Nightcap Hour 1: FRUSTRATED Shedeur Sanders goes SILENT + DOLPHINS Darren Waller on NFL COMEBACK & Overcoming ADDICTION

Speaker 1 What a matchup we got, y'all.

Speaker 3 This is that classic HBCU vibe.

Speaker 4 Non-stop action.

Speaker 5 The band is rocking and the crowd lick.

Speaker 6 Chants echo.

Speaker 7 Drum beating.

Speaker 8 Everybody showing that school pride.

Speaker 6 Game like this?

Speaker 9 Yeah, it calls for an ice-cold Coca-Cola.

Speaker 11 Ah, crisp and refreshing.

Speaker 12 That's a game changer right there.

Speaker 10 Mmm, yeah.

Speaker 2 That taste always hits the right note, just like a band at halftime.

Speaker 7 And just like that, we're back at it.

Speaker 13 Passionate fans, school colors everywhere, and an ice cold Coca-Cola?

Speaker 4 That's a winning combo.

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Speaker 15 Fan work is thirsty work.

Speaker 17 So grab a Coca-Cola and keep that HBCU pride going.

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Speaker 10 Hello, ladies and gentlemen, and thank you for joining us for another episode of Nightcap. Y'all know who I am.

Speaker 10 I'm your favorite unc, Shannon Sharp, the guy that's adjusting his camera, getting the light set up. He's Liberty City's own.
He's Bingo Ring of Fame Honoree, a Madden Ratings Adjuster,

Speaker 10 former Pro Bowler, and an all-pro. That's Chad Ocho Cinco Johnson.
Please make sure you hit that subscribe button.

Speaker 10 Please make sure you hit the like button and do us a favor, go subscribe to the Nightcap podcast feed wherever you get your podcast from.

Speaker 10 We'd like to thank each and every one of you for your support and your continued support. Thanks to your eyes, your ears, and word of mouth, Nightcap has been able to continuously grow.

Speaker 10 Hopefully, Hopefully, we'll continue to do that thanks to your support. So thank you again.
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Speaker 10 We got Darren Waller joining us at the bottom of the hour. Ernest Jones is going to join us at the top of the hour.
So we really appreciate our guests staying up and joining us tonight.

Speaker 10 The Cleveland Browns have announced that their third round pick, Dylan Gabriel, will start Sunday against the Minnesota Vikings in London. When asked about

Speaker 10 Gabriel getting getting the starting job, it was literally

Speaker 10 left Shador speechless. Ocho, let's take a listen to the side.

Speaker 25 Yeah, yeah, let me hear that thing.

Speaker 10 That's one more. What do you think you have to show, you know, show to some coaches just to

Speaker 10 have them have that belief in you that you can be ready.

Speaker 10 What can you say?

Speaker 10 I'm just saying.

Speaker 10 How much has Joe been important to both you and Dylan in terms of your guys' development to this point?

Speaker 10 Man, y'all money.

Speaker 10 Oh, Joe, do you like the way Shador handled this press conference? Absolutely.

Speaker 25 Absolutely. Because whatever he says, they're going to twist his words.
If you say nothing,

Speaker 25 you know, there's really, wait, on any other team, there are 31 other other quarters. Excuse me.
There are 31 other teams. Do any of those media members talk to the third string quarterback?

Speaker 10 No.

Speaker 25 It's controversy. Why create controversy? How do you not create it? By when they ask you questions, just don't answer.
You just don't answer. If anything, they should be talking to Joe Flacco.

Speaker 25 Why are you talking to shador

Speaker 25 i mean it makes no sense and i like the way he handled it because anything he does say they're going to make it a big deal they're going to twist his words and take it completely out of context listen dylan gabriel's a starter so be it

Speaker 10 for me i mean it's being reported adam shepherd reported and some other networks are starting to report that this was his response to Rex Ryan saying what he said on the Sunday show that keep your mouth closed move to the front of the class, and X, Y, and Z.

Speaker 10 Okay, I like that. I like that.
I guess this was a situation where he's like, okay, I should keep my mouth shut. I'm going to keep my mouth shut.

Speaker 10 It's hard for me to believe that the scenario that he didn't talk to his father,

Speaker 10 obviously, he leans very heavily on his father, rightfully so. His dad has been through things like this,

Speaker 10 where, you know, he says something and then it...

Speaker 10 If he says something, it's one thing. If he doesn't say something, it's another thing.
So he took this approach. Look,

Speaker 10 he's not just any

Speaker 10 other quarterback, any other third-string quarterback. No, you and I both know if he was any other quarterback and he slid down where he did, we wouldn't even be having it.

Speaker 10 If he was any normal fifth-round pick, we wouldn't even be having this discussion. But he's not a fifth-round pick, so we shouldn't

Speaker 10 ask him to act like a fifth-round pick because that's not what we believe he is.

Speaker 10 For me, look,

Speaker 10 if he'd have taken the pro and say, look, I'm happy for Dylan.

Speaker 10 Hopefully he goes out there and plays well.

Speaker 10 Joe, I feel bad for Joe, but, you know, this is the game of football. This is a business.
And, hey,

Speaker 10 I'm just, you know, I'm happy for Dylan and my job doesn't change.

Speaker 10 I go out there, I prepare.

Speaker 10 And if my time, if my number is called, I'm going to go out there and give it everything that I possibly got. That's really the only thing that he can say.
Oh, Joe.

Speaker 10 What's he supposed to say?

Speaker 10 Now,

Speaker 10 it's a situation i'm not you know we had this conversation and everybody from cleveland jumped on me i said guys what are we doing right why why is joe flacco here yeah we know joe flacco was in cleveland once before and they let him go he was in indy and he wasn't let me get this straight he wasn't the answer the first time around in cleveland he wasn't the answer in indy he wasn't the answer at the jets but now he's gonna be the answer this time around joe flacco hadn't been the answer since 2012 when he wasn't up when he took the uh the ravens to the super bowl and that's it go ahead ojo

Speaker 25 i i don't think he i don't think he was the answer um it was more sure of the short term the short excuse me the short-term answer until they're ready to see who's going to be quarterback number two we find out who quarterback number two was and it was only a matter of time same thing with russell wilson and jackson dart russell wilson was a starter he was he was he was a starter for for a short time like you said eight weeks or maybe after i thought it would have been way i thought i thought it'd been far beyond that but obviously we see what happened they they made a change after week three same concept i knew i knew he wasn't going to be there being there too long

Speaker 25 and i mean listen dylan gabriel is now the quarterback i i i wish him luck and i i we're gonna see i to me to be honest with you i don't think he's the answer i don't think he's the answer and um we're gonna find out listen this ain't the preseason

Speaker 25 this ain't the preseason And the defenses that you're going to see now are going to be a lot more different than what you saw

Speaker 10 during the preseason.

Speaker 25 So

Speaker 25 if he can handle the pressure, one of the things I do like about Dylan Gabriel, not only can he throw the ball, he showed that he can be efficient in the preseason, but he's also a dual threat.

Speaker 25 He can use his legs. Similar to Jackson Dart.
I'm not saying Jackson Dart, but I'm just saying he had that dude threat capability and being able to extend plays and throw the ball.

Speaker 10 It's funny how we look at things. Now,

Speaker 10 Jameis Winston has a big personality. He's a third-string quarterback.
quarterback everybody would have lied to jameis had he did the exact same thing

Speaker 26 right

Speaker 10 i mean think about it ocho yeah the funny things that he says and the mannerisms that he has yes

Speaker 10 this is jameis yeah absolutely but they have a problem with shadure i i don't know how shadow wins um

Speaker 10 if he says something he shouldn't have said anything if he doesn't say anything he should have said something um until he gets on the field and somebody can say either see i told you he could play play or I told you he couldn't play,

Speaker 10 it's going to be a something, Ocho.

Speaker 10 That's just the nature of what it is.

Speaker 25 Absolutely. You know, it's totally unfortunate too, Uncle if it was any fifth-round pick, he wouldn't be talked about like this.
No. Because this one comes with that last name.
Yeah, absolutely.

Speaker 25 This comes with the aura of being a Sanders. It just, it is what it is.
Obviously, I feel the Browns and organization. Zefansky, obviously, the owner himself came out and said, this wasn't my pick.

Speaker 25 This is not who I wanted. So the odds are stacked against him.
The cards that he dealt, he can have to do his best job at playing the hand that he has.

Speaker 25 When that opportunity comes, if it does come, you got to come out. You got to be prepared.
You got to be prepared. And when you get it, you got to shut that door behind you.

Speaker 10 I get it. Look, people say, well, Jameis proved himself.
What?

Speaker 10 That he's a journeyman quarterback. He threw 30 picks.
He was the last quarterback in the NFL since you got to go back to Test Diverty in the 80s. It threw 30 interceptions.

Speaker 10 So I'm trying to figure out what did he prove.

Speaker 10 He took, did he take Tampa to did he take Tampa to the Super Bowl? Because all I know, the team that he left, Tom Brady came in the next year and they went to the Super Bowl.

Speaker 10 So I'm asking you guys, you said he proved what did he prove?

Speaker 10 If he'd prove, guess where he'd have been, Ocho?

Speaker 10 Not the backup in New York. Where would he have been? Because where was he last year, Ocho? Cleveland.

Speaker 25 Cleveland. Yeah.

Speaker 10 He was in New Orleans before that.

Speaker 25 Yeah.

Speaker 10 All I'm saying, I'm saying the personality matches. We can, look,

Speaker 10 prove, prove.

Speaker 10 Okay, fine. I get your point.
Where he started in the league. He was rookie of the year in the league.
You're absolutely correct. But

Speaker 10 there are a lot of guys that's proved they can. Joe Flacco proved that he could play in the league.
Joe Flacco won a Super Bowl. He was a Super Bowl MVP.

Speaker 10 Go look at Joe Flacco playoff numbers.

Speaker 10 I mean, you would say that Joe Flacco would have proven more if you say improve than James.

Speaker 10 I was just saying the personalities. When we like somebody, Ocho, we'll tolerate more of their behavior than if we don't.
Yeah, see, we like Jameis. James funny, man.

Speaker 10 Y'all heard what James was saying? Jameis funny. Jameis is going to have a career in media.

Speaker 25 Yeah, Jamin, Jameis is one-on-one. Jameis is

Speaker 25 there. There isn't another personality like him.
I think Shador doesn't have that kind of personality.

Speaker 25 I think people just don't like Shador based on the or what he comes with, the name,

Speaker 25 pops as well. Some of the things Dion may have said in the past, people that like Dion.
So any ill will toward Dion, it just overflowing onto his son as well.

Speaker 25 For me, Unc, you ignore it, especially as

Speaker 25 Shador, you ignore it.

Speaker 25 You've been prepared for this moment. You've had the deal all your life.
Now it's come to a head. You at the last stop.
You've reached the pinnacle. Your childhood dream of being on the NFL team.

Speaker 25 You're not the starter, but you have an opportunity to to be the starter at some time if things don't go well. You just need to make sure you are prepared when the opportunity presents itself.

Speaker 25 And that's pretty much it. All the noise, block all that out, man.
Block all that out.

Speaker 10 It's just unusual

Speaker 10 to see the starter get benched.

Speaker 10 And

Speaker 10 well, I guess it's common because

Speaker 10 when Russ got benched, Jackson Dart came in to start and Russell went to the backup.

Speaker 26 Right.

Speaker 10 So I guess it's not as unusual as we might think it is. You're like, Well, hold on,

Speaker 10 Flacco got benched. Shadu was already third.
Shouldn't everybody just like move up a spot and the guy jumps back?

Speaker 10 But that's seemingly not how they did it because uh, Brian Dayball said that Jackson Dart would start the rest of the season and Russ would serve as his backup, and Jameis stays where Jameis is.

Speaker 10 Yeah,

Speaker 10 and

Speaker 10 I don't, I

Speaker 10 guess it's common, I don't, I don't really know know Ocho,

Speaker 10 but it seemed like this is the same thing. Joe Flacco lost his job.
The guy that was backing up, Joe Flacco, moves to the starter,

Speaker 10 and Flacco moves to number two, and the third quarterback stays exactly where he was. Yeah, absolutely.
I think the thing is, until Shador gets on the field and proves or disproves

Speaker 10 what the Ocho is 50, I mean, want to play. He's too cocky.
He's too this he does this and he does that the mannerism i

Speaker 10 until he's on the field right until he plays it's the the chatter the noise is not gonna stop no it's not

Speaker 10 it's not are you muted

Speaker 10 me

Speaker 10 he ain't said nothing i can't hear him you can't hear me

Speaker 10 Oh, just me?

Speaker 25 Yeah, that's you. I'm talking to you.
Can you hear me now?

Speaker 25 Hey, can you see my muscles?

Speaker 25 You see my muscles? Hey, chat, can you see my muscles?

Speaker 10 Yeah.

Speaker 25 Okay, there you go. You got me now?

Speaker 10 Yeah, I got you. Go ahead.
That was me.

Speaker 25 Okay, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah.
I can hear you now.

Speaker 10 But it's a situation, Ocho.

Speaker 10 People want to see him succeed or they want to see him fail, but they want to see him on the field. Yeah.

Speaker 10 That's what it comes down to, Ocho.

Speaker 10 i want to see him on the field and i want to see him sink or swim right yeah that's what it comes down to because all this talk where he shouldn't have been this or he shouldn't have been that now he's going to either prove a a camp right or he's going to be proven wrong right but they want to say okay we see now that's why he's led to the fifth round man i don't know how y'all see how he playing he should have never been in the sixth round I mean, the fifth round.

Speaker 10 Right. You don't know.
I'm sure he talked to his dad. Yeah.
His dad's like, look, son, if it was me, you handle it. You're your own guy.
You're your own man. But

Speaker 10 Rex said,

Speaker 10 I don't know exactly. I don't want to misquote, but I think he said something to the fact.
Why are you talking? Because it's the same situation.

Speaker 10 And here's where he's going to get beat up at. If he doesn't go play in and he doesn't play well, Ocho, remember, he said he can play better than some of the starting quarterbacks right now.

Speaker 10 That's what got LeBron in trouble with Bronny. Bronnie was in high school or Bronny was in college, and he braun said Bronny is better than some NBA players currently.

Speaker 10 You put a huge target. Now, I get it.
When you tell your son, you know, you believe in your son and you should believe in your son.

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Speaker 1 What a matchup we got, y'all.

Speaker 3 This is that classic HBCU vibe.

Speaker 10 Non-stop action, the bed is rocking and the crowd lick, chants echoing, drum beating, everybody's showing that school pride.

Speaker 9 Game like this, yeah, it calls for an ice-cold Coca-Cola.

Speaker 11 Ah, crisp and refreshing.

Speaker 12 That's a game changer right there.

Speaker 10 Mmm, yeah.

Speaker 2 That taste always hits the right note, just like a band at halftime.

Speaker 7 And just like that, we're back at it.

Speaker 13 Passionate fans, school colors everywhere, and an ice-cold Coca-Cola?

Speaker 4 That's a winning combo.

Speaker 16 No matter the sport, no matter the yard, everybody knows.

Speaker 15 Fan work is thirsty work.

Speaker 17 So grab a Coca-Cola and keep that HBCU pride going.

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Speaker 28 What's up? It's Big Long from Miss Up There Podcast. On this episode, we're unpacking the difference between toxic love and a real bond.

Speaker 28 How so many of us were taught to survive love instead of experiencing it. A lot of men think being solid means being silent.

Speaker 10 I'm good. I got it.

Speaker 28 That's the script we memorize before we even know ourselves. Because somewhere along the line, expression got labeled weakness.
So now we perform composure while we're falling apart.

Speaker 28 You'll share your body, but not a conversation, and that's not intimacy. But what if being a man really means you care enough to communicate? Real love isn't loud, it's consistent.

Speaker 28 It's the small things, the small check-ins, the shared accountability, the honesty that feels awkward, but keeps everyone safe. Stop confusing numbness with dependability.

Speaker 28 We got to break the cycle and break the pattern.

Speaker 28 This special episode of this up there podcast with Long brought to you by Healthy Sexual from Gilead Sciences on the iHeart radio app or wherever you get your podcast.

Speaker 29 10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points.

Speaker 32 You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an iFit contract for $250,000.

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Speaker 10 But when you put it out there like that, Ocho, man,

Speaker 10 you're asking for a lot of criticism. We'll get back to that in a minute.
We got a very special guest joining us.

Speaker 10 We got former Pro Bowler, former Raven, former New York Giant,

Speaker 10 former Raider joining us.

Speaker 10 Darren Waller. Darren, how you doing?

Speaker 26 How y'all doing? Appreciate y'all having me.

Speaker 10 Man, I'm doing amazing. Let me ask you, bro.

Speaker 10 You playing, I mean, look, you have a little setback, and we'll get into that a little bit. You get drafted by the Ravens.
You have, you know, have some issues.

Speaker 10 You end up going to the Ravens where you revive your career, playing unbelievable. You go to the Giants and having success there, and then abruptly, you know, you stepped away from the game.

Speaker 10 What went into that decision that you're playing basically at the height of your career and you said, you know what? I need to step away.

Speaker 26 I feel like mentally and emotionally, I feel like I kept running into similar walls I was running into earlier in my career.

Speaker 26 I wasn't necessarily sabotaging myself in the same way, but I just felt like I kept running to the wall like this, this isn't really fulfilling to me.

Speaker 26 I feel like there's a lot more room for me to be having joy here. And I'm not having joy.

Speaker 26 So I feel like I needed to step away to really just reevaluate my life while I was doing the things I was doing. Was I doing them for me or was I doing them for other people to give me a thumbs up?

Speaker 26 Shit like that. So I feel like taking that time away really presented an organic moment for me to come back and join the Dolphins.

Speaker 25 You know what?

Speaker 25 When I think about it too, when you think about that, that organic moment for you and being able to get away and having a sense of peace for most, usually football allows us to get that peace away from the world,

Speaker 25 away from reality. Are you in a space now?

Speaker 26 Are you in a headspace now where you think you fulfilled whatever it is you needed to step away from the game from and now you can devote your attention to just football yeah i just feel a lot lighter a lot pure um just in my life you know i feel like there was a lot of things i was involved in or trying to do just to um i don't know escape the game in a way but now i feel like the perspective i got from these last couple years allows me to step in and just see it the way i saw it like when i was a kid you know what i'm saying just being excited to play like having fun like with a team just cutting up like it's just i just see it with a whole new pair of glasses now

Speaker 10 yeah that's dope when you stepped away from the game did you think it would be as easy as it was to get get back in because normally you know getting in is easy getting back in is really really hard yeah i feel like dudes ain't just really just like stepping away and then being like oh i want to come back usually they step away it's like there really ain't no coming back so me coming back into it I mean, I feel like I've always respected the game.

Speaker 26 So I'm like, dudes, it's still just as fast, stronger, maybe even more so. So I'm like, shit.
I practiced maybe

Speaker 26 three full practices, a couple of limited ones earlier, right when camp first ended. So I was like, I don't even really know what I'm going to be like when I step back into this.

Speaker 26 Like I'm going to get hit too. I ain't got hit in two years.
And then to have it go how it went on Monday was just like,

Speaker 26 you couldn't even script that for real.

Speaker 25 I think, but when you think about it too, when you were in the game, you were still one of the better players in the league at your position.

Speaker 25 I mean, just removing yourself for two years, two years from that and coming back with just two years, you're still going to be one of the better players at your position, as you you saw when you guys played.

Speaker 25 So I'm excited for you. Skies is obviously limits.
Tyreek Hill is now gone.

Speaker 25 And so that puts you to even, even more of a bigger role because knowing Mike McDaniels and the creativity he has offensively, you can create mismatches with you all damn day. All damn day.
For sure.

Speaker 26 Straight up.

Speaker 10 How long did it take you for your spidey senses to come back?

Speaker 10 Because you know, like when you enjoy, like when you take like four months off, it takes you a while to really understand, like, okay, this is where my danger spotty is, danger over here.

Speaker 10 The guys coming up from behind, I need to get up in my shadow. Being away for two years, I can only imagine, and your spidey senses are shut off for two years.

Speaker 10 How soon did it take them to start tingling again? Where you felt, okay, this is man's own. I got danger on my right.
I need to get up in my shadow. I need to spend left.
I need to spend right.

Speaker 10 How long did that take for it to come back?

Speaker 26 Bro, I still feel like it's coming back because, like, during the week of practice last week, like, we had like like put a play in where i was kind of running like

Speaker 26 like a choice but like it kind of turns into like a wheel route and i was out there like on the red line taking them on the red line i catch it like my feet are just barely in balance so i'm like i got to get my field spacing back but um luckily like that first play that first third down of the game it was just like two man and i'm just like all right like i know what this would like i beat this a million times and just like that muscle memory came back but no you definitely right like i feel like the spacing reading the zone seeing how things coverages coverages react from the disguise, like post-snap, I feel like, oh, that shit's got to come back with reps.

Speaker 25 Yeah. Well, I mean, and speaking of reps, was the game too fast for you? Did it feel like you were moving in slow motion a little bit, being that you've been away from the game?

Speaker 25 And listen, you didn't get a chance to play in the preseason.

Speaker 25 I'm not sure. But game speeding, totally different.
It doesn't matter how much you practice. Once you get in the game, playing against somebody else, you'd be like, what the hell?

Speaker 25 Have you caught up to that yet?

Speaker 25 Are your legs up underneath you yet?

Speaker 26 I feel like it was a good start Monday, you know what I'm saying? Like, I was getting, you know, reps against guys like Sauce.

Speaker 26 And, you know, there's good athletic guys on that defense that's moving fast. So I feel like it's a good start.
And, you know, I'll probably see matchup with guys like JC on Sunday with the Panthers.

Speaker 26 They got some guys that can cover. So, I mean, I feel like it's only going to get better for me.

Speaker 26 I feel like the little things tops of the routes, just to feel like how I'm feeling in stems and just, you know, playing fast and not really thinking is going to probably take some time.

Speaker 26 but i feel like i'm probably further along than i think i was just off monday night because i didn't know what to expect

Speaker 10 i think the thing is is that you like you said i mean you really haven't it wasn't like you were out running routes because you didn't know if you were going to come back and so now basically they putting you out there and you got to hey i do i rip do i swim what do i do do i press i mean do i get on his outside i know i'm i don't want to square him up because i don't want him to give him my whole chest i just want to give him a shoulder to hit how soon did the route running aspect of it come back?

Speaker 26 Like I said, bro, it's still coming back, bro. Like, I got, so I had got injured when a few weeks into my training of when I said, all right, I'm going to play again.

Speaker 26 And that had me out for real until last week. So, like, I had a few practices before I got hopped in that game.
So, it's really all just coming back to me as we go along.

Speaker 26 So, like, these Wednesday, these Thursday practices is like super intentional.

Speaker 10 You get better than people.

Speaker 26 Yeah, super intentional for me to kind of like, all right, how can I curate like everything that dudes was doing throughout camp you know i'm kind of like trying to hustle up and kind of get back into into that flow but also just understand like you know i am where i'm where i am i'm supposed to be here right now i ain't got to be where anybody else is at in their journey uh my journey is probably as weird and unique as it gets you know saying

Speaker 26 with the tyreek were you on the field when tyreek got injured or did you see it on the jumbotron when no i was right there so we had ran like i don't know if they call it a crash concept in your day but it's like the dude in the slot runs like the 12 yard out and you got the under from number one

Speaker 26 the smash route yeah we smashed the smash i ran a little under from number one and i seen the ball go over my head so i turned i'm like and reap caught it and then i just saw like and then i seen his leg dangling and it was just like spot like just instantly just like it just brought me to the ground like i ain't even know my body just didn't even know how to react

Speaker 10 Yeah, because they said he

Speaker 10 suffered a dislocated knee, a torn ACL, and maybe some other ligaments

Speaker 10 damage.

Speaker 10 It's tough seeing that.

Speaker 10 So, obviously, you know, and Mike McDaniel is telling the story of how he's, you know, he's joking with some of the guys, like, guys, you just make sure you get this win, knowing, because look, you've been around this game enough.

Speaker 10 You know, when it's a serious injury, nobody had, the doctor doesn't have to tell you anything. You don't have to hear around a report.
You've been around this game enough.

Speaker 10 You see that, you know, yeah, he's not coming back.

Speaker 26 Yeah, straight away. I turned around and I was like,

Speaker 26 come, come get him. They got to put him in the air cast immediately.

Speaker 10 yeah

Speaker 10 so

Speaker 10 you was with Gruden I think you with Gruden because he's like hey this this guy he saw you what has been the biggest difference between Gruden and and Mike McDaniel because they're both this this basically uh the verbiage might be a little different but this is the west coast system yeah no the similarities between the two just coming from like the the founding fathers like like mike shanahan and gruden like It's kind of easy for me to pick up the concept.

Speaker 26 Like there's different words, different nuances, but

Speaker 26 they're both really like they're one of one individuals like there's i don't think i've ever met anybody with personalities like like either one of them they got their own unique sense of humor um but i mean they love ball for real and they love giving putting the guys in position to you know do something with their career do something with their lives you know so they uh it's really fun energy to be around i feel like both of them got just a distinct energy

Speaker 10 i don't I don't know.

Speaker 10 It's hard for you to say, but the word out is there have been reports that he was too lenient and guys were coming late to practice and guys were coming late to meetings and guys were overweight.

Speaker 10 What have you seen in your short time there that lead you to believe that, you know what, he's the guy that can get this fixed.

Speaker 10 He's the guy that can turn this around and get the dolphins going in the right direction?

Speaker 26 I've seen a sense of urgency just since July from cleaning up, you know, like the fines that guys had from last year and just like all the little things.

Speaker 26 It's just like, how the fuck are we doing this and thinking that we're going to win. Like, I feel like he's put in his energy and

Speaker 26 used his words to be like, hey, like, this is, this has got to change.

Speaker 26 And, you know, of course, it starts with me, but at the same time, it's like, it's really up to the guys in the locker room to police this.

Speaker 26 And I feel like the captains have really, really gone out that way for sure to make sure things are different from that regard.

Speaker 26 You know, and results on the field, sometimes it's like, okay, it may take a while to get things going. Like, that's how the league goes.
It's just super competitive.

Speaker 26 But from the standpoint of little things like you just described, I haven't seen any of that this year.

Speaker 26 And so it's like, all right, like once you have that out the way, like we can actually go somewhere.

Speaker 10 Locker room controls the football team. They police, they run.
You got to show me the team that has the strong locker room and I'll show you a team that consistently win.

Speaker 10 You show me a team that the locker room and the guys don't hold the other guys accountable and I'll show you a team.

Speaker 10 Just let me, you let me go. You put me in any locker room for a week and I don't know anything.
So I'm going in there blind. I'm just going to happen to be in the locker room.

Speaker 10 I'm just going to be observing. I'll tell you who's winning and who's losing.

Speaker 25 Matter of fact, AD, since you came back, right, two years removed, obviously you get an opportunity to come back, play for the Dolphins. Obviously, you have your team goals.

Speaker 25 From an individual standpoint, two years removed for the game of football, what would be a successful season to you now that you return?

Speaker 26 I think a successful year for me is,

Speaker 26 you know, really just kind of keeping the same mindset I had before. It's like, I don't necessarily if

Speaker 26 it'll be 100 catches.

Speaker 26 I don't know if it'll be the metrics that they once were five, six years ago, but just the same process of like, however many opportunities it is, like those opportunities are going to get maximized.

Speaker 26 It's how I kind of try to measure success. Try to get away from like the stats and everything like that.

Speaker 26 And really, just kind of like being a leader, kind of being one of those guys like that Shannon was just discussing. Like, I'm the oldest guy on the team, I think,

Speaker 10 which is wild. Like,

Speaker 26 I was turning 33 September 13th.

Speaker 26 That ain't bad. That's young.
Right. So just kind of like embodying that presence too.

Speaker 26 And just kind of like some of the shit that I've been through coming in, going back, like going from where I was in my career, I can relate to where any of these dudes is at in a career from practice squad to getting cut to getting traded to on the rise.

Speaker 26 Like just kind of stepping up in my leadership abilities, I would say, as well.

Speaker 10 Now that you're back in football, because when you stepped away from the game, you stepped into music. Obviously, that's a passion of yours.

Speaker 10 But now that you're back in football, have you put music on the back burner? Is that something that you're going to pick back up once your football career is over?

Speaker 26 Yeah, it's kind of on the back burner for now, for sure. Like I think I've written

Speaker 26 one verse or two since July

Speaker 26 and like a hook or two for a song, but like I haven't really been doing anything. It's been focused on football for real.
Like I got a lot of songs.

Speaker 26 Like I'll like tease some shit, like put some music behind some posts that I'll put out, but all those songs were recorded before I even got back out here.

Speaker 26 So and it'll be nice to take a break because I was going hard with it and creating in my time off. And so I feel like it's a good flow for me to be back in ball.

Speaker 26 And when it's time to pick the mic back up again, I feel like I'll be ready.

Speaker 10 Well, yeah, I mean, I haven't really heard a whole lot of rappers from Georgia Tech, but okay. Hey,

Speaker 25 I'm glad to do that.

Speaker 10 You know, because

Speaker 10 I guess it's a new thing, Daryl. Hey, hey, we, we, we open to it.

Speaker 25 Yeah, hey, you know, one of my hobbies and one of my passions is, you know, I write.

Speaker 25 I've written for a few, a few artists. So at any point you pick that mic back up, let me know.

Speaker 25 I've written for Drake. I've written for Nicki Minaj.
I've written for Lil Man.

Speaker 26 You got real credits?

Speaker 25 Oh, yeah, I got real credits. If you ever, I wrote for Beyonce,

Speaker 25 if you look at their credits on some of the songs that I've done, I'm in the credits.

Speaker 10 Huh?

Speaker 26 Your connection fucked up?

Speaker 25 I'm going to show it to you. I'm going to send it to you.
But yeah,

Speaker 25 we get in the studio, do a little something, little du-o, little duet or something. Say less, bro.

Speaker 26 Hey, I need to know what's the best. What's the best cigar lounge in

Speaker 26 South Florida, bro? I'm in like Fort Lauderdale area.

Speaker 25 Hey, listen, we could go together.

Speaker 26 Smoke on the water. Smoke on the water.

Speaker 26 Smoke on the water. Right there, right off

Speaker 25 Royal Palm Boulevard.

Speaker 10 Yeah, or something. No, Darren, I don't do nothing but smoke them Daniel Marshalls.

Speaker 25 Hey, send me my cigars, man.

Speaker 10 Whoa, whoa, I'm talking to the gas. This ain't got nothing to do do with you, Ocho.

Speaker 10 I'm telling the man what I smoke.

Speaker 26 You don't even smoke.

Speaker 10 Ocho.

Speaker 10 You see, all I'm saying is that the Daniel Marshall, those are 24-carat, you know,

Speaker 10 I got a box of those.

Speaker 25 Can you send my cigars? Hey, AD,

Speaker 25 on Pembroke Pines, Pembroke Pines Boulevard, there's another cigar bar called Aficionado's.

Speaker 25 Them the two I go to is real nice.

Speaker 26 I ain't smoking no 24-carat gold, but

Speaker 10 yeah, you're the gold leaf. You look gold.
Somebody, you know, Daniel Marshall, when you next time you go to the cigar bar, that they're gonna be in the case.

Speaker 10 You just can't go pull them because you know, they like a they like 85 to 120 a stick, but you know, nah, uh, AD, don't listen to him.

Speaker 25 Them sticks cost $2.89 a park. Nah, we all bad.

Speaker 10 Listen,

Speaker 25 yeah, they $289.

Speaker 10 Oucho, why you mad? Because I got a box of them. Damn.
Did I see you a couple?

Speaker 25 Hey, AD, them sticks was probably sent to him by accident. They were probably for me i

Speaker 10 you don't smoke cigars whoa whoa whoa we'll get

Speaker 10 darren in 2020 you founded the darren waller foundation with the mission to equip youth to avoid and overcome addiction to drugs and alcohol support the youth and their family during the recovery and treatment a journey

Speaker 10 I don't know how well our audience know, but you originally drafted by the Ravens.

Speaker 10 I mean, a guy that's your size, six, five and a half, 255 pounds, can run like you can run. You're a matchup problem.

Speaker 10 No linebackers doing anything with you. Safeties, they're just too small.
People are putting their best corner. You beat Sauce for a touchdown.

Speaker 10 You were getting, when you were at your prime, when you were with the Raiders,

Speaker 10 I thought you were going to get my record that day, too. I think you had like 15 catches for 200 yards.
I'm like, damn, he gonna get it.

Speaker 10 To overcome what you overcame, when you were at your darkest, did you understand like, man, I'm throwing this great opportunity away? Did you understand when you're in it?

Speaker 10 Do you understand or do you realize that you actually have an addiction? Who told you you have an addiction? When did you realize you have an addiction?

Speaker 26 Yeah, it's a great question. I feel like in the moment, I don't think you can, I think you're too numb.
At least I was.

Speaker 26 Like for me, like the drinking and shit like that was to numb a lot of things I was feeling, thinking.

Speaker 26 experiencing so in those moments where you know a normal person would feel like oh fuck like i'm throwing this shit away Like, I don't have access to that feeling. Like, it's all kind of shut off.

Speaker 26 You know what I'm saying? And I had guys like Ben Watson was with the Ravens when I was there, like right before I got suspended.

Speaker 26 And he was like, if you could just like lock in, bro, like, you don't know where this shit could go. Like, like a whole bunch of people just telling me that.

Speaker 26 And I'm just like, I can't really receive it because I also don't really have that much confidence in myself. So I realized I was addicted when, because I OD'd in 2017.

Speaker 26 It was like a month before what would have been my third season. And I i was probably going to be a starting tight end in baltimore that year that was 2017.

Speaker 26 and uh yeah i odd and then went to rehab a month later and i'm just sitting there listening to what everything they're saying i'm like damn like i definitely that's you 100 me and it's all throughout my family you know i'm saying like

Speaker 26 throughout like the generations of my family it's kind of like impacted a lot of people so it's passed on to me and then being able to have the opportunity to be like all right i could change the course of generations going forward for my family and also just, you know, be somebody that people can look to because like shit, I've been fucked up plenty of times, but they can still be successful at whatever they got going.

Speaker 10 How old were you when you started drinking or you started dabbling with drugs? Were you young or whether you got to college? You started drinking, you know, college atmosphere. Was it in high school?

Speaker 26 I was pretty young. I was like 15.
I got into like painkillers, like the hydrocodon, five milligrams, 10 milligrams first.

Speaker 26 Started smoking weed and drinking. After that, probably like junior year and was just kind of off from there.
It got real crazy through college and through my first couple of years in the league.

Speaker 26 And then, so it's about like a 10-year run from like 15 to I got sober like a month for my 25th birthday.

Speaker 10 What

Speaker 10 would you want to, what message would you like to share with the youth about what they can potentially overcome, given

Speaker 10 you're the best teacher because you've overcome something. You know a lot of what these kids are dealing with.
You know a lot of the signs. You know a lot of the symptoms.

Speaker 10 You know a lot of, man, I'm all right. No, you're not.
Cause that seat that you're sitting in, I sat in that seat for about a decade.

Speaker 10 Now I'm in this seat and I want to share with you the message of how you can beat this addiction.

Speaker 26 The message for me is just like.

Speaker 26 There are so many different ways that we try to mask what we really feel in or who we really are. We compare ourselves to so many different people.

Speaker 26 There has to be some level of return to like authenticity, find like a comfortability, like a peacefulness and a joy and just being like exactly who you are.

Speaker 26 Because I feel like me, this young kid, I was like, it all stemmed from the pain I felt from feeling like I was always like the odd man out or people thought I was too weird or I had big ears, big feet, I was getting roasted or like it all started from all these, all these little things that I was like, man, I don't feel like I'm good enough.

Speaker 26 And I want to turn to things that make me feel like I'm. good enough or at least forget the fact that I'm not good enough.

Speaker 26 And when really it's like, there are people around you that are going through the same things, we just all try to act like we don't have stuff going on in our lives.

Speaker 26 So it's really just being yourself. You're going to attract people to you that love you for who you are and that will support you whatever you go through.

Speaker 26 So I would just say, you know, there is really no peace, no sobriety possible if you don't find ways to really deal with the pain and the trauma that happened earlier in your life or whenever in your life.

Speaker 26 And just, yeah, finding peace with just being who you are, whether people like it or not.

Speaker 10 I like that. Happiness.
Happiness is, you know, people say, I found happiness, but happiness is something that you create. Peace is something that you create.

Speaker 10 How long did it take you to get to that point that you say, I'm at peace with Darren? I'm happy with Darren.

Speaker 26 It's been elusive, man, to be honest. Like, I think my journey with sobriety and just kind of seeing life differently started like 2017.

Speaker 26 And I feel like there were a couple of years in there where I was like, okay, like I'm moving in the right direction. And then there were some years in there where I'm like, I don't know.

Speaker 26 I feel like I'm kind of moving away. Like I'm still sober, but there's still like

Speaker 26 still something that's left blocking a little bit

Speaker 26 from, you know, say 21 to 23.

Speaker 26 And then it's like, since retiring, it's opened up nothing but a path for me to just go as deep as possible with those kind of things and really just look at myself in the mirror.

Speaker 26 And now I feel like it's like a lot more attainable. I feel like the happiness is fleeting, but it's like I'm a lot more content with my life.
Like I don't need,

Speaker 26 I can step in the football and just be like, I'm gonna just, I want to have this experience. This is what I want to do.
I don't need it to do something for me, to validate me to do X, Y, and Z.

Speaker 26 It's just like, I'm sure, this is the way I'm choosing to live my life.

Speaker 26 And I'm gonna, I'm gonna enjoy this shit.

Speaker 25 And that's dope, man. The funny thing about it, too, I'm really glad.
I mean, I'm really glad you're able to be authentic and raw and answering these questions.

Speaker 25 The questions are phenomenal, too, because there are people that are probably in the chat.

Speaker 25 There are people that are going to see this and people that are dealing with the same issues you are and not knowing how to navigate those situations or how to deal with it and and you being a testimony and being someone that has had issues but gotten the help and look where you are now that i mean dude that's that that's an amazing story and kudos to you for having for one the discipline to do it and and stick to it and be able to live out your childhood dream again

Speaker 25 because most times people don't get a second chance

Speaker 26 appreciate that man

Speaker 10 but darren we're gonna get you out of here on this one now that you're back have you put a timetable or time limit on how how long you want to play or are you taking it year by year or you're like you know what i really like to get two or three more in or you saying you know what all i know is that i'm going to play 2025 and i worry about 2026 and 2026 and beyond once that time arrives but right now i'm in the here i'm in the now and that's all i can i think you just i think you really just said it right there man because it's like after experiences like Monday, because I came in, like I said, I got, I got hurt my first co-week training.

Speaker 26 I'm like, damn, bro, we on this shit again. Like, this is still, this shit's still happening.

Speaker 26 And so I'm like, there's doubt, there's fear, like, did I even make the right decision coming back? But then having like a night like Monday, it's like, well, wait, like,

Speaker 26 this feels like there's still like plenty left here.

Speaker 26 Maybe there is something more done in the future, but it's like, I feel like, like you just said, playing this season, giving this season my all, and then re-evaluating from there.

Speaker 26 And so I'm open to everything. I don't want to say I'm done.
This is just one chapter because, you know, I don't really know.

Speaker 26 Every time I thought I've had my life figured out in which direction it should go, I feel like God has flipped the script and been like, nope, we're going this way now.

Speaker 26 Cause I, I was, I was, I was set on not playing football ever again, but it's like, here I am. So I'm trying to just remain open.

Speaker 10 Well, Darren, thanks for joining us tonight, man. Congratulations on all the success.
Everything that you've overcome lets us know that there is a God and that anything is possible.

Speaker 10 Stay healthy. And after the season, come back and talk to us.
Sure, man.

Speaker 26 Appreciate you always.

Speaker 10 Appreciate you coming on, man. Darren Waller, tight end for the Miami Dolphins.

Speaker 10 To go through what he's gone through, Ocho, to be able to overcome because, you know, hey.

Speaker 10 Like you said, he was about to start in Baltimore

Speaker 10 and ended up getting suspended a couple of times. And they moved on.
And now he ends up with the Raiders. And he's a Pro Bowl player.
I mean, he's at the top. He's one of those top players.

Speaker 10 And then, you know, all of a sudden, abruptly, you know, he steps away from the game. And for two years, he's like, and he's like, you know what? I want to come back.

Speaker 10 And kudos to the Dolphins for giving the opportunity.

Speaker 10 I don't know if there were other teams out there willing to give him an opportunity, but I know the Dolphins was one because he's playing with the Dolphins.

Speaker 10 And so it's always great when you, you know,

Speaker 10 you're here. You're down here, and then you're back up here again.

Speaker 10 And so, like you said, he doesn't know if he'll ever be what he once was in his prime but for him to come back and to show that there's a possibility because ocho you and i talk about it all the time it's easier to get into the league oh yeah than get out and try to get your butt back in back in yeah but listen if you if you're really good and you leave a good impression before you leave the chances you coming back they pretty good he's a mismatch nightmare you think about Think about this.

Speaker 25 Remember when Jimmy Graham's with the Saints?

Speaker 10 Yep.

Speaker 25 You see what he looked like? Yep. Gronk.
I'm not saying he's Gronk. I'm not saying he's Jimmy Graham, but I'm just saying that he's a mismatch nightmare.

Speaker 10 Yes.

Speaker 25 He can go out.

Speaker 1 What a matchup we got, y'all.

Speaker 3 This is that classic HBCU vibe.

Speaker 4 Non-stop action.

Speaker 5 The band is rocking and the crowd lick.

Speaker 6 Chance echoing.

Speaker 7 Drum beating.

Speaker 8 Everybody's showing that school pride.

Speaker 6 Game like this?

Speaker 9 Yeah, it calls for an ice-cold Coca-Cola.

Speaker 11 Ah, crisp and refreshing.

Speaker 12 That's a game changer right there.

Speaker 10 Mmm, yeah.

Speaker 2 That taste always hits the right note, just like a band at halftime.

Speaker 7 And just like that, we're back out.

Speaker 13 Passionate fans, school colors everywhere, and an ice cold Coca-Cola, that's a winning combo.

Speaker 16 No matter the sport, no matter the yard, everybody knows.

Speaker 15 Fan work is thirsty work.

Speaker 17 So grab a Coca-Cola and keep that HBCU pride going.

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All rights reserved.

Speaker 28 What's up, y'all? It's Big Loon from It's Up Dead Podcast.

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Those aren't passion killers, they're peace builders. It's too much risk in our silence.

Speaker 22 Speak up.

Speaker 28 You can listen to this special episode of It's Up There Podcast with Loon, brought to you by Healthy Sexual from Gilead Sciences on the iHeartRadio app or wherever you get your podcast.

Speaker 29 10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points.

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Speaker 25 he's really good. And he got a small sample size of that when they played Monday night.

Speaker 10 Yep. Ocho, let's pivot back to the Cleveland Browns situation with Dylan Gabriel being named starter.

Speaker 10 Should we be surprised that he was named starter?

Speaker 25 No, I mean, he was the number two.

Speaker 25 It shouldn't be a surprise at all. It shouldn't be a surprise at all.
He was, he, listen, Mr. Fancy came out before the season started and said that Dylan Gabriel will be the number two quarterback.

Speaker 25 I mean, that's what it is. That's what it is.
So we knew at whatever point things weren't going well for Flacco, Dylan Gabriel would be the next man up.

Speaker 25 Now, if things don't go well with Dylan Gabriel, I don't know what's going to happen from that point on.

Speaker 10 That, that, see, that's where I was going next. Oh, you're right.
You're right, Ocho, because it was reported that Gabriel was getting first-team reps along with Flacco if it's earliest training camp.

Speaker 10 So he was getting first-team reps, Flacco was getting first-team reps. And who was the quarter of the quarterback?

Speaker 25 Damn.

Speaker 10 From the Steelers.

Speaker 25 Kenny Pickett.

Speaker 10 Yeah, Kenny Pickett. Yeah, Pickett.
So those guys were getting first-team reps. Shadur wasn't getting those reps.
So I agree. We shouldn't be surprised.

Speaker 10 The question that I have for you, if Gabriel struggles, now what do we do? Do they go back to Flacco or they say, oh, do they give Shadur an opportunity?

Speaker 25 You know what? I'm not sure. And knowing the game, understanding the business and knowing how the business works, I think they will probably go back to Flacco.

Speaker 25 I think they will go back to Flacco.

Speaker 25 And if things don't work out again and Flacco is still not successful when he returns back to the field, then I think Shadur will get his shot somewhere in the back half of the season.

Speaker 10 Ocho, let me ask you a question.

Speaker 25 Talk to me.

Speaker 10 If

Speaker 10 you think Shadur knew what he knew now, you think he goes back to Colorado for his last year?

Speaker 25 If he knew what he knew now, if he knows what he knows now, hindsight, yeah,

Speaker 25 probably so,

Speaker 10 probably so. I think so, too.

Speaker 10 I would think so. But there's no possible way.
There's no possible way. Ocho, there's not a scenario that anybody thought, okay, let's just say, Ocho, he's not the first pick.
He's not a top five.

Speaker 10 He's not a top 10. Let's just say, you know what, Ocho, because you and I having this conversation.
Yeah. Let's just say that he's not a first-round pick.

Speaker 10 32 players going to be selected in the first round.

Speaker 25 ain't no way he thought he'd be a fifth round draft pick no absolutely not absolutely not not at all and some people listen some people will say well he wasn't that good uh he was mid he would listen he can play the quarterback position

Speaker 25 he can play the quarterback position he does he does he's not a dual threat but what he what he lacks in his ability to

Speaker 25 run the ball, he makes up in other areas. He has other intangibles that makes him a quality quarterback where he should get an opportunity to start on an NFL team.

Speaker 25 And until he gets the opportunity to prove he can do just that, we're going to have to wait and see.

Speaker 10 He should apply

Speaker 10 for a hardship for COVID.

Speaker 10 Say, I want to go back and play.

Speaker 10 You're right. I mean, there's really like no way to really know.

Speaker 10 I mean, Hell, I didn't, somebody would have told me I was going to be a Silver Rod draft pick. I said, you out your damn mind.
Yeah. Yeah.

Speaker 10 I was the number one rated,

Speaker 10 one of the number one rated players

Speaker 10 below

Speaker 10 Division I.

Speaker 10 So I'm like, okay, I ain't going to go to the first round. But somebody tell me I'm not going to be a

Speaker 10 third round, a top three round pick, man, please.

Speaker 25 Let me tell you something, huh? You've been around a long time. I've been around long enough to understand that business and how that business works.

Speaker 25 Anything they don't like about you before you get there, they will find a way to humble you they will find a way to humble you

Speaker 25 and when your opportunity does present itself boy you got to knock that goddamn door down and close it behind you because you're not going to get very many opportunities

Speaker 25 especially if they don't like you

Speaker 10 i would have yeah i would have uh uh

Speaker 10 i agree with you oh cho because my brothers used to tell me all the time i said man you know I've been in training camp, Ocho,

Speaker 10 and I'll be like, man, I ain't getting no ref today. Or I'll be in in practice, you know, once I'm ready to team.
He said, don't worry about it. He said, one day, John Elwy gonna call on you.

Speaker 10 He said, just make sure when he calls your number. Better be ready.

Speaker 25 Got to be ready.

Speaker 10 And I think the thing that really helped me, Ocho, is that he told me, he said, T,

Speaker 10 you could be good in this league. He said, there ain't a whole lot of people, there ain't a whole lot of can do what you do now.

Speaker 10 He said, just keep working, you know, just keep working hard.

Speaker 10 I don't know why that man took a liking to me. I don't, Ocho.
I don't know why. Right.
But I mean, for him and Gary Kubiak, Kubiak was the backup when I was in Denver when I first got there in 1991.

Speaker 10 Hey, Cool used to pull me to the side. Now, that's when you know somebody really take a liking to you.
He pulled me to the side. He said, He would show me.

Speaker 10 He's like, Hey, now you're going to be in here on this, this, and this. You know what you got?

Speaker 10 Now, they're going to be in this coverage. You run this.
You're going to be on that coverage. You run that.
Oh, Joe. I'll be, I'll be out there doing like I'm doing.
I do like, okay, good job.

Speaker 10 Good job, Shark.

Speaker 25 Hey, you know what else?

Speaker 10 You know what else, though? They'd be like, oh, Ocho, they be like, good job, Sharp. That's what I'm talking about.
Yeah. That's what I'm talking about, getting your playbook.

Speaker 10 Man, Koo told me everything.

Speaker 25 Hey, you know what else, Uncle?

Speaker 25 When I think about it, when I think about some of the things the fancy said, when I think about some of the things the owner said, they bait me too a little bit too, Uncle. They bait me.

Speaker 25 When you go to the Army, when you go to the Marines, when you go to the Navy, any of those places where it's a structured environment what's the one thing they try to do to make sure to see if you if you ready or you worthy they're going to try to break you down trying to break you they trying they're trying to break him you he cannot break you cannot fold you cannot lash out hell no i don't come this far hell no you can't do none of that you got to stay the course

Speaker 25 you got to stay the course and focus on the end goal and prepare for that opportunity because it's going to come. Yeah.
It's definitely going to come.

Speaker 10 Man, Ocho, look i'm gonna share this story with you i've only shared it one time and i shared it with um when i spoke at uh coach reeves funeral um i was the only

Speaker 10 his wife called me and asked would i speak now you got to realize all the people that he played with coach reef played in the league he played under coach landry all the coaches he coached he was the offensive coordinator with the cowboys yeah he was the head coach of the broncos he was the head coach of the giants he was the head coach of the uh the falcons

Speaker 10 he asked asked me to, she asked me to speak.

Speaker 10 I didn't know it

Speaker 10 until like

Speaker 10 she told me.

Speaker 10 But

Speaker 10 she's like, Shannon, it would be a huge honor if you were to speak at Dan.

Speaker 10 I was like,

Speaker 10 I'm like, are you sure? I was like, she's like, I'm sure. She said, Shannon, you was always his favorite.
He said, you worked so hard. He just said he saw

Speaker 10 how you came in and what you worked and turned yourself into. He was just so proud.
So I'm sure he would be honored if you spoke.

Speaker 10 Oh, Joe, every Sunday, Coach Reeves would ask seven or eight of us what we had on a certain play.

Speaker 10 God on his truth.

Speaker 10 Every time he would call on me,

Speaker 10 he would already have saw me. He would tell me he would step out in the hall.

Speaker 10 He would tell me, I'm going to ask you this.

Speaker 25 Right.

Speaker 10 This is what you need to say. Right.
Say it like this.

Speaker 10 And I'm like,

Speaker 10 why he?

Speaker 10 He ain't doing that for nobody else. Right.

Speaker 10 He's not.

Speaker 10 That's why it hurt me so bad, Ocho, when he got fired.

Speaker 10 I said, had I became, because he got fired the year I made my first Pro Bowl. I led the team in receiving.

Speaker 26 Right.

Speaker 10 It hurt me so bad. I said, if I had only become

Speaker 10 what I later became in 93 through 98,

Speaker 10 ain't no way Coach Reeves get fired.

Speaker 10 So that's why it hurt me because he invested so much in me. He believed in me.
He did. He drafted me.
Somehow he lost his damn mind and forgot to cut me.

Speaker 10 And for him, John, and Ku and Coach Reeve to take that kind of time, I promise you.

Speaker 10 And I don't know, you don't quote me on this. It's hard for me to believe that a head coach is taking that kind of interest in a seventh round draft pick in today's game.

Speaker 10 It's hard for me to believe John Elway, the number one pick in the 1983 draft.

Speaker 10 He was a pro bowler, he was an all-pro, he was an MVP, had gone to three Super Bowls, is taking that kind of liking in a seventh round draft pick.

Speaker 10 Gary Kubiak, who is the backup, is taking that kind of liking. Ocho, I have no choice.

Speaker 10 It's like my grandmother when she put, when she took my mom's three in after raising hers,

Speaker 10 I ain't have no choice, Ocho. How could I let these people down that had invested so much in me that believed in me? How? I couldn't.
Right, man, I got in a playbook. Hey, every night, I'm going home.

Speaker 10 I say, I'm gonna know

Speaker 10 everything.

Speaker 10 It became second nature. It became, I knew, I knew what I had to do.
It's hard to because, check this out, Ocho. Yeah,

Speaker 10 the tight end is normally

Speaker 10 why, Yeah.

Speaker 10 In Dan's offense, he's X.

Speaker 25 The X.

Speaker 10 Yes, because Coach Landry was a defensive coordinator.

Speaker 10 So everything is backwards.

Speaker 10 135 is to the right. 2468 is to the left.

Speaker 10 Yes. So if it's backwards, that's not Z.
That's a wing.

Speaker 10 Okay. X, Y.

Speaker 10 Wing three, Y dig.

Speaker 10 Tight end is the X. Oh, Joe.
Tighten been Y his whole life.

Speaker 10 2468 been to the right your whole life. 1357 is to the left.
Oh, Joe.

Speaker 10 Now you got verbiage. Oh, Joe, I came from the route tree.
Yeah. 654.
Same. 737.

Speaker 10 Man, what you mean?

Speaker 10 52 double slant in special. Huh?

Speaker 10 What I got?

Speaker 10 52.

Speaker 10 I ain't never heard nothing like that. Right.

Speaker 10 Oh,

Speaker 10 man.

Speaker 10 Geez. My mind was spinning.

Speaker 25 But him, some good days, boy.

Speaker 10 Ocho, I just want to know what is it going to take? What do you believe it will take for Shadur to get an opportunity to start this season?

Speaker 10 Because this is, because if he doesn't start this season, Ocho, the whole purpose of him not going to Baltimore and it's reported that there were another team, the Eagles also thought about selecting him.

Speaker 10 He said, No, I don't want to play behind her. I don't want to.
It wasn't that he didn't want to play behind guys like that, but you're talking about a guy like Jalen Hurst is very doable.

Speaker 10 He doesn't miss time. Lamar,

Speaker 25 you're not seeing the field, honk. You're not seeing the field at all places now.
He's got the opportunity to play.

Speaker 10 What happens if he doesn't see the field this year for cleveland

Speaker 25 hey that that that's that's one i don't know and that's i'm not understanding but if he doesn't see the field this year for cleveland being that they're

Speaker 25 they have shortcomings with flacco and they have shortcomings with dylan gabriel then that's malpractice on ownership

Speaker 25 It might get to a point where you have no choice but to put him in there because not only are the team going to call for him, the fans and the media are going to call for him as well.

Speaker 10 I definitely think the fans are going to be calling for if Gabriel doesn't play well.

Speaker 10 I mean, look, just don't turn the ball over. Just don't just keep the defense off the field for damn for 35, 40 minutes.

Speaker 10 I'm not asking you to be a world beater,

Speaker 10 but if you can give your defense, if you can score enough and keep your defense off the field.

Speaker 10 Where they're not playing 35, 40 minutes,

Speaker 10 you're going to have a chance.

Speaker 10 You're going to have a chance. The defense is plenty good enough, but not if you wear them down.

Speaker 26 Yep.

Speaker 1 What a matchup we got, y'all.

Speaker 3 This is that classic HBCU vibe.

Speaker 4 Non-stop action.

Speaker 5 The band is rocking and the crowd lick.

Speaker 6 Chants echo.

Speaker 7 Drum beating.

Speaker 8 Everybody's showing that school pride.

Speaker 9 Game like this, yeah, it calls for an ice-cold Coca-Cola.

Speaker 11 Ah, crisp and refreshing.

Speaker 12 That's a game changer right there.

Speaker 10 Mmm, yeah.

Speaker 2 That taste always hits the right note, just like a band at halftime.

Speaker 7 And just like that, we're back out.

Speaker 13 Passionate fans, school colors everywhere, and an ice cold Coca-Cola?

Speaker 4 That's a winning combo.

Speaker 16 No matter the sport, no matter the yard, everybody knows.

Speaker 15 Fan work is thirsty work.

Speaker 17 So grab a Coca-Cola and keep that HBCU pride going.

Speaker 24 Did you know Microsoft has officially ended support for Windows 10? Upgrade to Windows 11 with an LG Gram laptop. Voted PC Mag's Reader's Choice Top Laptop Brand for 2025.

Speaker 24 Thin and ultra lightweight, the LG Gram keeps you productive anywhere. And Windows 11 gives you access to free security updates and ongoing feature upgrades.

Speaker 24 Visit lgusa.com slash iHeart for great seasonal savings on LG Gram laptops with Windows 11. PC Mag Reader's Choice Use with Permission.
All rights reserved.

Speaker 29 10 athletes will face the toughest job interview in fitness that will push past physical and mental breaking points.

Speaker 32 You are the fittest of the fit. Only one of you will leave here with an IFIT contract for $250,000.

Speaker 33 This is when mindset comes in.

Speaker 31 Someone will be eliminated. Pressure is coming down.

Speaker 23 Trainer Games on Prime Video, January 8th. Watch the trailer on TrainerGames.com.

Speaker 34 It's the gaming event of the year featuring T-Pain's Nappy Boy Grizzlies versus Neo's Gentleman's Gaming.

Speaker 35 It's a 4v4 matchup featuring Call of Duty, Tetris, Track Mania, Tony Hawk Pro Skater 3 Plus 4, and Tekken 8.

Speaker 34 Season 0 of the Global Gaming League is live streaming on YouTube and Twitch. Head over to globalgamingleague.com.

Speaker 4 Com, com. Global, global, global, global, global, global, global, global.

Speaker 36 Season 2 of Unrivaled Basketball is here, and the talent is unreal. Paige Beckers, Nafiza Collier, Kelsey Plum, Brianna Stewart, and more are back to redefine the game.

Speaker 36 Unrivaled Basketball, season two sponsored by Samsung Galaxy, tips off January 5th on TNT, True TV, and HBO Max.