The Athletic Football Show: A show about the NFL

Get your tickets for our LIVE show at Lincoln Hall: https://lh-st.com/shows/09-01-2026-the-athletic-football-show-with-robert-mays/

King Arthur's Table. Table Mountain. Mesa Verde. Teufelstisch. These are just four famous tables known the world over. Could the TAFS Contender's Table join their ranks? Likely not, but that won't stop us from asking the question. And it certainly won't stop us from bringing back our favorite bit from 2025 with improvements for the 2026 season. Robert Mays, Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman introduce the initial batch of legitimate Super Bowl contenders on this episode of The Athletic Football show by giving 10 teams a Seat at the Table.

Join The Athletic Football Show Discord Server: http://discord.gg/theathleticfootballshow

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Hosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman
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 Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays
Follow Dave on X: @DaveHelman_

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.

Accompanied reading: Arch Manning's potential, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/7510943/2026/08/18/arch-manning-nfl-draft-film-study/
The full set of preseason ranking articles, https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/author/dane-brugler/

The sun is shining, the birds are chirping, and Building the Beast is BACK! Dane Brugler joins Dave Helman to dig into the top prospects at every position for the 2026 season. Arch Manning, Leonard Moore, Xavier Atkins, and so much more.

Join The Athletic Football Show Discord Server: http://discord.gg/theathleticfootballshow

Co-Hosts: Dane Brugler and Dave Helman
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.social
Follow Dave on X: @DaveHelman_
Follow Dane on X: @DPBrulger

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.

We have an astounding 25 new playcallers on either side of the ball in 2026. Mike McDaniel with the Chargers. Jim Leonhard with the Bills. Those two are expected to be among the most important acquisitions of the offseason, players and head coaches included. But they aren't the only ones grabbing our attention. Robert Mays and Derrik Klassen highlight the playcallers in new places they can't wait to watch on this episode of The Athletic Football Show.

0:00 Welcome to the show
2:45 Mike Rutenberg & Cleveland Browns
11:44 Christian Parker & Dallas Cowboys
23:59 Chris O'Leary & Los Angeles Chargers
32:10 Sean Mannion & Philadelphia Eagles
43:52 Tyler Biadasz injury
45:01 Mike McDaniel & Chargers
53:41 Drew Petzing & Detroit Lions
1:04:47 Brian Daboll & Tennessee Titans
1:09:27 Brian Fleury & Seattle Seahawks

Join The Athletic Football Show Discord Server: http://discord.gg/theathleticfootballshow

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Hosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman
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 Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays
Follow Dave on X: @DaveHelman_

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.

Get your tickets for the live show! https://lh-st.com/shows/09-01-2026-the-athletic-football-show-with-robert-mays/

Sure, we could rank the NFL's best offenses from 1 to 15 and then tell you the rankings of each host. But then we wouldn't hear Robert call himself a "spineless piece of shit," we wouldn't hear Dave talk about making an offense out of a "ham bone and a moldy shoe," and we certainly wouldn't hear Derrik agonize over picking another NFC North team. So we're doing it this way. Join Robert Mays, Dave Helman, and Derrik Klassen as they draft the NFL's best offenses for 2026.

0:00 Welcome to the show
3:05 Bills
7:44 Cowboys
13:59 Rams
17:17 Patriots
22:25 Lions
26:31 Bears
34:04 Ravens
40:49 Chargers
45:50 Bengals
52:21 49ers
56:13 Packers
59:47 Jaguars
1:04:07 Chiefs
1:06:21 Vikings
1:09:14 Broncos
1:11:25 Honorable mentions
1:18:37 TAFS live show!

Join The Athletic Football Show Discord Server: http://discord.gg/theathleticfootballshow

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Hosts: Derrik Klassen and Dave Helman
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 Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays
Follow Dave on X: @DaveHelman_

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.

Get your tickets for the live show! https://lh-st.com/shows/09-01-2026-the-athletic-football-show-with-robert-mays/

Good news! All of the good stuff you saw from the players you like and all the bad stuff from players you don't like in preseason is real. But the things that don't affirm your existing opinion? Fake. Not going to happen again. Robert Mays and Dave Helman have a mix of both those opinions and more reactions to the first preseason action of 2026.

0:00 Welcome to the show
3:54 Arizona Cardinals-Las Vegas Raiders
4:30 Jeremiyah Love injury
8:29 Fernando Mendoza
9:52 Jeremiyah Love pre-injury
14:24 Chase Bisontis
15:25 Ty Simpson
16:39 Stetson Bennett
21:16 R Mason Thomas
21:42 Drew Allar
23:50 Jager Burton & Aaron Banks
28:24 Caleb Douglas
28:49 Kadyn Proctor
29:49 De'zhaun Stribling
30:33 Jakobi Lane
32:49 Jack Bech
34:46 Matthew Hibner
37:35 Marlin Klein
39:55 Cincinnati Bengals-Detroit Lions
45:06 Cleveland Browns quarterbacks
52:20 Browns receivers
54:21 Carolina Panthers-Buffalo Bills
56:07 Seattle Seahawks-Dallas Cowboys
56:46 Jamal Adams
57:51 Tennessee Titans-San Francisco 49ers
59:46 Other positive performances

Join The Athletic Football Show Discord Server: http://discord.gg/theathleticfootballshow

Host: Robert Mays
Co-Hosts: Dave Helman
Executive Producer: Michael Beller
Senior Producer: Katy Duffy
Social Producer: Scott Krinch

Follow Robert on Bluesky: @robertmays.bsky.social
Follow Dave on Bluesky: @davehelman.bsky.social
Follow Robert on X: @RobertMays
Follow Dave on X: @DaveHelman_

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.