TAFS Goes Camping: Conversations with The Athletic's Panthers, Browns and Commanders beat writers
Look, you visit with eight teams in one week, you gotta have two Beat Writer Notebooks. In this edition, Robert talks with Joe Person, Zac Jackson and Nicki Jhabvala, The Athletic's Panthers, Browns and Commanders beat writers, respectively. How legitimate is the optimism for the Panthers offense? How do the Browns even measure success this season? What can the Commanders do to follow up on last season's unexpected breakthrough? Learn the answers to those questions, and a whole lot more, on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.Rundown (timestamps are approximate)4:01 Robert and Joe Person from Panthers camp27:21 Robert and Zac Jackson from Browns camp48:08 Robert and Nicki Jhabvala from Commanders campHost: Robert MaysWith: Joe Person, Zac Jackson, Nicki JhabvalaExecutive Producer: Michael BellerProducer: Michael BellerSubscribe to The Athletic Football Show...AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.socialFollow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.socialFollow Joe on Bluesky: @josephperson.bsky.socialFollow Nicki on Bluesky: @nickijhabvala.bksy.socialFollow Robert on X: @robertmaysFollow Joe on X: @josephpersonFollow Zac on X: @AkronJacksonFollow Nicki on X: @NickiJhabvalaTheme song: HauntedWritten by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love SongsCourtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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1:09:50
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1:09:50
TAFS Goes Camping: Conversations with The Athletic's Bills and Steelers beat writers
Robert Mays is coming off his busiest week of training camp yet, having spent the previous seven days with eight different teams (gotta love joint practices). In this edition of the Beat Writer Notebook, Robert talks with Joe Buscaglia, The Athletic's Bills beat writer, and Mike DeFabo, The Athletic's Steelers beat writer. How do the Bills finally get over the hump? Can Aaron Rodgers find enough of the fountain of youth to push the Steelers to another level? Learn the answers to those questions, and a whole lot more, on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.Plus, Robert and Derrik Klassen cover the injuries to Rashawn Slater and C.J. Gardner-Johnson.Rundown (timestamps are approximate)3:10 Rashawn Slater and C.J. Gardner-Johnson injuries17:25 Robert and Joe Buscaglia at Bills camp45:36 Robert and Mike DeFabo at Steelers campHost: Robert MaysCo-Host: Derrik KlassenWith: Joe Buscaglia, Mike DeFaboExecutive Producer: Michael BellerProducer: Michael BellerSubscribe to The Athletic Football Show...AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.socialFollow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.socialFollow Joe on Bluesky: @joebuscaglia.bsky.socialFollow Mike on Bluesky: @mikedefabo.bksy.socialFollow Robert on X: @robertmaysFollow Derrik on X: @QBKlassFollow Joe on X: @JoeBuscagliaFollow Mike on X: @MikeDeFaboTheme song: HauntedWritten by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love SongsCourtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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1:05:55
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1:05:55
The early training camp storylines that actually matter
Teams have been at training camp for a couple weeks now, so you know what that means. We've got plenty of storylines floating around out there. Some of them matter. Many of them don't. Dave Helman and Derrik Klassen wade through them and separate what actually has meaning from what doesn't on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.Rundown (timestamps are approximate)6:09 Matthew Stafford's back injury13:27 Ben Johnson's aggressive approach to training camp24:07 The Saints QB battle32:20 Depth chart silliness52:57 Rookie WRs turning heads1:01:45 Aireontae Ersery pushing for a starting job in HoustonHosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave HelmanExecutive Producer: Michael BellerProducer: Michael BellerSubscribe to The Athletic Football Show...AppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.socialFollow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.socialFollow Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.socialFollow Robert on X: @robertmaysFollow Derrik on X: @QBKlassFollow Dave on X: @davehelman_Theme song: HauntedWritten by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love SongsCourtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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1:02:19
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Quarterbacks at a crossroads in 2025
There is a subset of quarterbacks for whom the 2025 season is an inflection point. For some of them, it's about their future in the league. For others, it's due to the massive changes around them. For still others, it's about their legacy. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen discuss eight quarterbacks at a crossroads this season on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.Rundown (timestamps are approximate)5:11 Kyler Murray21:22 Jared Goff34:26 Trevor Lawrence46:47 C.J. Stroud and Jordan Love55:56 Brock Purdy1:03:05 Patrick MahomesHost: Robert MaysCo-Host: Derrik KlassenExecutive Producer: Michael BellerProducer: Michael BellerSubscribe to The Athletic Football ShowAppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.socialFollow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.socialFollow Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.socialFollow Robert on X: @robertmaysFollow Derrik on X: @QBKlassFollow Dave on X: @davehelman_Theme song: HauntedWritten by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love SongsCourtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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1:07:23
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Half-baked takes for the 2025 NFL season
Some takes are meticulously crafted, with each ingredient perfectly balanced to create a rational, thought-out, deeply held belief. Others are slapped together, thrown in the oven for, you know, whatever length of time feels right, and dropped down on the table to consume at your own risk. These are the latter. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman offer up their half-baked takes for the 2025 season on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.Rundown7:00 Micah Parsons isn't getting traded and Jerry Jones isn't serious about winning football games (this is a fully baked take)10:43 The Niners will win 12+ games17:02 The Vikings will finish last in the NFC North24:45 This is the year the Steelers crash out35:42 The NFC will have massive playoff turnover this season41:50 This is the season the Packers go nuclear48:14 Abolish the draft so players like Myles Garrett don't get stuck on teams like the Browns forever55:57 The NFL needs a leaguewide standardized bye week1:05:40 Bo Nix was just kinda getting away with it last year, and that's not gonna happen this year1:15:56 Zac Robinson is this year's Liam CoenHost: Robert MaysCo-Hosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave HelmanExecutive Producer: Michael BellerProducer: Michael BellerSubscribe to The Athletic Football ShowAppleSpotifyYouTubeFollow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.socialFollow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.socialFollow Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.socialFollow Robert on X: @robertmaysFollow Derrik on X: @QBKlassFollow Dave on X: @davehelman_Theme song: HauntedWritten by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love SongsCourtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
About The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL
The Athletic’s flagship NFL podcast covers the league like only The Athletic can. Host Robert Mays and co-hosts Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman dive into the biggest stories, break down the Xs and Os, and tackle the ins and outs of roster building. They meticulously follow the details of why we all love this sport and have plenty of fun along the way, bringing the expertise necessary to cover the NFL at the highest level. You want year-round draft coverage? You'll get that here, too, with draft expert Dane Brugler. Whether it’s happening on the field or behind the scenes, you’ll get an in-depth look at all things NFL on The Athletic Football Show, available wherever you get your podcasts. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
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