Jayson Tatum’s Documentary // Patriots Offseason Spending // Lightning Round of Callers - 3/2 (Hour 3)

We have a show to do today. The whole new acronym thing drives me effing bananas. Can we call him by his name? Shelter and man on 98.5 The Sports Hub. Let's go. Three entry reminders are brought to you by our friends at Blue Bear Plumbing. Go to bluebearplumbing.com to book your appointment today. Let's do a lightning round, Jimmy, shall we? The lightning round brought to you by Blue Sky Restoration Contractors. Indeed, if your home or business is experiencing property damage from roof leaks, ice dams, or burst pipes, our guys at Blue Sky are ready to respond 24-7. So visit GoBlueSky.com. No E-B-L-U-S-K-Y. GoBlueSky.com. Blue Sky Restoration. Restoring your property and your life for a brighter tomorrow. Ryan in Medford on Jason Tatum on the lightning round. Go ahead, Ryan. Hey, fellas. I got to say, the confidence you guys have in talking basketball is unmatched. Hall of Fame delusion. K-DM tears his Achilles, and you guys climbed the video. Very funny. But I wanted to talk about when you guys said they punted on the season. Do you think the Celtics are better after the trade or before the trade for Vucevic? They might be better. I'm not totally convinced, but they might be better. So you don't think that trade wasn't punting on the season? It was strictly to try to go at the Pistons? No, it was to get under the tax. Correct. You don't think it has anything to do with the matchup with the Pistons? No, no. It's a happy coincidence. A happy coincidence? They're not trying to go after the top seed in the East, and I think it's pretty clear that we're going to potentially play the Pistons and get to the finals. You don't think we're now better suited to play them after that trade? You might be. Better suited, but if they were going for the Pistons, they would have gotten tougher players. Vujovic has been good off the bench, but he's a softer player. They would have went after tougher, more physical players, not a soft outside, you know, spread-the-floor player. I mean, this is how I've said it from day one, Ryan. If the money was equal, meaning if they didn't save anything on the tax, would they have made the trade? I mean, it adds flexibility for the future. Ryan. No, no, you're missing the point. Just try it. Just experiment with being honest as opposed to just green teaming. If the money was equal, do you think they would have made the trade? I mean, naturally, probably not because they have to make the best for the team and looking for the future while also making the team better now is better for the team overall. The first priority was to get under the tax run. The first priority was to get under the tax. If they didn't save against the tax, they wouldn't have made the deal. I mean, that's what I think, too. Certainly if Vucevic cost more. Now, look, they might have come out more balanced as a result of it. Because, you know, I don't think you're going to get what they got from Cata last night on a regular basis. But they got a big guy who can at least play near the basket in addition to out by the three-point line. And they got a big body in there. If nothing else. Sorry, Milton Providence on the lightning round brought to you by Blue Sky Restoration. Hi, Milton, go. Yeah, I just want to let it be known that not all Celtics fans are eating up this docuseries. It sucks. As Naz would say, it sucks, Mike. It really does. You know, it makes him look soft. And it makes him look like a grifter who's just selling the Tatum brand. So, you know, I think that he should be nervous to come back. He should be worried about how he fits in. You know, the team is molded into a feisty, more balanced, fun to watch, team to watch. and I'm not saying that they're better without Tatum. Obviously, having Tatum makes you a better team, but he should be worried. Are they going to continue the same style of play when he comes back? You know, it's something that I think he should be worried about. Okay, worried is just no. It's something they have to overcome. I'm not telling you it's simple, like he just walks in and everything goes back to the way that it was. They have some things that they have to navigate, but what are we talking about here? It was basketball with two guys who are highly decorated, highly accomplished, and now experienced. So whatever hurdles they are facing are overcomable. I don't want to be nervous about it. I'd be confident that we can figure it out. I mean, they should be able to figure this out. It isn't that unusual. I mean, Jesus, what are we talking about? I know it's not. Look, the Achilles injury is a bad injury, relatively speaking. The patella tendon would have been worse. If you ask me, like you lose that one in your knee. But even so, you know, don't figure it out. He's 28. He's not 38. If he were 38, it might have been the end of his career. He's 28. Larry and Marblehead on the lightning round. You're up next. Hey there. I was laughing so hard. I almost drove off the road. But it reminded me, a friend of mine who was 60 did his Achilles. We carried him into the house. And the first thing his wife said, would start yelling at him that he had ruined their lunch plan. Exactly. It was ridiculously funny. I almost drove off the road. I was laughing so hard. I mean, it's unintentional comedy. It really is. Like you said, it's like an SNL skit. It's a parody of itself. It really is. My soul left my body. I couldn't lift my head up. To look at the x-ray. Jason, we need you to look at the x-ray. No. No. I can't lift my head. Don't look at it, Marion. No. Like it's the Ark of the Covenant. Turn it off. Go ahead. Play number one again. This is his voice, too. It's like the way he, the breathless. Yeah. Tatum is hurt. Tatum is hurt. You know, after I got injured, I remember I was in the back. Dr. Shana, I remember handed him a tape cutter. Cut the tape off. The doc kind of raised his leg up. He looked up. He kind of nodded and confirmed, like, yeah, it's the Achilles' disruption. It was, like, heartbreaking. It's always thought the worst injury in basketball has been the Achilles' tenter rupture. They feel like an explosion go off in the back of the leg, and the tendon just separates. I just couldn't help but think, am I ever going to play again? Am I ever going to play again? And to be honest, at that point, I... I had no hope. Oh, man. Man, I had no hope. Man, I had no hope. Has he watched his peers? Has he paid attention to the league? I'm sorry, Murray. How old was Durant when he did his? Was he like 32? Yeah. Okay, 32 years old. That's a guy that could say, I don't know if I'll be back. Right. Like, you get to that. Look, I know it's only four years, but the point is it's a one-year recovery. Now he comes back. He's 33-plus. And does he have the same foot? And by the way, he's fine. Durant's fine. As good as ever. John and Quincy on the lightning round brought to you by Blue Sky Restoration Contractors. Go ahead, John. Jason Tatum, sorry, buddy, but you're a tier one douchebag for this. Murray, yes, you are going to find yourself on an SNL skit. And I'm quite sure that this video will do zero views within the confines of, say, the Walter Reed Clinic or any child children's hospital across this country. He's a douchebag. Okay, so you don't need to do that. I am curious, though, fans are lapping it up. I mean, do Celtics fans enjoy watching this, or do they watch this and get a little bit of a douche chill? Because, I don't know, I think you're lying to yourself if you don't watch these particular clips and go, oh. Really? So, Murray, I understand. Not exactly blood and guts. No. So, look, but I don't get a douche chill. I get a, like. Dude, you can't be serious. Right, right. Just come on. You know, it's just. Secondhand embarrassment then rather than. I just think, look, Murray, everybody makes a documentary about everything now. Like, this isn't documentary worthy. No, not at all. It's completely oversaturated. This is just another guy blowing out an ankle or a knee. And coming back. Yes, it's the same crap. It happens to every guy in every sport at some point. They all have an injury. All the pros they play. There are so many miles they accumulate. The pieces break. I'm going to start doing them like when I'm constipated. I had to use Me Relax last night. Don't know if I can eat pork anymore. Give me part two. Give me number two, Jimmy. Come on. Give it to us again. I wanted more Murray. Oh, my gosh. We do the MRI. Put it on the screen. He was like, you know, Jason, let me show you. This is his Achilles tendon right here. This is one end of the tendon, this is the other, and this is the gap right here, and this is what we sew back together. And I remember I shook my head. I couldn't look, I couldn't lift my head up. And he was like, all right, these are the different options of surgeries that you can do. There's pretty strong data that if you do it within 24 hours, patients have better outcomes. There's things around the tendon that we can preserve that makes the recovery process and the surgery better. He looked at his watch and he was like, man, I'm actually free today around 3. That's the best one. And it just kind of felt like my soul left my body. I just put my head down. My soul left my body. His face, he's turning white. Jason was like, I'm not doing that. He's like, I didn't wake up this morning thinking I was going to have surgery. And so everybody's just kind of looking around. And he's like, nah, I'm not. And so I just asked everybody to leave the room. Yeah, she just grabbed me. And I kind of, you know, I broke down. And after the doc looks at his watch and says yeah yeah we do it at three And then he says my soul left my body I free at four actually yeah That part embarrassing too because does his soul quote unquote leave his body Because you mean I can get surgery for this? There goes the soul up into the rafters. Doctor again. Yeah, what, three? Sure. You want to, like, I got a few banged up. I can bang out a few today. Okay, Ian. And I'm telling you, that guy saw dollar signs too Don't kid yourself I think they get paid per surgery Every time they do a surgery, it's like 10k But the point is, the doctor's like, it's kind of routine I'm free now if you want to do it It's really not a big deal Meanwhile, he's like breathless We don't even have to put you under for this one By the way It's a local anesthesia I'm just going to numb up your leg You're going to be loopy, but you'll be talking You'll be awake Unbelievable Jason Tatum stars in the first Achilles ever torn. It's like a soap opera. It really is. With the overdramatic violins and the music. So leaving your body. And then I asked the doctor, when can I get surgery? Huh? Three. I'll just push my lunch, man. We can do it. Sure. That's right. Yeah. It is. It's not a big deal. A couple hours. No sweat. Thus concludes the lightning round brought to you by Blue Sky Restoration Contractors. Back to your phones, I promise, and more good times right after these words. You're listening to Felger and Mads. I think this is a moral loss. On the Sports Hub. Here they are, which is why I have been saying all along that if I had a vote and I don't anymore, right this minute Jalen Brown would be my MVP because of what I believe he has meant to this team that I think everyone thought might even consider tanking this season. Well, who's done more with less? That's what you could say. That's the point. Scotty Pippen should have been the MVP of the league in 1994. I've been saying it for now 31 years or whatever it is, and I believe that Jalen should be that. Meanwhile, Jalen Brown's going to get some MVP support. Does there from Mike Greenberg. How does Tatum's return impact that? Episode four, three. How do we have to stay tuned for that one? uh back to your phones paul in new hampshire go ahead paul yeah hi um these guys are unbelievable today these athletes back in the 80s i'm gonna brag a little bit i fish king crab and uh broke fingers cracked ribs kept going for four weeks working 40 hour days i was on a boat to say 27 hours in the life raft i was back out to sea uh four days later doing the same thing i mean it's just embarrassing well you should do a documentary it's it's unwatchable really to me i'd watch that documentary over tatum's providing that's real gonna get a lot of stories like that today i've heard that's one of the most dangerous jobs you can have as a crab fisherman you mean not just fisherman yeah crab fisherman crab fisherman yeah because i guess you're like deep deep out and there's there's all things all kinds of things that go go wrong really yeah okay i don't think he was bs and tom and quincy hi tom hey what's going on guys hey there's a couple things about this uh documentary about tatum I feel the over dramatization with the musical score behind his comments during the filming is over the top. And it's so saturated, like Jim just said. These guys keep doing these things because these broadcast companies just keep going like, you know what, people would really want to see this. I'll tell you right now, if you guys have ever seen the Alex Smith documentary, the Project 10 about the recovery after he got his legs shattered and they wanted to take his leg off, okay? Jason Tatum is more dramatic talking about how his soul left his body as opposed to Alex Smith, who legitimately they had to graft his bones from parts of his body, put him back together again. And he wasn't as dramatic as Jason Tatum. You can chalk it up to being a basketball player. You can chalk it up to being a weak, soft athlete if you want to. Even Gabe Kapla blowing his Achilles running around second in Toronto looked even better than what Tatum's coming off as right now. So you're saying his soul remained in his body. Yes, it stayed intact. So did Alex Smith. It did. The soul remained attached, tethered to his physical body. The Alex Smith one is a good comp. I don't know if you've ever seen part of that. They had some really graphic images of the injury. That thing was, the fact that that guy has a leg is a borderline miracle. Well, how about the same injury? Aaron Rodgers, who is a gigantic pain in the ass, just acted like he knew immediately. Yep. All right. Kind of know I'm done. Nothing like this that you've got from Aaron Rodgers, who, again, was a gigantic pain in the ass. The whole thing. From the writhing on the floor to the thrashing around, which apparently, Maz, I don't know, you could speak to it. It's really not that painful, is it? No. In fact, there's almost no pain. And when Kapler did his in Toronto, running the bases after a home run, I think, he was running around second. Someone else hit the home run, but he fell down at second base. And someone asked him after the game, I think it was McAdam, said, I've heard this is a painful injury. And Kapler said, really? I've heard the opposite. I didn't have any pain at all. And neither did I. It's like you feel this initial thing and then nothing. Gone. Zippo. Your foot just kind of hangs there. Note to listeners, callers, really. I don't want to hear about your Achilles. And frankly, I don't need to hear about the crab fishing either. Okay. But specifically, we're not taking calls on your Achilles. We're allowing Maz to do it for a minute. I got that covered. It's his show. I was pulling up Dungeness crab. Lost my left hand. I was back at work the next day. Joe in Colorado. Go, Joe. What do you got? Yeah, Felga. This one time. No, I'm just playing. Hey, real quick. I want to set the record straight on the Celtics trade, the Celtics trade being about money, not about player availability. And the best part of that, real quick. The nerds have infiltrated ownership. So they hired on private or sold into a private equity company who's now part of ownership. He's going to control all of the roster and everything because the sun can't do it. He can't evolve. This is the way of the future. and so that's what it's going to be, head figure and nerds running the office. Well, I didn't get fully what you were talking about there except the private equity ownership of the team, which if you saw June Lee's reporting last week, is not even what it's been sold to you as, as in this is Chisholm's show. It's really not Chisholm's show. Bill Chisholm is really a little bit more of a figurehead. He doesn't have the most money in it. It's the Sixth Street Investors. This private equity firm has the biggest stake in the team. And I don't want to say silent partner, but have preferred stock and all these mechanisms that give them the most influential ownership stake. So it's really their show. And Chisholm is kind of a figurehead. And that's why they're selling the fact that he's local, which he's really not. But they're trying to sell the local angle to fans because no fan wants to be owned by a private equity firm, by some sort of faceless private equity firm that really is there just to beef up the investment and then flip it, and that's what they do. And that's probably what these guys are doing. But they can't sell that to you, so they sell you Bill Chisholm from Georgetown. It's nonsense. But this is a long way of saying, you can't convince me that it wasn't a directive from the highest levels to get under the tax, and they're going to do it again because for you to get out of the repeater tax, you have to do it twice in four years. Isn't that right, Stu? Two and four, something like that? So this is just year one. They're going to do this again. If not next year, then sometime here in the next three years, they're going to do it again because it doesn't make sense just to do it once. It doesn't get you out of the repeater. You got to do it again. And that's how the team's going to be run. And they can, because Brad Stevens is so good and Tatum and Brown are so special, you're still going to win at a high level and you might even win a championship. But don't kid yourself about how this team is being run and no one can convince me that them getting under the tax was not an absolute directive from the highest levels of this team. It just makes good business sense. As Steve Paliuca said, if I get this team no private equity money and luxury taxes be damned. So whether he was just blowing smoke or whatever he called it he called this thing and that's how it's being run but like i said because stevens is exceptional and tatum and brown are special you're still going to win at a high level in the midst of all this so you're lucky uh here's scott and canton go ahead scott two things i want to talk about um number one my birthday is this friday and number two what do you think is going to happen to the celtics tonight i think uh they're going to roll and happy birthday scott happy birthday scott tremendous i'm more interested in the game later in the week now. Friday? Yeah. Oh, so Bill Simmons says Tatum Friday. You got that, Jimmy? Let's just hear from the Boston sports guy from Connecticut who lives in LA. Go ahead. Tatum, it feels like it's going to be Friday. Dallas. Okay. That's what all signs are pointing to Friday, Dallas. I was wondering if it would be this weekend, but by Friday, I think it was not going to be this weekend. That's an NBC game as well, Is it not? Might be. I think they were talking about that game at the end and obviously they have this Tatum rehab docu thing they doing So Friday I looked it up I think Friday an ESPN game It is a national TV game. I think it's shared here locally. I saw, I don't know, just the TV listing. I must be the last guy on the planet that goes to the newspaper for the TV listing, but I do. Okay. Because I don't get the TV guy. I was going to say, don't get that mailed to your house anymore. I must be the last man in America that goes to the newspaper to show me the TV listing, but I did. And the TV listing in the Globe has ESPN and NBC Sports Boston on Friday. Okay. So, Friday for Tatum, what do you think? Cooper Flagg comes to town. Look, it's as good a guess as any other at this stage. Again, once those five-on-five scrimmages started for Tatum, I did a 180. I thought, well, now he's coming back. There's no question. I mean, once you go to that stage, you're not doing that for the hell of it. So unless he has some type of setback, it's coming soon. It's going to happen within the week or within two weeks. And he's not coming back to be any role player, Doc. Does that comment concern you? No. Not really, no. I mean, I think, you know, I think he is. I also think he's being a little idealistic about what it's going to be like to come back if, you know, he thinks he's going to come back and pour 30 in right out of the gate. Or protective. Right. I'm not going to be a role player because this is my team. That's how I take it. Yeah, no, no. But, well, so that's true. I mean, yes, he's being protective about it. But I, you know, it is his team. I mean, and I think deep down Brown knows it too. The team runs better with it, you know, under pressure when it goes through Tatum. And that doesn't mean it runs perfectly. But you put Brown in those pressure environments, and I mean ball pressure and everything else, he turns it on. No, no, and I agree with you. But boy, for two guys who long since showed they can coexist and have given their fans enough ammo to shout down anyone who says, well, look at them. They don't get along. What's it going to be? They certainly give you a lot of ammo. I mean, if you wanted to use it, you hear Jalen Brown say this year, this has been my favorite season. Did he say my favorite season by far or something like that? He said, this is my favorite season by far. How's that comment? Is Tatum's out? I mean, I don't know. He posts the numbers with Tatum and without Tatum. This is my favorite season by far. It's like, I mean, I expect them to coexist and get along and excel at a high level because they've done it in the past. But if they don't, they've certainly given you or someone like us enough ammo to point to and say, well, this, you know, this might not work. But I think it will. But they are going to play up the drama in the interim. Just get ready for it. Or he's enjoying himself because the drama queen's not around. Seriously. They're serving meatloaf today? My soul just left my body. Oh, Jason. It's just lunch, man. Enjoy it. Here's Murray's update. We're back with more. Don't go anywhere. Now, more of Felger and Mads on the Sports Hub. Hi, there was NFL trade today. Is it David Montgomery? Yeah, David Montgomery to Houston. Running back? Yep. I don't know. From Detroit. Thoughts? I mean, I think it's actually a pretty good deal for the Texans because he's more of a contact back. Like he's going to, you know. I mean, the idea of trading for running backs, I know you'll be against it. I'm asking, do they need one? Who, Houston? Patriots. Oh. Yeah, they could use a running back. Yeah? Stevenson and Henderson again next year? That doesn't do it for you? I'm a little worried about Henderson. It was only his rookie season. Yeah, not that he sucks. I think he's, but I. Do you say anything special about him? I think he'd be a good third down back. Really good. There's burst. You know, I think he'd be good, like Matt says, third down back if they used him in the passing game a little more. He lacks vision. I didn't look at that trade today and say, ah, the Patriots should have been on David Montgomery. He's going to be 29 this summer, too. Like, I don't look at that and lament it. I mean, remember, last year they started with three. So they're probably going to add one. Definitely. Now, again, you can do that in the draft. You can do that in the fifth round. I mean, whatever. So I don't lament the Patriots part of it. I looked at more of it as the landscape of the league. And, you know, I mean, I'm a little surprised Detroit, you know, parted with them. It felt like they had a good thing going there at back. He bitched too much because Gibbs gets it too much. It started to become a problem. It felt like last year. So maybe that was it. But, you know, I wouldn't want to, like, increase the workload for Gibbs. I think that would be stupid if I were them. Okay, league tampering period begins a week from today. The official league year begins a week from Wednesday, meaning free agency. So entering a new cycle here in the NFL for next week and a half. Should be good. Dominoes are top line. All right. But back to your calls in the interim here. Jim and Danvers on Jason Tatum. Go ahead, Jim. Hey, one time. Yeah, Tatum, is he talking about he has no hope of returning to that series? Because if I was him, that's what I'd be talking about. He could call up and say that. really that's not what he was referring to he was talking about ever being able to walk again or play again and uh yeah it was all just a little dramatic wouldn't you say yeah so look at i said this to murray somebody's got to give him better guidance than that and look it's not the end of the world i'm not telling you the thing's going to completely collapse around him but he didn't need a documentary right now why did this have to happen i don't think that it did because for a lot of pro athletes, these are looked at as good marketing opportunities. I'll put myself out there more. Maybe this leads to something else. It's all part of building the brand. That's what it is. But I'm with Maz. Someone should have said, no, no, no, no. Let's not do this, huh? I mean, really? Like, it just has no need for it. Will in Pittsfield. I will. So what a dichotomy from last Sunday, listening to Jack Hughes winning the gold medal, and now back to these insufferable NBA players like Jason Tatum and how bad we should feel for him that we need a documentary to capture the injury recovery that athletes come back from regularly every year now. So I think, Mike, you've got your answer on why Tatum cryptically said a few weeks ago he might not be coming back. It's all for the silly documentary drama. Oh, I figured that out the second I heard there was a documentary. I didn't know there was one. But when he did one of that podcasts and said he's just doubting his return and the identity of the team and they got a good thing going and how do I fit in and I'm having second thoughts. I called that out as complete bull crap the second I heard it. I didn't know why he went there, but as soon as I heard there was a documentary, I understood why he went there. It's because he's building drama for episode four. He's just, it's a show arc. He's got to create adversity to overcome it. And it was just gotten sucked into this melodrama of his. But the stuff with the Achilles, it's kind of laughable, unfortunately, for him. It's like a parody of itself. the way he's carrying on about it. Ryan in Andover. Yes, Ryan. Hey, guys. So I'll agree with you that the doc is a little too much, but Maz, don't you agree that Durant was kind of a different player? I mean, he was a kid with the Sonics and a little bit with OKC, but he had a little more burst to his game. He used to drive to the hoop, and the only reason why he can survive is because he's always been a shooter and he's so long that it doesn't matter who's guarding him. and you kind of rip on Tatum from shying away from contact anyway. What do you think he's going to be when he gets back? I mean, he's probably going to chuck it and be nervous again. How far are we removed from Achilles injuries? I mean, Kobe, Durant, these guys are the elites. This is more of a career injury for a lesser player, but I think Tatum can still survive it, but he's probably not going to be the same player. We don't know. They've come a long way with surgeries, but... He'll be the same guy in time. Brian, I think he'll be the same guy in time. So do I. It might not be right away, but he's young enough where he should get back 95, 98 percent of it. I mean, I think you're going to see him get I think he's going to get back to what he was. Yeah, me too. I don't I don't think that this is a major deal for him. And by the way, I would say the same for Halliburton. Lillard was a little older, so that's a little different. But Halliburton, he's younger than Tatum, I think. So he'll be fine, too. You know, to me, I just think it's fairly routine. It is. It's easy to say when it's not you, but in the scope of pro sports injuries, it's relatively routine. Yeah, now look, there were guys that, it usually happens to older guys. It happened to Marino when he was old. It happened to Vinny Testaverde. Yes, I don't remember. Right, Rogers is another one. I don't remember how old Vince Wilfork was when he had it, but I want to say he was in his 30s or early 30s anyway. So like, you know, a 28-year-old guy shouldn't have issue with this. Long commercial-free segment comes your way next. We'll reset where we are with the Patriots at this hour heading into, like we said, what should be a pretty busy news cycle anyway. That's coming your way right after this. It looks like one of the toenail clippings. Zoe usually leaves in the studio. Welcome to blah, blah, blah, everybody. Felger and Maz, 98.5, the Sports Hub. As I was taught, we talk about the business of the NFL, the businesses. We looking for the better younger cheaper player every day And the players that we have are trying to not let that happen And that the dynamic and that the business of the National Football League From a season-ending press conference after the Super Bowl loss, which is a way to get back into what's going on with Steph Diggs this week. It's presumed that they're asking him to take a pay cut to return next year. And if he doesn't take that pay cut, and again, not to beat you over the head with it, but it has nothing to do with the cap. They're asking him to take a pay cut, and if he doesn't take that pay cut, they may release him. Although I'm not convinced of that, Maz. I think they might just keep him on that number because the number that he's at is really not that unreasonable. It's not. The going rate for receivers is now up over $40 million for the top of the market. There's 10 guys, I think, who make $30 million. Diggs averages $21 million. His $21 million average annual value ranks 22nd in the league currently, and by the end of this offseason, we'll probably rank 25th or lower once Pickens and some of these other guys get their contracts. He's not even going to be in the top 25 in terms of average annual value. So it's really not that unreasonable of a contract, but when you read that they want him to restructure, that's a euphemism, a lie, for a pay cut. They want him to take a pay cut. And I asked earlier, Maz, does Vrabel asking Diggs to take a pay cut, and if he doesn't do it, cutting him, does that undercut Mike Vrabel's culture pitch and the thing that he's done with the culture? And does that undercut his moral high ground, if you will, about the culture and what they're building down there? So I say no because Diggs is sort of your classic NFL veteran that would get the same treatment from just about every team in the league. And also the comment that we just played, Vrabel laid it out there for everybody at the end of the season. He never said we're signing everyone. He didn't say anything like that. He basically told his players, if we can replace you for someone who's younger and cheaper and better, we're going to do it. It's just the reality of it. Smart by him to get out ahead of it. Yes. And look, so now if he were doing this with Christian Gonzalez, I would feel differently. But you're talking about a veteran guy in digs who's in his thirties coming off an injury. He was on the back nine. Like, I don't think it's duplicitous. I don't. Well, it shouldn't matter. but as much as that culture thing was pumped up, it maybe dents it a little bit because, you know, you could as a veteran player say, well, did you fight for me? I mean, what about the we all we got, we all we need, that whole thing. I mean, it's the reality of the business. Sometimes you're going to get priced out and you will get cut. Like, that's what happens. But did you fight for me? Did you really go to bat for me, et cetera, et cetera? That whole thing, the message of Murray's right. You know, you sign this guy, you sign him to the contract. I mean, you didn't pick up his existing. You started over, you know, I'm putting in air quotes here. And it's an NFL promise, but it's in the contract that he's worth that money for next year. Once he got through the spring camps and got off the boat in Miami and the pink drag of bugs. Excuse me. These bees come away. The pink bag of drugs. And he got through that thing, allegedly. He did basically everything he was asked. and felt like on the field, off the field, it was everything they wanted. And now you're going to say, well, unless you take a pay cut, we're going to release you? That doesn't undercut what Brabel's trying to build at all? I mean, I don't think it does because, again, I thought the Diggs thing was basically a one-year deal from the get-go. And I think I said you early in the offseason, there's no way they're giving them that $6 million on March 11th. They're not going to do it. But I understand your point. Oh, March 13th. But, look, I understand the point. I just don't think that Diggs qualifies as one that you should flip out over on. What if they don't pay Gonzalez? Okay, that's different. That's different. You're talking about a guy who is a first-round pick, who's entering the prime of his career, who is a cornerstone guy. Like, that one will look bad, which is why I think Gonzalez has him over a barrel. And, look, with the Diggs thing, you know, let me see how it shakes out, too, I guess. if they don't replace them then it's going to look pretty hollow but again it's really more towards the locker room you know you come in do everything that is asked of you we will reward you like in that what you want to that message to be to your players yeah okay and this one's just the opposite you've come in on everything we've asked and we're going to ask you to take a pay cut or else you're going to get released so was there how many guys on that team do you think fall in the same category as stepticks. I am obviously sort of over-dramatizing a little bit just to sort of drive home the, I think there is a, it's not as cut and dry as we would, you know, say as a veteran receiver, 33-year-old. Diggs knows the, you know, knows the lay of the land in the NFL and the way his contract was structured that they would have to make a decision early in the league year in his second year. He probably wouldn't get the money. Like he knows the realities. Yeah, yeah. So like, again, I'm over-dramatizing a little bit. not as bad as say like jason tatum but i i do think there's there's a layer that i think the team has to consider that they want the message to be you take care of us we'll take care of you i mean just as simple as that of course and i think that this it creeps up on that a little bit yeah look again i i just don't think it's egregious like you know so what are they supposed to do are they supposed to keep everybody no obviously not so now look there were guys that didn't uh you know, live up to their part of the bargain or their part of the deal. You know, I'd have to give it some thought, but there were clearly guys on that team that underachieved or that they didn't get out of what they thought they were going to get out of. You know, I mean, an easy one is Gibson. Gibson got hurt. Were they obligated to bring him back for the same? Obviously not. Yeah, right. Exactly. So that, you know, I just think that there are, you know, But I will say, let's see how they replace him. Like, if they are basically playing Brown and Diggs off one another, then, you know, whichever one of you takes the deal or is willing to play ball with us is who we're going to go with. Then, okay, like, I get it. But if they end up with neither, well, then I think that guys in the locker room can be pissed and can look at it and say, wait a minute, why did we even F around with Brown at all? Like, I think it could go that way. So they've got to make sure they replace him. But again, to reset what we were discussing earlier, I think that it's entirely possible Steph Diggs returns, and Steph Diggs returns on his existing contract. I don't know if that's likely, but I think there's a chance because I think maybe he is playing hardball himself. I'm not going to give any money back. He's like, I can go out as a free agent and do better than what you're offering me. I mean, it's really just kind of like he's a free agent almost. He's probably doing some sniffing around, but what his interest level would be. And he also probably knows the reality of what's going on with A.J. Brown. The Eagles are being unreasonable, as Phil Perry wrote at NBC Sports Boston over the weekend, that the Patriots believe that the Eagles have an unserious offer or an unserious stance when it comes to A.J. Brown, meaning they're asking for too much. And Greg Bedard had on a Philadelphia writer who said they're asking for first and second round picks, which is laughable. And then you give A.J. Brown the money on top of it, the Pats aren't going to do that. I don't think anyone's going to do that. Right. But maybe A.J. Brown's not a realistic consideration. So then what do the Patriots do? Good question. And Diggs knows it. Diggs knows it. Says, oh, you don't got any other options. Pay me. And the Pats look at it and say that salary isn't even all that bad. It's not. Like I said to you before, 22nd. You rank 22nd in average annual value right now. It'll go down. It'll be 25 by the time this offseason is over. He's only one of 19 receivers, you said, that had 1,000 yards? It's actually 20 because there were two tied at 19. So, yeah, one of 20. One of 20 guys, and he's paid like the 20th guy in the league. It's not unreasonable. It's a fair contract. It's a fair number for him. And maybe they're going to come to realize that between now and next Friday. Yeah, that's certainly possible because, again, they need an answer there and they don't have one. so and look from digs's standpoint mike to your point if they're gonna low ball him then his attitude is well i can get that on the market right so you know there's no harm in me going to market at that point so i'm just gonna sit here and sit tight no they both their leverage are what the market is in other words the patriots said well you're on the books for 20 well we're going to make it 12 and we're going to tie the rest into uh incentives patriot guarantees and stuff digs takes a look around the league and says well can i beat that and if he can he doesn't have to take their offer and if the patriots have got an inside track on a.j brown and a.j brown's willing to play ball with them as you mentioned and the the acquisition cost isn't all that great they can leverage stuff digs and that's what's going on here definitely so i'll tell you on some level This is like the Patriots. This is a wet dream for them because they got the guy for, let's call it a bargain deal because he was injured and old and, and also has a, you know, a history of burning out in places when he gets there. Then he has an off field thing here that pops up. And so, and he had a good year and now they can hold his head over a barrel. They love this. Okay. So there's a reset of some of our Patriots thoughts. Back to your calls after Murray's 92nd update. There are no commercials. I'll go right to you, so don't go on him.