QB Carousel: Marc Hochman, 560 WQAM

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Offer valid for a limited time, minimum order $10. Additional terms apply. The Miami Dolphins. From your show or I listen to your show, I just think about that ketchup that you put on cheesesteaks.

It drives me insane. My wife is from Philadelphia. She taught me that. She said proper Philadelphians put ketchup on a cheesesteak and I adopted it and I roll with that for the rest of my life.

Well, Howard Eskin, who's like the king of Philadelphia, needs to talk to your wife because he may revoke her Philadelphia card. He's very sensitive. Are you sure? Are you sure he doesn't put ketchup on a cheesesteak? Nah, he hates Cheez Whiz. He thinks Cheez Whiz is a violation, so I doubt he would put ketchup on a cheesesteak.

Wow. Do you go Cheez Whiz? Of course. To me, a premier cheesesteak is Cheez Whiz, obviously the steak, and a big load of ketchup squirted all over it. No onions? You don't go fried onions? I prefer not, to be quite honest.

I don't mind them, but I prefer not. See, the Cheez Whiz I could let you have at it with, that's fine. I usually go provolone or American, but if you're going ketchup and no onions, that's where I have the violation, Mark. Wow, you can't go American cheese on a cheesesteak, those acts.

Provolone, I'm with you, can't go American on that. You know what? I'm sure Odyssey would pay for this. You'll come up, we'll go to Della Sandros, I know the owners, and they will tell you how to order a cheesesteak. I'm sure all of our bosses will.

Alright, fair enough. Len Weiner, Spike Gaskin, David Field, Jeff Salolano, I'm probably getting fired right now as we speak. I'm sure they would pay for that. I guarantee you Len Weiner won't sign up on it. Alright, so let's get to the Dolphins. It's weird when we get to the two of conversation, because we all saw what unfolded last year and it's uncomfortable. What do you kind of think next year will look like for two?

Is it just okay? Can he get through the season without suffering a concussion and then he'll be the quarterback for the next 5-10 years? Yeah, I think he's always going to have this microscope on him, so can he get through an entire season without a concussion? I doubt it, only because I think they treat him a little bit differently than other quarterbacks just based on the eyes that were on him when he had the prime time one.

But I don't think it's going to be a problem like it was this year. I don't want to say it was new because they've been dealing with head injuries for a while, but the prime time concussion that he got was so gruesome looking that I think it kind of put this season a little bit askew with him. And I think he'll kind of fall into line with other quarterbacks next season, where obviously you're going to take some hits and your head is going to hit the turf at some point. But man, I just have a tough time believing he said he was going to go through yoga and some other stuff this offseason to learn how to fall better. Maybe I'm just hoping against Hope, but I don't think it's going to be a lingering problem.

I hope it's not. The weird part for me is I still go back to that Bills game, how he came back in the game. I was shocked, but how they still say that it was a back injury and not a head injury. I get it. I'm not a doctor.

I just went to Temple in Philadelphia and studied communications. That to me looked like a concussion, though, in that Bills game. Yeah, that one. The optics on that one did not suggest back injury, but I will say the optics on that one also. If you go back and look at it, you go back and by the way, I'm not being an apologist like for head injuries here because I'm very happy that they're very cautious about that stuff and they should certainly err on the side of caution. But I don't think it was that out of the ordinary from other quarterback hits during the season, and I think you see plenty of guys that go down.

They get up. They're a little wobbly on their feet, and then they kind of get their bearings. I mean, it is what it is. The sport is what it is. But I mean, you know, to think that that was a back injury that caused the likes to kind of buckle there and him look confused is probably a little bit naive, but it's a story that they're sticking to. With how much this has been in the public spotlight, Mark Hochman, I just wonder if he suffers one next year.

Like, when do they determine if he's cleared or not? Because I feel like there's going to be a lot more attention on that one like we were talking about if he suffers another concussion next season. That's the big question with him. I mean, that really is. I'm glad that I don't have to make that decision.

I'm not the general manager, but that really is the big question, which is the optics. You know, we all have that image of him and his hands going into that weird motion in the primetime game and knowing that he had obviously suffered a significant head injury and that we know he ended the season with head injury and being in the concussion protocol. So I'm with you.

That's the million dollar question, right? Because even you can even talk about extending them, but you don't know because I think what happens in that situation, if he does get a concussion, if he goes into the concussion protocol at any time, you're going to get the pundits and fans and, you know, experts in the medical field who are saying it's too many in too quick a period and you've got to think about shutting them down. So I'm really glad. Listen, I'm a fan.

And so I watch the game. I love him. I am so in on to I think this guy.

I mean, when he was playing at the highest level this past season, he was playing in an MVP caliber. Like I'm, I'm really in on him. I find him to be unbelievably likable.

I think he's unbelievably accurate. And so obviously this, this question is going to linger. He really needs to get through a season without a major injury, whether it's a head injury or a hip injury. Like he needs to be able to get through a season, but it's going to be tough to overcome if he does have a concussion early on in the season, it's going to be tough to overcome, you know, the optics of the, you have to shut them down for his own safety.

And like I say, it's the million dollar question. Dolphins are, are saying all the, all the things, you know, that, uh, that you'd want them to say as a dolphin span, which is he's our guy. He doesn't have a propensity for head injuries, uh, more than, than someone else in the league. And we think he'll be fine. Um, but man, it's going to be tough to withstand public pressure if he does indeed go down with a bad head injury.

Well, here's the real question for me. Cause I know it's different regime in terms of who the head coach was, same general manager, but they've said before he's their guy. And then they have pursued other quarterbacks and they didn't wind up with them. Like if Rogers does become available this off season or Lamar Jackson and the Ravens or Packers call Chris Greer, just doing their due diligence. And I wonder how far those conversations do go. Yeah, that, that, you know, I really do believe Chris Greer, the general manager, when he says he's their guy, I didn't believe him when Brian Flores was the head coach.

And that was obviously a power struggle. Chris Greer was saying one thing, Brian Flores was believing another in those instances though, those two instances that you point out though, Aaron Rogers and Lamar Jackson. I absolutely think, but I think a lot of quarterbacks who are solidified on their team, if those two guys were available, you certainly have to have the conversation. Uh, I think Aaron Rogers, listen, Steve Ross, the owner of the dolphins, he wants to win. He's owned the team for a while now.

They've had no real postseason success since he's been the owner. Aaron Rogers is someone you would have to pursue. And he wanted to draft Lamar Jackson when Lamar Jackson was coming out in the draft and Steven Ross was overruled by his own football guys. So I think those two particular guys who you point out there, I think those guys, yes, you say the right things about Pua, but if it's one of those guys, you certainly have to pursue it.

And I don't think anyone would blame them either. Now just because Caleb Williams says it doesn't mean that it's going to happen. You need the Dolphins to have a bad season or trade up next year to do so. But what was the reaction today about the Caleb Williams stuff where he says the Dolphins are his number one choice for an NFL destination? Yeah, everybody loves it.

Everybody loves it. Listen, I think they have a really good team moving forward. I think, you know, obviously you've got the two receivers on the outside who are unbelievably good, Tyreek Hill and Jalen Waddle. But I really think with Tua, I think, I mean, didn't you think during the season last season that they were an elite football team for about a three, four week run? Didn't you think that they were one of the elite teams? Until the injuries, absolutely. Yeah. Yeah. So it doesn't surprise me that, you know, top guys would say, yeah, yeah, that's where I'd like to end up because I happen to think that they're a really good team.

Again, is there this one huge question mark hanging over them? There is, because I don't even know what you do in the backup situation. Again, I'm glad I don't have this job, but I don't know what you do for the backup situation because if you bring in a guy that's competitive for the starting position with Tua, you know, it's like, what are you doing to him now in year four? Because he went through it in years one and two, had the injuries this season. But if you don't have a guy that's super quality capable backing him up, then, you know, are you really kind of putting all your eggs in the Tua basket?

And he's shown you for three seasons that he can't get through a season. So they're in quite a quandary. I'll say this. And obviously, as we've been talking, wrapping up with Mark Hochman, the biggest story is the health of Tua moving forward. That's all out of our control. I'm still trying to figure out, I know it's only one year and he did a good job. But Mike McDaniel is as a head coach, how confident are you in the Dolphins coach? Yeah, I'm pretty confident in him.

I'm pretty confident. I take my lead, obviously, my radio partner played for the Dolphins, Janet Crowder. So I take my lead on coaching with him. He's all in on Mike McDaniel. You know, can you judge any coach after one season?

You certainly can on the negative, right? So we saw it with the Dolphins with Cam Cameron. He went 115 in his only season. And you knew early on that this guy just didn't have it, you know, as a head coach. What I saw from Mike McDaniel, there were definitely some rookie coaching mistakes. There were definitely some clock management issues in certain games that he wished to have back. I would imagine he does love to go forward on fourth down situations. But some of the play calling in those fourth down situations certainly can come up for question. But to me, that was like that was more than you would expect out of a first year coach.

They had an unbelievable run. It looked like the team was all in on him. He didn't seem to be overdoing it in trying to win over the team or be cutesy. You know, you see the press conferences before they hired him.

And I didn't think anything was like schtick. Like, I think you've got the real deal with him, which is kind of a quirky guy, but really knows football. He did make some rookie coaching mistakes.

And we certainly talked about it on the air. I mean, it wasn't wasn't like he was beyond questioning on some of the calls. But for me, like that's kind of part and parcel for a first year coach, first year head coach ever.

So I'm in on him. I what I really loved about him was the way that he treated Tua with the utmost respect and treated him like a starter, like a top five NFL draft pick, a starter whose job is not in jeopardy. Because for the two seasons prior to that, Brian Flores, it was always very clear that Tua had a very short leash and that Flo probably was preferring a different person in that spot. So I love the way that Mike McDaniel treated Tua. And that's because I'm a big Tua fan. But I think Mike McDaniel is going to be a longtime head coach in the NFL.

I think he's going to be very successful. I started you with food. I have to end you with food.

I'm on your Twitter profile page right now. Are you a big In-N-Out guy? So there is no In-N-Out around us. But when I do go to the West Coast, I enjoy In-N-Out.

But I will tell you this. I've had Whataburger twice in my life, and I think Whataburger is better than In-N-Out. I used to intern for Angelo Cataldi, and then he would have me on his show a bunch, and he would always tell me about In-N-Out Burger.

The first time I went to the West Coast, I had it. I thought it was a little overrated. So for me, the service and the vibe, they always have a hundred people working in the kitchen and at the counter.

I like the way that the service is right on. The fries are underwhelming. The fries, you've got to get them well done. They're underwhelming. But I'm telling you, have you ever had Whataburger?

Yes. Better than In-N-Out. It's better than In-N-Out, yeah. I also like cooked burgers at Five Guys, so I think I'm all versed in this.

I enjoy Five Guys as well. Mark Hochman, we appreciate the time. Thank you. Thanks, Zach.