The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL

For every Will Anderson Jr. and Jaxon Smith-Njigba, there's a Robert Spillane and Parker Washington. In other words, for every superstar who clearly left his mark on a given season, there's a role player who also helped define what the league was, and were it could be going. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen highlight the players who quietly defined the 2025 season on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

Rundown:
0:00 Welcome to the show
3:14 Parker Washington
11:36 Byron Murphy II
19:00 AJ Barner
20:20 Colby Parkinson
28:15 Reed Blankenship & Evan Williams
34:49 Devon Witherspoon
41:45 Robert Spillane
46:30 Kamari Lassiter

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Host: Derrik Klassen
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays

Theme song: Haunted
Written by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love Songs
Courtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the first installment of Lingering Questions this offseason, we cheated by asking the same question about four then-rookie quarterbacks. Now, we're kicking this thing off for real. We still have questions about the Cowboys, Commanders, and 49ers. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen ask - and try to answer - those lingering questions in today's episode of The Athletic Football Show.

Rundown:
0:00 Welcome to the show
3:08 Cowboys offense
23:46 Jayden Daniels & Commanders collapse
39:42 49ers young defenders

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Host: Derrik Klassen
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays

Theme song: Haunted
Written by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love Songs
Courtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

In the second and final edition of our annual Supporting Casts miniseries, we flip our attention over to the NFC where, frankly, things are a whole lot more loaded. Is it as obvious as it might seem at the top? Who was the breakthrough team from last season? How many different times will Derrik Klassen shock Robert Mays? The guys rank the 16 NFC supporting casts on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

0:00 Welcome to the show
3:17 Commanders
5:08 Giants
9:10 Panthers
12:27 Saints
18:27 Cardinals
23:09 Falcons
29:24 Buccaneers
34:17 Packers
42:37 Seahawks
51:06 Lions
57:00 Eagles
1:01:16 Vikings
1:05:50 Cowboys
1:09:10 49ers
1:15:57 Bears
1:19:34 Rams

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Host: Derrik Klassen
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays

Theme song: Haunted
Written by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love Songs
Courtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

They say if you give an NFL team an inch (drafting Ty Simpson), they'll take a mile (trading the farm for Myles Garrett)...isn't that what they say? Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen get to the bottom of just how aggressive is TOO aggressive in today's NFL on this mailbag episode of The Athletic Football Show. They also discuss the most toxic potential pairings for this upcoming season, how to build an ideal edge room, and much more.

Rundown:
0:00 Welcome to the show
0:47 Going “all in”
11:47 Trading stars for premium picks
19:01 Switch order of NFL Draft and free agency?
28:15 Toxic NFL pairings (via Malort infusions)
37:03 Best talent-per-dollar positions
49:44 Building an edge room
55:49 Tone around Declan Doyle vs Mike LaFleur

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Host: Derrik Klassen
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays

Theme song: Haunted
Written by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love Songs
Courtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.

Tight end Charlie Kolar caught 10 passes for 142 yards and two touchdowns last season. In the offseason, he signed a three-year deal with the Chargers that guaranteed him $17 million and put him inside the top-20 earners at the position based on annual average value. How does a guy who puts up in a season what Brock Bowers does in a good week end up as one of the most important players at the position? Allow him to bring you inside the tight end revolution on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

Rundown
0:00 Welcome to the show
4:55 Why are TEs booming?
14:40 Rams impact
16:39 Seahawks impact
17:28 Bears next evolution?
23:03 Value of early downs
31:44 Importance of unpredictability
39:51 Charlie Kolar interview

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Host: Derrik Klassen
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Derrik on Bluesky: @qbklass.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays

Theme song: Haunted
Written by Dylan Slocum, Trevor Dietrich, Ruben Duarte, Kyle McAulay, and Meredith VanWoert / Performed by Spanish Love Songs
Courtesy of Pure Noise / By arrangement with Bank Robber Music, LLC
Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.