Episode 1 Nico's Sports Insights Podcast

Nico's Sports Insights podcast discusses the game between Bayern Munich and Koen, which ended in a 1-1 tie. They also talk about the upcoming NFC Championship game between the Bengals and the 49ers, as well as the AFC Championship game between the Chiefs and the Bengals. Nico predicts the Bengals and the 49ers will play in the Super Bowl, with the 49ers ultimately winning. He also discusses the issues the Cowboys had with their kicker and the possibility of signing Greg Zuerlein as a replacement. Ladies and gentlemen, welcome to Nico's Sports Insights. With you, Nicolás Jaramillo, the best sports podcast in the West. Hello and welcome to the Nico's Sports Insights. Today, we will start off by talking about Bayern Munich and Koen's game. Koen started off very, very well, and they scored in the third minute off of a corner. Bayern Munich was stunned as they are the number one team in Germany. This was much of a surprise. But soon, Bayern Munich was not to score, not even till halftime. It was 1-0 at halftime. It was scary for Bayern Munich fans, but soon in the second half, Bayern Munich, Leon Goretzka, would score. The game would end in a 1-1 tie. Here, what's your opinion when you think about the game? Well, I actually think we should be talking about what's going on in football here. Football, we already know what happened. Now, let's talk about football. I'm very interested in knowing what your opinion is about the way this NFL league is going. So, speaking about that, the NFC Championship game is probably one of the most anticipated games of the year. This game is between the top two of the top quarterbacks in the league. Brock Purdy, who at last season was Mr. Irrelevant, being the last pick in the NFL draft, and he started the season as a third-string quarterback. Now, he's a starter. He is 7-0 with 17 touchdowns, three interceptions in seven games. On the other side is Jalen Hurts, who right now is probably the front-runner for MVP, as he has 26 passing touchdowns and 11 rushing touchdowns. To my knowledge, this game is going to go down to the running game, the running defense and the running offense. The running offense for both teams is really good. It's Christian McCaffrey and the 49ers average a little over 150 rushing yards a game, and Christian McCaffrey averages around a hundred of those. While Philadelphia Eagles last game had 268 rushing yards against the Giants as they blew out the Giants, 38-7, and many people think that could indicate that the Eagles have the advantage in the running game. The problem with that is the 49ers have the number one defense in the league, allowing just 17.5 points a game, and while the Eagles running defense is middle of the pack, it isn't too good, but it also isn't too bad. So we're very even, but mostly it's going to go down to the running game. And one thing, the 49ers are on a 12-game winning streak, and it's been really difficult to beat them. Even though Jimmy Garoppolo started out 2-3, he ended it perfect, and they've been perfect ever since. So I completely believe that this is going to be a battle, and it is the battle of the two best teams in the NFC. This game will just be a thriller. Your opinions? When is that game? It is on Sunday at 12 p.m. Pacific Time. Is that the only game that day? No, there's the AFC championship game, which I'm about to tell you guys about. Tell us, tell us about the AFC. The Kansas City Chiefs will play the Cincinnati Bengals. This has a lot of factors to it. The Cincinnati Bengals have beaten the Kansas City Chiefs three times in a row, including last year's AFC championship game. Though the Bengals did lose last year's Super Bowl, the Kansas City Chiefs also are one and a half point underdogs, but have a 64% chance to win. But they are without Patrick Mahomes. Patrick Mahomes may play, but he will probably not be at 100% as he had a right ankle sprain on Saturday's game against the Jacksonville Jaguars. So, is that the game where he went out and then came back? Yes, that is the game, that he came out and came back. And the Cincinnati Bengals are with Joe Cool 2.0. Joe Montana had a hold of the Cincinnati Bengals in the 80s. His nickname was Joe Cool because he was so calm in the big moments. Now, it's going to be Joe Burrow. The former LSU men and national champ winner, I believe, is going to Super Bowl for the second year in a row and the Cincinnati Bengals have a very high chance of winning this game. The problem is both teams have an average running game. Both teams really can only pass the ball. For the Bengals, they have a really good offense, though. They have Joe Burrow, Jamar Chase, T. Higgins, Tyler Boyd, and Joe Mixon. Three really good wide receivers, one good quarterback, and one good running back. While the Chiefs really only have Juju Smith-Schuster, Travis Kelsey, Isaiah Pacheco, and Nicole Hardman, and Patrick Mahomes, which will be at around 70%. So, to my belief, this is not going to be Kansas City's day again. I know this many people disagree with me, but this is going to be a very close game. But, yes, it's going to be Cincinnati Bengals night. And, even though this game is in Kansas City, at Arrowhead, this is one of the most important factors. Both defenses are middle of the pack, so it's going to be up to the offenses. The problem, the Bengals offensive line has three starters out. Three of them got injured in their wildcard victory against the Baltimore Ravens. But their defense has actually performed better than the entire season in the last two games. They had a 98-yard fumble return touchdown against the Ravens in the wildcard, and they held the Buffalo Bills, who are one of the best teams in the league, with Josh Allen and Stephon Diggs, to 10 points their season low. And, this, all these factors point toward the Cincinnati Bengals are going to face the 49ers in the Super Bowl for an 80s rematch. And that is your football talk. Oh, that's very interesting. So who's going to play the Super Bowl according to you? Cincinnati Bengals, San Francisco 49ers, 80s rematch. And of that rematch, who is your favorite to win? It's very close, because they're my... Ever since I found out that the Green Bay Packers could not make it to the playoffs, I was siding with either the Bengals or the 49ers. So, it'd be really close. But who do you think will win? Who's better positioned to win? That is a very difficult question. The 49ers have Brock Purdy, who many people a year, like six months ago, would say is that nobody knows about. Now, he's like one of the stars of the NFL. He, and he has a side cast of Christian McCaffrey, Kyle Juszczyk, Elijah Mitchell, Juwan Jennings, Debo Samuel, Brandon Iyuk, and he has the best left tackle in the NFL, Trent Williams, as a blocker. The defense, Nick Bosa, league high, 18.5 sacks this season. And Fred Warner, who is the front-runner for Defensive Player of the Year. So, all these signs are pointing more forward to the 49ers, but then there's the counter-attack of the Cincinnati Bengals, which is Joe Mitchison, Tyler Boyd, T. Higgins, Jumaar Chase, Joe Burrell. Their offensive line is banged up, though. So, I would be, I actually believe that the San Francisco 49ers will win the Super Bowl this year. I believe so. That's a very interesting prediction. Even though they started this season 3-4, right now they're riding a 12-game winning streak. So, I think that is a big factor. The Cincinnati Bengals, though, are riding a 10-game winning streak. The reason they may not have this winning streak, if it weren't for the Jumaar Hamlin incident, where, against the Bills, they got that rematch last week. The story goes that Jumaar Hamlin, it was 7-3 Bengals, Jumaar Hamlin tackled T. Higgins, and after he got up, took three steps, he collapsed. Whole story turned out, he had to get CPR, and he was taken to the hospital. The game was called off. So, that winning streak could have maybe not happened at all. But, for now, all we know is that they're on a 10-game winning streak. Who knows? Whatever could have happened. And, two side questions about the NFL. What do you think of the problem the Cowboys had with their kicker? Do you think that cost them their moving on? Yes. They did catch a break against the Buccaneers, because he missed four extra points against the Buccaneers. They got away with it, though, because they won the game. They did not escape the Commanders, as they lost 26-6. As the same kicker missed his last kick. At one point, he was on a five-in-a-row missed streak until he made one. Then he missed one to start. That, I think, cost them. And, it also made them, it just made the coach, they think that they were not going to use him as much. They did not use him as much. They had twice as many two-point plays ready. They had three times as many fourth-down plays ready. But, he still made one extra, he missed an extra point, but he made two field goals. He made a 47-yarder, a 25-yarder, and missed a 29-yarder. So, I think the Cowboys' kicker really cost them. And, it's also costing them some salary cap, because their expected salary cap at the end of this season is going to be negative $7.9 million. If you were the coach, would you fire that kicker? If we had a good replacement option, which I do believe there is. And, either Greg Zierlin, the current Jets kicker, used to be, like, five years ago was the best kicker in the league. He could kick 60-yarders easily. Now, he's a veteran now. He's a little old now. But, he still has a good leg. And, the Jets aren't using him anymore. They have somebody else that they believe is better. And, he's going to be a free agent this offseason. So, Greg Zierlin is your top option, Dallas Cowboys. So, I believe that they're going to sign Greg Zierlin, if they have the chance, and if the Jets don't extend him. And, they fire Maher. They must fire him. There's also another thing. They might be losing their offensive coordinator for the Panthers' head coaching job. And, that is something that Jim Arbaugh, the Michigan head coach, was interviewed for. He's staying at Michigan, thankfully for me. And, so, they might lose their offensive coordinator. I don't think it's a good time, Cowboys fans, to go how you did in 1993. How about them, Cowboys? It's not a good time for that. So, don't. So, Cowboys, take your situation. Come on, get Greg Zierlin before time runs out. And, one last question regarding the F-word. Do you think anyone is talking to Tom Brady right now? He actually, in his podcast a few days ago, got so mad that everyone was asking, are you going to retire, that he was forced to say the F-word twice. Because of how mad he was. Is that right? And, he says he does not want to hear the questions anymore. He does not want to hear it. Okay, but we can have an opinion. What do you think? I believe, I mean, he's going to be a free agent this offseason. I believe, I think he's going to retire. From what we're seeing by his, by what he's doing, he has no plan to return, but he also has no plan to retire. But, by his actions, I believe he's going to retire. And, that game against the Cowboys was his last game. The last game. Sorry, Tom Brady, but I think the better option for you is to retire. Because, I just don't think this can be done anymore. But, Tom Brady must retire. He's a legend. He's a living legend. Do not ruin your reputation, like Michael Jordan did, by coming back and playing on the Wizards and being a bad player. So, don't ruin your reputation, Tom Brady. Retire, and you'll be the GOAT. Okay. Light question about the Super Bowl. What do you think the halftime show is going to be like? Do you even care about that? I believe that it's going to be one of the biggest. Because, have you ever heard of Rihanna? Yes, I've heard of Rihanna. She's going to be at the halftime show. So, I do believe that because it's Rihanna, and that there's a lot of people, and it's going to be... The Super Bowl halftime show is always amazing. I think this year, it may be, just may be, the best Super Bowl halftime show ever. Wonderful. Let's close out then this wonderful podcast with some basketball talk. Just a few minutes ago, actually, around 30 minutes ago, the Boston Celtics were defeated by the Miami Heat, 98-95. And Peyton Pritchard did have a chance at the buzzer, but there was one problem with that. One, he was far away. There were some factors, though, to the game. The Boston Celtics scored only 13 points in the fourth quarter, a season low, for the best... They're the best team in the league. Best record. And they scored only 13 points in the fourth quarter, a season low for any quarter. And, really, Bam Adebayo, again, stops the Boston Celtics. He stopped them in the Eastern Finals in 2020, in the bubble. Now he's stopped them again. And Bam Adebayo has just dominated the Boston Celtics the last three years. He couldn't do it last Eastern Finals last year, but in 2020, he rejected Jason Tatum's buzzer-beating layup in Game 7. So, I'm just saying, the Miami Heat have a chance to make it to the playoffs. They have just been amazing lately. They have been really good. The Boston Celtics, back to the drawing board, two straight games without scoring 100 points, a defeat to the Magic, who are one of the worst teams in the league. They've lost three straight against the Magic. And the Miami Heat are just, without Jimmy Butler, defeat the Boston Celtics. Any other day besides now, probably nobody would believe that this happened. And that brings concerns, because now the Boston Celtics are one game for the number one record in the league. Two weeks ago, they were 10 games, like three weeks ago, four weeks ago, a month ago, they were 10 games ahead of the second best team, which were the Denver Nuggets. Now, they're only one game ahead of the Denver Nuggets. They have blown a lot of games. The only reason that they beat the Lakers last game is because LeBron James just couldn't do it in the clutch. They lost by two points to the Lakers. Or else, it would have been a seven-game losing streak for the Boston Celtics. At that one point. They got lucky with that game. And now, they were riding a nine-game winning streak by yesterday. They lost. Now they're on a two-game losing streak. So, worrisome for the Boston Celtics. The trade deadline is February 9th. You need to sign somebody. You need somebody besides Williams. Williams for the power forward. You need somebody else. Sure, he did great today. It was three for three for three. But, you still need somebody else. A power forward is one of the most important positions. You need somebody else. Somebody new. So, I think you have to sign somebody. Somebody. Must be signed. Do you have anyone in mind that could fill that position? Definitely not Anthony Davis. He's been injured for the last four months. And, he has proven to make the Lakers worse. Really? Everyone thought Anthony Davis was the best player in the league. They had the 20th best offense in the NBA. When Anthony Davis got injured, now they're the 7th best offense in the league. It was a blessing in disguise. You do not want Anthony Davis. He is just returning from injury tomorrow and he's only going to be 80%. So, definitely not Anthony Davis if people are asking. I don't think there's many good options to my knowledge. But, there may be some options here and there that are maybe as good. One thing I am certain, many people do not realize that the Sacramento Kings, who last season were a team that nobody wanted to watch, that it was pretty much like a waste of money to go to their games. Now, they're one of the best teams in the NBA. The reason? Trading away Buddy Field, who now has the most three-pointers in the entire NBA, 183, for DeMontis Sabonis. Six triple-doubles this season. Third most in the NBA. Only Luka Doncic and Nikola Jokic have more triple-doubles. This guy was barely even known last season. Now, he's even more underrated, even though he's better. Wake up, people. The Sacramento Kings are a good team. De'Aaron Fox, DeMontis Sabonis are coming after you. Buddy Field and the Indiana Pacers are also coming for you. Watch out for these two teams. They're teams that nobody talks about, but they're actually good. And watch out for Jalen Green, too. Triple-doubles, a few games ago. Actually, no, not triple-double. 42 points last game. And then, Houston Rockets, 13-game losing streak. Even though they're the worst team, he is a very good player. In some seasons, if the Rockets surround him with good talent, the Rockets will be a contender for many years to come. So watch out for Jalen Green. Final question about basketball. What do you think of the Warriors? What's going on with them? They just need to get, one, the injuries better, because they have a lot of late injuries. And what is going on? You're the defending NBA champions, and you're barely even over .500. What is this? Everyone thought they were going to win the championship. They're not even in a playoff spot. Why is that? What do you think is happening? Klay Thompson has not been good. Klay Thompson is the only reason Stephen Curry has won all his championships. Without Klay Thompson, Stephen Curry was a baby. He was not any good at all. Klay Thompson is, they're called the Splash Brothers for a reason. They're like brothers. And they're called the Splash Brothers because they used to be able to hit threes. Now only Stephen Curry can hit three pointers. So, I think it's just Klay Thompson and their lack of big men. They have nobody that's tall except James Wiseman, who is in the G League now. So, they need somebody who's tall and that can score good inside. They only have outside scorers, not inside scorers. So, it's going to be hard to find big men. The same thing with the Celtics. They need power forwards. Good power forwards. Right now their power forward is Andrew Williams. He is decent. Last season he was good. Now he's decent. He's getting like 15 points a game, which is below the NBA average. That's pretty average. They need somebody else besides Andrew Williams. Somebody else. So, you think the Warriors are out? For now? From playoffs and from any possibility of winning the championship again? Unless Steve Kerr finds a way to rejuvenate Klay Thompson. If they get Klay Thompson to play good again and if he finally fully recovers from his ACL tear in 2020, then the Warriors maybe get a play in, maybe the last playoff seed, but if they don't get Klay Thompson done with, if they don't fix his problem, if they don't trade in, if they don't get his injury fully done with, they're done. They're not going to make the playoff. Well, this has been a fascinating podcast. I can't wait until the soccer season starts and we can have discussions about the MLS. And... For now... Until the next episode.