Nothing Personal with David Samson

Today’s word of the day is ‘fool’s gold’ as in a treasure hunt for what could be as in sitting around all night, refreshing Twitter, trying to talk to friends, searching, waiting, looking for some new news. And what happened? Nothing! The deadline came and went — although we never got a specific time — no games were cancelled, more meetings happened, but still no deal. So what is happening!? We have the most detailed offer sheet from MLB that we’ve seen this whole lockout. (20:48) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the Russell Wilson trade. The Denver Broncos traded 2 first round picks, 2 second round picks, Noah Fant, Drew Lock, and more to Seattle for Russell Wilson. Holy moly! But, I thought Pete Carroll said Wilson wouldn’t be traded! What does this do for the Broncos sale!? (32:20) Review: Downfall - The Case Against Boeing. (42:45) NPPOD. Let’s talk hockey! Alexander Ovechkin is scoring goals for the Washington Capitals still. Interesting statements from the team. (46:50) Aaron Rodgers is back in Green Bay. He’s got a new deal, but says he didn’t sign a new deal. Big money. Little money. No money. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘final countdown’ as in will things ever be the same again as in Europe as in MLB set a new deadline for MLBPA to agree to new terms. This was the same thing was said last week before canceling games. Now MLB says we have a new deadline to cancel games. What is going on?! Is this a new deadline? Is this the final deadline? WAIT TO SEE! (18:00) Yankees president Randy Levine spoke for the first time publicly. Let’s discuss his comments. (23:10) What happened to Jeff Passan? Did MLB call ESPN and have them go after Passan for his comments? That’s exactly what happened. (32:15) Review: Winning Time Ep. 1 (36:15) NPPOD. (39:35) Atlanta Falcons WR Calvin Ridley has been suspended for the entire 2022 NFL season for betting on games. Ridley missed 12 games for the Falcons last year after taking leave for personal reasons. Let’s discuss the integrity of sports and why the NFL went so hard on Ridley. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘breakthrough’ as in we have a crack in the case as in we can sense something is happening in negotiations between MLB and MLBPA. This past weekend we had news trickle out of a counter offer from the players’ union. We saw what owners wanted. So what could be the hold up? Expanded playoffs? Pitch clocks? CBT? Money? Love? (22:30) MLBPA is putting together a $1M fund to help stadium workers. It’s a great gesture. It helps in PR. How exactly is this going to work? (31:20) Review: F1 Drive to Survive. (39:00) Brittany Griner is in Russian custody right now. She was caught with hashish oil in pen cartridges in airport security. Uh oh. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘Grover Washington Jr’ as in just the two of us as in we can make it if we try as in just the two us you and I. What are we talking about? MLB meetings! Dan Halem and Bruce Meyer met in New York City to continue negotiations. Did anything happen? Probably not. But a report came out with the name of the four owners who voted against the MLB deal openly in a 30 owner Zoom session. Bob Castellini of the Reds, Chris Ilitch of the Tigers, Ken Kendrick of the Diamondbacks, and Arte Moreno of the Angels. Arte! Never stop being yourself! Let’s explain CBT and the resistance. (31:30) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Our guy Ruben, @RubenTalksKicks, asked how championship rings are designed. He wanted to know how we did it in 2003. (41:25) Review: Drive My Car. (44:50) NPPOD - The Brooklyn Nets are a bad team. The Los Angeles Lakers are a very bad team. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘net proceeds’ as in Roman Abramovich is selling Chelsea as in he said he would be donating the proceeds from the sale to the people of Ukraine. What exactly does this mean? How much money is he going to get in the sale? Who is willing to buy the club? This is a fascinating case. (17:20) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me if it’s normal that all these players in MLB are talking, but no owner is. Mike Trout spoke out. Lance McCullers spoke out. Marcus Stroman spoke out. And many more. (37:55) Review: Cruella. (39:55) Yesterday we spoke on Kyler Murray’s agent releasing a statement about wanting a new deal. The next… Kliff Kingsbury got a new deal… he and Murray share an agent! (43:50) NPPOD - The Knicks are terrible. The Sixers are winning. Kevin Durant is officially back. (44:55) Dolphins GM Chris Grier met the media yesterday in Indy and spoke on the quarterback situation. He said they are done with Deshaun Watson. He had some interesting comments on Tua. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘disastrous outcome’ as in Rob Manfred had said canceling games would be just that as in the first two series of the season have been canceled as in the players rejected the final offer from the owners. So here we are. Opening Day postponed. Missed games. Players not getting paid. Fighting. Arguing. Yelling. Screaming. Now where do we go? When do they meet again? Will a deal get done? Is this the worst it can get? (27:25) Review: Phantom Thread. (31:45) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about Kyler Murray and his statement released by his agent. They wanted to know if the Cardinals are more likely to give him a new deal now. (37:40) NPPOD. (40:40) We have a battle in the WNBA right now. It’s the league vs the owner of the New York Liberty, Joe Tsai. He’s in BIG trouble for being too good to his players. He was fined $500K and almost had his team taken away… for chartering flights for his players! The horror! Violation of the CBA. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Breaking news out of MLB as the players have rejected the final offer from the owners. What does this mean? Will there be baseball in 2022? The lockout continues... Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘reputation’ as in we all know why you’re here today… our friend… Derek Jeter… Did anything happen yesterday? Did something happen with the Miami Marlins that I should know about? You may think I’m doing the Snoopy dance while talking about Jeter leaving the Marlins, but I’m not. Let me just explain what happened, where it all started, and some thoughts on the matter. (27:55) Review: Parallel Mothers. (30:30) MLB lockout update! The deadline by MLB for a deal came and went with no deal. But! Then we were told there’s a new deadline! Ha! So are we going to get a deal or not? Let’s discuss. (44:55) NPPOD. (46:20) Update on Russia and Fifa and UEFA. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

This episode was record on an Apple iPad, but could sound like it was recorded on an actual apple. We apologize for the quality, but the content was too important. Today’s word of the day is ‘delay’ as in a flight delay as in I’m stuck in Buenos Aires as in MLB has delayed Spring Training as in the regular season could now be delayed. What exactly happening right now with negotiations? It seemed like a deal was close and then a deal wasn’t close. Today is the “deadline” that MLB owners imposed on the union to take a deal done. (28:00) Let’s talk about the war going on in Ukraine. Russia has invaded Ukraine and it seems like a major part of the world has condemned Russia for this. There is a major sports element to this story too — Premiere League side Chelsea has seen its owner step away over ties to Putin; Manchester United and Schalke have dropped kit sponsorships with Russian companies; Poland, Sweden, and the Czech Republic have said they won’t play Russia in World Cup qualifiers despite FIFA laying down lame sanctions. (41:30) Review: SAG Awards. (44:00) So You Wanna Talk to Samson!? Someone asked me what is going on with Jeff Passan and myself. And here we are… Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Another mailbag! It’s time for another mailbag! Sorry, but that’s just the way it is! I want to start today talking about grief. Today would have been my sister’s birthday. My birthday is tomorrow. (15:35) Someone asked me for insight on international signings. They wanted to know what happens behind closed doors… so let’s open them! (29:55) Someone asked me about their moral-ethical dilemma. They wanted to know if it’s time to hide collectibles because the athlete turned out to be an awful person. (38:35) It’s time to update a bunch of Wait To See topics. On this show we say things and we’re accountable for everything we say. What did we get right? What did we get wrong? We’ve waited and now we’ve seen. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s a mailbag! A January mailbag! You asked the questions and I answer them! Let’s get into the business. Someone asked me what the best questions are for interviews. This is a skill for both sides. Let’s take the side of the interviewer here. (17:00) Someone asked me about negotiating salaries. This is the most common thing I’m asked. Let’s get into it. (23:55) Someone asked me about problem solving. They wanted to know best solutions to solving these complex problems. (36:45) Someone asked what my top 5 films about music. Not musicals. These are films with music as the main focus. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s another Samson Sit-Down. Chris Herring is an author and journalist. He wrote Blood in the Garden: The Flagrant History of the 1990s New York Knicks. You can buy the book now: https://www.simonandschuster.com/books/Blood-in-the-Garden/Chris-Herring/9781982132118 Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s another Samson Sit-Down. This time Todd Fuhrman joins us with everything gambling. We wanted to talk about the industry boom that is sports gambling. We hit on how odds are made, who’s making these odds, and how Todd himself bets. What does the future hold for sports betting? Let’s find out! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

It’s another Samson Sit-Down. This time we have Ken Rosenthal. Ken is THE best baseball reporter in the game. It’s time to talk MLB, the lockout, the negotiations, the future of baseball. EVERYTHING you need to know. Right here. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘quickie’ as in fast as in swift as in a short amount of time as in MLB and MLBPA met for 15 minutes and the meeting was over. There was panic on Twitter. Our pets heads were falling off! Calm down! The meeting time wasn’t important. The terms of the the counter proposal was the important part. So now what? Was any progress made? Is the season starting on time? Is the lockout ending? (14:40) Aaron Judge is looking for a new deal. He’ll be a free agent after this season. Will the Yankees pay him big money? He turns 30 in April so which other players got big deals that we can compare him to… (24:25) Review: Misha and the Wolves. (31:55) Someone at the Los Angeles Rams fans fell off a stage trying to take a picture. Matthew Stafford appeared to see her fall and walk away. She fractured her back. Social media bullied Stafford into paying her bills. Is that the full story? (38:55) NPPOD. (39:40) Eric Kay has been found guilty in the death of former Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs. Kay supplied the drugs that Skaggs used that led to his death. Let’s discuss this ruling and what it means. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘13/350’ as in 13 years and $350M as in that’s the offer that Juan Soto was offered by the Washington Nationals. That’s a lot of money… to turn down! Soto acknowledged he was offered this. Scott Boras would never let him sign this. Let’s explain why he would do this and what it means for the next 3 seasons he’s under contract for the Nationals. What is a Super 2? (16:55) MLB Lockout update! Get your MLB lockout update here! We have a meeting today at 1pm ET and the players will be giving their proposal to MLB. Let’s see if we get any movement! (24:10) Review: Ascension. (28:30) Let’s update on the Tyler Skaggs trial. Matt Harvey spoke under immunity that he used cocaine during his career. A report came out that MLB could suspend him for this. Really? (38:45) NPPOD. Adam Silver is just as confused as the rest of us about the New York vaccine rules. Kyrie couldn’t play for Nets at Madison Square Garden because of the away player rules. (43:40) The Dallas Cowboys were under fire for a settlement to Cowboys cheerleaders. Just another NFL team treating women like shit. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘opioids’ as in the trial against Eric Kay in the death of former Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs. Kay was an employee for the Angels and he reportedly supplied opioids to a handful of players on the team, and the pills that took Skaggs life. Let’s have an honest conversation about drug use in the clubhouse. (27:30) Review: Lunana - A Yak in the Classroom. (32:45) Kamila Valieva is allowed to skate for Russia in the Olympics. Valieva is the favorite for gold. Valieva tested positive for a banned substance and the IOC said it’s all good! What a shame. (44:30) NPPOD. (46:25) Ben Simmons spoke for the first time as a Brooklyn Nets player. He opened up about his mental health struggles. I was a bit harsh on him. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘150’ as in a buck fifty as in last night a report came out that MLB was looking to cut “hundreds of paying jobs to Minor League players” — this was reported with no real context, why this would happen, and why it should happen. Let’s talk about this proposal. (12:00) Why is this being leaked now? Well, MLB presented the players the latest proposal on Saturday and we haven’t heard much since. 130 pages long. Players aren’t too impressed. What were the big moves? (27:30) Chicago White Sox made a decision over the weekend that every Minor League player needs to be vaccinated. Why? (28:50) What is Sennets v. Office of the Commissioner of Baseball Class Action - let me explain. (36:35) Review: Worst Person in the World. (41:35) NPPOD. (44:40) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me if Tottenham has any real chance of getting the 2026 Super Bowl. #waittosee Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘Super Bowl’ as in the Los Angeles Rams have done it as in Cooper Kupp, Matthew Stafford, Odell Beckham (!), Sean McVay, Aaron Donald. And they got to do it in their home stadium. McVay may now retire. The ratings are here so everyone can forget about the horrible week that Roger Goodell had. Odell Beckham Jr gets vindication and then looks like he tore his ACL. And the biggest story of the night — the Rams went all in for Matthew Stafford, and it worked. (19:00) The Super Bowl commercials are what I was there for. Let’s talk about some of the big ones! Everything has changed about them. They used to be the thing everyone couldn’t wait to see. Now companies are paying $7M for a 30-second spot, but they tweet it before they air! (32:50) Review: Licorice Pizza. (40:45) NPPOD. Let’s finish with some more Super Bowl takeaways: the missed calls by the refs were bad. The offensive pass interference not called on Tee Higgins; the calls on the Bengals during the Rams last drive. Why are the calls made late in games that wouldn’t be called during any other game? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘blockbuster’ as in not the former movie rental chain that didn’t think Netflix would work it’s as in a big trade. The NBA trade deadline came and went, and it was a big one. James Harden to the 76ers! Ben Simmons to the Nets! Russell Westbrook to the bench! Let’s talk about what went wrong in both Brooklyn and Philadelphia. Kyrie and Harden didn’t like one another. Kevin Durant passed on Harden in the All Star Draft. Joel Embiid let the world know his thoughts on Ben Simmons. Drama! (20:45) Rob Manfred met the media on Thursday. It was a disaster. Knew it was going to happen. We have at least seven takeaways from the press conference from Spring Training to Universal DH to Saturday’s proposal and more! (36:25) Review: Don’t Look Up… again. (42:30) NPPOD/SB Picks! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘music’ as in face the music as in Roger Goodell had his presser during Super Bowl week. Wonder what people wanted to hear him speak about? Goodell spoke about Brian Flores, diversity, and integrity. (14:35) Roger Goodell wants Daniel Snyder to just stop it. Snyder announced he’s hiring an investigative team to look into comments made in front of congress by one of his former employees. Goodell came out and said, no, absolutely not. The NFL will now be running the investigation. (24:10) Review: The Puppet Master (30:25) Rob Manfred and the MLB owners are meeting in Orlando. Today is the last day of the meetings so Manfred will address the media. What’s he going to say? We got word that MLB will present a counter proposal to MLBPA on Saturday. Working on the weekend! (37:30) NPPOD. James Harden wants out of Brooklyn, just like he wanted out of Houston. Will the 76ers make a trade for him? Is Ben Simmons headed to Brooklyn? (40:10) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me why we haven’t spoken about the Olympics. Well, here we go! A 15-year old Russian skater won gold and then immediately tested positive for steroids! Perfect! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘quarterly’ as in 25 percent as in MLB quarterly meetings are here and happening in Orlando. Do you think the owners and Rob Manfred are scaling Space Mountain at Disney right now? Probably not. Maybe the tea cups. I wonder what they’re talking about. Let’s discuss. (17:55) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about Trevor Bauer and his future with the Los Angeles Dodgers. No criminal charges will be filed against Bauer. Now baseball can act. (28:00) The trial into the death of former Angels pitcher Tyler Skaggs is ongoing. Former employee Eric Kay is allegedly who supplied Skaggs with the drugs that were laced with fentanyl. Let’s break down this situation and case. (35:15) Review: Attica. (39:15) NPPOD. The Lakers are horrible. Not average. Not okay. Horrible. LeBron is not happy, but does it matter? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘streaming’ as in turning on your smart TV as in Netflix as in Hulu as in P Plus as in the Chicago Cubs are looking to start at direct-to-consumer streaming package for its games. This doesn’t sound like big news, right? WRONG! It’s a huge deal and MLB has to be FURIOUS right now. (18:15) Lovie Smith is the new coach of the Texans. We told you why this was going to happen. What does this mean for Brian Flores? He didn’t get a job. (27:30) Review: Oscar Nominations (31:05) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me a question about Freddie Freeman and if teams are talking to players during the lockout. Interesting. (36:30) NPPOD. (38:40) MLB has stopped drug testing. Steroids are back! Not so fast. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘crap’ as in crappy or craps as in a lot happened this weekend. There were so many events in Las Vegas this weekend. The Pro Bowl. The NHL All-Star Game. The Keith Thurman fight. Events on events on events. The Pro Bowl was an embarasssment. No tackling. Two-hand touching. JOKE! What else was happening? Alvin Kamara allegedly battered someone at a nightclub, played in the Pro Bowl, and then was promptly arrested postgame. VIVA LAS VEGAS! (11:00) The Lockout Update in Major League Baseball! Max Scherzer has spoken. Which means that Scott Boras has spoken. MLB wanted a federal mediator. The players said no. The tweets were tweeting! (23:15) Let’s give an update on Daniel Snyder and the Washington Commanders. A hearing before Congress. Sexual assault. Just a shameful organization. Snyder released a statement through an attorney. (30:45) Review: The Rescue. (34:40) NPPOD. Let’s talk about the Nets. STINK! Harden trade rumors galore. KD is hurt. Kyrie cannot play at home. (38:25) A little breaking news lockout update: Labor Secretary has communicated with MLB a willingness to get involved in the lockout discussion. Let’s explain. (40:15) Who will be the next head coach of the Houston Texans? Josh McCown? No shot. Brian Flores? No shot. It looks like it’ll be Lovie Smith. Roger Goodell is going to force that to happen and we’ll tell you why. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘unequivocally’ as in a way that leaves no doubt as in Daniel Snyder is back in the news for all the reasons we knew he would be. No not the name change. No not that FedEx Field is a dumpster fire. It was because six women spoke before Congress about how horrible Daniel Snyder and his Washington football team was. These women spoke about the verbal abuse they went through. About how Snyder and other executives sexualized these women and put them in the most uncomfortable and uneasy positions using power. (15:20) MLB Lockout time! MLB asked for a federal mediator to help negotiations. MLBPA is likely to reject it. The sides are still not playing nice in the sand box. When will this end? (22:55) Review: We Need To Talk About Cosby. (29:55) So You Wanna Talk to Samson!? Someone asked me if I’ve ever been to a meeting disheveled. Interesting. Brian Flores said that the Broncos brass showed up to his interview a little tipsy and late. John Elway said not true! Let’s discuss. (37:50) NPPOD. (39:10) The New York Giants have responded to Brian Flores’ allegations of violating the Rooney Rule. The Giants went after Bill Belichick over TextGate. Oh joy. The last statement of the week! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘midnight’ as in the midnight hour as in right after midnight today Dolphins owner Stephen Ross released his statement on the Brian Flores allegations. Is he serious? The nerve to release this when the East Coast is sleeping. Let’s update the Flores class-action lawsuit and more details that came out yesterday. (23:20) If you want an owner to talk who do you call? Jerry Jones. Jones talked about the Rooney Rule and the league needing to do better. How do you think Roger Goodell feels about that? (26:45) Brian Flores is going to need people to join this class-action lawsuit. Who could join him? Lions defensive coordinator Aaron Glenn won’t be one of them. Hue Jackson looks like he is in and will take down the Cleveland Browns. (32:15) Review: The Tinder Swindler. (39:25) NPPOD. (40:20) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the comments Rocky Wirtz made to the press. The Chicago Blackhawks owner was asked about what the team was doing to address the culture of the team following the sexual assault case against a former employee. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘class action’ as in class action lawsuit as in former Miami Dolphins head coach Brian Flores is suing the NFL AND the New York Giants. Flores took out a flame thrower and went scorched earth on Stephen Ross and the Dolphins, the Denver Broncos, the New York Giants, and the NFL. Let’s go statement by statement; team by team; and break it all down. (28:00) What is going on with Jim Harbaugh? We spoke about him likely going to Miami, not anymore. Now he’s headed to Minnesota… maybe. But what did the Vikings do wrong? A report came out that Harbaugh would be the next head coach of the Vikings… hours before the Vikings said they were interview Patrick Graham. Uh oh. (37:25) Review: Nightmare Alley. (40:00) NPPOD. (41:20) The Washington Commanders are here. Dan Snyder has a new team name. Great. Wonderful. Way to go Dan. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘tempus fugit’ as in time flies as in it’s been 365 days since my father died. I just want to speak for a little on what’s happened since then and how I’ve felt. (8:15) So what’s going on with the MLB lockout? Well, we have an update! The two sides will meet again on Tuesday. Wonder what they’re going to discuss… (20:35) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me the difference between Marlins Park and the Inter Miami deals. Interesting. Wonder why people are asking us. (33:50) Review: The Fallout. (39:30) NPPOD. (41:55) Tom Brady addressed his retirement on his podcast. He did not say he was retiring or not retiring… just said the time wasn’t right and his decision wasn’t made yet. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘retiring’ as in Tom Brady has retired or has Tom Brady not retired? This was the biggest story of the weekend. News broke that Tom Brady was retiring and then his father and agent said whoa! What exactly is going on here? Who leaked this info? (13:05) What happened to the Kansas City Chiefs on Sunday? It all fell apart for Patrick Mahomes in the 2nd half. Joe Burrow and the tanking Cincinnati Bengals are headed to the Super Bowl. Let’s talk about how this turnaround happened so quickly for the Bengals. (18:01) The Los Angeles Rams were outnumbered by San Francisco 49ers fans at their home stadium. But in the end… the Rams will be the first team to ever play a conference championship and Super Bowl in its own stadium. (27:35) Review: Top 5 Blizzard Movies. (31:55) Rafa Nadal played in one of the best Major finals ever. Coming back from 2 sets down he won the Australian Open in over 5 hours. (33:30) NPPOD. (36:59) Where is Jim Harbaugh going? Stephen Ross said he wouldn’t do anything to cause Jim Harbaugh to leave Michigan. Now Harbaugh has reportedly interviewed for the Minnesota Vikings head coaching vacancy. Interesting. Well, is that enough for Ross to call Jim? (40:20) The New York Football Giants pretending to interview candidates for head coach and GM. When the GM got hired from Buffalo, it was a lock that Brian Daboll was going to be hired. New GM Joe Schoen put out a statement that was ridiculous. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘feasible’ as in Minor League housing as in drama is back! MLB owners announced they would take care of housing for some minor leaguers and now we have some more issues. The MLB lockout is only for Major League players on a roster… everyone else, sorry. So let’s dissect the latest issues and what MLB had to say about it. MiLB players also won’t be required to be vaccinated for this season. Staff, yes. Players, no. Why is this? LOCKOUT! (15:00) What’s going on with Mike McCarthy and the Dallas Cowboys? He was safe and then Sean Payton stepped down in New Orleans. Is he still safe? Yes, because Payton isn’t coaching in 2022. Dan Quinn announced he’d be back in Dallas… maybe that’s why McCarthy is staying? NO! Jerry Jones wants Payton so he’ll wait until Payton is ready. *cough cough* 2023. (23:10) Review: As We See It. (28:10) Let’s talk about football or soccer or futbol. FIFA President Gianni Infantino had one of the worst quotes of all time. This man had the audacity to say the World Cup should be every two years so African countries could have more hope and not die at sea trying to find a better life. WHAT!? (32:55) NPPOD. (37:45) What is going on with the Arizona Coyotes? They were locked out of their arena in Glendale. They are still looking for a home… and it could be Arizona State University. Embarrassing. (42:15) Let’s update ourselves on Meyers Leonard. He was traded by the Miami Heat and then cut by Oklahoma City after shouting an anti-Semitic remark streaming video games. What has he done since? Everything he should have done since; education, outreach, change. And we’ll end with David Bateman, who was a chairman for a tech company in Utah, and he blamed Jews for covid. Just more horrible antisemitism. Be better. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘continuity’ as in keeping the flow as in when you’re an exec in sports you need to know it. Teams crave this at every level; Front office; coaching; and players. The lack of it almost always leads to losing. Having it leads to championships. Let’s talk about John Mara and the New York Football Giants. He spoke about Daniel Jones and Deshaun Watson with new GM Joe Schoen. (12:55) Antonio Brown media tour is continuing. Let’s talk about what Brown has been saying about his health and mental health. (20:55) Review: Yellowstone Season 4. (25:55) Chris Mack resigned as the head coach of the Louisville Cardinals basketball team. In his statement he made some comments about why he was stepping down (to avoid getting fired) that we need to talk about. (32:20) NPPOD. (33:45) Neil Young called out Spotify over Joe Rogan. Spotify said see ya later. (42:30) Today is Holocaust Remembrance Day. What’s going on in Tennessee right now is wrong. A school board has voted to ban a book on the holocaust because of some words and visuals in the book. The book is called Maus by Art Spiegelman. This is happening more and more and it’s just wrong. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘controversy’ as in people are going crazy as in that could be about everything, but today it’s about the Baseball Hall of Fame. David Ortiz is in. Barry bonds, Roger Clemens, Curt Schilling… see ya. Alex Rodriguez only got about 30% of the vote. Let’s discuss the voting and the Hall. Danger danger danger. (23:10) We have another lockout update! Can you believe it!? Back to back days of MLB owners meeting with MLBPA. Let’s discuss what they talked about this time. (36:35) Review: Dangerous. (41:15) NPPOD. (43:10) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about Sean Payton quitting as the New Orleans Saints head coach. Payton says he wants to take a year off. Maybe talk on TV. Maybe coach a year later. Hilarious. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘volley’ as in back and forth as in you go then I go then you go then I go as in MLB owners and player’s union met again to negotiate a new CBA deal. People are getting nervous. Are you? The owners offered an economic proposal last week. The players countered yesterday. So where do the talks stand now? (22:45) The Baseball Hall of Fame class will be inducted today! Will anyone make it? Barry Bonds? Roger Clemens? Curt Schilling? Alex Rodriguez? What about David Ortiz? (29:10) Review: Ozark Season 4. (32:15) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the Milwaukee Bucks support of the Grayson Allen suspension. Allen was called for a flagrant foul on Alex Caruso which ended with Caruso fracturing his wrist. Caruso is out 8 weeks. Allen suspended for one game. (38:55) Let’s talk about the SATs. They are now going digital and being shortened. Why? Here’s why. (42:20) NPPOD. (43:40) The Australian Open has walked back its ban on “Free Peng Shuai” t-shirts. First they announced they were no good. Now the Open says they can be worn. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘defibrillator’ as in the NFL Divisional Round was out of control as in one of the best weekends of football ever… unless your team lost! (2:35) Let’s talk about how amazing Patrick Mahomes vs Josh Allen was! 13 seconds! But it was almost ruined because of the NFL overtime rules. How can only one team get the ball in OT? Ridiculous. (17:35) Aaron Rodgers is going home. The Packers fell apart at home. Lost to a team that didn’t score an offensive touchdown. Let’s discuss everyone talking about this Rodgers loss. (21:00) What is going to happen with Tom Brady in Tampa? An incredible comeback fell short for Brady against the Rams. Now what? (26:30) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Tom Brady said he doesn’t receive preferential treatment from the referees. Someone asked me about his comments. (32:30) Antonio Brown had to be back in the news. He needed to be noticed. He needed the attention. Why would a team ever sign him now? (35:10) The NFL is now testing based off the honor system. “Do you have COVID?” No. “Okay, we believe you!” (38:45) Review: The French Dispatch. (40:20) NPPOD. (42:10) Some more racist BS in hockey. A player has been released from an ECHL team for racist taunts of Jordan Subban. Jordan is the younger brother of NHL star PK Subban. This was the second racist incident that occurred in hockey in less than a week. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘rejected’ as in shut down as in turned down as in the Tampa Bay Rays will not be the half-Tampa, half-Montreal Ex-Rays. WE TOLD YOU THIS WAS NEVER GOING TO HAPPEN! Rays owner Stu Sternberg knew this would never happen, but he kept pushing and pushing nonsense to fans. Sternberg was spewing BS about this sister-city plan and we told you what it was. HORSE HOCKEY! (20:35) Are the Athletics going to move from Oakland? Probably not! (21:45) RIP Meat Loaf. (25:55) Review: After Life Season 3. (29:10) MLB Lockout Update! (35:30) NPPOD. (40:40) Former UCONN head coach Kevin Ollie is getting his money. This case went to court and Ollie won big. Over $11M. Let’s discuss how this went down and why the school messed up. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘knock’ as a little love tap as a little smack on the helmet as in Buccaneers head coach Bruce Arians was fined $50K for smacking one of his players in the helmet. Arians said he was trying to get his player away from an Eagles player so he didn’t do something dumb. It wasn’t the best optics, but it wasn’t the worst either. With everything that’s happened with Antonio Brown this isn’t great. Will the NFL fine stick for “conduct unbecoming of an NFL coach”? (8:45) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the University of Michigan having to pay $490M to victims of sexual abuse, but will not be involved in distribution. They wanted to know if this was normal. Just a horrible story. (19:55) Review: Eternals. (23:30) MLB Lockout Update: The players’ are going to be responding to ownership very soon. Everything has been quiet since the owners gave the Union its latest economic proposal. What do we think the players will ask for? (29:30) The Las Vegas Raiders are in an interesting place right now. The NFL asked for the Jon Gruden to be dismissed. The Raiders need a new coach and just interviewed the interim head coach for the job. The Raiders need a new GM. Mark Davis has some work to do. (37:10) NPPOD. The Lakers stink. Absolutely stink. Blew a lead to the Pacers in the 4th quarter. Frank Vogel is still the coach. Russell Westbrook got benched. (40:30) It’s the one year anniversary of me having contracting covid. Still can’t smell. Still can’t taste things. Life has been weird. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘Groundhog Day’ as in here we go again as in Carlos Correa has fired his agents WME/Endeavor and hired Scott Boras. This comes a day after we talk about the WME/Endeavor was threatened by the MLBPA with decertification because of its deal with Minor League Baseball. Boras Corp lands the big fish left on the board. Endeavor will lose out on millions now. (13:35) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about Dan Prescott and the postgame comments he made against the refs. The NBA Referees had something to say. Other NFL players had things to say. But, Dak Prescott apologized. (29:55) Review: Mass. (32:50) Frank Vogel is reportedly coaching for his job with the Lakers. What does this even mean? Lakers won on Monday so Vogel was safe for a day. If the Lakers lose to the Pacers tonight is Vogel gone? Let’s discuss the pressure he feels, LeBron feels, and Jeannie Buss feels. (39:30) NPPOD. (40:55) Matt Gaetz made public that he’s canceling his membership to country club for its mandates. Let’s discuss this situation. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘confident’ as in the Dallas Cowboys were eliminated from the NFL playoffs and it seems as if Jerry Jones and Co think it was a confidence issue. Stephen Jones, Jerry’s son, had some very strange quotes on Monday. The Jones family likes to control the news, they like to be the faces of the organization, so it was a Monday radio tour to talk about what went wrong. (10:20) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about what the Brooklyn Nets should do now that Kevin Durant is out for 4-6 weeks with a knee injury. They wanted to know if the Nets should start working with local officials to get Kyrie Irving back for home games in New York City. This is an interesting position. (22:50) Review: Jagged. (28:00) Endeavor and WME are in danger of being decertified by MLBPA because of ownership of Minor League Baseball teams. Is this a bad thing? Is it something likely to happen? (35:45) NPPOD. (39:00) Let’s talk about what Joel Embiid had to say about the 76ers without Ben Simmons. Daryl Morey can’t be happy with this. Is the team better without Simmons? Maybe! But does it help to say that when you’re trying to trade Simmons? NO! Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘father of the bride’ as in my daughter got married yesterday. First child, oldest child, my daughter. We drank. We danced. We laughed. Let’s talk about this night. A little personal. (18:45) What in the world happened in the Raiders-Bengals game? How did the NFL allow the refs in that game to mess up so badly? Then after the game we had to hear the refs explain how they made the right call… Well, those refs are out for the rest of the playoffs, but the NFL has stayed quiet. Shocking. (22:45) What happened in the Cowboys-49ers game? A QB draw with 14 seconds left and no timeouts. Cowboys lose. But what was that ref doing?! The ref slammed into Dak Prescott’s back, couldn’t spot the ball, game over. Jerry Jones was despondent. (29:20) Review: Wolf Like Me. (34:40) Novak Djokovic has been deported from Australia. The Joker was in Australia for the 2022 Australian Open. It was a weeklong ordeal of him being allowed in then not allowed in then allowed in and then the Aussie PM said he wanted him gone. Just a crazy week. (38:50) NPPOD. (40:55) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me how I dealt with a former player ripping me or my team. This stems from Magic Johnson’s comment about Jeanie Buss and the Los Angeles Lakers not playing great right now. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘sugar ray’ as in all around the world, statues crumble for me. Who knows how long I’ve loved you. I just wanna fly. Put your arms around me, baby! The Houston Texans have fired David Culley after just one season. Culley was the oldest first year head coach ever. He’ll leave with about $25M for one season. What’s going on in Houston? GM Nick Caserio wants to do things the Patriot Way. Deshaun Watson was out all year for you know what. CEO Cal McNair doesn’t have a clue what he’s doing. (11:00) Mike Tomlin is the last Black head coach left in the NFL. But the story here is about Ben Roethlisberger and the comments he’s made in his final season. He’s doing everything he can to make it as if the team stinks, not Mike Tomlin. He’s protecting his coach… just in case. (19:30) Review: The Tender Bar. (23:45) So You Wanna Talk to Samson!? Someone asked me about the MLB lockout meeting. They wanted to know what happened on Thursday. (38:55) NPPOD. (42:10) What's going on with Ben Simmons? Is he going to be a Sixer for long? Well, petty Daryl Morey might just make him sit the whole season out of spite. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘mazel tov’ as in congratulations as in MLB plans to meet with the Union to discuss its economic proposal. What exactly is going to happen during this meeting? Minimum salary? CHECK. Universal DH? CHECK. Expanded playoffs? CHECK! And a whole list of other items. (9:50) It finally happened. Joe Judge was fired by the New York Giants. It happened after two separate meetings. Really? You needed those meetings to see what a failure this regime was? (19:55) The Denver Broncos are going to sell now. Let’s update on the court ruling that will allow this to happen. (31:40) Review: Dash & Lily Season 1. (34:20) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about incentive hunting. Chris Jones needed one sack for $1M bonus; didn’t get it. Rob Gronkowski needed 7 receptions and 85 yards for $1M bonus; he got it thanks to Tom Brady. (42:20) NPPOD. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ’Black Monday’ as in the worst day in the NFL to be a head coach or general manager. What happens on that day? It’s the first day after the final day of the regular season. The Denver Broncos fired Vic Fangio. The Miami Dolphins fired Brian Flores. The Minnesota Vikings fired its GM and head coach Mike Zimmer. The Chicago Bears fired its GM and head coach Matt Nagy. (6:00) What about the New York Giants and Joe Judge and Dave Gettleman? (14:30) Was firing Brian Flores and retaining Chris Grier the right move? (20:50) What about the Carolina Panthers? They’re keeping Matt Rhule and he’s fired almost all of his assistant coaches. Good! (24:15) Review: The Lost Leonardo. (30:55) The New York Yankees have made a historic hire. The Yankees hired Rachel Balkovec to be the first female manager of a minor league baseball team. (38:00) NPPOD. (41:20) Wait to see: Will Jim Harbaugh be the next head coach of the Miami Dolphins? Stephen Ross said he wouldn’t take Harbaugh away from Michigan, but what if Harbaugh wants to leave? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ’tie’ as in one of the wildest endings to a NFL regular season in the history of the game. The Jacksonville Jaguars eliminated the Indianapolis Colts. The Pittsburgh Steelers were in by beating the Baltimore Ravens. The Los Angles Chargers and Las Vegas Raiders are both in with a tie! And the Raiders win it on a field goal with 3 seconds left in overtime! We almost had the tie! (14:40) The College Football Championship is here! Alabama vs Georgia! The SEC title game rematch! But the big story is what Nick Saban said during a press conference. He spoke about NIL and the future of college football. (24:00) A roofing company wanted its money back after sponsoring the Jacksonville Jaguars home game against the Colts. Fans dressed up as clowns. Fan chanted about firing the GM. And the Jaguars went on to upset the Colts! (34:00) Review: Nine Days. (42:00) The Golden Globes took place last night. Did you see them? No, because it was just tweets. (43:15) Wait to see update (46:45) NPPOD. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ’rebuttal’ as in Antonio Brown is back in the news like he never left. Bruce Arians has responded to AB. Antonio Brown tried exposing people on Twitter and Instagram. The Tampa Bay Buccaneers released him. There’s money rumors leaking about why Brown was so mad. Woof. (16:55) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the Denver Broncos. There is a fight like no other about the control of that team. Will it be sold? How much will it go for? The Mayor wants a sale, but how much sway do they have? (26:00) Review: The Lost Daughter. (31:00) Former Mets GM Zack Scott has been acquitted of DWI. He was fired by the New York Mets after his arrest. Now what? (36:00) Becky Hammon will be the new head coach and GM of the Las Vegas Aces. (41:55) NPPOD. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘365 days’ as in one year as in the one-year anniversary of the storming of the US Capitol building. Let’s discuss what happened that day, the details of that day, and what’s been found out since then. (19:25) Review: 4 hours at the capitol. (25:55) Antonio Brown has accused the Tampa Bay Buccaneers of some serious things. Brown alleges that the Bucs shot him up with drugs and forced him to play in the game against the Jets. He says that Bruce Arians told him he was done in Tampa on the sidelines which let to his outburst. Oh boy. (36:35) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about MPV voters and if it should be voted on by writers and should they consider off-field issues. This comes on the heels of a writer saying he wouldn’t vote for Aaron Rodgers because of his vaccine stance. Rodgers fired back. (44:40) Australia has denied Novak Djokovic from entering the country for the Australian Open. This has become a major legal battle. Will he be let in or turned away after not being vaccinated? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘part time lover’ as in Stevie Wonder as in Kyrie Irving is back in the news with his return to court coming tonight in Indiana. Why is his first start on the road? Irving is unvaccinated so he cannot play any games in his home arena because of New York City rules against unvaccinated people. Kyrie has missed the team’s first 35 games, but he’s back. (11:35) NPPOD. (12:45) Let’s followup on the conversation again about Joe Jude, the Mara family, and the New York Giants. Is Judge safe? What will happen with Dave Gettleman? The Giants have been so bad in recent years something needs to change. (20:00) Jalen Hurt penned a letter to the Washington Football Team after what took place at FedEx Field. Never seen anything like it. (31:55) Review: The Comey Rule. (36:45) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me a question about the scenario the NFL has found itself in. There’s a way that the Los Angeles Chargers and the Las Vegas Raiders can tie and both make the playoffs. How does this happen? How does the NFL let something like this happen? TV deals. Why don’t these games start at the same time to avoid nonsense like this? (44:55) Fantatics bought Topps. Here’s why that’s important. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘proxy’ as in doing someone else’s bidding as in Max Scherzer continues to be the mouthpiece for Scott Boras. The lockout is still locking in MLB and Scherzer spoke to the LA Times to give an update on what’s been going on. (18:30) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me about the Washington Football Team and the railing collapse at FedEx Field. This team just can’t help but stay in the news. But hey, it will announce its new team name on February 2nd. (32:55) Review: C’mon C’mon. (36:40) MLB Network decided to fire Ken Rosenthal because of his coverage of MLB Commissioner Rob Manfred. MLB Network is owned by MLB. Let’s explain this situation. (43:40) NPPOD. Big Ben says goodbye. Baker Mayfield may optout of the final game of the season for surgery. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘streaking’ as in we’re going streaking through the quad and into the gymnasium as in Antonio Brown had a meltdown to remember during the Bucs-Jets game. Bruce Arians asked Brown to go back into the game and he refused… in the most Antonio Brown way. He ripped his jersey off and pads off and gloves off and he’s shirtless running in the end zone. What? (14:20) So You Wanna Talk To Samson!? Someone asked me to followup on my 2021 New Year’s resolutions and what my 2022 ones are. (29:15) Review: Death of 2021, Squid Game. (35:40) Let’s take some time to remember John Madden and the impact he had on the NFL. (41:30) NPPOD. (44:10) Joe Judge career as head coach of the New York Giants is over. He is bad. The team is bad. Not coached well. Judge says things that are just outrageous. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘mutual’ as in reciprocal as in connected as in bilateral as in Carlos Correa and the Chicago Cubs reportedly have mutual interest. So the Cubs didn’t want to re-sign Bryant or Baez or Rizzo, but they want to pay $300M+ for Correa. Okay, sure. (8:20) Cody Bellinger and the Los Angeles Dodgers have agreed to a one-year, $17M deal. How was it announced after December 1st in a lockout? Hmmmm. (14:20) Former MLB columnist Michael Hunt has not voted for a baseball player to the Hall of Fame for the 2nd consecutive year in a row. Two years ago he only voted for Derek Jeter. Is this fair? (25:15) The Gator Bowl will go on. Rutgers has accepted the bid to play against Wake Forest. (29:45) Review: Belfast. (33:45) NPPOD. (39:20) Peloton, Chris Noth, Sex in the City update. (45:55) So You Wanna Talk to Samson!? Someone asked me about handling and dealing with insomnia. Let’s get personal to end the year. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

Today’s word of the day is ‘worry’ as in panic as in anxiety as in NFLPA president JC Tretter said the union was worried about NFL games being cancelled due to COVID. He said the union pushed for postponements, the NFL nearly cancelled 3 games, and that would have been bad news bears. (10:30) Joe Burrow is the starting QB for the Cincinnati Bengals. Joe Burrow said there’s nothing to do in Cincinnati. (22:00) Review: Clickbait. (27:30) NPPOD. (29:15) The College Football Playoff has announced new covid rules. Forfeits everywhere! (34:30) The Gator Bowl is in jeopardy right now. Texas A&M had a covid outbreak and can’t play. Wake Forest can play. The bowl is scrambling to replace Texas A&M. (39:50) The NBA is in trouble. There are now 50 players playing on 10-day contracts. What!? Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices