is investigating
the financial improprieties.
Allegedly. How do you do all this and this engaged? Well,
you have, you have people working for you delegate.
That's how you do it. You delegate
and, and you stay up late, you delegating to stay up late.
She's also investigating the claim from Tiffany Johnston. A
former Washington employee that there was some sort of
inappropriate conduct committed directly by team owner. Daniel
Snyder, and she's investigating
the Miami Dolphins for the clay. I'm from former coach
Brian Flores that he was offered a hundred thousand
dollars per loss in 2019. And now we become aware of
an investigation that has been ongoing
as i.com had the report last night and it was unclear where
it all came from. Because I saw on Twitter, a statement from
the Browns, the Browns issued a statement to S i.com on request
because
as I was looking into
the fact that the NFL is investigating the Browns for
the oh, by the way, claim that Hugh Jackson made after Flores.
Just that he was offered a hundred thousand dollars per
loss. In 2019 Jackson said basically and I'm paraphrasing
but
same thing here happened with me. Yeah. Oh wait, that's not
exactly the same.
Then he backed off. Yeah,
and the Browns pointed that out in their statement. They say he
retracted his claim. I don't think it's quite that simple
because
he gave a quote, to a sigh.com. Chris where he says that he
tried to go through the proper channels, two years ago and
and Raise this under the NFL's Constitution and bylaws
directly with the league, and they didn't investigate it
then. So why are they investigating it now?
So, there's something there. I just think it's been poorly
communicated by Hugh Jackson, as to what the something is.
Yeah. I don't disagree with you there. And yes, I would think
there is something there. I don't think
Hugh Jackson would say this, you know,
just totally falsely but I do think he kind of hurt his
credibility a little bit in the situation by coming out. So
strong right off the bat. Like, yeah, me too. And then, yeah,
okay. Now it's two or three interviews later and it's not
mean to its you have a little different story and you don't
seem to be as strong as selling it as you did when you first
came out. So that's those where it's a little weird. But do I
doubt that some sort of conversation like this went on
maybe with a huge accident Cleveland? I don't I certainly
think it's
worth investigating and
and check it out. If you're married, Joe in the NFL
and this all comes down to how aggressively she investigates.
How many rocks she overturns and what the league wants to
find again? This is my opinion. I don't need to get sued by
Mary Jo White or anyone else, but I know from experience,
you don't continue to get hired by a major client
to conduct independent investigations.
If you aren't giving them what they want,
whatever it is, they want, they're happy with our work and
I don't think it's like, oh, she uses a great penmanship.
They're happy with the result. Not the process. At a certain
point, let's put it this way to, and this comes up from time
to time
because
the NFL likes to hide behind this idea that it's using,
truly independent investigators. It's not their
beholden to the league. They want to keep getting work from
the lake and the more work Mary Jo White gets from the league,
the less independent.
She is necessarily
because you basically become, you know, like a satellite
office for the NFL. Hey, we got we go. Hey, we're Mary Jo, we
got another One for you. All right. I'm on it.
If they weren't happy with everything she was doing. They
would not be continuing to hire her. She's giving them what
they're looking for and that can corrupt the process because
sometimes you start to try
to guess what you think, the person who keeps hiring you to
do these interviews really wants and these investigation.
So I say all that because
If there's anything here, here's what I think it is and
and this is speculation
informed, by an understanding of how things work and how
the sausage gets made.
I would not be surprised.
If the truth here is Chris, that the Browns had a system of
incentives
for Hugh Jackson and others in the organization
that were tied to factors.
That were not conducive to winning now but winning later,
like not using all your cap space
like finding a way to stockpile, draft picks
other things that would show
that you're really not trying to win. Now not we're paying
you to lose but we're giving you Financial incentives
to do these various things that when all taken together, it's
going to make it pretty damn hard to lose right now man.
Yeah. Well, yeah, you know,
I hadn't and so it's a more subtle way
of doing. Stephen Ross, did it Sam or
it's a more
engineered type of tank and it's more strategic how it's
not? It's not. Hey Hugh. Here's a hundred grand for every game.
You lose its
we've got benchmarks to determine bonuses
and we're going to
base these bonuses on
how much cap space we carry over from 2016 to 2017 2017,
2018 2018, 2019, whatever how many draft picks? We have that
kind of thing. How many free agents we sign or don't sign.
And that's a way to bake tanking
into your broader structure without being obvious. If then,
if then again, that's that's speculation, but
that, that could be what Hugh Jackson's talking about. It is
interesting. I mean, I will be, I'll be you know, interested to
hear what he says or what what the his vision of whatever was
being portrayed to him as far as what he wanted losing.
Yeah, you're right. That way. It's not your traditional way
of tanking. You're still coaching and playing to win. A
game.
But, you know, you've set yourself.
You gotta hand tied behind, but you know, you've set yourself
up. Yes. To not really, put your in the best spot to
actually coach your best and win the game. So that's where
I guess this is my thing
and not that, I mean we've seen crazy crap in the NFL,
that just seems like
a lot to keep quiet. Like, I just feel like that would have
came out already. If there was that intricate of a detail
plan.
You talked about it a few minutes ago, how impressive it
was. For my homes and Kelsey to keep it Tyree kill thing.
Quiet. I have a hard time, thinking,
a bunch of people in a front office. Can keep that quiet
either too. But if you're getting money, maybe that'll
make you be quiet. That's for sure to. I don't know, but did
but didn't we know that that's what they were doing that. The
analytics plan
that was put in place by Paul depodesta was based on
sucking now to be better later. It was kind of like an Open
Secret. Like they're not really trying to win.
This is what they're doing. They're stockpiling picks. They're
there waiting to make their
Play later and it worked. But there's a difference. So
there's a difference to me than that, though. That's just
playing The Long play and not going all-in on a year. So
that's where,
yeah, it'll be interesting to kind of see how that's planned
out because you're right. I mean, I know what you're
saying. They are doing that but to what extent are, you know,
you can't bite off your nose to spite your face for the future
to just to do
that.
So that would I got to see some of the details I guess is what
I'm saying, to believe it or
Really where this is going with Hugh Jackson because I'm kind
of confused by his claim all together.
Did you say bite off your nose to spite your face? Yes.
I said, yes. I said
that's one of your classic. See, I need to point out to
anyone. Who's inclined to email me to say, there's a new Sims
is. MM. It's not new.
It's it, trust me.
It is not new. Most of them at this point are not know. This
is just, you know, a re-airing of past comments.
This gets to the point though
that came up in the immediate aftermath
Math, the Flores allegation, because
the only reason that Stephen Ross was suggesting,
if the allegation is true,
that the Dolphins lose games in 2019, is he wanted to have
the highest possible draft pick in 2020? It's not like he's
betting on the Patriots when they're playing the Dolphins,
and he wants Brian Flores to lose, so he can win the bet
that he's made against his team.
And
that's why
the draft structure is flawed and the NFL
is
Robert Lee ignorant of it. I think they know but they act
like they don't know because their attitude is every team
tries to win every game.
Every team does its best to win every game? No matter
the steaks, no matter the week. No matter whether or not you have
the one seat or the worst team in the league.
Everybody's trying to win
all the time, Integrity. The game Integrity of the game,
Integrity the game.
And we know that's baloney.
We know it's baloney. It was proven with the Buccaneers we
17 at the 2014 season when they removed
half their starters
to deliberately lose a game that they were winning against
the Saints. Sean. Payton told that story Super Bowl week.
He's, you know, he's
he said he had somebody who talks to him
when when changes are made when somebody's out there's
an injury. Hey the left corner backs out and it's like they're
going over and over again like half their team was out when
they came out for the second half. Everybody knew what
the Buccaneers were doing.
So there are reasons to do it because of the
the way that those draft picks are awarded until the NFL
changes that that incentive is going to be but still whether
it's something specific like I'll pay a hundred thousand
dollars to lose
or whether it's a broader incentive structure
that does not prioritize winning now, but prioritizes
having more draft picks to build a team later.
That's a reality of the NFL. Yeah. It is a reality. The NFL.
I do think there's a little difference there. There's
a difference though to me
at least in me in my opinion and I'll again. Okay, late last
game of the Here,
we've kind of already made our bed. So now in the second half,
we're going to just make sure we don't win this game. So we
can have the number one pick. There's a difference to me in
that and then to,
hey, owner, telling coach lose this game. Next week. Lose
every game here, down the stretch, and here's money to do
it. That's a different ball game, to me,
and then one is egregious, and it is wrong.
Another one,
you know, again, I don't know how to stop trying to land. A
plane, I get it trying to like get it, but first overall pick
in the draft, I get you. But 11 has shown weeks and weeks of
evidence of like not trying to put your best foot forward.
The other one, at least, you can't prove that they went
finally, we put our best forward. We stink. Let's make
sure we get the number one pick here. There's there is
a difference to me in that and maybe I'm not explaining or
getting to the core differences. They're the best
way.
Payton's view on that is once you cross that bridge you can't
go back. Yeah, that that if you do that,
you are inflicting a wound upon your program that can't be
repaired. Because
there are individuals players coaches Etc. That, you know,
you want to have a winning culture. Yes. And winning means
winning every game, right. Winning winning, winning
winning trying to win, trying to win, trying to win. So
whatever you gain from deliberately losing
is going to be offset by what you lose
by, not trying to win if that.
It makes total sense. We talked about this a lot towards
the end of the year. We talked about this with Detroit, right?
We were all. Just they lose. They do this. No, you got to
start building something win games, start giving the team
and the players to go.
Wait, things are going in the right direction of the end of
the year and then you can hit the off season feeling
positive. No. And added to the fact of like, you know, what
we've talked about so much did
these coaches. It gets put on their gravestone with their
records, are a lot of the times, you know, they oh, yeah,
you want me to lose but you're gonna hold me to that lose. In
season three years from now, so I'm not going to lose screw
you, we're going to win,
they're going to go down fighting more times than not
because of all the reasons. You just said it does it will
spread through your organization. And it's those
you're going to have coaches that won't like it
and then coaches are going to tell players that said going
on. Hey, don't, you know, we didn't really try to win that
game and all the sudden it filters to your locker room,
when you get a bunch of losers,
and you're a loser organization. So that's where
you got to be careful.
Pete said to me, that it worked for the Eagles week, 17 of
2020. It though Doug Peterson got fired. After that.
There was no coming back from that.
The organization picked up the draft picks. But again, that
was the other example and when Peyton talk and Peyton talks
openly about tank and he points to those two examples, week 17,
the Buccaneers, in 2014 week, 17
of the Eagles in 2020
as situations where there was a deliberate Personnel change
that was made for one reason and one reason only to lose
games. And
again,
the problem is the NFL is so strident in it. Position that
this never happens, that it makes it laughable
when we see it
and they just ignore it. They don't, they don't want to deal
with the flaw. The inherent and obvious flaw that they
incentivize losing.
By giving the team, who gets the worst record the best pick
in the draft. It's like it magically appears at this team
had. How did the hollow hosel Jaguars have the first? Because
they blow, they stick their horrible.
That's why they have the first pick in the draft
and they earned that they worked hard to earn that.
Pick in the draft.
So there's a firewall
in the NFL is mind
between what you're doing the regular season and where you
are in the draft, but we're not a days away from the Marquis,
offseason tentpole event and look at this. Will you want to
have a high pick in the draft? Well, there's a way to get it.
That's
the fundamental problem here.
And this isn't we don't have time to get into Solutions.
We've talked about them in the past potential solutions, to
this. But that incentive is, the reason why
Brian Flores is saying what he said, why Hugh Jackson may be
saying what he said why the Bucks did What they did, Why
the Eagles did what they did. There's an if there's a reason
to do it.
There is a win through that loss late in the season.
Whether it's a half of a game,
a half of a month or half of a seasoned. Yeah. I know you're,
I mean, there is a win, you know, and again, I don't know
where the line is, but there is a line or a difference to me.
And again, what? Sean Payton you're saying, or what the
Tampa Bay, Bucs and Philadelphia Eagles did,
as opposed to what Brian floor. As
is alleging from Miami Dolphins to me. There is a difference
there.
One is actively trying to lose the whole year, for the most
part at least half the year, the other one tried to win and
just got to the last game of the year. And when okay, wait
and we lose we get to one if we win were the third pick
and you know, not that we're going to go out here and like
actively lose but we're gonna pull players. There's
a difference there,
Ross was asking asking the coach a Idli, again
to not coaches, good and do all the other things to, to add to
go with that. And that to me is there is a difference and
I don't know where you draw that line or how you figure that
out.
But once more egregious to me than the other,
we didn't take a break, but for all we know. Yeah, we're all we
know because we don't know what the truth is here and we may
never know the absolute truth. The whole truth and nothing but
the truth, but for all we know Ross was trying to set up
a system kind of like what they had in Cleveland where they
deliberately take a step back. They
deliberately prioritize.
Stockpiling cap, space and draft picks.
And, and, you know, when you go back and look at what they did
in 2019. They were bad at first after the, by I think
that's when Brian Flores decided I can't do this.
I can't go along with this and so they start winning games. So
the plan starts not working and maybe at some point, bro.
Stephen Ross gets exasperated and says, what do I have to do?
Pay a hundred thousand dollars
per loss. What do I have to do to get what I'm trying to get
here? So
again, we don't know the context. We don't know what was
said. We don't know. If it was actually said, these are all
things that are being.
Investigated under the rubric of
Mary Jo White and her independent review of what
occurred, but, but there's a lot of different ways. This can
manifest itself. That's our point. Because of the way,
the draft picks are determined.
There's a lot of different ways that tanking can happen
and because of that system,
we're now dealing with the Browns,
the Dolphins, and whatever else may come up with.