Chiefs Need More Help? AJ Brown Trade, Myles Garrett Shocker & Stefon Diggs Rumors

The NFL offseason took another wild turn as AJ Brown was traded to the Patriots and Myles Garrett landed with the Rams, reshaping the AFC and NFC playoff races. We break down what these blockbuster moves mean for the Chiefs, whether Brett Veach should be more aggressive, if Kansas City needs to make a move at wide receiver, and whether Stefon Diggs could still make sense. Plus, we discuss Patrick Mahomes' recovery, the Chiefs' evolving offensive philosophy, Kenneth Walker's impact, the right tackle competition, and much more.

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Video Transcript

Welcome into the Arrowhead Addict podcast.

It is Thursday, June 4th already.

Means we're a little bit closer to football.

Patrick Allen here with you, as always, joined by the Blog Father, Adam Best.

Adam, how you doing, man?

Good.

Good.

Just, watching the rest of the NFL get better and watching the NBA get more exciting, so it's, it's that time of year.

It is that time of year.

June fi- we're gonna talk about all this, but June 1st was a big day around the NFL.

It's a, a weird thing that happens with contracts that kinda causes a little bit of extra trade activity and things that can happen, when teams move a player after June 1st.

Couple of big deals, that happened that we'll talk about in just a minute, but first we got a big announcement.

I'm excited about this.

The, the, the OG Hour, Adam, you've been on every other week for, I don't know, a year now?

And keeping things really OG, we've been having so much fun, we're gonna run it back every week.

You're gonna be joining us every week as, as- as the permanent co-host to the OG Hour.

Yeah, man, I'm thrilled.

I'm thrilled.

You and I have been working together over 15 years, off- off and on.

Yep.

So we go way, way, way back.

And, we're the first two editors of Arrowhead Addict, so, I, I'm, I'm just thrilled to be doing this with you for the fir- for the foreseeable future.

And I think this- puts us in a situation where we can keep doing it and keep growing it.

And, yeah, I, I look forward to every single Thursday.

A- and also, you and I have perspective that goes way back, because we've been doing this for so long.

Yeah.

So I think that's valuable to our audience as well.

Absolutely, and it's part of, a- a- and for all you Verderam-heads out there, don't worry, Verderam is still gonna be a regular fixture on this show every other week.

He'll be joining us for a segment here on the OG Hour.

Gotta have our Verderants.

but, you know, I think the, it's part of a larger shakeup that we're doing here at the podcast.

I'm not gonna get into all the details now, but l- you know, we've been doing this since 20 tw- right, 2021 we started this podcast up.

It was audio only, then we moved to video, and now we're trying to move into a new era here.

It's 2026, wanna keep things fresh, wanna keep things moving.

So, a couple of new shows are coming your way, a couple of new formats, even maybe some new hosts.

Ooh.

So we're excited about that.

We just wanna keep, raising the bar here at the Arrowhead Addict podcast, giving you, not only, like, the hopefully the most entertaining Chiefs coverage that you can get out there, but, but insightful Chiefs content.

And just, we really wanna keep pushing that idea that you're just hanging out with your pals, 'cause we're all members of the Chiefs Kingdom here.

So, you know, you can always do us a solid if you wanna support the show and go on over to Apple Podcasts or wherever you get your podcasts, leave us a five-star review over there, and if you ask us a question, we'll answer it right here on the show.

It's a great way to support us.

And of course, you can always check out the link in the description for more.

but let's get into some Chiefs talk here, Adam.

As I mentioned at the top, June 1st brought huge NFL news.

and it started with, with, A.J.

Brown going to the Patriots, a long-rumored, now it's done.

There was some question about whether or not the, the Eagles were gonna get a first-round pick for him.

They did.

I believe it's a 20 tw- is it a 2028 first-round pick?

I think it's a- Sounds right.

Yeah, it's a later, pick from the Patriots.

But it makes sorta sense for both sides.

He seemed sorta like he was done in Philly, and the Patriots are trying to get a Super Bowl.

And they were in the Super Bowl, and they didn't really have enough firepower to get it done last year.

but pretty big move to be happening after June 1st.

What was your take on this deal?

And of course, from a Chiefs perspective, if you had a, a, a dream of A.J.

Brown coming to Kansas City, that's off the board.

I'm a huge fan of A.J.

Brown's game, have been for a long time.

I think he's one of the most underrated players in the league.

Now, you have to worry about those, those knees and those lower body injuries, because that's the kind of thing where, whether it's Odell Beckham or Julio Jones, it can make a receiver go downhill fast.

That, that's when they start to lose their juice, when they have those lower body injuries, in succession.

I mean, it happened to JuJu Smith-Schuster too, who we saw, just sign with, with Odell Beckham.

That's gonna be interesting.

imagine the TikToks, right?

but A.J.

Brown I think has a bad rap, and it's not, it's not really fair.

I think he has been a top three or four receiver in this league for a long time.

If you look at things like yards per outrun, there is no more efficient receiver in the league o- over the past five years than A.J.

Brown, but he's been stuck in these run-first offenses.

And y- you want a receiver that wants the ball, guys.

You want a receiver that thinks he can beat any coverage, any corner at any time, and open things up for his quarterback.

And look at Jalen Hurts, what Jalen Hur- I mean, Jalen Hurts was getting blown out by the Buccaneers in the playoffs before A.J.

Brown arrived, and people were talking about, "Do we need to draft another quarterback?"

And then A.J.

Brown arrives, and he's in MVP conversations.

Ryan Tannehill got a giant contract.

Derrick Henry deserves some of the credit there too, but A.J.

Brown played a huge role in that.

And I think this is, this is what you gotta do if you're the New England Patriots.

And it certainly turns the page on all the, on the Vrabel nonsense.

But the, the bigger point is Drake May, you do not wanna see regression from your superstar quarterback after he lost- No Stefon Diggs.

You wanna keep, you wanna keep arming him and making sure he improves, he stays confident, and, and you, you, you don't wanna have what happened to Washington last year, where you make the Super Bowl or damn near su- make the Super Bowl, and then you come crashing down.

It happened to the Cincinnati Bengals as well, for different reasons, because of the defensive side of the ball.

But, I, I mean, I think it was too rich of a price for the Chiefs, because he is, he is an older player, he's expensive, he has the injuries, he's, he wants the ball a lot.I don't know that he was a fit for the Chiefs.

I know the Chiefs were interested allegedly years ago when he was traded from Tennessee to Philadelphia.

But, I, it, it is, a sign that the rest of the league is getting ultra-aggressive at a time where the Chiefs are not.

So that, that is the biggest, I think, thing we need to look at in Chiefs Kingdom.

Yeah, look, it's a I, I don't, I don't think I'd have wanted them to trade for him.

He's a great player.

He'd make an impact.

But I understand that Brett Veach is playing a long game here, and I know they had a down season last year, and our frustrations with their lack of attention to detail on the wide receiver position have been well documented on this podcast.

But they've done what they've done.

And to over-correct like they're playing a game of Madden and giving up assets for an older receiver with potential injury issues isn't, isn't gonna set them up for the kind of suc- Like, fine, we're gonna talk about the Rams in a minute.

Let the Rams and the Eagles take these big home run swings to try to get themselves a Lombardi.

I'm gonna ride with Brett Veach who got us where we were.

They both already have a Lombardi in the, in, in all fairness.

Yeah, yeah.

No, no, I know, but, but the way that they approach it, they're, they're, they're, they're They, they approach it like I approach f- Dynasty fantasy.

I'm like, "F them picks.

I'm gonna try to accumulate good players now.

I'm gonna try to win this year, 'cause I'm gonna get more picks later."

And I, I, I'm really aggressive when it comes to Dynasty fantasy.

I don't wanna spend years and years meticulously rebuilding my team with players that may not ever even work out.

But I'm not on the clock with a guy like Patrick Mahomes, like Brett Veach is.

And so he knows he's got a certain amount of runway.

He knows he's gonna have to pay him outrageous money for the rest of his career, and he's trying to manage that the best he can.

That doesn't mean he's making the best choice every time, but I don't want him to, to over-correct, like, if he You know, I think he should have taken a wide receiver in the draft, in the first round.

He didn't do it.

But that doesn't mean what he did isn't going to work out for the Chiefs.

If their defense, if all these defensive picks hit for them, they could be extremely formidable.

And if some other things go their way, like Xavier Worthy, takes the leap, and, you know, Rice gets out of prison and all those things happen and the coaching helps, like, th- we've seen them win with an elite defense and a, and a, and a solid offense, and I think they can have those things.

It doesn't mean it's gonna be a failure.

Even if it's not the way I would have done it, I don't want him to, like, over-correct and go back o- 'Cause then, then you don't have a plan.

Then you're just blindly shooting, try- and, and you're, you're not, you're not gonna do anything well.

So it's, y- I, it would've been too much for me to give up that pick for him now at this point, because that shrinks your window.

Whereas, look, if they go to the playoffs this year and they get knocked out in the divisional round or the AFC Championship game or something, and the, and the common denominator is they don't have r- enough receiving help, but they got that far because their defense is repaired and these defensive players have, have worked out, you're looking like you're in pretty good shape going into the next off-season, where you could go and acquire a receiver and finish the job on your offense, and you do a two-year retool and you could be back winning Lombardis again.

Whereas if you get A.J.

Brown and it doesn't work out, you know what I mean?

You don't have that pick, and now you don't have the pick.

So now he didn't work out and you don't have the pick.

You know what I mean?

So I, y- you, you can't be, like, schizophrenic if you're Brett Veach- Y- yeah in your decision.

I, I think where I probably come down i- is that it's like when we talk about the Chiefs need to get more aggressive, pushing the flexibility of the salary cap.

Yes.

People say, "Well, you don't want them to be the Eagles.

You don't want them to be the Browns."

Well, they don't have to be that.

They, just because they're not trading for A.J.

Brown or Myles Garrett doesn't mean they still can't make That's an A+-sized move.

That's a 10 out of 10.

That's an 11 out of 10.

They could still ch- do a six or seven trade, you know what I mean?

And, you know, when Brett Veach, when they were making the AFC Championship every year and, and going to Super Bowls every other year, almost every year, the argument that Brett Veach w- w- was, his kind of strategy, "We're gonna play it safe around Patrick Mahomes.

We're never gonna go all in.

We're never gonna get desperate or aggressive.

Or super aggressive.

And because of that, our window is always gonna be open.

We're gonna be a perennial Super Bowl contender, and it may frustrate fans that we don't get too far out, ahead of our skis, but that is the safe way.

That will make sure we never miss the playoffs."

Well, after they went 6 and 11, I think that argument, that strategy has less merit than it used to.

Because w- what we were being sold by the Chiefs never, you know, trading away Legarrius Sneed, Joe Thuney, Tyreek Hill, you know, n- n- never making huge, huge splashes, splashes really in free agency after Mahomes', contract got much larger, was, "We're gonna protect this 15-year window to make sure we never have to take a huge step backwards."

But now that they've taken a huge step backwards, I think it's time to reevaluate that, and I, I think they could stand to be a little bit more aggressive.

Because I think we saw last year that And, and we kinda saw this a little bit, when they, when they picked Clyde Edwards-Helaire and just tried to run it back with Sammy.

And anytime they kinda stand pat, I think, it, it, it's detrimental to the franchise.

That's when, that's the last time, they kinda got to the Super Bowl, a little bit smoke and mirrors I would say during that COVID season too, and then they got the doors blown off them.

and then they took another step backwards and didn't make the Super Bowl.

and I think they're, they regressed even further this time.

And I know, like, expecting a team to meet, make the Super Bowl every year is a little unrealistic, but I, I, I think, like-Yeah, I, I would make the same, complaint if I were a Buffalo Bills fan.

Now, DJ Moore might be, a sign that the Bills are saying enough is enough.

We have to, we have to give Josh Allen more help.

I mean, look at the help the Rams are giving Matt Stafford.

Look at what the Ravens do for Lamar Jackson.

So- the- even the Bengals, they went out and got Dexter Lawrence for Joe Burrow.

I think this is a time where I Maybe because these younger GMs, the NFL's getting a little bit more NBA-esque, right?

That they're- Totally I, I saw in the Myles Garrett trade, there was a 2029 pick involved.

You know, it used to be you were trading for this year's picks or next year's picks.

Now you're seeing 2028, 2029.

You're seeing bigger players move, and I think the NBA and these younger general managers, we're starting to see more of that style trading in this league.

yeah, I Look, I think the Chiefs could stand to be more aggressive.

Don't, don't get me wrong there.

but I also didn't think they were gonna win the Super Bowl the year after they traded Tyreek Hill and JuJu Smith-Schuster was gonna be their number one wide receiver.

Now, they had Travis Kelce in his prime, but they've done it before.

I A- and, and a big part of what they were able to do winning those extra two Super Bowls was having that elite defense around Patrick Mahomes.

And so I, I can see the path to this working out really well, and I think if, if it does, the fact that you're not paying McDuffie, Chris Jones coming to the end of his deal, like, you have the chance to be set up for making aggressive moves.

If you know, "Hey, man, we got this defense pretty well squared away.

We gotta figure out the receiver position.

We got Kenneth Walker," and that was a big, to their credit, that was a big move for them at a position that they had been ignoring.

So maybe they couldn't have get it all done this off-season, but we'll see.

I, I, I'm h- I'm really crossing my fingers on Xavier Worthy.

I know some people think I'm a hater, but I'm really crossing my fingers because if he could take just a, a bit of a step forward over what he did his rookie year, and Kelce can be the same guy, and they have Kenneth Walker, I do think they have enough to make some noise.

You mentioned the Rams.

Obviously, they traded for Myles Garrett.

Now they've got McDuffie, Watson from the Chiefs, and then Garrett.

They really have loaded up on their defense.

But I think the difference with that team is that, look, man, they won that, they won that Super Bowl a few years back, and it's been a long time, and they've had some down seasons, and Stafford's just won an MVP.

He's at the end of the line.

If Patrick Mahomes was as old as Matt Stafford, I would, I too would be like, "Trade all the draft picks.

I don't care.

I don't care if we lose for 10 years after this.

Let's win as many more as we can before the end."

so I understand some of the caution, but, I mean, do you think the Rams are gonna be in the Super Bowl this year based on the moves they've made?

I mean, that defense should be formidable.

I do.

If it wasn't for a muffed punt, they would've been in the Super Bowl last year, and I know, like, woulda, coulda, shoulda, but they were- Yeah so, so clo- And I think they would've won that Super Bowl.

I think whoever won the NFC- Agreed championship game was your Super Bowl champion.

Not to take anything away from the Patriots, but just down year for the AFC altogether.

probably the easiest road you'll see in a, in a 10-year span, maybe longer.

just things fell per- the cards fell perfectly for Drake May and the Patriots.

Yeah.

And for, and for the Broncos for, for, too.

but yeah, they're just loaded, man.

They're loaded.

It The, the, the Ty Simpson pick becomes more of a head-scratcher to me, and I know the Rams are saying, "Well, now that we have our quarterback of the future, we don't have to protect our first-round picks anymore because we know we're not gonna have to move up and, and get a quarterback."

I, I don't know.

I mean, can you i- imagine if they also had Reuben Bain on that defensive line- Yeah with, with My- with Myles Garrett and Byron Young, and it would be Kobe Turner.

It'd be an absolute nightmare.

But yeah, I, I think you m- the Chiefs might be in this, quarterback-wise, in this no man's land where when you have a quarterback who's young and you need to make sure he's growing and he's on a rookie contract, you can make big moves around him, and when a quarterback's at the end of the line and y- you know that, the window's about to close, you can get more aggressive, but in the middle, maybe you wanna be a little bit more careful.

I just think the thing that I always come back to with the Chiefs is it, it's really hard to argue that It's easier now that they went 6- 11, but I think the argument has always been, well, they're winning championships or they're going to Super Bowls, and I just think Patrick Mahomes is so good that just because he's winning does not mean that is the optimal way to get there or even close to the optimal way.

I think he could dr- There are a lot of teams where you could put him on their roster right now, and if you traded hi- you know, they're worse than the Chiefs now.

If you just traded one player, they'd be better than the Chiefs.

I think he could drag a lot of teams to the Super Bowl or damn close.

So that's the thing I always come back to with Patrick, is, like, this whole we're gonna build a great defense around Patrick because it's worked before.

And I mean, it, it has worked, but I also saw Patrick Mahomes in 2018 drag maybe the worst Chief- Chiefs defense I've ever seen, a D forwards, a D forward offsides away from the Super Bowl.

Yeah.

So I, I think there are several ways to skin the cat with Patrick Mahomes, and I, I worry that they're, they're just at- they just continuously ask too much of him, by not surrounding him with better offensive talent.

And I know, Kenneth Walker was a hell of a signing, and Josh Simmons was a big investment, and I know a better defense will get him the ball more often, better field position, more opportunities, but I, I still, I'm real, real worried about this offense.Yeah, it really comes down to, and I don't want them to put too much on his shoulders either, because he's coming off an injury, a very serious injury.

He's probably gonna go out there and play before he's fully Patrick Mahomes, at least from a mobility standpoint.

It really comes down to Andy for me.

I believe in Andy Reid and his ability to adapt and change, even if he's stubborn sometimes, because we've seen him do it in the past, in the recent past, particularly after that season, y- you know, with, where, where after they traded Tyreek Hill, and they changed the offense 'cause they needed to.

So the, the, the, the, the organization is signaling to me that they're doing some different stuff.

Th- this is not a team two years ago who would have gone out and signed the top running back on the free agent market.

They just would not have done it.

No way.

And so th- if they come out and they have an o- Their, their, their game plan here is to try to build another elite defense and, and hopefully this defense can be really good by the end of the year.

Run the football, utilize under center plays and play action, and Noah Gray, and Travis Kelce, and Xavier Worthy's speed, and Rashee Rice is n- back and doing the things that he does well, at least for this year.

I could see it working out quite well because it is going to make a huge difference when teams are actually afraid of a running game.

the way the Chiefs play, the way the defenses play the Chiefs, man, I mean, like, th- they're like, "Go ahead.

Run it."

Ken, I'm serious, Ken Walker could have 1,200, 1,300 yards this season.

If teams- Oh.

Crazy if teams settle in, right?

And they're like, "No, we're not We don't care about Ken Walker.

Like, we're not letting that guy, we're not letting 15 beat us," he's gonna eat all day long behind And specifically things Brett Veach said, talking about the interior of their offensive line- Mm-hmm and really taking advantage of that.

Like, they're not gonna come out and say it, but I am sure there were some, many come-to-Jesus meetings within that organization last year.

Because when you have Patrick Mahomes only win- And they weren't, look, they weren't gonna m- I know he got hurt, but they weren't gonna make the playoffs.

They were gonna win more than six games.

They probably would've finished with like eight wins or something at the end of the year if Mahomes played the whole season, but they weren't gonna make the playoffs.

That's inexcusable.

You can't miss the playoffs when you have Patrick Mahomes if he's on the field, and they were going to.

And so there was some scheme issues, and I'm sure Andy looked in the mirror, and I'm sure they had lots of conversations of like, "How, what can we do to fix this?

We gotta fix this."

And I, there's, there's some hubris there, but there's some earned hubris as well.

And what they do this year, I think schematically, is gonna really tell the tale.

Because if they come out and they do the same RPO bonanza, and refuse to run the ball, and Kenneth Walker's sitting back there getting n- 11 carries a game, then there's gonna be a conversation to be had about Andy.

Mm-hmm.

Because it's, anybody can tell you that that's not gonna be working anymore for them, especially with the personnel that they have.

So it's gonna be a really fascinating season, and I think it's, the, n- none of these guys need to have their legacy cemented, but they could find a whole another level.

I mean, if Andy does this again and he turns around and Patrick's able to come out and have an MVP-type season because they committed to the running game, I mean, that's, w- wow.

There are a few reasons why I'm optimistic.

I know I've kind of been pessimistic, and I'm really scared about the right wide receiving corps because I just don't think they have a guy who can consistently beat man coverage.

I think they, that we're looking at a whole lot of scheming, and they're really relying on Kenneth Walker to open things up.

But actually, that's where I'm excited because Kenneth Walker is not as good as Saquon Barkley, but I think the way he will improve the Kansas City Chiefs running game will be more dramatic than even what Saquon added to the Eagles, 'cause the Eagles already had a good rushing attack.

They had Jalen Hurts.

They, they had the, the best offensive line coach in the league, the best offensive line in the league.

They were already good at running the ball.

The Chiefs, I know the Chiefs have a good success rate, like they are good at picking up three yards.

If it, if, if they need to gain two, they gain three.

If they need to gain one, they gain two.

If they need to gain, you know, three, they gain four.

Mm-hmm.

But they're not, they're the least explosive, over the past few years, the least explosive rushing attack in the league.

And if you go back to Super Bowl 59, the blatant dis- disrespect that Vic Fangio was showing the Kansas City running game.

I mean, guys just weren't even looking and keying on the, the, the I mean, they would turn their backs, you know, in, in the secondary- Yeah quicker than you'll ever see.

It was remarkable how much they were baying and daring the Chiefs to run, and, other teams were just basically saying, "We do not care what you do with your running game because you cannot hurt us.

You, yeah, you can pick up this measly first down.

You're not gonna rip off a 20 or 30 yard run."

Yeah.

And we know that, that like Kenneth Walker is, is like the bizarro Kareem Hunt.

He may get stuffed when it's time to pick up a three and two, but you're gonna be scared of him because like we saw in the Super Bowl, he can rip off two 30 yard runs in a row and really put you in a precarious position.

And that's what the Chiefs need.

They, they honestly need the threat more than the actual explosive runs because they just need to keep defenses honest.

They've been unable to keep defenses honest at all.

The other thing I'm really excited about with the Chiefs, and, and one reason why I give them the benefit of the doubt, both from a scouting and coaching perspective, is they've been playing so deep every year, going to three Super Bowls in the, in a row, that they really haven't had a chance to, to like go out and look at-All the coaches that are available, right, they haven't had a chance to, to do as much draft prep.

They haven't had as, as much runtime to kind of implement changes, and I think actually having a full off-season where not only did they not make a deep playoff run, they didn't make a playoff run at all, they had a real chance to, to recalibrate.

And I don't wanna make excuses for them.

I think they should've recalibrated more than they did last year.

I remember being on the podcast this time of year talking about how inefficient their RPOs were.

Yeah.

I think only the Giants were, were less efficient, and they ran more RPOs than anybody else.

So we saw this coming and, and, but the Chiefs just, it just felt like they didn't, they didn't have enough time and enough motivation really to, to totally recalibrate.

I mean, honestly, you said earned, earned hubris, earned arrogance, whatever you wanna call it.

You go to three Super Bowls in a row, even if you get blown out in one of 'em, I, I, I think it would be a little bit more weird to make major changes than basically making no changes at all.

Yeah, yeah.

Excellent point.

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Re- really quick.

Yeah.

I heard you said that it was gonna be Thunder in five after game one.

I, I was trying to- I was wrong I was trying to warn, I was trying to warn my brother, who is a huge Thunder fan, like, "Dude, just, this could be coming.

I've seen the changing of the guard a lot of times in the NBA.

I saw Jordan do the, the two-hand switch.

I've seen I saw the Kobe, the Shaq alley-oop in the '99 Western Conference Finals.

I saw LeBron go for 48 against Detroit."

And when Wemby hit that pull-up three from 30, I was just like, "We're all living in his world now, man."

And I don't know if it's coming this year, or it's coming next year, but baby, it, it, it is coming.

Y- y- you're right, and I Look, I saw that pull up from 30, and I looked at it completely differently.

I was like, they needed that to get by OK- and OKC's just b- I've seen them.

They, they're s- they're so good, and I just underestimated this young Spurs team being on the come-up, and I, I thought, I, I thought that was gonna be the only game they won.

I was d- I was dead wrong.

Credit to them.

In f- in fairness to you, there were several injuries, including J Dub, right?

And it looked like Dylan Harper and De'Aaron Fox might be hurt, too, and it was actually the Thunder that had the injury problems.

And if things go a different way, the, the Thunder might come out victorious because, like, they got, they got nothing from, from Chet Holmgren.

I, I mean, anytime you, you guys think you're disappointed in a Chief, I, I can't imagine being a Thunder fan.

I, I'm trying to think, like I mean, i- is that, it's gotta be worse than Clyde Edwar- Edwards-Helaire, 'cause, like, what, what he's getting paid and what they're expecting, and man.

He didn't even take any shots in that last game.

I mean, it was Yeah, I mean, n- not a basketball podcast, but it's, it's a b- it's gonna be a really interesting, NBA finals.

And the, the Knicks, those fans are bananas.

They're, As somebody whose team got eliminated by the Knicks in the Eastern Conference finals in pretty embarrassing fashion, they're, they're a good team.

They're really hot right now.

I, I don't, I don't think they can stand up to the Spurs and Wemby, 'cause he's an alien, like a literal alien.

S- He looks like an alien out there.

Like- He's- he doesn't look like he belongs on the same court as everybody else.

The o- the other thing I noticed, and we'll transition this back to the Chiefs, is there was a moment in game one, and there's a famous photo now, I- it was kind of instantly famous, of all of Wemby's teammates looking at him just in awe- Yeah on the sideline.

And I was like- Yeah I have seen that before as a Chiefs fan, because that is how Chiefs players look at 15.

And, and that's a rare thing.

That's how guys used to look at Brady and Jordan, LeBron.

There are very few players in any sport that, Tawny's there, but, like, that reach that rarefied air, and we've got one of 'em in, in Kans- Kansas City.

I know he's not quite as freakish as Victor Wembanyama, but he is, he's, he's, the way he moves and the things he's able to do, nobody's able, been a- able to do before.

He's, like, changed the game in a similar fashion.

Oh, boy.

And, it, I don't know.

It felt like, it actually made me think a lot about 2018 and how the Spurs, this young Spurs team got lucky in, in a way the Chiefs with the default offsides and losing that coin flip did not.

Sometimes it just comes down to luck, but when you see a force like this coming, you know sooner or later that they're gonna get there, and the Chief- the Chiefs got there a year later, so.

Yeah, they sure did, and, Mahomes, I mean, he's frustrated guys.

Y- you see the, the way opponents have reacted to him and just the frustration that they've had has been remarkable to watch over the years, and maybe these guys think they've got his number 'cause the, the Chiefs have become a little bit beatable, but I think cyborg Mahomes is coming back.

I got two more questions for you before we get o- into our movie talk, and we can move through these kind of quickly, but, like, is, is it Stefon Diggs time for the Chiefs?

Because if they're gonna do anything at the wide receiver position, right?

At this point, Jauan Jennings is off the board.

you, you, you're not, you're not trading for A.J.

Brown.

Nope.

Stefon Diggs can still play a little bit.

Like, is this a guy that you wanna bring in and see, just make sure you've got that depth there?

He's really not, and I guess the further we get into this and the more it appears there's not other options, the more interested I would get.

I don't love putting Rashee Rice around Stefon Diggs.

I don't, I don't know that those two guys are good for one an- another, another.

Frankly, I feel the same way about, about Tyreek Hill.

I know we're not building a church youth choir here, but, but still, like, the, I mean, Rashee Rice needs, I, I don't know.

He needs a Terry McLaurin in his life.

He needs an Adam Thielen in his life, you know what I mean?

Like, he does not- Yeah need a Stefon Diggs in his life.

and I think this is the part where, where, you know, you kinda say, "Well, I think there, there's a trade maybe that Veach could do," and I think a lot of fans would be like, "Well, then what is that trade, Adam?"

Well, I don't know, you know?

I'm a part-time podcaster, but Brett Veach- gets paid, get- gets paid the big- Yeah big bucks- Sure to sit around and spend 60, 70 hours a week seeing things that nobody else can see, and I'm hoping that he's seeing something.

I don't know if it's, is it Brian Thomas Jr.?

Is it, hey, KeSean Booty i- is available now that he's kind of expendable now that A.J.

Brown is on that roster.

Do you go after him?

I, I know that he's probably going to be patient.

It's very interesting to me the things that Brett Veach is patient about versus the things he isn't.

Like, he is very impatient when it comes to the offensive line, and that's interesting to me because I think, like, directly, it's like, yes, those guys keep Patrick Mahomes healthy.

But I would also argue that when guys get open more quickly, that also keeps Patrick Mahomes healthy, and I think part of the reason Patrick Mah- Mahomes was scrambling more and eventually got hurt this year was because guys weren't getting open enough.

Yeah.

So I, I think, like, in an in- in an indirect way, receivers, affect, you know, Patrick Mahomes staying healthy a- as, as well.

We'll see what the Chiefs do.

If anything, they've been taking their time here, but if they're, if they're looking for a, a veteran, at, time's running out there, so they may just run back with what they've got.

really quickly, and you don't have to expound too much on this, but I just thought it'd be a fun prediction 'cause there was some, some buzz coming out of the early spring practices.

Who do you think is the right tackle for this team this year?

Is it Jaylen Moore or Esa Pole?

Ooh.

I hope it's Esa Pole, because I think that would signal a few things.

It would signal that they may have their right tackle of the future.

It would signal that the Chiefs are not stubborn and that they can react in real time, right?

Yeah.

I mean, I know it's a hard pill to swallow spending 15 million a year on a swing tackle, but we have to remember when they signed Jaylen Moore, they didn't know Josh Simmons was gonna slip to the 31st overall pick.

That didn't seem realistic in that moment.

So when they picked Simmons, it was like, "Okay, this is, we've got multiple solutions now to a, to a problem," and, so I think that's a good, a good luxury to have because Esa Pole, I really like what I saw from him.

H- he's really raw, a raw player, but man, he's coming along quickly, and it sounds like the Chiefs are, are very encouraged by him.

Now, this could also be a tactic to light a fire under Jaylen Moore's ass.

Th- that may be part of the problem, that he's not, like, bringing it, you know?

He's not living up to expectations, expectations, of the coaching staff, front office, his contract, the fan base, all that.

But, I don't know.

I, I, I've said all that.

I still think it will probably be Jaylen Moore because I think the, the Chiefs probably feel pot committed, and it's his job to lose.

But I've been surprised before.

Like, Trey Smith, for instance, started, both he and Kingsley Suamataia started way before I thought they, they were going to when they were, when they were drafted.

So, what's your opinion on this?

I think it'll probably be Jaylen Moore because Mahomes is coming off an injury.

He's the veteran.

There's probably a little bit more trust there early in the season, unless Esa Pole just blows them all away.

But there could be a transition that happens later in the seasonThe money thing I don't care about, because Ezeepole is making a million dollars this year.

He counts for 0.33% of their salary cap.

So it doesn't ma- like, I don't care.

Like, the, the, as, as Sterling would say, the Moore contract is a sunk cost, and it doesn't matter to me if they're paying the guy that's really good, playing really good at right tackle a lot of money or not.

And then they can move on from the Jaylen Moore contract, and they'll have to re-sign, Ezeepole.

A- a- he's an exclusive rights free agent in 2027, so they'll have to figure that out then, but they'll have some, some money opening up, 'cause Moore will be off the books.

And think about it like this.

Ezeepole plus Jaylen Moore is still considerably cheaper than what they were paying Jawaan Taylor, w- or, last year, and what they were scheduled to pay Taylor this year.

Right.

And, you know, if midway through the season Ezeepole comes in and he's ready, and he starts and he does pretty well, they'll have to give him a contract, but they won't have to necessarily give him, like, a crazy, crazy contract, you know what I mean?

Because it's, it's not like he's gonna be an All-Pro or something, so they'll be able to save a little bit of money there.

They'll be saving money on Josh Simmons for a few more years, and, and all that investment in the interior line.

So we'll see.

That's gonna be a fun battle to watch, and it's just good to know that they've got two options that they like there at right tackle, and then obviously Pole can play left, so you've got a swing tackle either way.

All right, that's it for The Chiefs Start.

We got 10 more minutes here, before we get outta here, and as we do always for Patty's Power Rankings, we're gonna talk a little bit of movies.

It's summertime, big time movie season.

I just saw, God, what's it called?

Oh, Project Hail Mary, the other day, which I, I quite enjoyed.

I thought it was a lot of fun.

Little overly long, unnecessarily long, but really nice performance there, from, from the, from the CGI alien.

but let's get into- I think it was, I think it was a puppet Was it a puppet?

But they, they had- I think to have used some, some CGI.

But maybe not.

Maybe it, maybe there was some Maybe it was all puppetry.

Joanne's in the chat saying it was p- producer Joanne said it was a puppet, so I guess I was wrong.

I think they try to use less CGI than, than I, I know they use some- Oh for certain things, but they, they really work to use minimal CGI on this one.

Joanne's saying she didn't think there was any CGI.

I, I enjoyed it.

Like, I thought it was really well directed and, like I said, there were p- a few parts that probably dragged a little bit, but really nice, really nice movie.

Fun.

Fun.

I'm a big sci-fi guy, so.

Yeah, you know, there are a lot of movies nowadays that could stand to lose 10 or 20 minutes.

Yeah.

Yeah, absolutely.

well, we're gonna do three recommendations from the year 2015.

Really interesting year.

A lot of interesting movies there.

why don't you kick us off, Adam?

Yeah.

For me it is Sicario, from Denis, one of our best filmmakers, of the past, I don't know, 15 years or so.

I d- I love Prisoners, of course the Dune movies.

But this one is just, man, they captured lightning in a bottle with it, right?

I, I, I think the cast is great, but there's just something exhilarating about this movie.

I've never seen the, the cartel and some of the stuff going on on the border, and basically just the moral rot of the drug war captured.

And y- you would think kind of a, a heady movie like this would be boring, but it's exhilarating.

and I think why it works is we have Emily Blunt as kind of an audience surrogate, just kinda like finding her way into the, the muddy waters of the drug war, and just, like, i- i- it's, it's gross, it's terrifying, there's, there's no, there's no way to win, you know, there's no way to even keep your soul.

And I, I just think thematically it's, it's super strong and says a lot, but it also is just, in a weird way for such dark material, a theme ride of a movie.

So I, I revisit this one I think every, every single year at this point.

I haven't seen this one.

It's been on my list for a while.

I'm gonna have to knock it out now that you've, that you've recommended it.

number three for me, this actually premiered at Cannes in 2014, but it premiered in the United States in, in, in 2015, and that's It Follows.

if you like horror, it just depends on what kind of horror you like.

I think some people see a movie like this and they maybe think it's a little bit boring.

I loved it.

I thought it was great tension, a really fun and original idea, and really kinda dives into, what it's like to be a young woman sexually coming of, of age in, in the way that, that boys look at you.

you know, when you go deeper beyond, like, the, the, the horror element of it.

But basically the, there's, like, almost, like, an allegory for, you could say, like, an STD, but somebody has sex and then this, th- this demon, the, that's how they pass it from person to person.

This demon starts chasing you, and the only way to get rid of it is to have sex with someone else, and then it starts chasing them.

it's a fascinating movie.

It's really scary at times.

I think it's got a great ending.

if you've never seen it, it's a little bit more of a slow burner, but, it's got a really great opener.

I, I just thought this was, this was fantastic.

directed and written by David Robert Mitchell.

Yeah, David Robert Mitchell.

I really liked his, his first one, this one, It Follows, and then he did Under the Silver Lake, which is kinda just-It's, I, I couldn't even comprehend really what's going on, you know?

And I, I watch a lot of movies and, and tend to, tend to pride myself on being able to follow plots, but he actually has his first movie in eight years coming out called The End of Oak Street.

Yeah.

And- Trailer just dropped for that this week yeah, I mean, it's like dinosaurs, like this, this suburban house gets like transported through time or so- it, it looks, pretty whacked out and, and I think in the best possible way.

And after It Follows, I think he, he deserves more shots even if the last one was sort of a misfire, even though it has a cult following.

Yeah.

Number- End of Oak Street, Anne Hathaway and Ewan McGregor, I mean, that's, that's a pretty good c- combo.

I can't wait to see that.

Anne Hathaway is, is everywhere this year, man.

Yeah, yeah, she is.

number two for me, The Big Short.

Doesn't need a huge explanation.

I think this movie captured the frustration of the housing crisis better than, than anything, and then that, like 2008 financial collapse that affected us all.

And what I like about it is, is it, it really has teeth and it doesn't pull its punches.

but it, I, I also don't think it's alienating to whatever side of the aisle you're on.

It just channels fury towards our government, towards big business, towards the oligarch class.

And, it's also insanely entertaining, which it should not be entertaining, uh- It'd be boring yeah, when you're talking about, y- you know, CDOs and all this stuff.

but like the way they explain things with Ryan Gosling in that Jenga scene for, for, for, for instance, just some of the most enter- entertaining dialogue and set up you'll see.

So great cast.

Jeremy Strong's in this.

I mean, Brad Pitt, like I could keep going.

Christian Bale.

Uh- Yeah and I- Terrific film very rewatchable for something that's so, like, again, heady.

Yeah, absolutely.

number two for me is Ridley Scott's The Martian.

this is a great Damon movie.

lot of fun.

I think it's one of the most charming performances of Matt Damon's career.

He really carries the movie.

I mean, you get some other big stars in there.

Jeff Daniels is in there.

Kristen Wiig's in this movie.

Jessica Chastain, of course.

but it's just a This one's incredibly rewatchable, lots of fun, some really good action.

And, it was sort of interesting how he did this, and then he also popped up at Interstellar, one of my favorite movies of all time, also as, as a guy stranded on a planet.

So, l- if you've never seen The Martian and you like sci-fi, this one is, it's kinda got it all.

It's funny, it's dramatic, lots of action.

Bringing things full circle, it, was also based on an Andy Weir book, and Andy Weir wrote, Project Hail Mary, and they are both adapted by the same screenwriter, Drew Goddard.

Different directors, but same writing team, and obviously they have a winning formula there.

I kinda hope they run it back a third time because it's, it's obviously working.

Yeah, I, I The Martian is just one of those movies where y- if you're staying in a hotel and it comes on the TV, you're done, you know?

Can't- Yeah cancel your plans.

You're gonna keep watching that thing.

Yeah.

Indeed.

Number one for me is, a little bit more out there, but this to me was when one of our greatest international filmmakers, Yorgos Lanthimos, kind of, announced himself, and that's The Lobster.

The Lobster stal- starring Rachel Weisz and Colin Farrell, who's just hilarious in this.

And I mean, I, I'm not gonna lie to you, this is a batshit crazy premise.

Basically, the setup is single people check into a hotel, retreat.

They have 45 days, it's a singles retreat, 45 days to meet, their significant other and get engaged, or at the end of those 45 days, they will get turned into the animal of their choice.

and it is, as, as wacky as it sounds, but it very, very like dark, existential humor, but it, it, it hit me in the right spot and I, I just, adore this movie, so.

I gotta check it out.

It's always been on my list, so I feel like it's one I gotta be in the mood for.

Um- For sure.

Yeah.

Number one for me, I think I've probably talked about it on this show before, my favorite Tarantino film, The Hateful Eight.

We're in a fantasy league named after this movie.

it's just so good.

It has one of the best scores of, of any movie ever, in my opinion.

cinematically is absolutely gorgeous.

It, it's, it speaks to my theater roots, because it pretty much takes place in just about one, you know, one location.

It's very similar to my other favorite Tarantino movie, Reservoir Dogs, and has some of the same actors.

Tim Roth is, is a great turn in this, as, as Oswaldo Mobray.

And, of course Samuel L. Jackson, Kurt Russell.

Jennifer Jason Leigh's so good in this movie.

I thought she should've been nominated for an Oscar for it.

One of the all-time great villain performances in any movie.

She's amazing.

Walton Goggins is awesome in this movie as well.

And of course, the great Bruce Dern with a tremendous turn as a, as a racist old, South, you know, South, Civil War general.

I mean, it's just a terrific movie.

It has everything that you would expect from a, from a great Tarantino film and, and probably a little bit more.

One quick piece of trivia before we get out of here, and that is Morricone, who did the score, a lot of that score was some music he sent to John Carpenter for The Thing in 1981.

No way.

Another, another like isolated snow movie.

Oh.

And he never, he never used it, and when he and Tarantino were going back and forth, he kinda served that up, and-I, I don't think it was right for The Thing, but it's crazy that The Thing in- kind of inspired this music that was such a perfect fit.

I don't know, what was it, like, 40 years later?

30- Yeah not, not 40 years later, 30-something years later.

But, pretty cool, right?

Very, very cool piece of trivia.

It makes me re- I wanna re-watch The Thing, which is one of the most- Oh, it's so good disturbing horror, horror movies out there.

So good.

also with Kurt Russell, by the way, pops up and, and, w- what a, what an interesting, uh- Yep piece of trivia as well.

One of my facial hair idols.

I mean, that guy can really- can really grow a stash or a beard, can't he?

Yeah, he's incredible, and he's, he's great in this movie, too.

Definitely watch it if you never have.

All right, we gotta get out of here.

Thank you, everybody.

Again, we've got more to come.

We're gonna have a, something of a new lineup for you probably next week here at the Arrowhead Addict Podcast, so be sure to check in on, or maybe in, in two weeks here.

but it, we- we'll get it to you.

Don't worry.

It's coming.

some fun new shows and, and, and approaches to things.

So we appreciate your support.

If you wanna become a member of the Arrowhead Addict Podcast, check out the link in description.

Thank, thank you to producer Joanne.

Thank you to the Blogfather, Adam Best.

My name is Patrick Allen.

I'll see you next week, but until then, as always, go Chiefs.

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