The Jalen Hurts Debacle - Do Athletes Need Better Protection?

[00:00:00] The guy in charge of all that, you know, all things medical at the NFL office and I haven't always seen eye to eye about things. So I can't say I'm real surprised. The following is a presentation of Hobson Media. Woohoo! Alright, what's up? I'm not really an opening statement guy, but I will open with this statement. I'm fired up to be here.

[00:00:28] This is Church Pew Sports. Where we connect sports to life and faith.

[00:00:38] Could you repeat that first part? Take a knee. Absolutely glorious. Blend an ear. I believe it's gonna be for the best. Then get ready to laugh, listen and learn. How about you announce that you're getting better? No matter your team, your favorite sport. Bowling. Bowling's insane! Bowling is crazy! We cover it all here on Church Pew Sports. And we want to pop you up!

[00:01:07] Gentlemen, start your engines brothers! And with that we welcome you into Church Pew Sports where we connect sports to life and faith and it is good to have you all with us for another episode we record on this Friday afternoon, October 23rd heading into the weekend. A couple of big games on the docket and a lot of big sports news going on. Bill Hobson here, Pastor Paul Miller joining us today from...

[00:01:35] I'm in Nashville today and I'm here with a pastor colleague who flew all the way from Seattle to join me and when I met him at the airport to pick him up, the first thing he says to me is, hey, I have a message for you from my mom. She's a regular listener to the podcast and you are her favorite guy on the show. So, Adam Lightbody's mom is a fan. I don't know if there are any others out there but I'll take it.

[00:02:00] First of all, Mama Lightbody, thank you so much for listening. And number two, shame on Paul for twisting your words when we all know you were really talking about David Collins. David, as the people's champion, would you have a word you'd like to share with Mrs. Lightbody? No, I actually agree with her. As I've said before, Paul is the heart of Church of Pew Sports. He's what makes this thing have, you know, have some joy, have some love. Like that's what he brings to the table.

[00:02:29] So obviously, I'm also a Paul Miller fan, probably number one over her. Wow, thank you. Thank you. So there's a competition amongst the rankings of Paul Miller fans? Is that... Yeah, if she wants to sit down and have a conversation, she can, but she's not going to be happy with that one. Wow. Well, we don't want to make Mama Lightbody unhappy, but we are glad and we are happy that she's listening to the program. Crazy week in my world, spent most of it out in Utah and then Nevada, got home late last night.

[00:02:58] So kind of time zone schedules are all askew and Paul Miller is... Are you automatically a country music fan when you go to Nashville and broadcast from there? Do you have to have a twang at all or do you have a guitar handy? No, but I've had two different people text me knowing I was in Nashville to tell me that I need to listen to the new Brandon Flowers album. So I'll just throw that down on microphone for you guys.

[00:03:26] He's the lead singer of the Killers and he just put out a country album and it's actually pretty dang good. I'll say that. I'll say that. I was going to ask you if like you going to Nashville is kind of like a Brian Kelly going to LSU thing. All of a sudden, were you talking about your family? Like is that happening now your family and your program? I was telling Bill, here's what I've seen of Nashville so far. The hotel room and the conference center. Both are really nice. That's all I can tell you.

[00:03:56] Well, we have a lot of ground to cover on the podcast today. You know, it's funny. There are some very, very popular national sports podcasts that do an episode like every day or every other day. We get together once a week when we can. And so it's a it's hard to get everything caught up that's been happening. But man, there are some headlines, Paul, that we would be, I think, committing sports show malpractice if we didn't take a moment and talk about some of them,

[00:04:25] starting with Jalen Hurts and this bizarre world of what's happened in his like literal life and death situation. So start us off in the Jalen Hurts Philadelphia Eagles NFL cover up world. Yeah, Jalen Hurts. Yeah, he does. Right. So let me just run the timeline for you guys. October 4, he gets cleated during the Eagles game against the Rams and he injures his left calf.

[00:04:54] Six days later, they're in London for a game. They're playing in London and before the game, doctors discover that he has a superficial blood clot in his calf, but they medically clear him to play against Jacksonville. Four days later, they do a follow up ultrasound and realize that the clot has moved.

[00:05:15] And five days after that, additional examinations confirm that he is now going to be out for the year because he's got blood clots in both lungs. So kind of malpractice like the questions the Eagles are having to answer is why did why did the doc clear him to play when they were in London? What's going on? I'm not a doctor, but I think blood clots are a serious deal and they think he's going to be fine.

[00:05:42] He's just going to miss the entire season. He should come make a full recovery and come back next year. But, man, there's some people that got to answer for this one. It's not like the NFL to paper over some potential health issues until they're slapped with a class action lawsuit. But David is a big fan of both Paul Miller and Roger Goodell. Where do you see this thing coming down? This one's a really fascinating one to me.

[00:06:09] And a lot of it's because the main question that I have is if you're a team doctor, what actually is your job? Is your job to care for the health and well-being of the player first and foremost? Or is your job to get the player in good enough shape that they can be on the field? Right. Because what's going on here is there's such a lack of communication. You know, the first story came out and they said, oh, he was told not to sleep for 36 hours and then play.

[00:06:38] And apparently that was false. And so they had to go back on their word on that. And the communication has been so brutal throughout this process. We don't actually know what happened and who said what. And the crazy thing is, sorry. The crazy thing is the NFL comes out with a statement, Adam Schefter and other people come out with a statement and basically say, oh, yeah, this isn't true. Like everything was good, blah, blah, blah. But we have a very recent example with Chris Bosh having blood clots.

[00:07:08] And if you have to play on blood thinners, especially professional sports where your blood's constantly pumping, you can't you can't be on blood thinners consistently for a clot issue and not have your life in jeopardy every time you go out and play the most dangerous game in the world as it is. So I don't know. I don't know where this is going to come down. I think there's still a lot more to this story, and I know there are still investigations going on. But I'm actually fascinated by where this goes because I mean, you're playing with people's lives.

[00:07:35] Yeah, yeah, yeah. It's not just always got a rolled ankle. Let's see if you can tough it out, put some ice on it and move on through it. Literally that blood clot moves. And it's a very different discussion. We're actually going to dive more deeply into the question of the players need protection from their teams or is it more on the player? We'll talk about that kind of as our primary topic a little bit later on answering the question. Are players just commodities?

[00:08:01] But that's the certainly the headline of the week is what has happened there. So we'll continue that here in just a few moments. But Paul, continuing in the headline breakdown, we've also got yet another marvelous moment of generosity and thoughtfulness and kindness from James Dolan, the owner of the New York Knicks.

[00:08:25] Yeah, James Dolan, who, if my information is correct, gives empty ring boxes to like all the assistant coaches during the ring ceremony for the Knicks recent NBA title, which apparently they weren't aware was going to happen ahead of time or at least a couple of them claimed they weren't aware was going to happen ahead of time.

[00:08:47] And then it comes out that, you know, the rest of the staff, besides just the main couple coaches, whatever, I don't know how it all works, are not going to get rings. Then it comes out that an email went out to all those guys, like a phishing email asking them to click here to order your ring. And it was just a phishing email. So it's a bit of a fumble, you know, give the Knicks a break. It's been a minute since they won something, but no, we're not.

[00:09:16] No, no, no, we are not letting them off the hook for this. Remember just a few weeks ago, my that guy on this program was Steve McNess, my buddy who works on our TV crew, worked for the Knicks last year. Now he works for the 76ers G League team. He was at the game last night with them. And when he finished with the Knicks, of course, he still has several friends on the staff back there. And I said, do you feel like you left the team too soon because, you know, the team's getting rings? He goes, yeah.

[00:09:44] And even everybody down through the organization, everybody in the G League, everybody who takes tickets, everybody's getting a knockoff, but their own kind of ring. And it was all based on this kind of debacle from ownership where they said, and here's the exact quote. Congratulations. Your employee championship ring is here. This one is on the house.

[00:10:11] MSG is issuing a complimentary employee championship ring. The same jeweler, the same craftsmanship personalized with your name. No cost to you. There are two designs to choose from, championship gold and garden classic. Reserve the one you want now. And then, as you said, Paul, the whole thing was a fake. But the staff and the people who work for MSG have been planning for months on receiving some sort of memento of the championship.

[00:10:41] And they're getting nothing. This isn't even our holy discontent yet. That's just wrong. I mean, that's just ridiculous. What a garbage move by Dolan again. Yeah. Yeah. All right. College basketball is here. Yeah. College basketball is coming. I was in the athletic, on the athletic website this morning, and they had released their top 50 players going into the college basketball season.

[00:11:08] And I thought, I've got to ask my Michigan fan buddies what they think about the fact that the number one player going into the college basketball season, according to the athletic, is Jeremy Fears from Michigan State. I want to read you guys what they had to say about him. Last season's stats, 15 the game, 15 points, nine assists, two rebounds. Okay. That's great. Here's their thing. Fears was arguably the most indispensable player in college basketball last year.

[00:11:33] He led the NCAA in assists per game and made a big leap as a scorer, improving his jump shot and more than doubling his average. He ranked 10th nationally in win shares. The Spartans are 32-8 in the Big Ten with Fears as their starting point guard, and they made it to the second weekend of the NCAA tournament in back-to-back seasons for the first time since 2014-2015. Is Jeremy Fears the number one returning player in college basketball? And if he is, are we supposed to be excited about the college basketball season?

[00:12:02] I just need to know what you guys think about that headline. David, I'll let you start us off here. I mean, there are few players that get my blood boiling like Jeremy Fears does. And I think one of the reasons is it's like as good as – I mean, he's talented, but I mean, the consistency with how he's tripping guys and yanking the guy, it's just like he's so frustrating to watch.

[00:12:29] Yeah, he's really good, but I don't know how you can go in saying he's the number one player returning, like coming back when there's – I mean, there's so many guys. I mean, even Michigan's got some guys that are returning, like Trey McKinney could be one of those guys. There's so many guys, so many teams. And the fact that Michigan State has kind of gone in this rut where – did you say that's the – they went to the second weekend in back-to-back years for the first time since 2015? Yes. Yes. Wow.

[00:12:58] Congratulations, Marty. You can have your Jeremy Fears and every now and then go to a second weekend. Michigan basketball, we don't play those games. We play big boy games. You're not the same. Oh, man. Imagine – by the way, and I could be wrong on this and it wouldn't be the first time, but didn't Fears kind of dip his toes into the potential draft world and find out that he had nowhere to go so he came back to Michigan State or was that a different player?

[00:13:25] Yeah, he did dip his toe in, but it was to try to trip somebody that was going to the draft. I couldn't have set you up any better for that. Enough to softball. Well, we will all lose sleep at night hoping and praying that our teams have found a way to defend against Jeremy Fears, and that may very well just be with pepper spray or some other form of personal protection.

[00:13:49] David, generally speaking, in the lead-in to a big game or even a regular season game when the national anthem is taking place, are you locked in or are you at least respectful? I know that after 82 games or 162, it can be a little bit much, but are you at least paying attention during the two minutes and 15 seconds it takes for the anthem to be performed? I mean, that would depend on how much money I have on the over-under for how long the anthem is going to run.

[00:14:19] But honestly, the reality is I'm not the most uber patriotic person. I mean, I'm just not pledging allegiance to flags. A lot of it's just kind of weird to me. I mean, I love America and whatever, but I don't know. I don't think that the national anthem should even be played before sporting events. I don't even know why that started in, like, the 70s or 80s, and I know it became really popular after, you know, 9-11.

[00:14:48] And, you know, one of the coolest moments in sports history with George W. throwing that strike down the middle of the plate, whether you loved him or hated him, it was patriotism and sports really intertwined in that moment in a way that it had never really done before. So now it's – there's all, you know, the ceremony and the national anthems and all that stuff.

[00:15:11] I mean, I love that stuff if it's occasional, if it's like a national sporting event, if it's an Olympic event, if it's – that to me makes total sense. But why we're putting so much emphasis on it – and I think I know where you guys are going with this, with the LeBron James thing. But it's like, to me, I mean, I guess I don't know what someone feels disrespected by. So I guess maybe I can ask you that question. If somebody's not standing their attention, hand to the heart, like, why is that offensive to you?

[00:15:40] And, you know, kind of what's your mindset with that? Because to me, I guess it doesn't bother me. I kind of think people live their lives the way they do. And I respect the troops and I do all that stuff. But I guess I just wonder what the – like, what is it that bothers you so much about it? From my perspective, it's – you're the most visible player in the entire league.

[00:16:03] You've now played one whole game in your new city, the city where the Liberty Bell hangs and it's Rocky Town and it's everything America there in Philly. And during that national anthem, I totally understand if you're not able to stand there with your hands behind your back and have a tear slowly trickling down your cheek.

[00:16:24] And by the way, the WNBA sets me off to no end because they just literally leave the court and then come back out. That makes no sense to me. But what we're talking about, for those of you who don't know, is during the anthem at the game with the Sixers last evening, LeBron chose that time to work on his golf swing. And so he's standing in line with his teammates and he's just literally going through the motions. Listen, I'm somebody who loves to work on my golf swing.

[00:16:52] But to me, it's offensive because it is an intentional slight to the moment of the anthem. And probably, you know, to be fair, I'm probably a little bit extra on go because it's LeBron. But so is all of media because he insists on it being that way. He insists on being watched at all times by everybody in every moment. So if that's the case, then how about just for this two minutes, go ahead and do kind of what you're supposed to do.

[00:17:21] And the example you'd like to set for the kids that for some reason still idolize you. So I don't know, Paul, am I just screaming at the clouds here? Well, I'm going to take it in a place neither of you is going to expect. First of all, I think it was a deal because he was practicing his golf swing, which is like a way to say, hey, everybody, look at me while the anthem's going on. So it was an attention grab, or at least it came across that way. And I know that's out of character for LeBron. People want all the attention. Introverted. There's that. But here's the story.

[00:17:50] I don't know if I've ever told you this story. I went on an Israel trip with Steph from a church I was working at. And we're on the Sea of Galilee, and there's like 15 of us, 20 of us in this boat. And we're out on the Sea of Galilee, and one of our pastors has given us this devotional time about what it would have been like to be on the boat with Jesus and the Sea of Galilee. This is super poignant spiritual moment.

[00:18:12] And all of a sudden, the boat captain guy, who we hired to take us out on the Sea of Galilee, pulls out a little boombox and pushes play on our national anthem right in the middle of the devotional. And I'm sitting next to my wife, and I've got my head down because I'm thinking about other things in that moment. And so I don't stand. A bunch of people, pretty much everybody else in the boat stands.

[00:18:41] Bobby doesn't stand because she's next to me, and she's like, well, Paul's not standing. I'm not going to. We don't think anything of it. And then later that night, we're all sitting around at dinner, and one of the guys from our group comes up to me and taps me on the shoulder and says, we need to talk. He takes me out back and tears me a new one about how disrespectful I was to our country, to the vets who had sacrificed so much for our country.

[00:19:09] And he went on and on how much it hurt him personally that I didn't stand for the national anthem. And the more I tried to explain to him that I just wasn't paying attention because I was thinking about something else, the more angry he got. And I just kind of had to take it and just say, I'm sorry. I'm sorry. So I think my answer to the question, why does it matter, is for guys who have sacrificed for our country, that's a thing.

[00:19:39] That's a thing. So respect the flag, respect the country, and doing something that's disrespectful during the anthem is the exact opposite of that. So I have this, I have some empathy, sort of, kind of, a little bit. Well, I think, Paul, that's interesting. It's fascinating because I have a lot of friends, family, close, whatever, that were in the military as well. Yeah.

[00:20:05] And my experience is every one of them is jaded against our government in America. So it's like, these are also people that went, did their tours, et cetera, and they have a very different perspective. And I think that that's kind of where the difficulty is because no matter how I feel, it's like you were presented that. I've been presented a whole different version from people that were in similar situations. So that's what I love about these topics. You can come at it from a lot of different perspectives.

[00:20:35] Well, it's a generational thing probably too, right? Like the guy that put me up, he's 20 years older than me. So he's totally different era, different generation. I'm just curious, Dee, with those relatives, would they be deferential to the anthem because of their brothers in arms, even though they have issues with those who made the decisions, right? Is it that perspective or is it, I'm just burned out on all of it?

[00:21:03] I mean, I think it's a little bit more being burnt out on all of it. But I think the brotherhood is always the thing that I think they put first, first and foremost, because, yeah, you're going to have to do a lot of things that you might not even want to do because someone ordered you to do it, et cetera. But whatever you end up having to do, you're with those guys in the trenches. And that becomes kind of what you care about. Yeah. But I know like a lot of people that I know that have come back, just the perspective on the military.

[00:21:32] And I know the people that I know specifically, most of them wouldn't have an issue with how somebody else wanted to handle doing the anthem one way or another, because most of them believe and understand that what they fought for and what they represented is the freedom to not really care when the anthem's being played, if that's not something you. So they kind of have that perspective. But again, I think everyone comes at it from a very different place. So to say one way or the other is the right way to think about it is the last of nine.

[00:22:00] I'm going to go out on a limb and just say, you know, NBA pregame anthem playing. There are a lot of things you could probably do other than practice your golf swing to show that you're not that concerned about the anthem. So by the way, we're 22 minutes in and we're still in the headlines. So let's get to the last one. I don't know if you were to try to make an announcement in the NBA.

[00:22:24] Would all of the players who love Luca, please join us on this bus and you're going to go get a nice dinner. I think you're going to have a lot of seats left over on the bus because the guy is just grating and annoying to basically everybody because of the way he comports himself on the court.

[00:22:45] Well, there's a rookie in the NBA, young man from the University of Michigan, was fresh off of a natty and he got to play in his first ever NBA game and he was guarding Luca. We're talking about Yaxel, we're talking about Luca and we're talking about a combustible pairing where the rookie did not have it. It just wasn't having it in his first matchup. I got to see what the NBA is like, man. A lot of flop and a lot of foul bay and a lot of praying to the ref. It was interesting.

[00:23:15] I got to see what the NBA is like, man. A lot of flop and a lot of foul bay and a lot of praying to the ref, man. Interesting first game for me, for sure. You obviously, the back and forth with Luca, you know, we all saw it. It looks like at times maybe trying to get in your head. What did you make of that and how do you feel like you handled it? I had a lot of respect for him, you know, just because of just watching. I didn't really watch the NBA much. I just watched highlights, seeing him, you know, kill people all the time.

[00:23:44] But then being in there firsthand, just watching all the whining and complaining, I lost all respect, man. Like that was awful. Like me getting frustrated, it's not about like the foul being called. It's about like him complaining the entire game. And then you get the foul call. Congratulations, bro. And then you talk to me like you did something great, bro. Come on, dog. That's just weak, you know. So it kind of threw me off for a little while because, you know, like I said, I had so much effect for him. Gone, man. Gone. Gone. Gone, man. Gone. Kind of threw me off.

[00:24:14] So in the first few days of the NBA season, we've witnessed a pretty cool comeback by the Pistons in the opener. They were down 23 or something and then ran off 25 straight to beat the Celtics. We have seen OKC resume its theatrics, including last night. I don't remember which player, David, maybe you do, who did not get tripped but tripped himself at half court and then literally barrel rolled from half court all the way under the basket.

[00:24:43] He said later on in the post game that he got dizzy doing it. And then we, of course, saw this Yaxl and Luka thing. And I understand rookies have to earn their place. But, David, did you have an appreciation for Yaxl's reaction to this diva that is known as Luka? Yeah. So, I mean, this was kind of going to be mixed in part of my that guy. So I'll save a little bit of it. But I do like what I saw from Yaxl.

[00:25:13] I mean, the reality is he's a super talented kid and he's got a bright future. I mean, really, the sky's the limit for him. We saw at Michigan just how good he can be. But I think the cool thing about him is his attitude and the way he plays. And one of the things I wanted to talk about was as bad as the league is at this moment at specific things, like the Luka's, like the Shea Gilgis-Alexander's, the floppers. There is a crop of young guys that have come into the league that are starting to talk about ethical ball.

[00:25:43] The guys that don't foul bait. The guys that don't complain and whine all the time. One of the reasons I love the Pistons is Cade Cunningham's one of these guys. He goes to the line far less than almost every player of his caliber does because he doesn't flop and trip and throw the ball in the air with his head waving all over the place. So there is a young core. And Wemba Miana has spoken on this as well. It's like some of these guys have come out and they're basically like, we're tired of this, what you've done to the game of basketball.

[00:26:12] And so to me, it's just kind of another step in the right direction of ethical ball players wanting to play the game the right way to make it look like the basketball that we've all known and loved our whole lives. But so I think he's a good, it's a good message and time will tell if he's a good messenger for it. But just personality wise and everything, I think he's one of the, he's one of those guys that you can't help but like. So I appreciate what he said.

[00:26:40] I found it highly entertaining and also realizing that we're in a different era. When I was covering the NBA, when I was in the locker room with the bad boys a million years ago, a rookie like this would never have been able to say the things that Yak says. Because he would have been taken to the woodshed by Mahorn, by Charles Oakley, by Kareem, by any of these very senior veterans around the, around the league.

[00:27:09] This is not going to have that chance, but they also would not have put up with Luca. So let's go, let's go back a few years. Scott Tinman, by the way, joins us in the chat and he asked the question, who are the top divas in the NBA right now? The top two are LeBron and Luca. I think SGA has to be on that list too. But there was, I'm not going to say there was no complaining back in the day because I would be a hypocrite. Lamb Beard was the chief among them.

[00:27:34] And there's, you know, very well established evidence along those lines. But he was also pretty gritty and considered to be tough, probably dirty at the same time. I don't, I don't think you would have seen a Luca get away with it all 25, 30 years ago. I don't even think, and this is just complete conjecture on my part. I don't even think his own teammates like his act.

[00:28:01] They like his points, but I don't think they like his act. And since he usually is complaining when he should be playing defense, I'm going to guess it grows a little bit thin on everybody involved on his team. Even though he'll give you a 35, he'll give up 38. Right? So I don't know. Maybe, maybe he axes onto something. Yeah. I think it's a timely message when the NBA could be a little less driven by the divas, you know?

[00:28:32] Yeah. Let's just say the league hasn't exactly gotten off to a start that makes me think, oh, I got to start watching regular season basketball. Not really close. All right. We got a big football slate this weekend before we dive into our main topic. So, Paul, we've got Ole Miss against Texas. We've got Indiana against Michigan. Those are probably the two premier games in the schedule.

[00:28:55] Do the Wolverines have even the slightest chance against the Hoosiers with new starting quarterback, Tommy Carr? David Collins, do we have a chance? Are you saying there's a chance? Yeah, absolutely they have a chance. Because one thing Michigan does well is play a good defense. So, I mean, if you can stay in the game, get a couple big plays offensively, yeah, they have a chance. Do I think they're going to win? Again, I think Indiana's the better team.

[00:29:20] So, I would expect Indiana to pull off a relatively close, low-scoring game, in my opinion. But I think Michigan's got a shot. And why not? Let the new guy get in there and sling it around a little. See what you got. Yeah. Yeah, there's a reason these are the two games that are of interest to me, right? Because there's quarterback intrigue in both of them. The Michigan game is how's Tommy Carr going to play, right? And the Ole Miss-Texas game is what's up with Arch, you know? So, both of those are like worth... They were hinting at maybe Michigan.

[00:29:51] Yes. I wouldn't be surprised at all. There are like a couple laps around the track behind Michigan in that whole conversation, right? So, it would be interesting to see where it goes. But I actually think this is more of an NFL weekend than it is a college football weekend, right? Because we've got Kansas City at Seattle. We've got Dallas at Philadelphia. We've got the Packers coming to Detroit. So, there's NFL games that are a must... That I could point in the television for me this weekend. Is the Philadelphia game on your list just because of the quarterback intrigue and all the controversy?

[00:30:21] Because it can't possibly be because of Dallas. They're so bad. Well, I'm like, okay, I don't even know who's the backup in Philly. So, I'm interested to see if Dallas can get a win when Jalen Hurts is not playing. So, there's that. And plus, like I have extended family down in Dallas that are all Cowboys fans. And so, I have a little bit of an interest there. Not that I'm a Cowboys fan. And I just want Green Bay to lose. And I think Brian Branch is back, right? For the Lions. So, that's something.

[00:30:49] And then I just want to see Seattle shut down Kenneth Walker. That's what I want to see. I don't know if it's going to happen, but that's what I want to see. So, David, I got one for you here. On Colton Pouncey's podcast, he shared this stat. That since Brian Branch was drafted in 2023, the Lions' defensive success rate is 30th in the league when he's not on the field.

[00:31:16] And third in the league when he is on the field. How is that possible? How is one guy in the secondary making that kind of a difference on your defense? Well, it's Brian Branch. He's everything. He's a heat-seeking missile when he wants to come in and stop the run, when he wants to come in on the blitz. He can cover your best receiver in the slot. He can cover your biggest tight end. He can get back and play center field deep safety. He's all over the field.

[00:31:46] He causes more turnovers than many of the other guys on the team. Like, he disrupts play. Brian Branch is so important to this team. And the fact that, I don't know if you've seen it, but Kirby Joseph has been posting videos on his Instagram of him running cone drills and things like that. He looks sharp. If you get those two guys back and you can take Detroit's secondary from 32nd in the league to 21st, this team is a legitimate team that can make a run. So, I love that. And I just want to talk about some of the other games, too.

[00:32:15] You mentioned the Cowboys and Eagles. Off the top of my head, I do happen to know, I believe Tanner McKee is their backup quarterback in Philadelphia. And my buddy, I was over at his place last night. Big-time Eagles fan. He understands the season's over, the Jalen Hurts thing. He said, but here's, he goes, football's broken me. His fantasy team, he had Saquon and Jalen Hurts and all that's going wrong. He said, the only thing I care about in football anymore with my Eagles is beating the Cowboys.

[00:32:42] He goes, so I guarantee on Monday night, the Eagles are winning that game. And he also said he's got authentic Philly cheesesteaks he's making. He's got the Amarosa rolls. So, he's going to be cooking them up with the cheese whiz at his place. So, go Eagles. I think that's a big game. And I'm also with you. Always want Green Bay to lose. I'll let that be my holy discontent. I'll move on from that. But anyways, excited for the football weekend. That's for sure. And the World Series starts later this evening.

[00:33:12] When your local team isn't in it, obviously not as many people connect in that market. So, there's not a lot of Tiger fans that are that excited. But if you're a true baseball fan, this is a pretty interesting looking series. David, what are you most excited about for this World Series? This is one of the most anticipated World Series for me in a while. Because you have two smaller market teams, but they play baseball the right way. I've been saying this. They're young teams. They're athletic.

[00:33:42] They don't just rely on the long ball. They both bunt. They both pitch well. They both play amazing defense. These aren't, in my opinion, the two best-run organizations in baseball right now. And they both play baseball a very similar way. If you get to either of their bullpens late, it's lights out. Like, their starters can give you time. Like, their clutch hitting all over the place. I am so fascinated by this World Series. And one of the reasons I like it is because I see shades of what these two teams are doing in teams like the Tigers.

[00:34:12] Where you have some of those young guys. You start to build up. And those pieces start to come together. And the Tigers legitimately should have been in the playoffs like the last three seasons. Like, they're good enough to be there. So, I don't know. I think this World Series is fascinating. I can't wait to watch it. And I'm very excited to see Mizorowski going out there and throwing 109 miles an hour. Tonight. That'll be fun. So, the Babylon Bee tweeted this morning, can't wait for the World Series to start. It's most anticipated in forever.

[00:34:40] We're looking forward to seeing the not Dodgers face the not yet. Yes, exactly. That's the thing, isn't it? That is exactly right. And does this World Series matchup, because it's not the Dodgers, because it's not the Yankees, have the potential to stave off what looks, you know, everybody expects to be a work stoppage for next year?

[00:35:05] Because if small market teams are competing, does that defeat the argument that there has to be a salary cap? I know it's a hypothetical. I don't know where we go with all this. But it sure would be nice if somehow sanity could seep its way into all these conversations about where the sport is headed. I don't know. David, if you're sitting here on October 23rd predicting whether there's a spring training in Lakeland, Florida in March, which way are you going with that coin toss?

[00:35:34] Not a chance. There's too much in the agreement. They've already, like, you don't spend the ad money they've spent trying to convince the public that they're right. You don't do all this stuff without knowing you're going into a battle. And that's exactly what's going to happen. The small market thing, the problem, like, with the salary cap, what the salary cap does is it essentially raises the floor of the salaries for the lower end of people in the game.

[00:36:00] So a salary cap is actually better for you if you're not one of the top, you know, few paid players. But if you are one of the top few paid players, the salary cap is something that caps the amount you can make, which we've seen some of these contracts that are ridiculous lately. So I just don't see a way around it. There's going to be a work stoppage. And I just hope whatever the salary cap ends up at, it's just the right amount for us to get Scoogle back.

[00:36:23] If I was somehow engaged in these negotiations on behalf of the players, I would push for a salary floor minimum because there are some teams that are literally, I mean, the Oakland A's spend less on their entire payroll than the Dodgers do on Otani. And there are other examples like where these teams are just literally, you talk about cheapskates, like right out of the movie Major League.

[00:36:53] I mean, they're just basically paying them with popcorn and cab rides. And that seems to be about it. So maybe that's what needs to come in is the raising of the floor so that you have to spend at least this much money. And maybe that's the formula that they come with. But I, David, I kind of echo what you're saying. I don't think there's much chance that there's going to be a season and I haven't heard a single insider tell us anything to the contrary. So let's hope we enjoy a good World Series.

[00:37:21] It goes seven games, bottom of the ninth inning, bottom of the 15th inning, and it's a walk-off or something, you know, super memorable because it might be the only baseball we get to think about for quite some time. Okay. Hey, that's only 35 minutes on the headlines. We're good. Now for the real topic. The lifespan of a professional athlete, the playing lifespan. NFL, three years is the average.

[00:37:52] NBA, a little bit longer. Baseball, of course, a little bit longer. It's not as injury-related as it is talent-related. So let's talk football primarily. To what degree are players just pieces of meat? They're just commodities. They're just checkers on the board that get moved around, and as soon as one guy goes down, you know the next guy's ready to go.

[00:38:15] And there are stories from legendary coaches who literally wouldn't recognize a player speaking to them if that player was in street clothes on the sidelines during practice. You mean nothing to me. You're completely useless. The greatest ability is availability and all that kind of thing. So we get to this kind of a week where we have the Jalen Hurts issue, which really could have resulted in tragedy. It didn't, thankfully, but it could have easily.

[00:38:44] And it kind of renews the question of, and some of the players, including Alliance tight end Sam Laporta, are asking this question. Hey, am I just a piece of meat or should I be, in his case, kind of clumsily making the case that I want my lifetime legacy money now because I don't know how long I'm going to be able to play this game? So I don't know, Paul, are they just commodities?

[00:39:08] Do they need to be protected from themselves or protected from team doctors and from the pressure to be on the field at every given moment? Yeah, I think the answer is yes and yes, right? Like it is about the role of the team doctor. And the impression that I get when I hear a coach, like in his postgame presser, whatever sport, and they ask, how bad is the injury to so-and-so?

[00:39:36] And when do you think he'll be back? And the coach just says, I don't know, I haven't heard anything from the doctors and they'll let me know. And the coach kind of dismisses it as the team doctors make those decisions. I don't have any input. I always wonder when I hear a coach talk like that, is that really true? Because I got to believe that the priority for the coach is to win the game.

[00:39:58] And you would hope that the priority of the medical staff for the team or whatever would be the long-term health of the player, especially if whatever the situation is could potentially be life-threatening, like in the case of Jalen Hurts, right? So here's the thing, like you guys probably don't read the Buckeye stuff as much as I do, right?

[00:40:24] Like there's conversation going on right now about what Julian saying already hurt going into the Indiana game. And were they kind of covering it up because they needed him to play so they could beat Indiana? And there's questions about that. So now all of a sudden people are, and Ryan Day's kind of a squeaky clean kind of reputation guy as a coach, right? But people are wondering if he was, you know, like going to the team doc and saying, hey, man, we need this guy to play. So do what you need to do so he can get out there and play.

[00:40:53] So I think it's a yes and yes. I don't think it's a problem that ever gets solved. I think it's a tension that has to be managed. And I would assume that if you have a reputation as a program of being a team or being an owner or whatever, where you have a long-term best interest of the players in mind, then that would make it easier to attract free agents or guys in the portal or whatever, that kind of stuff. But I don't know, because winning kind of tends to be the thing over all of it.

[00:41:22] So I guess I'm talking in circles saying I think it's both. Can a player manage to protect himself without being considered weak and being ostracized without his toughness being called into question? Right. Probably not in the NFL, frankly.

[00:41:47] I mean, I can't imagine a situation where a guy goes, listen, my neck really hurts and I can't even roll over in bed at night and I cannot play this week. If he comes out and says that, then he's all of a sudden he's not tough enough. And so we're seeing this isn't new. We've seen this forever. In fact, it's probably less prevalent now than it used to be, but they would just shoot these guys up with whatever they could find. Now they do it in a blue tent. But it doesn't mean it doesn't happen as much anymore.

[00:42:15] You'll see these miraculous recoveries from a guy who gets carted off and then he comes hobbling back on and plays some more. And they talk about how his bell got run or he's got some, he's seeing some little, some stars kind of a thing. And in the end, it's very possible that we're plowing right through a lot of really serious traumatic physical issues. And David, I don't know where the balance is and I don't know how we should think about these things.

[00:42:43] I know it's not up to me to decide how Jalen Hurts is treated or what he puts up with or any other player. But it does kind of make you stop and think when we theoretically were one blood clot moving a little bit away from a, just a horrendous outcome. Yeah. So the difficulties here is trying to even describe what the job description is for the team doctor. So for instance, people talk all the time about like an HR department at your office or whatever.

[00:43:13] Well, what people don't often realize is that the HR department is not there to protect the employee. The HR department is there to protect the employer from potential lawsuits from employees. So that's kind of the objective there. So now let's look at the football world. What is the job of the head trainer, of the people trying to get the players on the field? Is it keep these players as healthy as you possibly can, the best for their long-term living, et cetera?

[00:43:40] Or is it get these guys well enough to be on the field? Because I would argue that whatever the bylines say in the whole thing, which probably is their long-term health over everything, I would guess that in the society that they live in, that that is often understood that actually get them on the field is the more important thing.

[00:44:04] So I think the difficulty here also, and you brought up the player himself, who in the entire scenario is incentivized to tell Jalen Hurts that he shouldn't play, including Jalen Hurts and his team of people. Who is incentivized in that is the team trainer, the team physician, the team itself, the head coach, Jalen Hurts?

[00:44:30] Who is incentivized to do the right thing for Jalen Hurts health-wise in that moment? That's the problem with the system is there really isn't anyone. Maybe the agent, maybe his agent, right? Who wants to get the long-term paycheck out of him? Yeah. And I think all of these guys should have their own, like they should have the team doctors, but they should have their own physicians that they see, somebody they pay that's not affiliated with the team. Because that to me is important as well, that they're getting second opinions that aren't just from a team doctor.

[00:44:59] Well, so through the charade that the NFL now has with the blue tent, they also have on every sideline in every game, an independent medical advisor who is the one who is supposed to be watching what's happening on the field. And when he sees a player a little groggy, in fact, the head official is also empowered with this. They stop the game and they order that player to go out and to be looked at, to be examined before they're allowed back into the game. So they are trying.

[00:45:29] They're making a tacit effort that's out of the hands of the team doctor. But at the same time, as we put all this on the scale of insanity, remember back to the legend that is Ronnie Lott. Paul, why is Ronnie Lott a legend in NFL circles? Aside from being a fantastic player, what did he do to show his commitment to this game? He played through everything. Yeah.

[00:45:58] And he had his pinky finger cut off. Yeah. Because it got caught in a face mask and they said, we're not going to be able to repair it. And he just said, we'll cut it off. And he came back in the game. And to this day, when you hear other, especially Hall of Famers, talk about who did you most respect when you played alongside and who did you fear and this kind of thing. Invariably, they come back to Ronnie Lott because they say any guy who would cut off his pinky finger and come back in the game. It was like the tip of it.

[00:46:26] And so we have a celebration of other level toughness. And we have to kind of, we've got to cognitively tackle this issue of, oh, you are super tough. But let's not be super dumb at the same time because you have a life to live outside of this game.

[00:46:46] And especially now that we have more information and class action lawsuits on CTE and all of these other things, I don't know who that puts more of the onus on. Is it more on the player or is it more on the organization? Yeah. Is it a problem that can be solved, right? Or is it going to be a tension that has to be managed? And like I would tell, just like David's talking about, I would tell any player, own your journey. Don't let the team tell you. Have your own doc.

[00:47:16] Have your own guys. And maybe that can't happen right in the moment. But like when an injury happens in the middle of the game or whatever, I don't think it's a problem we can solve. I think it's always going to be just a tension to manage. Which doesn't answer anything. No, and in the whole situation, you're going to have teams that do it right and care about the player more than other teams. And on the flip side of it, if you're the player, maybe you are just naturally injury prone.

[00:47:46] Well, the narratives are going to start coming up and the fans are going to start getting on you and he's never on the court. Like look at Kawhi Leonard, okay? Now, do I think a lot of Kawhi's sitting is because he just doesn't want to play a lot in the regular season? Yes. But what if you are truly that injury prone? Every time you feel a tweak or something a little bit off, you're going to want to take time because you want your body to be ready when it needs to be ready most. So, I mean, if that happens to be you, you're going to get scrutinized unfairly because you're trying to take care of yourself.

[00:48:15] I mean, look at the whole Lane Johnson situation. That whole thing is crazy in and of itself. And that's mental health stuff along with the physical health stuff. So, there's no right way to do it, but Lane Johnson stood up and said, I'm done. And a lot of people had a problem with how he did it and a lot of people thought he was great and brave for doing it. So, I just think you're never going to quite get consensus on this. And nobody wants to be – no one wants Charles Barkley to name them street clothes, right? He was that Anthony Davis, I think it was. Nobody wants to be that guy.

[00:48:43] But then you hear these stories of Peyton Manning having neck fusion surgery so he can continue to play. And he's one blindside hit away from really bad things happening. So, are players just commodities? Well, to the teams in many ways, I would have to say yes. But at the end of their careers, these commodities still have a life to live. And usually they're still in their early 30s. So, there's a lot of life still to live.

[00:49:13] I just – I thought it was an interesting topic to address as we dive into another weekend of all these big competitions. Because it's easy for me to just say, get him out of there. Get the other guy in there. If he's going to be hurt. If he's never healthy or whatever. At the same time, there are instances where we are – where the player is better off being held out of the game. Even though we may – even if it's silently, we may question their commitment or their toughness.

[00:49:42] You look at a guy like Terry Bradshaw who had like 17 concussions and now he – you know, many years later, you really feel the effects of that. So, interesting stuff. Are players just commodities? All right. With that, let's go into our holy discontent. It's time to blow off some steam. Get it off your chest. Rant about what's most bothering you. I got a lot of problems with you people.

[00:50:11] Now, you're going to hear about it. It's time for Holy Discontent. David Collins, what do you got? My holy discontent is any team playing an NFC North team that isn't the Detroit Lions, can we get some help, people? Yes. Dallas goes and just farts in Green Bay. And Chicago – Atlanta can't play well against Chicago. And then Chicago wins again last night. Congratulations to you, Bears.

[00:50:38] All of a sudden, the Patriots decide to look like the Patriots that I think they are, but somehow they keep fooling everyone into thinking there's something better. Just somebody beat – somebody beat Minnesota. Somebody beat Green Bay. Somebody do something and help the Lions out just a little bit, please. Yeah. That's good. You almost stole mine. Paul, what's your holy discontent?

[00:50:59] My holy discontent – this is probably going to resurface two or three more times before the end of the college football season – is with the special dispensation given to Notre Dame in the CFP. Right? Like, they have three ranked opponents on their schedule. They've already lost to the first one. They're going to lose to Miami. And by the time they play SMU, it's most likely SMU is not going to be ranked.

[00:51:25] So Notre Dame is going to go through the entire season without a ranked win. And if they're – but if they're in the top 12, they're going to take a spot in the CFP. And it's just not right. Right. Now, maybe people will say, Paul, relax, because don't you know what's going to happen? The committee is going to rank them 13th, and it's just conspiracy stuff and all this other junk. But I have a feeling the likelihood of Notre Dame being ranked 12th as opposed to 13th is pretty dang high, and it's just not right. Yep.

[00:51:55] It's not going to get any better either. Not going to get any better. You are not wrong on that. My holy discontent is the Milwaukee Brewers timeless ticket fiasco. If you have been otherwise occupied, let me bring you up to speed on what this is. Back 11 years ago, the Milwaukee Brewers were in the doldrums, and they needed some revenue, so they decided to offer –

[00:52:17] I don't know how many total tickets it was – but for $1,000, you could purchase a ticket that would forever be redeemable for any game at any time, including the World Series. Well, guess who made the World Series? And the Brewers were then being presented with these timeless tickets. They're actually like – they look like golden tickets. They're very, very cool. Like Wally Waka golden tickets? Yeah. They're kind of only like more durable.

[00:52:48] And these fans started coming forward and saying, oh, the Brewers made it. They made it to the World Series. I can't believe it. I'm going to redeem my forever ticket. And the Brewers said, oh, not so fast, my friend. And then a public relations nightmare erupted, and the Brewers were forced into honoring these tickets by sticking everybody in the 400 section of their stands of their stadium

[00:53:14] and then offering them the opportunity to keep their golden ticket for another future use. Here's one fan speaking out. And they explained it. Basically, what they said is, yeah, this ticket, any game in the future, game seven of the World Series, you know, you got a ticket. And, you know, you get three additional tickets that you can buy face value with it. And that's not happening.

[00:53:42] So the Brewers have been in PR scramble mode. And I'm trying to picture the Milwaukee version of a David Collins, who when he was 15 years old, got this golden ticket from Grandpa for Christmas, if the Tigers should ever make it to the World Series. And then they do, and Davey, little Davey walks up to the ticket office and he says, I've got my golden ticket. And they just, they just like slow motion, they slam down the window, the counter,

[00:54:12] as he is reaching up in there. And little Davey Collins has got, you know, tears rolling down his cheeks because this was the forever ticket. So David Collins, for the thousands and thousands of Brewers fans who are listening to this, what words of encouragement and counsel would you have for them? I just want to say that that's not how it would have gone down if I showed up at that ticket window. Trust me on that window. So you guys need to get creative out there,

[00:54:41] but if you need someone to come talk to somebody, come check with the people's champ. I was just going to say, you can represent them very, very well in this public debacle. What a way to treat your fans. Time for That Guy. Right now, this minute, today, this week, I am. All right, I'll lead us off this time.

[00:55:10] How about a tip of the cap to the two old guys in the Muppets balcony known as Wilbon and Kornheiser as PTI reaches 25 years. Pardon the interruption, but I'm Mike Wilbon and welcome to opening day in this bizarre television experiment. And I'm Tony Kornheiser. And if we can have a TV show, you can have a TV show. It's content in sports. We know we know it. We know it better than your show and your show and your show.

[00:55:40] Players know. Players know. No. Winning is never enough. I've had enough. I've had enough. I'm done. I'm done. Often imitated. Never duplicated. Those guys are timeless. And now I will say this. This is not an asterisk or a caveat or anything to take away from 25 years. I think that if one of them were to ever step down, they should call David Collins to fill in. Not Pablo.

[00:56:08] Not Frank Isola. They should call Collins to bring in some fresh energy to it. But those guys are so much a staple of the fabric of our sports world that, you know, that's saying a lot, especially given all of the transition that ESPN has gone through in the last 25 years. So tip of the hat to those guys for doing it so well for so long. That's really good. David, you're that guy. Yeah, make mine quick. I got to get out of here.

[00:56:37] I want to give a shout out to Jalen Duren of the Detroit Pistons. Tough offseason, wanting to get traded, having contract battle, all these things. But that dude sat in a press conference, answered question after question, recommitted himself to the team, to the city, said all the right things, has done all the right things. And the first game shows out really nicely with, I think it was 22 points, nine rebounds. He has said all the right things. He took his medicine. And the city has reconnected with him.

[00:57:07] And we love him and welcome him back. So just wanted to give a shout out to J.D. Go Pistons. 1-0, baby. Well said. And, Paul, you have that guy. I'm going to try to play a soundbite for everybody after you explain what's happening. So, yeah, my that guy this week is Charlie Becker from the University of Indiana, who last year, when Indiana beat Ohio State in the Big Ten Championship,

[00:57:32] he had a moment with his dad that got captured and went viral, where he was in a very derogatory way talking about the OHIO chant. We'll just leave it. Change the last two letters, I do believe. Change the last two letters. And then this year, after the Ohio State-Indiana game, he decided he was going to go up to Ryan Day and apologize for that. And they had a nice moment there. It looked nice anyways out on the field.

[00:57:59] And then he, of course, gets asked about why he felt like a year later he needed to issue that apology. And I think that's what you might be trying to play right here. After the Big Ten Championship last year, I've been thinking about that one for a little bit. Why did you feel like that was the right decision? I don't know. It's a personal thing, I guess. I never really want to be on anybody's bad side.

[00:58:28] That just wasn't kind of who I was. I saw my dad out there and just kind of thought I was directed at him. But there's a place and a time, and that wasn't it. So, yeah, I've just been thinking about that one for a little bit. I decided to apologize to him, and I'll have to stay for it. What I love about that apology is that he's owning it, and it's a year later when he goes back to make it right. Yeah. Whatever. And then I love that he says, yeah, that was just supposed to be between me and my dad.

[00:58:58] You know? Which I'm like, okay, you're allowed to celebrate. And the whole, that's not the right time and place. Well done. Yeah. And by the way, first, to do that a year later means it's been on his heart for a year. Yeah. And to do it right after you lost in heartbreaking fashion, and he first, as you said, did go up to Coach Day on the field when it would have been so much easier to just kind of slide over to the locker room later. Yeah. So, well done.

[00:59:28] Well done all the way around. That's a very good that guy moment. Let's wrap it up with a three-minute message. Homer, I'd like you to remember Matthew 7, 26, the foolish man who built his house on sand. And you remember Matthew 21, 17. And he left them and went out of the city into Bethany, and he lodged there? Yes. Yeah. Think about it.

[00:59:56] Think about it. Okay. So, earlier in this conversation, we were talking about LeBron James, and some of the social media fallout of him deciding to practice his golf swing during the National Anthem. You heard a lot of people saying he should know better. He should know better, right? It's kind of like what Dick Towner said to me when I didn't stand for the National Anthem in the middle of the Sea of Galilee when we were over in Israel. He's kind of like, Paul, you should have just known better.

[01:00:24] And I'm going to take the counter to that, and I'm going to say, hey, let's give LeBron a break for a moment, and let's talk about the fact that he doesn't know better. Like, his upbringing, for those of you that are unaware, he grew up in a single-parent home, low-income household, Akron, Ohio, raised by his mom, who was 16 years old when she gave birth to him. His biological father was not in the picture because he had a criminal record.

[01:00:50] Family moving around, so he's sleeping on friends' couches, public housing, and different things to try and find his way through. I think it's, if we want to be fair, we can say, hey, you know what? That moment of poor judgment by him might just be because he wasn't raised in a way where he would know better. And so I just want to share a word with all of us who are parents and listening to this podcast, right?

[01:01:15] Problem 22.6 says, train up a child in the way he should go, and when he is old, he will not depart from it. There are life lessons, there are values, there are moral principles that we should be instilling in our children because their character is going to be formed when they're still under our roofs as our children, and then someday it's going to play itself out.

[01:01:39] Maybe not in very public ways like LeBron James, who has a moment of poor judgment and it's blasted all over or whatever, and then Donald Trump gets involved and LeBron has to go on ESPN and say, you know, rebut Trump's comments and everything else. But let's train up our children to know better. Let's just train up our children to know better so that when they are adults and those opportunities come their way to do the right thing, that's what they will do.

[01:02:07] Very well said, my friend. And by the way, Lord, thank you for the safe delivery of Roxanne Azalea Hobson, born to Bo and Becca one week ago, and she's a keeper. We're going to keep her for a while, I'm pretty sure, and kind of fun to... Nothing like being a grandpa. Yes, how about this for my week? I held her when she was roughly 19 hours old at the hospital.

[01:02:34] Then I flew out to Utah to host this trip for the last five days. Came home a day early yesterday and surprised everybody, and then I got a chance to stop back in and now hold her at six days old. So it's a pretty good start for Gramps here to get some exposure to his new little lady in his life, and we're super thankful for all of that. So thank you all for joining us as well.

[01:02:57] Make sure you connect with Church Pew Sports at churchpewsports.com, and follow us on socials, Facebook, and X. And our YouTube channel is where we live stream our podcast now, and so you can watch it as it happens or go back and watch it a little bit later. Thanks for being with us. We'll see you all next time on Church Pew Sports. Church Pew Sports. Church Pew Sports.