Dexter Henry on The Knicks Challenges To Repeat. Plus, Giants Comeback Falls Short and Jets Struggle In Foxboro

All righty, let's roll, baby, welcome in. After what was a disappointing, but rather eventful Sunday of New York football, as both the Giants and the Jets lose in respective fashion. Giants almost pull off a stunner to the New Orleans Saints in comeback fashion. Jets in same old, same old against the Patriots. Where do we want to begin? Both games are interesting on a lot of different fronts, but I am going to start with the Giants, because I think there are a lot of layers to peel back now from what we saw on Sunday, and there are some direct ramifications of what we might see in the weeks ahead surrounding this football team. First things first, this game in particular turned on a dime on two particular plays, and the one everybody is going to reference is the Charlie Jones fumble, the botched return, leading the New Orleans, scoring a game tying touchdown right at the end of the first half. Obviously, a huge swing play. But I don't want the Carlson field goal to get lost in a shuffle. He's been an awful kicker this year. He missed one earlier in the game. The Giants were up 10-0. If they miss a field goal there, they're getting the ball back around midfield. Giants who knows might get points. At the very least, it's 10-0. It might be 13-0. It might be 17-0, and you're off to the races. Instead, it's made field goal, botched return, st. touchdown, and to be honest, you knew it 10-10 going in the half time. The Giants were not in good shape in this game. And they went up against the 30th ranked run defense that the NFL has to offer. And this is the first bigger picture topic I want to hammer home in giant length. Giants have a running back problem. John Horbaugh admitted after the game that Giants have a running back problem. Scadaboo and our guy Jordan Ronan was all over this. Was going to have a diminished role. And I think the prevailing thought from a lot of people, oh, it had to be the fumble against Washington. Of course, it was that particular play. Yes, I think that played a role, but I think the five fumbles over the course of this year were problematic. Stuff that might be going on as far as freelancing is concerned, blocking schemes, this, that, the other, that might be a problem. So I think Horbaugh, who obviously is the sheriff and runs an insanely tight shift, was sending a message to James Gowdman, buddy, you're not playing well enough for me to put up what I'm putting up with. You're not holding on to the ball, you're not doing as told, we got to rein you in. He gave Najia Harris more of a look, Najia Harris looked shocked. He gave Tyrone Tracy a look, Tyrone Tracy had a productive game, but they played full running backs. Horbaugh after the game didn't want to come out and say that he benched Scadaboo. Jack, come on, you're telling this to Christina Pink, you're telling it to all the reporters, we all know you benched Cam Scadaboo, he doesn't want to say it, but I'll say it, you benched his ass. How does he respond? Now, for me at Running Back, Scadaboo's gotta be a part of the mix, he's not perfect, he's not in every down back, but there are positives he brings to the table. I think your best one to punch at Running Back is probably Scadaboo and Tracy, but they wasted points with Najee Harris today, there's no getting around it, I wondered if Najee Harris had any gas left in the tank, watching him today, hard to make the argument that he does. So, problem number one, Giants have a dilemma at Running Back because it's a rotation, they don't know the answer to the rotation, they can't figure it out. Okay, there's that. Then you get to the second half of this game. Giants are down by as many as 28 points. They're getting outscored after being up 10-0, 31-0. It is a hot mess. James Winston, not playing well. Threw a couple picks after the 93-yard touchdown drive, didn't do a whole lot. 28-point game. You know I've been belly-aching about these stupid gimmick gadget plays. They ran another one with JJ McCarthy. The head coach Weiser said, You know what? We traded for him. This is a good opportunity, this is a good spot. Let's get him some bar. He throws an interception on his opening drive. But then all of a sudden, McCarthy catches fire. And this is where the St. Coaching staff should be absolutely roasted to the high heavens. Because I don't have the slightest clue how in this game, in this spot, when you're up by three scores in the fourth quarter, you are allowing the Giants to go and beat you down the field. That can't happen under any set of circumstances. It can't happen. It's inexcusable. But it did. McCarthy made big plays to the neighbors. McCarthy made big plays to Charlie Jones. He made a big play to Likely, get the two-point conversion. All of a sudden, 24 becomes 16. Then all of a sudden, 16 becomes 10. They don't get the two-point conversion, which ended up being problematic, and your chances of trying to come back and win this game. McCarthy had a chance, down seven, and I didn't love the Giants' clock management, potentially like at the end of the game. Breeze had a problem with them not kicking a field goal earlier before the two-minute warning. I thought the field goal would have been a little bit too long, and with a kicker who did not have a great game against Washington a week ago, I'm sorry, down ten, can't be settling for a 50-something yard field goal regardless of the time. Got to make sure that's a guarantee. And yes, before the two-minute warning, which was accomplished. But of course, the Saints ended up taking out the kick, and they ended up saving the time out. But the point being is, it really required a perfect set of execution to overcome a 28-point deficit. Cospino cigar. And that leads us to where we stand with this team as far as next week and beyond at quarterback. Because let's be honest about this. That's all anybody's gonna be talking about until John Horbaugh announces maybe tomorrow, maybe on Wednesday, whatever it might be, who his starter is going to be for the UC game. I want to commend JJ McCarthy for playing well. Second half of this game, they poised, played well. Was it soft defense from the Saints? Yes. Was it the same sort of defense that you get at the start of the game? Absolutely not. Is it encouraging? Sure. Is it the sort of performance that says to me without a doubt, he's got to be the starter next week against the Texans? No. Now, if he had come back and tied the game, am I maybe singing a different tune? I might be singing a different tune, but he didn't. Jamis Winston has a winning record for you as a quarterback so far. We all know he's not perfect. We all know what the Jamis Winston experience entails. Despite how poorly the Texan defense is played, that's a bad spot for the challenge. On the road, the Texans can't be messing around. They've won two games in a row. The poor spread in this game is already, look ahead, nine and a half, ten points. This is a game you start Jamis Winston. I think he's earned that goodwill from Harbaugh and the organization. Now, if you get another dud from Winston, it gives you the perfect segue to go and make a quarterback change. Perfect segue. Buy week, come out of the buy, extra time to prepare, and then you get McCarthy ready for a game at Philadelphia Eagles. That's how I draw. That's what I do. McCarthy after the buy. Will Harbaugh listen to me? Not sure. It's always a wild card, based upon what I've seen from this coach so far, because he does hold people accountable. He clearly is not playing any games. But I think it would be best suited for JJ McCarthy given the extra week or two. Because you're not really set JJ McCarthy up to go into Houston and win this game right from Job Street. But after watching what I saw here in the second half, it's inevitable at some point that JJ McCarthy is going to start against the Giants. I think we all kind of knew that when they made the trade a couple of Mondays ago. But the fact that they've tried working him in the games, the fact that they got him into this game and he played well, they are building up JJ McCarthy to eventually be their starter for the remainder of the year. The question is the timing and when they're going to pull the trigger. I don't think it will be this week. We shall see. Here's the good news for the Giants. Eagles lost. The Cowboys looked offensively inept on Sunday Night Football. We'll see what happens with Washington on Monday night against the 49ers, a game in which I think they actually might be livened. But nobody run in the high end in the NFC East. Therefore, these issues at play have to be dealt with immediately. What's your deal with running back? Who are the guys you actually trust? How do you navigate what quarterback looks like in the days ahead? So, close but no cigar, but when you fall behind by 28 points, let's be honest, you don't deserve to win the game. Now, I want to make something crystal clear about the Jets in 2026. The Jets in 2026 are a significantly improved product and a far more watchable product than the absolute garbage we saw last year, 1,000 percent. However, we continue to have the same conversation and the same sort of theme regarding week in and week out performance. That's pretty simple to comprehend. The Jets have beaten teams that are in their weight class. When they go up in competition, they have not met the mark, they have not met the challenge, they have not found the way to exceed expectations. Once again, that came home to ruse in this game against the New England Patriots that really started with such a brutal vibe because you had such a good opening drive, Gino looks incredibly efficient, you're moving the ball, it looks like you're going to get a Cooper touchdown, boom, seven nothing against the Patriots to start the game, call back for a penalty. That kind of summed up how this game ended up going for four quarters because there were moments in the game where it felt like the Jets were dominating play. It was a game in which it felt like they were dominating the first half and yet you walked into the locker room with the Jets down by 14 points, sitting there saying to yourself, how are we here? How are we here? Well, I'll tell you how we got there. It's pretty simple. The finer details and the little bits that sometimes can get neglected if you don't watch the game, were absolutely, positively butchered by this team, and specifically the coaching staff. What do I mean by that? Let's compare short yardage. Let's see the Jets try to execute a quarterback sneak from fourth and one and a half, try to execute third and two and fourth and two and fall flat on their face, get stuffed in those spots, and watch New England, despite the fact that they are losing offensive linemen, stop by, stop by, stop, find a way to execute short yardage, find a way to execute on third down. And then, you get to my favorite, the end of the half. Of course, it was yet another sequence where the Jets go and surrender points at the end of the half. It happens to be a touchdown. Made this a 17-3 game. You want perspective, I'll give you perspective. The Jets in the Aaron Glenn tenure have been outscored. Wait for this. I saw this and I couldn't believe it was this bad. Ninety to six! No, no, no, no, no, this was not like the varsity Dom Bosco football team playing the Petrides Junior Varsity team. No, no, no, no, no. These are professional NFL players. They have been outscored in Glenn's tenure. Ninety to six in the final two minutes of the half. That is insanity to think about. Insanity. And that also includes the Old Bricks' solid year from 2024. So I should correct myself there. Over the last three years, two of them were airing Glenn being at the helm. The Jets since a franchise have been outscored 96 in the final two minutes of the half. That speaks to bad coaching because it's a repeat offense. It continues to keep happening again and again and again. Now, this is where I'm going to defend airing Glenn a little bit. And I think some people who are listening to the podcast are going to be stunned to hear this. I thought his comments about the way he phrased us getting the ball, even though the Patriots got the ball start the second half, was honestly a whole lot to do about nothing. I kind of get the sense airing Glenn meant. This is me trying to play translator and decipher what's being said in a two-minute interview that he's just trying to rush through and get his ass back to the sideline. I think he was trying to say, hey, when we get the ball, we got to score, we got to put up points. Thanks. But I think he was well aware of the situation. And honestly, I think if this interview was conducted with, I don't know, Andy Reid, for example, I don't think anybody would make anything of it. But because of the fact that it's Aaron Blank, and because of the fact that his record is what it is, he is going to get roasted by anybody who's willing to be on the social media. But you want more examples of the little things costing this team. I'll give you another example. End of the third quarter, right? And this is after the Jets. Get a stop. Because AJ Brown couldn't catch the ball. They get the touchdown to Cooper. Daly forces the fumble. Really, really good play. Settle in for a field goal. Kill him. But at the end of this third quarter, when everybody in the building knows the Patriots are not running a play. Everybody knows it. I know it. You know it. Keenan knows it. Benigno knows it. Stefan knows it. Fliegelman knows it. Fata Booms knows it. Every Jeff in my life knows. The Patriots are not running a play here. What happens? They still jump offside. Losing football. Inexcusable mental mistakes that continue to keep happening. And I'll throw one more. How many times on third down when it depleted offensive line? The Jets are sending these all out blitz packages. And I got Hunter Henry in the flag. Third and 12, he gets 14. Third and 14, he gets 16. The talent was there for the Jets to play against the Patriots. But one team is well coached. The other team is not. I think that's abundantly clear. Patriots didn't play the game today either. They didn't play the game. Adrian Brown dropped a zillion passes. They had a key turnover. The Jets moved the ball well. They couldn't finish drives. They couldn't execute on third down. They couldn't get off the field on third down. These little things prevent you from winning games like the one we saw on Sunday. It's really that simple. And that is an aspect of the Jets that has not improved in 2026. The talent has, the watchability has. This is where I question the week in and week out coaching. From that standpoint, that's where I'm not seeing improvement. And that's probably not. So the Jets are now 2 and 4. The good news is you get the Dolphins next week. That should be a win. Then you get the Raiders. Again, can you get the 4 and 4? Not a given, but can you get the 4 and 4 and allow us to extend this season? Or are we going to be talking about a loss in one of the next two games, and then like Kansas City, Buffalo and tougher games on the schedule when we fall into the invests? Jets had another chance to make a statement, and it was another chance that they can go and try and sell moral victories, but they can't sell an actual victory of progress. More of the same against the Patriots. Now we're going to have Dexter Henry on the show, who is fantastic. My old pal who I used to see all the time here at SNY. He's working over at the New York Post. He has the NYGOT GamePod. I've gone live with him and Brian Fonseca, a bunch during these Knicks playoff games. Dexter interviewed Jalen Brunson a couple of months ago at his golf outing, or maybe it was a week ago, two weeks ago. I don't even know. My sense of time is just completely thrown off, but we needed to have a fun little conversation on our beloved New York Knicks, who finally now will end this period that has been so blissful, that has been so rewarding from a fan's perspective on so many different fronts. The basking of the euphoria of the championship, yes, will last forever. But before we officially turn the page to the 26-27 season, there's one last order of business that's got to take shape on Tuesday night. And that is the idea of a banner being raised to the rafters at the corner of 31st and 8th Avenue and 7th Avenue that says New York Knicks 25-26 NBA Champions. That's the image that you can enjoy as the nice icing on the cake, the cherry on top of what has been the best Sunday you could possibly ever taste. But after that, it's on the business. The New Look Philadelphia 76ers come in the town. LeBron James getting the golf runs in. LeBron James is commuting in the helicopter. New York to Philly, New York to Philly, mixing a golf run in New Jersey. Maybe stay in Philadelphia for a night. How is all this going to work for the Sixers with his age? And indeed, LeBron James and Brown adjusting to a new role with a very talented young back court in Maxey and Edgecomb. I, for one, don't like their over. It's been bent down. I think it's going to take them some time in a very deep and very competitive conference. But we'll see them as the Knicks play their first game of the year. And the Celtics in another nationally televised game on Friday with Mitchell Robinson going up against his old team. So like you hit the ground running for this championship defense. And listen, I think there is one major looming question surrounding the Knicks as they try to go back to back this year. There's no contract extension for Coralante Towns. There's no contract extension for Josh Hart. We know how instrumental each of those guys were to the success of the team a year ago. Does it become problematic having it loom over this season? I believe in the infrastructure of the team, the leadership of the team, despite the concerns of the second apron. I get the sense that Knicks and Lianne Rose are going to find a way to work this out. KAT's way too important to what they do. Hart's way too important to what they do. But it's not even the idea of this getting done or not getting done. To me, it's about the ripple effects. There's such a camaraderie and a sense of cohesion with this group. You don't want to see it upset. And with Hart, I'm not worried about it as much. He's going to do his thing. He's going to fill up a box score. He's going to be Josh Hart. But KAT, after the deadline last year, was in such a good place. And in the postseason, was in such a good place. Is there now a sense of, hey, I did my part, I made my sacrifice, now I want more of a piece of pie? He seems to be a pretty unselfish guy, but it's human nature. Right? Like, I want the ball more, I want to get my contract, I want to have my situation taken care of. And it's not at the moment. And that's something the Knicks are going to have to deal with in the early going. Plus the fact that they played a ton of basketball last year, and okay, it's great, season's about to get underway, title defense about to get underway. How much gas is in the tank for the early going of this year? We know the Knicks, it's not about being a Warner or a 2CV Easter Conference anymore. It's like, hey, they've earned that. Be top four. Make sure you're right at the end of the year. Kind of in the way last year's team was right at the end of the year. And make your move come playoff time. It's going to be a lot of chatter around that, but hey, when you're defending champs, every night somebody's gunning for you. And I'm so curious to see how the Knicks handle that. I know it's going to bring out the best in Brunson. My guess is it's going to bring out the best in a lot of guys on this team. I'm not worried about a championship hangover. I'd be worried about the improvement of the Eastern Conference. I'd be worried about those two behemoths at West. One you beat in San Antonio, the other who is loaded and is going to be healthy in Oklahoma City. I think they are way more intriguing questions than the idea of the Knicks being fat cats. I don't see it. It's not in their DNA. It's not what they're about. We'll see if there's any disease in me. Those of you who know the inner workings of Pat Riley know exactly what I'm talking about. But it gets started on Tuesday. And I know this, it's the best show in town. It was the dream season a year ago. Now the question is, what's in store for an encore? So we'll have Dexter Henry in a little bit, preview of the year. Tomorrow, I'm going to tape with Mike Breen. We'll have that up on the YouTube page, and that's going to be a part of our Tuesday pod. We'll be live on the Underscore YouTube channel right after the next Sixers. Sal and myself. We'll have a New York, New York up on Tuesday night. Then of course, we go live on Thursday after the Thursday night football game. So that is our schedule throughout the week. Maybe have a little mini stream of some sort if they announce quarterback, if it's JJ McCarthy at least, they have to work that into the equation. That's the agenda. So before we get to that, let's hit a couple of calls, 9173821151. Let's rock. Hi JJ, this is Ben from Brooklyn. I mean, there's no doubt that the Giants played a tremendous test today. But I'll let you keep my glass half full about the overall big picture for the season and beyond. The Giants did not fall back down. Again, in the previous season, the Giants were down big. They would lay down and just take it. But now, two straight weeks, obviously, we would like to want to watch them, but two straight weeks, they were down big and they come back. Obviously, this week was way less successful than the Washington, but we ended up being lost. But this team has no quit and that's a great activity to have. We will coach and seal down with them. Obviously, phone booth is still US judicial. But I think JJ is not short of promising. I mean, it doesn't take a rock to decide to figure out who he meets next week and let's see what we have with him. Like you say, Paul, we could look for better value. Maybe for a fourth round pick, a third round pick, and we trade for a fifth round for him. So we put some better value. Or at least have a magic turn for next year. It's historic, you know, it proves to be injury prone as we fear with the Navy. But I don't think it's going to be a cost. And but the division is very bad. Division is bad. So giants, by that fact alone, giants have a legitimate shot to still make a foul. Even with the fight, all the fouls they have. But they will have to clean up like the fumbles and the run defense and a lot of stuff. But I know that the coaches and Friday, like, you know, John Harbour approaches it hard and he makes note that the effort is there. And so, yeah, I'm looking for a brighter future for the Giants, you know, stay with us. Thank you, Everett. Have a great night. Love you, Joe. I appreciate the support. I think your point on the fight of this team is a thousand percent spot on. This is a game that in prior years, the Giants fold up the debt. Yeah, they showed a lot of fight down 28. And that's why I have to give McCarthy credit. As poorly constructed as the same defense plan and execution might have been, when you're a quarterback of a team down 28, you have the ball in the fourth quarter down seven with a chance to tie, you did a good job coming in off the bench. I'm not going to go nuts. I would need to see it again. I'm giving Winston this start, and that's where we disagree. I think it's a bad spot to have McCarthy come in and make his first giant. I don't want to say debut, but his first impression as a starter. I like giving him a little extra time. I don't want to just sell Winston down the river after he had a ball or second half against Washington. He's got a winning record as the giant starter so far. I'm giving him this Texan. It gives me another bet against the Texans. It's easy to make the change. I'm giving James Winston at least one more week. That's me. Let's take one more. Hey, JJ. Jastrem Queens here. If there are still any people who think Aaron Glenn has the potential to be a good coach, I think all they need to do is watch the last 90 seconds of the first half of this Jets-Paytrudes game. I just inexcusable play calling there. Of course, it's on the offensive coordinator and it's on the players to execute. But as the head coach, you have to know the situation there. Ninety seconds to go, obviously, you want to score, but you can't give the ball back to the Patriots, so they can score before the end of the first half. That is just unacceptable. Guess what happens? Jets fail to get a first down. They don't kill any clock, three straight pass players inexplicably. The Patriots get the ball back, go down and score, and now you're down big in the half instead of keeping it competitive, keeping it a close game. And guess what? The Jets are probably going to lose by 10 now. It's 2016 with less than a minute left. The NFL, the competition in the NFL is too good, and the Patriots are too good for coaching like I am going to make a mistake like this. You give a team like the Patriots, or you give a coach like Mike Vrabel an opportunity, they're going to take it, they're going to execute, they're going to go down and score, and you're going to lose. And that's what the Jasts do. They lose. Could have been three and three, going into this next stretch. Now they're going to be two and four. They're still alive, but just looking forward in the future. Aaron Glenn is not the guy. Would love to know your thoughts. Thanks, Georgia. Well, I don't think, Jazz, I'm going to have any of the Aaron Glenn truthers coming after me after the performance we saw against the Patriots, which I wouldn't say was non-competitive. But the little details, the little things could not have been more obvious. And that's the difference, beating the team like the Patriots or losing another game to the Patriots. There's Jets down in the air in Glentenia, 5-18, 0-7 against the AFC East. And here's what you keep waiting for. When are you getting a signature win? Like Miami next week is not going to constitute that. Vegas the following week is not going to constitute that. In order for this coach to really show hey, progress is being made, your team plays better at the end of these halves. You don't jump offside when the entire team knows the Patriots are not running a play and they're basically just trying to get you to bait. This is the sort of stuff that you see from poorly coached teams. And yes, I believe the Jets are poorly coached. I think there's an upgrade in talent. That talent was able to hang with the Patriots today. Patriots didn't play their best game. Brown was awful. May was up and down. Jets moved it on their defense. Couldn't finish drives. Didn't execute at the end of the half. Couldn't get off the field on third down. Couldn't deliver on third down. Simple game, folks. Patriots lost 10-0 to Lyman. Brown looked as rusty as can be, and yet they find a way. Like after the game, the Patriots are like, yeah, if we play like this against a better team, we're not going to win. They're right. They're right. But they were like, hey, thankfully that wasn't the opponent we played on Sunday. Like, that's got to bother you if you're a JFA. But it's the truth. And as we know, sometimes the truth hurts. To help us preview this 26-27 title defense for the New York Knicks, NY got game. It's got a great pod going with the New York Post. He's my man, my good pal, Dexter Henry on Match. It is crazy to think about the fact that the NBA season starts on Tuesday and that there will be a banner raised to the Madison Square Garden Rafters. No, it's not an NBA Cup banner. No, it's not Billy Joel or Harry Styles finishing up a residency. But as I welcome in Dexter Henry of the New York Post and the NY got game, pod, livestream, all that good stuff. I've been on with him a bunch. He's a badass. He's fantastic. You want to check him out. Dex, I can't believe there's going to be a championship banner at the Garden on Tuesday night. You know what, man? What's up, JJ? First of all, I can't believe it either. I will be there and I'm still thinking about how crazy it is that I will be there to see that. Knicks fans, folks in New York media like ourselves, it's been so long waiting to see this. And despite seeing them win it back in June, despite going through the whole summer, this beautiful summer that we had in New York, it still feels crazy that it's happening. So I'm with you. And that's a great way to phrase it, Dex, because there was this period of bliss, really all summer long, after watching the finals against the Spurs, enjoying the parade, the after effects of the parade. Even when Philly gets LeBron, you're like, whatever, you're like, this happens, whatever. Knicks or Champs, this is like the last image of this euphoric Nick period of this particular calendar year, right? Like you knew at the end of the day, we were just waiting on that banner, their reactions, the rings, and then we get it on Tuesday. Yeah, you know, and I think for some people still, I still think JJ, there's gonna be a lot of emotion. You saw this, we saw so much emotion when the Knicks won. I'm sure there's people, you know, who cried. It touched you in some way, you know, it touched me in a particular way. And I think you're gonna see that again on Tuesday night. I think a lot of people, it's really gonna be real to see that banner go up. You know, I'm sure it'll hit the players in some way as well too. You just think about all the work you've done, everything that you've seen to this point, and now you gotta go try to do it again. And I'm sure we'll get into that, but that is the challenging part for the New York Knicks here, but they're champions and what a special championship that was. Okay, Dex, you know what the narrative has been throughout these last few weeks. Contracts, contracts, contracts. Let's start here. Concern level. One being the lowest, ten being the highest. How much will the lack of an extension for KAT and Josh Hart womb over this next season? So my concern level with Josh Hart is going to be pretty low, and I'll put it at a two or three. And that's because he doesn't have the control that KAT has with the player option. And so I'm not as concerned about him. That's business I think they'll get taken care of down the road likely next offseason. KAT, where I'm a little bit more concerned, and I want to give credit to this because it wasn't my thought at first, but it was my colleague, Stefan Bondi, who brought this up. He said, look, Dexter, look at the fact that KAT last year struggled at first in the season when the trade rumors were around with Giannis, right? And he's even openly talked about this. John Krasinski from The Athletic wrote a fantastic piece on him and talked about the fact how KAT and his wife were already, they were at one point looking for homes in Milwaukee. I worry about this not necessarily in how it can impact the team, but could it mentally impact KAT, right? He comes across to me as a guy who definitely deserves his money. I want to be very clear about that. And I think has been, you know, we'll want to know that he has that security. So I wonder, I think my concern level with him on that, I thought it was a little higher, I put it at five. I wonder if we get past JJ, the trade deadline, and this isn't resolved, where you start to feel a little bit nervous about it impacting the whole team. I think this team is a good group. I think this team is great leadership with Jalen Brunson. I think they're tight knit. I think there are guys who want this to get done, but KAT, I just hope this doesn't hurt his focus, because he was so good. He overcame everything that everyone said about him in the playoffs. He was really solid defensively. He was great offensively. And I get it for the guys like this. This is his last chance to cash in. He is an aging center. He wants to feel secure. My opinion, it would have been nice if the Knicks got this done before the start of the season. We know that's not going to happen now. But I would say my concern level with KAT is at a five, Josh Hart, two, three. Yeah, and I think that's fair for the reasons you detailed. I'm not worried about their leadership infrastructure. Brunson will have this straightened out. Leon Rose and West have been unbelievable in detailing with their players what's taking shape. This has just been a well-oiled machine since they've taken over. I have to give them the benefit of the doubt as far as that goes. Here to me is the million dollar question. There was so much unselfishness from KAT, specifically in the playoffs last year. Don't get me wrong, the offensive foe is better when he's getting his touches and he's actively involved, but on games where it was an OG game, on games where it was a Bridges game or a Brunson game, KAT was cool. He went about his work. There was no moping. The body language was good. We saw that throughout the playoffs. I wondered, Dex, throughout the regular season, if this is still booming, hey, it's very easy for KAT to say all the right things. It's very easy for him to say, hey, I love these guys. I want to be a part of this. I want to be in New York. But that's where those subtle elements can come into play. That would be my biggest concern. Is a lack of a contract extension going to affect his unselfishness? That's what I worry about. I think it's a fair concern. I think KAT's wired to be unselfish. But what I think you're saying, JJ, is... You know, and I always try to bring this back to just at a human level. Take the athlete out of it. Just look at it as a job, right? And if you feel like you're not getting paid what you're worth at a certain job, it's only going to be natural to be like, yo, what's going on here? Like, now we all say we try to be professionals, but you're wondering, will it impact performance? And in the way that will you start to become more selfish on the court and say, ah, man, I got to get mine now because you don't want to pay me right now and I would like to get this extension done. I do think it's fair to question that. I do. Again, I think KAT by nature, just the way he is, is an unselfish guy. But what you're saying is you can be an unselfish guy. But when you're in this situation, well, you know it's your last time to cash in, as I just mentioned before, will that then turn you into necessarily not being for the team? It's a fair question. It's more than fair. I think you question about anybody in any workplace. We're going to see, man. We're going to see. It's going to be very interesting to see how that all plays out, which to your point and my point is why I think we both would rather have the Knicks have got this done now than later. Yeah. That said though, I do trust the overall vibe of what they've built. Like give them leeway on this. I do. I think they've earned that, and you have to just acknowledge what you saw last year. And that's why this team, despite what they may do in the regular season, we could put a win total on it. I know Vegas has a win total on it. Honestly, Dex, I'm not worried about a hangover with this group. There's too many hungry guys. There's too many motivated guys. I can't see a world where the Knicks are not a top four seed in the Eastern Conference despite these being so much improved and so much deeper. There's just too much dog in these guys for me to see a year where the Knicks go 44 and 38, assuming everybody plays. I don't see it either. We did a show a couple weeks ago on New York Got Game. We did a betting show. We kind of looked at the over-under win total. Over-under is 52, I think it's 52 and a half. I said I would go under, but slightly under. I probably would stay away from it as a bet, but I see them getting 51 wins. I could see them getting 52 and a half. I think that's a very sharp number. I think they probably win in the low 50s. Yeah, I think it's a sharp number too. I'm with you on that. So I would go with that. I'm with you though. I don't see them not being a top four seed. I think for this team, I agree with you. Maybe in the beginning, and I don't know if it'll be a championship hangover. I don't look at it that way. I think in the beginning, you could see a slower start, JJ, but I think that'll be just because they played so much basketball in the last couple of years, right? That's the thing. They played a lot of basketball, just had a deep run. This is the shortest summer of a lot of these guys' careers. And now they're going to have to get back at it. I think the key with this next team is what you're kind of alluding to here. Get a top four seed, what you need, get into the playoffs. You've got the championship experience. I think this is a hungry team. I'm with you. When I sat down with Jalen Brunson this summer, he was telling, you could see this man is not satisfied. And if he's not satisfied, the rest of those guys are not going to be satisfied. So I'm confident they're going to be hungry. And I think they're hearing the talk that it's hard to repeat now in this second apron era. You know, we haven't seen a champion, a repeat champion in eight years. I think this team is going to be motivated to go and do that. I'm not saying they will, but I think they're going to be very motivated to go and do it. All right, I'm glad you brought up this chat. You did a great job with Jalen throughout the course of the summer. I saw that interview. Looked badass. Obviously, listen, being with the CAP is as cool as it gets. Other than the takeaway of the job's not finished type deal, even after winning a championship, even after winning finals MVP, he's basically the king of New York. We all know that. If there was a takeaway you had from being around Jalen Brunson for that amount of time, what was it? That this is somebody who is very detailed focus, maybe even more than I had realized. I think we always knew that about him. But he's so detailed focus. When I asked him about his hand injury, which is still amazing, that I was just recently rewatching game five of the finals. It's so amazing. We didn't know that he was dealing with that hand injury, and he puts up 45 in that game. When I asked him that, he talked about how frustrating it was at that time, when we did the interview in early August, to not be able to do anything this summer, to not get back in the gym, to not be able to work on his game the way he wanted to. And you could see it was killing him. And he really is not satisfied with what they've done. He believes in more for himself, more for this team. And I think that focus is gonna be so perfect for this team this season. I also will add, JJ, it, you know, I looked, I was a defender of the Mike Brown hire when it happened. Give me credit, you take a big time W on that one, big boy. Yeah, I was, I was one of the few, a lot of people didn't like it. Guilty. I didn't want to make coach, but I didn't want any other coach. I don't want to make coach change. You wanted to roll with Tibbs on this, right? I was a Tibbs truther. I would have rolled Tibbs till he can't ride him no more. And you know what? Sometimes making a change is a good thing. Gotta acknowledge it. Sometimes it is. And I also think what we learned, and I'm adding this to Brunson, I think that Mike Brown was the right coach for this team and the change that they needed. And not just him as a change, but the change they needed to make in the playoffs. Obviously, after game three against Atlanta, that stuff mattered. And I think what I'm saying is his leadership combined with Brunson's focus, I think works for this group and the adaptability that they have. I think if the Knicks need to make adjustments this year, we should all be confident they'll do it. It's like you said, you trust in the regime and the front office to get this done. Well, I think now there also has to be that trust in the coaching staff and the relationship with the players to make changes and get things done if they need to. So yeah, Brunson's focused, man. He's focused and I think once that banner goes up on Tuesday night and they tip off, 2025-2026 season and 2026 championship, that's all in the past. It's now on to the next and I'm very confident this team will be ready for that challenge. Okay. So for the most part, the Knicks will run it back with the exception of Mitchell Robinson is now at Celtic. Andre Drummond is now in Nick. He had a couple of intriguing veterans work their way into the preseason. Brown, Wiseman. I almost want to take Drummond out of it because we know he's going to be a part of the team. Yeah. Out of the guys that kind of like will work in their way on it or radar, who is the most intriguing to you? It's definitely Wiseman for me. I, it's so funny because we also did this show where we were looking at those guys that were going to compete for one of those final training camp spots. I know Brown got waived, but there's still a chance if they made a move, he could come back with the team. Wiseman at first to me, I said, I don't know about Wiseman. You know, former number two overall pick hasn't been able to stick around. If you talk to people, JJ, and I've talked to some people, they've said the thing with him is the game looked too fast for him. And this is part of the reason you struggle. And listen, this happens with athletes in different sports at all different levels. It happens in the NFL, it happens in the NBA, it happens in baseball. But he looks, he's looked good in preseason. And Coach Brown has been impressed with him. The key for me is if the Knicks have an injury, knock on wood, two Kat or Andrei Drummond, we will see how ready he's and able to step in. How can he handle the speed of the NBA now and defenses and all that stuff. But he's looked good, he's got the athleticism, he's 25. This is a big opportunity for him, even if he's going to be the third center on the Knicks roster. Because I think there will be some moments. I think the Knicks will load manage. I know that's a word people don't love all the time, but I think they will load manage. And they will try to rest some guys as they're going to try to manage their way through the regular season. So it's going to be an opportunity for them. He's been intriguing. If the Knicks hit on him, and what I mean by hit on him is if he's a guy that when there's an injury coming and you look at that and say, ah, he looks competent as a backup center. Even if Drummond goes down, I trust him in there to understand the defensive assignments and rotations and make the right plays. That's a huge win for the Knicks. Because in the second apron era, JJ, you're going to need to hit on guys. Basically what I'm saying is if he can become the Landry Shammet of last year, and how important Landry Shammet was to the Knicks, that's a huge win in having that continuity and getting a low cost piece in here that can help you win games. No question about it. Okay. Biggest concern you have with this team going into the year? Biggest concern is kind of tied to that backup center role. If Andre Drummond, what I need to see from him is, we know he's still a good rebounder. Does he give you enough rim protection? Defensively, he's looked pretty solid through the preseason. How is he going to hold up in the playoffs against the lead teams? Because we saw the Knicks hook him and Embiid in the postseason last year when they played Philly. Andre Drummond is now what he used to be defensively. I like Andre Drummond, good guy. I was talking to somebody close to him the other day, and he's ready for this challenge, and he's hungry and wants to play well in New York. But my biggest concern is, do they have enough at the center position if KAT goes down? So that adds Wiseman and Drummond. That's probably my biggest concern with this roster going into the season. Okay, I want to ask you about the complexion of the Eastern Conference and the next biggest threat, but I want to hit on the nets very quickly. The East, as you know, is loaded. It's weird talking about the East that way, but there are six, seven legit teams. Then you throw in a team like Charlotte, who was super fun last year. I know they made a big trade, but they're intriguing. Chicago is intriguing with Cale Wilson, who, by the way, I've met for NBA Rookie of the Year. I've played my big cuff. Yeah, I feel good about those. I feel good about those. The Nets, they bring Randall in. Yeah, Michael Porter Jr. Make the case that they can be an interesting watch this season. Let me ask you this, JJ, by interesting, what's your definition of interesting for them? Playing games that are, like they're in that, not just playing mix, they're looking like a team that is significantly moving in the right direction and not being completely stuck in a mud. Okay, yeah, I think they can be interesting because the two veterans you mentioned there, Randall and MPJ, now what's interesting there is what are you doing with those guys? Are they looking to flip those guys eventually to then recreate more cap space? But they should be competitive here. You know, when you look at Yegor Demin, who was of the rookies they picked the year before, he was pretty solid. Look, will Mikel Brown look good for them? He looked good in summer league. I'm not gonna go crazy over that. He's an intriguing rookie there too. I think the thing for the Nets is they've got their coach, JJ. He is good. I agree with that. He's a very good coach. I like Jordi Fernandez. And at some point in your development as a team, you can't just be about this losing. You can't just be about this tanking. And now with the new rules for the lottery and that kind of de-incentivizes tanking, we'll see how that works in the NBA this year, there's no incentive for them to tank, especially which I believe is the following year. They don't have their own, they don't control their own pick. So I think they can be a team that competes for the last playing spot. I think if you're the Nets and you do that, and it's competitive. Talk to somebody yesterday who told me he thinks they could get about 37 wins. That's a little high for me. That seems a little rich for me. Yeah, in this East that's better, as you just said. I think if they're in the low 30s, that could probably get you to 10 seat in a playing tournament. And I think if they're battling for that, to me, that's a successful year. Try to get into the playing tournament, show that you're building something, and then move forward. I think they can do that. I think they can be a tough team for people to play. You know, are they going to be great defensively? Probably not. But I think they're a team that is going to give you, come into relentlessly in offense, are well coached by Jody Fernandez. The big question is, what do they do with MPJ and Randall? Are they trying to move one of the, or the two of them by the trade deadline? That's the question. All right, Dax, final one, Easter Conference. Yeah. We know the old LeBron, Jill Brown, Edgecombe, Maxie. Team's going to be, on paper, awesome. I'm betting they'll win total under. I just think there's- I love that. I love that. How can you bet it over on that team? I love it. When it be never plays, LeBron is 40 years old, Jill Brown, how are you incorporating him into a new team? Like, there's just, they might figure it out. But the idea that they're going to go and rattle off 60 games, no, no, no, no, no. They don't have the look of like a well oiled. That's like what regular season teams do, that guys have played together, guys that have been there. I also don't think they're the biggest threat to the Knicks as far as getting back to the finals. 100% agree, 100%. That's the Indiana Pacers. We are on the same page, we're the same team. And I bet them, and I hope I don't win this bet, obviously. I haven't 45 to 1 to win a title. I'm betting they'll win total. I have only bet, as we sit here recording this at 10.38 in the morning on Sunday, I've only bet one NBA win total, Pacers over 44.5 wins. I feel freaking great about it now. Halliburton's got to play, I get that. But if Halliburton plays, they are so well coached, they are so deep, they have so many different ways to beat you. And oh, by the way, the Celtics lost to the Knicks in a playoff series. Philly has lost twice to the Knicks in a playoff series. This Indiana team has beaten the Knicks twice. That's the team. You're asking me who scares me the most if I'm the Knicks? It's the Pacers. 155 percent agree with you. Actually, it's funny, I hadn't looked at their win total, I realized it was 44.5. That feels low, feels so low. You know why it's that low? Because the books are factoring in the Halliburton injury. Not just the idea of him missing time, but the idea that he may not be himself over, I don't know, the first month, or two months, or three months, and how that factors in. That's my thought. Maybe, but if you look at their run to the finals, and I wonder if this is some of what you're talking about too, that was a team that I believe was 21 and 19 after 40 games, if I remember correctly. Yeah, absolutely right. They did. And then they ran. I have tons of respect for Riccarlo. I think continuity, see, we're both probably both valuing continuity. This is why I like the Knicks and the Pacers and the Eats. Continuity matters. They're getting their guy back with the engine of the offense. I think they're going to be dangerous. I will also add this. I love that you took the under. What's Philly's win total? What's their win total? It was in the 50s. 50s? I'll tell you right now. Might be the same as the Knicks. It might be a higher than the 50s. I think it's like 51 and a half. I'm going to double check that right now. I'll talk while you say that. I would take the unknown and that total too. Not only do I just not trust them in the regular season, JJ, I also would look at this and say, is this a team you can trust in the postseason? When you look at Embiid's health, when you look at the fact that LeBron is 42. 49 and a half, by the way, Dex, it's gone down. So people betting, the sharp guys are betting the under. Sharp guys are betting the under. Yeah, that tells you a lot there. When you look at that, I'm like, is this a team that's going to make it through the postseason? With everything that you just mentioned, JJ, I don't trust that. Look, they're excited down there in Philly. I was down there a couple of weeks ago. They are excited about this team and they should be, but there's a lot of question marks, like you said, and I don't look at them as the biggest threat in the East of the Knicks, because I think the Knicks have the continuity, I think the Knicks have the championship medal. For the Knicks, it's going to be about staying healthy. The Knicks are healthy, and they played their capability, they can go back to the finals. But I think Indiana is the team that has a continuity, that was a game away, and some people will say an Achilles' tear away from them winning the whole thing. I think they would have. I think if Albert doesn't blow out his Achilles in that game, 7-8 win. OKC San Antonio, I feel like you have to pick one of those two teams to represent the West, right? I think they're the best two teams in the West. I do think Wembee will be on a mission. I think for San Antonio with me, it's all about how much do they allow Dylan Harper to truly emerge as that number two player on that team. They need that point guard creation. He looks like that guy. If he takes a leap and he gets the minutes and they probably cut De'Aaron Fox's minutes, I think that team is a lot better. But something is telling me OKC is going to be back. That's my pick. I think it's OKC and the Knicks. I think so, too. If it's not the Knicks, it's OKC and the Pacers. I think people will like that finals rematch. I think that'll be a good one. I'm going OKC and the Knicks is my final pick. I don't want to see Indiana beat the Knicks again. I can't deal with that. Come on now. I don't want to see that either, JJ. But that's my final pick. I'm going OKC, Knicks. I think that's the finals. I think the Knicks are getting back. I think the Knicks are going to, by the time we get to playoffs, they're going to hear a lot of the chatter and the doubt. Can't go back to back. I think this team is going to be motivated by that. They're healthy and the Knicks have had a lot of health luck, if you look at it, the last couple of years. But, and that matters in terms of winning. OKC didn't have that last year. JW got injured. You need that health luck to be able to get there and also play well. But I think the Knicks are one of the best three or four teams in basketball. I think they're going to have something to say about it. They'll be right there when it's all said and done. Dexter Henry, he's a rock star. I do their live stream throughout the playoffs. You want to check it out. New York Post Sports, NYGOT Game. Bro, don't be a stranger. Even when you got some Steeler takes, you got to fire off me. I don't get to see you walking around the newsroom anymore. You want to hear Steeler take from me? I am so, not a take, I am so ready, so ready for this Aaron Rodgers, excuse me, era to be over. Can we just end it now? Yeah, but all you do is keep getting three touchdowns out of Aaron. I get it. But is he, is, are they actually good, JJ? Are they actually good? Dex, you probably have been saying this about the Steelers before he even got there. This has been the conversation we've had for the last eight years. Guess what? You'll have nine to 10 wins, you'll probably play in the playoffs, you'll probably lose that game, and we can do it again next year. I remember you and I having this conversation at S and Y about this and me being like, you're like, Dex, this is what the Steelers are, you know this, and I'm like, yeah, I do. I do, but you know what? I would like to see them just move on from that, and I wouldn't be mad if they were bad for a couple of years and formed five and 12 or something and found it. I've got to find a quarterback. That's the key. I get it. I get it. And if you don't have that, you can't get to the highest level. I'm not even gonna ask you about your dolphins. I'm not even gonna do that. That's all right. They are doing exactly what you want, so be careful what you wish for. Be careful what you wish for. Dexter Henry, appreciate you, bro. Appreciate you, brother. Thank you. All right, before we say goodbye, I want to give out a couple of over-unders. Now, I might as well get this on record. I don't feel great about this, but I'm going to throw it out there anyway. I am going with a very chalky NBA finals. Very, very chalky. And I don't think the NY fan is going to like it, but that's okay. I will go home to the city in the next, and we'll play in the next year's NBA finals. I thought long and hard about picking the Pacers, but there's no way in the world I could stomach the idea of the Knicks losing to the Pacers again. So I'll just stash the 45 to one in my portfolio. It's blood money. I hope it never caches, but hey, if it's in there, it's in there. I think OKC will be a team on a mission this year. They would have beat San Antonio if they were healthy. I think they'll have better injury luck. I know the Chet Wimby thing is a problem. It's not ideal in any way, but you didn't get fully armed and operational OKC. I think if you get that this time around, they take damage first. So I'll say thunder over the Knicks in this year's NBA final. And if there's a team that is going to go and upset that, as I've been telling, it's the Indiana Pacers, who, in case you're wondering, 33 to 1 to win the title, I got 45 to 1, I still take 33, it's a very good number, and 18 to 1 as far as winning the conference. Now, I fired a couple of win bets, literally, in the past few days. I've been so football focused, baseball focused, I was like, wow, I got to get NBA futures in. Here are the ones I like for totals. Pacers, you know I love them. The total is all because they're factoring in a little rush for Halliburton coming back off the injury. I love that team. They're super well coached. They swap out Miles Turner, they get Sue Botch in there. 44 and a half wins. Sign me up in On The Indiana Pacers. Next one I'm going to give you. I hate this one because I can't stand Kevin Durant. Rockets is going to be a really good team. They play unbelievable defense. They're going to get their guards back in Van Fleet. He's going to help. He's a pro. They needed somebody who had half a clue when it comes to running an NBA offense, leading their offense. I think Houston is going to be one of the teams where you're like, wow, they went to buttload of games. I don't trust them in the playoffs, but I think they're going to win a buttload of regular season games. Rockets, I took them over 48 and a half wins. So that's two. The next one, this is down the rack. And I know the Eastern Conference is better, but I took it anyway. I'm all board the Cale Wilson hype train. I won a root for Chicago this year. I took them over 29 and a half wins and minus 105. It's not a ton of wins. I think there's a little bit more incentive for them to go and actually try to win a few of these games. They finally feel like they have a cornerstone they could build around. So I went over with Chicago. I wanted to have a low one that I could at least root for. And that was the low one I went with, with Chicago at 29 and a half. Now two Unders. The first one, Philadelphia, 49 and a half wins. I don't love the fact that this line has moved. I would have preferred having a 50 and a half or a 51 and a half, and I know the talent and what you're talking about as far as the talent is concerned. Too many moving parts, a lot of age, a lot of injury concerns. I think it will take the six or team some time to chill. So I went under 49 and a half for Philadelphia. So now I got to give you one more. And from an under perspective, this is the one I targeted. Detroit at 48 and a half wins. They won so many regular season games a year ago. Are they going to value the regular season the same way? I don't think so. They obviously have scoring problems. We know that. You throw in the fact that I think the East is better. I think you see Detroit come back to the pack here a little bit. 48 and a half wins, too many. I think they like a 44, 45 win team. So I went under Pistons. I went under Philadelphia. We go over Indiana. We go over Chicago. We go over Houston. Those are our five NBA win totals. We'll see how it treats us over the course of the year. All right, Jeff Money, four is yours. What do we got? Monday Night Football, take it away. What up, JJ? Jeff Money here with a handicapper picture. I got to play for the Monday Night Football game. I know we're going to be heads up on it. I'm going to go with the 49ers minus the seven and a half over the Washington Commanders. So again, I'm going to go with the 49ers minus the seven and a half. We'll see what also is on other things that are on tap on your end, and then we'll compile all my daily plays on Twitter at Jeff Money. Okay, JJ, I'm out of here. Let's go. Let's go, Jeff Money. We are heads up in this game, and it is a golden opportunity for the Washington Commanders, despite everything that happened last week with the Giants. Go to San Francisco, beat on the feet of the team. Jaden Daniels points well. Dallas is a mess. Philly is a mess. Giants don't have their starting quarterback and their best defender. I'm all over Washington in this game. Now we had a decent Sunday. Chargers really ruined what would have been a beautiful Sunday. It was a profitable Sunday, so we're never going to complain about that. Texans were good to us. The Raiders, by the hair on our chinny chin chin, were good to us. The Saints were good to us. But just a reminder, this goes to Adam Shonig and myself. Friends don't want friends. Bet on Chargers. On that note, hope everybody enjoys Monday Night Football. We'll be back Tuesday after Banner Night. And remember, on the YouTube page, we'll have this drop in Monday early in the afternoon. Great Mike Green to preview the 2026-2027 season.