and making it even more
stunning. The fact that it has been largely ignored by
the likes of ESPN and NFL media because they didn't report it
Chris and I started talking about it in late February
the possibility of Tom Brady and Sean Payton to Miami. Dave hide
of the South Florida Sun Sentinel reported on Friday
that it was in play it wasn't just in play.
Look I was becoming more open and praising
and candid about it.
It was Happen. It was halfway down the road. Hi,
it was done. It was just a matter of how it all unfolded,
the, you know, how these big deals, go
they get done and then there's a way that it has to play out.
It was done,
Tom Brady retires February, 1 the next week he would have been
named minority owner
of the Miami Dolphins and not long after that they would have
done a deal with the Saints for Sean Payton and then at some
point after that after the Buccaneers had found another
quarterback and
they really couldn't have brought back Tom Brady because
they've devoted the
Resources to another guy that they're getting ready to be
their quarterback. That's when you take what you get from
the Dolphins and he becomes their quarterback, it was happening
to Brian Flores lawsuit filed the same day, Tom Brady retired
derailed everything but it was happening. And
what Dave Hyde has added to that conversation that it's not
a surprise to me. But you know one of these reports is going
to wake more people up.
Hide said that the Dolphins were going to pay Sean Payton
a hundred million dollars over five years. Now, Albert Briere
of s i.com. They said it was actually four years, either
way, 20 million or 25 million per year.
A hundred million dollar contract for Sean Payton. You
don't get to that point. If it's not done, you don't get to
the part where, you know, what they're going to pay him. If
it's just exploratory,
it was a done deal.
It was happening,
but for the brown Flores lawsuit and I'm telling you,
the more, I think about it, because I really do think it
was in Brian Flores interest to wait, wait for the text at
the higher Josh, McCown, wait for the Dolphins to hire Sean.
Peyton makes your case stronger,
right? I really do feel like and I don't know this but I do.
I do feel like that there may have been a desire to blow that
up and keep Stephen Ross from getting
Sean Payton and Tom Brady. It was a nice little collateral
benefit to filing the lawsuit. When Brian Flores did Chris,
I don't doubt that I don't. Yeah I mean you know way hey you're
getting you know screwed over why not? You know screw those
people over
on your way out the door. I could certainly see that in
mind set there a little bit or make things hard on them but
yeah, you know, again,
I don't even know what else to say here. I feel like we've
talked about it, so many times, I want to just be like, I told
you, so I told you so I told you. So, we've been saying it
since February. 28th, it's I'm sick of going on Radio Networks
and people go. And you know what about that rumor and like
rumor. We've been talking about this until I
met Evan. I know. Hey, we are the people that started that
this is real factual rumor. Think of that. What do you
think about that? I know the Miami rumor. Well, I'll tell
you what, I think about and I, you know, I got I got, you
know, some pushback from some people that Who backed away.
Eventually, once I started pushing back especially even
Tampa Bay. I mean, come on, there's real as it gets it was
it was
not like real. It was halfway down the road and almost home.
That's how far down the road they were with this
conversation and then again, Brady was asked about it last
week and what did he do BS and didn't say one damn thing?
Oh, I talked to a lot of people, I don't know, I talked
to a lot of teams and he changed the side. They change
the subject. Come on. He was leaving Tampa Bay. There was
Asian already discussed
now and and that's real.
And then it was compensation discussed between Miami and
the Saints and the Bucks and the Miami Dolphins as well.
It was all in the works
and happening in the plan was going as planned
until like you said, Brian floor isn't all that happened. So
I got, this is what I love. We're going to continue to get
more inklings and inklings an inkling so where you know it's
going to come like you said it from the start, it's going to
come late August or early September with One Sunday
Splash. Yes, PN. Exactly that's gonna happen
Tom. Brady begins its third season with the Tampa Bay
Buccaneers but it was almost a different team tune in next.
I know for more right? That's what's going to happen for
seven months. Yeah
let me add a little something to it. I like because I was
thinking about this. Like what, what else do I know about it
that hasn't been said, this is an interesting a little wrinkle
to the whole thing because
once we started poking around member you and I text I say
this is kind of at the point where you and I are both here
in a Yeah, separately. Right? We need to actually cause
gather a little bit and frame it, right and and pull
the sheet off of the
statue and let the world see it. So I did some actual real
reporting even though I am not trained. I am experienced, I'm
kind of like Jerry Jones is a GM after 30 years even though
you had no business doing it in the first place.
You kind of start to figure out the job. So I reached out to
the various parties involved to try to get information, I asked
the Dolphins about it and they acknowledge that they contacted
the The Saints with an inquiry about the possibility of hiring
Sean Payton and eventually because we were pushing it,
Chris Greer, the GM of the team was asked the scouting combine
about and he admitted it. Chris Greer called Jeff Ireland,
the Saints assistant GM former Dolphins. GM to have
the conversation and Ireland told Greer, basically don't waste
your time.
Here's the rest of the story on that.
That wasn't part of the effort
to get Sean, Payton,
that was just coincidental.
Didn't know what was going on. I
was all happening above him is already done right above him
when he made the call to Jeff Ireland. It was completely and
totally coincidental. I
also will believe that things were done above most people in
Tampa as well.
I do, you know, I got some pushback from people in
the Tampa organization, over this story, a little bit, you know,
at first, and I push back a little bit and then they backed
off. Because there I go away. Whoa.
Whoa now where they move they did not like and Brady eluded
this a little last week I believe you know I talked about
hey what happened was
free agency was starting
and Tampa was going to have to start to get into
the quarterback conversation a little bit because they have no
quarterback and that's where Brady had to start going. Okay
well with damn I don't have any other options. I'll come back
to Tampa,
I had thrown out the Sean Watson's name when I discussed
that. I was wrong. I didn't know that for a fact. I was
right. I just threw it out there for an example. I know
the Bucks didn't like that. So I
Josh for throwing his name out there.
But everything else
is spot-on and just like you're talking about with
the dolphins, I know that yes, these were high-level
conversations,
this was Brady and his representation
with the owners there. He was, he's an owner world. Everybody
when you're Tom Brady or you're a franchise quarterback,
the most power. You're the most powerful person in
the organization. You're more powerful than the coach and
everybody it's the quarterback. The owner and you get to start
to have those type of conversations.
Relations. And that's when went down
certainly and that conversation was way down the road
and Miami. And Tom, Brady, and Sean Payton was happening.
If he wanted to make that power play, he makes that power play.
He brought the team an unexpected, Super Bowl win in
2020. He gave them a full stadium in 2021 when they
hadn't had one
since their Super Bowl year.
Yeah, he was getting out of he wanted out and it was
done and one of these days They're going to wake up to it.
Now I know some of the folks at ESPN are talking about it but
it's never been
really mentioned, or discussed or or even acknowledged by
their news breaking group. Because look, it's funny
to see this, it's not theirs, so they're acting like it's not
real, same as NFL media, I don't think NFL me is breed,
the word of this. They didn't
report it, so it's not real, it's not ours. We're just going
to ignore it because we don't have to give somebody else
credit because we got scooped. We should have had it. It.
It's amazing. And I know that the reporters are under a lot
of pressure and it's competitive but but I mean,
come on. It is what it is. It's out there. So what you're not
going to get every damn story? That doesn't mean you ignore
the ones, you don't get.
I agreed. I feel like there's two things in play there.
I think the NFL doesn't want that story and really, to be
real true. That would be through worst thing, right?
I mean, just because I love the Brian floor situation and all
that. There's so many illegal things about Sean, Payton and
Brady going to know.
I mean they broke every law and the CBA. We broke every lap,
purring right, hampering Galore, exactly, right? I mean
everything there.
So then there's that. And then
the other aspect, I will bring in this and
guy. I got great respect for here and Adam schefter.
But Adam schefter is a Michigan guy. His, he is
a Brady guy by all accounts.
And oh, wait, yes, always, the owner of the Dolphins. Where
did he go to school? Oh, that's right. Michigan. So
I could also see personal relationship getting into that
one and being like, I won't, Tell
you know, some of the secrets of some of my friends here and
maybe that's why that stories about certain so. So let's
let's be clear on what you're saying because I agree with you
depriving the audience of the truth,
putting your own personal relationships and agendas above
giving the audience. The truth, my only commitment to
the audience, I don't care who gets pissed off at me as you know,
Chris. Yes, I'm gonna tell the truth. Whatever is out there is
out there,
yet deal with it
and you know, it's for the audience to decide whether or
not they're going to listen to people who tell them the truth
or The truth that is convenient for the reporter
to tell and then you just ignore the story, it's just ignored.
And so look I think more and more people are starting to
realize there was something there and it's a fascinating
case study and it's a shame that others didn't jump in
more would be revealed and Chris you touched on something.
I think very important the biggest rule
that would have been violated by this.
Not necessarily the letter of the rule because the Dolphins
would have made, sure, they complied. But clearly
the spirit of the rule, the Rooney Rule. Yeah, you've already
decided you're hiring a white Coach
period. You've made the decision before you even embark
on the full-blown process. Just like Jerry Jones was going to
do in 2019.
When he lined up Sean, Payton,
he still had a coach, in Jason Garrett. Jason was getting
fired. They were going to do a search that complied with
the Rooney Rule and then they were going to trade for Sean,
Payton, it was all set.
Up. I had a time
and it was just a matter of implementing it. I think you're
right, NFL media, they know they're stepping onto the third
rail. If they talk about this story
because it exposes
the underbelly, that has really
characterize the last 20 years.
Yeah, the Rooney Rule isn't something that owners generally
look to as some Guiding Light, that gives them
a better sense of how they should go about hiring coaches,
it's like filling out your tax form, you just got to do it,
we got to check boxes.
We got to fill in numbers.
We got to do this. We got to do that
form over substance. At the end of the day, we're still hiring
the guy we want. Oh, and we're going to set it all up before
we embark
on this phony process
of complying with this role
because the league requires us to comply with this rule. Yeah.
Right. And I think yes, all that and then the fact that
yeah the owners were so involved. I think here and you
know, basically,
you know, talking about Commodities that weren't
available and on top of that. So there's a lot of issues
there. I think that would scare
Our NFL media off of and as far as that's concerned but
hey, this was a real thing, there's no doubt about that, we
know that, and I think you're right, it's going to continue
to come out and at some point, everybody's going to buy into
what we've been trying to tell them since. What was that
mid-march? When we broke our started? Talking about this is
February 28th. February 20th. Yeah, since we're already
tooting, our own horn and or wearing a Groove in our own
back.
Let me just say, let me just say
to the discerning.
NFL information and Analysis
consumer, you got plenty of choices. You got plenty of
choices.
It's up to you to choose
whether or not you're getting your information, people being
straight with you.
Or whether you're dealing with people who have agendas,
whether it's personal, agendas, whether it's, they work for
the NFL. So there's certain things they can't say
because they work for the NFL and paychecks are literally
signed by Roger, Goodell, literally signed by Roger,
Goodell you decide. We're going to get your information, it's
up to you. We're still going to be here doing what we do. Now,
the Sean Payton transaction
would have entailed. I'm told a first-round pick
from the Dolphins to the same.