WEBVTT - The Dave Pasch Podcast - Greg Olsen 0:00:04.800 --> 0:00:07.360 Hey everybody, and welcome to another edition of the Dave 0:00:07.400 --> 0:00:11.440 Pash Podcast. I'm your host ESPN and Arizona Cardinals broadcaster 0:00:11.640 --> 0:00:14.960 Day Pash. Our guest this week is Fox Sports lead 0:00:15.120 --> 0:00:20.439 game analyst Greg Olsen, longtime Carolina Panther, also played for 0:00:20.480 --> 0:00:24.080 the Bears and finished up his fourteen year career as 0:00:24.079 --> 0:00:27.800 an NFL tight end with the Seattle Seahawks. Last year, 0:00:27.960 --> 0:00:30.000 he was on the number two crew at Fox with 0:00:30.080 --> 0:00:33.279 Kevin Burkhart. This year they're the lead crew and they 0:00:33.280 --> 0:00:36.920 will call the Super Bowl here in Arizona at State 0:00:37.000 --> 0:00:40.960 Farm Stadium. We'll talk about the Panthers and his thoughts 0:00:40.960 --> 0:00:43.760 on Baker Mayfield. We'll also talk about his time as 0:00:43.800 --> 0:00:46.920 a member of the Panthers, playing with Cam Newton on 0:00:46.960 --> 0:00:49.559 a team that went to the Super Bowl in twenty fifteen. 0:00:50.000 --> 0:00:53.840 Also Greg's thoughts on calling the Super Bowl, how he'll 0:00:53.840 --> 0:00:57.320 treat that week as a broadcaster. My approach this year 0:00:57.800 --> 0:01:00.520 is really get a good routine every week on how 0:01:00.520 --> 0:01:02.520 I prepare and how I go in with the mindset 0:01:02.560 --> 0:01:04.600 and how I want my style to be by the 0:01:04.640 --> 0:01:06.319 time I get to the playoffs. By the time you 0:01:06.360 --> 0:01:08.720 get to the super Bowl, you can just like as 0:01:08.720 --> 0:01:11.160 a player, you can really rely on that routine. 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Gambling problem called one eight hundred. 0:01:37.200 --> 0:01:40.240 Next step, All right, let's hear now from our guest, 0:01:40.720 --> 0:01:44.800 Former NFL tight end and current Fox broadcaster Greg Olson. 0:01:45.000 --> 0:01:48.640 Fires ends on and it's caught touchdown at the back 0:01:48.640 --> 0:01:53.520 of the end zone. Greg Olson, So Greg. The producer 0:01:53.560 --> 0:01:57.400 of this podcast is Jim Omohundro, but the executive producer 0:01:57.440 --> 0:02:02.160 for this particular episode is former Cardinal quarterback Drew Stanton. 0:02:02.240 --> 0:02:05.160 Who got you to do this? I really appreciate you 0:02:05.200 --> 0:02:07.040 doing this. I used to favor from Drew to get 0:02:07.080 --> 0:02:08.639 young because I know you don't do a ton of these. 0:02:08.919 --> 0:02:10.920 First of all, tell me how you and dreukes I 0:02:10.960 --> 0:02:14.000 know you guys are tight. How far you go back 0:02:14.200 --> 0:02:18.680 and just about your relationship. Yeah, Drew is one of 0:02:18.720 --> 0:02:21.399 my closest buddies. We So we first met so back 0:02:21.400 --> 0:02:25.400 in two thousand and seven, we both declared for the 0:02:25.480 --> 0:02:27.640 draft and we were preparing for the combine and we 0:02:27.680 --> 0:02:31.880 had the same agent, Drew Rosenhouse and Drew we all 0:02:31.919 --> 0:02:35.840 trained at a facility down in South Florida, um with 0:02:35.960 --> 0:02:38.440 a guy named Pete Bamrito, and Drew put all of us, 0:02:38.520 --> 0:02:40.679 all of his clients up in that year's class in 0:02:40.720 --> 0:02:43.840 the same um like condo building. So Drew and I 0:02:43.880 --> 0:02:46.399 lived across the hall, and just that was the first 0:02:46.440 --> 0:02:47.880 time we had ever met. And you know, for the 0:02:47.919 --> 0:02:51.600 next three months, we drove to training together, we ate together, 0:02:51.720 --> 0:02:55.359 We you know, became really good friends. Our our wives 0:02:55.440 --> 0:02:59.440 became really good friends. And to this day, he's a 0:02:59.480 --> 0:03:01.880 guy that, you know, I consider one of my closest friends, 0:03:02.160 --> 0:03:05.000 you know, in the uh you know, in the world. 0:03:05.040 --> 0:03:08.400 And he's just a great guy. His family, Christen, the kids, 0:03:08.440 --> 0:03:11.079 they're just they're just great people. And uh So, when 0:03:11.120 --> 0:03:14.320 Drew reaches out a friend of Drew as a friend 0:03:14.360 --> 0:03:17.560 of mine, fair enough, And are you as into wine 0:03:17.600 --> 0:03:20.960 as Drew as because the guy's out of control. I'm not. 0:03:21.840 --> 0:03:24.359 I should say I've learned a lot about wine through him. 0:03:24.639 --> 0:03:27.160 We love going to dinner, we love traveling with them 0:03:27.160 --> 0:03:29.480 because that's one thing that'll always be taken care of. 0:03:29.600 --> 0:03:33.560 But uh, yeah, Drew, Drew's love of wine. We went 0:03:33.560 --> 0:03:37.000 to a for a buddy's fortieth birthday years back. We 0:03:37.040 --> 0:03:40.320 all went out to NAPA and so the experiencing NAPA 0:03:40.400 --> 0:03:43.640 with the Stantons is h is quite the experience. So 0:03:44.760 --> 0:03:47.000 I don't pretend to know as much, but I've learned 0:03:47.040 --> 0:03:49.400 a lot from Drew, and anytime I have a question, 0:03:49.480 --> 0:03:51.840 he's my first call. Well, he's gotten really good at this. 0:03:52.280 --> 0:03:54.760 I think he, you know, enjoys broadcasting. I don't know 0:03:54.800 --> 0:03:57.040 if it's going to be something that, uh, you know, 0:03:57.080 --> 0:03:58.840 he's going to want to pursue all in like you have. 0:03:58.960 --> 0:04:00.480 But I think he's really good. I think he could 0:04:00.520 --> 0:04:03.600 do really well in the business as you have. It's 0:04:03.640 --> 0:04:06.200 really interesting kind of watching your ascension, and I want 0:04:06.200 --> 0:04:09.200 to get into that. It's funny because I've had conversation 0:04:09.240 --> 0:04:11.600 with Drew about doing his games, even when he was 0:04:11.760 --> 0:04:14.160 at Michigan State. Because I've been at ESPN now doing 0:04:14.160 --> 0:04:17.080 college football for almost twenty years. I did your games 0:04:17.080 --> 0:04:19.760 at Miami and then obviously did your games with the 0:04:19.839 --> 0:04:22.800 Cardinals when you've been in the NFL, and I know 0:04:22.880 --> 0:04:25.760 you live in Charlotte. You had a great run as 0:04:25.760 --> 0:04:29.640 a player, spent nine years with the Panthers, three Pro Bowls, 0:04:29.680 --> 0:04:32.160 three straight one thousand yards seasons, which had never been 0:04:32.200 --> 0:04:34.719 done by its height end, and then you beat the 0:04:34.760 --> 0:04:37.080 Cardinals in the NFC Championship Game in twenty fifteen. I'm 0:04:37.080 --> 0:04:40.760 assuming that is up there with your fondest memories of 0:04:40.800 --> 0:04:43.880 being a Panther. What else would be at the top 0:04:43.920 --> 0:04:48.560 of the list of your memories with Carolina? Yeah, you know, 0:04:48.600 --> 0:04:50.880 I was fortunate for nine years, you know, I was 0:04:50.920 --> 0:04:53.680 able to join to join a team that prior, you know, 0:04:53.720 --> 0:04:55.960 the two ten season was a little bit of a struggle, 0:04:56.000 --> 0:04:58.680 and it was really cool that in twenty eleven it 0:04:58.760 --> 0:05:01.040 was kind of the start of something pretty special. They 0:05:01.080 --> 0:05:04.800 had a really good nucleus of players, um, you know, 0:05:04.880 --> 0:05:08.920 Steve Smith and Ryan Khalil and Jordan Gross and Jonathan Stewart. 0:05:08.920 --> 0:05:11.200 I mean just a really good you know, Tom and 0:05:11.240 --> 0:05:13.560 Thomas David is just a good core group of guys 0:05:14.880 --> 0:05:16.760 that were there but you know, they just struggled. They 0:05:16.800 --> 0:05:18.400 had a tough season the year before for a lot 0:05:18.400 --> 0:05:21.440 of reasons. So that next year, um, you know, hired 0:05:21.520 --> 0:05:24.200 Ron Rivera and drafted Cam and they traded for me 0:05:24.240 --> 0:05:25.960 from Chicago. So it was cool. We all kind of 0:05:26.000 --> 0:05:28.760 started that chapter of our careers together. And you know, 0:05:28.800 --> 0:05:31.239 as you said, you know, the pinnacle was twenty and fifteen. 0:05:31.279 --> 0:05:34.000 You know, we made the playoffs year three and two 0:05:34.000 --> 0:05:37.160 thirteen U and kind of put ourselves on the map 0:05:37.200 --> 0:05:39.960 and made it again in fourteen and then you know 0:05:40.080 --> 0:05:42.640 kind of really you know, hit our peak in fifteen. 0:05:42.680 --> 0:05:45.599 But you know, we went fifteen to one, and like 0:05:45.640 --> 0:05:48.279 you said, we played Arizona in the NFC Championship. We 0:05:48.320 --> 0:05:49.840 had the best record in the league, and I believe 0:05:49.880 --> 0:05:51.440 they had the second best record in the league. I 0:05:51.440 --> 0:05:53.280 think they won like thirteen games that year. So it 0:05:53.360 --> 0:05:56.520 was it was a huge matchup. And the reality is 0:05:56.560 --> 0:05:59.120 we just played really well that night. Um. It was 0:05:59.200 --> 0:06:02.320 kind of a magical back in you know, back in 0:06:02.600 --> 0:06:04.719 back in Charlotte, and you know, I just remember standing 0:06:04.720 --> 0:06:06.560 on the field and you know realizing, you know, at 0:06:06.600 --> 0:06:09.120 the trophy presentation that we were in two weeks we 0:06:09.120 --> 0:06:10.640 were going to play in the Super Bowl, and just 0:06:11.000 --> 0:06:13.279 we had beat in Seattle in the divisional round and 0:06:13.279 --> 0:06:16.600 then to beat Arizona in the conference round. We had 0:06:16.640 --> 0:06:18.880 we had really gone through a pretty you know, a 0:06:18.960 --> 0:06:21.640 gauntlet of really really good teams just to make the 0:06:21.640 --> 0:06:23.760 super Bowl and then you know, we ended up just 0:06:23.839 --> 0:06:25.520 kind of laying an egg. But I have so many 0:06:25.560 --> 0:06:28.279 fond memories at that time there. I think the best 0:06:28.279 --> 0:06:31.960 thing was just building, you know, building that group of 0:06:32.000 --> 0:06:34.520 guys and building that team from the ground floor up. 0:06:34.560 --> 0:06:36.440 You know, they were they had the number one pick 0:06:36.520 --> 0:06:38.240 in two thousand and eleven, and we were back in 0:06:38.279 --> 0:06:41.800 the playoffs by thirteen and uh making a run in fifteen. 0:06:41.839 --> 0:06:43.719 So that that was probably the most special part, was 0:06:43.760 --> 0:06:46.800 just seeing how we can turn a franchise around when 0:06:46.800 --> 0:06:49.119 you had the right group of guys. And you mentioned 0:06:49.120 --> 0:06:51.600 that twenty eleven draft that that will go down as 0:06:51.640 --> 0:06:54.440 one of the greatest first rounds in NFL history. JJ Watt, 0:06:54.880 --> 0:06:59.600 Patrick Peterson, AJ Green, Von Miller, Cam Newton number one overall. 0:07:00.080 --> 0:07:02.040 What was it like to play with Camp because that 0:07:02.160 --> 0:07:06.240 year he was the best player in football. Oh yeah, 0:07:06.360 --> 0:07:08.880 it wasn't even close. In his MVP year, what he 0:07:08.920 --> 0:07:11.400 was able to do. But but even years prior, you know, 0:07:11.440 --> 0:07:13.920 and after, you know, it wasn't really until the injuries 0:07:14.360 --> 0:07:16.400 kind of set in in two thousand and seventeen that 0:07:16.520 --> 0:07:19.640 things kind of started to fade away for us, you know, 0:07:19.680 --> 0:07:21.480 not not just him and dealing in and out with 0:07:21.520 --> 0:07:23.800 the shoulder injury and then the foot, but you know, 0:07:23.840 --> 0:07:25.920 that was kind of the start of kind of the 0:07:26.080 --> 0:07:28.360 end of, you know, our run. We know, we made 0:07:28.360 --> 0:07:31.640 the playoffs in twenty and seventeen again UM ended up 0:07:31.680 --> 0:07:34.400 losing to New Orleans and then that was really the 0:07:34.480 --> 0:07:36.280 end of it. And after the nineteen season we were 0:07:36.280 --> 0:07:38.960 all gone. So UM. You know, camp Cam was a 0:07:39.000 --> 0:07:41.280 special guy. We saw that pretty quickly. You know, I 0:07:41.280 --> 0:07:43.120 got to train at Camp there in two thousand and eleven, 0:07:43.160 --> 0:07:46.840 after after I got traded to Carolina, and not really 0:07:46.880 --> 0:07:48.640 knowing what to expect. Of course, we had all seen 0:07:48.680 --> 0:07:50.720 him play at Auburn and we knew how special he was. 0:07:50.760 --> 0:07:53.320 But you gotta get you meet him, and at first 0:07:53.360 --> 0:07:56.200 you're just you're just blown away by his physical presence, 0:07:56.240 --> 0:07:58.760 just the way the guy looked, his size, his his 0:07:59.040 --> 0:08:01.280 just his physique. He was he was just there was 0:08:01.320 --> 0:08:03.200 not a lot of guys built like Cam Newton, and 0:08:03.240 --> 0:08:06.680 then you know his ability to run, both his speed 0:08:06.720 --> 0:08:09.160 and his you know, his physical nature that he'd run with. 0:08:09.240 --> 0:08:12.920 He just was unlike any quarterback really at the time. 0:08:12.960 --> 0:08:15.400 And you know, he just grew so much as a passer, 0:08:15.440 --> 0:08:17.360 he grew so much as just an all round player. 0:08:17.400 --> 0:08:20.360 He was awesome. He was so good for my career. 0:08:20.720 --> 0:08:22.520 We were able to accomplish a lot of really good 0:08:22.560 --> 0:08:25.760 things together. And you know, I'm the first to admit that, 0:08:25.800 --> 0:08:27.640 you know, a lot of my success was a product 0:08:27.680 --> 0:08:30.160 of the two of us playing so long together and 0:08:31.160 --> 0:08:33.800 having so many games together, and you know, just really 0:08:33.800 --> 0:08:36.040 saw things the same way. So Cam Cam was a 0:08:36.120 --> 0:08:39.600 unique talent. There's there's not a lot of guys like him, 0:08:39.679 --> 0:08:42.520 and he's about as competitive a guy as I ever 0:08:42.520 --> 0:08:44.600 played with. And I think that carried him so long, 0:08:44.679 --> 0:08:47.360 and unfortunately some of those injuries kind of you know, 0:08:47.440 --> 0:08:49.200 got the best from there at the end. But man, 0:08:49.240 --> 0:08:51.840 for when when he was at his best, he was 0:08:51.880 --> 0:08:54.720 as good as anybody. I know. You're doing national games 0:08:54.720 --> 0:08:57.240 every week, and I totally get what that's like. You're 0:08:57.520 --> 0:09:00.400 honing in on the two teams you're prepared ring for, 0:09:01.080 --> 0:09:04.199 but you're still keeping abreast of what's going on around 0:09:04.200 --> 0:09:06.640 the NFL, and certainly when you live in Charlotte, you're 0:09:06.640 --> 0:09:08.680 paying close attention to the Panthers. And given that you 0:09:08.679 --> 0:09:11.120 played most of your career there, what are your thoughts 0:09:11.120 --> 0:09:13.440 on the Panthers and where they are? They had lost 0:09:13.960 --> 0:09:15.840 nine in a row. Their last win prior to this 0:09:15.880 --> 0:09:19.280 past weekend was against the Cardinals here, which really started 0:09:19.280 --> 0:09:22.679 the Cardinal's downfall last year. Yeah, and I think, if 0:09:22.720 --> 0:09:25.520 I remember it right, that was Cam's first game back. 0:09:25.559 --> 0:09:28.040 I think Cam ran for a touchdown and threw for 0:09:28.040 --> 0:09:31.360 a touchdown real early in that game. They kind of 0:09:31.440 --> 0:09:34.040 used them in and out of the lineup, So yeah, 0:09:34.120 --> 0:09:36.840 you know, I think, you know, just this year, tough 0:09:36.920 --> 0:09:39.320 game in the opener they had, it had a tough 0:09:39.400 --> 0:09:41.000 kind of ending there at the end of the Browns 0:09:41.080 --> 0:09:45.040 game with a weird roughing the passer call and a 0:09:45.120 --> 0:09:48.680 weird grounding call that you know, gave Cleveland a chance 0:09:48.679 --> 0:09:51.000 to kick a field goal, and then you know, never 0:09:51.040 --> 0:09:53.240 expected they were going to lose, and the schedule came out, 0:09:53.280 --> 0:09:55.160 they thought the Giants game would be a win, but 0:09:55.200 --> 0:09:56.840 the Giants have proven to be a lot better than 0:09:56.880 --> 0:10:00.440 people thought. And you know, it's I think there's season 0:10:00.640 --> 0:10:03.160 started worse than they are. I think this past week 0:10:03.200 --> 0:10:06.200 getting a good win against UM, against New Orleans was 0:10:06.200 --> 0:10:07.800 big for them, just to kind of get that off 0:10:07.840 --> 0:10:10.280 their back. You know, anytime you lose for that long, 0:10:10.360 --> 0:10:11.920 you know what, you just need to win, and it 0:10:11.920 --> 0:10:14.080 doesn't matter how it comes, it doesn't matter the form 0:10:14.160 --> 0:10:17.360 or fashion. But sometimes it just allows everybody for one 0:10:17.360 --> 0:10:19.400 week to just take a collective deep breath and say, 0:10:19.440 --> 0:10:22.240 all right, we're good, broke the losing streak. Now we 0:10:22.240 --> 0:10:24.480 can just focus on, you know, honing into play. So 0:10:24.679 --> 0:10:28.360 I think they're a more talented team than their record shows. 0:10:28.480 --> 0:10:30.640 They're you know, not only this year's record, but just 0:10:30.679 --> 0:10:32.959 the record into into last year as you reference, they're 0:10:33.000 --> 0:10:35.480 losing streets. So I think they're talented. I think they 0:10:35.520 --> 0:10:38.640 have a lot of good young pieces. Um. Obviously Baker 0:10:39.160 --> 0:10:40.959 is still kind of getting you know, getting his legs 0:10:41.040 --> 0:10:43.839 under them here in Carolina as the starting quarterback. And 0:10:43.960 --> 0:10:47.120 I think as the year goes on, I really do 0:10:47.240 --> 0:10:50.199 believe that they'll continue to improve and that you know, defensively, 0:10:50.240 --> 0:10:52.720 they're pretty they're pretty stout. They got some really dynamic 0:10:52.760 --> 0:10:55.040 young players there. And then I think as the offense 0:10:55.120 --> 0:10:58.319 continues to find its way. They're not short on talent, 0:10:58.440 --> 0:11:00.600 they're not short on playmakers. I think it's just a 0:11:00.640 --> 0:11:02.840 matter of how they continue to gel and come together. 0:11:02.920 --> 0:11:05.320 But I think they're a talented group that's just trying 0:11:05.320 --> 0:11:07.800 to learn to win. Right now, tell me more about 0:11:07.840 --> 0:11:10.160 why you think Baker is the answer. And I've been 0:11:10.160 --> 0:11:13.839 told by several people that even though you're a tight end, 0:11:14.240 --> 0:11:16.439 you see the game the way a quarterback sees it, 0:11:16.559 --> 0:11:20.160 so you're certainly qualified to talk about Baker and his strengths. 0:11:20.800 --> 0:11:23.400 I think we all know about Baker's weaknesses. But tell 0:11:23.440 --> 0:11:25.440 me why you think Baker is the answer there for 0:11:25.440 --> 0:11:28.200 the Panthers. You know, I you know, is he the 0:11:28.240 --> 0:11:31.360 long term answer for the next ten years? I don't. 0:11:31.520 --> 0:11:33.800 I don't know. I can't pretend to have that sort 0:11:33.840 --> 0:11:36.160 of insight and whatnot. But in my limited time studying 0:11:36.200 --> 0:11:38.360 them and and just you know, watching the games on 0:11:38.440 --> 0:11:41.240 replay and whatnot, you know, I think what he brings 0:11:41.400 --> 0:11:44.960 is is just stability. He brings he brings that competitive fire, 0:11:45.000 --> 0:11:48.480 but he brings a guy who's really played. He's played well, 0:11:48.520 --> 0:11:50.760 and I think he's played better than his reputation. I 0:11:50.760 --> 0:11:52.240 think if you looked just at last year, you know, 0:11:52.400 --> 0:11:55.920 last year in Cleveland, you know, he really he was 0:11:55.920 --> 0:11:58.400 out there kind of banged up, playing hurt. You know, 0:11:58.440 --> 0:12:00.480 could have easily said, hey, I'm not help, I'm gonna 0:12:00.480 --> 0:12:02.480 sit this out, but he didn't. He continued the battle, 0:12:02.559 --> 0:12:05.240 played with that shoulder, played with a litany of things, 0:12:05.240 --> 0:12:08.200 and didn't play well. But you know, I think he's 0:12:08.200 --> 0:12:11.120 a better player than what our most recent memory of him. 0:12:11.120 --> 0:12:13.040 So I think when you know, they went out and 0:12:13.040 --> 0:12:14.680 brought into Shawn and made him a bail. But I 0:12:14.679 --> 0:12:17.120 think there was there was talking Carolina for for a 0:12:17.160 --> 0:12:20.240 long time that Baker was going to eventually end up here, 0:12:20.280 --> 0:12:21.760 and then you know, it kind of happened a little 0:12:21.840 --> 0:12:23.760 later in training camp that people you know, going into 0:12:23.760 --> 0:12:26.120 training camp that people thought. But you know, I just 0:12:26.160 --> 0:12:28.760 think with the weapons that he has, Christian McCaffrey and 0:12:28.840 --> 0:12:32.720 DJ Moore and m you know, Robbie Anderson and you know, 0:12:32.720 --> 0:12:35.559 they got some they have some weapons. Offensively, they've improved 0:12:35.559 --> 0:12:39.040 their offensive line drastically from last year, drafted what they 0:12:39.040 --> 0:12:41.400 think is the next you know, ten plus year left 0:12:41.400 --> 0:12:45.360 tackle in Ikey. So I think as far as the 0:12:45.440 --> 0:12:48.320 core group of guys to work around. They have them, 0:12:48.360 --> 0:12:49.960 and now it's up to the quarterback. It's up to 0:12:50.000 --> 0:12:53.040 Baker to run the show. And he hasn't played great 0:12:53.080 --> 0:12:55.400 this year. I think he's played better as the year 0:12:55.480 --> 0:12:57.840 has gone on, but as he continues to get more 0:12:57.840 --> 0:13:01.680 comfortable in Ben mcadu's system. He's not short on playmakers. 0:13:01.679 --> 0:13:03.600 He's not short on guys to spread the ball too, 0:13:03.679 --> 0:13:05.839 and that's going to be the key to this growth 0:13:05.880 --> 0:13:08.839 of the offense is how does Baker run the show? 0:13:08.880 --> 0:13:11.640 How does Baker operate in this offense? We know he 0:13:11.640 --> 0:13:14.160 can be special, We know he can make the splash, 0:13:14.240 --> 0:13:17.040 flash play. Can he just make the easy play? Can 0:13:17.080 --> 0:13:19.079 he just make the easy read and get the ball 0:13:19.120 --> 0:13:22.480 into some of these dynamic players that they have offensively? 0:13:22.480 --> 0:13:24.920 And I think if he can find that balance between 0:13:25.000 --> 0:13:28.400 playmaker and just game manager at times, he needs to 0:13:28.440 --> 0:13:30.800 be both. And I think that's the recipe that I 0:13:30.800 --> 0:13:33.000 think they're looking for, because I think they had the 0:13:33.000 --> 0:13:35.240 players around him to do it. Graig, what are your 0:13:35.240 --> 0:13:37.360 thoughts on the Cardinals. You are out here for Fox 0:13:37.400 --> 0:13:40.680 doing the Baltimore game, and I get that in that game, 0:13:41.120 --> 0:13:43.000 nobody really played for the Cardinals, so it may be 0:13:43.120 --> 0:13:46.320 hard to fully give an evaluation properly on where the 0:13:46.360 --> 0:13:48.760 Cardinals are. But I think he did some Cardinals games 0:13:48.840 --> 0:13:51.640 last year, and as you know, the first half of 0:13:51.720 --> 0:13:53.839 last season and into the second half, they were the 0:13:53.920 --> 0:13:57.679 best offensive team in the NFL. Right now, they're struggling. 0:13:57.800 --> 0:14:01.679 No first quarter points. They have led in regulation at 0:14:01.720 --> 0:14:04.080 any point in three games this season. What do you 0:14:04.120 --> 0:14:06.920 make of what's going on out here? Yeah, you know, 0:14:06.920 --> 0:14:09.640 I didn't I actually didn't end up getting any of 0:14:09.679 --> 0:14:12.440 their games um last year in the regular season. As 0:14:12.480 --> 0:14:16.360 you mentioned, I called their preseason game against Baltimore, zero 0:14:16.400 --> 0:14:18.560 of the starters played, but had a chance to visit 0:14:18.600 --> 0:14:21.560 with with Kingsbury and and some of the coaches and 0:14:22.880 --> 0:14:24.920 advanced Joseph. It just kind of get a vibe and 0:14:25.000 --> 0:14:27.680 a field and they felt really optimistic going into the year. 0:14:27.720 --> 0:14:30.400 They felt that as they got healthy. Of course, missing 0:14:30.440 --> 0:14:32.680 DeAndre Hopkins to start the year as a big blow, 0:14:32.760 --> 0:14:35.480 and you know they think a big reason for that, 0:14:35.800 --> 0:14:38.560 you know, late season kind of collapse that you mentioned, 0:14:39.360 --> 0:14:41.200 a lot of it was injury related. You know, they 0:14:41.480 --> 0:14:44.840 lost you know, Hopkins, they lost Um. You know, obviously 0:14:46.600 --> 0:14:48.600 Cayler Murray got banged up there and kind of played 0:14:48.600 --> 0:14:51.320 through some injuries. They lost JJ Watt. They you know, 0:14:51.360 --> 0:14:53.680 they were a veteran laden team, maybe a little bit older, 0:14:53.720 --> 0:14:55.320 and a lot of those key veterans that they were 0:14:55.360 --> 0:14:57.760 relying on, you know, they didn't have down the stretch. 0:14:57.760 --> 0:15:00.440 You know, JJ came back and attempted the play i 0:15:00.480 --> 0:15:03.160 think in the playoffs, but it didn't end up, you know, 0:15:03.200 --> 0:15:05.480 being too much in that Rams game. So I think 0:15:05.520 --> 0:15:07.880 they're going to be very dependent on staying healthy. I 0:15:07.880 --> 0:15:09.640 think they're gonna need some of these top you know, 0:15:09.760 --> 0:15:12.480 especially some of these older guys to stay healthy. They're 0:15:12.480 --> 0:15:14.600 gonna need some of these weapons, you know, Hollywood Brown 0:15:14.640 --> 0:15:18.000 and these guys to still in because DeAndre Hopkins is 0:15:18.080 --> 0:15:19.840 arguably one of the best receivers in the league, and 0:15:19.960 --> 0:15:23.080 you know, to expect just one guy to replace him 0:15:23.080 --> 0:15:26.400 as difficult. So they're gonna need collectively as a group. 0:15:26.440 --> 0:15:28.560 They're gonna need Kyler to play really well. They're gonna 0:15:28.560 --> 0:15:30.920 need their skill players to step up. They're gonna need 0:15:30.960 --> 0:15:33.480 to stay healthy. And from what I've seen this year, 0:15:33.600 --> 0:15:36.760 you know, the magical comeback win that they had two 0:15:36.800 --> 0:15:40.120 weeks ago was insane. I mean, the way that game 0:15:40.240 --> 0:15:45.680 ended was wild against the Raiders and really outside of 0:15:45.720 --> 0:15:50.120 that late flurry, as you mentioned, offensively, they've just been 0:15:50.280 --> 0:15:53.400 kind of blah. So they've got to figure out what 0:15:53.440 --> 0:15:55.480 their identity is. They've got to figure out, you know, 0:15:55.560 --> 0:15:58.400 what scheme they want to run, a little hybrid of 0:15:58.440 --> 0:16:01.240 what Kingsbury started running when first got there and you know, 0:16:01.400 --> 0:16:03.240 kind of what they've evolved to now. So I think 0:16:03.240 --> 0:16:05.480 they're still trying to figure that out. Obviously, they've hitched 0:16:05.520 --> 0:16:08.840 their wagon to Kyler Murray and you know, they're only 0:16:08.920 --> 0:16:10.400 going to go as far as he takes them. But 0:16:10.400 --> 0:16:12.320 I think they're still trying to figure out, you know, 0:16:12.360 --> 0:16:15.160 what that identity is, what's that balance of him as 0:16:15.200 --> 0:16:18.920 a runner as a passer. Yeah, they have too many 0:16:18.960 --> 0:16:21.640 good players to not be better offensively, and I think 0:16:21.680 --> 0:16:24.200 that right now that's the obvious thing that they're trying 0:16:24.240 --> 0:16:27.440 to figure out. So your last year playing was twenty twenty, 0:16:27.480 --> 0:16:30.480 and you were kind of the broadcaster in waiting. You 0:16:30.560 --> 0:16:33.640 have the coach in waiting, you were like the top broadcast, 0:16:33.680 --> 0:16:36.200 your top analyst in waiting. Everybody knew that when you 0:16:36.240 --> 0:16:40.120 were done, you were going to a high level booth 0:16:41.120 --> 0:16:43.480 at one of the networks. You're at Fox. Last year 0:16:43.600 --> 0:16:46.160 on the number two crew with Kevin Burkhardt, Joe Buck 0:16:46.200 --> 0:16:48.600 and Troykman come over to ESPN. So now you're on 0:16:48.600 --> 0:16:50.800 the League crew, You're doing the Super Bowl this year. 0:16:50.920 --> 0:16:54.600 I'm curious, Greg, when did you start to realize that 0:16:54.720 --> 0:16:58.200 you wanted to do this post football? And was it 0:16:58.280 --> 0:17:01.120 always I want to do games? Did you think you 0:17:01.160 --> 0:17:04.880 wanted to do studio or were you not really sure? Yeah, 0:17:04.880 --> 0:17:07.200 it's a good question, to be honest. It wasn't something 0:17:07.240 --> 0:17:09.560 that I ever early in my career. It was not 0:17:09.640 --> 0:17:12.400 something that I ever really thought about or dreamed about. 0:17:12.440 --> 0:17:14.160 You know. I was always so focused on just being 0:17:14.240 --> 0:17:17.439 a player. And then you know, kind of in you know, 0:17:17.720 --> 0:17:21.120 the later stage of my career, you know, fourteen fifteen, 0:17:22.280 --> 0:17:24.040 you know, through some context that I had, I was 0:17:24.080 --> 0:17:26.880 doing some local TV stuff in Charlotte's, some local regional 0:17:26.960 --> 0:17:31.520 network college football shows, some professional stuff, you know, Fox 0:17:31.560 --> 0:17:33.560 asked me to come out one summer, I think it 0:17:33.600 --> 0:17:36.840 was the summer going into the twenty fifteen season, and said, hey, 0:17:36.840 --> 0:17:38.199 why don't you come out. I was I was in 0:17:38.320 --> 0:17:41.320 LA visiting a friend, a former teammate of mine, and 0:17:41.800 --> 0:17:43.159 so why don't you come over to the studio and 0:17:43.240 --> 0:17:45.040 just call an audition game. And you know, for anyone 0:17:45.040 --> 0:17:46.879 who doesn't know an audition game, you just it's a 0:17:46.920 --> 0:17:49.480 game that already happened in the past. It was from 0:17:49.480 --> 0:17:52.119 the previous season. It's prerecorded, and you sit in a 0:17:52.160 --> 0:17:54.160 studio with a play by play guy and you just 0:17:54.280 --> 0:17:56.919 talk over the game and it's just a simulation to 0:17:56.920 --> 0:17:59.520 see how comfortable you are and whatnot. So from that, 0:18:00.040 --> 0:18:02.320 which was actually with Kevin Burkhart, who's my partner now, 0:18:02.359 --> 0:18:05.440 which is kind of a crazy um full circle moment 0:18:05.440 --> 0:18:09.960 that he called my audition. So now fast forward twenty seventeen. 0:18:10.480 --> 0:18:12.720 They that summer, they reached out to us and said, hey, 0:18:12.720 --> 0:18:14.160 we'd love to put you in a three man booth 0:18:14.200 --> 0:18:16.120 on your bye week. We think it'd be really cool 0:18:16.160 --> 0:18:19.240 to have a current player and add him for for 0:18:19.280 --> 0:18:21.080 a one week kind of special thing. So I joined 0:18:21.160 --> 0:18:25.000 Kevin Burkhardt and Charles Davis. I became their third third 0:18:25.040 --> 0:18:28.000 member of the crew on my bye week. That was 0:18:28.040 --> 0:18:31.560 twenty seventeen. It went well. Twenty nineteen, they said, hey, 0:18:31.560 --> 0:18:33.560 we'd love to see you do a game on your 0:18:33.560 --> 0:18:35.360 bye week again, but this time we'll put you as 0:18:35.359 --> 0:18:37.280 a two man crew. So I did it with Kenny Albert, 0:18:37.800 --> 0:18:41.600 and then that that next offseason, you know, right before 0:18:41.680 --> 0:18:44.719 COVID hit, they launched the XSL and me and Kevin 0:18:45.119 --> 0:18:49.119