The fresh faces of Santa Clara and Super Bowl LX

It’s not Belichick and Brady or The Legion of Boom but the franchises look familiar even if the matchup in Super Bowl LX in Santa Clara feels like old blood. Luke Jones and Nestor preview a compelling if not star-studded affair as the New England Patriots and Seattle Seahawks are doing it with fresh faces and familiar old friends.

Nestor Aparicio and Luke Jones discussed the upcoming Super Bowl 60 between the Patriots and Seahawks, highlighting the fresh faces and new dynamics of the game. They noted the defensive-minded coaching styles of Mike McDaniel and Mike Vrabel, and the potential for both teams to win. Jones praised Vrabel’s turnaround of the Patriots, while Aparicio emphasized the importance of coaching and the potential for the Ravens to follow a similar path. They also discussed the rise of Sam Darnold and Drake May as quarterbacks, and the broader implications for NFL coaching and quarterback strategies.

• [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Attend scheduled in-person Super Bowl week appearances and give away candy cane cash $3 scratch-off tickets at the listed locations and days: Fay Lee’s (Monday), El Guapo/Mossapazole in Catonsville (Tuesday), Koco’s in Lauraville (Wednesday), Pizza John’s in Essex (Thursday), and Costas in Timonium (Friday); represent sponsors on-site
• [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Publish Farnan and Dermer sponsor information (including website and contact phone) on the WNST website and coordinate on-air mentions/promotions
• [ ] @Nestor Aparicio – Collect canned goods during Super Bowl week events and personally deliver the donated items to local pantries and shelters by Friday

Super Bowl Week Kickoff and Sponsorships

• Nestor Aparicio welcomes listeners to WNST 1570 Towson, Baltimore, and mentions the ongoing Super Bowl week activities.
• Nestor discusses the various locations where they will be giving away $3 candy cane cash scratch offs, including Costas in Dundalk, Timonium, and other locations.
• Nestor thanks their sponsors, GBMC, the Maryland lottery, and Farnan and Dermer, highlighting their support for the Super Bowl week events.
• Nestor humorously mentions the challenges of eating a half pizza at Pizza John’s in Essex and plans to blame Terry for it.

Super Bowl Matchup and Local Perspectives

• Nestor and Luke Jones discuss the matchup between the Patriots and Seahawks, noting the fresh faces and new dynamics in the game.
• Nestor mentions the lack of traditional star power like Tom Brady or Aaron Rodgers in this Super Bowl, making it a unique event.
• Luke Jones expresses his belief that Seattle is the better team but acknowledges the Patriots’ potential to win if their defensive line performs well.
• Luke highlights the local relevance of the matchup, comparing it to the Ravens’ hiring of a defensive-minded head coach, Mike McDonald.

Coaching Influence and Second Chances

• Nestor and Luke discuss the importance of coaching in football, with a focus on Mike McDonald and Mike Vrabel.
• Nestor mentions Mike McDaniel’s background and his potential for getting another head coaching job despite his recent struggles with the Dolphins.
• Luke reflects on the second chances in coaching, using examples like Vrabel and Jim Schwartz, and how they can lead to better performances.
• Nestor emphasizes the significance of veteran coaches like Vrabel and the potential for the Ravens to benefit from similar coaching experiences.

Patriots’ Turnaround and Drake May’s Progression

• Luke Jones credits Vrabel for turning around the Patriots, noting their improvement from a perceived lack of talent to Super Bowl contenders.
• Luke discusses Drake May’s development, highlighting his potential and the favorable schedule the Patriots faced.
• Nestor and Luke talk about the challenges Drake May faced in rough weather conditions and against strong defenses, but also his impressive playoff performances.
• Luke compares the current Patriots’ situation to the Ravens’ potential for success under new coaching leadership.

Seahawks’ Success and Sam Darnold’s Journey

• Nestor and Luke shift their focus to the Seahawks, with Luke predicting their victory based on their overall performance.
• Luke praises Sam Darnold’s journey from being perceived as a bust to a potential Super Bowl-winning quarterback.
• Nestor and Luke discuss the Seahawks’ strategy of acquiring a middle-class quarterback like Darnold and the potential for other teams to follow a similar path.
• Luke highlights the importance of a good defensive roster and coaching staff in achieving success without a top-tier quarterback.

Future Prospects for the Ravens and NFL Dynamics

• Nestor and Luke discuss the potential for the Ravens to emulate the success of the Seahawks and Patriots under new coaching leadership.
• Luke emphasizes the importance of Jesse Minter and the young coaches in the Ravens’ organization in developing players like Lamar Jackson and Kyle Hamilton.
• Nestor reflects on the changing dynamics of the NFL, with a focus on defensive-minded coaches and quarterbacks who are not traditional stars.
• Luke and Nestor conclude by discussing the potential for new stars to emerge from this year’s Super Bowl and the impact on the league’s future.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

Super Bowl 60, Patriots, Seahawks, Mike McDonald, Drake May, Sam Darnold, defensive minded coaches, NFL playoffs, quarterback talent, coaching impact, Ravens, NFL free agency, Maryland lottery, GBMC.

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SPEAKERS

Luke Jones, Nestor Aparicio

Nestor Aparicio  00:01

Welcome home. We are W, N, S, T. Am 1570 Towson, Baltimore. We are Baltimore. Positive it is Super Bowl week around here. We call it a cup of soup or bowl. We’re going to be at all week long, giving away these candy cane cash scratch offs. They are the $3 tickets. They’ve been a lucky batch. Thus far, we did have $100 winner at Costas and Dundalk hope to make that happen again at Costas and Timonium on Friday, out all week, fatley is on Monday, Tuesday, we move to not stay fair. We said originally, we’ll guapo across street having the pole. Wednesday, will be at Koco’s in laraville. Thursday to Pizza John’s in Essex, where I swallowed a pizza on Saturday night, almost whole. I eat half a pizza in booth number 21 there the other night. So I’m going to blame Terry for that on Friday. And then, of course, on Friday will be a cost of cintimonium. All that brought to you by our friends at GBMC, as well as the Maryland lottery and our newest sponsor at Farnan and Dermer. They are the comfort guys. You can find them at Farnan and dermer.com family owned and operated since 1902 they are keeping our H back together and providing all of our sports coverage. You’ll be hearing more about air conditioning in the summer, heating in the winter, indoor air quality, plumbing, all that stuff. They do it. And you could find them with with one phone call, 410-600-7964, or just find them at Farnan dermer.com we will have them up on the website, and Luke will probably have them on his chest or his head at some point when I go get a shirt. All right, dude, if we were in San Francisco right now, we would be having margaritas. We’d be walking around union, and I tell you what, San Francisco’s really a challenged area. If you were to go back 10 years later, I made it there twice in the last couple years, but we’d be at the Super Bowl, and we’d be talking about this matchup. We would talk about it with every guest that we have and all of that. So I did want to open the oxygen here, and I know we’re going to get some spring training in. We’re going to talk about Pete Alonso and maybe from revoldes, maybe not, but for the Super Bowl itself and the game, I just want to throw it to you, because we’re not going to do a lot of seg. Going to do a lot of segments this week on Mike McDonald. We’re going to do more on, you know, Jesse Minter. I keep wanting to call him Rick Minter, by the way, too, which is I’ve been saying Rick Minter for a long time, because I wrote about his dad in Purple Rain too, because his dad was a foundational part of John AR ball. So, but all that being said, McDonald Mike Vrabel, rookie quarterback and Drake May, pretty much young guy, a guy with a chance to do this and then the Sam darnold thing. If I had the Moscone Center behind me in downtown San Francisco, right next to the Denny’s open all night, we would have the two quarterbacks over our shoulders and the little logo and guys in gold jackets would be coming by, we would have to talk about this game. It’s pretty good football game. I think the two best teams showed up. That doesn’t happen often, and the two best teams don’t have Tom Brady, they don’t have Aaron Rodgers, they don’t have Peyton Manning. This is, you know, I mean, a whole bunch of new faces, other than Vrabel, who’s been there a couple times with a uniform on, right?

Luke Jones  03:03

Yeah. I mean, I as far as the two best teams, think Seattle’s the best team. Now, will New England be the better team for three hours on Sunday night? I mean, that’s that’s sports, right? So, but Seattle, you heard me going back to even November, I thought Seattle and the Rams were the two best teams in football, and the NFC Championship game, to me, felt more like the true Super Bowl, but that said the Patriots are gonna have something to say about it, and there’s a path for them to win if their defensive line, their defensive front, can continue to do what it’s done throughout the month of January now in early February. But I think what’s interesting about this, from a local flavor standpoint, is, if you’re the ravens, you know, if you’re a Ravens fan, forget about the organization for a moment, if you just us regular guys, right? If you’re looking at this, you see two defensive minded head coaches. Well, the Ravens just Hi, hired a defensive minded head coach, and in recent years, it’s been offense, offense, offense, right? It’s been Andy Reid, it’s been Nick Sirianni, it’s been Sean McVay. I mean, you look down the list, I mean, even the losing, even Shanahan, he’s, yeah, right, exactly. Even the Super Bowl loser has been an offensive minded head coach. So that’s refreshing. I think that’s refreshing, just in a general sense, too, right? I mean, you don’t want the same thing to happen every single year. It’s why we get sick of the chiefs. That’s why we got sick of the Patriots after two decades, right? I mean, for as much as we talk about dynasties, the only, the only ones who really enjoy the dynasty are that fan base. Everyone else is just rooting against that dynasty. But you have that dynamic. You have the mike McDonald dynamic, obviously, with his ties with the Ravens. And then on the flip side, you have Mike Vrabel, who, of course, is not a first time head coach, but he’s a rookie Head Coach in New England. It’s his first year as the head coach in New England, and he’s taken the patriots who going into the year we’re not at all. Perceived to be this way. In fact, it’s always funny I go back and I don’t really do this to be overly critical of myself, because predictions and all that kind of stuff is just for entertainment purposes anyway. But I didn’t make a specific prediction on the Patriots, but I went back and looked when the Ravens schedule was released, and we knew that the Ravens were going to play the Patriots in December. My comment was that, like Ray boo has a chance to have this team playing pretty good football as the year goes on. I mean, lo and behold. I mean, that was the understatement of the year, because of how well they played. But I mean, the Patriots were perceived to be lack of talent. I mean, even last year. I mean, I thought people who really paid attention liked what they saw from Drake May, but not to the degree that you thought he was going to be an MVP candidate his second year. I think it was much more like, well, this kid kind of acquitted himself well, considering he didn’t have a whole lot around him as a rookie. But for them to make the jump, and I’ll hear, believe me, they played one of the easiest schedules that you’ll find. I mean, there’s, there’s just no way to deny that they’ve played an incredibly favorable schedule when it comes to the stars aligning, to go from where they were last year under the previous regime to what they’ve done this year under Mike Vrabel. That said that doesn’t mean you have to apologize for that. That doesn’t mean that they haven’t taken care of business. You know, one thing that’s been interesting has been some of the dialog around Drake May and and look, he hasn’t put together an overly impressive statistical playoff run here, if you’re talking about him individually, that said he’s played in some really rough weather conditions, and he’s played against some really good defenses. Now the weather should be much more favorable this time around. Playing Santa Clara, you would certainly hope so. But he’s going up against the Seahawks defense. It’s really nasty, so that’s going to be fascinating. But again, to kind of look at it just from a raven’s perspective, obviously, Mike McDonald. We’ve talked about it as much as people will compare Jesse Minter to the HAR balls, and understandably so. I think the more exciting way to look at that is this is kind of the Ravens version of a mulligan for letting you know for Mike McDonald getting away two years ago, not that they were, they weren’t going to fire John two years ago. Like, right, right. I mean, like, let’s live in reality. But this was kind of a kind of sort of mulligan for for that. And in the case of Rabel, even though he had been a head coach previously, and Jesse Minter is doing this for the first time, it’s still a first a guy in a new spot in the first year doing what he did. I mean, anyone who talked looked at the Patriots a year ago certainly views the Ravens far more favorably right now than you would have viewed the Patriots a year ago, and they’re in the Super Bowl. So it’s it shows, it does very much show how

Nestor Aparicio  07:53

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important Coach, how important coaching is. Coaching matters. I mean, yes, you need to have the Jimmy’s and the Joe’s, and I’ll continue to talk about the players, you and I talked about that in our previous segment, as far as players themselves needing to be better. But coaching is really important. And you, I think you have two of the more highly regarded coaches in football. In variables case, he’s been around, but in Mike McDonald’s case, receives damaged goods after Tennessee, right? I mean, yes, and no one, a lot of games there. And by the way, you know, I when you see guys, you know, move around and you look at their record, Mike McDaniel, and I looked him up because I shared a I had the audacity to share a picture of nine white guys and Robert Sala and saying the hiring cycle in the NFL was all white guys. It was like a Trump cabinet. So I’m taking all the abuse that I usually take as the Venezuelan guy who’s been banned himself, you know, for all of this, but I Mike McDaniel is it has an African American father. I did not know that and but I looked it up that he identifies realistically, but he didn’t get a head coaching job. And I looked at his record, he wasn’t nearly as bad in Miami as you think he was like if you looked at his record. So he’s had the dolphins. He had a quarterback that had got hit in the head for three years and tried to make it go because they had a contract with him. And like all of that, there was a lot of question about the General, General Manager, bringing the players in there. He was an above 500 coach in Miami, made the playoffs two out of the four years he was there, and he got canned. And I’m thinking he’ll get a job again, like he’ll get a job again, because he was really young the first time around, and he got a couple of interviews last week right away. I think there is something about four or five years and getting your teeth kicked in and losing some playoff games that the second time around, Mike vrabel’s Way better this time around, in the way that I believe Jim Schwartz would be way better around in the way that anytime you get a second chance. Raheem Morris, I don’t know, yeah, I’m just thinking of other people who had a second chance. Vrabel is the poster child now for second chance, in a way that before that there are plenty of bells. Belichick’s The Second Chance guy. He failed in Cleveland, right? So that second time around, the Ravens didn’t experience that hiring mentor. They didn’t but they had that opportunity to bring on and you know, the owner spent 10 minutes on the podium when he was with you two weeks ago, before he didn’t show up last week to talk about, don’t discount veteran coaches and Vrabel, there goes, your your walk on that. I think,

Luke Jones  10:27

yeah, well, and I would push back a little bit from the standpoint of, I think variable was still very well regarded even when Tennessee fired him. I think, I think a lot of people saw through that and said, I mean, that that organization doesn’t know what they’re doing. I mean, he he had Derrick Henry, and he’d be the first to tell you he had Derrick Henry. And certainly they had some defenses. And we’re going back to like when they came into Baltimore and upset Lamar, the Lamar second year, right when the Ravens went 13 and three and and look or at No, they went 14 and two. Sorry. But you know that that they had a reputation, and for whatever reason, ownership and management there felt they needed to make a change, when, to me, it was very evident that you need better players. This guy’s proven that you can win with him, and they just didn’t have very good players that by the time he was at the end there. So, so yeah, they moved on from him. He took his, you know, his one year sabbatical, or whatever you want to call it, so to speak. I mean, what he was with the Browns as a consultant in 2024 and then, you know, the Patriots job becomes available. And hey, I mean, it was a perfect fit there, obviously, given his history in Foxborough, so but, But your point is well taken, and it really is a reminder of how important the environment is, right? We talk about this a lot with players, but it applies for coaches too, you know? And maybe this is, you know, I’ll give my little plug for Todd monk in here for 30 seconds, right? I think, you know, I’m happy for Todd Monken. I will continue to say, I will continue to push back at any notion that Todd Monckton didn’t do a good job with Lamar Jackson. Lamar Jackson played the best football of his career in 2023 and 24 should have been a back to back MVP, in my opinion. So. But that said, Do I like Todd monkens chances in Cleveland? No, in the same way that I don’t really would like anyone’s chances in Cleveland. That’s just the reality. I think Kevin Stefanski, it’s gonna be interesting to see how he does in Atlanta. All things being equal. Now, I still have my doubts about their quarterback situation with pennix’s health and Kirk Cousins, age and, you know, kind of his limitations. But I thought Stefanski, anytime he had even a hint of decent quarterback play, he did pretty well for them, like they, they made the playoffs, right? They made the playoffs a couple times under him, So, but, but to bring it back to Vrabel, I think he’s such a I think he’s such a good mix of old school in terms of he’s got the credibility. He’s won rings. He had a long NFL career as a player. But where sometimes former players can run into trouble is, I don’t want to, and I don’t even want to say that they rest on their laurels, because that implies that they’re lazy or not working hard, or anything like that. And I’m not making that accusation at all, but I do think sometimes there’s a an expectation of, oh, well, because this guy was a great player, or because this guy worked for this guy or that guy, there’s an assumption that he’s going to be great at the job when there’s a lot more to it. And yeah, you need to continue to work and grow and evolve and get better as a coach as well. And I think Mike drabble is the kind of guy who’s done that, so that’s where you look at this thing. And oh, yeah, I don’t want to bury the lead here. He walked into a situation where he had a franchise quarterback, which he did not have in Tennessee, right? I mean, they had Ryan Tannehill for playing decent football for a couple, a couple seasons, but hardly anyone you’d view as like a Lamar, Josh Allen, Patrick mahomes, Joe burrow, a Jalen Hurts kind of franchise quarterback. So he walks into New England, and he clearly liked Drake May. And, you know, I’ll go back to what I said a few minutes ago. I mean, I think anyone who I remember watching Drake may in December of his rookie year, and I think they were playing the chargers, and they got beat pretty, pretty handily. But watching him in that game, it’s like, you know, this guy’s competing, and you can tell he doesn’t have a whole lot around them, and you can tell he’s a rookie, and, you know, not, not very good right now, but there were enough flashes to say, if they get, you know, they they figure out their coaching situation, and they put enough talent around him, he looks like he could have an IT factor that could make him one of those guys eventually. Lee, I didn’t think it was gonna be this year, let’s be clear. But I think brabel liked that situation, and he walks into it, and you’ve got a young quarterback that blossoms, and oh yeah, brabel also has McDaniel as his offensive coordinator. Josh McDaniels, who say what you want about him in terms of what’s happened as a head coach, but I think his track record as an offensive coordinator at this point speaks for itself, and I get it. He worked with Brady a long time. Imagine that good coaches working with good players, right? But, but I think that’s ended up being a good combination. And to your point, it is a reminder that for as much as like the Ravens were talking about all this newness, right? And there’s upside, and they’re bold hires, and that doesn’t mean they won’t work out, let me be clear, but it does make you take pause because of the lack of experience you look in New England, even though it is a new regime. I mean, Mike fraval’s experienced. He’s got a really, I mean, as experienced of an offensive coordinator as anyone you know when you’re talking about Josh McDaniel. So that’s that’s an infrastructure guys failed his head coaches. There you go. Yeah, what a fantastic coordinator, you know. Say what you want about him as a head coach. So that’s where you just look at that thing and say, Man, they turn that thing around quickly, even with the perception being that they didn’t have. And I would even say, now I still don’t know if I’d look at that roster across the board and say, oh my goodness, that’s an unbelievable roster, but what I would say is that’s a coaching staff that’s getting the most that they can out of a roster, and that’s where, again, to kind of bring it from a raven’s perspective. You’re hoping that Jesse Minter and these young coaches that there might be some initial growing pains, but you’re hoping the upsides there that they’re going to take Lamar Jackson to a new level, and they’re going to take Kyle Hamilton to a new level, and, you know, go down the list of Nate Wiggins and Malachi Starks and some of the younger guys on the roster as well. So, but, you know, you look at both these teams, I mean, neither one of them were even in the playoffs last year. I mean, the Seahawks were, what, 10 and seven. It’s not like they were horrible and Mike McDonald’s first year, but they weren’t what they

Nestor Aparicio  17:07

are this year. Well, they wanted a quarterback. They needed a quarterback. They did, and that’s a defensive coach, right?

Luke Jones  17:12

Sure. So, I mean, the quarterback matters. I mean, it matters, but that all that being said, it is, it is fun to kind of look at this thing, and you have two defensive minded head coaches, and you have two quarterbacks who are not quarterback royalty in this league just yet, right? They’re not mahomes. They’re not Josh Allen, who’s still waiting for one of them will be on Monday morning. Well, they’re right, but I’m just saying, like as much as we’ve talked about, Allen Lamar, Joe burrow, right, like these guys that are waiting to get their first Super Bowl, and I know burrow made it to one, but win one, it is wild to think that Sam darnold or Drake may are going to be a Super Bowl winning coach or coach quarterback, which is also a reminder, it’s a team game at the end of The day, right? I mean, it’s a team game. But, you know, in the case of darnold, you know, came into a, you know, was in a good environment in Minnesota, then went into another good environment in Seattle, and now has taken his game to new heights, and didn’t win in spite of his team like he or they didn’t win in spite of him like he played great football in the in the title game. So, you know, he’s earned it. That’s been cool to see for him. And in the case of Drake May, I mean, you know, year two, I mean, you win that, then people start to look at you differently in the way that you think of Tom Brady, winning a Super Bowl in his second year. Patrick mahomes Winning a Super Bowl in his second year. So not that Drake May is going to become those guys, necessarily, but that’s the kind of space you’re in right now. I mean, that’s the kind of territory you’re in. I mean, Jalen Hurts won, you know, won a Super Bowl, not in his second year, but made it to a Super Bowl in what his third year. I think that was. So, you know, Joe burrow made it to a Super Bowl in his second year. So, it is, you know, it’s definitely, it’s fun, you know, and there’s some, there’s a fresh even if, even if it is the Patriots, it’s a different kind of patriots, right? It’s not Belichick and Brady. I’m not saying I’m happy that the Patriots are back in this position, but it is at least a different sort of, different regime. So, you know, you just look at it if, from a Ravens perspective, there’s, there’s at least some threads you can pull on here and say, hey, if things break right, and di cost makes the right moves, and Jesse Minter and his staff are up to the challenge, and Lamar has got his contract, and guys stay healthy, and these players take a step forward, you know, it’s not, it’s not impossible envisioning the Ravens being in that position a year from now. That said, there’s a lot of work they’re going to have to do between now and then.

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Nestor Aparicio  19:47

He’s Luke Jones. We are not in San Francisco. We’re doing a cup of soup or bowl this week. You can find Luke out knowings Mills when the time is needed. And if you’re on the wnst tech service brought to you by Cole roofing and Gordian energy, you will get any breaking news. News First, I don’t might be more on a from or Valdes side, or some low level trade for the Orioles, that it’s going to be ravens oriented news here in the coming week. But from the Super Bowl perspective, you’ve given me the whole New England thing. You haven’t talked about the Seahawks. And let’s be honest, dude, they’re going to win, right?

Luke Jones  20:17

I think so. I mean, and look, I’m not going to sit here and make some bold proclamation that they win by four touchdowns or anything crazy, but I just think they’re a better team. I think the NFC was better than the AFC this year, and they’ve been the best of the best.

Nestor Aparicio  20:31

And you better start giving Sam darnold Some flowers, dude, you know, or some coffee from Seattle.

Luke Jones  20:36

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Nothing else been a great story. And I mean, look, it’s a big reason why Clint pub Acts about ready to become a head coach, right? Again, landing in a spot that I don’t necessarily love his chances, but, but I mean, he’s, he’s a great story, I mean, and it really started the year before that, right? I mean, in Minnesota, and I get it the way that the year ended with him with the Vikings, that was tarnished. I get it he really struggled in their last two games, like really struggled. But you’re talking about someone who, once upon a time, was a really big deal, you know? You’re talking about someone who was at USC and and I remember, he was one of those guys that you talked about for a couple years. He was going to save the Jets, right? But, but he was one of those guys that you talked about a couple years before he got to the NFL. That’s what kind of Prospect he was. You know, he’s the third overall pick. But you were aware of Sam darnold in 2016 you know, a couple years before he was drafted. Where you say, Man, that guy, whether it’s the Jets, the browns, whoever it’s,

Nestor Aparicio  21:35

the way we looked at burrow, we looked at all those guys, that question, yeah, no question. But he

Luke Jones  21:39

was, he was in that space. He’s not just that, you know, you’re kind of on your radar. Your last year in college, he was on the radar for a couple How about this? He’s a franchise quarterback, no question. But he goes to the Jets who was available last year, and nobody wanted him really, right? Well, I mean, they, I mean the Seahawks wanted

Nestor Aparicio  21:58

them, but he’s good, but he’s not good enough. Was the feeling. That’s what Minnesota thought, yeah,

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Luke Jones  22:02

I mean, I mean, the Seahawks got him for three years, $100.5 million 33 million a year, right? I mean, that’s, it’s not much compared to what the franchise quarterbacks are making so but, but he’s someone that I think clearly has shown a lot of resolve. You know, when you consider what he went through in New York. Look, I mean, I’m it’s not all on the Jets. It’s not all on his previous coaches. I mean, he needed to get better too. But you land in Minnesota, you work with Kevin O’Connell, who’s perceived to be this coach whisperer. It’s kind of funny now to look at what’s happened with the Vikings, you know, with the front office and everything now, where you do wonder, where they kind of look at that and say, Man, in hindsight, should have kept Sam darnold, right? I mean, whole thing with JJ McCarthy, well, this kid doesn’t look like he can play either. I mean, it looks not good. Well, that said Sam darnold didn’t look like he could play the first few years, right? So you never really know. But the point is, he went to Minnesota. He made strides there. It didn’t end the way he wanted it to, the way they wanted it to, as far as with them trying to be the number one seed and make a playoff run and all that. He goes to Seattle, the Seahawks, as I mentioned, the Seahawks weren’t bad under Mike McDonald the first year, but I think they identified pretty clearly in saying, like Geno Smith, isn’t it? Like he’s not going to get us where we need to go. We need we need better. We can’t necessarily, like we’re not going to go get Lamar Jackson necessarily, but we need better than Gino Smith. So they bring in Sam darnold. They’ve coached him up. He’s played well. And you know what’s kind of interesting about this run? I mean, how he’s played in January. Go look at his numbers. Over the last six weeks of the regular season, he wasn’t playing very well. I mean, he just wasn’t and so, so it’s been pretty remarkable to see, not just the way the Seahawks have played collectively, but for him to play. I mean, what? He had 350 yards and three touchdowns against the Rams in the championship game. I mean, he was fantastic. So it has been a really good story, and I like it from this standpoint. I because I mentioned the defensive minded head coaches, and just in general, when you see this, especially if it’s darnold and the Seahawks that win, which is what I’m expecting, what I think it’s what most people expect, who aren’t Patriots fans, but I like it from the standpoint of, this is not a top tier quarterback. This is a middle class quarterback, from a standpoint of, he’s not one of the top paid guys, and he’s not someone that’s on his rookie contract, right? We’ve kind of talked about it in those terms, about the haves and the have nots for quarterbacks in recent years, right? I mean, we’ve talked about it in terms of, if you’re not Patrick mahomes, you better be a quarterback that’s on a rookie deal, like what the Eagles did with Jalen Hurts, you know, I guess the first time, you know when they made it. But you kind of just look at this and you say, hmm. Um, maybe, if you’ve got a heck of a defensive roster and you’ve got good coaches, and you can make a savvy quarterback acquisition, you know, you say maybe, like I would say, if you’re the Steelers right now, for example, right? And put, put aside the Mike McCarthy and and all you know, all the Baltimore, Pittsburgh hate. But if you’re kind of looking at that, you’re saying, Man, is there another move to be made out there? Is there another Sam darnold out there that we could sign someone that we’re gonna have to give real money to, but not the top of shelf, absolute elite, stupid money to write. I mean, think about some of the contracts right now that you see, like tua, Tonga, meloa, I mean, the dolphins are going to be paying the consequences of that for the next year or two, right? I think you look at someone like, you know, the Jaguars right now, with Trevor Lawrence, can Trevor Lawrence win a Super Bowl, especially with what he’s being, you know, the money, his tax bracket, you know? Is he really good enough to justify that? Or are the Seahawks in a really good spot here right now with Sam darnold Now they win a Super Bowl, Sam darnold might say, hey, I want to get paid like 33 million. That’s not going to work for me. Dog, you know, I but point is, it’s another path to doing this that isn’t just you have a top five quarterback or you’ve got a quarterback on a rookie contract. So I think that’s where you it’s fun for the rest of the league to kind of look at this because, you know, that’s where I look at someone like Malik Willis, you know, this offseason, who had a, had a great run, you know, great stint here with the Packers. I mean, we saw what Malik Willis did against the Ravens defense in weeks, week 17. So, you know, is there some team that’s going to look at Malik Willis and say, we give him a nice contract? You know, we’re not gonna have to give him $50 million anything crazy, but gonna have to give him some real money. Could he be our sam darnold? It’s just an interesting way of thinking about it. So like teams like the Steelers right now who are in complete Super Bowl purgatory, or super quarterback purgatory, in terms of not having a good, good enough draft pick, the draft one, but not really being in a position to, you know, that you have one that’s nearly good enough. You know, is there a way to go do that? Because the Seahawks, they did it, right? They got a quarterback in that middle class territory. So I just, you know, anytime someone does something differently in this league, I think it’s just refreshing, because, you know, we kind of get into these patterns of what we think you need to win, and yeah, you still need good quarterback play, and you still need really good quarterback play, but we also know that not every team has Patrick mahomes, Josh Allen, Lamar, Jackson, Joe burrow, right, like the top of the top, and even some of those guys are still waiting to get their first title, right?

Nestor Aparicio  27:51

Well, they could all sit at home this week while they watch Sam darnold and and Drake may over my shoulder here in San Francisco.

Luke Jones  27:57

Yeah, yeah. I mean, and it doesn’t mean that. Doesn’t mean Drake May and Sam darnold are better than those guys. I mean, we know there are lots of variables at work here, but again, I think it’s fun to just see teams that are doing it a little bit differently than what the norm has become in recent years. And again, that’s where I kind of look at this thing through the Raven’s lens of saying, hey, Jesse Minter, if Mike McDonald and Mike Mike Ray could get there. What’s not to say Jesse Minter can’t lead the Ravens there in a couple years, in the next couple years, right? You know, sooner than later, you hope so. I just think it’s, it’s fun. It’s fun to kind of see teams do things a little bit differently than what the norm has become. And, you know, for as much as, and I’ve been, as, I don’t even want to say guilty, I think it’s just been kind of what the expectations been. Expectations been in recent years. It’s been offense, offense, offense, quarterback, quarterback, quarterback. It is, has been fun to see two teams that have a little more of a defensive minded approach, paying off here as they’re meeting in Santa Clara on Sunday evening.

Nestor Aparicio  28:57

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He is Luke Jones. He is Baltimore, Luke. We’re not really at the Moscone Center. I just like the background. You like that? You like this like thanks to Matt nehagen, my old boss from Sporting News Radio, works for Odyssey out in San Francisco, who who did a little run around, looks like Leland scar is also. We have a bass player here, you know as well behind us here at the Moscone Center, we’re doing a cup of soup or bowl this week, on behalf of our partners at GBMC, as well as the Maryland lottery, I’ll have candy cane cash scratch offs to give away. We have a new sponsor or two, farnand and Dermer. You can find them out on the web, F, A R, N, E n, d e r, M E R. They are the comfort guys. You may have heard about them around town, because they’ve only been doing this for like, 125 years at this point, around Baltimore, whether it’s indoor air quality, heating, air conditioning, HVAC, and certainly when it’s cold as hell, like right now, you need them on your side. Family owned and operated serving Maryland since 1902 it is Farnan and Dermer. Our newest sponsor, Raven scratch offs to give away if you come down this week, families on Monday, Tuesday, we’re at El Guapo and mossapazole over in Catonsville when. Wednesday, we were at Koco’s in lauraville. Thursday, we are at Pizza John’s in Essex. I still have a little bit of Hawaiian pizza and delicious chef salad in my fridge right now. Friday will be a cost this intimonium, and it’s going to be a great week, as we’ve talked Super Bowl. And you know, you and I did this for a number of years. I did 27 of these radio rows Super Bowl weeks, and people coming by and celebrities and all that now it’s all gambling and podcasters and all of that stuff. I don’t miss doing it in that it was becoming a diminishing asset in that way. But I do miss the part where you come around and you talk to people who really know football and want to talk about the games and talk about the off season, that there is a level of expertise that the week provided, and relationships that all the relationships I have, I still have, I can still find them and grab people. But this is, this is a fascinating game for me in a lot of ways, because it doesn’t have the star power that the league always has, right like, if Sam darnold or Drake may were next to you on an airplane, other than being 6465, you might look at them and say who their faces are not synonymous with the sport, not even the coaches. There’s no Andy Reid. There’s no discount. Double check, there’s no Patrick mahomes there. I mean, there’s not even Derek Henry has commercials like so part of this is um number zero on the Seahawks over here, the other player, the two zeros. Do people even know who they are yet? This is their chance to create star power. That to your point, burrow, Lamar, Josh Allen, the biggest stars in the sport are watching this game, and I don’t even know who the biggest star in the game is, or that there’s anybody in the game that I’m like Hall of Famer, for sure, that guy. It’s a weird matchup in that way. It’s a very sort of like my wife’s soup on the day she makes it. It’s a little young. You have to wait till like Wednesday or Thursday, when she makes the soup on the weekend to really taste it. This thing might be something five years from now, when one of these cats or McDonald’s in his third Super Bowl, and the Ravens are on their next coach, or the Patriots become dynasty oriented, because this kid’s special, and they got a great coach, and they have an organization there where they can make that happen. And they’re in a division that sucks. I mean, the bills suck. They fired their coach after they got good Dumb, dumb for me, like to me, the bills, they keep sliding down the mountain. And then there was the press conference. They’re in a division with the Jets. They’re in a division with Miami. Can’t get out of their own way. Get used to seeing the Patriots. And I’ll tell you, what, if Minter becomes anything, they’re gonna be some cold January’s up there where you have to go up there and steal their lunch money. Their lunch money. That’s very well possible. Sure To answer your question, DeMarcus Lawrence, Where’s number zero for the Seahawks? Demarcus Lawrence, five times, mainly with the Cowboys, right? I’m just saying like if I asked 99 out of 100 regular people on the street, not football nerds or gambling any like in on it. These are not known quantities in the way that even legion of boom and you know what they had before, or certainly the patriots, who were always a bunch of Teddy brews, keys and and really good players, Rodney Harris, guys that were on the Hall of very, very good, but Brady and Belichick were on the on the days every year, and that was enough for them. This is, this is a fresh thing for the league, I think, in a way that most Super Bowls we went to, we were either dealing with mahomes or Brady or Manning or something that felt larger than life. There’s nothing about this dace that feels larger than life to me right this minute.

Luke Jones  33:40

Yeah, I think that’s mostly fair. I would say I think brabel has a little more recognition than than because he was on some of those Brady teams, and he’s been a head coach, has been for a number of years. But to your point, because you made mention of Drake May and Sam darnold, Mike McDonald on the street, I don’t think anyone. I think even football fans, you know, not Seahawks fans, are not Ravens fans, but your average football fan, if Mike McDonald was just walking

Nestor Aparicio  34:08

down walk around New York or Chicago or LA, nobody knows who he is on a plane. And if there wasn’t a Seahawks fan on the plane, they he would not he would travel. Now that’s going to be different for him in Annapolis in March when he comes in for right? I mean,

Luke Jones  34:22

it’s changed from this point forward now, but, yeah, so, so, yeah, but that’s fine. I mean, that’s what makes this fun. I mean, look, I still remember vividly I was a freshman, well, or I guess what that would have been my Yeah, it was my freshman year in college, the Patriots when they did. You know the tuck the tuck roll, you’re like that whole thing that run. Think about how we perceive the Patriots later on, they were every like everyone was rooting for the Patriots in that Super Bowl. Tom Brady, like really drew bledsoe’s backup. Say what you. One about Belichick. I mean, at that point, Belichick was perceived to just be a failed head coach, right, who was getting another chance somewhere else. You know, we thought of it as the brat, the Browns head coach, but like Brady, like you think about how that was perceived, and then what he became, and then how he’d be perceived, like, how they were perceived as the heels, right? Like, put

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Nestor Aparicio  35:20

when, when it’s like, a six round draft pick in the Super Bowl, be the same thing about, like, the 40 Niners making it right? I mean, there is something about Donald that we’ve talked about that said he had the stripes to some degree to be this guy. But may has been that from the beginning he was a lottery. I mean, he’s supposed to be a good player, right?

Luke Jones  35:41

But, but, but, until, until you do it, and then you start doing it multiple times, then, then they hate you for it. But right now, yeah, there’s the newness

Nestor Aparicio  35:51

to it. Drake may hate names. Gonna be really hard to do. He’s just all shocks.

Luke Jones  35:54

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And I think, I think just, I think it won’t be as hard. I mean, not that anyone should be personal about it, because, you know, he seems like a like a perfectly solid young man from the little bit I’ve seen of him. But I mean, really, the Patriots just it got to the point where they’re perceived like the Yankees, right? I mean, they’re they’re perceived like we perceive the Cowboys to be, 35 4050, years ago. So, you know, I mean, it’s just, but there is a newness to it. It’s unique. It feels different. I mean, it felt different when Kansas City made it, you know, when mahomes made it the first time, right? That felt different, because we on at that point. We were all just so sick of Brady and the Patriots at that point, it felt a little different for here locally, because the ravens, you know, that was the year the Ravens were the number one seed in 14 and two and all that. But, yeah, I mean, it’s always, it’s always a good thing when there’s some fresh blood. Now, is this Super Bowl going to end up doing the all time record setting numbers? I don’t know, although, at the same time, it feels like every game now is a new record that they come up with, you know, with streaming and all that. I mean, they’ll add the peacock numbers into to whatever the TV rating is on NBC, but, but, yeah, there’s something different about it, and that’s a good thing, right? I mean, I, I don’t, I didn’t want it to be the Chiefs every year for the to the end of time. In the same way I didn’t want the patriots to do it to to the end of time. And now, after a five year respite, the Patriots are back, even if it’s a version two of the Patriots. So we’ll see how it plays out. But yeah, I mean, Mike McDonald alone here locally, makes, makes it fun to watch. And I do think the Sam darnold thing is pretty cool. You know, from the standpoint of this guy was just perceived as being a bust. And we all remember the Monday Night Football game where he was saying how he was seeing ghosts on, you know, when he came off the sideline and was struggling the way he was for the Jets, for him to be in this spot. Now, I mean, it’s, it’s pretty cool. And now it’ll be interesting to see if they win. Does that turn into something where Sam darnold, you know, starts to realize and become exactly what you thought he was going to be? You know, one Super Bowl win here doesn’t completely validate him in that way, but it puts him on a path that maybe he does become that guy, I don’t know so, but it’s fun. It’s fun because it’s something a little bit different than what we’ve seen here in recent years.

Nestor Aparicio  38:07

Hey, it’s Luke Jones. I’m Nestor. If there’s any breaking news this week, you will get it first on the wnst tech service. Brought to you by cold roofing and Gordian energy. It is a couple Super Bowl week. We’re everywhere. We’re not here, although we are for a minute or two, and I’ll take you to San Francisco watch the Orioles play. Okay, we can’t go see the A’s play the Orioles anymore, but we could take a drive over to Sacramento and see it in a little park, maybe this year as well. We’re going to do some baseball around here, because Fran bevald As I swear he’s coming, well, he’s going somewhere. He’s going to pitch somewhere, maybe for us or against us. We have to figure that out. It is Super Bowl week. It is a couple of Super Bowl week. We have new sponsors around here, lots of fun to be had, and we’re going to be telling community and charity stories all week long, stuff that’s probably going to make me cry before the week is over, and that is okay, because we all need to help each other out. It’s dead of winter. We’re doing it for the Maryland Food Bank. There’s lots of people out there that are hungry. If you bring me canned goods, you bring me things that we can take to local pantries and shelters, that I delivered myself on Friday. By the end of the week, I fill my trunk up. Come on down to Fay Lee’s on Monday. Come on over to El Guapo on Tuesday, over to Koco’s on Wednesday, Thursday, we’re at Pizza John’s in Essex Friday, where cost is in Timonium. It’s all brought to you by the Maryland lottery and GBMC. Luke is on a little bit of a break here before Sarasota, and then a little bit of a break before the NFL free agency, and then we have the owners meetings, and then we have opening day, and then we have the draft, and enjoy it. It’s Super Bowl week. Fill up your fridge, get some beer, get some wings, gamble responsibly on the game, or don’t gamble at all. That’s what I do, and it’s so easy to hate on the Patriots. So Go Seahawks. I’m looking for all my ugly Mr. Yuck stickers I can put on with my ugly day glow green, and I will support my friend Michelle Jackman and Mike McDonald as well, and all my friends out in Seattle. Go Seahawks beat the Patriots so easy. Just rolls off the tongue. We’re W N st, Baltimore positive. Stay with us. So.