Tony Boselli talks old Ravens-Jaguars battles and meaning of making Pro Football Hall of Fame

The Hall of Fame left tackle talked with Nestor and Luke on Radio Row ahead of Super Bowl LII in Minnesota.

SUMMARY KEYWORDS

played, ravens, game, year, bit, case, player, ray, defense, baltimore, hall, wn, run, tom brady, wembley, making, great, dotnet, jacksonville, pittsburgh

SPEAKERS

Luke Jones, Tony Boselli, Nestor Aparicio

Nestor Aparicio  00:00

wonderbag wn, st Towson, Baltimore and wn St. dotnet. We are live on radio row. It’s all things Super Bowl 52 It’s all brought to you by Howard bank as well as our friends at rural farms real fresh real fast. And the Maryland Jockey Club where they are racing and Laurel this weekend Luke Jones riding shotgun and you know our tables right by the Jaguars table. And someone said, well, they just bought table case they were in the game and I Okay, great. Whatever, the table. Yeah, great, whatever. Well, today, all the Jaguars stuff shows up. And then late in the day, this mountain of a man who’s less of a mountain, you know, than it used to be. And you know, I’m hoping for you, I’ve made the case for you, not against you. Where here’s your humility is, is everybody would say this about you. And you’re this sort of the famous everyman of football. But you came up you’re like, yep, call the game for Westwood one this weekend. And I’m thinking myself, that’s not what’s really going on for you. There’s, like, you know, I’d be mentioning that just a little bit. If I were

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Tony Boselli  00:58

to focus on things, I have something that I can control a little bit, that whole thing is out of my control. There’s gonna be 48 Guys voting on that Saturday afternoon. So trying to think too much about it. It’s hard not

Nestor Aparicio  01:07

to everybody’s saying that. I’m saying but people love you, your friend. everybody’s cheering for you in some way. I

Tony Boselli  01:14

just need those 48 Guys cheering for me, that will be fine.

Nestor Aparicio  01:17

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Well, I talked. I talked to Shireen too, so we’ll throw her in there. But on that end, Ray is a part of this. And he’s getting in.

Tony Boselli  01:26

He’s walking into the hall thing

Luke Jones  01:28

he’s doing, he’s doing the squirrel. And

Tony Boselli  01:32

so the way I look at it, there’s there’s one 100% guy getting in, there’s a 99% guy getting in. It’s Ray and Randy Moss. Let me let me two iconic players. I mean, if you look at their we played in. I mean, if you said just say middle linebacker, the first thing that comes to mind is Ray Lewis.

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Nestor Aparicio  01:48

I mean, you’re a great gauge of this. So instead of you telling me how great you were versus pays you to play against them you played against right? Yeah, he’s outstanding. He’s the best player you ever chin strapped on and look the crow. No, I

Tony Boselli  02:01

wouldn’t say that. But it wouldn’t be me, because he’s a guy that did so much more than just engage offense alignments. And so when I’m playing Baltimore, I’m more worried about my career fairs in gray Louis and those just respect the way he looks. He’s the heartbeat of that football team. But he’s a guy that was so smart, and that he could diagnose things but he also had the athletic ability to run things sideline to sideline and just an overall you know, he could come downhill he could do it all you can cover you, especially in his early days. When he got older, he became more of just a, you know, to down type of linebacker, but for 1214 whatever number of years he could do everything on that football field. And he was tough. And then on top of it when they were really good. You couldn’t get to him half the time because Sarah Goosen and Sam Adams are there so it’s it’s not only bad enough you got a great you know, future off a linebacker you’re trying to chase down and get you got these two big old dudes covering you up and you can’t get there now he’s making every play

Nestor Aparicio  02:59

you know when it’s up front for defensively greatest offensive line is what I did NFL films this week, I shot my top 10. And one of the categories was greatest D lines ever. And they said to me the BART Scott screamed about the O six ravens and the Ravens front of the defense. And I said, you know, you give me the front for that ravens team. And I wish I were the wacky sports radio guy was 20 years ago, and we were in the studio and I had a phone because I would just blind call McCreary right now. And I would call him and pipe him in and say, Mack, you make the case for Maselli because I’m sure he would be the first guy to talk about you.

Tony Boselli  03:35

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Talking about a guy does not get any credit for the type of player he was in the era we played. He was a double digit sack every year. I mean, he was dominant Michael McCrary with that needs to hit bad everything because he just abused. He played so hard. I mean, like my Wonder Mike everything hurts. You’re trying to never take the play off. But you look at Yeah, McCrary Rob Burnett Burnett. Ooh, Sam, Sam, and then on third down, oh, we’re gonna blow were coming on,

Nestor Aparicio  04:01

on the front rotated in Webster and jelly. And you know, my point is, but

Tony Boselli  04:05

that front seven was dominant. I mean, they were one of the best scoring defense in the history of the game, which we scored I think 35 points.

Nestor Aparicio  04:14

You guys had some pretty good teams. Jimmy Smith still talking about

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Tony Boselli  04:18

they still have a cover Jimmy Smith that trying to figure that out the second time they played a little less single single coverage. And I don’t bring that up as often. I wouldn’t because 285 See, I think

Luke Jones  04:28

back to the year before when you and the Ravens played that six to three game and Jackson that was a battle. The Ravens defense was on the rise. Jacksonville had a pretty good

Tony Boselli  04:38

battle. Yeah, it was a game. I remember that was the first or second game that we played him because I think we beat him really bad. The first time we played him are either really bad but pretty easily Sure. In that game, though,

Nestor Aparicio  04:49

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you guys were good. You were 13 and three kind of good.

Tony Boselli  04:52

Yeah, we actually that year we were 14. Yeah. And that team man. It took us we couldn’t do anything. Now thankfully they were worse than us and I offense, they couldn’t be less bad defense was so tough because they could stop the run. And we’d like to run the ball because we had Freddie T. And we wanted to run it now, we were a run first football team. And they took that away and they forced us to do things that you know, we could do with Jimmy and Mark and Keenan, but it wasn’t our bread and butter and, and then they could cover outside. They were, you know, you know, what’s running around in midfield, you know, doing all kinds of stuff. So outstanding. It was that division back then with the ravens and the Steelers and the Titans and us. The Bengals were, you know, kind of an afterthought a little bit. But those were battles. I mean, you knew you had six gruesome physical games a year in that division.

Luke Jones  05:40

It’s really true because we see what ravens Steelers has evolved into when they realized the division two, but and I tell younger Ravens fans who don’t remember those early years quite as much I say, the old AFC central with the Ravens with Tennessee and Jacksonville. That was just every bit the rivalry that ravens Steelers eventually became absolutely had a chance

Nestor Aparicio  06:03

to fizzle out. He was stopped. He was literally Yeah. And

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Tony Boselli  06:09

that was so disappointing for us. I know that, that when they did the realignment, I was like put us up. Let us go with the ravens and Steelers and making the Ravens Steelers Titans and us I mean, that would have made the Bengals and browns go somewhere else.

Nestor Aparicio  06:23

I think it’s all worked out. Okay. Especially with the NFC and the realignment of the South air and making sure the 40 Niners aren’t playing the East Coast anymore. All

Tony Boselli  06:32

right. I’m just saying selfishly I’d much rather. But

Nestor Aparicio  06:35

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in saying that you’ve created your own thing in Jacksonville and this is sort of the RE Renaissance. Coach Coughlin coming back and I know you have great affinity for he and he for you and all that but is this. This is like the beginning of something that feels like, Okay, you didn’t make it this year. But that thing the next three or four years, it wasn’t a fluke. It feels like it’s something that’s getting better. And it’s interesting

Tony Boselli  06:55

back when we were really good early, it was more offensive stars. We had good defensive players on your on Tony Brackens and Gary Walker, Kevin Hart. Sure. But it was kind of you know, it was offensive. With Freddy T and Mark and Jimmy and Keenan, this is the opposite. This is a defense. This is almost like the Ravens. I mean, it’s all about defense and all that swag. Oh, which reminds me of the defense. I mean, ray coming out doing that stupid dance. I mean, sit on the sidelines and I wanted to come on, what are we doing?

Nestor Aparicio  07:22

Watch it or not watch it.

Tony Boselli  07:23

I watched it laughed.

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Nestor Aparicio  07:25

Okay. I’m going to ask every person that was ever on the field because everyone has a different associate, should you not?

Luke Jones  07:29

I mean, how could you not watch it? Whether you nod, right? I mean, I knew Ray.

Tony Boselli  07:33

Ray’s great. And he’s doing what

Nestor Aparicio  07:34

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Otto said he would tell his players watch it but then worry like, maybe some of them would be a little shook up by watching it

Tony Boselli  07:41

laughed, I thought was great. I thought this is this is like almost comedy. It worked for him. That’s all matters. It worked for his team. But it worked. I would hate to see if any player said that intimidated them. They should go change professions, honestly, stance it

Luke Jones  07:59

intimidated them. They were thinking more about the player doing

Nestor Aparicio  08:03

big in the building coming down on you a little bit. That was very,

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Tony Boselli  08:08

it was it was but yeah, but this the Jaguar defense reminds me of that. I mean, they have real swagger. They have real personality. They literally think they their world beaters at all times. And they go out there, they press the envelope. I mean, they go to the edge and sometimes over the edge a little bit. And that’s what the seams built on. And that’s what it’s going to be built on, at least in the near future. It’s their trademark much like back when the Ravens were great. It was a defense it was a trademark. I don’t want a

Nestor Aparicio  08:35

lot of do overs in life by I want to do over a Wembley. I mean, we need to redo that when

Tony Boselli  08:40

you should because

Nestor Aparicio  08:45

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I saw you were you know, and they had the greatest little crumpets there in the press box. And like Wembley was delicious. And I see you at halftime and I mean, I look like I was white as it go. Like I thought

Tony Boselli  08:54

we would win. I mean, I thought we’d beat the Ravens that we were a better team at that point. I thought it would be tight. I thought it’d be 1630. I thought it like that because I thought that defense would be good for you guys. I knew our defense and I knew Flacco was still working his way and it was a struggle a little bit. But that’s I think there’s

Nestor Aparicio  09:10

an inherent benefit. Right away. It’s a mess. You guys go every year. So I think that there is for the Ravens organization for every one for the ticket salesman to the President’s team. Everyone had all of this recon they had to do on that game, because you’ve never been as an organization every how’s that affect the players? I don’t know. But from a you guys know how to how to go there.

Tony Boselli  09:29

Okay, but here’s okay. For my staff. You’re right. No doubt about it. But remember, we had a bunch of new coaches. I’ve never done it before. The point that’s true. I don’t think claims Campbell AJ Boyd ever been over there. Leonard Fournette Leonard Fournette cam Robinson we had a lot of guys that have never been there. And now but overall you’re right as an organization. We know how to travel there and we know what to expect. But that’s not why you guys got your butts kicked.

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Nestor Aparicio  09:53

We got a bunch of kids you got a bunch kid. It was

Tony Boselli  09:55

I was shocked at that. And my favorite was afterwards like I really like John Harbaugh. I think he’s a great coach. I have such such a respect for him. The way he handles things the way he’s done things, but I thought it was funny. Like, he’s like, I never want to go back to London again, like claiming that was the reason you were bad.

Nestor Aparicio  10:14

All right, so if you were voting for the Hall of Fame, would you vote for you?

Tony Boselli  10:18

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I’m not gonna do it. Because so my whole thing ever since the semifinals and finals have come, you know, last few years. I’ve been asked that all the time. And the reason I don’t like talking about it is because it’s very important, but I don’t want to ever talk down another player. Because if I’m talking myself up, like I’m better than I should be, instead of 14 other guys, they’re sure I can make the case for right now. You go down the list, I’ll make a case for what that’s

Nestor Aparicio  10:45

what I say, you know, my wife said, who else is on with rainless? We can I read the names off? And I’m like, there’s nobody here, it’s on the wall. I mean, I can make a case for any of them. I don’t know that I want to make a case against them. The case against you would be longevity. And that would be the deciding factor that you would have to decide if you were there to say that so I don’t think anybody would you wouldn’t be in the room. If you didn’t.

Tony Boselli  11:06

That’s right. You didn’t have hit right. So that’s why I go back. I think there’s only two for Shures and it’s it’s Ray and Randy. I think after that there’s three spots that are they’re gonna have to vote and figure out did Terrell

Luke Jones  11:16

Davis making it last year knowing that he was a guy like you, not a long career, but really impressive. Peak? And that’s that’s kind of the argument always about longevity verse, did this player dominate for some periods, I

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Tony Boselli  11:29

think TT TD making it Terrell Davis and then can easily as well he made it last year, the senior committee and both of them I think I played one or two more games, and both of them were maybe it’s vice versa, basically. And I think that changed the viewpoint a little bit. And at least what people have said is like, we need to look at greatness, right?

Nestor Aparicio  11:49

It has the viewpoint of that. And Gail Sears would be another guy from the original in baseball, the Kirby Puck, you know, that there are cases for all the Hall of Fame’s and all that. But maybe there’s a case in the modern world now with injuries, that we don’t look at you as being soft or injury prone, or, you know, he broke down, you know, whatever that is, it’s friggin crazy game. It’s a crazy game about toughness, and to penalize someone when they’ve already had their career taken away. by So, you know, because I do think that there’s a little bit more kindness about that particular thing, in any case, because you didn’t elect to go away from the game, right? And none of you who had it taken away from you did that. But you know, I think that 20 years ago was much more macho, and you know, longevity was the the barometer and a lot of,

Tony Boselli  12:46

you know, like any Hall of Fame is subjective, and probably especially offense alignment, because there’s not really stats, you know, you go to baseball, it’s all about stats, you know, and in football, you have runningback, stats, quarterback stats, you know, you can go, you know, all the different things, you know, tackles and sacks and interceptions. Ours is a little bit different. But even with all the stats Hall fame selections are, are somewhat subjective. And so as you look at, I mean, each guy has his perspective. And when you talk about the longevity thing, it’s a great conversation. You know, if you’re a voter and you think, wow, I mean, really good for a long time. Trump’s being great for a shorter period of time. I mean, so that’s a conversation that they have in that room, and I respect that and I’m actually okay with it, because that’s the process. Well, this

Nestor Aparicio  13:28

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sucks thing this year has been fast because I’ve been here from the beginning with him. He was in the hallway, very good for a period of time. It’s certainly one of the best if not the best defensive player for that period of time. Chad Brown and I talk about this a lot because Chad was one of those guys. Chad was like ominous. Like if you want to take fun his best five years up, we’ll put it in the name if you want would be in that conversation. Then there’s a guy like songs that blew up both feet. Yeah, had $100 million, which guys 30 years ago didn’t have could have gone off to Phoenix and dumb, made movies and bald and instead is busted his ass to get back not to be no offense to Dwight Freeney, a guy or specialist guy, but still sifting 16 years into the league running around at a level this year that blew our doors off and I’m a Suggs detractor. I’m a guy that’s dealt with him on a personal level to bleach stuff I all of that. And I’ve just been in a room with her. He’s not my kind of guy and I, I’ve said that for 15 straight years. He’s a Hall of Famer now and he did it. For me, my vote says at the end of the end to be able to do that something that you didn’t have the ability to do. He stayed healthy, got himself right enough that he could go out there at 35 and still make a case for stuff that you didn’t have.

Tony Boselli  14:40

And it’s a great conversation, and Terrell Suggs is a good subject for it because I would actually say he was great. You know, he was more than just really good for a short period of time and he was Defensive Player of the Year was 2011. So I think there was a point I

Nestor Aparicio  14:53

think he could have been gone four and a half years ago. Now. It had a really great Yeah, and we would have talked about him and all family He might have gotten me but now, Smith, same thing came to Baltimore did that I

Tony Boselli  15:04

think it’s I’m not sure. Stiva is a little bit more on the borderline. I think it’s a great conversation. And I love Steve. I love how he played how he played that attitude like, first bounce. The greatest. receivers are really hard now. So because because the numbers are so inflated as you almost have to reset, what those numbers mean, because of the way the game is played now, but you look at Terrell Suggs, I mean, I’m shocked what he does. I remember after he tore his second Achilles and I, not to anyone just myself, I watched him he’s done. He’s never played again. And all he does is come back and and you watch him. And I always watch guys for perspective how I block him. And half the time it doesn’t look like he’s moving. But somehow he’s still getting to the quarterback. I mean, he’s remarkable. It’s he’s a lot of fun to watch. His grit is determination, just as ability to battle is to play again. And I don’t know if he’s a first ball bow Hall of Famer, but he’s getting in so

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Nestor Aparicio  16:02

I remember asking him last year in Pittsburgh after we lost that the reach game on literally Christmas night, I was at his locker and there’s not a lot of visiting media anymore, you know, in our cities for five guys. And I went over and I pissed him off, and I’ve never really pissed him off in the locker room setting. I’ve never asked him a question that he really bird up. I said Could this be the end? And he looked at me like I mean, he you know, he wanted to kill you. Yeah, and I was I thought it was a fair question. I didn’t think it was an unfair question that that goes through your mind and I don’t know that I’ll ask him it again because I don’t know that I mean he’s gonna come back and play again and what he did this year really really I took my cat because there were very few guys that can make it through this mess of yours up to that point to be able to prove that he’s a tough man and then there’s Brady on the wall here and there’s

Tony Boselli  16:52

a lot that goes somewhere else he’s like we’re over here over here he’s why he’s over with like Jerry Rice and those all those guys hanging out in a different section.

Nestor Aparicio  17:04

I hope they put you in I appreciate and we’re doing a trip already we’re so convinced raised we’ve already got the bus

Tony Boselli  17:11

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by the by the ticket by the hotel room so he’s in he’s he’s in he doesn’t have to worry about it’s always like I feel like you know the old days like I never worried about getting cut and you know so he cut day wasn’t a worry. Now this is like a worry for me for Ray It’s not a word He’s like one of the guys he’s guaranteed to know what the hell you do I’m not even I have nothing do you sit in

Nestor Aparicio  17:36

a room Saturday man you know the Aaron Rodgers thing like that? I mean

Luke Jones  17:47

that does have a little something called the Super Bowl it also has

Nestor Aparicio  17:52

the game because we didn’t

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Tony Boselli  17:55

have enough people tell me it’s gonna be great game I actually think it’s better game than you know, most people maybe Phillies more talented. They’re better. They’re better. That the line is no joke. No joke, but the problem is, knowing when it’s Tom Brady’s I’m picking Tom Brady. You know what else to say? I feel I don’t think it’s not like really deep insight like you want from an analyst like hey, your breakdown the X’s and O’s. Okay, they have Tom Brady. They don’t I’m gonna go with Tom Brady

Nestor Aparicio  18:20

often it’s 10 below out here. I look up in the mall. And there’s Tom Brady. And there’s Nick Foles. And you’re like,

Luke Jones  18:26

just as we are in August.

Nestor Aparicio  18:28

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I’m not down on Nick Foles. And he seems like of all the things you said about Wembley and composure and, you know, if you’re intimidated, he looked like it’ll be fine. It’ll be fine. Not all these guys do.

Tony Boselli  18:39

I’m not worried about that. He’ll be alright but Belichick and Brady man they’re gonna make adjustments are going to do something until until they are behind with all zeros on the clock. They’re in the game.

Nestor Aparicio  18:51

Well, we got invited to the Eagles postgame celebration, some E ag until I meet the fitness fans come through here. And I’m like, You got to be kidding me. What the things I do with things I do for Jim Schwartz and Joe Douglas out of my love. I mean, I’m even like, I’ve even got this hat here. It looks

Tony Boselli  19:09

really good. That’s not allowed.

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Nestor Aparicio  19:13

Um, well, it was a green initiative. It was approved, I saw it like a green hat. And I’m like, I just want to wear something that said they don’t beat me

Tony Boselli  19:24

up. Well, can you imagine being Philly if they win, you’re gonna burn it, burn, whether they

Luke Jones  19:29

win or lose, I think but if they win

Nestor Aparicio  19:32

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last week, I mean, I’m an hour and a half away, support schwarzsee and got their tour if they win. I said if they win, they’re gonna burn it down. They lose it. And then at 930 in the morning, they get Crisco on the pole.

Luke Jones  19:42

I saw something earlier today. They’re not they’re not bothering with greasing up the poles because they said it didn’t help last week.

Tony Boselli  19:48

It’s gonna be it’s gonna be a melee. Yeah. All right.

Nestor Aparicio  19:51

Good luck. To nervous All right. Thanks for having me. So

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Tony Boselli  19:56

I think we played you guys next year. So

Nestor Aparicio  19:59

Oh, Oh, January of 19. Perhaps that’s one of the next time we’ll see the road to Atlanta.

Tony Boselli  20:04

Is hardball. Gonna get that thing turned around a little bit up there.

Nestor Aparicio  20:09

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It’s the big question. We’re gonna be trying to think what I am saying. It’d be very hard pressed to walk out on the field in September and convince anybody that that they’re better than Pittsburgh. I don’t know how on paper. They’re gonna get better than Pittsburgh. But in reality, they were playing away at Pittsburgh, so there’s not there’s not that flat. What

Tony Boselli  20:28

a heartbreaking loss to lose in Cincinnati fourth down like that. I mean, that’s unreal.

Nestor Aparicio  20:32

We’re still living with all that. And the Patriots might win again, or worse. What’s the deal with those cheesesteak eaters running around with the Lombardi trophy? I guess? I don’t

Tony Boselli  20:41

know we were we should help that out. We should have been paid Yes. Yes. All right.

Nestor Aparicio  20:45 All the fame Ramona refer to him in that case, because that’s what we’re gonna refer to him as it’s all brought to you by Howard bank. ROFO was also around the corner for you make sure you get that ROFO rewards, download the app, use it, save some money, get some chicken, save some money on your gas pump up. Do it all. Maryland Jockey Club and Laurel racing this weekend as well. They are sponsoring us. All of our WNS T stuff lives in the buy a toyota.com audio vault 24 hours a day from anywhere in the world on your mobile device by downloading the tune in radio app do come in crystal clear from anywhere in the world nasty wn St. dotnet finds me he is Luke Baltimore Luke ad on Twitter and Luke at wn St. dotnet. We’re at the Mall of America Superbowl 52 ongoing coverage. We are wn st dotnet am 1570 wn st Towson Baltimore and we never stop talking. Baltimore sports