NFL All Pro Bobby Wagner on Lamar Jackson, NFC Champion pick, Pete Carroll, Raheem Morris Legion of Boom defense & Super Bowl.

FOLLOW THE PIVOT PODCAST: MERCH | https://pivotpodcast.com YOUTUBE | https://www.youtube.com/thepivotpodcast INSTAGRAM | https://instagram.com/thepivot TWITTER | https://twitter.com/thepivot TIKTOK | https://tiktok.com/@thepivot FACEBOOK | https://www.facebook.com/thepivotpodcast Ryan, Channing and Fred sit down with Bobby to talk about his insane NFL career despite setbacks and loss along the way and the Super Bowl champ gives his pick for NFC championship and talks why Lamar Jackson is a his year’s MVP. With Championship Sunday this wknd, Bobby speaks through experiences of playing the NFC West rival 49ers and why it’s Detroit he will be rooting for as well as 2 of the leagues best QBs going at it in the AFC with Lamar Jackson and Patrick Mahomes, he breaks it down with the guys. Winning a Super Bowl, Bobby knows the discipline and preparation necessary to be on that level and talks through what made his defensive unit one of the best in NFL history and also talks about how he felt it would last for years until his team came up short of another Lombardi trophy. He shares how much Pete Carroll helped him stay the course of his career and how an unexpected person outside of football taught him he needed to work harder to be the best as he shares the story of the night he watched Beyoncé perform and how it changed him. With a tough start in football and being underestimated, Bobby talks about how the loss of his mother has shaped the player and man he is today and why it’s equally important to be just as successful off the field as on. When Bobby was a freshman at Utah State, his mom suffered a stroke leading to her passing. Bobby talked to the guys about her impact on him and how she is his biggest motivation to always be the best version of himself. New episodes drop on Tuesdays at 12 p.m. ET and Fridays at 3:30 p.m ET on YouTube, with audio available on all streaming platforms including Apple, Spotify and Amazon. Learn more about your ad choices. Visit megaphone.fm/adchoices

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:01Speaker 00

  Having uncontrolled eosinophilic esophagitis, or E O E, can mean you're stuck in many ways. Like cutting your food into tiny pieces.

• 0:11Speaker 00

  Or stuck, chewing food for a long time.

• 0:15Speaker 00

  Dupixent, Dupilumab, a prescription medicine for patients one year and older weighing at least 33 pounds, can help with that. It's a breakthrough treatment that can reduce inflammation in the esophagus and improve swallowing.

• 0:28Speaker 00

  How about this? Dupixent is not a steroid. It proactively treats E O E, so you can get ahead of it.

• 0:34Speaker 01

  Severe allergic reactions, including skin reactions, can occur. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing or wheezing, or swelling of your face, mouth, tongue, or throat. Tell your doctor of newer worsening joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection, or asthma. Don't change or stop other treatments without talking to your doctor.

• 0:49Speaker 00

  Feeling stuck with E O E? Start treating with Dupixent. Talk to your gastroenterologist or allergist today about Dupixent. Learn more at dupixent.com or call 1-844-DUPIXENT.

• 1:00Fred Taylor?

  Like, support black companies.

• 1:03Channing Crowder?

  I appreciate you coming on, brother. Shut up, man. They snuck up.

• 1:07Ryan Clark?

  Those customs, bruh. Those customs.

• 1:09Fred Taylor?

  What's up, man?

• 1:10Ryan Clark?

  Little Jordan, you know what I mean?

• 1:11Fred Taylor?

  What's up, bro?

• 1:12Ryan Clark?

  Jordan, you know what I'm saying? Jordan's kinda helped me out a little bit. You know, man, when you a special guy... Are you a Jordan guy? I am. Oh, yeah. Brand Jordan, you know what I mean? They get all the joints like we don't get.

• 1:22Fred Taylor?

  So that's straight from Jordan like that?

• 1:25Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, they sent these, for sure.

• 1:27Fred Taylor?

  God, that's lovely.

• 1:28Speaker 05

  I had a Nike deal. Open them up in the box.

• 1:30Ryan Clark?

  That's a different deal. Lamar Woodley was a Jordan guy.

• 1:34Speaker 05

  Oh, yeah.

• 1:35Ryan Clark?

  And he said that, like, monthly, he'd just get a shipment at the house of...

• 1:39Speaker 05

  It's like quarterly.

• 1:40Ryan Clark?

  Quarterly, okay.

• 1:41Speaker 05

  The big boxes.

• 1:42Fred Taylor?

  A lot of merch?

• 1:43Speaker 05

  Lot of merch, shoes. Uh, sometimes it's... Like, we get Jays, like, maybe three months in advance.

• 1:50Channing Crowder?

  How they just dropped a new pair for my six rings is...

• 1:52Fred Taylor?

  They just dropped some cool grays on Nike.

• 1:54Channing Crowder?

  See?

• 1:55Ryan Clark?

  Bobby is a Jordan guy, and he wouldn't wear six rings. They care me about my six rings.

• 2:00Speaker 05

  Six rings, sir.

• 2:03Ryan Clark?

  This man, a Jordan guy, doesn't even know what a six rings Jordan is. I'm just kidding, I'm just kidding. I'm just kidding. Because when they send them, when they send those to Bobby's house, he sends them back.

• 2:14Channing Crowder?

  They made me throw out all my, well, give away all my six rings. They got on me so bad. Had everybody on me about my six rings.

• 2:21Ryan Clark?

  Whenever they start, like, creating and melding different Jordans together, that's the ones you don't want.

• 2:26Channing Crowder?

  You know what, the fusions?

• 2:28Ryan Clark?

  That's your favorites?

• 2:29Channing Crowder?

  I thought they were hard until, oh, boy, they were on me for about four, five episodes on me.

• 2:33Ryan Clark?

  Bobby, he wear mids.

• 2:35Channing Crowder?

  I didn't know mids wasn't cool. They're half the price.

• 2:41Ryan Clark?

  Okay.

• 2:43Ryan Clark?

  Hey, look, I'm on, I'm on your team.

• 2:45Channing Crowder?

  Appreciate you, brother.

• 3:10Ryan Clark?

  Welcome to The Pivot, Bobby, man. It's exciting to have you, especially still during football season. So I know this is incredibly tough time for you to do it because this is normally when you guys get to rest and sort of recuperate. You're a West Coast guy, so to come way out here to the East Coast, we appreciate you. Freddie T, my dog Chan, I'm RC. Welcome to The Pivot. Thank you, guys, for tapping in. And I said it to you when we talked earlier, truly, I believe, when you talk about the Seattle Seahawks and the Legion of Boom, the first name that should be mentioned is Bobby Wagner. I think what was amazing about that era of that team was y'all had so many leaders, right? And so many of the top players at their position. But to me, it all started with you.

• 3:55Ryan Clark?

  I appreciate that. And so, you know, I think it's cool to get an opportunity to see sort of where all of that grows. I say all that to say I want to talk about being in Los Angeles, though, and not about playing for the Rams and being a guy that's from there. On game day, having an opportunity to drive past Inglewood Park Cemetery. And always remembering that she lives.

• 4:18Ryan Clark?

  There is what you said, not lived. Talk a little bit about just what your mother meant to you and sort of what that year was like, knowing that you take that drive every day.

• 4:29Speaker 05

  It meant the world to me. I remember the first time when I was in Seattle and we played for the first time at that arena. And I didn't realize how close it was. I kind of just put it into my phone just to see what the distance was. And it was like maybe .5 miles or something like that. And so, you know, I think she's always, you know what I'm saying, present in me. And so be able to come there. And I always try to like visit before I go into the season. So that season was different because I got a chance to, like you said, I drove by every single day. So I stopped there often. I spent a lot of time there, especially when the season wasn't going the way we planned it. I might have stopped there a little bit more often.

• 5:13Speaker 05

  But she's been, she was such an intricate part in my success. And I try to give her a flowers as much as I can.

• 5:21Ryan Clark?

  Like you said, having opportunities to go there more. Or, you know, like you say, you visit before the season. You know, I know for me, whenever I do, and my mom's still here, but whenever I do lose a loved one and I am standing in front of their gravesite, I have a conversation. You know, and I share things that I'd want to share with them if they were still here. That normally goes in the same vein of the conversations we had when they were alive. What are some of those conversations you share when you get an opportunity to visit?

• 5:57Speaker 05

  I think it's kind of like you said, it's just a normal conversation. It's almost like their spirit is present. You know, just the physical part of them is not there. And so it's just conversations, big and small, like issues or just having a conversation because it's a voice that you don't get to hear anymore. But you remember, you know, what the responses would be like, you know, if you were able to have that conversation. So it's pretty much anything. You know, she was my best friend and meant the world to me. So it's like funny, when I did go back, I was trying to find my old cellphone so I could charge it and listen to some of the voicemails that she left before. And so it's.

• 6:42Speaker 05

  It's a thing. I don't think, you know, it ever goes away to an extent. But you try to be a bright extension of what their legacy is.

• 6:53Channing Crowder?

  I love that.

• 6:53Fred Taylor?

  Was that your one of the, or the toughest time to, that going through that?

• 7:00Speaker 05

  For sure. That was definitely my toughest time just because I was, I think I was like 18. So I was living in California. Then I got a scholarship to Utah State. So I go to Utah State. I've never been anywhere near snow before. Never even knew what it looked like. All I saw was from cartoons and movies. And in that first year, you know, you get that phone call that, you know, she had an accident and you need to come down here quick. You know, it was definitely one of the toughest things I had to deal with. But I think it also made me stronger.

• 7:38Fred Taylor?

  Your journey to Utah State, you were a two-star recruit.

• 7:41Speaker 05

  That's what they said.

• 7:42Fred Taylor?

  That's what they said. What was your motivation, like just coming up, your upbringing? What inspired you to get into football? And what became your ultimate motivation?

• 7:52Speaker 05

  I think the biggest thing was I just wanted to get out of the situation I was in. And I wanted to, you know, put food on my family's table and things of that nature. So that was like, we didn't, I didn't know about stars until I got to Utah State. I didn't even know I was a two-star or anything. And so I didn't really care about that. I was just trying to make it out. The motivation honestly was conversations that I had with my, with my mom. Like I remember I picked up a job just because I, I wanted to have money of my own. I didn't want to depend on my parents. And it was, it was tough balancing going to the job and football. And then.

• 8:35Speaker 05

  I end up getting fired from the job because I chose football one day over the job. And then, you know, we had this conversation where she was just like, you know, why are you working? And I was like, because I need, I need money. And then she kind of just said, I got you, just focus on this. And so my mind was like, okay, like she's taking care of me. I want to be in a position where I can return that favor.

• 8:56Fred Taylor?

  You said the situation that you were in, you wanted to sort of change that. Could you go deeper? Like, could you expound on that and kind of give us a visual?

• 9:06Speaker 05

  I just was like, I was tired of like not having any money. I was tired of being dependent on other people. I was kind of, growing up, I always knew I was, I felt different, but I always wanted to have my own. And unfortunately, because of my age at the time, I couldn't work. And so the moment I was able to work, I wanted to kind of get from underneath my parents and not have to rely on them financially. And, you know, just I didn't want to ask for anything. I wanted to be able to provide for myself. And I just wanted to get away with that. And then I saw, I was fortunate enough to have both my parents, but I saw a lot of my friends, you know, didn't even have a mother or a father. You know what I'm saying?

• 9:48Speaker 05

  So I saw the way that they were taking care of their mothers, the ways they was doing it. And I wanted to do it in a brighter spot.

• 9:56Ryan Clark?

  I was messing with you earlier and I was like, hey, man, is your name Robert? And you told me an interesting tidbit about your father's name, your name, and your brother. Can you, one, tell us all their names? And how the hell does that happen? Why, how did they come up with that?

• 10:15Speaker 05

  That, that's not a question for me. But my, my name's Bobby. My brother's name is Robert and my dad's name is Bobby. My dad's name is Bobby Joe. I'm Bobby Joseph. And then throw my brother in there, he's like Robert Deshaun, so he went.

• 10:32Ryan Clark?

  But most times dudes who we call Bobby, their real name is Robert. So your pops' real name is Bobby and your real name is Bobby, obviously.

• 10:40Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 10:40Ryan Clark?

  And so he was just like, well, since Bobby is short for Robert, I can name my youngest son Robert and not everybody got the same name?

• 10:49Speaker 05

  You know, it's funny though, I never even thought that was a thing until I got to like high school. And the teacher kept saying, Robert Wagner, I wouldn't respond.

• 11:01Speaker 05

  And then like she looked at me like, why are you not responding? I'm like, cause that's not my name. My name is Bobby. She's like, I'm pretty sure it's Robert on your birth certificate. And I'm like, it's not. It's Bobby on my birth certificate. I haven't seen my birth certificate, but I know it's not that. Cause my brother's name is Robert. So I don't know what the thought process was. But yeah, when I was younger, I used to get offended. Cause I thought people were calling me by a different name. But now I realize as I got older, it was actually short for Robert. But it don't make no sense. Cause Bobby is five letters. And Robert is more than five letters. So I don't see the shortness.

• 11:39Channing Crowder?

  I can speak on this, cause it's really just some country shit. Cause I named my, my first son Randolph Channing Crowder to myself. Then I had a second son, but Randolph is going in his name. So he's Chad Lee Randolph Crowder. So it's really just country shit. You wanna keep your lineage going, your name going. It's, I'm, I, I can answer it. We can holler at your daddy, but I, I think I know the answer.

• 12:00Speaker 05

  I'll ask him. I don't know if that's gonna be the answer.

• 12:02Ryan Clark?

  So his, so his pops name is, cause his name is Randolph. Right? His pops name is Randolph.

• 12:07Channing Crowder?

  I'm Junior. And I got, and I got a third, but now we three Randolphs. I can't leave my baby out of Randolph. That's just a prestigious name. So I had to throw Randolph on him too.

• 12:17Speaker 05

  Somehow, some way.

• 12:18Channing Crowder?

  Somehow, some way.

• 12:19Speaker 05

  I'll ask and I'll get back to you.

• 12:22Ryan Clark?

  You, um, you know, you mentioned Utah State. And you going to school there is one of those things that I think in the future will become sort of a trivia question. Right? When, when you go into the, the Hall of Fame, when they put up all your all pros and your pro bowls and Super Bowl champions, they're gonna be like, guess the player of school? And people are gonna be like USC, right? Cause you're from California. They're gonna say all of these bigger schools. But you went to Utah State, you become a star there, you're drafted in the early rounds. What was the experience like acclimating to school there? Because it's a, it's one, a different culture. It's obviously a different climate. But how were you able to acclimate to now being away from home? Where you did have both parents.

• 13:07Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 13:07Ryan Clark?

  Where not everyone has that. To being in a spot by yourself amongst a lot of people who aren't really like you.

• 13:15Speaker 05

  I think it was an adjustment for sure. I think the weather was the toughest thing for me because it, it was. You know, zero degrees or something like that. I have never even touched that in California whatsoever. So to me, the weather was different. There was different religion was there. The religious, I've never heard of the religion that everybody practiced down there. And then obviously, the demographic was different.

• 13:39Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 13:39Speaker 05

  But looking at it now, I think it kind of made me better because, you know, I'm coming in. I was seventeen, turning eighteen. But the people I was playing against was like twenty-one, twenty-two, twenty-three, because they were all going on missions.

• 13:53Ryan Clark?

  Okay.

• 13:53Speaker 05

  And so their freshman year was like twenty-one versus mine was eighteen. So I'm playing against people much older than me. And gaining that experience in a different way that I might not have.

• 14:07Ryan Clark?

  Right.

• 14:08Speaker 05

  Going to the regular schools.

• 14:09Fred Taylor?

  So you played tight end in high school, too?

• 14:11Speaker 05

  I did.

• 14:12Fred Taylor?

  Whose decision was it to make you full-time linebacker once you got to Utah State?

• 14:17Speaker 05

  I think it was a combination between minds and some of my coaches. But honestly, it was more so I would get so frustrated in high school because the quarterback wouldn't throw me the ball. And so I remember going to like practice one day and I was just like, all right, I'm just gonna try this one hand every, uh, every ball at practice. Just so like, I'm good, throw me the ball. And so I got frustrated that like my success relied on this guy getting me the ball. Versus playing linebacker, my effort was all on me. I can get to, I can get to the ball or I can get my hands on the ball just by my effort.

• 15:00Speaker 05

  And so it was more so just wanting to control my fate a little bit more. And I feel like linebacker, you can do that.

• 15:06Channing Crowder?

  You went to Utah State and there's gonna be a question when you go in the Hall of Fame. It's gonna be one of those trivia questions. Now that you know ball, why did you have to go to Utah State? Were you a late developer? You know, could you not like, there's a reason you went.

• 15:19Ryan Clark?

  He just said he couldn't get open at tight end. So many words.

• 15:23Speaker 05

  That's not what I, that's not.

• 15:24Ryan Clark?

  So many words, he was like, I couldn't really create separation.

• 15:28Speaker 05

  We're gonna look at these cameras and the playback's gonna be crazy because how you flip that up is nuts.

• 15:35Speaker 05

  Which is funny because I met Pete Carroll my junior year. He was recruiting, uh, one of my friends, Omar Bowden, a running back. And he just thought I wasn't big enough. And so coming to the senior year, you know, you try to put a little bit of weight and all these different things, but still, nothing. And Utah State was my only offer. And then, fast forward, the how I got the Utah State offer, I didn't even know until we won the Super Bowl, where my coach, you know, my high school coach tells me, you know, "Come, talk to the kids" and stuff like that. So I come down there and he tells me about this Stanford story. And I'm, the Stanford story, I always thought was, in high school, you know, you have the TA class where you don't really have to go.

• 16:19Speaker 05

  I had it first period. So basically, you get to sleep. And so, I'm asleep like I normally sleep. And I wake up to, you know, like 300 calls, maybe 200 text messages. And my coach was trying to get me to come up to the school because Stanford had came to visit and they wanted to talk to me. So I got dressed as fast as I can. I went, got there, but by the time I got there, they were gone. And he was upset, like he was pissed that I wasn't at school. And so I'm thinking it's that. And later on, when I'm at this event, he tell me the real story, which I didn't know, was he was at this coaching convention. And he was sitting at this table, and I think Jim Harbaugh,

• 17:03Speaker 05

  who's the Stanford coach, he was talking to him about linebackers. And he was like, "Hey, I got this linebacker. You should come get him, blah, blah, blah." He's like, "No, I'm good. We're good at linebacker." And so I guess he left from that spot and walked over to the Utah State guy and said, "Hey, that guy over there is about to offer my guy if you don't get on it." So Utah State offered me because they thought Stanford was about to offer me. Man, you should have hugged your coach so tight. A hundred percent, but I didn't know that story. So when he told me, because I didn't want to go at first because I didn't want to go to Utah. And so, I remember being in a room and I told him, "Man, I don't got any other offers. Like, we can't get something else."

• 17:45Speaker 05

  And I remember how mad he was and how he stormed out the room. And I didn't understand why he was so upset until probably like 10 years later. Because he was ungrateful. That's a way to look at it.

• 17:59Fred Taylor?

  They pulled the Drew Rosenhaus move.

• 18:02Speaker 05

  It's something like that.

• 18:03Fred Taylor?

  Willis McGahey on draft day.

• 18:05Speaker 05

  With Buffalo.

• 18:06Fred Taylor?

  Yeah, with Buffalo.

• 18:07Speaker 05

  Mm-hmm.

• 18:07Fred Taylor?

  He told him, just act like you're on the phone. You know, and they pretend to call each other as if he was gonna be drafted next because teams watch.

• 18:15Speaker 05

  Live feed.

• 18:16Fred Taylor?

  The live feed. So Buffalo was like, no, we gotta get in there and they wanted him, they ended up picking him. But I want to ask you, you said Pete Carroll came to recruit Omar Bolden.

• 18:25Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 18:26Fred Taylor?

  What was the conversation like between you and Pete? Once you, you know, uh, once he became your coach with Seattle?

• 18:34Speaker 05

  Well, the first time I saw him, um, after all them years, I definitely brought that up. How he passed up on me, um, in high school, but, I mean, he got it right. And so.

• 18:43Fred Taylor?

  He did.

• 18:44Speaker 05

  It was just cool being around him. Obviously, growing up in California, you saw all the success they had at SC. You know, they were coming off a decent season the year before and he was always a fun, charismatic guy, like wanted to play around. Like when I came into the league, I had this perception of like it was gonna be serious, strict, no play. If you don't do your job, you getting cut type situation. And when we got there, it was the first meeting, it's loud music, then they turn the loud music off. Then it's, you know, basketball, uh, competitions and I'm just like, this can't be the NFL. Like this is, this is college. We did this in college. And it just worked perfect for our group because we had a lot of young guys. I believe I was like 21, 22.

• 19:29Speaker 05

  KJ was 22, give or take. Cam, Sherm, Earl, those guys were probably around 23. We was all the same age. And so we weren't too far removed from, from college. So we just fit right in with what he was trying to do.

• 19:43Fred Taylor?

  You'll never hear anybody say anything bad about Coach Carroll. You know, he learned from being an old Patriots coach, going down to college, then coming back to the league. He understood what environment was about. You know, and all of the guys that I know that have played for him wouldn't want to trade him in as a coach for anything in the world. He'll always be a legendary coach in my eyes and I, I've only met him once. But according to all the other guys, like they wouldn't want to, you know, have anyone else coach them ever.

• 20:14Speaker 05

  I mean, I can see that because, you know, I think what Pete. Did was he brought the best out of you, whatever that was. Like, he never, he never wanted you to change who you were. He wants you to be who you were, but he wants you to be the best version of yourself. And so if he was loud, be the best loud person that he's ever seen. If he was quiet, if he was focused, if he was whatever, like, he wanted you to be that best person. I think that's why he brought the best out of everybody. And so I would say I was fortunate to be able to play with him for all those years.

• 20:44Ryan Clark?

  The play on the field of the Legion of Boom, you mentioned some of those names, the Cam's, the KJ's, and all of you guys was something we just all enjoyed, right? We felt like, I remember being at the Pro Bowl with, that was the year, I think, Brandon, but Brandon Browner had made it, I think just before you, Brandon Browner made it. It was Earl's year there, and they was just saying, like, we are going to be the next defense. Because at that time, the Pittsburgh Steelers were. And they were like, we're going to be the next. And then they add you. What was just the environment of competition like? What was the environment of work like during the time that your defense was the Legion of Boom?

• 21:28Ryan Clark?

  Because not only did you guys have great players, y'all had characters. And y'all had, like, monumental moments that didn't involve football. Whether it was, you know, whether it was Sher or Earl, Cam, you know, Marshawn. Just what was that run like for you, just being with those people?

• 21:46Speaker 05

  I think being in it, you didn't appreciate what was going on because you thought it was gonna last forever. And even, you know, when we got to the point where we had to get paid and things of that nature, we was able to work it out, so we extended it, you know, even longer than what people, you know, had said. The environment, though, was crazy, like, everybody's coming to be the best. Like, I wanted to be the best linebacker, Earl wanted to be the best safety, Cam wanted to be the best safety, Mike B wanted to be the best, Marshawn wanted to be the best. And so when you go out there and you practicing against people that want to be the best, they bring the best out of you. And so it was a fun environment, and like you said, we had a bunch of characters. So, you know, the conversations were crazy, obviously the practice was crazy,

• 22:30Speaker 05

  the constant fights that we probably got in early on was crazy, but it was expected. And, you know, I think- It was all out of love, you know, so anytime you got into it with somebody you knew is because they want you, you said that you wanted to be the best.

• 22:45Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 22:45Speaker 05

  And maybe that day you wasn't acting like the best, or you weren't pursuing yourself, or pushing yourself to be the best. And so, you knew it was out of love. And so, when we got in those tough moments in the game, people knew how to push and get the best out of one another. And it was like the perfect group for that time.

• 23:03Ryan Clark?

  When Snap goes over Peyton Manning's head.

• 23:08Speaker 00

  Having uncontrolled eosinophilic esophagitis, or E O E, can mean you're stuck in many ways, like cutting your food into tiny pieces.

• 23:18Speaker 00

  Or stuck, chewing food for a long time.

• 23:22Speaker 00

  Dupixent Dupilumab, a prescription medicine for patients one year and older weighing at least 33 pounds, can help with that. It's a breakthrough treatment that can reduce inflammation in the esophagus and improve swallowing.

• 23:35Speaker 00

  How about this? Dupixent is not a steroid. It proactively treats E O E, so you can get ahead of it.

• 23:40Speaker 01

  Severe allergic reactions, including skin reactions, can occur. Get help right away if you have trouble breathing, or wheezing, or swelling of your face, mouth, tongue, or throat. Tell your doctor of newer worsening joint aches and pain, or a parasitic infection, or asthma. Don't change or stop other treatments without talking to your doctor.

• 23:55Speaker 00

  Feeling stuck with E O E? Start treating with Dupixent. Talk to your gastroenterologist or allergist today about Dupixent. Learn more at dupixent.com or call 1-844-DUPIXENT.

• 24:07Ryan Clark?

  And it's the Super Bowl. Did y'all know then it was over?

• 24:11Speaker 05

  Nah, we knew going into the week before. We knew we was gonna win going into the week.

• 24:15Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, like there's winning a football game, Bobby, and then there's like barely even playing a football game. Cause it wasn't hard for y'all that day. There's no way you're going against Peyton Manning, who's had an MVP season, and you're walking into the stadium or practicing that week. So, me and you've been to Super Bowls, they haven't. So, we gonna turn this way and just have this conversation, together.

• 24:39Speaker 05

  That's kinda crazy, but.

• 24:40Ryan Clark?

  Yeah. Disrespectful, ain't it? Just disrespect.

• 24:43Speaker 05

  Guess y'all let that happen.

• 24:46Ryan Clark?

  You know, like I know what that week is like. Going, you said going into the week, going into the game, y'all knew y'all would win.

• 24:53Speaker 05

  Yeah, cause we was in New York. And you know, we got there the week before. And you see the team, obviously, the team's not far from where you at. So when you're going out, different places and stuff, you see them. And we, the way they was carrying themselves that, we just knew they weren't focused. They wasn't as focused as we were. They was more interested in all the other stuff that was going on, like the events. Like I knew, I mean, a couple of those guys had events, you know, leading up into the week. And we just wasn't on that. We was just, we was there to win. And so, we may have went to a basketball game. If that, we just didn't feel like, you know, they was as focused as we were.

• 25:32Channing Crowder?

  It was a business trip for y'all.

• 25:34Speaker 05

  I remember the week before, obviously, before we go out there, I've been watching the film. And, you know, from watching the film, we felt like if we all did our jobs, it was gonna be good. But then when we saw how they was, you know, kinda moving around during, during that week, we knew that. The moment we get out there, we was gonna win. And then when the ball went over their head, it was like, this is what we was talking about. Like, that's not happening if you focused. Like, it, it was over.

• 25:57Channing Crowder?

  It's, it's one thing being good, being a top defense. Y'all were feared. Like, did y'all, did y'all- Was that killers? Like, did y'all embrace, did y'all know and embrace that? Like, y'all were feared. People were going on the field, looking out like, damn, if B-Wag hit me, it might be over for me.

• 26:14Speaker 05

  We, we were very confident. And you could say too, like, if you looked at our defense, we didn't, we didn't run too much crazy stuff at you. Like, you knew we were, we were probably 90% cover three.

• 26:29Ryan Clark?

  Mm-hmm.

• 26:30Speaker 05

  And we just ran every variation of cover three that you possibly knew. So you knew where we were gonna be at. It's just you had to make the play. And we felt confidently that we were gonna make the play more times than not than you were gonna make the play. And so, it was more of a thing, like, who's gonna make it this week? Like, you gonna be it, Sherm? Or is it gonna be me? Is it gonna be Cam? Like, we just knew that. Somebody's gonna make a play, and there was a competition on who made the play first.

• 26:57Channing Crowder?

  And can, cause it's called Legion of Boom. Can that ever happen again? Because I don't think, I don't, in this day and age of football, I don't know if that defense is as good because everybody's getting fined. Cam for sure getting fined.

• 27:12Speaker 05

  Cam, Cam getting fined. Sharon might be getting fined because of what he said, not because necessarily what he did. Earl probably get fined. We'll get fined, but we adapt. I think we was a group that could adapt.

• 27:24Channing Crowder?

  You done it.

• 27:25Speaker 05

  Yeah, I was about to say. You know what I mean? So, I think we could do it.

• 27:28Channing Crowder?

  Was it tough for you to do? Because you, you can't say certain things. Head hunter, kill the head, the body. You can't say old style football stuff like that. But I've watched you, I love linebacker play. What have you done to not get those fines? Because you still knock the hell out of people, but you ain't giving them all your money back either.

• 27:47Speaker 05

  I just, I always felt like you try to, you know, I try to hit with my shoulders. I feel like I work out my shoulders so much, why hit with my face? And so, to me, it's just practicing on the target. I never really, like, growing up, when we was coming into the game, they was teaching, hit with your head. And I'm just like, well, you not walking away from the game with your head. Like, you walking away from the game, like, kind of messed up. So, I don't want to do that. And, you know.

• 28:14Channing Crowder?

  His shoulders is this wide. We didn't need that disclaimer.

• 28:19Speaker 05

  I mean, I work out. You know what I mean? I work out.

• 28:21Channing Crowder?

  His shoulders this wide, though.

• 28:22Speaker 05

  I work out.

• 28:23Fred Taylor?

  I want to state something for the record. He said, "Everybody fear y'all." I used to watch the games on my couch. I wanted some of that action. So, I ain't fear y'all, but I wasn't there.

• 28:35Speaker 05

  I feel it. I don't think you would have had that many yards, though.

• 28:40Fred Taylor?

  See what I'm saying?

• 28:41Speaker 05

  You wouldn't have had that many yards, for sure.

• 28:43Fred Taylor?

  I wasn't 63. I'm not 63. You like to talk about my age, huh? Yeah, let's go one on one right here. No, nah, I used to sit on the couch like, damn, they look so good out there. But that's what you want, like, the Pittsburgh Steelers. Teams that bring out the best in you. And we just talked last week on our three man show, where I said, "I don't have many moments where I miss the game." You guys were so good that I wanted to get out there like, damn, I can, but I knew I couldn't. But in my mind, I felt like it would have been nice for that challenge, man. Because down in history, the 2000 Ravens, the '02 Bucks, you guys, the Steelers, 85 Bears. It's not, it's not that many great defenses.

• 29:28Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 29:29Fred Taylor?

  When you get a nickname, you know it's legendary. Steel Curtain.

• 29:34Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 29:34Fred Taylor?

  You know what I'm saying? You guys, you's fucking legendary.

• 29:37Speaker 05

  I think the nickname was more though DBs though, to be honest. I think over time it it became.

• 29:42Ryan Clark?

  The tired.

• 29:43Speaker 05

  Everybody, but at first I feel like it was more so Sherem Cam, Earl, BB, or you know, whomever was the the second uh next corner. And so it took it took everybody else kind of a minute to kind of embrace that because it was more of a the secondary. You know, when you heard Legion of Boom, you thought of that secondary. And so in essence, it could have motivated the rest of the group too that, you know, you wanted to kind of make a name for yourself. Um, but I think in a way it was all it was all positive.

• 30:15Fred Taylor?

  I am a running back. I never went into the game thinking about the secondary.

• 30:20Speaker 05

  You didn't play you didn't play Cam Chancellor though. Cam Chancellor coming in the box.

• 30:25Fred Taylor?

  I played Troy Palamalu.

• 30:26Speaker 05

  He not Cam. I no disrespect to Cam at all. I mean to Troy.

• 30:29Fred Taylor?

  And no, no, I love Cam's game and I know he knocked out plenty of guys.

• 30:33Speaker 05

  It's not even that is is Cam was six, one, two, forty. He played in the block, the box majority of the time. Like he was just different. It wasn't like most safeties not coming in the box like a linebacker.

• 30:47Fred Taylor?

  Right.

• 30:47Speaker 05

  Like he was. And so I just think that that he had a di- a different aspect to the game.

• 30:51Ryan Clark?

  I know Vernon Davis has to hate him.

• 30:54Fred Taylor?

  Yeah.

• 30:54Ryan Clark?

  Boy, he used to give Vernon Davis the blues, boy.

• 30:59Fred Taylor?

  This was a time I just wanted to give you.

• 31:01Ryan Clark?

  Cam was crazy.

• 31:02Fred Taylor?

  I wanted to give you your flowers.

• 31:03Speaker 05

  I appreciate it.

• 31:04Fred Taylor?

  Because even with that, you could hear Bobby Wagner and that's kind of what made me stand up because I knew what you brought to the table. And even a guy who was considered a two star, no going second round, you're ten time uh all pro. That that doesn't happen. Uh, I I forget how many Pro Bowls you have. Uh, you had over. A hundred tackles per season for 12 straight seasons. Every year you've been in the game, which is crazy as shit. You know, and you had a chip on your shoulder when you left Seattle to go to LA, come back to Seattle just to show them that you still can do it and you did it, earning a Pro Bowl. So even going back to those days when I thought I can hop off my couch, you that same player.

• 31:48Fred Taylor?

  And that's been since, what was that, the 15 season?

• 31:51Ryan Clark?

  Baller, man.

• 31:52Fred Taylor?

  So I just want to give you a flower, bro. I ain't think about them not disrespecting them, but I know where the shit come from on the defense.

• 32:00Ryan Clark?

  Channing would always tell us about practicing with Ronnie Brown and Ricky Williams. And he played with Junior Seau. And he said Junior Seau, man, would try to fit up Ricky Williams at practice. Ricky was running too hard, he'd throw his helmet, he'd get mad, get off the field. Did you ever have any of those sorts of battles with Marshawn? Because we would always just say, offensively and defensively, iron sharp as iron. Right when we were in training camp, like I wanted the offense to try to score. I wanted them to go hard because I wanted to be able to believe in him. As a backer, having an opportunity to see Marshawn, you know, daily in training camp. What were those experiences like?

• 32:37Speaker 05

  Marshawn helped my game so much, especially as a rookie and my second year as well. Because oftentimes when you think of Marshawn, you think of, you know, him running everybody over. But he's also really good at setting up his blocks. And so I just remember being at practice and thinking I had him and then he would disappear. And he would be gone. And so, you know, I would go over to him, I would ask him like, like what you saw on that? And he would just tell me like the way I stacked my alignment, the way the offensive line was flowing. He just like set me up into the gap and then he knew where the hole was going to be, you know, after he did that. And I was just like, dang, I didn't realize anybody thought like that from.

• 33:21Speaker 05

  The other side, like I didn't think that they was reading the way that we were reading. And so, you know, I felt like it started allowing me to set up blocks too, where I would make you think the hole was open and then I would meet you there. And so, you know, he helped me out a lot, just that was the battle. It was like more like a chess piece. It wasn't more so physicality, it was more so like, you know, alright, I'm not gonna let him beat me with one of these jump cuts today. And I'm not gonna let him set me up, I'm gonna see if I can set him up today.

• 33:49Ryan Clark?

  Why didn't you tell Coach to give him the ball then?

• 33:52Speaker 05

  Hey, that's above my pay grade, brother. You know what I'm saying? Hey, look, that's your two, right? Still trying to figure it out. Not gonna walk up to Pete and tell him that. But everybody in the building knows.

• 34:06Ryan Clark?

  Bro, when you are on the sideline, like the best, the best visual from the Malcolm Butler interception is Sherm's face.

• 34:15Speaker 05

  Right.

• 34:16Ryan Clark?

  Like Sherm was in between disbelief and distraught, so he had the ugly cry face with no tears.

• 34:23Speaker 05

  Right.

• 34:24Ryan Clark?

  You know what I mean?

• 34:24Speaker 05

  We saw it.

• 34:25Ryan Clark?

  And they show it all the time.

• 34:26Speaker 05

  It's a meme. I use it sometimes.

• 34:29Ryan Clark?

  When you use it, do you still feel it?

• 34:31Speaker 05

  I send it to Sherm sometimes. If Sherm texts me and he say something crazy, and I can't, I'm in disbelief of what he said, I send him that.

• 34:39Ryan Clark?

  When that happens though, bro, cuz you, you, you, you know, you have the ball that tips and you catch it, you put yourself in position to score. Malcolm Butler, honestly too, I think it, everybody focuses on Marsha not getting it. It was actually just a hell of a play.

• 34:54Speaker 05

  Right.

• 34:54Ryan Clark?

  Two by Malcolm Butler. You have to be thinking to yourself, oh, this is number two. You know, we're gonna win this game. When that moment happens, what's your initial thought?

• 35:05Speaker 05

  It was so much that led up to that moment, that, you know, the cursed catch. You know, the, it was a bunch of plays that led to that moment. So by the time we got there. You know, you just think like, man, this has happened so many times throughout this season. Even if you look at the last game, it's, you know, we threw like five interceptions and, or we had five turnovers and we weren't supposed to win and they do a onside kick, the dude doesn't block it right, we get the ball, then, you know.

• 35:36Ryan Clark?

  And that was Green Bay.

• 35:37Speaker 05

  Yep, and then, you know, Russ throws the pass, touchdown. So, it was just like, oh, here we go again, we about to, we about to win. And then, when they don't get it, honestly, if I remember, I remember I looked directly at Marshawn. Because I feel like a lot of the reaction to the situation was based off of how he felt. You know what I mean? And he kind of was just like, you know, he kind of just like, kind of like, ah, I seen this coming. And he, he already to an extent had already moved past it to a extent by the time we got in the locker room. So, the initial, it was like shock, like dang, I can't believe, like, we were that close. Um, and then I think, right after, you know, they come out, they knee, I think we get in

• 36:19Speaker 05

  a fight before the thing, so then it turns into that, it's like, alright, let's not get suspended for the next season. And it was just tough, it was a tough one to overcome. I still feel like we, we never fully recovered. But I don't think that was the, the thing that kind of took its toll on us.

• 36:36Ryan Clark?

  What was the thing that took its toll?

• 36:37Speaker 05

  Uh, I think it was the game before. I think it was the game before. Um, I think defense, you know, we going up against Aaron Rodgers. And we started in the red zone, maybe like the first four or five drives, they had a couple, um, field goals, uh, you know, I think Sherm had a couple picks that game. And I just remember going into the team meeting room the next day, and there was a lot of praise for the offense and by how resilient they were, and then there was, defense need to be better. And, you know, like you said, we have a lot of alpha males in that room, and a lot of those guys didn't take too kindly of, of that, from an accountability standpoint.

• 37:20Ryan Clark?

  How much did that have to do with the quarterback of the team?

• 37:22Speaker 05

  I'm pretty sure that played a part in it, for sure.

• 37:26Ryan Clark?

  Did he really have his office?

• 37:28Speaker 05

  Did he have offense with us?

• 37:29Ryan Clark?

  An office in the vicinity.

• 37:31Speaker 05

  He didn't have an office.

• 37:33Ryan Clark?

  Okay, cuz that was the story was when, when, talking about Russ, right?

• 37:36Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 37:36Ryan Clark?

  When Russ went to Denver, he, that he had an office in Seattle where he was just above the rest of the team.

• 37:43Speaker 05

  He didn't have an office in Seattle. He maybe had a space where, you know, he took care of his body or did some, some work. You know, he had a, um, a PT that he worked with, um, but it wasn't an office. And it was kinda out of the way, so you wouldn't even, it was like a room that was unused. Nobody even thought of that room, and so.

• 38:04Ryan Clark?

  That's a.

• 38:04Speaker 05

  We didn't think of it as, we didn't think of it as nothing. We just looked at it as he was, he was using that space to get ready for the game, just like everybody else.

• 38:12Ryan Clark?

  You know, you talk about taking a toll as a, you know, we had a really good defense too. And sometimes we felt like offense didn't necessarily pull its weight. And there was the, looking at the quarterback and looking at the offense like, okay, man, we winning games 11 to 10. Right? We're, we're winning games 6 to 3. You know, like at some point, you're gonna have to have our backs. How much did that ever become an issue in Seattle during the time of the height of that defense? You know, were there ever conversations of like, man, if the offense does get to this point, we could be this? Or if they were already there, we'd already be this?

• 38:56Ryan Clark?

  Or did you guys just look at it like, man, look, if they don't score, they don't win?

• 39:01Speaker 05

  I think that was more of our thought process. Cuz we were wanting to be a really, really great defense. And you watch all of the defense that we've talked about. And if you even listen to some of the soundbites that you had from the Ravens, they'd be like, all we need is 3 points. Like, we don't need the offense to score that many points. So it was more of a mentality thing. We didn't really focus on what they were doing.

• 39:26Speaker 05

  We wanted to make sure that the other team didn't score points. And how can we be the reason why we won the game? And so we wasn't worried about like them pulling their weight or them doing these different things. It just put us in a position where we can make plays. And we gonna make those plays.

• 39:41Ryan Clark?

  Did you have to mourn the end of that era? The Kam Chancellor is gone. Earl Thomas is gone. Richard Sherman is gone. Mike B is gone. KJ eventually leaves. It's like you are like Benjamin Button, right? Like, I don't know if you've ever seen the movie. But obviously Benjamin Button was aging backwards. Or not even like Benjamin Button. Like the guy on the Green Mile. Right on the Green Mile, he gets touched by John Coffey. Like to drink, not spell the same. And so he lives longer than everybody else. He's watched his kids go. He's lost all of his friends. Right, and he says this is cursed for letting one of God's great creations or God's miracles die. You came a little bit later than some of the people.

• 40:26Ryan Clark?

  So you had to watch them all go. And though you were still playing at the height of your game, the defense wasn't as good. You didn't have all the same players. The team wasn't winning the way that they used to. And I know too, like when you become a part of, and they've been around us, the Steelers, when you become a part of something like so great, so monumental, and you accomplish certain things, you grow a different attachment to those people. And to watch them all leave, and it's like, damn, I'm still here. You know, even with all those people around you, you had to be like that Will Smith picture on the last episode. You know what I'm saying? Looking around with your hands in your pocket and that whole empty.

• 41:09Ryan Clark?

  What was it like, man, as the pieces started to go and change?

• 41:13Speaker 05

  I would say it kind of happened really fast. You know what I mean? Like, it started, and then it happened really fast. Like, you watch, you know, I think maybe Kam got hurt first. And you watch Sherman get hurt. And then Earl had his stuff going on. You had all these different things. And I was just like, alright, well, in your mind, when they get hurt, and in your mind, when they have these things, you, alright, well, they're just gonna heal up and they gonna be back. You know, a couple of those guys had basically career-ending injuries. So they weren't coming back. You know, another guy had reached the end of his contract and, you know, went somewhere else. Same thing with another guy.

• 41:53Speaker 05

  And so you look at that and you're just like, wow, I don't think I appreciated that time the way I probably should have when we were in the moment. But I think that being said, like, you have conversations, you know, with these guys all the time. And, you know, you're like, hey, how long you want to play? You know, some guys were saying 10. Some guys were saying, you know, just the second contract. And I always had a goal of getting to 10 and then figuring it out, but wanting to ultimately get to like somewhere in the 15 range. And so to me, I'm like, I knew at some point that day was gonna come. Because even from our goals were different. I wanted to play longer than they might have wanted to play. It's just, I think.

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• 43:37Speaker 05

  The window that they wanted to play got cut shorter than they expected. So it was more of a like, after they, after they left, I realized that I needed to appreciate my teammates more because you never knew how long you was gonna be able to play with them.

• 43:56Ryan Clark?

  You know, and part of that is continuing to build who you are away from the sport. And I saw an interesting piece on you about FAST54. Can you sort of explain the acronym and why that's so important to you?

• 44:13Speaker 05

  I think that is basically a comic book that I created, like we talked about. But my mom, like, I always try to find different ways to kind of honor her, or kind of, you know, understand her story and what she went through, and I'm pretty sure there's other people that's, you know, gone through the same thing. And so FAST54 was just like an acronym based off of the signs of stroke, where we wanted to, it's kind of a serious subject, but we wanted to figure out a way to educate people because when she had the stroke, like, there was no, for me at least, there was no information out there. You didn't know what to do. The only thing you did was call 911, but you didn't know what was happening.

• 44:53Speaker 05

  You know, I just, we wanted to create this comic book based off of an action hero, but it's not a hero that saves the day. And so that's kind of what we wanted to paint in this comic book, that you don't have to be a hero to save lives. And so that was just our way of coming up with something fun that any age can relate to, whether it's somebody young that loves comics, or loves superheroes, or somebody who's older that remembers their first comic book that they had. It's basically a story to try to shed some light on people that suffered stroke and raise some money and awareness and, you know, trying to turn something that wasn't good into good.

• 45:37Ryan Clark?

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• 45:58Channing Crowder?

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• 46:17Fred Taylor?

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• 46:31Ryan Clark?

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• 46:39Fred Taylor?

  B, let's pivot off the pitch for a little bit. People know everything that you've done on the field, or at least after seeing this, they will know. But off the field, like your endeavors with philanthropy, you mentioned your mom is a stroke victim. You've partnered with several organizations. I can't go down the entire list, but I want you to. Because people, no, I mean, whoever you've partnered with, because I think it's important that people get an opportunity to see that side of players. Because a lot of times, things go unknown. They think athletes are just these guys that just play ball and they disappear. But you do a lot in the community, namely, I guess I could speak to the whole mentoring program back in Seattle.

• 47:24Fred Taylor?

  You partnered with the public school system, Finia May Fund. You partnered with Cedar Sinai to assist stroke patients. Any other things that you've done?

• 47:34Speaker 05

  The idea is just whenever I feel compelled to do something that I've experienced, I just try to help. And so, you know, I've partnered with like the Rent School District because I didn't realize that if you didn't pay your meals in elementary, it carries on to middle school and at some point you have to pay that debt. And so, I remember getting, you know, meals when I was a kid and I'm like, I don't remember that debt following me like that. And so, you know, we, we found a way to relieve some of the students of that debt. But a lot of it has just come from experience. You know, I've done a lot of work with HBCUs just because I didn't know what an HBCU was until I got to, to college.

• 48:19Speaker 05

  I didn't realize what that was and how impactful it could be. And that is a resource. So, you know, I try to spread some light on that. So really it's just whatever I, I feel compelled to do that, that kind of speaks to me. I just go for it.

• 48:33Fred Taylor?

  Those community works have led to you being honored with the NFL Man of the Year award through your Seattle Seahawks. To, to receive that honor, how does that make you feel?

• 48:47Speaker 05

  I mean, I think it's, it'll be a blessing, you know, to get the big thing. But being, you know, being acknowledged by Seahawks, I think it just speaks to some of the stuff that, you know, we've been able to do, not just myself, the team that's helped me do those things. Just being able to, to try to impact, like you said, impact the game off the field, just as we do on the field. So it's trying to find a way to just leave a legacy that's not just this game.

• 49:14Ryan Clark?

  This is your second time being nominated by the Steelers.

• 49:17Speaker 05

  My second time, yeah.

• 49:18Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, so you were nominated for the Walter Payton Man of the Year in 2019. And now in 2023, again. Obviously, earning the award is a, a big thing, but also the name attached to it. What would it mean to you to be attached to such a great, both on and off the field, like Walter Payton?

• 49:42Speaker 05

  I mean, I think it would mean the world because I think, like you said, we've talked a lot, you know, about my mom and, and what she's meant to me. I think the things that I remember her saying is be more than just the athlete, just and, and do more than just what the average person does. And I think that's kind of how I live my life. And to be able to be a part of that class, that group that has been able to be honored with this award, as well as, you know, the award itself and what it means to the league and to the people, I think it'd just be a blessing.

• 50:13Ryan Clark?

  You are, you're taking NBA classes, right?

• 50:16Speaker 05

  I am.

• 50:16Ryan Clark?

  Right, so you're taking NBA classes. You're in.

• 50:20Speaker 05

  Proud of me that he knew that.

• 50:21Ryan Clark?

  You're in, in my opinion. A Hall of Famer. And you continue to seem to strive for more, right? To be more than what people maybe expect you to be? And to be more than what you've already accomplished, which is already been a ton. And I could be wrong, you can tell me if wrong. I think you want to be the commissioner.

• 50:45Speaker 05

  That'd be dope.

• 50:45Ryan Clark?

  Or, or, or work in some capacity.

• 50:48Speaker 05

  Somewhere in.

• 50:48Ryan Clark?

  In some capacity like that. What are your goals going forward?

• 50:53Speaker 05

  I want to run a team someday. Um, I think that's the biggest thing. I think, uh, I read a book a long time ago. And it was, I believe it was called A Forty Million Dollar Slave. And it was just the opening caption of the book. It was like, I believe it was Larry Johnson. Um, he's playing in the garden. I might mess it up, but basically the story goes, he's playing in the garden and there's this fan heckling him. And, you know, they're going back and forth the whole game. Uh, Larry wins the game. I think it's, he has like maybe thirty-eight points, twelve rebounds, eight assists, whatever it is. And so he goes up to the fans like, yeah, take that. And the fan responds, um, you still a forty million dollar slave.

• 51:35Speaker 05

  And then the book kind of just talks about how like, we're okay with just being players and making the money that we make being a player and then leaving the game versus the people that are running the teams and the people that are in charge of the decision makings. And, you know, the opportunities that they get from just being in those positions are far greater than the ones that we get, but we just don't see it that way. Or we don't aspire to be at that, be there because we don't see enough people, um, that look like us in those seats. And so I always wanted to be somebody that end up in those seats. Like I watched, uh, I looked at Magic Johnson. You know, obviously he was a, a big one for me, uh, growing up and just seeing his transition from playing in the game,

• 52:20Speaker 05

  being great in that game, and then being as good of businessman, um, you know, after football or after basketball. Same thing with Jay-Z. Um, I would even say like somebody that I look up to, to this day, that hopefully I meet one day is Fifty Cent. Just watching his transition. So I just watched these guys and how they were known for something. They worked at something else, transitioned to that, and were even better than the next phase. And so that's why I'm trying to be whatever that is. I believe that my role is somewhere in business.

• 52:54Channing Crowder?

  You got everything planned. You're super damn smart. You MBA, what's that? Masters in business and all.

• 53:01Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 53:03Channing Crowder?

  You got everything planned, but every time somebody says when you gonna start playing ball, it's a mystery.

• 53:08Speaker 05

  Everything you say is planned out exactly how it's gonna go. Hey, but how long you playing?

• 53:13Channing Crowder?

  Ah, you know, I had around 15 years.

• 53:16Speaker 05

  Is it planned though? Or am I just doing something? Am I like MBA that's moving?

• 53:22Channing Crowder?

  Towards a goal.

• 53:23Speaker 05

  Towards a goal, yeah. But the thing with football though is that we know is we are not always in control of that. Like I can want to play as long as I want, but if the teams don't see it that way, then that's out of my control. What I can't control is being in the best shape, continuing evolving with the game, and being ready for my opportunity. That's all I can control. But, you know, that's in my control. Everything else is not in my control.

• 53:54Channing Crowder?

  You gotta see if they keep giving you that check.

• 53:56Speaker 05

  You know what I mean?

• 53:58Ryan Clark?

  I'll tell you what's not in your control is this NFC Championship game. And, you know, I tried to say that the Rams were your rival earlier, and you pushed back on that. And you said it's probably more San Francisco.

• 54:11Speaker 05

  If you think about it.

• 54:12Ryan Clark?

  Well, your rival is in the NFC Championship.

• 54:15Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 54:15Ryan Clark?

  With Brock Purdy as the quarterback.

• 54:18Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 54:18Ryan Clark?

  A great defense. You know about linebacker play. I think they have some of the best backer play in the league. Who wins it?

• 54:26Speaker 05

  I'm not going for the 49ers.

• 54:28Ryan Clark?

  I didn't say who you were going for. I said, who's gonna win the game? Detroit or San Francisco?

• 54:32Speaker 05

  I don't want the 49ers to win. So Detroit.

• 54:39Speaker 05

  That's what I'm shooting for is Detroit. I'm a big fan of Fred and Dre and all those guys. I want them to do great, but I don't want to see them in there, just like if the Rams is in there. Like I love Sean and, you know, Raheem and all those guys. Ernest, AD, like I want y'all to ball out, but I probably wouldn't want to see y'all win, to be honest.

• 55:03Ryan Clark?

  You had it out. Y'all guys, a good team this year. You know, fell a little bit short.

• 55:10Ryan Clark?

  Y'all went to Baltimore and it was kind of like a prove it game. And Lamar was Lamar.

• 55:17Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 55:17Ryan Clark?

  You've been in this league for a long time and played some really good players. People truly believe he's the presumptive MVP for the second time in his career. I think the first to have two by 26.

• 55:29Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 55:30Ryan Clark?

  What makes that dude so different?

• 55:33Speaker 05

  I think the biggest difference in his game is I think when he first got into the league, it was if he didn't see what he needed to see, he would take off and run. And I think the biggest evolution of his game is he's seeing the pass game so good, but still has the same agility, same speed to take off and run. And so back, maybe before, you would, as soon as something didn't break in like the first couple of seconds, you were okay going and trying to make the tackle. But now is if you do that too soon, he throws it right where you left. Or you leave your guy, he throws it right over. He's looking to throw, but also understands how great a value his legs still are.

• 56:16Speaker 05

  And you know, it makes him very hard to stop because he's throwing a ball with great accuracy. And he's still, you know, you watched the game last week. He runs, stops on a dime and keeps running. Like you can't, that's, that's tough.

• 56:30Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, dude is, dude is different, man. And this has been a great show, first off, man, we appreciate you. But we ask all of our, our guests this. It's what's your biggest pivot? What's a moment in your life that whenever we tell the story of Bobby Wagner and all the things that he was able to accomplish or all that he ever was, the moment that we'll point to and say with, without this moment, whether negative or positive, he doesn't grow to be the man he grew to be. If you could point to that moment, what would it be?

• 57:03Speaker 05

  I would say probably, uh, probably the first one was my, my junior year and.

• 57:14Speaker 05

  In college, I would say.

• 57:19Speaker 05

  I probably put a lot more into football. Like, I made the decision. Uh, cuz I was, I was thinking about coming out just because I wanted to be able to put food on the table and I, I just couldn't, you know. Back in, when I was playing, they weren't giving out deals like that. We was trying to survive our $400, you know. Like, we weren't getting what SC was getting, you know, in our per diem's. We was getting barely enough. And so, I was tired of living like that. So, I was thinking about leaving school early. Um, but I got talked into not doing that. And I was like, okay, if I'm coming back for my senior year, then I'm literally putting everything that I have into this game. And I'm not partying, I'm not nothing, I'm not doing nothing.

• 58:02Speaker 05

  I'm going to focus solely on being the best football player that I could possibly be. Um, I think that helped probably raise my interest of NFL teams. And then it was a Beyonce show that I went to, too.

• 58:19Speaker 05

  This is, y'all wanna be honest?

• 58:20Ryan Clark?

  Yeah.

• 58:21Speaker 05

  I went to a Beyonce show and I watched her perform. And I watched all the costumes that she changed and I watched all the dances that she had. And I watched, this is maybe 2013 or something, give or take. Um, and when I saw her perform, I walked away and I said, "I'm not working hard enough at my craft."

• 58:48Speaker 05

  And I was just like, "I need to work harder cuz what she's doing is insane."

• 58:54Ryan Clark?

  So Bobby Wagner was inspired to work harder at football by Beyonce?

• 58:59Speaker 05

  For sure. Why not?

• 59:01Fred Taylor?

  That's safe.

• 59:02Speaker 05

  I'm in the Beehive too, brother.

• 59:03Fred Taylor?

  Why not?

• 59:03Speaker 05

  Yes, sir.

• 59:04Fred Taylor?

  That is, that is safe. Real quick, before we let you out, B. Um, who do you expect to be the next coach of the Seahawks? And where do you think you'll be playing next year?

• 59:13Speaker 05

  Hopefully with Seattle, um, but.

• 59:17Speaker 05

  I understand this business. Obviously, I've been through it a couple of times now. So I understand that, again, that's something that's not in my control. I want it to be that, but I also understand that I'm open to playing elsewhere. Because I want to continue my career. So if that's not in Seattle, I would love to continue my career regardless of the situation. The next coach of Seattle, I'm not sure. I don't know. I would hope that somebody like Raheem Morris gets an opportunity.

• 59:51Channing Crowder?

  He's a great fit.

• 59:51Speaker 05

  I think there's a couple of guys that I think should get opportunities. But that's the first thing that comes into my mind, just because I've been with the Rams and watching him run the defense and then watching him run the defense when everybody started to get hurt and we had guys, you know, not being able to be ready for games and his ability to make those adjustments. And then you see it in this year. Like this year, you come in and, you know, everybody, you know, don't have any expectations, you know, for those guys. And that defense plays at a high level. Obviously, AD's AD, but, you know, Ernest played at a high level. There were so many different people that played at a high level. And I think a lot of that is because, you know, he knows what he's doing.

• 1:00:34Ryan Clark?

  We went to Raheem's house the day of the parade when they won the Super Bowl.

• 1:00:40Speaker 05

  And y'all interviewed him?

• 1:00:41Ryan Clark?

  Yeah, and so we sat with him, right? This is when the pivot was really pivoting.

• 1:00:48Speaker 05

  Okay.

• 1:00:48Ryan Clark?

  Right, like we hadn't quite got a hold or an understanding of the freedom of traveling in such a manner. So his wife comes out and she's like, you guys want water? And we was like, hell, no. It's a Super Bowl celebration. We was gonna party too. So, you know, he goes back to the wine cellar and this defensive coordinator, former head coach, wine. You know what I'm saying? This ain't Boon's for him.

• 1:01:13Speaker 05

  Yeah.

• 1:01:13Ryan Clark?

  Man, so we break the wine out. You know, here I am thinking, Bobby, it's a glass of wine. Well, yeah, it's a glass till you drink 11 of them. Oh, wow. So by the end of it, man. That was a great show. I thought it was. You see, we really had to edit it. That's when Alicia was really earning her money.

• 1:01:31Speaker 05

  We fought.

• 1:01:32Ryan Clark?

  By the end of the show, Channing then tackled me. I drop a glass of wine. Oh, wow. When I dropped the glass of wine. Is it red? It was red, bro. White floor. White carpet? I don't think we got the carpet. OK, that's cool. It was wood floor. And then. White wood? And so then when Channing makes me drop the wine. Nice house. When he makes me drop the wine, he then starts to beat me up because I dropped the wine. He's asking a lesson.

• 1:01:56Speaker 05

  Hit play. Oh, y'all got video footage?

• 1:02:00Fred Taylor?

  I turned the volume down.

• 1:02:01Speaker 05

  Oh, wow.

• 1:02:03Fred Taylor?

  We don't like posting everything, but there's evidence.

• 1:02:06Speaker 05

  So before I, I'll pause the video, but the funniest part of this whole video is y'all didn't even drink the wine in regular cups. Y'all just in classic cups?

• 1:02:14Fred Taylor?

  Red cups.

• 1:02:15Speaker 05

  OK.

• 1:02:16Fred Taylor?

  Solo.

• 1:02:17Speaker 05

  That's cool. Respectable.

• 1:02:19Fred Taylor?

  Hey. He, hey, you know, Rod's like that.

• 1:02:21Speaker 05

  I feel it.

• 1:02:22Fred Taylor?

  That's why he deserved that head coaching job.

• 1:02:24Speaker 05

  Wow.

• 1:02:25Fred Taylor?

  He gonna get the best out of those guys in his natural element.

• 1:02:28Speaker 05

  And yeah, you, you, you definitely, I don't know, you're punching form.

• 1:02:32Channing Crowder?

  That's called a drunk fight.

• 1:02:34Speaker 05

  OK.

• 1:02:35Channing Crowder?

  That's my white girl.

• 1:02:36Speaker 05

  Yeah. Yeah, that, that form, that form, we need to work on that.

• 1:02:41Fred Taylor?

  We might have to release the.

• 1:02:42Speaker 05

  You need to pivot from that.

• 1:02:44Channing Crowder?

  Later.

• 1:02:45Fred Taylor?

  We might have to release the audio at some point.

• 1:02:46Channing Crowder?

  Later that night, I was on the trampoline with, with Raheem's kid rolling around on the trampoline playing with the baby. It was, it was a long day.

• 1:02:54Speaker 05

  Yeah, that's, that's an interesting story. I don't know if I have a, well, maybe I do. I don't know. Not like that, though. Not like that. What's actually funny is I got, it's one of my favorite pictures is of me and Magic Johnson. And I don't, to this day, I don't know if he met me. I don't know. I got tickets to the Laker game. And I got the seats from top. And I'm sitting on the floor and I've got a bunch of people coming up to me. So this is maybe year seven-ish, give or take. So I'm thinking, oh, man, like, people know who I am. This is dope. I brought my cousin with me. And so Magic Johnson comes up and I'm just like, yo, I gotta introduce myself.

• 1:03:37Speaker 05

  And so I go up and I introduce myself. We say, what's up? You know, we have this small conversation, do catch the picture. But then I realized that everybody thought my cousin was Wiz Khalifa. And so I wasn't sure that if people were coming up to me to say hello or just... So I got this really dope picture of me shaking their hands with Magic Johnson. And I don't know if he think I'm Bobby or Wiz's bodyguard. I don't know.

• 1:04:10Speaker 05

  With the picture, hold on. The picture's dope. The picture look like he's my friend, so that's... I tell people that all the time, for sure. Until we, you know, until we see each other, then we exchange some business deals.

• 1:04:22Ryan Clark?

  Well, Magic Johnson, here it is. You're now part owner of the Washington Commanders. Bobby Wagner would like to go back to Seattle. But if you need a future Hall of Fame linebacker and maybe business partner, just know you met him, or you may not have met him. He at least met you. And that's the end of the pivot.

• 1:04:42Speaker 05

  That's hard.

• 1:04:43Ryan Clark?

  Appreciate your work. My dog say, Wiz Khalifa's security.

• 1:04:47Speaker 05

  I don't know.

• 1:04:49Ryan Clark?

  Hey, Freddie T., when you doubt Bobby off, you realize what current players as compared to... Yeah, like...

• 1:04:56Channing Crowder?

  Hugging the motherfucking corner of the wall.

• 1:05:00Ryan Clark?

  It felt like you on the concrete, golly. He one of the few dudes I see knock people back flat-footed. Like, he'll come off a block and be set. He's a man.

• 1:05:10Speaker 05

  I squat.

• 1:05:12Speaker 05

  I squat for a living, man.

• 1:05:14Channing Crowder?

  My body look, my body look different, though.

• 1:05:17Speaker 05

  Just a little bit.

• 1:05:19Speaker 05

  We smiling, we doing. Let's smile, man.

• 1:05:46Speaker 00

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