Episode 336 — Stephen A. Smith, Pat McAfee & The Grift Taking Over Sports Media

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Support him at SoundCloud.com slash May 1st Music. The National Association of Black Journalists gives Stephen A. Smith the thumbs down award for his, quote, recurring public pattern of disparaging public commentary directed at prominent black women across politics, sports and media. Now, is this accurate? Yes. whether it's Jemele Hill, whether it's Jasmine Crockett, there has been a poignant effort done by Stephen A. Smith that when someone of prominence within the black community, specifically when it comes to black women, he seems to be ready to jump down their throats or ready to ride the bandwagon of those that are disparaging those particular women.

That is not hyperbole. That is not gaslighting. It is factual. Even with who was it? Not just Cena Anderson, but Kari Champion, her as well. Like there's just been a strange coincidence, if you want to cop, please, to where whenever someone is dunking on a black woman within media, within sports media, within politics, Stephen A is right there to double down. It is a problematic pattern, but it is a pattern nonetheless.

And let's be very, very clear when it comes to Stephen A. Smith. You see here where it says sports analyst and political commentator. That second part is nonsensical. It doesn't make sense. This man is a panderer for the right. He has turned himself into that.

He has positioned himself to be that. He has worked very hard over the last, I would say, decade plus to put himself in that position. Stephen A likes to play both sides. When it comes to serious, hard to fight, hard to fight black issues, he will toe the line and say the thing. But when it comes to anything that could be subjective, he will normally lean towards a conservative angle. And you could be a black conservative and not be MAGA. You could be a black conservative and not be problematic.

You could be a black conservative and not be right wing. The problem is too often when it comes to Stephen A, he doesn't know how to toe that line. He doesn't know how to walk that tightrope. Chris Rock once had a bit where he said the most racist man is a old black man. And while it got jokes back in the day, if you see reoccurring patterns when it comes to certain black figures when they get older, they do tend to lean a little bit more conservative than in their, quote, heyday when they were more liberal, outspoken, wild, you know, fuck the police, fuck everything. Like that energy seems to wane as people get older. The issue is that Stephen A.

was never really on that type of time from the beginning. He's kind of always been this more conservative leaning person off rip. And again, you're entitled to be whatever you want to be. That's what this that's one of the perks of being in this country, allegedly. But when you are targeting your ire, when you are targeting your vitriol and the victims of that always just so happen to be people who look like you. And then opposite genders at that. It comes off problematic.

What are the most known bits or the most known interactions for fraud? It's him going at LeBron. It's him going at Kyrie. It is him going at Kaepernick. It is him going at Jasmine Crockett. It is him going at Jemele Hill. There are certain things that are starting to line up that are becoming more and more than just a coincidence.

Yes, he sat across from Skip Bayless and debated him for years, but it was for television. It was for a check. Yes, he sat across from Max Kellerman for years, but that was for a check. When has Fraud A gone out of his way to battle, to debate, to put his ire at someone who does not look like him? Whether culturally or gender. When has he gone at a white man, a white woman, a non POC with the same energy that he has for Kyrie? Now he's running around apologizing for what he allegedly did to Kyrie when it was just being strided against what Kyrie wanted to do, which a lot of people were.

A lot of people were. But the fact that he's apologizing for apologizing to Kyrie and publicly doing so. It is aligning himself further in the right wing conservative atmosphere is not even a true genuine apology. It is a apology that is only furthering the positioning of putting himself in a more right wing conservative lane. Because, again, he wants to be known as a political commentator. Something that he is not actually that's not actually a thing, right? Like Stephen A is not actually a political commentator.

he is just someone that wants to grift in the lane of politics and it's an easy lane to get into it is super easy right now to go on the internet become right-wing become uber conservative and you can run the numbers up you can run the donations up you can run the views up the subscribers up you can run it all up so Stephen A who because he works at the four letter network is overworked and underpaid. Yes, even at the current deal of where he's, there's various reports of whether he's making 25 mil upwards to close to 40 mil. You can still argue that he's still underpaid. So where can I get the extra money from? If Pat McAfee's about to get 60, 65 M's a year and I feel I'm just as important, if not more, how can I get that supplemental income? But let me go over here and grift on the right wing conservative side. And I feel that's where we're at here.

So the NABJ should be calling out Stephen A. They should. Because as a National Association of Black Journalists and Stephen A, who at once at once upon a time was a black journalist, they should be able to call him out if they feel as though he's doing something problematic, such as a reoccurring public pattern of disparaging public commentary directed at prominent black women across politics, sports and media. That is the NABJ's job. Here's the issue that the NABJ is going to face once Stephen A cracks a mic today. Once he cracks a mic today, he's going to spit the real. And the real is going to have nothing to do with him being a right wing conservative.

It's going to have nothing to do with him trying to defend himself. It's going to be the truth depending on what he decides to tell today. If he decides to tell what the NABJ has truly been up to over the last decade or so, it's going to go bad for the NABJ. And you have to be extremely cautious when you go at someone like Stephen A, who, let's be clear, a lot of folks are just now learning last this past weekend into today what the NABJ actually is and what those letters even stand for. So now you're only bringing the light onto yourself. But now you're going to have someone with the voice of Stephen. Despite what we want to think of Stephen, he does have a huge platform in his voice carries.

He is now going to lambast you on his platforms, whether it's going to be on first take today or whether it's going to be hit on his own independently owned platform later today. He's going to open fire. He has already promised it. where's that tweet so you see this tweet here this is the epitome of Christmas arriving early the NABJ wants to call folks out fine you had your turn now mine is coming and make no mistake I'm coming let's see who really deserves a thumbs down award when it comes to the black community after I say my piece Remember, NABJ, you asked for it. I've shut my mouth for years. Now y'all started something. Now, this could be viewed as rage bait, click bait, just getting people to watch his show.

He may even go at them with kid gloves whenever he decides to approach this topic. But how much, how many of you actually out there believe he's going to go light on the NABJ? I don't have any inclination that he's going to take it easy on the NABJ whenever he decides to address this topic. I think he's going to go with both barrels. I think he's going to have the sawed off shoddy. I think he's going to go ahead and do that. I think he's going to unload because, again, the NABJ has not been the best, especially over the last decade and change.

Because, again, he's saying here, I've shut my mouth for years and I'll be quite transparent. A lot of us within the media space have shut our mouths collectively for years because NABJ is supposed to stand for something. NABJ is a pillar of sorts. NABJ at one point in time was akin to what the NAACP did overall for black folks. But when it comes to when it comes to. The media space, they're held in that type of high regard, right? Now, though, it's becoming they're becoming less and less important.

They're becoming less and less vital in the process. They have their convention every year. They have their job fairs every year and et cetera, et cetera. But unfortunately, more times than not, the NABJ is a forgotten entity. They have not carved out a space. They have not been able to remain relevant in the evolving times, especially within the way that media has evolved. This is a this was an opportunity for them to get back into the spotlight, to get their name in their their platform back out there, which I think is ultimately why they did what they did.

You don't you don't come out here and go at Stephen A not expecting him to clap back. Right. So they know they are expecting a clap back. The question is, is that how much truth is Stephen A going to tell when he decides to clap back today? Because if he goes where he can go, it's going to be scary hours for the NABJ. They're not going to want to know. They're not going to want the public to know all the things that Stephen A might tell people today.

And he has a large platform. He can fuck their money up today. depending on what he says. If he truly goes there, which he's hinting and insinuating at on his tweet, and I'll pull that up. He is insinuating he's going to do that, right? Give me one second. So he's insinuating that he's going to go there.

Let's see who really deserves a thumbs down award when it comes the black community after I say my piece. Okay. So he's already letting you know where he's going to go. I'll hit step in the chat real quick. Teal's comments still standing true today. No, it's true. And unfortunately it's been true for a very long time.

It was even true before Teal went out there, but it's just, he keeps giving us example after example, after example of where, Again, I defy you to bring a scenario where he's gone at someone who wasn't black with the vitriol that he came at with Kyrie, that he came at with T.O. during what Steph just mentioned. When he came at Kaepernick, Jasmine Crockett, Jemele Hill, Kari Champion, like all of those are melanated folk. When has he ever the one time he tried, he tried it with Trump and Trump gave him that backhand smack and he went back into his corner and he hid. So I just I don't understand where that's going to come from when it comes to Stephen A going at someone that's not melanated. When has he ever went at someone that was not melanated? Again, I would love for someone to let me know.

If someone wants to let me know in the chat, the chat is open. Find me an example of Stephen A. That's not a co-host where he went at somebody with the same energy, but he kept the same energy for someone that was not melanated. And again, there might be folks like we have here to chat. how dare they go after you after all you done for the black community. Now, look, Stephen A's from Queens. I'm from Queens.

I don't want to go at somebody that's from my home, that's from my home borough. But Stephen A loves to promote the fact that he has done a lot for the black community, whether it's getting black people hired, HBCUs, bringing First Take and bringing that ESPN platform and spotlight to HBCUs. He can get it off. He can list a bunch of stuff that would make you think he is for the community. And that's why what I said earlier is that you can be a black person and a conservative, but it's a very slippery slope from being a black conservative and then being a black full-on low-key MAGA or full right-wing conservative. There are levels to it. And unfortunately, Stephen A is going to try to run on the resume like he's not even a black conservative.

That's silly. If you've been paying attention, you see very clearly the fact that this man is a constant on Fox News tells you everything you need to know. There's a reason why he is more willing to lend his voice to that platform as opposed to the other side's platforms. Steve and A will go do a podcast tour that are of predominantly black podcasters and think that that checks the boxes that I've checked in with the black community. Meanwhile, when he wants to ingratiate himself to the other side, to the non-melanated side, he makes sure to go on the largest cable news platform for that side. Don't you find that strange? When it comes to I want to get to the black community, I'm just going to go do a podcast run.

But when I want to go and be seen by the other side, by the right wing conservative side, I'm going on Fox News. There's something underlined there. If you know, you know, but if you're paying attention, he's saying the quiet part out loud. But this is where we're at. NABJ, the National Association of Black Journalism, black journalists, stepped out there and gave Stephen A a tongue in cheek award. that is highlighting the fact that you go at too many black women. Whether it's sports, media, and politics, you go at too many black women.

Wasn't he on the Caitlin Clark side with the whole Caitlin Clark, Angel Reese thing? Like he had just shown so many times where it's become blatant, where it's become obvious, where it becomes like, all right, dude, there's no way you can genuinely feel this way. You are clearly doing this because you're angling and positioning yourself to be ingratiated and accepted by a certain base. And I would only wish that there was actually a chance for him to say that. And I think more of us, even though we might not agree with it, we could at least respect the hustle. We know when someone's hustling. We know when someone's trying to get over.

And we respect the hustle when someone says, hey, man, I'm just trying to get on. But when someone's trying to scam you with it, don't tell me about bringing ESPN to HBCUs. Don't tell me about all the black people you've hired behind the scenes, because for as many black people as you have said you have had hired behind the scenes, there are even more black people who have said you have held them back in their careers. So you can't have it both ways. Which one is it? Is it Uchiwali or is it one mic? If you want to have that duality and you want to put yourself out there as if you have that duality, then be up front with it.

Hey, man, I'm trying. I got this bread over here. My sports bread is limited. It's cap McAfee then came through and crushed the buildings. Dog Pound came through and kicked over the buildings like. They came through McAfee and his boys and all them came through and kicked over the buildings. The streets are now McAfee's.

Now, if I'm fraud A or Stephen A, if you respect them. I now got to go get mine somewhere else. I'm a milk all I can from the four letters because I put in the years. And I've held the company down. He has had the whole building on his back. Let's be clear. Even though I have my thoughts about him and how he moves, I'm not going to diminish his impact.

He has had that whole building on his back. But if someone comes in and takes the spot from you, takes your rock and just go home with it, like McAfee has done. McAfee took his lunch. where now even if you get a raise, you're still not going to sniff whatever McAfee about to get. Whatever you get, McAfee is going to walk right back into those high executive offices and get a raise that's going to be more money than you. The company clearly values him. As much pandering as Stephen A.

has done to be ingratiated by the right, to be ingratiated by the right conservatives to be ingratiated by the MAGA portion of the audience. Who was the one that got put out there on the tarmac to welcome in the orange man off Air Force One? It was McAfee. Who was chilling with McAfee and the orange man at whatever that ridiculous event was, even in the first place? It was all the ESPN executives. So clearly McAfee was handpicked, not the man who has been openly pining to be welcomed by the right wing conservatives. And that's always the dichotomy when I see someone who is a black conservative that then tries to tap into that right wing shit.

It's like, oh, dogs, they don't even rock with you like that. Clearly, if that side welcomed him and loved him so much, why wasn't Fraud A on the tarmac at the top of the steps of Air Force One welcoming the orange man? Why was it McAfee? So not only did McAfee steal your spot, steal your company, steal your shine. But even the ultimate grift of what you're trying to do, which I think McAfee is a grift, too. And we'll get there in a minute because McAfee put out an album. I'm not shitting you.

McAfee put out an album and people are actually trying to convince you that it's good. That's how much the grift is and how much he is a golden boy at the four letters that McAfee could drop an album and people are actually pumping it up like it's good. OK, so not only. Does McAfee take your shine, take your spot as the number one guy, the face of the company, the face of the company is. no longer Stephen A. Smith. It is Pat McAfee.

Not only does that happen, not only does he come in and make more money than you, not only does he come in and get more tight with the high level executives than you, but then the grift that you're trying to pull off, he walks in with his Midwestern values and immediately gets put to the top of the list to where now he's greeting the orange man off Air Force One and you're at the crib watching it. He even outgrifted you. He came into your job, took your spot. He got to be even closer with the bosses than you. And then he even gifts the better grifting opportunities than you. He even outgrifted you. The game is the game.

The game is the game. So now he gets to do the easiest thing of all, which is to dunk on black people. He gets to continue. So here's here's a I don't know if it's irony. But here's the most telling part of this. He gets to. After getting an award.

For clowning, talking down on, misrepresenting. slandering black women in sports media and politics he gets to crack a mic today and go on his platform and do the same exact thing to the entirety of the National Association of Black Journalists and that's where I don't know if the NABJ is going to get what they think going to get by doing this. It is good that they put Stephen A on blast, right? Even if it doesn't mean anything in the long run, at least they try to have some kind of spine, some kind of backbone in being the National Association of Black Journalists and saying, yo, man, enough is enough. You are specifically hurting our people. You're specifically affecting our community. The problem is they had Stephen A at their conference last year.

So clearly there was a relationship of sorts to where Stephen A and the NABJ could link up. Let's also not overlook the fact that the NABJ hosted a what was it like a debate? Not really. I guess a debate of sorts with the Orange Man. So now all this stuff, Fraud A is going to leverage in his attack. He's going to say, well, you can't be that mad at me when you had me at your conference last year. You can't be mad at me, but then have a debate with the now president at your same conference.

Like you can't do all again. He's going to try to spin it like they're playing both sides. When it works for them, they're down to break bread with Stephen A. But when it doesn't work for them, they're going to give him the thumbs down award. that's going to be the spin the continued spin you're getting mad at me because you think I've been attacking Jasmine Crockett Jemele Hill etc etc etc when you had a debate with the orange man and you were promoting it now that's a that's putting something and not giving the full context it was a very vitriolic debate the orange man was fighting for his life because he had a bunch of black journalists getting at him. So it wasn't the most it wasn't like it was a welcoming party and it was like, you know, softball questions. It was a contentious debate.

Where the orange man sat down and got grilled by the NABJ. But that part's going to be left out. It's just going to be the fact that what you had Trump. You had Trump pull up. We know how Trump gets down when it comes to black women specifically. All the policies have impacted black women the most. Every single thing that comes down the pike, it is clear to clear as day to see.

So you can't be mad at just me. When not only did you have me pull up last year, but in the years past, in the most recent years past, you've had the orange man pull up. You gave him a platform. So not only have you given me a platform just last year. But you have platform, whether you intended to get at him and make him look bad or that, you still gave him the platform. You still allowed him to get his shit off. So any of that will be most of that.

I'm going to go ahead and predict most of that is going to be said by Stephen. He's going to bring up the fact that he was there last year and he's going to bring up the fact that they had Trump there during the campaign. Now, what's going to be the pushback? Now, he may bring up some other stuff. And this is why I think it could be a dangerous game for the NABJ. They jumped out the window. They fired off the first shot.

And it was a kill shot or what they thought was a kill shot, because if fraud A goes into his bag, he could just the last two things I just mentioned are easy. That's easy work. But if he really wants to go into the deep seatedness. of how folks have been talking about the NABJ behind the scenes for years. I'm only trying to tell you because as someone that's worked in sports media for almost 20 years and I've participated in conventions, I've participated in local regional chapters, elections, and I was a paying due. I was a member that paid dues back in the day, all that. So I am very familiar with how NABJ gets down.

Over the length of my career, there has been a very much not necessarily love hate relationship with black members in media and NABJ, but it's very much of. We want them to do more and they have not been doing more. I can go back to pandemic times, pandemic times. Those real conversations in regards to the old guard and the new guard in terms of the old heads were being accused of being gatekeepers to the youngins. That was a real conversation that was being had and it was being had at a point in time where everything was extremely tense. social injustice, you know, George Floyd, pandemic, all the things were happening. And it felt like this powder keg had exploded where the youngers were like, yo, man, you O-heads are blocking us from getting our shit off.

You O-heads that claim y'all doing so much. You O-heads that claim you're trying to pave the way for the next group. Well, we're the next group and y'all are blocking us. We're the next group waiting for opportunity and you ain't looking out. We're supposed to stand on each other's shoulders and grow. Y'all ain't doing that. You're only looking out for self.

These are real things that were being discussed. And to be quite honest, I don't think there ever was a resolution. Words were said, heated words got said, but we didn't land anywhere. Now, is that the NABJ's fault entirely? No. But as the face, as the representative, as the more public face of that debate, they have to take more of the responsibility than the individuals who feel like they're being gatekept against. If he goes into that bag and pulls out receipts, it's going to be a long week for the NABJ.

It's going to be a long week. Because as much as you can loathe what Stephen A is, what he represents, if he spits facts and those facts can be backed up by other members in the media. It's going to be a long week for the NABJ. Don't bark up that tree. That tree might fall on you. And I don't want to be in a space where Stephen A could win against the NABJ. If we're trying to treat it like it's an actual scoring thing.

But I know enough to know that if he decides to go to that level, to era as he's insinuated. Let's see who really, all caps, really deserves a thumbs down award when it comes to the black community. He's insinuating he going to take it there. If he decides to take it there, I think it's going to be scary hours for the NABJ. So just want to get that off. Just my thoughts on it. Let me know if you have any thoughts in the chat.

You know, this will be interesting. This will be this is going to get aggregated crazy. There's going to be think pieces. It's going to be a bunch of short form content, video essays. It's going to be a bunch of stuff dropping if he decides to go there. If he takes the foot off the gas, if he pumps the brakes, it decides to pivot and not do it. The story will die.

But if he goes there, if he goes Super Saiyan. long week for NABJ alright so I mentioned the McAfee thing right McAfee got an album I randomly was sent this tweet by Dan Olavsky the album is legit good good at Pat McAfee and yes McAfee has an album. And it's called The Diary of a Polarizing Figure. And again, another grifter. This is a grift. This is continuing to grift. This is not even tripling or quadrupling down on the grift.

This is next level grifting. This is the square root of the grift. Because fresh off the heel. So basically, we can now say him on the tarmac at Air Force One was the rollout. McAfee on the tarmac greeting the orange man off of Air Force One was a rollout for his album. This is the point that we're at now where a failed former, well not failed, but a former NFL punter who doesn't have any credibility outside of, oh yeah, you recognize the name and the fact that he was a punter, has turned himself into a man that will likely command over $60 million a year for his content and his commentary. I ask you this.

When's the last time you got a bit of football analysis from McAfee that stood out? and then I have to ask you does that even matter anymore in 2026 with the current state of streaming television web-based content is actual analysis now my audience and my community that I'm growing here on multiple platforms is more about a ball knowing community We know ball over on this side. Ball knowledge is mandatory. However, we have to understand that we are in the minority. There are way more casuals than there are ball knowers. With that being the case. What is it about McAfee besides the obvious?

That makes people feel as though he is so good and so valuable to the people that matter at the fourth of the network that they're about to pay him over 60 million dollars a year. Allegedly. The grift keeps grifting. Why would I ever care what a punter is going to spit on an album unless it's Marquette King? Marquette King want to drop some bars? I'll listen. because at least he had some personality even prior to even becoming anything more than what he ended up actually being.

McAfee, it all seems contrived. The grift has been grifting for a long time. The fact that a punter was able to, a punter, a position that is laughed at even more than a field goal kicker, than a normal kicker. The absolute last person held of any significance and importance to a football team has now leveraged himself. To be in a position where he is the most important voice or the entire sports media company. Do you understand how unbelievable that is? No one respects the punter.

No one cares about the punter. But somehow, someway, this one punter is going to get upwards of 60 plus million dollars for his opinions. It is, it is extremely glaring what the reason is, right? I oftentimes don't want to look at the obvious thing. I try to look at things from multiple different angles and try to figure out is there a is there another angle I'm not seeing? Is there? No.

If Marquette King tried to take the McAfee path, how far would he get? Marquette King put out an album too by the way Marquette King went to the UFL and he was trying to get it off so McAfee ain't the first punter to put an album out but somehow Marquette King can't command 60 plus million dollars from a sports media company somehow Marquette King can't be on the tarmac at Air Force One greeting the president I wonder why y'all think I'm playing about that Marquette King, that Marquette King's a real thing that Marquette King's a real thing let me see if I can find that album Marquette King was dropping. If it was not an album, it was definitely like an EP or a single. Marquette King. Marquette King says he's still blackball, by the way. So much like Colin Kaepernick, Marquette King is still out here saying he's blackballed. But again, nobody cares when it comes to, you know.

Let's see. Marquette King album. Here we go. Marquette King on Apple Music where we at here get the screen up Marquette King Area 51 if you want to go support he's got multiple albums he's got three albums out Marquette King out here dropping three albums he's not able to go use Air Force One waiting on a tarmac for the president as a rollout for his albums Mark K. King out here dropping heat He's got joints Look at this The catalog is crazy McAfee got one album out And watch him do Buku numbers McAfee already platinum Crazy times we're in Crazy times we're in the second part of this Orlovsky thing we're going to stay on Orlovsky Orlovsky's gotten a lot of attention another guy that failed upwards another guy that again a guy that went 0-16 a guy who's most infamous or famous, depending how you look at it, moment is running out the back of the end zone because he had zero field awareness. Playing the most important, the hardest allegedly position in all sports. He lost all track of his awareness and ran out the back of the end zone.

This man is now considered a QV savant. so his opinion is respected at a high level that NFL live show is top tier I don't know how they're going to replace Ryan Clark but that's not a decision I have to deal with but Mina Kimes or Lopsky whether it's Booger or Marcus Spears well somebody will step up hopefully it's not McCourty McCourty is not that he's not that type to me but NFL Live is a top tier show. They've gone a long way to making that show be one of the preeminent shows in the NFL landscape, right? So Orlovsky's opinion is now respected. Orlovsky dropped his top seven quarterbacks or his QB traits rankings heading into 2026, right? So he did this, right? And if you want to go there, You know, he's doing all the stuff, right?

You see arm strength. He has a category, right? So he's doing all the stuff. Ball placement. So he's doing all the stuff, right? So he's breaking it down, right? It's preseason.

We need fodder to get us to the regular season. It's stuff like this that gets us there, right? Everyone loves a list. Everyone loves a list, right? So we can dissect his list. I don't really want to go through all that because the main story is the fact that. The fact that he dropped the list and how he ranked the list, you saw a very common thread.

And if you know sports media and if you know how this game is actually played, this should come at no surprise. But Dan Arlovsky. Is represented by CAA. six of the top seven of the QBs that he ranked. So six of the seven of the Q, top seven of the QBs that he ranked are also CAA clients. Now you may think that's a coincidence, but you tell me, Do you have Bo Nix top seven of anything that's positive right now? In your own list, think of your list internally and let me know in the chat.

Do you have Bo Nix top seven in anything positive? Now, certain names make sense. Dak Prescott, polarizing, but makes sense. Josh Allen, polarizing, makes sense. Stafford, makes sense. But we put in Bo Nix in a top seven of something good. And I know how we looked at the end of last year and a lot of people are now saying he turned a corner.

But are we ready to put Bryce Young top seven of anything? Drake May took a team to the Super Bowl, but people leave out the fact that that team had the easiest schedule in the entire league. we're just going to sneak them in and you're telling me that has nothing to do with the fact that he works for the same agency or that he's represented by the same agency so again media is just compromised left and right and nobody and by nobody I mean the casuals don't seem to care and this is why they can get away with it because Not too many people are going to stand out there and say, hey, this is compromising. This makes way too much sense that the guy that is wrecked by CAA. So, again, you have to take it to the fact that Orlovsky is not supposed to be here. Orlovsky is not supposed to be. Held in high regard, he was supposed to go to his grave as the guy that ran out the back of the end zone.

But that has been flipped. That's changed. He now is the guy that gets to stand on the fact that I am a big time NFL analyst. My post playing career is going to be significantly more successful than my playing career. He ain't supposed to be here. But he is. And part of that is because he's represented by CAA.

Where did Rich Paul learn how to go be an agent? CAA. Where did the Knicks GM cut his teeth? CAA. Where was LeBron James once housed as a client? CAA. Carmelo CAA.

We could keep going. CAA is a tremendously strong figure, not just in sports media, but in all media, but specifically in this instance, sports media huge. It would make sense to keep your people happy. I'm not saying Dan Orlovsky went out his way to make sure he had six out of seven of the QBs in his top seven BCAA clients. What I'm saying is, is that some things become so ingrained that you do it without even knowing you're doing it. And I think that's what we got here with Dan Olofsky. Because having Bo Nix top seven of anything is laughable unless you are a Denver Broncos shill.

If you are a Denver Broncos content farm, then yeah, you can have Bo Nix top six, top seven in everything. It makes sense. Hype your mans. But anyone who is supposed to be respected for their football opinion, have them bone nicks, be top six of anything, laughable. You throw all your credibility out the window when you do that. In my opinion, if you still think Orlowski is him, even though there appears to be a clear and apparent bias towards people that are represented by the same agency he's repped by, then so be it. But we look at things different.

The whole point of my content, the only thing I've ever wanted to do in this space, whether it's here on YouTube, here on Twitch, here on TikTok, is to try to have people think just slightly differently. Because I'm able to leverage information that I am aware of and bring it to the forefront. This information is not supposed to be known. People are not supposed to be able to put two and two together. The casuals would just look at the list and think of it as just, oh, it's just happenstance. It's just happenstance that all these QBs just so happen to be repped by the same agency as the guy that's given out the rankings and the list in the first place. Steph in the chat, Bo Nix is at best 11.

And that's generous. That's extremely generous. I mean, if we're so let's see if we get this after this. Right. So, again, I'm not trying to rank people today. Steph, myself, his brother and some other folks are going to be putting something together real soon about that. So if you want to be, you know, you want to be notified of that, make sure to subscribe or follow depending on what platform you're on.

But let's just take a just a quick gander at some of the. So let's try to see the biases. How does Bo Nix arrive at top six? What list is he on that he shouldn't be on? Okay, he's not on the arm strength top 10. He's not on the ball placement top 10. He's not on the mechanics top 10.

Where does Bo Nix come in? decision making he's not in the top 10 did he just do an overall list pocket presence he's not in the top 10 okay second reaction ability okay so apparently Bo Nix is 6th in second reaction ability now what does he classify that as The flip side is working outside the pocket. I'm looking for creativity here as well as the ability to throw from weird arm angles and platforms. Okay, but mobility and field vision also matter in a big way. So it's no sugar. Okay, Knicks surprised me. Okay, so here's his breakdown of why Knicks is sixth.

Knicks surprised me. He really became a broken play artist last season. And his eight touchdown throws from outside the pocket tied for second most in the league. And no one made more outside the pocket throws last season than Knicks at 133. It was a big part of his game. Okay. So if we're bringing it down, basically outside the pocket.

I don't know why it got to be second reaction ability. Basically, the ability to make throws outside the pocket. He's got Bo Nix in the top 10. Ahead of Lamar, by the way. rushing ability okay Bo Nix cracks the bottom of the top 10 at number 9 that I can live with that makes sense is that it? that's the list? so only two of the what's like eight categories here two of the eight categories Bo Nix is able to crack the list I'm a little confused then.

Yeah, there's three. Yeah, there's seven categories. Bo Nix is only top 10 in two. All right, so who else was shaky? Bryce Young? You want to go Bryce Young? Where's Bryce Young?

Unless there's another list that just have top rankings, That tweet might be Fugazi. All right, let's look for Bryce Young. Well, we got Drake May here. Let's stick with Drake May. Drake May, I think, is a little much. Drake May arm strength, top 10. Ball placement.

Drake May is number two in ball placement. So, okay, here we go. Again, the Patriots had the easiest schedule in the league last year. The easiest strength of schedule in the entire league last year. Drake May is top 10 number 7 overall in arm strength and he's number 2 in ball placement where's the anecdote on Bo Nix here because you got to explain to me how he's number 2 on Drake May if you're looking at the stats May would have a pretty good case to be the new number 1 he settles for 2nd here but there's no knocking his league best 72% completion rate and 9.1 completion rate above expectation. And unlike every other QB in the top five, he wasn't playing with an all pro receiver. May was especially good with trajectory going downfield, dropping it in a bucket.

You know how you can throw for a league best 72% completion rate by playing the Jets twice a year? You know how you can have a league best 72% completion rate by playing the Dolphins twice a year? You know how else you can have a league best 72% completion rate by having the easiest strength of schedule in the entire league? Hey, Heat fan, I appreciate you, bro. Thank you for tapping in. This is insane to me. Insane to me.

All right, so Drake May has been top 10 in both categories so far. What about mechanics? He's not in mechanics. Decision-making with the football. Drake May number four. So Drake May is so far top five in two of the four categories, and he's ranked top 10 in three of the four categories so far. Pocket presence.

Drake May is number one in pocket presence. Again, I just don't understand what we're doing here. May was number one in QBR inside the pocket. He completed 70, I'll just round up, 75% of his throws from there for 9.2 yards attempt, both tops in NFL. I find it very interesting how much glazing we're doing for Drake May. Drake May outside the pocket. He can run.

So he's top five in that too. Rushing ability. Top five. Top three for Drake May. This is a glaze fest for Drake May. Nothing else, right? Wow.

Okay. So, and I didn't see Bryce Young in any of these. Am I bugging? Rushing ability? I was hoping he wouldn't sneak Bryce Young into the rushing ability because yeah. That'll be very telling for other reasons. I don't see Bryce Young at all on this list so far.

See CJ Stroud is more on this list than Bryce Young so far. Yeah, I don't see Bryce Young on any of these rankings. So I'm not sure where this tweeter got the Bryce Young piece, but certainly Drake May. Drake May being here is problematic. Six out of the top seven ranking QBs at every trade is a fellow CAA client. But Bryce Young is not on any of these lists. so okay all right it is what it is but I think the overarching point still stands we'll remove Bryce Young from this list but in regards to you had seven traits is that what he's trying to say six out of the top seven ranking QBs that every trait is a fellow CAA client okay I think that's what he's trying to say it's not worded it's not worded the best he's trying to say every six out of seven traits, there's a CAA client on the list.

Okay, that makes more sense. That could have been worded a lot better. And that's why we do these live, because we find it out in real time. Okay, so this tweet needs to be worded better, but the real issue is that six out of the seven categories that Orlovsky is grading quarterbacks on, there was a CAA client. All right, let's see what else we got. We're doing more list. Let's do another list.

But this is a list of how the QB position has changed since last year. And again, this is oftentimes thought of as the most important position, the hardest position in all sports, etc., etc., etc. So let's look at this list of QBs that have changed teams. This time last year, Justin Fields was the Jets QB1. That is now no longer the case. Cal Murray was the Cardinals QB1. That is now no longer the case.

Tua with the Dolphins, gone. Penix with the Falcons. Depending on what Tua does, if Tua keeps looking the way that he's looking, that could potentially be gone. Geno with the Raiders, that's done. Flacco with the Browns, that's done. Russell Wilson with the Giants, that's a little bit of a, that one, you're stretching a little bit there, but it is factual, but we know that was only a placeholder. J.J.

McCarthy with the Vikings. Now we got Kyla Murray going from the Cardinals, QB1 to being the Vikings, QB1. Spencer Rattler was the Saints QB1. That will not be the case. Daniel Jones took over for the Colts. Matthew Stafford. But he would wait.

Didn't he play? All right. So some of this is a little bit of a stretch here, but just the QB, the flux of the QB position, which is oftentimes thought of as the most important, the most hardest position to play in the sport. This is where things go with the NFL and these QBs. The QB position has never been as overhyped and as overrated as today. There has never been a point in time where the QB position has been as inflated and glazed as today. The importance of the position has grown to the point where teams feel as though every year we got to keep changing our quarterback until we get the right one.

There have been plenty of examples throughout history where you can win with not just a pretty good quarterback. You could win with an absolute mid quarterback. You could even win with an absolute trash quarterback. Yet and still, teams, free agency, draft, offseason after offseason, continuously risk it all to hit on the QB position. Because the thought is, if you hit on the QB, that puts you in such a better position as not hitting on the QB. And I think that's a flawed logic. It is a absolute flawed logic because.

If the name of the game is still run the ball, stop the run. Run the ball, stop the run is in the holy Bible of football. If there was a 10 commandments of football, run the ball, stop the run is top two and is probably not two. If that's the case, why are we still so penchant on having a dominant top tier, top five elite got to be the best of the best QB one? If we can all agree that the name of the game is still run the ball, stop the run. Why are we so infatuated, transfixed by teams chasing after the elusive QB1? It doesn't make a lot of sense to me.

Because I know QB1 is obviously, look, I grew up a Chicago Bears fan, so I've never seen a QB1. a true, legit top-tier QB1. I never saw it when I still had my fandom. Dan Marino was a QB1. Hall of Fame, immortal, won Super Bowl. Like, we could go on and on. Eli Manning has two Super Bowls and he was an average quarterback.

Like, we can play the game if we really want to in regards to at one point does the QB position matter? Yes, I know Eli Manning made those two throws in those two Super Bowls. But what was actually more important to those Super Bowl victories? Eli making those two throws or the defense harassing Brady both times? What impacted the game more? Eli making the throws when he had to? or the defense causing havoc, beating the hell out of Tom Brady two times.

I know what I would pick. What do you pick? You know what it is. This has been the V10B podcast, a podcast that is talking about sports and sports media in addition to other things. Soon we will be talking those other things. The brand is growing. The brand is evolving.

Walk with me. Stay with me. This podcast is available on all major podcasts and platforms. Don't forget to subscribe and rate. Bob Starr, something less. Tell a friend. If you're into the visual component, holler at the The Sam D YouTube channel.

At The Sam D, that's T-H-E-E-S-A-M-D. For all my thoughts on tech, that channel is now up and running and is strong. At shill free tech on YouTube. Thank you again for listening to this episode. I will catch you again on the next one. I go by the name of The Sam D. This has been The Sam D Podcast.

I'm out.