Takes

NFL replays are too long and break the game's momentum

I think the replays are too long. It's too hair-splitting. It breaks up the momentum and the pace of a game. And I think eventually people are like... Just move on.

The NFL catch rule fails the eye test even if the letter of the law is technically followed

The Calvin Johnson one that kind of started all this... Against the Bears was like he made a catch, went to the ground, basically went to his locker, and the ball fell out. And they're like, nope, not a catch. It was a catch. Same with the Dez Bryant game... by the letter of the law, yeah, they're not catches. But the law is not right. It doesn't pass the eye test.

Scouts will reasonably drop Shaquem Griffin in the draft because he only has one hand

I can't wait for people to get mad when he falls in the draft a little bit. Look, I think he's a good player, and he did well at the Combine, but he does not have one hand. So, like, I think... That's a fair criticism to throw out there. That doesn't mean that he's not going to be a good NFL player, but I think most scouts would probably say, I'd prefer two hands than one.

The Chicago Bears have the best fans in the NFL

Who has the best fans in the NFL? Chicago. That's an easy one. I'm positive.

Success for the 2018 Bears means beating the Green Bay Packers

What's success look like in 2018? Beat the Packers. There we go.

Josh Allen pushing the revolving door proves he is an alpha leader, while Sam Darnold is a beta

I'm going to say that it was probably Josh Allen who pushed because guess what? He's a leader. And when he sees a problem, he fixes it. So Sam Darnold, way to be a beta, bro. Hey, Sam Darnold, you're just going to let robots run your life?

I would punch myself in the balls 12 times to get Saquon Barkley on the Bears

I would punch myself in the balls 12 times for Saquon Barkley to magically just be on the Bears. Just magically. You just compile, you know, you trust the process, like Ryan Pace told us.

Russell Wilson 'invented' the concept of letting time pass to cure a concussion

Russell Wilson invented just how to make time pass. He was just like, here's how you get rid of your concussion. Ready?... Drink five cups of water a day. And in six days, you're going to feel better... and in six days, I will have cured you. So water cures sunburns and concussions.

The NFL Combine is just a giant excuse for the entire league to get drunk in Indianapolis

Well, what we realized, too, is the Combine is basically an entire fraud operation so that everyone can come to Indianapolis and get drunk. Yeah, because when you break it down, the athletes that they're scouting, they've already scouted in detail... Why are they having everyone get into underwear and run on turf in Indianapolis? Oh, it's because Indianapolis is the one city in America where every bar is connected to a hotel and has a steakhouse.

Josh Allen will break the NFL by throwing a ball 90 yards at his pro day

Somebody on the NFL Network just said that Josh Allen is going to throw the ball 90 yards at his pro day... You know what? Is he going to break the NFL? Yeah, don't even let receivers run routes for him. Just have him stand back and just throw the ball as hard as he can like 10 or 20 times in a row.

Josh Allen might go number one overall because of our draftjoshallen.com campaign

I said it on Wednesday's show, but I think with what we're doing for Josh Allen, he might sneak in and get all the way up to number one. He might. Just from us.

I will win at least one Super Bowl before I retire

[Big Cat mentions Pete Prisco predicted Bortles wins one Super Bowl] Wow. Yeah. You heard it from Pete first. [Bortles agreeing with the sentiment of the conversation].

Josh Allen will be the number one overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft

I think [Josh Allen] might go number one because of us. ... Four and a half million people are debating whether or not to take Josh Allen first.

Limiting pass interference penalties to 15 yards will cause receivers to be 'mugged' downfield

It's going to be like the purge for the Seahawks receivers more than 15 yards downfield. ... the NFL is going to create a new law that's going to have like a million unintended consequences to it.

The NFL should stop the clock after first downs under two minutes like college football

The only rule I really want to see in the NFL is I want the NFL to... adopt the clock stops after a first down under two minutes like the college... Because it makes – you can come back with 45 seconds left. It's awesome to watch.

The NFL should allow all players to smoke marijuana

I enjoy marijuana a lot... I think it's made my life exponentially better... the NFL should let all their players smoke... because there's such a high percentage... there is actual medical relief for it. I think the NFL will get over it.

Blake Bortles is a lock to be the Jaguars' starter next year

So I guess Blake is, I guess, a minute as a starter next year. Yeah. So Kirk Cousins, one less spot.

Josh Allen will be the number one overall pick in the 2018 NFL Draft

We now have a place for all you Josh Allen fans out there to learn more about Josh Allen at draftjoshallen.com. I, for one, feel bullish about where we're going with this... [Mel Kiper] basically just putting Josh Allen at number one on his big board. Twice, though.

Ryan Tannehill is awesome and will take the next step next year

Yeah, I think Ryan Tannehill is awesome. [He will] take the next step.

Josh Allen will be the number one pick in the 2018 NFL Draft

So Josh Allen, the tallest quarterback that's ever played football, also going to be the number one pick in this year's draft.

A.J. McCarron will receive a contract similar to or better than Mike Glennon's

Someone is going to give A.J. McCarron some legitimate money. I would say my guess right now is he's looking at Mike Glennon plus. The Browns were interested enough to try to trade for him... The Vikings are going to be interested if they don't sign [Case] Keenum. A.J. McCarron's going to get some, some legit money.

Josh Allen is going to suck in the NFL

I love this Josh Allen buzz. He is going to suck, and it's going to be great.

AJ McCarron is the perfect fit for the Arizona Cardinals

AJ McCarron has Arizona Cardinals screaming all over him. That seems like the perfect fit. Shirt off. Business tats.

I would rather win one Super Bowl and have fun than win five in a fear-based organization

I think a lot of guys just want to be happy playing football... It's like the Patriots, obviously, they won five Super Bowls. Is that necessarily guideline minds to win the Super Bowl?... I don't want to be serious. I want to be a not serious individual and get the job done.

Ex-Patriot players won't speak the truth about how much they hated playing for Belichick

What do you think they're going to say? I can hate it there. No, I won Super Bowls. We had a great time. They're not going to badmouth their coach. They're not going to say what they really want to say. Do you think that's going to happen? Hell no.

Establishing the run game is the foundation of all football success

Mine [Mount Rushmore] is establishing the run game. Love when a team establishes the run game. Just run, run, run, run, run. Because then you get that play-action pass and the cameraman misses. It opens things up. ... Everything starts with establishing the run. That's just a fact.

Colin Kaepernick's lawyers picked a fight they can't win against Roger Goodell and Papa John

My first hot seat is Colin Kaepernick's lawyers. Uh-oh. Because they picked some fights that they can't win. They're going up against Roger Goodell's two favorite people in the world, his wife and Papa John. ... They're going to ask Papa John if he gave instructions or if he was given instructions by Jerry Jones.

Cam Newton is a pile of trash

I watched Super Bowl 50. It was being replayed. [Cam Newton] stinks. That's my hot take.

I will start at least one more game in the NFL

In my personal opinion, of course, I'm a little biased, but I would say [I'll have over one more NFL game start]. I know it's not the easiest way back for me... but just where I'm at and where I feel my mindset is, that's my goal at the end of the day is to get back there and be able to run out on the field as a starter again.

I won't ever return to the Cleveland Browns

I would think not [to giving Cleveland another shot]. We've been down that path. We've seen it... I just don't see what the benefit would be to go back and try and do it all over again... if anything, that bridge is probably still flaming a little bit.

Vince McMahon will have to walk back the XFL's 'no criminal record' rule

I think he's going to have a very, very hard time finding eight teams or nine teams... with football players that don't have at least something on their record. I would be hard-pressed to find what the percentage of people in the NFL are that have... any criminal past... I feel like you might have to walk that stance back.

The 'Patriot Way' is a fear-based organization where players don't actually enjoy themselves

I just think the the Patriot Way is it's a fear-based organization. Obviously, do they win? Hell yes, they win... Do I think people enjoy... you can say I had a lot of fun playing there? No, I don't. When they go to interviews they act like fucking robots. Hey, let's stop being a dickhead. We can be cordial for a little bit.

Winning one Super Bowl while having fun is better than winning five and being miserable

I would much rather have fun and win a Super Bowl than be miserable and win five Super Bowls.

There is no quarterback controversy in Philadelphia; Carson Wentz is the starter

No, Carson's our guy. But, hey, you really never know in this business.

If Andrew Luck was 100% healthy, Josh McDaniels would have taken the Colts job

I'll put it this way. If Andrew Luck was 100% healthy, then [Josh] McDaniels takes this job.

Josh McDaniels only stayed in New England because Tom Brady promised to play three more years

I don't think [Josh] McDaniels walks away from Indianapolis if Tom Brady doesn't say to him, 'I'm gonna stay for three more years.' [Josh] McDaniels would be the dumbest person in the world if Belichick's like, 'Yeah, I'm done next year,' and Brady's like, 'Yeah, I don't know if I'm gonna play more than one year,' because then he would basically be [stuck].

Bill Belichick letting Matt Patricia leave but keeping Josh McDaniels proves he thinks Patricia is a dummy

The other fallout is [Bill] Belichick must think Matt Patricia's a dummy because he's like, 'No, you go ahead. You're not going to be the coach of the New England Patriots when I leave. So you go ahead and don't even look back.'

Mike Tice retiring because players 'don't want to be coached' just means he sucks at coaching

Mike Tice is going to retire, and he says it's because players no longer want to be coached... When you say that you're quitting your coaching job because players don't want to be coached, you're just saying, 'I suck at coaching.'

Bill Belichick's two best qualities are insight and foresight

There's two qualities that he by far stands apart from everyone else. And I call them insight and foresight. On insight, I mean on a daily and weekly basis, he's on top of everything all the time... and then foresight. Foresight he always seemed to be one step ahead of everybody else. He'd get rid of that guy that everyone still loved, but it was towards the end of his career, and then the next year they'd fall off the shelf.

Curtis Martin and Brady Quinn were the best players I ever coached

Pros... I think Curtis Martin might have been the best player in the pros. [In college] might have been Brady Quinn. I mean, he played for me for two years and led the team to two BCS games. And he got hurt in his last game against LSU... He tears up his knee, he puts a brace on him and finishes the game.

The Eagles must keep Nick Foles because Carson Wentz might not be ready for the season

I think [the Eagles] should keep Nick Foles for the time being because who's to say Carson Wentz is going to be all of a sudden better in eight months? ... We've been kind of numb to the fact that ACL recoveries are still pretty intense... Carson Wentz is going to take a while.

Doug Pederson beat the Patriots by taking the huge risks that the Jaguars refused to take

Doug Pederson did what the Jaguars refused to do in the AFC Championship game. He knew that to beat the Patriots, you have to take one or two huge risks, and that's the only way you can do it. And he did it with the fourth down call where Nick Foles caught the touchdown.

Aaron Rodgers realizes he could be pushed out of Green Bay just like Brett Favre

Aaron Rodgers... said that he was shocked that the Packers fired his quarterback coach. And he also said... 'I think you have to be humble enough to realize if it could happen to Brett [Favre], it can happen to you. It's a business.'

Malcolm Butler was benched because of a gentleman's agreement trade between Bill Belichick and Sean Payton

Nobody knows why [Malcolm Butler was benched]... I actually think it's something else entirely. I think it's part of a gentleman's agreement between [Bill] Belichick and Sean Payton just to keep him healthy for the trade that is yet to be finalized. But it's definitely coming.

Rob Gronkowski is seriously considering retirement

Gronk definitively would not say that he's coming back. Like he, you can tell he's thinking about it. He's thinking about retiring.

Nick Foles will get 'a lot of money' and Cleveland will try to sign him

How much money would you pay Nick Foles next year? He's going to get a lot of money. Cleveland... Cleveland comes knocking for Nick Foles. Nick Foles would be the perfect addition to that [quarterback jersey], you have to admit.

Dan Snyder is using the franchise tag on Kirk Cousins just to maintain control

Dan Snyder... has decided he's going to franchise tag Kirk Cousins after trading for older Kirk Cousins [Alex Smith]... It's just Snyder wanting to have control over a situation where he has no control. Which is everything.

Tom Brady can't beat 'ugly' or 'mouth-breathing' quarterbacks like Eli Manning and Nick Foles

What the game did prove to us was our theory that Tom Brady sucks against ugly quarterbacks and mouth-breathing quarterbacks... You got two against Eli [Manning], you got one against Nick Foles. It's like an ugly duckling, beautiful swan situation where you underestimate your competition if you're that much more attractive than they are.

I can play up to five more years in the NFL

How many more years are you going to play in the NFL? I would say anywhere between one and five... 15? Yeah, I could do 15 [seasons total].

There is a 0% chance I ever get into coaching

I hope you don't think you're going to get into coaching with that attitude [not drinking coffee]. There'll be 0% chance I get into coaching.