PMT DB
PMT DB
Mike Tannenbaum on NFL Front Offices, Baker Mayfield, and Pizza Toppings
Football is officially back, even if that means we’re watching fourth-stringers run for their lives in the Hall of Fame Game. Big Cat and PFT are already in midseason form, dissecting the sideline snacks of Ben Roethlisberger and the absolute psycho energy Dan Campbell is bringing to the Lions with 1,100 milligrams of caffeine before sunrise. While most people skip the preseason opener, Big Cat is ready to fire at the betting window.
Big CatI'm taking the over on the Hall of Fame game's 32.5 point total.
I think the over-under was like 32.5 tonight. Take me over. The Hall of Fame game has changed where it used to be you'd get maybe like a series of the starters. Now we get nothing.
PFT is also finding an edge in Canton, mostly because Mike McCarthy knows Jerry Jones is watching his every move through the lens of a Hard Knocks camera crew.
PFT CommenterI'm taking the Cowboys to win the Hall of Fame Game because Mike McCarthy wants to set a tone for Hard Knocks.
For that reason, I'm going to take the Cowboys in the game tonight just because I think that McCarthy, he knows that Jerry Jones has his, like, Emperor Palpatine breath breathing down his neck all the time. So he wants to set a tone, and he knows that he's on Hard Knocks.
Olympics Fever and LeBron Narratives
The guys checked in on the Tokyo Olympics, where the vibes are mixed. USA Basketball looks like they’ve finally woken up, but the track and field team is having a rough go of it, particularly with the baton passes in the 4x100. Big Cat isn't exactly losing sleep over the relay team's struggles, though.
Big CatThe US men's 4x100 relay team is terrible.
So our four by 100 team sucks. And there were like a lot of people who were like, this is a debacle. How are we so bad at this? ... I really just don't care. Like, I want us to win, but if we don't, I don't lose any sleep over it.
Speaking of the Olympics, Billy tried to get some respect for the track records being broken, but Big Cat isn't buying the purity of the sport right now.
Big CatThis is a 'Mickey Mouse Olympics' because host countries are manipulating tracks to ensure records are broken.
It's a Mickey Mouse Olympics. ... It's basically, and I kind of love this, that every host Olympics wants to break a bunch of records so they just make the track better. ... Every host country is like, how can we make this legal but also break all the records?
They also touched on LeBron James starting his annual "everyone is doubting me" cycle by posting (and immediately deleting) a hype tweet about his old Lakers squad. PFT pointed out that if LeBron really wants a challenge, he should step into the ring with a certain heavyweight, though he might have too much of an advantage.
PFT CommenterLeBron James would obviously beat Mike Tyson in a street fight because of his size and reach.
LeBron James would obviously beat up Mike Tyson. He's way bigger, Billy. Dude, reach. He's bigger. Mike Tyson... LeBron James is like 6'9". And LeBron's tough. He's never flopped.
Mike Tannenbaum in Studio
Former Jets and Dolphins executive Mike Tannenbaum joined the show for a fascinating look inside NFL front offices. He didn't shy away from his mistakes, admitting he probably should have kept Danny Woodhead and explaining the chaos of the Laremy Tunsil gas mask draft. He also gave us a look at the "production equals tolerance" formula that every GM uses when dealing with locker room headaches.
Mike TannenbaumIn NFL front offices, a player's production determines the level of tolerance for their off-field behavior.
In every single GM's office, they have one mathematical equation. Production equals tolerance. ... You want to have standards, protocols, and culture. But you know what? Hey, if Tiger Woods is not in the offseason program, he's still going out there as one of our guys.
Tannenbaum also went through the current crop of AFC quarterbacks, and he isn't exactly a member of the Baker Mayfield fan club. He argued that the Browns shouldn't break the bank for a guy he considers "height and speed deficient."
Mike TannenbaumBaker Mayfield is a height and speed deficient quarterback who should not be paid a top-of-market contract.
Baker Mayfield is a guy that is just objectively short and slow... you can't pay him $40 million a year because you've got to keep Chubb and Ward and all these other guys... In my opinion, he's somewhere between the 6th and 8th best quarterback in the AFC. How are you going to win a championship?
The guys also pressed him on the future of other young stars like Josh Allen. While Allen has been incredible for the Bills, Tannenbaum thinks the jump in accuracy we've seen is something we might never see again from a college prospect.
Mike TannenbaumJosh Allen's massive jump in completion percentage is a historical aberration that is unlikely to be repeated by others.
He is a very good player, and historically he has done something that no one else has in terms of improving his completion percentage... People don't leave college football and become as accurate as he has... his increase in completion percentage is historically good. [It is an aberration].
He also weighed in on the Aaron Rodgers drama in Green Bay, noting that the Packers held all the cards as long as Rodgers didn't actually miss a paycheck.
Mike TannenbaumThe Packers will not blink in the Aaron Rodgers standoff until he actually skips a regular season game.
Green Bay will not blink or even think about blinking until [Aaron Rodgers] doesn't show up. Now, when he doesn't show up, now they're going to take a half a step back and say, hey, can we get three ones from Denver? ... But until then, they're going to assume that, hey, he's bad like a lot of us are at his boss, but when rubber meets the road, he's going to show up.
Mount Rushmore of Pizza Toppings
The guys went back to the fairway for a classic Mount Rushmore of Pizza Toppings. Things got heated immediately when Big Cat tried to take "plain cheese" as a topping, which was quickly shut down by the committee. PFT stood his ground on the importance of the basics, though.
PFT CommenterA pizza place's ability to make a plain cheese pizza correctly is the true metric of their quality.
If you can do a plain pizza right, then I think that you can do everything else right. ... Start with the basics and build off that.
Hank went full Carnivore Diet with his list, drafting Pepperoni, Sausage, Bacon, and BBQ Chicken. Meanwhile, PFT tried to corner the market on the saltier side of the menu.
PFT CommenterBlack olives have the most flavor per surface area of any pizza topping.
Black olives have the most flavor per surface area of any pizza topping. ... I like doing a mixture [of green and black].
Billy somehow drafted "Oregano" and "Spinach" because he’s apparently the healthiest person at Barstool, while Big Cat took heat for a Ricotta and Pineapple combo that sounds like a cry for help.
Whether it's burning your mouth on a DiGiorno or betting on Australian basketball, it's good to have the NFL back in our lives.
