00:00If they haven't picked up the option, we should, is what he said.
00:05And basically, he's worth the money, we should pay him.
00:08And he's worth the money that he wants, so we ought to extend the guy and get it done sooner
00:15than later.
00:15But he doesn't get into negotiations.
00:18That is an Elliot Wolfe area.
00:20Do you believe that?
00:22No.
00:22Okay.
00:23No, no way.
00:24I believe Mike Vrabel is entrenched in it right there with Elliot Wolfe and Robert or Jonathan Kraft as far
00:31as like, okay, what is it going to cost us to keep Christian Gonzalez, which it's right there playing his
00:39day.
00:39I don't think all you got to do is go do a quick Google search and you'll be able to
00:42find out where you need to be to pay this guy.
00:46And, you know, the fact that maybe they will, maybe they're just kind of like, you know.
00:50Wiggy, what scares me?
00:51And I don't want to just like spend the whole morning talking about money and owners spending money, but you've
00:57negotiated or had an agent negotiate with this franchise before.
01:02Is the sticking point with Gonzalez's contract going to be the guaranteed money he asked for?
01:08Because the Patriots do have a reputation of saying, we're just going to fold a bunch of incentives into this
01:12contract and not so much the guaranteed cash.
01:15Well, I was never at a Christian Gonzalez level.
01:18So it was a lot easier when it came to exactly know what I, what I was going to make.
01:22I would say, but you are one of the rare guys that had a better career after here than before.
01:28Yeah.
01:28Well, that's because I was just given an opportunity here.
01:31I was given an opportunity, but I wasn't fully given an opportunity.
01:35When I went other places, they said, hey, listen, you're going to have an opportunity to catch footballs and, and
01:40it's up to you to do your job, do that job.
01:42And I was able to, to do that, set a couple records, you know, all as an undrafted guy.
01:47You know who missed an opportunity to catch a football because he was in the bathroom?
01:50That's it.
01:51Yeah.
01:51I never went to the bathroom.
01:52But, but yes, but I would, I would, I would say this for Meggo to answer your question.
01:58I'm Miles Davis.
01:59With today's players, it is all about the guaranteed money.
02:03That is it.
02:04They see, what does somebody get at my position?
02:07How much do they guarantee him?
02:09If I'm better than him, I want more than what they guarantee him.
02:12Do the Patriots get that?
02:14They should.
02:15Yeah.
02:16I mean.
02:17Now, if they don't get the deal done, would that be on Elliott Wolfe or would that be on Robert
02:23Kraft?
02:23Or Jonathan.
02:25Who would you, I mean, I hate to go down this road.
02:28As you said earlier.
02:29Okay.
02:30Who would that eventually land on if they don't get the deal done?
02:34I would have to say it would land on Mike Vrabel.
02:37Wow.
02:37I thought you were going to say John Henry.
02:39Okay.
02:40I mean, John Henry at the end of it.
02:42What he probably did is called Robert Kraft and said, hey, whatever you do, you want to
02:47lose because the more you lose, the more money you make.
02:49Bingo.
02:50But I would say the reason, only reason why I would say Mike Vrabel is because.
02:55I like this.
02:56I feel like Mike.
02:57It's because of that giant Red Sox, brand new spanking new Red Sox jersey that you have.
03:02Yeah.
03:02But I get Patriots stuff all the time.
03:04Or a hoodie that you have there.
03:05When you're playing for them.
03:06Sick rag.
03:06Yeah.
03:07I get Patriots stuff all the time.
03:08They take care of me.
03:09I would say this because I feel like Mike Vrabel is the guy.
03:14Is the guy when it comes to the Patriots organization.
03:17He brought them back from the abyss, got them to a Super Bowl.
03:21I feel like whatever he wants, he's going to get.
03:25No matter what.
03:26That's what Texter says, I'm assuming Florida 407.
03:32I can't imagine a scenario where Mike Vrabel doesn't get Gonzo paid.
03:37Right.
03:38Don't you think if Mike Vrabel goes to Robert Kraft and says, hey, listen, this is the best corner in
03:43the league.
03:43Here's what they paid Trent McDuffie.
03:46We need to match that and pay him a little bit more.
03:49Mike Vrabel is the type of guy.
03:51He's not coming to a place where he doesn't have the ability to do that.
03:55Especially when you turn this franchise around and what he's been able to do.
03:59I mean, he's at the level right now, I would think, that you would see when Belichick was at that
04:04level.
04:05You would hope that it says, like, Mike Vrabel wants this guy.
04:08Get it done.
04:09Sorry.
04:09Go ahead, Curtis.
04:10No, I was just going to say, Wiggy's 1,000% right.
04:12If Mike Vrabel can't execute the deals he wants to do, he'd be out of here.
04:19Don't you think?
04:20I mean, why would he take a back seat?
04:22Right.
04:22And if you're paying him $15 million a year, you don't think you're paying a guy that much money when
04:29he has a major influence in what your team is going to do.
04:32Why does Elliott Wolfe speak to the media so much?
04:36Because he's the GM.
04:37You mean because he was on Up and Adams yesterday?
04:39He's probably their Sam Kennedy, their person that they roll out there to do all the talking.
04:45So you think that that's something that's alleviating a burden off of Vrabel?
04:48Yes.
04:48Okay, that makes sense.
04:49So then Vrabel doesn't have to answer all like, you know, he answers the questions, you know, similar to what
04:54we just heard.
04:55But more, it falls more on Elliott Wolfe's plate at the combine, at the owner's meeting.
05:01But I mean, do you not think that this is like this organization is ran by Mike Vrabel in the
05:11sense of like every decision is about him having ultimate veto power to get it done or not get it
05:18done?
05:18I mean, Wiggy, isn't the biggest stress test of that coming up right now?
05:22Because you would have to guess Mike Vrabel wants A.J. Brown on this team.
05:28And if the price is deemed too high by somebody else, especially with draft capital to get A.J. Brown
05:34here, then we might see how far Mike Vrabel's power extends.
05:39And if A.J. Brown can't get here, because you better believe in all indications down out there at the
05:47owner's meeting was A.J. Brown is not going to be on the Eagles.
05:50You hear everybody saying he's an Eagle right now.
05:52Okay.
05:53All right.
05:54Great point.
05:54I think with both of these, both Christian Gonzalez and A.J. Brown, you can make a determination about who
06:00is really in charge.
06:02And when it comes to—
06:04But with Christian Gonzalez, I do think that that will involve ownership.
06:08Like, I don't think they have the final say where they can tell Vrabel F off.
06:12But like, if you're doing $100 million in guaranteed money, the owner, I would presume, would have a say in
06:19that, right?
06:20I'm not talking about the day-to-day things.
06:21And the way that business has been done previously by that ownership group is not really to do those long
06:30-term extensions at big money that aren't incentive-laden.
06:34Like, so that's why I think, you know, you have a great example in your guy, Tom Brady.
06:41They were reluctant to pay Tom Brady what he wanted, $25 million or whatever.
06:45But do you think ownership's going to get in the way—and, Megal, you brought this point up with A.J.
06:51Brown.
06:51Do you think ownership gets in the way and goes, oh, wait a second.
06:54We don't want to give up draft picks.
06:56Yes, if they think his knee is torn up.
06:58If they think his knee is tearing up.
07:01If his knee is an issue, I would think Vrabel would be on the same page.
07:05I think Vrabel would be like, yeah, but he has issues.
07:09Let's only offer them X.
07:11Vrabel could also say, heard the same thing when I was in Tennessee about his knee, and I didn't want
07:17him gone.
07:17And look what he did in Philly.
07:19They were talking about his knee back when he was in Tennessee.
07:22Okay, but then he would say, hey, that knee stuff, not real.
07:26He's going to be productive for us for the next, you know, three years.
07:29So he would be able to step in and alleviate some of that concern about his knee.
07:37He could, but they could also say, hey, the Rams backed out because they got some word on that knee.
07:44Like, there's a reason we're the only suitors in this race right now.
07:48Like, it is two months for too early in this rebuild, if you still believe it's a rebuild, to give
07:54up that draft cap.
07:55Do you think the Rams backed out because of that, or did they back out because they go, ooh, Puka
07:59Nukua?
07:59We just saw where JSN got, mm, we're going to have to pay Puka Nukua a ton of money, and
08:05now we're going to bring in A.J. Brown, who's going to cost us a ton of money.
08:08Or they just assumed that the Patriots, everything they were talking about, they were knowing that they weren't going to
08:12land the players, so why would we continue negotiations?
08:15And I would say it is different.
08:16Like, if the organization vetoes an A.J. Brown trade, that is a major red flag.
08:23I understand the ownership's contribution to the decision-making process surrounding the corner and the quarterback.
08:29That is a ton of money.
08:31But Vrabel has earned the right to trade for A.J. Brown if he thinks it'll improve the team.
08:35Like, why wouldn't you want to – and it's all on him, right?
08:39If he gets here and then he's a problem, you can't blame Elliott Wolfe.
08:42No.
08:42Also, can you still call it a rebuild if he got to a Super Bowl?
08:45No.
08:46No.
08:46No, I don't think they're in a rebuild process.
08:48I don't think so either.
08:49Yeah, I don't think so.
08:50But you could say, like, early in this process with Vrabel.
08:53Yeah, but I think at this point, like, you're going with a – like, you're going with a beautiful brass
09:01roof.
09:02Like, you're just adding a roof to the place.
09:04You're like – everything else has been rebuilt.
09:06You've got to spend some money on the – you know, you get the nice plumbing fixtures.
09:11I agree.
09:12They're ahead of schedule when you're talking about the house that they're building there.
09:15We're like, oh, wait a minute.
09:16You just got to add some luxury to that.
09:17Right, so they're ahead of schedule in the sense that –
09:20You get one of those fake fireplaces like you have.
09:21Oh, they need a full fireplace.
09:23Or a bidet.
09:23Great bidet.
09:24I'm getting a new one.
09:25We need to talk about this.
09:26You're getting a new what?
09:27A new fake fireplace.
09:28Really?
09:29Yeah, a new spot.
09:30She's a big full fireplace.
09:31Oh, my gosh.
09:32I can't live without it.
09:34We have one in the place in Southie that we're in now.
09:36We're moving in a couple weeks.
09:37I already have, like, it final – I have it narrowed down to three finalists.
09:42These are my three final fake fireplaces.
09:44Have you ever experienced a real one?
09:46Of course.
09:47I grew up with a wood-burning fireplace.
09:48Have you ever experienced a fireplace?
09:51What?
09:52So a faux one is nothing like the real one.
09:55Well, Greg, I'm renting.
09:56I can't just build a chimney in the new place.
10:00I understand.
10:02But, I mean –
10:04And I would bet –
10:05Fake is better than nothing.
10:06Yeah.
10:06And I would bet that most new constructions or new builds probably put in fake fireplaces.
10:12That's not right.
10:13Why?
10:14Like, because half of it is going out and chopping the wood, gathering the kindling.
10:18Churning the butter.
10:19Yeah.
10:20Why?
10:20When you could just flip a switch or hit a remote.
10:23Lazy.
10:23Hey, listen.
10:24I'd rather be lazy than have to go out there.
10:26I love the fake fireplaces.
10:27The guy who has a concierge bring his groceries to his door is calling someone else lazy.
10:31One of the –
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