00:00Patriots have decided to part ways with him, and we have discussed that a bit this week, a little bit
00:07last week.
00:08Good job, Curtis.
00:09Yeah, Curtis, I think you said pretty early on that you thought this would be the way they would go.
00:15I didn't think that was a hot take.
00:17They were so clearly being generous, over-the-top in terms of effusive praise.
00:24Because Steph Diggs needed to get a year out, post the surgery, where he could show he could still play,
00:29be a great addition to a locker room.
00:32Some of the things that he was accused of being, he wanted to prove the world he wasn't.
00:37And the Patriots needed someone to elevate Drake May in a must-have season, second year in the NFL.
00:43They finish it up, he's going to go on his way.
00:45The Patriots did him a solid by releasing him early, so he's got plenty of time to hit the free
00:49agent market.
00:50What a great acquisition, and he served his purpose.
00:53And I feel like he's going to get his bag.
00:56Like, somebody will give him that bag somewhere else, don't you think?
00:59Of course.
01:00Yeah.
01:00So, I mean, it is.
01:02West Coast.
01:02And, listen, they have been pretty good as a franchise, whether it was Bill or, you know, in this case,
01:10it's Mike Rabel,
01:12at making a decision about a guy and not making that decision too late.
01:16Like, maybe making it a little bit early in some cases.
01:19Like, maybe you would have got a pretty good year out of Steph Diggs next year.
01:24But it also says to me, like, my only, when we were talking about a Curtis last week and you
01:30were pretty sure that this is going to happen,
01:33my mind immediately goes to, okay, you better have an option lined up that you feel very confident in.
01:42And whether that is, I mean, I hope it's A.J. Brown and that the relationship between Mike Rabel and
01:49that player means that he's very interested
01:51and you're willing to part with whatever you got to part with in order to get him.
01:55Like, I hope it's that and that we're not going to be disappointed with what the comp is when we
02:03have said goodbye to Steph Diggs.
02:05That's it.
02:05Yeah, I don't think, like, I don't understand why everybody still says it's for cap reasons.
02:10Like, you literally make the season guaranteed and the cap hit goes away.
02:16And to say nothing to the fact that they're $50 million under the cap anyway.
02:19Like, it's just so silly.
02:20They didn't want to pay him $21 million.
02:22Robert Kraft didn't want to pay $21 million.
02:25And Andrew Callahan and Doug Kide in the Boston Herald over the weekend said that at the Combine in Indianapolis,
02:31the Patriots have, quote, cash flow concerns, unquote.
02:36What?
02:36Cash flow concerns?
02:38Yeah.
02:38Does he put the $7.8 million to host the FIFA World Cup as part of the cap?
02:43Like, what are you talking about?
02:45The printer machine lost power down there over the snow that last week.
02:49They're a little behind.
02:51They make $400 million from the national TV deal before they do anything.
02:56They just made a billion dollars in the private equity deal.
02:59Like, what is happening?
03:00So, would you buy those that are suggesting that this and other moves have been made to clear the room
03:14to pay A.J. Brown?
03:16Like, would you accept that if that were an argument that somebody was making?
03:20You would.
03:21I would.
03:22Curtis, you would not.
03:23But it's just not – they're not mutually exclusive in any way.
03:27Yeah.
03:27If you wanted to say that A.J. Brown and Steph Diggs wouldn't have been great together, okay.
03:31Maybe.
03:31I don't know.
03:32But A.J. Brown coming here is not like, okay, we're good.
03:36The offense needs a big addition on the offensive line.
03:40They need a tight end.
03:42They need A.J. Brown.
03:43And then they need to get a pass rusher.
03:45I think that this is the beginning of it.
03:47I just don't – it's frustrating when you read guys like Mike Reese that know what they're doing and they
03:51talk about the cap.
03:53And it's just – it's just like – it's like the tooth fairy.
03:56Both exist.
03:56But it's just – to me, it's kind of exhausting.
04:00It's not why he's gone.
04:01They just wanted to save money.
04:02Yeah.
04:03Well, obviously, we talked yesterday about Alec Pierce or whoever it may be that they end up with.
04:11If they don't get A.J. Brown, but I feel like there's going to be some disappointment when it comes
04:17to the diehards if they don't end up with the prize,
04:20which is somehow making that trade work when it comes to A.J. Brown.
04:25And don't you think if the Eagles do trade A.J. Brown, they're not going to trade him in the
04:28NFC?
04:29So it would likely be one of your rivals in the AFC, whether it's the Bills or the Chiefs or
04:34whoever else.
04:35Yeah.
04:36I mean, 978 text on the Subaru of New England text line, is it possible that they are so high
04:43on Drake May that they think he can now elevate players?
04:48And so they're going to be willing to go out and grab a couple B-plus weapons and believe that
04:55Drake May can elevate them?
04:57Of course, that's what they've been doing since the dawn of time.
05:00Since Robert Kraft has owned the team, that's what they've been doing.
05:03I understand it was Tom Brady, and that was the truth with Tom Brady, but that's what they've been doing
05:07now for 25 years.
05:08Don't you think that's a mistake, though?
05:10Of course I do.
05:10Yeah, it's a terrible mistake.
05:11And especially coming off the playoffs that we had, and was Drake May injured the entire time?
05:15Was he beat up?
05:16Yes, of course.
05:17And was there weather issues?
05:18Of course.
05:18But at the same time, Robert Kraft can't look at what he put out there for the playoffs and say,
05:23okay, we can give him B-talent.
05:24It's just not there yet.
05:25Yeah.
05:26I want to go back to Stiz's take that was the hottest take of the year, according to Ken.
05:31And we love Stiz, about the Patriots might have been better off not making the Super Bowl.
05:36If they approach this offseason like they've already arrived, I agree with him.
05:40Yeah.
05:41Because whether you lose in the AFC title game or you lose in the Super Bowl, you don't win the
05:45championship either way.
05:46And if Robert Kraft's kind of putting his feet up on the ottoman, saying we're good, we can save some
05:51money, we showed we got back to a Super Bowl, then that would be fool's gold and Cam Newton would
05:55be right.
05:55Well, and I might be a sucker, but that's why I, since the Diggs news, I have had it in
06:02my head that, and I've been excited about it, like, all right, there's Mike Rabel's talking to, you know, A
06:09.J. Brown on the side, and they believe that they can get him, and they think that he's the guy.
06:15Well, to Curtis's point, though, they need so much more than just A.J. Brown.
06:19Like, if they actually want to compete and, like, change the culture and keep moving, and this is a culture
06:23piece, too, right?
06:24Stephon Diggs wears his welcome out.
06:26Like, he did a lot in the eight months he was here.
06:29It was only going to, like, compound as he's continuing to stay here.
06:33Has Cardi B worn her welcome out or no?
06:36Yes, no.
06:36I would like Cardi B.
06:37Bring her back.
06:38She could come back without him.
06:39Yes.
06:40She's always invited back.
06:41Please.
06:41She's a wrestler.
06:42Please.
06:42She'll be here in April for her show.
06:43Okay.
06:44All right.
06:44She had.
06:45But so you think that – is it the off-field stuff that you think –
06:48No, no.
06:49I think that's part of it.
06:50I do think that's part of it.
06:52Again, that's – there's only going to be more things that happen.
06:56But, again, I go back to Curtis's point.
06:58It's not just about A.J. Brown.
06:59You need the line.
07:00You need a tight end.
07:01You need a bunch of other things if you actually want to elevate Drake May.
07:05Yeah.
07:05Yeah.
07:06All right.
07:06Well –
07:07It's just a pop-up.
07:07Well –
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