Hawks Are Overhyped 👀 | Cowboys Making Playoffs | QB Talk

We call the NBA hierarchy on both coasts, weigh MVP odds, and map how age, health, and depth will shape the season, then shift to quarterbacks with Miles McCaleb and close with a family tribute, a youth fundraiser, and a fresh look at motocross
Bold picks meet real talk, with space for doubt, data, and heart

• East seed logic built on availability, shooting, and coaching
• Cleveland and New York as continuity bets at the top
• West depth penalizing older cores over 82 games
• Thunder repeat case anchored in depth and defense
• Jokic vs Luka MVP paths and narratives
• Russell Wilson’s transition and Jackson Dart’s early read
• Browns QB room fit: timing, protection, and processing
• Arch Manning concerns vs upside ahead of SEC tests
• Tribute to Grandma Vivian and what she taught us
• Haven House charity pick’em details and how to enter
• Cowboys defense woes, Bills bandwagon pulse
• Motocross SMX wins, purse growth, and Whole Shots

Make a $25+ donation at thepickempros.com, pick Panthers vs Cowboys, and get entered to win. We’ll draw the winner live on Instagram the day after the game. Let’s raise $10,000 for Haven House Services.

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Transcript

Studio Vibes & Show Rundown

SPEAKER_05 0:00

Play in Atlanta Hawks.

SPEAKER_02 0:01

And playing Atlanta Hawks always have a game in Atlanta around that time.

SPEAKER_05 0:05

Now, a lot of people though have them high this year. They're high on the moves that they made this offseason. A lot most people do not think they're going to be a play-in team this year. Well, they are.

SPEAKER_02 0:14

So they're going to be back where they always are.

SPEAKER_00 0:16

This is former Chicago bear Desmond Clark. And y'all hear me on many podcasts. But when y'all hear me on Pick Em Pros, y'all know it's all about family. This ain't just business.

SPEAKER_05 0:26

All right, ladies and gentlemen, welcome back. You know who it is? I am Derek Thompson. And I'm Diego Thompson. And who are we? The Pick'em Pros. Yeah, yeah. Pick em Pros coming at you from the studio, man. We got an audience here doing big things, baby.

SPEAKER_02 0:42

Yeah, man. Ready, man.

SPEAKER_05 0:44

Yeah, yeah. We also got the one and only EJ DJ in the building. Outside. We outside. You know, we outside and in the building. Both of them. Both of them. You know, we got the throwback to the old, old timers and the new. So I'm versatile. You know what I'm saying? All right, man. Well, you ready to drop this sports knowledge today? Ready. Let's go. All right. What were we talking about today, man? What are we doing?

SPEAKER_02 1:07

Talking about some NBA. Yeah, season's coming up.

SPEAKER_05 1:09

NBA, okay. And NBA's coming up, and then we're going to get into the NFL. We got a special segment with uh Miles McCaleb, star quarterback of Clinton. Yeah. Clinton Dark Horses. Just threw five TDs last night. So we're excited about that. Yeah, big time, big time. And uh man, we're gonna close it out with uh our man Johnny O. Yes, yes, Johnny O in the building, man. Yes, yes. He's the author of Whole Shots, the big motocross uh podcast. And you you're repping uh motocross there with your hat. You have any idea who that is?

SPEAKER_02 1:41

Uh well yeah, Jack Lawrence, yeah, yeah, yeah. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 1:47

All right, cool. That's right. He's number one. So you're wearing the right hat, man. Wearing the right hat. All right. Well, let's get into it, man. Let's not waste

NBA Preview: Eastern Rankings Debate

SPEAKER_05 1:55

any time. Let's get into your NBA rankings. You've got East and West. Give us uh 10 through one for the East here. How are things gonna play out this year?

SPEAKER_02 2:03

All right, so East is obviously the weaker, weaker conference. So, you know, things can really shake up either way, but this is just how I'm gonna how I'm gonna go at it here. So, number 10, I got the Indiana Pacers. I know they're gonna be out without Halliburton and and Miles Turner just left, but they still got a good team. They got Siakum, they got you know um some other people, Nemhard, and um, yeah, they got some good pieces.

SPEAKER_05 2:24

Okay. I I think 10's a little low, man. That that's a little disrespectful.

SPEAKER_02 2:27

Well, nah, I mean they shouldn't have been made made the playoffs last year.

SPEAKER_05 2:32

What? They so they they went to a game seven last year. Oh, all that's luck. Oh, that's luck.

SPEAKER_02 2:38

Dang, that that's that's a lot of luck. Yes, it is a lot of luck, but it's it's possible.

SPEAKER_05 2:42

Okay. So so with no Halley, no Halley Burton, they're gonna fall all the way to 10. Yes. Wow. Yes.

SPEAKER_02 2:50

That's probably the most homes I'm in out of all these pictures. Really?

SPEAKER_05 2:53

Okay, all right. We're gonna have to come, we're gonna rewind the tape on this one. We're gonna have to check this one out later. Okay, all right. Let me net lot stop your flow here.

SPEAKER_02 3:00

Go ahead. All right. Number nine, I got the heat. Okay. Um, you know, they're always in the mix, always around that play-in spot. So they're a little safe a safe uh spot right there.

SPEAKER_05 3:10

Yeah, I think that's a good pick.

SPEAKER_02 3:11

All right. Number number eight, I got the Hawks. You know, we got Trey Young. Um, you know, Sora basically just like the Heat always in that like seven to ten spot.

SPEAKER_05 3:20

So play in Atlanta Hawks.

SPEAKER_02 3:22

Play in Atlanta Hawks always have a game in Atlanta around that time.

SPEAKER_05 3:26

Now, a lot of people though have them high this year. They're high on the moves that they made this offseason. A lot most people do not think they're gonna be a play-in team this year.

SPEAKER_02 3:34

Well, they are, so they're gonna be back where they always are. Okay. Number seven, I got the Boston Celtics. Uh no Tatum this year, but they still have a really good team. They have Brown, Derek White, um, all the other pieces of that team, championship experience. Okay. So yeah, they're always gonna be in the mix with or without Tatum. Okay. And uh number six, I got the Milwaukee Bucks, you know, Giannis, obviously. Uh Miles Turner, the addition at center. Um, yeah. I mean, and not really much else, but they they do have Giannis, so that's that should get them at least in the playoffs.

SPEAKER_04 4:05

Yeah, it should get them in, at least that's not playing. Still feels maybe a little low for the Bucks. No. With the moves they made, okay.

SPEAKER_05 4:13

What moves do they make outside of Miles Turner? Yeah, Miles Turner. You've got uh the Greek freak who's uh you know still a top five player in the NBA in a very weak East. Uh I think most people might have them a little higher than that, man.

SPEAKER_02 4:25

Nah, nah, they need a little more to get up there. A little more. All right. Number five, this might shock people. I have the Philadelphia 76ers. I know Jared McCain just got hurt in training camp, but he's only gonna miss like the first week or two of the season. So that shouldn't make that big of a difference right there. And then they got VJ Edgecombs really uh kind of he's gonna get more playing time in that spot. Joel Embiid. I think I think they're due for a healthy year, actually, because last year they had luck didn't go their way. And you know, they hopefully get some chemistry with Embiid, and B looking to prove himself again, and you know, Paul George, all the other pieces on that team. Podcast P. All right. Podcast P and all that. We're gonna see. Number four, I got the magic. Um I like the moves they made this year. And they're they're a young team, and young teams usually do well in the regular season. And they're they're really bad at shooting, and they got they got like Desmond Bain Bane that uh is a sharp shooter, so that should help them out a lot, and I think that's gonna catapult them to the next level.

SPEAKER_05 5:19

They had the loudest bro clap ever when they uh embraced when he came onto the season. Oh, yeah. Yeah, when he joined the team. Yeah, they got the record for that.

SPEAKER_02 5:27

Yeah, yeah. They might have might have gave up a few too many first round picks, but it should be good for this year. All right. Number three, I got the Detroit Pistons. I had a great year last year. Detroit? Yeah, number number five in the East last year. But and with the with with the East being a little weaker, they're gonna step it up and get into that top three. Okay. Cade Cunningham and all of them. Detroit Pistons. Number two, got the New York Knicks, you know. They got Jalen Brunson, you know, the crew. And uh I don't I don't think they're gonna get worn out in the regular season like they did under Tom Thibodeau. Because now they got better coaching there. I think he's gonna be more cautious of their minutes and getting Jalen Brunson healthy for the playoffs. So I think that that's gonna help them play better in the regular season as well. I like that. And number one, I got it. Number one, I got the Cleveland Cavaliers. You know, they were number one in the East last year. I like that. Uh they lost the Pacers because of injuries. Their whole starting five was injured. And it's another reason why the Pacers shouldn't have made it as far as they did. Okay. But um, yeah, and I think they're gonna be back. They're gonna look to prove people that last year wasn't a fluke and they're gonna be ready to go.

SPEAKER_05 6:29

Okay. I I like that. Yeah, I like Cavs one. I like Knicks too. I like Detroit Pitts. I like your top three. I think your bottom seven's a little you know, I I would disagree with some of that.

SPEAKER_02 6:39

The addition of Lonzo Ball, I think, is big too. Yes, that's gonna be big. I think that was a good thing. He's not gonna have to play a bunch of minutes, and he's gonna fit in really good.

SPEAKER_05 6:47

Yeah, hopefully he can stay healthy. That's always the thing with him. But uh yeah, I I love what the Cavs have done. Okay. All right. Now, ooh, the tough. The big bad West. Yeah, the West. This is what we have here.

SPEAKER_02 6:59

So number 10, there's

Eastern Top Three: Cavs, Knicks, Pistons

SPEAKER_02 7:00

many good teams in the West. Number 10, I have the Grizzlies, the Memphis Grizzlies. Um, they got Ja Morant and Jaron Jackson Jr., they lost Desmond Bain. But um, they still have uh a few good players in that team that I think can get them into the play in. Okay. Number nine, I have the San Antonio Spurs, uh, Victor Wimbenyama, uh, getting ready for year three. Hopefully he stays healthy. And you know, they got a lot of young pieces. They got De'Aaron Fox, Stefan Castle, uh Dylan Harper. So a lot of a lot of guards, a lot of guard play, though. Look to get Wemby the ball and uh also just space out the floor and shoot threes. So I think they they got a really good roster down there, really good young roster. Number eight, I got the Dallas Mavericks. Um they got they're actually a really good team this year. They got Anthony Davis, Kyrie Irving, Cooper Flag, PJ Washington. Like that, they got they even got D'Angelo Russell who's gonna take Kyrie's place while he's out. So why are they since they're so good? Because the West is stacked. And Kyrie's not coming back until probably like around Christmas time. So that's and two to the in the West, every game counts. Like that's just what gets the Warriors into trouble because they're such an old team that they you know take. Right, you know.

SPEAKER_05 8:11

Man, I tell you though, the the map, Kyrie, yeah, he's coming back from the ACL, but the moves I see him making all in practice, like, man, he looks like he can play now.

SPEAKER_02 8:22

Well practice. Looks like prime Michael Jordan in practice. True. Yeah, yeah. So yeah, the talent, the talent level is insane. It's crazy. Okay, all right. So I got them at eight right now. Hopefully, Cooper Flying will get better throughout the season, too. So I think their record's gonna get better throughout the year. Okay. Number seven, I got the Golden State Warriors. Um, I I they weren't making any moves towards the um in the mid in the offseason, then they just made all their moves this past week. But I like what they did. You know, they got Al Horfer, got a center, they got um Seth Curry, uh, got the chemistry with Steph. I like that. And you know, another sharp shooter. I re-signed Kaminga, you know, just re-signed Gary Payton. You know, I like like the moves they made, made some solid moves.

SPEAKER_05 9:04

I like all those moves, but I if we weren't sitting here on set, I would have ran out that door right now because everybody knows how you are about your Golden State Warriors.

SPEAKER_02 9:13

Nah, but see, I'm being more of a realist with them this year because I know that the the regular season is a is a young, young team's game, right? And the old team and they had the Warriors have a lot of talent. Okay, a lot of good pieces, and they could have made the finals last year. Yeah. Well, but Steph Curry got hurt, and that that that could be used as an excuse, but that could also be used as like something that can happen because they're an old team, like they're really old. So like they people can get hurt throughout the year, and that can impact their record. So I just don't trust them.

SPEAKER_05 9:42

So they're gonna be a play-in team.

SPEAKER_02 9:44

Yes, talent talent-wise, I think they're much better than that. But um, with just with the way their roster is structured, I don't I just don't believe they're gonna stay healthy all year.

SPEAKER_04 9:53

Okay. All right.

SPEAKER_02 9:54

And yeah, number six, I got the Lakers, the LA Lakers. Oof. Yeah, with LeBron, LeBron and Luca, and they they got DeAndre and they got the center, but I don't know. I just don't I don't I don't trust them. I just I just don't.

SPEAKER_04 10:07

Ah, you don't, but okay.

SPEAKER_02 10:08

They we they got swept by the um well and the gentleman swept, my bad, by the T-Wolves. They did?

Western Rankings: Depth, Injuries, Old vs Young

SPEAKER_02 10:15

I I just can't unsee that, man. Like that is bad.

SPEAKER_05 10:19

That is that is true. They got gentlemen swept by the T-Wolves, who then what happened to them after that, they fell apart. But let's think about this for a second. So Luca has clearly been drinking pure green.

SPEAKER_02 10:31

Yeah, all right, yeah. He has been drinking pure green, but he's doing the same slow moves he was doing before. So it's not like he's got he's any faster.

SPEAKER_05 10:40

Yeah, he yeah, he's but that that that's his game though. But at least he should be, since he is drinking pure green, shout out to uh our sponsor, um he should be uh, you know, at least he'll be more uh durable this year. So shouldn't have the calf injury, shouldn't have those other injuries that hinder him throughout the season. Yeah, but uh and then LeBron, you know, LeBron going into the Jordan year, 23rd year in the NBA, you know, you got him and whatnot. So uh I I see the slight eye roll there. Nice, you know.

SPEAKER_02 11:10

Young man's game, I'm telling you. Not not a young team. Well, what's up with LeBron's injury? He's always gonna have injuries. He's 40 years old. That's what's gonna happen. But it's like curry.

SPEAKER_05 11:21

It's like curry. Okay, well, hey, watch it now, because I'm I I'm in my 40s and and and I don't I don't have injuries. You know what I'm saying? But that that's just not about me. All right, so let's talk about LeBron. So the injury though, uh the injury was to the glute, I believe. I believe it was nerve damage in the glute. That definitely seems like an old man injury. Yeah, right there. Very much. Yeah, okay. That's interesting. I just I I never heard of that injury before. That's kind of, but when you set the when you set the barrier for how many years you play in the league, I guess that opens it up for new injuries that we have not heard of.

SPEAKER_02 11:54

A lot of these old teams, they can make playoff runs. Like they if they can they play their cards right, they can stay healthy in playoffs and make runs.

SPEAKER_05 12:02

All right, okay.

SPEAKER_02 12:02

Anyways, number five, I got the LA Clippers. Another older team, but they did make great moves in the offseason, though. Chris Paul was a great move. Um they got Bradley Beal, who he's not the same, but he still can contribute to the move. That's a good move. Uh-huh. You know, yeah. So I like I like those moves. Got a healthy Kawhi. You know. Yeah. Okay. Do they? Maybe not. I mean, you never really know. But uh he's on the team. He's on the rocks. He is on the team. He is on the team. So he's like, Yeah, we'll see we'll see what happens with them. But yeah.

SPEAKER_05 12:34

Did they find another sponsorship deal for Kawhi? We all know about Kawaii. We don't know about that. Okay, all right, we'll see.

SPEAKER_02 12:41

All right. Who's your number four? Number four, I got the Houston Rockets. All right. KD coming in, coming to town. Uh drained a bit of the youth from the Rockets, but but hey, you know, they're they're still a good team. Yeah, still a good team. Yeah, Jalen Green not there anymore, but they do got Shingoon. You know, no, no, Fred Vend really, I think, was a big hit. He was about to be big, big part of the team.

SPEAKER_05 13:02

But that that injury hurt. Yeah. That injury hurt, and that also made me wonder. I'm like, man, every time KD goes somewhere, somebody get hurt. I'm like, man, he just cannot catch a break. You know, like man, clear.

SPEAKER_02 13:16

Yeah, that's really true.

SPEAKER_05 13:17

Yeah. Yeah. You look at the Brooklyn Nets, you look at the Phoenix Suns everywhere. That it's either him or some main player on the team. Something happens. I think about that.

SPEAKER_02 13:27

Number three got the Denver Nuggets. Um, this is a team that I think could win it all. They're gonna be down. They really could, but um, yeah, the team that do have ahead of them I think will play well in the more better in the regular season. But the Nuggets, they got Tim Hardaway Jr., they trade, they finally trade Michael Porter Jr. to get chucking all them threes. Yeah. Cam Johnson in, who's more of a you know, roll a role player, team player. Yes. And uh Jonas Falanciunis to back up uh Nicole Jokic. And I believe there's some there's some other moves I'm missing. But and also just with Jokic and Jamal Murray, like those two have championship experience, they're gonna get you far.

SPEAKER_05 14:03

I I love the moves that they made, but what was weird to me about Michael Porter Jr. was he'd have this huge bandage on his shoulder. Yeah. All pregame, they talk about man, he can't lift his, he can't lift his arm above his head. He can't lift his arm above his head. He's gutting it out, he's gutting it out. But then he's shooting three pointers in the game.

SPEAKER_02 14:22

You don't have enough to get it for that.

SPEAKER_05 14:25

Your arm just went above your head. So that I was just always confused by that. Yeah, it wasn't that confusing.

SPEAKER_02 14:30

All right. Number two, I got the T-Wolves. Uh Minnesota Timberwolves, Anthony Edwards have another great regular season. Uh no, they they did have last year, I believe they had the best draft in the NBA. They got uh Terrence Shannon Jr. and uh Rob Dillingham. And I think those two players are gonna be very impactful, especially this year. Right. Because with Mike Connolly getting older, I think Dillingham's gonna kind of be able to take a few reps off him in the regular season. Yes. Terrence Shannon Shannon Jr. looked good in the playoffs when he got the chance, and I think he's gonna get more minutes. And uh yeah, just with the other pieces they have McDaniels, Gobert, you know, uh yeah, and all them, yeah, they're gonna have a good year. Okay, the Thunder, obviously, and the reigning champs, I think they're gonna win it again this year. But um, yeah, just not really much to say, but they're just the same, same old champs.

SPEAKER_05 15:20

So you have you have the um okay, see, let's just cut to it as far as the championship. You got the Thunder winning the championship this year? Wow, okay, okay. I I actually agree with you on that. Yeah. I think when I look at the landscape of the NBA, I I see the Cavs going far. The Knicks are gonna be strong. Um, the West is loaded, you know, what's my matchup?

SPEAKER_02 15:41

Thunder versus Cavs in the finals.

SPEAKER_05 15:42

Okay. Yeah, Thunder winning it. But I'm kind of surprised though, because normally with your Warriors, if there's any chance they could get there, you normally go that way. I'm surprised you're not picking them to go to the finals this year.

SPEAKER_02 15:55

Last year drained all the hope out for me. Because like when and watching them watching them beat the Timberwolves in game one, Curry was Curry was going crazy. Yeah. I was like, we might, this might be our year. Then he's grabbing his hamstring, hobbling off the court. It was looking good. It was looking good.

SPEAKER_04 16:13

They they need Jeremiah, man.

SPEAKER_02 16:15

You know what I'm saying?

SPEAKER_04 16:15

Yeah, yes.

SPEAKER_02 16:18

Yeah, so that that seeing that happen to him and then seeing the Thunder just totally blow out the nuggets in that game set and then go on to win it. That just showed me that was really kind of a new age and at the old old edge kind of.

Title Picks & MVP: Thunder and Jokic

SPEAKER_05 16:30

And for the Thunder to do that, and people still don't really realize just how hurt uh Jalen was. Yeah, he was banged up in the in the um in the playoffs. Hrist, yeah, like he had surgery on his wrist. Surgery, right?

SPEAKER_02 16:43

He needed yeah, it's like if if it wasn't the um playoffs, he probably would have missed the a lot of time. Yeah, if you need surgery.

SPEAKER_05 16:50

And they still pulled it out with that. So I think that that definitely shows a lot.

SPEAKER_02 16:55

He's about to he's gonna be healthy, healthy wrists, he's about to go crazy.

SPEAKER_05 16:59

So we're not gonna fully go down this rabbit hole, but I do have to ask though, because so we've seen everyone here has witnessed the um hope get drained out of you on your Golden State Warriors. Yeah. So that's very interesting to us all. So y'all probably know where I'm going. When is the hope gonna get drained out of you about your Carolina Panthers?

SPEAKER_02 17:20

Um, it's it feels pretty. Um yeah, it feels pretty drained out right now. But I mean, obviously things can happen. You know, uh if we get one big win, things might things may or may not change. Things might may or might may not change with the Warriors. That's just how I am. But, you know, yeah, Ras of right now, I'm I'm kind of losing a little hope on Bryce. I don't know if he's the guy, but yeah, that things can obviously change. Because Bryce, you know, he'll sometimes he'll play bad, sometimes he'll play good. Yeah, you should never know.

SPEAKER_05 17:54

So I think you know what? I'll I'm gonna have to call cap on you, on the uh Warriors in the playoffs. You're you're you're pulling a Chris, you're pulling a C-Paint on me. You say that now, but I think we all know when the playoffs come around, and if the Warriors start looking good, I don't think you're gonna be able to help yourself.

SPEAKER_02 18:13

I think we're look if we're actually looking good, chances I might switch back. Because we do have Curry. Like we we do we do have Steph Curry. People are forgetting that. We nobody was believing us, and we went into Boston and we beat him six games. So, I mean, Steph can if he wants to, he can flip the switch and lead us to the championship. Yeah, but yeah, he is old, but I mean he can he can still do it. Like he's he's still still that guy.

SPEAKER_05 18:39

Yeah, see, we all we already see you wavering a bit. I like that. I like that. All right, okay, so let's uh quickly before we bring our guy Miles McCaleb on here, talk about these quarterbacks, let's touch on one more thing. So with the uh MVP, let's just go MVP. Who do you see winning MVP in the NBA this year?

SPEAKER_02 18:58

I'm gonna go with Nicola Jokic. Uh he didn't win last year, so when people say he should have won, so he probably makes sure he wins this year.

SPEAKER_05 19:06

So I don't know. That's uh not yeah, that that's a good one. Um I can see uh Luca, but we say that almost every year, I feel. Yeah, it's like obviously.

SPEAKER_02 19:18

He probably he should have there was one he should you should have won like two years ago. Yeah, yeah. You never know. It might be his time though.

SPEAKER_05 19:25

Uh-huh. I can I can see it this year. Yeah, he's he's slimmer this year, a lot to prove, Lakers. Um, he'll have to do a lot on the team. So I think the the you know stars are aligned for him to probably do it. All right, okay, okay, cool.

QB Talk with Miles McCaleb

SPEAKER_05 19:40

Well, that'll conclude our NBA for today. And uh, man, it's time to talk a little NFL. You ready for this? Yeah, I'm ready. All right, we're gonna talk about this. And uh to go into NFL, we're gonna go ahead and talk quarterback specifically. We're gonna talk about Russ, you know, Arch Manning, Dylan Gabriel, Shador, all those guys. Who better than our main man Miles McCaleb, quarterback, star quarterback of the Clinton Dark Horses? Uh coming off uh fire game last night where he threw five touchdown passes. Not one, not two, not three, not four, but five TDs. Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for Miles McCaleboy.

SPEAKER_01 20:32

Yeah, yeah. What's going on, my man? What's going on? What's going on? I like that hoodie. Yes, sir, yes, sir. I just got it today, actually.

SPEAKER_05 20:41

Yes, yes. Pick'em Pros. If you want a hoodie like this, you can go to thepickempros.com and order that right now. All right. Same as same as butt. Or if you want these, you know, jackets out here that we see, you know, whatnot, or orange hoodie, all this paraphernalia out here. You know, yeah. My man's got the throwback. I don't know who this guy is, but my man, somebody's got a throwback hoodie back here. That's right. We have the different colorways too. My man Sims back there, yeah, rocking the Detroit Lions throwback uh colorway there. Looking good. Yes, you can get them in your favorite team. All right, man. Well, hey, congratulations on uh your success. You know, you know we're rocking with you, you know, we're proud of you, my man. Yes, sir, yes, sir. And uh we want to talk a little quarterback here today. Let's do it, let's do it. Yeah, so uh, man, first let's talk. Because I know when you were on uh our next up show a couple of weeks ago, you were talking about one of the QBs that you looked up look up to, rightfully so, is Russell Wilson.

SPEAKER_01 21:37

Yes, sir, yes, sir.

SPEAKER_05 21:38

Legendary career and whatnot. Um, but uh man, just talk to us a little bit about him and you know, moving over to the bench and just kind of what's your take on what's happened with Russ so far?

SPEAKER_01 21:48

Yeah, I mean, I think I think Russell Wilson obviously is a great player, great quarterback. I think uh at some point everybody's time does come. So he's been in the league for a while. So I think I think a part of him is probably a little ready to pass the torch down to Jackson Dart. I know they've been like watching film and he's been teaching himself. So I think a part of him is kind of already ready to kind of step back. You know, he got kids in the family, so he's probably kind of ready to get out the way and start letting Jackson do his thing. So that's what I think about it.

SPEAKER_05 22:16

Yeah, I think so. I think so. So speaking of Jackson Dart, that's a great segue. I'll start with Diego and come over to you. Uh Diego, man, what do you think about Jackson Dart, man? He's kind of looking like the real deal. You think so?

SPEAKER_02 22:28

Uh yeah, he he obviously looked really good in his first game, had some good, really good moments. Um, I don't know if the consistency was really there, though. He only threw for about a hundred or so yards, but he did when it counted, he did come through. He had the rushing touchdown, he had the passing touchdown. But you know, without Malik, I think it's gonna be really tough this year for him. And you know, I just I I don't know if if this is gonna be a Daniel Jones Jones type of situation, you know? Like Daniel Jones started off, had some good moments, then just kind of faded off and faded away into being not the best. But yeah, this I I it's too early to tell if Jackson Dart's the real deal or not, but from what we've seen so far, he he's looking good.

SPEAKER_01 23:08

Okay, okay. How how about you? Yeah, I say I I agree with that. I say he's still he's still young, so he's still uh he's still got some time. I think he's sent to start again tomorrow against the Saints, if I'm not mistaken. So I think we go tune into that and see what he's talking about there. Yeah, so I think that would be a uh uh able to tell from that how well he'll be long term.

SPEAKER_05 23:30

Uh-huh. Yeah, I can definitely, definitely see that. Okay. Well, I love um with the Giants, I like the energy that they have. You could definitely see the next generation uh, you know, I'll come into shape here. So I'm so sad about Malik Neighbors, man. That just uh I I hate that uh for sure. It's like, man, it can't, you feel in one way the Giants can't catch a break because I I feel that he was getting ready to go off with Jackson Dark coming in there. So that makes me sad. But uh I do see a lot of um of a bright future with some of the pieces that they have. So let's move on to the Browns. Uh we got Dylan Gabriel, uh came from the Oregon, Oregon Ducks. Uh, looks like he's stepping into that QB1 spot, and then uh they still have Shador uh number three. Just kind of to give us your take on just the whole Cleveland Browns quarterback situation.

SPEAKER_01 24:18

Yeah, I think that was uh uh an interesting situation. I think we all knew it was gonna be interesting as soon as uh we seen it on draft night. So I think it was just uh I really don't know what it was. If it was me, I wouldn't win Shadur. To be honest, I would have went Shador and I would have had Dylan at the three, but I guess they decided to switch around, so we'll see how he does.

SPEAKER_05 24:39

Yeah, yeah, but that definitely see. What about you, Diego?

SPEAKER_02 24:43

Yeah, it's a really interesting situation. I mean, if you look at the start of the season, you know, obviously Dylan Gabriel drafting the third round, Shador drafting the fifth. And I mean Shador's third in the depth chart, and honestly, like it's third string quarterbacks don't play often in their first year. Like it's that's really hard to do. Like, and I mean if you look at if you look at college, Dylan Gabriel took what to two to two and a half seconds to throw the ball. He was he would get the ball out really quickly, and Shador would take well over three seconds to throw the ball. So I mean, I think that's part of why they chose Dylan Gabriel because you know the uh uh Brown's O-line isn't the best. So I think they feel like they could just throw the ball with with uh Dylan Gabriel more efficiently to where Shador needs more time and needs to sit in the pocket more to make things happen. So I I I like the

Giants, Browns, and Rookie QB Outlooks

SPEAKER_02 25:30

decision. I think that's um a solid decision for them.

SPEAKER_05 25:33

Okay, all right, yeah. Well, I I definitely want to talk uh a little bit of Arch Manning, but oh, before we go to that, one more um piece on uh Shador. So we know that he passed on the um the man, the Baltimore Ravens. Sorry. Baltimore Ravens passed on them. And which, you know, there's debate, you know, on both sides, like, hey, you know, it's a great organization to learn from and whatnot, learn from Lamar. But you can also understand, hey, Lamar's a legend. Like you're not, unless there's injury, you're not playing. So you're sitting for several years, 10 years, so you'll never really get to play. However, again, hindsight's 2020, we look at it now, it's like, dang, if he did go to Baltimore, he'd probably be playing right now. Because, you know, it looks like Lamar's gonna be out. But just one last thing on that. What do you think of the decision to pass on um a couple of teams that already had an established quarterback to, you know, go to the Browns?

SPEAKER_01 26:27

Yeah, I think uh I think you know everybody wants to go where they think they're gonna play. So I'm sure he thought he was gonna play at Cleveland, but we've seen how that turns out. So I'm sure he was just in the draft. He was trying to go wherever he thought he could play the quickest. And I guess he thought the Browns was the best place for him. Yeah. So yeah, I say that.

SPEAKER_05 26:42

Could definitely see that. All right. So we'll we'll finish up with uh one more before we get you out of here, my man. Arch Manning. All right, so uh big, big week's coming up now. So we know we started was a whole lot of hype, family legacy coming in, a whole lot of hype. And then that first week was what was a dud. Okay, let's be real about that. However, and then right after that, it was a dub, but now numbers are getting better, getting more comfortable, playing a lot better, but not really against um good competition. Now it's about to get real, they're about to really get into that SEC. Yeah, what what's your take on what's uh about to happen here with Arch?

SPEAKER_01 27:17

Yeah, I mean, I think Archman is a great player. I think he brings something different between his uh between his brothers because you know he's able to use his legs a little bit. So I like that for him. I like that for his game. And yeah, I really don't know how the game's gonna go. We just kind of I like to just watch. I don't like to make too many predictions, it's just gonna watch and see what he does. I hope he does good though. So that's what I say for him.

SPEAKER_05 27:40

Yeah, for sure, for sure. Yeah, we definitely want to root root for everybody, uh, and we'll kind of see what happens. But uh I'll tell you what, well, look, we'll just go to Diego and get his take on this because uh I've I'm very curious because I don't know what I'm about to hear.

SPEAKER_02 27:53

Yeah, um, I'm really concerned with Arch Manning. I'm really concerned. I mean, after the first game, you saw the at the accuracy was not there. He was like, what, th 36% of his passes were just like inaccurate. Like he just like wasn't close to the guy at all. Like he just even against U UTP and like some of these other teams, like he's just not not hitting his receivers in the in the correct spots. So and I mean he's able to use his legs, that's great. But they're playing against these, they're about to start playing against these SEC defenses, and like they gotta play Florida this week. They have a really good defense. I just don't I just don't know. I just don't know.

SPEAKER_05 28:32

Yeah, we'll see. All right, so a lot of a lot of uh no. It's all right. We got we got a question in audience. We can't Florida, that's not bad. Oh, boom Florida. Oh, that's right, that's right. So in our audience here, yeah, we definitely we've got the uh Canes represented here, and we've got Florida State and uh big, big game coming up with them, big rival. So let me get get your table. Well, I might as well make predictions, but just tell us about the uh matchup between uh uh the the Florida Florida State and Miami.

SPEAKER_01 29:03

Yeah, where's that game at?

SPEAKER_05 29:04

That's at Florida State. At Florida State, yeah.

SPEAKER_01 29:06

I think I think that game is uh highly another highly anticipated game. I think everybody's definitely gonna watch that. Like you said, it's uh rivalry game, two teams out there. So I think that's gonna be a good game. I'm watch that and go just see what they can do.

SPEAKER_05 29:22

We'll see what we can do. So uh we get you get you out of here on on this, man. So five TDs, man. You know, things are progressing. I I believe you're also are now starting to, you know, get ranked and whatnot, and and uh more people are starting to recognize what you're doing with the Clinton Dark Horses. Yes, sir, yeah. Uh, want to give us any more intel on just how that process is going for you?

SPEAKER_01 29:40

Yeah, I mean it's going really good. Like first first couple of games, you know, everybody puts the non conference out. So I got my non conference film coming out soon. Okay. So you just put that out, see what the recruits say, get some feedback, what everybody's talking about. So that's my plan. Put everything out, and then after these five games put out the conference film and all that, good. Stuff so good. We'll just keep playing, keep balling, and just see what everybody's talking about.

SPEAKER_05 30:04

Yeah, we'll keep checking it out.

Arch Manning’s Test and Rivalries

SPEAKER_05 30:05

We know you got the big homecoming game October 10th, too. So, yeah, definitely we'll be checking you out on that. Well, man, much success to you. Stay healthy. We're proud of you. And uh, we're looking forward to seeing you next month with more QB takes with uh M2. Yes, sir, yes, sir. Thanks a lot, my man. All right. Oh, we got you switch on back for one second. Uh so you know, those of you that have been watching us for years, you know that um, you know, when somebody close to us passes, we always do a tribute to them. And uh this one, man, they all hurt, they all hit hard. But this one, uh, a little more with it being uh our grandmother. Uh my grandmother, uh Vivian Thompson, uh passed recently. And uh we just want to say rest in peace. Uh we want to tell her we love her. Uh she was a phenomenal lady. She was uh a school teacher, um, always had a smile, always dealt with adversity in a positive way, a way that we're trying to model in our everyday lives. Um she she represented Chattown, Chicago, Chicago's final. She actually went by the nickname Chicago Vivian. So I remember growing up and going there, we would go down to the magnificent mile, and uh they would buy me clothes, three or four sizes too big. And uh we just had a just had a great time. Yeah, so just want to say much love to my grandmother Vivian Thompson. We love you, rest in peace. We love you. Thank you. Okay, and uh no easy way to transition from that, but I think the best way to transition from that is to something that uh our grandmother would be very proud of, and that's a fundraiser that we have coming up. So we have a fundraiser, we are raising funds for Haven House Services, Diego. Yes, yeah, Haven House, they are an amazing organization. They have uh 13 different programs to help troubled youth uh here in Wake County. One of the biggest programs that they have is for runaway teenagers. So they are one of the few places that have shelters where runaway teens can go and stay. And uh we're trying to raise $10,000 for Haven House services. And we're gonna try to do this, we're gonna do this in Pick Em Pros style. So all you have to do is go to our website, thepick'empros.com, and pick who's gonna win the game between Diego's beloved Carolina Panthers,

Tribute to Grandma Vivian

SPEAKER_05 32:30

all right, and uh Johnny O's Dallas Cowboys. What a game. All you have to do is correctly pick the winner of this game. Uh yeah, that's right. And and make a donation. So if you make a $25 donation, that gets you one entry. Uh, and again, you can make much more than that and give you more chances to win. But if you get the game right, then you will be entered into the drawing to win. We're gonna draw the name live. We're gonna draw it live on Instagram live the following day. So uh you've got until um the day before the game to make that uh entry and donation. So please go make that domain donation. Let's raise as much money as possible so we can uh help our um youth that are going through a tough time here locally. All right, thank you, Pick'em Pros. All right, well, we're gonna close with our guy, Johnny O. Well, Johnny O has been on uh many times in the past, but the first time he was on was when uh he got lucky and won a pair of kicks with Pick'em Pros. We met him in a festival and uh dropped his name in a hat because we always got drawings, we always have cool giveaways and things going on, but he was the winner of uh some Jays and uh came on and joined us to show them off, and we've been uh uh joined at the hip ever since. He's also launched his uh own show uh called Whole Shots. It's all things motocross. Uh so uh let's put your hands together for the one and only

Charity Pick’em for Haven House

SPEAKER_05 33:55

Johnny Oh This ought to be good. Oh yeah, oh yeah. It's gonna be good. It's gonna be good. What's up, man?

SPEAKER_03 34:11

Hey, what's good, man? It's good. Thanks for having me. Yeah, it's a great setup.

SPEAKER_05 34:14

Thank you, thank you, thank you. Nah, it's great to finally have you here on the set. And uh we're so excited. We're so excited to uh, man, talks of uh Dallas Cowboys, your favorite team in the world. The best team, Dallas Cowboys. We know you're a super fan. Yeah, you know, you've seen you wearing the throwback Witten jersey, you got the coordinating Miles Austin.

SPEAKER_03 34:35

I got me a nice Miles Austin. Yeah, that was back when they were halfway decent. Yeah, well they're they're decent now. They they they that's high. That's you know one win. Yeah, yeah, one win. You got the number one offense in the league. Yeah, okay, and the last ranked defense in the league. Okay. So Micah here or not, I don't think it matters. But I'm not happy. You're not happy. No. I have lost. I literally do not like to wear cowboys gear anymore. What? I'm just it's upsetting to me. It's it's see, this I knew I'd get some fans in here. You know, so with that being said, I I've definitely jumped to the other bandwagon team in the NFL, which are the Buffalo Bills.

SPEAKER_06 35:19

Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 35:21

Let's go, Bills. Well, you've always, you know, you've always been a Bills fan as well. You know, you're from upstate New York. So, you know, we we we give you that a little bit. But uh man, that's just I'm I'm sad you you you switching. So oh boy.

SPEAKER_04 35:37

Oh man, what's this surprise? Oh boy, you know, Helm, you are are you sure you can is that Dax? You cannot uh is that his official game helmet?

SPEAKER_05 35:50

That's funny. That's funny. I didn't catch that at first. Yeah, you know, it's uh you you know you can't resist the star, man. I I'll take it. You can't resist this. Is that a gift? Is that a gift? It wasn't a gift. I was just showing it to I was just showing you know you were implying that you were like, hey, here, John.

SPEAKER_03 36:06

Nah, no, just for being such a good idea.

SPEAKER_05 36:09

Like true, you know, cowboy fans, they get hypnotized by the star and Jerry and everything. I guess you're right.

SPEAKER_03 36:15

You're right, because I can't stop looking at it. That's right. See, let's go sit that. Does it light up too? Is there a little is there a light? It can. Or did oh, that was just from the set, the set light. I thought there was a little red hint on the bottom of it. Oh, yeah.

SPEAKER_05 36:28

Yeah. I'm just gonna sit that there, man. All right.

Johnny O on Cowboys, Bills, and NFL Paths

SPEAKER_03 36:30

I'm not even gonna look at it.

SPEAKER_05 36:34

Okay, so uh no. So okay, Cowboys playoffs. Let's let's go right. Let's start with Mr. Uh Yes, play playoff cowboys. So let's go to uh Diego Army. The guy you you coined this phrase, Diego Army here. Shout out to you. Um Diego, the Cowboys making the playoffs this year.

SPEAKER_02 36:53

No, not with that defense, no. No.

SPEAKER_05 36:56

No?

SPEAKER_02 36:57

And then no chance, zero.

SPEAKER_03 36:58

Man, no. I mean, I'm not saying Panthers are much better are better, but I mean Well, look, I'm going to the game next weekend. Yeah. And uh I might enter that drawing and and make my pick, but it's gonna be anonymous because I'm not gonna you don't want to know exactly what I choose to score to be because I think it's gonna be a a big gap. But I'm not gonna say who's gonna win right here on the show. Not gonna say who's gonna win. No. Okay. All right. Because I don't want to make his head get, you know, you know how he feels about those.

SPEAKER_02 37:29

This game's probably gonna keep Bryce Young's job for another year. Probably so. He better have a turnout game. He probably will, yeah. Against our defense. Yeah.

SPEAKER_05 37:36

He might be able to. So who's the okay, so crowd, who's gonna win the um the Cowboys Panther game?

unknown 37:42

Panthers.

SPEAKER_02 37:44

Uh okay.

SPEAKER_03 37:46

I think I'm gonna hear him. Look at look at look at Diego over here.

SPEAKER_02 37:49

No, no, no, we're not winning that game. He's not winning that game. I mean, it's probably gonna be it's probably gonna be like 40 to 35. See, I can cowboys.

SPEAKER_03 37:57

I can agree, but uh the way our defense is playing right now, like I honestly don't think like he's gonna just he better have a hell of a game.

SPEAKER_02 38:07

He's gonna have a good game, but but our defense is about just as bad. Okay, so high, high scoring, crappy defensive games. Your offense is better though. Absolutely, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 38:17

But so there still I think you were right. That's a good 40 to 35. That's probably pretty accurate. All right, yeah. But I don't know, it could go either way.

SPEAKER_02 38:25

Yeah, Russell Wilson was able to throw for like 400 yards and four or four touchdowns. My thing is right before he got benched. So have a heck of a game and then you get benched.

SPEAKER_03 38:36

It doesn't make sense. Hopefully that don't happen to my man back there. There you go.

SPEAKER_05 38:44

There's no way, there's no way that's happened to my band. Man, okay. So uh so let's transition to uh your the Buffalo Bills. Okay. Yeah. Coming on here like MVP. Like you're time, you are not Tommy V. Well, though.

SPEAKER_03 38:59

Hey, this is true. He would love that too, because he he's on the uh the beginning of the hard nights. Uh-huh. I saw the show.

SPEAKER_05 39:06

I saw that was pretty cool. Shout out to Tommy. Yeah. So, all right. Um Super Bowl.

SPEAKER_03 39:14

Okay. That I got I I I'm gonna make a prediction. Yeah, right, right. So Eagles Ravens. Whoa, Ravens. Maybe have you seen the Ravens?

SPEAKER_04 39:31

In the same record as us. I I'm just saying though, they look like Yes, yes, but we got the bathroom right back here.

SPEAKER_03 39:39

I gotta I just gotta phone, I gotta go. I just got a phone call. Either the Ravens or the Bills. Yeah.

unknown 39:48

Okay.

SPEAKER_05 39:50

That's a hot take, too. Yeah, yeah. That's a hot take. That's hot. Remember that. You threw me off at that.

unknown 39:54

All right.

SPEAKER_05 39:56

Okay, Ravens or Bills, and then uh who in the um who in the NFC?

SPEAKER_03 40:01

For the championship game?

SPEAKER_05 40:03

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:04

The championship game in the NFC is probably gonna be the Panthers and the Eagles. Or not the Panthers, the the Packers. Sorry, the Packers. Green Bay Packers, sorry. Yeah, okay. Yeah, the Green Bay Packers or the Eagles.

SPEAKER_05 40:18

Okay, and then and then you got the Eagles and then the Eagles and then either the uh Bills or the or the Greens. Or the Ravens, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:24

Wow, okay, okay. I don't see the Chiefs doing much anymore this year. Hopefully the Bills can handle them in the next few games, you know, when they play. Right, yeah. Well, come on now. Let's take it easy. They always struggle with that game, that's for sure.

SPEAKER_05 40:41

Yeah, yeah. Regular season now. Yeah, yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:45

It's it's it's still early.

SPEAKER_05 40:46

Yeah.

SPEAKER_03 40:47

What is it, week five?

SPEAKER_05 40:48

It is, yeah. It's still early.

SPEAKER_03 40:50

There's so much more football to play, and there's so much more things that can happen. For sure. But the fact that the Cowboys have won one game and they tied a game, yeah, it's pretty pathetic. And it really upsets me. It's like a 31-year relationship that you just gotta get rid of. Yeah, it's gotta get rid of it. But it still lingers, you know what I mean?

SPEAKER_05 41:07

Oh, yeah, yeah. 31's gonna linger for sure. Well, I mean, I've been a fan since I was a little boy, you know. So spe speaking of, what about uh Jerry Jones?

SPEAKER_03 41:15

Well, hell. He needs to leave it to Steven. Yeah. And just he's gotta wash his hands, man. Just get away from the team. Yeah, like he's always had his finger on everything, you know. Just and I couldn't imagine being a head coach there ever. Yeah. Just because you know he's in it in his ear. Yeah, yeah. Do this, do that. Like, why don't you just coach the team? You know, he runs the show.

SPEAKER_05 41:37

He runs the show.

SPEAKER_03 41:38

Well, he is it is Jerry's world, right? I miss Jerry, by the way. We're we ever gonna see the pick 'em pros, Jerry. Jerry Jones Thompson, yeah, at some point. I miss that guy.

SPEAKER_05 41:50

I like having a drink with him. I miss him too. Yeah, yeah. He has some good yeah, yeah. He's yeah, he's got some amazing yeah, it's good. Yeah, for sure. So uh let's get you out of here on this, man. Motocross. Yes, sir. Motocross. Love it. See, Diego's got the hat up there. Yeah, number 18. That's Jet Lawrence.

SPEAKER_03 42:07

He actually just won the the entire SMX series. Yeah, good for him. Team Honda. Okay. Um, honestly, it was a double whammy. And the he won the big bikes and uh Honda Joe Shimoda, first Japanese rider to ever win the SMX championship. And they took, and now that it's starting to gain more traction with the mainstream, the money that they're giving out, it was like I think it was a total of five and a half million dollars between the two classes in the top five placements. Uh-huh. So they're given a lot of opportunity for different people to make their way in the way the point system works because the last race is triple points. Yeah. So if you do bad in the first two, you have a chance to come back in the last one. So it was a great season. I was able to go to the Charlotte race, which was really kind of crappy because it rained and they canceled the second motos and literally just got on the the um loudspeaker and says, Oh, I'm sorry, but we're gonna cancel the last motos due to the lightning in the area. Everybody boos, we leave. 20 minutes later, the sun's out. Yeah, it was a joke. Uh, there was some very mad people there. Oh, that's rough. But yeah, the motocross and and the podcast with whole shots, man. We we try to cover all of it and and

Motocross Wins, Payouts, and Whole Shots

SPEAKER_03 43:20

at least like very similar to what you guys do, just highlight all the important stuff and and just make our picks and and talk about what we think is is fun and what what should be done out there on the on the track. All right, we'll be looking.

SPEAKER_05 43:33

So when when does the next season start up?

SPEAKER_03 43:34

Well, so it starts in January. So hopefully maybe early December I can start doing some more. And because this is the this is the off-season. Well, this weekend is um the MX of Nations where all the different nations come to one track and they race against all the top pros in the world, so it's pretty cool.

SPEAKER_05 43:53

All right, but yeah, yeah, all right, man. Yeah, man. We'll be looking out for you for sure. Definitely your charisma, personality, you know, definitely shines through the pro. We gotta we do the work.

SPEAKER_03 44:02

Couldn't do it without you, man. Oh, yeah, or you, Diego. I appreciate you guys a lot, man. You guys have put me put me on the map, man. Thank you.

SPEAKER_05 44:09

Big up, see you guys. No doubt. All right, well, man, always a pleasure, you know. Fam, everyone was asking, but man, where's Johnny O? Johnny O, so had to have you all to be able to come into the studio and check us out. This is awesome. Thank you. Yeah, thank you, man. Appreciate you guys. Well, hey, it's about time to get on out of here. Thanks for checking out who you got. Thanks for everybody that came out to watch us today. Uh, thank you to Miles McCaleb for joining us, and uh, we will see you next time. Until then, pick em property.