Ross Tucker: Browns will probably win four or five games; I do have a lot of faith in Todd Monken

0:00It's the four clock out on afternoon drop. Football is back, Nick and JP, with you here, we got football on this year very station tonight. We got patriots and Seahawks tomorrow on this very station, 49ers and Rams and of course on Sunday, Browns and Jaguars and our next guest. Always very patient with us, always very pleasant with us, always willing to talk some ball here during football season and to have him join us. We head out to the Y-Shart right. We make a right call, Kyle Wright hotline. This NFL insider call is presented by Nationwide for your insurance and financial needs. Nationwide is on your side. Look at that. Look at that. That's that is week one energy for you, Ross Tucker. Pretty good, Nick. Pretty good. I like it. Way to bring it. I'm I'm radar. Well, I do have a question though. Who are the Browns playing on Sunday? How does your pronounce that?

1:00The Jaguars. John, then how do you say I say Jaguars? You're joking right, Nick, with the Jaguars. Yes, I do. Yes, yes, yes, I do. Have you had any Jaguars? Folks on the show? Yeah, we actually have a decent amount of them in this area. A lot of people do go Jaguars. Yeah, I like to keep it. I like to keep it fluid. I like to say it a couple different ways because I don't respect that franchise as a whole. So there's a decent amount of Jaguars. People in Pennsylvania too. I'm not really sure how you are becomes W I R E or where that really came from, but I find it fascinating. I try as much as possible to not hang out with people that say Jaguars. That's your stipulation. That's like no go. I'm glad that you guys both passed the test. I feel like there's some Princeton snobbery going on right now, but pronunciation of a again, I would arguably say bottom five franchise in the NFL.

2:04Outside of one good year and I don't know how we got there, but there aren't just a lot of people that say it that way. Ross in fairness, we can't get people who agree on how to say Shadour here in Cleveland. We have so many Shadurs that my eye twitches at least once a show. There's a real problem. You guys have Shadurs all the time. And even from like reputable people that come on stage to you, guests will come out and give it a sharder. And they're so impassioned too. And they're so like and they did they're ready to just make their take and be like, and then you're like, what happened here? Yeah. Yeah. That is incredible. By the way, Nick, you do not realize they won 13 games last year, right? Yeah, that was last year. When was the last time the Jags were able to go ahead and bounce back two great years in a row? I'll wait. Yeah, I don't know. I actually do know probably 98 99 maybe. Yeah, that's been about 26 years. But that but Sally Fred Taylor. Mark Bernal now we're talking. Mark Bernal Jimmy Smith, Kenam MacArthur.

3:05That's three years. That one year. They were the best team in the NFL that one year. And they blew it against the Titans in the AFT Championship game, but they were the best team. That happened sometimes. They had a great run of Madden teams as well because of Bernal. And you remember Greg Jones who you could just turn into a running back and nobody could tackle. Now those are the Jaguars that I'm very interested in. Yeah, I'm a I loved them because their tackles were Leon, Searsy and Bacelli. And that was when I was like a junior in college 99 and they were just beating you know what out of people. They played the way they game the way it's supposed to be played. I once did a national show the day that Bacelli got into the Hall of Fame. And I realized in the moment that I was ripping his Hall of Fame induction basically. By agent, he just didn't play long enough. He didn't play long enough. Didn't have enough all pros. And then I put together that somewhere in that the can't nary there was a radio station that was definitely playing me ripping his family as they were

4:05leaving the induction ceremony. So I felt really great about that. You know what? Two things. One is Tony's a very good friend. And that's the only Hall of Fame ceremony and party that I've been invited to so far and attended. And it was amazing. Everything about it. The ceremony was cool but then the party was really cool. So I will defend Tony Bacelli to the death. I think by the way, one of the reasons why I was invited. Not just because we're friends, but I very much was supportive of his Hall of Fame campaign. Because when I was in college and even I get famous my rookie year, I thought he was the best guy. So this is back with like John the nodding or Lando paste Walter Jones. Even if you ask guys that played back then like a Roman open or certain guys that played a lot of left tackle, but they will tell you for whatever that was the four or five six years that it

5:09was Tony. And then I thought when I was playing the guy that was under the radar was Walter Jones. I thought he was a decent amount better in the run game than Ogden and Orlando Pays. But for some reason, Ogden and Orlando Pays were both great players. It just seemed like they always got the pub. Maybe that's because Walter Jones played for the Seahawks. People never talk about the Seahawks, but he was awesome. All right, Ross. I did my AFC North predictions on TikTok, Nick talk earlier today. And the two things that have confounded people the most are one my Browns take and then two my Steelers take. I have the Browns at eight and nine and I have the Steelers at seven and 10 finishing last place in this division. Which one is the hotter take Ross? So I love that we're starting there because are we at the stage of your career where you just predict outlandish things to try to get attention on TikTok? Not really, but I'm not too far off

6:11that. This might be a toe in the water. Well, do we need an intervention? Because like when I I'm at a quitter Ross, when I make a prediction or a pick anywhere, okay, Ross Tucker football podcast, social media at Ross Tucker NFL or here on your show, I always do it based on what I think is the most likely scenario. I do not believe in your heart of hearts that you think the Browns are winning eight games this year. I don't believe you. You know what you're doing the show? You know it really get good ratings. Let's bring in like a retired FBI guy or a cop and have them bring in a polygraph, a lie detector and lie it. I'm telling you now Nick Nick would do video. He passed with flying colors. Video to social media. So your social media can go viral. That was all viral. You saying on the air that you you truly believe with all your heart the Browns are going to win eight

7:13games while you're taking a polygraph that I will watch. He passed with flying colors and the only way I can tell you with confidence I know this is because it's been a three month argument with us. You can't fake five hours a day for three months the way that he has. I put him in so many corners and given him so many chances to back off of it he just refuses to. So I think the Browns pick is less likely than the Steelers pick. I don't think either one, I will say this Nick I don't think either one of them is like no way you're you're crazy. I think the Steelers pick that could happen you know they're getting up there in age. What I find fascinating about the Steelers is if they go up to a bad start or like at some point it looks like they're going to have a losing season. Would Mike McCarthy ever bench Aaron Rodgers to put in either Will Howard or Drew Aller or whatever like that to me. Can you imagine

8:16benching a first ballot Hall of Famer who literally made you millions of dollars because he won the Super Bowl as your quarterback and then you bet I mean that's that's somewhere in the realm of possibilities if the Steelers got off to a really bad start. The Browns winning eight games would really surprise me. Let me ask you in this scenario how many games does to Sean Jackson's hard to quarter. Just one Jackson's hard to quarter back. How many games does Shadour Sanders start to quarter back. That would be two games for Dishon and I could see him even getting benched as soon as half time this week if it goes really really poorly and the rest go to Shadour. Okay guys so then you believe essentially because I'm going to assume then that the Browns lose at least one if not both of those to Sean Watson starts. You think Shadour Sanders

9:18is good enough where he's going to win eight out of 15 games. I think Shadour can be a competent NFL quarterback and I think that's all it's going to take for this team to be a 500 team so I will have to answer this question in the affirmative. So what's fascinating to me about that is if that happens man or you guys going to have a good topic in January, February, March and April. It's about time we have one of those. No, what I mean by what I mean by that is obviously like if they made the playoffs and they won double digit games or Shadour was really good that'd be great you have your starting quarterback. If it's the opposite and he's really bad. Okay well then fine we got to draft the kid. If they go eight and seven or eight or whatever it is and Shadour starts and he looks to your point like a competent NFL quarterback. Is that enough? Is that enough where

10:25they still don't get someone else and they have Shadour be the unquestioned starter going into 27. What I'm doing right now is I'm pulling a Nick Wilson and a John the Peterlyn and I'm already fast forwarding to next off season even though we haven't played a single game yet this season. You're welcome. I think we haven't already done this this off season. Yeah that was half of June. I think I'm on Ross. So where all right how many wins do you have for the Browns then let's just get to the the the brass tax on this if Nick is eight I've said six by the way I don't know that you know that or not I've said six where are you probably four or five that would be my guess. I certainly lean more towards six than eight I think I think a lot of it comes down to how you feel about the offensive line. We know about the quarterback saying okay so forget the quarterback saying I have a lot of faith in Todd Monkin. I really think he's good. I really think

11:31the Browns nailed it with that higher. So that's a feather in Nick's cap of eight wins. That's a feather in your cap of six wins. What what what I struggle with a little bit is basically having two rookie start at receiver. A totally revamped offensive line that that could go well it's probably more likely that there's growing pains early in the year since they haven't played next to each other that much. I think what I struggle with is how good the defense is going to be. I think you know they had such a great thing going with Schwartz and Miles was such a difference making player that no Schwartz no Miles. I know they still have a bunch of good players on that side of the ball and I've actually known Rutenberg for a long time. He's an Ivy League guy. Have you ever heard of it Nick?

12:33He's an Ivy League guy. I'm a BG guy so you know I have. Yes he's an Ivy League guy so I've known Mike for a long time. I think you'll do a good job don't get me wrong but it's always interesting when it's your first time ever calling the defense. He's never done it before and so there's some positives to that because the offensive coordinator don't have a book on you. They don't know any tendencies because you don't have any but there's also going to be some lessons he learned on the job. We're after the game he made a call on third and ten that didn't like and they gave up a big play and that's a lesson he'll learn from. So the reason why I can't go as many wins as you guys is because I don't have I don't have a high level of confidence that the defense will be as good as they were last year. So I do want to circle back to your lie detector idea because I've actually always been really interested in the idea of I think lie detector I think it's too

13:35predictable. So what I want to do is I want to do a lie detector at the same time that they put one of those things on that the text whether you're getting excited by graphic images or not but so the idea is you're you're taking two tests at once and you're never sure whether it's going to be a question that you have to be 100% honest on or whether it's going to be a picture that really gets you going in one way or another Ross and just think of the variables of outcomes that could happen there. I love that idea but I also love the idea you should want the lie detector test. If you really believe that the Browns are going to win eight games you should want that think about the credibility that that would give you with your audience if you took the lie detector and you said on the air I believe with my heart and soul and in fact I'm emptying out my children 529 plan for college education and putting it on the over on the Cleveland Brown season win total

14:42because I have that much faith in Todd Monkin and the boys. Ross I would be your best segment ever Ross I work in local radio what what makes you think I have an account for my kid to go to college come on now Ross he has already predicted a week one win over Jackson that is true I've locked that in I've locked that bleep down we got that early this week okay okay so this is this is this is where Nick struggles because at Bowling Green they they don't have a logic class but we do have five on the walls you have to Sean Watson only starting two games and maybe getting bench and a half time of the first game but you have them beating the Jaguars I pointed out this fly said I can game in the gamblers world you're supposed to make bets that aligned with what you want to actually happen now it figures out let me get this straight so let me so let's not so like is it does this mean that Watson starts against the Jags they struggle he gets benched half time should earth enters comes off the bench he plays great they win the game but Monkin says we're

15:47still going to start to show them Watson next week anyway no and you can give your dreams an area of planning oh my gosh give that one all right so you gotta stay for the same you gotta fall behind a little bit right maybe I mean it's Nick I just want like you know people are listening right I'm aware we actually number one ratings buddy this is not this is me you and Jonathan like you're on the radio in Cleveland yeah and I'm not the only person that just realized that you think Watson getting benched in at half time or in the first two games but you also have them being the Jags I'm so ready to be right about this the I was right that it's going to ring through the halls of Cleveland and your self-provider it's going to be very enjoyable when I'm right on all fronts you think I'm obnoxious when I'm wrong wait till you see when I'm right Ross we appreciate you buddy great to have you back congrats on the success and don't forget this weekend Nick Wilson my buddy on 92 three the fan don't don't forget to throw that in there on the national broadcast yeah that'll be extremely relevant for build at the time yeah on day on impress us that's how you

16:54do it right there yeah yeah yeah yeah I'm a fit in local people great yeah I get detector test when he's don't know what's about there on the bills text and say congrats for everybody be good later dude later dude uh this insider call is presented by nationwide for your insurance and financial needs nationwide is on your side Ross appearing