the photo done pretty good. And I've taken an hour and 20 minutes.

Not the end of the world, but the whole thing was an hour and 20 minutes. So while I'm there, I'm like, just on my phone watching, you know, NFL news, tweeting things out, saw that Daniel Jones ended up signing with the Indianapolis Colts. And I'll give you my reaction on it later. And I said, you know what? I'm going to text a certain individual. And I texted a certain individual because he was in the off-season news cycle. And I said to this individual, hey, good luck in your new destination. I'll leave the destination out because it will give it away.

And then that person immediately got back. And I said, by the way, you know, I know we've exchanged some messages. If you'd love to come on my show, we'd love to get you on. You know, I know this week could be a little bit busy if you can't do this week, maybe in some of the upcoming weeks. And that person said, absolutely.

When everything settles down, we can find the day and time that works. Any idea who this person is? Any idea? I could tell Samthor knows who it is. Because Samthor already has a bleep eating grin. He does on his face. Samthor is very confident. But I don't want Samthor to guess right away. Stu, no offense.

You look like you have no clue what's going on. Might be a total guess. Yeah. Take it.

Take a total guess. Can you start at the board? Yeah.

Oh, is it OK? Was that who you were going to guess, Samthor? I was going LeBron James.

I figured you were going to stick it to Shep. Draymond Green coming up on the show. No, but Kenny Pickett. And that was in the news yesterday for us, right?

In our universe. Because Chris in California, who's the biggest Kenny Pickett hunk, he called us up and he's like, the NFL is colluding against Kenny Pickett. I'm like, Chris, I don't think it's collusion with you.

I think it's delusion. So maybe what, 45 minutes later, we get the breaking news alert that Kenny Pickett has traded to the Cleveland Browns. So he has verbally committed to to joining the Zach Gelb show on the Infinity Sports Network. So we will have Kenny Pickett, which, by the way, Chris in California, when he hears Kenny Pickett on this show, we may need a medic on standby because I think he may pass out the moment he hears Kenny Pickett's voice or sees Kenny Pickett, whether it's on YouTube or on our airwaves. So Kenny Pickett scheduled to join us until he breaks our heart. Like he broke my heart once he was committed to go to Temple and then he ended up going to Pitt.

So that happens anyway. Aaron Rodgers, doesn't it have to be Aaron Rodgers to the Steelers? I like the only way I think Aaron Rodgers doesn't go to the Steelers is that the Steelers really aren't that interested in him. And Aaron Rodgers keeps on throwing out the Steelers name to drive up the price from the New York Giants because the Giants are desperate. Like the Giants right now, they're staring at Aaron Rodgers or Russell Wilson. I think they have to bring in one of those guys.

If they bring in Aaron Rodgers, I think it's trickier to still take a quarterback in the first round, but not impossible. If they don't get Aaron Rodgers, I think Joe Shane needs to call Mike Borgonzi and say, hey, I'll give you a three. I'll give you two threes. We swap ones. I go up to one and you take Kim Ward.

Maybe at most you do a swap of ones, a three and a two. We've talked about that. But the Giants are desperate. But if Aaron Rodgers, I think, was legitimately interested in the Giants, he would have already gone there. I just I don't know why this is taking that long.

I would say I'd hope we get clarity by the end of today. But you never know with Rodgers. He likes drama.

He likes to drag things out. But the reason why I think this is definitely going to happen is what the heck do the Steelers do? If they if Aaron Rodgers says he's going to the Giants, you really bring him back. Russell Wilson. I'd rather have Aaron Rodgers than Russell Wilson.

And in the year of twenty twenty five and neither really make me jump up and down like a fat kid in a candy store. But you look at the Steelers, assuming George Pickens stays there and we'll get more on that later. You also then have DK Metcalf, you just traded for. I know Darje Harris is no longer there as Najee Harris just signed a one year contract with the Los Angeles Chargers. But I don't think there's any excitement in Steelers lands or any excitement in our world. If we get this announcement that Russell Wilson is resigning with the Pittsburgh Steelers. Like I'm not saying you look at Aaron Rodgers and you say, oh, the league quarterback still a Super Bowl. But the goal for the Steelers and I said this before, in the next two years, they either have to find their franchise quarterback. Obviously, Aaron Rodgers and Russell Wilson aren't that or they need to win a playoff game in the next two years.

And if they don't do that, then it's time to say goodbye, even though he's a very good coach to Mike Tomlin. And if I if you ask me, Zach, who do you think has a greater ability in Pittsburgh next year with the roster that they have to win a playoff game? Is it Aaron Rodgers at Russell Wilson? I think it's Aaron Rodgers. So this makes too much sense for both sides.

Yes, it doesn't address a long term need. Neither does Russell Wilson, though, and it gets them better at the quarterback position. I know people say, oh, well, the stats are more in favor of Russ. Rodgers coming off an Achilles.

And I still think that takes you a full year to recover once you return to the playing field. Who do I think has the higher ceiling for this upcoming year in the NFL? Rodgers or Russ? I think it's Rodgers and I would go with Rodgers. And if you put a gun to my head, one playoff game.

I know the Steelers have won a playoff game since 2016 season. Who gives you a better chance? Who would you rather rock and roll with in that playoff game to get the job done? Even with the shortcomings of Aaron Rodgers in the postseason, I would say it's Rodgers over Russ.

So I look at this from two ways. I think the Steelers need Aaron. I think Aaron needs the Steelers because if the Steelers don't get Aaron, then they're going back to Russ. Blah. If Aaron Rodgers doesn't get the Steelers, you're going to the Giants.

That's a sad, a sad, pathetic end to the career for Aaron Rodgers. You're not making the playoffs with the Giants. I get it. You have Malik neighbors. I get you have Tyrone Tracy Jr.

But what else do you got? And Aaron, I know the Pittsburgh Steelers offensive line isn't one of the greatest offensive lines of all time. They've had problems. But the Giants have been trying to fix their offensive line for, I don't know, the last decade. And you're not a spring chicken anymore.

You're getting older. So I really think that it would be a sad ending if Aaron Rodgers stays in New York and quarterbacks the New York Giants. It would be entertaining because, right, it's Aaron Rodgers once again in the New York media market.

And he just basically jumped from the Jets to the Giants. But in terms of what elicits a better reaction for me in terms of what makes sense more for me, it's Aaron Rodgers picking the Pittsburgh Steelers. And I think both parties needs this to happen. All right. We'll take a time out. We'll come on back. We'll teach some of the biggest stories in the world of sports with some audio.

We'll get to a news brief next update time. First, here's the act man, Rich Ackerman. The defensive play of the week is sponsored by the Navy Federal Credit Union, who proudly serves the armed forces, DOD, veterans and their families. Their members are the mission.

Learn more at NavyFederal.org. This week's players, Celtics forward Jalen Brown in last night's 114-108 win over the Utah Jazz. Brown had three steals and a block.

Brown has now had at least three steals in 11 different games this season. Our guy, Stuart Kovacs, was this a birthday present? Is that what this was, Stu? Yes, this was a birthday present from my birthday back in November. OK, so you got a birthday present. I was going to say, I know Mike just had a birthday. I said I remember saying happy birthday to you, but I felt like that was a while ago. Sometimes I'll just say, oh, yeah, I feel like it was a few weeks ago.

And I know that could be literally a few weeks ago or that could be six months ago, something like that. So you got a birthday present in November and it was to go to the Lakers Nets game. Now, at the time, you know, like, all right, LeBron's going to be playing. LeBron obviously out the next one to two weeks because of a groin injury.

All right, it happens. You had no clue you were going to see Luka Doncic and the Nets are kind of out of the picture anyway. They stink and they just have a bunch of draft picks in their future, but you don't know where those are going to fall. We'll see what happens with the lottery and the ping pong balls.

And there's a bunch of swaps and things that could happen as well that may or may not go in their favor. So last night you got a bad performance. You kind of got the bleepy product of the NBA where you could buy tickets. And really, the NBA is the most unsafest league to buy tickets and then expect something like injuries could happen.

But you just never know what the effort is going to be and if it's going to be a load management night or not. And it seems like out of all the four major sports, the NBA is the regular season product that we care the least about. And the players care the least about as well. So I know that you did not get a great effort from the Lakers last night. You had a maligned Lakers team. What was kind of your impressions being at the Barclays Center last night? Yeah, it's funny.

I kind of like you said, I think the tickets like three days ago where you had to pay like 350 or so to get in. LeBron Luka, right? Yeah.

And then once LeBron was ruled out, it went down to like 120. So I think you got them somewhere in between, like not on that high end, kind of in the middle there. And that's the tough spot because you're with your girlfriend. You're going to have a good time there. Yeah. But there's nothing worse than going to a sports game and just your team just stinks or your team's out at full force. And you know that they're going to you probably thought going in, they could still win the game. I thought they could win.

Yeah. But there's there like was there a moment last night where you're like, oh, this is this is just boring to be at? No, I mean, they got off to a good start. They were up by like 10 or 12 in the first quarter.

But then it just it was downhill the whole way, especially the third quarter was pretty, pretty miserable. And were you angry at the game? No, I wasn't. Because that's like a it's a weird spot to be in. You're there with your longtime girlfriend. She did something nice for you.

Got you a gift. And you never know how it's going to be portrayed. Where if you're like in a miserable mood and you're sulking stew and you're angry stew and you got steam coming out your head. It's like, oh, I'm just trying to have a good time at the game.

Do something nice for your birthday. And then it becomes a fight. Something like that. Yeah, I was I think she was kind of shocked how not mad I was trying to tell her, like, it's the NBA.

It's just it's just it doesn't really matter. She was like elbowing you saying you could yell stew stew. Show some show some emotion.

Show some anger. I had two people behind me that were Laker fans that were they were those typical fans that were complaining about every single hour, every play. Where's the foul? Where's the foul?

It's like, no, Luca just kind of like flopped on a play. You know, there are two moments recently. One was at a sporting event.

One was today at the DMV. So you like when you go somewhere, you can never control the people around you. So I was at a Ranger game, Ranger Islander game last week, and there's two open seats next to me. So after the first period, my friend and I, right, we are two away from the aisle.

So like the two seats before the two aisle seats. So we just said, all right, like, we'll spread out. The moment we moved over, some guy behind us goes, do you mind if we move down there? And at first I wanted to be like, yeah, I do, because I wanted to sit on the aisle like we take these two seats. But I just didn't like I hesitated for a second. And he goes, my dad just had a knee replacement. So I'm like, all right. Like, I don't want to be a douche here.

I don't want to be a bad guy. So sure, your dad gets in the aisle. The dad was the nicest guy in the world.

The son. Every single moment there was something negative coming out of his mouth. And here's the thing. I don't understand the frustration at the Rangers getting blown out. This is one of the rare moments this year where the Rangers were kicking the snot out of the Islanders and he just wouldn't shut up. And then the guy sitting next to my buddy was just a complete drunk. And he's trying to start a fight with the Islander fan in front of him. And then the Islander fans girlfriend is turning around.

And let's just say she wasn't the classiest. And she's like mother bleeping him back. And I just go, I just want to enjoy the game. And then today I'm at the DMV guy sits down next to me. You've got to have a little etiquette. He's on the phone. And he's just not being mindful of how loud he is. And I know this is the pot calling the kettle black if I'm complaining about how loud somebody is. But he's sitting right next to me and he's chirping about his business problems over and over and over again. At one point he goes, yeah, I want to annoy the people around me. Too late, buddy. You already are knowing everyone around you.

It's amazing how people just don't know how to act when they're out in public. Drives me absolutely bonkers. Did you get some good food last night at the game? Ironically, I got a cheesesteak. You got a cheesesteak?

It's fine. There's only in the upper level. At the Barclays Center?

There's only a few things. There's like pizza, cheesesteak. Last time I got I went to the Barclays Center like two weeks ago, I got a burger. That was pretty good.

I am feeling the burger again. Honestly, if it's not for a concert, I don't really like the Barclays Center. I agree. I think for basketball, it's horrible. Absolutely horrible. It was really bad for hockey when the Islanders were there. I saw a game or two there and it was like, this is not this is not built for hockey or basketball. Like the lighting in the building is weird where it's made perfectly for a concert. It's just it's very dim in that building when you're there for basketball or you're there for a hockey game or March Madness.

I just don't think it's all that great. So I can't really knock you for your food, but you are going to Philly this weekend, right? Yes.

For my buddy's wedding. So there will be. Stu, I'm going to make this abundantly clear.

I know. If you come back and you tell me you went to Pats or Genos again after your last debacle in Philadelphia. I may be I know it's wheeling and dealing season in the NFL. I may be calling up some of the other shows and see what we get back for you, Stu. You need to get a proper Philadelphia cheesesteak, OK? That sounds good to me. I will do it. I promise. Well, I want to promise this time. But are you taking the train or are you driving?

We're driving, so this should not be an issue. Oh, well, you said that last time and it took you four hours to get to Philadelphia. I know. All right.

Without further ado, and I'm not talking about Freddie O'Doo. Let's update you. Some of the biggest stories in the world of sports. We get to a news brief right now. Time for your daily news brief. We get you caught up on the rumors, reports and reconnaissance from the day in sports.

I know your mind bleeped by this. I'm mind bleeped by this as well, because at first we didn't think the Browns are going to take a quarterback in the draft. Then Adam Schefter leading up to the combine was adamant. He said the thing he's most confident about, if anything happens in this draft, that the Browns will take a quarterback with their first round pick. So Stu and I both are like, all right, the Browns are taking a quarterback, whether it's at one, if they trade up, or if they just stay there at two.

This is Schefter, Adam Schefter on the ESPN yesterday talking about that statement that he made a few weeks ago. I said I was confident then. OK. It was only the process. I'm not as confident now.

OK, how about here? Interesting. I'm not as confident now. Hmm.

I think Cleveland and the Giants can go either way. Again, the intel, like we know how this works. Of course, of course. Early on in the process, I was, I was pretty confident that Cleveland was taking a quarterback. I am not that confident anymore. Can I just say it? Ah!

Like it's driving me nuts. I'm losing my mind here. Now, I don't think the Browns are going to take Abdul Carter anymore, because they just gave that big deal to Myles Garrett. So I think it's either going to be quarterback or Travis Hunter for the Cleveland Browns. That's what I think it's going to be. I don't think they're going to trade up to one.

Maybe they can. But I think it's either Shadore Sanders at two, assuming Cam Ward goes one. And I still think Cam won one award one way or another, whether it's Tennessee or the Giants is going to go one.

And then it becomes, do you want Shadore or do you want Travis Hunter? But I'm losing my mind over here with the Schefter stuff. And I love Schefter. He's phenomenal at what he does. He's the creme de la creme NFL insider. Hopefully that doesn't hurt anyone's feelings. And if it does, tough luck. But you tell me you're most confident in it, and now it's, oh, I'm not as confident in it.

And I mean this as a compliment, Chef D. Your words have a lot of clout. Your words can mentally bleep with people that follow these mock drafts and make mock drafts. So which one is it? Are they taking a quarterback or are they not? You're confident, now you're uncertain.

It's driving me absolutely bonkers. Alrighty, let's go to Ryan Hickey. So this was back at the NFL draft when the Colts drafted Anthony Richardson. And today I had a conversation with Hickey about the Indianapolis Colts signing Daniel Jones. But let's get the initial take from Ryan Hickey and what he thought when the Colts drafted Anthony Richardson with the fourth overall pick. We're here live at the draft. Instant reaction, Anthony Richardson is a Colt. It's a great day.

You want to know why? The Colts just got the quarterback with the highest ceiling in the draft. Let's go. Only one guy is going to be a top five quarterback outside of Bryce Young in this draft. It's going to be Anthony Richardson.

They trusted Shane Sykin. I love the gamble. Let's hope he pans out. Twenty percent chance.

But if he pans out, the Colts are super old contenders for the next 15 years. Lock it up. Let's go. Is this guy serious? I knew that take was bad in the moment. That's why I was trying to save him booing in the background.

He could hear my voice faintly and saying, hey, Hickey, I need a water. But this guy is saying it's a great day for the Colts. He has the highest ceiling in the draft. He said that if there's going to be a top quarterback outside of Bryce Young, it's going to be Anthony Richardson. Ended up being CJ Stroud as the top guy. So he screwed over Bryce Young.

He screwed over Anthony Richardson. And then here's what I don't get to. And I'm not a math guy. Like, I'm not good with formulas and equations, but he's saying all these positive things.

And it equals to only being a 20 percent chance that he's going to end up working out. Like, Stu, if I tell you, hey, you're wonderful. Hey, you're great. Hey, you're sensational.

Hey, you're the best behind the scenes guy that I ever worked with. But if I left the show, there's only a five percent chance that I take you. Like, that just totally negates all the other things that I said previously. So that's where Hickey absolutely lost me.

Yeah, the first 20 seconds of the video and then it just dropped off a cliff to 20 percent. Like, what? No. So they ended up getting Daniel Jones and he's going to compete with Anthony Richardson.

I still expect Anthony Richardson to be the starter, but I do think there will be a point next year where the Colts bench Anthony Richardson because Shane Steichen doesn't really like him and Anthony Richardson never is consistently able to be a good quarterback. But I'll ask you this. I texted Hickey today. Bang! Daniel Jones to Indy. What do you think are the two words that he said back to me?

Great signing. That would be wrong. Sam, do you want to take a guess here? What were the two words that Hickey wrote back to me when I broke the news to him that Daniel Jones is going to the Indianapolis Colts? Bleep you. Good guess.

It was kill me. Oh, no. So I'm just saying this. This is the ultimate test for the Hickey Hex. If Daniel Jones goes on to rejuvenate his career in Indianapolis, the Hickey Hex works in many different ways. Because he's been so positive about so many moves that the Colts have made. Carson Wentz years ago said it was going to be great. Anthony Richardson said he had the highest ceiling out of any of the quarterbacks in the draft.

Didn't work out. Now he's criticizing Daniel Jones. There's no reason to believe in Danny Dimes, but imagine if Danny Dimes goes on to be a good quarterback for the Colts.

Hey, the Hickey Hex is usually always undefeated. All right, let's get to Joe Mazzulla. His brother is on the coaching staff. He's like an assistant video coordinator with the Jazz.

How about going up against your brother last night, Coach Mazzulla? Joe, what is it meant to see your brother get his, you know, start with Utah over the last couple years here and see him kind of develop his own career out there? Yeah, I mean, he works for the other team. I didn't know that Joe Mazzulla had a brother that was on a staff with an NBA coaching staff.

And I was looking at him and I was like, I couldn't find him. And I read the article and it was he's the assistant video coordinator. So here's a reporter doing something nice. I know Joe Mazzulla is a robot and he basically shows no emotion. Hey, say something nice about your brother. You know, what is it like going up against him? You know, put a little spotlight on your brother pretty much. He goes, yeah, he's just on the other team. Joe Mazzulla, never change. That's awesome. Seth Payne joins us next. Zach Gelb's show, Infinity Sports Network.