Is It Dem Boyz' Year? (Hour 2)

We continue it as a Zach Gelb show coast to coast on CBS Sports Radio, our number two of our radio program OTAs underway. So let's head out to the guest line right now and welcome in a man that won two Super Bowls in the NFL with the Pittsburgh Steelers. And there's a great job right now for CBS Sports HQ. That's a friend of the program.

And of course, Brian McFadden kind enough to join us on CBS Sports Radio. B Mac, how you been? And I'm doing pretty good. Zach, how you doing?

I'm doing fantastic. I'm actually in Colorado right now. I'm visiting some family, but I was supposed to go to game five tonight between the Lakers and the Nuggets. But unfortunately, LeBron and company did not cooperate to get me a game five.

I mean, unfortunately, is the correct word because I thought we would at least get a game five. I mean, I don't think LeBron is going to retire this year. I think clearly he utilized every bit of gas he had left in the tank. But I think LeBron, if he's going to do it, he wants it to be done in a way similar to what we saw with Kobe, where he can really be appreciated the right way. You know, a farewell tour is something. A farewell tour is something that's going to be a little bit different than what we saw with Kobe, where he can really be appreciated the right way. You know, a farewell tour is something. A farewell tour is definitely something in LeBron's future. So I don't think he would just walk away and not allowing other organizations, you know, fans to really appreciate him one more go round. So, yeah, I think he will be back next year.

And who knows, we could get a guy like Kyrie, urban van fleet could be available as well. So I think we still, we're a piece away from having legit championship aspirations, but hopefully they can have that piece this offseason. BMAC Brian McFadden here with us is great job for CBS Sports HQ.

All right, OTA is underway. I know Rogers had a little bit of an injury scare, but he's going to be okay. You look at the Jets year one with Darren Rogers. What are your expectations for this team this season? I mean, the bare minimum, Zach, it better be playoffs, the bare minimum outside of that man, a significant run that has to be the option in regards to adding Aaron Rogers to a talented New York Jets team, especially on the defensive side. So the bare minimum playoffs in a postseason run that can get you in that championship conversation should be the reality for the Jets this year. Let me ask you this, because we know Kansas City, the Bengals and the Bills are the top three Super Bowl contenders in the AFC.

Would you put the Jets at four? Is it a team like Jacksonville or maybe somebody else? I think it's a team like Jacksonville. And the reason why I would have Jacksonville at the fourth spot, Zach, look at the easy road they have in regards to other NFL organizations in the AFC. Right. And I'm not, you know, throwing any shade on the other teams in the AFC South.

But let's keep it real. I mean, two teams potentially will have a starting a rookie starting quarterback the entire year in the Houston, Texas and the Indianapolis coast. And then with the Tennessee Tigers, we know this is probably Ryan Tannehill's last go round in that organization.

There's not a lot surrounding him outside of King Henry. So when you talk about Jacksonville, the experience they gained a year ago, that talent they continue to add around the young quarterback getting Kevin Ridley back over the defense, especially in the back end is better. I mean, I got it. You got to like their chances. When you look at the Chargers, they have so much talent. Is it just tough to believe in that team until they get a new head football coach? Man, it's tough to believe in the Chargers until their head coach actually put down the PS five controller and coach the game like it's real football. I think that's the issue every year. The talent is there.

You don't question. Is there talent on the Chargers roster, right, Zach? Every year since they added Justin Herbert, he's become the starter for that team, that organization. They've had talent and they can even add talent.

But for whatever reason, they can't get out of their own way. And I think it has a lot to do with the head man in charge. So hopefully, you know, another year of experience he's been able to gain.

He gained a year ago. He can kind of get this team in the right direction because there's no reason for them to be a consistent playoff contender with Herbert and a team that can make a deep postseason run. When you look at Denver, there's a Sean Payton factor, but a lot of questions still with Russell Wilson. I look at that roster defensively.

They're good. I don't love what they have on the offensive side of the ball. Are you leaning Denver outside looking in of the playoff picture right now? Yeah, I think different can make a run because Sean Payton is like the quarterback whisper, you know, Sean Payton.

Before the injury, the first seven ballgames of the 2021 season for James Winston. Under Sean Payton, Jamie's like a guy who could definitely be in an MVP conversation, you know, in any choice ACL. So you just look at Sean's Peyton resume as a quarterback, you know, guru play caller. He's always been able to get the most out of his quarterbacks and his offense. And one would think Russell Wilson still has a lot of tread on his tires, Zach. So you put him in the right situation where the respect is there for who is calling the plays from Russell Wilson.

I think we're going to see Russell start cooking back a lot of recipes, putting together a lot of recipes in the kitchen similar to what he did his final few years in Seattle. Brian McFadden here with us when we get to the AFC North. I want to start you off with that conversation with your Pittsburgh Steelers.

I think this is going to surprise you what I'm about to say about them. I kind of like Pittsburgh heading into this year. Now, it's so tough because there's only three wildcard spots and the AFC is just absolutely loaded. We know Cincinnati, if they stay healthy, should win that division. But I'm looking at Pittsburgh as a team that a lot of people aren't really talking about right now.

Now, you're not wrong for liking the Pittsburgh Steelers. And the reason why you're not wrong is because the last seven ballgames for Kenny Pickett. I mean, he really showed growth. They were five and two in that seven game stretch.

He really grew up, became a guy you can rely on in the latter moments of ballgames and he delivered. Now, you factor in some of the talent they've added to the entire roster. Yes, if they stay healthy, you've got to like Pittsburgh's chances. Think about this that the first game of the season on the road. What did Pittsburgh do? They harassed the heck out of Joe Burrow.

Granny didn't get a lot from the offense, but that defense harassed the heck out of Joe Burrow. And then you lose T.J. Watt and the wheels fell off. If they can stay healthy, especially with all the pieces they added, I like what they can do in their division alone, because I can tell you this much, regardless of who is the quarterback, regardless of who is in uniform. One thing we know about the Pittsburgh Steelers and AFC North competition, if Cincinnati is riding, riding high, they still split.

If Baltimore is riding high, they still find a way to split. And of course, you know, they always been able to take care of business against Cleveland for the most part. But I think, yeah, you're not wrong in your sentiments in Pittsburgh and how good they could be this year. And even when they have a bad season, because there were a lot of times last year where it looked like it was a bad season for Pittsburgh, they still finished 9-8. It seemed like last year with all the injuries that they had and some of the youngsters that they were playing, that experience could really pay off and maybe get that team to 10-11 wins this upcoming season.

Facts, facts. And I'm excited because for them, you know, they're trying to, it's been a while in regards to being in the playoffs. Even in the down year, they still win nine games, right?

So with the transition of a rookie quarterback, man, this, now, I'll say this Zach, the AFC North, there's no pushover division. So if they're going to get it, they're going to earn it. Yeah, if they're going to get it, they're going to earn it. But I think they're ready to earn it.

And it has to be pretty cool for you. I know that's your team. Now you have your cousin going over to Pittsburgh too. You must have been elated when you heard that news, right? No question, man. I'm fired up. I got Pat P in the Pittsburgh Steelers uniform, better yet, wearing my old number.

Man, you look at some of the other additions they've been able to add with what they already have in place, man. Listen, man, it should be a fun year. But as I stated, Zach, you got to be healthy. You got to stay healthy. When we have 90 on the football field, the Pittsburgh Steelers, they're a better team on both sides. He stays healthy. The rest of the court people stay healthy.

They can make some noise. When you look at the Baltimore Ravens, I know Lamar a few weeks ago said he wants to go throw for 6000 yards. I kind of chuckled at that. And then today he did double down and talked about how much he wants to throw the football in this new system with the new offensive coordinator. Is that the right approach for Baltimore where they just paid Lamar and now they're going to ask him to throw the football even more? I mean, the right approach is to have Lamar be Lamar Jackson.

That's it. There's no reason to put a filter on what he can do as a talent because he's too good. You don't want to say, Lamar, we want you to do this. No, Lamar, you do what you need to do for us to win ballgames.

And when he does that, they win ballgames. So I don't foresee him throwing for 6000 yards. I don't think the offense would allow him to have those moments to get to that level. And do you really want to see Lamar Jackson throwing, throwing, throwing?

No. You want to see him being involved in the running game. That's what makes their running game so special because he's a plus one in the running game. So me personally, man, just allow Lamar Jackson to utilize his God-given talent that has gotten him to the point where he is in his career right now.

And making sure he protects himself when in harm's way. And the rest is history. We know Cleveland has so much talent, but whenever people think Cleveland's about to put it together, something goes wrong. What do you think the Browns could do this year? I mean, they got talent.

They have talent. You talked about Brandon Staley and the concerns for him as the head coach for the Chargers. One could say the same thing for Kevin Stefanski as the head coach for the Browns.

Right Zach? Because what is stopping the Browns this year? You've got a full offseason with Deshaun Watson.

You added some more pieces to the puzzle that the chemistry should be there. What's the excuse for the Browns that they don't make things happen this year? Is it more of the coach or the players or the lack of the chemistry that needs to be established?

So I think the Browns, they're kind of in the same neighborhood as the Chargers. There's no issue about talent, but for some reason, they can't get out of their own way. At the end of the year, Brian McFadden, when we're talking about Jordan Love first year as a starter, how are we talking about him and his future with the Green Bay Packers? I mean, I don't think there's a question about is he the future?

He is the future. This year, which is year one as a full time starter, will either give the Packers fans reason to be hopeful about the future or a reason to be concerned about the future. I think Jordan Love is going to be okay, honestly. I think Jordan Love is going to really do some productive things. I'm not expecting Aaron Rodgers like production, but I think he's going to be really, really good in that uniform as a starting quarterback.

So I think the fans will definitely feel excited about the future and where they're going with Mr. Love as their quarterback. And I got to think the guys in the locker room respect him, because the last three years, it's not easy. He didn't ask for that, and he was never a distraction. He never added on to any of this drama that was happening in Green Bay. That has to carry some weight in that locker room, right? That's the type of energy you need to have as a young quarterback when you really haven't earned your stripes just yet.

But being able to be a likable guy, because when you're a likable guy, people will listen to you, they will respect you, and they will follow your lead. For you, we know Philadelphia, the four-diners, the two best teams in the NFC. Who's the third best team in the NFC in your opinion right now?

Say it again? Third best team in the NFC. If Philadelphia and the Niners are one and two, who do you put in at three? The third best team in the NFC. Seattle?

That's what I said too earlier. I think you could make the case for Seattle, and they added Jackson Smith and Jigba. You added another running back in Charbonnet as well to complement Kenneth Walker. You got the two big wide receivers in Metcalf and Lockett. My only question is, what's the regression, if at any at all, for Geno Smith this year? What type of year do you think Geno was? That's a good question. But I think because of how they built their offense, you don't necessarily need Geno to play hero ball week in and week out.

Right? They have a running game, they got an offensive line that really showed out last year. Defensively, I think they would be a much better unit. So every week, it's not all about Geno. You don't have to put everything on Geno's plate. So I think Geno can just be the Geno that we saw a year ago, and they're going to be fine. And I'll say this, I wouldn't be surprised to see Seattle win the NFC West this year.

Wow, over San Francisco. Is that just because you don't trust this 49ers quarterback situation? Yeah, we don't know who the quarterback is going to be. It's kind of crazy that they haven't been able to figure this out the last few years.

And it seems like they're fine with it as well. We know the roster is so great, but until you figure out who your quarterback is, you can get close. You're not winning a Super Bowl, though.

Exactly. So we don't know who the quarterback is going to be. We don't know if that quarterback is going to be the guy for the entire year or not. So there's a lot of ifs with the San Francisco 49ers that we have to wait and see.

But I'll say this, I'm not saying that I expect to see Seattle win, but I'm saying I wouldn't be surprised to see Seattle win. They have enough to win the division. Last thing I'll ask you, when you look at the drama Dallas Chokin' Cowboys, Bryant McFadden, you know they're going to have a good regular season. Is there any reason to believe that this is going to be their year in a wide open NFC to get to a Super Bowl or even an NFC title game? No, there's no reason to believe that because it seems like something always happens that prevents the Cowboys from getting to that level. And I'll say this, when you say the NFC is wide open, that might be true in totality, but the NFC East is not. The NFC East, when you factor in the Eagles, the Giants, and then not to mention the commanders who may be a competitive group, I think they will be competitive this year. That gauntlet just in the division alone is going to be really tough because if you look at Brian DeBaul and his staff, they did more with less a year ago and didn't have any issues in doing so. They've gotten better.

It's not going anywhere. So just that gauntlet in the division will make things dicey for the Cowboys when you talk about the entire NFC. If Dak was your quarterback, if you were in that Cowboys locker room and we injected you with some true serum, what would you tell me about Dak Prescott and your belief level in him as a QB? He's an emotional rollercoaster.

He gives you good high moments and low moments. As a Dallas Cowboys fan, for the fans that are listening to us, Dak, they don't disagree with me. Dak is talented, but a year ago, Dak had too many, oh no, Dak moments. Like, oh no, Dak, what are you doing? Those are the moments you have to get away from when you're a quarterback like Dak Prescott, when you have experience, when you have talent around you, and they're paying you to deliver the groceries. And when you deliver the groceries, you cannot forget the milk.

You got to bring everything because that's what's expected of you. And unfortunately, a year ago, he forgot the milk, he forgot the bread, he forgot the cheese, he forgot the fruit, and because of that, he never had a full meal in regards to fulfilling their requirements of making things special for the Dallas Cowboys post-season run, deep post-season run, and having a legit shot to get to the championship. He's the definition of a good quarterback, but not a great quarterback, B-Mac.

But let's keep it real, Dak. There are only a handful of great quarterbacks in the National Football League. There's only a handful of great quarterbacks, and a handful might be a stretch.

It might be three or four instead of five. Everybody else, either very, very good or good. And there's no knock on that because you can still be a good quarterback and get to that championship and win it. Brian McFadden from CBS Sports HQ. Always great to have you on. Thanks so much, my friend.

Thank you, man. There you go. Brian McFadden joining us on the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio.

Two things I want to react to that on the other side, both inside the NFC. We'll do that when the Zach Gelb show continues in five minutes. Now back to the Zach Gelb show. Alrighty, this is Zach Gelb show coast to coast on CBS Sports Radio. You can think O'Reilly Auto Parts for all your car care needs, get guaranteed low, low, low, low, low prices and excellent customer service from the professional parts people at O'Reilly Auto Parts.

O'Reilly Auto Parts. Hickey, two things that really stood out to me from a Brian McFadden said. One, I really do agree with.

The other, I'm curious what your reaction is. Let's first start off with Dak Prescott. You look at the Dallas Cowboys and I would say that this is an open NFC. I get what he's saying about their division. Their division is good.

Where you used to look at it the last few years is the NFC lease. That's not the case anymore because Philadelphia is by far and away the creme de la creme football team in the NFC. There's not really a flaw on that football team entering that season. The Niners are probably the are definitely the second best team in the NFC but you have questions about their quarterbacks but just keeping it inside the NFC East for a second. If you look at the commanders, I think the commanders could go win nine games this year. It depends what Sam Howell is but they have a more than competent roster. The Giants, I'm really curious what they're going to do because Brian Deball did a sensational job in year one.

It's okay. Can you take that next step and can you still find a way to win even with the roster that is not one of those great rosters in the NFL. But you look at Dallas, my expectation for Dallas this year is they'll go out there, they'll win 10, 11, 12 games somewhere in that realm. And there will be moments throughout the regular season where you go, oh look at that Dallas defense, it's great. Oh wow, this Dallas Cowboys offense, it's really clicking on all cylinders and they'll be able to overcome like they had the last two years. Two Dak Prescott injuries and they'll be able to keep the ship from sinking and we don't know when Pollard's coming back which could be a big problem. Maybe Ezekiel Elliott finds a way back into Dallas. You have CeeDee Lamb, you have Brandon Cooks, you got Michael Gallup.

So you got a solid wide receiving core. Now they also did lose their tight end, Dalton Schultz who's been there for a bunch of years. But I look at this Dallas team as even if you think they're really good in the regular season, they're never going to be able to make me believe this upcoming year that they're going to find a way to put it all together and go win, because they won't have a bye, and go win three playoff games with Dak Prescott as your quarterback and always you're waiting for the other shoe to fall with the Dallas Cowboys. It always feels like even when it's going good for Dallas and even when they're starting to make you believe, you're just waiting and waiting and waiting to see how they're going to mess it up and put this entire thing up in flames. They feel like the NFL version of the Sixers where a lot of high win totals, there's belief every year, going to the playoffs, this could be the year they break through, this could be the year they get to the Eastern Conference Finals and the same problems flare up every single year in the postseason.

If you switch a few guys out, switch the coach, switch some of the receivers in Dallas or switch some of the sidekicks with Embiid, it's the same result. The way Dallas is built, you're right, they're going to get 11, 12 wins, probably be in the wild card, maybe make a little bit of a deep December run and people will start believing again like they've always done, or win a playoff game against a sub-500 team like they did last year, and then they'll believe it's always there, and then just like the Cowboys do every year since 1995, fail to win a big game in the playoffs. And this probably isn't mentioned enough, the health of Tony Pollard could be the biggest key for the Dallas Cowboys this year, because if you're asking Dak, and it's weird to say this with how much money Dak makes, but if you're asking Dak to be the MVP of your team and take his game to the next level, with how many interceptions we saw last year, with the last two years being filled with injuries as well, it's tough for me to expect Dak Prescott to elevate his game where he just goes from being a good quarterback to them being a Super Bowl winning quarterback.

I know Maggie and Perloff are hanging out with Deuce Vaughn at the draft, and it was a fun story because his father is in the scouting department for the Dallas Cowboys, and if Tony Pollard is not ready early in the season, even if they do bring Zeke back, which Zeke doesn't have much left in the tank, he's okay if you want to play him for a downer too, but Deuce Vaughn, and that's tricky to rely on a rookie running back and go one or two ways, Deuce Vaughn may be playing a big role for the Dallas Cowboys this upcoming season. It'd be a fun story, hard to tackle him, he's so small behind that big offensive line, so it actually could work to his advantage and the Cowboys' advantage. But I just can't get behind making a push for the Dallas Cowboys this year, even in an NFC that you look at and you're like, eh, you know what, I'll even take it this far. Even if the Cowboys, and I don't think Dallas is winning the division, I'm clearly going with Philadelphia, but even if Dallas edges out the Eagles by a game and they find a way to win the NFC East Hickey, would that change it for you? Because for me, I would still expect them to mess it up in the postseason.

Same, and that's obviously where the questions begin, so anything they do in the regular season, you can't believe it because this is a team that, like you said, at this point, they have to show you in the playoffs, they can get it done, they don't deserve the benefit of the doubt. Now I'm friendly with Brian McFadden, we've had dinners together, we had a very nice steak dinner at the Super Bowl, where actually the Eagles' offensive line walked in. So this is not me just texting BMAC before the interview, this is not me putting the thought in BMAC's head about the Seattle Seahawks, but we were just having this conversation about who's the third best team in the NFC, and without question it's the Eagles' one, and then number two, it's the San Francisco 49ers, and we were talking about who could be that third team, and I mentioned Seattle as potentially being that team with all the talent that they have, and then I asked the same question to BMAC, and he went right back to Seattle, and he even went as far to say, not that he's expecting Seattle to win the division, but if they did, he wouldn't be shocked by it.

How'd you react to that one? Surprised, because still, you look at the 49ers, I think they deserve the benefit of the doubt in terms of, yes, we have no idea who the quarterback could be, and there's no reason to believe that Brock Purdy, Trey Lance, or Sam Darnall will be the next coming of Joe Montana, or be like a legitimate reliable. Well be careful who you ask. Well, you're right. You ask Niners fans, you ask Bill Romanowski, after one or two games, they were ready to say that Brock Purdy was the next Joe Montana. But in reality, when he started five games in his career, it's unfair, I think, to put big expectations on this Niners team being carried by the quarterback, but the way they're built, they don't have to be, which is why we see now Kyle Shanahan win games and have people believing in this team with a third-trim quarterback last year on Brock Purdy, so even though, yes, there's influx at quarterback yet again, I still think that they deserve the benefit of the doubt, and even if they have to, at one point this season, play all three, like they had to play three quarterbacks last year, I still think this is the vision for the 49ers to lose.

Okay, in terms of winning the division, I would agree that you give the benefit of the doubt to the 49ers, even though I'm higher on Seattle than most, and they only won nine games a year ago, and you saw San Francisco win 13, until they figure out and get some clarity at that quarterback position. This will be a team that continues to get oh so close, but yet so far in that ultimate goal of hoisting a Lombardi Trophy, because this quarterback situation, it's been sloppy, where I don't even know, and maybe it's the arrogance of Kyle Shanahan, and I don't want that to come off harsh, but he's very confident in what he does, and he should be, as a head coach of a football team, especially as a head coach of a football team that always has a team in the playoffs, and it seems like they're always in the NFC title game, but it almost comes off to me, Hickey, that he undervalues the quarterback position, and he just looks at his system as winning out, and he has a very talented roster, but a few years ago, Jimmy G was your guy. Then you pay Jimmy G, you want Kirk Cousins.

Okay, then you give up a Kings ransom, and you go out there, and you end up getting Trey Lance, even though he wanted Mack Jones originally. Now Brock Purdy, they're optimistic he'll be ready for week one, that's the line that he gave the other day, and Brock Purdy's going to start throwing on June 2nd earlier than what we thought was going to happen. He says his arm's feeling good, but he's not going to put a timetable on it. Last year, remember, Jimmy G was exiled to the side of the practice field. Two years ago, we could all drop dead tomorrow, remember was his line when talking about the quarterback situation. It's kind of impressive, but then also disappointing because it's what's holding this team back, how they've been this good, and still, we're entering the year of 2023, and the most confident people have with the 49ers in regards to their quarterback position is Brock Purdy, who, I'll give him credit, he played well in the five or six games that we saw him, but I'm not going to sit here and tell you that I expect Brock Purdy, even though he's a really fun and good story last year, to be this next great quarterback in the league.

Like, when Romanowski was on with us, and he was calling in the next Joe Montana after a start or two, and Romanowski did play with Joe Montana, I wanted to channel our inner Stephen A. Smith, who works with us here at Odyssey with his No Mercy podcast, and just be like, yo, Bill Romanowski, stay off the weed! And that was a bold claim, I think that was after his first start or even maybe second start, but it was still like the short career he had with a short season he had last year, it was early on at that point too, but look, Kyle Shannon should feel confident, I mean, think about it, it's been a plug and play at the most important position in all sports, he's never won a Super Bowl, but he's gotten to one and has been to three NFC title games in the last five years. And he won't until he figures out the quarterback position. Okay, I agree, it's impressive, but it's also disappointing, because a guy like that should have figured out his quarterback position by now.

I don't know what it is if he just has commitment issues, if he just changes with the wind, and one day like someone, next day like someone else, but I would say a piece of advice, Kyle, if you're listening, settle on one guy, like one guy, and that should do you well. You know who Shanahan kind of reminds me of, and I think we all have this friend, you go to a really nice restaurant, you can't mess up the order, because it's a, let's just say it's a select menu, there's like six or seven main courses, but you all know that the six or seven main courses are fantastic, out of this world, like whatever you think is the seventh best main course, which would be the worst at this restaurant's dish, it would be better at like almost any other restaurant in town. And the waiter comes over, and they go, Mr. Shanahan, what do you want?

And he goes, oh, I'll have the branzino. Actually, no, I'll do the filet mignon. Actually, I'll do the tomahawk steak. Oh, actually, maybe I'll do some rice with some scallops on it. Oh, actually, did you say you had some chicken teriyaki?

Oh, maybe I'll do that. That's what Kyle Shanahan does with these quarterbacks. He sits down, he looks at the menu, and the menu's a good menu, right? You have all the resources in the world, you have a good team, and you just can't make a decision. And the last few years, even when you go back to that draft process, Hickey, he did not want Trey Lance initially. He wanted Mac Jones, and he was talked into taking Trey Lance. And it's crazy that a guy with this much of having a great offensive mind, someone that's had so much success in this league, still can't figure out the quarterback situation and who his guy's going to be. And you know what?

I'll say this. It seems like their guy is Brock Purdy from what Shanahan has said and what Lynch has said. So right now, they're ordering Brock Purdy.

You just don't know when he's going to be able to get out of the kitchen because there may be a problem in the kitchen in regards to his health and when he's going to be ready. But then just look at how sloppy this is. They gave up all that for Trey Lance. And from everything we heard so far, if the season were to start tomorrow, and let's just say Brock Purdy is not ready to play, it does feel like that Sam Darnold, of all people, Sam bleeping Darnold would be starting over Trey Lance, who you just moved mountains to get with future draft picks. And if he didn't have this good of a team, and if you didn't have this much success, like almost any other coach in GM that gave up that much to go get Trey Lance and give up that quickly on him, would be fired from their job in the NFL.

But just again, underscores the impressiveness where you're still winning at an extremely high level despite neglecting, we'll say, or not showing proper commitment to the most important position in all of sports. Let me just look at their schedule real quickly. Because do you think Purdy's going to be ready for week one? He's going to start throwing June 2nd. So that's next week. That makes me think he's going to be ready for week one, Hickey. And they're talking about it optimistically.

It definitely sounds like more of a chance now than it did even a month ago. By the way, when I looked at their schedule, I'm like, why do they open up against the Steelers at 11 a.m.? I'm like, why is that in a different part of the country? But then I forgot that I'm in Colorado right now, so it's mountain time.

You know what, Hickey? This schedule is very enjoyable when viewing it at mountain time. You have an 11 o'clock game, a 2.05 game, a 6.15 game, a 2.25 game, a 6.20 game, an 11 o'clock game, 6.15, 2.25, 11 a.m. That's really enjoyable. Mountain time might be the best time to enjoy football. 11 a.m. is early, but not too early. You're still done early enough where you're not up until midnight watching the late game.

That's pretty good two hours behind East Coast time. But do you think Purdy will be there week one? Right now, I'll say yes.

All right, so you throw them right to the fire right out of the gate. Pittsburgh, the Rams, and the Giants. The first three games, it's not as if those are great teams. Pittsburgh could be good this year. The Rams, I don't know what to expect. And the Giants, I don't know what to expect, even though they had a really good year last year. I'll be very curious to see who's starting at quarterback, and the Niners are better than all three of those teams, but what their record is after the first three games of the season. You look at this schedule, it's not really that bad.

It picks up a little bit. Cardinals stink, you get Dallas, Cleveland, Minnesota, Cincinnati. That's a good four-week stretch. Then you get the bye week, you get Jacksonville's good team. Tampa Bay stinks. Then you get the division game with Seattle. You get Philly, Seattle.

That's a good stretch, Hickey. Seattle, Philly, Seattle. Back-to-back-to-back weeks, and then they wrap up the season. Arizona, Baltimore, Washington, and then the LA Rams. The middle of that schedule, from about Dallas to that final Seattle game, that's a pretty damn good six or seven, eight-week run there for the 49ers to see what they're going to be able to do. Absolutely, and again, at that point, you think midway through the year, towards the end of the year, you should be settled on whoever's playing quarterback, assuming there's no injuries, which also part of the reason why we've seen so many revolving door, basically, is you can't pick a quarterback, and also they can't stay healthy.

I hate to say, because it means I'm rooting against Brock Purdy, and he was rocking out with his Brock out last year, and it was pretty awesome. I kind of hope that they are QB whores this year, the 49ers, where they play Purdy, and maybe it hits midnight for Cinderella, and then they go to Trey Lance, and they go, I don't even want to see Sam Donald, but in this case, sure, whatever. I want to see how many quarterbacks they end up playing this year. That, to me, is a very intriguing question. Over under two and a half, what are you saying?

Oh, that's a great question. I'm going to say under, because I think Purdy will be ready week one, so even if there's an injury, then it would be two quarterbacks that I would say this year. But to get to three, it's not in the realm of possibilities. You have one injury, and let's say Purdy doesn't start the year, so you're already starting with one guy that you know is not going to be the starter throughout the rest of the season, then let's say Purdy plays, and then Purdy gets hurt, and then you go to the other guy. It's not crazy to say three right now, though.

I would take the under. All right, well, come on back to the Zach Gelb Show on CBS Sports Radio. You're listening to the Zach Gelb Show.

It is Zach Gelb Show Coast to Coast on CBS Sports Radio, 855-212-4CBS, 855-212-4227. Let's go to Mike in Abilene, Texas, next up on CBS Sports Radio. Mike, what's happening, my man?

Man, it's nice to hear your voice again, bud. You've been out the past couple times I've called. How you doing, Zach? Doing great.

What do you got for me? Man, what a series. What a run for the Lakers. What a freaking show of dominance by the Nuggets. Man, I think they look like they're going to win it all. Did not see a sweep coming.

After games one and two, I thought it was going to be tough to win, but yeah, I don't know, man. As 20 years in, man, he's definitely not going to retire, but I don't know where we go from here. I think he makes some moves. I think he makes some trades, and I think he sets it up to make a reunion in Cleveland. Not a reunion with Bronny, but a reunion with Cleveland and take Bronny with him.

So, yeah, crazy, crazy squeaking in. There's a seven seed. I think he gave us all a little reminder that he's still got a lot left in it. Definitely just not the LeBron of old. He couldn't take over and finish down the stretch. I've said it before.

I'll say it again. Anthony Davis is the most overrated, worthless, inconsistent player ever. Yeah, but he did not have a bad postseason. You don't get that far this year without Anthony Davis.

I think Anthony Davis, I know he didn't show up in the first half of the elimination game the other night, but Anthony Davis had more of a good postseason than a bad postseason for you guys this year. I would agree, especially on the defensive end. It's just not enough, and I say it without any animosity towards the guy, you know, being that big and having that many injuries. I'm sure he's in pain.

He's got stuff going on he didn't tell anybody about. Most players at that level do. Yeah, it was just disappointing to be in a position where, man, we could take, you know, all we needed was a couple buckets and just someone else to pull a little bit of the weight and, you know, AD was great rim protecting first two rounds. Jokic is just, I mean, that guy literally shot overhead shot like the guy from, you know, along came Paulie.

It was, and they went in. Just the guys playing on another level. Yeah, I think it'd be interesting to see what LeBron does.

I don't think he stays in LA maybe one more year, but I think him and Bronny Jr. end up in Cleveland for Bronny's first year and one last little hoorah. Yeah, man, it's good to hear your voice, Zach. Hope you're doing well, bud.

You know me. We're getting closer to football time, so you'll be hearing the Buckeye calls pretty soon, bud. You got it, Mike. Appreciate the kind words.

Thanks so much. Here's just what I don't get about that phone call, Hickey. And I see he's not the only one that's saying this. You have no clue where, if LeBron's going to leave the Lakers to team up with Bronny, there's no way that we could even speculate where that team's going to be because we're talking about two drafts from now. Like you have the draft coming up in June and then it's the one after that. And right now the Cavs, unless they find the way to get a deal done in a trade at the draft, they're not going to be bad enough, you would think, to be a lottery team by then because from everything that I'm reading, it seems like Bronny two years from now is going to be a lottery pick and he's really improved his stock. Ryan, we have no idea in the sense that if he even wants to come out after one year at USC, if he'll be even a first round pick or even for him worth trying to go out in the sense that he could just stay and work on his game.

We have no idea. And with LeBron's comments kind of changing of, oh, well, I'd love to play with my son, but maybe that's the biggest thing. I don't think you make any connections in terms of where LeBron will be playing next when it comes to looking at it through the lens of where he and Bronny could play.

I really do believe LeBron next year is in Los Angeles and he's back with the Lakers. Kyrie, you could spin this two ways, him showing up the other night, and we'll get into the Kyrie audio later, him trying to play the victim card about people speculating his future. Dude, I'm so sick and tired of Kyrie Irving. All this guy does is play the victim card and you're a star, with that comes coverage of you. If you don't want to be talked about, don't bring your ass to game four and sit court side when you're begging for attention.

And that's either to put more pressure on the Lakers to go make a move out in this off season or to give the thought that, okay, I'm in Los Angeles right now, Lakers are going to make a run at me, so Dallas, you got to pay me more and more money because you don't want to run the risk of Luka Doncic potentially leaving and I don't know where else Dallas goes, not that I would want to give long-term money and big money to Kyrie Irving because you can't trust the guy, but if you're the Dallas Mavericks, it's like what else do you do because if you don't bring in someone this upcoming year or the year after that, who knows how far away we are from Luka Doncic or actually maybe being close from him wanting to get up out of town in Dallas. Yeah, Kyrie, showing up at games and saying, oh wow, everyone's talking about you, please let me live my life in peace. Loser.

Oh, okay. He is such a loser. And also he's talking about, are these just random people coming up to him at dinner or are the people he's talking about, are they the people that he's going out to dinner with? Because if you're going out to dinner with people and your friends are bringing up the conversation, he made it out to be as if random people are coming up to him and if that's the case, like if you're in Los Angeles, what do you think, a Lakers fan's not going to walk past you at dinner and be like, I hear you're coming to the Lakers. Like, come on, what are we doing here?

It's just, it's absolutely ridiculous. It's classic, classic Kyrie. I will say though, if LeBron is not back with the Lakers next year and if he's going to force his way to one team, I do think it would be Golden State because he loves, loves himself. Some Steph Curry has talked about that a lot. I don't think that's going to happen. I do think he's back in Los Angeles, but I'll make one prediction. If LeBron is not back in Los Angeles next year and he wants out via trade, the team that I would list as the favorite would be the Golden State Warriors. It is the Zach Gelb show on CBS Sports Radio. We will take a break when we come on back. We will look at some NFL coaches that are on the hot seat.