Matthew Stafford on Staying in LA, Aaron Donald’s Insane Workouts and Girl Dad Advice | Ep 128
01:14:03 Share

Wondery Plus subscribers can listen to new heights early and ad-free, plus unlock access to exclusive episodes of the show. Join Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify today.

The stench of sweaty uniforms in a football team's locker room can be unbearable, but Arm & Hammer Deep Clean Laundry Detergents fights the toughest odors to deliver a championship-level clean. Arm & Hammer Deep Clean Detergents are the brand's most powerful formulas yet that can penetrate deep between fibers to tackle tough dirt and odors. Just like an elite defense, its pH-powered technology sends in millions of ionic micro-scrubbers to dominate the toughest stains and odors.

And unlike those premium tickets, with the trusted value of Arm & Hammer, you don't need deep pockets for a deep clean. Available in liquid or convenient power packs, it works in all machines and temperatures, even cold water. When it comes to tough stains and orders, put Arm & Hammer Deep Clean in your starting lineup. Pick up Arm & Hammer Deep Clean today. Available in-store or online at major retailers nationwide.

Okay, check this. Deli boys on Hulu. Two brothers, Raj and Mir, are living the high life. Not a care in the world. When their old man dies, it all vanishes. Poof! And they find out he didn't just own a deli, but was a drug kingpin. And they're like, what the? Throw in their ruthless aunt, some guys who just want to kill them, God knows why, and keeping dad's drug business going.

Sounds amazing, right? Deli Boys is now streaming on Hulu. I'm going over to his house in the mornings and I'm like, he's teaching me the offense on his whiteboard in his house going crazy. I'm like trying to write all this shit down. I'm like, oh my God, I'm never going to remember any of this. You know, I just got off a bender in Mexico. Fuck this. I remember he's got like my film up on his phone. He's like, do you remember this play? I'm like, yeah, like I'm trying to have a margarita and some chips, bro.

Welcome back to New Heights, ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls of all ages. Yeah. 92 percenters. A wondry show produced by Wave Sports and Entertainment. New Heights is brought to you by Nike. Yeah. One of my all-time favorites. Shout out to Nike. When the world says you can't win, Nike says...

So when? Yeah. We're your hosts. I'm Travis Kelsey. This is Jason Kelsey, my big brother out of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, Northeast Ohio, till I die, baby, east side. Subscribe on YouTube, Wondery Plus, wherever you get your podcasts, and follow the social media channels at New Heights Show with 1S. Jason, tell the people what we got coming up.

We've got an incredible episode coming up for you guys. First, we're going to tell you how you can win an official New Heights Golden Cup that I was supposed to bring to this episode that I did not.

Sorry, it's not here right now. Well, Jason, you have- The baby is back. We're going to start doing fan contests starting today. We're going to reveal our first fan contest of the offseason where you'll have an opportunity to win a New Heights Gold Cup. That's some exciting shit. Sounds pretty exciting. All right. We're also going to be answering some not-dumb questions, and we have an incredible conversation coming up with a friend of ours and a-

still L.A. Ram, Mr. Matthew Stafford. Oh, the Texas Gunslinger. But first, we're going to do a little bit to that...

Brought to you by audible. Oh, yeah, baby audible. Hmm. I want to hear what you're talking about. Yeah, that should be there's no slow. Yes You just come up with audibles new slogan pet like catchphrase. They want to use it They're gonna have to pay me a lot of money if you want to hear what they're talking about if you want to hear what I'm talking about That's the way every audible book should just start like oh

James Clear, Atomic Habits. If you want to hear what they're talking about. March Madness Bracket Challenge. 92 percenters. We're pumped. Yeah. Jacked up. I mean, who's not? It's March Madness. For our first fan contest of the year and a gold cup.

Is on the line. Is on the line. That's right. If you remember, we had a bracket challenge last year that decided the best team name. The winner was the Vikings. Yep. That's still up to bait. I don't know. Well, listen, it's not a debate. It's the one that won. It's a debate whether that was...

Accurate. Well, one. And this year we're going full March Madness. That is right. We are the first ever New Heights Tournament Challenge with Reese's Peanut Butter Cups. Wait, time out. How does Reese's factor into this? This is- Oh, okay. I didn't know if we were giving them the cup with Reese's inside of it as the chairs. Good idea. Great idea. That's a great idea. It's like two trophies. Great idea. Are they lava big cups or just regular cups? Whatever they send us.

Or Reese's Peanut Butter Puffs. What if it's just a conglomerate of Reese's Peanut Butter Puffs, Reese's regular peanut butter cups, Reese's big lava cups, Reese's PCs. I actually just got a protein from Cellulor that's Reese's flavored. I was out when you said conglomerate. We will post links to where you can make your picks and enter this bracket challenge.

You'll play against us, me and Jason. Yeah. And the new Heights team. And everybody else that submits a bracket. But yes, we'll be in it too. Yeah. Jason doesn't even know what a basketball is made of. It's made of leather. Oh. And air. That's what he thought. All the college balls are made of some sort of composite now, Jason. Yeah, it's probably not. You're a fucking idiot. I don't, yeah, I have not watched one ounce of college basketball this year. Not even a lick? Which is why I feel extremely confident. Yeah.

In a lot of ways. I'll tell you what I'm going to do. This is what I'm going to do. I'm going to go to Audible and I'm going to look up the books on how to master March Madness. And I'm going to read up on them. And you're going to be doing- Well, you don't read on Audible. Well, I'm going to listen up on them. Okay. And then I'm going to come in with a wealth of knowledge on how to pick March Madness teams. And I'm going to kick your ass. No way, Jose. I'm going to Audible-

James Wooden's. Can you name one team in the top 25? Duke. Lucky guess. It was. Can you name one player in NCAA basketball? Holy fuck.

One player, Jason. Jesus Christ. I don't think I can. I don't think Jesus is in the NCAA. No. He's everywhere, Travis. So they say. So they say. Yeah, I don't think I can. He doesn't even know who we gave NIL money to at the University of Cincinnati. I don't. I'm not going to lie. I don't know one name.

- Jizzle James, shout out to Jizzle James. - Jizzle James! - Yeah, he's still there. - He's still there? - Yeah, he's rocking, he's our only hope. We gotta make a run in the Big 12 tourney from what I think. Rules are simple, sign up using the link in the episode's description. Entry with the highest score wins.

We will do our best to limit it to one entry per person. All right? So please don't enter multiple times, even though that is going to get you the best chance to win. Yeah. There will be a bracket for both men. We're on the honor code, people.

There will be a bracket for both the men's and women's tournaments, so we'll be handing out two Golden Cups. We're handing out two Golden Cups. Questions, have either of you watched any college basketball games this year? We answered that. Do you guys usually fill out brackets ever? I will say this. Mom used to get Cavs tickets if she won the bracket at work. So you'd fill it out for her? And I used to fill it out for her, and that was how I got free Cavs tickets. That's not how you got free Cavs tickets from Fairfax Elementary School. Go ahead, tell them.

Tell them what happened. You're still thinking about it. 30 years later, Jason. I'm just regurgitating a fact. I'm not thinking about it. You brought up a false fact. I won my fight. You didn't. You got suspended and I got cast tickets. What do you mean you won your, I won my fight. What are you talking about? I did not lose my fight. I think that's why you didn't get the casting. No, I didn't get cast tickets because I got suspended for beating the shit out of a kid. Okay.

So why did I get cast tickets? Because you schmoozed the principal. What? Do you think that's how I got cast tickets? Yes, yes. The principal loved you. Mrs. McBee did not like me. I'm pretty sure Mrs. McBee despised our entire household. No, I think she liked... I'm not really sure. That's it for new news brought to you by Audible. All right. Can you hear what I'm talking about?

Jason. Yep. I'll tell you that. Want to do the honors? Alrighty. Our guest today is from Highland Park High School in Dallas, Texas. He was the number one pick in the 2009 draft, a two-time Pro Bowl or Super Bowl champion, and still the quarterback of the Los Angeles Rams. Please welcome Mr. Matthew Stafford. Thank you very much. Thank you for having me. That's a hell of an intro. I need you in-game. Yeah. I need you in-game for me. I'll come do that anytime.

How you doing, brother? I'm good, man. I'm on the mic at Ram's house, baby. I would say you're doing pretty good. You finally got the elephant out of the room of the off-season, I guess, right? Yes, that was a little nerve-wracking there for a little bit, just trying to figure out what was going to go down, but happy to be back wearing Ram's colors, playing the SoFi, doing the thing. Hell yeah. Hell yeah, man. We knew you had a ridiculous amount of success in Detroit, but it kind of feels like L.A. is where you really ... It feels like it's where ...

You kind of made it home, at least on the football field, man. Yeah, for sure. I've been lucky to be playing here with Coach McVay and all my teammates and all those guys for a few years now. And we love it here. My family loves it here. I love playing here. The brand of football fits my style. Oh, yeah. I love going to work and playing in front of the fans. It's a blast. It has been a really cool thing, obviously, coming from Detroit,

Very different place than Los Angeles. Love both of them. But this has been a cool change up and my family's settled in great and we love it here. Love it, man. You say you're brand of football, but...

Do you have a brand? Could you fit into any offense? We were just talking about running midline back in the day. I remember the old coaching points, you know? So how drastically different was it coming to LA and being with Sean and this offense versus what you were doing in Detroit? Did you have multiple different offenses in Detroit? Yeah, I had a few.

I felt like you were always airing it out, but. Yeah, we, yeah, I definitely, I've experienced a lot. You know, this is, this past season was 16. This will be 17 coming up. So I've had a few offensive coordinators. I've done like the Peyton Manning, you know, no huddle at the line of scrimmage thing. We did that with Jim Bob when he was in Detroit for a while. Scott Linehan was my first coordinator when I first came to the league in 09 for like five years. I mean, that,

Seems so far back. Defense, offense, all of it was so different at that point. But yeah, I've had a few. I feel like any player, any competitive player should be like, yeah, put me in any system and I'll thrive. I don't care. You call the plays and I'll haul them. But it has been fun with Sean. The way he challenges all of us, not only physically on the field, but mentally in the approach to the game and all the things that he asked me to do with the line of scrimmage or pre-snap, whatever it is. It's a lot, but I think it makes us successful and it's fun to

you know, getting that challenge from your coach, you know, being like, hey, I think you can handle all this and he gives me all that and it ends up being successful. That's a lot of fun. Thank you. Absolutely. It's fun to watch. Yeah, I appreciate it. We've talked about this before, but

That like McVay offense, Shanahan offense, the run play action is so dynamic on first, second down. But what was obviously great, the moment you got there when the Super Bowl was taking this guy who could do drop back passing at a high level and function in that type of setting combined with that, it felt like just like the perfect marriage. Did the offense change around you when you got there as well, almost just as much as you had to learn the new stuff? Yeah, 100%. That's a very good way of kind of describing what

you know, what transpired and what happened for sure. I got there and I remember we were, Sean and I were maybe, you know, a couple weeks into me being out in LA and he's like, hey, you, me,

Kelly and Veronica, let's go drink some wine up in Santa Barbara area. I'm like, all right, cool. We're going on a little wine trip, go for a day. Right away, different than Detroit. Correct. Yes. Badass beer with Kid Rock or something like that at one point. It's tons of fun to happen in Detroit, too. Exactly. So we're cruising up there. We're like 30 minutes into our ride up there, and my guy pulls out a piece of paper, and he's like, all right, so here's the drop-back stuff. No, no, no.

Okay, I got it. I haven't even had any red wine yet and we're just, we're already into this. I love this shit. But he's like, here's this package I'm thinking about. We'll go no huddle, jump the ball and we'll do it. And sure enough, that's what we did a bunch, especially in 2021 and launched it all over the field and had a bunch of success. But when I got, you know, here, he was like, man,

you know, drop back pass has been something that, you know, we've always wanted to try and elevate, you know, just as that core system. And I was like, well, that's kind of all I did in Detroit. You know, like we didn't really run the ball or play action at very often. It was just like, I'm in the gun and here we go. Yeah. So it was like,

Oh, that's the easy part for me. You know, like I've done this my whole career. So it was kind of a, it was a good marriage and it's worked out well. Let's talk about the decision to stay in LA. Okay. There are a lot of rumors out there, you know, getting wooed from New York, Raiders, LA, contract stuff. Yeah. What was ultimately the deciding factor to come back?

and resign with LA. Yeah, I mean, I think it was kind of a joint process, right? Like it wasn't just, I wasn't a free agent. You know, I still had two years left on my deal and, you know, we kind of worked something out last year, kind of, you know, at the 11th hour to kind of figure it out right before training camp with the understanding that, okay, we're going to come back and readdress this if I want to play again the next year. Sure. You know, had a nice season and wanted, you know, felt healthy, wanted to keep going.

And, you know, so it was like, all right, let's figure out how to get this done. Obviously, there were some trade rumors and some things like that that, you know, transpired that was, you know, a little bit tough on your family just because you don't really know what's going to be next. I remember when I was getting traded from Detroit to...

LA really a couple weeks before that you know I'd made it known that I wanted to be traded from Detroit and I can't tell you how much time I spent on Zillow at that point looking at houses in Indy and there and all these places back then right so you're just like and I'm sitting there going man where am I going to be where are my kids going to school all this kind of stuff and you know a little bit of a similar situation just because

you know, what was out there and what was going on. But I think in the end, I know that they wanted me back. I wanted to be back. We just had to kind of figure that out and get to that point. We did. And I'm sure as hell happy that, you know, I'm going to be here for at least another year and hopefully some after that.

Love it. Love it. Hell yeah. I remember coming out of the draft, I was – I had a – what do you call it? Where they fly you in. Top 30 visit or whatever. Top 30 visit. I had a top 30 visit to Washington. Yeah. And at the time had no idea what would eventually transpire to be like

four out of the four head coaches just sitting in like the player like positions at the time and McVay was one of them and he was the tight end coach so I spent most of my time talking to McVay about ball and I just remember him talking so fucking fast it hasn't changed and he's just rambling and he's just ripping them and ripping them and I'm just like dude

I don't know how you got me jacked up, this jacked up about playing football right now, but you're the only one to do it. It was like, it was him and like, ironically, Dan Campbell were the two that I was like, man, these dudes are,

Love this shit. And during installs throughout the building, is he just nonstop 100 miles per hour and just all about ball? Yes, all day, every day. The guy loves it. I mean, shoot, like I said, we're going on a wine trip and the guy's ripping off plays. He just can't stop and loves it. But it is cool to watch him do his thing. He's so, like you said, he's great one-on-one, right? He's great teaching me the offense. I remember when I first...

You know, got traded here. I was actually, long story, but I was in Mexico, randomly ran into him, whatever, it happened. You know, I fly back and I'm going over to his house in the mornings and I'm like,

he's teaching me the offense on his whiteboard in his house going crazy i'm like trying to write all this shit down i'm like oh my god i'm never gonna remember any of this you know i just got off a bender in mexico the old chocky baby yeah exactly so i uh but yeah he's like that one-on-one he's all day every day loves football but then he gets up in front of the room and he can relate to everybody he commands the room he's got great energy um sets the tone for the week every single week and and guys uh

you know, thrive on it. So it's, uh, it's a lot of fun going to work, you know, in that building, especially when we're winning and he's in a good mood and rocking and rolling. It's a, it's a lot of fun. Yeah. Fuck yeah, man. I don't even know if I want to put, but the only time I've literally met Sean, we were kind of,

and I were in Maui on vacation. Yeah. And him and Veronica walk through and he makes a point to come over and same thing. Yes. Immediately talking football. Yes. And like, hey, we'll meet up. I'm like, I could just see a look at Veronica's face like she is, this happens all day. All the time. Every day for her. She's like, great, we're on vacation in Maui and this fucking idiot still wants to talk about football. 100%. She probably saw me walking to the pool in Mexico and was like, fuck, dude.

I remember he's got like my film up on his phone. He's like, do you remember this? I'm like, yeah. Like I'm trying to have a margarita and some chips, bro. So good. He's just got to know, man. He just, he is what he is. I just, I enjoy talking ball with him. He ropes you in, man. He ropes you in. He just wants to,

He just wants to get better, man. I fucking love that. No doubt. Well, you guys got a lot of talent around you over there. I'm sure that had a lot to do with you wanting to come back. It feels like a great situation over there. Obviously, the Cooper Cup, like, decision of whether he's going to be back, things like that. One of the best receivers in the league still. Yeah. Obviously, dealt with some stuff last year, but is it like –

And we don't have to talk about this if you don't want to, but have you talked to him? Well, yeah. I mean, like I was, um, you know, I ran into him right kind of when they told him the news that they're, you know, talking about trading him and, and, um, you know, obviously that one is tough. It's you're, you're around this game long enough, those kinds of things happen, you know, and, and it's, uh,

It's tough, especially for a guy that's meant so much to me in my career and how he helped me kind of, you know, get in with the Rams and, you know, just in that locker room and what it's all about to be a part of that team. He was such a huge part of that for me. So it's tough. And I've spent probably more time with him as a teammate than really any other teammate, you know, in my career. And that just kind of happened organically. You know, I would go in there early and,

And sure enough, Cooper would be in there. He'd walk in as I'm walking in, and we'd start watching tape together. And then it just turned into a thing that we just did every day. And so I spent a ton of time with him. He's meant a ton to me as a player, but even more probably as a person. You talk to guys, including Sean, guys around that team that have been with him for extended periods of time. And he's a fantastic player. He means a ton to our team. But just as a human being, as a person, he's as good as it gets. So whether he's with us, which I –

You know, I love Cooper and would love opportunity to continue to play with him. Or if he's somewhere else. I mean, whoever gets him, it's going to be – you know, he's a fantastic person for the locker room, for the team. And shoot, you know, when he's healthy, he's still balling. Hell yeah. Man, I still remember that goddamn interview where he just started ripping off defensive, like, coverages and stuff. Dude, that shit was so – but it was like, I mean –

The mind is going, man. He's dialed in. He's like the nicest guy in the world, right? And so the story behind that is he's doing this interview post-game, which he doesn't love being in front of the camera anyways. And he's doing an interview, and the reporter asks him a question. He answers it. She asks him another question. He answers it. It's like a third question. He's like, okay, what is going on here? And he's like, I'm trying to get off the field, get in the locker room and go. She asks him one more question. And so he's like, you know what? I'm just going to go top rope way over your head so that you're just going to go –

Okay, thanks, Cooper. Yeah, yeah. Brilliant. He answered with just like the, I mean, we saw the zone pressure. I knew it was, the mic was working away because we got three out. Matthew changed protection. I'm like, you just went like rogue football on this reporter and she was just like, and that's Cooper Cupps. He was like, thank God I can go take a shower and get out of here. But, uh,

It was a pretty veteran move by Koops. You were saying he watches film with you guys. Is he that in tune with protection calls and stuff like that? Or was he just trying to get out of that interview? He's pretty dialed in. He asks me really good questions. Nice. Just from a quarterback perspective, he knows as much or more than any other teammate I've ever had. This guy will be watching practice or something, and he's like, hey, run that play back. And I'm like...

and it's some run play and he's like, we really could, you know, knock it back, tag it back one here with these angles and single high and I could just block the mic instead of having to go out to the nickel in this two by two set. And I'm like, yeah, I mean, if you want it to change, go ahead. He's grinding on every like run play, every single thing he's meticulous about and shoot, it's, you know, part of what makes him great. I gotta love it. You gotta tell me the difference though of a guy like him than a guy like Demarcus Robinson. Oh yeah, baby. D-Rob. D-Rob.

D-Rob. One of my favorite teammates of all time. He's so great. D-Rob is the man. I love D-Rob. He's been great for our team. I think he's got some crazy streak where he's been on like, he's played for nine years, played for a few different teams, and he's made the playoffs every single year. Dude, it's ridiculous. So he's just like, he's the good luck charm. You know, you just got to bring him back. But he's a great player. You know, okay to not know to, you know,

tag it back one in a single high he's okay with not knowing that and it's good baby we can figure it out but like instinct wise he's got great instincts great instincts like you can just tell him out there be like hey we're gonna run wide zone at you and he'd probably end up on the right guy you know he just gets it so much fun to play with

Even Puka, man. What a character. Yeah. You guys got so much talent out there. Puka's a monster, man. For a young guy to come in and, you know, done what he's been able to do the last couple years is pretty outstanding. Obviously had a great guy to learn from with Koop as far as, you know, kind of where to be in that offense. Yeah. And then, you know, once the ball's in his hands,

you know, some of the best stuff he does is just running physical and playing physical. It's pretty cool to see. Heck yeah. Do you think the receivers in that offense need to be a little bit more dialed in with all the motions and like how responsible they are in the run game? Yeah, you won't play if you're not. Right. You know what I mean? And that's kind of the way it is. And, you know, a lot of two-by-two sets where the F and the X were cooping old D-Robber out there together. There you go. Who do you got? Who do you got?

Yes, yes. So there were two peas in a pod out there. There we go. Two by two sets. Oh, I love it, man. And so yeah. Try to rely on your teammates, come on. Not illegal to communicate out there. I miss those combos with D-Rob, man. Not illegal to communicate out there. Look when they sign Brandon Brooks. The thing is, you get me and D-Rob on the same side. We're over there like, oh God. We'll both just get somebody. Yeah.

I think when they signed Brandon Brooks, they were like, part of your job is telling Lane Johnson, you know, what the call is. Let's make sure we're bouncing this call out. We're echoing the call. We got to echo the call. 100%. That's part of it, man. He's going to block TJ one-on-one. You're going to let him know what the call is. That's the beauty of the game though, right? For sure. There's give and take from everybody and...

No doubt. It happens. It's fun to watch. Let's talk about the Super Bowl season. You went there in the first year. When you signed in L.A., did you anticipate that happening that quickly? Probably not, right? Any guy that just says, yeah, I'll just show up there and we'll win the Super Bowl. Obviously. No, it was... I was excited about the opportunity. I didn't think it was going to happen there just because I didn't... I think I was going there just because of the...

you know, contract stuff they had just done with Jared and all that. Sure. You know, but I ended up there and, yeah, I mean, I knew we had a talented team, but I just knew that I felt a ton of pressure because...

I think they returned 10 guys on offense except for me. And maybe all 11 guys on defense. And I'm like, I'm not going to be the asshole that doesn't know what's going on. You know what I mean? So it was like a lot of pressure, especially at my position. I'm supposed to know everybody's job in and out. So spent a lot of time and a lot of hours just kind of making sure that when I stepped into huddle day one, they weren't like –

this guy you know what I mean so it was like alright not only physically could I do what I could do but I want to make sure that mentally they were like oh okay this guy's on it and so spent a bunch of time and I knew we were talented I didn't know how talented but you guys have been on those teams it's like you know the week one starters we had compared to you know what we were doing at the end we finished

It's totally different and so being able to navigate that whole thing was incredible. It was an incredible year. You know, we had so many talented guys, you know, especially late after we signed Odell, we signed Vaughn. I mean, it was like going out to practice was like, I mean, this was just unbelievable practices we had against each other. Swag champs, man. You get two swag champs like that. It was wild.

It was wild. Especially in L.A., man. Yeah. They were fun teammates to have, and I still talk to those guys. But it was a special moment. I mean, just a lot of years in Detroit, not knowing if that was ever going to be an opportunity to get them playing those games and going through the playoffs and –

you know winning those games to get to that point was special and then getting to do it at our home stadium was was crazy and a lot of people focus on your time in la just because i think the success has been there as a team you balled the out in detroit oh every year every year yeah every year calvin johnson i mean yeah what the hell he was a monster yeah just a creative player he didn't say much you know and i wish i was i wish i would have got

obviously more time with him anytime you got a great player like that you're like man I wish I had more time to play with that guy but I just think about like plug and play him in the system we're in right now and I'm like oh my god would have been scary that's a guy you can plug into any system no doubt I mean the guy was playing at Georgia Tech he was literally playing yeah put him out there he can figure it out but he is an incredible player

I've been lucky to play with a bunch of talented receivers, all kind of different styles and body types and all that kind of stuff. But he is, I mean, it was crazy. Throwing balls to him, it feels like you're throwing to a D end. I mean, that's what he looked like when he was out there. It was crazy. I mean, you have two, so Cooper in what year was that? 21 for Coop. 21? Yeah. And then Calvin in 12? 12. I mean, two of the top five receiving players.

Seasons of anybody in the history of the game. Yeah. And they have you as a person throwing. What does that mean? Like, do you remind them that you're the person? I just send a yearly text. You're welcome. No, it's cool. It's something that I feel lucky to be a part of. You know what I mean? I'm sure. It was incredible watching both those guys do it.

in completely different ways you know Cooper like majority from the slot um just unbelievable finding his way through catching run guy and then Calvin just line him up on the outside and let him go to work on people it was uh it was cool to be a part of both um I definitely am proud of it and that you know we got that done um it's a special special thing I guess you know um

I guess I can get that number one guy the ball a lot if he's getting open. Yeah. Schwartzy used to tell me that you guys would run a goal line play where Calvin would be singled up. Yeah. Forward to the other side. And we used to call it diamond. Yeah. Where it's like quarterback draw if it's a light box. Calvin, if he's got the one-on-one, we're taking it. And if you've got numbers there, you've got the screen. Yeah. And he's like, you could not be right. Yeah. Like, it was like a cheat code. It was. And then, like, we would get to the point where I would –

It was hard down there in the goal line to see leverage. Sure. You know, for me, like, was the guy playing inside of you or outside of you or whatever? So I got to a point where, like, Calvin and I would just have – he would just signal to me whether he wanted the fade or the glance kind of. Yeah. And he would just go open hand, closed hand on the inside hand. He just closed hand. I'm on the fade. Sneaky son of a bitch. Open hand. Biggest dude on the field. Sneaky. Just one hand open. I'm like, ooh, here comes this one right here. So, but, yeah, I mean, it was crazy. And then we went and played the Saints, and they ended up vicing him.

you know, down to like pump pro. And then the next year on there for you, we're playing at Arizona and like the first third down of the game, he's in the slot and we're running like 525 F post swing, like, you know, and, and, uh, he's,

he's viced on third down third down easily third down from like our like minus 20 you know like opening possession of the game we're not letting him ruin the game I'm like jeez guys relax I mean listen that's what we treated Aaron Donald we viced him all game yeah I get it I can completely relate and I threw it to like Pettigrew and we didn't get the first down or something and I come back and

I'm like, how was it? He's like, I still got open. And I'm like, fuck. This guy, of course he would get open. You know what I mean? Of course. It killed me, man. We're going to cancel him out since there's two guys vicing him. Still won. I'm like, God. He was crazy. March Madness is coming up. That's right. I don't know if you know it, but March is here. It's going to be wild. Everyone always locks in on the men's tournament, but the women's bracket is shaping up to be unreal. Yeah. Have you seen Juju Watkins? Come on now.

What she's doing over at USC, absolutely electric. Electric. We got to meet her out in France last year, actually. If you're not already on the Juju team, now's your chance to say you were there early. That's right. The level of talent she brings to the women's game is generational. I'm telling you, do not sleep.

on the women's tournament. - Yeah, she can literally do it all, man. This is the year and make sure you keep your eye on Juju Watkins. Her mindset is next level, like the way she attacks everything she does. - She's got that classic Nike energy. When people say you can't, she's like, "Watch me," and just does it. - You got that right.

And shout out to our partner Nike, who she also partners with. They came out with that insane commercial around the Super Bowl that we showed you guys. And now they're out inspiring the next generation of hoopers. Stay tuned for what they've got going on for March Madness. I cannot wait. Now...

A moment brought to you by American Express. Ooh, I like how you went down here, Jason. Do you have any fun dining experiences planned for maybe St. Patrick's Day? I'm going to dine on 15 freaking Guinnesses. Ooh, nice. They are packed with protein. Are you going to fit in with the holiday theme? I'm going to be wearing green. Ooh. I might. I don't know. Do I go slapsticky and do all the Kiss Me I'm Irish stuff?

Or do I just go like a green sweater with a Jeff cap and just drink Guinness? Well, that's fun. With Amex Platinum, you will get global dining access by resi when you add your Platinum card to your resi profile. So you can experience some of the hottest restaurants with access to exclusive reservations.

and even be notified when a hard-to-get reservation opens up. That's the powerful backing accessed by American Express. For full terms and access to learn more, visit americanexpress.com slash withamex. Thank you to our partner, Mentos Gum. Do-do-do-do-do-do. Do I.

We did it! Life's got its mundane moments. The morning commute, the endless calls, the same playlist on repeat. But what if you could shake things up with just one small move? Guys, that's where Mentos gum comes in. That first burst of freshness. It's like hitting the fresh button to make ordinary moments fun. Suddenly, you're not just sitting in traffic, you're jamming out to your own private concert. No, right now. The back-to-back meeting marathon?

Now your mind is zooming and grooving with fresh ideas. From the crisp kick of fresh mint to fruity strawberry, each piece is refreshing with possibility. Refresh every day with Mentos gum.

I was going to take it back, man. How does a Texas gunslinger like yourself end up in Georgia? Yeah. Well, both my parents went to Florida State, so I wasn't like a Texas kid growing up. I wasn't like Longhorns or Aggies or any of that kind of stuff. But your whole life you grew up in Texas. I did. But I loved Florida State. I wanted to go to Florida State. I ended up getting an offer from them, but the offensive coordinator at Florida State for a long time was Mark Richt. He then became the head coach at Georgia, so I started watching Georgia.

And my sister went there the year before me. And really the couple years before I went to Georgia, they were like second and fifth in the country. It was a really good program. And I frankly wanted to be doing what I'm doing right now, playing pro football as fast as I could. I went there, took a visit. It was like a pro-style offense. Yeah. Felt like I had a chance to play early.

And I don't know. I wasn't like a huge, I wasn't like in love with the recruiting process and it's so different back then than it is now anyway. So I just was like,

Let me get into where I fit in and keep it moving. And I loved my time there. It was great. Got to play with NoSean, a bunch of talented players, A.J. Green, some of those guys. So I was never in love with University of Texas football, so I know all my buddies wanted me to go there because they're all Texas kids. I was about to say, even the day and age you're coming out is like – Our intern right here, Brandon, is the biggest Texas Longhorn fan you'll ever see. Help me.

I'm sorry. Well, you know what didn't help? Because I went to Texas. I sat down with Greg Davis, who was the offensive coordinator. First mistake. Yeah. He pulls up tape of the game the year before. It's Vince Young versus Oklahoma State. That's what I'm saying. You're in like the heart of like prime Texas football. But it was like, hey, this is four verse concept here. This is like, they had some crazy comeback at the end of the game.

And the second half, Vince went crazy. And he was like, we were running four verts. And he's like, this is beater box. And then we check it down. We say, beater box back. That's like seam outside, go to the back, right? Sounds like a Texas fucking offense. He goes, well, when Vince is quarterback, we just say beater box and run. And I'm like, well, I ain't fucking running, bro. Show me some major Applewhite tape. That's what I need. You know, like, find me here. And he just showed me Vince stuff. And I'm like, I'm not going to hurdle the middle line back there anymore.

do this shit so can you just like find me here and it just it didn't it didn't fit but yeah that's amazing that was my story Texas I was like I don't know I don't know what to tell you that's not my skill set so good man it was fun though so you go from Georgia you drafted in the first round first pick yeah at what point did you know you were going number

It was like a couple nights before maybe, maybe a night or two before. Yeah. Back when they kind of did that, you know, and like figure out contracts and all that kind of stuff. So, yeah, I was in New York already. So it was, you know, doing the whole draft thing. You did the whole rigmarole, yeah. Yeah. And they kind of called my agent and told him, you know, we're going to do it. And I was like, all right, sweet. This is kind of nice. Nice walking into the green room not-

Having any stress? Yeah, having any stress at all, knowing this will be a short sit. And it was, you know, just kind of sat down, popped back up and kept it moving. It was a whirlwind. It was crazy. I think back on that. I'm like, man, what I didn't know, right? Like so much. But it was a blast.

Did you immediately jump on a jet to Detroit or did you? Yeah, the next morning. So I like went out. That's not immediate. Did you have a little fun in the city? Yeah, I had some good times with the buddies. I had a bunch of college buddies there and some of my family was there too. So we went and had a good time. Kicked it. I had to pick my number. The next morning the team president calls me early in the morning. Oh, that's nice. And I'm like,

And he's like, what number do you want? And I'm like, seven. That's what I was in college. He's like, well, Dutch Clark, 1932, Detroit Lion. Yeah. His number retired. And I was like, oh, shit. And they were like, we can call his family and see if he would un-retire it for him. I'm like, no, no, no. All good. Rifling through the numbers. Like my dad's in the room. A buddy of mine's in the room. And I'm like...

Hey guys, what number should I be? And I'm like rifling through these like, ah, you don't want that one or you don't want that one. I was like, all right, I'll just go with nine. Is nine available? They're like, yeah, nine works. I'm like, cool. And in my head, I'm like, great. I don't have to change my signature much. And like the seven just goes to a nine. Like I'm good, right? This is easy. So, uh, yeah. After that proceeded to, uh,

you know, hop on a jet and fly to a flight of Detroit. So love it before the two days before when they called you, were there any other teams that you thought, Oh, I might end up there? Like, or how's the process I guess before? Yeah, it was, um, I took a couple of those 30 visits you were talking about. I took one to Detroit. I took one to the jets and then I took one to, um,

San Fran. Okay. And so the Jets, when I left there, they were like, we're moving up to five to pick somebody if you're not there. And they ended up taking Sanchez. Oh, yeah. At five. They moved up to five to take him. And then the 49ers was a different deal. They had the 10th pick. They ended up taking Crabtree. But...

At the Combine, there had been some stuff going on in an interview, right? I sat down with Peter King afterwards, and he was like, hey, what's the craziest thing that happened at the Combine in the meetings, right? Sure. And that was kind of back when they would ask you stuff you can't say now or ask now. Sure, okay. And so I'm like-

Well, Sam Fran's deal, it was Singletary was the head coach. Yeah. And it was like a shrink. Oh, yeah. You know, like a psychiatrist. Yeah, a sports psychologist, psychiatrist lady. She's talking to me about all these different things. And it's like, tell me about your parents. I'm like, my parents got divorced when I was in high school. And okay, do you want to talk about it? I'm like, not really. They're cool. It's okay. So Peter King's like, what's the strangest thing? I'm like, well, my 12 minutes with the Niners at that point was...

you know, it was like, uh, I wanted to know how much of the prorated hour I owed him after my 12 minutes. And I said that and he wrote that and I was like, and so Mike got all pissed off and was like, he's not, you know, ready to be a quarterback and he got mad. So I had to fly out there and like, just kind of like shake hands and be like, listen, man, I didn't mean anything by it. Yeah. Supposed to be a joke, but, uh, yeah, that was my, that was my time. Yeah.

I fly out to San Fran. I'm on the East Coast. I'm in Atlanta at the time. I fly out to San Fran. I go there. I meet with Mike. This is awesome. He's getting a Bowflex put in his office. As I'm walking in, I'm like, hell yeah. He's getting the Chuckie. He got scammed by the commercial. I was just like, been there before. And I'm like, this is awesome. But it was honestly a great meeting with him. The whole deal. And so...

You know, I'm meeting with them. They're like, hey, they're not going to. We're like, you're not going to be there at 10. We're not going to get a chance to take you. Had a slim flask milkshake next to him. Do a top up. Oh, gosh.

It was short-lived. The league has changed quite a bit. Yes, it has. Yes, it has. Oh, man. Good old Mike. Yeah. All right, well... Goddamn, that was good. What do you think the biggest change in the league has been? Besides Bowflexes and coaches? Exactly. Golly, I mean, it has changed a ton, right? Like...

I feel like the X's and O's parts of it is so cyclical and like...

you know it was all when I first got in the league it was all Tampa 2 what were y'all's first years I was 11 13 okay yeah so it was like all Tampa 2 it was Chicago Bears Chicago Bears Tampa 2 they're bringing the Mike and the Nickel playing three-week way or they're bringing the free safety and Erlacher's cutting and picking four-week and take him to the house right it's like the pressures were all these like zone dogs 100% that's all it was right and then it went to like okay Seattle we're playing three deep four under we got the like weak hook player carrying three vertical all that stuff yeah and then it's you know a lot of what you guys are doing I think is great you know and whatever so I think

Scheme-wise, it's really been cyclical. I think the way they can hit players now has changed so much. I mean, I used to get just absolutely dumped by dudes. You've got some iconic just like face masks going in all sorts of different directions. Yeah, there's been some tough...

Some lean moments there. So good. Just some good memes nowadays. It's not the same. No, yeah, it's not the same. I remember at one offseason, I was in the NFC North for forever, and Julius Peppers, who was with Chicago at the time. I just talked to you and sounded too mean. Jared Allen. Julius Peppers. North Carolina. Are you out of an action movie? What the fuck are you doing on this football field?

But Pep and Jared Allen were both free agents in Minnesota and Chicago. I'm like, good, get the fuck out of here. I'm tired of seeing these guys. And they just fucking switched seats. I'm like, damn it. Julius is in Green Bay and Jared's in Chicago. And I'm like, God, I can't get rid of these guys. But no, it was different times back then. Yeah.

I mean, really all aspects of the game, I feel like. But, I mean, none of the guys were doing this, so this is a different part of it as well, which is kind of cool. I'm not like...

ultra dialed into the podcast thing my wife does the morning after yeah KB she does a couple podcasts and she rocks it I'm not super dialed in Cooper and I did a little nine and dime okay for the team kind of thing yeah which was a lot of fun but yeah I mean just having the ability and the platform to kind of get out there and talk a little bit is cool it's I know it's fun for everybody to get to know you guys too so it's cool we have fun doing it

Especially when we get guys like this, man. I appreciate you. We got to talk about something that Tom Brady said, though. He's saying that college isn't developing these quarterbacks like they used to. Do you kind of see that as well? Do you see some of these young guys that come in that just are – it doesn't seem like –

they're as ingrained in the like maybe the x's and o's or their mechanics as much well yeah and i think maybe kind of what he was thinking about too when he was talking about that is just you know the ability to move and and do all that you don't get time in a system right like think about if you just changed office of coordinators every single year you'd be like man i don't know

I know a lot, but I don't know if I like mastered any got everything you know what I mean and got everything out of that and So I mean cuz for me it's like hard to argue. I mean what Jaden Dennis did this year is a rookie I'm like pretty solid You know and I think yeah all those guys that are coming out like the rookies actually impressed me You know just the way that they can go out there and operate and play it up at a high level at a young age But I do know what he means by that like

You're just kind of bouncing around, bouncing through college. That's a different feel. I went to a school, you guys went to a school, and you're like...

Feel good about that school, try to learn everything there is to learn about that system and go from there. I think it's an individual case, each player, but I am impressed by a lot of the guys that come out. I'm a fan of, I want those guys to have success. I don't want the guys to come into the league and I'm not the old guy that's like, no, you can't take, don't have my job. I want you to fail. I'm like, man, I want the game to continue to be great and I want those young guys to play well. So I was impressed by them.

- Awesome, awesome. - I think also it goes back to what you were saying, it's just a different game. - 100%. - When you come into the league nowadays, I just feel like, and this might be me being older thinking about this, but it feels like it's a younger game. - Oh yeah. - It doesn't, like I don't see the Ray Lewis's at linebacker where it's like intimidation. - Yeah, you gotta be able to move. - Where you're under center and you're staring

Ray Lewis. And you're like, break the huddle. Here we go. I know you're coming. Yeah. They got to be able to cover and do more in the passing game. No, Ray Lewis would probably still be good in today's NFL. Yeah. No doubt. Right. Yeah. Bobby Wagner. Yeah. You know, I mean, I think, but yeah, it's,

As the game changes, so do the positions. Yeah, there's not a million dudes doing what I do, like sitting in the pocket and throwing anymore. You know, a lot of guys are moving around and making plays, and I'm jealous, you know? I'm watching tape, and they're like, I know they just see man coverage, and they're like, I'm just going to run. I'm just going to run. And I'm like, that's an awful idea if I try to do that.

Everybody's back. It's going to be second to 11. It's not good for us if I do that. Guys, get open. Do you ever watch the Combine, any of the college games? I mean, I'll flip the Combine on a little bit here and there. I watch some of the college games. I'm not like a huge college football guy.

when it gets like to the playoffs and the really good games sure I'll flick it on but I'm not like following a guy throughout the year now I do watch those guys when they get into the league like CJ Stroud I thought he had an unbelievable rookie year and I still think he you know he had a tough year this year but they had a ton of injuries around him and all that kind of stuff yeah and so they have but I like watching the young guys play because it's it

It kind of like revitalizes me and invigorates me a little bit. Like, golly, these guys are out there just playing carefree, ripping it. You know, sometimes when you have, you know, a bunch of years of experience, you got some scars too, right? I mean, these guys are just letting it rip into this coverage. And I'm like, I remember CJ threw a touchdown. I think it was a preseason game. He threw like a bang eight into like into three buzz right over the safety's head. And I was like, I saw him that year we played him or something or practice against him. I was like,

"What are you doing ripping the skin right into rotation for a touchdown?" He's like, "Hey man, they didn't play it right." And I'm like,

Just to be carefree enough to be like, you know what, shoot it in there and score. I'm like, man, I'd have been going that way. And, you know, probably been second, sixth. We've been happy with the four-yard completion, but my man's dropping off the field with a touchdown. I mean, I noticed that even just for me, like you get resistant to something sometimes just because you've been burned on the floor. A hundred percent. And then you'll watch somebody else do it and all of a sudden it like works out. And you're like, man, am I wrong in this? Like what's going on here? I mean, it sounds like yours is pretty black.

and white but like the further you go no I'm with you the further you get in your career you gotta fight that sometimes right for sure man like I know how they should be playing that defense yeah and they're not playing it right but like I went over here and this was open even though I know shouldn't be you know what I mean you're like the teams that are really ultra like undisciplined on defense are

Don't want to give away any secrets, but those are tough ones to play sometimes, right? Because you're like, you know, you may get a freebie in score or whatever, but a lot of times, man, you're passing something because you know the coverage and it's wide open because they blew it. You know, and it's tough. It's tough when Calvin Johnson's double covered because you're like, man, he's double, but fuck, it is Calvin. Do you see anything when you're watching like a young quarterback where like,

oh man, he's got it. Or like, what do you, I guess, what would you see out of a trait in a guy that you like to see out of a quarterback? Yeah. I mean, I think poise is a huge one, right? Like, because I think that helps, you know, withstand time. I think quarterbacks, like so much of it is like longevity. How often can you do it? How many years in a row can you just go out there and be that player? And there's going to be times where,

where things around you or you are battling something or wherever and it may not be as good but like what kind of what are you when times are good when times are bad also in game like hey it's fourth quarter we need you like what does that look like I think that's something to me that you know helps

you know, predict and project what guys are going to be like down the road. Cause that's what they're all looking for, right? They don't want like a guy to be really good for one year. They want them to be good for a long time. And, and that's something to me that like, you look at what Jaden Daniels able to do. I mean, those guys, um, they proved it both. I think through like longevity of a season, but also in game in big moments, um,

being able to come up for the team is pretty cool. I forget what, there was like 11 wins or something like that, like at the last draft? Yeah, I mean, there's all sorts of them, right? I mean, you had the massive Hail Mary that everybody remembers, but there were a bunch of other ones too that were great plays. Yeah. I got to ask this before we get to this next segment. Yeah. You played with two of the best D tackles in this season.

Decade plus of football and Aaron Donald and in Dominick's. Yeah, who friends you more as a quarterback You know spent more I probably played more I don't know it might be kind of close I was gonna say I played more games against Aaron Donald than I did sue but I've got quite a few against sue there that kind of at the end I would say having you know experience with both age

A.D. is, it was a different deal. I agree. Because there was like, the get off was crazy. I mean, he just wrecked practices. Sue was that way too in a lot of instances and was a great player for us in Detroit and then, you know, bounced around and had some unbelievable seasons at other places too. But A.D. was, that was something different. Yeah.

Just watching him go about his job every single day. I remember the third practice I was there in training camp. We have no pads on. We're in a quick game. I'm throwing a hitch to the field. And I smash my thumb on his helmet. And I'm like, yo, I just caught the ball. It's like catch, throw, bang. And I'm like...

and next thing you know, everybody had the Guardian caps on. Yeah. But he was crazy in his ability. And I would say the respect that he got from offensive lines and other offenses was something I've never seen before. Yeah, I would agree with that. I mean, we treated him differently than any other defensive tackle that we ever played. And Sue was...

I think Shu was almost, he wanted to kill somebody. Where AD wanted to kill somebody too, but it was a different level of intensity. I agree. AD, though, his motor. It was every single snap, every single play, you could not take a playoff. He never took a playoff. I don't know how he had that kind of conditioning to this day. The combinedness of his athleticism is explosive in strength.

And he's a smart player, too. He just never stopped. Yeah, he's a smart player. I mean, he knew. You talk to him. I get in the cafeteria and you sit down and you talk to him. And he's like, yeah, I knew if I wasn't doubled. If the center didn't come to me, it's run away. Yeah. Because the center comes to me every pass play. Yeah. And if the center comes to me, it's pass or it's run two. Yeah. Center goes away. You're not blocking me with two. So he knew it was run away. And then he's shooting a backside gap. I mean, he...

It was just like, could make decisions and go like that that quickly. For sure. It was impressive to be around him and watch him work. I mean, the way he worked out. We had a...

I'll never forget and he's crazy in the weight room. Oh, I like the rock came in and worked out with him one time and there's a Maniac in the weight room, right and I'll never forget this was 21 or 22 maybe yeah We had like a make-a-wish kid who had like a year before had been like hey I want to my dream is to go like be with an aerodromal for a day kind of thing and thankfully this kid at that point was

had kind of beaten the odds and had beaten the cancer that he had, I believe, and like was really on the mend. And it was really cool. Like he came in and you're like, oh man, this guy's like doing good, right? High school kid, like bigger kid, like loved to play football. And AD was like, cool, come work out with me, right? And I'm like...

I'm walking by, I'm like, "Yo, what is about to happen?" And I look over and I'm over there doing banded something. And 30 minutes in and A.D.'s just ripping curls out. And next thing you know, this kid is puking in the trash can. I'm like, "A.D., can you please have a little understanding?" The kid got what he wanted.

You want to be a D? You got to work like a D. It was unbelievable. I'm like, God, can we just relax on the bicep curls for a little bit? It's like, how many do we do till we throw up? You know what I mean? It was just unbelievable. I was like, this guy has no, I mean, the motor just never stops, man. It was incredible. I remember it was my first time playing in LA against the Rams and it was a preseason game.

And I'm number three closest to the line. We're running all-go specials. It's cover two, or at least I see too high. And I'm thinking I'm just right at the hash. And I take off, and I'm like, man, I'm just going to fucking dig for my first five to ten yards. And by the time I got to the –

five yards downfield, I felt something throw me to the numbers. And I got out of that play like fucking like little dazed. I'm like, what in the fuck was that? And I watch it on film and it was 80 coming from the backside B gap and just fucking smoked me. Oh, I believe there was a blitz from the other side. And I was just like, what the fuck? I had never felt like more of like,

Like the lightest thing in the... I had never moved that fast before ever in my life by anybody. I remember I was in Detroit. We were playing a game against the Rams and they were in St. Louis still at that point. Jim Bob was our coordinator and I dropped back to pass late in the game. We need to play. And Aaron, I have two hands on the ball, right? Like this. And Aaron just...

comes up from behind me and just rips both my biceps apart the ball falls down the ground and I'm like I'm looking at him and I'm like I come over to the sideline I'm like I mean I'm pissed and I'm like I don't know what I'm supposed to do there he's like you gotta find a way to hold on to it I'm like go fuck yourself man you think I'm gonna be able to hold on to this this monster just he just went like this and like

He kindly separated my arms. He was like, I'll take the ball. I was just like, what do I do? Oh, is that what I was supposed to do? Hold on to it. Got it. Thanks. That's how this works. I was with Jim Bob. I'll never forget when he came up. We will probably cut this.

Bro. Gotta tell it, though. Tell it anyways. So I'm sitting there. We had just hired Nick Sirianni and Shane Steichen, and Jim Bob was on the staff. I had never met Jim Bob. Oh, yeah. I didn't know about him in Detroit, really. Yeah. He comes up, and he says, hey, Jason, my name's Jim Bob Cooter. And I fucking laugh. Oh, my God.

Like audibly like a giggle. Yeah, and I'm like, oh, that's fucking real Awesome fucking dude, dude all-time name It caught me just so off guard like I was like what are we like in varsity blues? Like he's got like the name matches. I think his like I

His childhood home backed up to the Jack Daniels distillery, like as it should. With a name like Jim Bob Cooter, it better back up to Jack Daniels. So yeah, he's one of a kind.

Thank you to Intuit TurboTax for sponsoring today's episode. If your schedule is as unpredictable as ours, trying to lock down an in-person appointment with your tax pro can get a bit tricky. But now taxes are matching with a TurboTax Live Expert on any device. They do your taxes for you and...

Get you your maximum refund all while you go about your day listening to your favorite podcast. Nice. Who wouldn't love to kick back with a cup of coffee, feet propped up, while a tech-savvy tax expert makes sure you're getting every dollar out of those business trips, huh? I mean, that does sound pretty dreamy. When you match with TurboTax Live Expert, they have cutting-edge tools for any tax situation. It's 2025. It's time to file. Now this is Taxes Live.

Brought to you by Intuit TurboTax. Thanks to our sponsor, Audible. Hey! Let Audible expand your life by listening. That's right. Explore over 1 million audiobooks and exclusive Audible Originals that'll inspire and motivate you all in one easy app. Whether you're breaking free from old patterns or building better ones, Audible puts wisdom in your ears. Just open the app and dive in with thousands of titles covering every goal and interest you

Your next listen is at your fingertips. Like the Let Them Theory by Mel Robbins or 10% Happier by Dan Harris. I'll take 10% Happier. I'll take 10%. I'll take 1,000% Happier. I'm going to one-up Dan Harris. Yeah. I'm actually going to tenfold up him. I'm going to go 10,000% happier than you. I'm going to 100 times. I'm going to 1,000,000% Happier. Yeah. Yeah.

Get advice and insight from leading professionals and experts on health, relationships, career, finance, investing, so much more. There's so much opportunity to learn and more to imagine when you listen. Start listening today when you sign up for a free 30-day trial at audible.com slash new heights.

All right, 92%ers, if you're listening to me right now, this is your sign to stock up on my favorite energy drink of all time. That's right.

I'm telling you, this is the best tasting energy drink on the market with the best flavors, more than one, multiple, a bunch of them. And they're all zero sugar and uses 100% natural caffeine. Nice. Doesn't get any better than that. Every single flavor is a banger. And they just dropped a new item on Amazon. Jason, please tell them what I'm talking about. That's right, Trav. Three of your favorite flavors are now available in one variety.

We're talking rocket pop, cherry ice pop, and tropical punch. Woo!

That's actually a great trio right there. That's right. Cherry Ice Pop has always been one of my favorites. It's basically Shirley Temple. These flavors are three of my favorite. Obviously, Orange Ice Pop is up there as well. Orange Ice Pop? Yeah. These three, you can't go wrong with these three. I'm not even going to lie. These are three very good flavors. Not right now. Accelerator is clinically proven to provide sustained energy, accelerate your metabolism, and even enhance your focus. The drink is the real deal, people. Upgrade your energy and go get your Accelerator at Amazon.

Let's get into this last segment brother. Yeah, we gotta ask you tell us to fuck off. You don't gotta answer Okay, but yeah, we always wrap it up with uh with you. We gotta ask, but you don't have to answer We gotta ask is brought to you by Mentos gum Do you keep doing the same note? No, it's not you're doing the same note. I'm doing a different note do your note. No, I

See? Yeah, you were different that time. That sounded terrible. That time you were different. Because I did the same note that time. Go high. That was close. That was it. That was it.

I'm done. All right. Yeah, no, this will be easy. This will be easy. Rapid fire, too. You don't even got to think about it. Am I elaborating on these answers? Am I just one wording? Yeah, you can listen. Fuck off. Whatever feels right. Just give me what the question is. Let's fucking go. Yeah, that's right. As of 2024, the only remaining active players in the NFL from 2009 draft class are you and Jets punter Thomas Morstead. Morstead. Morstead. Morstead. Morstead. Yes. The E-A-D. It's a tough one. It's a tough one. It's a tough one. It's a tough one. Read. Read. Yeah. You know what I'm saying? It's the same.

My first grade daughter, Hunter, is doing those words right now. She was reading this word. See, see, read, read. 100%. It's a real deal, bro. I don't know who created this fucking language. Yeah. Do you plan to do whatever it takes to outlast Morstia? I'm waiting for him to just wither away at some point, but he just keeps going. He's a machine. We actually played the Jets this year. It's funny you say this.

We played the Jets this year. I was unaware that Thomas was an 0-9 draft pick. Did he fucking challenge you? Post-game, he fucking came up to me and was like, yo, can I get a picture? We're like the only two guys still doing it. So, yeah, it was nice to get a picture with my guy. It'll be the last one. Yeah, right? Don't ever ask me for a picture again.

I love it. But no, I mean, he's got a gig that promotes longevity. For sure. So we'll see. I don't know if I can keep going, but he probably can. Yeah, he can keep going forever. I don't like my odds. Do you have a favorite throw? Throw.

One is tough to come up with. I mean, like, throwing a fade to Cooper to win the Super Bowl was pretty awesome. Yeah. The play earlier in that drive to throw the in-breaker I had where I kind of looked him off was another good one. Those are the two that come to mind, and then, weirdly enough, the three that hit me first were all to him, but the one in Tampa in the divisional round when

when they brought the zero pressure on the two-minute drive and I just he's running like a vertical push to clear out for a dagger yeah and I like caught it backside safety whenever I was like oh my god this is zero and just launched that one fade away um those three are pretty good ones because they were like high leverage high leverage moments right like there's some cool ones that you know you're getting blown out or you're winning big but those were high leverage moments and and I was able to

Make it happen. All right now. We do have a submission from Andrew Whitworth recently told a story. Oh, great. He said one time you threw a bomb to Van Jefferson against Arizona. I don't know if you remember this play. Okay. It's got to be 21. Where you said fucking die as you threw it. Yeah.

That was a good one. That was a good one. That too was a good one. You like called like nothing but net. Yeah. Kobe! It was a good one. Yeah, it came out of the hand good. And I was like, oh, this is going to be sweet. And I'll never forget, J.J. Watt was on the sideline. He wasn't playing that game. He was hurt.

and I like threw it and kind of like spun around and like for some reason you know I'm kind of cruising down their sideline and I like lock eyes like see him and I'm like oh god I was like also thank god you're not playing would not have been able to get that one off but uh way harder with you in front of me but it uh yeah that was a good one um Van when he got that one that was kind of like a cool like play action half boot that we had put in maybe that week or week before and uh

Hit it. It was sweet. That's awesome. Yeah, it was a cool one. Who put in the fake spike? In Dallas? Yeah. Oh my, that was not put in, Coach. That wasn't? No. That was just you just swinging it? Yes. Well, I was like... So we throw a seam ball to Calvin in the play before and I thought he got in. Everybody thought he got in. Riley Reif was our left tackle at the moment and he's celebrating like WWE style on the 50 like, oh, his back is to me. I'm screaming high pitch like a girl like, yeah. And so...

everybody's kind of waiting for Riley to get back from his celebration. And, uh, so I'm standing at the, at the line of scrimmage and I've got time to kind of like, look, there's like 12 seconds left on the clock and the D line is just like chilling in a stance. Sean Lee was kind of just chilling at Mike linebacker, which is very unlike him. Cause he was very much. What a stud. Oh my God. He was good. Super smart. He was tough. But, uh,

So I had time to kind of see it happening and I'm like, fuck it. I'm just going to go. Like, I'm not gonna let them call another play. Yeah. We had, you know, just a spike or a kill it, whatever you want to call it. We had that called and

And then I just decided to go for it myself and thank God it worked out. That would have been a tough one. Yeah, it would have been an all-time fail had it not worked. Well, it did. Yes. Was your return to Detroit the wildest atmosphere you've ever played in? Yeah, I would say so. I think both times really. The playoff game was crazy. That was wild because...

We ran out for pregame warm-ups, and the place was just packed and just booing the shit out of me, which is whatever. But yeah, that was a loud, loud game. And then we came back for the opener the next year, and it was crazy loud again. They support. When they're rolling, they support, man. It's wild. They're not fucking around. No. Especially Dome City, too? Oh, man. Yes. They're rocking and rolling. That shit gets rowdy. Yeah. Both of those were night games, so I had ample time to...

you know, get ready to rock and roll. So they were, uh, we're going to remove any type of, uh, uh, barrier we have to congenial congenialness. What the fuck did you just say? I'm going to stop talking. I knew where you were going to being nice. Yes. There we go. What do we got? Your father, four girls. Yes. As I am about to be. Yes.

You got any advice? Buckle up. No, it's a blast, man. You know, we saw each other not too long ago and was talking about it. It's a blast, man. My seven-year-olds will soon be eight.

six and a four so we're like rocking and rolling we're in leotards all the time doing gymnastics around the house it's crazy so I don't know man at this point I'm like I don't even know what I would do with a boy like I don't even I can't even wrap my head around it so I'm just like I'm all in on the girls throwing that pig skin I'm slinging man it's mean I mean I can figure it out you know what I'm saying I just yeah

I don't really know though. You can definitely figure it out, but I mean, changing a diaper with a nutsack there just feels like it would be weird. Agreed, agreed. Yeah, like wiping shit up a nutsack? Like, I don't want to be a part of that. I'm with you. I'm with you 100%.

Where are we at? Baby nutsacks, I think, is where we left off. We're on baby nutsacks. We're back on the nutsacks. I don't know why that's in the rundown. Your former offensive coordinator, Kevin O'Connell, told a story about a game before he was head coach where QB fell down a skinny staircase at Lambeau. Do you recall this? Yeah, well, that... Was that QBU?

No? No. Oh, shit. We've narrowed down the suspects. That was the guy before me. Oh, shit. That was JG. Oh, no. I guess. That's why I was obviously not there for it, but allegedly he had a...

He took a monster spill down those, you know, those like turf. Oh yeah. That's old school shit back there. That little tiny tunnel. Yeah. He, uh, I guess he took a spill. I don't know. I wasn't there for it, but that's not a fun way to start your day at Lambeau. It's going to be tough enough already. Yeah. He's bounced back. Yeah. Yeah. He's great. Do you feel you've gotten, you haven't gotten enough credit for, uh, the no look passes coming common in the NFL?

You know, I don't care too much for credit. I'm not going to keep a credit meter whether I'm getting enough or not. But for me, those started when I played with Calvin because...

everybody in the building knew I was trying to throw him the ball. And so I was like, all right, how do I get all these guys off my scent a little bit? You know what I mean? And so I'm trying to move backers when they're just sending all the zone coverage right there and I'm trying to maneuver it. So it kind of started then. Like, all right, how do I still get this guy the ball? And so it obviously evolved into more tactical use of

Spreading it around a little bit, but I don't ever think about it. It just kind of happens organically I mean, I know you know Pat does them and oh, yeah, and it's not at least for me like I'm not like talking about it you know you just kind of feel it and you're playing the game and

Sometimes you feel like you need to move somebody and you move them. Yeah. There you go. I'm with you. It's that easy. Just don't look where you're throwing the ball. Yeah. It just freezes everybody for a second. Yeah, exactly right. Well, we got you here. The first time we met you was out in Georgia. Yeah. The lake. Yes. Dude, what was your first impression of a guy like Jason Kelsey? Jesus Christ.

You know, I remember, I feel like... And shout out to the Air Force boys, man. Yeah, man, they know how to go. You let those guys out and look out. Yes. They'd be like, we've been just doing PT for the last six months. Haven't seen anything. And they walk out and it's like, chicks in bikinis on a boat. It's like, oh. I was like, whoa. Yeah.

We got to back up. But these dudes were, they were rocking and rolling, man. They were fun. But it was, those were great times, simpler times. They were so fun. South Lake Lanier, man. Yeah, man. The whole family. We got to do another trip. They were trying to run it back at some point. I'm like, golly, man. It would be hard now. It's going to take a lot out of me. Yeah. You know what I mean? Different days. But it was 10 years straight they did that.

10 years. I think I was there for nine of them or 10 of them. Started on like a Mastercraft wakeboard boat and then graduated into a giant houseboat. Triple-decker houseboat. Jesus. Before we get out of here, I got to have you read this from my former teammate and one of my favorite teammates of all time, Darius Slay. Oh, love Slay. He said, I guess you were known to pick on DBs occasionally. And this is a quote from Darius after the Eagles-Rams playoff game. It's, here let me. I got you.

I'm not that old. I have good eyes. So sorry. It was fun as hell until he started trying me the last two drives. Like, goddamn, staff. Like, damn. Calm the fuck down. Like, shit, this is so slay. This is so on brand. I know you've been slinging this motherfucker. Sling that motherfucker somewhere else.

Well, Darius, I'm sorry. I just had to do something. I was trying to fight back, man. You guys were kicking our ass. So it was, I love playing against him. I played against him quite a few times since we've both been gone from Detroit. And he is, what a great teammate. What a stud. Wish him nothing but the best. I love getting to compete against him. He's a man. That's it.

That's We Gotta Ask, and that was brought to you by Mentos Gum. I think that's all we got, brother. Dude, I appreciate it. No, thank you, brother. No, you guys are fucking great. I appreciate it. 92% of Matthew Stafford. Yeah, baby. Let's go, baby. Appreciate you coming through, brother. You got it, man. Best of luck this year. Appreciate it. Thank you. All right. All right.

All right, now let's wrap this episode up with some no dumb questions. No dumb questions is brought to you by American Express. That's right. Only doing one of these today since we had a good interview. We're just going to pick what sounds interesting. And we are brothers. We didn't really prank each other growing up, but that's the topic for this one.

Oh, wow.

I'm not a very good pranker, but I want to get better at it because, you know, let's have some fun. I don't want to do anything too cruel. Like, I don't want to traumatize them. But also, like, let's have some fun. So what are your favorite pranks to pull on, like, a middle school age boy? Thank you so much. All right, Willow, let me tell you about a game called Poop Dollar, all right? Here's what you're going to want to do. Poop Dollar is a great one. It's not cruel at all. You're going to want to get it. Nah.

Their middle school, I feel like a dollar works still for a middle schooler, right? What? 100%. Yeah. Take a dollar. A $5 would get them excited, but they actually, they still might keep the dollar. Yeah, if you really want to like really get them, $20 bill. Yeah. That'll for sure work. It's going to take some dirty work though, so you want to go get some hospital gloves. Get some gloves. Glove up for this. Hopefully you have a pet. That's easiest case scenario. Makes it way easier, but if not, just go to the park. Yeah, or you can do it yourself, but-

I'm going to guess... We've never gone that far. Yeah, we haven't done that yet. You're going to want to take a $20 bill, fold it in like a U shape, roam your backyard for some type of dropping of...

excrement of some kind. Take the U-shape so the bill only, not your hand will. Bill only. Bill only. But you got gloves just in case. You smush it right in the middle of the bill. Now you have it in the middle of the bill. Fold that puppy over on top of each other. Set it down where the boys are going to be. You know they're going to wander by. They're going to pass by. Yep. It's going to be enticing. You got to be around though. So you got to camp out. You got to hide out. You have to be there while they pick it up or you're not going to be as satisfied. Yes.

And you're going to want to leave it so that they discover it, pick it up, and then find out that, lo and behold, there's poop inside of it. And you scream, poop dollars!

So that'll work. That's a good one. That's a great one for middle school boys or really boys of any age. Yeah. Men grow men. That gets them too. I would say another one that we knew about that we didn't really partake in as much, but Icy Hot in the Jockstrap always works. So you can go Icy Hot in the... It's kind of cruel, but it takes about an hour to wear off.

Chris Pesick got me in ice hockey. There you go. Yeah, of course I do. Pesick. So the freshman used to have to like unload the buses or something like that. And we had like a loss or something like that. And I was trying to get the hell out of there. Didn't unload the bus. Came back the next day. Put my jockstrap on. Went out on the ice.

Not a fun day. Yeah. Yeah. Both icy and hot. Just as it. Nothing icy about it. It was pure hot. Zero ice to it. Yeah. It can feel a little cruel. Yeah. And if they don't wear jock straps, I mean, just the boxers work. Yep. Boxers work just as good. Yeah. I mean, I wouldn't do that. That's too far to me, Willow. But what are some other good ones? We're just not great pranksters. We didn't do a lot of pranking. If you have one of those like hoses that.

Like you got to squish on the squeeze like on the sink. Put a little rubber band around that so that when they turn the faucet on, it just sprays them right in the face. It's a good one. What are some other good pranks? You can booby trap them. You can always booby trap them. Get a balloon full of whipped cream or something like that. They open a door, all of a sudden smacks them right in the face. That takes some good work. You got to be kind of handy with a tool in your hand. Where's she from?

South Carolina? Are there alligators in South Carolina? I'm sure they ventured up there. I mean, if it's a pool day, get an alligator and duct tape its mouth closed and throw it in the pool. Yeah, well, good luck with that. They don't have strong... They're not that strong at opening their mouth. They're only strong at closing it, so it's...

Duct tape will hold. You'll be good. Yeah, that sounds terrifying, Jason. It'll be very scary, though. I'll wait for them to be around their friends and then just pants them. Yeah. Yeah. Got nothing for you other than they will hate you forever. Please let us know what you ended up doing. We can't wait to hear how you pranked these little twin fuckers in middle school. Yeah. So that does it for No Dumb Questions brought to you by American Express.

All righty, that wraps up another episode of New Heights. Thank you to Matthew Stafford for joining the show. What an awesome conversation that was. So much fun, man. Awesome to relink after all these years. Hell yeah. Make sure you're subscribed on YouTube to the New Heights channel and follow New Heights on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to new episodes of New Heights early and ad-free right now by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app or on Apple Podcasts. Don't you forget to...

Hit up Wondry on the Wondry app, baby. Once again, New Heights, a Wondry show produced by Wave Sports and Entertainment and brought to you by Nike. When the world says you can't win, Nike says, so when? Follow the show on all social media at New Heights Show with one ask for fun clips throughout the weeks. And thanks to our production and crew. And thank you to the 92 percenters. As always, we will see you next week. Peace. Can we get a harmonization?

What are you going to start off? Do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do, do,

I can't find where you're at. I have no idea where you're at. You're all over the place. This is why I don't do music. Follow New Heights on the Wondery app or wherever you get your podcasts. You can listen to New Heights early and ad-free. Plus, enjoy exclusive episodes of the show by joining Wondery Plus in the Wondery app, Apple Podcasts, or Spotify today. Before you go, tell us about yourself by completing a short survey at wondery.com slash survey.

As athletes, we value quality sleep and recovery, which is why we love our next sponsor, Sleep Number. Sleep Number and the NFL have been partnering since 2018 to bring quality sleep to elite athletes and why 80% of the Kansas City Chiefs players

Have a Sleep Number bed. Sleep Number smart beds are the best beds for couples because you can individualize each side. That's right. Elevating legs, your head, or adjusting firmness, Sleep Number is tailored just for you. And Sleep Number smart beds also show your sleep quality every morning in the Sleep Number app. And if you struggle with sleeping too hot, Sleep Number has the right temperature solutions for your best night's sleep. If you're in the market for a new bed, make sure you stop at a Sleep Number store and check them out.