Paid Advertisement

Former punter Dave Zastudil splits defense of Browns and Ravens as Flacco returns to Baltimore

8

Paid Advertisement

Podcast Audio Vault

8
8

Paid Advertisement

He has the rare distinction of being a guy born and raised in Cleveland who was drafted by the Baltimore Ravens and returned home to Northern Ohio for a life on and off the field with his hometown Browns. For better or worse, our old pal and punter-turned-insurance executive Dave Zastudil always teaches us more about football. Can Joe Flacco come back to Baltimore and beat the Ravens on Sunday?

Nestor Aparicio interviews Dave Zastudil, now a managing director at Oswald Companies in Cleveland, about his career transition from football to insurance. They discuss the upcoming Browns vs. Ravens game, highlighting the Browns’ defensive strengths, particularly their defensive line and secondary. Zastudil notes the Browns’ recent performance against the Bengals and the Ravens’ loss to the Bills. They also touch on the potential relocation of the Cleveland Browns’ stadium and the emotional significance of the 30-year anniversary of Ozzie Newsome’s return to Baltimore.

Dave Zastudil’s Career Transition and Current Role

  • Nestor Aparicio introduces Dave Zastudil, who is now the managing director at Oswald Companies, an insurance brokerage in Cleveland.
  • Dave explains his role, which involves overseeing property and casualty insurance brokerages, group benefits, life insurance, and retirement services.
  • He mentions his network of independently owned insurance brokerages, including RCMD in Baltimore, and the value proposition of their independence.
  • Nestor humorously notes Dave’s transition from a punter to a “smart kicker” in the insurance business.

Insurance Business and Personal Life

  • Dave elaborates on the relationship-based nature of the insurance business, emphasizing the importance of trust between brokers and clients.
  • He shares his personal background, including his education and how it contributed to his success in the insurance industry.
  • Nestor and Dave discuss the importance of schooling in the insurance business, with Nestor jokingly referring to Dave as “the smart kicker.”
  • Dave mentions his family, including his five children, and how his busy schedule balances work, family, and personal interests.

Upcoming Browns vs. Ravens Game

  • Nestor and Dave discuss the upcoming Browns vs. Ravens game, highlighting the significance of the 30-year anniversary of Ozzie Newsome’s return to Baltimore.
  • Dave notes the Browns’ performance against the Bengals, emphasizing their dominance and the missed opportunities that cost them the win.
  • They discuss the Ravens’ loss to the Bills and the importance of the Browns game for both teams.
  • Dave predicts a competitive game, with the Browns looking to avenge their loss and the Ravens aiming to protect their home turf.

Defensive Strategies and Player Performances

  • Nestor and Dave analyze the defensive strategies of both teams, with Jim Schwartz’s game plan for Lamar Jackson being a key focus.
  • Dave highlights the Browns’ defensive line, including Mason Graham, Myles Garrett, and Carson Schwesinger, as strengths.
  • They discuss the Browns’ secondary, particularly Denzel Ward and Greg Newsome II, and their potential impact on the game.
  • Dave mentions the importance of limiting Derrick Henry and the challenges the Browns’ defense faces against the Ravens’ explosive offense.

Ravens’ Offensive and Special Teams Performance

  • Nestor and Dave discuss the Ravens’ offensive performance, noting their sharp play for three quarters but the struggles in the fourth.
  • They highlight the special teams’ issues, including missed kicks and penalties, and the impact of these mistakes on the game’s outcome.
  • Dave praises the Browns’ performance against Joe Burrow and the Bengals, emphasizing their capability to win games.
  • They discuss the importance of Joe Flacco’s familiarity with the Kevin Stefanski offense and his potential impact on the game.

Cleveland Stadium and Relocation Plans

  • Nestor and Dave discuss the potential relocation of the Cleveland Browns’ stadium, highlighting the challenges and benefits of the new location.
  • Dave explains the economic and logistical advantages of the proposed site in Berea, including better accessibility and infrastructure.
  • They discuss the impact of the new stadium on the city’s economy and the potential for hosting major events like Super Bowls and concerts.
  • Nestor expresses his preference for the current downtown location, citing the historical and cultural significance of the area.

Personal Memories and Rivalries

  • Nestor shares his personal memories of attending games in Cleveland, including the Elway drive game and the return of the Browns to Cleveland.
  • Dave reminisces about his time with the Ravens and the unique experience of playing for a team he grew up supporting.
  • They discuss the rivalry between the Ravens and Browns, emphasizing the mutual respect and excitement it brings to fans.
  • Nestor and Dave express their appreciation for the vibrant sports culture in both Baltimore and Cleveland, highlighting the importance of these rivalries for the cities.

Final Thoughts and Predictions

  • Nestor and Dave discuss the potential outcomes of the Browns vs. Ravens game, with Nestor expressing concern about the Ravens’ performance.
  • Dave emphasizes the importance of the Browns’ defensive line and the challenges they face against the Ravens’ offense.
  • They discuss the potential impact of Miles Garrett on the game and the importance of the Browns’ ability to limit Derrick Henry.
  • Nestor and Dave conclude with their predictions for the game, highlighting the competitive nature and the significance of the matchup.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

Browns, Ravens, Joe Flacco, Lamar Jackson, Cleveland, Baltimore, insurance brokerage, Oswald Companies, NFL, football, defense, offense, stadium relocation, rivalry.

SPEAKERS

8

Nestor Aparicio, Dave Zastudil

Nestor Aparicio  00:01

Welcome home. We are W, N, S T am 1570 Taos of Baltimore. We are Baltimore positive. We are taking the Maryland crab cake tour on the road. We will be at the Beaumont on Tuesday afternoon, joined by Councilman Pat young. He’s gonna be running for Baltimore County Executive. We’re gonna talk military and military takeovers of cities as well as probably eat the lamb chops, because my tastiness countdown had the lobster, but not the lamb chops. And my wife said, You got to get the lamb chops in. It’s all brought to you by the Maryland lottery. I will have some pressure looks and lucky sevens. I’m gonna have the Raven scratch off by Tuesday as well, when barrister Chad cause joins me for seventh grade social studies as well. This guy once taught me punting, being left handed, brotherly spirit, and what it was like to be that guy from Cleveland who was drafted here to play football here in Baltimore and then went back to Cleveland. And if you’re watching out on the video, you’ll see that he actually overlooks Cleveland from his job site. My wife said to me, whatever happened to Dave zestel? And I said, What’s he doing now and then he comes on the video, and you used to come on with, like, helmets behind you, and sort of your club basement somewhere near Berea, and now, like you’re a hot shot in a big building in downtown Cleveland. What are you doing with your life? Dave’s asked

Dave Zastudil  01:21

it all, yeah, no. Thanks for having me on Nestor. I am now the managing director at a large insurance brokerage called Oswald companies headquartered in Cleveland. It’s ironic because we’re part of a network of seven independently owned insurance brokerages. One of our partners is rcmd in Baltimore, so I’m on the phone with with RC MIDI all the time. So they’re they’ve been a great partner, Die Hard Ravens fans, and it’s fun to have the, not only the business connection, but just talk football here and there.

Nestor Aparicio  01:50

Look, I’ll get to the football in a minute, and we’ll talk Joe, we’ll talk about all this, but like, what is an insurance like? Just fill me. Educate people on the fact that you’re not the dumb punter, that you’re more like the smart kicker.

8

Dave Zastudil  02:03

Yeah, my role is really in charge of all property and casualty insurance brokerages. You know, whether it’s, you know, local, regional, national, international, the our insurance firm, really is made up of four business units. I run the property casual division. There’s group benefits, life insurance, and then retirement services. And so, you know, our network of firms ranges from, you know, Oswald in Cleveland, arsenide in Baltimore, down to NSI in Florida, and out to Gibson insurance out in Indianapolis, and there’s a few in between that. But our model really is all independently owned insurance brokerages, firms that really don’t want to get gobbled up by, you know, you know, some of the larger global firms, and we love the independency. We think it’s a good value prop for our clients. So that’s, that’s really what I’ve been doing since I retired from football almost 11 years ago.

Nestor Aparicio  02:53

It’s good thing you went to school, huh?

Dave Zastudil  02:55

Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah. I think school helped a little bit. But, you know, insurance is really a relationship business. You got, you know people, whether they’re Tom, their autos, their businesses, they got to have an insurance broker they trust. And we try to really provide not only good service, but also our expertise. So yeah, it’s been a good business, great connections, great relationships I’ve built. But you know, more to come on that. But I think we’re here to talk football, right?

Nestor Aparicio  03:21

8

Yeah. You know, when you came into this thing, like I used to bring you out and do the show, and you were always good at explaining things, and you had been a quarterback, so you saw the game sort of in a different way. Left Handed certainly saw the game in a different way, in that way and all of that. But, I mean, you had this Baltimore, Cleveland thing. I mean, we’re honoring Ozzie on the field. The media guys I talked to in Cleveland are all up in arms that, like we’re rubbing Cleveland’s nose in it, you know, again, and you’re coming back with Flacco, I mean, and it looked good last weekend. It didn’t look like bad browns. It looked like capable browns, you know, not 13 point underdog browns, but sort of like, Hey, man, you better put the helmets on the right way this week, and certainly what happened to the Ravens on Sunday night. It’s kind of a juicier Browns ravens game than the garden variety Browns ravens game for me, at least, because I think most people didn’t think Flacco was ever going to come back here and play

Dave Zastudil  04:15

again like this. Oh yeah. I think both teams, in my opinion, felt that they should have won the game. I mean, if you look at the Cincinnati Bengals, the Browns held Joe burrow to seven net yards in the second half, miss an extra point, missed the game winning field goal, had two tipped interceptions. I mean, if you look, actually watch the game, and I’m sure John Harbaugh saying this to his team, if I was him, that, you know, the Browns certainly, pretty much should have won that game. They dominated the game. And then you look at the ravens, bills game, you know, hype game night game, Buffalo coming back. Ravens certainly probably felt that they should have pulled away with that win. Now you have the Browns coming to Baltimore, not only as a division game, which is huge. You’re this early in the season, but it’s also the 30 year anniversary. Ozzie Newsome, I talked to Hanford Dixon all the time, the top dog here you. And Ozzy are very good friends, and I always ask about Ozzie and ask how he’s doing. So it’s really good to catch up. I’m still have some friendships in the Ravens organization, and it certainly is kind of building into that kind of fiery game. I think 11 and a half, 12 and a half point underdog, the Browns will certainly, you know, kind of look at that as probably being a little disrespectful, but they’re going to go. And Brian Billick taught us this a long time ago. Whenever you go on the road in a hostile environment, you have to take it as a business trip, go in, get your business done, and just get out. And I think that’s what Kevin Stefanski is probably telling the team, is it’s going to be electric. It’s their 30 year anniversary. It’s a home. It’s Lamar Jackson. It’s all that they’re coming off a loss. They want to avenge that loss. We have to look at this as a business trip, so I’m excited for the game.

Nestor Aparicio  05:44

Well, part of the business is going to be defensively. Jim Schwartz, putting together a game plan and having some pieces that have bothered Lamar in the past. I think when you prep for Lamar twice a year, every year, for several years, it’s that benefit that NFC teams rarely have, which is why Lamar freight trained a lot boat raced a lot of NFC teams over these eight years. But the Browns have always played this thing a little differently, defensively with Lamar, with Derrick Henry, with what they’re trying to do here and what Todd monk is trying to do. Can the Browns play with that all day?

Dave Zastudil  06:21

Well, it’s a good question. I think you know what? What fans kind of fair to fail to realize is the strength of the Browns right now is most likely on their defensive line. You know, they brought in Mason Graham, first round draft pick, miles geared. Everybody knows what he does. He has some they have some revolving doors on the other defensive end, Carson schwesinger, this rookie out of UCLA has just been, you know, fantastic so far in preseason, and many are training camp and now in the first game, it’s a shame the Browns lost J Okay, to injury with that neck injury this year, because if you line those two guys up, you know your defense is stacked pretty good. Then you look at their secondary. Denzel Ward, Jim Schwartz thinks he’s the best cornerback and football. Craig Newsome had a really good game on Lamar. Chase limited 25 yards. So I think Jim shorts and Todd monk and are probably going to be watching a little bit more film and planning for this a little bit more than they usually do. Because, I mean, it’s no secret here in Cleveland, Lamar Jackson is just a he’s an X factor. The guy could do everything, but I do expect the Browns to limit Derrick Henry. They just can’t afford to have those big, long chunk gate yards that that Derrick Henry can do if he gets that second level. So it’ll be interesting, really, to see the game plan that Jim Schwartz has. But there’s no there’s no secret that you know that ravens offense can be explosive.

8

Nestor Aparicio  07:34

You know, the Ravens offense looks sharp for three quarters, and then it’s punt, fumble, punt. When it mattered, the Ravens defense was okay, you know, it’s 25 points at one point before it was 41 points. So it was, certainly, was far from perfect. Special teams weren’t very good either. Missed the kick. You know, a one point in a one point game, after all the Tucker nonsense that happened here in the off season. And I look at it and say, Cleveland, after the first two drives, things tightened up there a little bit for the browns, and how they play defense and what they’re capable. I keep going back to the word capable, what they’re capable of doing in this game. And I am, you know, first week, there was a lot of ring rust, and even Marlon Humphrey talked about, we’re not mature yet in that we don’t all know our responsibilities, because you haven’t gone out and played football. Browns went out and did it against Joe burrow in sort of a concrete way. And to your point, Flacco hit the guy between this and the RE and the ball goes up in the air, and the next thing you know, it’s interception. They played well enough to win. I This game should concern Ravens fans here that that’s where I’ve been on this all week.

Dave Zastudil  08:46

SAST, yeah, it’s a it’s a little bit tough to be honest with you, to really judge a team after one week. You know, you could tell the you could tell Cincinnati had some, you know, timing issues. They, you know, they came out a little flat in the second half. And, you know, obviously there’s always half time adjustments. But, you know, now that everybody got that first game under their belt, I think you’ll start seeing teams open up a little bit more and doing some things maybe they didn’t do in week one, trying to, you know, establish the run, which Baltimore really did. I think the bright spot here in Cleveland is, you know, Harold Fannin and Dylan Sampson, these rookies and Carl Schweizer, they really showed up in that first week. So everybody’s a little bit, you know, not surprised, but really appreciative that these rookies are already, you know, coming out and playing that well. Joe Flacco, on the other hand, I mean, he loves the Kevin Stefanski offense. It’s built for everything he does. It’s, you know, you got two tight end sets. They love the run to set up the pass to play action, and it just fits his his profile really well. And the thing about Joe Flacco is it does. He doesn’t really look any different than he did years ago. He’s still got a rifle arm. If you look at that game in Cincinnati, it was super accurate. The interceptions really were just on in and out of the hands of receivers that typically don’t drop those balls. So I think the Browns have a lot of confidence in how they performed when they watched that tape to come in. And but coming into Baltimore, I met played there for years. It is a tough place to win, especially with the 30 year anniversary. It’ll be a lot of emotions. A lot of the fans are going to get really into it. So gray is going to dance, you know, he I think if he does, I think it’ll be something that wouldn’t be surprising to me, but I think it’ll get that fan. The fans even even off their seats more than they probably already will.

Nestor Aparicio  10:23

Well, Dave’s asked it was our guest. He’s out in Cleveland. If you’re not watching on video to see the stadium behind him, are you still doing radio there? No, you’re you don’t do color anymore.

Dave Zastudil  10:33

8

No, I don’t do much anymore. I do get calls from some of my colleagues that are on the morning shows, 92 three, the fan, Ken Carmen, you know some of those guys on, on some special teams questions, they’ll text me on some things. But with my full time job now, and the kids in sports and school, it just, it just, it’s a little too much, little it would be too much for me to do it this time.

Nestor Aparicio  10:51

But I think kids got kids. Come on, you can’t just say I’m not gonna let, not let you plug your kids if they’re playing sports.

Dave Zastudil  10:58

Yeah, five kids. My oldest is a senior in high school. I got a freshman, an eighth grader, and I got a technical twin boys that are six, that are at that age, just in everything, right? So I’m trying to coach, trying to work, trying to do all those things, but I can’t complain life. Life’s really good for me right now,

Nestor Aparicio  11:12

trying to be the washed up Raven and brown that comes back as the alum and tells us things here spends 20 minutes back in Baltimore. You enjoy you. And I had fun here. We had fun when you went back. You’ve had this fun life with kids. And I mean, and I see this, whether it’s Mike Flynn and his family, he’s putting a kid in college now, and all of you of that era, Flacco was my all time favorite dude ever. And the thing that he’s still doing this, it makes me want to go to the game this week, and they pretty much threw me out of the Kevin Byrne press box. So I have an affinity for Joe in a way that this week, it’s sort of like Wonderland to think that he could actually come back and beat them this week. Dave, can he come back and beat them this week? I mean, can they run the ball? Can they play responsibly? You talk about all of those, those fundamental two tight end sets, and the things that Joe does well, you know, they know he’s going to do it now, can they stop it? Right? The Bengals knew he was going to do it last week, and they had a hard

8

Dave Zastudil  12:12

time stopping it. Yeah. I mean, you know, there’s no. I mean, I’ll be honest with you, I’ve been around the game a long time. I mean, anything can happen week to week in the NFL. The Browns certainly are capable. If they play their A game, they don’t turn the ball over and they get help from special teams to have a chance to win the game. And I’m sure Baltimore would be saying the same thing on their side. So yeah, I think there’s definitely a chance they could. It’s always tough to win on the road. I think, you know, we always were taught in the NFL, broad speaking, is you win at home and split on the road, you’re a playoff team. And I think that’s probably exactly what, you know, John Harbaugh’s prime team is, Hey, we gotta, we gotta win at home. We gotta protect our turf. It’s funny, you mentioned Mike Flynn. I still talk to Mike all the time, you know, great friend of mine. And you know, I always tell people all the time I said at the time I was a raven that, you know, I’d had no intentions. Always want to finish my career there and continue in there. But, you know, I had an opportunity to play for a team that I grew up with, my dad, Grandpa going to, and it just was a very unique situation. But I tell people all the time, Sam Cook was arguably one of the best punters I’ve ever seen play. So me, me leaving, and you guys getting Sam Cook probably worked out in your favor. So I think everybody, everybody was a win, win in that situation.

Nestor Aparicio  13:19

So as I see the stadium over your shoulder that I’ve been to so many times. I feel bad I didn’t go to that Def Leppard journey show last year when it was out there blossom, because I drove out to Cleveland for a couple days to see Sammy Hagar. Blossom was unbelievable. I love the rocking Wall of Fame. I came down to Tremont and had breakfast with lunch Bishop at Lucky’s cafe, one of my favorite places. Get the scones. They’re delicious. Get the ship wreck, but the stadium and downtown Cleveland. And I was telling stories about being in the flats in the 90s and running into Eddie Murray Cal Ripken last week at the Hooters down there and the basement. And, you know, in my youth, being there when the all star game was there, the 30th anniversary of the Indians being in the World Series is next month. So I’ve had great experiences in Cleveland. I’m sure I said that to you when we were younger, 30 years ago, when you were playing here. I would just say, for the stadium being there, I would think politically there, that’s a effing nightmare, the thought that they would move the ravens to Hunt Valley or Owings Mills or Bel Air or Columbia, or Glen Burnie or the Orioles to any of the above is really weird, and they pulled that stunt in Atlanta, moving the baseball team out. And, you know, I go down the racial line on that all day long, because I’ve been to Atlanta for all my life. But the Cleveland things really weird, because the Cavaliers played out in the middle of nowhere in Richfield forever. The blast used to go out there and play the force on the crunch. And I’ve been to the Convocation Center. I saw meatloaf at the Convocation Center. I saw Motley Crue and cheap trick the Convocation Center as well. I mean, I’ve been coming to Cleveland forever, but the notion that they’re going to take that sacred ground down there, the mistake on the lake. Jim brand, like everything had happened there, and move the stadium out by the airport. I’m trying to understand it, and I know Goodell is going to give him a Super Bowl and all, you’re the smartest guy I know, and you overlook the stadium. I mean, the winds weird out there, politically, in a lot of ways, right?

Dave Zastudil  15:18

Yeah. I mean, it’s, you know, the stadium, I think it was a 30 year lease. You know, the problem with the Cleveland Brown stadium is, I think when they they kind of, I wouldn’t say they rushed to build it, but, you know, it’s at a point now where, if you look at all the new stadiums being built all across the NFL, I mean, this is, it’s an experience. It’s a fan experience. That’s what, that’s what everybody wants. And you know, there really isn’t a lot of land where the The stadium is behind me, the parking is really difficult. Even season ticket holder that has season tickets have parked, you gotta go way off these 55th come down on a one, one way road. And it’s just, it’s not easy. And I think the, you know, what, what the Haslam sports group looked at was, you know, a they couldn’t, they couldn’t put a dome in downtown. They, they, if they were going to do remodeling, it was up to 600 100 Million it just wasn’t going to create the environment that I think they wanted to last for many, many years. And I think when they looked at what they’re doing in Berea, where their facility is, they’re adding on a whole wing of like a mini stadium that, you know, youth football can use. They’re adding, you know, they adding a bunch of medical buildings there and resources around that. Then if you put the stadium in Brook Park, which is shoot, it’s 510, minutes down the road, everything is right there. It’s probably 15 minutes from Cleveland, two minutes from the airport, which is one of the problems from the airport, and you’re put a building, a state of the art facility, that arguably, arguably would be the number one you know, stadium, really, at the time it’s built, and it’s got massive amount of opportunities for great park, and they’re going to build like, almost like a mini suburb around it, with restaurants and all. So there’s a lot of Spark here about the economic activity that can bring, really, the New England model, right? So you’re always going to have the people that it’s always got to be downtown, it’s got to be in the lake of traditions. But you also have some people that are seeing these things and going, Holy cow, this could bring Super Bowls. It could bring national soccer. It could bring concerts. It could bring a lot of things to Northeast Ohio. And I think it’s getting a little bit more people on the train when they’re seeing these renderings of what it could be,

Nestor Aparicio  17:16

8

yeah, well, I want to see in Cleveland, because I don’t want to fly in to Hopkins. And in a future life, I guess when bis doesn’t own the team, or whatever, whatever media becomes, where nobody wants to answer questions or have people qualify people like me to ask them after games. But if I flew in to Cleveland in the future, into the airport and stayed at the courtyard next to the stadium and walked in and out, I would have gone to Cleveland and never going to Cleveland. And I think part of this is the hall of fame. Being near there makes a really interesting pathway. And the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame for people like me that love music and want to come downtown, or people that want to avoid downtown can’t avoid downtown. And I think that that’s very unfortunate. Because I’ll say this, Dave, I’ll leave you with this, because what year were you born? I’m not googling you. What year was 1978 78 so you’re 10 years younger than me. You, without question, remember the Elway drive game?

Dave Zastudil  18:13

Correct? Oh yeah, oh yeah, right, oh yeah. That was our that was our youth. Yeah, that’s still, that’s still a tough, tough talking point here.

Nestor Aparicio  18:22

I got out of bed that day and Phil Jackman picked me up in his Nissan sentry. Went down to the airport. We flew on a United Airlines Flight, 605, we landed at 705, at Hopkins. We got on the RTA. We came into center city, tower city up. Hey, it’s Christmas story. Ralphie, the whole deal. We walked to the church right up. And because Jackman was a very religious we’re going to church. Don’t be a heathen. That’s my Jackman. He was from, uh, Worcester. Worcester mass. We lost Phil last year. Was talking about crazy uncles in my life. So Phil and I go into the church at 8am for the service, and we’re in there, and half the place is wearing dog masks. You can tell Dixon, miniford and minnifield, any of those guys, Ozzie, everybody’s in there wearing dog masks. And we walked from the church past the accused Steakhouse, John Q Steakhouse, down a hill over I’d never been to Cleveland in my life. I’d never been anywhere in my life. I was 17 years old, and I had a 50 yard line ticket that Ernie a corsi had gotten me for that game, and I went out wearing orange because I wanted to fit in between Denver and Cleveland. And I sat in Section 1050, yard line lower, and I watched Elway go into the end zone. I took the RTA back to the airport that night, so I go back to downtown football. And that’s just the beginning of the beginning. I was there when they were ripping the seats out and, you know, we stole the team. I was there when the team came back. I’ve been there all these years with you. I’ve seen a lot of football in downtown Cleveland. I don’t think I want to come to Cleveland and and have a suburban village instead of coming to downtown Cleveland. I mean, that’s how I feel about it. And I’m a tourist.

Dave Zastudil  19:58

Yeah, a lot of the old. Cool guys that grew up in the municipal stadium and the 99 team that came back. I mean, yeah, those are you’re getting a lot of history and memories that they love going downtown to do that. But I do think with people coming in from out of town, I still think they’ll stay downtown. They’ll see clean there’s a lot to do here. Now, with the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame, you got great restaurants, great theater district, the flats is what it is, and it’s about a, you know, 12 total, 15 minute yard drive down there. Excuse me, minute drive down there. So, you know, there’s only certain amount of places you can stay around that stadium. So I do think the city will, will still get some out of town tourists involved in these games. But it’s certainly a hot topic, you know, on the fans on which route they like. But, you know, I think once they commit to this, I think you’re just, we’re just going to have to get on board and try to support the new era bronze

8

Nestor Aparicio  20:45

football. I came out there for the agora. I came out there for the Listen man, the old baseball stadium, the new baseball stadium I was at. I’ve been out there for World Series games. I’ve been out there for all I’ve been out there for Billy Joel, I’ve been out I’ve been out there forever. I’ll keep coming to Cleveland. I love you folks. You know this, Dave, right?

Dave Zastudil  21:05

Oh, I know. I know. And I think what’s, what’s really cool about, you know, the city here, and you know, everybody, really, to be honest with you, we have all rivals, right? You know the, you know the city does with the AFC north and all that. But I think everybody respects the league. They they respect the other fans, because everybody’s the same. I mean, you look at, you know, the Steelers on the Browns left, they had, you know, rallies to try to get the Browns back into Cleveland, because they love the rivalry so much. So, you know, these games Baltimore, Cleveland, coming up on Sunday, it’s just so good for the fans. It’s so good for the sport. And I love it for the cities, because, you know, we’re all, you know, somewhat small town, small cities. And it just, it’s just the excitement to see people on the weekends getting where ravens, browns, and, you know, the old browns, new browns. It still never dies. And it’s going to be a fun, fun weekend.

Nestor Aparicio  21:52

I loved watching downtown Cleveland come to life, whether I was staying at the key Marriott, whether we’re staying up around the corner up, you know, up by the the restaurant row up there. I mean, the bowling alley in the corner. Now, you think I haven’t seen a show at the Playhouse? Come on, man.

Dave Zastudil  22:08

8

You know, you know the history here more than I they don’t have the basement. They don’t have Hooters anymore, flats to get revamped, but that was the old night. It’s got like, a

Nestor Aparicio  22:15

Margaritaville now with, like, yeah,

Dave Zastudil  22:19

and all these breweries, you know, we just wish the weather would stay longer,

Nestor Aparicio  22:23

because Scott don’t need all that bougie nonsense. Give me a John Q’s prime rib, for crying out loud, and a proper onion and a martini. Dave’s asked it all is here. He’s new school, old school, one of the few brownie and a raven, a brownie and a raven. So, you know, I got listen, I I’ve been honoring the old colts all week. So I’m doing all my old helmets here. I’m even doing, like, old belt buckles I’m not allowed to show for Cleveland. So, Mr. Logo, still myself. You guardians, fans out there and all that. You know, this thing never had a logo. And you know, everybody’s using that Kindler elf from 1946 I don’t understand that. Dave, you know,

8

Dave Zastudil  23:01

you know the it’s like any organization, they put up these surveys of the fans, and the fans pick and they try to make the fans happy. But you know, you know, the helmet, we’re just happy that they went back to the original face masks. You know, we went through the gray face mask, the dark brown face mask. Now it’s back to the orange and white, which is the, you know, the old, you know, good times that we really had here. You know

Nestor Aparicio  23:21

what really uniform that they should be wearing, if it was good enough for Jim Brown wear that one? That’s all. That’s all I would say. If Jim Brown wore it, it’s good enough to wear this Sunday. That’s what I would say.

Dave Zastudil  23:33

Yeah, those are they do. They do use the orange pants. I think they did at home the first week. They try to mix it up a little bit more than when I was there,

Nestor Aparicio  23:41

8

but those uniforms he looked from Brian’s site, that looked a lot sexier than whatever Flacco is going to walk at pajamas he’s going to walk out in here on Sunday. So, you know, that’s me being a Get off my lawn. The old old school laundry guy.

Dave Zastudil  23:54

That’s they would wear pink here, if they met, they would have a winning season. That’s how that’s how thirsty These fans are for some consistency. But it’s, you know, they’ll keep doing variety uniforms they always do.

Nestor Aparicio  24:07

Yeah, if I had a wacko for Flacco sign or a C Joe throw sign that I used to give out at the games, I’ll pull them out, but they’d be purple this week. But it isn’t. It’s an interesting game, and it’s all I’m going to say Dave as we get away. This is for the Ravens fans. Watch out for miles, Garrett, just don’t let him wreck the game. That’s all I would say on the on the Raven side of things, take care of yourself. My, my, thanks to you. Lots of kids, five kids. Big job, corner office. All that I’m I’m going to call you next time I come in to go to Lucky’s at Tremont, next time I go to the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame when they’re displaying something that’s going to get me on a plane and there’s a show out there or something. But I love coming to Cleveland. I miss coming to Cleveland on this I appreciate

Dave Zastudil  24:46

you always reaching out to me and, you know, staying connected at me on your show. It’s always fun to talk. Had wonderful members in Baltimore. I think it’s a wonderful town, great. I tell people all the time I still get gifts from Baltimore, from their legends Club, which is just. You know, so thankful, but it’s a top, top notch organization, always has

8

Nestor Aparicio  25:04

been. You want to tell you what ever comes to time for me you and your brother to rekindle a few Super Bowl beers? I’m down with that. So Dave’s astral joining us here from the oh how we’re going to hate Ohio, in northern Ohio, as the Cleveland Browns come in, looking to sort of wreck things for John Harbaugh here at oh one it’s been a tough week. Luke’s been at the castle all week. Any breaking news happens first on the W, N, S, T, tech service that is brought to you by cold roofing and Gordian energy, GBMC sponsor in the hotline trying to get me a colonoscopy before the fall is over. So I’m trying to be a good 56 almost 57 year old man here with old friends who kicked footballs for a living and now like run around with their kids and work in the insurance business in Cleveland. I’m Nestor Mondays. Well, you I told my wife I think zastitles a suit, and I’m not wrong, but you look you look good. You look marvelous, is what I would say

Dave Zastudil  25:57

if I were your age either. So

Nestor Aparicio  26:00

because I’m in Cleveland, and you’re my last segment of the week. I’m going to let my rock and roll hair down because, you know, I got, you know, I didn’t even do that for you. I didn’t let

Dave Zastudil  26:09

8

my rock some kind of

Nestor Aparicio  26:12

bond and stuff. But, yeah, well, it looks a little silly right now, that’s why I’m going to go. He’s Dave’s astel. I’m Nestor, football Sunday at one o’clock. I love football season. You.

Share the Post:
8

Paid Advertisement

Right Now in Baltimore

Lining up to talk DVOA and an offensive O line with The Godfather of modern analytics

Lining up to talk DVOA and an offensive O line with The Godfather of modern analytics

We all see the problems in the trenches for the Baltimore Ravens but how much impact has that had on the offense as a whole, which has been legendary in the football analytics space since Lamar Jackson arrived and revolutionized the position for the running game. The Godfather of DVOA and modern football analytics Aaron Schatz talks Ravens woes and NFL trends with Nestor.
The lost Super Bowl XXXV parade video from 2001 – the whole purple Festivus route to City Hall

The lost Super Bowl XXXV parade video from 2001 – the whole purple Festivus route to City Hall

Center Mike Flynn invited Nestor onto the Humvee to record this incredible "home movie" for a one-hour ride down Pratt Street onto the dais with the Lombardi Trophy to City Hall back on January 30, 2001. If you're a Baltimore Ravens fans, go find yourself in this beautiful mess...
Where is the Rubenstein and Arougheti commitment to winning for Orioles fans?

Where is the Rubenstein and Arougheti commitment to winning for Orioles fans?

It's a murky picture throughout Major League Baseball as the Winter Meetings begin and Eric Fisher of Front Office Sports returns to discuss the state of the game, on and off the field. And the business and labor of MLB and a pending working stoppage might be affecting much more than just the payroll of the Baltimore Orioles heading into 2026.
8
8
8

Paid Advertisement

Scroll to Top
Verified by MonsterInsights