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The Cult Of Colt: The Art Of Performative Pettiness

On this edition: The Haskins-Rivera rift, Alex Smith’s return to action, and... what now?

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NFL: Washington Football Team-Training Camp Geoff Burke-USA TODAY Sports

The NFL is an incredibly petty league. Owners are petty towards other owners, engaging in one-upmanship by building larger and more grotesque stadia and practice facilities largely on the taxpayer’s dime. Front office personnel leak scoops to the media, seeking to cultivate narratives for others that they want to undermine. Coaches roll their eyes with disdain and repeat well-worn platitudes in press conferences in lieu of providing substantive reflection their decision making and player performances. Players cryptically subtweet one other, only sharing their true feelings about teammates once they’re out the door. Fans (no not you, you’re all great) take any opportunity to take great offense at any perceived slight, real or imagined, when their team and their honor is on the line.

In a year when not much else has stood out for the Washington Football Team, pettiness has been in no short supply.

On this edition of the Cult Of Colt, we have lots to break down both in the short term — a laugher of a loss against the St. Louis Los Angeles Rams last weekend — but also the bigger picture of what has, and continues to go south in Ron Rivera’s first season at the helm. The topic of pettiness was the central driving factor in our conversation, with the Rivera-Dwayne Haskins connection as Exhibit A. Neither party is faultless in what is fast becoming a toxic relationship. Rivera has found a way to poison the well, tanking any value left for potential suitors of his inherited young quarterback on the open market. Meanwhile, Haskins’ move to unfollow the team and his teammates on social media drew the ire of otherwise loyal followers. From the perspective of we two “olds,” this move does come across as immature and not something that we would do given the circumstances, but we do recognize that the youth shall inherit the earth and the mechanisms of conflict escalation and resolution can come in different forms between different generations. To that end, we discuss whether or not Dwayne Haskins time in Washington is in essence over, of if there is any hope for reconciliation between the former first-rounder and his childhood club.

The recent history of the organization shows that this tiff is far from a one-off: it’s not hard to think of a half-dozen names or more of former players and staff whose departures (or ousters, as the case has been) fall into the “ugly divorce” category. Be it Junior Galette (whose Twitter account is still, just, wild), D.J. Swearinger, Su’a Cravens, Trent Williams; or Mike Shanahan, Jay Gruden, or Scott McCloughan, there has been an penchant for throwing people under the bus as they make their way out the door.

To that end, we wonder if this trend has an impact on the club’s ability to attract top talent and whether or not a player like the recently-released Le’Veon Bell would even be interested in coming to Washington if offered the opportunity to improve a flagging backfield.

We covered a lot of ground on this episode, but we would be remiss if we didn’t pay attention to the story of the week, if not the year in Washington: the return of Alex Smith to a professional football field. We spent a good amount of time discussing our feelings of seeing Smith trot back out behind a turn-style offensive line, and what it means to the team, to him, and to us, to see him back out there. While for us (and his family who the broadcast kept on cutting to) there was a feeling of abject terror, it is undeniable that with his return, Smith has re-written the narrative of his career and cemented his legacy.

As we look ahead to this week’s contest against the New York Giants, a matchup with one win between the two teams, and recognize that it feels — important? It’s not entirely clear what’s next (a problem in and of itself) but it feels as though a result either way is going to begin to demystify a trajectory one way or another.

Finally, we turn the question to you and want to hear your thoughts for a discussion we’re preparing for next week: what do you see as the fun part of supporting the Washington Football Team in their current iteration? If the answer is “not much” then what do you want to see that would make it fun for you again? We’ll discuss your answers on next week’s edition of the Cult of Colt.

A brief programming note: going forward we’re going to make an effort to include a full transcript of each episode available on the Hogs Haven post where the episode is hosted. We recognize that it’s a little bit sloppy (it’s a semi-automated solution) but we’re working on improving access to audience members who are hard of hearing or in the deaf community and really feel compelled to listen to us talk about the WFT — who are we to stop you from doing that? It’s a free country.

Click on the button below to reveal podcast transcription.

Bryan Stabbe: Hi everyone this is Bryan

Gumbi: And this is Gumbi

Bryan Stabbe: And before we get into this week's episode just want to put out a little PSA public service announcement.

Bryan Stabbe: We. Yes, there we go. It's over the wires.

Bryan Stabbe: We wanted to just very quickly call attention to something that we're going to try and do going forward.

Bryan Stabbe: We are going to make every attempt to include an audio transcription of our podcasts as included in the article that

Bryan Stabbe: Hosts it. So if you go to hog save and whenever we put up an episode. There's a little article

Bryan Stabbe: Everybody goes and go straight down in the comments and yells at each other and doesn't listen the episode but however if that's how really how you want to do it or if you aren't able to listen.

Bryan Stabbe: We're going to try to include some an audio transcription, just for folks who are either hard of hearing or they consume media better by reading

Bryan Stabbe: We want to be able to offer that. And so that's just some want to sort of shout out will be including those at the bottom of the post and yeah

Gumbi: And what's great about it is, is that not only is it great for the

Gumbi: Audience, no matter how small baby for us right now when it gets bigger be wonderful, but we are also trailblazers in this scenario, and we're one of the first podcasts in the sports world to do this. So I'm happy to be on board with this.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, and it's not that hard for us to do, and we hope that we're just trying to lead by example here a little bit. So

Bryan Stabbe: Our hope is that you if you're a fan of a podcast and you have friends who require sort of the

Bryan Stabbe: Transcription maybe reach out to them and ask, is this something that you offer because you never know until you ask, and we just are hoping that this is well received.

Bryan Stabbe: And for most of you will probably never use it. But for the folks who rely on it. We hope it's it's a nice value add and so if if you really feel so compelled is to listen to the, the two of us chuckleheads talk about this football team.

Bryan Stabbe: Who are we to tell you. Don't do that.

Gumbi: Nobody

Gumbi: Know, enjoy. Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: All right. Ah, so we're gonna play the intro music and we'll get into this week.

Intro Music

Gumbi: So I was at the beach this weekend and I took the time to sit down and watch the game.

Bryan Stabbe: Oh, wow.

Bryan Stabbe: Okay, can I ask you something. Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Please, why did you do that.

Gumbi: I don't know.

Gumbi: I think it was raining.

Gumbi: It was, but so I could have been out on the balcony looking over the beach. I think it had more to do with the fact that I wanted to be more engaged in this podcast.

Gumbi: Hmm, is the actual watching of the team.

Gumbi: And that's how it kind of goes for me.

Gumbi: So right now I'm trying to keep myself available for this.

Gumbi: Wonderful podcast and I said things to say.

Gumbi: Even though the team doesn't uh. However, before we go down this wonderful slope of negativity, that's about to hit um what you drink it.

Bryan Stabbe: Oh I guess we're doing this.

Bryan Stabbe: Well, first of all welcome to Cult of Colt episode 5.

Gumbi: So,

Bryan Stabbe: That's cause for celebration.

Gumbi: Years, that that

Bryan Stabbe: As, as you mentioned, the team has not given us very much to celebrate

Bryan Stabbe: What am I, sipping on we said it last week we've said it. I think at least a handful of times this team.

Bryan Stabbe: Makes us drink.

Gumbi: Oh, yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: I don't have that I'm going to heavy hitter today when I was at the beach when I was doing a couple weeks ago, you'll remember if you're listening. I guess stopped by

Bryan Stabbe: A very large liquor store before he left take advantage of the, the very fine tax laws of the our very first state and I picked up a birthday present for myself. The Glenfiddich 12 single malt scotch with

Gumbi: The bottle. Oh yeah, that don't

Gumbi: Do it again. I want to hear it again.

Bryan Stabbe: One more time. Ready.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah. Oh.

Bryan Stabbe: I know

Bryan Stabbe: I understand. I understand this is a little bit of a controversial take I go rocks. I do go rocks. I think it sort of allows it to breathe, just a little bit and I listened. I know, I know everyone is

Bryan Stabbe: Is blaming their

Gumbi: Yeah. Oh, they're getting mad. And here's the thing. First of all, this isn't a bourbon podcast, even though it will be later when the team tanks even more, but

Gumbi: So the reason people all you're not. You're you to drink it neat when my favorite anecdotes about that is that. So you're saying that Frank Sinatra is not a man

Gumbi: Frank Sinatra was not a true drinker of alcohol. He Vegas. The he loved it. He saying he was part of the Rat Pack. He actually used to drink whiskey with two rocks and a splash of water.

Gumbi: I drink my drink the same as Frank Sinatra. Deal with it.

Gumbi: Yeah. Deal with it.

Bryan Stabbe: Now, I just, I don't know, and I'm not. It's not like I'm coughing up along I actually really like

Bryan Stabbe: Like PD smoky scotch. But I just think that it sort of makes it a little bit more lifted.

Bryan Stabbe: If you're going to get. Okay. If you're going to yell at us this week in the comments section over anything, it can be our cocktail preferences.

Gumbi: And I agree with you. I think a bourbon. I usually use a bourbon stone or bourbon a cube.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, but

Gumbi: You know, it's made in the fridge. Like, it's not a regular fridge one. It's a big circular one

Gumbi: Yep, and

Gumbi: That so I like it a little bit chillier I'm not gonna lie.

Gumbi: Yeah, I think it does pretty well.

Bryan Stabbe: Here's the thing though, with, with the stone and we're like going this is going to be the most engaging part of this week's episode I

Bryan Stabbe: Actually, I went to a whiskey tasting and

Bryan Stabbe: I asked about whiskey stones. And one of the things that he the guy went to is Lou Bryce, and he's the former editor in chief of beer and whiskey advocate.

Bryan Stabbe: Did a very nice tasting for an alumni event for my college. He said that he does not do whiskey stones now because he doesn't like that it when it's cold. You're just saying that the like you know how it comes in that little bag.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, the flavors can sort of like get messed up when you put the stones in your whiskey that you might as well just use an ice cube instead of a whiskey stone.

Gumbi: Okay, well, if anyone knows the answer that question. It's em.

Bryan Stabbe: lib rice. Yes. What do you have been on

Gumbi: So I actually didn't go with liquor. I've actually drinking what's called what Maryland does, but true respite. I said collaboration.

Gumbi: hazy IPA by Maryland breweries and I can tell you right now, it's kind of delicious.

Bryan Stabbe: And you taste all 28 How did

Gumbi: I only 22 of them. I don't know where the other six are only tastes 22 of the breweries. I'm sorry, guys. The other six you guys just weren't involved.

Bryan Stabbe: Here's, here's another really pretentious beginning to a sentence.

Bryan Stabbe: As a brewer myself.

Gumbi: Oh, here we go.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, as a brewer myself, I, I'm very curious as the logistics of having 28 different breweries collaborate on a single beer. I'm listen we're both Marylanders

Bryan Stabbe: Okay, yes. I'm currently residing

Bryan Stabbe: south of the border.

Gumbi: In the Commonwealth.

Bryan Stabbe: In the Commonwealth.

Bryan Stabbe: I think I still have a lot of Maryland in me. You're like that you've been referred to as the most Maryland person that that has not me someone that I know has met you had said that you know the most Maryland person that they know

Gumbi: I'm actually wearing a shirt with you on. Yeah, you're wearing an Under Armor right now.

Bryan Stabbe: Right now.

Bryan Stabbe: Cannot make this up.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, that's cool mail and has a good brewing culture and it's neat when when breweries collaborate with one another. We will, I promise. I'm Mark my words. Right now we are going to do a full episode related to the football team, the washroom football team and drinking

Bryan Stabbe: Hundred percent alcoholic beverages adult beverages, we may, maybe we'll even do a Facebook Live on that one. We can we can do

Bryan Stabbe: It. I don't know if there's if people want us to do it. But what if anyone can think of anything specific that they're like it has to do with the team.

Gumbi: Yes, comment and let us know what kind of alcohol or specific beer that they know of that we should be trying

Bryan Stabbe: People are going to be like you should start drinking bleach.

Gumbi: Didn't make it just make it go away. Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Thank you, the whole thing up well.

Gumbi: So with

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, let's let's let's

Bryan Stabbe: Dive into the game hard segue.

Gumbi: Yeah, hard segue because we're gonna keep drinking, but

Gumbi: I want to ask you a question.

Gumbi: Please. I don't want to go through the whole game. I don't want to go through the whole game. It was painful.

Gumbi: Yeah, but

Gumbi: The news was and people almost forget that we lost the game by 20 points because something happened that no one believed would have happened.

Gumbi: Alex Smith.

Yeah.

Gumbi: He got in the game.

Bryan Stabbe: He did.

Gumbi: And he went back for a pass. And I think the first pass was incomplete then like two plays later he gets sacked by

Bryan Stabbe: Donald

Bryan Stabbe: Donald Aaron, Donald.

Gumbi: Explain to me how you felt during that play

Bryan Stabbe: It's funny because this is exactly what I wanted to talk to you about and we

Bryan Stabbe: Little peek behind the curtain. We did not discuss this before the episode um,

Bryan Stabbe: I

Bryan Stabbe: I felt as bad watching an NFL game.

Bryan Stabbe: As I think I ever. I got you know I always feel really terrible. When you see a guy get carted off the field. I mean back this weekend. I mean just awful just absolutely awful.

Gumbi: I know he's a cowboy, but I don't want no bad upon him. No.

Bryan Stabbe: No, no.

Gumbi: Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Just seems like a good dude.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, honestly, I'm pissed that he didn't take more Jerry Jones is money.

Bryan Stabbe: Any anyone who's taking money from Jerry Jones, like the less dollars Jerry Jones has, I think, the better off.

Gumbi: And the more that that takes the less the rest of the team gets and

Bryan Stabbe: He seems he seems like a good dude I'm neither here nor there. I always feel just like me. I always sort of feel a twinge of like he this this is like

Bryan Stabbe: I don't feel good about this when I saw Alex Smith coming to the game.

Bryan Stabbe: My stomach dropped

Gumbi: Oh, yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: The pit, like I i had butterflies and I was like, this should not and then they kept on cutting to his wife and my children.

Gumbi: When they went to commercial. Is that so, so he gets in the game. They go to commercial

Gumbi: Yeah, and then they come back to it and they have his wife like her mask is half on their kids are staring daddy's in the game. And I'm like, You gotta be kidding me.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: Like don't show the kids right now like now let him do something first. This is everybody who is a football fan, not, not just our team, but anyway for fan held their breath.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah. And then when Aaron.

Bryan Stabbe: Aaron Donald got his arms around me. It's like a big strong man. Yeah, and

Bryan Stabbe: I

Bryan Stabbe: I think I am not alone in feeling just abject terror in that moment and listen to his credit, he took the hit and he got up immediately.

Bryan Stabbe: And the broadcast was giving me like like he hasn't taken a hit. Yeah. You didn't take a hit and practice. He didn't take a hit in camp like he hasn't had any contact and then like

Bryan Stabbe: All of a sudden there is the best defensive player in the league, I think, arguably, in this generation, the best defensive tackle you can

Bryan Stabbe: Always. Always follow JJ Watt's up there, but you're talking about, like, you know,

Gumbi: It may be a handful of people at the last X amount of years. He's good.

Bryan Stabbe: He's

Bryan Stabbe: He's amazing credible and in my mind, my mind is racing a mile a minute. It's like

Bryan Stabbe: Oh my god like West Martin as a turnstile

Bryan Stabbe: This offensive line is a mass and and you know the Rams they came in at three in one. There were one on one on the road.

Bryan Stabbe: We said it in the outset, the fact that the NFC East has to play the NFC West this year.

Bryan Stabbe: It's not going to bode well fantasies and we'll talk about the division, we will talk about

Gumbi: Vision, but let's let's get through the the project 11 issues.

Bryan Stabbe: Well, yeah. So, I mean,

Bryan Stabbe: I just, I was I was mortified. And the fact is, so I think we get back up here for a second. Oh, Kyle Allen starts the game.

Bryan Stabbe: And

Bryan Stabbe: You don't find you just fine. He was, he was nine of 13 for 74 yards.

Bryan Stabbe: I it was there was nothing there that was like, fantastic. And then he takes that wicked hit Jalen Ramsey, right, that's why.

Gumbi: As well again as a quarterback. I understand. He was going for the first down

Gumbi: But, sure, why don't you put your head down.

Bryan Stabbe: Right.

Gumbi: You know you're we all saw it. Once you put his head down, we knew was bad, and ran

Gumbi: Down hit the ground, and they actually you could see his face to face mask and you could see he was in pain and immediately. Oh, yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Oh my god. Is he coming out of the game.

Gumbi: Alex Smith is about to come into this game.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah. And, um, no, I am, I'll be honest, I didn't

Bryan Stabbe: I didn't feel good watching Alex Smith play him. I felt very

Bryan Stabbe: Just, just really nervous. I felt like it was really like it, like it didn't need to happen. It just didn't need to happen and I just I was really just terrified. How did you I'm sorry I'm referring here, but like, how did you

Gumbi: Get here.

Gumbi: So, so did you watch the documentary about

Gumbi: Alex, Miss Lake

Bryan Stabbe: didn't watch it.

Bryan Stabbe: I didn't

Bryan Stabbe: I couldn't watch it and just sounded like really you

Gumbi: It's called product 11 and it goes to the entirety of what happened with his leg from the actual break, which is terrifying to watch

Gumbi: Then how the leg started to deteriorate, how it got a bacteria is in it, how they had to almost amputated. And then they had to take different pieces of skin and put it

Gumbi: On there and completely

Bryan Stabbe: I’ve seen them. I've seen the picture.

Gumbi: Oh, yes.

Bryan Stabbe: It's horrifying. It looks like a zombie movie.

Gumbi: And you watch this whole thing transpire. And you sit there and you're like, man, he's lucky to be walking. He's lucky to be able to just get in the car drive home and all of a sudden he's in an NFL game.

Gumbi: Against the best NFL defensive player, we've seen in a little while. Um, and when he hit some don't hit some gets on his back. I was expected the leg just dust.

Bryan Stabbe: Right.

Gumbi: Didn't you just disappear.

Gumbi: And it didn't.

Gumbi: Yeah, and I was shocked by that. But again, I give him.

Gumbi: Well, let me try again for $75 million that's on the line for him. He has to do this, he has to do this for his pride. Yes, he's a football player and he's going to be a great coach down the line.

Bryan Stabbe: So yeah, sure.

Gumbi: If he wants to. He will be. He's great. But the problem is is that

Gumbi: He's not a Hall of Fame quarterback.

Gumbi: He's not a quarterback digital leave you to the Super Bowl. There's a reason that he went to San Francisco. He went to the chiefs, he went

Gumbi: And he just never won anything because he's a service or quarterback. He's very smart. He's very good, but he's serviceable he's a he's a able to not lose the game for you, but he's never been more than that.

Gumbi: Not 30 something years old with half a leg, left on on one side, you're staring at a guy who

Gumbi: Is barely able to do anything but you kicked away a first round talent you you're kicking away all these opportunities and you're sitting there staring at like he's the Messiah or something goods going to happen.

Gumbi: He has a year left, maybe two of being a backup quarterback and he's not gonna do anything great for us.

Gumbi: Yeah, so sit leg and save your life.

Gumbi: Get the hell out of the game.

Bryan Stabbe: Well, and that's that that's a good point. So I don't know if I really should have just watched the thing and sucked it up to watch the thing but

Bryan Stabbe: I don't know if I mentioned this in that documentary, but this is my name dropping insider knowledge there.

Bryan Stabbe: According to folks that I know who know

Bryan Stabbe: That for a period of time in early stages.

Bryan Stabbe: an amputation was considered to be a best case scenario.

Bryan Stabbe: Yes, they people they thought he was gonna die. They thought it was going to kill him.

Gumbi: He had set up the status.

Gumbi: Yeah yeah

Gumbi: They really thought he got down on them. They've done it was like a whole two days.

Bryan Stabbe: And so

Bryan Stabbe: The fact is, and I you know what he

Bryan Stabbe: Has a level of

Bryan Stabbe: Sort of stick to it stick-to-itiveness and resilience that is just

Bryan Stabbe: It's, it's unbelievable. It's breathtaking. And it kind of defies description in my mind, you know,

Gumbi: You're to help make that happen $75 million

Bryan Stabbe: Well, and, you know, so they he had a of course yes of course of course he was quoted in the pro in the post game.

Bryan Stabbe: Saying that the, the, the primary motivating factor. The reason that he wanted to do this and come back was because he wanted to prove to as kids that like you don't you don't quit like that was the lesson he wanted to just quit his gets

Bryan Stabbe: In my mind, though there is also a lesson that you can teach your kids that if something almost kills you. Maybe you shouldn't do it again.

Bryan Stabbe: You know,

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: That's not a bad lesson.

Bryan Stabbe: To teach your kids. And the thing is, I have an immense amount of admiration for Alex Smith in the fact that he even

Bryan Stabbe: Every single thing that he has done since that injury, the fact that he went through all the surgeries. The fact that he walked the fact that he even made that he tried to make the team.

Bryan Stabbe: The fact they

Gumbi: Did not walk around. He cannot walk with his kids he can throw a ball with his kids he can be a dad.

Bryan Stabbe: Like, just like in my mind and your dad like

Bryan Stabbe: This

Just like

Bryan Stabbe: Enough is enough in my mind that was sort of like what I was going through my head and now here. Here's sort of where I fall on this. If I rock Smith, I would retire in the postgame press conference because he did it. He did what he set out to do.

Bryan Stabbe: He made it. Wonderful. It's one of the most amazing comeback story. And people were like always come back. Player of the Year.

Bryan Stabbe: I don't know if he's come back part of the area in the sense that, like the award is designed for someone who like was hurt and then came back and played well the fact that Alex Smith came back and played it all is basically a miracle.

Gumbi: Oh yeah but good for

Gumbi: The only trophy that may we may windows entire years that

Gumbi: Yeah. And again he deserves to be put up there because again it's insane that he played

Bryan Stabbe: It's insane.

Gumbi: It is that he was on that field.

Bryan Stabbe: He though, I think in the back of his mind and I am, you know, maybe I'm just projecting here. But at a minimum, he has, in essence rewritten the narrative of his career by coming back from this injury because what was the narrative is of his career that he was a high first round.

Bryan Stabbe: draft pick

Bryan Stabbe: Highly touted couldn't really was serviceable like above average for two separate teams.

Bryan Stabbe: That ultimately ended up going to Super Bowls after he was their quarterback coming Colin Kaepernick goes to a suitable with after Alex Smith.

Bryan Stabbe: He takes Alex Miss job and then Patrick homes, goes and wins the Super bowl after taking Alex Miss job in Kansas City. And so the narrative of people, you know,

Bryan Stabbe: 3040 years ago from now.

Bryan Stabbe: Save for this was so Alex Smith, like I remember we love remembering guys like we're guy remembers.

Bryan Stabbe: Absolutely, it would have been Alex Smith. Oh yeah, he was. It was highly touted yeah you know first round draft pick but like didn't never really do it now. What's the story of Alex Miss career.

Bryan Stabbe: He was a high draft pick. He bounced around he almost died playing football but he fought all the way back and play football again. So he has accomplished in my mind.

Bryan Stabbe: Like he cemented his legacy in a real ship performance, it didn't, it didn't matter. It didn't even matter.

Gumbi: What he don't lories numbers. What were his numbers and Sunday.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, so his numbers. I mean, if we want to sort of dive in.

Gumbi: I do, I want to know if he like how shitty was his game.

Bryan Stabbe: He it was bad. It was nine of 17 for 37 yards. He was sacked

Bryan Stabbe: Six times

Bryan Stabbe: He was sacked six times that is

Bryan Stabbe: Again criminal negligence.

Bryan Stabbe: To put him on our offensive.

Gumbi: Yeah, our oceans line is horrendous. But we all know that again.

Gumbi: This is a bad team in a bit. But let's, let's say, well, let's we talked about out

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: The washing football teams a bad team.

Bryan Stabbe: They are a bad teams big NEWS ALERT, THE

Bryan Stabbe: Team is a

Bryan Stabbe: Team. It wasn't a global team. Maybe the the least talented roster of NFL players.

Bryan Stabbe: Except for the defensive line.

Gumbi: But we're also so so worth the worth a bad team in a bad division.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: And the only other teams out there that can sit there and say, well, maybe we're worse are in our division.

Gumbi: That's true, as, as we're sitting here right now, it's Wednesday night for us.

Yep.

Gumbi: So we haven't played the Thursday night game yet as of this point. There are eight teams in the NFL eight that have as many or more wins than the entire NFC East

Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: It's almost a shame that someone is going to make the playoffs from this division, because no one deserves it.

Gumbi: No, and I don't, I don't want to make the playoffs. I want a good draft pick. I want the ability to rebuild this team by winning the vision you now put yourself further down the line for no reason.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah. And this is an argument that I think a lot of people get really fired up about. They're like, Oh, well, you know, there are third and fourth round draft picks the quarterbacks that do really well. And yeah, that's true.

Bryan Stabbe: They're also third and fourth round guys who don't play for this team because they're in a system where they're set up to succeed. Now the exception that proves the rule is Kirk Cousins, who ended up being fairly successful, all things considered.

Bryan Stabbe: I mean, he ended up, you know, leaving but numbers wise.

Bryan Stabbe: I think what we talking about legacy is he's going to be a guy that save for him like completely turning around and going and winning a Super Bowl.

Bryan Stabbe: What's, what's the Kirk Cousins store the Kirk Cousins story is like he he was drafted the same years Rd three, he ended up starting for for for Washington. He couldn't beat good teams. He always ran up the score on bad teams and then they didn't pay him, and he laughed.

Bryan Stabbe: I don't know, it just

Gumbi: That there's a lot more intricate to that. But we don't go through that.

Gumbi: Sure. Kirk Cousins is gone.

Gumbi: And so as Bruce Allen, thank God, but so you look at all this, I'm sitting, looking at this horrible division.

Gumbi: Yeah, and we have this, you know, the new GM. We have a new head coach.

Gumbi: And for some

Gumbi: unknown reason they're determined to win this year. Now the problem is is that when you win in a bad division, the worst division possible with a six or seven win season, you're still bad

Gumbi: But now you're in the playoffs about to get your ass beat

Bryan Stabbe: Your teeth kicked in.

Gumbi: And how does that make me better I played football for many years and I've been part of many winning cultures.

Gumbi: We are not a winning culture. Now, we are not and the change that culture, you have to go in and say we are on an X amount of year plan. We have this is our idea. That's what we have to do. Um,

Gumbi: And it's horrible, but to a small snippet of what's going on. And I'm going to use Haskins as that example they bench Haskins.

Gumbi: Instead of making him second string and make them third string instead of letting him suit up. They say he's sick. I don't know if he actually was sick. I don't care.

Bryan Stabbe: He's apparently still sick.

Gumbi: Because he is

Bryan Stabbe: He hasn't been to the facility as a practice what well

Gumbi: Yeah, so I was

Bryan Stabbe: Like this is gonna

Gumbi: Be. Yeah, well, this, this is yet another old school Washington scenario where

Gumbi: We walk in and we have this first round draft pick that we're thinking about trading.

Gumbi: Yeah. So what you want is, get them at the most possible value.

Gumbi: Right, which was two weeks or, you know, last week before they bench them to keep them the value

Gumbi: That you want and start shopping him around by knocking him down to third string and pretty much just getting rid of him now teams think that he is damaged goods.

Gumbi: Right, and they don't want him or they want him on the cheap. We just cheapened one of the better pawn pieces that we had in the trading market, all in one week.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, this team is very good at like shooting themselves in the foot, they are

Bryan Stabbe: There are a lot of very petty franchises in the NFL like

Bryan Stabbe: Billionaires like owners billionaires like have a way of just like the pettiness is

Bryan Stabbe: It's pretty astounding to me it's like you know you have a lot of money. You don't need to be petty like you there. There's a cure for that. And you probably have the amount of money to not have to be petty and yet.

Bryan Stabbe: This is an incredibly petty League.

Bryan Stabbe: This is an incredibly petty t this is this team is the upper echelons

Gumbi: Settings.

Bryan Stabbe: You think about and it doesn't even matter who

Bryan Stabbe: Who's running the show below Dan Snyder because it I think Dan Snyder's pettiness sort of just like rubs off on people. You think about like

Bryan Stabbe: Scott McLaughlin when they're like accusing him of being like a drunk at work and dragging him to like try to fire him with cause and then clearly someone is like putting those videos are those pictures of Jay Gruden just like

Bryan Stabbe: How like

Bryan Stabbe: Hitting on. We don't even need to go into it. It's we don't talk about that much. But this is a team that is incapable of ending any relationship in a clean way.

Gumbi: It just doesn't. Absolutely not.

Bryan Stabbe: Doesn't happen.

Gumbi: Whether it's whether it's the on the field or off the field or in the stadium or whatever they so an example, as I said that league is petty

Gumbi: Yeah, Arthur Blank, the owner of the Falcons opened up a brand new amazing stadium.

Bryan Stabbe: John's bottle.

Bryan Stabbe: Mercedes Benz.

Gumbi: Hey man, but he told me it's not phenomenal.

Gumbi: It's going to definitely not bottle.

Bryan Stabbe: Bottle.

Gumbi: But what he did is he went in and said ever all the owners use third party vendors for everything and then they skim A LOT OF THE MONEY OFF THE TOP paid

Bryan Stabbe: Oh yeah, Mary Jones.

Bryan Stabbe: MAKES MORE MONEY OFF legend, because the Yankees you I don't like you.

Gumbi: But

Gumbi: So blank went in and said, I'm getting rid of the third party. I'm gonna run concessions and I'm going to cut everything to minimum

Gumbi: Yeah beers like five bucks hot. Yes, like two or

Bryan Stabbe: $3 $4

Gumbi: And he's making a killing off of it, but because he has to show that the other owners are petty and they're like, well, we can do it better our way. No one's going in following this great idea.

Gumbi: Right, so he has an Atlanta this great idea orders, like we don't care.

Gumbi: We don't want to get involved in that. Let's just be petty, let's just keep the way I'm just keeps keeps getting money off the top of legends.

Gumbi: And just make it happen. And that's, that's this league. That's this team that whole concept of let's just be as lazy as we can to try to as much money as we can in the worst possible ways

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, and I mean this this Haskins situation.

Bryan Stabbe: The whole thing. And honestly, I say this is the one thing we did talk about for the episode bill in Bangkok wrote a fantastic piece this week.

Bryan Stabbe: As part of the five o'clock club where he basically said exactly what I was thinking where he's, he articulated what he thought the team was

Bryan Stabbe: And how he no longer has an understanding of who they are and what they are trying to be I feel very similarly. And we talked about this a lot last week was just like, totally baffling. The decision making in every sense where

Bryan Stabbe: And he did a fantastic job spelling it out and I had even forgotten about the Amari Cooper flirtation in

Bryan Stabbe: though. Yeah, yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Where they wanted to go out and spend a boatload of money on Amari Cooper and then got outbid by the Cowboys. I mean, actually no. I think the Cowboys may have given him less money and he took the less money in order to not be here.

Gumbi: What which people that to show to the team. Now, a lot of other players are just doing that.

Bryan Stabbe: Sure. Well, and really, all of this. If you let's say you are a free agent.

Bryan Stabbe: And

Bryan Stabbe: You have a number of different offers and sort of like different teams are calling up your agent.

Bryan Stabbe: Or calling up you if you're representing yourself and one of those teams is this one.

Bryan Stabbe: And you see the way that they drag people through the mud and that there's infighting, and you see what they, you know, the how DJ swear and your leaves and he's so angry and you see how

Bryan Stabbe: I don't know if you follow, Jr. Glad on Twitter. It is. It's something it's

Gumbi: Not

Bryan Stabbe: Oh my god, he, he is mad at this team still to this day.

Gumbi: Furious, he has a tattoo. He got and send it out.

Gumbi: Even more mad about that.

Gumbi: He's again.

Gumbi: So everyone's gonna there's gonna be comments comments going to say, but we're in a new era. We have a new GM new coach. The problem is, is that as we're watching this team over the last, you know, couple of games of the season so far.

Gumbi: Yeah, it doesn't look like it the decisions that are being made are the same bad decisions we've always made the. It doesn't look like they've learned anything. It looks like we have taken the same people over the last 20 years and just change the faces.

Gumbi: And that's what's that's what's painful about this is that we have

Gumbi: These guys were supposed to be better. We're supposed to think ahead. We're from the outside the box, who are who are understand what's going on old football players and instead we're getting the same crap. We've always got

Bryan Stabbe: And the thing that I think is interesting as it relates to Ron Rivera, and we talked about this last week in terms of his you know he had that quote about how he thought he could win the division is maybe chasing short term glory.

Bryan Stabbe: I, the more I thought about this. I don't blame Ron Rivera, the coach for feeling that way. I do, though, blame Ron Rivera, the de facto general manager, the de facto

Bryan Stabbe: Person who's responsible for personnel decisions, those two positions have very different goals, a coach is there to win every week and like I get it.

Bryan Stabbe: What he said is, it's coach speak. It's accurate. It's what he should be saying a general managers job is to

Bryan Stabbe: Not get bogged down in the week to week is to look at it from a big picture is to say, okay, properly evaluate where you are and evaluate where you want to be.

Bryan Stabbe: And make decisions based on those long term goals. Those goals that don't always run in concert with what a coach who's game planning and know coaches out there trying to lose. So when you vest.

Bryan Stabbe: Those dual responsibilities in one guy, regardless of how much everyone likes the guy, regardless of sort of the, the talk, regardless of, sort of, you know,

Bryan Stabbe: breath of fresh air, all that stuff it. I think it makes it really challenging to show that there is any sort of a long term plan and goal, just by nature of who they have vested that responsibility. Yeah.

Gumbi: Absolutely. And there you it's bad to have them both the same person.

Bryan Stabbe: Yes, yeah.

Gumbi: The Patriots did it the only team that's done it and it's worked as the patriots and that I don't understand it. It works for them great most teams, it falls apart.

Gumbi: And for some reason, Danny Boy he keeps trying to hand this the

Gumbi: Double titles out to the same person over and over again. He did that he said that a couple times at this point and

Bryan Stabbe: Chant

Gumbi: Happily rate Shanahan did it and was like, You've got to be kidding me. Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: And it never works out because he's not able to

Bryan Stabbe: Sort of give up those

Bryan Stabbe: Responsibilities but it's just, it is an interesting thing even around the league that those two things.

Bryan Stabbe: Those two sets of responsibility. I mean, we saw really tumultuous example of it Bill O’Brien was just fired from from Houston and good he he both did a shit job as a coach, but then also like traded away DeAndre Hopkins like it. There's no

Bryan Stabbe: I don't lie.

Gumbi: Yeah, well, you can as an owner, you can't be the GM look

Gumbi: Jerry Jones like

Gumbi: You need to have 123 you need to have this and having those separate people gives you different views on different

Gumbi: Opportunities and Sir areas and also gives you different relationships with other teams.

Gumbi: Sometimes the owner can pull up the law that the general manager can sometimes a coach can jump in and say a player is this or that, that the general manager can or the owner can't, it's you have these relationships and by all turning into one person you lose a lot of opportunity.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, rah rah does Ron Rivera does

Bryan Stabbe: Head Coach Ron Rivera have time to be on the phone with other general managers and I know that they have sort of brought a new new blood in the in the front office, but just

Bryan Stabbe: It just seems to me.

Bryan Stabbe: That those things are in Congress and Ron Rivera is now being pulled in too many different directions, where now this this whole Haskins thing.

Bryan Stabbe: Listen, I get it Haskins wasn't a guy, and that's okay, but to then tank is value and maybe sour the relationship and, you know, and again, if you haven't read bills piece.

Gumbi: You gotta just got to face.

Bryan Stabbe: He, you know, the idea that he sort of says one thing and does another and goes out wants to spend a ton of money on Amari Cooper, but then when that falls through

Bryan Stabbe: Doesn't go and get anybody else to sort of create a supporting cast doesn't go really investing offensive line in a way that's going to substantively be able to allow him to properly evaluate

Bryan Stabbe: His quarterback that may not have been his choice, but he's, he you haven't, you have to deal with it and you have to put them in a position to succeed. And I think that is the overwhelming consensus right now. You know what, whatever October 14 2020 that

Bryan Stabbe: Dwayne Haskins was not ever put in a position to succeed and it. Okay, so here's a question. Here's a question for you. Do you think he ever. You think he ever takes another stamp for this team.

Gumbi: This team now. Yeah.

Gumbi: Now I think he's I think I don't think I think he's done. I think it's done for this team. I think the everything that's happened Haskins has has been broken by this team.

Gumbi: And same way like Jason Campbell was broken by the same he was given a lot more opportunity.

Gumbi: And I think what's going to happen is they're going to trade them, they're going to get you know cents on the dollar for a first round draft pick and they're going to walk away.

Gumbi: And he's going to go back and he's probably going to be a backup quarterback for some team and I hope and I really think at one day. He'll. He'll take some more snaps again whether he ends up being like an RG three words a backup for a few years and makes it, that's fine.

Bryan Stabbe: Ultimate has been a great situation for Robert Griffin.

Bryan Stabbe: Has been a fantastic. It's been about as good as situation as I can imagine.

Gumbi: Yeah, it helps him. Shut up, because when he was talking, he was bad.

Gumbi: But let's let's go to the next thing. So

Gumbi: The Washington football team is said, Okay, well let's get rid of Haskins. Let's. This is dead weight. So they've talked about for all the offseason and all last year how great the running back classes.

Bryan Stabbe: how great these people

Gumbi: Are and they have not turned out that way. Now, whether it's their fault or the piss poor offensive line we have

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: Right now there's a rumbling

Gumbi: There's a rumbling going on that this bad offensive line this horrible offense should pick up, leave your bell

Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I saw that, I don't think it's gonna happen. I don't, I, too, so a, I don't think it's going to happen. No.

Bryan Stabbe: Because money. And why would they be on bail want to come here. Now, to be fair, Adrian Peterson, it worked out great. It really did it. He I mean

Bryan Stabbe: I haven't really been keeping up on him this year. But for the time he was here. It was it was a really good situation and it at the time that they picked them up a reeked of a oh

Bryan Stabbe: It was aspirational makeup, a kind of a guy who's on the you know his best years behind them. It's just going to be an embarrassment. Like, people will remember that he was here and sort of laughed about it. That was not the case. He was a he was a really good back for us.

Bryan Stabbe: Absolutely. He was a really good back and he still worked hard, he showed he still had it.

Bryan Stabbe: Bell.

Bryan Stabbe: Bell has been just, I mean he's had he's in a similar situation in New York, where they talk about a toxic culture that

Bryan Stabbe: Does not go well there without any case. But I mean, they haven't had an offensive line, either. So why would you leave the jets to come to the Washington football team like

Gumbi: In LA seeing traded

Bryan Stabbe: Know,

Bryan Stabbe: He's free agent.

Gumbi: Or whatever.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, he has his choice, he's gonna have teams that want him to come and do I think that it would make this team better like yeah, for sure. The running backs are not good.

Bryan Stabbe: We, we got our first fan tweet this week who

Bryan Stabbe: They are and I'm I apologize for not shouting you out because I don't remember what your handlers, but

Bryan Stabbe: Sort of putting holding us a task or taking us a task a little bit on

Bryan Stabbe: Our negativity in the backfield

Bryan Stabbe: So why, why do you guys not feeling, feeling this this this team and running backs well

Gumbi: What I got it. It's a hachi hachi

Gumbi: And how Sosa

Bryan Stabbe: Do so. So, okay, yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: And I saw that, first of all, thank you for listening and

Bryan Stabbe: Thanks for

Bryan Stabbe: Thank you. I don't know. Yeah, I mean, will take away yet.

Bryan Stabbe: I did. There's not very good and

Gumbi: Let me, let me throw out the I'm actually, I'm gonna give the tweet.

Gumbi: Please okay at be savvy and that's the STA BB that's established, I agree with most of what you said of the podcast today. But why does Gumby, that's me to keep saying all the running backs or trash. He doesn't like Antonio Gibson. Well, hey, I don't believe I said that that was

Bryan Stabbe: I saw that

Gumbi: Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: Savage. I don't like it.

Gumbi: But as a side note,

Gumbi: The book that's in front of us.

Gumbi: Is only a couple pages for these running backs.

Bryan Stabbe: Sure well for Antonio Gibson.

Gumbi: Period. Yeah. So, so I'm looking at the going well. We have a trash offensive line.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, so

Gumbi: Even if these guys were could, they're not going to get the opportunity to be

Gumbi: Good and tell the lie is better. So you have these running backs. You have proven nothing. We've shown nothing yet. So you call them trash. Because right now, our offenses trash. We're a one win team.

Gumbi: Last year we were three wins team. We are a bad team. Yeah, so

Bryan Stabbe: Stop the presses.

Gumbi: To stop the presses on that we have one, two, maybe three shining lights on our team.

Gumbi: Yeah, but of the 53 man roster three to five are good. The rest are people that we love. Yeah, but

Gumbi: If they were gone. No one would care the long run.

Gumbi: No, we

Gumbi: Don't have a quality team.

Bryan Stabbe: Well, yeah, okay. And just to sort of addressing move on in terms of my perception of the running game, you said it via lines. Not good. And Tony Gibson is averaging 42 yards per game. I will give him credit he running back is not as first position.

Bryan Stabbe: You know, he converted by receiver JD McKissic is sort of a journeyman Peyton Barber is a journeyman

Bryan Stabbe: That's it. I mean, they have three running backs on this team and none of them are terribly good and we have seven rushing touchdowns and then five games, they're averaging 81 yards per game that's you just can't. You can't win in the NFL. If you can't rush for 100 yards game.

Gumbi: There's a three running backs.

Gumbi: Rushing for 81 yards a game. Yeah.

Gumbi: That's

Bryan Stabbe: It's actually, it's like three running backs.

Bryan Stabbe: Running for like 65 yards a game and then usually like a quarterback has to scramble

Gumbi: Ah, yeah.

Gumbi: I didn't browsers in that bad. Sorry. Sorry. So that's, that's

Bryan Stabbe: pretty brutal so

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I mean, and and really all this, this comes back to the idea of that this was supposed to be an evaluation season.

Bryan Stabbe: I guess now the consensus is that Ron Rivera, at least with Duane Haskins has seen everything that he needs to know.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, um,

Bryan Stabbe: This is just one of those debates that I think really inspires a lot of fire on all sides, like, you know,

Bryan Stabbe: Is, is it petty

Bryan Stabbe: We talk about pettiness, is it petty that doing Haskins like I'm followed all of the, the team and all the players on whatever social media Instagram, I guess, like, Yeah, kinda.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: He's also a kid like here's a guy who played what

Gumbi: Two games that ball two years of ball. This one actual year at Ohio State. He played a couple games last year for the Washington football team and a couple games this year. So in the last couple of years he's been a kid. He had his draft party at a bowling alley, like, really, he's a kid.

Gumbi: This in the social media world he. This is what he does. Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: This is like this is and I can't speak for it, it's not it's not the reaction that I would have. It's not the reaction that you would have but

When

Bryan Stabbe: That's what you're growing up around like you just kind of have to say okay this is not sort of my reaction. But this is sort of the reaction that you would expect someone sort of

Bryan Stabbe: That and

Gumbi: He was wrong.

Gumbi: Right hold him who's guiding his way. Now again, whoever that is helped him get stability work with the wide receivers work hard to get where he is.

Gumbi: Sure, he went through and deleted everyone on all the social media. He had a little bit of a fit.

Gumbi: Yeah, but I can't. I can't blame him, he worked his ass off and they got benched kicked down to third string. He's pissed.

Gumbi: Yeah. And they also took away a lot of like his equitable amount in their knowledge to be traded but also monetarily

Gumbi: They ruin that for him and understand that I'd be pissed, too. He had he got broken up with bad girl who was telling the whole time how beautifully wasn't how Samson was not great. He was and all sudden one day was like, I'm out and goes, what what happened.

Yeah.

Gumbi: And so I can't be mad at him for all of that now Kenny doesn't need to step up a little bit more and kind of hold his head up look next to look at Alex Smith Alex method spent a good portion of his career teaching other quarterbacks how to play the game.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, sure.

Gumbi: You have a consummate professional standing next to you learn from him.

Gumbi: Sure best opportunity to do that.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I don't know, it's

Bryan Stabbe: If it feels

Bryan Stabbe: It's it's at this point in the season. And this is a familiar feeling where you feel like you're in a hole. Like I feel like they're in a hole. But I feel like they're not at the bottom of the hole which is not a great thing to feel when you're one and four. I mean,

Bryan Stabbe: They're not in last place.

Gumbi: Now,

Bryan Stabbe: So let me talk about how

Gumbi: They're tied for first place with 19 other teams. No.

Bryan Stabbe: I mean of crap, this division is I, you know, what if this week.

Bryan Stabbe: This week feels really significant, not just in terms of

Bryan Stabbe: The outcome of the season because, as you say, like, let's say somehow they become like the kings of ship mountain and end up winning the NFC East

Bryan Stabbe: Which is just a crazy thing to say for a one and 14 but we're living in crazy times but

Bryan Stabbe: To go up against a winless giants team without their best player sake one Barkley being injured. I mean, it's terrible because I actually, I don't like the giants giants. I don't have a lot of love for giant fans.

Bryan Stabbe: They're annoying. They're terrible. Don't I have lots of things to say about the giants. Are we really want to dive into too much, but they you go up against them. And I think we're gonna really know who this team is

Bryan Stabbe: After this week.

Gumbi: I think going to lose this week.

Bryan Stabbe: You think they're gonna lose this week.

Gumbi: That are going to lose this week, the Washington Football Club is going to lose this week to the New York Giants.

Gumbi: Which will be beginning of the downfall of any opportunity for us to win this division which is I'm fine with

Gumbi: The giants have played fairly well. The last two weeks against some opponents who crushed us. I think they're going to go in hot thinking this is their best opportunity to win a game this year.

Gumbi: And they watching the football team, which is slowly falling apart does not have that same drive right now the drive to not be an open something team is huge.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, they are favored their minus 150

Bryan Stabbe: Huh, yeah. This is a two and a half to two and a half point favorites going into this week.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, that's

Gumbi: Our money on that.

Bryan Stabbe: That's Yanks the fact that you're a winless team and your favorite that should tell you everything you need to know about what Vegas thinks about this team and like what, you know, people think about this. The squad.

Gumbi: I don't know.

Bryan Stabbe: Like I don't need i'm not i'm not i'm kind of preaching the choir here a little bit. No one. No one thinks that this is a good club.

Bryan Stabbe: No, I don't think so. This is a good club.

Bryan Stabbe: No one. I mean,

Gumbi: If people saw hope there's this is the problem with with with

Gumbi: The society has been around, is that people keep thinking that this team is good and it's until we turn around and say they're not they're not good. Dan fix this.

Gumbi: And allow it to happen that needs to happen. But this idea that we short term glory. We haven't had we haven't had long term glory. We've had no glory for over

Gumbi: 20 years you want to throw at me and say, I'm looking for short term Lori.

Gumbi: I don't want short term I want the ability to say that we're a decent team for a few years. I want the ability to say we are able to think about a Super Bowl know I have mailed to that for years. Last time even had that thought was with RG three for that double 2012 season.

Bryan Stabbe: So let's, let's say that the New York Giants.

Bryan Stabbe: Do, but we're watching football team like garbage. This week, but say they really. I mean, you're right that basically that basically shuts down any any notion that this is a potentially division winning team.

Bryan Stabbe: Correct.

Gumbi: Like 1710 2010 that that range.

Bryan Stabbe: What yeah let's say that happens, and I

Bryan Stabbe: Are we were doing picks. I have my I'll put my out now.

Bryan Stabbe: I

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I just, I, I can envision I can't envision them winning either

Bryan Stabbe: But, you know, okay. So then you've put this this notion of short term glory, whatever, you know, and I know we keep on harping on that that

Gumbi: Because it's an important quote is a really important quote because it makes no sense.

Bryan Stabbe: Sure what but then. Okay, so let's say that you banished that notion. What, what then

Bryan Stabbe: It's the same questions like, well then, what then is the goal. What is the endgame.

Bryan Stabbe: I keep on asking this question. What's the endgame.

Bryan Stabbe: And for now, it seems the end game, at least if we're taking Ron of air for his word, which has, as Bill. Again, if you have read the piece where the beast specifies it becomes hard to do, and you really sort of scrutinize what he had say sort of his actions. His words but

Bryan Stabbe: Okay, let's say they go on and let's say after next week we're sitting here and there, one in five.

Bryan Stabbe: Uh, what, what are they

Bryan Stabbe: What are they doing, like, what are they doing

Bryan Stabbe: I

Bryan Stabbe: If it were me, if I were in a position where I have the ability to be making decisions for this club.

Bryan Stabbe: Basically the only people on this team who stay our term or corn Jonathan Allen.

Bryan Stabbe: Chase young

Bryan Stabbe: Man is who's hurt.

Bryan Stabbe: Like

Bryan Stabbe: There might be

Gumbi: Fuller fellows put fine.

Bryan Stabbe: Candle for oh yeah he's played okay I mean I don't touch the D line.

Bryan Stabbe: Know what, like if you here's really what it comes down to. For me, if you feel as though you've seen enough of Dwayne Haskins to make the call that he is garbage and that he's not, he's not in the future, then

Bryan Stabbe: Every other player on the team, except for the guys that I named also falls in that category.

Bryan Stabbe: Every single other one

Bryan Stabbe: Everybody else

Gumbi: In the next three weeks. Well, as there's two weeks. The next two weeks will be huge journalists, we play us three weeks. So she goes giants cowboys giants, which I think is a horrible.

Bryan Stabbe: Giants and dragons.

Bryan Stabbe: Cowboys and then at home against the giants.

Gumbi: The best chance we have of gaining any wins in this next three games is on the eighth against giants.

Gumbi: Because I think

Gumbi: At that point, time we'll have a little bit of fire, we lose this weekend it lose against the cowboys and redemption is the only thing we have left on the membrane. So I'm looking at

Gumbi: 115161 we're almost going to be happy where we are halfway through the season with one when if we're lucky to

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, and you know, now there. I would say is the perception of a glimmer of hope. I mean, that DAC isn't. I mean, Andy. Andy Dalton I know people like to shoot on Android on

Bryan Stabbe: Any Dawn is sort of like a replacement level. Maybe I'll put them in like the 60th percentile of NFL quarterbacks last decade, like

Gumbi: He's the best backup in the leak.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, sure. Yes.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, he's the best back of annoyed. I think that that is an accurate statement. So there you know whatever the cowboys were they're not going to be as good as they would have been with back

Bryan Stabbe: They're not going to fall off a cliff at this point I'm looking at this division of, like, who the hell is going to win this division.

Gumbi: So I think with with

Gumbi: The Cowboys will end up winning the division. It's not going to be a clean, it's not gonna be amazing by thing it's going to end up being

Gumbi: Dallas eagles. If the giants are playing anywhere like they played last couple of weeks than the giants, the Washington boxing. Yeah, I think will be the bottom feeder.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, he in the eagles. I mean, that's a whole we we saw week one.

Bryan Stabbe: That week one feels like about it, a million years ago.

Gumbi: But, but people are still hold on to it. Oh it, but we've beat the eagles.

Gumbi: Yeah yeah

Bryan Stabbe: When says a chump.

Cursor yes

Gumbi: I mean, I mean,

Gumbi: Yeah, Evan folds fighting it out. That was the best opportunity they had. And now let's just yeah but

Bryan Stabbe: They want a Super Bowl and I will give them all the credit in the world for that and

Bryan Stabbe: killed me because I was I was rooting for the Patriots that case because I hate the eagle so much

Bryan Stabbe: But they they locked up there, guys, long term and they it just like the NFL is such an interesting League. In addition to being petty

Bryan Stabbe: Glory.

Bryan Stabbe: Glory is fleeting.

Bryan Stabbe: It really is.

Bryan Stabbe: Oh yeah readily. I mean, the fact that the Patriots were as good for as long as they were

Bryan Stabbe: And you know, I think. It's what keeps things interesting. It's why people like to watch because you know in a team can make the playoffs and like real off couple wins in a row and like win a

Bryan Stabbe: Conference Championship

Bryan Stabbe: And we're talking about bad teams in the playoffs.

Bryan Stabbe: What comes to mind is that year that Seattle, I believe, how to losing record because they had a tie. I think they were like 71 and they beat the saints. That was the beast. Quick game.

Bryan Stabbe: My mom when she had that

Bryan Stabbe: I think they were a losing team.

Gumbi: And so you also look at their schedule. So the Seahawks, even though they had the Seven, eight, whatever it was they really start to get on fire at the end of the season.

Gumbi: Sure they always had talent. No one ever said they didn't have the talent.

Gumbi: They were the problem that people have that they weren't living up to their town and all sudden, they started gaining that momentum going into playoffs.

Gumbi: And they took it over, they have the talent. They had the talent. We don't have the talent, the eagles don't have the talent, they have more talent than we do.

Gumbi: And the eagles are in deep, deep trouble. At the end of the season where they have a lot of people's contracts coming up. So they're going to be

Bryan Stabbe: Who's the most talented team in the division.

Gumbi: I would say cowboys right now.

Gumbi: Cowboys cowboys.

Bryan Stabbe: Zeke is good.

Gumbi: Yeah, my, my. Yeah, he is.

Bryan Stabbe: My fantasy team, except for when I lost you.

Gumbi: Yeah, which was by chance, by like like less than a couple

Bryan Stabbe: No, we can't pay you for you. I felt bad

Gumbi: But so the Cowboys are the most talented team. Um, but the eagles are right behind there, but they have a lot of people injured the problems that eagles team, the eagles have this season, and then they're gonna completely fall apart. They can't pay everybody

Gumbi: So,

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah yeah

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I mean, you put any of the teams, the NFC West and the NFC East and they win 11 or 12 games. I think I

Bryan Stabbe: Know it's tough. And it's hard, and I understand where the people I i don't I have empathy, but not sympathy for people who are like, yeah, this division is crap. We can win it. Yeah.

Gumbi: Why, why be the

Gumbi: Be the top of the shit.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Gumbi: Because all it's going to happen. Someone's going to set their foot on you and crush the ship. Yeah. Um, we're not going to win the Super Bowl, we're not

Gumbi: If we if we put up a banner that says NFC East champion 2020 oh my god why it's it's a useless banner. It's just something people going to put a t shirt. We can't be happy about it with with all the we get six wins. I'll be shocked. So we're not going to win this division. I just not going

Bryan Stabbe: I said three I

Gumbi: Yeah, I said five

Bryan Stabbe: You said five

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, I

Bryan Stabbe: I'm having a hard time right now seeing three

Bryan Stabbe: I saw three with Dwayne Haskins playing 16 games and

Bryan Stabbe: Just based on his sort of like rah rah like he's he's talented. He's skilled he busted his ass in the offseason he gotten really good shape. I think he worked really hard.

Bryan Stabbe: Apparently, according to any one who seems to know that Dr faltered once he got

Gumbi: The job but I saw him.

Bryan Stabbe: Assuming he played 16 games. I saw him winning maybe three I saw this team winning three and now I don't know i'm i'm

Bryan Stabbe: I feel like

Gumbi: This division, just a pile.

Bryan Stabbe: It is, and I wanna I'm just, I'm like what like Bill said, I'm very confused. I feel as though

Bryan Stabbe: I feel as though we haven't hit rock bottom.

Bryan Stabbe: And there's still a lot of football left to play. I will be interested to see what materializes I just, I don't really have a good sense of what's going to happen other than it's not going to be

Gumbi: I'm just afraid that the the quality pieces that we still have sitting around as players, these guys who I would love to have for 510 years are going to get hurt.

Gumbi: From playing on a GD team in a even worse division and a Senate scenario that puts them in a horrible possible

Gumbi: And there's going to get hurt. And that's, that's all I'm worried about I want this to rebuild. I want us to be good. Again, I want us to be the team that we used to root for. I want a game at rfk I want to see all the

Gumbi: House, I want to just enjoy watching football. Again, I don't

Gumbi: Yeah. It's hard. It's hard to watch a team score 10 points when I think seven of it was almost immediately.

Gumbi: It was hard. It's a hard thing to go through

Gumbi: I'm a fan. You're a fan. We're fanatics. We want to be crazy. I want to go down to the mall and cheer for a Super Bowl and go to a parade and get blackout drunk young in stream with all of my million other fans love it but that's not going to happen for a while.

Bryan Stabbe: Where we're going to put it. Let's put a pin in this conversation.

Bryan Stabbe: Because, well, here's our here's our topic. I think for next week, assuming that

Bryan Stabbe: There aren't other football topics to discuss what would it take, and we can discuss will discuss next year. What would it take for this.

Bryan Stabbe: For watching this team to be a fun and enjoyable experience again.

Gumbi: That's a great question. Oh, I'd love to get people's input on that.

Gumbi: Okay, I'm not going to answer it now.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah.

Bryan Stabbe: For dependents. Let's, let's put a pin in it.

Gumbi: I'm gonna write it marinate.

Bryan Stabbe: Right, yeah. And yeah, that's all discuss next week, I am, and I said, I'm, I'm interested. There's a morbid sense of curiosity about what's going to happen on Sunday in the Madeline's against a team that on paper is worse than ours.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, it's

Bryan Stabbe: It's gonna be yucky. It's gonna be

Gumbi: A real yucky.

Bryan Stabbe: Gonna be it's

Gumbi: Gonna be a nice a nice game.

Bryan Stabbe: No, not appointment TV, um,

Bryan Stabbe: We're gonna watch anyway though, I suppose.

Gumbi: We will

We will

Bryan Stabbe: All right, I think we'll be right there. Do you have any other any other thoughts before

Bryan Stabbe: We round things out.

Gumbi: One positive thing.

Yes.

Gumbi: I will give and I think everyone can be happy about this. Alex Smith did play

Gumbi: Yeah survive. And that is a great story.

Gumbi: So all the negativity with this team, even though we lost by 20 points he threw for like 60 something yards, whatever it was, he still played

Gumbi: So let's let's take that and be happy for him. I know what I said earlier when I said, but for a split second, I'm going to be happy for him as a fan as a lover of this team. I'm happy for him that he get to relive his dream.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, it really is amazing and I will give him all the credit in the world for his, his fight.

Bryan Stabbe: I, I really hope that it sounds like Kyle Alan's gonna start again if assuming he's healthy. And I think that that's probably for the best. I

Bryan Stabbe: Alex Smith has been through more than anyone that we know

Bryan Stabbe: Yep, it's, it's crazy and I will. I didn't like that damn he

Bryan Stabbe: Beers on me if I ever run into Alex Smith at a bar that's

Gumbi: Absolutely. It's not gonna be an expensive beer because he charged us himself.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah yeah well

Bryan Stabbe: Alright, um, I think we'll leave it there Gumby, thanks so much for taking some time to chat.

Bryan Stabbe: I know we were rambled who are a little bit sad and sorry to everyone who was

Bryan Stabbe: With us. We appreciate you.

Gumbi: Pride, they're feeling the same thing we are right now.

Bryan Stabbe: Yeah, they're filming. Exact same way

Bryan Stabbe: We're all in this together.

Gumbi: And we

Gumbi: Should keep it short. Today it's already an hour and 15 minutes in.

Bryan Stabbe: Cool.

Very cool.

Bryan Stabbe: Oh boy. All right, well for Gumby, and this is Bryan savvy from hogs Haven. Thank you all for listening and this was

Gumbi: The Cult of Colt.

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